#they should do life series on a custom map with bits of lore to find

[150en]

Bdubs sweet home.

[origami-goblin]

Starfinder Theme Focus - Spacefarers and Xenoseekers

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First of all, let me apologize. It's been MONTHS since I teased the final article on Starfinder themes and leaving this series in a perilously unfinished limbo. I wish that I had a decent excuse to explain it, but unfortunately I don't have that either. So please, accept my apology, and let's get to the conclusion of this series!

We've covered a lot of bases - Ace Pilots, Bounty Hunters, Icons, Mercenaries, Outlaws, Priests, and Scholars, which means that today we will be talking about Spacefarers, Xenoseekers, and briefly touching on the Themeless concept. That's still a ton of ground to cover, and I'm a bit intimidated even thinking about it. Concluding this intense detail into Starfinder's themes will be bittersweet - not only because it'll be over, but also because there's no way to fully encapsulate the entire, endless spectrum of characters you can create within Paizo's Starfinder universe. That's what's really great about the Themeless option; if none of the other themes do your character justice in describing their schtick, then you can always go Themeless and solve that particular problem.

Whenever I create a character, I will usually start by trying to find an interesting or obscure feat, characteristic, theme, etc and build the character around that. Some people are really creative and come up with amazing backstories first and build the character to fit their artistic vision. Although that'll happen on occasion, I'll generally determine a character's backstory after I've fleshed out their vitals and statblock. The important thing for me is that my characters stand out. Not from a min-max perspective (if that's what you enjoy then keep doing it!), but from a standpoint of going outside the norm and playing a character with abilities that people may have never experienced before.

Stone Warder Sorcerer? Breadth of Experience feat? Archivist Bard? All of these types of choices go leaps and bounds to hint and what the character is all about. A Stone Warder Sorcerer would be something like an Earth Bender from Avatar, gaining their powers from the rocky world around them. Characters with a Breadth of Experience are ancient, meaning that they've seen and heard nearly all there is to know. Bards with the Archivist archetype aren't going to be dishing out much damage, but they are constantly scribbling down their experiences and every bit of lore they can get their hands on. And just like that, a single piece of your character's statblock can literally define them.

That's partly been the point of these posts about the Themes in Starfinder. Sure, you can come up with an absolutely AWESOME character concept and attach a theme that fits that character. No problem. But if you're having trouble coming up with a character, the options listed in these posts are meant to assist you in launching off into the incredible Imagisphere to create a truly unique character.

Alright, I've babbled so much that I've turned into a brook. (Sorry if I've used that particular moniker already...it's been a long time since my last Starfinder post). Time to finish off the series!

Spacefarer Character Concepts

"Your longing to journey among the stars can't be sated. You yearn for the adventure of stepping onto a distant world and exploring its secrets. You tend to greet every new opportunity with bravery and fortitude, confident that your multitude of skills will pull you through. Perhaps you simply find joy in the act of traveling with your companions, or perhaps you are just out to line your pockets with all sorts of alien loot!"

Clueless Tourist - Let's face it. You saw a map of the Pact Worlds and immediately searched the best places to visit on each planet. Theme parks, monuments, parks - you want to visit them all and document your travels on a blog that you're still coming up with a creative name for. Experiences are the best currency to be paid in, and your goal is to become filthy rich on them. Now, you might not understand all of the different cultures or customs in the places that you're visiting, but in your eyes everybody else should be happy that you're bolstering the economy in all of your destinations. Excuse me - could you please take my photo?

Deductive Meteorologist - Perhaps in the same vein as the Environmental Engineer concept from the Scholar post, this character would be all about the weather and is drawn to the varied climates and conditions present in the Pact World planets. Have you ever seen the sunrise through noxious fuchsia clouds or felt thick, oily rain land on your head? All of these phenomenon can be explained through science. Maybe you'll publish a scholarly journal on your findings, or maybe your more of a storm-chaser bent on surviving the most wild and dangerous conditions. No matter how you spin it, you're fascinated by the weather, whether your companions like it or not.  

Hospitable Flight Attendant - Time to make everybody else's travel experiences as enjoyable as possible. You're an expert at socializing and keeping everybody's minds off the baggage fees and severe lack of legroom. In your eyes, there's no part of a space commute that can't be made better by a tall glass of sherry or a delicious sack of Zeni's Zesty Znacks. While traveling, you are sure to keep all the amenities nearby to heighten the enjoyment of those around you. You might have gotten into the gig because you wanted to see the universe, and maybe that itch is just beginning to surface once more.

Curious Explorer - Hardly anything fancy about this one. You love exploring. The mystery, intrigue, and discovery thrill you to pieces. Every time you come across a corner, you just HAVE to see what's on the other side of it. This is known to get you into heaps of trouble and situations where you end up on the wrong end of a 'No Trespassing' sign. But, through your foolhardy actions, you've been able to experience things that very few other people have, and your stories are the things of legend. There are countless star sectors to visit and only so much time...what are you waiting for?!

Budding Photographer - Your goal? The perfect shot. You might be a movie producer scouting locations for your next sector-buster. Or maybe you're an artistic photographer determined to capture the essence of the human (and alien) experience. You never miss a moment and you are incredibly easy to track based on the trail of snapshots that you leave behind. Whether your honing your craft or a complete amateur when it comes to lighting, focus, and apertures, space grants you the freedom to create magnificent works of art. Every horizon has another potential shot, and you'll hitchhike your way around the galaxy if you have to if it means catching your elusive unicorn.

Xenoseeker Character Concepts

"The thought of meeting alien life-forms excites you. The more different their appearances and customs are from yours, the better! You either believe they have much to teach you or you want to prove you are better than them. Of course, the only way to accomplish your goal is to leave the Pact Worlds and travel to the Vast, where a virtually endless number of aliens await."

