Biggs' Zone

A Geek's Cogitations, Conjectures and other Cortical Experiences

It’s Santa’s Fault I’m MIA

The Thanksgiving and Christmas season is always pretty busy for me. I have to make sure I’m efficient at work as I usually take quite a bit of time off for both holiday’s to spend time with family. In fact that is the reason I haven’t written a post since the Rise of Skywalker trailer. I have some posts in draft or in mind, I just haven’t had the time to complete them.

Radio City Music Hall Stage

I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving (US); mine was excellent. My in-laws know how to provide a wonderful Thanksgiving vacation experience. This year they treated us to the Christmas Spectacular starring the Radio City Rockettes. I have never seen a Rockettes show; its an amazing show. It really put me in the Christmas spirit. I highly recommend going to a Rockettes if you have the opportunity.

It is now the wonderful season of Advent and, therefore officially Christmas season. I have begun decorating, listening to Christmas music and donning my Santa hat for the next 24 days.

Rise of Skywalker Trailer Reaction

Now that I have had some time to digest this new trailer (and watch it about 8 more times), I’ve come up with a few thoughts. Some conclusions I’ve made based on what I’ve gleaned from the trailer; others are based on some of the other things I’ve read on the Internet. Everyone is posting their theories and trailer break downs, but this is my Rise of Skywalker trailer reaction.

If you haven’t watched the new trailer yet, or again (and again), then go do that now (or again).

I think this trailer is much different than the other two; it’s far more nebulous. There were major plot points I extrapolated, correctly, based on each trailer. In The Force Awakens, it was Kylo Ren’s heritage. In The Last Jedi it was the reason for Luke’s cantankerous behavior and hermit lifestyle. This trailer, however, leaves very few clues. Although, the fact that Kylo Ren was the crux for both of those major plot points makes me wonder what will be his final role?

Is That The Mortis Dagger??

Altar of Mortis

At about 1:50 into the trailer we see Rey and Kylo Ren destroy a statue. The scene doesn’t really indicate if they are working together or if that statue is collateral damage. Regardless, what’s important is what Rey is holding in her left hand? It appears to be a dagger which begs the question, is that the Mortis Dagger??

If you watch The Clone Wars then think back to Season 3, episodes 15, 16 and 17. Anakin, Obi-Wan and Ahsoka leave for a mission and suddenly find themselves on the planet Mortis. On this planet lives The Father, the Daughter and the Son. All three seem to be incarnations of the Force and all three are immortal. The Son, which is the incarnation of the Dark Side, has become too consumed with his power. The Father helps Obi-Wan and Ahsoka acquire the Mortis Dagger which removes immortality and can therefore be used to defeat The Son.

I’m going to stop there 1) because you should go watch those episodes, if you haven’t yet and 2) I think you know where I’m going with this. Episode IX director, J. J. Abrams, has said that the Rise of Skywalker will “unite all three trilogies”. Granted, The Clone Wars is not a movie but an animated series, however it is part of the Skywalker Saga. Using the Mortis Dagger to destroy the Emperor not only makes sense but would be another one of those brilliant tie-ins. I’m really digging this idea and I really hope the Internet and I are correct.

There is not a lot to glean from this trailer, other than the possible modus operandi of permanently killing Palpatine. Therefore I’m going to move on to other reactions and thoughts I had about this final trailer.

The Final Skywalker Trailer

A bittersweet event. The last trailer before the release of Rise of Skywalker and the final trailer for the Skywalker saga, released on Carrie Fisher’s birthday. Here it is!

HOLY KENOBI OMGBBQ!!!

We were regaled with this trailer for the first time during Monday Night Football. Fortunately you didn’t have to watch the game, just half time. Much to Tom Brady’s chagrin, that is the only reason anybody tuned into the game because nobody likes watching the Patriots.

By no means is this the last Star Wars trailer, there are at least three more coming in 2022, 2024, 2026. Potentially more if the rumor mills are correct about Rian Johnson still working on a movie (or two, or three). It is the last trailer we will see for a couple of years (but we have some live action series to keep the geek fires burning).

A trailer analysis will come later.

Breathe. Just breathe. Now reach out.

WoW: Ode to Humpday

I have been with this Convert To Raid raid team, Humpday Heroes, since the end of Warlords of Draenor. Our goal, as a raid team, has always been to earn the “Ahead of the Curve” raid achievement. Recently we successfully earned the “Ahead of the Curve” raid achievement for Queen Azshara. However, this accomplishment is bittersweet.

Brothers (and Sisters) In Arms

When you take on arduous tasks for months and years with, predominately, the same people a bond is formed. It’s more than just avatar names and pixels. Succeeding and failing together are the ingredients of synergy and the elation of finally reaching our goal is indescribable, however it was also bittersweet.

We often forget that this is just a game. Just like any other game, video or otherwise, it can get stale or life’s priorities change. In our case this achievement is the last one with one of our long time members, and my co-tank. This is the second co-tank I’ve lost this year but real life happens. However, while they are no longer playing the game, they are still a friend. The bonds of friendship will never be abandoned.

As the British say we must “Keep Calm and Carry On”. We are trying out new tanks and regrouping to get ready for the 8.3 raid, Ny’alotha. We have some promising candidates and I’m excited to finish off this expansion with one more “Ahead of the Curve” achievement! I know the Humpday Heroes will continue to prevail!

