Wormholing

Posted by Roc Wieler on

“She looks good.” I said to my chief mechanic. “Hopefully she’ll do the intended job.”

“She’ll be treatin’ ye right, lad. None of yer fluff, all yer meat.” my chief mechanic replied.

I had christened her the Kubwa, my first battlecruiser, a Hurricane class ship. The entire fit had been just over 100 million isk, but I figured I should get some solid experience in wormholes before taking my 2 billion isk fit Slepnier in there. My crew was slowly becoming comfortable with that size of ship, but I wouldn’t consider us capable yet.

My old friend Nathan Carver had been involved in a wormhole colony the last few months, their entire existence based in wormhole space. They had several POSes setup, and had regularly made their way into class 6 Sleeper facilities. Meanwhile, their Empire team would transport required goods and materials where needed. The entire colony experiment was thriving well, raking in billions of isk.

The war against the Amarr continued to drain my personal finances, so any quick influx of isk was welcome.

We met in Hek at 20:00 hours.

“Alright, I’ll scan us down something.” Nathan said.

“Sure thing, Nate. I’ll just sit here and look sexy I guess.” I replied. My Hurricane was an artillery fit, six 650 mm IIs at the ready. Complimenting those was a standard missle launcher, and a salvager. “Range and tank were they key”, Nathan had said to me when first discussing this opportunity. “The salvager just makes it easier so we don’t have to keep going back and forth.” he had also mentioned.

It wasn’t the strongest fit Hurricane in the galaxy, but I trusted Nathan’s expertise in this enough to fit accordingly. Now I just had to sit and wait.

I looked at the Tribal Liberation Force channel, keeping my eyes open for any potential threat coming our way. Nathan was no longer military, but I was still a Colonel, and though he had come in his Nighthawk which might make small gangs a little wary, we were anything but untouchable.

“Nice. Nailed it on the first try.” Nathan chimed in within minutes. “Warp to me and let’s take a look.” Soon I was sitting in front of the wormhole. It was a glorious and mesmerizing phenomenon, far more beautiful than I remembered from the wormhole I remembered when rescuing Sam from the fleet of Dreadnoughts. Of course, at that time I was focused on staying alive, not sitting around enjoying the scenery.

We jumped through the wormhole, landing in Amarr space, 31 jumps from our original destination. Fortunately, it was lowsec, or I was sure their militia would’ve responded accordingly to my presence. We returned through the wormhole, as it wasn’t what we were looking for, but I made a bookmark, as the destination would be useful to me over the coming days for quick hit and runs into Amarr space, at least until the wormhole collapsed.

We travelled through a few dead end systems, Nathan explaining the higher probability of not being bothered to me, and we eventually found another cosmic signature.

Warping to the signature, we came across an Orca. It didn’t retreat right away, which left us with the dilemma of whether or not to attack it. Being in high sec, the answer was no, but if the Orca was going into the wormhole, we could get away with it there. A fat bellied Orca always meant isk, though the pirating nature of the attack Nathan was discussing didn’t sit well with me at the time. My friend had changed since leaving the militia.

I opened a conversation with the Orca pilot. Turned out he was just leaving the wormhole, his gang having just made a successful run against the Sleepers. We were welcome to explore if we wanted, but he assured me we wouldn’t find anything.

I relayed this to Nathan, whom decided the pilot might be less than truthful, and we entered the wormhole.

Once on the other side, we quickly warped to different locations, scanning all the while for other capsuleers, as well as the nefarious Sleepers.

“I’ve got a lot of wrecks on scan.” I said, seeing that the Sleepers had indeed encountered the Orca pilot’s friends.

“Roger that. Looks like the Orca pilot was right; this place has been picked clean. Let’s head out.” Nathan said.

Several systems later, Nathan scanned down another wormhole. This time as we arrived, a single Jaguar pilot was sitting in front of it.

After some friendly conversation, it turned out he had been scanning this region as well, but everything had already been scavenged. We invited him to our fleet, but he declined, a little disappointed at having the last several hours looking for a fresh wormhole without success.

We wished him well and continued on our way to the next system on our route.

Jackpot.

Sleeper facilities everywhere with plenty of Sleepers to engage. We had them on scan, but before jumping in, Nathan took the time to brief me on our aggression strategy.

