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Know what I want to do, Need help/advice on skill-training/paths (Caldari)
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Sam Cavanaugh
State War Academy
Caldari State
#1 - 2011-12-02 00:54:20 UTC  |  Edited by: Sam Cavanaugh
This is my third day playing EVE so I'm a newb pretty much although I did play for a couple days a few years ago. On the plus side, I'm great at reading, googling, don't mind working with others and have already done a lot of research including quite a bit into EVE scams so as to avoid them, i.e. collateral scams, "Here, take this jetcan.", ponzi schemes and whatnot.

While there seem to be a lot of guides that are great at telling you how to awesome at one single thing, it's seems a little murky if like me you want to do a little of this and a little of that.

Here's a breakdown of my current skills, assets and goals:

=Current Skills=
SP: 156,916
Electronics: 3, Survey: 3
Engineering: 3, Shield Operation: 3
Gunnery: 3, Small Hybrid Turret: 3
Industry: 3, Mass Production: 2 (to 3), Mining: 3, Production Efficiency: 2
Hull Upgrades: 2 (to 3), Mechanics: 3
Missile Launcher Operation: 2, Standard Missiles: 2
Navigation: 3
Astrometrics: 2, Cybernetics: 2, Science: 3
Caldari Frigate: 2, Caldari Industrial: 2, Spaceship Command: 3
Trade: 3

=Current Assets=
700k ISK + about 100k worth of random newbie stuff

Ships: 2x Ibis, 3x Bantam, 2x Badger I, Kestrel

=Active Ship=
Kestrel: Standard Missile Launcher I (Piranha light missiles), Small Shield Booster I

=Goals=

***Combat*** (Primary)
Ideally, I want to be able to solo at least Level 3 missions. I prefer flying a mid-range ship I guess. Not too big, not too slow, decent cargo, decent slots that can fight and explore like my Kestrel which has fair cargo space, fair speed and a good mix of slots, although I'm not sure if missiles are my thing. I don't like being big, slow and sluggish but on the other hand I don't like being fast and able to shoot but not anything else. I like that happy medium where I'm versatile and able to change up roles a little.

I would also like to take part in these "Incursion" and "Crucible" events. I want to be able to take out NPCs coolly and be able to make a couple would-be gankers turn their tails and run.

I don't have any aspirations of being a pirate so I'd rather be able to handle players defensively at first, and then aggressively if necessary.

I'd like to be able to participate in wars but I don't necessarily want to join one of the NPC militia factions that will make me an immediate target in other factions' space.

I don't know exactly what kind of ships, weapons, equipment, skills would be best suited for me and I don't know if I want to armor tank or shield tank although I assume the Caldari are more suited to shield tanking.

I guess as far as range goes I prefer mid-close range.

***Exploration*** (Secondary)
I really enjoy the whole exploring, probing, scanning, analyzing, salvaging, hacking type stuff. So, I'd like to make that a part of my repertoire as well. Maybe a little mining here and there but not as a serious endeavor.

I'm also interested in industry a bit. I'd like to at least be semi self-sufficient, be able to collect materials and manufacture items for stuff I use a lot such as probes or ammo.

I'm also interested in playing the market a little as I have had fairly decent success in past games with similarly cutthroat market places.

I already have some basic skills but I'm not sure what I'll want to train the most and what else I'll need to train.

=SUMMARY=

So, that pretty much describes my style, preferences and goals. I know I've heard the EVEMON skill planner mentioned a lot but I'm not sure what skills and skill paths specifically I'll need or want in the first place.

I'm also not sure if I'm training too many skills? Is that a bad thing? Mostly so far, I'm just buying, training skills as I find I need them for getting through the tutorial missions and being able to fly my current ship.

Since I got the Kestrel which was an all around decent frig but only had hard points for missiles I had to buy/train standard missiles/missile operation for example.

Also, I don't know what the "must have" skills are.

I would also like to be relatively legit and lawful. I'm not really into scamming other players or pirating innocent newbs.

I've been waiting on looking/researching a good Corps to join until I finish all the tutorial agent missions, that way I'm more of an asset and have less constant stupid questions.

