Valar Guild

February 9, 2020 Sunday Meeting

5:00 P.M. Eastern time (-4 GMT aka 9 P.M. aka 21:00)
Discord: Valar Guild/meeting_place

Back to News
Transcript work by
Varda.
[times are Central Time from Varda's Discord. Add one hour for Eastern.]
["slight smile" is the same as we are used to using as a regular smiley]

Attending (and spoke): (4)
    Discord: Arien, Ar-Pharazon, Eonwe (presiding), Varda

Before-meeting
Meeting begins
Membership news
Web:
Gaming:
    General reports: World of Warcraft, Lord of the Rings Online, Heroes of the Storm, Hearthstone
Tolkien:
    Link sent by Arwen-(V): "Far Over the Misty Mountains Cold"
    Orson Bean
    Topic 1: comments on the animated movies.
    Topic 2: A question raised by the animated movies: why the Elves sail West, and what it takes to be permitted as a mortal to sail West
After-meeting:
   Flashgaming Reviews by Ar-Pharazon

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Before-meeting

Eonwe ValarToday at 12:50 AM
Heya all.
It seems that just a couple of days ago, actor Orson Bean died after being hit by a car. https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/actor-comedian-orson-bean-hit-killed-car-la-aged-91-n1132956.
For those of us of the right age in the late 70s/early 80s, you might remember him from your childhood as the voice of Bilbo Baggins: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5HDI-INklKk
    YouTube
    YouTube Movies
    The Hobbit - Trailer

And of course later of Frodo Baggins: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_IOgrdBRiiE
    YouTube
    Aaron Jones
    Opening Credits | The Return Of The King (1980)

He was 91 years old and apparently still working.

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Eonwe ValarToday at 3:58 PM
Heya All.

Ar-Pharazon-VToday at 3:58 PM
Aiya!

Eonwe ValarToday at 3:59 PM
I'm not going to be able to stay too long tonight, and I'm not sure why Varda hasn't made it yet, but since it looks like I'll be chairing tonight I'll be starting promptly.

Ar-Pharazon-VToday at 3:59 PM
poking Sunshine

Eonwe ValarToday at 4:00 PM
Thanks.
Ok, let's go ahead and begin.

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Elen Sila Lumenn Omentielvo!

ArienValarToday at 4:01 PM
Aiya :slight_smile:

Eonwe ValarToday at 4:01 PM
Membership:

Ar-Pharazon-VToday at 4:01 PM
Aiya :slight_smile:

Eonwe ValarToday at 4:01 PM
Heya :}
Everyone here, say Elbereth :}

Ar-Pharazon-VToday at 4:02 PM
Elbereth

Eonwe ValarToday at 4:03 PM
We'll count Arien too since she just said Aiya :} but looks like that's everyone.
Any other membership news before we move on?

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Web:
Nothing new to announce at this time.
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Gaming:

World of Warcraft:
The Love Is In The Air event is running through February 21st.
The Darkmoon Faire is coming to WoW Classic: https://worldofwarcraft.com/en-us/news/23302786/the-darkmoon-faire-is-coming-to-wow-classic
    World of Warcraft
    The Darkmoon Faire is Coming to WoW Classic - WoW
    Gathering the weird, exotic, and extraordinary from around the world, Silas Darkmoon presents the Darkmoon Faire—a celebration of the wonders and mysteries of Azeroth.

The PvP Brawl: Cooking Impossible is going until this Tuesday.
This week's bonus event is Arena Skirmishes. Next Week's is World Quests.
If you didn't take advantage of the Darkmoon Faire buff to get your Uldum Accord and Rajani Reps up, don't miss the World Quest buff.

Ar-Pharazon-VToday at 4:09 PM
hmm, useful, especially now that the requirement for the rank 3 essences from those 2 factions are now revered rather than exalted

Eonwe ValarToday at 4:09 PM
Aye.

