First (real) post

WFT-II was the only British software company that could be mentioned in the same sentence as such major U.S. companies as Microsoft or Lotus. The sentence would probably run along the lines of "WFT-II, unlike such major U.S. companies as Microsoft or Lotus ..." but it was a start.
-- Douglas Adams

There are plenty of other good EVE blogs out there.  I've read a few of them, and they played no small part in my decision to embark on a life of lowsec piracy.  This is the point where I'd link to some of my favorites...but you'd probably find they were better than mine and never come back.  So you're stuck with me for now.

One of the interesting things about these blogs was that they often started out just like this, giving advice from the point of view of the FNG, but they can't still do that.  Plenty of them have moved on to things other than Piracy, or can only talk about their latest exploits in faction fit battleships.  I thought the EVE blogosphere could use a fresh infusion of disreputable pirate.

What I'm hoping this provides you with is a sense that it is still possible to do it.  I had more than a few people try to convince me that PvP with only a month of skill points under your belt just wasn't viable.  I'm here to tell you not to believe the lie.  If you, like me, have realized that the only way to truly take advantage of the mutliplayer aspect of an MMO is through PvP I encourage you to start now.  Grab as many Tech I frigates as you can afford (a good PvP fit will run you about 5 million isk) and head into lowsec.  You'll encounter plenty of other frigates out there.  Some of them looking for a fight themselves, some of them killing NPC 'rats in belts.  Pay little attention to their age, pay more attention to the description of their Corporations and to their security status.  A few million skill points will put you on equal footing with the vast majority of them, as long as yours are devoted to PvP in a frigate.  

Why would you want to do this?  You probably won't get rich...at least not anytime soon.  In fact, my first two months of Piracy cost me about 40misk.  Why not just spend your time amassing vast riches in highsec running level 4 missions until the cows come home?  You will never get the same amount of joy from doing anything else in EVE online as you do from winning a 1v1.  I guarantee it.  The rush of adrenaline is unlike anything else a video game has ever evoked in me and from talking with others, I know I'm not alone.  

If this will be your first introduction to PvP in EVE, then I suggest you don't just run out there and die.  That won't be much fun for you, and may well sour you to a life of Piracy for a very long time.  So arm yourself, not with better guns, but with knowledge.  I'd suggest to anyone ever planning on venturing into lowsec to read Skira's Piracy Guide.  The tips on overview settings, and tactics will probably be just as valuable to someone trying to avoid pirates as someone trying to be a pirate, but shhhh...don't tell the carebears.  Also check out Wensley's Rifter Guide.  Absolutely wonderful if you're plan on taking the plunge in a Rifter, and even if you're not, plenty of others will be, so it helps to know what their tactics will be.  Plenty of the advice will apply to any frigate you may be flying.  Of course, nothing will replace the experience you get from actually trying it yourself.

Go on...do it.  You know you wanna.