tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20272286986976069832024-03-14T06:18:26.913-07:00 Starships & Dragons We are high school students that have such an affinity for science fiction and fantasy, that we formed a club called Starships and Dragons. The Club makes reviews on material and shares opinions on various topics.Starships and Dragonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01072114298176711676noreply@blogger.comBlogger34125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2027228698697606983.post-50526926063279491632015-12-05T22:39:00.000-08:002015-12-05T22:39:49.362-08:00Artist Appreciation: Ursalina Aguilar<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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A couple of months ago, I attended at a small, local convention named PalmCon, where I helped out a couple of my friends at their booth. When I went around, I didn't see much of notice: a small Artist Alley, a decal shop, a replica TARDIS. There was one artist that I did enjoy the work of, though.<br /> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjihUF7LU8ofSFeaHF1gyY_OKFOagbBBVYhbgHxdU_qLteRmtlqoNDyx40izWSHD4YytP5olaFRs6JjIskwBqUq9efWWwvaqoNY7boS7i5uNVpIDeWyoE23NZ6iO9yYApGj6J5uCU-DnpUU/s1600/IMG_1424.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjihUF7LU8ofSFeaHF1gyY_OKFOagbBBVYhbgHxdU_qLteRmtlqoNDyx40izWSHD4YytP5olaFRs6JjIskwBqUq9efWWwvaqoNY7boS7i5uNVpIDeWyoE23NZ6iO9yYApGj6J5uCU-DnpUU/s320/IMG_1424.JPG" width="240" /></a><br />Ursalina Aguilar is a designer and artist that seems to be based in South Florida that does abstract illustrations as well as artwork of well-known franchises. What's most notable about her artwork is her use of bright and rich artwork and somewhat varied style, based on the subject of the work. Some of her art is shown below.<br /><br /><img height="200" src="https://scontent-lax3-1.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-xap1/v/t1.0-9/11698502_1045957378755733_1997505966433672196_n.jpg?oh=97ef9682c99fa76b72676c1e63422a69&oe=56D5F815" width="200" /> <img height="320" src="https://scontent-lax3-1.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-xaf1/v/t1.0-9/11760275_1049557438395727_4093347849569064297_n.jpg?oh=2d7c3acfcc374a2cefe4c04c35541f82&oe=56EED02C" width="214" /> </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBonn8rZx9jzHyea9PnxpKvGJwwZsJgkAqhRkrjEx09h3C6b6gTTcu3Nn4axifDPhY1SFE3TcG_0WahUmwOy7-zEFmkA7JOc7dMWpqiamaL4PTQAO7hwnRnpI43NS3rSmPyxXfQqEDrAFV/s1600/IMG_1426.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBonn8rZx9jzHyea9PnxpKvGJwwZsJgkAqhRkrjEx09h3C6b6gTTcu3Nn4axifDPhY1SFE3TcG_0WahUmwOy7-zEFmkA7JOc7dMWpqiamaL4PTQAO7hwnRnpI43NS3rSmPyxXfQqEDrAFV/s200/IMG_1426.JPG" width="150" /></a><br />While I do believe her fanart is a bit unrefined in comparison to her more abstract works, I do find her art enjoyable to look at, and she has a lot of potential.I especially like Ice Cream City, which you can buy on her Etsy store <a href="https://www.etsy.com/shop/theJunkArtist#" target="_blank">here</a>. Her <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/-62bKGrsAK/?taken-by=thejunkartist" target="_blank">latest painting</a> on her Instagram of a dragon and woman flying over a field and village is quite beautiful, in my opinion.<br />
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Unfortunately at PalmCon, I was a bit tight on money and only bought a small print of the Pokemon Gastly for my friend Selah, which she deeply enjoyed.<br />
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If you like Ms. Aguilar's artwork as much as I do, you can check out her work on her <a href="http://theartofursalinaaguilar.com/" target="_blank">website</a>, <a href="https://www.facebook.com/thejunkartist/" target="_blank">Facebook</a>, <a href="https://www.instagram.com/thejunkartist/" target="_blank">Instagram</a>, and <a href="https://www.etsy.com/shop/theJunkArtist#" target="_blank">Etsy</a>, I look forward to seeing what she has in store next.<br />
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- Mara (previously Angela)Starships and Dragonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01072114298176711676noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2027228698697606983.post-7187364206747799292015-05-31T19:16:00.002-07:002015-05-31T19:18:54.425-07:00Online Spotlight: Cucumber Quest by Gigi Digi<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.3800000000000001; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Howdy, my darlings. I’m back again with another review on some sort of reading material!. Only this time, </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">things will be a little bit different</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. I’m not here to tell you about a book. I’m here to tell you about a webcomic that I’ve been </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">very</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> into lately.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJTM1ie9kobBh3nqFAQge-Bti4YWDQ6qD651YazMTTP7Vq6ivCCIiXaUuDofcJIg5uSS3idoEogwLGFBcuYK5L1utFyvCbKOcHnYarc1YrBF4LwKhL3DyTaHuvpR9ysujYkJ8FFNLA-8UV/s1600/almond.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="197" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJTM1ie9kobBh3nqFAQge-Bti4YWDQ6qD651YazMTTP7Vq6ivCCIiXaUuDofcJIg5uSS3idoEogwLGFBcuYK5L1utFyvCbKOcHnYarc1YrBF4LwKhL3DyTaHuvpR9ysujYkJ8FFNLA-8UV/s320/almond.jpg" width="320" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJTM1ie9kobBh3nqFAQge-Bti4YWDQ6qD651YazMTTP7Vq6ivCCIiXaUuDofcJIg5uSS3idoEogwLGFBcuYK5L1utFyvCbKOcHnYarc1YrBF4LwKhL3DyTaHuvpR9ysujYkJ8FFNLA-8UV/s1600/almond.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="color: black;"></span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br class="kix-line-break" /></span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Cucumber Quest</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> is a comic written and drawn by Gigi Digi that follows the adventures of a young bunny-boy named Cucumber and his several bunny friends. This includes characters such as Almond, Cucumber’s younger sister (and, personally, my favorite character), the noble Sir Carrot, and other great friends that they meet along the way. They all have bunny ears. It’s adorable. But I’ll gush about that a little bit later. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; text-indent: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The plot of the story is really interesting. Cucumber must save the world from (supposedly) </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; text-indent: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">certain<b> DOOM</b></span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; text-indent: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. The evil Nightmare Knight has been resurrected, and Cucumber is the Legendary Hero who must stop not only the Nightmare Knight, but his Disaster Masters as well. </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; line-height: 1.38; text-indent: 36pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">I won’t go into too much detail on the plot because, I mean, you should definitely go read it and see it for yourselves, but, nevertheless, it’s great. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; line-height: 1.38; text-indent: 36pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">Aside from the story, I’d like to talk about the style of the comic. Not just the art, but the way it is written. The way the characters talk to each other is great; there’s such a lighthearted tone. It’s very endearing and just adorable all around while still taking into account when things get serious. There are plenty of humorous moments, and the characters are very well written to accommodate the light tone. You'll meet such a wide variety of personalities along the way that have all found a way to wedge themselves into your heart in the best ways possible.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; line-height: 1.38; text-indent: 36pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">Now, I could gush for hours about how absolutely adorable the art is in this comic. The generally bright colors are very eye catching and all of the characters are just the best. All of the characters are basically bunny people. They all have bunny ears. All of them. It’s great. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; line-height: 1.38; text-indent: 36pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">The art in general is amazing, but one thing that I really enjoyed were some pages having to do with the a few of the Disaster Masters. One in particular was specifically memorable to me. Mutemaster had the power to remove sound. And the artist, instead of just removing the dialogue from the frames, found a very interesting way to incorporate this effect into the art itself which was a thing I had never seen before. It was an amazing idea and I loved it. This doesn’t only happen with Mutemaster, but I’m not going into the other Masters who I’ve seen do this kind of thing. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; text-indent: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I think this is just about the end of my fangirling. I hope you enjoyed this review. I highly recommend reading </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; text-indent: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Cucumber Quest</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; text-indent: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. It is, however, ongoing, so the story has yet to reach a conclusion. It currently updates at least three times a week. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; line-height: 1.38; text-indent: 36pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">If you’d like to read, which you definitely should, you can go </span><a href="http://cucumber.gigidigi.com/cq/page-1/" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; line-height: 1.38; text-indent: 36pt; white-space: pre-wrap;" target="_blank">here</a><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; line-height: 1.38; text-indent: 36pt; white-space: pre-wrap;"> to start from the beginning.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; line-height: 1.38; text-indent: 36pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">Danielle, signing off! </span></div>
Starships and Dragonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01072114298176711676noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2027228698697606983.post-15569113178058688072015-02-01T22:13:00.000-08:002015-02-01T22:13:11.345-08:00Underrated Books: Itch Hey, it's Danielle, and welcome back to my amazing world of book reviews!! This time I will be reviewing a book called <i>Itch: The Explosive Adventures of an Element Hunter</i>, written by Simon Mayo.<br />
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I would recommend this book to literally anyone, although it may be a little more enjoyable to younger readers. However, this book isn't a total sci-fi/fantasy adventure in another world.<br />
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This book takes place in the real world: Cornwall, England to be exact. The main protagonist is Itchingham Lofte ( known as Itch), a 14-year-old boy with a very extraordinary hobby: hunting the elements. Needless to say, he comes across quite a few mishaps along the way; Explosions, fires, minor illnesses, serious injuries, some death maybe?<br />
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As pretty much everyone knows, there are quite a few elements that are <b>WAAAY</b> too dangerous to just have. Mainly the insanely radioactive ones. But what could possibly be wrong with this suspiciously warm rock? It can't be too bad, right? Needless to say, it gets pretty crazy. The book is filled with tons of action and quite a bit of adventure as we follow Itch, his cousin Jack, and his little sister Chloe. You also get to briefly meet his "dealer," Cake, although he isn't in the story too long.
Itch and friends encounter many challenges trying to protect this amazing(ly dangerous) "rock" from people who want it for all the wrong reasons.<br />
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While there are definitely some hardships to overcome, they pull through well enough.
