Post Holiday Break

For some reason, this year, the holidays seemed to be overwhelming.  It wasn't just the rushing around getting presents, or the  holiday gatherings, or traffic.  I felt by the time Christmas Day loomed near that my cup had ranneth over and then dumped out completely.  Hence, the sort of half-assed attempt at a Christmas party on the 23rd.  And I'm not done yet.  Kids are still out for winter break and my niece decided that the week after Christmas would be the perfect time to get married.

So I'm taking a break.  

I know.  I'm sorry.  My rather lackluster streams lately have testified to the necessity of it.  I never want to do something that 1) I don't enjoy doing or 2) dread having to do.  You can really tell when someone has lost the spark, and the only losers are the awesome people who come to watch one stream.  I haven't lost my spark yet, but I fear it has dimmed somewhat.

So what to expect:

1- I am taking a break until next year.  The plan is to return to a full schedule of streams on Wednesday, January 3rd at the normal time.

2- I am modifying my schedule again.  The alternating Friday/Saturday evening schedules are too weird and confusing.  I am considering doing a day-time stream for Friday while the kids are in school, but I haven't decided that yet for sure.  The rough draft of it looks like Mon-Thurs in the evenings, with a day-time stream on Fridays and my Sunday stream with GirlStreamers.  I will defintely keep you guys updated and of course, post the new schedule on my channel.

One last thing to note -- winters are hard on my depression.  Yes, I suffer from depression with just a smattering anxiety mixed in just to make things interesting.  If I've learned anything over the years about having depression is if you neglect self-care, it makes depression worse and it takes longer to bounce back.  This is my self-care.  If you suffer from depression, don't make the mistake I did and wait for years and years to care for yourself.  Find help, learn about it, and know that the people around you care about you and only want you to be your best self.  Need help finding help?  Go to the Anxiety and Depression Association of America.

Thanks so much for understanding and supporting me.  Let's kick 2017 to the curb in a spectacular way and start over fresh in 2018.

~~~   Scrappywheelz  ~~~

Does he love me. . . does he love me not? Theron

So last night I finished the playthrough of my agent, Velvete's, storyline in the game.  I've been playing through it mostly so I can make notes for a story I've been working on.  And its interesting that some things  have been popping out at me as supportive of some of my fan theories about Theron Shan.

If you don't like SPOILERS, then stop reading now and come back after you played through Traitor Among the Chiss.

One of the biggest parts of my storyline with Theron and Velvete is their connection,  not just from their love for each other but also because as both of them are spies, there are some things that just don't need to be said between them.  And I'm not going to go down the whole list of places where Theron either proved to me that something more was up, or was so obvious a toddler could have gotten the hint (however, if, in the furture, a few people want to see my list I can post it in a different blog post).  I want to focus on a couple of things that popped up during and after I finished Traitor Among the Chiss.

The first one was what I'll start calling a Toddler Moment -  a hint done so obviously, the writer in me physically cringed watching it.  The moment I'm talking about is right at the end of the flashpoint where Theron is observing the holomap with the Chiss, Valss, and his hestitant "Yeah."  People aren't stupid.  If you're still in the pocesss of proving yourself to an organization, especially if they are illegal or have a dark purpose, like The Order of Zildrog is hinting at, any hesitation could be seen as not fully committed to the cause and thereby making you look suspicious. Certainly made me suspicious.  But I guess that's the point, we're supposed to question his motiviations.

The next is a very interesting letter I got from Theron after I got back to Odession.  It reads as such:

"I saw your message on the HoloNet.  I wish I could drop everything and leave with you.  Somewhere awa from all this war and death.  But that's just a nice dream -- reality is much harder.

Feels like I've fought for peace all my life, but everyone has let me down.  The Jedi, the Republic, even the Alliance.  The galaxy doesn't deserve this endless war for power.  I just want it to stop.  But now, I've finally figured out how to end the desctruction.  Trust that eveything I do is for the good of the galaxy.

I don't expect you to understand.  But however this ends, I just want you to know that I loved you from the moment I saw you.  And I always will."

Cryptic, much?  Possibly even a letter of intimation, dare I say?  Until we know all, all I have is supposition colored by hope.  I do hope Theron does come through, at least for Velvete.  Regardless of what happens to her, the galaxy will go on with or without the Alliance.  So I can't see why, even despite his best heroics his current plan falls apart, they can't reunite and fight through the aftermath together.  Time will tell, as it always does, as Lana says.

And since we are on a vein of romance today, let me share with you another letter I got about the same time.

"From: Arcann

Suject: The Alliance

We've spent such a short time as allies, but laready I feel a connection to the Alliance, and to you.  Your victories give me strength -- and I feel the sting of your setbacks.  This betrayal unsetttles me.

I realize you're strong enough to take care of the matter yourself.  I witnessed your power, not so long ago.  But as you protect the Alliance from this dangerous man, know that I am a weapon for you to wield however you see fit.  My hand is yours.  You need only ask."

Holy what???  I mean I have heard rumors that some time in the future they will be making Arcann a romanceable companion, but short of saying he's madly in love with me, its almost, ALMOST the same.  Guess time will tell on this one too!

What's your thoughts about any or all of it?  Do agree with my assessment?

No stream tonight.  And no stream on Saturday -- maybe.  I would normally stream this Saturday but we have Cmdr_Blackhorse's company party that night.  I might try a day time stream on Saturday, but only because I've been challenged to widen my gaming net and try Elder Scrolls Online.  Check Twitter for the most update to date gaming time updates, or check my channel's panel wall.

~~~  Scrappywheelz  ~~~~

Its beginning to look a lot like Christmas!

Write this down on a piece of paper and then nail or paste it to your wall:

Saturday

December 23rd

8pm MDT

twitch.tv/scrappywheelz

Christmas Party!

