6 Years Young!

Over here in the Southern Hemisphere, the arrival of September means it's Spring!(I know it's not quite here, but Wizard101 have called early on September, so I am too!). The morning chill is fast disappearing and the temps everywhere are in the increase. So it's a great time to celebrate, and what better way than to have a party? Of course, the great news is that September is also the Birthday month for Wizard101, and that means cool giveaways, more sales and more celebrations!

It seems the birthday candles will reveal a cool giveaway each week. Candle number ONE is super awesome, and something I can't wait to place this in one of my gardens - 

Birthday Gala Gazebo Housing Item!

September is a month long celebration in the Spiral, so make sure you check back throughout the  month for special birthday deals and offers!

Oh - wait.... there's more!! What celebration would be complete without a special new fish reveal? Yes - there is a birthday mystery fish!

There's a rare new fish in town creeping in the waters of the Spiral. It's only here during the Wizard101 birthday celebration month... can you catch it?

I sent out the spies and this rare fish can be found in Unicorn Way - which is great because it means Wizards of all levels have a chance of snagging one. If you don't want to find out what the fish is then look away now - or don't scroll down....!

Be on the lookout for a Balance fish that bubbles more than other fish. You can catch this beauty throughout the month - good luck.

Thanks to KI for letting us enjoy their Birthday with them :)

Have fun, until next time,

Tabitha

Decorators Delight!

So it's back... And better than ever by the looks of it - with the addition of the Build-A-Castle Medieval sets. I had to buy one just to see what is on offer in these packs:

Unlike many a wizard out there, I have yet to start building. I have purchased 6 of the recipes so far, so I am getting ready! Well now I have a few items, including one ultra-rare item, I may just have to start :)

There are many other items on sale in the Crown Shop though. Half price castles, reduced price Aquarium and Housing packs, even housing Elixirs! You can really make a great start on the Castle of your Dreams with these great prices.

And don't forget to claim your free item... I scored an Ambrose Bobblehead, which is cool. I have quite a collection of these now.

Have fun, until next time,

Tabitha

Numbered Items - Sooo much easier...

Just a quick note on one of the things I really appreciate about Wizard101.  Despite the popularity, KingsIsle keep striving to improve their world.  This makes the playing experience just that much more 'playable', and for us older players, that is invaluable.

Items in inventory have long been a challenge when the number of items you have increases.  When looking to place a new item in your house, the types and quantities of items that you carry can sometimes be unclear.  The times you really notice are when it is time to give your house a bit of a makeover :)

But - wonder no more.

The Item Counter in the inventory list is just great.

You know, although I realise that every pet is different, I sometimes think it would be very handy to know exactly how many of each pet type I am carrying too.  Still, then it would be hard to choose between Miss Heidi and King Pepper!

Oh, and I have to say, I LOVE the way the item name pops up now when you select it in your own house!  For the newer players, I know you won't believe this, but we used to have to pick up an item, then check your backpack to see what the item is called.  As many of us collect the rarer items, knowing what we have collected over the years has always been a challenge...

I realise it won't be long before this is just what people consider the norm, but for a long time player, this is improvement is just great!

See you 'round the Spiral!

Morgrim

Khrysalis 2 - Pets, Crafting, Housing, Tours & Gardening

Hey Everyone,

Time to let you know a bit more about some of those updates that came with the Khrysalis 2 release a few days ago......

Crafting Updates

One for all those higher level Wizards.... If you've completed your Crafting tasks for Oztomeca in Three Points in Azteca, and obtained the Crafting Title of Transcendent Crafter, then Oztomeca has a new task for you.

Visit him in Three Points in Azteca to obtain the quest "Way of the Crafter". That quest will send you to Stendill HammerTail in Silent Market, Khrysalis, to continue your training. The quest Stendill HammerTail will give you is (of course) "Stop! HammerTail".

Crown Shop Reagent Bundles

Not looking forward to collecting more Stone Blocks? Run out of Scrap Iron again? Where is a patch of Deep Mushrooms when you need them?
Never fear! Collecting certain reagents will never be the same again, if you have crowns to spare that is! New Reagent Bundles are available in the Crown Shop:

Gardening & Housing Updates

• Moon Flowers, which are a Rank 1 plant, will no longer attract Rank 2 pests
• Blue Huckleberries, which are a Rank 1 plant, will no longer attract Rank 2 pests
• Honey Bee Plants, which are a Rank 1 plant, will no longer attract Rank 2 pests
• Angel Oak must be planted in Enchanted Soil
• Melting Cheese Trees have begun to attract pests
• Unfortunately, we have been unable to address the issue of rank 5 gardening spells not stacking. We'll continue to work on this and it will hopefully be addressed in an upcoming content update.

