anecorbie on Jan 11, 2016 wrote:

I love your enthusiasm, Helpful Alura Parker!
Have you gone to Valencia yet? You meet Phule there, in Granchia ( The Tomb of Marco Pollo ).

Thank you, Anecorbie!

And yes, I have gone to Valencia - I'm actually in Cool Ranch right now. I don't remember Phule, though. What does he look like?

You have a lot of cool posts, by the way!

Quick question - is Bishop a good guy or just another Clockwork? I think he's a good guy - he does Puppet Shows! I think only good guys do Puppet Shows.

Just so you know, maybe there should be some kind of quest called "Just Another Clockwork!" where you have to defeat Kane (I was thinking of mentioning Deacon, but I know you already defeat him) and before him, some other Clockworks. You sail to the Skyway in Aragon Skyway that's past The Great Machine, and your quest has to do with it. Maybe The Great Machine is some ultimate weapon to destroy the Spiral, or to do something to go to El Dorado - or even to build the Dragoons that were in the beginning and the book called "The Art of Valencia" which you can get in the Crown Shop! The Great Machine can be used for so many purposes, and I'm thinking we could use that as a part of Valencia Part II. We all know there just has to be a Valencia Part II!

I'll also have my own subject called "About Valencia Part II..." under The Shipyards. I think it would be a pretty cool thing to talk about, don't you think?

Thanks and Good Hunting,

- Helpful Aurora Parker, Level 22 Swashbuckler

At Anecorbie's insistence after I poked her about this in-game, here I am to post my discovery.

So, I've recently been able to quest again, and decided to start running my musketeer as far as I could in the month that I have access to the full game. As I was wrapping up Valencia, I noticed something quite interesting.

Leonardo da Vinci was a 15th century intellectual and inventor, commonly referred to now as the "ideal Renaissance man"; he created a ton of stuff and filled numerous notebooks with ideas and sketches. Over the December holiday, I received a scale model kit of one of his inventions, an early helicopter sort of creation that he dubbed the "Aerial Screw". Being the model-kit loving person that I am, I happily set to work on it and completed the project in a couple of hours. I also managed to make a horrific mess with the glue in the process, but that's beside the point.

While I was working on Louis' first promotion in Aragon skyway, I stopped in a windlane near that gimungous Armada contraption, the Grand Design, I think? I don't recall the name. Anyway, as I was waiting for my ship's health to refill, I decided to pop onto the deck of my ship and take a screenshot of the machine. As I looked up, I noticed that on the top turned a canopy of the same design as da Vinci's invention that I mentioned previously, which leads me to think that there may be other devices of his within the world of Valencia. The clockwork wings mount is similar to his flying machine (also known as the "ornithopter"), though much smaller than the real thing, and da Vinci even included a sketch of a mechanical bird in one of his notebooks.

I am thinking that in our upcoming visit to Valencia, we may meet a character modeled after da Vinci that might be connected to the Armada, and we'll probably encounter more contraptions that are similar to the inventor's designs.

Caligostro was a travelling magician in the 16th or 17th century, the word magician though

CdeWinter on Mar 8, 2016 wrote:

Right, so I was having me a think the other day about the structure of Kane's court/ government. So what I came up with was based quite a bit on what we already know about Kane's court, but a bit of conjecture regarding Milady and Phule.

What we know,
Kane is the Supreme Commander,
Deacon is the Head of Intelligence (I'd say Foreign Affairs)
Rooke is the Head of the Armed Forces
Bishop is the Head of Research and Development

Now for the conjecture,

If Deacon is the Head of Foreign Affairs, and we strongly think that Milady has something to do with public relations, then perhaps Milady is the Head of Internal Affairs, or Domestic Intelligence.

Phule we know has a very obvious dual personality. I was thinking of what department or function would require a dual nature, the ability to see both points of view in an issue. So then I decided on a judge. So, perhaps Phule is the Head of Kane's legal system, the Head Justice?

Very interesting conjecture, Scarlet. Especially the idea of a Fool ( Phule ) being Chief Justice/Attorney General of the Armada.

Pirate101 fan on Mar 16, 2016 wrote:

I think kane could spend a little more time trying to kill us and get our map pieces because I don't see what could be so important that he can't get someone else to do it for a second while he kills us before we become a threat and obtain three more map pieces and that photo we have. Or at least take us prisoner, bind us with chains and torture is until they have all the information they need from is and then kill us. That doesn't sound hard for kane t9 do at all and probably better than what he is doing right now.

I suspect that Kane is trying to find another way into El Dorado without the use of the map. Remember in Bishop's Puppet Show, he mentions that he hopes that Kane is "making progress in the Celestian computations" and we saw some gold discs from the Isle of Doom attached to a machine. It looked to me as if it was a calculating device.
Could Kane assign someone else to this most important mission ( finding El Dorado ) so that he can deal with us personally? I doubt that there is anyone within the Armada who can do this.
If he is interested ( and I don't think he considers us any type of threat ) in squashing us like the bugs we are, I feel he'll send someone else to deal with us - maybe the Lady Elite.
Don't be so anxious to face Kane. In the words of Blind Mew "if I had my way, Kane could defeat a level 80 pirate with one hand tied behind his back."

Anne Radcliffe on Mar 17, 2016 wrote:

I don't think Kane would consider dealing with us more important than seeking out El Dorado. Certainly we have proved to be a problem that should be confronted rather than ignored, but Kane has lots of options without needing to put his major mission aside.

And, as you say, Esperanza, Kane certainly seems to be looking into how to get to El Dorado without the Map. Knowing how difficult it is to get all the pieces (or perhaps impossible, as one of the persons who held a piece of the Map is dead!) Kane is wise to seek other avenues. The Celestial Computations mentioned by Bishop seem likely to be an example. We may have interfered in other avenues already, especially in Mooshu:
1) Scrolls from the library in Subata were deliberately stolen by the Amber Horde. A strange choice for plunder for people who likely can't read them... most likely they were paid to steal them for someone else.

2) Emerald tablets were also stolen... we retrieved them (if I remember correctly, these had bemusing philosophic commentary). But here's the thing: the Pirate101 writers are very, very well read and very clever. Historically, there was -supposedly- in Classical times a critical text of alchemy written on a tablet of green stone. This was the Emerald Tablet, the founding work of the secrets of alchemy by Hermes Trismegestus, and all secrets would be open if you understood it. (Having read it in translation I have to say is way more confusing than the emerald tablets in Pirate101. Which is saying something)

So, if memory serves correctly, we retrieved those tablets from Tso's ships. But who wanted them in the first place? Moo Manchu? Or someone else?

(Ah, the game of speculation... what fun!)

On the Emerald Tablets, I have to agree, and I'm very glad that you've brought that up, Anne. When we rescued these tablets we used them to translate the writing on some stele near a statue of the Moodha, these translated teachings sound very much like the Zen branch of Budhism.
But these tablets were stolen by Gen. Tso's forces, and I believe you're right that they may have been used by the Armada for their own translation of their pieces of the Map ( however, we prevented this. ) Also, the tablets were valuable in themselves if they were actually carved on emeralds and not on a greenish stone.

Pirate101 fan on Mar 17, 2016 wrote:

What's weird to me is that there have been no improvements in the clockwork design since kane was made meaning the technology must have gotten worse. Although it is probably because they need more rare materials to make. But even though it's a pirate game, it doesn't stop AI from being the main enemies of the game so anything could be possible. I just wish I could get my hands on an ak-47 or an amr-2 8n the game so I could just grand theft auto the big machine in Valencia.

To quote Blind Mew, "you scared Bishop so badly that he's getting upgrades."
These aren't the only clockworks in the game, we have yet to see the core of Valencia in their home base. So how do you know there are "no improvements" going on?
"Grand Theft Auto"-ing the Great Machine would be anti-climatic; I want to enter, do some sabotage ( at great risk to life and limb ) find the self-destruct button, then scurry outta there.

What I meant was kane should be the most primitive if he's the first and the others should be alot more efficient in almost every aspect because kane is probably the first post-prototype model (because I have a feeling that when we meet the toy maker we might see the prototype clockwork) and improvements should come along the way. Like we don't start out with the I-pjone and then get a bunch of Blackberrys (the flip phone not the fruit).

MistyDragon13 on Jan 29, 2016 wrote:

At Anecorbie's insistence after I poked her about this in-game, here I am to post my discovery.

So, I've recently been able to quest again, and decided to start running my musketeer as far as I could in the month that I have access to the full game. As I was wrapping up Valencia, I noticed something quite interesting.

Leonardo da Vinci was a 15th century intellectual and inventor, commonly referred to now as the "ideal Renaissance man"; he created a ton of stuff and filled numerous notebooks with ideas and sketches. Over the December holiday, I received a scale model kit of one of his inventions, an early helicopter sort of creation that he dubbed the "Aerial Screw". Being the model-kit loving person that I am, I happily set to work on it and completed the project in a couple of hours. I also managed to make a horrific mess with the glue in the process, but that's beside the point.

While I was working on Louis' first promotion in Aragon skyway, I stopped in a windlane near that gimungous Armada contraption, the Grand Design, I think? I don't recall the name. Anyway, as I was waiting for my ship's health to refill, I decided to pop onto the deck of my ship and take a screenshot of the machine. As I looked up, I noticed that on the top turned a canopy of the same design as da Vinci's invention that I mentioned previously, which leads me to think that there may be other devices of his within the world of Valencia. The clockwork wings mount is similar to his flying machine (also known as the "ornithopter"), though much smaller than the real thing, and da Vinci even included a sketch of a mechanical bird in one of his notebooks.

I am thinking that in our upcoming visit to Valencia, we may meet a character modeled after da Vinci that might be connected to the Armada, and we'll probably encounter more contraptions that are similar to the inventor's designs.

In going through Beachhead again, I found that there is a model of that "Aerial Screw" in Bishop's Laboratory near the camera/projector.

I kind of hope that the Lady Elite is some sort of crazed automaton, like Bellatrix Lestrange. For example, she looks ladylike and calm, and speaks so, but as soon as she switches gears, she's a lean, mean Armada machine. IIRC, New did say she'd be very ladylike and not at all an insane berserker *cough cough me*, but I suppose something a little Lestrangey wouldn't be too bad, no?

anecorbie on Mar 29, 2016 wrote:

Interesting speculation, Noble Matthew.
Because we know really nothing about the Lady Elite ( in fact, less than is known about Kane ), I'm hoping that we will soon learn a bit more about her ( at least her name ).
An insane, ranting berserker isn't my cup of yum, though. I prefer my villains to be more subtle and menacing.

It would also be a cool twist to see that kane is doing all this stuff for his manipulative wife (I can only assume she's his wife anyway) though I guess we'll have to wait for a story update. I wish it didn't take so long!

I agree with you anecorbie. But maybe Pirate101 fan only called her Kane's wife to state her importance in the game......... as the queen of the armada. After all, the queen in the most dangerous piece on a chessboard...

anecorbie on Mar 31, 2016 wrote:

WHY does everyone ( except a few ) automatically assume she's his wife simply because she's female and sitting near him?
WHAT does an automaton need a wife for? Why can't people accept that a female may be just an employee or part of an organization without "shipping" her?
Gosh golly, it's the 21st century, yet some player's mindsets are still in the 19th century when it comes to women in jobs or any organization!
Maybe it's my art background ( of which Art History is a basic course that must be taken ) but I can't count the number of paintings I've seen where the adult women ( & a few adolescents ) were All siting down, with no actual relationship to the gentlemen in the picture ( & half of which were standing )! I'll bet most players would assume that if the woman is sitting down and the man is standing, it would indicate that the woman was more important. HAH!
Sorry, but I'm soooo tired of players assuming a relationship between the Lady Elite and Kane. She's just as much an Elite as Phule or Bishop, she has her purpose in Kane's Court ( whatever it is ) and she's not his wife or a Queen!
But, hey, at least you think she's evil and not a potential ally or might be "sympathetic" to us.

I just said it would be a nice twist. I didn't say that that's actually what I thought. Because it's a robot and there is no he or she it's just the way she's programmed, dressed, and painted. I would say something about lady elite being the only female making it likely that she's the empress except the angels appear to be females.