ELDEN RING (Part 3)

Part of the fun of Elden Ring, for me, is being able to play around with my character's build, which can be whatever you want it to be. Of course, you need the stats to support that (see last blog entry) but that is probably the only "limitation" (but that makes perfect sense).   

I've now made some progress in the game -- had no issues beating Godrick the Grafted -- and have his great rune as well as the interesting Rogier's Rapier +8 (YES!) Next I really need to work on the controls (always an issue for me cos my brain-hand coordination is REALLY poor) and, therefore, need to also practise on how to execute attacks correctly -- yes, even at level 71, I can still die from, like, getting mauled  by a pack of wild dogs if not careful 😵😵

SO what to put in my right and left hands???

Since the Sword of Night and Flame is indispensable I have placed that in the right hand. I have also include the Rapier cos it comes with the amazing Greatblade Phalanx spell /Art of War, which apparently can stagger enemies. Both swords require a trigger-free left hand so I took out the beast heater shield (with shield barrier AoW). On the left hand, I have the sacred seal for incantations (depending on situations I switch between fire spells, Rotten Breath, Darkness and Heal) and the Meteorite Staff for spells, including the rock sling, which also can stagger enemies (apparently). Also have the shield (on standby) for the left hand and bow for the right hand.

The next challenge is learn to switch between all these options while in a fight !!!  

ELDEN RING (Part 2)

 So is Elden Ring difficult?

Depends on who you ask really (just check out reddit!) Some find the game horribly hard while others say this is the easiest Souls title. What do I think?

At the beginning, when I didn't know what I was doing (which is normal), it was darn hard. I was killed by even the lowest life forms in Between Lands (like, wild dogs?!) Then I realised the game offers players ways to cheese their way up! So, since my last blog entry, I have been grinding runes at this spot to level up my stats (yes, I am quite a grinder) so that I can, mainly, wield this super duper Sword of Night and Flame (it is much better than the staff!!) Sure, it has been nerfed since but it is still a decent weapon for early game. And that has basically changed the way I spec my character.

And allowed me to kill bosses, one after another. 

Instead of putting points in DEX and END, I have been investing in VIG for more HP, MIND for more FP, INT for more powerful spells and FTH for stronger incantations. Being a mage was fun for awhile but with this new sword, I find incantation + melee works far better in killing enemies. Have also picked up talismans to further boost survivability. There are also some quirky incantations that are just fun to play around (like Darkness)... 

As said in my last blog entry, if you just rush into the story without investing time in building your character, you will just spend hours looking at the You Die screen. Instead, do a bit of cheesing, run around the open world and pick up high level gear/items so by the time you are better equipped (I am now at level 66) then you can take on the early game bosses with no problem. The game becomes bearably easy!

So, I am about to go into this dungeon (quite challenging but manageable to look for items to further power up the sword) ... then it is time to take on the game's second boss. Can't wait to few-hit-KO it. LOL   

ELDEN RING

Here is a video game that'd generated so much hype it was hard for me not to get it (downloaded it off PlayStation the weekend it was released). Which is also a kinda rash decision, given I have not played any of the previous "Souls" games produced by the same developer, FromSoftware. And what's so special about these Souls games? They are notoriously unforgiving and, therefore, difficult. 

Elden Ring boasts of a HUGE map (truly!!) and, like, at every turn, there is something that wants to kill you. And I really am not exaggerating. So, how to survive?

First of all, forget about following the overall story progression like you would with any other RPGs because your character will just ... die. (Oh, and there seems to be fewer missions or side quests, which I like). So I've spent a good part of the week just farming gear/weapons/items/ experience to better survivability. 

There are quite a few classes/jobs to choose from at the start of the game -- but since I quite fancy being a caster (read they are quite strong in this game) -- I went with "Prophet", which is, like, a cleric who can cast incantations as well as spells but has stats that also make a Paladin/ melee build viable. Right now my character can cast one really strong spell but I need to work on the melee attacks, especially with a spear. 

Rage-smashed console control a few times already because 1) my brain-fingers coordination is still very poor (and the slightly complicated D-Pad menu doesn't help); 2) keep hitting triangle when I should be pressing circle (stupid brain); 3) couldn't move when being attacked cos I was wearing a heavy armor (doh! read the instructions!) Honestly, there are no bad games, only bad players LOL

The Godrick Knight set isn't that great ... 

Have gotten myself a nice staff, a decent "Traveler set", a very good spear and shield, now I need to look for an enchantment that can strengthen my shield (which is crucial to enhance survivability).  

Took me awhile to get this weapon drop

Stats-wise I think I will need more Vigor, Endurance and Dexterity to make my Paladin is less squishy ... casting spells from a distance is fine and great, but when the enemies come closer ... that is when an enchanted shield  can save my character from dying yet another horrible death 🙈🙈🙈  

     

First post in 2022

I mean, do people still BLOG? 

Looking back more than a decade ago (yes!) I think I was big (and, therefore, blogged) on several subjects: Phones, Yoga and Games. Not much has changed (yes!) except, well, I am still huge on Yoga and Games but phones? 

Not so much these days. Currently I "only" own these: Google Pixel Pro 6 (yes!) for work and Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5G for gaming, which I use daily. Then there are the old BlackBerry Key 2 LE and LG G5, both I really love but which I retired recently because they are ... well, old. And finally I still have the Sidekick ID and Docomo Fujitsu F-06D, which are kinda collector's items (both have those fantastic LED lights 😍😍 Compared to those crazy days when I changed phones, like, every other week, this is, like, normal. 

