Bring it.

I am an avid reader of Second Life Games, Ondar Skall's blog. I am a huge fan of board games in RL (particularly those that combine Strategy and Blind Luck) and it always tickles me to find games of any kind in Second Life. Recently, Onder showcased a goban board.

Go is in here.

It turns out that Go isn't the only game Polaris Graystone has provided for the public at his Touchstone Cathedral. The restful Asian architecture of Effulgent Brown is the perfect setting for the challenges of a variety of single-player games.

I sorted the puzzle to the fewest moves possible (I think) but I was never able to do it quickly enough to get my name in the top scores.

I haven't seen sudoku in SL before!

Goooo, Ida! Way to play the peg game!

My personal favorite, I played Memory for ages.

Creator credits for the multitude of games include: DNA Prototype and Digi Vox, Stephane Zugzwang (sudoku), Psau Mfume (Go) and Chrystalshard Foo (hangman). The Cathedral is a scenic, thoughtful and fresh alternative to computer solitaire.

Cathedral, Home of the Pathfinders, Manua (161, 77, 25)
Deck full of one-player games, Manua, (186, 96 27
Goban, Manua (182, 65, 28)

If, like me, you can't get enough of Memory, the games by DNA Prototype and Digi Vox are available at the Gnubie Store in Indigo (214, 50, 47).

Delicious

I recently paid a visit to Caledon Tanglewood, the Independent State of Caledon's newest and northernmost sim. The forest sim is springing to life at the hands of its quirky and completely charming residents. After a delightful stroll, I took a ferry ride (provided by Miss Kamillah Hauptmann) through Lionsgate to the charming Port Caledon where I hoped to catch a glimpse of Nessie.

Upon arrival, I noticed a manhole.

Curiouser and curiouser.

So of course, I clicked it (you can find the most entertaining things by clicking indiscriminately). I was not disappointed, the manhole cover opened obligingly, revealing a dark maw. I hopped right in. And fell quite a ways to land in a dimly lit underground cavern (World->Force Sun->Midnight for the best effect).

Luckily, in Second Life, one can breath underwater.

To the east was a large open area that I believe lies underneath the city streets. I followed the passage to the west, past some unusual artifacts...

I wonder if the driver managed to phone home for assistance.

...through a grate to the equally unusual basement room of The Lion and the Setting Sun. Which contained, among other things, an avatar-sized specimen cage.

*panic panic*

I quickly located the exit at the opposite end of the room and found myself beside The Lion and the Setting Sun, Miss Hauptmann's workshop. I poked around, taking note of several intriguing gadgets and the boxes of textures along the wall. I also perused the available reading materials to discover that Miss Hauptmann is "the last 'daughter' of Doctor Moreau. He was delicious." This information does explain the items in the basement...

Telehub, Caledon Tanglewood (128, 207, 22)
Ferry Landing - Tanglewood side, Caledon Lionsgate (138, 248, 22)
Manhole at the Pier, Port Caledon (149, 122, 22)
The Way Out, Port Caledon (111, 194, 22)
The Lion and the Setting Sun, Port Caledon (123, 175, 23)

Jack never had it so good.

I was flying around registering sims (as I am wont to do), when I came across a very large sunflower. A VERY large sunflower.

There are fairy cushions to sit on in the top!

It's description claims that "Pandora's Giant Sunflower" is the "biggest in SL." I lack the resources to confirm this, but I will say that I personally haven't come across any other sunflowers of such staggering proportions.

Seeing the sunflower reminded me in mind of another larger than life plant: Stellar Sunshine's climbable beanstalk.

With a creation date of July 3, 2003 (I just learned about "inspect object"), the beanstalk is one of the oldest resident-built objects that I know of in Second Life. Legend has it, if you prove you can climb to the top unassisted (no flying no scripts), you'll be rewarded with L$500!

That red balloon wouldn't give me a tour.

I wonder if anyone has made it to the top. I sure can't.

Pandora's Giant Sunflower, Theretra (178, 202, 204)
The Beanstalk, Welsh (31, 81, 22)

Lordfly Digeridoo recently posted a link to snapshots of the 104 sims that were extant in March of 2004. Interesting stuff.

Guest Writer: Ignatius Onomatopoeia

In Xanadu Did. . .
by Ignatius Onomatopoeia

After five weeks in SL, I am still new enough to have jaw-dropping moments. Svarga provides that; I felt as though I were strolling around Coleridge's poem.

The island, created by Laukosargas Svarog and currently owned and maintained by the Illusion Factory, has a Myst-style design with lush tropical plants, a virtual-life experiment, and even an oracle created by none other than Taras Balderdash himself. On my first visit I did not try the island's sound-stage experiment; it generates music based upon AVs chat.

When I popped into the telehub, I was in a crowd of AVs, something I'm not used to encountering in my early-morning (East-Coast US time) forays. I immediately jumped into a little egg-shaped flying car that gave me the guided tour. Be sure to use Mouselook as you fly over the island. The setting is so detailed that getting the best orientation possible will help later on foot or flying.

And this is a great place to walk. Practice walking on the rope bridge. . .I fell off. Also spend a few Lindens to feed the birds. Look for bird seed near the fountains of Svarga.

I ended up at the shop (of course) and enjoyed browsing the items that are Svarga-themed. Well worth 200 Lindens for some way-gone shades for this virtual Beatnik, dig? Then I took the Ambipod elevator (just outside the shop) to a wildly immersive audio/visual experience of floating in space.

Svarga Telhub, Svarga (2, 121, 21)
Oracle, Svarga (192, 121, 98) - downstairs from this courtyard
Illusion Factory's home sim, Illusion Factory (128, 128, 0)

**Ida's Notes**
You can read more about Laukosargas Svarog's amazing creation and the Virtual Balance of Life that Svarga is hosts on Hamlet Au's blog, New World Notes. Articles of particular interest include God Game and Saving Svarga. I also just discovered that Svarga is Sanskrit and refers to a Heaven where the righteous await their next reincarnation. Go figure. I always assumed it was just a play on the last name Svarog. Thanks for the great post, Iggy!