#so 50/50 on the is this game potentially good scale...

[quenthel]

man... should i play rouge trader...

[cerastes]

So I haven't unlocked any of my modules for Ebenholz. Is 3rd module the one I should unlock first?

Depends on what you want him to do! All three Modules are good!

The Originium Dice Case is particularly good with S3, as being able to hold an additional charge plus extra damage per charge makes his Ganon Cannon (timing the S3 so he'll have full charges by the time the desired enemy walks into range) significantly stronger, increases his burst damage potential considerably.

The Theory Expositor lets him do cleave damage, hitting enemies around the target for a bit over a third of the damage dealt to the main target. There's application for this with S3 but it's main synergy is S2, as those blasts are already AoE so the damage ramps up very nicely and lets him do a fine work of lane clearing.

The Lineage of Decay turns him into an outright DPS that can also do his intended burst very well. His single target damage against lone targets is immense, and he'll also apply to Necrosis, which is another free 12000 elemental damage (nothing in the game resists it, so it might as well be true damage that cannot be Civilight'd) over the course of 15 seconds in addition to a hefty, decaying Attack% debuff (50%!). If an enemy is under the effect of Necrosis, he'll also just hit them for an extra 30% damage for free, on top of the 30% extra damage for not having other enemies nearby, so it starts scaling into true goofy goober numbers, in addition to the utility Necrosis brings.

Think about what you want out of him, and get the right Module for your needs. If you use Eben a lot, you want to long term get all of them and swap them as you need, but of course, this is very expensive, so prioritize your needs accordingly, and remember that the first rule of burst damage is to be yourself and have fun.

[prettycottonmouthlamia]

So some Ulpianus thoughts as I go through his kit and do some of the math out

-Base statistics wise, he's extremely similar to Hoederer, having slightly more HP in exchange for very slightly less ATK -This of course doesn't matter once he gets stacks of his talent going. At 10 stacks, he'll have the highest HP and ATK of any Crusher in the game (even outpacing Wind Chimes with her Vigor buff) -Regaining 100 HP when hit, and 160 HP when under 50% HP, is actually probably not enough on its own to really keep Ulpianus alive through sustained damage. It is very good against damage over time effects though, with the possible exception of Zaaro's curse which is very funny

-S1 looks pretty okay. It's notable for being a Pull in an entire class who does not have one, and it's a pretty beefy attack scale on an ATK stat that can almost be 2000. I'm not sure this ends up being a viable portion of kit in most situations, especially since his other two skills seem generally better. -S2 looks...interesting. I'm not actually sure this skill is "good", at least in part because of its massive 70 SP cost. This can be reduced significantly (to about 47 SP) through Unchained's PUM-Y module, but 47 seconds is still a long time for what is supposed to be a lane holder. While the skill is up though, it is quite powerful, especially since it increases the healing from his talent to 200/320 per hit, but 3 Block is also really risky on a Crusher. Hoederer's S2 also suffers from this issue. -S3 is just good. A frankly disgustingly high ATK buff on top of a scaling attack buff means that anything he hits in his initial blast is probably capital F Fucked and he'll take advantage of the six second stun to get two more additional hits in, adding in that the range on this skill is long, let's him be proactive in lane holding, and potentially even allows him to hold two lanes at once is bonkers. 17s charge time with PUM-Y btw.

We probably should talk about the hunter buffs btw, because Ulpianus arguably benefits the most out of any Hunter with them.

-Gladiia: On her own, Gladiia provides a 237.02 HP/s Regen buff to Ulpianus thanks to his titanic HP stat, which increases to 279.02 HP/s with his talent stack maxed out. That's just generically hefty as an regen in general, especially since its healing effectiveness cannot be reduced in any way. The 30%...psuedo-Sanctuary (does Sanctuary actually stack with Gladiia's module?) is also rather incredible for him, being a huge HP buff inherently and making his HP gain talent even stronger. -Andreana: 22 ASPD matters the absolute most to Ulpianus thanks to his titanically long attack interval, reducing it from 2.5 seconds to ~2.05 seconds. In addition, Andreana benefits the most from the 600 Max HP Ulpianus can give her thanks to her low base HP. -Skadi: +24% ATK and +20% Max HP on the Abyssal Hunter with the highest ATK and HP of any class in the game. Easy. Honestly maybe we should have seen the Crusher class coming. Worth noting though that the ATK buff is extremely diluted once his skills are up, however. -Specter: 5% extra damage is honestly fairly good for him. On one hand, his ATK stat gets so high it probably isn't super distinguishable from ATK buffs in terms of effect, but during skill, this buff won't get diluted either. -Specter the Unchained: Maybe the biggest partner for Ulpianus outside of Gladiia, because he really wants the extra SP per second she gives, especially for S2.

In total, what does Ulpianus look like with all the Abyssal Hunter buffs?

HP: 10,158 (11,358 with his Talent) ATK: 2,100.56 (2,400.56 with his Talent) HP Regen: 355.53 HP/s (397.53 HP/s with his Talent)

This is just at base too. While the ATK and HP buffs do end up diluted from his own skill buffs, just looking at his stats while his S2 is up:

HP: 14,221.2 (15,421.2 with his Talent) ATK: 4,810.96 (5,110.95 with his Talent) HP Regen: 497.742 HP/s (539.742 HP/s with his Talent)

So...is Ulpianus good? If you're using him in Abyssal Hunters, definitely, and honestly he's disgustingly good looking there. But outside of that remains to be seen. I think his S3 in general is just so strong that there's a very good chance he remains a good, usable operator outside of his niche, just like all the Abyssal Hunters.

