Can I Get a Rez?

The answer is: no.

I actually haven't played WoW in a while, and I've been indifferent towards the game for even longer. I do not like the current story line or setting for the Mists of Pandaria expansion, so I found it very hard to play any aspect of the game and find some sort of enjoyment. This goes for RP as well. I still write with a friend of mine in Google Drive, but other than that my love and interest for the game is almost at an absolute zero. With that, this blog becomes pointless. I'll leave it here for the archival factor (I know my posts get read from time to time), but unless Blizzard does something amazing with the game, I doubt I will make anymore posts.

Character Analysis: Lady Khoura Everroot

This is re-posted from my old blog, circa July 28th, 2011.

Khoura is my second favorite character to role play within the World of Warcraft, and she's actually much more personal for me. I rolled her originally at the end of Burning Crusade on the PvE server I was on at the time, Arathor. As I began to collect more random stuff and run out of bank space on Lycannon, I decided I needed to make myself a guild bank. I also wanted to play a druid specifically to be a tree, wanted her to be an herbalist and alchemist because it seemed to work well with a druid, and so thus, Khoura was made.

Rumor Alert: Those Other Guys

Long time, my friends. Life gets crazy and one finds themselves either at work, asleep, or still trying to play the game that I made this blog for. Hello again.

A few months ago I was inspired to make an emotional post about Blizzard as a company because of the shocking news that they laid off 600 of its employees. Scary, but not altogether unexpected, which I also went into detail about in the post.

As I've said before, I always have to remind myself that Blizzard is not just Blizzard Entertainment. The company does a good job of making you think that while you're playing 'Blizzard' games or browsing the Battle.net site, but the reality is that Blizzard is subsidiary, co-dependent on Activision, and when one side starts slipping, the other has to either bring up the slack or trim the rot.

You can read more after the jump.

Born this Way - Retrospect

As Mists of Pandaria sits on the horizon, drawing ever closer, the longest and craziest storyline I've ever done within the World of Warcraft is drawing to a close.

On July 5th of last year I began the Born this Way storyline, written for two close friends of mine, Kiwi and Auramis. Sitting at Part 86 as of this post, BTW focuses on the last of Lycannon's demons while forcing other characters involved to look at their own. What started out as an arson mystery has evolved into a full fledged, mind bending ghost chase for the players, and the final battle is underway.

Ashandarei Dawnborn, Falkoen Moonshadow, Kaludra Meraan, Lycannon McSars and her son Daelin, and Torsyth Cair'Dazar have been gone for a whole year, and they have no idea that the world has shifted in their absence. The Firelands have been tamed. Deathwing has been defeated. Tensions between the Horde and the Alliance are hotter than ever. For them it feels as if only a month or so has passed by. What will happen if and when they all make it out?

And it's not just them. The rescue party that started out strong has divided, reformed and dwindled down to just four unlikely allies - Auramis Lightbourne, Kiserai Dawnborn, Elicoor Meraan, and Khoura Everroot. They set out against seemingly impossible odds, each having their own motives, and they have no choice but to run straight into traps set for them by the one man controlling the entire situation.

Gideon is a powerful wizard and necromancer from Argus, and has altered the free-floating nether energies from within the Netherstorm to form his own paradise sitting high above the broken chain of islands. His arena, named Safeena Altair and called 'The Boat' by regulars, draws its main income from the spectators betting on the gladiators he employs. The complex is kept well guarded and hidden by unknown means, with visitors having to teleport in by way of meeting a magi at a random location... And for good reason. While Gideon sits on the piles of gold he makes from the bets in his own complex, he also siphons the souls of those slain to make himself more powerful magically.

The twist is that this man is supposedly Elicoor's father, and to everyone involved, it appears that his motive is plain , crazy and simple. He is getting back at Lycannon for shaming him on Argus... But things are never as they seem.

There is a wildcard involved, an emotionless spectre named Zorana enslaved by Gideon and bent to his will. She is by all accounts the spirit of Lycannon's first child, and works as Gideon's eyes, ears and blades on Azeroth. She has worked to trap other characters and bring them to the necromancer, using an array of magically imbued daggers to stab the target and pull their soul into the Astral Plane where she then whisks them away to Gideon. Khoura appears to have been split in half on purpose by this, and her other self is now a Druid of the Flame, working as the man's lapdog... cat.