After getting charged up about the impending assault, I did one more quick scan of the Sleeper facility, and quickly aborted the warp cycle I had began.

“Abort!” I yelled into comms. Thankfully, Nathan was quick, and prevented his ship from entering warp.

“Two Ravens, a Dominix, and Broadsword just showed up on scan, probably in that Sleeper facility.” I said, thinking how fortunate we had been to have not been caught already engaged when they arrived.

“Dammit!” Nathan said. “I swear it’s not usually like this. Of course, we are only go in one level deep, looking for class 1 and 2. Nobody bothers you when you get to class 4 and higher.”

I looked at my chrono. I had to report for duty in five hours.

“I hate to say it, Nate, but I think I’m gonna have to call it. Gotta report for duty in five hours, so need my beauty sleep. We’ll do this again though, ok?”

“Yeah, we will. Next time we’ll have more luck. That I promise.” Nate replied, anger and disappointment in his voice.

We said our goodbyes, and I docked the Hurricane in Hek, grabbing Vigil I had recently fitted based on a recommendation from General Sasawong, and headed back to Dal.

—

AUGA SYSTEM

My engineers were working swiftly at locking down the Major Minmatar Stronghold. They had been attacked recently by the Amarr, and were in need of repair. Failure to do so would result in the Amarr being able to pass through Auga unmolested, and that wasn’t acceptable.

They estimated just over four more minutes to complete their task.

There were a few other TLF pilots in the area with me: a Rifter, a Stabber, and a Reaper of all things. We weren’t working as a fleet; I had scanned down this complex, discovering their communications array had been destroyed, and broadcast its location on the local overview. The other pilots had quickly flocked here for the opportunity to earn some honour through potential battle.

They wouldn’t have to wait long. A single Rifter entered our location, and my HUD immediately flagged him as neutral. In a warzone, neuts were never to be trusted.

Nobody moved towards him, so I took the initiative. After all, it was my engineers aboard the stronghold.

I prepped my single autocannon and missle launcher, launching a lone Warrior II drone to engage him. I had no scambling or webbing capabilities, but if I could frighten him off, that was all I needed really.

Of course, in hindsight, if the sight of the aforementioned ships didn’t scare off a single Rifter, that either meant he had more company coming, or was a complete idiot.

Turned out to be the latter.

My Vigil wasn’t really built for DPS, or tackling, it was strictly a small tank for plexing. Still, with some overheating and the Warrior II, I was slowly taking him down.

What amazed me the most is that he wasn’t leaving, even as he entered hull; nor did he target my drone, at least not until the very end.

He just kept pursuing me, his shots skimming off my shields effortlessly. I was stunned, still anticipating the arrival of more ships, but none came.

His ship exploded, but as I said, no scramming capability, so his pod escaped to fight another day.

Examining his wreck revealed the following:

  • 150mm Light Autocannon II
  • 5W Infectious Power System Malfunction
  • J5b Phased Protoype Warp Scrambler
  • Gyrostabilizer II
  • Damage Control II

What the hell? Regardless, I was cautiously thankful for the victory, and proceeded to retrieve my engineers.

Just another day of war I suppose.

Recipe – Fried Green Tomato Hornworms

Posted by Roc Wieler on

“We’re not going to last much longer.” T’jallak said, his voice sounding of exhaustion. I stopped my forward crawl through the wilderness to look back at the older man. We were all emanciated, bare to our bones, having been on the run for two weeks now. Looking at him was like looking at any of us; clothing tattered and filthy, skin cut, bruised and dirty, hair and beards growing wildly. He was right about our situation. Two of us had already died from hunger, a third when we were happened upon by our Amarr masters. But we had come this far, and I wasn’t about to give up on our chance for freedom just yet. Besides, I didn’t know if I could survive another ‘re-education’ session. This had been my fourth attempt to escape unsuccessfully.

“We’ll make it, T’jallak.” I said, my own voice hoarse, dry, cracking. “Lay here. I’ll get us something to eat.” I turned to see the older man had already stopped to rest, his eyes closed. Instinctively, I checked his pulse. He was still alive. I stole a quick glance around to make sure he was sufficiently covered from wandering eyes, then set about finding us some food.

