Mangling a Merlin mashing

Fin's next door, but through a K162 to more class 4 w-space and not our static connection. 'No one's home, but they don't run their sites anyway.' As she scans for further K162s I head to our unvisited neighbouring class 3 system. Seven scanning probes light up my directional scanner, but a tower from fourteen months ago that should be in range isn't. The probes aren't that close either, so I'm not expecting a scout to come this way soon, letting me warp out and launch my own probes. Two anomalies and seven signatures isn't much, and really shouldn't take long to resolve, and the single ship my combat probes pick up could be the active scout. I warp across to find out.

D-scan shows me an Ibis frigate, so it's safe to assume that this isn't the source of the other probes, even before I locate it floating unpiloted inside a tower's force field. I warp back to the wormhole to scan, wondering if the scout will jump past me, when another ship blips on a second blanket scan. I've just left that region of space and d-scan shows me nothing, the ship disappearing from my probes before I am able to turn around. I start scanning out by the tower, expecting to find a wormhole that the scout used but only resolving a radar site. Fine. What else is here?

I resolve the static exit to high-sec, a K162 from class 4 w-space, some gas, rocks, and a K162 from low-sec empire space. Oh, and a second tower. Nice scouting, Penny. I didn't realise this planet was out of range of our K162, but there are still no ships or pilots, so I haven't missed much. Checking C4b through the K162 has two towers and a territorial control unit on d-scan, but still no ships. It's all a bit dull. I launch probes and scan again, the single anomaly and four signatures holding a single K162, again from class 4 w-space, but this wormhole critically destabilised. That's okay, as we have an exit, so I risk collapsing the connection and poke through.

The wormhole survives the passage of my cloaky Loki strategic cruiser, only to throw me in to an unoccupied and empty system. There are anomalies, signatures, but no ships, so who cares? I don't even find any other wormholes when scanning, making me wonder who opened the static wormhole and why it is now critically unstable. Well, I don't wonder for long, instead simply jumping back to C4b and going straight back to C3a, where a Merlin is now on d-scan. The name of the ship and then d-scan suggests the frigate is at a tower, which is easy enough to confirm, and so I loiter, because apparently I like to sit and watch pilots do nothing.

In case the system is waking up, Fin joins me and gets eyes on the second tower in the system, which remains holding just the unpiloted Ibis as the Merlin pilot drops to his pod. 'My Japanese is weak', says Fin, 'but I think their tower is named 'We Mix Guns''. It almost sounds feasible, but I am getting that hang of Fin's translations. 'Or possibly 'Industrial Pansies'. It's hard to be sure.' The pod at the tower I'm watching gets back in to a Merlin and warps out of the tower, towards the static wormhole to low-sec. I blurt this out to Fin and give chase.

The Merlin is sitting on the wormhole as I drop out of warp, and exits to low-sec. I follow, but have a bit of space to cover before I can jump, and appear in low-sec to see the Merlin disappear. He won't have cloaked, and hasn't warped, because the pilot is no longer in the local communication channel, so he must have jumped back. That's good, as it means he'll be polarised and easier to catch. I jump back too and get ready to unleash the overwhelming force of a Loki against a basic frigate.

The Merlin is visible and near the wormhole. I set my ship to approach the frigate, intending to break my session change cloak and activate my sensor booster, which I really would like to have active before I attempt to lock on to the Merlin. The frigate is small and I will probably need all the help I can get if I am to prevent it warping away. But my sensor booster doesn't activate. I try again to get my ship moving towards the Merlin so that I can get my sensor booster working, but again the module won't respond. A third attempt has no better luck.

It's possible the Merlin is already in warp, which means my ship has no reference to move towards. Or maybe some latency in my systems is degrading the response time. Or perhaps, just perhaps, I'm pressing the wrong bloody button. I shift my focus across one step to the right button, get my sebo finally active, and start locking on to the Merlin, several seconds after my Loki has been both clearly visible and able to target the frigate. Naturally, the Merlin warps clear a split-second before I get the positive lock and disrupt his warp drive.

Mistakes happen, and at least this one hasn't cost me my ship. It's a bit frustrating all the same, as the Merlin was a sitting duck. Still, I also had time during warp to clarify my communication to Fin about the Merlin's movements, instead of leaving her with a cryptic clue about what the pilot was doing, which would have given us two ships trying to catching the Merlin. I suppose I'm not entirely on the ball, so decide to call it a night before I make a bigger mistake.

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Tags: eve online, ibis, loki, merlin, mmorpg, penny ibramovic, pvp, scanning, w-space

Distressing the neighbours

I jump from C3b to C2d, and warp across the system to return to C2a. W-space has provided me with some thrills already, as Fin and I executed an unorthodox and improvised ambush against an escorted Exequror cruiser. The gasser got away, but other side thought they'd engineered the situation so we wouldn't even get a shot, so we're happy with the result. And now, one jump away from the home system, it seems that there is another gassing capsuleer for us to hunt.

The class 2 w-space system connecting to our home C4 was empty when we passed through it on our way to the class 6 system with the Exequror, but now a Myrmidon is visible on my directional scanner. The battlecruiser isn't in an anomaly, and a jet-can suggests the ship is sucking on a gas cloud. It looks like a new hunt is on. The only sticky circumstance is that our scouting has shown this C2 to be occupied by blues, the owners friendly to our alliance, but it's possible this Myrmidon isn't local, and we can't tell its affiliation without getting a look at it. To do this we need to warp to its location. And to do that we may as well assume we're hunting it.

I warp away from the Myrmidon to launch scanning probes, which puts me in range of the local tower, but as the only pilots who may see me out here are essentially allies there can be no harm in decloaking. The Bestower hauler from earlier remains at the tower, but when it disappears from d-scan I can only assume that it is now piloted. I have no idea whether it has warped out to collect the Myrmidon's harvested gas or its own planet goo, and either situation is possible given that the battlecruiser is not in d-scan range of the tower. I'm going to continue with the hunt until I know for sure I am chasing blues.

Fin is in the system and in her stealth bomber. Shev is in the home system and getting an Onyx heavy interdictor prepared, warping it to the K162 in readiness for the ambush. I return to the inner system and start refining d-scan to estimate the Myrmidon's position. The Bestower has already gone from wherever it went, keeping us in the dark about who is what and where. I narrow down the battlecruiser's location and am ready to scan for him when an Armageddon appears on the other side of the wormhole to Shev, Fin spotting the battleship as it warps in. Is it blue? 'No, it's a yellow skull', Fin says, and she and Shev get ready for an assault.

No, check the pilot's information, I say. I have come close to shooting a blue ship before, and only because the rather peculiar default setting of the overview displays security status above standings. I'm not sure why this is, because it surely would be preferable to know that a pilot is an ally regardless of his criminality, but at least I know of this feature. And, as it turns out, the Armageddon is piloted by a blue, and is probably the capsuleer who was recently in the Bestower. As a check, I call my probes in and scan, resolving the Myrmidon's position good enough to warp to it, and confirm that it is also a blue pilot who is gassing.

