30 November 2024

Online PC Games

World of Warships. Common gribes regarding this Update (13.11), i.e. the Christmas event. 

(1) Steel event is overpriced (steel that is). Two ships - the Dutch cruiser and the German destroyer will be gone after the event ends. But the Archerfish (ridiculously superfast submarine) and Shinano will remain available for purchase.

(2) Dockyard event's a joke. Niord and Kalmar are the ship rewards. Meh.

(3) Battle Pass is now double the price. Disguised as another event by splitting it into two "chapters". Yes, you get two ships but who's heard of them? Teng She and Lugdumbumbum (whateva)? Instead of the one Battle Pass event you're getting two. No, not two-for-the-price-of-one, no, it's two-for-the-price-of-two! Cost is the same for both events.

(4) Coal crates are now standardised; before they were quite random with their rewards. Now it's guaranteed 400 coal, 3 Grey economic bonuses (of any type), and the third slot is either Elite Commander XP or Free XP. Occasionally you will get a variation but in the past week and a half, this has been the yield so I've noticed on the daily spreadsheet record kept. 

(5) More prevalent in Co-Op these days, you either get BOT players (farming credits) or the lack of cooperation is now very common. On one map recently the other day I was on one flank but saw on the other flank two friendlies take on two enemy BOT ships. To my surprise, both friendlies died even though they could have easily taken out the enemy BOTS. I simply could not believe it. Tried to race over to try and salvage something but was too late. And it keeps getting worse. Guys, these are BOTS!

(6) Playing the last operation in the Star Trek event is not simple. Four basic tasks need accomplishing before dealing with the Borg Queen: 1 - Eliminate the Queen's Minions (three of them), 2: Defend the three key areas, 3: take out the East and West guards (three in each), 4 - Collect four debris (buffs). Once done, the Queen herself will appear. Be warned: her arrival may knock out any ship not protected enough. When she arrives, knocking her out is a tall ask as she has a 1,000 hit points. And there is a time limit. Achieved this only twice in the ten or so attempts. 

Summary - I am very skeptical of eventually reaching my goal of six hundred ships in port after this first week of the new Update. This year's Santa event looks to favour those with fewer ships. The Christmas incentive should kick in tomorrow and I'm hoping it will improve but I remain very skeptical and more convinced this will be my last "full-on" year playing this game. 

Here's hoping that tomorrow improves with unlocking the Exploration North rewards and the Festive rewards begins. 

Stardew Valley. Play this straight after WOWS to get the "stink" off. 

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Good writers

First is J.R.R. Tolkien. He is the top of the tree. Read his profound trilogy many times over. So much depth in the lore which the Silmarillion barely scratched the surface. The Peter Jackson film trilogies did it quite well although initially I thought they skipped quite a bit from the books and made up other bits. But now I see that even if they had included parts like Tom Bombadil, it would have been too long and turned many off. 

Rewatching certain scenes from the Sharpe tv series on YT (the scene where Wellington lambast Simmerson seems a well-loved 2024 favourite) reminded me so much of my love of other favourite writers who have left indelible imprints on my psyche. After Tolkien, #2 would have to be the English historical fantasy writer, Bernard Cornwell. His Sharpe series were staple diet during the early 80s and I read all the titles published during that decade. Later decades, not so much as I was only interested in his time in the Peninsular under Wellington.

Third would be the late American fantasy writer David Eddings. Obviously loved the five-book series, The Belgariad and then the follow up concluding series, The Mallorean. 

Silk, the cheeky thief prince and Relg, the dude who could walk through rock and stone unharmed, were two of my favourite supporting characters from both series. The humour prevailing throughout, often under duress, was a big hit with me somehow. That all the major characters (on the good side) got "happy ever after" endings seems twee now that I look back on it in review. 

Was also keenly interested in the Elenium and Tamuli series featuring the Pandion knight Sparhawk. Had high hopes it would enjoy the same success as the Belgariad but there was something different about it compared to other two series. Probably because the guy was already an adult, a battle-tried adult. You did not see his character development like you did with young Garion who grew up from a cheeky little imp underfoot of Polgara to eventually end up king of Riva and husband to the wilful Queen Ce'Nedra. I wanted more because it seemed like a really good story but it was not to be.

