Eye Candy- Greetings From Draenor!

Upgrade time! Upgrading to level two Barracks enables you the option to have a follower accompany you in your travels across Draenor. There are five bodyguard followers to chose from, once you gain them.

Weekend Recap

I've gotten ahead of myself in SWTOR, getting further in the story line, being able to move on to the next planet. But I'm trying to get a few levels to buffer me as I am still a bit low, some of the story quests are kind of hard but it is mostly due that I really should not be getting more levels before I keep moving on. I just really enjoy the story a lot, not always the side quests as much.

The world in which this game takes place is very refreshing. I don't feel that I am anywhere for too long, change of scenery is pretty often. It also reminds me of being a kid again, my love for Star Wars coming back to me, it is quite awesome. As a child there really wasn't ANYTHING like Star Wars to me. Going on my missions and wielding my own light saber makes my inner child quite happy.

My brother is still playing, he has passed me up in a few levels, I'm playing the balancing act with games though. I need to log in this week and catch up. I was taking advantage of EQ2's double xp weekend, which seemed slow still at 90...sigh.

In EQ2 I am almost, almost 91! The levels are going very slow. The questing has been enjoyable and I've been doing the Chrono daily quests (which start at the chrono mentors), to add in a nice change. However yesterday in The Estate of Unrest (instance) I realized I needed two people to unlock the doors to kill the boss. Two are needed to pull levers simultaneously, and I could not find any help. So that really put a damper on my session in EQ2. I don't want to chrono down and blow through a dungeon with someone else, it is too easy and I like to take my time and explore, I go to EQ2 to play with my merc and solo. The others that I have done I've gained mini enchanted statues of the bosses whom I have killed, which make for nice house items! I will have to share some pictures of them when I get more.

There is a lot to do in EQ2, lots of content. Even if you missed something you can always mentor down and go back to check it out. Also the events, always something going on at one point or another. The game does have a lot of options on what to do, which is something that always pulls me back. Add in mercenaries and you can do so much more than ever- except if you need them to pull a level...gah.

And, yes, I am still playing WoW. Though not nearly as much. Which was good to get a bit of a break. I still log in to do my weekly quest in the barrens with one or two characters sometimes. I also mainly run heroics and scenarios with Dire. Which are quite easy as my druid, she is a really enjoyable healer. I'm also messing around with my lock here and there, she is my 'go to' character when I want to solo something. 5.4 looks to be interesting, and we have some new appearance items in the shop, which I will have to get....soon. I still do enjoy the game, probably too much to really quit, we'll see what is ahead.

Rift also has a summer event heading out to us in a couple of days... Which I MUST take part in, I missed it last year. Too many games, too little time, isn't that always the problem? That's it for today. Have a great week!

Busy Bee

Hope everyone had a nice weekend, ours was a bit extended, thus Dire had me playing more EverQuest than I had planned, lol. My cleric made it to 92 with close to 3k AAs, which make a huge difference. We're going to both park at 92 for awhile and just work on AA's and such, flags or whatnot. My other (main) characters are a tad higher, the Magician is 93 and the Druid 95, but this one is pulling ahead in the AA department. We also did the J5 merc quest, which gives us the strongest mercenaries out there. The quest isn't hard it just can be rather long waiting on spawns and such, especially if other people are working on it as well. I suppose it was harder with other duo's but Dire's SK is a beast, he has some decent gear and a hefty amount of AA points, he made this cake for us.

Right now we're having some issues with mercs bugging though. Dire couldn't purchase anything other than the healer merc from Hydra Ware in PoK, so he wasn't able to purchase any others for the extra slots he has (you can have up to six slots and swap them out on the fly). Very annoying, which means petition time. Me? I can't even purchase a J5 merc, it isn't showing that I'm flagged for it. I've done the quest on all my other 90+ characters so I know it was finished. I just think right now there is an issue with mercs that needs to be looked into. Dire was pretty irritated last night, but it happens sometimes, no game is immune to bugs and the occasional hiccup.

Other than that EQ has been going well. Dire is always very happy when I log in, but it does take time away from my other gaming, besides a little time in the evenings, or early in the mornings, if I am not too tired. But I enjoy spending time in Norrath with him, so putting other games on the back burner for now isn't a big deal. Vanguard has taken a little bit of a back seat but I hope to have more gusto later this week, getting back in, playing around with my new shaman spells a bit. The cleric needs some levels as well! And I am still logging into Rift, though I am not as active as I want to be, with Feb events rolling around I'm sure I'll be on much more. I just lost stamina to play every day. Plus, I had an officer leave and take a big chunk of money from the bank, which really felt like a kick in the gut there, as I have spent SO much on the guild. All of my free money has gone into it, the hall, extra item slots, bank tabs and such, it adds up to a small fortune. Some of the drama taxed me though, but I did love that little guild, still do.

