September 26, 2007
Troy from Voyages of Vanguard had me on his show again (thanks Troy!), and the topic of this episode was 5 cool things that we have seen in Vanguard. I figured I’d summarize them here as well, and also add screenshots, because trying to describe the amazing sights doesn’t compare to actually seeing them. So here are my top 5 cool things about Vanguard (in no particular order).
1. The epic feel of the world. If you are someone who has friends that you play with regularly, Vanguard will have you feeling like you’re doing big stuff right from the earliest levels. The questlines that you will come across have some neat twists and turns, with spectacular dungeons and creative encounters. From places like the Fallen Lyceum (check entries here and here), to the Pantheon of the Ancients, to Rakshasa Citadel, you are reminded of how large the world is.
Troy made an excellent point along these lines, saying that Vanguard has a vertical depth that is unmatched in current MMOs. Games like EQ and EQ2 have the “zone wall,” quality, and WoW’s seamless world still has that feeling that you are boxed in by natural terrain and sky. Here are a few screenshots of places in Telon where you get a sense of the immense height in the game:
First view that a Qalitharian or Mordebi sees upon entering the world. The Cliffs of Ghelgad overlooking Khal.
A view of Hathor Zhi, the newbie valley for dark elves.
Mount Stiirhad. I literally had to fly straight up to clear this volcano.
2. Flying mounts. If you are playing Vanguard and are trying to convince friends to give it a shot, give them 20 silver and take them to a flying mount vendor. There is nothing like suddenly realizing that you are off the ground and able to go anywhere you want in the game. I can’t wait for the flying mount quests to go live, and I am happy to see that they are revamping Ksavari Gulch, including a quest that has players doing fly-over raids using a wyvern mount. It’s great to have players be able to sample these flying mounts in their early levels.
3. Diplomacy. I just wrote a big piece on diplomacy recently, so I won’t repeat myself. But again, this is a feature in Vanguard that is unique to MMOs, and they’ve done a nice job of giving it a real purpose in the game.
4. This game is perfect for those who have a penchant for exploration. If you have the patience to really poke around the world, you will come across some subtle mysteries that, if you can figure them out, lead to fun encounters and some nice rewards. The darkspark event in Tar Janashir and the Cartheon conga line are two examples of this. You won’t get a huge icon over an NPCs head, or a giant quest box popping onto your screen. And you will start to think twice about odd looking things around you, because chances are that your instinct is correct, and there is more than meets the eye.
5. I like how I look! I’ve played EQ, EQ2, and WoW, and for the first time, I actually feel like a ranger. My gear matches (no rainbow EQ dye!), and has an attention to detail that is unlike the other games I’ve played. Right now I have armor that looks subdued, camouflaged, and ornamental. I look rangerly, important, and unique. What’s nice is that you can tell the difference between the lower level and higher level players, but everyone still looks good overall.
On top of that, when I’m in town, I can sport one of many sets of diplomacy outfits. When I’m harvesting, I sport my harvesting clothes (granted, the newbie harvesting clothes resemble a Rocky Balboa-style sweatsuit, but it’s not *that* bad). And when I’m crafting (which I never am), I don my leather apron and mitts as I work near the forge. It’s a small thing to some, but if you are trying to find an MMO that is immersive, this is an important factor.
This is just a quick highlight of some of the podcast discussion. There’s a lot more we talked about though, and you can find it over at Virginworlds. So check it out!
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September 19, 2007
Over the weekend, I did another podcast. Troy from the Virginworlds podcast, “Voyages of Vanguard,” was nice enough to have me on his show, and I had a great time talking about the top 5 things we’d like to see in Vanguard. If I have time this week, I’ll summarize mine and add in some screenshots of the places I referred to in the show. Our segment ran longer than expected (Ok, a LOT longer, but that was my fault!), so I’ll also be on the next episode he records. That one will focus on the top 5 cool things we’ve experienced in Vanguard.
Also, Darren from the Virginworlds podcast, “Shut up We’re Talking,” came out with a new episode this week, including a great discussion on whether bloggers are considered press. Sean from Brackish Waters was on the panel, and made some great comments, which you can also find over at his blog. This topic got me thinking, so I will toss out my thoughts on it later this week.
Lumio has been busy doing comics, both for Vanguard Vault, and now Ten Ton Hammer. His latest is called “Very Very Very High Performance,” and you can check out all his comics over at About Vanguard. Don’t forget to vote too!
