Family updates + GVC news & launch party

A lot's been happening to the DeSanggria family these past few days. Following my temporary departure from CARNAGE, I'm happy to announce that I've finally moved to a new Pinoy faction, Ravenloft! Mad props to faction leader sotelo for bringing in the stray. Hehe.

I was able to join the group last night, and it's quite amusing to note that the guys from Ravenloft are likewise fun people to hang out with. I'm looking forward to more funny discussions (and perhaps a raid mission with the group? XD).

In other news, I've finally purchased my first G-Points! An officemate who bought the loot online sold me a couple, and I've already spent them on my first purchase: Pioneer's Kit - Strategy Package!

The only thing I'm quite excited about this package are the 10pcs of Andre's Costume Box! Right after getting the stuff, I immediately opened it and got some pretty cool stuff! Here are the girls wearing some of the accessories and costumes:

Bear-type Cyradis

Schoolmarm angel Verdandi
Mucho thanks to pCM Veya for the Divine Angel Wings! Yay!

Alaena the undead

I also got some stuff which the girls can never wear so I'm resorting to selling the following items:

• Clara Mago hair (lvl 84 female Wizard)
• Shaggy hair (male Musketeer)

I want more Andre's Box!!!

===

And I just got this mail from Sir Lyndon...

Great news, Pioneers!

The Office of Pioneering Support is pleased to announce that Granado Espada Game Value Cards (GVCs) are now available! Now you can further optimize your exploits in the New World with the much needed items for your quests, or to simply look good while strolling around the verdant forests and crowded cities.

Please check the list below to know where you can avail of the GVCs.

LUZON

PARK AVE.COM	2481 Park Avenue, Pasay City	831-2703 / 833-5219
G.MICK GAMERS ONLINE	1143 G. Masangkay St., Sta. Cruz, Manila	354-9250 to 51
WARZONE INTERNET CAFÉ	MAIN: 2436 Leon Guinto St., Malate, Manila BRANCH: 749 Victoria St., Intramuros, Manila	523-7088 / 523-8590
PC QUEST	1345 Dapitan St., Sampaloc, Manila	731-3703 to 05 / 742-2078
Pinnacle Technologies	Balaga Luna Bldg. Catmon Malolos Bulacan	044-7912038
VISAYAS
Miranda Traders	N.Bacalso st. Duljo Fatima Cebu City	0920-8142048
MINDANAO
Herrera Brothers	Door 6 Phil Veterans Bldg Monteverde Davao City	082-7009588
Quagmire Computers	105 bonifacio st. Davao City	082-2258788
HD Financial Services	Cagayan de oro city	0917-7060303
PINS
Load Central	Unit 406 4th flr Verde Oro bldg Commonwealth Ave Q.C	932-4303

Please take note that more retailers will be added on the list as soon as it becomes available.

Meanwhile, here is the detailed breakdown of GVC amount and their corresponding game time and G-Point denomination.

Code Types for GVC	G-Points with Game Time	G-Points Only
30 days Unlimited Play GVC (Php 300)	5000	5800
10 Days unlimited Play GVC (Php 100)	1600	1800
5 Days Unlimited Play GVC (Php 50)	650	750

Signed:

Sir Lyndon
Chief
Office of the Pioneering Support

===


Do check out the Granado Espada PH site for details on the activities for the launch party!

The Idge Project (part 3) + on going solo

Say hello to Idge Imbrulia...

...her armor I mean.

Neat, huh? I tried putting it on last night and it's quite ok...I'll just have to adjust a few parts of the leg armor and the elbow guard as well. I just realized that I won't be able to flex my arms while wearing the elbow guard because it's made of rubber. But generally speaking, the costume's really good. I just feel kinda silly in front of the mirror while wearing it.

The boots will be done 2 weeks from now. By then it would be the dreaded week of the launch party, but I do hope I can organize a small pictorial of sorts with my friend who's going as Brunie Etienne on the event as well. I just hope this little plan materializes given the time constraints on our part. Hopefully I can post pictures of me wearing the Idge armor...decent ones I mean. Hehe.

