tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-45274100729662850352024-03-13T05:21:05.722-07:00Kusamoto's ArmyArmy Strong. Fire Bad.Kusamotohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08800908760278068599noreply@blogger.comBlogger61125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4527410072966285035.post-46329064495838830922011-01-04T22:08:00.000-08:002011-01-04T22:31:02.597-08:00Remembrancer, Part II: Tsurii's Decision<em>Four Hours After Deathwing’s Awakening…<br /><br><br /></em>I watched the elf as he paced back and forth in our meeting hall, one of the numerous hidden catacombs that dotted Undercity like Alterac Swiss. His hammer made a rhythmic clanking sound as it bounced off his leg armor, one hand absently rubbing his forehead with frustrated ferocity right where his newly-acquired helm still chafed. Katsuko’s magic-powered lanterns burned brightly in the dank cavern without the haze of smoke associated with a Dwarven or Tauren dwelling, yet the air was still hazy and thick with dust as the aftershocks of the tremendous earthquake we had all felt continued to rattle our senses.<br /><br><br />I absently sat polishing my giant sword, testing the edge with a skeletized finger for the hundredth time. Try as I might to lighten the mood, our “General” was in no humor for frivolity. Even my Sylvanas v. Thrall deathmatch shadowpuppet show had failed to rouse a ghost of a smile. Kusamoto had simply looked over at me and said, “Tsurii, honestly, now is not the time for childish nonsense. Information. We must have information. All hell is breaking loose out there, and you want to play pretend? Make yourself useful and find us something to eat.”<br /><br><br />It hurt a little, I admit, to be dismissed like a common serving knave. Besides, even the Banshee Queen herself had declared that my reinterpretation of the retaking of Undercity, while totally fictitious, was in every way an improvement on actual events. People just don’t appreciate real art, I suppose. Especially Blood Elf people.<br /><br><br />Luckily, I was able to find a panicked, but still coherent, vendor in the main hall who hadn’t sold, lost, or eaten his entire stash of day-old bread. He wasn’t paying much attention as I handed him a stack of gold that would have made royalty blush. He absently pocketed the jingling coins while grimacing in trepidation as another aftershock rattled the foundations of old Lordaeron. Oh well. He deserved it for still being here. If he lived, he’d have a pleasant surprise when he checked his books later.<br /><br><br />If he lived.<br /><br><br />I headed back, quick to skirt through the ancient archway, more aware than ever that we were snugly cocooned under thousands of tons of masonry and rock that could give out if another monstrous quake came our way. I turned the corner, realizing too late that someone was standing there, waiting for me or another unlucky soul. Vermin, these looters. Almost as bad as the elementals Katsuko and I had fought to dispatch in Orgrimmar earlier in the week, except without the good sense to retreat when they were outmatched.<br /><br><br />It was probably too late, but I whipped the bag of stale bread at the hooded figure and drew my <a href="http://www.wowhead.com/item=50761">blade</a>, cold fire and the starlight from the heart of diseased suns flashing along its edge as I rose to strike. Only then did I realize that my improvised missile had not only missed the target entirely, but was now floating two feet from me in a halo of greenish-blue mist.<br /><br><br />“Raising arms against your Queen, <em>Colonel</em> Tsurii?” came the corpse-warm voice it seemed like I had heard my entire life. “And here I thought you at least as intelligent as you were irreverent. It appears I may have to reevaluate my opinion of you.”<br /><br><br />She stepped into the light, simultaneously beautiful, horrific, alluring, and repellent. I felt something stir inside me, as I always did in her presence, which I thought long since vanished. A powerful longing for something to believe in. Something worth fighting for. Something to make this cursed existence worthwhile. Who wouldn’t die for that, or kill for it?<br /><br><br />I knelt, holding my sword pommel-first toward her as a sign of fealty. “My sincerest apologies, Queen Sylvanas. I’ve been set upon by these thieving wretches too much of late, and my paranoia is running higher than usual.”<br /><br><br />Sylvanus chuckled, idly motioning for me to rise. “Forgiven, my loyal servant. Of all my Forsaken, you may be one of my favorites, even if you are somewhat lacking in tact. Destroying you for a misunderstanding would bring me no pleasure.”<br /><br><br />I shuddered imperceptibly as I rose and sheathed my sword. <em>Notice she didn’t say she wouldn’t, just that it wouldn’t be fun</em>, I thought. “Much as this unlife is sometimes not to my liking, I think the alternative would be just as, if not more, unpleasant.” I took a deep breath, more to steady my nerves than any real need for oxygen. Breathing was a reflex with our kind, and nothing more. “My Lady, is there any news from our forces in Silverpine? Northrend? Felwood? We need on-site intelligence to allow us to plan any kind of strategy. Is it true that Booty Bay has been wiped off the face of the world? What of the reports of Twilight Hammer forces seizing large swaths of Durotar?”<br /><br><br />“Patience, my friend, patience,” the Banshee Queen replied, raising a hand. “Walk with me. Time is short and we have many decisions to make.”<br /><br><br />I nodded, falling in to step beside her. For the first time, I noticed her usual retinue of rangers was conspicuously absent. Sylvanas never traveled alone, especially since a large portion of the royal apothecaries had been purged from the ranks some three years previous.<br /><br><br />With a small smirk, Sylvanas noticed my questing glance and what it signified. “I have sent my rangers to the farthest corners of the world,” she explained, “to act as my eyes and ears. More than ever, I must have scouts that are absolutely loyal to our cause to feed our generals accurate information. To feed <em>your</em> General accurate information, as well… even though we both know who truly issues the marching orders for Kusamoto’s Army.”<br /><br><br />I opened my mouth to protest, shaken to the core that our secret had leaked out. The reality was that Kusamoto was a figurehead, nothing more. Katsuko and I were the ones who strategized, who planned, who conspired with turncoat Alliance spies like Morney and Lorosaphne for information on troop movements. Kusamoto was the face, the artful diplomat, the fiery speaker, the symbol of our organization to further the Horde’s goals. And while I might have been the brains, Katsuko was our beating heart and need for vengeance. We made a fabulous team, and had won more plaudits for our actions in Outlands and Northrend than I could count. We were loyal to the Horde, forever, for our lives. Did our Queen now think us disloyal?<br /><br><br />A look from Sylvanas snapped my mouth closed around the dissembling I was about to engage in. “I am…somewhat surprised…that we were that transparent, My Lady. I hope you do not believe us traitors to the Horde, or to you. Our army exists alongside your own, furthering our own goals, and supporting yours when necessary. I hope you do not think-"<br /><br><br />“What I think,” she interrupted, “is that you and the girl – Katsuko, isn’t it? – have done a marvelous job with very limited resources. Choosing that comely Blood Elf as your mouthpiece was a stroke of brilliance. And fear not, Tsurii. I know where your allegiance lies. You are fiercely loyal to your friends, your comrades, and most of all, your Queen. And I appreciate having an experienced strike force to apply with precision at a problem, which is exactly what you have given me.” She shook her head. “But there are events occurring that you and your General cannot stand against. Not yet. You see, Deathwing is loose from his prison in Deepholm. Those idiots, the Twilight Hammer, have released him to bring about their damned apocalypse. That’s what’s behind all this; that was the earthquake we felt, that was what demolished Booty Bay, and that’s what’s coming for us.”<br /><br><br />I stopped and sagged against the wall. Deathwing? The Deathwing? How could…why would they… ? “Gods, do they truly know what they’ve unleashed? What he’ll do?”<br /><br><br />Sylvanas shrugged as we continued down the hall, now just a few yards from the Army’s bolt hole. Around us, blacksmiths, weaponsmiths, combat trainers, and civilians streamed out of the city in all directions, looking for some supposed safety. “Who knows? Do they actually care is the better question. To them, the Father of Terror is simply a means to an end. A tool to be used to upset the old order and replace it with their own. But to him…they’re food.”<br /><br><br />I shook my head. It was inconceivable, but the pieces began fitting together in my head: The elemental attacks, the sudden resurgence of the Hammer, formerly rock-solid sources of information suddenly going silent, never to be heard from again. All of it orchestrated by Deathwing from his prison of agony.<br /><br><br />Sylvanas was right: Our Army could never hope to fight this, not directly, and my fists clenched in impotent rage at that thought. We had ended everything that had stood as a threat to the Horde, to the world, even. Blood Princes, upstart Emperors, elemental masters, even the Lich King himself. None could stand against my steel and resolve, Katsuko’s magic and fury. We had ended other threats, we could end him, too.<br /><br><br />“My Lady,” I said, “I have served from the ranks on up. You know my record, you know my dedication. Command me, even if it is to go into Hell itself to fight this monster. Say the word and I will tender my resignation to Kusamoto and lead whatever forces you wish to place in my care. Win or die, we will be who we are, and we show Deathwing that his will be a short reign. I beg you, My Lady, <em>command me</em>.”<br /><br><br />For the first time in years, I saw her actually smile as she placed a delicate hand on my shoulder. The feeling was electrifying, and I knew then I would give anything, anything to keep her and my people safe. Even my own life, paltry as it was.<br /><br><br />“You do me more honor than you know, Tsurii,” she said, “but I am no fool. A strike against Deathwing now would simply waste resources we cannot part with. We have to come at him sideways, destroy whatever infrastructure he is attempting to build, before an assault can be mounted. And for that, I need everything you have in your arsenal, including your figurehead. Except…he isn’t precisely a figurehead anymore, is he, Tsurii?”<br /><br><br />I frowned, trying to discern her meaning. Kusamoto? He was a scribe, an excellent speaker, a healer with great potential. He was also raw, untested, irritatingly moral…<br /><br><br />And with a start, I realized what had happened since Katsuko and I had returned from Icecrown.<br /><br><br />How he had slowly taken over the majority of our recruiting.<br /><br><br />How he had taught himself finance and overseen Taka’s ordnance and supply decisions, thereby doubling our reserves.<br /><br><br />How he had quietly suggested that Undercity, not Orgrimmar, would be a better base of operations, and how we had unquestioningly gone along with it.<br /><br><br />And how our ranks had actually grown, our influence spread, while the “brains” of the operation toiled against the scourge in the Frozen North.<br /><br><br />“He’s a natural leader,” I said with wonder. “How did I miss it?”<br /><br><br />“Because he doesn’t see himself as one either, Tsurii,” Sylvanas said. “He believes you are still the one really in charge, when in reality, he has been for almost a year. But that means if something happens, he will expect you to bail him out of trouble, and that weakness will get him killed. I need him, my friend, so he must be ready when the time comes.”