/cheers

duke-nukem-sm If zombies attack the world, everyone will run and hide. Except for us gamers, of course. We’ve been waiting for this all our lives!

 

RTotD: Better Than A Smoking Addiction

Addiction, the fact or condition of being addicted to a particular substance, thing, or activity. Me? I’m addicted to running. If the temperature is above 90 or below 30, I still find a way to safely go for a run. Aside from the weekends, if the day is nearly over and I haven’t gone for a run, I’m anxious. It means I’ve been sitting too long and experiencing cabin fever. 

If it is truly “not safe” to run outdoors, my alternative is to use the treadmill. I am more likely to concede to use the treadmill when its too cold versus too hot. However the treadmill doesn’t provide the same level of satisfaction as running outdoors. The fresh air, the breeze, the fact that upon reaching the half way point, you have no choice but to finish. Those are characteristics of running outdoors that cannot be duplicated by a machine.

Assuming I’m smart and safe about it, this has to be one of those “healthy” addictions. Regardless its a better addiction than smoking (or “vaping” 🙄 for you millennials).

/cheers

The things that go through my mind when I’m alone with nothing but my thoughts for entertainment is dangerous. Some might even say eccentric. Consider this your warning about today’s Random Thought of the Day

 

Mount Farming Guide: Pandaria World Bosses

This is my World of Warcraft Mount Farming Guide for the Pandaria World bosses. There are four world bosses, each have a rare chance of dropping a mount. At the time of this writing we are in patch 8.2 of the Battle for Azeroth expansion. I play Alliance, therefore these instructions are told with Boralus as the starting point. Also at the time of this writing, I don’t have any of the mounts that drop from these bosses, I’m still actively farming each of them.

AddOns and Macros

There is only one AddOn I use, WorldBossTimers. This addon shows a countdown timer on your screen to the next time the mob spawns. It does have its draw backs. If you weren’t there when the boss spawned, it doesn’t have a timer. However, if someone else standing nearby has this addon, and they do have the current timer, they can share it with you. This isn’t a required addon, I typically use it because I often do other things while I wait for the mob to spawn and the timer, and sound effects, help me pay attention. It sucks when you miss it, the respawn timers are typically 15-20 minutes.

The only macro I use is purely informational. It tells me how many times I have killed each boss. It took several years to get the Rivendare Deathcharger mount and the Raven Lord mount and I’ve often wondered how many times I killed each boss. If you want to use this macro, here is the command text:

/run local y=0 local function z(n,i) if GetStatistic(i)~='--' then y=y+GetStatistic(i) end print(n.. GetStatistic(i))end z('Galleon=',6990);z('Sha=',6989); z('Ondasta=',8147);z('Nalak=',8146);print('Total='..y);

Pandaria World Bosses Farming Route

Starting in Boralus, take the portal to Stormwind.

Galleon – Valley of the Four Winds

Mount: Son of Galleon.
Coordinates: 71, 64.

Take the portal to the Jade Forrest located in the Mage Tower in Stormwind. The flight point is immediately to the left of the portal. Take a taxi to Half Hill in the Valley of the Four Winds. After arriving, fly south, just past the Silken Fields to a large brown area on the hillside. There will probably be other people waiting there, assuming he hasn’t spawned by the time you arrive. There is about a 3 second delay before his health starts dropping quickly.

Sha of Anger – Kunlai Summit

Mount: Heavenly Onyx Cloud Serpent.
Coordinates: 54, 63).

Take a taxi to One Keg in Kunlai Summit. After arriving, fly just a little southwest, you should see his crumpled corpse as it usually sticks around for a while after he’s been killed. Several steam geysers will suddenly appear about 15-20 seconds before he spawns, which is your cue to get ready. He also has about a 3 second delay before he begins rapidly losing health.

Oondasta – Isle of Giants

Mount: Cobalt Primordial Direhorn.
Coordinates: 50, 54.

YOU CANNOT FLY TO THIS ISLAND! Well, you can try, but you will fall into the water before you reach the shore. I still suggest taking a taxi to the Isle of Giants. You also cannot fly on this island so you will have to get on a ground mount and follow the foot of the hill to the northeast until you see a path going up. Follow the path up the hill and you will see a large muddy area with dinosaur bones. Dohaman the Best Lord will be cowering in the middle, Oondasta will spawn right behind him. PLEASE NOTE: Oondasta can now be tamed by hunters and a hunter can tame him faster than he can be killed.

Nalak – Isle of Thunder

Mount: Thundering Cobalt Cloud Serpent.
Coordinates: 49, 68.

Take a taxi to Shado-pan Garrison in Townlong Steppes. After you arrive, there is a portal just a little north of the flight point that will take you to the Isle of Thunder. You cannot fly on the Isle of Thunder so you’ll be running to Nalak. You’re basically running north to The Foot of Lei Shen. Keep your eyes peeled on the sky. There is NO DELAY for this mob. Engage Nalak as soon as you see him spawn, he will die very fast!

That’s it for the Pandaria World Bosses. After Nalak you can hearth or continue further into the ruins and enter the Throne of Thunder raid. There are 2 mounts available: Spawn of Horridon and Clutch of Ji’Kun.

You will also make about 110g unless you get some gear drops, which will add to your transmog appearances and also sell for a couple gold.

Happy Hunting!

(Go to Farming Raid Mounts Part 1)

duke-nukem-sm If zombies attack the world, everyone will run and hide. Except for us gamers, of course. We’ve been waiting for this all our lives!

 

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