This is, however, only the first book in a trio. While I have not had the time to read the second and third installments in the exciting life of Itchingham Lofte, I will definitely be checking back in once I have.<br />
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Stay tuned for Itch Rocks and Itchcraft! -DanielleStarships and Dragonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01072114298176711676noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2027228698697606983.post-52763115270809394432014-12-17T15:49:00.000-08:002015-02-01T22:05:02.048-08:00Adventure Bar Story: Capitalism Meets JRPGsI was never much of a mobile gamer. Most of the games on my tablet or phone are rhythm games or visual novels. My main genre of video games, RPGs, has a very limited presence on the iOS or Google Play store. Even more than that, there was an apparent lack of management RPGs.<br />
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And then, I found <i>Adventure Bar Story</i>.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpNIRMOyXGxgBoDRhB1nncRxVNL6CDIiK8rghA_PQPRv7nuvxvA2rOvmjQRh6ot-bkfCpALCCzJ4XmBE9J1Xtf7IAUk-A-PhXV_6MkE09DSnTETfsn9N0SKv5Kd32XvgKZ8aYx8AKuA1ld/s1600/Screenshot_2014-12-17-17-38-55.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpNIRMOyXGxgBoDRhB1nncRxVNL6CDIiK8rghA_PQPRv7nuvxvA2rOvmjQRh6ot-bkfCpALCCzJ4XmBE9J1Xtf7IAUk-A-PhXV_6MkE09DSnTETfsn9N0SKv5Kd32XvgKZ8aYx8AKuA1ld/s1600/Screenshot_2014-12-17-17-38-55.png" height="180" width="320" /></a><i>Adventure Bar Story</i> is a management RPG where you play as a girl named Siela trying to stop her family bar from closing. You can attain other characters to join your party, sans your sister Kamerina who stays at the bar. Among these are Fred, Siela's greedy childhood friend who runs the local store, Alfine, a talented wizard-in-training with a penchant for sweets, and Alter, an adventurer who often visits the bar and gets drunk.</div>
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The game combines qualities of a typical JRPG and mashes it together with a simpler version of Cooking Mama. To keep your bar alive, you need to cook dishes to put on the menu to earn money and enter contests. To cook dishes, you have to collect ingredients in dungeons, where monsters can also drop ingredients. To progress and succeed in dungeons without dying, characters have to eat dishes to gain experience and level up. When there are certain ingredients that you do not have, you have to use money to buy from stores, especially Fred's store (who only helps you so you can buy from him anyway).<br />
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The battle system is a typical turn-based attack and guard system. During battle, you may use skills that aid our characters in some way. To get these skills, you have to gain certain types of EP, which replaces the experience monsters typically give you. Most characters share skills, though some may be exclusive to one (for example, Alter is the only one who is able to get drunk and use special drunken skills). Eating certain foods will have special effects in battle, though only the dish a character has most recently eaten is the only effect that they have on them.<br />
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The cooking itself is rather simplistic. Get ingredients, have the cooking utensil, and use the recipe. Recipes have to be bought or guessed. As you get new ingredients, you will unlock hint recipes, which are recipes that have an ingredient that is unknown, and you must guess it to be able to cook the dish. You can also use jewels, which is the typical currency you can be with actual money, to unlock these recipes or let you cook a dish. You then place it on the menu, where Kamerina sells it.<br />
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<i>Adventure Bar Story</i> is a rather simplistic and somewhat addicting JRPG. It has a very classic style of gameplay with likable characters. As someone who enjoys collecting items in games, it's really satisfying getting more and more recipes. The dungeons are fairly difficult if you aren't leveled enough, and you're constantly motivated to go cook and get ingredients to level up. It's the type of game that would be fun for casual gamers and completionists.<br />
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There are a fair amount of flaws, though. The soundtrack isn't fun, the text is littered with typos, controls don't always function the way they should, and it's tedious to backtrack to earlier dungeons to get ingredients there. And the game forces you to make needlessly costly dishes and buy ingredients from Fred to succeed (<i>that capitalistic, greedy jerk</i>). There are times where I've had to stop because the game was frustratingly unwilling to do what it should.<br />
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Even so, I do recommend this game to people who enjoy RPGs. The price of the game is somewhat reasonable for its quality (currently, it is $3.25 on the Google Play Store and $2.99 on the App Store). <i>Adventure Bar Story</i> is fun in its own little niche. If you're not a friend of mobile games, <i>Recettear: An Item Shop's Tale</i> on Windows has a very similar theme. You won't be wasting your time.<br />
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Hope you guys have a great day. -AngelaStarships and Dragonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01072114298176711676noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2027228698697606983.post-91554884394096414492014-07-28T22:59:00.001-07:002014-09-28T21:25:12.016-07:00Smaller Stories: The Little Prince <img class="irc_mi" height="320" src="https://www.mtholyoke.edu/omc/kidsphil/questions/Littleprince/littleprince_cover_380pixels.jpg" style="margin-top: 0px;" width="257" /><br />
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I have recently read a book called <i>Wartime Writings, 1939-1944</i> in English by a man called Antoine de Saint-Exupéry. I thought the name sounded familiar but didn't think much of it until I read the introduction. To my surprise, he was actually the author of one of my favorite childhood stories, <i>The Little Prince</i>.<br />
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<i>The Little Prince</i> is a novella written and illustrated by aviator and write Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, and is his most famous work. It is the third most sold book in the world with about 140 million copies sold. I personally had forgotten about this small treasure until a couple of years ago, when I came across a cover of the Japanese song <i>Little Traveler</i>, which was apparently based off <i>The Little Prince</i>.<br />
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The story begins with the narrator (who is based on Saint-Exupéry himself) recollecting an event in his childhood, when he drew a boa constrictor that consumed an elephant. When he showed grown-ups the picture, they said it was a hat (I thought it looked like the humps on a camel, personally). He then drew another picture showing the inside of the boa; the grown-ups rebuffed him and told him to focus on other things, like geography. Now a pilot, the narrator is stranded in the Sahara Desert after his plane malfunctioned. He soon encounters a little man, who asks him to draw a sheep. The narrator draws again the boa, who surprisingly recognizes the drawing as a boa digesting an elephant, but rejects it and demands a sheep. The narrator draws several sheep that the small man reject before he draws a box, saying the sheep is inside it. This is apparently what the man, whom the narrator calls the little prince, wanted.<br />
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<a href="http://i.ytimg.com/vi/V3RNv8uWbww/0.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" class="irc_mi" src="http://i.ytimg.com/vi/V3RNv8uWbww/0.jpg" height="240" style="margin-top: 31px;" width="320" /></a>Over the next eight days, the narrator fixes his plane while the little prince talks about his life. He is originally from an asteroid that is no bigger than a house, and has three tiny volcanoes and some plants. He talks about a rose that suddenly grew on his planet, and he had fallen in love with it. The rose was very vain and prideful, and soon enough the little prince felt taken advantage of, though he loved her. He decided to leave his planet to explore the universe, and the rose apologized; still, she urged him on. The prince then visited six other asteroids, all which had a foolish grown-up. He then lands on Earth, and learns many things.<br />
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While it is technically a children's book, <i>The Little Prince</i> has a very philosophical view, and lingers and observes many human mannerisms. It is known and accepted that much of the book is based on Saint-Exupéry's own life, including the rose and the little prince himself. I have always experienced a weird sense of nostalgia, even when I first read it.<br />
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It is hard to explain without experiencing firsthand what the book is like in its many layers, so I recommend that you read it. If you're reading this in English, I suggest the Katherine Woods translation; while it is the oldest version, I think it captures the essence of the original French perfectly compared to the more recent translations, and it is the version I have in English. If you have read <i>The Little Prince</i>, I recommend Robert F. Young's short stories (I have recently covered one of them in an earlier post). I also think <i>The Alchemist</i> by Paulo Coelho and <i>Abarat</i> by Clive Parker feel quite similar to this novella, so read it if you want a longer experience.<br />
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Unfortunately, Saint-Exupéry disappeared at the end of July in 1944, during WWII while on duty, and is presumed dead. I decided to write this in his memory. While he is no longer here, his works, especially <i>The Little Prince</i> has taught many moral lessons, and showed us how life should be lived. I hope his memory lingers for centuries to come.<br />
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Live freely, readers. -AngelaStarships and Dragonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01072114298176711676noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2027228698697606983.post-30123828908590551882014-07-25T20:39:00.001-07:002014-07-26T12:11:39.083-07:009 Video Games You've Probably Haven't Played (Or Heard Of)With franchises like the<i> Legend of Zelda</i>, <i>Mass Effect,</i> and <i>Call of Duty</i> making the headlines, there are many games that are ignored or overlooked entirely. So I want to call to attention some fantasy and sci-fi related video games games that weren't seen, but still deserve some recognition.<br />
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Keep in mind that this list is in no particular order, and some of them (actually, a lot of them) aren't for everybody, but they are games I've enjoyed, so I am personally biased towards them. This is particularly obvious when you realize the majority of the list are JRPGs. So without further ado, let's begin.<br />
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1. <i>Rune Factory</i> Series</h3>
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Systems: <span style="font-weight: normal;">DS, 3DS, Wii, PS3</span></h4>
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Play if:<span style="font-weight: normal;"> You enjoy the <i>Harvest Moon</i> series or want a simulation game where you can also fight monsters.</span></h4>
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<span style="font-weight: normal;">Rune Factory is a spin-off of the moderately successful <i>Harvest Moon</i> franchise, where you play as a farmer working towards some goal (usually saving the town that you're living in). However, you are instead placed into a fantasy universe, and the usual system of purchasing animals is replaced with taming monsters. There are many colorful characters and races, including a wealthy human girl that speaks in opposites, a Univir (a horned species that resembles elves) elder woman who hates humans, a half-elf boy that that also hates humans, a female butler who tends to fall asleep, and a pair of girls who look like each other with the same name and are sort of vampires.</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>She actually likes you. Really.</i></td></tr>
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Just like in <i>Harvest Moon</i>, you can farm, interact with the villagers in your town, and eventually marry. All installments feature a male protagonists, but only recently can you play as a female and woo the guy of your dreams (there is a slight exception in <i>Rune Factory 2</i>, but it doesn't really count). You may then have a child, though they tend not to have a big role (Again, there is an exception with <i>Rune Factory 2</i>).<br />
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I personally recommend <i>Rune Factory</i> <i>2</i> on the DS. It's my favorite installment in the series. However, if you want something a little more recent, you should play <i>Rune Factory 4. </i>The characters are interesting, and the story line is pretty good.<br />
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2. <i>Zero Escape </i>Series</h3>
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Systems: <span style="font-weight: normal;">DS, 3DS, PS Vita</span></h4>
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Play if:<span style="font-weight: normal;"> You enjoy somewhat difficult puzzle games, visual novels, plot twists, and being under a form of stress.</span></h4>
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<a href="https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRcMYQdyiQ6T8d_kwTZzT1XZOoKVXf56-KM_zQ3a7a3EU4jo6L6" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRcMYQdyiQ6T8d_kwTZzT1XZOoKVXf56-KM_zQ3a7a3EU4jo6L6" width="212" /></a><span style="font-weight: normal;">The <i>Zero Escape </i>series has been praised wildly for its plot, and it's not hard to see why. In the first installment, <i>999: Nine Hours, Nine Persons, Nine Doors</i>, you play a college student named Junpei who is kidnapped and placed on a slowly sinking ship with 8 other people, and will have to play the 'Nonary Game' and work with them to find a door labelled 9 in nine hours to escape and live. The second game, <i>Zero Escape: Virtue's Last Reward</i>, starts similarly, where a college student named Sigma is kidnapped and placed in an elevator with a woman named Phi. They escape and find 7 other people, and they are all forced to play the 'Nonary Game: Ambidex Edition'.</span></div>
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In both games, you are equipped with bracelets. In the first game, they allow you to know which characters can enter which door. In the second, reaching nine 'Bracelet Points' allows you to escape. While both games do not immediately appear to have any unnatural phenomena, it becomes clear, at least near the end, what is really going on. The games are addicting, and both feature different endings based on the player's decision, so they have replayable value. It requires you to think, but you'll feel satisfied when you solve the problems. All in all, it's an enjoyable series that'll make you want to play both of them.<br />
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3. <i>Weapon Shop de Omasse</i></h3>
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Systems: <span style="font-weight: normal;">3DS</span></h4>
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Play if:<span style="font-weight: normal;"> You want to play a JRPG-referencing, self-aware game, or have a quirky sense of humor and have time to spend.</span></h4>
