NEXT ISLAND - Part 2 - Mainland Experience

MindStar9 Explores Next Island Mainland​

(Part 2 in a 4-Part Series)​

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As the morning sun started edging out the evening moon, it was time once again for me to continue my exploration of Next Island. The day before, I spent my time getting acclimated with the newbie experience, and I have to say I thoroughly enjoyed it. I had fun with the Papoos, who seemed to be just as surprised as some of the locals to see me on the planet. However, my motivation and inspiration for exploring Next Island is quite simple - to honor David Post's vision for the planet, and in support of his efforts moving forward.

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My day began with an exit from the newbie zone, but not without a brief visit to Caroline's, which is fashioned after Caroline's Comedy Club in New York in the US. It looked like just another ordinary tropical building with a big sign on the top from the outside, but when I passed through the doors, I found a delightful environment that was rather inviting, and reminded me of places I visited both in New York and Chicago, as well as Hawaii when I lived there.​

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The interior gave the feel of a cozy environment where people could gather and share their Next Island experiences. The stage was reminiscent of open-mike nights for reading prose and poetry to subtle background music, as well as perhaps those who might want to try their hand at karaoke. Then again, it was the perfect venue for those who fancy themselves comedians and inspired to tickle our funny bones.​

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The one thing I noticed that I would change, which is not top priority of course, would be to have the front doors open up somehow. Walking through the doors it's rather dark on the other side because there's a wall there, rather than it being open to the internal environment. First time I walked through the doors and discovered this, I didn't think the club was open, because I didn't see that I had to maneuver my avatar to the right in order to walk a short distance and find the open area. A day later when I decided to try again, I actually accidentally discovered the little corridor I needed to walk to the open area, so I'm glad I was able to have the Caroline's experience.

A SOUTHWEST ADVENTURE

At first I decided to wing it, and headed along the southern coast toward the west. I found the terrain quite colorful and nicely textured. The whole area had a nice southwest feel to it with the red, orange and amber clay colors that fit nicely into a southwestern theme. Perhaps there's more than just a tropical flavor to Next Island, but whatever the case, the scenery was magnificent, and I caught myself literally mesmerized by it, but ...

I wasn't alone ... nope, and while I wasn't too surprised that I ultimately ended up with company, I was surprised by the sort of welcome I received. I had no idea that Next Island had it's own musical talent. I was greeted by none other than the Boar Street Boyz who had something special prepared for my visit.

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"If You Want It To Be Good Girl, Get Yourself A, Bad Boar"​

Needless to say, I was onto them, and any amount of sweet talk and what they felt I'm sure was musical brilliance, didn't persuade me in the least to let them continue roaming the range. You guessed it, I had to set the record straight, and let them know I couldn't be bewitched and bewildered by their belching - Home, Home on the Range might have come across more authentic, but out came the Delta, and it was all over but the tears - no applause, no standing ovation, no testimony to their bad boarness - just pure boredom.

As I've learned in the past from my interaction with mobs, they tend not to forget my preciseness in getting them out of my face. Call it paranoia, but I swear, they have a secret brotherhood across all species that band together and strategically plan their attacks on me, or at least interact with me in ways that are meant to confuse.

While the Papoos continue to harass me in various locations, the Boar had something more specific in mind. Oh yes, they gathered the troops together when they discovered that I was about to test a boat trip on the river in their territory that seemed to go on forever.

I love boat trips, and I had no idea this particular trip was going to not only be quite lengthy (as I had anticipated), and a challenge to navigate because of the curves and obstacles, but also that the dumb-ass Boars decided to line the banks of the river in wait to have their revenge. So what happened? You'll have to wait for the video that I'll be sharing in the reserved posting area of this thread. The only thing I'll say - is that the water and scenery were amazing.

THE EXPLORING CONTINUES

After wandering around the southwest portion of the mainland for a bit, I decided to check at the Next Island forum to see if there was a list of teleporters and their coordinates to make it easier to collect the TP's. I was on limited time to get the Next Island adventure completed so that I could get back to Arkadia before space travel kicked in, because I wasn't sure if all planets were set up in some way to accommodate this type of travel.