<br /><br><br />I straightened, realizing I could hear Kusamoto issuing orders from just down the hallway. His awareness of the situation was total, even though everything around him seemed to be falling apart.<br /><br><br />“Relay this to Ginawa,” I heard him say to one of our runners. “Silverpine is in chaos, from what I’ve heard, and he’s been out there for a few weeks. If anyone knows what the situation on the ground is, it would be him. Now. Go. Don’t stop for anything.”<br /><br><br />I turned to Sylvanas as a juvenile Orc raced around the corner, oblivious to our presence, the copper and gold lion etched on his armor gleaming brilliantly in the muted light. In a moment of clarity, or perhaps prescience, I saw our crest flying high on a standard above a battlefield of unspeakable carnage. Tattered and torn, but still flying high, and beneath it, shouting out our last breaths in defiance, stood Katsuko, Kusamoto, and I. We were dying, but somehow, I knew our sacrifice had bought the world victory.<br /><br><br />Dying wasn’t on my list of things that needed to be done anytime soon. But if I couldn’t die at my Queen’s side, it wouldn’t be a bad death, at that. A good death, in fact. An honorable one. “What must I do, My Lady?”<br /><br><br />Sylvanas pointed in our General’s direction. “Send him to Outlands, Tsurii. He is more than ready. Send him alone, with only what he carries, today. If he survives, he will be the weapon we so desperately need in this dark hour. I have skill; I have legions at my beck and call; I have all the powers of the etherium at my fingertips. But I need leaders, generals, respected commanders, or else we lose. The whole world loses. He must be who he was born to be, and soon.”<br /><br><br />I nodded. “It won’t be easy to convince him, but in the end, he’ll go. This I swear.”<br /><br><br />Sylvanas smiled and started to say something else, but I never got a chance to hear what it was.<br /><br><br />A tremendous explosion rocked the hallway, and I was thrown through the air to land in a heap of rubble. Dust and pain obscured my vision, but I fought against unconsciousness, straining to catch a glimpse of our Queen. She couldn’t have been caught in that explosion…she couldn’t be…<br /><br><br />With a pained sigh, I saw her form emerge from the obscuring detritus of the blast, shimmering faintly behind a protective shield of sickly green light. She padded over to me as I heard the shouts and curses of our forces as they stormed in our direction. “Remember, Tsurii,” she whispered, “it’s <em>Kusamoto’s</em> Army. Make sure he realizes that.” With a high-pitched whistle, reality bent sideways and swallowed her in a wash of magical energy.<br /><br><br />The last thing I remembered as darkness claimed me was the elf running in my direction, the healing light already forming at his fingertips. <em>I thank you, my old friend</em>, I thought, <em>but if you knew the decisions I am making for you, for your own good even, you would curse me rather than heal me. And you would be right to.</em><br /><br><em><br />I would.</em>Kusamotohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08800908760278068599noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4527410072966285035.post-21289089825634149642011-01-01T23:43:00.001-08:002011-01-02T12:51:53.328-08:00Scenes from Azeroth IIWell, since we're having server authentication problems, let's get caught up. Where has the Army been? Fighting against the horrors of Deathwing, of course...<br /><br /><br /><br /><p align="center"><a href="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5166/5317318174_e20f4a999d_b.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 200px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 104px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5557687354005270098" border="0" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_MB_lvXlEJRo/TSDfM9wqLlI/AAAAAAAAAKY/O5RAyNSO3hk/s200/Off%2Bto%2BVashjir.jpg" /></a><em>Here's Katsuko shortly after Deathwing's arrival on her way to Vash'Jir. One of the best screenshots I've ever done, methinks.</em><br /><br /><br /></p><div align="center"></div><p align="center"><a href="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5162/5317318744_99eae0162e_b.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 200px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 104px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5557687570249655794" border="0" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_MB_lvXlEJRo/TSDfZjVVpfI/AAAAAAAAAKg/c_QqhsrT-mU/s200/Gnomebliteration%2521.png" /></a> <em>I'd talk about this quest if I could stop laughing.</em></p><p><em></em></p><p align="center"><a href="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5125/5317377150_5f345559be_b.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 200px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 104px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5557690148926632914" border="0" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_MB_lvXlEJRo/TSDhvpp1s9I/AAAAAAAAAKo/Yt5XgH6dcfI/s200/Tsurii%2BDeepholm.jpg" /></a> <em>Give an undead an ugly stick and then step back and just watch... </em></p><p align="center"><br /></p><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_MB_lvXlEJRo/TSDiTYFOSLI/AAAAAAAAAKw/41yqdQ-slFg/s1600/Kats%2B85.png"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 149px; FLOAT: right; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5557690762684942514" border="0" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_MB_lvXlEJRo/TSDiTYFOSLI/AAAAAAAAAKw/41yqdQ-slFg/s400/Kats%2B85.png" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />And here's Katsuko now. She was the first of the Army to the new level cap and is a very irritating 2 GS points away from being able to run heroics. Only having access to 2 Ramkahen dailies is really exasperating, since they easily have the best caster rep gear. I do appreciate the Cowboy Beebop anime hat, though, from the Earthen Ring folks. <div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Oh, and for you old schoolers? Outlands armor? Still outlandish.<br /><br /></div><div><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 244px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 397px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5557691460548168162" border="0" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_MB_lvXlEJRo/TSDi7_0yCeI/AAAAAAAAALA/b_T4DP9dI9g/s400/Outlandish%2BKusamoto.png" /></div>Kusamotohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08800908760278068599noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4527410072966285035.post-13812647778587995012010-11-29T18:31:00.000-08:002010-11-29T19:28:58.927-08:00Katsuko: Guardian of DalaranA pall has fallen over Northrend. A nameless dread, a constant reminder of what we had and what is no longer. So much joy, so many celebrations, so many friends made and promises kept.<br /><div></div><br /><div>Naxxramas is destroyed.</div><br /><div>Ulduar lies in ruins.</div><br /><div>Even the Lich King, our hated nemesis, has been bested.</div><div><br /></div><div>Now...</div><div></div><br /><div>Now there are only memories of faded glory. A ghost of the greatness that was, and what never will be again.</div><br /><div>The heroes have moved on, left the once-glorious floating city to its own devices. In their place, only the desperate, the corrupt, the forgotten remain. Organized crime, petty thieves, rapists, murderers...they are legion within the city, now.</div><br /><div>My city. My beautiful, wonderful metropolis. I spent so many happy hours here. Yes...happy. Me, of all people. I was happy here. Content. At peace.</div><br /><div>But now...</div><br /><div>I cannot look at the shell of this place and not feel...rage. Rage against the people who sully it. Rage against those who abandoned it. Rage for all those that must remain and deal with the daily despair of life. </div><br /><div>And that rage needs victims.</div><br /><div>So while you heroes of the frozen north run back to Azeroth...</div><br /><div>While you succumb to the consumerism of the Bilgewater Cartel...</div><br /><div>While you quibble over useless theological debates between Thrall's followers and Hellscreams'...</div><br /><div>I will remain as I always have. I will stay and defend those who cannot defend themselves. I will be the guardian they no longer have.</div><br /><div>I am a poor champion, I admit. But if I am all they have, then so be it. The darkness that rules Dalaran now has an enemy. The people have a guardian. </div><div></div><p><div>Because for them I can be what I never have been. What I never tried to be. What I never wanted to be.</div><div><br /></div><div>A hero.</div><br /><div></div><a href="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5290/5219385605_4f3a96c92d_b.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 200px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 104px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5545176989839796674" border="0" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_MB_lvXlEJRo/TPRtF7gSKcI/AAAAAAAAAKE/WB9jFnL1Iuw/s200/Kats%2Bthe%2Bguardian.jpg" /></a><br /><div></div><br /><div><span style="font-size:85%;">(with apologies to Batman, Daredevil, and The Maxx)</span></div>Kusamotohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08800908760278068599noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4527410072966285035.post-92216481871112953162010-11-24T10:57:00.001-08:002010-11-24T23:25:37.061-08:00New Tonight, Deathwing Returns…And Now Here’s Bob with the Weather<div><br /><br /><div>So patch 4.0.3 hit last night and everyone is either a) up in arms because their portals/favorite spec/damage/heals/old tree form/cappuccino bar is gone, or b) very pleased with the changes in the world landscape/questlines/race-class combinations/guild mechanics. Personally, I’m a little of both of these. Am I happy that Warriors got hit with the ugly stick yet again? Not at all. Do I like the cosmetic changes to the old world setting? Absolutely. Do I want my portals back? Hells yes…well, except for my mage. Katsuko is raking in portal tip cash by the bucketful. I’ve already had to go get more portal reagents twice in the last 2 days (normally I only need to buy them once every few weeks…guess I need to rememorize the location of reagent vendors in Org and Dal again). Am I having fun? Dude, I’m having a blast. This is just what the doctor ordered for this game.<br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_MB_lvXlEJRo/TO4MSTwOuMI/AAAAAAAAAJ0/CzDL95R50tg/s1600/Shigs%2Blvl10.png"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 308px; FLOAT: right; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5543381700019402946" border="0" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_MB_lvXlEJRo/TO4MSTwOuMI/AAAAAAAAAJ0/CzDL95R50tg/s400/Shigs%2Blvl10.png" /></a><br />So like one of my favorite blogging compatriots, <a href="http://dechionsplace.worpress,com/">Dechion</a>, the first thing I did after getting the kids fed and put away for the night was log on and roll up my undead hunter, which was THE thing I was most looking forward to. Had a name picked out, bags and gold ready on my trusty bank alt, and even knew where I was going to train his main pet (a Lion that will be getting named “Akodo,” naturally). Ergo, Shigetoshi was born…or died…or both; and let me just say that the new “awakening” portion of the Undead creation process is fantastic. Levels 1-10 are completely updated with very compelling vignette stories, which I certainly appreciate, and immediately immerses you into the game experience. Compared to early leveling before, this feels much more like you inserting yourself into the canon story rather than playing an FPS until you get to Silverpine/Barrens/Westfall/wherever. For now, Shigs has a Darkhound pet, which is very not bad for leveling as far as ferocity pets are concerned.