Weathered Daystar Robe get!

This weekend was filled with lots... and lots... of Brayflox HM. Upside, I finally got my Soldiery chest piece: Weathered Daystar Robe! It's the first time in what feels like months where I was able to sit down and binge on video games the entire weekend. We've (my husband and I) had plans every weekend for at least two months... his break hasn't come yet. He's spending the week in Tennessee visiting family and next weekend is our Gender Reveal in Las Vegas.

I don't think I've ever been so productive in Final Fantasy XIV... I completed Ifrit Extreme, completed this chapter of the Main Scenario, put some attempts on Leviathan Extreme, got my Garuda healing ring (finally got rid of the LAST piece of Darklight). I feel like there's more that I accomplished, but I honestly can't even remember.

My husband isn't enjoying the game as much anymore. We haven't really been able to play together in a long while (which seems to happen in most MMO's we start together). His end-game goals are usually much different than mine and he enjoys being able to be strong alone as opposed to having to rely on so many other people. This may be why he typically likes PvP a lot more then PvE. He can show his skills in a different way and doesn't have to rely on a team (depending on the game). I remind him that PvP is getting revamped right now, but his expectations are too high for FFXIV to likely meet at the present time; he'll still have to rely on his team.

I tried queueing for a little bit of level 30 PvP myself last night. It was... okay. I had a little fun, but at level 30, I don't have many tools that I need to help my team succeed (like Leeches). If I'm focused with a bunch of people who can stun.... I'm toast. It's beyond frustrating. Even with "Purify" -- I'm dead. I only queued for 30 since I have no PvP gear currently. I guess I'm going to need more practice... probably in the level 40 range...

I tell everyone who asks me on stream, "if your goals are PvP-oriented, this is not the game for you.... yet. Things may change for the better, but bear in mind that Square Enix hasn't done PvP before; they're learning what works for them and taking player feedback to improve it (as with everything else). If it's PvE you want, this game is AMAZZZZZZINNNNNG!!!" I hope Square Enix's changes make PvP a more balanced and viable outlet for those who enjoy it.

13 Weeks, FFXIV Remote Play, & Baby's Gender

I'm officially 13 weeks into pregnancy as of yesterday. This baby is really testing me... oh my goodness. The weekend was very busy with Easter festivities -- and when I wasn't busy, I was busy feeling sick. I feel like I haven't played games (with the exception of my two streams on Tuesday and Wednesday this week). I just haven't been feeling all that well. Now that I'm in the second trimester, I'm hoping the sickness will subside soon...

Aside from that, I finally set up my PS3 version of Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn (then promptly upgraded to PS4 version for free). We also have a PSVita. I messed around a little bit with the PS4 and Vita on Sunday; playing a new character to get a feel for the controls. I can definitely see this as an alternative (though I need practice to be able to do things other than gather and send my retainers on ventures on my Main character, Rahhzay Hana) while I lounge around or am on the road. It was fun and not too difficult to get into with a controller, although PC will likely remain my main mode of play. I have a couple trips planned in the near future, and it's a cool thought to think I can remote play while using my phone as a wi-fi hotspot (or more likely, my husband's phone -- since mine hates me lately).

One trip we have coming up, is our trip to Las Vegas to visit family and have our gender reveal party! Side note: Hubby and I gave in and opened up that sealed envelope to reveal the sex of the baby. We're the only two who know and have sworn to not tell a soul until after the reveal.. so you guys are still going to have to wait. :) The main reason we did this was because the paper that was sealed away, also had other lab results for me and our baby (everything is normal!). We didn't want to give the envelope with these results to someone to bake our cake, so we decided we'd make the cake ourselves for the reveal. The current plan is to go out the weekend of Mother's Day for the reveal -- no later! I can't wait until we get to tell everyone! Just a couple more week guys. ;)

What do you think we're having? Leave a comment below!

Have baby name suggestions? Click here. Feel free to suggest as many names as you'd like. If we pick your name, I'll promote you (on twitch) to VIP Gold status on my page. View my twitch page for details on VIP status. Don't have a Twitch ID? Sign up or suggest anonymously.

YouTube video from when we announced we were pregnant to my Twitch.tv viewers. Click here.

Somersaults and a Sealed Envelope

I am 12 weeks pregnant today! Yesterday we had our third ultrasound and it was hilarious to see my baby doing (almost literal) somersaults in the womb. Practicing flip turns? Martial arts? LARPing? (insert other active yet geeky action here). We got several pictures; though, you can barely see the arms and legs in any of the six we received since baby would move them out of sight whenever the doctor hit the button.

We also received our results from some genetic testing we had done. For this test, a lab took my blood 2 weeks ago. This test isolates the fetal DNA in my blood in which they test for chromosomal problems such as Down syndrome, Edwards syndrome and a few syndromes and disorders; it can also tell you the sex of your baby by seeing if there is a "Y" present. My doctor called me Monday telling me the results are in -- which I promptly told him that I wanted him to not reveal the sex of the baby yet as we want to do a "gender reveal" party with my family. Upon arriving at the doctor's office yesterday, I picked up a sealed security envelope with this top secret information inside. My husband began telling me right away to open it and that he couldn't wait. I, of course, refused. :) The doctor told us that all the results were normal and thus far no chromosomal or genetic deficiencies were detected; these are of course only for the ones that the test looks for -- but so far everything is looking good!

The envelope still resides in my purse... for now. I'm itching to know. I even had several dreams last night about the results of the gender being boy or girl (switching with each dream). Within the next week or so, we'll reveal the sex to everyone!

Baby's First "Visit" to Disneyland

Yesterday we went to Disneyland (Rahhzay's happiest place on earth). While I wasn't able to do much, I do very much enjoy that magical ambiance. I spent much of the time with my aunt, cousins and other family while my brother, husband, and a few others went off and rode many of the rides.

Yes, you might be thinking, "but Rahhzay, what did you do. Pregnant women can't ride anything at Disneyland!" Well, of course there's a long list of rides that I couldn't ride: any of the mountains (Space Mountain, Splash Mountain, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, Matterhorn), as well as a few that jostle you around (ie. Star Tours), and of course most everything in Disney's California Adventure. I did however go on Haunted Mansion, Pirate's of the Caribbean (although this one is at your own discretion due to the two drops and the occasional boat pile-up -- which is a lot of bumping as you all caterpillar along to the final lift), as well as It's a Small World (which was my 6 month old baby cousin's first ride EVER! So cute to see her face as she looked around at all the singing and dancing dolls). I really just spent the day walking around with family, eating the yummy food, did a little shopping (got a cool new hat and a sweatshirt), and just plain relaxing. I even had a little fun with a "1st Visit" button -- wearing it on my belly for some of the day. Thinking of writing on it with a sharpie, "11 weeks in the womb."

Saturday my weekend seemed like it was going to be one where I didn't leave the couch. I'm hoping that this sickness is just a sign that things get worse right before they get better. I was lucky to wake up yesterday feeling well enough to go to Disney -- granted, who turns down a day at Disney?

All in all it was a great day and I was happy to have the "morning" sickness subside for the day.

RIP The Battousai

Last night, my Free Company finally died. It's been a long time coming... Since I got pregnant, I wasn't around as much and so... drama ensued. Drama makes ripples and those ripples make ripples. It was fun while it lasted and I enjoyed being the Free Company Master of The Battousai «SLYR». For now, I've given the reigns over to my husband to revamp the FC as he sees fit; but I think we're just going to pass it on to an alt to hold onto for a little while. I need time away from the name and the pressure. I plan to be a tagless free agent Scholar for a little while before I settle into another Free Company as a meer nobody. I don't want to fill a leadership role for a long time.

Thank you to all the people who made The Battousai a success while it lasted; please keep in touch!

RIP -- The Battousai (8/24/13 - 4/9/14) -- until it's resurrected.

Rahhzay starts a blog!

It's been quite a while since I've kept any sort of journal or blog. Let me start by introducing myself... I'm Elise; many know me as Rahhzay. I'm a 25-year-old gamer, twitch.tv streamer, Disney nerd, and mommy-to-be due in October.

A little over a month ago I announced to my viewers on twitch that my husband and I are pregnant. I'm so grateful to my viewers, regulars, and friends for all the love and support they've been giving me since. I love streaming (and plan to continue doing so throughout my pregnancy) -- it's fun to hear new gamer baby puns some of my viewers come up with. I haven't been as consistent with my streams as I have in the past due to "morning" sickness, etc. Now that I'm 11 weeks along, I'm hoping that in the next week or so I'll be back on a more steady and reliable schedule again.

With being pregnant, I feel like I'm falling behind in so many things! Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn (an amazing MMORPG by Square Enix) just released patch 2.2 and (in the two weeks since release) I've failed to cap my Tomes of Soldiery, let alone finish unlocking many things or completing some content that was introduced in 2.1. I have a feeling I'll be playing catch up for a while.

I want to continue to keep this blog to update not only my gaming achievements and game opinions/impressions, but also a little bit of my pregnancy and what else is going on in my life outside of gaming. Stay tuned!