It’s a bit like being naked in public. Yes, that dream, that horrible dream where you’re in class and you’ve forgotten your homework and everyone is laughing at you because you’re naked. That one, exactly.

So I imposed on family and asked them to read my poor book. And then I almost had a panic attack. Sitting in class naked? It would almost be easier.

The following two videos are what I assume is the conclusion of the Sith Inquisitor Andronikos Revel storyline. (According to the forums, once you get married that’s pretty much it. Your companion won’t talk to you anymore, rather like some real-life scenarios.) The romance-novel relationship continues, with Andronikos being very romantic…beware, if you have diabetes, you may want to avoid these videos. :)

Unfortunately, both characters had hoods on in the first video – by the time I realised, I was afraid to back out of the conversation.

Spoilers after the cut.

And then, I got these letters. Come on, say it with me: “Awwwwwww.” :)

]]> http://www.ravven.com/blog/2012/01/swtor-companions-andronikos-revel-part-2/feed/ 0 http://www.ravven.com/blog/2012/01/clockwork-bluebird-covers-round-two/ http://www.ravven.com/blog/2012/01/clockwork-bluebird-covers-round-two/#comments Fri, 20 Jan 2012 15:53:40 +0000 Ravven http://www.ravven.com/blog/?p=3796 And again, new covers. It is amusing me how difficult this actually is…none of these are right, even now. There is no urgency, of course…just the frustration of wanting to get it right. Some or the artwork is rough/not fully painted, as these are mockups. The initial covers are here.

Revised and new versions:

Below are two covers that I have been thinking about, one more literal and one a bit more simple/abstract. The story is (without giving away what it’s a retelling of) an it-happened-all-in-one-night mad chase through various fairytales and through the middle of a war between the Seelie and Unseelie Courts. It is steampunk fantasy, and would be placed somewhere between Middle Grade (as in the first Harry Potter book) and YA (as in the darker books which the series ended with).

Which cover would you be prompted to click through to if you saw it on Amazon? Which would catch your eye, and why? I think I fell into a quite unexpected trap, which is that I am having trouble visualising a cover for my own work because I am too close to it. In a recent post by Joel Friedlander, Book Cover Design and the Problem of Symbolism, he writes:

The problem is that authors are so attached to their own symbolism or to an image they have lodged in their mind that would be “perfect” for the book cover, they lose sight of the role their book cover is intended to play. One of the quickest ways to kill any good effect of your book cover is to include too many elements. In fact, this is one of the most common failures of amateur designers.

Yep, I’m there right now. So since I can evidently no longer see this objectively, what do you think? Images after the cut.

Design One

Design Two

*Click through image for stock information and credits*

Then they came for the trade unionists,
and I didn’t speak out because I wasn’t a trade unionist.

Then they came for the Jews,
and I didn’t speak out because I wasn’t a Jew.

Then they came for the Catholics,
and I didn’t speak out because I was Protestant.

Then they came for me
and there was no one left to speak out for me.

According to Wikipedia, which is black today in protest against SOPA, “First they came…” is a famous statement attributed to pastor Martin Niemoller (1892-1984) about the inactivity of German intellectuals following the Nazi rise to power.

If you think that SOPA doesn’t apply to you, and you have a gaming or any other kind of pop culture blog, you are very much mistaken. They are definitely coming for you. Those screenshots and frapsed video? Definitely someone else’s intellectual property. You could try and argue fair use, but I think that the pockets of most bloggers are much shallower than those of game companies.

If you post strong opinions about businesses or politicians, or if you review books or movies, SOPA applies to you.

Even if you live in a country which allows you to do things like post links to other sites (even if you are not providing pirated property at all) SOPA will apply to you. America (or rather the corporations behind every politician) have already won the right to extradite people who have committed no crime in their own country.

Posting lolcats? Better not. Ok, that is taking things to a silly extreme of course, but the point is that anyone will have the right to take your site down without hearing or proof. And they will do it.

