Because there just isn't any other way for this baby to roll...
It’s kinda funny that I make a point of this on one of our
smaller updates, but what can I do- not a record breaking number of new members
rolled through this week and the content from the Water Cooler is significantly
down as well. While I can guarantee that I am always going to come out here,
doing my best to provide you with quality content and such, I can’t always
promise that the amount of content available for me to prepare, let alone
present, is always going ot be of a wealthy amount.
That said, let’s get crackin on this blog.
What's Happening Valucre?
The Chosen: Round Three Continues- Okay, so when I said this Friday, I meant next Friday... right? RIGHT? Okay, maybe I really did mean the Friday before, but another school related delay came up and has now pushed it to this Friday- honest, it will happen this Friday! So, be prepared, the final match to determine who has rights to challenge the previous champion- are you ready for this?Winter Formal in Genesaris- Feel like getting decked out in your finest clothes, heading out for a night of merrymaking and good old-fashioned partying? Care to walk the halls of the newest castle discovered within the Cold Mountains, mingle amongst the nobility and some of the most powerful political figures in Genesaris, and perhaps Terrenus as well? Of course you do, which is why you are going to go this thread, state your interest, and watch for the update that tells you where this RP is happening- it’ll be within the next couple of days, so look out!
Markets of Kal'bajar- The slum markets of Kal’bajar, a place to get your purchasable goods of Niche along with some of Terrenus’ blackmarket goods. The market will be experiencing some overhauls, so be prepared for changes and all that, but if you are looking for a different sort of place to go out and buy some very strange items, you have to check out this shop. Formatting is definitely unique (in a good way!) and there is lots of fun that could be had of this place. Go check it out.
A Monstrous Disaster in Mezthaluen!- A quick way to get involved in what has been a mostly fast paced Rp with plenty of opportunity to get some punches in and work on claiming a good VB reward. Time is running out though- that reward will soon disappear. Best be quick about it! Can you help?
Site Changes!- Another friendly reminder that we are switching formats and that changes be coming down. Site either should have already been temporarily down for backup or it soon shall be- so be ready for those sorts of interruptions. I'm playing with the new site format right now- seems pretty darn cool :)
Lore of the Week!
This Week's Feature: Coastal Grande, Genesaris
At a Glance:
At a Glance:
- Leader: Counsel of 8, including Benjamin Vesches
- Population: Native Northern Genesarians, in addition to many tourists from all parts of the world.
- Defenses: Prime Military--Invictus Army: Hardened by generations of civil war and unrest, the Invictus Army has a dark history of demolishing entire cities and decimating the South. Highly intelligent and ruthless, the Invictus Army spare nothing when dealing with criminals and lawless intruders, often performing executions by “accident”. To their credit, crime is at an all-time low.
- 25,000 City Guard
- High Ranking Officers: 160
- Jail Workers: 1,500
- Capital Guards: 800
- Special Assignments Officers: 90
- Military: Houses 40% of The Great North's Army, about 900,000-1,100,000 troops.
- Territory Coverage: About 450mi Radius
- Estimated Number of Forts (Contains a brigade): 350
- Troops able to defend city within 1 day: 50,000-60,000
- Time to gather entire army: 7-12 days.
- Counsel Member Benjamin Vesches is a former Edgemaster- a very skilled one in fact.
- Hot Spots:
- Yum Janus Tavern: A cross shaped tavern that is divided into three dining sections; the rich, the not so rich, and a place where both can mingle. A cause of controversy, the only thing everyone agrees on is that Yum Janus has an incredibly high standard of food and service. With prices from the modest to the insane, even the cheapest of meals leave the hungry satisfied. Due to its popularity, the Yum Janus company has spread to nearly every city, but this is where it all began.
- Airship Ocean Base: Situated out from land to sea and therefore protected quite well against mainland attacks, 8 airships languish like shining gems on the surface of the clear waters. Shining gems though they seem, they are all outfitted with some of the finest weaponry possible. In contrast to the tear and jet-shaped airships of modern times, these take a more revolutionary approach; spirals stacked on top of one another and sustained by curving pillars, making them taller rather than wider. They also have a small fleet of sea ships.