Lord of the Rings Online:
Check out the newest hotfixes. : https://www.lotro.com/forums/showthread.php?678287-Update-25-3-2-Release-Notes
    Update 25.3.2 Release Notes
    Update 25.3.2 Release Notes
    Here are the release notes for Update 25.3.2, released on Wednesday, February 5th.
    News and Notes
    Quests and Adventure Areas
[Note: LotRO Players this week list]

Heroes of the Storm:

Ar-Pharazon-VToday at 4:11 PM
Small Warcraft mention:

Eonwe ValarToday at 4:11 PM
A new blog is out: Meet the biology major evolving the Heroes of the Storm A.I. to combo you to death. :https://heroesofthestorm.com/en-us/blog/23307262/meet-the-biology-major-evolving-the-heroes-of-the-storm-a-i-to-combo-you-to-death-2020-2-7/
    Heroes of the Storm
    Legendary heroes and villains from Warcraft, StarCraft and Diablo are summoned to the Nexus. Choose your hero and prepare to fight in Heroes of the Storm!

Go ahead Phar
Ar-Pharazon-VToday at 4:12 PM
New novel announced, pre-Shadowlands, called Shadows Rising.
Gonna be good lore between expansions, with some interesting plotpoints!

Eonwe ValarToday at 4:12 PM
I hope so, hehe.
Thanks.

Ar-Pharazon-VToday at 4:12 PM
The main points have already been revealed... and one of them was something I'd already predicted for BfA but was apparently a bit too early for :slight_smile:
https://blizzardwatch.com/2020/02/07/shadows-rising-warcraft-novel-shadowlands/
    Blizzard Watch
    Elizabeth Harper
    Read an excerpt of Shadowlands prequel novel Shadows Rising, featuring...
    We've reached the end of Battle for Azeroth without a clear resolution.
    What is Sylvanas' plan? What will we find awaiting us in Shadowlands?
    Blizzard is bridging the gap with a new novel: Shadows Rising by Madeleine Roux, which is due out on July 14.
Includes spoilers!

Eonwe ValarToday at 4:13 PM
Thanks for the warning

Hearthstone:
Now live: Galakrond's Awakening Chapter 3. : https://playhearthstone.com/en-us/blog/23284207/galakrond-s-awakening-chapter-3-live-now
    Galakrond's Awakening Chapter 3 - Live Now!
    Chapter 3 of Galakrond’s Awakening is now available! The battle grows more intense as dragons and airships clash over Dalaran – it’s an Air Battle over Dragonblight!

Any other gaming news before we move on?

VardaToday at 4:16 PM
Aiya

Ar-Pharazon-VToday at 4:17 PM
Aiya!

Eonwe ValarToday at 4:17 PM
Heya :}
We're finishing up Gaming News. Anything to add? :}

Ar-Pharazon-VToday at 4:17 PM
Oh, related to that novel

VardaToday at 4:17 PM
Sorry, barely zoomed in out of the car. Nothing ready. So glad you're here!

Ar-Pharazon-VToday at 4:17 PM
It comes out mid-July, and since it's a pre-expansion novel, I guess we can confirm that while there's no 8.3.5 patch planned, the actual expansion release will at earliest be late summer.

Eonwe ValarToday at 4:20 PM
With the Pre-expansion patch being usually a couple of months prior to that.

Ar-Pharazon-VToday at 4:21 PM
About a month, usually.

Eonwe ValarToday at 4:21 PM
So give your levels a big hug now, because when that launches, you're going to lose up to 70 of them

Ar-Pharazon-VToday at 4:21 PM
hehe

VardaToday at 4:21 PM
Yikes

Ar-Pharazon-VToday at 4:22 PM
Right, good to remember, I was going to level my huntress and warlock a bit, to prevent them possibly losing their pets when they scale down.
Though it's probably best to wait until we learn more about the scaling.

Eonwe ValarToday at 4:25 PM
Before we move to Tolkien, I'll just throw in here that I got the scale to turn in for the Rajani Cloudserpent last night, and so I have my 300th (and by the achievment, also my 301st) mount in WoW.

VardaToday at 4:25 PM
Trying to grab the LotRO player info. Might have to give it later.

Eonwe ValarToday at 4:25 PM
49 to go until the next mount achievement, hehe.
That's fine.
Ok, on to...