The Oatmeal had the best anti-SOPA protest today; this says it all.

On a minor level, I’ve seen my own artwork pirated. I’ve seen it used on other sites and presented as other people’s work. I’ve written some nasty emails and had work taken down. If I was making any money at all from my art, then that would theoretically be costing me money. Would I stand behind something as corrupt as SOPA and PIPA to keep that from happening? Not in a million years.

Yes, I am a Bad Person. I admit that I do download things like TV shows and some music. But you know what? I wouldn’t be doing it if this media was sold at a fair price, or (in the case of TV shows) sold to a global market. Do you think that I want to watch my favourite shows a full season behind the US, after I’ve already read tons of spoilers? No, I want to experience it at the same time as everyone else. I would totally pay for ALL music if I didn’t feel that it was morally corrupt – the artist will be getting a few pence from every CD sold, and the music and movie industry is full of asshats. I don’t want to feel dirty – give me a way to buy music without supporting corporations that do so much harm in the world.

If I was prosecuted for downloading the odd Castle or True Blood episode, I would have to hold my hand up and say “yes, I did that and I knew it was wrong.” But having my site taken down because I post a negative review of a game and add some screenshots? Wrong.

So speak out. Don’t wait until there is no one left to speak for you.

Andronikos Revel is without doubt one of my favourite companions. The storyline is pure romance-novel stuff, wherein the heroine meets the bad-boy pirate, they fall in love, and she manages to rehabilitate him and turn him into a loving, faithful lifemate. Because, you know, that totally happens in real life. My Sith Inquisitor is almost level 40 (I’ve been taking my time) and is almost capped on affection for Andronikos, so I’ve had to put him away for a bit because I don’t want his storyline to end.

This is Andronikos:

For five notorious years, the pirate Andronikos Revel terrorized Republic and Imperial space alike as the captain of the Sky Princess. Known for his sharp temper and sharper flying skills, Revel was one of the few pirate captains to serve as his own pilot.

His piracy career was cut short by a strange mutiny, however, and he was abandoned to the Imperials who had been hunting him since he’d raided a ship carrying valuable artifacts. After a year in Imperial prison, Andronikos Revel was let loose. He has been meticulously hunting and killing the mutineers who betrayed him ever since.

Likes: Action, keeping promises, complications
Dislikes: Authority, betrayal, backing down from a fight

His character is voiced by Steve Blum, veteran of many game and movie voiceovers, and a great actor. I luuuuurve his voice. When I send this companion off on a crafting or gathering mission he growls “You’re going to miss me” and I admit that it gives me shivers. Sad perhaps…but a testament to how well done companions are.

Overall (from the limited experience that I have had so far) I think the game handles romance options very well. This is a new dimension that I haven’t seen in an MMO yet – single player games, yes, but not an MMO. You feel a genuine sense of attachment when a companion starts warming up to you, and the storyline arcs are written quite well. Evidently one class has a very tense storyline involving first romance and then a vicious betrayal – it’s not a class that I wanted to play, but I may have to just for that companion story.

I need more from an MMO than just killing things. As I said to someone recently, I find SWTOR to be addictive in that I can’t wait to see how the story plays out – I have to see the next scene, the next twist. Very nicely done.

And now for the spoilers:

Video one: Andronikos gives you a gift. It’s a weapon, of course – what else would be nearest and dearest to a pirate’s heart?

Video Two: Yo Ho Ho, It’s a Pirates Life for Me. Discussion of being a pilot and a pirate.

Video Three: my character gets her some rough trade pirate booty has a romantic encounter. And he is very romantic. Awwwwww….

Video Four: getting to know each other better. As you do after you have impetuously slept with someone who works for you.

Video Five: first lover’s quarrel. Andronikos evidently doesn’t like being told what to do.

Video Six: Andronikos’ old life comes back to haunt him.

