Out with 2015, In with 2016

2015 was a great year for Wizard101. Jam-packed with tons of new content, it's hard to say which impacted us most. 2016 can only be better! Here's some key content that made this year amazing, and what we could be seeing this upcoming year!

Best of 2015

• Ultra Everything: Ultra Dungeons, Ultra Pet Levels... all amazing things that enhanced our game play for the better. We got some awesome gear that was comparable to gear from dungeons like Mount Olympus and Waterworks! Our pets gained an extra level, giving us the ability to get an extra talent. 
• Jewel Socketing: Our amulets, athames, rings and decks got a brand new makeover... stat wise. This update made wizards more powerful with stat-boosting jewels. We even got pet socketing, adding even more talents to our pets.
• Holiday Specials: One of my favorite parts of Wizard101 is the holiday celebrations. I love it when the commons is decorated, holiday quests are backs, and amazing items return to the crown shop. Our Harrowing Nightmare and Winterland Packs were updated with epic items. This year saw one of the best holiday updates ever.
• Polaris: One of the most anticipated update was the Polaris Update. Exalted wizards where itching to move up. They got to graduate and begin studies in the advanced school of the Arcanum. Great job to the Prodigious wizards, you make Ravenwood proud!
• Fishing: Fishing was majorly improved. Fish were released in certain waters of bundle houses. We even git fishing tournament sand new fishing gear.

2016: Year of more Progress

What could 2016 hold for us? We can never be sure, but there are plenty of hints. 

• Mirage could possibly be our next world!
• Gear Socketing
• More Shadow pips
• Improved Pet Derby
• New Hobbies (i.e. crafting, gardening, fishing)

And something I would personally like to see: 

• Fishing in all houses

What was the best part of 2015 for you? What are you hoping to see in 2016?

Have an amazing New Year!

Merry Christmas Eve!

Merry Christmas Eve, wizards! I hope you have an amazing holiday with your friends and family. As awesome as Wizard101 is, I encourage you to choose real life for today and tomorrow over being in the game. Merry Christmas to KingsIsle and their families. Have a good one!

I hope you all get tons of presents and are extremely happy! I will resume activity on December 26th, although I can't confirm that I will be posting that day. I'll be back with a brand new batch of posts!

Once again, Merry Christmas Eve!

-Your friend, Cheyenne Caster

Pictures of the Spiral: Wizard City

I'm going to start posting pictures of a specific world in the Spiral. For this installment, I am going to post pictures from Wizard City. This does not include Darkmoor or Aquila. Enjoy some cool shots of Wizard City.

Next time, I will post pictures from Krokotopia!

Grizzleheim Expansion

First, before this post starts talking about random stuff, I would like to say that this theory was based off of no evidence whatsoever. This is mainly what I would like to see, should Grizzleheim be expanded once more.

Grizzleheim, in my sole opinion, is a world of unfinished business. This includes Wintertusk. Being a side world, it doesn't hold a significant place in the story line. Sure, Grandmother Raven has a part in creation, but she is an individual, not the entire world of Grizzleheim. But, this world has so much potential to becoming a main world in its expansion. Since KI is trying to change the game slightly, it would make sense if a side world was expanded, and the expansion became necessary in the story line.

A Brief History

Ragnarok is the impending doom that the gods will face at the end. They are destined to die. A large part of Viking culture is becoming a warrior. Warriors who die valiantly are hand picked by the Valkyrie, or female figures who choose the fate of warriors in battle. Warriors are sent to Valhalla, a sort of "holding place" for the god's armies. When Ragnarok is unleashed, they fight alongside the gods.

Yggdrasil is the tree of life. I think you step through a version of this when you come into Grizzleheim, but I also think the tree Grandmother Raven sits on is also this tree. The tree Grandmother Raven sits on is gnawed at by Nithogg, who could be the variant of Nidhog, the serpent that gnaws at Yggdrasil's roots. Yggdrasil connects all the Nine Worlds together. Bifrost is the rainbow bridge connecting Asgard to Midgard. The vast void of nothingness is ginnugagap.