Housing

• When in Decorating Mode, items of the same type will now stack in the item placement window
• When in Decorating Mode, the name of the selected item is now displayed when you are placing or adjusting an item
• Avalon housing items are now available as rewards from duels
• More House names & phrases have been added to the Customizable Housing Signs
• Medal Display, Medal Display Case and Commemorative Statue can no longer be sold at the Bazaar
• Curved Vase Case & Vase Case are now properly labeled as Furniture not Decoration
• Items picked up in the world can now be sold in the Bazaar

Castle Tours

When Castle Tours first made an appearance there were some clear issues. Houses were appearing that had not been decorated at all, and that was clearly not the intent of that update. Good news is that this has been fixed and Houses must have at least 50 items inside and 50 items outside before they can be added to Castle Tours.
Additionally, players will be prompted to confirm that their house actually contains a maze when adding a Maze themed Castle

One of the things I always wondered when I had my MooShoo house in the Castle Tours, was how many Wizards had popped over, so it is great to see this update - Castle owners can now view the number of days left on the tour and the number of visitors to their home.

New School Pets!

New Pets have arrived to stand by your side in peace and combat. If you are a minimum of level 98and have your level 78 school pet, speak to your School Professor for your next pet quest.

That's it for this update. As you can see KI have been very busy indeed!

Until Next Time!
Tabitha.

Now you see it..... Now you don't

Hey everyone,

I had a call for help in Wisteria the other day, and while I was there I popped into the shops, just to remind myself of what they were like. It's been a while since I have been over there so I sometimes just nose around an area, you know just checking it out. I was in one of the shops and popped upstairs. Again there is often no reason to do this other.... but I'm sure I'm not the only one to 'browse' either!

And, as often happens when I am not looking for anything in particular, a message pops up on the screen as I move into a certain spot. Usually this is a reagent of some kind. Unusual to find a reagent in a shop though! So I re-trace my steps back until the message appears again.
And there it is. The paining on the wall is collectible!

The Dragonship Painting to be precise. I already have one of these in my barn, and I know for sure they don't often show up in the Bazaar. It is quite a large painting too, one I definitely am happy to add to my collection.


And it got me thinking about the 'Collections' Swordroll has been thinking about starting over on his blog. Still that is a completely different topic!

Back to this piece.... I click the 'X' and the painting literally disappears from the wall. It's pretty cool actually. I have done this with housing items that I have randomly found, but never with a painting.
 It's quite cool to see the empty space on the wall like I've just bought the painting for real :)

And then I got to wondering if there are any other paintings to be had around the area. It doesn't take long for me to find an Estate Painting. Again I had seen this before, and I already have one of them. And they are very large too - great to fill an empty wall - and it's free! All very good reasons to press the 'X' and collect.


And there we have that empty space on the wall again. I didn't have time to find any more paintings. I have heard that there are free 'spoils' to be gained in most worlds within the Spiral. I'm sure it wouldn't take long to do some research and find them all. But that's for another day.

Perhaps you can tell me of some of the objects you have picked up on your travels, especially if there are more paintings - I am keen to expand my collection.

Until Next Time,
Tabitha

Tabitha's Myth House Revealed!

Hey Everyone,

As you may have read earlier this week, my Myth House is now done. Inside was complete when I placed the final Jade Chair, and the placing of the Carousel saw the garden also complete.

As promised here are a few pictures of the house. First up is the outdoor entertainment area. I have set a party theme here, and this is also where the majority of my sunflowers shine.


I wanted to create a fun area, that was also relaxed enough to kick back and take in the evening.

You have already seen the bistro area with the jade chairs and tables, so I'll skip that part of the house.

The pool area is the obvious choice for more of a celestial theme.More sunflowers and scattered cushions and mattresses make for the perfect spot to enjoy some ice-cream!

You have seen the carousel already, so I have taken a few more of the garden to showcase the myriad of colours provided by trees of all sizes and hues.


A few of the trees were tough to get hold of, and it is fun to walk around through some of their branches when you actually visit.


There are chickens, flowers, food carts and even a wooden well. My love of things that move meant I also had to place a couple of steaming pagodas.


