Mechwarrior & Tabletop

It has been an incredibly long time since i've last blogged.. I haven't been doing much other than playing Mechwarrior Online, although recently I've been watching Wil Wheaton's show: Tabletop. Very geeky (famous) people playing boardgames. Great show, really funny.

Ryan is incredibly lucky. I don't think Wil expected him to win so fast and all the games.

Check out Mechwarrior Online; it's gone "live", and today the new content of the Phoenix Package became available which includes 4 brand new mechs. I contemplated for the longest time whether I should get it, and although I love the game and think I should support PGI (the developers), I don't think i'd make very much use out of any of the packages (20/40/60/80$), so I'll just save my money for other future in-game fluff (camouflage designs and paint colors). Little babies complain that its not a free-to-play game, but they're literally being internet trolls; it'll take a bit longer, but you can be just as good as any player that spends money in the game. Spending money, just lessens the grind for money and experience, but it won't make you a better player or make you a one-man army.

Mechwarrior Online Launch!

Happy Launch Day for Mechwarrior Online!

Looking forward to some CRAZY sale *coughcough*. Maybe ill be able to afford many dyes so I can color my mech like above! (probably not, but its purty).

The next set for MTG is coming up very soon: Theros. A very Greek-themed cardset.

I really liked this token.

Finally, check out Cardhunter if you enjoy D&D and MTG. It went live last week but had a few issues (lag and queues), but seems to be better now.

Mechwarrior Online: Short Wishlist

Fan Expo is this weekend in Toronto! Don't miss it otherwise you'll miss this!

Still playing Mechwarrior Online these days; amazing game and they're making the free-to-play model work for them; each week there is a new sale with interesting (not mind-blowing, but still enticing) things to purchase. I literally want to throw my lack-of money at them; other game companies should look at how PGI (Piranha Games) does it.

The game is still technically in beta and is a work-in-progress but is due to launch in September. Some things on my wishlist that i'd like to see happen:

- the ability to change/pay for an account name change; i'm currently using my old standby for user names, but in this game, I think i'd prefer a different user name

- the ability to gift game-currency to friends; i'd love to buy some mc-bills (used to purchase things that only people with mc-bills have)

- an easier way to report players who are griefing (team-killing) and get them banned/suspended faster

- more game-balance for medium mechs; light mechs are really quick and nimble, while heavier mechs are more heavily armored and equipped. Mediums feels like a poor-man's jack of all trades in the worst way possible. I'd like to see them be a bit shorter, thinner (so harder to hit) and hit 120 km/hr with the best engines and the speed tweak unlock.

Music Time: Radioactive

From the Defiance trailer.


Writing up another new player guide for Mechwarrior Online. It should be ready by the end of this week.

The Engagement Shoot Lessons

I have obviously not been writing very much of anything these days and my only defense is that I haven't been playing too much of anything (as this is a gaming blog). Really the only thing that I play on a semi-consistent basis is Mechwarrior Online. After about 3 months of play, i've only spent 15$, mostly for some red and gold paint for my mech (although you can unlock basic paints via in-game currency). My partner in crime, Hunter, hasn't spent anything at all and does equally as well in the game. That may be the biggest advantage of MO, as success comes from skill (not buying things) and teamwork; while i'm quite deadly (per prior screenshots) in my decked out Raven-3L, when Hunter is in his Spider, we can easily take down Heavy and Assault mechs. 

I'd normally recommend a game of this calibre to anyone and everyone, but its honestly an acquired taste; the biggest hurdle will be movement. If you can figure it out, then you're good to go, but if you can't wrap your head around it, you'll hate the game and quit. Its free though, so its worth a download.

By the way, big props to Piranha Games (developer), and their charity fundraiser that tries to tackle cancer on behalf of a young mechwarrior that passed away. I honestly can't remember what game company last had a charity fundraiser like this. Basically, by donating 10$ you help find a cure for cancer and PGI sends you a customized mech for the game. Last I checked in Twitter, they had collected $70,000 in donations from the community! Congrats! 

