So, I was told there was a costume day for school, and so my response was this:

Yes. I know it's not perfect, but it'll do right? :D

Yeah, sort of my "2nd" cosplay. I kinda enjoyed cosplaying as Ghost. Staring at people and drawing my fake Colt 1911 when they stare long enough. Being a school where the campus is being shared with nursery and kindergarten kids, it was a bit scary as all my equipment looked "real"

I had to wear my student pass, so that people won't freak out and think it's a school shooting. Oh, and a pic of my painted M4 before I broke the buttstock! xD

He's buff... I'm not buff D:

There was a criticism about my cosplay though: I wasn't muscular enough.  The fact that many soldiers, Ghost included, have a heavy build, makes me look like a piece of Asian twig compared to the "actual" Ghost.He's buff... I'm not buff D:

Anyway, From here on, I'll be sharing you more photos of my cosplay! Enjoy! :D

Well, that's it. I've got a legit cosplay to prepare this July, and the character I'm going to cosplay next, WILL NOT be Ghost, partly because of how much of a pain it is to wear the knee and shoulder pads, and putting on the holster.

It's either going to be Zechs Merquise from Mobile Suit Gundam Wing...

Or Tieria Erde from Mobile Suit Gundam 00 (Yes. He's a dude)

Thanks for checking this out!

LEGION!

- Vergil

Trial exam reflection.

Trial exam reflection:

A basic representation of what I was like during the exams.

Preparation for the trial/mock/prelim exams.

When I heard of news that the mock exams (or what I call, prelim exams) was around the corner, I already knew that I was not fully prepared, and even if I studied, I'd probably not do as well as I thought I would, but I did anyway. 

Apart from subjects like English, which you really can't study for, I did study... But not as much as I thought I would. 

Usually I would always end up going through the day like any other ordinary day, ending up procrastinating and then realising that I am going to fail my subjects. 

Especially Mathematics. When I did the exams, it was okay when I was doing the English papers. I would say the English paper was reasonably not too easy, nor is it not too hard. However, I felt really unsure that I answered my questions correctly on the Literature papers. 

For Maths, I was barely prepared. So unprepared that I slept through most of the paper (Though I did a handful of questions). 

For my History paper though, I felt that I was prepared, but because of the issue with slow writing and timing, I didn't manage to finish all 3 of the History papers I've took. How well did I think I've done for the mocks? 

Well, I would say that I could at least pass English with a C. For Literature though,at least a D grade. I'm not that hopeful. 

Overall, I'd say that I could have done better for the mock exams, and I am definitely aware that I did not put in my maximum effort into studying for them.

Reaction to my results

After getting back the results, I have to say that I underestimated myself. My prediction for my literature was eerily accurate... That doesn't mean I am a psychic though... 

Yep... I still have no superpowers :(

As for English, I was amazed that I got such a good result. I don't usually get a B for English, but when I do, I try my best not to look smug among my friends! As I said, I have totally underestimated my performance on English, but I was not surprised when I got my literature results (As I mentioned above, it's eerily accurate)

Preparation for the real exam

For the real exam, which is obviously no joke, I intend to study as much as I can. The results of my recent papers is what's described as a wake up call. I did terribly for Maths and apart from English and Literature, I got myself a D grade on my other subjects except for Mathematics in which I got a G grade. 

But I digress. For my exams, especially for Maths, I plan on constant and intense practising from today onwards, and for the rest of the paper, I would study just as hard because of the fact that I did not study enough for the mock/prelim exams.

The areas I need to work on would definitely be writing speed, as I struggled to keep up with the time in my History papers and Drama papers. 

Another one would definitely be Maths. If one does not practice well enough, the person taking a Maths exam will probably not do well. I need to do well because my polytechnic course requires that I get a D grade for Maths, at least a C grade or above for English, and a D grade with 2 other subjects (History, Drama and Art).

As the IGCSE's are around the corner, I have realised that I should not continue this unhealthy lifestyle of procrastination and sleeping late. Sleep deprivation has been taking a toll on me due to last minute studies AND video games, so one thing I should definitely cut down on, video games and to sleep early.

The grades that I aim to get, is at least a B grade for English. The same case with Literature, but I have a feeling in my gut that my Literature might pull down my English grades (As shown in my current results).