Next up is a very functional kitchen and a rather blue sitting area. The kitchen is again crafted from the recipes bought in Grizzleheim. I hope there are different options a bit later in the game for crafting some different kitchen furniture.... if not then I guess I'll have to get some housing packs in the Crown Shop.

In the sitting room I was keen to create a blue floor to match those padded chairs. There were no carpets to suit, so I used 3 of the knotted rugs instead.

The last area is the rather pretty garden themed bedroom. This is the first time I have used a full carpet in a room, and I think it works very well. The bright cerise tones help bring the room alive, so I was happy to pick up a good mix of them. There are a few of the more difficult to acquire objects in this room too.

Again I have had a great time decorating this house. I really need to get back to questing though, as I have been doing anything but!

Once this gardening challenge is done, I will get back into it properly. At the moment I tend to stay in my gardening gear all the time! And I haven't even had to do much at Halfang recently. One of the bonus side effects of the extra gardening. I will post some more on this soon. Join me on Twitter and get behind me in this challenge! #Tabithatowin

Love to hear your comments on the house!

Until Next Time,

Tabitha.

The Barn

Do you know when I first started my Wizard journey I did not know about the Bazaar? Seems crazy to me now, but it was actually Morgrim who pointed it out to me.  I can't remember the context of the conversation now, but Morgrim had to talk me through how to get there!! I had passed that little shop by many many times - just never noticed it! So I guess I have Morgrim to blame for what has turned into a bit of an obsession.

Decorating houses in different styles has been a fun side of the game. At least now I have unlimited gold from Halfang! I've been working on the main room at my Barn for the last couple of months, and I think it is pretty much done. Of course, as always, working on means hanging at the Bazaar for my chosen style! Well today I picked up a new wall trophy - the first I have seen in a while. There was just enough space for the "Earth Dino Shield". The style of the room is "Trophy". A place to display all shields, masks, armour and many other items.

I took a quick picture of the room, but realised that you can't really see the items I have on display. Take this "Ornate Mask" - you can't see it in the room. So I decided to take some video of the room, so you can see the trophies, armour and unusual items I have been picking up. The Fur Lined floor fits in with this style, and the Stitched wallpaper is sufficiently plain to show off the items. I have developed a love for moving items, such as flames or steam, so you'll notice a few of those objects in the mix. My biggest problem is that the barn is big, but only allows 250 items inside, and I'm completely full. If anything else shows up then I will have to cull from other places to fit more in!

I am very happy with how it's all come together, but would love to know what you guys think!

Until Next Time,

Tabitha

Castle Tours - Much needed Improvement!

Hey everyone,

Have you wondered how the ratings work for the Castle Tours? Or maybe just thought it unfair that a clearly unfinished house is rated top, when there are so many great houses out there? Now I know that the houses with the dungeons rate high, as everyone wants easy access to them. But some houses look like they have just been bought with no decoration inside or out, or maybe just a few scant items.

Seems unfair to me, that some Wizards go to so much effort - those houses deserve to be seen by everyone!

So I was happy to see that one of the other updates that will be included with the Khrysalis Part 2 update is as follows:

This is great news, and clearly shows that KI, once again, are listening to the masses and giving us great improvements in addition to the next part of the Khrysalis story. I understand that only level 10 wizards will be able to rate houses with this release too. Nice one!

Until next time,
Tabitha

And that makes 20 or is that 21??

On the 26th December I set myself a personal quest to get 20 snow globes - you can read about it here. So I have been hanging out at the Bazaar. A lot. For days there would be nothing, then one day there would be 3 of them sitting there. I managed to get 15 relatively easily...... I felt sure that once the New Year arrived there would be a bounty of snow globes in the Bazaar.

So I was dismayed to find them even harder to get hold as (if you are from this side of the planet it would be described as "Rare as hen's teeth"). Today that elusive little globe at last showed up in the list. I held my breath as I pressed the Buy and then confirmed - I was dreading seeing the "Sorry this item has been sold". But lady luck was with me, and I got it. The 20th snow globe.

I took a short video of me placing my last globe - an historic moment :)

With a break for maintenance, the next time logged back I was again at the Bazaar. Habit got the better of me so I checked, and there was another snow globe. With lightening fast reflexes, that globe was mine.

So I went back to my house to see what would happen.... I can't place any more outside, so number 21 will just have to go inside!

And here it is. In my everlasting Christmas room, keeping the snowmen happy - a bit like the little snowman in the Disney movie Frozen!!

