On News and Thieving

I got SO BAD at this and I apologize.  Not to sound conceited or anything (although, my family used to tell me "of all the conceit in our family, I think Jessica got most of it" - thanks for boosting it guys), but I re-read my blog sometimes and I think I'm HILARIOUS.  Mostly because I have context and during the sometimes 5 hour stints of me playing Skyrim I am in a constant state of inner laughter.  Regardless of all that, it's among one of the main reasons I actually play this shit.

This is something I wrote MONTHS ago.....and I thought it was still fairly true today and fitting for this post:

WOWZA.  I have been playing this game for TWO MONTHS and I'm not even CLOSE to finishing.  I think I mentioned this before but I think I average about 10 hours of playing a week, so let's approximate and say that I've spent 72 hours Climbing in people's windows and snatching their people up (don't forget to hide your kids and hide your wife....and your husband...because I'm pickpocketing ERRY-ONE out there).  That is THREE WHOLE DAYS of my life spent helping the citizens of Skyrim and basically saving their asses left right and center.
Without me, who would have taken Meridia's Beacon from the clutches of the evil Falmer in Shimmermist Cave?  Who would have Spread the Love of Mara around Skyrim? 

Me, waiting in line for the Keynote at PAX Prime West in Seattle

And may I add that my playing time has amounted to at least 5 days now?  and I haven't even played for two whole months because I've been in other countries where video games like STARCRAFT and LEAGUE OF LEGENDS are a big deal (neither of which I understand the fascination of in the slightest).


A lot has happened since the days of old as I become more than the girlfriend who plays one video game (which happens to be THE video game), and closer to the girl who starts to play Dungeons and Dragons with a regular D&D group and plays multiple video games and goes to video gaming conventions.  WUT!  Apparently it's been in me all along and I'm not ashamed.

Regardless of my newly attained video game prowess, I want to talk to you a little bit about my favorite questline in Skyrim.  Do you want to guess before I tell it to you?!?!?!  huh? Do ya? No?  Well you're no fun.

It's the Thieves Guild Questline.  You guys it is SO MUCH FUN, and intriguing, and ghostly, and, in my opinion, the best thought-out.  The last time I talked about my adventures in thiefdom was in this post of yore where I disclosed that Maven Blackbriar was the largest (and really only) client and that SOME SNEAKY MOM (or just person.....we had yet to find out) was slowly trying to shut her down and close her out of business.  For instance, the Goldenglow Estate where Maven got all her honey from for her Meadery was going to no longer supply it to her! WHAT THE EFF, so I warned the owner by burning down some bee hives and sneaking into the estate to find an interesting letter with a curious symbol on it.  Very curious indeed.

Maven asks to speak to me DIRECTLY, which, you guys, is SCARY because she's an intense lady who has waaaayyyy too much power over the peeps of Riften, and she wants to talk to ME.  Like I said, I'm a popular gal who gets invited to parties and the such and whatnot.  I talk to Maven like a civilized adult and she tells me that her competition up at the Hunningbrew Meadery outside of Whiterun somehow got a shitload of money and is in direct competition with Blackbriar Meadery.  Apparently she doesn't take to competition too well (as we've realized with the event I like to call "The Burning of the Bees") and she wants me to do something about it.

As if I have a choice, I agree to helping her out for a pretty sum and head to Whiterun to execute the plan.  Right now Hunningbrew has a skeever infestation (which I will agree is a thousand times worse than something like a cockroach or silverfish infestation).  I'm to find the nest and apply the poison said nest.  In doing so, I also have access to the brewing pots for the Mead and will put some gross shit in them to make the Mead taste disgusting and dirty so that when it gets tested by some eager investors they will drink the yuck and condemn the Hunningbrew dude and his mead therefore turning them towards the Blackbriar Meadery instead.  It's a pretty brilliant plan if you ask me, and, as you can imagine, worked like a charm, aside from the weird wizardy dude named Hamelyn that I met in the cave by the skeever nest who was batshit crazy forging a skeever army because he was upset about some people "wronging" him.  Give me a break.  I had to pull out some magic there and literally fire his ass so I could get to the nest and kill the skeevers.  What a pain in my backside.  I also stole a promissory note that contained the SAME symbol as that of the one found in Goldenglow Estate......curiouser and curiouser.

