warfare-and-tactics
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EVE Evolved: Downtime deployment debate
Earlier this week, an explosive argument broke out in the EVE Online community. Following an extended server downtime, it became known that Reddit-based alliance Test Alliance Please Ignore had used the server downtime to protect the deployment of 14 territorial claim units. Ordinarily, these claim units are vulnerable to attack for eight hours while they start up. The owner may choose to either commit a fleet to defend them for eight hours or leave them unguarded and hope nobody decides to knock them down. This mechanic is designed to ensure that a force can't claim or attack a large number of systems simultaneously against opposition, as an alliance can't reliably defend several TCUs at once. By anchoring the structures just before the extended downtime occurred, Test Alliance made them invulnerable for their entire deployment time. A controversial debate then ensued, as GMs stepped in and Test pilots began making accusations of corruption, collusion and favouritism. In this opinion piece, I weigh in on the latest debate to shake New Eden. I look at whether downtime deployment really is an exploit and whether there's any substance to the accusations made against EVE's Game Masters.
EVE Online forum revamp may lead to disappearing threads
The last week or so in EVE Online has seen the forums set ablaze with Ghostbusters references, but now it may be some threads which are disappearing. CCP Wrangler posted a note about this today on the EVE site, reminding us of a dev blog from August, Forums Refined, which had stated that some significant changes to the forums were on the way. Well, as anyone who's logged into the official EVE Online forums today found out, those changes have arrived. While it'll take a little time to get used to the new layout and categorization of topics, there may be an issue with players not being able to find their old threads, some of which have been moved with the forum revamp. CCP Wrangler addressed the potential confusion this might cause, and had this to say: "If you had a thread that has disappeared due to these changes, for example if the forum no longer exists, please contact us by creating a petition in the Other Issues - Forums category. Please include a direct link to the thread in question if you have one, otherwise you have to include as much information about the thread as possible to help us find it. The name of the forum, the name of the thread and anything else you can remember would be very helpful."
