#not based on the amount of light giving bonuses

[impossible-rat-babies]

meaningless complaint, but sometimes stuff in bg3 is utterly asinine in how it plays. to me

[zahri-melitor]

Blade Runner, The Matrix and Robins: if you want to run a conspiracy in your story you need to put in the work

One of the central conspiracies people like to speculate about in Blade Runner is the theory of whether Deckard is a Replicant. It's a high-context theory woven into the plot and cinematography of the film. (I'm aware various people, decades on, have 'confirmed' it's true; I don't think that's particularly relevant to this).

The reason why the theory is so compelling for audiences to discuss is that the film in itself poses the question 'what is a human' and sends the main character, Rick Deckard, on a hunt for those clues and mistakes that give away the Replicants he is looking for. Things like Deckard's evasion over whether he's ever taken a Voight-Kampff test, and moments that suggest implanted and shared memories make for a fun second level mystery for viewers to think about and solve. The unicorn dream sequence, with both the dream and silver foil unicorn, provides another pointer for audiences to consider the idea. Even the Replicant Red Eye moments are subtle clues that get called out via the broader focus on eyes.

What also helps the debate and hunt for this potential symbolism is Ridley Scott's reputation as a director who heavily goes for visual cinematography hints and altering stories by changing them in Director's Cuts.

Similarly, The Matrix has a conspiracy that the real world is another level within the Matrix. This one is easy to understand how it developed. The Matrix, as a film, invests a substantial amount of its runtime teaching its audience the clues used to distinguish the Matrix from the real world. We get explicit scenes like The Girl in the Red Dress and explanations of how déjà vu works to demonstrate alterations in the Matrix. We see how characters can alter the Matrix to their own ends, leading into moments in the trilogy where Neo appears to use those skills in the real world being able to be read as 'are we still in the Matrix?'

The thing is: neither movie fully commits to these readings. They're possibilities that audiences can read in, that feel like they've been woven into the plot for people to consider. The audience is drawn to ask the question via the way the hints/clues are found in things the audience is already directed to consider. At their worst, they're artefacts of the audience taking the themes of those films and extrapolating too far.

My feeling about Robins as a comic is that Tim Seeley and Baldemar Rivas want to suggest one of these conspiracy theory stories, but did not have the skill to convincingly pull it off.

One of my difficulties the entire way through the comic was that the story did not know when it was set, and indeed repeatedly suggested via both dialogue and art that it was set in very different periods.

Robins takes place at least partially in a generated overlay from information based on Bruce's notes on the five Robins and also on various criminals. It's trying to take the log entries from Gotham Knights #1-11 and extrapolate that concept out to 'what if having this went wrong for Bruce'. (And I shouldn't really be surprised that Seeley chose to do this: Seeley is very big fan of Devin Grayson's work in the Bat books and frequently chooses to reference it)

The markers used for this simulation are firstly the level reward bonuses, and secondly the singing robin (that apparently uses the wrong call).

In that light, you could argue that problems like characters wearing the wrong costumes, from non-matching eras, and holding views that don't really accord with those characters is supposed to be a series of hints about the resolution of the title, rather than a set of weird screw ups that involve suggestions that the team didn't both checking details.

My issue is that it doesn't feel earned. If Seeley and Rivas really did want to hint and direct their audiences into reading that the presentation, comments and impressions of each of the Robins in their story were wholly based on Bruce's conception of them, then I think those discontinuities should match each other more clearly within each character.

Take Tim for a moment: he wears his original 1990s Robin costume; is the opponent of Damian's 'gauntlet' (a period in which he was wearing his all red Robin costume); has his overlay stolen for a rant about how Tim things the Obeah Man and other villains should die in a way that explicitly references Red Robin #26 (his post-Crisis Red Robin period); and gets specifically removed from the story and trapped in a way that he has to direct others to find him and try to escape himself (suggestions of both the Ünternet and more specifically Mr Oz during Tynion's Tec run). These do not match. If we're supposed to think Bruce is hung up on a specific conception of Tim, and a particularly backward-looking one (which you would assume, given he's put in his earliest Robin costume), why don't the other elements match? Why not put him in his all-red Robin costume to hint that he's Damian's gauntlet? Why not put him in one of his Red Robin costumes if you're going to keep referring to him as Red Robin, and that Bruce's worries about him relate to specific events in that period? And why, if the early Robin costume is supposed to reference Tim's own 'gauntlet', then is he the only character wearing his original costume from the storyline?

And what does not help with this is that Seeley has several obvious screw ups. The most prominent one is he conflates Rite of Passage with Batman: Identity Crisis. The Obeah Man was the villain of Rite of Passage for Bruce, where he was hunting him down to save the Drakes. Tim's personal combatant during that story was tracking down Lonnie as Moneyspider. The storyline where Tim showed the skills and personal judgement that made Bruce decide that he was ready to be Robin was in Identity Crisis, which was a story rescuing Bruce and Vicky Vale from Scarecrow. While the stories are sequels to each other, they're not a contiguous whole: they take part in different titles, with a gap in time between them. Similarly, Seeley places Felipe Garzonas' death as Jason's first case as Robin, rather than his last case.

The whole concept of the 'gauntlets' is the underlying thread holding the story together, the aspect on which Bruce's analysis of each of the Robins and whether he wants to work with them is based, leading to the computer files, leading to the entire plot.

If you mess up like that, audiences are less likely to grant that you're trying to build hints in that something is wrong by having things be noticeably mismatching, because you've also screwed up the ground on which you're trying to construct the story. You cannot fairly claim that the incongruities you put in to hint at your plot are something that should be analysed as clues when you've already primed your audience to think that you're just a hack making blatant mistakes.

And this problem extends to all of the characters, not just Tim. Tim's just the easiest for me to pick apart because I know the references made so well (and Tim Seeley clearly doesn't actually care as much about Tim as several other characters, making the oopsies more obvious).

The issue with this story isn't simple single-panel moments like "And I need to hear it from you, Tim, because Jason and Damian lie through their teeth" or Tim saying he "demanded" to be Robin where people can dunk on it by showing another panel like the Teen Titans 2003 "I lie to Batman" panel or ALPOD. It's in the fact it tries to be clever but doesn't earn audiences' trust to do that analysis. And it doesn't earn that trust because you can't pick apart what's a deliberate incongruity as a hint from what's a general mistake from the team, and if you do pick at elements that look like outright mistakes, the whole thing comes tumbling down.

Blade Runner and The Matrix train their audiences from the very start of the story to look for these incongruities and hints and showcase what problems to look for openly in the plot, leading to people to heavily analyse background details for further suggestions of these hints. They earn the buy in that leads to the elaborate fan theories.

Tim Seeley forfeited his audience's buy in to the story he apparently was trying to tell by not being exact enough about the details in a story where he wanted them to pick at those details, and not showing early enough that the audience is expected to be picking at those details. And that's just poor writing and biting off more than you can chew.

[aesethewitch]

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[kotlc-deleted-scenes]

Stellarlune Paperback Edition Marella Short Story

Hello, wonderful Keeper readers! Some of you might already know that I love to sneak a little something extra into the paperback versions of my books whenever I can (since I don't think hardcover readers should get to be the only ones who sometimes find fun bonuses). For those who didn't know that: surprise! ☺

I knew I wanted to include a story from Marella's POV this time. Not only is she on the cover (looking fierce and fabulous!) and a fan-favorite character, but she also had some key scenes in Stellarlune that we only got to "hear" about. The Keeper books are limited to Sophie's POV, so I can only include moments where Sophie is present—and since Sophie didn't go with Marella to her meetings with Fintan, we only learn what Marella tells Sophie later. But what if there was something Marella didn't share?

Over the next few pages, you can watch one of Marella's conversations with Fintan play out in real time and hear all Marella's thoughts and reactions to what's happening. I've called this story "The Trade"—and I've worked in lots of fun little extra details (some of which might even turn out to be important later…*wink*). For those wondering, this story is based on a scene in chapter 31 of Stellarlune—and if you haven't read Stellarlune yet: SPOILER ALERT! SPOILER ALERT! Reading this first will probably be confusing and will also give away a few tidbits too early. You'll be much happier if you start by reading Stellarlune and then come back here for all the Marella fun once you're done.

Happy reading!

—Shannon Messenger

THE TRADE 

Marella

“Ugh, I hate this place,” Marella muttered, shaking the freshly fallen snowflakes out of her gilded blond hair much harder than necessary and yanking her thick velvet cape tighter around her narrow shoulders. 

She said the same thing every time she had to trudge through the knee-high snowdrifts and found herself staring at the icicle-crusted entrance to the now familiar cave. Didn't matter how many times she'd gone there—or how important her visits were. 

She was never not going to dread making the long, slippery trek down to Fintan's frozen cell. The cave looked like some sort of open-mouthed snow beast Mating to devour everything in its path—which was probably intentional, since the prison was designed to be as miserable as possible. 

Especially for someone like her. 

The goblin guards even gave her pitying stares as they moved aside to reveal the endless icy path that wound down and down and down a whole lot more to a place where the tiniest glimmer of heat had long since been swallowed up by the suffocating cold. 

No amount of clothing could keep Marella warm in the heart of the prison. She'd actually tried wearing so many layers that she'd looked like an overstuffed gulon and she still couldn't stop shivering. And the whole "body temperature regulation" thing wasn't exactly possible when she had to use so much concentration to make sense of Fintan's ranting. 

It wasn't fair. 

Everyone else got to train their special abilities in fancy rooms at Foxfire, with Mentors who weren't creepy, unstable murderers. 

But they weren't Pyrokinetics. 

Marella was lucky the Council was letting her use her ability at all. 

They could just as easily label her Talentless, kick her out of their snobby academy, and ban her from ever sparking another flame. 

Or they could decide she was too dangerous and lock her away. 

In fact, Marella wouldn't have been surprised at all if the Council was already building an icy cage just for her—but the thought still made her shiver and she wished she could have manifested as…

Nope.

She stopped herself from finishing that sentence. 

If life had taught her anything, it was that there's no point wanting things that were never going to happen. 

Instead, she focused on the thin beams of sunlight streaking through a gap in the gloomy gray clouds. The light was far from warm, but if she really concentrated, she could feel a hint of lingering heat tangled among the brightness. 

She called the warmth closer and soaked it in—let it pool under her skin, pounding with her pulse, swelling with every heartbeat. Growing hotter and hotter and hotter until…

Snap! 

A flick of her fingers sent a small tangle of flames sparking to life above her left palm. 

"Feel better?" Linh asked as Marella let out a long, slow sigh. 

Marella nodded—though she definitely could've done without the whispers that were now hissing around her head. 

The flames had a soft, crackly voice. And they always made the same plea. 

Feed me. 

Feed me. 

Feed me. 

Fire craved fuel—constantly wanting more, more, more—and it would've been so easy for Marella to let the fire swell bigger and bigger and bigger.

But that was the kind of thing that would lead to a lifetime of shivering in an underground ice cube, so she forced her gaze to shift to Linh, who stood in a small, snowless circle surrounded by a halo of hovering snowflakes—-none daring to touch her long silver-tipped hair or shimmery purple cape.