Regardless of all this, one common link is this dude name Gulum-Ei who often helps with thieves guild-y type things so I follow him to where he is actually sometimes stealing goods from the guild which by the way is an ass hole move, and I confront him about what all this is about.  He reveals to me that the person behind all this hullabaloo is a lady named KARLIAH.  At this point, the name means absolutely nothing to me, it's like, that moment where I *should* have some sort of jaw-dropping awe-ish reaction, but because I have no idea who the fuck he's talking about I'm like aiight and peace the scene.

Heading back to the thieves guild, I find out Karliah was a previous member of the guild, very close to both Mercer and the old guildmaster Gallus.  She also was the person who purportedly KILLED Gallus and now is planning on doing the same to Mercer Frey.  In other words, this sneaky lady is trying to shut down the thieves guild for good with her skeeving ways  and we're all not too happy about that.

So what are we going to do now? track her down? feed her to the wolves? cast a spell?  My questions were more like: what on earth does this chick have to gain from killing all these people?  Why would she resurface now after all this time?  Why am I the one who keeps getting chosen for all these high profile thieves guild quests when there are other people who are pretty high up in the seniority bit that might like some fame?

Want the answers?  CHECK BACK NEXT TIME BECAUSE THIS BLOG POST IS TOO FUCKING LONG.  I love you, but seriously all this typing is giving me a hand cramp.  UNTIL NEXT TIME, don't let anyone steal your sweet rolls.

Astaldofânwen: Skyrim's Best Matchmaker and Agent of Love

I'm really not the kind of person who gets extra sappy around Valentine's Day because I eat chocolate all the time anyway.  But THIS YEAR that guy I date was galavanting in his motherland during V-Day and I was feeling sappy.  So what did I do?!?!?!?!

WHY, I made my character visit the Temple of Mara in Riften, of course.  I met up with Dinya my homegirl at the temple, and she was all "Would you like to be an agent of Mara and spread her love around Skyrim?" to which I replied "EFF YA IT'S A CELEBRATION, BITCHES!" 

My first task:  Set up two young lovers in Ivarsted.  I fly over to Ivarsted, a white winged cherub with a heart tipped arrow, and meet Fastred.  Fastred is nicely harvesting the plants in her family's garden and there's a look of sadness in her eye.  you know, the look one might get when told they're not allowed to love the one you love.  Talk about Romeo and Juliet!  Farsted has fallen in love with Bassianus (who I'm not really into to be honest) but her father HATES HIM.  She's all "you NEED to talk to my father for me" and I'm like urgh fine...I'll do it....

Bassianus, just chillin, y'know how it is

Since I obviously am such an authority on the matter, I would rather have her rekindle her love with Klimmek, whom I did a favor for before learning "The Way of The Voice" up in High Hrothgar (even though he is a bit older than Fastred, but love knows no age limits (except in real life, where she's probably really only 16)).  UNFORTUNATELY, I looked around for Klimmek everywhere to switch that shit up, but couldn't find him and got annoyed so BASSIANUS IT IS.  I have so much power, you know? (I think it's my "honeyed words").

Basically, I'm good at matchmaking and I got Bassianus and Fastred together and they happily flee to Riften (so basically they rushed away to thief central which is cool because I need to increase my pickpocketing skills).

My next task on the way to becoming an "agent of Mara" is to get OldMagicGuy Calcemo together with the Housecarl of Markarth's Jarl (yarl, carl, rarl......I have no idea what I'm saying), Faleen.  She's pretty rad, I've spoken with her before, and Calcemo, well, he's old fashioned but not a smooth talker like me.  Calcemo urges me to find out what Faleen likes (sweet rolls? missionary?  S&M?) so clearly I talk to her best friend, Yngvar.  Poor Calcemo, Yngvar isn't a bad looking dude (if you're into that sorta thing) so I'm really surprised by his willingness to help out!   He says, as cold as Faleen looks on the outside, she actually REALLY loves POETRY!!!  This girl has got some taste.  Not only does he give me this little bit of information but he also provides a poem he wrote for some girl that he can change to be for Faleen (but not without a price, argh). But read it isn't it CUTE?!?!?!

