Black Abbey

The Black Abbey of Kilkenny, Ireland, is a Catholic priory of the Dominican Order, dedicated to the Holy and Undivided Trinity. Black Abbey was established in 1225 as one of the first houses of the Dominican Order in Ireland.

The history of the Black Abbey is marked by several reversals of fortune under different governments.

Name

The name Black Abbey derives from the use of the term "Black Friars" to describe members of the Dominican Order. This in turn derives from the black cappa or cloak which Dominicans wear over their white habits.

Site

When the priory was founded the 13th century, the town of Kilkenny was divided in two parts by the Bregach River. One part was occupied mainly by indigenous Irish and the other by English settlers. The Dominicans established the priory between those two towns and outside the city walls, because they wished to show their independence from either side.

In practical terms, the site chosen for the priory presented challenges, because ever since the priory was established, right up to the present time, the buildings are subject to annual flooding from the river.

The Black

The Black is a rock band from Austin, Texas that formed in 2002 when singer/songwriter David Longoria began collaborating with drummer Andy Morales. The two were later joined by renowned guitarist Alan Schaefer (son of famous guitar maker Ed Schaefer) and Nick Moulos of the Austin band The Crackpipes.

History

The group began playing regularly at Emo's and house parties until Schaefer moved to France to teach English in 2004. Longoria joined major label act ...And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead during the band's hiatus, his first performance with them on the Late Show with David Letterman in January 2005. Schaefer joined the rest of the band to support Trail of Dead on their European Worlds Apart tour. During the tour Trail of Dead was the band's backing band for a handful of shows.

Their full-length album Tanglewood was recorded in 2004 and released the spring of 2005 on their own record label K Woo.

The band's next release, titled Donna, was released in the summer of 2007.

Final Fantasy

Final Fantasy (ファイナルファンタジー, Fainaru Fantajī) is a science fiction and fantasy media franchise created by Hironobu Sakaguchi, and developed and owned by Square Enix (formerly Square). The franchise centers on a series of fantasy and science fantasy role-playing video games (RPGs). The eponymous first game in the series, published in 1987, was conceived by Sakaguchi as his last-ditch effort in the game industry; the title was a success and spawned sequels. The video game series has since branched into other genres such as tactical role-playing, action role-playing, massively multiplayer online role-playing, racing, third-person shooter, fighting, rhythm and anime.

Although most Final Fantasy installments are stand-alone stories with different settings and main characters, they feature identical elements that define the franchise. Recurring elements include plot themes, character names, and game mechanics. Plots center on a group of heroes battling a great evil while exploring the characters' internal struggles and relationships. Character names are frequently derived from the history, languages, pop culture, and mythologies of cultures worldwide.

Final Fantasy XV

Final Fantasy XV (Japanese: ファイナルファンタジーXV, Hepburn: Fainaru Fantajī Fifutīn) is an upcoming action role-playing video game being developed and published by Square Enix for the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, and currently scheduled for a worldwide release in 2016. It is the fifteenth main installment in the Final Fantasy series, and forms part of the Fabula Nova Crystallis subseries, which also includes Final Fantasy XIII and Final Fantasy Type-0. Originally a PlayStation 3-exclusive spin-off titled Final Fantasy Versus XIII, it is a major departure from previous games, providing a darker atmosphere that focuses on more realistic human characters than previous entries. The game features an open-world environment and action-based battle system similar to the Kingdom Hearts series and Type-0, incorporating the ability to switch weapons and other elements such as vehicle travel and camping.

The game takes place in a world similar to modern-day Earth, where all the world's countries bar the kingdom of Lucis are under the dominion of the empire of Niflheim. Noctis Lucis Caelum, heir to the Lucian throne—having gained magical power from a near-death experience—is driven from his home when Niflheim invades Lucis on the eve of peace negotiations between the two nations. Now on the run with his companions, Noctis begins to work towards defeating the forces of Niflheim and rescuing the crystal from their control.

Dragon's Dogma

Dragon's Dogma (Japanese: ドラゴンズドグマ, Hepburn: Doragonzu Doguma) is a 2012 action role-playing video game developed and published by Capcom. The game features an open world fantasy setting, in addition to hack and slash gameplay elements. The game was directed by Hideaki Itsuno and includes other staff members who worked on previous Capcom game series, including Resident Evil, Devil May Cry, and Breath of Fire.

Following the game's positive critical reception, Capcom stated it would consider a possible sequel in the future, with Dragon's Dogma Online later being announced in January 2015. A version for Microsoft Windows, ported over by QLOC, was released on January 15, 2016.

Gameplay

The player is able to select between various vocations: Fighter, Strider, Mage, Warrior, Mystic Knight, Ranger, Assassin, Sorcerer, and Magic Archer. Gender choice and appearance settings are also available. The vocation, or class system, changes gameplay and tactical options available to the player. For example, the Fighter has abilities that focus on hack and slash combat (with a move-set similar to Capcom's Devil May Cry) and the Strider is skilled at climbing large enemies (like in Shadow of the Colossus).