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<span style="font-weight: normal;">Depending on who you are, you'll either love <i>Weapon Shop de Omasse</i> or you'll think that it's just not fun. And it's understandable why. You play a blacksmith forging the weapons of the heroic figures who will be taking on the quests to defeat the Evil Lord.</span></div>
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<a href="https://d3esbfg30x759i.cloudfront.net/ss/zlCfzRii_xUCgYi7hE" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://d3esbfg30x759i.cloudfront.net/ss/zlCfzRii_xUCgYi7hE" /></a><span style="font-weight: normal;">This game was delayed for a long time due to dialogue translation. <i>de Omasse</i> is text heavy, and although it's a rhythm game, there is much more to do than tap your screen to shape metal. You have to familiarize yourself with your customers to make their perfect weapon, and you can check on their progress while they're out adventuring through an in-game version of Twitter.</span></div>
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<span style="font-weight: normal;">As <i>Destructoid</i> has described it, <i>de Omasse</i> is 'a niche within a niche'. The game is definitely unusual, in its dialogue and gameplay. Some may find the humor lacking and the work tedious. The music isn't all that great. But it is certainly a game that will charm at least a target group of gamers. If this sounded a little bit intriguing, then you should try it.</span></div>
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<i>4. The Last Remnant</i></h3>
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Systems:<span style="font-weight: normal;"> Xbox 360, PC (retail and Steam)</span></h4>
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Play if:<span style="font-weight: normal;"> you like turn-based battle systems, have generally good luck and a PC, or want to see a new fantasy world.</span></h4>
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In all honesty, <i>The Last Remnant</i> isn't terribly good. You control Rush Sykes, who is trying to find his little sister Irina, and meet several characters who decide to help him.</div>
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The visual style is very unique and beautiful, and is one of the game's best points. The fantasy world that <i>Last Remnant</i> takes place is extremely distinct from any other, and it's enhanced by a beautiful soundtrack. Battles feature a turn-based system with unions, groups of 3-5 people led by a general. However, much of it is based entirely on luck; even with high levels, you may not survive some encounters due to chance. The PC version is apparently a vast improvement on the Xbox version, although I've never seen the Xbox version.</div>
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There are many things wrong with <i>The Last Remnant</i> that can't be overlooked. It's a little clunky, there are slow loading times, and screens are a cluttered mess. The battle system is fun, but after a while it gets repetitive and annoying; who knows how many times I've restarted because of my bad luck. Even so, for its price (it's $10 USD on Steam), <i>The Last Remnant</i> is something you should possibly consider.</div>
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5. <i>Eternal Sonata</i></h3>
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Systems: <span style="font-weight: normal;">Xbox 360, PS3</span></h4>
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Play if:<span style="font-weight: normal;"> You like classical music, want to try a different battle system, or just want to try out a new RPG.</span></h4>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijlG3087sgEUAoQtN06HBjzPh853D-_gIu1V5pIh4aEDbvmtxybeH2LDcPjRnvZkbTutE7YApLqmAyaOgEuXRkDLUkLWZyZQrAUnE0kfMmc5aceOmyxac2KfHEj3KJ8DEcw4bR9PM6tLM1/s1600/1189821367.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" class="irc_mi" height="224" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijlG3087sgEUAoQtN06HBjzPh853D-_gIu1V5pIh4aEDbvmtxybeH2LDcPjRnvZkbTutE7YApLqmAyaOgEuXRkDLUkLWZyZQrAUnE0kfMmc5aceOmyxac2KfHEj3KJ8DEcw4bR9PM6tLM1/s400/1189821367.jpg" style="margin-top: 3px;" width="400" /></a><i>Eternal Sonata </i>is one of those games that is beautifully strange. The game takes place in the mind of Frédéric Chopin, who is lying on his deathbed, where he envisions a fantastical world influenced by his life. In it, he meets a sick young girl named Polka. The two travel together and meet many people and uncover a great conspiracy.</div>
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This game legitimately made me cry. It is absolutely beautiful and stunning. Along with an astounding soundtrack (which includes several compositions of Chopin), the voice acting is wonderful and the graphics are quite pretty. The battle system changes every time you go into battle; it is turn-based, including 3 members with each character's turn starting with 'Tactical Time' to decide what to do, and ending with an amount of time for the character to complete their actions.</div>
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My only problems with <i>Eternal Sonata</i> lie with its duration. Not only is it short, but the game is extremely linear, even painfully so for a JRPG. Still, this game is still one I highly recommend you check out. It is just beautiful.</div>
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6. <i>Contact</i></h3>
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Systems: <span style="font-weight: normal;">DS</span></h4>
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Play if:<span style="font-weight: normal;"> Like karma systems, games that break the fourth wall, and like weird space dogs (<i>shh, he thinks he's a cat</i>)</span></h4>
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<span style="font-weight: normal;">Despite few copies being sold, <i>Contact</i> may legitimately touch you, as it did me. In it, a scientist only known as the Professor is fleeing from a mysterious terrorist group known as CosmoNOTS (Cosmic Nihilist Organization for Terror). He lands next to Terry, a young teenage boy sleeping on a bench, skipping school, and has him run quickly inside his spaceship. They land on an unknown planet, losing the ship's 'cells', gem-like objects that act as a power source, and Terry agrees to help the Professor collect them while exploring the planet; the thing is... He isn't helping him. <i>You are.</i></span><br />
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<a href="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/8/81/ContactGameplay.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" class="irc_mi" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/8/81/ContactGameplay.png" height="320" style="margin-top: 19px;" width="213" /></a><span style="font-weight: normal;">Most the game's main characters, sans Terry, are aware of your existence. The Professor directly breaks the fourth wall to communicate with the player, understanding you are helping by playing a game. The gameplay is split into two screens; the bottom screen is the player controlling Terry and continuing through the game, while the top screen show the Professor in his lab, who gives advice and funny, offhand comments that sometimes references other video games. The Professor will invent decals that can assist the player in attacking, healing, etc. Costumes can also be found that will give Terry special powers (cooking, lockpicking, etc.). Battle mode can be switched into, and is played real time. Terry has different stats, including some that can determine how NPCs react to him.</span><br />
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<span style="font-weight: normal;">This game first came out when I was in the middle of elementary school</span><img src="http://www.atlus.com/contact/img/sp.gif" /><img src="http://www.atlus.com/contact/img/sp.gif" />, and it legitimately put me in awe. The battle system is nice, and I spent hours completely all the sidequests and getting as many weapons as I could. The dialogue was witty, even though there are several grammatical errors. I liked collecting all of the 'girlfriends', meeting new NPCs (My favorite is Nadia), discovering new lands; there's so much to experience. Of course, there are annoyances and flaws. The battle system can be hard and repetitive, and the game sometimes doesn't tell you what to do (I literally spent about two hours beating a boss before the Professor told me how to make it easier, and that's my most recent playthrough). Terry's hair always bothered me, because it's brown in-game while it's really black. I suggest you to play it, even if it's older.<br />
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7. Risk of Rain</h3>
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Systems: <span style="font-weight: normal;">PC, PS Vita (Upcoming)</span></h4>
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Play if: <span style="font-weight: normal;">You work well under pressure, and enjoy side scrolling platformers.</span></h4>
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<span style="font-weight: normal;">Funded by Kickstarter and created by two university students, <i>Risk of Rain</i> is an action platformer shooter where the player is a survivor of a space train crash on a mysterious planet. The game is unique as the difficulty escalates as time goes on, giving a sense of urgency and pressure.</span><br />
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<span style="font-weight: normal;">The game is almost entirely randomized, from the map to the spawn location to even the location of the bosses. <i>Risk of Rain</i> is extremely difficult, and it's impossible not to die several times before you get the hang of it. There are ten characters with different skills and benefits to them to help the player along. Also, there are over 100 items that have different effects, and all of them are beneficial.</span><br />
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This game was originally not on my list, but was suggested by the president of this club. It was, he said, "F***ing hard." And it's true. You will absolutely die. But that does not mean it isn't fun. Its rogue-like elements are great, and its old-school style is charming. It's fun and absolutely worth all the time you may put into it.<br />
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8. Costume Quest</h3>
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Systems: <span style="font-weight: normal;">PC, Linux, Xbox Live Arcade, iOS, PS3</span></h4>
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Play if: <span style="font-weight: normal;">You want something short, easy, and cute</span></h4>
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<span style="font-weight: normal;">Originally released around Halloween, <i>Costume Quest</i> is a quirky yet simplistic game. You play one of two fraternal twins (it's your choice who you want to play as) on Halloween, saving their sibling when they're kidnapped by a monster while trick-or-treating.</span></div>
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<span style="font-weight: normal;">During battle, the character's costume transform into larger versions to fight. The system itself is turn-based. Like in a typical RPG, you can collect more party members and complete quests. However, it's very simplistic and easy, and can be treated like a childish RPG. The characters are nice and the story is interesting enough.</span></div>
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<span style="font-weight: normal;">There are a few flaws, obviously. It can get very repetitive, and there's really no difficulty in playing it. Any really serious RPGers can pay it no mind. The music is a bit forgettable. The biggest flaw in <i>Costume Quest</i> is its length; it is extremely short, and the main game can be played in a few hours. Even so, the game is interesting enough. It can be played at all ages, so I especially recommend it to children.</span></div>
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9. Trace Memory/Another Code: Two Memories</h3>
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<b>Systems:</b> DS</div>
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Play if: <span style="font-weight: normal;">You want an interesting, old adventure without a lot of thought.</span></h4>
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<span style="font-weight: normal;">Cing was one of my favorite video game developers for the DS; unfortunately, they filed for bankruptcy a few years back. <i>Trace Memory</i>, as this game was known in North America, was the first game I played that was made by them. In it, you play young Ashley Mizuki Robbins, who goes to Blood Edward Island in search of her father, Richard. He was presumed dead when she was a baby, along with her mother, Sayoko.</span></div>
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<a href="http://images.nintendolife.com/screenshots/4460/large.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://images.nintendolife.com/screenshots/4460/large.jpg" /></a><span style="font-weight: normal;">Ashley is given a DAS, an obvious spoof of the DS (it even looks like the original DS), which only reacts to her. It acts as the game's menu, and can be used to take pictures. They also read DAS cards, which contain information about the plot and the island, On the island, she meets a ghost named D, who has lost his memories. <i>Trace Memory</i> is a point-and-click adventure game. The camera during movement is kept in an aerial view. The touch screen is mainly used. Puzzles are scattered throughout the game, and must be solved to progress. Most use DS capabilities, like the microphone and touch screen.</span><br />
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<span style="font-weight: normal;"><i>Trace Memory</i> was one of the games my older sister would not let me play until 3 years after we got it. At the time, puzzles were quite difficult. However, I have now realized that they are actually quite easy. I can now finish the game in a few hours without much trouble. It has almost become tedious to play, and there is little replay value after you finish playing the game. Even so, it still is a fun experience, and the plot is very interesting with an intriguing vibe. If you don't mind playing something a bit older, I definitely suggest you play this.</span></div>
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Games are an engaging experience that many people experience. I hope you will want to try one of these games, too.</div>
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Until another time, Angela</div>
Starships and Dragonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01072114298176711676noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2027228698697606983.post-67484435917821781542014-06-30T23:49:00.000-07:002014-09-28T21:24:48.837-07:00Smaller Stories: The Dandelion Girl<br />
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<b><i>"Day before yesterday I saw a rabbit, yesterday a deer, and today, you."</i></b></div>
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Robert F. Young, a lesser known science fiction writer in the 20th century, died on June 22. As he's the author of one of my favorite short stories, I wanted to write something about him (I'm a week late, but I've always been a procrastinator).</div>
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<i>Dandelion Girl</i> is one of Young's, if not the most, famous story of his. It has influenced the anime<i> RahXephon</i> and is referenced several times in the visual novel <i>Clannad</i>.</div>
