Tuesdays with Tarinae 1/14

I went back to look at how wonderful my blog was when I started Tuesday with Tarinae at A Healadin's Tear and I realized something. Everything about Tarinae is perfect. I rolled her in World of Warcraft: Burning Crusade and I never once thought about rerolling her (seriously a feat for me!). When I through together my blog after applying to write for WoW Insider, A Healadin's Tear was perfect. I redesigned the color scheme a lot but still perfect. Maybe I am only allowed to have that perfection once?

Speaking of WoW...

A couple months ago Lead Systems Developer for WoW, Greg "Ghostcrawler" Street left his posistion with Blizzard for another opportunity. It was a shock and quite a heartbreaking moment for all of GC's fans on the day he said So Long... but it appears he has resurfaced. Gaming sites across the web report that Greg has joined Riot Games (producers of League of Legends) as Lead Game Developer. 

I imagine the pace is quite different but as I have recently started playing League of Legends I couldn't be more happy to hear this news. I know that any game that has GC on their side is headed in the right direction. 

I would love to get him on the podcast! I could talk to this man for hours. He is also quite handsome. #fangirl

Game of Thrones Season 4 Trailer

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Drop a comment and tell me what you found out this week in geek life!

Episode 5: Timey Wimey Bullshit

TEGP: Episode 5

So if last week was our speculations, hope, and dreams about Blizzcon this week is the coverage, possible let down, but extreme excitement over everything that was announced in Anaheim this past weekend. There is talk about the biggest annoucement of all the next World of Warcraft expansion: Warlords of Draenor. We also talk about Blizzard's new games Hearthstone (F2P CCG) and Heroes of the Storm (MOBA). We even have a few Warcraft movie details to discuss!

World of Warcraft: Warlords of Draenor

 

Other Show Resources:

Heroes of the Storm*

Hearthstone* 

Divergent Trailer

*Beta Opt-Ins are available through Battle.Net

Episode 4: Warlords of the Dark Below

TECP: Episode 4

This episode was intended to be a light speculation on Blizzcon that would have been happening in a few days and some serious game talk but...it turned into full World of Warcraft expansion speculation and we are okay with that. So here is where we note the rumors, instill hope, and wait anxiously for the news!

Also....NaNoWriMo and NYT Bestseller Allegiant is discussed.

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If you have a question, comment, or want to say hi leave a comment below or email us at theeclecticgeekpodcast@gmail.com.

Book Review: Vol'jin: Shadows of the Horde

Vol'jin: Shadows of the Horde By Michael Stackpole

Goodreads | Amazon

Publisher: Gallery Book s(June 16, 2013)
Age Group: Adult
Pages (Hardcover): 352
Series: World of Warcraft #12
Source: Library
ISBN-13: 9781416550679
Genre: Fantasy | Lore Supplement
Series Reviews: Arthas (5★)

Shadows of the Horde follows Vol’jin to the lost continent of Pandaria, where the troll chieftain's loyalties are put to the ultimate test when a member of his own faction moves to assassinate him. . . .

Aided by the renowned brewmaster Chen Stormstout, Vol'jin takes refuge in a remote mountain monastery to recover from his wounds. His time there, however, is far from peaceful, as intense visions of the past assault the Darkspear chieftain, and the ancient Zandalari tribe mounts a series of attacks on Pandaria. In his struggle to make sense of what’s happening, Vol'jin must ultimately decide where his allegiances lay—a choice that could save or doom his people . . . and forever alter the fate of the Horde.

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Getting used to the writing style of Michael Stackpole was considerably interesting. The slow points in this book that were story and history based were on the slow side, this really captured that nature of the Pandaren but it also meant for a laborious read. But then in times of war and times of action his writing was action-packed and one blow after the other. This left me on a roller coaster of reading interest; while I absolutely loved this story and everything in it, I slugged through it at an unusually slow pace.

The character of Vol'jin is so critical to the World of Warcraft lore that this book is an integral part of the story. It connects the events in game of the Dagger in the Dark scenario and the 5.3 content patch Escalation. This book is inundated with amazing amounts of lore for both troll, pandaren and the mogu.

Stackpole did a wonderful job at fleshing out characters that we wanted to see more of including Taran Zhu, Chen Stormstout, and Li Li. He also did a wonderful job at introducing us to new characters including Yalia and Tyrathan Khort. He made the lives of these people jump off the pages and they held on to you with a vice-like grip.

If you're a fan of World of Warcraft novels this books is a must read in my opinion. I am a troll fanatic and I just love everything this book has to offer. I should declare that given its subject matter that is does speak in strong dialects at time but that is akin to Stackpole's great job of creating mood, voice, and setting!