When Ash comes into possession of a particular pendant belonging to Gideon, Zorana is suddenly only loyal to her, revealing a major flaw in the wizard's defense. The only thing it seems he has left now is Lycannon, and he uses his control over her to set her upon the rescue party and any that stand in her way. With two people already down, what will Ash do with her new-found power? Will they have to kill Lycannon to get to Gideon? Is anything what it seems? Find out on the next episode of Dragonbal-... I mean... Really, what will happen?

For you guys involved, get ready for the kicker. Please don't hurt me.

Another WTF ACTI-BLIZZ Blog Post

Or "Some French Guys Own Blizzard".

If you check out the official forums on the World of Warcraft sub-site of Battle.net, you'll probably find a thread all about what I'm going to post here, and in no particular chronological order.

So those who keep up with the news of Blizzard already know that BlizzCon '12 is not happening this year. While that sucks, I am also glad because it gives me extra time to prepare for BlizzCon '13... If it's worth attending. Here's to hoping they have some really awesome Titan stuff prepared for then, or maybe another cool easter egg the community has yet to dig up.

Then there was the news of Blizzard laying off 600 people worldwide (which created a domino effect with a few small developers, forcing them to lay people off as well), and mostly in customer service. That means GMs and Tele-center reps, as well as a few other slots. I was personally shocked to hear the news, even if it wasn't exactly something to be unexpected. After having lost about two million subscribers to WoW during Cataclysm, something scary like this wasn't far behind. Activision-Blizzard also hired a new CFO shortly before the layoffs.

Need I mention the WoW Annual Pass?

And of course, there is the Blizzard Store having released their in-game pets and mounts that you can buy with real money, with one pet in particular that can be sold on the Auction House for in-game gold. They slowly began putting these things into the game in Wrath and have ramped up since Cataclysm, the newest being a shiny asian-style dragon mount that doesn't really fit anywhere in the game (though I suppose that will change with Mists).

Two days ago Blizzard announced their revamp of the Scroll of Ressurection system, designed to bring back players whose accounts had been inactive since March 4th of this year. With the new SoR... Well, here:

Once your friend accepts your scroll and pays for at least 30 days of game, you unlock your choice of the following rewards:

• A Free Spectral Gryphon
 for an Alliance character

• Or a Free Spectral Wind Rider 
for a Horde character

And, to enable you and your friend to play together in Cataclysm’s newest content, any friend who accepts your Scroll will also receive the following epic benefits:

• A single character immediately boosted all the way to level 80 
-- DING!

• A FREE upgrade to Cataclysm 
-- regardless of your friend’s original box level

• An optional FREE character move 
-- to your realm and faction so you can play together

• 7 FREE days of game time 
-- available immediately

A few other prerequisites apply -- such as a free upgrade to a Battle.net account for players who haven’t played since 2009 or earlier -- so be sure to check out the FAQ below for full eligibility details.

The SoR thing has been around for a long time, and  it's no surprise that such a thing was redone after seeing how poorly Cataclysm did when compared with the expansions before it.

We also can't forget the cutting of the World of Warcraft magazine, which might have been the first sign (albeit small) that finances over at Activision-Blizzard weren't doing that great even though finance was never stated when they called it quits. Finance is always an issue.

The main thing to remember here is that Activision-Blizzard is a company, owned by another company called Vivendi, headquarted in Paris, France. I have to remind myself sometimes that Blizzard isn't just Blizzard Entertainment anymore, it's attached to another entity which are both underneath a giant 'international media conglomerate' which isn't going have the heart that Blizzard by itself has had in dealing with its holdings. Both Activision and Blizzard were started by nerds, for nerds, and I'm sure either by themselves would be more than willing to lose a few profits for the community if they had to. The problem is that the Activision and Blizzard Entertainment of 30 and 20 years ago (respectively) have grown up quite a bit, and Vivendi has owned Blizzard for the better part of that 20 years. The point is, the bigger a company gets, the more robotic it gets, and the passion that started it in the first place gets swallowed up by corporate grind and money.

