Monthly Archives: August 2017

The Home Game Advantage

I listened to the most recent MassivelyOP podcast last night     http://massivelyop.com/2017/08/29/massively-op-podcast-episode-133-gaming-gamescom/      and am thinking about the mailbag question on “momentum” what keeps you playing fiendishly, then you take a break of any kind and that momentum is sometime lost and you don’t feel like playing for awhile, and sometimes surprisingly never again.

There’s also the concept of a “Home Game” — your main game that you play all the time and know inside and out.

Because of the small goals oriented way I play any game, I’m able to switch games pretty easily.  As I’ve mentioned, I’m happiest when I can play on my weekly rotation schedule, playing seven different games throughout the week.

Sometimes one game will take over, and becomes your preferred playscape, as World of Warcraft currently has for me.  As I’m working Legion, though, I’m getting twitchy, because I don’t care for the areas and stories, and I feel like I’m grinding towards nothing.  In Legion crafting is just not fun.  It’s like the game up through Pandaria is one game, then Draenor changes things up considerably, but all things considered, I love Draenor, but Legion…agh.   It’s a fight with myself to play through it.

As this WOW adoration and exclusivity is crumbling, I’ve peeked back into Everquest 2,  because it is still my current second favorite world, and Ravalation’s post on the character models of LOTRO   http://ravalation.blogspot.com/2017/08/lotros-first-character-update-humans.html and Myndariel’s new Hunter guide  http://myndariel.blogspot.com/2017/08/introducing-hunter-level-1-20-high-elf.html   has me updating the LOTRO client as we speak. Getting the Mordor expansion as well, because maybe one of my other characters can get past Mirkwood more easily. Let’s bring that Rogue forward, right?  It’s silly to let one character/class get stuck, and let your whole game get stuck,  when sometimes another class can break through a problem area for you. Once you know the way, you can anticipate and compensate for the play style of your other classes.   Yay for Alt Armies.  (Bonks self on head for letting myself feel stuck here).

Having Many Places To Call Home Means You’re Always Home

I do admire on occasion what people who only play one game know about a game, their expertise is great when you have questions.  If you play just one game, you can accomplish everything, which has to be satisfying.

At some point, many people are just tired of their game, and jaded, and frustrated with game changes or development, and perhaps they stop playing anything at all.  Never stop playing! Life is so rich in virtual worlds.  You can be the very best you, no limitations.  How great is that?

Playing Multiple Games 

Keeps all games fresh.

Staves off boredom or dissatisfaction with any particular game, and gives you a broader perspective of what is possible.

You can keep the game client up to date so a long download doesn’t discourage you from logging in to play when the impulse hits.

Often when you’ve been away for awhile you don’t recall how to play your class, or your inventory is packed with (stuff) you don’t know what to with.  You’re right up to date with game changes so it’s always  a familiar place to play.

There are a wealth of games available, so may different worlds, so much imagination in creation and care by the game makers to create a place for you to wander, it’s a golden time to be able to try so many styles of play.

WOW Notes

I’ve been playing World of Warcraft almost exclusively, every day.  It’s easier to write about games I’m not so familiar with for some reason than ones I know really well.

My current main character is a Paladin who has swept through the world up to Draenor without trying to complete any areas or quest lines, I’ve just kept her moving.  It is an appealing playstyle, but not one I could do with all of my characters.  Just getting to maximum level might be a little empty if you don’t have any tradeskills (which she doesn’t), and you are not up to the proper level for the area with mining and herbalism, her two professions.

It was always my plan to slow down once I got to Draenor, and do everything that can be done in Draenor (which is a lot).  I made it through each area, with every quest and Objective completed, through Spires of Arak.

You get the offer to go to the Broken Isles at level 98, and my character’s gear level certainly wasn’t up to going there.  Still, by the end of Arak I was level 100(?), and my habit of using this character to make money fast wasn’t being satisfied by Draenor’s quests, not quite.

At a still terrible item level of (eek, I know) approximately 524, I tried out the beginning scenario for Legion.  With only my character and one other person, it went pretty slow, but it was doable, no death.

I decided to get crushed by the Class Quest, but no, I steamrolled it. It was easier for her than for my main Paladin who had an easy enough time, with better gear, but not quite that easy.

Legion continues to be a struggle for me to play through, so I’ve been sending the secondary Paladin to Tanaan, working on Garrison Follower Missions, Naval Missions and the Fishing Dailies.  Then I send her to Dalaran to work the Class Hall missions, and out into Azsuna for quests.

As I’ve played through Tanaan and done quests in the Broken Isles she’s now at 701 item level and is having an easier time.

It occurred to me this week she is catching up with my Blackwater Raiders characters, and could surpass them.  That doesn’t seem right, does it? So I’ve picked my Paladin and Druid to go neck and neck on BWR towards 110, finally.