===

Yesterday, I asked to be booted out of CARNAGE for the meantime in order to visit other factions and feature them on the GE PH website. It feels kinda odd walking along the cities without the usual noisy ramblings in the faction chat.

And while I'm waiting for the invite to move to my next domicile, going solo has never been so quiet and lonely. I'm already looking forward to the next batch of people I'll be interviewing and I'm pretty sure it's going to be fun there as well.

The Idge Project (part 2) + Baron item at last!

Finally, it's here! My Idge costume is 90% done...I only need the boots and then I'm off to war!

I just got the goods last night, but I wasn't able to take a lot of pictures on the finalized suit. All I can say though is that it rocks my socks! And the Castor Sword is just huuuuuuuge. I still can't believe I was able to stuff that uber long sword inside a cab!


As you can see, the swords' length goes beyond the height of my bedroom window. It's even taller than I am! But like all Great Swords, I cannot do away with shortening the length because that's just what they are—ladifarkingda huge ass swords.

It's made of light wood by the way. I still feel uneasy holding it, much less swinging it to my back because I might accidentally whack someone. Nevertheless, I'm not going to wear it on my back coz I might trip over and break my neck.

What I did manage to take pictures of were some of the accessories.


My Idge hat fits nicely, as with the elbow guards for the suit. The gloves though, are made of soft leather, and my palms get all sweaty with the unbreathable cloth. But as cosplayers would say...magtiis ka (bear with it)!. LOL.

I might probably take pictures of the suit when I get home. Stay tuned!

===

Just this morning, I took a quick visit to the Mansion Reception Hall to hunt for bots because I wasn't able to get the free gravestone from Mr. Johnny (as what Arcleaumont just informed me). Lookee what I got!

===

'Gratz to Welling for being the first-ever GE blogger to be blogspotted by Mistress Hrin!!!

Colony Wars (8/26/07): The last hurrah + complete & utter pwnage

This is still the suicidal colony wars reporter, DeSanggria, filling you in on the news on what happened at this week's faction battles. Today, I'll try to recap the stuff that happened in Cervantes for CARNAGE Faction and Caravaggio for Unholy Faction.

Let's just hope I do this right. XD


The last OBT colony wars prompted me to hole up in Cervantes to see CARNAGE's last stand. With only 1 colony on the map, the guys decided to go in for the kill to become more aggressive than ever.

Anyway, I won't go into details on the war in Cervantes as I'd be posting the nitty gritty stuff on the CARNAGE Faction blog. Let me just comment on a few things though.

For one, the lag was utter crap. I think I wasted quite a lot of warp scrolls moving to and fro maps and then dying along the way because I can't very well skittle to a safe place while Yakisobas rained skills on poor, helpless Cyradis.

The competition to gain colonies was fierce even at the start of the war. Yakisobas were tailing us every step of the way, thwarting our efforts to defend and seize more colonies. Surprisingly though, this "last" war saw through the appearance of new factions on the face of the Granado Espada map. They're not exactly "new" to begin with...I've seen their members in my travails in towns and in dungeons as well.

Again, Veterans tipped the scale of the fights. Elite weapons and special skills made the difference in tearing down defenses and building offense. Nevertheless, CARNAGE got two colonies after the gruelling battle. It wasn't an easy job so these guys deserve one big kudos!

Cervantes Map: CARNAGE's mark

Meanwhile in Caravaggio, I was teamed up with Unholy Faction. It was a good thing Welling was there in i-Hooked as well so I was able to more or less know what was happening in this server while wading in Cervantes.

One of the more shocking discoveries I learned that day was that Luminaire's colonies were wiped off the map due to some hacking incident that disbanded the group. I'm not sure as to how this happened, but feel free to lay down the facts just in case I misconstrued some things.

The thing about this particular war was the lack of Unholy members who were to go against the forces of TheCore, ReBorn and HeavyMachines Factions. The initial plan, as Welling informed me, was to get the former Luminaire colonies while their ally, PasawayProphecy, were to defend their territories.