I love Christmas!  Its probably tied with Halloween in my favorite-O-meter for favorite holiday of the year.  And what's more fun than a Christmas party!  A Christmas party with cheesy Christmas music blasting in the background, games, and giveaways!  Join me for trivia, lots of Star Wars playing, laughing, and maybe some truth or dare if you have gotten some Scraps built up before hand!

While my Halloween party was a resounding success, there were some hiccups.  These I plan on not repeating and I have devised a system to make prize-giving much easier, consistent, timely, cost-effective and rewarding for all involved.  It will involve prizes being mainly procured through Amazon, Steam and gift cards.  I also plan on having some game specific prizes available that I already have in my hot little hands, though I really wish that you could gift Cartel Coins to someone.  Thankfully, Steam has already hopped on that bangwagon, even though it takes about 3 days from 'friend-ing' you before 'gifting' can occur.

Also just annoucned today, Nividia GeForce and SWTOR have teamed up to make the holidays even more jolly.  If you sign up for GeForce Experience client by December 13th, you'll get a slew of freebies.  The "Rule the Galaxy Story Pack" will contain:

• Full access to Knights of the Eternal Throne, if you don't already have it.
• An Outlander character token to boost one character to level 65.
• Chiss Talon Intercepter Airspeeder mount.
• Force Veteran's Armor Set.

Not too shabby.  And considering that Nividia has been pushing the GeForce Experience to anyone who has recently purchased a new graphics card or updated their drivers, this seems like a nice 'you're welcome' for having one more program hovering in the background on your computer.  Click HERE to download the client and be eligible for the giveaway.  You'll recieve the code for the redemption on December 13th within the client and you have until December 31st to redeem it.

Tonight is WoW Wednesday and Goblin Warlock leveling!  Join me!

Twitch.tv/scrappywheelz

~~~   Scrappywheelz   ~~~

Ch-ch-ch-changes . . . on my channel!

Green Screen Fail!

So you may have noticed a few changes already on my channel.  First was an ill-fated attempt at a DIY green screen.  We are now waiting for a properly colored backdrop to come in the mail.  In the mean time, you'll just see me in a little box in the corner until I can get this fixed and looking better!

While I am wearing the same headset, I'm not using the mic anymore!  My husband decided to surprise me with a Blue Snowball.  I love it.  I've always had a problem with the mic being in front of my face, and the Snowball solves this problem, not only because its a free standing mic that makes it unnecessary to do much adjusting of my desk set up to accommodate it.  It also sounds clear as a bell despite being 15 inches away from my face!

Lastly and most fun, I've added a few fun commands to the channel exclusively for my Followers.  They are sound bytes that can be played during the stream.  I plan on adding more but for now here are the ones you can use:

!booyah - sound of Cyborg saying 'booyah' !leia - 'from now on, we'll do as I say, k?' !strange - 'what a strange person' from Monty Python !vadar - 'i have you now' !wesley - 'shut up, wesley'

Let's not abuse these, k?

And for those who play Star Wars: The Old Republic and did not already know or see my Tweet yesterday - if you are interested in playing the new Traitor among the Chiss flashpoint with the cinematic, you must play it as Solo, not Story. Otherwise, you'll be looking at doing that flashpoint all over again (took me just over an hour to complete it the first time) just to see Theron's new do.

And be on the look out later in the week or on the weekend for information about my upcoming Christmas party!


~~~  Scrappywheelz  ~~~

For your FYI . . .

Welcome to your news bomb!  Lots of little bits that I think you'll find useful --

 

You might have noticed the names on the yellow leaves on my overlay.  Those wonderful people have subscribed at one point or another to my stream and I wanted to highlight them as a way of thanking them for their generosity.  The next time you see them in my channel, please give them a virtual high-five.

A Song Request system is now available on my stream!  Thursday night was  blast as some of my regulars tested it.  To access this feature, you just type in !sr or !songrequest in the chat box along with the name of the song or the link for it from YouTube.  Viewers of my stream have the ability to request up to five songs, but if you need more than that, asking me or my mod for extra requests shouldn't be a problem.

Did you know that you can get bits for free from Twitch?  Yes ma'am you can!  In the bottom right hand corner of the chat column you'll see a diamond-ish symbol next to the emotes symbol.  Click on it and it will prompt you to either pay for the bits OR watch a video.  You watch the video (commercial) all the way through and Twitch rewards you with 5 bits!  Its a nice way to cheer on your favorite Twitch content creator (me, of course!) without breaking the bank!

Through November 20th, get your free Special Forces gear in celebration of the new Star Wars: Battlefront II.  Go to www.swtor.com/redeem-code and enter the code SPECIALFORCES.  You'll find a little package in the mail the next time you log on, and its account wide!

Through November 27th, if you complete any three Group-finder PvE activities (flashpoints, heroics, ops) or three warzones, you'll  be eligible for a new companion, Darth Hexid.  She'll be showing up in your inboxes on November 28th if you complete the requirements for her eligibility.

Also, if you logged on at all between November 8th and November 27th, Karraga the Unyieldingly Little (aka Mini-Mogul NM-1) pet in the mail on November 28th.

