Thursday, November 19, 2015

Harvest Hannah Hype Song


During KI Live, Tom & Leala announced that Harvest Hannah is returning to the Spiral, They also mentioned Harvest Hannah Hype, and someone making a Harvest Hannah Hype Song. I decided to do it. 

"Harvest Hannah Hype" by Cheyenne Caster
**To the tune of The Addams Family theme, Lyrics also Parody**

Harvest Hannah
Harvest Hannah
Harvest Hannah, Harvest Hannah, Harvest Hannah

She's tall and dressed like a pilgrim
A black hat with a brim
She's all together slim
Harvest Hannah

Her shop is a stand
When wizards come to buy wands
They end up spending one grand
Harvest Hannah

(Wheat)
(Meat)
(Treat)

So load up on some crowns
Some gear you can stitch on
We're gonna pay a visit
To Harvest Hannah

She's tall and dressed like a pilgrim
A black hat with a brim
She's all together slim
Harvest Hannah

And, if you still didn't get the hint... Harvest Hannah is coming to the Spiral! 

Wednesday, November 18, 2015

Congratulations Class of 2015!

"Our belief in sorcery."

The day's finally arrived... your graduation from Ravenwood School of Magical Arts! As you, the first class of wizard move on, let's remember some amazing parts of the past few years at Ravenwood.

Nostalgic Speech

"Remember your first day at Ravenwood? You were pretty scared when you dueled Malestaire's cronies. But then you conquered Unicorn Way in a breeze! By the end of the month, you were packing your bags for Krokotopia!

I bet you don't remember choking as stepped into the hot desert. Maybe you remember all those hieroglyph rubbings you did? Who can forget your glorious take down of Krokopatra? She was pretty electrified by your performance.

Did you have a good time in Wysteria? You did a good job representing us! Way to bring back the Spiral Cup!

Remember your hooligan adventures in Marleybone? Please don't tell your mother, she'll be very angry you were up so late. What... What's that? She's in the crowd? Ma'am, please sit down. Your child is alive and well, and IS graduating.

Ladies and Gentlemen? Attention please. Thank you. I have a special note from Zeus Skyfather. 'I remember the day you bested me. I thought it was pure luck, but now seeing you are graduating, I'd like to congratulate you. I could use some sky guardians. If you are interested, I'm where I've always been!' Such a great letter from Zeus, am I right?

Now where was I? Ah, have you meditated on your MooShu trip? You came back truly changed. I could tell you were at peace with yourself and the spiral,

Dragonspyre. Dragonspyre, Dragonspyre. What a memorable time. You blazed through that place! Not to mention, Malestaire ate dust when you confronted him! He stood no chance whatsoever!

How can we thank you for uniting Grizzleheim? Stopping the coven? Preventing Ymir from waking up and bringing about the Everwinter! 

I bet you enjoyed your educational vacation in Celestia, You came back very, very sophisticated! You handled Astral Magic like it was a piece of cake! You gained so many talents there!

I must say, we are thoroughly impressed by your performance in the Water Works, Not many wizards are successful.

Zafaria was most impressive for us. You were done fairly quickly and did a great job. You helped us narrow in on Morganthe even more!

Poseidon wanted to tell you that you did amazing in Atlantea. He wants his triton back.

In Avalon, you gained so much knowledge of history. You learned about Headmaster Ambrose's life and learned of so many traditions. Amazing job to our Knights of the Silver Rose!

Azteca, um, great job, kind of. Moving on...

Hades the Unseen is coming for you for your excellent job against him. You may want to be cautious around shadows.

Khrysalis... one of our proudest moments! Morganthe was taken down for good! Unfortunately, Old Cob kinda got out. Oh well, we can find that spider another day.

Malestaire's name may send shivers down your spine, but he's finally happy now. He's with Sylvia, and that's all that matters now. 

Polaris held many adventures for you all, and it still does. I think you've earned this diploma."
-Someone


A quick toast from yours truly
Wow. I can't believe so many of you are graduating. It's been awesome looking up to you all. So many of you were mentors to me, you've helped me out in battles, passed information to me, taught me new things. I'm really gonna miss going to school with you.

Beyond this game, so many of you have been supportive to me. You've taught me about programming and blogging and techniques, and I don't think some of you know that. If you've ever talked to me, you did influence me. Thank you for all that you've done. Good luck at the Arcanum and safe travels!

