Minecraftin'

I kinda regret not recording or streaming this game. iHavoc was over for the weekend and we decided to play some Minecraft. But not Pixelmon or any minigames we had been playing recently, we decided to actually play a game of classic Survival.

We spawned in what appeared to be a Forest biome, right next to a Desert biome and right near a cave. iHavoc tunnelled an entrance/shelter while I gathered wood to make tools and a crafting bench (we also started with a bonus chest so we had at least some basic wood tools and a couple of apples) We spent some time mining and making stone tools before I noticed a village off in the distance. So after collecting some iron and making a couple of iron pickaxes and a couple of pieces of armor we set out to build a house near the village, so that the villagers could do all the farming and we can steal their food. There was also what appeared to be a large cave nearby as well.

So we began gathering wood and started building the house. I built the walls and iHavoc decided on granite floors (at least on the first floor). In the meantime a cow took up residence in our house, so we named him Steve and built a pen for him once the house was completed. There were quite a few cows around and since we started raising them we are all set for food (mmmmmm steak). Unfortunately we only found a couple of sheep and so we don't have enough wool to make a bed, since iHavoc decided to kill them rather than pen them in so that we could shear their wool. He probably thought we would find more.

Once the house was finished (double door with pressure plates, glass panes for the windows, a couple of double capacity chests, crafting table, furnace, some decor) I started tunneling under the house so that we have a secret entrance to the Batcave. I installed a trap door and a ladder as the entrance starts with a shaft that goes straight down for a ways before turning towards the cave, secured with another door. Also lots of torches so that mobs don't spawn inside our tunnel hopefully.

Then came exploring the cave itself. I think at this point iHavoc has put both a crafting bench and furnace down there as we found SO MUCH STUFF and don't want to have to always run all the way back to the house to prep it. I have never found so much iron in a game of Minecraft, so I'm pretty sure frequencies of raw material spawns have been increased (this was a game on default settings; we didn't even know about the new custom game option when we set it up).

As I continued on my way, gathering iron and some coal (we found so much iron that the two of us are wearing full iron armor and using iron swords, plus I made six buckets and there's still a pile of ingots left), and killing a few monsters (some creepers helpfully exploded entrances to new sections of the cave network as well), I came across some gold ore. I carefully moved around it as there was a pool of lava nearby, trying to get a better sense of how much gold there was, and calling to iHavoc to bring an iron pickaxe as I had forgotten mine, there it was. DIAMOND ORE. The first I had seen in a legit game of Minecraft. Needless to say iHavoc hurried his way down there even faster. Initially we saw 2 ore. Mining the gold and surrounding stone revealed a third. Happy that we found 3 diamonds, we scooped them up to find 3 more underneath! So we have a total of 6 diamonds now.

iHavoc proceeded to make a diamond pickaxe and mine up the obsidian that I had found not too far away while I kept exploring. I then discovered craploads of redstone ore. Altogether I think we came away with 75 redstone on the day. So we've discussed plans to make powered minecarts leading to the village and around our cave network.

All in all a fun and productive weekend in Minecraft!

Guilty Pleasure: Power Rangers

Yep, that's right. I like Power Rangers. I was pretty happy when Netflix picked up the franchise. My youngest son loves the show, primarily Power Rangers: Dino Thunder (he likes dinosaurs after all).

Yes, I realize the acting is comically bad, the writing often incoherent and the villains ridiculous. That's part of the show's charm though. The costumes are pretty cool (particularly when the Rangers' helmets are lacking a mouth) and the action sequences enjoyable, even with the sometimes ludicrous special effects.

What some of you may not realize is Power Rangers is the American version of a Japanese show called Super Sentai (collectively; each season has its own name), which has been running since the mid-1970's. Starting in 1993, Saban Entertainment began porting the show produced by Toei Co., renaming it Mighty Morphin Power Rangers. Generally the footage used from Japan is the action sequences after the heroes transformed, with the rest filmed domestically, though they will also shoot their own morphed action footage when necessary.

Mighty Morphin was the first, and for a time, only multi-season run of Power Rangers, and actually utilized footage from multiple Super Sentai shows (Sentai had long since adopted a self-contained season format), primarily Kyoryo Sentai Zyuranger, but later adding Gosei Sentai Dairanger and Ninja Sentai Kakuranger, mainly for new Zords (the Rangers' giant robots). The costumes were from Zyuranger, though towards the end they used the costumes from Kakuranger. Originally a team of 5 Rangers assembled by a powerful being called Zordon, this show also began the tradition of adding a "Sixth Ranger" later on. They originally fought a villain named Rita Repulsa, who was replaced by Lord Zedd, who then ended up marrying Rita. It's a bit of an odd show...

