Runaway New Pet

Note: This article has been corrected - August 10th

A new pet, The Runaway Poppy, will allow its owners to gain extra Platinum Medals.

That's at patch 2.6, starting August 3rd.

There is a small chance of obtaining Platinum Medals from the gifts that the pet gives in response to feeding.

It eats snacks that drop in Crucible Challenge, when you successfully complete stage 2 (bonus round). Each time you will get either "Snack Food" or "Tasty Snack Food" or "Nutritious Snack Pet Food". These will you give a minor, normal or major bundle respectively.

You only have to feed your pet one poppy treat. There is a chance to get a platinum medal each time you feed it a poppy treat. There is a maximum of 40 times you may feed the pet before having to buy another runaway poppy, which costs around 2010 Crucible Insignia.

... now does this mean that people with good gear will start joining us for EC? Please? o:-)

Moods

Today I borrowed some images from another favourite comic, called Looking For Group, to help demonstrate my mood(s).

That's the initial strip (click on the picture to enlarge it):

Now check how is everything included:

• Most of the time: "I will see, I will learn, what no other scholar has ever dreamed of."
• Rarely: "I'll be able to get them off my back."
• When I am happy: "I will fulfill my true destiny."

 

Based on same comic, here is a visualisation of the basic cleric mechanism:

OK maybe sometimes other thoughts and feelings are there as well :)

However there are few days, very special days, like today, that..

You didn't know I like to kill things? Seriously?

StDev(friends) = 11

You two gentlemen are too young to be my friends!

Hmmm most of you are too young to be my friends!

..and yet you are. Good friends.

Playing MMOs for some years, I found out that a/s/l* is not that important in game cooperation. Yesterday I realised that my closest Aion friends are quite younger than me. Except one who is older. I should have expected that, since I am myself older than the average player. But it made me feel like a cougar!

Being a scientist, I calculated the average age of my closest aion friends (16 ppl) and the standard deviation (σ) of their ages. The results were expected:

• Average age: a bit over 30
• Standard deviation: 11

In case you are wondering what "standard deviation" means - it is a measure of how much the data varies from the average. In the graph above, it varies a lot.

Well after all this extensive statistical analysis, it is now possible to deduce one result:
I don't care about your age. It's you I want.





* a/s/l stands for age / sex / location. Used primarily as a question in chat rooms and other virtual environments,  to request info from the other person.

Resistance Is Futile

I keep moaning about not having enough time to play. So many things I need to do online!

• Do Empyrean Crucible daily (done)
• Go places with my friends (never enough)
• Do dredgion, farm abyss points and platinum medals, dailies, gather (pending)
• Learn to hunt asmos (ludicrous emm pending)

So how many hours a day? Because the two hours I play every day are definitely not adequate.

But then I look at my tank. He plays long hours. He plays so many hours, that by the end, there is no real stimulation. He does all those every day and many more. He has full Stormwing, he has tons of AP and medals, in short he has almost everything. And you know what happens? He is bored. Disappointed. He sometimes considers leaving the game.

So how many hours a day? Because the long hours he plays every day are definitely not adequate.

Some very capable legion members have already moved to different games, seeking the challenge of new goals. Is there really a point?

The comic above, from Nerfnow.com, really summarises my concluding thoughts better than any post could. Check the site, I think most of this guy's strips are really funny.

New Character Design UI

 OK mate, you are strange and you are creeping me out!

Easy To Please Online

Some time ago I read yet another comic of the Thenoobcomic series.

While I was reading it, I couldn't help but smiling to the poor wanna-be forum moderator idiots depicted there.

As if anyone would want to become a forum moderator! As if there is anything special (or desired) in that title! Of course not.

Only an idiot would care for forum power, and I am no idiot!

But.. wait.. Community people are nice people, no?

Today I received a message from

saying

This means that I get my own "title" in official aiononline forums, and it comes in colour! It also means that effort is recognised - I hope. Not to mention recognition of how mature, friendly, and the other, I am.

I realised that I love the recognition - even if it only comes as a colourful name label. Or fangs.

Dyes and dies

New blog colours!! Cool or what!

Needing a refreshed approach to on line life, I tweaked with the design of this page. If this doesn't work to cheer me up, I will buy those!

Same approach in game. You can change skins, or if you prefer a lighter approach, you can just change the colour of the armour. For that, you need dyes.

Or dies.

Some non-native english speakers get confused with the spelling, and more than once I heard them asking about black or red die. I cann't help it, I smile each and every time!

I know, i know, on line lingo can accept a lot of those, it is not after all possible to have all those people speak the same.. each language has it's own origin.

How many hours a day?

A good friend of mine is temporarily giving up Aion. Two reasons led to this decision:

• financial issues (scary, no?)
• time issues

the latter reason (=time) being more important. He told me:

"After I stopped playing Aion, my day got 8 hours longer."

But this makes no sense, I thought. He did not really play 8 hours a day.

Oh wait..

He might not play, but he was connected for quite a lot every day.. After all, each day he had to:

• craft two heliotrops 
• log with each toon, visit trader to sell items
• do daily quest
• do other daily quest
• craft potions or food or scrolls

 And it is not just him, we all have to do those as often as possible.

And of course some of the days you have to:

• do Abyssal Splinter quest run
• do weekly quests

Yet those are "complementary" activities, none of them is *really* playing. Because when you "really" play, you will do an instance, dredgion, or some kind of legion activity. Time starts to stretch.

When you want to do an instance like Esoterrace or Besh, you need to:

• wait for group to complete
• wait for random-group-member-1 to eat before you start
• wait for random-group-member-2 to re-connect after dc

Ok this is getting serious - too much auxiliary time, lost time, noise, for each "real" activity.

As I think of the "to-do" list, the list keeps getting longer. I am worried.

 Xkcd demonstrates one way to make it.

Important considerations

The 2.5 patch has been up for a while, and a lot of things are in my mind - so many important decisions to make in game!

• How should I use the plastic surgery ticket? 

I think my hair colour needs a re-vamp. At the same time, this ticket might be my opportunity to get a bit taller/older. Cool.

One thing that scares me though: the character creation and modification engine has no "undo" button. What happens if I make a change that I do not like? How do I get back to my usual self?

• What should I buy first with the Empyrean Crucible Insignias? 

I was going for the loot-pet, but my adult side asks for weapon or armour. 

 

Which means I need to do a comparative study of prospects and stats, in order to target the optimal choice. Or hire a consultant to do the study for me, feed him the desired outcome, and use his presentation to persuade all the conflicting inner voices.

• Do I want to do Beshmundir Temple again? 

Oh, that's an easy one. No, i dont! I am not sure though if I ought to though..

• Where should I look for the new lolita costumes? 

I meant the student ones. Imagine me having a halo, a lollipop and a short plaided skirt! Sooo shallow!

If this costume/skin is available as a present, I do not want to buy it myself. I wish someone else buys it for me.. A handsome guy preferably!

Who do I choose and how do I make him realise that he wants to offer me a gift?








So many things in my mind.. It's a tough on-line life after all!

Mini-event: double drops

Today a series of mini events was announced, including an increase of drop rates from May 18th to May 25th.

I got so excited!! Increased rate of orange drops in Beshmundir Temple! I might even get my full set at last!

Picture from angrycritter

Then I realised. Even if they double or triple the drop rate..

We usually get 0 orange items.
For 7 days, we will be getting 2x0 orange items.


Aha.. now I see..