Persephone Astrid's YarrJournal

Most people have an internal set of principles that they live by. Whether these rules are well thought-out and clearly articulated or simply a set of loose guidelines that are applied situationally, they are always there in the background, guiding their actions.

Persephone lives by the philosophy of the fifteen Ps: Proper prior planning prevents piss-poor pirate performance, protects Persephone’s pod, provides plunder, and pays for PLEXes.

This seemingly-silly alliterative phrase contains the foundation of her approach to the business of piracy. In order to profit, ISK received has to exceed ISK expended. Recklessness wastes hulls, fittings, ammunition, implants, clone upgrades, and most importantly, time. Economists have a term for the cost of time: opportunity cost. Simply put, it means that while you do one thing, you cannot also do another, so when you choose to to one thing, you are losing the other. In this case, time spent being blown up in an ambush is time not spent out hunting for prey and making money, time fitting new ships to replace the ones discarded foolishly is time not spent out hunting for prey and making money, time moving more hulls and modules and ammunition from the market to lowsec is time not spent out hunting for prey and making money, and so on.

Admittedly, adherence to this philosophy makes Persephone seem like something of a boring stick in the mud when she’s on the prowl. She’s unwilling to take reckless risks or to engage in random PvP fights for their own sake. To Persephone, a thrilling fight is one in which everything goes as planned and results in a ransom payment or a cargo hold full of loot. Defeating other pilots in spaceship battles is a means to an end, not the end itself. In other words, she shoots at spaceships to prove a point about the viability of piracy, not to prove she is the greater spaceship fighter.

Most guides to piracy instruct the would-be pirate to maintain some kind of money-making alt: a mission runner, researcher, market PvPer, macro miner, or the like. They say this is because it is impossible to make a living solely as a pirate, that ISK lost will always exceed ISK earned.

Persephone derives immense satisfaction from the knowledge that every day she’s out there proving this conventional wisdom to be dead wrong.

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What principles guide your actions? Do you have a motto, or code of ethics, or (if you’re Caldari, I suppose) a Mission Statement, or even a loose set of guidelines? I’d like to know. How and why do you do the things that you do?

Persephone used this:

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(killmail here)

On Tuesday The Bastards went out looking for trouble. During a quiet moment, I snagged this photo:

(Click for 1680×1050 glory)

I’m more of a frigate gal myself, but there is a certain beauty to a fleet of Hurricanes and Drakes moving in unison.

Years ago I was a member of an organization which prized those people who we called “fun mavens.” These were the people who could be counted on to take any situation and make it fun. With several fun mavens at a gathering, there was a good chance that fun would suddenly break out and everyone would have a good time. We cultivated fun mavens, encouraged them, and tried to retain them. A little of this rubbed off on me, and now I try to help others to have a good time.

Out of nowhere, I got the inspiration to host some fun for The Bastards (and recruits!) in the near future.

What: TEAM FRIGATE MAYHEM MELEE!
Who: All Bastards or recruits
When: (deleted for security reasons)
Where: (deleted for security reasons)
Why: Because I love hosting these.
How: Read this post!

All Bastards and applicants will fit one of the following frigates in any way they see fit: Atron, Condor, Executioner, or Slasher. The participants will be randomly divided into two teams. The teams will fight it out in a melee for control of the grid at a remote battlefield. All members of the winning team who are on grid at the end of the battle in their still-intact ship will receive the prize of a interceptor hull based on the ship they flew in the melee. Members of the winning team who lost their ship will receive a consolation prize of 1 million ISK.

Eligible ship hulls and fitting: Atron, Condor, Slasher, Executioner. NO CLOAKS, NO ECM MODULES. Other than that, anything goes; fit whatever you want. Just remember that it will probably go -pop- in a horrible ball of fire. (Warp scramblers/disruptors are not required, but are funny.)

Teams will start on opposite sides of the referee’s ship, 25 km away from the referee (50 km from the other team). Ships will be at a standstill with no targets locked. Modules may be active. After the order to begin, the players may engage and destroy the ships of the other team at will. No entrant is to go more than 150 km from the referee’s ship. Any ship which exceeds this distance, no matter how briefly, will be immediately disqualified. This includes warping away from the grid.

Time limit: The winning team must hold the grid alone before 5 minutes have elapsed. If this has not been done at the 5 minute mark, then the winning team will be the team with more intact and manned ships on the grid.

Important: to win an interceptor hull you must be (1) A member of the winning team (2) on grid at the end of the melee (3) still in the ship in which you began the melee and (4) not have been disqualified for exceeding 150 km from the referee’s ship. This will be strictly enforced.

Winner’s interceptor choice: If you flew an Atron you may choose from an Ares or Taranis. If you flew a Condor you may choose from a Crow or Raptor. If you flew an Executioner you may choose from a Crusader or Malediction. If you flew a Slasher you may choose from a Claw or Stiletto. Prize ships will be delivered by contract after the next corp freighter run.

Because I am donating all prizes and organizing this myself, I reserve the right to be a meanie and say “no,” when you beg for five more minutes to fit up a ship while the rest of us wait for you. Be prepared! Proper Prior Planning Prevents Piss-Poor Performance, Pirate!

Sometimes the two-ships-in-one-hangar view bug produces amusing results. To me it looks like a very protective mama Harpy is sheltering a little Ares under her wings. The only thing missing is for someone to draw in cute little n.n eyes behind the two ships’ beaks.

I toyed with the idea of writing a short story in which some junior docking bay worker got the bright idea to save space in the hangar by stacking ships like Tetris pieces, but I just couldn’t find a way to make it funny. You’ll just have to use your imagination on this one.

What do you think is happening in this photo?