92 replies to this topic

[Yamir Ke'Shark]

I have a couple of questions....well...more like 3 or 4....

I am currently in a corp that runs classes in Eve basics for players who ultimately wish to fight live opponents. It's good of them to do so but talk about agony....oy vey! Thus the following questions:

1. Does Agony think it's useful, clever or just plain cute to roleplay military drill instructors, heaping meaningless abuse on new players for failing to follow rules that are difficult to discern because they've organized their forum like a monkey hurling feces?

2. Do the majority of Agony members and students believe that every thought, feeling or insight need be prefaced and punctuated by the Saxon noun/verb/adverb/adjective for coitus? I wish these folks well and all but I don't pay a monthly fee and login to a complex, imaginative universe to experience all the culture and ambiance of a biker bar in Casper, Wyoming.

3. Does Agony focus on the Ms in MMO? What I am looking for, beyond the formidable task of simply comprehending this near impenetrable game, is group activity, teamwork and camaraderie unseasoned by a prerequisite several shots of Bourbon washed down with a six pack of beer.

I'm just looking for a good crew of folks who enjoy working together and often while showing each other some respect.

In short, have I come to the right place?

Thanks

If you enjoy the above attitude then Agony is probably not the place for you. If you're looking for a change, first impressions are a good indicator so the easiest way to find out what Agony is like is to try and get on a Basic class where we try to show our best or see if you can catch someone from Agony in the agony public chat room and strike up a conversation (Hi, is a good start usually)
But form my opinion and experience the three numbered questions can be answered:

1. No (unless something really weird is going on and you hopped into the wrong channel on TS),
2. No (however it quite probably wont be PG either),
3. Not sure what you mean with the latter part is it the M for Massive (in which case we're not that big, nor do we tend to use that software package for rendering large crowds of people or animals) or the M for Multi-player in which case we do try to work as a cohesive team and new people are introduced and older people leave from this team regularly for varying reasons (just watch and listen to an experienced FC and an experienced team of skirmishers and scouts work together in a fleet).

Hope that answers the majority of your questions. If this is the right place for you, only time and communication will tell.

[Greygal]

I have a couple of questions....well...more like 3 or 4....

I am currently in a corp that runs classes in Eve basics for players who ultimately wish to fight live opponents. It's good of them to do so but talk about agony....oy vey! Thus the following questions:

1. Does Agony think it's useful, clever or just plain cute to roleplay military drill instructors, heaping meaningless abuse on new players for failing to follow rules that are difficult to discern because they've organized their forum like a monkey hurling feces?

We're not roleplayers - well, there's the occasional spurt of "Take that, you Amarrian scum!" (oh wait, we used to fight FOR the Amarr...) but definitely not drill instructors or militaristic. Our forums are well-organized but that doesn't mean they aren't challenging to navigate at times!! lol! After all, there's more than six years of history in our forums! But nobody is going to yell at you for failing to navigate our forums. More likely be relieved at one less forum whore...

2. Do the majority of Agony members and students believe that every thought, feeling or insight need be prefaced and punctuated by the Saxon noun/verb/adverb/adjective for coitus? I wish these folks well and all but I don't pay a monthly fee and login to a complex, imaginative universe to experience all the culture and ambiance of a biker bar in Casper, Wyoming.

Cursing is actually very rare in our comms. What little cursing occurs is usually related to someone cursing at their own selves for doing something silly ("F*** I knew it was a trap!) or someone is flying drunk and loose (which doesn't happen very often, unless you are Koldz! - teasing you, Koldz!) I personally have never witnessed any Agony member cursing at another Agony member. While I'm sure people may have cursed at eachother when having a dispute - we do have six years of history - I have never witnessed it, and from what I know after being in Agony nearly 1.5 years, disputes between members are uncommon and generally respectful. One thing is for sure: We do not curse at someone for making a mistake.

3. Does Agony focus on the Ms in MMO? What I am looking for, beyond the formidable task of simply comprehending this near impenetrable game, is group activity, teamwork and camaraderie unseasoned by a prerequisite several shots of Bourbon washed down with a six pack of beer.