Thirty minutes later I returned. I didn’t have the gear to hunt large game, or anything that could outrun or outmaneuver me for that matter; so I had done what I could.

I had found some wild tomatoes, not quite ripened, but hopefully edible, surrounded by hornworms. I hoped they hadn’t laid their eggs inside of the ones I had picked, as their colony appeared to be feasting on the tomato patch. Still, it was food, and it was the best I could do.

I struck up a small fire, and did the best I could with them, offering the first bit to T’jallak, whom hadn’t stirred this entire time.

“T’jallak,” I said, a little louder than I wanted to, “Old man, wake up.” I said, poking at him with my hand. He didn’t move. Instinctively, I checked his pulse once again. The old man had died.

—

Fried Green Tomato Hornworms

by David George Gordon

hornworm1What does a tomato hornworm taste like? Well, what would you taste like if you’d been stuffing yourself solely with tomato leaves for the better part of a month? Hornworms are ridiculously chlorophyll-rich. They taste great with just about any summer vegetable, but my favorite recipe draws inspiration from the cuisine of the Whistle Stop Cafe, that fictitious Alabama diner made famous by novelist Fanny Flagg.

“You’ll think you died and gone to heaven,” boasts Flagg of her recipe. To which I add, “If you do go to heaven, ask the Powers That Be to keep the tomato hornworms out of my vegetable patch.”

INGREDIENTS

  • 3 tablespoons olive oil
  • 16 tomato hornworms
  • 4 medium green tomatoes, sliced into 1/4-inch rounds
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  • White cornmeal

METHOD:

  1. In a large skillet or wok, heat the oil. Then lightly fry the hornworms, about 4 minutes, taking care not to rupture the cuticles of each insect under high heat.
  2. Remove with a slotted spoon and set aside.
  3. Season tomato rounds with salt and pepper, then coat with cornmeal on both sides.
  4. In a large skillet, fry tomatoes until lightly browned on both sides.
  5. Top each round with 2 fried tomato hornworms.
  6. Garnish the paired hornworms with a single basil leaf.

Yields 4 servings. Mmmmmhmmmmm good!

200th Post Extravaganza!!!

Posted by Roc Wieler on

Wow, hard to believe it’s been 200 posts already. Thank you for making this possible and joining me in this 200th post extravaganza! <audience applause>

It’s been an interesting journey thus far, and these last few weeks have been particularly tumultuous. Where will things go from here? I’m as interested as anyone else to find out! <audience applause>

But before we venture into the future, let’s take a look at the past, and see where we’ve been, and what we’ve learned. <audience applause>

Current Stats

  • Roc’s Ramblings currently receives over 15,000 views per month
  • The 1,000 view in a single day benchmark was broken on April 16th, 2009
  • The single most viewed post is Capsuleer iPhone Release Candidate – 1,716 views
  • The single most non Capsuleer related post is A Beacon Beckons – 1,347 views
  • The least viewed post is Roc’s Rule #176 – Breasts are insanely complicated – 3 views
  • My top (and only) heckler is Sard Caid – Congratulations Sard!
  • My top referrer is Life in Low Sec – 1,903 referrals! That’s what happens when I ride on the coattails of the greatness that is Mynxee

Blog Lessons

At the end of the day, I write this blog for me, and me alone. However, I must admit it’s been nice having an audience that has appreciated my efforts.

Some subjects are of interest to my readers, others are not. Short stories, novellas, artwork, these tend to be the things my readers enjoy. Recipes don’t seem to be a favourite, and yet they will continue! <audience applause>

So what I have learned from being a first time blog author? A great deal indeed. Let’s take a look. <audience applause>

  • People don’t like polls
  • People do like guides
  • Using tags is good
  • Promoting post titles for the blogrolls instead of Roc’s Rule #xxx is a much better idea(thanks again Mynxee)
  • People like artwork
  • People like artwork involving breasts even more
  • People demand more action figures
  • People demand Mynxee and Roc get it on!<audience applause>

The Future

So what comes next? Well, let’s take a look at the things I have on the go; I’m sure there will be something of interest! <audience applause>

