After a holiday Hiatus i'm back and have a rather large post to share with everyone here!
Our various recruitment teams for the different divisions got together and came up with the concept of a community spotlight. Â It's a brief discussion with a member from one of our divisions, and a way to help people in our community and here on these sights to get to know our various members.
The first one up just happened to be us in FF XIV, and it's our Division Commander Beljora, though you might know him in games as Agrias Oaks. Â We'll be rotating divisions each week, so you'll also get to know some of our other members you might not see in game.
Here it is, hope you enjoy!
1. What is your forum name? You're real name too if your comfortable sharing it!
Forum name: Beljora
Real Name: Koby
2. What game(s) do you play with the Remnants of Hope, and who is your main character in the game(s)?
So far I've played GW2 (Hlifhildr) and FFXIV (Agrias Oaks). I've been recently eyeing SW:ToR since that starfighter update...
3. How did you end up with the Remnants of Hope?
Aidyn, Dahkeus, and Applegate invited me... and then pretty much texted me every day 'til I finished the requirements, lol. Glad they did that though.
4. What is your favorite in-game memory from your time in the community?
Probably various memories RPing in FFXIV so far.... I remember in a recent RP event Theodinn Ravenshield was tossing people potions to heal their wounds during a huge battle. At the end of the battle our NPC captain was stabbed through the chest by the Kobold Chief and fell dead on the ground... Most of our characters were shocked and on the verge of tears and Theo is like "Did you try a potion?" "Here, I have this potion, give it to him." and Xha'li grabs him and is like "HE'S DEAD!!" It made me laugh out loud so hard, though I know it was emotional in-character.
5. What about your favorite memory from the time we spend outside the games?
Has to be when I wrote the proposal for the FFXIV division. Tension was high because a lot of people had very legitimate concerns for adding a new division, and they didn't mind expressing them to me. I decided I would still fight hard for this new division, because I knew my time on GW2 was pretty much done, and I would have to leave the guild due to inactivity unless I could get a FFXIV division instituted.
6. Is it Pot-A-toe or Pot-a-toe?
Potatoe. Obviously. Â (Xha'li here: CHEATER!!!)
7. What object would you say you simply could not live without and why?
PC/tablet/smartphone/car are too unoriginal and boring, right...? Excepting those obvious things... I bought a water-pick for cleaning between my teeth sometime back. It's the kind of thing that seems like a complete gimmick, but it's so damn good at cleaning around a permanent brace on the back of my teeth. I dunno how I ever got on without it.
8. Favorite TV show and why?
Game of Thrones (I'm sorry Firefly, it was close). There's just so many angles to this show, so much to discuss and think about: motivations, relationships, politics... and I feel like I understand it more every single time I watch it, so I certainly get my money's worth for blu-rays. I didn't start reading the book series until I became a fan of the show, so I've only read the first two books 'cause I don't want to ruin season 4 myself. I know, I can't call myself a true fan now, but, hey, I only ever said I was a fan of the show.
9. Zombie Pirates or Space Ninjas and why?
Close call.... but... I ultimately have to go with Space Ninjas. Sure, zombie pirates are great, but there's only so many unique stories you can create before roaming the high seas eating brains will eventually wear thin. Space Ninjas however have infinite planets they can travel to and they can change the course of galactic warfare in an instance. The Weabiles have captured the Emperor of Reycon and are forcing him to sign a treaty that will end hostilities in the gamma section for a millennium!? Oh, ****, space shuriken through the heart!
10. If you could be any mythical creature or monster what would it be and why?
Â
Hm, probably a Phoenix. They drew a good hand from the mythical creature deck. Immortal andawesome-looking.
Â
11. Favorite Book or series and why?
I read a lot of non-fiction economic and science books, some of which would probably qualify as my favorites........ but I wont bore you with those.
I've read Mark Twain's Joan of Arc several times. It's a pretty easy read like you'd expect of Twain, but, unexpectedly, it has a very serious tone (a small witty phrase here and there, but never overly sardonic like most of his books). It's a story of a (real-life) illiterate 17 year old girl from a 1-horse town at the edge of France who manages to become the Commander and Chief of France (yes, while still 17) and restores most of France to Charles VII from absolutely nothing (a treaty had literally declared absolute surrender, handing France over to the English on Charles VI's death). She is captured by the English about 2 years later, tortured into admitting that it is sin to wear men's clothing and subsequently burned alive. Twain takes liberties, but most of the dialogue after her capture is taken verbatim from court transcripts. It blows my mind every time I try to fathom that it's based on true events.
12. You get together with some members from RoH in real life, what do you do?
I actually DID get together with some RoH members (Applegate, Azerial, and Kain) in real life not that long ago. We went to the Renaissance (thank you, spellcheck) faire. We watched a few shows, Azerial and Kain bought some pretty awesome outfits (though... how many times do you really get to use them...), I nearly froze to death because I didn't know it was 40 degrees out when I left (It's Texas... and it was like 75 two days before), but it was a lot of fun!
