So I’ve been making plans as to how best to use the head start I’ve got on Friday. The sad part is that I’ll still be at work when the servers open, and will be there for several hours afterwards. I think that’s the part that will truly drive me mad.

The happy part is that I’m receiving a Mac-compatible gamepad on Friday! So when I do get on, one of my first self-assigned tasks will be getting the bindings set up before proceeding to the tutorial dungeons to test them out.

It’s going to be a little sad, starting out at the beginning again, remembering past (minor) glory, but I shall persevere. And in my struggle to get back to where I was, I’ll be working up to the following equipment….

Note: while these are all low-level items, and while in Spiral Knights it’s possible to start from day 1 with awesome equipment as it’s the equipment, not you, that levels… one isn’t going to start with enough crowns to do that.

• Beast Basher. I have to buy from one of Haven’s merchants. It can then be upgraded with 0- and 1-star crafting material to Big Beast Basher. It’s not a Troika, but it’ll have to do for a while. And it is amongst the better 0-star and 1-star weapons, with bonus damage against beasts (wolvers and chromalisks).

• Slime Smasher. Unlike Beast Basher, these can be crafted from the start as well as upgraded (to Super Slime Smasher). About the equal of Beast Basher, except strong against slimes rather than beasts.

• Firecracker. A 1-star bomb, as I need to get back into the hang of using them. Setting things on fire is a good thing, um, generally speaking, at least in Tier-1 and Sparrow Gate. Speaking of setting things on fire….

• Hot Edge. The 1-star precursor to Searing Edge.

• Emberbreak Shield. Fire is useful against enemies. Who also find it useful against you. Fortunately, a 1-star elemental shield (these days; the wiki is out of date) doesn’t have the additional weaknesses that the corresponding 1-star armor and helm have.

• FrostBreak shield. Like Emberbreak, except against the freeze effect.

• No 1-star gun is worth the crafting or crowns price, unfortunately. Will need to stick with the Proto Blaster.

Ok. Plan in place.

… Although I wouldn’t mind if the special preview set came already at 2-star. Or 1-star, even. I wonder if the gift has an alchemical path for crafting. I wonder if it’ll mostly be useful as armor costume rather than armor.

*ponder ponder ponder ponder ponder ponder*