Alts and Screenshot Spam

      I hadn't really meant to make an alt on my main server in Rift (Faeblight) unless another friend came to play there with me. But then I saw Kaozz at ECTmmo had a post on Dimensions and the Dreamweaver profession which had mildly intrigued me but which I can't really looked into enough to realize what it actually did. When I found out... I really wanted one. But Daethrys has put a fair amount of work into keeping his Outfitting, Butchering and Foraging leveled so I didn't want to drop any of them. Well, there's an alt for that. At least there is now.

     Meet Falharan. He's a Silenus Cleric for the sole reason that I wanted the fae pets. Turns out that so far it's also a lot of fun. He's a Dreamweaver, Daethrys is dumping all the artifacts at him to salvage now and he's set up his default Dimension as a workshop from which to make lovely things and dole them out to Daethrys first and foremost but also to the two rl friends I got to poke into Rift a bit with me.
     I love the idea of the Dreamweaver profession. It got me all enthused over Rift professions and over playing in Rift again, just as I am having a big slump in WoW. So Daethrys has gone from level 34-37 in the last couple of days and Falharan's already level 13 (mostly as a side effect of trying to get more burlap.)
    And because Rift is one of my very favorite games to screenshot in... there are lots of screenshots.

Falharan and his Satyr, Silaun.

Falharan and Alarie look like they hear something.

I don't usually leave the helms showing, but I'm kind of getting a kick out of this one, so for now it stays.

Some of my favorite shots of Daethrys are in moonlight. Shortly before he left Scarwood Reach.

Managed a half decent archery shot finally. Poor Friend sometimes dies because I dropped the UI and stopped paying any attention to anything but screenshotting :P

I don't think I was supposed to really get up here. But looking for the way up to a quest that I couldn't find I climbed way up on Lantern Hook. So of course. Screenshots.

Nice break on the hammock between killing things. I seem to have a thing for nighttime shots of Daethrys.

One of the many shots I took attempting a decent archery one... kept because the bloodspatter was too much fun to pass up.

I love going into new zones in Rift. Or in any MMO really. That feeling of exploring all over again. Didn't think I was a fan of desert zones really, but I love Droughtlands (and Uldum for that matter.)

Rift Progress

     My Rift progress has slowed down some as I renewed interest in a couple of other projects tried a few new things but I still really love logging in and doing some questing. Daethrys is making his way somewhat slowly through Scarwood Reach at the moment.

     It's an interesting storyline but more than that I like that I have to think about what I'm doing a bit harder than in a few other MMOs I've played. With stuff at his level Daethrys can manage to get into trouble if he's not careful and sometimes it's been fun being crafty and careful and using the Kelari racial to get around things. There was a long quest chain into Trollblight Caverns that I absolutely loved even if halfway through I failed to find a tunnel leading on to the next room. (Oh caves without maps, you are my bane in every game ever.) That evening I'd hearthed out without completing all the objectives and the next day I tried going overland to find what I was missing before realizing I just must have missed something somewhere deep in the troll and Aelfwar infested cave.
     The Kelari racial got a lot of use then to avoid fighting many, many things I'd already fought and finally I made it all the way back through and discovered what I'd missed. It maybe should have felt like a nuisance but I absolutely loved it.

Not the room I missed, just a really neat looking one inside the caverns.

     I think sometimes having to bee just a little bit cautious makes things feel more like a real adventure. It gives me time to think about Daethrys as a character and how he's handling stuff and I like that. And getting lost and taking unexpected turns can lead to lovely screenshot opportunities. As can climbing things you have no real reason to climb which is another thing I find myself doing a lot in rift. The lack of fall damage makes it pretty non-punishing to be just a little crazy on mountains. And the views sometimes make it rewarding. Granted I don't think any game other than Wildstar will ever feed my inner climber its fill.

    Some of the environments in Rift are just odd too. The Aelfwar in Scarwood Reach are messing with Life Rifts so there are all sorts of strange plants around them and I can't resist taking screenshots at the ones that make me stare. This will probably always be one of my favorite screenshotting games.

Daethrys' loyal pet is named Friend. 

Wildstar Beta Weekend: Final thoughts

I love the occasional ear perking and listening the Aurin do... it's too cute.

     Well the beta weekend ended last night. I was very sad to see it go. I really wish I thought buying and playing this game was in the cards for me. More than that I wish it worked on my husband's computer. I'd have loved both of us playing together, two different classes, two different paths, probably both Aurin. It was fun. Insane amounts of fun and just lovely... I don't know how many times during gameplay I'd just pause a moment and savor how incredibly pretty it was.
     The UI was buggy as heck, I assume that's why it's still in beta, but when it was working there were some neat concepts. Little mini games for certain tasks instead of just: right click, interact, done. Of course those got a little annoying when the UI didn't work enough to pop up that interface for you.
     I logged onto Frith Sunday, I'd hoped to level him far enough to check out the housing, but that didn't happen. I did get as far as tradeskills though I hadn't figured out mining by the time I logged off for the last time. I did make my first weapons though and he goes off into whatever sort of oblivion beta characters go to well armed.

Don't know if you can tell but this is way up on top of the world... or at least on top of a really huge tree.

     I really suspect I'd have gotten further with the leveling and tried out housing and everything if it hadn't been for all the time Frith and I spent climbing everything that could be climbed by an enterprising catboy. This game was designed for climbing, for getting up onto things and into things and just exploring. I didn't even care that I failed to level enough to check out the housing because I had so much fun climbing. Explorer is definitely the path for me.
     Back in WoW today I miss double jump... and just a little bit I miss those flicking ears and the twitching tail. I don't wish them terrible luck but if this game ever goes free to play I will be there. If I ever scrounge up the money for a preorder... I'll be there... probably taking a million years to level but climbing all of the things.

This little area was so beautiful and the quest was rather touching. And I love those weird deer things, they're pretty.

So long, Wildstar. Feel free to invite me back sometime. And if not, well at least I've got the memories and some really gorgeous screenshots!