Comments for The Blank Pages http://www.emberdione.com/blog The blank pages at the end of the book, for you to fill in. Wed, 17 Aug 2011 22:00:01 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.2 Comment on Transmorgrify! by Ember http://www.emberdione.com/blog/?p=477#comment-26 Ember Wed, 17 Aug 2011 22:00:01 +0000 http://www.emberdione.com/blog/?p=477#comment-26 Also here are the links to three swords that will see a great deal of farming I speculate: http://www.wowhead.com/item=24361 http://www.wowhead.com/item=31336 http://www.wowhead.com/item=1728 :) Also here are the links to three swords that will see a great deal of farming I speculate:
http://www.wowhead.com/item=24361
http://www.wowhead.com/item=31336
http://www.wowhead.com/item=1728

:)

]]> Comment on The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo by Ember http://www.emberdione.com/blog/?p=314#comment-18 Ember Thu, 20 Jan 2011 04:56:53 +0000 http://www.emberdione.com/blog/?p=314#comment-18 So far, I think it isn't so much that she has Aspergers, it's just way more she has a complete lack of ability to read social queues. Considering her childhood so far as I have learned, that doesn't surprise me at all either. Her ability to travel, her ability to move into her new apartment, buy all new stuff, etc is proof of non-Aspergers. But her relationship to Mimi shows how she has no ability to read people's faces or responses. I am about half way through book 2. :) (And my issue with the hardback isn't that it costs, but rather with the fact I have 2 paperbacks and I like all my books to match if they are in a series. :)) So far, I think it isn’t so much that she has Aspergers, it’s just way more she has a complete lack of ability to read social queues. Considering her childhood so far as I have learned, that doesn’t surprise me at all either. Her ability to travel, her ability to move into her new apartment, buy all new stuff, etc is proof of non-Aspergers. But her relationship to Mimi shows how she has no ability to read people’s faces or responses.

I am about half way through book 2. :) (And my issue with the hardback isn’t that it costs, but rather with the fact I have 2 paperbacks and I like all my books to match if they are in a series. :) )

]]> Comment on The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo by Celeste http://www.emberdione.com/blog/?p=314#comment-17 Celeste Thu, 20 Jan 2011 04:05:48 +0000 http://www.emberdione.com/blog/?p=314#comment-17 First of all, I love, love, LOVE this series. I just finished the 3rd and final installment, The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest. No, I did not indulge in an expensive hard back, than you very much....it was a birthday gift! ;) I also found Lisbeth's lack of social skills rather intriguing, if not a bit disarming. Later in the series it is suggested(very briefly)that Salander behaves like a person with Asperger's Syndrome. I had to go back and read again, pause, think, and then...."lightbulb"! What a concept!! Persons with Asperger's are often painfully socially awkward, and yet also often savants. Sounds like Salander to me! Then again, she is also a woman who has been grossly abused by the system among others. Ember, what do you think? First of all, I love, love, LOVE this series. I just finished the 3rd and final installment, The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet’s Nest. No, I did not indulge in an expensive hard back, than you very much….it was a birthday gift! ;) I also found Lisbeth’s lack of social skills rather intriguing, if not a bit disarming. Later in the series it is suggested(very briefly)that Salander behaves like a person with Asperger’s Syndrome. I had to go back and read again, pause, think, and then….”lightbulb”! What a concept!! Persons with Asperger’s are often painfully socially awkward, and yet also often savants. Sounds like Salander to me! Then again, she is also a woman who has been grossly abused by the system among others. Ember, what do you think?

