WoWFate: Beard War

The Quillboar, convinced by Phred, attempted to react reenact dwarven birth.  They snipped a bit of Brim's beard, and tried to concoct a plan to pass through Urist's legs as the beardless dwarf was probably the female.

Meanwhile, Thorren's air elemental caught up to Etiainen, trailing her back to the caravan.  It agreed with her that most mortals were confusing, but sided with Thorren over the elder shaman's concern for his apprentice.

At the Razor Fen, most everyone had fallen asleep, save for a few Quillboar who began snipping at the hair of Brim and Urist.  In his sleep, Urist registered these sounds and brought Urist back to his traumatic experiences against the Scourge.  He woke screaming about an imminent attack, much to the dismay of the Quillboar.

The adventuring party quickly sprang into action. Yshara gathered a group of piglets to her side.  Phred drew his daggers and encouraged the defense.  Thorren readied his command of the elements. Zulfi'shi summoned spirits. And Brim went right on snoring. After it became clear nothing was actually happening, the stealthy rogue slipped in and knoxked Urist out, ending the kerfuffle.  The leaders of the Razor Fen demanded the adventurers leave because of the disruption, and the group had no choice but to comply.

As they headed back to the caravan with their recovered supplies, Brim woke, having remained unaware of what had transpired.  The party hastily explained to him, and Etiainen, what had happened and Brim, bow quite angry, demanded that he and Urist go back to apologize to their potential customers.

They set out, with Phred in tow, as the rest of the party settled in to get the caravan ready to move come morning.  Once at the Fen, Brim and Urist did apologize.  The Quillboar agreed to accept it should the Lightbrew brothers agree to take on apprentices. Phred backed this plan and Brim quickly accepted for both brothers.  

After quite a bit of debate over how apprentices should be picked, Brim simply approached two Quillboar, asked a few questions and announced he was taking one of them. Urist quickly followed suit.  Their names were Keb-keb amd Hogwa and they were extremely eager to learn the ways of brewing Lightbrew Ale.

Once everyone had regathered, the caravan set out again sending dude to warn Honor Hold about the Undead in Razor Fen Downs.  Hopefully, that garrison would be able to defend the area until Orgrimmar or Theramore could send reinforcements.  Once that was done, the party would continue on their mission to Ashenvale via the Crossroads.

As they travelled, they came upon an oasis.  Thorren felt something off about the elements there and was only just able to warn the others before a sudden storm gathered and something attacked!

That something turned out to be a centaur raiding party, led by a hige centaur in ornate armor carrying a spear of Tauren craftsmanship.  The leader singled out Thorren and told his followers to handle the others while he faced the Tauren.  He charged in , reading a powerful strike, but Thorren was ready and able to mostly deflect it.

Two of the archer centaurs fired artows at Urist, who was lightly injured but undaunted by the attack.  Etianen, wanting to help her mentir, fired a lightning bolt at the lead centaur, but his armor glowed and absorbed the attack.

Meanwhile, Zulfi'shi launched skeletal skulls at some of the centaurs towards the back of the group, burning at their skin.  The centaur stormcallers retaliated with lightning strikes, which most of the adventurers dodged after Etiainen blocked a good amount of it.  Brim and Parker, angry now, angled to get into good offensive position.

The centaur leader backed away, readying for another charge, but Thorren closed with him and disarmed his foe with a mighty swing of his axe. At almost the same moment, Etiainen blasted the centaur with redirected lightning, rocking him.

One of the archers took a shot at Brim, but the Dwarven hunter was ready and fired a blast back into his foe, killing the centaur.  Urist added shielding to his companions as Zulfi'shi attacked another of the lackey centaurs with spirit attackers.  Phred stealthily cut around the groups, cutting off their route of escape.  Meanwhile, Parker mauled yet another centaur marauder to death.

The centaur leader managed to trip Thorren up and moved into position to trample him.  Seeing her mentor hurt, Etiainen asked if he needed healing, but Thorren refused it, despite being heavily wounded.  Instead Etiainen blasted the centaur leader again, and this time it struck home.

Another arrow found purchase in Brim's shoulder, but Urist was already blessing Parker a charge to avenge the Dwarven hunter.  Parker chomped down on another Centaur, taking it out of the fight as the Centaur's companions failed to slow the raging bear.

Zul'fishi began preparing herself for a far greater spell than her norm, chanting quietly in Zandali.  Yshara, needing to close the gap with a distant foe, tookoff running in her bear form, leapt while changing into her Night Elf form, cast a spell, and hit the ground running once more as a bear.  Phred, for his part, used the distraction to down a foe with a well-placed knife to the back.

The Centaur leader managed to trample Thorren, who was badly wounded but refused to yield.  Etiainen went against her mentor's wishes and healed him.  Urist dollowed that up with a heal of his own.  Meanwhile Brim used his rifle to fell another Centaur archer.

In the momentary lull, Zul'fishi completed her spell, using it to have entangling hands grasp at all of the Centaurs, slowimg their leader greatly.  He made to charge, but Thorren was ready this time.  The Tauren had retrieved the spear and found it of Tauren-make.  Etiainen used a spell to blind the Centaur leader, who was left open to a huge thrust from Thorren's spear.  

Phred, Urist, and Yshara finished the remaining Centaur.  Yshara recovered the leather armor of the Centaur and Thorren determined that he would return the spear to Tauren representatives ge hoped to find at The Crossroads.

