Novus War Journal

On leave from the battlefields of Novus

2007-03-19T18:58:00.000+08:00

I've been playing RF since... November or December '05, at least. Prior to that, I've been diligently MMORPG-ing since the craze hit the Philippines when Ragnarok Online first arrived here about two years or so before RF.

This is the game I've committed to the most, way beyond the concept of "casual gaming": I've joined a guild; I've taken the development of my characters seriously; I'm an active RF Boards member, and was surprised to know my words count for something among the Archmages; I've volunteered to help LUG in several events, like assisting the GMs in LU Live and City Under Siege 2006.

I remember those evenings when I would rush to a shop because it was 8:00 p.m. and the Federal Army needed all its troops for the 9 p.m. CW. Heck, I remember staying at E-jim until 3 in the friggin' morning.

Last December, I got enough from my work to (a) buy a kick-ass PC, and (b) still have quite a bit leftover. So, after discussing hardware with the techie kuya, we bought me my own PC. The overriding idea was that so I could spend less and play more. Less in the sense that I share in the electricy bill anyway when I spend fewer than 12 hours in the house, while spending for RF outside. This way, I can pay for the increased consumption while cutting down on "other" costs like rental time, dinner, coffee and taxi fare at 3 a.m. And I can play past 3 a.m., and early on weekends besides.

Not two weeks into getting the PC, my RF play slackened.

I reasoned at first that it was the new games; having a Dual Core processor, 1 gig of RAM and more than 100 gb of HD space makes for a wonderful gaming experience. Dawn of War at the start was the culprit; at all settings high, it was a slugfest and wargame galore for this armchair general.

But it was already the middle of January 2007 and I was still barely playing RF. Given that I had all the time in the world, it still took about a month to get to level 43 with Rianos. I also noticed I was playing my Secondary character, Telzhar, more. Upping his levels and crafting PTs made it all worth it since at level 30 he was already earning money through ammunition sales to make both him and Rianos sustainable.

February saw me play a little bit more, especially since Rianos was now levle 43 and could last well in combat. When Kyoketsu took back his SI Cycle Staff, and Bo Hammer "took" the stuff I used to try and make my own, plus a couple of incidents I can't say here... I stopped.

I would log on for a while and then log out after a few minutes. I made an Accretian with my OB account, and made a Corite. But even those I've stopped playing. My most recent foray was when I tried to PL to 44 at White Hole only top get involved in a 2-vs-7. The score was 2 Accretians dead for me and Crisboo, a nice little battle that lasted a few minutes before the Accretians got us.

Although the incident, as well as some CWs, sort of revived my interest in the game... I'm still playing less and less. In fact, I'm going to pay Blizzard almost 4k PhP to be able to play World of Warcraft in its full glory (at the prodding of the "I'm not going to MMORPG" techie kuya. He even said he might pay for the upgrade once I reach level 60). Since going into WoW last week, I've been playing the bloody game approximately 6-8 hours every night I log in. I slept at past 4 a.m. this morning because of WoW.

I don't know. Part of the reasons - and in fact what I think may be the PRIMARY reason I'm not keen on playing RF right now - I can't talk about here. Maybe after, I can, but not right now. Still, even given that, the combo that Rianos and Telzhar have has shown me I can sustain the game IG now, even with minimal Guild support. Making a Specialist-crafter as Secondary was a wise choice, indeed.

And even at level 43 I can more than hold my own. Several highbies have died because they were facing a team with an experienced debuffer. Even elite mystics like Redhound of the Cora have felt what I can do. An Archon of the Accretia found out that, in CW, even the Aura is useless when there's an Archmage around who knows what Deadly Staff is for.

And I still want to show these goddamned highbies what being a High Level is and what you can do with a high level Archmage.

But... I find that even pressing the link on my desktop is an effort. When I finally log in, I end up logging out quickly enough.

Maybe its the grind. I don't do Battle Dungeons, saying I'm too impatient to wait the backlog out. I also have this predeliction to PL/PT alone. Sure, I can battle ABs on my own, but the cost in pots is... insane. In order to effectively PL alone, I have to stay in Ether, which means I have to face those goddamned Cohorts and 6-knots when they decide it would be nice to have "hobbit stew" for merienda.

One time, I was chatting with some Vanguards who happened to be on patrol, and they asked why they see me rarely now. After a lengthy chat on the above, I also mentioned that "casual" gamers like me really don't stand a chance against those who have the time and the pilots to make the most of the game. You can't possibly compete with an Avatar that can concievably be online 24/7 because it has at least 3 people manning it.

I said that the Accretians have skewed the game's balance because their elite have played continously, thus a +2 or +3 SI weapon is "standard", when it should be "uncommon" at the very least. The Corites have discovered they can PL their upped anima even past their Avatar's level, making it nigh-impossible for me to fight a Summoner even 5 levels below me.

Against all these I have to pit a +4 normal Black Stick Bead and 4-favor Int armor (a gift from fellow Archmage xml). I was exasperated to find out that Telzhar, in the one CW I played him instead in a CW, lasted longer in combat than Rianos did. And he's a level 35 Spec-crafter. Ri barely lasts more than a few seconds during a charge...

So I'm technically on leave from the Federal Army. Because I have the worst case of RF fatigue right now.

Maybe I'll be back soon. Maybe.

Meanwhile... I just got to Ironforge and decided I want to walk to the other Dwarven territory. Isn't the World of Warcraft setting sooo... HUGE...?

Turning Forty

2006-10-06T15:00:00.000+08:00

The second "milestone" level in RF (not counting 25, of course).

Actually, I should have acheived this level a few days before the second Act of the Implements of War storyline. But, several IRL and IG things got in the way, so I was still a simple Mage when IoW Act 2 came and went.

Still, being an Archmage is everything a "damage-dealer" type of Bellato Mystic wants to be. Sage Force is a nifty buff, increasing my casting range to what seems to be at least 50% more on top of a small increase to Force damage. This shines in the debuff department, as the Archmage can Hiatus or debuff a target from much afar, important when one is up against Velo-augmented Corites or most Accretians.

Force Impact is still something I'm testing - a Force-type attack, but elementally nuetral, so none of the Resistance values supposedly apply - while Deadly Staff appears so-and-so right now.

Archmages, IMHO, shine when one is a "pure build", meaning Mystic->Mage->Archmage. This is because of the Mage skill Edian's Soul. When Edian's is used by an Archmage, the increase in damage is truly significant. When paired with the range buff of Sage Force, and Elite tier offensive spells, what you have in your hands is a long-range nuker par-excellence. I tried this with Bellato Turncoats at Sette, and even the rangers had to run forward to get me into range.

During LU Live, Intel had a side event where a class from each of the races was pitted against those from the others without the benefit of HP and SP potions. During the testing, I wiped the floor with my opponents, one of which was even equipped with a Faust (the launcher, not the Cora class).

Even nicer, I have managed to make two solo kills as an Archmage. My first Accretian solo kill was nicer since I wasn't expecting it. I saw this Accretian trailing a mob to where I was PT-ing at the Bellato Repair Shop in Ether. I hit him with Hiatus from long range and a couple of debuffs, but the tin can was just too well-PTed in Def and armor that the Passer Alphas barely made a dent. We ran around each other, the Accre trying to bag me with his Launcher. I was irritated that my damage was rather low, but I couldn't disengage as one of my guildmates was AFK PT-ing on one side of the BRS.

Then, I noticed that I was using a +3 Chaos Int Blue Wand.

Whoops.

Hiatus to Accretia. Right click on +1 Keen Int Black Stick Bead. Check if Edian's and Sage Force were still active. Drink Adv. Adre Pots.

Three to five spells later, the Accretian was down.

