young woman star

Clones are not real. Not yet. None of us live forever. We can only hope to continue beyond this life via the memory of others, whose lives, in turn, we have touched in some small way. To that end it shined a bright light into the dark corners of my soul when I read this post on the E-O forums, asking that CCP graciously honour the memory of the recently-departed “Taera”, by creating, in EVE, a monument to her earthly accomplishments.

Laura “Taera” Genender worked at CCP, albeit briefly, yet it was the very beginning of a promising career for a 23-year old who started as a journalist at MMORPG.com and who seemed to make friends wherever she went. Her ambition whilst at MMORPG was to move into games development, and, as someone who has harboured similar ambitions, I can jealously proclaim that it was an incredible accomplishment to have started that career at CCP.

I’m pretty sure I never met her in my travels (I can barely remember the faces of my old mates at PCZone), but reading what others have said, it saddens me that when I get to Fanfest in November, she won’t be there to politely say she loved reading EON.

I do hope that CCP create something inside New Eden as a testament to her memory. I also hope they change their policy and allow monuments to lesser others who are no longer able to fly across New Eden due to extended downtime in the afterlife.

We should remember that EVE is a real universe where real friendships are forged. These are friendships that persist solely in - and because – of EVE, and when players have their clone contract terminated prematurely, the loss is felt across EVE. It is therefore only fitting that players be allowed to honour the memory of departed friends through the medium of the game that brought them together in the first place.

For myself, I’d much rather have my name on a planet in Amarr than a park bench in Woking. Not that I’d care if I’m dead, but maybe …just maybe, others might.

Thanks Taera. Fly safe, wherever you are. Hopefully I’ll see you in EVE one day.

if we don’t fight, they’ll kill us both

Sadly there hasn’t been much news from CCP on when or where the next Alliance Tournament will appear. I’m reminded of asking since it was this time last year that we headed over to Iceland to prepare for and broadcast the fourth of EVE’s inter-Alliance PvP contests (this was back when EVE TV was kicking its hooves in the tiny MMM stable).

Being a rather large and expensive logistical exercise, it’s not one I myself am keen to be involved in again, although I remember it with great fondness… as do the hundreds who took part and the thousands who watched it live. For the sake of that and for continuity though, I’m curious as to whether November’s Super Ultimate Eve Online Mining Tournament of Awesomeness is a welcome re-imagining of the Fanfest PvP Tournament, a financially necessary re-branding of the bi-annual telethon, or a conjugation of both?

Whatever the future of the Alliance Tournament, I do hope it continues in some form. Even if it means getting all the alliance leaders into a bear-pit and arming them with lirpas. (Daa-da dah dah da-dah…)

more postcards please

Whether it’s the way the light skims off a golden hull, a vast armada of warships striking through warp, a POS under seige, or just the serenity of a quiet planet nestled in a off-route system, EVE is full of stunning views. In EON every issue we try and capture some of them as part of Postcards from the Edge, but we need your help. We need your screenshots.

If you wish to have one of your EVE pics included in a future edition of the magazine, all you have to do is email to me along with your character name, the name of the system the screenshot was taken in (if known) and a brief description of what is going on.

Please note that we can only accept images taken with Premium Graphics content enabled, and please ensure that no interface elements are included (ALT-F9 toggles the UI). Those who have their images published will recieve a free copy of the magazine, and, ever better, my eternal gratitude.

time flies by

I can’t believe it’s been almost three months since I last attempted an entry here, and I feel a slight sense of shame that it has taken so long to be roused from my blogging slumber. That said it has been a busy few months: Another EON has been and gone; there was the Council of Stellar Management meeting in June, some other deadlines in July that corresponded with a trip to the US (where I saw a drive-in movie for the first time) and loads of other personal stuff, including moving home, filing a very late tax return and a few less pleasant chores even than those.

…All of which kinda leaves me back where I was three months ago; rushing around to complete another EON. Whilst I and others get on with that task though, I shall endeavour to blog a little more often and update all the things on the site that need updating.