Thursday, December 31, 2009

See Ya Next Year!


 
To ring in the new year I thought I'd post something worth a good laugh. I am a forum junkie, I even read up on games I don't currently play at times. Today I found a hilarious post on the WoW forums, while it could be grounds for nightmare pugs... it's still very funny. Especially when screen shots are added!

No I'm not going to participate! It still doesn't stop me from enjoying the thread! 

Also I decided it was time to update my banner a little bit. Something a little more updated. I suppose those are some of my favorite characters, oh and Dire of course was added into it. I'm sure it won't be the last! Hope you readers enjoy it :)

I hope everyone has a safe and fun New Years Eve! It's been a good year for gaming, I hope next year is even better! 'See' you all next year!!





Happy New Year,
-kaozz

Wednesday, December 30, 2009

2009- A Copper For Your Thoughts! (MMO)



So how did you like the year as far as MMOs go? A copper for your thoughts... Well, if you can get past that little dragon there!

This has been a year I've dabbled in a lot of games especially some new releases. Since I've played so many it has influenced me to to start writing about them this year. Although I am new to the MMO blog scene, 2010 will make a decade of being a MMO player for me. There have been a few that still have remained untouched but for the most part- I have had a chance to try out a lot of games, adventureed in many fantastic wolds and make some great friends- especially this year!

Lately I've pretty much settled back down into WoW, as it's been home for me since release it's just a game that you really can't beat. It still is holding it's own on the edge of another year and another exciting expansion for 2010. There are also some new interesting games due out in the upcoming year.

It seems gaming is at a real good point this year. WoW has the wonderful new dungeon finder. So many games offer choices now to re-customize characters. RMT are rampant in games, but this can be a good thing especially in the case of server transfers and so on. We seem to have more choices than ever in the games we play. Achievements are a big part of many games which is a nice addition.

I'm not going to review what was a hit or a flop this year as we all know what we liked or disliked or even what I've played.. I have pages and pages already to cover that! There are some people that hold onto their games with tenacity even if they are not the most sought after and others who proudly proclaim how popular their game still is.

For me it looks like the new year will still be another year for WoW, some Free Realms on the side. I do look forward to seeing Allods Online and SWTOR is one I am patiently waiting to see and hear more about. How about you?


-kaozz

Allods Online


I recently got a chance to peek at Allods Online. While I didn't sign up for it, I just have too much going on for now, I sort of wish I had. I've not been too excited about many free to play games, but after having a look at some videos on the net and then seeing actual game play- even trying it out a tad, I'm impressed.

I'm not going to go into depth as it's still in closed beta, but I thought I would share some personal thoughts on the look and feel. I'm not bound to anything as I'm not even playing it ;)

The characters have a especially nice look and feel about them. They have a unique look to them, so lovely! There are a lot of very cool races, the classes just look fun. I love the ideas of many of these classes. They have some very cool options when it comes to classes. I would be busy for quite some time trying them out, if I was playing.

The game has a WoW type look but it also has it's own feel. I almost want to say I am more impressed with the look and feel more than I was with Aion. I suppose it all depends on the art style you prefer. I can't comment on the combat as I didn't indulge in that area for long. It went pretty smoothly and had a nice feel to it though.

All in all this is definitely one I will try out when it is released. If you're looking for something free, heck something new and fun, this is one worth keeping an eye on!

-kaozz

Pic curtsy of teh interweb!

--- Due to spam posting-- Commenting is no longer available on this post. 

Tuesday, December 29, 2009

Tried and True...





My first character in an MMORPG was a Necromancer. That was a long time ago, in another game. Still I have fond memories of playing her. I liked the self sufficient picture the class drew in my mind. Plus it was cool to have a pet to command. I remember drooling over raiders gear, hoping one day I'd be able to do that also. I eventually switched to other classes and made many alts and played many games.

Today is a far cry from what I was doing years ago in my MMORPG. I can now group and get decent gear, I don't have to save every copper to buy a measly upgrade or spam chat for days to find someone to make me a spell. Money in game is not hard to get, though 'twinking' an alt is still just as fun with heirloom gear.

I decided to go with a Lock for my newest alt in WoW. I have played one in the past to 60 when that was the cap. I enjoy the class, it's almost like a cross between a Necro and Mage from my first game, Everquest. I simply feel more at home playing it than a Mage in WoW. It suits me better, the play style. It sort of reminds me of the first class I ever played.

Plus sometimes I need a break from healing. While I enjoying my Druid very much, I think one more gallivant through Azeroth before Cataclysm is due. I'm going to take my time and enjoy the view along the way. So when I hit 80, I can be the one to head into the heroics right off the bat in greens and blues! This time I won't wait to properly gear up as I did with my main. Ha! I will ride on other peoples coat tails and be carried for a change! So I suppose you can guess what I need a break from. I'm waiting on my brother to catch up his DK to us at 80, then we will run an insane amount of heroics I suspect.

Sometimes the more things change the more they stay the same. Even though the game scene has changed from what it was years ago... play styles stick with us, the tried and true 'holy trinity' is still in tact and people still love to play alts.. sometimes.

Have fun whatever you find yourself playing!
-kaozz


Lovely artwork up top by- *Me*! 2004.. woo how the time flies!

Monday, December 28, 2009

The alt bug has bitten me! (WoW)




I've decided I want to play up another alt, I just haven't decided what to play yet. My brother has just started back and I 'fired up' the ol' Shaman, ran her out there and did some quests with him. It was pretty fun, almost like a Mage that can heal. Except... I don't have as many fancy tricks. I managed to get her to 62. I ended up healing a bit too, I do sort of want an alt that doesn't heal, though it is handy in a duo. I don't want to mainly heal again on anything besides my Druid. So whatever I play will strictly be a dps alt. I did make a Mage, she is sitting at level 6 still. I even got a sweet name for her. But she will just wait here for now, while I think on what I want to play up.

I could play the Druid as dps also but I just want something else to mess around on sometimes. I was thinking Mage. There are only two classes in WoW I have never played past 20 and that would be Mage and Warrior. I've never had one past 20, so it would be new and refreshing. I just don't know if it's my cup of tea, Warlocks have always been more my sort of class. I have been interested in the Mage though, it looks real fun. Decisions, decisions.

I could always pick up my neglected Hunter. I'm leaning towards a caster for now. I'm sure I'll get back to the hunter one of these days. My brother wants me to play the Shaman with him, gives him some company to do quests with. Then Dire wants me to make a new alt with him. I just have to decide what I want to play. My son has a 39 Mage on the account, I've messed around with it a few times. I don't want to take over his little alt, even if he never plays it. I thought about it though lol. I also have a 32 Lock I could transfer from the horde but I'd rather save a few bucks and not worry about transferring her.


We've been running heroics same as always. Stocking up on emblems, I have all the caster gear I need with the heriloom set. I may grab another trinket.. or possibly some mail stuff for the Shaman, depending on what I play. So for the moment I'm holding out on spending them.

The Druid will stay my main as she is really my favorite of all my chars. I just sometimes want to play something else. Plus leveling another alt will keep me sane from all the pugs we do!


Till next time!
-kaozz

Saturday, December 26, 2009

New Toys (WoW, FR)



I hope everyone had a nice Christmas. I finally got to sit down and watch the movie UP with my family. It was such a nice movie. For Christmas for my brother I activated his WoW account, so he should be playing with us again on Silvermoon. It will be fun once he catches up again. Last time he played there we were on Horde.

Speaking of Christmas Presents... I was a bit disappointed at WoW's newest present this year. It took me a bit to figure out what it does. The Red Rider Air Rifle is used to shoot critters, sometimes you might hit yourself in the eye. Sure it's a cute reference, but the item has only 200 charges. I want a toy that lasts forever!