Tonight would normally be a World of Warcraft night but considering there's still a lot of stuff to do since the server merges, I'll continue on with my kitty trooper leveling.  Feel free to stop by, say hello and request a song or two!

www.twitch.tv/scrappywheelz

~~~   Scrappywheelz   ~~~

The Problem with Theron

There are many feels when I write this blog post.  Very many feels.  I remember the day I first met him.  Tall, handsome, a little dorky, and a dead sexy voice performed by Troy Baker.  All the things a gunslinger or a sage could ask for, except, well, he was a little standoffish.  His awkward flirts were endearing for a while, and then became frustrating.  Did he have a problem with commitment?  He said otherwise, but his actions spoke volumes.  And then Yavin 4 happened and how could I not trust those brown eyes staring down at me?  But somewhere in my heart, I knew things couldn't last.  Not with him.  Not that I wished it.  It was just a gut instinct.

In heavily story based game play, things of this kind happen.  We fall in love with a character only to have the rug pulled out from under us.  And sometimes, it actually hurts like a break-up.  I hit the end of the train on Umbara and I just sat there in shock.  I had heard rumors.  I refused to believe them because there was no possible way Theron would betray me.  He had been by my side for so many adventures.  He had chided me when I tried to kill Senya and Arcann, but loved me anyway.  So it was like my guts being wrenched out when I stood there staring at him through the red-hued forcefield as he monologued about the Eternal Alliance and he looked me dead in the eye telling me he was going to kill me.

So here's the stupid thing.  I still can't accept for one moment that he truly betrayed me.  Despite his assassination attempt, I can't help but feel that something else is going on.  I can't put my finger on it.  When Lana and I were walking into the cab of the train, he had his gun trained on us the whole time.  If he had truly wanted to kill us, that would have been a golden opportunity.  But he didn't.  When he was ranting about alliances and rotting and takedowns, he still said "I love you, too."  And finally, the explosion.  Maybe if I had been less skilled, less experienced, I would have died in that train crash.  But I wasn't and I know he knew that.  That means it was only a cursory attempt on my life.  It means he wanted me and Lana to escape.  I know he cared for Lana too, having worked with her so long.

The question becomes - now what?  If he is truly a traitor, then would I have the strength to destroy him?  Would I be weak enough to let someone else do it for me?  If he is not a traitor, do I have the patience and faith to wait for his return?  Can I forgive him?  Do I want to?

Join me tonight on another adventure!

www.twitch.tv/scrappywheelz

~~~   Scrappywheelz   ~~~

Halloween Eve will be a Scream!

I'm sending out a last minute reminder to not miss my Halloween Eve party tonight starting at 8pm MST!  There will be games.  There will be music.  There will be prizes!!  Let me give you a rundown of what's up for grabs so far (prizes subject to change - but probably won't).

Funko Pop -- BB-8 figure, new in box

Two $10 Steam Virtual Gift Certificates*

Two Candy Coffee/Drink Cup Prizes

$10 Playstation Store Gift Card

Two 5000 Star Wars: The Old Republic Cartel Coin Virtual Gift Certificates*

I'm not kidding!  So join me for some WoW/SWTOR game action and a chance to win these fantastic prizes!

www.twitch.tv/scrappywheelz

* Virtual Gift Certificates are to be redeemed either in app or in game.  Steam gift certificates will be redeemed through the Game Gifting function.  This will require the winner to select the Steam item of their choice and be friended with Scrappywheelz in order to recieve the prize.  Star Wars: The Old Republic cartel coins can only be redeemed in game.  Selections for cartel market items will be selected by player and then items will be gifted through in game transfer - either in game character trade or though the mail.

~~~  Scrappywheelz  ~~~

GirlStreamer's Stream Team

I found out recently that a group I belong to has asked me to be on their stream team.  GirlStreamers is a group of women supporting each other in our shared passion of streaming live gameplay, creative arts, or whatever on Twitch, YouTube and other internet platforms.

When you first start streaming, there is a learning curve.  And it may not necessarily something you could figure out on your own.  So unless you know a person who has been streaming for a while, there's not really any place you can goo.  One of the great things about humans is we like community, even if its for the sense that you're not alone.  Fortunately, Twitch's whole bread and butter is community.  Not just game or interest communities, but also streamer communities.  So it was that when I first started streaming I was looking for somewhere to bounce ideas off of more knowledgeable people but also find other people that liked some of the same things I liked.  I had tried applying to one group who I only heard back from after I had been with my current group for a month.  Tried to tell me that my stream wasn't good enough in their opinion.  //shrug//  Lucky for me they did, because then I probably wouldn't have found GirlStreamers.

GirlStreamer's whole philosophy was inclusion in what ever form that means.  It doesn't matter if you've been streaming 5 minutes or 5 years, doesn't matter what game you play or if you don't play in favor of showing your creative side, doesn't matter if you're biologically female or just identify as such -- all are welcome.  So when I joined and got that first few 'welcomes' from ladies in the Discord chat of the group, I knew I had made the right decision.   I have been displaying proudly the Flower of Life on my Twitch overlays ever since.

Within the hierarchy of the group, there were a few tiers.  And one of the topmost was the "Stream Team".  Its something I had been working towards for the last few months.  I view it giving back to the group that has helped me through so much.  So what does that mean?  It means I'm locked into their servitude FOREVER!!  No, not really.  Here's the 411 --

How will this affect your current streaming schedule?

       *  Not at all.  In fact, I purposely chose a time where my schedule would be uninterrupted.  Same Bat Day, same Bat Time - Sunday's from 8pm MST to 10pm MST.

If you're on the GirlStreamer's Stream Team, what are you going to be streaming?

        *  The same thing I always do on Sunday  nights - Star Wars!

So if everything is the same, then why bother?

        *  Well, its not all the same.  You'll notice that my overlay will be different, representing the GirlStreamer's group.  And at some point, I will either play a commercial or send a shout out to one of GirlStreamer's sponsors.  

And its worth the bother -- not only because the way I will connect with my audience, streaming from GirlStreamer's Twitch channel, will plop me right in front of their audience, which is a lot bigger than mine.  Having that much exposure can at worst produce nothing at all and was the same before I started, or at best, it could be fantastic for my stream, bringing in new folks to my channel.

Let me give you a list of relevant links that relate to GirlStreamers and my streaming taking place tonight. --

Their Website & Twitter -- www.girlstreamers.com    @girlstreamers

Twitch Stream -- www.twitch.tv/girlstreamers_   (this is the addresss you want to use Sunday night!)

Some of our sponsors:  E-win Racing Gaming Chairs
                                      GLOMTOM - Gaming Accessories
                                      LootCrate - Gamer Subscription Box
                                      Simple Jerky
                                      Punks Paracord

Just ask me about the discount codes were offer as part of their sponsored stable!

I'm very excited for tonight and hope to see a bunch of you there.  Cause who better to screw stuff up in front of then your devoteds? LOL