- As of Fixing the Game: One of the 8 counsel members was assassinated, but the death was made to appear to be an accident. A frontrunner for the candidacy was murdered by an assassin who later 'turned out to be the other front runner'- captured by Benjamin Vesches. A young woman is brutally murdered, her death pinned on an ambassador from Ashville- the father seeing to it that embassador will never return to Terrenus. A plague is recently released, which will have further implications down the road. The thread will end with Ben as a counsel member with a great deal of influence and control.
Available Quests:
- None Currently.
Brief Summary of Lore:
The pride of the Great North extends out from land to sea. Coastal Grande is the largest city inall of Genesaris and by far one of the most beautiful, second only to Aelindra City in size and glory. No missions of conquest have ever touched Coastal Grande, and it has only grown in strength. As a result, Northern residents tend to be arrogant and overt, looking down on those of more modest cities and towns.
Despite the undercurrents of racism and cultural stigma, no one can deny that Coastal Grande is one of the best tourist areas and resorts. The economy is exceptionally strong, allowing for splendid hotels, restaurants, and luxuries rarely found anywhere else. Due to the city’s relationship with the sea, high-class seafood is incredibly popular and has been shipped out continent-wide, resulting in a great surge of income for the government. The Great North has used this to strengthin their magitech and military, which has caused some worry in lands with a history of war with the North.
Newly Awarded!
None this week, check back next week!
Valucre Blog Challenge!
Well now, no one bit on this one. But see, I am a persistant bastard who will keep trying and trying until I get some results- someday, this too shall bear fruit! Until then, let's find a new challange.
New Challenge of the Week: I want a Haiku. But not just a Haiku, but one that must incorperate the following four objects:
Apple
Egg
Tiger
Knife
Find a way to write me a Haiku that flows, makes sense, and uses all four of those. Bonus if it is touching and lovely. xP
Since we're losing blogs, just PM it to me! :)
New Members and Returns!
Welcome:LocNessa:
I can see you're new, and all you want to do is role-play? Perhaps not the most ambitious list of agendas for one's life pursuits, but hell, I'll get behind it! If all you want to do is role-play, let me say for starters that you have absolutely come to the right place. Welcome to Valucre, hope you get that RP fix. ;)
Diamurai:
Another wayward traveler from the depths of Gaiaonline, in growing up and out seeking a new place to make their own- yeah, we see it a lot. We also hear a lot about how people aren't even sure where to begin with our site (we're working on that!), so don't feel bad. You got it in the right though- people get it figured out eventually. ;)
Hezarkke:
Let me start off by saying that avatar... is AWESOME. Oh, I wish I had that around while I was doing my halloween board event. Anyway, stoked to see that you are here to 'RP like Crazy' and hope that you get more than enough to fuel that manic drive for the good stuff. Keep RPing, it's what keeps places like these flowing!
Epsilon:
Hey, someone who comes with a pronounciation guide for his name! Definitely could use that with our users who have more confusing names, but yours is pretty straight forward :P. Of course, who am I to talk- my name is latin- figure that one out. Anyway, the site should lay itself out to you in time- she's good about that. ;) Anyway, good luck to you in your RP endeavors!
LilMissRose:
Looks like you know a few people here already, and promises to bite as well- jeez, things just keep getting fresh down here *adjusts collar*. Anyway, I'm sure you'll find a few people willing to let you take a stab at getting your teeth into their necks. Until then, take a look around and see if you can find yourself some good RP. :)
1ate7:
Ha, I like how there is this thing about, 'aboard' and someone ends up saying it not long after. The thread is a walking pun/joke factory- look at that name, 1 ate 7, instead of that dasterdly 7 eating the 9. If that was the connection. Who could say, I am starting to get a migrain here, so excuse me if I get these things wrong. What I won't get wrong is how Valucre is going to be an awesome place for you. ;)
Amoux:
Interesting opening- went for a bit of an ominous stylistic introduction versus something a little more traditional, I can dig it. According to your status though, we can't readily expect much from you until the 17th anyway, so guess we got about another 5 days yet. Tragic, but we shall wait them, for we like our new members! Hey look, another aboard message got in there too- what has been seen cannot be unseen!
Aether:
Glad to see that you're poking around and looking to have some fun while you're here. A great way to start off an introduction thread- quote a character you are brining to the table. Of course, now you actually have to bring that character to the table, whether you planned to before or not- hope you don't feel cornered!