Video Seven: the philosophical pirate. Andronkos gets all metaphysical. I was terrified to talk to him at this point, fearing the marriage and kids conversation. (Seriously? Sith lord with squalling kids and wet nappies? Is that where this is going?) So this will be the last companion quest I do with him for a while…will post Part Two when it happens.

For a long time I’ve been wanting to split the site between artwork and blog, and make more of a feature of the art section. I use my various deviantART and Behance profiles as portfolios, but they’re obviously not optimal as a showcase to try and get a bit of work happening.

Because I really, really need to start bringing in some money. Phil brings in money from freelance copywriting, but it isn’t enough to pay the bills. Because my last place of employment was such a negative, costly experience and due to the fact that as an older woman in a predominantly male environment, I’m really going to struggle in trying to go back to web development or project management. We have another couple of months, and then the savings are gone…a scary place to be. But as always, we keep shovelling: networking, updating all of the various social media and networking sites, sending out emails, sending out CVs.

Anyway, the new site. Since the book that I’ve been working on is kind of a steampunk fairytale, I’m thinking a steampunk theme, homepage split between art and writing. I’m sticking with WordPress, of course – I think it is the best blogging and community software out there. I’m looking forward to a shiny new place to play. :)

I’ve been working on Clockwork Bluebird edits and revisions, and have just finished today. The thing really needs a proper title but I am completely blank. WTB title plz.

We have old friends coming to stay with us on Friday, which is very much looked forward to, and tomorrow our Christmas present from the in-laws is being installed. Since the kitchen is the only room which has the original 100-year-old windows still in place and is cold enough to keep ice cream frozen on the counter, double-glazing is very much appreciated. Now if we can just find the money to fix the leaking roof, or get the slowly-tilting Chimney of Doom replaced…

Still playing way too much SWTOR, and very much enjoying the class storylines and character arcs. My Sith Inquisitor had some flirt options available for a very smarmy NPC, which I took, and all of a sudden he was leading her to a convenient bedroom where he promised wine and nibbles. They went into a clinch, and I was like “AAAAAAGGGGHHHH!!!” and covering my eyes. The next morning my pirate companion Andronikos Revel was quite snippy about it, and claimed to have had his own night of fun with a stable girl. I’ve been frapsing some of the interaction between Ravven and Andronikos, and will do a post on virtual relationships at some point. Even though the interaction is scripted and the other party is a character in a game, it’s still well-written enough that there is some fizz there as the relationship unfolds. Nicely done.

Back to work. 2012 is going to be my year to realise some dreams, after all, and I am putting everything into making that happen.

Fair warning about the video below: I quite liked it, but Phil came in the room and asked if someone was killing a cat. Your mileage may vary.

The one thing I will say about SWTOR is that it feels like a single-player game. Due to the heavily sharded/instanced servers, you rarely see other players. There are usually a few people talking in general chat, but the cities seem almost empty, which feels odd. This feeling of deadness is compounded by the lack of animation of NPCs, and the lack of wildlife and critters. NPCs in cities stand still, and unless they are vendors or whatever, generally you can’t click on them. Some of them are animated as though they are having conversations, but you can’t hear anything. It feels extremely unfinished and odd, as though they are placeholders. There are no critters (squirrels, butterflies, birds, etc.) and the rare mobs you see just stand there waiting to be killed. There are no roving mobs as you see in other games.

The static world is quite strange. This is a superb game in terms of storylines and plot. It’s a ton of fun to play. But in terms of immersiveness in the environment, and feeling as though you are in a real world, it is quite sterile and quiet. I’m hoping that this is something that will be improved when some of the launch bugs have been worked out, as it would add immeasurably to the immersiveness of the game. I seem to remember that critters were even added to Darkfall, which I picture as a game wherein you are mainly concerned with ganking people and taking their stuff…if it was important there, it surely is essential in a game like SWTOR.

I don’t want to feel like a ghost drifting through a dead city.