In this installment our intrepid adventurers decided on their avenue of attack following several information gathering sessions and some party restructuring to fill roles left open from players unable to attend.

Roll Call:

• Autie – Druid/Sorcerer/Mystic Theurge (10th total level)
• Kevin – Monk (10th level)
• Jeff – Scout/Inquisitor (10th total level)
• NPC – Bard/Assassin (Scout’s Cohort) (8th total level)
• NPC – Fighter (Monk’s Cohort) (8th level)

The assault on Jorgenfist would test their cunning as they are badly outnumbered by massively powerful foes. With two cohorts in tow the party opted to venture to the fortress from where the Iron Peaks brush against the Sanos Forest. Though more rugged and difficult the party was traveling light.

The first night in the mountains the party heard a ruckus discovering it to be a Stone Giant hunting party that had cornered a Wyvern. The PCs saw an opportunity to gather more information and so engaged the giants and their hunting bears, The battle was quick with the party defeating the giants handily. The Wyvern helped finish the three dire bears.

The Monk decided to speak with the injured animal to offer it healing in return for information. Being unable to fly the creature agreed and eventually flew the monk nearer the Giant’s fortress for a first hand view of what awaited the party.

This insight lead the party to a cavern in the deep river valley below the fortress they hoped lead into the lower levels so as to avoide the horde of Giants and Kin surrounding the fortress on the surface. The party encountered and defeated undead arachnids in the cavern and parlayed their way through the Redcap warrens only to encounter the vicious kobold barbarian. Once dispatched the party was intercepted by an apparently friendly stone giant who also seeks Mokmurian’s death.

This new ally provided a quickly scrawled map to the entrance of the ancient Library where Mokmurian spends his time.

The party, following these directions defeat a pair of Trolls, a Runeslave Hill Giant and a massive Stone Golem.

The party earned their 11th level at this point and the session was ended.

A galaxy spiral filled with millions of stars and a sudden rush towards it to focus on a single yellow star with planets in orbit. Again the rush to a small brown planet surrounded with a field of debris and a slow turn and focus on two white wedge shapes drifting near the body. Zoom once again to the larger of the two as a small tri winged shape moves into the belly area. On the bridge of the star destroyer a figure dressed in gray looks out the main view port hands clasped behind his back as another figure hurries to his side.

-”Admiral Roanca the courier has docked and this was to be delivered to your hand from naval operations.”

-”I take it the data is encrypted for my eyes only, otherwise you would have reported the contents to me.”

-”Uh, yes sir, it is.”

-”Very well.”

A small silver cylinder is handed to the Admiral and he moves to the room just off the bridge ordering two Stormtroopers to seal it. Inside the silver tube is plugged into a console and the decryption cylinder is requested, as is the entry code. This done, the admiral waits for the seconds to get the message. On the bridge personnel go about there jobs as usual until a call goes out to the Caption from Space Traffic Control

-”Sir we have movement from target Alpha it looks like the mains are on line and she’s running hot and moving out from cover shall I alert Tactical for intercept?’

-”Yes and scramble all ships to launch, Sound battle stations, Communications any traffic from her?’

-”Sir, some kind of code was sent out local area, Decryption is working on it sir.”

-From Tactical “Sir it looks like everything is moving in to Alpha and docking no fighters are screening her but her batteries are clearing junk from her path so she has teeth sir.”

-”Any activity from the space dock?”

-”Some small ships moving away towards target Alpha sir.”

-”Intercept and stop anything coming out and alert the Reaper to await orders.”

Alert klaxons sound as people run to positions on the once quiet bridge, all over the star destroyer weapons mounts are activated and shields are raised as fighters are launched. The patrol-flight of TIE interceptors move at attack speed towards the smaller gray split wedge emerging from the cloud of space junk surrounding the planet, it’s shielding up and laser cannons clearing a path to clear space.

Admiral Roanca steps out of the briefing room as the storm troopers snap to attention, stopping he takes a moment to look at the now very active bridge. He motions the white armored Stormtroopers to follow him as he moves to the command station. The Caption reports in a summarized fashion finishing with “The fighter patrol is moving to intercept Alpha sir.”

