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Participated in the Together Alliance (anti-far-right) march in London yesterday. The numbers were higher than the fash march last year (500K vs 100K). I did not stay for the speeches, as the bloc I was in (LGBTQ) was at the tail and moved slowly.

The person who made me watch the Chainsaw Man show and movie says they've been perfectly happy with part 2. I've now finished part 1, I guess I'll be seeing with whom I agree in the coming week or two.

This build was created for a collaboration with @Aestus who runs the Youtube channel Aestus_RPG. Here's the video where we talk about this and other builds. This is build 2 of 5 from that collaboration. ----------------------------------------- This build is mainly meant for inspiration. You don't need to follow it in detail to have fun. If you understand the key features - the basic idea what makes this build special - you can usually deviate from my non-core attribute-, skill-, gear- and ability selection and form the build to your own likings and ideas. I do not try to produce the most powerful uberbuilds (often those are the most boring to play in he long run) but to focus on having fun while playing. Usually that means the build is powerful - but it's not the main focus. If you like to read about my personal requirements for "fun to play" builds, you can jump to a list below this post ----------------------------------------- orn a slave, Miccaela Shorsh grew up in the shadowed quarters of Ancenze in the Vaillian Republics, where art, politics, and wealth flourish - at least for the free. Her mother Borschtscha was cleaning the dog kennels for one of the wealthy families, and Miccaela seemed destined for the same life of subjugation and shἱt shoveling. However, even as a child and despite her little frame, her voice was unlike any other, an voluminous sound that could either stir hearts and calm tempers or incide discord and altercations. Unbeknownst to her, her gift was more than mere sound: Miccaela possessed a rare psionic talent, woven into her voice. Her abilities first manifested during a punishment because she refused to wash the stinky fur of the owners' favorite hound Beangobbler the Volatile. Terrified and in pain, Miccaela sang a phrase so powerful that it brought the overseer to his knees, clutching his pearls. Word of this strange power spread quickly through the household, and Miccaela was soon seen as dangerous, but also a potential tool. Her owners realized her voice could be used for their advantage in politics and business, so they forced the little Wild Orlan to perform at grand galas, her melodies subtly manipulating the minds of listeners. But the Wild Orlan's rebellious nature kicked in: at a big dinner event she planted a simple longing into all of the female guests: to stab their partners or patrons with a greasy shashlik skewer as soon as they started to talk obnoxiuos stuff. As a tumult erupted and people who looked like shashlik porcupine fell over each other, Miccaela managed to flee the scene - and the Vaillian Republics althoghether on a trading vessel which was headed for the Deadfire Archipelago. As Miccaela grew older (which happens pretty quickly with Orlans, min you), she learned to conceal her abilities behind the guise of mere performance. Although cleaning the kennels, Beangobbler the Volatile and the whole slavery shebang was behind her, she longed to fight for freedom for all sentient beings: every note she sang became a coded message of rebellion, a call to anyone who would be susceptible to the power of her voice. Now, Miccaela is no longer just a performer, but a covert agent of resistance, using her voice to bend minds, influence rulers and subtly shift the balance of power. In secret and with a philosophy similar to that of a Bleak Walker, she will use all means to free the oppressed and gather those who would help her tear down the chains of slavery, always with a song on her lips and her psionic power in her little yellow furry head. "I won't let you down I will not give you up Gotta have some faith in the sound It's the one good thing that I've got I won't let you down So please don't give me up Because I really, really don't want to wash that hound..." - Miccaela while freezing some killers stiff - =================================== The Ceaseless Siren =================================== Difficulty: PotD -------------------------------------------------------------- Solo: untested -------------------------------------------------------------- Class: Spiritualist - Psion/Troubadour -------------------------------------------------------------- Race: Wild Orlan (or any) -------------------------------------------------------------- Background: Old Vaillia (or any) - Slave (or any) -------------------------------------------------------------- Stats (w/o Berath's Blessings, ★=recommmendation) MIG: 10 (11, -1 Orlan) CON: 10 (do not dump) DEX: 12 PER: 15 (13, +2 Orlan) ★ INT: 19 (18, +1 Old Vailia) ★★ RES: 12 (11, +1 Orlan, do not dump) ★ -------------------------------------------------------------- the unique icons for all passive abilities are part of the Community Patch mod Abilities | Skills | Proficiencies - (!=important, r=recommended, a=automatic) 00. Brisk Recitation (! a) + Telekinetic Burst (a) 01. Whisper of Treason + If Their Bones Still Slept + Blessed was Wengridh | Dagger + Large Shield 02. Lingering Echoes | +1 Stealth (->1), +1 Intimidate (->1) 03. Soul Shock | +1 Stealth (->2), +1 Intimidate (->2) 04. At the Soud of his Voice + Mental Binding | +1 Stealth (->3), +1 Insight (->2) | Small Shield 05. Weapon and Shield Style (r) | +1 Stealth (->4), +1 Intimidate (->3) 06. Phantom Foes | +1 Stealth (->5), +1 Insight (->3) 07. Ancient Brittle Bones + Puppet Master | +1 Stealth (->6), +1 Bluff (->3) 08. Secret Horrors | +1 Stealh (->7), +1 Intimidate (->4) | Sabre 09. And Hel-Hyraf Crashed | +1 Slight of Hand (->3 ), +1 Insight (->4) 10. The Shield Cracks + Pain Block | +1 Stealth (->8), +1 Bluff (->4) 11. Spell Shaping | +1 Sleight of Hand (->4), +1 Intimidate (->4) 12. Penetrating Visions | +1 Sleight of Hand (->5), +1 Insight (->5) | Club 13. Rapid Casting + Borrowed Instinct | +1 Mecanics (->2), +1 Bluff (->5) 14. Keen Mind | +1 Mechanics (->3), +1 Intimidate (->6) 15. Farcasting (r) | +1 Mechanics (->4), +1 Insight (->6) 16. Quick Summoning + The Empty Soul | +1 Mechanics (->5), +1 Bluff (->6) | Scepter 17. Disintegration | +1 Mechanics (->6), +1 Intimidate (->7) 18. Greater Focus | +1 Arcana (->2), +1 Insight (->7) 19. Many Lives Pass By (r) + Ancestor's Memory | +1 Arcana (->3), +1 Bluff (->7) 20. Called to His Bidding | +1 Arcana (->4), +1 Intimidate (->8) | Pistol --------------------------------------------------------------- Items (!=important, r=recommended) Weapon Set 1: Sasha's Singing Scimitar (r, +Refreshing Finale, +Shocking Prelude), Shimmer Scale (+Warped Scales, +Thermal Ablation, +Legendary) Weapon Set 2: Lover's Embrace (use modal at all times), Shining Bulwark (+Rear Guard, +Legendary, use modal when shot at) Head: Pearlescent Rhomboid Helstone (or any other) Back: Cloak of Greater Deflection (r - helps to demotivate enemies from attacking you) Neck: Charm of Bones (r - for the added INT -> bigger AoE and durations) Armor: Casita Samelia's Legacy (+Legendary, +Ardent) or Nomad's Brigandine (+Tail of the Column, +Tactical Withdraw, +Legendary) or Gipon Prudensco (+Legendary, +Fight Another Day, +No Fool I) Waist: Girdle of Eoten Constitution Hands: Bracers of Greater Deflection (r - helps to demotivate enemies from attacking you) Rings: Chamaeleon's Touch (+1 INT & +1 PER) or Ring of Protection or Deflection, Kuaru's Prize Boots: Boots of Stability or Boots of Speed Pet: Loki (+15% AoE size) or Animancy Cat (when using summons a lot) or whatever suits your spell selection --------------------------------------------------------------- What is this build about: endless generation of resouces: you gain focus and phrases for your spells without having to do anything. That also means your resources fill up while you cast, run around etc. Using the Psion (focus gain per second, scales with Power Level) and the Troubadour (phrases elapse twice a fast with Brisk Recitation -> double the phrase point generation) gives you a caster who never runs out of spell resources and has almost no downtime: excellent action economy no need to actively use your weapon (which you are not good with anyways) immense versatility with all sorts of great spells: healing, reviving, disables, damage, buffing, mind control, summons - you can do it all. Pick what your party needs and you’ll be good at it. You can then also alter the gear to your needs. For example: if you wanted to play a Ceaseless Siren as a damage dealer who is spamming