<br /><br />Also, the scenery! The beauty of the environment is outstanding, and I was very happy with the way the early Brill/Tirisfal questlines were arranged. No more running halfway across the continent to do inane things with/to Gnolls or grinding 200 mobs for 8 moldy fingernails. Quest item drop rates are much higher, at least early on, which can only increase your sense of accomplishment if you’re just now picking up the game.<br /><br />I could go on and on, but let me just finish up with a few nice things I’ve noticed:<br /><br />• <strong>The faction-specific quartermasters</strong>. This is an outstanding addition. For 10 silver, you can buy a tabard for each faction in their major cities. Like the LK factions, these tabards will allow you to grind rep for that faction while in any dungeon. Once you hit Exalted, which shouldn’t take too long with your home city, there are a number of excellent blue BOP items for sale at low prices, and a 16-slot bag that runs a little over 1G is available at Revered.<br /><br />• <strong>FPs in starter cities</strong>. Brill, Razor Hill, and the cow city all now have FPs to the capitol <em>a la</em> the Space Goat and Blood Elf baby pools.<br /><br />• <strong>Cosmetic baby gear improvements</strong>. Your starting gear looks much more like a military uniform or Nordstrom’s off-the-rack stuff, rather than something from the Homeless-Crackhead-of-the-Month-Club catalogue. </div><div><br /></div><div>• <strong>Hellscream's Temporary Staffing Services, Inc</strong>. I mostly just found this amusing. However, I'm interested in seeing what odd jobs for heroes get tossed up there in the future. Maybe unique weeklies? Special quests that hand out Feat of Strength achievements? Envelope stuffing for the Argent Crusade's membership drive? </div><div><br /></div><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 260px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 141px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5543383752955532770" border="0" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_MB_lvXlEJRo/TO4OJziWFeI/AAAAAAAAAJ8/Tn21X9DCnMk/s200/WoWScrnShot_112410_205701.jpg" /><br />• <strong>New Orgrimmar</strong>. My God, Blizzard outdid themselves here. I really wish Undercity would have gotten a facelift like this, but Orgrimmar is a beautiful sight to behold. It can almost make me forget that Hellscream’s dumbest progeny is now running the place. Almost.<br /><br /><div></div><div>• <strong>Dude, valium</strong>. Speaking of, I talked to Hellscream last night just for fun and HE STILL TALKS LIKE THIS NO MATTER WHAT HE IS SAYING! CAN I BORROW A CUP OF SUGAR! I'M MAKING PIE AND NEED SUGAR! GIVE ME SUGAR OR I WILL DESTROY ALL YOU LOVE! I miss Thrall already...<br /><p></p></div><div></div><div>OK, time to go. Need to jump back on my hunter for a bit. <em>Remembrancer: Part II</em> is in the can and being edited. Be prepared for a time jump.</div></div>Kusamotohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08800908760278068599noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4527410072966285035.post-51793472327116620382010-11-19T00:36:00.001-08:002010-11-19T01:02:47.361-08:00New Feature! Random Screenshot Thursday!Because, "Work sucks and I have no idea what to post and <em>Rembrancer: Part II</em> is still at the shop getting new tires, so I can't do that," didn't have the same catchy marketing title to it.<br /><br /><a href="http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1282/5189348268_1137e1f236_b.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 200px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 104px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5541182879270477874" border="0" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_MB_lvXlEJRo/TOY8eGJkoDI/AAAAAAAAAJs/K__cF6DS9BY/s200/WoWScrnShot_111510_224441.jpg" /></a><br /><br />Yes, a 40-man raid defense of Orgrimmar from the forces of elemental destruction infesting the world; because that's how we Silver Hand Horde roll. If there's a problem, yo, we'll solve it.<br /><br /><br />Having never been in a 40-man raid, I really don't know how you old-school folks did it back in the day. It's total chaos...but with more running and screaming.Kusamotohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08800908760278068599noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4527410072966285035.post-80746903379412458442010-11-10T09:19:00.000-08:002010-11-10T11:01:21.661-08:00And Now for a Word About CharactersSo, my wife is currently waiting to have her traitorous galbladder removed. I am scamming the hospital wi-fi, trying to think of things to do to keep myself occupied, and not going batshit crazy with <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H3tt9hE9sc4">worst-case scenarios</a>. It's a simple procedure, but I had the same thing done 3 years ago and they had to do it the old-fashioned way...with a chainsaw and a baseball bat, apparently.<br /><br /><div></div><div>But that's as it may be. I'll try to keep off that. I wanted to go into how I choose and develop characters a little bit, since this is a question I get with a fair amount of regularity IRL. </div><div><br /></div><div>So, I've been playing various RPGs for a really long time. In fact, I remember the old <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Star_Wars_Roleplaying_Game_(West_End_Games)">West End Games Star Wars System</a>. Loved it; roll far too many D6's for no good reason. Yeah, I'm getting grey, I know. I've played <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AD%26D_2nd_Edition#Advanced_Dungeons_.26_Dragons_2nd_edition">AD&D 2nd</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cyberpunk_2020">Cyberpunk</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shadowrun">Shadowrun</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Legend_of_the_Five_Rings_Roleplaying_Game">L5R</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rifts_(role-playing_game)">Rifts</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Doctor_Who_RPG">Doctor Who</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Babylon_5#Games">B5</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wheel_of_Time_RPG">WoT</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vampire:_The_Masquerade">V:TM</a>, and so on. I go to <a href="http://www.gencon.com/2011/indy/default.aspx">GenCon</a> every year, half to play the <a href="http://www.l5r.com/">Legend of the Five Rings CCG</a>, but half to see the weird new RPG tabletop experiments that are coming out. So I've got a fair amount of experience playing make-believe.</div><div><br /></div><div></div><div>All those systems varied wildly from each other, for the most part. But the one thing that remained constant was the characters. Any RPG, no matter how poorly designed or executed, can be a really good time if you have <a href="http://www.essortment.com/all/creatingcharact_rdmv.htm">interesting characters</a> you like, care about, and enjoy playing. Conversely, the best-designed system in the world will fall absolutely flat if you don't give a damn about what happens to the main players (<a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0120915/">The Phantom Menace</a>, anyone?).</div><div><br /></div><div></div><div>That being the case, I go out of my way to build and play characters that are not just fun, but have history, personailty quirks, annoying habits, hopes, dreams, goals, character flaws...in short, I try to make them as close to real people as I possibly can, because that makes for <a href="http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Reservoir_Dogs">interesting dialogue</a> and game play. </div><div><br /></div><div></div><div>What do you do, for instance, when your main group of characters has been hired by the mob to do a smash-and-grab at a local jewlery store, which sounds fine, but one of the PC's uncles owns the store and actually was a huge influence in his or her life? Maybe got him or her into NYU through his connections with the geology department? Or if another of the PC's was busted for petty theft 6 months ago and has been turned into a narc to avoid prosecution. How does he react to this? Does he do the job on the down-low, or does he stoolie out and run to the cops? Or how about a third who is naturally conceited and can't helping bragging to a few of his buddies after the job, and is overheard by a friend of the jeweler's?</div><div> </div><div><br /></div><div>See? Good, rich characters can make something that seems <a href="http://www.pbs.org/wnet/gperf/episodes/macbeth/a-conversation-with-sir-patrick-stewart/1022/">pretty ordinary on the surface (listen to the bit about the sandwich)</a> and make it, if not epic, then so much more realistic, deep, and fun. </div><div><br /> </div><div>The same rules translate over to WoW, as far as I am concerned. Arthas, Sylvanas, Varian Wynn, Tirion, Thrall...these are all fantastic characters with rich, meaningful storylines. To create characters that are any less than 3-dimensional then, to my way of thinking, is an affront to the people who imagined up this awesome world. Therefore, my three flagship characters, Kusamoto, Tsurii, and Katsuko, have been developed over the course of months, even years. </div><div> </div><div> </div><div><p>Kusamoto, in particular, has a rich history, as he is my <a href="http://www.blogger.com/www.l5r.com">L5R</a> alterego. I've been playing that game so long, in fact, they folks at <a href="http://www.alderac.com/">AEG</a> decided to give in and make him, and I, a part of canon. It's a nod at my peserverance and in a really strange way gives him, and therefore me, a kind of immortality most people can only dream of, so I am immensely humbled by the honor Shawn Carman and company have done me. So, here's my alterego, Kusamoto, in the card game: </div><div><br /></div><div></div><a href="http://www.thelionclan.com/swiftsword"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 286px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5537989196075366690" border="0" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_MB_lvXlEJRo/TNrj1RIF-SI/AAAAAAAAAJM/cf5GaI0NMSg/s400/AkodoKusamoto.jpg" /></a><br /><div>Naturally, who else could I have chosen to create for my flagship WoW character? Since I play horde almost exclusively, the racial choice wasn't much of one (Blood Elf was the only thing that came close) and class was similarly chosen for me (Pally, of course). So I roll him up along the same lines as my card game character, and here's what I come up with:</div><br /><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 179px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5537996333493328754" border="0" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_MB_lvXlEJRo/TNrqUuFJG3I/AAAAAAAAAJU/yK6O1w1e__g/s400/Kusamoto%2Bsalute.png" /><br /><div></div><div>You can see the similarities in type, which is why I was immensely pleased at how he turned out in game, and was really looking forward to playing the hell out of him. Only one minor problem:</div><br /><div>I didn't like him. </div><br /><div>In fact, he sat on the shelf for about 4 months before I started grinding away at the Blood Elf starting quests, but I still wasn't having any fun with him (and I'm certain the reverse was true). I couldn't figure it out at all. Until one day, in SFK, I chose DPS or healer, got in as a healer, and realized my mistake.<br /></div><div> </div><div> </div><div><p>THIS Kusamoto was NOT entirely "my" Kusamoto. He preferred healing over righteous fury, and more "white collar" pursuits, like Inscription and Herbalism, over the down-and-dirty professions like engineering or mining. While this originally came as quite a shock, it made perfect sense with the background I had in my head of a mid-level functionary's son forced into a role and profession he never really wanted. And now, he finds himself, by virtue of his skills in writing and oratory, as the political figurehead of an organization he is more than glad to let Katsuko run behind the scenes while playing straight man to a undead warrior.