  • Path to Freedom, EVE Online Novel
  • One Night of Roc, music CD available in August 2009
  • The Colonel and the Pirate, collaborative novella with Mynxee
  • Capsuleer 2.x, the definitive iPhone tool for EVE Online
  • Personalized 3D action figures of YOUR character in exchange for ISK <audience applause>
  • More short stories
  • More recipes
  • MOAR ROC! <audience applause>

Final Thoughts

Yes, it’s been a good ride thus far, and looks to be really only beginning. I invite you to continue to experience this adventure with me in this universe we call New Eden. There is always so much to do, so much to learn, new friends to make and kill, and of course, self introspection. <audience applause>

—

“I can’t believe I overslept!” I said, scrambling out of bed. I looked for my shirt on my dresser, sleep dazed for a moment until I realized I wasn’t in my quarters. I heard Kainda stretching behind me, small purrs escaping her mouth as I had inadvertently woken her.

I found my shirt on the floor in a far corner of the room, and began dressing quickly, trying to get one foot into a boot while pulling my shirt on. It didn’t work out exactly as I had envisioned in my head.

“Need a hand there, tiger?” Kainda said, reclining on the bed, the thin sheet barely covering her silky skin. I took her in fully, once my shirt was on, feeling her sultry smile and come hither stare penetrate me, stirring my loins. She leaned over onto her back, the swell of her full breasts reaching skyward, enticing me further to come and partake.

“I would,” I began, tying my one boot, “But I can’t late. Duty is duty.” I had used that line a thousand times before, to impress whatever woman I had happened to bed the previous night, and also as an excuse to make my exit, but this time it was true. I had been summoned by the Sanmatar, the request to my NeoCom requiring the highest level of clearance to view.

The message itself had been short:

<START>

Colonel Roc Wieler. Your presence is required at the office of the Sanmatar at 0500 hours. This is not an optional request. Failure to comply will result in military contempt and imprisonment.

<END>

It had obviously not been written by the Sanmatar himself, and seemed a tad threatening, but not everyone was good with their communication skills. Still, it did seem odd, and I tried to imagine what was going on that would require such strong wording and a meeting at such an ungodly hour.

“Will I see you again?” Kainda asked, a small cuteness in her voice.

“Universe is a small place.” I replied. I wasn’t one for relationships, never had been. Mynxee was the exception of course. There was obviously something between us, more than just physical, but it was unsure, uncertain, and definitely didn’t warrant any commitment.

I gave Kainda a quick kiss on the lips, which turned into several minutes of intense petting and making out, finally extricating myself from her grasp and running out the door. Hot women were going to be the death of me.

Arriving at the Sanmatar’s office slightly out of breath, and covered in old lipstick, I pulled a wipe from my jacket pocket and freshened up as best I could.

The two guards standing on either side of the Sanmatar’s door was an ominous beginning to this meeting. Usually, I would just knock on the door, and Maleatu would invite me in; clearly that day would be different.

I informed one of the two guards of my identity, which was verified, and after briefly speaking into his aural implant, the door was opened for me to enter the room.

As I walked in, I could feel the heaviness in the air, and knew in my gut something bad had happened. Maleatu wasn’t his usual smiling self, and was in the middle of conversation with two council members I didn’t know personally, as well my top ranking escort squad leaders. Daul Halwick looked my way, uncertainty on his eyes, and I nodded to him in reassurance, trying to play things as casual and “normal” as possible.

“Colonel, please have a seat.” Sanmatar Shakor gestured to a nearby chair as he finished his conversation with the council members. I assumed they would’ve left, but they didn’t, seating themselves in adjacent chairs to me. Daul took a standing position behind me and to the right, the other escort behind me and to the left.

I could feel the hairs on the back of my neck stand on end, and my knuckles turning white, the blood starting to rush through my veins a little faster in anticipation of something dreadful about to occur. I quickly went over my activities of the last few weeks in my mind, trying to see where someone could’ve interjected speculation into my accounting of things, some aspect I had overlooked that could now be used against me.

I wasn’t a pessimist. I was simply pragmatic. Hope for the best, expect the worst. If I didn’t think of the absolute worse scenarios, I wouldn’t be able to react quickly and efficiently when even worse things occured.

“Colonel,” Maleatu began, his voice sounding uncomfortably formal. “I requested the presence of Councilman Traithe and Councilman Arbor this morning as witnesses to this meeting, and I apologize for the early hour; it was the only opening in my schedule today I’m afraid.”

