A Tale of Pew Pew in Three Parts

Part I: Agincourt

The market has been treating me well. Sales of the new rigs have been swift, and profit margins have been very comfortable. My wallet is growing nicely.

I had some business with my research agents in Sinq Liason and beyond. Last night, I took my Wreathe industrial, Agincourt. Once I was done, I decided to check the local market for salvage material. I've been building Gallente equipment, so it shouldn't surprise me that the salvage that I need is cheaper in Sinq Liason. I picked up about 110 million ISK in salvage and started heading back to Metropolis.

I was autopiloting while working on a blog post (that hasn't been finished, yet). I was peeking at local, keeping an eye out for any Amarr militia. I was pulled from my typing by the distinct sound of blasters. I looked up to see half my shields were gone. It wasn't firing around me, it was someone firing at me!

I was over nine kilometers from the gate and a Brutix in Aufay, a 0.5 system, had just removed half my shields in one volley. I had no options, I had to hope CONCORD would show up, or I'd make it to the gate.

Again and again the blasters fired. Quickly, Agincourt was destroyed. Instinctively, I warped my pod away. As I was warping away, I saw a Hoarder turn flashy. I can only assume he was looting what was left of my wreck.

I warped back to find my wreck. I didn't see another wreck. It is possible I missed it. It is possible that Teff nogero warped away. Perhaps CONCORD got him elsewhere, but I have to imagine that he was planning to get away since he was using a Brutix fitted with large weapons.

I lost my entire cargo. Fortunately, my cargo was destroyed and little was left to loot.

Part II: Assailer

I had the day off, and spent it on the frontier. I arrived in one of my Aggressor-class Rifters, Assailer. We were in a fleet of about fifteen, playing cat-and-mouse with an Amarr fleet. I found myself in a scout role.

I was poking around Dal. There were just a few war targets. I warped back to the Auga gate, ready to leave. As I approached the gate, it activated. There was another war target in local. I waited, zero-bubble on the gate, for the hostile to drop cloak.

It was an Incursus. It was very likely the same Incursus we had seen poking around as a scout for the other fleet. I was very tempted to engage him. I notified the fleet. The Incursus took a hostile posture. He turned toward me and locked me.

I probably shouldn't've, but I decided to obliged. I triggered my targeting computer and selected approach.

Afterburners on. Proceed to tight orbit.

As soon as my lock was established, i quickly toggled everything. His drones were out, his rails were responding. I was determined that this Incursus would be destroyed.

I panicked a little. As soon as my shields started depleting, I triggered my armor repairer. I'm so used to being in a shield-tanked ship.

I toggled my repper back off, and was pleased at how quickly his shields and now armor were melting. At this rate, my Rifter was sure to outlast this lone Incursus.

Now, however, we wasn't alone.

An Amarr militia Malediction answered his call and joined in the fight. I soon found myself taking fire from both. I was now chanting, "Hold together. Just hold together."

My armor repairer was losing against the rising tide of hostile fire, but I had now removed the last of the armor from the Incursus. I was still panicking. Instead of toggling the overheat on my autocannons, I just toggled the whole high rack.

The Incursus was flaming, barely holding together, but they were now eating into my hull. I picked a distant object, ready to make an escape in my pod.

My capacitor ran dry, my afterburner, my damage control, my armor repairer, they all fell silent. And I lost my lock on the Incursus.

Clearly, my Rifter had been destroyed. I spammed the warp button. My capacitor was empty. The Malediction still had me pointed. I wasn't escaping. I was spamming the align and warp buttons.

It was in this moment of panic that I realized, my Rifter was still holding itself together. I had lost my lock on the Incursus because it was destroyed. It was just the Malediction and me.

I knew I couldn't take him. I had no capacitor, my hull was dropping from his ranged attacks, and one of my autocannons had taken so much damage that I'm surprised it hadn't exploded.

I got some capacitor back. I don't remember which module I triggered. The afterburner to get away, the armor repper to hold things together. I don't remember, but when I was finally far enough away to warp, my Rifter was near 60% hull.

I had my second solo kill. I had survived what turned out to be a one-versus-two.

I was shaking. I was racing. I didn't have the capacitor to reach the celestial that I had picked. I bookmarked my location and waited a moment. I picked another and object and warped, letting the armor repairer slowly plate the burning ship.

I had to go out through Auga to meet the fleet. I knew the Malediction would be waiting.

I finally warped to the Auga gate to find the Malediction, a Wolf, and I forget what else. They chased me.

They chased me into a Heretic camp.

I jumped through, and they stopped chasing. I found a station and eagerly authorized the 31,000 ISK to the station master without looking at the bill for the repairs. I wanted Assailer back together and ready to undock.

Part III: Zunvi'as

Our fleet restructured itself a few times, and I eventually found myself in a Blackbird, Zunvi'as. We were still sparring with the Amarr fleet, but a band of Heretics had decided to spoil things a bit.

One of our pilots was caught at a safe spot by the Heretics. Our fleet doubled-back to assist him, but I found myself closer than the rest of the fleet. I thought I would warp in just long enough to break the lock on the pirate that had my militia mate pointed, and we could both flee.

Regrettably, as I was in warp, his ship was destroyed. As my bubble collapsed, I found myself 30 kilometers from the Heretic band as they attempted to lock his pod.

Immediately a Heretic Malediction broke off and heading for me. I locked him as I aligned to warp away. I took the preemptive measure of jamming him to keep him from getting a point on me.

In doing so, I got my first Global Criminal Countdown.

Regrettably, I had chosen a stargate as my destination. The gate guns tore into my Blackbird before I could warp away.

The fleet arrived and disbanded the Heretics, dispatching a three of their ships and a pod. We regrouped and waited for our timers to countdown.

I had no armor and barely two-thirds of my hull. My ship was on fire, as we waited together.

Another engagement called, and those without timers warped away and jumped out of system. It was then that the Heretics returned and found me in a safespot.

They easily destroyed Zunvi'as.

My first GCC cost me one Blackbird.