LnN's First EVER Customs Are Here!

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Building our first ever fish-able customs took a long wait, and I am sure glad that I have breached the creative barrier. Deciding how to build our own versions turned out to be quite laborious. But with reference to some of the customs available to us in the fishing community, opting for the "cute and easy-to-build types" was the best choice to get us going.

The now classic Powerpuff Girls character inspired me to go anime-style. Builds from LnN are not for sale and will only be available to catch for FREE for a limited time only. (L-R) Bubbles Luvs Octi, Blossom Lures A Piranha, and Buttercup Nets A Clown make up the first batch.

A handful of creators behind some of the most popular customs have cemented their reputation as being one of the best custom builders around. It would indeed be quite a challenge to create something as interesting and innovative as the ones currently being offered to the community. Now that the level of expectations for custom building is high, bringing out variations at par with the accustomed standards would definitely have to be a work of art.


The gist so far: Vintage battleships and pirate ships are associated with Migizi North; Daemian Ember renowned for his preference for all-prim-customs, builds amazing modern battleships; Mialissa Masala for her limited edition fed jellies and crab cakes while fellow SugarRush entrepreneur Skinny Paine has popularised building block (aka lego) inspired-customs; Amara Twilight (with no relation to vampires whatsoever hehehe) is synonymous to exotic and sometimes erotic mermaids; Dragonfishes are Alice Xue's turf, Resisupo chipmunks are a mainstay in the Magic of Oz; and the list goes on with veteran builders like Rails Bailey (Van Deimen's Land-Shimano), Grey Nacht (iPala), Shelly Macci (The Pig and Whistle), Sindy Bracken (Original LOLRus and Neko Characters), Oasis, Aruba, Alien Isles, naniSL, katat0nik, Takeli-li among many others make up the ever growing roster of 7Seas celebrity builders.

The second batch of PPG customs: Buttercup Is A Tease, Bubbles Drops A Fishie, and Blossom's Bag of Fishies, adds a bit of emotion with poofer texture effects overhead.

Bug-eyed Cuties
Reviving the Powerpuff Girls (PPG) phenomena...

Going for anime-style made it easier for us to build customs and the PPGs were just the perfect models. The designs on our sets evolved to a more personalised/all-original version with Liz and I modeling our customs on ourselves.

Go bag yourself an SUR! LnN's Karaoke Queen and King and the Tulips For Two Lips customs will start a series of caricature versions featuring SL personalities.

Earlier versions were unorthodoxical by interpretation with customs depicting a bit of Britishness. The Good ole English Muffin (stylised in the form of a cupcake thanks to Alice Xue's craving for it) was the first to be crafted followed by the humble Fish n' Chips (with mayo). Variations of the two customs soon followed with the addition of the Scottish Haddock and Chips (with tartare sauce), the Naughty Fish n' Chips (Page3.com inspired - well it's a UK thing hahaha), the Blueberry Oz (Australian) Muffin; and of course a meal is never complete without something to help the food run down smoothly: NapsieCola (Coke inspired) with Lizzy-ade.

Nothing compares to traditional fish and chips freshly served at your local shop. Customs celebrating a bit of Britishness and the Commonwealth.

Let The Fishing Begin...
Exclusive to Lo Lo

You can catch these customs at the marvelous Lake Lo Lo, and many thanks to Caroline Apollo for giving these customs a home! Catch rates are currently 20-30% higher than the suggested percentage, which makes collecting a tad more pleasant. So enjoy the customs as much as we enjoyed crafting them for you!

Catnapped Neko shows the continuously evolving look of LnN customs.

The sets are also "housed" in an unannounced/undisclosed location, so don't be surprised if you do suddenly catch one out of the blue! I also carry a CPG with me whenever and wherever I fish, unless the area owners prohibits any form of squatting (hahaha).

We will try to bring out at least two sets (usually three customs in a set) each month, just keep an eye for any announcements. In the meantime, get those rods fully baited and let's all go fishing for more customs!