A missive: from Calcelmo to Faleen

My lover's heart is numbing stone

That hides in ice beneath our sight.

So some decry, "It is not there,"

While others whisper, "Yet, it might."

Though stone is born from fevered ash,

Once formed it yields no whiff of heat.

So too, her heart betrays no love,

Nor comforts those embracing it.

As mountains grow and yearn for sky,

Then climbers, conquering, ascend.

With chisel, rope, with axe and pick,

They force the rock to yield to them.

One peak stands proud amidst the range,

Invincible, and scaled by none.

Those men who try wash down her slopes;

Their eye-born streams obliquely run.

For brash assault could never pierce

Those guarded depths that lay apart.

But patient water gently shapes

A furtive channel to the heart.

My love is delving water, ice

That cracks with cycles of the sun.

A lapping, yearning, whispered plea

Will mark the time 'til I rush in.

For I have dwelt among the rocks,

My city carved from rugged stone.

So in that burrow I will creep,

And warm the soul which makes my home.

AWWWWWWWWWWWW!!!!!!  Let's just say, that worked like a charm!

So now that I've made Fastred make up her mind and turned Calcemo into Shakespeare it's time I bring a couple together who have been drifting apart......pretty literally.  See this couple were around AGES ago, and died unfortunately while looking for each other.  Condemned to never knowing what happened as spirit form, it's my job to bring them together.

You see, I didn't really want to kill anyone during this quest, but I begrudgingly had to walk past a DRAGON circling a Mammoth and that was just annoying because you basically have no choice but to kill the thing in the meantime.  No rest for the Dragonborn, so it goes.

BUT WHATEVER, I got the man with the fiery beard and his little bonnet woman together and they lived (in death) happily ever after!  They even floated up in the sky like two cute hollographic ghosty guys.  Good for them.  I'm a champion.

AWESOME, now I'm an "Agent of Mara" which means I have +15 Magic Resistance.....WERD UP.

Moral of the Story:  It pays to be a lover, man.

Skyrim's Thieves Guild - My Kinda People

It's no surprise that my last post about the Erotica I found in Haelga's room (and in newer news, on the shelf in one of the breweries too) is the most read post on my blog.  Who doesn't like sexy times?  I was visiting my Aunt and Uncle over the weekend and he was telling me how nerdy I am for posting about sex in my blog while he's got his headphones on and is swearing at some 16 year olds while he's playing WoW.  As he taught my 3 year old cousin to say - "Cool Story Bro."

I have definitely been logging more playing hours than WRITING hours...which is probably not good for business BUT THIS GAME IS SO EXCITING!!!!

Interestingly, the second most viewed post is the one where I talk about FOOD.  So I will do that again and then tell you how I proceeded to burn some bee hives.

FEAST YOUR EYES ON THIS BEAUTY OF A BREAKFAST

That, my friends, is roasted bell pepper (of the red variety) with an EGG in the middle of it.  Complete with some Kicking Horse Coffee (Kick Ass) and a little salt, pepper, and chilli powder.  GENIUS.

That prepared me for a THIEVES GUILD quest.  This quest line is becoming one of my favorites (aside from the COMPANIONS one and I found out something EXCITING there but I don't want to ruin it because it was just so cool!).  Have I even told you about the thieves guild?!?!?!  They are a group of dudes and dudettes who are into pickpocketing and stealing and cunning and run Riften under the noses of the Jarl.  What a group!  I love 'em.  I first had to show that I'm worth their time by telling a bunch of punks to pay up.  I had to throw a statue around and break some urn and basically just be badass and finally Brynjolf was all like "great work, the thieves guild is BACK IN ACTION"

But what do you mean BACK in action?  As it turns out the thieves guild's biggest client is Maven Blackbriar, the lady in charge of the Blackbriar Meadery and things are happening that are slowly shutting her down.  We don't know what exactly...but one thing is for sure:  The dude who owns Goldenglow Estate has SOLD his property which means they are NOT going to be supplying the necessary shit for making the MEAD (and the mead is SO important...obvs).  My mission, which I totally chose to take, was to intimidate the guy and burn THREE bee hives to say "HEY BITCH WE'RE SERIOUS" and then steal some things from the estate.

