Vacation Idea Dilemmas – Short Notes

Posted on January 21, 2015 by short

Short's Short Notes where today she discusses vacation idea dilemmas!

Vacation Idea Dilemmas!

Let’s be honest, everyone loves vacation. It’s time to rest, explore, and just get away for awhile. Each BlizzCon I think about how great it would be to land in sunny California and spend a few days hanging out with the greatest bunch of geeks I know. However, I start looking at the fine print and realize making that happen would take nothing short of a miracle. I would have to go on a heavy medication regiment to start off well, go to the airport two hours before the “get there early” time, fly four hours, find handicapped transportation from airport to hotel, rent medical equipment needed while there, and hope I get there without being near any triggers that set off a respiratory episode. Or, of course, have my 56 year old mother from Small Town, Tennessee drive in Los Angeles traffic!

Vacation Preparation

Vacations with my disability are definitely different. They take a lot of extra planning and travel time since my best course of action is driving to the destination. I can pack extra necessities, lie down anytime I’m not feeling well, and I don’t have to worry about being in a confined space with people who bathe in perfume. Driving takes extra time, but it’s definitely needed in my situation. The extra time needed for traveling offers one big perk… time to think.

Vacation & the Future

You might have noticed an absence in content recently. It started out due to illness, crept into holiday hiatus’, then ended with vacation out of towness (yes, I’m aware that’s not a real word… until now!) During vacation I had a lot of time riding in a van. Long stretches of road to think about Ability Powered and its YouTube/website future. I thought about video series that I want to do and games on my to do list. I thought a lot about the website and found myself in a dilemma.

A Place for Gaming Accessibility & More

I originally created this site to only post gaming news that involved disabilities. I used it to post summaries of my videos for hearing impaired gamers. Both are things I want to continue here. Gaming is my thing. It’s my love. Then the dilemma popped up. I was thinking of posts I wish I could share with you guys that aren’t gaming. I’m not talking about “21 Makeup Secrets You Never Knew”… that’s definitely not my thing. They were more tips and tricks to help in real life.

Where Does Ability Powered Go Now?

Even this vacation took me pulling rabbits out of hats to make it a success. Sure, I can show you “Easy Ways to Tightrope Walk in Azeroth”, but where could “Easy Way to Keep Your Straws from Being Murdered in your Wheelchair Backpack” fit in? Do I make a different blog for the broader non-gaming content and potentially have you guys going to two sites? Do I go off topic occasionally on my gaming site and potentially lose you guys that only want gaming? Do I keep the real life tricks to myself or share in hopes it can help someone else… like my gaming content does? It’s all disability things, but I’m not so sure what to do.

Short seen in her custom World of Warcraft wheelchair discussing which vacation idea is best. I need input from YOU guys. Give me your opinions here, Twitter, Facebook, YouTube… ANYWHERE! I know you guys have them, share them! Check here if you’d like to see more Ability Powered Short Notes!

Short Seen in World of Warcraft Documentary – Short Notes

Posted on December 15, 2014 by short

Short's Short Notes where today she's been seen in the World of Warcraft Documentary!

World of Warcraft: Looking for Group

Hello, Ability Powered gamers! If you haven’t watched Warcraft’s 10 year anniversary documentary: Looking for Group, check it out right now for a glimpse of Ability Powered’s own Short talking about the World of Warcraft Community!

What an amazing project that involves so many fantastic people! It was an honor to be included in such a piece of history for World of Warcraft and Blizzard Entertainment. While my part this in World of Warcraft documentary was small, the video itself holds massive importance for WoW and gaming alike. Let me know what you think about this whole event! Check here if you’d like to see more Ability Powered Short Notes!

Ability Powered Charity Weekend – Extra Life (2014)

Posted on October 13, 2014 by short

Extra Life – Cause for a Cure

We are so excited to be participating in Extra Life again this year! On October 25th Ability Powered, DisneyDeathCamp, and GamingInSherwood will be gaming for 24 HOURS to raise money for the Children’s Miracle Network! Last year we raised an amazing $255.00. As time gets closer I’ll be posting more information about our schedule, giveaways, streaming, and more! Can you help us reach our goal again this year? Be a Hero! Help us help sick kids! Donate here today!