WoWFate: Rogues Do It From Behind

The next morning, the assembled team was summoned to join the caravan headed to the Crossroads, which only Thorren had much knowledge of, through  his interactions with Taurajo, Razor Hill, and Orgrimmar.  At the caravan, they met a rogue Orc named Fhreyd, who would later become known as Sleepy Rogue.

The first leg of the journey past rather uneventfully.  The creatures, and peoples, of the Barrens kept their distance and the party could relax.  When they stopped for the night, the adventurers started chatting amongst themselves.  Brim, still offended that Thorren had chosen Stormstout Brew over Lightbrew, challenged the Tauren to an armwrestling contest.  If Thorren won, Brim wouldn't bother him about the Lightbrew again.  If Brim won, Thorren would trade his Stormstout in for Lightbrew.  The dwarf struggled nobly, but was no mach for the power of the Tauren.

A bit more conversation, including planning the watch rotation, and the group bedded down for the night.  Brim and Zulfi'shi took first watch.

Ash, the faerie dragon companion of Yshara, flew off investigating.  Not long later Ash returned, clearly alarmed.  He woke Yshara, and in turn everyone else, and set out to kead his mistress back to what he'd found.  The others quickly followed.

Parker and Thorren quickly covered the distance of Yshara's lead and the trio discovered an Orcish farm surrounded by raptors.  Atop the farm was an one-armed Orc farmer, clearly being hunted by the raptors.

Further back, Etiainen tripped Zulfi'shi, drastically slowing the Witch Doctor.  At the farm, Thorren's sharp eyes revealed young raptors eating the farmer's pigs.  Having just arrived and trying to see, Zulfi'shi summoned ghost lights, appearing as skeletal figures.  These glowing apparitions reminded Urist of the Scourge and he turned to head back to the caravan and rally reinforcements.

Thorren's air elemental, Nilc'hi, moved to open the gate to the pigs' pen.  The startled young raptors moved to flee.  Etiainen and Zulfi'shi fired elemental and magical force into the raptors, but it was Parker, at Brim's call, and Yshara, in bear form, who waded in and dealt heavy damage to the raptors.  The farmer called down that his children were inside and threatened by more raptors.  Thorren plunged into the building.

As Brim, Parker, Yshara, Zulfi'shi, and Etiainen tore into the raptors outside, the sounds of Urist and the caravan guards nearing grew increasingly apparent.  The raptors fled before Thorren could find the children, but they ended up being safe.

The farmer thanked the group for saving his family.  Urist's force arrived and began to search for the Scourge.  Zulfi'shi explained that what Urist had seen was her magic, not actual Undead and everyone calmed.  A plan to find the raptors was formulated, at nearly the same time everyone realized the caravan was completely unguarded, save for Fhreyd.

Brim and Yshara set out to hunt the raptors while everyone else rushed to the caravan.  Most of the goods were missing.  One of the guards found tge rogue and accused him of having stolen then, but Fhreyd replied that he'd seen Quillboar taking them and scattering.

Etiainen and Thorren spotted tracks which lent strength to Fhreyd's story, but with Brim and Yshara still after the raptors they'd have to wait.  It wasn't long, though.  The raptors had vanished and tge pair returned to camp.  Brim immediately agreed to track the Quillboar.

As Etiainen and Brim led the way following the tracks, the party set to some arguing.  Zulfi'shi insulted Etiainen and then questioned Urist.  Brim defended his brother as Thorren chastized Etiainen for not giving the others a chance, angering his apprentice.

After some walking, the group arrived at Razor Fen Downs, home of the nearest Quillboar clan.  Once there, the Quillboar threatened the team and claimed rights over the stolen, and unguarded, goods.  Yshara used her memories of Agamaggon to get the Quillboar to hear the party out and Thorren, Yshara, and Brim spoke at length to convince the Quillboar that handing over the goods might be in their best interests.

All of this discussion convinces the Quillboar to allow the adventurerers to speak with their chieftess, named Negara.  In that conversation, Thorren advocated for the Quillboar to petition to join the newly forming League of Kalimdor.  His suggestion is that the Quillboar cede control of the Gold Road, and defend against attacks upon it, in return for status as a member of the League and protection of the territorial boarders around their Razor Fens.

Negara questions Thorren's ability to convince his superiors of this agreement, but also recognized that as a Tauren and a member of the Earthen Ring, Thorren would stand by his word.  Negara had her shamans summon up an earth elemental to make the agreement binding, with the added caveat that Thorren return to defend the Quillboar's territory should the League rebuff the Quillboar's offer.

Etiainen, still irritated with her team and Thorren, set out back to camp to let the caravan guards know that the Quillboar would be returning the stolen supplies.  Thorren noticed her departure and sent his air elemental ally, Nilch'i, to follow her. The rest of the party dispersed to converse with the Quillboar, rest, and load the carts for return to the caravan.

Yshara gathered a large pack of young Quillboar, whom she regaled with stories of Agamaggon and his role in the War of the Ancients.  The Lightbrew brothers introduced their ale to the Quillboar, who loved it.  This led the Quillboar to ask Thorren to leave them behind, but yhe Tauren said he still needed Brim and Urist.

Thorren was also told of a Scourge take over of Razor Fen Downs, leading to Urist being called in.  The Dwarf Paladin suggested that he needed to inform Orgrimmar and call back a large army to stage an attack on the infected Razor Fen.  Meanwhile, Fhreyd, had heard of the Quillboar interest in Brim and Urist and had begun plotting a way to both irritate the Dwarves and placate the Quillboar...

