Episode 2: From the eye of an RF veteran

I admit to being lazy for this week probably because schoolwork is finally taking its toll of me but this doesn't stopped me from experiencing episode 2.

Episode 2 is finally here and with it is a lot of changes - change in the gameplay, change in tactics, change in the RF community itself. The very first order of business for my friends and I are the Ether Wings. Xythos was the first one to successfully manufacture one by having the advantage of playing earlier than any of us while Potemayo was the first one to experience losing 22 million disena when his Ether Wings failed to materialize. As for me, it was a mix of relief and disappointment as Yakumo's Ether Wings materialized only to have 1 slot for upgrade. Well it's not that it matters really because I really don't have any plans of uprgading my Ether Wings until I get a spare one because I heard that there's no safe zone for upgrading the cloaks and I don't want to risk breaking mine - I'm fine the way it is. But I heard rumors that +4 Ether Wings has some kick-ass effects so I really want to this one of those.

I think the most noticeable thing about Episode 2 is the lack of loots just about everywhere. By everywhere, I mean even the booties from the NPC which a lot of Specialists and Artisans are relying on are gone not to mention the Specialist job path is now useless because of a sort of bug that enables them to craft even level 1 equipments with an outstanding rate of ~1% chance of success. I am now left with the dilemma at my other character, Amamiya Manami, a Redemeer, as to when and when not to use the Giga Exploding Vulcan Magazines which Potemayo crafted for me back when the necessary booties to craft the ammunition was still available at the Tools NPC at HQ. The other thing is loots are really REALLY scarce. I mean I don't know whether we are still having a hang over from the modified drop rates at the end of episode 1 or something but even premium users are having a hard time farming for booties - and we are supposed to have 2x drop rate.

Speaking of farming, I don't know where to farm. Lures Lot in Ether was "the" farming spot for warrior like us who could easily mob the Callianas there. Now, it's a pain in the arse to farm there because they have Heal. They all have HEAL for heaven's sake, HEAL. Killing 2 Callianas takes a lot of time; Killing a mob of Callianas takes eternity! And it doesn't end there. As if adding insult to injury, once you killed them after a year or so, they'll just drop one or, if you are lucky, two Glis and maybe a Rare Ore or two. This….THIS IS MADNESS!! And that's for premum user, imagine the horror of those non-premium users.

On the other hand, Power leveling is where Premium Subscription shines. Leveling up is a breeze. I am amazed as to how much experience my character was gaining. Yakumo, now level 48, gained like 20% in one day on a day that was not dedicated to leveling up. It took just about an hour for Amamiya Manami to go from 43 to 44.

Regarding the community, I guess the most noticeable thing is that the servers are always busy which more or less equates to a lot of people. There is indeed an increase in the number of people and one can sense it when raiding enemy settlements. It's a rather exhilirating experience. We are engaging and wiping out entire parties of Accretians and Bellateans on once desolate areas of the settlements. The Radar thing which can be bought from the Expensive Supplies Dealer near CX is my best friend when it comes to raiding as it readily points out areas where there are concentration of enemy units.

"BD 46-50" is non-existant. This is probably because the more common Boss Type Battle Dungeons are much more difficult now that Pit Bosses has insane regeneration rates not to mention skills. Even the Pit Boss in the HQ settlements are difficult enough to handle. Unlike before where an individual with decent equipments can take them out solo, this time it's really a group, or even a RACIAL, effort just to kill one Pit Boss - they even announce it on Whole and Race Chat.

Well I guess this is it for now. Even though there'll be a continuation I think this'll be the last entry to meet the cut-off for the RF Blog Contest. It's been a fun ride writing this game blog so I guess I'll continue writing on this blog when I feel like it.

Thanks to all the readers.