My Loki is decloaked by the gas cloud and still manages to spook the Myrmidon, which I suppose isn't too surprising. It's not like I'm going to shoot, although I have to admit I don't know how or if mutual standings work, and if we look blue to them. I open a conversation to the Myrmidon pilot to explain our actions, letting her know that we didn't know she was blue, but I get no reply and the conversation is closed. 'That's just rude. We should shoot her.'

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Tags: armageddon, bestower, eve online, loki, mmorpg, myrmidon, onyx, penny ibramovic, pvp, scanning, w-space

Successful scanning sends us a ship

Fin's here, which is always a good sign. A lack of bookmarks may indicate she's currently gassing it up, but it turns out that she's just arrived and is launching scanning probes, just like me. That's just a coincidence, though, and we're probably not the same person. Yesterday's new pocket of gas has already been sucked up by Aii, which makes today's new pocket of gas a welcome sight, in a way. We also have new rocks and a K162 from class 2 w-space to go with our static wormhole to the neighbouring class 3 w-space system. I'll go backwards again.

I made a Bhaalgorn pilot squeal like a small kid the last time I was in this class 2 system, when I bombed the battleship for giggles and nearly got caught as a result. Good times, but all I find here today is a tower with an empty Bestower hauler in its force field. Worse still, the tower and ship are owned by blues. Still, other pilots could wander in to the system and try to steal its resources, so I take time to scan the five anomalies and ten signatures, although I bore quickly and end up looking only for other wormholes. I find them, too, as an obviously distant signature becomes a K162 from class 5 w-space, and some less obviously wormhole signatures are resolved as a static exit to high-sec empire space, two K162s from class 2 w-space that are at the end of their natural lifetimes, and a nifty outbound connection to class 2 w-space.

As the EOL wormholes are tagged as C2b and C2c I find myself jumping through the healthy outbound connection to C2d, where an Anathema appears on my directional scanner. He remains for longer than he should, making me wonder if the ship is empty and abandoned, but disappears just as that thought forms. I suppose not then. Opening the system map shows that there is nowhere to hide, and so no occupation, and the only interesting object on d-scan is a rather presumptuously named jet-can, requesting capsuleers 'contact us before settling here'. I'm sure pilots will heed that, sir. But I don't think too many corporations will want this system, as along with a K162 from class 3 w-space I resolve the static connections to lead to class 5 w-space and exit to null-sec k-space. Those won't be friendly neighbours.

I'm more interested in the K162 from class 3 w-space than the potential for diving head first in to a chain of class 5 systems, although an unoccupied system with a single mining drone littering empty space isn't much of a find. The tower that was present four months ago has been ripped to shreds, leaving me to scan once more to look for activity. A K162 from low-sec isn't terribly interesting, neither is the static exit to null-sec, but an A982 outbound connection to deadly class 6 w-space is. It is even more interesting when jumping to C6a sees ships and no tower, along with a few Sleeper wrecks. But the Proteus strategic cruiser, Legion strategic cruiser, Absolution command ship, and two Guardian logistic ships will be no match for the class of Sleepers found in these anomalies, so I can only suppose they are clearing a gravimetric or ladar site in preparation for harvesting the resources.

A Noctis salvager clears up the wrecks, there being only a handful pretty much confirming the location probably being a ladar site, and the fleet disappears. Sadly, they don't go before I have to move away from the wormhole, and although I am practiced at cloaking quickly I may well have appeared briefly to a vigilant fleet. But the ships go and I appear to be left alone, which is good considering there is essentially nowhere out of range of the site the fleet was in. I take the opportunity of the ships' absence to launch probes and blanket the system, revealing a whopping forty-three anomalies and forty signatures, but I don't scan yet. I want to see if any miners will come.

A ship appears on my blanket-scanning probes, but it's gone soon after. If the fleet is collapsing its connecting wormhole I should find out sooner rather than later, so I don't waste time waiting for ships that aren't coming, and I take what could be polarisation time to make a quick sweep for K162s. I find a wormhole that's not a K162, instead resolving the system's static connection to class 5 w-space, but a second attempt gets a K162 from more class 6 w-space. And moments after landing near the wormhole, my probes thrown back out of the system, the K162 flares. An Exequror cruiser appears and warps to what must be the ladar site, which looks like a juicy target, but he's followed by a Falcon ECM recon ship, who warps curiously to the system's fourth planet.

Maybe I was spotted, or maybe the Falcon is a precaution the fleet can spare as gas is hoovered in to the Exequror. Either way, I'm hunting the cruiser, and Fin's coming along to help. I suggest bringing a stealth bomber, rather than a heavy interdictor, because I think we should employ hit-and-run tactics, given the real possibility of a response. I'm a few systems deep in to the constellation, however, and it takes Fin a little time to recover her own gas and bring a Manticore my way, although that gives me time not only to use d-scan to get a bead on the Exequror but also triangulate its position. I loiter by the C6 K162 and get my probes in to position, warp to planet near the Exequror to check they are good, and then do it again at the K162 to C3b. They all line up, making me pretty confident I'll get the cruiser in one scan. It's a shame then that we may not get to shoot it.

As I check my probes from the C3b K162 as Fin approaches, a Buzzard covert operations boat appears, belonging to the C6ers and having scanned and discovered the entrance I used. They were clearly suspicious of the Loki strategic cruiser that blipped on d-scan as they cleared the ladar site of Sleepers. And now it looks like the Falcon will be sitting on this wormhole to monitor for traffic. That puts a damper on our ambushing plans, particularly as two Talos battlecruisers jump from C6b and warp to join the gasser. But maybe we can use this knowledge to our advantage. Fin's at the wormhole and ready to jump, and I am ready to scan for the Exequror. I am pretty sure I know what is expected, and what will happen, so I update Fin with a change of plans.

I warp across the system and tell Fin to get ready. She knows what to do. I call my probes in to scan, and Fin jumps in to the system, which will obviously register with the Falcon. I get a solid hit on the cruiser and recall my probes, telling Fin to warp as I do. But she's not heading to the ladar site. I have measured the C6er's expectations and updated our own, having Fin warp to join me on the K162 our target is using. Sure enough, we've faked them out. The Exequror warped out of the ladar site on seeing the probes, or on instructions of the Falcon seeing a Manticore jump and enter warp, but all he has done is leave his two battlecruiser escorts in an empty ladar site to enter our modified ambush. The Exequror drops out of warp on the K162, jumps, and is followed by my Loki and Fin's Manticore.