In fact, I really love the new Google phone ... the last one I owned was the Nexus S (by Samsung circ 2010), which had a curved screen and I think I had that for quite a long time until the firmware became totally outdated. The Pixel Pro 6 (I have the Japanese edition) is just the kinda flagship phone I needed to replace my dependable BlackBerry (thumb typing on the Pixel is great!). The Z Flip is a foldable so at least it is different. 

However, while I may now have fewer phones, that doesn't mean I have fewer gadgets. In fact, my collection of electronic stuff has grown exponentially over the years that, perhaps, I need to do something about that. Like, these are machines that if I don't use or charge up regularly they might just ... die!

The ThinkPad (that I am typing this blog on) is SUPER-DUPER! I mean, I have had this for many, many years and one massive ransomware attack later, I am still using it. It has a wide screen and even a built-in DVD/CD/VCD player (that works) and you just cannot buy this amazing laptop anywhere now. And I have a Apple MacAir too ... which, to be honest, I have no idea why I bought cos I don't really need it. But it is good to learn to use the iOS (which IMHO is totally counter-intuitive). I still have a Kindle with a keyboard (yes!), three PlayStation handheld (yes!), Game Boy Advance SP (yes!) and a first gen iPad (yes!) Well, you get my drift. The thing is, I am now just using mostly my Nintendo Switch for gaming.

So just taking turns to charge up these gadgets up is kinda troublesome. But do I throw them away?

On the yoga front, I have been having issues with my right leg, specifically the outer knee and hamstrings. Will do this pose throughout the coming week (+ anti-inflammatory tablets) to see if situation will improve.

   

Pokemon Unite

Seriously, blink and it's already mid November!!! It's been, like, six months since my last entry and I have temporarily left the Witcher world behind (though I will no doubt be getting back into it next month when Season 2 of the Netflix series starts). So no more Gwent and no more Witcher 3: The Wild Hunt.

Instead, I've been playing Pokemon Unite, which has the potential of being a great MOBA but, right now, it is just kinda okay. The problem with it is that if you play solo (since I have no friends who are on call 24/7 to team up with me) you can queued into all sorta nonsense and I get extremely rage-y if my (random) teammates are a bunch of morons who don't know how to play (or just bots). 

Still, when things go the right way, it's really fun. Also, unlike Gwent, there is no pressure to play regularly in order to stay in the same rank. 

Meanwhile, have finally swapped my BlackBerry Key2 LE for the new Google Pixel 6 Pro ... it's great to have a powerful main phone again so I don't need to carry, like, three phones all the time. 

Taking next week off work ... time to ponder the future... 

The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt -- Revisited (Part 4)

 

Here is Geralt looking fine in his traditional Skellige outfit. Have just completed the first main quest there so he is now at level 70 BUT still not strong enough to take that enemy swamp in the Hearts of Stones (Rose on the Red Field) side quest. May try again at level 75 ... what a grind !!!  and after several (10?) attempts I finally completed the Rose on the Red Field side quest in Hearts of Stone. The trick is to lure them to a spot where they just run into one another (or don't attack at the same time!) I think I used that for another fight in Blood and Wine too. Geralt is now at level 71 (!)

But I don't think I will try the frog prince quest just yet (I will probably need to level up some more for that one). So maybe I will do a few more quests in Skellige first or in Novigrad or even Velen. Actually this part of the game is quite fun since I can just jump from one storyline to another to get to know the Witcher world better (Post-Wild Hunt world is quite empty and sad!!!)  

The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt -- Revisited (Part 3)

Second playthrough, as it turns out, isn't as tedious as I thought it'd be (which is great) cos I can replay the main quests in Velen, Novigrad and Skellige in any order and, in doing so, levelling up Geralt to the point where he is strong enough to take on enemies in Hearts of Stone.  

So I decided to go straight to Novigrad (after the first Keira Metz quest, which is fun) and do the Whoreson Junior/Dandelion/Triss quests first, before sailing off to Skellige to meet Yennefer. Hoping to skip Velen (for now) -- cos getting the "good" ending for the Bloody Baron quest is quite time consuming -- and still able to get Geralt to level 70+. Also, this time Geralt will romance with Triss instead of Yen.

I'm now trying to do the Extremely Confusing "Get Junior" and "The Gangs of Novigrad" quests without getting a "fail" ... and this is what I am going to do:

1) Start the Get Junior quest first: find Whoreson Junior hideout;

2) visit Arena next, before speaking to Cleaver to avoid failing the arena quest (in The Gangs of Novigrad later). Here is the tricky bit, has to go to The Nowhere waterhole first to find a certificate that allows Geralt to enter the Arena.  

3) do Not read the documents x 2 (but read the mysterious letter)... note there is one (temporary?) "failed" mission (not finding info on Whoreson Jnr in Casino), which I hope the next step will redress;

4) now go and visit Cleaver and trigger the raid the Casino quest (without triggering the Arena one, which is completed already)

5) raid the casino with the dwarves, return to Cleaver and complete The Gangs of Novigrad with no fails!! 

6) continue Get Junior quest and get to his hideout -- do NOT enter from the front, go round the back instead and there is a stable of sorts and enter the grounds from there. From then on just kill all his henchmen, hear out Ciri's story (I LOVE using Ciri dash) and then KILL Whoreson Junior. If you don't kill him, then you get a RED X ... I actually wanted to spare his life in this playthru but ... not at the cost of a RED X!

So, all done! *clap*

Meanwhile, Roach needs a trophy so Geralt sailed off to Skellige and killed a Fiend (at level 84, I think). This is quite a tough monster fight if you went in with no preparation ... so I made sure Geralt had all the right potions (this is why I think the Alchemy build is THE BEST) and kept spamming Igni until the beast died. Above is the photo of Victory!!!