Been awhile... RL happened

I haven't had a whole lot to say in the past year.  At least not that I could very easily put into words or sound idea's.  I'm not a word smith like the more prominent EVE bloggers out there and this was my attempt at maybe fixing that.  I'm not giving up just yet!

Some quick updates...

Lucifer's Hammer is humming along quite strong with increased sales, an increased number of producers working to keep the hammer strong.  The markets have been doing weird things and we've made some good shifts in our model to work with these times and help keep things flowing.  Nothing is worse for industry than stagnation!

I'm off in null sec when I get a chance to pilot and have helped as much as I can to help The 57th Overlanders Brigade and their new alliance forge a home in sov null.  Times are interesting for the non-bloc pilots and alliances, this is for sure.  Fights seem to be plenty, territory is shakey and we're all anxiously awaiting the release of the Citadels next month.

I personally am hoping that this will spark something and drive me to log in even more.  This has to contend with my desire to be with our new little one however and that force is a very strong driver.

This brings me to the topic that is burning at me atm.  As I was importing my photos today from my phone I ran across this and was struck again but this time for a different reason...

The thought that raced through my head when looking upon this photo is that it illustrates everything about being a parent...  When I took it, our son was merely 6 days old and we had just gotten out of the hospital with him.  He was struck with jaundice pretty bad... we were tired, in love, frustrated and downright excited to finally have him home.  Then the heavens decided to show us this as if in some prophetic way showing us what life was going to be like for the next 18+ years.

After 5 months I can see that message now...  Anger, frustration, love, hope, excitement, absolute exhaustion and utter chaos... all rolled into one tiny little package.  Every aspect of this moment captures all of that and illustrates what parenthood has been and will probably be for the foreseeable future.

I just wanted to share this and get this and let those of you who may visit this corner of the web know that I'm alive and well and very excited for what's in the future both in EVE and in RL :D.

o7

Strengthening the Hammer

Today Rixx Javix posted about Stay Frosty and the fact that his crazy adventure started two years ago.  This isn't entirely true, however, as I'm sure he'll tell you in person.  Yes, the Stay Frosty label has only been around for 2 years but he has been ruminating on this idea now for several years.  Taking examples from others, throwing his own spin on it, learning from his own past, and even giving his members the steering wheel from time to time.  Have we run off the road once in awhile?  Oh, sure, accidents will happen but we've corrected and moved forward and learned from those mistakes and experiences.

Today I'm here to talk to you about Lucifer's Hammer.  What we are and where we're going.  Right now we're a primarily high sec organization who's attempting to keep up with explosions in low and where ever our goods will be used.  We run very similar to an RL corporation but without the necessity to do what you are asked to do production wise.  We have redundancies built in to cover your back if you can't "meet your quota" for the month.

As a corporation we as a whole build frigate modules and hulls for sale in your local trade hub, some low sec markets and provide logistical support if/when its needed and we're around to do so.  Our coffers aren't deep, I won't lie to you but they're growing at a healthy rate and a majority of what we as a corp make ends up in our producers and haulers pockets instead of the corp.

Our approach to industry is actually fairly simple.  You as a producer are assigned some things to build and invent and you plug in the jobs.  Those hours that your manufacturing and laboratory slots are busy count towards your 'paycheck' at the end of the month.  We're attempting to build something where you can focus on what you want to do and ignore the rest.  Want to be involved in industry but not really haul all the stuff to/from Jita on a day to day basis?  Want to haul the stuff to/from a trade hub to earn some isk or just get to know the locals as you pass through the systems?  Are you keen on watching market fluctuations and prepping for the storm or jumping in on a bubble that's about to burst?  If any of these possible career choices fits what your looking for then contact Narook, Sheza Kewtee, Raiv Solregard or even Rixx Javix or jump in channel EVEOGANDA or The Frosty Hammer in game and get our attention.

As of last month we've grown to 13 unique individuals behind the keyboard all working to produce as much as we can possibly produce AND sell it at a profit.  This number is growing weekly as we have the bandwidth to support more producers consuming and producing.  We're currently pushing approximately 10b worth of goods through Jita every month and paying out nearly 1b to our involved members.  These numbers are growing by ~24% month over month and we're inviting you to get involved and come along for the ride while we see where this will land.