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Tolkien:

Ar-Pharazon-VToday at 4:26 PM
Grats!

Eonwe ValarToday at 4:26 PM
Thanks :}

VardaToday at 4:26 PM
We have a link from Arwen, given earlier today.

Eonwe ValarToday at 4:26 PM
Go ahead.

VardaToday at 4:27 PM
You Tube link for extended lyric video of "Far Over the Misty Mountains Cold" by Clamavi de Profundis:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4koD_SN7QXA
    YouTube
    Clamavi De Profundis
    Far Over The Misty Mountains Cold - Extended Edition (Lyric Video) - C...

That's all I had for now. : )

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Eonwe ValarToday at 4:28 PM
Thanks :}
As you may have seen when coming in for the meeting tonight, Actor Orson Bean, the voice of Bilbo Baggins and Frodo Baggins from the Rankin-Bass versions of The Hobbit and The Return of the King, was killed in a car accident on Friday.

Ar-Pharazon-VToday at 4:30 PM
The moment I read it, I heard his voice in my head. Unforgettable as 2 hobbits.

Eonwe ValarToday at 4:31 PM
He was 91 and still working, and the fact he was apparently walking somewhere to be hit by a car means he must've still been going strong.

VardaToday at 4:32 PM
Thank you, Eonwe. We enjoyed his performances.

Eonwe ValarToday at 4:33 PM
I'll transition from there to the Tolkien discussion in a moment, but first, a message from our sponsors... er, from Varda with the LotRO report :}

VardaToday at 4:33 PM
heh : )
Lord of the Rings Online players by server for the past week:

Landroval:
Erkenbrand
Eonwe
Lenwe
Fangorn
Morwe
Nar
Varda

Ithil:
Dis
Falco
Fangorn
Varda

Anor:
Fangorn
Varda
Back to our regularly scheduled programming.

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Eonwe ValarToday at 4:34 PM
Thank you, Varda :}
So last night I decided to re-watch the afore-mentioned versions of Hobbit and RotK.

VardaToday at 4:35 PM
Wonderful!

Eonwe ValarToday at 4:36 PM
It's always a fun viewing with those, and in the RotK, there's a couple of pieces that stuck out to me.
The first one, that always sticks out to me is when Orson Bean uses old-Bilbo's voice for Frodo at the very beginning, and I can never decide if it was a slip up, or if Frodo is trying to tease Bilbo for falling asleep, heh.

Ar-Pharazon-VToday at 4:38 PM
Heh.

Eonwe ValarToday at 4:40 PM
The other one is at the end, where Bilbo tells Frodo he's going to sail West with Elrond and Gandalf, and Elrond just sort of nonchalantly goes "Bilbo's served us well, and there's always room for a friend." I can't help but think "Wow, it's that easy to get a ticket on a ship West, huh?"

Ar-Pharazon-VToday at 4:41 PM
Always room for a friend, hmm.
It pays to be friends with elves.
Ironic coming from me, but still.

VardaToday at 4:42 PM
Not too many get to claim they are friends? You have to be a Ring-bearer? And yes, that doesn't sound right.
So if he had served them well but wasn't a friend...?

Ar-Pharazon-VToday at 4:43 PM
Or he's a friend because he's served them well.

Eonwe ValarToday at 4:43 PM
it's also like "Wow, so they liked Bilbo so much, they just kind of threw the rulebook out the window and said 'Hey, let's bring a Hobbit with us! The Valar won't mind.'"

VardaToday at 4:43 PM
O look, the oceans just boiled away. Oops.
It's not really a land that belongs to the elves, so it's an interesting thought.

Eonwe ValarToday at 4:44 PM
We of course know better, and so, along with your own humorous thoughts on that scene, a discussion of why the Elves sail West, and what it takes to be permitted as a mortal to sail West, is what I propose :}

VardaToday at 4:45 PM
Good one.
We could figure that from the fruits of what happened. Which mortals were allowed to sail West?
And by sailing West, you mean after Ar-Pharazon's time?