WoWFate: I'm On A Boat

After having completed repairs to the ship and setting off again fron the Murloc-infested island, the travellers landed at Northwatch Hold, near the Tauren village of Taurajo. Upon docking, Brim hurridly rushed off the boat stopping near the guardhouse at the edge of the dock.

Yshara was close behind, walking regally down the gangplank and introducing herself to the guards.  Urist, ever-cautious, followed, keeping a careful eye out. 

Yshara quickly struck up a conversation with a Night Elf guardsman who she initially confused for a guardswoman, much to his embarassment.  Zulfi'shi also headed down the ramp and after a short conversation, Thorren and Etiainen also disembarked.

They passed the guardhouse, heading for the magistrate, who was further down.  He was quite rude, making disparaging remarks about almost everyone before curtly leading everyone to the town hall, where the meeting was set to be held.  The meeting was set to begin in about 30 minutes, leaving everyone time to get settled in.

Most of the party went alone to their rooms, but Etiainen accompanied Thorren to his.  They discussed the need for Etiainen to try and overcone her distaste abd distrust of other people, with no strong resolution being found.

Shortly thereafter a page arrived to each room, summoning the collected adventurers to the meeting hall.  Therin were collected a number of important dignitaries, including Thrall, Jaina Proudmore, Hamuul Runetotem, and Malfurion Stormrage.  The greeted the heroes, who returned the greeting with the respect and awe due the leaders.

Thorren was the main speaker for the Horde adveturers, greeting the Warchief with the phrase "awaihilo ich porah," meaning strength and honor.  The great leaders of Kalimdor laid out the broader mission: ease tension between the Kaldorei and Orcs by ceasing lumbering in Ashenvale.  In return, the Night Elves would cede Fel Fire Hill to the Orcs to lumber.  The gathered adventurers would facilitate this by surveying Fel Fire Hill, gathering intelligence on the inhabiting demons, and reporting back to General Saurfang, who was overseeing the military actions.  This would lead to a concerted effort to purge the Fel taint from the area.

Etiainen and Thorren discussed ways to do this, and asked Thrall and Hamuul's advice.  A few other questions about the region gained the party a sense of the tension that was building in the area and the disposition of Silverwing Lodge and the Warsong Clan in the area.  Everyone signed on to the task and we were informed that the group would make the first part of their trip escorting a caravan from Northwatch Hold to the Crossroads.

Once the meeting had ended, the party tenporarily dispersed but all ended up at the tavern.  Brim, naturally, immediately set to drinking.  The patrons of the bar seemed to universally agree that his family's lightbrew was unappealing and "tasted like piss."  Thorren, having been part of the teams organized by Rexxar, Vol'jin, Rohkkan, and Chen to find Baine Bloodhoof when he was kidnapped, asked after Stormstout Brew, and was pleasantly surprised to find the inn had it. Etiainen, for her part, was uncomfortable in the tavern but unwilling to part from Thorren.

Zulfi'shi, for her part, ordered "something special" and the bartender brought her a Noggenfogger Ale.  As she drank it, she slowly transformed to appear as a skeleton.  Which was not for the best, as Urist saw her and had a flashback to the Scourge invasion. Brim managed to calm him, though, by pointing out the Troll's transformation was cause by the brew and temporary.  A little redirection towards the idea of fresh brewing some Lightbrew didn't hurt, either.

With Urist calm again, Yshara and Brim tried to sit and make friends Thorren and Etiainen, but the Tauren's preference for Stormstout Brew over Lightbrew and the Troll's preference for "not people" prevented much success on that front.  Offended, Brim enlisted Urist to make a fresh batch of Lightbrew. They set to furious work, but it took them so long that everyone else had headed back to the inn before they coukd try the batch.

WoWFate: I Am Murloc

The various individuals assigned to a mysterious mission for the nascent League of Kalimdor boarded a ship headed south.  Yshara the Nightelf Druid was first, in Darnassus.  Thorren, Tauren Shaman, and Etainen, his Troll apprentice, boarded in Orgrimmar.  Brim and Eurist Lightbrew, Dwarven brothers, joined them in Theramore.  They were making good time before being run aground on a small island.

As the crew of the ship made repairs a varitable army of Murlocs advanced on them and the heroic passengers set to the defense.  Thorren, ever vigilant, struck first, but the Murlocs dodged away from his blast of lightning.

Etainen reacted quickly, though, placing an earthbind totem down to slow one of the Murloc packs and followed that by drawing the moisture from their skin, weakening them.

Transformed into a savage bear, Yshara took a surprising tactic, dancing to stupify one of the Murloc packs closing on her.  Brim capitalized by shooting one of the Murlocs in its spear-toting hand, but the blast was so powerful that it incapacitated the amphibious threat.  His pet bear, Parker, waded into the fray chomping on Murlocs left and right.  Eurist placed shields on the other heroes, helping them withstand attacks.

For a moment, it looked like the Murlocs might overwhelm the boat.  Thorren took two massive cuts and Brim was beaten.  Etainen and Eurost worked to heal them as Yshara slammed into several other Murlocs.  Thorren used his immense Tauren size to stomp on the ground, stunning a number of Myrlics who Etainen finished off by dessication.  Eurist layed another shield on his brother and Brim and Parker finished off another pack of Murlocs.

The Murlocs turned and ran as a Sea Giant rose from the nearby ocean.  Unfortunately for the giant, the heroes had finally hit their stride.  Brim put several rounds into him, followed by a lightning bolt from Thorren and the coup de grace consisting of an icy spear through the neck by Etainen.  The giant fell and the journey to the rondevous could continue.

