DotA 2

Over the past few weeks, I have regained the enthusiasm for DotA that I once had when I first heard about the game. I remember being an overly eager and curious pest after my brother told me about the new War Craft 3 custom game map. It's been a long time since that day, and I have now forgotten what the original game looked like. As a tradeoff, I now have a great deal of information on its successor, Valve's DotA 2, safely stored in my unreliable memory bank.

The idea of this particular game concept went against most of my personal gaming principles at first. I'm not the kind of person to play competitive multiplayer and I sure as hell didn't like the concept of not being able to hold on to a permanent trophy as a reward for countless hours of gaming. Playing too many MMOs taught me that one ought to be able to show off their roster of high level characters and rare equipment to indicate the amount of dedication that they have put into a particular game.

The reservations that I held on to previously were, to an extent, resolved with the arrival of DotA 2. While technically a free-to-play title, DotA 2 provides its players with the option to personalize their in-game characters through purchasing or earning custom items. Players also gain experience and their levels through the completion of various matches and game modes. The number of victories are also documented in their own DotA 2 profile. These characteristics allow the tracking of performance throughout a player's DotA 2 career. In other words, the game has created mechanisms that allow people like me to show off their accomplishments (or lack thereof).

I don't really know why I became interested in playing this game again. It's a good thing that it has an option to play against computer controlled bots available. This is pretty much the only game mode that I play. I suppose it makes me a wuss, but I don't think I can do very well against other players yet (I suck). And I hate losing.

End of 2013

Alright. It's only a few more hours before the clock strikes midnight. What I'm really looking forward to isn't the fresh start of the yearly cycle, but the food. It's always the food.

Here's to hoping that 2014 will be another year full of music, coffee, and "other drinks".

Refresher

Ho.

A really powerful typhoon passed through the country recently. I haven't read the overall damage and casualty reports, but it's a good thing storm kind of ignored Cagayan de Oro. The people here were pretty restless, thinking that another Sendong/Pablo event would occur. The mid section of the country was supposedly pretty badly hit.

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I haven't been able to update as much as I wanted to. I need to shift my time expenses from idle internet browsing to writing new posts. Even with all the work I've been doing, I still have quite a lot of time on my hands.

It's been a while since the last time I played Monster Hunter. I've been a bit busy with Rune Factory 4 and Rocksmith 2014. The multi-weapon mastery challenge has been put on hold as of the moment, but I hope to finish it before they (hopefully) localize Monster Hunter 4 for western audiences.

As for the music side of things, I'm glad to say that I haven't been slacking off too much. Thanks to the new Rocksmith game and the inspiration drawn from Sakamichi no Apollon, I managed to give my guitar skills a bit of polishing. I'm planning on getting my own bass ax but it would be wise to think over any plans to buy one more thoroughly.

Monster Hunter 3 Ultimate: G Rank Armor Sets

UPDATE: Apparetly, the site used to host the images is no longer there. I apologize for not being able to supply the previews anymore, since I don't have a backup of the images.

Hello. I haven't been able to update in a while. I've been busy with work and Monster Hunter. Mostly MH though.

I have come across a nice reference as to how G rank armors look like. I've been playing MH games for a while now, but I was still surprised to know that majority of the armor sets for G rank monsters were different from their Low/High rank counterparts.

Note: on armor names

(Armor Name) - Low Rank Version

(Armor Name) S - High Rank Regular Species Version

(Armor Name) U - High Rank Subspecies Version

(Armor Name) X - G Rank Regular Species Version

(Armor Name) Z - G Rank Subspecies Version

In this post, I'm going to list down the armor sets that I find to be cool or badass looking out of all the offerings. I'll also include the total number of required resources and materials to complete each set.

