animal crossing new horizons post

content/articles/animalcrossing-newhorizons.md

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+showonlyimage = false
+draft = false
+imageActive = "gif/acnh.gif"
+image = "gif/acnh_still.gif"
+date = "2020-04-05"
+title = "Animal Crossing: New Horizons Adventure Blog"
+tags = ['Animal Crossing']
+game_name = 'Animal Crossing: New Horizons'
+Description = 'It is a fresh breeze indeed as the Island unfolds, buildings appear, and I sweat my ass off trying to collect enough lumber and clay to satisfy even the most grumpy of Tom Nooks. Welcome to the latest installment of Animal Crossing!'
+game_platform = 'switch'
+game_genre = 'Life sim'
+game_release_year = '2020'
+game_developer = 'Nintendo'
+weight = 0
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+
+Remember the [Animal Crossing: Wild World Adventure Blog post](/articles/animalcrossing-wildworld/)? Well, after a _very_ long wait, the newest installment of Animal Crossing, called New Horizons, finally arrived on the Nintendo Switch. For the first time since the original installment on the Gamecube, it has come back to home consoles! It only seemed appropriate to continue the **AC adventure blog**, from way back in 2006, to see what kind of trouble my character would get himself into while trying to build a community in the new Island. 
+
+### Easter is (almost) upon us...
+
+<div style="text-align: right;">[ Date: 05/04/2020 | <a href="#top">top</a> ]</div>
+
+... And it proves to be hell on earth. It's raining balloon gifts, and they are all easter-flavored: a certain bunny hopped by and told me to nab as many hidden eggs as possible. Sometimes, a gift I shot down contained DIY recipes for those eggs. Don't you love seasonal presents? They can only be made/given in a certain time frame, and after the 12th of this month, it's game over for the easter bunny. I remember gathering acorns in [Wild World](/articles/animalcrossing-wildworld/) like it was yesterday, so naturally I set to work.
+
+![](/img/games/ac/nhpasen.jpg)
+
+After decorating my head, my door, and all other inhabitants by forcing gifts upon them, I think I've had enough eggs for the week. The trouble is, they all take up inventory space - of course they do. There are air eggs (you shoot down), earth eggs (you dig up), leaf eggs (you shake down), water eggs (you fish out), and stone eggs (you shovel out). It's one big feast, and one big mess trying to manage item space. 
+
+The most frustrating thing about the upcoming easter festivities is that my precious _clay_ resource does not appear as often as I would have liked because of those pesky stone eggs. Now I have to visit islands (thus gathering Nook Miles) to hit even more rocks. Yay!
+
+### Even Guilliver is on Tech now
+
+<div style="text-align: right;">[ Date: 03/04/2020 | <a href="#top">top</a> ]</div>
+
+Yup, I came across that sleepyhead again. He landed on the beaches of _Poezista_, trying to message his comrades, using a modern tool no less. However, not only the reception is bad, but the thing was utterly broken. Guess what, I had to go on a hunt for resources! But first, clear out some inventory space please, because five broken parts need to be dug up somewhere in the area on the beach. 
+
+![](/img/games/ac/nhohmygosh.jpg)
+
+The guy was kind enough to send me a present via mail the day after. Not that I was really into the Tiki lady figurine that resembles a bobblehead, but hey: my tiny living room needed that piece of furniture to cheer up the place a bit. I hope that mortgage will be paid soon, maybe a bathroom won't be bad. I managed to craft myself a _shell rug_ using three giant clams I found on the beach, so that's not bad!
+
+### Where's all that money at? DIY!
+
+<div style="text-align: right;">[ Date: 01/04/2020 | <a href="#top">top</a> ]</div>
+
+One of the coolest, and also annoying, additions to New Horizons is the Do It Yourself attitude. You can craft items (and even tools) yourself - oh sorry, scratch that (ha!): you **must** craft certain things yourself. Well, not entirely, Timmy also sells Flimsy Fishing Nets, but you don't exactly want to spend more than 400 bells on something you can whip up in a matter of... minutes? Shaking trees: branches, check. Hitting rocks: stones, check. My pockets are constantly full with garbage: soft wood, hard wood, stones, clay, the occasional golden nugget, ... 
+
+Luckily, Tom Nook's Shack (that hopefully will get upgraded some day, they only sell shit over there!) is also willing to buy my handmade things. That's where things get interesting: once a day a certain DIY item is worth twice that price. And if that item is an umbrella you can easily make out of clumps of weed, it's time to pull some weeds! 
+
+![](/img/games/ac/nhumbreallas.jpg)
+
+I think I sold more than 20 umbrellas that day. It was a good day. My 189.000 bells loan got paid off quickly. Now I have a 345.000 bells loan... Ouch. The core of the game hasn't changed much: it's still a grueling grind, and it's still ever so lovely and addicting! 