Archmages rock, wehehe...

Thoughts on the eve of Impelements of War Act II

2006-09-22T17:41:00.000+08:00

Tomorrow, ECO goes on its first major official mission, and its a tall order: the defense of Solus itself against BOTH the Accretian Imperial Legions and the Cora Holy Army.

There have been many discussions in the guild about how to do it, and Ryu and I believe that what was initially thought of was still the best option. Even my Training tells me that the doable is well within the parameters of the tactics and strategies we have laid out for Saturday.

Besides, Altrax showed it CAN be done. Defense always has mant inherent advantage over Offense.

But...

Most certainly ECO lacks the manpower. Even if all 40 members appear, it is still nothing compared to the hundreds the other two races can throw our way. We will need the help of the Federal Army. But then, that's the idea, neh? This must be an operation involving the whole race.

But Symour's recent irresponsible post may have cost us this battle. Imagine telling the lowbies that they have no right to suggest? That kid is an arrogant fool. It would have been okay if he was just "another" warrior of the Bellato but he's the goddamned Archon!

We need those lowbies with us during the battle, if only to act as anti-cloakers at Anacaade Gate or at Solus' notorious North Gate, or as scouts so we can keep what little strike forces we have in strategic rally points and not going around the settlements like, in Ryu;s words, "headless chickens."

And what happens if the Cora and Accretia ally? Even one of convenience - say, just to break the expected blockade at Arayan-Solus - can be devastating to our defensive positions.

It's doable; I have never been this sure of a strategy before. But the elements we need... It's hard to fight a difficult enough battle knowing what's facing us, but it gets more difficult when you don't know what you have.

*sigh*

We just have to see then.

Expert Holy, first upgrade, and why I still stay in Nexus

2006-07-18T17:44:00.000+08:00

Actually, this is a long-delayed post. See, I got my Expert tier of Holy spells about... two weeks ago? Something like that. Axelle and I were doing a buff grind when, in the middle of the conversation (I mean, what else can one do while buff-grinding?), I suddenly notice my already-bought Expert Holy Force Reavers lose the red, "no-use" color.

You can imagine my elation.

As I once said, it seems that we Mages aren't really that useful in the war as compared to the Chandras. The latter are in demand starting at level 30 because of their buffs; of all the buffs, Velocity is the one that is most wanted, and is easily accessible (Elite Holy buffs are harder to come by). Chandras, especially pre-GU4, can tank even up to four high-level Accretians by spamming Cure.

Mages, on the other hand, can't do as much spell damage as our Cora counterparts - even in GU4 - and as debuffers we sometimes aren't THAT effective because the Dodge build and cure chargers render our debuffs essentially little useful than what is on paper. We Mages only start becoming useful when we become Archmages, or when we get our Expert elementals early because the Expert debuffs are the really painful ones.

But a Mage with Expert Holy... Having Velocity, Resist and one's own Cure is so nice... And, your fellow Bellato start to thank you, even for Velocity. You just have to remind them sometimes that not all Mystics are Chandras so we don't all have Elite Holy spells.

I was also successful in upgrading one of my two Intense Blue Wands with a Chaos talic. It needs another one to be up to ECO-specifications, but it was nice because I used a Narrow gem in conjuction with two normals and I lacked another.

Here's my proof of my firs, successful upgrade:

Now isn't THAT nice?

All these, along with getting that 15 attack /15 defense ring that I won from the Bellato GEB, makes living in Nexus interesting. I can kill high-middies now. Heck, I even took down someone during the CW two nights ago when I did a kamikaze run into the Accretian formation trying to break the BCC.

Now, if only I can get to level 40 quickly enough...

Pining for Altrax

2006-07-10T17:15:00.000+08:00

Another thing about MMORPG culture (or, again, is it just something that happens here?) is that the game's servers take on an identity all its own. When communities in that server start to materialize, players of a certain stripe tend to gravitate to the server that suits their playing style and/or temperament better.

Consider pRFO. Nexus is the more populated server, the "prestige" server. It is also the home of the so-called "power players," so powerful that they sometimes think they're a god and can do anything they want. On contrast, Altrax, the "other" server for us in Nexus, is the roleplay server.

Actually, being a, uh, "Nexan," I've barely considered Altrax. In my whole MMORPG career, I've never been one to cross servers. I did in pRO, but only because they said Fenrir would be better than Chaos and Loki and the build for my Mage was very, very, wrong.

Sometime last week, I made an avatar in Altrax.

Originally, the reason was because LUG would be testing an RP system for RF, but only in Altrax since it was meant to be the RP server and many of the roleplayers are there. Since participation would be very limited without an Altrax avatar, I made one.

When I stepped into familiar-yet-unfamiliar soil, the feeling was... different. I said I'd lurk awhile, since most of the active BBoarders knew who I was and I wanted to surprise them. But, I just couldn't resist... I Mapchatted: "hello Altrax!" and immediately Zetagear and others welcomed me ("Rianos? as in the one in the boards?").

The welcome was so warm... haaaay. I met Ceraby, too. Ceraby is this Chandra who happens to be one of the most famous non-combatant avatars in pRFO. Aside from buffing me (gee, Cera, thanx for the Vit... wehehe...), Ceraby gifts me with bags! Aw, that's so sweet. And Keo offered 1 million Dalants (the Bellato currency) if I permanently settle in Altrax. And I've already gotten TWO offers of Guild membership - and one from Ceraby to join Revolution, no less! - and I'm not even level 20 in Altrax!

*sigh*

Y'know... I've been anti-raiding in Nexus since before turned 30 . I've bled for the Federation. I'm stuck in such a relatively low power level because I spend at least a third of my not-so-considerable playing time responding to raids and more often than not getting killed by them. I don't look for the recognition that much, but at least the knowledge that the community appreciates your efforts. These days, I even get smartmouth remarks when I don't buff them with Velocity (I do not have that spell yet, people! I'm a frikking Mage!!!!), and get mobs up my butt when I try to keep some players in line.

But the minute I stepped into Altrax...

If I didn't love ECO so much, I wouldn't have thought twice of shifting servers. Even without the 1m from Keo. You play a game to have fun, not to get exasperated, and Nexus has been that recently, if not for the stuff we do at ECO.

*sigh*

Oh, well.

But then, I never get into anything half-baked. Besides, my Altrax-Rianos is better built than my Nexus-Rianos - full PT at level 10 except for Force and Shield! - and I did say I'd help Altrax...

I mean, I can ALWAYS shift servers, even for a while, when things get too much in Nexus...

Brukbak Accretians, Ripcord and Post-Gu4 Anti-raid

2006-06-29T11:02:00.000+08:00

Every gaming community develops certain... quirks that become a trademark of that community. In-game language, the terms and concepts unique to a game, is usually the first sign of a developing gaming community. Similar to IRL communties, the lingua franca of a game distinguishes its players from other gaming communites as much as the world at large. Thus, you'd know if someone is a player of whatever game based on how they talk and what they talk about.

Gender-preference-based chat is something I think is unique to RF, partly caused by the unique 3-race setup of the game, as well as the way some avatars were designed as much as the IRL preferences and... creativity of the players. The classic in pRFO is the "chixilog" tag given to the Legolas-like Cora. "Chixilog," in vulgar argot (Philippine, or Philippine Gaming Community only?) is essentially a homosexual, and is (kind of) derogatory. You just have to see the Cora, and go through their boards, and see how they fight, to know why the Accretia and (most especially) the Bellato call them that.

Recently, something called the "brukbak" phenomenon - or virus, as its "proponents" call it - is on the rise, primarily among the sexless Accretians. "Brukbak" is, of course, taken from that seminal (yaiks! No pun definitely intended!) film, Brokeback Mountain. We Filipinos being who we are, and the extremely insane Filipino gaming community being what it is, the term sort of got adopted for general use.

