Achievement: Dragonslayer

Yes, you read that right.

After today's hymn-singing, laundry folding, house tidying (or in between those things), I played more Dragon Age: Origin.

I called down a High Dragon from the mountain top, and in only two attempts, 'smote it's ruin upon the mountainside'.

Hah!

I tried to catch an image with the achievement still up on the screen, but I was too shocked at my success (and unfamiliar with the controls--I blame the differences in the Steam version of LotRO) to get it right.

So, I made up for it by posing with the stone-faced (in my head they're gleeful and mostly just glad they didn't get eaten) characters who brought the beast down.

From foreground to background:  Morrigan, Alistair, Wynne, and my warden.

And now if anybody could tell me how to replicate this outcome with Flemeth, I'd be doing really well!  Not being able to take Morrigan to that particular clambake is proving impossible for me.  

For the time being, my Dwarf commoner has reluctantly returned to Orzammar.  I wasn't even inside the city before I got called a filthy brand.

...sigh...

(But this it the stuff good fanfics are made of!)

Ooh, fanfic?  I mean...um...why would I start a new fanfiction?   Ain't nobody got time for that!

Throwback...Saturday?

Confession time:  I played Dragon Age: Origin all day today (minus the time I spent washing all the dishes, scrubbing out the sink, cleaning spaghetti night off of the white stove).

I even played it during the Broken Buttons build event today.  o_O

Not sure I'm ready to admit that I have a problem...yet.

But I will admit to wanting to know how the story ends.  I'm just a little frustrated at the moment, because I'm having to leave some of the areas unfinished because the final bosses (and some mini-bosses) are too powerful for me to successfully beat.

*dramatic sigh*

Needless to say, no craftsies today.  Tomorrow's up in the air, too.

Anyway, on with the Throwback!

I make a Christmas gifts for distant family (or at least, I have been the last two years since getting married) and ship them out usually with enough time for them to arrive by Epiphany.  (That's January 6th.)

Cominatcha from Christmas 2012: crocheted hotpads!

Don't they look like little ornaments?

Those little dart designs are actually raised, so you can set hot pots and pans on them.  Neat!

Until tomorrow!

Video Game Reflection: Relationships

True story: I am not used to video games having relationship angles in them.

Except for the Sims.  But that's all the game is about without extra expansions, so I disqualify it.

No, I'm talking about typical hero/quest/adventure video games.  Action and adventure; swords, battle axes, shapeshifting, using the Force, whatever.

Let me back up and explain that my first ever "true" video game was The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time.  Everything before that (other than Mixed-Up Fairy Tales) was educational.

Anybody remember any of these games?

My brothers and I still have the abandonware today.

Featuring the Shady Glen television station.

Starring paint-slinging robots and math puzzles galore.

Then for Christmas, we got a new computer to replace the brick of an IBM (which only took 3.5" floppy disks (which really weren't floppy compared to the larger 5" disks the old school computers ran on)) that was my first home computer.  That shiny new machine had a CD-ROM drive and Windows 95--it was a thing of beauty!

It also game with a small binder of game discs, which included Myst by Broderbund.

The first realistic 3D game environment I'd ever encountered.

And that was how I got my love of puzzle games, and a glimpse into how games could look (as long as the game didn't have people in it--the first Myst game only had one actual person, and because of the mechanics, you couldn't move in all directions around him).

This was followed by some early internet chatrooms, which introduced me to the wider concept of MMORPGs.  The first one I ever tried was Runescape, and I made it my mission to be the best miner, smelter, and blacksmith ever without raising my combat level (as much as possible; you had to be certain levels to mine in special locations).  

I was the great ore stealer; people would assume that li'l old level 22 me would lose at the ore deposits (because the game awarded the ores to the highest mining level, which was also affected by equipment) when they were level 80+.  Mwahaha!  

Apparently, I'm an early internet troll.

But imagine what it was like for me when in college, somebody gave me an N64 emulator and a bunch of different game images to play on them.  (College was in 2002, in case  you're wondering.)

I went from thinking that 3D characters looked like this:

To this:

And then of course, to this:

This is probably how I got my thing for blond elves.

Around that time, The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring came out in theaters.  Besides being the deciding factor in my choice of college major, the trilogy was accompanied by the Gamecube RPG game The Lord of the Rings: The Third Age.

Do you see where this is going?

Couple that with what I was learning about tabletop games, and then the release of The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess on the brand-new Wii system...well.

Now we get the gist of where my desire to play hack'n'slash characters comes from.

However, though the relationship between Link and Princess Zelda is always heavily implied (discounting all of the other ladies in the games such as Midna and Ilia), there's no real "romance" opportunities.  I thought games were supposed to be linear, for the most part, with tons of tiny side quests for bonuses and loot.

Then I entered my Dungeons and Dragons Online phase in grad school.  (There may have been some Serious Sam mixed in--I warned you about me and hack'n'slash!)  This opened my eyes to cool customizable characters.  My friends and I spent real money buying the pretty armor from the store, in whatever colors we wanted.  To me, that was the most advanced character creation I'd ever seen.

(Here I'm discounting the creation of Minecraft skins in Paint, which I've also done.)

This is Deevius and I posing in a clothing/armor shop.

But it didn't stay that way...

Another friend, who is a fellow Lord of the Rings geek, had heard that the online MMORPG The Lord of the Rings Online was going free-to-play (this was a couple years ago) and we should check it out.

...yeah...

I never go into these things alone; I of course told my other geek friends what I was doing (the same ones that used to Serious Sam with me, and DDO with me) and lo and behold...we now have our own kinship and game together once a week.  (I in fact bought us all each two expansions during the Black Friday sale this year at the Turbine store.)

Now, I'd heard of other MMORPGs that have relationship options with NPCs, I think from Mike the coworker.  While LotRO does not have that mechanic in place, Deevius, DSCA and I have already divvied up the elf lords we're going to snuggle if that should ever be a possibility.

I mean, DSCA already has Elladan's pants...

Ahem.  I digress.

Around the time I began to play LotRO, I also started dating the Panda.  He was impressed that I had my own Wii.  I was impressed that a boy wanted to talk to me.  (At our small college, geek and/or nerd girls are a minority, and were somewhat frowned upon in my day.  This resulted in me bringing my Wii and television to all the on-campus parties I could.  I educated even the most sheltered of people with Mario Party 8 and Dance Dance Revolution: Mario Mix.)

A girl's gotta do what a girl's gotta do.

We married the summer of the year I began playing LotRO and he moved all of his gaming equipment into our house.  Now, the Panda is an only child, and he would save his money to buy each of the Nintendo gaming systems as it came out.

So, my sparse video game life suddenly exploded.

I didn't know what to do first!  (I still don't know!)

The Panda favors games such as Halo, The Last of Us, Uncharted, Red Dead Redemption, Mass Effect, and Destiny (to name a few of the lasting ones).

He brought with him a PlayStation 3--to me, a mythical device that replaced my DVD player and could also use Netflix and Amazon Video.  At first, I had no use for it; I couldn't even figure out how to play movies.

But then the Panda started playing through the Mass Effect trilogy...and suddenly I didn't care that I didn't know how to use a PS3.  I watched him interact with the characters and make decisions.

And then I watched him romance Miranda.

Well.  Two can play that game.

Yes, I do mean literally.

I would spend the nights he was at work playing the Mass Effect games as (of course) FemShep.  The first time Kaidan made a move on her, I didn't see it coming and I turned him down flat.  (The only options in ME1 are Kaidan and Liara.)  I was too busy mastering the mechanics of a type of game I'd never played before to complicate FemShep's life with another person.

Also, thanks in part to my roleplaying game background, I had already begun to put together a probably backstory for my FemShep (other than her Spacer, Hero chosen requirement).  Her inspiration came a tiny bit from Honor Harrington, David Weber's character and the subject of over a dozen space navy books (toward the end they get a little ridiculous).

Anyway, Velvet Shepard's backstory included at least one failed shipboard romance, likely early in her Alliance career.  It was likely very hurtful, and possibly detrimental to her career, and it could have taken some interference from higher-ups for her to get out of that situation.  (Details unclear--read my fanfic.)  Needless to say, she resolved never to date within the Alliance chain of command ever again.

So my Shepard went on her way, trying and failing to be a good Infiltrator (I do not have the steady hands to use a sniper rifle at all).  My go-to team for ME1 was Wrex and Garrus.  I loved their interplay, and BioWare did a fantastic job creating a well-rounded, interesting universe.

When I find a new fandom/universe and it really, really grabs my attention I go all-out.  That means reading wikis, articles, walkthroughs, and anything else I can get my hands on.  The Lord of the Rings was the last fandom I got really entangled in.

I knew that ME2 was going to be very different from ME1, and not just because of the expanded party options (ten people?  Seriously??).  My FemShep was waking up in a changed universe, presumed dead and brought back to life by the enemy.  The first familiar face she ever saw was Garrus'.

Do you see where I'm going with this?

I had already decided (based on the Panda's playthrough) that if I was going to get sidetracked by a romance, I wanted it to be with Garrus.  This didn't stop me, however, from nearly running right into Jacob's arms accidentally.  I didn't just turn him down flat, I dropped him like a hot potato (because I wasn't aware that I had picked him up--oops).

When asked why I chose Garrus, I wasn't sure why (the character is an alien) at first.  But as I did more and more of his conversation interactions, I noticed how charming and awkward he was.

Just like the Panda.

Hm.  Could be a fluke.

Well, last night I spent some time playing Dragon Age: Origin with the Panda's shared Steam library.

(Side note: this is the one time I have ever been ahead of him in a game!  I know what's coming!  My glee cannot be contained!)

Another BioWare game, Dragon Age is a medieval RPG game, but the plot is so fascinating, it's almost like a disaster you can't look away from.

Anyway, there's another awkward character, and as a female gray warden with any shred of sympathy, you could also find him charming and bashful.  Yeah, I'm talking about Alistair.

What's not to love about a man that says things like that?

The Panda finds it amusing that all my romance choices are essentially him in the games.  I think he's proud.  (I hope he's proud, at least...)

What can I say?  Bumbling charm is what does it for me.  And I don't mind the corniness because of the sincerity.

In one of the cut scenes, Alistair says something like: "Have I told you that I love you today?  Well, it doesn't matter, because it bears repeating: I love you."

My warden answered: "I love you, too."

Alistair:  "See, was that so hard?"

I had to play this part twice, and both times I yelled at Alistair for quoting the Panda.

But enough of me and my video game history.  I didn't have a craft project to share, so I thought I'd talk a little about what I did in game yesterday night, and early this morning.

Later!

Facebook Art Trade 2014 - #4

I ended up getting confused at one point--I thought one friend had signed up for the Art Trade and was worried about which Doctor Who or Avengers project to do...

...and then discovered I was wrong!  My good friend from college (granted, she worked for me) graduated as a nurse and is working up in Ohio.  I believe her husband teaches for a Christian/private school, and they're probably getting lots of snow this year for Christmas.

Anyway, I wasn't sure what to do; I needed something that would be simple, preferably in colors I already had on hand, and perfect for a nurse (making other nursing coworkers jealous is just a plus).

There's things like stethoscope cozies, and little crocheted caps (do people actually wear those?) but in the end I found myself looking up search words like 'bacteria' and 'virus'.

See, ThinkGeek.com carries plushie microbes you can get for your friends.

And, well, if it can be a plushie...it can definitely be crocheted.

I found this charming $1.00 pattern from Jana Whitley (Ravelry link; purchase necessary) for a red blood cell amigurumi and fell in love.  (She also has a white blood cell pattern, too!)

It took me two separate nights, but only because I didn't realize I needed a tube sock for the stuffing (how else do you think it has that doughnut-like shape?) and asked my fabulous husband to raid his dresser for any lonely socks.

Some eyes, a little fabric paint, and some finishing touches while watching The Expendables 3, and voila:

Microbial adorableness!

He's even concave in the middle!  Now to have the "shipping department" of my crochet emporium dispatch this cute little guy to Ohio!

And now the modified project list:

- Plushie D20

- Facebook Art Trade 2014 - #5

- Guude Plushie

- VintageBeef Plushie

- Baby Groot II

- Purple & Black Scarf

Also, stay tuned for Broken Buttons news this Saturday (with some sneak peeks at our new map, Alucard)!

House Slipper Collection

Several months ago now, DSCA and her family bought a house for the very first time.  It was a fixer-upper, and in the interest of packing up their things and then unpacking them, decided to pare down their possessions.

These possessions included a large paper bag (you know, the kind with thin, white handles that stores like Bath and Body Works gives you with a large order) FULL of random yarn.  April brought it with her when she came back from visiting DSCA in Virginia this summer.

The only thing asked of me was that I crochet some house slippers for Mom Wilson to have, in order for guests to wear while over at the house.

Using my modified version of the free pattern from ZoomYummy's website, I made five different pairs:

My slippers are modified to have less toe coverage in the beginning, and to make up the difference along the sole of the slipper.  This technique I developed when making the Power Ranger slippers last year:

   

Thank goodness for Ravelry notes!

Since I had to stay up late to wait for the Panda to get home from work, I started a new project (Facebook Art Trade #4) last night, but am lacking a tube sock.  Perhaps I can convince the Panda to sacrifice one in the name of craft projects everywhere...

I hope to post about it tomorrow!  (Fingers crossed!)

Facebook Art Trades 2014 - #3

When I agreed to do the Facebook Art Trades of 2014, I signed up for two trades.  I already posted about the fabulous jewelry and handmade cards from Dr. S.

The second trade was with Roger (Tao from LARP) whom I met through Mike the coworker.  I joined a Star Wars RPG, and Roger played Maru, our unofficial leader.  We started spending more time together after he graduated from college.  We actually played through the Mass Effect trilogy together at my house (because my hubby has all of the DLCs).

Together, we played a FemShep with an engineer background, who romanced Liara and made a few more 'renegade' decisions than my original FemShep playthrough.

Anyway!  Roger invented and mastered making fluffy brownie cupcakes.  That was my trade, and believe me, it was long gone before there could be any pictures taken.

In exchange, when I went up to the last LARP session of this year (during the "Polar Vortex" -- it was below freezing for more of the weekend than the sun was out), I crocheted him some fingerless gloves, by tracing his hand and estimating using this pattern by Vampireweasel (purchase required; Ravelry link).  It was made much simpler when he decided he didn't want the extra thumb piece.

I then brought a bag of random yarn colors with me to LARP, and made and sold another pair to Mike F., a plot member.  He was generous and paid me double what I asked for (really, they're a quick project, even when you can't really feel your fingers due to the polar vortex).

Here's the pictures:

Strong man hands, ladies.

Here's hoping that's not an unintentional gang sign.

This takes care of all the projects I've finished that I was ready to share with you!  Hopefully, I'll finish those house slippers tonight and be able to post about them tomorrow.

(Did I mention I'm trying to blog every day in December?)

I'm trying to blog every day in December!  ^_^

Here's to 9 days!

Letterbox Spot: Treaty Oak

Until this past weekend, I had never been to Clemson.  Clemson is known for Clemson University, home of the Tigers.  College ball is a big deal down here, and the two main contending forces in this part of the state are the Clemson Tigers versus the USC Gamecocks.  Whole families have been known to disown members over this...

You think I'm kidding?  I am not.

Well, maybe wholly 'disown' is a stretch.  But they make license plates that say "A House Divided" for families that have both types of fans in them.

Anyway...

Mom looked up some of the best letterboxes out in Clemson (home of Figureeight, the gentleman who organized and ran the Paris Mountain letterboxing event we attended in September).  She compiled a list of clues, and off we drove!

Clemson University is a large, sprawling campus, covering acres including an extensive botanical garden, a golf course, and several historical markers.

Mom and I visited the historic marker for Fort Rutledge, strolled out along the dike of Lake Hartwell, and then out to the site where Andrew Pickens' house used to stand.  (He was one of the people Benjamin Martin (Mel Gibson's character) in the movie The Patriot was based upon.)

We ended out letterboxing foray with a quick hike up to the Treaty Oak Monument, honoring Hopewell and the Indian treaties signed there.

We parked by the historical marker.

The beginning of the trail was nearby, and we were glad we came in the off-season; the beaches are said to be pretty popular with the college kids in warmer weather.

The other side of the sign, detailing the location

of the actual monument, where we were headed.

The local Boy Scout chapter had done a lot of work to clean up the path; the hike was beautiful and we had perfect weather.

The unearthed plaque in memory of the Hopewell estate.

This is the actual site known as the Treaty Oak Monument.  It has four of these unique structures, and the clue referred to them as "the four points".  In the middle is the carefully-protected Treaty Oak sapling.

But enough sightseeing!  We had a letterbox to find!  I had my compass out (some of the clue depended on general directions, and I am no good at naturally knowing that kind of thing) and Mom went off to find the appropriate beech tree.

The beech tree in question was said to have "Tim & Sabrina" carved into it; the age of the carving has eliminated half of the names.

Let's hope they're still doing well, whoever they are.

Some Muggle kids came up for about five minutes, so we tried to look tourist-y and "read" the sign at the location a few more times.  As soon as they were gone, I dashed back to the tree and went on with the search (no spoilers!).

We then hiked back the way we came in search of a Bonus Box!

A bonus box is a letterbox who's clue is located inside another letterbox, and usually gives directions from the first letterbox to the bonus box.  In this case, there were small, laminated cards.  We took one, and off we went!

If you're thinking about letterboxing down in my neck of the woods, definitely check out the amazing carves and plants Figureeight has done.  Well worth your time!  Mom and I have never been disappointed.

Later!