Retrospective

Looking back over the last year of writing about New Eden, I thought I'd revisit a few of the posts on Fiddler's Edge that stand out over time.

In some cases, they are of special interest to the Eve community and are referenced well past their original publication date. The Carebears Who Killed Atlas is one of those. Combining the dramatic collapse of a storied alliance with insights regarding greed and corruption, it continues to draw hits, even today, five months after its original publication date.

Tickling the Dragon's Tail is a much younger piece, but has rapidly risen to the number two spot on the overall Fiddler's Edge hit chart. It was a tidy piece of analysis that predicted the revelations of hollowing-out and internal conflicts that were occurring within IT Alliance.

Player churn over the Incarna upgrades continue to roil the waters of New Eden, even as they are released. That accounts in large part for the ongoing popularity of Fashonista, the first and only fiction post at The Edge. The story introduced Aldo, fashion rock star. It also anticipated fashion upgraded strategic cruisers with 10,000 m3 walk-in closets, motorized hanger rail systems and on-board dry-cleaning. Totally lock and load, baby.

 Noblesse Oblige, Galactic Settlers and Galactic Landlords have long tails as well, garnering hits well after their publication dates. Taken together they serve as a primer on key nullsec relationships between landlord and renter, and lord and vassal. They also reinforce the importance of the personal relationship in nullsec alliances - a key and oft overlooked driver of events in New Eden.

Finally, there are two posts that deserve mention because they're personal favorites.

Vox Populi was a reflection on epic player rage that followed the announcement that CCP would be providing minimal upgrades to the ships-in-space part of Eve in order to focus on Dust 514 and Incarna. It was fun to write and the only Fiddler's Edge post that garnered a comment from Crazy Kinux.

Finally, there's The Amoral World of Diplomacy. An early piece that events have long since passed by, it no longer receives many hits. However, this was the post where Fiddler's Edge found its purpose and its voice, and I look back on it with special affection.