Tyler F.M. Edwards's Blog, page 62

Reviews: Defiance, “The Awakening” + Dark Matter, Episode Eleven

Defiance, “The Awakening”:

As the name would imply, the Omec have awoken. In small groups, they filter down to Earth to help Kindzi usher in her reign of terror. With Yewl’s unwilling aid, they begin to gather their strength, feasting on the innocent people of Defiance.

This is not an episode for the squeamish.

Meanwhile, Stahma tries to make peace with Alak now for fear Kindzi will soon hunt her down, inadvertently endangering him and Luke in the process.

I can’t say I particularly enjoyed this episode, though I’m not entirely sure why. I guess you could chalk it up to my general disinterest in the Omec. Or perhaps I’m getting a little tired of death, gore, and horror after an entire season of it with no real relief.

There are some obvious flaws in “The Awakening,” as well, though nothing too egregious.

For instance, I felt Amanda’s breakdown was rather out of character. Not unjustified, but still out of character. After the way she chewed up and spit out Pottinger, I can’t believe she’d just give up like that.

Also, the situation with Alak feels contrived. He’s so worried about Kindzi, but he seems in no rush at all to leave.

One odd theme of this episode: Agreeing with characters I don’t normally agree with it.

Stahma is right — this whole mess is entirely Amanda’s fault. She was warned repeatedly about what would happen if she allied with the Omec, and she just didn’t listen. And even more shockingly, I agree with Berlin — Irisa’s plan of trying to make peace with the Omec is foolish.

I will nerd rage so hard if they try to redeem the Omec. The entire point of their arc to date is that they are really just monsters, and “The Awakening” has only reinforced that. T’evgin was the only halfway decent one, and he was still brutal, arrogant, and unforgivably callous.

There are two highlights to this otherwise mediocre episode, though, and it will surprise no one familiar with Defiance that their names are Datak Tarr and Meh Yewll. I don’t even want to spoil anything. They’re just awesome.

Overall rating: 6.8/10

On a related note:

I had some free time the other day, so I memed:

I was quite surprised a Google search turned up no other versions of this.

Dark Matter, episode eleven:

I once heard Raymond E. Feist describe his books as “ripping good yarns.” I viewed this as his way of saying that his books are less about expressing some deep message or being the height of artistry and more just about providing fun and excitement.

The eleventh episode of Dark Matter is a ripping good yarn.

Picking up immediately where episode ten left off, episode eleven shows the crew of Raza hopelessly under the thumb of Waxler and his ruthless band of mercenaries.

The show takes some time to remind us that yes, these are really awful people. One takes the worst of it, but nobody is exactly enjoying themselves.

Then awesome happens.

I’m not sure how much I should say about the latter half of the episode. I generally try to avoid spoiling things in any major way. On the other hand, while it’s a very fun twist, it’s one that could easily be seen coming, to the point where half of the fun of the episode was waiting for it to happen.

What I will say is that it is a very fun, action-packed episode, and very satisfying after the tension of the last episode.

This is also another case of Five taking a more active and heroic role than usual, which makes me very happy.

In general, this is an episode that will likely please the feminists among us. I think they’ve atoned for that awful fembot episode now.

I have a couple complaints, but they’re very minor and don’t significantly detract from how entertaining episode eleven was.

The first is that we still don’t have much more insight into the true nature of the crew or how they got into this situation. I think we’re rather due for an info dump. Certainly I was expecting one.

I’m also a little underwhelmed that One’s speech didn’t ultimately amount to anything. As Six said, it was a good speech.

Then again, if the guys had done more, it would have detracted from Five and such. So maybe it’s not such a bad thing.

Overall rating: 8.1/10

Filed under: Games Tagged: Dark Matter, Defiance, review, sci-fi, TV

Cheating on WoW: The Elder Scrolls Online

Elder Scrolls Online is a game that’s been my radar since before it launched. Which is a bit odd because my history with the Elder Scrolls franchise is virtually nonexistent.

I am for all practical purposes an Elder Scrolls virgin. I did buy Skyrim on a Steam sale a year or two back, but it failed to impress. I’m sure for a certain kind of player it’s a great game, but after four hours during which a rough estimate of nothing had happened, I just gave up.

Despite that less than stellar experience, though, I remained curious about ESO. Elder Scrolls name aside, it seemed to be doing a lot of things that I appreciate in an MMO. The wide variety of options for customizing one’s build holds a lot of appeal, and while ESO’s reputation as a “single-player MMO” is a stain on its name for most people, it’s a mark in its favour for me.

I had hoped for a free trial, but none was forthcoming, so when the game went on sale for $12, I decided to take a chance.

After a few days of exploring Tamriel, I’m still not entirely sure what I think. I should also mention that I wasn’t able to delve as deeply into the game as I normally do before I write these posts, due to a combination of my limited time before resuming my apartment search in Toronto (which is probably where I’ll be when this post goes live)* as well as ESO’s quirks.

But I’m not sure whether I’ll continue playing or not, and even if I do, it won’t be for several weeks, so I figured I should write up my first impressions now.

*[Actually, no. I found a place, and I am currently back home finishing off my packing for the move. Haven’t found the time to spend any more time in ESO since writing this, though.]

A plethora of options:

The odd thing about ESO is that it has very few significant flaws — at least so far — but also very few exceptional qualities. Despite this, I will do my best to highlight the game’s strengths and weaknesses.

By far my favourite thing about the game so far is the amount of freedom you’re given in how you build your character.

ESO does have classes (four, to be precise), but they make up a fairly small part of your character’s build. Every class can use every weapon and armour type, and similar to Guild Wars 2 or The Secret World, your weapon provides much of your active abilities.

I’ve been playing a sorcerer, but I’m using mostly leather and plate armour, and I’ve been shifting back and forth between a greatsword and a bow for my weapon. I’m sure this is a terrible build that would get me laughed out of groups, but I’m enjoying it a lot.

Well, sort of. To my surprise, despite having a quasi-action combat system (again, similar to GW2 and TSW), ESO seems to follow the WoW model of combat difficulty. That is to say most enemies drop dead after about two or three hits, and fights are often over before I even take a single point of damage.

This is by far my biggest complaint about ESO so far, and it’s sucking a lot of fun of out of what might otherwise be an interesting game. What’s the point of this deep build system when most enemies die after one or two ability uses? What’s the point of all the game’s intricate block, dodge, and interrupt mechanics when you can just burst mobs down almost immediately?

Someone in chat said it gets harder once you leave the starting zone, but I have my doubts. I find most MMOs generally maintain a fairly static difficulty level for open world content.

On the plus side, something else I appreciate about ESO is that it is a very detailed game. The world is not lifeless and sterile as you would see in WoW and its clones. There are books and notes to read everywhere (though most of them are pretty boring), and there’s loot scattered everywhere (though most of it’s not that valuable).

Where this gets interesting, though, is that some of that loot already has owners. The game has a full theft and crime system where if you’re sneaky, you can rob NPCs blind. But get caught, and the NPC guards will begin hunting you, forcing you to hide lest your ill-gotten gains be confiscated.

Goody two-shoes that I am, I only steal from the NPCs who deserve it… but there are a lot of those, so I’ve spent my fair share of time dodging the guards. It’s surprisingly fun — again, it makes it feel more like a world and less like a game.

I’m a little on the fence on the quest design in ESO. On paper, it’s exactly what I like: fewer, deeper, more story-driven quests. It’s a bit like The Secret World that way.

But the quests still aren’t that memorable, ultimately. They certainly beat the stock standard “kill ten rats” fare, but there isn’t a lot of mechanical originality, and the story-telling remains largely unimpressive, with incredibly predictable plots, a generic setting, and mostly uninteresting quest-givers.

Except Razum-dar. This one likes Razum-dar. Razum-dar is good Khajiit.

Story is usually the largest factor in determining whether I stick with an MMO, and while ESO’s story doesn’t bore me as much as, say, Rift’s or Neverwinter’s, it’s not exactly grabbing me, either.

Another odd thing about ESO’s quests is that most of them are just out in the middle of the wilderness with little to no indication of their existence until you stumble across them.

It’s another thing I feel mixed on. On the one hand, it’s a good reward for exploration. Reminds me of Guild Wars 2 a bit. But it also feels a bit unnecessarily obtuse, and if I hadn’t already known to look around from reading about the game, I probably would have missed out on a lot of content.

Taking it slow, and other thoughts:

Another issue with ESO is that the leveling is probably the slowest I’ve ever seen in an MMO. Before even hitting level ten, each level takes about as long as leveling 89-90 did back in Mists of Pandaria. If not longer. It’s crazy.