]]> Comment on Indiana Jones and the Quests of Uldum by Ember http://www.emberdione.com/blog/?p=276#comment-16 Ember Thu, 20 Jan 2011 02:52:43 +0000 http://www.emberdione.com/blog/?p=276#comment-16 42% when I voted... it appears I was not the only one who enjoyed it. http://us.battle.net/wow/en/forum/topic/1920714240 42% when I voted… it appears I was not the only one who enjoyed it.

http://us.battle.net/wow/en/forum/topic/1920714240

]]> Comment on You know the single player game is done right? by Ember http://www.emberdione.com/blog/?p=269#comment-15 Ember Wed, 12 Jan 2011 00:12:32 +0000 http://www.emberdione.com/blog/?p=269#comment-15 Andrew Dovichi - Though I agree with you, to play the devil's advocate, Nintendo would probably be the only publisher I could see doing that. I agree that I highly doubt they are. I think I would have had to tell that guy that I am working on Bioshock 2 and he is an idiot if he thinks it's being held up by multiplayer just to see his reaction. I would have actually gotten him to put his foot further in his mouth first, not like he was at all helpful towards the original purpose of the trip into the store anyway. Chris Luhrs - Yeah, I'm sure Nintendo is holding off its signature title until after Christmas. Andrew Dovichi -
Though I agree with you, to play the devil’s advocate, Nintendo would probably be the only publisher I could see doing that. I agree that I highly doubt they are.

I think I would have had to tell that guy that I am working on Bioshock 2 and he is an idiot if he thinks it’s being held up by multiplayer just to see his reaction. I would have actually gotten him to put his foot further in his mouth first, not like he was at all helpful towards the original purpose of the trip into the store anyway.

Chris Luhrs – Yeah, I’m sure Nintendo is holding off its signature title until after Christmas.

