Overwatch competitive guide (updated)

So I decided to write an updated guide for Overwatch competitive ranked mode. Here we go.

First of all, figure out your role before you even begin to play ranked. And stick to that role until you're really good at it. I started playing first person shooters seriously with Team Fortress 2 (with a friend) right before Overwatch came out (I couldn't get into the beta, damn you Blizzard). I mained Medic in tf2 (Team Fortress) until I got super good as a healer. Then when Overwatch came out I mained healers. I played all of them decently but noticed I was especially good with Mercy because the skills from tf's medic shined through in the transition. Mercy and Medic play similar, although I do think Mercy's pistol is better than the Medic's syringe gun. So the first and most important thing you need to do is find your role (mine was healer), learn it well, and stick to it.

Okay, so you've figured out what you like to do (dps, tank, or heals) and you're decent with some heroes. Now if you want to win consistently you need to play the same couple heroes you're decent with until you're super good with maybe two or three of them. For me I've become super good as Ana and Mercy. Once I realized that I shouldn't be playing Zenyatta and Lucio as much I found out that I can win a ton more games consecutively and consistently. Nothing wrong with Zen and Lucio but if I really want to win I should play Ana or Mercy. So if you want to increase your chances of winning every game stick to your absolute best characters every game. However, there are times when you should stray from this idea. For example, I know that if an enemy team has a Pharah and they're rocketing away at me when I'm Ana I should probably switch to Mercy (better maneuverability), Lucio (I can guesstimate her spacing prediction and shoot her out of the sky w/ sound gun), or Zen (if I'm feeling ballsy I can discord her and rely on my team to kill her). That's just one example. Other times you should play characters you don't play as often if your team would be a better composition. However, if your will to win is strong I recommend sticking to your absolute two-three best characters every match.

Next, we have the eliminations talk. No matter what you're doing (even being a healing main like myself) you're going to have to get some elims. Most of the time you take points or objectives by getting a pick (a kill), moving your entire team in, getting another pick, and repeating until you take the point or objective. That's what happens in most games. As a healer you can deal a lot of damage to enemy players when your team doesn't need healing. I've found that Mercy's pistol can kill fast in the heat of battle when the enemy team won't suspect it. In addition, you can get so many kills sniping as Ana from a safe distance. If you're dpsing eliminations is your main objective. You need to get elims often enough that your team can move in closer and closer to the point/objective without dying or getting pushed back. As a tank you need to get a lot of elims as well. It's super important! However, don't forget to stop dpsing when you need to and keep healing if you're the healer. So many healers forget there's a balance between healing, shooting, and repeating. Also, if you're Mercy remember to damage boost often. So many Mercys focus on just healing they forget that the damage boost gets you a lot of assists.

Lastly, you must think about your attitude and general outlook of the game, match, whatever. You need to know outright that you're not going to win every game and that your friends will definitely make you lose games. You will make your friends lose games. You have to remember that this is a competitive gaming experience and that if you can't handle losing then maybe you should play Quick Play or some other game. You're never going to become better than Koreans until you get massacred by them at five in the morning (California time) when they're playing at night in Korea. There are times when players get super upset, talk shit, throw games, etc because they can't handle the competitive aspect of this game mode. It's not for kids and its not for adults that act like kids. If you take any advice from this listen up to this next statement. You will have a much better competitive gaming experience if you remember that each match is a learning experience. And if you use that knowledge to your benefit you will continue to keep becoming a better player.

Also, remember to lighten up! It's a freakin' game after all!

How magic the gathering improved my social life and gaming skills

I just got back from a great night of gaming (card gaming) and hanging out with friends. I've been participating in Magic the Gathering tournaments at Fire and Dice, a hobby shop nearby. I used to go to Fire and Dice for Smash 4 tournaments quite a bit last year but now I participate more in their Magic tournaments. Magic has improved my social life and improved my gaming skills in many ways. I'd like to explain how.

