Opening Hand

Pocket Pairs & Pod Pilots is my first attempt at blogging.

It incorporates two of my most avid interests: EVE and Poker. Recently I have discovered that these two tastes taste great together! There is a healthy and growing community of Pod Pilots that play Poker against each other on a frequent basis.

If you're familiar with this lot then you probably know more about the ins & outs of EVE Poker than I do. Feel free to chime in and enlighten us to this wonderful niche in our galaxy. If poker in EVE is as new to you as it is to me then let me be the first to welcome you to the exciting world of Texas Hold'Em between the Stargates.

Get the info and updated chat on the in game channel "Eve Online Hold'Em". Then follow the links and instructions in the Message of the Day to "Poker Mavens" so that you can see and set up the web site to play at. Next thing you know, you'll be slinging chips across the virtual felt against the likes of RicDic and Mynxee, LTJW and Sniper699.

Poker is such a fascinating game! It gets as deep as you can dig when it comes to strategy, tactics and intricate conflict. Yet, it's very simple to learn the basics and work out the foundations of some math, odds and skill. The more you try to learn about poker the more you find there is to know. The mastery of this game is a lifetime pursuit and, yet, it provides a quick and easy outlet for those "gotta get out there and tangle with a foe" moments that can be hard to satisfy without a fully fitted fleet operation.

I plan on discussing thoughts about poker in general here and, as I come to know and identify with the denizens in the Eve Online Hold'Em channel, I will explore some of the personalities and interactions at the tables.

In Eve Poker, currently, there are ring games (everyone buys in with as many chips as they choose, within some limits) and there are tournaments (the fast, furious Sit & Go variety). It's a great beginning to a burgeoning field.

ISK is the currency of choice. This is a wonderful place to grow a small bankroll from a recent lucrative trade or feel the thrill of risking some of that hard earned mining payout after a day of drilling. And that's what it's all about, really: Risk.

Risk versus Reward is the slope that we all love to race down. Some like it steep and bumpy. Some like it gentle and safer. Poker provides yet another place to plot your course.

So if it sounds interesting, drift on over to the tables between gate camps and check out the action. I'll be here and there, scraping for an edge and looking for things to write about.