Stuff: Star Wars Knight Errant - Aflame, part 2

Right, this is the last of the posts I've got to catch up on, that is to say the last of the posts I'd planned on writing before going away on holiday! So hopefully after this things should be a bit more up to date - as up to date as I ever get on this blog anyway!!

If you've forgotten about Knight Errant read the first part of my post about it HERE

New Vehicles

Starcrosser

Is the first vehicle - a heavy loader designed to cross long distances with goods, one was hijacked by the Jedi for a surprise raid on Chelloa. I looked for an image, but I couldn't get one and my scanner's packed in so not a great start!!

Daimanite Starfighter








A model of starfighter used by Lord Daiman at his base in Chelloa and elsewhere. He sent a force of these fighters to attack his brother Odion, and Kerra Holt joined the fight in a stolen fighter so she could sneak aboard Odion's fortress.

Kinetic Corruptor








These immense weapons of mass destruction are actually mining tools, used in mining Baradium, but Odion discovered they could detonate the explosives material even in it's raw form and planned to use them to blow up Chelloa and deprive his brother of the planet's resources. Daiman returned the favour drawing his brother to the planet with his army then detonating Kinetic Corruptors he'd built himself, destroying most of his force.

Hammerhead








To be honest I was a bit annoyed to see this ship as it seems odd that a design from three thousand years previous would still be used, but it had already been mentioned in a Darth Bane novel (written by a KotoR writer using his own stuff!) so it was an established part of the timeline and at least they's revamped the design a little. These were used by the Republic in the battle of Aquilaris, which they lost to the Sith.

Mobile Munitions Complex






I really liked this. Due to the constantly shifting competition for resources these mobile cities were built so that when new resources were found the mining and construction facilities could simply be moved there rather than having to start from scratch. When Daiman discovered Baraidum on Chelloa he brought several of these complexes across his space to the world.

The Spike











Similar to the previous, but instead a massive space station, this is the base of operations for Lord Odion. Comprised of several modules around a central spike this facility acts as both fortress and production facility for Odion's war effort. At the time of his battle with Daiman over Chelloa he converted several of the modules to work on Kinetic Corruptors to damage the planet.

Sword of Ieldis







This was Odion's main battle cruiser from which he fought Daiman's radi on The Spike, blocky and functional, it fits the designs of the era and I'm really loving the variety of ships and other designs in this era.

The Freedom Fleet

Again I'm having trouble with getting images here, but there was a large variety of mining and trading vessels on Chelloa, Kerra Holt captured and liberated these and used them to evacuate the people of Chelloa away from the destruction caused by the warring Sith.

Story

I've gone into a lot of it, but I'll give a rough outline of the plot while I'm at it I suppose. The Republic and Sith have been at war for decades with the Sith carving out a huge portion of space for themselves and settling to squabbling with each other for resources. The Republic is largely concentrating on holding it's lines and defences, but a group of Jedi want to strike at the Sith and go to Chelloa to disrupt the Baradium mining and launch a secret raid. Unfortunately their raid copincides with a sneak attack by Odion who brings his kinetic corruptor, killing most of the Jedi before having to retreat. Kerra tries to take on the Sith alone but can't, realising she has a greater mission - getting the people to safety before the uncaring Sith kill them all in their battles with each other.

Map

I would normally do a map, but instead there's a very detailed account on the are in which the story takes place, including maps which I'll link to HERE.

And that's it, more from me soon.

Blogga's Video Game Diary - 17/5/11

There's not much to say in terms of diary because I finished the game a while a go and am well through my second playthrough. After escaping Kaminio the Apprentice takes Vader's fighter to travel to Cato-Neimoidia (if you watch the movies it's the planet where Plo Koon was killed) to find his former master Rahm Kota to save him and start the search for answers.