I work five out of seven days so I don't get much time to hang out with friends or even interact with too many people outside of my work environment. Monday night mtg (magic the gathering) tournaments has given me refuge and I've met many new friends. Most of them are fellow nerds but they are all unique individuals. I usually organize our group and text everyone and tell them to come through to Fire and Dice when I go there. My group consists of about eight people. And counting in the future probably. They're all great mtg players and they've helped me out a lot with my decks and strategies. In a way I feel like I've anchored the group to show up when I'm there. And they usually all do show up surprisingly. I like the environment at Fire and Dice because its relaxing, fun, entertaining, and jokey. Perfect really. Its a great place to hang out. I always meet new people there every time I go and some of them become friends, others just casual acquaintances. Either way its great social interaction. Something I don't get to do often because of work.

Magic has also made me a better gamer. I usually play edh commander league tournaments. It's this game mode where you play with 100 card decks and you only have 1 of each card in it. You have a commander you can cast anytime you have the mana for it and this game mode is not easy. It also free for all. In tournament it can be 4 player free for all of 3 player free for all. Every match is fun, intense, and challenging. I've learned a lot more gaming skills from playing in these tournaments because I've learned to think a lot more before I act upon anything I do. This carries over to other forms of gaming-even competitive fps and moba gaming. I think a lot more about every action I take rather than just "going for it", which is better suited to a jazz guitar solo.

All in all, mtg is a great social gaming experience. I'm definitely going to keep playing the game and continuing to participate in tournaments. I'm also down to go to Fire and Dice for Smash 4 tournaments but it seems like I never get Thursdays off (that's the only day they do those there). It's great that I've gained strong friendships there through the card game. I have another inner circle of friends that I hang out with and even work with but its nice to have an entirely different sort of circle that is still just as awesome.

Magic rules! Btw, that's my commander in my mono green edh deck. This old woman rocks!

Valeera, Rogue Assassin enters the Nexus

Blizzard updated Heroes of the Storm today and released Valeera as their newest hero.

"Valeera Sanguinar, Shadow of the Uncrowned, is a melee assassin hero from the Warcraft universe. For a time, the gladiator Valeera Sanguinar served dutifully as one of Varian Wrynn's personal bodyguards. Now, her shadowy skills find her a natural fit within the secretive rogue order, the Uncrowned, in their fight against the Legion. She is a tricky assassin who can gain access to different abilities while stealthed, and builds combo points to eviscerate her opponents." (heroesofthestorm.gamepedia.com)

"Valeera Sanguinar, along with Broll Bearmantle, was a companion of Varian Wrynn. She eventually became an enforcer for the New Council of Tirisfal, and accepted the position of an advisor and bodyguard to Varian in Stormwind, with the caveat that she retain her independence. She culturally identifies as a blood elf, taking pride in her people's traditions and defending their tribulations and loyalties. However, she herself acts independently of the Thalassian government, and has formally joined neither the Horde nor the Alliance since her introduction but is fiercely loyal to Varian and his son. Valeera herself maintains that her loyalties are personal, to her friends and her ideals." (heroesofthestorm.gamepedia.com)

Ok, so now you know a lot about her. Now let's get to the nitty gritty-the skills and abilities. To keep this post short and sweet I'm only going to talk about the main skills rather than the additional talents you get as you level up.

Vanish

Cooldown: 8 seconds

Valeera vanishes from sight, becoming Stealthed and increasing her Movement Speed by 10%. For the first second, she is Unrevealable and can pass through other units.
Using Vanish grants Valeera an alternate set of Abilities that she can use while Stealthed.

This is her passive that allows her to be very powerful. Once she goes stealth she stays invisible unless she's hit or revealed. Not only that but using vanish gives you an alternate set of abilities that you can only use while invisible. It's awesome that they added another stealth character like Nova, Zeratul, and Samuro but Valeera has a much cooler stealth than all of those characters because it gives her great abilities. 

Q

Sinister Strike

30 Mana Cooldown: 5 seconds

Dash forward, dealing damage to all enemies in a line. If Sinister Strike hits an enemy Hero, she stops dashing immediately and the cooldown is reduced to 1 second.
Awards 1 Combo Point.
Stealth: Ambush
Heavily damage an enemy.

This is her bread and butter attack that you're going to be using a lot. The dash can go a pretty decent distance and you can also use it to run away. It is also good for general attacking, killing, and gaining combo points.