Captivated Anthropologist - This concept makes perfect sense. As an anthropologist, you live and love to study the differences between humanoid species. You can even take it a step further to be fascinated with specific aspects of each of the races. What are the secrets behind the Lashunta's psychic abilities? How tough are the scales of the Vesk? So many questions and not enough time to find all the answers. You might become acutely interested in your crewmates, asking them all sorts of intrusive questions in order to develop an understanding for their specific gifts and talents. Beings with surgical enhancements might be particularly interesting to you as humanoids continue their never-ending quest for power.

Inquisitive Marketing Guru - If you want to sell something, you HAVE to know your market. Double blind surveys, focus groups, experimental expos...you will stop at nothing to understand the people buying the products you're pitching. Whether you're a part of an elaborate Ponzi scheme or a well-known enterprise, you are hungry to understand the psychology of buying patterns and habitual spending. If you can unlock those secrets, you will be the most valuable asset to whichever company decides to employ you. And, by developing an understanding for the beings around you, you'll undoubtedly be an asset in any situation involving sweet-talking with honeyed words. Heck - maybe if you can find some delicious edible aliens, you will be the next great snack mogul in the Pact Worlds! Second only to Zeni himzelf.

Experimental Doctor - You embrace the uniqueness of yourself and encourage others to do the same. Stand out from the crowd, you say. Set yourself apart! Implant yourself with one of the many augmentations that you can provide! Your interest in the countless creeping aliens and obscure creatures skittering around the Vast stimulate your imagination and provide you with the necessary...tools to allow you to develop exciting new attachments for your adoring fans. Or maybe you're more secretive and don't think your work should see the light of day. Will you be a mad scientist or a renowned surgeon? The choice is yours!

Calming Zoologist - People will pay loads of money to see an exhibit they've never experienced before. There are countless numbers of mindless creatures out in the far reaches of space that would be welcomed additions to a zoological attraction. Your history in taming wild beasts and soothing the animalistic nature in the creatures you've encountered makes you the perfect person for the job. There is a fantastic space zoo that'll pay top dollar for new specimens, and you're itching to get paid. This isn't to say that you are inconsiderate of the creatures' feelings, however. The zoo that you're working for is more akin to a resort, and they take great care of the residents that live there.

Talkative Space Taxi Driver - While taking fares, you've come across just about every type of intelligent being known in the sector. Long nights that turned into early mornings were a staple of yours, and you've delivered passengers to slums, clubs, and luxury estates, learning about them all the while. You love a good conversation; it helps pass the time and gives you an amazing repertoire of stories to share with your crewmates. Everybody comes from a different background, and you have learned to appreciate the intricacies and uniqueness that everybody brings to the figurative table. You might have a bit of a lead foot as well...but who doesn't?

Themeless Characters

If you don't fit the bill with any of the other themes, then you are probably Themeless. By choosing to forgo a theme designation, your statistical bonuses will suffer compared to a character who has a theme, so if you're more concerned with numbers and maximizing your character, then this might not be for you. Choosing this option, however, will allow you to portray your character as a vast canvas, awaiting your masterful strokes.

Hopefully I've portrayed the wide variety of concepts that the Starfinder themes can cover. With a dash of creativity, you can morph at least one of the themes to fit the base core of your character. Try to think about each of the themes in new ways; don't get caught up in the specific 'title' of the theme. Read the blurbs about each one and search for synonyms that line up with the character that you're envisioning in your mind.

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At the end of the day, play a character that you WANT to play. You should be excited every time that you portray your character, and play the game in whatever way is going to be the most fun for you.

I hope you've enjoyed this series on the Themes of Starfinder! See you in the stars!

[michelozzoutube]

So, Played Ultra Moon Recently (Pokemon Theory/Talk)

I know its been out for a bit, but for the sake of internet manners, I’ll give a read more so if spoilers wish to be avoided they can be. I do talk about late game spoilerific stuff in this so your warning, it is fair

So, when you get to the point in Ultra Sun/Moon where in ‘classic’ Sun/Moon Nebby evolves into the box legendary and then you travel to Ultra Space, Ultra Moon takes a sharp turn and weaves Necrozma and the Ultra Recon Squad into the story, not to mention opening up the actual travel in Ultra Space into a full fledged game feature rather than just a cut scene. Fuck the motion controls tho, praise the sun someone thought of giving an option to use the circle thumb stick instead of the motion controls though, but shame on them for hiding the feature in a completely unrelated part of the game map. But I digress.

So, after the plot mandated first use of the Ultra Wormhole and the battle that follows, you gain the ability to travel through Ultra Space at your leisure, to find the ‘older’ Ultra Beasts and some other off the Pokedex Pokemon including old Legendaries. This is a neat feature and one I’ve spent a lot of time on, but it got me to thinking of the lore implications of it all, considering your ‘score’ in the mini-game is in fact the number of LIGHT YEARS you travel away from Alola via the Ultra Wormhole. 

So. With the aid of a Legendary Pokemon-Ultra Beast you can travel through Wormholes that allow you to cross the gap between INCREDIBLY far flung parts of the Pokemon Universe in the span of oh, a few minutes tops depending on how far your skill takes you in the mini game. I can buy that, Pokemon has certainly done crazier things. But the thing that got me thinking is the fact that no matter where you land, you run into the same thing. Pokemon. Sure, Pokemon you don’t find in Alola proper, but Pokemon all the same. 

This basically confirms a few things. Firstly, it confirms there are many Earth-like planets in the Pokemon Universe that can support life, not a major point but one worth bringing up. 

Secondly, it confirms that Pokemon do indeed exist in outer space and all the Pokedex entries about Pokemon like the Clefairy line or the Elgeym Line are also canon rather than merely speculation. Which is cool. 

