Eva's Adventures in Nexus

I’ve had this compilation just sitting in my drafts for a very long time. I was going to post it before the shut down, then I didn’t. Then I was going to post it after. Then I didn’t. Every time I’ve gone back to it I’ve felt this vibrant rush of melancholy that would wrap around my brain and say “not today, Jade. You can’t.” 

I still felt that today. I’m just ignoring it.

Real talk? I miss Jeremy. I feel like it’s an odd thing for me to say. I’ve always said that my “home” (as far as games are concerned) is where Muds is. While we have since moved on to new places, in a lot of ways I’m still grieving over Wildstar and the experience I’ve lost from its disconnect. Jeremy in particular was a paragon from which a new standard has been set. Every Muds that I create will always be affected by this one. In a way that’s comforting to me, because I know he’ll never truly be “gone”. It’s just that even beyond RP, I miss *being* in that game with him - building, hoverboarding around, running adventures, taking down reset bosses. It was all such a wild ride. Three months later and I still manage to accidentally click on the Wildstar icon on my desktop as though I should be able to start it up. 

Despite my melancholy, I’m very fortunate to have gotten several opportunities to commission some real talented artists to draw him. I’ve always loved getting to see my character through the eyes of others, and now these pieces sit among a whole collection of special memories that I’ll always have from this game.

In order of appearance:

@catbatart

@needlesslycryptic

@mandromeda

@galoogamelady

@hkluterman

And the last one is mine. Of all the times I drew his stupid face, that one is still my favorite. 

Rowsdower Minion Ver. 1.0

Replaces: Tender Lamb

The official mascot creature for WildStar was the rowsdower, a variety of mountain goat common throughout the galaxy. There are many varieties, though all of them are generally considered to be smelly and lacking in intelligence. They are much beloved by players though, which is why rowsdowers were among the first vanity pets. Yes, they are named after Zap Rowsdower, though I don’t know if there’s an actual reason for the name being given to this creature specifically. There was also a rowsdower NPC named Zap in the Grimvault zone, manning a cannon which he evidentially used to kill the scientist who had trained him to use said cannon.

The FFXIV version flails about when running, which is actually pretty close to the original animations. The front legs distort a bit in the headbutt animation, but it isn’t terribly noticeable unless you get close with gpose.

Dropbox link: https://www.dropbox.com/s/oda9hxmp4ppzxsb/Rowsdower%20Minion%20v1.0.ttmp?dl=0

1-25-19 Color Commission

Little doodle of @valil-gentlebreeze 

Don’t recognize these screenshots? I don’t blame you. Maybe they even seem a little creepy, since they’re utterly devoid of life. Well, that’s because they all come from Dreadmoor, one of the game’s unfinished zones. This particular one can be found south of Illium and Auroria, and is absolutely huge. I heard some people talk about how it was meant to be an alternate levelling zone, maybe an alternative to Whitevale? I noticed some Exile areas that seemed a little too large to just be areas to fight mobs in…

The first chunk of Dreadmoor is mostly a boggy area, with hazy skies and sickly-looking grass. Like the Chua’s fault. There’s lots of water running through the zone, which eventually leads to more lush areas, though the sun never seems to shine brightly. There’s tons of Nexus natives and Eldan ruins in the zone, and even a Protostar area. There’s lots of stuff that looks like it was recycled to and from other zones, so it begs the question of how far along was development before the whole place was scrapped? It’s mostly done, with some models missing pieces, some geometry that doesn’t quite connect, and a few areas with awkward texture, but for the most part, the aesthetics of the zone are about 95% done. Wonder why they got rid of it?

Even though there’s no NPCs, no music, no map, and no lore, it’s not too tough to figure out what the areas around the zone were meant to be, and some areas are even named on the map. Starting in Illium, you run into a bunch of Chua communes doing what they do best: making science and destroying the environment. There’s a Pell encampment not too far from there, perhaps they would strike against the Chua? From there, you’d run into some Terminites and Moodies before continuing into the rest of the zone There’s tons of screenshots, so I’ll put them under a cut before explaining what I think the intent was.

Goodbye Wildstar.

It’s bittersweet to see something so loved by many fade into the stardust that formed it. Wildstar was my first real MMO. I had so many stories and characters I grew to love and so many good memories. I formed a small group called “The OH GOD squad” after running around with a friend screaming “OH GOD” as I tried my best not to die. Despite things falling away, I still have stories for my characters and still plan to breath life into the dust left by this wonderful game.

Wildstar, you were the brightest star in the night sky. NCSOFT didn’t deserve to have you, but alas it did. For many you were a way to make friends. A way to escape from an otherwise dark and scary reality. Your soundtrack is something I still find myself listening to in an otherwise silent room when I’m alone.

To all of my followers and friends who found me because of this game, I want you to know I’m not letting my characters die. They are still on Nexus, still living life and still waiting for the future I have yet to plan for them.

Part of them has touched new places like WoW, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t still here being space cowboys.

I could write for hours about this game. About everything it changed in my life for the better, but some things are best left unsaid.

You will always be in my heart,

Noodle~

(( I’ve wanted this top forever, and now it’s mine. Ho-ho! 

With Wildstar shutting down I had the absolute bittersweet pleasure of being commissioned to do some commemorative pieces ;; We worked directly off a screenshot the client provided of the husbands’ in game housing to make it truly fit in.