[2019] Streamer Interview

Last year we introduced the Streamer Interview news series where we talk to our community streamers in order to know more about their lives. To continue our series, this week Bex reached out to DCLara with some questions about her and her history with games and streaming.

Hi Lara, thank you for taking part in the interview! Please introduce yourself.

Hey Bex thanks for reaching out for this interview! My name is Lara, I'm 23 years old and was born in Turkey but grew up in Canada. I just recently graduated university and I'm focusing on streaming for now while living in Vancouver.

When did you first start streaming? How did you get into it?

I first started streaming in February of 2017. My friends and I would play Overwatch all the time and they encouraged me to stream from time to time. One month later I got tired of Overwatch and my friend Taha suggested I try out a game called "Path of Exile". Ever since that day I've mostly been playing and streaming Path of Exile.

What can people expect from your stream and schedule?

I almost exclusively stream Path of Exile for the first two months of a new league. I usually play hardcore league because it's more exciting to me. After the first two months I usually play strategy games such as "Heroes of Might and Magic III", "Command and Conquer Generals", "Civilisation 6" etc. I usually stream everyday unless I have schoolwork, or am sick. Now that I'm done with school, people can expect me to be on much more often. Since I moved to Vancouver from Ottawa a few months ago, the 3 hour time difference has somewhat messed up my schedule which I'm trying to get back to.

What were you doing before you started streaming?

I was a hostess and bartender at a local diner at the same time as being a full time University student.

What one thing caught your attention in the beginning and what one thing kept you coming back?

The first thing that caught my attention about Path of Exile was a Breach portal. It was my first time playing Path of Exile, and I was playing with my friends. I had wandered off into a corner of the Mud Flats I believe and saw this large purple portal. As soon as I touched it purple men started running at me out of thin air and I died. After freaking out at my friends and bringing them back to the exact location that I found this purple portal - it was gone. They didn't quite believe me, and I had no idea how Breach mechanics worked at the time so it left a lasting impression on my memory. The main thing that keeps bringing me back are the new leagues, and content I haven't experienced yet.

Are there any highlights from your time playing Path of Exile that stand out in your memory?

The highlight of me finding my Doctor card is probably the biggest standout. I had been farming a Doctor card for over a week I believe and had run hundreds with full quant gear with nothing to show for it. When it finally dropped, it was as if my inner demons were unleashed and I'm pretty sure I scared everyone ahahaha.

What are your thoughts about the Betrayal Expansion?

I absolutely adore the Betrayal expansion because it introduced my new favourite skill: Winter Orb. Furthermore, the syndicate members are extremely rewarding - Tiny's Trial and the Booby trapped stashes are probably my favourite syndicate reward just because they're so exciting. Veiled mods have also given a huge QOL boost, with my favourite new craft being 5-8% increased max life and mana on chest. On top of that, there is so much stuff to do I never get bored while playing. The adjustments to the delves and beast crafting were amazing and make it really enjoyable to play.

You recently created the 'Dab of Ink' Divination Card. Can you tell us a little about your thought on making this card?

Oh boy, where do I get started. First and foremost I have to thank Aneruok for gifting me the divination card slot and giving me the chance to add something to a game that I love. Dabbing has long time been a meme in my chat, and I thought it would be pretty funny if we could *sneak* the word dab into the title of a divination card. I thought about what my favourite unique in the game was, which was the Poet's Pen. Then together with my chat, we came up with the clever name of "A Dab of Ink". Shortly thereafter I submitted the ideas to GGG and you guys gave me the go-ahead. Many people know that when one designs a divination card, you only have a say in what the item will be and the title of the card - GGG decides what the illustration will be, etc. I remember suggesting that the image of the card look like someone wiping sweat off their forehead and it merely looks like someone dabbing. I never imagined that you guys would actually draw someone dabbing - and much less make it look exactly like ME! I feel extremely honoured to be immortalised in Path of Exile, you guys are amazing. It was drawn so well, that even those who are unfamiliar with dabbing would not sense anything amiss in the general dark theme that POE divination cards are made in.

Is there anything you'd like to see more of in the streaming community?

I'm pretty happy with the POE streamer community. I think it would be awesome though if you, Bex, would stream every now and then, that would be super fun.

Do you have any advice for people who are looking to make their own career out of streaming?

One of the best pieces of advice I have for newer streamers is to try to get on right after bigger streamers get off. This sounds weird, but when I first started growing my channel, I would start streaming when the biggest streamers got off. That's usually when most people start searching through the POE game directory for new streamers to discover.

Are there any up and coming streamers that you'd like to shine a spotlight on?

I would highly recommend checking out and supporting these channels that have really good content and stream regularly: somayd, DajoTmone, CellTank and PUTT3BOI. I'd also like to shout out to suitsizesmall, who does daily lab runs so that all of us noobs can see the normal/cruel/merc and uber lab layouts. He suffers so we don't have to and I think that's really admirable.

What hobbies or interests do you have outside of streaming?

Since I stream during the night and sleep during the day, it doesn't leave much room for extracurricular activities. However, my hobbies include reading, learning the flute, and playing with my dog. During the summers I like to play basketball, volleyball and go swimming.

How has your life changed from before you were streaming until now? What role has streaming played in that transition?

Well when I graduated highschool I was very confused in which direction I wanted to head in life. I graduated university more for my parents than anything, which isn't the best reason I admit. But ever since I started streaming, the friendships I've made have been incredible. This is quite literally the dream job. I used to take breaks from work to play games, and now this is my work.

What is one thing you think every Path of Exile player should hear?

Do you have any projects on the horizon you'd like to talk about?

I don't really have anything too big other than trying to get my first level 100 in hardcore. Maybe it will happen this league. The closest I've gotten before is level 95 (which I know isn't close at all) but hey, everyone's gotta start somewhere.
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Thank you so much for participating in the interview! If you want to follow DCLara, check out her Twitter and Twitch.

We're continuing our Streamer Interview series this week by talking to BalorMage, a full-time Path of Exile streamer from Australia.

Hi Balor, thank you for taking part in the interview! Please introduce yourself.

Hi, my name is BalorMage and I basically live and breathe POE, all day every day. I feel like I have a half decent understanding of maybe 60% of the game after about 11k hours played. So we are getting there.

When did you first start streaming? How did you get into it?

I started streaming part time around 2 and a half years ago, just for fun while I was working, and then attempted to go to uni to retrain, lasted about a year there and quit. About 1 year ago (maybe 1.5years? Im very bad with timeframes) I quit Uni and started streaming full time.

What can people expect from your stream and schedule?

I stream POE every single day, for 12 hours or more. 7 days a week. Usually starting between 8am and 10am Brisbane Australia time (GMT+10). I also have the most hours streamed in POE of anybody in the last year (yes, anybody. Literally nobody has streamed more POE than me in the last year). I took 1 day off for a wedding this year, and 3 days off last year for a family thing. So you can basically just assume I'll be online anytime, and I probably will be.

What were you doing before you started streaming?

For the last 12 years or so I've been a Large format offset printer (yes that's a trade). Basically I printed things on very, very, very expensive large printing presses, letterheads, business cards, posters, magazines, things like that. It paid well and was the worst, most unrewarding job ever.

