Hello Everyone,
I have decided not to close this blog and to start posting again. I thought about my reasons for and against maintaining the blog. In the end, it came down to my being a bit stupid to think about closing this. Yeah, you read right, stupid. I believe myself to be fairly well read, level headed and somewhat intelligent. But like all humans, I sometimes do not think things out real well and make rash statements or actions that just were not real smart (read stupid).
So, I will be posting somethings in here and will try to be a bit more regular.
Monday, July 12, 2010
Friday, July 2, 2010
The end, maybe
Good Morning Everyone,
I will not be posting on here for a while. In fact I am considering shutting down this blog, but have not yet made up my mind as of yet. The reasons? Well, there are several.
This particular blog is called BlackJacks Ruminations and was mostly about Jack and the rp in Deadwood. However, Jack is not going to be around for a while. For reasons that I will keep to myself, I have decided Jack needs a break. Will this typist continue to play in Deadwood? I don't know. I love Deadwood! The owners and all the players there are great people. I have not found better rp anywhere in SL.
As for my other characters, Ezra, JF, and Carlton will all be on hiatus.
I am not going to say good bye here, just so long and happy trails to you all.
BlackJack Landar
I will not be posting on here for a while. In fact I am considering shutting down this blog, but have not yet made up my mind as of yet. The reasons? Well, there are several.
This particular blog is called BlackJacks Ruminations and was mostly about Jack and the rp in Deadwood. However, Jack is not going to be around for a while. For reasons that I will keep to myself, I have decided Jack needs a break. Will this typist continue to play in Deadwood? I don't know. I love Deadwood! The owners and all the players there are great people. I have not found better rp anywhere in SL.
As for my other characters, Ezra, JF, and Carlton will all be on hiatus.
I am not going to say good bye here, just so long and happy trails to you all.
BlackJack Landar
Monday, June 21, 2010
The Mechanics of Fighting Part I Melee
First, let me preface this with a statement: I do not claim to be the worlds greatest fighter. I have however had some success in melee and ranged combat. With that being said, here are some of my thoughts on the issue of actually fighting using meters. I decided to write this because it has taken me a long time to learn some of the ins and outs of combat. I was fortunate in having some really great fighters give me some tips. Thank you, to all who have shared their knowledge with me.
Let us assume that you have given a combat challenge to somebody. Are you going to use free form/text style combat or are you going to use meter combat? If you plan to do text style combat, then make sure you IM your opponent first, otherwise, you might find yourself laying on the ground with your meter reading you are dead while you are still typing out that you are drawing your pistol with lightening speed. So, let us assume that you are going to use meter fighting. The way many meters work is on collision. An object, for example, a bullet, makes contact with your meter. The meter detects the collision and registers the result as damage/reduced health, etc. That is a quick and dirty explanation of meters and how they work for combat.
Lets look at melee combat first. Melee combat is using your fists, knife, sword, broken bottle, etc.....You are up close and personal with your opponent. One of the first things you want to do is go into preferences and reduce your graphic quality. This will help reduce lag and make you slightly faster. If it is dark and you are new to melee combat, set your environmental control to midday. This way you will be able to see what you are trying to hit. If you are in a dcs, ccs, etc sim set your avatar to run. In Deadwood, I suggest you do not set to run. Some may disagree with me on this, but, in Deadwood, running really reduces your stamina and you can find yourself suddenly collapsed because your stam went to zero, yet your health is still good.
Now, pull your weapon or activate your fist weapon and go into mouselook. Fighting in mouselook is the best way to fight as you can move more easily and have better control of your avatar. Now lets look at a boxing match in Deadwood. Jack has climbed into the ring and activated his fist weapon. Pressing the left mouse button will raise your fists and allow you to swing when you hit the arrow buttons. The bell rings....what do you do? Some charge for the center of the ring and slug it out head to head. Exciting and fun to watch. This can work really well too. Another thing to try to do though is slip around behind your opponent. If he is facing away from you, he can't hit you, while you can hit him. Keep an eye on your health meter, if you are losing badly back away, move to the side, anything to keep from getting hit.