Rohk'narani

Kneeling down, she stared at the icy footprint settled upon sandy shore near Sen'jin Village.  "Ya, mon.  Dis be from one of my kind.  A death knight walked de path of frost here."

Rohk'narani felt the witch docter behind her tense.  Perhaps he was looking for the other death knight, perhaps he was just disturbed by how casually she refferred to her new role in life.  Many who had fought the Scourge, who feared the Lich King, were uncomfortable around the raised former mortals who made up the Knights of the Ebon Blade.  Rohk'narani could no longer identify with that fear.

"Dey come ashore near da village, but where dey go?"

"De tracks are not trollish.  Unlikely dey could be hiding in Sen'jin.  De hills nearby, maybe," answered the death knight, her gaze lingering on the hills as if it could reveal her prey.

"You'll be huntin him, den?"

Rohk'narani nodded, finally looking at the frightened witch doctor.  "I be, yah.  For da Darkspear."

The witch doctor visibly relaxed.  "For da Darkspear and da Horde, sistah."

---

Rohk'narani stalked through the barren hills of Durotar, headed northeast from Sen'jin Village.  There was no way to be absolutely sure which way the death knight had gone, but she had suspicions.  Vol'jin had returned from Pandaria in the recent days and captured Razor Hill, headquartering his rebellion against Garrosh there.  It was the only logical place for an a lone agent to be trying to sneak up upon.

But be dey Alliance or Horde?

Rohk'narani descended into a narrow gorge, slowing her steps and holding her sword ready.  Dis clearly be a trap.  De question be, be it worth springing?

Shaking her head softly, she pushed on.  It was possible the other death knight had come to join Vol'jin.  Many members of the Horde had, especially from non-Orcish races.  It was why Rohk'narani had come, after all. She remembered all too well what came of a hot headed leader, as Garrosh was, chasing blindly after weapons of great power.

---

She was sure she was in Bwonsamdi's realm, a spirit consigned, as was proper, to the death god.  But something tugged at her, like a tidal flow out to the sea.  She descended, coming to rest in a corpse.  Her corpse.

"Rise, servant of the Lich King, rise and attend."

She did.  Momentarily, she wondered if she was a ghoul, if this was what they'd felt as she marched against them.  But in the considering, she realized that there was too much left of her mind for her to be a ghoul.

The death knight who'd spoken to her beckoned.  "Come, newling, come.  Our master has a task for you."

Obediently she followed, not remembering her master but sure his will was her every want or need.  The death knight, face hidden behind helm and hood, directed her into a long wooden building.  Inside, prisoners were chained to stakes in the floor.

The death knight led her forward ubtil they came to a stop before a tall Troll, battered and beaten, but clearly still defiant.  In that moment, she remembered being Troll, being Darkspear.  The Troll looked up at her and gasped.

"Narani!  You live!  I was sure you had fallen!  Let them chain you; they be beatin us all like dogs otherwise.  De Horde be bringin rescue soon, no doubt."

Narani.  As before, in thst moment she remembered.  She had been Narani, warrior of the Darkspear, sent against the terrible Scourge of the Lich King.  This Troll before her; she'd leapt to his defense has he nearly fell to the Undead. She could remember her concern for him, her fear for herself, her anger at the Loa for letting things come to this.  Remembered those emotions, but no flame of them lived in her.  Not even an echo.  They were gone.

The Troll must have seen it.  "Oh... Mah sistah, what dey done to ya?"

The death knight gazed at her from beneath his hood.  She could feel the command of his master, her master.  She extended a hand and into it the death knight placed a knife.  Her fingers closed around the hilt, but as she wielded it, she felt nothing at all...

---

Rohk'narani was dragged from her reverie by bands of power pulling her from the floor of the gorge to its rim.  She landed on her feet and immediately tensed, scanning the ridge for the death knight she knew must be close.

She found him sitting on a rocky hoodoo nearby.  She assessed him quickly.  An older Orc when he died, one eyed and grizzled.  He'll favor the right because the left is the one gone.  Two handed axe, likely following Frost teachings.

The Orc nodded at her as if he'd heard her assessment.  "Sister."

She shook her head.  "Not a way to be greetin a sister."

"You were walking away from me.  We needed to talk."  The Orc shrugged.  "You know of Vol'jin's revolution."

"I do be aware.  That be why you are here?"  Rohk'narani moved towards the other fighter cautiously, but trying to convey a readiness to talk.

"Of course.  Someone must remind the people their loyalties to the Horde," he said, gesturing vaguely in the direction of Razor Hill.

Rohk'narani paused, pondering the words.  "Indeed."

"So many have strayed from the path of the Horde.  Our responsibility to this world," continued the Orc, gesturing from earth to sky.  "Someone must take them in hand, make them remember."

Rohk'narani muttered the words she'd so often heard before. "De Horde is family."

The Orc grinned at her.  "Yes.  And one must always be loyal to one's family."

"So you come ta join Vol'jin then?"

The Orc barked a laugh.  "I come to bury him.  If you are wise, you will join me troll and return to the side of the Warchief."

For a moment, Rohk'narani stared at him, wondering how he could not see the logic in her words.  Then, down deep, in a place she would have denied still existed, she began to simmer.  In truth, many death knights were like this Orc.  They still carried their own agendas, now that they were free of the Lich King.  She'd seen them laugh, and cry, and unleash furious rage.  True, some were cold, as she was, but many had merely been tempered by their transformation and still carried the person they had been within them.  Her anger lived.  And this Orc had stoked it.