I’m someone who feels the journey matters more than the destination, so this isn’t a gamebreaking issue for me, but going so long without any gear upgrades, or new abilities, or any rewards at all is a little wearing.

Due to the snail’s pace of leveling and my Toronto-related deadline, I haven’t had a chance to try dungeons, or PvP, or really anything but questing. My understanding is that ESO is another game to make the incredibly backwards decision not to include a dungeon finder, so I may never experience its group content, and I think the PvP is just open world faction war, so that holds even less appeal to me than MMO PvP normally does.

The only thing I’ve done that involved other players was a very Rift-like open world event. It was fun enough, but very quick, and it didn’t offer much in terms of rewards.

ESO also still doesn’t have anything resembling an auction house as far as I know, which I find baffling. I guess that “single-player MMO” thing isn’t entirely a good thing even for me.

The one good I can say on social matters is that at least ESO has open-tapping. Which is good because the zones are incredibly crowded, even at low levels.

One final thing I should mention is that I very much like the business model ESO has adopted. No mandatory subscription, and the cash shop is so pure in its devotion to cosmetics and minor convenience that it fills me with wistful sadness, for I know no cash shop can remain this utterly harmless forever.

* * *

After several days of playing, I’m still not sure how I feel about Elder Scrolls Online. It rarely excels, but it also doesn’t have a lot of major flaws. I’m not exactly thrilled with it, but I keep logging in.

As a result, I’m also not sure whether I would recommend it or not. It’s a lot like The Secret World, but with much lower difficulty and a lesser quality of story-telling. Whether or not that appeals is up the individual.

Filed under: Games Tagged: Elder Scrolls, fantasy, The Elder Scrolls Online

Review: Continuum, “Lost Hours”

Showcase has decided to do a web-exclusive pre-release of the first episode of Continuum’s final season. The TV premiere will come September 4th, but I always watch online anyway, so this suits me.

I’m trying not to be too melancholy over the end of one of the best and smartest shows on TV right now. Three and a half seasons is better than most sci-fi shows do these days, and at least they’re getting to wrap up the story. I’ll call that a win.

It’s still a tad bittersweet, though.

As for the episode itself, “Lost Hours” gets the fourth and final season off to a strong start.

You can definitely tell that the story has been compacted to account for the shorter season, but I don’t think that’s a bad thing. It just means there’s no wasted space, no dull moments.

This very busy episode picks up right where the third season left off, with Brad and Kiera fleeing the future soldiers — who turn out to be from Brad’s future, which I probably should have seen coming.

This puts Brad in a rather awkward position, as you might imagine.

Meanwhile, Kiera manages to escape, but a near-death experience brings her longing for home back stronger than ever. With Liber8 foiled and Alec redeemed, she views her mission as complete and turns her eyes to getting home, if that’s even possible.

But the technology she needs lies within the depths of Piron, and is thus under the thumb of Mathew Kellogg.

And she’s not only the only one gunning for Kellogg. Alec is determined to win back his company, and he forms an unlikely alliance with Julian and the remnants of Liber8 to bring Kellogg to his knees.

Everything seems to be coming together to paint Kellogg as the major threat, but I’m more worried about Curtis and the Traveler. They seem to be trying to play Kellogg and Liber8 against each other, but to what end?

Plus, with all apologies to Jesus, I generally don’t trust people who come back from the dead.

It’s a complicated story, but a gripping one. “Lost Hours” features all the tension, mystery, action, and adventure I’ve come to expect from Continuum. We’re once again treated to Kiera using her super suit for all kinds of entertaining super hero feats, and Emily stars in what is easily one of the best fight sequences I have ever seen.

Between the character on Continuum and the singer for my favourite band, I’m developing quite the positive association with the name Emily.

And Garza is still all crazy and badass, and Hell, even Julian was entertaining this time around.

Kiera essentially deciding to drop everything and go home seems a bit irresponsible to me, but that’s in keeping with her character to date. She’s never been a squeaky-clean, flawless hero. Just a flawed person in an impossible situation.

Also, while he had a relatively small role in this episode, I do want to say Carlos put on an excellent performance, as well. The snark is real.

Overall rating: 8.1/10 They’re goin’ out swingin’.

Filed under: Reviews Tagged: Continuum, review, sci-fi, TV

Reviews: Defiance, “Of a Demon in My View” + Dark Matter, Episode 10

Defiance, “Of a Demon in My View”:

Nolan and Irisa are Brazil-bound, but they don’t make it far. Their convoy is attacked and massacred, and Nolan is carried off.

He awakens in the ruins of Old St. Louis. Kindzi has decided she wants to “enchant” him. His only hope of escape lies with T’evgin, but he is paying the price for his negligence.

Elsewhere, Berlin reappears without much explanation, and it’s up to her and Irisa to find out what happened to Nolan.

This is a episode that needed to happen, showing Kindzi clearly take her place as the main villain of the current arc, but I can’t say it was an especially memorable or interesting episode.

I’m hoping there’s more to Berlin’s story than she’s letting on so far. Right now it just seems kind of random and out of the blue. And as for Kindzi’s story, it was really rather predictable.

That said, I do want to take this opportunity to do something I’ve neglected to do in past reviews: praise the actors behind the Omec.

Now, it is true I’m no fan of the Omec. I think they’re an unnecessary complication for the greater plot of Defiance and that there are far more interesting things the show could be covering, but none of that is the fault of the actors, who put on an excellent performance.

Conrad Coates is both majestic and terrible as T’evgin, and Nichole Galicia manages a potent combination of scintillating sensuality and skin-crawling creepiness as Kindzi. They’re both chillingly alien and radiate power and confidence.

It’s unfortunate such talent is being wasted on a relatively dull plot.

Overall rating: 6.9/10

Dark Matter, episode ten:

Trapped by their enemies and out of options, the crew of the Raza receives unexpected aid from the corporation who helped them resolve their issue on the mining planet back at the beginning of the series. This also means more of Tori Higginson, which pleases me.

But nobody saves a gang of ruthless mercenaries without strings attached. This particular corporation needs something stolen from a rival.

Two is reluctant, but the rest of the crew talks her out of it. Her distaste for the mission grows as they are forced to band together with another squad of mercenaries, the leader of which quickly gets on Two’s bad side.

You don’t want to be on Two’s bad side. It’s not a healthy place to be.

With their engineering expert out of commission, the two crews need another technical wizard to complete the mission: Five.

Meanwhile, Sally creates a new sub-program to analyze her behaviour for potential issues. I’m willing to bet cash this program ends up going crazy and taking over her body at some point.

This was an unusually tense episode, with twists and peril from beginning to end. The other mercenaries are the first bad guys on Dark Matter I’ve genuinely disliked. I want to see the General die on principle, and Four’s step-mom is pretty evil, but these guys are the first ones I really want to see beaten to a bloody pulp at the earliest convenience.

Episode ten is also a rare case of Five getting to play the hero, which is cool. I realize it’s a difficult thing to write, but I do wish sci-fi would have the geekier characters save the day more often. I mean, most of the people who watch these sort of things are more on the nerdy side; why do we always see the jocks and fighters take center stage?

Two also puts on possibly her strongest performance to date in this one. I think this is the first time I forgot I was watching Melissa O’Neill and only thought of her as Two.

Judging by the ending, I think we’re about to learn just who, and what, Two really is.

I’m not sure this is a bad thing, but this was one of the few Dark Matter episodes that didn’t give every character something significant to do. Six, Three, and Four are there, but they don’t contribute much to the plot or have any memorable scenes, and their arcs don’t advance at all.

Overall rating: 7.5/10

Filed under: Reviews Tagged: Dark Matter, Defiance, review, sci-fi, TV

Review: Warcraft, War Crimes

After far too long a wait, I’ve finally gotten around to reading the latest Warcraft novel, War Crimes by Christie Golden. It’s a very unusual story for a Warcraft novel, but also an intriguing one.

Eschewing action, adventure, and bloodshed almost entirely, War Crimes is instead a courtroom drama about the war crimes trial of Garrosh Hellscream. Held at the Temple of the White Tiger in Pandaria, the trial is officiated by Taran Zhu, with Tyrande Whisperwind serving as the prosecution and Baine Bloodhoof drawing the proverbial short straw and being assigned as Garrosh’s defense.

War Crimes could be viewed as a lead-in to Warlords of Draenor, and certainly it does serve that purpose, but ultimately I feel War Crimes would be much more accurately viewed as an epilogue to the events of Mists of Pandaria. Not only does much of the “action” take place in Pandaria, but more importantly, it continues the themes and tone of Pandaria, being an often introspective and thought-provoking tale.

There is never any pretense that Garrosh is not guilty — even he freely and proudly admits to all of his many crimes. Instead, the question of the trial is what should be done about it. Should he be put to death, or allowed to live in the hopes he may one day see the error of his ways and redeem himself as his father did?

