Bangkok Crates Have Arrived
Jan/100
With the beginning of the Bangkok Beta the folks at Zynga have of course come up with new crates to spend your Godfather Points on. Crates can be a very quick way of getting your hands on some decent gear in a hurry but in most cases the items that you can get simply by playing the game is better.
The cost of these crates is
1 Bangkok Crate: 12 Reward Points
3 Bangkok Crates: 35 Reward Points
Each crate has the same odds for rare items
- 10% chance for Rare
- 30% chance for Uncommon
- 60% chance for Common
Here is a break down of the items that you can get in the Bangkok Crates along with the rarity.
|
Bangkok Crates |
||||
|
Item |
Attack |
Defense |
Type |
Rarity |
| Titanium Keris Knife |
26 |
15 |
Weapon | Common |
| Spitting Cobra |
46 |
28 |
Weapon | Rare |
| Yin Yang |
34 |
17 |
Weapon | Uncommon |
| Daisho |
31 |
20 |
Weapon | Uncommon |
| Sumotori Fighter |
17 |
25 |
Armor | Common |
| Hung Chu Enforcer |
16 |
24 |
Armor | Common |
| Lloyd’s Archangel |
32 |
24 |
Vehicle | Uncommon |
| Fugama Kondoru |
25 |
47 |
Vehicle | Rare |
Some of these items are quite nice but as I said above you can get better just by completing jobs.
For those of you who love to collect things these crates give you even more items to add to your prized collection.
Collections for Bangkok
Jan/100
The Beta of Mafia Wars Bangkok started last week and as I promised I am going to bring you as much information as I possibly can. Many blog readers have asked about the collections that will be available in Bangkok and I am happy to report that I indeed have some info on them for you.
Episode One Collection – Chess Set
- Chessboard
- Pawn
- Knight
- Bishop
- Rook
- Queen
- King
Vault Bonus: 5 Energy
Boost: Chess Master (-8 job energy cost)
Episode Two Collection - Masks Collection
- Agat-Talai’s Mask
- Sukreep’s Mask
- Palee’s Mask
- Phra Ram’s Mask
- Indrachit’s Mask
- Hanuman’s Mask
- Tosakanth’s Mask
Vault Bonus: 5 Defense
Boost: Wet Paint (+32 attack skill)
While I do not yet know what the collections are called for episodes 3 through 5, nor do I know what the vault bonus or boosts are as yet, I do know what the items are for each level.
Episode Three Collection – Possibly Spices or Herbs
- Coriander
- Garlic
- Tumeric
- Green Peppercorn
- Holy Basil
- Lemongrass
- Thai Chili
Episode Four Collection – My guess would be carvings
- Wall Carving
- Floral Statue
- Dragon Statue
- Decorative Nightstand
- Lotus Bloom
- Rearing Elephant
- Stone Buda
Episode Five Collections – Flowers
- Marco Polo
- Grace Pink
- Misteen
- Jade Siam
- Bom Gold
- Bom Blue
- Fatima
This is what I know thus far and of course I will update you as soon as I know more. In the mean time have fun playing Mafia Wars.
Mafia Wars Embraces The Haitian Relief Effort
Jan/100
Zynga has been a staunch supporter of helping Haiti which is the poorest nation in the western hemisphere and with the recent earthquake they have ramped up their efforts raising more than $1.5 million by allowing the players of their popular social networking games to donate safely.
I am an avid Mafia Wars player and even though I whack a few of my peers on a regular basis I am not cold hearted when it comes to helping a country that cannot help itself. Today I wanted to give you some information that may both save you some headache and provide some needed support to Haitians who desperately need it.
When there is a disaster somewhere in the world most countries rush to aid the stricken area as quickly as possible. There are also many charities which go into high gear to get some relief on the ground as soon as possible. However the misery suffered by the victims is a smorgasbord for scammers. It has been reported that there are over 400 websites, email campaigns and other scams working right now to take advantage of the plight of the Haitian people.
If want to give but are afraid of being scammed here is an excerpt from the FBI website regarding a Haitian Fraud Alert and how you can protect yourself.
HAITIAN EARTHQUAKE RELIEF FRAUD ALERT
01/13/10—The FBI today reminds Internet users who receive appeals to donate money in the aftermath of Tuesday’s earthquake in Haiti to apply a critical eye and do their due diligence before responding to those requests. Past tragedies and natural disasters have prompted individuals with criminal intent to solicit contributions purportedly for a charitable organization and/or a good cause.
