Zirina Shadowborn



Character Name: Zirina Shadowborn
Race: Sylvari
Gender: Female

Profession: Necromancer / Reaper / Scourge
Apparent age: 19

Hair / Leaves / Flower: Ranges depending on the season. Generally, during the day it's percieved as white.

Skin: White bark, with mahogany edges and some evergreen scarcely sprinkled.

Eyes: Hazel to a blue-tented silver in the light.

Appearance details: Bio-Luminescence: Deep gold to bright vivid yellow.

Religious beliefs/philosophy: With the realization of Modremoth, she no longer puts as much faith into the Pale Tree. Whatever her beliefs, she is Sylvari, and as such has much loyalty to her species.

OOC Intro:
A Necromancer was like the third character I made, a little Asura named Kievva, and while I loved her character, not much was appealing to me as far as gameplay with any future Necros.  Thus, I had a plethora of other classes and only one Necro.  While Heart of Thorns surfaced and expanded on the class as a Reaper, I still wasn't poised to create another one.  In the first Guild Wars, I was a 'minion master' and never really found that gameplay in GW2, and even with Reaper's greatsword, I still didn't recapture the feelings I had from the class in the first game.  When Path of Fire came along and introed the Scourge, I thought of it as one of my least favorite classes.  Still, I took my original Asuran Necro out into the desert and maxed out the Elite for Scourge.  After playing this for a time, I really began enjoying myself, and further still, I enjoyed having my little minions running around while giving myself a bit more to do than simply going into a Death Shroud.  I also found that being a Necro simply was easier for me to play.  While I don't shy away from a challenge, I really just breezed through the desert with my Asura, so I decided to roll another one.  I'd toyed around with the idea of having an ebony bark type of Sylvari, but I quickly steered away from that since I've seem alot of those type in game: the freaky looking Sylvari with dark skin, green glows, and mohawks and such.  Instead, I wanted to go for a brighter Sylvari with some distinctive glows.  Her skintone could be contrasted to a darker wardrobe, and with her being slightly colorless, alot of different customization and dyes could be done to accommodate that menacing look, if desired.  After a time in the wardrobe, I found a desired outfit - one that required me to do quite a bit of collection & gathering, but I think her final look was worth it.  And in pursuit of this goal, I came up with a brief story describing a point of time in her life which greatly affected her below. 


RolePlay Brief Story:

As a young sapling, I recall hearing a lovely hymn sung; whether by Sylvari or originating from another race, it spoke of standing your ground during turbulent times.  But, as the jungle dragon destroyed our invasion force, I find it difficult to recall this message.  I awoke to find my companions in disarray, most lay dead or dying.  Normally unshaken by such things, this sight uprooted my confidence.  Their fragile bodies lay mangled, burned, torn asunder.  These were the Pact officers I had served with for several cycles, now all dead.  In this realization, however, I took solace: they were now empty vessels.  While I would later mourn their passing, they had indeed passed.  And they would again become my allies, in death.

------

The battle had ended, and we were much closer to our objective than I believe any of us could surmise.  My companions again banded around the lit fire as we made ready for night.  My bio-luminescent glow illuminated the area around me, a few body lengths away from the camp.  They wouldn't say it, but I know the members of our party preferred it this way: whether from the smell or looks of the undead creature I had resurrected in the battle.  I laugh at their misconstrued perceptions.  This abomination saved them twice in our last encounter with the mordrem.  They honestly have less to fear from this revived mass of flesh than they do me: for as we grow ever closer, I hear Mordremoth's call; his voice beckoning me to become one of his corrupted.  I stare at the putrid goliath as it stares back at me, awaiting an order to attack or to release it to oblivion.  I do neither, instead ordering it to lay down with me.  I accept its cold embrace and allow it to dim my light, forcing me into the darkness... where I'm at home.

------

It happened close to our location: the jungle dragon's demise.  It was not my party.  It would later be discovered we were on the very wrong path, but close enough for me to finally succumb to Mordremoth's taunts.  Our group was just taking out the last of a scouting party, when the dragon's chants grew so loud, so empowering, I let him take me.  It was an act of ecstasy, excitement, and joy to know my creator, let him touch something in me I had long before denied and stifled.  But the act I committed; the atrocities performed... those were like watching a play.  The really disturbing thing is that I can't be for certain it was a tragic play... I remember laughing as I did it.

