metadigital

I stand corrected, I was just guessing on that date (using the '36 Berlin Olympics as a rough guide). I was actually referring to Hitler's term as a corporal in WW1. Italy took a long time to re-take because the Germans were dug in very deep. Germany also had superior weapons (e.g. especially their tanks). Don't forget that Patton wasn't permitted to run amok; I'm sure he would have made a big difference had he been let loose by Eisenhower. The US managed to beat the Soviets in the end, so I would say its a fair bet that they would have done it earlier, too. You forget the arms build up by the Soviets after WW2; at the end of WW2 the US was producing 5 battle ships a day, for example. That was my point, actually. Using Hitler (who is generally regarded as evil) as an example of how great good can come from great evil. It is all too likely that, if Hitler hadn't existed, a far worse tragedy would have occurred, just not at that particular instant in time. Finally, it was an illustration of intent as a marker for alignment. So your alignment would be Chaotic Good, because you chose to allow a great evil because you deemed the consequential great good that derived from it worth the sacrifice. :cool:

At no point did the authors of the intelligence (the secret services) give any false assurances. The reliability of all the evidence, as it always is, was marked clearly. The other salient fact that you seem to be omitting is that Hans Blix was conducting a renewed search for WMD. He has stated numerous times since the war that not only was he receiving unprecedented co-operation from the Iraqi government, but also he was seeking out the very places mentioned in the (soon-to-be) coalition's intel, with zero result. It would be a fair and reasonable conclusion to say that Bush invaded Iraq before the normal UN processes could produce a result. Now whether this was because he wanted some sort of vengence, or because he wanted to nullify Iraq as a force in the Middle East is not certain. Certainly the "it's for the poor people of Iraq" defence doesn't wash. What about the poor Palestinians? They had half their country stolen by the Israelis, and then the League of Nations did nothing. What about the poor North Koreans? Etc. I have no problem with the US invading Iraq as a global politcal man

I don't think the House of Commons can take all the credit for Galloway's rhetorical abilities. There are far more speakers who are just inept. He is the epitamy of an opportunist. I wonder if Gordon Brown (current Chancellor of the Exchequer -- that's the Treasurer to you people over the Atlantic -- and expected next leader of the Labour party and therefore Prime Minister) will invite Galloway back into the Labour party?

Anything that adds much-needed depth to the characters and narrative is a Good Thing in my book.

Tetris is a masterpiece. I don't know too many games that get into your head so much that you end up dreaming about them! ... I used to dream difficult tetris block configurations and the solutions to them. (Maybe I played with too many lego sets when I was young ... )

Fact: Number of allied soldiers killed whilst occupying Germany after WW2: ZERO.

1. The war in Iraq -- the Second Gulf War -- was not "legal". The UNSCR 1441 stopped short of the wording used to precipitate the first Gulf War, which is the reason Tony Blair was trying so hard to get the second UNSC Resolution. The fact that international law is a shambles doesn't excuse illegal activity. 2. The premise for going to war was that Iraq posed a "real and present danger", with Inter-Continental Ballistic Weapons of Mass Destruction that could reach the UK in 45 minutes, based on a single, uncorroborated source who has since been discreditied as he was attempting to obtain political asylum. 3. The premise in the US for going to war was ludicrously linking Saddam Hussein to Al-Qieda! 4. It is patently clear that no-one had planned for what to do after the invasion. Standing down the entire Iraqi armed forces and not shoring up the borders were two fatal mistakes, for which the poor soldiers (and Iraqi civilians) are paying for now. All that said, I am pleased the war happened, as I don't have a Lawful Good alignment. It is mandatory that the coalition stay and complete the stated mission, because a rapid withdrawal would only duplicate the problems created where the dominant world power has left a power vacuum, before; e.g.: the UK in Afghanistan and Palestine! I would be in favour of going after Mugabe and pattern-bombing North Korea, too. (Not that I'm a violent person. )

You're right, that's way off-topic.

I would question your definition of "Free" -- I doubt Al Gore could have his own chat show on Fox. As much as it is denied, I certainly believe that there is an implicit -- if not overt -- editorial policy straight from the Board of Directors.

Emmanuelle? Older games should be easy to rate -- either or <_< . So a series like Ultima can go on indefinitely? Until the copyright goes t**s-up, that is. Some of the older games can seem a bit incomprehensible in comparison though. A bit unplayable too. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> That's the one. Boy was that crapola. I agree that everyone is taking their ratings a bit too seriously; simply a "liked it lots", or four stars, or versus a "Meh", or two/three stars, or <_< , and "Yuk", or one/no star, or should do it.

Firstly, actually, "stupid you" got it wrong again. Yes is PC, No is XBox. Secondly, NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! Not another stupid flame-bait Xbox v. PC thread. This is the worst sort of posting. Cease and desist.

actually, I think we still do fluffwise. if you decide to swoop race on Telos, for instance, I believe it is your bike that supposedly gets used. however, we have never, to the best of my recollection, had to take swoop bikes out on missions. this would add alot of ambience, IMO, even if it was just cutscreen-based. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> I agree, the fact that we have to walk / Jedi Speed run everywhere is kinda unrealistic. Sure in a the Telos satellite system we should be zipping around the metro system, but on the planets' surfaces we should be able to roam much further. It is even feasible that it could be a mini-game in itself, sort of like the turret mini-game in K1, and there could be multiple locations to swoop to. Even stealing a bike or something -- don't tell me only Maul had a little scooter.