Lastly Mmuugg of the Halgar server has been updating his Vanguard blog. He put in an entry recently about Game Update #2, and he now has an entry about the Infineum questline, called “The Fabric of Time.” He added in a gallery too, with some impressive screenshots. Check it out if you are into Vanguard!
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September 18, 2007
Parley!
National “Talk like a Pirate Day” is September 19th, and the timing is perfect, because I’ve been busy doing parleys myself. No, not the pirate kind, the diplomacy kind!
I haven’t written about my adventures in Vanguard lately, mainly because I haven’t done much adventuring. I’m still playing just as much, but I’ve been busy trying to get our guild hall constructed. Part of that effort – a big part of it actually – involves doing diplomacy parleys to gather up hundreds of pages, which are then turned in to the appropriate continental NPC for a commission that allows you to purchase the plot.
For those who aren’t familiar with diplomacy, it’s one of the three spheres in Vanguard (crafting and adventuring being the other two). It is a card-based strategy game within the game, and, if you have patience to learn it, can be very fun to play. I did a little checking around, and according to my very precise calculations, only about 7 % of the population has played diplomacy to level 5 (which is mainly the tutorial), and only 3 % has made it to level 7, which is when it really starts to get interesting. That’s too bad, because it’s a fresh and unique feature in Vanguard, and in MMO’s in general, and it deserves a closer look by the player population.
Having said that, I have had a love hate relationship with diplomacy. When I first started doing diplomacy, I had the constant urge to throw my wireless mouse across the room. There were markers moving all over, little dots coming and going, angry harp music blaring in my ears, and lots of rude gestures being thrown at me from the NPCs. I read somewhere that Steve Williams (Aruspex), the head guy for the diplomacy sphere, was a former science teacher, and that made complete sense to me. Diplomacy reminded me of science lab. I’m a cut to the chase kind of person – I don’t needs tutorials and instructions, just let me dive in and get to the end. That kind of mentality doesn’t work well for science labs (I think I had to do titration about 12 times before I finally gave up and actually read the lab instructions), and it doesn’t work well for diplomacy either.
I finally had a moment, though, where it all clicked. It was a Matrix moment. All of a sudden, the board made sense to me. It didn’t look like scrolling green numbers and letters, or colored dots, in thic case. I could SEE the game. I was able to figure it out because A) I had to in order to help the guild with the guild hall plot quest and B) I got a lot of help from guildies (Thanks Faunis!)
If you are someone who hasn’t tried out diplomacy yet, or if you tried it and gave up in frustration, I’d recommend a couple of things. First of all, make sure to visit the VG Tact site. It’s the best diplomacy site, not only for the amount of information, but also because it’s so nicely organized. You can find answers to any diplomacy question there in a matter of seconds. Also check out this post over in their forums, because it gives a nice perspective on what to do as you level up. The other thing I’d recommend is to join the dip channel (/join dip). Diplomats seem to be overwhelmingly positive and more than willing to answer questions.
Why bother doing diplomacy? There are several good reasons why you should try now, and the list is growing with every game update. High level diplomats are finding that they have lots of new best friends all of a sudden. Once you’ve figured out the mechanics of diplomacy, here are ways to use it in game:
Civic Parleys - If you see a marker board in the center of a town or outpost, it means you can do civic diplomacy with various NPCs in that area. Civic NPCs usually require you to have a certain amount of presence before they will parley with you, which you can get from doing parleys or from the many choices of diplomacy clothing. Doing civic diplomacy can trigger levers in the town or outpost, which will provide various citywide buffs. In addition, doing civic parleys rewards you with information, which is turned in to informant NPCs for some nice rewards. Lastly, if you are in a guild that is planning to buy a plot, you’ll want to become intimately familiar with civic diplomacy. The commission that’s needed to purchase the plot requires tons and tons of information pages, from every tier of diplomacy skill. Set up a sharp deck and make sure to do the 7′s and 0s!
Revelry and Honor, just after we turned in our civic information pages to the Sultan of Ahgram for our guild hall plot commission.
Bartender Parleys - You can also engage bartenders in parleys, which give you experience as well as rewards that vary from expendable stat items, to riftway shards, to clothing, and even diplomacy cards.
