"Fierce and garnered with the weapons of a savage. The Marauder is all energy; brute force mixed with relentless pain. They walk and they glare as they take into sights the next victim of their wrath..."

Do you like being able to destroy anything wearing flowing robes and the like? Then you will love playing a Marauder! The Marauder brings sustainable damage output and pretty good resilience. They shine against any class unable to heal itself or wearing sheet metal for armor.

A great example of how strong a Marauder can be is easily found in RVR (realm vs realm) combat. I entered the RVR battleground at level 2 (gotta love the instant immersion of Warhammer)! So, I figured I would get destroyed, but it would be fun none the less! So, I enter and my first encounter is with a level 9 bright wizard.

The wizard is basically a fire spell user wearing toilet paper armor. So, I engage him and to my surprise and awe...we both die. I figured I would hurt him a little, but I did not think I would kill him as well! I died first, but he was bleeding and that ended his glory shortly after!

To be fair, RVR combat how a slight normalization to it. Simply, when you enter RVR battleground, everyone is granted at least level 8 in health points, to make it fun for everyone. So, the lowbies of the group aren't picked off so easily. So, while the bright wizard had far more of his abilities being 7 levels higher, I had enough health point to fight him long enough.

Ok, all that being said, let me say that Marauder is quite the fun class. If you have seen the cinematic preview for the game, then you have seen the arm mutating Marauder class. Basically you change you arm into a sword, a claw or a mace (thus far anyway). Each mutation is used for different situation. For example, the mace is used when you think you may need to take excessive damage.

The part I enjoy about the Marauder the most is the heavy damage output. After playing "The Chosen" I was shocked at how much harder I could hit now. My best skill at this point ( I am level 8, by the way) is a bleed. The skill cuts my opponent to force him to take damage over 9 seconds. I can amplify this bleed 3 times (a 3 stack) that make them bleed for a lot of damage. It is the staple of my damage output and if I were you, I would fall in love with this attack very quickly!

To summarize, as a Marauder you are a damage dealing machine. You mutate your arm to fit every situation and you pummel things into submission. Definitely lacks the smooth style of "The Chosen" but present you with a true instrument of chaos. You go in, you hurt things, then you go home. Enjoyable for sure, I can only hope the leveling brings even more diversity and utility. Either way, I can see playing this class quite a bit!

As always, if you have questions or want to see me try something, just say so!

"Cursed with the shadow of resilience and a body ripe for pain. 'The Chosen' are built for the glory of the front lines. They curse their enemies with a fury of dark power and absorb attacks to protect their allies. Walking in the shadow of a Chosen will truly bring a sense of confidence...a sense of victory. The punishment is coming...and they will take it for you."

So, yeah, The Chosen! This was the first class that really caught my eye. A heavy armor, shadow magic user. So, basically a tank (tank = the front line damage taker) who has a generic knowledge of magic. Personally, I liked how they looked and the concept of the class, thus I tried them first!

First impressions pre-level 10: Ok, so your a tank, but right off the bat you can grab a "great weapon" otherwise known as a 2-handed weapon. What this will do is allow you to slay your foes faster while still not taking massive damage. Again, you are in heavy armor.

The basic shadow spells you use are known as curses. A curse is an aura like spell that surround your character. Any foes in the radius will receive a negative curse event when in proximity to you, while allies will receive the positive effect of the curse.

For Example: If you have a curse that increases your strength by 25 points, thus making your 25 points stronger in melee combat, then all of your allies will also receive this curse (buff - an enhancement to your character). In addition now, every enemy you fight will receive a minus 25 strength curse (de-buff). So, it is a 50 strength swing in your favor!

The curse spells work as long as you keep them active. If you switch from one curse aura to another, you will have two for 12 seconds. Basically, when a curse is switched the curse you switched away from, lasts 12 seconds after being removed. So, for 12 seconds you can have 2 curses! In addition, the curses can be switched every 4 seconds. What this means, is that you can have 3 curses on at any given time if you switch them every time the 4 seconds timer has passed!

Example:
Activate Curse 1
Wait 4 seconds

Activate Curse 2
Wait 4 seconds
Curse 1 has 8 seconds remaining

Activate Curse 3
Wait 4 seconds
Curse 2 has 8 seconds remaining
Curse 1 has 4 Seconds remaining

Then re-activate Curse 1 and you can have a continuous cycle of 3 active curses! It is one of the most involved systems I have seen in a game. Curses are flowing and you still also have your full arsenal of skills! The skills are pretty basic and perhaps in the future we will go more in depth on some. Let's just say you get your threat generating skills (they make the enemy attack you instead of your friends) nice and early!

So, my initial impressions are high. Good depth and strong diversity of skills right from the beginning. Not only are you a front line damage shield, but you can go out there and solo quest too. You can smack someone with a big axe or toss on a shield and let the bad guys pound on it for a while (*yawn* and relax while this occurs).