When did you first get into Path of Exile?

Bloodlines league I think? It’s hard to remember because I didn’t know anything about it at the time, I just started in hardcore and I think I did a total of about 12 maps the whole league on maybe 20 toons. I did not live long.

What one thing caught your attention in the beginning and what one thing kept you coming back?

Difficulty. The game was much harder back in the day. That’s what caught my attention. Then just complexity helped me stay. But what really made me stick around long term, was honestly the developers and the community. I’ve never in my life encountered such a good online community, or any other company who treated their community so well. It doesn’t feel like we are here to play your game, it feels like we are all here in the boat being exiled together. And it’s fantastic.

Are there any highlights from your time playing Path of Exile that stand out in your memory?

The first time I took on Shaper in hardcore was bonkers for me. I really enjoyed that, and I almost didn't make it several times. But honestly every single RIP ever, I love those so much there is actually a full playlist of them on my Youtube.

What are your thoughts about the Betrayal Expansion?

Very difficult, and I love that. The mobs are dangerous, they fight back. It feels like a return to the dangers of old. Slightly sad that they copped a damage nerf. But otherwise super happy with the whole league. The big standout is the voice acting though. So many voice lines, and when they are not all happening at the same time they are fantastic.

You stream many hours of Path of Exile. What motivates you to put this many hours into what you're doing?

Honestly I just really enjoy it. When you stream this much it can't be just about the game. The community here as a whole is fantastic, and the community I'm building is really great. I feel like I’ve made a lot of friends and I get to be social while never leaving the house. That and I just really enjoy helping people.

Is there anything you'd like to see more of in the streaming community?

Collaborations. As a viewer, I always really enjoy when streamers cross over and do things together on occasion. And now as a streamer I’d really like to do more of that myself, and see others do it more. It really is fun to watch and it makes the community feel more connected.

Do you have any advice for people who are looking to make their own career out of streaming?

Don't quit your job like I did. Some people can make it in a few months, some might take 2 years. Don't put yourself in a position where if it doesn't work you're screwed. But other than that, go for it! Don't let people tell you its a waste of time! It's so rewarding and it’s a lot of fun!

Are there any up and coming streamers that you'd like to shine a spotlight on?

Honestly there are so many I wouldn't know where to start. And I would be scared of missing people out who I love. I watch quite a bit of Sefearion, KittenCatNoodle, Ghazzy, Octavian, CatmasterOP, PressStartToPaws, but a relatively new streamer that I really like is Brittleknee. Also Bex stream when? Otherwise I spend what little off time I have sleeping.

What hobbies or interests do you have outside of streaming?

Once upon a time I used to like rock climbing and swimming…. But now I don't have any interests outside of streaming ! I'll try to pick some of those up again once I’m comfortably partnered by Twitch maybe?

How has your life changed from before you were streaming until now? What role has streaming played in that transition?

Honestly it's changed a lot for the better, I'm far more broke than I ever have been in my life. And also far FAR happier. I really enjoy what I do now and that makes all the difference in the world. Money just isn't that important when you love your job.

What is one thing you think every Path of Exile player should hear?

Get loot filters, your life will be miserable without one. And most importantly, if YOU are having fun with your build… then it's not wrong. And don't let anyone (including me) say otherwise. The most important part of any game, is that you're having fun!

Do you have any projects on the horizon you'd like to talk about?

Honestly right now i'm just focused on streaming as much as I can, and trying to get twitch partner. I have been very very close the last 2 leagues. That's basically my only goal right now. But I have several things i've been playing with and starting to put together…. Just nothing that's ready for anyone to see yet.

A huge thank you to GGG for creating a game that I spend more time playing than a full time job. Also a big shout out to Bex for being an awesome community manager!

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Thank you so much for participating in the interview! If you'd like to follow BalorMage, check out his Twitch, YouTube and Twitter.

A few months ago we began interviewing some of our streamers and notable community members. In continuation of this series, we've interviewed Quin69 from our very own New Zealand! Find out what Wanganui's #1 gamer has to say about life as a Path of Exile streamer.

Hi Quin, thank you for taking part in the interview! Please introduce yourself.

Hey! I’m Quintin, but most people call me Quin! I’m just some rat from New Zealand who really likes to play computer games and thought it would be a good idea to broadcast it to the internet.

When did you first start streaming? How did you get into it?

I started streaming in 2014! One of my dreams was to have a career in video games, but I never thought it would be a possible living in New Zealand (GGG sure proved me wrong) but then I discovered Twitch! The second I found out fiber optic internet had been rolled out in my hometown in Wanganui, I moved back and started streaming.

What can people expect from your stream and schedule?

Here’s the “!schedule” command I use in my stream:

★ ★ ° ☾ ☆ ¸. ¸ ★ . . • ° ★ . * . ¸ . ° ¸. * ● ¸ . ...somewhere ° ☾ ° ¸. ● . ★ ° . . • ° . * ...in a parallel universe* ● ¸ ° ☾ °☆ . * ¸. ★ ★ ° . . . ☾ ° . * ● ¸ ...Quin...° ☾ ★ °● ¸ . ° :. . • ○ ★ . * has a schedule ☾ ★ °●

But on a serious note, I’m practically live 24/7 during any new content patch or game release and then I usually end up defaulting back to streaming from 1AM NZT(ish) onwards so that I’m able to go outside after stream during the daylight with my girls!

What were you doing before you started streaming?

After a short stint in the New Zealand army I decided it was a good idea to get a diploma in commercial skydiving and I ended up working as a professional skydiver based out of Taupo - basically just jumping out of planes, making videos and packing parachutes! Both jobs were pretty cool but at the end of the day it was all just to fund my obsessive gaming habits.

When did you first get into Path of Exile?

I first started playing Path of Exile in between one of the first Diablo RoS seasons because Twitch chat kept spamming me to try the “superior” game. The Path of Exile fans were pretty relentless!

What one thing caught your attention in the beginning and what one thing kept you coming back?

The thing that caught my attention in Path of Exile was the ability to make insanely “custom” characters and skills. The fact that you could completely change the way abilities would activate and function was insane to me. It's a really fun game for try-hard hipsters like me who like to try make stupid builds work. I’d say the consistent content patches were the thing making me come back or maybe just twitch chat spamming stuff like “PLAY NEW POE SEASON REEEEEE”.

Are there any highlights from your time playing Path of Exile that stand out in your memory?

To be honest, recently killing shaper on SSFHC was probably the thing that stands out to me the most. RIP that character ;_;

What are your thoughts about the Betrayal Expansion?

Initially, I didn’t really understand or care too much about the expansion mechanic due to the fact I had a couple of league mechanics to catch up on, but after I sat down, figured out how it actually worked, and realised that you can totally manipulate and control how things run to make a bunch of currency, it quickly turned into my favourite Path of Exile expansion ever #Bridge69

You've made Wanganui famous! Are there any perks or challenges that people wouldn't expect from streaming from a small town in New Zealand?

The niche of being a Kiwi is a great perk because everyone by default loves us (except the Aussies) and all the foreigners think we live in mordor or somesh*t lol.