I had my first engagement photoshoot two weekends ago.. which is part of the reason why I haven't been writing much as i've been editing photos instead.

Unlike my other photoshoots, I think I came better prepared physically.. and because of that, I think there were less hiccups. All this experience means that i've learnt from my past errors and there are less learning experiences now. I'll list some randoms things that comes to mind still:

- a flash was heavily used in this photoshoot; nearly every single photo except for one where a flash was too harsh and it was just easier using a fast (50mm 1.8f) lens instead. A flash makes a big difference in the way photos will appear, whether its when there is a strong light to the back (resulting in heavy shadows on your subject) or just low light situations

- there is something about using my kit lens (18-105mm 3.5-5.6) that makes me feel amateurish and made me keep it at home and instead bring specialized lens (fast lens, wide angle, macro). I would argue: never feel like that. I missed that kit lens, for its flexible; if you're comfortable, you'll take better photos. Also, I didn't bring my second camera, and was changing lens very frequently and that was annoying and slowed the process.

- a polarizing filter is a great investment, especially on a wide angle lens or one that you will use for landscape photography; it basically darkens your sky and gives a very pleasing blue sky and green grass (but the sky is what is important imho)

- I bought a battery tester, and it has already paid off; I checked my batteries this time before the shoot and found that 2 of 12 batteries were completely dead. Removed and replaced and didn't even need to change the batteries in the flash.

- we had a few props this time: umbrella, large circular (vs the normal oval shape) balloons, a frame, bubble formula. Props are helpful, but whats more important is having pose AND location ideas coupled together. I'm (hard on myself; phrasing!) still weak in this aspect as I need to do extra research/studying on various poses so I can guide the models to reach a certain photo. While knowing poses in your head, you'll still need to couple it with the background (b/c you won't necessarily have the same background as a photo you're looking at, and thus may not look the same) and the model (certain poses don't work for all models)

- having a stylist is very important; it cuts down prep time and increases the quality of the appearance of the models. A wardrobist (sp?)would have been good in one of my photoshoots as the model was wearing bland baggy clothes and although he may have been comfortable, it didn't flatter him. So if you don't have one, make sure you ask to see what clothes they intend on wearing, so you're not disappointed with the photos later.

- communication is critical; I was honestly pretty intimidated in this photoshoot b/c the client had done an engagement shoot prior, but was doing it with me b/c she wasn't happy with the other photographer's photos. It was intimidating b/c I personally haven't done a (engagement) shoot before and thought the other photographer's photos were pretty good (although heavy post-processing). While I may not have been as creative or possess the Photoshop skills of that photographer, I had the edge of communication. I was constantly seeking what the client wanted, made them feel comfortable and was able to communicate what I wanted in my shots. Some people (photographers) don't like being told what kind of photo they should take and I think that's a mistake; take the type of photo and with your keen eye, try to make it better/appealing.

Thats all the time we have today; enjoy the week!

Matching the Card to the Player

Although my friend BrownMagic may like the Core Sets for Magic the Gathering better than themed sets, I couldn't find any particular cards that he'd enjoy. Last weekend was the pre-release, this week will be the official release.

I think my friend, Ginger will enjoy this card and make her zombie deck even more powerful.

My best friend, Hunter typically likes to recoup mana or get a one shot boost of mana, so I think he'd want a card like this.

I love using enchantments and I love mana ramping. This enchantment is something i'm very interested in, although i'm not very keen on the artwork.

Click for a closer look on my dominance in Mechwarrior Online (free to play people!) in my Raven mech. Speed kills.

Mechwarrior Online

    Getting MUCH better. Tonight's session I dramatically increased my kill/death ratio. Ravens are nasty. In that match above, it was me in my Raven (light mech), versus THREE other mechs: a Hunchback(medium), Trebuchet (medium) AND a Cataphract (heavy). The Treb was capping my base, so I defeated him first. Caught the Cataphract in the middle of the map and finished off the Hunchback in a skirmish between buildings by his base. I showed both teams how deadly a light mech can be; weaving in and out between buildings, being invisible and slowly taking down much larger opponents.

MWO - Beginner Tips

Playing Mechwarrior Online makes me feel guilty; its so damn good, that we should pay for the game (a la Guild Wars 2; buy the game, play free, buy fluff). Modern day graphics, same ol' Mechwarrior feel.

As promised, some helpful tips that I could have used when I started right away when playing Mechwarrior Online.

Learn your keys

- H for thermal sensors, N for nightvision, O for heatoveride. It sounds silly, but i've watched other players fighting in the dead of night without nightvision.

Speed is key

- especially for lighter mechs; the ability to joust, or zoom past heavier mechs without taking a hit is critical. Using speed to circle strafe the enemy is an effective strategy as well as circling around hills is very effective against slower, heavier mechs.

Stay close to ecm

- ecm aka electronic counter measures, gives the mech that is equipped with it evasive abilities; nearly undetectable on radar, harder to lock on with missles, gives an aura of ecm to nearby allies and can be switched ("turned off") to counter enemy ecm (to kinda level the playing field)

Weapon groups

- your mech will remember your loadouts and weapon groups, so figure out what works well together. Sometimes its better to have many weapon groups to not overheat, and to fire weapons more tactically.

Overheating

- Press O to override auto-shutdown of your mech when you overheat, making sure you're not still firing tho and using that time to circle strafe or evade fire. It is better to be moving and not shooting, rather than not shooting AND not moving.

Group play vs Lone wolf

- stick with your group members, unless you're a scout, and even then, never engage a group of enemies by yourself. Even the heaviest mech can be brought low by two experience light mech pilots.

Twist and Turn

- use your non-critical (empty weapons, non critical weapons [narc, tag], the front vs the backside) parts of your body to absorb enemy fire when evading. All you need to do is to twist for a second or two. Think of it like bringing up your shield; you deflect the blow and counter attack. For example, an enemy is shooting at your backside, by twisting all the way right/left, they then shoot your arm instead and altho they are weakening your arm armor, you preserve your backside. If you lose your arm, you lose weapons, but if you lose your back, your mech explodes.

Turn off throttle decay

- in the options screen, bottom left box; throttle decay works similar to a car, if you let off the gas pedal, your car will slowly decrease in speed. This is not good imho for mech combat, there are alot of things you have to concentrate on and worrying about maintaining a certain speed isn't one of them. TAKE OFF the checkmark.

Beware of buildings

- they are your friends, but can be your worst enemy if you bump into one by accident. That brief moment that you are struggling to stop bumping into the building, you are essentially motionless and a much easier target for your enemies

Play alot with Trial mechs before buying your mech
- as an ALT-o-holic this should maybe be the first tip you take; just because a heavier mech means more weapons and more armor, doesn't mean it'll suit your playstyle. I like more weapons and more armor, but it doesn't mean i'm still not one-shotted and i'm very exposed to very fast mechs who are adept at staying on my backside. Do you like to be speedy, balanced, have more weapons and health, or be a slow juggernaut? If you can't figure this out, you'll be wasting alot of time and money (mostly time tho) playing matches to make money and buying mechs.

Its a fantastic game, but its honestly not for everyone; the BIGGEST part of the learning curve is that unlike EVERY first person shooter, your torso moves independently of your torso (like a tank). If you can't master moving, you will rage quit. But its free to download, free to play, balanced and you can compete with those that spend real money.

Best MMO: Mechwarrior Online

Yeah, I said it. Mechwarrior Online rocks.
Its free to download. No monthly fee. You pay for fluff and special mechs.
Other than that, crazy fun.
Its only pvp, no singleplayer.

I totally want to get a heavy mech with chainguns like this guy ;)

I'll put some strategies here later this week.