I finally broke down and got my T9 chest on the Druid over the holiday.  I'll probably start working on my balance set before long. I also got my first Mammoth, aww. Dire got a nice new shiny tanking weapon this week, he was happy.




In Free Realms they had a holiday bonus for SC which I wanted to take advantage of. However some of the information didn't state the exact time the event started and I claimed mine too early. I can be an irate customer at times and this time it seemed customer service was going to tell me oh well. After bickering back and forth with customer service in emails, I decided to call them up. I spoke to a very nice gentleman who helped me resolve the problem and I was set. Sometimes the squeaky wheel gets the oil heh.

I also made a few new friends recently. I even met another WoW player which was pretty neat. Sometimes it can be hard to communicate in FR with the chat filter. It filters so much out, it makes talking about things a pain. You have to be very imaginative to get things across at times. I finally had a chance to share my newest toy, the Dance Pad, with some other players, fun!




Hope everyone had a nice holiday week whatever they were doing!
-kaozz

Friday, December 25, 2009

Merry Christmas!



Merry Christmas all! Hope everyone has a wonderful holiday! *Cheers*! I'll be enjoying my holiday with family, back to writing after the holiday! *Runs off to her presents*!


-kaozz

Wednesday, December 23, 2009

Annoying Stats (WoW)




Since I've switched mains this year in WoW from a Holy Paladin to a Resto Druid I've had to learn to aim for different stats. What was important on one healer is less important on the other. Int and Crit is very important on the Paladin (sp also but that's across the board) while haste is very important on the Druid. Now I'm not a raid healer 'atm', so the lack of haste on my behalf isn't really a big deal in heroics. However when I start raiding with her it will be more so important. The changes in 3.3 to talents made it a higher cap we have to aim for now.

I think back to the days of healing and doing dps years ago and not worrying about redundant stats. While they are nice, they can be so spread around, annoying. There are so many stats I think should be thrown out the door. Hit rating? Expertise?

What, did I suddenly go blind at 80 needing hit rating to hit the mobs? Am I suddenly swinging blindly at the mob like a little ol' lady swinging away at a pinata? And Expertise.. One point of expertise decreases the chance that melee attacks made by the player will be dodged or parried by 0.25%. So while I have to work on the chance I won't miss as melee, I want to make sure I won't be dodged or parried!

At some point it always starts to annoy me. Why make a game full of such complicated annoying redundant stats? These were not in the game when it went live, somewhere along the lines someone had the fantastic idea that these stats would make it more.. um? I don't really know what they were aiming for.

Some people have actually used spread sheets to decide if an item was an upgrade. While I have never had to use this method, for I am far too lazy in the first place, some people have done so. It stats to kill the lighthearted aspect of a game when it starts being redundant and complicated.

In Cataclysm things will change of course, they constantly change. I would like to throw a lot of these stats out the door. Some will be more normalized but a lot of it will stay. Health will be higher all around, damage won't be as spiky but more steady. Mana regen has been changed around already, I hope it's not going to be a big problem in Cataclysm. Healing needs to be a challenge, I've seen this thrown around and it worry's me.

These are just some thoughts I've run across while playing over the last five years and seen things change, added, removed and so on. Maybe you agree maybe you don't, all I know is the game was fine before many of these 'make believe stats' were added in. Thoughts?

-kaozz

My MMO Wish List!



Ok, I already have one... still there's other things a girl can want besides a Warrior. Right?   
     
Currently I'm playing two different games (again) which seems a trend for me these days. I was pondering over the question, why do I need two different games to keep me satisfied.. I suppose I don't really need two. One is a cheap little game I can sub to or chose not to if I don't feel like it. It all comes down to covering bases.

One game offers all the combat and in depth game play orbiting around this type of play. The other offers tons of fluff and just so many other things to do while I'm on. One offers more high end and social dependence on game play higher up, while the other it doesn't matter what I do high end as there really is none. One I am harnessed with race and class choices and the option of alts. The other... has no needs for alts. One requires the holy trinity, the other I can solo anything on.

I suppose I am spoiled by one aspect of simplicity and another aspect of depth. I honestly just want one game that covers it all. Simplicity might not be the best description for this, maybe less complication on choices of picking what I want to do.

There is no perfect game. Even if I thought one was perfect someone else would complain about it. Which leads me to my Christmas wish list for what my perfect game would offer!

My perfect game would include:

Grouping- Grouping in WoW is almost perfect with the new system, it offers incentive all the while keeping the group aspect alive and kicking. This would be a must.

Solo- Everyone likes to solo sometimes, some lesser incentive. Dailies can cover this but maybe some short fun objectives that don't requite crossing the world to complete? Such as instanced soloing for those with shorter play times. OMG you killed Chillmaw, we were here first.. ugh.

Fluff- Mounts, housing, and pets.. all that cool stuff. I am a fluff freak. Armor Dyes (Black and white are a must have!), Appearance slots, I want to look unique when I feel like it, not like everyone else in the same tier armor!

Raiding- A solid game is nothing without raiding. If you don't agree, well you can have a cookie for consolation, sorry.

PvP- While I don't  PvP much these days I would like to see that others are happy too. A PvP server with different rule-sets. While spells may get nerfed in PvP it would have to stay within in the PvP servers not to affect PvE play. Stop changing my classes to affect PvP!!

Nonexistent Faction Barriers- I do not enjoy playing on a faction and being cut off from friends on the other side. This has to be the most limiting idea ever. Did you ever think that maybe LFG in WoW may not have been so dead if both sides could group together? Now I get to group with random servers because even though my server is a high pop, I can't group with half of it? Pure Genius!

Race Class Combos- I want to be X race as Y class. The lore prohibits that. Get out of here.. I want to be what race and class I want to be. If I wanted rules out the wazoo I'd go play some D&D. 

Illusions- This stems from EQ, one of the most fun fluff things would be illusions. While I would love a game that offers more, I also want the option to hide them from everyone, myself included. Some days in WoW I get sick of looking at Tree Form.

Tradeskills- More in-depth  reasons to sit and play around with these. I love fishing, give me more reasons to fish!

Some things that I would want, off the top of my head. How about you, what would your wish list include? Hope I've not been too naughty this year and Santa is listening...

Cheers!
-kaozz

Tuesday, December 22, 2009

Up and Running Again...



Last night I spent a while 'tinkering' with my machine and found out it was a bad stick of RAM that was causing my problems. The upside is I didn't have to format. It's running fine now. So I am thankful for that at least, one of these days I am going to just wipe it clean, not yet... too much to do for now lol.

My son has my husband's old computer, It really is old. One of us needs to get a new one so he can have a better one handed down! He can play WoW on it, things like that but he cannot play Free Realms. So last night he heard Free Realms has checkers and chess and he wanted to play those. He loves chess. So most of the evening I spent watching him play as he loves me to watch. He played checkers, chess and some racing games. It's such a great kids game. Soon it will go to the PS3.. so he will have his chance to play it all he likes when that comes out.

Later in the evening I did a couple of heroics with Dire. He was very happy to know I had my machine up and running. He said he was scared of what he might have came home to find ha! Some enraged banshee perhaps?

I've gotten a few more upgrades with the Druid. Groups have been nice for the most part. We had a Shadow Priest last night spam the damage meter saying he was doing way more than he was and the Paladin in the group started feeling bad. Funny thing was the Priest was actually doing less than the Tank (who was second on the meter with a tad over 2kdps, on some boss fights on top for damage.. yikes!). The Priest was actually last on the list. So then the spamming of recount went across the chat window every so often, which ended up with one of us re-posting to correct his error. Reset your recount before you join a group.. He was an all around annoyance, insulting the Paladin telling the tank to pull bigger groups so his dps would be 'awesome'. Sometimes you hate healing people like that, but you just have to take it in your stride.