New Characters

Baron Merillion Tarko
Species: Human
Sex: Male
Homeworld: Anaxes
Position: Baron of Cato-Neimoidia







A powerful Imperial with friends in high places he was given rule of the rich world of Cato-Neimoidia and quickly took advantage of it's wealth for the Empire and his own personal gain. He renamed the capital after himself (Tarko-Se) and established a massive gladitorial arena suspended under one of the bridge cities, which he used to amuse himself, dispose of prisoners, and make a profit. He aimed to kill Rahm kota in the arena, but when Starkiller arrived he was killed himself in the ensuing battle.

New Troopers

Sith Acolytes












Trained in the Dark Side, these acolytes were deployed on Cato-Neimoidia and other subjugated worlds to instil fear with their use of Sith powers. Instead of weapons they used the force to attack their targets from range, disarming and dislodging them before they could attack. They were no match for Starkiller however, who shunned their force attacks and defeated them with his lightsaber skills.

New Vehicles

AT-MP








I think walkers are over-used and there are too many variants, especially going into the past. I don't mind post-trilogy books adding new types (though there should still be a limit) but there are dozens of walkers added to the Empire's arsenal in these games and other things and it's on the verge of getting ridiculous and takes something away from the awe moment of first seeing AT-ATs on Hoth. (Having said that I loved the AT-CT in the first game!)

These walkers were a devastating attack force able of launching several guided missiles in one burst, useful for guarding bases against an oncoming force, though they were slow and awkward and not useful for attack. They met their match in Starkiller who used the force to deflect their own missiles back at them.

Nemesis gunship











I couldn't find a decent picture of this for some reason, but anyway, this also shows the cargo tram Starkiller was riding when he was attacked by it. This powerful atmospheric gunship was incredibly fast and manoeuvrable and able to launch both missiles and blaster bolts at it's target, swinging round in devastating sweeps of fire before retreating out of range.

New Species

Gorog








A massive creature, easily able to clutch a rancor in one hand and in the mythology of some cultures as a bringer of death and the end this creature was somehow captured by the Empire and brough to Cato-Neimoidia and kept in the arena pit. Enraged by Starkiller's arrival the Baron ordered the Gorog's release before suitable restraints were finalised. The creature broke free, destroyed the arena, eat the Baron before falling to it's death at Starkiller's hand.


And that's it for new stuff.

Story

Starkiller infiltrates Cato-Neimoidia in search of Rahm Kota, battling his way through the Imperial forces to the arena where he battles the Gorog and escapes with Rahm. Still unsure of his identity he wants to meditate and find more, while the General just wants him in the fight, after falling out with him he drops him off on Malastare and heads to Dagobah, where he meets Yoda and goes into the Dark Side cave where he gets a vision of all the other clones and finally Juno's location, he leaves to track her down, but the Empire is already on her trail.

More soon.

Assassins's Creed: The Fall - Review

Still catching up on old content at the moment, so prepare yourselves for plenty of comics and game reviews over the next few weeks, with a sprinkling of up to date content thrown in too I hope.

I'm review The Fall an original story set in the Assassin's Creed universe. It is fairly unique in that it doesn't feature any character's from the game world (well OK Vidic does make a small appearance!) and isn't a 'deleted scene' or additional backstory like most game comics. It does tie in to a little of the game's backstory but is a fully self-sustaining story set in the same world.

I'll try not to spoil too much, 'cause I really would recommend this to any Creed fans as worth getting whenever the graphic novel comes out. But I doubt I'll succeed so if you're planning on getting this you may want to skim over the details.

EDIT: OK I failed completely! If you want to stay spoiler-free, wait to buy the comics!

New Characters

Nikolai Orelov











A member of the Russian assassin's order in the late 19th century he was ordered to assassinate Tsar Alexander the 3rd in order to obtain The Staff, a piece of Eden held by Templars but failed. He led a mission to capture the staff but it was destroyed by Tesla and his weapons before he could retrieve it. Wanting to make sure it was destroyed he tracked down the final shard, which was used by Rasputin to gain influence. He took the shard and used it to escape Russia for America to start a new life.

