EVE New Citizens Q&A

So I was shocked to learn today that you can actually buy and sell characters with isk right here on the eve forums. It certainly isn't something I would consider doing any time soon, but I won't deny that I was tempted. I have tried eve a couple of times over the years, but have repeatedly gotten burnt out after the "wheeee spaceships!" phase has worn off, due in large part to the way skill training works. I talked to some acquaintances in-game and was told that buying a character was the "worst idea ever".

Their opinion was that not only would I be "cheating", I would just end up making myself look silly, and furthermore, would have lots of trouble finding a corporation.

So a couple of questions:

1) Do people tend to look down on new(ish) players who buy a character? (I'm sure I'm not the first newbie to have thought of this...)
2) Would I have trouble finding a corporation?
3) I think it is a ridiculous to say I would be "cheating", but if you feel that way, please explain why.


Also, inb4 "Pay2win scrub!"

The problem with buying a character is that while it has the skills for various ship classes you may not. The skill training can seem like a grind, but it tries to force you to build up experience with game mechanics, fits, how modules work, compliment each other and why you fit them, and how you use the ships themselves, while they're cheap.

As a newbie you definitely shouldn't be flying anything you can't afford with newbie money, Frigates, Destroyers, and Cruisers if you're feeling rich. You'll probably die a few times in PvE and a lot in PvP before you begin to figure out what does what, and why.

You can certainly buy a character and hop straight into a battleship, with all the support skills trained, if you want. But you'll still be a newbie, with little or no idea how to fly it effectively, that gets frustrating and expensive. How you use the gear is far more important in Eve than the gear itself.

In my opinion your friends are right, it's probably not a good idea for a newbie. Later on when you know what you're doing & have some experience with how the basic concepts and mechanics work is the time to consider buying one, give it 6 months then decide if you still want to buy a character. You will have invested time into Eve by then and are less likely to quit because of it, so less chance of you wasting your money.

In answer to your questions

Will we look down on you? Some will, some won't, but we will poke fun at you when you explode we'll also offer advice
if you ask for it. Don't do it General Discussion, you'll be mercilessly trolled do it in here.

Would you have problems finding a corp? Nope, be honest, some will say no, some will laugh and call you a scrub, others will welcome you and teach you to use the ships you can fly or rob you blind , both if they're any good. Don't be afraid to change corps if they don't suit you.

Would you be cheating? Only yourself.

Somewhat. Refer to #2 and #3.


Depends on the type of corporation you are applying to.

If you are applying to just a "run-of-the-mill" high-sec corp then you won't have too many problems (unless the character you buy has a bad "reputation" attached to him/her).

If you apply to more focused corp then your newbiness will be immediately apparent and you may or may not be booted just because of that. If you don't, you may find people in the corp a little leery about your ability to keep up with them and fully expecting you to faceplant in ridiculous (and expensive ways)... which may or may not make everyone else look bad.


Even though it's perfectly legal, I consider it "cheating"... mostly because it cheats you out of the learning experience of starting EVE.

As a fresh newbie...

- you (hopefully) are learning what each skill you have does (i.e. there are less skills for you to look over that make you wonder, "hmm... what does this do?")

- you see what skills you need (if you are training towards a specialty) and know what are injecting into your character (again... you don't want to be presented with the problem of "hmmm... I have this skill... but what does it do?").

- the cheaper equipment you are "stuck" with is actually a good thing. Seriously. It forces you think about how to get around a problem through the mechanics and/or tactics and/or using "special fits" rather than "go buy more expensive stuff."
Plus, cheaper equipment won't make you cry as much when it is lost as it can be replaced more easily.

- while more "high-end" corps may be a little out of reach as a newbie (note: this is not a rule, there are some very good corps that do enjoy taking on newbies) you will find that in a "fresh" character you are allowed a certain degree of "leeway" in terms of making mistakes and experimenting with ships and fits.

- your clone is cheaper. A lot cheaper. Which allows you to die over and over again rather cheaply relative to characters with more skill points (I'm around 80 million SP... clones cost about 30 million a pop for me). Use this to your advantage (i.e. be fearless!)

- there is a common (and often fatal) perception that a newbie is not to be taken seriously in a PvP engagement. The way the skill system works, a newbie with less than a week of training and some newbie friends can WTFBBQ more experienced players with ships and equipment a fraction of the cost of the Vet's.