-”Thank you Captain, have the fighters diverted to the corridor and intercept any traffic leaving the planet. Alert ground assault elements to load transports and transmit order IMP – 477801 to the Assault craft. Have the planet garrison alerted that we are taking the planet and to await the assault landing before moving out.” Turning to the green clad officer “I trust you agree Colonel?”

-”Yes Admiral I’ll have the heavy assault units loaded and ready to go within the hour.”

-From Tactical “Sir target Alpha is moving away at full thrust and vectoring to jump out of system.”

Flash to the brown planet below where the large and imposing figure of an armed Coynite enters the office of a much smaller human like fiure who is sitting at a worktable. The pale Criss dressed in flight gear looks up as the Coynite reports.

-”Sir operations reports that the New Home has broke orbit and the space dock is abandoned. Numerous reports of bombardment have come in. I have alerted the forces to be ready for an assault landing.”

-The Criss standing quickly “Are the fighters up yet?”

-”In the attack most of the fighters were destroyed we have but one heavy fighter left and it is being readied as we speak.”

-The Criss moves to gather weapons and gear “have the crew stand by I’ll be taking it out.”

The Coynite nods and leaves. A very short moment later as the Criss hurries to leave as explosions can be heard mixed with the whine of ion thrusters.

Zoom out and flash to a dark ship drifting in deep space a long distance away from any star. The dark boxy shape is approached by another small tri wing ship. On the bridge much the same scene is occurring with results on a smaller scale as orders are given to execute prisoners taken on at Socorro with the exception of one who is to be taken to the core on the shuttle that just arrived. Deep within the dark ship sits a human male in quiet meditation. Having heard the yells and the blaster fire he waits for his time to end then his cell opens to reveal armed guards. The guards, weapons at the ready, part as the tingle of force power washes over the sitting man and two dark robed figures step forward.

Flash to a busy starport where a Rodian exits a transport ship, takes a nervous look around and moves to enter the city beyond the port.

Flash to Saco- Jarel starport where a beat up Ghtroc transport lands with a Duro pilot needing repairs and a clean record of ship ownership. Slowly he sets the ship down in a bay next to a former Imperial customs frigate under going repairs.

Flash to a modified transport ship badly damaged and caught in the tractorbeam of a star destroyer being pulled in. In the smoke filled cabin is a human injured and bleeding but alive. On the bridge of the star destroyer is a blond woman with Captions rank going over the battle damage report and wondering where this person got such a modified ship. She will have to conduct the interrogation to get the full story.

Flash to a news report of an Imperial interdiction that destroyed a terrorist ship carrying arms and explosives. In the fight Lt. Dreft of the Imperial Navy was killed but his heroism will long be remembered and his proud mother is given the Imperial cross for her sons selfless actions. Setting in front of the monitor watching is a young woman in shock after hearing the news and her new friend is wondering why sitting next to her.

These events matter not to the universe they are but brief moments. Moments are dark for some just as moments are good for others some are as yet undetermined. The dark is the contrast to the light and each is important to the other, for without this contrast there is no change, there is no growth, and there is no learning, for those not wise enough to see. Only the individual chooses to hurt or help another, this will be remembered by those who have gained or lost by the action or inaction. The universe will turn and moments will pass until only the universe remains. When next you chance by something alive you might consider insignificant, should you remember look at it and consider for a moment how important its world is to it, and know this is the way the universe is towards us. It can be disheartening to realize that everything we might hold to be important is not, one might gain or be crushed by this knowledge. This is the gift given to us, not only to know but also to choose the path we might take be it good or bad and no amount of excuse making or perspective will change the fact that the individual is responsible. Consider the impact or consequences of your actions on others, it might matter little or be remembered long after. Still the universe will turn and things will be created, things will be destroyed and things will change.

The Tapani sector is located in the Colonies on the Shapani Bypass; trades route that is an off shoot of the Rimma Trade Route. The sector capital is Procopia, though the world of Tallaan is actually as important, because the main Imperial regional depot is located here.

Though Tapani isn’t in the Core, it might as well be; it is a vastly wealthy sector with political thumbs in almost every Imperial pie. Its noble families, most ardent supporters of the Emperor, have sent their sons and daughters into the most elite Imperial institutions, private schools, the Academy, the Navy, and the halls of power on Coruscant. And the results are starting to pay off house members now captain Star Destroyers, command worlds as moffs and governors, and sit in council with the Emperor himself.