I not only found a list of teleporters and their coordinates created by Lee DeLioncourt, but also a list of what mobs were in what area that was created by SoftHart - so thank you ladies, it came in handy for sure. I managed to get all of the teleporters listed, in addition to one that wasn't (Orpheus), and had a very pleasant time accomplishing this mission, except - there was a surprise or two along the way that had my adrenaline pumping for sure.

What follows gives a bit of a flavor of what my experiences were, and also what stood out for me, but is in no way conclusive. I have been the EU Picture Storyteller since the Summer of 2005, and pictures to me either speak volumes without words, or offer up a canvas with which to take liberty and add to the fun of the experience. There were so many photos that I took that just won't fit into this general report, so I have reserved a couple more posting areas to share what captured my attention the most - same as the reserved area for videos, because there will eventually be more than one.

THINGS THAT STOOD OUT FOR ME

Along my travels as I was collecting teleporters, I had some interesting experiences that I can't help but share. I ran into a Stalker, but one of a winged kind, and not looking too inviting. It's a good thing that I was inside the StarShip9, otherwise this could have been nasty.

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What I found to be incredibly eye-capturing was the colors of the water no matter where I ventured. Whether I was on a river somewhere, sitting under a waterfall in my boat, roaming a territory on foot, or flying above - the water colors were absolutely breathtaking, as well as many of the terrain textures that made a specific area stand out.

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One of the places that was certainly more than a TP and service center, was Vulcan's Pass. The vulcano area was captivating to say the least, and even before I acquired the TP, I had to fly over it for a better view. It was so inspiring, not only from a writer's perspective, but from the potential this area had in generating future activities that had the means of providing some pretty interesting experiences. Creativity is only limited by your thoughts.

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As I hovered over the TP to acquire it, I just had to set the StarShip9 down and explore a bit. I ran over to the huge pointed rock that jutted out over the vulcano and walked to the edge in order to get the full essence of this firey pit, hoping in the back of my mind that I wouldn't push the wrong button and end up flambe'd. What an experience indeed.

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My exploring of Vulcan's Pass was done and I headed out for the next TP, or so I thought. I managed to get out a ways from Vulcan's Pass when all of a sudden my computer froze while in mid-air. Perhaps that was because I had too many windows going at once, who knows, but at any rate - yours truly was suspended in air while having to completely shut down the desktop to reboot, and we all know what that means, yes?

When I made it back into EU, I was out in the middle of nowhere, but could see what I was sure was Vulcan's Pass in the distance, so I revved up the mindforce and headed back there in order to collect the StarShip9 that was conveniently shipped off to storage when the pilot came up missing. My only concern at this point was - would I be able to land far enough away from the vulcano pit itself and not end up with hotpants. Mission accomplished.

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I was relieved that I made solid land, and not squishy moulten lava, so I headed for the service center to pick up the StarShip9 in order to continue with my exploring and collecting of TP's. However, as I got closer to the service center, I started taking hits and basically said - WTF - as there had been no mobs whatsoever in the area when I was there before - not one single red dot.

As such, for some reason I thought it was just a fluke - I know ridiculous thinking, but we do have unusual experiences at times in our universe, although - I can confirm that this definitely wasn't one of them. I had already reached the interior of the service center but was still taking damage, not much at that point, but still taking damage, so I figured I better turn and face the music and get it over with.

What I didn't anticipate, was the kind of fight I had to put up in order to end the malling. However, for what it was that I faced, along with the battle that ensued, you'll have to wait for this video as well. I can tell you that it was one of those adrenaline-pumping moments where I was determined not to be defeated.

AND THE ADVENTURE MOVES ON

I discovered that there was a non-lootable PvP area at the Ancient Ruins location, so decided to head over there to at least get the TP and get back out again, especially since it was noted that the radar wasn't active there. I had no idea what I would run into since I know there are some who enjoy surprise PK'ing activities.

To my delight, there seemed to be no one around, and I was able at my leisure to do a bit of exploring once I set the StarShip9 down and tucked it away. The ruined structure itself had quite a few walls and areas still intact, and enough hidden from view to invite entrance.

