12 Days of Christmas: Day 10

     

🎵 On the tenth day of Christmas, Gamer Reverie gives to thee... 🎵

12 Days of Christmas: Day 10

 

🎵 On the tenth day of Christmas, Gamer Reverie gives to thee... 🎵

The Marathon Day Recap: 2020 Edition

 

For my 8th year of Extra Life, I played The Lord of the Rings Online over the course of 24 hours and raised $501 to surpass my goal of $3,000. This is what happened!

Extra Life Marathon 2020: LOTRO Class Reveal

Because the Away Shall Fade kinship on Landroval was so AWESOME in supporting the PvMP 4 Extra Life event on Labor Day weekend, I promised them I would spend the entire Extra Life marathon in LOTRO playing a new character. They've had several weeks now to submit class guesses to me for a chance to win VIP Time or an equivalent gift. Today I reveal the class!

Extra Life Marathon Countdown: 1 Week!

 

The 24-hour Extra Life marathon is in 1 week, and this is a weekly entry counting down to the event. Here's an update to get you excited!

Learning LOTRO: Lesson Twenty-Six - Kinships

In this series, I talk about various aspects of The Lord of the Rings Online. This series is meant for newcomers, but may also help veteran players find more to love about the game.

If you're a new player or someone who hasn't played an MMORPG before, then I will do my best to introduce to you a very important aspect of them: Kinships. In most other MMORPGs, they are called "guilds," and allow players to form large groups within the community. Sometimes they are started by a group of pre-existing friends who want to play the game together long-term, and sometimes they're started by one or two people who then shape the group after a particular purpose and invite anyone who shares their interests.

Whatever the reason behind their creation, Kinships serve a critical role in Lord of the Rings Online. Not only do they act as the glue that holds players together within the community, they help organize like-minded players together so they can better achieve their goals within the game. Let's discuss!

All Things LOTRO

The Learning LOTRO series has been going for 6 weeks so far, and there are even bigger plans for its future -- as well as other LOTRO-related projects for Gamer Reverie. Read on to find out more!

Aumai Goodness: A LOTRO Yule Story

Like any good Harfoot, I enjoy a comfortable hobbit hole and the warm, welcoming smell of food just waiting to satisfy and delight. My name is Aumai Goodness, and I'd like to tell you about an odd little adventure I had last week.

I have made it my life's work to dedicate all the free time I possibly can to the artistry of cooking, despite being in the auspicious burglar trade. I take great pride in making all manner of foods to please my kin in and around Michel Delving. It was just last Thursday afternoon that I found myself baking a few spiced apple pies in the communal crafting area on the hill when Jewel Underhill leaned over my shoulder and giggled.

"Everyone's run off to Frostbluff to enjoy other people's cooking and fun... and you're here slaving away at our tired old oven? Auuu-maiiii... you should go enjoy Yule while you can!" Jewel declared fussily at me. Using padded mitts that had seen better days, I pulled the last pie from the oven and stood there thoughtfully, turning over her words.

"You know well enough how I like to cook for others, Jewel. But... you say there's good food to be had at the Festival?" I was already contemplating what sorts of festive recipes might be employed at such a gathering, and had every intention of collecting them for my own use if at all possible. Jewel was a more accomplished cook than myself, though, and I needed to hear her affirmation before making any rash decisions. As much as I love my pony, I am not overfond of traveling long distances without great need.

"Most assuredly, Aumai," she said crisply, snatching the padded mitts and pie from my hands all in one deft movement. "The stable master at the bottom of the hill has a helper this time of year because of how many travelers take the Far Downs road to get to Frostbluff. Both of them can tell you how to get there if you've never been. But you should hurry, for it'll be dark soon. But oh -- how Winterhome will glitter in the evening hours!"

Before I really knew what I was doing, I found myself saddling up my gentle Rosemary. We trotted down the hill to the stable master, with my collection of pots, pans, utensils clattering as I hoped I had enough food stored up in the saddlebags for my journey. Jewel made it sound like a relatively short trip if I was to be there just after sunset. The stable master's helper assured me on this subject and told me to just head up the Far Downs road until I found a Festival sign on the road directing the rest of the way to Frostbluff. In minutes, I was well past the hedges of Michel Delving and wondering if Jewel had only meant to eat my apple pies.