]]> Comment on That’s why they are called “heroic” by Ember http://www.emberdione.com/blog/?p=264#comment-14 Ember Wed, 12 Jan 2011 00:07:10 +0000 http://www.emberdione.com/blog/?p=264#comment-14 Chris Luhrs - I've also found heroics very tough, but I'm not bothered by this. I've had a few successes, but most of my groups have failed. There's no sense of achievement in clearing an instance on the first attempt. I'm gearing up, investing in enchantments, and rethinking my spec to reduce the damage I take a bit. I'll know the fights better each time and they'll be a little easier because I generate bigger numbers. If the encounters are still too hard in a month, then I think you'll have a legitimate argument. I suspect that almost all the encounters will be fairly straightforward by then though. Ember - I have no problem with them being tough. I have no problem with wiping a dozen times, IF I am aware of why. Are we trying it undergeared? That's fine. Are we not coordinated? Wipe it up. Terrible tank? Bad healer? All good reasons to fail and fail again. But when we have good people, working together with gear that Blizzard says *should* be able to do it, then we should be able to reasonably complete the instance. Not spend 3 hours wiping only to finally give up. Frustration =! fun. And honestly, that's all they are to me. Chris Luhrs - Fair enough. Different people are going to be frustrated at different points and bored at different points. Just because you all have hit ilevel 329 you may still be below the gear level where it's reasonable to do things. Are you all flasked with the newest food? It's possible Blizzard set the bar at where it should be barely doable with perfect execution and optimal gems, enchants and consumables. Ember - Just for reference, most of us are well above the 329, (I was lowest at 333) in addition to having food, inscription scroll buffs, etc. It seems logical to me that if this is where our current upgrades are supposed to come from, it doesn't work if we need those items to actually pass the "test" to get the items... With the exception of the exalted epic rewards, I only have 2 upgrades outside of heroics (both very small), which means I should be capable of clearing a heroic. Chris Luhrs - Yeah probably. You should be able to clear at least half the heroics then. Heroics are being cleared, but it is hard. If every heroic you're trying is a fail it's possible someone isn't doing something right. I don't know. Ember - So additional "discoveries" about this topic: 1. All items in your character's bags and bank count. So the 359 purple boe cloak I had in my mailbox to sell? It counted (even though it was str/agi). 2. It apparently doesn't care about armor type. (Hunter had a pair of cloth something that was throwing his off.) 3. It is possible it doesn't even check IF you can use the item. (A DK insisted his ilvl was counting a purple boe shield he had crafted.) Which just proves my theory that it is in fact an issue with the ilvl gate as opposed to the actual difficulty of the dungeon. As more and more of our people are at full 333 or higher, we have stopped hitting solid walls, though there are still fights that are insanely difficult for what seems to be needless reasons. (We still can't get Ripsnarl unless we have a mage, and we can't get Beauty unless we have a druid/hunter, and we can't get some others unless we have just the right combination of dumb luck, which I believe is a terrible reason, but it happens.) I wouldn't pug any of them though. But I am now positive that I was right, it isn't really the heroics as much as the ilvl issues. It needs to be tuned. Chris Luhrs - Ripsnarl seems to be the tough fight of the heroics. I haven't had a chance at him yet because my one deadmines run failed before that. Beauty has been impossible with pugs, but was pretty trivial the one time I had a real group. Me and the other warlock chain feared two adds. We did have a hunter but as far as I know the only thing she did that was hunterly was chain frost trap the third add. It seems anyone who could CC the third would have been just as good. David K. Sedgwick - So what you're saying is that, since it counts the gear I have in the bank and in my bags, all the old loot I've been holding onto for nostalgia purposes, despite not actually WEARING it, is dragging my average ilvl down? Ember - No, because your ilevel is calculated based on the average item level of the highest item you have to go in that slot. So even if you have every tier set chest piece, it only counts your 333 one. However if you are a let's say leather worker, craft the 349 epic leather chest piece, even if you are a mail or plate wearer, it COUNTS as your highest chest piece, so it bumps you for it. Regardless of if you would wear it or not. The problem is, with so many people running around with items in their bags they just haven't sold, or not quite the correct gearing you end up with an inflated ilvl. @Chris - yeah, but the argument I have with Beauty is at this gear level, if you only have 1 cc (which we did only have one that could handle beasts, me the lock) it is undoable. The tank and heals aren't overgeared enough to handle 3 things chomping on the tank, and we don't have enough heals to offtank it with a dps... We tried about 8 different ways and just couldn't do it with the group we had. It really felt like a slap in the face to the "bring the player not the class" thing they keep saying. David K. Sedgwick - Oh, okay. Carry on, then. Ember - AH HA! Quoted from GC's post today about upcoming class changes: "There are some Heroic dungeon bosses that are probably tougher than the required item level average permits." ...Vindicated! Also now that many of our people have gotten up to 346+ average item level, we are finding them much more doable. So really I was say 340 is a good average ilvl for queuing for heroics. Ember - http://blue.mmo-champion.com/topic/136974/cataclysm-hotfixes-updated-jan-5 They hotfixed the vapors, finally. So group with less bursty DPS should be able to do this much easier. Chris Luhrs -
I’ve also found heroics very tough, but I’m not bothered by this. I’ve had a few successes, but most of my groups have failed. There’s no sense of achievement in clearing an instance on the first attempt. I’m gearing up, investing in enchantments, and rethinking my spec to reduce the damage I take a bit. I’ll know the fights better each time and they’ll be a little easier because I generate bigger numbers. If the encounters are still too hard in a month, then I think you’ll have a legitimate argument. I suspect that almost all the encounters will be fairly straightforward by then though.

Ember -
I have no problem with them being tough. I have no problem with wiping a dozen times, IF I am aware of why. Are we trying it undergeared? That’s fine. Are we not coordinated? Wipe it up. Terrible tank? Bad healer? All good reasons to fail and fail again.

But when we have good people, working together with gear that Blizzard says *should* be able to do it, then we should be able to reasonably complete the instance. Not spend 3 hours wiping only to finally give up.

Frustration =! fun. And honestly, that’s all they are to me.

Chris Luhrs – Fair enough. Different people are going to be frustrated at different points and bored at different points. Just because you all have hit ilevel 329 you may still be below the gear level where it’s reasonable to do things. Are you all flasked with the newest food? It’s possible Blizzard set the bar at where it should be barely doable with perfect execution and optimal gems, enchants and consumables.