Those were my top three favourites of the fiction genre. 

Others worth mentioning include C.S. Forester, the author of the popular Hornblower series. Read a few and was mad about the whole Age of Sails period. Got on to Edgar Rice Burroughs Barsoom series not that long ago but already had exposure to it through the animated comic book style renditions. 

Others in the sci-fi genre include Issac Asimov, Arthur C. Clarke, Ray Bradbury, Anne McCaffrey to name just a few read.

Of the more "heady", more intellectual style, #1 would have to be George Orwell simply for his writing technique. The man could write. Not a wasted word. His tight economic style reminds me of (although differently) to that of Winston Churchill who was a renowned speaker, writer, and scholar - not just a statesman and adventurer. In a lot of ways, Stephen Fry continues that tradition of well-spoken English speakers and writers; he is much the same in that he articulates well with both the written and spoken word. The Irish playwright George Bernard Shaw was another who got straight to point, at least for me. 

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24 November 2024

A Blast from the Past

I watch a YT streamer who runs video of the King's Guard in London from time to time because I sometimes enjoy watching videos without commentary. Just observing like the streamer. Tonight's viewing was of a young Guards officer in parade dress uniform (with bearskin) walking on foot in from the Horse Guards to some destination. Along the way he is accosted by two young surprised female tourists who ask for a photo op. He obliges politely and then resumes his walk. Seeing that exchange, and another earlier showing YT video where tourists "chased" after another Guards officer in a similar park scene for a photo opportunity, reminded me of my own past encounter with the Queen's Guard back in the late 80s.

I had the fortune to attend a military training course run by the Brits in Brunei. I befriended a young Irish Guardsman also attending who invited me over to visit him if ever in London which I duly did a few months later. Among the many great memories was the rare opportunity of being attendance as he took part in the changing of the guard at Windsor Castle. He was a Lance-Sergeant at the time and therefore a senior NCO in the guard changeover. 

Having access to the "behind the scenes" meant being present during the guard rehearsal, then access to the actual changeover ceremony at Windsor Castle was an opportunity I was not going to waste especially with my then-SLR camera. I met the young Guard officer who graciously consented to my taking several photos of him in dress uniform up close. I was even allowed access to the inside of the guard room where I was shown various famous "signatures" upon the wooden wall panels such signature of a teenage Prince Charles. There were also other signatures mentioned but the only one I remembered, besides now King Charles, was Sir Winston Churchill. 

I remembered that entire privileged experience with great fondness. And not a little sadness at how people sometimes treat tradition as if it's some tawdry Disney theme park sensation.

There is a place for tradition in any society. Tradition teaches you continuity. It provides an anchor upon which to explore and experience your own journey through life. Tradition teaches you boundaries. Knowing what boundaries are is very important. Having no boundaries is simply chaos. And freedom without rules or restraints becomes as meaningless as its pursuit. Distinguishing between context and chaos is probably the most interesting part.

World of Warships

This month's gaming has revealed some interesting insights:

• In the low 1000s of players on the Asian server whenever I log off every day.
• The value of "rewards" - in whatever focus or form, be it daily log in, event pass rewards, one-off events, is continually declining and diminishing while the grind effort makes one question its return. 
• Supercontainers. Nothing "super" about them at all any more. No difference between them and ordinary containers nowadays. Both offer "junk" ninety-nine per cent of the time. Of that one percent, you're extremely lucky or rare to find a ship as a reward.
• Camo is worthless cosmetic art. However it is being promoted as being the new "currency of value" in this game even though it's basically valueless. Bringing back the economic bonus that was attached to having camo in the first place is unlikely to happen. 
• Paper ships and overpowered submarines and carriers now rule the waves. The historical element  died out once the carrier rework was introduced. The introduction of submarines has only worsened the situation (despite protestations). And now superships and paper ships are so much more potent than their actual historical counterpart. Just waiting on the Star Wars style lascannons and photon torps....wait, it's already here!
• The value of "new" ships is rising all the time, to the point of putting many off buying into the hype. Take the current Black Friday event for instance. 
• Playerbase quality has dropped off considerably with the constant dumbing down of game play over the years. Add in the overpowered submarines and CVs into the mix, and it's an explanation for why many have left the game for "greener pastures".
• RAIN (EU) won this year's King of the Sea XVII International final. They earned USD40,000 for their efforts. A pretty pay packet.
• In the time since leaving my second clan I got three invites to join a clan. Declined all three invites (one looked legit though). In the end, I realised I prefer playing solo. Don't need nor want the responsibility in being part of a collective I have no connection with anyway. I've managed to grind every tech tree line currently existing, minus the submarines and CVs. 
• My goal by year's end is to reach 600 ships through daily play and, hopefully, this year's Santa/snowflake event will help reach that achievement. Just shy forty-one ships. Doubting I will make it however as I've read the Devblog regarding this year's Santa/snowflake event and it looks like slim pickings all round. I still have just under two months of Premium time left so will keep playing daily until that expires.
• Playing Cunningham on the Tier VI British light cruiser Dido is interesting. Not as potent or varied as playing Auboyneau on the Tier VI French light cruiser Dupliex which had smoke and hydro and longer-range torpedoes. All Dido has is defensive AA and the option for single-firing torps as well as a spread. Her torp damage however means she can take on enemy battleships but only after they've taken some damage and Dido pops out from concealment or ambushes the enemy. Her HE, while lightweight, is very good at starting fires.
• Grinding Los Andes for Libertad was short and sweet, and accomplished within a week using economic bonuses. I ran the Libertad once so am completely ignorant of its full capabilities although I know of its funny button (F key) having played the Los Andes and Ipiranga. 
• Upskilling the unique Pan-American commander Lisboa will take time though as he's still in the low 13-pt range. I already have a 17-pt commander on the Tier X cruiser Santander and may transfer him over to the Libertad and have Lisboa as a floater instead, free to jump on any ship in the Pan-American line.
• Which highlights a major problem for me playing Tier X ships; I only play them rarely these days. Or not at all. Simply because I am more focused on upskilling certain commanders - Unique, Seasoned, and any higher skilled captains. It's largely due to the fact that one need loads of Blue and Red economic bonuses to justify taking Tier X (and Superships) out of port. Blue and Reds help cover the exorbitantly high service costs and often compensate for poor battle performance.
• Playing the German Tier VII premium light cruiser Munchen was also interesting. Enjoyed the MG-rapid fire effect whenever holding down the left mouse while targeting an enemy ship. Mind you, one's aim has to be consistently accurate.

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18 November 2024

Online PC Games

World of Warships. Saw a regular Youtuber streamer's assessment of the Star Trek event, and I hope he's wrong. He believes this is the future of WOWS. Whether it's space-cloaked or simply modern era, it signals the end of playing for me. I just want to reach 600 ships by the end of the year.

Now I hear that they're going to be introducing Gold premium ammo in Update 14.0 (Jan 2025) courtesy from another YT streamer. Having never played World of Tanks, I have no first-hand knowledge regarding the introduction of this paywall tactic (sneaking it in disguised of course if you read the latest Devblog closely) but I hear that its introduction into WOWS (some are surprised that it was not introduced sooner) will mean those long-time players will either (a) quit the game, (b) avoid playing PvP altogether except on the odd or rare occasion, or (c) merely shrug their shoulders and continue playing - and paying. The last applies to new players and/or those with fat wallets.

Whatever is the case, I'm almost done with this game. Playing it almost daily for almost five years has been a journey but lately the experience has become a very tiresome burden. And when something becomes a burden, it's time to move on to new horizons.

New Games. Finally played Farming Simulator 22 even while Farming Simulator 25 has also just been released into Early Access (so I believe). I sucked at the game in my first attempts despite watching countless YT videos on how to play. Who'd thought, eh? Played the Guided Tour part and struggled from the start. It also brought to light my awful driving skills, especially with the tow bar. Whether in reality or on a PC, I have no skill whatsoever other than forward and stop! 

The newly released Empire of the Ant looks promising. Graphics are outstanding. Perspective (from the ant's view plane) is interesting and adds novelty to the game. At least there are no pronouns nor DEI tripe to contend with. Saw a famous YT streamer play it and kept smiling because all he wanted to do as the ant was chase after and kill the butterfly! He became quite vicious in his play, swearing and cussing at the enemies of the ant. 

Sea Power is now out. Much better than World of Warships by a long shot. It may well attract a lot of naval milsim and traditionalist gamers. Good reviews from among the numerous YT streamers I follow.

English Civil War

No change in the situation apart from some minor detailing remains regarding the cavalry, including attaching guidons. Been inactive due mostly to a serious lack of interest and current ongoing health concerns. And depression does not help. 

I will more than probably forego the "few loose ends" given this is a solo campaign effort anyway as no one will be looking closely at my minis. I am planning starting assembly and painting of the Royalist army in the new year. I will prepare my solo campaign however as it's been on my mind for several weeks now; just to help with motivation. No plan and no idea how I will tackle it apart from reading the campaign booklet acquired several months back and formulating something thereon. 

More than likely I will now post irregularly until I am mentally in a good place again. And Christmas time always brings back fond memories. 

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Weekly Digest #8

Online PC Games

World of Warships. Several ships of interest for purchase are available this Update. These include the Karl XIV Johan (for doubloons), Anhalt (now a coal ship), Los Andes (released from Early Access and now part of the tech tree line). So it will be a combination grind alternating between playing both the Dupliex and Ipiranga with their appropriate Unique commanders who will also be upskilling. Multi-tasking is still a new prospect for a single-minded individual such as myself. Will probably get all three ships anyway.

Finally jumped into the Star Trek mode tonight (3rd). Played the Vulcan battleship T'Pau, adding upgrades along the way as I slowly made my way to the end of the available mission sets. Quickly got the hang of playing it aggressively and fared well enough. Have not touched either the cruiser or destroyer versions yet; no intention. Played this mode only because I'm chasing the resources (Free XP, coal, etc) for the new ships sought. 

This mode is exactly like the D-Day missions around June/July where you gamed one series of missions to its series end then wait for the next series to unlock. And so it goes until the entire mission series is completed. Next one for Star Trek is due soon; in the meantime, you continue to play for tokens to help unlock upgrades until the next mission series is unlocked. 

Today (4th) I played both grind ships and ended up getting the Alabama B (Black Friday container), Los Andes (tech tree), Anhalt (coal), and Karl XIV Johan (doubloons). The Alabama B has its own mission where the reward is 2500 doubloons so will likely grind for that. 

Used the doubloon rewards from the Alabama B mission to pay for two stages in the Black Friday event today (5th).

Today (6th) got pleasant surprise. Been bagging Supercontainers a lot because what made them unique has been severely nerfed to the point that it's not worth anything any more. For every one hundred standard container, you get a Supercontainer. Today was different from the usual norm of nothing when opening a supercontainter however. I actually got a ship, and one that I'd been wanting for some time - the US Tier VI Arizona. Also upskilled Auboyneau who is now 19-pt using surplus Elite Cmdr XP; will continue to grind him toward 20-pt.

Every Black Friday ship obtained comes with a quick mission - earn so many Base XP. The reward, depending on the ship, is a quantity of doubloons. With the Alabama B it was 2500 doubloons if my record-keeping is correct. With the Dunkerque B it is 1500 doubloons. 

Today (8th) I fast tracked (spent dubs) the last three levels to finish the Black Friday Event Pass, and thus obtain the Dunkerque B. Arrangement of guns means it's a forward firing tank. Precursor to Jean Bart, most likely so I have categorised it. Nothing great but did okay with it in the games to earn dubs back in fairly short time (earn 4000 Base XP).

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Tabletop Gaming

English Civil War. Opened up the Royalist package over the weekend (2nd) but haven't fully gone through all the pieces. First thing I noticed was that the artillery pieces actually look like they belong to the period unlike the artillery pieces for my New Model army list (see earlier blogpost). Will send pics to the retailer for an explanation. 

Reviewing the Royalist list as finalised 16 July 2024 prior to posting as an order. Note: it may undergo further changes until fully assembled because nothing is firmly set until the last painted figure is done, more or less.

Prince Rupert (field commander) + dog
    Prince Rupert's Lifeguards (bodyguards) = 6 figures (2 stands)
    2 couriers (may be more - to be decided)

Left Wing cavalry (Langdale)
    "Northern Horse" = 8 figures (4 stands)
    Cary's Horse = 8 figures (4 stands)

Centre Wing infantry (Lord Astley)
    Lucas' tertio
        Lord Hopton's Foot (blue uniforms)
        "Shrewsbury Foot" (green uniforms - dull or dark)
    Astley's tertio
        Duke of York's Foot (white uniforms)
        Page's Foot (grey uniforms)

Right Wing cavalry (Prince Maurice)
    Prince Maurice's Lifeguards (bodyguards) = 6 figures (2 stands)
    Prince Rupert's Horse = 12 figures (4 stands)
    Queen's Horse = 9 figures (3 stands)

Reserve (King Charles I)
    1 courier
    King's Lifeguards (Stuart) = 6 figures (2 stands)
    King's Foot (red uniforms)
    Prince Rupert's Foot (blue uniforms)

Artillery (tbd)
    1 Saker + crew
    2 Falcons + crew*
    Firelocks (Legge) = 12 figures (4 stands)

Both sides will share the following items as scenario or campaign needs dictate:
    1 Mortar + crew
    Baggage train (6 donkeys carrying assorted baggage)
    Powder cart + horse team
    Wine/water cart + horse team

* The other two Falcons (plus crews) will go to the New Model list. One of the NMA demi-culverins will transfer over to the Royalist list to complement the solitary saker. 

Going with different coloured uniformed units in keeping with making each force fairly distinctive and distinguishable tabletop-wise. Thus the NMA will be known by their standards while the Royalists will be distinguished by their uniforms. 

Total cost (including postage and packaging): over AUD1100.

Today (6th) continued cataloguing the Royalist package. Confirmed the NMA artillery pieces are demi-culverins. Enough firelocks for both sides. Extra artillery commanders are mounted.

Finished unpacking the Royalist package (7th). More or less all there. More because there are some "overs" but not much. Less because I am shy 4 cavalry figures but probably need to check this shortfall against final list above. 

Initial shortfall has ballooned out to several packets of horse so I learned today (8th). My fault: I did not double check the order listing. Which means another order for despatch, probably in the new year. I have enough on the painting board to keep me busy till then. 

Weekly Digest #7

PC Gaming

News: Saw an interesting stream about a new sci-fi AAA RPG game tonight. Game is due for release soon. It's called Exodus. Looks interesting to me although I confess I'm not up-to-date with the genre of sci-fi games at all. Storyline has me hooked though. Being a Traveller in search of technology to help your own kind survive in a hostile galaxy will always appeal because it involves exploration.

Farming Simulator 22: Also checked out Farming Simulator 22 as well after watching a YT streamer play it from scratch - no $ and nothing - several days ago. Knew of it already but passed it by. But now I am very interested because I am looking for something more engaging which is a big step up from Stardew Valley. Watched several modded streams and am convinced I will be getting this game soon.

Space Marines 2. Saw this tonight on Steam community (28th) Patch 4.1 released and intends to fix some of the concerns expressed by the players. 

"...Space Marine 2 is all about the power fantasy, and Patch 4.0 negatively impacted it for many of you.

This is why we’re rolling back these changes. Extremis enemies’ spawn rates in Minimal, Average, and Substantial difficulties will revert back to their pre-Patch 4.0 levels and will be significantly reduced in Ruthless difficulty to hopefully strike a balance between how hard the game was at launch and how “easy” it became with Patch 3.0..."

Hopefully they're able to strike the right balance. Maybe I will return and finally knock off that Hive Tyrant.

World of Warships. Devblog posted details regarding Update 13.11. Or the much-looked forward Christmas events. Read through it and noticed some changes.

(1) No longer three type of Santa containers. Eliminated the "middle" one so now it's just the Gift and Mega crates. Included the Golden Gift crate which is available only through the Mega ones.