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The novel is about a married, middle-aged man named Mark Randolph. He goes on vacation, which he only has twice a year, to a nearby rural area alone (his wife, Anne, has jury duty, and their son is at college), and meets a young woman with dandelion-colored hair wearing a white dress named Julie Danvers on the hilltop there. She informs him that she is from the year 2201, using the time machine her father made. Mark does not believe her, but goes along, partially because of her smile. They talk for a few more hours before leaving. The next few days, he goes up to the hill and meets Julie, who wears a different colored dress, and they talk for hours about their mutual interests.</div>
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<a href="http://cb.pbsstatic.com/l/09/4209/9780345304209.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://cb.pbsstatic.com/l/09/4209/9780345304209.jpg" /></a>Well, that's as far as I can get without spoiling it. It's honestly something you have to read to experience. Although I've read stories very similar to this, <i>The Dandelion Girl</i> has touched me in a poignant way, similar to, say, the French novella <i>The Little Prince </i>(which I'll talk about another time). The language is slightly dated, considering it is from the 1960s, but the message still gets across.</div>
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If you have read <i>The Dandelion Girl</i>, then I'd recommend you to read some of his other short stories. <i>Star Mother</i> has a very similar vibe, and is about a woman whose son becomes a 'star', or an outer-space vigil for the American government. <i>L'Arc De Jeanne</i> is about Joan of Arc in an extraterrestrial scenario. His novel <i>The Last Yggdrasil </i>is about several people wanting to cut down the last world tree (referencing Yggdrasil, the tree in Norse mythology where all the worlds are located and the home to many beings).</div>
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If reading isn't your thing, but you like video games, the RPG <i>To The Moon</i> has the same type of atmosphere and is more tragic. It's short and doesn't exactly have great dialogue, gameplay, or world design, but it will make you cry. Like <i>The Dandelion Girl</i>, you have to play it to understand why it's good.</div>
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While Young wasn't quite recognized while he was alive, his stories are still touching. I strongly encourage you to read his stories; they are beautiful.<br />
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May I see you again, AngelaStarships and Dragonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01072114298176711676noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2027228698697606983.post-5706684897645576512014-06-20T18:52:00.002-07:002014-06-20T19:05:56.778-07:00Underrated Books: The Jack Blank Series<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> I am here to sing the praises of an </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b><i>amazing</i></b></span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> book series that is fairly unknown to many people in the world today. This series has everything: sci-fi, fantasy, action, adventure, romance, and every other thing someone could look for in a book. </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I am, of course, talking about the </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>Jack Blank</i></span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> series. </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; line-height: 1.15; white-space: pre-wrap;">I will admit, this name isn't all that exciting; I assure you, it is.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> So, there are a few things in this series that I value over others. First and foremost, I absolutely ADORE the choice of the main villains in this series. </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Throughout, the main foe of our heroes are the Rüstov which are b</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; line-height: 1.15; white-space: pre-wrap;">asically freaking ROBO-ZOMBIES. Not exactly, like there are things that would probably say otherwise, but that's the simplest way I can describe them. </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; line-height: 1.15; white-space: pre-wrap;">Now, I know not everyone loves robots or zombies as much as I do, but <i>dude</i>. Together?! At once?! How can you <b>NOT</b> love that?! </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> I mean, they're villains, so I hate them, but I love the idea of them! </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; line-height: 1.15; white-space: pre-wrap;">Zombies are basically humans, but with no brain functions other than EAT.</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; line-height: 1.15; white-space: pre-wrap;"> They get an arm ripped off, they keep going because they want meat. They can rip through another person like paper. <b><i>THAT'S AWESOME. </i></b></span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; line-height: 1.15; white-space: pre-wrap;">And they're also freaking robots: emotionless, hard to destroy, killing machines! If there's a robot after you and its specific function is to kill, it's unlikely you'll survive.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; line-height: 1.15; white-space: pre-wrap;"> the Rüstov have several abilities, like, if they lose a limb or something, they can take someone else's limb and attach it to their body to be their own! </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; line-height: 1.15; white-space: pre-wrap;">And they can also transfer from body to body. One single Rüstov can go from one gross decaying body to another healthy practically fresh body. That's kind of how the Rüstov hierarchy works. The fresher whatever host body you were using was, the higher up you were because it meant you just had endless bodies to switch between.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> In the books, I like how they had this whole group of villains, enough to fill thousands of pages, and there were still other enemies. There were other struggles ou heroes had to overcome than just fighting robo-zombies. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> I would just like to make that, while this series has romance,it isn't a driving force behind the book. I mean, don't get me wrong, there are plenty of books that are amazing and are driven pretty largely by romance,and there are plenty of opportunities for it to happen in this series, but it doesn't happen because it would take away from the main plot. One of my personal ships sailed at the end of the book, but it was so unimportant to the main action that it wasn't even addressed until the end and everything was good. I think this was a good choice because it would've distracted from the important action. And when it happened after the fact, it was so much better because you </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>knew </i></span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">that they would </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>actually</i></span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> get to be together!And I was so much happier because of it </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> The majority of the series happens in a</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; line-height: 1.15; white-space: pre-wrap;"> place called The Imagine Nation. Yes. That's the name. This place, as stated in the book, can only be found when you're not looking for it. And in this place lives literally every being that has ever been imagined. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> The Imagine Nation is separated into different sections: The </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><u><b>Vargog</b></u></span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, a 'place of the past' (it's like medieval times with queens, knights, wizards, etc.); </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><u><b>Machina</b></u></span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, a 'place of the future' (full of robots and androids. They don't get along with </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Vargog</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> all that much); </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; line-height: 1.15; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b><u>Cognito</u></b>, a 'place for hiding' (Cognito is a very mysterious place. If you don't know exactly where to be and when to be there, you'll get lost easily and often);<b> </b></span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; line-height: 1.15; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b><u>Hightown</u></b>, home of the world's tallest skyscrapers and the HQ of SmartCorp (a company that you will develop a distaste for, much as I have); </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; line-height: 1.15; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b><u>Karateka</u></b>, a fusion of ancient and modern China (it's the home to many martial arts masters and ninjas); </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; line-height: 1.15; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b><u>Galaxis</u></b>, a space port(it's full of different aliens and creatures from all over the universe); </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; line-height: 1.15; white-space: pre-wrap;"><u style="font-weight: bold;">Seasonstill Park</u>, where each section of the park is permanently stuck in a certain season; and </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; line-height: 1.15; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b><u>Hero Square</u></b>, a monumentous plaza that is frequently visited by citizens of Empire City. It is also the meeting place of The Inner Circle, which is a group of people who defend The Imagine Nation. </span></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; line-height: 1.15; white-space: pre-wrap;"> All in all, the <i>Jack Blank</i> series written by Matt Myklusch is a MASTERPIECE. It's a phenomenal trilogy, and I think it deserves way more recognition than it gets. </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Read it! </span><br />
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See ya later, DanielleStarships and Dragonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01072114298176711676noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2027228698697606983.post-60358098769818702112014-04-01T21:22:00.001-07:002014-04-13T21:15:39.470-07:00Camp NaNoWriMo has Begun for April 2014<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Amidst the April Fools announcements of Google seeking a Pokémon Master and Amazon's new Kindle Paperscent, a semiannual writing session has quietly begun.<br />
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National Novel Writing Month, or NaNoWriMo <span style="font-family: inherit;">for</span> short, is an annual creative writing program where participants around the world (in contradiction to its name) are challenged to write a 50,000 word novel during the month of November. The contest has experienced a positive reaction, with the website's about page stating,<i><span style="font-family: inherit;"> "</span><b>341,375 participants</b> started the month as auto mechanics, out-of-work actors, and middle school English teachers. They walked away novelists</i>.<i>" </i>Even famous author John Green had participated in this (albeit 4 years ago).<br />
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Since 2011, the website has also offered a friendly 'camp' session during the months of July and April in 2014 for anyone to write a novel in a month; the difference is, the word limit is chosen by the user. Everyone may opt to be part of a 'cabin' with up to 10 other people based on settings one would have chosen for encouragement and advice. Each cabin has a message board that can only be seen by members of that cabin.<br />
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This will be the first year I will be participating in anything NaNoWriMo related, and frankly, I'm quite excited. I am opting to write a collection of events I have witnessed through a car/train window, which I hope will sharpen my writing skills in the first person POV. It's a great first step to begin writing. You don't even have to impress anyone; <i>just start</i>.<br />
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I hope to see more people participate in the project. Who knows? I may even become cabin mates with any of you viewing this sometime soon.<br />
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À bientôt! - AngelaStarships and Dragonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01072114298176711676noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2027228698697606983.post-63444113067010244662014-02-08T06:24:00.001-08:002014-07-28T21:55:30.547-07:00Wolverine: By Old Man Logan. A Must Read.<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">Old Man Logan
tells the story of how superheroes fail and after 50 years, bad guys have taken
over and split the country into four parts. The only true superhero still alive
is Wolverine who has vowed to never kill again. Hawkeye asks Wolverine to come
on mission. Wolverine does it to get money for rent so the Hulk gang doesn’t
kill his wife and kids. This story line is filled with many twist and turns. I
highly recommend it to any Wolverine or X-Men fans. I promise you this graphic
novel will keep you on the edge of your sit, even if you’re not a fan of
Wolverine. This is definitely in my top favorite graphic novels. It’s a total must
read.</span>Starships and Dragonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01072114298176711676noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2027228698697606983.post-16145142846583183222014-01-15T05:30:00.000-08:002014-01-15T05:30:15.395-08:00XBOX One & PS4... Are we missing out on gaming?Many of these new gaming systems are throwing people in a frenzy. Some are impartial, hating the new systems geared towards being "entertainment systems" rather than "gaming systems". Others are excited for the new "entertainment factor"<br />
Those leaning towards the older gaming systems (PS3, XBOX 360, though not really old) are torn. XBOX has agreed to still produce games for the 360 however PlayStation has said they want to phase out the PS3. PlayStation has probably lost several of their younger gamers raised on the PS2 and PS3. Gamers are no longer crazed with needing the next gaming system, but are more focused with the next installment of a game series. For instance, several Kingdom Hearts fans are annoyed at the fact that they have to buy a PS4 to play Kingdom Hearts 3 after waiting eagerly for several years. I know the only reason I have intention to buy a PS4 is for that game in particular. All I can say is thank goodness they remastered Final Fantasy X and X-2 for the PS3.<br />
Both the PS4 and the XBOX One are not backwards compatible, a factor that seriously pisses me off. However, PlayStation thinks that it makes it better if I pop in my Virtual Fighter 5 for the PS3 into the PS4, pay ten bucks, then poof I can play Virtual Fighter 5 on my PS4 until it breaks. A lot of the people however, sell their old systems to pay for the new ones. Doesn't this mean we're missing out on gaming, a new generation is being forcibly cycled out of the classics and being sucked into the guts and glory of the newer video games... Thanks gaming company's now I can never reference Pacman or ICO to anyone under 20<br />
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-Darian WolfeStarships and Dragonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01072114298176711676noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2027228698697606983.post-27248944254631244692013-10-23T05:29:00.002-07:002013-10-23T05:30:28.032-07:00Beyond: Two SoulsI recently picked up Beyond Two Souls.<br />