Challenges?! Well let me see…

• All of the relevant Twitch conventions are a 18~38hr flight away.


• Very bad for networking with other streamers because there are so few of us in New Zealand.


• Very little Twitch support for New Zealand streamers. (They should practically re-name Twitch ANZ to Twitch Australia).


• No Twitch server in New Zealand, so whenever some idiot messes with the trans-tasman cables we have massive connectivity issues.

Otherwise it's totally mint condish! Hopefully ExileCon later this year will at least add one more perk to the list!

You recently became a Dad! Are there difficulties or advantages about being a parent while also making your career as a streamer?

I didn’t really sleep much anyways as a full-time streamer, and my god tier fiancee, Abby, carries super hard with the baby stuff! Really hard to explain the advantages outside of the fact that I love those girls more than anything <3

Is there anything you'd like to see more of in the streaming community?

I recently tweeted about how nice and welcoming the Path of Exile streaming community is. It's easily the best community I’ve been apart of on Twitch but the thing I’d most like to see out of the Path of Exile Twitch community as a whole is that we hunt down, bully, ostracize and maybe just permaban every last BACKSEAT GAMER. My theory is that because of the level of complexity Path of Exile offers, it’s developed a diehard culture of fans that watch build guides which is totally fine but then some less experienced players who are only just starting to get an idea of what's going on take it upon themselves as some sort of duty to try and tell the Twitch streamer that their skill setup is wrong and to use the skill/item setup that they saw in a guide.

Do you have any advice for people who are looking to make their own career out of streaming?

I’d say MAKE SURE you give it a go part-time see if you like it because the reality is always different to what you’d expect. Then, if you love streaming and it's working out, try to further develop the unique aspects of your stream which keep people coming back.

Are there any up and coming streamers that you'd like to shine a spotlight on?

I’m pretty much a normie when it comes to watching other streams on Twitch, I pretty much just chuck on the top dudes of whatever game I’m playing at the time. To name a few I’ve been watching… Mathil, Raiz, Ziggy, Alkaizer, Nugi, Don, Cutedog, Modz and Ziz!

What hobbies or interests do you have outside of streaming?

I just straight up stopped all my normal “hobbies” once I started streaming, i.e. rock climbing, sport jumping, mountain biking. Does min-maxing my streaming setup or buying ridiculous smart products count!? But really, when I’m not streaming I’ll be trying to spend as much time as possible with my girls.

How has your life changed from before you were streaming until now? What role has streaming played in that transition?

Oh god, where do I start... almost all aspects of my life have changed as a direct result of streaming. They've been mostly positive changes (excluding a couple of things like the destruction of my physical and mental health LOL). Through streaming, I met my future wife, ended up buying property and building a house, met and became friends with some of the coolest people in the world, and gained the ability to choose my own work hours, make my own choices, and (within the Twitch Terms of Service) just do whatever the viewers and I feel like.

What is one thing you think every Path of Exile player should hear?

DON’T BACKSEAT GAME TWITCH STREAMERS :rage:

(Unless they specifically ask for it, then that's ok xoxo <3)

Do you have any projects on the horizon you'd like to talk about?

I really want to create my own private league in the future with as much of the Path of Exile community as possible but I just have to convince the lovely amazing god-tier GGG devs to implement a new feature! (Solo-only, trade-league)

Thanks so much for the interview! If you'd like to follow Quin, you can do so on Twitch, YouTube and Twitter.

In continuation of our new series where we interview streamers from the Path of Exile, we took a moment to get to know Octavian better! Check out his full interview.

Hi Octavian, thank you for taking part in the interview! Please introduce yourself.

My name is Chris, but most people reading this will probably know me better as Octavian. I’m a 20-something guy from the greater Boston area who plays an unreasonable amount of Path of Exile and sometimes a more reasonable amount of other things. I enjoy things like playing life based builds in an ES meta, leveling Scions to 100, and long walks on Strand maps.

When did you first start streaming? How did you get into it?

I first got into online broadcast as a result of an illness I contracted sometime just after I had returned from my first year of university to live with my brother. I was going through a nasty bout of Mono at the time, which then left plenty of room for a dormant case of lymes to blossom and wreak havoc with my larger joints. As a result of my knee swelling to three times the size it usually was, I was unable to walk for the better part of a year. This left me somewhat… limited in terms of job options. Perhaps it wasn’t the wisest decision, but in my slightly-better-than-bedridden state I decided to pursue something which had always intrigued me - shoutcasting. At the time, I was a huge League of Legends fan, so I got into shoutcasting that esport, and got into it hard. A few years later, it hadn’t really panned out into much, with at best a few amateur events here or there to show on my resume. Instead of the rational thing, though, I decided to double down and start streaming content for my newest favorite game, Path of Exile. A couple dozen (or dozen dozen) empty streams later, and I was starting to pick up viewership. From there to here has just been a matter of persistence and luck.

How are you doing healthwise now?

I'm doing very well nowadays, just some regular physical therapy to keep my joints in a good state. Fully recovered, thankfully.

What can people expect from your stream and schedule?

As for a schedule, I’m often streaming starting sometime in the early afternoon EST, and going for anywhere from six to eight hours. As far as content, the stream is almost exclusively Path of Exile - unsurprisingly. Within that, though, you can often find me playing my latest excuse to play a Scion again, or my latest excuse to play flicker strike again - or sometimes both. I often make somewhere between three and six builds over the course of a league and will jump back and forth between them as the mood suits me for whatever they’re designed for, be it bossing, mapping, or something in between. As well as that, I like to consider myself something of an “everything” player when it comes to the various gamemodes of Path of Exile, as I frequently jump around between trade SC, trade HC, and SSF of either variety. Usually, I’ll start a league on SC and switch to HC about a month or two in to reinvigorate my interest in the league and provide some challenge to overcome.

Do you have a favourite build?

As far as a favorite build, I think it would be questionable of me to say anything other than Scourge Arrow, since I've leveled that to 100 twice now. Flicker Strike is up there though.

How did you pick your channel name?

I wish there was a more interesting story behind my channel name, but really it's just due to me being a blatant thief. The name of a character in a book I liked growing up was Octavian Nothing, hence the zero on the end of Octavian0. Really, I just thought it sounded cool. I’ll play along with all the folks who’ve assumed it was because of some deep love of roman history, though. Makes me look smart. And no, my last name is not Morosan.

What were you doing before you started streaming?

Before I got into streaming, I was in school for a short time with an indeterminate major, and then during the phase where I was building the stream to where it could support me I worked as a server in a restaurant down in Houston, where I was living when I started streaming Path of Exile. I’ve had brief stints doing construction work and cashiering in a french cafe as well, but nothing too prestigious. I did learn the French words for some very fancy desserts, though. Gotta count for something.

When did you first get into Path of Exile?

I got into Path of Exile back in Warbands league, in July of 2015. A good friend of mine convinced me to try it again when Warbands launched, as I had previously been scared off by the massive passive tree and list of skill gems and dropped it sometime in act two. The second time was the charm though, and I’d say I got a good bit further than act two.

What one thing caught your attention in the beginning and what one thing kept you coming back?