Marella knew how hard Linh had fought to achieve that level of control, and how tentative Linh's hold over her ability still was. But the fact Linh could stand in a sea of frozen water and do nothing except keep the falling snow from settling on her flushed pink cheeks was very…

Annoying.

Then again, everyone annoyed Marella a little.

Her dad used to call her "fiery" long before he realized how accurate that description truly was.

But it wasn't Marella's fault!

People tended to be annoying.

Especially a Hydrokinetic who was currently looking all peaceful and pretty and perfect while making snowflakes flutter and spin in intricate patterns.

That didn't mean Marella wasn't also grateful that Linh was willing to tag along to her Pyrokinetic lessons. it was nice to see a friendly face after hours of Fintan's rambling. Plus, it seemed like a good idea to have someone with water powers around while she practiced setting things on fire.

They were even finding some pretty cool ways to work together. Fire and water might be opposites—but that didn't mean they couldn't be combined. Marella had actually figured out a way to ignite Linh's rain, and she couldn't wait to use that little trick on the Neverseen—assuming those black-cloaked losers ever showed up again.

For a fearsome, unstoppable rebellion, they sure spend a lot of time hiding.

"Are you going to start by asking him about the cache or do the lesson first?" Linh asked, reminding Marella why they were there.

Marella shrugged. "Depends on Fintan's mood."

Sometimes he was already babbling about some fancy new fire trick when she arrived, as if he'd started the lesson without bothering to wait for her. Other times she couldn't get anywhere with him until she'd let him go on and on and on about how foolish the Council was, or how badly he'd been wronged, or how much he missed the feel of a flickering flame—and she didn't necessarily blame him for the last one.

Part of her wanted to hold on to her fireball forever.

Make it her smoky little pet.

Instead, she curled her fingers into a fist and snuffed it out—but she didn't let all the heat dissipate. She called a single tingling glint deeper, letting it sear through her veins and settle into her heart.

She knew it was a risky move, even with all the defenses she wrapped around it. But she couldn't bear the cold emptiness of Fintan's prison without a least a tiny fleck of warmth tucked away.

A secret spark whispering, I'm here. You're not alone.

"Okay," she said, weaving a few strands of her hair together to clam her twitchy fingers. She'd picked up the nervous habit years ago—after her mom's accident—and the tiny braids were kind of her trademark now. "i guess I should stop stalling and head down to deal with Sir Creepysparks, huh?"

Linh smiled. "Probably. Unless you want to rehearse what you're going to say."

"Nah. I'm just going to offer him an ugly flower—that doesn't exactly need a big speech. Oh, but that reminds me…"

She reached into her cape pocket and pulled out the spiky dark blue Noxflare—which looked more like a dying weed than a super-rare flower—and held it up to the guards. "Mr. Forkle already checked this before I brought it here, to make sure it's safe for me to offer to Fintan. but I figured you'd want to check it too."

"We do," they agreed in unison as one of the biggest, deadliest-looking guards took the Noxflare from Marella and brought it over to the other goblins.

A lot of mumbling about potential kindling and fire hazards followed.

Eventually, the guards decided to quick-freeze the Noxflare into a block of ice in case there was any heat stored inside.

"Whoa," Marella said when the scary guard returned with the flower-filled ice cube—which had turned out as big as her head. "How heavy is that thing?"

The guard studied Marella's skinny arms. "I can carry it for you if you'd like."

"That'd probably be smart." Marella was pretty sure she'd drop it, or her fingers would freeze off during the long walk—and using telekinesis would drain her mental energy. "But can you stay out of sight? I was planning to tell Fintan he can only see his weird flower thing if he gives me access to his memories, and that's kinda ruined if there's a giant goblin holding it right next to me.

Not that it made the plan any less pointless.

Fintan was obviously going to turn her down.

He's already made it super clear that the only trade he was interested in was for his freedom—which was never going to happen.

Marella doubted a dying flower frozen in ice was suddenly going to make him be like, You know what? Who needs out of this horrible prison when I can have that!

But she was out of other ideas.

And Sophie wanted her to try the Noxflare thing, so…

Whatever.

Marella didn't care about Sophie's current power trip the way Stina did.

As long as she didn't have to be the one coming up with all the plans—or almost dying all the time—Marella was fine following orders. Especially if she got to say I told you so when they turned out to be a huge waste of time.

"Sure you don't want me to come with you?" Linh asked as Marella pulled thick gloves onto her hands. "Fintan likes me."

Marella wasn't sure if "like" was the right word, since Fintan didn't seem to like anybody. But he'd definitely been impressed with Linh.

He'd demanded to speak with "the Hydrokinetic" after Marella mentioned she practiced her pyrokinesis with Linh, so Marella had convinced the goblin guards to let Linh down into the prison. And when Fintan asked for a demonstration of Linh's ability to ensure she wouldn't "hinder his training," Linh had stirred up all the ice shards on his floor and made them rain around him like he was trapped inside a snow globe—which actually made him applaud.

Apparently, most Hydrokinetics struggled to manipulate water in its solid form, and were limited to liquid water or water vapor.

But not Linh.

Of course.

Marella was pretty sure that Linh was more powerful than any of her other friends.

"Well, if you need me, you know where to find me," Linh said as Marella forced her feet to carry her into the cave. "I'll just be here, making another snow menagerie." She flicked her wrist and wove the hovering snowflakes into a soaring alenon.

"Ugh, at least make some ugly creatures this time," Marella called over her shoulder. "I want to see a row of snow ghouls when I get back here. Or a giant Princess Purryfins!"

Linh gasped. "Princess Purryfins is not ugly! I'm going to tell her you said that!"

Marella laughed. "I'm sure you will."

She would've teased Linh more about her ridiculous obsession with her pet murcat, but the frigid air from the prison hit Marella hard, and she had to lock her jaw to keep her teeth from chattering.

At least she didn't have to make the journey by herself this time.

Marella could hear the scary goblin guard keeping pace several steps behind her as her eyes slowly adjusted to the dim blue light cast by a series of glowing spheres dangling from the ceiling. The downward slope grew steeper with each winding curve, and Marella was always tempted to try sliding down the icy floor instead of walking—but she'd probably end up crashing into one of the weird ice thrones outside Fintan's cell. And she knew better than anyone that injuries couldn't always be healed.

Plus, the trudge gave her a chance to add extra defenses to the heat she'd tucked away in her chest.

She often wondered if Fintan had hidden a few sparks of his own when he was arrested. After all, he had to know the Council would put him on ice for the rest of eternity. Wouldn't he try to preserve what little heat he could?

But Marella had stretched out her senses a zillion different ways and never felt the slightest tingle of warmth when she was around him. So either there was nothing to find or Fintan was that good.

She had a horrible feeling it was the latter, and he was waiting for just the right moment to reveal his grand plan—but that wasn't the kind of thing she should be thinking about before having to face him.

Still, she spent the next few turns trying to figure out what she'd do if she were right.

Her feet turned numb while she plotted, and her bones were officially aching by the time the path widened— the only warning that they were getting close to Fintan's cell.

A few curves later, his cage came into view: a stark, icy bubble in the center of a circular cavern.

The round wall was reflective on the inside, so even though Marella could see Fintan pacing along the edge of his frozen barricade, he wouldn't be able to see her until she triggered the sensor by sitting in one of the freezing thrones positioned at the only point Fintan could peer through.

He looked extra tired that day—his sky blue eyes sunken by more shadows than usual, and he kept muttering under his breath about incompetence as he tucked his messy blond hair behind his pointy ears with a bit more force than necessary.

Marella glanced back at the scary guard, making sure he'd ducked into the shadows near the back of the cell before she made her big appearance. Then she took a deep breath and pressed her hand against her heart, reaching for her secret spark of warmth one last time before plopping into the closest ice throne.

"Awwwww, looks like you missed me," she said, tossing back her hair and flashing her brightest smile.

She liked to start her visits by showing Fintan she wasn't afraid of him—even if she totally was.

But Fintan didn't glance her way.

"I'm not in the mood for games," he warned as he continued his slow march around his cell.

"Neither am I" Marella assured him, deciding that was her cue to start with the cache. She sat up taller, trying to look extra confident as she added, "But I do have an awesome trade to offer you!"

Fintan sighed. "If this is about my cache, I already told you what I'm willing to accept. Unless you're here to grant me a day of freedom—"

"I'm definitely not. But! I found something you should like even better." She paused, hoping the extra bit of anticipation would somehow make her offer sound more exciting when she told him. "Noxflares!"

Fintan scrunched his slender nose. "What are Noxflares, and why would I care about them?"

Marella tilted her head, trying to tell if he was faking.

She hadn't expected him to jump around or applaud or anything—but she had expected him to at least know what Noxflares were.

Then again, his mind had been shattered and pieced back together so many times, his memories had to be in shambles—and Ancient minds tended to be a total mess anyway, since they were crammed with thousands of years of information and the past and present blurred together.

"Would it help if I told you I stopped by your old estate on my way here?" she asked, "Your garden could use some gnomish help, by the way. All the plants have turned into a giant dying tangle. But I dug around and managed to find this scraggly vine with dark pointy flowers—and I hear that plant is special to you, so I picked a few and—"

"You picked my Noxflares?" Fintan snapped, rushing to the wall of his cell and pressing his palms against the ice. "You must let me see them!"

Marella's lips curled into a huge smirk. "I thought you didn't know what they were."

Fintan gritted his teeth so hard, it sounded like cracking ice.

"Hey, I'm not saying I won't share. Buuuuuuuuuuut it'll cost you—and I'm pretty sure you can already guess what I want." She paused for another beat before she added, "Just so we're clear: I'll show you one of your Noxflares if you open your cache and show me what's inside."

Fintan's jaw tightened even more and his hands curled into fists.

But he didn't say no.

He didn't say anything—which was definitely new.

Marella had already offered him a long list of trade suggestions that she, Linh, Maruca, and Stina had all come up with—some really cool ones! And Fintan had shot each one down before she could even finish the offer.

She couldn't believe he looked so tempted by an ugly flower.

but as the silence dragged on, Marella started to wonder if she'd misread the situation.

maybe she'd pushed him too hard—taunted him too much—and now Fintan was letting her sit there in the cold, knowing the icy throne was turning her butt and legs numb.

She was trying to decide if she could make standing up look like a power move when Fintan told her, "Fine. You have a deal—but since you're only offering one Noxflare, I'll only show you one memory."

Marella barely stopped herself from blurting out, SERIOUSLY?

"Orrrrrrrrrrrrrr," she said instead, wanting to kick herself for not bringing more Noxflares with her. The whole thing had just seemed so silly—and the first few she'd picked had crumbled to dust. But the vine had lots more flowers, so she could fix the mistake super easily. "How about I go back, grab eight more Noxflares, and then you show me all nine memories?"

Fintan grinned. "Tempting. But one Noxflare is really all I need."

Need?

Marella wasn't a fan of that wording.

But before she could ask him what he needed it for, he added, "My offer expires in ten seconds," and started counting down.