While I'm not blowing through the levels in WoW, I am enjoying playing it again. *surprise face* =o I didn't expect to play anytime soon again but it just happened that way. I am working my way through 88, I really want to hit 90 with the hunter. I think I will keep my sub alive just so I can. Another thing that really keeps me interested in is the fact that there is just so much to do. That is always a huge plus in any game I play, I like to have goals and things to do, it is how my mind works, I always have to be doing something, have an objective, RL and in game.

Over the weekend I managed to get my little dark moon monkey pet, yay! That is the first I've gotten, I am always so bad on char hopping when the event hits. So I was pretty happy to finally get this cute little pet, he matches my combat pet, twins! (pictured below)

Not the most exciting post but we're enjoying things on our end. I have some interesting topics I want to touch on, just need to get the time to sit still and jot them down! I look forward to the many events heading out way this month for Valentine's Day, can't wait! And the title? I think I've been listening to too much Steam Powered Giraffe, lol.

Monkeys! I love you, monkeys!

The gang... An escort quest in MoP. 

Fun little quest where you get to ride this mean gal and kill Dookers, err I mean Hozen. . 

Dark Moon carousel, gives a faction buff.  

Up, up and away!

The Ties That Bind Me

I've died and gone to... PET HEAVEN!!

It's been pretty fun returning to EQ2. Last time I gave it a go, well, it was on an alt and I honestly enjoy the 85+ content the most these days. It's more polished in terms of laid back questing and DoV has quest markers on the map, unlike some of the mid-level zones. Plus, I can fly, I love that ability in EQ2!

Awhile back, when there was a triple SC scale, I bought some flying wings, they're very pretty and I hadn't had a chance to test them out until recently. The flying animations in EQ2 are very smooth and graceful. It is a neat change and they really look snazzy on my character. I absolutely love, and have missed, the lovely little bits of cosmetic flair and fluff EQ2 offers in an MMO world.

I've been puttering around in a new house. All of my items are splayed over many different homes and alts, sigh. It will take some time rounding it all up. I also need to get working on moonlight enchantments, which starts tonight. Lots of really neat housing items in those, floor tiles and such. I'm really soaking up the lore, atmosphere and feeling of Norrath again. I just really have strong ties to the original EQ lore and that which stems from it, it always gets me, makes me feel at home in EQ2. Plus the fluff, oh the fluff!

What else, I'm working through DoV, enjoying it immensely, trusty Paladin by my side, wreaking havoc to anything that crosses our path. I still have tons of quests to work on, lots of little neat quests with house or cosmetic rewards as well as some upgrades. It really is enjoyable especially now that I have a merc to help me on my way.

I'm still asking Dire if he wants to log in and play, I'm feeling one of these times he'll break down and join me. He's still working on D3, sitting around 55. He doesn't get to play much but he is still enjoying it. I think he'll enjoy EQ2 again... once he breaks down and gives it another go, he has a 90 SK collecting dust.

Other than that, I'm still messing about creating and building in SL. Slowing things down as I need a bit of a break, I still have several items to list and one project I'm working on. Sometimes I just need some time to recuperate, heh. I really push myself and I'm a perfectionist, it can be draining sometimes.

Twig, who is my RL mother actually, yes my dear, sweet mother plays SL with me- She's the biggest reason I've stuck with it and made friends within the game. She is such an addict ;)  Anyhow, she's headed to Scotland for a couple of weeks so I'll really miss her (Death in the family, wish I could have gone too but it was all so very last minute, it's so lovely there though). I'm such a mommy's girl. I've always wanted her to play an MMO with me, she's tried WoW before, but she always gets confused and doesn't give it enough time, so this is close enough to an MMO. SL has a steep learning curve and I still have to explain things for her and help her but she has come a long way, I'm very proud of her. 


It's cool to be able to game with your family. I'm thankful of the times I've had with mine, I still miss gaming with my brothers. My son and I have different tastes these days too. Now if I can just get Dire to stop slacking off and game I'd be good. I can't complain he works about 70hrs a week, he's tired. Soon though- I'm quite demanding beguiling when I want to be!


Hope everyone has a great weekend. Sharing some pretty shots:


P.S. Yes, I'm heavy handed on the screenshot button! And... Yes, I've been slacking in TSW.


EVERQUEST 2

Decorating!

Gorgeous Velious!

Thank the devs for SOGA models (on human males), lol. I just love some of the SOGA models.

Beware... Dragons.

Flavor like this really hits a soft spot. I was so happy to stumble upon the waterfall 'hidden' Thurgadin entrance. Very similar to the one in the original EverQuest.

While claiming some TCG packs that had accumulated-  RNG takes favor on me, LOVE this illusion! Actual pics of it later on.