Not long after the sun faded behind the growing mountains, Rosemary and I broke through the trees into a snowy valley that was altogether too charming. There at the end of the road was a stone-walled village which I assumed was Winterhome, the whole structure draped with festive banners and snow-kissed in just the right places to make it seem quaint instead of cold and forbidding. I slowed my pony to a walk and stopped at the village entrance near a small cluster of people. There were two Big Folk there who were busy talking to other travelers about stolen candy or trying to sell some Yule-bedecked horses in the paddock behind them. But there was a smiling little hobbit next to them, and she waved enthusiastically.

"Greetings, cousin! I'm Verbena Greenhand. It's good to see some kin here for the festival -- the Big Folk aren't as good at parties as we are. You'll want to head right in and talk to Mara near the first brazier. She'll steer you right, cuz!" And just like that, the incoming crowd of travelers required me to dig my heels into Rosemary's sides a little to make her move out of the way and into the village itself.

Sliding down out of Rosemary's saddle, I immediately regretted not bringing anything to cover my feet -- I'd forgotten how cold snow could be! After looping Rosemary's reins around a nearby pole just inside the gate, I scurried over to where I could see this Mara hobbit warming herself by a cheery fire. Just at the moment, my feet wanted to be by that brazier, too. I'd tell you we had a great chat and bonded over the cold, but Mara Sandydowns was just a smidge too cheerful for my tastes. She was worse even than Jewel could be, and that was saying a lot. It also seemed that Mara had been put in charge of doing several things but was either too lazy or too cold to do them herself -- she seemed mostly employed in convincing visitors to do them in exchange for bags of Yule surprises. She offered me some of these same bags if I helped out around the festival, and proceeded to shoo me away from her fire to talk to the nearby Big Folk.

Guard Kember was the stiff-necked man close by who was giving the stink-eye to everyone coming and going. He didn't seem to want to talk, but said I should go talk to a woman nearby named Ona Kay who was leading the eating contest. I couldn't help but agree when he said, "All good celebrations should start with a full belly of delicious food!" There may be hope for this Big Folk yet.

Ona talked about several stations of food, not just the three full tables she was standing next to, but that I really ought to go see and talk to the mayor first before I eat myself into a stupor and miss out on all there is to see. Clearly the woman had had experience handling hungry hobbits, so I relented and trotted in the direction she pointed.

Mayor Winston Goodnough and his wife Carolyn Goodnough are easy to find just down a set of stairs, watching a courtyard of festive patrons. They seemed very pleased to see me, which is more than I could say for the Big Folk at the gate. Winston said they'd spared no expense, and I heard a story about a guy named Hammond who apparently said the same thing... and then people died. Winston is pretty amiable, though, and told me to invite my friends and do all the things. Is he a mayor or a carnival barker? Carolyn at least kept it brief and sent me on my way to see more of the town.

Across the courtyard, I could see a pair of tired-looking Big Folk at the bottom of another stairway. They had cringing smiles as I approached, but seemed relieved when I simply said hi. Mabel and Basil insisted they're just servants and not worth speaking to, and told me to head north of town to see a fellow named Cecil who hosts a snowball fight -- that I'd probably have more fun there. Game for that, I retrieved Rosemary (my feet were getting a little too cold and it sounded like quite a long way to go, even for a sturdy hobbit) and let my pony pick a safe path through the crowd of patrons between me and the north exit of the town. She naturally picked up the pace once we were out of the gate and traipsed through a veritable army of snowmen on our way down a snowy slope.

There was no missing Cecil, standing on a wooden platform next to a field that was boxed-in, mostly, by stone walls. Cecil did not improve my growing irritation, because he insisted I finish a complete tour of town before I lobbed any snow. He must've noticed my pouting, because he then added that I'd enjoy speaking to the hobbits running the theatre.

Oh, relief! It wasn't ALL Big Folk around the festival! Without much of a thanks, I turned Rosemary's head and sent her cantering back up the slope to town, leaving Cecil standing alone in the cold. We collided with a snowman -- accidentally! -- about halfway up, but the Big Folk didn't seem to notice... so we raced up to the town.

The watchman just inside was nice enough to direct me to the theatre up the stairs and in a central nook of the town. I passed three more of the food stations Ona had mentioned, but instead of looking appealing they just looked sloppier than a pig sty. Didn't anyone clean up?

The hobbit lass directing people into the theatre didn't introduce herself when I arrived -- she was too busy greeting people and talking about the Green Lilly Orators, Bards and Entertainers and how Mr. Shakesburrow put together an acting company. It sounded great -- right up the alley of my minstrel friend, Eha -- but it felt like she was trying to recruit me. She must've seen me looking for an exit to the conversation, so she bade me farewell to finish my tour of town.