~~~  Scrappywheelz  ~~~

TwitchCon Keynote 2017

I am not going to attempt pretend that all the cool things offered at TwitchCon I had any access to.  I did make it a point to watch the keynote address, since that's usually when you get the biggest goodies they have to offer so you can feel glad you spent all that money, took time off from work and family, so  you could be there to hear it.  This is my first TwitchCon in any format and their keynote did not disappoint.

Here are the highlights from Keynote:

1. Premiers - a way for content makers to showcase and advertise special content.  The keynote gave the example of one of their partnered beta testers put together a special edit of a few of her favorite moments.  According to her, it was like having a big party for all her viewers.  I can only imagine that if I understood Premier's format and intention, then this could be used to highlight any number of special events for your stream - fundraisers, giveaway parties, birthdays, etc the list could go on forever.
2. Achievements - This is #2 on my list of 'excited for' improvements on Twitch.  I had been gunning for Affliate since I first started streaming but the thing was, even though they listed out the minimum requirements for attaining Affliate, they basically just said under all that "When you reach this nebulous and unquantifiable goal, we'll send you a letter.  Just watch for it."  Ok so I was paraphrasing but that's what it was like.  With Achievements, gone is the mystery and uncertainy.  Achievements will spell out how to obtain both Affliate AND Partnership using defined goals, that once reached, will mean a guarentee invitation to each level.  While being able to see how close you are to reaching each level, based on the slide example, it could be used as a way of seeing where your stream is excelling and where it needs some work.  They are planning rolilng this out in November.
3. Stream Summary - Another fabulous addition for content creators.  As I mentioned, Achievements can be used as tool to improve your stream, Stream Summary was designed specifically for that.  It will break down different aspects of the last stream you had in to useful tidbits like most active chatter, number of follows/subs/donations, stream length and demographics for viewership, most clipped, etc.  All this information can be parlayed into a visual representation of the health of your stream, or places where you could improve.  End of November is when they annoucned this will be available.
4. Rooms - I girl-clapped and cringed at the same time.  This new Twitch functionality will have a lot of implications for your stream.  Imagine have the ability to have chat conversations with your viewers during a stream while able to chat in a separate chat with your mods or subs.  I adore this idea.  However, its just one more section of screen that I have to babysit during the 100 other things I'm trying to do during a stream.  Rooms will be available some time in December.
5. Rituals - they were very brief in mentioning this Twitch function, so I may have completely misunderstood Rituals' benefits other than Twitch's attempt to replace third-party apps or programs, such as Nightbot or Anhkbot.  From the slide it looked like it had new viewer greeting in chat functionality, as an example.  Hopefully Twitch will release further information before Rituals is released.
6. Extentions - Unless I'm some sort of special snowflake that I didn't know I was, I'm already using Twitch's Extentions.  StreamLab's offers an extention that gives my viewers a little bit more interactivity than I would normally have - automatic Scrap accumulation based length of viewership, a bouncing treasure chest with bonus Scraps that all my viewers need to do is use their mouse to click on their screen, a music queue if I wanted to use it, and Scrap redemption prizes that I create myself.  Regardless, sounds like they are full steam ahead to offer user made extention platforms that can only do really awesome stuff as a content creator.
7. Raids - Spend any time discussing Twitch and streaming and this will come up eventually.  For those not 'in the know', a raid when one streamer drop-hosts their viewers on another streamer.  The idea is usually a high-viewership streamer either drops their already accumulated viewership or plans in advance a viewership to drop on a streamer that they want to help out.  This is the holy grail of new streamers.  Apparently now, Twitch has bestowed their blessings and have sanctioned this idea and make it part of their offerings to streamers and viewers.  They were not very specific about how this would translate to any functionality of your Twitch options, so I'm hoping closer to its release date they will let us know how Raids will work in the future.
8. Gifting Subs - This is hands down #1 in my book.  And they announced that this ability will be available right before the Holidays.  My guess would be sometime before or close to Thanksgiving.

All these changes in general are very satisfying.  Any time Twitch can offer more user-friendly functionality or useful additions is always a good thing.




~~~   Scrappywheelz   ~~~

Its a Dead Man's Party . . .

https://katiecandrawblog.wordpress.com/

I'm sure you've noticed by now that I've changed my overlay to something a little more festive for the season.  I love Halloween!  I used to love it for the candy, but as I've gotten older its for the costumes and the parties.  So I'm having a PARTY!!  On Monday, October 30st, I am holding a Halloween Eve stream.  There will be games!  There will prizes!  There will be Star Wars!!

There will be plenty of prizes to win - SWTOR cartel coins, steam games, and the Piece d'Resistance -- A Funko Pop BB-8 figure!  Its new in package and so freaking adorable I don't know anyone who wouldn't want one.

So let's talk party!  Starting at 8pm MST, I will be streaming Star Wars: The Old Republic.  During the 4 hour stream,  we'll play games that will either earn you Scraps, gift cards, etc.  Then, at about 10:30pm MST I will do the raffle for the BB-8.  The longer you're in my stream, the better your chances to win.  Hint:  Join me for my regularly scheduled streams through the month and earn more Scraps to increase your chances to win as long as you're a follower.

Let's get loudy and rowdy! Rock to my awesome Halloween playlist and watch for the floating jack o' lantern for bonus Scraps.

Also a brief reminder that my Scrapping Cancer event is still going on.  Any bits given or donations made to Paypal will go directly to my nephew's cancer fund.  And he also has a YouCaring fundraiser as well, in case you'd rather donate to his fund more directly.  Any little bit helps!  Let's beat childhood cancer -- Go Team Gabe!

www.twitch.tv/scrappywheelz

~~~   Scrappywheelz   ~~~

TERA, Arsenal . . . New Gear Progression!