Q

Ambush

20 Mana Cooldown: 1 seconds

Ambush a target, instantly dealing damage to them.
Awards 1 Combo Point.

This is her stealth Q ability. It's a great general attacking skill used for killing and gaining combo points. It does more damage than sinister strike but it doesn't do a dash attack, instead its just a close range assault. 

W

Blade Flurry

40 Mana Cooldown: 4 seconds

Deal damage in an area around Valeera.
Awards 1 Combo Point per enemy Hero hit.
Stealth: Cheap Shot
Stun and damage an enemy.

This is her small aoe attack. It will hit enemies around you but it doesn't have much range so they will have to be close to you to be effective. Its great for clearing lanes but if you're playing Valeera most likely you don't want to be clearing lanes that much. I find the stealth version of her W ability to be much more useful. 

W

Cheap Shot

30 Mana Cooldown: 1 seconds

Deal a small amount of damage to an enemy and stun them for 1.5 seconds.
Awards 1 Combo Point.

This is my favorite ability for Valeera because it stuns an enemy and does damage. With the stun you can follow up with more rogue attacks and if your team is with you you'll instantly kill them. If you use this at the right time you'll always be able to secure kills. Very useful ability. 

E

Eviscerate

25 Mana Cooldown: 1 seconds

Consume all stored Combo Points to Eviscerate an enemy, dealing increased damage per Combo Point spent. Valeera can store a maximum of 3 Combo Points.
Stealth: Garrote
Silence and damage an enemy over time.

This is a great all around attack when you have a lot of combo points stored up. Like cheap shot it will help you secure a lot of kills. I have to use it more and learn its uses better.

E

Garrote

30 Mana Cooldown: 1 seconds

Garrote an enemy, instantly dealing a small amount of damage to the target, as well as a larger amount of bonus damage over 7 seconds, and Silencing them for 2 seconds.
Awards 1 Combo Point.

This one I have to mess around with more because usually when I'm in stealth mode I go for cheap shot and ambush more so than garrote. But I do see that it is very powerful, mostly because of the silence for 2 seconds. I have to use this ability more.

Ultimates

R

Smoke Bomb

Cooldown: 60 seconds

Create a cloud of smoke. While in the smoke, Valeera is Unrevealable, can pass through other units, and gains 25 Armor, reducing damage taken by 25%. Valeera can continue to attack and use Abilities without being revealed. Lasts 5 seconds.
Using this Ability does not break Vanish.

This is my favorite ulti for Valeera, at least for now. I like the fact that it has a short cooldown and that damage is reduced, armor is gained, and you can keep attacking and using abilities without being revealed. It's also great when you're super low on health. You can pop smoke bomb, run out, and use your passive stealth to run away. So good.

R

Cloak of Shadows

Cooldown: 25 seconds

Valeera is enveloped in a Cloak of Shadows, which immediately removes all damage over time effects from her. For 1 second, she becomes Unstoppable and gains 75 Spell Armor, reducing Ability damage taken by 75%.
Using this Ability does not break Vanish.

This ulti seems great too. I've used it during my first couple games and I love the short cool down. But so far I prefer smoke bomb for most games. However, if I'm getting targeted hard and don't have a healer this does seem like a much better option. The fact that it only lasts 1 second makes me not like it as much but the fact that its on a 25 second cool down is just insanely good. 

All in all Valeera has turned out to be one of the coolest and most fun characters to play in heroes of the storm. I probably won't get bored of her until I reach level 10 on her. Then I'll go back to my usual roster of heroes. Playing her reminds me of playing my Undead Rogue in World of Warcraft (oh, those were the days), albeit a much simpler and easier play style. She's super fun! 

Now you're thinking like a rogue.

Magic the Gathering, Board gaming, and hosting

So I've been having a great time with a lot of friends who are into a lot of different activities. I have a group of friends that are more into metal music, concerts, and hanging out (with some console gaming thrown in there) and another that is more into Magic the Gathering, board gaming, and meeting new people at these events called meetups. These are events hosted by people and advertised online through the website Meetup.com. We've met so many cool people and a lot of them have become good friends quickly. It's been a blast meeting new people, enjoying mtg (Magic the Gathering), and learning new strategic board games on the fly.

