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dmozal-cancer-walk-in-50states · 6 years ago

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Sharing Relay for Life in the Beautiful Carolina’s

As I start the final of my 50-state relay goal in 2018 I want to say how exciting this year is going to be. With only 8 states left it will be a busy year. I apologize for the huge delay in writing this blog as the first of my relays didn’t start off as expected. I fell less than 3 weeks before the first of my relays. I fractured my tibia and it slowed me down quite a bit. It made it more difficult to talk to other people because I was on crutches and was a bit uncomfortable. It was a great reminder, however, of the gifts I enjoy everyday. Health, the ability to walk without pain, the friends I have made over the year, etc.

Shallotte, North Carolina - May 4th, 2018

I must apologize for not being able to spend as much time as I would have liked with the wonderful survivors who attended the Brunswick County relay. As I mentioned, I fractured my tibia a few weeks prior to the event and walking on crutches slowed my “walking” down quite a bit! Because of that I am using photos from the Brunswick RFL Facebook page. https://www.facebook.com/Relay-For-Life-of-Brunswick-County-NC-200772466654653/ (Besides they are great)

Opening ceremony

There were many survivors at this relay compared to some I’ve attended. Each person sitting here is a survivor. They are a group of people who are strong, funny, caring, tenacious and welcoming. Thank you for letting me be a part of your relay. I was able to chat with a couple of the survivors from this group. Their stories are shared below.

Photo copied from https://www.facebook.com/Relay-For-Life-of-Brunswick-County-NC-200772466654653/

The chaplain that shared the opening prayer is also a survivor. Bill Boynton is a man of many occupations. Husband, father, grandfather, chaplain for the Brunswick County Sheriff’s Office, Lead Pastor at Church Builders of Brunswick County, and survivor (I’m sure I’m missing several more). I was so blessed to be able to sit and speak with Bill. He is a man with a very special message. But first, I want to share his story.

Me and Bill Boynton – Brunswick RFL, Shallotte, NC

Bill was diagnosed with prostate cancer a little over a year ago (June 13th). Bill had retired from his job for almost 6 months and had a physical set up that he really didn’t feel like he needed to attend. He had this feeling that he should go though. He mentioned to his doctor that he was having some issues with frequency in urination. He had no pain, no other issues, and figured it was part of getting older but his doctor is what Bill calls “thorough”. The doctor wanted him to have a PSA blood test and a digital exam. After a bit of headshaking and saying he really didn’t think it was necessary, Bill gave in even though the doctor felt there were probably no issues.

Bills PSA results were 10.2 instead of being around the normal range of 4. Because of the elevation the doctor wanted the test to be repeated. The results were a little lower but not much. Bill’s primary sent him to a urologist.

The urologist repeated the PSA bloodwork and it was elevated again so a biopsy was the next step. Bill is the type of person who researches whatever he is questioning so he is well informed. He found that this urologist only biopsied about ½ of the cores that most doctors do. After much thought he changed doctors and his new urologist was more thorough. She and Bill’s personalities matched better as they are both people who speak “matter of fact”. She took more biopsies including some that were painful to extract. She told him that these were probably the ones that were cancerous.

The results of the biopsy came back that he had a more aggressive type of cancer. Bill said he just shut down. He is a man of faith so he not only believes in God, he also knows where he is going when his time on earth is done. He was ready to give up and let whatever was going to happen just happen. He was tired and didn’t feel the fight was necessary.

Bill continues to be thankful for his gift from God, his wife! Her strength and support as his advocate and caregiver, along with the support of the rest of his family (including those who are “non-blood related”) is what pushed him to do something. Bill said these wonderful people flooded him with phone calls and messages (locally and from several states), letting him know that he needed to fight this disease. They would NOT let him shut down and give up!

After about 3 or 4 weeks of people reminding him of his importance, he contacted the doctor. His urologist sent him to his radiologist-oncologist to see if radioactive seeds would work. After discussion Bill, his wife, and the doctor decided on a prostatectomy. Bill is doing great and has had terrific bloodwork over the past few months.

“Men need to take care of themselves and not depend on doctors to bug them to be checked.” Bill said that men, especially men of color, do exactly what Bill did…..they shut down, they try to ignore what is happening, they don’t take care of themselves as they should. This is such an important message that Bill wants to share with everyone. He said “remember that your family needs you, friends need you, God has a plan but we need to take the step of taking care of ourselves”. Bill said it is important to get checked. It isn’t fun, but it is highly necessary. He also said by getting this type of check up, especially the blood test, you are choosing to take care of yourself and care for others. Bill also said if you don’t feel you have the money find a clinic that will do the PSA test for free or a minimal charge.

He also said fear puts handcuffs on you and you actually lose the ability to make a choice. Death from prostate cancer is not pleasant.

Bill has passed on the lesson he learned from his father to his children and now his grandchildren which is “nothing beats failure but a try”. What an amazing man, he cares for others, has amazing faith and shows love to everyone he meets. Again, he says don’t let fear prevent you from taking care of yourself. You remove the gift of time with others because of fear…..so instead take care of yourself.

The other survivor I talked to was Heather Kinlaw. Sadly I only talked to her for a few minutes. I was hoping we’d be able to talk again so she could share her story with me.

Heather is an event planner and has been involved with RFL for many years. She was event chair during part of her time with Relay but over the past few years she has been traveling so she hasn’t been able to be as involved with her local event as a member of the event staff. However she has been attempting to attend whatever relays she can in the states she’s traveling to.

Heather Kinlaw and me

Heather shared a few of her fundraising ideas that she has been involved in such as committee members raising money so that one of their co-committee members would receive a pie in the face. Or a T-Shirt contest where each team designed a t-shirt and people bought tickets as a way to “vote” for the design they like the most. Then that team that received the most tickets received the money from all the ticket sales as part of their fundraising money.

She had a lot of idea’s for fundraising and from the few minutes I talked to her it was obvious that family, friends, health, and community were very important to her.

Heather is not only a survivor, she is a mother, grandmother, businesswoman and volunteer. Cancer didn’t slow her down!

Two of the many people who made the Brunswick Relay such a great success were Teresa Houser and Kecia Taylor. They both took the time out of their busy day to sign my shirt and make me feel welcome.

Kecia Taylor, me and Teresa Houser

Kecia signing the T-Shirt

Teresa Houser signing the t-shirt

There was lots of fun at this event. People participated and enjoyed the day while raising money and honoring those who have been affected by cancer. The community not only raised a lot of money to fight cancer, they also shared in showing love and support for one another (such as dressing up).

Relay supporter, raising money to help others fight and cure cancer

Myrtle Beach, South Carolina - May 5, 2018

Dr. Christopher Bach shared his story during a speech at the Grand Strand Relay for Life.

He was diagnosed with acute lymphocytic leukemia that had spread to his nervous system when he was 18 months old. For the next 3-4 years he spent his time receiving chemotherapy and radiation at the National Institute of Health in Washington DC, trying to get his cancer under control. Chris said he was lucky. His cancer responded quickly to the chemo and he has been leukemia free for 33 years.

Dr. Christopher Bach and me

Chris developed a lot of respect for the medical community because of his experiences, so he started the path to becoming a medical doctor. He is now a gastroenterologist, helping prevent cancer in as many people as he can! As wonderful as that sounds his life has also had some additional dramatic events.

As with all treatments there are side effects that can linger for month, years, or even a life time. During his training to become a doctor a co-resident was practicing an ultrasound of the heart on Chris and found a tumor. Luckily, he was at John Hopkins and one of the best cardiothoracic surgeons took him to the operating room just a few days after the tumor was discovered. They found an myxoma of the left ventricle. He was told after the surgery that he was only days away from a piece of the tumor breaking off and causing a stroke or possibly death. Chris said that this “near brush with death” caused him to want to know more about the treatments he received and the type of cancer he had. He requested his records from NIH so that he could find out more information. He also reached out to his pediatric oncologist.

The chemotherapy Chris received was experimental, a treatment regimen that was new at the time of his cancer diagnosis. This regimen was so successful that it became the standard for treating his type of cancer and many lives were saved because of this new chemotherapy. The doctor told Chris that he didn’t know of a correlation between the type of chemo he received and the tumor he had but there was a great deal that the doctors didn’t know about the adverse effects that patients would incur years later.

