May/101
Riding in Style!
I finally finished my awesome new dune buggy in Fallen Earth! I love how trashed out this thing looks! It has a nice deep rumbling engine too. It may not be as fast as the motorcycle but what it lacks in speed it totally makes up in armor and trunk space. This thing is like a mobile vault (ie. bank/storage/etc)! It has 44 slots and can hold 265 pounds of equipment. In comparision, my character with a strength of 33 can only carry 56.5 pounds.
Now I just need to research some alternate fuels to see if I can make one that runs on corn!
Jan/102
Wandering the Wastes of Fallen Earth
I’ve only been playing Fallen Earth for about a week so I’m no expert but I must say it’s definately scratching that MMO itch (at least for now). The FPS elements and post-apocalyptic real world setting are refreshing changes to the usual MMO fair. There is a significant learning curve (at least for me there was) but I think I’m getting the hang of it. It’s a skill based / classless MMO with preset templates for various paths to help you plan your character. For example, Victor here is a pistol packin’ crafter so I just used the pistolier and crafter templates to give me an idea on where my skill points should go.
The crafting system is fairly detailed in it’s own way. Everything you see on my character screenshot was crafted by him. It’s not a minigame like in Vanguard but it does require time. You basically gather the materials and start the crafting process. While crafting you can actually run around and do whatever but the time to craft will be longer than if you sat still in a crafting area. What is really nice is that you continue to craft even when you log off. So, ideally you could cue up a bunch of recipes before you log off so that they’ll be done when you return the next day.
Death basically respawns you at the nearby cloning facility (ala graveyard). You respawn with all your gear although your vehicle is wherever you parked it so you may have to huff it to retrieve your wheels (or uh, hoofs if you gots a horse). I haven’t noticed any actual death penalties but I’m guessing that will come later as I get out of the newbie levels.
The quests are typical MMO stuff (kill this many things, collect this many things, deliver these things, etc) so it’s not revolutionary but I guess there’s nothing really wrong with that. I haven’t wandered into the PvP areas so I can’t comment there.
I’ll check back in a week or so to give an update on how the game is going. If anyone would like to give it a go I believe there is a 10 or 15 day trial available.
Sep/095
It gives you wings!
I finally ascended yesterday afternoon and got to play around with my spiffy new wings. You get your flight ability at level 10 which is also the level where you choose your specific class. I created a scout at first level and so at 10th level I was given the option to be an assassin or a ranger. I chose the ranger route and so far I’m not regretting it. Like most physical ranged combat classes in MMOs, I have ammo to worry about but unlike WoW you can shoot your bow at point blank range. I’m still getting the hang of kiting although I was a little frustrated and how quickly my target would loose aggro from me if I pulled him too far away from where he started. I’m not sure if this is a bug or if I’m simply not doing it right. I thought the idea of kiting was to keep pulling away from your target as you wear them down.
One thing about Aion that I think is pretty unique is how movement influences your gameplay. If you’re moving forward when attacking then you’ll do more damage but be less defensive. The opposite is true if you’re backing up from a target. If you’re moving side to side then your evasive ability is enhanced. Spooner over at Spooncraft.com made this handy little reference.
Sep/093
Aion Headstart
It’s been several months since I peeled myself away from WoW and here I am getting sucked right back into another MMO. The Aion headstart was yesterday for folks who preordered the game and wow was there a ton of people on. It was slightly frustrating having to compete with so many people when quest resources were limited but I guess that’s the price you pay for being in on a game that just launched. At least I had the benefit of having done all of the intro quests in the Open Beta.
My main character will probably be this fellow here, Valdric the asmodian. I’m going to go ranger with him and try to master the whole ranged combat/kiting style of gameplay. My alt will be an assassin named Vala which is the typical class that I tend to enjoy when playing MMOs (at least I loved my rogue in WoW). If I get frustrated or end up no liking the ranged route then I’ll always have my assassin to fall back on.
I’ll say a few words about the gameplay after I get more into the game.
Sep/091
Arrr! That thar be a fine map!
(click the map for a bigger picture) I finally decided to get over my intimidation and frustration with Campaign Cartographer 3 and actually work my way through some tutorials. I found a great series of tutorial videos on YouTube by a guy named Joe Sweeney that did an excellent job of walking me through the basics. This is the map that I created myself as I followed along with the videos. I feel much more comfortable with the tool and think that with a little more practice I should be crankin’ out maps easy peasy.
May/090
Doctor Keen is back!
Doctor Keen is back and this time he’s a villian! Muahahahah!
Ahem. Actually, I’m still working on a background story as to why Doctor Keen would turn his back on his family, friends and allies and turn to a life of crime. I’m going to go dig through some old 90′s Image comics to mine for horrible ideas that might work. A villian killed his puppy and now he’s infiltrating their organization seeking vengeance! He saved a old woman who sued him and his company ruining him financially and teaching him that the only good deed is a deadly deed done dirt cheap! This isn’t Keen but an evil doppleganger or worse a complete stranger in Keen technology using it for ill gotten gains! I need to make a list and see which one sounds the best.
In all honestly though, the real reason I remade Doctor Keen as a villian is because I really enjoyed the robots mastermind class the last time I played CoV but I lacked the emotional interest that I had when I played Doctor Keen. With Keen I already have a background worked up from a long line of HERO RPG games that my good friend Jeremy ran back in the day. Take that and the fact that I’ve logged more hours in COH playing Doctor Keen as a hero and together I’m hoping I have a recipe for staying power for at least a few months. Right now I’m only interested in soloing and getting a firm handle on the strategy and tactics of playing a mastermind. Grouping can be fun by typically they just want to rush from one mission to another in a mad dash for 50. That hasn’t been my style for a while and so for now I just want to take it nice and easy on my own.