I had less details on what happened on this battle plan as I spent a considerable amount of time in Cervantes, but when I did manage to get back to Caravaggio, most of the Unholy colonies were under attack. ReBorn was quite on a roll in warring Unholy that the latter's forces were scattered in the defense of Diabolica and Rio Albi territories.

Welling, who was clearly so engrossed in his sole efforts to defend, was definitely not to be disturbed so I just watched behind his shoulder as he single-handedly took down enemies, of course, with the help of a few factionmates. Up until now, I still cannot fathom how he managed to do all that with the lag and all. XD

Anyhoo, Unholy was able to claim the Scorching Plateau colony, adding to their Lago Celeste and El Tierra Blanco territories. Of course, it did not take long before these were attacked as well, thereby foregoing plans to go on an offensive mode.

Colony defense took quite a heavy toll on Unholy. The end of the war saw to their hold on El Tierra Blanco, while the rest withered away to ReBorn's hands.

Caravaggio Map: Unholy's mark

And that's it, folks! Open Beta Colony Wars officially ended yesterday. On August 30, Granado Espada will officially go commercial, and thus, the entire map will be wiped clean of all faction names, as Hrin mentioned previously.

Congratulations, one and all! See you again in war come commercial phase! ^0^V

===

By now you've probably read in NineMoons' blog how she completely pwned me in a PvP match. Hehehe. Since we both haven't tried getting into PvP matches, we took it upon ourselves to try it out. Note that NineMoons was 4 levels short of my girls, not to mention that I had a 10% HP boost that time.

We agreed on a best of three match, heading for the first time in the Duel Colloseum. I must say that I did manage to knock Tuon and Aurana out of balance, although she finally knocked me out twice in a row. XD

Nice game! We must arrange a rematch soon. ^.~

Oh and I got quite a few funny remarks from CARNAGE after finding out what NineMoons and I were up to. XD

===

Also yesterday, NineMoons and I went on squad mode at the Reception Hall in Dr. Torsche's Mansion primarily to hunt for Catherine's parts. We saw quite a number of bots there, and on mixed feeling of whim and curiosity, we decided to Baron bots.

Squadding up with NineMoons

I must say that hunting bots and baroning them got to my head. It was nice getting baron points off those scums, but my fun was spoiled when they just logged off...right when I was on the verge of my second kill!

Die, die, die botters!!!

I managed to baron two bot families, after which, I decided to pay Mr. Johnny a visit in Los Toldos. Sadly, I wasn't able to claim my grave stone as I didn't have those Soul Crystals with me when I went there.

The visit to Mr. Johnny in Los Toldos.

But as NineMoons would say, we now have a new quest in GE...and that's hunting for bots! :3 Hehehehe.

Gpoints and the impending prospect of splurging

If you've been around the City of Auch Ch. 1 (Cervantes), you'll see a lot of walking advertisement: players strutting around in Bear and Croc suits sporting various hairstyles and accessories, back costumes, gorgeous dresses, Veterans looking dangerous...

God, being one of the firsts to get their hands on Gpoints must be a fine thing.

For quite some time now, I've been thinking about the stuff I'd want to buy from the Item Shop once Gpoints become available here. I've had some careful thought and here's what I've drawn up so far:

Naharurosa - 9,900
Combat Manual Expert (30D) - 6,600
Pioneer's Kit - Strategy Package - 14,300
Battle Smith Costume - 7,700
School Look for Scout - 11,000
School Look for Fighter - 11,000

TOTAL: 60,500 GPOINTS

Okay, buying the initial 30-Day GVC (without game time) will only give me a measly 5,800 points. Even if the Battle Smith and School Uniforms are still unavailable to date, buying that Naharurosa costume for the Elementalist as well as the nifty Andre Costume Box is going to blow a nice hole in my wallet.

And that freaking 60,500 Gpoints will force me to buy a 1-year GVC plan.