Ar-Pharazon-VToday at 4:46 PM
Well, even before my time it wasn't really permitted to sail West as a mortal.
We did it anyway.

VardaToday at 4:47 PM
And you made it. In one piece. And everything seemed deserted. For a while....

Ar-Pharazon-VToday at 4:47 PM
Felt a bit like an anticlimax, to be honest.

Eonwe ValarToday at 4:47 PM
I think the discussion of the Elves sailing West is going to touch somewhat on the time before Pharazon, as will the reasons why mortals can't just go there willy-nilly.

Ar-Pharazon-VToday at 4:48 PM
You go through all that trouble to build a forest of a thousand masts and there's nobody there to greet you.

VardaToday at 4:49 PM
No obvious welcome committee.

Ar-Pharazon-VToday at 4:50 PM
No "Well, guess you found us, here's your immortality!" ...except that's kinda what I got anyway.

Eonwe ValarToday at 4:50 PM
I apologize for giving a topic and running, but I must be off.

Ar-Pharazon-VToday at 4:50 PM
But yes. That's why mortals were interested.

VardaToday at 4:50 PM
Namarie!

Ar-Pharazon-VToday at 4:50 PM
To no longer be mortal.
Namarie!

VardaToday at 4:50 PM
I apologize for being late!

Eonwe ValarToday at 4:50 PM
Take care, good night, sleep well, and have fun :}

VardaToday at 4:50 PM
Just got back from Star Wars.
Namarie, Eonwe. : )

Ar-Pharazon-VToday at 4:51 PM
I saw a nice movie yesterday, had it recorded from tv a few months ago. The Greatest Showman. Was entertaining!

VardaToday at 4:52 PM
Wolverine did a good job in that too. : )

Ar-Pharazon-VToday at 4:52 PM
He did!
One of those movies that flows despite you never quite knowing what the main plot is until near the end.
hums Rewrite the Stars

Anyway. Topic.
Mortals wanted to go there to no longer be mortal. But it was not for them; it's not what the Undying Landds were made for.
That said, the Elves that went there did stop reclining.
declining.
What's the word.. reclining is lying on a sofa, right?
receding maybe...
Riht.
They also left because they felt the world belonged to Men now more than them, who multiplied faster and left a greater mark on the land.

VardaToday at 4:58 PM
The elves that died went back over their lives while in the Halls of Mandos until ready to enter Valinor proper.
Aye, they went to an elvenhome away from war and being sidelined.
The people there were immortal because it was their nature, not because of the land.
Ar-Pharazon and his people were misled into thinking it was a property of the place.

Ar-Pharazon-VToday at 5:00 PM
Indeed.
And yet we were locked away in suspended animation until the end of the world. So while not a property of the land, it can be given. At least for a while.
I imagine that after the last battle, we'll still go to that place up in the sky.
And immediately get sent back to start a new world :stuck_out_tongue:

VardaToday at 5:01 PM
Didn't get to move on outside the circles of the world, said to be with Eru, denied pretty much everything for a time.
Stuck in a hole in the ground, like where it all began. Yet not in a hobbit hole that means comfort.
Denied the wonders of Valinor and the release that Men were supposed to receive.

Ar-Pharazon-VToday at 5:03 PM
I wonder if we're awake, or just asleep and locked away in conveniently mansized holes in the rock.
Or worse, both.
Awake and unable to move.

VardaToday at 5:05 PM
I kind of got the impression of being awake and moving but in a smallish place underground at the bottom of a shaft or tunnel. A re-read of that would be a good idea.

Ar-Pharazon-VToday at 5:05 PM
They were called caves, yes. So that is likely.
Not burial spots without coffins.

VardaToday at 5:06 PM
Away from the light of Sun and Moon.
Sure hope they were good friends, cooped up together all that time.

Ar-Pharazon-VToday at 5:07 PM
Might be some light-giving moss.
Glow-worms.

VardaToday at 5:08 PM
One hopes. And possibly some light from the mouth of the tunnel.

Ar-Pharazon-VToday at 5:08 PM
Well we couldn't exactly kill one another, so we're bound to become friends sooner or later.