Flying. Whee!

New pet- LoN TCG loot. 

Tizmak caves, brings back memories from the first EverQuest. Ah the ties that bind my heart... 

Second Life:

Twig and I (my male AV, she's on back). Male AV= keeps the flirting men at bay, heh.

Let me play you a song.

Concert on our sim. Standing around with some friends.

Meditation... Or chit-chatting rather. 

Playing around with a desk I had in my inventory, in the enforcer office.

Trying out a couch with Twiggy.

Riding around on my horse while friends play Greedy, I'm not big  on this game (involves counting, I'm slightly OCD and counting isn't always something I want to do- I count when I'm extremely stressed, not like I did when I was younger and it's taken years to overcome- Yeah, TMI). They love it though.

My Victorian Home, finished and sitting on my land. Love this house, very roomy feeling inside.

Visiting the Booshies (wearing one on my shoulder).

Trying out a new desk in the enforcer's office. Twig made me come and deliver pictures to decorate it with, heh. 

Time... Never Enough Time

Oh, how I missed you, my trusty tank.

Yesterday we went to see the movie Ted. When I got home I had the urge to play EQ2. I've been wanting to poke back in and check out the end game, for awhile actually. I just wanted to be in the right state of mind and not feel rushed with it.

My 90 Inquisitor has basically sat there collecting dust since the Freeport revamp. I messed around on a couple of occasions but nothing more than a mere few minutes here and there. So, last night I decided to poke around, quest in DoV zones, last time I tried things were pretty slow and a bit boring- as a healer soloing. I went out there with my trusty merc and... wow. The difference with a merc was amazing. The Paladin merc has always been a favorite of mine but I have to say he really kicks some ass. It was really fun blowing through quests and having a 'companion' to help my slow self. I had such a good time I ended up re-subbing to EQ2. Yeah, that was out of the blue, but I enjoyed myself so much that I figure I might as well. Dire expressed his disdain, as he doesn't like EQ2 anymore. But I have a feeling he'll check back in one of these days. I'm only 40 AA points off from being able to level onto 91. No rush though, just having fun. Plus, I log in and feel like I've done something and had a good time, I like that.

While re-subbing to EQ2, I cancelled Vanguard. I didn't really want to but I haven't logged in for two weeks. Mainly because I've been quite busy, partly because I'm waiting on some new content for alts. I'll pick it back up after the F2P version comes out and all the excitement is back again. Right now I honestly don't have the time to spend on leveling in Vanguard, even if I enjoy it, it's still a very time consuming game.

Fortune Teller:"I see a tall, dark, rugged, stranger in your future."
Sablesix:  "Really? He's probably a zombie waiting to eat my brains."

So, what about The Secret World, right? I'm still puttering around there. The biggest issue is the preformance   with the game, sometimes it runs like total crap. Especially where there are tons of shadows. The lack of an option to turn them off- to me- is just pure laziness in design. Now, I don't have a horrible machine but it's a couple of years old. So, yeah, that's my beef. Another thing is, time. The game is one where you sometimes have to spend time searching around for stuff. Which is fine, I just don't always have the time and I feel as if I accomplished absolutely nothing in my session, I hate feeling like that. I'm still playing it though, good game, just a few things that have been bothering me. I still am having a nice time, killing zombies (yeah!) and I really enjoy the combat. 


Last but not least, I'm still doing a lot of building in SL still. My shop is expanding and if I never make a dime on it, I can at least say I enjoyed myself. Twig is trying to get me to start making tattoos for avatars. I may consider it. I want to work on shapes soon, so why not tats too? 


That's about it for today. Sharing some of my creations. Enjoy & safe adventures and all that!

Large Country Home.

Framed art, in the shop. Look familiar? Hehe.

Interior of my Meditation Garden.

Entrance.

Outside of the Meditation Garden.

Interior of my Victorian Home.

Exterior.

Upstairs.

AoD- Raising The Bar (EQ2)

I managed to get EQ2's new expansion with the triple SC sale, which was an extremely good deal, I'm very happy that I purchased it as I am seriously enjoying the heck out of it. I thought I'd I would share some of my experiences and thoughts. AoD isn't full of a ton of content but aimed at more features as content is going to be more along the lines of patches since EQ2 going F2P. Thus far it has been my favorite expansion since I started in 2007, yeah a late bloomer with EQ2... Blame it on my old computer and video card.