Oh my Lord...have mercy on my pocket.

This will only be the first time in history that I will splurge money on virtual items. Go me!

===

Oh and I just remembered that today's Colony Wars will be the last one before the impending wipeout of faction names on the GE map prior to the commercial phase this August 30. So to all those participating tonight...

GAMBARIMASU!!!! FIGHT-O!!!!

the exorcism

Anyone here watched the movie The Exorcism of Emily Rose?

Boo-yah!

I was scared shitless when I saw this. Hope it scared the hell out of you too. :p

Colony Wars (8/19/07): Surprises and everything after

And now for the long overdue post...

This weekend Colony Wars was truly an unusual experience for me. For one, I encountered NineMoons in the same i-Cafe where I decided to play just to avoid the heavy lag. Quite surprising indeed. I even shot myself on the foot by covering the wars in both Cervantes and Caravaggio for the factions CARNAGE and PasawayProphecy respectively. Talk about utter martyrdom or what. XD

Caravaggio server: Pasaways go to war

I promised the peeps in PasawayProphecy that I'd be there to cover the faction's colony defense, and ultimately, their conquest of other territories.

There were about 34 people online that night and not everyone, I believe, joined in the war. Faction Leader Kerigan nonetheless was quick to issue orders for everyone to meet up in the Old Port of Coimbra Ch. 2. Everyone was asked to get ready to switch channels once the the war declaration was activated.

Upon the official start of war, the server-wide notice announced the clash between ReBorn and PasawayProhecy, thus prompting all members to move channels. Sweeping the enemy faction seemed to be an easy task for these guys as they decimated enemy ranks and brought out nasty valkyries to break towers and finish the job.

Factions all over Caravaggio were quick to capture colonies within the span of a few minutes. Luminaire was the first to broadcast its conquest of the Via Fluvial Colony, while PasawayProphecy's ally, Unholy, managed to snatch El Canon de Diabolica from ReBorn.

Utter pwnage by Pasaway.

Vice Faction Leader Kupz meanwhile, instructed everyone to have their Scouts set traps and be on their guard from hostile factions. It was at this time when faction member Anonymously informs everyone of sightings of Rebirth hovering near Ferruccio Junction, one of PasawayProphecy's territories. Not long, the said colony was under attack. Defending the colony however, was not a problem as it was soon declared secure by Kupz.

while all the skirmishes happened, the lowbie DeSanggria boys were busy hanging out at the entrance to the Al Quelt Moreza dungeons, painstakingly leveling while I paid close attention to the faction chatbox (how's that for CW reporting? XD).

Friendlies pass by.

At one point when the Ferruccio Colony was once again under siege, I was surprised to see some Pasaway factionmates appearing at the Al Quelt waypoint, obviously on their way to defend the colony. Not only did a handful of the good guys passed by, but unfriendlies as well. The boys got their first taste of PK from the hand of a Rebirth member, who I failed to take note, as his Claude Baudez quickly finished off my helpless Scout, Musketeer and Elementalist.

The Ferruccio Junction colony saw a lot of Rebirth members wanting to have a piece of the said territory, prompting Kupz to order everyone to move to defend the area.

The defense of all PasawayProphecy colonies turned out to be successful battles, despite being in a state of war against three factions (ReBorn, NeptuneWorld and Rebirth). With only a few more minutes left on the clock, some members were raring to claim another colony. Kerigan initially objected, saying that the defense of their colonies was more important as some of their territories were frequently targeted by hostile factions. He finally relented after much prodding from the others.

Owned: King's Garden Colony

The more pressing concern, however, was the choice of colony to be targeted next.

The Tetra Ruins colony was suggested, but was then changed to the King's Garden after difficulties in declaring war with the current owner of the territory (special characters in the faction's name frustrated Kerigan in the end, methinks. XD)

Getting the King's Garden colony was not actually a walk in the park for them, as another faction by the name of the RedStarAvengers wanted to get the same territory as well. In spite of the challenges brought about by an adversary faction setting sights on the same target, PasawayProhecy nevertheless obtained the said colony.

