Editor’s Note: This week we’re featuring Signaleer peike with a noob’s perspective on our Credo and a Lowsec incident.
Hello fellow Signal Cartel members! I wanted to take some time (out of the game?) to share a recent experience I had in the low security system of Vecamia; a 0.4 system. But first, a little bit about my EvE background.
I began playing EvE Online back in 2010. My first encounter with an aggressive force was with two Aussie gankers. As it turned out, we became fast friends, both in game and in real life. I was a miner by both trade and race and they weren’t, simple as that. However, I soon discovered I loved being a ‘Care Bear’ and yet, I had this overwhelming desire to explore our galaxy. So, being the Noob that I was, I decided to take my nice Navitas into the unknown.
The date was 2010 June 14 and after a wonderful and delightful trip, I ended up in a ‘wonderful’ little system called 8KE-YS, a -0.05 system in Etherium Reach. Needless to say, as soon as I emerged from the gate, I was vaporized in a flash. We all know the routine; warp scrambled, followed by endless pounding until there was, quite simply, nothing left. Even my capsule was destroyed, all in under a minute; like that, in a flash, I was gone, only to re-spawn in my home base of Cistuvaert in Verge Vendor. That was my last adventure into the unknown for a very long time.
Fast forward to today, on a routine cargo run to pick up 100 new core probe launchers from Tarta in Concord Territory to Shera, which is part of the Amarr Empire. The route would take 18 jumps via Highsec, but I decided to take the short route by way of Vecamia, only 4 jumps. As I laid in my course and clicked the jump button I thought how cool it was that I’m restocking my supply of probe launchers for stranded pilots in the unknown sections of wormhole space. Moreover, how wonderful it was to be part of an organization with such a rich history as Signal Cartel and EvE-Scout.
As I approached the Vecamia gate I noticed a ship with a solid-red colored box containing a little pirate banner inside of it, sitting not too far from the gate. It was then that I was beginning to realize that this trip might not have a very pleasant outcome. Indeed, I had already selected the jump button as I left the DED facility at Tarta, so there was no way to abort the jump, even though I attempted in vain to do so. This is the point when your mind begins to accelerate and a million thoughts run simultaneously. Indeed, I thought it was one of MECH 1000‘s crew (Vecamia pretty much belongs to them) and MECH and I go back a bit; he often doesn’t bother me unless I do something stupid. I often test ship fittings and weapons in ‘his’ system by Ratting the NPC pirates that live there.
On the other side of the Vecamia gate I did a quick D-Scan. There were ships that I did not recognize as belonging to MECH 1000’s crew and a quick look at Local comms indicated others were in the system. I realized that I only had one shot at getting through – hit the jump button for the next gate and hope that I can cloak before they target me. However, the campers were strategically placed around me and I had little hope. Indeed my Viator, the USC Shadow Fox, met its fate. Perhaps miraculously, my little pod did not. Indeed, the pod seemingly executed my last command to jump to the gate that leads to the 0.5 system of Cleyd. Upon entering the system, I realized that there was no reason to proceed with the mission since the Shadow Fox had been reduced to a pile of twisted aluminum and composite fragments. So, I limped back through the Cleyd/Vecamia gate and docked up at the nearest station; back into the system that I lost my beloved Shadow Fox.
I sat in the station, pondering my options and feeling a bit sorry for myself for losing my ship while also feeling a certain self-loathing for trying to save time by jumping through Lowsec during a high-risk time frame, I knew better. In any event, I began plotting my next course of action; how to get back to Tarta without getting killed. There were two possibilities, the first, cross back through the Vecamia/Tarta gate and hope that the campers had left (they hadn’t). The second option would be to plot and execute a course that would take me from Vecamia to Jita to Tarta. This route would take approximately 30 jumps and with Signal Cartel’s current War-Dec status this could be as perilous as simply attempting to jump back though the Vecamia/Tarta gate. There was also a third option, one that doesn’t seem as realistic as the other options; namely, to shut down for the day and remain docked until I could safely get out. While I was contemplating these options, it was then that the first strange event happened.