The Plot

Players will come into the common area of Yggdrasil, which is also the name of the expansion. This common area will be chaotic. Branches will sprawl around, surrounded by Ginnugagap. Nine areas at the end of Nine various branches will be the questing areas. These Nine areas will be the nine worlds: Asgard, Vanaheim, Alfheim, Midgard, Jotunheim, Svartalfheim, Nidavellir, Nifleheim, and Muspelheim. 

This time, the goal will be to prevent Ragnarok. Players will visit with Odin and gain counsel from other gods. They will help a fallen warrior get to Valhalla. They will visit Valhalla, receive some viking-grade training, and promptly turn down a spot in Valhalla. They will join a legion of Valkyries and help fallen warriors cross Ginnugagap. 

The final dungeon will be a harrowing experience, and not for the faint of heart. But most prodigious wizards will be able to get through this dungeon with ease. They will help bind Fenrir the wolf and stop Nithogg (Nidhog) from gnawing Grandmother Raven's tree (Yggdrasil). Players will successfully prevent Ragnarok by a couple hundred thousand years. Odin will personally congratulate them at the conclusion of the dungeon.

Players will later find out that Old Cob tried to unravel Fenrir's rope, since Old Cob was a good weaver. At this point in the Third Arc, Old Cob will have been driven mad by his conquests and is no longer able to think rationally. Stopping Ragnarok only made him crazier, which is a failure equivalent to Azteca.

Cool Badge Ideas

• Asgard Adherent: Visit and talk to all the gods: complete Asgard story line quests
• Vanir: Complete all story line quests in Vanaheim
• Alf-alfa: Defeat 250 elves in Alfheim
• Lord/Lady of Midgard: Complete all story line quests in Midgard
• Jotun Battler: Defeat 250 jotuns/giants in Jotunheim
• Dark Alf-alfa: Defeat 250 dark elves in Svartalfheim
• Dwarf Miner: Defeat 250 dwarves in Nidavellir
• Nifleheim Explorer: Find Helheim (quest)
• The Extinguisher: Defeat 250 fire giants and 250 demons in Muspelheim
• Yggdrasil Explorer: Complete Zeke's quest
• Ragnarocker: Complete all story line quests
• Master of the Nine Worlds: Complete all quests in Ginnugap (excludes crafting and other hobby quests)
• Runecaster: Decipher all Runes (quest)

What expansion would you like to see to an existing world? Would you like this expansion? Leave a comment below!

P.S. this is my 50th Post! Yay! :)

Polarian Shipwreck Tour

The Polarian Shipwreck is the newest house in the game. It's massive, beautiful, and filled with surprises. Special thanks to @HuntFireShield on Twitter for letting me take a look in his house! You rock!

Absolutely Gorgeous!

The Polarian Shipwreck houses 250 items both inside and outside. It has a dueling circle and an NPC that rewards you daily for visiting. The ice makes you run faster and slide when stationary. This Polaris themed house is an amazing property!

The Spiral Door 

When you enter this frozen wreck, a ghostly wail is distinctly heard. Huge glaciers tower above you. A feeling of insignificance is evident in this house.

The Shipwreck

The Shipwreck is situated partly inside a glacier. Near the shipwreck is a dueling circle. This is the house portion of this property.

The Dueling Circle

Outside of the shipwreck is this practice PvP Dueling Circle. This is a great way to control who you want to play without changing your score.

Inside the Shipwreck

Inside, there's plenty of room for all your treasures! The middle of the main floor is ice, so it's perfect to strap on some skates!

Each room has plenty of space!

Each room has so much floor space. A beautiful glacial ceiling towers above most of this house!

The Secret Room

Like many bundle houses, this house has a secret room! Simply go the the back of the house and turn left. You will come through a false wall. Take the tunnel and it will lead you to this room! Continue on and it will take you to one of the existing rooms in this house.

Rewarding NPC

Captain Shackleton is the poor, shipwrecked mutt who has grown found of his "frozen deathbed." He pays you rent by giving you items from his Cargo Crate, on the left of him. This Cargo Crate gave me at least 5 snacks, which contained a wide variety of ranks, the highest being a Rank 8 giving 10 XP and a Rank 7 giving 12 XP. It also gave me a furniture item and 30 gold.

