Welcome to the Spiral!




As you guys (hopefully) know, Summer is in progress, meaning lots of excited wizards are joining the Spiral in hopes of conquering quests, learning spells, and making new friends in the exciting game that beholds them. Like starting anything new, it is usually scary going into a game without any friends in a giant community like ours. Today, I decided to write a blog post that can inspire you to help newcomers, and keep their motivation high as they encounter the dangers of the Spiral. One of our natural instincts is to stay with people we know and feel comfortable around, but it is fun to explore our capacities even in a game by meeting new people. If one encounters a low leveled while questing, don’t be afraid to introduce them to the game. Chances are they haven’t experienced the game before (which is something you may want to ask before you start babbling) and may want to hear somethings from an experienced member.Enjoy!


1) Be open-minded to questions.

We’ve all been there, when one feels like we’re being truly annoying when asking questions. Questions are a beauty when it comes to anything really, and when you were a beginner, Wizard101 wasn't all that self-explanatory either. Take your time to elaborately answer questions to newcomers either when directly asked, or when asked on one of our Wizard101 fansites (Central or otherwise). Just giving someone an answer can give them a broad attitude on the helpfulness of some wizards, or just clear up their mind on some difficulties they had in game. So keep those answers coming!

The Future of Housing





The Arcane Bundle, possibly the most controversial bundle that the Spiral has ever encountered hit the shelves of local stores a few weeks ago. With the ability to take castle building blocks and model an entire building structure, it has definitely revamped the way we look at housing. Down to the core of this bundle, it was Kingsisle’s goal to give us a house in which we are not limited as to how it looks or where it’s placed, as now we have the control. What will this new feature bring us in the world of housing? In today’s blog post, The Spiral’s Geographic Society takes a look into what the arcane bundle can mean for creative and decorative wizards, as well as general housing ideas that may come in the future of Wizard101/Pirate101.
One of the thing’s that interested me as I found out about this bundle was the fact that the entire castle can be remodeled to our liking. I thought this was a sick idea, but will this be expanded onto housing items as well? If the choice to change a housing item from it’s original state does happen, I’m sure it will only happen with things that have simple or single textures, such as wallpapers and tiles. Similar to moving the bundle around, one will be able to take a wallpaper or tile to the dye shop, and add either a color scheme or a pattern to it. With a variety of patterns and colors to choose from, houses will be forever unique. An example of what I mean can be found to the left.


Erika the Red's Map Piece: SGS's Theory



It’s pretty obvious that in the next expansion to Pirate101 that we’ll be returning back to Valencia, in order to meet the Toymaker. However, where will we go after that? There are only 2 map pieces we don’t have, that the Armada doesn’t have; our mother’s, and Erika the Red’s. We have very few ideas as to where our mother’s could be, so it’s probable that we will go and search for Erika the Red, and try to earn her map piece. But the main question is, where is she?

On this thread on the Pirate101 Forums, Blind Mew says that Erika is from Grizzleheim, but he also mentions that just because she’s from Grizzleheim it doesn’t necessarily mean that she will be there. But on this thread,  he does hint that “ we'll be getting our first taste of Grizzleheim before too long.” So wait; does that mean that we, or we will not be going to Grizzleheim?


I think that the next expansion will not only involve us returning to Valencia, but also to Grizzleheim. After we figure out how to defeat Kane from the Toymaster, I believe that we will search for Erika the Red in Grizzleheim. We’ll search around, do some quests, and probably fix some problematic events in the area, and then we’ll figure out that she’s not there, but in some other world. But that brings up another question; what world could she be in?

Instead of trying to figure out what worlds she can be in, let’s rule out the ones that she most likely won’t be in. Darkmoor seems to be unlikely for Erika, unless she was forcibly taken there; which is possible, but I believe that to be unlikely; she’s a tough Grizzleheim bear, and is most likely not alone. She’ probably a part of a clan, or something similar, so it would definitely not be easy for her to be forcibly taken. Polaris would seem likely, ur Blind Mew has mentioned that he doesn’t see Polaris being in the First Arc of Pirate101 (Sorry, no link). We don’t know much about Empyrea, so it’s a possibility, but nothing more.