Suddenly, A private comm sprang to life, ‘would you like to accept a private conversation’ or whatever it states. Figuring that this was my killer’s chance to gloat and taunt me about his victory, I decided to accept figuring that I might be able to plead with him to let me pass through the gate unscathed. Pleading is something that I don’t relish in the slightest, however in the world of diplomacy, sometimes it’s the only sane option. I reluctantly clicked ‘Accept.’
Surprisingly, (I was truly shocked) the following message lit up my screen (names have been redacted for security and privacy reasons):
XXXX > Hey we didn’t realize you were EVE-Scout until after you popped. I have nothing but respect for you guys. Would you allow me to SRP a portion of your ship as a way of showing respect?
peike > Thanks! No partial needed. If you want you can make a donation to Eve-Scout. It was a good fight. And remember, if you ever get trapped in Wormhole space, give us a shout.
XXXX > I insist man, I make it a point to NOT shoot you guys.
XXXX > I feel pretty terrible about it tbh
At this point, I wasn’t sure what to do. On one hand, I was amazed that this pilot, a pilot who destroyed my ship and almost killed me, was apologizing, let along offering to help rebuild the Shadow Fox through a reparation, I thought WOW! On the other hand, are EvE-Scouts even allowed to accept such a reparation? There seems to be a very narrow interpretation between what is, and isn’t, allowed with regard to the Credo on many issues. Thus, I decided to reach out on the Alliance comm to Eve-Scout’s seniors to confer with them and see what is, or is not, allowed. To my amazement, the person who responded to my hail was none other than, Johnny Splunk. He replied, ‘yep’ it’s okay to accept such a reparation.
However, when I returned to accept the offer, my terminator was gone and the comm channel closed. I thought to myself, wow, if only I had accepted, or at the very least, asked him to please hold on a second while I checked. I wondered if I had angered him or, as we sometimes say in America, ‘dissed’ (street slang for disrespecting someone) him for not accepting. Had I made a new enemy? My answer would quickly be answered, at least in part.
Suddenly, my private comm sprang to life once again, this time though, it wasn’t from my terminator, rather it was from MECH 1000:
MECH 1000 > o/
MECH 1000 > Kill: * (Ashimmu)
peike > Hello Mech 1000
MECH 1000 > Kill: * (Loki)
MECH 1000 > hello
MECH 1000 > after they killed you
peike > They didn’t get the pod. Only the ship, this time.
peike > it was a good fight.
MECH 1000 > well, you can feel redeemed ! lol they lost a lot more
MECH 1000 > o/
MECH 1000 > GL
peike > I wondered what happened to them. They disappeared.
After an analysis of the situation via zKillboard, it became clear that MECH 1000 hadn’t actually killed my terminator, rather, he killed part of my terminator’s alliance team. This actually made me rather sad. In a strange sense, I am appreciative of MECH 1000’s revenge on my behalf, but it was unsolicited. Of course our universe is a very dog eat dog world. Nevertheless, I am very sorry for what happened to my terminator. In other, respects, I feel that I was indirectly responsible for part of his alliance’s demise.
Why you ask? Well, this is where diplomacy comes into play and why we must very carefully attempt to study all variables. Indeed, this is one reason our Credo is written in the manner that it is. Every decision that we make has multiple possible outcomes; it is as though our lives are but one stop in a massive algorithm through which all flows. Consider the following questions:
- Did my returning to Vecamia have any bearing on the outcome?
- Did the conversation that was initiated between my terminator and myself create the opportunity for his alliance’s partial demise?
- Did my delay in answering him, while I was checking with Johnny allow for the attack?
The answer is, maybe to some extent. It’s true that he initiated the conversation between he and I. It’s also true that MECH 1000’s crew doesn’t play favorites with anyone, including me. One could argue that my terminator was in the wrong place at the wrong time, just as I was shortly before. The moral of this story is that for every action there is a consequence. This is one of the main reasons why Signal Cartel remains neutral in the galaxy.
Fly Safe Everyone.
Pax,
~peike
Signal Cartel/EvE-Scout