Therefore, before making a donation of any kind, consumers should adhere to certain guidelines, to include the following:
- Do not respond to any unsolicited (spam) incoming e-mails, including clicking links contained within those messages.
- Be skeptical of individuals representing themselves as surviving victims or officials asking for donations via e-mail or social networking sites.
- Verify the legitimacy of nonprofit organizations by utilizing various Internet-based resources that may assist in confirming the group’s existence and its nonprofit status rather than following a purported link to the site.
- Be cautious of e-mails that claim to show pictures of the disaster areas in attached files because the files may contain viruses. Only open attachments from known senders.
- Make contributions directly to known organizations rather than relying on others to make the donation on your behalf to ensure contributions are received and used for intended purposes.
- Do not give your personal or financial information to anyone who solicits contributions: Providing such information may compromise your identity and make you vulnerable to identity theft.
Anyone who has received an e-mail referencing the above information or anyone who may have been a victim of this or a similar incident should notify the IC3 via www.ic3.gov.
If you have the means please help the people of Haiti but protect yourself in the process.
Mafia Wars Treasure Chests
Jan/104
On Tuesday Zynga released “Treasure Chests” for Mafia Wars. The chests are a way that players can get their hands on a number of fairly sweet items. There is a catch however, the feature is not free. It will cost you some Godfather Points.
To participate in the “Treasure Chest” event you must acquire a Treasure Chest Key. To obtain this item you simply need to complete jobs as normal and you will be presented with a popup that offers you the chance to purchase the key for 9 Godfather points.
One might wonder if purchasing the key and participating in the event is really worth it. It is not my place to tell you if it is or not but I can help you make your decision by giving you a glimpse of the items that you can get if you choose to.
|
Treasure Chest Items |
|||
|
Item |
Type |
Attack |
Defense |
| A Deadly AA-12 Auto Shotgun | Weapon |
34 |
18 |
| A Deadly Boomslang ACR | Weapon |
45 |
20 |
| A Deadly Bullet-Proof Berkshire | Vehicle |
20 |
36 |
| Deadly Armed Guards | Armor |
12 |
28 |
The above are the items that I have seen so far but may not be a complete list.
The items are very nice and are a must for those of us who are serious collectors and want at least one of everything available in Mafia Wars. If you have the spare Godfather points and want to get some good equipment then by all means jump on the offer. On the other hand there are items in the game that are much better and are completely free. The decision is yours.
Zynga also announced this week that the Bangkok Expansion will be going into beta sometime this week. With as many accounts as I have it is likely I will be able to begin to give you some insight on the expansion early next week. Feel free to leave some comments detailing your experiences if you are part of the beta as well.
Mafia Wars Complete Required Item List
Jan/100
When you get right down to it Mafia Wars is a game of numbers. We concentrate growing our mafia to 500+, worry about our energy pool, attack and defense skill and much more. For those of you who are number crunchers (like I am) here is a list of all of the items that you will need to purchase when playing Mafia Wars.