The first thing that really hooked me about Path of Exile, and what keeps me hooked to it, was the eureka moment I had when I finally figured out the core concept behind the currency system. That feeling of finally seeing the way an elegant system like that functioned was like watching a particularly beautiful optical illusion fall into place. Path of Exile has consistently delivered on that feeling for me, with that moment of clarity being repeated dozens of times across the many leagues I’ve played and mechanics I’ve dug into. It really is addicting.

Are there any highlights from your time playing Path of Exile that stand out in your memory?

The easy answer to this one would be my first level 100, or first hardcore boss kill on something or other. Those moments were certainly awesome, and I’m happy to have achieved them, but the Path of Exile related memory that stands out most clearly to me is the first time someone popped up in my chat thanking me for a build I made, saying it had taken them all the way up to Shaper and they were really happy with it. That feeling, to see someone truly enjoying the game more for me having helped them, is half of why I keep doing this. The answer to the previous question is the other half.

What are your thoughts about the Synthesis Expansion?

Synthesis is for me another Bestiary, and while that initially may not sound like high praise, people who know my channel well may be aware that me and Bestiary have a complicated relationship. Initial implementation has been rocky, but the core systems at play here, both in regards to the memory mapping as well as the synthesized crafting, have interesting things to bring to Path of Exile. I see memory mapping, and more specifically memory collecting, as another iteration to the question of “what can be loot” - back in Bestiary, monsters were loot, in Incursion, temple rooms were, and in this league zones themselves are loot, in a way. I get excited when I see a memory using the Rooftops tileset, since I know that means it will have good density - I get excited when I see that perfect set of connections I need for my next goal mapping. That is incredibly neat, but the system is so potentially incredible in terms of value generation, that getting it to be appropriately rewarding isn’t an easy task. After the 3.6.3 Patch, I think the mechanic is in a much better, more forgiving position - I just hope that if the system goes core, it doesn’t get as pared down as my initial comparison of Bestiary.

Is there anything you'd like to see more of in the streaming community?

I want to see more growth in areas of community oriented events. The recent races organized by Kammell_ which I’ve had the privilege of casting have been great, and Method and Zizaran have been doing a great job pushing competitive events as well - but casting that net wider and encouraging more competitive participation by the community at large is always something I’m going to push. In fact, the most recent race organized by Kammell_ was open registration, with prizes handed out by base class, so if you’ve ever considered getting into competitive POE, I’d highly suggest giving it a go, be you a streamer or just an avid player. I don’t have any insight on when the next race in that format might be, but it was enough of a success that I certainly see it being revisited.

Do you have any advice for people who are looking to make their own career out of streaming?

Work on the core of your product first, accessories second. If you have a functional webcam that doesn’t look like staring through a pint glass and a mic better than two tin cans and a string, you can start. Do not drop hundreds of dollars on top of the line equipment before you’re sure that you’re providing an entertaining stream people will stick around for - cause if you’re not, no one will. Even if your mic sounds like it was crafted by angels and your webcam is projecting you holographically into their room, in the end you need to be providing something worth watching on that beautiful camera, and listening to from that microphone. So, before you dive all in with soundproofing and pro gear, practice in front of a mic a few dozen or hundred times. Then, realize that even if you do everything right, you’re gonna have to do it all right a few hundred times more before you’re anywhere near doing it for money, since time is the most important final ingredient to making this or almost anything work. Be prepared to stream at a loss, as a hobby, for years - if that's not something you’re in a position to do, streaming may not be a viable career path.

Are there any up and coming streamers that you'd like to shine a spotlight on?

A few folks you may have heard of, but should give a look if you haven’t - Thi3n, who is very good at wringing the last bit of efficiency out his time spent in the game, often achieving more than me in the course of a league while also holding down a fulltime job outside of it. SuitSizeSmall, who is one of the guys you have to thank for having lab layouts every day over on PoeLab. Kammell_, who organizes the races we hold every month and is quite a good racer himself to boot, and CatmasterOP and BalorMage who co-host a podcast called Fated Connections thats been a good time whenever I’ve been invited on.

What hobbies or interests do you have outside of streaming?

Nowadays, there isn’t all that much outside of streaming that I find time to do. I’ve been following a few bands pretty closely, and going out with my brother to concerts whenever I can afford the time, just recently taking a trip to see Vulfpeck in NYC, which was awesome. I say that was recent though, and if I recall correctly it was all the way back in November, so that gives you an idea of how often I get out. I do still keep up with competitive League of Legends, and watching the lead-up to LEC and NA LCS finals recently has been how I’ve fallen asleep every night. Aside from that, Path of Exile, eat, sleep, repeat.

How has your life changed from before you were streaming until now? What role has streaming played in that transition?

Streaming has been instrumental in teaching me the value of consistency, as well as helping me to build a stronger work ethic. Something I struggled with growing up was finding something that would hold my attention for long enough for me to truly get great at it, rather than just decent. I ended up with a passing knowledge of a dozen subjects, and a practical knowledge of none of them. It was really when I decided to push myself to streaming, and online broadcast in general, that I spent a lot of time working on one thing, and it has helped provide me the tools to apply that sort of consistency elsewhere in my life. I certainly can’t say I’ve perfected it yet, and my stream schedule still sometimes reflects those flaws - but it has helped, and is helping, immensely. Streaming really gave me something to be, sappy as that might sound.

What's one thing every Path of Exile player should hear?

You’re never truly broke in Path of Exile, because every zone is a stepping stone to the next. Every league, every player starts from nothing. A run of bad luck, an unfortunate choice of build, a dry spell of map drops - it can feel terrible in the moment, but everyone gets to guardian maps from tier ones. Everyone gets to tier ones from twilight strand. The game is designed to drop loot, and designed to be progressed through, and making that realisation has more than once helped me with getting through a dry map spell in SSF or something similar. Just don’t make it a competition with how others are doing, and you’ll be free to progress and enjoy the progression as you go.

Do you have any projects on the horizon you'd like to talk about?

Later this league, once trade SC starts to lose some lustre, and I feel like I want a fresh start, I’m planning on attempting my first SSFHC uber Elder kill. I don’t have a hard date narrowed down for that yet, but I’m already thinking of which builds I want to approach the challenge with, and am excited for giving it a try. First though, I gotta figure out how this whole Synthesis thing works post patch.
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Thank you so much for participating in the interview! If you'd like to follow Octavian, you can do so on Twitter, YouTube, and Twitch.

As part of our ongoing Streamer Interview news series, we spoke with Uberelite about his experiences with Path of Exile. He's been playing since 2012 and is a long time member of the racing community.

Hi Uber, thank you for taking part in the interview! Please introduce yourself.

Thanks for having me! I’m theuberelite, also known as Uber. I'm 27 and have been a PC gamer for more than half my life at this point. Most people know me as someone that plays a lot of minion builds, though I'll play other things from time to time if they are interesting enough to me!

When did you first get into Path of Exile?

Back in Closed Beta... around 0.9.12 or so I believe. So around the time of Kripp playing Path of Exile for the first time. I had heard about the game before that from another friend but didn't try it as it was shortly after Diablo 3 came out and I was clinging to the hope that Diablo 3 would be good.