The 2-hour war saw to Pasaway's victory, getting additional 3 colonies and thereby boosting their HPs to 40%.

Congratulations to all Caravaggio Pinoy factions who did exceptionally well in last Sunday's war!.


*Red mark - PasawayProphecy colonies
*Blue mark - Unholy colonies

Special thanks to Kupz and Onigiri for the screencaps!


Cervantes: CARNAGE struggle

Thank goodness I made the right choice to play in i-Hooked as they had better (and faster!) connections. The lag was still there, but switching servers and warping in between areas proved to be less of a hassle for me. And since I spent most of the time monitoring the war in Caravaggio, I was particularly clueless with the happenings in Cervantes.

On my first switch to Cervantes (around 9PM), I was taken aback with the messages I found on the faction chat. Almost all CARNAGE colonies were in constant attack, some of which were under difficult strains. I believe it was the El Tejado Verde that was the most critical around that point in time.

I was able to take note of Overseer's orders to let go of the King's Garden colony and move to the Deserted Quay's defense. It was at this time that a 7 factions were at war with CARNAGE, but I later on learned that there we were actually up against 10 factions, making the simultaneous defense of all 5 colonies a difficult task.

Hermanas Colony in Yakisoba hands

With my intermittent stay in Cervantes, I resorted to have Cyradis the Scout resume her medic roles in reviving the fallen. Thankfully with the better connection, I was able to warp with much ease and dodge those AOE spells.

In the middle of all the busy war, I found out that our El Tejado Verde colony was snatched by Yakisoba, despite efforts to defend it. Obviously, Veteran Stances proved to be the deciding factor in this neck-to-neck battle.

In the end, CARNAGE managed to hold on to its sole colony, Porto Bello's Deserted Quay. Defending against 10 factions was no joke, though this was quite an experience for everyone in the faction. I'm pretty much sure to expect a mean comeback this Sunday, as this will also be the last CW before the wipeout in preparation for the game's commercial launch.

Nevertheless, I salute all CARNAGE members for a battle well fought!


Ok, that's the wrap! Back to GE for me.

===

Oh and before I do, allow me to introduce the first Veteran dude in CARNAGE.

Macho men, amfufu!!!

'Gratz to Estradz for reaching Veteran status!!! Libre! Libre! Libre!

the idge project (part 1)

W00t! I just got home fresh from the Colony Wars event a while ago. I just went and made my life more difficult by covering not just one, but two CW happenings in Cervantes and Caravaggio servers, specifically for CARNAGE and PasawayProphecy factions respectively. But since I'm already digressing, I'll talk about that in tomorrow's post.

Anyway, I've been feeling quite giddy over the prospect of an Idge Imbrulia cosplay. Not too many people appreciate this particular RNPC, so I've decided to immortalize my fandom of the Illier blacksmith by cosplaying as her on the upcoming GE PH Commercial Launch Party on September 15.

This is the Idge version I'll be wearing, complete with the huge ass Castor sword.

And here are just but a few developments of the costume:

Idge's breastplate and..uhh..a wrench XD.

We all know Idge looks kinda boyish in her getup, but her armor does flatter her nice figure. The breastplate for one, hugs her top frame. I'm particularly happy with the actual turnout of this, considering that the paint applied on the rubber foam made it look like an old piece of metal. The engravings on the armor are actually strips of rubber foam and glue gun painted in silver.

The tools of the trade.

And this one shows Idge's essential tools for enhancing items: the hammer, chisel, and a nifty wrench. Again, this stuff's made of just rubber, but the effect's as good as metal. I've assembled them to look like the ones in the picture.

The striped pants of doom.

I hope I don't look stupid wearing these pants.

I'll be updating this blog with more info on the Idge Project™ as it progresses. Meanwhile, I really ought to hit the sack.

I LIIIIIIIVEEE!!! + big news!

Panfilo's glad to be back in GE.