Have a look at the Activision-Blizzard Wiki. (Wiki, I know, sue me.) The three key people it lists aren't people from the hometown of Blizzard Entertainment. The first guy is a french businessman named Jean-Bernard Levy, and the second guy is Michael J. Griffith (who has no Wiki but can be looked up here), and Robert Kotick from Activision - President and CEO of Acti-Blizz. Supposedly Kotick's down with pushing the 'independent developer', but you can never really tell with those business-suity guys. It gets a bit scary when you read on his page his supposed quotes... especially the 'exploiting' part. Knowing this, when reflecting back on what just World of Warcraft has gone through in the past year, not looking at any other games underneath the Acti-Blizz umbrella... Well, I personally just get a sinking feeling. If the top guys at Vivendi tell Acti-Blizz to create profit and trim fat, the top guys at Acti-Blizz are going to turn to their lower people and tell them to get to it. The lower guy representing the Blizzard arm of the company is Mike Morhaime, and he did his best to gracefully let the WoW community know what was up with the layoffs, as well as reassure everyone that everything is okay.

But is everything really okay (with Warcraft)? I respect Blizzard Entertainment, it's the guys sitting above them I'm worried about.

Tabula Rasa

"Purge their minds of memories grim,
Of pains from recent slights and sins.
When the fire burns out, when the crystal turns black, the spell will be cast.
Tabula Rasa, Tabula Rasa, Tabula Rasa."

Buffy, anyone? For those that aren't familiar with the TV series, it had to do with the characters losing their memories and exploring what could happen if they did. In the end, everything gets set right... mostly.

Drama happens, both in character and out.  The trick is to balance the two and attempt to keep the two worlds separate, but it can be difficult sometimes. If two people are dating, it's not uncommon for their characters to also end up together, either one or many. You find a really good role player who thinks you are also a good role player, and you'll end up wanting to RP all the time because it is just so fun to do so. You get to know the player behind the character, and that extends to any type of playstyle within any game. I met one of my best friends through World of Warcraft, and it had nothing to do with RP. Relationships form, bonds are forged, and life is great.

But what happens when things start to turn sour in real life? If you find yourself not being able to RP, raid, PvP or whatever with that person you used to like doing said things with because of real life problems? The answer is always much more simple than the execution, especially when it comes to RP and keeping it afloat. Can all parties involved simply stick to RP? Is it healthy to even do so? Does a retcon need to take place? These are all really good questions, some I find myself asking. 

My current Lycannon storyline has been almost a year in the making. It is my last story, as I plan on taking a break from creating them for a while. As such, I wanted it to last as long as it has, though it has been sluggish lately from me getting a new job and general lack of interest in the game itself as of late. Those who know my Lycannon also know she's been through hell and back, and gone through a ton of stuff, but she's not the only one. Every character that has been involved with her stories and her past has also earned their colors, as usually they are the ones jumping into the fray with her, either to get her out of danger or help her overcome something for someone else. Usually it's the former because Lycannon attracts trouble like a moth to flame. That's just how she is, and it is her most outstanding flaw - Bad luck. She has always had it. Tie that in with raging berserker and free spirit, and well, you have my lovely warrior. As I've come to get to know people and make friends, her direction changed from the general perspective I started with (in the World of Warcraft, at least,) to what she is now, two years later.

The people and their characters I've come in contact with all had a hand in shaping my main character. For instance, Lycannon originally had three children, all of which were dead when I began to RP her. Over time I created stories and thought 'what if', and went with it. Somehow she ended up with six, and the added three all came after I met the friends I did. One of these children came to be because a friend of mine needed a backstory for a character, and asked if the character could be Lycannon's kid. I said sure, why not? Because really, why not? I always try to do my best to accommodate people if they want to RP with me or be a part of my stories, because I think it is important to keep the mindset of: 'How would my character be involved' instead of: 'My character wouldn't do that because..." You don't find RP by thinking of reasons not to, after all.