content/articles/bg1-ee.md

@@ -19,22 +19,22 @@ That was a decision we regretted after a few more fistfights in the woods. When
 
 However, he is usually the second to die when not hanging in the back. Jaheira is probably the first. Instead of mourning her dead husband, she stays 'dead' silent. The couple from the Friendly Arm Inn looked cute to us, and we were in dire need of help, so we took them in, or they took us in. But Khalid happened to be a crybaby, and we can't stand those anymore now, can we? Right, Garrick? K-k-khalid also g-g-ot what he deserved. By simpling sending him into the fray without any armor on, the guy died silently. We grieved for about a second or two, looted his corpse, and spit on it. "Now, Jaheira, you're given a choice. Join us, use your druidic skills, or also dy trying. What do you say?" As she didn't say anything, we figured she would be willing to try. 
 
-Mother nature awaits. But, the Omnipresent Authority Figure is always looking to tell others what to do. And perhaps this group does not need as much help as she think it would. As these phrases are among the favorites of Jaheira's things to say, most party members need to resist the urge to bash in her head, as we did with her husband. At least she can heal some wounds and cast Summon Insects and Call Woodbeing. And Since Dimitrius, our great leader, is looking for "multi-talented people", he has a soft spot for multi- and dualclassed people like her. Dimitrius himself is an adept Berseker, planning to go rogue by classing into a mage at level 9. That is, when we ever get to finish the first party of this ever lasting Baldur's Gate story. Yeslick (fighter/cleric), Coran (fighter/thief), Jaheira (fighter/druid) - all interesting party members capable of dishing out damage in more than one way. Add Neera for the french kisses and we're all set. 
+Mother nature awaits. But, the Omnipresent Authority Figure is always looking to tell others what to do. And perhaps this group does not need as much help as she think it would. As these phrases are among the favorites of Jaheira's things to say, most party members need to resist the urge to bash in her head, as we did with her husband. At least she can heal some wounds and cast Summon Insects and Call Woodbeing. And Since Emmetrius, our great leader, is looking for "multi-talented people", he has a soft spot for multi- and dualclassed people like her. Emmetrius himself is an adept Berseker, planning to go rogue by classing into a mage at level 9. That is, when we ever get to finish the first party of this ever lasting Baldur's Gate story. Yeslick (fighter/cleric), Coran (fighter/thief), Jaheira (fighter/druid) - all interesting party members capable of dishing out damage in more than one way. Add Neera for the french kisses and we're all set. 
 
 <img src="/img/games/BaldursGate1/bg1_garrick.png"/>
 
-While wandering around, our party discovers and finds... most of the time nothing. The in-between spaces of Baldur's Gate are surprisingly empty, but there is always at least something to do beyond the fog of war, even if it is killing Ankhegs, saying "yes dear farmer, your sun is dead, now shut it!", and blasting fireballs against a group of sorry ass bandits. The woods serve as a short trip, for adventurers like us, as a short break, before hitting pure stone walls like Durlag's Tower. The massive tower does not look impressive. "Let's loot the place!" Coran says. Jaheira, as usual, says nothing. Is she thinking about Khalid? Luckily, Dimitrius does not care: he yells "forwards!", and forwards we go. 
+While wandering around, our party discovers and finds... most of the time nothing. The in-between spaces of Baldur's Gate are surprisingly empty, but there is always at least something to do beyond the fog of war, even if it is killing Ankhegs, saying "yes dear farmer, your sun is dead, now shut it!", and blasting fireballs against a group of sorry ass bandits. The woods serve as a short trip, for adventurers like us, as a short break, before hitting pure stone walls like Durlag's Tower. The massive tower does not look impressive. "Let's loot the place!" Coran says. Jaheira, as usual, says nothing. Is she thinking about Khalid? Luckily, Emmetrius does not care: he yells "forwards!", and forwards we go. 
 
 Until we land on a cloudkill trap, and have to reload. Whoops. "Coran, could you possibly, you know, use your keen eye and find the goddamn traps?". "I can dance on the head of a pin, as well!" - oh wait, that was Yoshimo, another beloved thief that ended in a tragedy. As Coran's thieving abilities are not up to snuff compared to Imoen's (thanks to multiclassing), we have to rely on potions. Some fireball traps are unable to avoid. "Hey, I have like, a great idea, haha. Or whatever. Can we maybe cast, you know, protection of Fire?" Great idea Neera, go ahead. _Wild surge: protection from Ice._ What the hell? "Oh erm, that was what you wanted, right? Shall I try Again?" Yes, please. _Manus, Potentis, Paro_. _Wild surge: a cow drops from the heavens and kills Yeslick._ Why, Neera, why? "Well I was an abused child and never really got to learn stuff propertly..." Okay, that makes sense. This romance seems to get along nicely, so let's abuse each other right now. "Okay!". Jaheira says silent. Maybe she's preparing to be jealous in BG2.
 