<br /></div><div><br />Even though I had built the character along the same lines as my true alterego, he changed and grew before my eyes in surprising ways <em>because of</em> the same rules I follow when building characters, not <em>in spite of</em> them. It's frightening when that happens; when a character you have made, played, and were both mother and father to, suddenly matures into something you never expected. Frightening, but also very exciting. It means you've done your job in creating and raising him well, and now you are simply along for the ride.</div><br /><br />So, this has been pretty wall-of-textish, but I hope I got my point across. WoW is, for all intents and purposes, a tabletop RPG in a lot of ways. Character creation and development is similar, and if you go out of your way to make interesting characters with breadth and depth, it will never get old, no matter what changes are made to the game, and you will always enjoy playing it.<br /><p> </p><br /><br />OK, back to the really real world of waiting for my wife to be out of surgery. But let me ask everyone: Who is your favorite WoW character (NPC, your own, or someone else's) and why? I'd love to hear your opinion.Kusamotohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08800908760278068599noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4527410072966285035.post-40212875891479485542010-11-09T17:56:00.000-08:002010-11-09T19:02:50.567-08:00'Cheeves!<div align="left">I must thank <a href="http://needmorerage.blogspot.com/">Ratshag</a> for the cool <a href="http://wow.curse.com/downloads/wow-addons/details/achievement-screenshotter.aspx">addon</a> he linked from his blog, even if it was just peripherally. I suspect it will make my life a lot easier. Plus I can catch important moments in the Corps' life much more grandly, like this:</div><div align="center"><br /><br /></div><div align="center"></div><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 324px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5537736717974216530" border="0" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_MB_lvXlEJRo/TNn-NG59n1I/AAAAAAAAAIc/u_r9BiIqyYs/s400/Ginawa%2Bscreenshotter%2Btest.png" /> <p align="center"> <em>Ginawa got a horse!</em><br /><br /><br /></p><p>Or this:</p><p><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 300px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 247px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5537737501534189058" border="0" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_MB_lvXlEJRo/TNn-6t5N9gI/AAAAAAAAAIk/6S2l3KLQ9Zs/s400/Exthalion%2Bding.png" /></p><br /><p align="center"><em>DK Space Goat levels right in front of King Varian Wynn. Courtiers aghast. Film at 11.</em></p><p align="left">And action shots like this:</p><p align="center"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 376px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5537748760322562482" border="0" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_MB_lvXlEJRo/TNoJKEJi2bI/AAAAAAAAAIs/L0y_hqGxNqs/s400/Kats%2Bfwooosh%2521.png" /><em>That's a lot of fwoosh.</em></p><br /><p>But I am very glad I was able to get this one. Kats would have never forgiven me if I'd missed this huge milestone in her quest for vengeance:</p><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 312px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 309px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5537749286950858834" border="0" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_MB_lvXlEJRo/TNoJot_g8FI/AAAAAAAAAI0/y2I8HEW_yOg/s400/Kats%2Bstorming.png" /> <p align="center"><em>Teaser alert! More on Kats' first journey into ICC to come!</em><br /></p>Kusamotohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08800908760278068599noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4527410072966285035.post-46884540727809042662010-11-02T19:57:00.001-07:002010-11-02T20:17:27.544-07:00The End is Nigh...The Local 405 of the Doomsayers Union needed some new representatives for the Orgrimmar division. Recruitment and members willing to sow the seeds of chaos and disorder were apparently lagging in the face of political adversity from the local fascists. Plus, they pay well, and no one has to die...right now, anyways. <br /><br />I have just one thing to say to any potential affiliates:<br /><br /><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 317px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 315px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5535153415103492482" border="0" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_MB_lvXlEJRo/TNDQtFyIsYI/AAAAAAAAAIU/gYF9RHTpKGU/s400/Tsurii+the+end.png" /><br /><div align="center"><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nkqmMLi0b0Y">Repent</a>, bitches.<br /></div>Kusamotohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08800908760278068599noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4527410072966285035.post-19744358681538396412010-10-31T21:56:00.000-07:002010-10-31T22:41:33.599-07:00We Interrupt this Broadcast...<div><br /><br /><div>...to bring you the following special report...</div><br /><p align="center"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 344px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5534441032705817874" border="0" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_MB_lvXlEJRo/TM5Iy-jGvRI/AAAAAAAAAHs/T1P8C7XEnNQ/s400/Tsuriibwahaha.png" /><br /><strong>BWA-HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAAAA!</strong></p><br /><br /><p>It only took two years, but Tsurii finally got <a href="http://www.wowhead.com/item=49126">"the single coolest piece of loot in all of Azeroth."</a> It has now been tricked out as his PvP helm...and so he can buzz the Alliance in WG while laughing maniacally at them.</p><p>Katsuko also has been enjoying life after patch 4.0.1. Not only is she sporting <a href="http://www.wowhead.com/item=47776">new threads</a>, but she picked up <a href="http://www.wowhead.com/item=29469">a new friend</a> and a new title.<img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 272px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5534449006217940722" border="0" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_MB_lvXlEJRo/TM5QDGMiTvI/AAAAAAAAAH8/qQW-qCiigB8/s400/Katsuko+Hallowed.png" /></p><p></p><div>More to come soon, but for now, we're tired...it's been a long day and we need to eat <a href="http://www.wowhead.com/item=33226">the candy </a>that the trick-or-treaters and/or various family members didn't get to.</div><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 269px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5534451831111183426" border="0" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_MB_lvXlEJRo/TM5SnhvkbEI/AAAAAAAAAIE/w4a_7gNT4hA/s400/halloween.jpg" /><br /><div></div></div>Kusamotohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08800908760278068599noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4527410072966285035.post-79037302280870662392010-10-20T09:49:00.000-07:002010-10-20T09:58:33.444-07:00When Loot Filled Bags Aren'tDear Blizzard,<br /><br />We have now defeated the toothless horseman 8 times between our 2 80s. We have received one (1, I, uno, eins) Loot Filled Bag that actually has loot in it. On behalf of the rest of the Corps, I would like to suggest the following name change be made to the Loot-Filled Bag immediately (please select the one that seems most appropriate to you):<br /><br /><ul><li>The Bag that Sometimes Contains Loot, but Mostly Just Irritates the Commander-in-Chief</li><li>The Bag That Glitches Your Interface Causing You to Crash Out</li><li>Moth- and Lint-Filled Bag</li><li>Bag of Justice Points and Continental Frequent Flyer Miles</li><li>It's Just a Bag, it Doesn't Have Anything In It. Please Don't Email Us Anymore</li></ul><p>Or, as an alternative, you could actually have something show up in the Loot-Filled Bag, even it's only marginally useful, so that players have some sense of accomplishment. Candy, pumpkins, toothpicks, a rock (a la Charlie Brown), anything, really. </p><p>We appreciate the Justice Points, we really do, but getting all excited over a boss' stuff, only to find it totally empty, is anticlimactic at best, downright annoying at worst. We appreciate your taking the time to read this and make any appropriate adjustments.</p><p>Sincerely,</p><p>Gen. A. Kusamoto</p>Kusamotohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08800908760278068599noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4527410072966285035.post-23701953922459605912010-10-19T09:11:00.000-07:002010-10-19T09:28:49.944-07:00...And Now I'm Happy Again<a href="http://cn1.kaboodle.com/hi/img/b/0/0/4e/9/AAAAC_ztCEMAAAAAAE6Qaw.jpg?v=1243300942000"><img style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 143px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 146px" alt="" src="http://cn1.kaboodle.com/hi/img/b/0/0/4e/9/AAAAC_ztCEMAAAAAAE6Qaw.jpg?v=1243300942000" border="0" /></a><br /><div>The Army is back in action with new <a href="http://issuu.com/asus/docs/nbc_issue_16">gear</a>. And oh, what pretty gear it is. I never realized this game was so well-designed from a graphics standpoint until I got a machine that can run it effectively.</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>Now, as far as the game relating to patch 4.0.1...</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>I like it, for the most part. There are a few minor changes I don't care for, like separate friends and guild tabs and the profession filtering tools, but overall I'm content. Things I have noticed, however:</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>1) Pallys got beaten with the nerf stick, not just hit a few times. DPS with a Pally? Yeah, you're funny. Fight 3 mobs then heal and drink. Fight 3 mobs, heal/drink. Rinse, repeat. Mana management is impossible, and most of the really good damage-inducers are either gone or changed so much they might as well be. Healing, though, is a lot easier and costs next to no mana, which makes me glad Kusamoto is leveling Holy.</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>2) Mages are ridiculous. Katskuo went from barely 2300 DPS self-buffed to around 3.5k without reforging, regemming, or reglyphing. After I finished reforging and glyphing, she's almost to 4.5k...and she's wearing crafted purples and tier 9.5 stuff, mainly. After gemming, I should be at 5k+. Mages, enjoy it while you can. The nerf bat is probably coming for you, too.</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>3) Warrior tanking is an exercise in futility. Arms warriors seem to have gotten away with very little changed. Fury warriors got hit pretty hard, but it's still manageable. Prot? Yeah, not so much. We have one (1) AoE threat generator now, and the solo ones weren't all that great to begin with. However, shouts no longer cost Rage, and actually generate it, which is very nice.</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>Going to log on this evening to continue working on the Hallowed title for Kats. More to come...</div>Kusamotohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08800908760278068599noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4527410072966285035.post-57923829635242516532010-10-13T20:18:00.000-07:002010-10-13T20:30:53.189-07:00Now I'm Sad...<a href="http://perfectpandas.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/09/sad-panda-podiatrist.jpg"><img style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 238px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 190px" alt="" src="http://perfectpandas.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/09/sad-panda-podiatrist.jpg" border="0" /></a>My computer has betrayed me. I have freed up 12 gigs of space...and it is still not enough room for patch 4.0.1. Ergo, I am WoWless until I pick up my <a href="http://www.bestbuy.com/site/Toshiba+-+Satellite+Laptop+with+AMD+Turion%26%23153%3B+II+Dual-Core+Mobile+Processor+-+Midnight+Breeze/9705346.p?id=1218154375878&skuId=9705346">new laptop</a> this weekend. Pity me, for my laptop is <a href="http://reviews.cnet.com/HP_Compaq_Presario_V5000Z/4505-3121_7-31727904.html">old and substandard</a> (read the first user review). <div><br /><br /></div><div></div><div>*sigh*</div><div><br /><br />Oh well. Time to catch up on <em><a href="http://www.usanetwork.com/series/psych/">Psych</a></em>.