The funny thing about this is, it is... booming in the one race that is the most martial and so... "unhomo" as the Accretia. The big, bad cyborgs are the ultimate war machines of RF. To see an Accretian charging at you is to see immense pain on two legs. The Accretians are, truly, the walking, talking, fighting avatars of war.

But... wahaha. It's actually funny. Maybe it's their being sexless. As the story goes, the Accretians start as flesh-and-blood but sacrifice their organic bodies for the "perfection" of their cyborg ones. Essentially, they are, then, without any sex whatsoever. Their avatars are sleek, but lack the sexual triggers that, say, a Corite avatar can illicit from RF players. Technically-speaking, Accretians, as a race, are male.

My Mind keeps thinking, God, this is sooooo Greek.

Wehehe.

And there's this Corite player whose avatar is named "Ripcord" who is becoming quite the pain. The first time I encountered this... thing was when he backstabbed me post-GU4. Backstabbing, in RF terms, is attacking another avatar from behind, usually while the target is engaged in monster bashing. RF being a 3D game, your back is usually a blind spot unless you walk with the camera pointing to the back.

Ripcord, according to some research, is a relatively powerful Corite, and is a Dark Priest, the Cora equivalent of the Bellato Chandra in terms of warp capability. Post-GU4, the Chandra, the Dark Priest, and their Accre equivalent are the only ones who can teleport while being attacked.

Needless to say, this kind of fighting has gotten the ire of many players, which was what led to GU4 being hailed by most everybody engaged in anti-raiding. Now, raiders don't have the luxury of hitting and not suffering the consequences. Back then, a raider can escape raid response simply by porting or logging out. It was technically a "win" for the raid response, but it was frustrating to know that, somehow, a person can attack settlements with impunity, without a high degree of risk.

Such an easy way out for raiders has led the other races to accuse the Bellato of being "asa sa BMAU", or dependent on our big mecha. True enough, without the power of the BMAUs, we couldn't kill a raider fast enough before they could port. Now, even level 40s have to be careful around Bellato territory as they run the risk of being "lowbie mobbed" and suffering grave loss of CP from being killed by another player from a much lower level. This has also spawned the new phenomenon of high levels trying to reach a settlement gate, where the GTs are. Getting killed by settlement GTs entails no loss of CP, so a player would rather get killed by a GT than a mob of hobbits out for vengeance.

But players like Ripcord are the exception. "Ghey fighting" - backstabbing as a principle tactic, and then escaping retribution through porting - is something that, although creative, nets the other player negative recognition. It's okay to fall to an opponent that fought you face to face. But to be hit before you have a chance to react is infuriating. Even worse, Ripcord PMs the player he killed. As if we could understand what's being said; inter-race chatting is not possible, and all you get is something like, &%*&^$E)@.

Now, it's almost a rule that when Ripcord is out - and the gheyboy has the gall to raid solo! - people avoid me because gheyboy wants to take me down. How weird. He's not even Unforgiven. But then, his "courage" only comes from taking advantage of a lot of things: his Dark Priest port skill, his Isis, and backstabbing. This is no warrior worthy of praise but some hyena. Take out his skill, he won't raid solo. Take out his Isis, like what I did the last time I engaged him, and he ports out posthaste. And when he can't backstab, he can't kill anyone.

Oh, yes, gheyboy Ripcord is on my "to-kill" list when I turn 40. As Axelle said, I have the advantage of range then, and we'll see what this stupid, backstabbing Corite can do.

The War thus far

2006-06-27T15:21:00.000+08:00

So I'm level 35 now. And I am wearing... pink. Whoever thought an all-pink armor for Level 35 male force-users is a good idea should be fed, alive and kicking, to Belphegor.

But the... power in the "middle-middie" level... The only thing I can't tank is an Accretian Cohort on steriods or a high-level Corite Summoner with an Isis that got the drop on me. Anything else is, at the very least, a stalemate. I remember being charged by two 4-Knot Corite melee users - wow, that's a refreshing change - at the Solus Helkin Tree (the one that serves as "exit" for the Solus East Gate plain) and they couldn't kill me. I could've stayed to play, but I was on my way back to Solus at the time to resupply, since I was nearly out of potions.

The Accretians continue to dominate the CWs. But I think this is more over a lack of attendance of Bellato troopers to the CW than about the raw power of the Accretians. During the recent Dark Hole event, the Federal Army mustered in strength and quite literally run over the Imperial Legions. The Accretian's vaunted Cohorts couldn't do anything against a fully-mustered Federal Army.

Actually, what we're also suffering from is a leadership issue; with papaSPY007 in literal IRL hiatus (why are some of the best players in the Bellato Federation also very responsible people IRL?), nobody can command the full respect and allegiance of the troops. Some go for Armored Beast. Some, including many of the veterans, go for Symour. While wishing for a return to active duty of the real Azrayel, the pre-P2P Bellato Archon that led us to early dominance.

At least, being in E.C.O. has certainly made my play much better. There is an increase in the... intensity and quality of my game. There is more responsibility being taken, and a name earned, and thus the need, the want to prove one's self worthy of all this. Although an increase in raid response among the citizenry of the Federation has allowed me to not respond to every raid report, there is still that wont to drop everything you're doing at the moment to help. Because I got known for that, and because there's this large Guild name on top of my avatar's name that tells every Federal trooper that here is a person who will help you if a raider comes along.

But now I know what I will be when I turn 40:

I will be an Archmage.

Where everyone is taking the Chronomancer route - it being the most versatile high-level Bellato spiritualist class - I will take this path. Not (only) because of all the Bellato spiritualists it deals the most damage, but because it has the potential to be a potent weapon of the Federation...

I've also remedied my Range PT problem, thanks to Guildmates ZeoLedCross and Melkaiah. Once I work it up to the minimum level for a Gatling, I can proceed levelling my avatar up.

The end of an era: the retirement of papaSPY007

2006-05-30T11:05:00.000+08:00

I am hitting myself repeatedly over the head right now (well, at least since yesterday).

Last Sunday, I was thinking of playing RF. But since I was keeping expenses to a minimum - there's three days to payday, after all, and my funds were down last Sunday - I decided to just stay at the house and catch up with my reading.

And, always, always, there are reminders why I am a psion in the first place.

Last Sunday was the last gaming session of the longest-serving Archon - both in Bellato and in all the races of all three serves - ever. It was the Last Ride of Bellato Nexus Archon papaSPY007.

And what a ride it was, according to the reports.

The Federal Army fought late. I guess we were still in the throes of the CW LOA for the x2 PT. The Accretians, bored to death with breaking a BCC that was thinly-defended at best due to the LOA, attacked the CCC instead. Paps, logging in late - he was already packed to go, IRL, and decided to play one last CW - called on the Federal Army to assemble.

And the troops came. By the drooves. Especially when Paps said over Race Chat, "for one last time, ride with me!" Suddenly, even the usually-absent higher-level Bellato in Ether PMed Papi, saying that more than 40 in Ether were responding to the call.

Many reportedly asked for a KS because the CCC was already down about 18% or so. But Papi, one to always confuse his enemies through well-calculated audacious manuevers, decided instead to bring the Federal Army to ACC.

At one point, the gap between the damage to the ACC and the CCC was as high as 35%. Normally, this would be a KS attempt. But Paps ordered the Federal Army to focus fire...

... and we won.

AND, Paps was the chip bearer!

With the retirement of Paps - IRL reasons - an era has ended for RF Philippines. Paps Archonship has shown that RF isn't a game that can be dominated by munchkins and power players, that sheer force and firepower cannot always carry the day. His strategic and tactical acumen and his genuine caring for the Federal Army has not only set such a high bar for future Archons to follow, but has redefined this game to give it the unique feel it has over the other MMORPGs.

