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Natural Science?
Urgh. I was about to take a nap and thought Hey, I should do one last check on Gaia for no apparent reason because, heh, let’s face it, I have nothing better to do! And what do you know. It’s that time of the month again. Time for me to sit down with my bank account, determine how much of it will be sent to Gaia (because I do love this site for all creative purposes), and then bash away at their work like an ungrateful little s**t. Might as well get on with it.
<span id="test26376485">. . .</span><br/><div id="post26376485" style="display:none; margin-right:75px;">
Magic School Course: Science
The Techno-Mage brings the world of science and magic together in a bastardization that can be best described as the poor-man’s Full Metal Alchemist. Now, I know what you are thinking. How could this be bad? It’s bad aesthetically. Nearly every option is made out of the same five colors: green-gray, copper, silver, red, and blue. A very strange combination when you think about it from a color theory stance, but it does work if you stay within those ranges.
The default option is as a really dumb hat. I mean dumb. You have vacuum tubes on one side and a tuning fork pointing out of the front like a horn. Wires connecting every piece of machinery exposed to the point where you just look ridiculous. Your avatar will look even more ridiculous if you decided to flip on the power switch, causing the tubes to glow and the tuning fork to spark.
The Monocle is a little bit more forgiving, though just as strange as the hat. Here, your avatar is given a multi-lens monocle that reminds me a lot of the movie version of that one professor from Harry Potter with the shifty eye. You get a hint of Disney’s National Treasure with the red and blue lens that are positioned in a way that imply you can move them into your line of sight to see things that could otherwise not be seen. If you want a more interesting look and you still own Syaoran’s Goggles, you’ll be happy to know that this option can combine with most eye wear available. Be careful which you pick, however, as the lens of the monocle is transparent enough to show the goggles underneath. The last thing you want is a layering issue you can’t avoid.
The Belt option is just that. It gives you a belt with a holster, a pocket watch, what appears to be a miniature version of the Fausto’s Bottle evolutionary item, and a pair of metal rods connected to a portable battery pack. Nothing to write home about, unless you are the kind of person that likes to be prepared for just about anything and don’t mind looking like a walking mall kiosk.
The Spell Caster Cannon is a hand-held pistol with three barrels for shooting, what else? Magic Spell Bullets! Sound familiar? It should, seeing how it was the primary weapon of a certain anime called Outlaw Star. Gene cosplays to be expected now.
The Arc-Guider Staff is the alternative weapon of choice for the Techno-Mage. Taking its design from that of a large wrench, it is equipped with a red crystal that is used to harness and amplify electrical currents that pass through it via all those wires and little pieces of machinery. Much like the hat, it has the option of being turned on or off. Both options are not that impressive, which is unfortunate considering you’re essentially holding a portable welder that could be used like an ion pulse cannon.
The final option is the Power Pack. It’s a backpack with several steel canisters connected through piping and metal cables to a regulator that appears to be connected to a pair of light bulbs so you know that it’s working. Turning the power on results in the regulator glowing red, the light bulbs glowing blue, and steam coming out of the seams of the metal canisters. Probably not the safest backpack to go walking around with, but I can think of worse things you could put on your back.
Overall, this item is a strong compliment to the steampunk item we had a while back. Mixing and matching the various gear between the two can result in some interesting looks. However, as far as the magic aspect of this item goes, it’s missing in spades. And if you aren’t a fan of the color pallet that restricts this item’s flexibility, then you’re better off trying to find another look.
Got Wood?
When I initially started this critique, the Spring Nymph was not fully uploaded with all its features. So I decided to take said nap and come back to it when it was functioning properly. Unfortunately, when I came back, it was still not working, so here is my partial review of the item.
The default option of this item is as a wig of clovers and daisies. As a wig, I think it just makes your avatar look like an overgrown chia. To be honest, the flora wigs you get from the Elemental Hair is better.
Ivy Wrap gives your avatar a very artsy vine wrap that covers up the naughty bits very tastefully. It is here where the Spring Nymph earns its name, both in design and in theme. All that’s left to do is to get a skin-tight outfit that compliments the green of the ivy. Too bad that this option layers UNDER every piece of clothing I have in my inventory.
Bark Corset is just that. A brown corset similar to those provide in the Wench set you can buy in the NPC store. The big difference is that it isn’t snitched up all the way. And by all appearances that I can determine, it does nothing for the waist line. Of course, this is for all the male cross-dressers I’m talking for.
Floral Adornment gives you a very decorative but sparse flower to accent your hair style. Given the design, swooping hair styles will benefit from this option, particularly if your hair moves in the same direction as the strings that keep this wrap on your head. If you have a variety of hats, experiment with them. At least half of them will layer underneath this option giving your that very unique combination that will surely turn heads and get people to notice you more. My personal favorite combination is with the Luxurious Head Wrap option from the P. Urn evolution item.
Forest Wreath gives you yet another headband of flowers that you can choose from! Between this and the Flower Headband and the various others, you should have no problem finding the appropriate flower for the hippie in you to wear at any point in the year. This one appears to be made out of small orange flowers or berries, which compliments the green quite nicely.
Ivy Wings sucks. I’m starting to get tired of these back wings we can’t even see. Actually, to be honest, I’m starting to get tired of collectibles having wing options to begin with. Besides, the Bonsai Wings you get from zOMG! look better, despite the fact you can’t even see those either.
My Mana Tree gives you your own personal tree to keep you company. While it may look like your average background item, it holds a special surprise! Making your avatar sit causes your entire avatar to be hidden in a Mana bush, very similar in design to the bushes that line the Towns area. The unfortunate thing is that you cannot walk while you are hiding in the bush, which would be fun.
The last (working) option available is Deep Root. Here, your feet turn into the roots of a tree, forever cementing your place in nature. Kind of reminds me of that one Batman episode were Poison Ivy ran a rejuvenation spa where she turned corporate tycoons who destroyed acres of forests in urban and industrial development into the very trees they destroyed. (Probably one of the creepiest episodes I’ve ever seen, to be honest.) But outside of that specific look, you probably are not going to get much out of this option.
The last two options I can only speculate about, as they are not working as of this typing. So with this in mind, I can’t really give this item a true overall review. What options that are available are interesting and do stir the creative juices. However, the layering of these options does bring into question how to make them work well. The design is very hit-and-miss, so it will take a very creative person to make these work outside of the nature theme this item is going for.
The Magic of Nature
Between these two items, you’re not going to get much out of either unless you happen to like the brown or green color range. And those two colors are not very popular to say the least. Hell, I can’t even see green, so I’m just going off of what I think may be green. But if you can find a look that works with them, it won’t hurt you to invest in at least one of either. I just don’t see many people rushing out to get them this month. I mean, hell, even I was hesitant in buying the five letters I did (two for the nymph, three for the Techno-Mage), but that has something to do with my current economic state more than it does with design.</div>
 Zeek Slider · Mon Mar 16, 2009 @ 02:19am · 0 Comments |
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