By "six" she decided that one memory was better than nothing.

"Fine," she said, pulling the cache from her pocket and holding the marble-size orb up to the light. "But you go first. How do I open this thing?"

No way was she going to risk letting him back out—especially since he probably wasn't going to be happy when he saw his precious flower was stuck in the middle of a giant ice cube.

Fintan held out his hand. "Give me the cache, and I'll open it."

Marella laughed. "Hard pass."

"Ah, but you don't have a choice. I'm the only one who can access the memories. And I need to make physical contact with the cache in order to do so."

Marella squinted at the tiny gadget.

She didn't know much about caches—aside from the fact that only Councillors used them and that each colorful inner crystal held a single Forgotten Secret. But she did know that Dex had already tried everything he could think of to open the cache and failed—and he was one of the best Technopaths ever.

"Do I need to start counting down again?" Fintan asked. "I believe we'd gotten to five…"

Marella chewed her lip. "Uh, how do I know you're not going to destroy the cache or try to hold it for ransom or something?"

Fintan's smile was colder than his cell. "You'll just have to trust me."

"Yeah, I don't see that happening."

Fintan shrugged. "Then our deal is off."

Marella rolled her eyes. "Come on. Even if I wanted to, it's not like I can open your cell door and hand the cache to you."

She wasn't even sure if his cell had a door. The wall looked like one big solid piece of ice.

"You've proven to be very resourceful during our lessons," Fintan reminded her.

"Yeah, but—"

"It's your call," he interrupted. "If you want a memory, you'll have to trust me."

She snort-laughed—but before she could get another word out, he repeated, "You'll just have to trust me." And she could tell that was the only response he was going to give.

She turned to the scary guard, who had started pacing in the shadows. "Is there a way to pass Fintan a small item?"

"Ah, you have a hidden goblin escort—I knew you were resourceful!" Fintan clapped his hands. "And yes, there is a way to pass me my cache, otherwise I wouldn't have suggested it. Any guard can open the disgraceful tube they pass my horrid, frozen bits of food through. The cache should fit nicely."

The guard gripped his sword. "I cannot allow any unauthorized item to enter his cell."

Fintan clicked his tongue. "Clearly you're not considering the fact that I've already had plenty of chances to make this trade—and turned them all down. Do you think I would do that if the cache was even remotely useful to me?"

The goblin couldn't argue with that logic.

Neither could Marella.

And when Fintan went back to counting down, she told the guard, "The Black Swan knows I've been trying to make this trade—and they're working with the Council now. No one would let me do this if they thought the cache was dangerous."

Then again, they'd never discussed the possibility of handing the cache over to Fintan—but surely someone must've considered that during all their endless talking and obsessive overplanning…right?

Besides, if anything went wrong, she could always remind them that this was Sophie's idea.

"I don't like this," the scary guard growled. But Marella gave him her I-totally-know-what-I'm-doing glare until he set the frozen Noxflare down with a particularly dramatic thud, snatched the cache, and spent an eternity squinting at the tiny crystal, spinning it all different ways. "If anything happens, my priority will be subduing the prisoner—not protecting you. Are you certain you want to take that risk?"

Marella absolutely wasn't.

But…this might be their only shot at seeing one of Fintan's Forgotten Secrets.

Plus, she had her tiny little spark buddy she could call on if she needed. Surely she could use that to…

To what?

Take down a superpowerful, much more experienced Pyrokinetic with a history of murdering poeple?

But…did she really want to wimp out?

Sophie wouldn't.

And yeah, Sophie had, like, a permanent bed in the Healing Center. But Marella was pretty sure their whole group would vote "DO IT!"

There were also a dozen other armed goblins who would rush down as backup.

And Linh could attack Fintan with her cutesy snow animals.

It'd almost be worth it to watch Fintan get swallowed up by an ice wave shaped like Princess Purryfins.

"I can handle myself," she decided, using a tone that hopefully sounded intimidating.

Fintan's gleeful laughter echoed off the ice.

The scary guard muttered something about the arrogance of elves as he reached toward the top of Fintan's frozen cell and felt around for a specific spot. A faint clicking sound followed, and a tiny round door slid open—far out of Fintan's reach.

"I can neutralize you within seconds," the guard reminded him as he held the cache up to the opening. "By numerous means. Some far more painful than others."

"Yes, I'm well aware of the absurd lengths the Council has taken to keep me contained," Fintan assured him. "But I don't plan on giving you a reason to use any of them. Not today, at least."

The guard bared his supersharp pointy teeth, and Marella wanted to shout NEVER MIND, JUST KIDDING! But she let the guard shove the cache through the tiny opening—and then it was too late to change her mind.

All she could do was watch the glass orb make its slow descent, rolling around and around and around—down some sort of invisible path etched into the wall of the cell.

Her stomach backflipped with each rotation, and she felt more than a little vomit-y when the cache dropped low enough for Fintan to catch it. But he simply held it up and studied it.

Then he coughed on it.

And sneezed on it.

"Ewwwwwww," Marella groaned when he followed that up by drooling on it. "You know, there are better ways to give it your DNA."

"Yes, I'm aware." Fintan cleared his throat and launched a slimy blob of spit at the cache. "I also know your little Technopath friend is going to ask you how I accessed the memories, so feel free to give him a detailed list." He wiped the cache dry with his fingers and then ran it through his greasy hair before sneezing and coughing on it again. "Some of these methods are vital. Some are distractions. None can be re-created without me—but it'll be fun if he tries, don't you think?"

He laughed so hard, it brought tears to his eyes, and he smeared them across the cache before sneezing and spitting on it again—making Marella very glad she had gloves to keep her hands clean once he returned the cache.

Assuming she actually got it back…

She tried to make out what he was saying when he started mumbling a bunch of stuff into the crystal, but the words were all mushed together. He also tapped the cache in so many different places that she doubted even Sophie and Keefe with their fancy photographic memories would be able to re-create the patterns. And he looked so smug as he did it all that Marella decided to look as bored as possible—which was why she was barely paying attention when the cache flared to life, projecting a small hologram of Fintan standing alone in a wide, empty field.

"Huh," Marella mumbled. "Gotta admit, I was expecting something a little more exciting than a tiny glowing Fintan in the middle of nowhere doing…nothing."

"Then you should learn to be more observant." Fintan pointed to the swaying grass around the hologram's feet, and after a few seconds, Marella realized there was a vine of blooming Noxflares. "I figured I'd show you what Noxflares can do, since you're so generously bringing one back into my life."

Marella squinted at the tiny flowers, waiting for something to happen.

And waiting.

And waiting.

"So…they…blow in the wind?" she asked.

Fintan sighed. "No, they do this."

The hologram of Fintan waved his arms, and all the Noxflares erupted with searing white flames.

"Yeeeeeaaaaaaaaaaah, still not seeing why this needed to be a super-hush-hush Forgotten Secret," Marella grumbled as the Fintan hologram flicked his wrist and added purple fire to the white.

Sure, the flames were pretty—but all flames were beautiful.

"Try thinking like a Pyrokinetic!" Fintan snapped. "Tell me, are there any other flowers that could remain intact under such an inferno?"

Marella couldn't think of any.

And the Noxflares still didn't burn when the Fintan hologram added yellow flames to the fiery mix.

but other than clearly being fire-resistant, Marella didn't see the Noxflares actually doing anything—and the hologram of Fintan must've been equally unimpressed.

He frowned at the flaming petals and dragged a hand down his face, mumbling "something's missing."

"Still not seeing the point of this," Marella noted. "I mean…"

Her voice trailed off as the tiny Fintan waved his arms again and blasted the Noxflares with pink flames—which made the flowers spray sparks in every direction.

The effect was breathtaking.

Kind of like the sky during the Celestial Festival.

But that still didn't necessarily scream, THIS MEMORY IS IMPORTANT.

"How come the grass isn't catching fire?" she asked, grasping for anything that might be significant. "Do the Noxflares protect it or something?"

"No, I was protecting it. A pyrokinetic should always be in control of their flames."

He sounded so smug Marella was tempted to remind him that he let five Pyrokinetics die when he tried to teach them how to call down Everblaze and they all lost control—but that would probably make him throw one of his tantrums and send her away.

She needed the cache back first—and to hopefully find something useful in this boring memory. But sadly, all Fintan's hologram did was stare blankly at the stars and mumble "something's missing" again before the image flashed away.

"That's it?" the scary guard demanded, beating Marella to the complaint.

"Yeah, so…you put on a little fire show all by yourself with some spark-shooting flowers," she added, trying to sum up what she'd seen. "You were clearly disappointed by that little show. And then you must've remembered you needed to…"

She waved her hands, cuing Fintan to fill in the blank with whatever was "missing."

But he just stood there, staring at the cache with the same glazed look he always got whenever he started rambling about the beauty of fire—and Marella wished Linh had come with her after all.

Linh could pelt him with snowballs or something to snap him out of it.

But then she realized…

"You never figured out what was missing—did you?"

Fintan blinked and met her gaze. "Noxflares are full of possibility. But they need to burn."

"That doesn't answer my question," Marella noted.

Fintan shrugged. "Context was not part of our bargain."

"yeah, because I figured when I saw the memory, it would be obvious why it's this big Forgotten Secret. How does you setting some flowers on fire and then realizing you did it wrong matter to anyone?"

"I did nothing wrong," Fintan assured her, with a particularly haughty smile—but Marella wasn't buying it.

There was a tightness around his eyes that was way too familiar.

Her dad had that same tightness every time her mom was having one of her "bad days," and she knew exactly what it meant.

Disappointment.

Frustration.

A hint of helplessness.

So she marched over to the guard and grabbed the frozen Noxflare from the floor—too irritated to even notice how heavy the ice must've been as she hauled it back.

She plopped it in front of Fintan's cell. "Ta-da! One ugly flower, as promised—and I'm sure you're not surprised that I had to freeze it before I brought it down here."

"I'm not." Fintan dropped to his knees and gazed at the Noxflare like he was seeing a long-lost friend.

He pressed his hand against his cell, trying to get as close as he could. "Such power. Such…promise."

"Uh-huh," Marella agreed, letting his stare and stare, hoping it would help him let his guard down.

When his eyes turned a little teary, she went in for the kill.

"But there is something still missing, isn't there? That's why you saved this memory—to remind yourself to keep looking."

A whole lot of painful silence passed before Fintan slowly nodded.

Marella wanted to feel triumphant.

But all she'd done was prove the entire trade had been pointless.

There was no game-changing clue.

No dirty little secret about the past.

Certainly nothing to help them stop their enemies.

And she had a pretty strong hunch the other eight memories in the cache would be just as ridiculous.

"The answer is out there," Fintan murmured. "I can feel it. I just can't grasp it. Perhaps…"

"Perhaps?" Marella prompted when his eyes locked with hers.

Fintan stepped closer to the ice, keeping his voice low, like he didn't want the guard to hear him. "Perhaps a different Pyrokinetic is meant to find the truth. One who's already convinced the Council to trust her."

Marella laughed. "The Council doesn't trust me."