Ability Powered Broadcast Schedule:

Saturday:

8:30PM – 11PM

World of Warcraft with Friends

Sunday:

8:30PM – 11PM

World of Warcraft Raiding

Watch Stream HERE!

Donate HERE!

GamingInSherwood Broadcast Schedule:

Saturday:

3PM – 5PM

Minecraft

Sunday:

12AM – 5AM

Minecraft

Watch Stream HERE!

Donate HERE!

DisneyDeathCamp Broadcast Schedule:

Saturday:

8AM – 2PM Destiny

2PM – 12AM The Evil Within

Sunday:

12AM – 2AM NBA 2K15

2AM – 4AM Forza 5

4AM – 8AM Diablo 3

Random classic console games all day/night

Watch Stream HERE!

Donate HERE!

All three teams will be drawing names from donors to win various Steam games, so be sure to get your donations in! We will be active on Social Media between broadcasts updating everyone on our progress! We can’t wait to see you Saturday! If you’d like to read more about Ability Powered updates then head to our News column!

BlizzCon Tips from the Pros at Blizzard Entertainment!

Posted on October 7, 2014 by short

BlizzCon Tips for BlizzCon goers.

Time for BlizzCon Tips!

Hello, Ability Powered gamers! BlizzCon is right around the corner and a lot of you guys have asked if I will be there this year. In short, no. Flying is just too dangerous health wise for me and the drive would be almost 24 hours! So this year I’m on #team virtualticket! I will also be living vicariously through guildies who will be going. As I helped book hotels and was drowning in 5,000 questions, a member of the World of Warcraft Twitter community, Nicole Belle, came forward and was sweet enough to field tons of questions I had about the trip! Many of my questions were solved thanks to her in depth BlizzCon tips.

How Do BlizzCon?

With time getting closer I started thinking… I wonder if there are BlizzCon tips about the convention itself. Who better to ask than the people who throw the biggest party for us? Here are the responses I got from Blizzard community managers and developers on Twitter when I asked “What’s your best BlizzCon tip?”:

Gary Platner @GaryPlatner (WoW Lead Environment Artist): My favorite part of BlizzCon has always been the opening ceremony, don’t miss it!

Daxxarri ‏@Daxxarri (Community Manager): Be prepared – bring batteries/chargers! Plan ahead – don’t forget travel time. Hydrate and eat snacks! Focus on having fun! Oh! The BlizzCon 2014 Survival Guide thread is packed with good information too:

Helen Cheng ‏@BlizzardKismet (WoW Senior Game Designer): Don’t miss the opening ceremony. Eat at con to save time. Shop store 1st day. Deodorant. Talk to people. Have a great time!

Nethaera @Nethaera (Community Manager): Wear comfortable shoes. There’s a lot of walking that will happen… and standing.

Don Adams @_DonAdams (Game Designer at Blizzard Entertainment): Wear comfortable shoes! Stay hydrated. Have a designated meeting place if your group is separated (cell signal breaks down). Other useful stuff: handheld gaming device, USB charger (can find on Amazon for about $40) and asprin. And finally: there are lots of bathrooms in the front hall (before you enter the expo floor) and nearby hotel lobbies.

Shawn Silverman ‏@CM_Phenteo (Community Manager): Pack deodorant, extra pair of socks & underwear for every two days away from home. Have extra sharpies for signatures.

Monte Krol ‏ @krolco (WoW Lead Tools Engineer): Hmm, good question. Plan your days: figure out the stuff you want to see, and make a plan for getting to those events.

Crithto @CM_Crithto (Community Manager): Backpack, comfy shoes, extra socks, Emergen-C, moisturizing hand sanitizer, and water. Also a bib to catch your melted face. Oh, and some energizing snacks. Good trail-mix FTW! 😉

Russ Petersen ‏@nite_moogle (Reward Systems Designer): Wear good walking shoes, eat at off hours, remember you have automatic gaming passion commonality with every person there

Rygarius CoffeeBird ‏@Rygarius (Community Manager): Do make plans on what you want to do. Expect that plan to change, and that’s ok.

Owen Landgren ‏@olandgren (Items & Rewards Designer): Talk to the people around you in lines and between panels. Everyone’s at Blizzcon because they’re into awesome stuff.

All these tips will definitely ensure you have an epic adventure at the biggest party us Blizzard fans could ever dream up. However, Hearthstone Senior Game Designer, Ben Brode, gave perhaps the best tip to enjoying BlizzCon:

Ben Brode ‏@bdbrode: Attend

BlizzCon Tip: Have Fun

Short seen in her custom World of Warcraft wheelchair giving out BlizzCon Tips from the professionals of Blizzard Entertainment! But don’t just take their word for it! If you’re heading to BlizzCon keep up with helpful tips to share with us next year. If you’re like me and will be at home this November 7th – 8th, get your virtual ticket and join me on Twitter #teamvirtualticket to talk about all the news and fun BlizzCon will surely bring! Big thanks to the crew at Blizzard who participated! If you’d like to read more about Blizzard creations then head to our News column!

Warlords of Draenor Dungeon Thoughts

Posted on August 25, 2014 by short

Warlords of Draenor Dungeon Impressions

While we do have dungeon preview guides coming to Ability Powered soon™, I wanted to write a quick post with some opinions and observations about the new 5 man dungeons of Draenor. One thing I can say about the new 5 mans is they definitely keep you moving. For Ability Powered gamers who have mobility problems this isn’t necessarily a good thing. Mechanics are new and exciting on not only bosses, but also some trash. This is good for veteran players who have waged war across Azeroth for years and have seen tons of bosses, but it comes at a price for gamers like us.

Prior World of Warcraft Dungeon Mechanics

During Burning Crusade I remember a lot of crowd control and burning adds quickly. Wrath of the Lich King I remember less crowd control and a lot of side stepping out of bad things. Cataclysm was back to crowd controlling and kill priority, but added unique things too (rope swinging of Deadmines’ ship anyone?) Mists of Pandaria brought… well… I’m not sure about dungeon mechanics, because I was too busy doing the 500 dailies. Warlords of Draenor will definitely be remembered for having to run for your life.

Warlords of Draenor Dungeon Chase

So far, I’ve dodged boulders on a burning bridge with occasional wind bursts pushing me backwards. I’ve avoided a constant barrage of arrows. I tried not to get grilled by nonstop dragon breath while on a platform hanging high above Black Rock Depths. I’ve kited a flock of exploding birds around a platform, so my party could survive. Oh and I’ve dodge cannons on a moving train that you CAN fall off of. (Thanks for testing dungeon team!) All these things were during a boss fight. I haven’t touched the adventures I’ve had with trash getting to said bosses.

WoD & It’s Endless Adds

So far, I’m pretty terrified at the thought of healing people through all the movement mechanics added. I know it will be doable with time and practice, but it’s definitely something I’m dreading as a damage dealer in Beta. Movement is key. My early advice is to practice with Move Pad to master moving quickly while using abilities. Familiarize yourself with right Clicking to Move. Get accustomed to autofocusing party members and keybinding autofollow to help keep your character moving quickly. Working with these things now will take the edge off the added movement requirements when Warlords launches.

Warlords of Draenor Dungeon: Moving to Victory

Movement heavy fights are definitely harder, but it’s not the only thing we have to watch out for. There seems to be a lot of line of sight issues during fights. There’s lots of wind blowing you around. There are a LOT of areas you can fall off of. Again, thanks to my team who always check!

Warlords of Draenor Dungeon Progress

The new 5 mans are rough so far. While I’m not a fan of the movement additions, I don’t think they’re impossible. The addition of Deadly Boss Mod timers should help give players a heads up to prepare for the incoming movement. But don’t take my word for it, sign up for Beta and test out the new Warlords of Draenor 5 man dungeons! Enjoy our WoD talk? You can find more of me thoughts at our Opinion column!