Ok, so a lot of worlds that we know little about, and/or unlikely are pretty much cancelled out. But what’s left? What world could Erika the Red be in? One of the more popular theories is that she is currently in Krokotopia. It’s a world in Wizard101, so we know quite a bit about the sandy, Egypt-like world. It’s a pretty big world, with many races of creatures, and an interesting history; meaning there are many reasons Erika could be there.



Ok, so I agree with the popular theory of Krokotopia being the world where Erika is, for the reasons above, but there’s one more reason that I can think of. Remember Marleybone in Wizard101? Many people didn’t like it; it was very easy to get caught in unneeded battles, little variety in enemies, etc. But in Pirate101, it’s an amazing world, that many people enjoyed. May different environments, enemies, great music, and most of all, a great war story. Kingsisle greatly improved a world from Wizard101 that many people dreaded, into a world that many loved in Pirate101. And Krokotopia falls into the same possibility; there’s little variety in the world, and overall, it’s just not that interesting. But the team for Pirate101 could turn it into such an amazing world. Add a great story, epic music, and a wide variety of environments and npcs, and it’d be great.

There’s also the fact that our pirates can be raised there; we can be raised in Skull Island, Mooshu, Marleybone, Krokotopia, and Grizzleheim; and the last 2 show that the theory that we will go to Grizzleheim, and then Krokotopia could be likely. There’s also an interesting image, that somebody captured after they encountered a small glitch in-game.


It’s very likely we’ll be going to Grizzleheim; really, it’s pretty much confirmed. But it’s still a question as to where we’ll go after that. While Krokotopia does seem likely, it’s nothing more; there are other worlds that could work, and it’s really hard to tell without knowing where the story is headed.

Written by Cedric Young

We reached 3,000 views!

To celebrate this awesome accomplishment, the SGS staff collaborated to have yet one more falltastic giveaway. Though our giftcard giveaway is still continuing, this time we have something a bit more different.. finally a Wizard101 giveaway!

We want to say thank you so much for reading our blog, and hope our view count keeps increasing! 

Fashion & Homes #1



Choosing the housing theme that’s right for can be something of a challenge! But we're here to give you a few tips!


First off, it’s always wise to come up with a story to go around for your house. For example, one of my houses is the home to her Majesty of Marleybone’s Lord Chancellor. If you have a story you can design each room with purpose and a message. Having a story that goes along with your house can keep you focused on a specific theme, so it doesn't look all over the place.

Next, is a huge mistake some decorators make. The lack of detail to accompany their theme. Without detail, a home meant to be a Samurai Retreat can just as easily become a wizard’s dorm room. One of our laws are, without detail there is no message. Though detail is important, don't put all of your ideas in one room. It is perfectly fine if one of your rooms is more detailed than another, as long as something is conveyed over all.




Also, DO NOT choose a theme you are going to either hate or become tired of in a few days. Themes have to carry on for months until you can think of another good idea. If you're new to decorating, it is easiest if you choose to make a house out of your favorite world, or even NPC. If you despise Krokotopia, don’t choose a balance themed home. It will end up becoming more difficult for you. After you get the hang of it - challenge yourself. Make an underwater house, or decorate based on your favorite book! It will all come in time.

Never, ever decorate to JUST the sides of a room.  Always have something in the center to round it off and not just be an empty floor of nothingness. Many people are confused as to what to put in the center of your room - but it all just really depends on your theme. The center of your room can't be too crowded but not too empty, so sometimes small items will do.



Though this may sound a tad silly,  try to be the character who the home is meant for. If it’s meant for your wizard get in their mindset and design their home for them, not you. But at the end of the day, you must be satisfied with your results.

Try different things! Mix Aquila and Valencia, or even Mooshu and Krokotopia! Using items from different worlds will develop your technique, and will result in a more complex house. Just don't go too crazy!

Keep a budget , so you can get all you want done without running out of funds. Even if it’s not everything you wanted, you will have framework. You can always add onto the framework!



This has been Finn with Fashion & Homes Friday! Hope you enjoyed these tips!

October is here! What will it bring us?


October is in the Spiral! What does this mean?
Halloween.. and amazing contests and surprises from The Spiral's Geographic Society!

The staff here at SGS loves Halloween, as it can be celebrated by every age group, every family, and every culture differently, but ultimately has ultimately has one goal - fun. Though considered scary for little kids, we feel Halloween is just a day to express your spooky side! Speaking of spooky, Wizard101 has included very spookylicious (ha) updates for us this month, and I'm sure everyone is excited to check them out!


