"The Curse of the Demon" is a British horror film directed by Jacques Tourneur and released in 1957. The film is based on the short story "Casting the Runes" by M.R. James and tells the story of a skeptical American psychologist, Dr. John Holden, who becomes embroiled in a supernatural plot involving a curse. The film opens with the death of a British colleague of Dr.
Note: this post contains information on Wrath of the Lich King, although it’s mostly mechanical and thus not hugely spoilery.
Blacksmiths, however, can add colorless sockets to their own bracers and gloves, and create Eternal Belt Buckle for players to add a colorless socket to high-level belts. Finally, tertiary-color gems which include only the Void Sphere and Prismatic Sphere will fit into any color slot excluding meta and still activate the slot bonus.
The film opens with the death of a British colleague of Dr. Holden, who had been investigating a cult led by the mysterious Julian Karswell. Dr.
Epic Gems and Jewelcrafting in 3.2
Patch 3.2 brings with it WotLK’s long-awaited epic gems. The item names have been known ever since they were datamined during the beta, but they’ve never been available until now.
What Gems Are There?
There are six new gems, of epic quality.
- Red: Cardinal Ruby
- Yellow: King’s Amber
- Blue: Majestic Zircon
- Orange: Ametrine
- Green: Eye of Zul
- Purple: Dreadstone
What Cuts Are There?
As far as I can tell, based on datamined info from MMO-champion’s internal DB, every uncommon/rare cut in WotLK has an epic equivalent except the prismatic “Enchanted” gems (the ‘all stats’ pearls).
Edit: as of PTR build 10072, there’s now an “all stats” epic gem – the Nightmare Tear, +10 to all stats, unique-equipped, matches any socket, and requires a Dragon’s Eye and 5 Infinite Dust to cut.
The values on the gems are increased by 25-33% over the rare cuts, except with mp5 (which is in line with the boost to mp5 on gear in 3.2). So a +16 attribute rare cut will be a +20 attribute cut in its epic versions.
I’ve revised the Jewelcrafting Quick Reference Sheet: WotLK Edition to include all of these cuts.
This table includes all jewelcrafting gem cuts excluding BoP gems that are JC-only. It is current as of 25 June 09.
If you prefer it in PDF form, you can download a copy here: jc32a.pdf.
Last updated 25 June 09.
What Cuts Aren’t There?
The ‘prismatic’ quality of jewelcrafter-only gems is being removed – the Dragon’s Eye JC-only cuts will now have a specific color. Bold Dragon’s Eyes will be red, Brilliant Dragon’s Eyes will be yellow, and so on.
This will make it harder to meet socket bonuses and meta gem requirements for unpopular gem colors (*cough*blue*cough*), and many people had expressed a hope that Blizzard would add orange, purple and green JC-only gems.
Alas: such things are, so far, absent.
Where Do the Cuts Come From?
As you can see in the images linked above, there are 72 cuts for epic gems.
The patterns are BoP and require 450 Jewelcrafting to learn. They can be purchased from the Dalaran Jewelcrafting trainer, Timothy Jones, for 5 Dalaran Jewelcrafting Tokens each – so you’ll need a whopping 360 tokens to buy ’em all.
Edit: As of 3.2 going live, the patterns cost 4 tokens each, requiring 288 tokens in total.
Where Do the Gems Come From?
Blizzard have made it pretty easy to get epic gems, but nothing’s sure except death and taxes:
Jewelcrafting
You can prospect Titanium Ore for epic gems, although they’re not guaranteed. As a guide, I just did 13 prospects (ie 65 ore’s worth) and got:
- 4 epic gems,
- 3 rare gems,
- 20 uncommon gems, and
- 8 Titanium Powder (which can currently be used for a quest handin on the PTR; according to commenters Catreina and Megree, this rewards 1 Dalaran JC token per 10 powder).
Obviously, this isn’t a big enough sample to get a realistic idea of drop rates; this could have been a very unlucky (or lucky) batch.
Edit: I just did another batch of prospecting (9th July, PTR build 10072) and 350 ore netted me 18 epic gems, 8 blue gems, 99 green gems and 62 titanium powder. This looks like about a 1-in-4 ratio for getting epic gems out of a prospect, which is pretty expensive given the scarcity of titanium; that will likely keep epic gem prices high.
Alchemy
You can transmute all six colors of gem. The transmutes for five of the gems are taught by the Dalaran Alchemy trainer, while the Cardinal Ruby transmute is taught by a quest from the same NPC. It’s a simple quest, requiring you to complete 5 epic gem transmutes of any other color.