I got some crusader orbs for my tank to get some really nice crafted bracers, he was pretty happy about that. He is now working on a better DPS set also. I still have a few more things to get then I will work more so on a dps set. Both actually, I want one for all three specs. Imagine that.. how one changes as the game changes.  We shall see how that comes along.

Hope you all have a wonderful Christmas week!
-kaozz

Monday, December 21, 2009

Technical Difficulties



Last night I decided to do something a little different, run some old heroics for achievements. Dire was up for it so we ended up getting a few knocked out. It was a nice change of pace, I had some funny screen shots to share. However my machine wants to be stubborn today and not boot up... so it looks like I will be formatting it this evening. Then I get to do the lovely task of putting everything back on it.

I've been lazy and didn't back up a lot of family photos, just stuff in general I didn't want to lose. So I will lose a lot of stuff , I let my son keep my burner on his machine. I need to switch those out while I'm at it tonight. I am currently in one location and my cd's are in another. What a wonderful day!

Anyhow as you can see in the pic I ended up getting the White Hawkstrider from our heroic MGT run. Dire was so nice to pass since he knew how badly I wanted it!

 So that's what I will be up to this evening. I dread reinstaling and patching WoW.. Wish me luck heh.
-kaozz

Sunday, December 20, 2009

LFM (MMO)



I haven't posted much new this weekend.. well because not much is new heh. Heroics, heroics, and more heroics. I have emblems falling out of my pockets. I've been mainly waiting on my tank to be logged on to do them, hopping on to do a few dailies when he's not, that's about it. I'm loving the new system, don't get me wrong. Instant groups back to back with this combo is nice.

I'm still keeping an eye out for a cool active guild, I've still not found one. The little guild I'm in is wanting to do a Naxx run this week so I may help them out for a change of pace. Dire could tank it for them, but he won't be home then.

In the past I've joined a lot of guilds through friends, my friends list on the alliance is very small. While the new instance change is awesome it makes it harder to meet people on your own server. I'm not looking for a hardcore guild, just something to change up the evenings with some interaction, nice people and a few raids here and there. I'm not wanting to pug raids either, just too much bull sometimes.

That's something I've noticed in most of the games I play these days, it's harder and harder to find nice people to stick around with. It was a big reason I left EQ2. All I did was solo 99.9% of the two years I've played on and off. Dire is a lot more friendly than I, he makes friends easily. I try, don't get me wrong but he makes friends dueling, running pick up raids, stuff I don't always do. Though even he hasn't met many new people either.

It's just a solitary feeling at times in the MMOs I play. I log in to WoW, my group is there waiting on me. We do the run, next group, rinse and repeat. I don't have to interact to go anywhere. Some groups are fun and nice but chances are I won't see them again as they were from other servers. So while I love the quick groups, I miss making new friends.

It's the same with my other game Free Realms. I have a nice guild, most the time they are off in a mini game or doing their own thing and don't see guild chat until later. I miss the days of more friendly social interaction in online games.

So while I like the ease of today's MMO scene, I miss those old groups you hated to leave in Everquest. Do you ever feel the same way? Maybe it's just me. I've taken a leap back to the other faction after being established more on the other, so it just takes time I suppose.

Till next time.
-kaozz

Saturday, December 19, 2009

Snowman



Not game related, just something funny in the Christmas Season :)
-kaozz

Friday, December 18, 2009

Weekend Funnies (MMO)



Some funnies I thought I'd share. The video is from Free realms, the game has a built in game cam, the music is also from a boombox in-game. I figured I'd post it up as well, I really got a kick out of my reindeer 'Yule' dancing! Have a great weekend all!



 

 

 

 

Yes, I was Rick Rolled in Free Realms...
Enjoy!
-kaozz

<3 my Pug (WoW)



If you can't tell from the pic above, I finally got my Perky Pug! I've been kind of slow in grouping the last couple of days. I've been messing around in Free Realms and just waiting on Dire to tank when he's on. I noticed last night that we needed to do three more groups for me to get this little baby. I sat laughing at my little pug after I got him, with Dire looking at me like I had lost it. He's just so cute! I named him Gizmo, after the real one ;)

I also noticed I have 80+ emblems sitting there that I need to spend. Upgrades today! It's nice playing a class again I feel so "in my skin" with. I just enjoy it all around. Resto suits me perfectly, healing is much more fun than it's been in years. I wonder why I quit on the Druid so long ago.

I'm thinking of changing my off-spec, for awhile, to feral. I want to run some old dungeons for achievements. Feral is much smoother for doing so. I've gotten a lot of nice feral gear from heroics that nobody has needed. It's been piling up so fast I only need a cape and a necklace now. I don't think I would want to dps as feral, I may try it out. As far as that role goes I enjoy Boomkin more so to do damage. However I like that I can have three very different specs I can utilize with this class. I suppose you could say four, if I want wanting to tank. Nay! Tanking isn't my scene anymore.

Dire decided to go DPS for awhile last night. It took a little while longer to find a group w/o him as a tank. It wasn't too bad since I stayed Resto. I prefer him tanking, as I know how he works. He decided to go back tank spec. He was thinking of transfering his Rogue to Alliance, I told him he may as well dps as the warrior too if he want's to. I don't mind healing another tank if he needs a break from it.

We all have those days where we like to switch things up. What do you do for a change of pace from the norm? I think for me instead of going dps... I'll just farm some old achievements, keep healing in my heroics, as I enjoy the role.

Have a great weekend all!
-kaozz

Thursday, December 17, 2009

'Two' much fun with patches... (WoW, FR)



Last night Dire wasn't feeling well so we only did a couple of heroics before he fell asleep. Plus I was out a bit trying to find my son a last Christmas Present we really want to get him. I still have some hunting around to do for it this evening. We got a couple of pretty easy randoms in WoW though, when we logged in.

I always have recount going. It's been a habit since I played a dps class, I've always liked to keep tabs on how my output is going. I notice myself still keeping an eye on it. While hating to sound elitist, I never post it if not asked. However, some of these people should not be doing heroics. I had the urge to spam it last night just because I was annoyed two of our members were not doing even 1k dps. Dk and a Lock.They pulled adds, stood in the yucky stuff all the annoying stuff dps can do. As a healer when I dps (rarely but once in awhile I like to), I feel bad that I only push out 2k with the set I have. Here they are not even trying. Or maybe they fell asleep? Heh...

Dire and I took time to make sure we could handle the heroics before we set foot into any. Here we have people in greens, not even trying, whatever the case may be. Basically piggybacking a heroic off us and the one dps pushing all he had. Must be nice.

I suppose it bothers me more since we had to try harder to get where we are. We busted our tails to gear up to be able to fill our roles properly. Does this ever bother you? Granted it's easier to get gear now than ever, they are just using heroics as an easy way right off the bat. We ran regular instances to gear up first.

All in all it was a good night, I'm just 'thinking out loud'. Thanks for 'listening' ;) When he logged off I decided to hop onto Free Realms to mess around with the new features. I am trying not to burn out on heroics in WoW as that's all I do anymore. So this helps out in that area.

I poked into the forums for a bit first and it was a massive cry fest over the revamp of the combat system. How can I say this lightly... Combat in Free Realms has always been a snore fest.  Now I can just get through it easier. These people are crying over a combat system in a game called Free Realms. If they are looking for a game with a staple being combat they are surely playing the wrong game. The beauty of FR is that you don't have to go around killing things when you play. It's such a relaxing game, there are so many things to do as well as combat. Seriously, what do they expect from a family oriented game? Hard core group content? I think this update has been fantastic personally.

I got a few levels on my combat classes, trying for some gear out of the holiday 'instance'. Won a few nifty items. It seemed that xp went by much faster, I am all for that. I couldn't find any cash shop weapons listed, I am wondering if they removed them. If so, I am glad my ninja has a weapon from it. She does insane damage compared to my other characters. I pulled the whole instance and killed every mob with a couple of abilities.