Having invested so much in the Empire, Tapani sector is able to maintain a certain level of independence; while surrounding sectors are ruled directly by Imperial-appointed administrators, Tapani sector is permitted to choose its own leaders.

The sector economy is booming, which helps the Tapani lords afford their fine estates and huge luxury star cruisers. Tapani has a large population of highly educated workers, and its research facilities rank among the most productive in the Empire (especially those at Mrlsst Academy). There are about 70 systems in the sector, roughly a fifth have inhabitable worlds, which are heavily settled. Other systems also have settlements, but much smaller ones: research stations, military outposts, mining facilities, and so on.

The Tapani sector has a large number of temperate worlds within it, and an abundance of raw materials ripe for mining, including some which are relatively rare in the rest of the galaxy Tapani mining companies have been shipping trillions of tons of valuable ore to the Core annually for several thousand years). Tapani sector is one of the closest major sources of raw materials to the Core. This gives it an edge when competing with sectors further out which must raise their prices to cover higher transportation costs.

Geographically, Tapani sector lies a bit off the Rimma Trade Route. The Rimma run, as it is known in trader slang, ranges from the Core all the way out to the remote Kathol sector. It used to be quite a way off the beaten path, but centuries ago some Republic scouts blazed a big shortcut right through the sector that cut days off the Rimma run. The new bypass brought Tapani sector into a major trade route, and that livened the place up a bit. On star charts, the shortcut is called the Shapani Bypass, but most folks call it the Bacta Run or the Bacta Bypass instead, since it was established to get Bacta into the Core faster. Thyferra, the major production center for the Empire’s Bacta, is just a few days travel away though not in Tapani sector itself).

There are two distinct parts to Tapani sector: the Expanse and the Freeworlds Region. The Expanse is an ore rich area of space under the control of noble houses the remnants of the small stellar empire which once ruled the sector centuries ago. It is made up of seven provinces, which make up specific house holdings. The sector capital, Procopia, is an independent world which, by tradition, is governed by the ruling coalition.

Slowly encroaching on the Expanse is the Freeworlds Region, a series of systems on the border of the sector. The Freeworlds, which was once the backward fringe of sector, has become powerful thanks to its position on two major trade routes, the Bypass and the Giju Run (an ancient trade route). Because most Expense ore pass through the Freeworlds, there is a lot bickering about the high tariffs the Freeworlds place on Expanse shipping.

Despite its distance from the Core region, by tradition the Tapani sector is considered a part of the Core community. The Tapani nobles are constantly going to and from Coruscant, to attend to business there, but mostly so Emperor can keep an eye on them and they on him.

The Freeworlds have successfully maintained a high level of independence from the houses of the Tapani Sector for several centuries. At the same time they have been protected from gross Imperial interference by the arrangements the houses made with the Emperor. This state of affairs is taking the best of both worlds and has worked for thirty years.

Planet Tallaan
Type: Terrestrial
Temperature: Temperate
Atmosphere: Type I (breathable)
Hydrosphere: Moderate
Gravity: Standard
Terrain: Urban, plains, forests
Length of Day: 22 standard hours
Length of Year: 355 local days
Sapient Species: Humans, Herglics, and Mrlssti
Starports: 100 Imperial class
Population: 67 billion
Planet Function: Trade, Imperial sector headquarters
Government: Trade Commission
Tech Level: Space
Major Exports: Trade goods, starships, land vehicles, and high tech goods.
Major Imports: Foodstuffs, Low tech goods, and medicinal goods.

Tallaan is a mild and temperate world. Located at the nexus of the Giju Run and the Shapani Bypass, it is the most active trading world in the entire sector. With few exceptions, everything that goes into or out of Tapani sector passes through the Tallaan system.

Tallaan serves as the unofficial seat of the Empire in the sector. The Tallaan Imperial Shipyards are the largest in the region, and Tallaan also serves as sector headquarters for numerous Imperial bureaus and organizations. It is suspected by many that the Imperial infrastructure on Tallaan is organized to allow the world to serve as the staging area should the Imperials decide to take direct control of the sector.

