Falling Into Place

Running after my champion as he slays those big bad newbie mobs.

Last night Dire decided he'd like to try out Lord of The Rings Online with me. We've not really been playing anything together for awhile so I thought he might take to the idea of something different that he's never tried. I haven't played LoTRO in quite awhile and figured maybe it would be a nice time to return. It is old school enough where he would enjoy it, but not too modern where he feels there isn't a challenge. We rolled up a tank and healer duo. We quested a bit and he commented on how nice the world looked. The game still is beautiful and holds up quite as it ages.

We ran around questing for a bit, which he seemed to enjoy. I've done the starting areas many times but it was really nice to do it over with Dire. A few years ago I was really enthralled with this game but he didn't want to play, so it is nice to go back with him this time.

We're starting over, well I am, he's never played. We figured out old trusty combo might fare us well with this game. So far it has been fun and I'm introducing him to things in the game such as traits and deeds. Which I often hear moans about the grind behind them but we're pretty happy to grind away at content, especially him, if it offers a neat goal behind it. We're 'EverQuesters' after all, heh. We were born into the MMO scene when it was a horrible grind! Honestly though, he really likes game play with things to work on such as AA points from EverQuest, so traits and deeds sound like something he'd enjoy working on. We'll see.

Thus far he hasn't complained about the combat, that is what makes it or breaks it for any game he plays. Combat. Lets play Rift? Combat sucks. EQ2? Combat sucks. That's what I am up against. If it doesn't click with him, which I enjoy combat in both of those games, it will kill it for him. I received a text earlier today from him"LoTRO tonight?" Which is a good sign so far! We're playing for free now to gauge how much we like it. I want to play this as a duo, more fun that way. We're on Landroval, I can't remember where I was playing before. I think this is the RP server, add me if you play there- Sablesix.

Heri and I. Ninjas (he's in the black)! That is the inventory there, it works well and is easy to work with.

On my own I am playing Onverse. Heri joins me on occasion. I've been doing a lot of questing lately. There are many quests which involve grinding player points for items and/or completing puzzles. It is casual and laid back, I enjoy this type of play. No stress or pressure to do anything in particular. That's how I like it. I still find this my go to game for relaxing. I play it on a regular basis because I just really love this little game. It isn't just a social type game where you just pump (RL) money into it for anything and everything, a lot of the cool stuff you have to obtain through quests and buying with player points.

A couple of weeks ago I was reading about rune hunting. Basically you hunt runes, with a special tool, within a temple maze for keys. These unlock a steam punk chest full of all kinds of neat steam punk themed items. I really wanted to do this but you had to complete a quest and you need other players to do so. I wasn't quite sure if I could even find anyone to help. Luckily there were some people working on this quest and several others helping when I headed out there. I was in luck! One amazing gal led me through the maze to the jumping puzzle part which I then cringed and balked at. I was dead tired that night and the thought of me jumping through the puzzle as the others jumped on platforms to move the ones I needed.... Well that was just daunting! People had to wait on me to jump through it, gah!

Questing. Those pillars behind me are part of a quest, more jumping, oh joy!

I am not the best at jumping games. I'm not terrible though. I'm harder on myself than I deserve in all honesty. I made it after several attempts and I was so thankful to the people who helped. The other person with me trying to complete it never got to the end, she just couldn't do it and I felt really bad for her. Nobody can do it for you, so to speak. I've asked my son to try a few jumping puzzles before, even he thinks they are quite hard and he's amazing at that kind of stuff. He's way better than I am but I do like to do them myself. Maybe one day I will convince him to play it with me!

I can't wait to get more mog gear. The monk is so fun to 'dress up'  =p

I'm also playing WoW. I subbed back for the holidays. Since I have time on the account I don't want it to go to waste and I am working on finally getting my monk to 90. I am sitting at 88, not too bad for a slacker! This will be my 4th 90. I would like to get my 86 DK to 90 but I think I will work on the monk instead, enjoying it at 90 and taking a long break from leveling. I will use my free boost to 90 (that is if I purchase the expansion) on my priest.

I'm back on the Horde with this one. I have an old friend who I enjoy playing with over there so I figured it was due time to go back. I still play my other 90's but for now I want to get back to the Horde some and just enjoy the monk I've wanted so badly for so long! I'm actually feeling quite excited about hitting 90 with it.

Things are falling into place with gaming this year, I'm pretty content and have plenty to keep me entertained. It comes and goes sometimes. If you're playing WoW, what will you use your boost to 90 on? If you're not playing WoW, what is keeping you entertained as we wait for all these long awaited 2014 releases?

Visiting This Week: Aura Kingdoms, Onverse, Mabinogi

Awhile back I mentioned Aura Kingdom, trying it out and giving a few ideas of what I thought on the game. My brother decided to try it as well and thus we had a bit more time to take a better look at this title. I'd have to say as we progressed through, the game continued to feel polished. A bit sterile at times too though, it offers the option to auto path to quest objectives and quests. But that isn't a bad thing. It is just a very linear game. Perfect for jumping in and getting things done.

We had a chance to try some solo instances, which were very small but interesting. We picked up mounts at level eight, which was quite spiffy. They resemble chocobos. The game is really quite beautiful. you can't deny that. Flowers and storybook looking trees decorate the landscape with little cottages and fishing huts dotted along the way. It is really beautiful. I made it to around 20, I'd say the game is pretty easy to hop in and out of  and I've enjoyed myself quite nicely.

Heri and I.

The pet system is decent, we picked up our first combat pets, as you progress through the main story you get access to everything you've been wondering about such as pets and mounts, even appearance clothing. So, if you haven't tried it, it is a nice way to pass some time, relaxing, cheerful and overall decent. I don't know if I have the time to continue it on a regular basis, but it will be nice to pop in when I can.



I also decided to revisit Mabinogi. This is an interesting title. Lots of very unique classes and systems. I mean who doesn't want to be a puppet master?! The downside to all the interesting things about this game would be that is takes a lot of time to learn everything, such as rebirthing. Which resets your age so you can get more points, which make the character stronger. There is no level cap, I read the highest character was around 15, 000. Which is boggling!

The game has a lot of interesting things to offer, plenty of cool classes, there is a lot of variety on things to do. Farming, pets, mounts, and more than I really got to get too far with. It was just so overwhelming, so I am taking it slow and picking it up when I have time to sit and put some time into learning it.

I did like the puppet master class (pictured at top), there is now a tutorial which lets you try out some of the classes you pick from. I was swinging my puppet round about into mobs, smashing him all over and controlling him to do my bidding. Very, very fun! The tutorial for humans looks to be quite a bit different from the last time I played. It seems to give more direction, I also read you want your first character to be a human for bonuses. There is so much to learn, a very in depth game.

I'm still puttering about in the world of Onverse. Megaplots were released last week. Basically huge islands with a much higher item count allowed, for more extravagant building. I decided to try my hand at creating my own house instead of having one to only decorate. I had a great time coming up with an idea, still work to be done on the isle but it is looking pretty decent. I've had a lot of players complement me on it, which always just makes me glow :)

Exploring different areas.

Finishing up a quest I've been working on for about a week now. Elemental planes. 

My house, Stellar Isle.

Building the house, wish we had the option to fly on plots to build!