VardaToday at 5:08 PM
Eventually, just get tired. : )

Ar-Pharazon-VToday at 5:08 PM
Right :slight_smile:
Give it a few millennia and you get used to anyone.
Mutual Stockholm Syndrom.

VardaToday at 5:09 PM
What other mortals came to Valinor?

Ar-Pharazon-VToday at 5:09 PM
2 or 3 hobbits, a dwarf...
Not quite sure about Tuor.

VardaToday at 5:10 PM
So Ringbearers, except for Gollum who became part of the lava.
And I should say ones that went there alive. Turin was an odd one. His story didn't fit that well, but it was pieced together from a lot of different notes over time.

Ar-Pharazon-VToday at 5:12 PM
Turin remained in Mandos, did he not?

VardaToday at 5:12 PM

Tuor had wed Idril.
He seems to have been therefore numbered among the elder race, and loved the Noldor.
It's also not definite that it really happened.

Ar-Pharazon-VToday at 5:14 PM
In fantasy, any legend that is not contradicted, is true :wink:

VardaToday at 5:15 PM
It's left to sound as if it was possibly a tacked-on happy ending by the elves. Tuor was already quite old when he made a ship and sailed with Idril towards the West. He might not have actually survived long even after reaching it.
heh
The mortals who went to Valinor tended to "burn out" their lives faster.

Ar-Pharazon-VToday at 5:15 PM
Still, he made it. Same might go for Bilbo.
Already old when he got there.

VardaToday at 5:15 PM
He may have made it there, and just not have stayed long.
Right.
All the Hobbits probably were only there for a time.

Ar-Pharazon-VToday at 5:18 PM
Or perhaps they were allowed to stay in Mandos, similar to Turin, and maybe even play a role at the end of days. Perhaps they had a choice.

VardaToday at 5:21 PM
They were Men variants and should have been allowed what was considered a really good thing.

Ar-Pharazon-VToday at 5:22 PM
Allowed, yes. Hence the choice.

ArienValarToday at 5:22 PM
it seems Men were allowed with a special mission .. see Earendil who was allowed to travel to plea for  Elves was it? or for the other Humans .. i really should read the Silmaril again .. especially the Atalante or what it is called :slight_smile:

VardaToday at 5:23 PM
Aiya Sunshine : )

Ar-Pharazon-VToday at 5:23 PM
Aiyata :smile:

ArienValarToday at 5:23 PM
Hantal ~
Frodo and Bilbo were allowed as ringbearers and Sam as well rumour has it
and Legolas took Gimli with him but how the Valar reacted i do not know :open_mouth:

Ar-Pharazon-VToday at 5:25 PM
I do believe that dwarves had a special afterlife in Valinor, so it was probably just a shorter trip for him.

VardaToday at 5:26 PM
Earendil was a special case. [note: Part-elf] He let his elven wife choose that they would be of elven-kind but would rather have been human. But after the battle, Earendil remained in the sky sailing Vingilot wearing a Silmaril.
Legolas took Gimli with him and apparently Galadriel gave Gimli some aid, but it is unlikely that Gimli lived long after, already being old, and probably had "burn out" after a while.
Still, as a dwarf, Gimli would have gone to the Halls of Mahal (Aule) which were in Valinor, so they could probably still visit.

ArienValarToday at 5:28 PM
:slight_smile:
nice idea

Ar-Pharazon-VToday at 5:28 PM
Sounds nice!
"Hey, Gimli, that spectre look suits you!"

VardaToday at 5:28 PM
heh

ArienValarToday at 5:29 PM
*ah really looks shiny longear eh? not that edgy *
but i miss my beard

Ar-Pharazon-VToday at 5:29 PM
hehe

VardaToday at 5:30 PM
Dwarves were not human or human variants, so they did go to Aule. It's possible that the friendliness of Gimli with Legolas and Galadriel could have led to more visiting between elves and those of the Halls of Mahal. Nothing is said about it.
At least the Dwarves say they go to Aule, and would aid him in rebuilding the new Arda to come.