I nudged Rosemary into a trot away from the theatre, and ended up heading to the west corner of town to avoid the nasty-looking tables. It's there that I found the backbone of the festival -- the workers. A sharp-tongued man named Gareth Rust was not friendly, griping about the mayor forcing them to slave away so he can become rich. So vehement was this Big Folk, that I backed Rosemary right up into another fellow, who introduced himself as Daley Utteridge. He apologized for Rust, and said he welcomed company even during hard times -- but I got the hint that I should leave them to their work.

I made my way back to the mayor -- once more letting Rosemary find the safe path between people and horses as they rushed to and fro. I tried to mention something about the workers, but Winston was completely dismissive and told me to go have fun in the festival now that I knew my way around. Carolyn agreed and urged me to go see a guy named Virgil who was making snowmen... oh. That guy. Maybe... later.

I returned to Mara to partake of the fire for a few moments, but the respite was short-lived because Guard Kember spotted me. He suggested if I was bored that I might bring some aggravating cheer to a family of snowbeasts outside of town. He basically asked me to run them off for him and do his job, but I supposed it would be fun to sneak up on them. A burglar's got to keep a hand in, right?

Seeing the sloppy tables again as I left the fire, I was reminded of what Gareth said -- so I went back to the west corner of town. I asked Daley how I could help and he started talking about the watchmen keeping the jobless workers away from the festivities. He was worried those forced out will come too close to the awful grims at the frozen pond. It was on my way to those snowbeasts, so I told him I'd take care of it.

Gareth overheard, apparently, and motioned me over to him. He had something even better in mind -- and suggested I set off a store of fireworks and pinch festival coins from distracted patrons. I liked this guy, even if he'd been rude before. And wasn't it every hobbit's fondest wish to set off fireworks when one wasn't supposed to? A hobbit's life is not lived to its fullest potential without that accomplishment checked off.

It didn't take me long to find the fireworks Gareth had mentioned -- they were around the side of the theatre and at the top of some stairs. Not deeming it the right time to set off the fireworks, a quick glance showed me that Mabel and Basil were at the bottom of those stairs and looking utterly beside themselves. This time, I simply walked up to them and asked how I could help them. Hesitant at first, they soon relented in telling me the tasks they were unable to finish while still managing the chaos in the immediate vicinity. If I didn't have a hearty to-do list before then, I certainly did after talking to them. Basil was the poor schmuck in charge of keeping the kegs ready and full, and was also the only one able to clean up all those sloppy tables. Mabel, on the other hand, was tasked with replenishing those tables but had run out of fare to serve -- and the firewood to cook with. She told me where I could find what she needed, and warned me about some "angry trees"?

With this new list of chores to undertake, I decided I should clear my conscience and speak to Virgil first since the snowman field was on the way to everything else outside of town. To my pleasant surprise, Virgil was a pretty laidback person for a Big Folk and told me he liked the disaster I had made of the broken snowman. Other festival patrons had even begun copying its design because it was simple and took them less time out in the cold while still allowing them to participate. To me, that seemed like the epitome of a participation trophy, but whatever suited these weird people!

Virgil directed me beyond the snowball field to a little rise where I would find "Cluckland" -- and hound-guarded hen houses strewn with fresh eggs. I picked up as many would fit in my cloth-lined satchel where I usually kept my own supply of eggs, and headed along the woodline to collect Mabel's firewood. 

The first creaking growl startled me for only a moment before my burglar skills helped me evade an onslaught of clawing, thumping, branch-like arms. "Angry trees" indeed -- Mabel was harvesting firewood from wood trolls! Belatedly, I realized I only had a paring knife with me and my large ladle -- but I made do. Firewood collected, I huffed and made my way down the slope towards the frozen pond. 

From a distance I could see the ominous swirling clouds of ice, but I also saw the winterberry bushes. The grims were not as tough as I had feared, only a nuisance in my task of picking berries, and I was soon moving up the opposite wooded slope in search of the snowbeasts that were annoying Guard Kember so much.

In the end, it was child's play to sneak up on the large, horned snowbeasts that were snoring away among the trees on the edge of the valley. I gave my loudest, whooping hobbit cheer right in one's ear, with my paring knife and ladle at the ready in case I needed them. Instead, the sleepy brute stood up with a groan and stretched, then stumped off to put several trees between us... and proceeded to flop back down to sleep. 

