Mystic Worlds

The MMO Gaming Community

I love my MMO gaming community. It's millions strong but still feels small at times. I've yet to meet anyone in person but over the years, I've exchanged phone numbers with  a few and consider them friends.

What inspired a post this morning was an email from Tiny Speck about their new game, Glitch which came to me via Warrender / Winged Nazgul. It's been FOREVER since we've played the same game! It made me smile, that knowing the sorts of very particular things I tend to enjoy, he thought this might be a fit and had an email sent.

Unfortunately I'm too busy right now but will keep it on the list. I'm not overly social. Don't do much social media but I do consider myself part of ONE and only one, online community - MMORPG gamers!

I love fantasy/scifi games but it's also the community members like Tipa, StarGrace, Kinless, sometimes emo _Heartless, Capn John, The NPNM Sisters, Warrender, Bhagpuss, Gillian & Mike from my AC2 days, Sarazan, Ludo, Eagel and my other Casualties of WAR guild mates, the crew at Massively, the GBTV folks and countless others who make the gaming experience more special.

The gamers themselves and the community, are an integral part of my gaming history. They add the extra seasoning I love even though when it comes to leveling, I still prefer to solo. *smile*  Yes, I know - some forms of madness never die.

BTW I've evolved to Facebook. Better late than never.

Rolling Along

I continue to be extremely busy at work and at home.  I still haven’t played anything in the past several weeks.   On the weekends I catch up on gaming news via my favorite videocasts and podcasts.  I’m very excited about the upcoming content updates for Rift.  Most especially, I’m chomping at the bit for the solo dungeons being introduced by Trion.  As it stands, I might have 30 of 45 minutes here and there to play which doesn’t lend itself toward participating in group content.  Sitting at max level in Rift, all I’m really interested in is doing the instanced content.  I’m over questing and instanced PVP doesn’t appeal to me enough for it to be a steady activity.  I’d love to do the Rift raids.  However, there’s no way to ensure one is taking place when I actually have time to play.  The ability to match my wits against solo scripted instances is something I’ve wanted for YEARS.

Crafting in Real Life

It’s been several weeks since I’ve played Rift.  I didn’t stop playing because I like the game any less.  I initially stopped because gaming ceased being enough to hold my attention.  I was sick, worried and stressed to a point that not even my love of fantasy could hold me.

I had a distinct craving to create.  I tried working on a few of my stories but my writing felt flat and uninspired.  I toyed with the idea of returning to EQ2X and my furniture and design shop, which remains one of the highlights of my gaming adventures.  I was close to re-subscribing until I decided that I should create something in real life – at least give it a try.  I wanted to make something that would exist even after I’m gone.  Yes, my thoughts had turned rather morbid at the time.

Rifting the End Game. WTF Happened in New Eden?

Not Gaming Over Health Reasons

I haven’t blogged in a while because I haven’t been gaming.  Over the past several weeks I’ve had health concerns that were leaning toward a very scary place – again. Thankfully, after weeks of tests it doesn’t appear to be cancer.  An outpatient biopsy this Friday will hopefully confirm that it’s just an unusually large hemangioma on my liver.  They’re not a health risk and normally go undetected.  Mine just happened to form in a spot and develop to a size where I was experiencing pain, discomfort and a persistent state of nausea - not fun.

I'm still dealing with the symptoms but the overwhelming panic and depression over it are gone.  I feel much more in the “clear”.  Even knowing it will have to be treated, it’s several orders of magnitude away from liver cancer. For people who spoke to me here and there, in game or email, sorry.  It was just easier to say I was busy with work and stuff than explain when there was still so much uncertainty. Crossing my fingers for the biopsy results.  The doctors feel confident so I do too! 

Update 7/1: Biospy went fine.  Had a decent 4th. Have consult for results on Friday 8th.

 Update 7/8: BENIGN!!!!!!  Dodged a bullet.

Hit Level 50 in Rift

I returned to actively playing Rift again last weekend.  In two days I hit level 50 – FINALLY!  I’m such a scrub.  Most of the Casualties of War guild members have multiple 50s at this point.  They’re such a great bunch.  The night I hit level 50, they organized back-to-back Tier 1 dungeon runs to help me upgrade my gear.  My accessories, staff and shoulders were all replaced.  I cringe at using LFG tool to do some runs but I might have to in order to catch up.  My one good experience was quickly followed by a bad one.
 

Not Abandoning EVE

I need my wider blog layout for a few upcoming posts so it's back to the original Mystic Worlds format until my next installment of EVE adventures.

Curiosity Wins - Joining Rift Beta Event

I'll be giving Rift a spin this weekend as part of the game's Warfront beta event.  I know very little about the game and have no particular agenda other than trying the Cleric class.  Shoot me a tell if you see Saylah or Alysianah running around.