We are a small corp. I think right now we have about 60 or 70 active members, spread through all time zones. Typically there are 10-15 people online at a time, more during scheduled or special events, less during those "dead times" between the time zones. As to drunkenness... most of the time, everyone's sober or just enjoying an after-work beer here or there; we're not a frat-house environment at all. Sure, there's the occasional party atmosphere occasionally, but it's not Animal House

I'm just looking for a good crew of folks who enjoy working together and often while showing each other some respect.

We genuinely enjoy each other's company and flying together. Respecting each other is one of our very few rules (which are actually called guidelines) and is a well-ingrained aspect of our corporate culture.

In short, have I come to the right place?

That's something for you to decide, of course! I will mention, however, that there are a number of people in Agony who used to be in the corp you currently are in, and they all seem quite happy here!

[Vansen]

I have a couple of questions....well...more like 3 or 4....

I am currently in a corp that runs classes in Eve basics for players who ultimately wish to fight live opponents. It's good of them to do so but talk about agony....oy vey! Thus the following questions:

1. Does Agony think it's useful, clever or just plain cute to roleplay military drill instructors, heaping meaningless abuse on new players for failing to follow rules that are difficult to discern because they've organized their forum like a monkey hurling feces?

2. Do the majority of Agony members and students believe that every thought, feeling or insight need be prefaced and punctuated by the Saxon noun/verb/adverb/adjective for coitus? I wish these folks well and all but I don't pay a monthly fee and login to a complex, imaginative universe to experience all the culture and ambiance of a biker bar in Casper, Wyoming.

3. Does Agony focus on the Ms in MMO? What I am looking for, beyond the formidable task of simply comprehending this near impenetrable game, is group activity, teamwork and camaraderie unseasoned by a prerequisite several shots of Bourbon washed down with a six pack of beer.

I'm just looking for a good crew of folks who enjoy working together and often while showing each other some respect.

In short, have I come to the right place?

Thanks

I just joined Agony myself a little while ago. So I'm going to try to answer your questions form a new corp member perspective, which should be (more or less) how you'll end up when joining (btw -> joining requires an application in this forum and an interview)

1. If you are a role player or you want to role play ... yes, that is necessary.
However, Agony is not a role playing corp (or did I completely miss that?), hence people will teach you in a "direct" way.
"Direct": there might be theoretical parts and practical stuff but basically you just do fight live opponents and learn by doing what the FC says or of failures (your own, of fleet members or of opponents)
In short: It's fun!

2. You might hear such a word from time to time as you might hear it in day to day conversations. More interesting is the use of talking about yourself in the 3rd person (mostly in fleet), so that people know who is talking even if they don't know your voice. The difficult part is getting used to that while speaking

3. Drinking is not required ... unless it's a drunken roam ... if there is any

If you want to give it a try, either apply or join a class and get to know us.

... Hoping that I'm not getting kicked out because of what I just wrote ... (not serious)

[Dior Saursi]

1. We do not RP, if anything we tend to giggle at those that try. We do tend to theorycraft and debate fitting and tactics a lot. We throw terms like applied DPS and engagability around. 2. I won't say our comes are pg, in fact I would say it would be boring if they were. We have entertaining banter that always has an overtone of respect since our recruitment process and corporate structure tries to foster comraderie and a sense of family. When we say our (un)official mantra "stop sucking," we mean it in as a friendly message. I would say that the culture and tone changes based on what time of day it is. 3. We aren't a dry corp. We don't usually have drunken roams either. It is pretty rare that people get drunk while playing, but you would have to pry the bourbon from the cold, dead fingers from some of our members. Above all we play to have fun. Being surrounded by a group of obnoxious drunk people, walking egos, or people who can't work together isn't fun.

