MMORPG.com sponsored a chat with EVE Online developers covering a lot of ground in and around the Empyrean Age update. The log has been posted but here's a teaser to whet your appetite:

MMORPG_Taera: zionner asks, Hey everyone, I was wondering, what have you done in EA, to help include people who are new to PvP, into PvP and Factional warfare?

Ginger: Well we are hoping the whole dynamic of factional warfare, in that its much easier to get a fight and know where to go to fight will help get new players directly in the action. But also the areas and missions where you can only fly the basic ships, such as dungeons that only allow tech 1 frigates so it doesnt cost a fortune to participate and you can dont neccesarily have to face players who can fly much better equipped ships than you.

MMORPG_Taera: mench asks, What will deter large numbers of gatecamps in the FW areas so that less experienced players have a chance?

Greyscale: Directly stopping, nothing. EVE is still a sandbox and it doesn't make sense to have deterrents to this sort of thing out in free space. The ways to deal with them are 1) have a fast ship - no warp disruption bubbles in lowsec space so if you're quick enough you can just run away, and 2) good co-ordination with your friends and allies to clear out enemy camps. Again, it's something we'll be monitoring once it goes live, but it's not something we want.

Enjoy the rest of the log at the link above.