ArienValarToday at 5:31 PM
absolutely possible :slight_smile: Their friendship led to more contact between dwarves and Elves in Middlearth so why not in Valinor?

VardaToday at 5:31 PM
Ok, someone write the story! : )
It could be in the background of another story too.
We have reached the hour, plus another half hour. : )

the gavels bounce up and down on the shelf - pick me! pick me!

Ar-Pharazon-VToday at 5:32 PM
paints a picture of a feast between elves and shiny floating dwarves

VardaToday at 5:33 PM
The gavel with the beard gets to go visit the shiny hammerpad
thunnnk!
We have....

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After-meeting!
Free chat. : )

Ar-Pharazon-VToday at 5:34 PM
I'm currently going through the last few steps to collect the Waist of Time secret in WoW, but after that I'll give a report :slight_smile:

VardaToday at 5:36 PM
Good luck!

Ar-Pharazon-VToday at 5:36 PM
Thanks!
Though I guess I can start while I travel. Still have some npcs to find all over the place.

VardaToday at 5:38 PM
Whatever works. : )
I will probably be visiting Eowyn and family next weekend and may not be able to attend the meeting.

ArienValarToday at 5:41 PM
I ll bear it in mind

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Ar-Pharazon-VToday at 5:42 PM
Personal Gaming Report:

We start with 3 flashgames! One older but quite (in)famous, one I hadn't the badge for yet, and one relatively new that got badged this week.
https://www.kongregate.com/games/Edmund/meat-boy is the first game! A notorious platformer where you play a boy made of meat (can be a bit gruesome) who's trying to rescue his girlfriend, bandaid girl, who keeps getting kidnapped at the end of each level.
Kongregate
    Meat Boy
    -Meat boy is Hard!
    -You can skip levels by pressing esc and exiting to the level menu.
    -Unlock extra characters by collecting band aids.
    -You only need to beat...
There's also scrolling levels, saws, bandages to collect for an extra objective, and lots of tricky walljumping.
If you're up for a platforming challenge, give it a try! Pixelated anyway, so not too bad :wink:

https://www.kongregate.com/games/Wild_Shadow/realm-of-the-mad-god is the second game. An MMO, which is rare for weekly/daily badges, and I didn't have it yet; still, pretty fun, and you don't actually need the multiplayer part.
    Kongregate
    Realm of the Mad God
    Cooperative MMO shooter!
    Play together with thousands of others in a frantic real-time bullet hell game.
    Dodge blasts from devious monsters while you work with...
RPG, you start with a character, get to collect gear and xp and fight enemies in various areas, the idea is to collect fame by getting as far as possible and as high a level as possible before dying.
Upon doing so you lose the character and the gear, but by playing certain classes to certain levels you unlock a whole bunch of other classes to try, and the fame accrued allows you to develop permanent companion pets for permanent bonuses.
So it's a bit of a grind, but lots of stuff to unlock and permanent progress to be made.
Also, the actual gameplay is pretty simple, with easy combat and easy gearing up. So no need to worry about that.
And I suppose there's also a story, but haven't really looked into that (yet) :wink:
A mad god with some mad followers, seek em out, get achievements!

https://www.kongregate.com/games/Chandler/lynk for the first one! I really enjoyed this one; finished it in a day or two, despite there being 100 levels.
    Kongregate
    Lynk
    a different kind of puzzler with a line drawing mechanic
    100 levels
A puzzle where you have to link up circles by drawing lines. Every few levels you get introduced to new mechanics, obstacles and victory conditions, without a tutorial or description, but it's pretty easy to discover what each one stands for.
Requires a lot of trying and logical thinking before you're done, but has a very smooth difficulty curve :slight_smile:
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Ar-Pharazon-VToday at 6:27 PM
Yay, got the Waist of Time :smile:
clockwork belt, cosmetic appearance
gonna work just fine with my mechagnome mage

Blizzard gaming:
Heroes of the Storm:
1 level gained, up to 388! Kharazim the monk to level 15. Was pretty fun playing him, but time to level a new Diablo healer hero, and that hero will be Auriel!
Haven't tried her out yet, but looked at talent builds online and a sacred sweep build looks pretty good. Also set her up with a nice outfit, mount and banner :slight_smile:
Going to be an interesting hero, I'm sure!