Rating out of 5:

 

Tuesdays with Tarinae 9/24

Tuesday with Tarinae bringing you this week in geek... 

Surreal Mother Geek 

I learned about this little nugget from listening to the latest episode of Beaucoup Pop. Written by Diana Pressnell and illustrated by Brett Hatfield this book is a self published geek twist to the nursery rhymes that many of us grew up on. For example This Little Piggie...as retold into This Little Cultist and a full out (AMAZING) Cthulhu/Lovecraft twist.

 This book comes with a variety of Easter eggs hidden throughout for children and adults alike. It is also a great way to introduce your little one to the world of geek. On top of all of that Diana's husband is an iDeveloper and has developed an app that goes along with this book and provides reading support for your little independent readers. I just think this is awesome! Check out all the details on their website, The Surreal Mother Geek.

Warcraft Movie News

Deadline.com has reported that Colin Farrell and Paula Patton have been offered casting roles in the new Warcraft movie that is set to start filming in 2014. This is major news for WoWrs who have been waiting for this movie for a long time. There are still over 8 million people who play and we are all really hoping this works out. As a sidenote, WoW Insider had a great guess that Colin Farrell could be Medivh, the mad 'wizard', but I am not sure about Patton. It is worth noting this movie is set in the Warcraft timeline rather than World of Warcraft, and yes, there is a difference.

Diablo III Auction House

More Blizzard news comes to us in way of the announcement that Blizzard will shut down both in-game and real money Auction Houses in Diablo III. They argue that this takes away from gameplay because it should be determined that if you go out and kill things you will get the "epic lootz". I don't know whether this is effected in part by the release of the console version or not but I know there are some who are disappointed about this news. I enjoy in-game auctions but I hate micro-transactions that need me to spend real money.

Disney's Live Action Cinderella
Tip Credit: Kentucky Geek Girl

Disney has announced that it is doing a live action Cinderella. Disney is a princess animation kind of thing. It is rare (ever?) they screw up a Princess telling when it is done in animation. So here is to hoping that all of the newly acquired live action companies (Marvel & Lucas Films) has inspired them to greatness.

Image Credit: Comingsoon.net

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Drop a line and tell me what you found out this week in geek life!

Tuesdays with Tarinae 8/27

Tuesdays with Tarinae, covering the past week in geek...

Batfleck

The word is in that Ben Affleck has been cast as the new Batman due to make the appearance against Henry Caville in the second Man of Steel movie. This has caused quite the uproar in the geek community and there has been a lot of flack (See what I did there!) thrown towards the actor/director.

I wasn't against the idea that Christian Bale could have done the role of the caped crusader but I don't think I was prepared for this (though I love Affleck in romance!) and neither was the rest of the world, in fact there is a peteition with change.org that has over 77,000 sigs to rename someone else. Rumor has it Ben Affleck has been signed for multiple movies should "sequels continue to proliferate". What are you thoughts?

Just remember the boy from the dorky knight story turned out to be the best Joker the universe had seen.

Divergent Trailer

I love this book, if you haven't read it pick it up. Choose your faction, change your life, watch this trailer.

World of Warcraft TCG

The word as of August 23 is that Blizzard has pulled their license with Cryptozoic Entertainment that puts out the World of Warcraft Training Card Game. Here is Lexington this is pretty popular Magic-Style TCG. There are region tournaments and battlegrounds. This comes as a major blow to the community. No more new blocks, no new merchandising but if you are due to run a tournament you are on your own but you are still responsible for following Blizzard's rules.

This news comes shortly after their F2P Online CCG, Hearthstone, just entered the beta testing. It was suggested that the two games would not interfere with one another but it seems that is no longer the case as Blizzard has bought themselves out of the contract and does not plan to renew the license with any other company. Now is the time where I rush to stock with cards for my own decks, my art project, and loot cards. 

Tuesdays with Tarinae 8/19

Tuesdays with Tarinae, covering the past week in geek...

Trailer Mania

There were several trailers that released this week (or that I stumbled upon perhaps) and they absolutely blew my mind. This one is the movie trailer for the book-to-movie adaption of Richelle Meade's Vampire Academy.

I have never read this series, I chose to read Twilight instead and my Young Adult vampire fetish went no further. But these books are bestsellers and this trailer looks to be pretty action packed and little on that sexy side.