Flinging my hands up at this lost cause, Rosemary and I made our way up the slope to collect mushrooms from the heated tent. I was never as fond of mushrooms as my kin, and I could only imagine how decimated this tent would be if more hobbits had come to the festival. These mushrooms clearly didn't have the same quality as Farmer Maggot's, anyhow -- otherwise they'd have dogs to protect this crop instead of sending an unknown like me to come collect what I could!

Done with all the crazy errands, I huffed a foggy breath into the chill air and mounted back up on Rosemary. She grunted and shifted slightly as I did so, clearly as unused to all this activity as I was. I leaned over to pat her neck appreciatively. "Hey girl, it's alright. You probably needed this exercise, and I'll make you some apple and oat cakes when we get back home, alright?" This seemed to satisfy my pony, and she gave a little toss of her head as she began her way up the path towards the town.

Back inside, I reported to Guard Kember about my attempt to cheer-scare the snowbeasts. He half-smiled and shrugged, but gave me some festival coin for my troubles. When his attention was elsewhere, I was again face-to-face with the slop-planks behind Ona that were passing as feast tables. Unable to stand the mess any longer, I grabbed a nearby rag and began to clean to the chagrin of a surprised Ona. The smelly garbage, unsightly spills and grimy dishes were soon a thing of the past. Even us hobbits know how to clean up after ourselves! Maybe it taught the Big Folks a lesson to see me cleaning their mess, but I somehow doubt it.

I ended up by the servants oven and proceeded to bake some of the bread that Mabel needed, while also grabbing some coal to supply to Virgil. Bread baked, I hefted up a nearby keg and brought it to the lone dwarf I'd seen in town -- who very well may have been draining the kegs all on his own. There was no telling, because he was too drunk to even tell me his name. But funny thing, that -- there weren't any elves here at all. Maybe the dwarves and elves were having a better time elsewhere?

By this time, there was a large crowd enjoying the refreshed food tables and drink, and I deemed it the perfect time to set off the fireworks. Chaos erupted in a matter of seconds, and I reveled in every second of it! Panicked servants came running to the crate of fireworks, as if their pleas would make them cease to launch. Patrons in the square thought it was planned and began to watch the sky and dance and cheer. Amid this distracted chaos, I slipped in between the besotted people and lifted festival coins from many of them. I was gone around a corner long before the fireworks died down.

Virgil was well pleased to receive a handful of coal from me, and I replicated my broken snowman to his amusement before heading back into the town. I had a lot of coin to get rid of, and I knew exactly who to give it to. I discreetly made the rounds around the town, slipping coins to the workers who'd been reduced to beggars. My good deeds done for the day, I returned to Mara to lay claim to one of her promised bag of goodies -- and to thaw out my toes.

As I stood there with her, listening to her chatter away about some exotic pets I could trade festival coins for -- I saw some Big Folk come up to Mayor Goodnough and show him a piece of paper. Winston must've been looking at his spared-no-expense receipt, because he turned whiter than the falling snow. I guess he decided to spend some more money, because I soon saw the same Big Folk going around to the jobless workers and telling them they were rehired.

Worn out, and not sure I wanted to find out what kind of drama had transpired among the Big Folk, I took my leave of Mara and decided to head to the theatre to relax. I heard they were putting on a Shire favorite about Mad Baggins, and I loved that one dearly. I only hoped the Shire tradition of throwing fruit at the bad actors would be acceptable here at the festival.

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I hope you enjoyed this Yule narrative about LOTRO's Yule Festival, as told from the perspective of my hobbit burglar, Aumai Goodness. This blog entry was a reward for one of my 2018 Extra Life donors because she donated $100. This is the kind of stuff I do for my donors! If you'd like to be one, just click the image below. Thank you for reading -- and please feel free to leave comments and feedback!

The Marathon Day Recap: 2018 Edition

For the 10th Anniversary of Extra Life, and my 6th year of participation, I clicked and pressed my way through 18 games over the course of 25 hours. This is what happened!

Saturday, November 3, 2018
7:30 AM

My alarm goes off, and I get myself out of bed. I turn on my computer, go heat up breakfast hot pockets in the kitchen, and bring them back to my computer along with a Vanilla Doubleshot. I am ready to start this!

I open up the marathon channel on my Extra Life server on Discord, and find a few friends and team mates there and ready to get going.

8:00 AM
Glass Masquerade

Expectations: A puzzle game based on stained glass. Stained glass is pretty.

Reality: A puzzle game based on art deco and stained glass, with beautiful music and a variety of difficulty for the puzzles themselves. The progression path is based on world countries, so the artwork is thematic and relevant to the locations. The puzzles themselves are presented in a unique way. You are given fragments of stained glass in concentric circles around the face of a clock (where the pieces go), but they only appear as silhouettes. When you pick them up, they rotate and show their colors/patterns. The chimey/piano music is very whimsical and added a lovely touch to the game. It made for a very pleasant first game of the day/marathon.