[6ad6ro]

my review of each game in UFO 50: BARBUTA - intentionally "hard and obtuse to reflect the era", but imo it works. haven't gotten far but i really appreciate it. BUG HUNTER - kinda hated it at first, but wound up really liking it once i understood the basics. NINPEK - controls great. appreciate the mr goemon inspiration. but sadly way too hard. PAINT CHASE - a fine game. sorta like pacman. MAGIC GARDEN - a really cool take on snake. took a minute to warm up to it tho. give it a chance. MORTOL - what a cool idea! lemmings combined with a platformer. gets hard fast but fine. VELGRESS - inverted downwell? it's neat. super hard but i'm just bad at it lol. PLANET ZOLDATH - an awesome bitesized roguelike. this game is sick, don't skip it. ATTACTICS - i'm too stupid to play this. but also i don't really want to learn. just okay. DEVILITION - seems more interesting than attactics, but i want to play it even less. KICK CLUB - bubble bobble clone, seems amazing at first. but all too quickly turns into tedious bullethell drop puzzles. after world 2 you'll wanna stop playing. too bad. AVIANOS - hard but kickass strategy game. has game customization and difficulty settings! MOONCAT - a big reason to buy ufo 50. weird and great! BUSHIDO BALL - do you like windjammers? this game kicks ass. gets real hard tho. BLOCK KOALA - i've never liked sokoban and i never will. seems fine if you do. CAMOUFLAGE - didn't wanna give it a chance at first, but it seems alright. lil stealth game. CAMPANELLA - it's probably a fine game but i hate playing it. maybe if it had a healthbar? GOLFARIA - amazing idea executed poorly. i wish i liked this more, but it's annoying to play. THE BIG BELL RACE - campanella combined with super off road (or sprint). better than campanella, but that "touch the walls and die" shit makes it way worse than it's inspirations. WARPTANK - seems cool. i def need to spend more time with it. WALDORF'S JOURNEY - good, cute game. hard but small scale, making it very fun. PORGY - an even bigger reason to buy ufo 50. small scale metroidvania. cherried it. ONION DELIVERY - god, what were they thinking? has so much potential but wayyy too hard. CARAMEL CARAMEL - such a good game ruined by a two-hit gameover. booooooo. PARTY HOUSE - this game is just really really good. hard to explain, just try it. HOT FOOT - imagine if super dodgeball had shit controls. why does my player autoswitch? i may never give it another chance… DIVERS - weird swimming rpg. i need to give it more time, but seems ok so far. (skipped over next 5) FIST HELL - a final fight clone? hell yes! but then i realized it was more like playing final fight on hardest setting with a single credit. aka "not fun". another example of a good game mossmouth ruined by making it too hard. (skipped over next 10) PILOT QUEST - tied with porgy for being my fav so far. zelda 1 combined with crafting. but you gain resources even when playing other games. kicks ass, PLAY THIS FIRST. cherried. (skipped mini and max) COMBATANTS - tbh i heard it sucked so i jumped ahead to it. they were right… (yet to play final 4) ??? - awesome but can't talk about it.

i'll update with the rest of the games once i try em.

[bored-trans-orchidsexual]

This post is negative, DNI if you want to defeat someone's opinion

Spoilers as of fantasy high junior year, episode 18.

This episode was really dumb. I don't know if its all the drama heads chomping at the bit to call anyone with a different level of thought a racist or hating children in this fandom, or just the sheer sillyness of this episode itself, but I am *losing interest* in this show. Even Breanna called the energy and moments of this ep the dumbest shit they have ever done on dimension 20, and I'm not just talking about K2. Though don' get me wrong, the K2 stuff was also pretty dumb. Emily looking to justify it "technically all of it is rules as written" no, it's really not. Kristin being able to divine intervention 4 times in one day is not RAW. the Simulacrum being able to do it a 2nd time, *maybe*, it's debatable, but advantage on divine intervention is not a RAW thing, that's a brennan call. Like I don't really care, they can run thier games how they want, just the "It's all RAW" line irks me because it's not, you don't need to pretend it is as a justification, this show prioritizes bits over everything else and that's just how you play. You don't need to pretend you stick to the rules just embrace what you are. Th dragons thing was getting kind of annoying. Just mowing down *so* many dragons, killing lots of what should be powerful monsters, like cool for you but yeah the bad kids can just do anything now. Deploy them in other countries and they can take over governments, ect. The *scale* is so comical now I shudder to think what a hypothetical senior year would even have to be about. I don't mean to come off as a hater or negative nancy, I like this series and this story but there's still so much mystery, so much potential, so much character interaction that could be happening but it just won't. Tumbler keep on loving things like Lucy Frostblade, or wondering how 50% of the people we know feel about how any of this is going down we just will not get to *see* it. I could write fanfiction of this season, fill a damn book with just parents and other students reacting to the crazy shit they are making canon or doing. All with barely a mention of beloved characters like the seven, Ayda, ect. If you are still watching and love it, *great*. I'm happy for you. I'm just not having a good time anymore and wanted to voice it, in case anyone else out there is reading this and agrees, wants to see it said too. No hate, just not personally interested anymore.

[realcleverscience]

Tech Footprints

Just some context (provided by chatgpt):

Here’s a comparison of per-person carbon, water, and energy footprints, organized by footprint size:

Carbon Footprint (per year, per person):

Beef: 3,000 kg CO₂ (for 50 kg of beef)

Airlines: 1,200 kg CO₂ (one long-haul flight)

Gaming: 20-50 kg CO₂

AWS: 10-15 kg CO₂

AI: 2-5 kg CO₂

Water Footprint (per year, per person):

Beef: 770,000 liters (50 kg of beef)

AWS: 150-200 liters

AI: 100-200 liters

Gaming: 50-100 liters

Airlines: Negligible

Energy Footprint (per year, per person):

Airlines: 1,000 kWh (one long-haul flight)

Gaming: 200-250 kWh

AWS: 60-80 kWh

AI: 50-100 kWh

There's a lot of talk about AIs footprint, but I think people should understand that, so far, it's much less than other industries. That said, as society scales up AI, those numbers are going to grow quickly, so I think it's important that we work on how to maximize sustainability and efficiency of these systems.