Services we offer our members are growing as we find things that we can use and profit from.  Currently we have a buyback program where the corp will buy your stuffs at Jita buy prices.  These items include salvage, ore, minerals, datacores, construction components, PI goods and we'll work with you on any kind of adhoc contracts that you might find useful to the corp.  Being allied with Supreme Mathematics, Voodoo Children, Stay Frosty and New Jovian Exploration Department gives you other avenues to explore what New Eden has to offer.  As Rixx has said on his own blog, we all operate as much as we can as one corporation and we're encouraged to get involved wither each other and the operations that are able to be made public to the alliance.  So come on over, get involved and have some fun while attempting to rule the markets with us.

Zao Amadues, I'm coming for you!

Double post day today!

With our current war effort running in the Ishomilken area we have a lot of ABA members out hunting in low sec.  From our dedicated crazy wormholers to our cuddly carebears, we're all out in low sec shooting people in the face or pissing people off with combat probes trying to find their boosters.  This has generated a lot of content for all of us and really helped to galvanize us a bit more.  I give you this back story because I can and also to help set the stage for my first fight with Zao Amadues and his daredevil.

Supreme Mathematics recruiter Sanders Schmittlaub was out roaming in his Tristan looking for a fight when he announced on comms that he almost bagged a daredevil that took some pot shots on him at a gate near Ish.  At first this didn't interest me as he was 5 jumps away and I was looking for a fight a bit closer until he said 'I know that guy, oh shit, its Zao Amadues'.  Instantly I wanted the fight so I shipped into a DD I had recently moved to ish and burned best speed to the system.  I wanted to test my metal vs one of the greats in the game.

I had located him on the station and knew he'd either be permanently criminal or suspect from recently trying to kill Sanders.  So I set it up with some distance from the station to entice him out.  I figured he'd wait until we got off gate gun range but instead he burnt damn near straight for me.  Perfect opportunity for me to get first blood and show him that the fight was on and he gladly obliged with some awesome piloting.

Have a watch for yourself from his perspective: here at the 2 hour mark.  I would have loved to hear what he had to say but alas he was playing some awesome music which is copyrighted :(.

From my perspective though this fight was over in his favor.  Right when he warped I had warped off as well and was sure that I was the one that popped.  It wasn't until I landed on my destination where I saw a repper running and 19% structure left but almost full armor at that point.  Give him a follow, subscribe to his channel and enjoy his content.  If you see him in space, oblige him with a good 1v1 as he WILL be alone ;).

EDIT: Talked to Zao today and he can't highlight :( so unfortunately that link for the fight will break.
EDIT 2: Unfortunately the fight link is now broken as twitch has purged the archived video.

A good fight I could have won?

This one is kind of old but I'm happy about its content so I'm going to post it up :D.  The fit _should_ still work and if you want a break from your usual breacher then I would highly recommend that you check out the dual repped version as its quite fun indeed.

I want to dive into an analysis of a good fight I had in a new fit from a corp mate I was trying out.  I'm not saying this is a completely new way to fit the Breacher but it was in fact quite new to me.  If you haven't seen it or flown it yet, I do highly recommend it:

The DPS on this thing isn't necessarily very great but it can tank fairly well and will throw your opponent off due to the lack of shield reps.

[Breacher, Dual Armor Rep]
Small Ancillary Armor Repairer, Nanite Repair Paste
Damage Control II
Small Armor Repairer II

Experimental 1MN Afterburner I
J5b Phased Prototype Warp Scrambler I
X5 Prototype Engine Enervator
Small Electrochemical Capacitor Booster I,Navy Cap Booster 400

Rocket Launcher II,Caldari Navy Inferno Rocket
Rocket Launcher II,Caldari Navy Inferno Rocket
Rocket Launcher II,Caldari Navy Inferno Rocket

Small Bay Loading Accelerator I
Small Nanobot Accelerator I
Small Nanobot Accelerator I

The loss mail is here.  After the fight, I, in my own head, accused the pilot of using links.  It didn't really feel like it though but is still quite possible.  Who knows for sure.