What one thing caught your attention in the beginning and what one thing kept you coming back?

The customization available with the tree, gems, and builds... the racing was also something interesting back then for me as well. I distinctly remember seeing spreadsheets for racing from a person named NotThat, also known as PandaMajere, and it was something that after I had played a few builds decided to pursue.

What are the biggest differences you notice between now and when you started in terms of both the game and the community?

Well, the game is much faster, that's for sure. The community difference that I notice is that there's a lot more people that speak from the softcore perspective, which is a good thing -- beats the hardcore elitism that plagued the forums and such for a long time. Though it bothers me a bit when I see people say things like “Pantheons are useless!” when they honestly aren’t.

The other thing with the game is the tools outside of the game have made it much easier to optimize builds and come up with new things -- in particular, Path of Building. Not necessarily a terrible thing either, as Path of Building is still not necessarily easy to use, and you find people that have too many things checked off that aren't reliable. Path of Building has also made the game much more accessible and without it, I doubt we would be as fast as we are at discovering builds.

What is your perspective on racing in Path of Exile back in the day compared to now?

Back in the day races happened at a lot of different times, and you'd have a lot of random people who worked for different goals, full clearing sidezones for rewards and such. It was interesting since it almost gave racers different "categories" in the same way as speedrunning does. It's kind of a shame that that's not really around much anymore.

If there's one thing from those days that I'd love to return, it's the races where you really couldn't practice for, nor can you play at all normally -- which made the experience fresh in a way. Things like Endless Ledge, and even more so, Descent. I really miss those races, but given how much the game has changed since they were last run, I'm sure it would take a lot of work to bring back something like Descent to even work properly. I'm having flashbacks to the time where Endless Ledge had no mobs and only bosses in the zones...

That said, I definitely like the races that are being held now, and the recent race held by Kammell was interesting to talk about with the other racers. The general consensus is that the results didn't show any clear "best build" which is a very good sign -- and there was a ton of skill variety in that race, which made it very fun to both participate in and watch.

When did you first start streaming? How did you get into it?

I streamed from time to time in a few different gaming communities but never too much. Even back before twitch was a thing, in the own3d tv days. Even on Path of Exile, I streamed from time to time (especially during races when my internet wasn't being bad), but I didn't really start taking it seriously until during the Path of Exile 2.0 beta. Various real life things made me stop trying for a while -- until Essence league about 3 years ago, and I've been going strong ever since. As for how I got into it, I honestly can’t even remember other than doing a few things on Youtube leading to it.

What can people expect from your stream and schedule?

Recently I've been streaming a LOT of summoner gameplay, though I'll also play more than just summoner when I find or come up with a build that interests me enough. Lately I've been trying to do a lot of different experimental minion builds to try some new things, such as champion dancing duo, though I've been a big fan of Zombies in the current patch. I try to stream starting from about noon EST every day, though it varies based off if I wake up early or late.

What were you doing before you started streaming?

Finishing my CS degree, and for a short time I was actually working on trying to go pro in the FPS genre (before Path of Exile, even). I worked a couple online jobs here and there as well, though nothing that ever really stuck for more than a year.

Are there any highlights from your time playing Path of Exile that stand out in your memory?

In particular I really liked my runs of Summon Raging Spirits in the first Turmoil/Mayhem race, even though I finished second in both. That was a time where CI was considered the meta, and there I was somehow having 9k life with a rare astral plate. It's worth noting that I wasn't even initially planning on Baron in the Mayhem race, nor did I have a plan for it if it did drop. I made that build on the fly, so to get second in that race to 100 honestly felt great. Even if it started my string of 6 rank 2 overall finishes in a row.

Another one was the old Searing Bond build, TankyTotems, played in the 1 week Domination/Nemesis league. I think a lot of people don't know that was actually me as well. I remember by the time I logged out to get sleep, even though I had been playing solo almost the whole time (with the exception of carrying Helmannn for a bit through act 2 and 3 in merciless after I passed him), I was literally double the XP of rank 2. Although I didn't even finish top 20 in the end for a lot of reasons, the results showed in Invasion league with almost everyone leveling with Searing Bond.

You're somewhat known for making unique character builds. Do you have a method you follow when experimenting with a new build?

Most of the time it comes from one idea, or a combination of ideas used to utilize a new mechanic. I have a thing with memorizing weird mechanics which generally aren’t useful at the time, but later on end up being useful. I usually get a sort of baseline for the build, and it takes me a few iterations before I really get something good. And not all of my builds are successful in the end, but it's nice to try them -- experience is important because what might be bad one league might be decent the next one due to changes, new items, and even just the way the league works.

It's also worth noting in this regard that a change that affects one build negatively might affect another positively. My thought process in coming up with Vaal Storm Call was "man it sucks that duration increases the cooldown on my Vaal Haste now... but wait... does it work in reverse? Would the Storm Call enchant work?" and then I remembered Soul Catcher existed because of reliquary keys, Bloodstained Fossils introduced with Delve, and immediately got to work.

Sometimes I'll get some ideas from others and try to improve upon them or build them a little differently, though. Insobyr is one person who I can say also makes a lot of great, interesting builds, and has inspired a few of the weirder ones such as Blink/Mirror Arrow Summoner. He also inspired me to try a Chaos Animate Weapon in Essence league.

Do you have a favourite build that you've created?

Easily Animate Weapon. A lot of different ones, so it's a bit hard to narrow it down to one. The elemental one that I played in Invasion/Beyond was where things really got started and I doubled as both a support build and a single target carry -- since bosses usually took quite some time it was weird to see a build that would kill them in a matter of seconds, and Animate Weapon was one of those builds. The one from Beyond league also got Build of the Week, though it unfortunately died 30% away from 100 in Hardcore -- the same fate that the one I made during Darkshrine league had 30% away from 100 as well. (Build of the Week S03E12)

That build, I could really go on about for ages -- it was very hard to play effectively, but was top tier for the people that could play it well. This is sort of reflected by the popularity of it in the Breach league, where United in Dream was strong enough to the point that you could use spell totem or cast while channeling in order to deal with the clunkiness of self casting the skill which slowed it down.

What are your thoughts about the Legion Expansion?

Legion has honestly been very fun even though I've died a lot this league. We have way more defensive options available to us. Even though the league is fairly rippy, it's quite possible to get the defensives you need to survive some of the crazy things that are thrown at you in the league.

The clear side of things for the monoliths are a good example of why aggressive minion AI isn’t always a good thing, since aggressive minions generally won’t stick to a rare monster that you want to break out. Well, unless you have amazing damage on said minion.

The multiway fights are fun, although it kind of is unfortunate Headhunter dominates it so much. I just run them anyways because it's a great way to put your character to the test -- still working on a high end character for trying some 5 way battles, though. I like to look at it similarly to Delve, but in a much more offensive oriented manner. In Delve, you tend to want more defensives in order to survive the crazy damage scaling, whereas in the Legion multiway fights you tend to want more damage in order to kill bosses faster.