It’s a very fascinating debate on the often blurred lines between good and evil, whether people can change, and when and if wrongdoers should deserve a second chance. It could have gotten preachy, but I personally didn’t find that to be the case. Most of the time, the author seems happy to let the reader draw their own conclusions.

Ultimately the trial ends up serving not just as an examination of Garrosh, but of many of the major characters from throughout Warcraft lore, and there are a lot of strong performances. Anduin Wrynn once again proves himself to be quite thoroughly awesome, and Baine actually manages to be pretty interesting this time around. The conflict between his personal loathing of Garrosh and his honour-bound duty to defend the former warchief to the very best of his ability is quite interesting to see play out.

This book is also noteworthy for finally bringing us a reunion of the sisters Windrunner. Despite falling on opposites of both the Horde/Alliance conflict and the divide between life and death, Sylvanas and Vereesa find themselves united by their common hatred of Garrosh. The story is a bit odd and ultimately doesn’t come to much, but a reunion of the Windrunner sisters was long overdue, and I’m not sure what could have been done to make it more interesting.

Overall, I thought War Crimes was a very strong book, but it does have a few flaws. The ending is quite strange and random, and ultimately quite unsatisfying. This is necessitated by its connection to the events of Warlords of Draenor, which seems to have strange, random, and unsatisfying as its calling cards.

War Crimes is also another chapter in the endless ruination of Jaina Proudmoore’s character. This book once again paints her as a weepy, over-emotional mess of a person, and it also reaffirms the absolutely dreadful romance between her and Kalecgos.

I’m starting to think it’s time to give up hope of Jaina ever resembling her original incarnation or being remotely interesting.

Still, hiccups aside, I found War Crimes a good read. It’s a refreshing change of pace from the usual Warcraft bombast, and for a book that’s little more than three hundred pages of people talking in a courtroom, it’s quite a page-turner.

Overall rating: 8/10

Filed under: Reviews Tagged: books, fantasy, review, Warcraft, World of Warcraft

Reviews: Defiance, “When Twilight Dims the Sky Above” + Dark Matter, Episode Nine

Defiance, “When Twilight Dims the Sky Above”:

Man, Nolan and Irisa really have traded places.

The Votanis Collective has come to Defiance, but not for war. They seek to make amends for Rahm Tak’s atrocities, and they offer the the town of Defiance much needed assistance and protection.

There’s a price, though. The Collective fears the Omec, and they will only complete their alliance if the town can broker a peace deal with T’evgin.

That would be a hard enough on its own, but there are complications. Nolan’s recent trauma has caused his mind to come unhinged, and he sees enemies everywhere. Meanwhile, T’evgin’s negligence has allowed Kindzi to escape and cause fresh mischief.

Oh, and Datak’s back. Just to make things a little more volatile.

It was nice to finally see the Votanis Collective take an active role in the story — Rahm Tak doesn’t really count. I’ve wanted to see more of the VC for a long time now. This isn’t much, but it’s something.

I also liked Stahma standing up to T’evgin — this was another very strong performance from her. And of course it’s great to see Datak back in action.

On the other hand I kind of wish Defiance’s alliance with the VC had just gone through smoothly. I know it’s not the most dramatic option, but the people of Defiance have suffered enormously for a long time, and I think a clear win is overdue. Endless tragedy gets exhausting after a while.

Plus, again, I want to see more of the VC.

I’m also a bit perplexed that Irisa didn’t really do anything to raise the alarm about Nolan’s madness. Doesn’t make a lot of sense. She knew something was terribly wrong, but she made only one — fairly weak — attempt to stop him and then apparently forgot about it.

Overall rating: 7.2/10

Dark Matter, episode nine:

Considering the history and temperaments of the Raza crew, it is perhaps a bit surprising it took this long for the bonds between them to start coming undone.

Shortly after Six’s little vacation, Four does the same (minus the cloning shenanigans) in an attempt to reconnect with his half brother and seek vengeance against those who stole his throne.

Four isn’t the only one feeling a distinct lack of team spirit, though. Recent revelations have taken One’s hatred for Three to new heights, and Six is crushed under the guilt of what the General tricked him into doing, causing him to lash out at anyone who comes too close.

Meanwhile, Two continues to beat the drum for trust and teamwork despite being the most dishonest person on the ship.

Episode nine once again illustrates that Dark Matter is very good at giving every cast member something to do, with pretty much everyonet having a strong performance. There is a slightly greater focus on Four, Five, and Six, though, and since those are my favourite characters, it’s no surprise I enjoyed this episode.

At this point I’m about 99% convinced Two was behind their memory wipes, so now what I’m wondering is why she did it. She doesn’t seem to have a clear purpose in mind for the crew, but just wiping their memories and hoping everything would work out doesn’t seem like a terribly good plan, either.

I’m also curious how the crew will react once they find out. The more she preaches about trust and honesty, the deeper she digs her own grave for when they find out the truth.

Overall rating: 7.6/10

Filed under: Reviews Tagged: Dark Matter, Defiance, review, sci-fi, TV

Rage of the Old Gods, Chapter Nineteen: The Pause

We come now to the nineteenth chapter of Rage of the Old Gods, the first book of my epic science fantasy trilogy the World Spectrum. In the coming weeks, I will be posting the entire book for free on this blog. If you’re just joining us, you can get caught up with the previous chapters now.

A calm has settled over the world of Barria, giving Leha and her allies time to recover — and time to confront their doubts and their demons. But the calm precedes the storm, and the question lingers over all: Why have the Gods vanished?

———————

Chapter nineteen: The Pause

When she awoke, it was still dark.

She raised herself on one elbow groggily. Someone had left a water skin and some rations beside her. Her mouth stung with thirst, so she downed most of the water. When she finished, she wiped her mouth and proceeded to fall back to sleep.

* * *

When she next awoke, the sun was up, its light seeping through the fabric of the tent.

She felt much better, though still somewhat sleepy. Her mouth felt dry again, and her stomach growled with hunger. She turned to the supplies beside her and finished the water. Looking into the ration pack, she found reindeer jerky and a thin slice of hard cheese. She wrinkled her nose. Better than nothing, I suppose.

At that moment, a small gust of wind brought the smell of cooking meat – bacon, she thought – to her nose. Her stomach churned hungrily, and her mouth watered. She abandoned the sack of rations, sprang out of the bedroll, and found her clothes. She held her tunic before her face and considered it disapprovingly. It was stained with sweat, and it carried a powerful stink. She decided she had no choice and dressed, trying to ignore the smell.

She shoved aside the tent flap, and the sun greeted her from low in the eastern sky. She blinked at the brightness and began to step towards the source of the cooking smell, using her nose to guide her. She regrew her claws.

Her knee continued to sting every time she put her foot down, but it did not hurt as much as before. She funneled Tyzuan energy into it to make it heal faster – having high energy in just one section of her knee made walking awkward.

From the look of it, it was just after dawn. That meant she could have only been asleep for a few hours. She felt too rested for that to make sense. Maybe I went to sleep earlier in the night than I thought I did. Her mind hadn’t been at its clearest the night before.

A camp had sprung up around her while she had been sleeping. Tents, cook pits, and all the other hallmarks of a military encampment had appeared to dot the land around her. Various skirmishes with the machines had left many trees toppled or broken, so no land had needed to be cleared. A few trees still pierced the spaces between the tents, and she saw unmolested sections of evergreens rising at the edges of the encampment.

The rain had vanished, and the forest seemed lush and refreshed. A cool wind blew out of the north, rustling over tents and through branches.

She came upon Drogin in an open area between several tents. He sat upon a rock with his back to her, and he had his eyes on her quarry: the leg of an animal roasting over a smoky campfire. It was from a keldi, a Tyzuan animal that looked like a deer. She had first tasted keldi meat the night after her transformation at the hands of Sosk.

“Good morning,” she said.

He turned. “You’re awake.”

She approached the fire. Before she could ask, Drogin said, “Join me?” gesturing to the keldi leg.

She nodded hungrily. “Thank you.”

Drogin pulled over a stool, and she sat down.

She glanced at the sun. “How long was I asleep?”

“A little over a day.”

Her eyes widened. “A day?”

He grinned widely. “Yes. Some people wanted to wake you, but we haven’t had any trouble, so I thought we should let you sleep.” He sobered. “The battle took a lot out of you.”

She nodded. “Me and everyone else.”

She shook her head. “A day.” For a moment, she wondered if Drogin was playing a joke on her, but her brother had never been the sort to do that. If she had slept for a day, it explained her hunger.