|
Mafia Wars Item Costs |
|||||||
|
New York |
|||||||
|
Item |
# required |
Cost Each |
Total Cost |
||||
| Armored Sedan |
20 |
$60,000 |
$1,200,000 |
||||
| Baseball Bat |
1 |
$300 |
$300 |
||||
| Body Armor |
20 |
$16,000 |
$320,000 |
||||
| Bonus Weapon |
5 |
$200,000 |
$1,000,000 |
||||
| Bullet Proof Vest |
3 |
$6,000 |
$18,000 |
||||
| Chain Gun |
20 |
$200,000 |
$4,000,000 |
||||
| Colt Pistol |
2 |
$1,000 |
$2,000 |
||||
| Crowbar |
1 |
$700 |
$700 |
||||
| Delivery Truck |
12 |
$20,000 |
$240,000 |
||||
| Getaway Cruiser |
12 |
$90,000 |
$1,080,000 |
||||
| Grenade |
10 |
$3,000 |
$30,000 |
||||
| Hacksaw |
1 |
$10,000 |
$10,000 |
||||
| Machine Pistol |
1 |
$5,500 |
$5,500 |
||||
| Motorcycle |
4 |
$15,000 |
$60,000 |
||||
| Sawed Off Shotgun |
2 |
$2,000 |
$4,000 |
||||
| Sedan |
3 |
$40,000 |
$120,000 |
||||
| Speed Boat |
2 |
$400,000 |
$800,000 |
||||
| Tommy Gun |
10 |
$120,000 |
$1,200,000 |
||||
| Town Car |
40 |
$400,000 |
$16,000,000 |
||||
|
Total Cost for New York |
$26,090,500 |
||||||
|
|
|||||||
|
Cuba |
|||||||
|
** $ = Cuban Currency (C$) |
|||||||
|
Item |
# required |
Cost Each |
Total Cost |
||||
| .308 Sniper Rifle |
4 |
$32,000 |
$128,000 |
||||
| Barge |
8 |
$27,000 |
$216,000 |
||||
| Bazooka |
8 |
$40,000 |
$320,000 |
||||
| Camo Fatigues |
3 |
$10,000 |
$30,000 |
||||
| CM Seta |
2 |
$10,000 |
$20,000 |
||||
| CM Venga |
5 |
$22,000 |
$110,000 |
||||
| Commerical Helicopter |
5 |
$45,000 |
$225,000 |
||||
| Gaduka 5-Pistol |
14 |
$24,000 |
$336,000 |
||||
| Hatchet |
2 |
$12,000 |
$24,000 |
||||
| Hired Thug |
16 |
$22,000 |
$352,000 |
||||
| Jeep |
2 |
$18,000 |
$36,000 |
||||
| Jungle Tracker |
3 |
$14,000 |
$42,000 |
||||
| Lead Pipe |
18 |
$5,000 |
$90,000 |
||||
| Local Guide |
2 |
$4,000 |
$8,000 |
||||
| Local Tough |
8 |
$8,000 |
$64,000 |
||||
| Machete |
2 |
$1,000 |
$2,000 |
||||
| Oso-12 Cargo Truck |
5 |
$38,000 |
$190,000 |
||||
| RAS-29 |
26 |
$15,000 |
$390,000 |
||||
| Rebel Sniper |
4 |
$38,000 |
$152,000 |
||||
| Wise Guy |
30 |
$30,000 |
$900,000 |
||||
|
Total Cost for Cuba |
$3,635,000 |
||||||
|
|
|||||||
|
Moscow |
|||||||
|
** $ = Russian Currency (R$) |
|||||||
|
Item |
# required |
Cost Each |
Total Cost |
||||
| Arctic Camo |
30 |
$11,800,000 |
$354,000,000 |
||||
| Balaclava |
18 |
$1,800,000 |
$32,400,000 |
||||
| Beovoy Nozh |
24 |
$2,200,000 |
$52,800,000 |
||||
| Bronezilet |
30 |
$5,400,000 |
$162,000,000 |
||||
| BYK-922 |
12 |
$14,200,000 |
$170,400,000 |
||||
| Dubina |
15 |
$500,000 |
$7,500,000 |
||||
| Dvina |
12 |
$3,200,000 |
$38,400,000 |
||||
| Enforcer |
54 |
$16,800,000 |
$907,200,000 |
||||
| Forest Camo |
30 |
$11,800,000 |
$354,000,000 |
||||
| KRZ8 |
12 |
$16,500,000 |
$198,000,000 |
||||
| Listsa |
32 |
$6,800,000 |
$217,600,000 |
||||
| Mototsykl |
12 |
$500,000 |
$6,000,000 |
||||
| Pistolet Bess |
18 |
$900,000 |
$16,200,000 |
||||
| RAS-28 SMG |
45 |
$7,500,000 |
$337,500,000 |
||||
| RAS-55 |
45 |
$16,800,000 |
$756,000,000 |
||||
| Riot Helmet |
30 |
$7,200,000 |
$216,000,000 |
||||
| Shturmovaya |
36 |
$5,200,000 |
$187,200,000 |
||||
| Snayperskaya |
15 |
$21,500,000 |
$322,500,000 |
||||
| Sokel Helicopter |
15 |
$24,500,000 |
$367,500,000 |
||||
| Taksi |
9 |
$1,000,000 |
$9,000,000 |
||||
| Tracked Truck |
15 |
$26,500,000 |
$397,500,000 |
||||
| Tracksuit |
24 |
$900,000 |
$21,600,000 |
||||
| Zharpesta |
15 |
$27,000,000 |
$405,000,000 |
||||
|
Total Cost for Moscow |
$5,536,300,000 |
||||||
Good luck in your criminal activities.