"Fear not this night, you will not go astray," the minstrels sing... Fear is what I know; fear is what I have become.  I went astray, and I can not be certain if I have or will ever return from the dark abyss where I feel so comfortably at home.




Saplinghood:
Having awoken during the Cycle of the Day, it's unknown to her why Zirina prefers the night.  Maybe its the paths she's chosen during her journies that have caused this familiarity with the cold darkness of night, but she feels at peace while most others slumber.  Growing up, Zirina pursed a passion of knowledge and joined the Priory at first chance.  It was here she began studying her craft and secretly met with forbidden teachers of the dark arts in her pursuit.


Recent history:
Having tried to put the past behind her, Zirina traveled to Elona to join parties in pursuit of the human god, Balthazar.  While no interest in the affairs of her human compatriots, she recognizes the threat to all existence... And while a world of the dead would be highly enjoyable, the utter obliteration of the world is intolerable.



Personality & Relationships:
As introverted as she is, Zirina surrounds herself with companions - and not just the dead.  While this may have a more deeply rooted need for living companionship, most that travel among her believe they are simply ammunition of fresh corpses for her minion reserves.  Zirina, herself, is unaware of any specific longing for living interaction, but does note that she winds up in traveling parties despite her love of solidarity.  This often manifests itself in verbal altercations with anyone she finds herself on solid grounds with.  Very blatantly, she pushes those around her just to the point of disgust, disdain or anger, but not so far that they disassociate themselves.  However, since the jungle dragon's influence, she seems to have grown distant from those not in her horde, and genuinely doesn't caring if she has completely destroyed relationships with her offensiveness and off-putting personality.  Perhaps subconsciously, her self-destructive loneliness is penance for past sins.




Favored beverage & food:
While she's aware that most races enjoy alcoholic beverages and food, she takes no pleasure in consumption of anything she sustenance she must have to sustain herself.  Again, it seems that self-loathing has robbed her from this simple pleasure.


Favored weather or season: When the night invades the light and a cool wisp of winter chill is in the air, Zirina seems to thrive.  She would never admit this, of course - and be offended if it was mentioned - but her vivid yellow bio-luminescence glows brightest during this season.

Favored color: brown / pale yellows / muted greens

DOOTS 2nd Annual Super Birfday Bash Blowout of the Year! (6-21-17)

So last year I had a crazy birthday party, which like 20 people (and even a dev) showed up to.  We danced, jumped around, played with a few festive activity boxes & ended the long night with a naked beach party.  [link to last year's party]


For this year, I decided to make a couple of videos to promote the event.  The first is simply done with music; the second I tried to do a little bit of voice-over.  Be kind, I've never done this sorta thing before! (obviously watch with sound on! :P )
 


So, I really wasn't sure what to expect and how many should show, but I wanted to accommodate people who did show up and give them a little treat.  I began by scouting the guild hall and quickly realized that there were some places people hadn't even seen.  I found an area that would be perfect: a little lost lagoon in the upper corner of the map.  Getting there, however, was an adventure all to itself:  Apparently, the developers had closed off the area and only allowed access to it by doing some crazy maneuvering, in what seems like a pretty ill-conceived jumping puzzle.  After finally accessing the area, I went about finding a quicker way to get there.



Enter Oakheart's Essence.  The new map, Draconis Mons, allows for quick exploration by obtaining a mastery and activating an "Oakheart's Essence" node.  This gives the user a grapple gun (so to speak), allowing them to launch their characters into the air and get very high.  When I learned this ability could be used in the guild hall, I was super excited!  However, the node must exist in the guild hall, and our guild leader (who usually does the decorating) has been away from GW2.

Left to my own devices, I began research.  Apparently, I needed to create an Oakheart's Essence node, of which I had no clue how to do.  While I may not have superior research skills for crafting stuff / how to obtain stuff in this game (crafting things generally gives me migraines), I was able to find that 25 flowers from this new map allows a player to buy a node.  I farmed the map, bought the object, then feverishly went to the guild hall... Then I stood there.  How was one supposed to even place the node down?  It was in my inventory, but I couldn't do anything with it!

Frustratingly not finding much information online (perhaps I just don't know where to look since I've never really done any decoration), I began talking to each and every vendor in the guild hall.  I discovered there's one vendor which allows a player to donate the currency - in this case simply called "Oakheart's Essence" - to buy an "Oakheart's Essence."  Seriously?  These things are named exactly the same, and have the same icon and are virtually indistinguishable.  Maybe I should have added the word, "node" to my search or "guild decoration"?  I don't know.  Either way, I found the guy!  I bought the node!  And then... nothing.  I stood there.  What the hell was I supposed to do now?  I got the flowers, bought the thing, used the thing for the decoration thing.  Now what?



Well, duh!  I have to place it!  But how?  I've never decorated anything in this game in my life.  I began my research.  Unfortunately, all information I found was about how to decorate, where to place things, how to build certain things, etc... Nothing actually showed HOW to get into the placement interface.  I was sooooo close, but I simply couldn't find anything that actually explained how to get the interface up I was seeing in videos of people building things online.  I checked my rank, thinking I simply didn't have rights.  Nope!  As an officer, I have the ability to add / remove decorations in the guild hall, but how to get the damn interface up?!?  Frustrated, I asked around in map chat in Lion's Arch.  For a game that prides itself on a friendly community, this was simply not a good example.  Finally, someone from the guild got online and I was able to ask a fellow guildmate!  However, there was a miscommunication and I got an explanation of how to purchase the currency from the map vendor. /facepalm  Again, after some time, it was explained to me how to actually go into "Decoration" mode and I was all set!


I began by placing a node right when you show up in the guild hall.  This would allow members to quickly jump to the bank or to the tavern, etc... quickly.  Then after placing it here, I decided to go back and farm some more flowers for an additional node near my little corner of the map.  This allowed anyone to access what I began to think of as "Doot's Lagoon," where the party was to be held.  Finally, I began to decorate the area, adding diving platforms, balloons and an additional two nodes (one of which was donated by a fellow guildmate).  All of this took place over the course of a week and when I was finally finished, I lit up the way with a line of floating lanterns which guild members could follow to access the hidden area.

I've since built a mini jumping puzzle for those without the mastery to obtain access to Doot's Lagoon and have decided to leave the area decorated through the summer.  I've been thinking about hosting a RP event there, which I may do in the coming months.  All-in-all, even though there wasn't alot of people that showed up, I really enjoyed playing in the area with the people that did and look forward to further playing around with object placement in the guild hall.  [note: since this post, I've removed all customizations and decorations at the request of the guild leader]


Also, before the party started, I took the time to place 11 wagons throughout the guild hall, limited to the left side of the map.  I held a contest for attendees of the party to take screenshots with every wagon.  This turned out to be a tremendous success and all those involved simply love it!  I awarded the winner with a pair of shades from the gemstore.  I may well be doing this sort of scavenger hunt type of event in the future. [Click here to reveal all wagon locations]



































.

Super Adventure Box 2017: Doot's First Time

Quite honestly, the Super Adventure Box never really appealed to me.  I mean, sure I was curious, but I gotta pick and choose my GW2 time wisely!  I sorta saw what it was about in previous years, but since it wasn't completely enticing, I didn't really try to set aside the time to do it.  That changed this year; while this won't be a crazy long post of my analysis of the thing, I didn't want to not post anything about it.

SAB (which I learned stood for Super Adventure Box *slaps forehead* DUH!) had some videos online, and after seeing only a brief amount played, I had the impression the thing was CRAZY hard!  It turns out, this is a 'tribulation mode' specifically designed to be difficult; so needless-to-say, I was really worried about even attempting it.

