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There is a certain renaissance of the arts so to speak going on with everything. And a reminder that there are nice people out there...

^ The fact that Neil Gaiman responded and agreed to this makes this twice as amazing.

Sorry, the spoiler tag seems empty. There is nothing there.

Save scumming is a symptom, not a cause. The causes themselves can be diverse -- perceived unfairness (XCOM syndrome), design that rewards it, learned habits on the player's part, etc. So yeah, anything that seeks to address the cause(s) and leads to less time spent looking at progress bars and more time playing the game is a step in the right direction. edit: beaten to the punch. And more eloquently to boot.

@melkathi ad 6. I care, and I enjoy it well with the exception of Durance. He is not as annoying to me, but from his whole spell pool I am using like 6 maybe 7 spells. Which is bad... Other spellcasters’ spell pools are little bit better balanced, but because it is not vancian type of casting, from in each spell level you Just pick the most powerful and cast them all the time. With Ciphers being the most extreme. As soon as I got access to level 6 spells, I am using 90% of the time one spell which spreads circle of water wave and knocks down all enemies in area. For me the most balanced spell pool is for the mage, followed close by druid spell pools. Unfortunatelly I was not able to find out a lot about chanter spells, so I will not comment on their spell pools. Being said all that, PoE is still one of the best wRPG games, I’ve played in last 10 years. Can’t wait to put my hands on PoE2...

My list of things I do not like about PoE: 1. Loading a game: Save Games are not organised based on how recent they are. They are organised by Autosave, then Quicksave, then Manual save. Extremely counter-intuitive when you hit load game and normally would click the top of the list. Not in PoE, you have to scroll and find the save you are looking for. Minor added gripe: while there is a Quicksave key (F5) there is no Quickload which other games with Quicksave so very often have (F9) 2. Saving a game: When manually saving the game, Autosaves and Quicksaves are in the list and can be overwritten. Why? 3. Endurance/Health dual HP system: I do not feel it adds anything to the game other than weakening healer roles and forcing more frequent rests in an effort to force a feel of pressure through a limited camping supply system (which aren't that rare, and even if, you can always leave, rest at Caed Nuad and return fully rested). 4. Engagement / Disengaging: Is a terribly designed system as it only exists to hamstring the player, since so many enemies have been given ways around it with either free disengage or just blinking/teleporting onto Aloth. It gives the impression that a system was created, only for the AI people to realise they couldn't get the AI to understand it and thus the enemies were given ways to avoid it. 5. Prone/Stun/etc spam: I start combat from stealth, and half my team will still end up prone before they land the first attack. Somehow even as the attack animation happens, the enemies get to target and start with a free attack. Which usually will be a stun or paralyze or whatever. While all these abilities can be interesting, their overuse isn't. Fights end up as a "Who paralyzes or dominates or whatever first". 6. Bloat: As already partially mentioned in the previous point: there are so many ways of doing the same thing: I can stun, daze, paralyze. I can slow, hobble... the list of status effects is huge. And a lot of them could be merged into half the number. Then though stats and skills would need to do less, and those too are bloated with things they affect. Which they could without making the game any less interesting. Same goes for spells and similar abilities. At 88 hours I still can't remember what all of Durance's spells do. Not that I care to, since the guy is annoying. The game had to become a DnD/Pathfinder clone and therefor needed loads of classes and every class needed to be unique and rich in options - but as one of my professors loved to ask every lecture: Who cares? It pains me to use the line as it gets thrown around way too much in school of architecture, and I have developed an allergy to it, but "Less is more". Maybe this should have gone in the unpopular opinion discussion. But this opinion has nothing to do with Mad Max movies, so it may have been out of place there.

am recalling pbs buffalo went after levar burton when he resurrected the reading rainbow show via a kickstarter campaign. seth macfarlane contributed ~$1 million to the kickstarter. am embarrassed to admit we never bothered to see what were the resolution o' the legal kerfuffle, 'but given he is still reading but not using "rainbow," am assuming some kinda settlement were reached which allows mr. burton to continue. is our opinion gaiman's best work is found in his kid friendly and ya catalog, and that ain't a backhanded compliment. the graveyard book is one o' the best stories we has read since 2000... period. no qualification as a children's book needed. applause for mr. burton and gaiman respective. HA! Good Fun!

y'know what's really exploitive? _________. reroll is no biggie 'cause __________. *insert favorite dismissive emoticon here* disadvantage for us, having been on crpg boards since last century, is fact these balance arguments is like living groundhog day. same bad arguments getting repeated over and over and overandoverandoverandoverandoverandover. bg3 is not pnp. bg3 is a single-player crpg. re-load is a known and predictable quantity. ps:t went so far as to make dying part o' the mechanics and dying were in fact necessary to advance the game. nevertheless, reload happened and were anticipated in ps:t and scores o' similar crpgs. reroll, on the other hand, is utter outside control o' developer as the range o' possible attribute spreads is vast. HA! Good Fun!

apologies for double. our suggestion regarding bg3 point buy and reroll, not that anybody at larian or anywhere else for that matter has reason to listen to our game suggestions, would be to make reroll a post completion unlock. after game has been completed once, then the options box for the reroll feature becomes subject to interaction and let folks go-to-town with +90-minute rolling sessions to achieve attribute spreads more in-line with a high-level character than a starting adventurer. problem being am suspecting there is a whole lotta folks who want reroll included. end o' consideration. reality is reroll doesn't hurt folks such as Gromnir save for it renders any kinda meaningful balancing efforts pointless. larian does have a built-in defense to insulate 'em from balancing considerations as they may choose to blame inequities 'pon d&d rules as 'posed to considering how crpg differences makes pnp rules a starting point rather than a final judgement. regardless, becomes kinda stoopid to expend effort on balancing when from start you got reroll. there is gonna be cheesy exploitive nonsense which works in bg3 which ain't possible in pnp 5e. exploits will work not in spite o' faithful implementation o' 5e rules but because. am suspecting presence o' reroll is a harbinger which warns us in advance o' larian indifference to balance, which will not doubt come as a welcome relief to many. and those o' you who is utter dismissive o' crpg balance, we know what you look like in rl. HA! Good Fun!

While browsing statuseffects.gamedatabundle for buffs to filter for my mod, I came across a bunch of buffs related to someone called Nisanga. I believe these are the "Fortune" buffs listed here, and I also believe that list may very well be partly populated by datamined stuff, so nobody's necessarily actually gotten them legitimately. So anyway, since I smelled a +1 stat buff in the air, I tried to figure out just how to trigger this. But, my datamining skills have proven insufficient. In worldmap.gamedatabundle there are three uh... entries? that seem relevant: "DebugName": "RE_Fortune_Teller_Lady_Abimi", "ID": "b2ce0550-0bfe-457b-8faf-0cb73e582474", "DebugName": "RE_Fortune_Teller_Lady_Nisanga", "ID": "99febfc0-de86-4517-84ef-fae2e7bd518e", "DebugName": "RE_Fortune_Teller_Unnamed_Watcher", "ID": "6df163e6-aa2b-415f-a794-680986b92302", However, that's pretty much as far as I've gotten. As far as I can tell, these ID's are not referenced anywhere else (I did a find-in-files search in exported\design and in the lax* folders). Looking at other entries, RE seems to mean Random [Neketaka] Encounter. I can tell you for certain that if they are, they're not something that "simply happens"; much like several other such encounters, there are probably [very specific] conditions that must be met. But, I don't know how to determine what those conditions are. Any 1337 h4xx0r around? Update: As far as I can tell, all random Neketaka street events simply have the condition that you must have visited all districts. These three fortune teller events are similar to all other random events in that they contain this bit: "ValidityConditions": { "Operator": 0, "Components": [ { "$type": "OEIFormats.FlowCharts.ConditionalCall, OEIFormats", "Data": { "FullName": "Boolean CallGlobalConditional(Guid)", "Parameters": [ "82c00560-9f37-41d1-9691-8ff1d19f5697" The parameter at the end being the key part, leading to an entry in globalscripts.globalscriptbundle which seems to be a confirmation that you've visited all districts. Comparing to say the scripted interaction with Laetharn, which also happens "inbetween districts" in Neketaka, the parameters are different. No weird string, just having restored the adra pillar at Hasongo. Well, I also knew that to be the condition from having played the game a lot Anyway, obviously visiting all districts is not enough to get these fortune tellers. Update 2: Current theory is that the GuidString used doesn't actually lead anywhere. I don't know what a GuidString is, but for a random encounter that actually happens, that string returns loads of matches in the relevant .conversationbundle file. In other words, the trigger is fine, but the encounters don't exist.