Mafia Wars Rollbacks?
Jan/100
Lately it seems that Mafia Wars and Zynga have been having problems with many of their accounts. This morning I logged in and found that even though I completely finished Moscow weeks ago I am somehow back to chapter 1 in episode 3 Brigadir. I find it odd that every other episode is completely done except this one. Has this been happening to any of you as well?
Recently Zynga released the following on their Feature Updates/Release Notes page.
“User Account Issues: Some players may have been affected by a technical issue that happened at about 2 am PT on January 5th. We are extremely sorry for the difficulty caused by this issue. We’ve identified the affected users and are working to appropriately compensate everyone touched by the January 5th rollback, and we hope to resolve this issue within 48 hours. We will update you on after we’ve resolved the issue. Please don’t hesitate to contact Customer Support about the issue at http://zynga.com/support. Customer Support will have the list of users we have identified that have been affected by this issue. Thanks for your patience, and we apologize for the inconvenience.”
In this release they are speaking about a problem on January 5th. Evidentially the problem is not fixed since it is now January 11th.
On the release page they further stated the following.
“Bangkok Beta Coming Soon: We are happy to announce Bangkok will be going into beta very shortly. We will be asking some of our players to provide important feedback and make improvements for the final release. Please stay tuned.”
While that is all fine and nice it would seem to me that Zynga should be concentrating on getting the problems fixed in the current version of the game before shoving out another expansion. This has been a problem with many of the major online game developers over the years and many have suffered because of it.
Completing an expansion and then discovering that the developer has rolled back the game is a very frustrating experience. Zynga in my opinion needs to get the obvious problem fixed and restore all affected accounts to their previous state before they shove out the next expansion.
I urge anyone who has suffered a roll back to start a thread on the official Mafia Wars forums demanding that their account be restored before Zynga releases the Bangkok expansion.
Super Stuffed Crates Are Now Available
Jan/100
I must admit that Zynga keeps the surprises coming when it comes to crates. We have had Yakuza Crates, Woodsman Crates, Wild West Crates and more. Recently Zynga has added Super Stuffed Crates.
If you have been playing Mafia Wars for any length of time you already know that one of the biggest pains in the butt in the game is gathering the consumables that are needed for some jobs. It never seems to fail that you run out of consumables before you complete a job requiring them and you have to back track to get more.
In the new Super Stuffed Crates Zynga has made it much easier. In these crates you can not only get an item but you also get consumables.
Like all crates the Super Stuffed version is purchased with Godfather (Reward) points. One crate will cost you 20 Godfather points and a package of three crates is sold for 55 points.
Super Stuffed Crates are guaranteed a 100% chance to give you 1 special item, 3 consumables, and 5 boosts in each and every crate. The special item is from the current crate set.
Here is a quick list of the consumables that can be found in these crates
- Blackmail Photos
- Computer Setup
- Concealable Cameras
- Illegal Transaction Records
The boosts that you can get include
- Boxer
- Extra Pair of Eyes
- Hot Coffee
- Injunction
- Sandbag Wall
- Sting Grenade
Personally I am not much on buying crates but if you are looking for a super fast way to get consumables and boosts they may be the way you want to go.
Is Your Mafia Wars Account In Danger Of Being Suspended Or Even Banned?
Jan/100
Mafia Wars is arguably the most popular of the myriad of social networking games that are available today and it was only a matter of time until Zynga took a harder line when it comes to suspending or even banning accounts.
The buying and selling of intellectual property is one of the biggest concerns for internet gaming companies. While the practice has been around for years many companies turned a blind eye to it because of the expense in prosecuting those who traffic in currency, accounts, and items.
In the last year or so many of the bigger gaming companies have done one of two things. First they have cracked down not on the sellers of such items but those who purchase them. Second, many have opened up their games for free play while requiring players to purchase the top items or even the all but bare necessities with micro-transactions using real cash. Some have done both.
Zynga has not missed what is going on in the industry and has started to follow suit by targeting those players who participate in the buying and selling of intellectual property. Presently they are suspending or banning accounts quite regularly. If you are a player who has purchased items or entire accounts do not be surprised if you try to log in one day and discover that your accounts is no longer accessible.