After much deliberation, I decided to give it a shot; but not without assistance!  A guild mate agreed to pop my virtual SAB cherry.  He was gentile and patient (giggity :P )  But in all seriousness, I genuinely had a fun time playing through the content.  We went through all zones in a couple of play sessions and I really had a blast.  After getting over my initial fears, I found myself humming along with the music and thinking about it the next day at work.  It was all nostalgic from Nintendo days and had a really relaxed and fun atmosphere!

While I'm not entirely sure I could continuously play through multiple times (and on tribulation mode, either!) like some players do, I could totally see myself coming back next year when SAB returns.  Until then, I'll have to make due with listening to the soundtrack for the feels :)

Below you'll find a few screenshots I took during my SAB exploration:


My anxiety really increased when I saw the sheer amount of people hanging out at the SAB entrance in Rata Sum.  I thought this was the actual hub/staging area.  I hadn't even begun: Within the SAB, there's a map that leads to all the zones.  Crazy shenanigans are contained there.  Double the amount of folks!


Upon entering, however, I was greeted with bright colors and sound effects that brought me back to Nintendo days.  Oh yeah, this place just screams, "DOOT!"


So, I sat in every single chest I found.  I don't know why; it was like the chest had an X on it and called to my booty.


RAINBOW BRIDGE ON A HAPPY CLOUD!  (need I say more?)


"Oh no!  I'm all tied up... Whatever am I to do?  I hope nobody takes advantage of this situation..."


"And then Doot discovered a trampoline & left her guildmate to finish SAB alone...  Some whisper to this day, there's still a little Asura jumping in World 2."


Like seriously, I couldn't stop.  I just kept jumping taking screenshots and giggling.  This went on for about 45 minutes.  Not. Even. Joking.


And then, I discovered another trampoline... and again, wasted 30 minutes:



If they ever make a trampoline guild decoration, I will never leave the Guild Hall.  Like... ever. 




Finally, adventure concluded, I bid farewell to the SAB.  Looking forward to next year!


Shiera Soelnarr

Character Name: Shiera Soelnarr

Race: Human

Gender: Female

Profession: Warrior / Berserker / Assistant to her master

Apparent age: 20  Apparent birth year: 1220AE

Hair: Jet-black, free-flowing

Skin: Pale White

Appearance details: Blind, her visor allows her to see shades of red.  Ash-smears run down her cheeks, giving a weeping appearance.  Her eyes are devoid of color and completely dark obsidian orbs.

Religious beliefs/philosophy: The mists give little belief to an afterlife Shiera would even care about.






OOC Intro:
After Heart of Thorns came out and everyone made Revanents with visors covering their eyes, I decided to create a Warrior which appeared like a Rev, but could go Berserker and shatter the illusion.  The initial idea, not withstanding, I dressed Shiera in full Mistward armor, but something happened: rather than a novelty, I actually really started to enjoy the toon.  I began formulating a story at to why she's wearing the eye covering, and instead of using it to further channel her power, it would be a burden she'd have to use: a disability, she's trying to overcome.  This generally became what would determine her actions in RP and furthermore, what I'd think about while playing her.


RolePlay Brief Story:



Shiera opened her eyes slowly.  The darkly lit room glowed a soft green, illuminating a small figure hovering over her.

"Can you hear me?" the voice asked, in the gentleness of a mother's voice.

Shiera tried to blink back the darkness.  "I... I can't see."

The figure placed a visor over the woman's eyes.  "This is to be expected; I calculated as such!  Therefore, I have created this to allow optimal visual acuity, based on your condition."

The woman sat up slightly, her head pounded; the visor helped only slightly: the soft green, replaced by red became more crisp.  "My... condition?"

A small asuran silhouette came into focus.  "Why yes, I used my skills to wench you from the brink.  I brought you back!"

"Back from where?"

The Asura, Kievaa, grinned wickedly and wildly. "Back from the Mists!"

-------Archives-------

The parchment was old within the dilapidated tome.  Shiera peered over her guide's shoulder.  It appeared blank, without any discernible markings detected from her visor.