</div>Kusamotohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08800908760278068599noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4527410072966285035.post-26956000062777569732010-10-12T20:22:00.000-07:002010-10-12T22:08:55.234-07:002010 1013 2306 Zulu SitRepHi, boss. Tsurii here. Our fearless leader, Gen. Kusamoto Esq. P.h.D. III, is slightly...um...indisposed. Therefore, I will be doing our semi-regular checkin with you. And boy, there have been some seriously jacked up things happeing in Azeroth. It started this morning when I jumped out of bed, ready to go kill in the name of good and fun...and because I really, really needing something to die. But the Sunreaver guard someone decided to post at the door to my crypt said I had to stop. Something about "the fundamental nature of the immaterium intruding on our rational world" or some such load of kodoshite. I was flummoxed for a moment, but then made the connection: Patch day. <a href="http://www.worldofwarcraft.com/patchnotes/"><em>The</em> patch</a>. The big one you and our <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jNIsORCZd0U&feature=related">ambiguously gay commanding officer</a> have been discussing. Chaos, disorder, magnetic polar reversal, dogs and cats living together, they are FINALLY coming here.<br /><br />I can't wait.<br /><br />But anywho...a lot has been going on with the team over the past few weeks. Firstly, we have <a href="http://www.wowarmory.com/character-sheet.xml?r=Silver+Hand&cn=Ginawa">a new recruit</a>! He's a cousin of mine who dabbles in the dark arts...for informational and entertainment purposes only, of course. And for the sheer joy of tearing puppies into tiny shreds to summon elemental demons. Oh, and he has no eyes, but that doesn't stop him from doing some serious (spoiler alert! spoiler alert! heehee!) <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Book_of_Eli">Book of Eli</a> asswhuppin. 'Course...I'm better. I can do it without the blueberry...or the hocusy-pokusy frou-frou stuff. I gave him Katsuko's <a href="http://www.wowhead.com/item=48691">old clothes </a>and <a href="http://www.wowhead.com/item=44095">staff</a> so that he can get through the old world a little faster...plus, now he smells like a girl, which I find amusing. Hey, I'm dead; I get my laughs where I can.<br /><br />Speaking of the girl, Katsuko was a little...um...miffed when she found out that a few of our buddies from <a href="http://www.demonknights.org/">Demon Knights</a> rolled up and smoked His Licheyness a few weeks back. Miffed enough that she completely vanished for awhile. Not sure what's eating that kid. I mean, maggots are eating me, but I don't think that's her problem. But, she showed back up a few days ago with a lot of high-level gear and a very determined set to her pretty little jaw. It was hard to see behind her sparkly-new <a href="http://www.wowhead.com/item=47774">Hannibelle Lector Faceshield(TM)</a>, but I think it was determined.<br /><br />As for me, I haven't had the chance to raid the remains of the Icecrown Empire State Building recently, but I did manage to find an armor vendor that had <a href="http://www.wowhead.com/item=45824">a belt</a> better than the stupid <a href="http://www.wowhead.com/item=47229">girdle of "I'm wearing purples and you're not nyah nyah nyah"</a> I yanked off the Black Knight's corpse almost a year ago. And I finally...finally...after going through it 500 times or so, got that <a href="http://www.wowhead.com/npc=36502">whitchamacalit of souls</a> in the forge to give up his <a href="http://www.wowhead.com/item=50198">shiny</a>. 'Bout damned time.<br /><br />Other than that, I'd been busy busting a move on Coren Direbrew once a day for almost two weeks. And you know what? HE DIDN'T DROP SHIT I COULD USE! Not one goddamned thing that was fun or needed. My groups must have summoned 300 <a href="http://www.wowhead.com/item=49116">barmaids</a> and had a huge orgy the number of times I saw that stupid thing fall off his belt. His tankard? Shattered in a million pieces. The ram? Yeah, one of the Death Knights ate it. The Kodo rampaged and trampled all the dark iron dwarves in the hall next door after the troll accidentally gored it with one of his long-ass tusks. And yet, Kats' first run? The <a href="http://www.wowhead.com/item=49076">watch</a> dropped for her.<br /><br />>.><br /><.<<br /><br /><a href="http://www.ebaumsworld.com/video/watch/261403/">Is Tsurii gonna' haveta' choke a bitch?</a><br /><br />As far as fearless, and probably sexually deviant, leader goes...he's still stuck in the Badlands running Marudon and Uldaman over and over and over and...well, you get the idea. He's apparently seen enough <a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/SergioAlex76/SO9_OqiNkwI/AAAAAAAAAKk/N80Bbnte7xw/fail-cat%5B2%5D.jpg">cactus</a>, <a href="http://www.fairfaxunderground.com/forum/file.php?2,file=19795,filename=coy.jpg">coyotes</a>, and <a href="http://images.icanhascheezburger.com/completestore/2008/11/19/128715776455968285.jpg">buzzards</a> to last him a good long while. I didn't tell him about <a href="http://writerscholarprofessional.blogspot.com/2009/02/mictecacihuatl-la-nortena-in-hell-hot.html">Hellfire Penninsula</a>...figured I'd let him find that one out for himself *evil laugh*<br /><br />Well, that's all for now. My patch is done and I'm off to kill in the name of justice. And loot. OK, mostly loot. Late...Kusamotohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08800908760278068599noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4527410072966285035.post-23542165783082813152010-09-12T15:47:00.000-07:002010-09-12T16:19:56.396-07:00No One Puts Belfy in a Corner<div>Not much of an update this week, I fear, but I had to share the following pics. </div><br /><br /><div></div><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_MB_lvXlEJRo/TI1ZoCBBTRI/AAAAAAAAAHc/XT0PAnzbZUM/s1600/Alvi+and+Kats+dresses.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5516163662869515538" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 387px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_MB_lvXlEJRo/TI1ZoCBBTRI/AAAAAAAAAHc/XT0PAnzbZUM/s400/Alvi+and+Kats+dresses.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div>First pic is Katsuko and her new favorite tank, <a href="http://www.wowarmory.com/character-sheet.xml?r=Silver+Hand&cn=Alvi">Alvi</a>. Why is she her new favorite tank, might you ask? Because she tanks in a dress! Yes, that's right. She tanks like a girl, and I dare you to make fun of her. Keristraza did, and look where that got her. Yes...dead. </div> <br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div> </div><div> Awwwww, she even gave our hate-filled little burninator a hug. How nice of her. Only problem with Belfs tanking in dresses? There were two other dress-wearing Belfs in the party...follow the wrong one at your peril.</div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><br /><div>Pic #2 is from the recent retaking of the Echo Isles from good 'ol Zalazane. Yes, Zalazane...the same asshole we all killed at level 10. Well, he's back and officially beating ass. Er, at least he was. Now he's so much protoplasm being played with by the benevolent Troll voodoo God of death and vengeance; which seems to be a contradiction in terms to me, but hey...I guess if you smoke enough of the really green, stinky, crunchy peanut butter, wicked voodoo God worship starts sounding like a pretty good idea.</div><br /><div></div><br /><div><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_MB_lvXlEJRo/TI1bYmd-pfI/AAAAAAAAAHk/Kt0x3e293Kk/s1600/katsuko+the+recruiter.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5516165596800001522" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 273px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_MB_lvXlEJRo/TI1bYmd-pfI/AAAAAAAAAHk/Kt0x3e293Kk/s400/katsuko+the+recruiter.jpg" border="0" /></a>Anywho, in the process of assisting said dark voodoo God (for Darkspear rep and gold, of course...it's not like we do this for free), Katsuko discovered she was a pretty good recruiter. Now, if only she could get them into OUR Army instead of Vol'Jins.</div><div> </div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div>That' all for this week. I will try to be less lax about posting than I have been. Remembrancer Part II is on the way, as is another Army SitRep, all within the next two weeks. Promise.</div>Kusamotohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08800908760278068599noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4527410072966285035.post-33080571457877160222010-08-26T21:59:00.001-07:002010-08-26T23:04:02.563-07:002010-08-26 2300 Zulu; Battalion SitRep<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_MB_lvXlEJRo/THdGT6ZhgVI/AAAAAAAAAG0/GB6V40JkpIE/s1600/Katsuko+80+cheeve.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5509949977018859858" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 314px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_MB_lvXlEJRo/THdGT6ZhgVI/AAAAAAAAAG0/GB6V40JkpIE/s400/Katsuko+80+cheeve.jpg" border="0" /></a>Report Filed By: Gen. A. Kusamoto<br />Priority: Moderate<br /><div>Classification: Secret</div><div>Batallion Status: Green</div><div>**Begin Trans**</div><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><div>Col. Katsuko deserves congratulations from the rest of our company on her latest achievement, namely promotion to the highest levels of Azerothian competence. However, since this milestone earlier in the week, she has only slowed down long enough to pull some new <a href="http://www.wowhead.com/item=43583">clothes</a>, a <a href="http://www.wowhead.com/item=45085">knife</a>, and a strange-looking <a href="http://www.wowhead.com/item=36471/ice-crystal">orb</a> (which, she informs me, has already been replaced with some terribly boring <a href="http://www.wowhead.com/item=37889">book</a>) out of her footlocker. She seems absolutely driven to make it to Icecrown and Arthas' Frozen Throne in support of the rest of the battalion. While her singleminded zealotry is admirable, we all find it vaguely terrifying. Col. Tsurii even baked her a <a href="http://www.wowhead.com/item=33924">cake</a> and had <a href="http://www.wowhead.com/item=21983">signs</a> printed up ("Congratulations, Slacker") as a celebratory gesture, but she begged off saying something about the "twice-damned sons of Ho'Dir" needing her to do something. I swear I heard her mutter something about <a href="http://www.wowhead.com/quest=13006">"waxing their helmets,"</a> but I really didn't care to listen past that. Tsurii just seemed amused in a knowing way.</div><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><div><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_MB_lvXlEJRo/THdK0uC1eKI/AAAAAAAAAG8/2KM94-6E6j8/s1600/tsurii+with+ICC+gear.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5509954938684668066" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 227px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_MB_lvXlEJRo/THdK0uC1eKI/AAAAAAAAAG8/2KM94-6E6j8/s400/tsurii+with+ICC+gear.jpg" border="0" /></a>Speaking of , after being unceremoniously stopped cold in his ICC advance by an entity known as the <a href="http://www.wowhead.com/npc=37955">Blood Queen</a>, Tsurii has performed a temporary retrograde action back to Dalaran in an effort to rally his boys and support Katsuko's drive. He did, however, manage to requisition <a href="http://www.wowhead.com/item=52569">new gear</a> from an officer of the Ashen Verdict, as well as raid the Alliance's resupply and assault frigate for <a href="http://www.wowhead.com/item=50788">these</a>. One of the creations of the Lich King's Lieutenant, Professor Putricide, apparently had no further use for <a href="http://www.wowhead.com/item=51001">this</a>, either. While the remainder of his equipment is strictly <a href="http://www.wowhead.com/itemset=868">standard issue</a>, <a href="http://www.wowarmory.com/guild-info.xml?r=Silver+Hand&gn=Demon+Knights">allied forces</a> have reported that his conduct and performance under fire have been exemplary. </div><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><div></div><div></div><div>Sadly, the pressures and resposibilities of command have left me more-or-less stationed in Undercity for the foreseeable future. This is a delicate time for the Army, and I cannot ignore my post to go gallivanting off to the Arathi Highlands like some common mercenary. There are campaigns to plan, supplies to distribute, families whose loved ones Katsuko has set on fire to<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_MB_lvXlEJRo/THdMYjGLY-I/AAAAAAAAAHE/liurhskA3lc/s1600/Kusamoto+at+home.