I have, since the marathon, gone back and finished the main game as well as the two available DLCs. My only disappointment is not being able to find the music for the Halloween DLC available anywhere. It is also fun to try beating my previous times for the puzzles. Most were finished in less than 10 minutes; only one took me about 18 minutes to complete.

Lyrak: CRAP I accidentally killed my husband
snarkqueen: ^ Things said while playing Skyrim for $500, Alex.
Lyrak: We're... just... gonna load that game again.

9:00 AM
Battle Chef Brigade Deluxe

Expectations: There's cooking and fighting and OH LOOK -- THE LOGO HAS DRAGONS!

Reality: Very selfish main character made this hard to enjoy from a story standpoint. "I'M GONNA RUN AWAY FROM HOME BECAUSE I WANT TO, EVEN IF IT MAKES THINGS HARDER FOR MY ALREADY STRUGGLING PARENTS AND MEANS STEALING MONEY TO DO IT." The sister makes sure she has enough underwear and stationery... then gives her a cookie jar that somehow bestows +2 health. "I have to make sure I'm not sending you off to die in a ditch!"  "I'll have plenty of underwear and paper in that ditch." And then the things already in my inventory? Orion's Pebble: A shiny pebble given to you by an elderly customer one day. Maybe he thought it was a coin? UNDERWEAR, PAPER, COOKIE JAR, AND A ROCK. I'M SURE TO WIN MYSELF A PLACE IN THE ELITE CHEF-SOLDIER BRIGADE!

The game elements are pretty good, though. The match puzzle element for cooking is spot-on (insert Pacha meme here), and the combat to acquire ingredients from monsters is adequately challenging -- especially when the little bird monsters want to fly off with your hard-won monster bits and your bag is too full to carry what you need. I did rather like the old man with all the cats named after cheeses, too. PECORINO! BRIE! FONTINA! SWISS!

Innkeeper: Everything alright with our accomodations, sir?
Mina: I'm a girl.
Innkeeper: Oh ho ho! Oh my word! You'll have to excuse me. I've misplaced my glasses.
Mina: But I don't sound like a man, do I?
Innkeeper: Forgive me! I'm hard of hearing too, oh ho. I'm sure you're a fine young Orc lad.

Mina: Is that your falcon? She's beautiful.
Shiv: She knows.

At this point, I forgot that I wasn't wearing my 10th Anniversary Extra Life t-shirt, so I fixed that. I may or may not have struck an epic pose for nobody but my cat.

11:00 AM
Kentucky Route Zero

Expectations: A super popular adventure game with a lot of good story. So I've been told...

Reality: [Insert Unpopular Opinion Puffin meme here.] I'm afraid I was highly underwhelmed overall with this game, but there were some elements that tickled my inner geek's fancy. This mostly came in the form of really intellectual references you either knew or would miss entirely. The gameplay itself didn't really strike me as entertaining, and the the dialogue menus left me wholly dissatisfied.

The best reference was to Gabriel Garcia Marquez's "One Hundred Years of Solitude." You are told to find a character named Marquez to get through the Zero. When you look up the address for them, it is 100 Macondo Lane. Macondo is a fictional place in Marquez's book. If you're familiar with my homestead in Second Life, I have a tower in one corner of the sim that is actually named Macondo Keep. Aside from that, the only other reference I'll mention was an excellent use of Beethoven on a record player (Symphony 3, movement 2, I believe).

I won't say anything else, because there is a good deal of character story that pushes the story forward. I haven't yet made up my mind if I'm going to go back and finish the game.

12:00 PM
Luigi's Mansion: Dark Moon (Nintendo 3DS)

Expectations: I played 10 minutes of this and then got distracted by Pokemon Alpha Sapphire instead. I did read that it is a sequel to a GameCube game (Luigi's Mansion), and there's a tentatively-titled Luigi's Mansion 3 that's going to come out next year. I dunno -- it's Luigi, and he's dealing with ghosts. I always liked him better than Mario. It's gotta be good if they're planning another sequel, right?

Reality: The ghosts and the scientist in Dark Moon remind me of the minions in Despicable Me. It's an entertaining little game where you have to poke and prod at everything to find things to do other things and restore the fragments of the Dark Moon to make the ghosts be nice again. And of course you have to do this as the fearful Luigi who didn't really want this task in the first place. I almost got stuck early on because I hadn't tilted my 3DS enough to uncover something.