"It appears you are, indeed, included in Tyria's history.  Although, this is very much further in Tyria's history than one would expect.  It is a relative miracle we were able to find your information in the Priory archives; further still, an absolute miracle the data was kept intact, being this far reaching!"  Nyssa looked up from thick brimmed glasses.  Her guest was an armor-clad woman, with ghost-white pale skin, Nyssa noted, even for a human.  She stood as still as one of their god’s statues.  Uneasy with the tension, the Asura cleared her throat.  “Is there something specific I can tell you, Miss Shiera?”

Shiera slowly nodded, “My last name.  Does it say who I am?”

Nyssa smiled, pleased to give an oral interpretation of the findings.  She began, “Soelnarr.  You come from a noble family that seemingly participated in the founding of Divinity’s Reach…”

------Returning------- 
“So, you’ve come back to your place of resurrection?  And what action are you to take on me?  Punishment returning your life to you?”  The snarky Asura laughed.  “You know who I am by now!  I am Kievaa, the magnificent; Kievaa the magnanimous; on occasion, Kievaa the Vile!  I did not get such a titles by tip-toeing around despicable acts other Asura refused...  I brought you back!  You are my greatest accomplishment!  The proof I can return souls trapped in the Mists to their rightful place among the living!”

“What kind of life is this?” shouted Shiera.  “Part of me is missing!  My life is a pale comparison of who I used to be!”  Shiera paused, considering, then slid off the visor, revealing eyes of blackness.  “ ‘I am your greatest accomplishment’?  If that’s true… then you failed, Kievaa.”

“Failed?  No one can do what I have done!  I will use the data I’ve gathered from your experiment to enact my ultimate goal,” she tapped on the storage cylinder beside her.  “I will bring my companion back from the realms beyond, thanks to such a triumphant experiment!”

Shiera slowly approached Kievaa, held out her visor, while speaking in prophetic tones.  “I’m the one that can’t see, yet you are too blinded by your feelings to see.  But my sight is not the only thing I am missing; there’s something inside that is no longer there, and I fear without it, not only will I will never be whole, but your friend can not be restored completely. Do what you set out to do: restore me completely and I will be forever your ‘greatest accomplishment,’” urged Shiera.

Kievaa retrieved the visor staring at it, and after a long pause, she sighed.  “I suppose we must ensure you are completely a success before we go on to the real subject.  Perhaps there’s still some piece of your non-corporeal form somewhere within those realms.  We will have to venture forth to find out, however.  We shall need one with experience in such matters.”

She paused, glanced at the wall of the lab where a flickering hologram lay on its side, the animated image of five Asura posing sparked to life between each electrical pulse.

“Who are they?” Shiera asked, as she reattached her eyepiece.

“The colleagues that began this journey with me and have since abandoned it… Nyxx, Nalla, Lexxie, and Dott: my old krewe.

Childhood:
Much is unknown regarding Shiera's childhood. Most of what she's discovered is inconsistent and speculative. She can only recall the briefest of memories of siblings, and what she believes is a house on fire. There's also a bit of centaur hatred she feels, which doesn't contain a memory, but only feelings when dealing with their kind. If the Durmand Priory records are any indication, this may be because her family was one of the founding members of Divinity's Reach, encountering centaur resistance along the journey.


Recent history:
Shiera recently completed a quest to retrieve a 'stone which holds spiritual essence,' that Kievaa orchestrated, to be used in an experiment.  This test was to ensure such a device could be used to actually contain remnants of souls from the fallen from the mists.  It is unknown at this time if the experiment was a success or failure on the necromancer's part, but Kievaa is never undetermined.  Shiera's vested interest in the Asura's success will keep her calling Kievaa "master"... for now.



Personality:
Shiera often doesn't think of her worth as anything other than a warrior or pawn in other's affairs.  She genuinely doesn't care for politics and the like, or even for advancing her own powers, position, or stature.  The only goal thus far has been to obtain information about her past, but after tracking said data (or lack thereof) down, she's hit a very hard dead-end in her investigation.  She's thought about requesting assistance or hiring a researcher to help, but it seems to be a slope she can't overcome until she retrieves the piece of herself she still feels is trapped somewhere in the mists.  To this end, she will do whatever she can to assist the necromancer, Kievaa the Vile, that restored her.