(Click on the images to enlarge, click on item names for monster/quest sources and carve rates)

Preview arrangement: Male BM | Male Gunner | Female BM | Female Gunner

JAGGI X

MATERIALS NEEDED:

Imperial Frill - 4

G. Jaggi Claw + - 7

Jaggi Scale + - 6

Eltalite Ore - 11

G. Jaggi Piel - 11

G. Jaggi Hide + - 8

Avian Stoutbone - 7

Fucium Ore - 7

Fey Wyvern Gem - 1

G. Jaggi Head - 1

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BARIOTH X

MATERIALS NEEDED:

Hvy Amber Tusks - 4

Barioth Fur - 14

Barioth Cortex - 14

Cryo Sac - 6

Barioth Lash - 5

Lrg Wyvern Stone - 1

Lagombi Fur - 6

Barioth Talon - 4

Monster Slogbone - 3

Lagombi Auricle - 4

Crushing Fang - 2

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NIBELSNARF X

 

MATERIALS NEEDED:

Nibel Cortex - 15

Nibelsnarf Talon - 7

Nibelsnarf Piel - 9

Giant Fin  - 2

Dazzling Fluid - 8

Avian Stoutbone - 2

G. Wroggi Hide + - 3

Imperial Beak - 2

Lrg Wyvern Stone - 1

Monster Slogbone - 3

G. Wroggi Piel - 4

Brilliant Fluid - 4

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BARROTH X

MATERIALS NEEDED:

Barroth Chine - 11

Barroth Cortex - 9

Barroth Crown - 4

Avian Stoutbone - 4

Barroth Talon - 6

Prized Pelt - 6

Monster Slogbone - 4

Barroth Lash - 1

Massive Bone - 3

G. Jaggi Piel - 2

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DURAMBOROS Z 

MATERIALS NEEDED:

Duram Hardhorn - 4

R. Duram Shell - 23

Duram Sacrum - 1

Purecrystal - 1

Marbled Hump - 8

Lrg Wyvern Stone - 1

Prized Stomach - 3

R. Duram Hardtail - 2

Hard Mossplate - 5

Crushing Fang - 3

R. Duram Plate - 7

Durambolite - 1

Arzuros Allbrace - 3

Monster Slogbone - 3

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GIGGINOX X 

MATERIALS NEEDED:

Revolting Piel -5

Nightmarish Maw - 3

Gigginox Piel - 19

Toxin Sac - 5

Gigginox Talon - 4

Foul Venom Gland - 9

Purecrystal - 1

Gigginox Claw + - 2

Fey Wyvern Gem - 1

Monster Essence - 6

G. Baggi Piel - 4

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LAGIACRUS X 

MATERIALS NEEDED:

Lagia Hardhorn - 2

Lagiacrus Piel - 13

Lagia Sapphire - 2

R. Ludroth Shard - 6

Lagiacrus Mantle - 1

Lagiacrus Flail - 3

Barioth Fur - 4

Lagiacrus Talon - 6

Deathly Shocker - 8

Lagiacrus Shard - 14

Lightning Sac - 5

Purecrystal - 1

If I find time, I'll do a complete list of all the G rank armor sets. If you spot any mistakes, please comment so I can edit it immediately.

Small Update

I haven't been able to post anything lately. I'm not really bogged down by work or anything, I just can't seem to finish my half-baked writings. I suppose I should use the occasional office down time to write instead of just passive mining.

I started with my new job just this month. As liaison officer, I am tasked with inter-office communications between the Climate Change Commission and local partners for Project Climate Twin Phoenix in R-10. It's something new to me, but the work is contributing to a worthwhile cause.

Practice with the guitar has been slow but steady. There hasn't been much improvement compared to the speed at which I learned when I first started, but that's because I hit the barre chord wall. The good thing is that my barre chords don't sound as dead as when I first tried doing them. I'm trying to keep myself from buying another guitar (since it's really unnecessary, just GAS). Maybe I'll just buy mods for Ceres, but it's a bit difficult with the very limited selection in CDO or even Davao.

