Whirlwind Month

Well, for having been back almost a whole month now, it was a fun whirlwind. I will just touch on a few of the fun points. Once my HUGE set of downloads got done, I logged in and Zira and I partied a bit in Qufim, where I met up with Chieftobique, and finally got my TL pearl that I was gonna pickup from Valark a ways back. Did a few ZMs with some of their members, and got to see Munei before she vanished at the end of February. Only time doing anything with her ingame, ironically, though having read most of her LJ entries and such, seems like more, haha!

Chief (MNK), Dasheem(DRG), and I (SMN) staticed for a bit early on, got from around 21-31, and schedules went kinda haywire, along with much camping of Mee Deggi. Served to remind me that I should really camp some things too.

Joined another semi-static with Bigpapa, Elianna, and Hutman, and it has been fun times for me being Monk and Samurai again there. So much going on with RL right now with trying to move, work, etc, that I lose track of things. I know there was much more here, please forgive me if I missed it!

Back...

Well, after being off the game around 9-10 months, I returned, and saw that some things are still the same, and some people I actually missed. So awwww to you all for being good people and such.

I'll try to get back into more writings at this time. Much thanks to Chieftobique and Dasheem for our fun static with SMN, MNK, and DRG while it lasted. Now...gotta go swipe Dash's DRG some more xp so he'll be caught back up, haha! Enjoying being finally able to be in TL, was supposed to meet up with Valark long ago before my vacation, but our times don't mesh too well. (Darn this 3rd shift job)

So hopefully I'll go back and finish that battle now, with a bit of the comedy that's happened in the game while I'm gone...sounds like a game plan.

Dust in the Wind - (Ch. 7)

Battle Music! -- Joe Satriani - Crushing Day

Thankfully, that wasn't all, and I prayed fervently as my mind began to think of the best way to remedy the situation. Murmuring softly, the darkness heeded my call as sleep overcame the group of warriors, except for their leader. "Now THAT'S more like it, the odds go back to my favor now pal," I laughed, slipping Genbu's Shield onto my arm as I surrounded myself with shadowy clones from the shihei.

However, the creature merely transformed in front of my eyes, his golden eyes glowing as he assumed a much more serpent-like appearance. "Then I guess it'sssss time to reveal myself, messssssenger..for what messenger daresssss to seek out the god of darknesssssss and the desssssert?" His forked tongue flicked incessantly as he hissed out all the S sounds in each word, a habit that I found quite annoying...I already dislike snakes enough on their own before their combination with gods, dark magic, or any of that!

The battle begun, as he cast out a hand, and warped his followers...somewhere. I didn't have much time to ponder their destination, however, as his movement speed in the sand was ridiculously fast in serpent form, and it was all I could do to parry the first of his blows, and the second shredded one of my clones. Although my landing the Gravity spell helped slightly, his quickness was still superior to my own, as he dodged my crescent kick with a backhand swipe of my blade with a laugh, "Time for some of your own medicine, Aspir!" The darkness felt like a boiling acid ripping through my soul, as I felt my mana slipping away, and quickly...perhaps this truly was a god of Darkness.

But...darkness can't help you with THIS, I thought as I focused upon the winds to silence the creature. To my dismay, a forceful whip of a tail crashed into my chest, sending my flying over the sand and into a rock wall! I bounced off it, but as I went to stand, a medium boulder landed on my back, half-burying me into the desert itself. "Oh, that was SO un-graceful," I muttered, hating to waste my little precious mana on it, but inciting a thunderbolt to shatter the rock so that I could rise again.

Looking up, it had paused to begin to drain the remaining mana out of me, and with my health as low as it was, I decided I didn't have time to think, acting on pure instinct, my aura lighting up as time itself bent to my will, Cure IV remedying my injuries as Silence and Bind followed in near simultaneous succession before the serpent could react and approach. "Enough of this..." I closed my eyes but for a moment, feeling my mana replenish and my body grow weary, and marking a divine seal quickly on the ground, felt my body fully recover as I cast another Cure IV upon myself.

"Cheap parlor tricks are not the mark..." it laughed as it broke the hold of the silence, but that was all it managed before a powerful Flood washed it back into the tunnel. I spun around to see Eckardt and Val standing behind me. Eck tipped his Turban as I threw a refresh on him as well, and followed with a Thunder spell to the Creature, sparks cracking part of the wall down on him as well.

