Creating Adventure - January 2015
I’d like to start off by introducing you to our Creating Adventure newsletter. This is a fresh take on communicating with our players to show you what’s in the works, what’s soon to come, and bringing back some nostalgic highlights.
The GemStone Wiki
While our initial debut slipped to the public, we are very excited to announce the GemStone Wiki, home of the Krakiipedia. The wiki is a player-driven resource that anyone with an active account can log on and begin their journey with editing and formatting articles. The GameMasters will also use this as a tool to update documentation and provide canon information to the players.
We hope to better incorporate the official wiki to deliver more information to our players, as well as give players an official tool to communicate and share information. We are still in the process of getting some of the functions of the wiki in working order, so please bear with us while we continue to improve the user experience. We also have some relaxed Policies to abide by while contributing on the wiki.
We encourage all players to continue to use this resource, and we hope to continually grow the number of articles!
Summit Academy
Sylinar’s Spire was just the beginning of our new area located somewhere in the northern DragonSpine Mountains. The Spire, an event that we offered several sought after enhancive services, actually takes place in a school of wizardry named Summit Academy. Very soon, we will be offering a new event named the Summit Expression Faire to take place beyond the walls of the Spire. Services will include a number of pre-made roleplaying tools, such as SWEAR MINE, special logon/logoff messaging, SIGNATURE verbs, and SPELL PREPs. This will be a ticketed event with limited attendance.
Duskruin Arena
Tucked away in seclusion near the Locksmehr River is place known as Bloodriven Village. Notorious to bandits, outlaws, and ruffians to congregate and do business. Located underground from the village, the infamous Duskruin Arena is a place of blood sports among the brave. Earn special scrip to buy a wealth of prizes. Duskruin Arena is a free event to spectators, with options to buy what you like, instead of a full-blown ticketed event.
Many new items will be debuted at Duskruin Arena, such as scarring razors, pet rats, whisper cloaks, garrote knives, nerve staves, and much more! Unique shops are also available throughout Bloodriven Village. The release of Duskruin Arena is slated for later on this year!
Be sure to stop out and view the interesting locales of Bloodriven Village!
Treasure Updates
What is the most important aspect of hunting in GemStone IV? THE LOOT! And we have some new additions coming out very soon! With the release of several items in our SimuCoin shop, we want you, the players, to have a chance to earn some of those rewards in game. We are introducing daily drops of our Enhancive Pauses, Urchin Guide Tokens, and Locker Runner Contracts. How can you find these new items? Simple! Just hunt like you normally would for a chance at one of these daily rewards. Premium subscribers have a daily boost to their chances at finding their first drop each day, but do not fret, if you have a basic account, you will also have the ability to find this loot, should you be lucky enough!
Magical Armoires
We will be adding a new reward, Magical Armoires, you can purchase with Bounty Points to the Adventurer's Guild Shops across Elanthia. This item will allow you to select a number of items in your inventory to quickly dress and undress your character. Special occasion you need to get dressed for? No problem! Want to change out of your combat gear and wear something more casual? Our magical wardrobes are just thing! Be sure to visit a Adventurer's Guild shop soon!
Platinum Chain-of-Command
We are changing how we allocate staff to our Platinum instance, which we will be announcing further at the end of the month. If you're a Platinum subscriber, more news on this January 30th!
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Spotlight on Staff
We talked with GM Kenstrom to learn a little more about the man behind Cross into Shadows.
“I first began playing GemStone when I was like, 14 years old back in, oh gee, I can't remember, 1993? I'm 33 now, and joined the GameMaster community back in Jan of 2010. I started off immediately on the Towns and Communities Team and I always had my sights set on one day being the guru of Wehnimer's Landing and Humans. I took over as the “First Male” MHO Guru for a few years, and had a good run. I became the town guru of Wehnimer's Landing in September of 2010, and been killing players ever since. I recently took over as the Humans guru back in 2013, and while I'm very happy to have achieved the goals and positioned I had aimed for since the beginning, I am even more excited for the plans I have in store in those areas.”