Ok so before my watchers start throwing old Jedi robes and burn out lightsabers at me let me explain.  Just as I was a founder for Star Wars: The Old Republic, so I am a founder for TERA as well.  Its gives me access to play at subscriber level without having to pay a sub fee every month.  Its gives an alternative if I start feeling a little burned out from SWTOR.  Plus, who doesn't love Team MLP!! (My squad of Elin all named after My Little Pony characters.)  And overall I like playing the game but not as much as I do SWTOR.

A friend of mine told me that TERA is getting ready for a major update come October 10th (what is up with major updates for the 10th??)  And one of the biggest is the new gear progession - new tiers,  new enchanting mats, new tier names!  That is one major overhaul.  So for all my friends who love TERA and are curious about the coming updates Tuesday, check out this super funny yet dorky video about the new gearing progression.  Good job, guys, on the vid!

~~~   Scrappywheelz   ~~~~

www.twitch.tv/scrappywheelz

Sub-tober, extended!

In the smallest blip at the top of the blog post, it was announced on Twitch's blog that they are extending half priced subs through October 18, 2017.  That gives you about 13 more days to show the love to your favorite content creator by subscribing to their channel.  As stated in the above graphic, get 50% off the 1st month of any new sub.

And speaking of showing the love, I'm still actively fundraising for my nephew, Gabe, who is in the hospital fighting lymphatic cancer.  All bits thrown my way and all PayPal donations made through my channel will all go towards the fund set up to help his parents with the expenses that come with being in the hospital for almost two months.  Not to mention that he will have to have at-home doses of chemotherapy until the doctors declare him in remission.  There is also a YouCaring account set up for him, if you'd rather donate directly.  Every little bit helps and is immensely appreciated!

Tonight we continue with Chapter XV: Battle of Odessen.  See you at 8:30pm MST at twitch.tv/scrappywheelz!



~~~   Scrappywheelz   ~~~

SWTOR Roadmap Reviewed

So my man of the hour, Keith Kannig, released the lastest roadmap for Star Wars: The Old Republic on Monday.  I'm one that will mull over things and see what other people are saying before I start throwing out opinions.  Hence the few days delay in my own review.

The future is quite beefy for the next couple of months.  The meat and potatoes of it all is the United Forces updates, starting with some major updates with the release of game update 5.5 on October 10, 2017.  The official release date for United Forces is November 8, 2017 where we will see some very juicy changes.

The first change is the most important and informs all the other exciting changes coming up.  Yes, we are seeing server merges this year!  On November 8, 2017, SWTOR will be consolidating what servers they have currently to the following:

There is a huge article regarding the mergers and how it should impact or not impact your characters, legacy, guilds and GTN.  For the sake of time, I'll refer you there.

With the new servers established, they have finally decided to implement a system people have been enjoying for a while in World of Warcraft - cross-server queuing.  This is not just for PvP or Flashpoints, this affects everything!  Uprisings, Ops, GSF are all included.  And if you haven't figured it out yet, this means shorter queue times because you have a bigger pool of people to pull from.  Unfortunately this will not affect the quality of the player one would queue up with, and they weren't exactly clear if the group organizing algorithm sets up a balanced group (tank, heals, dps), or its same ol', whatever-we-can-get group.  Regardless, the mere fact that queue times will be shorter is always a reason to celebrate.

Now on to the highlights!  And when I say meaty, I meant it!

-- Starting on November 8, 2017, they will be bringing back the double CXP/EXP bonus through November 14, 2017.
-- Be a subscriber from November 8 through November 27 and you will earn a new mini-pet, Mini Mogul (Karraga the Unyielding), to be delivered to your mailbox on November 28.
-- At the same time, you also have the ability to earn a new companion, Darth Hexid, by completing Group Finder PvE or PvP instances.  He, too, will be sent to you by mail on November 28.
-- United Forces PvE and PvP group finder achievements.
-- New Legacy perks - for every character you have at 300 galactic command level, you give your Legacy a 25% bonus cxp boost, up too 100%.  Apparently, you have to buy the first 25%, but then the other levels are free.  Even better -- these perks are retroactive!!

Now a word about Galactic Command Crates.  We are getting an additional crate slot which is meant to give an improved higher tier item drop rate.  This also includes a chance at Unassembled Components.  They are also planning on changing the way Disintegrate works.  Instead of command experience, it awards Unassembled Components.  This might be disappointing except for the fact they are making UC Legacy bound, making tiering up alts a lot easier.  People had been asking about a new gear tier.  There will not be one, though the roadmap did say they planned on making an upgraded augment available.

One of the more interesting parts is the new flashpoint "A Traitor Among the Chiss".  Ensign Temple will be returning, and we find out how what happened in "Crisis on Umbara" is directly linked to what the Traitor may be up to and why.  This flashpoint's release is scheduled to coincide with the United Forces release date of November 28.

And last but not least (in my opinion), the highlight of the roadmap.  They mentioned they will be allowing Legacy banks to hold credits.  Thank you!!  Toon hopping to find wayward credits gets really old, really fast.

So with all that said, what is your favorite part of the roadmap?  What are you looking forward to most?

Remember to join me tonight at 9pm MST for the continuation of my Veteran Mode Eternal Empire chapters, starting with my favorite chapter - Chapter XIV: Mandalore's Revenge.  You can find me at www.twitch.tv/scrappywheelz.

