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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