Firstly, I really kind of want to talk about what I KNOW I did wrong.  Quickly bulleted out:

1) Didn't have drones agress for at least 10 seconds or so (time slows down dramatically during a fight so it could have been longer :P)
2) I approached on several occassions by misreading my opponents current distance
3) I didn't pay enough attention to effects on my ship
4) I might have wasted a couple nanited rep cycles :(
5) I didn't overheat each cap booster cycle which lead to cap issue's at the end
6) I didn't look at my opponent during my approach to understand the firetails variant.

The fight progressed something like the following:

I enter the plex, think I hear my opponent engaging the NPC inside.  I lock my opponent and launch drones and immediately hit F for them to engage (they didn't listen because I think they weren't in space yet).  I approach quickly as she's 20km off and I really wanted this fight.  Once inside web and scram range I settle into a nice wide orbit to mitigate any damage from the autocannons I suspect that are on the ship.  The dance begins as my opponent actually agresses first and I follow suite.

This was a pretty long and drawn out fight (for a frigate engagement) and there were times when I was quite confused as to who would pull it off.  Damage appeared to be applied in equal proportions on both sides with occasional massive chunks of my armor being ripped off.

I seriously enjoyed this fight and would explode again!

-----

A couple days later I looked at the KB and noticed that I had a kill that I don't remember...  Wait... it was that Firetail I lost to the other day, lol.  No wonder why I thought it was linked... it was dual repped just like my breacher... who'da thunk it!

[Republic Fleet Firetail, Dual Armor Rep]
Small Ancillary Armor Repairer, Nanite Repair Paste
Damage Control II
Nanite Repair Paste

1MN Afterburner II
Warp Scrambler II
Small Capacitor Booster II,Navy Cap Booster 150
Tracking Disruptor II,Tracking Speed Disruption Script

200mm AutoCannon II,Republic Fleet Phased Plasma S
Rocket Launcher II,Caldari Navy Mjolnir Rocket
200mm AutoCannon II,Republic Fleet Phased Plasma S

Small Auxiliary Nano Pump I
Small Projectile Burst Aerator I
Small Projectile Metastasis Adjuster I

New Love Affair: The Succubus Part 2

Yesterday I said I wanted to talk about 2 things and then only talked about 1...  Oops, guess I should proof read a tiny bit more before hitting that publish button :P.

The second thing I wanted to talk about was what I've been able to accomplish with that little beast.  You can see my track record with the ship over here.

In chronologically descending order, let me touch on the fights that were most memorable to me.

Hull Tanked Enyo vs Succubus:

https://zkillboard.com/kill/42200202/

This Enyo almost fell victim to my Large Tachyons much like this crow.  They landed at the belt at 0 that I was ratting at and were nearly instantly greeted by me stripping them of their shields and half of their armor.  The second volley missed and they warped off shortly after.  They never left dscan though so I decided to down ship and go on the hunt.

The fight was a good one and I learned that I need to manage my heat on my web better as I slipped outside web range quite a few times with her QUICKLY closing range and beginning to blaster me.  Void wasn't a good choice though so the incoming DPS was never enough to really do a whole lot and I'd then notice and re apply webs to get out of that predicament.  Good fight all around though and unfortunately that succubus would meet its doom 4 days later as we saw yesterday.  While I learned the lesson... it wouldn't sink in... we'll see if I do any better in the future ;).

Coercer vs ABA Gang:

https://zkillboard.com/kill/42154014/

I honestly don't remember shooting this guy...  I was drinking that night though... so... yeah...

Atron vs Succubus:

https://zkillboard.com/kill/41992054/

OMGWTFBBQ?  This was quite painful as this pilot skillfully kept his range coming within OH'ed web range a couple times but quickly noticing and getting away before I could start to apply my damage.  Had he made that mistake any bigger he would have quickly felt a scram on him and the coldness of space in his pod.  Well played sir!