See you then!



~~~   Scrappywheelz   ~~~

Salt Lake Comic Con 2017

Salt Lake Comic Con is in its 5th year this year.  We've been to every single one.  And each time Dan Farr and Bryan Brandenburg find ways to not only improve upon a good thing, but always bring quality content.

Unfortunately for us, this was the poor year.  Well, we've never had a rich year but seems the finances were less tight around the time of the other years we've been to.  So things like photo ops and autograph signings were not in the budget.  But that really didn't matter because there was other things you could do that was included in with the price of the ticket.

We have a sort of tradition when we go to cons.  Unless there is a panel or something else we can't miss, we take a stroll through Artist Alley first.  You get a few bad apples in there (think - why would you pay money for a booth to embarrass yourself like that?) but for the most part, the art quality is amazing.  My daughter is obsessed with finding as much chibi and anime art as she can find.  Her big prize this year was finding the Tentacle Kitty booth and was estatic that she had the money to get one.  Its cute in its weird way.  It sort of went with her kitty cosplay theme.

A few artists that have done work for Magic: The Gathering were there also, and we admired it greatly.  My husband's always happy to see SaberForge there and he appreciated that this year they were offering mystery boxes so that you could get yourself a nice looking saber for less than normal asking price.  A new vendor I found there was Synthesis Studios, who made soap, lip balms and bath bombs.  They had a fantasy theme to most of them and I was impressed to find out that she made most of the molds she used for her soaps herself.  Sorry!  I really was going to buy something we just had to leave at an awkward time.  Probably next payday, you'll get an online order.

KidCon area was next.  In years past we've had such a good time.  But when we got there, there seemed almost nothing to do for the kids.  Jingles the Unicorn was there and she's always a favorite with the kids.  And they had a little race track for the kids to do races on, similar to the one they had at Game Con.  But the princess tea party wasn't there and there seemed to be less games available to play.  The story time area was empty most of the time.  There was no visible schedule for it so parents didn't know when to bring the kids for story time.  There was an author that tried to start a story time a little before we left.  He and another staff member at the Con tried their best to round up an audience for him, but the poor guy only got to read to a handful of kids.  I hope for the sake of KidCon that the powers that be focus on that part of the con as integral like they advertise it to be.  Pleasing kids is super easy and it doesn't take much decoration or much money to get them involved.  But it does take consistency and a little forethought to what kids like to do in order to not only engage them but help their parents encourage them.

Some things I'd like to see next year at the KidCon is:
* bring the princess tea party back.  Kids of either gender absolutely loved the princesses, and the ladies were always so nice and welcoming.
* Change the layout - put big kid stuff in the back and the littles stuff in the front.  Make sure that families aren't tripping over or having to run an obstacle course in order to get to the different sections.  Include vendor space either within or just outside KidCon.  You'll make parents happy not to have to search for kid friendly items, and you'll make vendors happy because they're easy to find.
* Post schedules!  You wouldn't not post a schedule for the panels.  You want people to show up for them.  Same with events at the KidCon.  Let parents know what is going on and when.  Put it on the website and available for view on the app.

Maverick gasoline stations booth was heaven to my oldest son.  They had a climbing wall!  He not only enjoyed the climbing wall a ton, but was so excited to get the freebie backpack they gave him.  Good job for thinking outside the box, Maverick.  I'm sure my son wasn't the only one who enjoyed it since it seemed to be non-stop busy.

I was disappointed that I didn't get to go to more panels than I did.  Seems that morning and the day before was a rush of unending things to do or be worried about.  So much so that I didn't even take a serious look at the day's schedule until it was half way through the day.  Brandon Mull's panels are always fun, with his stories and his goofy laugh.  My daughter and I were excited to hear about some of his upcoming novels.  It also reminded me that I hadn't finished a few of the other ones he had.  Gotta get on it!   The second panel we went to was a discussion on women in comics and movies and how their roles have evolved over the years.  It was a great discussion in the modern equalizing in gender roles and that's always a positive conversation for my daughter to hear.

And lastly, a grand high five to the guys at Gaming Con.  You should have seen my boys' eyes bug out of their head when they saw the console/computer set up near the entrance.  Like earlier in the summer, the consoles and computers were available to play for free, as long as people took turns and played nice.  It was a good distraction for them especially since they HATE shopping.

I'd say overall this year's Salt Lake Comic Con was pretty decent.  There are things I would change or recommend to improve.  However, our experience was, for the most, part fun. As always, they were able to bring in some pretty big names, and the stars had a good time here from some of the Tweets I've seen.  A big thank you to all the volunteers!  This con wouldn't run as smoothly if it wasn't for them.

Next up - continuing with my Veteran Mode Chapters with Jenna Ado on Wedneday, October 4th starting between 8:30 and 9pm MST.  Join me in my channel at www. twitch.tv/scrappywheelz!

Also, a reminder - all bits and direct Paypal donations made to me on my Twitch channel go directly to my nephew's fund as he fights lymphatic cancer.  For more information, or for a more direct way to donate to his fund, go to his YouCaring page - Team Gabe.



~~~   Scrappywheelz   ~~~

Schedule Change -- Again!

I know.  I know.  Its only been about six weeks since the last change.  But I think this new schedule will not only fit the week better, but it also allows my family some together time right in the middle of busy school and work schedules.  So . . . .