There was no smile on my friend’s face. I could feel myself growing more tense. I nodded to the Sanmatar, acknowledging his words, but not offering up any of my own. There were times it was better to sit quietly and observe than to speak foolishly. This was one of those times.

The Sanmatar turned his back on me, gathering some documents on his desk, all the while talking. “Your anti-pirate initiative has encountered tremendous success. You are to be commended for that.” Maleatu said, turning his attention back to me once again, a small hint of a smile on his lips. “”Our squads have captured or killed many of the region’s outlaws, and morale amongst the general militia troops has drastically improved. Well done, Colonel.”

The two councilmen plastered fake smiles across their lips, clapping in unison for the exact same duration, then stopping, the smiles falling from their faces as quickly as they had appeared. It looked perfectly rehearsed a thousand times over.

“The council has been concerned by the additional expenditures during a time of war, and I’ve had to rationalize it to them on your behalf.” Maleatu continued, the unspoken words not being missed. He knew I had no experience with accounting or asset management, and I was thankful for his intercession.

“They have finally come to agree with my assessment as to the necessity of continuing this intiative, and given our most recent victory, have happily signed off on continuing the exercise.” Maleatu said.

Recent victory? As head of this operation I micro-managed just about every aspect of it. I didn’t necessarily have to be involved in every detail, I just liked to know everything that was going on at all times, who was doing their job, who was doing just enough to get by without being discharged from the op, even who was profiting a little on the side, though they weren’t aware yet that I knew.

What was he referring to?

The Sanmatar threw a docket onto my lap, but my gaze never left his. “One of our fleets has been very active in Evati system lately, the results of these pushes into pirate infested territory being that one of the local bandit groups has opted to relocate to Kourmonen.”

I only knew of two pirate groups operating out of Evati: The Bastards and the Hellcats, Mynxee’s corporation. My heart began pushing against my ribcage. I quickly glanced down at the closed docket, hesitant to open it.

The Sanmatar continued, “While enroute to their new ‘home’, we managed to coordinate with the militia and intercept some of their pilots, cutting them off from their main force. While there were casulties on both sides, this could now be considered a turning point in our war against terrorism. That’s what we were discussing when you arrived.”

I could sense Daul tensing slightly, his heavysuit making his movements easier to hear. I could feel a lump forming in my throat, and my heart continued to race, threatening to burst free. Casulties? Who had died? Had I known them? I found myself more concerned for my friends, even though they were pirates, than for the brave men and women of the militia that had also perished. I felt great shame at that.

“Please, Colonel. We need your input on this one. While you are strictly denied any access to this prisoner, your past experiences with her will prove invaluable to us. She’s proven quite resistant to interrogation thus far, but we know you will provide the answer.” Maleatu gestured towards the docket once again.

I couldn’t breathe. My hands wouldn’t respond to the commands of my brain, shaking and moving slowly towards the docket on my lap. I could feel the adrenaline pumping through me. I could feel the fear and outrage rising within me. I was terrified of whom it would be, yet also hopeful it was her; at least then I knew she was alive. I could feel my anger in the vein on my forehead; if she was alive and being ‘interrogated’ behind my back, I wasn’t sure what I would be capable of.

Finally, I opened the docket cover, and saw Mynxee’s face looking back at me.

Last one out get the lights

Posted by Roc Wieler on

I stood at the front doorway of Freeform Industries from the inside, looking out. All the lights had been dimmed, all the cubicles and offices cleared out.

I breathed heavily, my sigh echoing throughout the empty hallways of our once proud corporation facility. It was never easy saying goodbye to the place you’d worked for the last year. It wasn’t the job, jobs came and went, it was the people. People always managed to make an impact on me, and closing this chapter of my life meant leaving behind some people that meant a great deal to me.

Would I ever see them again? Perhaps. Regardless of how big the universe was, it often seemed very small sometimes.

I stepped into the light of the main corridor, the symbolism of darkness to light not lost on me. I turned to face the Freeform main doorway as it slid closed for the last time.

“Engage security protocal X-12H, authorization Wieler C286T71.”

I could hear the door seal, heavy deadbolts locking into place. I took my sunglasses off, and moved towards the retinal scanner.

