Part 1 of 3: e-Games Domination II Event: The Morning Journey (and Woes)

Photos courtesy of NineMoons! I wish I had a camera... NOTE TO MULTIPLY READERS: PLEASE VISIT http://menatales.blogspot.com FOR ANY UPDATED VERSIONS OF MY EXISTING POSTS. THANK YOU.

Well, I woke up in morning and prepared myself for that day. Had a bath, checked my inventory and headed off to the SMX Convention Center which is part of the SM Mall of Asia. I took the LRT going there and I was able to get a ride to the SM Mall of Asia. The place seemed desolate but I had a feeling that the SMX is gonna have a long line! :P So, I walked from the North Wing then I passed by the Entertainment Mall, going past the Music Hall. By reaching the South Wing, I can see the SMX Convention Center. Well, looks like the line was shorter than at the Hataw Hanep 3 event that I last attended.

Me, WhiteShips, Fiksdotter and Reclusion

I was able to meet up with NineMoons, the Reclusion Brothers, Fiksdotter and Artexerxes, along with a couple of faction members from the Takhisis Faction! I met AlphaOmega (thanks for much for the tanking for my FIghter!) and WhiteShips (our Feng Ling cosplayer!) and both of them are members of the Takhisis Faction. When we got inside (well, not to the event proper) the building, we were still waiting for our turn to register. To my fellow bloggers' surprise, we all saw none other than the Community Manager Mistress Hrin!!! OMG!!! This was like the moment I've I mean, we've been waiting for all of lives in Granado Espada! After a brief introduction and chat, she had to go ahead already along with her companions from IAH Games.

The escalator to the event

After having our pre-registration forms and GVCs confirmed, we were told that it will be held at the second floor. Wow... I've never been to the second floor of the SMX Convention and that marks as another first in my life. We were totally surprised at the line that was waiting for us! Me and my companions were so flabbergasted on how the lines were sooooooo unorganized. It really made my morning headache (which I'm trying to ignore because of the happiness and adrenaline flowing in me) really worse. Some of us got lucky in getting inside earlier while the rest of us got stuck in the LONG AND SLOW LINE. What's worse, sometimes the line breaks up like hell! Well, the good thing there was no casualties.

What in blazes? What's going on? Where's the line?!?!?

After a total of three hours (yes, three full hours!) of waiting and whining, we finally got inside! Wow! This place has like a lot of screens to surely blind your eyes at the end of the day! I immediately went to the GE Booth and did "The Duel" activity! After that, Hrin made another appearance! Yay! Then, I decided to settle somewhere because of the tiring wait. Well, better stick around for the happy part of this report! Make that tomorrow. I'm work right now on the day I made this blog post! :P

Finally in! Happy group shot time!

Getting help from the faction

Well, I made progress in leveling up my characters. There are some who made it to level 52 while the main team's in a mix of levels but at least I was able to get some good EXP.

Getting help from a faction mate

When my faction leader told me to meet a fellow faction mate for powerleveling, he advised that I bring one character for the spot. I decided to bring my fighter for this task. All I just did was arrive at the spot and left my fighter there to sit and wait while the other member was busy fighting off the mobs. I was able to AFK peacefully since that faction mate will take care of the rest.

When I came back to check on my fighter, I was surprised to see progress! I leveled up by 2 with a little more to 95! He had to leave now because he had other characters to level up. I respected that decision and let him be.

The Skullic Dungeon is hectic, even for two families!

On the day before maintenance, I was able to meet up with another faction mate at the Skullic Dungeon 1st Floor. Instead of AFK all the way, I was able to give my fullest attention to my family while we both grinded for more than 5 hours. There was a moment where that pesky Skullic Leader appeared and nearly owned us! When I realized I was using a sword and a shield, I used the High Guard stance and took advantage of my blocking ability to survive while my faction mate kept the boss' cronies at bay. With some perseverance (and a lot of Healing Potions to boot!), me and my faction mate were able to defeat it! That was one experience I can't forget! Well, the only bad part during this whole process is that my scout gets totally owned by the mobs. Those pesky Skullic Lancers use their Harpoon skill that it annoys me! Plus, it can even hit ground targets!

Whew! To top it all up, my Fighter is at 95 and both the Elementalist and Scout are at 93. Just a little more and I'll be a Veteran before my 1-year anniversary! :D Oh yeah, goodbye Premium Buff! At least the GVC Boost Promo is still there! :P

Oh darn! I'm so excited to attend this event!