"The fact that you're here for a pyrokinesis lesson says otherwise—particularly since the lesson is with me." He started circling his cell again, mumbling under his breath and nodding. The only words Marella caught were "possible," "improvising," and "best option."

After three more times around the cell, he stopped in front of Marella again, leaning even closer to the icy wall as he whispered, "I believe it's time for me to offer a trade of my own."

"A trade," Marella repeated, not missing the way the scary guard gripped his sword.

Fintan glared at him. "This conversation is between me and my prodigy. She stands here of her own free will, shielded by who knows how many different kinds of protections—and she can leave anytime she pleases. Your presence is no longer needed."

"You still have her gadget," the guard argued.

"I suppose I do. but that can be easily remedied." Fintan set the cache on whatever invisible ledge it had slid down in the first place and gave it a good shove, sending it spinning up the path toward the top of the cell.

The guard had to scramble to catch it when it launched out of the ice bubble.

"See?" Fintan said, shifting his gaze back to Marella. "I can be trusted."

"Pretty sure the only thing I can trust is that you'll do what's best for you," Marella countered.

"As long as you get what you want, why would you care? After all, no matter what, I'm still stuck in here, aren't I?" He waved his arms around his little ice bubble, which suddenly looked way less secure than it had during her other visits. "Oh, relax—all I'm asking for is a little information."

Marella crossed her arms. "Right—and information has never gotten anyone hurt or killed."

"It's not that kind of secret. It's…" He frowned. "Honestly, I don't know what it is—and for someone my age, with my connections, that says something, doesn't it? I doubt any of the Vackers even know the full truth."

"Then how am I supposed to find it?" Marella demanded.

"As I said, you've proven to be quite resourceful. Particularly when you team up with your little friends." He scowled at the guard again before motioning her to step closer—until her ear was practically pressed up against the ice.

A voice in the back of her head kept screaming, WHY ARE YOU LISTENING TO HIM?

But…she was curious.

And there was nothing wrong with hearing his offer, was there?

Fintan's breath fogged the ice, obscuring his face as he whispered, "All I ask is that if you ever find out what's missing from the Noxflares, you share it with me."

"Why?" Marella glanced at the frozen flower, wishing she could see something more than just ugly shriveled petals.

"Because I want to know," Fintan said simply. "And because I can give you what you want in return."

"The rest of the memories in your cache," Marella clarified.

Fintan nodded. Then his lips curled into a smile. "And one other—something you've long wondered about, even though you probably don't admit it to yourself."

Marella raised one eyebrow, refusing to show any more interest than that.

Fintan cupped his hands around his mouth and pressed them to the ice before he whispered, "I know what happened to your mother."

Marella sucked in a breath.

"Yes," Fintan added. "I'm talking about her 'accident'—if we can really call it that. I know why she fell. And why her injuries were so incurable."

Marella stumbled back, collapsing into the nearest throne and hugging herself to stop her body from shaking with tremors that had nothing to do with the cold.

A tiny, terrified part of her had always thought the story she'd been told about her mom's fall hadn't totally made sense.

But everyone—everyone—was convinced it had been an accident.

Even her father.

And if it wasn't…

She leaned toward Fintan. "I don't need your games."

"Oh, this definitely isn't a game. But it's the only way you'll ever know the truth, and before you start overthinking everything, consider this: You have all the power here. Make the trade, don't make the trade—it's totally your call. You also don't have to make a decision right away. I'm trapped in this prison. I'll never find the answer on my own—and I'll never know if you find the answer unless you decide to tell me. So there's zero pressure. No one even knows we've had this conversation—and don't worry about the guard. See how frustrated he looks? That's because I made sure he only heard what I wanted him to hear. The rest is our little secret."

Our little secret.

Fintan was probably the last person she should have a secret with.

And yet…he had a point.

No one knew he'd made her this offer—and it wasn't like she'd come to any decision.

She didn't even have the information Fintan wanted anyway!

And with the way their investigations always seemed to go, she'd probably only find a whole lot more questions.

So there was really no point in telling anyone about this.

She could tell them whens he needed to.

If she needed to.

That wouldn't be wrong…would it?

It didn't feel wrong—or it wouldn't have if Fintan's smile wasn't so creepy.

"I'm not agreeing to anything," she said, wanting to make that very clear.

"You're not," Fintan assured her. "So how about we put this out of our minds and get started with our lesson? I'm sure your Hydrokinetic friend is wondering why you haven't come up to practice yet."

Linh was probably starting to worry.

She'd probably also built enough snow animals to make a frozen Sanctuary.

"Fine," Marella said, standing up and dusting ice off her cape. "What do you want me to work on today?"

"How about I teach you how to make those colored flames you saw in the memory," Fintan suggested. "You know, in case that ever comes in handy."

He winked, and the guard groaned and held out the cache to Marella. "Sounds like I'm no longer needed."

"You aren't," Fintan agreed.

The guard growled—looking scarier than ever—and turned to march away. But he spun back after a few steps. "He's right that I don't know what he offered you. But I can tell you're tempted. And I hope you're smart enough to reject it. Never make a deal with someone who has nothing to lose."

"I'm not," Marella promised.

And she wasn't.

She hadn't made any decisions—except to keep this to herself. But that didn't mean anything.

She was just trying to avoid a ton of drama and arguing and having people give her advice she didn't need.

Plus, everyone has secrets.

Shoot—the great Sophie Foster had more secrets than anyone.

So it was fine.

Everything was fine.

Nothing had changed.

Time to focus on controlling her fire.

And yet, for the rest of the lesson, the tiny spark in her heart burned hotter and hotter and hotter. Whispering a new plea.

Trust me.

Trust me.

Trust me.

Note: Thank you to @bookwyrminspiration for doing the bulk of this transcription!

[pathfinderunlocked]

Deadly Toxicutter - CR9 Construct

An animated weapon that’s here to make your problems worse.

Artwork by MagicalKaleidoscope on DeviantArt.

See also the Toxicutter, a CR 4 version of the same monster idea.

This is designed to be minion for some kind of creature that uses poisons or diseases. It doesn’t inflict such effects on its own, but is pretty weak and boring if none of its allies do. If it doesn’t have any allies that can inflict poisons or diseases, its CR decreases by 0.5 to an effective CR of 8.5 (5600 XP).

Toxicutter - CR 9

Hovering in midair, this silver dagger drips with some kind of toxic green liquid. When a drop of the liquid lands on the ground, it fizzes and steams like burning acid.

XP 6,400 N Tiny construct Init +6 Senses darkvision 60 ft., low-light vision; Perception +0

DEFENSE

AC 18, touch 18, flat-footed 12 (+6 Dex, +2 size) hp 75 (10d10+20) Fort +3, Ref +9, Will +3 Defensive Abilities evasion, hardness 14 Immune construct traits

OFFENSE

Speed fly 35 ft. (perfect) Melee dagger +20/+15 (1d4+8/17–20 plus 1d6 acid plus advance toxin plus corrosive burst) Space 2 ½ ft.; Reach 0 ft. Special Attacks advance toxin, corrosive burst, flank anywhere, sneak attack 1d6

STATISTICS

Str 12, Dex 22, Con —, Int —, Wis 11, Cha 1 Base Atk +10; CMB +9; CMD 25 (cannot be tripped) Skills Fly +19, Stealth +15 SQ finesse combat, magic attacks

SPECIAL ABILITIES

Advance Toxin (Su) Once per round, when a deadly toxicutter deals a successful attack, a poison or disease affecting the target immediately progresses as if its frequency had passed, requiring an extra saving throw immediately.  Its duration is an amount of time equal to its frequency.  If the target is affected by more than one poison or disease, only one poison or disease (decided at random) is progressed in this way.

Corrosive Burst (Su) When a toxicutter deals a critical hit, it deals an extra 1d10 acid damage.

Finesse Combat (Ex) A toxicutter uses Dexterity instead of Strength to calculate its attack and damage rolls.

Flank Anywhere (Ex) A deadly toxicutter counts as flanking as long as at least one other creature threatens its target, and provides flanking bonuses to any creature that threatens its target, regardless of positioning. This allows it to use its sneak attack, as usual for flanking.

Magic Attacks (Su) A toxicutter’s melee attacks count as magical, as if being hit by a +2 corrosive burst keen dagger. Its attack includes this +2 enhancement bonus, which also gives it an additional 4 hardness and 20 hit points. These bonuses are already included in its statistics.

[nativeniche]

Navigating Game Genres: Finding Your Niche on Ok Win

In the diverse world of online gaming, players are often presented with an overwhelming array of options. Ok Win is no exception, boasting a vast library that caters to all tastes and preferences. With genres ranging from slots to strategy games, finding the right niche can enhance your gaming experience and increase your enjoyment. In this article, we’ll explore the different game genres available on Ok Win and provide tips on how to discover your ideal gaming style.

1. Understanding Game Genres

Game genres categorize games based on their mechanics, themes, and player interactions. Familiarizing yourself with the main genres can help you make informed choices about what to play. Here are some of the primary genres available on Ok Win:

Slots: Perhaps the most popular genre, slot games feature various themes and mechanics. From classic fruit machines to modern video slots with intricate storylines, slots are easy to play and can offer big payouts.

Table Games: This genre includes traditional casino games like blackjack, roulette, and baccarat. Table games typically require a blend of skill and luck, making them appealing to players who enjoy strategic thinking.

Live Dealer Games: Offering an immersive experience, live dealer games allow players to interact with real dealers in real time. This genre combines the convenience of online gaming with the authentic atmosphere of a physical casino.

Skill Games: These games require players to use strategy, logic, and skill to win. Examples include poker and certain card games, which appeal to players looking for a more challenging experience.

Casual Games: For those seeking light-hearted fun, casual games are perfect. They often feature simple mechanics and shorter play sessions, making them ideal for quick entertainment.

2. Exploring Your Interests

To find your niche on Ok Win, consider what types of games resonate with you. Here are some questions to help you explore your interests:

Do you prefer luck-based or skill-based games? If you enjoy games of chance, slots or live dealer games may be your best bet. However, if you thrive on strategy, table games or skill games might be more appealing.

What themes do you enjoy? Different genres often have distinct themes. If you’re a fan of fantasy, look for games with mythical creatures and epic quests. If you prefer the glitz and glamour of casinos, focus on traditional table games.

How much time do you want to invest? Consider the amount of time you have available for gaming. Casual games are great for short sessions, while more complex table games or skill games may require longer commitments.

3. Trying Out Different Genres

The best way to discover your niche is through exploration. Ok Win allows players to try out various games with ease. Here’s how to make the most of your exploration:

Use the Demo Mode: Many games on Ok Win offer a demo mode that lets you play for free. This feature allows you to try different genres without risking any money, giving you the opportunity to find what you enjoy most.

Participate in Promotions: Keep an eye on promotions that highlight different game genres. Special events may introduce you to new games and offer bonuses that encourage you to try something different.

Join Tournaments: Engaging in tournaments can provide exposure to various game types while adding an element of competition. These events often feature a mix of genres, allowing you to experience new games alongside fellow players.