But it seems we were a bit too keen. We jump too early and the Exequror registers the extra wormhole flares before trying to clear the wormhole on the other side, letting him hold his session change cloak. We get ready to engage anyway, and I get a positive lock when the cloak inevitably drops, but the cruiser merely jumps back to C6a. And this is when I spot the error in my updated plan. We should have also anticipated this reaction and had one of us remain in C6a to intercept the cruiser's return. As it is, we don't know whether the escorts are now waiting for us on the other side of the wormhole, and we'll be as polarised as the Exequror if we jump to find out. I decide discretion is the better part of valour and call to hold in C6b whilst the polarisation timer runs down.

I am still calling this a minor victory. We may have goofed slightly in the details, but we outsmarted the wary and supposedly prepared fleet. Seeing the Exequror warp by itself to the wormhole where both Fin and I waited for it, as the two Talos battlecruisers patiently expected us to fall prey to them in the ladar site, was a moment of beauty. A slight modification and we probably would have popped the cruiser too. We'll know for the next time. For now, we return to C6a once possible polarisation effects are negated, not having any of the strategic cruisers from the many towers in C6b coming to welcome us in the meantime, and appear in empty space. If anyone was waiting for us, they aren't any more. The Taloses are even gone. If I had to guess, I'd say they are on the wormhole in C3b hoping to catch our exit.

The Exequror is still around, though, just not in the ladar site. I place him about 1 AU from a planet, and launch probes to try to catch him only to have the cruiser return to the wormhole and jump to C6b before I can get completely organised. Fin gives chase, but we were both a bit far from the wormhole to catch the cruiser in time. I don't regret not scanning the Exequror near the planet, though, as the Falcon was probably guarding it there, and as a Proteus decloaks on the K162 before long I can only assume that the strategic cruiser was waiting with it too. But the Proteus doesn't decloak to reveal itself arbitrarily. It's aiming for me. I prepared myself for the Exequror jumping back should Fin engage it and decloaked to negate the recalibration delay, only cloaking again when Fin said it got away. The Proteus saw me, aimed my way, and decloaked to try to reveal me. It works too, although I manage to manoeuvre out of the way and re-activate my cloak before I'm caught. I need to watch myself sometimes.

All the ships return to C6b slowly. The Proteus watches the Taloses come back from C3b and jump home, as does the Falcon, and Fin takes a moment to warp to the ladar site and pop the jet-can the Exequror was using to store his gas. All is quiet again, making it time to head homewards. It was a fun little hunt, even if no ships were lost on either side, and shows once again that if you can predict what the other side will do you will be at an advantage.

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Tags: absolution, anathema, bestower, buzzard, eve online, exequror, falcon, guardian, legion, loki, manticore, mmorpg, noctis, penny ibramovic, proteus, pvp, scanning, talos, w-space

Music of 2012, part two

I'm still late with reviewing the music I've bought this year, but here's my second collection of albums. There's more to come, once I get around to writing about it.

Grimes is pushing out albums almost quicker than they can be pressed. Hot on the tail of Geidi Primes comes Visions, bringing together some more eclectic electronica. Despite being pleasantly surprised by the quirkiness of Geidi Primes, nothing really grabs me about Visions on the first few listens, even if it seems to be from the same earlier mould. It isn't until I see a performance of Genesis on Later... With Jools Holland that the song catches my attention and I realise the beauty of it, allowing a few more of the tracks to fall in to place as a result. Oblivion has an interesting riff half-way through that is highly reminiscent of... something, maybe an old 808 State song, which I find pleasing. But even though there are the occasional moments of inspiration, like the muted Skins, the apparent homogeneity of the songs means I find its quirkier predecessor to be more enjoyable overall.

I enjoyed the kitschy but energetic previous album by That Fucking Tank, so have no problem picking up their latest offering, TFT. It pretty much follows the same pattern as before, with instrumentals based around drums and guitar, to the point where there are even instructions included in the cover booklet describing how to write a TFT song. Of course, there is more to inspiration than a set of steps to follow, but there are undeniable foundations in music that only the best can eschew with confidence. And That Fucking Tank know how to create strong riffs and slam them together to make a cohesive whole. Even if it won't set the world alight, TFT is another fine collection of rock instrumentals.

Surprise album for me in this selection is The Echo Show by Yeti Lane. It gets a favourable review in the NME, but that doesn't mean I am ever sure what I'm going to get. This time, just the gentle, echoing vocals gliding so beautifully on top of synthesisers and almost-fuzzy guitars melding so perfectly in opening track Analog Wheel gives me unexpected tingles. And the songs just keep getting better, each one poking my pleasure centres in just the right places, such as Warning Sensations with its measured vocals, warbling synths, and rhythmic guitars combining with such ease. I could really just call out each song in turn for one reason or another, but instead I'll just say that The Echo Show is one of those rare albums featuring male voices that I just get along with, singing beautiful pop songs to engaging, driving music. This is definitely a favourite album of the year.

I saw Pinkunoizu live, asked the band their name, and have not forgotten it. I enjoyed their set and am happy to pick up the debut album Free Time!, hoping to relive the experience. And I may be, I'm not quite sure. I seem to remember more interesting drum patterns than are on the album, but maybe that's more because I was focused on watching the drummer's style during the gig. The music is not quite as I remember it either, but there are bands who show disparity between live performances and recordings. There's nothing particularly outstanding about the songs, just as there is nothing particularly disappointing about them either. The album chugs along nicely, even if it occasionally stutters with a motif that doesn't quite work. But even though Free Time! isn't remarkable it is pleasant background music that I can listen to each time it comes up on my playlist, which counts for something.

Bo Ningen played live with Can lead singer Damo Suzuki, recording and releasing the session as three-track EP Foreign Affair Confidential, which I pick up at a later gig. I suppose it's pretty much what I should expect from both parties, with psychedelic guitars wailing, manic drumming, and Suzuki shouting and moaning almost in a stream-of-consciousness. It's hardly easy listening, particularly with three tracks extending to a fifty minute play time, and mostly incoherent, but it can be appreciated for the crafted noise that it is.

I thought Islet's nine minute opening track was a little ambitious, and over-long, but here comes second album Laughing Party from shoegazers It Hugs Back, starting with a fifteen-minute monster of a song, The Big E. Impressively, the song neither feels over-long, or that long in itself. The riffs, changes, and melodies all manage to hold the song together, even building to a satisfying climax, to create an audacious and impressive opening song. It is a keen illustration of how It Hugs Back have grown since their debut album. The songs have the same feel, with wispy vocals over fuzzy guitars, a relaxed beat without being too laid back, but with more depth to them. Each instrument tries more, adds more, but without cloying the sound. It Hugs Back found their sound, and now they are shaping it to fit them better, creating a very competent album in the process.

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Tags: bo ningen, cd, grimes, it hugs back, pinkunoizu, that fucking tank, yeti lane

Gigs of 2012, part two

More gigs! I can only get to gigs when bands I like are playing, or when I notice that bands are playing, but I'm still trying to get out when I can. I really need to make more notes on the night or day after, though. I think I assumed I'd be writing the individual reviews sooner after the gig than I have, as I have left a few of them a bit too late to have anything other than an overriding impression of what I remember. Still, this is more a record of what I've been getting up to than a gig guide, so a few missing details don't really matter.

