EVE New Citizens Q&A

Here is what I currently send out to people who ask me for a 21 day Buddy Invite. I would like some help in polishing it, because I've been fiddling with it so long I think it's turned into Frankenstein's monster. Please use it if you feel it contains useful information for people that you are inviting to play EVE (and let me know in this thread if there are improvements that should be made)!


I normally play during 08:00-13:00 EVE time (GMT, or UK time), my play time is a little restricted at the moment but I'll try to log on occasionally to make contact.

Before you start playing, check out the following videos on YouTube and take the "personality test" on the EVE Online website:

• 10 things to know about EVE before you start playing[1]
• CDIA Files Orientation Video[2]
• Personality Test[3]

The personality test is only a few questions, intended to help you focus on one aspect of gameplay. It will recommend a "persona" type such as Pirate, Miner, etc, which you can talk about through in game channels and seek advice. You are not restricted to one style of gameplay, the persona type is just a cheesy guide to act as a set of training wheels through the new player experience. Later on you will discard the "personality type" training wheels and use St Mio's "What to do in EVE Online[4]" as a guide, it is an awesome reminder of what activities are available in this wide wonderful universe.

When you start, I highly recommend going through the tutorials. You'll be guided through the initial tutorial by the in game assistant called "Aura". Once Aura has finished with you, she'll recommend you head off to some Career Advancement Agents. If you get stuck on a particular mission while working through those career advancement missions, you might find solace in the "How to Survive EVE Online[5]" walkthroughs. Along with the tutorials, have a look at the new player guide starting with the article "Your First Days In Space[6]".

If you're interested in lore, make sure you check out Mark726's EVE Online Lore Guide[7] over on Freebooted blog (have a read even if you're not usually interested in the backstory of MMOs).

As far as subscribing goes, you have the option of paying using a credit card or WebMoney through the Account Management section of the EVE Online web site[8]. Although PayPal is accepted, I would advise against using it. The best option is credit/debit card.

If you choose to subscribe on this buddy invited account, I will be rewarded with a PLEX, which I then contract over to you. A PLEX can either be redeemed for 30 days of game time, or sold on the in game market for a significant chunk of ISK which should keep any new pilot well financed for several months.

[1] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c0M7jkv3xkQ
[2] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aI4VkO6qr0U
[3] http://www.eveonline.com/sandbox/personality-analysis/
[4] http://swiftandbitter.com/eve/wtd/
[5] http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLB9A647F3121DFC21
[6] http://wiki.eveonline.com/en/wiki/Your_first_days_in_space
[7] http://freebooted.blogspot.com.au/2012/02/eve-online-greatest-story-still-being.html
[8] https://secure.eveonline.com/AddGametime/

PS: When it comes to paying for the first subscription, if you're feeling particularly masochistic and play during Australian peak (see the first paragraph of this message) please look me up and we'll run missions (or go mining) together until our eyes bleed — then you'll have enough ISK to subscribe using PLEX (and then you get that PLEX back a day or so later as a reward from me for subscribing). We'll need an average of 2 hours a day, every single day of your trial.

I have purposefully left PayPal out because I've read too many complaints from people saying they have some kind of trouble when using PayPal.

In fact, I have an active Buddy Invite invitee who has paid using PayPal but the Buddy Invite is showing up as "used an ineligible payment method". The invitee has submitted a petition: if a GM happens to stumble across this message please feel free to contact me in game or through any of my registered email addresses so I can tell you which petitioner I'm referring to.

So in the meantime I'll be asking people to avoid using PayPal because it creates more problems than it solves. I won't make a political issue of it, since I'm sure all the small businesses I'm hearing of who have had PayPal seize/freeze their accounts are not representative of the general population of PayPal users.

Thanks for the reminder about St Mio's chart, mxzf! I've tried to incorporate it smoothly into the welcome message text.

I might by chance decide to add new ideas into the introductory email, such as pointing people to this awesome "10 things you need to know about EVE before you start playing" video.

What is my "ploy"?

A more constructive approach would be to point out what it is that you take issue with.

Let's not have a second thread outside the buddy program listing. Please ask questions there instead.