Notable relationships:
Shiera, at the very least, attempts to socialize with others.  She often finds that her lack of social graces causes her to be ostracized.  She attempts to mimic others to overcome this, but it often comes across as superficial and dry.  Appropriate times to laugh or to respond after being asked something are a few social queues she struggles with.  Kievaa is not her friend, but would be the closest thing she has to one.

Favored alcoholic beverage / Favored food:
Along with her depth-perception (visorless), Shiera can no longer taste food or drink, therefore often forgets her body needs such things.  She once passed out in the jungle malnourished and dehydrated.  She was luckily found and brought back to camp, cursing her body's requirements.  Interestingly enough, she's often so not particular about food, that she can eat much her race would generally not be able to stomach.  She's inadvertently gained praise from Charr who dared the black-haired stranger to eat 20 Ghost Pepper Poppers.


Favored weather or season: As her skin is always chilling to the touch, Shiera really doesn't get cold in the winter time, but appreciates the darkness that usually comes on those winter nights.  This causes the images the images her visor produces to gain extra clarity, and she can literally see the whisking wind currents as colors in the sky.  It's one of the few times she doesn't see the world with red auras.

Favored color: Since she literally sees the world as tents red, Shiera often picks dark colors along with the contrast of red (which resembles white to her).  Once she had the slightest memory of being a little girl and liking the color purple, but the memory was fleeting and hard to grasp.












.

Cassidy Clementine


Character Name: Cassidy Clementine

Race: Human

Gender: Female

Profession: Engineer / Scrapper / Bounty Hunter

Apparent age: 22

Hair: Usually pulled up, almost always hurried and untidy; Golden Brown

Skin: Light

Appearance details: Cassidy wears glasses, and mostly leather.

Religious beliefs/philosophy: "Whatever it takes to get the job done."

OOC Intro:
I had an idea after seeing a new hairstyle enter the game, and after I got some eye glasses that I knew would look amazing together.  Since I only had one other human character on my account, Cassidy Clementine came to be.  There's only a few characters I've made that had their final look almost entirely conceived before I created them.  After playing her for a while, I was completely enthralled.  I decided to post this character sooner, rather than later, since I've already had a running idea of her back-story and her current progression.


RolePlay Brief Story:



“Mah father - the one that raised me - was an honest man.  Was his honesty that kept people comin’ by to git such good deals.”  Cassidy paused, staring at the cloudiness of her liqueur.  She looked up at the gentleman across the table and continued, “It's due ta his good nature that he wasn’t armed when those damned bandits showed up…”



A clicking from her revolver’s hammer could be heard ever so slightly in the busy tavern.  Her table companion froze.


“As much of a pleasurable experience it would be for me to end ya - and the damned smugglin’ outfit ya got goin’ on, I reckon I shouldn't be all personal like - even if it is the bandits ya give’n’ the weapons to.  See, I may have a personal grudge against ya’ll, but I also got me a reputation to uphold.  And, I’ve done been taught by experience that them’s opinion is worth it’s weight… so to speak.”


The man glanced around, seeing Seraph now where patrons once were.  Beads of sweat rolled down his face from the sudden panic.


Cassidy grinned, “Go ahead and try; I want ya to.  I’d save face and still git ya bounty. Best of both worlds, no doubt!”


Weighing his options, the man slowly stood, hands on head.  The Seraph quickly surrounded him and began escorting him out.  The squad captain stood over Cassidy.


“I’ll be by to be collectin’ mah earnin’s shortly.”  She holstered her pistol under the table, leaned back and downed her drink as the remaining Seraph and captain funneled out of the bar. Cassidy smiled, shut her eyes and lingered in the moment.


“Your father would be proud,” came a voice across the table, where the man had been.


Unaccustomed to being waylaid, Cassidy quickly sat up, stumbling to draw her weapon.


The Norn woman shook her head.  “That won’t be necessary,” she said calmly, “Besides, if you kill me, who would take you to see your father?”


“What’d ya know ‘bout it, stranger?  Mah father’s dead; gutted like tha fish he used ta catch by those bandit butchers!”