Crocodiles/Virals at Hotel Street

I've had the second album by Crocodiles on my list of CDs to buy for a while, never quite getting around to picking it up, so when a gig at Sailor Jerry's Hotel Street comes up, for three quid a ticket, it seems to be an ideal way to get a feel for the band. There is even a support act to enjoy first, for loose values of 'enjoy'. It's easiest to clump the two bands together for the review, with Crocodiles being a little more emphatic than Virals, but both being pretty much the definition of MoR indie rock. Despite playing in a tiny venue and having the opportunity to really connect with the audience, the music is relatively bland and uninspiring.

Most disappointing is the finale from both bands, neither of which is really big enough to make a difference. Crocodiles choose to just play loud, but strumming distorted guitars hard and smashing cymbals is not in itself an effective way of adding intensity to the performance. Neither band is bad, but neither are they more than quite forgettable. It doesn't help that the sound levels are off so much that the keyboards can't be heard through most of the set, but I honestly don't think it would make much difference if they were included. I have crossed Crocodiles off my watch list now.

Django Django/NZCA/Lines at Cambridge

NZCA/Lines is one band, not two, and, we are told, is pronounced like 'Nazca Lines'. I mishear this and have to ask after the support set what they said, also getting the explanation that it is easier to search the internet for 'NZCA' without the 'a', which makes sense. As for the music, I am initially sceptical, because of the electronic drums, but they turn out to be played competently by the drummer, who simply chooses to stand up and not mess around with his feet. That's probably quite wise, in its way. And the krautrock vibe to the electronica keeps me interested, and entertained enough to pick up their album after the gig, which is an indication of how much I enjoyed the set.

There are thoughts that Django Django are deliberately coming on stage late because they're watching the footy in a pub somewhere, which is only partly true. They appear at an odd time, for a set to start, but before the European finals match has ended, giving an occasional pause to ask the smartphone-equipped audience for an update to the score. But we're here to see the band play, and play they do. Even though the debut album doesn't quite hold my interest all the way through, Django Django are a force to be felt live. The stomping four-to-the-floor bass drum keeps the rhythm pounding along to the grooves, and the whole band are clearly having a good time performing.

The audience are having fun too, even if they're not quite paying attention. 'We've got another one', says lead singer Vincent Neff, and hearing someone shout a request adds, 'but it's not Storm, because we've already played that'. And after that one more there is only one more, making the audience call for even more. But there is only so much that Django Django can play. 'We've only got one album! We'll be back in four years.' Whether that's four years to write, record, and produce a new album, or four years to come back to Cambridge I'm not sure. I have to say that my enduring memory of the gig, beyond the music, is just how provincial it seems, when I am used to the London scene. It's not just me either. 'This is the churchiest church we've played in', says Neff. 'We've played in churches, but none as churchy as this.' And they nearly bring the roof down, too. It is a fantastic gig that reinforces once more the power a performance has to bring music alive.

Bo Ningen at Hotel Street

It's Bo Ningen again, and in the tiny Hotel Street venue which naturally gets packed. There isn't much of a riser for the stage, making it difficult to see Bo Ningen play, although guitars being jerked in to the air every few seconds aren't hard to miss. Neither is it difficult to see singer and bassist Taigen climbing on the amps near the end of the set. And having a shield of bodies to help protect against the wall of noise isn't so bad, and can in no way disguise the sheer energy the band projects. I keep coming back to watch Bo Ningen, and they never disappoint. A new album is on its way!

Novella at Hotel Street

Another gig at Hotel Street, before it closes, has me see new band Novella again. There's not much to report beyond what I've said on previous occasions. They are interesting and engaging to watch, have good songs and a different set-list tonight, and they are definitely maturing further as they continue to practice and play. I'll be picking up an album if it gets released and will be keeping my eyes out for future gigs, as Novella remain a band that offer a good evening's entertainment.

Achilla/Neuronspoiler/Orpheum/Human Wave Attack at Boston Music Rooms

The Boston Music Rooms is peculiarly deserted tonight. I've been to quite a few gigs, and even the smallest bands at least fill the venue so that there are bodies around. But something is awry, because everyone in the audience could swing a guitar around without hitting anyone. It's the same throughout the night, for some reason, and can't be blamed on the mediocrity of opening act Human Wave Attack. To be fair, they would be pretty good—fuzzy guitars, shouty vocals, catchy songs—if it weren't for their mechanical drummer, who plays the same beat with almost no variation through each song, and almost the same beat for each song. It really drags down what could easily be competent rock.

Orpheum don't have the same problem. I'm not sure why their drummer wears a mask, beyond them being goth rock, because he needs to be recognised as the genius drummer he is. It's not even the stark contrast between the blandness of the previous drummer, he really is damned good! I am mesmerised watching him play all around a big kit, wishing I had the dedication and skill to get to his level, although I also try to pay attention to the band as a whole. I kinda know the singer, which is why I'm at this gig in the first place. She's got a great voice too, and although goth rock isn't my normal genre Orpheum play some accessible songs, and they're all pretty perky for goths. I don't know how much market there is for this kind of music, but I hope they get some success.

Considering the Boston Music Room is opposite Tufnell Park tube station, it seems appropriate that Neuronspoiler fill the role of Spinal Tap. One of the two guitarists can't get his amp working for half of the first song, walking back confused when no sound is made, then strutting to the front of the stage when he thinks he's fixed it, only to turn around in frustration when he clearly hasn't. He even gets his hair caught in his guitar at one point. It's easy to mock this 80s hair rock, with so much preening, leather, and extended Axl-esque warbling that even Beavis and Butthead would take the mickey, but I have to give Neuronspoiler credit for not only playing the part perfectly but taking themselves seriously. More power to them, even if it's not my scene.

Headliners Achilla look like they're going places. They have the athletic blond lead singer, a bass player who looks out of place in the band but is enjoying every moment of being on stage, and a decent drummer, along with some good tunes. It really is a shame that they are playing heavy rock to an almost-empty room. But they give it all they've got, pimp their album-launch gig, and blast out a great set. It's been a good night's entertainment.

Allo Darlin'/Tigercats/Martha at King's College

I catch the end of Martha's set as I make to the fourth floor of King's College. My only real impression is that it must be pretty cool to be young, in a band, and playing in front of friends. I get to see the whole of the set by Tigercats, and even though the lead singer seems pretty nerdy the band play some confident and tidy music that's very much in the traditional indie sense. Guitar-based, charming and melodic, Tigercats play music that keeps me interested through the whole set, which is fairly unusual for a support act. I shall watch out for more from the band.