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Yakumo

Hiatus, Sloth and the freakin’ weather…

Last week was our supposed mid-terms week but thanks to the weather it has been pushed this week so I really didn't have time to post anything last week or early this week, right? RIGHT?! So here I am again out of hiatus. Hopefully I'll be able to write something interesting because right now I feel like I've been hit with GM Sloth  because I feel like not doing much other than sleep my butt off; it must be because of the weather because I feel like my mental processes are being slowed down by this friggin cold weather which I am oblivious of the cause (heck, I don't watch or read the local news nor do I watch local TV so I have no damn idea that there's already a storm in the Pacific Ocean). Ironically, I am pretty good at knowing when classes are suspended or not through my elaborate network of contacts and with classes suspended one day after another last week, I got to play RF without worrying much about my midterms.

Anyway,  I guess the first thing to do is to thank LUG especially the RF Team for picking this blog to be a runner-up place in the 4th week of the RF Blog contest. Thank You! Except that…uhmm…the prizes seemed to be jumbled up since instead of the supposed 25 EG Set, 25 HG Set, 10 Keen and 10 Favor, I got instead, 50 HG Set, 25 Keen and 25 Favor Talic. Not that bad but I still owe Xythos 25 sets of Elite Gems which I borrowed to purchase the +5 Strong Intense Field Lance I'm currently wielding. Thankfully we already got a reply from Apollon and Cydie and I hope they fix the matter soon.

First order of business was farm, lots of fa rming especially with the Leon's Legacy Event happening in Praxis. The first time Katar Khan visited, I got an SI Beam Winged Spear for Konata Izumi as well as a Sharp Intense Gun Bow now currently being used by our newest Corite recruit, the soon-to-be Marksman, Matchetehe. Xythos got a nice Wind-Intense Bone Knife which, upon receiving from Katar Khan, he cannot wield because he was 1 melee PT short. Thanks to the SI Beam Winged Spear, Konata Izumi managed to level up to 35 in a breeze now she's ready to join Amamiya Manami who is seemed to have taken permanent residency up there in Ether since she still has yet to return to the warm tropical plains of Cora HQ.

The second Katar Khan is…uhmm…a bit weird. Not WEIRD in a bad way but I guess a bit more lenient than the first Katar Khan which caused a bit of confusion on our side. I lined-up hoping to acquire a Strength-Intense Lance since I only have Strength PIMs on hand but instead got a Strong intense Lance. Apparently the PIMs doesn't matter, so long as we have 40 PIMs of any type, we can order any Type D weapon of our choice - Fine intense, Smart Intense, you name it! I hope this is really the case since I have an oversupply of Strength PIMs that I got from breaking Purple Equipments I got from farming in Ether. Anyway, I manage to get a Strong Intense and a Solid Intense Lance from the second visit of Katar Khan which I plan to overupgrade so Konata Izumi can easily level her way up to 40 so that she'll be a full-blown Knight-Paladin before F2P.

Speaking of PIM, don't you think using the acronym PIM is a bit weird if not insulting? Like if you ask "What is needed beside the Maps, Weapons, Gli and Excelsiar?" and someone answers "PIM"…Just thinking out loud ^_^

Quick Post: Bravery and cowardice

With "special" guest appearance of Imperial Unit CB of Exiles Guild. -.-;;

smile naman dyan!

Talk about cowardice.

Tonight turned out to be quite a fun RF experience. A group of tincans decided to camp at our Sette portal around so the few brave Corite legionnaires decided to repel them. I happen to have nothing to do then so I decided to join in the fray. The tincans turned out to be quite a bunch of metal chickens as they scampered at the sight of Lacuna, Putomoto II and other 8-knot ranking warriors. We did a good job at reelling them and pushed them up to their Sette portal. Seeing as our job was done we decided to head back to HQ.

But! These night-time Accretians seemed to be rather persistent as they decided to camp again. This time however cardinal, who was itching for a battle, joined in the repel team only to discover that the camped Accretians has once gain disappeared into thin air. Disappointed, cardinal then led this small goup of Corites for an Accretian purge of adjacent Cauldron Volcanic Zone.

I was in the lead group with cardinal and guildsmate Demo and we are in Vapor Lake when the main group who was quite a distance behind us was attacked by CB's group in the downhill route. We quickly backtracked and helped the main group who was engaging the tincans near the bug area. One by one the tincans were scrapped and only one Accretian lived. Guess who this cowardly Accretian was? Yup! you guessed it right. Seeing as he is doomed to be scrapped, he used the Cauldron terrain bug to escape the the wrath of the Decem. LOL!

Too bad I was quick at pressing "Alt+0." By the way being the good RF player that I am who reads the RF Magna Carta, I found out that the penalty is..

*drum rolls*

Deliberate Abuse of Game Bugs and Exploits

1st offense: 7 day account ban + -50% ALL, -30% ALL skills, -20% CP

2nd offense: 30 Day Ban + Account Item Wipe

3rd offense: Permanent Ban

Ouch! I've already filed a report so no hard feelings whoever you are

RF goes F2P, are we ready?

RF Online Episode 2: Giga 1 “Pioneers Of Novus” Launching
Date Posted: Aug. 06, 2007

RF Online, The Philippines’ ONLY Sci-fi MMOG is set to launch their biggest patch yet, Episode 2 – Giga 1: “Pioneers of Novus”on August 28, 2007. The patch features powerful new weapons and it’s very own Item Mall.

Players who were turned off by the premium priced subscription rates of RF will now be able to enjoy the game as RF Online will now be FREE TO PLAY!

A Premium Subscription option will still be available for players who wish to gain an extra edge by offering 2x Exp / 2x PT / 2x Drop and 2x Mining Rate! (As well as getting bonus credits for item mall purchases when they opt to use the Premium Subscription Option.

Item Mall credit and premium game time rates will be announced soon!

Discuss

With episode 2 just around the corner I wonder how this update will change RF. My thoughts after the jump.

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Damage Assessment: A Photo Blog

Towards the glittering sun. Nothing like a warm majestic view of the Corite HQ to start off a long day of farming and PT training in the cold desolate waste of Ether. This past weekend was a blast with Level-Up Games giving RF Players a much needed modified rates.

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The Force of Love

The Force of Love
Lia
RF Online Japan

All alone, somewhere far away from home
In a lonely place where no one knows your name
Lost inside, a corner of your mind
Looking for a place to hide and not to find

Back in the days when you where just a child
The sun rays dance eternally
And when you least expect it, you hear a voice inside
Telling you to begin the life of your dream

You have the power to believe
Take a look inside your heart,
A road is waiting for you

The truth is written on the star
No matter who you are…

You feel the Force of Love

Like a wind, blowing high above the cloud
You were moving fast but couldn't touch the ground
Think of the days when you were just a child
You felt a joy so tenderly…

And if you stop to listen, to what you feel inside
You can be everything you wanted to be

You have the power to achieve
If you reach inside your heart,
Your wish is waiting for you

The truth is written on the star
No matter where you are…

You feel the Force of Love

All the pain and tears and broken dream flowing like a river,
It's never easy to see

Trust what you feel and just keep your spirit free
You can be all the things you wanted to be…

In your dreams…

You have the power to believe,
Make a promise in your heart
Your future's waiting for you.

The secret in the sky above
Like a shooting star…

You feel the Force of Love…

It's written in the stars.

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I decided to put music to add life to this blog and I chose Lia's song "The Force of Love" for that purpose. The Force of Love is, if I am correct, is one of the launcher music for RFO-Japan. I've got nothing against Razorback but I just feel that this type of song best fits RF Online's theme of Romance and Fantasy.

I really like the lyrics. I'm not good at expressing these mushy things but all I can say is the lyrics is good. By the way, this is not the official lyrics. I just got this one from listening to it so it may differ slightly from the original. Anyway, it tackles believing in oneself to reach our goals; that there is nothing impossible if we only have confidence in ourselves - now isn't that an inspiring piece?