Ember –
Just for reference, most of us are well above the 329, (I was lowest at 333) in addition to having food, inscription scroll buffs, etc.

It seems logical to me that if this is where our current upgrades are supposed to come from, it doesn’t work if we need those items to actually pass the “test” to get the items…

With the exception of the exalted epic rewards, I only have 2 upgrades outside of heroics (both very small), which means I should be capable of clearing a heroic.

Chris Luhrs – Yeah probably. You should be able to clear at least half the heroics then. Heroics are being cleared, but it is hard. If every heroic you’re trying is a fail it’s possible someone isn’t doing something right. I don’t know.

Ember –
So additional “discoveries” about this topic:

1. All items in your character’s bags and bank count. So the 359 purple boe cloak I had in my mailbox to sell? It counted (even though it was str/agi).

2. It apparently doesn’t care about armor type. (Hunter had a pair of cloth something that was throwing his off.)

3. It is possible it doesn’t even check IF you can use the item. (A DK insisted his ilvl was counting a purple boe shield he had crafted.)

Which just proves my theory that it is in fact an issue with the ilvl gate as opposed to the actual difficulty of the dungeon. As more and more of our people are at full 333 or higher, we have stopped hitting solid walls, though there are still fights that are insanely difficult for what seems to be needless reasons. (We still can’t get Ripsnarl unless we have a mage, and we can’t get Beauty unless we have a druid/hunter, and we can’t get some others unless we have just the right combination of dumb luck, which I believe is a terrible reason, but it happens.)

I wouldn’t pug any of them though. But I am now positive that I was right, it isn’t really the heroics as much as the ilvl issues. It needs to be tuned.

Chris Luhrs -
Ripsnarl seems to be the tough fight of the heroics. I haven’t had a chance at him yet because my one deadmines run failed before that.
Beauty has been impossible with pugs, but was pretty trivial the one time I had a real group. Me and the other warlock chain feared two adds. We did have a hunter but as far as I know the only thing she did that was hunterly was chain frost trap the third add. It seems anyone who could CC the third would have been just as good.

David K. Sedgwick – So what you’re saying is that, since it counts the gear I have in the bank and in my bags, all the old loot I’ve been holding onto for nostalgia purposes, despite not actually WEARING it, is dragging my average ilvl down?

Ember –
No, because your ilevel is calculated based on the average item level of the highest item you have to go in that slot. So even if you have every tier set chest piece, it only counts your 333 one. However if you are a let’s say leather worker, craft the 349 epic leather chest piece, even if you are a mail or plate wearer, it COUNTS as your highest chest piece, so it bumps you for it. Regardless of if you would wear it or not.

The problem is, with so many people running around with items in their bags they just haven’t sold, or not quite the correct gearing you end up with an inflated ilvl.

@Chris – yeah, but the argument I have with Beauty is at this gear level, if you only have 1 cc (which we did only have one that could handle beasts, me the lock) it is undoable. The tank and heals aren’t overgeared enough to handle 3 things chomping on the tank, and we don’t have enough heals to offtank it with a dps… We tried about 8 different ways and just couldn’t do it with the group we had. It really felt like a slap in the face to the “bring the player not the class” thing they keep saying.

David K. Sedgwick – Oh, okay. Carry on, then.

Ember -
AH HA!

Quoted from GC’s post today about upcoming class changes:
“There are some Heroic dungeon bosses that are probably tougher than the required item level average permits.”

…Vindicated!

Also now that many of our people have gotten up to 346+ average item level, we are finding them much more doable. So really I was say 340 is a good average ilvl for queuing for heroics.

Ember – http://blue.mmo-champion.com/topic/136974/cataclysm-hotfixes-updated-jan-5

They hotfixed the vapors, finally. So group with less bursty DPS should be able to do this much easier.