And the jewels... they're actually really interesting. I really enjoy them -- they have a lot of interesting side effects and they're quite hard to build around sometimes, and finding good ones feels great. Even reworking your tree to fit in a jewel and taking clusters you wouldn't normally take is really interesting to me. I spent a few hours a while ago just optimizing my tree for a jewel that I had because it caused me to take nodes in a spot that I normally wouldn’t.

What would you like to see in future leagues?

Support for animate weapon in endgame encounters? :^)

On a serious answer, in terms of league mechanics I think something that's a little more boss killing focused and less clear speed oriented is good. The boss design in the last few leagues has been amazing. Kurgal, in particular, is one that still sticks in my mind to this day as one of my favourite boss fight experiences.

Is there anything you'd like to see more of in the streaming community?

One thing that I wanted to see a little more of is collaborations between streamers to, say, min-max a build. It's an idea that I actually had a while back, as usually it ends up being the works of more than 1 person. It's also interesting to see how different people approach builds and what they would change, and this is even more the case before the league starts, especially in this one where the tree changed so drastically that everyone had different opinions on pathing.

Do you have any advice for people who are looking to make their own career out of streaming?

Social media stuff is good. Youtube content is good. Just make sure you take care of yourself and stay hydrated. But keep doing what you enjoy!

What hobbies or interests do you have outside of streaming?

I watch anime from time to time, though I've been giving myself less time to do that recently because I usually just end up posting memes while I'm offstream, whether it be on reddit or another streamer's chat.

How has your life changed from before you were streaming until now? What role has streaming played in that transition?

The biggest thing that I've noticed is that I have a lot more motivation to do things, and I've been able to give myself a much better schedule -- even if it's not exact every single day, I've stayed fairly close to it. Turns out enjoying what you do is a great thing to have!

What is one thing you think every Path of Exile player should hear?

PLEASE report your bugs in the bug report forums! If the devs don't know that a bug exists, how can they fix it? Providing them with any details, character names, what skills you're using, what’s happening around the time a crash happens, any information can help them. Also using /bug for layout generation stuff is very useful.

Also don't use cast on damage molten shell if you're using vaal molten shell. It's not fun to have an 8,000 absorption shield that lasts 10 seconds only to have it be overwritten by a 2,000 absorption shield, causing you to die… Not that I'm speaking from experience or anything...

Do you have any projects on the horizon you'd like to talk about?

I'm currently working on reviving my Youtube with a bunch of summoner information, part of the reason I'm playing so many different summoners this league. I feel that part of the issue with summoners right now isn't as much that I feel they are underpowered, but that people do not understand how they work, and aren't aware of the various tricks you can utilize to almost abuse their AI in a way.
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Thank you so much for participating in the interview! If you'd like to see more from Uber, check him out on Twitter, YouTube or Twitch.

In continuation of our Streamer Interview news series, we reached out to Chistor, a popular streamer from our Russian community, to talk about his streaming career and history of playing Path of Exile.

Hi, thank you for taking part in the interview! Please introduce yourself.

Hello, my name is Stanislav, known as Chistor. I stream on twitch.tv. Nice to meet you.

How long have you been streaming for? How did you get into it?

I started streaming in 2015. In 2012, following the release of Diablo 3, one of my teammates gave me a link to the channel of some guy called Kripparrian, he was pushing for the world first hardcore Diablo kill. Prior to that, I didn't even know it was possible to broadcast games and interact with viewers live, that blew my mind.

I didn't have a chance to try out streaming back then as the internet in my city was really bad, so I kept studying in university, doing a few sporting activities, playing random games and online poker when I had free time.

Then, a couple of years later my internet improved and streaming became possible in rather ok quality, so I decided to give it a go. At this point, I wanted to quit online poker, even though it was going pretty well, but that was something I didn't want to do in my life, so I cashed out all of my money from my poker account and made a streaming setup with it. I didn't have any plans or expectations of it, the idea was - if I play video games, why not also stream it.

What can people expect from your stream? What kind of schedule do you follow?

I treat my viewers as a group of friends. We play games together and have fun, anybody is welcome to become part of it.

You can find me online at twitch.tv/chistor_ from midday to evening (CET) every day with very few days off. At the start of every league I push on stream non-stop. I stream in Russian but also do speak English, so feel free to chat and ask questions, as I always tend to help players with figuring out the game.

In terms of content, you can expect pretty much anything - exploring new league content, making different fun or effective builds, pushing endgame, testing new strategies, checking out some interesting game releases and so on. Whatever is fun and enjoyable. There's no limit for types of content.

How and when did you find out about Path of Exile?

You may guess - Kripparrian played it on stream. That was the first time I found out about Path of Exile, haven't had a lot of free time during those days, was watching Kripp more than playing it myself.

What was the moment that got you hooked on the game?

I returned to Diablo 3 to try out its new seasons system in February 2015, during Season 2 and started streaming it. A few months later someone told me about this game called Path of Exile, which was getting official localization in CIS by Garena. At this point I stopped watching Kripparrian long ago, as he became a Hearthstone streamer and also hadn't played Path of Exile for a long time, so it was pretty much a fresh start for me.

Was switching between PoE leagues and Diablo 3 seasons back and forth. As the time passed by, D3 was receiving less and less updates, while Path of Exile started rapidly improving. Eventually I knew Path of Exile was coming a long way, so I quit Diablo 3 and made Path of Exile my main game for streaming. Now that I look back, that was probably the best streaming decision I made.

What hooked me about the game is its non-linearness in terms of character customisation, content and updates philosophy.

Path of Exile developers seemed to be really open minded, not afraid to try out new things and do risky moves, which is really rare for gaming industry nowadays. So I thought, game designers with such passion won't sit back and watch their game decay. I put my hopes on them and wasn't disappointed.

Also, it's worth mentioning that the Path of Exile Atlas and maps system is one of the best endgame systems that I've seen in any ARPG so far.

What are the top highlights from your time streaming Path of Exile?

I enjoyed Delve the most. Exploring the mechanics of that league and adventuring through endless depths for the first time made the best moments for me. I really hope this idea will be evolved in the future. Endless randomly generated content with increasing difficulty is one of many aspects that make ARPG's fun in my opinion. If it feels like a small game inside of a game, then it's made well.

Is streaming your full time job? If so, what were you doing for work prior to streaming?

Yes, I have been streaming full time for almost three years now.

As I mentioned earlier, I was studying and doing some other activities prior to that.

What hobbies or interests do you have outside of streaming?

I enjoy listening to music, watching movies and TV series, reading books, swimming and camping in the wild.

I like learning new science, logistics and sociology facts. My favorite topic is space colonization.

I also like architecture and history - especially about Roman Republic.

I have a few other small hobbies that I used to enjoy but haven't had much time for and might eventually get back to is basketball, tennis and painting.

If you could say one thing that every Path of Exile player should hear, what would it be?

That is a really important topic, in my opinion. I'd point out several things.

As a new player, don't let yourself be overwhelmed by diving into every game aspect all at once. Take it step by step. Path of Exile's world is much wider than you might expect as a newcomer.