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I took several other photos, but I'll reserve those for the photo section later, and just say that I enjoyed navigating my way through the ruined building to the other side to take in what I discovered there as well. However, when I came back through the building to the front side again, where I was prepared to launch the StarShip9 for further exploring, I got a bit of a surprise.

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These little creatures crack me up, but I know that Softy puts them up to it. There's no doubt in my mind that she gave them the 411 on my visit to Next Island, and that they should keep an eye out for me. Well, she's going to find out soon enough that her stable of pets is slowly dwindling <insert snicker>.

My next stop was Crystal Bay, and yet another place that I just had to explore. What an incredibly beautiful place this was, especially in the evening, but I could only imagine what it looks like during the light hours, so I'll have to go back for sure. I've added several more pics to the additional photos section.

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Another location that had a bit of a surprise for me was at Warrior Peak, which I found to be an incredible location atop a very high peak indeed, and the view is amazing. I stayed a bit and did some exploring inside the large building, which was not like any of the usual service centers, but rather had an interior much like a museum - what a novel idea. It has two levels, and seating areas that were quite quaint, but the additional photos will be in the photo areas that follow this report.

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Oh yes, the surprise - well, when I came out from exploring inside the building, I was standing near the edge just admiring the view when all of a sudden, a Storm Drake Old flew up above the edge out of nowhere and attacked. It scared the crap outta me, because I wasn't expecting it. The Papoos and Boars that usually turned up at the TP's weren't so much a bother, so I didn't pay much attention when there might have been a red dot on radar, but this time - I didn't even look at the radar and was just breathing in the site. I eventually collected myself and won the battle before taking off to the next TP.

My next stop was the Enchanted Village, which I found very quaint and very gypsy-like with the wagon style homes, but also with a pleasant environment to explore. I'm sure I'll be able to get a better feel for the area in daylight, but day or night, there was one thing that continued to be consistent - friendly greeters who just had to have a word or two with me.

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After some righteous handling of business, I went on to my next stop, which I thoroughly enjoyed as well. I just couldn't believe the amount of colors presented across most of the environments that I had visited, but Serpentine Village was an eye-catcher for sure. Yet another place that I had to set down and do some exploring. It really took more than a minute or two to drink it all in because it was not unlike a fantasy environment that had a feel of magic to it somehow.

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As I mentioned before, I took far too many photos to include in this report - I just couldn't stop clicking - but you can see the rest of them in the following reserved posts when I get them uploaded. I may not have gotten into too much game play, but I have to tell you, that the environment across the planet so far is exquisite, with many areas quite inviting.

Also, this part of my exploration was not without a gift at the end as well, which was a more pleasant surprise than some of the others - so thank you Next Island. This happened at the Pyramid location which you will see in the additional photos - a Boar decided that I was intruding.

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If I had more time, I would have planned a longer stay, but with space flight about to be launched, I'm totally uncertain how or if we'll all be able to get to one planet from another if all planets don't have hangars. I don't fully understand the mechanics of it all and I don't want to take any chances right now, but ...

What I can say, is that I will definitely be back to take more time to interact with the Next Island environment and the creatures of the wild - including the Softy kind. In the meantime, I am preparing for the next leg of the Next Island exploration adventure which will take me to the Club NEVERDIE Playground. After that it will be Ancient Greece, and since I'm running down on time, I think I will complete the next two segments of my exploring before writing up each of the reports, so you may not see Part 3 until late on Monday, or even Tuesday, and then Part 4 on Ancient Greece most likely on Wednesday.

For now - I will load up the other photos to give you more of what my visual experiences were, and work on the videos so that I can get those posted as well.

Am I enjoying myself? - Absolutely!

 

Some pictures need no introduction, but there are others that I set apart in order to identify locations - Enjoy!

VULCANS PASS​

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ANCIENT RUINS​

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CRYSTAL BAY​

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WARRIOR PEAK​

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MISCELLANEOUS​

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SERPENTINE VILLAGE​

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MISCELLANEOUS​

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Ajoite Ridge Landmarker​

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Time Travel Portal​

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Morion Teleporter​

PYRAMID - POSSIBLE FUTURE TIME TRAVEL PORTAL?​

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<reserved> - for videos

 

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I thought the Boar Street Boyz might add a fun touch. :D

Well, I'm glad your little pets want me around to play with, because I have to admit - they make me laugh myself silly. It's kind of cool in the dark when you can see red dots on radar and not know when you'll get a monkey-ass in your face - LOL.