Here’s Faunis showing off a rare reward from a recent bartender parley – The Officer’s Hookah.
Diplomacy Quests - There are a few different types of quests that involve diplomacy. There are tutorial quests, which are a must-do for any new diplomat. Visit your starting area to find your diplomacy trainer and get your tutorial quests. These instruct you on the mechanics of diplomacy, and they also give you a nice storyline about your particular race’s background. As you explore Telon, you will also come across many other diplomacy quests, including some nice ones that give out rewards like diplomacy cards and mounts. Again, check out VG Tact for a full list of quests.
There are also diplomacy “Web Quests,” which are more lengthy questlines that involve travel to various locations throughout Telon. These were added to the game after launch, and are nice for the lower to mid level diplomats who want to parley and explore at the same time. As you work through a web quest, you can get some nice clothing rewards that are upgraded the further down the line you go.
The New Targonor Noble Houses - If you are a higher level diplomat (I believe it’s level 30 and up, with a high presence), you can work on parleys at one of several Noble Houses in New Targonor. As you increase faction you can acquire coins, which are then used to purchase various types of items. See VG Tact for a full rundown.
Here is Drax showing off a sword he got from House Hilthorn. Yes, those are sparklies floating around the sword, and it certainly sends a clear message when doing parleys!
And here he is, showing off some beautiful barding from House Hilthorn.
Faction - A side benefit from doing parleys is that you are also building up faction with the nearest city. This can help if you’re trying to become non-kos in a particular area. I worked on some parleys recently in Lomshir, and I was actually increasing my Pankor Zhi faction. So someday, I’ll be able to walk around safely among the dark elves.
Rewards - Speaking of rewards, if you’re someone who likes to stand out in a crowd, diplomacy gear has some of the most interesting clothing and items around, which not only look cool, but can sometimes be very useful. For example, if you plan to be a career diplomat, one thing you want to make sure to do is work on building up your prestige. Prestige is basically diplomacy faction, and when you reach 1,000 prestige in a particular city, you can turn it in for a title. If you can reach 1,000 in all nine prestige centers (Khal, Ahgram, Pankor Zhi, Martok, Tanvu, Cai’al Brael, Bordinar’s Cleft, Leth Nurae, and New Targonor) you earn the title of Exemplar of All Telon, as well as the stat-heavy Sign of the Exemplar of All Telon. I know this because Faunis has linked his every night since he got it.
Faunis, sporting the Sign of the Exemplar of All Telon. More sparklies!
Adventure Content - Right now, I believe there is really only one adventuring dungeon where diplomacy comes in handy, and that’s in Nusibe Necropolis, a level 45-50 dungeon. If you have a high level diplomat in your group, he can disable certain traps inside, making your dungeon crawl much easier. However, there are more plans for diplomacy to be in dungeons and raid content in the future. The upcoming release of Ancient Port Warehouse is supposed to include gnomes that provide helpful raid buffs if you can beat them in a parley. Personally, I’m against talking to gnomes, but if it helps a raid I guess it must be done.
In the future, there has been talk of allowing diplomats to parley with the dead, which would give an adventuring diplomat a chance at new rewards. There’s even been mention of diplomats being able to give out quests to other players down the road.
For now, I’ll be happy just filling up my wardrobe with cool clothes and weird items.
(Thanks for Faunis for help with the dip details)
Happy Pirate Day! Now go talk like one!
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September 13, 2007
Darren from The Common Sense Gamer tagged me with one of those horribly lame “tell us about yourself” games. I hate these, but since I already have a witchcraft site breathing down my neck, I figured I’d better answer it. I have visions of some Candyman thing if I don’t.
Four jobs I have had in my life (not including current job):
1) Taught high school history
2) Coached high school softball and basketball
3) Camp counselor at a nature center
4) Sneaker salesperson at Lady Foot Locker (yes, I wore one of those green and white striped shirts)
Four Movies I have watched over and over:
1) Star Wars (Who doesn’t!)
2) Apocalypse Now (Maybe not over and over, but way more than any normal person should)
3) Kill Bill Vol 1 (wiggle your big toe)
4) Pretty much any kids movie that my kids like. If you have kids, you know that anything they like they have to watch about 2385903852396 times. Right now “A Bugs Life” is in the power rotation.
Four places I have lived:
1) Hamden, CT
2) Waterville, ME
3) Quebec City, Quebec
4) Franklin, MA
Four Shows I love to watch:
1) Hell’s Kitchen
2) Man Vs Wild, until I found out Bear was a big faker. 
3) Real World (Any location)
4) Miami Vice (Crockett and Tubbs – coolest duo ever)
Four Places I have been on vacation:
1) Martinique (best lunch I ever had, followed by one of the best beach walks I ever had)
2) Allagash River, Maine/Canada (best canoe/camping ever. Just steer clear of the moose!)
3) Vegas!
4) Canyon de Chelly, Arizona (wading across the wash to see the cliffside ruins and petroglyphs was unreal)
Four of my favorite foods:
1) Boiled Maine Lobster
2) Veal Marsala
3) Spider Roll from the sushi bar
4) Anything with cilantro
Four favorite drinks:
1) Coke
2) Prickly Pear Lemonade
3) Merlot
4) Orange Soda with crushed ice (has to have crushed ice)
Four places I would rather be right now:
1) Silver Beach in Milford, CT with my two kids
2) Playing Vanguard
3) Doing pretty much anything with the kids (zoo, playground, berry picking, running around like maniacs)
4) On a white sand beach sipping a gigantic fruity drink with a paper umbrella (like who doesn’t)
Four People I Command to do This:
I really don’t have any internet friends, and I can’t bring myself to force anyone to do this anyway. So…I command no one! Thanks Darren, this was the lamest thing I have ever done. Now give me that bow back you sonofabee!
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September 13, 2007
Time to lighten things up again!
Every now and then, I look over the blog stats and stuff. It’s fun to see which other guilds and various fansites link to here. Last week, though, two sites in particular made me puff up my chest in pride!
The first one was a link from 1UP.com the big MMO news site. They do a weekly “Massive Update,” and last week they included my blog in the roundup. Here’s what they said of my Xenn dungeon write up:
- Journeys With Jaye – Jaye describes a long quest chain stretching across a series of islands and into the depths of a temple. You have to respect anyone that can make Vanguard sound like fun.
You have to respect anyone that can make Vanguard sound like fun. I smell a new motto!
Being linked by 1UP was really neat, but I knew I had finally made it big when I saw that I was hotlinked by….A Portuguese Witchcraft site! I kid you not. Under a entry about grimoires, spells, and freaky deaky mind control, was a screenshot of mine from the Fallen Lyceum. Suffice it to say, I’m now sleeping with one eye open!
I even had some GM attention recently. While I was running through Ahgram, I noticed GM Ichig, and stopped to gawk, as I always do with GMs, since they always have such cool armor and toys.
All of a sudden he says, “Jaye from Journeys with Jaye?” I was so surprised he knew my blog that I said something really dorky and ran off. I just hope he didn’t see my spam prank tells to guildies about my “fast livery.”
Gotta go work on my spell casting now…..and my portuguese!
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September 11, 2007
I saw on Dale Roe’s site that Captain Patrick Brown did not receive a tribute last year, which really surprised me. Captain Brown seemed to be the perfect American Hero – U.S. Marine, Vietnam war veteran, Gold Gloves boxer, 6 time marathoner, black belt karate instructor, and even one of Manhattan’s “most eligible bachelors.”
Patrick “Paddy” Brown was meant to be a firefighter. As a kid, he used to listen to fire calls on his scanner and would spend as much time at the local fire house as he could. When he returned from his service in Vietnam, he worked his way into the New York City Fire Department, and eventually made it to Ladder 3 in Manhattan.
On September 11th, he helped to lead about 25,000 civilians to safety out of the North Tower at the World Trade Center. It is believed that Captain Brown and other firefighters were on the 40th floor of the World Trade Center, helping dozens of severly burned victims, when the North Tower fell.
Captain Brown’s remains were finally found on December 14, 2001. His family scattered his remains on a jogging path in Central Park. Later, the Captain Patrick J Brown Walk would be constructed along the East River on Avenue C near his Stuyvesant apartment. The story of his recovery was made into a documentary, titled “Finding Paddy.” There is also a memorial web site dedicated to his memory, which has raised money to support established charities that assist firefighters, their families, members of the Armed Forces. The site can be found here – The Patrick Brown Memorial Foundation.
One of his bravest rescues was in May, 1991. He and his fellow firefighters charged into a 12 story burning building to save two people that were trapped on the top floors. There was no way to reach them by foot, so he organized a rope rescue from the roof to pull them to safety. He recalled the event in July, 2001.
This guy was going to jump any minute, any minute. Even thinking of it now, 10 years later, I get all upset. As a lieutenant, I could have said that we aren’t doing this. And the guy would have died. I could have said that it’s too dangerous, and nobody would have said a word. If I had finagled around and said, “Break the wall so we can tie off and have a safety line,” he would have been gone. The victim was four or five feet below, looking up at me. It was either let’s do it or let’s not. I just said, I know we can do it.
At Captain Brown’s memorial service on November 9th, 2001, Firefighter Mike Moran, from Brown’s Ladder Company 3, did the eulogy. Here’s part of the wonderful tribute:
On the morning of Sept. 11th, enemies of the United States attacked the World Trade Center. Their followers rejoiced, they even danced in the streets. They thought they had achieved success. But they did not.
They made the mistake on the morning of Sept. 11th, when all they saw when they looked at the WTC was 2 buildings. What they failed to see was the nation that stood behind them. What they failed to understand was the terrible resolve they had awakened.
And if there is justice in the afterlife, and I believe there is…..
Those fanatics who crashed those planes into the WTC did NOT get to meet Allah. They did NOT get 70 virgins. Instead, they met Patrick J. Brown. And they discovered they messed with the wrong Marine.
In remembrance of Captain Patrick John Brown, age 48, New York City.
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September 11, 2007
*Note* This is the tribute I wrote last year for the 2,996 Project. I’m bumping it here to remember him on the 6th anniversary of 9/11.
Today I am devoting my blog to join thousands of other bloggers in paying tribute to each of the 2,996 victims of the 9/11 attacks. The blog tributes were organized by Dale Roe, and with his efforts, every victim has an assigned blogger who will pay tribute. When I heard about this project, I immediately signed up, and I was assigned to write about Joseph Zaccoli.
Around 7:30 AM on the morning of September 11th, 2001, Joseph Zaccoli arrived at his office on the 104th floor of One World Trade Center, where he worked for Cantor-Fitzgerald as a bonds broker.
His day was to be like any other — catch the early train from Long Island, put in a hard days work with the company he loved, and get home in time to be with the family he loved even more. His daughter was about to have her 11th birthday. His wife, Helen, had just started a job teaching theology at Kellenberg Memorial High School. Basketball season was just around the corner, and he loved coaching his kids’ basketball teams. “Shooter,” as he was nicknamed, had the best shot in the family. And while summer was over, he always got the most of it during the family vacations to the beach.
A little over an hour after he arrived at work, American Airlines Flight 11 struck his building, between the 94th and 98th floors. Joe was trapped above. He couldn’t get in touch with his wife, but he did reach his father-in-law, Neil Griffin. He said, “‘call my wife and go pick up my kids. I’m OK now. I’ll do everything I can.”
His body was recovered 6 days later, and amazingly, his wedding ring was also recovered and returned to his wife. The inscription on his ring said, “Till death.” His wife’s said, “Till us part.”
As his brother-in-law, Christopher Griffin, said of him, he was a “devoted father, wonderful husband to my sister, extraordinary sense of humor, a man who persevered.” Every morning, he would bring muffins and coffee to his wife. Every year, he would send roses to his mother. He was very involved with his children, especially their sports teams.
His brother-in-law, Ray, wrote a tribute of 100 words for Joe:
Man, son, husband, father, Daddy, brother, uncle, coach, friend, family man, in-law, practical joker, loud laugher, maniac with a vacuum, sharp dresser, pizza lover, bagel buyer, muffin getter, movie lover, movie dialogue memorizer (sometimes over did it), wallet loser, wallet finder, composure keeper, Ocean City boogie-boarder, summer crew cut wearer, nothing but netter, carrot cake devourer, hoops lover, book reader, life of the party, number cruncher, Knick ticket getter, loved his wife, but drove her crazy, bargain hunter, real estate mogul, Survivor in our hearts, special to us all, we miss you, we love you, we’ll never forget you
In Remembrance of Joseph Zaccoli, Age 39, Valley Stream, New York
Sources used:
September 11th Victims
Cantor Fitzgerald Families Memorial
Newdsay
September 11th Memorial
Wall of Americans
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