shock spells (Her Revenge + Soul Shock) nonstop you could pick up Deltro's Cage instead of the armor I listed above. If you want to take a support role (casting Pain Block and singing Ancient Memory or Mercy and Kindness etc.) you could use the Physikers Belt and a pet that does +15% healing and so on. The most potent combination might be to focus on mind control on the Psion side (Whisper of Treason, Puppet Master, Ringleader) and on summons on the Troubadour side (Animated Weapon + Many Lives Pass By), but constant CC spells are also very impactful: spamming Killers Froze Stiff + Mental Binding lets you completely disable and control whole groups of enemies pretty early in the game. independent from special unique items, this build can free up gear for other party members who might need it more. Sasha's Singing Scimitar is great, but even without it this caster is very effective. So if you want to include another chanter in the party who might make even better use of the weapon (for example a Bellower) it's not a problem. attributes can be allocated freely fitting your role. For example a damage dealer wants more MIG, a summoner or supporter/healer wouldn't need a lot of PER. one of the very few class combinations that beat the Ultimate challenge without the "endless duration of buffs" exploit - which shows how powerful it can be. I chose a mix of CC, damage, healing and summons so that there's always an answer to most situations. While playing you will quickly find out which spells you like to use the most - just can alter your choices of abilities and gear accordingly. Issues: when you get damaged (or critically hit when using the Community Patch mod which I recommend) your focus generation will stop for a short time. Unconditional focus generation is the Psion’s forte. While phrase generation stops briefly after an invocation the Psion’s focus never stops growing until damaged (or critically hit with the CP mod). Without this costant focus generation the Psion is bad. So you want to avoid getting attacked! You automatic ability Telikinetic Burst can help of course. But there's other ways to reduce the risks: stay stealthed at the beginning of combat. You want to load up on focus anyway - and when enemies have settled on your party members (like your tank) you are lot less likely to get attacked. having good deflection and/or immunity against disengagment attacks lets you get away without damage. you shouldn't build a glasscannon but have to invest into defenses. You can also use summons and mind control/disables to avoid damage to great effect - but more importantly (because it works without much effort and micromanagement) raise your deflection and armor and don’t dump your CON (health). There are lots of enemies out there that specifically look for weak party members in terms of low deflection, low armor and low health (like rangers, rogues and barbs do). Using a shield and putting on decent armor deters most of those enemies from picking you as their favorite target in the first place, giving you an easier time. sacrifice some offensive prowess for defense. It will help to let this character play a lot more smoothly than maxing your offensive potential. Unusual for a caster but it works. The best offensive stats mean nothing if you cannot cast because you lack focus. Another great way to prevent getting attacked (without having to actively do anything) in the later game is to sing Many Lives Pass By at all times - a weak skeleton that pops up every 3 seconds and forms a group of skeletons with its buddies quickly draws attention away from you and shields you from almost all attackers. Why is it fun: because of the endless and fast resource generation there’s always something to do, very little downtime. Opposite of low level Wizards, Priests or Druids who have very few spells in he early game. the spell selection is great always good impact, powerful right away bc. of summons, great CC and so on extremely versatile. There are Very little situations where you cannot contribute. The swiss army knife of casters because of the rel. good sturdyness (to avoid focus stop) little frustration from getting knocked out etc. which is great for inexperienced players. does not depend on items - this can help to attain a special look or theme/background a lot more easily without the feeling you have to sacrifice performance. Hope you enjoy! Cheers!