“Revoke roles and privileges, Roc Wieler, authorization Wieler E7Gamma2.”

“Are you sure?” Aura responded.

I had made up my mind. It was time to move on. There was simply nothing left to hold onto here.

“Yes.”

“Termination of employee 87, Colonel Roc Wieler, complete.” Aura replied.

“Take care of yourself.” I said to the doorway, realizing I was being a sentimental fool.

I slung my tote bag over my shoulder and walked towards the nearest pub. The bag had my final few corporate belongings, small mementos I had collected during my time at Freeform.

An hour later, I was lost in melancholic revelry, enjoying my beer(s), contemplating my next step. I knew where I wanted to be; I just wasn’t sure how to get there.

It reminded me of a lesson Master Cho had taught me as a slave child many years before…

“But if I choose the first path, Master, I will miss out on what the second path has to offer.” I said, working through my logic verbally. Master Cho was strict and harsh, but I knew he appreciated the process as much as the end results. By demonstrating my ability to work through an issue, he would hopefully be impressed.

We stood at a fork in the road. The surrounding area was beautifully forested, dense enough to not reveal what lay at the end of each path before me, but promising to be pleasant enough either way.

“Yet if I take the second path, I will miss out on what the first has to offer. Hmmm.” I scrunched up my brow in deep thought, as I had often seen Master Cho when concentrating on an issue.

“Maybe there is no wrong choice.” I said, turning to see Master Cho standing behind me, arms crossed, a stern look on his face. He was a visual reminder that going back was obviously not a choice; that I would have to move forward.

“Or perhaps there is no right choice. That is the wonder of mystery.” Master Cho replied.

I turned back towards the two paths, looking for some indication of which direction I should choose for myself.

The path to the left seemed more well-trodden, perhaps a trade path used by local merchants. If that were the case, there would be food and gifts at the next stop along the route. At the same time, trade routes often beggared bandits and vagrants, set on stealing or begging for your hard earned money.

The path to the right had a gentle breeze, which indicated some type of water; perhaps a waterfall or lake. I didn’t see any gulls in the sky which was often an indication of a waterline, so wasn’t sure of my assessment. This path winded quickly, not giving me much of a view to ascertain at all.

“So which path will you choose, dog?” Master Cho demanded from behind me.

“I choose neither, Master. I have not sufficient knowledge of either, and therefore it would be foolish of me to engage down either unknown path without first gathering more information. So I will stand here, and query any passers by to make a more informed decision.” I said confident I had passed this test.

Master Cho smiled with satisfaction as he approached me, and for once, I felt I had measured up to what he expected of me. A quick backhand corrected that misconception.

“Young fool!” he barked, in a sudden rage. “By choosing neither path you miss out on the opportunity of both! No decision is the most pathetic decision of all. All life moves in two directions; it is either growing or dying, moving forward or decaying. Standing still is not natural.”

I did my best not to cry. I had tried so hard to please him, to impress him just once.

It wasn’t until many years later that I learned the man was simply unpleasable.

“Wish I could kill you again, Cho.” I said, raising my beer to my lips.

“What was that?” a female voice said from my side.

I turned and saw a Brutor female standing beside me, smiling, her red hair flowing freely around her face. At first my heart leapt, thinking it was Mynxee, but it wasn’t. How many red headed vixens were in this universe? Sheesh.

“Nothing, just remembering someone I’d rather not.” I replied glumly.

She arched her eyebrow in that way all women seem to, appraising me. “Well aren’t you the man of mystery and intrigue?” she said, sitting down in an empty chair at my table.

She stuck her hand out towards me. “Kainda Gordo, pleasure to meet you. Hope you don’t mind a little company.”

She was far too pleasant and chipper for my mood, but I wasn’t one to turn away the companionship of a beautiful woman. I took her hand in mine, noting the strength behind her grip, and introduced myself.

“Roc Wieler.” I grunted.

“Now where do I know that name from?” she said, a flirtatious smile on her face, inviting me to share more.

I simplly shrugged, taking another sip of my beer.

Today I was just another man. Today I was without a paying job. Today was just another day in another bar in another system in the universe.

Kainda leaned over on her elbows, staring intently into my face. “I think someone needs some cheering up, and you’re lucky; I’m just the right girl for the job.”