Edit: the transmute mats have changed; thanks to Simes for alerting me.
- Red: Cardinal Ruby (mats: 1 Scarlet Ruby, 1 Eternal Fire)
- Yellow: King’s Amber (mats: 1 Autumn’s Glow, 1 Eternal Life)
- Blue: Majestic Zircon (mats: 1 Sky Sapphire, 1 Eternal Air)
- Orange: Ametrine (mats: 1 Monarch Topaz, 1 Eternal Shadow)
- Green: Eye of Zul (mats: 3 Forest Emeralds)
- Purple: Dreadstone (mats: 1 Twilight Opal, 1 Eternal Shadow)
(Edit: Note that the mats for the Eye of Zul have changed again, as of build 10072; thanks to Michelle for the headsup.)
On the PTR the transmutes have no cooldown; however, Blizzard has given stuff a cooldown late in the testing process beforehand, so there’s no guarantee they won’t on this one too. (Edit: they now all share the same 20-hour cooldown timer as the titanium and Eternal elemental transmutes.)
Emblems
You can buy all six colors of epic gem from the Emblem of Heroism Quartermasters in Dalaran; they cost 15 Emblems each. (Edit: red, blue and yellow gems now cost 20 Emblems, and orange, green and purple gems cost 10 Emblems each.)
PvP
You can buy all six colors of epic gem from the Jewelcrafting Quartermaster in the PvP vendor centres in Stormwind and Orgrimmar. They’re currently set at 10,000 honor, which is the same price as rare gems on live servers, so I suspect that price may increase.
Holden dismisses the cult as mere superstition and continues his research on paranormal psychology. However, he soon finds himself targeted by Karswell, who gives him a slip of paper with ancient runes inscribed on it, known as the runes of evil. According to legend, whoever possesses these runes will be stalked by a demon and ultimately meet a gruesome death. Holden initially dismisses the curse as a hoax but soon experiences a series of unsettling events. He begins to see the demon, first as a shadowy figure, then in more tangible form. Despite the efforts of his colleagues and a skeptical friend, Holden becomes convinced that the curse is real and sets out to uncover the truth behind it. As he delves deeper into the mystery, Holden discovers that Karswell is indeed a powerful practitioner of dark arts. With time running out, Holden must use all his psychological expertise to outsmart the cult leader and find a way to break the curse before it's too late. One of the standout features of "The Curse of the Demon" is its atmospheric and suspenseful storytelling. Jacques Tourneur expertly creates an eerie and foreboding atmosphere through the use of lighting, sound effects, and clever cinematography. The demon itself, when finally revealed, is a terrifying and memorable creation, despite its limited screen time. The film explores themes of skepticism, belief, and the power of the supernatural. It raises questions about the nature of evil and the boundaries between reality and the supernatural. As the story progresses, the audience is left wondering whether the curse is a supernatural force or merely a product of Holden's overactive imagination. Overall, "The Curse of the Demon" is a well-crafted horror film that stands the test of time. Its blend of psychological suspense, supernatural elements, and intelligent storytelling make it a compelling watch for fans of the genre. The film serves as a reminder that sometimes the most terrifying things in life are not the monsters that lurk in the dark, but the demons that reside within ourselves.".
Reviews for "Ghostly Visions: The Paranormal Sightings Linked to the Demon Filn"
1. Jane Doe - 2 out of 5 stars - I found "Curse of the Demon" to be incredibly underwhelming. The plot lacked originality and failed to deliver any scares. The acting was subpar, and the characters felt one-dimensional. The pacing was also off, with moments of slow build-up that didn't lead to any satisfying payoffs. Overall, I was extremely disappointed and wouldn't recommend this film to anyone looking for a good horror experience.
2. John Smith - 1 out of 5 stars - "Curse of the Demon" was a complete waste of time. The movie relied heavily on predictable jump scares and cheap horror clichés. The story was convoluted and lacked coherence, making it difficult to follow or feel invested in the outcome. The special effects were laughably bad, and the overall atmosphere felt forced. Save yourself the frustration and skip this film.
3. Sarah Johnson - 2 out of 5 stars - I was expecting great things from "Curse of the Demon," but unfortunately, it fell short of my expectations. The pacing was inconsistent, with slow moments dragging on for too long, while the supposedly tense scenes were rushed and lacked suspense. The writing was weak, with unconvincing dialogue and clichéd plot twists. The ending felt rushed and unsatisfying. While the film had potential, it failed to deliver a truly captivating and horrifying experience.