Newletter, February 26, 2001

Newsletter

MAGGIE THE JACKCAT'S IRREGULAR AC NEWS
February 26, 2001 Edition
Brought to you by Maggie the Jackcat of Thistledown
Web Site: www.thejackcat.com/AC
Email: Maggie@thejackcat.com or thejackcat@xrgaming.net

CONTENTS:

* AC2!
* Tim the Enchanter Hits Level 126!
* AC Sites in the News
* Maggie the Jackcat's Kick-Ass Fabulous Site News

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AC2!
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It's official! Microsoft and Turbine Entertainment announced today that a sequel to Asheron's Call is under development! If any of you read my write-up from the Boston Player Gathering last summer, you may remember the overwhelmingly enthusiastic response generated by the preview of the Turbine Engine 2.0. It completely blew everyone in the room away. It's now confirmed that this remarkable technology will be used in the sequel to Asheron's Call. AC is probably the most fun game I've ever played, and certainly the coolest. My vassal and I were just discussing it earlier today, marveling at how many places in Dereth we had still never been. I'm thrilled, as I'm sure are all of you, that it looks like the adventure will only be getting better!
http://www.microsoft.com/games/zone/asheronscall/ac_the_sequel.asp

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TIM THE ENCHANTER HITS LEVEL 126!
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Hard to believe, but it's true! Tim the Enchanter of Thistledown achieved Level 126, the highest level currently attainable by a player. A global message announcing the feat accompanied the event. Congratulations, Tim! You can find an old Interview with Tim the Enchanter, back when he was a baby level 97 on AC Tips. *ahem* Thistledown RULZZZ!11!! ;-)
http://www.tip.it/wizard/ac/proba.php3?jump_id=56

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AC SITES IN THE NEWS!
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Crossroads of Dereth
http://ac.xrgaming.net/
If you haven't been by to check out the CoD since its revamp, slap on some sunglasses and prepare to be dazzled! Choose one of many gorgeous skins to customize your viewing. In case you're like me and didn't have the slightest idea what a skin was before seeing CoD in all its glory, it's a way to change the appearance of the site without changing the content or functionality in any way. My favorite is the Magma Golem skin, with its volcanic black background and vibrant magma colors. You can even create one of your own!

The revamp to the site was a lot more than just a facelift. Julia Child joined the staff and provided a much appreciated Trade Skills section. You'll also find a brand new FAQ. The quest section was overhauled and many new quests were added. In addition, the Weapons, Armor and Trophy & Lore sections were converted into database format for easier updating and navigation. It's an impressive collection, so stop by and browse for a bit!

The Way of The Sho Jitte Warrior
http://www.panmere.com/AC/Jitte/index.htm
In a previous newsletter I featured an Archery site. This time it's the life of a Jitte fighter. I ran across this site a while ago and was charmed by Tze's of Morningthaw's in-depth exploration within a narrow focus. You'll find information on the philosophy of a Sho Jitte Warrior, an overview of the weapon's strengths and weaknesses, the weapons available in-game, and his progression through various levels. The underlying wisdom is clear. As Tze says, "Creating and playing an enjoyable character is far more important than playing a template."

AC Stratics - Meet the Devs
http://ac.stratics.com/content/community/turbine/
I had planned to mention the hilarious Meet the Devs feature on AC Stratics back in the December newsletter. But since, um, I never wrote one, I'll mention it now. Better late than never! Find out what the Turbine folk really want from their fans: Money, public adoration, Phat Lewt and chocolate.

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MAGGIE THE JACKCAT'S KICK-ASS FABULOUS SITE NEWS!
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You may remember the spike in the my stats during the whole Boobie Dress imbroglio (thanks to the link from Lum). What seemed like a heavy traffic back then would be a very light day now. In recent weeks, the site receives almost 5,000 unique user sessions a day. The month of January alone had almost a half million page views! Not too shabby for a site without forums.

The quest section still remains very popular, with the Exploration Society Letters quest finally overtaking Shadow Armor as the most visited quest pages. The Bargains Section, with information on Vendor Rates and where to buy your Peas, and Mana Stones, and Cooking Supplies, etc. has been picking up more and more visitors as well. I'll try hard to get the section finished soon. There are just a few more towns I need to add.

The Letters and the Runway, including the Where Are They Now section, continue to have an extremely large number of visitors. So many that I am feeling extremely guilty about the piles and piles of screenshots and email sitting on my hard drive that I haven't had a chance to get up on the site yet. More coming soon! ;-) Other well-visited pages continue to be the tried and true basics of the game: Portals, Alchemy Formulas, Beasties, etc.

As always, deep thanks to all my visitors. I have become incapable of keeping up on the mail I receive and can no longer promise a personal reply to every letter. If I haven't yet responded to your letter, it doesn't mean that I don't love you! Even though my Inbox is overflowing, please don't stop sending them! Your suggestions, information, stories, tips and screen shots are invaluable to me and to the rest of the AC Community. And all that effusive praise doesn't hurt either. ;-)

See you in the game!

- Maggie the Jackcat
Thistledown

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remove@thejackcat.com
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Copyright 2001 by Maggie the Jackcat. All rights reserved. No part of this material may be used or reproduced for commercial gain or stored in a database or retrieval system without prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews.