Tuesday, March 29, 2011

Achieving Grandmaster Artisan...

...Nearly made me cry. Seemingly endless pearl farming in the Portico, hours spent bazaar-sniping sunstones and sandstones...I came very close to a mental breakdown many times.

This harrowing journey to Grandmaster Artisan-hood has changed my views on anyone else who's achieved this rank. Before, I regarded Crafting as an easy, 2-second thing. Boy, was I wrong. To anyone with more than 1 Grandmaster Artisan, I applaud you. I would never want to re-experience that type of grind, hour after hour after hour...

I also learned in the course of finishing the quest, was to read the directions very closely. Everything up 'til GM Artisan, you had to craft 2 of an object. So, like a total dummy, I assumed the same for the Seal of the Seven Seas. Had I read the quest dialogue, I would've found directions to only craft one Seal. That was 2 hours wasted on bazaar-sniping, and another 2 wasted banging my head on the wall.

The beacon of light that shone through the darkness, though, was that the Sunstones were needed for the Cosmic Kris and Stellar Signet. It left me thinking, "Do all of the recipes in here require sunstone?!"

In case you didn't know, the Cosmic Kris and Stellar Signet are an athame and ring. Together, they give 400+ HP, 32% power pip chance, and about an 82% boost to heals (incoming and outgoing combined). They're all the rage amongst PvPers because let's face it: 82% is a huge boost.

Here's the mathematical proof:
Pixie (normal) = 400 HP
Pixie (with Infection) = 200
Pixie (with Infection and Stellar Signet and Cosmic Kris) = 364

See? With this set on, you could get nearly normal heals even with an Infection on you. This set is like the new-and-improved Malistaire set. It's also my next goal. Wish me luck as I embark on hours of bazaar-sniping and head-banging!

Jess.

Sunday, March 27, 2011

I'm Back (+more...)

Hey guys, I'm back! 

Today, I'd like to talk about changing personalities. I'm bringing this up because it was one of my IRL problems that forced me to step away from the computer and deal with real life. 

I have this one friend; we were best friends for 5 years. One of our longest running jokes was making fun of those popular people with identical personalities and too much makeup--I think we all have those people in our lives at some point or other. 

Well wouldn't you know it: the moment we stepped into middle school, she found a cozy little niche with the exact sort of people we used to ridicule. 

Excessive makeup, swearing, the "I-don't-care" attitude, and the too-short skirts. Two years later, she was a carbon copy of them. 

During the 2 years, we talked less and less. She had her friends, I had mine. Whatever plans we made always ended up being really awkward. Things had changed.

Well, who am I to judge her? No one. I'm not trying to say that it was her fault--a part was mine as well--but I guess it came down to this: the people we were were best friends, but the person she and I are now don't click. 

And it's not surprising, people change; it's the natural progression of life. 

...I had a point I wanted to make but in the middle of writing this, I lost it. So I bid you a 'hello' and 'farewell'. Oh, and thanks for listening to my sob story.

Jess. 

P.S. Yes, I am back. But just saying: I'll probably be just as lazy as before with posting.