F***ing Vertical!

When a certain picture was leaked out last week, of a CCP employee working on the Minmatar design-contest-winning Tornado, I was overjoyed. "About damn time!" I thought right away, and the feeling got amplified when I learned that the Tornado would not only be a Tier 3 battlecruiser (a true battlecruiser in essence; more on this later), but it would also have some company in Gallente, Caldari and Amarr form. It looks like I'll have some gunnery skills to train up because although I'm nicely cross-trained in pretty much all medium weapons, it's only in Large Projectiles that I can use the T2 weapons. I have the start of Large Hybrids but at the moment I only have that skill to III, and missiles I have only trained just enough for a stealth bomber. But the Tornado? I want one as soon as they come out of various ovens. Well, just like when the Noctis came out I will wait a few days for the prices to stabilise because I'm not one of those weirdos who will pay ridiculously bloated prices to be the first to have one.

Now, why did I say that the Tier 3 BCs will be "true" battlecruisers? My buddy Letrange and I had a discussion about this and being the military buff he is he's totally right. The current Tier 1 and Tier 2 battlecruisers in EVE, if we want to compare them to real life navy ships, are in reality heavy cruisers; they have cruiser-sized weapons but sport tougher armor and defences. A battlecruiser carries battleship weapons, but they aren't as armored as the big boys, and they are much faster. The rule of thumb of real life BCs is the following: it can destroy whatever it can catch and can outrun whatever it cannot destroy. I'm not sure if the same will apply to the Tornado and its brothers, but at least they have that "BFG" factor. I'll also be very interested in seeing the Amarr BC, the Oracle*. The thought of a pocket Abaddon appeals to me. All this, coupled with the changes to PI and capital ships, should make New Eden a very interesting place in the near future.

The Clown is BACK!

On a completely different subject now, I was happy to get some news from this little alliance (yes, it is a one-corp alliance) that apparently is re-emerging from its own ashes, and I'm talking about none other than my first ever alliance, Clown Punchers Syndicate. I'm a regular podcast listener so obviously Voices from the Void is high on my playlist, and last week's episode featured BOZO female pilot Jel Malar talking about a recent Listen to the Voices player meet in Austin TX, and also about the rebirth of BOZO. A short recapitulation: Clown Punchers got shut down in April 2010 when the old leaders, Quebnaric Deile and Teister, and director Tolarus, decided they had had enough of EVE and quit permanently. I'm still in contact with them and believe me when I say they don't want to come back! After they left, ownership of the corp/alliance fell to swedish murder machine Rugs and not much happened in the past year. But apparently some old BOZOs are getting back together and reforming in Syndicate. Now, I know the reasons why I left back in October 2009 (damn it's already been that long?!) so before I make any kind of move I'll have to have a long chat with Rugs. I'm pretty sure he will know to avoid what caused the collapse/burn-out over a year ago and lead the BOZOs accordingly. I wish all my former BOZO mates the best in this reboot of one of the best group of people to fly with. If you want more information on BOZO recruiting, join the channel "Sideshow" and hit it up with a recruiter.

Paradiddlus Ad Infinitum

Gimme !!!

Finally, to close this post on a non-EVE related subject, yesterday was a very special day for me because I went to a Drum Corps percussion clinic, so not only did I get to immerse myself once more in the fabulous musical sport of Drum Corps, I got to reconnect with my first ever drum instructor, the one who literally taught me how to hold a pair of sticks. And not only that... it was at the same school where my old corps, Les Éclipses de Longueuil, used to practice. I have never gone to school there so the last time I had set foot in it was 30 years ago as a member of the Éclipse drum line, the best in Québec at the time. I also got to meet some drum line players from back in the day, one of which was a lady I use to be very close to back then because she was on the snare line and I was on the cymbal line so we where like ALWAYS together. I was 11 years old at the time and I was in a corps that was just about to break into the DCI top 25. Yeah, it was rough! But even if I have never really marched after that I was always close to Drum Corps because of my dad and in my teen years the drumming experience came in handy when some buddies of mine got into music and needed a drummer. And so it was that yesterday I got to practice with not only the Wishmaster drum line for a 1-hour mock-up practice session (imagine a Nightwish cover band, but instead of one drummer they have a full-sized drum line.... epic win !!!), but also up close and personal with a few snare guys. I got to try quads for the first time but these are extremely tough. But that got me thinking, now that Quebec has a senior corps (senior means "over 21", not "old age"!), wouldn't it be awesome if I joined 'em, practiced my ass off, and marched my first ever Drum Corps competition on the snare line? I think my dad would cry rivers of joy if I did it :)

Fly yer ass off

o7

*Edit: so the Amarr tier 3 BC is called the Oracle, where I had previously called it "Abomination". I was misled by the name of a contest participant.