[2020] What happened this year to Rayque?

It's that time of the year again! It's time for another summary!

This year marks the 10th summary on this blog. As always, the Rayque3 Staff wishes you a great 2021!

2020 to me has been a pretty good year, for a change. It's been an incredibly productive year, although expensive. Regardless, among the specific milestones achieved this year are some pretty significant ones...

Anyway, let's get to those statistics of 2020.

[EMS] Awake - 5th Job's seventh wave!

Another big update, another skill wave. What does Nexon have in store for us this time? Half a year worth of skill changes, two new skills and a 5th Job skill with the potentially highest target count in the game which also comes with one of the higher line counts that you'll currently find. Pretty good stuff, if you ask me.

For this particular blogpost, I'm going to scale a bit down on the skill changes compared to last time because it ended up being just way too much for me to keep track of. Not all of the skill changes we received are major, so they don't need a sizable wall of text. Plus, this month's pretty stuffed (complete with a poor sleep pattern) and thus I don't have a decent number of effective hours to work on anything. Recent days have felt too short, to be honest.

Anyway, that aside, let's get to it.

[EMS] Upper Charge & Leap Attack

After a bit of delay, EMS released two new skills for Hero's toolkit. Introducing Upper Charge and Leap Attack, a pair of powerful skills that's significant enough to warrant its own dedicated blogpost. Originally released shortly after the Rise update in KMS, Nexon decided to postpone this patch for several additional months so they could include these with our edition of the Awake update instead. To say the wait was painful is an understatement, but at least the Celestial Festival and Mark of Honor III events were nice distractions and gave out some great rewards.

So, basically: Upper Charge and Leap Attack are here to improve Hero's movement options, allowing us to perform a multitude of new ways to tackle platforming and dodge boss attacks. While these skills are shared with Paladin and Dark Knight, as usual I will only focus on the in-depth applications with Hero.

[EMS] Sword Illusion - Level 30!

Sup guys! Today saw the release of the Awake update, which in old EMS tradition is a combination of several updates combined. Basically, we got a huge backlog of new skills, skill adjustments and upcoming content all at once. 

So, there's a bunch of new stuff to write about, and the following is my planned schedule for EMS-related blogposts:

• Near the end of the month, I'm expecting to publish a blogpost covering the new Upper Charge and Leap Attack skills, which are new movement options for Hero with a surprising amount of utilization.
• In mid-December, I'll cover our newest 5th Job skill, Sword Illusion, together with the other skill adjustments. The usual stuff (example).
• Maybe I'll write about the upcoming changes to the Amaterasu item set in January, if I feel like it...

Obviously, I'm still working on that Xenoblade Definitive Edition article, so the progress on it will have to happen at the same time as these EMS blogposts (and any work on the Hailfire Droid, at that). I took a (much-needed) break on the DE's article for about two weeks, but I'm ready to pick it up again tomorrow. There's just so much stuff to cover there, and I've been working on it actively for the past six months - it's kinda difficult to maintain a consistent productivity when it's such an undertaking.

Anyway, that's it for today - I'll see you guys again next post!

[Lego] Mokarr's head

A literal piece of LEGO^® history, from an unreleased Galidor set.

Well then. This is significant and something special.

Long story short: in 2002, LEGO^® released a theme called Galidor with officially 20 announced sets. Set #8322, named "Mokarr" (occasionally misspelled as "Makarr") was unreleased, despite being advertised on various media as an upcoming product. The set itself is a motorbike with a shark motif, a complementary vehicle for other Galidor figures, similar to the TDN Module.

Initially, little to no additional information could be found about this set. It was shrouded in mystery, with a bunch of "supposedly there are" and "apparently there is", but as time went on, additional information became more concrete: Mokarr is real, and so are other unreleased Galidor sets.

Look at that printed gum and teeth! The details on this thing are awesome.

Despite being unreleased and never mass produced, LEGO^® did produce a very small number of Mokarr's and other (unreleased) Galidor products that were part of (supposedly) future releases. Basically, they had the injection molds and the pad printer ready, used it to produce parts for their own archives, and it seems that some of these parts ended up on the aftermarket. From the perspective of an engineer, the term "prototype" for these parts is misleading.