In DCS2 you have a few more options due to the fact that in most sims you have powers that you can use depending on your race. So lets say Wolfbane is about to fight a vampire. The first thing I do is hit my frenzy power, this gives me a "buff", which means it gives me more health and stamina, meaning I can take more damage. With DCS meters always set your avatar to run. Movement is life in any fight whether it is melee or ranged. So, I have hit my frenzy power, then I hit my regeneration button. Lycans in most sims heal quickly anyways, but this accelerates the process. I have drawn my sword and we attack. Now I hit him with my maul power. this is a ranged power that will do 20 points of damage to a target up to 15 meters away. As soon as I hit that, I hit mouselook and jump. thats right jump. Now, some sims forbid jumping so check before you use this tactic. Jumping is great for getting in behind an opponent and getting in a few quick swipes. The other thing jumping is useful for is, if you lose sight of our opponent you can jump up and look down to spot him. That way you can keep track of him. A couple of other helpful hints. Set your dcs powers up as gestures activated by an F key. this way if you take damage you can hit your regeneration button and gain some health back. You can also use your ranged power as well.
Does all this mean you will win each and every melee fight you are in? Nope. Many things play a part, for instance, lag can hit you and slow you down, the other guy has a better weapon then you do or he is just a better fighter. As I said, I am not the best fighter in SL. There are some really fantastic melee fighters out there. I do ok, I win some, I lose some. Even the best fighters lose. If you do, take it with good grace. Its just a game folks. You were not really hurt and your character is still alive. yeah, yeah, it says your dead on the meter, but guess what? It aint permanent!! So have fun
Let us assume that you have given a combat challenge to somebody. Are you going to use free form/text style combat or are you going to use meter combat? If you plan to do text style combat, then make sure you IM your opponent first, otherwise, you might find yourself laying on the ground with your meter reading you are dead while you are still typing out that you are drawing your pistol with lightening speed. So, let us assume that you are going to use meter fighting. The way many meters work is on collision. An object, for example, a bullet, makes contact with your meter. The meter detects the collision and registers the result as damage/reduced health, etc. That is a quick and dirty explanation of meters and how they work for combat.
Lets look at melee combat first. Melee combat is using your fists, knife, sword, broken bottle, etc.....You are up close and personal with your opponent. One of the first things you want to do is go into preferences and reduce your graphic quality. This will help reduce lag and make you slightly faster. If it is dark and you are new to melee combat, set your environmental control to midday. This way you will be able to see what you are trying to hit. If you are in a dcs, ccs, etc sim set your avatar to run. In Deadwood, I suggest you do not set to run. Some may disagree with me on this, but, in Deadwood, running really reduces your stamina and you can find yourself suddenly collapsed because your stam went to zero, yet your health is still good.
Now, pull your weapon or activate your fist weapon and go into mouselook. Fighting in mouselook is the best way to fight as you can move more easily and have better control of your avatar. Now lets look at a boxing match in Deadwood. Jack has climbed into the ring and activated his fist weapon. Pressing the left mouse button will raise your fists and allow you to swing when you hit the arrow buttons. The bell rings....what do you do? Some charge for the center of the ring and slug it out head to head. Exciting and fun to watch. This can work really well too. Another thing to try to do though is slip around behind your opponent. If he is facing away from you, he can't hit you, while you can hit him. Keep an eye on your health meter, if you are losing badly back away, move to the side, anything to keep from getting hit.
In DCS2 you have a few more options due to the fact that in most sims you have powers that you can use depending on your race. So lets say Wolfbane is about to fight a vampire. The first thing I do is hit my frenzy power, this gives me a "buff", which means it gives me more health and stamina, meaning I can take more damage. With DCS meters always set your avatar to run. Movement is life in any fight whether it is melee or ranged. So, I have hit my frenzy power, then I hit my regeneration button. Lycans in most sims heal quickly anyways, but this accelerates the process. I have drawn my sword and we attack. Now I hit him with my maul power. this is a ranged power that will do 20 points of damage to a target up to 15 meters away. As soon as I hit that, I hit mouselook and jump. thats right jump. Now, some sims forbid jumping so check before you use this tactic. Jumping is great for getting in behind an opponent and getting in a few quick swipes. The other thing jumping is useful for is, if you lose sight of our opponent you can jump up and look down to spot him. That way you can keep track of him. A couple of other helpful hints. Set your dcs powers up as gestures activated by an F key. this way if you take damage you can hit your regeneration button and gain some health back. You can also use your ranged power as well.
Does all this mean you will win each and every melee fight you are in? Nope. Many things play a part, for instance, lag can hit you and slow you down, the other guy has a better weapon then you do or he is just a better fighter. As I said, I am not the best fighter in SL. There are some really fantastic melee fighters out there. I do ok, I win some, I lose some. Even the best fighters lose. If you do, take it with good grace. Its just a game folks. You were not really hurt and your character is still alive. yeah, yeah, it says your dead on the meter, but guess what? It aint permanent!! So have fun
Tuesday, June 15, 2010
Combat and how to do it in RolePlay
As many of you already know, Deadwood sim has been featured in Second Life's Destination Guide. The admin team has been dealing with a lot of new folks who have no idea whatsoever on how to role play. We have had the run of people running around nude or so close to it doesnt matter, their noobie dangly bits exposed for God and everybody to see...well, you get the idea. So the admins in Deadwood have been talking about how can we help new folks get into the rp with a minimum of time and a maximum of useful information. Not so easy as it seems. But never let it be said that the Deadwood admins backed away from a challenge. I will be posting some ideas on how to roleplay combat in Deadwood. These ideas will be applicable to other rp sims.
Combat! How does it happen? What do I do so I can commit mayhem and not get warned or banned for it?
Entering into Combat / Giving combat warnings
Your character is sitting in the Cricket Saloon, when a man walks in. During the course of time, this stranger looks over at you and makes some comments about your dubious parentage. What do you do? Lets look at the wrong way first.
Leaning against the bar Jack Landar sips his whiskey, his eyes flitting from person to person noting each one. Joe Smith turns to Jack, "You bastard, I was talking to that whore first." Jack Landar slams his fist into Joe Smith's jaw knocking him unconcious.
Several problems with this, Jack did not give any combat warning, and he god modded Joe by not giving him a chance to react to the punch he threw.
A better way...
Leaning against the bar Jack Landar sips his whiskey. Joe Smith takes a spot at the bar and turns to Jack, "You bastard, I was talking to that whore first." Jack smirks, "Bastard am I? I am going to teach you what a bastard can do." Jack pulls his fist back and throws a punch towards Joe's jaw.
Here Jack gives the combat warning by what he says and what he does. He also gives Joe the opportunity to react to his punch.
Combat! How does it happen? What do I do so I can commit mayhem and not get warned or banned for it?
Entering into Combat / Giving combat warnings
Your character is sitting in the Cricket Saloon, when a man walks in. During the course of time, this stranger looks over at you and makes some comments about your dubious parentage. What do you do? Lets look at the wrong way first.
Leaning against the bar Jack Landar sips his whiskey, his eyes flitting from person to person noting each one. Joe Smith turns to Jack, "You bastard, I was talking to that whore first." Jack Landar slams his fist into Joe Smith's jaw knocking him unconcious.
Several problems with this, Jack did not give any combat warning, and he god modded Joe by not giving him a chance to react to the punch he threw.
A better way...
Leaning against the bar Jack Landar sips his whiskey. Joe Smith takes a spot at the bar and turns to Jack, "You bastard, I was talking to that whore first." Jack smirks, "Bastard am I? I am going to teach you what a bastard can do." Jack pulls his fist back and throws a punch towards Joe's jaw.
Here Jack gives the combat warning by what he says and what he does. He also gives Joe the opportunity to react to his punch.
The use of rp warnings should of course be applied to meter fighting as well.
