Running a pirate corp in EVE Online is about more than killmails and flashy fights—it’s about finding the right people to fly with you. And if you’ve ever tried to recruit for a low-sec PvP group, you already know: it’s not easy.
You’re not offering safety. You’re not offering krab-friendly income streams. You’re not promising a flood of CTAs or FCs holding everyone’s hands. What you’re offering is a challenge—a chance to step into the chaos and make something happen with a tight crew, a solid fit, and a little bit of villainy.
And not everyone’s built for that.
Why Recruiting for Low-Sec Isn’t Plug-and-Play
In nullsec, you have hooks: structure income, caps, sov upgrades, alliance-scale logistics. In wormholes, you’ve got rolling content and blingy loot. But in low-sec piracy?
You’re offering something less tangible and more personal.
- Autonomy.
- Adrenaline.
- The opportunity to pick your fights, write your own story, and steal someone else’s.
That’s a harder sell—but when it lands, it lands strong.
What Actually Works (And What Doesn’t)
We learned pretty quickly that good recruitment isn’t passive. You can’t just post on the forums and walk away, especially in this part of space. The people you want—skilled, bloodthirsty, independent-minded—aren’t just waiting around for a copy-paste ad. They want to be sold on the culture.
What’s worked for Echoes of the Hollow:
- A distinct identity. We leaned hard into our brand: “Tired of Blue Donuts? Come Be the Villain.” It’s not just edgy—it’s honest. We don’t sugarcoat what we are. No fluff, no fleets on rails, just small-gang piracy with teeth.
- Reddit and the EVE Forums. r/EveJobs, r/Eve, and the in-game forums are still where a lot of solo or disillusioned pilots go when they’re looking for a change. Being present and engaged—actually replying to questions and DMs—makes a difference.
- Killboard and video highlights. A good fight speaks louder than a thousand words. We use zKillboard links and Youtube Shorts to show what we do, not just tell people. When a recruit sees you brawling outnumbered and still pulling a win, it clicks.
What hasn’t worked:
- Generic ads. If your post reads like every other corp, you’ll blend into the noise. We stopped trying to appeal to everyone and focused on the kind of people we want to fly with.
- Low-effort Discord spam or mass DMs. It’s tempting, but in practice? It attracts pilots looking for a handout, not a home.
Filtering for Fit
We’re not a starter corp. We’re not a casual PvE group. And we’re not interested in growing fast at the cost of quality.
That’s why we have a 20 million SP minimum, and we screen for mindset as much as skill.
We ask:
- Do they want to fight?
- Do they think for themselves?
- Do they understand that losing ships is part of the job?
We avoid:
- Pilots who want content delivered to them.
- Pilots looking for safety nets.
- Pilots who get salty over losses or obsess over efficiency.
Because at the end of the day, we’re pirates. We undock to cause problems on purpose.
What Makes It Worth It
Recruiting is a grind. Some weeks, you get promising DMs. Other times, it’s silence. But when the right person joins—when you read about that excitement in discord after their first chaotic brawl, or see them start leading their own fights—that’s when you know it’s working.
You’re not just building a roster. You’re building a crew. A gang. A group of like-minded troublemakers who log in to find fights, push limits, and remind New Eden that low-sec isn’t dead—it’s just not safe.
Final Thoughts
If you’re running a pirate corp, don’t waste time trying to appeal to everyone. Know who you are. Know what you’re offering. Speak to the people who want blood on their hands and nothing but void in their cargo.
The right pilots are out there. You just have to be loud enough—and real enough—for them to find you.
