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Trying EVE for the first time. Solo PVP perspective.
quarrel
Member Posts: 21
in EVE Online
Solo/Duo PVP has been my playstyle in every MMO iv'e played and was basically wondering if I could get this to work in EVE. The game is highly praised for its variability and sandbox play, so it caught my eye.
So to put it very bluntly, here is my question:
I would be starting from utter scratch, no knowledge, no currency, and no connections. Just very extensive MMO SOLO PVP experience. How long would it take for me to become viable in this playstyle?
Thank you for any help.
Comments
5-9 months depending on the amount of time you play and overcome the learning curve
So from day 1 you are capable of doing this, though duo may be a bit easier. You just need to get out into a low-Sec Space so Concord does not become a major factor. and even said, yo uwill be a small fish in the big fish pond. It would be better to learn some skills, and get some ship handlign under your belt. even find a corp of like minded people. As most of the juicy targets for Gate-Camp and Pirating will need some friends to help tackle and take down. That said, you can find some juicy AFK miners out there that generally do not pose too much of a challenge, and IMHO would help out the economy greatly.
solo pvp? in eve!? only happens by accident....
searching for small scale pvp in eve is more like fishing. spend lots of time waiting for the right opportunity and even then there is a high propability that your catch escapes.
Doing it and being effective are very differnet , day 1 he is cannon fodder being blown to bits till he rage quits
2-4 months with a teacher. More without one. That includes character skill training, researching forums, videos etc.
I skate to where the puck is going to be, not where it has been -Wayne Gretzky
With a good mentor and lotsa playtime ... ill buy that.
sadly, although you can pvp from the start, solo, or even duo.. your going to have to be very very careful, even then 99 percent of the time, you will be hulled and podded.. Eve isnt a lone wolf kind of game, Eve is hard and fast, and often very dirty, if you want to do small squad action then you really need at least 4 ships, and good tactics..
Bullshit.
It takes about 2-3 days to get done with the basics. The rest is learning how the game works and will occupy you for a long time. It takes considerable skill to know when to engage and when to hide, or, more to the point, how to avoid bigger fishs and catching prey.
I'd still recommend joining a lowsec piracy corp that supports you. When you're not familiar with game mechanics you'll lose a lot of ships. Having a few friendly people to help and teach you will make the difference between dying unnecessarily and killing people.
It kind of depends on you, my friend. A few people just "get" EVE PVP straight away, and they're killers almost from day one. The great majority of us dumb schmoes take rather longer. Some people never get it.
I have one friend in game who played since 2003, staying as a terrible carebear and general PvP failure for over 4 years. Then one day it just kind of clicked for him and he got 500 kills in a month. Last I talk to him, he was leading a small pirate corp in Curse, probably one of the toughest regions in game to survive in.
It took me about 3-4 months before I felt "ready" to PVP, and another couple to feel that I was truely useful (I am too old and slow and drink too much to be much good as a tackler). Nothing beats combat experience, though. Join red vs blue or Faction Warfare - the best way to learn to fight is to fight against and alongside people who do know how to fight. You can almost certainly do it quicker than I did, if only because there are much better supports for new players these days in terms of teaching. I had to kind of puzzle stuff out myself, mostly. I've been lucky enough to get in to a very good alliance with lots of highly skilled pvpers and some very good FCs, and that has made a vast difference to my confidence and ability.
Solo PVP is really an endgame goal IMO. As said above, you're hugely restricting your choices and opportunities; you can easily spend a whole evening looking for a solo fight that isn't a more or less obvious trap, and still not find one. Having even one wingman will open up a lot more encounters, and I truly believe it is way more fun and involving to fly with friends. Why are you so set on solo?
Give me liberty or give me lasers
Listen to this man.
Thanks for the great responses guys. If I start up in EVE, i'll probably be getting a close friend to play with me, so at least we'll be duoing for a time before either of us try to solo. Let's say doing research on the game daily, playing for about ~25 hours a week. Think we might get somewhere in a decent amount of time?
Define somewhere and decent amount of time for you.
It will still probably take you a couple of months if you intend to PvP just the two of you. I would highly recommend joining a pirate corp though. You will get into PvP much more quickly and will have some people with more knowledge to watch your back.
I agree with the people saying joining a pirate corp. They tend to be more smaller scale fights teaching you the skills you need as a solo or duo setup.
You will still be free to roam by yourself or as a pair while having knowledgeable experienced pvpers to guide you and teach you the details that would take moths or maybe even years to pick up on your own.
Thanks again for your responses. I may end up joining a pirate corp for this purpose. One more question I had:
Most small-scale PVP in every MMO involves the smaller-party (myself and whoever I will be with) fighting outnumbered. In some games, fighting outnumbered is impossible regadless of playerskill because numbers>all. Whereas other games allow player-skill to overcome numbers at least to a small degree, enough to sometimes get the win. Is fighting outnumbered in EVE a disastrous proposition, or a doable one?
Take a look at the post on this page entitled Bomb Squad in Action for your answer.
Now I do realize that fight is a little larger scale than you are looking for but it is aprime example of a smaller fleet being out gunned and coming out on top with crushing victory over their enemies.
Smaller numbers can indeed win over larger fleets with bigger guns. You just need to learn what your ship and fleet setup can and cannot handle. This is why having a pvp corp showing you the ropes is a good idea.
It's perfectly doable, but requires the fleet to be organized so they can run in case things go bad.
In a straight slugfest you won't have a lot of chances unless you're fighting disorganized groups. But that's what hit&run is for.
Just as long as it will take you to be able to train probing and tackling. If you have a buddy that sprobes for you and dropping bookmarks for you. Then you are good to go at the latest by friday primetime.
Find a good lowsec misison spot and cash in on destroyer and cruiser kills with your T1 frigate. Learn the ropes meanwhile you are training your skills and move on.
Well you should do some reading and follow god advices on how to fit and engage aswell ofcourse.
I'm so broke. I can't even pay attention.
"You have the right not to be killed"
In 5-9 months then he will surely be really good at pvp. Both skillwise(SP) and knowldgable about the game. Far above viable.
Viable as in getting his own killmails, less then a week.
I'm so broke. I can't even pay attention.
"You have the right not to be killed"
Just strike a pose and go...
I'm so broke. I can't even pay attention.
"You have the right not to be killed"
With a very patient mentor you could be pvping in a few weeks under their command, and you could probably start making a pain in the arse of yourself (with a friend) after a month.
Pirate corps are hard to get into. They dont just invite any random noob player, they will be afraid of infiltration. Your probably better joining Red Vs Blue, or a reputable Faction Warfare corp!
Finding a mentor though is going to be tough! I've mentored a few player and its really hard work and tiring, and often thankless.
When considering pvp in terms of ship numbers you kinda have to imaging 'rock paper scissors' but imagine 2 or 3 more variables, I dunno, Rock, paper, Scissors, Acid, and fire. So yes, if there were more of them than you, there is a good chance they have everything coverd and will take you down (provided they catch you) but there are a LOT of noobies as well.
Thats an awefull lot of training and learning though! I hope your a solider because its a very ambitious goal. Maybe you could come back and write an article on your experience for us
People say you can do it right away.... no. You can do it right away if you don't mind dying all the time and being instant poped. In reality it'll take you a year to get your skills upto par with the rest of the people and you'll never be able to solo cause everyone flys with gangs or their alts.
I friend ingame have a 9:1 ratio on solo kills. He has not yet left his T1 fitted rifter. Why, I assume, you died all the time needs a further explanation of your conditions.
I really do not think that the OP is asking if he will be top of the food chain.
You know learning about teh game includes knowledge about not attacking that lone HAC with his first frigate.
I'm so broke. I can't even pay attention.
"You have the right not to be killed"
Biggest load of nonsense I've ever heard.
Personally I've started many players who have landed their first solo pvp kill in 13 days. It takes 4 days worth of skill training to jump into a pvp frigate.
If you've taken an entire year then you have to be a extremly slow learner.
Give me liberty or give me lasers