Ar-Pharazon-VToday at 6:36 PM
Hearthstone:
Had a bit more time to play this week, and caught up on lunar festival quests. In fact, I had one long match with a spelldeck on mage, completing 3 of the quests at once, including 20 spells and 35 spells played. Came pretty close too, but ultimately no match for a deck designed to win :slight_smile:
Still, the randomness of the spells makes it fun to play.
Thanks!
Brawl this week is All-Star Squad, where you build a deck with 1 card of your choice 22 times, and 8 random class cards.
Started out pretty simple with a pogo-hopper deck, a rogue card that gains stats for each pogo-hopper played before. You can imagine it ramps up pretty quickly when you have 22 of them.
In fact, won my brawl against another rogue who did the same thing, but I had card advantage and he just couldn't catch up :slight_smile:
WoW:
More raiding! 11/12 bosses down on normal, as usual the last boss is a huge step up. We made some progress, but fear our dps is too low, so we're trying to get some gear again on earlier bosses. There are even plans on trying out the first 2 bosses on heroic difficulty in 2 days, before going back to normal.
And normal is useful still, because of a shortcut quest that will allow us to get to the last few bossfights instantly in the future, as well as me still having looted neither of my two desired weapons. Though I did end up with an LFR version of one of them, so at least I've got the proc going.
Next reset the second wing opens up on LFR, so maybe I'll get the other weapon that way as well. Still, the normal and heroic versions will be a lot better :slight_smile:
Did another horrific vision using that new weapon, as well as a new talent I bought which I mentioned last week, and with both of those I cleared the two corrupted areas rather easily for the quest items. Also tried it in guardian spec since they made those visions easier for tanks, but it's still pretty slow compared to dps spec, so I went back to that.
And with 2 visions done for 2 items each, my cloak is now rank 9, giving even more corruption resistance!
Got 2 new pets this week, including one from a raidboss that also drops the other weapon, so at least I got something from him. A wasp-thing from N'zoth, tiny flying aqir, as ugly as it is cute :slight_smile:
2 new essence ranks, too; one from lesser visions, and one for completing a lost area in a horrific vision. Those are the toughest areas, but doing one was enough to get the essence, so with a bit of effort it went well enough.
Oh, and the other pet was from island expeditions, a porcupine pet called the Needleback Pup!
Lunar Festival over, and the Love is in the Air event started; complete with new bossfight to do every day, the 3 apothecaries. Still trying for the mount they drop, but still no luck.
Well, not new bossfight exactly, but they only appear during the event.
Weekly this week is arenas! More fun since I started doing it in guardian spec. It got nerfed since last time, but is still pretty good. Got all 10 wins already.
And for the last in-game thing, I indeed completed the search for the Waist of Time today, a cosmetic belt from a long line of secrets to find, so it's aptly named.
I had been doing parts of it over the last few months, but no time for it lately until today, so I completed the last few stages surrounding a farmstead in Arathi and its occupant, a skeletal gnome called Grimmy, who indeed gave me the belt after doing some stuff for him.
As for WoW-related stuff, not only the new novel coming out, but also a sort of atlas about the Eastern Kingdoms planned for October, which I pre-ordered. Hopefully the other continents will get similar books, it'll make a fine addition to my collection!
And in preparation for my warrior's biography, I did some research into the fall of Gnomeregan, and found out from the Chronicles that instead of the weeks described in my rogue's biography, it actually took 5 years. So I altered that one. Doesn't flow quite as well and may possibly have some leftover words from pre-existing sentences, but at least it'll pair up well with the warrior's now.
Oh, and in my project to play a number of old favorite games of mine at least one more time, including single player campaigns that I've never actually completed properly before, I've now started Creeper World 3. My favorite of the series, and should be a lot of fun (again)!
And that's my report for the week!

VardaToday at 7:01 PM
Thank you, Phar. : )
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