#diablo 4 all characters

[pcgamer]

Diablo IV - All 5 Characters Classes | First Boss Gameplay

[silver-alter]

Oh I came to the world at the right time for pirated content to be popular in CD/DVD format.

Now... I had no idea at the time (because I was like… 5?), but my general understanding is that legit media and games were also kinda very expensive back then (some things never change. If the original price tag was in dollars, that's how it was and is to this day), so it wasn't uncommon for small stores to sell pirated games and movies. Heck, cybercafés were REALLY popular. Dad would take me to one close to home to play PS2 games at midnight, and I remember rows and rows of PCs with a decently big library of games. All cracked, of course. And an open room with four big couches and 4 huge screens to play PS2 or Xbox 360 games. And it was this dark atmosphere lit only by black lights that made it look like some underground/party club

I don't know WHY he insisted we go that late (I guess he knew I was a sucker for black lights and nighttime?), but it was a sort of fun Friday quality time I got to spend with him for a good couple of years. Also child me thought it was funny to come back home at 3am smelling like I had smoked a full pack of cigarettes (That place always had people smoking inside, I swear to god, I don't know why). It wasn't until I think 10-15 years ago(?) there was a crackdown on these places, and so now they're unable to host games unless they have a license for each and every copy (which is prohibitively expensive nowadays and not worth it in an age where EVERYONE has "easy" access to internet). By the time it happened my family already had access to internet and we were well educated on piracy, so it didn't hit as hard. I still kinda miss it, though.

Fun fact: I was born in the offline era. Molded by it. I did not see an internet connection at home until I was 12.

I learned how to and where to find pirated movies and games from my parents, and how to burn them on DVD's as well. I also probably bricked my PCs (plural) a fair couple of times during the learning process. If I search my bedroom I'm sure I can still find some folders filled with old PS2 discs.

In any case, it was really normalized for me since an early age that media was not something I had access to limited to the money in my pocket. Which is funny bc that was the same period of time where the "You wouldn't download a car..." ads were RAMPANT. Even in movie theaters. And yes, they were as funny and ridiculous then as they appear to be now.

Did your parents watch pirated media with you as a child ?

[brokehorrorfan]

6 Things I Learned from the Lisa Frankenstein Commentary

We don’t get movies like Lisa Franeknstein often, which is a shame because it’s endlessly charming yet delightfully twisted. While it disappointed at the box office, it has "cult classic" written all over it.

The coming-of-age horror-comedy is out today on Blu-ray and DVD. Among the special features is an audio commentary by Zelda Williams. Here are 6 things I learned…

1. Catch Me If You Can inspired the opening credit sequence.

The opening credit sequence, which briefly depicts the Creature's love story from his previous life in the style of Victorian shadow box art, was inspired by Catch Me If You Can.

"We wanted to do something interesting with the credits in this bit. I was really inspired by Catch Me If You Can, which I thought the opening credits were particularly interesting and helped establish the story before we ever got to it. And because Creature doesn't speak this whole movie, I wanted an opportunity to show what his life would have been like."

2. The film was originally intended to be rated R.

Although Lisa Frankenstein pushes the PG-13 rating as far as it can go, it was originally intended to be a hard R. Williams cites the party scene, in which Lisa originally smoked a laced joint rather than drinking a PCP cocktail, as a difficult revision.

"This is where stuff got a little complicated when we were going from R-rated to PG-13. Originally there was a coated joint they were passing around. This is one of the only scenes that I'm not sure I'm as fond of in comparison to the joint stuff. Most of the rest of the changes were fine, but this one I find very strange. It's just a very different reaction and interaction than what used to be there. However, these are the things that happen when making a movie."

3. Creature is an homage to Day of the Dead's Bub.

Not only Lisa is seen watching George A. Romero's Day of the Dead in the film, but the Creature is an homage to its iconic zombie, Bub.

"Creature for me is definitely an homage to Buster Keaton, but he's also an homage to the zombie you just saw on screen, Bub, who was in Day of the Dead, a Romero movie that I'm very fond of. It was an incredibly emotive and a very intelligent zombie and ended up getting revenge against the asshole in the movie. It was one of my favorite monsters ever made, so when I could put that on screen during the movie, it made me very happy."

4. Zelda hid a tribute to her father, Robin Williams.

Williams is the daughter of Robin Williams, and she included his 1983 comedy album, Throbbing Python of Love, among the records scattered on the floor in Lisa's living room.

"Oh, there's Dad! We used one of Dad's vinyl albums because we had to scatter some across the floor." She refers to it as "a little, mini Easter Egg for me."

5. The police officers are named after John Waters.

The police officers in the film are Officer John (played by Walker Babington) and Officer Waters (Sylvia Grace Crim) — named on a whim in honor of cult filmmaker, John Waters.

"They asked me to name the cops, because obviously they needed to have name tags, so I named them Officer John and Officer Waters." She thought no one would notice since they're so small, but a viewer pointed it out at a test screening.

6. The film is sprinkled with movie references.

Williams wore her influences on her sleeve with her directorial debut, and she pointed out several references on the commentary:

A Trip to the Moon (clip featured in Lisa's surreal dream sequence)

The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (stylistic inspiration on the dream sequence)

Weird Science (the party scene)

Suspiria (red lighting during drug sequence)

My Boyfriend's Back (camera shot from inside a grave looking up at characters)

Kill Bill (weapon point-of-view shot)

E.T. (a boy on a bike — played by Diablo Cody's son — at the end)

Notting Hill (reading together on a bench at the end)

Lisa Frankenstein is available now on Blu-ray, DVD, and Digital via Universal.

[ohnoitstbskyen]

Why do you think Diablo has disenged on it's core themes? (I mean I agree) I've always considered it to be a franchise with some insane wasted potential, but my perspective comes more from Diablo 3 and 4. Id be nice if you could expand on that.

I mean, my argument is that Diablo 1 was a dungeon crawler with a randomized loot mechanic that existed mostly to enable the roguelike random level generation that ensured replayability for the adventure. Players shouldn't be able to simply beeline it to the most powerful items in the game once they figure out exactly where they are, so randomization made each journey into the Tristram Cathedral a new process of discovery.

It's a game that, yes, wants to provide engaging gameplay, but just as much as the discovery of loot, it is driven by discovery of its world and story - multiple NPCs in the game exist that have no function or benefit to the player except as characters to interact with. You find lore tomes in the labyrinth which give you exposition about the world, but offer no tangible benefits. Shrines will randomize your stats, transform your potions, curse your items, randomly teleport you into a horde of monsters. The world is populated by objects, people and events that entice a player with curiosity to see what happens as much as they entice the player with the power fantasy of Making Number Go Up, and plenty of interactions have no hard gameplay benefit. "Sub dungeons" in the labyrinth, like the Halls of the Blind or Chamber of Bone, exist in part to give the player lootable rewards and monsters to fight, but also each of them have their own exposition, lore and worldbuilding (however limited by budget and technical limitations).

Diablo 2 realized that the skinner box thrill of randomized loot drops and number-go-up optimization was by far the most primally emotionally engaging part of Diablo 1's gameplay, and began the process of reorienting the franchise ENTIRELY to enable that specific pleasure. The loot system expands exponentially, crafting, gem slotting, etc all get introduced, and loot mechanics are given pride of place in terms of how the game engages the players. Shrines all provide knowable, specific benefits, every NPC is either a quest-giver or a merchant, there are HUNDREDS of randomized sub-dungeons on every map, and the vast majority of them have absolutely no narrative content whatsoever, they are merely slot machine arms for the player to pull, hoping for a chance of a jackpot loot drop.

Diablo 3 is the apotheosis of this process - a game which drops all pretense that the nature of your loot matters in favor of orienting every part of it around chasing the high of Getting A Bigger Number. You're a sorcerer running around with a greatsword? No problem! You cast all your spells as normal. So long as the greatsword has Bigger Numbers, anything works. Templar with a Wand? Equally viable! Damage numbers inflate into the millions, hordes of monsters swell with ever greater numbers, your spells and abilities clear entire screens in seconds, and everything in the game revolves around enabling the player's power fantasy.

In Diablo 1 you are an unimportant adventurer, the latest in a long line of unremarkable hopefuls, stepping alone into the bowels of a middle-of-nowhere village church, creeping slowly through its doors and hallways, fighting its monsters primarily one by one. Any group of ranged monsters can kill you in seconds, even in the late-game, and if you get surrounded, likely as not you are quite simply dead. It's tense, lonely, unglamorous and often desperate. Unwieldy inventory management puts constraints on your ability to heal and restore mana. You can only carry so many potions while leaving room for loot, and remember to leave room for your Town Portals and Identify scrolls, and for your all-important gold, which will clog your inventory almost totally by the end. Slay a unique monster and hope to god that the item it dropped wasn't cursed. Touch a shrine and you might lose 2 Strength points and suddenly be unable to equip your armor. When you kill Diablo, you find he is nothing but the possessed body of a young boy who was abducted and abused by a corrupt priest, an ugly and mundane tragedy leading to extraordinary suffering.

In Diablo 3 you are the most specialest most important incredible super-hero that has ever existed. You are a half-angel half-demon unstoppable killing machine, mowing down hordes of demons and corrupted angels like nothing, absolutely BATHING in infinite showers of ultra-powerful legendary loot, each more ultra-powerful and legendary than the last. You deal ten million damage with a single ability. You fight Ultra Diablo, the special super-powered SUPER SAIYING MEGA ULTRA super-powered extra special Prime Evil who is the most powerful evil bad guy who has ever existed and YOU are the only one in the whole universe who can beat him because you're SO special, yes you are! Identify shit by clicking on it! Cast town portal whenever you want! Enemies drop infinite health potions whenever you need them! Fuck it, you even KILL DEATH by the end because you are invincible and immortal and unstoppable and perfect. Fear has no hold on you, never in your life will you know uncertainty or doubt. AND it's your birthday! Buy a sword that is 3.2% better than your magic wand with real money in the auction house as a treat!

tl;dr Diablo 1 is an adventure game, Diablo 3 is Cookie Clicker.

[salford-blues]

Dressed to impress

A/n: I am so not ready to go back to Uni. So fics might slow down a bit because this semester might take a toll on me haha.

Pairing: F1 grid x driver!reader Summary: Y/N shows off her little family to the world, in which they're all dressed to impress. Well most of them are <33 Warnings: like a swear word

@yourusername and @l/nandcompany

liamlawson30, georgerussell63, landonorris & others liked

My new account for my little companions! Just a fun little account for my many pets.

Left - Thackery (12), Middle - Cosmic Creepers (8), Right - Oogie Boogie (8)

View all comments

alex_albon booooooo!! Just trying to copy now 👎

> yourusername i cant just let their cuteness go to waste

>> alex_albon you know what... fairs. Cossie is very cute

User.1 eeeeeee soso cute

User.2 Thackery doesn't look very happy

> yourusername that because Alex didn't bring is favourite treat...

>> alex_albon heeyy i forgot!! Tell him I'm sorry. pleassee

>>> yourusername he said he'll forgive if you bring him some next time!

>>>> alex_albon deal!!

landonorris do NOT let Cosmic Creepers fool you. He may be cute, but he's possessed. I'm telling you

> oscarpiastri dramatic, and for what?

@l/nandcompany and @yourusername

oscarpiastri, charles_leclerc, logansargeant & others liked

Omg, I've never looked so good...

Left - Kismet (9), Middle - Itchy (3), Right - Knuckles (1)

View all comments

User.3 how do you come up with these names???

> yourusername most of them are named after characters!!!

charles_leclerc hahaha... veryyy funny caption

> yourusername knew you'd like it

User.4 how many pets do you have?

> yourusername faaarr too many.

User.5 surely this is animal abuse...

User.6 Why does she have a hedgehog?? I thought they were illegal in some states

> yourusername 1. I rescued him and 2. not everyone lives in the states babes <33 but thanks for the concern

@l/nandcompany and @yourusername

mickschumacher, lewishamilton, logansargeant & others liked

Having a fursome time. Managed to snag a pic before Diablo fought the camera. 🐾

Left - Diablo (3), Middle - Meeko (2), Right - Prometheus (5)

View all comments

User.6 Diablo looks very cool.

> yourusername Diablo likes to tell people to 'fuck off'... wonder were he got that from

>> yourusername looking at you @liamlawson30 👀👀

>>> liamlawson30 don't know what you're on about 😤

>>>> yourusername sure you don't. Just like you don't remember teaching him to attack people when they're smacking their lips.

>>>>> User.12 that is a very valid reason to attack someone

logansargeant look how sophisticated Meeko looks

> yourusername oh wow, that's a big word coming from you

>> logansargeant i try to be nice and this is what i get in return...

>>> oscarpiastri yh but you're american. it's why you get bullied

roscoelovescoco whens cans I's comes round agains?

> yourusername soon Roscoe!! Prometheus and Itchy miss you

@l/nandcompany and @yourusername

frederikvestioffical, georgerussell63, danielricciardo & others liked

We wish you a merry christmas and aaaaa happpyyyy newwwww yeaaarrrr 🎄🎄🎄

Left - Ankyl (6), Middle - Bandersnatch (2), Right - Scorchito (2)

View all comments

User.7 why are all these animals so cuuutteeee

User.8 cuteness overload... think I'm gonna die

User.9 Ankyl isn't very christmassy

> yourusername I couldn't find his christmas picture, so I had to put his halloween one up instead

porschef1 hmmm meet and greet when??

*yourusername liked comment*

User.10 do any of them have a favourite person/driver? do any of the hate one of the drivers?

> yourusername yes and yes!! some examples: all of the cats HATE Lando, but Itchy loves him. The cats like Oscar, Alex, Liam, George etc. The ferrets are fond of Fred Vesti and Charles. The bird likes noone... he will attack at any point. ESPECIALLY when you're singing. He's a very naughty boy and we can blame Liam for that.

>> User.11 Liam and Lando catching strays left, right and centre.

maxfewtrell Lando looks like he might cry. Keep talking

> yourusername well I'll send Itchy his way. That'll cheer him up

>> landonorris thanks gonna keep him now

>>> yourusername right... grounded for 3 months.

>>>> landonorris 3 MONTHS???? WHY???

>>>>> yourusername cause the cats told me to

>>>>>> landonorris this is bullying!!

@yourusername and @l/nandcompany

mickschumacher, liamlawson30, oscarpiastri & others liked

Meet our newest member Koda 🐻

View all comments

User.13 awweee he's so fluffy!!

oscarpiastri I want to be the first one to meet him

> mickschumacher too late...

>> oscarpiastri I SAW THAT

>>> oscarpiastri NNOOOOOO

User.14 wait Mick was the first to meet him? Awweee

> logansargeant NO not 'awweee'. Why was Mick the first one Birdie?? Why not me? Why not Oscar? Do you not love us?

>> yourusername why so dramatic? Can we appreciate Koda's cuteness instead ta

mickschumacher so cute!! Can't wait to meet him 💙💛

> logansargeant you can't sweet talk your way out of this Mick

>> oscarpiastri LIAARRR... count your days Mick

>>> yourusername stop threatening the poor boy or else you can join Lando

>>>> oscarpiastri no please I'll be nice. Promise 🙏

[is1of1]

Just point me at what I need to destroy!

Mephisto: I will give you the violence you long for

Me:

[natalieironside]

Things we know go to heaven:

1. All dogs

2. The car from that show Supernatural

3. The player character in Act 4 of Diablo 3

[demonic0angel]

hi i was think abt ur demon!jazz and priest!jason au and i suddenly realized that they would be a perfect fit as inarius and lillith from diablo 4. Also their character designs are so incredibly cool i have like a 5/8 chance of drawing this

shallow lore explanation is the theres an eternal war between the high heavens and the burning hells, and it literally goes on for eternity. But at some point Lillith, daughter of hatred, decides that she wants no part in the conflict, and falls in love(or like has a weirdly charged situationship with?) Inarius the archangel. Together they create sanctuary, the earth-equivalent. They also have a child who becomes the first human. But a prophecy is revealed that states "a spear of light shall pierce hatreds heart" and inarius gets obsessed with the idea of returning to the high heavens with the prophecy as "proof." And now Lillith and Inarius fucking hate each other and are both incredibly imperfect and flawed and both of them think the other is absolutely delusional, while also being outcasted from their affiliations.

Me: *breathing down your shoulder* 5/8 chance…

I appreciate the explanation lmao. I think this sort of dynamic really would suit them. In my priest and succubus AU, Jazz and Jason love each other because only they can understand how outcasted and different they are from other people (Jason died, got revived, and then lost his blessings while his siblings are still pure, while Jazz is weak and relies on her charm as a succubus to live in the underworld with her far stronger siblings), but at the same time, they also despise each other because none of them will take the first step in reaching out to the other, as well as the fact that they are technically mortal enemies and have tortured and hurt each other a lot.

With Diablo 4 as an inspiration, I think the addition of a child would only make them even more vicious and petty. Their kid is probably stuck in the middle of 2 childish, proud people who won’t admit that they love each other and constantly hurt others around them to hurt the other. All in all, Jazz and Jason in the priest and succubus AU are deliciously toxic and with this added idea of them also having a past where they might’ve had a chance of admitting that they loved each other, but now only hating each other even more and thinking that the other is crazy but also unable to leave each other bc they’re more alone than ever—

A very, very yummy idea XD

[ligninn]

I know I'm reeeeally late to the party, but I just finished Diablo 4 and I have… questions. First of all, the game looks incredible, and I loved the aesthetics, the scenery, the character designs—they were all really well done. However, the story felt a bit "meh."

Since Diablo 3 (or maybe even 2—tbh I really don't remember D2 lore; it's been ages since I've played), the story kept showing us how Heaven, source of light and good, doesn't care about humans or anything related to them, that they just mind their own business with Hell. They see humans as abominations since they have the darkness in them too. Again since D3, there's been this yin-yang situation going on, especially seen with Inarius and Lilith. Inarius is an angel corrupted by darkness, mostly by hatred, and Lilith is the daughter of hatred "corrupted" by love and care. She was a mother, maybe not the best for sure, but it really looked like she cared when her son got killed. Especially since Inarius was the killer and his reason was so fucking stupid. He really thought killing his son would get his ass back to heaven- i can't with this man... We see more humanity in Lilith than any other "villain" we've had so far, I believe. I'm not saying she's perfect of course, her ways were brutal obviously but she only talks about giving people the freedom to do whatever, suggests that they're free to do sin but never really gives any details on what a sin is. In the end it's the people choosing to do evil. She's saying that no religion, especially one following a corrupted angel, can show them the way to live and act. AND SHE WAS RIGHT! But why was she doing all this? What was in it for her? Did she just want to send a big "fuck off" to both Heaven and Hell, or was she craving power and wanted to be the sole ruler?

That's my biggest issue with the main story. We never get to learn. We were never given a chance to really talk and consider her points, which mostly made sense, btw. But instead, for some reason, we were considering more of what Mephisto, a damn Prime Evil, had to say? Like I said, the story so far had a yin-yang theme, so I thought we would dive deeper into this with less prejudice, but it felt so superficial, unlike the theme itself. Because it was literally just Lilith = bad while everything about her was mostly gray. And I think they wasted a lot of potential there :/

[my-world-my-stories]

Considering the Predator movie Marathon i made way back in Halloween, I feel now in a mood to comment on which movies I liked the best. Especially on a a scale on how much I enjoyed them.

Keep in mind, these are just my opinion, everyone is entitled to their own tastes, i'm no way shape or form a movie critic, so don't take these too seriously.

(Obvious spoilers for the movies)

Predator (1987): Honestly, for being an 'action' movie, the pacing was really slow. Like literally the only entertaining bits for me where the Predators scenes and they were very few and far in between. We only get to that cool fight between Dutch and El Diablo (badass nickname honestly) at the literal end and the rest is just about a bunch of sweaty military man walking around in the jungle and getting picked one my one. Did not care one bit when they got killed either since most are just assholes. I still give it a 7.5/10 for being the one to start off the franchise.

Predator 2 (1990): In my opinion, objectively an improvement from the first one by a lot. The Predator is part of the plot since the start, the action is satisfying and while the pacing goes at a neck break speed, making it feel very over the top and hammy, i was having a blast through it all. The human characters feel like a buch of stereotypes of 90' cop movies (the rouge cop that does whatever he wants, the cop best friend that gets killed, the chic cop, the newbie, the evil druglords) but the predator being part of the mix kinda saves it from being too cliche like the rest of his genre. I give it a solid 8/10.

Alien VS Predator (2004): AvP is an interesting case for me. It's a very much a movie of it's time, that got that 2000’ movie energy where they try to be so cool and edgy, in some scenes it can work, while in others, it kinda fumbles. The CGI doesn't help either. But the elements that do work, like Lex and Scar team up, the Xeno Queen fight, the idea in general of Yautja hunting Xenos as a trial of sorts, make the movie for me (if we don't count the finale). It's a good movie to vibe with, just to see cool predator action, so I say it's a 6 or 7/10.

AvP Requiem (2007): Did not watch it. No opinion. (Literally everyone agrees that Wolf is the sole worth it part in this movie)

Predators (2010): It's not bad.... But not good either. Recently, a friend asked for recommendations on Predator movies, and without hesitation I said 'do no recommend' about this movie, so that says a lot. None of the human characters are actually interesting, the predators get so little screen time, Cruci predator deserved better and in general, it has a lot of wasted potential. The movie is even supposed to take place on an alien planet, which sounds so interesting as a setting, but they made it look like every generic jungle in a movie ever (with a few weird plants, a funky skyline and ONE scene with another alien creature that isn't a yautja or a hound). It didn't completely ruin the vibe, but I definitely won't come back to this movie anytime soon, 4/10.

The Predator (2018): Did not watch it. No opinion. (The few things I saw and heard discouraged me in an heartbeat.)

Prey (2022): I do not care if I'm saying what everyone else has, Prey IS a good movie. Even if you're not familiar with the franchise, it's a good movie to enjoy, with great cinematography, good special effects, a badass design for a Predator AND a human main character that I can actually root for and I care about if she manages to survive or not by the end (if we also count Lex from AvP. That girl and Scar deserved so much better.). Her victory felt earned, even if I still feel salty that every Yautja must die by the end of their movie. Might be slightly influenced because the bar of comparison for the other movies is low at this point, but it deserves a 9/10.

[raven-at-the-writing-desk]

edgar allen poe + twst??

***Spoilers for book 7 part 4!!***

In the latest main story update, Lilia tells us about the princess of the Briar Valley (ie Malleus’s mom) and a fae messenger that went to an human fortress to the east (Malleus’s dad). If you’ll recall, Malleus tells us in present day (in his Birthday Boy vignettes) that his “only living relative” is his grandmother, which implies his parents are gone. The update leaves us on a cliffhanger where Lilia and co. are at the eastern fortress while the humans are launching a surprise attack on the palace where Malleus’s mother resides. It is very possible that she will die as a result of this encounter (for as powerful as she is, the humans greatly outnumber her). His father had gone missing prior to this while going to deliver a message to the humans. It is not confirmed if he is dead or just… missing at the moment.

Both Malleus’s mom and dad are referred to by name, but the fandom is finding it difficult to settle on one variation until an official English localization of book 7 comes out. “Mallenoa” appears to be the commonly accepted term for Malleus’s mom, whereas “Levan/Revan” is for his dad.

Well… what if we looked at the works of Edgar Allen Poe?? More specifically, at the two poems Lenore and The Raven? 🤔 Stay with me here—

The first poem, Lenore, was written by Poe to cope with his wife Virginia contracting tuberculosis. It speaks of the passing of a young woman (Lenore), and those who mourn for her. Important to note is that Lenore is described as “the queenliest dead that ever died so young”.) Her intended is not crying at the funeral, so others accuse him of not caring for his now deceased fiancé. He counters by claiming the other mourners are the ones who never really cared for her. The poem finished with Lenore’s husband-to-be saying that she is in a better place now than this “damned earth”.

What does this have to do with Malleus’s mom? Look at how her name is written in TWST JP (the two characters that follow the name refer to her title):

Now notice how Lenore is written. All of the characters match except the missing first one (which is understandable, since that is the “Malle”/“Mare” part missing). I confirmed this by typing in “Mallenore”; the end result was the exact same writing as how Malleus’s mom’s name is written in game.

Knowing that Mallenoa is in a dangerous situation that puts her life at risk and Lenore is a poem all about someone who has passed... PLUS Lenore is a woman who is described as “the queenliest dead”, and Mallenoa is the princess of Briar Country, destined to be queen one day... AND how their names are written matching up, it’s possible that “Mallenoa” will be localized as “Mallenore”.

But what about Malleus's dad? Well, I see two possibilities: "Levan" could be a reference to "levin" or lightning (something which Maleficent is associated with) OR it could be "Revan", which is just raven with the vowels swapped around. (It's difficult to know for sure which one would be "more" correct, as the /r/ and /l/ sounds tend to blend together in Japanese.) As we all know, Maleficent is also known for Diablo, her pet raven. Levan/Revan also serves a very similar role as Diablo did for Maleficent to his wife and princess (ie he advised her and acted as her right-hand man; hence why he was the one who departed for the diplomatic trip).

Edit: TWST EN has confirmed that the official localization for Malleus's dad's name is "Raverne". Back to Lenore for a moment, Levan/Revan could be filling in for the role of the upset husband-to-be. Thinking about it, after his wife has died (and assuming he is still alive at that point), the world really would be like a "damned earth" to him. His wife is gone, his country in tatters because of how the human invaders have ravaged it, etc. And worse yet, if he is fae himself then it will be years and years before he is able to rejoin his wife in death.

This brings us to The Raven, which was published 2 years after Lenore and serves as a sort of companion piece to it. The Raven refers to a creature that visits an unnamed man, who laments the loss of his love, Lenore. (Note that even though the same name is used here, it’s not clear if this Lenore is the exact same as the one in Lenore.) The bird continuously antagonizes the mourning man and drives him to madness, reflecting the poem’s sentiment that lingering grief can interfere with one’s ability to live in the present. The Raven, then, is said to be the spirit or presence of Lenore paying a visit to her lover and/or “haunting” him.

The Raven doesn’t have parallels as clear as the ones between Lenore and Mallenoa—however, the motif of the raven itself would match up with what we know of Diablo. “The Raven” is a bird that refuses to leave the mourning man’s home no matter which room he goes to. This could refer to the relationship between Malleus’s parents, between princess and her trusted aide that follows her like a shadow. Alternatively, since the mourning man is Lenore’s lover, this could be foreshadowing. It could mean that Levan/Revan (again, assuming he is still alive by the time his wife dies) will be deeply affected by his wife’s passing.

All of the canon details and stuff aside, this makes some sense thematically if we think about Poe’s general themes. He often talks about death and the loss of loved ones, both of which are major themes in book 7 and now, as we can see, in the history of Briar Country.

So 👁️ 👄 👁️ in conclusion, you should read Edgar Allen Poe… 👉👈

ADDENDUM: HER OFFICIAL NAME IS MELEANOR, BOYS... We were so close...

[covertblizzard]

Teen Titans Chronology

Era 1: Superhero Names & Funky Nicknames

The Brave and the Bold (1955) #54 The Brave and the Bold (1955) #60 Showcase #59 Teen Titans (1966) #1-20 The Brave and the Bold (1955) #83 Teen Titans (1966) #21-22

This is the peak silly era. Goofy nicknames, (mostly) goofy one-off villains, occasional team-up, etc. As far as I'm aware, none of their real names are ever mentioned within their own title and it's just their superhero names.

It starts with Robin, Kid Flash, Aqualad (in the first Brave and Bold), with Wonder Girl being the first addition when they are officially first called the Teen Titans (in the second Brave and Bold), so I'm counting the Fab Foursome (Cool Quartet? Fantabulous Foursome?) of them as the starting point. They're a team up to #18 with occasional guests from Speedy (#4 - with notes that there were an "avalanche of mail" asking for his inclusion, #11), Beast Boy (#6 - rejected by the Teen Titans and apparently previously the Doom Patrol for not having a guardian's permission slip, interesting note that he already had movie offers here), and Starfire (#18 - definitely not who you're thinking of and instead a Russian boy).

Issue #19 is when they become "Fab-Four-Sometime Five" where Roy joins and Garth takes a break, so the main four changed. There are then two more team ups with Jericho (#20 - also not who you're thinking of but some boy name Joshua) and with Hawk and Dove (#21).

I think only Mad Mod became a long-term villain (?) but the list includes: Mr Twister, the Astounding Separated Man, Beast-God of Xochatan, Akkuru, Ding Dong Daddy Dowd (Demon Dragster), Diablo, The Ant (less villain and more blackmailed by Mr Krask), Mr Baltzer, Mad Mod, Honey Bun (and a spy Karl Larner), Captain Tiger, The Scorcher, The Gargoyle (who makes a reappearance in #35), Captain Rumble, The Dimensional Caper (from Dimension X), Le Blanc, Punch (Sylvester Sepastopol), Fat Cat.

Era 2: Real Names, New Teammates, Mr Jupiter, and Solo Storylines

Teen Titans (1966) #22-31 The Brave and the Bold (1955) #94 Teen Titans (1966) #32-34 World's Finest Comics #205 Teen Titans (1966) #35-39 The Brave and the Bold (1955) #102 Teen Titans (1966) #40-43

This part of the story starts to have a bit more personality and it is a lot more character-driven as opposed to (short) plot-driven stories. Their real names are finally used and they're shown to hangout as civilians and not just superheroes.

This starts at the end of #22 when Donna Troy is given a name, a backstory (one of many), a new apartment, a roommate Sharon, and a makeover. Dick and Wally was previously named in #83 of The Brave and the Bold, but Roy gets named in #24. In a way, this makes Donna feel very much like the living center of the Titans for me, her development begins with the Titans and she's intrinsically tied to it very personally (and this also feels reflected in how Garth views Donna as the "TITANS FOREVER" among all of them). After all, at this point, there's no separate comics she is in unlike the other 4 main titans. She is also the only single character that appears in every single comic with no exception (other than the very first, but they weren't known as Teen Titans then either).

There aren't so much guests as much as two new permanent members - Lilith who joins right before Mr Jupiter comes into the picture in #25 and Mal who joins right after in #26. During this time, 6 of them are mostly all there and are led and trained by Mr Jupiter. The longest disappearance is when Dick goes to college (from #25-32 except for a single appearance in #28) and occasional disappearance when they stay behind to take care of Mr Jupiter's lab (sometimes it is unexplained but I chalk most disappearance up to this). From #26 onwards, all but 6 issues are not related to Mr Jupiter (#28-29 led by Garth, #31 led by Wally, #34 and #42 led by Donna, and #43). This era also seems to establish Wally (and Donna) as de-facto leader when Dick is not around.

All other guests are really more part-time members such as Hank and Don who do their summer stint from #25-#30, Gnarrk who first appears in #32-33 and comes back in #39, and Garth who appears in #28-29 and #40.

For the first time (as far as I'm aware), a known villain gets brought into the story - Ocean Master (Orm) and an alien leader Mofo in #28-29 with Garth going after him. This part also established the easy-to-get-into-fights, easy-to-get-out-of-fights (among themselves) dynamics that I associate with the Titans. They start to place more importance on their insecurities and friendship.

There are also 2 main "friends get brainwashed" (for extended period) type storyline during this period of time (which later seems to become quite commonplace among the Titans): once with Donna (#34 which Wally doesn't see) and once with Garth (#40).

This is also the only era which has quite a lot of additional separate solo storylines. It start with Donna if you count "The Origin of Wonder Girl" in #22 (although it's kind of more like an additional story where everyone appears), and then Wally and Garth (with Tula) in #30. Garth (#30, #35, #36, #38) and Lilith (#36, #38, #41, #43) have the most with 4 each, Roy (#35, #38) and Hank&Don (#31, #39) have two each, and Mal (#35) and Dick (#36) have one each (like Donna and Wally). Superboy (young Clark) actually also has two - one with Dick (#36) and one with young Ollie (#37) that doesn't even have any of the Titans in it.

Crucially, contrary to how modern comics love to portray Batman and Robin's view on the Teen Titans, Batman actually fully supports the Teen Titans in the original and has never been shown to do otherwise almost at all. In fact, he is the one with the most team-ups with the Teen Titans and the team-ups almost always happen because he needs helps "relating to the teens" and he specifically calls on them, with full respect for them (even purposely allowing Wally and Donna to punch him real hard that one time to solidify their cover). The only mentor who does show disapproval is actually Aquaman (in Era 3), who does so because Garth gets mysteriously sick which he blames on the Teen Titans (sort of half-correctly).

Interestingly, up to this point there are actually more team appearances of what I'm calling Alternative 5 or Alt5 (Wally, Donna, Roy, Lilith Mal) than of Fab5 (Dick, Wally, Donna, Garth, Roy). In fact, up to this point there were 12 appearances of Alt5 over 5 appearances of Fab5. This is mostly because Roy and Garth actually have very little team-ups because Roy became a permanent basically the same time that Garth stopped being a permanent member.

Titans Villains (other than Ocean Master hat one time) in this era: Hell's Hawks, Harry Tout, Dr Pauling, Councilman Buckminster (Santa Claus), Demoness possessing Magda Drachwyck (Miss Wickersham), Calibano Della Loggia (x2), Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, Black Earl of Moray, Captain Barstow's Phantom, Lord Beetle

Era 3: When Fab5 was Defined, More Teammates, Teen Titans West, and Splitting Up

Teen Titans (1966) #44-53 The Brave and the Bold (1955) #149

There was a more than 3 years gap from the last issue #43 in February 1973 to issue #44 in November 1976 which translated to a 2 year in-comic hiatus of the Teen Titans. There's also a change of regular writer from (mostly) Bob Haney to Bob Rozakis. All this culminated in a change in tone of the characters being a bit more aggressive and antagonistic towards each other, especially with Roy (note: Snowbirds Don't Fly happened in 1971 so it's not because that occurred in between the break since it actually happened before the break). They fight a lot more this era and the storylines are longer and bleed more into one another.

Another obvious change is that Wally is shown to be way more into Donna than before (in his thoughts especially) instead of their more casual flirting. Wally does eventually confess to Donna who rejects him in this era. The other "official" relationships are Mal/Karen and Lilith/Gnarrk (funnily because Mal/Lilith was a thing for a bit).

In story, Mr Jupiter decides to close shop (unknown reason) and so they broke up, with Mal taking care of the labs and the rest pursuing their individual careers instead as they agreed upon (but Mal is unhappy about). This... doesn't really make sense because I'm not sure what "individual career" Donna has, but never mind.

Lilith is no longer in the main team (later explained that she settled in the West Coast with Gnarrk which is very contradictory to her last statement in #43 that the Teen Titans is her family). Garth comes back from #45 when he is mysteriously summoned by Mal's horn and it's like he never left. He wants to resign in #51 because his insecurities making him physically sick, but he agrees to finish the mission and they all ended up disbanding anyway. Karen appears first in #45 as Mal's girlfriend and joins as Bumblebee in #49, but Duela joins the team first in #46. Because of these lineup changes, Fab5 appearances started to catch up to Alt5 until eventually Alt5 (15 appearances) just barely edges out Fab5 (13 appearances). Interestingly, Dick-Wally-Donna-Roy-Mal actually end up appearing most (17 appearances).

They (it's honestly mostly Dick, Wally, and Donna) discuss the idea of a new headquarters first suggested by Donna in #45 (like I said, she's very much the living centre of the Titans). Dick makes the decision (because he is Leader-Man and Bruce is funding it) to have their headquarters as a restaurant front, Gabriel's Horn (named after Mal's horn given by the angel Gabriel in #45), run by Mal and Roy (the jobless duo apparently) in #46 and they set it up in #49. Mal and Roy also started forming the rock band The Great Frog (a job!) in #45 which plays in their restaurant.

Teen Titans West first meet up and is established in #50 with some familiar faces (Gar, Hank, Don, Lilith, Gnarrk) and some complete newbies (Bette, Ch'al) to the roster. Issues #51 and #52 have the East and West team up, resulting in basically every Titans ever joining with the exception of Tula (but then again, at this point she only appeared in Garth solo story and never in the main storyline). At the end of which, they have a big feast (sponsored by Dick) and decided to part ways to improve and work towards eventually becoming the future Justice League (as they were always meant to).

The final story #53 establishes their origin and formation story which includes Roy, but had Roy basically saying he wanted to be involved only whenever he wanted and not permanently (ahem commitment issues), establishing Fab5 as the clear founders of the Teen Titans in the last issue.

There is a third "friends get brainwashed/used" (for extended period) type storyline with Lilith (#50-52), except she's not evil, but her powers are manipulated for evil. With Duela, there is also the first instance of villain's children in the Titans (in future there is Joey and Rose most prominently), setting up the stage for Titans raising villain's children. They actually brought Two-Face in to visit Duela at least once (right after a crime too???) which is... interesting?

This era has many more appearances of known villains including Dr Light, The Fiddler, Two-Face, and Mr Esper (Captain Calamity). The final issue is where Antithesis first appear (he is a recurring villain or at least comes back in future issues), and the remaining unimportant ones are: The Wreckers, Flamesplasher (x2), Sizematic (x2), Darklight (x2), and Rocket Rollers led by Brian the Brain.

Finally, there are some unexplained mysteries. Where the hell did Mal's horn go since it went missing in #49? Who is the blonde "Little Queen" that Garth meets from #36 (because I don't think it's Nirka McDuff from #40)? Who are Lilith's parents? What's up with Mr Jupiter? Is he Donna's dad (#35)? Do they ever make use of the possibly haunted mansion and fortune they inherited in #43? Why did Mr Jupiter not bother to make Roy, Wally, and Lilith face their fears (#38)? Does he think redheads have no fears? Are we going to address the fact that Lilith is apparently Juliet reborn (#35-36) and decided to give up Romeo (who she was very enamored by for a while) for Gnarrk?

To be continued~

Some Statistics (For Fun)

Most to least appearances, we have:

Donna (60) - only missing from the very first story before they were coined the Teen Titans

Wally (58) - missing from 3 stories all during Mr Jupiter era (twice unknown reasons and once because he is watching the lab)

Dick (54) - missing from 6 issues for his college

Roy (41)

Garth (37)

Mal (28)

Lilith (22)

Mr Jupiter (12) - not a Titan but I was curious so I counted him

Hank and Don (11)

Karen and Duela (8)

Gnarrk (5)

Gar (4)

Bette and Ch'al (3)

Tula (1)

Most to least trio appearances (within Fab5):

Dick-Wally-Donna (50)

Wally-Donna-Roy (38) - the love triangle lmao

Dick-Donna-Roy (33)

Dick/Donna-Wally-Garth (32)

Dick-Donna-Garth / Dick-Wally-Roy trio (31) - DWDG and DWDR limiting factor

Wally/Donna-Garth-Roy (14) - Roy/Wally-Donna-Mal/Lilith have more than this (25, 23, 19, 18)

Dick-Garth-Roy (13) - Fab5 limiting factor

For quartets, Dick-Wally-Donna-Garth (DWDG) quartet (31) ends up exactly equal to Dick-Wally-Donna-Roy (DWDR) quartet (31).

Special note that because of Lilith separation in Era 3, even though Garth is brought back, the Rebirth "OG" line up (Fab 5 + Lilith) actually only has 3 appearances together. On the other hand, Alt 5 + Dick have 9 appearances (but no Garth). World's Finest line up (Fab5 + Karen) have 7 appearances but only 4 of which Karen is actually Bumblebee and fighting with them, while the Silver Age Final line up (Fab5 + Mal) has the most with 10 appearances.

Ultimately, Lilith does still make more sense to me than Karen to balance the team with more girls, because she definitely was there earlier, had more appearance than Karen, and also doesn't have the additional association of joining because of Mal since she predates Mal. That said, the girl with the most Fab5 teamup might actually be Duela who also has 7 appearances with Fab5, all of which she is on their side (although half their issue was trust which wouldn't make so much sense if she was with them from the beginning). The person with most Fab5 teamup is unquestionably Mal though (10). It's curious to see what is more "valid" but my personal opinion is that there is no point in making a Fab6 just let leave it be and acknowledge it as product of its time.

If you want to have a look at the data out of curiosity, it's here.

[capacle]

20 Brazilian TTRPGs I wish also existed in English

Today I offer you:

20 Brazilian TTRPGs I wish also existed in English (because I want the world to know about them)

Buckle up, because you won't BELIEVE the diversity of our indie scene.

[presented in no particular order, and only one per author]

1. Meu Brinquedo Preferido ('My favorite toy'), by Eduardo Caetano

A metaphor about a child's growing process by deconstructing their fears through playful situations.

2. SeanchaS, by Jorge Valpaços and Jefferson Neves

A game about myths, construction of identity and narrative around bonfires, about the time of ancient stories and the present time.

3. Gatunos, by Tiago Junges

A GMless/Solo game in which you play as cat thieves and mercenaries doing the dirty work of the five big factions that run the city.

4. Nômades (Nomads), by Marcelo Collar

A card-based RPG in which you play as beings who have the ability to find and pass through the cracks in the veil that separates the universes.

5. Infaernum, by Caio Romero

Create your own apocalypse while playing the game, and interpret characters who experience the last days of all things.

6. Áureos, Os Dançarinos da Lua ('The Moon Dancers'), by Rey Ooze

A game of fight and freedom where dice play capoeira. You play as an 'Áureo', a former slave who, in a fantastic colonial Brazil, receives the blessings of his Orisha to free his people from slavery.

7. Veridiana, by Alan Silva

You play as creatures that live in a large tree, embarking on a deeply sentimental journey in search of a cure.

8. Karyu Densetsu, by Thiago Rosa and Nina Bichara

A game inspired by action anime and manga, with tactical combat, philosophical conversation, and passionate ideals.

9. Imperia, by Jonny Garcia

A game of politics and intrigue in a medieval court, inspired by Game of Thrones. Create a kingdom collaboratively and assume the role of the most influential people in it.

10. Goddess save the Queen, by Carol Neves and Julio Matos

A pulp adventure game in which you play as secret agents of the British Crown during the interwar period, with their own agenda connected in some way with their home nation.

11. Abismo Infinito ('Infinite Abyss'), by John Bogéa

A narrative game of psychological horror in which the protagonists are astronauts, far away in space, involved in a web of lucid nightmares and manifestations of their own fears.

12. Mojubá, by Lucas Conti and Lucas Sampaio

An Afrofuturistic urban fantasy game inspired by Yoruba and Afro-Brazilian mythologies. Play as a person with fantastic powers who descends from the Orixás, fights evil spirits, and occasionally gets into a rap battle.

13. Chopstick, by Igor Moreno

A game inspired by action movies of oriental martial arts, gang fights and crime, with a twist on Fate Accelerated.

14. Contos do Galeão ('Tales of the Galleon'), by Encho Chagas

Create together the legend of a vessel that would have existed during the Golden Age of Piracy. Players will create the ship, its pirates, as well as its enemies, challenges, and rewards.

15. O Cordel do Reino do Sol Encantado ('The Cordel of the Kingdom of the Enchanted Sun'), by Pedro Borges

A narrative game set in the northeastern 'cangaço' region at the beginning of the 20th century.

16. Através das Trevas ('Through the Darkness'), by Ramon Mineiro

A post-apocalyptic fantasy game inspired by The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, The Witcher and Diablo.

17. Nihilo, by Andre Osna and Gustavo Rolanski

A world very much like our own—yet bigger, deeper, and stranger. Secret banks are run by Urban Dragons, Infernal mafias terrorize slums, interdimensional portals open in the basements of abandoned pizzerias.

18. Caçada ao Colosso ('Hunt for the Colossus'), by Jairo Borges Filho

Reenact stories such as Siegfried and the dragon Fafnir, the Greek Odyssey or legends centered on the opposition of two primary forces of humanity.

19. Perdidos ('Lost'), by Marcelo Paschoalin

Inspired by Bloodborne and Dark Souls, a world in ruins, fragmented to the point where only memories remain. You'll find relics of yesteryear, monstrous beasts, beings that have forgotten their purpose, and devious paths to tread.

20. Hitodama - A jornada das almas ('The Journey of the Souls'), by Alexsander Araujo

You are Shinigamis: creatures half divinity, half Yokai, who must carry out missions through different worlds, fighting formidable enemies and saving lost souls.

[playgameshealkids]

It's that time of year again, friends!

Tomorrow, November 2nd, we will be gaming and streaming for 24 hours to raise funds for our favorite charity, Extra Life.

We have raised over $15,000 since we started on this quest 7 years ago and so far we've raised just over half our goal of 4k for this year.

Register after donating for some great give aways! 

This year we will be giving away a physical Collector's Edition of Word of Warcraft: The War Within, digital Epic WoW and Epic D4 Expansion editions, WoW game time, and Battle.net balance. A donation is required to enter and winning is not guaranteed. You can enter and read more about the give aways here! 