Finally! After last night's server fiasco, I was finally able to log in to the GE world. It's still a painful chore for me to level the girls, so I took them all for a nice stroll around Reboldoeux and Coimbra.

In doing so I encountered new sights in those areas. In Reboldoeux for one, a costume exchange chest was located near master couturier Andre Janzur. By putting in some costumes (the ones bought from Janzur and not the armors), one will get a random item. A factionmate tried exchanging one this morning and he got an Auch Return Scroll. Cool!

Oh and for those who are wondering, items in the Market Manager are steadily going back to their exorbitant prices. You might want to purchase some stuff now, and unless you're fully loaded with Vis, getting armors and weapons will be a major pain in the family coffers.

Moving over to Coimbra, we noticed the add-ons as described by RCM Hrin.

Hrin's new bestfriend, the Item Mall NPC stands near the notice board, already selling goodies for those who have their G-Points (lucky people ).

No G-Points for the DeSanggria family just yet.

And while on the way to a rendezvous with Gracielo (hehe), we spotted Jonathon, the new Coimbra Pioneering Officer. Cyradis went on to engage him in a friendly conversation and to check out the quest issued by this NPC. To her surprise, Jonathon replied tartly, "We do not need your help."

Jonathon, the Coimbra Trooper Pioneering Officer

Ouch. Darned ingrate.

The girls likewise saw the ballot boxes for the upcoming Party Elections! It's just across Captain Ricardo. Neat stuff really.

Cast your votes here!

Oh, and RCM Hrin has posted some nifty info about Barons in her blog. Go check it out! Just don't baron me...yet.

===

For those of you who've been curious for the nth time...

IP-Interactive will have the GE PH Commercial Launch Party on Sept. 15 (Saturday) at One Esplanade, near SM Mall of Asia!!!

down, down, DOWN!!!!

Sacre bleu!

The GE world is suffering from server connectivity problems and other concerns. News has it that the servers are currently down from 1730 to 1930 (GMT +8) for emergency maintenance.

I wonder if they can fix it all in that time span.

On the other hand, I was lucky enough to get in a while ago, and I noticed quite a few changes, one of which was the major drop in prices in the Market Manager. Imagine the shock on my face when I saw unique weapons for sale below 1M Vis.

Players have likewise been broading warnings not to buy too much stuff because of bugs and all that fluff. Good thing I didn't take the bait in those uniques.

With all the major problems happening, I'm getting an inkling of a 2X EXP hanging ominously in the air.

But don't take my word for it.

Alaena's entry: Musings at Coimbra

Thoughts of home

Eyes lost beyond the horizon
I wonder if there's an end to its vastness
The sun dips low, purple haze turns crimson
Soon, everything will be wrapped in darkness.

For a while, I wish it will not end
Sadness creeps along as the day fades
This facade of strength must not bend
Yet inside there's an urge to break away.

This land fills my thirst for adventure
The burning urge to strike, a satisying feeling
But the endless onslaught seems like an overture
The essence of battle loses its meaning.

Still, I must keep this to myself
For I am the anchor my sisters' hold on to
I must never succumb to treachery itself
This steadfast heart will pull us through.

For now, let me wallow in this misery
Let my tears fall and merge into this emptiness
Tomorrow will bring a renewed spirit
And put away this feeling of loneliness.

===

Romance at Coimbra

mirrored on the water's surface
gleaming under the setting sun
with waves crashing
with the wind singing
the horizon brings forth a new view
gazing beyond
way past the haze and mist
unveiled by the sun's arms
i gazed at your beauty

amazed
breathless
enraptured

===

All poems were inspired by the picture above.

Alaena, our tough and fearless fighter, reveals more of her soft side with her own poetic compositions. Contradictory to her moody and stern disposition, not even her sisters know she's quite skilled with the quill. I'm pretty sure she doesn't want them to know anyway.

This post was also inspired by the works of Lothlorien and Lord Darrick as well. Coimbra's perpetual sunset makes a perfect setting for an emo post. The place absolutely begs to be immortalized in poetry. LOL.