An Open Tunnel

There are many open tunnels outside. Glaciers loom above you, framing a gorgeous sky.

The Icy Coast

If you want a great place to work on a tan, this is not your ideal coast. This frozen shore echoes the calls of walruses and seals. Off shore, stubborn fish swim along. Try your chance at a chest and maybe snag something cool from this bundle!

A Picturesque Sky

The Polarian Shipwreck boasts the most gorgeous sky in game. The Northern Lights shimmer in the distance. The stars twinkle and shine brightly in the sky. Make a wish as a shooting star flashes by!

The Polarian Shipwreck is an excellent house to buy! I had an excellent experience inside, and I recommend it to others. I hope you enjoyed this tour!

Hunter's Stew Recipe

In Winterbane Hall, Jarl Whiteshield tells us a recipe for his Hunter's Stew. It's very specific on ingredients, so I decided to try and find the real life equivalent. After some changing of a few search words, I found it!

Here's the in-game recipe:

• First, put butter into the stew pot
• Follow with meat to brown it
• Add mushrooms, turnips, barley, and water
• Finish with salt and hot pepper
• Serve with black bread

This recipe is essentially the basic version of Hearty Hunter's Stew, a Scandinavian stew.

Here's how to cook it:

1. Brown the meat in butter and oil. Season with salt and pepper. Set aside.
2. Slice the potatoes, parsnips, carrots, onions, and garlic, and brown the vegetables together with the mushrooms. Add the meat.
3. Add the beer, and cover the rest of the stew with water.
4. Add the stock cube and make sure it dissolves completely. Let it simmer for about one hour. The meat should be very tender.
5. Mix a couple of tablespoons of of cornstarch with about as much water. Pour it in and make sure to stir so that you do not get lumps in the stew
6. Garnish with parsley and thyme

Ingredients:

• 8-10 peeled potatoes
• 2 peeled carrots
• 2 peeled parsnips
• 3 peeled yellow onions
• 3 cloves of garlic
• 1/3 lb. (200 g) shiitake mushrooms, or other mushrooms

• 10-12 slices of moose, elk, or other venison (preferably from the thigh) ***I talked with my dad, who is Italian and owns a deli, and is an excellent cook. He said that beef/steak can be used in place and would still end up fine. 
• 1 1/4 cup (3 dl) dark beer
• 1 cube of beef stock
• 3 bay leaves
• 9 juniper berries
• butter and oil
• corn starch to thicken water

Garnish

• 2 tbs. chopped parsley
• 2 tbs. thyme leaves

Recipe was found at http://www.newscancook.com/recipes-by-chef/hearty-hunters-stew/ . I'm sure there's other versions, so feel free to try other recipes.

Pleas ask your parent's permission before taking on this recipe. I recommend helping your parents until you are an experienced cook. I personally had this stew, and it is very good. Let me know how it turned out!

***My dad own's an Italian deli and caters. He has a degree in cuisine. Food is his passion. He is highly qualified to make any comments on this recipe.

Spiral Wars: The Ice Titan Awakens

Story by Ymir 

Retold by Cheyenne Caster 

A long time ago, in a world 

far, far away...

Years after the defeat of The Coven, the spiral faced a new threat from the evil Old Cob and his many children. When a wizard opened the spiral door to Polaris, the wizard met Inspector Fouche, a clever inspector who needed help in a crime scene. Together, the magic duo joined forces with Innkeeper Gorbeau to make sure The Resistance could stop Empress Antuskette and find out the whereabouts of Old Cob, the leader of his children.

Amongst the chaos of this unstable world, the wizard was to caught up in battle to know that other worlds where being affected by the war. Tiny tremors of battle coursed through out the spiral, stirring the ice titan Ymir to awaken. Contrary to popular belief, I did not bring about the Everwinter. Instead, I fought side-by-side with the wizard and the companions.

Afterwards, the wizard did not trust me. With the help of Merle Ambrose and my four sons, they cast me back to sleep for eternity.

The young wizard was successful and brought a stop to Empress Antuskette. As for Old Cob's whereabouts, the wizard may never know...

To be continued...