He seemed to know he'd tipped his hand.  "Come now, girl.  If Vol'jin continues this farce, it weakens the Horde.  The Horde which protects your people.  The Horde which welcomed you back after your transformation.  I know the rumors are true that Vol'jin has even allowed the Alliance to join him in his mad quest."

Rohk'narani brought her blade up.  "Garrosh be mad.  He be reachin for power like the Lich King did."

"And why should he not?  The Horde should be strong.  It should crush the Alliance and claim our birthright!"

"Even if it mean we all be monsters?"

"I am no worse for wear."  He struck, blurring forward and swinging hard at her midsection.  Only because she had been sure the attack was coming was Rohk'narani able to bring her guard up in time.  She swung away and around, lashing back out towards his head.  He'd already moved, though, off to her left.  He flung a bolt of cold at her and followed with necrotic energies fueled by his own unlife.  Rohk'narani grit her teeth as the attacks scored against her armor, slowing her.

But not her anger.  Even as her limbs momentarily numbed from the blast of frost, her anger flamed to new heights, spurring Rohk'narani to action.  She leapt across the distance, blade forward, and scored her first hit of the combat, impaling the Orc's right shoulder.  He shoved at her, and her blade came free as she stumbled back.  Laboring, he charged forward, but missed as his right arm refused to stay level.  Rohk'narani grinned at him.  Let's see how you be doin havin only your weak side.

The Orc snarled at his inability to hit her.  He swung again, wildly missing her.  Rohk'narani stepped inside his open guard and thrust her sword into his gut.  He crumpled, coughing blood.

"You haven't won, troll.  There will be others.  The Warchief will crush your entire traitorous race."

"Your Warchief be a madman.  Dis be justice."

Coughing again, the Orc spat blood at her.  It hit Rohk'narani in the face, just above her left eye.  "You'll all fail.  The True Horde shall win out."

Rohk'narani sneered at him, raising her hand to smear the blood on her forehead down, past her eye, in the shape of a spear.  "You won't be there to see it."

Grinning savagely, she raised her sword high and plunged it down, into his breast.  "For da Darkspear!  FOR DA HORDE!"

---

The witch doctor winced as he pressed the needle into the skin above Rohk'narani's eye.  Calmly, she told him, "Stop.  If you flinch, it may ruin da image.  I assure you, I be not movin."

The witch doctor nodded, continuing his work more steadily.  "And then what, sistah?"

Rohk'arani paused for a moment, contemplating feelings foreign after years of cold.  "And then I be joinin Vol'jin.  And we be bringin down Garrosh."

The witch doctor leaned back, finished.  Sitting up, Rohk'narani lifted a finger to the tattoo of the Darkspear running down over her left eye, where the death knight's blood had been.  Smiling, she whispered, "For da Horde..."

The Voices My Voice Follows: Videogames

Previously, I spoke about the authors who inspire me.  Originally, I intended this follow up piece to be about both videogames and boardgames.  But I quickly realized there's too many of each to write about them in the same place, so I'm splitting them up.  Today I'll talk about the videogames that inspire me (and the ones that I play the most often).  I'll start with the ones I've talked about the most here.

StarCraft: StarCraft was one of the first PC games I ever owned.  I'd played WarCraft II on the Mac and my step-brothers owned WarCraft: Orcs and Humans.  But StarCraft was all mine.  I've always slightly leaned more toward Sci-fi worlds than fantasy, and I really enjoyed RTS games.  StarCraft's real strength, to me, is that there's a bigger story going on than what we see, and we can know that but still stay focused in on the game.  At it's heart, the games in the series are about the relationships between characters, but these relationships play out on grand scale.

WarCraft: WarCraft II was a game I picked up because I'd heard a lot about it and because I'd played a few Blizzard games before (more than I realized at the time, actually).  I loved it.  The characters weren't really there yet, but the story was interesting, especially in that depending on if you played Orcs or Humans, it would end differently.  I was amused by the things the characters would say if clicked on, and the game world has grown far beyond what it was.  The writing may not always be top notch, but it's clear Blizzard spends a lot of time planning where the games can go and where things were before the moment they exist in, and that kind of world building always resonates with me.

Diablo: To be completely honest, Diablo was definitely the third place Blizzard franchise for me.  I played mostly because my friends did and I wanted to play games with them.  Diablo III really changed that for me. While I still play mostly co-op, D3 was the first time I really wanted to push through the whole story alone and try different difficulties.  I know that a lot of people feel like D3 doesn't live up to the standards of Diablo II, but I think they have different goals in mind.  I like where Blizzard seems to be going and I'm curious to see what's going to come in the next expansion.

Assassin's Creed: Assassin's Creed, I think, speaks to a lot of people's urge to be the guy that's so badass that he can do whatever he wants and get away with it.  At least, that's what it does for me.  I'm still not quite sure I know what to think of the storyline with Desmond.  I really liked Altair's story, wasn't a little hesitant for most of Ezio's, and enjoyed Conner's, but I'm just not sure of my investment in Desmond.  I didn't like him much in the first game, and I've gone back and forth with being okay with him since.  I'm curious to see where the next game goes, and I think that'll change a lot of my opinions on the modern era storyline.

The Walking Dead: First off, I love the Walking Dead comics, and I greatly enjoy big chunks of the TV show, so I had some reason to come to this game expecting to like it.  And it blew those expectations out of the water.  The story of the game is healthily complex and we get to see some hints at what may have happened before we first see the characters "on screen" in the comics/show.  It hits the right notes of both horror and sorrow, while still giving glimmers of hope.  And in true Walking Dead fashion, no one is safe.