Chris mentioned that although he is considered cancer free of the childhood leukemia he had, he is reminded of the fact that there are still residual effects that can occur. The reminder comes whenever he applies for life or disability insurance and is turned down. He also said that you take the good with the bad when you currently have, or previously had, cancer. If he hadn’t had cancer he wouldn’t be in the medical field preventing cancer and curing early colon cancer. He also says that cancer influences him but it doesn’t define him. I love the way he said “I use my past experiences to better appreciate my present, my family, my health”. He reminded us that the Relay was to celebrate life, our family and friends, and to remember who we love who did not survive. I was inspired when I listened to this man’s speech. Dr. Christopher Bach is many things….husband, father, doctor, survivor, and a man striving to destroy cancer as early as possible!

I was also privileged to meet Joe and Lee Magnani. Joe is a soft tissue sarcoma survivor of almost 8 years. He is a retired custodian that thought that the lump in his left thigh was just the result of bumping into something on his job. He was incorrect.

Joe and Lee Magnani

Lee noticed that Joe was very quiet the whole weekend which was uncharacteristic for Joe. Then Joe felt numbness in his leg so he went to Immediate Care. When he saw the doctor, she was concerned with what she was seeing so she sent him to see an orthopedic doctor to receive an MRI. While Joe was heading to receive his results Lee was fighting pneumonia and was receiving an x-ray. Lee said Joe had to receive the devastating news of his cancer alone. The MRI showed a tumor that measured 22 x 17 cm. (The size of a small football)

The doctor told Joe that he would need surgery to remove the sarcoma that was almost wrapped around the artery (there was just 1.35 mm or the thickness of a dime, between his artery and the sarcoma). If it had been wrapped around the artery there would be no way to save his leg. There was still great concern due to the size and location of the sarcoma.

On July 1, 2010 Joe had surgery. The surgery was supposed to take 4 hours but actually ended up taking 9. Lee said she prayed every prayer she knows to every Saint she could think of as she waited with her brother and sister for news on Joe’s condition. When the doctor finally appeared, he told Lee he had good news and bad. Lee asked for the good news first. The doctor said he was able to save Joe’s leg. The bad news was that they had to remove a lot of his quadriceps muscle and nerves so he would most likely need to wear a brace for the rest of his life because his leg was numb in the area of the surgery. (a brace much like people with polio wear)

Joe had some issues during his healing including gangrene that developed because he was on the operating table for so long. That same leg had previously had a hernia and now also developed a clot. During the 23 days Joe was in the hospital, he had 4 different surgeries. The Magnani’s said they had the best surgeon, Dr. John Healey, orthopedic chief surgeon at Sloan Kettering. The doctor is an expert at what he does and is world renowned, having patients from all over the world.

Joe and Lee also had to drive into New York for 23 days to receive radiation treatments. This is a feat during normal circumstances especially with traffic and riding in the car for hours, etc. but they did it!

Lee has had her own health issues, some because of the stress of watching her spouse go through so much. So Joe had additional great caregivers besides his wife Lee. Lee’s sister and brother took turns visiting Joe at the hospital because Lee couldn’t due to her lung issues. (it also happened to be the hottest summer in years in New York which contributed to Lee’s lung problems)

On one of the many visits to New York to see the doctor Joe saw a girl around 15 years old that no longer had one of her legs. Joe said he was so very thankful he was able to keep his leg.

Joe has a really good attitude. He and Lee made a pact for Joe to walk every morning when he got home from the hospital. The first few days he’d walk with Lee for about a half block. Lee was still working and Joe told her that she needed to go to work and he would walk by himself. Lee was worried about Joe falling but he promised to “fall on the grass”. See, good attitude! He did walk and continue to add steps every day to build up his strength. It worked! To also keep his leg working properly he goes to water aerobics 5 days a week. In the winter they walk in the mall and stores.

Joe now wears a compression sock that he puts on every day. He also uses a compression boot a couple of times a day to keep the circulation working correctly so he doesn’t get swelling in his leg. Having lymphedema seems to be a small price to pay to keep his leg.

Because of Joe’s condition with his leg bugs seem to love him. These bites cause cellulitis and it can be dangerous. Lee can tell exactly what is going on so she watches Joe closely. Joe is also great about saying when he doesn’t feel good. He also wants to make sure that people (especially men) say something when they aren’t feeling right. If something is wrong, don’t ignore it. Get it checked before it becomes too far advanced.

Joe and Lee were great fun, they really like each other and have grown so much stronger with having to deal with cancer. They continue to live life to the fullest and remind people of the importance of taking care of their health and paying attention to their bodies.

Keri Wells was diagnosed with thyroid cancer in February 2007. While she was visiting her family in Iowa at Christmas time, December of 2006, she had flu-like symptoms and decided to go to urgent care. When they were checking her glands the doctor said she thought Keri might have a goiter and wanted her to see her own doctor to follow up.

Me and Keri Wells

Keri went to the doctor and he wanted her to have a biopsy. Thyroid biopsies can be very uncomfortable and she had 16 spots they biopsied. She received the call at work giving her the diagnosis. Keri finds that tough because you need to focus on your job but “cancer” is all you can think about. She called her mom who took the diagnosis hard as well. Looking back at family pictures she and her mother realized that the goiters had been growing for years. As she was growing up it seemed she was developing an Adams Apple but because it was so gradual no one really noticed.

Keri went to a surgeon who said that she actually had 2 goiters (one in front of the other) and because of the size they needed to be removed. When Keri went to see the surgeon he didn’t have her pathology report yet. As she was on her way home from the appointment the surgeon called and said he had just received the report. He didn’t realize how large the goiters were. He told her that she needed to have them removed as quickly as possible. The problem was he was going out of town so he was going to have to pass her to another surgeon to have a full thyroidectomy.

Keri didn’t meet the new surgeon until just before the surgery. As a corrections officer Keri asked her new surgeon to make sure her scar didn’t make her look like she’d been shanked. He did a fantastic job!

It was also discovered that Keri had a lot of cancer cells wrapped around her vocal cords that they weren’t able to remove. Most “normal” people have a single dose of radioactive iodine to kill the cells but Keri has had 5 doses. She’s had one impatient and 4 outpatient treatments.

The hardest part of her treatments was the high dose of radioactive iodine she had to receive. It was so strong that she had to live in an isolation room during the treatment, throw away her clothes once it was complete, the nurses had to wear hazmat-type suits, and it took 3 days for her to get her levels low enough to leave the hospital. It is very unusual to have so many rounds of this treatment. Keri also said she has had to eat a low iodine diet 3 times and it is very hard to follow (and not appetizing at all).

Before she left Minnesota in April 2011 she had a scan and has been cancer free since then. She has yearly scans now but from 2007-2011 she had scan’s every 6 months. Keri said she also has breast cancer in her family so she is very careful to be checked.

Keri has blood work every 3 months to make sure she is doing well. Although I’ve heard often that thyroid cancer is one of the best cancers to get Keri reminded me that any cancer can kill you. Also, the thyroid regulates everything in the body so it’s function is very necessary. She said that with any type of cancer you always have to continue to be careful and pay attention to your body.

Keri has some non-thyroid issues but other than that she is feeling great. She has been participating in the Relay’s in her area since she came to South Carolina in 2011.

Keri said she isn’t someone who would go to the doctor often because she has always been fairly healthy but she realizes now the importance of having a yearly, full body checkup. Catching cancer as early as possible is vital.

I also met Susan and Scott Berman. Susan is a 24-year breast cancer survivor. (I just LOVE hearing that) She discovered her cancer during her self-exam. She found the lump in December of 1994 and when she called for an appointment her doctor’s office didn’t have any available until January. Susan was so concerned with what she felt that she called the clinic. They had an available appointment on Friday of that same week. The lump she discovered was the size of a golf ball (3 1/2 cm).

Me, Susan and Scott Berman

The doctor that examined her was also concerned so she called the head of surgery to get Susan in for a biopsy. The head of surgery did the biopsy that same day and told Susan he wanted to do a lumpectomy on Monday (yes he could tell it was cancer and even more amazing he wanted her to have surgery just a few days later).

The surgeon called a few days after the lumpectomy to say he wasn’t sure they got all the cancer. Susan told him that she wanted a mastectomy to “get all the cancer out”. The doctor wanted to make sure Susan understood what she would look like so she wouldn’t be surprised when she came out of surgery. Susan was very sure of the decision she was making. They moved very quickly through the whole process. One-week later Susan had the mastectomy. She said after the surgery she was relieved. She knew that for her this was the right decision.

