RPG Character Quiz

The What D&D Character Am I? Quiz

I Am A: Neutral Good Elf Wizard (6th Level)


Ability Scores:

Strength-8

Dexterity-9

Constitution-9

Intelligence-16

Wisdom-16

Charisma-13


Alignment:
Neutral Good A neutral good character does the best that a good person can do. He is devoted to helping others. He works with kings and magistrates but does not feel beholden to them. Neutral good is the best alignment you can be because it means doing what is good without bias for or against order. However, neutral good can be a dangerous alignment when it advances mediocrity by limiting the actions of the truly capable.


Race:
Elves are known for their poetry, song, and magical arts, but when danger threatens they show great skill with weapons and strategy. Elves can live to be over 700 years old and, by human standards, are slow to make friends and enemies, and even slower to forget them. Elves are slim and stand 4.5 to 5.5 feet tall. They have no facial or body hair, prefer comfortable clothes, and possess unearthly grace. Many others races find them hauntingly beautiful.


Class:
Wizards are arcane spellcasters who depend on intensive study to create their magic. To wizards, magic is not a talent but a difficult, rewarding art. When they are prepared for battle, wizards can use their spells to devastating effect. When caught by surprise, they are vulnerable. The wizard's strength is her spells, everything else is secondary. She learns new spells as she experiments and grows in experience, and she can also learn them from other wizards. In addition, over time a wizard learns to manipulate her spells so they go farther, work better, or are improved in some other way. A wizard can call a familiar- a small, magical, animal companion that serves her. With a high Intelligence, wizards are capable of casting very high levels of spells.


Find out What Kind of Dungeons and Dragons Character Would You Be?, courtesy of Easydamus (e-mail)

Portal (Puzzler game) free until May 24th!

I received this message from a friend recently, read it yesterday, and after getting set up I spent quite awhile playing it last night. Haven't seen anything family unfriendly as yet (and I am on level 15 of 19). You have to download the Steam browser to get it, but this is also free AND they have some other free games once you do. Steam has an excellent rep on the net, so that part doesn't concern me. btw Portal isn't really a shooter. You only 'shoot' where your portal goes on the wall or floor, and knock over a robot or two. This video explains, though its a lot more hectic-looking than anything I have seen in Portal yet ;-)

EDIT:: Got to level 16 (finally) and it suddenly got rougher. You have to avoid these robots..and when you don't you see your character's blood splattered on the walls :(    So...to level 15 its pretty much kid safe.



The other free games are listed here:  There's a racing game and a real-time strategy thingy, and a version of the casual classic, Peggle. Please note that while the usual versions of Peggle are safe for all ages, the free 'Extreme Peggle' Steam offers has 'scary monster' graphics added. IMHO the worst is the opening scene with something apparently trying to eat the unicorn's head. Gave me an extra grin given my recent blog post....


Anyway-

You will notice a mention of Nvidia & ATI card games on the post...both get the same freebies aside from Portal...which used to give half of the game only to Nvidia people.


http://www.steampowered.com/nvidia/

OR

http://www.steampowered.com/ati_offer1a/
 

If you have an NVidia graphics card, you might want to pick up your Nvidia special first if you care about the Half Life 2 episodes. The current free Portal promotion seems to be making things a little more complicated for some folks.

First impressions are that most of Steam's free games are PG-ish, and/or guy-centric...but I felt Portal was worth the trouble. It really is a fun thinking game.  :-D

Nancy Drew Tale of the Twister Play Now! | HerInteractive

Play Now! | HerInteractive

My family loves adventure games, and has been following the Nancy Drew titles for years now. I thought this trailer looked fun.

Zelda gets to play!

Okay..so I already mentioned on Facebook that Muzzled - the 3rd episode of the Wallace & Gromit adventure series is free this weekend on the TellTale site (its free through Nov 9th)

AND that all their seasons are $20 through Nov 9th - almost half off!

Still...not everybody who reads this blog, reads my Facebook page, so while I apologize for the repetitions, I felt it worth mentioning once again. ;)

After looking into the Telltale goodies...I checked another email and found more video gaming wonderfulness - if you're a Zelda fan, anyway. The upcoming Zelda: Spirit Tracks looks very promising, as far as gameplay goes. Its about time Zelda got a turn alongside Link.