Needless to say I am only about an hour through the game and I already have so much to say.<br />
Leave it to Playstation to develop a game that takes the PS3 to it's limits, right when it's about to be replaced with the PS4.<br />
The game brings you back and forth between Jodi (The main character) when she was a child and when she's an adult. It also gives you the ability to play "Aiden" (her imaginary friend, that is an entity from another dimension.) Playing as Jodi sucks (not going to lie) you're time as her is mostly walking around very slowly and trying to do things yourself, but you end up relying on Aiden anyway. Playing as Aiden however, is fun. Aiden gives you the ability of telekinesis, to move objects or possess peoples bodies.<br />
The gameplay overall though consists of circular dots over people and objects, as you approach them button combinations will appear. This is all you do, for the entire game supposedly. It's almost like a choose your own adventure game.<br />
The characters, are real actors, and the graphics are phenomenal (even the creases in their mouths move when they talk.) The graphics, and the storyline make this game an addicting find. I may not encourage you to buy it without trying it, but you can purchase it for $2 a day with a redbox near you.<br />
Darian Wolfe<br />
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<img src="http://i.walmartimages.com/i/p/00/71/17/19/98/0071171998298_500X500.jpg" /></div>
Starships and Dragonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01072114298176711676noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2027228698697606983.post-51802363449453441342013-10-23T05:15:00.000-07:002013-10-23T05:15:11.248-07:00PalmCon Review <br />
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PalmCon turned out to be a wonderful surprise, about ten of us went last Saturday. With a whole bunch of impulse buys and great cosplays, PalmCon turned out to be a great hit. The convention brought in over 2000 people to the convention center in one day. Only about a quarter of those people actually cosplayed, giving them the spotlight.<br />
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All the convention goers left with shopping bags of art and collectibles in their hands, with most comics going for $1 an issue, and toys and art galore. I myself spent $150 on several things including a latex Cratos mask, two action figures and several art pieces.</div>
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Walking in to the convention you were met with the stars of the convention, however hiding in the back of the center was a life size Tardis that you could stand in and take pictures and a working Ecto-1 with the full gang of the ghost busters with it. </div>
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Granted PalmCon wasn't a traditional convention with events and guests, a lot of people still had fun, provided there was money in your pocket.<br />
Overall though, great fun.<br />
Darian Wolfe</div>
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Starships and Dragonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01072114298176711676noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2027228698697606983.post-72609055926571688412013-09-21T05:40:00.000-07:002013-09-20T06:04:33.437-07:00PalmCon<br />
<img src="http://cosmictimes.net/images/palmcon/PalmConHomeLogo.png" /><br />
Several of our group will be going to PalmCon this weekend. PalmCon is a collection more for collectors, but we're using it as an intro to conventions. There will be a few guests there, and a huge shopping area. PalmCon will be held at the West Palm Beach Convention Center from 10-6 on Saturday 9/21/13. Tickets are $7 in advance and $9 at the door. I implore any comic collector to go to PalmCon. The link is as follows:<br />
<a href="http://cosmictimes.net/palmcon/">http://cosmictimes.net/palmcon/</a><br />
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If you can't go, we'll be writing a post telling you all about it so look forward to it.<br />
-Darian WolfeStarships and Dragonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01072114298176711676noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2027228698697606983.post-30171972166394950622013-08-04T16:24:00.000-07:002013-09-16T05:42:40.930-07:00King of Thorn Review<a href="https://encrypted-tbn3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSK7w9PGWI_OSPXVtKGgcr0w4Abgv1cIY_YtHX6xmwz7pe1Dq7L" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://encrypted-tbn3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSK7w9PGWI_OSPXVtKGgcr0w4Abgv1cIY_YtHX6xmwz7pe1Dq7L" /></a> So in case you all haven't realized, I've taken the summer to do movie reviews (without spoilers). This is mostly because I just upped my cable bill $7 a month to be able to watch the Funimation Channel. I recently did a review on Vexille and have decided to keep up my trend of odd movies. My review today is on King of Thorn, another ingenious Funimation creation as I like to call it. <br />
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If you were raised like me, the story of Sleeping Beauty was a dream for little girls, and a cookie cutter fairy tail that made dreams come true. Grimm's tale of Sleeping Beauty got a little more violent. But Funimation's King of Thorn takes the tale to a whole new level. King of Thorn is a gruesome action filled movie with a nice resident evil flair and quirky accents on key characters. Like most Funimation creations this too started as a manga, which I have not read so I cannot judge, but am interested in reading it.<br />
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The original reason I decided to watch this movie was the description, it occurs after the world is swept by a disease called "Medusa" which ironically enough, petrifies the body and literally turns it to stone. A group of people get selected to be cryogenicly frozen to wake up 100 years later to be free of Medusa.<br />
This movie is certainly something else and is highly recommended in my book if you can get past the sheer gruesomeness and craziness of the movie. This epic thriller full of tragedy, mystery and the bending of reality is well worth a try and I give it a four out of five. I have watched King of Thorn five times since the first time I saw it a month ago, and I encourage you to check it out!<br />
<img 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" /><br />
- Darian Wolfe<br />
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<a href="https://encrypted-tbn3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRyh0XktyMlAFevQm2Tn_zYfnba5NWAa0PCsCHquwyoFA0o8K3d" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://encrypted-tbn3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRyh0XktyMlAFevQm2Tn_zYfnba5NWAa0PCsCHquwyoFA0o8K3d" /></a></div>
Starships and Dragonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01072114298176711676noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2027228698697606983.post-1792598085592805272013-07-28T11:36:00.002-07:002013-07-28T11:45:43.168-07:00The Best part of Comic Con, Nerd HQ, Operation Smile and Zachary Levi<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Comic Con is over and I
missed it again! Now you would think that I would be depressed or upset because I missed
this awesome convention...again. I mean one of the greatest reasons for going to any
convention besides cosplay characters created by the fans... are the panel of
celebrities that come to talk about their shows, movies or projects. I definitely
missed out on the live panels but thanks to <b>The Nerd Machine</b> and<b> Nerd HQ</b>
started by<b> Zachary Levi </b>from Chuck fame, I saw many of my favorite stars on
special panels created by Nerd HQ for their fans at the convention and those
fans who could not attend Comic Con this year. They streamed the panels live and late on they posted them on <b>You Tube </b>and <b>Nerd HQ</b>. It was like being there live.Here is an example from the Dr. Who Panel. Set your video slide bar to 2:32.</span><br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/dXausp-UdL8?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Now, I have been following
Zachary Levi and his friends from Nerd HQ and The Nerd Machine<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>for the past two two years but it has been around
for three. I missed the first year.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">So,… what is Nerd HQ? </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">For the past </span><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;">three</span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"> </span><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;">years</span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">, <b>Zachary Levi</b> has masterminded </span><b><span style="color: #0b5394;"><a href="http://www.thenerdmachine.com/nerd-hq/" target="_hplink"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Nerd HQ</span></a></span></b><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">, an epic gathering for fans and
celebrities to play games, buy merchandise, recharge their literal and
metaphorical batteries and engage in "</span><b><a href="http://www.thenerdmachine.com/nerd-hq/conversations-for-a-cause/" target="_hplink"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Conversations
for a Cause</span></a></b><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"><b>"</b>
during Comic-Con weekend. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">The coolest thing about Nerd HQ for fans has always been <span style="color: #990000;">Conversations for a Cause</span>. This venue offers fans a
special kind of intimacy and interaction with their favorite celebrities. This
year the event is held at Petco Park, the home baseball stadium of San Diego's
Padres, and the bigger venue comes with more opportunities for geek goodness
over the course of the weekend.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">The
venue holds 250 seats at a cost of about $20 which if every seat is filled
comes to about $5000. This money goes to <span style="color: #0b5394;"><a href="http://www.operationsmile.org/"><b>Operation Smile</b></a></span> an international charity for children, made up of medical
professionals and caring hearts who provide safe, effective reconstructive
surgery and related medical care for children born with facial deformities such
as cleft lip and cleft palate. The $5000 equates to about 20 surgery’s for
children born with facial deformities such as cleft lip and cleft palate</span></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;"><br />
</span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">Not only do you get an hour long panel with some
of your favorite TV and Movie celebrities but your money goes to a great charity
to help children. Here are the few panels I've seen so far.</span></span><br />
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<a href="http://youtu.be/5kAgdwpgk6A"><img alt="joe m1" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-10041" height="200" src="http://www.thenerdmachine.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/joe-m1.jpg" style="border: 0px none;" width="186" /></a> <a href="http://youtu.be/EUMiIbadFLc"><img alt="haven1" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-10043" height="200" src="http://www.thenerdmachine.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/haven1.jpg" style="border: 0px none;" width="186" /></a> <a href="http://youtu.be/t6IQgLBaSV4"><img alt="joss" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-10023" height="200" src="http://www.thenerdmachine.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/joss.jpg" style="border: 0px none;" width="186" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://youtu.be/dXausp-UdL8"><img alt="drwho1" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-10068" height="200" src="http://www.thenerdmachine.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/drwho1.jpg" style="border: 0px none;" width="186" /></a> <a href="http://youtu.be/Sg5SLGZ80ms"><img alt="evalilly1" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-10135" height="200" src="http://www.thenerdmachine.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/evalilly1.jpg" width="186" /></a> <a href="http://youtu.be/kqiWrGw36ZM"><img alt="jaredandjensen" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-10170" height="200" src="http://www.thenerdmachine.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/jaredandjensen.jpg" width="186" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://youtu.be/njhsxrm9Cpo"><img alt="nathan5" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-10110" height="200" src="http://www.thenerdmachine.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/nathan5.jpg" width="186" /></a> <a href="http://youtu.be/CxS5MXPy-_Y"><img alt="psych" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-10028" height="200" src="http://www.thenerdmachine.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/psych.jpg" style="border: 0px none;" width="186" /></a></div>
Starships and Dragonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01072114298176711676noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2027228698697606983.post-68945574535753640332013-07-24T21:07:00.004-07:002013-07-28T11:21:23.295-07:00A New Star Trek fan series that is the closest I have ever seen to the Original.<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 18.0pt;">"Open
a Channel, Lt Uhura", is the famous line spoken by Captain Kirk in the
old Star Trek Television series to communicate with anyone and everyone
during the run of the show which now can only be heard in reruns and fan
driven productions.</span></span><br />
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<a href="http://www.blastr.com/sites/blastr/files/styles/blog_post_media/public/startrekcontinuescast.jpg?itok=8Z3YKwxA" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" height="400" src="http://www.blastr.com/sites/blastr/files/styles/blog_post_media/public/startrekcontinuescast.jpg?itok=8Z3YKwxA" title="" width="640" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-outline-level: 1;">
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 18.0pt;">I hope by now everyone (the two of you who read this blog) know I love fan
driven projects that are well made. One example is Bat in the Sun’s “Batman…City
of Scars and Felicia Day’s Dragon Age: Redemption Series to name a few. I
have been following Star Trek: The Original Series fan projects for many years. I
appreciate their vision and hard work. Needless to say, you get accustom to the
quality of the work which for the most part is pretty good. I was satisfied
with most of the attempts made to bring back the original until now. <b>Holy mackerel</b>,
I could not believe my eyes. A new fan based Star Trek: TOS that has the look
and feel of the old Star Trek and the cast is pretty good as well. However, do not listen to
me, here is<b> Dan Roth’s article on Blastr</b>…the online magazine for SYFY and his opinion on this new fan series.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-outline-level: 1;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-outline-level: 1;">
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 18.0pt;"><b>Side Note: </b>Dan Roth </span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">is SYFY’s local
expert on funny books and campy, classic sci-fi. He has also had the good fortune to
write for <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/doctorwho/s4/features/stories/adventure_091217_01">Doctor</a>
<a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/doctorwho/s4/features/stories/adventure_091223_01">Who</a>
and <a href="http://www.comicvine.com/angel-yearbook-yearbook/37-273012/">Angel</a>.