Thirdly, alongside the existence of the Ultra Recon Squad, this confirms that there is other HUMAN life in the Pokemon Universe, not native to ‘Earth’. A crazy thought if you really stop and think about it, one I think Nintendo should NOT sleep on, because it would be an amazing thing to have a Pokemon game really embrace its sci fi elements more and include the possibility of interplanetary travel for more than just ‘hey, here’s a room with a cool Pokemon in it’ 

Ultra Beasts are interesting in this whole process because they all seem to come from worlds custom tailored for them. Is it an example of a world that was taken over by an invasive species and all that remains are the conquering creatures? Or are these environments the only place Ultra Beasts are truly ‘native’ and in their ideal locations? The game seems to point towards both, since for most of the locations you get a thematic local full of Ultra Beasts in the distance just, living their lives while the one that’s ready to fight you waits for you to walk over to it. 

But then there is Guzzlord, whose ‘home’ location is very clearly an alternate Alola where its greedy, gluttonous rampage has reduced the world to a smoking crater not unlike locations in the Fallout series. Considering its design, I wouldn’t be surprised if Guzzlord is one of the only Ultra Beasts who is ALWAYS an invasive species, with no place to call home. Likely because it stripped such a world bare in short order, and moved onto the next. 

Thought occurred to me too about why Guzzlord would be able to go through a world so effortlessly. The Alola they ravaged must have been from the timeline where the original five generations of Pokemon occurred. No Mega Evolutions, No Fairy Types. Probably Z-Moves, but we’ll never know since their Alola was reduced to rubble. Anyone who has played Generation 5 knows how pervasive and powerful Dragon Types were back then, and how few counters they had beyond other Dragon Types or Ice Types. Now imagine an entire ecosystem’s worth of Dragons, with no hard counter and no way for the average trainer to hard wall their powerful attacks from either their Dragon or Dark typings. Steel types sure, but that’s only defensively. It would only prolong the war of attrition. Probably just long enough for that planetary evacuation you find notices of in the ruins. 

But back to the general concept of life on other planets in Pokemon, as proven by Ultra Wormhole travel. Taking what we know from this, and adding the fact that in Pokemon Lore, Arceus is the source of all life, Pokemon and Human, it makes one wonder is he the source of all life in the entire Pokemon Universe? Did all life come from ‘Earth’, and before Humans could properly record/observe the universe it spread out to other planets through space travelling Pokemon like Clefairy? Did Arceus start in some far flung star system in deep space, spreading life as it traveled until it settled on ‘Earth’ and had one last bout of creation? Or perhaps there are many Arceus (Arceuii?) each one responsible for creating life in its respective domain (which could be a single planet, or perhaps solar system?). There’s no evidence one way or the other, but just tantalizing little bread crumbs that point in all sorts of directions when it comes to this mystery. Which is incredibly neat for a franchise that originally came out in the 90′s about throwing balls at electric rodents for the purposes of pit fighting, don’t you think? 

[aion-rsa]

How The Elder Scrolls Online: Blackwood Brings Back the Magic of Oblivion

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Blackwood, the latest chapter in The Elder Scrolls Online’s ongoing “Gates of Oblivion” event, is poised to be a particularly special experience for fans of the all-time classic Bethesda fantasy RPG The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion. While the chapter is set 800 years prior to the events of Oblivion, Blackwood’s versions of the sprawling cities of Leyawiin and Gideon, as well as the devilish Deadlands, will undoubtedly feel familiar to veterans of the 2006 classic. But as we learned during a hands-on demo period in April, the expansion also features new areas and characters that bring these iconic locations to life in new ways.

Like with the game’s Skyrim-based Greymoor chapter, nostalgia permeates every aspect of Blackwood, including the setup of its story. Mehrunes Dagon, Oblivion‘s diabolical antagonist, takes center stage once again as the chapter’s main villain, but things aren’t as they seem.

“The story is about a deal with a devil,” ESO creative director Rich Lambert explains. “When you first arrive in Leyawiin, you’re asked to investigate a threat to a number of Imperial counselors who used to council the Longhouse Emperors. When you start to dig into things, you begin to realize that there’s a lot more going on than initially expected. How Mehrunes Dagon is involved in this is up to you to figure out and put an end to.”

Spawning randomly in the swampy Blackwood east of the legendary city are Oblivion Portals, which don’t appear on the map, making each encounter feel unexpected. When you interact with these portals, you’re transported to the Deadlands, a public dungeon-sized area where you can find new loot, face challenging enemies, and uncover details about Mehrunes Dagon’s grand scheme.

“Mehrunes Dagon is one of my favorite Daedric Princes, if not my favorite,” Lambert says. “He’s this cool, big, badass, four-armed character that wields axes. How can you not like that?”

Oblivion Portals are not the same as the Oblivion Gates you fought to close in Oblivion, however. Unlike the latter, portals behave more frenetically and plop you in random spots across the Deadlands, Dagon’s hellish realm.

“We’re thinking of these as Mehrunes Dagon figuring out that tech,” Lambert explains. “It’s like his initial science experiment. These are the precursors to the gates. They don’t work exactly the same way. There may or may not be secrets hidden in there. There are also other parts of the Deadlands explorable in the main story. The fourth-quarter DLC is going to be more akin to, say, Clockwork City, where you’re in the Deadlands, exploring the Deadlands.”

While nostalgia will be the key to charming Oblivion veterans when exploring the Deadlands, Lambert insists that there are more than a few surprises in store for even the most knowledgeable fans.

“When you get to the end of the dungeon, you learn a bit about how Mehrunes Dagon is doing this and you’ll see that things aren’t the same as they were in Oblivion. This is different—it’s our take on Oblivion portals and how Mehrunes is using them.”

Leyawiin, however, brings back very warm memories of Oblivion. The city is lovingly recreated along with the addition of new areas, like a dock and some sections that were flooded in the 2006 game. But even more impressive is the return of Gideon, a location that debuted in the very first Elder Scrolls game, 1994’s Arena, and hadn’t been seen since. Needless to say, it’s very cool to see how ZeniMax Online Studios is weaving the historic settlement into ESO’s ever-expanding map.