(2). Event Pass is now in two parts (called Chapters), each three weeks long. Once ended, it's gone forever so incentive is to complete them as they unfold. There are twenty-five stages. It's a continuation of the Explore the North Pole event. The rewards are the two Polar commanders - Li Wei and Olaf Lundgren - and two new ships Tsurugi and Lugdanum. Instead of receiving at the end of the grind, they appear midway through the "Chapter".

(3) Only 145 ships on offer this time around with some new ones included like the Georg Hoffman, Prins van Oranje, Chikuma II - obtainable through the Golden Gift crate. Others include Wiesbaden, Tsurugi, Navarin, and so on. Still some rare ones like Kamikaze, Enterprise, Friesland, and so on. 

(4) Explore the North Pole event concludes in this Update. If you join in this Update, you get a free Tier VIII ship - either North Carolina, Implacable, U-190, Akatsuki - straight off the bat. If you made it to the stage where you've been able to earn 10,000 tokens your free Tier X ship is a choice between Schlieffen, Audacious, Balao, Shimakaze. Note: the two destroyers are speculative and rumoured while the others are confirmed. No cruisers.

(5) Christmas port (Nordlyshavn) has a Christmas tree in need of decorating. Earning decorations rewards you with meh gifts such as Premium days, coal, permanent camo, flags. Yeah....nah!

(6) During the Update period (Dec 1 to 25) daily log in is different. What that entailed is not fully disclosed apart from certainty that you will receive a reward of sorts. Can't be any worse than what's been daily log in for the past five years, can it?

(7) Festive Rewards is back again and echoes the same event during the Ninth Anniversary. The more ships in one's port, the more chances at rewards. Whichever Tier ship is taken out, you have to earn the requisite amount of BASE XP to receive the Festive reward.

What's missing is the information regarding Santa certificates (snowflakes). Maybe it's a given and still confined to just Tier X ships. Not a good feeling so far regarding this approaching Christmas. 

Closer to the current timeline, November is Black Friday time. Or Black Hole Friday as I like to call it now. Black Hole because it's where those with more money than sense splurge wildly. Avoiding this year's current list of Black Friday ships as none appeal apart from a couple: I can wait for those. Plus they're costing a fair bit for their actual worth to be honest. WG knows its market well enough. 

The Smolensk auction is a big definite no-no for me. Wildly over the top haggling for a nerfed ship. Always avoided these auctions as the bidding is super inflated with many fearing they will miss out so they bid exorbitantly.  

Apart from that, sticking to playing the current Event Pass for the resources as I grind to upskill the French Unique commander Auboyneau on the light cruiser Dupliex. I should have used the De Grasse which is a little more robust and reliable but its ship XP is already past the 300+K limit. Dunkerque B as the Event Pass final ship reward does not interest in the least but it's better than nothing. 

And completing the next stage of the Polar Exploration mission chain. One more mission task to complete and that should complete the minimum requirement for the rewards released from December 1.

Noticed the Karl XIV Johan and Anhalt are now Armory ships (former as a doubloon and the latter a coal ship). Contemplating getting both but will see how the rest of the month pans out first. 

Tabletop Gaming

English Civil War. Continuing slow work assembling my New Model army list. 

One of the problems I've been struggling ever since starting this English Civil Wars project has been how to generate cavalry standard bearers (or cornets). The Hinchcliffe retailer I've used does not have specific cornets for cavalry. Without wanting to go to another brand, I found myself stuck figuring out how to adapt existing cavalry figures. 

But in end, as of today (30th), I'm just going to ignore it altogther, create the banner, and stick it to the base. No conversion needed. Problem solved. Move along.

Just one more group of horsemen to assemble; this group is short mounts and riders which I will have to order eventually, but no rush right now. For now, I can live with two units of heavy cav, two units of carabiniers, and one unit of dragoons. Should be sufficient for my campaign needs. The bulk of the New Model Army is very much done now; just final detailing, attaching pikes and flags, then a final wash, and then gluing and flocking the bases. 

Painting

Started bird cards with these initial rough paint sketches. Rusty as heck. Will take me months to fully get back into it because of my stutter approach to painting at the moment. These are the wagtail series gift cards for family and friends. 

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