Val was the first to speak, "Titan told us what was going on, and of course we got here soon as we could...Could tell something was wrong just by the massive amounts of Antica stationed outside. Malu and some others from another realm are holding their own, but the ants don't seem to run out of reinforcements."

Eckardt added, "Of course, I also dropped that note to Doc, and he's 'rallying the troops' again, so I suspect there will be a genocide of Antica happening shortly, but for now, uhhh...that thing doesn't look to happy, and it just picked up that huge boulder that fell on it. What are we fighting, anyway?"

I could only smile at my old friends, "The god of desert and darkness, apparantly. Sutekh, the one from the South. I hope the others get here soon. Val, watch those blades of his, they have some hellacious effects on them," I chided, giving her the blessing of Protect and Shell, while my Phalanx II wrapped her in its holy protection. "Just like old times," I said softly, time returning to its own flow around me after hasting the entire group and quaffing a Hi-Ether.

Southern Winds (Ch. 6)

Soundtrack – Breaking Benjamin - Blow Me Away

I teleported out to the heated sands of Altepa, a deserted wasteland that was a far cry from the lush wilderness and harmony that once prospered there. It was now full of dunes and the underground communities of the Antica. I tried speaking with some of the nomad tribes about the Sutekh warriors, but they were all extremely tight-lipped and wouldn't even mention a general direction. They looked panicked as if an arrow might fly out of nowhere to silence them were they to even attempt to speak to me.

It wasn’t long before I’d exhausted my options seeking information from them so I rode out from Rabao, and headed to see one of the Terrestrial Avatars, Lord Titan, guardian of the earth element. Now, one thing you will learn about Titan is that he doesn’t like to wear clothes much…and walks around in an insipid thong that really inspires me to cast a Blind spell upon myself!

As I approached the large crystal where the avatar slumbered, I couldn’t help but notice the shadows that seemed to slip along the walls, and the shiver that ran up my spine. Something was near. Something POWERFUL. As I murmured to refresh my armor, the creatures emerged around me, powerful figures that appeared to be a fusion of Hume and Scorpion! One in particular stood out, wielding a pair of gleaming scimitars, one with emerald inlay, and one with black pearl. Instinctively, I knew this had to be one of the Sutekh warriors, who'd probably found out from the nomads that I was looking for them. Joy. Always good to be on your own turf, right?

His aura was cloaked in a dark shield, and it was then I realized that the only way out was through all of them. The odds of one on 5 didn't exactly look promising once I felt the power emanating from the black pearl in the hilt sear into my aura, melting away my stoneskin; the armor of the winds abandoned me as well, but I realized it just in time for me to spin and parry the blow from the other blade with my own. Not too bad, I thought to myself, as the other creatures closed in as well...

Balance and Love (Ch. 5)

Soundtrack - Alicia Keys - A Woman's Worth

Returning to the realm of the Wind Goddess, I gathered my belongings and prepared for what could be a long time away from home. I spoke with my friends and family and let them know that I was being summoned away. They seemed to understand, but I knew at that point there was much more I needed to learn before I could even consider revealing the whole story.

A convenient portal was waiting for me in the Metalworks, where Master Engineer Cid placed a hand on my shoulder. "Guan, you've got a journey before you that I would've hated when I was your age. Better you than me, son." I couldn't help but laugh and smile at the man, who had done so very much for the city of Bastok, and wonder how exactly he seemed to know everything that was going on regardless of where it happened.

"I need to get your spy network, Cid-sama. I am never unimpressed by the span of your influence." We shared a knowing glance, and he watched as the portal began to envelop me.

"May Death find you well, Guan." The familiar salute brought his hand to his chest as a Bastokan send off.

"And return my body to my homeland," came my reply, returning the salute as I vanished from the realm of the Wind Goddess again, appearing on an elegant windswept plain...that was devoid of a breeze. "Irony," I thought to myself as I headed toward the direction that I was naturally drawn.