Vengeance vs Succubus:

https://zkillboard.com/kill/41990372/

This pilot didn't want to fight me at first as our first encounter had someone completely unaffiliated to either of us come on short scan before we engaged.  He accused me of coming in 2v1 but I assured him that I was alone that night.  He took the fight later though as we can see.  Not much to talk about besides the fact that my speed was FAR more than he could handle and mitigated about 90% of his potential damage it seems.  If I recall, I went into armor just barely and didn't spend a single MASB charge on the fight.

Suddenly AFK vs ABA:

https://zkillboard.com/related/30005262/201408280300/

These two engagements were quite fun and helped me understand the capabilities of this awesome little frigate.

It started with the Maller and the Algos coming in on us while we were belt ratting.  Draiv in his Oracle and me in the Succubus with Nix on comms derping around elsewhere.  I knew that the Algos could be very dangerous for me as tackle so approached with caution.  Upon getting close however, I noticed only T1 drones so dove in head first and put tackle on the Algo's and damage on the Maller while Draiv landed for the blap on the Algos.  Upon landing and blapping however a Proteus came on scan and Draiv buggered off.  I stayed engaged on the Maller and slowly whittled through his tank while Nix came along to steel the kill and Draiv came back to apply blaps.

The next part of this two part engagement was a tad trickier.  We still had not evaluated the skill of the pilots from the previous engagement and were not keen on going head to head with a thrasher that COULD be skilled well.  So this one took some positioning and some risk taking to setup properly until Draiv finally landed within an appropriate distance where the fight started and fairly quickly ended with Draiv pretty beat up if I do recall correctly.

Good fight guys, would do again :D.

New Love Affair - The Succubus Part 1

Today I want to talk about 2 things really.  Both of these revolve around the Succubus however as I've grown to love this ship a great deal.  Not necessarily how it looks, although it does have its own character, but rather in how it flies and what I've been able to accomplish with it.

The first point I want to talk about is my recent loss.  This fight was well played by my opponent, I have to say.  I don't know if he grew bored camping the gate in Gonditsa or if he just came on line and part of his opening routine is to scan the nearby systems for potential fights before lighting his camp fire.  I think I'll have to talk with him and ask him how him coming to Galnafsad came about as I'm quite curious.

The Story:

I'm out belt ratting in what I'm temporarily calling my home and using a blap fit oracle.  I see a new comer to local and almost immediately spot some combat probes which soon get closer.  Once I feel like they're too close I align out and leave when I feel the time is right.  What happens between me leaving and him landing is anyones guess but I come back in a cloaky just to see what I'm working against and spot the lone Incursus with _potential_ links.  I want the fight, so I decide to undock the Succubus and dive right in.

I land at the belt, fire up the AB and start to approach my target.  Very quickly, however, I noticed I'm not moving very fast... this isn't good as I'm on grid with a 0.2 Clone rat AND a blaster fit Incursus... I'm sure to melt at these kinds of speeds.  I zoom in and notice that I'm stuck on a damn asteroid and my shields are dropping.  Hit the MASB, GTFO out of my current predicament and stop the MASB when I've mitigated some incoming damage.

Damn, 2 charges left on the MASB and I still have to deal with this blastering Incursus and this clone rat.  Shields at around 3/4ths at this point and I survey the area as best I can and find a good approach vector.  Things aren't looking good for me though as I begin to pick up too much speed and let my webs drop on a couple of occasions and burn my last 2 remaining charges.  I also didn't pay enough attention to my transversal against the clone rat and probably ended up moving straight away from it.  Terrible range management and terrible transversal management lead to this succubus meeting its doom.

I want to tank you Uef RUS for the engagement and the lessons learned.  Well played sir using the clone rat to take down my succubus.  Apparently this ship was destined to be a wreck on that day but served me well.

The Ship:

As I said, I've really grown to love this ship.  I'm not entirely sure what it is at this point but how it flies and what its capable of has me very excited.  At first I saw this thing as an up close brawler due to its tracking speed bonus and its speed.  I'm changing my perspective though and seeing/using it as a mid range kiter.  Although if things get down to it, swap out the crystals and brawl away.