I haven't played mtg seriously since middle school and back then I relied on cheap tactics decks. I had an elf deck and a slivers deck as my main decks. Both were all about getting tons of creatures out and killing off the enemy player fast. Playing mtg again now that I'm older has really made me realize how great of a game it is. I even played in a tournament a few weeks ago. It was an edh (elder dragon highlander) setting where you have over 100 cards in your deck and you have a special commander card that you can play anytime if you have the mana on your turn. Its kind of a broken format but I find it to be super fun.

Magic has a lot of strategic and awe-inspiring elements for a trading card game. Its definitely the best card game I've ever played, sorry Yugioh kiddies. So I've been enjoying getting out, hanging out with friends, and playing magic. Sometimes we'll play until 1 in the morning just enjoying the gameplay. I've become quite serious and I'm even down to play in a tournament again even though last time I got curb stomped. They do tournaments at Fire and Dice, the place I used to go for Smash 4 tournaments. Go figure! 

This past Thursday I was at a board gaming event at this older woman's house in Woodland Hills. At first I was hesitant because we've gone to events like this before and my friend was kind of awkward (he walked in without knocking on the door first lol). However, this woman was so cool, funny, sarcastic, and chill. Her son was there too and we were the first people to arrive. Eventually more people came. We brought food and everybody was enjoying themselves eating fried chicken, pie, soda, coffee, donouts, and Doritos Cool Ranch and Nacho flavors.

We played this awesome game called Salem where we had to figure out who the witch(s) was(were) and if we found out and survived without being killed by the witch we win the game. I ended up using this troll-like strategy where I accused a random dude so much to the point that everybody thought I was the witch. But I wasn't the witch. I was just messing around. Haha, it was really fun and I ended up being a survivor, thus winning! Next time though I will definitely play that game smarter.

In addition, we played this great miniature DnD style rpg game. It was a co-op survival horde zombies game called Zombicide. Its on Kickstarter and I highly recommend it. I was this spellcaster Stormcrow dude who had this amazing spell (that I looted in a room) called Repulse where I could reposition zombies to different squares (only one square away per cast) and I got us a torch for a bile blast that killed tons of zombies in one fell swoop. I got insta-leveled pretty high from that. In the end our team just didn't play together on the same part of the board. So we got surrounded by the horde and killed. Rip. It was a fun game and I would definitely be down to play it again sometime there.

The son was a gamer too and we talked a lot and became friends. I added him on Steam and we're planning on playing Team Fortress and Terrarria sometime in the future.

I'm still interested in hosting my own events. I wanna do game nights at Planet Cyber for Overwatch. I'm currently working on doing this. Now that management has changed at my work I'm back to getting two days off a week, which I haven't had since November. You can bet that I'll be using that free time to the fullest engaged in social activity, friendship, relaxation, and fun.

Are board games better than video games? They just might be.

Whaddya want to learn on the guitar?

So I ran into my old guitar teacher and he said he'd be down to give me lessons again. Here I'd like to outline some ideas of what I'd want to learn. These are things I could figure out on my own but it would take me a long time.

First off, I want to build a custom pedal board using my vast array of pedals. I want it to sound perfect and not hiss all kinds of sonic distorted fury (because I could do that on my own). I've actually been against pedals for a long time now because of the fact that there's too much hum going on when I connect all of them together the way I do. I'm not a professional sound engineer by any means but this dude knows how to do that. He has a pedal board where I can turn up to a super high volume and there's no hum. He's a wizard lol!

Second, I'd be interested in learning more about musical theory. I already know a lot but this dude knows a lot more. Music theory is really big for him so this would be an important thing learning from him.

Third, I'd be interested in finding other musicians to play music with. Be it jazz, rock, metal, or anything really. If I can find more musicians through him that would be fantastic. Working with more musicians is always a worthwhile goal and experience in any styles of music that you play.

