RPS: I want to give a little background as to how Goonswarm came to be reviled by a certain chunk of Eve’s playerbase. In theory though, all of Eve is a democracy because there’s no way of forcing someone to log on and play the game, and they can always leave the corporation if they don’t like it. RPS: Could you not divide those duties up?
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In a situation where you need to be able to respond quickly and with force to strategic problems, invasions or what have you, you can’t wait for a vote. Council-based alliances typically have corporations of roughly the same size. Since I’m the CEO of that corporation all the other ancillary corporations in the alliance are relatively powerless, and that works towards an autocracy. Goonswarm is very lucky in that we have one large corporation, Goonwaffe, which used to be Goonfleet, which is mostly Something Awful members and has over 2,000 people. MT: Autocracy is the most effective form of government in null sec. Is that just a preventative method against espionage? RPS: You also mentioned in the same talk that Goonswarm is an autocracy. And we don’t have much of a hierarchy, so even though I lead a large alliance, even non-members can take me to task or call me a silly larping metrosexual. MT: Well, I’m only arrogant about things that we’ve accomplished or things that I’ve done over the years. RPS: How does somebody who’s arrogant end up leading a group that’s known for being irreverent? No, it’s because I’m quite arrogant and people make fun of me for it, so it’s easier than trying to deny it.
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The Mittani: I refer to myself as a pretentious douchebag because I have a reasonable self perception. For anyone who doesn’t know anything about Goonswarm or its leadership, could you explain why? RPS: You referred to yourself as ”a pretentious douchebag” twice during your presentation yesterday. Click on through for talk of warfare, intrigue, hatred, propaganda, and why he says Eve Online is a terrible game. Prior to the announcement of the election results, I caught up with him at the Eve Fanfest for a mammoth interview.
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As of two weeks ago The Mittani was also voted in as the new Chairman of the Council of Stellar Management, the player-run and player-elected body that CCP liases with with the aim of improving the game. Eve Online player The Mittani is the CEO of Goon Fleet, the single largest corporation in Eve Online, both loved and reviled for its practices which include teaching new recruits to scam other players.