She smiled again, and I was forced to chuckle at her confidence.

Maybe it wouldn’t be such a bad day after all. I ordered us both a round of beer, choosing at least the temporary path before me.

Republic Fleet Firetail

Posted by Roc Wieler on

POST UPDATED: 02/04/10 FIRETAIL REVISITED

Introduction

The Firetail is modeled off a fighter frigate known as the Shamrock, a design used by a small, now-extinct pirate faction known as Lazari Dromitus.  The blueprint found its way into the hands of Matari military forces after a raid on Lazari Dromitus’s headquarters succeeded in killing its leader, thus beheading the organization and scattering its remnants to the four winds.  It has since been improved upon and upgraded, and the Firetail is now a mainstay in most Republic Fleet patrols.

RF Firetail

I don’t recall what it initially was about this ship that attracted me to her; was it her smooth and sexy lines, her speed? Perhaps it was the way in which she was born, having been birthed from the blood of pirates. Maybe it was her sheer brutal effectiveness? Regardless of why I decided to choose her when I did, it is a decision I have never regretted since.

Today we’re going to talk about the Republic Fleet Firetail, and why it’s such a valuable specialty ship to any Minmatar pilot.

NOTES:

  • Never fly anything you can afford to lose
  • Understand this guide is based on my own extensive experience flying Firetails for a particular purpose
  • This guide is post-Apocrypha so takes into account warp scrambling changes introduced in that expansion.

So you’re an accomplished frigate pilot, probably even read THIS definitive guide on Rifters by the dread pirate Wensley. If you haven’t, you should, because if you don’t understand T1 frigates, then you’re not ready to fly a Firetail.

First things to understand about faction frigates:

  1. They’re expensive
  2. They require specialized skills to be effective

Pretty much any capsuleer can pop open a frigate and take it for a fly; there’s not a lot of skill required. Now of course, in order to fly a frigate well is something different, and requires a few support skills to give you the advantage. To this end, many pilots will train to fly the ship they want FIRST, then learn all the support skills for it SECOND.

Recommended Skills

The RF Firetail should be the exact opposite approach. Take the time to learn all the support skills you need BEFORE you ever undock the ship; it will last longer that way.

What skills do I recommend? For today’s discussion, i find the following list to be the bare minimum for flying a Firetail:

  • Electronics V
  • Long Range Targeting V
  • Signature Analysis V
  • Energy Grid Upgrades V
  • Energy Management V
  • Energy Systems Operation V
  • Engineering V
  • Shield Compensation IV
  • Shield Management V
  • Shield Operation V
  • Tactical Shield Manipulation IV
  • Advanced Weapon Upgrades V
  • Gunnery V
  • Motion Prediction V
  • Rapid Firing V
  • Sharpshooter V
  • Small Artillery Specialization IV
  • Small Projectile Turret V
  • Surgical Strike IV
  • Trajectory Analysis IV
  • Weapons Upgrades V
  • Astronautics Rigging IV
  • Hull Upgrades V
  • Jury Rigging IV
  • Projectile Weapon Rigging IV
  • Shield Rigging IV
  • Acceleration Control IV
  • Afterburner V
  • Evasive Manuevering IV
  • Fuel Conversation IV
  • Navigation V
  • Thermodynamics IV
  • Minmatar Frigates V

If it looks like a lengthy list, that’s because it is. I cannot stress enough how important it is to not just be able to fly your ship; you need to fly your ship well. Ideally, these skills will all be trained to level V, but this is the minimal recommended requirements for a RF Firetail.

Fitting the Firetail

Like anything else, you can do things half assed, and get half assed results, OR you can do things right the first time. In the case of doing things right with a Firetail, it’s expensive, about 100 million ISK expensive.

Holy &$??!** Roc! Why would I spend that kind of isk on a Firetail fit when I can just fly Rifters for about 3 million isk per fit?

I could try to rationalize many legitimate reasons: if you fit it correctly, you’ll rarely lose it; the boost to morale it gives seeing a Firetail in a fleet; enemies not knowing how to fight it as it’s not a very common ship; etc, etc.

The truth is simply Coolness Factor: It’s a damn cool ship to fly. It looks great, it responds great, it dishes out death well. What more could you want?