Takhisis Faction Tourney Feb 2008 PicSpam!!!

Let the pics say louder than words! 56K WARNING! Access at your own risk!

Not bad for the decorations, lah?


People getting ready for another fight!


This is a hold up! Give us your goods!


Fear the White Grim Reaper!


Another fiasco before a fight...


Tell me... Is it me or do I see a lady with four boobs?


Is it me or does this guy dig bondage?


Looks like the day is done!

Want more pics? Visit my Multiply Album!

Experiencing PVP at a social level

I felt so tired when I came home from work and parapara dancing but I nevertheless played G.E. When logging in, I noticed that there was a faction event. I took it in mind to attend the event at the right time. Since I felt tired, I had to AFK every now and then. Yes, I admit to this activity!

Marvin (Fighter) was able to max out his Epee Guard stance, so I switched to Sabre Guard. For Stephanie (Elementalist), I was able to learn the Blizzard skill in the Evocation Ice stance. Blizzard is like a stronger cousin of Possession Ice's Deluge. It was tricky to use because Ice Wave attacks target in a line, not within a diameter range. When the event was already done, I was invited for some PVP. Hey, why not? I've been to an actual PVP (Player-versus-player) once and why not also get along with the faction?

Waiting for the battle to start...

We started off playing at the Liberty Colosseum where victory can be achieved by either defeating all the opposing team's members or destroying the opposing team's colony. On the first round, I made a run for one of the colony beacons that grants one additional rating for both attack and defense. When I spotted the opponent, I had to make a run for it! No way could I face my opponents alone. We all converged at the center and with all the commotion going on, my team ended up victorious. On the second round, we saw no one at the opponent's colony area. I took the initiative to start breaking the colony. It was then the remaining opponent was our leader and he tried his best to beat us to shreds but I persevered in breaking the colony and lo, victory! I was commented that I was a colony breaker! :D

Colony destroyed!

On one match, we decided to battle at the World Tournament map. Being there grants you the World Tournament buff: Additional 120% HP. Wow... So good... Anyway, my team was able to snag a colony. As we come in conflict with the opposing team, I was totally owned big time! Even with another opportunity given to fight them (thanks to who resurrected the fallen members), the opposing elementalist defeated us! :( However, my team achieved victory by breaking the opponent's home colony!

"Feel my wrath, weaklings!"

After that one, we ended battling at the usual Triple X Triple arena since we were just six left. I ended up not being victorious or not being alive until the end in those matches. One of my opponents were really too strong for my team to handle. Can't say much about it but what I can recall is that someone hit me with an Elemental Strife! Levitating wizards are really a force to reckon.

A taste of the Elemental Strife!

It was really nice doing this and I got to socialize with my fellow faction members. I just hope there can be more experiences like this in the future! :D

Just to add: I grinded at the Rion Dungeon Hollow for the rest of the evening. Yay! Level 75! I'm just 3/4 in reaching level 100! I'm getting bored at the Dungeon... Back to the prison, perhaps? And I'm officially crazy. I still think it's Christmas...

Do you know who is this character?

Want more peektures? Kleek da leeeenk! PVP with Takhisis

Farewell RedSign, thank you Takhisis

It was just weeks ago that I noticed RedSign was going to disband and its going to be recruited by the Outcasts Faction. Surely, disappointment came first because I belonged to a faction that stayed since Open Beta and I had a good experience with them. From witnessing the Level 52 Faction Quest to snagging a Colony for the +10% HP Buff. I was even thankful that during my month-long absence during October 2007, they did not kick me off the faction. Also, we had a welcoming celebration for 10 new members in our faction as well (and they eventually left...). Sure, the faction had its share of bad stuff but the good stuff totally outweighed it (for me, that is). Well, being part of a bigger and active faction was also a good move. We totally have a few online members during Colony Wars. But before I decided to go along with this plan, I decided to do some thinking...

Being with the Outcasts Faction would be great since they're active in Colony Wars. However, I thought about the faction of a good friend and fellow blogger. I didn't wait for the faction to be disbanded, so I left RedSign while it still existed. Of course, I get the seven-day penalty to go along with it.

After that penalty period, I waited for the leader of the Takhisis Faction to let me in their ranks (with me informing him of my availability). Well, it's nice to be part of a faction again. Good thing Takhisis is a Republican Faction, like RedSign. Well, thanks for the good times, RedSign. I hope your stay in Outcasts will be a good one! :D