The Giju 820 complex is one of many on the planet covering an area of 20 km diameter. Ships [both large and small] land and launch from the complex transporting cargo and beings to the orbiting stations in the system and beyond. The complex is rated as an Imperial Class starport offering refit and repair services as needed based on the planet.

The area surrounding Giju 820 is a support system of warehouses, housing, and markets connected to an elevated maglev mass transit system and secondary roads all connecting to the 820 complex. Shuttles also connect to other locations on the planet and for those with the time the maglev and road system also connects to other villages, towns, and complexes.

Housing: Housing is divided into 2 forms, permanent [those who live on the planet] and temporary or transit [for those moving though]. Both can be either luxury or economy depending on the funds available.

Culture: The spirit of fierce independence that characterizes the Freeworlds is strongest on Tallaan. Its people are driven to success, and bristle at the suggestion that they have grown rich thanks only to house ore shipping and the Bacta trade.

Nobles from the Expanse are regularly reminded through the action’s of Tallaan’s citizens that they cannot expect to be treated with deference and unwarranted respect. On Tallaan, one’s family name can be a source of pride, but Tallaani are expected to make there own reputations.

Tallaan has a large population of migrant workers, who live here part of the year to manage trades and transfer cargoes. There are a large number of aliens of all types living on Tallaan, and most have at least a small enclave somewhere on the planet where they gather to live among their own kind.

Economy: Tallaan derives most of its economy from the trade passing through its system. It also has a few prominent mid- and high-tech industries of its own it hosts several prominent spaceship manufacturing firms (most notably the Tapani Starship Cooperative), as well as companies that make speeders, repulsorlift vehicles, tractors, and other transports.

Since it can obtain raw ore at a very low price, its goods can be manufactured and sold far under standard galactic prices. Though there are superior and better-established brands around, Tallaani vehicles are popular in the Colonies and Inner Rim because of the low prices and high quality.

Points of Interest: The Tallaan spaceports are huge complexes, some as large as 25 kilometers. Girding each one are hundreds of kilometers of warehouses and housing complexes for the temporary population. There are hundreds of established markets at different locations on the planet, each specializing In a certain sort of trade; some deal in droids, others in grain, while still others deal in spacecraft or ferrocrete.

The largest alien enclave on Tallaan is the Herglic district Soun Giju, literally, ‘Little Giju.” Surprisingly, Soun Giju more resembles a Herglic community on Giju than do those on Lamuir whereas Lamuir Herglics have adapted their culture to coexist with humans, most of the Herglics living in Soun Giju are natives of Giju rather than the Tapani sector.

Humans and aliens are welcome in Soun Giju, but visitors must get used to the over sized structures. Humans have a difficult time performing normally simple tasks, such as reaching the controls to a blast door or climbing steps. This is the perfect place to purchase Herglic made devices, hire a Herglic, or immerse oneself in Herglic cuisine.

Offices and corp interests in the 820:

Xizor Transport Systems, or XTS as it is often called, is an immense shipping megacorporation which has a territory encompassing all of Imperial space and various peripheral regions such as the Tion Hegemony, Hutt space, and the Corporate Sector Authority. Its huge fleet of container ships and bulk freighters haul cargo throughout the galaxy, and its many exclusive imperial contracts allow it to enter markets other shippers can’t. It also maintains a large fleet of extremely fast and well-armed courier ships for high-paying clients with small but valuable cargoes.

XTS is not based in Tapani sector, but it does maintain a regional office and major shipping hub on Tallaan.

Data Equity Management, Inc. (DEMI)
Based in a huge corporate park on Procopia, DEMI manages data and inventories for hundreds of Tapani-based companies. Other megacorporations generate huge amounts of information and inventories, usually needing millions of credits of computer equipment and hundreds of employees just to perform data entry updates. DEMI provides this service with the latest supercomputers and a staff of tens of thousands of employees, for a modest fee. This service frees up important credits and personnel to perform more useful duties.