Daemian Ember: The King of Pure Prim Building

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Fishing at Sugar Rush's Developers Dock with Grey Nacht led me to discover an extraordinary custom crafted by 7Seas veteran Daemian Ember; the SUR Aircraft Carrier. It was definitely an eye catcher as it was the biggest custom I have seen so far.

Formerly located at the WickedlySinful sim, DE originally offered his customs on global mode (caught at random regardless of rarity) making the whole set much easier to complete. But despite them being an easy catch, Daemian Ember did not fail to make them as popular as the other mainstream collectibles. The quality they posses will even pass the eye of the most fussiest of all 7S custom-collectors.

Perhaps a version 2 will see the aircraft carrier with miniature fighter jets; and the battleship with firing cannons. With Daemian's preference for detail and realism, who knows?

The SUR Aircraft Carrier (top) and the SUR Battleship (below) were part of Daemian's original set. Both customs average 1.5 metres (in the SL virtual metric system) making them the biggest and the longest customs ever built for the 7Seas Fishing Community as yet.

For those who are very particular with detail, one will know of the hard work that has been poured and spent into each of DE's customs - all of which are built with dimension, precision and proportion.


Battle of The Great Subs!
The cold war continues...

Recalling how I marveled at the sight of a non-7Seas swimming pet for the first time (during one of Jackpot Fall's fishing tournaments), DE gave us a glimpse to one of his upcoming submarines way before 7Seas opened the floodgates to custom building. I guess that says a lot on how passionate Daemian is about his custom builds; then again I'm sure all custom-builders are!

A sight which both the Whitehouse and the Kremlin would dread. Perhaps the first and only modern day submarine customs available to the 7Seas fishing community.

The American Ohio Class Submarine (above) seems to square it off underwater with the Soviet Red October Submarine (below) in this mock-up battle of DE's UltraRare custom collection. Still living up to the battleship and aircraft carrier's reputation for being all-prim-builds, the submarines give new meaning to the phrase "a deadly catch".


Adding More To The Man-O-War Portfolio
The US Navy's Landing Craft Air-Cushion (LCAC)

After having been in sabbatical for several months, Daemian Ember returns to us in true-form with the release of his long anticipated LCAC. Having seen how he built it from scratch (which was how I was inspired to do my customs mostly on prims rather than sculpties), it's amazing to see its final outcome - from just being a jumble of raw prims a couple of weeks back to something close to the real thing.

Daemian Ember does his finishing touches to the new LCAC custom in 1:5 scale. Top inset: A perspective of the LCAC; Lower inset: An actual photo of the military hovercraft.

The LCAC dons the spinning propeller trademark with a twist: water sprays from the amphibious craft's 4-bladed R345 propellers. The Rare U.S. Navy LCAC custom is indeed a perfect addition to Daemian Ember's amazing collection.

The Sloop-Of-War
DE goes vintage battleships!

Custom styles which were originally Migizi North's forté had caught up with Daemian Ember's creativity. The SuperUltraRare Sloop of War is the latest in DE's custom offering. With the ability to fire multiple cannons (thanks to a collaboration with Migizi North himself), you can't help but get reminded of those ghostly pirate ships that started people collecting these amazing wearable ship "pets".

Quels sont vos ordres mon capitaine? The Battle of the Atlantic can now be re-enacted with Migizi's own battleships. Let the fireworks begin!

With Daemian getting a hold of the "exploding cannon" script, perhaps a v2.0 of previous builds will see them upgraded with working cannons? The Sloop-of-War may be a glimpse on how future releases in the DE collection would be like. Even the shoulder cannon had been upgraded to a v2.0, replacing the older static version.

A New Custom In The Works?

Rumour of a fishing trawler is close to being released with just two "parts" needed for its completion. I guess the whole idea for this vessel is to "hoard" all the fishies we can get in the waters eh? (hehehe)

It never is hard to complete DE sets as catch rates are affixed to be higher than the standard percentage. The regulated number of customs would leave you enough time to try and complete other customs.

DE collaborations with RA Fishing are now available to catch at the Fairy Cove, along with Daemian's personal custom builds. Perhaps those who know him well would agree that he is more than just a builder... he's one heck of an innovator.