Ah, you started reading the manga. That's cool! As I said Fire Punch also had an atypical ending, but here it just felt like he wrote himself in to a corner and gave up. Then again maybe people just had expectations that he never promised in the story to meet. I'm genuinely curios to hear what you think. On a aside, I read the first five chapter of Koi to Yobu ni wa Sasayaka desuga (It's Not Quite Love Yet, but...) that are out (it's monthly :( ). This is an original story from the godhand of slice of life Hagiwara Daisuke. I'm now itching to reread Horimiya.

Based of all that very detailed information - thanks once again! ⸜(｡˃ ᵕ ˂ )⸝♡ - i think i may just stay clear of Debonair. I really, really thought that the Debonair gets the Tier 3 Body Inspiration, not the enemy x.x I think i might just go for Trickster then, as it seems the most unique of em all that doesnt buff the enemy haha. Or, well, maybe Psion. Vibe wise, just as special as Debonair seems to be. Likely with a Chanter Subclass stacked on top for maximum "i literally just stand 'round and ya'll vanish". Who needs knives and underhanded tactics if your mere presence is enough, right?... smth smth along those lines.

Single class Rogue is fine. Mostly because both Gambit and Vanishing Strike are good abilities and fun to use. By the time you get Gambit you will usually have over 10 Guile (+2 if you use the Devil of Caroc's Breastplate) which means the crit conversion when using Gambit is at 100% or only a bit below (Gambit's cost of 4 Guile gets substracted before the conversion check). That means unless you miss or graze you will critically hit all the time, giving you back the 4 Guile (if you are using a dual wielding setup, else only 2 Guile). This lets you spam Gambit endlessly which is very powerful, especially with weapons and other items that do something good on crit (see Ball and Chain, Rust's Poignard, Boltcatcher Gloves and so on). It also works well with ranged weapons such as hand mortars, blunderbusses and pistols so a Debonaire who doesn't want to go too near to enemies or doesn't want to leave allies can also make good use of it. If you have a party member who can charm all sorts of enemies for the Debonaire then the critical hits for Gambit are even more likely, at least for the first attack (which will flip the target back to hostile). Vanishing Strike gives you an invisibility that doesn't break until its duration is up. This means you stay invisible even if you are damaging enemies with attacks. Since the duration is rather short you want to: a) prolong it with high INT and items (Salvation of Time is not working because the spell will not hit you because you are invisible and not targetable) b) be very fast with your attacks while invisible to squeeze the most out of it. Both Assassin and Streetfighter are nice for this. The Assassin because of the Assassinate passive being at work while invisible and the Streetfighter because of the reduced recovery which allows more attacks while invisible. Debonaire can also use it of course. Obviously Backstab is a great ability to combine with Vanishing Strike. You can use both - like turning invisible and then slam Gambit - but imo it's better to concentrate on one of them to maximize the effect. Debonaire as a subclass is charming (pun intended) but its uses are fairly limited. Because charmed enemies immediately flip back to hostile if you hit them, the 100% crit conversion isn't a very exploitable feature. The added damage charmed kith do (if you charm them with the Debonaire's own Rogueish Charm) is okay but not really impactful. Imo something like a self-contained Skald/Debonaire (focus on the charm invocation + melee crits for phrases) or a Psion/Debonaire (charm and then use Disintegrate as an almost guaranteed crit, this doesn't flip back the enemy) is most fun, even if a combination of a dedicated Charmer + a Debonaire on the party is usually better in terms of action and resource economy. One charms and the other immediately profits (instead of having to wait for recovery to finish). Single class Debonaire works and can be used like any other Rogue with the known drawbacks of a Debonaire. I just find the other Rogue subclasses more suited for single class operation. Assassin in combination with Vanishing Strike, Streetfighter with Gambit and Trickster with stuff like Freezing Rake, Wall of Many Colors or even Gambit in combination with Wall of Flashing Steel. The Debonaire's special thing at level 18 is that the kith enemies they charm with Rogueish Charm get any tier 3 body inspiration. It's nice but very situational imo. Like... why would you want the charmed enemy to become Robust? So when looking at single class Rogues the Debonaire isn't more attractive than a vanilla Rogue to me. PS: iirc you can combine the Chanter's charm upgrade (charmed enemies deal more damage) with the Debonaire's body inspiration on the same (kith) target somehow (don't remember how I did it). Not really worth it though imo. The most annoying thing about a melee Debonaire is that Persistent Distraction doesn't work and is a trap choice because they cannot ever engage enemies in the first place.