Exploring the highland forests of the region of Cyrodiil evokes Oblivion in a powerful way as well. Blackwood even lets you explore areas like Border Watch, Undertow Cavern, and Deepscorn Hollow as they were centuries before the events of the classic RPG.

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Another aspect of Blackwood that harkens back to Oblivion is the new companion system, which allows you to recruit one of two NPCs, Imperial knight Bastian Hallix or Dunmer thief Mirri Elendis, who will then accompany you anywhere in the game other than solo arenas and PVP. The companion system should beef up the party of players who feel less comfortable with the more social aspects of the game, giving them a customizable NPC sidekick who can help them throughout their journey.

“Companions are essentially a permanent friend or adventuring buddy,” Lambert says. “They will follow you into pretty much any content. They can be a tank or a damage dealer or a healer.”

Companions have their own gear (you can’t give them yours) and behave independently on the battlefield, though you can customize their skill rotations. There is a hierarchy of skills, so if you want your companion to behave like a healer, you prioritize healing skills on their rotation so that they employ that style in battle. Both companions come with their own content, including quests and individual storylines, and you build a rapport with them as you adventure continues.

Two fan-favorite characters, Eveli Sharp-Arrow (from the Orsinium DLC) and Lyranth (Base Game), also return to help you unravel the mystery behind the brutal attacks on Imperial counselors across Blackwood. While the storyline is relatively small in scope at the outset, it eventually spirals into an epic undertaking.

Blackwood also offers a new trial called Rockgrove, which features three unique bosses with hard modes, new gear and cosmetics, and a new mount as a reward for completing the challenge. There is also a new “endeavors” system that allows you to buy crate items that typically cost real money by completing tasks that run in the background while you play. This is the first time these crate items will be available to earn without paying real money.

Console players will also get next-gen console enhancements for Xbox Series X/S and PlayStation 5. Updates include a 4K/30fps fidelity mode and a 1440p/60fps performance mode for Xbox Series X and PS5 (on Xbox Series S, it’ll be 1440p/30fps and 1080p/60, respectively). You should also expect improved lighting and textures, a nearly doubled draw distance, and more.

So far, it looks like Blackwood is yet another massive ESO chapter that reintroduces players to a familiar corner of Tamriel with a few twists to keep things fresh. Lambert and his team pay homage to Oblivion while also bringing to the table new stories and twists to the original lore.

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“One of the best things about Blackwood for me is kind of going back to my roots,” Lambert says. “When I first started at Bethesda, my first game was Oblivion. Now I get to contribute more to it and flesh the world out to learn more about the history of the area.”

The Elder Scrolls Online: Blackwood is out on June 1.

The post How The Elder Scrolls Online: Blackwood Brings Back the Magic of Oblivion appeared first on Den of Geek.

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[jamesbyerj]