Wednesday, June 2, 2010
Wolfbane's Travels
Hello Everyone,
Recently Deadwood has been quiet and when that happens I usually go pull Wolfbane out for a romp around Dark City. But I believe the same late spring/early summer stuff (graduations, parties and just really nice weather) is pulling people away from SL temporarily. Wolf was just sitting around in a nearly deserted Dark City about a week ago, when he got an IM from Crow Runner. Many of you know her from Deadwood. I had turned her onto Dark City and she repaid the favor by turning me onto Sentinel Mountains.
Sentinel Mountains is a new sim owned by Justinian Diavolo and Freya Kirax. The sim is set in 1420 and for its theme that of the Roman Empire with a mix of the World of Darkness and Anita Blake novels blended in for good measure. We have a number of races to choose from. Lycanthrope's (werewolve are not the only type of lycan, there are werebears, weretigers, wereswans, wererats, etc.), Vampires, Orcs (which includes goblin,hobgoblin, orcs), Drow, Elves,
and Dragons.
The builds in the sim are quite good and some are massive. The keep pictured below is where the Dark Lord (Justinian) will rule the lands. The sim is primarily made up of Lycanthropes at the moment but there are other creatures. I have met two Merfolk , a dragon and a goblin. No vampires yet, but I look for some to come. Actually we need vampires and other dark creatures for the Lycans to fight. Because no matter what Hollywood tells you, werewolves are not evil creatures. They were created by Luna to protect the human race from the dark spirits, primarily, vampires. But hey, when has Hollywood ever got anything right?
So if you find yourself with some time on your hands or are looking for a new place to play, come visit Sentinel Mountains.
Thursday, May 27, 2010
Jack in Great Bend, Ks.
September 1872 Indian Territory
Jack knelt down just below the ridgeline of the hill, few trees and brush helping to breakup the outline of him and his horse. As Jack surveyed his back trail, he saw the men who had been chasing him for three days. He had worn out his welcome in the Texas panhandle when the buyer of the cattle he had rustled gotten greedy and began to try to renegotiate the price of the herd. An argument had ensued and the man went for his gun. Jack had not beaten the man to the draw, but the fellow's first bullet had missed. Jack took steady aim and put two rounds in the man's chest.
Having ridden up into Indian Territory, Jack had thought the three men would have given up the chase, but this little posse was like a dog with a bone. They were not about to give it up. "Well Jack, only one thing left for you to do." With those words Jack took his bedroll and unwrapped the double barrel shotgun. Kneeling down he checked to make sure both barrels were loaded. Pulling his pistol from its holster, Jack laid it on a rock next to his knee.
The three men rode along slowly looking for any sign. They moved to within 20 yards and Jack fired a barrel at the lead man. The horse reared and took off at a dead run. Immediately Jack fired the other barrel in the general direction of the other two. Dropping the shotgun Jack grabbed his pistol and fired two quick shots at his pursuers. Both men dug their heels into their horses to get out of range. Jack watched as the men rode hard and fast after their companion. Jack reloaded all his weapons then slowly, his eyes flicking here and there to watch for a return of the posse, he moved to the trail and saw some blood. Which ones were hit and how bad, he had no idea, but with wounded to tend to, he had bought himself time. Remounting his horse, Jack kicked it into a trot and rode north.
May 1873 Great Bend Kansas
Jack walked into the Town Marshalls office, which was empty of furnishings save for a table, two chairs and a heating stove. A man sat at the table, a coffee mug and a hat with a red star drawn on it sitting at the edge of the table. Looking up at Jack he said, "I'm Marshall Gainsford. What can I do for you?" Jack pushed his hat back off his forehead as he replied, "I'm Jack Landar. The hotel manager said you might have need of a deputy." Gainsford studied Jack for a moment, "That your willing to do the job says a lot. You have any experience as a peace officer?" "No sir", Jack said, "I don't, but I'm willing to learn." Gainsford nodded once, "Alright, get yourself some red paint and draw a red star on your hat. We don't have any badges. I reckon you could cut one out of tin can, but I find this works just as well."