Allo Darlin' are the main act, and there are unsurprisingly a number of vocal fans in the audience. It's unsurprising because the band are charismatic, outgoing, and happy to be playing music, which all comes across in the performance. I know that there is a first album that I have not heard, so the first few songs are unfamiliar, but still enjoyably familiar. And it's not long before Allo Darlin' move in to promoting current album Europe, filling most of the set with catchy, poppy songs from it. Lead singer Elizabeth Morris has an amazing voice that lilts with such an airy manner it makes you not care that some of the lyrics are a little pedestrian. She also somehow hides her Australian accent whilst remaining distinctively different when singing. Seeing Allo Darlin' live reinforces my enjoyment of Europe, making it a current favourite album, and I will try to see the band again when they next tour.

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Tags: achilla, allo darlin', bo ningen, boston music rooms, crocodiles, django django, gig, hotel street, human wave attack, king's college, martha, neuronspoiler, novella, nzca/lines, orpheum, tigercats, virals

And staying for an Anathema

I've podded a planet gooer and waited for his clone's return. That's perhaps a little malevolent, but I am often curious to see what precautions a pilot will take when coming back to a dangerous system. It seems at first that the pilot will rely on a colleague to escort him home, even if the stealth bomber is barely a credible threat to my Loki strategic cruiser, but when the Purifier fails to warp from the tower for a good while I think it's best that I move on from this class 3 w-space system. I doubt the new clone will be coming back soon. That is, until his shuttle warps back in to the tower, from the direction of the system's static exit to low-sec empire space.

Missing the pilot's return is a little disappointing, after waiting specifically for a sign, but I suppose I had little chance of catching a shuttle anyway, so it's no big deal really. And now that he's here I am genuinely interested in seeing what he does next. What he does is board an Anathema covert operations boat and warp out of the tower. I follow behind, as it looks like the boat has gone to the customs office where I popped the hauler, where I see the pilot do a u-turn and head right back to the tower. It seems like he was reconnoitring the customs office, perhaps to see if there was any loot left in the wreck, and if that's the case he'd have been disappointed. I scooped his corpse, and looted and shooted the wreck.

Shot. Maybe Scoopied. It doesn't scan so well in the past tense. Whatever, the cov-ops doesn't stay for long back in the tower, bouncing out to the same customs office again. Maybe this time he's checking to see what is waiting to be collected, wondering how much he transferred to the ill-fated Mammoth before I destroyed it all. Except that doesn't make sense, as I pretty much ambushed the hauler before he dropped out of warp. I don't know what's happening, but the Anathema keeps doing it.

I think I can catch the cov-ops if he keeps this pattern up. There is no way I can intercept him by following the boat from the tower, as it enters warp quicker than my Loki, has a higher warp speed than my Loki, and pretty much turns around and is in warp again by the time I reach the customs office. But if he's going to revisit the same office several times I could sit at one of them and wait for him to come to me. The pilot doesn't even seem to want to activate his cloaking device for these trips, which would give me early warning to his arrival too. But by the time I work this out it seems that the pilot has given up on... whatever he was doing, and has returned to the tower to bring some defences on-line.

Fun over, I creep through the constellation I scanned backwards from our home system, wondering if anyone else has woken up. But I greatly exaggerate the extent of the constellation in my mind, and it doesn't take long to determine that all two of the class 2 w-space systems remain as quiet now as they were when I first explored them some half-an-hour earlier. Never mind, here's Aii. I can hand the baton of w-space roaming to him and go off-line for food. Or I could, if the Anathema in C3b hadn't gone back to bouncing around customs offices.

I just can't help myself. I watch with fascination as the cov-ops boat warps out and back in again, repeating the same trip a couple of times. I must try again. I watch him visit one customs office and head back to the tower, and I sit and wait at that office in case he comes back. This time, I have Aii watching the tower, and I ask him to let me know if the Anathema comes back my way. It does. 'Anathema heading your way', says Aii, and I update d-scan to see if the pilot will cloak this time. He does. That makes the ambush a little less certain, but I should still have a shot.

As I said, I have little chance of following the Anathema, with it being more agile, particularly with the sensor recalibration delay when my Loki decloaks, preventing my ship from locking any target for six seconds. I had hoped that the Anathema would continue to fly decloaked, so that I could gauge when it was going to drop out of warp and soak up the delay. But all is not lost. The Anathema will be automatically decloaked by its proximity to the customs office, which will also prevent it re-cloaking, and I will be already here and waiting, without any additional delay of having to exit warp myself. I just need to have good reactions and strike before the target can turn around and flee.

I am ready and moving closer to the customs office, preparing to try to bump the tiny ship if I can, when the Anathema blips on to my display. I decloak, activate my sensor booster, and surge towards the ship. As expected, the Anathema cannot cloak to avoid my attention, being too close to the customs office, and not quite as expected I am able to gain a positive lock before he can warp clear. I disrupt his warp engines and start shooting, and my guns make short work of the cov-ops. Again I aim for the pod, and again I get a positive lock. It's just not this pilot's day, as a second clone of his gets turned in to a corpse.

I scoop, but don't loot or shoot. My hold is still full from popping the same pilot's Mammoth earlier, even if reloading my guns frees enough space to let me stuff one corpse on to the other, in some bizarre form of zombincestuous display. I'm not going to turn that surviving covert operations cloaking device in to space dust, though, so call Aii in to loot and shoot the wreck, giving us maximum profit and minimum residue. Job's a good 'un.

I almost feel bad for podding the same pilot twice, but not quite. The first time was unfortunate, the second poor judgment. The pilot clearly knew the system was hostile, after already being podded, and recognised the potential continued threat by virtue of making highly inefficient planet goo runs in an Anathema. There was planet goo in the ill-sized hold of his cov-ops, so he clearly was trying his best to collect what he could in a ship he thought was safe, but didn't account for the predictable nature of his actions. The spider caught the fly by sitting in wait.

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Tags: anathema, eve online, loki, mmorpg, penny ibramovic, purifier, pvp, w-space

Coming back for a Mammoth

Aii needs gas, badly. And we may have some to placate my colleague's lust. There is a bookmark to a magnetometric site in the home w-space system, but four signatures means there must be more to see. As luck would have it, we get something for everyone. Aii has his gas, with a new ladar site cropping up, and I get to explore through a K162 wormhole that accompanies the regular static wormhole, both connections linking to class 3 w-space. I head backwards to what I shall dub C3b.

A tower and no ships waits for me on my directional scanner, which given the relatively early hour doesn't surprise me. I launch probes and blanket the system anyway, even if I'm most likely to find only an exit to k-space, and bookmark four anomalies and start sifting through the eight signatures. Rocks, gas, a magnetometric and radar site, and three wormholes gives me a bit of everything, including another w-space system to explore. The static exit to low-sec empire space is expected, the K162 from null-sec k-space is interesting but not exciting, and the K162 from class 2 w-space is where I'm going next.

