January 30, 2008:

• The TruthScape Soapbox - Issue #10 - Requiem for a Chompy Bird Hunter: The rewards from the new quest As a First Resort... are so overpowered and unbalancing that they undermine at least a dozen skills, items and activities. Was the game balance team just asleep at the wheel again, or is this a deliberate effort to ply unhappy players with short-term goodies, regardless of the effects? You decide.

January 29, 2008:

• TWIRP Report and Economic Analysis - Week of January 28, 2008: Oops! I'm a day late, but is RuneScape's economy a dollar short? Check out the TWIRP report for this week to find out!

January 21, 2008:

• TWIRP Report and Economic Analysis - Week of January 21, 2008: What was the impact of the release of Summoning on the RuneScape economy? This week's TWIRP report is now online; read it and find out!

• Second Tip.It Times Article: My second article for the Tip.It Times is online. It's called Shooting Fish in a Barrel and deals with the problems related to high-level players making a joke of the word "training" by killing zillions of newb monsters.

January 18, 2008:

• The TruthScape Soapbox - Issue #9 - Would You Like That on a Silver Platter?:  RuneScape's newest skill, Summoning, is interesting, multidimensional, complex and one that requires a lot of thought and consideration to get the most from. Which means that, naturally, many RuneScape players are trying to do everything they can to get Jagex to turn it into yet another boring, one-dimensional, overly-simplified skill-as if we didn't have enough of those already! In this article I explain why some of the complaints about this new skill are misguided, and why it’s far too early to draw any conclusions about it.

January 14, 2008:

• TWIRP Report and Economic Analysis - Week of January 14, 2008: This week's TWIRP report is now online and ready for your reading enjoyment. As you'll see, RuneScape prices have dropped a great deal in the last seven days, but the net impact of the price declines on players might not be what you'd expect...

• Affiliates and Links Page: I have added a page to the site where I will be adding links to RuneScape-related resources that I think you may find interesting and/or that I wish to support. You can find it in the button list to the left, or click here.

• TWIRP Index Values, Item Values and Quick Links: Not even 24 hours old, I've already updated my latest project, the TruthScape Weighted Index of RuneScape Prices (TWIRP). Based on requests from interested readers, I have created a summary page showing all current TWIRP index values in a single table. In addition, I made a page with three extra tables showing all of values and weekly changes of the 300+ items used in TWIRP. Finally, I implemented quick links to relevant TWIRP pages, which you can find on the left side of this page.

• TruthScape Weighted Index of RuneScape Prices (TWIRP): Understanding what is happening with the RuneScape economy has always been difficult due to a lack of information on prices and market trends. The TruthScape Weighted Index of RuneScape Prices, abbreviated TWIRP, is a project that aims to rectify this situation by accurately tracking the prices of essential RuneScape items, and portraying market movement in a way that is helpful to gamers and anyone else interested in MMORPG market dynamics.
  
  The best place to start is probably the TWIRP Quick Guide; those who want more detailed information on this new system should read Understanding TWIRP and TWIRP Index Details. Weekly results are collected under the heading TWIRP Weekly Reports and Economic Analyses; I have published the initial report for the week of January 7, 2008.

• The TruthScape Soapbox - Issue #8 - A Lack of Communication, A Lack of Respect: The decision by Jagex to eliminate “unbalanced trades”, starting today, effectively forces RuneScape players to use the Grand Exchange instead. Yet, despite the newfound importance of that feature, Jagex has so far made none of the necessary changes to its incorrect prices and restrictive features, even after receiving useful feedback from thousands of players over a span of five and a half weeks. Perhaps even worse, as this article explains, the company apparently doesn’t seem to respect its customers enough to even tell us what its plans are for this market mechanism that we now have no choice but to use.

• TruthScape Special Reports - RuneScape 2007 Year in Review and Report Card: As 2007 draws to a close, it’s time to reflect on the year gone by, which featured many excellent new features, some not-so-wonderful updates, critical game and policy changes, and no small amount of controversy. Many believe that the year will ultimately be viewed as having been a pivotal one in the evolution of RuneScape. Come along with me as I take a detailed look at the good, the bad and the ugly of RuneScape in 2007.

• TruthScape Monster Secrets - Dark Beast Slaying Guide: Only the most dedicated players stick with the Slayer skill long enough to hit level 90, the minimum required to fight the famous dark beast and maybe earn for themselves a dark bow. These monsters have a reputation as being very difficult and expensive to kill, but are they really? Well, I love a challenge, and whether you’re a high-level slayer or not, you’ll find this new guide an interesting read.

December 13, 2007:

• The TruthScape Soapbox - Issue #7 - The Doctrine of Estoppel (December 13, 2007): While 90% of RuneScape is busy arguing over the merits of the radical changes occurring to the game to combat real world trading, Jagex is quietly performing a purge of accounts with “offensive usernames”. The company is not just removing new accounts with truly insulting monikers, though—it is terminating accounts with very marginal usernames that have been played by veteran gamers for years, in a move that I find more offensive than any derogatory label could possibly be.

