Author: Dalarin Brenen
As a NEWBRO to EVE Online, joining a fleet where you know with 100% certainty the future of the ship you are about to undock, is actually quite refreshing.
It will never see another dawn, will never again have the satisfaction of docking, will never again feel the sensation of a new skin touching its hull. In short – it’s doomed.
What is special about the chaos fleets?
I had attended a number of fleets organised by EVE University and found myself embarrassed at my lack of knowledge and inability to keep up, and frustrated at letting the team down.
The Chaos fleet removed all of this anxiety. If I died, no one would be let down and I could simply reship and catch up with the fleet. In fact, if I died, I would probably be celebrated.
So what are the Chaos fleets?
I have no idea. No one does – that is the point!
Every single Chaos fleet is different and there is never a defined structure, nor a final goal. Unless the complete obliteration of the fleet can be classified as the final goal.
What Chaos fleets have in common is that they are organised by experienced Unistas. The Chaos Sisters unstable unit and Danielle en Divalone have created chaos and helped Unistas meet each other in those social fleets for many years.
On the last fleet when asked “What is the objective?”, the answer presented was:
“We are taking our dog for a walk. However the little scamp has actually managed to escape and we need to go find him.” It is very difficult to find a “Retriever” in EVE’s vast universe.
WHAT?!
The actual route had been designed to allow the new players in the fleet to examine several of the tourist attractions found within the vast EVE universe whilst we chased our dog (the Retriever ship) and included the following attractions:
The Eve Gate (New Eden)
It is believed that this Gate was used by the original human colonists until it collapsed trapping many of them in New Eden. I recommend that everyone should read the history of EVE to gain insight into the different factions that we encounter every day in game. This is a historic location and everyone should take time out to visit.
The Black Monolith (Dead End)
Looking like the object from Space Odyssey this massive Smooth black Monolith can be seen in the Dead End system. This is obviously a reference to Space Odyssey and has been included on a number of CCP sponsored sightseeing contests. Definitely worth a visit.
Violent Wormhole (Promised Land, Plant 1)
What appears to be a stable wormhole is in fact a Sansha constructed wormhole and some people say that you can see the Sansha fleet through the wormhole waiting to attack New Eden. You cannot enter this wormhole and no one knows if this content will eventually come to life. But nevertheless this is one eerie wormhole and the danger of the Sansha forces is palpable. I love it.
The Sansha nation was once among the strongest nations in the Eve cluster. Will they ever return?
Hollow Asteroid – Or as we call it – Dani’s Hole (Djimame)
An asteroid in space with a hole that has mysteriously gained the name Dani’s hole in reference to EVE Unis extremely popular member Danielle en Divalone.
And here I find myself, cramming my tiny ship into Dani’s hole with 50 other people. What is going on – fireworks everywhere and more laughter than I can remember in a long time. I don’t know what to make of this and anyone finding this fleet on DSCAN would probably have been scared away by the sheer craziness of it all. Fantastic fun!
The Molea Cemetery (Molea, Planet 2, Moon 1)
Starting out as a memorial for player toons having died in game. Players would simply drop their corpses at the cemetery as a bit of fun.
Now however, it has become so much more. Now the cemetery is a place to remember players that have passed away in real life and loved ones that players have decided to remember. Thousands upon thousands of containers with loved ones’ names and messages now surround the monument. If you have not visited this monument yet, be prepared for the emotion that comes with it.
An extremely powerful and heart-warming memorial to our loved ones which is now a permanent feature of the game.
Until that evening’s fleet I had not even contemplated visiting tourist attractions in game. How stupid of me.
So what happens when you:
- Remove all of the stress from a fleet enabling new players to enjoy an experience without worrying about losing their ships
- Turn a PVP Sandbox with the mantra “Do not undock what you cannot afford to lose” into a fun, light hearted journey around some fantastic tourist attractions within Eve Online
- Introduce the concept of walking a dog into a Space based MMORPG
Basically you show new players what SANDBOX means and how vast EVE Online is. There is a reason it is called a SANDBOX. You can do whatever you want. You can be whatever you want to be. You can act however you want to act. You can even be a DOG if you want to.
What did I think?
This was by far one of the most enjoyable fleets I have ever attended and it ended exactly as expected. With my ship going out in a blaze of glory. Thank you to the Chaos Sisters for organising these fleets and making them so unique and enjoyable.
If you have never attended a Chaos Fleet – What are you doing?
Join EVE University and prepare for the next Chaos fleet.
Wow, the Chaos Fleets organized by Eve University sound like such a fun and unique experience! As a new player, I can imagine how liberating it must feel to not have the pressure of “not undocking what you can’t afford to lose.” And exploring all those interesting in-game landmarks and attractions with a group sounds like a great way to get immersed in the EVE universe. I’ll have to check if there are any Chaos Fleets happening near my location in the future – it seems like an awesome way to meet fellow Unistas and have an adventure!