I agree with those thoughts completely! The whole interaction needs more depth, and I think that a freeform exchange -- while obviously providing the capacity for such depth -- would not provide the support to make the interaction fun. Definitely a blunt "charisma" score doesn't do the art of conversation justice, that's why the "persuade" skill was created. There needs to be a further evolution of these skills, as they play such a central role in the game mechanics and delivery of the plot.

There was a minotaur henchman character in one (of Adam Miller's, I think -- Dreamcatcher, maybe?) mod. Wasn't a girlie, though.

We had a swoop bike in K1. Must have been jetisoned in a battle. As for shuttles, I don't think that's workable. It would be just as useful to have one group dropped off and another doing something else on the same planet, with a rendezvous at some predetermined future place / time ... with the inevitable rescue scenario when one group doesn't show up. Yeah, and a shower cubicle! I really wonder about that Atton and his phobia of soap and water ...

I am not sure if this correct. The skill of the party member played at 1st persons, is definately taken into account for creating items. I know this because when i open the bench with Bao Dur I can manifacture almost everything while when doing it with the Exile almost nothing. ( I am taking for benches out of ship). So it is inconsistent to count the members skill for creating an item and only the exiles for breaking it down. Strange. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> I haven't checked, but I also can confirm that the first person PC is the one who's skills contribute to what can be done at the workbench. I would change between characters, and swap inventories of items like Czerka belts, etc, to create new items. My Exile generally had a reasonable Repair skill, so if what you report is true it would be a bug -- or the fact that one can use another party member's skills to build items is a bug; the two are logically mutually exclusive. Ergo, not strange, broken.

Do these people who create their first post and become objects of derision just disapear out of overwelming embarassment, or do they venture forth with a brand new identity, or what? Unless there is one sad dude that keeps making elementary errors in netiquette, there seems to be a lot of people that don't read the FAQ, or even -- at least -- follow the "lurk before you post" heuristic. Is fame such a potent drug that infamy becomes almost as desirable? I'll never get it, I suppose. <_<

Don't you have a twenty-sided die?

I don't understand. If you want to be good, but don't then is your alignment really neutral evil? I thought you must be trying to be evil to be truly evil, otherwise you are just a weak-willed neutral.

Yes, that sounds quite feasible from a player point of view. This is a serious point, there would need to be pathways to escalate the argument into different stages of confrontation, from mind distrust, annoyance and bitter anger and jealosy right up to physical assault. And there would be ways to diffuse a situation, too -- bribery comes immedaitely to mind.

So how do minotaurs reproduce? And what does a female one look like?

Well, that is not a clear conclusion; the Director General resigned because the Hutton Enquiry did not find proof that the government was guilty of the "sexing up" of the "dodgy dossier" of intelligence of WMD in Iraq, as had been alleged by the erstwhile tabloid reporter Andrew Gilligan, and so the buck stopped with Dyke. I don't believe it is possible to be completely objective in reporting; what needs to be fought is the deliberate spin-doctoring that has become the norm for all governments: propaganda gone mad! Speaking of the Labour party's tenure in government, they have completely co-opted the ostensibly-impartial public services into the Labour propaganda process, so public srevants are now giving party political statements for and on behalf of the ministers! We are on a slippery slope, not only does the public not believe most of the governmental disclosures, but also it is not a large step to a malevolent power in government using the existing tainted system for absolute ruthless self-aggrandizement, feduciary gain and power. For a democracy to function it must have a free press. The electorate cannot make informed decisions without information. I fear for the consequences of the choices made by some of our politicians now.

Ahh, but it's always nice to go out on the water: must be all those negative ions, like just after a thunder storm; there is something magical about the waves lapping on the shore, like they have done for four billion years and will continue to do for as many again. Makes one feel small and insignificant ... so can we have your liver, then?

Now that's a character! I likee a lot. I disagree that she is not as exciting, that's an injustice. She is obviously an intelligent character, therefore not as easy to write a brief synopsis of, as she has subtleties and hidden depths. Good work!

Ah, Ultima ... *reminisces of Ultima ][ on the Apple //e, then Ultima ]I[ and the marksand cards, after the character creation through the gypsy in the fair ... (why did I end up as a Shepherd when I answered honestly?) ... Ultima IV ... good memories * I wouldn't know where to start with all the RPGs and Adventure games I've played; I think I've forgotten more games than a lot of people have played ... yet a lot of the ones posted above I haven't played ... :"> I even remember that silly French one where you went to different planets and had to try to decipher their language using a "typewriter" of pictographs to communicate with them (and end up eventually offering to copulate with them) ... what was that one called? (I never bought it, I played it at "work" on a summer job as a call-out computer technician -- i think it was on the Amiga ...)