]]> Comment on WTS Level 25 Guild, 250k, PST. by Ember http://www.emberdione.com/blog/?p=261#comment-13 Ember Wed, 12 Jan 2011 00:00:24 +0000 http://www.emberdione.com/blog/?p=261#comment-13 Jason A. Lauborough - Excellent essay on the subject of the guild leveling system; I pretty much agree with the main points made, especially the bit about sticking around in bad situations. I suspect that many servers will at least see large pseudo-guilds being formed for no other purpose than grinding the levels, while the achievements will remain outside the purview of most people (much like high-end raiding was for quite some time pre-Wrath). What may also happen is that people with lots of characters across a couple guilds (such as yourself) may cycle their alts into larger, high-level guilds, grind the rep to earn access to the special items, and then switch them around again. The large guild still gets access to the player (potentially in different roles) but the player gets to keep their smaller, friendlier guild. Ember - IIrc - You can't do that. If you leave a guild that has the phoenix mount unlocked, and join a guild that doesn't, while you do not lose the mount, you can no longer use it. So you see, it actively *punishes* you for leaving your old guild a...nd joining a lower level one even if you *like* the lower level one bette Jason A. Lauborough - Oh hell, I didn't know it'd been confirmed that you lose the items. :\ Ember - Technically you don't lose them, you just lose the ability to use them. Though, this is info from the beta, not from live. Alex von Minden - Hey Ember, nice essay. As for me, it's all about the people. Sure, some of the guild stuff is nice, but I don't know that I'd care about a pet or mount - I doubt I'd guild hop based on guild perks only. But then, that's just me. Chris Luhrs - I actually finally switched guilds to one with people I actually want to raid with the day before cataclysm. I suspect that they actively want to discourage extremely small guilds (especially singletons) and changing guilds. It feels like they have in mind an idea for how big a guild should be and are really pushing you to be in a guild that size. I don't know if it's a good idea or not, but it wouldn't surprise me if it increased the games stickiness. Ember - ‎@Alex - Last Tuesday I would have agreed, but this Tuesday, I am not so sure. I have played with a guild with fast track and a guild without. The difference is noticeable. As the perks pile on, it is likely to just be more significant a difference. @Chris - I agree, they do seem to be trying to force the mold on their idea of a guild. The problem is, with 12 million players, this is gonna leave a great deal of people out in the cold or running with a guild just for the perks. It is massively multiplayer, and I get their idea, but, I don't believe a game like WoW, that has worked so hard to be "single player" friendly, should do something like this in such a fashion so that it takes 2 years for a nice little guild to catch up to the "design ideal". I think, as time goes on, they will need to adjust it to allow for new growth. I mean, look at Booze Hounds, if guild leveling had been present for all of Wrath, we would never have been able to pull in the quality people we did, coming in so late to the game. Some times what you really need is a fresh start with new people or people who share YOUR ideal of what a guild should be. Not Blizzards. They are actively deterring the creation of new guilds. And I think it will lead to some serious stagnation. Alex von Minden - Ah, yeah I see where you are going, Ember. Yeah, it will be interesting to see if stagnation issues come up. Would be quite insightful to see actual data on the rate of guild formation, etc. but I doubt they'd release any, unless supporting changes. Jason A. Lauborough –
Excellent essay on the subject of the guild leveling system; I pretty much agree with the main points made, especially the bit about sticking around in bad situations. I suspect that many servers will at least see large pseudo-guilds being formed for no other purpose than grinding the levels, while the achievements will remain outside the purview of most people (much like high-end raiding was for quite some time pre-Wrath).

What may also happen is that people with lots of characters across a couple guilds (such as yourself) may cycle their alts into larger, high-level guilds, grind the rep to earn access to the special items, and then switch them around again. The large guild still gets access to the player (potentially in different roles) but the player gets to keep their smaller, friendlier guild.

Ember –
IIrc – You can’t do that. If you leave a guild that has the phoenix mount unlocked, and join a guild that doesn’t, while you do not lose the mount, you can no longer use it.

So you see, it actively *punishes* you for leaving your old guild a…nd joining a lower level one even if you *like* the lower level one bette

Jason A. Lauborough – Oh hell, I didn’t know it’d been confirmed that you lose the items. :\

Ember – Technically you don’t lose them, you just lose the ability to use them. Though, this is info from the beta, not from live.