THE BEE HIVES!  I had to swim and get to the little island and BEAT UP SOME DUDES with arrows.  Like I said in previous posts, I think I'm AWESOME and I was able to stealthily kill a lot of the guys protecting the place and with the flames from my hand I was able to SET THAT SHIT ON FIIIIIIIIIIRRRE!!!!!!!  Like THIS ---->

WOOOP WOOOP.  I got the deed from the house and there was this WEIRD symbol on it....so I don't know.  There is definitely some one plotting the demise of the Thieves Gild.  Which is sad because I am really liking being a part of their little gang.  They're some kind of alright.  They're like a family so I'm going to continue to help them out.  I'm a sucker for the badasses, y'know?

Skyrim's More...Sultry Likings

Riften is an interesting place.  There are a lot of people and a lot of thieving and other interesting things going down.  I'm really finding all of the politics and inner workings of all the different cities the most interesting about this game because there is A LOT of drama.

In Riften there is this "bunkhouse" which is for the workers of Riften to stay in while they're working in the fisheries or whateverhaveyou and the lady who runs it is Haelga.  She is this cute little blonde number and although she says "if you're looking for a place to stay go to the Bee and Barb and get a room" (the local pub) I can still stay in her bunkhouse on an unused bed for free.  HURRAY!

But doesn't Haelga look like a vixen?  You're right, I didn't think so either.  She has a statue of Dibella in her entranceway which isn't strange because Dibella is the goddess of love and beauty (The Skyrim Venus, if you will) and there are Dibellan statues in almost every pretty lady's place.

Haelga isn't a very friendly person she's sort of hard and cold and this can be backed up by her maid, Svana.  Not only is Svana her maid, but she's Haelga's niece as well.  She's pretty bitter about the way Haelga's been treating her so she imparts to me a little secret. 

Apparently Haelga is QUITE the town bicycle.  WHAT?!?!?!?!?!?!?!  I know, right?  DRAMA IN THE BUNKHOUSE.  I had NO idea Skyrim would be so gossipy!  The reason Svana gave me this little tidbit of information is because she wants me to seek out the people Haelga has slept with and CONFRONT Haelga about her looseness.  Just to tone her down a bit and to make her be nicer to Svana.  Sure, I'm always into a little blackmail. 

Haelga has given all the men she sleeps with "the mark of dibella" - this cute little jewel to our left.  I'm supposed to go rustle up the dudes who have slept with her and get those things back and that's my proof that I know she's slept with those guys. 

I won't get into all the raunchy details......but ALL of the guys she's been sleeping with are MARRIED...and not to Haelga!  SCANDALOUS!!!!!!!!!!!

THIS WHOLE QUEST is not even the best part.  In Haelga's room in the bunkhouse I found the GEM OF GEMS.  I don't mean literal treasure, I mean something hilarious that still makes me laugh out loud today.

I found:  SKYRIM EROTICA.  I'm not kidding.  You know those reallllly sultry scenes in some books.....well THIS....this is something to behold.  It made my likeness for this game increase EXPONENTIALLY.  I will impart this video to you of some guy reading it out because it is easier than me reading it out, videoing, and then posting.  TAKE A LOOK. (I highly encourage you to take a look).

SERIOUSLY EVERYONE....The Lusty Argonian Maid?!?!?  How is that NOT brilliant? 

Skyrim's Ratways: A guide to Riften

Do you remember way back wheneverthatwas when I talked about how EXCITED I was to go to Riften?  Because I had heard so much about it and I need my jewels to be appraised!

My main purpose of coming to Riften though:  FINDING ESBERN.  In said post above I couldn't quite remember his name but he was important and YES, he is actually important.  He's the leader of THE BLADES, you know, those people who are supposed to protect and talk about the Dragonborn....and the Dragonborn.....who is that again? OH RIGHT! IT'S ME! HURRAY!

Off to Riften I go.  It is DARK and DREARY there.  It's like there's no moment where it's not foggy.  Riften is a pretty cool settlement because it's on a lake and there are all of these docks and A LOT of people.  I am looking at this picture and I'm like....huh.....I have not been to like half the places in that picture and I've been trolling around Riften for a long time....EFF.  Now I'm going to have to figure it all out.