LikeI said in my post at the BBoards: Paps is respected - both by the Bellato which he led and those of the other races whom we fought - because he deserved that respect.

I just wish I was there for his Last Ride.

Operation Defender of the Haven

2006-05-30T10:26:00.000+08:00

My first mission under ECO. This is a blockade mission, with the intent of holding the line against raiders to Solus Settlement for two hours.

Blockades are, simply, camping in front of a map's "gate" or entry/exit point and preventing other races from using it to get into the map. Guilds and the Council regularly do this in order to prevent raids so lowbies and middies can PT and PL in relative peace.

The mission started out well enough. By the time we had camped at the Crag Mine "gate" and the Guard Towers (GTs) were in place, everything was set. The effective placement of GTs by Xena allowed us to take down quite a couple of Accretians and Corites. One gave us quite a time by actually walking out of our little trap. We got the Corite a few paces outside the last GT, but he gave us quite the workout. In between the tense moments when a raider comes in, ECO members chatted away.

Things started to unravel when a single Corite was able to come from behind us and take out one of the GTs, the one farthest from the gate area. We took down the Corite, but we were left vulnerable from behind. There was also an implication to the assault that would become apparent much later.

That was when a full force of Corites - level 40s all - decided to break our blockade... from behind us.

A running battle followed. The Corites showed a certain methodology by first picking off the mystics in our team: good strategy, as mystics are (1) easier to kill, (2) annoying due to debuffs, and (3) the equivalent of the Corites in force power. The Corites, through sheer firepower - there were two or three rangers in the group! - were able to run us off the blockade. I think one of them - the summoner, perhaps - went to the GT setup and tore them down. Meanwhile, ECO's blockade team was being picked off one by one.

Ryuaito, ECO Commander, declared the mission a failure because we were unable to hold the line for two hours. In our post-mortem, we realized that our one mistake was to not guard the exits of Solus Settlement itself.

One persistent bug that Bellatos complain about is the GT bug ofSolus Settlement. Corites can enter the base because of the link to Numinous Stockade. BUT, it should be VERY difficult to exit the gates of an enemy settlement because the GTs would pepper an enemy trooper with bullets as they exit.

At least in theory. There is, of course, the animus tank, where a Corite uses her summon to draw the fire of the GTs, allowing them to exit the Settlement. We in ECO foil this by waiting for the Corite to exit and shooting the summoner as she exits. ECO mystics and MAU users also hiatus or net the target so she'll slow down, giving the GTs enough time to cycle, retarget and fill the Corite with hot gatling lead.

But there is a blind spot in the North Gate GT setup. This blind spot allows non-Summoners to exit easily without fearing our GTs. This was what the Corite anti-blockade team used to get behind ECO's effective blockade of the Crag Mine gate.

No one was to blame for the failure of Operation Defender of the Haven. I guess we should have thought the Corites would use a dastardly trick to break the blockade, but when you play with honor you kind of somehow expect other players to play at least with a modicum of deceny, too. We were expecting a blockade runner team to try and breach our defense through sheer number and/or power. But that's costly, and maybe they realized it would be futile due to the excellent GT setup by Xena with its overlapping kill zones that maximized the GTs attack power.

Well, lessons learned.

Besides, a new chapter is added to ECO's - and the conflict's - history: it was just one guild that broke our blockade, and Ryu has declared "open season" on them. Let the fanatics of Unforgiven beware from hereon in...

My first formal sweep

2006-05-17T02:14:00.000+08:00

This session is also my first with ECO. It was just something that happened on the fly, starting from raid response immediately after the 16 May 06, 9 pm, CW. Ryu was present, so about eight or so ECO members who were present got organized into a sweep team.

Actually, I've been in sweeps since I turned 30 and decided I'd disregard the CP cost of being PKed. But these were spur-of-the-moment associations, as those who responded to raid reports went around together to drive away the wolves trying to cull our whelping warhounds.

But this session was my first formal sweep around Solus. We went from the Helkin Tree that bordered the East Gate area to the Crag Mine Tunnel used by most raiders to get into the area. Along the way we took on quite a number of Accretians and took down about two or three Corites. We discouraged most of the tin cans, making them run or port out; Accretians are strong, by design, and these were in their 40s. We couldn't kill them, but we hounded the raiders until they took off.

That was fun. It gives one the palpable sense of achievement to see strong opponents flee, and to put a stop, however briefly, to the neverending spate of raids on our main training ground. Because of our efforts - along with the other sweepers in the whole of Solus - our lowbies can train and get stronger.

They probably didn't know that their uninterrupted sessions were because of the sacrifice of ECO's members - we're not high levels, and we definitely need to PT and PL some more - but I know we all felt good that, somehow, we made a difference in this war.

Besides, Ryu wants the raiders to fear ECO, or at least get annoyed at us enough that the mere sight of a squad of ECO would make them turn away. More of these, and we're sure the raiders of the Cora and Accretia would truly remember the name of our division.

Joining E.C.O.

2006-05-15T17:31:00.000+08:00

I've been playing MMORPGs since the beta days of Ragnarok Online. I've changed servers twice there, ending with a level-45 Magician that was PLed and, uh, PTed largely on my own. I played ROSE in those few months between its launch and that of RF, and I was I think a L47 Mage when I left, again achieved largely on my own. I've also played Gunz, Flyff and tried MU for a bit. And in all those games I have always played alone.

Why do I have an aversion to joining Guilds, the player-associations in MMORPGs? Heck, I even rarely join a party, the last being with my friends here at the HQ during the initial madness of RO.

Maybe its a communication thing: typing commands and requests while fighting for dear life can be quite challenging, if not fatal.

Another is I'm usually the lone wolf type, preferring to act on my own so there will be little in the way of restrictions, unless the party or guild is under my command. Unlike the RO days, I've been playing my MMORPGs in a shop, so the time I spend to do my own thing gets limited to the needs of the party or the guild.

And there's also the rep; I REFUSE to associate my avatar with an organization that would dirty my name, IG, or simply serve as an IG frat or gang of sorts. If I'm going to be part of something that would demand my commitment, then it should be worth it, yes? It should make me feel as if I was part of something special, something... larger than my own little story in the grand tapestry of the game I play.

This then makes my accepting an offer from E.C.O. quite a personal landmark for me. This is the first time I've joined a MMORPG player association ever. I have never done this before. Especially with RF, yes, I have considered building my own Guild - I mean, take a look at Rianos' background story- but never seriously about joining a Guild. Well, okay, I have seriously considered it - and ECO was one of my top choices - but I was planning on putting it off until I was level 35.

So why join one now?

First was the rep of the founders of ECO and its roster. Many of the RF players I respect and admire - and some of the most dedicated (read: adik), if the Boards are any indication - are in ECO. Of course, ECO founder (and now Boards Archon) Ryunaito and his gf Thyalla are two of the Bellato I respect the most. I wasn't pulling sir Ryu's leg when I said I just couldn't refuse when it was him who invited me to ECO. Imagine, a lowly level 32 who more often than not is cannon fodder during CW was personally invited by the legendary Ryunaito? How can I say no?

And there's the rep of the guild itself. Although just recently founded, ECO has a good reputation among the troops of the Federal Army in Nexus. It was founded on the best of intentions, and it has done quite a bit in the few months it has been in operation. The Guild's members also seem to share a deeper camaraderie than in most IG aggrupations I see, given the fact that we come from very disparate backgrounds.