Slmkaz:
Well, I do believe we have already met- but that's okay, you still get a formal greeting (if you want to call it formal, hah!) in the weekly blog nonetheless. Looking to play characters who are not just interesting to you but interesting for others to read is a great way to go about things- I look forward to seeing it. ;)
Jehan:
Sounds like you have some experience in a small number of genres, but let me tell you- there is plenty more where that came from and all you need to do is go out there and explore it! I hope you do, because while many of us owe our roots to Tolkein (either directly though reading or indirectly through RPGs his books inspired) we all have a varied array of tastes and things we participate in. :)
Returns:
Only one this week:
MerryGoRoundofLife:
Sounds like you have had a lot of stuff going on, but glad to see that you are back up on your feet and ready to get back into some role-play. I hope some immersion into this fantasy world of ours helps bring you back to level ground. ;)
Birthdays of the Week?
So, here are the week's listed birthdays. PLEASE, keep in mind that if you do not make birthday's on your profile listed and public, they will not show up on the Calendar. If they are not on the Calendar, I have no way of knowing about it and therefore no way of adding it here! If you want a shoutout for your Bday, be sure to make it viewable!
- DECEMBER 6th:
- None!
- DECEMBER 7th:
- DECEMBER 8th:
- DECEMBER 9th:
- DECEMBER 10th:
- DECEMBER 11th
- DECEMBER 12th
Happy birthday all you fine Valucreans!
Other Highlights?
Closing Thoughts?
Funny thing about these closing thoughts- I often come up
with a great idea for them, one that I think, ‘hey, that’s perfect, I need to
do that this week’ and ‘hell, that won’t even end up being that long either’
and guess what happens… yep, my sleep deprived head goes and drops that memory
off somewhere. I think the little voices in my head keep trying to assure me
that is somewhere for ‘safekeeping’, but I am not inclined to believe them.
They have told me many bad ideas before.
Bastards.
Anyway, when I forget one, I usually manage to come up with
another one in short order- so it just had to be this week that as I am gearing
up to do this thing, I start to get a migraine. Yeah, and I have to be at work
for another 12hrs to boot. >_>
Enough about me though, let’s focus back on what thoughts I
can formulate.
I had to do a little sifting around on the interwebz to find
something that inspired me, and so I did, so here we go. It’ll be on the
shorter side due to time constraints and the fact that my school feels ready to
split in half. @_@
In our everyday life, as we interact with each other and our
environment, it is easy to become lost in this daily routine, this mundane flow
that becomes habit, a form of autopilot if you will. We form routines, and in
doing so we become habituated to the stimulus and events that go on around us,
losing focus of the changes and taking notice of things that not only occur on
their own but because we made it so. Living life, sometimes it’s easy to lose
sight of just how much we can influence things around us- writing it off,
putting aside the accountability, letting things go…
This is not to say that we should start shouldering
responsibility for all bad things, but instead, I want to impart with all of
you the importance of being mindful. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mindfulness_(psychology)
Are you truly aware of your surroundings your life
situations, the way you are having a direct effect on how they turn out? Or are
you lost in the everyday rhythm of life, flowing with the routines, ignoring
the ripples and waves you create as you move along?
Believe me, I have a lot to work on in this area myself- it
is so easy to become immersed in routines and just becoming a work oriented
mind, that sometimes you miss the big picture, or the opportunities to make
change, to be the one that makes a difference. No, no one is a beautiful,
absolutely unique snowflake (some of that new-age pseudo psychology nonsense
that seems to be spitting out a generation of very self-centered people 0_o),
but we are all different, with our different views, ideas, takes on a
situation, perceptions, and connections.
Every day, we go out and make ripples. Maybe ours were
insubstantial and unimportant. Or maybe, unknowingly even, we went out and made
changes that had a profound difference in at least one life. Will you be aware
the next time that opportunity comes around, that next time where maybe the
difference between something tragic, or even just something mundane, and that
of something extraordinary, is you having just enough focus and awareness in
the situation, to think about it for a moment, and make a critical decision?
Deep stuff to ponder on- take that with you this week as we
look forward to the holidays. Wish me luck on shedding off this vile headache,
yeah? ;)
-
Acies
"I will act as if I do make a difference." ~William James (Author, Philosopher, Father of American Psychology)
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