EVE Online at Ten Ton Hammer - Taking MMOG Gamers to the Next Level!

Save some money

Believe it or not, there’s really no reason to spend anything more than what some of the career missions may need you to in the beginning. When I say the beginning, I mean your first month or so… seriously.

The only things you should really be spending any money on are skills, a new ship or two, and parts. There are plenty of new shinies along the way that will try to turn your head, but have some discipline. Everything will seem pretty affordable at first, but when you start looking at getting yourself into a new Battlecruiser with all the fixings (and the subsequent insurance you’d better buy with it), you’re going to need some of that loot you’ve worked so hard for earlier on.

Decide which ship you want to fly

There are quite a few different ships to choose from, even when you’re still a green pilot wet behind the ears. Take some time to look ahead and start gearing the skills you purchase and train towards those of a specific ship class. There’s a big difference between having the bare requisites to fly a ship you want and having the skills to fully take advantage of said ship.

You’ll find there are what seem to be a thousand different skills available to you in the game. A ship may require you to have a Gunnery skill of level 3, but meeting this bare requirement will net you the bare results in combat. Supporting that skill with a few levels in Motion Prediction, Controlled Burst, and Rapid Firing will go a long way in improving your general effectiveness. These are only meant to serve as an example, but delving further into the specialized skills for your ship of choice will only help make your time in space more enjoyable.

Pay attention to your attributes

The character creation process will set you up with a viable character for what you want - military, mining, etc., but when you start adding implants, knowing where they'll help you out most is extremely important. All the attributes affect the speed in which you learn certain skills differently.

The implants you choose to increase your attributes can have a drastic affect on your ability to learn skills efficiently. For example, if you plan on focusing primarily on combat skills, Perception and Willpower will be the most important attributes to you.

This table from the EVE Online support pages shows the different skill groups and their corresponding attributes:

Group	Attributes used (primary and secondary)
Corporation Management	Memory, Charisma
Drones	Memory, Perception
Electronics	Intelligence, Memory
Engineering	Intelligence, Memory
Gunnery	Perception, Willpower
Industry	Memory, Intelligence
Leadership	Willpower, Charisma/Charisma, Willpower
Learning	All
Mechanic	Intelligence, Memory
Missiles	Perception, Willpower
Navigation	Intelligence, Perception
Science	All except Perception
Social	Charisma, Intelligence
Spaceship Command	Perception, Willpower/Willpower, Perception
Trade	Willpower, Charisma/Charisma, Memory