One with the Force - Kingo64

In the feature, we're chatting with Kingo64, the creator of the most popular mod for Blade & Sorcery - The Outer Rim. Being a bit of a Star Wars geek myself, this is a mod I've been following for a long time.  [b]Thank you for joining me Alex ([url=https://www.nexusmods.com/bladeandsorcery/users/470810]Kingo64[/url]), we'll start as we always do, can you tell our readers a bit about yourself?  [/b] Hey! My name is Alex, I’m a full-time software developer and a fairly recognisable member of the Blade & Sorcery Discord server. I’ve been modding the game Blade & Sorcery for a bit over a year now and have obliterated any notion of ‘free time’ I once had since starting [url=https://www.nexusmods.com/bladeandsorcery/mods/528]The Outer Rim[/url]. It’s been said that I have ‘a bit of a personality’, and I’ve been blessed with many friends from modding communities over the years, notably from a now-defunct forum called Facepunch. I’ve been pretty fortunate and grew up with computers and video games from a young age. Without the internet you kinda needed to figure things out on your own, stumbling around through game files, seeing what you could change, trying to make the villains of the game bark like a dog for your own amusement. Modding was always one of the big appeal factors when it came to games for me since it essentially meant that the games were never ‘done’ as long as people remained interested it’s like an endless sunset. I’m still not sure if I’d ever want to work full-time in the video game industry but I suppose there’s always a possibility if I change my mind? There are always opportunities out there. [b]What are your favourite games of all time and what do you love about them?  [/b] Ha, I’m not too good at picking favourites. I suppose I’ve always enjoyed first-person shooters the most; along with role-playing games. I think I’ll just throw out a fly fishing line and reel off a big list of names and see if we get any bites. [u]Multiplayer games[/u] [list] [*]Unreal Tournament ‘99 [*]Quake 3 Arena [*]Battlefield 1942 & 2 [*]Halo: Combat Evolved [*]Garry’s Mod [*]Worms Armageddon [/list][u] Single-player games[/u] [list] [*]Half-Life 1 & 2, Opposing Force, Blue Shift, Black Mesa [*]S.T.A.L.K.E.R. series [*]The Elderscrolls III: Morrowind [*]Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic series [*]The Witcher 2 & 3 [*]Id Tech 3 classics such as: Jedi Knight series, Call of Duty + United Offensive, Return to Castle Wolfenstein, Soldier of Fortune 2: Double Helix [*]Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory [/list] Without turning this into a TEDx Talk (call me TEDx if you want rambling subjective opinions on games), it mainly boils down to either enjoying the gameplay, the story, or the atmosphere/world building. All of these games have left me with long term memories, unique experiences, and wield some kind of spark that just makes me want to hope for a rainy day or a good excuse to dive back into them. I’d encourage those who haven’t played some of these games to check them out, they’re pretty fun. [b]Before we start talking about your mods, I'm guessing you're a huge Star Wars fan. There are tonnes of games, movies and other media in the franchise. What are your favourites?  [/b] Fun fact, I wasn’t much of a Star Wars turbo nerd when I first started the project but I have had to do a fair amount of research into the lore, wikis, and books in order to create [url=https://www.nexusmods.com/bladeandsorcery/mods/528]The Outer Rim[/url] in a way that respects both the Star Wars Expanded Universe / Legends and the canon. Fact-checkers are welcome. For those of you who have not watched the TV series ‘The Clone Wars’, do yourself a favour and watch that. Specifically with the ‘Ultimate Episode Order’ (you can find that online) which restructures it chronologically. It masterfully fleshes out the Star Wars universe and gives a plasteel backbone to the characters in the prequels and what they should be remembered for. This TV series in its totality is arguably better than the movies. As I’ve mentioned earlier with the games, I highly recommend Jedi Outcast / Jedi Academy from the Jedi Knight series along with the Knights of the Old Republic series. They are the primary inspirations for [url=https://www.nexusmods.com/bladeandsorcery/mods/528]The Outer Rim[/url] when it comes to gameplay design. [b]The sequel trilogy had a fairly mixed reception from Star Wars fans, what are your feelings about it?  [/b] The sequel trilogy really garners a lot of mixed feelings from everyone. For younger audiences, this will likely be their introduction to the Star Wars universe on the big screen - bright-eyed without prior conceptions of what to expect, who they’ll see or what may happen. It’s all new to them and it’s all fantastic. They’ll grow up and look back fondly at the time they saw Star Wars Episode 7 in the cinema when the older generations were audibly grumbling at the thought of it. The same thing happened when The Phantom Menace came out and the same thing will happen again when the re-animated corpse of Darth Plagueis rears his head 15 years from now when another trilogy is announced for the next generation of kids. Personally, I thought the sequels were incredibly lack-lustre, disappointing, and almost a deliberate betrayal to the Star Wars ecosystem they’ve built up over the years. It’s no surprise some people prefer to stick their head in the sand and just pretend they never happened. All of the characters were either unlikeable or forgettable; excusing Kylo Ren - a pale imitation of Revan. The story was poorly developed, ham-fisted, and mostly surmounted to nothing (Last Jedi particularly). There was a very clear agenda on ‘throwing away the past / wiping the slate clean’ to absolve themselves of the original trilogy and prequels. I understand that their intention was to create a fresh footing to tell new stories on but it ultimately backfired on them pretty hard, unfortunately. Red Letter Media, in particular, gave a pretty good summation on the recent movies that mostly match my opinions for those looking for a meaty analysis. Rogue One was fantastic though, congrats. [center][img]https://staticdelivery.nexusmods.com/mods/2295/images/26/26-1597753699-614768287.jpeg[/img] [img]https://staticdelivery.nexusmods.com/mods/2295/images/26/26-1597753704-1234122797.jpeg[/img][/center] [b]Talking about mods now, you started out modding back in the height of the Oblivion days with a few small compatibility patches, have you done much modding between then and when you discovered Blade & Sorcery? [/b] Well, to be frank, I’ve been modding games since the dark ages before stable internet connections and when we used to get games on discs in magazines. It made sense to me to try and create new content for yourself where possible, whether it is custom maps/campaigns, gameplay tweaks, asset modification, rather than waiting for the next game. Games were often released as a final distributable copy rather than the evergreen update cycle we expect today and often did not receive patches outside of expansion packs.  Generally, when I make a mod it’s for personal use and may be shared with my friends at most. More often than not because the mod is an opinion piece on gameplay tweaking, or a compilation of other mods, or simply not worth uploading. Another big factor would be the fact that it was only within the last couple of years have I ever had an upload speed that could transfer information faster than a person flapping a blanket over a smokey fire. Between the Oblivion days and now, the most prominent mods I’ve released would be the shader packages for S.T.A.L.K.E.R. Shadow of Chernobyl and Clear Sky, known as [url=https://sites.google.com/site/kingo64ssite/Home/optimised-game-shaders/stalker-shaders-max]STALKER Shaders MAX[/url], which primarily focused on improving performance and improving graphics - a necessity for my low-end 7300GT and mid-range 9600GT that I had back in the day which struggled to play the game. But yeah, mostly was just kicking back, enjoying everyone else’s mods until the creative itch started to kick in. It’s difficult to manage time with social life, work, family, friends, hobbies. [b]How did you discover Blade & Sorcery and what is it about the game that keeps you coming back? [/b] I bought it on a whim whilst growing out my VR library and was surprised by how polished and enjoyable the melee combat was, easily the defining feature of the game. The fluidity and believability of the melee combat have really set it apart from other games that have attempted it such as Boneworks and those not courageous enough to try such as Half-Life: Alyx. Even though it’s still currently a sandbox game, I’ve found it to be much more replayable than any other VR title I’ve played. I think it’s really setting the precedent on