I don't expect to see capital ships in C2s, but there is a Phoenix dreadnought and Chimera carrier in this one, according to d-scan. There are also two towers, a Hulk exhumer, Orca industrial command ship, and a Probe and Imicus frigate each, but with no scanning probes, no wrecks, and no jet-cans suggestive of mining I doubt anything is happening. I locate the towers easily enough, as there is only one planet in range, to see that all of the ships are empty, and exploring finds two more towers but no more ships.

Scanning reveals nine anomalies and eight signatures, which is a surprising number given the capital ships present, and I resolve the usual rocks, gas, and combat sites, along with the second static wormhole that exits to high-sec. Another wormhole is a neat find, and even better that the K162 leads back to even more class 2 w-space. Let's see what awaits me there. Nothing, it seems. A tower with no ships appears on d-scan, and as I appear in the system eight kilometres from the wormhole I don't bother wasting time exploring.

I jump back to C2a and poke through the high-sec exit, which puts me in a system in the Tash-Murkon region and single-digit hops from Amarr. That may come in handy, I suppose, but not for me, not now. I'm heading back. I return to w-space and cross C2a to return to C3b, where I prepare to head home and through our static wormhole, when, hello, a Prorator transport ship and Mammoth hauler have woken up. D-scan puts the two ships at the tower, so I warp there in the hopes that I have caught them before they've completed whatever planet gooing they intend to do.

Unlike the Mammoth pilot, I'm in luck. There is movement from both ships, but it is the hauler that leaves the tower first, warping to what is probably a customs office. I follow behind, already aligned to the office as I watch the Mammoth's engines spool up, and arrive almost before the hauler does. Indeed, by the time the recalibration delay has ended after I decloak I still can't lock on to the hauler, as it is still dropping out of warp. That's okay, I can wait. And once the Mammoth is vulnerable I am locking on, and burning towards the hauler to give it a bump.

My guns rip the Mammoth apart and, when it explodes, I even manage to catch the pod. One volley later and I have a corpse to loot, and a wreck to loot and shoot. That was quick and clinical. I reload my guns, turn my cloaky Loki strategic cruiser around, and return to monitor the tower, where the Prorator has been swapped to a Bestower hauler. This pilot's not a complete buffoon, though, and doesn't take the chance that I'm not watching him, staying instead safely nestled in the tower's force field.

The second pilot swaps to an Anathema covert operations boat and launches probes to scan. There may be plenty to see, depending on who opened the wormholes here, and I suppose the number of connections makes determining my entrance more difficult. As far as I can tell, the Anathema only scans his own system, not leaving to scout others, so I can't tell if he's just confirming a lack of new connections or finding the ones that are here for the first time. That makes it difficult to know if the podded pilot will come back through their static exit to low-sec or the high-sec connection in C2a.

I loiter by C3b's exit for a while anyway, not wanting to show my face in the low-sec system, but return to watch the tower when the Anathema is swapped for a stealth bomber. I am hoping the Purifier will act as escort for his colleague's return, as I should be able to withstand a bomb and can melt stealth bombers pretty quickly. But rather than see the Purifier warp to a wormhole, he just sits there. I wait and watch, watch and wait, but when I take a short break to feed my cats and return to see still no change I think it's probably time to move on.

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Tags: anathema, bestower, chimera, eve online, hulk, imicus, mammoth, mmorpg, orca, penny ibramovic, phoenix, probe, prorator, purifier, pvp, scanning, w-space

Caught between reds and blues

Aii's in our neighbouring system, scanning amongst 'lots of towers, four piloted ships'. That sounds good to me. I poke the home system to confirm there are no new connections, then head through our static wormhole to join my colleague. Four towers light up my directional scanner from the K162, but with only three ships, which are a Hurricane battlecruiser, Damnation command ship, and Bhaalgorn battleship. I'm pretty sure Aii can count better than me, and warping around shows that there is much more to see. More towers, more ships, and 'all the ships are in towers'.

His majesty speaks! Aii's scanning is boring one of the locals, it seems, but there's not much we can do about that. Aii's been looking for the static exit to high-sec empire space that should be somewhere in the system, but I imagine that there's little chance of using it uninterrupted at this point. As much as I don't want to waste any effort put in to scanning, I feel our time will be better spent collapsing out static wormhole and starting with a fresh constellation, rather than risk coming home from high-sec and finding warp bubbles in our way.

Aii's cool with the plan to start again, so we head home and start shoving massive ships through the wormhole. The locals may have found our K162, or they may not, but it doesn't look like it's being monitored as we destabilise it, seeing how the chatty C3er talks to himself. Maybe he doesn't realise that after-images of capsuleers remain in the local channel for a few minutes, even when they've left the system. Regardless, our ships come and go without interruption, and the wormhole collapses with just the right amount of encouragement. We can scan afresh.

The only signature to find at home is the new static wormhole, and we jump through to see a rather less bustling class 3 w-space system. A single tower and lack of ships shows up on d-scan, and my notes even tell me that this system has a connection to high-sec. I feel a bit better about abandoning the previous C3 and it's high-sec static wormhole now. All we have to do is resolve the connection to use it, and I warp out to launch probes and start scanning. Aii sees wrecks on d-scan, though, and Sleeper wrecks too. That's curious, particularly as one of the wrecks is a Sleeper battleship, so that it must be in a combat site.

The most likely explanation for the wrecks is that Sleeper combat was interrupted, so we ought to be cautious. Even so, as long as we don't blithely ignore the warning signs to come here and shoot Sleepers ourselves we should be relatively safe, given that whoever was attacked has disappeared, and I perform a blanket scan of the system to start looking for wormholes. Nine anomalies, thirteen signatures, and a ship light up my probes, where swapping to d-scan spots the Proteus strategic cruiser briefly. We have a cloaky visitor.

I sit watch on the local tower, whilst Aii monitors our wormhole. A scout will likely notice the new connection and want to investigate, whereas a local will probably return to safety of his tower. A second ship appears on my probes, which remain safely hidden outside the system, and the Ares interceptor is good at convincing us that these are hunters and not scouting for Sleepers. Even more convincing is that when the Proteus finds our K162, jumping in and out with the speed of a scout seeing just one signature, Aii pegs the pilot as a member of AHARM. AHARM don't look for Sleepers, they look for other capsuleers.

One Hurricane appears on d-scan near Aii, a second joins him to turn up in range of my d-scan. A Sleipnir command ship comes and goes, and just as I think some combat may start a Buzzard covert operations boat appears at the local tower with the potential to throw a spanner in the works. Can't he see the two Hurricanes in the system? Doesn't he check d-scan before crawling out of the tower's force field to launch scanning probes? And core scanning probes at that! Whatever could have been about to happen may just fizzle now that an unknown has been added to the equation, and one that is scanning. But that just spurs me in to scanning too. If the ships aren't going to be fazed by the Buzzard, what's one more set of scanning probes?