To bring this all to a point, Lycannon is/was/something married to a man named McSars. The player of this character and I became really close, and the person was a really great role player. McSars became my favorite character because most people don't want to RP an actual soldier type, one that has believable trauma and a believable broken mindset to go along with the age that would match it. While the player may not have seen or intended to have much depth with the character, I had thought that these traits were actually what gave him the deepness that a lot of good characters lack. If one was sharp enough, one would realize that the reasons this character may be berating another aren't just because he is the 'soldier type', but because he is the soldier type that has seen enough shit to last a lifetime. If you saw a horde of undead slavering to gnaw at your guts, perhaps people you once knew (or at least knew to be human), you would not be alright after you managed to survive something that traumatic. I know I definitely wouldn't be alright even though I might seem like it if I had to experience something like that. Those with PTSD are the same way. It's the same concept, and I hardly see it translate or executed well in a setting where almost everyone should have it, like World of Warcraft. So, McSars became my favorite because his depth was not so glaringly obvious, he was believable, and he was not a shiny hero.

I really loved to role play with this character, and both Lycannon and McSars developed over the past two years we spent RPing them together. They were married. They had a kid. Most importantly, they had to learn to be human (or well, you get my drift). Lycannon was emotion. McSars was logic. Both were in the extreme ends of the spectrum. Because of that, the characters worked very well together, and gave me what will probably be the best RP I've ever done. It was awesome, and unfortunately it stopped.

Real life problems affected the role play, and despite efforts to reconcile, we just could not make it work. I kept my characters either suspended or I kept playing in character as if nothing ever happened in real life, and that has gone for the Born this Way story that is currently in progress. Honestly, I was not sure what to do with the characters that had ties to this player's. Could I completely erase the past two years and pretend it never happened for them? I don't believe I was ready to at the time, which is why I kept going how I have so far. Lycannon is confident that her broken knight will come find her where she is. He is the love of her life, her husband, and he has come through for her so many times before. Of course, I knew this was not going to happen and had for some time into the story, but Lyc won't find out until the end... And what will she find out?

It really is unfortunate that I doubt I will be able to RP with McSars' player again. Part of me was still a bit hopeful that one day we could pick it up again without any inclination to real life. Two people, simply RPing. Of course, it is never as simple as that, and the hammer has recently fallen on the character I loved to RP with. In his place, I have been given a shell of his former glory in the form of an NPC, cast off to make room for a new version of McSars that I will consider alternate universe. It is a bit of a slap in the face, as I was never approached about the change, but it is what it is. It is a shame, and I am deeply saddened.

So what will I do with Lycannon? Kaludra? I do not know. For now, I will continue with my story the way I had thought it out, and figure out the ending as I go.

Down... But Not Out

If anyone plays a warrior in arena, you know how much it sucks if you don't have a Gurthalak, and even then it still sucks. If you play Fury in raids, you know how frustrating it is to have to depend on said sword for decent DPS. Do you play SMF? I'm sorry, here's a puppy to make you feel better.

Arms hasn't been able to keep up with Fury for a long while, not since the beginnings of Wrath when they were about equal. Finally, again, Arms is beating the shit out of Fury in DPS, and it's not because Arms got better, it's because Fury got worse. The nerf to Dual Wield spec punched us in the face, and the bug fix laid us out. Yes, bugs need to be fixed, but it left the Fury spec reeling with a sense of false accomplishment without compensation. Put that with starved Fury rage regen, terrible AoE (even when specced), the crap Tier 13 four piece for Bloodthirst, reliance on unreliable proc weapons, plus Arms' ability to hit the 24% hit cap where Fury cannot without further gimping itself, and you are left with the worst melee DPS spec currently in the game: Single-Minded Fury.

My old RP partner would probably laugh at me right now as he always favored Arms over Fury, and I could just swap specs and Bladestorm abuse my way back to the top, but I don't want to do that. I play SMF because I've always preferred the playstyle, and when I wasn't tanking in Burning Crusade, I was Fury. It's always been a constant cycle of up and down for every class in WoW, and this is no different. I enjoy my times at the top, and figure out what I can do better or what went wrong while I'm at the bottom. If you're lucky you'll have a raid group that understands and lets you keep your slot just because they love you... Either that or they're dumb and won't kick you out. In the end, if you love to play Fury and have enough alcohol skill and patience, the blow to Fury won't be so severe, and it won't really matter. You can still smash DPS against subpar players (unless it's a subpar Arms warrior... Then you just kind of smash them).

Pop your gum girl. Pop your gum.