Also, I've met Aidyn before. We mostly played Super Smash Brothers Melee. Oh, and I went with Applegate, Aidyn and Aidyn's brother to a metalwork festival around here... They seemed pretty disappointed in it if I remember right, but I thought it was pretty interesting myself.
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13. Can you dance, and if so what's your favorite dance move?
God no.
14. Favorite song and why?
Oh man, this is, by far, the hardest question... I'm a huge classical music fan and could go on all day about it.
Â
While not technically a 'song' I would say Schuberts Piano Sonata in B flat edges out the win for me.
I once heard it described that the low trill in the left hand represents Schubert's impending death from typhoid fever. The low trill returns frequently and somewhat out of place in the otherwise straightforward but beautiful melody, as if to remind him of its presence. The melody then repeated louder, but this time where you'd expect to hear the low trill you instead hear a defiant series of chords played. Finally, during the development section the low trill and melody mix and give the melody a much darker mood. Granted, we don't actually know what Schubert was thinking with that piece, but that explanation of the trill has stuck with me every time I've listened to it.
Â
Liebestod from Tristan and Isolde comes in a close second
It's been analyzed to death by smarter people than me, so I'll spare you an explanation on that one.
Those and pretty much anything from the Romantic period I'll love, really. Or post-modern.
I'm a big fan of musical theater as well.
Â
And pretty much anything by Ricky Ian Gordon.
I met him once and he was so nice to me despite me being stupidly nervous.
Â
I also like Bluegrass fusion.
Â
I listen to J-Pop to practice my Japanese listening skills.
I became a pretty big fan of Kalafina while listening to various J-Pop artists.
And while the music itself doesn't really blow me away, Nagi Yanagi's voice from Supercell is unreal.
The composer didn't use real human voices in his music until he came across a video of Nagi singing karaoke.
Â
Sorry, feel free to ignore any/all of those.
Â
15. Lastly, and most importantly, what is it about this community you love the most?
 I love how varied people's interests and ideas are, but that we can all talk to each other in such a respectful way. Like I wrote in one of the recruitment posts, "It's a rare environment where members can discuss Call of Duty with as much respect to one another as when we discuss AD&D RP." It allows me to be exposed to things I normally wouldn't be, like games or music that aren't my usual genre. I also like that we can argue our various visions for the guild that we all love and put things behind us once official decisions are made. I dunno if it's applications scaring trolls away or what, but I just generally find a higher caliber of people in this guild than I normally come across on the 'net!
Our various recruitment teams for the different divisions got together and came up with the concept of a community spotlight. Â It's a brief discussion with a member from one of our divisions, and a way to help people in our community and here on these sights to get to know our various members.
The first one up just happened to be us in FF XIV, and it's our Division Commander Beljora, though you might know him in games as Agrias Oaks. Â We'll be rotating divisions each week, so you'll also get to know some of our other members you might not see in game.
Here it is, hope you enjoy!
1. What is your forum name? You're real name too if your comfortable sharing it!
Forum name: Beljora
Real Name: Koby
2. What game(s) do you play with the Remnants of Hope, and who is your main character in the game(s)?
So far I've played GW2 (Hlifhildr) and FFXIV (Agrias Oaks). I've been recently eyeing SW:ToR since that starfighter update...
3. How did you end up with the Remnants of Hope?
Aidyn, Dahkeus, and Applegate invited me... and then pretty much texted me every day 'til I finished the requirements, lol. Glad they did that though.
4. What is your favorite in-game memory from your time in the community?
Probably various memories RPing in FFXIV so far.... I remember in a recent RP event Theodinn Ravenshield was tossing people potions to heal their wounds during a huge battle. At the end of the battle our NPC captain was stabbed through the chest by the Kobold Chief and fell dead on the ground... Most of our characters were shocked and on the verge of tears and Theo is like "Did you try a potion?" "Here, I have this potion, give it to him." and Xha'li grabs him and is like "HE'S DEAD!!" It made me laugh out loud so hard, though I know it was emotional in-character.
5. What about your favorite memory from the time we spend outside the games?
Has to be when I wrote the proposal for the FFXIV division. Tension was high because a lot of people had very legitimate concerns for adding a new division, and they didn't mind expressing them to me. I decided I would still fight hard for this new division, because I knew my time on GW2 was pretty much done, and I would have to leave the guild due to inactivity unless I could get a FFXIV division instituted.
6. Is it Pot-A-toe or Pot-a-toe?
Potatoe. Obviously. Â (Xha'li here: CHEATER!!!)
7. What object would you say you simply could not live without and why?
PC/tablet/smartphone/car are too unoriginal and boring, right...? Excepting those obvious things... I bought a water-pick for cleaning between my teeth sometime back. It's the kind of thing that seems like a complete gimmick, but it's so damn good at cleaning around a permanent brace on the back of my teeth. I dunno how I ever got on without it.