I'm not just going to scan willy-nilly, though. I'm aiming for the ships. The two Hurricanes are sitting together in empty space, and have been joined by an Onyx heavy interdictor, and my curiosity wants me to see what they're doing. I cluster my probes around them and, with ships to aim for, resolve a wormhole indirectly. I warp in, not fearing the Onyx's warp bubble, to get a couple of surprises. First, the wormhole is not a K162 but the system's exit to high-sec. Second, the pilots are blue.

I open a channel to the Onyx pilot, wanting to at least let him know about our presence in the constellation and not give him more surprises, and we share some intelligence. AHARM have connected in to their w-space system and there's been some to-and-fro, and before too long am told that there is a 'big fleet incoming' and that I should 'get safe'. Can do, chief. I remain a safe distance from the wormhole but prepare to shift more if needed, when a couple of Proteuses and a Devoter HIC drop out of warp, two on the edge of the Onyx's bubble and one diving through to the wormhole itself. Some weapon fire is exchanged and the blues are forced to make a tactical withdrawal to high-sec.

A third Proteus warps in a little late to the party, with a Loki strategic cruiser on d-scan somewhere. As my probes are still available I scan for more wormholes, taking my merry time in finding one, and warping to see a half-mass K162 from class 5 w-space: our blue friends' home system, and the one AHARM are currently abusing. That's the only other wormhole I can find, though, and as our allies tell us that AHARM are outnumbering them to the point where we won't make a difference to the odds it sounds like time to call it a night. The Onyx and Hurricanes make it back from high-sec to their C5 home, no doubt with scouts ensuring the route is safe, and Aii and I get home thanks to being entirely ignored. Our exports can wait until another day.

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Tags: ares, bhaalgorn, buzzard, damnation, devoter, eve online, hurricane, loki, mmorpg, onyx, penny ibramovic, proteus, scanning, sleipnir, w-space

Yesterday's Legion

A continued lack of new sites gives me an easy start to the evening, as I resolve our static wormhole and jump to the neighbouring class 3 w-space system. A tower with no ships graces my directional scanner, which is a change from an unoccupied system seven months ago but hardly gets my heartbeat pumping in expectation. I launch probes, blanket the system, and locate the tower. No anomalies and five signatures indicates a pretty active system, making me wonder how many of those signatures will resolve to be wormholes. Two, it turns out: the static exit to low-sec and a K162 from class 4 w-space. The other signatures are just gas.

I exit w-space to appear in a boring-looking system in the Khanid region, bookmarking this side of the wormhole before heading back in to and across C3a to see what waits for me in C4a. A tower, Orca industrial command ship, and Badger hauler are on d-scan, but as I appear in the system seven kilometres from the wormhole I refuse to get excited. I locate the tower, as standard operating procedure, confirm the ships are lacking pilots, and launch probes to scan once more. With four anomalies but thirty-two signatures in the system I think it's fair to say that the locals aren't industrialists. Luckily, K162s are easy to find by their chubbiness, and I start sifting through the signatures.

Here's a K162 already. How lucky, it comes from class 1 w-space too. I'm going in. D-scan is clear in C1a, but not for long. A Tornado battlecruiser appears in the system and I damn myself for not moving from the wormhole and cloaking sooner. The session-change cloak drops with the Tornado still on d-scan, potentially giving the battlecruiser time to see me, but if he did it's just bad timing. And now the Tornado is, uh, launching probes? That's an odd choice of ship to scan with, but whatever. Still, the probes may not be his, particularly as a few probes turn to half-a-dozen after the Tornado 'cloaks', so I presume the Tornado actually warped away and the probes belong to someone else. Maybe I haven't thwarted a potential ambush yet.

Shev is sitting on the C4a-side of the wormhole to C1a, which lets me warp off to explore what else may be around. A tower with the Tornado appears on d-scan as I cross the system, along with a Ferox battlecruiser and Badger, and even though they are all together they aren't really. I warp through a bubble trap to see the Tornado inside the tower's force field, but the Ferox and Badger floating unpiloted in a second bubble trap. It's unorthodox, but, again, whatever. A Tengu warps to the tower, the strategic cruiser appearing far outside the force field at first, moving to join the Tornado after presumably having avoided its own bubble traps. I'm sure that if you have to manoeuvre around bubbles to enter your own tower then you're doing something wrong. Whatever.

Despite having got my colleagues excited about a Tornado in space, and then a scanning Tengu, both ships in C1a go off-line shortly after they reach the tower, leaving space empty again. And it's pretty empty space, as scanning reveals just the one anomaly and two signatures, the second being an exit to high-sec empire space. It's a good exit, though, even with the tight mass limits of C1 wormholes, as it leads to the Lonetrek region and a mere five hops to Jita. I spot a red pilot in the system and am asked to pass a message along. Who am I to refuse a request from the boss of Transmission Lost? The pilot turns out to be chatty, so whilst we have a pleasant conversation I take the opportunity to scan and rat. But I don't find much this being high-sec, and head back to w-space before long.

Shev has found a K162 in C4a coming from more class 4 w-space, and in C4b another K162 from a C4. I follow behind him and warp to the wormhole coming from C4c, which flares before I get around to moving on. Was that Shev? 'My probes are out', he says, not answering my ambiguous question directly but telling me what I needed to know all the same. I hold on the wormhole for what seems like a bit too long, and a Dramiel appears. I think I'll stay cloaked and on this side of the wormhole, thank you very much, as the faction frigate can probably catch and hold me easily enough for whatever ship he's working with. Unfortunately, I may not have much choice about staying cloaked.

I start to back away from the wormhole, increasing my distance to prevent accidental decloaking, when a Legion warps in. The strategic cruiser has come from the direction of C4a, much like I did, and as I didn't expect to encounter any ships I haven't moved off the line between the two wormholes. This puts our two ships on a collision course, with the Legion approaching the wormhole and me backing off. I slam my Loki in to an evasive manoeuvre, but my own strategic cruiser can't get out of the way before our two ships get close enough to force my cloak to drop. That's bad. Thankfully, these two pilots weren't expecting to see anyone either, at least not here, and I am able to pulse my micro warp drive and re-activate my cloak before I am actively targeted.

Once cloaked I change vector again, hoping that I can move sufficiently far and unpredictably so that the inevitable attempt of the Dramiel to locate me fails. Sure enough, the frigate burns hard and buzzes around the wormhole, hoping to bump my ship and reveal me again, but I manage to stay hidden. But only just, it seems, as the Dramiel manages to get within a few kilometres of my Loki. Rather than move slowly, compounding my original error of being predictable, I should probably just warp out and return. Of course, I could just leave the system behind me, as I don't need to jump through the wormhole I was nearly caught on to get home. But Shev does, and I can at least provide some intelligence for him.

The ships have both gone by the time I've bounced off a planet and got back at range to the wormhole. Shev confirms they are in C4c with him, and that he quite likes the Legion's ship name. 'What is it? I was too busy panicking to update d-scan.' He tells me, and I can't help but laugh. 'That's the Legion that I beat to the punch in hunting the Covetors yesterday.' It's probably not an uncommon name for scanning ships, but because the ships are red, and Shev recognises the corporation as the one that almost ambushed him later yesterday evening, I would say we've bumped in to the same pilots on consecutive days. 'Taunt him about it!' And, bless him, he does. We have the best pilots.