I ended up getting my membership back and received a nice little house! My pets roam around the yard which is really nice, when they are not with me they are roaming free at home. How cute! My house barely has anything in it, I do find myself porting there to get away from people when I am looking for something or deciding what to do next. It's nice and quiet.

The new pets are really awesome. I see a lot of people with dragons, they are pretty, they just don't seem as cool to me, maybe cause I have whelps in WoW already. I do like the ponies (what other game offers pony pets!) and dinosaurs are pretty sweet. The FR team did a beautiful job on them all.

I've had a lot of fun in general being back and it also gives me a chance to breathe from WoW so I don't get burnt out soon. So once again I'll leave you with some screen shots! Hope you are having a blast as I am, wherever you find yourself gaming. If your not gaming.. well what are you waiting on! Just kidding.



 

 



Till next time.
-kaozz

A peek at Snow Days (Free Realms)


 

I popped into Free Realms for a bit to see the new changes. It's looking pretty nice. A lot of things have changed and there are also the new holiday events, which I didn't get far on. It stops mid-chain unless you are a member, I will have to decide if I want to renew for that. The upside if I renew is the house members get, however free players get an apartment or you can buy a house from the cash shop. I definitely think that is worth it. I just don't know how often I'll be popping in, so that is for now undecided.

The new housing is cute. I only got to check out a little bit of this aspect. Below you can see my naked apartment. I would love to furnish a house or apartment, I love player housing.  I can only imagine how cool some houses will be. I really enjoyed the new fishing job too. I am a fishing person in WoW so this carries over. Another membership bonus for this as well, getting past level five.

So the game feels that it has a little more depth. Coins really have more worth imo. You can buy things for your house, new clothes.. lots of items where you didn't focus on them as much as you do now. I didn't get a chance to check out the new combat system. I will leave that for another day. I do like the choice of colors when you buy clothes.

Another thing I noticed is the change of chests in the vault. No more spending all your tickets and getting tons of lame consumables. Yucky! They each are marked for jobs, you pick the type of item you want to get and there you have it a random item from said chest. I like this a lot better. I spent all of mine on the freestyle chest heh.

The cash shop is an evil thing. It calls my name.. More holiday goodness there this month. There are some really cool pets. Ponies, dinosaurs and dragons.. to name a few. I have a pug so for now I am happy.. I want a pony still! There are also currently holiday outfits and items too. I think the coolest is the reindeer pet. Who doesn't want a pet reindeer?!

While I don't play FR for an extensive amount of time, often I play in spurts here and there. It is really a nice game to log into and relax. While the name of the game isn't as fitting as it once was, I can still log in for free and mess around. I don't have to put in a subscription to say hey to friends, or to blow off some stream. This game is a nice change of pace for me at times. It will be one I always keep up with as I really enjoy it. And yes, adults do play it, hey I'm not thirteen anymore but I still like cute games! My guild is an adult aimed guild which is nice.

For those of you interested in the new fishing job, Zam is putting together a great fishing guide. I will be checking that out when I get fishing rolling. So that's it on my first impression of the new update. The game is looking even better I'd say. It has it's perks for sure. For something for the kids to play that's safe and wholesome, or something for adults with not much gaming time on their hands it's great. It's a great game just to play in general. I'll leave you with some screen shots!





 

 




Till next time!
-kaozz

Wednesday, December 16, 2009

In other news.. (MMO)




I've been so busy running instances when I log into WoW I've not had much time to do the holiday event. The achievements are not among some of the more fun ones imo. I do want to try to work on them though. I'm just being lazy. Do you like achievements? I think I enjoy the holiday ones the most. I'm still trying to get the little Pug pet, just a few more pugs to go! I did get the title "The Patient" so far.

Speaking of Achievements Everquest added these in with the new expansion. That will be a massive list I would think, as large a world as Norrath is. I peeked in my mail and read up some on the new Underfoot Expansion.

Today I worked a bit more on the December Holiday Event list. There are a lot of games I didn't get to cover but there is a link to Massively's 'massive' list for those I missed. There really are some fantastic events out this year in new and older games alike. Chances are in whatever you are playing, there is something fun for the holiday.

Pitrelli over at Kill that Cheerleader posted that Fallen Earth has a Free trial out. I am sort of wanting to try this. I may give it a shot. Still not sure it's my cup of tea. It looks very cool though.

Free Realms had a really cool update. I still need to log in, and yes, you will be hearing more about this as I dabble around checking things out later this week ;) It's a really great game to pop in and out whenever you feel like. Some of the coolest features are housing, pets and fishing! Combat has had some improvements, and omg no more dress shoes from the daily spin!! You can check out the notes here. I need to set aside some time to pop in check all this out!

LoTRO has another free playing spree from Dec 17-21. I still have yet to pop back in there for one of these free play events. Free is always good, one of these days I'd like to revisit it.

SWTOR has introduced the two new classes on the list, Sith Inquisitor and Jedi Consular. My brothers are so hyped up on this game. I am still waiting to see a bit more. I am sure I'll get more excited the closer it gets to release. Or heck even getting into beta. The class line up is looking good. I want to see how game play is going to be and how end game is. What is it going to offer for long term for the MMO player?

Pouncealot over at Heals and Dots has a really nifty post about gems and Jewlcrafting. I've been lazy this week and been meaning to link it as it's definitely worth a look. So if you're looking for some good tips check it out. Plus she always has something interesting to read!

Tipa from West Karana has returned to WoW with a different view on the game since 3.3. A very interesting outlook from a defiant EQ2 and Wizard 101 player. Often she has said things that I don't agree with about WoW, so it's nice to see her change of heart.

Tam from over at Righteous Orbs has a really hilarious post about his dealings with pugs lately. A read that had me splitting at the sides! Good to know I'm not the only one feeling that way some days!

And that wraps it up for today just some interesting tidbits I thought I would share! What have you been up to in your holiday line up? Events, grinding, groups? Safe adventures all!
-kaozz

Tuesday, December 15, 2009

Daily Deviation (WoW)



Playing WoW last night didn't go quite as planned. I had wanted to get a couple more quick runs than I did. I ended up getting more Heroic ICC instances than one could want and stay sane. Compared to the old heroics these are harder. If everyone isn't on their toes they can be ugly. WTF why did I die healer? I dunno.. maybe you were in that nasty green goo for too long? I figured you were trying for a facial so I let you lay in the mud? Others went quite well though. I've decided I don't really want to do these with pugs. They can either be a breeze or take way too long. Some of these took up quite an amount of time and in the future I'm not so sure I am willing to give a pug a shot at wasting so much time. Stop queuing for this place people!!

I think I may rather poke myself in the eyes than pug the ICC heroics. How about I don't do either heh. I am going to wait a bit on those until more people get the hang of the instances. I know FoS like the back of my hand and can talk a group through it, the other two are a bit harder. HoF is probably the stupidest instance to pug. Seriously. The DPS has to be good, exceptional actually.

Several times I felt as if it was my fault people were dying on runs. DPS not moving away in time, I can't prevent that, Tanks not having max Defense among other things. When Dire came home he saw how hard of a time I was having in one run, he checked the armory. My tank didn't have max Defense...Doh! These people were kind souls so I politely told them I had run out of time.

So other than that I picked up a few nice Balance items this week. I even went dps in one group. HoS, I didn't do too bad. I can push out 2k dps, not impressive I know. A lot of my gear is borrowed from Resto but my hit is capped. It would have been more fun if the healer didn't let people die so many times. By the end of the run I was popping out of Boomkin to heal myself and the tank to get the run over with. I decided 15 minutes in the queue for something so easy, yet made out as if it was hard, wasn't worth it and went back to Resto. 



