The Fire Rising Syndication Wed, 15 May 2013 02:35:16 +0000 forum@bzpower.com (BZPower Forums) IP.Blog 60 I'll probably review these later. I haven't checked the games tonight yet, but here they are:
 
East
Pittsburgh Penguins (1) vs. Ottawa Senators (7) - Senators in 7.
 
Boston Bruins (4) vs. New York Rangers (6) - Bruins in 6.
 
East
Chicago Blackhawks (1) vs. Detroit Red Wings (7) - Blackhawks in 6.
 
Los Angeles Kings (5) vs. San Jose Sharks (6) - Sharks in 5.]]> Wed, 15 May 2013 00:08:00 +0000 As a refresher, on May 1st these were my predictions for the first round:
 
East
Pittsburgh Penguins (1) vs. New York Islanders (8) - Penguins in 6.
Montreal Canadiens (2) vs. Ottawa Senators (7) - Canadiens in 7
Washington Capitals (3) vs. New York Rangers (6) - Rangers in 7
Boston Bruins (4) vs. Toronto Maple Leafs (5) - Could go either way, but I'll say Maple Leafs in 7.
 
West
Chicago Blackhawks (1) vs. Minnesota Wild (8) - Blackhawks in 5
Anaheim Ducks (2) vs. Detroit Red Wings (7) - Ducks in 7
Vancouver Canucks (3) vs. San Jose Sharks (6) - Canucks in 6
Los Angeles Kings (4) vs. St. Louis Blues (5) - Kings in 6
 
Now, below, here they are updated, mostly my thoughts on what could occur in the series that haven't ended yet (I'm not gonna be stupid and just switch my predicted winners, because that'd be sore losing)
 
East
Pittsburgh Penguins (1) vs. New York Islanders (8) - Penguins in 6 - This prediction could still come true, but in order for it to do so, the Penguins must win tomorrow's game. Do I think they can do this? Absolutely. However, I anticipated the Islanders putting up a good fight, and although they've done so already, I do think they are capable of pushing a game seven, and possibly even eliminating the Penguins. Tomorrow night will tell.

Montreal Canadiens (2) vs. Ottawa Senators (7) - Canadiens in 7 - WRONG. Senators defeated the Canadiens last night, winning the series in five games. To be honest, I knew this series was lost by game two, but again, wasn't going to just change stuff on the record books. That said, I think the Senators will be lucky to get matched with a team they can beat in Round 2.

Washington Capitals (3) vs. New York Rangers (6) - Rangers in 7 - As I write this, the two teams are tied 1-1 in the second period of game five in a series that is tied 2-2. Despite the blitz of the Capitals throughout April, I believed and still do believe that the Rangers have the firepower to take them down. I don't believe the Rangers can win the cup, but they can certainly defeat this team that should be executed for removing the Jets from the playoffs.
EDIT: After the Capitals won game five, they are up 3-2; I still believe that the Rangers might be able to win the series, however.

Boston Bruins (4) vs. Toronto Maple Leafs (5) - Could go either way, but I'll say Maple Leafs in 7. - As I write this, the Maple Leafs also lead 1-0 in the second period of game five. However, the Maple Leafs are currently down 3-1 in this series. If they do not win tonight, they will be eliminated. I will cop out slightly here and point out that I originally said the series could go either way in my first prediction; the Maple Leafs victory was my Canadian bias coming out. I do believe though that if the Maple Leafs win tonight, they might be able to push game seven. After that, who knows.
EDIT: Maple Leafs won and are now down 3-2. Who knows, honestly...
 
West
Chicago Blackhawks (1) vs. Minnesota Wild (8) - Blackhawks in 5 - 100% correct. Gosh darn, can you believe it? Don't worry, the Canucks and Canadiens proved me wrong enough to compensate for this, but man, it is nice to know that I really understood the Blackhawks (don't expect this again). It was five simple games, and I could see the Blackhawks making the final round, if the Sharks don't catch them on the way.

Anaheim Ducks (2) vs. Detroit Red Wings (7) - Ducks in 7 - As I write this, the Red Wings lead 1-0 at the end of the first period of game six in a series that the Ducks currently lead 3-2. If I'm off by a game and the Ducks win tonight, I'll consider it no big loss. I got the winner right, and that's what matters. However, I can still see the Red Wings pulling off a victory tonight only to fail in the grand finale.
EDIT: Red Wings won, and the series is tied 3-3. Prediction can still stand.

Vancouver Canucks (3) vs. San Jose Sharks (6) - Canucks in 6 - 100% WRONG. I honestly did not see this one coming - the Canucks being swept? But issues with the coach and which goalie to play let me know by Game 3 that the series was lost, and it was only a matter of time. Luongo should have been in net games three and four. Maybe it would've changed the fortunes of the team, it probably wouldn't have, but at least the Canucks look to be heading towards a restructuring they desperately need. If the Sharks continue to play like this, I could see them finally winning the Stanley Cup they deserve.
 