After 3 seasons Saban adopted the new-team-per-season format (at least partially) with Power Rangers Zeo (adapted from Chouriki Sentai Ohranger) , though this retained the characters from the end of Mighty Morphin. Now they started bringing new footage from Japan annually and didn't try to make the hodgepodge that Mighty Morphin had become toward the end. Ironically, the Red Ranger for this show was Tommy, who was the original Sixth Ranger in Mighty Morphin (originally the Green Ranger, but later became White Ranger and was promoted to leader), while the Sixth Ranger in Zeo (the Gold Ranger) was Jason, who was the original Red Ranger in Mighty Morphin. The enemies this time were the Machine Empire.

The next season saw the Zeo Rangers become Power Rangers Turbo (adapted from Gekisou Sentai Carranger) and adopt a car theme. This time however there was a casting change partway through, and for the first time we had an entirely new cast of Power Rangers. They fought a villain called Divatox. Sixth Ranger was the Phantom Ranger, whose identity was never revealed. SPOILER This season actually ended with a full defeat of the Power Rangers and the capture of Zordon, probably the only true downer ending the franchise has ever had. This resulted in the Rangers (minus the Phantom Ranger and the Blue Ranger, who was a 12-year-old kid for some reason) seeking out another Ranger in space, leading to...

Power Rangers IN SPAAAAACE!! Joking aside, this is the last, and arguably best, season of the so-called Zordon Era (adapted from Denji Sentai Megaranger). The Turbo cast was mostly intact, though they changed roles within the team. The Red Ranger became the Blue Ranger, as they brought in an entirely new character named Andros to take on the role of Red Ranger. The villain this season was Astronema. Sixth Ranger was the Silver Ranger. This was expected to be the last season of Power Rangers due to Power Rangers Turbo being generally bad, and the finale certainly felt like it. However, as people got on board with it and ratings went back up, it was renewed once more, and the next season was...

Power Rangers IN SPAAAACE AGAIN!!! Or, officially, Power Rangers Lost Galaxy (which actually had more of a nature theme, just set off-world. Adapted from Seijuu Sentai Gingaman). Where Space Rangers was still set on Earth (the Rangers base of operations was a starship they kept in orbit), this took place on a space colony called Terra Venture, and this season began the annual tradition in full of New Season/New Rangers/New Theme. This also began the tradition of This Year's Rangers Should Team Up With Last Year's Rangers, teaming the Galaxy Rangers with the Space Rangers. It also had the first Ranger to be SPOILER killed in the line of duty (of the noble sacrifice variety). The villain was Scorpius, followed by his daughter Trakeena, and then (upon being sent to the eponymous Lost Galaxy) Captain Mutiny (though they escaped the Lost Galaxy and fought Trakeena again). Sixth Ranger was the Magna Defender. Next came...

Power Rangers Lightspeed Rescue (adapted from Kyukyu Sentai GoGoFive). These Rangers were rescue workers (sort of: they were a firefighter, lifeguard, stunt pilot, nurse, and extreme sports athlete), and were the first to openly act as Rangers as well, rather than concealing their identities. There was also no mysterious source of their powers and Zords, it was all some kind of government superhero project. Villain this season was a group of demons, originally led by Diabolico, then Prince Olympius. Sixth Ranger was the Titanium Ranger, who, interestingly, had no Japanese counterpart and was created solely for the American version. This was followed by...

Power Rangers Time Force (adapted from Mirai Sentai Timeranger). This team of Power Rangers was from the future (mostly, as SPOILER the Red Ranger was killed and they needed someone with the same DNA to unlock the rest of the team's morphers so they recruited his identical grandfather). The show's intro implied a time travel theme but this ended up not being the case, as the show took place in the present-day (the Zords were stored in the future however). That said, this is considered one of the strongest Power Rangers seasons, in terms of writing, special effects, even acting (it was actually decent for a change) and is the only Power Rangers series to be nominated for an Emmy Award (for sound editing, but a nomination is a nomination). Interestingly, the Red Ranger was not team leader this season, it was the Pink Ranger (the Red Ranger was a rookie after all) The villain this season was Bennett Ransik and his daughter Nadira. Sixth Ranger was the Quantum Ranger. Follwed by...