Comic Con News Blitz & Trailers

This year made people who attended Comic Con in San Diego the envy of most every geek. There were so many things debuted and released this year that it just makes the happy come to life. It also raised a new question on whether SDCC or Blizzcon should be my big con goal. Here is a small wrap up of the biggest announcements that made my day.
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Karen Gillan

Karen Gillan, Amy Pond in Doctor Who, was cast as Nebula in Marvel's Gaurdians of the Galaxy. The movie caused quite a stir being a bit on the unknown side but Gillan goes all out for the role.

Legend of Korra Season 2 Preview

This was so awesome and so well done that I had to take a break the moment I saw it to tell you guys about it. Check out the trailer and recommendation for this series in my earlier coverage!

Catching Fire

This definitely looks like it is set to be a fantastic movie. Having read the first two books, I thought The Hunger Games was pretty spot on and was extremely well done. This trailer glimpses that they have taken the book even further and made it into a spectacle that is more than worth seeing! Bravo! Come on November!!

Man of Steel 2

It was confirmed over the weekend that in the next Superman movie, the Man of Steel will meet the Dark Knight. This was a huge reveal that stirs up a lot of questions. Normally it is a bad guy good guy scenario but now we had goodie vs. goodie. What could have happened to pit them against one another? I wasn't going to post the video but it gave me goose bumps to watch the unveiling, so here it is!

Wrap Up Movie News

Other noteworthy news is Marvel Avengers: Avengers of Ultron was announced. And the World of Warcraft movie was confirmed. As it turns out Sam Raimi has left the project and casting is set to start with production in 2014. The movie is just titled Warcraft. Apparently, there was a mood piece shown at the convention but it is not expected to be released.

What were your favorite pieces of SDCC news?

Featured Read: Voljin: Shadows of the Horde by Michael Stackpole

Featured Read July 2013

Vol'jin: Shadows of the Horde by Michael Stackpole

Goodreads | Amazon

Publisher: Gallery Books (July 2, 2013)
Age Group: Adult
Pages: 352 (Hardcover)
Series: Warcraft #12
ISBN-13: 9781416550679
Genre: Fantasy/Lore Supplement

For fans of World of Warcraft, this book is extremely important to the current progression of the game. With the content release of 5.3 came the Escalation; the escalation of the war. The lore of this quest line is strongly dependent on the events of this book and it will ultimately lead to the Seige of Orgrimmar; something many fans have been looking forward to for four years.

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Shadows of the Horde follows Vol’jin to the lost continent of Pandaria, where the troll chieftain's loyalties are put to the ultimate test when a member of his own faction moves to assassinate him. . . .

Aided by the renowned brewmaster Chen Stormstout, Vol'jin takes refuge in a remote mountain monastery to recover from his wounds. His time there, however, is far from peaceful, as intense visions of the past assault the Darkspear chieftain, and the ancient Zandalari tribe mounts a series of attacks on Pandaria. In his struggle to make sense of what’s happening, Vol'jin must ultimately decide where his allegiances lay—a choice that could save or doom his people . . . and forever alter the fate of the Horde.

Featured Read: Dawn of the Aspects by Richard Knaak

Featured Read: June 2013

Dawn of the Aspects by Richard A. Knaak

Part I | Part II | Part III | Part IV | Part V

Publisher: Simon & Schuester
Age Group: Adult
Pages: ~78 (eBook)
Series: Dawn of the Aspects Part I-V
ISBN-13: 9781476708645
Genre: Fantasy/Lore Supplement

After the fall of Deathwing, the aspects no long had their role as aspects and were left powerless and confused about the future of their kind. This 5 part eBook supplement is from the point of view of Kalecgos, the former Blue Aspect. One part of this series has been released each month starting in February and the final gripping conclusion releases June 17, 2013.

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THE AGE OF DRAGONS IS OVER.

Uncertainty plagues Azeroth’s ancient guardians as they struggle to find a new purpose. This dilemma has hit Kalecgos, youngest of the former Dragon Aspects, especially hard. Having lost his great powers, how can he—or any of his kind—still make a difference in the world?

The answer lies in the distant past, when savage beasts called proto-dragons ruled the skies. Through a mysterious artifact found near the heart of Northrend, Kalecgos witnesses this violent era and the shocking history of the original Aspects: Alexstrasza, Ysera, Malygos, Neltharion, and Nozdormu.

In their most primitive forms, the future protectors of Azeroth must stand united against Galakrond, a bloodthirsty creature that threatens the existence of their race. But did these mere proto-dragons face such a horrific adversary alone, or did an outside force help them? Were they given the strength they would become legendary for...or did they earn it with blood? Kalecgos’s discoveries will change everything he knows about the events that led to the...DAWN OF THE ASPECTS.