At the same time, as I wrote about in another post, AI could rapidly expand our economic output for a fraction of the "footprint cost" of trying to expand the population to achieve the same goal. (Put another way: If we replaced 90% of IRS employees with an advanced AI system, one could expect that it'd get a lot more done, a lot faster, and with smaller footprints than the employees who were replaced.)

In terms of producing things and getting stuff done, AI could double our output with only a fractional increase in resource usage. This is extremely ideal.

The problem is that even if AI requires just 1% the resources as a person to do the same thing, as it becomes easier to access AI, it's usage may grow 10,000% (e.g. "hey AI, make me a movie, also some funny pictures, and also examine my x-rays, and also order and make dinner, etc..."). So even with needing just 1% of resources, if it's used 10,000% more, that's ends up being a lot of resources used.

So yes, we need to think about AI - it's footprints, its effects on employment, and a lot more - but let's not lose sight of the context (e.g. compared to other industries) and potential gains (massive growth in goods, services, and scientific advances).

[hetalia-club]

Got Bored And Made An Entire Hetalia Baseball League (HBL)

the league is meant to have fictitious and near impossible goals for regular humans to achieve. They are all scaled beside each other accounting for superhuman strength.

~Canada's Stats~

Canada's batting average: Regular Season: .287 Projected: .291 Career: .313

Running Speed MPH- 13-14 mph Hitting power- 85-90 mph Regular Season Stolen Bases: 40 Career Stolen Bases: 450

Canada would be a solid, well-rounded player who is highly consistent and reliable. He would be known for his ability to contribute both offensively and defensively, maintaining a high level of performance throughout his career. His balanced hitting profile and good plate discipline would make him a key player in any lineup. Though he might not always stand out in terms of flashy plays, his steady and dependable nature would make him a beloved and respected member of the team. Overall, Canada would be considered a very good player, appreciated for his consistent contributions and team-first attitude.

Tsunami Titans- link to their team and positions

Other Players: (will update with link as they are added) America Russia Sweden England Ireland Iceland Canada Denmark Turkey France Scotland Greece Germany Japan Nyo!America Prussia China Nyo!England Spain Austria Italy Norway Romano Finland

Canada's breakdown below >> (Chat GTP helped with this part because I'm not good at describing things or sports talk)((it also made me the lay out above I made the stats and it put them in MLB format for me & calculated batting average because math :/ ))

Considerations for Canada’s Stats:

Character Traits and Personality:

Kind and Reliable: Canada is known for his gentle and reliable nature, suggesting he would be a consistent and dependable player.

Quiet and Overlooked: Often overshadowed, Canada might not always be the star player, but he contributes significantly and reliably.

Balanced Stat Distribution:

Regular Season:

Games Played (GP): 162, indicating he is a regular and dependable player.

At-Bats (AB): 540, showing consistent involvement in the lineup.

Runs (R): 80, reflecting a solid contribution to the team's scoring.

Hits (H): 155, indicating a strong batting average.

Doubles (2B): 25, Triples (3B): 5, Home Runs (HR): 20, showing a balanced hitting profile with some power.

RBI: 70, demonstrating an ability to drive in runs.

Walks (BB): 50, Strikeouts (SO)**: 85, reflecting good plate discipline and contact skills.

Projected:

Slight improvements across the board to reflect continued growth and consistency.

Career:

Games Played (GP): 2000, reflecting a long and productive career.

At-Bats (AB): 6700, showing sustained participation and consistency.

Runs (R): 1050, Hits (H): 2100, Doubles (2B): 340, Triples (3B): 90, Home Runs (HR): 260.

RBI: 1100, indicating a consistent ability to contribute to the team’s offense.

Walks (BB): 650, Strikeouts (SO)**: 1000, showing excellent plate discipline over his career.

Summary:

Regular Season: Canada’s stats reflect his consistent, reliable, and balanced nature, making him a productive player.

Projected: Small improvements in key areas such as hits, runs, and home runs to reflect potential for continued growth.

Career: Cumulative stats that highlight a long, consistent, and productive career, aligning with his reliable and steady character.

Player Analysis: Canada

Consistent and Reliable:

Games Played (GP): Consistently playing a full season (162 games) indicates that Canada is a reliable and durable player. He shows up for his team day in and day out.

At-Bats (AB): With a high number of at-bats (540-550 per season), Canada is regularly featured in the lineup, showcasing his importance to the team.

Balanced Hitter:

Batting Average: With a batting average around .287 to .313, Canada is a consistent hitter who can be relied upon to get on base frequently.

Hits (H): Averaging around 155-160 hits per season, Canada demonstrates the ability to maintain a strong presence at the plate.

Extra-Base Hits: With a balanced distribution of doubles, triples, and home runs, Canada shows versatility and the ability to hit for power as well as contact.

Team Player:

Runs (R) and RBI: Scoring around 80-85 runs and driving in 70-75 RBIs per season, Canada contributes significantly to his team's offensive production, both in scoring and in bringing teammates home.

Walks (BB) and Strikeouts (SO): With a good number of walks and a moderate strikeout rate, Canada shows discipline at the plate, indicating a strong understanding of the strike zone and patience.

Long-term Contributor:

Career Stats: Accumulating over 2000 games, 2100 hits, and 1100 RBIs over his career, Canada would be viewed as a dependable and productive player over the long term.

[pokemon-card-of-the-day]

Pokemon Card of the Day #2954: Hitmontop (Neo Discovery)

The first Hitmontop card seemed to be built much like the early Hitmonlee and Hitmonchan cards were, as a Basic Fighting-type that provided some pretty solid damage. Hitmontop's twist to it all was that everything it did relied on coin flips, which was generally a bad thing. The damage potential was higher, though, so while Basic Pokemon weren't nearly as good by this point as they were earlier in the game, Hitmontop at least had the chance to scale up to try to meet the higher numbers an Evolution-based game provided.

