On behalf of the Hek Mining Association, allow me to thank you for finally giving mining the attention it deserves. Mining has consistently seemed an afterthought but these recent changes are a massive quality of life improvement for us rock farmers. However, we are concerned that in your zeal to right past wrongs you may have over-corrected. And, in doing so, you may be causing more harm than good.
I am referring to the recent significant buffs to mining ship hit points. On the surface this would seem to be a positive change. After all, who doesn’t love when the ships they fly get better. However, it is important to understand that Eve is a delicate ecosystem that relies on a number of interconnected components to function. In this case, the increase in hit points is making it more expensive and difficult to gank them. And, it is this disruption that threatens our way of life.
Prior to these these change, miners and gankers existed in beautiful equilibrium. A solo miner with a bad fit could easily be destroyed by a single pilot. But, a fleet of properly fit mining vessels with support could handle all but the largest of ganker fleets. This balance incentivized miners to cooperate and penalized those that did not. After these changes gankers are forced to use at least two to three times more ships to achieve the same results. As such, many of them have simply stopped. And, that is bad for the game.
Eve is truly unique in the world of online games. It is an epic sandbox where your choices and relationships have a genuine impact on the shared universe. And, love them or hate them, high-sec ganking organizations epitomize that sandbox. They have taken the tools available to them and created something organic and real. What’s more, their actions often introduce players to the sandbox for the first time. And, it is that moment of discovery that creates an Eve Player.
If we lose that, we lose Eve.