Most of my groups were really nice. I met some very nice people. I even got a tell from Pouncealot from Heals and Dots. She had made a Druid on Silvermoon and it was so nice to hear from her. It always makes the game so much nicer to have people you enjoy talking to. Now if I could convince her to come on over for good.. just kidding! She is one of my favorite bloggers, one of the nicest ones around so it was really cool to have a chance to talk to her more than across our sites. I hope to see more of her when she has time to play up her new little Druid there! I had to run out there and say hi in the pixels. It was a nice deviation from the daily humdrum.

Today is the start of Winter Veil in wow. Yay, something to distract me from Pugs. I doubt I get the title this year, I may try for it, I'm not so sure yet. I wonder what the new item will be under the Christmas tree! Being the holiday freak I am, I'm surprised I forgot about it until today. I've just had my mind elsewhere I suppose. 

Do you sometimes have things you just don't like to do with pugs? I really need to find a good guild. I don't see anything appealing so far. I will keep my eyes peeled. Safe adventures wherever you may find yourself peeps!

-kaozz

Monday, December 14, 2009

Hello, Goodbye! (WoW)




I have a Bard in Everquest I play sometimes, remember how busy this class kept us? This class has come a long way from being the carpal tunnel causing, button smashing class it once was. Bards can now use /melody to make a song line up and the class plays it all by itself. My bard now seems so easy and laid back compared to years ago. I use to constantly be twisting songs. The only time I got to talk in groups was between pulls on med breaks.

That's sort of feeling I have lately in WoW. Everything is so fast paced it's hard to say much past hello. Especially in the new instances, damage is all over the place. Does it really have to be so fast paced. A lot of groups I joined, people don't say one world. They join, ignore the group and leave. Like this was a group of NPC's there to do their bidding. Hello, Goodbye! I don't even get that from some people.

I have noticed other bloggers mention this also. Sometimes in groups someone will mention that we are are friendly because we said hello, the first people lately to talk. At the same time I don't want to be in one instance all day! I suppose I really need to find a more active guild, that's just what I am going to look into this evening. While my little guild is small and friendly I am looking for one to do more with.

Last night Dire went on an instance spree, dragging me with him. I think we got around 50 emblems with the new dungeon system, randoms offering an extra two really makes it fly. With a tank healer duo we have zero wait time for groups at any hour of the day.

So we've officially moved onto heroic content. We've upgraded a lot of gear and can do any of the heroics now. They went very smoothly yesterday. For the most part we grouped with some very nice people, he decided to bring a few people along from our server that we've met, it lessens the chance for jerk to join lol. One random instance group we ended up doing a few more instances with, it was nice. This has been a rewarding combo. I do not miss playing my other 80's. The more we advance the better it gets. He's a monster at tanking, I have a really nice time healing him, I no longer feel burnt out healing like I did with my other healers.

The biggest problem I have is people not doing as they should on boss encounters, making my job harder. Saying they know a fight then it being the exact opposite. Either they don't care to do things right or they told a story heh. I notice myself looking at the dps meter at times, often my tank is second on the list. However I will take a nice player that does meager dps any day over a jerk that pumps out damage. He teases me that I am becoming elitist, as I've always been one to not appreciate meter spam and people endangering groups to try to be on top. I do notice when people are slacking off though. They sure would if I did, right? Why are we dead? Oh.. I was taking it easy on the heals today? As long as we get the instance done and they aren't getting me killed, all is well.


So that about wraps it up. Do you often feel things are too fast paced sometimes? I don't know, sometimes it's nice to chat a bit while in groups, instead of feeling you are with a bunch of monkeys who can't talk.

-kaozz

Sunday, December 13, 2009

What features would you would miss? (MMO)



 
I was thinking, since my post, 'If you could go back', about some of the cool features games offer now that really make them great. What features you would miss, if you had to game without them?

After playing Aion I really missed mounts. I hated running everywhere. That also had me to thinking of all the things I really missed about WoW. But sometimes when I play WoW I do think about other things offered in different games. Such as Player Housing. So what do you miss when you play a new game? Or rather, what would turn you away from a game, from lack of having?

My list would Include:

Mana/Hit Point Regen.
Remember the days of EQ medding for these? I like an option to regen with an item such as food or drink or class ability. After playing DDO, I missed this immensely. Even in EQ2 I have to wait in out of combat on food and drink to regen. Even sitting to med is nicer than having no option.

Mounts.
I really hate running around slow! As I mentioned in Aion I missed this. I love it though when games allow you to fight on mounts. The biggest thing is having travel speed. Flying mounts, I miss those a lot too when I don't have one.

Flight Paths or Portals.
These two are great options for travel. The faster the better! I'm not lazy, I just don't like spending half of my play time traveling to get to and fro.

Solo Play.
I love to be able to solo when I want. Sometimes I just want to do what I need to and not worry about random players.

Auction House.
Need I say more?!

Dual Specs.
I love this option in WoW. I can heal or DPS if I like. No more doing dailies as Resto b/c I am too cheap to respec! I lus da Boomkin!

Community. 
Last but not least! A nice laid back player base. People being decent. A nice guild. Those are things you just can't beat!


Just a few things I like about today's games. How about you, dear reader?



Till' next time!
-kaozz


One of those days... (WoW)




Disclaimer: Ranting Ahead. 
Warning: The side effects of P.U.G.s can be harmful. Side effects may include; stress, a drop in IQ due to being around such stupidity, ninja looting and Massive Facepalming.


The good
I've really enjoy healing with the Druid, more than my previous 80 healers, Paladin and Priest. It's very enjoyable. My gear is starting to improve, it's getting easier as the gear upgrades. The new emblem drops and LFG system help push it along nicely. I get complements on my healing here and there. It's always appreciated.

While I love healing, I've never grouped with such vile people as I have this week. My Battle Group must be full of degenerates. Where are all the decent people? As a new Tank & Healer duo we've come along nicely. We work together well, groups go smoothly because we pay attention, we strive to do our best. Not to brag but these people are lucky to get a nice duo like us. We started heroics last night and I must say they went well. However I'm finding myself wishing, at times, I could put a fist through the screen and connect with random_pugger_100001's face. Ever feel like that?

The Bad
We decided to do ToC regular run for another try on the tanking trinket for Dire. We've run it 20+ times just on this duo ha! When I join a group I always try to be nice and say "Hiyas", I'm returned with FAIL, from the Rogue. I think... /FACEPALM... Someone asks why he said this. The Rogue informs us that the tank and healer suck (Dire and I). We can't do this run, we need to leave, we suck.  He goes on a bit more. Dire says ignore him, and we start. I was so mad I let everyone die by losing focus. They blamed Dire. Uh no.. that was me. Sorry. The rest of the run was smooth. Mr. Bigshot Rogue was under the tank till' the end on dps.

I inform him on how FAIL his dps is, being 1.4 tops. I never do this, he provoked me though. The tank you insulted is tanking and doing more dps, we should kick you. You should be one to tell anyone they fail? LOL. Anyhow long story short. He got mad at me and ninja looted the tanking trinket. Dire had to beg that sack of .. fail (lol) for it.  I asked him several times to let him have it, I was the one who was rude. I had to hold back and be nice. He handed it over after five minutes, then I told him what a loser he was and he should learn some manners and how to dps, then I left.

The Ugly
After this Dire wants to do Heroic AN, it goes well. I start to feel calmer. Next we do the random heroic daily. A Paladin who can't get over himself because he does around 5k dps is in this group. You want to tank it, you join as a tank, want to heal it, join as heals. This guy pulls the whole first room on us. I die, he blames the tank, saying he isn't good. Then tells me to calm down he had heals. The nerve. I told him, "I'm calm, Han Solo, annoyed but calm. My tank is fine, you killed me." Which he does this the whole instance. I got killed twice because he wanted to be superstar dps. I wanted to leave but we didn't want to get the deserter debuff as I just needed a few more emblems for shoulders.