He also writes a web comic. </span></span></div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-outline-level: 1;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 24.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 18.0pt;">Blastr</span></b></span></span></div>
</blockquote>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<h3>
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><b><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 18.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 18.0pt;">This new
Star Trek fan series is the closest we've ever seen to the original.</span></b></span></h3>
</blockquote>
</div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><a href="http://www.blastr.com/author/dan-roth">Dan Roth</a></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Friday, July 12, 2013 - 12:37pm</span></span></div>
</blockquote>
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> Lots of people try to make
fan versions of Trek. None of them look like this.</span><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">To be totally honest,
whenever there's another attempt by a fan group to continue the adventures of
Kirk, Spock, et al., my eyes instantly glaze over. Maybe I'll give the trailer
a look, but I'm usually out in under a minute. Fan efforts just never really
approach the campy goodness of the original.</span></blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">But <i>Star Trek Continues</i>?
Friend, its warp nacelles are a cut above the rest. And if you're wondering why
it's so good, here's your answer -- pedigree.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Montgomery Scott is played by
Christopher Doohan. Name sound familiar? That's original Scotty, Jimmy Doohan's
son! How cool is that? And the ship's computer? Why, it's only played by
Counselor Deanna Troi, Marina Sirtis, herself!</span></blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Then there's the pilot
episode, wherein the producers decided, "Hey, let's do a sequel to <i>Who Mourns for Adonais?</i>"
Oh, and while we're at it, let's get the actor who played Apollo in that
classic episode to come back and reprise the role.</span></blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">If this sounds like
overselling, so be it. But, man, this just feels like Star Trek in a way I've
never seen from a fan series before. The only thing? The first episode's a
whopping 50 minutes long. So here's what I recommend -- do what I normally do,
throw it on for a minute and see how the show strikes you.</span></blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/3G-ziTBAkbQ?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> And then let us know in the
comments if you were as taken with it as I was.</span> </blockquote>
Starships and Dragonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01072114298176711676noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2027228698697606983.post-75169531025089681972013-06-29T17:47:00.002-07:002013-09-16T05:43:00.599-07:00Vexile & Everyday Life<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/proxy/AVvXsEhABMOLprMxZfjm6y16BoUoFhmxtS6hW4mclqQlU_mKVs6xcpy3JHMiPB-lBe_f8bt1lSR7cVefpk8iMsUENaG2V5LVj0ZjofEOr3PWXiMicNd4yuLQ0KFRhmB2YA12cYjFPlw2poXZ9I4zrJy_ADnlAdosNOw=" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/518t9dQeY5L.jpg" height="200" width="146" /></a>I was watching "Vexille" today and it brought some pretty crazy notions in my head.<br />
For those of you who have never seen the movie, A highly trained U.S. secret agent attempts to investigate the changes Japan has undergone in a 10 year seclusion from the rest of the world.<br />
Japan turns out to have created a bunch of androids to take America.<br />
Don't worry I'm careful I won't spoil anything big, but I do suggest you go watch it for yourselves. <br />
America is so advanced that it looks like something out of Stargate Atlantis, and I thought to myself "you know that's what the U.S. is probably gonna look like in a while longer." This seemed really cool at first, but then the movie shows Japan as a biomechanic wasteland.<br />
When you think about it, biomechanics is not a new concept to America or Japan... Kinda got me thinking... In ten twenty years time who knows maybe Vexille could be reality.<br />
That's the beauty of science fiction... Science is readily evolving...<br />
<br />
Therefore it can never truly be fiction.<br />
<br />
<br />
Darian Wolfe
<!-- Blogger automated replacement: "https://images-blogger-opensocial.googleusercontent.com/gadgets/proxy?url=http%3A%2F%2Fecx.images-amazon.com%2Fimages%2FI%2F518t9dQeY5L.jpg&container=blogger&gadget=a&rewriteMime=image%2F*" with "https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/proxy/AVvXsEhABMOLprMxZfjm6y16BoUoFhmxtS6hW4mclqQlU_mKVs6xcpy3JHMiPB-lBe_f8bt1lSR7cVefpk8iMsUENaG2V5LVj0ZjofEOr3PWXiMicNd4yuLQ0KFRhmB2YA12cYjFPlw2poXZ9I4zrJy_ADnlAdosNOw=" -->Starships and Dragonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01072114298176711676noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2027228698697606983.post-50709892275721436922013-06-24T07:31:00.000-07:002013-06-24T07:44:53.974-07:00Celebrating WoW With Jimmy Fallon and the World of Warcraft <div style="text-align: center;">
<b>Celebrating WoW With Jimmy Fallon and the World of Warcraft</b></div>
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<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/8nk9XoiWGQg?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
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With some help from Felicia Day, Chris Hardwick and Warcraft players all
around the world, Jimmy celebrates one of the best video games of all
time. Now as a novice, I find the World Of Warcraft mythos a little daunting. so here is a little history of World of Warcraft.<br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLXSmSkf9k_t0TNmPKnP20InVS8jtkmq1dtQVqATflXJygI4LgcLzqAYV18W1QV7FXy6w0ThF1-0U-MD0d7Gu9ireR5Kgi8Z7LMapfeTeic8KcA3UbnIXeL-QoPM5-m09ep9oQe0uYpgwr/s1600/WoW_Box_Art1.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLXSmSkf9k_t0TNmPKnP20InVS8jtkmq1dtQVqATflXJygI4LgcLzqAYV18W1QV7FXy6w0ThF1-0U-MD0d7Gu9ireR5Kgi8Z7LMapfeTeic8KcA3UbnIXeL-QoPM5-m09ep9oQe0uYpgwr/s1600/WoW_Box_Art1.jpg" /></a><i><b>"World of Warcraft</b></i> (<i><b>WoW</b></i>)
is a massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) by
Blizzard Entertainment. It is the fourth released game set in the
fantasy <i>Warcraft</i> universe, which was first introduced by <i>Warcraft: Orcs & Humans</i> <i>World of Warcraft</i> takes place within the <i>Warcraft</i> world of Azeroth, approximately four years after the events at the conclusion of Blizzard's previous <i>Warcraft</i> release, <i>Warcraft III: The Frozen Throne.</i> Blizzard Entertainment announced <i>World of Warcraft</i> on September 2, 2001. The game was released on November 23, 2004, on the 10th anniversary of the <i>Warcraft</i> franchise. "Wikipedia </blockquote>
So what is MMORPG? <br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<b>Massively multiplayer online role-playing game</b> (<b>MMORPG</b>) is a genre of role-playing video games or web browser based games in which a very large number of players interact with one another within a virtual game world.<br />
As in all <b>RPGs,</b> (Role playing games) players assume the role of a character (often in a fantasy world or science-fiction world) and take control over many of that character's actions. MMORPGs are distinguished from single-player or small multi-player online RPGs by the number of players, and by the game's persistent world (usually hosted by the game's publisher), which continues to exist and evolve while the player is offline and away from the game." Wikipedia</blockquote>
Next...