• The TruthScape Soapbox - Issue #6 - Good Riddance to Bad Rubbish (December 11, 2007): In yesterday’s article, I pointed out many of the problems with Jagex’s game updates, which curtail real world trading but also make it hard for honest players to enjoy the game. Today, I want to look at how these changes have the potential to greatly improve the RuneScape community, mainly by encouraging many of its less desirable members to go elsewhere.

• Big Changes Coming to RuneScape, and TruthScape As Well: The changes that are occurring to RuneScape right now are the most significant ones since the launch of RS2 years ago. As I explain in the article discussed just above, many whole categories of scams and lures are being eliminated from the game, so I will need to make many updates to the sections of the site where I explain and warn about these dangers. It would be unwise to make changes right now while the game is in flux and Jagex is still making and tweaking its new policies, so I am going to wait until the dust settles before picking up my virtual scissors.

December 10, 2007:

• The TruthScape Soapbox - Issue #5 - It’s Not Too Late to Save the Patient (December 10, 2007): Today, Jagex made dramatic, historic changes to RuneScape that show how serious the company is about stopping real world trading. Unfortunately, Jagex’s decision to effectively eliminate direct player trading also means that many honest players will be severely affected along with the bots and gold sellers. I admire Jagex’s principled stance, but I also hope that the company is willing to make modifications to improve the ability of its paying customers to get through these changes. In this important editorial, I overview the issue, describe what the problems are, and provide many constructive recommendations for improvement.

• Tip.It Times Article: I am honored to have been asked to contribute to the Tip.It Times, a weekly publication from my favorite RuneScape fan site, Tip.It. My first article was published yesterday; it's called Maybe It’s Not About the Money?.

December 6, 2007:

• TruthScape Special Reports - Understanding and Surviving the RuneScape Market Crash of 2007: Over the last few weeks the overall market prices of most items in RuneScape have dropped dramatically, leading to disappointment, frustration and anger on the part of many players. In this special report, I shed light on what is really happening in the economy, explain the many reasons why the price drops have occurred, and—most importantly—tell you how you can make the best of the situation.

• Guest Column: Those who just haven't gotten enough of my ramblings about the new Grand Exchange can find more from me on the subject in a mini-debate as part of the Project Onyx web magazine on the Tip.It forums...

• The TruthScape Soapbox - Issue #4 - I Have the Right to Remain Silent: You just want to fish or mine or kill dragons in peace and quiet so you turn off your public chat and play. No problem right? Wrong. The ongoing obsession that some have with finding “bots” is creating the incredible situation where legitimate players are accused of being cheats just for minding their own business silently.

• The TruthScape Soapbox - Issue #3 - Sorry, Comrade, but Price Controls Don’t Work: The new Grand Exchange is finally here, promising the easiest trading ever in the world of RuneScape. In my testing, I found that the feature itself works well enough, but its usefulness has been severely crippled by Jagex’s decision to use the new marketplace as a vehicle for imposing price controls.

• New RSS Feed! Someone suggested that an RSS feed for TruthScape would be useful, due to the frequency of updates on the site. I have now implemented a feed; hopefully it works properly, since this is my first time doing this. To subscribe to the feed you can click the black RSS Feed button to the left; for your convenience, I have also included several links for popular RSS aggregators and readers.

• Slight Update to Dueling Tournaments Report: I slightly revised my review Dueling Tournaments - Not Ready for Prime Time, to fix a few problems and include several screenshots that I wasn't able to put online yesterday.

• TruthScape Special Reports - Dueling Tournaments - Not Ready for Prime Time: RuneScape’s newest minigame expands the idea of dueling from a one-on-one affair to a full-fledged tournament of up to 64 combatants. The idea behind dueling tournaments is an excellent one, and the feature has a great deal of potential. Unfortunately, as I explain in my review Dueling Tournaments - Not Ready for Prime Time, it has been hamstrung by a host of implementation problems that highlight major weaknesses in Jagex’s development and QA processes.

• The TruthScape Soapbox - Issue #2 - Curing the Disease by Killing the Patient: Jagex’s recent emphasis on making draconian changes to RuneScape in an effort to stop real world trading seems to have reached new and ridiculous heights with the company’s decision to effectively remove staking from the game. In my second editorial in The TruthScape Soapbox, called Curing the Disease by Killing the Patient, I use the context of this update to explore the much larger problem of Jagex’s reactionary changes meant to stop cheating, which cause great harm to innocent customers while not really solving the problems they aim to fix.

November 17, 2007:

• The TruthScape Soapbox - Issue #1 - Words Can Kill: Today I am launching a new feature, called The TruthScape Soapbox. This is the part of the site where I will share my views and opinions on a variety of subjects, from gameplay to community issues with RuneScape and the larger online world. The first issue of the Soapbox is called Words Can Kill; as the title suggests, it's about a very important subject that is worthy of your attention.

• Revision to Aviansies Magic/Ranged Training Guide: I got so caught up in all the recent exuberance over the improvements to crossbows that I never thought to test out my old standby, the crystal bow! It turns out to be a viable alternative to using addy bolts when fighting one aviansie at a time, though it is more expensive to be sure. I have updated my guide, Aviansies, the Perfect Magic/Ranged Training Monster, to reflect this information.

• Boyfriend/Girlfriend Solicitation Outlawed: I must have missed an update somewhere, because I have recently discovered that Jagex has made it illegal to bug people in the game to be your "boyfriend" or "girlfriend". This is a welcome change as it removes one of the more childish nuisances from RuneScape; I have modified several pages of the site accordingly.

November 14, 2007:

• TruthScape Sneak Previews - Why the Grand Exchange Could be RuneScape’s Most Important Update in Years: I have just launched a new section of the site: TruthScape Sneak Previews. This is the place where I will put analysis and speculation about important upcoming features, and the first entry in the section is a big one! The Grand Exchange is coming this month, bringing with it the ability to trade with other players in real time across all servers. I believe that this feature is not going to be "just another way of trading"; rather, it is going to revolutionize trade in RuneScape and change the game in a surprising number of ways. Read all about it in Why the Grand Exchange Could be RuneScape’s Most Important Update in Years.

• Update to Special Report on the RuneScape Assist System: Responding to complaints by players, Jagex this week decided to remove the resource gathering skills Fishing, Hunter, Mining and Woodcutting from its Assist System. I have revised my article on the feature, Understanding the RuneScape Assist System, to reflect these changes. While this change is welcome, Jagex has unfortunately has not addressed most of the other problems that still hamper the system.

• TruthScape Monster Secrets - Aviansies, the Perfect Magic/Ranged Training Monster: Busy week on TruthScape, huh? Well, now it's time for my latest entry in the TruthScape Monster Secrets series, and this one is just for you rangers and mages out there.
  
  Located deep in the new God Wars Dungeon is a monster that has a set of attributes that makes it almost ideal for rangers and mages to train: multicombat area, easy to kill, excellent drops, no cannons allowed, no need for high levels, and even in a spot where there are no random events! How good are they? Well, how does getting over 30k Ranged XP and making a profit of 500k gold per hour sound? Learn how to do it in Aviansies, the Perfect Magic/Ranged Training Monster.

• TruthScape Special Reports - The RuneScape World 2 Trading Survival Guide: The town of Falador in World 2 is the biggest meeting place in RuneScape for those looking to buy, sell and trade items and goods. Some people really enjoy the dynamic nature of this huge online marketplace, but it can also be a very confusing and intimidating place to those who are new to the game or have little experience in World 2. The World 2 Trading Survival Guide explains what World 2 and the Fally market are about, tells you when to use it and when to avoid it, and how to take best advantage of this resource without going crazy. The guide also features both an overview map of World 2 Falador, as well as the largest, most detailed trading location map of the World 2 Fally marketplace ever published.

• Updates to Understanding the RuneScape Assist System: As RuneScape players continue to be unwitting beta testers for Jagex's new Assist System, more flaws and abuses are coming to light. I have updated my article, Understanding the RuneScape Assist System, to list and request correction of some of these exploits.

• TruthScape Special Reports - Understanding the RuneScape Assist System: Just yesterday, Jagex released a new feature called the Assist System. This new feature allows a low-level player to temporarily “borrow” the capabilities of a more experienced player, effectively replacing most types of "trust trades". The person assisting gets the experience points, while the lower-level person gets the items made using the skill, and there’s no need for any materials to be traded. I've created an extensive new guide to the system, which you can find in the article Understanding the RuneScape Assist System. I tell you how the system works, what its restrictions and limitations are, and how it operates with each of the skills it supports. The report also includes a FAQ, a list of myths that I dispel for you, and much more. I hope you find it useful!

• Updates to Trust Trade Information: I updated several topics related to trust trade issues to reflect the role of the new Assist System.

• TruthScape Monster Secrets - Ultimate Power Barrows for Experts: The latest entry in the  TruthScape Monster Secrets series is a truly massive, extensive guide to The Barrows. Oh, sure, you've seen Barrows guides before, but nothing like this! I spent dozens of hours testing methods, analyzing equipment and tweaking my techniques to make them as fast and cost effective as possible. Ultimate Power Barrows for Experts will show you everything you need to know in order to really understand the issues at The Barrows, choose equipment, make good decisions about your methods, and do runs reliably in as little as 9 minutes per chest, even with banking stops! Also included are over 50 diagrams and screenshots. Enjoy!