Lanthe Artifice, based on Gilliana, produces a stunning array of droid lines and AI neurobrains. Lanthe opted to settle in Tapani sector 11 years ago as a client company of House Cadriaan, while Danthe [the sister company] went on to set up shop on the Core world Corulag. Ironically, against all expectations, today it is Danthe which has been taken over, not Lanthe. While Lanthe continues to enjoy autonomy, Danthe is now but a subsidiary of Arakyd Corp.

Lanthe recently lost a key manufacturing planet in a mysterious explosion, which has all but shut down its production of security probots for at least a year.

Tampson Consolidated, Incorporated (TamCo) is a large, multi-faceted megacorp based on Javis. TamCo, first came to the sector two decades ago from the Mid Rim.

The Mining Guild is a loosely knit trade organization that represents companies and megacorporations that control the extraction, processing and transportation of roughly 75 percent of the Empire’s raw materials. The other 25 percent produced is by intra system mining companies, government operations, and nonmembers.

As a trade association, the Guild represents the interests of the owners of member companies. It exists primarily to allow member companies to pool resources, collude in fixing rawmat prices, and present a united front to governments and megacorporatlons bent on controlling them. Resources and services are made available to member companies as requested.

The range of resources and services are vast. The Guild possesses an immense fleet of rawmat transports that can be leased out to member companies. A large team of high-powered lawyers and lobbyists look out for the Guild’s Interests on Coruscant, and ensure that imperial nationalization efforts do not encroach on the assets of Guild member companies. The paramilitary Guild Enforcers step in when member assets need protecting from danger – usually from pirates, civil wars and, increasingly, Rebel strikes at imperial production centers.

Imperial Terminal – Heavy security, ID is checked at the gate and access is restricted by Imperial forces, delays can be expected without clearance or appointment.

Free Worlds Security Forces Terminal – Same as Imperial Terminal for security. Uniforms are different but gear is Imperial standard.

House Consulate Terminal [All houses have them] – Another high security area controlled by House forces in distinctive uniforms but gear is Imperial standard.

Common Sector Media Sources:
Most of the media networks available in the colonies are active in Tapani sector. There are many news nets which send courier droids into Tapani sector to shoot out there micro broadcasts before the hyper jump to the next scheduled system. The press is fairly free in Tapani sector though the houses can occasionally bribe or threaten a reporter into silence when he uncovers a particularly sensitive bit of information (either that or they just disappear). Here is a sampling of news services that cover the sector.

Colonial News Net (CNN) – A network that covers most of the sectors in the colonies. CNN is pro-Imperial and very much a champion of law and order. This causes some friction between Imperial political offices and CNN because the latter expects the Empire to obey its own edicts and laws. When its representatives fail to do so CNN does not hesitate to criticize the offending officials.

Coruscant Daily NewsFeed (CDF) – The CDF reports on events in the Imperial capital and gives both readers and viewers a glimpse into life on Coruscant. It can often be relied upon to profile those in favor at Court (it is always useful to know who one must flatter) and report on surface events at Court.

HoloNet Free Republic (HFR) – The HFR is a pro-Rebellion newsnet that broadcasts in nearly every Imperial held system including all of the Tapani systems.

Imperial HoloVision (IHV) – One of the galaxy’s most powerful and influential news services. IHV has over 28.000 bureaus on planets throughout the Empire and various independent powers around it.

Independent Traders Infonet (ITI) – The ITI is a semi legal publication serving the spacer community. It is not circulated through normal newsnet channels but is easily found in spaceport kiosks.

Tapani Free Press (TFP) – The TFP is based on Procopia and acts as the general newsnet for the entire sector. The TFP is an independent and beholden to no one.

Recently our industrial corporation in EVE Online was approached by a group located in a low security pocket to provide supplies (Alliance A). Normally, this would be a simple matter of taking and filling orders with various ship chassis and modules. However, the negotiations ceased when our alliance members notified the command staff that their miners had been attacked and destroyed while mining in high security by another entity (Alliance B) working with this initial contact to defend their contested space. Was it their fault directly? No.

Combative Industrialists do not fault any player for seeking PVP opportunities. However, we have a strict ‘no supply’ policy if a known buyer (Alliance A) is associated with a known aggressor (Alliance B). Realizing that the initial contact has no control over these wild cards it was unfortunate for both sides that a supply deal could not be arranged.