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7Seas 1st Fishiversary!

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On March 15, 7Seas Fishing celebrated its First Year Anniversary! That's one whole year of fostering fishing addicts like me! hahaha 7Seas may still be seen as the new kid on the block in the virtual fishing biz, but the success it has enjoyed in the past 12 months is paramount! Going head to head with established virtual fishing games in Second Life was one brave move the Thorne and the Shikamis of 7Seas had demonstrated.

But what exactly had made 7Seas Fishing so popular compared to others? What made it such a big hit after its launching exactly a year ago? I guess the secret to its unparalleled success lies within the charm and appeal it holds towards the masses. That's people power at work for you!

I waaaaaant cake! Official party favours were freely being served throughout the event. In fact they still continue to flow at Flotsam Beach, the official 7Seas Fishing Head Quarters.

What probably makes it so appealing is the low cost sale of its gear and equipment. A 100 piece bait bucket would only cost you L$30, while the recently introduced 600 bait bulk bucket (the golden big boy!) costs L$150 BUT with 100 extra baits added as an incentive.

The constant reinvention of 7Seas Fishing may have been the key in rallying support from fellow patrons. With updates and upgrades released on a regular basis, and the evolution of the 7Seas official gear becoming more user-friendly than ever before; it's no surprise why virtual fishing has continuously been exciting for all of us.

The professional rod (currently on version 3.2 for L$350 a pop) having been made modifiable and available with an invisible option, encouraged builders to create an endless collection of various custom fishing rods exclusive only to 7Seas. No two people can be seen fishing with the same rod anymore... heck, you don't even have to fish holding one at all.

We can now go fishing without the rods, while enjoying a mug of virtual cuppa and even go dancing in 7Seas-enabled clubs. Lizzy and I having hot chocolate with the usual Risisupo chipmunks and otters for breakfast at the Magic of Oz sim.

Pimp My Fish!

It is no doubt that the popularity of today's Custom Builds added to the success of 7Seas Fishing. Offering the official Developer's Kit as open source was probably the best move Seven Shikami (the big man himself) had done for us in the fishing community; encouraging ordinary fishers aspire to become custom builders themselves. From just a handful of builders since the OpenSeas Developer's Kit was released to the public, we now have a huge roster of talented artists offering to us some of their brilliant and innovative creations.

"Not another custom fish?... Aaaaaaaaaaarrghhhhh! I can't help it! I want them aaaaaaaaaall!"

What a splendid idea to bring out that creative cloud in all of us... /me bows to the 7Seas honchos ... now the addiction will never end. I start to feel sorry for those fellow fishers who LIKE ME resembles that nutty squirrel from the CGI hit-movie: Ice Age, feeling the need to get all those acorns (though in our case it's the custom fish). hahaha

A sim-wide congregation of some of the best Custom builders in 7Seas. No need to teleport from one simulator to another just to catch your favourite custom fish. Staying stationary in one area can get you all of them.

Sugar Rush (left) and Amara Twilight~Dolma Dollinger's fishing spot (right) are just two of the many other fishing areas in Osmium.

It's Party Time! Get Those Rods Out!

Still broken-hearted for missing out on the only opportunity to win any of these sought after 7Seas Ducks...

Cyber Duck supposedly won at Twilight Fishing's Fishiversary contest;
School of Ducks from Aruba Beach Club;
Pirate Duck offered only at Sugar Rush;
and the the bounty prize Ninja Duck at Ruthenium (an island north of Osmium the official 7Seas Fishiversary venue)...

Anybody out there willing to let go of theirs? I'm going to be very generous! Promise! hahaha the sound of a very desperate man!

... I thought that being part of 7Seas last hurrah would help me forget "my loss"! hehehe have mercy people!

Many well-known custom builders were present with CPGs in tow, as Seven Shikami gave us a spin with some of his choice hits. I wasn't so sure if it was my internet connection that was messing up, but I really thought I heard Alvin the Chipmunk taking over the DJing from Seven. hahaha just kidding

It was very clear that everybody was having a super-great time as more fishers were joining us before the start of the main event. With those trademark puns from our dear friend Grey Nacht (the light of 7Seas Social chat... just mention the word.. COFFEE and he comes to life! hahaha), and those never ending gestures from our fellow fishers, how can the fun and the good times end?