Left 4 Dead: I do enjoy me some zombies.  Left 4 Dead, like Diablo originally was for me, was a game that I picked up because all my friends were playing.  Despite this grouping of games, I'm not much of an FPS player.  I'm not terribly skilled at it and I tend to get bored easily.  That said, Left 4 Dead (and Left 4 Dead 2) is one of my most played games and I'm fairly certain it more than doubles the playtime of the rest of my Steam list.  The characters greatly entertain me, and we still drop "I hate ____" and "ALMOST THERE!" jokes in both my game groups.  I'm curious to see if Valve will ever do a third Left 4 Dead, because I get the sense there's a bigger story waiting to be revealed.

Half-Life: Speaking of games on which I'm waiting for a third installment...  Half-Life is an interesting game.  I love the world and the way things have come together.  The community around the game is pretty amazingly creative and involved.  But I'm not a big fan of Gordon Freeman.  I know, this is blasphemy.  I don't mind silent protagonists (I mean, heck, I really like Chell and Master Chief), but Gordon just gets me.  Maybe it's that he's supposed to be a scientist; a scientist that doesn't talk or do science is a pretty lackluster scientist.  On the other hand, the supporting cast is great.  So I keep coming back for more.

Portal: Chell is awesome, despite not talking.  Personally, I ascribe to the "Chell doesn't talk because it's a dig at GlaDOS" camp.  For that matter, GlaDOS is pretty amazingly entertaining.  I love the puzzle solving and mind games of Portal and it's full of things that can be called out later ("When life gives you lemons...").  All in all, I feel like Portal is a bit of an homage to being a smart nerd and that endears it to me quite a bit.  Plus, as you can probably see as a theme, it seems to be connecting to a larger world in a way yet to be fully revealed.

Halo: I really wanted to not like Halo when I first played it.  It was the overhyped game of choice for a lot of jerks on the internet.  But I ended up liking the fact that the games were focused on giving players a contrast between the small dramas of the characters and the greater dramas of a galactic war that turned out to be a battle in a larger galactic war.  Over time, a lot of depth has been added to the game world, and Bungie and then 343 Industries worked hard to link a lot of out-of-game material into an in-game system of discovering it.

Worms: So the Worms series is definitely not about storyline for me.  But it's good fun.  Sometimes I just have to blow something up and there's always plenty of options in Worms.  Plus, it's still entertaining when I fail spectacularly to do what I want, which isn't something I can always say of other games I play.  It's good to get away from all the heavy story and Worms serves as a good palate cleanser when I feel like I'm leaning my writing/roleplaying too close to a specific game studio's style.

Thorren in Combat

The axe crashed down at Thorren, but he was ready, clawed gauntlets already in place to deflect the blow.  It was rare something towered over Thorren’s 9-foot-tall frame, but this Iron Vrykul managed it.  Despite the defeat of the Lich King, some years before Thorren’s departure from Thunder Bluff, the Vrykul remained hostile to the non-Vrykul races.  This one had pushed into Horde territory near Warsong Hold, far from the usual haunts of the Vrykul.

The Vrykul leapt back as Thorren swung at its gut, seeking to tear into the half-giant’s midsection and end the fight.  Thorren had been in Northrend at an elder Shaman’s request, journeying with a message to the Taunka tribes of the frozen north.  The Vrykul pushed forward again, snarling rage at the “fleshy cow!”

Thorren laughed in its face as the half-giant’s spittle flecked onto him.  “I’m no cow, servant of death, I’m a bull!”

With a mighty shake of his head, Thorren raked his horns across the Vrykul’s face, driving the half-giant back.  It howled in fury and raised a hand to grasp at the rent across his face.  It swung blindly with its axe, trying vainly to hit the Tauren, but Thorren had shoved back.  Muttering briefly, he raised a fist to the sky and let a bit of blessed powder loose into the crisp air of the Borean Tundra.  At his side, a pair of spectral wolves sprung into view, howling their master’s fury.  As the Vrykul recovered, the wolves darted forward, sprinting around and biting at its flanks.

Thorn dropped back a step and felt out toward the elements around him.  He drew upon the electricity of the storms that raged throughout the north.  Pausing for thanks to the spirits of the elements, he drew back a hand and pushed it forward with explosive force, lightning leaping from his claw and arcing towards the metal body of the Iron Vrykul.  Between the assault of the wolves and the lightning, the half-giant crumpled.  Thorren stepped forward anew, the wolves prowling in search of a further threat, and searched the Vrykul.  Nothing showed why it had come so far, but if it had slipped past the Taunka, it concerned Thorren.  He was sent to rally Taunka allies in the face of Garrosh’s corruption of the Horde.  If they’d befallen dangers or been abandoned by Garrosh’s forces and fallen to the Vrykul it would be a mighty blow against the power base being gathered by Baine Bloodhoof, young High Chieftan of the Tauren.

Thorren scowled at the thought and called out to his mount, a large and heavily armored wind rider.  It bounded close and stood still as Thorren climbed astride it.  With a word, the wind rider leapt to the skies and Thorren set out seeking the Taunka.

A Thorren Scene

Thorren stared down onto the plains, shifting slightly as the winds sweeping down from the north buffeted his muscular frame.  He breathed shallowly, eyes searching.  It had been years since he last patrolled Thunder Bluff this way, years since the Cataclysm had roused him from the complacence of never straying from Mulgore, following the duty his family had performed for generations as the defenders of the wandering Tauren tribes.  His grandfather, Enroc, first of the Bluffwatch name, had watched for Centaur marauders and Quillboar.  His mother, Deshra, had fought Centaur and followed Cairne when the High Cheiftan joined the Horde, speaking powerfully against Grimtotem detractors who decried the Tauren’s interactions with other races.  Thorren honored them.  But his duty had called him away from the bluffs.

