Grind till you drop: The race to Master level

IAH announces the arrival of the Master Promotion Scroll to the Cash Shop, as well as the in-game event for the race to Master level.

This is good news to those who've practically known no other place in GE but those paid dungeons. LOL. I know a few people who have already reached Expert Lvl. 10 (100%), so it's just a matter of buying those scrolls and promoting their characters.

As for me...well...I'm going to be realistic in saying that I can't possibly boost my mains in just a month to Master. But this doesn't mean that it will totally be a far-fetched idea. I remember saying before that I may not probably reach Expert level, but look where I am now. My main team's Expert, plus I have 2 additional characters waiting to be promoted. I'm thinking that I may probably reach Master level, but not within the month. I have priorities too, and that includes beefing up my team and equipping them with the right armors and weapons.

Although I couldn't help but wish that IAH can help the players power level by giving us a 2x EXP event, or perhaps opening another dungeon similar to the Ancient Shelter now that more players have access to the Premium Buff.

I'm guessing that sGE won't be able to access future game content if a considerable number in the player population have reached the level requirements. This happened previously as one patch got delayed a couple of times because only a small percentage of the players have reached Expert level. If IAH manages to get IMC's approval for a 2x EXP and a new dungeon, it's going to be a win-win situation in terms of item sales & player numbers. But of course I'm not an expert on this, nor do I know the set-up between IAH and IMC. Nevertheless, I hope they can do something about the EXP rate for those leveling to Master.

A fashion commentary on new GE costumes

Any avid GE gamer would have to be insane to pass up the opportunity to own costumes for their own characters. Whether it be for the stocks or RNPCs, GE's brand of fashion truly makes each one of us eager for new updates.

I'm not exactly a fashion guru, nor am I that well-versed when it comes to fashion terminologies and such. Let me, however, provide you with my personal comments on the up and coming couture that's going to hit our servers really soon!

The Trump Series

According to Mistress Hrin, things are well in the way for the next patch update this month. Although there's no final name to the patch itself, v.3.4 features the Arsene Circus, where a whole lot of circus-y stuff is bound to arrive in the New World. The main highlight of the patch of course, is the arrival of a new Elementalist-type RNPC, Hellena, and the opening of Ania's recruitment quest. Among these new characters, there's also new maps, boss monsters and mobs to encounter on this rather challenging patch update. I also got word that the cat pet (Sith/Nyato) will also be available in this patch.

The overall look and feel for this patch is obviously that of a deck of cards. From the costumes, maps, character/monster names, this update will bring a different spin to the costumes of the stock characters, aptly named as The Trump Series.

Now let's talk about them one by one, shall we? :D

Musketeer

As expected, Musks are the cloth-clad characters that don't go all-out for skin exposure. Just like the Le Blanc series, Musks don't show that much TNA, and the discerning elements of the Trump theme can be seen in the checkered patches and the heart choker for the female Musk.

I love Musks to bits, but I just feel that the female one looks tomboyish in most of her costumes. I just wish they'd flatter her feminine looks, much like what they did for the Clivia Sprite. The costume design looks a bit plain if you put her side-by-side with the Wiz and Elem.



Wizard

I think that the Wiz class truly embodies the costume theme with the checkered designs, and spade emblems on their clothes. The male Wiz looks right at home with the theme, as if he was made for such design. Meanwhile, the female Wiz looks like a regal courtier in her gown! Those accordion-like skirt frills reminds me of Shakespeare's collar. LOL.




Elementalist

No one would argue that Elems are the most flamboyantly dressed characters in the game, not to mention the most daring one as well. This one, however, got totally offhand.

For one, the male Elem's clothes are ok, but the stripes are a bit too much. The designers could've opted for a minimalist look, same with the male Musk and Wiz.