The link you gave for the Caves stuff doesn't work Hon, can you check it out please?

The Pyramid is near the Morion Outpost TP, and I think the coords for the Pyramid location are 128070, 85060 ... or ... 128972, 84269 - one set of coords is for the Morion Outpost TP, and the other set for the Pyramid, which doesn't have a TP.

It's the same situation with the Time Travel Portal that I posted in the additional pics (no TP there) - I think that one is near the Sherman Outpost, and the coords are 127241, 88001 - the coords for the TP are 127640, 88440.

I had a great time on this leg of my exploration, and tomorrow I'm going to cover ND's island, along with Ancient Greece so that I can get it all in before the space system is implemented. I want to get back to Arkadia before that, but I'll definitely be back to Next Island for more exploration that isn't time-limited.

I have to admit that I'm totally blown away by a lot of the graphics, as well as how areas are set up - like a great deal of detail was taken into consideration. I also like the cool locations of where TP's are, makes it really interesting.

I'm looking forward to my next 2 adventures, which I'll do first before writing another part to this series. I'll also complete the videos as well.

See you in the tropics! :p

 

To Softy ... thanks for fixing the link Hon, it works now and I have printed off the list, which Calin did a great job on. Hopefully I'll have time to get the Cave exploration in too, but if not, then I'll add that to my next visit for sure.

To Alien ... I have to agree with you - I did feel like I was on vacation, even though I was rushing through some things because of time constraints, but nonetheless, the overall feeling of peacefulness loomed close - except when Softy's pets were harassing me at just about every turn.

To Oleg ... yes, I did notice the uniqueness in many areas, and with each TP that I acquired, it was truly an adventure because of the out of the ordinary places they were located - as a matter of fact, I took a photo of each of them I believe, and I'll post some of them below.

I know the vision and design for the planet is David Post's with whatever input he received in the process, but I have to assume that the majority of the planet was scripted by ND's team (those who work with the CE2 platform), and if that's the case, then I have to say hats off to them for at least the beauty of the planet, as well as the uniqueness that was implemented. The detail in every area I visited was rather impressive, and it really brought certain areas to life for sure. So much so in some areas like Serpentine Village that I forgot I was in EU. That place for me was just magical, and will probably end up being my favorite.

I'm going to put the additional photos in a new post. :)

 

Here are more photos to show the uniqueness of some of the locations on Next Island - I really like that there's not a copy and paste thing going on, except for how the teleporters look, but then some of those are unique as well - especially their locations.

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Southwest Mainland​

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Bustamite Forest TP​

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Salvation Outpost​

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Ancient Ruins​

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Warrior Peak​

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Warrior Peak​

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(wonder if "Vally" is a typo)​

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These are just some of the TP's that I acquired, but going to each location was definitely an interesting trip, and as you can see, the areas were quite unique.​

 

During my visit to Next Island, I didn't take the time to actually interact with the drakes in any extensive way, other than when I was surprised at Vulcans Pass and Warrior Peak, but I didn't have a difficult time with it because there was only one at each location that I had to deal with. The drake at Vulcans Pass was a bit more difficult because of the maturity, but I have that fight in video footage that I will be posting later after I get Part 3 of this series up on the front page.

I can tell you now that I found them to be smaller in size at Omen's Ridge on the CND Playground, but they were much higher maturity, and I found one person there dancin' with the Stalkers - I'll mention that in Part 3.

I have a couple of experiences with the larger dragons on ROCKtropia, and especially the Hendrix dragon at the dome, and those are definitely much larger, so not sure why the drakes on Next Island are smaller in physical size. When it comes to flying dragons, it makes it more intimidating when their physical size looms over you, because it's an overwhelming feeling, and makes the adrenaline pump for sure. Perhaps it's all an optical illusion, who knows. :D

I am off to finish up on Part 3 of this exploration so that I can get it posted at the front page. :)

 

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Still working on them ... I haven't had a lot of time to finish up with everything, but I should be able to get them posted soon, and when I do I add a post to let everyone know. :)