EVE General Discussion

Whilst you are taking a little time to read up/preparing for exploring in WHs or NS:

-Choose a route of say 10 systems, in a low traffic region of HS.
-Make notes of all the signtaures you probe on your way through it. The first 3 letters is enough.
-Then fly through the same route over and over, probing the new sigs as they appear.

When I first started, I drew the route on a piece of card and taped it to the back of a pane of glass from a picture frame.
I used a thin marker to jot the sig codes down, and wiped them off with a q-tip as they appeared/dissappeared.
Saved a lot of time on probing.

Probably a bit childish, but It was kind of cool to pretend I was a down-on-my-luck explorer in my rust bucket ship, using an antiquated system cos I couldnt afford any better in attempt to squeeze out a little more profit.

But hey, it works. You can run through the systems when you have a few minutes away from RL stuff.

A pic of my old "space charts" so you can all have a laugh:
Old-School Exploration

Just wanted to relate my Alpha clone exploration experience to give some sliver of hope.

Went out with a fairly well fitted Heron couldnt find anything in High sec so broke down and went through a wormhole then another. Found a data site and a relic site. Also found one that actually had NPC's, that I wasn't aware of, nearly got killed.

Used safe spots and made it back with roughly 3 million in loot. Not much but pleased with myself that I didn't end up as debris.

Edit: My total sell orders are 11 million. Guess I did better than I thought.

Here's my poor man's fit.

[Heron, Necronomicon]
Type-D Restrained Nanofiber Structure
Warp Core Stabilizer I

Relic Analyzer I
Data Analyzer I
1MN Y-S8 Compact Afterburner
Small F-S9 Regolith Compact Shield Extender
Scan Rangefinding Array I

Core Probe Launcher I
TE-2100 Ample Light Missile Launcher
TE-2100 Ample Light Missile Launcher

Small Memetic Algorithm Bank I
Small Emission Scope Sharpener I


Hobgoblin I x7

Inferno Light Missile x994
Core Scanner Probe I x16

So I found my first data and relic site... and the noob I am, I forget my relic analyzer, so I only did the data site. I was able to hack 1 of 2 items and got some stuff valued around $600,000. Not bad, but just a long process. I'm sure I'll find a routine. I took a lot of the advice here, so thank you all!

To avoid getting killed by the NPCs at a site you didn't expect, try warping at an actual distance instead of to within 0km of it. Cloaking is a thing for Alpha clones right?

Exploration can be hit or miss income - there will be dry spells even when you are working in low traffic systems. That's why I think it's good to start training some exploration combat skills. It doesn't take much skill to run level 1 & 2 sites. This way you'll have something to do when you don't find data/relic sites.

Variety is a key to enjoying Eve.

CCP must wipe your ass if you are finding relic and data sites this easy and making that isk -- or simply there's an algorithm you've solved as to where they're spawning, which I doubt too.

Sleeper cache are rare to find as well and require close to level 5 scanning. Or mobile Depot and spam mid slot modifiers to scanning.

I stroll through null and about 85% WH 10%combat sites ...

It actually depends on the region and a smidge of good luck, it is entirely possible to make that kind of ISK over the course of an hour or so. I've done it myself in both Null and W-space. For example if you look around the dronespace you won't find jack ****, maybe the odd drone datasite that'll drop drone bpcs but that's it. But if you go to Guristas or Bloodraider sites/regions I've found the drops to be pretty good. Especially from Crystal Quarries, but for low skill players and alphas they're very hard to hack.

Nullsec space is considerably safer than w-space since you only have local chat to worry about, but it does pose it's own problems such as getting in and out safely. One way is Thera. Once you're in NS one tip is to watch for systems with no celestials within dscan range of the next gate on your route. Very often that's where the gatecamps will be for this exact reason. So never warp gate to gate unless noone is in local, even then you have to be cautious of abandoned bubbles. Although this has probably been mentioned, plan your route on dotlan looking specifically at systems with low kills/jumps, the quieter the better and the more chance of finding a pool of sites. Oh and, AVOID RUSSIAN SPACE!

Wormhole exploration is also something I'd definitely recommend, as long as you know where to look (well covered above). Anything with a faction name in it is fine, anything else is a sleeper site. Get into the habit of making safes, warp between a hole and a celestial; halfway between hit Ctrl+b and enter, strictly speaking you want a true safe spot to be out of dscan range of everything else. You could always join a newbie/alpha friendly wh corp who can help you with all these details, advise you on skills, ships and even fittings if you're interested in that plus it also gives you a little extra safety. Besides that all the tedious wormhole scanning and bookmarking will already have been done for you in most cases. All you'll have to do is find the sites/other wormholes. O

Incidentally my corp is currently recruiting fellow explorers and hunters. We're a group of friendly & experienced players ready to pass on a wealth of knowledge and experience to newer (and seasoned vets) players. Our aim is simply to have fun, wheather we win or loose. If you're interested drop me a PM and I can provide further details.[/shameless plug] .

Hope some of this helps!

no algorithm
in null sec in some regions where players do other things than explo (ratting, mining, trading etc) it's easy to scan 5-10 systems /hour and find 3-4 relic/data sites per hour, don't you think so?

so earning 150-200M for 2 hours of playing is not a lie, it's my daily reality. That means 75-100M/H, not far from doing 2 sanctum per hour in a ratting ship which provides about 60M/H. And people ratting in carriers earn about 100M/H, don't they? I don't see why CCP would "wipe my ass". And another player stated above that he also earned this amount of isk, so thank you for being suspicious but you are wrong. And it's not because you don't have the same experience that other cheats or lie. If i play golf, and plays +40 above the par, if someone says "i play +10" should i say "hey you cheat, that's impossible because i never played les than +40"? In the area where you live, explo may be diffciult, due to other players, respawning rythm etc. But You should not think that you know the entire eve universe.

I have nothing to prove to anybody, i just tell OP that he should keep the faith and he can earn isks doing explo. Actually i find it also less boring than mining or even chaining sanctum or havens. Remember, this is a game, not a job.

To be totally honest, OP, you have to keep in mind that
1) yes, my skills are lvl 5, i am mainly doing explo so i levelled up the corresponding skills. And i also practiced a lot, rarely loose a can, etc
2) it does not take into account the cost of the numerous ships i have lost when i did explo in null sec and reds found me while i was hacking ;) (anathema is soooooo squishy.........)

Believe me or not, i don' t care

edit: the previous post is right: the most valuable relic sites are "'crystal quarry" ones. often 50 M, sometimes 80M.....

Nope.

--Gadget

I agree exploration is just another thing to do, I like it, especially out in null. Al of my corp mates hate it but appriciate that i do so they don't have to and can worry about what they like doing...like mining...which is something that makes me want to cut my heart out and eat it, so i guess that's a working relationship.

if you ever wondering what to do in EVE, someone has take care of that for you.

http://swiftandbitter.com/eve/wtd/

one of the best images for the game ever.

and I think it is especially useful for new Alpha players a little slack jawed about what to do.

Dont' like what you are doing....no problem.

WTD in EvE can help you find something new.

Speaking of which....can alphas do COSMOS missions, and Story Arcs? I'm sure the level 4 ones are out but ...

I could see VNI being good for running cosmos missions for alphas.


just my .02 isk