Riften, as I've learned, is home to the Thieves Guild and there are MANY mixed emotions about this.  Some people are IN the guild so they're like yeah, werd, this shit is great, and others are like "GUILD PFFT, they don't have the right to be called that" or something similar.

I meet these two characters, Mjoll the Lioness and Aerin, and they are both seemingly good people.  Mjoll is pretty badass and kind of breaks down gender stereotypes because she's a well travelled warrior who got ill and was nursed back to health by Aerin who told her of the shit going down in Riften so she vowed to save the town.  She is not stoked on the thieves guild.  I hope she might be a contender for my love at some point...I would totally consider her as a life partner.

RIGHT, so I'm trying to find ESBERN, and peeps in the pub say I should check the RATWAYS.  SWA?  They are underneath Riften and a little freaky.  They tell me that THALMOR (seriously, these guys are ridiculous Elves...just give up already, I'm the DRAGONBORN) are running around the Ratways trying to find some person so I should be careful.  When am I not careful you guys?  I mean REALLY.

I don't know how I'm feeling about all of this creeping around.  Maybe I'm just feeling overwhelmed by HAVING TOO MANY QUESTS or because I am playing this game because I'm sad and unemployed.....or ALL OF THE ABOVE.  PLUS the ratway is skingy....like skingier than all of the caves I've been in.

BUT ALAS, INTO THE RATWAYS I GO!  Peeps were right there are Thalmor bitches everywhere.  WHATEVS, I'll shoot them with my arrows and my stealth-sneak-attackalack.

Esbern was hiding in a pretty secure little place with bolts on the door and the such.  Because that will keep him away from DRAGONS....right?  SO I told him....ESBERN........I am your father......KIDDING! I said I'm the DRAGONBORN and Delphine sent me so in other words, come with me if you want to live.

PHEW.  Now we have to go to some precious place called Alduin's Wall and I am a little nervous about that :S  TO INFINITY AND BEYOND!

Skyrim: of Daal and Dragons

YOU GUYS.  SO MUCH HAS HAPPENED.  I am ultra behind on the blogging bit and super ahead in the playing bit.  Because things are happening around the house (that thing where I said I would be blogging a whole lot unless I miraculously got a JOB sort of happened but only briefly...for like two weeks...but then I became the MASTER of odd job findings, so now I am employed for yet ANOTHER TWO WEEKS! It's a Christmas Miracle!) I have been playing and not blogging which is maybe not good for business because I FORGET what I've done.

You might think "how can you forget what you've done" but when you're accumulating like a hundred mini quests per hour of play and only completing maybe two mini quests and half a main quest per hour well...YOU DO THE MATH BECAUSE I AM A FRENCH TEACHER WHO IS REALLY GOOD AT FAKING ABOUT KNOWING A LOT OF MATH (read as: lazy).


BUT, to the DAAL!  I have been HUNGRY for all things delicious and decided that I would make something DELICIOUS to give me energy to SLAY DRAGONS (hence the DAAL and DRAGONS bit).

LOOK AT THIS:

RIGHT?!?!  SO delicious.  The Daal is from THIS DELICIOUS PLACE but is also known as my boyfriend's parent's pantry. (BEST DEAL EVAR RIGHT?!?!) and that bread is HOME MADE.  And the drink is CHAI with FOAMED skim milk (which is my favorite kind).  Basically you're all jealous, it's fine, I get it.

A SLIGHT update, but I have gone to RIFTEN.  I've been waiting AGES to go to RIFTEN because it is said to have a guy who can appraise the unusual gems that I have.  But WHY!?!?!?! did I go there you may ask.  After returning to Delphine from the Thalmor Embassy to collect things to see about the goings on behind the dragons, I told her about this conversation that I overheard whilst in the embassy about them trying to locate this guy...Endersby?  No that's not right....Andurs?  No that's the guy in the Hall of the Dead in Whiterun.....ummmm......ANYWAY he is IMPORTANT because he's the leader of the Blades (you know that secret organization that Delphine is a part of) and he was thought to be dead! But he is NOT.  So now I'm supposed to go find him.  Go Riften!

I'm basically the bearer of the best news ever.....in my opinion.  But I'm biased.