I'm not - I wasn't aware of that thread - but I'm proud of you nevertheless.

If you're referring to a recent r/truefilm thread, I just defended it mightily from unfair onslaught.

Hold on, let me fix that...

I tried today, and it worked ! Thank you so much for your help and your very well detailed answer !

Most summons I see as mere decoy for enemies à la "here, attack those guys while I beat you".

1. another drake should appear, but it's not a member of your party. it's "enraged" so i believe at best it's a member of your team, but not anything directly controllable. 2. the vast majority of summons are stuck with a really lame 7 PEN, with no upscaling - the only option to improve this is Animancy Cat. Even the AL9 "The great wyrm flew o'er the mountains" dragon only has 7 PEN. This means--especially on PotD--nominally powerful summons will be at like -75% underpenetration. This is what makes the animated weapons that @Boeroer mentions are so good - they are treated as being equipped with weapons, which DO scale upwards and get more PEN. Similarly I believe priest Spiritual Ally also gets scaling gear, making it notably better on harder difficulties/late game than summons from other classes that are supposed to be good at summoning (e.g. druid). edit - this also means that abilities that reduce enemy AR are really good for summoning-heavy setups (expose vulnerabilities, the shield cracks, even mass flanking) 3. Speaking of which AL9 dragon is another massively good summon, even though its basic attack is guaranteed to be at -75% underpenetration in most fights. It just has enormous amounts of health (~1000+ with some elemental immunity - i literally used this summon to facetank some megabosses for me) and its abilities have MASSIVE powerlevel scaling (something like +20 PL bonus) so even if it's basic attack only has 7 PEN, its tail lash can easily do 150+ damage per enemy with overpenetration bonus (same thing with its prone attack and flame breath). I used it on a bellower--the bonus PL from the bellower made the summon last *huge* amounts of time, basically giving >100% uptime. Even without PEN upscaling and some misses, most summons are still hugely good. I think expecting pure damage from anything other than the animated weapons summon is a mistake, though, and some summons (the 3 wyrms you mention as a fallback) are so clearly single-mindedly focused on (crappy) damage that they're hard to justify over even just the basic AL1 skeleton summon. Summons (esp chanter summons) tend to have a lot of supplemental effects, and if not that they may still be useful just as huge bodies to make the enemy waste their abilities and time. Fortunately, if a summon isn't working out for you - you can respec.

Fridge returned to life. I am guessing there's ice blocking some vent, so that's a tedious debug. Fridge is 10 years old, wondering if might be better to just replace the thing - we spent $1000 trying to keep our Bosch washer alive, so maybe that's colouring my opinion. Boring day at work, spent more time listening to Ice Cube than actually working.

Everyone who takes a measure of pride in their work and strives to improve their skill at their craft - and by extension, the end result - wants to deliver a good product. Just because you don't see the point of it because it's "beyond x, y and z" doesn't make it a wasted effort, sorry. Not every proposed solution to a given problem is going to be golden (or every problem be an issue that actually needs to be tackled), but that doesn't mean working to improve upon it is a bad thing. As you have pointed out, some games only let you save when you quit, others put consequences to your actions behind several hours of gameplay, others heal you up between encounters, or they learn to clearly label conversation options so you don't accidentally continue a dialogue instead of going through all the questions. The problem isn't that people save-scum, the problem is that they have a reason to do it and again, figuring out how to sidestep that is part of your job as a game maker, or at least, game makers seem to agree, since it's something that comes up again and again.