In contrast, the top of the head is smooth and has some nice depth to it. It looks like a squid?

In 2018, supposedly a complete Mokarr was sold on Bricklink, to the frustration of many (including myself). A few months ago I found the original seller by pure coincidence, and he confirmed that he sold another Mokarr earlier this year (yes, he had another one) to someone in the UK. To confirm that he wasn't pulling my leg, he sent me a picture album of the other Mokarr, which is different from the one sold in 2018 - this "2020 Mokarr" contains one piece in a different color, and it is exclusive to Mokarr. Suffice to say, the conversation was very informative.

Seeing as I missed out on a Mokarr twice, I felt gutted ("you snooze, you lose"). There aren't many out there in the wild. That may have been my last shot at ever finding one that's for sale. I've been in pursuit of this thing for over a decade. I could literally become a LEGO^® Product Designer, and that still doesn't mean I can have one. I can't really put it into words how important this set is to me, despite it ultimately being a silly plastic toy from long ago.

However, there is a silver lining in all of this.

The windscreen element is only used once per set, but heck: I have two of them.

The seller still had a couple of Mokarr parts for sale. Yes, it technically speaking is only three of eighteen parts, but at this point, I might as well take whatever I can get my hands on. It's that, or nothing - an easy decision to make.

So, while it may not be the full model, it's a step in the right direction. To be honest, I still find it very hard to believe I actually have something, given that Galidor ended 18 years ago. While it will always remain highly unlikely that I'll ever find the other Mokarr pieces or complete models for sale... the hunt, my pursuit of Mokarr, continues.

Edit on the 27th of June, 2021: Part 2.

[Lego] Work in Progress: Hailfire Droid (October 25, 2020)

The Hailfire Droid rolls around just fine, until it suddenly goes to an abrupt halt...

Wait, that doesn't seem right... It seems I've hit a new kind of roadblock with the project. Well, shit.

I had some other plans for this month's blogpost, but ironically all of them have probably been pushed back to later this year, including the Xenoblade's Definitive Edition article, which I'm close to halfway done with the initial draft. It's currently about 25.000 words long. Might need another month (or two?) before I can publish it. That said, this Hailfire Droid roadblock surfaced today, which gave me an opportunity to talk about it, as it's quite fascinating.

Last time I've mentioned an issue where the thread links disconnect when driving backwards. This was caused by having too much clearance between the wheels and the drivetrain. I came to the conclusion that the disconnect happened because there's an unequal distribution of power: pulling the threads when driving forward is no problem, but it becomes one when you're pushing the threads if driving backwards. So, in order to supply an equal distribution of power for both pushing and pulling, I've doubled up the motors. That was a (partial) mistake.

So, if you look carefully at the GIF above, the Hailfire Droid seems to abruptly stop after a while. Even its eye goes out for a brief moment. This isn't a mechanical issue. It's one particular thing I completely forgot about, and it also has been a particular issue with my progress on the Constructor: a safety measure in every modern LEGO^® motor kicks in that prevents it from frying. Basically, the motors draws more current than what the battery can handle, and every time it hits this safety threshold, it shuts the electrical circuit off - a circuit overload. Woops.

Taking a look at the project on paper, it doesn't take long to figure out the problem. The motors I'm currently using are the popular Power Functions "L Motors", which are great for many applications, but they are notoriously known for drawing a lot of current. I didn't expect that I would hit this safety threshold with these motors, given that the wheels of the Hailfire Droid spin at full speed without any issues when holding the model in the air, but it seems that it kills the circuit when you drive it on a surface.

So, what now? The answer's simple: I need to use motors that draws less current. Fortunately, there are plenty of motors that draws half the amount of current, and ironically enough, this also makes the Hailfire Droid drive faster as these motors come with a higher RPM. 

Sometimes in order to prevent a circuit overload in LEGO^® is not to go slower, but to go faster. Funny how that works.

That's it for today - I'll see you guys again next post!

[EMS] 13 years of Rayque!

Sup guys! Today's the 30th of September, that marks another anniversary on EMS.

