All I Want For Christmas Is You ... At My Party!

Hey Gang,

So you heard it right, I'm hosting a Christmas party!

*Ummm ... Luke ... it's the middle of September ... why are you posting about this?*

Good question, curious readers! One of the reasons I'm posting about this so early is simple for availability. See, with my Wizaversary, I had to reschedule the day because someone had already booked the day for their own Wizaversary. See, I booked the day about a month in advance, whereas the other wizard had been talking about it for a pretty long time, so it was obvious to me that I needed to reschedule. It's just nice to have first dibs and not have to worry about different days being available (and hey, you CAN'T break the international protocol of dibs!).

My second reason is simply because of time constraints. There are a lot of items I want to fill my Sunken Palace with, including rare and (very hard to make) crafted items. Therefore, it's going to take a lot of money, reagents, and time to get this party up to the caliber I expect it to be; I hope for it to be much bigger than my Wizaversary.

Here is the details of the party:

Luke GoldHorn's Jinglebell Rock Party!

Who: Why, you of course!

What: Christmas Party

Where: Gilroy SkullFlame's Sunken Palace

When: Friday, December 23rd, 8:00 P.M. EST (7:00 CST, 6:00 MT, 5 PST)

I'm expecting to have a lot of people, so please, spread the word and I hope you can show up! I'm going to try to get some contests going, so stay tuned for those too. I'm going to post these same details up when the date comes (much) closer, so don't feel pressured to keep coming to this particular blog post.

Hope you can make it and spread the word!

P.D.

Party Analysis

Hey Gang,

Every scientist knows that the best way to come to a conclusion for a problem is to analyse the data of your experiment. You could say my party was a social experiment, because, well, I had a lot of facets to my party that were never really used before. So, I'd like to point out some tips for future party-planners (and some can even be used in real life situations):

1. Something may sound good in theory, but...: The Red Carpet sounded like an awesome idea in everyone's heads. I'm pretty sure that was the most anticipated part of the party. However, there were some challenges that I simply didn't think of. Some Featured Wizards couldn't tune in to the livestream because their computer couldn't handle it. Others were deaf and could not hear me call their name. And some were just embarrassed and didn't want to be put in the spotlight. All in all, this part of the party wound up a being a complete disaster. People who weren't Featured Wizards were trying to get on the Red Carpet before it was open, which really frustrated me. Then some would start freaking out on me when I sent them away because they were not supposed to be on the Red Carpet. It was way too stressful and it simply didn't yield anything worthy of going through that amount of stress. If you would like to try the Red Carpet idea for yourself a few tips I would give would be:

a. Have a practice or two before the day of the Wizaversary for the Featured Wizards to know what's going on. A confused Red Carpet Event is a bad Red Carpet Event. This will also give you more time to deal with the problems presented.

b. Get a headcount of the Featured Wizards attending. You can do this over Twitter, Facebook, or by simply asking the Featured Wizards to comment saying that they will attend.

c. Have what you're going to say about each Featured Guest prepared and ready. For those tuned into the livestream during the Red Carpet Event, you'd know that I was a mess when talking about each guest. While I thought that I could just wing it, I learned that writing it out before time would have made it seemed organized. Also, if you plan on having a featured guest that is deaf, be courteous and at the very least write out your thanks to them in chat.

d. Have what you're going to say about each guest short, sweet, and to the point. Don't ramble on about each guest, and don't take so much time to do the event, because guests (even the Featured ones) get impatient and bored. Constantly entertain your guests.

If you're planning on trying a Red Carpet Event, I wish you luck. Not only was it challenging to scrounge up the gold and materials, but it made a lot of people impatient and angry. I have to admit, not one of my best ideas. But like I said, it DID sound good in theory.

2. Keep your guests busy: I already said this in the previous point, but I feel it should be emphasized. People have short attention spans. Watching people PvP can get boring. Do something out of the box to entertain them! Have some people running instance, have a dance floor, and come up with some of your own wacky ideas to keep your guests entertained. Even if a plan doesn't work out, at least you know for the future.

3. Keep ALL your guests in mind: Again, I realize I already talked about this, but this is a HUGE tip that needs to be stressed. Try your best to make the event for everyone. Write out things for people who can't hear or for people who can't tune in to listen to you talk. Have something to do for people who don't like to PvP like a Fashion Contest. If you can keep your event as open as possible, it will turn out as best as possible.

4. Do a LOT of Decorating: I worked very hard on my Sultan's Palace to make it look the best it could, and from what I'm hearing from attendees, it sounds like all my work paid off. Hundreds of thousands of gold and Crowns were dumped into those decorations, as wells as a ton of time and opinions (*cough**cough* Paige MoonShade :D). Take your time on setting up the house, and finish decorating a week or two early. Also, come up with your own unique ideas for the house, or build off of another's idea (but don't steal it!). Use other people's housing decor as a spring board to do something even better.