Lastly, I'd want to learn about modding my equipment. Maybe make my Marshall amp sound different by changing some wires. Perhaps modify one of my distortion pedals in some way. Things like that. I'd also be interested in how to do a proper setup on a guitar. He's done work like this at Guitar Center so I'm sure he'd be down to show me if I asked.

These are all pretty cool things. In terms of guitar technique, songs, improvisation, jazz playing, and chord voicings I will have to work on that little by little every day on my own. If I could learn all these things it would be very beneficial to my guitar playing!

Overwatch PTR patch 1.7

Here I'd like to talk about some of the changes on the latest ptr (public test region servers) patch. There were major changes to Roadhog, Ana, and Sombra..

Roadhog's hook has been adjusted further. In the last patch they changed (nefed, but made more consistent) Roadhog's hook so that it would hook people right in front of him when he successfully hooked but it was the persistent line of sight from the position of Roadhog that was getting on peoples' nerves. People could hide behind a tree and the hook would automatically break. Blizzard decided it was too much so they're not making that extreme of a change to the hook anymore.

If part of somebody's body is seen during the hook, it will still hook them. It's not gonna break the hook. They're adding a heavy slow when hook applies. Also, they fixed it so that Roadhog can't hook you, spin 180 degrees and drop you off a cliff.

Applying a hook won't work against people you can't see. That's the major thing to take note. If you hook someone they will still be reeled in. Blizzard wants us to feel like when you get hooked, that its fair. This looks like a step into the right direction.

Ana saw a big nerf. The last patch reduced biotic grenade's healing (on allies) increase from 100% to 50%. On top of that the grenade only has a 4 second duration instead of 5. This is a way to combat the current tank heavy meta. Ana is a big part of this tank meta and weakening her might change things up a lot. This might bring Mercy back into play for competitive more so than Ana. However, I will still be playing Ana a lot. 

Sombra got a buff, yay! In the last patch we saw her hack time take 0.8 seconds instead of 1 second, and the cooldown of hack has been reduced to 8 seconds from 10 seconds. This means Sombra can hack a health pack, run away, and then hack an enemy player in combat. Hacking health packs and players has become easier.

I'm super happy about the Sombra hacking buff because Sombra is one of my favorite dps characters. I have 5 hours of play time with her and most of it was wins. She plays like spy from Team Fortress on steroids. It will be fun playing her when this patch goes live. Which will be sometime soon. .

I can't help but feel like the ptr is Blizzard's way of having us players test the game for them for free but it is refreshing that they're changing things about the game that the player base doesn't agree with like Roadhog's hook. 

Smell ya later Overwatch agents

Planet Cyber event success

So the Planet Cyber meetup I had with my friends went well. We were all able to play Overwatch on free accounts provided by the cafe. I didn't want to log in using my main account for security reasons. Anyways, we ended up only having a three man party of myself and two friends. I was hoping for more but I'm already planning another meetup next week Thursday to try to get a stacked six man team.

Overwatch worked fine and we had a blast. Talking on the headset was fun, the monitor was super nice, and the computer ran the game just fine. We played really well for our first time playing all together the three of us. I mostly played Ana and had fun. I'm ready to plan more of these Overwatch nights and recruiting more people for the cause.

After we played Overwatch we did run into some technical computer problems. We installed Team Fortress 2 (which took 20 minutes) but after trying to launch it kept giving my computer and a friends' a Steam error. The guy running the place couldn't figure it out so he gave us a lot more time instead. We used that extra time to play more Overwatch.

One of my friends was upset about how Team Fortress didn't work but hey technical issues happen. All the other gamers there were playing Dota 2 and none of them had any problems. I can tell that this pc cafe is a moba cafe because all the guys there play is Dota. Which is actually super cool. Dota is a great game. I used to play it when I first got my computer but I stopped around the time Heroes of the Storm came out. Because of the popularity of the game yesterday I decided to reinstall it last night. I think I'll give it a whirl again sometime soon.

Anyways, I'm planning more game nights at Planet Cyber solely for Overwatch. If I get more people (just five for a full team) then that's all I'll need to get an amateur team going. It's going to be hard because I have to be a community organizer. I might have to resort to Meetup.com and Craigslist to find more players.

Wish me luck!