Perhaps I'm also looking to "upping" the level of my game. Yes, I saw some really high level players who did not belong to a Guild among the Royals and even the Cinques of the Federal Army. But I doubt I could replicate their achievements given my relatively short gaming time.

Besides, RF is a team game; the major conflicts in Novus are resolved between armies, among units. Maybe the Accretia and the really-high level Corites can solo, but not the Bellato. Our concept and design is not optimized for solo combat. Even the BMAUs can't fight alone.

And, it might also be due to the fact that, given all that RF has to offer, I'm stuck in a rut, game-wise. A routine has come into being of PT/PL->CW->PT/PL/Raid Response. I zone out during a session, and I don't think it's only because I'm extra tired these days. Being part of a Guild, of a group, entails a challenge I have never experienced in all my days playing MMORPGs, and if there's one thing I can be sure of, adding more, ah, humans to the equation will conclude in extra-added fun.

So now I'm in ECO. And damned proud to be so.

Those tin cans and chixilogs had better be afraid, 'cause next time we meet, I just might have one of the best divisions in the Federal Army fighting alongside me...

Rianos Dan Cannar: Background Story

2006-05-09T19:00:00.000+08:00

Name: Rianos Dan Cannar
IGN: Rianos Race: Bellato
Level: 32 Class: Mage
Class specialization: Fire Support Nuker and Debuffer
Current Base of Operations: Solus Settlement
Homeworld: Phoenix Eyrie (now abandoned by the Federation)

History:

The Dan Cannars are an ancient family with a long history of service to the Bellato. During the consolidation of the Bellato of their empire, the Dan Cannars were one of those at the van of their forces, part of the military organization called the Order of the Star. The "StarKnights" were the bane of the the worshippers of DECEM; master Light Force users and skilled warriors, the StarKnight divisions were some of the primary factors responsible for the suppression of the Cora.

The coming of the Accretia and their rise to power saw the end of the Bellato dreams for an empire. The focus of the new race on non-organic bodies and the sheer power of these forms and their weaponry was something the StarKnights were not prepared for. Divisions of StarKnights fell alongside the rest of the Bellato Imperial Army at the coming of the cyborgs, decimating the proud Order that once stood strong as a pillar of the defence of the Bellato Empire.

In this twilight of the Order of the Star, the Lord Commander was Rianos' father, Rickard. In a pitched battle, Rickard Dan Cannar would lead the remaining divisions of the StarKnights against the massed legions of the Accretians. Valor and a long tradition of courage and skill that are the hallmarks of the Order would be for naught as the cyborgs unveiled their latest weapon: the Siege Kit. Rickard and the StarKnights would be some of the first victims of this potent new engine of destruction.

As the last Lord Commander of the Order of the Star died in the flames of the Accretian Launchers, in the StarKnight homeworld of Phoenix Eyrie - also the home planet of the Dan Cannars - the Cora were sealing the fate of their hated enemies. With the StarKnight divisions offplanet, the newly-rebuilt forces of DECEM's followers stormed the Eyrie. An orgy of destruction followed as decades of pent-up anger and frustration, fueled by the Dark Force, were unleashed in this bastion of the Light. The remnants of the StarKnight divisions, fleeing from their lost battlefield and carrying the body of their fallen leader, came upon the Cora running rampage in their home and fought their old enemies. This would be the last battle for the Order of the Star; leaderless, their forces depeleted and badly mauled by the Accretians, they fell one after another.

In the conflagration engulfing his home, a young Rianos would witness the death of his mother, his older brother, grandparents, and many of House Dan Cannar. The ancient home of the Dan Cannars, Minas Thoronnar, was the focus of the Corite assault. Only through the efforts of the family's loyal retainers was the young Dan Cannar, his sister and some of his cousins saved from certain death at the hands of the fanatics.

In the unholy light of the black flames consuming his family's home, Rianos' last memories were of his father's already lifeless body skewered aloft on a Corite lance amind the banners of the StarKnights and the Dan Cannars burning in fires of DECEM's vengeance

Rianos and what was left of the population of Phoenix Eyrie were rescued a few days later by the remnants of an Imperial squadron hoping to get relief and refit at the stronghold of the StarKnights. What the Bellato naval officers saw was the once-verdant planet reduced to a smoking, lifeless desolation, and took the refugees to the Bellato Homeworld.

Rianos was made a ward of the Empire, and eventually of the Federation when the latter's defeat was encompassed. But it would be months before the young Dan Cannar would come out of his stupor, his young mind overwhelmed by the gravity of his loss. Yet when he did, there was no question as to what he would do for the rest of his life. Rianos entered into the Federeation's War College to train as a combat mystic and swell the ranks of the newly-established Armed Forces of the Bellato Federation.

Upon graduation from the War College, Rianos requested for a post at the new conflict emerging in the Novus System. There, he hopes to find his destiny or his fate. Yet no matter what path he will take, his burning desire is to see DECEM's flag burning in the flames of his retribution, just as his family's crest once did in the home now forever lost to him.

Outnumbered, Outgunned, but not Outfought: the April 23 and 24, 9 pm CWs

2006-04-25T12:02:00.000+08:00

I've been going to CWs for quite sometime now, as early as when Rianos "turned 25" back in January or February. I've been in exciting ones, and boring ones. I've seen us win, I've seen us lose.

But few CW experiences compare with the ones of the last two nights.

In both the 23 and 24 April, 9 pm, CWs, there were four similarities:

There were very few Bellato
Our Archon was not present
The enemy Archons were present
We were badly outnumbered

In both instances, I really expected us to lose. But in CWs like that, the Bellato who do fight commit to the action because we do not want to lose without a fight. The other races may claim and say all they want about the Bellato, but they can never say that the Federal Army does not put up a fight.

The Federal Army is currently suffering from being outgunned and overpowered by the other races: the Accretians have a higher proportion of troops over level 40 (and many already in their 45s), while the Cora have vastly high PT, drastically increasing the power of their Anima (and the army of the fanatics is about 80% Summoner). The MAU is often battled solo by Accretians, and it is getting distressing to see MAUs actually running from a single Accretian, much more seeing a single cymek surviving the prolonged attention of a whole squad of Bellato supported by a BMAU. So, you see, without sufficient numbers, the Federal Army cannot hope to win a CW, given the power of the other two races.

That is, until the April 23 and 24 CWs.

Keeper was in command for both CWs. Maybe because it wasn't the Archon who called, few people responded. I have never been more... worried for the outcome of a CW as I was with these two. There were just so few of us. Too few, in everyone's opinion, but we were already there and we wanted to put up a fight.

Both started with sorties against the ACC at o-20. Both saw us go up against the flower of the armies of the other two races, supported by their Archons. Both saw the Federal Army fight outnumbered and outgunned. Both lasted between one to two hours.

Both were won by the Bellato.

I remember the... worry I had during the April 23 CW. That was the first time I saw us kill-steal a chip, but not after we tried our damnedest to break the ACC while the cymeks were hacking at the CCC. We even came close, as the discrepancies narrowed down to below 20% chip health. But Keeper decided to KS instead, as there were too few Bellato to chase the Accre lead. Federal troops were caught battling the Accretian forces on the path to the CCC from ACC and the Corites guarding the CCC along with the Accretians hacking at the chip. I remember falling in the chaos of the fight in the Accretian lines as it degenerated into a free-for-all with no battle line to speak of, leaving mystics, mages and chandras open to direct assault as we nuked the Accre lines or debuffed enemy troops being engaged.

But we won.

And what about the April 24 CW? That was no KS. The ACC was bashed to smithereens by a very small Federal Army, sandwiched between the defending Accretians led by their Archon and the kill-stealing Corites. In the final moments of the CW, Animus-assisted spells and Launcher explosions mixed liberally along the Bellato battle line. Federal troops fell by the score and MAUs and even BMAUs went up in gigantic fireballs.