I am very happy Nintendo has continued the Wind Waker world. IMNSHO The Wind Waker is as iconic as Ocarina of Time or Legend of Zelda: Link to the Past. Its my personal favorite. Since I've been a fan of the Zelda series since the first game, I feel that's saying something. I just wish they would make a Wii version with the original cel-shaded look of the first game. Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass suffered a bit for being shrunk to DS size. The trailer suggests Spirit Tracks is going to be just the same. If the game is good enough, this is forgivable. Honestly, it was that irritating timed main labyrinth...which you had to start from the very beginning EVERY TIME that ruined Phantom Hourglass for me (and MANY others, according to the reviews)...and even that lead balloon didn't get too heavy until I was more than halfway (maybe 2/3) through it. I was happily immersed for some time in the ship challenges & little islands quests. Phantom Hourglass was quite fun aside from that one central dungeon. Hopefully they won't repeat that error...and since its the same team & pattern, I feel quite hopeful that Spirit Tracks will be a keeper.

Video Games | Zelda: Spirit Tracks | Exclusive Zelda's Secret Trailer HD

XBox 360 | Playstation 3 | Nintendo Wii

Where'd I go?

I just realized how badly I've neglected this blog since being talked into joining Facebook. Don't get me wrong, I also neglect my Facebook page quite a lot. lol It has, however, been a getting a lot more of my blog time than I figured it would.

I've been offline mostly. DH is still healing slowly but surely. I finished those crochet ponchos for the other family members just in time for the cooling weather (My Mom finished mine. :) I also sewed some pillow cases (some I embroidered) and I made a few clothes. We're back into homeschooling, of course...and tis the season for some family birthdays. No matter how much is made or found for those, it all takes time. Maybe I will get some pictures up soon of some of my recent crafts. I've been meaning do that too. heh

We actually have some fall weather this year! I am LOVING it. Usually its late November before we have many 'cocoa' days, but we have had a number of mildly chilly days since early October. The leaves are just gorgeous. I've been too busy to get many pictures, sadly, but perhaps DH or DD have gotten some extra I can share. We'll see.

and then there's how I spend my 'free' time... I think I admitted to playing Legends of Zork awhile back. Its still free and still family friendly. I still like it, and check in occasionally, though its seeming a tad repetitive now. Wish they would add other gameplay bits sometime this year...

Years ago, a number of online friends recommended a free online game to me called "Kingdom of Loathing," and lately another group of friendly acquaintances talked me into giving it a whirl. Its turned out to be a very amusing rpg, but not precisely family-friendly fare given its emphasis on alcohol use, its moderated -but largely unfiltered- chat room (optional), and a number of PG - PG 13 refs.

They do keep the naughtiness down a bit. I'd say KoL is on par with, say, a COPS 2.0 episode. Its a little more restrained than current prime time dramas, but not nearly as family friendly as Funniest Home Videos. Maybe that will help you decide if its in your comfort zone. Its pushing mine at times, and after too many hours watching TV with my recovering spouse (especially in hospital rooms where we didn't have that much program control) I am a lot less sensitive than I was during the years we chose not to have cable.

I had planned to finish the story, at least, but - honestly- I am already having trouble fitting it in anywhere. There have been enough references to classic games in the RPG & adventure genres that I was looking forward to spotting the next allusions. I have enjoyed much of the humor too. In fact this game has a lot of the fun of the old text adventures, given that most of its 'graphics' are actually silly descriptions. Who knew you could have so much fun with stick figures?

and..oh yes, we've still got a number of irons in the fire in other directions too, as some of you may remember. I don't care to announce those until I am finally ready to show you something substantial. November is now writer's month, and that's where I am concentrating my other efforts....when I can find the time. In the interim, I recommend some lovely cocoa.

Monkey Island has returned!

Started playing the first Wii episode and - so far- it is great! Looked it up on the Tell-Tale games site and got even better news. Hope you enjoy this widget heralding the remake of Monkey Island 1. There is even sword-fighting insult mini-game. Oh I hope they make a DS version of this !:)))

replaying RPGs

I still do replay my old favorites, especially old RPGs...the old consoles retire upstairs and those that have the best game music to sleep by get played the most. DH especially likes that aspect after surgeries.

On my handheld I am finishing replaying Chronotrigger. Finally found the new DS content. Wuzzah! Also currently finishing an umpteenth replay of Lufia 1 - I'd love to play Lufia 2 again but its been a real buzzard about deleting saved games about halfway in. Not something I'd complain to Nintendo about- I have had these SNES cartridges for what, 15 years? Anyway - Becka & I are working on ways to realistically get a ROM playing on the elderly thrice-fried tv upstairs so he can listen to this unreliable old fav.

In the last months I have replayed Replayed Paper Mario 1 & 2, Mario Sunshine, & all the older Zeldas to completion except Seasons/Oracles (he didn't like the music after a bit)...and the end of Majora's Mask because I was too tense with it. [I have the GBA & orig Gameboy connectors for the SNES & Gamecube so those can be played on the tv.]

Fav RPGs:: Chronotrigger, Mario & Luigi Superstar Saga 1 & 2, Final Fantasy III, IV, & VI (SNES FF3) , Paper Mario 1 & 2, Super Mario Legend of the Seven Stars (you can now get it again on Wii virtual console W00t!!), Lufia 1 & 2 (the translations are so bad they're funny), Link...almost counts, Illusion of Gaia, & Breath of Fire (I think. There's one cartridge that hasn't worked in years. I seem to remember liking it.)

Just a little note to keep the blog from looking abandoned until I have more time :)

City of Ember fun

Its another slow day, with my kitty peacefully sitting on my toes. We don't do much with Columbus Day remembrances anyway, having long had doubts about whether he was more famous or infamous. DS is still adjusting to the new braces. The black powder event was pretty empty when we went by yesterday, so we went to the library instead - which seems to be much better run these days btw. I remember ranting about how they were, but hadn't told you what happened when a necessary bathroom break sent my family in to talk to them again. So far, they've been as good as their word- and the collection is MUCH better than I remembered.

Went by the City of Ember site (deciding whether we want to see it). I've been a sucker for (non-horror) cave people stories since:
1) missing numerous field trips to area caves while growing up. I was sick every single time we were supposed to go!
2) high school study projects, where I was in one of those experimental programs that had me roaming the stacks at the local uni more weeks than not- and afterward I spent time exploring left out resources their collection happened to have. As a former homeschooler I was more than happy to educate myself far beyond scholastic requirements. [grin] Some manuscripts were quite rare and included copies of documents stored since the French Revolutionary era - (minutes of the Committee' etc). Among the more fascinating bits was a collection of reports about 'cave people' who had supposedly come up all over Europe (from France to Germany, England, Gibraltar, and even Turkey!) Some were probably recent hideouts from the Terror, but other reports were positively intriguing. None of the adults in these reports survived for long after 'returning'? to the surface - but some of the children did adapt. Oddly, several were reported as having to learn the local language - but seemed to be speaking an unknown tongue of their own. A few told stories of a now lost civilization deep within the Earth that had suffered some kind of recent disaster. Several Native American tribes also told stories of living underground for a time. Were these all fairy tales? Possibly, since none of it has been proved aside from the comparatively shallow cave cities of Turkey, but the stories inspired Jules Verne and many after him - and apparently inspired the makers of Zork & Myst too. (at least secondhand. Once images enter the public imagination they take on a life of their own.)

Millions have been enchanted by the fascinating idea of a hidden city deep underground, safe from outside troubles, but challenged by their limited land and from the darkness within the hearts of mankind. The old stories still intrigue me too, so I took a look into the latest rendition, curious to see which of the classic tales or games this one would resemble most. So far the synopsis suggests neither Zork nor Verne. Ember's storyline (as written in the official synopsis and on Wikipedia) reminds me of several Dr Who storylines, old Star Trek episodes, Wall-E, and (faintly) of Logan's Run - but without 'lastday' and other violent Huxley-ish overtones. I guess I've read and seen too much fantasy & scifi works to find it original. But who knows, it might be reasonable to watch. Still haven't decided.