Out of curiosity, did you like The Fountain? I have always loved that movie. Still, I have also recently discovered that, apparently, people and critics alike didn't really think much of it.

^ I loved Portman as the kid in Leon/The Professional but haven't found her to be all that compelling in her adult roles that much. Don't dislike her tho, she's decent enough most of the time, just not as good (or it's her chosen roles) as I thought she was going to end up being. "1917" (rented) - interesting WW1 film. Largely two characters with brief famous cameos here and there. The one-shot gimmick works well for most of the movie (it's more like two-shots) because of the trenches and such. Some surreal cinematic moments. Not what I'd call a masterpiece but a pretty good watch. "The Platform" (Netflix, subtitled) - what a trippy horror/social/human nature commentary film. It's very violent/gory in spots, make no mistake, for anyone sensitive to such, but it feels more like a stage play at times. Themes of greed and gluttony vs enough for all, rich vs. poor symbolism in a horrific situational setting. Very strange yet compelling.

I still thought it was funny but felt that a lot of the more crude humor was often times a little outdated and wouldn't be found in a lighthearted PG-13 comedy today. But maybe I'm overthinking it and as I said, it doesn't hurt my enjoyment of the film.

I'm a big Aronofsky fan but still have not seen Black Swan... It just doesn't call out to me.

The gang, assembled (well, missing Alphinaud) Mom always causing some heartache... Heavensward spoilers (including the post-release patches) Downtime for the hero, shocking!

I have to agree. Going for the "TTRPG experience" is cute and all but a video game won't turn your failed roll into a story beat. On the tabletop If you fail a charm roll against a hostage taker, the situation won't automatically escalate, you can try a few different approaches until the GM says you've hit a breaking point (or rolled a 1). In a CRPG, you failed the roll, the hostage dies. Have fun reloading.

MY LITTLE PRINCESS MY SWEET LITTLE GIRL MY LITTLE PRINCESS MY SWEET LITTLE GIRL MY LITTLE PRINCESS MY SWEET LITTLE GIRL MY That film did my head in. It feels like a David Lynch film only more histrionic, fuller with heavyhanded cod-psychology, and devoid of aesthetic creativity. That said I didn't think Portman herself was bad in the film, I think she delivered the role pretty well in spite of her character, the premise et al being utter pants. Vincent Cassel was like nails on a chalkboard though, a proper Julian Sands level display of AHHRARCTING. Portman's best performance I reckon is Jackie, most likely.

people tend to use fascist the way vol uses nazi. if you do something bad and lacking what the speaker deems appropriate social consciousness, then fascism is an appropriate label? am not blaming vol as is many who reflexive use nazi and fascist functional interchangeable. nevertheless, from our pov, fascism is one o' the most common misused labels. umberto eco did a fair job o' coming up with fourteen common traits o' fascism, but keep in mind there is hardly universal consensus mr. eco got it right. am suspecting most obsidian posters has used fascist label in rl or on internet. am also betting the vast majority o' us has not considered what is the essential qualities o' the pejorative epithet we throw 'bout with such frequency and abandon. reminds us o' J. Stewart attempting to define obscenity for First Amendment purposes "i shall not today attempt further to define the kinds of material i understand to be embraced within that shorthand description ("hard-core pornography"), and perhaps i could never succeed in intelligibly doing so. but i know it when i see it, and the motion picture involved in this case is not that." am guessing most o' us would struggle to adequate define specifics o' fascism, and would likely be surprised at just how difficult it is to so define. nevertheless, am similar believing many believe they know it when they see it. regardless, we do recommend doing a search for umberto eco + fascism. HA! Good Fun!

for those disappointed in the new star trek show, there is nevertheless something worth watching from captain picard. current reading a sonnet daily. HA! Good Fun!

'Control' certainly gets environment porn down.