For the female Elem, now that's what you call a deck of cards exploding on a dress! She looks like a fondue cake with all the layered petticoats. It's a bit overdone for me. Besides, they went all clothed on this series, compared to the more revealing clothes in their other costumes. Quite a bit inconsistent, considering that players are actually peeping Toms when it comes to the female Elem. :p



Scout

I've always thought of Scouts as the innocent looking ones in the game, most especially the female. On this costume though, the innocence was totally smothered by the rather..uh...revealing outfit that makes the female scout look like a lolita for pedos or something. XD Although I have to admit that it matches her skin tone, but still, it's a bit far too revealing for my own comfort. The male one, on the other hand, looks ok. But there's too much purple that he reminds me of ice cream. :x It's also a far cry from the Croanian costume/Oiled Body look that really showed off his buff body.



Fighter

The male Fighter looks like something you'd expect from the anime Sailormoon. No kidding. And his arm's dislocated. XD

I'm a bit neutral to this, as I think the impressions would come when we see the costumes worn by the characters themselves. Based from my experience, the renders may look unappealing, but would look really nice on the actual characters. I'm still reserving my thoughts on this, though I have to say that the female Fighter's femininity is given some justice.

Overall, I'd say that the Wizard class tops the cool, sophisticated look for this series of costumes. It would also help if there was a bit of play in colors. So far I've noticed that the predominant shade was purple, and not everyone would look good at it. Still, the costume update is still worth something to anticipate. Hopefully they'd look a lot better once they're worn by the characters and we see them live in our servers. :)


Image Sources:
sGE Forums
GE Hanbiton

Cirque du Soleil in June

RCM Hrin has recently blogged about the upcoming release of v.3.4.14, otherwise known as the circus patch. Ok, there's no official name for the patch just yet, so I just made that up XD.

The new patch looks promising, with new maps and a new RNPC to recruit. The cat pet will also be released in this patch, though I do hope it doesn't consume much pet food as Pigling does (still haven't got the pig though...my luck's not really rubbing off).


One thing that got me salivating in Hrin's post was the update on the Premium Treasure Boxes! Every single item is worth something (especially those Constellation signs), so there's probably no better time to get that from the Item Shop (well, I'd be floored if they brought back the Phoenix wings though...I'd love to have that D:).

The patch is set to be rolled out in 18 June. I am somewhat excited about all this, in the sense that I'm assuming that this is going to be a more challenging map than Zeia. Speculations are already up and about, saying that the patch might herald the release of the Master Promotion Scrolls.


Gosh, the requirements just keep getting a lot more steep in every patch update.


Hrin is opening the doors to suggestions for the patch name for v.3.4.14, so if you happen to think up of something that would fit the circus-like theme, then do make those suggestions count!


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In other news, a new GE server in Vietnam is currently up in the works. Based from what I understood in Hrin's post, Vietnam will have their own GE, although I think they're working closely with IAH. I'm not sure if I interpreted it as a new server, or whether Vietnam will play a distributor role for the SEA version of GE. Kindly correct me if ever I missed anything. :x


Nevertheless, I hope the GE community continues to grow, regardless of the server we all play in. ^^


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Some stuff I picked up in the forums about jGE: They're getting seiyuus (or voice actors) for RNPC VOs!


For those who've watched a few anime shows and played a few videogames know how seiyuus can make or break the overall persona of a character. I, for one, have been a huge fan of the Japanese VOs for GE characters and I absolutely find their voices extremely suited for the role.


This blog particularly talks about the specific RNPCs that need some really kick-ass VOs. I've come across some familiar seiyuu names and needless to say, I would absolutely love to hear their voices in those characters!


And yes, jGE is getting their own RNPC by the name of Miyufu. They say she's a martial artist type, though she looks more like a samurai to me based on her costume.


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Straight from the horse's mouth: Uncle Meepoktah tweets about plans for an upcoming GE tournament...Team Arena style!


Unfortunately, I suck at this, so I hope everyone else joins! Hehehe. This is going to be so much fun. I hope I can get to watch in the sidelines. XD


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RANT: Does anyone read these days? I mean...seriously. There's another facepalm thread in the forums complaining about the re-scheduled maintenance. Yeah, yeah, another round of self-pwnt posts on why it wasn't properly announced. Kinda weird because I saw the web announcement early this week.


Get this: they say that not everyone checks the website and forums for updates like this. I nearly ROFLed.


Man, oh man...God save the world from pea-brained whiners. <_<