So what’s a typical Firetail fitting look like? Well, here’s one of my current favourite setups, ready to paste into EFT:

[Republic Fleet Firetail, Renegade Variant]
Power Diagnostic System II
Damage Control II
Overdrive Injector System II
Gistii B-Type 1MN Afterburner
Pithi C-Type Small Shield Booster
Republic Fleet Warp Disruptor
250mm Light Artillery Cannon II, Tremor S
250mm Light Artillery Cannon II, Tremor S
‘Arbalest’ Standard Missile Launcher, Caldari Navy Sabretooth Light Missile
‘Arbalest’ Standard Missile Launcher, Caldari Navy Sabretooth Light Missile
Projectile Collision Accelerator I
Anti-EM Screen Reinforcer I
Auxiliary Thrusters I
[Republic Fleet Firetail, Renegade]

Power Diagnostic System II

Damage Control II

Overdrive Injector System II

Gistii B-Type 1MN Afterburner

Pithi C-Type Small Shield Booster

Republic Fleet Warp Disruptor

250mm Light Artillery Cannon II, Tremor S

250mm Light Artillery Cannon II, Tremor S

‘Arbalest’ Standard Missile Launcher, Caldari Navy Sabretooth Light Missile

‘Arbalest’ Standard Missile Launcher, Caldari Navy Sabretooth Light Missile

Projectile Collision Accelerator I

Anti-EM Screen Reinforcer I

Auxiliary Thrusters I

Let’s take a look at that visually:

Sample Fitting

Not a bad frigate at all!

PROS:

  • Capacitor stability
  • Agility
  • High warp speed
  • Scan Resolution
  • Signature Radius
  • Top Speed
  • Effective HP

CONS:

  • low DPS
  • If webbed, or caught out of range, the Firetail’s HP will quickly diminish

As you can see, if you take the time to learn the support skills necessary for this fine ship, she will make it worth your while.

ROLES FOR THE FIRETAIL

As I eluded to earlier, the Firetail is not a general purpose frigate; it’s just too expensive for that. I wouldn’t be using it for missioning or ratting, or for mining, or even for general PVP.

So what would I use it for?

Faction Warfare

For all its broken mechanics, for all its perceived pointlessness, there are still a great many pilots out there voluntarily engaged in the war of the Empires. I happen to be one of them, and a Colonel in the Tribal Liberation Force besides.

Faction Warfare plexing, that is, the scanning and capturing of defensive and offensive complexes, is done in a fairly controlled manner. Plexes are each assigned a size, and only ships of that size or smaller can fit into that particular plex.

The Firetail is the king of minor plexes.

The only other ships that can fit into a minor plex are frigates and destroyers, and 99% of the time, at least for my situation, my enemy is Amarr.

It’s an ideal scenario for the Firetail. No heavier ships around to cause it grief, a controlled entry point the enemy MUST come from (each plex is entered via an acceleration gate), and range and speed no other ship in that class can match.

Look again at the fitting. That RF Warp Disruptor has a 30 km range. Do you know many other frigates/destroyers with nearly 2 km/s speed and the ability to fight effectively at 30 km? Well yes, an artillery fit Thrasher can fight at that distance at least, and you have to be careful with those for sure, but for the most part, you’re operating in a way other frigates and destroyers simply cannot match.

Interceptor Tackler

Another interesting role for the Firetail is tackling. It can easily tackle just about any ship in a fleet operation, and anything bigger than a cruiser will be sorely pressed to even hit it, but for real fun, try using the Firetail for tackling interceptors.

It can match speed with most of them long enough to get the warp scram going, and it’s armour can easily withstand anything an interceptor can dish out.

Again, these are group activities! Do not try doing this for solo pvp efforts or you will find yourself losing plenty of isk every time another Firetail bites the dust.

SUMMARY

So, what did we learn today?

The Firetail is an expensive sexy ship with limited use and high skill costs, but when utilized correctly can be one of the most effective faction frigates available in New Eden.

Fly safe.

EDIT (Sept 25/2009) – So the Firetail is going to be getting some love from CCP in the near future. Will be slightly slower, ranking third fastest amongst all frigates, but will see a significant increase in DPS. I can’t wait to start playing with new fits.