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5509956653732815842" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 322px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 388px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_MB_lvXlEJRo/THdMYjGLY-I/AAAAAAAAAHE/liurhskA3lc/s400/Kusamoto+at+home.jpg" border="0" /></a> apologize to (cultists have mothers...huh...who knew?), then those same families to apologize to again after Tsurii ate a few of their cousins- [<span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="color:#ff0000;">"OMNOMNOM! heehee!"</span> <span style="color:#cc9933;">"Dude, shut up! I'm recording here!"</span> <span style="color:#ff0000;">"Sorry, boss...say, does this clown taste funny to you?"</span> </span><span style="color:#cc9933;"><span style="font-size:78%;">"*sigh*They don't pay me enough for this..."</span></span><span style="color:#000000;">]...</span>where was I...oh, Dalaran city guardsmen to bribe...err...motivate, and plenty of new recruits to interview (although the Tauren that is convinced she is a Paladin and the very devout-if eccentric-Goblin flummox me). Our Army strengthens, and soon we shall be strong enough to not only push the last remnants of the Lich King's forces from our world forever, but also survive the cataclysm you have often spoken of. **END TRANS**</div><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><div></div>Kusamotohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08800908760278068599noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4527410072966285035.post-23803078270376602852010-07-14T21:15:00.000-07:002010-07-14T21:37:02.078-07:00Remembrancer, Part I: Katsuko's Tale<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_MB_lvXlEJRo/TD6NzqYd_cI/AAAAAAAAAGI/bLic22CDjAk/s1600/Katsuko.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5493984514128346562" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 215px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_MB_lvXlEJRo/TD6NzqYd_cI/AAAAAAAAAGI/bLic22CDjAk/s400/Katsuko.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div> I remember how the apple blossoms fell from the trees like a winter snowstorm every year when I was a child. I remember the simple joy of running through them, laughing as they parted before me while my parents watched, content, from their bench in Falconwing Square. My father’s full lips and light green eyes showing his good humor at my cavorting. My mother absently brushing a lock of Raven-black hair from her eyes, wedged comfortably in the crook of his shoulder. I remember the caress of warmth as the afternoon breeze ghosted softly from the city-side of our little paradise, redolent with the exciting smells, sounds, and textures of civilization, progress, and affluence. We were a proud race, then, and an exceedingly rich one. Rich in worldly possessions, rich in culture, rich in knowledge. </div><div><br /> And, as my parents often demonstrated, rich in love. </div><div><br /> I was denied nothing growing up in the outskirts of our magically-powered city, yet for all that I was not spoiled. My father often spoke of our duty as virtual immortals to guide the younger races away from the paths of self-destruction they virtually careened down at top speed. That duty, instilled in my from the age of six, as well as my apparent and sometimes frightening aptitude for the magical arts, led to a fulfilling apprenticeship with Magister Jaim Sunfury; one of the most respected practitioners of magic in our little empire. I learned quickly and gained confidence, all the while lovingly supported and encouraged by those whose respect I desired most. </div><div><br /> It was idyllic. It was utopian. It was glorious. </div><div><br /> It was fleeting. </div><div><br /> For you know, you <em>remember</em>, what came next. How the plague ravaged Lordaeron, leaving most dead and some far worse; how the Orcs fell upon us in a fury of bloodletting and murderous rage; how the Scourge nearly wiped us all off the face of Azeroth; how our world almost ended. </div><div><br /> I was still young and idealistic then, and remember the bitter, senseless arguments held in our courts, by our mages, by our military leaders, by my parents. Oh, everyone <em>said</em> the right things; the arguments were sensible and logical: Entrench, prepare, hoard, defend, parlay. The counterarguments were equally good, however: Attack, surprise, conscript, flank, never stop or capitulate. I remember the first gut-wrenching time I realized the truth, and all my idealism and naivete was swept away in one painful rush: </div><div><br /><em> No one knew what to do. </em></div><em><div><br /></em></div> Yet our armies marched, proclaimations were made by pontiffs who knew better, households were prepared for seemingly inevitable sieges, larders were filled to bursting with hard tack and magically-preserved foods, battalions of mage trainees, myself included, were conscripted into elite units…I remember it clearly, these terrible days of debate and waiting. <div><br /> All that ended when the Sunwell died. I remember. Gods, how I wish I did not. </div><div><br /> The chaos. The pandemonium. The shrieks of my friends, some of whom I had known for years, as were traumatically severed from source of our knowledge, our morals, our sanity. I remember a few of them lashing out with their power at anyone and anything around them, burning buildings to ash with fireballs, freezing fleeing men, women, and children solidly in place with frostbolts, or simply tearing the object of their misplaced wrath apart with pure threads of the etherium. No description of this event in any textbook, or by any fanciful storyteller, can ever do justice to the awful certainty of destruction that hung over us all at that moment. That any of us lived was a miracle. That I lived, where so many did not, was something out of a tragic poem. </div><div><br /> I remember heat, cold, screaming, than pain and disorientation as something cracked against my skull hard enough to send me flying into one of my beloved apple trees. I remember looking up through blurred, blood-filled eyes at the pink, red-veined blossoms. So beautiful, so ephemeral. I remember seeing the blast of flame inexorably marching toward them, flung in madness from a compatriot who had already torn his own eyes from his skull. My soul wept as the fire splashed against the trunk of the tree, setting it alight almost instantly. The blossom, caught in the conflagration, wilted and then crisped, raining ash in a parody of their natural life cycle. I remember knowing I was going to die, knowing that the fire would reach me soon. But somehow, the heat, the pain, the wonder of watching the blaze greedily devour everything it touched…it made me feel…feel… </div><div><br /><em> Complete.</em> </div><div><br /> Then movement and dizziness as someone plucked me from my addled reverie, swinging around enough to grant me a vision of Hell. The city was exploding, engulfed, tearing itself apart. I remember…I think I remember…my mother trying to trying to fight through the chaos to reach me, calling my name in anguish as she was pressed back and out of the main square by the mob. The last thing I remember that day was Magister Sunfury’s voice telling me to close my eyes, to not look upon what he would have to do to win out with our lives. I obeyed, fainted, and the world fell away.<br /></div><div><br /> How we survived in the ensuing years, and even thrived, still astounds me. We all became mana addicts to one degree or another, a poor replacement for the Sunwell’s influence, but were mostly able to control our vice and retain our wits. I prospered more than ever before as one of a handful of mages that had survived that black day. My skills were in demand, my tutors were delighted at my progress, if somewhat chagrined at my changed demeanor and total lack of self-preservation, but were ultimately pleased that I had finally settled on a sphere of mastery. I spoke little, made no friends, performed the functions of my profession, and lacking any other option, grew up quickly. </div><div><br /> One day, Jaim pronounced me ready for combat duty, and I was assigned to cleanup detail in the ruined portions of Silvermoon City. “Cleanup” was a euphemism for execution of the wretched ones; Elves who, having lost their minds to total mana addiction, fled for the supposed safety of their fellows. Killing them was a mercy, and one I was ideally suited for. Our situation had made me cold, detached, calculating, and completely devoid of any compassion. I was less than a machine. I was a tool; nothing more. </div><div><br /> And so I killed. As a tool, a weapon, an assassin. Again and again, I killed and felt nothing. </div><div><br /> Until one day, returning from those fields of the damned, I was confronted by a particularly wretched-looking wretch. She might have been beautiful once, but now her Raven-black hair lay limp and matted against gaunt, filthy shoulders. Her wordless snarl revealed broken, rotted teeth framed by cracked and bleeding lips, wild eyes, and hate. She raised her makeshift shiv, a low growl building in her throat. </div><div><br /> I sighed in irritation, calling forth the cleansing red and orange flame that had replaced all that was lost in my life, preparing to finish her in one quick shot. There was nothing to these once-proud Elves, after all. They went up like so much dry tinder at the lover’s caress of the fire. Almost a waste of power…but pretty to watch, at least. </div><div><br /> The fire was never released, though, as my adversary’s growl suddenly stopped, her shiv lowered. I stared in sudden consternation as recognition flooded her eyes, her mouth dropping open in shock. The flame in my hands died as her voice, long forgotten and rusty with the harsh rasp of permanent addiction, whispered past her abused lips. </div><div><br /> “K-Kats? Is it…is it…really you?” </div><div><br /> I remembered…I remembered, damn you all! I had not truly forgotten, but buried that which was too painful to bear. No one, no one but…but…her…had ever called me that. Not my friends, not my father, not Jaim Sunfury, no one else. She had often chided me with the diminutive of my name when I was younger, teased me good-naturedly with it. I hated it, of course. I also loved her for doing it, of course. </div><div><br /> When my voice came, it was barely a husky whisper, equally as unused as hers had been. “Yes. It’s really me. I’m…oh, I’m so sorry that…that…<em>this</em> happened to you. It’s my fault. My fault for not coming for you that day. My fault for running.” </div><div><br /> She shook her head, dismissing my concern. The wild look to her eyes was gone, sanity returned. The hunger remained, but I did not delude myself into thinking that would ever leave her soul. “No, no, baby. It’s alright. It’s…a lot of us ran that day when we should have fought. I…I ran…I ran to find your father, but couldn’t. I don’t know where…how he…if…” </div><div><br /> She trailed off, her eyes darting left and right, searching, beseeching. “The fire was everywhere. In everything. Everyone burned, or ran, or died, or became like…like…I am.” She licked her lips, and I tried to hide my distaste