4. Connecting with the Community

One of the great advantages of Ok Win is its vibrant player community. Engaging with fellow gamers can enhance your understanding of different genres and lead you to new favorites.

Participate in Forums and Discussions: Joining community discussions can provide insights into popular games and hidden gems within different genres. Fellow players can share their experiences, tips, and recommendations.

Follow Social Media Channels: Ok Win’s social media presence often highlights new releases and trending games. Following these channels can keep you informed about exciting titles in various genres.

5. Evaluating Your Experience

As you explore different genres on Ok Win, take time to evaluate your experiences. Reflect on what you enjoyed and what you found less appealing. This evaluation can guide your future gaming choices.

Keep a Gaming Journal: Consider keeping a journal of your gaming experiences, noting what you liked or disliked about each game. This reflection can help you identify patterns in your preferences.

Revisit Favorites: As you discover new genres, don’t forget to revisit your favorite games. Balancing exploration with familiarity can lead to a more satisfying gaming experience.

Conclusion

Navigating game genres on Ok Win opens up a world of possibilities for players seeking their ideal gaming niche. By understanding the various genres, exploring your interests, trying out different games, connecting with the community, and evaluating your experiences, you can enhance your gaming journey. Whether you’re drawn to the thrill of slots, the strategy of table games, or the immersive experience of live dealer games, Ok Win offers a diverse selection to cater to every player. Dive in, explore, and discover your unique gaming style today! Happy gaming!

[book4flight]

Cheap Flights: Your Guide to Affordable Air Travel

In today's world, air travel has become a necessity for both business and leisure, but it doesn't have to be expensive. With the right strategies, you can find cheap flights that fit your budget without sacrificing comfort or convenience. This comprehensive guide will explore various methods, tips, and tools to help you secure affordable flights, ensuring that your next trip is both enjoyable and economical.

1. Start Early: The Importance of Booking in Advance

One of the most reliable ways to find cheap flights is by booking early. Airlines often release their cheapest seats months in advance, and prices tend to increase as the departure date approaches. By planning ahead and purchasing your tickets as soon as your travel dates are set, you can lock in the lowest fares available.

Booking early also gives you the advantage of choosing from a wider selection of flights and seats. If you're flexible with your travel dates, you can compare prices across different days to find the most affordable option. Tools like Google Flights and Skyscanner allow you to monitor fares over time and set alerts for price drops, ensuring you never miss a deal.

2. Be Flexible with Your Travel Dates and Times

Flexibility is key when searching for cheap flights. Airfares can vary significantly depending on the day of the week, time of year, and even the time of day. Generally, mid-week flights, particularly on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, tend to be cheaper than weekend flights. Similarly, flying early in the morning or late at night can often result in lower fares.

Traveling during off-peak seasons, such as late fall or early spring, can also lead to substantial savings. Avoiding major holidays and school vacation periods will not only help you find cheaper flights but also allow you to enjoy a less crowded travel experience.

3. Use Flight Comparison Tools

The internet offers a plethora of tools designed to help you find the cheapest flights. Websites and apps like Kayak, Skyscanner, Momondo, and Google Flights allow you to compare prices across multiple airlines and booking platforms. These tools also provide options to filter results by price, duration, and stops, making it easier to find the best deals.

Another useful feature is the ability to search for flights within a range of dates, which can help you identify the most affordable travel periods. Some comparison tools even offer "Everywhere" searches, allowing you to explore the cheapest destinations from your departure city, perfect for travelers with a flexible itinerary.

4. Consider Budget Airlines

Budget airlines, also known as low-cost carriers, have become increasingly popular for offering no-frills flights at significantly lower prices than traditional airlines. While these carriers may charge extra for services like checked baggage, seat selection, and in-flight meals, the base fare is often unbeatable.

Examples of budget airlines include Southwest Airlines, Ryanair, EasyJet, and AirAsia. When booking with a budget airline, be sure to read the fine print regarding fees and policies to avoid unexpected costs. Packing light and bringing only carry-on luggage can help you save even more when flying with these carriers.

5. Leverage Airline Rewards Programs and Credit Cards

Airline rewards programs and travel credit cards can be powerful tools in your quest for cheap flights. By signing up for frequent flyer programs, you can earn miles or points every time you fly, which can be redeemed for free or discounted flights in the future.

Travel credit cards often come with generous sign-up bonuses, such as free flights or large amounts of points, after meeting a minimum spending requirement. These cards also offer benefits like free checked bags, priority boarding, and travel insurance, adding value to your travel experience. Some cards even allow you to earn points on everyday purchases, helping you accumulate rewards faster.

6. Look for Flight Deals and Promotions

Airlines frequently offer promotions and sales that can lead to substantial savings on flights. These deals are often time-sensitive and may only be available for a limited number of seats, so it's important to act quickly when you spot a bargain.

To stay informed about these deals, sign up for airline newsletters and follow their social media channels. Additionally, websites like Scott's Cheap Flights, Airfarewatchdog, and The Points Guy specialize in finding and sharing the best flight deals, so you can take advantage of discounts and error fares that might otherwise go unnoticed.

7. Opt for Connecting Flights

While direct flights are often more convenient, opting for a flight with one or more connections can sometimes result in significant savings. Connecting flights are generally cheaper than non-stop flights, especially on long-haul routes.

When booking connecting flights, consider using a service like Skiplagged, which specializes in finding hidden city fares. These are flights where you book a ticket to a final destination but get off at a layover city because it’s cheaper than flying directly to that layover city. However, use this method cautiously, as airlines generally frown upon it and it may have some risks.

8. Book One-Way Tickets on Different Airlines

Another strategy to find cheap flights is to book one-way tickets on different airlines instead of a round-trip ticket with the same carrier. This approach, known as "hacker fares," allows you to mix and match flights from different airlines, often resulting in lower overall costs.

For example, you might find that one airline offers the cheapest outbound flight, while another has the best deal for your return journey. Websites like Kayak and Momondo make it easy to search for these hacker fares, helping you put together the most cost-effective itinerary.

9. Consider Alternate Airports

When searching for flights, don’t limit yourself to just one airport. Major cities often have multiple airports, and flying into or out of a smaller or secondary airport can sometimes result in cheaper fares. For example, if you're flying to New York City, consider Newark (EWR) or LaGuardia (LGA) in addition to JFK.

Additionally, nearby cities may have lower-cost flights, and it might be worth driving a little further or taking a train to save money. Use tools like Google Flights or Skyscanner to include nearby airports in your search, giving you a broader range of options.

10. Avoid Extra Fees

Airline fees can quickly add up, turning what seemed like a cheap flight into an expensive one. To keep costs down, be mindful of common fees such as those for checked baggage, seat selection, and in-flight services.

If possible, travel with only a carry-on bag to avoid baggage fees. Many budget airlines offer tiered fare options that include different levels of service, so choose the one that best suits your needs. Additionally, bringing your own snacks and entertainment can help you avoid spending extra money on board.

Conclusion: Making Cheap Flights a Reality

Finding cheap flights is all about being proactive, flexible, and informed. By booking in advance, using flight comparison tools, considering budget airlines, and leveraging rewards programs, you can secure affordable flights that leave more room in your budget for experiences and adventures. Whether you're planning a quick getaway or a long-haul journey, these strategies will help you travel smart and save money, making your next trip both enjoyable and economical.

[gertlushgaming]

The Lamplighters League Review (Steam)

 For this The Lamplighters League Review, we recruit a team of misfits with unique abilities and unforgettable personalities and chase the Banished Court to the ends of the earth in a mix of real-time infiltration, turn-based tactical combat, and a character-driven story of adventure and intrigue.

The Lamplighters League Review Pros:

- Remarkable graphics. - 15.96GB download size. - Steam achievements. - Full controller support. - Graphics settings - quality preset, fullscreen mode, and resolution, frame rate, v-sync, anti-aliasing, bloom, motion blur, depth of field, screen-space reflections, screen space ambient occlusion, lighting, shadows, volumetric lighting, texture, geometry, tessellation, and visual effects quality. - Text size slider. - Strategy adventure gameplay. - Boot-up options - Paradox launcher or the game. - Paradox account integrated. - Three difficulties - the explorer, the adventurer, and the survivor. - Custom game settings - introductory missions, system tutorials, agent loss, meta-game difficulty, combat difficulty, and phenomena difficulty. - Rendered film-like cutscenes. - Tutorial pop-ups as you play. - You can skip the cutscenes. - Can rebind controls. - Out of combat, you have real-time movement. - Group and ungroup characters at will. When grouped everyone will follow you and not be seen by enemy radars but ungrouped will be seen. - In out-of-combat movement characters all have unique personas like thieves can unlock locked doors and others can steal. - Save when you want. - Recon mode lets you explore an area freely with the camera and click on people to find out information. - You can avoid fights by sneaking. - Full 3D game with 360-degree camera control. - Combat is your turn-based strategy affair like an X Com. - You can swap characters on the fly. - Aiming a weapon will show your chances of hitting and missing. - Dots show on the map for Interactive points. - Excellent soundtrack. - Slams can be performed by a bruiser and with this you can take out multiple enemies at once. The drawback is you only get X amount of them per active mission. - It has a really good French spy film vibe to it all. - You can see enemy circles that once entered will make them suspicious of you. - The turn-based button allows you to set up an ambush and then start a fight. - Excellent animations and takedown sequences. - Fog of war is in play so you can't see everything at once. - Find lore and collectibles around the world. - Many ways to finish the mission. - You can use items and healing in and out of combat. - Optional areas will appear and are much harder self-contained sections but they also house better loot. - Environmental hazards play a big part like setting oil on fire, explosive barrels, or even electrifying water. - Tall grass can make you a harder target. - Full cover system in play from partial to full cover. - Scions are stronger enemies and ones that can not always be beaten so you may have to run away! - Enemies can randomly drop loot. - Excellent level design. - High-up shots grant bonuses. - Stress builds and once full that character has a stress break meaning they flee or shoot at other friendlies. - Uses all the usual suspects like poison, bleeding, blindness, etc. - Mortal danger is the state a character goes into on zero health. Another ally has to reach them and stabilize them within three turns or they die. - At game over you can load the latest save, last checkpoint, give up, or load a particular save file. - Playing the game or a section as a pacifist makes it one of the best strategy puzzle games I have played in a while. - Del Vastos Landing is your safe haven where you go in between missions. - The world map is where you choose missions. - Main and optional side missions. - Agents have four types of equipment - armor, accessories, weapon mods, and pocket items. - Earn exp and level up to get skill points to put into a skill tree. Every agent has their own skill tree. - The supplier menu at your safe haven is a shop to tool up. - Before a mission, you can select your team and their equipment, all with a cool plane backdrop. - Honestly feels like a film. - Acolytes are crazy kamikaze style enemies. - I love the banter and interaction between all the characters. - Memorable characters. - Scourge enemies are shock Troopers and use flanking maneuvers. - You can find supplies in missions, they don't take up inventory space or an item slot. - Vaulting is available to everyone. - Every encounter just feels fun to play. - Agents attacks and abilities are all governed by action points (AP) and some attacks can earn you bonus AP. - When it clicks it's almost magical. - If an enemy has the key or objective you need they get marked. - Enforcers are the heavies of the game with automatic weapons and satchel charges. - Pick up special items that can reset cooldowns. - Dripping in style and atmosphere. - Set pieces usually trigger a handy flyover of the area. - The Undrawn Hand mechanic is where each agent has blank cards, as you find/earn experiences in a mission it creates a card and these once equipped change how they fight. - You can discard/break down unwanted cards for ink that is used to power unit cards. - Recruitment missions net you a new agent and they get extra skill points to catch up with the rest of the team. - Sentinel enemies are your snipers. - Just one more go is a strong pull here. - Missions always take 3 agents. - You can send additional agents out on search expeditions. - Gets very addictive. - The group of agents even when a new one comes in, feels like a family. - Intel is needed to send agents out on search expeditions. - The majority of the time you get told what the mission reward is or what you will unlock. - Multiple choice on the mission selects for the one you don't select disappears for a time. - It's the whole atmosphere and vibe the game gives off, it is intoxicating and inviting. - I always wanted to see what's next, what will this new member add to my game. The Lamplighters League Review Cons: - Either a real system hog or badly optimized on PC for my i7 RTX cannot get it running nicely. - To share items you have to drop said item and then the character who wants it picks it up. - The camera goes crazy in some of the action shots. - Had the game get stuck on combat turns and had no way to fix it but quit the game and restarted. - When using an environment like up high all the abilities and movement mess up like not registering properly. - You never feel like you know everything you need to. - Saving and loading isn't as fast as you would like. - The inventory system always feels like it's clunky, not always ideal. - Cannot do any management stuff like reloading guns etc. - After fights, it's always a case of regrouping and if you forget then you have some backtracking to do. - You forget constantly that it doesn't autosave so you end up replaying huge chunks of the mission. - Skill points are shared among the agents. - I don't like how I'm forced to buy all skill tree unlocks so I get access to the next tier in some places. - Enemy locations or alerts are very short. - The difficulty regardless of setup is up and down. - Slow starter with a lot to take in. - It really needs a quick save and a quick load. - No way to speed up the enemy's turn. - You don't see a move order/list. - Have been shot and shot through containers and walls. - Never sure when it has actually been saved. Related Post: The Mortal Kombat 1 Launch Trailer Debuts The Lamplighters League: Official website. Developer: Harebrained Schemes Publisher: Paradox Interactive Store Links - Steam Read the full article