Daniel Cross









Daniel was a descendant of Orelov. As a child he was kidnapped by Abstergo, who sued brutal methods to extract his genetic memories before turning him loose. Plagued by visions of the past as a young adult Cross turned to drugs to escape his visions and became a low-life criminal. He was picked up by members of the Assassin Order, who helped him uncover his identity as an Assassin and trained him. He went on a quest to find The Mentor, who he discovered in a vision, but when he did an impulse embedded by Abstergo drove him to kill The Mentor without knowing why. He had to flee the scene and eventually returned to Abstergo, having nowhere else to go.

Paul Bellamy and Hannah Mueller










Paul Bellamy was the leader of the training facility which took Daniel Cross in. He was in contact with a number of senior Assassins and was able to obtain information on Daniel's heritage and The Staff. Hannah Mueller was a fully trained Assassin, though her role was a hacker and computer expert, stopping the Templars from subverting Elections and other things to their advantage. They both supported Cross and helped him in his quest to find the mentor, not realising what it would cost.

The Mentor













A title once held by Ezio, this title was passed on to the leader of the Assassin Order, each giving it to his successor. This man was head of the Assassin's Order, remotely commanding the Assassin teams around the world to do the work of the order. The Assassin's largely worked through non-violent means to ensure that free will was preserved, thwarting Templar plans by other means. He had a base in Dubai as he thought it symbolic of Templar methods and ideals. After inducting Cross into the order he was betrayed and killed by Cross, throwing the Order into disarray.

Overall

This was a great story, it works on it's own, but also explains the Tunguska event, part of the wider backstory and also shows how the mighty Assassin Order came to be the scattered, hunted group that it is in 2012. It was nice to see the Assassin's around the world, from Japanese businessmen to Buddhist monks to desert training camps. Well worth a read and a great addition to the franchise.

Blogga's Wall - Catchup!

OK so I'm VERY behind on this one!! I've obviously missed a bit due to my holiday, but it also looks like I didn't do a post for February either so this is a big catch up here - right, better get on with it!!

1) Mass Effect: Evolution











I won't say much as I'll be reviewing this series before long. Basically this delves into the origins of the Illusive Man from Mass Effect 2, who aids and funds Shepard's mission to stop the Reapers, though his ultimate goals remain a mystery. Set during and after the time when humans first stumbled into Citadel space this story explores the young mercenary, and the discover that drives him to become leader of Cerberus.

2. Darth Vader and the Lost Command












Another new comic series from Dark Horse, I'll also be reviewing this soon, when the final issue comes out in a month or so so I won't say too much. Darth Vader leads an army to recover a lost Imperial Unit sent to the Ghost Nebula, tracking his target through traps, mysterious worlds and betrayals.

3. Outcasts







This was a great BBC series, set on a new colony world of Carpathia. Set as a new colony ship arrives at the new colony it explores the power struggles of people who were important on Earth against the established rulers of Carpathia. As this goes on it opens up a wider angle of what's going on, with rogue clones waging a secret war against the colony and further on an alien force intent on wiping them out - unfortunately this series isn't going to be resumed so we won't find out what happened next, but it was a great ride.

4. Assassin's Creed: The Fall.











Again will be reviewing this soon so I won't say much at all, in fact I think it's my next post so I'll say nothing!

5. Legacy: War #3










Another series I'll be reviewing in a month or so, it's sad to say that the FINAL issue of Legacy is out soon - I don't know what I'll do with myself after.

6. Caves of Steel













A great Asimov novel, basically a detective story in a future Earth with robots, spacemen and the future of humankind in the balance! Humanity has taken to the stars, but those that remain have built great enclosed mega-cities and feel little need to leave so when a group of 'spacers' return and establish a colony on Earth the tension is high, and when a spacer is murdered the tension is higher - Baley, a detective must be partnered with a robot (3 laws and all that) to uncover the killer before war breaks out and finds a bigger plan at work too. Great read.

And that's about it - normal service will resume soon.

SF at the Movies - April '11

Very late, I give a two week holiday as my excuse! As with the new format I'll let the trailers do the talking.

Source Code

Released 1/4/11




Sucker Punch

Released 1/4/11




Mars Needs Moms

Released 8/4/11




There's also a film called RUBBER about a tyre that becomes sentient and has superpowers - I kid you not - YouTube it!