The Legion and Dramiel disappear, not rising to the taunts, leaving us alone. And as scanning further back through this unoccupied and empty w-space will probably only lead to their class 6 home, we may as well call it a night. Shev returns to C4b without any problems, and we both head back the way we came. I cross C4a to C3a and jump home to hide, and Shev pokes in to C1a to take one last look at the rest of the constellation. All is quiet, except for Aii harvesting gas in the C3. It's been a fun evening of pilot interaction, even if there was no shooting involved.

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Tags: badger, dramiel, eve online, ferox, legion, loki, mmorpg, orca, penny ibramovic, pvp, scanning, tengu, tornado, w-space

Race for the prize

Okay, I'm not going home. I can't scan my way through a null-sec system with an astonishing eleven wormholes without at least trying to exploit this opportunity. The class 5 w-space system I've ended up in may have a static connection to a C6, but the supposed threat of deadly w-space shouldn't stop me looking for it. I pause at the wormhole, re-launch my scanning probes, and start sifting through the fourteen signatures. And I realise again why I initially decided to turn around and head home.

The fourteen signatures aren't really a problem, as I could sift through them without too much effort. It's more that I don't really know what I'm looking for. K162s are nice and chubby, easily found and easily resolved, and from experience I know how to find wormholes in class 3 w-space. The guaranteed exit to k-space limits the type of static connection I will be looking for in a C3, and my notes often let me know the specific type. Exits to low-sec are chubby, high-sec not so much, and null-sec pretty weak. But looking for a wormhole to a C6 in class 5 w-space reduces me to scanning methodically.

I ignore rocks and gas, and then radar and magnetometric sites, until the wormhole appears. It must be the static connection, as it's too weak to be a K162, and its initial feel is that of a D845, I suppose. I doubt I'll remember that, or even need to rely on it at all, but there you go. And because I scanned for it I jump through it, appearing in C6a with a tower and Reaper frigate on my directional scanner. The tower has moved from my last visit seven months ago, and locating it has the completely unsurprising result of seeing the Reaper unpiloted. What is interesting, though, is that C6a has a static connection to class 3 w-space. That could be worth looking for.

A blanket scan reveals five anomalies and ten signatures, and the first signature resolves to be a wormhole. I would say that was quick, but as the connection is an exit to low-sec empire space I need to keep scanning for the C3. A second wormhole gives me a second exit, this one leading out to null-sec k-space, and a third wormhole isn't third-time-lucky, as I warp to see a K162 from more class 6 w-space. Finally, I uncover the static connection, and jump in to C3f. I would remark at having to use 'f' to denote a w-space system, but what comes out instead is 'MINERS!'

D-scan holds the beautiful site of a mining operation in progress. Three Covetor exhumers, mining drones, a Bustard transport ship, and an Orca industrial command ship all get my attention, the tower and Heron frigate registering but only barely. The hunt is on. I move away from the wormhole, cloak, and warp across the system so I can launch scanning probes covertly. Unfortunately, the miners are on one side of the system and the tower the other, so I can't get out of range of everyone, assuming the Orca is piloted. And, to add a complication, I see on d-scan a Legion strategic cruiser decloaked and launching his own combat probes.

Clever boy. He has decided to launch probes in range of the tower instead of the miners, knowing that the miners would be taking more care to monitor d-scan than would a pilot sitting safe in a tower merely providing a boost. That's just what I would do. So I do. Not only do I have miners to hunt but I have a race against another hunter. Let's see who gets them first. I fling my probes out of the system and re-activate my cloak, warping across to get back in range of the miners as I do. With the Covetors back on d-scan I start narrowing down their location. I get them in a five-degree beam soon enough, but place their range at 9 AU. I double-check the range, as there are lots of zeroes to add, and realise I need to get closer. I don't want the azimuth error such a distance could introduce.

I make sure my datum probe is in roughly the right place and warp across to what must be the planet closest to the miners, some 6 AU away, and look for the miners again. My probe is quite well positioned and needs only a minor adjustment to get it lined up with d-scan again. Another minor adjustment, this time to the range, and I am pretty much ready. So is Aii, apparently, having heard my call and navigated his way to the connecting C6 system. I warp my ship back the K162 as I arrange my probes around the datum, still aware that I'm potentially racing against the Legion, and knowing that as Covetors are relatively big I don't need to be too accurate. All looks good. 'Aii, jump.'

I hear the wormhole flare as my probes are already scanning the area I've assigned to them. It's a good result, resolving all three Covetors, the Bustard, and the mining drones. I don't care that the actual site is a bit fuzzy, as I'm not here to mine, and I recall my probes and fling both Aii and myself in to warp towards our targets, hoping I'm not sending us in to a bigger fleet that will get there moments earlier. I decloak early so that I am ready to shoot on landing, but perhaps a bit too early as we appear almost on top of two Covetors as they're actively recalling their drones. 'Pick a Covetor and start shooting.'

I pick a Covetor too, and start shooting, hurtling my Loki strategic cruiser towards the second to give it a nudge out of alignment. But the nudge is unnecessary, as we got lucky and picked a different exhumer each. Guns fire, launchers flare, and the first Covetor explodes in flames as a good industrial ship should. I catch the pod but don't manage to disrupt its warp drives, perhaps because I also have the second Covetor locked, so it flees as we turn our combined attention to the other ship. A second explosion ejects a second pod, which also manages to flee, leaving us to loot and shoot the two wrecks that are all that remains of the mining operation.

Cloaking for safety, the gravimetric site becomes empty of obvious ships and activity. That was a smooth and very exciting hunt. I'm happy Aii came along to help, bagging us the two ships that remained in the site, and apparently racing against another hunter only heightened the thrill. This was certainly worth taking the time to go deeper down the rabbit hole. I loiter in the rock field for a while, not really expecting a fleet to drop in to empty space, or the miners to return, but just relaxing. Aii locates the tower and notes ship changes, including the locals sending their own scanning boat out to see where we came from.

I am curious to know about the whereabouts Legion, as its ship name suggested it wasn't local, but leave Aii to ask the question. He's a miner too, and speaks their language better. But I only really spoke in the normally verboten local communication channel to let the Legion know he was beaten, not actually expecting an reply. A minute after he's mentioned, we both spot the Legion on d-scan briefly, presumably as he leaves the system, which I suppose answers the question in actions rather than words. That's good enough for me. It's time to head home. Lots of scanning, a remarkable system full of wormholes, and an exhilarating and successful hunt has made this an excellent evening indeed.

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Tags: bustard, covetor, eve online, heron, legion, loki, mmorpg, orca, penny ibramovic, pvp, reaper, scanning, w-space