[roserysttrpggarden]

Homebrew Spotlight: The Warden

Hi there~! While you wait for my next entry into homebrew design class for dummies, I wanted to give some spotlight to one of my favorite homebrew designs as of writing: The Warden by Kibblestasty

Based on 4e's class of the same name: The Warden is a class that focuses on locking down targets and tanking

When you don light or medium armor, you can enhance it with mystical defenses, integrating it with manifestations of your Warden Bond (for example, an Elemental Soul may manifest icy plating to reinforce it). When you do so, you can use your Wisdom modifier in place of your Dexterity modifier when calculating your AC with that armor. While you have your armor integrated with your primal power, when you take bludgeoning, piercing, or slashing damage, you can reduce the damage taken by 2. This value increases at 5th level (to 3), 9th level (to 4), and 13th level (to 5), and 17th level (to 6)

First, I love the flavor text at the start mentioning how an elemental soul may manifest this feature, but I also like how it immediately establishes your role as a tank, it helps keep your AC up when you otherwise would be lacking, helps reduce the MAD (Multiple-Ability score dependency) of the class, but also reduces damage taken by a flat amount, similar to a barbarians rage.

Moving on to second level the Warden is granted two features, Primal Interdiction and Endurance Die, the latter allows you to roll a d8, using it to either reducing oncoming damage or adding it to a saving throw, the die and uses increase as you level up. Primal interdiction meanwhile reads as follows

Nature hinders your foes with aspects of your primal power. This effect has a 5 foot radius centered on you, turning the ground within range into difficult terrain for creatures of your choice. Additionally, at the end of your turn, you can choose to recklessly defend your allies within this area at the cost of your own safety, giving attacks against you advantage, and giving attacks against allies within the effect disadvantage if you are also in range of the attack being made (or have been at any point since the start of the attacker's turn) and not behind total cover. The range of this effect increases by 5 feet at 5th level (to 10 feet), and again at 11th level (to 15 feet), and 17th level (to 20 feet).

This feature is what really establishes the warden, not only do you establishing yourself as a battlefield controller but you also gain a defensive version of reckless attack. And I simply love it, at 3rd-level you gain Primal Manifestations, which essentially act like eldritch invocations, either granting you a tiny boon or allowing you to cast a specific spell. You also gain the gardens grasp feature, which lets you grapple a target when you make an opportunity attack. While I recommend you read the whole document, the basic rundown of its remaining class features include:

Your natural weapons overcome resistance to nonmagical attacks and damage

You add your con modifier to damage reduced via an endurance die

You no longer need to eat or drink and are immune to disease

Your Mystic bulwark works on all damage types

You can bring yourself back to 1 hit point when you fall to 0.

You gain a swimming speed or a burrowing speed

And as your capstone, you can essentially warp the area around yourself, causing an effect similar to earthquake or manipulate weather

Got all of that? Good, now lets move onto a basic rundown of the subclasses, also known as your Wardens Bonds

Elemental Souls can create weapons of the elements, such as lightning lashes or a shield of ice, create an elemental maelstrom within their Primal Interdiction, and transform into embodiment's of the elements.

Beasthides can sprout claws, gain bonuses to grappling and athletics checks, cause their claws to crit on 19 or 20, cause concentration on their inate spells to be unbreakable via damage, and transform into a gigantic form.

Elderhearts create lashing vines, redirect damage back to their attackers, turn critical hits against them into normal hits, transform into a treant-like form and sprout trees.

Stonebloods create fists of stone (Duh) that they can augment with different properties, unleash tremors, pull in enemies, gain tremorsense and draw upon the power of the earth itself.

Sunwatchers (My personal favorite at the moment) create blasts of solar energy, use the light cantrip to augment their weapons, create solar flares, teleport in a burst of sunlight, and transform into an embodiment of the sun itself.

And lastly: Ironbounds can use their Mystic Bulwark with heavy armor, gain resistance via Endurance Dice, use chains to bind those that attempt to escape your primal interdiction, morph and adapt sets of heavy armor, and transform into a monolith of iron.

There's not a whole lot to cover in terms of the primal manifestations, but in essence they're little bumps that enhance your endurance die, enhance your weapons and create various walls to impede your foes.

Final Verdict

Overall I really enjoy what kibbles has done with the class, I love its blend of tanky endurance coupled with battlefield control, an archetype not present on martial classes outside of subclasses I also enjoy how it allows you to to use magical abilities, in particular I like how the subclass specific spells allow you to use your Endurance Dice to cast them. I also admitively am a sucker for magical martial classes if you couldn't tell.

If you like what you've read then make sure to check out kibbles other content, and if you feel so abridged make sure to donate to him as well.

That's all I got for today, if you want me to cover any other homebrew classes, subclasses or likewise let me know, links to the warden + Kibbles website is down bellow, stay cool and go make some homebrew.

The Warden

Kibblestasty's website

[tomreview]

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[ajentmm]

August '23 Refine Theorycraft

Wow, this month sees two enemy-phase distant counter calvaries getting their remixes (and a bunch more long over due). These two have some very nice benefits for beating back those that initiate, but all those benefits are in enemy-phase, so their movement is under used. Additionally, their HP/Def/Res are lacking due to them being cavalries, and thus, lower total base stats. Thankfully, IS has being remining this by giving us more calvaries with perfs that give high amounts of in combat stats debuffs to foes and percentage based reduced damage, so I’d imagine their refines will look like those.  

Seliph: Scion of Light 

Lvl. 40 5 ☆ 41/41/17/37/26 Max Invest 49/49/24/45/33 

Virtuous Tyrfing : Grants Res+3. If foe initiates combat or if unit's HP < 100% at start of combat, inflicts Atk/Def-6 on foe during combat, and if unit deals damage to foe during combat, restores 7 HP to unit. (Triggers even if 0 damage is dealt.) 

Ignis – Distant Ferocity - Holy War’s End II - Joint Hone Def 

Holy War’s End II: At the start of combat, if unit's HP ≥ 25%, inflict Atk/Def-5 on foe during combat, unit makes guaranteed follow-up attack, and foe cannot make a follow-up attack, and also, if foe initiates combat, unit attacks twice (does not stack). 

Legendary Seliph was kind of bad at launch. His enemy-phase desperation was cool, but again, he’s a calvary. Plus, that weapon wasn’t doing much. Now, with Holy War’s End II, he’s getting omi-breaker, Atk/Def-5, and the ability to attack twice during enemy phase. He’s now quad attacking after the foe’s first attack. Presumably, the weapon refine will fix the condition for mixed phased usage and make him more tanky to the first hit, so he can hit four times and trigger Ignis on the last hit if necessary.  

Virtuous Tyrfing: Grants Res+3. At start of combat, if foe initiates combat, unit's HP ≤ 99%, or foe’s HP = 100%, inflicts Atk/Def-6 on foe during combat, and if unit deals damage to foe during combat, restores 7 HP to unit. (Triggers even if 0 damage is dealt.) 

Enables [Canto (2)]. If unit or foe initiates combat after moving to a different space, inflicts Atk/Def-X on foe during combat (X = number of spaces from start position to end position of whoever initiated combat × 2, + 4; max 12), and also, if unit's HP ≥ 25% at start of combat, unit’s HP > 1, and foe would reduce unit’s HP to 0, unit survives with 1 HP. (Once per combat. Does not stack with non-Special effects that allow unit to survive with 1 HP if foe's attack would reduce HP to 0.) 

Yep, he’s getting Canto and Miricle. He’s still healing 7 per hit, a potential 28 HP healed, over half his max HP, he just needs to live the first hit. A since Brave Seliph is already using true damage = foe’s Def, I just went with a lot of reduced Atk/Def on foe (23 in total). I would have liked damage reduction based on whether the foe is ranged or not, seeing as Sigurd’s Divine Tyrfing had 50% damage reduction to magic too, but Miricale is already good.  

Freyja: Lady of Nightmare 

Lvl. 40 5 ☆ 40/38/44/24/22 Max Invest 47/45/51/30/28 

Nightmare Horn: Grants Spd+3. Unit can counterattack regardless of foe's range. If unit's Spd > foe's Spd, reduces damage from attacks during combat and from area-of-effect Specials (excluding Røkkr area-of-effect Specials) by percentage = difference between stats × 4 (max 40%). [Calvary Beast] 

Luna – Atk/Spd Solo 4 - Binding Necklace+ - Pulse Smoke 3 / Spd Smoke 4 

Binding Necklace+: Removes the condition to transform. Inflicts Spd/Def-4 on foe during combat. If a skill compares unit's Spd to a foe's or ally's Spd, treats unit's Spd as if granted +7. If foe initiate combat or the number of adjacent allies ≤ 1 grants Atk/Spd/Def/Res+3 to unit and inflicts Atk/Spd/Def/Res-3 on foe during combat, and also, if foe has bonuses, grants bonus to unit's Atk/Spd/Def/Res and inflicts penalty on foe's Atk/Spd/Def/Res during combat=current bonus on each of foe's stats. Calculates each stat bonus independently. 

Freyja, the lady of Nightmare, and goat mama, was a terrifing foe in the story maps where there was 6 or so attacking you in a defense map, but if you actually came prepared for DC, DR, and kept the Bonuses at home, you wil be fine. The unfortunate thing with cavalry beasts was that their transformation bonus was player-phase only, so a perf that has distant counter wouldn't get the benefits on the Atk/Def penalties on foe when countering ranged foes. Freyja’s summer alt ditched the DC for better player phase nuking and it was better for it. Now, there’s a new calvary transformation bonus that’s mixed phased, so long as the initiator moves one space. On top of that, we got Eitr, that gave use an Arcane weapon that has the same effect as Freyja’s Binding Necklace, and a new Beast B-Slot skills that removes the condition to transform, gives phantom Spd, and Dodge of 40%. Huh? So the Binding Necklace part is getting the first two parts of Beast Sense 4, since her weapon already has Dodge of 40%, AND she’s getting Spd Smoke for another Dodge of 40%. Would that mean her weapon would look like this?  

Nightmare Horn: Grants Spd+3. Unit can counterattack regardless of foe's range. If unit's Spd > foe's Spd, reduces damage from attacks during combat and from area-of-effect Specials (excluding Røkkr area-of-effect Specials) by percentage = difference between stats × 4 (max 40%). At start of turn, if unit is adjacent to only beast or dragon allies or is not adjacent to any ally, unit transforms (otherwise, unit reverts). If unit transforms, grants Atk+2 to unit, inflicts Atk/Def-X on foe during combat (X = number of spaces from start position to end position of whoever initiated combat + 3; max 6), and also, if X ≥ 5, reduces damage from foe's first attack by 30% during combat. 

Accelerates Special trigger (cooldown count-1). At start of combat, if unit's HP ≥ 25%, inflicts Spd/Def-X on foe (X = 50% of highest total bonuses + penalties on foes within 3 spaces of target, + 6, Max 22), neutralizes effects that guarantee foe's follow-up attacks, and effects that prevent unit's follow-up attacks. 

Epic. So, I copied pretty much everything from her brother, Freyr, but re-flavored it for her. She has the AS, she has the new cavalry transformation, she get NFU, and she get to inflict Spd/Def penilites on foe, based on how many bonuses and penalties are on the foe, since she is stealing the foe’s bonuses, it’s fine if they have any, and she’s inflicting Spd-7 on foes so that’s another 3. And you know she’s getting a big bonus when fighting L!Robin. I made the Max 22, just because that’s the highest Freyr can get, now that the flood gates of +8 visible stat buffs have been opened.  

Est: Springtime Flier 

Lvl. 40 5 ☆ 39/38/35/17/26 Max Invest 47/46/43/24/33 

Eagle's Egg: Grants Atk+3. If unit is within 2 spaces of an ally, grants Atk/Spd/Def/Res+5 to unit and neutralizes unit's penalties during combat. 

Moonbow – Fury 4 – Chill Atk/Res 2 – Hone Fliers 

Spring Est is . . . a blue tome flier. That’s it. She is immune to penalties so that’s cool, but it’s all she got to work with.  

Eagle's Egg: Grants Atk+3. If unit is within 3 spaces of an ally, grants Atk/Spd/Def/Res+5 to unit, neutralizes unit's penalties, and also, if unit's HP ≥ 25% at start of combat, reduces damage from foe's first attack by 40%. 

If unit initiates combat or if unit is within 2 spaces of an ally, grants Atk/Spd/Def/Res+4 to unit and inflicts Spd/Res - X on foe during combat (X = highest total bonuses active among unit or allies within 2 spaces.), neutralizes effects that prevent unit's follow-up attacks, and also, if unit initiates combat and 2 or more allies are within 2 spaces of unit, unit attacks twice (Does not stack). 

Well, that’s something. I gave Spring! Est a neat effect where she prefers granting bonuses to herself and allies, instead of using Rein skills. These bonuses fuel the Spd/Res pentiles inflicted on the foe akin to a Blade tome. She then gets half-NFU and the cherry on top, in combat Triangle Attack. In a way, she’s going to be identical to Legendary Seliph, just with more prep needed, unfortunately. I will not be surprised if she just granted [Triangle Attack] just like her sister Catria.  

Alright, the rest of the refines are under here with links to past blogs. The only one I would change is Ced, and add more in combat stats to the green part of the refine. And remember, next month, we might getting CYL5 refines, and we are getting Itsuki, the first of the TMS heroes. I did their theorycrafting here and here.

Echidna: Unyielding Idealist 

Heroine Axe Western Axe: Grants Atk/Spd/Def/Res+X to allies within 2 tile radius of unit during combat. If unit is within 2 spaces of an ally or structurers that a foe can destroy, grant Atk/Spd/Def/Res+X to unit during combat. (X = number of allies or structurers that a foe can destroy with 2 tile radius x 2; Max 8) If X ≥ 3, foe cannot make a follow-up attack. 

If unit’s HP > 25%, foes with Range = 1 cannot move through spaces adjacent to unit, and foes with Range = 2 cannot move through spaces within 2 spaces of unit. (Does not affect foes with Pass skills.) At the start of combat, if unit’s HP > 25%, inflicts Atk/Spd/Def-4 on foe during combat and restores 7 HP to unit after combat. 

Mareeta: Sword of Stars 

Mareeta’s Sword: Accelerates Special trigger (cooldown count-1). If unit initiates combat or is not adjacent to an ally, grants Atk/Spd/Def/Res+4 and neutralizes effects that guarantee foe’s follow-up attacks and effects that prevent unit’s follow-up attacks during combat. 

If unit’s HP > 25%, grant Atk/Spd+6, inflict Special cooldown charge -1 on foe per attack during combat, and also, if unit initiates combat and unit’s Spd > foe’s Spd+10, unit attacks twice. 

Ced: Hero on the Wind 

Winds of Silesse: Grants Spd+3. If unit initiates combat or is not adjacent to an ally grants Atk/Spd+6 to unit during combat, neutralize penalties on unit’s Atk/Spd, and inflict Special cooldown -1 on foe per attack. 

At start of turn 1-4, inflicts Atk/Spd -6 and [Gaurd] on foes with the lowest maximum Special cooldown for their next action and inflict Special cooldown count+1 on those foes. (Cannot exceed the foe’s maximum Special cooldown.)

Travant: King of Thracia 

Thracia Kinglance Tyrannical Gungnir: Grants Atk/Spd/Def+5. Inflicts Res-5. At the start of combat, if unit’s HP > 25%, grant unit a guaranteed follow-up attack. 

If unit initiates combat or is not adjacent to an ally, grant Spd/Def +5 to unit and inflict Spd/Def -5 to foe during combat, and also, if unit’s Def+Spd > foe’s Def+Spd, deals damage = 20% of unit’s Def (excluding area-of-effect Specials), and reduces damage from foe’s attacks by 20% of unit’s Def during combat (excluding area-of-effect Specials). 

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Call / Whatsapp: +971 50 912 5616

Website:  https://OGSStechnologies.ae

Office 101, Juma Al Majid Technic Building,

Salah Al Din St., Deira,

Dubai - UAE.

Product Based Group Sales commission Generation software for MLM Industry

MLM Commission Software

MLM Commission Software is a computer program that aids businesses in creating commission settings that are error-free and automates payout for each cycle of commission payments, ensuring accuracy and streamlining the procedure. Additionally, it aids in tracking and computing commissions according to particular compensation schemes and other predetermined parameters used by MLM firms.

Advanced commission processing engine with customizable commission configuration modules

Utilize the OGSS Technologies Commission Software to set up commission calculation rules. For each commission payment cycle, the system automates payout and provides error-free configurations. Maintain your calm and let the system handle the challenging commission computations that follow each requirement.

Configure the compensation structure based on your business rules

Sales-commission analytics

To determine the state of the organization, business administrators can examine the ratio of commission payments to sales. Commission rules may be modified at any time in light of the findings from analytics.

Goal conversions

Discover the company's accomplishments based on distributor production for each commission payment cycle. To assure greater business conversions, new customised goals can be established based on goal conversions.

Commission predictive analytics

Similar to sales-commission analytics, it's critical to base future decisions on company data. By comparing the current commission data with the prior payout cycles, commission predictive analytics offer insights into company predictions.

Distributor commission tracker

Keep track of the business contacts and output that each distributor in your network makes. Give them feedback on their contributions and motivate the underachievers by using our highly suggested engagement tools to make them more proactive.

Rank configurations

Determine the level-based percentage of commissions that will be paid to your distributors. Based on the sales, raise the distributors' ranks and boost the amount of commission they receive to reflect their work.

Configurable commission payouts

Schedule the payment in advance based on the production and establish the commission payout cycle. To quickly select the commission payment date and view prior payments, a special commission calendar is offered.

Sales Commission tracking through a mobile app

Now, it’s easy to track your commission payouts and reports by accessing with your own mobile application anywhere, anytime

With the help of our mobile app, you can now use both large and small screen devices to access the MLM system. Our cross-platform mobile apps provide access to all features and options. Depending on the needs, we provide MLM mobile app services for iOS, Android, and other significant platforms.

Easy setup

Commission alerts

User-friendly navigation

Customizable look and feel

Manage your team anywhere

Quick payout report generation

Track commissions by date and time

Separate login for admin and distributors

Set commissions based on sales, ranks or recruits

Premium features to monitor your sales commission efficiently

A ready-made option for taking use of the OGSS Technologies commission system's premium services

Internationalization tools

Depending on the geo-location, set distinct commission guidelines, bonuses and rewards, rank configurations, etc. Now you can quickly build up country-specific commission setups, which are these configurations set up independently for various nations.

Rank vesting

Depending on their efforts or priorities, sponsors can move distributors up the company rankings. When using this functionality, the commission conditions are not taken into account.

Auto-generated reports

For each payout cycle, commission payments and sales data are generated automatically. Depending on the needs, the report creation feature can be activated daily, weekly, monthly, regularly, or at any other specific time.

Commission Cues

Similar to the distributor performance tracking tool, it's critical to understand which rewards/bonuses indicate greater distributor motivation. Understanding your MLM business will improve if you concentrate on the commission cues.

Aren’t you satisfied with your present commission calculation MLM system?

Are you preparing to switch to a more expensive MLM program that operates more quickly and can help your company grow? We offer full migration services, a premium system without losing your current business data and customizations, so don't worry. What are you still holding out for? Switch to OGSS Technologies software right away.