The palace shimmered where it stood, like a crystal and hematite spell, inlaid with marble flooring. I was almost afraid to touch it for fear of breaking something and having the walls come crashing down around me. Hematite wasn't really known for its durability, you know! I'tedaal waited there, elegant in her strapless ice blue gown, stark contrast to the colors of the room. "Welcome Guan, I am going to keep this short and to the point, just your style." Her smile seemed gentle, but I noted there was almost a malice behind her soft petaled lips.

Before I could ponder what that bitterness might coming from, she continued, "Love is a vicious and jealous mistress. She will not see her own flaws before she passes an unfair judgment to those with her; when she does realize these same flaws, she will find ways that they are justified. She has been twisted by the darkness of the society and has become somewhat of a project for it to lead astray. She is like a fallen avatar in a sense, that the elemental messengers have been unable to reconcile with her natural way of being. This job now falls upon you since you have accepted the mission assigned to you from the universe."

I nodded, "It doesn't sound that bad really, does it? I help people, set the elements right, and make love pure once again in the world." No, it didn't sound bad at all...but it sounded like something I was totally unqualified to do. Even my will and power wasn't strong enough to overcome all the darkness of the realms, if it had corrupted Love herself, I worried. Dealing with the Shadow Lord, Kirin, or even Hydra was one thing...but this was a beast that couldn't be harmed by blade or spell, nor even debuffed. Confronting it directly would be like standing in front of a charging Behemoth and just seeing how much impact it would make. Not the brightest of ideas.

I'tedaal smiled, and before I even blinked she was right beside me; her voice had a venomous edge to it that compelled me to be silent and listen motionlessly, "Know that everything you come to care for, she will smile as it is lost to you, Guan. This is her revelry in the darkness, where Love has made her domain. If you take this path, you will find pain. A crystal is held by the warriors of Sutekh in the lands of Altepa, a place I understand you are quite familiar with. Go there first, and I will only warn you this once, Guan Kim. Shield your heart, lest it be wrenched painfully from your chest."

How Destiny Dreams (Ch. 4)

Soundbytes: Three Days Grace - Wake Up

Keeping my Joyeuse at my side, I nodded. “Quite kind of you actually. Thank you muchly.” Something is wrong with this picture, I thought to myself. Most often, I could estimate an opponent’s skills and feel their power with a look in their eyes, but this being was impossible to gauge!

“I’m I'tedaal, Keeper of Balance.” As black silken locks fell from under the helm, the voice softened as well to a soft feminine tone, “And that would make you Guan, who is about to travel to the realms of Vana'wrap." She put away the scythe and smiled, though there was something deeper to it. It wasn't a welcoming smile or a greeting, it was a knowing smile. TOO knowing.

"Vana...'wrap? I think you fell on those lovely dark tresses of yours, dear, this is Vana'DIEL, and well, I'm already here, so no need to get further here." I smiled in return, and guided my blade back to my side as well. "But anyway, I'..Ite...m'lady. What does you being a keeper of balance have to do with the urge to swing that farming tool towards my head?" I suddenly had a not-so-random craving for a chicken crunch wrap from Taco Bell. Gee, wonder where that came from...

"It means that I'm here as a messenger of the One, the master of the universe."

"He-Man!?!"

"No, you moron, the being who created all that is."

"Oh, you're preaching that Altana and Promathia theory again...?" I sighed...apparently I didn't pay the priests well enough, or else I'd committed some sort of unspeakable sin.

She suddenly laughed out of nowhere, the lilt carried across the mountains and I wondered if that was her meaning of balance...anger then peace, spite then compassion, hate then love. "Ah my dear boy, they are but young ones compared to the One. They're my children, nothing like what you'll be working with now."

"Maybe sane then psycho should be added to that list," I thought. I nodded, and bowed to the crazy person, "Then I think I should really be getting to work, take care, and see you again!" With that, I quickly cast warp, and found myself in front of a very familiar Mog House. "Enough insanity for the day...time to get a nap before heading up to duel Byakko and Kirin," I mused, heading inside to rest.

"Welcome to your Mog House, kupo!" The chipper moogle beamed at me.

"Any new deliveries, Kapo? You wouldn't believe the weird event that just happened," I started to explain, reaching to grab my reraise earrings from the locker where I'd left them. "And do you know what I did with my earrings, I could've sworn I left them in the locker yesterday."

