Warlord :D

Thought some might like to actually SEE the badge and rank.

And my Ranking atm :

Will continue to battle it out in the Arena as I do enjoy it SO much.

What an AMAZING day

It certainly has been an amazing day for me :D  And it's all good :)

I leveled my death a bit with my friend Lady  Blade and Joshua WyrmCloud, and hatched with Samuel Stormgem.  He wanted a Lifezilla with spritely.  He got the 'zilla, it still needs to hatch.  Hope he gets the talent.

Then went to PvP with Kevin BattleBlood, Madison Star, and Fallon -- 3 members of Team Perfect Catch.  First match was an all myth team -- loved their stuns and quakes, not that it did them a whole lotta good.  ;)

Second match -- same team :|  They STILL lost.

Third match, life/myth/storm/storm -- this one was just a bit weird.  Their life wiz was a loudmouth O_o.  He put up 2 guiding lights so of course I entangled him.  He said it was predictable.  Well, um, yeah?  Think we are  going to LET him heal his team? I don't think SO!  Then there was division among their ranks about their NEXT match.  Some wanted that life wiz, others wanted a different one.  So he LEFT!  Thats right, he fled the match.  Now THATS a sore loser.

Fourth match, important one for me -- I MIGHT hit Warlord :)  Go Team Perfect Catch!

Guess who we got?  That same team, or close to it -- one storm and myth were the same, but they had 2 Life wiz.  Was getting double teamed on the entangles.  I keep shields and blades in my deck to pull them without losing pips ;)  Gotta play smart, or be defeated by bad mistakes.  Team Perfect Catch did win that match so I very proud to announce my new PvP rank -- WARLORD!  Woo hoo!!

Fallon had to leave so the fun was over in 4v4 -- but not for the day.  Kevin asked if I would like to "spar" him in practice PvP.  So I said sure.  LONGEST match so far -- over 3 hours and 7 reshuffles for me.  Here is a link if you want to sit through it. :D

Was an AWESOME match -- I did lose but was an honest loss.  Someone whispered me and told me to watch the Livestream -- I refused, would be cheating. I DO NOT cheat in any way, shape, or form.

I have to admit I had a TON of fun battling Kevin.  He really is awesome :D We had a HUGE crowd of people there, was a sight to see when I finally got to.

So thank you Mr. Ice Armor for a wonderful match.

*** I need to fix the link on this post, Kevin has moved the match elsewhere 7.10.11

and another match vs Storm ....

Went into Live realm last night for a little PvP.  I was up against a Storm Commander.  In the time I had I put some treasure Storm shields in my side board .  Clock counts down ... time to battle. :D  Ended up being called a shield/treasure noob because of it.  Oh well.  Ended up winning the match, bolts that only do 110 damage aren't any fun for a Storm wiz I guess. :|  Got him down low on health and he says "Ok, here it comes Centaur." He was wrong ;), entangle first.  Perfect timing, his poor defender pig Dryad was wasted -- THEN I used Centaur! Poor Storm wiz, killed by the "weakest" PvP school.

He was whispering me after words, telling me I wouldn't have won if not for the treasure shields.  I used my usual reply, a card is a card, the side board is made to be used.  He said then, well I don't have any life shields.  My reply? Buy some and use them.  He said, but I don't have the gold to do that.  My reply was, well I farm for my gold, ever hear of Oyotomi?  Once again he came back, why should I farm for gold, it just cuts down on my time in the Arena?  My reply, well is it better to farm a bit and have shields or die from lack of them? It's your choice.  He left me alone after that, not surprising after all.

Balance Commander followed this match.  I misread his school and threw ice shields into my side board.  His first spell was a balance blade and I thought to myself "Oh joy Judgement".  And he only knew 2 attacks, Power Nova and Judge.  This was a LONG match.  He used his mander minion and got mad at it.  He full pip Judged me, then his manders spell fizzled.  Used a satyr and healed right up :)  He ended up fleeing the match saying gtg.  I won, but had to kill the poor minion to get the match to end.  LOL

During my matches this evening I had random wizards come up to me and ask if I would like to PvP with them, or on their team.  I don't know if it was due to the fact that I am a life wizard, or my skill set ;)

So just goes to show, ya NEVER know what will happen in the Arena.