Talk to our executive now +971 50 912 5616

[cryptosoftindia]

Product Based Group Sales commission Generation software for MLM Industry

For More Details Please Contact

Call / Whatsapp: +91 6385108373

Website: www.cryptosoftindia.com

1/124, DLF IT Park Rd,

Ramapuram, Chennai,

Pincode: 600116

Product Based Group Sales commission Generation software for MLM Industry

MLM Commission Software

MLM Commission Software is a computer program that aids businesses in creating commission settings that are error-free and automates payout for each cycle of commission payments, ensuring accuracy and streamlining the procedure. Additionally, it aids in tracking and computing commissions according to particular compensation schemes and other predetermined parameters used by MLM firms.

Advanced commission processing engine with customizable commission configuration modules

Utilize the Crypto Soft India Commission Software to set up commission calculation rules. For each commission payment cycle, the system automates payout and provides error-free configurations. Maintain your calm and let the system handle the challenging commission computations that follow each requirement.

Configure the compensation structure based on your business rules

Sales-commission analytics

To determine the state of the organization, business administrators can examine the ratio of commission payments to sales. Commission rules may be modified at any time in light of the findings from analytics.

Goal conversions

Discover the company's accomplishments based on distributor production for each commission payment cycle. To assure greater business conversions, new customised goals can be established based on goal conversions.

Commission predictive analytics

Similar to sales-commission analytics, it's critical to base future decisions on company data. By comparing the current commission data with the prior payout cycles, commission predictive analytics offer insights into company predictions.

Distributor commission tracker

Keep track of the business contacts and output that each distributor in your network makes. Give them feedback on their contributions and motivate the underachievers by using our highly suggested engagement tools to make them more proactive.

Rank configurations

Determine the level-based percentage of commissions that will be paid to your distributors. Based on the sales, raise the distributors' ranks and boost the amount of commission they receive to reflect their work.

Configurable commission payouts

Schedule the payment in advance based on the production and establish the commission payout cycle. To quickly select the commission payment date and view prior payments, a special commission calendar is offered.

Sales Commission tracking through a mobile app

Now, it’s easy to track your commission payouts and reports by accessing with your own mobile application anywhere, anytime

With the help of our mobile app, you can now use both large and small screen devices to access the MLM system. Our cross-platform mobile apps provide access to all features and options. Depending on the needs, we provide MLM mobile app services for iOS, Android, and other significant platforms.

Easy setup

Commission alerts

User-friendly navigation

Customizable look and feel

Manage your team anywhere

Quick payout report generation

Track commissions by date and time

Separate login for admin and distributors

Set commissions based on sales, ranks or recruits

Premium features to monitor your sales commission efficiently

A ready-made option for taking use of the Crypto Soft India commission system's premium services

Internationalization tools

Depending on the geo-location, set distinct commission guidelines, bonuses and rewards, rank configurations, etc. Now you can quickly build up country-specific commission setups, which are these configurations set up independently for various nations.

Rank vesting

Depending on their efforts or priorities, sponsors can move distributors up the company rankings. When using this functionality, the commission conditions are not taken into account.

Auto-generated reports

For each payout cycle, commission payments and sales data are generated automatically. Depending on the needs, the report creation feature can be activated daily, weekly, monthly, regularly, or at any other specific time.

Commission Cues

Similar to the distributor performance tracking tool, it's critical to understand which rewards/bonuses indicate greater distributor motivation. Understanding your MLM business will improve if you concentrate on the commission cues.

Aren’t you satisfied with your present commission calculation MLM system?

Are you preparing to switch to a more expensive MLM program that operates more quickly and can help your company grow? We offer full migration services, a premium system without losing your current business data and customizations, so don't worry. What are you still holding out for? Switch to Crypto Soft India software right away.

Talk to our executive now + 91 6385108373

[mlmtamilnadu]

Product Based Group Sales commission Generation software for MLM Industry

For More Details Please Contact

Call / Whatsapp: +91 9840566115

Website: www.mlmsoftwaretamilnadu.in

MLM Software Development Company,

26, 49th Avenue, Ashok nagar,

Tamilnadu – 600083

Product Based Group Sales commission Generation software for MLM Industry

MLM Commission Software

MLM Commission Software is a computer program that aids businesses in creating commission settings that are error-free and automates payout for each cycle of commission payments, ensuring accuracy and streamlining the procedure. Additionally, it aids in tracking and computing commissions according to particular compensation schemes and other predetermined parameters used by MLM firms.

Advanced commission processing engine with customizable commission configuration modules

Utilize the MLM Software Tamilnadu Commission Software to set up commission calculation rules. For each commission payment cycle, the system automates payout and provides error-free configurations. Maintain your calm and let the system handle the challenging commission computations that follow each requirement.

Configure the compensation structure based on your business rules

Sales-commission analytics

To determine the state of the organization, business administrators can examine the ratio of commission payments to sales. Commission rules may be modified at any time in light of the findings from analytics.

Goal conversions

Discover the company's accomplishments based on distributor production for each commission payment cycle. To assure greater business conversions, new customised goals can be established based on goal conversions.

Commission predictive analytics

Similar to sales-commission analytics, it's critical to base future decisions on company data. By comparing the current commission data with the prior payout cycles, commission predictive analytics offer insights into company predictions.

Distributor commission tracker

Keep track of the business contacts and output that each distributor in your network makes. Give them feedback on their contributions and motivate the underachievers by using our highly suggested engagement tools to make them more proactive.

Rank configurations

Determine the level-based percentage of commissions that will be paid to your distributors. Based on the sales, raise the distributors' ranks and boost the amount of commission they receive to reflect their work.

Configurable commission payouts

Schedule the payment in advance based on the production and establish the commission payout cycle. To quickly select the commission payment date and view prior payments, a special commission calendar is offered.

Sales Commission tracking through a mobile app

Now, it’s easy to track your commission payouts and reports by accessing with your own mobile application anywhere, anytime

With the help of our mobile app, you can now use both large and small screen devices to access the MLM system. Our cross-platform mobile apps provide access to all features and options. Depending on the needs, we provide MLM mobile app services for iOS, Android, and other significant platforms.

Easy setup

Commission alerts

User-friendly navigation

Customizable look and feel

Manage your team anywhere

Quick payout report generation

Track commissions by date and time

Separate login for admin and distributors

Set commissions based on sales, ranks or recruits

Premium features to monitor your sales commission efficiently

A ready-made option for taking use of the MLM Software Tamilnadu commission system's premium services

Internationalization tools

Depending on the geo-location, set distinct commission guidelines, bonuses and rewards, rank configurations, etc. Now you can quickly build up country-specific commission setups, which are these configurations set up independently for various nations.

Rank vesting

Depending on their efforts or priorities, sponsors can move distributors up the company rankings. When using this functionality, the commission conditions are not taken into account.

Auto-generated reports

For each payout cycle, commission payments and sales data are generated automatically. Depending on the needs, the report creation feature can be activated daily, weekly, monthly, regularly, or at any other specific time.

Commission Cues

Similar to the distributor performance tracking tool, it's critical to understand which rewards/bonuses indicate greater distributor motivation. Understanding your MLM business will improve if you concentrate on the commission cues.

Aren’t you satisfied with your present commission calculation MLM system?

Are you preparing to switch to a more expensive MLM program that operates more quickly and can help your company grow? We offer full migration services, a premium system without losing your current business data and customizations, so don't worry. What are you still holding out for? Switch to MLM Software Tamilnadu software right away.

Talk to our executive now + 91 9840566115

[pathfinderunlocked]

Bog Hulk - CR 10 Plant

A big mushroomy fella.

Artwork is official art from World of Warcraft, copyright Blizzard Entertainment.

Though relatively non-aggressive, these lumbering behemoths are savagely efficient at dispatching their adversaries when provoked. They are omnivores that feed on other native swamp creatures and their rotting remains.

Bog hulks sometimes form when fungal infestations take over the corpses of giants.  The rotting plant and fungal matter occupy the shape of the giant’s body, and swell up to build even more bulk, growing even more enormous than the original giant.  Perhaps as a result of absorbing and incorporating the remains of the dead giant’s brain matter, or perhaps as a property of the type of fungus that is capable of growing in such a way, they have a limited intelligence; more than most other plant creatures, at least.

Bog Hulk - CR 10

The muddy ground gradually gives way to a pool of stagnant water, in the center of which stands a gigantic fungal creature covered with a thick layer of green algae.  Its humanoid-shaped body seems to be made of a mass of mushrooms and algae.

XP 9,600 N Huge plant Init +2 Senses low-light vision, tremorsense 40 ft.; Perception +9 Aura spore cloud (50 ft.)

DEFENSE

AC 22, touch 10, flat-footed 20 (+2 Dex, +12 natural, -2 size) hp 147 (14d8+84) Fort +14, Ref +6, Will +5 Immune plant traits Weaknesses vulnerable to fire

OFFENSE

Speed 40 ft. Melee 2 slams +16 (2d6+7/19–20 plus grab) Space 15 ft.; Reach 15 ft. Special Attacks bog spray, vine pull

STATISTICS

Str 25, Dex 14, Con 20, Int 4, Wis 12, Cha 7 Base Atk +10; CMB +19 (+25 grapple); CMD 32 Feats Cleave, Improved Critical (slam), Improved Grapple, Power Attack, Skill Focus (Stealth), Toughness, Weapon Focus (slam) Skills Climb +10, Perception +9, Stealth +6 (+12 in swampy areas); Racial Bonuses +6 stealth in swampy areas Languages Giant (can’t speak)

SPECIAL ABILITIES

Bog Spray (Ex) Once every 1d4 rounds, as a standard action, a bog hulk can blast a spray of diseased acidic slime from its mouth in a 20 foot cone, dealing 8d6 acid damage (Reflex DC 22 halves).  Creatures that take any amount of damage from this must then also succeed on a DC 16 Fortitude save, or be afflicted with the Bog Rot disease with an immediate onset.  The Reflex save DC is Constitution-based.

Spore Cloud (Ex) A bog hulk is always surrounded by a barely visible cloud of noxious spores in a 50 ft. radius, which moves with the bog hulk.  A DC 20 perception check is enough to see the exact radius of the cloud of microscopic spores.  All living creatures that end their turn within 50 ft. must make a DC 22 Fortitude save or become sickened for 1d4+1 rounds.  A creature that is already sickened and fails its save becomes overwhelmed for 1 round. The save DC is Constitution-based. This is a disease effect.

An overwhelmed creature is staggered and cannot concentrate.  If an overwhelmed creature attacks or casts a spell, it falls prone and becomes helpless until the beginning of its next turn after doing so.   Effects that would remove or prevent the paralyzed or nauseated conditions also remove or prevent the overwhelmed condition.

Vine Pull (Ex) In place of a melee attack, a bog hulk can extend the vines from its arm up to a 30 foot reach to grapple a creature, pulling the target adjacent to itself if successful (as normal for a successful grapple).  When it successfully moves its target to an adjacent space in this way, the target takes 1d8 points of bludgeoning damage for every 5 feet it moves.

A bog hulk does not threaten this additional reach.  If it uses its vine pull as an attack of opportunity, it can only do so against targets within its normal reach.