At the site, I played a couple of puzzle games - one based on ye olde "Pipe Dreams" and the other on the ever popular 'flip all the Switches on' challenge - used in so many adventure, rpg, and platformer games that it'd be difficult to list them all (Spyro 2, Mario 7 Stars, Lufia, etc etc). Maybe you'll enjoy them for a few minutes. Yeah, I'm still a puzzler at heart. :)

A Little Hidden Object fun

Right now Viqua games is graciously allowing all and sundry to make their own Hidden Object game screens. You just input a background picture of your choosing and add objects to click from their inventory. Its easy & fun.

Here's the 2nd Hidden Object minigame I put together using a family photo. Its got lots of shiny treasure. ^_^



Thanks to Brown-Eyed Tiger & Stellaluna

Getting fit for the new school year

Okay so we finally got our Wii fit thingy last week - I say finally because I put a deposit on one back in May, We were supposed to get one by the end of June, and the local Gamestop actually coughed up one in the middle of August. They kept promising to call, and not doing it, and not holding them at all, and then saying things like "I didn't know we had anyone else still waiting" & (later) "But we have 72 people with a hold on it"(they admitted none of those were deposit people). They never honored that deposit by actually putting our name on one and holding it until I came in with the paperwork - until the day hubby managed to wander in while some were available and growled in their face about it. He stayed there and watched it until I could arrive.

I really wanted it to aid in my son's PE this year, but I wasn't in a super rush, as I had other kiddo books to buy etc. I truly didn't mind at first, but after awhile it was getting ridiculous. All in all, I am seriously inclined to do my pre-orders with somebody else. They honored the first few things I pre-ordered with them - but I can't honestly say that I felt they did right by us this time. I gotta wonder if those 72 other people had a better experience than I did.

But the good news is that we have one now, and its better than I'd hoped. Wii Fit has yoga, aerobics, balance games, and what they call 'strength training' - those seem to be 'regular' exercises. The kids both love doing their exercises indoor now, when the weather's too hot or mosquito-ish.

We didn't actually stop homeschooling this summer. Our kids covered the crucial subjects during these years of medical trial. In fact, they did very well on their end- of -year exams. I knew, however, they had some areas we really needed to work on when DH finally felt well enough for me to concentrate the way I felt was necessary. That turned out to be this year. So - as hubby got better, I got more into it. This effectively turned into summer homeschool, despite my concerns about bookworm burnout. Its gone pretty well. DS, in particular, has made a lot of progress.


Thankfully, the Wii fitness program does make the new school year feel - new. An effect that should only be intensified when the Teaching Textbook Math programs arrive. DS is looking forward to those. We did several of their lessons online and he felt they were much superior to the SOS math disks he had tried. Our son will be - actually already is - using Jensen's Grammer & ABeka I Comp, reading Huckleberry Finn (I'm using a collection of children's classics to start), studying basic Physics, and continuing the Spanish he ignored last year when I couldn't pay enough attention. Becka (DD) is officially off the public school's radar & did fine on her SAT. She is studying history, literature, logic lessons, etc - and continuing her CG stuff. Mom is enjoying the Wii fit program too, though Pat isn't officially 'studying' it as a kind of PE. We just finished our American history study and will start readings on the (European) Middle Ages asap. I am hoping to work in some real leather working soon. DS has some artistically ability, but is not as much into drawing as his sister. He prefers to work with his hands. We've done models & clay modeling to excess IMO. He's learned some practical home crafts, he's done one of those circuit board kits, but he's wanting to do something 'real' and, understandably, he doesn't mean a lot more sewing. Its time for 'guy stuff.' Hoping to work in some leather crafting for him soon. We have some leather, as it happens, and - if his orthodontist visit doesn't' break the bank, we may manage a small kit of tools soon. Hubby sounds reasonably enthused about giving a few lessons. Here's hoping!

Free Rice (& vocabulary drill)

Got this link from Michelle. Basically you practice your vocabulary skills and simultaneously donate free bowls rice for the poor - ten grains at a time.

I found my level is between 44 & 47.
It is neat to watch the bowl fill up as you get the words right.