Yet we won.

No Archon. No numbers. No surfeit of level 45s. Two enemy armies with numbers and power on their side, and we still won.

Hah. Bellato rules.

Glory to Freedom!

Turning 30

2006-04-20T10:59:00.000+08:00

The event last Tuesday, 18 April 2006, marks me as a certified RF addict.

That was the day Rianos achieved Level 30 (",)

In MMORPGs, levels not only determine one's progression in his/her skills and capabilities, but also in the class the player chose. Achieving a certain level allows one to chose a higher class, along with the more powerful options that class has. These levels also mark the milestones in one's in-game "career," with gamers usually measuring one's worth IG not only through who or what you've killed but on where you are in the scale of your own class.

The feeling of... achievement was palpable, and I had a mind to treat the guys at E-jim cafe when Rianos "turned 30." I started playing RF since November 2005 and I finally got to the first major personal milestone for my character (actually, the first major milestone should be "turning 25," as it allows your character to profit from the Chip War, but this is different). It was made more so by the fact that I was actually delayed for two hours because I made a mistake during one encounter and the system took away 10% of my experience points! Now that really hurt, since before I got killed I was at 88% with an hour to spare before CW.

And months of agonized thinking of what "2nd class" to take, months of trawling and posting at the Bellato Boards for suggestions and recommendations, finally came to a head as I faced El Dun Katta's avatar at the highest platform of Bellato Headquarters.

I decided to choose the combatant version of the Mystic (we used to be called Spiritualists; I don't know why they changed it to that), the Mage (originally Psyper; we actually still refer to my class as that IG), and got issued a new weapon! How nice.

But even better was the Mage class skill: Edian's Soul. It's a buff skill, increasing the amount of damage done by the Mage's force spells. From experimentation (and much looking at the character sheet), it appears I gain something like 250 additional points in damage. Kewl. That should come in handy.

I've also survived many of the encounters I get into with raiders from other races. Last night, I managed to hold off an Accretian single-handedly, giving it the runaround until some (censored) Corite summoner took advantage of the situation to whack me from behind.

And I get invites from Guilds now. That is quite nice. If I haven't saved enough dalants and/or made enough contacts when I turn 35 to form my own Guild, maybe I'll seriously considering joining an established one.

For now, I'll prowl Solus, Anacaade and Crag Mine solo, just to see what I can do. I've been fighting largely on my own and now that I'm 30, I'll enjoy the freedom of being a "freelancer" for a little bit more before I finally commit to a Guild.

The Power of 1: the 7 April 2006, 9 p.m. CW

2006-04-08T02:49:00.000+08:00

AS usual, there were relatively fewer Bellato.

papaSPY ordered the Federal Army to t12 and hammering of the chip began in earnest. A small detachment took on the Cora trying to defend the CCC and we managed to push them back.

Probably out of exasperation from KS defeats, papSPY's strategy for the evening was to bring the chip down to about 30% or 20% and alternate between engaging opposing forces and hammering the chip, slowly but steadily breaking it.

But the Accretians JUST KEPT COMING.

My spir was far from the main action, as on my way back after my first "medevac," I had the luck to encounter the WHOLE Cora army on the way to BCC. So all of us who fell, and those who were late, got stuck defending BCC from Corite and Accretian attacks.

And the Accretians JUST KEPT COMING.

Early on, an accre by the name of 1 "scouted" the gathered Bellato at CCC, prior to the beginning of that evening's CW. That was ONE kunat cymek. Whole squads went after him, including at least three BMAUs, and he just... laughed us off.

Maybe we should have been warned. When the CW ended, a lot of us were surprised to see the "failed" communique from El Dun Katta. Guess who broke the CCC?

1.

Grr.

So, yes, we lost. No one's fault, really. The Archon's strategy was good, there were several Councilors (I saw Witchgal. I heard Cool was there, too. Azra was assisting the BCC defense. I don't know who else from the council were present). But we were just too durned few. And there was just too many tin cans popping and hacking at the CCC.

Good God, those accretians are really getting powerful...

Still, the Federal Army was trying out combined-arms tactics during the CW. We're still rusty - spirs (like me; kaya napagsabihan ni Zeilla) sometimes get in front, and, wham: dead spir - but with enough practice, I'm sure we can be QUITE formidable, even with a small force.

Something sad post-CW: papaSPY was asking the Federal Army to choose our next Archon. He said he was tired T_T

I don't know about you people, but papi is one Archon I truly respect. Not only because he knows his strategy, but because HE CARES. The guy is online for the CWs, God's sake.

And even when he said he was tired and wanted to sleep after the CW, he still joined in the anti-raider sweeps.

That's a leader, someone who cares for his race and the troops. I can understand how tiring it must be for him, and will respect his decision to step down, but I will be very saddened if he does.

Come from Behind: 4 April 2006, 9 p.m., CW

2006-04-05T15:04:00.000+08:00

I arrived late, logging in at about past 10 p.m. due to RL stuff. I was surprised to be greeted by El Dun Katta with the CW mission prompt, which meant the CW was still ongoing.

So off I went to BCC. I was shocked to see it with less than half its HP and a HORDE of accres trying to force their way to it. Explosions were already going on around the BCC, as accre launchers kept hammering at our poor chip. When I first fell (accre with big sword + lvl 29 Spir = dead spir), I think the BMAU beside me also blew up, as I've never seen an explosion like THAT...

The attacks were relentless. The accretians just kept pouring in... but we kept pushing them back. Somehow. It came to a point that I realized we were already in the field that's the halfway mark to the ACC. papaSPY and Keeper rerouted the Bellato giving chase to the accretians to CCC.

Upon reaching the core of the mines, the chat suddenly spiked with reports of CORITE incursions to the BCC. Now we were facing Cora, with much of our strength already en route to CCC. I decided to cut left and head back to the BCC, to help in the defense. A corite soldier was in front of me, disappearing into the door that led to the BCC path. Several Bellato also followed in. I was expecting a fight in the tunnel, but a BMAU met us halfway into the exit tunnel so I suppose that's one less fanatic who won't be sticking steel into our chip.

Animi aplenty were at the BCC. Keeper was anchoring the defense along with several troops of the Federal Army as papaSPY led the main force in hacking at the CCC. By that time, attrition had reduced the BCC to below 40%, and we were told to hang on and keep up the defense.

As the CW wore on, both the Cora and Accretians would attempt several more times to break the BCC. At the CCC, the main force of the Federal Army relentlessly hacked, shot or hit with spells the corite chip, trying to bring it down before the other races deal a deathblow to the BCC.

Before 11 p.m. (Earth time), the CCC broke.

It was perhaps one of the biggest upsets in the history of the war. The warriors of two races, fresh from non-stop PT levelling for a whole week, still could not breach the Bellato defences to break the BCC. And the Federal Army, despite the odds, managed to come from behind and claim a victory.

Winning has never been sweeter.

Outposts and other fortifications

2006-03-17T17:28:00.000+08:00

This is another thing that came to my mind one time while dwelling on RF.

Currently, each race has several major facilities outside of its HQ. Each facility is part of a map area, and is the dominating feature of such. Unlike the HQ map areas, anywhere on the map outside of these facilities is a "free-for-all" zone and is usually the site for raids. For us Bellato, these are (usually) the Solus and Anacade Settlement maps.

Troops from another race cannot automatically enter the facilities of these maps, mostly because the Guard Towers (GTs) emplaced on facility entrances prevent them from doing so. In the instances when another race infiltrates that of their enemies, the "rules" (i.e. the default settings) inside facilities - that is, no attack can be made - prevent them from doing nothing more than run around.