Drat - Real Life Hits for 500K Damage

I've traveled 60% of the time since I started my new job.  I’m not complaining though because it’s all been enjoyable.  I’m working for someone I respect highly and am meeting lots of really nice people.  Besides which, I’m never alone when I’m gone because we’re performing group oriented activities, so the evenings are spent in pleasant conversation over a good meal.

However, the result is that I’m not gaming much at all and the game that has to take the biggest hit is the one that required the most attention, EQ2 Extended.  I can’t run a furniture shop if I’m not around to craft items, much less advertise the shop and take on orders for the custom décor items I enjoy building.  I will be downgrading my account to Silver come the New Year, but I’m not abandoning my home in Halas permanently. No sir, I still have big crafting plans.

I’ve decided to combine my love of building custom décor items with publishing the DIY articles and guides.  Instead of showcasing items I can make and sell, I’m going to showcase the items with instruction booklets so players can make these creations themselves.  I’ll replace my price books with links to DIY articles on here or the full blown magazine as appropriate.

Big Ups to GameBreaker TV

I don't typically engage in individual blog or site forums.  It' take more time than I really have keeping up with the blogs themselves.  There are so many good ones out there.  And I rarely comment on podcasts either because I'm listening while on the go.  So here's my personal BIG-UP to Gary Gannon and GameBreaker TV.  

I've been HUGE F'N FAN since the days of MOG Army, when Gary was paired up with Ryan Verniere. That's back went Brent was still doing the news for his site Virgin Worlds.  In my playlist, that was the golden days of my podcast listening.  I have added more favorites for sure, but I missed both podcasts. I'm elated that Gary is back in full force with a group of extremely entertaining co-hosts. I'm lovin' it, lovin' it and LOVIN' IT!

If you haven't been watching their vidcasts you're missing great gaming related entertainment.  Hell one of my favorites is for a game I'm not even playing, FFXIV. Then there's This Week in MMOs hosted by Gary and Mike B which is a complete hoot.

New Directions

This Friday is my last day in the Corporate America sweat shop that I've worked at for almost 7 years. I'm so happy and relieved to be exiting the telecommunications industry, I can hardly wait.  I'll be taking a few weeks off before starting in a new position, in an entirely different industry.

I want to use this opportunity to revitalize my attitude.  It's in jeopardy of becoming permanently evil and grumpy.  Watching millions of dollars in waste while good people lose their jobs and the so-called fortunate salaried employees that are kept, get to do more work and more hours for the same pay BUT reduced benefits and wage freezes, has made me less than amiable to work with. *Smile*  Yes, it's better to have a job than no job but at some point it's blood money.  Or at least, that's how I started feeling a couple of years ago.  Anywho - I'm finally out. Less money but happy with the choice I've made.

I will be mostly MIA the next few weeks while taking time off and then starting somewhere new, where I'll need to travel a bit more than I've needed to in the past several years.   Expect the sudden increase in posts to slowly wan down back to -- not sure what, just yet.

As soon as I can get EQ2 EX to load - gawd this launcher sucks after every patch, I'll pay my rent so the shop will re-open.  Thank Ziyi for bringing it to my attention.  I was sick this week and lacked the patience to deal with the service instability that started a few days back and haven't attempted to log on in a few days.  I'm having the game do a full file scan now in hopes of fixing why I can't get app to launch after the log-in screen. *sigh*

Please, no more bears!

No matter what it's still a forest
I’m no overly sensitive animal rights activist but I’m really sick of killing animals in the woods.  For starters, I find killing non-aggro mobs very boring.  There’s no strategy involved.  I get to safely decide where I want to stand within the herd of them wandering aimlessly about, until I take my first shot.  Secondly, sending me off to kill animals almost always takes place in the same sort of location – THE WOODS!!!

I don’t care how pretty or scenic you make a woodland area, doing a dozen or so quests there is monotonous.  It’s lovely the first time I roam through it and do a couple of quests, but once you send me there on a Nesingwary slaughter crusade, I’m bored out of my mind.  A tree is a tree. Grass is grass.  Rocks are rocks.  Flowers are flowers.  And bears are f’n bears!  There’s nothing you can do to make killing animals in the woods feel inspired so give it up already.

Villages, towns, encampments are more engaging
I want to fight humanoids set in cities, towns and villages - whatever.  I want to engage in combat within an area that seems to have a purpose and therefore, my presence is to defend or conquer.  It can even be abandoned areas, where nefarious humanoids are up to no good.  As pretty as the League zone was in Allods, this whole sending me to kill shit in the woods is why I tired of it very quickly.  Luckily, in the case of Allods, I liked the Arisen as an alternative to playing an elf.  More importantly, their Empire zone used Steampunk combined with fantasy which was fantastic.  This is what I enjoy in MMOs – fantasy but given a twist, such as the Steampunk + urban settings found in Allods.