Monday --      8:30pm - 12pm
Tuesday --      Day Off
Wednesday -   8:30pm - 12pm
Thurday --      8:30pm - 12pm
Friday -          Alternating Weeks
                       On week - 8:30pm - 12pm
Saturday -       Alternating Weeks
                       On week - 8:30pm - 12pm
Sunday -         Varies - check Twitch

All times are in Moutain Standard Time and at this point anything goes with what game I play.  I'm more inclined to play Star Wars:  The Old Republic, but every once in a while I'll get a wild hair to play Hearthstone.  I only play World of Warcraft if my husband forces me too.  [Insert teenagery pout].  Hey, and what do you know!  Halloween happens to fall on a Tuesday this year so I won't have to take any extra days off for that!

Speaking of Halloween -- what do you think of my new overlay?  Let me know either in chat when I'm live on Twitch or make a comment below.  I love FALL!!

Don't forget!  Twtich if offering half price subs for the month of September!  You've got three days left to take advantage of this!

Also, any bits donated or direct Paypal donations made while my nephew is in the hospital will be going entirely to his cancer fund.    You can also make a direct donation at YouCaring in his name if you feel so prompted.

And working on getting the Umbara Train Stronghold today so please join me in the fun!

www.twitch.tv/scrappywheelz

~~~  Scrappywheelz   ~~~

Scrapping Cancer

I remember I was at my daughter's parent teacher's conference.  I got a call from my sister, who through her tears, told me that my nephew had been diagnosed with cancer.  I'm pretty sure getting hit in the head with a brick would have been less surprising.  My 15 year old nephew, my brother's son, has cancer.  No one else in our family had cancer.  Ok well, melanoma.  We're all of northwestern European descent - Irish, Scottish, English, German.  We don't do sun.  But melanoma caught early almost never kills you.  But this was different.  This was lymphoma and that definitely could kill you.  And that's what rang through my head when I heard the news - No one in our family has cancer!  We don't have risk factors for cancer (except melanoma)!  What is going on?

We still don't know what is going on for sure.  At this point we know its T-cell lymphatic cancer.  It hasn't spread to his bone marrow, his spinal fluid looks good, and the doctors were pretty sure that it was contained to the lymph nodes under his jaw.  That's all fine and well - all that stuff. But as anyone who has had or has known someone with cancer, cancer's only the tip of the iceburg.  He's dealing with fluid around  his heart and lungs, with kidneys that are malfunctioning.  Having to get naked in front of female nurses!  Its all so overwhelming to me, I can't image what its like for him.  The doctors that have seen him have all had encouraging words for us.  Its as good as it could be if its going to be cancer, which to me really is like them pointing up to a mountain peak where the sun is peeking over and saying, "Once you get to the top, you'll be fine."  Its great that you can see the peak, the sun.  But you still have a long way to get there.  And its going to be hard, frustrating, terrifying, hurtful, and altering that as you go along you just hope its all worth it.

For about the next month or so, any bit you donate, or any direct donation made to my PayPal will 100% go to Gabriel's hospital fund.  I'll donate it for as long as he's in the hospital, which from optimistic estimates will be for at least a month.  Let's mitigate the nausea my brother and sister-in-law will feel when they get the bill for the hospital when he gets better.  If you'd rather go a more direct route I've also included a link for his YouCaring fundraiser below.  Any little bit helps - seriously.

Team Gabe You Caring Fundraiser

~~~   Scrappywheelz   ~~~

Schedule Shakeup

So tonight I normally don't stream.  Except I am.  And this Friday I wouldn't normally stream either, and I won't, however I will be doing a short live stream.  Why, you ask??

Cause I'll be at Salt Lake Comic Con!

Super excited to be going to one of my favorite places with the family.  We won't be doing any celebrity hounding this year but its ok because there's so much more to do than stand in long lines and listen to two dudes argue the virtues and vices of Kirk and Picard.  (Picard completely blows Kirk out of the water in intelligence, sophistication and sexiness - just sayin.)

So tonight in my semi-obsessive need to have all the healers, I might be leveling my agent some.  One thing I haven't really tried in Star Wars: The Old Republic is PvP healing.  None of the classes are really great for that.  Merc healers can be quite mobile with their heals and they get some nice shield procs and protective bubbles, but they only have one really good 'get out of stun lock free' and its cooldown makes it pretty unimpressive.  Sorcerer heals just got a nice big nerf stick to the face not too long ago and so while they have some nice abilities for heals on the run and escapes, they've seen a big loss in pure healing umph.  Which leaves me with the agent.

I have to admit.  Agent was fun to level but its not very much fun to play otherwise (note: IMO). As I've said before, I'm not a fan of melee DPS.  I much prefer ranged but agents as much as Gunslinger Smugglers suffer from ridiculously long cast times for their abilities with little to no mobility at all, if you want to cast the hard hitters.  I seriously tip my hat to the players that make the Sniper/Gunglslinger a viable and deadly class in PvP.  I just can't find the knack for it.  Which leads into some of the things I do not like about the agent heals.  Agent heals are less mobile than mercs, and they have more potential healing ability than sorcs.  But their abilities suffer from longish cast times.  The only thing, for me, that makes the agent rise above the rest for PvP is all its lovely escapes.  Which, having rarely played stealth classes, will be the hardest thing for me to learn and make intuitive.

So here's to throwing myself in the pool and making myself learn to swim so to speak.  And I'm going to do all for your enjoyment!