With an album of Gorillaz in full view, Seven Shikami showed us his other talent as people endlessly wave their rods high in the air... in the hope to catch that elusive Ninja Duck.

Even with my rod targeting (yep told ya the new rods are high tech) the LOLCat for the bounty prize, I still wasn't able to get my pixelated hands on that duck! sighs... But nevertheless it was such a joy to see Jen Shikami and Meissa Thorne boogie-that-woogie. woot!

Somehow, I have noticed something different with Jen from the last time I saw her at Flotsam Beach. She seemed to have gained a bit in size, and only later did I found out that she is actually expecting a baby in real life! Congratulations Jen! No wonder she just sat down on that custom prize giver the whole time. Must have been leg cramps. /me winks

Well for a moment there, I thought she was just tasked by 7S to guard that box filled with Ninja Ducks, as Meissa showed us some of her groovy moves... /me whispers: and elf ears? gasp! /me sticks his tongue out

Oh by the way, where was 7Seas Sass the whole time?

Jen Shikami with her cute belly and Meissa with those pretty ears! Glad to see the 7Seas honchos join us in the celebration... and doh! that dude behind Meissa has a lot of ducks! No wonder I haven't been catching any... grrrrrr.

Arigato Gozaimasu, 7Seas-san.

... and now for our very special guest, Keiko Takamura (applause please)...

The first time I have heard her sing, I swear I thought it was Lisa Loeb! Though in fairness Keiko is a very good singer in her own right. I really enjoyed her songs, a few covers and a couple of her original compositions. It's amazing to listen and watch live performances in-world, though this was the only second time I had been to one in a year.

The 7Seas peeps know how to throw one heck of a fantastic party eh?

The very talented Keiko Takamura serenades and rocks us at the same time with her cool music. Now I think she had just made one more fan in me.

When The Dust Start To Settle...

With a lot (and I really mean a LOT!) of fishes to sort out after the Fishiversary, I'm most certain to find some new and interesting customs to add in my list of favourite creators. I was quite pleased that some customs were easy to collect: Dolma Dollinger's Fishiversary sea snakes in particular could be completed in half a day, as well as Amara Twilight's Mermaids and Sugar Rush's St. Patrick's Day LE (limited edition) customs.

Pirate Cove's relabeled customs would be a bit of a challenge to complete, since I would have to collect everything all over again hahaha. I wonder if the original ones I got from the Migizi North Treasure Hunt at PC would still be available to catch?

The customs from Alien Isles and RA Fishing had caught my attention, and both have already been added to my faves-list. I have tried to avoid Aruba and Celeste Cazenove's customs in the past, not because they aren't nice to collect (well in fact they are amazing) but because there would be a lot to catch before I could make a complete a set! hahaha With a habit of first completing 5 volumes before considering it to be a SET, it would take me ages! That's FIVE TIMES THE EFFORT compared to the average Joe out there!

But thanks to the Fishiversary, having a glimpse on how amazing Aruba and Celeste's creations are, I have got to get them all! You can say that I'm toast... waaaaaaaaaaahhhh /me cries

With the limited time I have in-world nowadays, it's a wonder how I would be able to catch up with my collection. Maybe trade-up via 7Seas SocialChat? I guess we would have to just wait and see to find that out.

The party may be over, but the sorting-out part has just begun. Sifting through the piles of catches won't be easy... but surely it will be interesting and fun.

In the mean time, I want my DUCKIES! /me cries!

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The Twilight Zone: Mermaid Salvages

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Nope, I'm not going to talk about those classic horror flicks from the 60s (the unforgettable Nightmare at 20,000 Feet is the reason why traveling by plane freaks me out hahaha), that's a different "twilight". I am actually referring to Amara Twilight, the creator behind 7Seas community's famous mermaids. Like Migizi North, her custom catches are as popular as the official 7Seas fishes. The mermaids are fantastically textured with most variants having their own specially-scripted effects. Obviously crafted with passion and a lot of hard work, she made sure her mermaids are easy to collect.

Amara's Salvage-craftable sets: the high-tech (TC) MerMech Cybermaid and the ghoulish (TC) MerGhost DeceasedMaid. Oh did I mention that these beauties also "talk".. yep folks, non-stop wit!

Amara is a strong advocate for building customs with a (reasonably) high percentage catch rate. Which means completing the whole TC set would not be as hard unlike other builds. But mind you most of her mermaids are Rated-R, something most of us should be excited about! wooot!



(TC) MerMech CyberMaid
Who ever said water and electronics don't mix?

It is Amara's attempt to produce her first ever "assemblable" salvages, but with a touch of her trademark textures and effects. The MerMech is a mechanical/cyborg mermaid that records your casts, catches and misses.

The % catch-rate for each salvage varies depending on which area you are fishing. Just like some of the mainstream custom builders in the community, Amara's CPGs are found in various popular fishing venues.

Each salvage, as seen in the pictures below are so carefully crafted that the details and rendering of each part reflects the the creator's desire for perfection. The salvages themselves are considered works of art, surely your whole Twilight Creation collection would not be complete without them.

Creations speaking for themselves: the very presentable Blueprint, Salvage: Android Spare Parts, Salvage: Hydro-Electric Tail Segment, Salvage: Central Mercore, Salvage: Silicon Jellyfish Implants (my favourite hahaha)

The MerMech's blueprint alone goes way beyond traditional methods: a pageantry of lines and dimensions that shows how talented the very meek (but sometimes fiery) Amara Twilight is. It is something done with vector-layouted precision, the stuff you normally would see in actual architectural and engineering blueprints (ahem... something in which I am actually very good at hehehe). And that's just the blueprints we're talking about; think of what the other salvage parts would be like?



(TC) MerGhost DeceasedMaid
Just pushing the envelope further...

The latest salvage-based production of Twilight Creations pushed the boundaries of custom-salvage building even further. Having been given the opportunity for a first look prior to its release, I was struck in awe. Amara described her next creation like it was something that came out of a fantasy book. It would require a lot of super-hard work just to bring that one out.

Admittedly I thought it could never be done, well at least for the meantime... until she rezzed all the items in front of me making my jaw drop... literally!

Not that I would ever doubt her ability to produce amazing creations, no... it's not like that at all. It simply just sounded so incredible at first, as no one has ever attempted to produce anything in that caliber ever before... until now!

Taking us to the mystical world of Arcanum, Amara Twilight's amazing set of salvages; the Blueprint: Magical Scroll of Binding, UltraRare Salvage: Magical Brew, Uncommon Salvage: Arcane Ritual Altar, Rare Salvage: Enchanted Chains, Uncommon Salvage: Mermaid Tombstone... simply marvelous!

True to what was discussed during our first-look preview, the blueprint has special effects not featured on previous releases (both 7Seas and other customs). The Magical Scroll of Binding is truly an amazing piece: the mystical arcane symbols would go brighter and more prominent as salvages are infused into the scroll (blueprint). Blueprints have never been this complex and innovative since Migizi North's Haunted Galleon AVi.



Interactive Menus and HUDs
Customising things to the dot!

Thanks to the 7Seas bigwigs for offering us with their open-sourced paraphernalia, customs are now created with so much added features. Gone are the days of having to just stop your fish from swimming, or turning off its bubbles. We now have full control of our pets with cool commands that goes well beyond the sterotypical "sit, roll and play dead".

A picture of things to come as menus evolved further since Migizi North first introduced to us a "fire cannon" feature with his customs. Most prize catches are now menu-driven: some infused with music, while others give out the occasional banter. That makes you wonder what other cool tricks our dear beloved builders have under their sleeves, eh?

Amara Twilight's famous mermaids can be caught at SkyBeam Tradewaters, 7Seas fishing area is courtesy of Tamsin Ireton.