Thorren spied the lioness a few moments before it sprung upon the zhevra.  The equine beast cried out in fear, but it was already too late.  Thorren’s eyes tracked on.  To the west of them, a kodo train marched toward the outpost, shaking the earth.  In the past, the Alliance would raid these trains in the name of self-defense against the Horde.  Today, though, Thorren feared no Alliance hand.  The humans were occupied, he’d heard, with a Naga incursion in Night Elf lands.  No, today he searched for Taurens.

The thought boiled within him.  He’d been away from Thunder Bluff when Garrosh fought the mak’gora against Cairne, delivering messages to Camp Narache.  Away when the Grimtotem betrayed their people, perpetrating their heinous bloodlust against their own homeland.  Away when Baine, son of Cairne, was driven from Thunder Bluff and many of Thorren’s fellow shamans perished beneath Grimtotem blades.  Away when Thunder Bluff was retaken.  Away when his mother was killed for trusting Orcs, Trolls, and Elves.  Thorren snorted in fury.

The Grimtotem have much to answer for.

He glanced over his shoulder at his compatriots.  “They may have abandoned the plan.  I don’t see them anywhere.”

The female Troll shaman ostensibly leading the group nodded.  “We look elsewhere den.”

Thorren nodded back, shifting his grip on his clawed weapons in frustration.  He shot a final look down to the field, noting the progress of the kudos, before turning to follow his friends down the rise.  Another day.

Characters I've Played: Thorren

The goal of this type of post is to update a character that I've played before and intend to play again, though on occasion I may share a character who I probably won't play again.

Thorren was a character I created for Sunday Game Group's Dungeons and Dragons 4th Edition campaign in a homebrewed setting in which our group would be playing "monsters" struggling to overthrow a human-elf-eladrin kingdom which enslaved or oppressed all the other races of the world. The intent, eventually, was for the PC's to raise an army and lead the assault on the corrupt kingdom and overthrow it.

Thorren Bluffwatch was a Minotaur Seeker. Given that most of the members of the game played World of Warcraft or WarCraft III, we often referred to him as a Tauren, and the Bluffwatcher NPC type from WoW inspired Thorren's last name. As a Seeker, Thorren was of the primal power source and focused on using that power to aid him in making ranged attacks.

Rather than making Thorren an archer, I chose to make him a thrown weapon focused Seeker, giving him a hammer bound to return to him and a number of axes, javelins, and knives to be thrown situationally. Thorren's abilities generally focused on the production of ice or lightning effects.  He was great fun to play even though the Seeker is a fairly underdeveloped, flawed, and unsupported class in DnD 4e.

In the interim, I've picked up playing WoW and Thorren became a Tauren Shaman, with a leaning toward lightning and fire powers.  So in remaking him for a potential RPG, I'd like to incorporate both versions of Thorren.  As is typical based on Sunday Game Group's system of choice, I'm going to do this exercise in Fate Core's ruleset (just as I did for myself, here).

As a quick reminder, this means I'll need a name, a high concept, three phase aspects, a skill pyramid, and some stunts.  If you'd like more of a breakdown on these, go back and check out my previously linked post for a more detailed rundown.

Naming this character is a simple choice.  The name was inspired by the videogame and transferred out and then back in, so keeping it the same is a no-brainer.
Name:  Thorren Bluffwatch

Next up is the High Concept.  As the most likely place for me to play Thorren is in a Fate WoW RPG as has been discussed several times by SGG, it seems to make sense to involve his race and class here.  Tauren Shaman would be the simple way, but I always try to aim for making the High Concept more dynamic, so I'll try to add a bit on here.  I think Thorren's personality is probably the element missing in this situation.  Thorren's personality, in my mind is based strongly on his loyalty to his friends, people, and the Horde, so I'll call him a Steadfast Tauren Shaman.
High Concept: Steadfast Tauren Shaman

As before, I think of the first phase aspect as "back story" so here's a good opportunity to get in why Thorren is called Bluffwatch.  Tauren have a clan society (pretty clearly influenced by Native Americans) in which children can take on either their parent's surname or a name created by their deeds.  I've always intended that Thorren's family took the name Bluffwatch for being renowned defenders (with keen perception) of the bluffs (or, in WoW terms, Thunderbluff) that are their home.  Thorren carried on in this tradition for a time and took the name, but has since set out on broader adventures.  I summarize this in Generations Watching the Bluffs.
Phase One (Background): Generations Watching the Bluffs

The second phase-aspect is generally the first "guest star" situation that will link a character to the others in the party.  Given that I don't know who else will be in the party, I'll try to leave it a bit open ended.  In terms of the original game, Thorren met his companions because he had been captured by humans who hoped to sell him into gladiatorial slavery, but he escaped with his band of adventurers.  In WoW terms, I tend to consider that Thorren should have entered the lore of the game about when I started playing, and so probably first began his wider journey during the Cataclysm.  So I'll attempt to incorporate those things together.  I think something like, Forced to Battle, talking of Thorren's duty and the fact that he doesn't always look for the battle.  Fighting for Others might actually better sum up my general concept and get back to Thorren's personality, but lacks the outside influence.  I'll split the difference as best I can.
Phase Two: Called to Fight for Others