https://miningzimbabwe.com/zimbabwe-lithium-ban-policy-enforcement-not-inconsistency/ Here is another example of Chinese neo-colonialism and looting of African minerals Zimbabwe has basically banned Lithium exports because of abuse of how Chinese companies have been operating You dont hear much outrage and drama about this from most Afrocentric activists because its not a Western country involved

Also I see very useful the hotbar slots customization as food, weapons, meds, etc. I don’t like to open the menu just to change something I don’t need in that slot, we need it back from grounded 1. Both are very useful features.

That's right. I've only heard a little bit, because they've been shielding me from spoilers knowing that I started reading it, but there has seemed to be a general attitude of "haha, the media-illiterate Chainsaw Man fans don't like it but iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii sure do". Imagine someone making the smuggest face in the entire world to punctuate that statement, because that's basically what I've seen over the past week every time the subject of Chainsaw Man has come up. I'm genuinely very curious as to how I'll feel about it, especially given everything that happened at the end of part 1. big spoilers for manga, don't read if you've only seen the show

You still seem to think Trump is sane or rational. Hint: He isn't. Intellectually challenged and used to bully his way through life thanks to daddy Trumps inherited billions, he has no mental processes for dealing with adversity. He has the empathy of a cobblestone, the intellect of of a jellyfish and the cognitive abilities of a chimpanzee (although that would be an insult to some 4 year olds, who are smarter than chimps) If he can't have his way with something, his preferred option is to 1) break it and 2) pass the blame on someone else .All because he is a genius and a businessman without peer (trying to add the US to his list of major bankruptcies). But the worrying part is the tendency to destroy things he can't have. He has no concept of tomorrow, much less consequences of the destruction he orders done everywhere. Hypothetical speculation: Lets say the US somehow miraculously survives his presidency, how many years (and billions of dollars) do you think it would take to fully renovate the White House and turn it into a classy, stylish residence again. I mentioned it previously, half in fun, half seriously, he is the type of person that would blow up Mount Rushmore to make room for a new statue of himself. The biggest and the bestest statue the world has ever seen! So big and so best even the Colossus of Rhodes would turn green with envy, that's how best and biggest it will be! On a more lighthearted note, Denmark and Canada are not the only countries with a knack for sorting out borders

Gedonia (Steam shows 70 uploaded screenshots) A level 6 powerful wizard. I'd think that verbal abuse would decrease the defence, but whatever works. Threatening a minor. Better than looting from the corpse, I guess. How? And why? FPS dropped to 15. Is the mysterious assassin an assassin? Defeated 1 lurker at lvl21. Then there were 6 more deeper in the cave. The dagger was the same as the one I looted from a random chest in the next area. But good stats. A drakeling boss. Not hostile, but not recruitable either. Kings' Tomb it is not. Debating by tapping E. Was their demigod/Chosen One nailed to a cross too? Very hardcore barbarians - sunburn-resistant and brought wood with them. The main story I joined the not-Ewoks faction after completing several quests for them and still needed books to learn about them. The quest was the opposite of epic.

I spoiled my kitty and he got fat. -- j/k, it's a different black cat. At last a game where I can be a true "cat lady". Forget gameplay, I'll just tame cats for hours. Sadly, cannot rename. There's a few outfits to start, rumor has it one can get more. MUST GET.