So I was thinking: why not have facilities that other races can actually attack and sieze?

Wars fought in atmospheres (in contrast to wars fought in space) are still largely dependent on strongpoints controlling crucial locations. A well-defended and excellently situated strongpoint can not only provide very useful intelligence regarding troop movements but also at the very least disrupt the actions of enemy units. This holds even in a war where the forces are largely mobile: modern warfare is more a contest of manuever than actual power, so denying an important area or delaying the movement of crucial units can spell victory or defeat. And aside from acting as observation posts, fortifications can serve both as sanctuary and sally point for any army.

My concept of an RF strongpoint runs along those lines: little areas all over a map that a race can use to their advantage by controlling the area around the fortification. These outposts can also serve as places to run to during a heavy raid that catches your avatar on the field far from your race's settlement, and points from which a sally can be made to stem (or even stop) that raid.

The ouposts can be an incentive for the Guilds. They are the ones who will "build" such fortifications from their resources, "buying" facilities (like Tool, Weapons, Armor and Potion NPCs) and defenses (the usual GTs or even walls). If it's possible to do so, these defenses can go beyond the usual GTs, like long range artillery or missile batteries. I've always wondered at those huge weapons platforms on our facilities, wishing during a rather heavy raid that they were more than just eye candy. They don't have to be super accurate, just that they be additional deterrents. The Guild controlling an outpost can even "hire" NPCs (ala-GM summon), something similar to the Agit guardians in RO.

Outposts can also serve as that Guild's storage facility, where everything from spare ammunition and equipment to ores and Tallic, can be stored for access by others in the race. Guildmembers can access these stored supplies for free, while the Guild has the option of selling them (via Unmanned Transaction, or UT) to non-members of the Guild.

Guilds need not be limited to just one outpost, either. If my concept is possible, a measurement of Guild strength would be the number and quality of outposts a Guild controls.

But my concept allows for... overruning an outpost, like in a real war. Other races can assault these fortifications and either destroy them outright or use them for their benefit. Races "capturing" an outpost even have the option of "plundering" said outpost for any remaining supplies. They can even make use of any weapons platform that wasn't destroyed (or repaired, with repairs having a chance for failure), turning them from instruments of defense to that of additional stress for the race that previously held the outpost.

Raids have become a staple of RF, almost as important as the Chip War and an essential part of a race's strategy for ultimate control of the Tallic mines. Having outposts, in my view, adds a new dimension to the War (and, again, in keeping with papaSPY's interesting idea of a "Chip-less" war), and makes Guilds more than just avatar associations. Most importantly, outposts that can be built and overrun will add to truly making the War in RF more realistic and thus more inclusive, intense and interesting for its players.

The Strategic Scope of a War: going beyond simple PK raids

2006-03-11T02:12:00.000+08:00

My little thought experiment in the previous post gave birth to an idea about expanding the scope of the War. It involves giving us players a taste, even a bit, of the dynamics that go in a real war. Like economies and supply lines, and having too few troops to defend what you have adequately.

Owning the Tallic Mines doesn't just give you access to the central mining area. It also reduces the tax - see, there's a tax. So where's our salary? - of "basic" commodities like potions and ammunition. I heard that an increased rate of MAU repairs, as well as selling "Intense" quality equipment also raises the tax, but the tax fluctuates largely due to ownership of the mines. And how much Gold people buy at one time.

We have three races on one planet. It isn't even the home planet, and the RF literature suggests star-spanning empires. So all our supplies, or most of it, come from off-planet. I also sometimes see ships leaving our settlements; for now, they're just eye candy, but...

What if the supply ship for, say, the Bellato, got brought down by, say, an Accretia with a really big Launcher?

And what if the condition of the remaining supplies in that ship will determine (a) how high or low the prices of basic commodities will go up, and (b) how much of these commodities will be available for this cycle?

Imagine you're in the thick of CW and your MAU runs out of ammo. So you pull back to HQ to repair and rearm. Repair is nothing, since conceptually mecha like MAU just get welded here and there, with an occassional armor patch or actuator repair. But ammo... MAU go through ammo like termites through deadwood during CW. Imagine that there's no more ammo because the Army didn't save the fallen supply ship.

And why does it seem like the "kalawangs" seem to have more ammo? Where could they have possibly gotten the... supplies?

This is an example of how Supply and Demand can affect the conduct of a war. And an illustration of Napoleon's point that an army's supply situation can greatly affect its effectivity in the battlefield.

It also need not be arbitrary. What if, say, 100 characters that get killed in a single cycle means n percentage of supplies go down with a supply ship? But, that race has a chance to save at least some of the supplies if they can get to it first and beat off all takers.

This way, raids can have more strategic value. There'll be more opportunities to engage in actual warfare with the other races, and large-scale missions that go beyond the CW or the "clearing operations" in certain maps. And Archons have to decide which troops should be sent to rescue the downed supplies, or "liberate" them. This would be nice if ships go down during CW: these troops won't be available for the CW, so...

And what about... outposts...?

Oh, that's a story for another time...

Are we NOT an army?

2006-03-11T01:35:00.000+08:00

There are, perhaps, two core concepts of RF online: the subdivision of the players into three races who are aggressors of each other; and the Chip War, which determines who gets to mine at the central mining area of the Crag Mine map between four to six hours.

These concepts work to reinforce each other, giving RF a feel of one's being in constant siege. Somehow, this has a certain appeal for the "purebreed" - or paying, after RF went pay-to-play - players. The other MMORPGs either had you battling for a guild hall or similar facility, or player-kill (PK) servers where other players are just monsters with humans behind them. RF has an underlying objective to the mayhem, brutality and ruthlessness of its three-way war. Although the CW is the highlight of every cycle, raids on settlements constitute a staple of the RF universe. These raids can be brutal, where high-level players slaughter lower levels.

Simple PK brutality? No. There is a strategy to all of this: when you PK the players of another race who are essentially "training", whether point-training (PT) or player-levelling (PL), you at least set back their development. At best, you make these players scared to go out because they know you can bash them quite well and fast when they leave the safety of their settlements. So when you meet each other in CW, your race has more higher-level (and therefore harder-hitting or more powerful) troops. Like what the Bellato - the perennial victims of raids - are experiencing in CW these days.

We are at war. and War is never fair, and always hell.

And wars are fought with soldiers, with troops. We are the troops, so, ergo, we are the army.

The Bellato is the democracy of the RF universe, a federation that rose from the ashes of the Bellato Empire that was torn apart by the alliance of the religous fanatics of (and Chip-kill stealers supreme) Cora and the cymek-like Accretia. According to our site, the Federal Army on the planet novus is as much composed of volunteers as it is regular Army.

Army... Army... Weapons? Check. Generals and field commanders? Check. Units, in the form of guilds? Check. Troops, both greenies and elite? Check. Supplies and logisitics from Quartermasters?

Ah. No check.

I don't know: we are the Army of the Bellato Federation on the planet Novus, fighting against the Cora and Accretia for control of the Tallic Mines. We put our lives (actually, our Command Points, or CPs, which determine our ranking) and even so much dalant (the money of the Bellato) on the line for the Federation. Unlike the fanatics of Cora who fight for their god, DECEM, or the darwinist Accretia, we are citizen-soldiers who went here to this Lightforsaken planet supposedly to protect the interests of our race and country.

We are an army. So where are (a) the supplies from High Command, wherever the Bellato Capital is, and (b) our salaries?

I was thinking: as soldiers for a democratic nation, we should be getting allocations of basic needs, like potions (in lieu of food), ammo, and a little pocket money. Suuurreee the stuff they give for fulfilling the missions (read: quests) is quite substantial in terms of CP, money and equipment, but all that's optional; we're not required to do them. Shouldn't we be getting some sort of stipend from Armed Forces Quartermasters? Even ten HP and SP potions, and a few thousand dalants based on our rank every now and then would be enough to offset the huge overhead of the CW and raids.