(The following updates only pertain to Wizard101. It is unknown if the Pirate101 staff will reveal any Halloween updates for their game)

See Dworgyn for brand new Halloween Quests!

Wizards level 13 and above, can you defeat the evil boss?
The vegetables Farmer Tarley planted in the Haunted Cave aren't behaving like they should... is something amiss? Wizards level 13 or higher should visit Dworgyn, the Death Professor, to pick up this new Halloween quest. Defeat the evil boss at the end and you may have a chance at a special item drop!

Spooky Bob and his Friends Return to the Spiral

Spooky Bob is bringing back your favorite Halloween pets and other goodies plus we have these three powerful Halloween pets in the Crown Shop:

Ghost Dragon


Nightmare


Zombie Piggle



I'd also like to introduce you to Jack Hallow. He's just here for a few weeks so be sure to talk to him the next time you come to school. You can find him in the Ravenwood Commons.
He'll send you on many adventures, throughout all the different zones of Wizard City. Free to Play players can participate in most of these new adventures, while Members can complete the entire story, if they prove their strength!
SGS will be having a continuous month of Fall fun..
We are currently writing up our contest schedule, and will release it when we finalize it. 

Thank you for reading! We would appreciate if you comment any contest ideas you'd like to see, as we are completely open to recommendations. Have a nice day, and stay spiralin'!

         

Interview with Edward LifeGem!

cricket


Surprise Wednesday has rolled around, and we have Edward Lifegem as a guest this week! We did an interview with him expressing his love for blogging, and activities he likes to do when he's not playing Wizard101 and Pirate101. Enjoy!


1. Let's start off talking about your blog. It's innovative, fun, and many people view it. When did you start this blog? 

Edward Lifegem: Where did the inspiration come from? Hello, Thank you for interviewing me! :D Back in 2010 a wizard named Mary Dreamshade introduced me to the Wizard101 community and I started reading one great blog, The Friendly Necromancer! I loved every post Friendly made and I thought it was pretty cool he blogged about the game and we got to read how he was doing on the game and all of the great important news we needed to know. Mary Dreamshade and I created our blogs on May 10th, 2010 and I believe Friendly inspired us both to blog about the game. :)

2. What was your reaction when you went official for Kingsisle? Were you expecting positive results?

Edward Lifegem: I was actually very surprised the day I submitted my blog to Kingsisle for Official Pirate101 Fansite. I submitted my blog to Kingsisle two times before and didn't make it but I had a good feeling about the third time! I had no doubt in my mind and I submitted my blog to Kingsisle an hour later everyone on Twitter was telling me congrats. I was confused and had to read all of the interactions. Anthony Deathbane told me I made Pirate101 Official and I was shocked,surprised and had a lot more feelings that I can't even name! I look at my email and Tom (Friendly) told me I made it. Even today, 10 months after making it I'm still surprised and will always remember that day. :D I would like to let all of my readers know I made it because of them! Thank you everyone. :)

3. What is your favorite part about blogging? 

Edward Lifegem: I have no favorite part of blogging, I love every single last bit of it! I love Pirate101, Wizard101 and of course the community and as long as you're happy with my posts I'm happy even if one day no one reads my post I will still love blogging. :D

4. For new bloggers (like myself, and the rest of the crew), do you have any tips/recommendation?

Edward Lifegem: Welcome to the Blogging community guys! Remember your fans who read your blog/ view your site. If you're a new blogger don't worry about not having many readers at first. You'll get there soon if you never give up! I remember blogging in 2011 and only having 8 members and sometimes I had no views on my posts but still made them. That doesn't matter as long as you love blogging. :D Keep trying and never give up and you'll be the best blogger/site owner!

5. You're a fan of both Kingsisle games. What is your favorite part about both of them? 

Edward Lifegem: Would you like to see anything added to them? It'll be hard answering one favorite part of each game but I will try. With Wizard101 I love the spells, Kingsisle creates so many awesome spells that I can't even keep track of my favorite spell because most of them are favorite spells! :D My favorite part of Pirate101 is companions since they help so much and if you don't have anything else to do you can spend your time leveling them up. My favorite part of the games together are that they are created by the greatest creative game team ever, Kingsisle!