as one particularly putrescent scab broke open on her upper lip, pus and blood running freely, unnoticed. “But I’m better now, Kats. I am. I really, really am. I can control it. I can…be…who I was. I just…I just…need a few more crystals. Just one or two more and I’ll be right as the spring rain, you watch!” </div><div><br /> Her smile as she lied to her only child was the most disturbing thing. I saw she believed it, believed it entirely. She was lost. She…my mother…wasn’t there anymore. Only this masquerade remained. The smile died as quickly as she had plastered it on as her clawed fingers reached for my jerkin, pulling us both down to the ground as she shrieked into my face. </div><div><br /> “I need it! You’re a mage, so I know you have it! Just one! Just one crystal! Give it to me! Gods damn you, you ungrateful little bitch! GIVE IT TO ME NOW!” </div><div><br /> Her voice broke. She degenerated into wracking sobs, head lolling on my shoulder and soiling my clothes with blood, mucus, tears, and who knew what. I sat, unmoving, unable to comprehend what was going on, unable to superimpose this creature on the smiling, lovely face of my youth, unwilling to face what I knew had to happen here. </div><div><br /> And something else. Something was about to break loose inside me. Something dark and limpet, struggling to be free of the whirlwind of that dark place in my mind I had shoved all the memories that I could not, would not, <em>dared not</em>, let out. I couldn’t hold it back, couldn’t contain it. And with one soft, strained sentence from her, it was free to ravage my conscience. </div><div><br /> “If your father were here, he’d make you give it to me. If he were here. If he were only here…” </div><div><br /> And I remembered. All of it. All at once. Every face of every one of my victims for the past months. Every wretch I had put down, thinking it a mercy to execute them. For the first time, I heard their screams, their pleas as the fire took them. I remembered the faces of friends, rivals, entertainers I had loved as a child, political figures most of us had detested, minor royalty…and one face. One face above them all. His denials and shrieks had been long and loud. His rounded jaw melting in the heat of the flames, the spark in his light-green eyes starting to go out in excruciating spasms as the blistering heat contracted all his muscles. But most haunting, most jarring…<em>the recognition on my father’s face at the moment his soul shed its charred vehicle. </em></div><em><div><br /></em></div> I almost gave up then. I nearly laid down, bowing to the inevitable tortures and horrors my erstwhile mother, and the others like her, were certain to visit upon me, as they would any interloper. Idly, I wondered what would kill me first; their madness, or the malfunctioning guardians that still roamed the old city. I wondered if I cared. So many terrible things I had done, so many deaths. No atonement, no altruistic act of contrition, could ever cleanse the stain on my soul. My indifference had made me a murderer, and guilty of possibly the worst crime of all: patricide. To forfeit my life in exchange seemed paltry in the face of the karmic debt I had accumulated. I deserved no less, and perhaps much more. <div><br /> Ironically, it was the pathetic, wailing thing leaning heavily against me that saved my life. I remembered an afternoon, and a conversation my parents had had with me right before I was to begin my apprenticeship under Magister Sunfury. My father spoke at length of our duty to minister wisdom and prudence to the younger races; my mother spoke of the compassion one must have in the course of those duties; both impressed on me the responsibility that was now mine. At the time, it seemed like one more speech, one more lecture, and I only half-listened, making the right sounds back at them by rote. </div><div><br /> Now I understood, truly understood, what that duty and responsibility meant. It meant that no matter what I felt inside, no matter how hard it was to follow the path I had been set on in my youth, to turn away, to lay down and await oblivion, was more than just cowardice. It was treason. </div><div><br /> And that’s why, as I held my mother close, my hand found the discarded shiv and brutally thrust it between her ribs. </div><div><br /> Her fingers dug into my shoulder as she convulsively gasped in pain, eyes flying open wide in surprise. Gently, I leaned forward and reclined her against the hard, ash-laden ground. “I must release you from this pain," I said, surprised at how even, and hard, my voice was. "I have a duty, now, and I can’t turn my back on it for anything, or anyone. Not even the people who once loved me. I hope you understand and can forgive me. But even if you can’t, please…please be at peace.” </div><div><br /> She couldn’t respond, of course. I knew my trade well, and had punctured her lung to avoid attracting the attention of others like her. She couldn’t scream, couldn’t curse, couldn’t berate or chastise, but neither could she praise or forgive. She just stared up at me, the rising and falling of her chest becoming more infrequent, more labored. Finally, after only a few minutes, or maybe an eternity, she took in an erratic, grasping breath, let it rattle out from her ruined lung… </div><div><br /> And died. </div><div><br /> I remember wanting to cry, but not daring to, as I turned and left the blasted portion of the city. The flame of a simple conjuration licked around my mother’s corpse as I strode away. I couldn’t just leave her for the vermin, rodent or bipedal. That much compassion, at least, I still had to give. Soon, her ashes would mingle with the torched remains of our legacy, but I would be long gone by then. When she died, the last vestiges of my old life expired with her. My previous duty had ended, and a new one was about to consume my existence. </div><div><br /> It took less than an hour to pack my meager belongings, requisition enough field provisions to last at least two months, and leave the barracks behind with no one the wiser. The wretched ones, and the occasional abortive attack by the remnants of the Scourge invaders, were simply a symptom of the disease. I saw that clearly, now. The true threat, the enemy who had nearly destroyed us, the creature responsible for my never-ending pain, the Lich King, was now my target. </div><div><br /> And striding toward the Ghostlands where a bloody road of revenge and justice were soon to begin, I remember my resolve, my all-encompassing fury at what he had done to all of us. Then, as now, I swore an oath to never stop until I saw the architect of our suffering laid low and bleeding at my hand. I held no illusions, no doubt that this quest could only end in my eventual death, but that seemed a small price to pay to become the tool of our vengeance. </div><div><br /> Even kings can burn, after all.<br /></div>Kusamotohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08800908760278068599noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4527410072966285035.post-39388886767228001522010-07-13T22:29:00.000-07:002010-07-13T22:30:25.102-07:00Rembrancer is coming...no really, I mean it this timePart one of "Remembrancer" is on the way. Just in final edit. Watch this space...and hope it doesn't suck.Kusamotohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08800908760278068599noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4527410072966285035.post-28513299915844686812010-01-28T22:13:00.000-08:002010-01-28T22:32:18.494-08:00Scenes from AzerothWell, having ironed out my personal life issues, I started playing again on September 7th, 2009. All my characters had gone on permanent vacations or joined monastic orders or other such disappearing acts, so I started over...with another Undead Warrior named Tsurii (musta' been a relative or some such). On December 27th, 2009, I dinged 80. More about how I did that at a later date. For now, it's picture time!<br /><p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5432042009792807282" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 199px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 200px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_MB_lvXlEJRo/S2J9bX6zAXI/AAAAAAAAAFk/LtkF8nFNli0/s200/tsurii+DP+no+2.jpg" border="0" /><br />Standing outside the dark portal...again...</p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5432042481562283650" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 349px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_MB_lvXlEJRo/S2J921ZZ7oI/AAAAAAAAAFs/jl_K7evIzIQ/s400/Tsurii+and+Syl.jpg" border="0" /> <p>I think I'm wearing her down...But why is her horse so much bigger than mine?</p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5432042844883948098" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 227px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_MB_lvXlEJRo/S2J-L-4CkkI/AAAAAAAAAF0/0ZNtv3LPmCs/s400/Tsurii+bronze+drake.jpg" border="0" /><br /><p></p><br /><p>My first Epic Flyer; dropped for me in heroic Culling of Strat (in case you didn't know). His name is Mr. Blonde. </p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5432044491554687250" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 342px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_MB_lvXlEJRo/S2J_r1M8CRI/AAAAAAAAAF8/9XT-iU19dwk/s400/tsurii+current.jpg" border="0" /><br /><p>And here's Tsurii now, in all his facerolling Arms-specced glory. Yes, that is, in fact, the <a href="http://www.wowhead.com/?item=50267">Tyrannical Beheader</a>, probably the 3rd best 2h axe in the game. <a href="http://needmorerage.blogspot.com/">Ratters </a>is probably jealous.</p><p>OK, enough for now. I'll figure out what exploits to put in here tomorrow. For now, hit hard and loot phat, peoples.</p>Kusamotohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08800908760278068599noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4527410072966285035.post-73731372865354583622009-09-16T15:16:00.001-07:002009-09-16T15:18:14.376-07:00Remembrancer<div align="center"><span style="font-size:130%;"><span ><strong>Remembrancer</strong> is coming</span></span></div><div align="center"><span style="font-size:130%;"></span> </div><div align="center"><span style="font-size:130%;">Watch this space...</span></div>Kusamotohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08800908760278068599noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4527410072966285035.post-72012908868081146642009-04-01T21:44:00.000-07:002009-04-01T21:57:36.714-07:00Kusamoto's Last StandSo I jump on to BRK today, and I see his post from Saturday. To say I was shocked was an understatement. BRK? <em>The</em> BRK? Quitting the game? No way! Well, at least my wife and kid are OK with me playing this game.<br /><br />Aren't they?<br /><br />So I thought about it. Then I thought about it some more. Then I realized I haven't finished three of the writing projects I have been trying to work on for the better part of a year, my kid is always angry these days for some reason, I don't sleep very well, I'm irritable all the time...<br /><br />And all because of this fucking game. Well, maybe not all. But a big part.<br /><br />So I got home this evening, canceled my account, deleted all my characteres, and feel I am a better person because of it.<br /><br />So I leave you now. This blog shall remain open for a time, but I will be officially disbanding the army and heading back to my old battlefield full-time. Those of you who have my email, email me. Those of you I see on thelionclan.com, you'll absolutely still see me there. Those of you I have enjoyed reading, and I hope you have likewise enjoyed reading here, I wish you luck, happiness, and most of all, victory. And as a parting gift, I give you the words of one of America's most distinguished leaders...<br /><br /><em>"The shadows are lengthening for me. The twilight is here. My days of old have vanished - tone and tints. They have gone glimmering through the dreams of things that were. Their memory is one of wondrous beauty, watered by tears and coaxed and caressed by the smiles of yesterday. I listen then, but with thirsty ear, for the witching melody of faint bugles blowing reveille, of far drums beating the long roll.