Stupid CAS

YC113.09.19

It’s been almost a year since I graduated from the Centre for Advanced Studies.  Things are certainly different own my own, away from the sheltering confines of school...

So far, I’ve kept my head above water - or rather, air my lungs.  But what is it about school never teaching you the things you actually need to know to survive?  Just what lessons do they think we’re going to absorb, when all they talk about is all the ISK you can get?

(Or I suppose, for those with more muscles than brains - all those ships you can vent when CONCORD isn’t looking...)

I’ve made a few ISK, bought a few ships, promptly lost some of those ships, and am starting to get a feel for this new life.  Sure, I know how to get the most out of a mining laser or how to best use those sub-par refineries in the more “colourful” regions, but the real lessons I could have used:

Lesson 1: check what system you’re buying from!

I had a line on some broken drone transceivers dirt cheap, and a buyer ready and willing.  Man, did I have plans for the ISK I’d be getting outta this deal - which near as I can figure is why I forgot the first rule: if it’s cheap, there’s a reason.  Now, these transceivers were waiting for me in Reblier, a couple of hundred ripe for the picking.  And here’s me with a week-old Itty Mark III just begging to be taken on a trading run.

I get in-system just fine, notice there’s not exactly an abundance of traffic around.  But hey, the early bird catches the worm.  (Which really just shows the worm should have slept in...)  Of course, these things are spread over three stations.  The first pick-up goes just fine, not a soul to be seen.  Flying into station 2 I finally spot someone else, just flying patrol next to the station.  I dock no problem, get the goods loaded on, and without even pausing for a coffee off I go for the next station.

Only I barely get squeezed out the docking bay, and whammo! Shields gone in less than a second, armour right behind it.  Not even 10 seconds in space, and there goes my Itty III in a puff of vapour - along with those stupid transceivers!

That’s the last time I’ll forget to check security before buying.  

Lesson 2:  Going to the source is a great shortcut (just don’t ask what it’s a shortcut to)

How I lost my two-day old cruiser, that’s a different story.  Just as stupid a reason though.  I got a fairly sweet thing going for me here in Aidart.  Plenty of rocks to mine, not many neighbours, and just the occasional rat or two to clean up.  So I get it in my head that hey, let’s be proactive and clean out some of these rats at the source, see if I can make a difference in the universe.  

(Those bounties CONCORD’s paying - they never entered into my mind at all.  Nope, not one bit...)

And lo and behold, what have I got sitting in my hanger but this shiny Vexor, just loaded right up with guns.  I’d been hearing some rumours of a nest not far from an old beacon anchored on the system’s edge.  What better way to break in my ship?  Without further thought (or any thought at all, for that matter) I warp out to that beacon, fire up the scanner, and bingo!  One rats’ nest, coming up.

Warping in, no problem at all.  In fact, why not warp to 0 from the sig, save some time boosting closer?  (See where this is going yet...?)  I come out of warp, and sure enough, lots of rats just waiting for me to lock on.

Um, they’re locking on to me already.  Why aren’t they waiting for me to be ready?  What happened to fair fights and good guys always winning?  Hey, what the hell was that?  And where’d my shields go?

What’s that buzzer mean?  I haven’t heard that before...  Shut up computer, what do you mean there’s no armour left?

All I can say, thank goodness the auto-eject on the pod worked fine - cause nothing else did that day!