Anyway, that's it for this quick post. Modified rates are up and running and there's no time to waste - the Callianas are waiting for me.

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Yakumo

RF Online first person shooter, try it now

side step….side step…

On a lighter note, I've been quite busy with my other character. She is AmamiyaManami, the former Assassin lurking the hills of Sulos which is now a full-time Marksman busily training at the cold barren wastes of Ether. I just noticed that among my peers who play RF, I'm the offensive class specialist. The defensive class specialist would be eneide while the one specializing in the support semi-offensive class would be XythosVance. I still don't know what role Potemayo would be doing since she's still not a fully-pledged Artisan. I guess she'll act as the group supplier in the near future LOL!

Anyway, training in Ether is really easy once you have someone who can tank those Callianas in Lures Lot and lucky for me, there is eneide. I've been leeching my way in Ether while helping eneide in his farming. It's like having his very own "episode 2 Hecate" because of my Vulcan loaded with exploding bullets.

The Marksman is a really fun-class primarily because it out-ranges every other ranger in the game even an Accretian Gunner on his siege kit because of its class skill Correct Eye. Also there is the Hold skill which immobilizes an enemy for 10 second, a very good skill for fleeing from strong opponents or chasing a fleeing enemy unit.

I have yet to see the maximum potential of the Marksman because I'm at the moment busy with giving Yakumo the best equipments.

looking up the sky of war torn Novus…hey w-wait, isn't that thing familiar?

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Yakumo

Prelude to the Fall

Tonight was yet another fantastic defeat for the Corites led by our dear high council. From the beginning of it, everything was just wrong. The regroup, the push and the isolated strike team - everything. Where should I start? Then again it's just a repeat of the recent Corite defeats so I'll just go straight to the crucial parts. The beginning.

The Corites were split into two 2 "assault" groups - the main Corite army and a strike team heading for Bellato. It's a rather bold move. CCC was practically defenseless. I guess they were gunning for a simultaneous strike on both race chip to deter any attacks on CCC but such strategy, though quite effective if executed properly, is much complicated than the usual "defend CCC while ST strikes" strategy. For one, it requires a rather elaborate intelligence network to exactly know general enemy troop movement so that each surgical strike to the enemy chip will hinder enemy movements to CCC. This strategy is in part like a mobile defense system. But I guess for the current high council who kinda lack the foresight to even make the right decision as to when and when not to stop hitting the enemy chip, this is too much.

I guess my guildsmate were right. We are now "SUS-PET" not "SUSPECT" by blindly following each and every orders of the high council without assurance of victory like a dog wagging its tail to its master.

Sayang

 This made me laugh. This word was on race chat and it's just so wrongly used.

I wonder when the rants will disappear from this blog.

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Yakumo

You fail to amuse me…

 The good things first. First of all I would like to congratulate my friend Potemayo for winning in the 3rd week of the RF blog contest. Where's my 1 set of Elite Gem Set? I did name your character, I had a hard time coming up with that name of yours you know. Congratulations!!

Now onto the juicy parts. The great Corite defeat…

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Let us see…let us see…

"10% lamang natin sa kanila (We are ahead by 10%)" - xushen, Corite Archon

I don't know if a member of the current high council has read my blog or something but they finally got the battle plans right resulting to a spectacular victory for the legions of Decem on a 2 vs 1 situation in tonight's 2100 Chip Wars. Must have been a huge huge disappointment for the Accretians and Bellatean, especially the Accretians which was the chip that the Elite Strike Team (ST) destroyed, for losing in such a situation.

This doesn't mean that the council has regained my trust yet, it's just Monday so I'll just wait and see how things work out this week. Is this a pure act of redemption or just plain "ningas cugon." Let us see…let us see…

So where did they get it right?

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