One CW I participated in ended up with me going through two "bundles" - that's 99 pieces of a particular equipment, like crafting items or potions - of 500-pt SP potions. That's a lot of money.

So maybe that's what the mission-Quests are for. But it feels so... mercenary. We're soldiers, for crying out loud. Potions cost dalants. Ammo cost dalants, unless you're a crafter, but even then you have to "farm" for the loots that are the ingredients for the ammo you need, and then the cost isn't in dalants it's in time. MAU repairs cost a lot of dalants.

The Cora are religious fanatics. If they kill one of us during a raid or CW, they should conceptually be happy about it because it's all for DECEM. The Accretia are an empire, pity's sake; killing us Bellato and ridding the universe of one more fanatic to a god of numbers (isn't that enough reason to kill the Cora for any mathphobe?) is their lot in life.

But we Bellato are a democracy. And armies in democracies get supplies and salaries from High Command.

So, where's ours?

(Note to the Archon, the Council, and the GMs: this is just an opinion, and a thought experiment. In fact, I liked papaSPY's concept of a CW without the Chip. Or maybe with a demphasis on the Chip because the Cora simply kill-steal to win. I'll get back to you guys on some ideas to make the war more interesting...)

Against the Odds: Chip War, 2100, 9 March 2006

2006-03-10T17:36:00.000+08:00

For those who wish to know more about the Chip War (CW), and other RF terminologies, I recommend checking our boards. Or click on the link to the main RF Philippines site at the links area.

The Bellato Archon, papaSpy007, gave the call for the Union Army to gather at 2000. I went to the staging area - the Bellato Control Chip, or BCC - at about 2030, using my level 28 Spiritualist, Rianos. It was rather worrisome to (once again; CW has been going on since November 2005) see few Bellato responding to the Archon's call, but the troops started arriving a few minutes before the start of the War at 2100.

At 2100, the whole Union Army charged the usual target, the Accretia Control Chip (ACC) at O-20 in the Crag Mine. About 30 - 40 mins into the CW, large numbers of Accretia had not only broken our lines at the ACC but were actually throwing us back! The Archon had to call for a regrouping at the BCC. By this time, Rianos had already fallen prey twice to Accretia gladius units (Spiritualists are almost always the first targets of the Accretia: the power of the cyborgs and the relative physical weakness of the Bellato "mages" allow for one-shot kills for the "kalawangs").

For the next few minutes, the Union Army rallied around the BCC. With the help of the REKTA guild, under the leadership of Cool, we were able to not only recover our bearings but also pushed back an attack by the Cora Alliance. The perennial kill-stealing fanatics of the Cora were fallen in large clumps on the small rise overlooking the BCC after the Union Army was through with them.

After securing the BCC, papaSpy ordered the Union Army forward once again to the ACC. Rianos would fall about two or three times more as lag caught up with the dozens of Bellato and Accretia fighting in the vicinity of the Chip. Accretia cooldj's name would appear frequently in the Bellato CommChat, as it made for a troubling presence on the battlefield for the Bellato troops.

Eventually, the sheer mass of MAU-backed Bellato would force the Accretia to retire from the field, contenting themselves with causing havoc at the periphery of the Bellato lines or ambushing reinforcements on their way to O-20. Rianos would fall one more time this way, as three high-level cyborgs were waiting in ambush just short of the cave exit to O-20.

Seeing as between the lag and the strength of marauding Accretia my character would only be so much cannon fodder, I decided to wait at Solus, where my binding location (read: save point) was. The Archon and guild commanders were continously warning the Union Army that the kill-stealing Cora would attemt another KS at 20% ACC strength. But somehow, we were able to pull through and get the chip into the mine core for the extra 2 hours of control.

The CW lasted a good three hours. CWs used to be shorter, as the Bellato mecha - the MAUs - would simply dominate the battlefield. This caused a nerfing of the MAUs prior to the Giga3 update last January, but something seems clear: the Accretia and Cora have become very, very, powerful, enough that even a small band of the cyborgs could stop the whole Union Army that is assisted by its Archon and at least one Council member. And the Cora... how they love to kill steal...

But we won. Despite the odds. Despite a "boycott" by our higher-level troops, the Union Army won. The other two races may be stronger individually, but as a group, they still find it hard to top the Bellato. That we have an Archon that seems to know his stuff helps a lot, too.

Glory to Freedom!

RL ruminations: Express Yourself Day 2

2006-03-10T17:05:00.000+08:00

The second day of the Express Yourself seminar saw us learning the basics for a medium that is relatively new, even for the Net: Podcasting.

How... wonderful. Back in college, we were given training in the analog version of audio production. Considering all that we had to go through just to get a short production done, I wish we had digital audio editing equipment. To say programs like audacity make life easier for the aspiring audio talent is to say an understatement indeed.

Podcasting. Hm. Recording one's thoughts and comments in an audio media that can be listened to anytime - and many times as one wants after - gives new meaning and capabilities to audio information. One thing that made print media so attractive was the concept of the "pass on multiplier," meaning a newspaper someone buys can be given to another person and so on and so forth. Radio didn't have this. Podcasting finally allows audio to not only be indefinitely stored, but passed on as well.

The effort involved in producing a Podcast is not as much as that of its analog counterpart, but it's still painstaking, especially if you're a little on the detailed side. Will I eventually adopt this as one more medium for expressing my thoughts? We'll see.

RL ruminations: Express Yourself

2006-03-09T17:19:00.000+08:00

No, this is not yet about the war.

This blog actually was made as part of the exercise for a seminar on blogging and podcasting called "Express Yourself," given by the wonderful people at the Friedrich Naumann Foundation's Manila Office. The day-long event saw the more than a dozen participants learn the principles and fundamentals of blogging.

I've been blogging since 2004, so I'm not exactly a beginner. But even old dogs can learn new tricks, and it's always nice to get a little bit of grounding on the conventions of a thing your doing.

Yes, I learned a lot, "experienced" blogger that I am. The coding part was the best.

In Frank Herbert's opus, Dune, he said that what made his main character, Paul Atreides, truly extraordinary was his mindset that he could learn. This is an important lesson that everyone should take to heart, whether you're in the virtual world or "RL." If you know you can learn - and that you're willing to learn even if you think you've done something before - then you will be surprised at how far you can really go.

Remembrances of our victories and defeats

2006-03-09T12:40:00.000+08:00

I've been playing Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Games (MMORPGs) since Ragnarok came about two or three years ago. A videogame addict since the Commodore 64 days, I just couldn't resist the lure of MMORPGs.

Last year, local MMORPG pioneer Level Up Games introduced the 3D sci-fi MMORPG Rising Force, and I got hooked. The graphics were wonderful, at par with the some of the better 3D RPGs in the market. The background music was also good, and the opening theme is reminiscent of the Final Fantasy series.

But most of all, it had a story. It wasn't just a hack-and-slash session. You weren't just there to make an online rehash of Diablo but to engage in a game that can turn serious and test your ethics as much as it would your tactical acumen.

This is an account of the war seen from my eyes, as one of the troops in the Union Army of the Bellato Federation. This is the story of our struggles, our strategies and tactics, of the tales of the major conflicts and the little ones in between. This is a tale of glory and survival, of victories and defeat.

If you think nothing serious can be got from a "simple" videogame, think again. Filipino gamers are a serious lot, and play with the same passion they do for real life. There are stories here worthy to be told; in any endeavor involving humanity, stories worth telling can always be found.

Glory to Freedom!