It's so often used as a bad word in the gaming world.  Oh, well so and so is just hardcore.  Alright then, Kato.  What constitutes hardcore?

The people at EQ2 Flames?  Are they hardcore?  Of course they are.  They are passionate about their style of gameplay.  They raid.  They try to get the best gear they can and they want to be the best they can on their servers if not the game as a whole.

Groovy.  So what about other sites?  EQ2 Traders Corner?  (<3 Niami!)  A site dedicated to all things crafting.  Oh well... crafters can't be hardcore can they?  I mean come on.  A person who spends all their game time crafting... Even if that game time amounts to 20+ hours a week isn't hardcore are they?

You're damned right they are.  Even the person who solos their way from 1 to 80 is hardcore if they invest the time into it.

Hell, I'm even hardcore.  I get home from work and log in only to start working on my second job with actually centers around EQ2.  Hi... you can't really get much more hardcore than that.  Does it suck that it's basically made it so I don't have the time to indulge in my desire to raid?  Well, yeah.  But I still log a ridiculous amount of time in game just so that I can write about it.

I'd love to write about the raiding game.  Unfortunately I can't raid and write at the same time.  Not without being a craptacular cleric.  So I opt out and refuse to screw over a guild cause I need to multi task and can't devote the required time.

That doesn't make me a casual player any more than a rabid crafter, quester, altaholic, or whatever is casual.

I do my best to experience every aspect of the game.  Right now I'm fiddling with an alt to see just how far I can get without dying 9 times.  Yes, I know my first death is down cause I'm a dumbass.  We'll chalk that up to me being blonde and have done with it.  No way are those other 8 deaths going to happen.  Grrr.

After that I think I'll try my hand at PvP.  Chances are, I'll suck at it.  But I can't rag on PvP if I haven't tried it...  And I really need more people at whom to poke fun.  Rangers are getting to where it's just MEAN to poke at them :(  I'm starting to feel bad making Ranger jokes...