5. Invite your guests to explore your house: As I stated above, a lot of time went in to the decorating of the house. But I wonder exactly how much of the people actually explored and how many people just ran straight to the dance floor. Create a unique and interesting way to invite your guests to explore the house. Of course, there will be some guests who will do this on their own. But there are some who are just there to party, so create a way to make them appreciate all the hard work that went into accepting that huge project.

6. Don't take on a ride that's too tall for you: This kinda relates to my first tip, but it's not exactly that. I'm not sure if anyone saw the huge garden of Trumpet Vines, but that was a roller coaster that I simply wasn't tall enough to ride. With the Dragon Hoarder's Pack just releasing, I spent around 10,000 Crowns just trying to get that Skeletal Dragon (oh yeah, I totally regret that). I didn't have the crowns to buy Energy Elixirs to take care of my Trumpet Vines, so they kept wilting. This was simply too much for me too handle, and I recommend learning from my mistake by not doing something you can't handle.

7. Be Organized: This also relates to not taking on challenges that are too big. If you're not organized, things are going to get pretty messy. As I learned with the PvP Tourney and the Red Carpet Event, being organized is key. Get contestants you can rely on, and don't take maybe for an answer. Your contests and your Featured Guests have to be 100% sure that they can make it to the event. If they aren't sure, don't accept them.

That's pretty much all I have to offer as far as tips go. The party did turn out to be cool in the end. Here are some photos in case you missed it:

Also, here are the Winners of the Contests:

*PvP Tourney*:

1st Place- Abigail DawnPetal (Diana WildHeart)

2nd Place- Connor MistBlade

*Fashion Contest*:

1st Place- Katherine LightWalker

2nd Place- Ben FrogStone

3rd Place- Jasmine Smith

Ok, well, I've got a lot of work cut out for me. I hope everyone has fun in the Spiral!

P.D.

Party Invite

Hey Gang,

This will probably be my last post before the party, so I'm just gonna shove everything about the party into this post? You ready? Ok, first I'll list times:

1. Featured Wizards:

A. Realm~ Phoenix

B. Area~ One

C. Toon~ Oran FoeHammer (Level 17 Theurgist)

D. Place~ Fire Tower, Ravenwood School of Magical Arts, Wizard City

E. Time~ 5:40-5:50 Central Standard Time, Friday, June 17th, 2011 SHARP

2. Party Guests:

A. Realm~ Phoenix

B. Area~ One

C. Toon~ Erica GoldHorn

D. Place~ Life Tower, Ravenwood School of Magical Arts, Wizard City

E. Time~ 5:50-6:00 Central Standard Time, Friday, June 17th, 2011

If you have any further questions, please don't hesitate to ask. In case of confusion, here is the list of Featured Wizards:

• Fallon (Ravenwood Radio and The Perfect Catch PvP Team)
• Stephen SpiritCaller (Ravenwood Radio)
• Ditto Wizard AKA Digby HexCrafter (Ravenwood Radio)
• Christina IceDreamer AKA Icywiz (Ravenwood Radio)
• Ian AKA Stormywiz (Ravenwood Radio)
• Thomas LionBlood AKA The Friendly Necromancer (The Friendly Necromancer)
• Bailey SkyStaff (The Friendly Necromancer)
• Alia LotusPetal (Wizard101 Addict)
• Fallon ShadowBlade (Diary of a Wizard)
• Valdus SoulPyre (Diary of a Wizard)
• Paige MoonShade (Wizard101Central and Paige's Page)
• Alric RavenSinger (The Raven's Vault)
• Cassandra GriffinDreamer (Witch Warrior101)
• Ronnan Dawn (The Perfect Catch)
• Cassandra DragonHeart (The Perfect Catch)
• Kevin BattleBlood (The Perfect Catch)
• Fallon MoonGem (Diary of a Wizard and Twitter)
• Kestrel ShadowThistle (Shadowthistle School of Wizardy)
• Blaine StormMender (Close friend)
• Jasmine Smith (Randomly Selected Featured Wizard)
• Isaac StormFlame (Randomly Selected Featured Wizard)
• Diana WildHeart (Randomly Selected Featured Wizard)
• Elijah LightThief (Randomly Selected Featured Wizard)
• Connor MistBlade (Randomly Selected Featured Wizard)

Make sure you double check that list! I think I see some new names on there!

***NOTE FOR FEATURED WIZARDS: PLEASE BE SURE TO HAVE YOUR PORTS OFF***

Here are our judges for the Fashion Show:

1. Luke GoldHorn

2. Fallon

3. Jasmine Smith

Fashion Show Prizes:

Grand Prize- Mega Bundle Gift Card Code

2nd Place- (1) Dragon Hoarder's Treasure Pack

3rd Place- (1) KIFreeGames Code

***PLEASE NOTE: If you show up to the party and you are there until the end of the PvP Tourney, you will automatically be entered for the Fashion Contest***

PvP Prizes:

1st Place- (1) Mega Snack Pack

2nd Place- (1) Dragon Hoarder's Pack

Ok, I think I pretty much covered everything there is to cover on the party! I'm so excited and I can't wait to see you there!