 6. How's leveling your life character going? Haha. 

Edward Lifegem: Two weeks ago my life wizard finished Zafaria with help from Ian Stormstaff and Autumn Dreamwalker. Today my life wizard is about to finish Avalon and enter Azteca. I'm actually on the last area and I will soon enter Ghost Avalon and then the main last dungeon. I'm very excited to enter Azteca, that means I'm a step closer to level 90. Currently my life wizard is level 81 almost level 82!

7. Let's start going a bit off topic now. What are your favorite things to do besides blogging or playing games? 

 I love camping, jogging, swimming and playing football! They are all outdoor activities but I also love watching t.v. especially during Christmas with all of the awesome Christmas movies. :D

8. Favorite animal, meal, show, movie?

Edward Lifegem: I can't answer the first question since I love all animals, I've tried to think of one the past 5 minutes but can't answer just one. I love all animals for different reasons especially cats and dogs. :D My favorite meal? Oh another difficult one but I can say one food I love to eat.. PIZZA! I can't get enough Pizza and would actually love to have a slice now that its lunchtime and my stomach is growling! My favorite movie has to be Home Alone! I know its a Christmas movie but I still believe that it is my favorite movie. :D

9. Lastly, what is something you'd like to say to your fans? 

Edward Lifegem: Thank you again for this special interview! I'm happy that there are awesome new bloggers like you and the staff at SGS! I have followed your blog and added your blog to my blogroll. I am also going to make a post about the interviews I've had this month after you're done publishing so thank you again for interviewing me. To all of my fans I would like to thank you for everything! I know this will probably sound crazy but you've made one of my dreams come true. You've made me enjoy something that I will always remember forever and cherish. Thank you so much and I hope to see you around the Spiral!

Thank you for reading! It was really great to have you Edward, we appreciate it!

Wizard101 School Guide



Introduction


Wizard101 has 7 schools of magic: Fire, Ice, Storm, Life, Death, Myth, and Balance. Each one has various areas of focus, and has positives, and negatives, and plays very differently from the other schools.


Pros: Many DoT spells, many AoE Spells, High Damage, High Critical
Cons: Low Health, Low Resist, Low Accuracy in the beginning, low block.

Fire’s main focus is Damage over time spells. Since DoTs attack over multiple rounds, instead of one, they deal quite a bit of damage when added up all together, making Fire the second strongest school in Wizard101. They also receive a variety of Area of Effect spells (The most of any school), and some even in the form of a DoT AoeE. However, Fire also has the second lowest health, and resist, meaning they can easily be defeated, if they’re not careful. In the beginning, accuracy is an issue, but later on, once they get some gear with accuracy, it shouldn’t be too big of an issue. They also have the second highest critical in
later levels, but also low block. Overall, Fire is a great offensive school, but can suffer on the defensive side.



Pros: Very high Health, Very High Resist, Very High Critical Block, Stuns
Cons: Low Damage, Low Critical

Ice is the tank of Wizard101; they have the highest health, and resist, making it difficult for them to die. They also have very high critical block, greatly helping against enemies with higher critical, like Fire or Storm. They learn various defensive spells, such as a universal shield, and absorbs, and also get numerous stuns (The second most of any school). However, they have extremely low damage output, and low critical. Their accuracy also isn’t the greatest. In the beginning, it’s average, but later on, they get little accuracy from gear, and with their just ok accuracy, you could be fizzling more often than you’d like. These make Ice a great defensive school, but it’s typically hard for them to deal a lot of damage.



Pros: Extremely high damage, Extremely high critical
Cons: No DoTs, Low accuracy in the beginning, Low health and resist

Storm is the “Kill or be Killed” school. Their damage, both on gear, and their spell cards are insanely high, and add in critical, and they’re extremely dangerous to others. However, there Health is terrible, and they have the lowest resist out of all of the schools. When first starting out, they also have to deal with fizzling the most, but once reaching higher levels, their accuracy from their gear more than makes up for that. They also have a variety of ‘luck’ spells, like Wild Bolt which deals 10, 100, or 1,000 damage, and Insane Bolt, which deals 1,000 to an enemy, or 10,000 to yourself. Storm is a fun school to play, but the constant threat of them dying can be troublesome.