how good melee combat and item interaction should be achieved. In the VR FPS space, Pavlov VR has potential but it’s still stuck in its Counter-Strike mindset and Hot dogs, Horseshoes and Hand Grenades (H3VR) still has controls that make QWOP look like a walk in the park. Personally, I’m not really looking for online matchmaking when I want to play VR games, I kinda just want to pick it up and do my own thing - play however I want. That’s something that I’ve been able to do with Blade & Sorcery and the replayability I’d like to see in non-story driven VR titles. Each major update for the game has given us a glimpse of what to expect in the released version. The roadmap is really promising and I can’t wait to see what it develops into after it leaves early access. After many conversations with the lead developer over the past year, it’s pretty comforting to know that he shares the same opinions on gameplay design, decisions and direction as I do and I feel confident in saying that the game’s in good hands. The mod support for the game is incredible. I’m surprised by how large the modding community has become given the niche nature of the game. It’s a testament to how building a game with a positive attitude and public SDK only strengthens the community and widens the appeal, ultimately serving a more diverse and enjoyable experience for everyone. [center][youtube]fcyU6sE7rBo[/youtube][/center] [b]For anyone who hasn't played it yet, can you tell us about your biggest mod - [url=https://www.nexusmods.com/bladeandsorcery/mods/528]The Outer Rim[/url]? [/b] The Outer Rim (TOR) is a Star Wars total conversion mod for Blade & Sorcery which adds a humongous amount of content. There are 100+ lightsabers along with many blasters and other items to boot. The mod also includes custom maps, an optional player home, custom NPCs, and arena waves. It’s actively being developed and still has plenty of content planned and yet to be released. It is without a doubt, the largest mod available for the game with a focus on attention to detail.  If you like Star Wars, get it. If you don’t like Star Wars, try it out anyway. If you don’t have the game but have a VR setup, get the game then try this mod. It’s worth it. If you don’t have a VR setup, sorry - play it at a friend’s place? [b]The Outer Rim has been a huge success. When you initially started working on it did you imagine it would be as popular as it is?  [/b] It was pretty evident on the Blade & Sorcery Discord server that [url=https://www.nexusmods.com/bladeandsorcery/mods/528]The Outer Rim[/url] was going to be a big hit when it eventually came out. The prototype weapons I released when I was still learning the SDK and Unity, [url=https://www.nexusmods.com/bladeandsorcery/mods/280]Lightsabers U6[/url] and [url=https://www.nexusmods.com/bladeandsorcery/mods/246]E-11 Blaster Rifle[/url], were a hint of what was to come. Those mods were largely successful on their own, given that the innovation and quality of scripted weapons were not like what we have today bar a few exceptions, notably MulleDK19’s Mjolnir among others. What I didn’t expect was for my peers in real life to recognise the mod and realise I was the creator, or how wide of a reach it would have - driven by gameplay footage uploaded to sites such as Reddit. It’s pretty surreal to see yourself directly influencing your own Youtube feed when Youtubers decide to play ‘that Star Wars VR mod’. [b]Do you work alone on the project or do you collaborate with other authors? [/b] I primarily work alone on the project. There’s something cathartic in knowing that if something in the mod doesn’t meet my expectations I only have myself to blame, improve, and resolve. It’s not difficult to manage large projects such as this with many moving parts, it’s just a very time-consuming process with a large learning curve. I’ve branched out to others who I feel could do a much better job than I, namely 3D modelling and texturing. One long term collaborator of the mod is Plasma, a prominent modder from the Jedi Knight community, who has created models for the majority of the lightsaber hilts among other unreleased items from the next major version. Other authors who have contributed assets to the mod include Sakhado, uiojkl09 (Butters), Vale-X and Spongy. [b]There are a lot of mods made by others that extend The Outer Rim or add new Star Wars related stuff. Do you have any favourites? [/b] I hope I don’t get crucified for this but I haven’t actually played any of the other Star Wars mods so I can’t really answer that question well. In fact, I haven’t really had much time to play the base game as is or even my own mod outside of dev/testing. [b]Now that U8 has been released, are you planning to add any cool new force powers using the magic system?  [/b] Yep, that’s all been planned since the beginning over a year ago - with the intentions of being deeply tied into the skills tree proposed for the future version of the game, U9. There won’t be any force powers in the next major version of the mod, TOR 3, which is focused on blasters, but when I get around to it it’ll be worth it. The big backlog of stuff I have planned is daunting for me to say the least and exciting for anyone else. If you want an idea of what is to come in regards to force powers just play the Jedi Knight and KOTOR series and you’ll know what to expect. [center][img]https://staticdelivery.nexusmods.com/mods/2295/images/26/26-1597753345-139005324.jpeg[/img] [img]https://staticdelivery.nexusmods.com/mods/2295/images/26/26-1597753352-264767641.jpeg[/img][/center] [b]What is the status of a U8 update for The Outer Rim, I know a whole load of people are waiting on it? [/b] The next major expansion pack for the mod, Clone Reinforcements, is mostly complete in respects to content and features however the magnitude of changes presented by U8 essentially forced me to remake the mod, virtually every file needed to be modified on some level to be made compatible, no stone left unturned. The mod got nuked essentially. There have been many challenges and issues to face with the mod that still exist today directly due to what U8 has given and what it has taken away that prevent the mod from being fully playable or meeting my expectations. I’ve been in contact with the lead developer of the game throughout U8’s release and have been trying to report and resolve issues where possible to expedite the process. I’m hoping U8.4 should be the one to fix it. Ultimately, I don’t know how big of a change U8.4 will be, what it will add, what it will do, how much it’ll break, how much it will solve. But if it turns out to be big, it might set me back a few months, who knows? It’s a big game of “are we there yet?” but the car is misfiring and billowing smoke but the kids in the back just want to get to Disneyland. [b]Do you have any advice for authors who want to create mods for Blade & Sorcery?  [/b] If you have an idea for a mod, just go out and try to make it yourself. Take it as a challenge. Yes it’ll take time, yes you’ll have difficulties, but if you put in the effort you’ll be surprised by what you can achieve and how easy it is to learn and improve. There is a vast amount of tutorials and learning material out there on Unity and modding. Specifically to B&S modding, you can find information and example mods in the [url=https://github.com/KospY/BasSDK]Official SDK[/url] and on the [url=https://discord.gg/Yq4k2S]Blade & Sorcery Discord server[/url] in the #modding-howto and #mod-help sections. [b]Is there anything else you'd like to say to the community? [/b] It’s pretty thrilling to see how the VR community has continued to expand over the last few years as the games have become more compelling and the hardware more affordable. I encourage those with a VR setup to give the game a go, it’s a lot of fun, highly replayable, and a great place to flex those modding muscles. We’re welcoming new modders all the time and you know what they say; the more the merrier. A big thank you to those who have supported my work, whether it be leaving a nice comment, contributing their time to help others, leaving a donation, or who have shared it with their friends and loved ones. It’s a passion project with the intention of sharing good times, good memories, and hopefully inspiring people in one way or another. And also if you are wondering, yes I do read all the messages - I just don’t have the time to reply to everyone. Your comments have not fallen on deaf ears when you share your ideas, criticisms, and compliments. [line] A big thank you to Kingo64 for taking the time to talk to us! If there's an author or mod project you'd like to know more about, send your suggestions to [b][url=https://www.nexusmods.com/users/64597]BigBizkit[/url][/b] or [b][url=https://www.nexusmods.com/users/31179975]Pickysaurus[/url][/b].  Published first at One with the Force - Kingo64

[operationrainfall]

Title Wargroove Developer Chucklefish LTD Publisher Chucklefish Release Date February 1st, 2019 Genre Strategy Platform PC, PS4, Switch, XBox One Age Rating E for Everyone 10+ – Fantasy Violence Official Website

In some ways, I’ve been waiting on Wargroove for over a decade. After Intelligent Systems gave up on Advance Wars in 2008, I was ready to write that style of tactical series off. But then a new company decided to pick up the torch and start running with it. That group was Chucklefish, one I admit I was not that familiar with. But after seeing all the Wargroove coverage for the past year and change, I suspected I had reason to be excited. After buying the game, I wanted to spend sufficient time engaged in order to offer a deep analysis of the experience. The question then, was Chucklefish able to do justice to the legacy of Advance Wars? The answer is mostly yes, with some provisos.

One of the biggest differences between Wargroove and Advance Wars is stylistic. While Advance Wars was set in a sort of fictional modern military scenario, Wargroove is set in a medieval fantasy realm. So we traded our tanks and bombers for dragons and golems. I personally didn’t mind that change at all, since I love fantasy, and with any tactical game my primary focus is the gameplay. Having said that, there was another hoop that Wargroove needed to leap through if it wanted to prove itself the successor to Advance Wars, and that was the storytelling. Thankfully, Chucklefish proved they understood the need for levity in their series, much like in the one they patterned themselves after. Just enough to keep things light and fun. Some of my favorite examples are how the canine Commander, Caesar, does doggy things like roll over and scratch himself during battle, or how infuriated the energetic patchwork valkyrie, Ragna, becomes. There is a lot of humor and chuckle-worthy moments in the game, but not enough to remove any sense of drama.

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As with any strategy game, it’s important that Wargroove is tight and well-balanced. Thankfully, that is very much the case. Each faction, from Cherrystone to Floran to Heavensong to Fellheim, has access to the exact same units, so nobody is inherently overpowered. This is actually a step up from Advance Wars, where the choice of Commander could drastically change the inherent utility of certain units. While it’s true that the names for units varies from faction to faction, they are completely the same. For example, the Cherrystone dragon units are red hued Emberwings, while the Fellheim variant are the insidious Fellbats. Both play the same and are equally strong, they just have very different designs. Another thing that’s nice is the sense of balance between various units. You will find ground, aerial and sea units in the game. There is nothing in the game that’s unstoppable, so long as you have the right unit to counter it. Take the dragons for example. While they are powerful and capable of annihilating weaker units, they are also incredibly susceptible to anti-air units, such as Alchemists and Ballistae. Furthermore, each unit in the game has their own conditions under which they deal critical damage. For example, the Spearmen do extra damage when arranged in a phalanx adjacent to other Spearmen, while Alchemists do extra damage when their defense is boosted by terrain. There’s a lot of interaction and complexity to keep note of, and though the game does a good job of explaining it, it’s easy to forget some of the smaller details. While you can see a display showing which units are powerful and weak to other units, currently it’s a bit hard to read, mostly because they show tiny pixelated headshots of the units. Keeping in mind the visual differences between factions, this is a bit hard to decipher. Thankfully, Chucklefish have announced they are aware of this problem and intend to fix it with a more clear visual display.

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Since there are no tanks or planes, there is also no need to worry about depleting amounts of gasoline powering them in Wargroove, so you can always move a unit without worrying about it being stranded due to not having enough fuel. Though there is one element in the game that is completely absent from Advance Wars – Commander units. While it’s true the AW series did have Commanders who could use their powers to save the day, they were never physically on the field. That is not the case in Wargroove. While you won’t have a Commander unit in every mission of Campaign mode, they will be there for most of them, which is important for a couple reasons. For one, if your Commander dies, you lose the mission. For another, they have access to powerful Grooves that can change the tide of battle. I really like how tactics are dictated by the Commanders in the game. Their Grooves charge up as they battle, and once full, Commanders can unleash them at will. Thankfully, though the Grooves are powerful, they aren’t overpowered. They all have an area of effect, and the more powerful ones take longer to charge. Some examples are Mercia’s Healing Aura, which heals units around her, or Ragna’s Shield Bash, which lets her jump into foes, damaging them. It still takes good tactical strategy to win, and though the Commanders are sturdier than most units, they’re far from invincible. If they get surrounded, they will usually fall to a wall of steel and sorcery. To help balance things out, Commanders do heal a small amount of health each turn, around 10% of their max HP.

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One thing I really liked about Wargroove is how you’re constantly unlocking things. As you beat stages, you’ll unlock lore about Commanders, and by beating optional side missions you’ll unlock Commanders in other modes. Additionally, whenever you beat a mission in Campaign mode, you’ll be rewarded with up to 3 stars depending on how efficiently you played. These aren’t just for show. You’ll need 100 of them to unlock the true final mission in Campaign mode. While I managed to beat that mode in about 25 hours, it took at least that long again to get all those required stars for the best ending. This is because you can’t get enough stars by perfectly beating each mission in Campaign mode. You’ll also need to get them by playing the other two main modes in the game – Arcade and Puzzle.

