21000 years in the future, we're still there March 13, 2014 6:46 AM   Subscribe

It's been over a year now since Plate of Beans, Inc. was founded in EVE Online (well, more like 1 year +1 month), and we've had many new adventures since the previous post on MetaTalk.

We've maintained our territory inside of our wormhole, and the base we established there provides a valuable defensive shield for players who extract and process the rich planetary resources of the system or harvest various gas clouds.

We have also joined an alliance, Solar Destiny (SOLA), which is mainly a PVP focused group based in a low-sec region of Amarr Empire space. SOLA has proven over the past few months to have some top-notch pilots, fleet leadership, and tactical cunning. There was a lengthy evaluation process to make sure that the culture of the alliance would mesh with the culture of Metafilter in general and they have so far surpassed expectations (an unexpected find in an MMO?). They are a great bunch to fly with and really add a lot of fun to the game.

We've had a couple of wars with other corporations/alliances since joining SOLA and have come out on top. The most recent and ongoing war has been instigated by a corporation which seems to have no interest in actually...fighting. We've destroyed a number of their customs offices and stations (with a couple of dreadnaughts even!), but continue renewing the war declaration. We've had some fun simply speculating about their motives for continuously engaging in a losing war.

256 (Machagon in game) is organizing a Rifter PVP roam on Monday. The Rifter is one of the best combat frigates in the game, and only takes a couple of days to train for. If you've been curious about EVE and want to play with other Mefites, gallivanting about the galaxy blowing up ships (or being blown up, which is just as fun) is a great way to get started. This link extends the free trial from 14 days to 21 (note: a full account upgrade gives a boost to our corporate funds). You can also follow our exploits at MeFightClub.
posted by polywomp to MetaFilter-Related at 6:46 AM (57 comments total) 27 users marked this as a favorite

FWIW, I'll drop this here.
It took me awhile to get up the nerve to join EVE as like most people I thought it sounded really really really intimidating. TBH, that intimidation factor is oversold. Yes, absolutely the game can be incredibly detailed and complex and sometimes boring even. However, it is what you put into it. It doesn't have to be terribly OMFG!!! difficult, nor does it have to consume your life. We have many many players in Plate of Beans Inc [PINTO] who have limited time to play the game {raises hand} and still find a lot of enjoyment in it.
If you're a fence sitter try the free trail version, seriously, it's not nearly as bad as some make it out to be... quite fun actually.
posted by edgeways at 7:50 AM on March 13, 2014 [2 favorites]


You can also follow our exploits at MeFightClub.

Sadly not! All I see is the following error message:

Warning: mysql_fetch_assoc() expects parameter 1 to be resource, boolean given in /home/wonderchicken/mefightclub.com/extensions/MefightClubHomePageStats/default.php on line 191
posted by jack_mo at 8:04 AM on March 13, 2014


I get the PHP error message too, but then the rest of the site loads sorta on top of it?
posted by slater at 8:08 AM on March 13, 2014


How weird! Works fine for me.
posted by polywomp at 8:10 AM on March 13, 2014


I did the free trial around the time of that previous post, and it did consume my life for three weeks. Never quite got around to contacting Plate of Beans, Inc. I wanted to learn the basics of the game first, and I tend to be thorough. So I tried to do a bit of everything and hadn't nearly done it all by the time the free trial was up. Sure it's possible to accomplish fun things in the game without spending too much time on it. I found everything confusing for the first few hours, but after that you can just pick anything and do it. And have some chance of success even. Until you learn quite a lot, it's very easy in this game to get into battles you can't possibly win. It would probably be easier if you join up with a corp and follow some advice about what to do rather than trying to explore everything like I did.

It lives up to its reputation as a more interesting social environment than most MMOs. My pilot, wandering alone in the EVE universe as a sort of stealthy tourist, encountered plenty of people who opened fire immediately, but also a surprising number who were just amazingly friendly and helpful.

Anyway, in three weeks I managed to run missions, shoot pirates, get killed by pirates, mine asteroids, exploit market inefficiencies, join a couple of small fleets, evade at least half the people who tried to blow up my ships, see the sights of nullsec, salvage some loot from the wreckage of a big battle, buy a battleship, and run away from sleeper drones. It's quite a game. I'll probably get around to playing again some day.
posted by sfenders at 8:52 AM on March 13, 2014 [2 favorites]


Mining is a magical experience. I loved the game for the mining alone, but it got to the point where I felt like I needed to buy a new machine just to stay in the game and that was not an option.