St. Louis Blues (4) vs. Los Angeles Kings (5) - Kings in 6 - In just over an hour these two teams will meet in the sixth game of a series that the Kings currently lead 3-2. I'll admit, I'd love for the Blues to go far, and I was a little worried during the first two games that the Kings would lose the cup in the first round, but the royal team has picked it up since, and I can definitely see this game being the end of the road for the Blues.
EDIT: With the Kings emerging victorious tonight, I got another series spot-on.]]> Sat, 11 May 2013 00:32:00 +0000 Anywhere from 8pm to 9pm NA Eastern Time, we'll be playing Left 4 Dead 2 again (myself, Blade, and probably Hero). So if you want to join, just say so here before then or message me on Steam.
 
 ]]> Sat, 04 May 2013 16:24:00 +0000 If anyone here has Left 4 Dead 2 on Steam, Mr. Chicken/Hero and I (and possibly one other [foolish, might I say?] member who does not have it downloaded yet) are going to begin playing soon. Just message me on Steam if you'd like to join in.]]> Sat, 04 May 2013 00:47:00 +0000 Yes... as of today, I am back.
 
And that means, of course, that I am now once more up for Left 4 Dead 2, Team Fortress 2, and Minecraft (BZPC AT LAST!!). Those of you who I have played/tried to play L4D2 with, I'm hoping to get a session going this Friday.]]> Wed, 01 May 2013 19:32:00 +0000 I guess it's that time of year again - you know, where I predict the first round of the NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs and fail dismally.
 
These predictions will surely make it absolute that the teams I pick to win will lose, but whatever,  right? I'm no fan of assigning a number of games it'll take either, but I suppose to be official about it or whatever they call it, I shall.
 
I will explain my choices later if anyone is actually like, interested.
 
East
Pittsburgh Penguins (1) vs. New York Islanders (8) - Penguins in 6.
Montreal Canadiens (2) vs. Ottawa Senators (7) - Canadiens in 7
Washington Capitals (3) vs. New York Rangers (6) - Rangers in 7
Boston Bruins (4) vs. Toronto Maple Leafs (5) - Could go either way, but I'll say Maple Leafs in 7.
 
West
Chicago Blackhawks (1) vs. Minnesota Wild (8) - Blackhawks in 5
Anaheim Ducks (2) vs. Detroit Red Wings (7) - Ducks in 7
Vancouver Canucks (3) vs. San Jose Sharks (6) - Canucks in 6
Los Angeles Kings (4) vs. St. Louis Blues (5) - Kings in 6]]> Wed, 01 May 2013 12:08:00 +0000 At long last, I have a can of Dr. Pepper once more. It has been too long! It has been like three weeks! This is the pop of whatever deities exist, and if no deities exist, then I am that deity, so that it is still the pop of deities!
 
Dr. Pepper is perfection in a can. Cherry Dr. Pepper is perfection multiplied by seven.
 
And I swear to my own iBrow's eyebrows if anybody calls me out for calling your so-called "soda" as "pop", I will burn YOUR eyebrows. In your DREAMS. Because I am Canadian, and that is how we roll. We say "pop". Because we will be different.
 
 ]]> Sat, 27 Apr 2013 00:46:00 +0000 I have completed the first rough draft of what will eventually be the introduction post. If all goes well, the Hero Factory RPG could be up and running by the end of the month. Maybe. ]]> Sun, 21 Apr 2013 02:14:00 +0000 So there it is. I'm now a hurricane. ]]> Thu, 18 Apr 2013 20:34:00 +0000 So, I think most of us here are familiar with Pyro - y'know, that lovable muffled chum from Team Fortress 2 that sets everything ablaze (except every single magical wooden structure within the game).
 
Last year, on December 31st 2011 (which for our purposes, was so late that we'll consider it January 1st 2012) I started Mafia III: The Cult. I replaced the typical "mafia" group with a "cult" group. However, this also led to my changing up several other typical roles.
 
The Detective became a saviour for those the Cult kidnapped; the Doctor could save them before they were kidnapped, and could not be converted, and I even changed the official title to "Medic"(a term that has for the most part remained); and then of course the Cult turned people into new Cultists, increasing their size instead of killing off the other side.
 
However, I also made one other change: in Mafia there is a role known as the "Arsonist". This player is sort of like a serial killer, in that once every two rounds they kill someone, except that it is fire related, and of course they are only allied to themselves. Sometimes, there is a particular role that protects only from the Arsonist.
 
I changed the Arsonist to the "Pyro" - a role that was still allied only to itself. However, the Medic could not protect people from the Pyro (in a second installment, I created the "Engineer" role, which could protect from the Pyro). The Pyro would select two targets each night they were active, select a weapon to use on each one (either a flamethrower or an axe, like in TF2), and then the player to die was selected via a dice roll.
 
Fast forward to today, where my latest game, Bionicle Mafia III: By the Numbers - With a Vengeance has just ended. The Pyro has remained as a role within almost every single Mafia game, sometimes in a more traditional "pick one player, they die" role, and sometimes closer to its original incarnation. In this most recent game, the Medic could save Pyro targets, and the target to die was chosen by an online version of rock-paper-scissors; similar, but a little different. The next game appears to have the Pyro playing some sort of major role - he even shows up in the title! I don't know how Zakaro will use the role, but I think it's kinda cool that a role I actually invented has lasted so long.
 
So, here's to the Pyro remaining a role in many Mafia games to come.]]> Thu, 11 Apr 2013 20:05:00 +0000