Wednesday, May 29, 2013

10 Days

Good afternoon, Redstone.

Wow, it's been a really long time since I last posted. Ten days, just as the title says, to be precise. Ten long days filled with two different power hour events, both lasting three days each, and so much drama, you could swear that half of Prandel was Broadway for a while. Seriously, though, I am just gonna tell you that I have been just straight up bummed out, due to both my real life and in game events. This has greatly affected both my virtual and real life, making it hard to do things in either.

You will be happy to know that I almost reached 600, even though I didn't play too much. This was due to three-day 2X experience and three-day 3X experience PH events. Also, at least five bells were rang this past Memorial Day weekend, though I only attended three of them due to sleep. So after the madness of all of that, I reached this level.


I would have leveled more but due to berries and whatnot, Jigg was a couple levels behind me and we wanted to do one last Vestiges SD run before I outlevel it.

Considering I'm almost rebirth level and I've only been playing 50 days (even less than that since I haven't been playing as much, but that is how many days since I started), I think that is pretty impressive. I'm sure you have people who, through insane grinding or constant plvl, can reach it even faster, but who cares? This is my accomplishment and let me be proud of it.



Speaking of people, I've been getting some hate from people. I'm not going to say who because that would just be me stooping to their level and who knows, maybe they were having a bad day. No need to condemn a person for a few stupid words they typed when they were angry. 

Anyways, I think that is one of the reasons I have become disheartened. There's only so much abuse and hate a person can take before it starts to affect them. Please don't say "Suck it up, it's a game!" or "That's what happens when you play online" because, to be frank, those are shit excuses. 

Just because you sit behind a computer monitor, safely hidden behind a pseudonym and a cartoon character does not give you the excuse to hurt anyone in anyway. Calling them "fags" or "idiots" or throwing poorly spelled curse words their way to get around the system put in place to stop this horrendous bullying does not make you appear strong or make you better than them.

So can we please stop with all this hate speech against fellow members of the community? Quit equating people's names with insults and don't be so rash to threaten to report someone the second you see them in your spot. Stop sitting in town bashing other players or GMs or typing hurtful comments about others in your own GC where they can't see and defend themselves. You can't tell me you would like it if you found out that there was a group of people saying hateful things about you in town and laughing at your expense. So stop doing that exact same thing. 

Golden rule, people. Let's follow it.


Speaking of GC, I also have a bone to pick with that as well. You may not know it, but talking down to a person is very similar to vile hate speak. I know it can be well-intentioned but when I get the comment, "Oh, you've only been here a couple months, you don't know anything" over and over again, it makes me doubt myself. 

Basically how I feel after saying something awesome and getting shut down.

You have to realize, though, the amount that a person can learn when playing a game for hours upon hours a day, every day, for a couple months straight. Even if they are not meaning to learn, you'd be surprised what a person can glean just from sitting in town and from their very own guild chat. 

Yet, I have the upper-hand on someone who merely plays to enjoy and grow their own character. First off, I have my husband, Jigg, who has played for years. He's basically my walking encyclopedia of Redstone knowledge and is very helpful in a pinch. 

Of course, though, he doesn't know everything, and I love to learn for myself. This why I visit other people's blogs, learning from their experiences and their mistakes. I read the forums, old posts and new alike, to try and understand this game, and consequently, its community better.

Anyways, I'm done with the rant, and might just have to move this rant to a whole new post. I mean, it's sad when a person feels really accomplished and like they have come a long way only to have someone with "more experience" come along and tell them they are wrong merely because they haven't been playing for over a year or more.

Ok, rant over, on to my last piece of news, which isn't great. I'm no longer a knowledge Archer. Maybe it's just me, but I feel there is a huge bias against magic classes in this game. Again, this is my opinion and I welcome you to post yours, but if you are just going to post how "wrong" I am, don't expect me to reply. 

