Age of Wushu update

So, as I said in the last update (I think) I was giving Age of Wushu another shot. So far, I've kept with the game, tho I'm not playing nearly as often as I once did. Part of that is because I'm way behind, part of that is I am working on a few personal projects plus stuff for OnRPG. I am having fun, though, and if they give out some information about up-coming expansions soon, I may even consider maintaining a subscription. We'll see, though.


Truth be told, probably the only reason I am currently playing is that I could afford VIP thanks to 80 gold I had left on my account before quitting. That allows me to get the VIP and a Windrider, which is essentially required for Script Stealing. The game is still a pay-to-win mess in a lot of cases - that is evident by the Mount Hua competition. Really, it should just be called "Cash Shop Mountain" as the only people that won, or even had a chance, were those that sank hundreds or thousands of dollars into the game.

It honestly makes me feel bad about my own character. It's already extremely far behind. My meridians are weak and clogged, my internals are of a low level, I barely make the time to get on for Script Stealing, let alone do the instances and such I need to start doing. My reputation was even reset (or degraded over time, I'm not sure) so I have to work to regain my blue star.

I'm making slow progress on both my 4th and 5th inner. My 4th inner requires an item that only drops in small quantities from what are known as "School Instances." So far, I've only done one school instance and it was a hassle.I've only unlocked to level 9 of the 4th inner. My 5th inner is about the same, except the slow progress is due to the limited nature of the activity that is required to gain the Martial Merits to buy more pages for the inner.

On top of the 4th and 5th inner, I'm also working towards raising my school skill sets level caps. So far I've only raised a few skills to level 6. It takes about 10-15 minutes to raise one to level 6. 7 will probably be a tad harder. They go up to level 11 now, though, so a lot of work ahead of me there, too. I almost feel like I would have a better time if I just bought an account from someone that was already at a decent level. It seems it's a fairly common practice nowadays.


Anyways, I also talked about Blade and Soul last time. Well, I quit that for now. It was fun, but like I said I have other stuff to do. That other stuff is, of course, work for OnRPG. Right now I am reviewing a game called Cronix from Game and Game, also Sevencore from Webzen. Cronix is alright, though I ran into some technical issues. Sevencore reminds me a lot of a lower-quality Black Gold, as both games have a strong mount aspect with a nature vs steampunk theme. But Sevencore is a lot older and the gameplay reflects that - it was born in the "F2P Golden Age."

The other thing that is taking my time is a personal writing project. I'm taking my love for sci-fi, fantasy, Wuxia, MMOs, and gaming and rolling into one big ball. Of course, as I have not had much experience with writing fiction, I don't feel that it will turn out great. I've released the first few chapters online, and it got alright responses. However, the place I released it is known for the kind of fiction I'm writing (VR MMO, Eastern themes). I'm still trying to decide if I want to do a web serial type deal (releasing one chapter at a time on blogs/websites) or if I want to do a traditional novel format. Maybe I'll end up doing both.

That's it for now. I will probably release another update here concerning the fiction. I have a writing blog, but it would probably be a hassle to do two separate blogs. So I'll probably just release all the chapters on my "Apoca's gaming Blog" (This one). Thanks for reading, see ya.

Giving Blade & Soul a Go + An Update

So my friend recently pointed out that you can play Blade N Soul on a Russian server and it's partially translated into English. The link, for those interested. I'm not really interested in the game, but I've been kinda lost since I quit ArcheAge, so I figure I'll give it a try. My knowledge about the game is extremely limited, but I remember it being pretty popular (at least for a bit) a year or two ago.

Who doesn't like big boobs and cool guys?

The two things that stand out to me are the great graphics and the awesome-looking combat. My friend (who I will link to in a moment) says a lot of nice things about how the combat 'feels,' too. Which is great because we've both been searching for a game that can provide combat that felt as good as Age of Wushu (where we met). Perhaps this will sate that want. 

One of my favorite streamers, ThommyHubbub.

And speaking of that, I have officially quit ArcheAge. I just can't bring myself to pay for the subscription as I'm simply not enjoying the game anymore. Partially because my server seems to be dying, partially because no new blood is appearing, partially because of the ways Trion has messed up. So, I've decided that in five days when my sub runs out, I wont be re-subbing. I've left Amitabha in the hands of my vice-leader and have turned my eyes to other games like Life is Feudal, The Repopulation, Black Desert, and even the future versions of Age of Wushu.

Anyone that has read the blog or knows me probably has figured out my love-hate affair with Age of Wushu again. However, I got an email today that convinced me to come play the game (with promises of awesome goodie bags and very easy re-entry into the game). That got me interested in checking up on the Chinese version of the game (both on the actual Chinese version website and my favorite foreign MMO website, MMOCulture).

I'm looking forward to the Player Housing the most.

Back in August the Chinese version of Age of Wushu got a major expansion. This expansion included things like Player Housing, a lot of new factions/schools, and survival features. I've not been able to find to much information on how the housing exactly works, just a video that previews it. Apparently the new survival features include a more detailed hunger system, a new thirst system, and even a temperature system that requires you to dress in thicker clothing in cold climates and lighter in hot climates. Pretty interesting stuff, honestly. 

Anyways, that's it for now. I'll probably write a new entry in a few days talking about my experiences in Blade N Soul. In concerns to my writing, I recently wrote a 2015 Predictions article and it should be up in a few days or so. I'm currently reviewing a mobile game called Combat Monsters, too. Thanks for reading and see ya next time.