[Eethelred]

Okay then! I had a hunch after watching the You Boob video of GreyGal going over the directional scanner employing a hilarious parody of the flight attendant briefing that this was a good group. Not that the bunch I'm with are bad but..... Cursing is nearly mandatory and life would be painful without it. And arguments involving suspicious phrases such as family friendly make me want to stooge slap folks with Gideon bibles. I just feel it should be in response to *something* more than the speaker being alive and possessing working vocal cords. And I'm no teetotaler. The word sounds either vaguely obscene or involving math. It was more a situation, like the above, of extremes. As for small, while I thoroughly enjoy watching those stylish Rooks and Kings videos with their BBC broadcast quality narration, I've only been playing this game since February. Fleet actions of that magnitude...well...I'd be happy with an active cadre of clever folks who logon to a voice server when they logon to the game and don't all run off mining asteroids, ignoring each other on corp. So...time to find out how to apply then....many thanks, folks. Sincerely EDIT: Having read your Wiki and such, and given that I only recently crossed the 3 million skill point mark, I think I'll sign up for a course and leave matters of membership for later...

[DaDutchDude]

I think Management by Poo Flinging is a great way to organize just about anything, including the Agony forum.

[Yamir Ke'Shark]

I think Management by Poo Flinging is a great way to organize just about anything, including the Agony forum.

Release the monkeys!! And make sure they don't have any flaming poo...

[Alistone Malikite]

2. I won't say our comes are pg,

Powergrid? I don't recognize your use of the "PG" abbreviation. And they renamed the bloody hardwirings so PG2, PG4, PG8 etc aren't even items anymore...

You Boob video

You Boob seems like something we would call lazy corp-mates if for some reason it is more relevant than "stop sucking".

Stop watching the tube you Boob, it's slowing down your lock times and making you take longer to load grid "Ya Big Nub"

[Dior Saursi]

PG, as in the movie rating Parental Guidance. "Such films may contain only mild violence, language, drug references, brief nudity and/or implied or inferred sexual activity." Following that guideline would make thorax fleets much less amusing.

[Aluchem]

He means we fucking swear and talk shit

[Tay]

<- exclusively FCs drunk, while swearing and talking shit. Multi-tasking at its finest No worries, the others are pretty civilized.

[Hammereds]

Hello all, don't know if this is even relevent anymore since i've been gone from the game for a while now but thought i'd chuck my answers to a few questions particually making money in pvp since i could never do those mission things, i used to get scared whenever i wasn't in 0,0... that might seem odd but the few of you that remember my escapades into lowsec and highsec would know that i was fucking useless at it, probably should put a postit note on my face saying don't attack them there are gate guns here.

 

but anyway here is the short version of how to make money in pvp.

 

1) learn to pvp.

 

2) initial investment of cheap ship (start out T1 frigate. work your way up, my personal favorite was the taranis but i also worked in hurricanes etc when i'd had a few good runs in the taranis to buy one.)

 

3) talk to the other agony guys about fittings or look on killboards at other people that are doing this, i'm guessing there is still people doing it since alistone is still here, if glepp is about he was another big one for it.

 

4) go hunt, the fittings for your T1 ship will cost very little, so in terms of return of investment you basically need to kill one ship for every bunch of frigs you lose, as you get better you'll learn the high trafic systems (they'll also get to know you though, beware of carriers dropping on that battleship you've almost killed) and become better at piloting your ship -> more kills less deaths.

 

5) upgrade your ship. as i said i always used a taranis but as a newb it pays to use a T1 frig till you earn enough for something better + a few replacements. then fly about in your new ship till that dies, and if you've earnt enough from that replace it, if you've earnt more, upgrade, and less back to T1. i used to earn all of my money in my taranis.

 

and there we go. foolproof way to pvp without missioning ever. It will pay to talk to the more experienced members of the corp for tips and tricks, you need a keen ability with the directional scanner and full knowledge of warp interdiction methods etc to catch people. but your little frigate can do more than you think, you name the ship type and an agony member has probably killed it in a frigate. except a carrier, i tried, didn't go well.