Ended up the evening with a rank of 848 -- getting close to that Warlord rank I want :D

How new Mercenaries are Added ...

MERCENARIES ADDED
BY RECRUITMENT ONLY

After much consideration, I have decided that with the atmosphere that has been generated by our current team, that ANY NEW Mercenaries will be recruited from the ranks of the "Friends to M4H". With the collective assistance from all of the current Mercenaries is how we will handle this new process.

What is meant by Friend to M4H (F2M4H) - A person who has posted on this thread and asked for help, and/or has volunteered to assist a mercenary with large requests such as Kensington Park, Brisk Breeze Tower, The Warehouse or events such as the Tri-Harvest festival. We consider almost everyone a friend to M4H. If you want to help and a mercenary has not replied to a post on this thread within 30 minutes of it being posted, you are free to offer your assistance.

This does a couple of things: We add new Mercs from people that we know are here to help and that we have seen in action. Second, this gives those that have taken time from their own gaming schedule to assist when and where needed, first chance at any new openings. Lastly, if you are a F2M4H and are not part of any current recruitment process, please do not take that the wrong way. Please feel free to come to me and I will be happy to let you know what we need from you to be in the next group to be considered

* Guidelines For Potential Mercenaries *

1. You must be an active member of W101 Central. You can not find out that others need assistance if you are not online checking the thread for new requests.
2. You must want to genuinely want to help other wizards of the spiral. As you will see from the posts on our thread, most people are very impatient and do not like to wait. It takes a very special temperament in order to assist.
3. You must have access to all parts of the progressing story line of the game. This would include all parts of Wizard City, Krokotopia, Marleybone, Moo Shu and Dragonspyre. This means that you will need to be able to enter all locations within all of the listed worlds. Grizzleheim would be nice, but is not necessary.

HAPPY NEWS :D

ANNOUNCEMENT

After Christo Deathgiver’s departure from Wizard 101 and Wizard 101 Central, the Mercenaries for Hire had a group meeting to discuss what to do in his absence. This meeting was held Sunday night. During the meeting, it was unanimously decided that the M4H Group and this thread needs to keep going. While Christo may have created this Group, all of us Mercenaries share the same belief that he did – the belief in helping other wizards throughout the spiral. It is that belief that made all of us Mercenaries, and it is what will keep this thread going.

Knowing that the entire Merc team wants to, as Christo put it, keep this train rolling, we then needed to make a decision as to who would be a suitable replacement for Christo as the head of the team. While this team is very much a horizontal group environment, we felt that we do need a facilitator to manage the War Room (our internal group discussion board), update changes in policy on the M4H thread, and be an ultimate decision maker when a group consensus is not reached. With that, it was agreed upon that Andrew Wildflame would be the most suitable person to lead the M4H group.

Andrew and Christo have known each other in game since early 2009. Andrew was here for the inception of Mercenaries for Hire, and was asked by Christo to be a Mercenary from the beginning (even though at the time Andrew declined, as he felt he could not make the commitment due to issues in real life). The group felt that Andrew would best fill the void left in Christo’s absence, and steer the M4H group in a direction that Christo would want.

With that, we hope that you will all embrace the change that has occurred, and welcome Andrew Wildflame as the new head of our group. Some things may change around here, as the dynamic of our group can’t help but be changed by Christo’s departure, but one thing that will never change is this – our commitment to not only helping wizards with their harder quests, but helping them to become better wizards!

Your Mercenary For Hire Team:

Army of Stones
Aura*
Brahm DreamPants
Cassandra DragonHeart
Cody Soulmender
Fiona WildShade
Keira NightHunter
Kevin Shadowstalker
Lady Blade
Madtiger
Pheonix Flyer
SorceressMiklai

Sad News ....