So i found myself wondering, ‘How can a PVP alliance, intent on holding a low sec pocket, not have some sort of industrial wing to supply their obvious need for materials of war?‘ Further, why would any PVP focused entity actively hunt the people they so obviously need to fuel their habits? Wouldn’t this simply drive up the cost of those combat ships and modules they use to wreak havoc upon their true enemies?

In addition, if you call out to a group to assist in defending ‘your’ space wouldn’t it be better to understand that their actions will directly reflect on your reputation and plans to remain in a specific area. If you unleash ‘rabid dogs’ on a region you had better be ready to deal with the consequences or the offending party.

The only sane answer i can think of is lack of diplomatic awareness regarding your ‘allies’ and their motivations. Consider it a ‘Butterfly Effect’; your decision directly effected an entire region of space thus making things much more difficult for you and your pilots in the long run.

As an aside, bullying industrial ‘carebears’ is one of the most idiotic play styles no matter how your demented psyche justifies it. At some point you’re going to need to buy something from the market, how the hell do you suppose that all gets there??

clipped from: MMORPG

There are two basic kinds of game players; those for whom the most important aspect of the game is winning, and those for whom the most important aspect of the game is playing. For the former, the end-game is **the** destination; for the latter, the journey and not some final goal is the most important.

One might also very loosely define the first category as hardcore players, and the latter as casuals.  For those whom winning is the most important thing, getting there first or among the first “means”, to them, that they win. Burning through any new content first is, to them, the major goal of playing any MMORPG.  These hardcore players tend to be much more focused and involved in the game, and in talking about the game, and in populating forums about their game, than casuals. This focus on the game leads them to take positions in the industry; hardcore players tend to become the developers and the fan-site gatekeepers of the industry.  The hardcore treats gaming like a career; the casual treats the game like a hobby, and so the former tends to drive the functional path of the genre as it develops, because theyr’e the ones that end up in positions to make decisions about the structure of future games.

The hardcores brought an energy and enthusiasm into a genre that quickly exploded in popularity, but then hit what appeared to be customer base wall a couple of years after World of Warcraft was launched.  Although many  millions of people play games online, like hearts or poker at community sites, those people were not gravitating towards online MMORPGs. It quickly became apparent that online MMOGs were competing for the same base of players. After World of Warcraft, few new players were being lured into the western MMORPG market.

The reason for this is simple; virtually all MMORPGs are essentially the same game with various minor tweaks here and there, like better graphics, more character customization, wings, pets, real-money stores, pvp, etc.  Since the bulk of western developers were culled from the powergamer mold, they essentially all think alike, and basically perfected their powergamer-oriented game with World of Warcraft.

Now, some may argue that WoW is not a true powergamer game, but here’s my perspective: the powergamer developers built and revised WoW over the years around a fairly simple maxim: alienate as few powergamers as possible while appealing to as many casuals as possible thereby maximizing profitability. Second to that is: throw in whatever other games offer that seem to appeal to significant players if possible so that WoW players don’t have to leave WoW to get the “stufff” the other game offers.

The reason new MMORPGs can’t compete with WoW when it comes to size of player base is simple: all those other games are simply revised versions of WoW.  They offer no significant reason to start over or go to  a game that might fail and be a waste of money, when playing in Azeroth is money in the bank.

So, why do developers keep trying to sell us on WoW variations instead of trying something fundamentally different? Why do we literally have hundreds of MMORPGs out there and maybe one or two is functionally different from WoW? Is it because they wish to copy WoW’s success?

No, the simple fact is that virtually all developers and idea men that gain entrance into the arena of game development must go through the same gatekeeping process, which means they have to be powergamers and have  a powergamer mentality, which in turn means that they can only imagine games that are WoW-like; roles that fulfill group functions, groups that have access to content that can’t be accomplished solo; raids that can accomplish content that can’t be achieved by groups; a linear path of progression towards a guild-raiding end-game comprised of exclusively superior rewards and content, all centered around career-level investments of online time.

To the powergamer, this is what an MMORPG “means”, and playing the game any other way, or for any other reason, is so alien to their thought process they can only muster contempt and ridicule for anyone that talks about offline progression or equitable solo rewards.