 <img src="/img/games/BaldursGate1/bg1_stats.png"/>
 
-In the end, we managed to kill some kind of stupid looking Demon Knight, who is said to be the most dangerous thing in the game. Guess again: our party is. The guy didn't even put up a fight: after a few nice snipe shots from Coran, a hasted berseked dual wielding Dimitrius, and a few spells from my lover, things were over pretty quickly. The stupid mirror wasn't even touched. However, we were not quite prepared for the Soultaker dagger quest, were we. We took the thing up North, but cult members came after it and demanded it's return. Dimitrius responds, as usual, "fuck off", and fuck they did. The fucked us up pretty well. Backstabbing cult members instantly killed Coran and Neera, almost followed by Garrick, who spills the beans. Reload. Jam on space, cast haste, confusion, holy smite, skull trap. Neera's trap kills two innocent boys, a cow and a chicken. Reload. Backstabbed again. Reload. Arrgh!
+In the end, we managed to kill some kind of stupid looking Demon Knight, who is said to be the most dangerous thing in the game. Guess again: our party is. The guy didn't even put up a fight: after a few nice snipe shots from Coran, a hasted berseked dual wielding Emmetrius, and a few spells from my lover, things were over pretty quickly. The stupid mirror wasn't even touched. However, we were not quite prepared for the Soultaker dagger quest, were we. We took the thing up North, but cult members came after it and demanded it's return. Emmetrius responds, as usual, "fuck off", and fuck they did. The fucked us up pretty well. Backstabbing cult members instantly killed Coran and Neera, almost followed by Garrick, who spills the beans. Reload. Jam on space, cast haste, confusion, holy smite, skull trap. Neera's trap kills two innocent boys, a cow and a chicken. Reload. Backstabbed again. Reload. Arrgh!
 
-"Say, why don't we Mirror Image, then the thieves can target an image, and we still have time to run?" "Good call, Garrick. Should I cast chaos shield?" asks Neera. "NOOO!" yells everybody. "Uhm, okay, like, whatever." A few more haste, confusion, call lightning, and other things later, we managed to break up the attacking group and kill them one by one. Well actually, Garrick discharged quite a lot of fireballs from his wand, and Dimitrius could handle the heat, so no big deal. A few finishing arrows later, the members got slaughtered. Time to quicksave. And repeat this procedure at the entrance of the cult house. And again, in the guild hall. And again, in the basement. "From hereforth, I should call myself Demon Killer, instead of Dimitrius!" says my guy, pumping his flaming sword +x into the sky. 
+"Say, why don't we Mirror Image, then the thieves can target an image, and we still have time to run?" "Good call, Garrick. Should I cast chaos shield?" asks Neera. "NOOO!" yells everybody. "Uhm, okay, like, whatever." A few more haste, confusion, call lightning, and other things later, we managed to break up the attacking group and kill them one by one. Well actually, Garrick discharged quite a lot of fireballs from his wand, and Emmetrius could handle the heat, so no big deal. A few finishing arrows later, the members got slaughtered. Time to quicksave. And repeat this procedure at the entrance of the cult house. And again, in the guild hall. And again, in the basement. "From hereforth, I should call myself Demon Killer, instead of Emmetrius!" says my guy, pumping his flaming sword +x into the sky. 
 
 Time to rest, let's look for a tavern. And no Coran, let's stay within our room, last time you were caught sneaking around and opening other people's drawers, we had to kill a few Flaming Fist guards, and people did not handle it that well, remember? "Oh yeah, our reputation is quite low, do something about it or I might leave!" But you did that yourself! "No, you made me to!" Okay, that is correct. I should not have picked Neutral Good as my alignment, as I am clearly more Chaotic Neutral or even Evil-aligned. I wish we could drag Edwin along, but as I'm fucking Neera, things are 'wild' enough already. "Show me your wares!" demands the bartender. "I'll show you something... What about my spider's bane +2? Nice and shiny." No two-handed sword wielders here, so here, gimme al your money. 
 
 <img src="/img/games/BaldursGate1/bg1_tavern.png"/>
 
-You must gather your wits to venture forth. We became quite powerful, gathering a lot of cool equipment from Durlag and co. It is time to walk past the big bridge and enter Baldur's Gate itself. Time to finish things, let's find that other Bhaalspawn and end him. "That will be quite easy to do, since I'm the Demon Killer." grins Dimitrius. Right you are... 
+You must gather your wits to venture forth. We became quite powerful, gathering a lot of cool equipment from Durlag and co. It is time to walk past the big bridge and enter Baldur's Gate itself. Time to finish things, let's find that other Bhaalspawn and end him. "That will be quite easy to do, since I'm the Demon Killer." grins Emmetrius. Right you are... 

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