I took a stretch, walk and heated up pizza rolls for lunch. The best part of the pizza rolls being that there are codes on the packages to redeem for goodies in Assassin's Creed: Odyssey (which I need to get back to playing soon!). Extra awesome was opening a new package of pizza rolls, heating up a whole plate of them in a noisy microwave, cleaning the tops off of two soda cans with a noisy faucet, and NOT waking up either the snoring husband in the recliner or the hyper puppy at his feet. I'm either a ninja or a hobbit -- you decide.

1:00 PM
The Wolf Among Us

Expectations: I chose this game because it is by Telltale Games, and as most gamers know by now... they are closing their doors after they finish the work on their plates. I felt I should play one of their games in the marathon as a tribute to their great work. Plus, this one deals with fairy tale characters and has a good story... supposedly!

Reality: Well, I may have forgotten the Mature rating of this game. I remembered very quickly, and that made it a challenge to take screenshots -- plus, I never knew when I'd have to make a quick reaction! (I might have died once and had to restart from a save point because I was too focused on my pizza rolls.)

Make no mistake, though -- this is a fantastic game. It's dark, it's gritty, but the story is very intriguing and I absolutely HAVE to get back to it to finish it and find out Who Did It. It's a little nerve-wracking to know that my choices affect the mindsets and responses of the other characters. And what is up with the wine-drinking, flying GREEN monkey?

3:00 PM
Apotheon

Expectations: Fight the gods to save mankind in Greek mythology. Unique art style. Yeah, that's enough for me!

Reality: I plugged in my PS4 controller, having the notion I would need one since it's primarily about fighting your way through everything. However, even WITH a controller... the controls in the game were awful. A lot of the dialogue and events made no sense either. Blacksmith tells me to grab a coin box behind him, in his smithy, so that my character can afford to pay him for new gear? HERE, LET ME ROB YOU TO PAY YOU FOR YOUR OWN HARD WORK.

I finished the first portion of the game, but am not sure I'll go back to play more. I'm not sure how I feel about being on the same side as Hera, the goddess depicted as ever-vindictive. The controls were also just that bad... I kept dropping items instead of switching, and the directions for how to craft were very vague. I had to stop and Google just to figure it out.

I continued to listen to Lyrak on the voice channel as she played Skyrim, which made my struggle a little less tedious. "Everyone will get smashed when it is time." ...and other things said at the beginning of parties for $600, Alex. (If I recall, she was talking about an enemy getting up in her face before she was ready to smite him.)

4:00 PM
The Deer God

Expectations: Gorgeous pixel art. Be a deer. Survive to atone for being a jerkface. Did I mention the gorgeous pixel art?

Reality: So, the beginning of the game reminded me that it wasn't REALLY my character's fault that a baby deer died -- it was those wolves attacking him while he was aiming at the adult deer. Regardless, it was definitely fun to play. The only real struggle was getting through some of the long stretches where there was no food available. So, if you try this game, EAT EVERYTHING. Just do it. Be a pig. You won't regret it. 

My other bit of advice? DON'T STOP MOVING. Keep running and leaping and moving forward. This is not a slow-paced exploration game if you want to survive. Survival hinges on reaching other deer and creating baby deer as save points. The bigger you get (i.e. the more days you live), the easier it is to clear obstacles and avoid injury. Also... inside locations will likely throw giant bosses at you. I accidentally found this giant toad that was reminiscent of ShogunGekomon from Digimon, minus the horns.

Sometime around this point, my husband was awesome and went to go pick up some chicken tenders and potato wedges for dinner at a local place. (We've had them both Friday nights since. Yeah, they're THAT good.)

5:00 PM
Pyre

Expectations: Third game by Supergiant Games. I have traditionally had the first play of their games during my Extra Life marathons, so this one will, too. Something about rites to pass and redemption and freedom or something. (Yay, more Darren Korb music!)

Reality: The art is beautiful. The music is folksy and nice, but not AS nice as Transistor or Bastion (sorry Darren). The gameplay itself is very tricky, particularly in swapping between the characters during the Rites. However, it's just not as compelling as Transistor or Bastion were for me. I am disappointed that I am disappointed! I may go back to finish this game at some point, but it isn't anywhere near the top of the list like I thought it would be.

7:00 PM
Shadow of the Colossus (PS4)

Expectations: I watched my husband play a bit of this while we were supposed to be focused on our D&D game via Google. You have a horse. You find these giant temple-building-monster-things. You climb them as they're moving. You find a weak spot. You murderize them. That's all I've got. I let my husband choose this for my queue.