Not that it matters to all, but using the curses looks quite cool. You shoot shadowy smoke all around you with some and blue ripples on others. If anything, you can pretend to be amazing on looks alone!

I will expand more in future entries! If you have questions or want a particular aspect of 'The Chosen' covered, simply ask!

"Timid and cautious, you step your feet out of your home. The step is cold and shuttering with nerves. It is time to become the hero you were meant to be...in the age of war and destruction. It is time for Warhammer. It is time..."

Taking your first steps into Warhammer are quite the experience. Especially if you just watched the introduction trailer and you have your sound on. It is truly an epic experience. A voice talks as you see the panoramic view of your starting area. Then the camera zooms onto you, as you being your journey! Very good start!

So, as soon as you being playing, you are in a basic camp and you start to explore. The help text start to pop up on your screen to get you going (I have to say, it's some quality help text). Some things I liked right from the beginning:

- Great help text
- Everything is close (merchants, trainers, etc.)
- Open grouping!!!
- Red circles on the map where your quest destination is
- RVR (player vs player battles) is 1 click away at all times!
- Ridiculous instant immersion
- Gear diversity right from the beginning

Things I did not like:
- The crafting professions are 25% engaging and 75% tedious
- the Social tab is not easy to use (I still cannot figure out how to see who's online in my guild)

OK, so, since I have a short list of dislikes, I will simply say this: The crafting professions are simple and need some work to give them depth. Talisman making is an awesome concept, but the materials come slower than the leveling process, thus hindering your ability to keep up with it. I still enjoy it, it just feels a bit like a chore you keep putting off. (side note: if you like, you could ease the pain by simply buying 10 of a green item on a vendor!)

My travels are only just beginning! More of the journey shall be past along in time...like...soonish maybe kinda?

Which class will I play!!?? That is one of the harder questions to answer. I really want to try something new and something that can be made to do many things (a hybrid, if you will). It shouldn't be hard, it not like I am trying to run the Oakland Raiders here. Reading descriptions alone, here are the contenders:

Chaos - "The Chosen" - From everything I can gather, these are tanks with some shadow magic knowledge. I love the concept and it is definitely near the top of my list.

Chaos - "Marauder" - This is a melee damaging class with a mutating arm! Quite interesting concept and quite cool looking character models. Also, near the top.

Greenskin - "Squig herder" - A class focused on using pets. I experienced this type of class in every MMO I have played and have loved it each time. My thought this go round is to try something different, so this may not be the winner given it's likeness to past characters.

Dark Elf - "Disciple of Khaine" - This is a melee healer class. Amazing concept, but hard to gauge the role you would play. Essentially, I can almost imagine a healing tank who survives via self heals on top of others heals. Maybe it is designed to be over-powered in RVR (Realm versus Realm) combat? I am not sure, but I do intend to figure it out!

Since descriptions cannot tell me enough (in past games I knew right away what I wanted to play) I am going to play all 4. I will try each, level each and when they are all level 10+ then i am sure one will truly strike me as amazingly fun!

Something swaying my decision that probably shouldn't...race. I really like the models of the Chaos race. They look sort of human-like with an undead flavor. Also, the dark elf males look so lame (and uppity somehow) to me. Greenskins are fine, but no flare, just the Orc's and Goblins we have all grown to love!

Let the adventure begin! I hope you all enjoy the ride and my blog! If YOU want me to try something, just say so! I will gladly try new classes and give them a try and let you know what I think!

let the Age of Reckoning (for me) begin!

So, you may be wondering, why do have I chosen to play for the forces of Destruction? Why do I want to be a 'bad' guy? Well, I truly feel like it is time to take the Order focused world and shake it into Chaos. bring the Order to an end for a true and free life!

In all seriousness, I am playing on the Destruction side for one main reason: Solo heroism. I have played two MMO-RPG's in my day (definition: MMO-RPG - Massive Multi-Player Online Role Playing Game). The two are: Star Wars Galaxies (SWG) and World of Warcraft (WOW). I loved them both at a time and hated them both at a time. The glaring similarity that bothered me the most: playing a "good" guy.

Side Note: MMO-RPG's (for you rookies) are games with no end (in theory). When you reach the maximum level attainable, then you simply begin to enjoy "end-game" content. This is content set aside for max level players. These games are constantly adding content so you never run out of things to do. No one can say "I have done everything possible in The World of Warcraft" and no one ever will be able to say that. The games are too diverse and too fluid for this to be true.