Leveling and acquiring the best items in Mafia Wars is too easy to put your account at risk. With a proper plan you can level to level 200+ in mere days and will be rolling in cash along the way so there is no reason to participate in such shenanigans.
Recently I have come across a few Mafia Wars “information” sites that are blatantly trying to sell items and accounts right on their front page. While I will not name these sites for obvious reasons I find the practice to be unethical. It is one thing to write a guide or sell a report detailing how to master the game but selling items and accounts crosses the line.
All of the site that I have visited which are doing this are also making use of graphics and logos from Mafia Wars and other Zynga games. I predict that somewhere in the near future the publishers of these sites will receive a nice letter from Zynga which will in essence order them to cease and desist in using the intellectual property of the company.
I will make one promise to all of my readers right now. You will never see accounts, items or currency from any game for sale on my sites. The only disclaimer I will make to that statement are those sites that earn revenue from Google AdSense since the end user has no control over which ads are displayed.
In conclusion, if you are buying or selling the intellectual property of any company and get your account closed, you have nothing to whine about …you brought it upon yourself.
Some Serous Advice on Godfather Points
Jan/100
With Mafia Wars quickly becoming the most popular social networking game on the internet I felt the need to clue the new players and maybe even some of your old veterans in on what Godfather Points are, how to get them, and how to use them.
Godfather Points – A definition
Godfather points or reward points are a form of currency in Mafia Wars. They can be used for a number of things within the game.
Godfather Points – What they can be used for
.These points may be used for a number of things including
- Full Energy Refill
- Extra Mafia Members
- +4 Skill Points
- Money
- Full Health Refill
- Full Stamina Refill
- New Name
- Crates
- Limited Loot
How to acquire Godfather Points
Godfather points can acquired in two ways.
- They are earned through leveling your character
- They may be purchased in lots of 21, 42, 85, 170, 215, 440, 700 for real world cash.
You used to be able to get Godfather Points by completing offers and doing surveys but it seems that those options have been removed from the game.
Advice on how to spend your Godfather Points
If you have a copy of The Ultimate Mafia Wars Leveling Guide then you already know all of this as well as how to level as quickly as possible using sound time tested strategies. This information is for those who do not have the guide.
If you follow a strict plan on leveling you will never NEED to spend Godfather points on anything. The only thing that I have ever spent any points on is “+4 Skill Points.” I know there are those who will say that buying energy refills are the way to go but I guarantee you that in the long run the skill points will pay off much more.
The bottom line is that other than the points that are earned for leveling Godfather Points cost money but purchasing them is not necessary. If you are someone who wants all of the items available in the game and have the cash to purchase points by all means do so. But…If you are a cheapskate like me you don’t have too.
Money Laundering Collection in Mafia Wars
Jan/100
Money Laundering is a new feature in Mafia Wars that is in beta. What this means is that not everyone will have access to the feature. If you are one of the lucky ones that does then you have access to the following.
Collection Items
- Money Iron
- Dirty Laundry
- Dryer Sheets
- Money Line
- Roll of Quarters
- Death by Detergent
- Dirty Bra
The reward for vaulting this collection is a reduction in bank deposit fees from the normal 10% to a modest 7%.
Those who have access to Money Laundering have a random chance of hitting the “mother lode” when doing jobs and get extra cash. Once you hit the mother lode you will need friends to help you launder the money.
Ask your friends to help you launder the money by publishing to your wall. Once you get enough friends to help you out you will have access to the bonus pay for the job. When you publish your feed and ask your friends to help out they can get a random item from the money laundering vault simply by clicking and helping.
To add money laundering collection items to your wish list use this link
http://apps.facebook.com/inthemafia/remote/html_server.php?xw_controller=collection&xw_exp_sig=dc0cbf24850667a9553baa64907f32ab&xw_time=1258246935&xw_action=wishlist_add&xw_city=1&tmp=b47943007750c85882df17018062b60d&selected_city=1&gift_category=0&gift_id=xxxx
1113 dirty iron
1114 dirty laundry
1115 dryer sheets
1116 money line
1117 roll of quarters
1118 death by detergent
1119 dirty bra
Good luck on gathering all of the items.
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