It is almost a requirement for a post in the Jita Park Speakers Corner and so here is my campaign thread. Please feel free to bump it with questions or any messages of support (or otherwise ;))

Because not everyone wants to read the eve-online forums or prefer to comment via blogs etc I have cut and pasted the campaign message after the break.

Greetings, my name is TeaDaze and I’m here to ask for you to vote in the upcoming CSM5 elections. Of course I would be very happy if you decide I am the right candidate for your vote(s) but the most important thing is that you do vote for somebody.

Eve is a unique place with a vibrant and diverse community and where players can shape the news and even the game itself. The CSM is an important part of this, taking player ideas and issues, filtering them and finally passing the best to CCP for a response.

As the role of the CSM has expanded I feel it is even more important to vote for candidates who take the responsibility seriously. It is in the best interests of the Players to vote and continue to post issues in the Assembly Forum because it shows CCP that the CSM process is worth supporting further.

About me
I am a delegate on CSM4 during which I took the secretary role as part of my promise to improve communication. I talked with CCP about ways to improve the production of the Summit minutes which lead to a CCP supplying a member of staff for that purpose, enabling everyone on the CSM to participate fully in discussions. It was also one of my suggestions that lead to CCP making CSM as a stakeholder in the Eve project (thanks to the full support of the rest of CSM4)

I have been playing Eve since 2005 and currently specialise in 0.0 small gang PvP but like many people I started as an empire carebear running missions. I currently a member of a small sov holding Alliance, I also dabble in market trading, have an Alt in Factional Warfare, run a reaction pos and am involved with low scale T2 production via invention so have a wide variety of game experience to draw on. I was selected to be one of the commentators for AT7 and was also invited to be on stage commentating at Fanfest.

I teach classes with Agony Unleashed to help players new to PvP to find their feet.

Out of game I am a senior software developer with an Engineering degree and 12 years of experience in the profession.

What can I offer?

  • I take the CSM process seriously and will put in the necessary effort. During CSM4 I spent at least 5-7 hours a week discussing proposals with other players, raising issues and producing minutes
  • I am methodical and committed to researching any subject raised by the players thoroughly.
  • I have a wide breadth of Eve knowledge including areas outside of my primary PvP focus. I will listen to feedback from players on any issue and ensure items are presented to the CSM as proposed by the players before the CSM make any amendments (Accurate Representation).
  • I will continue to get correspondence to the players in a timely manner. Some of this might be out of the CSM’s control, but in that case the playerbase need to be kept updated even if it is to say that CCP haven’t yet published the supplied material.
  • Risk should be Rewarded. For example I’m still looking towards Lowsec players for suggestions on how to improve it. If people want to stay in Empire that is fine, but those wanting a riskier path should find it worthwhile to do so (carrot not stick).
  • I’m in favour of (where possible) buffing a weaker item instead of nerfing stronger ones. I feel that not all ships need to be good at solo PvP and that racial differences should be maintained rather than homogenizing everything. That said balance is important and must be maintained in some way.
  • With Tyrannis on the horizon and a commitment from CCP for a team to continue iterating on the design it is important that the players have a voice, but not at the expense of all the other issues.

Some of you might agree with my position but might have specific issues, I will try to address some of the common ones.

I believe the CSM process needs to be properly represented so feel free to ask me questions in game, on this blog etc.

What did you do during CSM4?

  • I kept to my promise of improved communication by producing minutes within a few days of every meeting.
  • Raised a great many issues relating to every playstyle
  • 100% attendance record
  • I took the process seriously and made time to speak to players directly in game, on forums, blogs, twitter etc

Why vote for me (and not another 0.0 candidate)?

  • It is likely the large 0.0 Alliances will be well represented on the CSM without additional votes from players outside those Alliances. Their combined block voting will take around four or five of the nine available seats (going on previous results).
  • I live in 0.0 but I don’t have political connections to any other space holding Alliances. I represent a different style of 0.0 play based around small gang subcapital roaming. I wish to ensure this remains viable and so represent the smaller gangs which move fast, hit hard and GTFO (or explode spectacularly, it is all good ).
  • Whilst Agony are now a sov holding alliance we are still fairly small and our no blues policy remains in place (outside of occasional planned operations). We were the first new Alliance in Providence to reset standings and are not pets or renters (AAA are neutral as well).

Why vote for me (and not another PvP candidate)?

  • As an instructor with Agony Unleashed I have taught hundreds of players how to take their first steps in PvP and have a good understanding of the challenges they face. I want to help educate players in how to survive in PvP and maybe they will get the same PvP bug that I did.
  • As I stated above, I wish to ensure that small gang roaming PvP remains viable to all. This is applicable to Low Sec as well as 0.0 dwellers. I know Agony have a reputation for only flying frigates, but rest assured we fly every ship class in game though when I say small roaming gangs I mean subcapital ships with between 2-20 pilots.
  • I support many forms of PvP even though I prefer 0.0 roaming. This includes piracy, gate camping and even POS bashing (just don’t ask me to join in). I prefer a policy of educating people in how to avoid obvious ganks rather than attempting to remove current tools in place (don’t break the Sandbox). However that isn’t to say that some things shouldn’t be made a bit more tricky.
  • I am a CCP certified PvP “Expert” from AT7 😉

Why vote for me if you live in Lowsec?

  • Because I realise that for many people the “Endgame” is not sov holding 0.0 and I stated as much during the CSM Summit. I know people have ideas for improvements and will continue to support Lowsec issues and poke CCP into some improvements.
  • Whilst I am not a pirate, I have a good relationship with many pirate corps and understand their game style. It is a valid form of PvP even if not to everybody’s taste.
  • As I said above, I support Risk vs Reward and this appears to need looking at in lowsec.

Why vote for me if you live in Empire?

  • There may be other candidates that are a better fit for people who live in Empire, however I feel I can still represent your needs.
  • I have experience of being a carebear (missions and mining) and understand some of the frustrations there.
  • I trade, run a pos do low scale manufacturing so have better than simple background knowledge in those areas.
  • I have helped many people from Empire to get into the mindset of PvP even if they decide that style of play is not for them.

Why haven’t you promised to fix the lag?

  • Short answer, because CCP are already working on it.
  • CSM5 can continue to monitor the progress of this but it is utterly ridiculous to think that CCP are not aware of the importance of this issue!
  • During the CSM4 Summit this was well discussed and CCP presented some technical information as to the nature of the problem. We await the outcome of these discussions

What about the UI?

  • Everyone agrees it needs work but the amount of development required means that promising to get it fully overhauled isn’t a very sound election platform
  • During Fanfest 2009 CCP HammerHead stated that he wanted to throw the UI away and rebuild from scratch. This means it is on the radar and whilst CSM5 could encourage the development it is too large in scope to be something CSM5 can commit to getting pushed through.

Got more questions? Ask away!

TL:DR
No matter what playstyle I promise to look at your proposals and submit the best to the next CSM meeting for voting.

Vote for TeaDaze