Third phase is another "guest star" with the same limitations at the moment.  In this case I think it's time to speak to Thorren's connections to nature.  In the original version, he was tied to lightning and ice, and in the WoW version he was tied to lightning and fire.  But in both, he could call upon spirits to aid him.  I think I'll focus on the lightning (or something near to it) and the spirits since they're a commonality.  And I think I have something that sounds cool.
Phase Three: By Ghosts and Thunder

Now for skills.  In the DnD game, Thorren was noted for his perception (which has lived on in SGG by the phrase "what do your ____ eyes see?" since we riffed off Lord of the Rings' "what do your elf eyes see?" by replacing "elf" with "Tauren").  In WoW terms, he's also renowned for his vigilance.  Seems only fitting that his strongest skill be notice.  From there I think fight and empathy make a lot of sense, given that he's a strong fighter in both settings and Shamans in WoW theoretically gain their elemental powers by communicating with and understanding the spirits.  Trailing along with that empathy would have to be rapport and lore, given that they'd strongly correlate the same connections.  I'd include shoot in that same tier as Thorren has always had an element of ranged combat to him, though less so in WoW than in DnD.  I think his Tauren size lends Thorren the physique and athletics skills, he has some ability to ride (aka the drive skill),  and his work and loyalty to the horde have gained him the contacts skill.

Great(+4): Notice

Good(+3): Fight, Empathy

Fair(+2): Lore, Rapport, Shoot

Average(+1): Physique, Athletics, Ride, Contacts

Now to finish off with stunts.  These are the most likely things to change upon actual game play dependent on how we work elemental powers in game. That said, I think the first stunt I should take is one that allows for Thorren to use Empathy to make attacks using elemental powers. To make it aspect-y I'll dub it Speaker to Elements. Next I think I'll add an ability to play off Thorren's ability to notice at a prodigious rate. I'll use it to allow him to use his notice for a trapping of investigate. It seems only right to call it What Do Your Tauren Eyes See? The final stunt should be about Thorren's connections, I think and his ability to call on allies. I'll take a line from the game and call it The Horde is Family.
Stunts: Speaker to Elements
What Do Your Tauren Eyes See?
The Horde is Family

So someday, Thorren will be ready to play again. I'm looking forward to it.

Various things that have me excited.

Ok, so there's a lot of things coming up videogame-wise that I'm excited about.  WoW patch 5.2, Starcraft II Heart of the Swarm, Assassin's Creed IV...  I thought I'd take a minute to share some videos and talk a bit about why I'm excited for each and how each video encouraged that.



So cool.  Blizzard is really elite at crafting trailers for their games.  The poetry in this one was really cool, different from Blizzard's usual fare and it rings really true with Pandaria.  I'm "new" to WoW, in terms of actually playing, but I paid attention to the game from day one, having loved the story of Warcraft III and its predecessors.  When I had less money I couldn't justify the monthly payments and then no one I knew was playing much, but at Blizzcon last year a large chunk of the people I know who play WoW got sucked back in, so I started considering it again.  I jumped in for the last couple months of Cataclysm and then picked up Pandaria when it came out.

A big part of Pandaria's draw for me is that it's the first completely new lore in WoW that isn't strongly supported in the pen and paper RPG or novels.  That's always the kind of things that draws me to games.  While certainly the dialogue and quests don't always have the deepest dialogue ever, the over-arching story, especially with some hidden backbone stories (the conflict between the Old Gods and Titans as well as the third faction in the Burning Legion, with hints that the Old Gods may be rising and the Legion returning), is very complex and has a broad scope that really allows for a number of finite stories which balance well with the ongoing tale.  The Thunder King looks to be one of the former (a surge from the Mogu, which will certainly be put down by players) with hints at the latter (a Titan players directly talk to who hints at something big coming from upon Azeroth, and further whispers from Wrathion about the return of the Legion).



I've been waiting on this one a while.  I was a huge fan of StarCraft and I followed all the fiction (I highly recommend Liberty's Crusade, The Dark Templar Saga, Heaven's Devils, Devil's Due, Ghost: Spectres, and Flashpoint if you want to really understand the StarCraft world).  I greatly enjoyed StarCraft II (despite the all-too-common "Blizzard's writing is shallow!" complaints).  I've wanted to see where the tale of Kerrigan and Raynor would go for over a decade.  The end seems to be nigh, which has got my curiosity at a peak.

I like StarCraft enough that I've tried to make up pen and paper conversions (and did try the Alternity: StarCraft game) and I've written 1.5 stories (the second is ongoing!) to use as entries to the Blizzard Writing Contest.  I can't wait to see where the story is going next.


Also very cool.  I find it very interesting how they've moved in a different direction than in other games in the series.  This is the first time we've moved backwards in time from the previous game (since when we got Altair after Ezio we still also got Ezio).  We've also got major changes in the modern era story (no spoilers!) and some hints at needing to connect with a different bloodline of assassins.  Beyond that, pirates!  This is clearly a way to make the games fulfill fun scenarios for the fans; swashbuckling attacks, beautiful vistas, and maybe some answers to how things came to be how they were in Assassin's Creed III.

It seems clear to me that the team behind Assassin's Creed has had the story for the modern era very well plotted out since the beginning but have been trying out ideas for the past on the fly in order to come up with entertaining locales in which to play.  I'm still hoping for a game set during the World Wars, Meiji Japan, or the various eras of the Indian Independence Movement (I can only imagine the conversations between an assassin and Ghandi).  I can't wait to see where they're going, either!