Reality: You're super upset about some girl dying, and you're willing to go somewhere forbidden to get the power to bring her back to life, and you've got this special sword. A disembodied voice (a god?) agrees to do it, but sends you to go kill the giant temple-building-monster-things. You climb them as they're moving. You find a weak spot. You try to murderize them. You fall off a lot. And steering the horse is harder than it has any right to be. I won't be going back to this game. It should not be the struggle it is. Which is a shame, because the graphics are super pretty.

8:00 PM
Moon Hunters

Expectations: Steam says: "A co-op personality test about exploring an ancient, occult world in 5 days. How will you be remembered?" ...so, like... this can go a lot of different ways, and I'm expecting to have multiple, different playthroughs. More pretty pixel graphics.

Reality: I am betting this would be more fun with others to play with because some of the mobs are just... too many for one character to handle, and they do a LOT of damage. But I was right about doing the multiple, different playthroughs. It's the same 5 days every time, and it's up to you to guide a specific historical hero of this world through those days. Each time you play, you unlock more options for future playthroughs, and you learn a little bit more about what's going on. 

The pixel graphics were good in the game, but I liked the hand-drawn art sections a lot more. More of that would've been fine by me. The music was also very well-done, but not memorable. There's a good chance I'll go back into the game to play more of the heroes and uncover more of the story and options.

Right here is where I hit the $900 Milestone and sealed my fate -- I'll be watching all of the Twilight movies.

9:00 PM
The Witcher Adventure Game

Expectations: Digital version of the board game... based on the video games... based on the writing. Geralt and monsters and stuff. Should be fun, yeah? This one was a selection from my GOG.com library.

Reality: This was SO BAD. If you don't own this game and you were considering it, DON'T. I mean, by all means feel free to buy the actual board game and invite friends over to play it. But if you enjoy video games, this is not for you.

It is very similar to complex, cooperative board games like Arkham Horror. Downside... they clearly didn't rewrite any of the text when adapting it to the PC version, so a lot of it reads weird or isn't understandable. They don't give you any help learning to play the game, either. I set it up with 3 bot-controlled players, and was glad that it didn't last too long. 

I told my friends in the Discord marathon chat not to judge me for bailing early on the game. I got the expected response from them, but made up for the gap of time with RIFT. Good ol' RIFT.

snarkqueen: Tell you guys what... I give this a half hour. I'll squeeze in an hour of RIFT or something to make up for it. DON'T JUDGE ME. I FEEL THE JUDGEMENT IN YOUR SILENCE. ;___;
Kataplexy: 

I worked on some guild quests for a while, then jumped into the Intrepid Instant Adventures (Hammerknell and Mind of Madness). Naturally, I got disconnected from the server RIGHT as the fight with Akylios was starting.

11:00 PM
Western Press

Expectations: Typing duel game. Set in the old west. Yes, please. I'mma beat those AIs!

Reality: The opening narration for this game was the absolute best. The capstone of which was, "The duel abides."

When I went into the settings, it said "Ah, a technical user." And when I clicked specifics, it said "What, default not good enough for ya?" I set it up so I would have actual words instead of random letters or directions. I made it all the way through pretty easily until the last duel, which was Wyatt Hurt. He is SO FAST. It took several tries, but eventually I won with the word 'strawberry.'

Short game, but lots of fun.

12:00 AM
Scanner Sombre

Expectations: Exploration game with unique visuals and good reviews.

Reality: This one was very different. I don't really know how else to describe it. There were a few places where I wasn't sure where I had to go, which resulted in awkward backtracking. You use the scanner to 'map' the topography around you in the caves and find your way through. I don't know why you're set up in a tent at a dead end. I don't know why you can't bring the actual light from there with you. I don't know why you don't bother to take supplies when you leave it. I don't know what happens if you fall into any of the big holes.

What I do know, is that the graphics are murder on your eyes. I had to lay down and close my eyes for a half hour after playing this one. I had to, or I wouldn't have been able to play any other games! This is when I begin to sip at a berry-flavored Five Hour Energy.

2:00 AM
Always Sometimes Monsters

Expectations: This is an encore. I have played this in a previous marathon and it got me through the tough early morning hours. It can be a completely different experience with each playthrough, so I felt I should bring it back again.