"Yesterday, kupo? This is the first time you've been here, Master. I was about to explain how Mog Houses work to you." The moogle's antenna drooped as it seemed confused. "And I'm not Kapo, I'm Kipipu."

Just as I was thinking it was going to be a long day, a voice spoke inside my mind. "You may not have believed I'tedi...I'tedo... the Keeper of Balance, but maybe you'll believe me. I was the jar of marmalade that spoke to you earlier today as well."

"Damn you tasted good, hate I dropped you, sorry about that." I threw away the thought of a crunchwrap in hopes of a marmalade sandwich now.

"No..I wasn't the..." The One sighed, "Never mind. What's important is that you are to be my messenger of Love. And no, you won't have a specialty like some of the other messengers, because love needs to be able to adapt to the person it needs to help. You could be all things, you just have to prepare yourself. That is why we wanted to choose a red mage."

"So you drag me off here to randomly go around finding people and helping them live happily ever after or something?? That is mighty cliche of you."

"We offer a good benefits package?"

"Oh, for feck's sake..."

"I'm KIDDING, you know, haha? Gods can joke too you know, just ask Genbu."

"You sure you didn't mean BE a joke?"

"Well, you have a point. However, my point is that you're not just to make them live happily ever after. Sometimes you'll have to do the harder things, like help them deal with reality when all they want to do is hide away. You have to know TRUE love. To be kind is sometimes to be harsh. Such why I sent... Balance to speak with you. This is a step beyond the destiny I created for you, if you will accept it. Love is dying, her last messenger fell to the deceptions and mistrusts, and no others would step forward. Will you help her?"

I sighed, sensing the desperate times in the world, and merely nodded my head. Alright, look, what do you expect me to do when the one who created the one who created the ones who created us asks for help in keeping the world together? Love isn't such a bad thing, maybe I'd even find it for myself one day.

Dreams of Destiny (Ch. 3)

Your soundtrack: Destiny - Stratoverius (Probably misspelled)

The cool mist wrapped around me like a velvet glove as I tussled with my cloak in my sleep. Something was wrong, the dreams didn't stop, even when I woke...

"Guan, you have to go, this is your destiny, stop trying to hide from the truth and listen to me!" Was this a turtle that was talking to me now? Geez, maybe I needed a doctor...or just to hit myself. Too much revelry apparently makes Guan a very confused person. I was still dreaming, must've killed the alarm again. Damn those easy to cast thunder spells. I sighed, rolling out of bed and heading to the locker to pull something out for breakfast. Hmmmm, cranberry marmalade with some bagels, sounds like a plan.

"A much better plan would be to go to the shrine and pay attention," said the jar of marmalade, which I promptly dropped, and it shattered on the floor, much to my moogle, Kaporegi's, chagrin. "See, you won't be making sense until you resolve this, you know what you need to do."

As Kapo looked at me questioningly, I simply asked, "I suppose you didn't hear that, did you?" The poor moogle shook his head, and I nodded, turning and heading back to my room, "If I'm not back in a week, let the Warriors know that I might not be returning for me, and feel free to distribute my things."

"But Master, you can't just leave that way, they need your help to train!" Kapo was always so sensible and energetic, and I admit was a reason I was able to maintain my sanity in the recent weeks that this had been going on.

"Tell Masters Kenshin and Doc what is going on. I'm sure that they'll probably know more about it than I do, but I'm going to this mystic shrine now...we'll see what happens from there." I bowed my head to my old friend, and vanished into the thick darkness that enveloped my room. The only beacon from within - a small solitary flame of a crimson cinnamon-scented candle that Tess gave me long ago, and that I used for meditation. I sat on my zabuton and breathed in deeply, focusing my spirit towards its origins, and traveled.

I ducked to the side just in time to save the feather from being sliced off my hat by a scythe's swing intended to decapitate me. "Ah, lucky for me Dark Knights can't aim worth a damn." Of course, I was in such a rush to move I didn't have buffs cast, "Very bad RDM form," I thought to myself, and cast Gravity on the being, my Auster's Staff coming easily into my hands as I unleashed the spell and dashed back out of its range and adding the barrage of armors that I'd studied, and a Barsilence just for good measure while listening to the speech with pretty much disinterest. The typical I'm so-and-so and I'm here to kill you had gotten old by this part, but when I tuned back in, fully buffed, I hear:

"That would imply you think me a simple Dark Knight. I'm a composite, just like you are, Guan." A small smile seemed to come to the creature's face, though it was mostly shadowed by helm and armor. "Do you want me to repeat it for you now that you're paying attention?"