The powergamers that brought the necessary energy and commitment to the MMORPG genre to get it started have become the entrenched system, guarding the gateways and pumping out one failed attempt to draw customers away from WoW after another, becoming so desperate that they even offer their games for free.  That has worked to some extent, but it is pushing the game industry into a certain business model that a lot of gamers abhor: the cash shop. It’s hard to call a game with a cash shop a game, isn’t it? It would be like Green Bay buying yards in the middle of a football game.

And so the MMORPG genre is stalled out, not because there is no more room for new, different, successful games, but because the powergamer oligarchy cannot imagine outside of their theme-park, linear progression, end-game, group-oriented,online- time-centric box. If they could, then we’d have true sandbox games, classless models, solo-oriented games, and offline progresion models … but the fact is that we don’t, and the reason we don’t is simply because the developers as a whole can’t fathom that people unlike them would play a game for reasons entirely foreign to their mentality.

I have on rare occasions taken part in PVP style game play. Depending on the game it can be amusing. I enjoy FPS team based or solo hunt/kill style of play in various games like Crysis, Left 4 Dead and Fear to name a few. I don’t get the same thrill from Counter Strike style games as the motivation and settings are generally less than appealing.

I have engaged in PVP activities in EVE Online with mixed results and feelings about the whole affair. Solo PVP in EVE is fast and dirty. It’s a game of number crunching between skills, gear and ship bonuses. Toss into that knowledge of the entire EVE database of common fits you might face and you have a kill-to-thrill ratio unlike most other games i’ve known. Add to this that if you lose, you lose the ship and everything on it and possibly your pod if you’re in the wrong place when the ship goes pop. That’s real loss in game time, in game currency and general effort.

I have little time or interest in competing with other players over territory or ego so generally PVP in EVE is quite limited. We don’t live in low or null sec so opportunities are less than plentiful. This is how we like it since most of our membership is limited in time dedicated to being in a ship due to real life.

I have not tried the PVP in Star Wars: The Old Republic because i can’t imagine it being anything other than power players beating the crap out of noobs with their uber gear. It’s all about the buffs and hardware you’re carrying and there’s no real loss since you and your gear clone to the nearest medical facility. How does it enhance my game play? why should i care to pit myself against other players when the galaxy is quite varied in it’s content and threats.

Once i maxed my levels in Star Wars Galaxies i would hang out in Restus battlefield to farm tough mobs or just hang out with friends. The engagements quickly got stale and i returned to soloing Krayt Dragons, Rancors and Night Sisters but this was after they had obliterated my primary interest; crafting.

I am not a PVP player and i honestly can’t say that i ever will be. I think you need to have an aggressive streak to really enjoy PVP. Apparently i don’t.

So far, i enjoy the story and the variety of settings. The combat missions are fairly challenging if you’re not the correct level but still fall into a button smash fest.

Something about having to run from location to location makes the overall experience less than appealing to me. I enjoy the scenery but not that much.

I have been flying EVE ships for so long that jumping from one system to another has spoiled me on movement. Yes sometimes it’ll be 20+ jumps to get to a target system but it’s ‘fast’ based on what I’m blowing past in warp from gate to gate in a system.

The Star Wars mechanics lend themselves to button smashing and cool down timer familiarity. Miss the sequence once and you’ll spoil a well placed power stroke or blaster bolt.

I’m playing a Sith Warrior on one server and a Bounty Hunter on another. I did this so that in the event one server is full i can still get on and blow stuff up. My Bounty Hunter is part of a guild but it still feels like I’m all alone most of the time. I’m guessing it’s because everyone is working up levels at their own pace thus scattered across the universe. In EVE our corp may be small but we’re usually only a few jumps away from each other and willing to fleet up and grind missions or asteroids depending on what’s on the menu. Maybe the ‘community’ aspect of the Star Wars game will grow and evolve but it feels barren at the moment.

Overall i feel like this game is going to be a flash in the pan for me. I miss the original Star Wars Galaxies MMO but I’ll never be able to capture the same immersion in the setting and story so i will ever remain a Pod Pilot in the service of our galactic merchant empire in EVE Online.