Pros: Healing Spells, Good health and resist, Good Accuracy, good block, High Pip Percent
Cons: Low Damage, very few AoEs, one DoT (Received very late in-game)

Life, as you can assume, is the healing school/class/whatever you want to call it of Wizard101. Most of their spells are heals, and come in a variety of ways; regular heals that heal one person, Heals over time, that heal over a few rounds, AOE heals that heal the whole team, etc. Their stats are mostly defensive; they have good health, resist, and pip percent, and actually have decent attack (Which helps make up for the low damage of their spell cards). They get very little accuracy, but it isn’t that needed, since they boot 90% base accuracy on their spell cards. However, in the offensive department, they don’t have much to show. Their card damage is the second/third lowest (Behind Ice, tied somewhat with Death). They also receive the fewest attack spells, and notably, few AoEs (Their first is received at 58), and only one DoT (At 88). If you enjoy keeping others alive, and supporting others, then you may like this class, but if you want to attack a lot, another class may suit you more.



Pros: Health-Stealing, Multitude of Traps, can weaken all opponents, High Pip Percent
Cons: Few AoEs, takes a while to deal a lot of damage

Death’s main gimmick are drains; spells that deal damage, and heal the wizard half of the damage dealt. This makes them a great solo school, since they can heal and deal damage at the same time. However, drains aren’t very strong, and to be very effective, there must be many blades/traps used (Which works, since Death has tons of traps). They also have anti-healing spells, such as Doom and Gloom and Infection, that weaken the strength of heals, and debuffs, that weaken the strength of the next attacking spell for all enemies. Death is somewhat tanky, with their Good Health/Resist, and their drains, and they can be pretty annoying (To enemies) with their multitude of debuffs. However, since Drains deal little damage, Death wizards usually take more time to win a fight. But they can reliably win most fights, which is a very nice quality.



Pros: Minions, Double Hits, Stuns, Great accuracy
Cons: Mediocre defenses, few AoEs

Myth is one of the more “interesting” schools of Wizard101. Their main focus is minions, which are allies that are not controlled by you, or an other person. So in a sense, they’re a summon-able friend that can help you in a fight. They receive a variety of minions, some that focus on attacking, others that taunt the enemy, etc. Myth also receives “Double Hits” which are spells that attack twice in one turn, the first of which is usually weaker than the second. This allows them to easily get around a single shield, where most other schools would have issues. They also have a Stun effect on many of their spells, and they have the ability to remove shields with Shatter/Earthquake, and Charms with Earthquake. Their biggest weakness, however, is their lack of a high level AOE. Their last trained AoeE is earthquake (Level 48), which isn’t much stronger than Humongofrog, an AoE they receive in the 20s. Neither are that strong, so they seriously lack in the AoE department in higher worlds, where enemies have tons of health. Myth has pretty good stats; they’re comparable to fire, but with a bit more defense, and less offense.


Pros: Variety of ways to attack, and has a great variety of spells, High Pip Percent
Cons: No Balance Prism makes it hard to fight Balance enemies

Balance, is a very balanced (Get it?) class. They’re balanced between defense and offense, buffing and debuffing. Their stats are also pretty evened out, they have a decent amount of everything (Except Accuracy) . For spells, they have Shields to every school (Except Balance, ironically), a single target debuff (Weakness) that weakens the next attack spell for an enemy. They have some heals, in the form of Heals over Time, and they have a good mix of single target and AoE attack spells. However, the most unique thing about Balance, is the form in which a lot of their attack spells deal damage. Instead of all of their spells dealing plain Balance damage, some of them deal damage from the Elemental Schools (Fire, Ice, Storm), or from the Spiritual Schools (Life, Death, Myth). For example, Spectral blast, can either deal Fire, Ice, or Storm Damage (Ice dealing the least, Storm the most). An interesting thing to note, though, is that the spell still uses Balance Damage (The stat), and it still has the typical 85% Balance accuracy, no matter which type of damage was used. This allows Balance to attack in a variety of ways, and forms, making them very versatile. However, Balance has one big drawback; they don’t have a prism. While every other school has a prism, which turns their attacking spells into the opposite (Like Fire to Ice), which are great for fighting enemies of their own school, Balance has none. And since most Balance enemies have Balance resist, they have to rely on their single target spells that deal elemental or spiritual damage for Balance mobs, making things go much slower. If you can overcome that one con, though, Balance is a really fun school to play, and can be quite powerful.

Conclusion


Each school is unique, and fun to play. So no matter which one you choose, you should have tons of fun with it. And, since you can have multiple wizards, try playing with all of the schools that seem appealing to you! Have fun wizarding in the world of Wizard101!

Fashion and Homes #2





Hey guys! Welcome to another Fashion & Homes. This week will be a bit more visual, as are going to reiterate our points from last week into a sample house created by one of our staff members. (Thanks Finn!)

With each picture, we will have an inspiration, back story, and a few points that we found strong within that room. Hope you guys enjoy!


The image we're trying to convey in this house is a small town in Marleybone. The Ambassador of Marleybone lies here, with a staff that serves whenever, or wherever. Though the Ambassador does have staff, he treats them with kindness and respect, and even has a room in his house for their relaxation. Above, is the Servant Lounge, where the maids and butlers of the Marleybonian Ambassador can take a breather after a long days work.

Tip: Most of the furniture is in the front of the room for depth purposes. The table is in great positioning the middle of the stairs, making the room look uncrowded but not empty.


The Ambassador loves his holidays, especially Marleymas (The Marleybonian Christmas :p). He spends time with his wife and puppies by the fireplace, in which they tell stories and relax. If his wife and children are busy, he normally lays down here and reads the newspaper.

Tip: The furniture placement in this picture is a great example. Most of these furniture pieces are separate, but collide very well together. The main key to finding matching furniture pieces is patience. Remember to mix and match, surprise yourself with different furniture from different worlds!


The basic living/meeting room. In this spot of the Ambassador's house, he has meetings with figures from all over the Spiral. Merle Ambrose even came once, granting him the exclusive spell books on the tables.

Tip: Never leave a table empty! Because tabletop items are very small, it's not too important what you put on them, as long as they match with the theme. Also, play around with the positioning of your furniture. As you an see in the above picture, the chairs aren't straight. You can curve and slant them for a better "house" feeling.


This is the small pantry where food is held before being set on the dinner table. The Ambassador comes in and out of this place all the time. (His wife isn't the greatest cook)

Tip: The littlest furniture items can add the largest depth. Remember to add a candle, a clock, or even a gallon of milk to your room. It'll make it look realistic, and will take up a bit more space, which is ultimately better.


The dining room is where everything great happens! After a long day of work, the Ambassador sits down with his wife and kids and.. bon appétit! 


After a large meal, the Ambassador goes to bed.. What a busy day!

Thank you for reading!




Valencia: Possible Expansion?



    Valencia, the greatest imperial power of the Spiral, but better yet, home of the Unicorns (cause who doesn't like Unicorns) is arguably one of the most meticulously deisnged worlds, but what's the use? We only visit it for a few quests before entering Cool Ranch. This, and many other aspects of the storyline makes people wonder "Will Valencia get an expansion?".

   Let's start off this editorial by talking about some of the unvisited places yet. When researching this subject, I noticed the great clockwork machine, in the somewhat center part of the world. (Picture below)



This place has caused lots of suspicions. Many people think (and I agree), that this is the capital/home of the Armada (mentioned in the storyline to be Cadiz). This would work as a perfect final dungeon for the current arc. It's big, certainly looks intimidating, and has that cool flying machine at the top (which would be an amazing mount by the way). Kane's power must be coming from somewhere, and this may be the perfect source.. Where the Armada is created, and forced to overrun the Spiral, this machine is certainly overlooked when we are first introduced to the world.

The ending of Aquila certainly gives us a hint of what may be coming next. Below is something interesting the Meowiarty said while finishing Aquila:



What machine? Is it the one we talked about before? This is definitely suspicious, but certainly interesting.
To top it all off, an expansion to Valencia has been approved by Blind Mew, but when, where, or how is left a mystery. This is what he said in the Pirate101 Community Forums:

"Valencia is a big world - like Skull Island, it has many skyways. The main plot has at least 2 more visits to Valencia planned, each to different skyways where there's a lot more going on.
For Book IV, my main goal was to get you to see Valencia and the Armada up close, and to give you some pretty strong indications of what they intend to do to the whole Spiral if they win. The trick was finding a way for the pirate to go to the home of the big enemies in the game and get out again logically. 
Having you go in the front door, fight the Armada full on, and escape strained my disbelief, especially so early in the story: if the Armada is as big and powerful as we say, they'd just crush you. So the entire interlude in Valencia was envisioned as a heist, or the heroes' trip to the Death Star in Star Wars: get in, do what you need to do, and get out before the Armada realizes you're there.
Sure, Phule does find you, but he's not the most... reliable of clockworks.
Don't worry, you'll see a lot more of Valencia. All in good time..."

So, it has been revealed. We are coming back, and meeting the beautiful horned creatures, and the evil clockworks (and maybe learn a little Italian). With all this information, Valencia will certainly return, but for all we know can be later or in the game, or as soon as after Aquila. What do you guys think?

Question of the Day: When do you think the next part of Valencia will arrive? Why?

-Dead-eye Hunter

Our Pirate101 Fall Festival!



Where: Dead-eye Hunter's Witchdoctor Grotto
When: October 26th, 2013 at 
6:00 PM Eastern
5:00 PM Central
4:00 PM Mountain
3:00 PM Pacific


Dress to Impress
Best Dressed Male and Female in Fall Attire 
Prize: Pet of Choice (each)

Simon Says
Can you follow what Simon Says?
Prize: 3 Hoard Packs

Foot/Mount Race
Are you fast enough?
Prize: 3 Hoard Packs (each)

Comment/Question
Since we are a new website, we want to hear your feedback.
In this part of our party, we will hear what you like/dislike about our website,
and if you have any recommendations. Best ideas and feedback will get a hoard pack.

Pirate101 Trivia
How well do you know Pirate101?
Prize: (Per Question) 1 Hoard Pack (12 questions)

Pictures
Picture time! We will join together and photograph our awesome time!

Future Events
Do you think we're done here?
Throughout the month of September, October November, SGS will have multiple
Fall-themed contests and giveaways for our fans! Keep an eye out, pirates and wizards!

Raffle
In honor of our ever first party, we are going to have our first ever Rafflecopter raffle!
We will be raffling off a couple of hoard packs and a $10 Dollar Pirate101 Gift Card (which can also
be redeemed on Wizard101). Please enter below! 

Pick-up Location: Avery's Court
Pick-up Realm: One-eyed Jack
Pick-up Person: Blaine Nightingale, Level 1 Swashbuckler

The person you must add will repeatedly say they are the pickup to prevent confusion.


a Rafflecopter giveaway

The Pirate101 Classes

Introduction

Pirate101 has 5 different classes, each one having different pros and cons, and different play-styles. These classes consist of the tough Buccaneers, the sharp-shooting Musketeers, the supporting Privateers, the nimble Swashbucklers, and the tricky Witchdoctors. 



Type: Melee
Pros: High Health, High Armor, High Base Damage Many Epics, Charge Powers
Cons: Low Resist, Few Powers, Only One AOE Power


Buccaneers are one of the tanking classes of Pirate101. Their high health, and armor allow them to take a lot of damage from Melee attackers, and their epics allow them to deal the damage right back at them. Their charge powers allow them to get to the enemy very quickly, and start tanking so their companions don’t have to worry about getting hurt. However, they are very susceptible to Musketeers and Witchdoctors, who get around armor with their magical attacks, and because most Buccaneer Epics won’t trigger against them. Their lack of powers always means they rely on their accuracy more than the other classes, and they only have one AOE, Reckless Frenzy, which is received very late in game (Level 65). However, the amount of damage they can absorb from Melee attackers, and deal right back is staggering.

Interview with Mercenary101 Veteran, Katherine Light!


(Click on the image to follow Katherine on Twitter!)

Surprise Wednesday strolled along, and this week we have another interview with you! Katherine Light was nice enough to accept our request, and this week we will look into her life as a Merc, and other things too! Without further ado, let's get started!

1. You're recognized as a veteran at Mercenaries101. For our new viewers, can you explain what "Mercenaries for Hire" is?

Katherine Light: Mercenaries for Hire is a group of highly-trained, experienced player that offer to help with any bosses in the Spiral. We'll help with questing or farming, whatever people need. It doesn't cost anything to get help from us, all you have to do is ask. We know that some of these dungeons are scary for people, so we write guides to help people through them if they want to try on their own, and try to make things fun and less intimidating for anyone who chooses to run with us.
We're also a little weird and wacky. 


2. Where did the idea to make up such a wonderful helping system originate? Who was involved?

Katherine Light: I can't take credit for that one! M4H was founded in 2009 by Christo Deathgiver and began with him as the only merc. The group has grown exponentially over the past 4 years, and we've had 5 leaders altogether. (Christo, Andrew Wildflame, John Shadow, myself, Scarlet*.) The group has evolved into something very different from what it was back then, but the core intention remains the same; we aim to help and educate.


3. We know you're on your toes when someone requests assistance. What is your favorite part of helping?


Katherine Light: I love it when people have been struggling with a dungeon for a long time and decide to take that leap, make a Central account, and ask for help for the first time. There's a moment where they're so nervous about what's about what's coming and have trouble believing that you can really help them get through. We get to explain what you need to do to defeat those bosses, watch them find out how it works, and see them take out that boss that's been giving them trouble for so long... it's fantastic to see them finally get that feeling of accomplishment and success.


4. If you could describe Mercenaries for Hire in one word, what would it be? Why?


Katherine Light: This is payback for all those vocab contests I like to hold on twitter, isn't it? Just one word? Um.... Pedagogical.
Yes, I chose that one to make people run for a dictionary. :P


5. We know you're a fond of farming, but everyone has that one item they can't get. Which item have you tried constantly to achieve but never have?


Katherine Light: That Amulet of Divine Influence! MUST HAVE IT. ON EVERY CHARACTER. The fact that I've been farming for weeks and never seen one drop CANNOT STOP ME! Okay maybe it can, but it's gotta happen sooner or later, right?


6. Speaking of farming, would you like to see
 a dungeon extension into any previous worlds? How does a level 90 dungeon in Krokotopia sound?

Katherine Light: I have been waiting for YEARS for that new dungeon in Krokotopia! I feel like there's been this ominous feeling hanging over Krokotopia ever since Briskbreeze tower mentioned something big starting there. I want to find out what's going on there! Aside from that, I'd looooove to get a look at the inside of Barkingham Palace, preferably as a dungeon.

7. Nearing the end of this interview, is there anything you'd like to see added to Wizard101 or Pirate101? 


Katherine Light: In Pirate101 I would loooove to see crafting, particularly if the gear is great. In Wizard101 I'd love to see more events, or dungeons like Winterbane.... basically anything that makes hoard pack gear droppable, lol. 


8. Lastly, is there anything you'd like to say to your fans?


Katherine Light: Sure! I am (and I think I speak for most of the M101 team here) actually a bit uncomfortable with the idea of having fans, so I'd say.... Please don't think of yourselves as fans, I much prefer friends.  If you see me (or any merc!) in game, come say hi, or send us a message on Twitter or Central. While we love to help, we're also regular players who like having fun. We love to meet new people and make new friends, so don't be scared to get to know us! 




Good having you, Katherine! You were a great addition to this blog, and I hope everyone enjoys the interview, because I sure did! 


The Off-Topic Press

The off-topic press will include anything and everything off-topic. This may include books, songs, videos, and just appropriate news from the real world! Stay tuned for more.


Everything displayed in this "press" is G-Rated, and can be viewed by people of all ages.
Please note: If you click the amazon or fandango icon, it will take you to the page where you can buy the item, or purchase tickets for the movie if you enjoyed the entry.




In her strongest work to date, Lois Lowry once again creates a mysterious but plausible future world. It is a society ruled by savagery and deceit that shuns and discards the weak. Left orphaned and physically flawed, young Kira faces a frightening, uncertain future. Read more.. 





"A British study on why people are afraid of technology". Enough said.








Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2 picks up where Sony Pictures Animation’s mouth-watering comedy left off. Inventor Flint Lockwood thought he saved the world when he destroyed his most infamous invention -- a machine that turned water into food causing cheeseburger rain and spaghetti tornadoes. Read more..

I was a fan of this adorable movie, and I felt the sequel will be as good or even better! 

Release Date: September 27, 2013









"Dogs have masters. Cats have staff."




Hope you enjoyed our little off-topic press! Updates will come every Tuesday in the Off Topic section, which can be found in the page bar above. If you'd like to see your art, fan fiction, comedy or personal song, movie or video preferences, tweet us at @SGeographic or email us at spiralsgeographicsociety@gmail.com