The Druid just finished Val’sharah.  Stormheim, coming up.  I have my main Paladin working in Highmountain, and I can barely stand it.  The Taurens all sound like the adults in the old Charlie Brown specials.  Wah, wah ,wah…  It’s a little better as you get away from Thunder Totem, the quests less…whiney…

Sliding in for some quality crafting time is my Gnome Engineer on BWR.  My son was looking for Heirlooms you could get with certain guild achievements, so I ground her up in crafting from where she was, in the mid 500s to over 600.  I moved her through Pandaria and into Draenor to get the craft skill up.  Engineering has the BEST STUFF.   I’m not pushing her through Draenor, but am working on her Engineer Dailies there.  I really want to be able to make some of the Pandaria recipes, including a big flying balloon thing that takes a billion Trillium, which I’ve found none of so far in Pandaria, but I know it’s in Darkmoon Crates often enough, so I’ll continue her through Pandaria rather than Draenor till she gets that thing.

Blingtrons!  I love seeing them, but who knew they fight each other when placed near each other and gain some sort of points for being the tough Blingtron on the block.   I always thought people were being nice when they say a Blingtron is outside the bank, blah blah, but maybe they’re fingering the little guys for some bully Blingtron to come and take them out.

Might I say I’m proud of this little gnome.  She’s the first Gnome, the first Warrior, the first Engineer among all my characters to make it to Draenor and have her own cozy spot in the world.

The game has a lot of layers…

What Makes A "Good Player"

The ever brilliant Rohan of Blessing of Kings (my Paladin idol) has been comparing Final Fantasy and WOW dungeons and the skills of players in them. 

http://blessingofkings.blogspot.com/2017/08/high-skill-gameplay-versus-low-skill.html

SynCaine of Hardcore Casual speaks to another writer’s statement that “bad players are bad people.”

https://syncaine.com/2017/08/15/since-he-asked/

This made me think about what makes for a Good Player.   This is within the context of running dungeons, something I’ve been doing in World of Warcraft quite a bit lately, and though I finally recently earned the title “The Patient” I’d be surprised if most players have been in more PUGs than I have over the course of years. 

I’ve played every single role, some better than others.   That has helped me immensely while running dungeons, because I know what each class can do in their role, and I can get a sense if a player needs extra help from my characters, and I know where the points are in most dungeons where things can go south, and be hyper vigilant.

Here’s what makes a Good Player

Do the best you can in your current role.  Work on a good rotation of skills, know your stat and armor requirements, carry potions to get you through bad spots.

Provide support for the rest of the group.
 
Be attentive to everything going on, not just what you need to do, but be aware of where the other players are and what they’re doing to help or harm the group.

React quickly.

If you provide guidance to another player, do it in such a way that it is helpful to them, and it sticks.

Learn the dungeon/encounter.

As DPS, protect the Healer, assist the Tank.

Play all the roles so you know what is expected and possible.

SWGEmu: Jedi Break the Game Again

Publish 9, which includes the long awaited (though not by me) village quests and Jedi was out on Wednesday, but some server problems (and I don’t have my own computer guru here to ask how it works)  have possibly made everything go kablooie, and there may be a wipe if there is too much corruption.

All my babies gone!  Heartbreak city, with this game once again.  I do know it is a test and planned to actually just play through till the end of the test and not re-create my characters on Suncrusher, the permanent server.

My first thought this morning is I’m done now.  Then I think, maybe I’ll just do two characters instead of the appealing but hard to maintain ten.  I keep going back and forth.

You know I’d like to see my babies once more to take screenshots and say goodbye.  I dunno.

I am amazed as always at the work of the volunteer staff who made it possible for me to walk through this world once more after the original game shut down.  I have nothing but good things to say there.

https://www.facebook.com/SWGEmu

PlayNotes Mixed

Lord of the Rings Online

I feel a bit guilty, but after thinking of my last post, and that I’ve basically been stuck in the same area of Middle Earth in LOTRO since 2009.   How is that even possible?  I’ve gotten stuck in plenty of Action/RPGs, but an MMO?   So, I have not bought the expansion till I see if I can get out of Mirkwood, or at least advance through it.

Secret World

I’m also stuck in Secret World with those security cameras, which has been depressing.  I’m wondering tonight though, if the reason I kept failing had to do with my recent connection problems.  My computer guru spouse fixed the connection problems as far as I can see, so maybe I’ll give it another try.  I will be so relieved to move on.

World of Warcraft

In WOW,  I ended up doing what I always do and have a newly established family guild on my new server.   I’m continuing to run my Paladin ahead of the rest of my characters to earn money for guild tabs, and guild repair monies, plus everyone’s riding training up through Northrend.

I’ve gone back to rotating my BWR characters who are in their 100s, but just those.  Everything is so easy for all of them except my Frost Mage, who I have to load with potions to keep alive.  Sheesh.  My new server Mage is going Fire, a spec I’ve never really played much.  Early on when I played the game, for some reason, Fire Mage and Destruction Warlock seemed too similar to me, at least for the lowbies I was running.   So I went Frost.

EverQuest 2

 All  of my characters are finally working in Antonica.   I had a bad moment when I considered sending one to the Frostfang Sea instead of Qeynos just to get a bearskin rug I’d picked up on the Fallen Earth server in that area.  Bad idea!   There must be a bearskin rug somewhere else in Norrath.

I love the fighting moves of my Monk and Bruiser, and have been trying to capture pictures of them in action.   It’s never easy to get a nice shot of your character in a fight because, well, dead doggie.

The Bruiser    Look at those brass knuckles!   Smoke effects, light effects!  The Froglok is on fire.

Monk    Watch out for those legs!

Been busy lately, but hope to be back on schedule for my games next week.