- more skill points will not automatically grant you the ability to earn more ISK or be "good" at PvP. Learning the core mechanics of the game, how to fly ships well (which is learned at the frigate and destroyer level), and interacting with people will help FAR MORE with gaining a good income and killing other people.
Skillpoints only provide an edge. Nothing more. Nothing less.

Although the answers so far are pretty much spot on and comprehensive regarding the fact that skill points do not reflect piloting skills and knowledge of the game mechanics, I feel a potentially very important thing has been left out: the relationship you have with your main character.

Some players - and, to be clear, I see it as perfectly acceptable - do not feel the need to strongly bind with their online avatar (especially if they use many alts) and see it as just another kind of asset that can be traded when in need. Others - I am one of them - consider it a requirement to enjoy their time in Eve.

As I undock my internet spaceship, I need to transfer part of me into the pilot, to feel 'something'. Don't get me wrong, I don't take the game seriously and I don't - although that's probably also what I would say if i did.. - have bipolar mind issues or whatever. But I need this immersive stance, this "act". Or otherwise I wouldn't be playing a MMORPG.

When you build a character from scratch, his/her name, the way (s)he looks, the way (s)he talks to other characters, all that has been influenced by what you are or what you would like to be. Your character's past actions are set in stone, they contributed to define the current state of New Eden.
ISK can be traded, ships, items can be traded, reputation can sometimes be traded, now security status can be traded. Characters can be traded, too. But the common history you have with your current main character, that can't be traded away. It is the last thing that connects you in a unique fashion to the Eve universe.

If you care about this, then you will never feel fulfillment with a main character bought on the Bazaar. If you don't care then feel free to acquire one (and once again I do not look down on players who bought their chars, and I understand the need to bypass the long training times and such).

It's not a good idea to buy a character as a newer player, primarily because you're going to start with every skill you want to train being like 20 days long instead of a couple hours, making modifying it significantly more boring, and it will lessen your feeling of investment a lot.

I also forget whether they allow you to scrub the character's employment history and change its name/face. I seem to recall them adding that at some point, but if they don't inheriting the employment history especially can get you outright banned from corps or entire regions of space. Reputation is important in this game.

EDIT: Also, buying a second character for your account as an older player will cost you a week's worth of missions or mining or something similar, hopefully something you'd do anyhow because you find it fun or at least mildly entertaining. Buying one as a new player costs actual money that you could be spending on a sandwich or movie tickets or something.

Part of the draw of an MMO for me is building up a character from scratch. If I "cheat" and buy a high-level character, I lose that sense of attachment. Basically I'm not going to pay anyone else to play the game for me. What's the point of outsourcing your leisure time?

I sell characters.

I have sold plenty to people that have just started the game. Obviously they are buying a lot of GTC/PLEX to do so. Hundreds of dollars sometimes.

Here's the thing. I have kept every character sold on my watch list and I've noticed that for the most part these newbs log in a lot for a few weeks and then move away from EVE for whatever reason. Kind of a waste of real money for them, but fine for me since they tend to overpay for the characters they buy.

But, in good conscience, I would have to say that buying a character before playing at least six months is not a good idea. It's easy to get excited about a game when you are just new, but EVE is not a game for everyone. It's hard, has a steep learning curve and you can lose everything in a moment.

So, by all means consider buying a character at some point. Just take the time to be sure you are going to stick around to use it.

EDIT: I should also mention that buying a character is one of the most secure investments you can make in this game. Anything you own can be stolen, destroyed or scammed from you. But your SP just keeps on piling up adding to the value of your character.

So if you buy yourself a nice 10m SP character with a decent name, portrait and solid focus, you can use it for a year and sell it for much more than you paid. I've found this to be one of the best forms of passive income in the game.

Mr Epeen

I have bought four characters. One was a very new character with some basic core skills from a friend that I started to train up. One was an Orca pilot so I would have one both in wormspace and high sec. Two others were miners for the same reason. So I don't think there is anything wrong with it. However. All the pilots that I grew myself have more sp than the ones I bought. It is true that we learn along with our characters and I only bought a character after I had already trained one to that level first. It would be a bad idea to buy a Tengu or Loki pilot for example and expect to go out and use them properly.