Conclusion:

Overall, I would like to say that this exam that I have just taken is a serious wake up call. In fact, I feel that I should have done better in this exam, but due to the bad timing of the exams (Colliding with Chinese New Year), my studies were badly affected.

Thank you for reading my reflection, and I'll see you soon!

LEGION!

- Vergil

The Great Gatsby Essay reflection.

The Great Gatsby reflection

On Friday, my class and I did a literature test, based on the book, "The Great Gatsby" 

We were given roughly 55-60 minutes to complete the whole essay.

Because I'm such a slow writer, I did not write that much but I wrote enough to prove my point in the question I was asked (Which I have already forgot).

Though it was enough to prove my point, I feel like as if it wasn't enough. 

Despite the fact that I read the book before the test, I was struggling in thinking about what I needed to write, and what would be relevant. 

But overall, regardless of what the outcome was, as long as I managed to do my job and at least pass this paper, I am generally satisfied. 

I'm sure my teacher believes that more could be done, which I absolutely agree with!

Teacher's reception:

Mrs. Holly says that the essay I have written was done as, "mature writing". 

She was impressed that I actually come up with such great ideas and refer to many parts of the book to prove my point (I do History and Social Studies in the past, mostly analysis-related, so I'm used to doing this)

Though she was impressed with the work, she says that I have to work on my structuring and my paragraphing. 

I will do my best to improve and make sure that my structuring and paragraphing gets better as the days go by!

Thank you for reading, and have a great day!

LEGION!

Vergil's Top 10 Games of 2012 (Cross posted via IGN blogs)

Cross posted via myIGN

It has been another wonderful year of video gaming. 2013 is 'round the corner, and since SPIKE TV's VGA 2012 is already over, I shall give you lovely people my top 10 picks! :D

10: Final Fantasy XIII-2

 I think a handful of people would know that this game's plot was rather... Clunky... I would say. It was a bit messy, but the combat system was improved and overall. I enjoyed this game. Not to mention the stunning soundtrack it has (Come on, most Square-Enix/Squaresoft games have fantastic soundtrack!) This game is definitely a great game to pick up if you're looking for an RPG :)

Vergil's rating: 8.0/10

9: Street Fighter X Tekken

 This game is underrated. As far as I know, it didn't sell well despite the great reception. I know, a handful of you don't really care about the fighting game genre, but if you want a game you can play with friends and have a fun time, I'd suggest this title. Seriously, if you're also both a Street Fighter and Tekken fan, I'd suggest you get this. It deserves the #9 spot

Vergil's rating: 8.5/10

8: Sleeping Dogs

 I really enjoyed this game. I mentioned before that this was like GTA with Asians with a bit of Max Payne. It's definitely one of my top picks and I suggest you get this game ASAP! One flaw I have with it though, is the short campaign. And when I mean short... Yeah... It's kinda short. But all in all, United Front Games made a good effort in making this. Read my review here.

Vergil's rating: 8.0/10

7: Call of Duty: Black Ops II

 Yeah, yeah... I admit it. I really enjoyed the campaign of this title. To a point where it made me replay the campaign multiple times. It's definitely better than MW3, and though the futuristic setting was controversial in the past, I have to say that I really like this not-so-distant futuristic setting. I only enjoyed the campaign though. I find the zombie mode boring for some reason, and I find the multiplayer rather dull... So therefore, this game deserves the No.7 spot of 2012!

Vergil's rating: 8.5/10

6: Hitman: Absolution

 I first thought I wouldn't like it because of the fact that it was stealth based. But in the end, I really enjoyed it and was hooked on this game for a week or two! It has a great story as well, and is also good for those who aren't used to the Stealth genre (There are tutorials, and the easy mode is targeted to beginners of the game). Honestly, I'd say you should get it. Really good game, and those hours of staying up late and feeling like crap in school was worth it :)

Vergil's rating: 9.0/10

5: Far Cry 3

 I was a bit sceptical when this game hit the shelves. I thought I would be bored out just like how I got so tired of Far Cry 2 due to the tedious exploration. But Far Cry 3 showed that Ubisoft Montreal sort of listened to the community and made their latest Far Cry game into a better experience. The stealth is fun, the fact that you can hunt animals in-game is fun (Don't have to do it in reality anymore! Hah!) and the crafting... Which I have mixed views upon, made me decide that this game is No.5 in my top 10 games of 2012!