60 HP was nothing special for a Basic Pokemon that wasn't going to evolve. It was also in that in-between spot where something like Steelix or Donphan would just miss a KO at full health but Feraligatr and Magcargo could get there without too much trouble. A Psychic Weakness let Dark Gengar get a KO without even playing around with Sleep flips and also caused issues against the occasional Espeon. The Retreat Cost here, at just 1, was very reasonable for when you wanted to do something like switch back to a Cleffa.

Detect needed a Fighting Energy and a coin flip. If heads, all damage and effects from opponent's attacks were prevented if they would be done to Hitmontop during the opponent's next turn. This could stall if you got lucky, or you could just sit behind a Baby Pokemon and get the same effect without using your attack.

Triple Kick needed 3 Fighting Energy and got 3 coin flips. Each heads got 30 damage. This was an odd attack in that you had a 50% chance to deal 60 or more damage, which was in 2 hit KO range for anything lacking a Resistance or a Metal Energy. You also had a 3/8 chance to just do 30, which was low for the cost, and 1/8 to do nothing at all. The risk was really high here as a result, and yet if Hitmontop got lucky enough it was quite scary.

Hitmontop had a few people try it out right when it came out, as its good moments were quite good indeed. The problem is that you could just have bad coin flip luck and it would be ruined and it wasn't like Hitmontop took hits all that well. It wasn't really worth using in general due to the high variance, yet it was pretty annoying to face for the same reason.

[kieuecaprie]

I wanted to wait until after the Big Run in Splatoon 3 is over before posting my thoughts but I think I'll post them now.

If you want to know my opinion about it and don't really care about reading what is potentially a wall of text, lemme give you the teal deer version:

Big Run is a completely terrible "gamemode" that only causes unnecessary stress upon everyone, casual and hardcore, and also serves to divide the already small pool of Salmon Run players even further. A co-operative gamemode is no place for a hyper-competitive event where the goalposts are completely invisible until the last second.

Now, with that out of the way, lemme write my thoughts on Big Run now that I have played through TWO of them, below the Read More:

The Platonic Ideal of Big Run

Initially, I thought the idea of Big Run is incredibly sound, a two-day event in the same vein as Splatfests where the cities get new decor and background events with new music tracks to listen to and a reason to play Salmon Run for longer than an hour per rotation.

Not only that, you get to play on the PvP maps. That's right! A PvP map gets pulled out of rotation and becomes the staging ground for the Big Run where you go through familiar territory fighting off the Salmonid hordes!

Cool, right? Yeah, it is, but the execution? Absolutely abysmal and it makes me want to break into Nintendo HQ, shake the lead developer by the collar, and get escorted off the premises.

The Botched Execution of Big Run

Let's begin with the obvious: collect enough golden eggs, you achieve a high score. Get a high enough score, get a reward! Simple! There are four tiers: Participant, Bronze (Top 50%), Silver (Top 20%), and Gold (Top 5%).

Okay, so, you just get enough eggs to achieve what you want and you're golden, right? Hahahahahahahaha, not even close mate.

So the cool thing about this is that you never see the numbers, you don't see a goalpost or a checkpoint or anything. You don't even get a single idea of what you're supposed to achieve, you're supposed to play the mode, get a good enough score and pray it's good enough. And if it isn't? Well tough luck, pal, you should've no-lifed HARDER.

See where the problem is? There's no indication that you're even close to achieving a good enough score for your desired bracket and GOD(s) help you if you choose to chase after gold, like I have been TRYING TO DO, because you will drive yourself insane playing the same map over and over and over and over, praying, hoping, pleading with the game to give you a good RNG seed with a GOOD loadout.

Forgot to mention that the loadout for Big Run is not fixed, it's random, with a Grizzco weapon being a rare chance. At the time of writing, it was Grizzco Brella.

And so, I'd like to say that Big Run is a fucking miserable piece of shit gamemode that Nintendo should've thought much more about before deciding they wanted to induce stress on an already small population.

Eggstra Work is looking to be a smaller version of this but I'm hoping that with that addition, that would mean they could retool Big Run into something BETTER than this.

The How-To Improve of Big Run

Of course, I'm not here to completely bitch about Big Run, as much as I want to, I'm here to potentially offer some hopefully reasonable suggestions on how to make Big Run feel like a Splatfest, if Splatfests were a bloodbath of sorts...

Ditch the whole "high score" system entirely.

Implement a community goal of golden eggs collected to do something. (I dunno, maybe some sort of Salmonid repellent?)

Give greater rewards to those who put in a lot of time grinding it out, maybe something a little extra for those at MAX level?

Quadruple the superbonus or at least let us gain money in addition to chunks during Big Run.

Offer more scales during Big Run to give people more reason to keep going and playing because the scale grind is fucking terrible.

If you absolutely MUST have the leaderboard, you have a phone app, use it. I think, in the past, Splatfest power has been tracked and placed on the leaderboards before, so why can't "highest number of eggs collected in a single shift" be given that same prestige? You don't see teams in Splatfests be given a golden Ultra Signal statue for being in the top 5% of squads, do you?

The Conclusion of Big Run

In the end, though, Big Run is a cool idea executed poorly and with rampant connection issues, slowdowns (the timer still moves at a normal pace btw), and just general unfairness, the whole thing is a complete letdown and I'm surprised Nintendo has kept it the way it is despite the issues it has.