It's been an eventful year of progress: I've hit Level 250, got my first triple %-STR Potential, reached 7000 Union and completed the Mu Gong Soul Collection. In addition, they finally fixed the Critical Rate on the Amaterasu's set! Took 'm 7 years, though. Now, if only they'd also fix that Invincibility after hit...

But wait, there's more! Later this year, Hero will receive a couple of new skills. I'm very much looking forward to Upper Charge and Leap Attack, which is hopefully our next update. I'll definitely be writing a dedicated blogpost for that, as there's plenty to discuss about it. Then, there's also our next signature 5th Job skill Sword Illusion, which is probably scheduled for the Winter update.

So, last year I did release a High-Dex Hero video, but as you've noticed on our Youtube channel, there has been none this year. There's still one planned for 2020, but I currently have my hands full on the Definitive Edition article. I've started writing a couple of days ago, but I do expect to need several weeks in order to get it finished.

Anyway, that's it for today - I'll see you guys again next post!

[EMS] Rope Lift - Level 25!

"The Celestial Festival is free to play - with little to no effort, save 300m a day - who needs Reboot, anyway"
Dropping over 100 Arcane River symbols daily has never been this cumbersome.

Wait what, Rope Lift is maxed out? 

It's simple - Rope Lift is pretty much the most common 5th Job skill; you'll find plenty of them from opening Nodestones. It's more (cost) efficient to max out these 5th Job skills by immediately fusing any duplicates you find, instead of crafting these individually. And now that Rope Lift is maxed out for the time being, I can now redirect any future duplicate Rope Lift cores to the extractor for additional Nodeshards.

The Celestial Festival event has been very resourceful with its generous 60 (!) Nodestones a day, for little to no effort. Granted, I'm past Level 250 so I only need to do one Arcane River daily quest per 10 Nodestones - which only takes up to half an hour for all six regions. In addition, we also have the weekly 3 Nodestones from Road of Vanishing, and I still have my Mitra's Nodestone Box for another 5 Nodestones a week.

There has never really been a legitimate reason here to buy Nodestones from other players or to grind Nodestones out. Nodestones are pretty expensive for the little amount of Nodeshards you get. You're going to need a lot of shards to max out a new skill, and recent events have been so generous with Nodestones, that by the time this new skill comes out you'd have more than enough shards. Mesos are much better spent elsewhere. 

Dare to say that current events have been past the breakeven point: when you have your essential skills maxed out, you gain more shards than you need. You can either save up these shards for future updates, or sell them to invest in more substantial upgrades such as Additional Potential.

So, the Celestial Festival still runs until the end of the month, and it seems that my simple-but-effective approach of being patient and mindful about resources pays off. I currently have enough Nodeshards for three instant Level 25's of choice, and I almost have enough EXP Nodestones to max out another "Spider in Mirror" type of skill where the corresponding Skill cores are locked behind a limited loot table.

While planning ahead always comes with a certain uncertainty, one thing's for sure: you can never have enough Nodeshards. I may or may not get another Level 25 within this event.

That's it for today - I'll see you guys again next post!

[Lego] Work in Progress: Hailfire Droid (August 27, 2020)

It's been about five months since my previous blogpost regarding progress on my Hailfire Droid. Back then I wrote that I would probably not do another one of these before the actual model is finished - although my stance on that has changed after seeing how much it has evolved in the past couple of months.

In addition, I think it is also interesting to just discuss the recent improvements, especially considering it's been a year since I've "officially" confirmed in a blogpost to do a complete redesign on the project.

The Hailfire Droid is currently about 70% done, I think. I should be able to finish it before the end of the year, but I have to admit that I've lost a considerable amount of time working on that Xenoblade Definitive Edition article, which is not close to done any time soon. Somewhere it's been far more work than I initially anticipated, but I find the quality of the upcoming article to be of utmost importance. In worst case, the Hailfire Droid is going to be very close to done by the end of this year. 

No big deal, in my opinion.

[EMS] Maple Union: 7000 Total Levels!

Sup guys! With the release of Adele last week, I've hit a total level of 7000 on the Union system - partially unexpected.

I was close to the 7000 milestone, but in reality that was a few events away. As I've explained in my previous Union-related blogpost, I tend to accumulate levels through the (weekly) Union EXP potions and participate in events where they give out Storm Growth Potions. Y'know, slow but steady.