The woman leaned forward to grab Cassidy’s unwavering attention.  “I meant your birth father...”




Childhood:
Cassidy grew up in a small fishing village on the outskirts of Kryta.  She always felt her calling was outside the norm, and would often stray too far, longing to travel.  She found out her birth parents were involved with the Order of Whispers, and set out to join the Order, herself. During this time, she met Rodia Raventear, and fell under her leadership with missions to assist the Order of Whispers' efforts against Zaithan.


Recent history:
Though the Order of Whispers provided Cassidy opportunity, she soon found herself separating from the organization after a mission caused the death of a comrade.  No ill will toward the organization, Cassidy used the training she had received, as well as her innate tracking ability to serve as a bounty hunter.  Making no pretense about why she does what she does, Cassidy Clementine has earned a name for herself as an adept person hunter.  If you catch wind of her tracking you, it's likely she's almost got you.


Personality:
Cassidy has a thick accent, giving away her small town origins, to those that know it.  She has a very 'whatever it takes' attitude when she has a goal.  Generally, there's a moral code she won't cross, but those who've been entrapped by her most likely wouldn't know.  She has been a chameleon at times to get what she's after and some of those times have had her do things most wouldn't.


Notable relationships:
While she's definitely flirtatious, she's had no known long-term relationships of note.  She's had friends that have come and gone, but Cassidy has never attempted to hold onto those in her life.  For the most part, she's been alone - aside from the occasional romp with her target (all for the mission, mind you!)

Favored alcoholic beverage:
Cassidy will drink anything from leftover swill to top-shelf Elonian wine.  However, Special Reserve Blood Whiskey would be of great interest to her, if it's available; this reminds her of a special mission she had with some pirates, where she really enjoyed herself (and the captain!).


Favored food: Anything roasted, fried and otherwise no longer living.  Fish hold a very special place in her heart, given her past.  There's not a time she doesn't pass by a fishing market or a fish fry and think of home.

Favored weather or season: Summer and Fall tends to be her favorite times of year.  Although lately, she's actually enjoyed a few Wintersday festivities in Divinity's Reach (which is something that never caught her attention.)

Favored color: Red/Black/Yellow


A Very Merry UnBirthday-UnChristmas-UnNewyears to DOOT!

I log in to start collecting wood, cause EVENTUALLY (and by that, I mean like maybe in two years) I'll be able to get a coveted "Permanent Hair Stylist Contract," which will allow any character on my account the ability to change their hairstyles on a whim.  I've pined for this thing since it came out.  For an alt-o-holic like me, it's the most amazing thing in the game.  Sure, there are pretty staffs and legendary weapons and such, but this thing... this thing is a Fashion Wars dream come true.  It's not available to buy in the gem-store, and it's a crazy-rare drop from opening Black Lion chests.  My only course of obtaining one of these was to spend something like $250 USD or save up gold in-game.  This also meant not spending any in-game gold.  That really sucks when there's pretty weapons that match your character perfectly that have a limited time lower price tag.  After a few weeks, their price skyrockets, so it's really difficult to NOT buy them, even when they're PERFECT for a certain look you have on a character.  At first, before I was seriously saving, I would fall into the pit of buying one or two, which set me back alot, and so much further away from obtaining the Perm Hair Contract.

But, then there came a point where I decided to actively save specifically for this item. Unfortunately, time from being a mom and wife and a full time job really stopped me from collecting mass amounts of gold.  Then, there's the knowledge factor: I wouldn't really spend time on researching what was on and selling, or where to obtain gold from, what people were doing to get gold, etc...  A guildmate of mine was kind enough to show me a few tricks on logging in every day to collect certain materials and that helped tremendously.  Still, I wasn't doing so hot with my income to playtime ratio, and I fell back into the rut of just playing the game and not worrying about the amount of income I was making.  This is good for me, since GW2 is really an escape from reality / RL problems.  But still, that damn holy grail kept calling me.

