SMITE: Demigods, Deities and Gods Explained is a column dedicated to introducing prospective players of SMITE to its massive back story of lore. From the Greek to Hindu, each week we’ll look at two characters from a major pantheon and provide a quick recap of their history and in what capacity their digital incarnation will represent on the field of Hi-Rez Studios’ upcoming MOBA.

Lore: Athena, the patroness of Athens, is the goddess of wisdom and numerous other components of civilization, from mathematics to just warfare. Athena is said to have come into the world as many ways as Zeus has children. The most often cited origin is that she was the cause of an unrelenting headache for her father after her father laid with Metis. Fearing her pregnancy, Zeus consumer her, keeping her prisoner in her stomach. Later, he developed a headache so powerful he literally had his skull split open to relieve the pressure. Athena leaped free, a fully developed and armed adult female.

A core Olympian goddess, Athena is the focus or a focal character in many legends. She was the foster mother to Erichthonius, the early mythological ruler of Athens, after Hephaestus attempted to rape Athena. She narrowly escaped, but not before his seed was spread upon the Earth and bore the future ruler. Her most famous tale is the creation of Medusa. A priestess in her Athenian temple, Medusa desecrated the sanctuary by breaking her vow of celibacy when she “allowed” herself to be raped by Poseidon. Disturbed, Athena turned her hair to snakes, morphed her lower body and made her gaze turn any man caught in it to stone. Continue Reading

SMITE: Demigods, Deities and Gods Explained is a column dedicated to introducing prospective players of SMITE to its massive back story of lore. From the Greek to Hindu, each week we’ll look at two characters from a major pantheon and provide a quick recap of their history and in what capacity their digital incarnation will represent on the field of Hi-Rez Studios’ upcoming MOBA.

Lore: Isis, the Goddess of motherhood, fertility and magic, was one of the numerous pervasive gods in Egyptian mythology to crossover into later pantheons in the region. Adapted by the Greco-Roman world, she was worshipped as the ideal women, mother and wife. Like many of the old gods of the Nile region, the realms guarded by Isis changed dramatically over her reign.

Born of the union between Sky and Earth, Nut and Geb, Isis wed her brother Osiris. Their union bore Horus.

Isis’ most famous myth is not for the sibling union specifically, but for her life-giving properties. Set, the sister of both, plotted to kill Osiris by deception. The strategic Set had measured her brother the night before and offered an ornamented box to anyone that could fit inside. Osiris being the only capable, Set tested the fit by closing the lid, sealing Osiris inside. After placing himself in a now-coffin, Osiris and box was pitched into the Nile. The river didn’t do its task. Isis and Nephthys quickly found the box. Continue Reading

This review of the World of Warcraft: Dawn of the Aspects: Part 3 novel by Richard Knaak is of the spoiler-free variety. Check out the entire Blizzard catalog in our Extensive Extended Universe post.

Before diving into the review proper, it’s important to note that Blizzard is releasing this book in a new fashion. Knaak’s latest work in the World of Warcraft universe will trickle out over the next few months in five installments. Each ringing up at $1.99, effectively costing more for those that purchase the full set. The serialized eBook is currently scheduled to wrap up in mid June. As such, this review will be concise.

Review of Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5.

Dawn of the Aspect has been a struggle to read through. The delayed releases of the individual parts of the eBook has endangered the novel further in my eyes. Rather than continuing reading to reach the next interesting plot point or gloss over additional unnecessary and repetitive detail, one has been left waiting weeks to see anything move forward. It’s been slow going during the first two installments, comprising of 10 chapters. Continue Reading

WoW: Memories features wacky, entertaining and enduring stories from the world’s most popular subscription-based MMOG.

In 2009 I ended my hardcore raiding ways in World of Warcraft. My gaming career during that can easily be summed up in two words, guild hopping.  Since the Year of the Ox began I had been through a raiding member of four guilds, and another while everyone was still leveling.  To me, the act of switching that often is sacrilege, but fleeting guild experiences have become the norm.  With Wrath of the Lich King’s introduction of 10- and 25-man raids, an easier badge system, and then the Dungeon Finder, guilds had become neigh replaceable by PUGs.  The changes lead me to experience the gauntlet of raid leader types since the Alliance and the Horde decided to take the Lich King’s threat head on.  From the best-friend to the belittling asshole, I dealt with them all in 2009.  The main concern is that the best, and who is the most fun to play with tend to be two different answers.

Without question the most productive guild I had been a part during 2009 was the last of them.  We cleared ICC 25-man the second day, the guild dropped ToGC like it was Naxxramas and TotT was defeated with alts. Everyone was geared out the wazoo – I recall only being invited because two members vouched for me – with the best enchants, full epic gems and Rawr checking all required.  By required I don’t mean you would be sat, but kicked.  The GM and officers are nowhere near lenient, opting to outright kick players who fall behind in the slightest.  The guild demands perfection, something I actually prefer, but the raid leader I’ve largely dealt with wore on me. Quickly. I hadn’t screwed up, but the constant stream of swears, belittling of other members and his power complex wore on me. I knew it was burning me out.  My only enjoyment became the competitive nature among the rogues and the progression itself. Not from the guild atmosphere. Continue Reading