... stay tuned for more!

Conquering Migizi's Salvage Customs

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My long wait is over! I finally caught up with the "not-fer-yer-average-mama's-boy" salvage set from Migizi's Custom Catch collection. Probably one of the few who first came out with alternate salvage catches outside the official (7S) label, Migizi North gave us one of the most sought after custom fishing rods:

The Nautilus and Squid Rod.

Despite of having to catch only three salvages, the blue print being designated as an SUR was as elusive as trying to catch a glimpse of a Coelacanth in the open seas. The fishing rod variant is a spin-off combining Migizi's separate Nautilus and Squid customs, both available to catch from any of his popular CPGs (Custom Prize Givers) around the 7S fishing community. Similar variants of the Nautilus and Squid from other builders and creators have soon followed.

The completion of my salvage set took me quite a long and patient wait, before I finally got the chance to claim the much coveted fishing rod. Having to complete 5 sets before redeeming any bounty is never an easy task.

On why I have to complete 5 (five) sets of the same fishes, customs and salvages would be discussed at another time (winks).

Migizi North has added two more unique fishing rods to his collection: the Ice Fishing Bone Jig Rod and the Migizi's Skull & Bones 5 Rod Holder, both of which can be freely caught on MN/CPG (Migizi North-Custom Prize Giver) enabled waters. If you're not the patient type, you can purchase them directly from any of his on-site vendors. For those who are interested in hosting an MN/CPG, just contact Migizi for more details.

Inset photo: the assembled Nautilus and Squid fishing rod. Clockwise from left to right: SuperUltraRare Blueprint: Nautilus Fishing Rod, UltraRare Salvage: Squid, UltraRare Salvage: Spool of Ectoplasmic String, UltraRare Salvage: Nautilus.

Migizi's Haunted Galleon Avatar

The first non-human avatar shape offered as a fishable prize. It would also be known as the benchmark that started the AVi-giveaway trend. With 6 (six) salvages required to catch and complete, this quest would be more of a "jump in the lake" than a "walk in the park" (laughs out loud).

Most salvage parts are not that hard to come by particularly the Red Medallion which is the easiest to catch, while the Blueprint (the first animated BP ever to be crafted) and the Captured Male Spirit both being SuperUltraRare (SUR) are the very hardest! Did I already mentioned "very"? hehehehe

Unlike the Nautilus and Squid fishing rod, the avatar is no transfer making trading for the assembled custom impossible. The unused or unactivated salvages however can still be given away freely. As an added feature, the Haunted Galleon avatar is combat ready and can fire its cannons on active role play.

Inset: Spanish Galleon aka Haunted Galleon AVi Clockwise from left to right: Salvage: Red Medallion, Salvage: Blue Medallion, Blueprint: Haunted Galleon AVi, Salvage: Captain Ahab Fish 2, Salvage: Captured Female Spirit, Salvage: Captured Male Spirit.

Want a piece of the action? Then come visit Migizi North's Haunted Pirate Island at Beek Zuiden Zee. A friendly word of advice as the fishing area is located in a role-play pirate battle sim, pirate gear or mermaid/mermen outfits are a must. There are free garments available at the vendor area BUT please do mind yourself for any "surprises". hahaha pirates you're dealing with, don't forget that!


Combine and Activate

Putting together salvage catches for an assembled custom is not complicated at all. On a free-rezz area, just drag the salvages to the ground... click the items one at a time... and wait for the blueprint to respond and deliver your assembled item.

Waiting for a "confirmation" from the blueprint "whispering" that the item was loaded successfully is important, so do take your time.

On a rez-restricted area, you can hold the salvages on your hand or attach them to any available part of your body (meaning parts not having any attachments) and click them one at a time for the blueprint to load them up.

Take note that there are a lot of other salvage sets out there just waiting to get discovered. It's just a matter of who's builds or what custom set to catch first.

Apart from these Migizi variants, creations from Amara Twilight, Sugar Rush and Pala are quite interesting to catch and fun to collect as well.

More talk about that very soon... keep looking up for this blog.
Adios mi amigo!