Think of it as a Super Mario where you constantly upgraded your overalls and got a more powerful fireball to spit. One that would eventually stun enemies for 2 seconds randomly so you could squash them. To boot, Mario would every couple of months get some new castles to conquer and more new and improved Bowsers to fight. Also, in this Mario game, all of Mario's friends would be around to help you! They would join you for the more difficult castles and help you save the princess! That a rough explanation, but you'll take it! :)

So, where were we...aha! The nerdology report! - I like the idea of fighting for freedom and justice and all things good and pure (as promised...cliche's). The drawback? So does every selfish, solo hero in the universe. Man is it hard to play a game on a side that revels on their solo glory. So much so, that the team is destroyed because of it. This aspect of the game comes into play primarily when you are doing PVP (player vs. player) combat. This is the part of the game that is real players all over the world, fighting each other.

As a good guy, you would think your allies would rally to your aid. Quite the contrary, as you call for help as a 'good' guy in SWG or WOW; expect to be ignored so everyone can go for their own personal goals. It isn't about the objectives or the team success! It is about the individual solo heroism of each person! NO!! This is why I must give in to the dark side. I must go to chaos to find justice if you will. I have sat in battles and watched a smaller opposing group of "bad guy" players save each other and play as a team as they build support (through teamwork) and then demolish the vast group of sporadic good guys.

All that considered. It is time for a change. I want to call for help and my calls be answered. I want to fight with a group of players who revel in team glory and battles won as opposed to individual kills that make no difference in the War. Oddly, you would think the bad guys would be played by the solo hero's and the "jerks" that only think of themselves. It is quite the contrary in almost all cases I have seen. The teenagers and young-lings and old people and everyone in between who play the bad guys...they want to WIN.

So, if they have to die 50 times in a row to save a tower from being seized, then they will do it. The good guys? They are busy chasing some lowly peon Orc into the open plains while his Towers are burned to the ground. Which would you prefer? To be awesome and occasionally have a moment of personal glory to the detriment of your side winning. -OR- To sit in keeps and bask in constant victories and massive tactical gains.

To put it in perspective; a kill in a losing battle is like you made the minimum payment on one credit card. A victory is like paying off five credit cards in full. That's how much more important a battle win is, over a single kill. Good guys get distracted, they chase the decoy's out in the middle to pwn their faces! (definition: pwn - Originated from the word "own" - people would mis-click the 'p' which is right next the 'o' on the keyboard. So, pwn became an ever popular way to explain your ownage of someones face. Teh = also quite popular!)

As the good guy chases the decoy around? His side is decimated as his keeps burn and watch towers are seized. More than likely his side had a brave soul screaming "To the North keep!! Please, get to the north keep!!". All for nothing, the solo heroes had killin' to do out in the middle of Worthlesstothebattleville.

Can you feel the love for the good guys that I have?! Sorry if this post seems rant like, but I wanted everyone to know why and where my desire to play a member of the forces of Destruction came from.

Questions? Ask them! :)

Welcome to all who decide to read my blog about my fake life of Waaargh! This first post will be written as if I am a normal person. The rest shall be full of good times and much more fantasy rich bloggafying (that's right... new words too!), thus more than likely to lead you down the path of belief. Belief in what you ask? In my deep rooted desire to bring chaos to the face of order. To bring the elitist scum back down to earth where they belong. To let the blood of my enemies show my disdain for order!! /end 'evil rage'

In a nutshell, I shall share my jouney's with you as I take my steps into Warhammer and fight the forces of Order. If Warhammer is foreign to you (get with it already!), then let me share a short synopsis with you. Warhammer is a game of war (or "Waaargh" this has become an increasingly famous pronunciation- think of it as the way a goblin would say 'war'). The War is between Order ("good" guys) and Destruction ("bad" guys). Calling one side good or one side bad is the same as debating any issue. It is a matter of perspective really.

I am sure some people called terrorists may be freedom fighters where they are from. Also, some people may consider bananas to be too yellow. All I am saying is whichever side you decide to fight on, make sure you do it for the right reasons...the way they look!!

For a nice detailed look at Warhammer, please go here.

My goal is to share experiences, knowledge and my take on things (should be 10% witty and 90% self serving). Also, I will try things out that my readers would like to see as well as sometimes going full nerd. In these moments, you may see great posts that tell a story of my character - an epic tale if you will!

Some things I am not: A perfect writer, though close, mistakes will be made. I promise to abuse the semi-colon; sometimes i may even destroy a comma, or two! Also, I am truly not a funny person. People tell me I am the funniest person they have ever met and ever will meet, but these people make up a small % of the people I meet (96.3% of them). So, let's just chalk me up to be unfunny, but giving 40% effort towards being moderately clever.

Well, I will attempt to blog anywhere from two to four times per week (no promises!). If anyone wants me to write about something specific, try something new or simply debate them on an issue...your dreams are only a comment away! (or an e-mail if you so please).

I hope you enjoy your stay in My Warhammer Life!