I guess another reason I changed was simply because I don't have the gear or stat points to be a knowledge Archer. Maybe in a few rebirths, maybe not at all. You see, some people can spend thousands on this game a year on extractors and mix boxes and who knows what else so that they can have super pro gears. 

Unfortunately for Jigg and I, we have real life responsibilities, including a puppy and I want to start college and all sorts of black-holes that money just kinda disappears into. Plus Hawaii, even being military and living on base, is not cheap living. So, as you can see, unlike all those other pro-players, I just don't have the funds to keep up. 



I did meet another knowledge Archer, who joined our guild to boot, (hi, Saki!) and they were amazing. Can't say I wasn't a little (ok, a lot) jealous when I can see them hit 10k's on the Red Wolves in Motel 2F without help from a Priest's EG or a great dragon horn. Hell, they killed so fast, they basically took over Motel 2F and I just watched in awe as they murdered everything.

Maybe, and that is a big maybe, I'll switch back to knowledge Archer, though we now have a pro knowledge Archer in the guild that I'm not sure they'll even need me. Plus, we just acquired a 2nd RB Archer, so kinda lost my top Archer spot in the guild pretty quickly this last weekend, though I don't mind at all. They are awesome from what I've seen, plus I've only been playing a couple months. 

Maybe I'll get it back but by the looks of it, Saki grinds just as crazy as Klien, and 2nd RB is already a long way to go. I will get there eventually, though, and our guild will have three very strong archers by the time I reach my second or third rebirth.


Speaking of rebirthing, a big congratulations to my guild master, Palidor, who rebirthed his 3rd time. He did rebirth accidentally low, but is already back up to nearly 550 in just a week and a half. So congratulations! 


With that, my post is done. I hope you all had a wonderful weekend and the rest of your week is full of fun and fortune. Good luck and happy hunting.


Saturday, May 18, 2013

Long Time, No Post

Good afternoon, Redstone Players.

I hope you are getting the best out of this three day PH weekend. I know I sure am working my butt off. But I realized how much I've neglected this blog, due to real life and in game events, and it seems to be turning into quite the habit, doesn't it? I think that to give you a better idea about posting and free myself from the guilt of not updating, I think I am going to cut down to one or two posts a week.

Anyways, now that that is cleared up, I have some good news and some bad news. I guess bad news first so that I can end this on a happier note.

So, we lost our level four hall. I guess it was fun while it lasted.

Basically me after they massacred us.

We did put up a good fight, but we just didn't have the firepower to stand up to numerous multiple rebirthed characters. I am happy to report that I did take a few down on my own, though I died too many times to count. 

Leveling was also terrible because I was feeling terrible. Actually, it was the worst I've felt in a very, very long time. I was lucky to get a couple levels a day but luckily, after a lot of bed rest and just waiting out the ickiness, I felt good enough to start leveling during PH.

Speaking of levels, I got to 500! Very exciting to reach 500 in a month and a half. Maybe I'll be rebirthed the end of this month and at most, next month. It is really cool to think that I've done all this without the crutch of power level and through my own sweat, blood, and tears. That makes me feel really good about myself, to be honest.


Actually, I am now 518 now and you know what that means! 

I finally switched to Knowledge Archer and this is probably the most amazing thing ever. I love, love, love being a Knowledge Archer and I don't think I ever want to switch back to Power.

Jigg's and my reaction to being a knowledge archer.

After being a Knowledge Archer, I don't think I ever want to change classes. It is so much fun and makes grinding so much more enjoyable. I also made sure that I was super avoid built, so as well as hitting 5k times five on anything in my vicinity, I also almost never get hit, especially with Misty Mirror. 

Not too many U's yet to be had but they will come eventually, and levels are more important anyways. 

Besides that, not too much else to report. I will probably post a video of my Knowledge Archer kicking butts and taking names, along with a guide on my favorite classes ever. Until then, I will report back to the grind and see you all around Prandel! Good luck and happy hunting.


Monday, May 13, 2013

One Step Closer

Merry Monday, blog readers.

I have a few wonderful things to report!