</em><br /><br /><em>Today marks my final roll call with you. But I want you to know that when I cross the river, my last conscious thoughts will be of the Corps, and the Corps, and the Corps.</em><br /><br /><em>I bid you farewell."</em> -Gen. Douglas MacArthurKusamotohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08800908760278068599noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4527410072966285035.post-90693319407921080842009-03-17T15:44:00.000-07:002009-03-17T15:55:01.523-07:00It's the song of the day + My very first tag!So I was filling out my NCAA bracket and this song came to me. I blame Megs. Enjoy!<br /><br /><div align="center"><strong>The Great Lament of the Newbie Raider (as sung to the music from "One Shining Moment"):</strong></div><br />*Intro music sung by the Thunder Bluff Phlegmatical Chorus...cleanup crew courtesy of Undercity Waste Management*<br /><br /><em>The purples drop<br />There you go<br />You’re “need”ing for your life<br />But DKP blows<br />Another raid<br />Has come and passed<br />Still in quest blues<br />Murlocs can kick your ass<br />(but with) One shining epic<br />The things we could do<br />One shining epic<br />To prove we’re not n00bs<br /><br />But the raid is long<br />The loot so-so<br />Stupid Grobb<br />Tore you a new hole<br />No party wipes<br />Just your toon in shreds<br />Your “friends” all laugh<br />And jump on your head<br />(just) One shining epic<br />I’d sell my first born<br />One shining epic<br />No seriously…I’m really not torn<br /><br />Feel the blaze of the screen<br />Feel the wind from heat sinks<br />“Ugh, Malygos again?”<br />Stomped fast as you can blink…<br /><br /></em>*Hammer dulcimer, banjo, and bagpipe solo*<br /><em><br />And while you’re pwned<br />Your head you’ll bash<br />When you hear, “<span style="color:#cc33cc;">[Red Sword of Courage]</span>??!<br />Man, shard that tank trash!”<br />(aarrgghhh!!!!) One shining epic<br />Not 4, 9, or 3<br />One shining epic, you QQ…<br />(please) One shining epic<br />Guess we’ll go PvP (zing!)<br />One shining epiiiiiiiiic…</em><br /><em></em><br />Tagging time...<br />Ratters, Darraxus, Jed (yes, you, Nakama), Dechion, and, of course, Megs from /oom. Take your favorite uplifting sports-type tune, do terrible WoW-related things to it, and post it for the world to experience...ciao for now.Kusamotohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08800908760278068599noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4527410072966285035.post-65032509038731722722009-03-11T21:49:00.000-07:002009-03-11T22:03:24.605-07:00If it Looks Like a Tank, Walks Like a Tank, Holds Aggro Like a Tank...So in celebration of dinging 72, here's a quick photo op in UC with my new gear. <div><div> </div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312159483843362226" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 362px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_MB_lvXlEJRo/SbiU59C0vbI/AAAAAAAAAE0/FPeHURpEcow/s400/lvl72.jpg" border="0" /><br /><div>In addition to the <a href="http://www.wowhead.com/?item=43184">Tundra Pauldrons</a>, <a href="http://www.wowhead.com/?item=42768">Boots of the Unbowed Protector</a>, and <a href="http://www.wowhead.com/?item=42765">Disturbing Giant Gauntlets</a>, I picked up a <a href="http://www.wowhead.com/?item=39084">Cobalt Helm </a>for cheap tanking fun, tossed a bunch of <a href="http://www.wowhead.com/?item=38375">Borean Armor Kits </a>over everything that a guildie was nice enough to ship me, and finally got my Fiery on for the <a href="http://www.wowhead.com/?item=36517">Iron Grip Shortsword of the Champion</a>. My DEF is sitting at 429 (ok, not great...but better), STA is over 1k, armor at 14.3k, and health at 15.2k. All in all, we're coming along. </div></div><div> </div><div>Although Tsuri hasn't been too thrilled with the quest choices lately...<br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312159485021084450" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 389px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_MB_lvXlEJRo/SbiU6BbnWyI/AAAAAAAAAE8/Ra9h-mVZcIg/s400/blingbling.jpg" border="0" /></div><div></div>Kusamotohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08800908760278068599noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4527410072966285035.post-56615809564157890362009-03-10T17:58:00.000-07:002009-03-10T18:12:09.100-07:00Weekend Update<strong>Raids/Dungeons</strong> <div><div></div><br /><div>Ran both Drak'Thalon and Utgarde Keep this weekend, which was a good time. I did quite a bit of boss tanking in UK and off-tanked the rest of the time. I think I'm getting better at it; we didn't wipe in either instance and manhandled UK. Got some kickin' quest rewards from UK, in particular, as well as some shoulders and gloves for my budding DPS set. </div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5311731195056210098" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 287px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_MB_lvXlEJRo/SbcPYQ-vwLI/AAAAAAAAAEs/inN0XuVrifw/s400/dredd.jpg" border="0" /><br /><div><strong>Leveling</strong></div><div></div><br /><div>I'm less than a bar from 72 after running almost all the Borean Tundra quest chains and starting on Howling Fjord. The Wyrmrest Accord catch-a-drake daily and the Walrusman "we need food" dailies pile on the XP and are a guaranteed 40k every day. </div><br /><div></div><div><strong>Professions</strong></div><div></div><br /><div>Just hit 400 mining last night, blacksmithing is still lagging at 310. However, I'm now a GrandMaster EMT with 405 in First Aid. </div><div> </div><div> </div><div><strong>Random</strong></div><div></div><br /><div>Vengeance is mine!</div><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5311731195546102082" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 263px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_MB_lvXlEJRo/SbcPYSzi6UI/AAAAAAAAAEk/d2UKKFhgMeA/s400/deadreaver.jpg" border="0" /></div>Kusamotohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08800908760278068599noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4527410072966285035.post-32423881765376078962009-03-06T10:53:00.000-08:002009-03-06T11:30:06.893-08:00Nexus RunQuick update (and since it's from work, no pics...sorry)...<br /><br />Finally got to run my first Northrend instance last night, regular Nexus. I think this was one of the more fun instances I've run so far, even if it started out with bad vibrations. Lemme' splain...<br /><br />So the more experienced guildie who had offered to run me through shoots me an IM asking if I'm good to go. I say sure, ready to tank whenever she's ready. After a few questions (such as "what's your def at?" which, at the time was 378...so not good), she says that someone else should tank instead; at which point I'm thinking, "fantastic...what precisely am I going to do other than get in the way?" I mean I leveled Tsuri as protection all the way from level 12 on. DPS? What's that? And is it my fault that everything I picked up in Outlands and the greens from BT were all pally plate? It's what the game gave me, man.<br /><br />Well, I stomp on my pride, stick on the <a href="http://needmorerage.blogspot.com/2008/11/is-where-kinn-cannot-be-understood.html">helm of nose-smushyness</a>, and accept the summons, pretty much accepting that we're going to wipe a lot because we'll be effectively a man down for the instance, since everyone else is 73 or higher and I have no clue how to do anything other than draw aggro.<br /><br />In retrospect, I needn't have worried. The DK tank was very good, the healing was awesome, and I discovered that I can actually do quite a bit of damage when pressed into a DPS role (I hit a couple of crits for over 2k on Revenge and HS). The fact that I was tossing 5 sunders on the minibosses I'm sure helped, but the rest of the guildies having a cohesive plan of attack and experience with the dungeon was the difference. Our only wipe was on Keristraza just as we killed her, and it wasn't even a full party wipe. I probably wouldn't have wiped, either, if I had realized the whole "you have to keep moving" bit meant jumping in place right next to the MT. I was even able to draw Keri's aggro on to me to fuel the Revenge+Devastate+Shield Bash+HS idocy.<br /><br />So what started out as dissappointment quickly turned really fun. I'm certain I made a ton of noobish mistakes, but it made me feel better that the MT made a few, as well (she typically plays DPS or healer alts, and very well, but has only tanked a little, apparently...still really good, though). I was even able to pick up some DPS shoulders in addition to the absolutely badass tank gear quest rewards. The Tundra Pauldrons, in particular, are amazing good.<br /><br />It was actually kind of refreshing to not have to stress about watching out for everyone else, checking mana pools, seeing who I needed to Intercept to keep alive...and I'm glad experienced people were running the show. I would have been sooooo lost in there.<br /><br />Things to remember for next time:<br /><br />• Vigilance on the healer for boss fights.<br />• Abuse defensive Charge to keep the hate flowing through me. <br />• Commanding Shout to buff the party before the last battle.<br />• TRINKETS DUMMY! You picked up all those +HP trinkets for a reason!<br /><br />Pics of the new hotness later this evening...Kusamotohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08800908760278068599noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4527410072966285035.post-19621755287151426992009-03-03T07:52:00.000-08:002009-03-03T08:47:11.313-08:00Weekend Update, Part DeuxOK, so now that that is out of my system...here's what really went down...<br /><br /><strong>Raids/Dungeons</strong><br /><br />I gave Blackrock a shot to see if I could solo the Jenkins achievement. Everything was going fine until I ran into 5 of the caster mobs that summon yojimbo to take all the pain simultaneously. Non-AoE me at 68 vs. 10 50-something elite mobs? Fail. I'll give it another shot when I get to 75 or so. I did get all the Nexus chain quests, however, so my guildmates are going to be nice enough to run me through a regular, vanilla version of it on Wednesday.<br /><br /><strong>Leveling</strong><br /><br />This one should be obvious, as the below post indicates. Leveling went swimmingly over the weekend. I am super, uber-glad I can now look at, and actually half-ass afford, some of the 70-only purples I've been drooling over on the AH for months and researching where they drop at. Additionally, I took a little time to level up Fujimaro a bit and got him his first pet (a lashtail red Raptor from Durotar). I named him Stelios since, when I found him, his aggro radius was ridiculous and the first thing he did when he ran at me was Savage Rend. Apparently, he is looking for a beautiful death. No sense of self-preservation FTW! <br /><br />Tsanuri is still stuck at 13. I swear I haven't forgotten you guys, Jed! I'll be jumping back to her later in the week to at least get her to 15 or 16.<br /><br /><strong>Professions</strong><br /><br />I got Tsuri's first aid up to Outlands max on Friday night, so now I just need to find the Northrend trainer and start making Frostweave stuff. Cooking is still way low, but I did break down and farm a ton of Thorium to get Blacksmithing up to 291. I'm probably going to do another Silithus run tonight to get it to 300 and then pay Outlands a visit for training and farming Fel Iron. Mining is progressing nicely; I should be at about 400 in short order.<br /><br /><strong>Random</strong><br /><br />Does anyone else think that Bor'Gorok outpost in Borean Tundra sounds like somewhere the Swedish Chef would hang out? I half expected a Dwarf wearing a floppy chef's hat to be there handing out cooking quests.Kusamotohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08800908760278068599noreply@blogger.com0