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sovonight · 1 year ago

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I've been considering playing Baldur's Gate because of you. Do you recommend it What is a good order to play the games in??

absolutely i recommend it!

first off, it's important to know that bg1 & bg2 are their own story, and bg3 is practically separate from them. bg3 is set a century after the events of bg1/bg2, and just has a few character cameos and references from bg1/bg2 (though from what i've heard some of the cameos aren't very good interpretations of the original characters). bg3 doesn't enhance the bg1/bg2 story in any way, and knowledge of bg1/bg2 doesn't matter when playing bg3.

i'd suggest starting with bg3 if you:

are used to modern rpg games, and 3d visuals are particularly important to you

know you don't/won't like infinity engine games (for a spoiler-free preview, look up walkthroughs of icewind dale 1 or 2 and watch a couple minutes of travel, dialogue, and combat gameplay)

i'd suggest starting with bg1/bg2 if you:

don't have a strong preference for starting with bg3 instead

enjoy the potential for mods to expand the game--not just in terms of gameplay, but in story/quest additions and companions, too

are interested in knowing the story that i'm drawing all my fanart of

have a limited budget (you can get these games for very cheap, they frequently go on sale)

if you want to start with bg3, you're all set! go ahead and get started. if you want to start with bg1/bg2, i have a bit more to add:

if you've looked into buying these games, you may have noticed that there's bg1/bg2, and then there's bgee/bg2ee (ee meaning "enhanced edition"). there's also a new dlc that's ee-only. so here's the original playing order:

baldur's gate (bg1)

baldur's gate: tales of the sword coast (tosc): bg1 expansion, adds new side quests and areas to explore during bg1

baldur's gate ii: shadows of amn (bg2, sometimes abbreviated soa to distinguish from tob below)

baldur's gate ii: throne of bhaal (tob): bg2 expansion, directly continues the story from soa and officially ends the series

and here's the enhanced edition order:

baldur's gate: enhanced edition (bgee): contains bg1 and tosc

baldur's gate: seige of dragonspear (sod): bg1 expansion released in 2016 to bridge the gap between bg1 and bg2 (i haven't played it yet, but if you're just testing out the series i'd say don't bother getting it yet, it was released 15 years after the story concluded so how necessary can it really be)

baldur's gate ii: enhanced edition (bg2ee): contains soa and tob

the enhanced edition also adds 4 new companions, an arena side adventure, and overall provides a lot of fixes/improvements/updates on the original games. obviously, considering all these additions and the ee mods that have come out since the ee series release, the ee series is where you should start.

side note--if you buy the ee series on gog (maybe on steam too, but i've only checked it on gog) you'll actually get downloads for the original, non-ee games as well. if you enjoy playing old games for the feeling of time-traveling into the past a bit, and you have the patience to fuss around with troubleshooting and mods, they're a perfectly fine place to start as well! (i personally am still playing the non-ee trilogy even now, but that's for a whole mix of reasons, including that i like using the physical cd's i bought them on lmao)

now finally, if you got this far and are thinking "okay, i'm cautiously interested in bg1/bg2, but which one of the two should i start with???"

start with bg2 if you:

just want to jump in and see what all the fuss is about

don't care about having context in the beginning (you'll gain some context as you play, though not all)

want vampires, technology, and more sewers in your d&d experience

prefer a story with darker tones and a lot of driving urgency

start with bg1 if you:

like starting at the beginning to have context for everything that happens

want a standard, classic adventure with camps, forests, and bustling cities

don't need the plot to engage you if your companions are there with conversations, commentary, and banter

are willing to install at least one mod, BG1NPC

i found bg1 to be kind of a slog to get through on my very first playthrough, but adding in character interactions via BG1NPC really livened the game up for me and made it my favorite game out of the series. (imo this works best if you're willing to do a romance though, bc unfortunately romanced companions tend to get the most interactions & care put into their conversations.)

you don't strictly need BG1NPC on bgee bc the ee adds those aforementioned companions who do have conversations with you, but iirc they don't talk as much or provide as many opportunities for interaction as some of the modded companions do. (for context, in the original bg1, companions don't talk to you or comment on events at all; that only became a thing in bg2.) playing bgee without BG1NPC means you'll have to get at least 1 of the 3 ee companions to hear any conversations at all.

anyway, hopefully this wasn't too long or confusing. i hope you try the games out!

#(*i recommend bg1/bg2 of course. we all know how i feel about bg3)#sovo answers

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night-market-if · 8 months ago

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I was wondering if demo games mean that its not/never will be the full game, cause im a college student n dont want to spend money on what some might consider like “in app purchases” but i love playing these games, so what is a demo? Why do people release them or is it just general knowledge that any game listed as a demo isint and never will be a complete story? I see demo games with update screens where they plan to add content and i get confused if this is a full game just waiting for morec or if i would need to go buy something.

I can't speak for other IF authors because I don't know.

For me, book 1 is released and it is not a demo any longer. It is available for purchase as an entire game right now on both Steam and Itch.io. It will occasionally receive an update to fix bugs or what not. I have two other complete works out as well that are related to book one.

Book 2, however is in a WIP format. So I consider it a demo. I release it as I write it. But it is still in need of some heavy editing and expansion in areas. There may also be breaks in it that will just not get fixed this round. When I'm done, I take the entire game down. Go over it for a few months to polish it and add, and then release it for sale. But the WIP is free. If you want early access to a chapter, you have to join Patreon but I put it out about two weeks later for the public.

Everyone does it differently so it's worth talking to the authors. Most demos are free though and are just in the WIP state. Or they are full demos that are giving you a taste of the real game. I have a free demo on itch.io for book 1. But book 1 is complete and available for purchase after.

But, just as a heads up, most IF's will probably not reach full release status. A lot of people do go into this not realizing the time it might take. Or they go into it and lose drive halfway through. So just be careful. Get to know the community and you will get a sense for which authors will be finishing and which ones won't.

Hope this helps.

#the night market

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pudding-parade · 1 year ago

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Get to know you - Sims Style

@rstarsims3 tagged me for this a while back, and I'm finally posting my answers, which took me a while to compile because 1) Blabbity blab blab blab, as usual, and 2) Still needing lots of rest and stuff, so no sitting at a computer for hours on end.

But here we go! I'mma put my blabby answers and my tag list behind Ye Olde Cut.

What’s your favorite Sims death? What an odd question, especially to lead off… Well, I guess if I had to pick one, it'd be the one from TS2 where cloudwatching occasionally brings a satellite down on the cloudwatcher's head. But generally, mine die of old age, if they manage to get that far. I play with long, but realistically proportional, life stages, mostly because I'm almost always playing "experimental" saves where I'm "road testing" rulesets and such, so I need a lot of time to work out kinks and test ideas and stuff.)

Alpha CC or Maxis Match? I land on a combination of more-realistic (but not ultra-realistic) stuff for CAS, but for everything else, like with furniture and deco and stuff, I tend to prefer CC stuff that visually fits in with the EA stuff in terms of style and textures and whatnot, so that the CC doesn't stick out like a sore thumb when combined with EA stuff. In fact, my "go-to" CC for build/buy is stuff that adds on to EA stuff, like more doors/windows that match an EA door/window.

Do you cheat your sims weight? What, to make the fat ones skinny? The skinny ones fat? The skinny ones buff? No. I don't see why I would. It's easy enough to make a sim gain or lose weight without cheating, which I'm assuming means just using the sliders.

Do you move objects? Is there anyone who doesn't? That's a serious question. Is there any one who doesn't? I want to know.

Favorite Mod? I'm leaving aside the NRaas mods because I don't see them as mods so much as things that are just essential to make the game playable in the often-weird ways that I play. There are others that I also consider just essential for when I'm playing in certain styles, especially for more primitive settings. But for ones that are optional and just pure fun, I'd nominate all of @thesweetsimmer111's baby- and toddler-related ones.

