Low Sec Forgetten? I think not!!!

Welcome to the twenty-first installment of the EVE Blog Banter, the monthly EVE Online blogging extravaganza created by CrazyKinux. The EVE Blog Banter involves an enthusiastic group of gaming bloggers, a common topic within the realm of EVE Online, and a week to post articles pertaining to the said topic. The resulting articles can either be short or quite extensive, either funny or dead serious, but are always a great fun to read! Any questions about the EVE Blog Banter should be directed to crazykinux@gmail.com. Check for other EVE Blog Banter articles at the bottom of this post!

This month topic comes to us from @ZoneGhost who a few month ago asked "Is Low Sec the forgotten part of EVE Online?" Is it? I'd like us to explore this even further. Is Low Sec being treated differently by CCP Games than Null Sec (Zero-Zero) or Empire space is? Can one successfully make a living in these unsecured systems where neither Alliance nor Concord roam to enforce their laws? What's needed? Or is everything fine as it is?

Lowsec is forgetten? Certainly not, it's just a place that everyone avoids. Too bad really, because lowsec is a really interesting place. Where else can you say you are truly living by your own wit? In High Sec, you have concord to help keep you safe. Sure you can still get killed, but concord makes killing you less desireable. Null sec is the very same situation, the only difference being CONCORD is a player entity with your corp's or alliance's name attached instead.

Want to learn how to be productive in low sec? I mean really productive, not just burning through case with a pirate, and making money with an alt to support your pirate habit. I mean do you want to learn to be productive and safe in the face of danger? Then run over to http://lowsec.org/, where the United Trade Syndicate (the low sec industrial and trade alliance), is publishing the information YOU need to operate safely and productively in Low Sec.

Fitting for Low Sec is Fitting for High Sec

As many High Sec residents are learning, High Sec by no means is an indication of safety. Sure High Sec is safer, because there is a less pronounced and less spontaneous PvP activity in high sec, but it is not safe. Nearly every high sec PvP victim is a result of fitting with the false expectation of safety.
So what does this mean for the everyday eve pilot? It means that no matter what you are doing, what task you are performing, or what ship you are flying that you fit and prepare for PvP. PvP does not necessarily mean fitting for in your face battle. It means fitting your ship so you can respond appropriately when under threat. In some cases this means fitting your ships for in your face pew pew, but it can also mean fitting your ship for evasion and being able to get out of dodge before it’s too late to get out.
I fit all my industrial type ships (Industrials, Exhumers, Orca) to be able to evade threats. My ships are fitted so that when flown properly, I can bust through gate camps without a scratch. My hulks are fitting to get to warp under 4 second. I also fit most of my ships with ECM or EW modules and a flight of ECM drones that will help me to escape in the unlikely event I do get snagged in a trap. No they don’t guarantee I will get away, but they grant me a dice roll 2nd and 3rd chance to get away.
My mission running and ratting ships are fitted pure ‘poke you in the eye’ PvP. They are not the most efficient for PvE, but when I get snagged, I am not sitting in a PvE ship, I am sitting in a PvP ship. This is something many aggressing PvPers are not counting on. They are counting on you to be fit like rib racks with those little chef hats on each tip, in other words, to die under their fire. However, you can turn the tables on them simply by being ready.
Another long term affect this would have, is if all pilots fit for PvP of one sort or the other (evasion or poke you in the eye), then aggressing PvPers at large will all think twice about your ship being simply a tasty morsel on the buffet table. Beyond your individual survivability, Eve as a whole will change for both the PvP and non-PvP playstyles. There will no longer be the jaded division between pirate and carebear, but the division will more equivocal. Yes it means PvPers will bring larger teams and fly solo less often, but that is good for you, because it means the roams will likely be more condensed, less profitable for the pirates, and therefore a less frequent encounter. Of course that only will happen with a paradigm shift of basic fitting styles at large.