My current fit is what was lost except I've decided to faction the web.  Part of this is because I'm either being too lazy to manage the heat, still too tunnel visiony during a fight or because I want the buffer of 14km cold and 18km hot that the Fed Navy web affords me.  My ideal engagement range is right outside 10km to avoid THEIR webs but still apply my own.  This is a problem if they're overheating and I'm not because I'm expecting more of a long fight due to how I'm flying.

Dramiel Comparison:

I look at the Succubus much like I look at the Dram.  These ships are both VERY similar in a few ways.  Lets do a side by side comparison.

Slot layout - Exactly the same

Weapons:

     Succubus: Lazors only

     Dram: Drones, Projectiles and Missiles/Rockets

Speed:

     Succubus:

          Base:  425

          All V/Coreli A-Type 1mn AB: 2322 (cold with nano), 3250 (hot with nano)

     Dram:

          Base: 575

          All V/Coreli A-Type 1mn AB: 1,898 (cold with nano), 2,532 (hot with nano)

Hit Points:

     Succubus:

          Shield: 813

          Armor: 688

          Structure: 675

     Dram:

          Shield: 738

          Armor: 738

          Structure: 650

Sig Radius:

     Succubus: 33, 37.2 (my fit)

     Dram: 30, 39.4 (speed tank fit)

I think that covers most of the relevant stats and as you can see, they're VERY VERY similar ships.  Obviously some bonus' you can get from the Dram would be that you can change your damage types through multiple different drone choices and ammo choices and the Succubus does EM/Thermal... period...

I however am liking the ship and encourage you to pick one up, try the fit or scour zkill for another fit that might suit your flying style.  I've seen some tracking disrupting/armor tanking variants, shield buffer variants, slightly differently rigged versions of my fit, etc.  I'll have to give the td'ing/armor tanking variant a try but I'm concerned about removing one of the key features of this ship through rigs that slow me down.

What are your thoughts on this little monster?

Fly dangerous o7

EDIT: I had meant to talk about 2 points but skipped the second.  Check out what I've done with this little beauty in the follow up post

Forging the hammer

Coming at you from another character today.  I, like many, have many personalities in this crazy chaotic universe.  I'll skip the introductions as my Who is Marq Aideron post explains mostly who Narook is and the other characters which were given away upon my quitting back then.

Today I would like to talk about industry and our progress in rebooting Lucifer's Hammer.

In all of my previous markets I've always targeted single modules and ammunition which were individually profitable until I felt like what I wanted to do was accomplished in that particular market.  I had never really listed anything in low sec however because, back in the day, it just wasn't worth my time and effort.  Now, we have an army to 'feed' and apparently now some friends who want to join the party.  So, off to low sec to join Sugar Kyle in her cult of fair prices effort.  This time though, I'm going to try the tactic of the complimentary good.  Still not there but working on it and the market in Ishomilken is growing slowly but surely.

In EVE I see the complimentary good as something that isn't necessarily very profitable but will help the sales of the goods that are.  So, you're selling 150mm Railgun II's then list some Navy Antimatter, Spike, Javelin and Magnetic Field Stabilizers.  Selling hulls, then sell fits you find in losses on zkillboard regardless if you lose a bit of isk on a few of the modules, making SOME money is better than making NONE!

Obviously this all requires a slightly different way of looking at your market.  Instead of looking at each and every individual item and whether or not you're making a profit on it, instead focus on the market as a whole.  What goods are you purchasing to build the output for listing on the market and at your given prices are you making enough money to move forward.  This is where apps like LMeve really start to shine as they give you this big picture looking glass into how you are doing.

Lucifer's Hammer is on its way up and I'm loving how things are looking so far.  We have a more vibrant corp chat and more and more people are showing up on TS to chit chat and do things in space.  With the corps adoption of LMeve we also have some eager industrialists ready to chip in and help fuel the markets for our pirate brethren to shoot people in the face.  Are you an industrialist and want something more to do than just make money?  Want to build something other than just modules to list to some nameless face in Jita?  Come and stop by 'The Frosty Hammer' chat channel in game and talk us up.