On Flippers and Ninjas

My official stance on can flippers and ninja salvagers is to completely ignore them. Do not talk to them in local period! Crying in local is their fuel, TEARS is their rocket fuel.

Although very similar, they do have different characteristics that need to be dealt with in their own separate way.

Ninja Salvagers:

I consider these to be the worst of the two as there isn't much you can do to them. There is one thing a lot of pilots don't seem to realize though, that does take the pain away when dealing with them. They make very little money! Too many mission runners rush to their missions upon hearing their wrecks are being salvaged by a third party. They try to get to all of their precious large wrecks before the ninja. What a waste of time! What they should do is move on to the next mission. I can guarantee doing another mission will be more profitable than whatever the ninja picks up. Instead of racing with a ninja (who will almost always have a faster ship) picking up only half the wrecks, a mission will give bounties, rewards/LP, and not to mention loot and salvage that the ninja will be to preoccupied with the previous mission to salvage. If revenge is still in the air while doing the next mission an eye can be kept on local for a slip up; he gets the red skull then it's time to strike.

Important note: Remember salvaging is NOT a crime; “if he doesn't loot: you don't shoot”

Can Flippers:

Now these guys are a little more fun. I have a bit more respect for flippers than ninjas as they are more brave as taking stuff from your can allows you to shoot at them and what not. The easiest way to deal with them is to have a hauler. An Orca works best as it can be dumped straight into like a can, completely detouring any possibility of being flipped. However, sometimes a hauler isn't present, in which case it's best to be in an alliance with a pvp corp in it. Have a member in the pvp corp drop one unit of ammo and dispense the ore into that can, if a flipper takes from it then let the games begin. Now, what to do if there are no haulers and no pvp corp? Nothing. Until you join a mining corp with some pvp friends, expect your ore to get stolen with little to no recourse. Sure, you do have that Rifter fit up with meta 2 gear ready to go. It's a great idea to use that, right? He's only in a Tristan right? No! Only the noob flippers use their flipping ship to engage a real target. Count on them using something bigger and better. Now if you're an older character with a fully meta 5 or better fit Dramiel it's a different story, but you probably already knew that.

The cold shoulder works best for both of these guys. They are not in it for the money. They are in it for the fight and the almost guaranteed TEARS they get to drink afterwords. Do not give them a fight, do not give them the TEARS, do not give them the satisfaction.

Comments Questions and Criticisms are always welcome.