Reality: It was weird playing a different character this time, and in my head I was still the last character. I might have to go back to that save file. I knew a little of what to expect this time, but it's still a very unique experience. I didn't get any closer to finding out the meaning of the opening scene, but I think I saved a friend from drug addiction this time. I think. I still had to sleep on a mattress in an alley because my landlord evicted me, though.

This game does a great job of illustrating the highs and lows of life and the realistic choices people have to make to get by. Still a strong recommendation from me, and I hope they don't perpetually delay the sequel, Sometimes Always Monsters.

3:00 AM
Seasons After Fall

Expectations: There's a fox, and puzzles and stuff and you control the seasons and there's pretty artwork. FOX!

Reality: Very cute game with a very pretty art style. The directing/narrating voice is irritating. The controls could be better -- but it may also be easier with a controller. I got stuck a few times, not sure what I needed to do -- and it ended up being the controls.

4:00 AM
Town of Salem

Expectations: Murder mystery meets colonial America. Finger pointing!

Reality: I enjoyed this more than I expected to. Since the marathon, I have played many more times and learned a lot more about how to play it effectively. It's always different because of how random people are thrown together (unless you build your own group with friends). The game seems to love placing me in the Mafia or making me the Sheriff. I've had a few other roles, but not enough to be worth mentioning. I couldn't really take many screenshots of this one because of the vulgarity of some names, as well as the language they used in the player chat. If you can ignore people's inherent perversion on the internet, and enjoy cooperative who-dunnit games, then I recommend this one to you. (I have even spent a few dollars so that my character appears as Santa Claus, has a reindeer pet, and the whole town looks like a Christmas village. Totally worth it when I get assigned the Godfather role. lol)

5:00 AM
The Forest of Doom

Expectations: Tabletop RPG of the 80's turned into digital choose-your-own-adventure with dice and stats. Yes!

Reality: This is an 80's tabletop game converted into a sort of visual novel with dice and stats. In the time I had, I had several playthroughs. I honestly don't know how anyone actually completes the quest... it's so unbelievably difficult! I made it OUT of the Forest exactly one time, but hadn't accomplished the objective of finding the two halves of the magical weapon AND delivering it to the dwarves. I struggled so much: through wolves, a swarm of killer bees, poison dart-wielding pygmies, hobgoblins, an apeman, a swindling crow, a thief, a werewolf, a wyvern... You get the idea. D&D players will probably enjoy this one.

6:00 AM
The Lord of the Rings Online

Expectations:  Being the game that got me started in Extra Life, I have traditionally played it in my final few hours of the marathon each year.

Reality: Nobody was online from the Away Shall Fade kinship when I logged on, so I was tempted to just give it 20 minutes then call it early and lay down for an hour before I would have to go to church. But then some people logged on and kept me company as I did some epic quests on my level 40 guardian, Yfandiel. 

I ended the marathon with $925, but by that Sunday afternoon I was sitting at $1,001. That means ALL of my milestones were unlocked and I have a great deal of incentives to deliver on in the coming months! And I'll do it all again next year, too.

I've learned over the years of doing this that you have to pace yourself -- and that includes breaks, food and drink. Step away for too long, and you lose momentum. Eat too much, and you'll get sleepy. Drink too much, and you'll have to visit the bathroom too often and it will interrupt your game flow. To this end, I made sure I started with that Vanilla Doubleshot after not having had any caffeine the previous day. I sipped at mini Cherry Cokes throughout the day, along with water. I snacked on Gushers and Goldfish crackers. My meals were pizza rolls, nibbled as I gamed and not gobbled all at once to sit heavily on my stomach. Every 3 hours I would stand up and do stretches. I made sure not to touch energy-giving options until after midnight, where I sipped on a Five Hour Energy for 3 hours instead of gulping the whole thing, giving myself a slow release effect of B vitamins. So I could function, I had my second Vanilla Doubleshot on the way to church around 10:30 am. This way, I didn't cause myself any sugar or caffeine crashes. I laid down that afternoon to rest, but maybe only slept a half hour in total. I didn't actually go to sleep until 9:45 pm. I had prudently taken Monday off from work, and I spent most of it in bed watching anime.

Look forward to the announcement for the Spicy Challenge poll result, as well as a loose agenda for when you can expect the other milestones. ALL donors should expect to receive 2 pieces of digital artwork for Christmas. They'll arrive via an official Extra Life e-mail so I can get those anonymous donors, too. 

If you're part of Away Shall Fade, I have good news! You guys successfully donated 25% of my goal, so I'll be giving away some LOTRO points. I'm trying to work out the logistics of that, but hope to have it done before Christmas. Thank you for all the support you've given me this year!