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

EVE Online can be a harsh place, and at times it is based more on player choices and emergent behavior than an inherent balance of forces. Nowhere is this more apparent than in the war system used to make PvP legal between two corporations or alliances in high-sec space. The disparity in force projection between a casual high-sec mining corporation and a diehard pirate ransom corporation gives 'asymmetrical warfare' a new meaning.

Players in corporations oriented towards relatively peaceful activities are sought out by these piratical organizations, and then the threat of war is used to terrorize and extort them. In short, fun and profit at other peoples' expense, often with a helping of teeth-gnashing on the side. Which has a place in the hearts of EVE players.

But never mind that. What's important is that when the terrible people hellbent on ruining fun come calling, the innocent high-sec dwellers understand what the options are, and don't panic. To that end, this guide.

The Psychology of The Extortionist

The pirates are after entertainment and ISK, in that order. They want entertainment in the form of blowing you up, and they want ISK from your dropped loot and from you eventually paying them to go away.

They don't want a challenge, but that doesn't matter because you can't put up a challenge. PvP in EVE Online is pretty darn tricky, especially in high-sec, and at least somebody needs to know what they are doing or you're going to get walked all over. First time PvPers trying feebly to retaliate is exactly what the pirates want, because when you lose (this point isn't really a variable, first time PvPers will lose against experienced war corporations) you will be more amenable to purchasing a quick end to the war.

Cost, Opportunity Cost, and Upkeep

Pirates can't make you undock, and the longer you go without undocking, the more it costs to maintain the war. This is your primary advantage against PvPers. All they can do is disrupt whatever you needed to undock for, be it mining, missions, or what have you. This isn't ideal, because it doesn't make them any money or provide much in the way of entertainment.

In order to make the war cost as much as possible, your corporation should be in an alliance. If not, the cost of declaring war on you is going to be a scant handful of millions of ISK, possibly as low as 2mil ISK. At least, for the first week of war. This is nothing. If you are in an alliance, the cost is more like 50mil ISK for the first week, or possibly several times that if the pirate corporation or your corporation are involved in multiple wars.

Some things can raise the cost of waging war against you. The longer the war goes on, the more it costs. The more wars the pirate corporation is involved in, the more it costs. The more wars your corporation is involved with, the more it costs. It's against the rules to declare war against your corporation with shell corporations, in order to raise the cost, though. This can be petitioned if anybody notices, and you may get a warning (or worse) from GMs.

You can't reason with them to end the war, because war is reasonable from their perspective. You can't beg your way out of a war, because whining is the chief motivation of most of EVE's pirate player base. As are idle threats. You do have some options, though, and it's best to be aware of them.

Responding By Not Responding

The best, most readily available way for a non-PvP corporation to deal with wars is to freeze the pirates out. Don't talk to them in local, especially in ways that let them know they are inconveniencing you. Don't undock to fight them, even if you think you can win --even losing fights can be entertaining for pirates, or at least not boring. And it's pretty unlikely that you will be able to win, no offense.

If you don't provide targets, by not undocking in any market or mission hubs, nor in any mining systems, the pirates will eventually end the war and search for greener pastures. It probably will take a week or two, tops. It's also possible that you can relocate yourself to a more obscure area of high-sec. This is not guaranteed to work, though, as special locator agents can tell the pirates where you are. If nothing else, though, this will probably mean there are less people in local chat, so you'll be less likely to miss someone you are at war with, jumping into system.

Another way to have fun but not play into these pirates' hands is to just log onto other characters, that aren't in the corporation that is involved in the war, and go about your business as best you can, until the war is over.