I recently attempted a (somewhat exploit in the game's mechanics) where you jump from one instance of the map to another, looting a successful meta-event each time.  This can earn you tons of gold, and I'm really thankful to another guildy for showing this to me.  However, it does take alot of concentration, and with a little one constantly interrupting the process, it would make it extremely difficult to continue.  Furthermore, I do believe the developers will soon patch this method, since the rewards weren't initially meant to be collected this way.

Which brings me to today:  I logged on, expecting to do a few hours of collecting/gathering working towards my goal.  I was immediately bombarded by guildmates asking me to come to the guild, if I could meet them, etc...  This came just as I decided to try out a new run to get additional gold.  Kinda frustrating cause I was in an area I didn't know that well, while having multiple conversations about getting me to do stuffs :)  Ah, the delimas of being a Doot. :P  I kept telling everyone I was trying to finish up a gathering run.  Suddenly, guildchat broke out into a tug-of-war for who my time was to be devoted to first.  LOLs.  These guys...



SO, I finish my run and decide to try to meet the first people that messaged me at the guild hall, then go off to everyone else from there.  Because I was so distracted with chat, PMs & my son, i didn't even look at my friend's list to see where everyone was.  I just know I was going to the GH as my first stop.  When I get there, everyone's encircling poor little Doot here, and I immediately ask, "Is this an intervention?"

I received a mail message, clicked on it and everyone started jumping around like crazy people!  The message read:

(had to take a pic from the Trading Post, cause I forgot to get one during the surprise)
I was... I am.... Speechless.  I must have sat there for like 10 minutes without saying a thing.  I don't even know what was said.  I think I read someone saying, "I think we broke her..."  I was completely shocked, surprised, dumbfounded, amazed, scared, nervous, excited (just to name a few)!  My first instincts were to send it back, gracefully say no thanks, etc...  However, this was something that alot of people put their time, money and sincerity into.  I sat there trying to think of what to say, how to express how unbelievable of a gift this was to me.  I still don't think I expressed myself.  I was truly in shock and awe.  To have this much love being projected at you from people you love, and such an unfathomable gift was something I've very rarely experienced.  I immediately started weeping.  I know... I know... but, truly such sincerity and love just totally overwhelmed me.  (I'm even tearing up writing this.)

Anyway, I believe Urel snapped me out of it when he told me to "TRY THE DAMNED THING OUT!"  I'd had the mail still opened without clicking "Take" yet.  LOL.  Like I said, I was shocked.  I did so, and bound it to my account.
Such a little thing brings hours and hours and beyond of fun!
I immediately ran to a spot in the guild hall and began testing out my new toy, while everyone cheered me on.  Felt like I was really at a quinceanera, so I put on my cute dress and proceeded to dance and play with hair styles.  It's now 4 hours later and I'm still only 1/3 way through my characters playing with different looks.

I can't possibly express how wonderfully incredible you guys are!  Urel, Harper, Yeshua, Alex: I'll never forget this amazing experience!  I love you guys.








ALL THE COLORS AND HAIRSYLES ARE MIIIIIINNNNNEEEE!!!!

Wintersday 2016 Festivities: A few screenshots


Wintersday has come and gone.  Fond memories and adventures have been had.  Bye bye 2016!

So, I decided to dedicate a sole character for Wintersday festivities this year.  In the past, I've made almost ever character have a wardrobe change with a Christmas theme, but this year, I decided that was a bit too much work.  I found a really pretty look with my human character and went with it for the season.  While not particularly inventive (it is just an outfit) I really enjoy the way it turned out.



Then there's always the Santa look-alike contest I secretly have.  I settled on this Norn because the furry garder-belt style pants made me giggle.  I sent him a present accordingly.


Runner up / special mention in my little hidden contest were these two.  They're dressed in traditional red/white, but what struck a cord with me is I can imagine this is how a Santa just may look in GW2, if not fat, jolly and traditional like the picture above.  I complimented them both on their really cute matching outfits and it really did get me into the giving mood.  Both their prizes were well deserved!



And with that, another year closing and another Wintersday ending.  Enjoyed every moment of it this year!  Let's see what 2017 brings...


Then I did a makeover on my Wintersday character and took the following follow-up shots: