EVE New Citizens Q&A

Hello. I've been playing the game for a few weeks, and have so far done what every guide I've read has advised against: splitting my training down two routes.

I'm focusing on both mining and ratting, gearing my character to fly a Retriever and probably at Vexor for the moment. I did have a Vexor for a while but ventured into low sec and got quickly blown up by another player.

Anyway, the issue I have is that mining seems to be way more lucrative, so much so that ratting seems fairly pointless by comparison. Going ratting in 0.5 I can make maybe 150-200k in a run if I'm lucky and find a Serpentis Den or similar on my scanner. If not, and I just roam the asteroid belts for rats I get a lot less. In about the same time it takes me to clear a room of its waves, I can make just under 1m ISK semi-afk mining in my Venture in high-sec.

My brief foray in low sec showed that mining was slightly more lucrative (made about 1.2m the time it takes to fill the Venture's ore bay), but ratting way more so, but that was probably because I was lucky enough to find a ship with a 500k bounty and some semi decent loot. But it also cost me my beloved Vexor thanks to another player swatting me like a fly, a ship I've replaced with an Algus for ratting purposes. I could just about afford to lose the Vexor, but I can't really afford to lose it twice.

So the current plan is to buy a Retriever and mine in high sec (at least until I can more afford to lose it), and use that to build funds so I can afford to buy and fit another Vexor and lose it in low sec regularly.

My question is, am I missing something? I thought all the professions were exposed to be more or less equally financially viable, but it seems mining, at least at a noob level, is way ahead. It just seems a little off, given that I can make five times as much being semi afk in 1.0 than I can working hard in 0.5 ratting.

Also, I'd describe ratting as medium fun, and mining as low to medium. But I feel, like if I don't mine I'm never going to get far beyond an Algos. So what am I doing wrong?

I agree that mining's good cash, but if you already have a decent ratting ship, consider doing L1 security missions. It pays out more, and you can start putting Loyalty Points back for the really good stuff. The payouts increase even more if Salvaging is already in your training plan.

I am at a similar point as the OP, trying to decide if it is too early to focus or not. I assume that while mining is more lucrative at this point in the game, ratting will pick up later on with more advanced combat and salvaging capabilities.

Mining- never going to get you anywhere with training other than moar mining....
Ratting/Missions- Skills trained there benefit PvP (weapons, tank, etc)

Ratting is a nebulous term. I call shooting up Forsaken Hubs in null sec 'ratting' although it can turn 30-40mil per run. There are belt rats, only worth shooting in Null Sec. There are mission rats, with that whole reward system.

For the newb in a high sec belt, you will never make any money at it. Start looking at Cosmic Anoms for better ratting across the board. High Sec offers a good starting point before you find yourself staring at 3 dozen enemy BCs and BSs when you go thru the accel gate in the Anoms found in null sec.

The 100% anoms found in high sec offer minimal difficulty, but it's a great place to try out different ships, tactics, and fittings. Also a good place to take other newbs for some fleet practice. No reason to do anything alone in an MMO. Two or three newbs in frigates still own any 2/10 I've ever been in.

Non-dedicated ratting like just bouncing belt rats isn't a 'career' and even in null sec, just killing belt rats would require so much time (rats are random and even warp away like players) that it's horribly inefficient at generating wealth enough to justify it. Especially given the risks involved.

I loathe mining, so my advice is always biased. However, if you want to pull triggers on people at any point, forget mining and look to the professional-grade ratting that Eve offers while you skill up and get enough money to be able to lose ships in PvP.
Run missions, yes they are boring and easy-button money but at least you'll train combat skills. By the time you're into level 4 missions you will know much more about Eve and will likely either embrace PvP, or go even deeper in PvE such as Incursions. *hint, either way I suggest playing with other people and remembering Eve is an MMO

But more directly to your point- the primary income of many null sec dwellers is 'ratting' in the form of running Forsaken Hubs mostly. Other than that, my only income is poorly maintained PI. I'm space poor by most null sec standards but fantastically wealthy by high sec newb standards. So there is very much a sliding scale at work.

Cheers

My personal opinion:
This is a game, do what you enjoy and don't turn it into a job.

As long as you are not overly reckless, pretty much everything in EVE will earn you ISK.
Sure, some things earn ISK faster, but if that requires you to do something you loath, is that really worth it?

EVE is unlike other MMOs. There is no end-game that requires you to grind x billions ISK before you can participate. Don't think of it that way. There are 10 year old veterans still flying around in Frigates, because they love the fast-paced combat that can be had in them.

So don't mine just because "it gives good ISK".

If you like combat, do combat. But, as Alaric said, don't do belt rats in high-sec. Either do security missions or scan for combat sites. At lvl 3, combat missions will start to pay more than mining. ISK wont come instantly, but don't see it as wasted time, use it to learn how to fly and make these newbie mistakes now, in cheap ships, rather than later in a multi-billion officer fitted BS.

Thanks for the replies! I've also done loads of security missions, mostly at lvl one, but a few at level two. I stopped a week or so ago though because all the ones I found were against other empires and would lose me reputation and shut down areas of space for me eventually. The other weird thing is I've had loads of mails from NPCs asking me for help and offering missions, and when I go to find them they say I can't do their mission because I don't have the rating. Which seems odd, given they've asked me to go find them.

I also got fed up with scanning for mag and radar sites very quickly, but didn't realise that the combat sites could pay out so well. Is that in low sec? I'm a little wary of low sec now, having had my rear so comprehensively handed to me in what to me was a very powerful ship. I don't fancy forking out for another Vexor only to lose it again in ten mins of low sec exploration. Which brings me back to splashing out on a Retriever so I've at least got a quick way to make ISK back.

And nobody ever mentioned that the big ISK in ratting is not in highsec but in low/null.

If you want to compare mining to a shooting style in highsec, compare it to missions. And level 4 missions pay out WAY more then mining can pay in about 1 hour of work.

This is kind of off the mainstream I guess, but I have a lot of fun and make a fair bit of isk wormhole diving in a Venture fit with gas harvesters and a probe launcher. It is nice to see that Venture's hold carrying 12-15 mil in gas instead of 1 mil in ore, and if you mess up and let the occupants of that WH catch you, who cares it is just a venture.

I wish I could bop someone on the nose with a rolled up newspaper over tcp/ip.

I generally steer people away from mining. It's boring as all get out.

NPC combat is pretty dull, too, but at least the skills involved there are applicable to a wide variety of other occupations in the game. Mining skills... not so much.

Unless you really enjoy mining, skip it.