StarStable

Last January my wife and daughter convinced me to try a game that I would never have considered on my own: StarStable Online.

My usual genre consists of games like Fallout, Arkham, Elder Scrolls, etc. All First Person Shooter or Hack and Slash games. StarStable is different in two ways: first, it is a[n] MMORPG and two it contains very little violence and when you are hurt it is masked by a sort of "whew that was close but you managed to survive (or get away)" message. Apart from that I soon learned this is a very fun game and satisfies a number of basic gaming needs.

When my daughter told me about this "awesome horse game" I laughed. But my wife began playing it and she is not really into games unless they are puzzle games (like Myst or Riven). Soon after not only were my daughter and wife playing but also my wife's parents, her sister, and the cousins! At that point I had to try it to see what the hullabaloo was about.

Turns out this horse game made for younger women is actually a lot of fun for anyone and everyone. 

StarStable Online is based on previous single player games. In this game you travel to a region where horses are the primary mode of transportation. You start at a stable and are asked to care for a horse. You do such a good job with that horse you are then asked to keep it and that is where all the adventure begins.

This is a pretty wide open world once you become a paying customer. There are level restrictions to several regions but that gives you something to work toward. You can communicate with anyone in game through mail or through chat. Chat is divided into multiple tabs with varying restrictions such as special groups, or the club you belong to as well as local and global chat. The game is VERY social and the players often don't bother following the plotline or quests and go off and have role playing parties and such.

But as open as it is, there IS a main plot or quest, and there are TONS of side quests and chores to do as well. Quests are segmented and can be done at your leisure. Completed quests grant you gold and level your character. Chores and races build your reputation with the various factions and regions and provide gold. Then there are the races. Races are divided into regular races with a competition board, and championships. Championships take place in specific regions at specific days and times. Regular races are available once per day for points (leveling your horse) and all day for the competition board itself.

It is a good idea to do your chores and races to build popularity (which leads to more quests) and helps your horse perform better (faster, more agile, better jumping, etc). At times the chores can become very tedious doing the same things day in day out but they are also quick to do. Some of the chores include cleaning stables, delivering goods, finding objects, mapping areas, checking on workers, fishing, etc. The more you participate the more quickly you advance in general.

There is a mystical side to the game. Your character, it turns out, is very special and has been gifted with powers that will be needed to keep the world safe from the nefarious plans of the bad guys. I won't say more about that, but I will say for a game for young women, there ARE some scary or stressful moments when you are trying to foil the plans of the interdimensional spooks or the ruffians.
The other aspect of the game that is just FUN are the horses themselves. There are many different types of horses in game and you won't have access to all of them at the beginning, but they come over time as you level up and gain access to where they are sold. Be warned, you can become addicted to buying the various horse types and colors! Another fun part is buying your own clothing and the horses tack. There are many options and at first you might try to stick to items that give you the best performance boosts, but sometimes you just bow down to what looks best. Other fun things to do include visiting the Disco every Friday and Saturday night and just riding around with your friends or your club. Some clubs even hold inter-club competitions.

Finally, it needs to be mentioned that StarStable provides NEW content EVERY WEDNESDAY! That is pretty amazing. They also provide MAJOR updates (like new horses) several times per year and REGION updates frequently as well! For example they just added a new region that is HUGE and takes a lot of time to investigate, and as time goes on they will add many new quests in this region. The development of this game is very active and the community is vibrant.

Over all I would recommend this game to anyone, but be aware there are a LOT of children on this game (and the chat filter lets you know that as it filters many words that could be abused - often to the frustration of people trying to communicate) so please be on your best behavior. But even so, there are a lot of adults on the game as well. The adults are usually found to be on late late at night or during the day when school is in session.

Check it out! If you like it, your best bet (financially speaking) is to purchase a lifetime membership. Also, while you get a star coin allowance as a life member, you WILL want to purchase more star coins to purchases horses and special tack... just a warning that it will dent your wallet!

Long time no post, and Changes

Well, wow.  So back in April I took a new Job with American Express.  It is MUCH closer to home, no more painful commute!  Because it is closer I traded my sonic for a used Dodge Ram 2500 HD,

I will write more about that and about the Ram, which is a decent truck, soon.

Sorry for the short update... gotta go now!  Oh!  And StarStable added a new section called Epona.   Level 18 here I come!

Goings On

Been awhile since I posted so I thought I would provide a brief update...

The family has been playing an online game called Star Stable Online (SSO).  It is a lot of fun, and there is always plenty to do, but it does cycle daily so that (unless you spend coin to move the day forward) you can run out of things to do in a day... preventing sleepless nights.  :)  Anyway, the basic story is that you come to this island where the equestrian life dominates, and you become an integral (and central) part of an ongoing good vs. evil adventure.  The game is frequently updated and new regions added, as well as advancing parts of the story line.

Other news... let's see.  My Chevrolet Sonic is hanging in there despite the mileage and abuse I put to her...  had to have some body work done on the roof, due to flying debris on the highway.

Work has been going alright.  Getting my work done reasonably well in a reasonable amount of time.

Leadership Training for Christ (LTC) is coming up, this will be the first time *I* have attended, and I am looking forward to it.

The American Tarantula Society (ATS) is NOT holding its yearly conference, instead a group of Arizonans are trying to put an alternative gathering together.  I am very tempted to attend.

Both LTC and the Tarantula conference will be held in Tucson.  I like Tucson...  long drive but seems like a nice area/city.

Sandi has a trip in June to the North East, I was able to apply frequent flier points to it and all I had to pay for was the added insurance.  That was nice.

The kids are growing, and school is going fine...  Karate is agreeing with my son, who is actually enjoying it.

That is it for now!  Hmmm.  Did I review my KUL keyboard?  I will have to check my blogs and see... if not I will have to post a review.

Review of KUL ES-87 Cherry MX Brown Keyboard

My new keyboard arrived today.  I had been using another keyboard that incorporated Cherry MX Blue keys but because of the feel and the usage of inferior components, I did not really like that keyboard.  It was backlit, which was nice... but it did not satisfy.  I replaced it with a Matias Quiet Pro mini keyboard which I liked, but I took it into work to use there.

This keyboard is very nice.

This keyboard is a little wider than my other two, having only lopped off the keypad section of the keyboard.  In my cramped workspace this does not leave much room for my mouse, but it leaves enough.  I am tempted to switch my mouse to my left hand, except it is designed for right-handed people, with thumb buttons.  I still may do that.

I will start by saying about the only thing this keyboard could benefit from is backlighting.  But that is a feature some people like, others do not.  Adding backlighting also increases the potential for some sort of failure.  So I understand the simplicity of this keyboard in that regard.  The key caps themselves are nicely shaped and your fingers magically find their way into them as you type.

Pressing the keys is akin to slicing into a delicious piece of chocolate cake.  Or firm butter with a warm knife...

Either way, key presses provide enough resistance and feedback (halfway through their is a soft "bump" to let you know you are activating the key) that allows a typist to feel comfortable to type without bottoming out all of the time.  With this particular keyboard, being made of some heavy materials, the bottoming out sound is not harsh and rather deep.  Both aural and tactile feedback is a wonderful experience.  Really, I cannot explain how nice this keyboard feels.  I would heartily recommend it.

My previous keyboards in order:
Matias Tactile Pro 2
Happy Hacker Keyboard Pro 2
Matias mini pro quiet
And now this, KUL ES-87 (Cherry MX Brown keys)

The HHKB was probably the nicest, and most expensive keyboard I've owned.  The Topre switches are very nice.  But I would say this rivals the HHKB and, according to the manufacturer, this is much more solidly constructed (which I believe as my HHKB connector broke in just over a year).

The KUL is close to 1/3 the price of the HHKB and the actuation, while perhaps a little more harsh when bottoming out, are very similar in feel to the topre switches (in regards to force and bump).

Anyway, I recommend this keyboard.

Monsoon!

The monsoon season started out pretty slowly but over the past several weeks it has kicked it up a notch.  We've been blessed with some decent rains and today there was enough to cause New River to flood, as well as many washes in the area.

I have not heard of any deaths caused by the flooding, so that is good.  I took back roads home today (left work early) because I-17 was closed due to flooding!

We live in a desert, the rains are GOOD.  God taking care of the plants, animals and shaping the landscape.

Work has still been a bit of a struggle for me.  I've been making some headway, getting more of my work done in a reasonable amount of time (for the most part) and hopefully improving my techniques.  I still have not adjusted to the drive, the environment and the personalities.

Watched "Pacific Rim" with Isaac today, it was a good movie, don't know why we waited so long to watch it.  Also found out that season 4 of Haven is up on Netflix.  Yay!

Testimony

Whoa!  I just realized I had not shared what happened...

So, you saw that I had lost my job and a recruiter had contacted me...  without solicitation on my part.

I interviewed with the recruiter, took a test, etc.  Then they got me an interview with the company I am now working for.  Well, as far as I am concerned the interview did not go well.  In fact when I left the interview I immediately called the recruiter and told them it was a bust, but to please provide me with the feedback I need to improve.  They said "we'll call you back in a bit."  I got home, my phone rang and it was the recruiter who said "are you ready to start?"

I was pretty shocked.  I was certain they would not even consider me based on the interview.  But they did and they hired me.

So here are the events:

Wed. Lost Job.
Thu.   Email from recruiter
Fri.    Contact from recruiter
Mon. Supposed to meet recruiter, we missed each other
Tue.  Met recruiter
Thu.  Interview / Initial Job Offer

I had been praying for change for quite awhile now and God was listening.  Sometimes what you pray for isn't exactly what you expect as an answer, but His answer was effective and did what I asked for.  Then, after shaking me up and changing my life he provided a job for me to make sure (another, constant prayer of mine) I am able to house, feed, cloth my family.

I know most people would just consider this chance...  I don't.  Prayer answered, lose job, job provided without me lifting a finger and despite my own failures and misgivings.  God chose this job for a reason, I don't know what it is but here I am so perhaps I can be an instrument in this place.  I guess only time will tell, but I am grateful for His love and for how he works in my life, and for where I am right now.

It's been awhile...

Life has changed a lot.  Not necessarily for the worse, but ... changed.

My new job is an hour away, and it is all new to me.  Huge learning curve, but I am trying to figure it all out, with God's help.  By that I mean, different working environment, different personalities, and of course a new development platform for me.  I was hired as a Senior Java Developer but the work is in Groovy/Grails.  Also, an all-new product (to me) so... it is a bit overwhelming, I just hope I do not disappoint my co-workers and new boss.

Other than that things are going well.

I will write more and about something soon, just haven't had the extra energy needed to do so.