This is a topic that has become a bit more important lately, as I expect a fair number of Kinship members from LotRO to start joining me in EvE in the new year. Help comes in many forms, I want to talk about a few of the primary kinds

Monetary Help: Cold Hard Isk Advice: “No you probably shouldn’t put lasers and an armor repper on your kestrel. How did you do that anyway?” Mentoring: “Ok, lets try doing this, to see how you like it”

I’m going to take them out of order, mostly to confuse the readers who aren’t used to my lazy writing style.

Advice is far and away the most critical it can save a new player from making critical mistakes (Always be training nooblet!) Point out both good and bad things that they are doing “Let me help you with fitting to your bonuses,” by saving a Nooblet from some of the more annoying traps EvE has we can help new players to avoid some of the pain that can crush them early on. Advice is literally taking a question that has been asked and rather than simply answering it, turning it into a learning opportunity for a wider avenue of EvE. It also includes anticipating the unasked question, sometimes one the Nooblet doesn’t even realize they should ask.

Mentoring means giving guidance, having a Nooblet try out different things, and not just missioning, mining, and hauling. Take them to lowsec and blow something up. Take them to a wormhole, heck take them to the New Eden gate, and get blown up. More than that, or less than that, show them different ways to do things, speed tanking missions in a kestrel. Brawling through them in a Punisher. Go crazy, try new things with them. There’s a plethora of new ships out there, break out EFT or EvE HQ, show them how to go at it.

Monetary Help means more than cold hard isk. It means providing a cushion for them. It doesn’t mean removing all risk. If a player feels like he can do anything because Papa Corelin is just gonna refill the wallet, then I am doing the Nooblet a disservice. Or myself if I keep doing it forever. The goal is to dole out the good cautiously. To hand them an allowance, to teach them the value of money, and to only provide the tools they need to provide for themselves better. By controlling the flow, you guide them towards self-sufficiency, and you can find opportunities yourself to guide them with advice, more than isk.

Next Time: Establishing Independence.