Apr/090
Peachy Keen
This week’s beer + WoW mashup featured something a little different than my usual fair. While doing dailies in Northrend I decided to give Canada some love by sampling Wyder’s Dry Peach Cider. I’ve had apple and pear cider but never have I sampled a peach cider from the shelves at Spec’s. I havta admit, it’s a refreshing cider with a distinct peach flavor that is clean and sweet without that bitter bite that pear cider has like Woodchuck Pear Cider. If you like apple ciders like Hornsby’s and you enjoy peaches then you’ll love this stuff.
As far as WoW goes it was a pretty quiet night. I’m guessing Sluder had to work this evening so I did the solo thing for a few hours. I’m still working to pay him back for the 2k he loaned me last week so I’m back to doing the same ol’ daily quests. I’ve done them so often now that the only challenge is to try and finish them as quickly as possible. I think once I pay Krag off I’m going to start working on some achievements. Maybe go back to Azeroth and solo all those old 5 man instances.
After knocking out as many dalies as I could stand I decided to switch to working on my cooking and fishing skill. I actually made some pretty good progress on those two fronts. My cooking is now up to 430/450 and my fishing is up to 353/375. Call me sadistic or simple minded but I actually enjoyed the fishing. I did a Dalaran quest where I had to fish up some fish that lust for blood. How did I attract them? Why, by killing some baby seals and covering my body in their blood! I then jumped in the water and made a “pool of blood” that I then fished out of to catch the blood thirsty fish. Pretty clever and somewhat fun. It was an intersting daily that actually made a jaded face crack a smile. I’d go so far as to say Blizzard’s work was done today.
Apr/096
GET TO THE CHOPPA!
I finally achieved a personal goal that I set for myself when I started playing WoW again a few months ago. I’ve always enjoyed the Engineering profession and even though anyone can get a Choppa if they have enough money (and know an Engineer who can make it for them), I still wanted to get one on my own.
Of course, “on my own” is not entirely accurate. My good buddy Kragstone (Sluder to his friends) lent me a huge dwarven hand by helping me find some quests to knock out the rest of the rep I needed as well as loaning me the last 2000 gold I needed to make the choppa ASAP.
The Mekgineer’s Chopper is fun to ride around in on its own but the real treat that everyone loves is the silly sidecar. The way it pops out and back in from the side is like a sort of transformer. It has to be seen in game to really understand and appreciate the silliness of it.
Now that I’ve knocked out that personal goal I guess it’s time to find something else to aim for. Although not a personal goal per say, I will be paying Krag back and helping him gather the mats so that I can make him a choppa as well. Do two bikers make a gang or do you need three?
Mar/092
Vacation Day Two: Errands, TV, WoW and Beer
Tuesday began with a rage inducing visit to Wal-Mart to get my oil changed. I don’t know why I didn’t just goto Jiffy Lube like I always do. Even though they’re a few bucks more than the Wallaria at least they’re quick and well mannered. No, Instead I decided to take my truck to Wal-Mart where I was greeted with apathy and sourness that I’ve personally come to now expect from most Wal-Mart personnel. They were unattentive and two faced when it came to how they spoke to customers and how they talked amongst themselves. I’m sure the job would be awesome if it werent for the customers but damn at least treat the customer like you value their patronage. I guess I shouldn’t be surprised by such souless presentation from those working for so little and for such a big corporation. Still, call me jaded or snobbish but with the unemployment rate being as high as it is you would think those who actually have jobs would strive to do their best. Or, those who employee others would have the luxury of finding employees who want to work and want to do a good job. It didn’t help matters that their printer kept jamming and they’re idea of troubleshooting was to remove the tray and put it back, remove the tray and put it back, remove the tray and put it back, remove the tray and toner and put it back. I now have a glimpse of the madness one must experience by looking upon the Old Ones.
The rest of the day was decidedly more enjoyable. I caught up on my favorite sitcoms, played some WoW (dinged 78!) and drank some beer. I decided to give Flying Dog’s variety pack a try and It was enjoyable. All of the flavors I sampled were very rich and full tasting if not a big syrupy. I’d recommend them to others although I doubt they’ll enter my list of favorite brews. A funny sidenote: As I twittered my mini reviews I actually got a response from someone who apparently works for Flying Dog. He liked my pumpkin pie reference.
Go check out my Twitter feed for a few pictures and my nuggets of insight into the beers that I tasted.
Mar/090
Vacation Day One: Talisman
Today has been a fairly laid back day. The biggest event of the day was spent playing Talisman, an enjoyable classic fantasy board game that has been around for over 25 years and I must say it has aged very well. Mind you the edition Ruen, Sluder, Ray and I played came out in 2007 so the art and playing pieces were redone in the top notch art I’ve come to expect from Games Workshop. The gameplay is the classic square-style paths with events occurring on the squares or from cards drawn. The concept of the game entails everyone playing an iconic fantasy character that is trying to claim the crown in order to rule the kingdom. Out of the 12 characters available our game entailed Sluder as the dwarf, Ray the warrior, Ruen the wizard and I played the assassin.
Gameplay mainly consists of fighting opponents, getting various items or followers or resolving events with the goal of gaining enough strength to beat the challenges and claim the crown. Every character has special abilities that only they can use. For example, my assassin had the assassinate ability which allowed me to try and assassinate enemies that were discovered but not yet defeated or even try to hurt other characters. What made this attack special was that it didn’t let the opponent roll a die to defend.
The game went on for almost 4 hours. In the end I got to the crown first but in order to win I would have had to use it to kill off the other characters. Judging by how powerful we had become at that point it probably would have taken us at least another hour so we just called it.
In conclusion, I would play the game again as well as recommend it to anyone else whobis into fantasy and board games.
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