Power Rangers Wild Force (adapted from Hyakujuu Sentai Gaoranger). This team featured a VERY heavy nature theme. The Red Ranger was a kid who grew up in a South American tribe and had to find a way to not only fit in with the team but also lead them despite the other Rangers being much more experienced. This was a transitional year, as the series went from Saban to Disney, and arguably suffered for it. Still featured great team-up episodes. Villain for the season was Master Org. Sixth ranger was the Lunar Wolf Ranger, who for some reason got to have 3 Zords all to himself. This was followed by...

Power Rangers Ninja Storm (adapted from Ninpu Sentai Hurricanger). The Rangers are trained Ninja (duh) with a bit of extreme sports thrown in, and this series played with the traditional 5+1 format of the team. The original team is only 3 Rangers from the Wind Ninja Academy, and are pitted against 2 Rangers from the Thunder Ninja Academy who are brainwashed into working for the villain. They eventually team up but it leads to duplicated colors: there are 2 blue and 2 red Rangers rather than a team of 5 different colors. This was thought initially to be a reboot of the franchise due to the transition to Disney, as well as the lack of a team up episode (this was due to production moving to New Zealand). This is proven to be untrue in later seasons. The villain is space ninja Lothor. Sixth Ranger is the Green Samurai Ranger. This was followed by...

Power Rangers Dino Thunder (adapted from Bakuryu Sentai Abaranger). The team is dinosaur themed again, and this season features the return of Tommy, who has somehow managed to become a respected paleontologist in an absurdly short period of time. This did, however, give us a clip show featuring each season to this point, as well as Tommy having to battle his previous Ranger forms (it makes sense in context, as much as Power Rangers can anyway) before becoming a Ranger yet again himself. This season actually never had six Rangers, though the fifth was functionally the Sixth Ranger. The original team was 3 Rangers again (red, blue and yellow, as the previous season) with Tommy joining as Black Ranger later on (with some lampshades being hung in the process). Villain was a dino-man named Mesagog. Sixth Ranger (despite technically being the fifth) was the White Dino Ranger. Followed by...

Power Rangers S.P.D. (adapted from Tokusou Sentai Dekaranger). Basically Power Rangers as Space Police. There is an entire academy of S.P.D. Rangers, and as I recall multiple Ranger teams, though the focus remained on one. The main squad is the B-Squad and is pressed into front line duty when the A-Squad vanishes. The season started off strong but became very inconsistent, and was criticized for some decisions made on the team up episodes. Villain was Emperor Gruumm. There were multiple Sixth Rangers: primarily it was the Shadow Ranger, but they also added the Omega Ranger, Nova Ranger, and briefly the Kat Ranger. This was followed by...

Power Rangers Mystic Force (adapted from Mahou Sentai Magiranger). Power Rangers with magic powers (and capes). These Rangers didn't summon Zords per se; rather, it was another transformation sequence as they themselves became their Zords. This season was the first in a while to lack a team up episode. The villain was Octomus the Master. Multiple Sixth Rangers again: White Mystic Ranger, Solaris Knight and Wolf Warrior. This was followed by...

Power Rangers Operation Overdrive (adapted from GoGo Sentai Boukenger). Power Rangers as adventure archaeologists. Generally regarded as the worst Power Rangers series, nearly ending the franchise. It still managed to feature an awesome team up episode (though not with the full Mystic Force team). The Rangers have to collect a set of jewels to keep the bad guys from getting them. Villains are Flurious and Moltor. Sixth Ranger is the Mercury Ranger. Followed by...

Power Rangers Jungle Fury (adapted from Juken Sentai Gekiranger). Power Rangers with Kung Fu animal powers. Team of three with multiple Sixth Rangers. Also these guys transform into their Zords like the Mystic Force Rangers. Considered an improvement over operation overdrive but no one watched it because Operation Overdrive was just that bad. No team up episodes. Villain was Dai Shi. Sixth Rangers are the Wolf Ranger (the first Purple Ranger) and Rhino Ranger. Followed by...