From what I recall, before the Rise update was launched in EMS, my total level score was around 6940-ish. If I were to get three Level 180 mules to Level 200 through Storm Growth Potions, that would've sufficed. That would've been my usual plan of approach. Although I'm clearly ahead of schedule - what's that about?

Usually when a class comes out, there's a small celebratory grinding event where a handful of rewards are given to players who reach certain milestones on this new character. What these milestones are and what rewards are given out are always different, but it's been a staple of an event for over a decade. But in most cases I don't really care that much for these type of events, unless there's a valuable resource or item to be gained from it (i.e. Adventure Rings, Maple Points). Although I certainly do always create the next-in-line class, out of pure curiosity and enjoyment. I can always use some more storage space...

So, because I had way too many Reward Points gained from the currently ongoing Maple Relay, I had decided to casually grind an Adele to Level 200 for the sake of getting the permanent outfit from that celebratory grinding event.

Yay, I guess. Not that I'm planning to use that outfit... Although those weekly Nodestones and the Level 200 STR card are kinda useful. While those STR cards are currently not my priority in terms of choosing what mule goes to Level 200 first, I'll tackle them eventually. Either way, doing that casual grind was enough to go past 7000 total levels.

I have no idea how long it'll take to reach that 7500 milestone, though - Nexon's been making events far more rewarding than last year with those "bonk Storm Growth Potions" where you get multiple levels per potion. Heck, there's another stack of those coming up next week. Should give my old Mechanic a boost in levels.

Anyway, that's it for today. I have plenty of work left on that Definitive Edition thing... I'll see you guys again next post!

[EMS] Level 251!

Ding! That went faster than expected... Although that's because Typhoon Storm Growth Potions are often included with each major event. If this keeps up I might even hit 255 next year.

While I rarely discuss 5th Job stuff ahead of time, I am interested in our next skill that was just released in Tespia ("Sword Illusion"). Of course, it being Tespia and early at that, it's likely to undergo some adjustments down the line before we have it here in EMS. But from what I can tell based on sufficient research... it's really good and versatile. Let's hope it stays like that.

That's it for today - I'll see you guys again next post!

[EMS] Soul Collector - Level 2 Mu Gong GET!

After about six years and plenty of teamwork, I finally managed to achieve this landslide of a milestone. This was by no means an easy task - as there are not enough Mu Gong Souls in the EMS economy to begin with. Everything that has to go right, had to go right, and it was not something I could do alone. And well, apparently it did go right this time.

I assume that most people who (will) read this particular blogpost are either new to this whole process or aren't particularly aware of the ins and outs in what happened here. So, I'll do a quick run-through on it.

Mu Gong Soul is basically one of the most difficult souls to get in EMS. Not many players own one. It's one of those resources that has always been hard-to-obtain, and it's only gotten worse as time passed.

• First introduced to EMS in 2014, you had to do daily Mu Lung Dojo runs and be lucky to find any shards. That Mu Lung Dojo didn't last long, as shortly after it was replaced with the Ranked Dojo we know today.
• Then, EMS had a short lived Cash Shop box called "Effie Boxes", which gave us the tradeable Mu Gong Souls at a decent-to-low rate. These souls were difficult to get your hands on because of the limited supply, let alone expensive in the Free Market. These were retired with the migration of 2016, and because the migration purged about 90% of the characters, a bunch of the already-limited supply got cut and only few remained.
• There were several Murgoth events that could give you a chance for Mu Gong shards, but the last one was in 2017. Getting the shards on the other hand, was another problem by itself.
• The Soul Extractor is probably not worth the time or money. Sure, it might be your best shot at obtaining shards, but you sure as hell are going to need to do a lot of them.

Let alone if you want to get a Level 2... it may no longer be possible. Chances are that there are no longer enough tradeable souls left in the game to complete a full page. And that's why it took me six years to begin with: it is not easy to find any player who still owns one, let alone is willing to part with it. 

I also should mention that the Level 2 collection for Mu Gong was introduced here after Effie Boxes retired, which was also after they replaced Mu Lung Dojo. So when the original Soul Collector didn't include Mu Gong in 2013 (KMS), I had to carefully plan years ahead of time, assuming that Nexon would add Mu Gong later.

Thus, 

• If the community didn't buy such a mass of Effie Boxes back then,
• If the community didn't find every single Mu Gong Soul variant from these boxes,
• If the community didn't migrate to maintain this small supply with the exact ones I still needed,
• If my friends didn't help me out with searching for them in those years, 
• If my friends didn't help me out with the Murgoth events back then, 

Then I would certainly have not been able to complete it. It could've easily not gone this direction because certain Mu Gong Soul prefixes are less common than others. Heck, I couldn't even finish this collection through Effie Boxes alone. I've had to use both tradeable "Effie Box Mu Gong Souls" and Mu Gong shards obtained through the Murgoth events.

How did I get my hands on the last Mu Gong soul, the "Hearty" prefix? The solution to that was a long shot: I had to get the word out. With the most recent Maple Relay event, we got a free Super Megaphone on a daily basis. So, 

I used that to get public awareness. Y'know, it was worth trying as I could only potentially gain from it.

And it paid off. 

Because of the recent upgrades to the security of EMS and the continuous efforts of Nexon, a lot of botters have been banned and thus mesos have become valuable again. As a result, players are hungry for cash... and that was the perfect opportunity to strike. I suppose that's how I managed to convince someone in the game to list that Hearty Mu Gong Soul in the Auction House. The same event as last time: right place, right moment.

All of that excessive effort, just to maximize the duration by 10 seconds. But somewhere, I wouldn't want to have it any other way. If you're a frequent reader on my blog, you should know by now that I'm kinda used to this. Did I tell you that the Soul Collector is character bound, so that I can only have the +1 effect on Rayque?

Now, let's see how long it'll take another player in EMS to reach Level 2 on Mu Gong as well. I'll be waiting.

That's it for today - I'll see you guys again next post!

[Other] Well... shit 3.0

I'm a tad upset that the delivery of this thing got delayed and that I didn't get it yesterday. At least I managed to get some Bricklink orders done for my Hailfire Droid in the extra time that I suddenly had.

That said, I have a lot to dive into with this Definitive Edition - in fact, I'm planning to write a dedicated blogpost to determine how much "definitive" this actually is compared to the original. I have no idea when that'll be, since I want to sink somewhere between 100~200 hours into this game so that I have a fair judgement on the overall product.

Anyway, time for me to unpack this thing and get going.

[Lego] So, I just got this Sealed Box of #8364...

... However I actually have to wait a couple of months before I can open it for my bday.

Anyway, if you're a frequent reader of my blog, then you would know about my acquired taste for experimental LEGO® oddities such as this one. As with most sets I write about, this one has been on my radar back when it came out in 2003, but I was unable to purchase it at the time.

I missed out on a couple of sealed boxes on Bricklink in the past couple of years, but that was by choice as I didn't feel like getting it until this year. While every set on my wishlist are sets that I truly want to own one day, it's best when you purchase them when you are in the mood for it. That and someone hoarded all of the damn Droideka's last year so I have to wait longer until I can get my sealed copy at a not-so-outrageous price point. Still waiting for Kardas, too.

That said, "what's this ridiculously large and heavy box all about?"

LEGO® Drome Racers was a lineup done in the early 2000s that lasted several years. Drome Racers was all about a futuristic racing theme set in a country-sized coliseum where several teams competed against each other in various elemental biomes. It ticks all the good stuff from a late 90s/early 2000s LEGO® theme.

The lineup spawned a pretty solid amount of products, a bunch of cool merchandise and arguably the best LEGO® racing game to date. But what makes Drome Racers stand out from the other Racers themes is its excellent variety of good toys with a coherent theming. The lineup produced sets for both System and Technic that (re)introduced us to (surprisingly powerful) pullback motors, remote control and vehicle launchers. But what is possibly the most interesting among the Drome Racers products is that one thing LEGO® never tried again to the same extent: the Track System.