I also bought a new harmonica! Playing this harp is way more challenging compared to the past ones I've used. The clean and clear sound more than makes up for it though, and I'm actually starting to get used to it. I even bought a holder for simultaneous use with a guitar. Getting addicted to music and music instruments can be a bit addictive, so I better watch my spending.

What's Up

Progressing quite nicely with the guitar. I can now do a faster chord change from open chords to a barre chord. I managed to improve my chord change speed by using chord pairs and a metronome set to 60 bpm. I'll be posting a complete write-up of the exercise I used within the next few days.

I finally bought the Treasure Adventure Game soundtrack from Bandcamp. It's a really well done collection of music that helped build up my love for the game. Here's where you can buy it. On a related note, I just learned today that the creator of TAG is making an HD remake of the game. It comes with new features and extended gameplay. The title is going to be Treasure Adventure World and it is currently in production through a joint effort between Robit Studios and Chucklefish Games. I am definitely going to buy this game, and hope that it's released on Steam and/or GOG.

Here's the trailer:

The Guitar - A Beginner's Thoughts

Over the past few weeks I've been continuously practicing with my guitar. It’s been a little over a month since I bought my own electric, but I’m glad I can actually see some progress.  I started practicing again so that I could have a more ideal emotional outlet and time sink, but I have to be careful about turning this newly found passion into an obsession.

Ceres

It’s a good thing that this plan pushed through. I've been reconnected with my old playlist, rediscovering music by listening to the lead, rhythm, and bass guitar parts of the songs. Although I’m far from being good enough to play all my favorite songs, it’s still fun to be able to strum along or learn a few notes by ear. The thought of actually playing those songs perfectly is very enticing, which is good since I get extra motivation to practice.

There have been a few difficulties that I encountered since I started. These problems can be quite discouraging, and I've seen, read, and heard of beginners quitting because of them.

Barre Chords

F

Back in high school when I first tried (and failed) to learn how to play the guitar, this was the biggest obstacle. I tried repeatedly to press the strings but it still sounded pretty dead. It also hurt my wrists a lot.

I've only learned recently that applying a lot of pressure isn't necessary, but the proper application of pressure is. My wrist was strained by the somewhat semi-awkward hand position and the fact that I used my fingers to grip and squeeze the neck. When I tried pulling using my arm with my thumb and wrist controlling the application of force, I found it easier to do barre chords. They still sound dead sometimes, but that’s where practice and repetition come in.

On a related note, the B chord can go die in a fire.

Picking/Plucking

So easy to misplace these things

I’m not really one to give advice for this problem since I still pretty much suck at it, I've noticed that a few changes in approach of technique make practicing and playing more enjoyable and pain-free. I now make it a point to keep my right index finger under my thumb when holding the pick to prevent it from snagging strings during upstrokes.

Pinky Anchor

This was recommended to me by a friend who has far more experience playing the guitar than me. It’s supposed to help guide the player as to where the pick or picking fingers are located. It helps develop a sense as to which string the pick or finger is close to and how much distance is needed for it to reach the corresponding string for the next note.

Using the pinky comes naturally for most people, but I find it kind of restrictive. I end up using it as a stand for my right hand, which applies unnecessary stress to the finger. I have to keep reminding myself that I should keep it relaxed and use it only as a pivot and not a hand rest.

Neck Pains

For those times that you need to crane your neck around to see if you’re not messing up the finger placement or planning for the next chord progression. I’ve been having these pains a lot recently and I suspect it’s because I have developed the bad habit of looking at the fret board at an odd angle. Sometimes this habit also causes wrist pain because “lookers” like me tend to hold the guitar at an angle to get a better view of things.

This problem can be prevented either by using a mirror, which would also help develop a great sense of inverted direction, or by being constantly aware of your playing position and making corrections when necessary.

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There are a whole lot more obstacles one can encounter when trying to master the guitar. Most are a bit more minor and some are only encountered only when a certain amount of skill or knowledge is achieved. Hopefully I’ll be able to tell these problems to go suck it when the time comes.