Here's to the Ravenwood School of Magical Arts Class of 2015!
-Cheyenne Caster, Level 82 Archmage Sorcerer

Thank You for all your contributions to our community, both in-game and out. Have an amazing Graduation!

Tuesday, November 17, 2015

November News

Isn't it amazing we are half way through November? So many amazing things have come to Wizard101 since my last recap. I kept on putting this off because so many new content would be added, and I'd have to constantly update. So finally, here it is: the most jam-packed recap ever in the history of Nordic Champion!

Test Realm OPEN! 
In early October, KingsIsle teased us with many amazing concept photos of Polaris! Later, the Test Realm was opened! It brought the new world of Polaris, level 110, new spells, and more!

Jewel Crafter's Bundle
Wizard101 introduced a groundbreaking bundle! It's mount gives stats! This amazing bundle gives you the Shard Warrior's Armor set, Shard Warrior's Hammer, Crystal Butterfly pet, Crystal Unicorn mount, and Bountiful Mine item. The mine grants you rewards once a day. The bundle comes with your choice of 1 month of membership or 5,000 crowns! Check out this amazing bundle available at GameStop for $29!


Halloween
Halloween was amazing this year! Amazing new items were added to the Harrowing Nightmare pack, such as the Midnight Owl and Winged Catastrophe.

Rise & Destroy
Rise & Destroy was officially released! This amazing mobile app is, surprisingly, not related to any 101 game of KI's! A special KI Live took place regarding the release, and many questions were answered. Also, some pretty cool tips were shared! This game is free put has some in-game purchases.

Extra Life
KI's team was very successful this year! We raised over $9,000! The original goal was $3,000. Participants who raised over $100 received the new Polarian Explorer's Bundle. Congratulations and Thank You to our Extra Life Wizards! (And Pirates)

Veteran's Day
Veteran's Day was celebrated beautifully in Wizard101! The Commemorative Poppy Display had a beautiful poem, and the community's support was amazing!

Polarian Explorer's Bundle
The Polarian Explorer's Bundle, originally offered to Extra Life winners, has hit stores nationwide! This bundle left me awestruck with it's beauty! The bundle includes Polarian Explorer's Gear, Polarian Explorer's Pickaxe, Proper Penguin pet, Battle Narwhal mount, and the magnificent Polarian Shipwreck house! As always, it comes with the choice of 1 month of membership or 5,000 crowns!


Test Realm is Going Live!
The Polaris Test Realm is going live on November 18th, 2015! Good luck to all our exalted wizards, and have an awesome Graduation! Congrats Class of 2015!

KI Live
KI Live will take place this Thursday, likely celebrating the launch of Polaris and the first wave of Ravenwood Graduates.

Cheyenne Caster
Yes, I'm still level 82. I'm stuck in Azteca and have no membership. I wish I could be graduating, I've already got senioritis! Have an amazing time in Polaris!

-Nordic Champion

Wednesday, November 11, 2015

Veteran's Day 2015


Thank You to our veterans. Without you, our country would not be free! Wizards, please keep them in your thoughts.

Wizard101 and Pirate101 are giving out a free Commemorative Poppy Display. From now until November 17th, enter the code "poppy2015" to redeem this gift. The display is interactive. A poem is recited when you press "x." 

Please visit this link to read more about the gift.

I decided to find the poem, and it's called "In Flanders Field" by John McCrae. The poem is beautiful and embodies Veteran's Day perfectly.

"In Flanders fields the poppies blow 
Between the crosses, row on row, 
That mark our place; and in the sky 
The larks, still bravely singing, fly. 
Scarce heard amid the guns below. 

We are the dead. Short days ago
 We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow 
Loved, and were loved, and now we lie 
In Flanders fields. 

Take up our quarrel with the foe: 
To you from failing hands we throw 
The torch; be yours to hold it high. 
If ye break faith with us who die 
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow 
In Flanders fields."
-Colonel John McCrae, WWI Surgeon

To learn more about this poem, please click here. I highly recommend reading about it as it is a moving story.