[confettibd]

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[ilaiyayaya]

I think professional game players and like, other similar performative, skill based "jobs" are a really good example of why I think the idea of AI taking over every job is kinda ridiculous, like yea it definitely is going to ruin a lot of jobs and that's still obviously bad, but I think the idea of it completely phasing out humans in every regard is really dumb and disregards the entire point of a lot of things. Art is the biggest category of "job" I'm mostly referring to, but definitely not the only one, like, a huge part of the appeal of art isn't just the thing itself that you see/hear/etc. but also the idea that that thing had effort and passion put into it, a lot of arguments against AI I see say that AI could never replicate certain artstyles and visual features of art, like for examples hands being bad, but like, yea it can't now but it almost definitely will be able to physically replicate every aspect of art we see, but that completely ignores an entire other, arguably (I would make the argument, I am making the argument) far more important aspect, the feeling of something, not even just art, just anything, the way it makes you feel, the creator feel, the vibe, the idea behind it. I bring up video game players as a perfect example of this because I saw a tweet earlier today that said something along the lines of "'AI is coming for our jobs' I'd like to see an AI perform the same combo 50 times consecutively in one take" and like, yea even right now an AI could very easily do that, far easier than a human could, but like, do people watch AI do combos like they do for human players? do they get invested in communities centered around large tournaments of AI competitiors? no (I mean, I guess SaltyBet exists, but like, that's kind of an entirely different thing) because while yes they are physically doing the exact same thing, watching human competitors do it has a whole different vibe behind it, those are people, like me, and they have funny wacky thought processes behind the things they do, like me, and also they yell slurs when they lose to a hard counter-pick, like Hbox! Even like, non-art/competitive stuff I think this still applies to, like I always hear people complain about how fast food places like mcdonalds suck to eat at now because they know that they're just ordering at like, a screen or whatever and like, robot food (idk i havent eaten at a mcdonalds in years, woefully underinformed comparison), and like yea, companies don't care about that so those jobs probably will still get mostly phased out eventually on a large scale, but I don't think they'll be completely phased out, and if they do get replaced it may even end up being a short term issue anyways if John McDonkeys loses enough money from doing it.

Also like, the end goal for a lot of AI people is literally just making humans again, like just making AI that's the same as a real human and like, ok so like we have humans again now, what's the point??? You wasted decades, potentially centuries of research and money on something we already have? go out and touch skin bitch god i hate elon musk sorry the demons took hold again

Basically moral of they story is AI is dumb and stupid and lame and dumb and bad, but also I have faith in humanity, even in the average random FUCKING IDIOT YOU YES YOU MINDLESS CONSUMER I SAW YOU PURCHASE THAT NINTENDO GAME YOU FOOL (haha me :)) to no longer care about or support AI stuff significantly enough in the long-term once the novelty wears off for it to actually be nearly as much of an issue as doomer internet people want it to be.

[mountkilimanjaro-blog]

Climbing Mount Kilimanjaro

A free-standing, snow-covered dormant volcano, majestic Kilimanjaro is the highest mountain in Africa.  Located in northeast Tanzania, it can be seen from far into Kenya and Amboseli National Park.

mount kilimanjaro

75,000 mountaineering enthusiasts climb Kilimanjaro every year so it is not the most untouched mountain, nor is it the most arduous.  However, it is certainly a test of one’s endurance, with altitude sickness the main reason for hikers not getting to the summit of Kilimanjaro. Although it has become a very popular challenge and the experience slightly crowded with other climbers, we still highly recommend it for anyone with an interest in mountaineering.

Mt Kilimanjaro is located in North Tanzania next to some of the top safari parks in Africa, so while making an ascent it would be a shame not visit the northern parks and experience the Serengeti, ��Ngorongoro or Tarangire. 

There are hundreds of operators that work on Mount Kilimanjaro but over the years we have decided to work with only 2 companies based on their safety track record, guides and cost. Climbing Kilimanjaro is potentially very dangerous so it's important to be with the right company!

A GUIDE TO CLIMBING KILIMANJARO 

How high is Kilimanjaro? 

Once you have reached the summit, you will be standing 5,895m or 19,340 feet high as Kilimanjaro is the highest free-standing mountain in the world. By comparison, Everest's highest peak is 8,848m above sea level. It is also commonly known as the roof of Africa, as it towers over East Africa, and the whole continent for that matter. It is so big, that if you stand at the bottom, you usually can't really see it... 

Where is Kilimanjaro?  

Kilimanjaro, unless climbed, is actually quite difficult to see in Tanzania. For the best view, hop over to Kenya's Amboseli National Park (if you can handle the crowds) for that iconic Kili backdrop view. If you are lucky, you will spot it on a plane from Nairobi, as it is situated on the Tanzania/Kenya border to the East of Arusha. It is easily accessible once in Tanzania to begin your climb... 

Climbing Mount Kilimanjaro Cost  

There are two choices when beginning to think about climbing Kilimanjaro - whether to go on a fixed departure climb with a group, or to go on a private climb. Per person the fixed departure dates begin at around $2,500 per person. Private climbs vary depending on how many climbers you are, and also which route. If you are a group more than 2, it could even be better value to do a private climb, but please do let us know and we can do the maths for you. We do not choose the cheapest operator, but one we have been working with for 20 years and trust wholly to take the best care of our clients.

The best time to climb Kilimanjaro: Mount Kilimanjaro Weather 

March to end of May is the wet season on Mount Kilimanjaro and not a great time for trekking. The rest of the year is good though with the absolute peak season being similar to the best game viewing from July through to the end of October. Afterall, you want to be in with a chance of catching your summit on a clear day to get an amazing view from the highest point in Africa. 

How long does it take to climb Kilimanjaro 

This does depend on route, but the fastest assent can take 4 nights, though most people take 6-8 nights depending on route

Overall mountaineering fitness required 

Although it is possible to simply trek a route to the pinnacle of Kili without relying on professional climbing equipment, it remains a hard and serious endeavour that requires a level of physical fitness, stamina and a realistic awareness of the potentially damaging effects of high altitudes.  Many tour operators request that clients consult a doctor before attempting to scale the mountain, and have a physical check-up for overall fitness.

Climbing Kilimanjaro | The Routes  

Marangu Route 50% All climbers Used

The Marangu route, also known as the Coca-Cola route, is the oldest, most well established route on Kilimanjaro. One of the easiest route to climb Kilimanjaro. The only route which offers sleeping huts in dormitory style accommodations in lieu of camping. There are 60 bunk beds each at Mandara and Kibo Huts, and 120 bunk beds at Horombo Hut.