 

word of warning, don't always hunt in the same area, think of it like crop rotation, kill russians for a few days, then go for pandemic etc. otherwise you'll end up getting quite the following. if your lucky dadutchdude bazman and glepp will come kill everyone for you while you scream down vent POINT, I HAVE POINT!!  =)

 

also doing this with a partner is great fun me, glepp and alistone went on some runs together and there is always of the spoils to share. just remember to dump the loot before you get blown up.

[glepp]

Omg it lives?

Hey Hammers, look they made me a director!

[Hammereds]

=D congrats mate, glad to see a few familiar faces still around. i hope your still rocking about in your little ships, can't have you getting all fancy now your a director.

 

Really wish i had the time to come back, hard to believe its been about 3 years =S although i've now finished my degree and got one of those girlfriend things so work takes priority over eve yet again. Think the next mmo i'll give a shot is that Star Citizen, and luckily thats still got a good few years development time left for me to get my life in order.

 

I'm in the steam group for agony so if any of you lot fancy a game of something feel free to contact me on there =)

 

anyway derail over. i have a question. now that agony is back in npc 0,0 have you guys manage to make the area into as big of a clusterfuck of roaming battle squads as back in providence(guessing now that its none owned space they'd be less action, and less opportunities to smartbomb battleship blob =D)?

 

obviously i was always about the small gang stuff but ocasionally the larger stuff catches my interest and they're things i'll be able to read about on those after action report website things to see how your all getting on. fuck if i can remember the name of the site i used to read them on though.

[Carenthor Loon]

o7 Hammereds

Not sure where you used to read them, but I've added you to Veterans so now you can read the AARs on our forum

[xikorita]

Hammerhead we still use that taranis fit you made!

[keacte]

♥♡ hammereds! - yup.. what Xik said! :-)

[Yamir Ke'Shark]

and there we go. foolproof way to pvp without missioning ever. It will pay to talk to the more experienced members of the corp for tips and tricks, you need a keen ability with the directional scanner and full knowledge of warp interdiction methods etc to catch people. but your little frigate can do more than you think, you name the ship type and an agony member has probably killed it in a frigate. except a carrier, i tried, didn't go well.

 

 

Took us 12 frigates if I recall correctly.

[Beef Hardslab]

For making isk I've always been keen on ratting. Sure, I can make a lot of isk killing people & selling their shinies, but for guaranteed isk I rat. I just rat in something pvp fit. I also used to run exploration sites in a sentry domi, but it seems easier to get caught up doing that than ratting in belts.

 

I'm usually pretty lucky at finding faction spawns, so that helps.

[Zael Serine]

I have a question if you don't mind.

 

I have been considering applying for Echo squad, my question is: If you are on holiday, or break from University, Are you allowed to x up to fly with Americans or Europeans if you are awake during their hours?

[ToranBrades]

I have a question if you don't mind.

 

I have been considering applying for Echo squad, my question is: If you are on holiday, or break from University, Are you allowed to x up to fly with Americans or Europeans if you are awake during their hours?

The squadrons are purely in place for some basic admin - you can fly with all Agony all the time, and just the mere thought of someone calling "Ok, all Charlie guys go to bed now, Echo's starting to fly..." gives me a crazy grin...

[Beef Hardslab]

lol Toran

[Zael Serine]

 

I have a question if you don't mind.

 

I have been considering applying for Echo squad, my question is: If you are on holiday, or break from University, Are you allowed to x up to fly with Americans or Europeans if you are awake during their hours?

The squadrons are purely in place for some basic admin - you can fly with all Agony all the time, and just the mere thought of someone calling "Ok, all Charlie guys go to bed now, Echo's starting to fly..." gives me a crazy grin...

 

Hah, alright, that makes a lot of sense.

 

I wasn't sure how the Squads would work, since the recruitment for other squads were full.

 

But thanks.

[DirtiSanchez]

Hi.  A few questions...

1. What are the main fleet comps?
2. Is there a roam every night or planned or just the random and... "Hey there is 5+ people on and a FC... lets do a roam?"