Power Rangers RPM (adapted from Engine Sentai Go-Onger). Power Rangers in an alternate universe post-apocalyptic world (but with cool cars again). The last Disney produced series and regarded as one of their best, but no one watched it because Operation Overdrive was just that bad. The franchise would go on a brief hiatus before being reacquired by Saban. No team up episodes, though the Red Ranger appeared in a couple of episodes in the next season. Villain was the Venjix Computer Netowrk (yes, it's basically Skynet). Sixth Rangers are the Gold and Silver Rangers. Followed by...

A hiatus as Disney re-aired Mighty Morphin for a bit and eventually sold the franchise back to Saban. Followed by...

Power Rangers Samurai (adapted from Samurai Sentai Shinkenger). Power Rangers as Samurai (obviously). Saban switched to a two-season format starting with this series, the second season billed as Super Samurai. Basically they gain a second-level, more powerful morph for the second season. Goes back to a lighter tone after RPM's rather dark setting. Villain is Master Xandred, and later added Serrator as a second Big Bad. Sixth Ranger is the Gold Samurai Ranger (the team is 5+1 again). Followed by...

Power Rangers Megaforce (adapted from Tensou Sentai Goseiger and Kaizoku Sentai Gokaiger). Another two-season series. No specific theme, sort of an animal theme but not a huge part of the series. Second season billed as Super Megaforce and as the 20th Anniversary season features many past Rangers. Villain is the Warstar led by Admiral Malkor, followed by Prince Vekar. Sixth Rangers are the Silver Megaforce Ranger and Robo Knight. This will be followed by...

Power Rangers Dino Charge (adapted from Zyuden Sentai Kyoryuger and Tokumei Sentai Go-Busters). Power Rangers with dinosaur powers yet again, because dinosaurs are awesome. Looks like 8 Rangers slated to appear, so expect multiple Sixth Rangers.

So there's an overview of the series so far. I'll follow up with my favorite team up episodes.

GTA V mayhem

My wife went to visit her parents for Labor Day weekend and took the little ones with her. I had my oldest son for the weekend so I stayed home (long story). We recorded a Minecraft video that I hope to have up this week. It was originally supposed to feature Pixelmon, but it wasn't working out the way we had hoped so that plan was scrapped and we featured some minigames. It's also the official introduction of my son as iHavoc (this will be his YouTube channel when he gets a computer that can actually produce gaming videos)

But the most fun was had in GTA V.

I believe I've pointed out before that GTA V is the first in the series I've played. Never appealed to me before (I don't really know why). I have played some GTA IV since, as iHavoc gave me his copy (he acknowledges it was a great game but it's completely outclassed by GTA V).

He has completed the story mode on his PS3, so we had to start fresh on mine. After playing some story missions, which didn't go entirely well as I'm getting used to the controls, we ended up deciding to A) cause some general mayhem and B) steal a fighter jet from the airbase.

General mayhem was accomplished by me. I busted out The Liberator monster truck, then pulled out my RPG. I proceeded to blow up a bus, the person walking next to the bus, and the car driving by the bus (all with one rocket). I then climbed into the monster truck and proceeded to run over all the cops. I eventually got away by going off road but fell into a bit of a ravine and the truck blew up.

The jet heist we both attempted, and we each pulled it off once, only to be foiled by my terrible piloting skills. iHavoc flew a helicopter near the base and then bailed. Free falling for a bit, he parachuted pretty close to one of the jets and was able to take off before the military could mount a defense. He then handed me the controller so I could try to see what flying is like and I promptly ejected.

The other strategy we devised I dubbed "Fast & Furious". We take a fast car (such as a Zentorno or Turismo R) and drive through the tunnel under the airbase. We turn around and use the side of the hill as a ramp to get over the fence. It usually takes a minute to figure out there's an intruder, and with one of these high powered exotics you can cover a lot of ground. Then it's a matter of getting into a jet before the tanks show up. This succeeded once. I then promptly flew the jet into a mountain. But it was all in good fun.

Then I started up a GTA Online game and had some pretty bad luck. I didn't get to race Lamar one on one as another player apparently started the same time, then bumped me off the road. So I came in second place as Lamar has a crappier car than you get to start with. One of the first jobs was to knock over a gas station. Which would have gone OK had the cops not responded so quickly and immediately shot out the tire of the Vapid Dominator I had stolen, making getaway fairly difficult. I ended up ditching the car in the aqueduct but I was able to steal a Sabre Turbo shortly after.