After the surgery Susan had to have chemotherapy. Her treatment regimen was a three-week repeating cycle - one week she had chemo and the two weeks in between she was on an oral medication. She did this for 6 months. The doctor gave her many options when he discussed chemotherapy, including breast reconstruction, and told her they weren’t going to do anything yet. He wanted her to think about the decisions she was going to make.

Susan hated the way she was feeling from the chemotherapy so by the fourth month of treatment she talked to her oncologist and told him she didn’t want to continue the treatments. She was so tired and depressed. She had no hair, no energy and just felt really bad. The doctor understood and said they would change her dose that day and make it her last treatment. He gave her anti-nausea medication before the treatment and when she was done that day she went home feeling better than she had for any of the other treatments.

Susan was glad because she had a trip to Virginia planned with her husband and she already hated that she had no hair and had to wear a wig, she didn’t want to be feeling sick as well.

After 3 years Susan was cleared by her doctor. She did have reconstruction for the breast that had been removed and a reduction on the other breast.

The other issue that Susan has had is lymphedema. She isn’t sure if it developed on its own but she feels that it may have been brought on by a spider bite she received when she was out hanging clothes one day. It is tough to deal with sometimes but she faces it head on.

Susan said if she could tell someone what she feels would help them it is to not be so afraid that they don’t do anything. Go to the doctor, hit it head on, get the cancer out and move on. It’s tough but important for survival.

Susan and Scott are very close. Scott is a supportive husband and partner. He also has words of advice.

He said he realizes that this disease was devastating for his wife. It is hard because he sees that it can make a woman feel awkward, uncomfortable, etc. but he says as Susan’s husband, lover, and partner he has always looked at her as beautiful and amazing (and he always will).

This couple has lost many family members and friends to this disease. They also had friends who have survived or are dealing with cancer currently. They have been involved with Relay for 20 years.

Scott and Susan, and relayer’s enjoying dancing portion

Susan and Scott continue to live fulfilling and busy lives. They enjoy each other’s company and do things together, always busy with something like dancing or being involved with their children and grandchildren. They laugh at the fact that they are busier now than when they were younger. They take care of themselves and others, and hope everyone will do the same!

Nan Hastings is a mom, grandma, coworker, runner, friend, and a 2-time breast cancer survivor.

Nan Hasting, me and Troy Matheny

She and her good friend Michele Hartman formed a cancer support group in 2013 when Nan had just finished her treatments for her 2nd fight against breast cancer. Michele's husband was still battling papillary thyroid cancer. A good friend of these two ladies was going through treatments herself and mentioned to Michele and Nan that she wished there was more support for people going through treatments. Michele and Nan said they didn’t see why they couldn’t start a support group for all cancers.

During that time someone asked about donating to their support group. At first, they didn’t know what they would do with the money, but as they talked about it more, they decided to become a 501(c)(3). All donations they receive go to residents in Horry County, helping local people with bills such as electric, gas cards, phone, and food. As Nan said, people fighting cancer worry about not only their health but also the bills. So many bills come in, work life is often affected, and it isn’t healthy for people to be struggling with these worries. They lose sleep or are affected in other physical ways but that energy needs to be used to fight their cancer.

The group is having a 5K on June 30th. You can see more information on their Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/CopingTogetherNorthStrandSC/

For Nan, she was a single mom for her first round of cancer, and she had a son that wanted to join the golf team but she didn’t have the $30.00 because every dollar went to bills and medical costs. Then one day she received $500 from a dear friend. The friend told her to use the money for whatever she needed. Nan knew at that moment that when she was able to she wanted to do the same thing. It is amazing that her second round of cancer is where that desire became a reality.

Now Nan is healthy, helping others through some of the financial issues they are going through, and enjoying life every day!

Troy Matheny is the Senior Community Development Manager for Myrtle Beach and a very energetic, caring person. He has the most amazing drive to help others, is exceptional at fundraising, and has a big heart.

As part of promoting the Grand Strand Relay for Life event I participated in a live show called Carolina & Company with Troy. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b_JpvlWW0Is I was so nervous that I didn’t say the main reason I am Relaying in every state. The goal is to share peoples’ stories so that others may be impacted in some way, as I am impacted every time I hear their journey. The hope is that someday we will Relay to celebrate the end of cancer and the people who have made the cure possible.

The theme at this year’s Grand Strand event was Dr. Seuss and Troy had a pair of light up tennis shoes that he wore when the sun went down (during the rain). His enthusiasm was contagious!

Troy Matheny signing the Relay shirts

Troy signed my shirts. He also has some great contacts that seem very willing to help in other ways than just financial. He had a contact at the Crown Reef Resort at Myrtle Beach that help me tremendously with the financial burden of a hotel room. Being self-funded means the cost of travel can really add up. The Crown Reef went above and beyond to help with that financial burden. Not only did they help me but their facility was great to stay at, beautiful ocean view, and fun activities for people to enjoy. I would love to visit again someday and would highly recommend them! https://www.crownreef.com/

Both Carolina relays were enjoyable and raised a lot of money for American Cancer Society. The people were kind, friendly, and supportive....not only to others in their community, but for a couple from Michigan as well. A common goal shared by uncommonly kindhearted and caring people!

#relayforlife #relay #southcarolina #carolina #americancancersociety #cancer #survivor #northcarolina

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wilmingtonhomeservices · 4 years ago

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TIPS FOR SORTING THROUGH BELONGINGS WHEN SOMEONE DIES

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When a loved one dies, you’ll find yourself faced with the task of sorting through his whole house and figuring out what to keep. There are experts who can help you how to make decisions related to home organizing after a death of someone close to you. They have the tools and training to change and organize any space. It’s highly unlikely for you to take this big of a task since you still have to deal with the shock and grief over the loss of a loved one. It’s something that you could have never prepared for.

Ask Help From Professional Home Organizers

It can be difficult to decide what to keep when a loved one passes away. Ask for help from a professional home organizer. Many people wold like to help but just have no idea how. You could ask your community to assist you with everything from dropping off supplies or snacks to helping watch the kids so you could focus on the task ahead. Even if they just sit by your side and give moral support, this is not the kind of task that you should do on your own.

Prepare and Plan

Before you try to make any decisions. You need to walk through the space first so that you will have an idea about the scale and size of the project. Take a walkthrough of the space with a home organizer, either in person or virtually. Find out how many rooms you have to sort through, declutter, and organize. You also need to know if you have to coordinate donations or plan estate sales. What kind of supplies will you need and how long do you need to do this.

Trust Your Instincts

If you need to go through an entire home, it’ll be helpful to do an initial sweep and pick up items that you think are most sentimental and meaning for you. At this point, it’ll be helpful to go with your gut.

Pace and Prioritize

Don’t forget to pace yourself when doing this home organizing task. Do the work in small increments so you’ll have enough energy to remain focused. You may find it a lot easier to sort according to the category.

Remember That These Are Just Things

Focus on items that are personal, irreplaceable, and meaningful such as letters, journals, and photos. Always remember that you can always take a photo of an item in case you don’t have the space or you are having second thoughts keeping it.

Make Concrete Limits

You have to be realistic when it comes to the limits in your storage space. You should decide in advance how many of these things you can take, care, for, and store. You can always purchase additional storage bins but make sure that they are reasonable and will fit comfortably in your own home.

Less is Better

There are many instances when homeowners stuff items into their garages, attics, and basements. It is better to keep things that you use regularly rather than keep items that you will only end up stowing away.

Donate

You will most likely end up with belongings and furniture that would need a new house. Once you’ve already decided what you want to keep, you should plan for what you need to do with the rest. One good option is to donate them to a local charity.

Call Brunswick Organizing Solutions now and let our professional organizers help you.

Brunswick Organizing Solutions Leland, NC 28451 910-477-3768 https://www.getorganizednc.com/

Cities Served Leland, Wilmington, Shallotte, North Myrtle Beach, Myrtle Beach, Southport, Bolivia, St. James, Oak Island, Ocean Isle Beach, Sunset Beach, Carolina Shores, Calabash, Castle Hayne, Burgaw – Brunswick and Horry County

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julystorms · 7 years ago

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lol how do rp? i made an rp blog for an unrelated fandom from you but i've been way too scared to post on it or get involved

Hope this advice helps you! I’ll start with some things you should have in place before starting to RP, which might boost your confidence in actually getting started!

1. Don’t use a sideblog. It’s a pain in the ass for everyone, including you. Always make your rp blog its own separate blog. (It’s not hard to go and make yet another gmail account.)

2. Pick a username that doesn’t suck, by which i mean: make sure it’s easy to spell and not hard to remember. It’s easiest if it relates in some way to the character, and originality doesn’t matter too much. For example, my Hitch blog is @hitchisms. Avoid dashes in your username too, as tag tracking doesn’t work well with them. Here’s some other RP urls I’ve had for characters:

Hange: exhaustedresearcherMike: secondstrongestAnabel (Pokemon): @remembrancelessGelgar: notdrinkingonthejob (now just @gelgar lmfao)Dita Ness: poeticsoldier (one of my headcanons was that he loved poetry since originally Charlotte’s name was translated into Shallott and I thought how cute it would be if he liked “The Lady of Shallott”!Akane (Psycho Pass): @clearlyunclouded Lin Beifong: bitterloner

Basically, you don’t want anyone to be confused about whether or not you’re RPing a canon character or not, and you also want to make it easy for people to remember you even if you’re an original character. In the Pokemon fandom it got to be hard to keep track of all of the original RPers due to all of the sun/moon urls.

3. In your description be CLEAR about who you’re rping!

You should also put the tag you’re tracking in there if your url is a canon url. You can see I didn’t do that for my Gelgar blog, but sometimes it’s useful to have there. I usually list the tag I track in my rules, though.

And speaking of that, because my next point is related to this: FOR GOODNESS’ SAKE PLEASE USE A THEME THAT ISN’T HARD TO READ.

The point of RPing is to write, and the point of writing is to be read. If people can’t read your writing, what’s the point of any of this? How is RPing fun if your blog is a minefield to navigate? I grew to hate those fancy themes with random stars and shit as links because I just can’t see well enough to find them anymore–but most of the time, I know it’s not my vision that’s impaired lmao.

Aesthetic should NEVER overcast actual functional purpose. You’re there to write characters you love. You want people to be able to read your description and rule pages.

4. Make some PAGES.

This seems daunting, but it’s not that bad. Really, all you absolutely need is some kind of “about” page. Sometimes I throw other pages in there, too, though, to give people more information. And sometimes I’m just an asshole.

My muse page (which is an “about” about the character, since she would be considered my inspiration for writing and therefore a muse) is literally just this:

I suggest looking at other people’s profiles in your fandom to see if there is any kind of pattern. I personally do the same kind of profile for most of my muses:

I try to keep things short and sweet in the sense that there is a lot of information on the profile page, but it’s not, you know, anything I describe with a lot of text. At the bottom of this (you can read the full page at my Anabel blog link up there), I include a “brief history” or rough outline of a history.

You also kind of need a rules page. If you don’t have one, people may not want to follow you, but you have options: you can keep it simple or you can be elaborate!

Shorter is probably better, but I implore you to be honest with yourself and include things there that may be a problem. As you can see above, I had to include warnings for content that my Hitch blog could run into. It’s better to be safe than to accidentally hurt someone. My Gelgar blog always had a very short set of rules because I started RPing him for fun and didn’t feel that I needed to be selective about who I RP’d with.

I usually break up my rules pages into various categories just to break up the text. A lot of general rules apply across most RP communities but it doesn’t hurt to be clear about it.

Now, the rest is really up to you. As you can see from my above “pages” images, I like having a few different kinds of pages.

Verses aren’t always things I include; it really depends on the character. For Akane, I wanted the option to be able to RP at any point in her career that I wanted to, so I made two verses: one where she’s still a newbie, and one that takes place after the newbieness of season one came to a close. As you can see from the text below, I was considering adding a possible enforcer verse: probably an idea I cooked up with @daantooine.

Relationships pages aren’t strictly necessary. Anabel doesn’t have one because she has so few canonical interactions that I mostly included her information in her profile page. Someone from SnK, however, probably will have many (even if casual) connections in the military and it’s useful for other RPers to kind of see how your character may currently view theirs.

As it says at the top of this page, though, relationships may change; my Gelgar had a very different relationship with two very different interpretations of Lynne! His relationship with Auruo and Hange were both based 100% on RP interactions I had with other RPers; we established a rapport and I drew from that.

Lastly, I think a page I enjoy having that others may not? Threads.

This makes it easy for you to re-read your RPs if you want to. I’ll admit, it can be a pain to remember to add things to the list, but it is worth it if you get really attached to character interaction (as I did with this particular Lynne). Thanks @hairjel! Rest in pieces @momtaku.

5. Make sure everything is updated how you like it: your muse page, about pages, headcanons, rules. If you use icons, have them ready to go. (No bigger than 100x100 for heaven’s sake.) Decide on a posting format.

Tiny text? Bolded dialogue? Fancy lettering? It doesn’t have to be fancy. My Gelgar threads never were formatted much.

Here are my Hitch threads and one from my Anabel blog, too.

In recent years I started using small text & bolding the dialogue. It sounds silly, but it makes it easy for another RPer to respond to the dialogue portion. It’s not always the most important part, but during a conversation it’s awkward if something doesn’t get responded to. Some RPers in the Pokémon fandom quite liked it and also adopted it!

6. Cutting posts. This is important because threads get long and ugly as they get reblogged. There’s an x-kit extension called Editable Reblogs that lets you cut out previous replies to the RP, leaving you with the above format so that when you type in a tag for the thread/chrono, it shows them all in chronological order and you can read straight through with no repeated bits!

7. Tagging. Always tag your posts with the other RPers url. everything else is up to you, but from my tags pages (on Hitch in particular) you can get an idea of the kinds of tags I use. Just remember that consistency is key.

From this point forward it’s all about networking and throwing yourself into the mix. Find other RPers, creep on their blogs, find out people you might like to RP with, and when you feel your blog is ready, follow them. Typically when someone followed me, I’d go check out their blog. Some people require you to send in passwords to prove you’ve read the rules, so be aware of that. That seems to be a very fandom-dependent thing, though, so it’s not prevalent in all fandoms.

Once you’ve followed all your blogs, or at least a few, make a “promo.” Here’s a link to a bunch I reblogged on my Anabel! In the Pokémon fandom, promos tend to be short, and many of them just use one icon. Having a promo allows people to kind of “network” your blog–pass it around to encourage other people to follow you/interact with you.

After this, most people do a “starter call” which is essentially just a post like this:

Most people put an icon in there, but since I don’t typically use icons, I didn’t use one here.

Making a starter call does put the pressure on you to start a thread and fling your writing out there, but it’s less daunting if you have other examples of your writing floating around: for example, the about/muse page we talked about earlier.

If you want advice on how to start threads and how to write good starters for your partners, or any other RP advice/questions that aren’t clicking for you, just hit me up and I’ll try to help!

#long post #really long post #rping and stuff #rp #rp advice #replies to friends #cute anons #hope this helped a bit anon but again #hit me up if u have specific questions i didn't get to

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crystalelemental · 8 years ago

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Atelier Shallie Plus Opinions

Anyone paying attention to the overall rankings, and more importantly paid attention to each of the other run-downs, has noticed I am a Dusk Trilogy fanboy in the extreme. The series has had such a wonderful shift in art direction, and the emphasis on the environmental impact and history for the setting has been nothing short of divine. The series also boasts some of the best casts of characters, and have changed the battle and alchemy systems to be far more engaging. And yet, Shallie is among my least-favorites in the series. It's still an excellent game, like all Atelier games, but it ranks near the bottom for a single reason: disappointment. For all the excellent buildup of this trilogy has to offer, boy is the conclusion just...among the worst this trilogy could've had.

CHARACTERS On the whole, I think the characters of Shallie are good. I wouldn't necessarily say that they're on par with the previous Dusk games, but they're still solid, and the returning characters are, once again, some of the best possible picks.

Shallistera - The better Shallie, I say. She's your more down-to-earth character, whose village is suffering from the water drying up. She comes to Stellard to find a way to save her village. She's definitely the more serious of the two, but she has some charming quirks as well.

Shallotte - Shallotte is the goofier of the two, and is high energy and kind of a dunce. I'm reminded slightly of Rorona, just in terms of those qualities. She works out as a character, and has her own thing going on with her sick mother. I just have a preference for mostly serious with quirks over quirk master supreme only calm in certain situations.

Kortes - I was on board for Kortes initially. But he's an idiot. His general stance is that, after being in the city and learning other customs, some of the things the village does seem odd or unnecessary to him. It's fine as a character, but the reason I don't like him is one scene with Wilbell, in which she mentions spirits, and he's like "Yeah, too bad those aren't real." Like...Kortes, buddy...we have fought spirits. Constantly. What are you talking about? I just hate that character in high-fantasy that's "science-minded" but rejects easily observable facts because they wouldn't exist in our reality. That's not how science works, asshole.

Jurie - Jurie is a treasure hunter who is out to make a lot of money, mostly for her younger sister. Jurie is also quite the writer, apparently, and uses her adventures to create stories for others about them.

Miruca - Miruca is Jurie's younger sister, and the best girl of this game. Miruca is flat-affect and very direct with her thoughts, particularly in regards to Central. She hated it there. Education in Central seems to be based largely on connection and conformity rather than development of new ideas or creativity, and as a result she never really fit in and was bullied by many in the program. Central itself is thus something she hates for their philosophy on how things should work, and with good reason. Miruca's storyline is also one of the reasons I came away not liking Shallotte that much. Miruca clearly disdains Central and what it's like there, and Shallotte spends most scenes with her talking about how great Central is and how Miruca's dream was once to go there to become a great alchemist. I know Shallotte's all about quirk and being gung-ho, but she kinda comes across as the type who is energetic to the point she's oblivious to the feelings of others, and that is something I really don't like. Not to mention, it’s one thing to support your friend’s dreams, and entirely another to ignore their very clear current stance and change in life goals to keep prattling on about what they wanted to do in the past.

Wilbell - Return of the best witch. Wilbell gets a lot in this. She has a vulnerable moment with her attempts at contracting with the Lord of Water, takes on Shallotte as an apprentice to help in what way she can, and is finally accepted as a proper witch by her great grandmother. It's a nice resolution for her character all-around.

Homura - Homura is a homunculus. Homura, unlike the other homunculi, has a taste for adventure and a desire to be a great treasure hunter, instead of being...more of a follower. When it comes to his attention that homunculi are all man-made, the little guy has a crisis of identity, and has a really striking scene with Solle and the Shallies about whether his quirks are because he was made that way, or if there's something unique to him as an individual. Honestly, he's the most emotionally significant character in the crew, I feel. I guess the name "Homura" is one just destined to be associated with emotional devastation.

Solle - Solle comes back, and continues to be his deadpan snarker self. I love this guy. He's actually playable this time, and apparently his attacks are based on using the Homunculi. Which is neat. Most of his best moments are in him becoming more like Marion with his disdain for protocol, and his interactions with Homura which are really sweet.

Escha - Alchemist return #1. Escha continues to be bubbly and fun, and is just great to have around. There isn't a whole lot of development for her character, unfortunately. She's just here to help out Solle as he establishes the new branch in this town, and to bring the seed entrusted to her by Flameu, as Flameu has stated this is where the seed should go. Mysterious.

Logy - Similarly, he doesn't get a lot of development, he's just around to help out Solle. I really have nothing significant to comment on, though I hear he's really good in combat.

Ayesha - BEST ALCHEMIST RETURNS! Ayesha comes back, and is as delightful as ever. My only real complaint is that, given her actions before she's officially added and the fact that her ultimate attack is effectively summoning the Yggdrasil monster she defeated, I had hoped this meant she took over the powers of Yggdrasil as sort of a manager of the cradle of life. She did not. She's just eccentric. Which still works, but you know. Mild letdown.

Keithgriff - He's not as critical as he was in Ayesha, unfortunately, and is part of the reason the ending is so dull. He really just doesn't shine like in Ayesha, where his role was more solidified and significant. Here, they kinda just use his character in the same role, but with no real deviations. He just shows the Shallies the dark past of alchemy and already seems to know everything, even though the emphasis on finding a solution to the Dusk should mean he’s roughly as clueless as the others. It was nice to see the scenes of how he's responding to traveling with Ayesha, and how he's changing the things he smokes to maintain good health like Ayesha wants. The game kinda implies a romance thing at one point, which I'm not a fan of, but the scenes are sweet.

Odelia - Actual best girl. She's back, and as wonderful as ever. She's just not playable, which is a sin. She gets one scene with Homura that's pretty good, as both of them have a moment about being man-made entities. But really, Odelia stands out in comedy. Her role in the sweets-eating contest as the eater of the sweets is great, and her shooting down Albert is just about the best thing.

Raoul - This guy is the head of the organization that manages the lower classes, essentially. He's a bit rough around the edges, but cares deeply for the town, and feels the government is only looking out for the wealthy while the poor immigrants from villages where water is disappearing are left to fend for themselves. He attempts to create order by establishing a system where people can find work through him to manage their needs. He's pretty swell, and works with Solle and Central to ensure things are going well in the city.

Perriend - By comparison, the guy in charge of the government cares significantly for the city's autonomy, and refuses to cooperate with Central. He's not a bad person, he just feels very strongly that sacrifices need to be made for the common good, and sometimes those sacrifices mean that not everyone is happy. He can come off as really abrasive, way more so than Raoul, but he does care for the city itself. I'm not a fan of his.

Linca - A different one this time. We meet Linca Seven, whereas the one with Marion is Linca Eight. This Linca works as a secretary for Perriend, and in terms of personality, is fairly similar to Linca 8, if a bit more serious and better at paperwork.

Nady - Shallotte's mom. She's apparently the former secretary of Perriend, and generally sweet. She's just also apparently really bad with money. She spends a virtual fuckton on literal garbage that Katla sells, making Katla look awful and Nady look like an idiot. She's cute, but eh.

Albert - This guy is a robot-fucker with excellent taste. He gets a look at Odelia, is instantly smitten, and starts collecting automatons to figure out how they work. He's a complete doofus who doesn't do his job, but gets away with things by being the rich son of Perriend. As a result, I am not the biggest fan of this guy, but boy does he have good taste in robots.

Teo - The older one from Shallistera's village. He's an occasionally helpful source of knowledge for some of the major events around town when you're looking for alchemy information, but otherwise doesn't do a whole lot. He does call Kortes out on being a know-it-all who doesn't know anything at one point, which I adored. But otherwise, kinda forgettable.

Rosemia - If ever there were a time I was disappointed in not having DLC for a new playable shopkeep character, it is now. Rosemia is awesome. She’s a former witch who was shunned largely by society, but found love with a man who cared for her despite her status as a witch. Unfortunately, he was a sea-faring man and wound up dying at sea, leaving her alone. She continues to travel, scavenging items from the dead to sell off. I really wish she was a playable character...

Katla - Oh, and Katla’s here. Hooray.

STORY Let's first review the past two games. In Ayesha, the background setting is all about the Dusk, and how humans used alchemy for bad purposes that messed up the world really badly. The devastation was so significant that oceans dried up, and the beings that were created with alchemy were let loose in the collapse of civilization, with the slags running haywire more as weapons than entities for work. The devastation was so extreme that locations like the Zweiteturm and the Cradle of Life were established to re-build the entirety of society and the world's ecosystem if they couldn't turn things around. It establishes the problem of the Dusk as something that has a global impact, and introduces the idea that there's a cyclic problem that people just have to endure.

In Escha and Logy, the problem is further explored as we learn that humans banded together to confront the threat, but ultimately came up short-handed. Even with the establishment of Geosis and its centuries-long study of the environmental impact the Dusk had, they still came up with little more than a single seed that offers a presumably temporary solution to an environmental problem. We're also given more indication that the Dusk may have been a human-created problem, and that the suggestion for certain farming techniques from Flameu may have caused problems for the soil's ability to sustain production until it all collapsed. It introduces a somewhat alternative theory for how humans responded to the crisis, but even with the implication that civilizations worked together, they still all died out and were unable to sufficiently fix the problem the world faced.

In Atelier Shallie, the basic plot concept was bringing in a resolution and solution to the problem of the Dusk. Already, I hope what you see wrong. "Solution." This should have been a band-aid at best; something that allows humans to consistently survive the Dusk, but not fix it. But it's super fixable in ways it should not be. You see, apparently the cause of the Dusk here is that a machine made ages ago for water purification broke down, and is now taking in a bunch of drinking water, failing to purify it, and instead spitting out contaminated water, which removes the water supply from the world. This is the Dusk. Now, it fits with "humans did this to themselves," but if it's a broken down machine, how exactly is this a re-occurring cycle? But to make matters worse, when you defeat the administrator of this facility, the machine turns off then back on again, and Keith just adjusts the intake a bit and the problem is immediately solved. They talk about "oh, not everything will go back to normal right away," but there's drinking water in the smaller villages again, so problem is literally solved entirely, with no adverse effects. It's too clean, and conflicts with so much we know about the Dusk. You really mean to tell me the ancient civilization was so incapable of figuring out the most basic of technology rules to turn it off and on again that they all died from it? You really mean to tell me that a machine breaking down was the cause of them building an entire facility to store all knowledge, another to preserve all life, and a third to study the phenomenon and develop countermeasures? No one saw the water drying up and went "Hey, maybe we should check the machine that monitors this stuff?" None of it fits with the elements that have come before, and considering we've spent so much time expressing that the ancient civilization was far more technologically advanced than the current era, there's no excuse for the problem to just be a faulty machine.

Then there's the issue of the Lord of Water, whose memories showcase that humans were in fact at war with each other as part of the reason she's so pissed about things. But that directly conflicts with Threia's findings, so either war happened prior to the Dusk and humans banded together to confront a larger problem after their own conflicts, or this game just forgot about that tidbit and did whatever it wanted. Personally, I kinda wonder if it's the latter, though I'm accepting the former. There are just pieces that do not tie together well, and considering how well Escha & Logy fit together with Ayesha despite having almost no connections in geography or characters, this is a little sad.

SETTING I feel like the discussion above is sufficient. The locations in this area are all drying up from the Dusk, and it all feels very connected to the rest of the trilogy up until they make the reveal of the answer. It really just knocks both the story and the setting components flat on their ass, and turns something with an incredible amount of potential into a massive disappointment.

ALCHEMY SYSTEM There have been changes. Many changes. For instance, quality goes up to 999. There's also a chaining process, where you can put skills on materials. Some skills are one slot, some are two, and materials all have different amounts of slots, up to 4 at a time. Your goal now is to improve materials to apply traits, and if you use the same element skills in a row on items that share that elemental trait, your chain bonus goes up, and this is entirely irrelevant barring Chain Attribute and Chain Effect, both of which are Earth skills. Earth and Wind skills are the only ones that can chain up to 9999 chain value, and if this is done, Chain Effect will bring your final product up to effect 999. It's honestly a little roundabout, and while I don't inherently dislike it, it doesn't feel as organic as Escha & Logy's system did. This game also does a super cool thing where a lot of optimal effects exist as the middle value, rather than the highest, so a lot of times your attribute-increasing skills aren't that necessary, so Fire and Water are barely ever used late-game. It just feels like an incredibly wasted aspect of the game when half your skills are never used, and the remainder are used almost exclusively to build up the Chain gauge without any regard to their effect.

Synthesis level has also been upgraded to 99, which is way higher than 50. So high that it's honestly hard to reach. You definitely want to, as you get more Cost involved for being higher level, which reduces the number of needed Water skills, which is great because now you can get back to just spamming Earth or Wind skills like you ought to be. The best way is to just gather a ton of Clay and Junk, and just synthesize 200 Brother Call items. It's a little slow, but manageable.

Ultimately though, I think it's an interesting idea that didn't play out too well. Synthesis is fun for most of the game, as it always is, but the conclusion kinda falls flat as everything becomes about optimizing quality by chaining skills. Because skills don't matter anymore beyond just keeping the same element going and ending with Chain Effect, your skills just feel irrelevant and the whole system becomes less complex. It would have made chaining to maximum easier, but I almost wish chain just built solely through matching an element skill to an element the material had. That way, you can apply a bunch of different traits as needed, while still getting a good chain together. Instead, it spends a majority of the game allowing for a bunch of traits as needed, but ends with "Just chain what you need and be done with it."

BATTLE SYSTEM Damage is really high in this game. HP values are also really high. Moreso than any other game, I think. I really don't know how I feel about it. The result is that you spend a lot of time just trying to implement a system where your characters will instantly get to do follow up attacks, because that's the basis of all damage. Equipment is significant, and you maintain the equip items from Escha and Logy, though items are apparently very nerfed from Escha & Logy, and the alchemists play a support and healing role more than anything. Which is odd. Shallistera's ability lets her duplicate items, which is completely worthless in this kind of setup where you equip items and they re-stock when you return to town. Shallotte's ability is to mix two items together to have effects, and I hear it's really good, but the damage options I worked with don't seem to be even remotely on par with the damage output of follow-up attacks. The combat isn't bad. It is a lot more difficult in the early-game, I feel, but very simple with late-game equipment, considering I beat the DLC boss on accident.

Fortunately, equipment continues the way it did in Escha & Logy, allowing you to use previous phases of equipment to transfer up. The difference is, you may want to use smaller items at some point, because a weaker item may get more skill slots, which is way more vital than anything else. Nothing matters like the ability to chain skills. Sadly.

In actual combat, there's a new Break mechanic. If you keep up the offense, enemies will reach a "Break" state, where they lose their turn and cannot act. This is a valuable mechanic, in that relentless offense can cause enemies to lose turns, but your characters also suffer from it. It's not a bad inclusion, I just am not its biggest fan. I'd rather we play combat as simple as possible, and this extra layer feels wholly unnecessary.

Then there's your Burst Gauge. Not gonna lie, I don't even understand all the mechanics of this. When you attack or use skills, your burst gauge goes up. When it reaches 100% or more, you enter the burst state. During this time, you can gain a boost to damage output, and even more depending on the skills on your weapon. The damage can be as significant as like 5-10x damage from the non-burst state. It also allows you to perform consistent chain attacks. Outside of burst, you can get one follow-up. In Burst, you can get all three reserve characters, but I guess you need all three of your front-line fighters alive to use all three back-row members? Which is honestly a stupid limitation. If you activate the burst under certain, very mysterious conditions, you can activate field effects based on your back row units. Some will allow for HP regen, some increase damage output, etc. They all have different effects, and it can be really helpful, I just have no idea what the rules are for activation, if I'm being entirely honest. Sometimes I can enter burst state right away in a match and get three field effects automatically, and other times it takes the entire match to get there and I only get one. I couldn't find an indication of where on the battle screen this information was, either. Some may say I should've paid more attention during the tutorial piece. I, however, say that this is an unnecessary layer of complexity.

OTHER MECHANICS When I started this game, I was convinced it would be the best, because there was no time limit anymore. This is fantastic, and definitely great to make sure you have time to make all the items and catch all events, even in one playthrough. However, this game attempts to keep some sort of fire lit by introducing motivation. When you complete life tasks (which is your indirect way of having ideas of what to work on), your motivation goes up, which in turns allows you to move faster on the map and gather more materials. However, if you putz around and don't accomplish things, motivation goes down, and you move slower and get fewer materials at gathering points. It's...honestly just a frustrating and irrelevant system, I think. I have all the time in the world and can gather as much as I want, you're just slowing down the process for the sake of trying to keep things moving. It's not a terrible idea, but I don't think it was implemented very effectively.

There's also the weather patterns. Certain environmental conditions will result in more or less of enemies or materials in certain areas. Again, it's an interesting idea, but it ultimately doesn't really change a whole lot. Reduced material gathering just becomes frustrating, while increased gathering is just great to unlock a lot of extra life tasks. More or less enemies is also irrelevant because...well...

Experience gained in this game is meaningless from battle. You will almost always be gaining shit for XP, and the real benefit is from the bonuses for completed life events. When you complete most of the goals around synthesizing specific items, you can get around 2500 XP. This can happen incredibly early in the game, resulting in a weird difficulty curve where the game is incredibly hard at the outset due to low XP, then incredibly easy mid-game when you can make better equipment and are like 25 levels above the enemies in the areas, followed by it getting really difficult again late-game as levels even out and you struggle to get the best equipment traits. I really am not a big fan of how the experience system works in this game at all. I guess the idea is, again, to keep that fire lit under your ass so you work hard at accomplishing tasks, but it's just a really awkward way to handle combat.

There is, however, one mechanic that I absolutely adore: skill points. When you hit level 40, you start gaining one skill point every level. Points are allocated to different skills for your character, such as improving their special attacks, or increasing stats. I am all about skill points, so I absolutely adore this system's inclusion...I just don't think it's all that interesting in how it's handled. Every character is essentially a carbon copy. You have the skill to increase attack, defense, speed, all stats, crit rate, crit damage, and the few to improve attacks to different forms. There isn't a whole ton of variance between them. I think one character (Escha, I think?) got two copies of boost all stats, which is great, and Ayesha got something to reduce the amount of break gauge damage you take. There's just not enough differentiation for my taste. I know that's kind of asking a lot, but that's the entire point of a skill point system; hyper-customization of characters. Having everything be so similar feels like it invalidates a lot of the purpose of such a system. The increase in stat points especially could just as easily be done through increasing the amount you gain at level ups. It's also hard to truly appreciate when you carry over accumulated skill points to NG+, so at the end of your second playthrough getting to level 99 (which is really easy), you can max out all skills instantly upon reaching level 40, so there's nothing left to work for. I do like the inclusion, and I hope they keep a similar system in upcoming games, but I would really like more specialization for characters, and for skill points to not carry over in NG+ so there's still something to work for.

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS Okay, remember in Escha and Logy, how the ultimate traits were found pretty much through luck in relic searches with a boost Relic rarity effect on and the Dowsing Rod improving traits? Their solution to this was to instead make them based on random drops from boss enemies. I hope you see the issue. While Escha and Logy is a little stressful in that it's hard to actually know where to find things without incredible luck or fore-knowledge, Shallie's method is WAY more obnoxious to farm for. Relics have all the properties, and with a quick building of the gauge and use of Dowsing rod, you get three searches in like 15 seconds. It's incredibly quick to get what you need. When getting traits off of drops, though, it's completely random, there are like ten billion traits in the pool to choose from, and they seem to only show up consistently on higher difficulties. Add to it, the base game has the optimal farming option through the Silver Dragon, while in Shallie Plus there was a minor change that makes it so Silver Dragon doesn't drop anything of value, and you have to wait for it to transform into a way stronger version to drop anything worthwhile. This creates a system where the best farming method for non-weapon traits (the first DLC boss drops two weapons, generally with excellent traits) takes a solid 5 minutes per run, with low trait drop chance, on a difficulty that may result in your death when you start out. It's the first time that I've looked at what was happening in an Atelier game and said it wasn't fun, which was devastating.

CONCLUDING THOUGHTS If I had to think of a word to describe the entirety of this game, it would be "Experimental." Atelier Shallie introduces a ton of new mechanics, and while some are interesting in theory, very little feels like it's handled well in practice. I've cleared the game in its entirety, and I'm still not sure how some of the battle mechanics work. Alchemy, while different from previous games, seems to invalidate a lot of the creative process when all you ever do late-game is spam Wind or Earth skills to get chain effect maxed to then maximize the effect meter of your item, making it feel very mechanical and, honestly, not particularly fun. The story is a mess, and actively harms the setup from the previous two games that made this trilogy stand out so significantly from Arland's games. The characters can be engaging and fun, and for the majority of the game things are generally great, but it really feels like the ending of the game dropped the ball for both itself and for the trilogy as a whole.

I made a mention back in the review of Rorona, that a game doesn't necessarily need a good, complex plot. Something simple yet serviceable can be just as effective, if played correctly. However, if you go for a plot, you really have to make it count, because nothing will hinder the impact of a game quite like having a plot that's either nonsense or just poorly constructed. Atelier Shallie is the perfect example of this. Between the poor conclusion for the trilogy and the game mechanics that are interesting but not implemented particularly well...it's hard to say Shallie shouldn't be the least favorite. The only thing really saving it from being at the bottom is that Totori's problems feel so much more significant, and the fact that, until the last chapter, Shallie was doing extremely well. By virtue of a strong and engaging beginning and middle, and the fact that I think there's a flat 0 in terms of really uncomfortable scenes, Shallie manages to barely outrank Totori on personal preference alone.

If you enjoyed this (for some reason), consider checking out the write-ups for the other games in the series as well!

Atelier Rorona Plus Atelier Totori Plus Atelier Meruru Plus Atelier Ayesha Plus Atelier Escha and Logy Plus Atelier Shallie Plus Atelier Sophie Atelier Firis

#atelier shallie #atelier shallie plus #atelier series #atelier opinions #it's been a month and I'm still salty

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myrtlebeachgolfguys · 6 years ago

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Coastal Golfaway Myrtle Beach Golf Course Rankings

Below are the Top 25 Coastal Golfaway Myrtle Beach Golf Course Rankings. Want to book one of these courses on your next Myrtle Beach golf vacation? We’ve got you covered! Head over to our Quote Request page and one of our golf experts will help you create an unforgettable trip.

RankGolf CourseDescription #1Dunes Golf and Beach ClubTruly treated like a member for a day. Excellent conditions, pace of play, truly a great experience all around #2CaledoniaOn one of the better pieces of land along the Grand Strand. Fun for all skill levels, and top notch service #3Wachesaw Plantation ClubGreat Fazio design, great scenery, and an enjoyable experience #4TidewaterBeen redone magnificently, course really shows the customer some great views of Cherry Grove #5True BlueStrantz design that has been toned down a little since it was built, but is a great sister course to Caledonia. Great use of the natural terrain #6Barefoot DyeDifficult the first time you play it, but over time you will come to love it. Amazing to see the land they moved to make this happen #7Barefoot FazioA little Fazio bias in this office, but a great track. Par 3s are great and the varying distances on the par 4's make this super fun #8TPC Myrtle BeachAnother Fazio design…. In the spring with wall to wall overseed this track is perfect. Very difficult, but a great test #9Surf ClubGreens are spectacular, and while it is a little older then doglegs make this a great day of golf #10Barefoot Norman#10 is one of the best Par 3's on the Strand, and the mid section of the back 9 are along the intracoastal which gives some great views #11Barefoot LoveThe most acclaimed of the Barefoot Courses in other publications, but this is generally the easiest of the 4 at Barefoot. #12Heritage ClubGreat value, and great aesthetics. In our office it is referred to as the "Working Man's Caledonia" #13Grande Dunes Resort CourseBig golf course, in a great location. No.8 is one of our favorite holes #14Rivers EdgeViews and elevation changes overlooking the Shallotte River, with some of the best closing holes on the strand #15Pawleys PlantationNicklaus design, that truly shows off some of the best the lowcountry has to offer #16Thistle Golf ClubThe best 27 Hole facility on the strand. Great if you are looking for 3 distinct 9's #17Tigers EyeTim Cate's use of the Coquina Boulders and framing shots with water makes this an excellent test #18Leopards ChaseCate takes a few notes from Pete Dye here by creating some visually intimidating shots #19PrestwickPete and P.B carved this beauty. One of the tougher courses on the strand but the bunkering is awesome on this track #20ArrowheadAnother great 27 hole facility by Raymond Floyd. Favorite 9 is the Waterway, but Cypress and Lakes are great as well. #21Pine Lakes Country ClubThe oldest course at Myrtle Beach is also one of the most fun. Excellent conditions, great service, and nice test of your game with out too much trickery #22Shaftesbury GlenOne of the best conditioned course during the spring, and also with very few houses it is a great setting for golf #23Crow CreekGreat for all skill levels, with arguably the best putting surfaces at the beach in the spring time. Great opportunity to score well #24MBN Kings NorthAre you a gambler? Another of Myrtles oldest courses, this facility will let you know what type of golfer you are #25Willbrook PlantationSet along a historic rice plantation this is another lowcountry gem

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maddietuck · 6 years ago

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Which way is better? #iseefaces #thefacespotter (at Shallotte, North Carolina) https://www.instagram.com/p/Bqpswchl8Ve/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=1piuzfnr7ca4i

#iseefaces #thefacespotter

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aplusprowindow-blog · 7 years ago

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How Often Do You Need To Hire Window Cleaning Services?

You may clean your windows yourself on a regular basis, however it's also a great idea to occasionally hire window cleaning services. Window cleaning improves your property's looks and lengthens the life of your windows.

Your windows are your home or office's eyes that allows you to see the view outside. Sadly, unclean or damaged windows may diminish your view both in and out. Even though you could clean your windows yourself, there are instances when only a professional cleaning will provide you the results you need.

Look for a window cleaning service in your area that deals with structures that are the same as yours. Whether you own a two-story home, a huge office, or a multi-story commercial building, you need to find a window cleaning Myrtle Beach in your area that could meet your needs. Once you've scheduled a window cleaning appointment, you will surely have a clearer and streak free windows.

Exactly how Often Do I Required Window Cleaning?

The simplest method to know if you require professional window cleaning is when the windows are noticeably unclean! Obviously, what's gross to a single person may not be so negative to another. Assess your individual breaking point by having your windows cleaned by an expert and then note the day what you had the service and see how long it will take you to require their services again.

Yet bear in mind that there are reasons to have your windows cleaned consistently, even though you are not bothered with the dust that is accumulating. For example, if you have a business, clean windows reveal that you respect your place of work; take into consideration scheduling window cleaning monthly or twice a month. If you are considering this service for your home, then the cleaning schedule can be more flexible. Just be sure to get this service as often as needed to show that you value your place.

Advantages of Window Cleaning

Working with a cleaning service gets your glass much cleaner compared to the results that you will get if you do the cleaning yourself. That means clearer views, a far better looking and also a lot more welcoming exterior, and enhanced lighting inside. Yet these are not the only benefits of professional window cleaning. It can boost the power efficiency of your building, which also means lower power costs. Furthermore, those unclean windows may be nurturing dangerous microorganisms and getting rid of them will help make sure that your health and that of your family or employees are protected.

Factors to consider

What about the price of the window cleaning service? There are means to reduce the costs. For instance, rather than having all windows cleaned each time you hire the window cleaning service, which can be quite expensive, you can have the front windows cleaned more often. Keep in mind that windows that are cleaned by experts remain clean longer than the ones you clean yourself. So by seeking out the assistance of a professional window cleaner, you will get to save cash, time, and effort in the long run.

Call A+ Pro Services Inc. for your window cleaning needs.

A+ Pro Services Inc. Shallotte, NC 28470 (910) 754-2263 http://www.aplusprowindow.com/

Cities Served in Brunswick County: Boiling Spring Lakes, Northwest, Southport, Belville, Bolivia, Calabash, Carolina Shores, Caswell Beach, Holden Beach, Leland, Winnabow, Navassa, Oak Island, Ocean Isle Beach, Sandy Creek, St. James, Sunset Beach, Varnamtown, Lockwood Folly, Northwest, Shallotte, Smithville Township, Town Creek, Waccamaw, Antioch, Ash, Batarora, Bell Swamp, Bishop, Biven, Bonaparte Landing, Boone's Neck, Bowensville, Brunswick Station, Camp Branch, Cedar Grove, Civietown, Clairmont, Clarendon, Coolvale, Doe Creek, Eastbrook, Easy Hill, Longwood, Maco, Piney Grove, Red Bug, Sunset Harbor, Supply, Thomasboro, Winnabow

Cities Served – South Carolina North Myrtle Beach, Cherry Grove, Little Rive, Longs, Loris, Myrtle Beach Surfside Beach, Conway, Carolina Forest

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eastcoastmovingllc · 7 years ago

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13th Annual Las Vegas Night

Saturday, January 27th for the 13th Annual Las Vegas Night! The Rotary Club of Shallotte brings to you the Original Las Vegas Night! BIGGER & BETTER! THE ORIGINAL! MORE SEATING! BEST FUN IN BRUNSWICK COUNTY!! Enjoy a night of Black Jack, Craps, Texas Hold ‘Em, and more. Great prizes, food and a fun night of entertainment. Proceeds support local charities & scholarships. Tickets cost $75 …

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oshunblue · 8 years ago

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Dropped these off by the #firestation Who better to eat these and be able to #work those #calories off! #thefillingstation #shallotte #donuts

#thefillingstation #calories #firestation #shallotte #work #donuts

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topmediumreadersclub · 8 years ago

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Psychic in Shallotte NC 28470

The following article goes into detail about psychic in Shallotte North Carolina 28470 After conducting psychic readings, numerology readings and tarot card readings for over 20 years now, I have gained a definite perspective not only as an advisor but as a client. As a client, I have been able to see exactly how psychics who are not real work their magic. After getting a psychic reading from dozens of so-called psychic advisors, you may find yourself intoxicated by the things that the psychic tells you. If it sounds too good to be true, most likely it is. You have to understand the origins and purpose of psychic networks. Their job is to make lots of money, not to help you. Granted, there are real psychics who are gifted and working on psychic network lines, but I have found that most of the people working as psychic advisors period, are not real at all. I'm sure you have heard by now that many fake psychics use scripts and certain formats in conducting their psychic readings, but for the most part, it's really simple what they tell you that gets you hooked. For example, if after getting a psychic reading, you find yourself feeling intoxicated almost, then they have done their job superbly. To be told that the one you love, loves you and that you will marry them and be together for the rest of your life is intoxicating. They give you hope that keeps you calling and calling until after you see that you have been lied to, you begin to face reality and the truth sinks in, you now realize that what they said was not true when they said it nor will it ever turn out to be true. You will find yourself hurt and disillusioned beyond the ordinary disillusionment experienced from your own life's complications. You may even find yourself broke or in debt. It's unconscionable that people could prey on others' vulnerabilities and pain in this way. But that is exactly what they do. And in the end, there is only more pain. And the inevitable distrust of psychics. It's this "fake" paradigm, which has its roots in the first elemental phone psychic networks, that dominates the public's perception and legitimate scrutiny is reasonable. But real psychics around the globe are out there and you should make it your business to find a foolproof way of determining who is real and who is not until such time as this paradigm is changed to ensure that your advisor is authentic by virtue of their credentials as it is for any professional practitioner.

Now you may frequent sites where the advisor is given feedback after your call. This is a good thing but, it is not foolproof. I have seen fake psychics who will have almost perfectly glowing feedback that goes on and on for pages. Perfect! You may wonder why this occurs. Simple. After you hear exactly what you want to hear or want to believe verified, well, this is where that intoxication comes in, you tend to reflect your glorious feelings with equally glowing feedback! But when things don't happen the way were told, you never come back. So, others following in your footsteps will call this advisor because "they too want to believe." Another thing to watch out for is fake feedback. This is also a tactic used by fakes to fool you. On sites where feedback is left, an authentic psychic advisor has to have a very high level of integrity in order to be comfortable telling the truth despite the fact of what the client wants to hear. If the psychic does not tell them what they want to hear in a reading, the client may leave very bad comments and a bad rating. It's the price you pay for being real. In my experience when I tell a client something they didn't want to hear, for the most part, they don't leave any comments. The fact is, they will most likely go find another psychic who will reflect their own feelings about the situation. A reading can be truthful and uplifting without bringing the client down but you have to ready to hear the truth. So how do you know who is real and who is not based on feedback! That is not to say that an authentic psychic is not going to have great feedback. They do, but sometimes they will be the ones to receive bad ratings and feedback mixed in with the good. Life is all about taking the good with the bad. Honestly, it's very hard to tell. The proof is really in the reading and outcomes and developing a relationship with a few trusted advisors who have been able to connect with you and your energy and have proven that their insights and predictions have been accurate for you. But, just remember, if it sounds unbelievably good, it probably is not really true and the psychic is not real and only setting up a line to take your money and setting you up for emotional failure. So be careful of perfect feedback. It's really not always an accurate gauge of the psychic advisors true abilities; except of course their ability to fleece you out of your dollars. Of course, really consistently bad feedback is a good indication that the advisor is probably just very bad and should think about going into another line of work.

Another point, you need to understand that even if you are speaking with a gifted, authentic psychic, you and that particular psychic may not connect that well. That is different from the psychic being fake. There a many reasons why a particular psychic may not connect with you. They may not be rested and ready to take calls, or you may not be relaxed and ready to receive truthful information or in some other way blocking the flow of what is being channeled thereby skewing the information on either side. Psychic readings are not an exact science. Intuition is relied upon to conduct an accurate psychic reading for a client. The reading goes much better when both the psychic advisor and client are relaxed and ready to receive. I personally find it difficult to connect with a client who wants to hear a certain thing. I have experienced many times my client trying to guide the reading. So see your authentic psychic advisor as someone who wants to help you and be ready to assist in the flow of information. To spot a fake psychic is not impossible, but if there was a way to quantify the statistic of fakes out there, I would be willing to bet that most (due in large part to large networks hiring script readers) are not real. Unfortunate, but through observation and experience, I feel this to be true. One of the Oldest Tricks in the Book. First Warning Sign That You Have Got a Fake! One of the oldest tricks in the book and something which continues to surprise me because people are continually taken in is when a psychic tells you someone has put a curse on you or there is a negative block on you which only they can remove for some exorbitant price, HANG UP! Say goodbye, because this person could not care less about you or your problems. Psychic parlors are notorious for this kind of activity. It is not for real, the curse nor the psychic. I have always believed that having a good doctor, a good mechanic and a good psychic are all professionals that are worth taking the time to assess their skill, experience and credentials to see if they are the one for you. There is nothing more satisfying than actually making a positive difference in someone's life and their continued use of your service over many years. A walking, talking testimonial is very gratifying for this psychic advisor.

See More Here: Psychic in Shallotte NC 28470

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