The Tale of the Heart's Blood (Ch. 2)

And the soundtrack for today's story -- Nightwish - Ever Dream

This is when I met Tessah, who to this day remains one of very few women that come hell or high water, if she needed me, I would drop what I was doing and teleport to her aid without question of my own welfare, no shove from the One needed. She brought a fresh perspective of life to me, and let me see that just perhaps, the One above really does know what they're doing. Faith wasn't something meant to be tossed away at a whim, especially when one has already seen the truth of the matter. That was why she had taken up the path of the healer. Later, the avatars spoke to her and she surpassed all her limits as a summoner before embarking the way of the Corsair, which is where we reunited for a while, joining together for a powerful refreshing combination to parties with COR & RDM through the higher levels of battle. Now that our times have shifted again, I still miss her from time to time, like when you look over your shoulder expecting to see a shadow but find nothing, there is a hollow in my heart that I have come to accept there, in lieu of the pain one might expect.

During my journies, I think the One decided to show me another shard of light when I met Vally. She's a tall Elvaan with bright sparkling eyes, silver hair, and a smile that I swear is everpresent. Always a cheerful word, and one of the most selfless people that I've ever met. I try to dig up things that she would enjoy and volunteer to do them, since it's rare for her to ask for anything for herself. I think my times with her have been a personal meditative solitude in a way, just a sense of peacefulness that I've never known before. I'm just glad she shared her heart with me these times, and allowed my song to borrow her grace. And now...times changed again, and we rarely get to see each other anymore, another hollow to absorb the pain that refuses to exist.

I could spin you tales of the people I've met, the hearts I've seen, the deceptions that I've witnessed both of self and others... Ultimately, it would all boil down to just a being trying to make the right decisions, knowing that there are people in need, and being willing to change and go with that feeling wherever it may summon him. But somewhere in this spiraling tale lies the center of me, and that, dear reader, is the path we now travel.

I got the Magic Stick!

And geez, that's an old reference to a funny song. But it suits my BLU well, just Bludgeoning things to oblivion. I went out partying with Eckardt and Verrick, planning to either find a party, or just trio RNG/NIN/BLU. So we rode out to Yhoator Jungle, and took on some mandragoras. We were probably SLIGHTLY underlevel with some 26's in the party, but I was being lazy and would rather just struggle a bit and then make it rather than have to move shortly after. And besides, it lets me get all spammy on my BLU spells to try to kill quicker, which in the beginning was slow going unless I had a good chunk of MP. Made me very wishful that I wasn't helping main heal with a BLM, but our SMN didn't want to main heal, just backup only. The BLM kinda took main healing so I could BLU spam into the Mandies, and I'd take over a bit to let him unleash a powerful spell too...it was crazy at first, but then it picked up up once we were all 27-28, got up to chain 4s I think...so I was content. Sadly at the end, I did my (now famous) move, and fell asleep. ((Long days just kick my arse, although at least this one wasn't after a double shift!))

Next night, I went hunting BLU spells as BLU/NIN. Perhaps BLU/WHM might've gone better, though. First Gigas I fought in Qufim seeking Grand Slam went down no problem. The second one...Well, it wasn't a monk mob, but damn if it didn't hit like one!!! Its Double Attack triggered five times in a row, and with only Ichi, I couldn't keep up. Tried to stun via Head Butt, but it missed both times, and interrupts baned, and alas, defeat ensued. A passing BLM/WHM dropped me a raise, and as I was healing up, Eck stopped by, and then, it was time for vengeance! Haha!

Fought another Gigas with Eck there to help out, and learned Grand Slam on the first try....too bad I didn't learn it on the FIRST first try, heh. But Eck mentions there are a couple others in the area we could get, so sure! Time to grab a couple others it was: Leapt into Lower Delkfutt's Tower and fought some bat triplets, from which I gleaned the knowledge of Jet Stream from the third bat also! Then it was time for some Dancing Weapons outside again along the bone ramp. They took a while more...I was feeling kinda like a slow stupid mage at that point, but finally deciphered the pattern to cast their Smite of Rage. Eck stayed a bit and helped me ding 30 since I was around 800 from it after the death, which let me equip the joy of Wild Carrot! So now the /WHM isn't as imperative, at least, and I can shadow and heal solo. I could really get addicted to this job, it's just insanely fun!