First up I'll speak about mercenaries. Are they worth it? Yes indeed, they are very much worth it. At the starting levels all the way into the low twenties they are around two silver per half hour, pretty much free. By 22 it is around ten silver and at 90 it is 25g. I prefer the charge being every 30 min instead of, like EQ, it being every 15 min. Some classes are a bit tougher to solo with and mercs can provide a nice boost to soloing. I've not used the DPS merc on the lower levels, only the tanks and healers with my beastlord, while leveling. The inquisitor is very nice for heals and does decent dps. The tank mercs are amazing for a dps boost. I simply adore the paladin from Qeynos, if I know I am not going to need a lot of heals he goes out and about with me as he is a beast. I might need heals if he didn't mow down everything in our way.

"I'll defend you till' death.... Or until you run out of coin." At least he's honest.

I decided to try the dps and paladin merc with my 90 inquisitor. All in all I'd probably stick with the tank, his dps isn't anything to frown at in the least bit. The dps mercs are good but the tank has a much better knack for pulling things off me while I am trying to heal. However, they are AI and you do have to watch aggro, he can only do so much as far as pulling things off me in a short amount of time. That being said they are a bit squishy if you are trying to heal yourself and them and them. I am pretty impressed with them as a whole though. I've read that some people find the mthe melee dps to be less squishy than the tanks but I did not find that to be the case with the Swashy anyhow, perhaps the Brigand is. I'm pretty fond of the Paladin honestly, his dps, when used with my inquis seemed just as decent as a rogue whom didn't get to utilize his abilities since he was tanking.

Mercs are one of the best things about this expansion. They make things a bit easier especially if you like to solo a lot, they can really impact your play for the better. Plus, they are pretty cheap. I do wish that you could at least have two in your mercenary tab, you can only one at a time or purchase another and switch them up and town that way. I'd love to be able to switch them out on the fly, depending on what would be needed- maybe soon because that was one of the features in the latest (original) EverQuest expansion. I suppose it is just a matter of time. This weekend I actually saw an email for the latest EQ expansion and saw it mentioned a feature being that you can now carry multiple mercs along with you. I was confused because, for a moment, I thought it was EQ2 and got really excited. Poor me, I needs to lern to reed :(

Reforaging. Seems like a nice deal, I was a bit let down that you can only reforage legendary (or better) items. Pretty useless on my lowbie beastlord. Plus, most of my appearance weapons are not legendary which means no pretty sparkles on them.... And if they are, well they already have some cool effect. It is a nice addition though, I just wish it was a bit more newbie friendly.

Personal dungeon maker. I still haven't had time for this but it really is a neat option. As an avid decorator this really seems like a lot of fun and I look forward to using it. While I was soloing some old dungeons with my merc I managed to get a few spawners to drop. You can add these as mobs into your personal dungeon. Currently you can only play as an avatar, not your own character, but on test you can play as your character- So soon this will offer more for players that have been asking for this feature. I think the whole player created content thing is a fantastic option for players who want to experience more content and those who love to create. MOAR CONTENT!

Speaking of content, I also like the Freeport revamp. Some of the questlines are really engaging. I also like the openness of the new [one] zone, no longer do you zone from each part of FP but you can still travel to different parts with city bells. It is done quite well, a nice style with the same layout. I can still find what I am looking for but it just has had a face-lift. Very well done IMO.

At level 20 Beastlords get a 'glowly' blue eyes spell effect
(the crown glowing is a cosmetic drop from SoL).

Last but not least BEASTLORDS! I absolutely love the class, coupled with my merc I find it a blast to play. The class is very bursty at my current level, 22. It gets more interesting and engaging as I level and it is quite formidable. I can see this being my new main easily.

Pets pets and more pets! I've tamed a lot of really cool pets, from a flaming bat whom I named Hotwings to a giant cow. I like how some of the options are silly while others are more along the lines of what you'd expect. I really love pet classes and the options for these are great. At level 30 you gain the ability to further make them stronger with their abilities. I suppose this means you'd want to pick one to focus on mainly at first. I'm eager to work on this soon.

The class has a lot of flexibility which it gains with levels. It is more in your face for a scout class but that is what I was expecting- Toe to toe with a warder at my side! I even have an invis/stealth ability, which is totally sweet. I really look forward to the next ten levels to see how the class changes and grows. It is a really fun class to play and a great experience.

All in all I'd say AoD was a great expansion. Adding in just more raids and five mans wouldn't have made me buy it, it was the features which drew me in. That's just me though. Plus, as stated before, content will be arriving in the form of patches.  If you're on the fence about it, I think it is really a great expansion, especially if you're wanting to jump back into the game, going F2P makes it even more so appealing for those who are not sure they have enough time to justify buying it- It will be there when you do, ready to play. EQ2 really is raising the bar for MMOs IMO. Sharing some pics I've taken along the way, enjoy!

Wolf warder in black, he's huge

Lerenth, an NPC from one of my favorite questlines.

Hotwings, my bat warder.

Darklight Wood.

Enjoying Frostfell.

My (othimir) Tradeskill Apprentice who just moved into my residence.