First Expansion/Game Pack/Stuff Pack? I know for TS2 it was Seasons. For TS3…For a long time, I had just the base game, which I got when it came out, but didn't play beyond trying it out and then going back to TS2. Then, years later, I got a new computer and decided to give TS3 another try, but I couldn't find the CD or DVD or whatever it was, so I bought a combo pack with the base game, Late Night, and the High End Loft or whatever it is stuff pack, so I guess it would be Late Night. Other than that, I bought all the other TS3 EPs in one go when EA had them on sale for 50% off via Origin, which that combo pack forced me to install. (But which I am now free of again. 🏴‍☠️)

Do you pronounce live mode like aLIVE or LIVing? As aLIVE. Because that is when the game is live. Games do not live, but they can be live. See, this is one reason why English sucks.

Who’s your favorite sim that you’ve made? Here's a thing about me: I don't really get attached to the pixel people. For me, they're just tools. I'm guessing it's because I'm not a storyteller when it comes to Sims, so I don't see sims as characters. Sure, sometimes I find one endearing for one reason or another. Usually, they have traits that make them assholes, and I like to watch them create chaos and ruin wherever they go. One of the founders of the Random Legacy that I will get back to one of these days is one of those. But I find I like other people's sims more than mine, though that's more of a testament to those simmers' story-telling skills than anything else.

Have you made a simself? Only by accident. A few times I've just been randomly moving sliders around and somehow I ended up with something that looked like me at some stage in my life. It stayed that way for a minute or three, before I yelled OH GOD NO! and quickly slidered the horror away.

But to be honest? I find the entire concept kind of creepy, at least in terms of putting a self-sim in the game and playing them as a character. That would just feel weird to me. That said, I suppose it might have been something that would have appealed to me if I had played when I was a kid, but the game didn't exist when I was a kid. Computers didn't exist when I was a kid, at least not in a form that regular people could own and that could fit on a desk. I was in my 40s when I started playing the game. My daughter played TS2 when she was a kid, and she had a self-sim inserted into the stories she would play, so…yeah. Maybe it's a younger-person thing. Or maybe I'm just weird. Yeah, it's probably that second option.

Which is your favorite EA hair color? Probably the black, but even with that I have to add some highlights to it because otherwise the hair just looks like a creature from the void eating the sim's head.

Favorite EA hair? None of them. They all need to DIAF.

Favorite life stage? I don't have one. I have a least-favorite, babies, because they're basically just objects, but once they're actually sims, I enjoy playing sims of all ages equally.

Are you a builder or are you in it for the gameplay? I originally bought TS2 just to build in it, and for a couple of years, that was all I did. I only started actually playing the game later. Now, I enjoy both building and actually playing the game, depending on my mood. Usually, I'll have a binge of building, but I eventually come to a point where I'd rather do anything other than build. Then I play the game. Then, eventually, the urge to build comes back. So it's a back-and-forth.

Are you a CC creator? I made lots of stuff for TS2, mostly object retextures/recolors. I've made a few minor things for TS3, and I retexture hairs and add preg morphs to clothing for my own use, but I wouldn't consider myself a CC creator for TS3. In fact, I'm actively resisting learning how to make stuff for TS3 because I really don't want to go down that rabbithole again.

Do you have any Simblr friends or a Sim Squad? Friends in the sense of "people I enjoy talking to and sharing ideas with and sometimes arguing with here on Tumblr?" Sure. Are those the same as friendships that develop face-to-face in the real world? Nope. But, sometimes I like talking to my Simblr friends a lot more than talking to my real-life friends, so make of that what you will. Y'all are less draining sometimes. LOL

Do you have any sims merch? No official merch, but my brother-in-law is into making pottery, and several years ago he made me a big stoneware mug with a plumbbob on it. Which is ironic because when I play the game I turn off the plumbbobs because I hate them. LOL But I love the mug. It's heavy enough that neither cats nor wagging dog tails nor giant snakes (though he could do it if he focused all four of his brain cells on the task) can knock it off of tables, but not so heavy that I can't comfortably lift it. I use it for eating soup and the occasional mug cake, and also for drinking the awful herbal tea my husband makes me drink, though since the recent surgery, I don't have to drink that anymore! *dances* So now it will just be my soup or cake mug. Or one for tea that I actually want to drink.

Do you have a YouTube for sims? I don't have a YouTube for anything. Well, OK, I have a YouTube account for watching other people's stuff and making playlists of things I want to watch, but I don't post videos on it, and I don't really watch video game-related stuff on YouTube, either.

How has your “Sims style” changed throughout your years of playing? It hasn't, really. I've pretty much always just come up with wacky scenarios to play and see how they go. In fact, for me, coming up with the scenario and figuring out how to make it work in the game and then inventing a ruleset to govern it is sometimes more fun than actually playing the scenario. LOL

And my Sims all look like the game made them because…the game makes all of them. I just poke the random button until it produces something that doesn't look too much like a freak of nature, then I hit up a couple sliders to remove or tone down any remaining freakishness. (Though I confess that I will spend an inordinate amount of time sculpting the titties of those who have them. Why? I have no idea, other than I just like me a nice pair of titties. Too bad there aren't any sliders for male titties…) Then I just slap on a different hair, maybe change the eye color, and slather on some makeup and facial/body hair and shit until they don't look too stupid, and then off I go. From there, they're all born in the game, and I just leave them as-is, mostly because I can't be bothered. "I can't be bothered" is pretty much my philosophy of life.

Who’s your favorite CC creator? I hate this kind of question. I feel like all they do is disappoint and discourage people if they're never picked. I refuse to do that over something so trivial. So, my favorite CC creator is you, the person reading this. Yes, you. Even if you don't make CC. It doesn't matter. You're the best.

How long have you had Simblr? I started my TS2 one in 2013. (I can remember that only because I know that I started it the same year I met my husband. LOL ) I started this one….2 years ago? 3? Something like that.

How do you edit your pictures? Other than basic cropping and resizing and maybe adjusting brightness/contrast a bit if the pic is too dark or whatever, I generally don't. I don't even use Reshade all the time anymore, only in certain situations, though I do have an NVIDIA profile for the game that adds ambient occlusion and better antialiasing and shit like that. Sometimes, though, I'll decide to photoshop scenery pics, and then I just kind of stab at it with various tools and filters and layer blends and shit until I like I how it looks. There's no actual process involved. I'm random like that.

What expansion/ gamepack is your favorite? I gotta go with World Adventures. Bits of it are a bit, shall we say, culturally problematic, but man, I never get tired of doing those stupid, stupid tombs. LOL Plus, I love that NRaas Traveler allows you to "travel" to any world, and I don't think that mod works without WA, so…. Yeah. WA.

Tagging: I have no idea who's done this, so I'll just tag a few random people, off the top of my head. Feel free to do or ignore, as you choose. No pressure from me! So...@nectar-cellar, @happy-lemon, @erasabledinosaur, @esotheria-sims, @lilleputtu, @littlefrenchsims, @anamoon63, @lazysunjade, annnnnnnnd @papermint-airplane.

#it's all about meeeeee!#memes memes glorious memes

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pixelrender · 2 years ago

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Top 10 games I missed in 2022

This was in many ways a transformative year. Or maybe that’s an overstatement and 2022 was end of an era. It followed a long term trend of me playing games less and less. I haven’t played a game on Steam since January. With that a maybe even some time prior I stopped paying attention to new releases. Until yesterday. Yesterday, I succumbed to the calling of Steam winter sales and visited my wishlist. I noticed that it was slightly messed up, because some of the games got released. After that I spent several hours looking for new releases and here we are. I admit It’s different, because many of these games are titles I’ve only found out about them being released.

Ofc, this year was massively, more than any of the previous years, influenced by board games and board game media. But getting around to actually buying some board games, I found out that the new hotness is rarely what I’m after. So, there are only 3 board games from this year I would like to own and 2 more I would like to try and write about (Stroganov’s take on colonization of Siberia could be made way better if it took a simple lesson from my n. 1 game). The three board games differ from each other a lot and video games on the list are reasonably diverse too. There are narrative experiences, Metroid and Castlevania inspired games both with jumping and without and free games I haven’t got time to try out yet. I also have one honorable mention: Victoria 3. Normally, this probably would make the list, but I don’t know enough to be excited and I’m still happy with my older Paradox games and I don’t need new ones (also, I know that Victoria 3 is beyond capabilities of my half-dead laptop).

10. Maptroid: Worlds

This is a commercial follow-up to a free game, you can still find online (not sure if flash?). It looks terrible, music probably does its job. It’s also an original and interesting take on the genre of Metroidvanias. It requires at least basic knowledge of the genre to get it and to appreciate it too. Because in Maptroid, you play on the minimap only. You explore and move around. The pacing is fast and that makes it fun. The commercial version promises more and that’s exactly what I want. Also, It’s only 2 bucks and some change.

9. Infernax

At first this looks like a straight clone of Castlevania but there’s more to it. There are choices and different endings. If you watch any footage of Infernax and like the genre of non-linear platformers you know the game is fun. It looks difficult with good controls and smooth movement. The fiction full of crosses and demons is something I can appreciate. The look is appealing too. A must play in a surely coming year of non-linear platformers.

8. Haiku the Robot

The third and final game of jumping and exploring on this list. Haiku is by far the most stylish one with beautiful sepia tones and detailed modern pixel art. It also looks like the most expansive one with many bosses, interesting puzzles and original lore. I’m afraid it might be too difficult as Hollow Knight seems to be a source of inspiration here. But without this baggage it looks like a fun and tight addition to the genre. One more thing, I like haiku.

7. Three Sisters

The first board game on the list is a heavier than average roll and write about tending to vegetable garden. The main reason this is here is the production. These warm pumpkin colored dice are just attractive and the whole game feels warm and welcoming in the similar manner. The game itself is about rolling dice and using them to tick boxes and form combos. Or if you go for the theme, and I think you should, planting seed, harvesting fruit and veggies, crafting in your garage. And that might be quite lovely when rainy and you can’t manage your garden for real.

6. Sunset Shift

This free game is about collecting and disposing garbage at a small private island. I watched some footage of it and it looks right up my alley. Basically, you drive around and the other friend is talking to you via radio giving the whole thing subtle story beats. I also enjoy games with either social or environmental message and this one seems to have both.

5. Glitchhikers: The Spaces Between

The original free Glitchhikers was one of my favourite cruising games. In it you drive on a highway while having random dialogues. This one expands it in all directions and adds many new environments and means of transport. I wonder about the message. Is it more than just more volume? Anyway, because of the original this one is on my bucket list too. Also, it’s the first game with no green or greenish pictures.

4. Citizen Sleeper

Frankly, I don’t quite understand what Citizen Sleeper is supposed to be. It’s a cyberpunk science fiction rpg controlled by dice, so there’s this tabletop element. Also, it seems to be focused on social issues, equality and such. You’re a working person and that reminds me of Cart Life, one of the greatest games ever. Jump Over the Age also made In Other Waters, an exciting UI experience I haven’t played yet but It’s one more reason to be interested in this game.

3. Village Rails

It’s a small and crunchy card game about building tracks with bucolic tones. The second part of the Village series from Osprey and designed by Matthew Dunstan with Breet J. Gilbert in a little unassuming box with a pleasant blue frame. It got praised by all of my board gaming sources including Dice Tower, Shut Up and Sit Down and Board Game Barrage. The game’s almost a filler but the combination of different goals and a special puzzle makes all decisions crunchy. For me it looks like a kind of game I would enjoy.

2. Roadwarden

Out of the green and into the brown. Roadwarden is a game I’ve been interested for a while. I think it does something interesting and that the devs limited themselves well to make a bigger game. The illustrations in this game look great too. I feel like I might enjoy its bleak fiction too. Being this highwayman and delivering messages, burning bodies sounds mundane, but also super atmospheric.

1. John Company: Second Edition

John Company is an unwieldy game from Wehrelig Games and Cole Wehrle of the Root fame. It’s complicated and long and an experience I want to have. I even managed to watch most of the five hours long session of Heavy Cardboard streamed on YouTube. In the game you and other players run the titular company and exploit India in order to get yourself a good retirement. The second edition tweaked almost everything and it looks great with one of the nicest board and components I’ve ever seen. Also, John Company: SE Is clear with its message and criticism of colonialism through its mechanics, something games like Stroganov ought to learn from.

All of the pictures used in this article are either from official sources or posted by the publisher at BGG(Village Rails).

#maptroid worlds #infernax #haiku the robot #three sisters #sunset shift #glitchhikers #roadwarden #village rails #citizen sleeper #john company

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estatedekho26 · 2 months ago

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Open Plots for Sale in Ghatkesar Hyderabad Telangana

Plots for Sale in Ghatkesar, Hyderabad: Discover Your Perfect Piece of Paradise

If you’ve been dreaming about owning a piece of land where you can build your dream home, plant a mini forest, or even start your organic farm, Ghatkesar in Hyderabad might just be the perfect spot for you. Nestled in the eastern part of Hyderabad, Ghatkesar offers a harmonious blend of urban convenience and serene natural beauty. Let's dive into what makes Ghatkesar a hot spot for buying open plots and how you can make the best out of this opportunity.

Why Ghatkesar?

1. Strategic Location

Ghatkesar is strategically located along the Warangal Highway, providing easy access to the city while maintaining a peaceful, suburban charm. It’s just a hop, skip, and a jump away from key areas like Uppal and Pocharam, making it a desirable location for those who want the best of both worlds. Imagine sipping your morning coffee with the city skyline in the distance yet enveloped by the tranquility of nature.

2. Infrastructure Development

With the IT boom in Hyderabad, Ghatkesar has seen significant infrastructural development. From well-paved roads to reliable public transport, the area is well-connected and easily accessible. The Hyderabad Metro Rail’s extension plans further enhance its connectivity, promising even more convenience in the near future. It's like getting your cake and eating it too!

3. Educational Institutions

For families, Ghatkesar is a treasure trove of educational institutions. Renowned schools and colleges like Vignana Jyothi Institute of Management and Sreenidhi Institute of Science and Technology are within a stone’s throw. Your kids won’t just get an education; they’ll get a fantastic one!

Open Plots in Ghatkesar: Your Gateway to a Dream Home

Buying open plots in Ghatkesar is like hitting the jackpot. Here’s why:

Affordable Prices

The real estate market in Ghatkesar is relatively affordable compared to other parts of Hyderabad. This makes it an excellent investment opportunity, especially if you’re looking for long-term gains. Plus, the joy of saying, "I own land!" is simply priceless.

Variety of Plot Sizes

Whether you’re looking for a small plot to build a cozy home or a larger one for an expansive villa, Ghatkesar offers a variety of plot sizes to suit your needs. It’s like choosing between a single scoop or a triple sundae at your favorite ice cream parlor – except here, every choice is a sweet deal.

Future Appreciation

Given the rapid development in the area, the value of land in Ghatkesar is expected to appreciate significantly in the coming years. Investing now could mean reaping substantial returns in the future. Think of it as planting a money tree only, this one’s real!

What to Consider When Buying Plots in Ghatkesar

Legal Clearances

Ensure that the plot has all the necessary legal clearances. This includes checking for proper land titles, verifying that the plot is free from any litigation, and ensuring that all relevant approvals from local authorities are in place. You don’t want to buy a plot and then find out it’s more tangled than your headphone wires.

Proximity to Amenities

Consider the proximity to essential amenities like hospitals, schools, and shopping centers. While Ghatkesar is well-equipped, it’s always good to check how close you are to these facilities. After all, you never know when you might need a midnight ice cream run or an emergency band-aid.

Soil Quality and Topography

Before finalizing your purchase, get the soil quality and topography checked. Good soil quality is crucial for the construction of your dream home. Plus, knowing the topography helps in planning the layout and landscaping of your property. Remember, a strong foundation isn’t just metaphorical it’s literal here!

Personal Anecdote: A Plot of Dreams

I remember when a friend of mine decided to buy an open plot in Ghatkesar. It was a sunny Sunday morning, and we embarked on a mini adventure, exploring various plots. Each plot had its own charm, some with mango trees, others with a gentle slope perfect for a garden. We finally stumbled upon a plot that felt just right. It was love at first sight, with the gentle breeze whispering promises of a bright future. Today, she’s building her dream home there, complete with a vegetable patch and a hammock for lazy afternoons. Every time I visit, it’s like stepping into a slice of paradise.

Tips for First-Time Buyers

1. Do Your Research

Research is key when buying property. Understand the market trends, compare prices, and gather information about the area. Knowledge is power, and in this case, it’s the power to make a smart investment.

2. Hire a Reliable Real Estate Agent

A good real estate agent can guide you through the process, help you find the best deals, and ensure that all paperwork is in order. It’s like having a trusty sidekick in your property-buying adventure.

3. Plan Your Finances

Ensure that you have a clear financial plan. This includes budgeting for the plot purchase, construction costs, and any additional expenses. It’s always better to be prepared than to have unexpected costs catch you off guard.

Conclusion: Your Plot Awaits!

Ghatkesar, with its strategic location, robust infrastructure, and promising future, is an ideal destination for buying open plots. Whether you’re looking to build your dream home, invest for the future, or simply own a piece of land, Ghatkesar has something to offer. So, what are you waiting for? Dive into this opportunity and watch your dreams take root and flourish.

In the words of a wise real estate enthusiast (okay, it was just me): "The best time to buy property was yesterday. The next best time is today." Happy plot hunting!

Visit estatedekho.com for more information about Plots for Sale in Ghatkesar Hyderabad Telangana. Estatedekho is an online platform that offers sellers, potential clients, buyers verified plots, and professional agents at service.

#plotsforsaleinghatkesar #ghatkesarplots #ghatkesaropenplots #hyderabadplots #plotsinhyderabad

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estatedekho04 · 4 months ago

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Open Plots for Sale in Ghatkesar Hyderabad Telangana

Plots for Sale in Ghatkesar, Hyderabad: Discover Your Perfect Piece of Paradise

Open Plots for sale in Ghatkesar Hyderabad Telangana

Why Ghatkesar?

1. Strategic Location

2. Infrastructure Development

3. Educational Institutions

Open Plots in Ghatkesar: Your Gateway to a Dream Home

Buying open plots in Ghatkesar is like hitting the jackpot. Here’s why:

Affordable Prices

Variety of Plot Sizes

Future Appreciation

What to Consider When Buying Plots in Ghatkesar

Legal Clearances

Proximity to Amenities

Soil Quality and Topography

Personal Anecdote: A Plot of Dreams

Tips for First-Time Buyers

1. Do Your Research

2. Hire a Reliable Real Estate Agent

3. Plan Your Finances

Conclusion: Your Plot Awaits!

In the words of a wise real estate enthusiast (okay, it was just me): "The best time to buy property was yesterday. The next best time is today." Happy plot hunting!

#plots in ghatkesar #open plots #ghatkesar plots #plots for sale in ghatkesar

0 notes

estatedekho23 · 4 months ago

Text

Open Plots for Sale in Ghatkesar Hyderabad Telangana

Plots for Sale in Ghatkesar, Hyderabad: Discover Your Perfect Piece of Paradise

Why Ghatkesar?

1. Strategic Location

2. Infrastructure Development

3. Educational Institutions

Open Plots in Ghatkesar: Your Gateway to a Dream Home

Buying open plots in Ghatkesar is like hitting the jackpot. Here’s why:

Affordable Prices

Variety of Plot Sizes

Future Appreciation

What to Consider When Buying Plots in Ghatkesar

Legal Clearances

Proximity to Amenities

Soil Quality and Topography

Personal Anecdote: A Plot of Dreams

Tips for First-Time Buyers

1. Do Your Research

2. Hire a Reliable Real Estate Agent

3. Plan Your Finances

Conclusion: Your Plot Awaits!

In the words of a wise real estate enthusiast (okay, it was just me): "The best time to buy property was yesterday. The next best time is today." Happy plot hunting!

#plots for sale in Ghatkesar Hyderabad #open plots for sale in Ghatkesar Hyderabad #Approved plots for sale in Ghatkesar #RERA Approved plots for sale in Ghatkesar Hyderabad

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thesecrettimes · 1 year ago

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Is It Safe to Buy Stuff From TikTok Shop?

What is TikTok Shop? Seemingly every other video on the social media platform has a button that appears right above the caption; when you tap on it, it takes you to a virtual store where you can order crop-top bras, Lion Latches or personalized tumblers without ever leaving the TikTok app. It’s easy to use — but is there a catch? As with any online retailer, you should know what you’re getting into before you type in your credit card number. According to the company, TikTok Shop is very much still in a development phase. It soft-launched in November and moved to beta testing this past April. Since its inception in 2016, TikTok has proven to be so much more than a silly dance app — it’s a business powerhouse where users love to discover, review and share products. (Need proof? The hashtag #tiktokmademebuyit has over 64 billion views.) Is TikTok Shop safe? TikTok says merchants are vetted before they can launch on TikTok Shop, and once they’re live, they must follow a set of guidelines that prohibits fake, fraudulent or misleading content. When someone makes a purchase, the company collects data “to provide our shopping features and facilitate the purchase and delivery of products, goods and services,” according to its privacy policy. But TikTok doesn’t actually handle the payment itself — it uses the third-party services PayPal and Stripe to process the transaction. PayPal and Stripe are considered relatively safe; they both use encryption to guard folks’ financial data. TikTok also claims it doesn’t store customers’ personal information after they buy an item. Even so, Don Grant, a certified financial planner, says to proceed with caution. “Those who post on TikTok want something from you,” he points out. “The TikTok platform wants something from you. If that ‘something’ is of value, viewers may only know it once it’s missing.” How does TikTok Shop make money? Here’s the rub: TikTok takes a cut of shop sales from merchants, so it has a vested interest in getting you to shop — and splurge — in the app. The company has big plans for expansion, too. The Wall Street Journal reported last month that the social platform is gearing up to launch a marketplace called the TikTok Shop Shopping Center. The Atlantic wrote that “TikTok’s turn to e-commerce, in theory, has the potential to be massive, capable of competing with the likes of Amazon.” How to shop responsibly on TikTok The TikTok Shop interface is so smooth that “you can basically click on something and buy it in a matter of seconds,” says shopping expert Trae Bodge. It reduces the pain of paying, a behavioral economics concept that refers to the unpleasant feelings a person gets when they spend money. That “pain” is important because it regulates people’s desire to buy stuff. When it goes away — say, because you’ve seen 50 increasingly convincing bra videos and the button to buy one is right there — so is that self-regulation. “Because of the ease of shopping, people don’t take the time to read reviews or look for ways to save more,” Bodge says. “That ease is a gateway for potential overspending, or less informed spending, on the general internet.” She recommends slowing down and pausing whenever possible. Sure, TikTok Shop might be convenient, but it means you might miss out on discounts and coupons offered by other vendors elsewhere online. Before mindlessly throwing things into your cart on TikTok Shop, Grant suggests you ask yourself two crucial questions: 1) “Do I really need this?” and 2) “Is there another platform that I trust from which I can purchase the same product or service?” The answers will guide you. More from Money: The Best Deals Around Are in Your Local ‘Buy Nothing’ Facebook Group How to Protect Yourself from Identity Theft Is It Risky to Give My Phone Number to Stores and Restaurants? Read the full article

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dexceldigitalhub · 1 year ago

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Dexcel Digital Hub is a Best Online Reputation Management Company in Pune

Why Should I Hire An Online Reputation Management Company To Grow Business?

Are getting worried about the online reputation management of your company, then you should hire an online reputation management company for better growth and expansion of your business.

Having an online presence can make or break your business. People are more likely to invest in businesses and products with a positive digital first impression. Unfortunately, bad reviews, unreliable information, negative press coverage, and disgruntled customers can tarnish your reputation and negatively impact sales.

Dexcel Digital Hub is a Best Online Reputation Management Company can help restore your brand’s trustworthiness and credibility with potential buyers and existing customers. This way, you can protect the value of your brand while also driving leads for growth opportunities.

In this blog post, we'll explore why it's essential to hire an online reputation management company to grow a business successfully.

Why is Online Reputation Management So Important?

Online reputation management is more important than ever in today's digital age. With the ubiquity of social media and online reviews, it has become essential to know how to protect and leverage your brand’s online presence.

Companies must take control of their online reputation by responding to customer issues on social media, curating positive content and reviews, and actively engaging with customers.

To maximize success in this area, companies should be proactive and have a strategy outlining how to address customer complaints, cultivate customer loyalty, and build relationships

If a business wants to stay competitive in the marketplace, investing time and resources into cultivating a positive online reputation is an absolute must!

Main Benefits of Managing Your Online Reputation

There are tons of benefits of managing your online reputation, here we have shared few of them:

1. Improving the Credibility of the Brand

The truth is that any company, no matter how impeccably they may conduct their business, will occasionally receive negative brand mentions. It is, therefore, imperative to have a comprehensive strategy in place for managing your online presence to build credibility. From responding swiftly and thoughtfully to comments, reviews, and mentions - both positive and negative - to proactively highlighting those comments that have left positive feedback about your product or service, effective reputation management helps to show customers that you are dedicated to delivering an excellent experience. At the same time, taking care not to oversell yourself can help build trust amongst your consumers as it demonstrates humility and candor. By investing time into building credibility through engaging with your customer base, you show that you truly value the satisfaction of all those who support your brand.

2. Improve Customer Engagement

Taking proactive steps to manage your online reputation and giving customers an authentic experience is essential for increasing customer loyalty. Your organization should be available on all the relevant channels, including social media platforms and email, so that customers can reach out to you easily. Also, share valuable content regularly to keep them engaged. Reputation management efforts should also incorporate responding quickly to customer comments and queries with relevant solutions. Going the extra mile by offering special discounts or deals applicable only to those engaged with you will further boost your customer engagement strategy.

3. Improve Sales

Managing a company’s online reputation has become an essential part of sales strategies. As the world continues to move into the digital age, consumers are increasingly utilizing the internet when making buying decisions. It is vital that businesses remain aware of what is being written and said about them on social media sites and other channels, as it can immediately impact sales. With a few well-made adjustments based on research, businesses can increase their positive exposure online, create better customer relationships, and ultimately increase sales.

4. Building Trust

Online reputation management is a process of managing customer opinions, and reviews about your brand over the internet by monitoring mentions in the media and responding to them quickly. One of its core objectives is to build trust between you and the customers. To ensure this, it’s important to monitor and respond actively on your own platforms and keep tabs on conversations about your brand elsewhere on the web. Additionally, verifying the accuracy of information posted about your business is critical for building an authentic relationship with potential customers. You can use tools that alert you when there are new mentions so that you can address any negative or inaccurate comments as soon as possible. When managed right, online reputation management can help secure loyalty from existing customers and create a good foundation for long-term relationships with new buyers.

5. Build Successful Relationships With Customers

Managing your online reputation is key to building successful relationships with customers. Taking the time to read, understand, and respond to both positive and negative comments that customers post online will show them that you value their opinion. Not only can this make them feel seen and appreciated, but it can help you improve your services based on feedback. Though it may be difficult to hear complaints about your brand or product, listening to your customer’s views will ultimately strengthen customer loyalty. Responding promptly with empathy can even turn negative reviews into positive ones - something any business should strive for!

6. Encouraging Recommendations

It’s becoming increasingly important for businesses to keep track of their online reputation, and there’s no better way than encouraging customer recommendations. Reviews have always been a great source of praise for businesses. Still, with the advancements in customer communication today, it is paramount that companies spend time focusing on amplifying positive reviews across the web. Implementing strategic tactics like social media referrals or offering incentives can help increase the number of customer reviews and ensure customer loyalty. Additionally, you can use online resources to monitor brand mentions and further control your online reputation. When done effectively, customers will be happy to spread the good word about your business, and your reputation will benefit sky-high!

7. Attracting Employees

As competition for top talent continues to increase, employers should pay closer attention to the importance of online reputation management. In today's digital age, potential employees thoroughly research companies before applying, ensuring they are respected and reputable. This makes having an attractive online presence extremely crucial for attracting potential employees and getting their applications for a position in your company. With proper online reputation management, employers can guarantee a great first impression with job applicants and continuously attract highly-qualified prospects looking for a rewarding career in the company.

Key note: You will need to spend 10% more per hire, according to the report published in Harvard Business Review.

8. Easier to Deal with Potential Crises

Having an online reputation management system in place could prove to be a lifesaver when it comes to any potential crises that arise. These solutions give brands early warning of any sentiment being expressed about them and help leaders act quickly as soon as something negative begins to spread. Having a generally positive attitude among potential customers also makes it easier for companies to recover from any PR calamities with less damage since customers would still remember the good deeds and communication efforts of a brand before this crisis took hold.

#seo services in pune #website development company in india #digital marketing company in pune #best seo company in pune

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fredandrewus · 2 years ago

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Tips On Selling Your House For Maximum Value

Are you looking to sell your house and maximize your selling price? You may be asking yourself the same questions that many people have when they decide to sell their home, such as: How much should I list my home for? Should I use an agent or do it on my own? What are the best ways to market my home online?

Home Selling Tips

When selling your home, you want to make sure that you are maximizing the value of your property. Here are some tips on how to do just that:

Clean Up: Make sure all the clutter in your home is gone. This will give potential buyers an idea of what they are getting themselves into, and it will also help them envision their own living space if they were to buy your home.

Repaint: A fresh coat of paint can really update and brighten up your house, making it look more appealing to potential buyers.

Fix Some Things Up: When done correctly, fixing up a few small things can add up to a lot of value in the eyes of buyers. For example, if you have water stains on the ceiling, fixing those up can really show that you care about your property and make it more attractive to potential buyers.

Get Organized: Having a well-organized home will show that you take care of your belongings and property. Potential buyers will appreciate this and may be more inclined to offer a higher price for your home if they see that you take pride in it.

Relocation vs. Home Selling

There are pros and cons to both relocating and selling your home. Here is a closer look at each:

1. Relocation Pros

-You can get a higher value for your home if you relocate.

-You may be able to save money on housing costs by moving.

-You have more control over the timing of your move, which can give you more flexibility in terms of selling your home.

-Moving can be an exciting experience, and it can help to refresh and rejuvenate you emotionally.

-Relocation may lead to new job opportunities or other opportunities that you didn't think were available when you were living in your current home.

-If you are considering a relocation, it is important to consult with an experienced real estate agent who can provide guidance about all the options available to you.

2. Relocation Cons

-You may have less time to sell your home if you relocate.

-You must factor in the cost of moving, which could amount to thousands of dollars depending on where you are moving to and how big the move is.

-It can be difficult to find quality housing once you relocate, particularly if you're looking in a new area or city.

-You may have trouble making friends or establishing social connections in a new location without having lived there for some time beforehand.

Settlement Costs

When you're ready to sell your house, it's important to know what the settlement costs will be. Settlement costs can include commissions paid to real estate agents, title insurance fees, and recording fees. You should also factor in any repairs or updates that may need to be made to your home before it can be sold. By understanding how much these costs will amount to, you can budget for them and ensure that you receive the highest possible price for your house.

Getting the Best Out of a Sale

When selling your home, there are a few things you can do to get the best price and maximize the return on your investment.

1. Make sure the house is in good condition: A well-maintained home will show more attention and be more appealing to potential buyers. Make sure all repairs are documented and up-to-date, and keep any improvements or updates in a visible spot.

2. Get creative with staging: Taking advantage of your home’s features (like an expansive backyard) can help boost its value. Try incorporating attractive furniture, rugs or art into the space to give it a fresh update.

3. Price it right: Don’t underprice your property or you may not receive any offers at all – instead, aim for a price point that reflects the market conditions and what you think is fair for your house (consider recent sales data).

4. Prepare yourself for offers: Be ready to take offers that come in – even if you don’t want to sell immediately! This will give you maximum exposure for your property and potentially drive up the final sale price.

Conclusion

Selling A Home In California can be daunting, but with the right tips and strategy, it can be incredibly rewarding experience. In this blog, we will share some of the best tips for maximizing the value of your home when selling it. We hope that our advice will help you sell your house quickly and easily so that you can move on to something more exciting in your life!

#Selling A Home In California

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hatredmadeofgold · 7 months ago

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It’s ethical to crack Sims 4 because EA is also doing a complete ass job at keeping the game functional and without modders, sometimes it’s completely unplayable. Not to mention the situation with that fucking shopping wheel cart that they introduced back in March I think? Greedy ass bitches trying to coerce people into buying new packs WHILE IN-GAME. As if the Menu when booting the game wasn’t already doing that, no, they force that onto players WHILE PLAYING. PC and Mac users can remove that shitty thing thanks to mods, but people on console are completely fucked over.

EA has also outsourced their QA and it’s done so badly, it’s crazy. Every new gameplay addition comes with so many bugs that the game is literally unplayable. The For Rent expansion pack had such extremely game breaking bugs for many people that STILL have not been fixed, and there is complete radio silence from EA about fixing it. The bug is so bad that it destroys entire save files and recovering them doesn’t fix it. People have lost literal years of gameplay because of this shit just because these greedy bitches at the top don’t want to invest into better quality assurance. Nope, just buy more packs!! Buy buy buy!!1 I hope they get fucking shot =_=

Without modders from the Sims 4 community (I LOVE ALL OF YOU BTW 🫶💕), the game would be unplayable for me. It’s boring as shit without mods. The build mode is great but the gameplay is so low in quality compared to Sims 2 and Sims 3, it’s asinine how they are pricing it like 4 billion times higher than those 2 editions combined. I was sadly on a MacBook when I began playing Sims 4 and cracking things for Mac is really difficult, so people do not really make those, therefore I bought many packs. By the time I switched to PC, I had already spent so much that risking my account’s survival was not worth it any longer just in case I’d go for a crack. What I do now is that I get packs from mmoga or instantgaming for way less money than I’d pay full price. The only times I buy directly from EA is when their sales are cheaper than the discounts from the former 2 options.

Tl dr; DO NOT BUY SIMS 4 DLCs. CRACK THAT SHIT, DO NOT GIVE EA YOUR MONEY BECAUSE THESE GREEDY BITCHES DON’T GIVE A FLYING FUCK ABOUT THE QUALITY OF THEIR PRODUCT AND IT ALWAYS COMES OUT BROKEN AS FUCK. EA won’t give a shit as long as people are buying their broken ass shit at full price that’s cosplaying as a functional DLC for this game.

the fact that all of the DLC for The Sims 4 combined is $1,100 USD should get several people at EA killed btw

#sims 4 #the sims 4 #ts4 #sims #the sims #fuck EA and their micro transactions and greedy crap

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nickgerlich · 2 years ago

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Doing More With Less

The American mindset has long been one of manifest destiny. Whether pillaging and plundering the land and people as we expanded westward, or with firms today in the corporate capitalist era, it is a “take no prisoners” philosophy. Bigger is better, and More is always better than Less.

And for better or worse, it has helped propel us into wealthiest nation status. Investors dig it.

But not all companies buy into it, and oddly enough, have even prospered by going against the flow. Call it salmoning or whatever, these companies—albeit few—are swimming upstream when everyone else is heading to the ocean.

There is probably no better example of this than Trader Joe’s, the cult-popular grocery chain headquartered in Monrovia California that has 569 stores in the US. Its smallish stores—by today’s standards—stock only about 4000 SKUs, a far cry from the 45,000 available at larger modern supermarkets.

Trader Joe’s, which is owned by Germany’s Aldi Nord, bullishly proclaims its “Less Is More” tag line whenever it can. It’s also a take-it-or-leave-it statement as well, but thus far, it has paid off handsomely, with sales of US$16.5 billion. With about 50,000 employees, each worker generates US$330,000 in sales.

It was during COVID that TJ’s operating mantra was put to the test. Most of its competitors, including first-cousin Aldi (owned by Germany’s Aldi Sud), boosted their online presence, with many also offering curbside pickup and/or delivery. Trader Joe’s wanted nothing of that.

And that is because the company firmly believes its brand is the experience, and you cannot replicate that experience anywhere outside of its stores. You either shop there, or forget it. Given that its stores are small by design and often in or near shopping centers, the addition of order pickers and delivery vehicles would unnecessarily clutter the whole space. That, of course, would help ruin the experience on which TJ’s hangs its hat.

Their product assortment is also ever-shifting, reflecting a heavy emphasis on seasonal products (pumpkin is king right now, but you better hurry, because once those products are gone, you’re out of luck until next year). The company is also dedicated to innovation, something that keeps people coming back (side note: their plant-based spinach ravioli is to die for). Other items rotate through availability, meaning that every time you go to TJ’s, its equal parts shopping and discovery.

You never know what you’ll find, again, because it is part of the experience.

With 80% of their products being private label—meaning TJ’s contracts with companies to manufacture them and put a TJ’s marque on them—it leads to higher profit margins. Typical nationally-branded grocery items often have a 20-22% margin, which, after overhead is deducted, leaves a slim 1-2% profit margin for most other grocers.

Their laid-back nautical-themed atmospherics, complete with friendly employees who are paid to answer customer questions, give advice, and walk them to the right product, reinforce the experience. And employees will even open an item to let you try before you buy, whenever that is possible.

Their “less is more” strategy also applies to its marketing, which is centered primarily on a podcast, Instagram, and a monthly in-store newsletter called the Fearless Flyer. The store has such loyal customers that fan-based Instagram accounts have popped up that showcase products and recipes. Otherwise, their marketing efforts focus on reinforcing the message, which is to come to the store.

Making matters somewhat complicated is TJ’s resistance to reckless expansion. It routinely receives hundreds of requests each year from people imploring them to build a store near them, but it is just not going to happen. They would rather people like me travel prepared with an ice chest and freezer bag so that when we are near a TJ’s store (which for me would be OKC, Dallas, Albuquerque, or Santa Fe, all four or more hours away), we load up. And I do. Heck, three weeks ago I spent $200 at one of the Dallas stores.

Adding glitter to the scene, TJ’s devotees even collect their city and state reusable shopping bags that are sold in-store for $1. Look on eBay and you’ll see what I mean. Once we figured this out, we started selling off our collection. My wife sold two Oklahoma bags for a total of $98. Not a bad ROI. As a result, we routinely buy several in each TJ’s state we visit. Even if they don’t sell, we use them for shopping, or as gift bags.

All of which illustrates that, for every glowing generalization I or anyone else makes, there are exceptions, and Trader Joe’s has hit pay dirt by doing less. There is always the possibility of finding a pot of gold far out on the tails of the customer distribution.

And that is a destiny that Trader Joe’s has made manifest.

Dr “More Or Less“ Gerlich

Audio Blog

#marketing #groceries #supermarkets #Trader Joe's #retail

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nasirlye · 2 years ago

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What's Destiny?

Hello! :D

Destiny is a first-person shooter sci-fi game series! It has a pretty extensive storyline that sadly is impossible to play all of it (some expansions and seasons that contain story parts have been vaulted for the sake of game storage space), but anyone interested in the lore can easily find videos online of people either playing the content or explaining what's happened up to this point!

This video catches you up to the oldest expansion available to play on Destiny 2 - Shadowkeep. It wasn't the first expansion released to Destiny 2, Forsaken was, but that has since been vaulted, sadly. It was my favorite expansion, too ;-; I did record the whole thing before it was vaulted though so you can watch that here if you want. It can also give you a good idea of how the gameplay is set up! Also, don't judge how many times you see the "screenshot taken" popup on the bottom of the screen. It was my last ever playthrough of my favorite expansion and I had no self control when it came to the PrtScr button during cutscenes ;w;

Destiny 1 is only available on Xbox and Playstation. Destiny 2, however (which has cross-platform gameplay), is available on Xbox, Playstation, and PC. Since I don't have an Xbox or Playstation, I've only played Destiny 2. Even though it sounds weird to start playing the 2nd game in a series, Destiny 2 is designed with brand new players in mind. You don't need to have played Destiny 1 to enjoy it, though I'm sure it does add to the experience. People who played Destiny 1 also get to hear a few exclusive voicelines that those who have only played Destiny 2 don't, which I think is pretty cool.