Marangu Route: Huts, Success Rate & Itineraries. Distance: The Marangu route is 72 kilometers (45 miles). Location: The route approaches Mount Kilimanjaro from the southeast. The trail itself starts at Marangu gate. Height: The route reaches the summit of Kilimanjaro at the Uhuru peak reaching a height of 5,895 meters (19,341 feet).

Is Marangu route hard? Marangu Route offers a slow, steady climb to each of the daily camps, which has given it the reputation for being an easy trek. Dont underestimate this trail however, as the approach to the final camp can be physically demanding with roughly 1000 meters of vertical gain on that day alone.

Lemosho Route: This is a slightly more relaxed route, allowing 8 days for acclimatisation and with a good balance in the height of the camp sites. The scenery is really beautiful, passing through forests and traverses. The success rate is 88% to Uhuru Peak and 94% to Stella Point.

Machame Route :This is the most popular route, and as such it can get pretty busy. It has overtaken the Marangu Route in terms of popularity, and although it does boast spectacular views to the west of the mountain, we feel like it’s popularity has somewhat stunted it’s quality. 

Northern Circuit : Being a 9 day climb, virtually everyone reaches the summit on the Northern Circuit climb. You can do it in 8, but 9 is a bit more relaxed! It is for mountain lovers and also for those who seek solitude on the mountain – it is a hard thing to come by on Kilimanjaro and so this is a welcome bonus to the Northern Circuit route.

Rongai Route : This is our favourite 6 day route. It begins the ascent up the northern side of the mountain, and is unparalleled in terms of scenery and summit success. There is some flexibility here too, as you can add a day giving you extra time for acclimatisation and increasing the chances of summiting. The success rate for the 7 day route is 74% to Uhuru and 88% to Gilman's Point.

Shira Route : This is an 8 day itinerary which takes you through the unspoilt wilderness of Shira Plateau and around the hilly and beautiful Moir Hut and the Lent Hills, before traversing underneath the Kibo icefields to summit via the Barafu Camp. The Shira Route approaches the summit from the western side, and is for those who want uninterrupted scenery and away from the crowds. The summit success is 86% to Uhuru Peak, and 93% to Stella Point.

Climbing Kilimanjaro | The Phases

First Stage, Tropical Forest 

With most of the old lowland forest now cultivated and settled, the first experience of the mountain environment begins with the dense vegetation of tropical montane forest between 1850m and around 2800m.

Cloud condensation mainly gathers around the forest, so this area is usually damp or drenched with rainfall, creating an intriguing mass of plant life and running rivers between endemic tree species. The area of heath just beyond the tree line also enjoys a relatively misty and damp environment as cloud clings around the density of trees. This is covered with heather and shrubs such as Erica Arborea and Stoebe Kilimandsharica, and a number of dramatic looking Proteas.

Open Moorland 

From around 3,200m a wide expanse of moorland extends beyond the heath and the cloud line, so that here the skies are generally clear, making the sunshine intense during the days and the nights cool and clear.

The climbing incline remains gentle, but thinning oxygen provides less fuel to energise the muscles and can dramatically slow the pace of walking. Hardy endemic species of Giant Groundsels (Senecio) and Lobelia (Deckenii) towering up to 4m high thrive in this moorland zone and give the landscape a strangely primeval atmosphere.

Alpine Desert, Sparse Vegetation 

Even higher, beyond 4,000m, oxygen levels are depleted further as the landscape develops into a more bizarre alpine desert, with sandy loose earth.  Weather conditions are so intense and temperature fluctuations so dramatic that barely any plant species survive other than everlasting flowers, mosses and lichens. Only the odd lichen survives beyond 5000m, after Kibo Huts and beyond the Saddle, where the landscape is predominantly rock and ice fields. Here, climbers experience the final steep push to the summit.

Saddle to Summit 

The easterly routes, Marangu, Mweka, Loitokitok and Rongai all converge west of the saddle near Gillmans Point, between the peaks of Mawenzi and Kibo. Kibos crater is roughly circular with an inner cone extending to 5,800m, (100m lower than the summit at Uhuru Peak).

At the centre an inner crater with walls between 12 and 20 m high contains another concentric minor cone, the centre of which falls away into the 360m span of the ash pit. This is the 120 metre deep central core of the volcano, and casts sulphurous boiling smoke from its depths despite the frozen, snowy outskirts. 

Interesting Facts about Mount Kilimanjaro

Being the tallest mountain in Africa, Kilimanjaro is one of the seven summits in the world.

Composed of three distinct volcanic cones Kibo, Mawenzi and Shira, Mount Kilimanjaro is nothing less than a geographical wonder. 

Kilimanjaro stands on its own. It is the world’s tallest freestanding mountain. Unlikely, most high mountains are part of ranges. 

The origin of the mountain's name is a mystery in itself. Multiple theories were created to explain the origin behind that majestic name. Some suggest that it's a play on words with the word Klima meaning mountain and Jaro means Caverns. 

The oldest person reported to have successfully climbed the mountain is Anne Lorimor, a 89 year old woman. She took the record from Dr. Fred Distelhorst, who was 88 year old when he reached the summit.

The youngest person to climb Kilimanjaro is Coaltan Tanner, who summited at the age of six back in 2018.

Mount Kilimanjaro was first climbed in 1889 by Hans Meyer, a German geologist. After many failed attempts, he finally succeeded in 1889.

[gikairan]

With Alan Wake 2 not getting a physical release to "save money", and a potential lack of physical release for Starfield (we're not sure at this point in time after a deleted support tweet said it wouldnt have one)

I am literally on my hands and knees begging people to care about physical game releases

Physical game releases save you money!! Digital store fronts do not reduce the price of games over time. They never have. They never will. Hate the $70 price point for new generation games? If gaming goes full digital, nothing will ever get cheaper outside of store sales.

Physical game prices drop because they take up actual physical space. And stores that sell them reduce the price to get rid of inventory, to make room for new inventory.

Physical space is not a barrier to digital store fronts, so they do not need to reduce prices. EVER.