First off, guild wise, this was a very, very good week for us. We reached triple digits in our guild hall level, which is very exciting, though can't say it was the most exciting thing to happen to us.

We also ran a perfect Point War run.

Let the happy dances commence.

Which means that, for the first time since I joined this guild, we got to attack a hall with the chance of finally having a level four hall. I think all of us were super excited and quite a few turned up to this momentous event. It seems we took the opposing hall by surprise, as they only had a few people. Granted, those people did hit very hard and a few of our troops fell, but a majority of us broke through their ranks and in less than five minutes, this message popped up on my screen.

Let the even happier dances commence.

So, this is how our guild emblem looks now.


Yay! Very exciting for all of us and we were all in high spirits.


As for me, there was some very good things that happened to me as well.

First off, this is my end level after this 2X weekend.


I actually gained over 20 levels this weekend, though I am disappointed that I didn't make 500 like I had wanted. I think this was because of one specific reason. I was in probably the most awkward leveling gap ever. Every place was either too low or too high until I reached 480 or so. I've already decided that when I rebirth, I am not rebirthing under 480 just so I don't have to deal with this frustration ever again.

Frustrated, also, because I haven't run Heaven SD, even though I have my full Redstone. Jigg keeps saying, "No, you need to run Spine SD with these people because of the experience." I understand that, and I wasn't planning on doing it during a PH weekend, but then at reset, he once more said I should run two SD's and of course, I did, getting a level off of that. 

Every time I see the Redstone, though, it seems to mock me and I really just wish that it didn't count as an SD just to turn the damn thing in. Oh well, I guess I will get to it eventually.



I also got so many U's that I can't possibly start to list them all. I actually stopped taking screenshots, considering the sheer amount that I already have. Quite a few I will most likely sell or keep, and will probably start a page on here to keep track of all the U's that I do drop. Maybe do that tomorrow, tonight I'm just too tired.

Also, I can wear my Slender Bow now! It is very exciting but I won't restat until 500+. Don't ask me why, but I feel like an even number like that will make it much more worthwhile. Sadly, I know I'm going to have to give up a few very nice gears I have acquired (Drake Plume, Tenacious Screw Flyer, etc.) so that I can shuffle around to a good Knowledge Archer build. 

I do have to find out a good distribution of stats and will have to do a little more math for that, but maybe tomorrow or the next day, I will finally have it all sorted out and you will find a pro Knowledge Archer in your midst. 

Until then, I will see you around Prandel. Have fun and happy hunting.

Friday, May 10, 2013

My One Month Anniversary

Happy Friday, fellow Redstone players!



Adding a read more for all you poor people who don't want to be bombarded by the length of this post.

Tuesday, May 07, 2013

The Post Before the Storm

Good morning/evening, Redstone players.

This is my post before the extra freaking long post that will be coming. I warn you now, that post will be full of excitement, leveling, unique items, and general happiness. Also it will be very, very, very long. But this is the ease in post of that. Actually, this really won't have much to do with that but figured that I would warn you about the imminent post and that you may want to wait a couple days if you don't want to read it.

Ok, so as you will find out in that coming post, I gained a lot of levels in my one month of leveling. These levels, I feel, were all well earned. Never did I sit charging every few minutes while a higher level character killed for me. Power leveling is not something I believe in but can't say that I haven't gone and helped a few lower levels, merely because something good or exciting happened to me that I wanted to share that good fortune and happiness with others.

It is interesting, though, seeing all these people with multiple different characters and sometimes I wonder if I am somehow missing something, wondering if I'm in the wrong not creating and leveling three different classes.

Yet I think how much I love my Archer/Lancer and everything that I enjoy about it. With its diversity of range and close combat, and its ability to be a knowledge powerhouse or physical steamroller, it is a character that I can't help but love playing. Dummies and Side Step make Lancer not only fun but also survivable in grinding and in PvP. The sheer speed and range of Archer makes it an effective killer no matter the map. 

