It might seem a bit weird to use the phrases “video game” and “combat shakes” in the same sentence. However, in my experience, there aren’t many things like the adrenaline rush I feel from a really good fight in EVE Online. Take, for example; the fight depicted in this video. I had just returned to EVE after about a year’s hiatus, and this was my first major engagement as a fleet commander upon my return.
The fight was over in about fifteen minutes. It wasn’t even particularly difficult – the results were fairly lopsided, and our ships easily tanked the opposing fleet. Neither side used any complex tactics, so all I really had to do was anchor a fleet and call targets. Despite this, I had pretty serious jitters going into the fight, and I was positively giddy after our victory. It’s this adrenaline rush that draws players like me to become fleet commanders.
When you win a fight in EVE, it’s because many individual players came together to execute an often complicated plan. For this battle, I created that plan and orchestrated its execution; there’s a very special kind of satisfaction you get from seeing your plans come to fruition so successfully. The satisfaction, however, comes with serious responsibility – the blame for a failure often rests squarely on the shoulders of the fleet commander.
Because of this, fleet commanders are often under a lot of pressure. It takes a lot of skill to be successful, and the outcome of a fight often hinges on the abilities of the commanders on either side. This can be fairly daunting, especially to those who are just beginning their careers. Nonetheless, there are many talented and dedicated fleet commanders playing EVE Online.
You’ve all heard of people like Elise Randolph, Asher Elias, or Elo Knight, but there are plenty of other pilots who create content for the rest of us on a daily basis. However, the vast majority of content in EVE is created not by these famous individuals, but by hundreds of passionate players that you’ve probably never heard of unless you’ve flown in their fleets. These are the players who stories I’m going to share.
The first player who I’d like to bring into the spotlight is Waylo Azomi. Waylo’s been a member of Shadow Cartel for nearly two years, having originally joined FETID and moved to Immortalis Inc. upon FETID’s departure from the alliance. He began his PvP career in 2012 as part of Tribal Band, before joining TEST. He notes that he had “a blast” during this time, and the fights he participated in were “pretty awe inspiring.” After TEST’s defeat, he eventually joined End-of-Line, a now-defunct wormhole corporation, before moving on to his present home of Shadow Cartel.
Waylo’s FC career began after Shadow Cartel introduced an incentive program called Roams for PLEX. Waylo says,
“Basically, if you ran a roam at a set time once a week then then you would receive a monthly PLEX as a reward for your efforts.”
Additionally, the Alliance funded a small Caracal fleet for Waylo to use on these roams.
Waylo admits that he “wasn’t amazing” at the beginning of his career.
“There were lots of times we went out and got very little…but we didn’t all explode so I felt that was a win.”
He also points out the difficulties any new fleet commander will face, saying “You just sort of had to sink or swim and there was no safety net.”
Despite these challenges, his prowess as an FC has grown tremendously. He cites perseverance as the most important quality any FC can possess. He also paid tribute to fellow Shadow Cartel members Paquito and w0wbagger, who he says inspired him to continue in his FC career.
“One thing that I’ve been told over and over again is that…the more you do it, the more people will join. You just need to keep going.”
Today, Waylo is very capable of leading high-level fleets of expensive ships, but he remains in touch with his roots, noting that
“the most enjoyment I get from FCing is when I’m doing fun T1 comps.”
He paid great respect to Spectre Fleet during my interview, stating that “it’s always enjoyable to just be able to pick a fun comp and then have a fleet that will fight you almost 100% of the time.”
One of the fleet concepts he most enjoys is the MWD Ferox, with which he has enjoyed considerable success. His first fight after the introduction of the concept was against Spectre Fleet in Thoraxes, and it was extremely successful. Says Waylo,
“Some of my top fights have been against Spectre, so I’d like to thank them for always being up for a great fight.”
Waylo also offered some words of encouragement to the burgeoning fleet commanders of New Eden.
“The most important thing I guess, and I think that anyone who FCs will tell you, is that you have to be having fun doing it. It makes you want to run more and more fleets, which in turn means more and more people join up over time and you’ll gain experience and that’s really the only way to learn.”
He advises newer FCs to write battle reports, seek advice from more experienced players, and always be willing to accept constructive criticism. Waylo also said that it was very important to “[be willing] to make mistakes that could kill the fleet” as this is extremely helpful in learning “the strengths and weaknesses of not just the fleet you’re going up against, but your own, too.”
In real life, Waylo is a 20-year-old university student in the United Kingdom. He’s currently studying computer science. In addition to playing EVE, he really enjoys reading; his favorite novel is Mortal Engines by Philip Reeve. He loves to eat gammon steak. He’s also very active, and enjoys swimming and playing badminton.
If you know an FC who you think deserves a similar spotlight, I’d love to hear from you. You can contact me at [email protected].