All our other heroics went fine and dandy. However as a healer and tank we get the brunt of the load when people don't try, don't work as a team or insult us. We are doing our job while they just screw around or make us feel bad. It makes me feel like a baby sitter. I knew this would happen. Do we suck? No, we get the runs done fine. I've been healing and he's been tanking for about a decade in mmo's and I'm not going to let some wet behind the ears jerk make me think we do. It doesn't mean I won't get offended though.

/rant off
I may try to dps when I am joining groups alone. For a change of pace, let someone else deal with the crap. People need to learn manners. If they acted like this on the street they would get quite the wake up call. I'm not ready to throw in the towel on WoW. I just have my days where I really wonder what rocks these people crawled out from under.

Get your nose out of that dps meter, that gear score add on, stop blowing your character kisses. Do your damn part. Stop standing in the circles, attack the mob that's marked. Sigh.. I could go on. DPS can slack off and it can still go ok, if the tank or healer slack off it won't. Yet the dps are always the ones to act so high and mighty. What a turn around it is from the days of EQ. You all should be kissing my...

I jest..

I have been healing in WoW for five years. Different servers, classes and factions. It seems that the cross server groups can lead a poor attitude in general. I guess that's my whole point. I'm still having fun, it's just been one of those days.


That's it for now.
-kaozz

Friday, December 11, 2009

If you could go back... (MMO)





Today has been very busy. My Step Father is in ICU tonight due to a blocked artery. Today he had a stint and heart cath done. Looks like he is going to be fine, just glad it was caught in time. I'm also not feeling too well, I am wondering if I have something wrong with my stomach.  Anyhow while I have a little bit of time this evening I thought I'd borrow my brother's laptop.

A cat monkey just jumped into my lap...Sorry, had to re-situate. Boo decided she wanted to help write today's post and attacked my lap. She says hello to all the readers, the attention hog she is. Mo, the wonder pug faithfully sits at my feet, he wants to know if anyone has any food he can have.

 I'm not going to go on tonight about 3.3 and the fun or adventures I'm having. Instead I thought I'd ask you readers a fun question. If you could go back to your first MMO game with the knowledge you have now, do you think you would still like it as much? Would you still be nostalgic for that game? Even if you've only played one game, it's still valid. Games change, mechanics, classes.. they all change at some point even in small ways.

Would that once loved game and fond memories still be as cherished? Would you even enjoy the game as much? By knowledge I mean; how things work, a sense of understanding and seeing what is possible compared to years ago.

I still go back to my first game on occasion, Everquest. For me this is a big big stretch of years. I love revisiting old places, playing those classes I loved. I don't end up staying as long as I intend, a few months max. I think seeing what is out there now and how much easier game play can be makes me come back to my current games. When I say easier I mean, no corpse runs, things like  no need for crowd control and instances galore. Then again this game has evolved so much these are minimal problems even now.

Sometimes I do think some of those harsher penalties made people not act so frivolous in groups. They didn't do as many stupid things. Nobody wanted a corpse run or to lose xp. People were more prone to think things through and work together as a group. However playing the game recently I have run across stupid people still. Clerics who never bought a rez spell.. yes I am serious, this is 60+ also. Warriors who couldn't tank and got mad when I wouldn't as a dps class.. I could go on and on.

I think now on the new LFG system WoW has and marvel at how fast it is getting a group. I remember waiting ages for a group in EQ. You put aside time just to find one. Everything now is at our fingertips. Are we better off for it? Does it still feel as epic? Do you still have as much fun?

I like the ease of things now certainly, while I love to remember my first game nostalgically. Even that game isn't the same game it was in 1999. There is always a page full of requests for a classic server on the EQ forums. Given the chance to go back to that type of play, would people still have as much fun?

So how about you? Are you having more fun than ever or do you sometimes miss those good ol' days? Just some things I've pondered over here and there. May your adventures be fun wherever you find yourself!
-kaozz




Video is Conquest in Sleepers Tomb. Song- Torn Skin by Wumpscut. It so rocks!
Second Video is Rogue Best of the Best 2000. I think everyone knows the song ;)

Thursday, December 10, 2009

Working as Intended: Part 2


                                          It's Arthas, run!!

I probably shouldn't write a post when I get riled up over some jerk in-game. I guess sometimes it's the straw that broke the camel's back. It's not the fact that someone won something I wanted, it's how they treated me. Ninja looting? You could call it that. So I was a bit upset to begin with Blizzard acting as if they had such a grand, fool proof way of looting now, yet the jerks still come out on top sometimes. Sure I'll get other things, you just have to move on when it happens.

I did that. I decided to wait until Dire got home to do any more groups. As a tank and healer we get groups very quickly. The rest of the night was nice. The guy is a wonderful tank, I don't have to worry about stupidity. He really tries hard and I don't have to worry. Our groups were fun. He found some nice upgrades and got some emblems to work towards more taking gear for heroics. It's much harder to start off in heroics as a tank and healer than dps. I am waiting on him because I would prefer to start them off on a good foot.

I'm use to playing the Paladin and doing heroics, raids and not worrying about gear needing upgrades to do current content (though his has fallen behind some). So starting over is a learning experience. The Druid healer is really my favorite now. In all of our groups since 80 we've only had one death (Paladin trying to off tank something and running off wasting my mana.. sorry Pally you're going to have to eat a death). It's been less stress as a healer compared to the Paladin and Priest at 80. While the Paladin was an awesome tank healer, groups that took large amounts of damage could be nerve wracking. The Priest was just not as smooth as the Druid in my eyes. I love hots. So many hots!

So after my 'meh' groups I waited around for him. Things went better. We are going to have to find a new guild soon. One we can do more with. We will look around before long. I'm just waiting to gear up a bit more. I have a few items that really need to be upgraded badly. He still needs a few too.

In a game so large, we are on a heavily populated server, introduce Battle Groups to the mix and you do get a bit more petty behavior. I guess you have to roll with the punches sometimes. I did end up getting the cloak the tank won in the earlier group, in a group later with Dire. So all ended well. I got a few more upgrades too. I was pretty happy when I logged off, it turned out to be a decent night.

I'm only human, I have a temper I try to keep a leash on. Sometimes dealing with jerks overloads my 'rage bar' heh. Do you get mad or just try not to let rude players push your buttons? I know we all as gamers have to deal with it sometimes. It's the MMO part, you take the good with the bad. I'm just a no B.S. person. I try to be fair and honest. I expect others to do so in return in every situation.

We had a good player last night who ended up going LD once. One member voted to kick him. I figured he would be back as he was a really nice helpful player. He indeed came back. Three of us had voted not to kick him, he said he appreciated it, we ended up doing a few instances. I wonder how many peole get kicked b/c impatient players can't deal with an occasional disconnect? I always don't mind waiting a few min on someone. The player who voted him out was the one who kept running ahead of the tank, tried offtanking adds for no reason, wasted my mana in general. They were nice but sort of childish. Should we have voted to kick them? It wasn't that big of a deal to us. I'm sure it will happen a lot with the new system.

So bear with me as I work towards my goals, sometimes I rant sometimes I rave. Forgive me if I seem like I am writing a 'meme'. It's sometimes hard going backwards and starting over. I enjoy the Druid too much to not stick with it though.

Best of luck to all in your own pug adventures! 
*Listens to some soothing Enya*
-kaozz

Working as Intended...




 And so the new instances were released, the people ran off to seek new lore and 'phat epic lewts'. Heroes fought bravely against new foes in seek of great rewards and promise of harder adventures. And then.. the asshats came and ruined all the fun.

The new instances are fun, until you meet a jerk who decided- since they are not on your server- they can be greedy. For the most part the instances have been fun. I have had some trouble. The attitude I find is- You're not on my server, so I can be a jerk to you. Well, asshat you're in my Battle Group and I'll be damned if I heal you again. I'm not here to help gear your off spec.