W101Central Community -
First off I would love to thank you all for a great 15 month run that I had with Mercenaries For Hire, truly was a fabulous time and I got the chance to meet and assist MANY Wizards of the Spiral.

But at this time, I have decided to resign my post and position with M4H and take a much needed resignation from this fantasy world that KingsIsle has created. At this point in my life, I have much greater things that I want to focus on, with my Wife, my Boys and my family at home.

I wish you ALL health, happiness and the best of luck in whatever you all decided to do.

Christo

The above is quote directly  from Christo DeathGiver on the Mercenaries for Hire thread on Wizard101Central.  Christo you have touched MANY MANY since you started M4H.  Not just those you have helped along the way, but those you will not have a chance to meet you.  M4H will be your lasting gift to the community of W101.  You will be missed, greatly, by your team and the members of W101.  I wish you all the best as you move forward with your life.  I hope to one day see you back as the heart and soul of M4H.

more PvP ... and Celestia in the Test Realm

My eldest daughter woke me up out of a sound sleep this evening ... not fun.  Couldn't fall back to sleep so decided to hit the Arena solo on my Life wiz.

First up was a Death wiz.  Didn't like the fact that I didn't talk.  Didn't like my pet.  Didn't like that I use treasure cards, called me a treasure noob.  Didn't like the fact that I was better in the Arena than he was.  I was going second and anticipating his every move and countering them. He said he could be there all night, that I wouldn't win.  Even his Doom & Gloom and infections couldn't win it for him.  Pulled his bubble long enough with Sanctuary to heal fully, then went on the offensive.   I think he really ended up the night hating me as I won the match :))  He ported out after leaving a nasty comment behind.  Sore loser >:P

Second match was against a fully geared Ice Warlord.  Changed my treasure cards up in the time I had and faced off.  He used fully pipped out Ice Armor - TWICE, plus his minion.  I slowly chipped away at the armor, and used my Seraph on the minion.  Was a slow match, grinding away at each other.  Was able to keep his heals shut down, all but one fairy that he used a Troll Ear Guiding Light on.  I did end up winning, and am now one rank point away from being a Commander again. :D

Have been missing my PvP as I have spent the last week in Test Realm (TR).  I started there with my Fire Wiz running with TEW on Nathaniel EarthWeaver (Storm).  Switched over to my Life wiz.  Was having a good time.  Then Lady Blade (LB) decided she wanted to try TR also so I switched again, now using my balance.  I may have been done with Celestia if not for the wiz hopping I did :) The three of us are running as a team, just like the Trio of Terror over on live realm.

The new world is very challenging, it reminds me a lot of PvP.  Be prepared when you enter for the first time.  The mobs start with as many pips as we do, and some have more!  Nasty surprise to see Ice Crabs with almost 2K health start with 6 pips.

My Balance wiz is currently level 56, and has her wand that gives 2 power pips.  I have been playing around with the gear that TR offers.  I find I prefer the gear that gives critical stats.  I hit "crit" often enough to make it worthwhile.  As Balance wiz, running with a Storm wiz, I don't hit as frequently as I might on my fire wiz.  But it seems like about half the time that I do hit I hit "crit".  A Spectral Blast in the "crit" range with a balance blade and monstrous applied is a sight to see ;) one mob down ;)

I got a Lobster as a mount, and named him Larry.  Larry moves pretty darn quick!  Seems quicker than my tiger in LR.  LB got one too as she said she couldn't keep up with Larry's scuttling on the Koi fish she started out with!  I do know I will get Larry once TR goes live, I really like that lobster!

Will update more soon, still digesting everything TR has to offer.

Hope your journey around the Spiral have been enjoyable.  Mine have been.

See ya 'round the Spiral!

Wizard Updates ....

Well I don't think I ever said what wizards I have beside my 3 Grandmasters (Fire, Life and Balance).

As you know all my Wizards look alike, have the same name (and at Grand) dress alike.

I have 4 more wiz I am working on currently ... 3 on my account, and one on my eldest daughters.  And it's only fair 'cause I pay for game for her, so I can steal one of her school desks!