$10 donation or more to be entered for Random Drawings  $50 donation or more to be entered for 1 year WoW sub  $65 donation or more to be entered for Digital Epic Editions of WoW and D4 $75 or more donation for physical WoW Collectors Edition (shipping not included) $85 or more donation for an in-game WoW Brutosaur 

Relevant Links

You can find our Donation page here: https://www.extra-life.org/participant/Sollitaire

You can find our Twitch Stream here: https://www.twitch.tv/sollitaire

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Schedule

We will start tomorrow at 12pm CT.

I don't have an official schedule this year other than our semi-annual 5v5 ARAM Heroes of the Storm shenanigans at Midnight central time. Here are some of the games we will for sure be playing: World of Warcraft (Retail - this includes Delves, Keys, and 20th anniversary randomness across a multitude of characters) Diablo 4 Vessel of Hatred (starting the expansion for the first time) Final Fantasy 14 (Working on the Dawntrail MSQ) Heroes of the Storm (All Random All Middle crazy town) JackBox - I have just about all of them Here are games I might play: Baldur's Gate - I've only played the intro to this and didn't get very far past that Chillquarium - super passive game that is just kind of brain smoothing when I need some down time A little to the left - cozy game that can sometimes be challenging Little Kitty Big City - will probably do this with my daughter Here are games that have been recommended (which I haven't played or looked up on purpose, that I'll sprinkle in sporadically throughout the day) Chance of Sennaar The Witness Super Bunny Man Hand Simulator (recommended for late late night fun) Inside Firewatch Ape Out Keep talking and nobody explodes (probably also a late night option) --- others on this recommended list I have but haven't played --- Tiny Glade (I think I own this but have yet to play it) Elden Ring (I have this and tried it once and raged pretty early, but that was because I had a hard time doing a keyboard/mouse setup - may try with a controller - this is only if I feel super masochistic) Have a game to recommend? Leave a comment or come say hi on my stream during game time. Hope to see you all tomorrow!

[voltaspistol]

As we've reported previously, despite holding executive roles in multiple major corporations and undertaking the busy work of burrowing himself in incoming political regimes, Elon Musk manages to find time to boast some impressive gaming laurels, claiming to hold high placements in Diablo 4 leaderboards and Path of Exile 2 hardcore league rankings. This week, those claims are being called into doubt, as PoE 2 streamers and subreddit sleuths analyze a recent stream in which Musk seemed to fumble over basic gameplay mechanics.

On January 7, Musk streamed an hour and a half of Path of Exile 2 gameplay on his current level 95 hardcore character. In PoE 2, surviving into higher levels in the hardcore league, regardless of ladder placement, is an impressive feat: As you progress, the game stacks layers of enemy modifiers, damage resistance reductions, and hazardous tileset modifiers, and dying once in hardcore means your character is toast. Getting a hardcore character into the 80s is impressive; getting one high enough into the 90s to place high on the hardcore ladder is a feat of skilled gameplay and buildcraft.

The gameplay on display in viewer-recorded VODs of the stream, however, is… well, not that.

Odd signs begin appearing as early as 18 minutes into the stream, when Musk enters his character's stash to reveal a tab that's been named "Elon's map." Considering the other tabs aren't labeled "Elon's currency" or "Elon's catalysts," the tab sticks out. Someone of a conspiratorial persuasion might see it as an indicator that, perhaps, another individual had curated the tab's selection of map-generating waystones for ease of gameplay—like if you wanted to be able to show off your high level character without a real risk of getting it killed.

But maybe it was just a fun little way for Musk to brighten up his own day. Who can say what affectations delight the hyper-wealthy?

Things spiral from there. Musk's clearspeed is halting. His movement, at times, seems random. At one point, his damage plummets as he goes a full 10 seconds without refilling his empty mana meter. Elsewhere, he leaves valuable currency items like Chaos Orbs and Exalted Orbs uncollected on the ground, but picks up low tier keystones that would be irrelevant at his character's level of progression.

At times, Musk clicks impotently at nodes on his Atlas map, seemingly struggling to identify which he can actually run despite having theoretically cleared the hundreds—if not thousands—of maps necessary for his character's level and gear. Later, when weighing which map to clear next, he selects a node with four modifiers. "There are four things here," he notes, which technically isn't untrue.

He enters maps with a full inventory, then repeatedly attempts to pick up items without inventory space. He doesn't have a loot filter active, but can be seen clicking and dragging items into his inventory—a maddening display that would imply he'd have manually sorted through thousands of dropped items to assemble his character's equipment, which could very well have taken longer than the actual gameplay necessary to reach his current level.

This is all, supposedly, from a player who at time of writing has been able to outpace all but 11 people on the global PoE 2 hardcore ladder. Still, it could've been performance anxiety. Even the wealthiest man alive can get a bit nervy when streaming for the peasantry, I guess.

What's most damning, however, is that Musk seems to show a fundamental misunderstanding of how itemization in Path of Exile 2 works. Late in the stream, he looks over his current equipment. Inspecting his weapon, he says it's "only level 62" compared to his level 95 character. In doing so, he's seemingly unaware that in PoE, an item's effectiveness isn't determined by its level requirement, but by its item level—a separate figure that determines which affixes the item can roll with.

He repeats the mistake as he mouses over each item he has equipped. "My equipment's pretty low level compared to my character level, but it seems to work pretty well," he says, even though it's all high-end gear that's been meticulously collected, crafted, and rerolled to maximize his character's build. It's a misapprehension that, frankly speaking, strains belief.

For players on the PoE 2 subreddit, the stream intensifies the doubt already surrounding Musk's ownership of his account. "His gear is better than a lot of full time streamers. No way it is real. Account sharing or boost of some kind," redditor InvestmentFew9366 said.

"I mean he has a f'in mirror tier staff and says he needs to replace it because it's only level 62," said redditor frenchpatato. "You don't need to say anything else."

"The wierd [sic] part to me is that he feels he needs to brag about being a pro gamer for some reason," Elbjornbjorn said. "Dude put a car his company designed into space on a rocket his other company designed, why the hell does he need to brag about gaming?"

[deadweight-at7am]

I love how Princess Elonia thought he was going to fool the gaming community. He's the poster child for "if I can't be great, I'll buy my status" which literally removes the relevance of said status. No one is impressed that he has a top ranked Diablo 4 account. No one. We all know (because we play the games) that it's not him doing any of it. It's the equivalence of getting high ranking status at a first person shooter and using Aim Bot the whole time.

I can not stress this enough; this man gives off "FREE HUG" -sign-holding-smelly-anime-nerd-waiting-in-line-for-hentai-screening at an anime convention. Tell me I'm wrong! TELL ME I'M WRONG!!