The Track System is basically a track builder where you build a layout from prefab road pieces. There were only three dedicated sets that came at three different sizes. Most of the smaller Drome Racers sets (and even the Xalax that came out the year before it) are compatible with these tracks, but each of these Track System sets are supplied with their own vehicles nonetheless. The pullback motors included in these small vehicles would allow one to use it on these tracks, in which the corresponding play features for these sets are designed around.

Pullback motors are only good for up to a couple of seconds, so the other two sets were designed accordingly with a clear starting point and finish line. However, this set elevates that concept to an entirely different height: by introducing rechargeable batteries for the same vehicle build, complete with a dedicated charger that functions as a separate road piece, specifically designed for the Track System. Thus, enter the Multi Challenge Race Track, set #8364.

Although there isn't much to be found about this particular set since it somewhat fell into obscurity, from the little you can find online: the execution of this particular idea (or Track System in general) isn't flawless. Recharging the vehicles (depending on its age) is only good enough for a couple of laps on the suggested track layout, and having steep slopes on the track drains a lot of battery power. Aside from that: when it runs, it's definitely something like no other.

And that's pretty much the essence of my interest and love in these kind of LEGO® sets as an acquired taste of niches: it's never about judging a LEGO® product for what it is not - it's about what it is, the unique experience only a select few sets can deliver, and what it means to stand out as a timeless milestone in LEGO®'s history of strange oddities in almost a century worth of products. There's nothing like it, and that's why I want it.

[EMS] Level 250!

The twelfth of April

Birthday of Maple Europe

Close to poetic

[EMS] Soul Collector - Mu Gong 6/7!

Well damn, of all EMS blogposts that I didn't expect to write about any time soon, this certainly is one of them.

To call this a small milestone would be an understatement. Long-time readers know that I've been trying to complete the Soul Collection for the Mu Gong Soul for about six years now, shortly after I got my hands on my first Mu Gong Soul back in 2014.

Mu Gong Soul is an anomaly among all souls in MapleStory, and a strange one at that. What this soul offers in terms of stats differs greatly between regional versions. It differs that much that in one version it's considered outright broken, while here in EMS, it's hardly ever discussed as a valid option. I'm currently one of the few in EMS who uses one. It is the only Soul Collection in the game that is considered literally impossible. At least it is for EMS.

Soul Shards usually drop from their respective bosses, even to a point where Nexon goes through the effort of making old shards such as Spirit of Rock still (readily) available in present day, even well after closing the old Kerning Square. If you want to get your hands on any soul from the Soul Collection, you can just grind out the bosses for shards.

But that's only possible for any boss in the game other than Mu Gong.

Mu Gong has ceased dropping Mu Gong shards in 2015, after Ranked Dojo was introduced as a weekly system. Although at the time that was no problem: we had Effie Boxes and the annual Murgoth event to get our hands on Mu Gong Souls (as thoroughly explained here). Plus, we had the prospering thought that the upcoming Soul Extractor would be an excellent all-year round alternative in case we ran out of sources.

But in that band-aid solution lies a fundamental problem. What if they retired Effie Boxes and the annual Murgoth events? What if even the Soul Extractor is a dead end?

Obviously, all of the above happened. Effie Boxes were retired with the migration of 2016, our last Murgoth event was in 2017, and it would take hundreds of billion mesos to craft even a single Mu Gong Soul through the Soul Extractor - let alone the one prefix you need, or the fact that there's not enough supplies in the EMS economy to begin with.

So, how in Maple World did I manage to get my sixth Mu Gong Soul? It's simple: pure coincidence.

This "Flashy Mu Gong Soul" is one that came from those Effie Boxes long ago. At the time, I've been collecting as many Mu Gong Souls as I could find and this just happened to be one of those that unfortunately flew under the radar. So, that means that against all odds:

• This specific soul was found from a short-lived Cash Shop box four years ago...
• Possibly was sold at least once in the Free Market where I failed to buy it before anyone else did...
• The character that held this soul in its inventory was not among the 2,7 million (!) purged characters during the migration period...
• Somehow ended up being listed in the Auction House a few days ago...
• And not only was I able to get in touch with the actual seller of an otherwise anonymous in-game listing, the seller was patient enough as I had to scrape an ungodly amount of mesos together in order to buy this thing as soon as possible, before someone else yoinked it and wasted it for good.