Also, when you watch a streamer or youtuber, and his character is better and faster than yours, he farms more currency than you or whatever else might upset you, don't worry about that. Play your own game, work on your character, enjoy your achievements and remember, when you start exploring something new, it's the funnest time, don't rush it, enjoy the moment. Eventually you will get to desired knowledge and skill level.

And one more - don't get used to the meta, a certain build or strategy for too long - balance shifts frequently in Path of Exile, nothing stays OP forever, not even the Occultist.

How much pressure is involved in being a streamer? How do you manage it? How has streaming affected your life?

I wouldn't call it pressure, more of a responsibility. When people open Twitch, they want to have fun and as a streamer you should be there to facilitate that.

The first year after I got partnered I was pretty much no-lifing it. I wanted to give it my maximum effort and see what happens. It went well and improved with every league, which is actually still surprising to me. Nowadays I'm trying to find a balance between life and gaming, which is hard if you are a game nerd. I push hard at the start of every league or interesting game release and then have stable schedule to keep content "stream" flowing as I enjoy it.

There are many new streamers looking to make their way in the Path of Exile community. What advice do you have for them?

As a new streamer, if you want to take it seriously, you will have to try harder than everyone else nowadays to get somewhere.

Think about what can make your stream special and work on making this aspect noticeable, master it and then start thinking what you can add up to expand your spectrum of content.

Also, always be real and honest with your viewers.

Every day think what you can do better, even if it's something small. Don't get trapped in the "everything is good enough" feeling if you want to grow.

Interact with viewers, keep self-improving, try different things and don't forget to have fun on stream, otherwise it's not worthwhile!

Is there anyone you want to give a shout out to?

I would like to give special thanks to Kripparrian for introducing me to Path of Exile and streaming, Stronkdota aka Alexander_GGG that we were cooperating with since Garena days, Arthas and Silvername for bringing many new players to the CIS PoE community, Zizaran and Quin69 for being great people and streamers, Grinding Gear Games team for creating and supporting this amazing game for us. I would also like to mention the Russian community content creators - Cursedone, Golaya, NoobNation, Pathofexilebota and of course Rebyatke - no joke, best viewers on twitch.tv! Shout out to the whole Path of Exile community, you all are great!

Do you have any projects on the horizon you want to share with the community?

A lot is coming. I have many ideas and plans for the future. Will be implementing them when the time comes.

Also I'm moving to a new place soon, so that I can finally have the best streaming quality and then will start working on other interesting things. Really excited about the future and upcoming Path of Exile updates. Thanks for having me and best of luck to everyone reading this!
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Thank you so much for participating in the interview! If you'd like to see more from Chistor, check him out on Twitch or YouTube.

In continuation of our streamer interview news series, we took a moment to talk to community streamer, Brittleknee, to find out more about what her streaming life is like and more behind the scenes info!

Hi Brittleknee, thank you for taking part in the interview! Please introduce yourself.

Hi, Bex! Thanks for having me. I’m so excited! My name is Liz, but for the most part I tend to stick to Brittle onstream/ingame. I grew up in Florida and still currently reside here. I've been playing video games for most of my life, though I grew up on Quake, Doom, Unreal, CS:S, SK etc, rather than consoles. These days I’m enjoying the Path of Exile life immensely. I’m only about 7.2k hours in, which is still a baby in some circles, but this game has been my ‘home’ for a few years now, and I’m still just as passionate about the game as ever.

When did you first start streaming? How did you get into it?

Though there were a few odd streams prior, I started consistently streaming in July of 2018, so we're coming up on two years already, which is hard to believe! I was encouraged by a friend to start streaming as a way to reconnect to the world and ended up enjoying it far more than I anticipated. What started as a challenge to prove to them I wasn’t a total hermit and still had mild social skills quickly turned into a very endearing road back to some semblance of normalcy for me in the aftermath of what was a very trying time.

When did you first get into Path of Exile?

I first started playing Path of Exile in 2013, but my free time for hobbies were pretty sparse then. I returned to Harbinger League to see what had changed in the meantime. After getting a little too intense in the Mythic+ scene in WoW, I needed something that was content-dense, but approachable in my own time. Path of Exile seemed like the perfect fit. There was heaps to learn, it had build decisions that felt meaningful, and that skill tree, my goodness.

What can people expect from your stream and schedule?

When visiting the stream, you can expect an inclusive and encouraging community, full of helpful and friendly folks. It's a really chill, laid-back place. I've done my best to be more of a custodian to my community, rather than its focus. I stream Monday through Friday in the mornings, from 8am EST until 2pm EST. It's great for NA exiles on the morning grind, EU exiles settling in for a cozy afternoon, and if you can't sleep in the Oceanic/AUS/NZ time zones, it's a quiet place to rest your thoughts. On Saturdays we run a ‘Community Day,’ inspired by group drops from MWO, where we all queue up and play together. We'll do Pure Breachstones, Blighted Maps, Legion Battles and more. Last league we were able to help over 250 exiles with their 5-slot map device unlocks through a concentrated community effort.

What do you think the most important elements are when it comes to building a community?

Consistency and approachability, I’d say. Consistency can be everything from the times you stream to how you conduct yourself during the stream itself. How you handle new players can also have a larger overall implication for the community as well, and that doesn’t mean stopping everything to answer every single question a newer player may have. There are people who will try to use you as a replacement for Google, but there’s value in recognizing and cultivating players who are hungry for the game, and connecting them to the resources they need. Knowing how to properly facilitate and moderate discussion goes a long way, too. People are certainly allowed to have their own opinions but keeping discussion productive and constructive can help unite the community even if they don’t see eye to eye on certain issues.

What would you most like to see for the Path of Exile Racing community in the future?

I think the future of racing will require GGG to turn their focus back to racing in a big way. Over the last year my team and I have made substantial headway alongside race organizers to progress the racing scene from a casual weekend event to something thousands tune in for when hosted. We were able to push racing to be something that had value again, not only in its ability to showcase the game but also unite the larger community. The future of racing will rest on the ability to make racing more approachable, rather than exclusive. Esport teams and invitationals are a great way to showcase the best of the best, but there's currently a large divide between those who wish to get into racing, and those who are established racers. I think one of the main ways to remove the divide between these two demographics of players is to split the private league system into Racing and Longer-Term Leagues. Race leagues would have very short durations by comparison, with most being active for 6-36 hours. Integration of certain features currently in-game or in-development could expand the options available as well. Being able to create a character and wait on the coast would be immensely useful for race starts, since right now someone just counts down in a global channel. The boss ladder developed for the Awakener Event could be used alongside options where creators could select which boss the race would end at. Integration of existing mods such as Turbo/Life/Damage would still allow for additional race customization. A mid-sized community race in the current system costs over $150/1500 points and that's fairly prohibitive, especially when you're trying to crowdfund a prize pool as well as a smaller community race organizer who isn’t backed by sponsors. More people organizing and hosting races means more people racing, more people racing means more competition and more competition drives new strategies and further optimization all the way up the ladder to the very best.

How did you pick your channel name?

In what is generally regarded as a bad move, I went in on a stopper that was twice my size. My knee moved, and her shin did not. My days as a left winger were effectively over. So, I have a brittle knee in real life, even after surgery. It's been my gaming handle for over 10 years now. Seemed a straightforward enough choice to use my handle.