why play World of Warcraft? Thanks to Mila Kunis on Jimmy Kimmel's
late night talk show she shares her excitement for the game which seems
to overflow to everyone. Like all celebrities there are pitfalls as she
shares with Kimmel.<br />
<br />
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</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/mI8WT3lVe80?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
To
find out more about World of Warcraft you can go to link below, Beginners Guide to Wow, where I started. If you are a pro at WOW....just enjoy the Mila Kunis
video clip.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #990000;"><b><a href="http://us.battle.net/wow/en/game/guide/"> Beginner's Guide -What is World of Warcraft</a></b></span></div>
</div>
<br />
Dragon OneStarships and Dragonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01072114298176711676noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2027228698697606983.post-6521127739729793472013-05-29T12:18:00.001-07:002013-05-29T12:20:27.486-07:00Fatality Fest comes to West Palm Beach 6/7-9/13<div style="margin: 0in 35.1pt 0.0001pt 31.5pt; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><b>Coming to West Palm Beach</b></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 31.5pt; margin-right: 35.1pt; margin-top: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibvsWnHuraxCYbTZDEBpKz_M0v9MJkXu2WDMwDvGoRdeRTdH0u4RrjKBJDt5SHtQT1B58kiiOi2497xY95zzETLIRb5bLRJr4tqN9Ra8CnhNtRygGcn0Dhvy-6q_OXob8VhcLPtAOJNGea/s1600/65218938.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="333" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibvsWnHuraxCYbTZDEBpKz_M0v9MJkXu2WDMwDvGoRdeRTdH0u4RrjKBJDt5SHtQT1B58kiiOi2497xY95zzETLIRb5bLRJr4tqN9Ra8CnhNtRygGcn0Dhvy-6q_OXob8VhcLPtAOJNGea/s400/65218938.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 31.5pt; margin-right: 35.1pt; margin-top: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 31.5pt; margin-right: 35.1pt; margin-top: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">It is horrifically awesome to find out that there will be a Horror
Convention in West Palm Beach, Florida on June 7th to the 9th. Fatality
Fest looks to be awesome with a great assortment of guests. You can check it
out on Facebook and Twitter. Join in on all the comments and conversations
about this event. The young men and women of Starships and Dragons (our science
fiction and fantasy club at my school) are making plans right now to attend
this event<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 31.5pt; margin-right: 35.1pt; margin-top: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 31.5pt; margin-right: 35.1pt; margin-top: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">The guest line up looks tremendous with Christopher Judd, Ernie
Hudson, Scott Spiegel, Dee Wallace, Judith Shekoni and one of my all time
favorite actors and villain, Vern Wells just to name a few. I plan to sit down
this weekend and will try to revisit as many of their movies as I can
before the convention. I guess it is true what they say...No rest for the
wicked.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 31.5pt; margin-right: 35.1pt; margin-top: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">The myriad of events at this year’s convention appears to be blood
curdling fun for everyone. Friday afternoon starts with the Fatality Fest
Pre-Party Zombie Walk from 1pm to 4 pm at the Mellow Mushroom. During the
convention there will be a multitude of activities such as, The Fatality Fear
Fest Film-making Competition, Silent Auction, Screening Room of an endless
array of Horror classics and sub classics, Main Hall activities and much more.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 31.5pt; margin-right: 35.1pt; margin-top: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 31.5pt; margin-right: 35.1pt; margin-top: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">To get a head of the game click on this link and check out<a href="http://www.fatalityfest.com/"><span style="color: black;"> </span><b><i><span style="color: orange;">Fatality
Fest</span></i></b></a> for yourself. I’ll see you there.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
Starships and Dragonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01072114298176711676noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2027228698697606983.post-63092752520064088152013-04-29T15:27:00.001-07:002013-04-30T12:16:09.936-07:00Protoss: The First Born<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgg1iqPDabpBgKp3I5WmiIw70S3dd2oI8NphudH3fm1K6mYsPknq_Z0DtPVEpll68xxXmDrRR6so6gf2k9Gar4eKwEsvfX_zM7tKdT4w_SEVS8vs3r-8y-QVbeJi98Cg8HSWpzVuxu9rCfD/s1600/e708_protoss.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgg1iqPDabpBgKp3I5WmiIw70S3dd2oI8NphudH3fm1K6mYsPknq_Z0DtPVEpll68xxXmDrRR6so6gf2k9Gar4eKwEsvfX_zM7tKdT4w_SEVS8vs3r-8y-QVbeJi98Cg8HSWpzVuxu9rCfD/s320/e708_protoss.jpg" width="270" /></a><i>Hey peeps, its Gil again. I hope you enjoyed my last post on the Space Marines as much </i><i>as I did writing it. It’s rather fun to enlighten people about the lore of the many races that </i><i>people love in the sci-fi and fantasy worlds. This is why I have chosen my next project to</i><br />
<i>be on the Protoss, from StarCraft. For a RTS (real time strategy) gaming juggernaut such </i><i>as the StarCraft franchise, you would figure that the many geeks and nerds that flock to </i><i>it in droves would know EVERYTHING about its 3 races. Sadly this isn’t the case; some </i><i>people couldn’t even tell you that En Taro Adun is the Protoss greeting! Good thing I’m</i><br />
<i>here… well let’s get started :P</i><br />
<br />
<b>"Stay alert people, these guys play hardball."</b><br />
<b><br /></b>
<b>- Jim Raynor, while alerting his men on the approach of hostile</b><br />
<b>Protoss.</b><br />
<br />
The Protoss are a sapient humanoid race native to Aiur. Their advanced technology complements and enhances their psionic mastery. Alongside the Zerg and Terrans, the Protoss stand as one of the three dominant species of the Milky Way, (not to be confused for OUR Milky Way Galaxy). The main Protoss cultural groups are the Khalai, who adhere to the communal Khala, and the Nerazim, who reject the Khala. In addition, another branch of the protoss separate from the Khala called the Tal'darim lives in various places in the galaxy.<br />
<br />
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Protoss are about two meters to three meters tall and have two glowing eyes, digitigrade legs, semi-permeable skin covered in scales, four digits on their hands (of which two are thumbs) and toes, broad chests and shoulders, and narrow waists with slim midsections. As in humans, coloration is considered a sign of ethnicity, with each protoss tribe having a specific subtly differing hue or typical pattern of markings associated with it. Also, Protoss blood can be blue or purple. Extending back from the crown of the head<br />
, Protoss have a bony crest. Beneath it, emerging from the back of the head, are thenerve cords, allowing them to access their racial psionic gestalt. This gestalt is the basis of the Khala or, “Path of Ascension”, the main religion of the Protoss. A protoss' average life expectancy is lengthy; Raszagal, age 1045, was considered old. Protoss under 300 years rarely have any significant political positions. Artanis, who was 262 years old during the Brood War, is considered young, despite his<br />
powerful military position.<br />
<br />
The Protoss were discovered by the Xel'Naga (a psionically-attuned, ancient, cosmic race that were believed to be the most powerful beings in the entire universe) on the planet Aiur, a world the Xel'Naga<br />
had previously engineered. The Xel'Naga, nearing the end of their life cycle, were in need of a race to achieve purity of form, and intrigued by their mental connection, chose to use the Protoss. Pushing the<br />
evolution of the Protoss, the purity of form was achieved and the Xel'Naga eventually descended to Aiur. The Xel’Naga altered them to some extent with their Khaydarin crystals and a giant crystal<br />
beneath Aiur, even increasing their reproductive rate with the Kassia crystal, but were content to remain unseen for many generations. The Xel'Naga felt they had achieved their goal, and gave the new<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeIibzk6AAdZ5U78Ur2nwnR0AnYhJ0q9_M5f8v8PUVEBn30r5p2GNIw746bB7ukBQu-saDj9T2t5hOEvvI4QuQlXpRSd1ktI64iILNfQUM6-qA5GxV3SLJwneLZP4WZiwGCCooHK0R-bV7/s1600/protoss+4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="226" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeIibzk6AAdZ5U78Ur2nwnR0AnYhJ0q9_M5f8v8PUVEBn30r5p2GNIw746bB7ukBQu-saDj9T2t5hOEvvI4QuQlXpRSd1ktI64iILNfQUM6-qA5GxV3SLJwneLZP4WZiwGCCooHK0R-bV7/s320/protoss+4.jpg" width="320" /></a>race the name of "Protoss", or "the First Born". Aiur was eventually covered by civilized Protoss, and so the Xel'Naga descended onto Aiur in order to more closely study the evolution of their charges. A<br />
temple marked where they first set down upon Aiur. The Protoss, who revered the Xel'Naga as gods, learned much from them.<br />
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However, these discoveries divided the Protoss, causing their psychic links to disappear and wars to break out amongst them. The Xel'Naga left the planet as the Protoss fell into the Aeon of Strife, a massive civil war amongst the Protoss, earning the status of the "bloodiest, most violent civil war ever recorded in galactic history". The destructive civil war ended when the warrior Khas, using Xel’Naga artifacts, Khaydarin crystals, re-created the psionic link. It became the basis of a new philosophy called the Khala. Approximately 1500 by Terran reckoning, the Conclave, the ruling Protoss government that was established after the Aeon of Strife, attempted to exterminate rogue heretics, who would later become known as the Dark Templar, that had deliberately cut themselves off from the Khala. They ordered Executor Adun to execute them, but Adun refused, instead teaching the rogues to hide from the Conclave. Eventually the rogues lost control of their powers, alerting the Conclave. They were secretly banished on a Xel'Naga ship.<br />
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The Protoss’ archenemy is the Zerg, a hive mind species that were also created by the Xel’Naga. By 2499 the Protoss became aware of a xenomorphic threat, the Zerg, another alien species also created<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_jOsYknW12Et7nvAlk6f1ozutIkfxz09mtWCy2hyLNMJv0c5UomcBw6ofvs0nBAnzbezwNjkYHSdH9ZRo3dl78ip31MPGshzdzZ988WLtPmA_Ta25IBU2H-D7SZfHIQ3nv2MJEAXBRfw1/s1600/Starcraft-2-Protoss1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_jOsYknW12Et7nvAlk6f1ozutIkfxz09mtWCy2hyLNMJv0c5UomcBw6ofvs0nBAnzbezwNjkYHSdH9ZRo3dl78ip31MPGshzdzZ988WLtPmA_Ta25IBU2H-D7SZfHIQ3nv2MJEAXBRfw1/s320/Starcraft-2-Protoss1.jpg" width="320" /></a>by the Xel'Naga. The Zerg were attacking the Terrans, a species that had traveled to the Koprulu Sector two hundred years previously. The Conclave dispatched Tassadar and a force of Protoss to destroy the infestation by purifying the infested worlds. Tassadar's force failed in its mission, and the remnants traveled to the new Zerg home world, Char. There, Tassadar struck an alliance with the Dark Templar prelate, Zeratul. They discovered a weakness in the Zerg command structure that could be exploited only by the Dark Templar, and clashed with their new leader, a Zerg infested psychic known as Kerrigan. Meanwhile, the majority of the Zerg force traveled to Aiur and attacked the Protoss. The Protoss were losing the battle, but when Tassadar brought Zeratul to Aiur, a Protoss civil war broke out between Tassadar's followers and the followers of the Conclave.<br />
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Eventually Tassadar's faction won. Unimpeded by the Conclave, Tassadar's followers attacked the Zerg Overmind, the hive-mind and leader of the Zerg species. Tassadar died during the battle, but<br />
managed to kill the Overmind, only for a second one to be reborn. Almost the entire population of Aiur was killed in the conflict. The Protoss fled to Shakuras, followed by a Zerg faction. The Protoss<br />
destroyed the renegade Zerg, saving themselves, but advancing Kerrigan's aims. With the assistance of her enigmatic minion Samir Duran, she would later force the Protoss into destroying the second<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEH6Qsz0ONaYyF7LlJmN0QdINcumygDJ5KsgYkXeOAw07L489IBOK2G1nuV3LdFvAklERcJmZlWFhSvNB8UgDJRKlbUdGaF_mx3oE35yfMMj_0paHCgEE3hw0ffU-8rnGpFyNisYx8EamD/s1600/Protoss3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEH6Qsz0ONaYyF7LlJmN0QdINcumygDJ5KsgYkXeOAw07L489IBOK2G1nuV3LdFvAklERcJmZlWFhSvNB8UgDJRKlbUdGaF_mx3oE35yfMMj_0paHCgEE3hw0ffU-8rnGpFyNisYx8EamD/s320/Protoss3.jpg" width="320" /></a>Overmind for her, making her the sole leader of the Zerg Swarm. As the protoss attempted a revenge strike on Kerrigan, Duran abandoned her to conduct Protoss/Zerg hybridization experiments,<br />
which were discovered by Zeratul. Then later exiled himself for several years following the discovery; he now openly helps the Terran rebel Jim Raynor for he believes that he is the last hope the Milky Way has left. The current activities of the Protoss remain a mystery, though they have been sighted assisting humans and fighting Zerg across the sector. Now, only time will tell what will happen to the “First Born”.<br />
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Thanks for taking the time to read this guys. Can’t wait to write my next one! – Gil<br />
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Source(s): StarCraft.wikia.com and numerous forums on<br />
Blizzard.com for StarCraft.Starships and Dragonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01072114298176711676noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2027228698697606983.post-29602189118286933322013-03-30T13:58:00.000-07:002013-03-19T09:29:52.007-07:00International TableTop Day! <div id="watch-description-clip">
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Felicia Day of Geek and Sundy announced an amazing new gaming holiday, International Table Top Day! <br />
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Go <a class="yt-uix-redirect-link" dir="ltr" href="http://www.tabletopday.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" title="http://www.tabletopday.com">http://www.tabletopday.com</a> to find events near you, sign up, and stay tuned for awesome news and downloads. <br />
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Share using #TableTopDay. <br />
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Don't forget to subscribe (<a class="yt-uix-redirect-link" dir="ltr" href="http://goo.gl/B62jl" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" title="http://goo.gl/B62jl">http://goo.gl/B62jl</a>) to keep updated on everything TableTop and #TableTopDay!<br />
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Music: Kevin MacLeod, www.incompetech.com<br />
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-Dragon One </div>
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Starships and Dragonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01072114298176711676noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2027228698697606983.post-65792309074678749412013-03-21T16:58:00.004-07:002013-03-21T19:07:44.944-07:00S & L's Interview with R.A. Salvatore I was a massive fan of the Sword and Laser podcast long before it was a video podcast. Veronica Belmont and Tom Merritt are great advocates of Science Fiction and Fantasy. They spurred me on to sites like Goodreads (Blog/ Forum) and Geek and Sundry's where they joined Felicia Day. I truly appreciate their Monthly Book Club were I have been introduced to a vast number of great authors and novel I never knew. Now that the video podcast has reached their first year anniversary they have interviewed a number of great authors including R. A. Salvatore. Salvatore is author of 22 NYT Best Sellers, creator of Drizzt Do'Urden, and all