July 1873 Great Bend Kansas
The sound of a gunshot followed by several more shattered the night air. Jack took off at a run in the direction of the shot and coming up to the Long Horn saloon, he saw 5 men one of whom, a cowboy from the look of him,was sitting in the street, blood oozing from a wound in his leg. The other two cowboys were holding pistols leveled at two buffalo hunters, who in turn had their own weapons leveled at the cowboys. Jack leveled his shotgun in the general direction of all 5 men. "Drop your guns boys. Do it, do it now." One of the hunters turned toward Jack, "Stay outta this deputy. We're gonna teach the goddamn Texans they can't come round here and order everbody around." Jacks eyes narrowed, "Bill Carter, you just settle yourself down. Now all of you drop your guns on ground right now." All 5 men looked one to another then at Jack and the big barrels of the 12 gauge shotgun pointed in their direction. Slowly they all laid their weapons down. "Thats better", Jack nodded to a man who was watching from saloon door. "Jim, you come on out here and pick up these weapons. Now you 5 start walking down the street, I'm going to let you all cool off in the jail. Just so you know, anyone tries to run, I'm going to start shooting and this scatter gun will get the runner and several of the rest of you." With their heads down the 5 began trudgng down the street.
Jack knelt down just below the ridgeline of the hill, few trees and brush helping to breakup the outline of him and his horse. As Jack surveyed his back trail, he saw the men who had been chasing him for three days. He had worn out his welcome in the Texas panhandle when the buyer of the cattle he had rustled gotten greedy and began to try to renegotiate the price of the herd. An argument had ensued and the man went for his gun. Jack had not beaten the man to the draw, but the fellow's first bullet had missed. Jack took steady aim and put two rounds in the man's chest.
Having ridden up into Indian Territory, Jack had thought the three men would have given up the chase, but this little posse was like a dog with a bone. They were not about to give it up. "Well Jack, only one thing left for you to do." With those words Jack took his bedroll and unwrapped the double barrel shotgun. Kneeling down he checked to make sure both barrels were loaded. Pulling his pistol from its holster, Jack laid it on a rock next to his knee.
The three men rode along slowly looking for any sign. They moved to within 20 yards and Jack fired a barrel at the lead man. The horse reared and took off at a dead run. Immediately Jack fired the other barrel in the general direction of the other two. Dropping the shotgun Jack grabbed his pistol and fired two quick shots at his pursuers. Both men dug their heels into their horses to get out of range. Jack watched as the men rode hard and fast after their companion. Jack reloaded all his weapons then slowly, his eyes flicking here and there to watch for a return of the posse, he moved to the trail and saw some blood. Which ones were hit and how bad, he had no idea, but with wounded to tend to, he had bought himself time. Remounting his horse, Jack kicked it into a trot and rode north.
May 1873 Great Bend Kansas
Jack walked into the Town Marshalls office, which was empty of furnishings save for a table, two chairs and a heating stove. A man sat at the table, a coffee mug and a hat with a red star drawn on it sitting at the edge of the table. Looking up at Jack he said, "I'm Marshall Gainsford. What can I do for you?" Jack pushed his hat back off his forehead as he replied, "I'm Jack Landar. The hotel manager said you might have need of a deputy." Gainsford studied Jack for a moment, "That your willing to do the job says a lot. You have any experience as a peace officer?" "No sir", Jack said, "I don't, but I'm willing to learn." Gainsford nodded once, "Alright, get yourself some red paint and draw a red star on your hat. We don't have any badges. I reckon you could cut one out of tin can, but I find this works just as well."
July 1873 Great Bend Kansas
The sound of a gunshot followed by several more shattered the night air. Jack took off at a run in the direction of the shot and coming up to the Long Horn saloon, he saw 5 men one of whom, a cowboy from the look of him,was sitting in the street, blood oozing from a wound in his leg. The other two cowboys were holding pistols leveled at two buffalo hunters, who in turn had their own weapons leveled at the cowboys. Jack leveled his shotgun in the general direction of all 5 men. "Drop your guns boys. Do it, do it now." One of the hunters turned toward Jack, "Stay outta this deputy. We're gonna teach the goddamn Texans they can't come round here and order everbody around." Jacks eyes narrowed, "Bill Carter, you just settle yourself down. Now all of you drop your guns on ground right now." All 5 men looked one to another then at Jack and the big barrels of the 12 gauge shotgun pointed in their direction. Slowly they all laid their weapons down. "Thats better", Jack nodded to a man who was watching from saloon door. "Jim, you come on out here and pick up these weapons. Now you 5 start walking down the street, I'm going to let you all cool off in the jail. Just so you know, anyone tries to run, I'm going to start shooting and this scatter gun will get the runner and several of the rest of you." With their heads down the 5 began trudgng down the street.