The difference is that casting times in Deadfire get influenced by attack speed modifiers and DEX - so you can shorten the casting time. In PoE only recovery was influenced and only with DEX could you shorten the casting animation. You have to compare Wizards to the other classes of Deadfire and not with Wizards of PoE. Deadfire is a whole different game. All characters share the new mechanics, that means enemies cast more slowly as well. For the new interrupt system to make any sense the casting times have to be longer. Else the player wouldn't really have a chance to use interrupts at all. So even if the Wizard in Deadfire has longer casting times: everyone else has that. But that doesn't mean that the Wizard is a weak class in the scope of the game. I also wouldn't tie the question whether Wizards are weaker or not to one single spell.

Removing Palegina from the party is enough. She won't comment on the Valera/Bardatto business even if you murder all of them as long as she's not in the active party.

Yea but talking to him teleports you right there. Kill everyone in 2 secs and then start looting. Saves you the time walking there

https://www.commondreams.org/news/2020/03/25/sanders-demands-trump-rescind-truly-outrageous-decision-hand-gilead-exclusive-rights?cd-origin=rss I'm with Sanders here. Incidentally, Joseph Grogan, member of the Coronavirus task force, was "Head of Federal Affairs" for Gilead Sciences 2011-2017. Draining the swamp!

I miss oby, this would be a good time for him.

Youtube is giving me weird recommendations again, but I thought of you;

HA! Good Fun!

I've always treated the packaging as dirty, so dispose of the envelope/box immediately and wash my hands after.

In order for the Brilliant Tactician to trigger no one in your party can be flanked and all enemies need to be flanked. If you have no Cipher in the team then this may be hard to trigger.

I think she would have dumped Bruce for sonicmage tbh. On topic, apparently they're floating shoving 6 trillion into wall street to delay its collapse long enough for some folks to cash out. Money printer goes brrrrr indeed.

I love Rammstein. After Metallica bailed out on me with a last minute warning that their concert was cancelled, I've found myself a new "must go and see live!" band. Just bloody tricky these days with the world in lock down and groups of more than 2 people prohibited The scourge of commercialism

I'm actually inclined to agree with the Criticism section of that page The horseshoe theory has been criticized by those from both ends of the political spectrum who oppose being grouped with those they consider to be their polar opposites, while also being criticized as an oversimplification of political ideologies and ignorant of fundamental differences between them. Simon Choat, a senior lecturer in political theory at Kingston University, criticizes horseshoe theory from a leftist perspective. He argues that far-left and far-right ideologies only share similarities in the vaguest sense in that they both oppose the liberal democratic status quo, but the two sides both have very different reasons and very different aims for doing so. Choat uses the issue of globalization as an example. Both the far-left and the far-right attack neoliberal globalization and its elites, but have conflicting views on who those elites are and conflicting reasons for attacking them. Choat also argues that although proponents of the horseshoe theory may cite examples of alleged history of collusion between fascists and communists, those on the far-left usually oppose the rise of far-right or fascist regimes in their countries. Instead, he argues that it has been centrists who have supported far-right and fascist regimes that they prefer in power over socialist ones.[16]

Hello everyone! We have a new post up on the Grounded website! In it you will find a link to the PAX East panel with Grounded's Game Director, Adam Brennecke, Senior Programmer, Roby Atadero, and Lead Environment Artist, Sean Dunny, along with our special guest moderator, Larry Hryb, Xbox Live's 'Major Nelson'. We also shared the link to join the Xbox Insider Program so you can sign up before we start our Insider Flight in the upcoming months. You will also find the link to our Steam Page so you can wishlist Grounded today! Review all of this and more on our new post!

She wasn't really absent. Not like Eothas or the original Abydon. Thaos wanted to use the souls to bring her back to her former glory. She was weakened but she was there all along.

important to note that whatever interactions sidekicks have are mostly self-contained to the DLCs (in fact, each DLC has a recommended sidekick). just calling this out because if you're expecting some interactivity, you'll get basically zero in the base game, but then all of a sudden one or two of your sidekicks will be real chatty in a DLC. (even mirke gets some reactivity)