Alex von Minden – Hey Ember, nice essay. As for me, it’s all about the people. Sure, some of the guild stuff is nice, but I don’t know that I’d care about a pet or mount – I doubt I’d guild hop based on guild perks only. But then, that’s just me.

Chris Luhrs –
I actually finally switched guilds to one with people I actually want to raid with the day before cataclysm.

I suspect that they actively want to discourage extremely small guilds (especially singletons) and changing guilds. It feels like they have in mind an idea for how big a guild should be and are really pushing you to be in a guild that size. I don’t know if it’s a good idea or not, but it wouldn’t surprise me if it increased the games stickiness.

Ember –
‎@Alex – Last Tuesday I would have agreed, but this Tuesday, I am not so sure. I have played with a guild with fast track and a guild without. The difference is noticeable. As the perks pile on, it is likely to just be more significant a difference.

@Chris – I agree, they do seem to be trying to force the mold on their idea of a guild. The problem is, with 12 million players, this is gonna leave a great deal of people out in the cold or running with a guild just for the perks. It is massively multiplayer, and I get their idea, but, I don’t believe a game like WoW, that has worked so hard to be “single player” friendly, should do something like this in such a fashion so that it takes 2 years for a nice little guild to catch up to the “design ideal”.

I think, as time goes on, they will need to adjust it to allow for new growth. I mean, look at Booze Hounds, if guild leveling had been present for all of Wrath, we would never have been able to pull in the quality people we did, coming in so late to the game. Some times what you really need is a fresh start with new people or people who share YOUR ideal of what a guild should be. Not Blizzards. They are actively deterring the creation of new guilds. And I think it will lead to some serious stagnation.

Alex von Minden – Ah, yeah I see where you are going, Ember. Yeah, it will be interesting to see if stagnation issues come up. Would be quite insightful to see actual data on the rate of guild formation, etc. but I doubt they’d release any, unless supporting changes.

]]> Comment on Where were you when the world Shattered? by Ember http://www.emberdione.com/blog/?p=256#comment-12 Ember Tue, 11 Jan 2011 23:51:39 +0000 http://www.emberdione.com/blog/?p=256#comment-12 Kristie Lauborough - I wish I'd done something like this, but when I logged off last night I was so tired and just didn't think of it :P Ember - It was all a part of my Character Plan. tm. :) Kristie Lauborough - I meant to logoff Elyriel in the Temple of the Moon and Phaedris in Astranaar. Kathrynne... well, she's a misanthrope anyway :) Ember - We can pretend Phae is out there with Leaf. :) Kristie Lauborough – I wish I’d done something like this, but when I logged off last night I was so tired and just didn’t think of it :P

Ember – It was all a part of my Character Plan. tm. :)

Kristie Lauborough – I meant to logoff Elyriel in the Temple of the Moon and Phaedris in Astranaar. Kathrynne… well, she’s a misanthrope anyway :)

Ember – We can pretend Phae is out there with Leaf. :)

]]> Comment on You do your chores or I am not tanking tonight. by Ember http://www.emberdione.com/blog/?p=253#comment-11 Ember Tue, 11 Jan 2011 23:50:43 +0000 http://www.emberdione.com/blog/?p=253#comment-11 (reposts from Facebook comments) (reposts from Facebook comments)

]]> Comment on You do your chores or I am not tanking tonight. by Ember http://www.emberdione.com/blog/?p=253#comment-10 Ember Tue, 11 Jan 2011 23:49:37 +0000 http://www.emberdione.com/blog/?p=253#comment-10 Sarah Sheffield, Lindsay Fossen and Sean Austin like this. Katy Hodge - That makes me smile. Thanks for sharing. Sarah Sheffield, Lindsay Fossen and Sean Austin like this.

Katy Hodge – That makes me smile. Thanks for sharing.

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