Where were you born?
Kearney, Nebraska
Where do you currently live?
Queen Creek, Arizona
Do you have any pets/kids/both?
I have an eight year old basset hound named Wilson. I have a 2 and a half year old daughter named Avery. My wife is pregnant with the second kiddo, due end of August.
What is your current occupation?
I just recently left the IT Sales industry and moved into Education Recruitment. It allows me to work from home and plot how to destroy Wehnimer’s La…I mean, it’s a nice change.
What did you want to be while you were growing up?
A writer. I still do. Slowly working on that.
Favorite TV shows?
Big Bang Theory, Firefly, Breaking Bad, Dexter (until they ruined the show), Friends, Scrubs, and currently Arrow.
Favorite actors/actresses?
Favorite actresses, or the hot ones? I guess both. Scarlett Johansson, Kate Beckinsale, Elisha Cuthbert, Kaley Cuoco., Rachel McAdams.
Favorite musicians/bands?
Weezer, One Republic, Eve 6
Favorite books/authors?
I loved the Game of Thrones book series, and recently caught up last year. I also liked Raymond E Feist back in the day. I also recently finished Killing Lincoln and Killing Jesus, and just got a copy of Killing Kennedy, all by Bill O’ Reilly.
Where did you go to school and/or what did you study?
I’m almost finished with my Associates in Business Management at a local community school, then moving onto ASU for my Bachelor’s in Network Administration.
Favorite/least favorite job you've ever had?
My favorite jobs (besides GM, does that count?) have been my last two jobs, working in the IT Sales industry and now in education recruitment. Both afforded a lot of opportunity and good coworkers, and let me do things I was interested in, and got paid for.
Favorite hobbies?
Writing, and movies. I’m passionate about both.
Favorite foods?
Chicken wings and pizza. I’m easy like that.
Favorite board games or computer games?
I love RISK for board games, and I probably spent too much of my youth playing video games like Halo and X-Com.
Favorite sports/sports teams?
Not a big fan of sports, but deep down I’m still sometimes a Cornhusker fan. It’s in my blood.
What would you do with a million dollars?
I’d find a way to turn it into a suitable investment that would allow me to live a comfortable life with my little family and become a full time writer.
What three people past or present would you invite to dinner?
I’d invite my friend who died in high school, Jesus, and my future self. Wait, you said past or present. So my third would likely be another historical figure, like Lincoln, to satisfy the political ideas and questions I always have.
What is your favorite quote?
I’m not sure if I’m stealing this quote, or if I truly made it up, but I always tell people “Leadership is about being the example and not the exception.”
Name something you'd like to do before you die.
Publish a book and setup my family financially.
What's your favorite acronym?
I don’t really have a favorite acronym, but they do clutter up my work life.
Who is your hero or heroine?
My father. He embraces life and people and never backs away from it. I’ve recently found myself in the last few years doing the same, so I’m happy with the road I’m going down.
If you could have any musical group or artist, past or present, play at your birthday party, who would it be?
Weezer, because then I could sing along with them and likely embarrass everyone but myself.
If you could have any superpower, what would it be and why?
Telepathy. The ability to read thoughts and control thoughts would be awesome, and of course dangerous, so I’d be sure to use it for good, at least for a while until I became a super villain.
What do you love most about being a GameMaster?
The players and staff, and being able to channel my creativity into a medium that lots of people can enjoy. I love being able to have my own little sandbox, in a town that I grew up loving as a player. I can honestly say that the job, despite its ups and downs, is thoroughly enjoyable and the interactions among players and events keeps it refreshing all of the time.
Would you rather never have to eat, or never have to sleep?
I would much rather never have to sleep. Doesn’t mean I couldn’t nap for fun, but I could get so much work and plotting down if I didn’t have to sleep and I’d save a lot of money on coffee.