Tonight I did go out of the way to ask people to let me greed on any cloth nobody else needed if it was good for healing (only a mage who out geared be my far), still they all pick DE. Great, I can't even trade it. Ok, no big deal. A really nice healing cape drops, tank rolls wins it and tells me "Oh well", he has over 40k hp so obviously he's well geared to tank. He wants to tank, he has taken time to gear up for it. He tells me holy is his main spec. Well you didn't join as holy. I passed on leather I could have used for feral. "Oh well"..

So with good changes come bad attitudes. The group wanted to do another instance. I left, let them find another healer. This new loot system is working as intended? People will be greedy any way they can. I am pretty put off because of the attitude. It just ruins the fun. With the new looting mechanics people will still go out of their way to be greedy. Nothing will change that.

/rant off...

There are some really nice items for people who are trying to gear up for heroics, in the new regular instances. I got a hold an awesome staff and a ring so far. I had planned to rave on how much fun I was having until I ran into a few rude players, I won't go into detail on the rest. Now I just get to wait on my tank to get home so it will be one less random idiot to deal with when he has a spot in the group.

That's it for now. I don't have anything nice to say... *mad face*
-kaozz

Wednesday, December 9, 2009

First Impressions: Dungeon Finder (WoW)


                             Nyomi says,"I pity the fool!"

I had a chance to try out some of the new implements of 3.3 yesterday and get a feeling for the new Dungeon Finder system. I've not had a chance to do the new instances yet but I plan on trying them out today. In the last major content patch I was in a guild running the new instance (ToC) and raid the day it came up. This time around I am still in the gearing up process for heroics.

So far the new Dungeon Finder is great. It felt like the best thing since sliced bread. It really breathes new life into Pugs for sure. We did the random Lich King Dungeon twice. It was instant finding a group last night. So far it looks great. So instead of doing a specific instance it pools you in with others that might need a specific one or just other random instances. Sure it might slow down some but getting a group at the odd hours we play instantly.. that was just awesome. We pondered going dps some because we saw so many (dps spec) people in our guild getting achievements the whole time we were on heh.

The new quest helper is really nice too. It's nice to see it in the game. I'm not one for running blindly for quests, wasting time.  I don't like having to look up things on a wiki to know what to do. I am glad to see WoW improving things like this. I used carbonite for so long that it feels odd not having it on.

Rolling... It still bothers me you can only need on your own armor proficiency. A hunter needed some leather shoulders I won on greed and I traded them to him before we left since he wanted them. It shouldn't have to be so annoying. The DE button is kind of pointless. Oh you can only use if you have an enchanter in the group. Why even bother then. I was still unclear on how it worked until I had a chance to see it, I had thought it worked differently.

On another note I am much better than I remember being for the argent mounted daily quests. I remember hating them with a passion. They now feel quite easy. I ended up getting my 25 tokens and a new dagger for healing. I made sure to get Dire rolling on them so we can do Chillmaw together. Now I don't ever have to worry about having help killing him.

So those are my first impressions getting to try some of the new "toys" out. I hear there are some nice items in the new dungeons (duh). So I want to get in there and check them out. I need to go update my Atlas Loot. I am feeling quite sick today. Off to hunt for my Pepto.

Have fun all, may all your lewt be phat wherever you are gaming!
-kaozz

Patches and Choices.. (WoW, EQ2)



Yikes I need to clean out the quest log!

I finally got to log in for a few to check out the 3.3 patch. It's lookin' good. I was misinformed about the race class combo additions.. doh! I was getting excited, they only changed the character select. I am very impressed with the new built in quest helper and map changes. The new lfg tool.. I found out you hit ( I ) to get this to work (finally a use for this button besides a keybind!), it looks pretty good.

So for the most part I am very impressed. I'm still disgruntled about the looting changes in pugs. There were some cool changes here and there for the better, that's for sure. 'Moar' pets for the collectors! I want to start working on the little pug. I'm pretty back in the saddle with WoW, it seems my break(s) have done me some good. Do I want a cookie for joining back on the bandwagon? Sugar Cookie please!

Random dungeon for emblems.. how cool is that? The calico cat was cute, also the albino snake, which was more so cool than cute I suppose. Other than my realm being a pita during this evening  to log into. It's actually tomorrow.. still tonight for me until I go to bed =p I just wanted to post up some pics and ramble a bit while I wait on Dire to get home. I was thinking lately.. I'm having fun why would I play anything else?



 

 

Having said that ( Saying this phrase now makes me think of Curb your Enthusiasm.. just something you gotta see to know) I think I will be sticking to WoW for the most part for now. So it looks like I will be saying goodbye to EQ2. I may head back another time to visit but for now I'm not feeling it with this game. I still have a few weeks left, but it's really at the point where I feel like- why bother logging in?

While the community is very nice it's an established and tight knit community. I suppose I feel stagnated with it already. I am starting to feel this game caters more to long time players, not opening doors as wide for returning and new to get a foot in. It's me, not you EQ2!

Yes I know I was raving about how great is was last week. I've really tried hard to get back into it and enjoy it but it's tougher the longer I play. I'm not staying it's no longer a great game, not at all. I'm just not having as much fun and I know all too well when it's time to break away from a game when it gets like this. If anyone asked me if it was worth a try I would surely tell them how great it indeed is. I probably would recommend another game if you are new to the MMORPG world though.

For now I have bigger Dragons to slay, so to speak. I'm off to try the new LFG system!

Tuesday, December 8, 2009

Patch Day! (WoW 3.3)




My neglected Paladin, Ashlex. He could really use a scrunchie, yeah you heard him!


I actually didn't play yesterday other than making my video. My son told me the patch would be out today, so while I am not over enthused about some of it, I'm excited about cross server groups. This should help out a good bit when we are lfg in the wee hours. Dire doesn't get home until 3am sometimes, so yeah it gets hard sometimes to find people.

Dire could see the patch notes and read a few off to me. I on the other hand had to scour the net to find them since my patcher is being ornery. I did run across something cool on wow.com.. Core Hound pups!! Ok I'm calm now, I hope I get one, it seems some characters do and others don't. I can't log in still. The game seems to hang when logging in.I have a feeling I won't be able to play much until later. I have to go out anyhow so no big deal there. I just wanted a peek though... *sad face*...

*Edit.. Seems the Core Hounds are sent to players with authenticators. What kinda bull is that?  .... well then I guess Perky Pug here I come... when I can log in. Don't forget the calico pet and albino snake went live today also. Breani has them in Dalaran. /big rude towards the direction of Blizzard on the Core Hound. No I don't use one. First Warden now authenticators. What more do I need on my machine to play WoW?


Oh and on another note.. Yay for Druids, Rebirth 10 min cd (not in arena).

So what are you doing this patch day? Are you having touble logging in? Or are you one of the lucky ones able to log in?

/shakes fist 
/runs away..
-kaozz

P.S.- Deimonia I have horde here too! Even though you'll find me on alliance more often these days. *nudge* come on over to Silvermoon!

Poppin' Hots




I have always wanted to make one of those flashy WoW videos. I'm not the biggest PvPer, so I always thought a cool song with some danceing.. people.. ya know whatever, would be cool. Let me say that Windows Movie Maker... along with VideoSpin.. are total crap. You may have had a good run with those programs but they really wasted a hefty amount of my time.

First off WMM doesn't want to save half the videos and then it crashes the other half of the time (after checking google, I find hrmm.... 5 mil other people have the same problem). While VS doesn't give me those problems. it has caused halting and what appears to be lag. I have 2 beautiful videos sitting on my machine, too bad you can't see them. So my video making days are short lived. I may try again when I am willing to shell out something for a decent editor. I know the good ones.. I'm just not that dedicated to buy one yet lol.