Also, Wights are squishy to Bludgeon, so if I need to catch up, that's my targets!

Spiraling sands

((It's been a busy RL month, meaning less busy in the fun world of Vana'diel! Overtime is good for some things, though, so I can't complain TOO hard.))

Going to rummage through my memory bank here and see what we come up with...Last night, went and fought Garuda, and ended up with this spiffy dagger:
Now I need to fight her, Ramuh, and Fenrir to get their Evoker's Ring items and be done with that quest! And Fenrir maybe in the works next couple of days, dun dun DUN!

Got RNG up to level 29 now through a fun party at Yuhtunga Jungle (May upload some pics later if I remember), where I had the joy of partying with 4 SMNs and 1 BRD, and I basically pulled, and tried not to rip TOO much hate away from the Diaboloses and Shiva and Fenrirs that came about to play while I felt very....small! Thanks for Lorddocster, Fullen, Blueeyedbeauty, Fey, and Basara for having me. ^^ And I managed to almost use up all the arrows Verrick had given me, as well as all of my bullets. Yay for space, Boo for knowing I need to buy more, hehe!

Eck and I did a bit of partying with our duo of my BLU and his NIN, and then got a bit of XP back with RDM & BLM on princes for a while...and another day on pudding camp with a party. RDM/BRD is fun, but it's just busy!!!

I had the most fun in the game I'd had in a long time. Doing what, you ponder? Well, I went 31 SAM and Val brought her 30(?) BLM, and we duo'ed giants, bats, and whatever else up Delkfutt's tower way, then went out and hit Rolanberry fields for some more fun of the same lines! Now mind you, it wasn't uber experience or anything, but it was FUN!, the xp wasn't our top priority.

Assaults: Did some Assaults the other day on an off-chance shout from someone I can't remember their name, old friend of Jai's from GYS. Their name was SOMETHING like Itsuki or something. Eck probably has a s/s of it from doing Evade and Escape, and can comment and I'll change this paragraph later, haha!

My WHM static continued, with Kenshinshiro as SAM, Zirasharia as RDM, and three pickups per party, and got to almost 63. Did a bit of partying at the Valley of Sorrows along the way, as well as through the fun of the Ayd{tab} (lol, I can never spell that zone) fighting some of the crawler mobs, got a sapling mobs for S&Gs, though those buggers are NOT fun, and had a good time all around. would've moved, but since half the party was leaving in around 30m, we just finished up there and then left for the night.

I managed to get THF caught back up to static, and getting TH2 in the process. Ironically, I now should take it farming since i'm quite broke. Sounds like a plan to get it up again since I will probably miss next static night as well. ;;

PLD and WAR to 37 for max sub level...but that went down the sands of time some kinda way. One of these (I'm thinking WAR?) partied with Alcindor when he invited me to a party just after another group. That went rather well, quick enough to decline the other invite in a polite (cheesy) way without getting drama central, haha! I end up tanking as PLD (obviously) but also as WAR, so I think I merge the parties in the memory. The other one I partied with Kenshinshiro after getting to a point where my COR (33) wasn't enough kick-power to kill things without risking deaths, I changed to PLD to alleviate some of the pain our party was experiencing. Hopefully the sands don't cough more.

Sweet Dreams

Recently, I've been traveling with Lorddocster, one of the fearless leaders of our LordsofHydra LS, a lot. LoH is affectionately known as the Starbucks of Garuda, for we cover everything imaginable with a different flavor of linkshell. Dynamis, Limbus, Salvage, Social...there's a shell for everything, and some great people in it. And when hanging with this group, there's always fun times to go around! So here we go on a short whirlwind tour of my past weeks.