Drogin gazed into the embers. “I’ve heard of wizards sleeping for days at a time after working great spells. Maybe what you do takes a similar toll.”

“Maybe,” Leha said distractedly, watching a drop of fat sizzle into the fire pit.

Drogin poked at the meat with a finger. He reached into a pile of small sacks at his side and produced two wooden platters. He covered each with two slices of Tyzuan fruit and a large slab of meat, and he gave one to Leha.

She tore into the food with fervor, savoring every morsel. The meat singed her mouth, but she hardly noticed. The meat had a strong, smoky flavor, and the fruit’s sweetness provided a pleasant counterpoint.

Once she had eaten most of her meal, and her hunger had abated somewhat, she said, “Where’d you get the food?”

Drogin swallowed a piece of fruit, licking yellow juice from his lips. “The Tall Tree clan had a little extra food, and they decided we needed it more than they did. Most of it went to the camp to the east, but I couldn’t resist commandeering a little for myself and the other commanders.”

“What happened while I was asleep?” she asked, flushing a bit. A day. She sliced off a piece of meat with a claw and popped it into her mouth.

Drogin put aside the remnants of his breakfast and wiped his hands on the grass. “Not much. We sent out scouts to try and find where the Automatons went, and Breena and a few other wizards are looking for them in the areas under the barrier, but we haven’t found them. They’re not in the camps south of here, they’re not in any of the ziggurats we know of, and we haven’t found them anywhere in the immediate area. We did find the trail of the Machine King – it went north somewhere. Eranna managed to find a few horses, and we sent a mounted party to find it.

“Most of our energy has gone into recuperating and reestablishing our defenses along the front. We lost a lot of people over the last few days – we still don’t know exactly how many – but we’re doing our best to put things back together.”

He took a breath, his shoulders rising and then falling. “For now, we seem to have been given a reprieve.”

“And it is a welcome one,” a deep voice from Leha’s left said.

She turned and saw Doga approach. He wore his usual Tor military uniform, but his armor and weapons were nowhere to be seen. He squatted beside Leha and eyed the keldi leg.

After a moment, he sheepishly asked Drogin for a plate.

“Oh, of course,” Drogin said. He rummaged through the sacks, produced another platter, and served out a piece of meat and two more slices of fruit. With a hint of timidity, he handed it to the Lost One.

Doga dug into his food.

Leha mulled over Drogin’s news in her mind. She finished the last bites of her meal, cleaned her hands on the grass, and stared at her claws, flexing her fingers. The fire popped.

“You do realize that the Automatons have likely just concocted some new plan to destroy us, that we’re probably in as much danger as ever?” she said to her companions.

Drogin’s face darkened, and he glanced at his feet. Doga swallowed his food and stared forward starkly. Silence hung over them for a moment.

“Yes, I know. I try not to think about it,” Drogin said.

Leha glanced at Doga.

The Lost One continued to stare ahead in silence; then, he tore off a piece of meat and held it up with a claw. “It is probable that the machines have simply found some new tactic to try; we probably will be in peril again soon.” He studied the meat on his claw. “But for the moment, there is nothing we can do but wait to learn more. Whether or not it was their intention, the Automatons have given us a break, and we should make the most out of it.” He ate the meat.

Leha smiled. “You’re right.”

They stayed by the fire for what felt like a long time, chatting and trading stories. Leha noticed a certain tension between Doga and her brother, and they rarely spoke to each other, but both were eager to talk to her. The time passed slowly as the sun climbed higher into the sky and the fire burned down to nothing. The workings of the camp continued around them, but they hardly noticed.

Leha found herself thinking back to her conversation with Natoma after the battle at Tallatzan, of her ruminations on humanity’s darker and more dangerous aspects, and the thought came to her that she could think of no better arguments in favor of humanity’s inner goodness than the two people on either side of her. It gave her some comfort.

* * *

Eranna had left sleep behind, but the images of blood and fire that had burned in her dreams stayed with her, throbbing in her mind like a wound. She dressed quickly, putting on her worn uniform, the uniform of a ruined nation. She bound her pale hair in a long and complex braid with a series of swift, efficient motions.

She glanced to the chest containing her weapons and armor, hesitated for a moment, and slipped into her padded red undercoat and mail hauberk. She strapped her short sword to her belt and took her spear, a relatively light weapon that could double as a javelin, in her right hand. She had lost her shield in the recent fighting, and she hadn’t found a replacement yet. Lastly, she placed a metal skullcap on her head.

She strode into the bright sunlight of the summer morning and out of the shadows of her tent, hoping to leave the violent images of the dream along with them. She paid special attention to every detail of the camp, forcing her mind to focus on the way the grass swayed in the northerly breeze, the way the sun reflected off the tents and the evergreen needles, and the mingled smells of camp life and the forest that permeated the air.

But no matter how much she focused on being in the moment, the memories of her dream continued to rise up out of her consciousness. The central threads of the dream had already begun to fade away, but the darker and stronger images remained with her, taunting her.

The dreams had begun after the battle in the Mannall Mountains. They did not come every night – they sometimes disappeared for weeks – but they never failed to return. Sometimes they were of the battle in the Mannall Range; other times, they took place in the battle at Three Gates. Sometimes, they shifted between the two or combined them. Always, they were a maelstrom of gore, smoke, and death. Always, the machines, the machines that her people had brought to ascendancy, presided over the slaughter. Always, she could not stop it.

She suppressed a shudder.

As she moved through the camp, she heard people say that Leha had finally awoken. Eranna felt a faint trickle of relief and considered meeting with her, but she didn’t see a point. Plenty of other people could bring her up to date. Eranna continued with her original plan: seeking out one of her lieutenants.

She found one, a tall Tor man named Karn, at the northern edge of camp. He was conversing with two other soldiers. From the words that reached Eranna’s ears, she guessed that they were discussing logistical matters.

As she approached, the meeting broke up, and Karn turned to face her. Beyond his name, she knew little about him. He had not had any prominence in humanity’s army until recently. She knew that he had been a farmer before the war, and that he had taken up arms around the time Leha had occupied Marlhem. He had displayed talent in combat and decision-making, and had thus come to her attention.

He nodded respectfully to her and spoke a greeting.

She returned his greetings. “Have the scouting parties found anything yet?”

He shook his head, the motion ruffling his short blonde hair. “Just more of the same.”

She nodded absently. “I want to join one of them.”

Karn furrowed his brow. “Why?”

“I need something to do.”

His jaw tightened. “I understand.” He paused. “We can send you by jumping point. Do you want to go south or north?”

“North. I’ll join the people looking for the Automaton Lord.”

He nodded again and went to find a wizard. A few minutes later, he returned, and the wizard linked with the scouting party via an ice creature, learned the target location, and led them to the nearest jumping point.

After a flash of light, a brief walk across a once-burnt field of shrubs and saplings on Tyzu, and another flash, they arrived on a vast, windy plain of tall grass. The wind was cold for summer, but Eranna was a Tor, so she was accustomed to much lower temperatures, and her clothing was thick.

The scouting party, a group of armed men and women on horseback, was arrayed around her in a crescent. One of them, a man, came forward, greeted her quickly, and dismounted. He handed her the reins and joined the wizard. They disappeared in a burst of green-white energy.

Eranna swung up into the saddle and placed her feet in the stirrups. The horse grunted. She patted its neck reassuringly. “Lead me back to the trail,” she instructed the scouts.

The party turned and headed to the east, their horses parting the grass like ships parting the sea. Eranna propped her spear butt against the horse’s side and held it in the air, wishing she had thought to bring a less-burdensome weapon. Within a few minutes, they arrived at a seemingly endless trail of huge, shallow footprints pressed into the soil of the plains.

“They’re not very subtle, are they?” she said over the wind.

One of the soldiers shook his head with a trace of amusement.

They set off down the trail at a canter, the sound of pounding hooves mixing with the rush of the wind. The grass glowed emerald and gold in the bright sun, and the vast dome of the sky was a deep azure. The scent of leather saddles and reins mingled with the smell of the horses’ bodies and the perfume of the grass. Eranna’s braid blew out behind her, and the imagery of her dreams began to fade away, disappearing as the task of scouting filled her mind.

A half-hour into their ride, the Automaton Lord’s trail terminated in a massive stretch of crushed grass and trampled earth. Eranna yanked on the reins, and her horse thudded to a stop. The other scouts drew up on either side of her.

Eranna swore. The area bore the kind of flattening that could only come from a large group of Automatons. Numerous trails led off of the ruined field, going in multiple directions. The largest one headed straight north.

Eranna’s heart went cold. She exchanged grim glances with the other scouts. Their faces showed that they had come to the same conclusion as she had: they had found where the machines had gone after Sy’om.

She turned to the battle wizard on her left, one of two in the party. “Find the nearest jumping point. Warn the camp.”

He nodded and galloped away.

“Over there,” a brown-haired Karkaran woman said, pointing to the east.

Eranna turned and saw a dark smudge of smoke hovering over the horizon. She tightened her grip on her spear. “Are there any clans traveling through the area?”

A Clansman eased his horse forward. “No, but the village of the Urdi clan is near,” he said, speaking rough Tor. “Their settlement is permanent; they’re rye farmers.”

Eranna chewed her lip. Her eyes darted to an eastward path cut by mechanical feet. It led straight towards the smoke. “Come on,” she said, urging her horse forward.

“It could be cooking fires,” the Karkaran woman called to her.

“Maybe,” Eranna said. She spurred her horse into a gallop.

The other scouts spurred their mounts and followed her.

* * *

They thundered down the path, the only sounds coming from the thudding of hooves into the soil, the huffs of the horses, and the wind. Eranna’s mouth was set into a tight line, and she held her spear forward like a lance. She hoped they would find nothing but homes and rye fields, but as the path continued to take them toward the smoke, her expression grew more dour.

The land had slowly been sloping upward since the trampled field, and now they came to the crest of the rise. The plains spread out below them, and a patchwork quilt of farmer’s fields spread itself amid the tall grass. At the heart of the grain fields, a jagged dark stain brooded and smoldered.

They were too late. The Automatons had come and gone.

Eranna stared at the ruins for a moment, her shoulders tensed. “Let’s have a closer look,” she said quietly. She and the rest of her party started down the hill at a more sedate pace.

As they moved towards the ruined village, her thoughts grew dark again, and she couldn’t help but the think of the violence of her dream. They reached the edge of the grass and arrived at the first of the grain fields. The trail of the Automatons cut a swath through the rye stalks, but they found a broad dirt path and took it through the farmland.

In places, fires or mechanical footsteps had flattened the fields, but for long stretches along the road, the rye stood unmolested, swaying in the cool wind as if the machines had never come. It was eerie. Eranna had grown up in the rural areas near Retgard, and the fields reminded her of the home she had left behind.

As they grew closer to the village, the signs of destruction grew more apparent. The smoke hung above them in thin clouds, and the stink of ashes assaulted them with every breath. Shards of wood and pieces of homes littered the earth and carved holes in the grain fields.

The rye ended, and they entered what had been the Urdi clan village. What had once been a system of streets and squares was now just a blank stretch of dark ash and still-burning cinders. Only the entrances to cellars and a few broken foundations marked where houses had once stood.

Eranna dismounted and took a few cautious steps forward. She could feel the heat of the ground through her boots. “This couldn’t have happened very long ago,” she said.

* * *

One by one, Leha crossed out a trail of Clan villages across the map.

This was not the same map she had used during the recent battles; this was an old chart drawn upon a piece of reindeer skin and used by Clanspeople to teach their children. It depicted the entirety of the territory claimed by the Northern Clans. A meandering line of crossed out markers showed the path taken by the Automatons, and the swath of destruction they had left in their wake. They were heading north-northeast.

A messenger poked his head into the tent. “The scouts have returned from the Larnen clan village. It’s been destroyed.”

Leha sighed and dismissed the messenger.

“That one,” Breena said, pointing to a dot on the map. Leha couldn’t read the script on the map, so she had found Breena and brought her to translate. The wizard showed an admirable composure under the circumstances.

Leha picked up her quill – she had shrunken the claws on her right hand to allow her to write – dunked it in an inkwell, and made a cross over the dot representing the Larnen village. “What did they produce?” she asked tiredly, speaking Tor for Breena’s benefit. The pleasant conversation of the morning seemed a distant memory.

“They were silver miners,” Breena said sadly.

Drogin nodded, his arms crossed. “They provided a lot of the silver we used to make the new cutting weapons.”

Leha pursed her lips, set down the quill, and stepped back from the table. She glanced at her two companions, observing their grim expressions. The other leaders were occupied by various other tasks, but they linked to her through Benefactor, and she could feel their worries mirroring her own. Thus far, all of the villages destroyed had been permanent ones – save one nomadic one that had had the misfortune to cross the machines’ path. The stationary Clan settlements had been a vital source of supplies since the Althing had voted to join the war.

Breena stared at the map. “Why are they doing this?” she said quietly.

Leha furrowed her brow. “Isn’t it obvious? They want to cut off our supplies.” She felt a murmur of psychic agreement from the other leaders.

The Clanswoman shook her head. “No. Their path is taking them north – ” she traced a line across the map with her finger “ – away from many of our other settlements.” She indicated villages to the west and southeast. “If they wanted to cut off our lines of supply, they could have chosen a far more efficient route. They’re just destroying whatever they can without detouring much from their chosen path.”

Leha surveyed the map. The Automatons’ route would soon take them to the northern edge of the lands commonly occupied by the Clans. Despite the midday warmth, she had to suppress a shiver.

“You’re right,” she said. She frowned. “What are they doing?”

A ripple of disquiet passed through the link.

Perhaps they wish to come at us from both the north and the south, Doga suggested.

Leha passed his message on to Drogin and Breena.

She sensed Natoma shake her head. Their forces in the south are too weak to attempt that.

Drogin’s brow creased. “They missed a village.”

“What?” Leha said.

He pointed to a dot to the west of what they had determined to be the Automatons’ path. The dots to the north and south had been crossed out. “The Fenheer clan. We were expecting them to come under attack soon. But they’ve already hit the Larnen village.” He indicated the dot to the immediate north.

Leha studied the map, shifting her weight forward and feeling a dull pain in her knee – it was nearly healed, but it still pained her if she moved the wrong way. “It’s a bit far off their path, but no farther than the Sannen village was.”

“So why did they spare the Fenheer?” Breena said.

Silence met her question.

After several moments, Eranna’s voice came through the link. The Fenheer village was the only one with a jumping point in the town. The nearest jumping points for all the other villages were at least a few minutes away. The Automatons must have figured that out. That would explain why none of the villages were able to evacuate or warn us, she said.

That and the fact that we never expected anything like this to happen, Leha added to herself regretfully.

You could not have foreseen this, Leha, Benefactor said.

Doga echoed his sentiments.

I know, she sent.

Leha explained Eranna’s theory to Breena and her brother.

Leha returned her attention to the map. “So they’re just destroying what they can while they make for whatever their real goal is.” She leaned on the table and thought for a moment. “What do you know about what’s up here?” she asked Breena, indicating the northeast corner of the map.

“There isn’t much to know. It is a harsh land with little life in it. During the winter months, it’s completely inhospitable. None of the clans bother to try and eke out a living there.” She paused. “Some of our people have explored the far north in the past. Eventually, the land reaches the ocean and ends.”

“What about to the east?” Leha said.

“The Gormorra Range continues almost until the edge of the land.”

Leha raised her eyebrows. “Almost?”

Breena nodded. “Eventually, the mountains fall into a spur of rugged hills. Soon after that, they disappear altogether. But a series of rivers sprouts from them and heads due north, to the ocean. The land around them is full of bogs and salt marshes; it’s virtually impassable in the summer, and nothing can survive there at any other time of year. No one of the Clans has ever tried to traverse the rivers, as far as I know.”

Leha considered. “I wonder if they’re trying to reach the camp east of the mountains,” she said.

Drogin shook his head. “I don’t think so. As hard as those marshes and rivers would be for humans to cross, it would be far harder for the machines. They’d sink into the mud, and the salt and water would cause corrosion.”

We shouldn’t underestimate the power of the Automatons, Doga said.

Leha passed on the message. “I agree with Doga,” she said. “They’ve figured something out.”

“How would they even know about the eastern camp – or the break in the Gormorra Range, for that matter?” Breena said.

Leha shrugged. “It wouldn’t have been too hard to locate the camp. We didn’t try very hard to conceal our trail when we went there. They could have guessed its location by a process of elimination. They could have used some kind of spell. I don’t know how they could have learned about the gap – maybe the Machine King learned of it before the Liberation; the stories say that the Old Gods held great knowledge – but I’m sure that’s their goal.”

I agree. It is the only explanation for their journey north, Natoma said.

I also agree, Benefactor said.

She relayed their opinions, and after a few more minutes of discussion, the leaders agreed to act on her belief and set up a defense on the eastern side of the marshland.

“We’ll leave a small force here so they won’t be able to launch any assaults from the south,” Leha said. She looked up. “What’s the latest estimate on our losses since Tallatzan?”

At least eight or nine thousand people, Eranna sent sadly.

Leha’s heart fell. “Let’s hope we have enough forces to hold them off,” she said quietly.

The meeting broke up soon afterward. The link dissolved, and Breena left the tent. Drogin and Leha lingered behind.

Drogin stared into nothing. “I don’t understand why they would want to strike at the camp. We can evacuate it with the jumping points. Losing it would be a setback, but it wouldn’t be a decisive blow, and it wouldn’t justify the effort they’re going to.”

Leha looked up from folding the map. She paused to think. “You’re right; it doesn’t make sense.” She finished folding. “There must be something we’re not seeing.”

She and Drogin exchanged a glance. Drogin nodded once, looking worried.

* * *

Preparations for departure began immediately. Tents were taken down, supplies were packed, and assignments were made as to who would go where. Within an hour of Leha’s decision, the jumping points across the front were busy with activity. Leha felt a touch of pride as she watched her people bustle about their duties. They were people of many nations and many cultures, but today, they worked as one, darting about the camp and making ready for the journey. This was how she had imagined the armies of Phanto and the other heroes of the Liberation. This was how things should be.

Reaching their final destination initially proved a problem. One could not journey to a specific location via a jumping point unless one of the people being sent or the wizard casting the spell had a clear memory of the target location, and no one had ever set foot in the place where they now needed to be.

After some searching, one of Benefactor’s people managed to telepathically contact an elderly Clansman who had explored the far northeast in his youth. He provided the memory of the western edge of the marshland, and once a few wizards had arrived there, they used scrying spells to spy out the eastern edge.

Over the past months, the people under Leha’s command had grown accustomed to moving to new positions. They dismantled most of the camps and defenses along the northern front with practiced efficiency. By the end of that day, half of the forces that would be departing had already made the trip. By mid afternoon of the next day, the journey was complete.

* * *

The sound of crashing waves filled Leha’s ears as she stood at the shoreline, staring out at the endless waters of the ocean. A foot in front of her, the ground gave way to a brown beach of damp sand and dark rocks. Behind her, the land stretched away in a vast expanse of dark, rocky soil studded with the occasional patch of grass, scrub, or lichen, eventually rising up into the jagged hills that were the crown of the Gormorra Range. To her left, a series of rivers, their waters shining in the bright sun, twisted around and through each other like a knot of serpents before emptying into the blue waters of the ocean. The rivers stretched west beyond what the eye could see, and water stained the land around them. No trees could be seen in any direction – no plant taller than Leha’s hand could survive this place.

A cold wind blew off the ocean, carrying with it the scent of salt and a fine mist of chilled water.

She’d heard tales of the ocean. One of her favorite adventure books told of a hero visiting an enchanted land across the western ocean. Before her birth, her father had taken a journey to Pira, and he had described his first sight of the ocean to her. But none of that had prepared her for the sheer enormity of it. It stretched to the horizon in an unending blanket, eventually melding with the blue of the sky. It looked like the end of the world.

After some discussion, Drogin had determined this to be the place where the machines would likely try to make the crossing. Though the largest rivers fanned out as they approached the ocean, closer to the hills, many smaller rivers extended outward to feed into the marshes. As a result, this was the narrowest point of the marshland.

A few dozen feet behind her, the forces of humanity went about the work of setting up camp. Over the roar of the waves, she could hear voices and the sounds of work.

She heard footsteps. She turned and saw Breena walking towards the shoreline.

“Breena!” she called, waving the wizard over.

Breena hesitated and then moved to stand at Leha’s left. She bowed her head respectfully. “Greetings.” She faced outward, holding her posture rigid and keeping her staff erect.

Leha let out a breath. Some people still found her presence intimidating, it seemed. “Relax, please,” she said amiably.

Breena’s shoulders relaxed somewhat, and she gave an uncertain smile. “Quite a sight, isn’t it?” she said, indicating the ocean.

Leha nodded and looked out across the waves. “Yes. It’s magnificent.”

“Coming from you, I suppose that says a great deal,” Breena said after a moment.

“Yes, I suppose it does,” Leha said.

Glancing to the west, she noticed a large white arrow shape poking out from the ocean. She squinted at it and furrowed her brow. “What is that?” She pointed.

Breena looked. “An iceberg, a mountain of ice that floats on the water.”

Leha peered at her. “A floating mountain of ice?”

Breena nodded. A gust of wind ruffled a few loose strands of her fiery hair. “I’ve heard stories about them. They float down from the north. No one knows where they come from.”

Leha considered the bleak nothingness around her. “This is a strange land.”

After a brief pause, Breena said, “Did you know that, at this time of year, the sun never sets in this place?”

Leha stared at her for several seconds, waiting for the Clanswoman to burst into laughter. When she didn’t, Leha said, “Are you joking?

Breena shook her head, smiling slightly. “During the heart of the summer months, night never comes to this place.”

Leha blinked. “And I thought Tyzu was strange.”

Breena chuckled.

* * *

Yarnig walked across the barren landscape, feeling gravel and rocks crunch beneath his feet. An ocean wind washed over him, stirring his brown curls and tugging at his new woolen tunic. He had received the maroon tunic, and a similarly colored pair of pants, from a Clansman in exchange for some minor magical services. Most of his clothing had not been designed for long-term exposure to the elements, and the recent months had taken their toll on his once-fine wardrobe. He’d needed something new and more durable. These clothes were not as elegant or as rich as what he had worn for most of his life, but they were comfortable and practical.

He kicked a stone and watched it skitter across the dry soil. With no immediate need for his unique magical abilities, he had taken the opportunity to leave Erik and the camp behind and spend some time on his own. No one had objected to his departure. Up until a few months ago, he never would have been able to wander into the wilderness alone. It was a strange feeling.

Over the past days, he had rarely been away from Erik or other people for more than a minute or two. After the machines’ retreat, what little energy he and Erik had left had gone to Healing the wounded. There had hardly been time to sleep. There had been even less time to think.

Yarnig exhaled and took a deep breath of the cool air. During those few moments when he had been able to think, his conversation with Erik before the ambush had dominated his thoughts, but all he’d had the chance to do was obsess without reaching any conclusions. He frowned uncertainly.

Uncertainty. It was a feeling he was used to in regards to his duties as a ruler, or to his path in life, or to many other things. But he had not felt it in regards to anything more personal in a very long time. That had been a bastion of certainty. Early in his life, he had learned that there was little true love or friendship among the nobles and royals of Tor Som, and that those of lower classes would never see him as anything but a royal, a creature far above them. Erik was the only true friend he had ever had. It was a harsh reality, but it was one that he had long ago grown accustomed to, and the certainty of it had provided a kind of stability.

But now, things were different.

Natoma’s face appeared in his mind, as it had countless times over the past few days, and he found himself awash in emotions he had not felt since he had been a teenage boy – before he had learned that, while beautiful faces and shapely bodies were common among the Tor courts, kind hearts and honest tongues were not.

His mind buzzed with confusing thoughts and impulses. Part of him wondered why, after all this time, his feelings had been roused again. Part of him wanted to run to Natoma now and confess his love. Part of him wished that none of this had happened. The human race was at war. He had better things to worry about.

“Emperor!” a voice called out.

Startled out of his contemplation, Yarnig turned to his right. Taldin strode towards him, approaching from the camp. The old soldier still wore the gray uniform of a royal guard. Yarnig pushed back his feelings and put on an expression of polite welcome.

“Taldin! Good to see you again,” he said, smiling.

Taldin ate up the remaining distance between them with a few long strides. “Likewise, sire.” He bowed. Strands of white had begun to streak his iron gray hair.

Yarnig acknowledged his bow, falling back into the old role of emperor. “Walk with me?” He offered, gesturing with one hand.

“Thank you, sire.” The corners of Taldin’s lips tilted up by an almost imperceptible degree.

They set off together, picking their way across the rough terrain as the cool winds whipped at them. The air tasted of salt and dry soil. Despite his best efforts to keep them at bay, images of Natoma’s kind face, porcelain skin, and warm eyes continued to pop into his mind. He did his best to stay composed and put one foot in front of the other.

“How have you been?” Taldin asked.

It took him a moment to formulate an answer, though he didn’t think Taldin noticed. “Good.” He considered. “Good. The last few days have been hard; I’m tired; but I’m good.”

Taldin nodded once. “Good.”

The conversation stayed on trivial topics for several minutes. They discussed the odd land they’d found themselves in, the weather, and various other things.

Then, Taldin said, “I’ve heard about what you and Erik have been doing.”

They stopped walking and faced each other.

“I’ve heard you’ve Healed the mortally wounded and toppled Automatons with ease,” Taldin said.

“It’s true,” Yarnig said simply.

“I know.” He looked Yarnig up and down appraisingly. He gave a half smile. “I guess you won’t be needing my protection any more.”

Yarnig smiled. “I guess not.”

Taldin’s smile blossomed fully. “Just be careful out there.”

Yarnig suppressed a chuckle. He was reminded of all the times throughout his life that Taldin had told him to be careful. “I will.”

Taldin nodded, seeming satisfied.

They resumed their walk. They talked for a few more minutes, and then Taldin returned to the camp, the wind ruffling his gray hair. Yarnig watched him go. By rights, Taldin should have been able to retire by now. If he ever asked for it, Yarnig wouldn’t hesitate in allowing him to.

Yarnig shook his head. The war took its toll on everyone, even those who should have been able to rest.

He continued walking towards the ocean. As much as he tried to avoid it, his thoughts soon returned to Natoma. He sighed. He missed his certainty.

———————

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World of Warcraft: Legion Announced

Before I start, can I just say that an expansion announcement just isn’t the same without Metzen? Metzen could get me pumped about a bowl of oatmeal.

So, anyway, Legion.

It looks… okay-ish, I guess? I don’t feel the profound disappointment I did after the announcement of Warlords of Draenor, but at the same time, I can’t say I’m thrilled.

The plot, unsurprisingly, starts with Gul’dan. After his escape at the end of WoD, he reaches main universe Azeroth, and succeeds where his other self failed by reaching the Tomb of Sargeras. This launches a new Burning Legion invasion of Azeroth, and we as heroes must travel to the Broken Isles to stop it.

The devs described this as “the largest Legion invasion in Azeroth’s history,” which made me absolutely cringe. The War of the Ancients consumed the entire world and destroyed an enormous section of Azeroth’s landmass. There is absolutely no possible way WoW could depict a conflict anywhere near that scale, let alone bigger.

So that sort of started things off on the wrong foot.

New systems are artifact weapons that you upgrade throughout the expansion, and class halls, which is a feature I’m struggling to wrap my head around. There’s also a new PvP progression system which replaces gear with PvP-only talents and abilities.

We’ll also be leveling up to 110, which is disappointing but unsurprising. Was hoping for something like Paragon levels or alternate advancement instead, but Blizzard’s far too obsessed with vertical progression for that.

Oh, and they added the class everyone’s been clamoring for since the game launched.

The Burning Shadow comes to consume us all:

The Burning Legion is something I have very mixed feelings on at this point. I loved them back in the Warcraft III days, and in theory they’re still the ultimate Warcraft villains, but every time they’ve shown up in WoW, it’s meant a trainwreck of an expansion, and WoW has managed to thoroughly rob them of all intimidation factor.

Ultimately I think the Legion is just not a good threat for an MMO. They’re too big, too epic, too world-changing. They’re perfect for an RTS, but an MMO just can’t handle that level of scale and do it justice. WoW is better at more subtle enemies, like the Old Gods.

I’m also very worried because they kept dropping hints that a whole bunch of major lore figures are going to die. The fact that the Doomhammer and the Ashbringer can be acquired by players strongly hints that Thrall and Tirion, at least, are going to be killed off, and Anduin’s lore blurb on the expansion site could be interpreted as a hint toward Varian dying.

Please, no. One of WoW’s biggest storytelling sins to date has been killing off it best characters far too carelessly. I’m not sure how much more they can do before I just lose all my emotional investment in the story altogether. Varian is pretty much the best character they have right now, and Warcraft without Thrall… is not really Warcraft.

Khadgar is also said to have taken over the Kirin Tor, and Jaina “was pissed off when she left.” Sounds like they’re going to ruin her character even more, if that’s even possible.

On the plus side, Illidan is coming back. I am cautiously optimistic about this. We knew it was coming sooner or later, and I can only hope they at last do justice to his character, rather than making him a one-dimensional caricature as he was in Burning Crusade.

We’ll also finally be seeing Alleria and Turalyon, though no details on that yet. I never really bought into the hype over them, so I have no strong feelings one way or the other, but watch a lot of people be profoundly disappointed by this. Those two have been built up to such mythic status by the fans that disappointment is the only possible outcome.

Ironically, the non-Legion parts of Legion are intriguing. The Broken Isles is a place I’ve wanted to visit for a very long time… though I’m disappointed we’re not doing so as part of an Azshara expansion, and this makes me wonder if we’ll ever see the Azshara expansion I long for.

The really sad thing is there is going to be some Naga/Azshara presence in the expansion. There’s even a dungeon called the Eye of Azshara. Why do you torment me so, Blizz?

But the Broken Isles are full of nerdgasmic lore locations I’ve long wanted to visit. Suramar, the Tomb of Sargeras, the Emerald Nightmare (with Xavius!), Black Rook Hold, Neltharion’s Lair…

There’s also a zone full of a splinter cell of Vrykul, and we’ll get to delve into their history and culture, which is awesome. There’s even a dungeon that takes place aboard the Warcraft version of the ship of fingernails.

*Homer Simpson drool.*

Though it does feel like a wasted opportunity to offer Vrykul as a playable race. Which sort of seems to be the theme for Legion so far: Cool ideas that could have been way better with a bit more effort put into them.

As it turns out, you are in fact prepared:

Yes, the time has finally come. Demon hunters are the new hero class.

I’m not sure how I feel about this.

I mean, I love demon hunters. Everyone does. They’re awesome. I dressed up as one for Halloween when I was a kid. My father made me these really awesome warglaives out of cardboard and coat hangers.

But do we really need them at this stage of the game?

They’re another pure melee class. Every single class added to the game post launch has been melee. Would it have killed them to add a bow spec?

Which brings me to another issue: Demon hunters only have two specs: Melee DPS and tanks. That just seems really underwhelming. Again, the order of the day seems to be taking cool ideas and then half-assing them.

As a warlock player, demon hunters also scare me a lot. They use demonic fury as a resource and have metamorphasis as an ability. These are the core mechanics and iconic abilities of demonology warlocks. That means we’re either going to see some really weird redundancy, or demonology locks are going to be completely gutted and turned into something unrecognizable.

I really would have rather they added demon hunters as a new spec for warlocks, or a modification of demonology.

Furthermore, demon hunters will almost certainly wear leather armour, making for a terrible amount of loot competition, and as another melee class with extremely high mobility, they fill pretty much the same niche monks did.

I just feel like demon hunters don’t quite fit into the current state of the game.

Mind you, I’ll still probably play one.

There are some things I like about how demon hunters are shaping up. They’ll have unique customization features similar to the death knight skins, but even more advanced. Choose your own horns, tattoos, and blindfolds. As a whole, the class looks incredibly cool.

The starting experience for demon hunters also sounds pretty amazing. Starting ten years ago as the Black Temple falls, demon hunter players will be sent on a mission from Illidan to the shattered prison world where Sargeras once housed the demons who would become the Burning Legion and embark on an epic journey from there.

That alone may be enough to sell me on this expansion.

Oh, and demon hunters are only available to Night Elves and Blood Elves.

I am bathing in the tears of Elf-haters now, and it feels wonderful.

Artifacts, class halls, and more:

Here’s a fun fact: Since launch, World of Warcraft has had an item quality level above legendary: artifact. They just haven’t ever added any artifact items.

Until now.

Say goodbye to praying for a weapon drop in Legion. This time, players will be taking up one of thirty-six artifact weapons — one for every specialization — acquired through epic, lore-rich quest chains and upgraded across the course of the expansion.

Retribution paladins take up the Ashbringer. Fire mages travel to Northrend to recover Felo’melorn, Kael’thas’s blade lost fighting the Lich King. Frost death knights also return to the roof of the world, where they will gather the shards of Frostmourne itself and reforge them into new weapons of terrible power.

Now here’s an idea I like. If you’ve followed this blog for a while, you know this is exactly how I’ve always wanted items in RPGs to work. Gear shouldn’t be a treadmill; it should be an integral part of your character’s story and identity.

A little concerned that the passives and perks of each weapon are just a repeat of the old talent trees and all the problems inherent therein, and it will be very disappointing if this feature doesn’t continue into next expansion. Who wants to vendor the bloody Ashbringer?

But this is still a big improvement over the traditional gear model, so I’m happy.

Also, they made it sound as though you can upgrade your artifact through pretty much any form of content. Hopefully this signals something of a return to Wrath of the Lich King’s flexible endgame.

The other new feature is class halls. Think Acherus or the Peak of Serenity, but for everyone. I’m not entirely clear on what the point of these are, to be honest.

The only gameplay they’ve mentioned related to class halls are champions, which are sort of like followers. This does, unfortunately, confirm that our Draenor followers will have no relevance going forward, which royally sucks.

Champions are supposed to be fewer in number and more interactive than followers, and they may be major lore figures. Lady Liadrin was mentioned as a potential paladin champion. That sounds cool, but if it’s another one and done thing like garrisons, I don’t think I care.

The official site also makes mention of the long-awaited conversion to a Diablo III inspired transmogrification system, which is quite welcome. There’s also the new PvP system, but I don’t PvP, so I don’t have much to say about it.

There was mention of making dungeons more relevant again, which in theory is very good news, but there were no details, and the said the same thing before WoD, and dungeons became more of an afterthought than ever, so I’m not holding my breath.

* * *

So I’m a bit on the fence about Legion right now. It’s not the obvious disappointment Warlords of Draenor was, and it has some intriguing aspects, but I see a lot of potential pitfalls, and after WoD, my faith in Blizzard is at an all time low.

I’m still waiting for some ambition, for some really big ideas like we saw in Cataclysm or Mists of Pandaria. Where are fourth specs? Real player housing? A business model change? Class-swapping? Horizontal progression? Sub-races? These feels like a huge missed opportunity to do away with the utterly unnecessary Horde/Alliance conflict. Anything big and daring.

Hell, I’m still waiting for scenarios to come back. The game has still contracted from what it was in Pandaria.

It could be good, but I’m keeping my expectations very managed.

And yes, I was wrong about free to play with 7.0, but frankly even I’m not surprised I didn’t have that right.

Filed under: Games Tagged: fantasy, Warcraft, World of Warcraft

Reviews: Defiance, “Ostinato in White” + Dark Matter, Episode Eight

Defiance, “Ostinato in White”:

Last week’s episode was a very difficult act to follow, but “Ostinato in White” puts forth an admirable, if not entirely sucessful, effort at doing just that.

The best parts of this episode deal with the residents of Defiance struggling to recover from the scars left by Rahm Tak’s reign of terror.

Stahma returns home, but she is a pale shadow of her former self. While she may have been officially pardoned, the people of Defiance have no love for her, and she is stricken with grief over the loss of Datak, not realizing he did in fact survive.

It’s the most subdued, vulnerable, and human Stahma has ever been, and it’s a very strong performance from Jaime Murray.

Also interesting is that Nolan and Irisa’s roles have been reversed. Just as Irisa has finally managed to pull herself together, Nolan is falling apart, crushed by grief over the soldiers who died under his command. This is probably the strongest part of the episode, bar a very cheesy musical montage in the middle.

The other main story this time around is a series of gruesome killings by what appear to be wild animals.

Gee, I wonder what that’s about? It’s not like a couple of legendary predators have recently taken up residence in Defiance or anything.

The funny thing about this is that while it conclusively proves Kindzi is just plain evil, I think it ultimately does more to make me loathe T’evgin. Kindzi is at least honestly evil — she is responding to her nature, and she makes no apologies for it.

T’evgin clearly has higher ideals, but he does a terrible job of adhering to them. He turns a blind eye to Kindzi’s transgressions in most cases, and he puts no effort into setting right her wrongs. If he’s to be the reformer for the Omec, he’s being incredibly half-assed about it.

So that, even more than Kindzi’s behaviour, convinces me that the Omec really are just monsters.

I’m also a bit disappointed we’re once again seeing Yewll coerced into shady behaviour. I love that character, but her plots are getting terribly repetitive. Not happy with the loss of Samir, either — he was a good foil for her.

Overall rating: 7.4/10

Dark Matter, episode eight:

After the mess that was last week’s episode, my faith in Dark Matter has been quite thoroughly restored.

Six takes center stage in this episode. Using the clone transfer technology he learned about earlier in the season, he attempts to track down the terrorist leader who tricked him into murdering thousands of innocents. It’s time for a little vigilante justice.

Six’s disappearance draws the suspicion of the rest of the Raza‘s crew, and with Five’s grudging assistance, they’re able to track him down. One and Four are chosen to bring him back, but in the process, long-held secrets about One are brought to light.

Meanwhile, “Sally” the android slowly recovers from the damage inflicted during last week’s episode, and Five makes clear what we’ve known all along: She’s not just a heartless machine.

Episode eight is a great example of everything that makes Dark Matter enjoyable. Snappy dialogue, good character development, and lots of crazy twists.

This episode is further proof that Two is probably the least trustworthy person on the ship, and I still strongly suspect she’s the one who wiped their memories. I do love the hypocrisy of her lecturing the crew on trust and not keeping secrets while she’s still wearing a bandage to conceal her wound which healed in less than a day, and Sally has only further confirmed that she’s hiding something.

Six is tied with Five for the spot of my favourite character on the series, so I liked seeing him get the focus, and a good righteous revenge story is always entertaining. I look forward to seeing how this plot evolves going forward.

Four also had a strong showing this time. I’m curious what the implications of his scene near the end are, and it was interesting to see him serving as a voice of reason for once.

I also look forward to One and Three’s rivalry getting even more intense after this week’s revelations.

Again, Dark Matter is very good at giving everyone something to do.

My only complaint, and it’s a minor one, is that this episode (briefly) continues last episode’s attempt to make Three not a total jerk, and it still just doesn’t make much sense.

Otherwise, an excellent episode.

Overall rating: 8.3/10

Filed under: Reviews Tagged: Dark Matter, Defiance, review, sci-fi, TV

Review: The Incredible Adventures of Van Helsing III

I’m a big fan of the band Chvrches. Their second album is coming out in September, and from what I’ve seen so far, it sounds like it’ll be very much like the first album.

Normally I like it when bands evolve their sound, but I liked the first album so much that I’d be perfectly happy if Every Open Eye turns out to be The Bones of What You Believe II: Bone Harder.

Why am I rambling about my terrible taste in music in a video game review?

Because sometimes more of the same isn’t a bad thing.

And that brings us to the conclusion of the Incredible Adventures of Van Helsing trilogy. It’s pretty much like the past games. It’s funny, it’s overflowing with Easter eggs, and it offers endless slaughter of a dizzying variety of bizarre monsters.

In fact, you could probably go back and read my reviews of the first two and it would tell you nearly everything you need to know about this game. It’s mostly just a continuation — more content based around a new story, but the same mechanics.

Events have come full circle in the grim land of Borgovia. With Professor Fulmigati and General Harker dead, the grip of mad science has been broken. But now the treacherous being known as Prisoner Seven has retreated into the depths of the Ink with plans of rewriting the world to restore old Borgovia, a land ruled by vampire kings and the creatures of the night.

Of course, it falls to Van Helsing, Katarina, and the Borgovian Resistance to stop him. This time, Count Vlados is back to assist, which gives me a surprising amount of joy. There’s also a pretty meaty side-plot that at last unearths the dark history of Lady Katarina, including her death and the “Pony Incident.”

But there are a few things different in Van Helsing III other than a new story, and unfortunately, most of them are bad.

The most obvious change is that you can no longer import old characters. This is because Van Helsing III introduces a totally new class system. The original classes have been replaced with six new ones, vaguely corresponding to more specialized versions of the old classes.

It’s an odd choice for the end of a trilogy. After being able to seamlessly transition from the first game to Van Helsing II with the same character, same skills, same gear, and everything, I’m now asked to start over. Sort of breaks the continuity, and I didn’t like being a penniless lowbie for the final lap.

The new classes are also massively simplified compared to the old ones. Instead of having multiple possible builds, you pretty much get enough skills to fill your action bar, and that’s it.

Ironically, since Lady Katarina keeps her original skill tree, she now has vastly more customization potential than the player character.

On the plus side, the classes do seem pretty fun. Admittedly, I only tried constructor, but I enjoyed it a lot. Took the best parts of the arcane mechanic class and got rid of all the fiddly, annoying parts.

Plus there’s just a simple joy to wading into hordes of vampires with a minigun and a squad of dismemberbots.

Van Helsing III is also a very short game — about eight to twelve hours, depending on how thorough you want to be. This is roughly analogous to the first game but significantly shorter than the meatier second game.

All of the new systems from the second game, like resistance management, return, though Fluffy the Chimera can no longer assist you in combat, making it little more than another variation of the resistance missions.

I was also a bit underwhelmed by how few tower defense quests there were this time, and their rewards seemed virtually nonexistent. Maybe they want to steer people to their new Deathtrap spinoff? I don’t know, but it doesn’t seem to make sense to shove one of the franchise’s most unique features off to the side like this.

Still, all the things that made me initially love the Van Helsing games are intact. The banter between Van Helsing and Katarina is still endlessly amusing. There are still enough secrets to make a completionist lose their minds. The graphics are still pretty, the music is still amazing, and the action is still satisfying.

And Count Vlados is back!

Overall rating: 7.5/10 Despite some stumbles, it’s a worthy end to the trilogy.

Filed under: Games, Reviews Tagged: fantasy, review, The Incredible Adventures of Van Helsing