So anyway, there it all is. I don't know what exactly I need to get there but I know what I like to do and what I'd like to be able to do so anyway suggestions, tutelage, mentoring and advice would be greatly appreciated.
tofucake prime
The Hatchery
RAZOR Alliance
#2 - 2011-12-02 02:37:39 UTC
Based on what you've said, what you really want is about 12 alts. Training up to be even mediocre at all of that is going to take a very very long time (since you basically said "I want to be able to do everything in the game somewhat okay".

There's a reason there's not guides about being a jack of all trades. Although Drake or Tengu will serve several of those purposes quite well.
Sam Cavanaugh
State War Academy
Caldari State
#3 - 2011-12-02 02:40:24 UTC  |  Edited by: Sam Cavanaugh
Well, I guess if I had to narrow it down a little more it would be primarily being able to run level 3 missions solo like I previously mentioned and pretty much everything I said and asked about it the combat portion.
tofucake prime
The Hatchery
RAZOR Alliance
#4 - 2011-12-02 03:03:24 UTC
Drake
Flakey Foont
#5 - 2011-12-02 05:41:49 UTC
tofucake prime wrote:
Drake



This. Train up missiles/heavy missiles and ease into a Drake to start.
Shoogie
Serious Pixels
#6 - 2011-12-02 06:21:01 UTC
About the EVE skill system: There are a finite number of skills which help the ship you are currently flying. Also, there is a severe diminishing returns for training skills to level 5.

This means, after a certain amount of time training for a ship, you will be nearly as good as anyone else who flies that ship. This time can be a couple weeks for a frigate--a couple months for a battlecruiser. So you see, the multi-year old veteran won't really be much better than you at a certain ship. (The advantage the veteran has is more friends to help him, more isk to play with, and a larger variety of ships to fly.)

This is why I highly recommend picking a ship you enjoy and getting good at it. Then you can pick another ship to train to add to your repertoire.

So what do you want to do first?

Do you want to be a miner? You have a Bantam. Go sit in it, equip two mining lasers, and fly to your nearest asteroid belt. Do you enjoy that? I know people who do. If you are one of them, more power to you. Go ahead and train mining barges. Otherwise, there are plenty of other ways to make isk without shooting rocks. Personally, I hate mining and wish I had not wasted time training barges which I don't plan to use again.

Production and trade go together. If you plan to be an industrialist, you also need to be a trader to get your items on the market. Many items have razor thin margins, and you need to reduce your fees as much as possible to make a profit. However, there are no skills which help both combat ships and production/trade. I recommend ignoring these skills for now. Fly combat ships on your main. Later, if you want to explore production and trade, start an alt for those functions.

Exploration is kind of cool. However when you find a site, you will need a combat ship to clear the NPC pirates to get the goodies. I recommend getting at least a good combat battlecruiser, then decide if you want to get the few specialized exploration skills.

So combat ships! You mention you are not sure if missiles are your thing. We need to discover this, and soon. You have a Kestrel with Standard Missiles. Train Minmatar Frigate 3 and Small Projectile Turrets 3 and try out a Rifter with Autocannons. Train Amarr Frigate 3, Small Energy Turrets 3 and try out a Punisher with Beams Lasers. Train Gallente Frigates to 3 and Drones to 3 and try out an Imicus with Drones and Railguns. You should be able to get all of these skills in less than 2 days. Fly them all in level 1 missions for a while. Get a feel for how each race fights. Pick your favorite. Just because you were born Caldari doesn't mean you must fly Caldari ships.

Here are the usual PVE ship progressions for each race. Follow the one you like best:
Amarr: Punisher, Omen, Harbinger, Apocalypse or Abaddon
Caldari: Kestrel, Caracal, Drake, Raven or Tengu
Gallente: Imicus, Vexor, Myrmidon, Dominix
Minmatar: Rifter, Rupture, Hurricane, Maelstrom or Loki

Another general piece of advice: You can never have too many hitpoints, so even if you normally shield tank, go ahead and train a few armor skills. If you normally armor tank, go ahead and train a few shield skills. The Core Competency Certificate is generally good and helps every ship you will ever fly. If your queue is running low and you don't know what to train next, pick something out of there.
Tau Cabalander
Retirement Retreat
Working Stiffs
#7 - 2011-12-02 08:13:43 UTC
Shoogie: Excellent post!

Sam Cavanaugh: EVEboard is a great way to share your skills so people can comment.