I am hosting it up for a thanks to all the people on Silvermoon who helped. I hope you enjoy, in all it's halting  glory! I know a few will check here. It should have been longer but as it was it would have been painful to watch lol. I spammed trade and a few very kind people helped with a scene. Once again thank you all!

We had fun making it. That's what counts, right?! I had thought of a little tune to go with the song playing, I'm a writer though not a singer.. My son tried to get me to sing. Ha!!! So I'll leave you with something I'm a bit better at, writing.

We're the duo, we're c-coming out 
Got my gear on it's true, need that spec on for you
It's so magical, we'd be so fantastic-o
leather and plate, heroic
not sure what it means but this duo of us
it don't have a price, ready for those uber fights
'cause you know that baby I--

I'm your biggest fan
I'll follow you until you love me, poppin poppin hots
baby, there's no other healer
you know that I'll be your poppin poppin hots
promise I'll be kind, but I won't stop until that loot is mine
baby you'll be famous, chase you down until you tank for me
poppin poppin hots

I'll be your girl backing  your group
healing robes and star shards, yeah 'cause you're my warrior
in between the runs, mana pots and innervates
healing is brunt, star skull and we kill x
my lashes are dry, purple teardrops I cry
it don't have a price, healing you is cherry pie
'cause you know that baby I

I'm your biggest fan
I'll follow you until you love me, poppin poppin hots
baby, there's no other healer
you know that I'll be there poppin poppin hots
promise I'll be kind, but I won't stop until that loot is mine
baby you'll be famous, chase you down until you tank for me
poppin poppin heals

Real good, we PvP in the bg's
snap snap, to to that daily
don't stop for anyone
we're casaul but we still have fun

I'm your biggest fan
I'll follow you until you love me, poppin poppin hots
baby, there's no other healer
you know that I'll be there poppin poppin hots
promise I'll be kind, but I won't stop until that loot is mine
baby you'll be famous, chase you down until you tank for me
poppin poppin heals



Have a fun patch day all! <3 to my Dire. AND a big thanks to Joey!! <3
-kaozz

Monday, December 7, 2009

We made it! (WoW)




Yesterday there was a parade here in Houston, so my brother and I took my son out to see it. I've never seen so many people. We stood in the drizzle watching the floats go by, while every police car and fire engine made all the noise possible, honking the tune of jingle bells. I didn't think I'd be able to hear for a week. It was great. The sides of Hwy 6 here were lined with people. The traffic on the way back.. that wasn't so great. I honked (does holding the horn for several minutes still count as honking? Ha!), shook my fist yelling a few choice words at some unsafe drivers and finally made it out of the parking lot which we had set up camp.

When I finally got situated back home, after supper, I played WoW and we ended up hitting 80! I know we had plans to PvP at 79 for a bit but we just were so excited about hitting 80 on the alliance! So we are pretty hyped about that. Dire is still working on his tank set, we will be glad when the new LFG system goes life because at the hours he plays durring the week it can be hard to even find dps.

I'm probably going to try my hand at some of the easier Heroics this evening. My gear is already off to a decent start. It's so nice to have 80 under my belt once again. I am very excited. I still need to work more on my Hodir rep for my shoulder enchant tonight too. Fun...

Don't ask me how my dps was so high in that meter, I think I had a buff at one point in the night from a quest heh. Anyhow I am heading out for now, I have a few things I need to get done. Hope you all had a great weekend!

-kaozz

Sunday, December 6, 2009

Daily Humdrum.. WoW vs EQ2 (MMO)

                                     Shake it like a Boomkin!

WoW, I'm almost 80 
Welp, I finally hit 79 with the Druid last night. One more level to go. Yay! Don't you love it when it's so close you can breathe a sigh of relief. I've had a nice time leveling her though. To help fund my first 80 Alliance I took up two money making professions. Skinning and Herbalism. It's payed off. I will drop LW eventually for Alchemy or Inscription. For now it's helped out big time. I make a lot of money off the herbs. I was even able to grab several items off the AH to boost me up some as soon as I hit 80, and several enchants.

Speaking of gear, we decided to run normal ToC last night to see if we could grab some gear and a change of pace. Dire was still 78 so we found another couple of tanks to help in the runs. It was fun, we died some but it's not the easiest to run at 78 (before the ding). Plus this is all still new healing as the Druid. I don't have my fast casting heal (Nourish) yet. I think I did a good job, we got about three or four runs in so I'd say it went well. The Druid is very enjoyable healing 5 mans, that is for sure. I really love it. I don't know if I could pick up the Pally again anytime soon!

The first tank was a good bit under the Def cap we found out later. Yeah.. we used the armory heh. So while I was thinking- Geez I suck tonight, it wasn't all my fault. Sometimes you gotta roll with the punches, it wasn't a Heroic and we got it done. The next tank was a bit better but he often seemed to phase out and not grab the bosses quickly.

I ended up getting two very nice trinkets, some shoulders and a ring from those runs. Dire got one tanking item and a couple dps items. I've been working on daily quests while I level and it's going quite smoothly doing that plus getting some things in order for 80.


As the World (of EQ2) turns
I  played some EQ2 the other day, the day before yesterday. I hit 40 with the little swashy which was great, I also got a couple of aa points also. The guild was running a low level dungeon for the guild leader's alt (Stormhold), so I mentored down and joined. I never had the chance to level there so it was fun. We only stayed about 30 min and it ended with me evacing us out of a bad spot. I've never gotten to use that spell on a group, heck that was my first group with this char!

Earlier in the day I wandered around Steamfont and quested some and chatted in guild chat all the while. We talk about other games we've played. WoW came up in the topic with much scorn. The guild leader made the comment about it going to 90, which I corrected him telling him it was in fact 85. Oh no, I was wrong. Well I'm the only one playing it, right? I guess they thought they would humor me heh. They then spoke on how it was only a solo game. How boring it was and how much it sucked. I asked what level they got to while playing it and was told 29. I then explained that the level cap is full of people doing heroics, raids.. group things in general. It's all about groups and raids.

As a person who has come back to EQ2 recently and played both I couldn't understand how someone could say EQ2 was so much better for someone being new to the game. For the majority I solo. It is nice to be able to solo in games to reach the cap. So why bash that in any game, right? I wander around looking for quests and use the EQ2 wiki more than I should have to, if you ask me. As a long time MMO player I say WoW is the better for newer players to the MMO scene. It has more direction and a larger amount of quests in each hub.

If I'm wrong then I'm at least right about the ease (direction) of finding where to go next w/o having to look it up, because I do a lot of looking! Then we got onto the topic that EQ2 has more adults. Two reasons here. It has less of a player base, when you have a huge player base you have a lot of all ages. Then this game appeals a lot to Everquest (original) players. Ten years ago a lot of them started it, that makes most of the players adults. Even if you started in 1999 at the age of 10, you're now 20. An adult. That's not the only reason but that in my eyes it's a big one. The biggest thing they complained about was the community and always soloing everything.

While both are great games it really bothers me when people assume one is better, one.. as they all like to say.. sucks. Why? Because it's not the game you picked? No, I'm not mad they bashed my other game. What was ironic was all the things they complained about in WoW... soloing so much, no direction, people not being friendly and so on. Well thats what I am dealing with in EQ2. I solo and miss a lot of dungeons for my level. I meet people because I reach out and try. Nobody has befriended me to be nice to a lowbie, I looked for a guild and made conversation to get to know them. I hunt around in zones lost, I have to refer to EQ2maps and the wiki. Ironic eh?

Anyhow.. I ended up messing around on Test a bit also. I always liked the test server in EQ, so it was neat checking this one out too.Would I play there? I thought it would be cool. However there were only 36 players online when I checked. It might get very lonely. I'm still thinking of playing there some. I made a paladin... I have a weakness for crusaders!

Safe Adventures all!
-kaozz

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