blockade
Latest
The US military wants walls that automatically pop out of cans
Many soldiers dream of having instant cover on the battlefield, and it looks like they might just get their wish. DARPA is soliciting proposals for BlockADE (Block Access to Deny Entry), a system that would automatically form a barrier from material stuffed into a canister 1ft by 6.5ft or smaller. If US troops needed to block off an entrance or create a makeshift building, all they'd have to do is hit a button -- much more effective than sandbagging or pitching a tent, we'd say.
Wasteland Diaries: It's fixed
During the past couple of weeks, I haven't been playing Fallen Earth too much. I have been waiting for some changes to come along. I found the new combat system to be a bit too slow-paced and dull. It was very centered around healing. He who healed the best generally won the fights. I prefer a system in which he who deals the most damage is more likely to win. There are, of course, other tactical considerations involved in both types of combat, but the overall feel was just plain wrong in the healer-centric combat system. I'm happy to report that some changes have been made to the system. There are still a few things I don't like about the 1.9 patch, but 1.9.2 fixed almost all of these issues. I won't say it was a perfect patch, but it was very close. There are still some minor issues I'd like to see addressed, but these are probably conscious design choices that are working as intended. In this post, I'd like to cover what has changed, why it's so great, and what we will see in the coming months. The urge to log into Fallen Earth is coming back to me, and it is all due to this new patch. After the cut, I'll explain why.
Wasteland Diaries: Exploring the Citadel
Normally, I prefer to PvP in Fallen Earth. It gives me the biggest sense of accomplishment and it's a handy way to gain tons of faction rep. But, while I'm leveling up my PvP clones and getting used to the new combat system, I've been doing mostly PvE. I went to Alpha County and ran some missions, but I'll go into more detail on that later in this post. I also got a chance to check out the progress towns. I have to admit, they are fun, and rewarding too! I actually had more fun messing around in the progress towns back in Deadfall than I did roaming around in Sector 4. Sure, I didn't do every mission in Alpha -- I probably didn't even do half of them. After a while, I decided to put my time to use in the progress towns. After the cut, I'll tell you why I left Sector 4 and came back to Deadfall.
Wasteland Diaries: A fond farewell
Fallen Earth's Alpha County: the first installment of Sector 4 is here at long last. There was a time when the place was considered a myth by many wastelanders, but it has finally become a reality. If you want to see what it has in store, check it out for yourself. It's very likely that's what I'm currently doing. Since the patch date got pushed back a day, I wasn't able to do a piece on my first impressions of the new zone. Maybe I'll handle that next week. I've instead decided to do a retrospective on what I am leaving behind in Fallen Earth, a fond farewell to some of the things that will no longer matter. There are a great many things I will miss as I cross over into S4, and there will be a great many things I won't miss. As a creature of habit, I fear change, but I'm trying to be as optimistic as possible. With that in mind, after the cut, I'll try to concentrate on some of the changes that I'll be pleased about.
Fallen Earth launches Alpha County expansion [Updated]
Welcome to Alpha County, wasteland wanderers! That's right, the big day is here, as GamersFirst has finally launched (see below) the newest expansion to Fallen Earth. What does this new addition bring to Fallen Earth players? Well... (deep breath!) the largest addition is the eponymous Alpha County zone, which provides endgame-level players with a wealth of new content. The expansion brings the level cap to 55 and introduces a brand-new conflict town called Blockade. Also included are new areas known as Progress Towns. These towns are PvP-centric areas that players can fight over, command, defend, and hopefully, hold. The expansion also brings a wealth of combat balance changes and new skill lines. The new system "allows for wider varieties of player builds and roles in combat." In addition, skills will no longer increase alongside the character's base statistics, thereby requiring more specialized skill investment in order to receive the most powerful abilities. New players aren't getting left in the dust either, as they will now begin the game with 30 Advancement Points from the get-go, allowing them to take steps toward customizing and defining their characters much earlier in the game. For more information, and to jump into the post-apocalyptic wasteland of Fallen Earth for yourself, head on over to the game's official site. [Update: And it's just been announced that the Alpha County update is delayed until tomorrow. So there's that.]
Wasteland Diaries: Playstyles
Most MMOs have three playstyles. Well, that's incorrect; they actually have any number of play-styles with varying degrees of three types of play. PvE (player vs. environment) is the style of play in which the antagonists are a part of the gameworld itself. PvP (player vs. player) pits the players against each other. And RP (roleplaying) has the players vying for... whatever they decide they need to vie for. Most players engage Fallen Earth (or any MMO, for that matter) with a mix of the three. Fallen Earth is a great setting for the RPers. Its vastness and its interesting-looking locales make for a variety of backdrops. The interesting locales usually make for some great locations for open world PvP. And there are hundreds and hundreds of PvE missions here, there, and everywhere. All three types of players can get a lot out of Fallen Earth if they approach the game properly. The purpose of this post is to help you along with getting what you can out of the game with your preferred playstyle. So without any further ado, click past the cut and read on.
Wasteland Diaries: Sector 4 lives!
To many players of Fallen Earth, the expression "when hell freezes over" has been supplanted by "when Sector 4 is released." At launch, the sector was supposedly largely completed, and it was expected to be released shortly thereafter. After a year had passed and we were still waiting to see it, many players started to believe that it didn't even exist. Well, I am here to tell you that not only does it exist, but I spent a few hours roaming around on the other side of the big wall. Aside from some nice pictures, I got a little bit of insight on what we might expect to see in Alpha County, which will be the first installment in the fourth sector. It's been quite some time since Fallen Earth's opening day, and we have been waiting quite some time for the new sector. But the team at Fallen Earth, LLC has given us a few things to tide us over: Deadfall and Terminal Woods, which combined have as much content as a full sector. So it's not like we've been stuck in Sector 3 for over a year and a half; the devs have given us some new stuff and made some fundamental changes to the game (some good and some bad, but mostly good). The first bit of S4 we will see was released on the public test server (PTS) earlier this week, so I took the opportunity to do some exploring for you (actually my motivations were entirely selfish). After the cut, I'll tell you a little bit about what I saw (slight spoiler alert!).