Here goes nothing -    www.twitch.tv/scrappywheelz

Also remember, you still have time to sub to your favorite Twitch-er for half off the normal sub price!  SubTember is almost over so make sure you take advantage of this fantastic offer while it lasts.


~~~   Scrappywheelz   ~~~

Bits and Scraps

Like I promised, I have finally implemented a few new features!  Not only do I have a tip mug

You can now visually see those bit cheers when you tip!  Throw as many bits as you like in my mug, and watch the magic.

Bits are fun but you do not need to donate them to participate in my stream.

Introducing - scraps!  For every 5 minutes you watch my live stream, you will receive 5 scraps!  Scraps can be used for playing games on my stream, or redeeming prizes.

You might have noticed that there is a button on the lower righthand of my screen.  This is the menu button where you play games, redeem scraps and request songs from SoundCloud.

Here is the initial offerings for scraps:

Also watch for the bouncing chest!  If you see one bouncing around my screen, click on it for a reward!  The amounts contained in the chest will change from time to time so you'll never know how much you're going to get.

I'll be streaming tonight at 9pm MST.  Tonight's adventure will be the follow up chapter to the Revan series - Ziost!  Please feel free to join me and earn those scraps!

And don't forget - September is SubTember at Twitch.  All month long any level of subscriptions are 50% off for your first month's subscription to your favorite streamer.  My sub button is in the upper right hand corner of my stream!

www.twitch.tv/scrappywheelz

~~~   Scrappywheelz  ~~~

Half Price Subs! and Revan

No, not that kind of sub!  Subscriptions!  During the month of September, Twitch is offering you the chance to support my stream for your first month for only $2.99 - half off the normal $4.99 pricetag.  SUBtember is here! (That one wasn't mine.  Blame Twitch.) Do you have to sub to enjoy my awkward and nerdy antics?  Of course not.  I don't normally pander the fact that I'm affiliated.  I figure if that's something you are interested in the button in the upper right hand corner of my screen next to the Follow button should be enough of a clue.  But since this something outside the norm, I'd figure I'd let you know about it!  If this something that interests you, great!  Let's rock and roll.  If not, great!  Let's rock and roll.

Did you also know that if you are an Amazon Prime member you are also eligible for an upgrade to Twitch Prime for free?  Yes!  Meaning commercial-free streams, access to monthly gaming specials and freebies and the ability to subscribe to one of your favorite Twitch channels for no extra out of pocket (meaning you don't have pony up another $5 [normally] a month).  That would be me, right?

So all this information directs you to one big question - "Why would you do that?".  Well, outside of the fact that I'm awesome which would be fairly specious of me to say, I've got lots of fun things planned for the folk who do subscribe to me coming up in the near future.  I've already hinted at one of them in a previous post, so keep your eye out for more updates.

DarthTemoc Deviantart

Revan!  What more can I say about this enigmatic force-user other than he is fascinating?  Now don't get all excited.  I have not read one word of any other EU Star Wars books on him (don't worry I have had friends chastise me on this already).  I didn't even know he was a thing until I started playing my first warrior in Star Wars: The Old Republic.  But ever since I played that first questline in Dromand Kaas (now located at The Wall), the duality of his nature, his seeming inability to assimilate both his light and dark sides has intrigued me.  Because let's be honest.  Who hasn't warred with aspects of their own nature in their way?  Who hasn't discovered that one decision changed the whole direction of your entire future, for good or for bad?

So for the next few play dates, I'll be focusing on playing out the entire Revan storyline that should take me from Mask of Revan on Dromand Kaas to Call to Arms for Boarding Party and The Foundry to Shadow of Revan on Rishi andYavin 4.  It should be a fun ride!

Hope to see you there!


~~~   Scrappywheelz   ~~~

Get all the CXP!

So in case you haven't heard, the powers that be at Star Wars: The Old Republic decided to unintentionally extend the bonus command experience gained in Black Hole, Oricon, Czerka, Yavin 4, Ziost, and Section X  dailies.  Apparently due to a glitch with this last patch, the bonus experience continued past maintenance this last Tuesday.  Sooooo, have fun and hurry and taken advantage of it while you can!  They've stated that they will not be doing anything to fix this until patch 5.5 comes out sometime at the end of September or beginning of October.

I admit I came to appreciate CXP a little late to the game and so I'm trying make up for lost time.  One tip I've found extremely useful, especially if you play on a high population server, is the PvP zone instance.  Certain nodes and updates can be positively painful to obtain with rude people ganking them while you're fighting the mobs around them or waiting for overly long respawn times.  Not to mention just the simple fact that you've got 20 other people in the same zone doing the same things and well, you get the picture.  Transferring to the PvP instance has in most, if not all of the incidences that we've done, have been fairly empty of other players, regardless of faction.  Of all the times we've run in the PvP instance, we've had only two events where we actually had to PvP.  First was two stealthies decided to jump us in Section X.  Problem for them was that we were better geared and probably had more PvP experience than them.  They managed to kill 2 of the 3 of us, but made the mistake of sticking around long enough for us to pop back up and get some health back.  Suffice to say, there were two dead stealthies after that.  The other was a target of opportunity that one of my guildies could not resist taking.  I actually felt sort of bad for the guy since he was only trying to get his dailies done and probably didn't expect to be messed with.  So while its mostly peaceful on the PvP instance, just be prepared.

I should also mention that the Umbara exploit is still in place until the next maintenance.  As stated in the above link, Eric Musco has warned that they are fully aware of this exploit and plans on penalizing anyone who took advantage of it!

Lastly, I want to sending out prayers of safety to my viewers and friends in the Southeast right now as they prepare for Irma to make landfall.  Just as with Harvey, Irma is expected to be particularly devastating as one of the largest documented hurricanes on record.  I encourage everyone to take a minute or two to consider making donations to agencies who are surely on call at this minute to help people get back on their feet again.  Heaven knows they are going to need it.

Here are some reputable charities with proven track records:

Global Giving
Red Cross
Salvation Army
LDS Church Humanitarian Aid Fund (100% of funds donated are used for relief services, not administration)
Florida Humane Society
Florida SPCA

Again, I can't stress enough - please know who you are giving your money to before you hand over your credit card or cash.  Unscrupulous people are out in force right now trying to take advantage of the misfortune of others by swindling you of your money.

Join me tomorrow while stream World of Warcraft tomorrow afternoon!  www.twitch.tv/scrappywheelz

~~~~   Scrappywheelz    ~~~