There are moments where I look at other players and their multitudes of characters and find myself tempted to create an alternate. Just this weekend, I dropped so many Necromancer specific unique items that I was sure the game wanted me to create one. 

But then I turn back to my Archer, still very much a baby archer with only one month under her belt, and I fall in love with her all over again. To be able to hit almost five digits at my level and kill most things before they can even hit me makes me giddy every time it happens. The excitement and anticipation to reach 500 so I can try my hand at a knowledge archer makes me almost impatient to gain my levels.

As she grows, I grow as well. I learn how to efficiently run my character, which items will be best for her depending on how I decide to play her, how to play her in a group setting, and generally become a better player overall. 

She is my first character and my only character. I can't say I haven't tried a few other classes, and I actually started out with a Champion but deleted her after about fifteen levels, but none have I enjoyed as much as Archer.

Many have asked me at one point or another why I stick with one character, how I don't find myself utterly bored out of my mind playing the same character day in and day out, how I don't have at least one other playable alternate character. I suppose this is my answer to those several questioners.

I would rather be the best I can be on one character, then just okay on several different characters. As Abraham Lincoln spoke, "I do the very best I know how, the very best I can, and I mean to keep on doing so until the end."


Wednesday, May 01, 2013

Where I Will Be

Good morning, blog readers.

I hope you are doing well. I know I am. Unfortunately this will be relatively short and lacking many of the screenshots and pictures you've come to love.

How I hoped at least some of you reacted.

The reason for this is because, if anyone has noticed, my one month anniversary of Redstone is coming up this Monday and I have two goals that I want to achieve by the reset of that fateful day.

1. Reach level 400, which is highly plausible, especially if we get a PH this weekend, but not going to count on it. This is my current level.


2. I would like to finish Main Quest, which I know is going to happen, considering this is where I currently am at. 


As you can see, I'm going to have a lot on my plate, but I promise that the moment I achieve both these goals, I will be back to posting on a regular schedule. Until then, I wish you the best of luck and hope that you all reach whatever goals you wish to achieve!

Leveling, Main Quest and a Couple More U's!

Good evening, fellow Redstone players.

I hope your Tuesday went well. I know mine has gone swimmingly. First off, I've gained several levels over the past few days, despite the fact that I've been so focused on main questing with Jigg.


Speaking of main quest, we actually did the next SD just a few hours ago, and I got some screenshots of the boss's entrance, which I thought were very cool.

All hail my fiery explosiveness.

He was relatively easy though and with a priest towering me, I brought him down in a minute or two. It's really fun to be the only damager on a boss and actually be able to take him down. We did finish Chapter 3 and I'm happy to be almost done with main quest. It is surely one of the most difficult quest I've done yet.

Besides that, I've decided to move to Small Cave, where with my Misty Mirror activated and sporting my Gorespout, I can actually take on the Mermen in groups of three to five without worrying too much about my health.


The damage I deal isn't half bad either.


I know it's hard to discern, but I actually criticaled for 12k, but chaser triggered and so I couldn't get too clear a shot. Basically, on a normal hit, I'm doing about 6k damage, and with these guys going down in 10 to 15 seconds at 60k experience each, you can see why I chose this place over Parble. Another plus is that it is more open, making those frustrating "An object is in the way" messages a thing of the past.

On another note, I dropped a couple new U's and pretty happy to see that I can drop them without the boost of a 3X drop rate.



Actually that Necromancer/Opticalist book isn't half bad.


Might keep it in case I'm ever curious to try out a Necromancer or Opticalist, though probably not. I love my archer too much and don't think it wise to split my time and effort between multiple characters. I figure better to have one excellent character rather than several good characters. 

I know a few people are able to do this and have multiple excellent characters but I'm unfortunately not them and as long as I still enjoy my archer, I see no reason to try and change to different class.

Besides that, not too much to report. I'm out of screenshots to give to you.


So I'm gonna take a page from Lilo's book and pass out for the night. I hope you all had wonderful days and have fun!