What were you doing before you started streaming?

I was a paramedic, though I still maintain all my licenses in case I wish to return to the field. The collective stress over years of public service can really put a lot of wear and tear on your person, mentally and physically. Eventually it built up and I had to make the difficult decision to leave my career and rebuild. I’m finding ways through streaming to still contribute, though, as we recently did a fundraiser for The Code Green Campaign, and raised over $4,000 to help connect First Responders to the mental health resources they need in times of crisis.

What one thing caught your attention in the beginning and what one thing kept you coming back?

I remember seeing the passive tree for the first time and just being inspired by the level of customization offered. Build/character decisions had become pretty eroded in the other games I was playing at the time, and I was craving that level of complexity. The difficulty of Path of Exile was something else that drew me in, as these decisions became more meaningful as a build progressed through leveling to end-game. I liked having to look up items and look for interactions to either push damage or survivability. I’m still learning so much every day, too, and I love it. Since I came back to the game in 3.0, I haven’t stopped playing Path of Exile. I’ve played every league to its very last day.

Are there any highlights from your time playing Path of Exile that stand out in your memory?

I have not made a lot of youtube content in general, but publishing the “How to Choose” video to Reddit/Youtube was very rewarding. I was absolutely terrified of how it would be received, but I thought that maybe if I could get the message to even just 100 people, I would be happy. I used to be a preceptor for paramedic students, and I put a high priority in guiding my students through the mental processes to think critically, rather than just be what is considered a “cookbook” medic. Gather as much information as you can, use the knowledge you have to categorize and group the signs and symptoms you observe/record, then rule out based on non-invasive tests available to you. The ‘How to Choose’ video was an attempt at introducing that teaching method to Path of Exile content. While there’s some things I’d change about it if I could remake it now, I think it was a good first attempt and the response to the video was very heartwarming.

Is there anything you'd like to see more of in the streaming community?

I think there’s a corner of the internet for everyone. Every streamer has something unique to offer in either their playstyle, community, ideas or otherwise. I’m not sure I’d really necessarily say there’s something I wish I saw out of streamers, because everyone should make the content they’re the most comfortable/proficient at. Some are really, really good at the game. Others are really, really good at creating communities. I think despite some obvious blemishes, Path of Exile has a great community as a whole, from the streamers and content creators, to the players and viewers. A few minutes in certain other games or streams make it fairly obvious we have something special here. I just wish sometimes at the end of the day, we all would just take a deep breath and remember we’re all people and try and see across our differences and empathize a bit more. We should actively work to preserve what makes this larger community one of the best out there.

Do you have any advice for people who are looking to make their own career out of streaming?

Don’t compromise your brand for anything. Much like your integrity, it is something that you have sole control over. People will try to tell you what to do to be more successful and how to go about doing it, and some of this advice will even be good advice backed by numbers, logic, and reason. It's perfectly acceptable to forgo this advice to shape your community on your terms. I can’t tell you how many people told me I would only be successful if I used a webcam. Constant, steady growth on your terms and comfort level will always yield a community you are proud of and enjoy being around. People will look after you, too. Sometimes it will be hard, and you’ll struggle. You’ll want to cave in and do X like every other streamer is doing. However, when the light shines on you and you’re recognized for your consistency, work, and dedication, it is so, so much more rewarding than any metric spike. I was virtually unknown for something I dedicated a solid year of my life to quietly (racing development), and having that pay off by being invited to talk about it on Baeclast was far more rewarding to me personally than my brief time on the front page of Twitch.

Are there any up and coming streamers that you'd like to shine a spotlight on?

Though not a new streamer, Sefearion is a dear friend and has been in my corner since the beginning of this journey. I don’t know where I’d be without him. Enki, the author of what is easily the most iconic Path of Exile build guide to date is streaming and deserves love for helping so many people approach the game for the first time. SuitSizeSmall remains vastly underrated for the amount of work he does for the community at large making sure the lab notes are up to date. Woolfio is another streamer/creator that I think is just brilliant in his exploration of non-meta build ideas and interactions. Others I would recommend are AphelionPath of Exile, Tryxt, Mairian, and Arkaynan.

What hobbies or interests do you have outside of streaming?

Gardening, Cooking, Hiking, and Camping. I enjoy horticulture, and greatly treasure the ability to work with ingredients from the start to the end of their respective life cycles. I volunteer and have volunteered at a number of co-op and urban farms where I reside, and even kept bees for several establishments here, hence the Bee emotes in my channel. I also love experimenting with different food/cooking techniques, from fermentation, pickling, dry-aging and curing. As far as hiking and camping, in Florida it's a great way to connect to a lot of the natural history here, but I love hiking and camping in the Blue Ridge mountains.There’s just something about the greater area that just resonates with me. I haven’t seen much of the world, admittedly, so I’d love the opportunity to connect to the foods, ingredients, people and landscapes of new cultures and places in the future if life allows.

How has your life changed from before you were streaming until now? What role has streaming played in that transition?

Having to walk away from a career in your late 20s that you thought you’d work in until you retired was devastating. It's all I had known for most of my “adult” life. When I started streaming, I had nothing. I had moved home and was helping around the house by looking after a special needs family member. I started streaming in the mornings and over time the stream was successful enough that I was able to move back out, get my own place, get my feet back under me, and start to take control of my life back step by step. I don’t know what the future holds, as I truly believe I’m a far better asset and much more productive as a part of a team than on my own, but for now streaming has shown me that my usefulness to the world did not end back in 2017, much like it felt at the time.

What is one thing you think every Path of Exile player should hear?

The first hundred, even the first few hundred hours should be treated like a sandbox. Try and learn what you like as far as playstyles and skills and don’t be afraid to make mistakes. If you need to be right before you play, you’ll never get better at the game. Experience trumps perfection. The larger problem within the game’s overall culture right now is there is an endemic fear of being inefficient or making a mistake in what character to leaguestart, what farm to focus on, what gear to buy, etc. Everyone is afraid of these consequences to the point of frantic paranoia, and I hate seeing new players get swept up in it. Path of Exile is one of the most content-dense games out there, with the ability to specialize how you spend your time and really tailor it to your own temperament, skill level, and enjoyment. Don’t be paralyzed by the fear of failure, and don’t let others decide for you how you should enjoy the game.

Do you have any projects on the horizon you'd like to talk about?

On the horizon for racing development, we’re really wanting to work in an armory-like function to the casting tool, so that during races we can display at-a-glance what a racer has equipped. From a casting standpoint this is really important because it's so difficult to keep track of everything. You may see the flash of a unique on a loot filter or watch someone ID boots and miss the mouseover, but to then go and scrape that information from a profile causes a delay in getting that information out to the viewers. There’s a lot of challenges with this idea, though we’ve largely figured out how we want to display the information. We’ve looked at how other games display gear loadouts and while it would be easy to iframe the profile page (though I think this functionality is currently prevented), we would prefer it if we could import this data directly into a predetermined format that didn’t require mouseover and hover functionality.
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Thank you so much for participating in the interview! If you'd like to see more from Brittleknee, check her out on Twitter, YouTube or Twitch.

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