around fantasy genre luminary R.A. Salvatore joins Sword and Laser to talk about what's
next for the Drow Ranger, John Fogerty. Enjoy! Here is their interview with R. A. Salvatore.<br />
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<b>Sword and Laser posted these sites concerning R.A. Salvatore:</b><br />
Website: <a class="yt-uix-redirect-link" href="http://www.rasalvatore.com/">http://www.rasalvatore.com/</a><br />
Twitter: <a class="yt-uix-redirect-link" href="https://twitter.com/R_A_Salvatore">https://twitter.com/R_A_Salvatore</a><br />
Goodreads: <a class="yt-uix-redirect-link" href="http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1023510.R_A_Salvatore">http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/...</a></div>
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More on Bob's works:<br />
Forgotten Realms:<br />
The Icewind Dale trilogy: <a class="yt-uix-redirect-link" href="http://www.goodreads.com/series/49133">http://www.goodreads.com/series/49133</a><br />
The Dark Elf trilogy: <a class="yt-uix-redirect-link" href="http://www.goodreads.com/series/49135">http://www.goodreads.com/series/49135</a><br />
The Legacy of the Drow: <a class="yt-uix-redirect-link" href="http://www.goodreads.com/series/49177">http://www.goodreads.com/series/49177</a><br />
The Paths of Darkness: <a class="yt-uix-redirect-link" href="http://www.goodreads.com/series/49180">http://www.goodreads.com/series/49180</a><br />
The Sellswords: <a class="yt-uix-redirect-link" href="http://www.goodreads.com/series/40474">http://www.goodreads.com/series/40474</a><br />
The Hunter's Blades: <a class="yt-uix-redirect-link" href="http://www.goodreads.com/series/49178">http://www.goodreads.com/series/49178</a><br />
Transitions: <a class="yt-uix-redirect-link" href="http://www.goodreads.com/series/49181">http://www.goodreads.com/series/49181</a><br />
Neverwinter: <a class="yt-uix-redirect-link" href="http://www.goodreads.com/series/49183">http://www.goodreads.com/series/49183</a><br />
Original Series:<br />
The DemonWars Saga: <a class="yt-uix-redirect-link" href="http://www.goodreads.com/series/60432-the-demonwars-saga">http://www.goodreads.com/series/60432...</a><br />
The Crimson Shadow series:<a class="yt-uix-redirect-link" href="http://www.goodreads.com/series/41638-crimson-shadow">http://www.goodreads.com/series/41638...</a><br />
The Spearweilder's Tale: <a class="yt-uix-redirect-link" href="http://www.goodreads.com/series/42273-spearwielder-s-tale">http://www.goodreads.com/series/42273...</a><br />
The Chronicles of Ynis Aielle:<a class="yt-uix-redirect-link" href="http://www.goodreads.com/series/41845-the-chronicles-of-ynis-aielle">http://www.goodreads.com/series/41845...</a>Starships and Dragonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01072114298176711676noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2027228698697606983.post-55051960165313839062013-03-16T13:47:00.002-07:002013-03-19T09:26:48.959-07:00Character for Starships and Dragons Board Game<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisl8c8JsP73_sua36nknXLRm-j41UMaqAbYzAuQYlOIWEOp8KY0WJl-gBSTBUcfaaAroismK1RIrWew8YM9Yqxqblew8lEy-KIOj4iO9GeIWJ_R7fQxUwjsfXRlM69p38skaIwI6AjcXwY/s1600/Rilos_Centaur_of_Lemuria_by_OrlandoFalvo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="269" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisl8c8JsP73_sua36nknXLRm-j41UMaqAbYzAuQYlOIWEOp8KY0WJl-gBSTBUcfaaAroismK1RIrWew8YM9Yqxqblew8lEy-KIOj4iO9GeIWJ_R7fQxUwjsfXRlM69p38skaIwI6AjcXwY/s320/Rilos_Centaur_of_Lemuria_by_OrlandoFalvo.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lord Rilos of Lemuria</td></tr>
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This is a fantasy character that I created and it is one of the characters I will be submitting for the new board game that the Science Fiction and Fantasy Club students at my school are working on at this time. I am excited about it. The Club has a great vision for this project and I feel that I need to step it up. Since drawing is one of the things I do...not a master just a novice, I created, Lord Rilos of Lemuria. It is one of my favorite characters and sketches. Now, I just need to fill out my character development sheet. I am so behind on this project.<br />
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-Dragon One Starships and Dragonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01072114298176711676noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2027228698697606983.post-19543698923879430652013-03-12T21:45:00.000-07:002013-03-18T09:00:28.095-07:00By the Elder Scrolls:Dragonborn (with Spoilers) Part 2 <br />
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Continued......</div>
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As we get farther north, we see the territory shift to be more similar to the icy north of Skyrim.</div>
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There are glaciers and Horkers galore as well as Ice Wraiths and Spriggans.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Also we see more new enemies in the form small little tribal imps known as Reiklings.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They themselves are weak but can be dangerous in high numbers.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The only time they aver actually managed to kill me was when I was outnumbered 10 to 1.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Also they tend to ride on dangerous boars called Bristlebacks that have very strong charge attacks.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>All in all though, they aren’t tough.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One of the most interesting features that dot the northern terrain for me was a cave inhabited by a tribe of werewolves.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Because in my Skyrim game I am a werewolf, I was highly excited to see a werewolf outside the companions.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What really interested me were the unique rings they sold that enhanced my werewolf powers if I wore them upon transforming.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They had a variety of effects from self-healing, more damage, a power howl, and slowing time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Being a fan of the werewolf powers I thought that no other transforming power was better.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That is until I ran into the WereBEAR.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is as it sounds.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s like being a werewolf except you transform into a bear-man hybrid.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They are stronger than your normal rogue werewolf and far more dangerous.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To my current dismay, it is not currently possible to become one. </div>
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<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But enough of that, back to the main quest line.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In the north is also the Skaal village, a home to Nords that live off the land.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They are the only ones who are able to see through Miraak’s power and help you oppose him….Yeah that’s pretty much it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You free the people from Miirak with the shout “Bend Will”, get the souls of your killed dragons taken by Miraak half the time (really unfair) and then your ride a dragon through Apocrypha.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>While at first fun, it easily becomes dull because it is difficult to control properly and aim.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>From there you go and fight Miraak where we once again see the game hype up a weak boss that although fun to fight, serves no real challenge.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>How the fight works is that you lower Miraak’s health to near zero three times but with each time he absorbs a dragon to restore his strength.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Upon defeating him on the final time, Hermaeus Mora appears as a mass of tentacles and a giant floating eye (He does this multiple times throughout this story but doesn’t do anything significant).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He then proceeds to steal your much deserved final blow and kills Miraak himself.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Your reward for completing the Solstheim story line is a plethora of dragon souls and whatever Miraak has on his person, which was surprisingly weak and explains the disappointment I felt during the fight.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Miraak wore clothes fitting of a mage and even had a dragon priest mask that boosted his magicka.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>However, Miraak fought with a sword that drained stamina and a staff that created tentacles, which was never used while he was fighting even though it was equipped to him. </div>
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<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>While the main storyline for Solstheim is quick and shallow, everything else about the island is full of adventure and grandeur.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Dwarven ruins bring forth new styles of puzzle adventures and hold amazing treasures such as a Dwarven helmet that lets you use the steam attack that Dwarven Centurions use.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Another unique treasure is the ability to obtain a dwemer sphere and spider as a companion as you travel.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In the new ruins we also see another new enemy called the Dwarven Ballista, which shoots colossal crossbow bolts at the player that can pierce armor. </div>
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<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Along with Miraak we are given four other new dragon priests and three new dragon priest masks from them. Each of these new masks gives a boost and resilience to the three basic elements of magic found in the game.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The most interesting priest is Ahzidal.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Throughout his tomb are unique items that were previously owned by him and each have a one of a kind enchantment such as water walking and adding new spells to your arsenal.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The priest you don’t get a mask from, Vahlok, is interesting because he adds more back story to Miraak because he is the one who seals him away. However, all in all, the new dragon priests don’t really bring anything extravagant into the world of Elder Scrolls.</div>
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<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Hidden throughout Solstheim, is a unique variant of Stalhrim armor called Deathbrand armor.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is unique because it is stronger than normal Stalhrim armor and has enchantments that improve for every piece of Deathbrand armor you wear.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>After obtaining all the pieces , you go to the grave of its redguard owner and get two unique enchanted Scimtar named Bloodscythe and Soulrender.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Another unique armor is obtained by befriending Glover Mallory, the brother of your Thieves guild friend, Delvin Mallory.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Upon completing several quests for him, he gives you the key to his house.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Inside, you will find a set of Blackguard armor.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is pretty much stronger Thieves guild armor with improved enchantments.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The real point of interest is a letter in his house addressed to the Thieves Guild member, Sapphire.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In which we learn that he is Sapphire’s father and all the regrets of his life about not being there for her.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If this letter is given to Sapphire, she will give you an exquisite sapphire that has a base value of 5000 septims. </div>
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<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Dragonborn also introduces two of the toughest enemies in the game.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The first is an undead frost giant named Karstaag.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>After finding his skull in Glacial Cave, you can bring it to Castle Karstaag Ruins to fight his spirit.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Upon being awakened, he unleashes a blizzard and charges at you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Due to his incredible physical strength, he can kill you and send you flying in one hit.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He has the power to knock you down and kill you before you can even get up.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He is the only enemy in the game I haven’t beaten and is one I will try again to in the future.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is because victory over the undead frost giant gives you the power to summon him to aid you in combat.</div>
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<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The last thing added in Dragonborn is the Ebony Warrior.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He is a Redguard man who appears to the player upon reaching level 80(The player reaches Max level at 81).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He asks the player to give him an honorable death.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Afterwards the player meets him at his desired location and fights him to the death.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Being only level 74, I have not done this quest. However, he is a guaranteed challenge because he wears full Ebony armor, the third strongest heavy armor in the game. </div>
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<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To sum it all up, Dragonborn is not phenomenal for the reasons I expected.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The shallow main quest it added was fun but it could have been more.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What was phenomenal was all the new places, spell, weapons, and creatures that are encountered in the brand new land of Solstheim.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I give the whole DLC a 9/10 and consider it a must have.</div>
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-Brendon Green</div>
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Starships and Dragonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01072114298176711676noreply@blogger.com0