It's a free-to-play game, however you do have to purchase the expansions to be able to play those storylines. They also have season passes (seasons last roughly three to four months) that have their own stories to bridge the gap between expansions. Some kind of story is always going on when it comes to Destiny 2. You don't have to buy all of these to be able to enjoy the game, since they do have a pretty decent amount of truly free content, so you can play the game and try it out completely risk-free if you'd like. They also have periodic sales on the expansions, so keep an eye out for those cause they're worth it!

I don't want to go into the Destiny 2 story too much and spoil the introductory mission if you're interested in playing it for yourself, so I'll stop this here before I ramble on for too long xD

#valiantlydecadentsuit2 #ask nasirlye #destiny 2

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trekscribbles · 3 years ago

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Chapter 3—Triple Threat: A Stone Triplet Fic

Fandoms: Leverage/Leverage Redemption, Librarians, and Almost Paradise

Cross-Posted: AO3 and FF

Summary: Eliot and Jake are both in the Philippines for separate jobs that turn out to be related. Kai takes the existence of Alex's brothers as a personal attack on her mental health. Ernesto happily goes along for the ride.

Chapter 1, Chapter 2

Jacob Stone needed a vacation. He wasn't sure what it was that was eating at him, but he could feel it building up, weighing on his patience and fraying at his nerves. He'd been snapping at the others more than usual—at Ezekiel, mostly—and while he knew it wasn't fair, he couldn't seem to control himself. And he'd spent decades perfecting his control over his emotions, of keeping his feelings hidden until he was ready to let them go.

So when the Clippings Book spat out a page about a new artifact to hunt down, Jake took one look at the location and stuffed the paper into his pocket. "I'll take this one," he told Jenkins, the only other person who'd witnessed the assignment. "Tell the others I'll be gone for a few days."

"Are you sure it will take that long?" Jenkins asked shrewdly.

Jake shrugged out of the long sleeve flannel he'd been wearing over his t-shirt—he wouldn't need it where he was going. "A couple of days at least," he said. "Can you tell them?"

"Certainly." Jenkins gave him a smile and reached out to take his shirt. "Shall I prepare the door?"

"Thanks, Jenkins."

Once everything was ready, Jake stepped through the door of the library and into a world drenched in sunshine. He sucked in a breath, unable to keep from staring. He'd seen more than his fair share of beauty over the years, but this... this was different. The colors here seemed brighter, more vivid, as if the greatest painters in history had all collaborated on this single canvas. Green leaves waved at him from gently swaying palm trees, and overhead a sapphire sky stretched across a peaceful horizon. He heard the door to the Library shut behind him, but he didn't bother looking back. His heart was already lost to the sound of waves in the distance.

"What are you doing?"

Jake started, blinking at the woman who'd just spoken. She stood across the path, half-turned as if she'd been going the other direction. Had he cut her off? He'd been so focused on the scenery that he hadn't looked where he was walking, so it was definitely possible. He glanced back at the door he'd come out of and frowned at the Employees Only sign in its center, then made a quick study of his surroundings. His back was to a building that appeared to be a hotel, judging by the pool and uniformed staff to his right. "I'm sorry," he started. "I was—"

"You're supposed to be back at the gift shop," she said, stepping toward him. She held a drink carrier with four coffees in one hand, and the scowl she gave him seemed too severe for a stranger. Her eyes sharpened as she got closer. "What happened to your hair?"

"Uh... what?"

A look of disbelief swept over the irritation on her face. "Oh no. No, this can't be happening."

"What? What's happening?"

"You're not—you're not another one?"

"Another what?" Jake's irritation flared, and he fought to get it back under control. The woman was clearly confused. He shouldn't hold it against her.

"What have I done to deserve this?" she muttered to herself. "I'm a good person. I help people. One I can understand—I've made mistakes. Two, maybe, after everything I put my mother through. But three? No one deserves that."

"Ma'am," Jake said. "I think you've got me confused with someone else. I don't—"

"Your name is Stone, isn't it?" she asked.

His hope for a peaceful vacation shattered. Jake did his best to keep his voice even, but he could still hear a tremor of frustration as he spoke. "How do you know that?"

"You'd better come with me," she sighed.

Jake folded his arms. "I'm not going anywhere."

"You are if you want answers," she said. When he still didn't move, she added, "My name is Kai."

As if that was his biggest question. He wanted to argue, to demand that she tell him how she knew his name and where she wanted to take him, but he kept his mouth shut. If he'd learned anything from his time as a Librarian, it was that he should follow people who said they could lead him to answers—especially since he hadn't done any research beforehand. Usually he read the Clippings Book pages through several times before leaving on a mission, but this time he'd only skimmed to pick out the relevant details: the artifact he was supposed to retrieve was something called the Ring of Harmony, and it was in the Philippines. He'd thought that was all he needed to know to start with. Apparently he was wrong.

So he took a breath, telling himself that he was Flexible Vacation Jake, and followed her along a path that led from the resort to a long expanse of beach.

"Do you live here?" Jake asked, matching her stride.

She glanced at him and frowned. "At the hotel?"

"No, here." He gestured vaguely. "On the island."

"Yes."

Okay... he'd been hoping for more, but it was a start. "Have you noticed anything weird lately?"

"Weird," she echoed. "Yeah. That's one word for it."

She wouldn't say any more, and after a few minutes of getting nothing but monosyllabic answers, Jake gave up the conversation. The warmth of the sun was starting to feel oppressive, and the gentle breeze now felt like the portend of a coming storm. How could something he had just found so beautiful now seem so restrictive? With a single conversation, he'd managed to lose the sense of joy and wonder that had nearly blinded him when he'd walked through the door. He used to be able to ride that wave of passion throughout the whole mission, even when Ezekiel was at his most annoying. Now? Now he just wanted to finish up and retreat back into his office.

When had he started looking at this life as a job instead of a blessing?

"There," Kai said, pointing up the beach to a small building with a brightly painted sign hanging over the door.

"Paradise Gift Shop?" Jake read, more confused than ever. "What, you want me to buy a t-shirt before you tell me what's going on?"

"He can use all the sales he can get," Kai shrugged.

"Who?"

She pointed again, and Jake looked back to the shop. Three men had just walked through the door and were making their way down the steps to the sand. The first was a wiry man with a gun on his belt, but the other two—

Jake stopped. He watched as they filed onto the beach, talking easily with each other, laughing. It wasn't possible. Alex had been in Spain the last time Jake managed to track him down, and Eliot... Eliot just dropped off the face of the earth. Jake had given up hope that he was even still alive. How could they be here, together?

Without him?

One of them looked up and waved to Kai, who stepped aside so she was no longer blocking their view of Jake. "Is that...?" the other one said, shielding his eyes and squinting. Jake didn't move. His thoughts raced, but they didn't seem to bring him any helpful information. Just a steady stream of What's going on? and How is this happening?

"Go on," Kai said, nudging him forward. He took a jerky step and stayed there, forcing a slow, even breath through his lungs. He saw Kai peer at him from his peripheral vision, waiting, but he couldn't move. He couldn't think. He just watched his brothers walk up to him, frowning, as if they weren't sure what to do next.

"Jake?" one of them said—the one with the shorter hair. Jake couldn't tell them apart. His own brothers, and he couldn't tell which was which. It had been so long... if they didn't share his face, he doubted he'd have recognized them at all.

"Another one?" asked the wiry man, moving to stand beside Kai. "How many more of you are there?"

"It's just us three," answered Jake's other brother.

"Jake," said the first. "Say something."

Say something? What did they want him to say? He'd spent years trying to get them to talk, begging them to get together, to be a family. They were the ones who walked away. He'd stayed home, taken over the business he never wanted, given up his dreams, waited. And decades went by, and they never came. They let him do their share of the work, take on their share of the responsibility, and they never came back.

And now they wanted to talk?

"Eliot," Jake said, his voice hoarse. "Alex."

His fingers curled into fists, and he swung at them both.