8. Favorite TV show and why?
Game of Thrones (I'm sorry Firefly, it was close). There's just so many angles to this show, so much to discuss and think about: motivations, relationships, politics... and I feel like I understand it more every single time I watch it, so I certainly get my money's worth for blu-rays. I didn't start reading the book series until I became a fan of the show, so I've only read the first two books 'cause I don't want to ruin season 4 myself. I know, I can't call myself a true fan now, but, hey, I only ever said I was a fan of the show.
9. Zombie Pirates or Space Ninjas and why?
Close call.... but... I ultimately have to go with Space Ninjas. Sure, zombie pirates are great, but there's only so many unique stories you can create before roaming the high seas eating brains will eventually wear thin. Space Ninjas however have infinite planets they can travel to and they can change the course of galactic warfare in an instance. The Weabiles have captured the Emperor of Reycon and are forcing him to sign a treaty that will end hostilities in the gamma section for a millennium!? Oh, ****, space shuriken through the heart!
10. If you could be any mythical creature or monster what would it be and why?
Â
Hm, probably a Phoenix. They drew a good hand from the mythical creature deck. Immortal andawesome-looking.
Â
11. Favorite Book or series and why?
I read a lot of non-fiction economic and science books, some of which would probably qualify as my favorites........ but I wont bore you with those.
I've read Mark Twain's Joan of Arc several times. It's a pretty easy read like you'd expect of Twain, but, unexpectedly, it has a very serious tone (a small witty phrase here and there, but never overly sardonic like most of his books). It's a story of a (real-life) illiterate 17 year old girl from a 1-horse town at the edge of France who manages to become the Commander and Chief of France (yes, while still 17) and restores most of France to Charles VII from absolutely nothing (a treaty had literally declared absolute surrender, handing France over to the English on Charles VI's death). She is captured by the English about 2 years later, tortured into admitting that it is sin to wear men's clothing and subsequently burned alive. Twain takes liberties, but most of the dialogue after her capture is taken verbatim from court transcripts. It blows my mind every time I try to fathom that it's based on true events.
12. You get together with some members from RoH in real life, what do you do?
I actually DID get together with some RoH members (Applegate, Azerial, and Kain) in real life not that long ago. We went to the Renaissance (thank you, spellcheck) faire. We watched a few shows, Azerial and Kain bought some pretty awesome outfits (though... how many times do you really get to use them...), I nearly froze to death because I didn't know it was 40 degrees out when I left (It's Texas... and it was like 75 two days before), but it was a lot of fun!
Also, I've met Aidyn before. We mostly played Super Smash Brothers Melee. Oh, and I went with Applegate, Aidyn and Aidyn's brother to a metalwork festival around here... They seemed pretty disappointed in it if I remember right, but I thought it was pretty interesting myself.
Â
13. Can you dance, and if so what's your favorite dance move?
God no.
14. Favorite song and why?
Oh man, this is, by far, the hardest question... I'm a huge classical music fan and could go on all day about it.
Â
While not technically a 'song' I would say Schuberts Piano Sonata in B flat edges out the win for me.
I once heard it described that the low trill in the left hand represents Schubert's impending death from typhoid fever. The low trill returns frequently and somewhat out of place in the otherwise straightforward but beautiful melody, as if to remind him of its presence. The melody then repeated louder, but this time where you'd expect to hear the low trill you instead hear a defiant series of chords played. Finally, during the development section the low trill and melody mix and give the melody a much darker mood. Granted, we don't actually know what Schubert was thinking with that piece, but that explanation of the trill has stuck with me every time I've listened to it.
Â
Liebestod from Tristan and Isolde comes in a close second
It's been analyzed to death by smarter people than me, so I'll spare you an explanation on that one.
Those and pretty much anything from the Romantic period I'll love, really. Or post-modern.
I'm a big fan of musical theater as well.
Â
And pretty much anything by Ricky Ian Gordon.
I met him once and he was so nice to me despite me being stupidly nervous.
Â
I also like Bluegrass fusion.
Â
I listen to J-Pop to practice my Japanese listening skills.
I became a pretty big fan of Kalafina while listening to various J-Pop artists.
And while the music itself doesn't really blow me away, Nagi Yanagi's voice from Supercell is unreal.
The composer didn't use real human voices in his music until he came across a video of Nagi singing karaoke.
Â
Sorry, feel free to ignore any/all of those.
Â
15. Lastly, and most importantly, what is it about this community you love the most?
 I love how varied people's interests and ideas are, but that we can all talk to each other in such a respectful way. Like I wrote in one of the recruitment posts, "It's a rare environment where members can discuss Call of Duty with as much respect to one another as when we discuss AD&D RP." It allows me to be exposed to things I normally wouldn't be, like games or music that aren't my usual genre. I also like that we can argue our various visions for the guild that we all love and put things behind us once official decisions are made. I dunno if it's applications scaring trolls away or what, but I just generally find a higher caliber of people in this guild than I normally come across on the 'net!
![[Image: Nonofono_Colbernoux_Balmung_Classes.jpg]](http://xivreborn.com/gen/Nonofono_Colbernoux_Balmung_Classes.jpg)