Randominity

Ever since the release of Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning, my free time has become filled with Goblins, Dwarves, Dark Elves and other such things. Actually, the Nerd King and I had been playing for an extra couple of days prior to release because we pre-ordered the game at Target. I have been looking long and hard for a game that we could play together and mutually enjoy, and so far this is fitting the bill, surprise of surprises!

I am still amazed by how much I am enjoying the PvP aspects of Warhammer. I never in a million years would have thought I'd like it, but I am having a blast, even when our side loses. By a lot. In an embarrassingly short amount of time. I don't know, maybe it's my knowledge that each class has a counter-class, or that I'm never alone on the battlefield, or that I don't get trash-talked by the other side (because we don't speak the same "language"), or what. But I've never been out there thinking that I have no chance against someone who is much better equipped or much more twitchy or much more ... anything ... than me. I feel like I have a fair shot, and that's something new.

We are playing Destruction (or, the side of EEEEVILLLL) because the NK really really really wanted to play a Goblin. Meanwhile, my favorite race is the Dwarves. Oh noes! We are diametrically opposed! Yet somehow we make it work :). As in, I play a Dwarf (and other characters) with my guild when he's playing something else, and a Dark Elf when he wants to wreak some havoc. I smite the hell out of things and he heals me. It's awesome and I feel mighty.

I'm still not sure what class I'm ultimately going to stick with, and that's a problem in a game where people are really heading for the end game of level 40 and keep sieges and massive war strategies. I'm looking forward to all of that as well, but when I have a handful of characters hovering around the level 10 mark, I recognize that my time and focus would probably put me a lot farther down that road.

Like thing the first: I can't do melee. I can't play warriors and stabbity characters, because I'm bad at steering myself and situational awareness (much like real life), and chasing things down to kill them is way more stressful than it's worth, considering I'm more likely to miss them than not. Some of the melee classes look SO GOOD OMG, but I just can't do it. I miss the days of Guild Wars where you auto-ran to target. :(

Thing the second: Being a healer is stressful. I never Monked in Guild Wars for a reason, and one of the reasons I lost interest so quickly in my LOTRO Minstrel is because I learned what it's like to Minstrel in a group: you watch health bars and stress about it. Yeah, no thanks. I like to see the battle ahead of me! And shoot stuff! In the face!

Thing the third: Casters wear toilet paper as armor. The only reason I can traipse about as a Sorceress is because I have a Goblin healer in my pocket, keeping me from blowing myself up and keeping guys with stabbity things from poking me into little tiny bits. By myself I can't imagine the game being much fun what with spending 70% of my time dead and all. Though it is pretty satisfying to set people on fire and then blow them up from the inside :D.

All in all, I am really loving this game so far. I don't know what it is that is rubbing me the right way - a lot of little things that add up to a pleasurable experience that I can't put my finger on. It's just *fun* and in a completely different way than I've had fun in other games. It's weird. We're probably being drugged through our computer monitors.

Mmmmm. Drugged.

Anyway, this is all I'm posting about because this is all we've been doing. Aside from things like taking the kittens to the vet to be neutered, buying groceries, doing laundry, and going to work, we game. I mean, I introduced the NK to The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion, and he sometimes wakes up in the middle of the night talking about it, he's so addicted, okay? We are having the nerdliest time EVER. It's my birthday next week and I asked for Warhammer novels.

(Then, in November, NEW CLAYMORE MANGA VOLUME. \o/)

<333333333