Dont believe me? Heres the current price for NBA 2k23 on PS4 on the UK Playstation Store (Ignoring the game is currently free on Playstation Plus as of typing this):

And heres how much it costs to buy NBA 2k22 AND NBA 2k21 on the UK Playstation store:

Theyre the same price. Despite the fact that 22 and 21 are "old" sports titles that are no longer getting updates (because 23 was released)

Right now, a physical copy of NBA 2k23 costs less than £20:

(I cant find physical listings for Brand New copies of the older games. But trust me... its not £59.99)

And sure, this is a game you probably dont care about. But this is also a game where a new version gets released every year, where the physical price crashes every year. And yet the digital store front is still charging Full Price for a version 2 years out of date.

Its not just crappy sports games that fall into this Bad Digital Pricing. Heres a game that came out 6 months ago:

Youre paying almost half to buy a physical version.

How about something critically well received?

And one not on sale:

The list goes on and on and on. And this is me comparing to Game.co.uk. .... Generally considered one of the most expensive places to buy physical video games. If i were to go onto Amazon, TheGameCollection, Hit.co.uk.... i'd probably find all of those games even cheaper.

This isn't even getting into the fact that when you buy a digital game, only you can play it. You cannot give it to a friend. You cannot sell it to a company to get a bit of cash for the next big game. You're stuck with it. Forever.

But what about sales? Steam is 100% digital, and they have Good Sales, right?? Wrong. If you were following Steam sales over a decade ago, you'd see they were a totally different beast to what they are now. Steam Sales a decade ago used to be a 75% discount on AAA games 2-3 years old. Youre lucky to get 50% on something 5+ years old these days. Most things are really only 25-50% discounts. Once Steam had gained a virtual monopoly over the PC game market, they dramatically scaled back the savings on their sales. Sales on the Epic Games Store tend to be more dramatic than Steam sales these days.... because they're doing the same thing Steam did. Offer ridiculous discounts in order to gain market share. Once they have the market share, they will stop offering such good discounts.

Refund rights with digital storefronts are also pretty poor. Here in the UK, if you buy something online... you have 14 days to send it back to where you brought it from if you dont like it. Brought that shiny new game but realised after 5 hours of play during the weekend that you didn't like it? You can just send it back and get a refund. It might be store credit instead of cash, but at least you can do it. Physical stores vary, but you usually get 48 hours to return something. Again, might be to store credit - but you still get your money back in some form. .... With a digital storefront, you only get 2 hours to play the game and decide if you want to keep it. Once you have played more than 2 hours, youre no longer eligible to refund the game.

.... 2 hours isnt a lot of time when you think about it. The FF16 demo is about 2 hours long, and most of it is watching cutscenes with very little gameplay! :D

And none of this is talking about how peoples literal jobs and livelihoods depend on the physical stores they work in. If physical games no longer exist, people will lose their jobs. Or how physical copies preserve games for the future, as digital store fronts on older consoles get sunsetted. And you cant expect a 20+ year old console to occasionally receive security patches so your card data is safe on their digital store fronts. You can always stick a physical version of a game into a console, but there wont always be a storefront to download it from. ...... Or the game could just be pulled. For good. Usually, this is due to licensed music expiring. Or it could be like PT.... where it was pulled, and literally removed from your library so it could never be downloaded again. If you own the physical copy, none of that matters. You can play the game for as long as the copy works.

A digital-only future for AAA gaming is something we need to be actively condemning

Dont buy digital-only consoles. Don't buy a digital game when a physical copy exists. Buy from your local video game store instead of Amazon.

[rinasunny]

Okay, I have some thoughts. So here's my mini-essay.

I never really doubted that Kat would appear in this game. The promo material says there will be 150 VIP bots. Given this, Gravity Rush being more or less a family friendly game and Kat's already existing cameo in Astro's Playroom, it was all but confirmed until recently.

If anything it's 3rd party representation you should worry about since there's not a single hint that non-Sony owned IP will be referenced, at least for now.

Back to Gravity Rush, the only real question regarding Kat is "How much big of a role she will have in Astro Bot?"

The safest bet is that the bot cosplaying her will be there to find and rescue. The other thing being her special item in gatcha and once reunited with it she will perform a special action.

I have a hypothesis that her item will be either Dusty (since he gives Kat her powers in the first place, and will be a great way to reference the plot and the lore of GR) or the Red Apple (which seems more likely as she's holding it on that promo art Marcaeg spotted her on and her interacting with it in 'Playroom').

And then judging by the trailer some VIP bots are going to have plot significance beyond being 'bots in distress', some of them will probably land their powers to the Captain Astro (the franchise protagonist), like Kratos giving his axe. This is where I suggest keeping your expectations low. It's quite evident that VIP bots aren't going to have the equal amount of screentime and plot significance, not that Kat doesn't have potential.

Lastly some thoughts on the game in general. Even though I'm happy for the positive press and recognition the game is getting (the reveal trailer has 1+ million views and 50+ thousands likes; GR1/2 trailers, in comparison, still haven't reached these numbers), but it still feels like Sony under-estimates Astro's potential. I mean they have roughly 3 months to do marketing for this game and so far we only got the reveal trailer, the press telling us that it's good (as if anyone who played and 'Playroom' would doubt it) and updates for the Playroom uh... 3 years after the launch.

If this is not a sign for Sony that Astro Bot should be marketed on a triple-A scale, I don't know what is.

Gravity Rush fan Marcaeg managed to spot a cameo of Kat in the new Astro Bot on PS5!

[mnranger5]

2nd Annual Nitro Fishing Tournament with Aaron, Forrest Lake, 8/13/22

With as tough as fishing has been lately, I expected the same for this tournament. But much to my surprise, Aaron and I caught them pretty good and almost scored a top 10 finish.

I have one main spot on Forrest Lake, and it has been consistently good. With a fairly decent boat draw, Aaron and I got to the spot quickly. And it's a good thing, because 5 other boats pulled up in the area around us, all salivating for us to move.. The name of the game on this spot is slowly dragging soft plastics through the weeds. This spot always holds fish, and usually some decent ones.