Vergil's rating: 9.0/10

4: Halo 4

 Oh, what a coincidence. 4th game in my top 10 list... Is Halo 4. This would've been in the top 3, but sadly, this game's hype was short-lived, and it has numerous of problems that 343 has yet to fix. Apart from that, the game's campaign and soundtrack is bloody brilliant. Neil Davidge did an awesome job on the soundtrack, and the campaign is so beautiful... It's like a love story in disguise as an action FPS. I won't give spoilers though :P

Vergil's rating: 9.0/10

And now... The Top 3 games of 2012!

...

...

...

Number 3 goes to...

Tekken Tag Tournament 2!

 At first, I really didn't like this game that much because of the extremely difficult A.I. (When I meant difficult, I meant cheating scumbag input reading kind of difficult!) But eventually, I managed to get used to the game, and sooner or later, they patched the game and made it easier (For the sake of beginner players and people who want to practice with the A.I.) This game is really underrated. So it kinda deserves the No. 3 spot because of the many things I love about this game, and also about the Tekken series.

Vergil's rating: 9.0/10

Number 2 goes to...

...

...

Forza Horizon!

 Apparently, from what I've heard, this racing game is quite underrated (Which is surprising for a Forza title!) and is overshadowed by the (what I think is) horrible Need for Speed: Most Wanted 2012. If you own an Xbox 360, likes racing games, cars and exploration, you should definitely get this title. I can guarantee you that almost everything in this game will satisfy most of your needs! Has a great soundtrack too!

Vergil's rating: 9.5/10

And now... The moment you've all been waiting for! My number 1 pick of 2012 goes to...

...

...

FARMING SIMULATOR 2013!!!

Oh God, I love farming so much

Vergil's rating: 11/10

LOL JK

It actually goes to Max Payne 3 :D

I think I've said this many times that Max Payne 3 is one of the greatest games I've ever played this year. In fact, I'm quite surprised that nobody mentioned anything about this game merely 2-3 months after its release. Movie-like cutscenes, great storytelling, awesome gameplay mechanics, epic soundtrack by HEALTH, sympathetic protagonist, and last but not least, the gorgeous setting in Brazil, Max Payne 3 gets the Number 1 spot in my Top 10 games of 2012! If you happen to see a price drop on this game... Get it.

Vergil's rating: 9.0/10

Read the review here

 Well, that's it. It's been another great year of gaming, and boy! Time flies! Thanks a lot for checking this out guys! I'll see you soon!

"I have always fought for the people I believe in" - Zero 

- Vergil

Reflection: A Horse and Two Goats

A Horse and Two Goats

A Horse and Two Goats is a short story written by R.K. Narayan.

It's about an old man named Muni, who lives in a small village in India. He is waiting around a statue of a horse for his sign to go home with his two goats when a car stops in front of him. 

An American man gets out of the car and attempts to converse with Muni in English, but being an Indian man living in a rural village, he couldn't understand him.

He does his best in attempting to understand the American, but due to a hilarious misinterpretation, the American thought that Muni was the owner of the horse statue and attempts to buy it off from him.

At the same time, Muni thinks that the American wants to buy the goats for a valuable price.

Finally, Muni goes home without his goats but with the money the American gave him. 

Meanwhile, the American waits for Muni to come back and help him load the statue into his car.

Personal thoughts:

This story amused me. It made me laugh due to the fact that there was miscommunication among Muni and the American. I would say that I kind of enjoyed the story, and it was also a story of one culture meeting another. I enjoyed this story a lot, and I'd say that this is the funniest one I've read. Not the best, but the funniest.

My Greatest Ambition and The Rain Horse reflection

My Greatest Ambition

This short story was written by Morris Lurie it has effectively shown the feelings of excitement and anxiety in the protagonist.

The protagonist, who is a young boy, has a dream to become a comic strip artist and make comics. it seems to be his Greatest Ambition.

His dream was coming true as he was heading for a meeting (Probably to determine whether or not he becomes a comic strip artist or not) and is showing signs of giving a good impression (e.g. wondering what to wear, as he considers it his job to be a really important step of his life.

The feelings of anxiety and excitement are interlinked together and form the basis of criticism in the story as they give a twist in the mood of the story shifting the setting occasionally.

Role: Vocabulary enricher

Personal thoughts: 
I liked this story. It was rather inspirational and it teaches people to follow their dreams and to not hold back. The protagonist's dream was to be a comic strip artist, and eventually, he did become one!