My Winter House will now have lots of snow all year round. No global warming problems here!

Now I wonder if I will be able to resist the urge to buy them when I see them at the Bazaar next time.... Time will tell!!

Until Next Time,
Tabitha.

Alia'a Sightseeing through the Spiral - F

F is for Furniture

It must have been a while since I have bought furniture at the crowns shop and so I was delighted to see the new furniture packs there.  I bought all the Zafarian furniture sets 1, 2 and 3 and they have become my new favourite furniture in the game.

At 22500 gold a set, I think they are great value and I think it is great that you don't need crowns for them.

I have been redecorating my life house which is still a work in progress but have included a few pics for you.  My favourite is the elephant bath with the rubber duck wearing a mask.

At the moment the bath, sink, bed and dining table are all in the same room downstairs.  This was just because I didn't have time to rearrange all my rooms, and I just wanted to see what it all looked like.







The lounge/entry room upstairs currently has the tree couch, fireplace, bookcase, rug and table.  One of my little sea dragons wanted front and centre for the photo :)


I'm not sure how long the packs have been in the crown shop for, but when I was telling my new friend Emily about my find, she said that she already had it in her house.  Here is Emily Roseblossom standing next to the enormous Zafarian Bath Sink which is just so impressive with it's size.  Thanks again Emily for letting me visit your lovely home.

 I went on to buy the Celestial Furniture packs as well and ran out of money after sets 1 and 2.  Thanks to Morgrim for helping farm halfang with me so I could afford set 3.  Not my favourite furniture but the dining table is amazing.

Until next time
Alia

I declare this house OPEN!!!

Next time you're in the Commons, how about stopping by the Castle Tours? Only there is a new house on the Block - An Imperial Palace. And it's my house. The one I have been blogging about - it is done :)

True to my word, every room has at least one crafted item, most of them have many... Thanks to the new Item Identifier you'll be able to see what I have crafted. Here are a few pictures of the rooms.
First up is the completed library - not much has changed in it since my earlier post, but I eventually found the right coloured rug to finish off the room.

Next up is the dining room and bar area. I have taken 2 pictures, one at each end as it is a very long room. This room only has one crafted item. The hardest part of this room was finding a dining table the right shade of wood. The amount of time I have spent at the Bazaar searching for just the right item to finish a room is well... let's just say I'd rather not think about that right now.

But I am pleased with the end result, and that's what counts.

You saw a preview of the bedroom when I first bought this house. I have changed this since then. The floor is better and I found a couple of lavender rugs that together were the finishing touch.

The sitting area is actually the entrance way and hall areas. I wanted to remove the dojo feel of this area, and the flooring and wallpaper were a dramatic change!

The 'Violin and Stand' was the most expensive piece in the entire house. It is crafted from a recipe in Grizzleheim, and is one of the few items that requires crafting at the Grizzleheim forge. Don't forget to check out Morgrim's post about the different crafting stations and what to look for! You can find the post here.

The 'Ship in a Bottle' was also crafted there, from another Grizzleheim recipe.

Lastly there is the kitchen. This was one room I was so looking forward to crafting, and I am so pleased with the result. Take a look! Again I have split the room across two pictures so you can see them properly.
This is the room with the most crafted items. I have also added one of my teleport tapestries to this room, so if you want to visit Avalon, come on over and take a trip through the tapestry. You'll find it over near the bistro table.

Outside I have tried to create a Spring like atmosphere, There is a picnic area, lots of trees and flowers.

I still hang out there, so if you catch me at home be sure to say Hi! I'd love to know what you think of my house too, so leave me a comment!

Time to plan my next project and to keep looking for those Snow Globes..... the last one is proving tricky to get!

Until next time!
Tabitha.

Getting Closer......

Update on the snow globe quest. My castle is gradually filling with snow, and I have started placing them outside too. I have 7 at this castle now. I think I'll move them all outside eventually - see if I have enough to make the whole outside area snow. We'll see!

With it being a brand new year I was also hoping that more would be available today. 

And it seems I was right. Take a look at how many I have scored this morning!! Another 7 and I am running low on gold yet again. Looking like I might well complete this quest. I've decided I am going to keep the Christmas going at my snow palace too.                                                                               I've got Spring happening at my new place. Pleased with how the kitchen is looking although the crafting has been a bit slow. More on that soon.                                                                                         

Back to the snow globes and I need 6 more - fingers crossed that I make it to 20!!

Until next time,

Tabitha