We didn't take many pictures throughout the day because we were constantly catching, weighing, and culling up an ouch or two here or there. At times it was pandemonium in the boat. Aaron would catch a fish and be in the middle of weighing it vs. the smallest fish when I'd catch a fish that would also need to be weighed. Keep the biggest, throw the other two back!

Mid morning, I hooked into a good one that fought hard as it buried itself in the weeds. With some added pressure I was able to pull him through the thick milfoil where Aaron netted him at the side of the boat. While we didn't weigh him in the moment, we knew he was easily 3.5lbs, if not larger (spoiler alert: he weighed 3.77lbs).

Much of the day was spent doing math in our heads. If fish A is 3.5, fish b is 2.25, etc, we probably have about 10lbs. As we caught slightly bigger fish, or estimate kept moving north...10.3...10.5....10.9.

Aaron and I discussed moving, but so many people seemed to want our spot, and we were catching fish, so it made any decision to move difficult.

We ended up moving for about 30 minutes, but we came right back. The spot had too many fish, and we knew the area had the potential for bigguns.

We made slight culls a few more times before heading into the scales.

Our final weight was 5 fish for 11.69lbs. Good enough for 14th place out of 50 anglers.

(Note: the score sheet has Dyan's name because she was registered to fish, but Aaron ended up fishing)

[hetalia-club]

Got Bored And Made An Entire Hetalia Baseball League (HBL)

the league is meant to have fictitious and near impossible goals for regular humans to achieve. They are all scaled beside each other accounting for superhuman strength.

~America's Stats~

Batting averages: Regular Season: .300 Projected: .317 Career: .297

Running Speed MPH- 20-25 mph Hitting power- 110-115 mph Regular Season Stolen Bases: 40 Career Stolen Bases: 575

These statistics depict America as a highly productive and powerful player, reflecting his energetic and competitive personality. America would be an outstanding baseball player, excelling in power hitting, run production, and consistency. His leadership qualities and durability would make him a central figure on any team, and his dynamic performance would make him a fan favorite and a feared opponent.

Freedom Fighters - link to their team and positions

Other Players: (will update with link as they are added) America Russia Sweden England Ireland Iceland Canada Denmark Turkey France Scotland Greece Germany Japan Nyo!America Prussia China Nyo!England Spain Austria Italy Norway Romano Finland America's breakdown below >> (Chat GTP helped with this part because I'm not good at describing things or sports talk)((it also made me the lay out above I made the stats and it put them in MLB format for me & calculated batting average because math :/ ))

Considerations for America’s Stats:

Character Traits and Personality:

Energetic and Competitive: America is depicted as highly energetic, competitive, and confident. These traits suggest a player who would likely be very active and a significant contributor on the field.

Leadership and Ambition: His leadership qualities imply a strong and consistent performer, aiming to be the best.

Balanced Stat Distribution:

Regular Season:

Games Played (GP): 162, indicating he plays a full season without many injuries.

At-Bats (AB): 600, suggesting he’s a regular starter.

Runs (R): 120, showing his ability to score frequently.

Hits (H): 180, reflecting a good batting average.

Extra-base Hits (2B, 3B, HR): High numbers in doubles (40), triples (5), and home runs (35), indicating a powerful hitter.

RBI: 100, demonstrating his ability to drive in runs.

Walks (BB) and Strikeouts (SO): 70 BB and 120 SO, showing he has a good eye but also takes risks.

Projected:

Small improvements across the board to reflect growth potential and continued high performance.

More runs, hits, and slightly more home runs to show continued development.

Career:

Games Played (GP): 2000, reflecting a long and successful career.

At-Bats (AB): 7400, showing sustained participation.

Runs (R): 1200, Hits (H): 2200, Doubles (2B): 500, Triples (3B): 50, Home Runs (HR): 350.

RBI: 1100, indicating a significant contributor to the team’s offense over his career.

Walks (BB): 850, Strikeouts (SO): 1400, showing good plate discipline over a long career.

Summary:

Regular Season: America's stats reflect his dynamic and impactful presence, consistent with a high-energy and competitive personality.

Projected: A slight improvement in performance metrics suggests his potential for growth.

Career: His career stats highlight sustained excellence and significant contributions, aligning with his ambitious nature and leadership qualities.

Player Profile: America (Hetalia)

Overall Assessment:

America would be an excellent baseball player, likely one of the best on his team. His stats suggest he is a highly productive, powerful, and consistent performer who excels in multiple aspects of the game.

Key Attributes:

Power Hitter:

With 35 home runs in a regular season and 350 over his career, America would be known for his power at the plate. His ability to hit home runs would make him a valuable asset in driving in runs and changing the course of a game with a single swing.

Run Producer:

Scoring 120 runs and driving in 100 RBIs in a regular season indicate that he is frequently involved in scoring opportunities. His presence in the lineup would mean that he consistently contributes to his team’s offense, both by scoring runs and batting in teammates.

Versatile Hitter:

With 40 doubles and 5 triples in a regular season, America would demonstrate the ability to hit for extra bases regularly, making him a threat to get into scoring position and drive in runs.

Consistent Performer:

A batting average around .300 in the regular season and over his career shows that he is a reliable hitter. His consistency would make him a cornerstone of his team’s batting lineup.

Durable and Dependable:

Playing 162 games in a regular season and accumulating 2000 career games indicate that he is highly durable and dependable, rarely missing games due to injury. This consistency would be a significant asset for any team.

Good Plate Discipline:

With 70 walks and 120 strikeouts in a regular season, America shows a good balance between patience and aggression. He has the eye to take walks but also takes his chances, leading to a relatively high number of strikeouts.

Leadership and Charisma:

Reflecting his personality in Hetalia, America would likely be a leader both on and off the field. His confidence and enthusiasm would make him a natural leader, inspiring and motivating his teammates.