Thor

Released 27/4/11




And that's it - I missed out on sucker punch and the others, but I'm definitely going to make Thor

more out of date content soon!

Doctor Who - comedy and Tragedy

Well Doctor Who has returned to British screens at last, I'd been away and was eagerly anticipating watching the new episodes as soon as I returned. When I did I was shocked to see the tribute message to Elisabeth Sladen at the start of the episode. These messages are usually attributed to a remote figure from the show's past, not a current leading star.

Elisabeth, who died from cancer, made a cameo appearance on the show with David Tennant, and her potential was quickly turned into an entire spin-off, The Sarah Jane Adventures, which didn't pander to old nostalgics, but brought in a whole new generation of Doctor Who fans who eagerly watched the former co-star with no recollection of her previous role. Her show was as exciting and charming as the one from which it was born and the loss of Sarah Jane from our screens will be felt keenly.

Tinged with this sadness is of course excitement for the new series, which is brilliant I must say. I don't know if it's globally available yet, but there may be a few things you might have missed - the first is a Doctor Who Comic relief special, which is a self-contained episode, not a sneak-peak and is official storyline while quite comical too. In it's two parts here is Time:







And also there's the official prequel to the new series, not the first part of the episode, a full prequel, which you may like to see.




And well that's it for now, I'll have more doctor who posts up very soon I'm sure.

Blogga's Video Game Diary - 11/4/11

Well these posts have been brewing for a while, but I've had so much Halo content to regurgitate I set it back a while. But as I've re-completed the game and am well on my way into Mass Effect 2 I thought I'd best crack on with some content.

Diary









Well the thing I did most recently was to go through all the challenges as they actually unlock some quite interesting stuff. Completing them actually unlocks a set of cinematics detailing the creation of the Dark Apprentice, a character that only appears in the non-canon Dark Side ending, but who yet from this amount of detail would appear to be a real character, perhaps to appear in the inevitable TFU-III.

That's it so on with the diary - I'll cover just the first level I think as I don't have much time and get back to the rest as quick as I can. OK, new stuff first I think

New Characters

Starkiller Clone









OK, I'll level with you now, he may not be a clone - he may be the real Starkiller brainwashed into thinking he's a clone - the game frustratingly doesn't tell us, but I'm sure we'll get a resolution in whatever comes next. but the fact remains that he could be a clone as a number of clones were made, most of them unstable but at least one more fully functional clone was made so yeah, he could be a clone. His memories, artificial or real, reminded him of Juno his love and of how Vader betrayed and stabbed him and so he took on a violent escape across Kamino and taking off in Vader's experimental TIE fighter.

Hey, that's the plot summary done for me! Now onto new stuff!

New Troopers

It just wouldn't be a Star Wars game without a new Stormtrooper variant now would it?

Riot Troopers










Like the name says, they were used to quell riots on unruly Imperial worlds. Trained on Yinchorr, where royal guards train, they were given close quarters combat training and given electro staffs to quickly stun or injure any being that crossed their path. A number were stationed on Kamino, where their lightsaber resistant staffs were useful in controlling Starkiller's clones.

New Droids

Carbonite War Droid









To be honest I think Carbonite is over-used as a weapon. In Empire Strikes Back it seemd to be an experimental thing, but now there seem to be Carbonite guns everywhere before and after the movie.

These war droids were used by the Empire as a defensive measure. Equipped with a large blast shield they could stand against any threat while spraying the area in front of them with Carbonite and freezing anything that tried to get past them. They had no such luck against Starkiller's clone who ripped off their shields and used their weapons against them.

Sith Training Droid










These droids, based on the technology of the holodroid PROXY were used to train Starkiller's clones. They were fully equipped to use lightsabers and could take on any form at will, asking the clone to kill Starkiller's friends and allies, testing whether he was loyal to the Empire or too attached to old memories. The droids were also used as a defensive measure when the facility was attacked.

And that's it - more soon!