If I bought a new machine and renewed my subscription, are my characters still going to be there?
posted by winna at 9:04 AM on March 13, 2014


polywomp - may have something to do with logged in / not logged in?
posted by slater at 9:16 AM on March 13, 2014


sfender - yeah I played solo a several times in the past for a few week/couple months at a time and kept getting burnt out and bored. Joining up with a corp that is newbie friendly and is active is a totally different experience, IMO.

Winna, I believe if you can still log into your account the characters are still there. I haven't done this myself though.

As for being logged in or out on mefightclub...it seems to make no difference for me using Chrome.
posted by polywomp at 9:25 AM on March 13, 2014


polywomp might provide a guiding hand. Also maybe not. Your gamble. Goonswarm plays a long game. I love the paranoia.

Eve Online’s Greatest Moments - It’s a Cruel World Out There,
May 29, 2012

I love reading about this.
posted by vapidave at 9:31 AM on March 13, 2014



Great to hear things are going well. I miss EVE. I miss all my characters and all you guys. If I wasn't working my ass off at my job and the same number of hours doing school I'd come back. Ah well hopefully this school stuff will eventually pay off and I can get back my play time hours like before.
Keep on PINTOING!
posted by Jalliah at 10:26 AM on March 13, 2014 [1 favorite]


sfenders, yeah I think being in a corp, even (especially) if you're new, and having folks around that you can count on being friendly does help improve the experience. We tend towards the not being a stereotypical MMO asshole crowd.
posted by edgeways at 10:54 AM on March 13, 2014


Your characters and their gear will definitely still be around. I've taken a couple of year-or-so breaks myself.

And yeah, to anyone looking to start out, I would definitely recommend joining a corp (our corp!) from day 1. The tutorials have gotten a lot better, but they still only scratch the surface of the game, and we LOVE helping new players.

I can't tell you how much having a chat window full of EVE playing mefites changes the game.
posted by 256 at 11:04 AM on March 13, 2014 [2 favorites]


In the not too distant future, 21,000 A.D....

I would also recommend picking up the trial just to play with the avatar creator they re-engineered a couple years ago. It really is fantastic, and can give you results like this. Unfortunately, it can also get you something like this.
posted by Evilspork at 11:17 AM on March 13, 2014 [2 favorites]


Your characters and their gear will definitely still be around. I've taken a couple of year-or-so breaks myself.

Yay! I let my account run out of time recently because I am not finding much time for EVE. I was in Beans but never got to actually get into Beans-controlled space. I was doing high-sec NPC missions and building skills. I was around briefly to see the messages about the merger, but never actually did anything because of newb jitters.

The most recent and ongoing war has been instigated by a corporation which seems to have no interest in actually...fighting. We've destroyed a number of their customs offices and stations (with a couple of dreadnaughts even!), but continue renewing the war declaration. We've had some fun simply speculating about their motives for continuously engaging in a losing war.

This makes me a bit nervous. Not sure if this is possible in EVE, but it sounds like a strategy I used to use on in Star Wars Rebellion against my roommate when we played over a LAN. I'd have a bunch of seemingly viable decoy-type planets set up, but the big industrial complex and mining ops all some distance away, building and building until I could send a massive fleet over and pick off planets one by one. In other words, "it's a trap!"
posted by Hoopo at 11:21 AM on March 13, 2014


The other people involved in the war really are that passive aggressive. If it was a trap it would be the most brilliant thing they've ever done. I've trawled through their history of declaring wars on other Corps and literally somewhere in the neighborhood of 90% of those wars ended with zero kills on either side. This current affair is by far their most active war in their history. 4 ships total killed in three weeks. I too was paranoid about what they where up to for about a week, but no longer. Just keep an eye out and not get caught soloing in the same system as them and it's all just normal Eve stuff otherwise.
posted by edgeways at 11:55 AM on March 13, 2014


I can't tell you how much having a chat window full of EVE playing mefites changes the game.

This.
posted by RolandOfEld at 12:16 PM on March 13, 2014 [2 favorites]


I'll add that we have a 100% "joined PINTO" rate from our last open frigate roam!
posted by bitterpants at 12:25 PM on March 13, 2014


We've had some fun simply speculating about their motives for continuously engaging in a losing war.