I've always wanted to direct movies and act. This story is somewhat of a motivation to follow my dreams and persevere.

BUT I DIGRESS! Overall, I would recommend this story to anyone who feels down and out. It really gives a message to people to hang in there.

The Dark Horse

Probably the most interesting out of the 4 short stories I've read. This short story was written by Ted Hughes.

There lived a young man who grew up in a farm, and then moved to the city for 12 years.

He went for a business career and was successful for the past twelve years. He wanted to go back home to relive his childhood memories.

Instead of an enjoyable walk down memory lane, he ended up being unhappy and quite miserable as he saw the condition of his home. 

Later, he encountered a horse and it attacked him after they stared down at each other.

The man managed to hold his ground and defeat the horse. He was forced back into reality, wondering what was going on. He felt somewhat lost. 

He sadly felt disconnected from where he grew up and didn't feel like the same person as he was before to a point where he questions his sanity.

Role: Summariser.

Personal thoughts:

A very interesting story which is based on the nature of mentality. Another story I can relate to as I am a bit crazy on the inside (I am, really). 

It has a mysterious atmosphere and the transition of the theme of the story made it extremely interesting. Like how the story started off as.

It started off, showing a happy lad wanting to visit home, and then it darkens down to something depressing and somewhat psychological. 

The story makes you think a lot. Did he really get attacked by a horse? Was he losing his mind? It's up to the reader to decide. 

This story is indeed fantastic!

Epistemic Philosophy

"When you always know what is right, where is freedom? No one chooses the wrong."

And what happens when they do? We condemn them of being evil? Arrogant? Mistaken? Where do we draw the line? When someone chooses the wrong or when someone chooses the wrong that he believes to be right?

The world of morality is vast and full of notions that, if you view it as a whole, it is something that has, for a lack of a better word, no resultant significance. The abstractions conceived from great sentience that is the Greek philosophers, paved the way for modern philosophers to theorize their own points, But where there is one positive theory, a negative one rises to bring balance. (the term ‘morality’ is then a general term to classify all ideas under immorality and amorality)

To interject a metaphor, I have gone passed the Event horizon of the black hole which is Morality; losing many assumptions about the simple nature of right and wrong.

I’d only like to begin on one, and only one, example on the ambiguity of morality, but its going to be a long article, so brace yourselves.

What is the general consensus of Right and Wrong?

It is/not a set of rules that we adopt to govern how we lead our lives

It is/not one’s ability to ascertain truth from false

Broadly speaking, these are the two main points of the general definition of moral Right and Wrong that I can think of. If there are any other points that I did not include, please notify via comments.

This has been addressed by many movies concerning good morals, most recently by Christopher Nolan’s new movie The Dark Knight Rises. Its been two months since it came out so I can stop worrying I’d be dealing out spoilers, but I was particularly intrigued on the implications of moral truth and how the movie addresses it. Relax, this is not going to be a review of that movie; I was merely relating to it for what I’m about to write next.

What are the implications of fact, truth, moral right and wrong? half truth? lies or general truth in its own context? Is the abstraction of a pure truth only conceivable for immortals? Does truth have to do with the canonicity of a supreme (or transcendental) being or force? I will begin to explore the aspect of these individual features to the best of my intellectual capability.

“When you are studying any matter, or considering any philosophy, ask yourself only: What are the facts, and what is the truth that the facts bear out.”—Bertrand Russell

In that mindset. I’d like to draw out a non-linear sandbox for scenarios concerning these ideas.

Fact and Truth
Fact is the base understanding of the canonicity of what is; all things that are real. We perceive these facts to be in accordance with reality. A tree is a plant, a bird flies, fish swim, any behaviour that clearly can determine a logical inference from the observer with a substantial amount of certainty. A fact may not always be in accord with truth: a Fact is eternal, the truth is what the facts bear as evidence under logical conclusion of the person. I do not say, however, that a person’s conclusion is truth. Without a base of palpable evidence, these “truths” demote to opinions.

There is no empirical theory that dictates truth because of the causal intricate web of decision. think of right and wrong as 2 intersecting strings, forming a cross. and a third string spiralling out from the centre of the intersect; just like a spider’s web. different points in that web dictates your decision the degree of truth, but not the certainty of it.

I might continue to address the moral of right and wrong... When I feel like it.