Wednesday, May 5, 2010
Setting up a character (Lycan)
Hello Everyone,
Thought I would take a bit of time today and share a bit more about Wolfbane Footpad, my lycan character. It took a while, but I finally have all of the avies I need for this character. Thats right, multiple avies. Wolfbane has three forms, human, wolf, and garou.
Wolfbane's garou or battle form. The avie is from TRUAM
The pictures above show Wolfbane's garou form. This is the form he takes on the full moon or when he loses control and loses his temper. The avie as noted above comes from TRUAM. It includes full werewolf AO, growling and howling sound effects and a DCS2 weapon. All of that at only 2400Ls is a pretty good deal.
This is Wolfbanes wolf or Quadruped form. Avie by Werehouse.
Wolfbane's Quadruped form is a wolf, but not just a regular wolf. Think Twilight size wolves, it is as tall as most human avatars. This avie is the Dire Wolf from Werehouse and in my view makes for the best quad form for lycans. Of all of the avies, this is my favorite. Its expensive at 3000L, but I am having a blast with it. I was able to get a DCS2 and a Spellfire beast claws weapon for him, so he is not totally defenseless. The DCS2 claws are not enhanced, but, hey he can still fight now and is not defenseless.
Wolfbane's human form. Avie by TRUAM
Those of you who knew BlackJack in Deadwood 1.0 will remember this avatar shape and skin. For my lycans human form I wanted something that would project a tough as nails, no nonsense warrior. I most definetely did not want to look like a pretty boy. This avatar from TRUAM is perfect for that purpose. Just look at that mug! Plus he is pretty big in his human form too.
This was just me being a bit indulgent today. If any of you ever want to get an animal avatar, do visit the Werehouse as they have a full line of anthro, quad and dire sized quads available. The animations and sounds that come with them make it a great deal.
Thought I would take a bit of time today and share a bit more about Wolfbane Footpad, my lycan character. It took a while, but I finally have all of the avies I need for this character. Thats right, multiple avies. Wolfbane has three forms, human, wolf, and garou.
Wolfbane's garou or battle form. The avie is from TRUAM
The pictures above show Wolfbane's garou form. This is the form he takes on the full moon or when he loses control and loses his temper. The avie as noted above comes from TRUAM. It includes full werewolf AO, growling and howling sound effects and a DCS2 weapon. All of that at only 2400Ls is a pretty good deal.
This is Wolfbanes wolf or Quadruped form. Avie by Werehouse.
Wolfbane's Quadruped form is a wolf, but not just a regular wolf. Think Twilight size wolves, it is as tall as most human avatars. This avie is the Dire Wolf from Werehouse and in my view makes for the best quad form for lycans. Of all of the avies, this is my favorite. Its expensive at 3000L, but I am having a blast with it. I was able to get a DCS2 and a Spellfire beast claws weapon for him, so he is not totally defenseless. The DCS2 claws are not enhanced, but, hey he can still fight now and is not defenseless.
Wolfbane's human form. Avie by TRUAM
Those of you who knew BlackJack in Deadwood 1.0 will remember this avatar shape and skin. For my lycans human form I wanted something that would project a tough as nails, no nonsense warrior. I most definetely did not want to look like a pretty boy. This avatar from TRUAM is perfect for that purpose. Just look at that mug! Plus he is pretty big in his human form too.
This was just me being a bit indulgent today. If any of you ever want to get an animal avatar, do visit the Werehouse as they have a full line of anthro, quad and dire sized quads available. The animations and sounds that come with them make it a great deal.
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