No, I won't discuss the exact number I had to pay for this thing. But I could've bought hundreds of Meister Cubes instead, that much I'm willing to spill. Was it worth the price? Probably not. However, it cannot be denied that this was certainly a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that I would most certainly regret if I failed to get my hands on this one.

Just for the record: including this instance, I have only come across three "Effie Box Mu Gong Souls" since the migration. One was sold in Auction House last year, and another one was bought by a friend of mine for his own sword. But this was the only one among the three that I required for the collection, and being able to buy it was certainly an unlikely event: a perfect example of a "right time, right place" moment that by all means should not have happened.

Seeing as any of my journeys to complete whatever I feel like always takes a ridiculous amount of years, I suppose one could say that it might be just "another one of those" or "same shit, different day". At any rate, the HP prefix ("Hearty Mu Gong") is the last one I need… and I have absolutely no idea how many additional years that will take.

[Lego] Work in Progress: Hailfire Droid (March 6, 2020)

 

As mentioned last August, I've decided to do a serious attempt at a redesign of my Hailfire Droid in order to get those proportions right. After about 150 hours spread across the past half year and plenty of (expensive) Bricklink orders, I've come to a point in development where I'm ready to write something about it.

 

Literally, the last blogpost regarding my Hailfire Droid has been over three years ago.

 

So, where to start? I think it's best to go chronologically through the process in how I got from the previous iteration to what is currently on my desk. And that starts with the wheel size.

[EMS] Glory - 5th Job's sixth wave!

It's a bit late, but as I've mentioned earlier on my blog, I had no other choice but to park this article until at least February 2020. Gotta admit, this blogpost took way longer to prepare than expected (almost 400 GB worth of video footage to get these GIFs done) and I have experienced finding motivation for finishing this thing after December to be difficult... Anyway, it's here!

With our previous traditional 5th Job wave being (over) a year ago, the Adventure update only introduced us to Pathfinder's 5th Job, so it's been a while since we actually had new stuff to play with. That said, the Glory update gives us a couple of 5th Job skills that are shared among various classes, and as usual I will only focus at the (only) one Hero receives; the skill Maple World Goddess' Blessing. Hero has also received its Skill Link: Invincible Belief.

However, most of this blogpost will actually be about the recent skill changes that happened between Black and Glory. And well... Hero got a bunch of them - so there's a lot to talk about. There are even ones that have yet to arrive in EMS as of the time of writing, but I'll save those for the next "skill wave blogpost". Let's start with the skill changes first.

[EMS] Level 249! Amaterasu's Belt - 20 Enhancements!

The Glory update is wrapping up in less than two weeks, and most of its final rewards are currently given out. I was rewarded two (!) Typhoon Storm Growth Potions for the effort (one from the second Maple Relay, another from the coin shop), which was more than enough to do another level up shortly after my last.

Looks like I should hit Level 250 before the Summer, huh...

But that's not all today!

Because there was a discount on the Glory coin shop, I've decided to give enhancing a go on my Amaterasu's Belt. The final rank on the shop allowed me to purchase a 17 Enhancement Scroll, which I could potentially use as an immediate backup in case I would boom my belt. Basically, it was a good opportunity to give it a shot: worst case, I could retain the status quo by sending my belt back to 17 Enhancements and avoid losing stats.

Looks like my attempt paid off this time. The enhancing went smooth, my belt survived all the way to 20 Enhancements, and I was able to wisely invest that backup scroll in something else.

So far, I have three items on 20 Star Force, and the estimated total cost sits at 70 billion mesos. I think I should keep track on this... Anyway, I'm now starting to run low on various resources, so I think I'll take it easy for the time being in order to replenish some of it.

That's it for today - I'll see you guys again next post!

[EMS] Level 248!

It seems like I had bought way too many 3x EXP Coupons from the New Year shop last night.

Instead of letting them expire tomorrow, I've decided to use them while I still could. Adding a Fury Totem Coupon and a Prepared Spirit Pendant that I still had lying around from last month's dailies, I was reminded again why I prefer to grind without any modifiers.

That's it for today - I'll see you guys again next post!