Some sort of insurance scam or credit default swap?
posted by TheWhiteSkull at 1:48 PM on March 13, 2014


I have no idea what this post is about.

I love this post.
posted by mynameisluka at 2:41 PM on March 13, 2014 [4 favorites]


Ah, EVE. The libertarian paradise/dystopia of the future.

Some scrub corp in nearby space is going to toil for 25 man-hours to pay me to login for one hour and do a thing that they aren't competent to do themselves. The in-game currency they will give me will pay for my next month's subscription fee.

I could scam them, I guess. But I've made a tidy little business for myself fleecing the various residents with my hugely expensive transport services. I don't want to ruin my reputation for honest gouging.

Join EVE, find a niche, and exploit it as hard as you can.
posted by ryanrs at 3:13 PM on March 13, 2014 [4 favorites]


Oh man. I've been out of Eve action for a _while_ now, and I definitely want to get back in. Especially if war was declared.

And war was declared.
posted by Phredward at 3:26 PM on March 13, 2014 [1 favorite]


Some sort of insurance scam or credit default swap?

Nah, they're just a bunch of goofs. They talk a lot of smack, declare war, then vanish for several days. They've done this more than once or twice.
I suspect that the other corporations they've warred with have treated them the way you treat a small dog barking furiously behind a stout fence.

This time, however, they've engaged players who really like stepping in the shit, and are pretty skilled at it.
When they did their usual disappearing act, our guys thrashed everything of theirs within reach.
Kinda like instigating a blood feud with your motorcycle gang next door neighbors then flying to Disneyland for a week.
What's hilariously funny is they reappear, inventory everything that got destroyed, then re-up the war and vanish again.

Anyhow, this is a really great group of players - very helpful and excellent company. I'm really glad I joined in the fun.
posted by Pudhoho at 3:48 PM on March 13, 2014


Warning: mysql_fetch_assoc() expects parameter 1 to be resource, boolean given in /home/wonderchicken/mefightclub.com/extensions/MefightClubHomePageStats/default.php on line 191

Whaaa?

On it, right now.
posted by stavrosthewonderchicken at 4:23 PM on March 13, 2014 [1 favorite]


Hmmm. That's very odd. It seems to be fine now.

The MFC home page (with that top bar with some user stats and stuff) is only shown to non-logged-in users. If you're logged in and cookied, you go directly to the forum itself when visiting the site.

Please do let me know either here or at MFC itself if you see this happening. As I almost never see the public front page of the site (because I'm perpetually logged in) unless I'm working on something, I might not be aware right away when there are issues (nor do Mefighters, because they're also whisked straight in when they hit the site). Thanks!
posted by stavrosthewonderchicken at 4:30 PM on March 13, 2014 [1 favorite]


I can't tell you how much having a chat window full of EVE playing mefites changes the game.

Definitely. I started playing recently after one of the EVE posts on the blue finally tipped the balance for me. Although I've been a gamer for years, EVE is the first MMO I've dipped my toes into. I'm long past the point where adolescent trash talk has any appeal, and being able to join a corp that recognizes that there's such a thing as Real Life™ and which values inclusivity has been huge.
posted by metaquarry at 5:21 PM on March 13, 2014 [1 favorite]


I'm long past the point where adolescent trash talk has any appeal, and being able to join a corp that recognizes that there's such a thing as Real Life™ and which values inclusivity has been huge.

This is one of the reasons that MefightClub exists (for any and all games and game-players), and we're up to about 3000 like-minded members now, so if you're not hanging out with us there already, you should!
posted by stavrosthewonderchicken at 5:30 PM on March 13, 2014 [5 favorites]


Is Ted Shank still flying?
posted by fatbird at 10:14 PM on March 13, 2014


Ted said to tell you that interceptors are fun and that DPS is where it's at.
posted by RolandOfEld at 10:38 PM on March 13, 2014 [2 favorites]


Alas, I was active for awhile but I've disappeared since August. I finally broke down and decided to cancel my subscription for the next few months. I'll be back once school ends. Keep the beans hot for me!
posted by Stynxno at 7:26 AM on March 14, 2014


WoW has been my game for 8-9 years now, but I'm thinking of breaking up with it for a while. All I know about EVE is what I've read on MeFi, which has always simultaneously thrilled and terrified me.

But I'm a casual player, and old in gamer-years to boot. If I sign up for the trial account, do I just create a character and start /yelling BEANS until someone answers? Is there just one server?
posted by kimberussell at 8:23 AM on March 14, 2014


There is only one server, which is one of the most beautiful things about EVE. Everyone is crammed into the same PVP-all-the-time space and forced to find a niche for themselves.

Once you've created a character and logged in, press ALT-E to bring up "People and Places," then search for corporation "Plate of Beans" or "PINTO" (for short). You should be able to apply to the corporation from there.
posted by 256 at 8:29 AM on March 14, 2014


What kind of laptop specs would I need to play this and not be frustrated at screen size and speed and all that stuff? I have a 6ish year old Sony Vaio that I've been debating updating and tax returns and a raise at work mean it might be a decent time to do so.
For reference, here's what comes up under Best Buy "gaming" laptops

Thanks!
posted by bowmaniac at 9:07 AM on March 14, 2014


The game runs okay but not great on my three-year-old Acer AspireOne netbook. You don't need much hardware if you turn all the graphics settings down. Just make sure you turn off the "Load Station Environment" setting first thing, if using an older machine.
posted by 256 at 9:09 AM on March 14, 2014


Yea, EVE can take up a good bit of screen realestate but not because of the requirements of the game but just because there can be a lot going on in various windows at once.

To clarify I play on an older Lenovo Thinkpad T61 as well as on my media center PC that is hooked up to a full size LCD tv. I think you can make it work wherever you need/want to honestly.
posted by RolandOfEld at 10:22 AM on March 14, 2014


...and don't forget to use the link in the main post above because it will both extend your trial period as well as provide a nice boost to corp coffers if you upgrade to a real account. Corp coffers aren't hurting but it never hurts to put stuff in as we'll be providing you with a fair bit of space altruism as you get started.

A true win-win, but mostly becuase more mefites = more fun.

If you could also join MFC and monitor the threads there, the newbie thread is handy. The latest tidbit I've posted about joining PINTO can be found here, but it's basically as simple as 256 said above. [hrm... on preview stav that link to an individual comment isn't taking me to the comment in question, is that something on my end or on MFC side of things?]. In any case Ctrl+F for (fittingly) the following, sans quotes, and you'll find the post in question "You are more than welcome to join us." and you'll find the exact comment in question.
posted by RolandOfEld at 10:39 AM on March 14, 2014


Winna, I believe if you can still log into your account the characters are still there. I haven't done this myself though.

Unless you explicitly delete them, your stuff stays on the server forever. I recently came back after several years of absence and all of my stuff is exactly where I left it. Including with fittings that don't work anymore, which makes it impossible to undock until you fix the problem.

And thankfully, the lolbertopia stuff has died down. With all of the Planetary Interaction stuff, the corp is so rich now that I get reimbursed just for blowing up and in fact can come out ahead of the deal.
posted by fifteen schnitzengruben is my limit at 4:01 PM on March 14, 2014


UPDATE: The Rifter Roam has been rescheduled to Tuesday Mar. 18, 9PM Eastern.
posted by 256 at 4:39 PM on March 14, 2014


I seem to be one of the lucky people for whom the game doesn't want to launch. Old machine, but should still work... I think. Grumpily attempting reinstall now.
posted by notquitemaryann at 5:52 PM on March 14, 2014 [1 favorite]


notquitemaryann, bowmaniac, and kimberussell: I hope to see you in space soon. I (Machagon in game) will happily bestow gift ships upon you once you arrive.
posted by 256 at 9:56 AM on March 15, 2014


Yea, we love to see interest so if you're somehow caught in the limbo between installing the game/creating a character and actually joining PINTO be sure to let us know so we can help out with any idiosyncrasies the client might be throwing at you.

And, even though it's been said in this thread aplenty, please do not think that flying solo while you 'learn the game' is a good idea. It's much easier to have some support structure while you acquaint yourself with the client and mechanics of the game.
posted by RolandOfEld at 10:58 AM on March 15, 2014 [2 favorites]


I highly suggest getting into industry and/or planetary interaction. If done properly you can play for free.
posted by AElfwine Evenstar at 7:00 PM on March 15, 2014


Free protip:

1. train all three toons on your account for planetary interaction (this will take around 2.5 months per toon...so figure about 5 months off training your main...make sure you take both Interplanetary Consolidation and Command Center upgrades to V...everything else to IV)

2. go to low sec, wh space, or 0.0

3. ?

4. Profit!
posted by AElfwine Evenstar at 7:05 PM on March 15, 2014


You can now train all 3 chars on an account at once if you like. Each additional training slot costs a PLEX. It's a good way to turn spare ISK into useful SP. I was burning something like 12 PLEX a month for a while doing this. Now I have a ton of cyno 5 bomber alts, blockade runners, recons, etc. Definitely worth it if you're space-rich.
posted by ryanrs at 8:15 PM on March 15, 2014 [1 favorite]


12 PLEX a month

And I thought I had a problem with my 3 accounts. :)
posted by AElfwine Evenstar at 9:08 PM on March 15, 2014


I'm back playing again, I'm guessing ~5 hours a week. I'll be at the rifter roam on Tuesday.
posted by MillMan at 11:53 PM on March 15, 2014 [1 favorite]


AElfwine, most of that isk was from a particularly nice Odyssey investment I made.

1) Post-crash tech bought at a discount from alliance sources.
2) Neo mercurite alchemy.
3) 1+2 => nanotransistors
4) Nanotransistors => microprocessors

** Odyssey patch introduces new metamaterial bottleneck on micros **

5) Sell micro stocks into the price spike.
6) Pump that isk into nitrogen isotopes.

I learned of this a few months before it hit so I was able to put in every scrap of isk I had. I even setup a "hedge fund" to handle corp and alliance isk. Around US$5,000 equivalent under management at the time. I think we ended up tripling our isk.
posted by ryanrs at 1:54 AM on March 17, 2014 [2 favorites]


I started a trial account on Friday night and purchased a 3 month subscription yesterday. If you're on the fence but are frightened by tales of the legendary learning curve, you should join.

If you've played any game at all, starting in EVE isn't terrifying or awful. PINTO is chatty and helpful. Yesterday a GM opened a private conversation with me to see if I had any questions, to make sure I was aware of high-security and low-security space, and to make sure I was working on the career tutorials. That was nice, and not anything I experienced before in WoW, SWTOR, or any of other MMORPGs I've bounced through.

(Plus the background music reminds me of the Space Mountain queue at Walt Disney World.)
posted by kimberussell at 8:10 AM on March 17, 2014 [2 favorites]


Welcome to our new members!
posted by RolandOfEld at 11:03 AM on March 17, 2014


please do not think that flying solo while you 'learn the game' is a good idea.

As the guy who did just that last year, I second this advice. I forgot most of what I learned since last playing, including the difference between a battleship and a destroyer, but I'll be there for the Rifter Roam.
posted by sfenders at 5:41 AM on March 18, 2014


Rifter roam: massive success.
posted by bitterpants at 8:57 PM on March 18, 2014 [1 favorite]


Indeed it was. Many more details in the main EVE thread over on MeFightClub. Two new members from this thread got kills on their first PVP op, including a battleship.
posted by 256 at 7:22 AM on March 19, 2014


Local chat actually had our back for a while. Was fun indeed.
posted by RolandOfEld at 11:18 AM on March 19, 2014


I just took the bait and got a trial account. Just finished with the basic tutorial, so I'll come find you guys I guess...?
posted by rollbiz at 7:12 PM on March 19, 2014


Woot woot, application accepted.
posted by RolandOfEld at 8:05 PM on March 19, 2014 [1 favorite]


I may consider joining you all... in the void...
posted by PROD_TPSL at 8:13 PM on March 20, 2014 [2 favorites]


Because this is my new jam and you are all my space buddies, enjoy:

6-hour remix of ambient EVE music
posted by fifteen schnitzengruben is my limit at 3:14 PM on March 26, 2014


I don't know if anyone is still following this thread but CCP just put out a new program for folks that have been away for a while to come back to the game, via invite/referral, for 7 days without any hassle or cost to them.

Here's a link to the program in question for all your questions and answers, please feel free to pester me and I'll get you one and send any proceeds/donations/referral bonuses into the PINTO coffers for group fun and support and logistics.

Best,
RoE
posted by RolandOfEld at 10:54 AM on April 5, 2014


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