3. (Understanding that PVP is not an isk making option.) How does your scouts/ecm earn any loot if they are at optimal or next system?

4. Do you require only mains or do you allow trialist to use alt/sub-main.  (Sometimes WH life can be a bit boring.  More like alot of times.)

[roigon]

 

 

I have a question if you don't mind.

 

I have been considering applying for Echo squad, my question is: If you are on holiday, or break from University, Are you allowed to x up to fly with Americans or Europeans if you are awake during their hours?

The squadrons are purely in place for some basic admin - you can fly with all Agony all the time, and just the mere thought of someone calling "Ok, all Charlie guys go to bed now, Echo's starting to fly..." gives me a crazy grin...

 

Hah, alright, that makes a lot of sense.

 

I wasn't sure how the Squads would work, since the recruitment for other squads were full.

 

But thanks.

 

 

 

They won't tell you, it's a bit of a dark secret but actually the in-fighting between squads is horrible. It's like the navy, airforce and marines. Obviously alpha squad is the best squad, but this just annoys the other two squads so they tend to gang-up on alpha squad. They will also deny this fact quite vehemently, claiming that in fact THEIR squad is best squad. Which is of course folly at best.

 

Especially the guys and girls in Echo squad. They can often be seen mingling with the other squads. People like greygal and toran were the worst offenders of this when I still flew with agony, which should be no big surprise for the people who have attended PVP-U classes and seen them in action. It's like this is all just some (video) game to them, just flying at whatever time they choose, logging in whenever they feel like. It's madness I tell you, madness. Like the rules don't apply to them. Like the choice of squad is just some vague indication of what timezone you mostly fly in. Don't be fooled by it, don't let them just drag you into having fun, there are rules to be followed damnit.

 

 

Hi.  A few questions...

1. What are the main fleet comps?
2. Is there a roam every night or planned or just the random and... "Hey there is 5+ people on and a FC... lets do a roam?"

3. (Understanding that PVP is not an isk making option.) How does your scouts/ecm earn any loot if they are at optimal or next system?

4. Do you require only mains or do you allow trialist to use alt/sub-main.  (Sometimes WH life can be a bit boring.  More like alot of times.)

 

It's hardly my place to answer these since I'm ex-agony but I'll give you some rough answers that you may take with a pinch of salt.

 

1) Sorry will have to wait for an agonite, but check out the killboard and the answer will probably be mostly sub-captial, BC/cruiser/frigate small gang 2-20 man gangs, with the occasional heavier kit type fights.

 

2) At least a few months ago it was still "all of the above". There are generally both planned roams for which you can sign-up/show-up as well as ye olde, "there are more people online then just me, let's go out there and blow up some ships" roams. 

 

3) There are many many answers to this question, but as someone who has flown a lot as scout/skirmisher there is always a time and place to loot, also between larger gangs there are always the smaller gangs in which you often won't have a dedicated scout and you are just a 3-4 cruisers or frigates, etc..  Also agony (at least when I left) had the standing tradition of giving loot to whoever lost a ship. So If you lost 2 BB's during a roam and weren't able to get any loot because you where constantly dead or at a distance, you might find you get your fair share of loot regardless. 

 

To perhaps delve into an answer to a question behind that question. You have correctly identified that fun pvp isn't a money making operation. However, it is quite possible to pvp on a budget and make do. Between the income from loot, the occasional PvE opportunity via exploration or running a complex and you can also quite easily set up planetary interaction to generate some nice, easy ISK income. It heavily depends on your play-style (i.e. how many ships you lose and how expensive those ships are) but it's perfectly possible to survive in a pvp corp on limited means. You really don't need billions in your bank to fund the habit. Furthermore agony is a fun first corp and members always help each other out. I mean, don't expect a free lunch, this is still eve. But you really don't have to be space rich to pvp, and you don't need to have billions of ISK to join.

 

4) A question better answered by an agony pilot. (but the answer is probably that agony is a corp of mains)

 

Anyway, again, I'm ex-agony as such my answers may be dated. Just trying to give an indication of what answers you may expect.