Eve of Crucible

Back from four days away and the patch notes are already on-line for tomorrow's release of the newest expansion.  


Like the rest of Eve I suppose I am simply waiting. Waiting to see what it really means, what it really looks like, what the short-term and long-term meanings will be. A lot of changes, in fact I can't remember a longer list of patch notes. Maybe Dominion? My mind doesn't remember the details and human nature dictates that the moment is more important than the past anyway.


So today is a good re-entry day for me as well. Time to get caught up and move Ana into the nearest trade hub. I'm not sure when the new ships will be available and how expensive they will be when they are, but either way I want her to be ready to scoop them up. Right now I'm planning on buying at least two of each. Rixx can fly all four, so why not?


And while many people believe the new ships may only be good for killing SC in Null Space, I think that is a tad short-sighted. Certainly 40 or 50 of the new tier 3 BCs will play havoc with SC fleets, and I'm sure many null Alliances will take advantage of that, I think the longer-term use will be in small gang battles. The sheer amount of DPS that one ship brings to the mix is staggering. And while survivability might be an issue, that is one issue that can be dealt with easily with small gang strategy and tactics. Either way, I'm anxious to give them a try.


Other than that, for us low-sec dwellers at least, the remainder of Crucible is mostly a cosmetic change. The only real issue remaining will be Player Owned Custom Offices and I'll have to wait and see what, if any, impact that has on low-sec. Some have predicted it might be the "golden calf" that brings more people into our systems. I'm not convinced yet.


But new ships, new nebula, new UI enhancements, new 'fixes', new ship skins, all add up to a ton of much needed and welcomed changes. And probably the most anticipated expansion that I can remember.


But my own personal play-style, my in-game moment to moment, won't be impacted that much by Crucible. New Eden looks to be a much better place tomorrow, but still full of ships that need to be exploded.