A) We had a couple of LS members that I partied with my COR, and drug it up to 33. I'm seriously thinking of being the "purely support" COR from now on if I level, going COR/WHM, like I did to start out that party due to lacking healers. Those bullets are just too costly with my currently financial status. Sounds like I need to do lots more BCNM runs to get some funding going! Limbus = broke Guan, despite 30k prices. T.T That leads into the fact that

B) I Started doing Limbus, and where else? Right home with LoH. Of course. :P Had a nice first runthrough for me, no RDM af item drops, but we got the win and the Omega piece, so all was well ^^

C) The terrestrial avatar of dreams, Diabolos, had long been summoning me to see him, so we took a group to oblige. I knew Eck had been wanting a round with him as well, so I coaxed him away from his RDM party (I'm sure they hated me for stealing their refresher xD) to come BLM with us. Our setup? BLM/(RDM/WHM) x3, NIN/WAR, WHM/BLM, RDM/DRK. I was all hyper when this went down, as it was one of my first major chances to Chainspell Stun something into oblivion!!! And that's very much what happened. Talk about a breeze, no one got injured at all!!! The BLMs opened with AM2, and upon landing, I unleashed the chainspell stun barrage while everyone unloaded on the sleepy one, who didn't get a single move off that I could tell. I really felt like I was one of the key parts of that plan, it was such a good feeling being able to be that useful for a mission in totally nullifying some wicked effects rather than purely the support role a RDM usually takes.


D) Running about, hoping to start duo'ing BLM with someone there, it's currently at 47, and would like to duo at LEAST to 50 to get freeze, which would help a lot with being able to solo pet things BLM/NIN.

E) Now that Divine Might's out of the way, and I have a shiny new Suppanomimi, looking forward to heading on towards the Storms of Fate. Those sound like great fun, and I can't help but wonder if there will be a tie-in to those from the ToAU storyline like where RotZ and CoP merged for requirements.

F) Went to sky and helped grab some pop items and beat down a turtle god...He appeased us with a decent set of drops, Kabuto (Grats Fullen), Hands abj (Grats Lordesequiel), a shield, which I got to toy with now and tank RDM/BLM, hahahahaha!


G) Started working on a compilation story that's being told on various forums...when I get a few chapters into it, I may begin posting it on the blogs here as well.

One full month later...

...but yes, I haven't died...well, twice knocked silly while running around as a samurai, mind you, but nay, I still exist. My times are quite...skittish recently, and between a combination of overtime and other menial tasks, the adventuring that I have been doing is quite little. So you get a small blog as well with basically a list of recap things that I don't have much time to describe. Gee, how kind to the journal I am, ne?

1) Went with LoH to kill for Diorite, later came to help kill Genbu and Kirin. Sadly, the other sky days, didn't get to go play with the other gods. ; ;
2) Got all jobs up to a minimum of level 20, a step on the mini-goal of clearing lower level gear from my MH clutter. Not being able to login at regular times really adds to the incentive of just grabbing a small job and soloing or going with a few friends, though.
3) Ran about getting Kazham keys for three people, which proved to be not as time-consuming as I remembered, even going RDM/WHM for the easy teleportation, there are a lot of new people joining Garuda, it makes for interesting times.
4) I was invited to a wedding! This should be great fun, Elianna and Bigpapa are having a traditional Tarutaru wedding, so in the meantime, I'm going to help with a Bachelor's party or something. Hmmm, but where to go for that...Seeing how Whitegate is lag central, unless the Hostel gets separated from that (ie instanced), not interested in that slow zone. Valkurm, perhaps.
5) Did some Hakutaku fighting, and realized that I need to adjust my mules and line things up, so I will probably have to take a whole day just to do that. My MH, ML, and ST are all cluttered. There's a new (at least to me) item called "9-Drawer Almirah" that gives 7 storage spaces each! That's almost double from the cabinet layout that I was using for mine. Maybe if I can gather enough of those for all my mules to have 80 storage, then I can adjust my own setup to assist more with Goldsmithing, a bit of lightning or Fire depending on what I'm crafting at the time.
6) Just last night, had a fun run of Assaults with the old GYS crew, so that brings me up to 10/25 for next promotion, I really haven't been doing those recently, shame on me, I know.
7) Tried to go skilling with Eck for old times' sake, but I fell asleep in the middle of fighting a Steelshell! ><; Orz, sorry about that Eck ><; Thanks for the D2 when you finished it off, I was dead to the world apparantly, thought I'd have an hour left in me with the aid of the drink, guess not.