Death baby is currently level 13, working on Collosus Blvd and has access to KT, although she has not stepped thru the Spiral door yet.  I was questing her with Blaze NightBreeze's fire baby, but Blaze was one of those people that apparently drifts out of a friendship, so she is running solo now.  I do PvP on her also, she has a record of 7W/3L so far and is at rank 578, which makes her a Sergeant. Two of those three losses were from the hands of the same Death wiz, the one using Animate even tho he was low level :|

Ice baby is level 5, just starting Fire Cat Alley. She is another solo wiz for me.  Not much else to say about her at this time.

Storm baby is next.  She is currently level 12 and working with the "Trio of Terror", The EarthWeavers (TEW) on Myth Nathaniel and Lady Blade (LB) on a new balance wiz Olivia.  We have a lot of fun questing together, laughter and jokes are shared freely, friendship given with no reservations.

Now onto my Myth wiz.  I never planned on having a Myth wiz AT ALL! I didn't care for the spells, thought the school was underpowered, and "unhealthy", didn't care for minions ... what use are they if the battle circle is filled with 4 friends?  ROFL  I don't know why I chose to have the door stop be a Myth wizard, maybe as it was the only school of wiz I didn't have yet?  I am certainly not sure.  The reason lurks in the back of my brain never to be found, and hoping it never will be ;)  TEW and I are running together on this wiz.  TEW  is running a fire wiz named Talon HexBreaker.  We power leveled these 2 wiz in Crimson Fields and the Labyrinth, so are mid teens in level and just doing the 3 Streets ;)  The real reason we power leveled was for PvP, of course ;)  I am currently undefeated, but only 6 matches so far. 

So there you have, all of my wiz.

Update on PvP

I am in the Arena more and more while waiting for Celestia to come out :) And aren't we all waiting?  Oh my!

Having been partnering in the evenings with my friend Keller NightSword, I met him at the Mercenaries for Hire Tri~Harvest Festival way back in April.  We have kept in touch through the months since then.  He had always offered to help me get started in PvP.  I didn't take him up on that offer, but he has been helping me to get gear.

We had 2 matches last night as I was very close to having the 700 tickets needed for my hat.  

First match was a Storm/Death team.  Now I don't really mind Storm wizards, though I do mind when all they do is Wild Bolt :|  This one did use Wild Bolt, but he ended up being the healer also, we kept hammering away at the Death wiz as we KNEW he could heal with sacrifice, and Death wizards are harder to beat with poison and such.  Ended up being a fairly long match.  We won it in the end, and it left me 2 tickets away from my hat :)  So win or lose the next one and I would have my hat.

Next watch was a Life/Fire team.  The Life Wizards name was Alric something or other, and NO not my friend Alric RavenSinger!  They went first, which is a HUGE advantage :(  We weren't doing too badly all in all.  Then Keller had to leave ... so I was solo.  Right before he left I played my minion and shielded her.  I did break my silence to tell the other team he had to leave.  I am not so sure that was a good idea.  This Alric started a rant about how the Spritely talent was unfair and if KI was going to introduce it to the game ALL pets should have it.  It makes his Life Wizard useless in the Arena with his entangles and infections.  I said you just need to learn a new way to play, a way to get around the pet talent.  He didn't want to hear ANY of it.  He is going to sue KI for his loss of money playing their game.  I said I didn't think he would get to far with that as he agreed to the Terms of Service when he downloaded the game.  Alric said pet talents aren't mentioned in the ToS.  I told him no good lawyer would even TAKE his case as it would be a loser.  Well he is a lawyer apparently so he will take his own case.  SO ... have a care Wizards, ya never know what will drive some people crazy.  Oh My!

I did end of losing that match ... 2 on 1 is just not quite fair, though I did my best and last another 15 or so.

Either way I did end up a winner as I got my Cowl of Tribulation out of the deal!

So I have a new look in the Arena, as I stitched it onto another hat ;)

And that goat there is a hatching off of Bailey, and Princess Smokey has the spritely talent too :D  Still trying for a pet that gives me resist and Spritely.  Oyotomi here I come!