Saturday, November 7, 2015

The Mystery of Dragonspyre


Dragonspyre is a mystery. It's one of those worlds that you can't figure out what it's based off of. There's so much contradicting evidence that you can't pick just one culture. I decided to do some research, and I think I finally have the answer.

First, I started with a Twitter Poll. I asked if people thought Dragonspyre was based off of Rome/Greece, Russia/Czech, or Russia/Byzantine. Each tweet had the majority voting Rome/Greece. So I referred to everything I knew about Rome and Greece. Coincidentally, my current world history unit at school is Rome and the Byzantine Empire!
  • I figured that the architecture is Greek and Roman, especially all the columns
  • Creatures like the Minotaur and Cyclops roam the streets. These are straight out of Greek mythology
  • Being a militant society, it could be based off of Sparta
  • The Forum is a Roman place of government and exchange of ideas
  • The Necropolis, meaning "cemetery," has the word -polis in it. -Polis is a Greek word for "city."
  • The Atheneum, meaning "school," also means "Temple of Athena." Athena is Greek goddess
  • The Basilica, which means "royal palace" or "church," is originally a Greek/Latin word
  • The Labyrinth is from Greek mythology. 
  • The Dragonspyre standard is from Rome's Eagle Standard



Not to mention the layout of Dragonspyre: It looks like an acropolis. Notice the tiered levels and walls, surrounding the more important parts of Dragonspyre? Dragonspyre Academy is in the up most area. Also, the volcano could symbolize Mount Vesuvius and Pompeii, which explains how destroyed the world is. Dragonspyre seems pretty Greco-Roman, right? But then we hit a wall...


Unless you played with mute on the whole time, chances are you heard the accents of the NPCs. They don't sound Italian or Greek at all. Their names aren't either. So I looked up the origins of some names, and what I got was unsurprising. The names were from Russia, Ukraine, and Czechoslovakia. 

This actually makes a lot of sense. Why? There was a blend of these cultures, and it was called the Byzantine Empire.

The Byzantine empire was created when the Roman Empire was split into East and West. While Rome fell and descended into the Dark Ages, Costantinople rose. It was located between Greece and modern-day Russia. Now we have Greek, Roman, and Russian cultures all in one area!

This excerpt sounds a lot like Justinian's campaign to take back the Roman Empire from the Barbarians.  



The Empire was brought down by a plague, which is mentioned in the History of Dragonspyre.


In short, Dragonspyre bares enough evidence to point towards being based off of the Byzantine Empire. Do you think Dragonspyre is based off of the Byzantine Empire? Why? I look forward to seeing other point-of-views!

Thursday, November 5, 2015

Rise & Destroy


Rise & Destroy has been officially launched! Rise & Destroy is a mobile game that includes smashing and destroying... EVERYTHING! This is also an intense strategy game. Smash through 60 levels of challenging cities and collect monsters! Monsters evolve at levels 5 and 10. 

I've played the game, and it is fun. Although, it is definitely challenging and at times confusing. Currently, I am on the 6th city. Hehehe. Not much to say on that.

Today's KingsIsle live was centered around Rise & Destroy. Many questions were answered and insight given. I did my best to take some notes on this KI Live.

Before I rattle off the list of notes, I want everyone to remember that Friday-Saturday daily rewards will be doubled! 

Tips
  • Run-FAST!
  • Destroy everything
    • utilize the domino effect!
  • Level 2 is good to test destruction out
  • Missile Launchers: Don't stand on the "x" - that's were the missiles land. Instead, stand near it and by things you want destroyed. The missile will inflict damage to those things instead.
  • Smash humans into buildings
  • Get 3 stars to complete Monster Cup Challenges
    • More Stars = More Gold
    • More Monster Cup Challenges = More Gold
    • More Gold = More Success
  • Utilize elemental powers
I probably won't blog about Rise & Destroy anymore than this. If any of this is incorrect, please let me know. 

Tuesday, November 3, 2015

Gear-A-Palooza 2015


Gear-A-Palooza 2015 is here! Now through November 8th, 2015, save 50% off crowns prices on your favorite gear! 

Save 50% off the following:
  • Rockhammer's Jewel Pack
  • All Weapons
  • All Mastery Amulets
  • All Hairstyles
  • All Clothing Bundles
Don't miss this important opportunity!

If you still don't have enough crowns for a Mastery Amulet, check out my guide on drops here.