#triple threat #stone triplets #the terrible triplets #eliot spencer #jacob stone #alex walker #leverage redemption #leverage #librarians #almost paradise #fanfic

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an0nymousghost · 3 years ago

Text

simblr asks v2

here are my answers! find the questions here.

i wrote soo much ahaha. like however much you think i wrote, i wrote more than that. imo everything i write is gold though

1. are you going to buy the new pack (cottage living) when it comes out? no, it looks really nice but i legit never ever buy packs at launch, especially cause this one is a expansion and it will probably go on sale at some point

2. do you p*rate your dlc or buy it legitimately? buy it legitimately 👌

3. what’s your favorite world? brindleton bay, it gives like seaside cottage vibes. willow creek is good but it’s boring.

4. if you use a queue, how many posts per day do you set it as? 3 or 4. i used to do like 12 lmaoo what even was wrong with me

5. do you watch sims on youtube? yes, i watch mainly malixa, oshinsims, and msgryphi

6. what are your thoughts on the most recent pack? (dream home decorator) those sectional couches look good! but honestly im kinda annoyed because now it’s even harder to have all the items filled in when i place lots from the gallery. like i’m just saying like a lot of builds will use that pack probably and if i don’t get it then i can’t really use builds/save files

7. how many packs/kits do you own? lemme count

expansion: all - 10/10 game: 5/10 stuff: 9/18 kits: none xo

24/38 - 63%

8. what’s your origin id? is it the same as your url? 🤗 it’s in my title, it’s celeschul. it doesn’t look that nice in my title but i use celeschul in my package files and i’m guessing people search things like, “celeschul penny hair” or something like that in order to find my cc- so i keep it in there so the search results are easier. i do want to change it though..

but no it’s also not the same! well i mean it’s the username i use for cc. my origin id used to be an0nymousghost but i changed it. i wonder if anyone’s taken that one?

9. is your simblr your sideblog or main blog? main blog ✌️ my old blog @stardze is a main blog as well.

my old old simblr was a sideblog but it had like 1 follower and it literally a bot so i don’t think that counts. i have a multifandom sideblog though

10. do you have a cc finds blog? i wish. i was thinking bout it earlier and that would be sooo neat but sometimes i download stuff that doesn’t have a tumblr post attached to it, and also it’s stressful to keep up with so nah

11. are you wcif friendly? yes sir. in fact i bring the trouble of wcifs onto myself but doing them even when nobody asked.

12. what’s your favorite sized household to play with? (ex. 1 sim, 4 sims) gonna have to think on this one, honestly 1 sim is really fun and stuff goes by so fast. doing stuff with astrid when she was on her own, it was much more efficient.

for families, i haven’t done that in a while actually. 5, 2 parents and 3 kids is cute tho. why did i write this this is honestly such a hard question

13. if you have c&d, do you play with pets? i feel like i haven’t played with cats and dogs in forever. honestly i just have no paitence. noelle fae was supposed to get a cat (there’s a food bowl + cat bed in her house) but when summer vacation started, the amount of time i spent playing ts4 decreased a lot. (this doesn’t really make sense, i have a lot more time. honestly it just has to do with my recent obsession with a certain anime/manga and some other personal thing)

i did random nightmares in may though and i had pets frequently. g5 didn’t because sofia scarlett lived in an apartment, but g2/3/4 had cici, and g1 had all the cats. but that was back in march so it’s been a while.

14. what lifespan do you use? i really want to do aging off but then i feel like it drags on. but aging legit stresses me out, sometimes i just want to sit down and do some cas stuff but i only have 2 hours in real time and there’s like 4 days left till one of my sims’ birthdays.

15. if you own a lot of packs, how many of them have you actually played through? just so everyone is aware this question was made for me

i feel like eps require a specific save made for testing them out, but the only save i’ve ever made for an ep is noelle fae’s get famous save.

that is literally a lie - i made a save for island living with one of my 100bc kids, maisie acapella. i did actually post it on tumblr BUT then i deleted all the posts BUT i reblogged them on my alt account BUT i privated my alt account so i honestly forgot about it

i have never played through discover university or watched anyone do it on youtube, i’ve read gerbits’ story about it so i think i’m pretty qualified. i’ve always wanted to do one with periwinkle acapella but i never got around to it

another ep i know nothing about is get to work

i tried doing a eco life playthrough but i hadn’t watched any videos and i was like..what is going on. so i quit lolx d ;;;;; i mentioned it but the whimsy stories legacy was the first time i had played with the eco lifestyle features so technically i think i know what im doing

i got outdoor retreat literally on monday of this week so i haven’t played through it yet.

jungle adventure i still don’t know what’s going on. i remember last year before i bought the pack i was brainstorming, and wanted to do a ja playthrough with luna and cedar, who are a couple who i did a random legacy with and it was all queued to post when i deleted everything (if you’re wondering why, it’s because my queue was literally 200+ posts). except this time i didn’t save them to my sideblog so i lost them.

i still havent had a restaurant in dine out

also never did the vet thing from cats and dogs

i have no idea what that rock climbing thing is from snowy escape but i did most of the other stuff because rn g5

city living i did through psc stage 5 and also it was the first pack i bought anyways

the rest of them are either stuff packs or i ended up playing them through casual gameplay (seasons, parenthood)

16. what do you do as you play sims? (ex. listen to music) i listen to music most of the time, or listen to commentary youtube videos because i am an alpha chad. i also used to talk with my friends on voice call but i don’t do that anymore 🥲

17. which sims challenges have you tried? random legacy, whimsy stories, perfect sim challenge, 100 baby, legacy (just the plain get-to-10-gens one), random nightmares, berry zodiac, astrology legacy, apocalypse

i feel like im forgetting some.. honestly most of the stuff i did before simblr was either 100 baby (i love that challenge) or random saves that lasted for 2 seconds.

18. do you like the new(ish) hair swatches? nah.

i do appreciate that most cc hairs have a true (ish) black, thank god! and the fact that the hair update is what inspired me to update and fix a bunch of hairs with different issues is pretty nice. but will i use them? no.

plus it takes up like 5 gb? depending on how many packs you have.

19. post the latest screenshot you took 📸

i live in cas

20. what is the cc/ingame hair that looks the most like your own? i think that dream home decorator side part hair looks a lot like my hair. honestly i havent see much like my hair but that one is kinda-? close

21. who is your favorite sim of yours and what is their story? noelle and alari fae i think!

link to post

noelle is blonde and has blue-grey eyes. she wears purple contacts pretty often though (because she wants to 😌)

alari has light brown hair that is kinda curly, and she’s got pretty vibrant blue eyes.

they’re sisters, alari is 3 years older than noelle. noelle was 19 and alari was 22 when they got spotted

they worked as models when they were young adults. their jobs involved dyeing their hair blue/pink, and they would model like clothes and stuff. anyways, they were pretty successful. like not ultra famous but they had enough money to not work for the rest of their lives.

their modeling group was made of 4 girls, the others were named paisley autumn and they were green and red, respectively. some things are:

paisley and alari started dating during this

autumn was a single mother to a little girl named destiny

noelle dated many people during this but never ended up finding the one <3

when their contract ended after like 6 years, paisley and alari went to go live together and noelle decided to get into acting. so thats when get famous playthrough started!

there’s more but basically they’re like oc’s with sims on the side. xoxo

22. if you use cc, are there any cc creators that you have like ALL of their items? this is such a good question! i hoard hair very heavily (my folder is 11gb) i so i have like 97% from most of the popular hair creators.

i think i had legitimately EVERYTHING from simstrouble though, i went through multiple times to check and i also have all of her retired stuff.

i have everything from ridgeport i think-? because of the fact that she uploaded all her stuff in one big zip.

i think that’s it.. for a long time i also had everything by clumsyalienn, but then i ended up deleting it and only keeping my faves.

and looking at my collection, maybe ah00b? i might be missing a couple but i at least have like 99%.

23. what’s one pack you think is underrated? dine out, it’s laggy af yes but it’s such a nice thing for my sims to do.

24. what are your favorite sims stories/legacies? melons by gerbits always and forever

this question was inspired by this ask anyways so

25. if you could change one small thing about ts4, what would it be? most of my suggestions are pretty complex but literally just - when you add tray files, they appear at the top. my life would be so much easier

this took me literal hours to answer

#replies #replying to MYSELF

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