Get Groovy on Page 2 ->

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Arcade mode has you pick a Commander and then succeed in a series of 5 maps against other Commanders. You can choose from different difficulties, and the harder you pick, the more stars you get. It’s a pretty basic mode, but it’s a fun time waster. To keep things fresh, the maps you play will be randomly shuffled each game, and there’s a pretty good variety. The only downside is some of the maps are more frustrating than others, so don’t feel badly about giving up and trying again, hoping for a better set. Puzzle mode is far simpler, but also more tricky. You’re presented with a map and a single turn to accomplish a set objective. Typically, this is beating the enemy Commander or destroying their Stronghold, but some will also involve tasks like getting a certain unit to safety. I enjoyed the mental exercise here, since Puzzle mode lives up to its moniker and requires some careful thinking to succeed. You won’t be able to overpower your foe, you instead need to carefully use the limited tools at your disposal. The only downside to this mode is that beating any map only rewards you with one star, whereas in both Campaign and Arcade, you’ll get at least a couple stars each time. But there’s one more mode we need to discuss – the Create mode.

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I remember loving the user created content in Advance Wars, and not only is that back here, but it’s more involved. You can create and share a variety of maps from scratch, customizing the terrain and setting units and decorations where you please. You can also play with toggles like weather and fog of war. Hell, you can even decide how much money you get from allied buildings, which is typically set to 100 per turn. I enjoyed the wealth of options here, and only really had a couple complaints. One, I wanted an in-game FAQ or tutorial to explain the nuances of this mode. Though making a map was mostly intuitive, setting up things like win conditions was less so. For example, I was unable to set my opponent as an AI, meaning that when I tried to test my stage, I was forced to alternate between playing as both Commanders. I also wish this mode was built with styluses in mind. It’s a bit irritating to have to move the cursor around an entire map to select things. I know the Switch wasn’t made with stylus play in mind, and I know Wargroove isn’t only available on that console, but I fervently wish Chucklefish would bring innovative solutions to issues like this for each version of the game. While it’s not life or death, the whole point of user created content is making it approachable, easy to use and understandable. Hopefully they will fix some of these complaints in a future update. Until they do, I likely won’t be creating many stages, and certainly won’t be monkeying around with the Campaign creator, mostly cause I like fully understanding such things before I get drawn deep into them.

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So now that we’ve established the basics, I feel I should spend a little time on the story of the game. The very first mission has you controlling the vampire Sigrid as she murders her way through Cherrystone Castle, ending with the death of the King. This sets the kingdoms of Fellheim and Cherrystone at war, and the young Queen-to-be Mercia is utterly overwhelmed. She is quickly ousted from her own kingdom and sets out to find allies to fight the Fellheim hordes, along with her trusty companions – the wizard Emeric and her armor clad canine, Caesar. Along the way they will meet many colorful people and nations, and will learn the dire truth behind the actions that precipitate the game. Though it’s not all that complex, it was interesting enough to hold my attention. This was because the world of the game is compelling, and especially the Commanders that populate it. My only real complaint is that I wanted to know more, more about the Commanders and their past, more about the kingdoms, and more about the lore. Don’t get me wrong, it’s a great start, but it also felt a bit underdeveloped at times. But hopefully the success of Wargroove means we’ll get sequels that allow the world to be fleshed out even further.

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A mark of success for any tactical game is how intuitive and streamlined it is, and I’m happy to say Wargroove does a pretty good job of it. There are nice touches such as pressing the L trigger to switch between active units or holding B to skip past battle animations and unit movement. It’s relatively effortless to bring up a display of all the units, check their status or just look at the map. However, there are also a couple areas that the game fell short. Namely, a few glitches I encountered in my playthrough, most revolving around the save feature. One time I beat a level, it auto saved, and when I returned to the game I was in the previous level. Another time, in the final stage, I saved at the very start of the battle, exited, and when I came back my units had moved and somehow the boss, who was supposed to be at the opposite side of the map, was right next to me. Lastly, one time, I had a glitch force me back to the home screen. Thankfully, when I went to play the game again, I hadn’t lost any progress. On the irritating side of the spectrum, I wish the game would let you skip the credits that play every time you beat Arcade mode. I also wish the AI was a bit smarter. It’s not idiotic, but it’s pretty easy to fake out. For example, I quickly found that AI units inexplicably fixate on Wagons, even when they’re empty, which I used to my advantage to distract them. The worst example of AI is how the Commander named Greenfinger is completely unable to use his own Groove effectively. But, assuming Chucklefish can resolve those save issues, they can ignore most of my other complaints.

Visually, Wargroove is fantastic. Not only does it ape the style from Advance Wars, it also adds many of its own bells and whistles. The pixelated artwork for each unit and character is fluid and colorful, and that goes double for the Commanders. I especially like the 2D portraits that display their reactions during battle, ranging from gleeful to dismayed. It’s also nice how each faction’s units are totally different looking, and have unique looking animations. The Floran infantry scuttle low to the ground, while the Heavensong charge fearlessly into battle, swords at a jaunty angle. My absolute favorite animation is probably how Greenfinger scatters seeds that quickly grow into his flora steed before he rides it into combat. But the game doesn’t just have great art, it also has catchy music. Each Commander has their own theme, and though I don’t love them all equally, there are several earworms. Having said that, I do feel that the music here is a bit inferior to that in Advance Wars. I can still hear songs from that game when I think about it, and it was just blissful rock and roll. But there is one area the sound design eclipses Advance Wars, and that’s how there’s a small bit of voice acting for the Commanders. It’s just a nice touch that adds even more personality to the eclectic cast of characters.

All in all, I was pretty pleased with Wargroove. Not only did it satisfy my nostalgia for Advance Wars, it expanded my expectations in wonderful ways. Best of all, it’s a super affordable package, only costing $19.99 for at least 20+ hours of content (though far more if you want to see everything). Yes, there are still some important kinks to iron out, but I can’t help but recommend this to fans of Advance Wars and tactical games in general. And if you find it too easy, you can always challenge yourself by trying your luck against other players. If you need a new strategy obsession on every major console, do yourself a favor and pick this up.

[easyreview cat1title=”Overall” cat1detail=”” cat1rating=”4.5″]

Review Copy Purchased by Author

REVIEW: Wargroove Title Wargroove