P.D.

P.S: If you haven't read my "Wizaversary Post", I recommend you do; I heard people enjoyed it :)

New Release From KingsIsle and My Wizaversary!

Hey Gang,

So there's been a lot going on recently. Where shall we start? Well, maybe with the most exciting and community oriented news out there? Sounds good; KingsIsle said on Twitter that they were going to release some information about what we saw in the video for WinterTusk! Have no idea what I'm talking about? I'm talking about THIS:

That's right! It's that new picture we've all been talking about! Exciting, right? Everyone's anxious to know what it is, and while I'm sure KingsIsle not going to give us all the deets, I'm almost positive that they will reveal its purpose as well as maybe a new prequest for it. Whatever it is, I'm uber excited!

I also have an uber awesome announcement to make! My Wizaversary is coming up! W00t! Excitement! I decided that I will in fact have a Wizaversary Party. Here's your own personal invite! Check it:

For anyone that can't read it:

"You're Invited!

To Luke GoldHorn's Wizaversary

When: June 18th, 6:00 P.M. CST (Central Standard Time)

Where: Port Bus @ Fire Tower in Sunbird Area One

What: Wizaversary for Luke GoldHorn

Who: Luke GoldHorn Will Host the Party at His Massive Fantasy Palace

Dress Code: Anything Fit for a Party! Dress Nicely!

COME ON OUT FOR SOME PvP AND DANCING!"

I'm really really excited! Anyone who wants to come, feel free to join along in the celebration of summer and of me playing this game for two years! Be sure to look for Erica GoldHorn (Level 1 Death Wizard) when you get to the Fire tower! Why am I telling you this now? Because on June 17th when I make a blog post, I will be linking this post so you can find your way to my party! :)

Be sure to dress well and bring your PvP gear! PvP will happen later on in the party. Here's the schedule of what's to come:

6:15 P.M.-6:30 P.M. (or 6:45 P.M.): Red Carpet Event.

6:50 P.M.-8:30 P.M.: PvP/Hanging Out/Dancing.

8:30-Whenever: Dungeon Runs

Ok, so I'll explain what each of the parts mean on the schedule. The Red Carpet event is something I will be doing at the very beginning of the party. I'm going to set up a walkway at the party. First what will happen is this: everyone will port into a closed off section of the party. I will have certain wizards in a different section that leads directly to the Red Carpet. These wizards are Wizards that sign up to be on the Red Carpet. I will let 5 random wizards sign up to be featured on the carpet, and those 5 wizards will sign up to do that here.

So basically, if you want to be one of these wizards, comment below and I will put you in for a random drawing. I'm going to save other spots for known members of the community such as (if they desire to go) Kevin BattleBlood and TPC team (Fallon, Cassandra DragonHeart, and Ronan Dawn), The Ravenwood Radio Crew (Stephen SpiritCaller, Christina IceDreamer, Fallon (Already listed), and Ditto Wizard), Thomas LionBlood and Bailey SkyStaff, Paige MoonShade, Fallon DeathSlinger and Valdus SoulPyre, Fallon MoonGem, Alric RavenSinger, and possibly others! Again, the people featured on the Red Carpet will all depend on if they desire to go and if they don't mind being featured. If you were not listed above and are interested in being on the Red Carpet, please comment by May 31st and I will see to it that you are entered.

I'm going to see if I can Livestream the Red Carpet Event. I've been having some bad experiences with Livestream recently, so we'll see how this goes :).

Also, before I move on, please RSVP to the party in the comments below. I'd like to get a general number of the people attending. Ok, so next we have the actual party. This will probably continue to 8:30 P.M. or 9:00 P.M, whichever is fine. Maybe we can have some PvP commentating by Kevin BattleBlood and The Perfect Catch gang? Would be an awesome time! So yeah, that part is pretty self explanatory.

The last part I thought would be an interesting twist. Do you have a dungeon you've been itching to farm? Well hopefully this party will serve of use to you! If you so desire, I'd like to get everyone (who wishes to participate) to go out and farm a dungeon. So make sure you have a planned group or a planned dungeon that you want to make a run through! If you don't feel for this part of the party, you're welcome to stay and PvP or play games or something of the sort.

Again, you should be commenting if:

1. You're attending

2. If you're interested in entering the Red Carpet Feature

3. If you have any questions.

I understand this is very confusing, so if you have any questions, please feel free to ask! Thanks again and I really hope to see you there! I have a TON of decorating to do! :D

P.D.

P.S: Remember, all those times up there are Central Standard Time!

P.P.S: For those who are being featured, I'll need you to arrive roughly ten minutes before the party starts!