#such as various power distribution stations

[zhejiangleihaoelectric]

[hillbillyoracle]

You Should Get A Radio

I want to convince you to get a radio. It can be a pretty cheap one - you can sometimes thrift them even - just something to listen to the music and shows that are literally streaming completely for free all around you right this very moment.

Libraries get a lot of love - deservedly so. They are such a frugal resource for entertainment and the community at large. I would argue that radio is very similar.

Find New Music

Radio can introduce you to music you never would have run across otherwise. Spotify and the like have a goal of getting you to listen for as long as possible. This incentivizes the alorgithm picking your music recs to stay very safely within your known listening profile. But since a radio station is broadcasting to a large number of people, not you individually, you're more likely to run into music you personally wouldn't have picked but actually enjoy.

Not to mention that if you're in the US at least, you're very likely within range of a public broadcasting station which not only has local and national news, but various music shows as well - World Cafe is a treasure. College radio stations, if you have one nearby by, can be hit or miss, but in general, it is a great way to find local and very niche music you wouldn't hear played anywhere else. If you're in a city, you very likely have a couple of hyperlocal low power FM stations - many who serve communities who don't speak English and who have their own unique music programming. I also enjoy a lot of the adult contemporary and "oldies" stations I can get near me.

The Ads Aren't Targeted

On most stations, you'll hear some ads. Some stations you'll hear more than a few. But none of those ads are based on an ever growing mass of information being collected about you and your listening habits to decide what specific ad you're most likely to actually act on. They're just...an ad. When you turn it off, it can't follow you around until you actually buy it.

Also, if you're listening to local stations, a lot of the ads are for local businesses in your community; places owned by your neighbors and the people you live with. For me, it's been a nice way to be reminded of what places exist in my community since I usually go to my regular haunts and nothing else.

Frugal and Fun

Radios can be pretty cheap. I see them in thrift stores pretty regularly around here and you might be able to try Marketplace for one. Mine was a birthday gift and I paid a little more to upgrade the antena later. Mine uses rechargeable batteries but I think they make ones that are just straight up rechargeable now.

Since I can't control the music, I'm not turning to it to skip through music or pick a different playlist or look up a given artist I want to hear because I just remembered they existed. I'm more present, whether I'm just listening to the show or pairing it with something else (recently it's been knitting or solitaire games).

Similar to the way that libraries can be one way you decrease your reliance on subscription culture, radio is another. Especially for public broadcasting stations, the programming is always changing, there are new shows every week, and there are often ways for you to get involved. It's another form of entertainment that often gets overlooked.

It's Screen Free

Not much to say here. It's just a big plus to me. I'm trying to take more breaks from screens and make the time I do spend on screens less addictive. I like that I can throw on a radio station and listen to a show without ever having to resist the urge to check email or something.

Vital in Emergencies

Have you thought of how you'd get information during an emergency if the internet goes out? Radio is a great option and still regularly saves lives. In the event of emergencies, local radio stations are often some of the very first people to get information on where shelters are being set up, where resoruces are being distributed, and how to stay safe through the course of the event. Depending on the event, emergency managers will actually bring in radio equipment to keep broadcasting going if there's been damage to a tower and even set up temporary/mobile station up to get the word out if there's not a local station they can partner with.

On days when the weather isn't looking so great, I often have the weather band radio turned on so I can get the latest NWS forecasts and hear when a watch is issued - phones usually only get warnings unless you go out of your way to sign up for more. And out where I live, I usually don't even get those since cell signal is spotty.

It's a great investment in your safety that you can also enjoy whenever.

Conclusion

Buy a radio. Especially if you're looking to get away from subscriptions and cut costs. You can own your radio - you can't own Spotify. It's also just something I think everyone should have since it's such a vital resource in emergencies.

ETA: I am a young millinial. I grew up with radio and remember a time before the internet so I'm not saying any of this as if I'm discovering it. It's more I've been not only enjoying it a lot lately but reminded that a lot of people aren't aware of everything it offers so I wanted to share that in case it was news to anyone.

[boatem-probler]

Cthulhu Returns as a Soccer Dad, in... Tokyo Soul!

1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 6 / 7 / 8 / 9 / You Are Here!

Last Time on Tokyo Soul...

"So yeah, these are definitely gonna come out slower from now on." -- Me, a Fool

Yeah I have no excuse. But! With this big batch of episodes down, the finale is so close I can smell it. It smells like something witty I'll think of later.

This report contains mentions of: Blood, Violence, Death, Guns Medical Malpractice, Allusions to Sexual Harassment/Assault

So Let's Get Back To It...

Episode 36 – A NEW FRIEND!!

Sam and Grian are on Taurtis’s computer, looking at his search history. He’s been searching for hair growth formulas.

Doughboy has been cooking parts of himself and distributing them to people.

Grian and Sam convince Taurtis to do several very stupid things on the premise that they can cure hair loss.

Geode is having a yard sale of all the trash he’s collected. And also Taurtis’s school locker.

They go to the train station to pick up another one of Sam’s friends, this time from Canada. He and Suspicious Person (remember Suspicious Person? From way back in episode 1?) walk out of the walkway on fire. The train platform is also on fire. Apparently Sam’s friend, Nick, set the fire.

Sam sent Nick Taurtis’s school uniform in the mail.

Sam apparently met Nick in a My Little Pony chatroom, where Nick said he was 14. The boys express doubt about this, given that Nick has a very full beard.

Grian: “We’ve had worse friends.”

Sam: “We were just talking about sports, right guys?” Grian: “Uh huh, sports! Footballfootballfootballtennishockey. Golf.”

I’m obsessed with the way he says this.

The cashier at the convenience store is Hank Kingofthe Hill except his name is Frank Chill. Just. By the way.

Episode 37 – DRAGON BALL Z!!

They all go over to Geode’s yard sale. He is frolicking around in the trash with a knife. He has a “mask” that is just a severed Dom Clone head. Grian wants to buy Taurtis’s locker. Geode just hands him a whole bunch of raw chicken. Geode doesn’t exactly grasp the concept of “sale”.

Another one of those weird aliens from the special has landed in the soccer field, and he’s brought Minions. Yes, those ones.

The alien guy gives a whole Dramatic Alien Speech to the effect of: he heard about Taurtis defeating that other alien guy in the special, and he would now also like to fight Taurtis.

Grian: “On a completely unrelated note, has anyone got any bullets?”

Basically Grian REALLY hates Minions and would really like the opportunity to actually shoot some in real life.

Anime Alien charges up for a good long while, and then Taurtis One Punches him. Then all the Minions charge, so the boys end up killing most of them too.

Sam: “How did you get this powerful, Taurtis?” Taurtis: “I did a push-up yesterday!”

As is tradition, they take Nick to Get His Class Schedule. Sam tells him there’s a fatality rate to the procedure, which I’m not sure I remember anyone saying before so he may just be fibbing. No one died that Sam saw, anyway.

Oh dear. So, Señor Loro is not wearing a shirt, because Geode is wearing his Christmas sweater. It turns out that Geode did, in fact, steal it from him without his knowledge, and attempts to deny ever having it. Despite this, Geode and Señor Loro both profess to being best friends. Grian is skeptical of the idea that someone would steal their best friend’s clothes and go to school wearing them. Sam argues that Grian has done that before. You may be able to see where this is going.

Anyway, Nick and Señor Loro fight. Unfortunately, someone has stolen all of the schedules.

Also this episode has the “Sam is my dog” blooper at the end.

EPISODE 38 – THE DARK LORD CTHULHU!

Chupa won the lottery for 5 cents, so he’s summoning Cthulhu again with a ritual meant to “gaze into time”. The ritual text is more old memes. Everyone makes Grian read it.

The whole class is transported to a room with blank white walls and a whole lot of bookshelves just kind of floating in various places. Igbar Cthulhu is there.

There’s also someone else who looks like a shadow with rainbow hair. Grian “wants whatever she’s smoking”.

Cthulhu has decided not to destroy humanity, and instead let Sam do it for him. Sam is “the cause of it all”. And also “the root of it all”.

Grian wants to know if he’ll ever get out of here. Cthulhu says it’s possible but not likely but also not really no.

Sam wants to know why they can still hear the school bell inside the weird room they’re in. Cthulhu says it’s a pocket space and they’re technically still in the classroom. Grian thinks this is bullshit and Cthulhu is just Saying Words.

Grian wants to know: “How do I kill Sam?” Cthulhu says: “You can’t.”

Also, the rainbow-hair shadow person is Nyarlathotep, the Crawling Chaos. Sam and Grian start bullying her.

They transport themselves back to the classroom, and Cthulhu and Nyarlathotep come with them, because they want a front row seat to the world’s destruction. Also, Grian is jealous that Sam gets to be a horseman of the apocalypse and he doesn’t.

Sam is now threatening to destroy the universe when his friends are mean to him. Grian tries to call his bluff. There is a very ominous sound of thunder, but nothing else really happens.

Dr. Nurse has apparently gotten tired of Grian bugging him about “learning” all the time, so he’s taking the class on a field trip inside an ambulance. They’re going to see a car crash!

EPISODE 39 – CAR CRASH!

They arrive at the car crash. There is a man covered in blood standing in front of a burning car. He’s actually mostly fine, but the guy he crashed into, on the other hand, appears to have been… decapitated. Death is beautiful, remarks Cthulhu.

Oh, apparently the other guy is not fine, his organs feel squishy. Dr. Nurse gives him CPR. He dies.

Dr. Nurse gets a report of screaming… at Kurokuma’s house. Kurokuma claims he was just listening to Screamo. They can hear the screams. Once again, no one pays any attention to Grian’s protests. He doesn’t protest very much.

Then they all rush off to help Doughboy open a jar of pickles. Grian is pretty ticked off.

They go back to school for lunch. Grian reveals he took something from Cthulhu’s pocket dimension called a “Sleeping Chaos Potion”. He’s contemplating drinking it. Sam, of all people, points out that it’s probably a bad idea to drink something called a Sleeping Chaos Potion, but he still ends up chanting “chug” alongside everyone else.

Grian drinks the potion, and starts taking damage. Cthulhu says he’ll be fine, there will just be some “lingering side effects”. “If you have dreams about the world exploding, let me know.” This surely won’t have consequences! (But really, as far as I’ve been able to glean there aren’t actually any consequences for this within the canon of Tokyo Soul. I, however, can think of plenty of consequences!)

Also I feel like it’s worth noting, it turns out that Geode milking Dom way back however many episodes ago must have been accomplished with some sort of mod, and not by just hitting him and quickly swapping a pre-prepared bucket of milk into Geode’s hotbar as I has assumed, because every time someone hits someone else while holding an empty bucket, said bucket becomes a bucket of milk named “[username of the person who was hit]’s Milk”. I just thought you should all know that, because I am completely baffled by the fact that they chose to do this and then leave the mod on the server instead of doing a much easier classic filmmaking trick, for what was supposed to be a one-off gag. Anyway. I just had to get that off my chest.

Anyway they’re in gym class and Cthulhu wants Sam to kill Invader. He kind of sounds like a dad at his kid’s soccer game, except instead of soccer it’s the destruction of Earth.

Another Anime Alien has landed on the track behind the school. Sam shoots him and he dies.

Okay so I’m now coming back to this after God knows how long and also after a Very Long Day so I am very tired. We will see how this affects the Energy.

Where were we. Ah, right, this was supposed to be Jerry’s gym class. He’s at a bit of a loss. Jerry is one of the most reasonable and responsible people in this show honestly. Like, he’s trying. No One Else in this school is trying.

Students: So, what do we do for gym class now? Jerry: "Uh. Play?"

Also one of the students falls in a hole and everyone else starts badgering them with the milk buckets and the fishing rods that sound like guns. What is with these people and just leaving weird shit on this server that isn’t supposed to be there? It does add to the Atmosphere, I’ll give it that.

Episode 40 – KILL THE MINION!

Professor Geode has claimed all the unused classrooms as His House. Well, specifically his Holiday Home. He also has a Shop. Grian points out that it’s all very clean for Geode. He finds this suspicious.

Geode has an indoor yard. With sheep. And a Minion. The sheep are also robots?

Geode’s plan for today’s class is to dissect the Minion. Also, Google Docs is still trying to autocorrect “Geode” to “God”.

Geode bloodily slices from the Minion: A Watermelon Slice. A Single Rose. The Minion Energy Core (he’ll save this for later). A Bucket Of Milk. Numerous Garbage Bags. A Potion Bottle Of Blood. More Cores. And A Skull. Sam speculates whether the skull means that the Minion ate a human alive, and then simply assumes it does mean that. Geode then kills the Minion.

Grian wonders if Geode has been learning what friendship is. Taurtis looks directly at the sun.

Taurtis: "Do you ever wonder if we’re alone in the universe?" Grian: "NO."

Oh, Jerry has stolen Geode’s TV. Now I know I just said Jerry is one of the more reasonable characters but I fucking love Jerry and Dom’s TV Saga so he can steal as many TVs as he wants.

Sam remembers that Taurtis technically won a spaceship that morning, so they go over to the soccer field and break into it. The ship pranks them with a fake self destruct sequence, and then the boys accidentally take off for Planet Canada.

And then it’s…… the end of the day, but not the end of the episode? But it seems like it’s still the end of the recording session because they’re now making an excuse for why Grian isn’t there and going off to do some whole other plot? And I’ve decided this is too confusing for this late at night so I’m calling it here for now.

Okay I’m back. Let’s see… Taurtis’s hair is growing back in weird patches because he’s been using a suspicious hair growth serum, Grian got left in Canada and Sam blames Taurtis because the spaceship is technically his.

Taurtis: "He’ll be fine, he’s with Nick- oh, God, you’re right." Sam: "He’s screwed, dude!"

Regardless, Sam has decided that he wants to be a superhero too.

They go downstairs, where the house is covered in “totally not stolen” appliances. Like, not just TVs, there’s also ovens, landline phones, refrigerators, an entire streetlight, and Taurtis’s locker. Apparently this was Jerry and Doughboy’s doing.

Dom seems to be dressed up as some superhero I haven’t heard of. Oh, he’s Rorschach from Watchman apparently.

Some sort of robot appears and says it has come for the “bald one”. It’s here to kill Taurtis before he becomes too strong. It was also sent by someone called “The Steampunker”.

Episode 41 – MEETING SUPER HEROES!

Sam and Taurtis tell the robot to shut up while they argue about which one of them should be the sidekick. The robot starts speaking in binary and then attacks Taurtis, who kills it. Sam and Taurtis continue their argument.

Sam says he’s “contacted” some superheroes and takes Taurtis to meet them. Also, Alex Minecraft is just, like, There and walking around. Wait, there’s some Steves too, a weirdly high amount of people just don’t have custom skins on in this recording session apparently.

They meet up with Sam’s superheroes at a coffee shop. There are also two Inconspicuous Bald Men at the coffee shop. Oh also one of the “superheroes” is Old Kurokuma, currently under the name “Kuma the Lion”.

The other superhero is called Captain Radiator or Luke, I assume he’s meant to be a reference to something but I have no idea what. But he’s wearing a yellow hazmat suit.

Sam wants his superhero name to be “The Strongest in All the Universe and the Leader of All”.

Kurokuma is still a creep.

Sam: "Okay, well my superpower, is… that… Taurtis! He- he neeed me. In the time of need."

Sam is also still insisting that he can destroy the universe because Cthulhu said so. Taurtis continues to doubt this.

Sam is given a superhero outfit. It is a rabbit costume.

Taurtis: "How do you defeat people like that? Do you like, jump on their head like Mario?" Sam: "I kill them with cuteness! And this 50-caliber sniper rifle."

Ah, the Inconspicuous Bald Men are holding up the superstore.

Episode 42 – SUPER VILLAINS!

They attempt to enter the superstore from the roof, but Taurtis misses the jump and gets trapped in an alleyway, so they all just agree to meet him at the front of the store.

Captain Radiator takes off his mask and gives everyone in the store radiation poisoning. It is unclear what this actually accomplishes.

Also, The Steampunker has appeared outside the superstore. He’s captured Invader and wants the heroes to meet him in a warehouse at midnight. The heroes just go there immediately.

Then they spend a Good Five Minutes trying to think of a superhero team name.

Captain Radiator tries to give the robots radiation poisoning, but fails, because they’re robots.

Oh also Invader is just kind of dangling above a vat of goo that supposedly will turn her into a robot. She doesn’t seem particularly distressed or anything though.

Taurtis volunteers to take Invader’s place because he thinks being a robot would be cool. Sam thinks this will put Taurtis under the Steampunker’s control, so they should kill him first. The Steampunker says the robot goo won’t work if he’s dead. Sam decides this means he can take the Steampunker’s place after they kill him and then he’ll be the one to control Robot Taurtis. Taurtis says he’d rather be controlled by the Steampunker.

Anyway, I think they eventually decide they want to kill the Steampunker after all, because Taurtis decides he wants to fight on the edge of the goo vat (because it’d be cool)... and the Steampunker punches him into the goo.

Episode 43 – KILL ME!

Taurtis breaks out of the vat and kills the Steampunker (he tried to let Sam kill him, but Sam failed). Then they try to get Invader down, but accidentally drop her into the vat. And it seems like her face is melting off, so Sam et al. run out of the warehouse like cowards.

Cthulhu shows up to tell Sam how proud he is of him for killing more people and melting a girl’s face off. Nyarlathotep gives everyone Mountain Dew. Cthulhu insults Taurtis’s hair, so Taurtis tries to punch him, it doesn’t work, and Cthulhu electrocutes him with a bolt of lightning.

Sam and Taurtis break into someone’s house and sneak out the back door, so Kurokuma doesn’t find out where they live. It doesn’t work, because they forgot they live with three other people who have no idea what the fuck they’re trying to do.

Dom, Jerry, and Doughboy are just living their best TV stealing lives and I support them.

Once AGAIN they are starting a new day in the middle of an episode and it’s really throwing me off my rhythm!!

Anyway. Taurtis has changed out of his One Punch Man outfit, and he’s in the kitchen angrily trying to make breakfast because, according to him, someone sent him a letter saying that if he didn’t make food, he’d be “fired”. I think it’s implied that Sam sent this letter, and that Taurtis knows this, and that Sam knows Taurtis knows this? But who honestly fucking knows with Sam.

Grian walks in! Apparently he’s “just been in orbit for a while”. He’s very confused about why there are so many appliances in the house. He also acquired his own spaceship somehow, and parked it on the roof.

Is it more interesting if the spaceship simply fell out of orbit directly above “Tokyo”/navigated there on its own automatically, implying that there is some supernatural force keeping Grian trapped there, or if Grian decided to go back there himself? Discuss. I could go either way, honestly, although I would like to find a way to have both, ideally.

Oh, apparently the context behind “Taurtis angrily making food or else he’ll be fired” is that it was something CC!Sam decided he wanted to do like right before filming the scene. “And then you can poison my food or something.” The more you know!

Thank God this episode doesn’t end in the middle of anything honestly.

Grian Trauma Count!

Deaths Witnessed:

Anime alien

Lots of minions

He didn’t actually witness the death, but he did see the decapitated body, so, Car Crash Victim Number the First

Car Crash Victim Number the Second

Grian seems pretty sure whoever was in Kurokuma’s basement died

Anime Alien The Second

Minion

Listen he had to get that second spaceship somehow

Injuries Sustained:

Basically anytime the guns come out I assume he gets shot a few times

Traumatic Events:

Subjected to another one of Sam’s shady friends

A somewhat all-powerful evil being tells him that Sam is going to destroy the world, there’s no way out of this town for him, and he can’t even kill Sam about it

Kurokuma

Sleeping Chaos Potion (even if there are no consequences in the canon series, it did still definitely hurt)

Look, he didn’t seem all that shaken up by the Minion Dissection, but I think it should still count

Got left in Canada. Again.

Next Time... Grian Pushes Someone Into A Big Hole

[mi6-cafe]

07.15.24 Mission Report

Unregulated violence erupts around the world as newcomers seek to fill the power vacuum left by the Big Snooze. With some effort, negotiations with the various unions (Henches, Agents, Villains, and Bystanders) proceed. On the plus side, the violence stops as handbooks are distributed and argued over. On the negative side, research into STARFISH also temporarily stops as Stationers get pulled into debates over specific contractual terms. 

(One of the handbooks guarantees hench access to a “radio or other communication device with which to alert superiors,” which naturally incensed anyone born in the 21st century until one intrepid Stationer managed to convey to the newbies that cell phones weren’t actually an option in certain far-flung locations. “Villains only need to establish their own cell tower if hench populations exceed certain limits. Your contract covers calling for help, not Pokemon Go.”)   

(“My remote lair has cell phone coverage,” one quick-thinking individual informs their prospective employees, which sets off a general scramble to improve communications.)  

Although no progress is made on narrowing down STARFISH’s location in Indonesia, a program searching through unlisted Youtube videos identifies what appears to be a relevant video diary: “Cut off a limb, and a starfish regenerates. A starfish doesn’t have to be fast or strong or conventionally attractive or able to write grant proposals: it just has to be the last organism standing. Ahahaha! AHAHAHAHAHA!” 

(“There’s a reason we’re in espionage instead of academia,” one of the more scientifically-minded Stationers notes. “There’s a healthier work-life balance.”)  

Both stations met over 75% of the mission goals last week: way to go! Any incomplete goals can now be moved to a success by reaching out to other Fest participants to complete in your stead or by completing them yourself if that’s easier/more practical. This will count towards completion of the overall goals during the month. There is a new tab in the Mission Tracker to help with organizing incomplete goals!

[honourablejester]

Heart: The City Beneath Character Concept: Gnoll Vermissian Knight

Trying out actual character creation over here. And I really want my train knight, my armoured paladin of a warped subway network that got hooked into a vast, reality-breaking eldritch thing.

Character creation in Heart is pretty easy. Pick your ancestry, which has no direct mechanical impact. Pick your calling and record the core ability from it. Pick your class and record the core ability from it. Pick 1 major and 3 minor abilities from your class. Pick your equipment. Pick two starting story beats from your calling. Fill out the details around the mechanical core, including answering the questions from your ancestry and calling. Voila! So:

Character Sheet: Ahkoura Roselight, Vermissian Knight

Name: Ahkoura Roselight

Ancestry: Gnoll

Class: Vermissian Knight

Calling: Enlightenment

Skills: Discern (Enlightenment), Delve (Vermissian), Endure (Steelbones), Hunt (Phantom Lens)

Domains: Technology (Vermissian), Warren (Tunnel Rat)

Active Story Beats: Gain favour with a faction that can help you learn more about your goal. Find a helpful text.

Equipment: Scrapsword (kill, d6), Magelight Rig (delve, d6).

Resources: Spare Wires & Capacitors (technology, d6).

Trinkets: Small sphere with a southern star map on it (Gnoll). Brass-inlaid tin half-filled with brown, gritty stimulant (Gnoll). Book of handwritten theories and observations (Enlightenment).

Abilities:

Core Ability (Enlightenment): “UNORTHODOX METHODS. You blend together method and madness in pursuit of your goals. Gain the Discern skill. Once per session, before you roll dice to resolve an action, instead state that your result is a 6. You succeed but take stress.”

Core Ability (Vermissian Knight): VERMISSIAN PLATE. Your armour is made up of scavenged, barely-understood technology from the alternate realities inside the Vermissian network. Once per session, when you consume a resource with the Technology or Occult domains by augmenting or repairing your armour, roll the resource’s dice and choose one of the following:

• Remove stress marked against Blood, Mind or Echo equal to the amount rolled.

• Inflict stress on a delve or adversary equal to the amount rolled.

• (D8 resource or higher) Gain access to a skill or domain for the rest of the session.

• (D8 resource or higher) Increase your Blood protection by 1 for the rest of the situation.

Major Abilities (Vermissian Knight):

AETHERIC FIELD. Your armour buzzes with static that makes your hair stand on end; this discharge can keep you safe from the body-warping effects of the Vermissian. Once per session, activate this power. You gain +3 Echo protection until the end of the current situation.

Minor Abilities (Vermissian Knight):

TUNNEL RAT. You have performed the Rite of Suffocation, and know ways of slowing your breathing to survive longer. Gain the Warren domain. You can hold your breath for a very long time, allowing you to stay underwater or in toxic areas for extended periods.

STEELBONES. Your armour bolts onto special implants that absorb harmful energy and distribute it through your body. Gain the Endure skill. You can fall distances of up to 3 storeys without taking damage.

PHANTOM LENS. Various blood, ichors and spittles have been used to treat these lenses, allowing you to see into dimensions other than the material. Gain the Hunt skill. While you wear these lenses, you can track anything – even if it doesn’t leave a tangible trail.

Character Concept:

I wanted the Vermissian Knight:

“The Vermissian is a cursed, centuries-old mass transport network that the people from the City Above built to get from place to place quicker. To power it, they tapped into the wellspring of potential that is the Heart, and damned every single tunnel and station to eternal weirdness. The Vermissian never officially opened. Now, desperate people, fringe historians and heretic cults hide in the infrastructure, using the strange unreality within to further their own ends. Using barely-understood technology and living in the space between worlds, the Vermissian Knights do their level best to understand the parasite reality and protect others they find there. They are in high demand as companions on delves: they have an understanding of the Heart, a good sword arm and a suit of powered armour built from scavenged train materials that helps keep them (and their allies) alive. Knights will inscribe the names of landmarks that they have discovered, or found stable routes to, on their armour – it is as much a research project and an advertisement of their prowess as it is a means of protection. Each knight’s suit is utterly unique, using technology taken from a dozen different places: different gauges of steels, different weights and levels of protection and flexibility and controls that are often inscrutable to anyone but the creator themselves.”

I love them instantly and completely. I’m gonna be a train knight and explore a cursed mass transit system.

And because most of what I want to do with this character is explore a cursed mass transit network, I had two main callings to choose from: Adventure and Enlightenment. Adventure because exploration is half the goal of that calling, and Enlightment because I don’t just want to see things, I want to know how and why they happen. I did go for Enlightenment in the end. I don’t just want to explore the Vermissian as it is now, I want to seek forbidden, dangerous knowledge on how a fuck up this titanic and massive happened. And, possibly … could it be fixed? Or used?

And. With that in mind. Ancestry has no direct mechanical benefit in Heart. But. The gnolls. See, humans are the tinkerers of the setting, they’d have reasons to want to unravel the Vermissian. The aelfir, high elves, the ones who built it, might want to know how they’d botched it. But the gnolls. The gnolls are currently at war with the aelfir and the City Above, Spire. They’re the enemy. And the gnolls come from a techno-occult culture:

“The gnollish empire (and its capital city Al’Marah) is founded on their advanced demonological and mechanical abilities; there are tales of djinn being bound into brass spheres to power uncanny devices. In the confines of the Heart, where the gaps between realities are thin, they can achieve unthought-of results in mechanoccultism – and great machines from ages past thrum and whirr in the hidden depths, just waiting to be found.”

“Al’Marah, the capital city of the southern gnollish desert kingdom, has no state religion. The government there dictates that the souls of all people who die within sight of the central ziggurat of Al’Marah are absorbed into the Source: a coruscating realm of energy from which djinns and ifrits are drawn to power gnollish machinery. They know this to be a scientific fact because specially-shielded teams have braved the depths of the ziggurat, found heaven and reported back on it with first-hand eyewitness accounts.”

The Vermissian was an attempt to run a mass-transit system off occult energy bored from the core of an eldritch extra-planar nascent god/reality seed/parasitic reality/thing. And the gnolls. The gnollish capital city is powered by their heaven. They hooked up their machinery to their afterlife.

Can you imagine a gnoll coming to the Spire, looking at the massive fuck up that was the Vermissian, and just going … How did you all fuck up this badly? This is basic occult power transmission! What did you do, or what did you plug into, that managed to do this?

One of the options for how you, as a gnoll (who are, again, currently at war with the City Above), even wound up in the Heart in the first place is that you are an escaped prisoner of war. And I was thinking. She escaped through the Vermissian. She ran into the weirdness of the tunnels, and no one followed her, and it turns out there are good reasons no one followed her, and she nearly died (or worse than died), and the only reason she’s alive now is that the Vermissian Knights pulled her out of the mess and got her to Derelictus. So she’s washed up in the undercity, very battered, very confused, and maybe she should be thinking about how to continue escaping and get home, but …

What was that? What she saw in there. How do you get that? What has to happen?

And the Knights. The Knights helped her. They pulled her out of there. They looked after her.

And just. The Vermissian. How do you manage to get … What has to happen? What did you plug into? How did you do it so badly?

So she decided to stay. Nascent loyalty. Raw fascination. She decided to become a Vermissian knight, and work her way up the order, and somehow get to a point where she can find the original plans for the system, and figure out what the blue bloody hells went wrong.

She can justify it a bit. If this went so badly wrong here, will the ziggurat back home eventually go wrong too? Her people need to know. Maybe the enemy, the aelfir, just fucked up on a titanic scale, maybe the gnolls won’t ever have to worry about this happening because they’re not incompetent, but … just in case. What if it was something else? Is it just the nature of the Heart? What is the Heart, and how does it compare, technologically, with the Source? Was it a fuck up of method? Did the aelfir do something very silly with their couplings? What happened, and how replicable a mistake was it?

So. Her calling questions: What impossible thing is she hoping to achieve in the City Beneath? What’s the first step on her journey?

She wants to find the original blueprints for the Vermissian network. She wants to find the original insertion point, where the aelfir ‘dug deep into the City Beneath and pierced the Heart Itself, seeking to use its unimaginable energy to bind each station with one another on a mystical level’. She wants to find out what went wrong.

And her first steps there are to ingratiate herself with the Vermissian Knights, to join them, work for them, build up trust within the order. And to search for documentation that could give her hints towards what she seeks. Hence our starting Enlightenment story beats: “Gain favour with a faction that can help you learn more about your goal. Find a helpful text.”

For her Vermissian elective abilities, I kitted her out for exploration and tracking, mostly. I was tempted to give her ‘Black Knight’ to get the Occult domain, which would make sense from her backstory, and if I was actually running her I’d talk with a GM about that.

I also took no abilities that would actually give her any protection, aside from Aetheric Field. I probably should have. I was tempted by the Arcane Rebreather for permanent echo protection, or the obvious Armour Plating or Stalwart. But. I just want her to poke around? No fall damage. Ability to hang around underwater or in toxic locations. Tracking ability. I want her to look for things, not necessarily survive them. And, I mean, Vermissian Knights are fairly tough from a standing start.

So yeah. There’s Ahkoura Roselight. A gnoll Vermissian knight who just really, really wants to know, in exacting detail, how the hell you manage to fuck up this badly. Heh.

[mariacallous]

In the early hours of March 22, Russian forces launched what Ukraine’s energy minister called the “largest attack” on Ukrainian infrastructure in recent times. Numerous critical infrastructure facilities across the country, including the Dnipro Dam, have been hit, and many places are without power or are under rolling blackouts to reduce demand on damaged systems. Additionally, the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant was briefly disconnected from the grid during the strikes, posing a risk of shutdown. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky called the attack a direct “war against ordinary people’s lives.”

Air raid sirens sounded throughout Ukraine early Friday as the Russian military launched massive missile strikes across the country. Ukrainian Energy Minister Herman Halushchenko called the strikes “the most extensive attack on Ukrainian energy infrastructure in recent times,” saying they were aimed at “causing a large-scale breakdown of the nation’s energy system.” Volodymyr Kudrytskyi, the head of Ukraine’s high-voltage transmission operator Ukrenergo, concurred, saying the attack was the largest of its kind since the start of the full-scale war.

According to Halushchenko, power generation facilities as well as transmission and distribution systems in various regions were hit and damaged. Many places are without power.

The city of Kharkiv has been left almost entirely without electricity or running water following Russian strikes on over 15 energy infrastructure targets in the area, reported Governor Oleh Syniehubov.

Russia launched 12 missiles on Zaporizhzhia, said regional Governor Ivan Fedorov. According to preliminary information, at least one person was killed and eight people were injured. Fedorov later reported that two more people are missing. At least seven residential buildings in the area were destroyed and 35 were damaged.

The Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, currently under Russian control, was also on the verge of shutdown. During the attack, the overhead power line connecting the occupied plant to Ukraine’s power grid was disconnected.

Drone and missile strikes also damaged critical infrastructure in Kryvyi Rih, said Mayor Oleksandr Vilkul. The city is implementing emergency shutdown schedules and hospitals and other critical facilities are switching to generator power where possible.

Pro-Kremlin Telegram channels reported a strike on the Dnipro Dam, a hydroelectric power plant. Petro Andryushchenko, an aide to Mariupol’s legitimate mayor, said a Russian missile hit a trolley traveling along the dam. According to him, the vehicle was filled with civilians who were commuting to work.

The Ukrainian energy company Ukrhydroenergo wrote that a fire broke out at the station but that the situation is under control and there is “no threat of breach.”

Ukrhydroenergo’s CEO, Ihor Syrota, told Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty that the Russian military hit the station’s Hydroelectric Power Plant 1 and Hydroelectric Power Plant 2 (HPP-1 and HPP-2). According to him, HPP-2 was severely damaged and may be beyond repair. One of the station’s supports was also hit, and crane beams were broken. “We’ll have to completely restore the machine room and electrical equipment,” Syrota said. “We’ll assess the consequences within the day and take stock of what happened.”

Authorities in Ukraine’s Sumy region have introduced a schedule of emergency blackouts to cope with damage from strikes on energy infrastructure. Russia’s attacks also reportedly damaged critical energy infrastructure in Ukraine’s Vinnytsia, Lviv, Ivano-Frankivsk, Mykolaiv, and Odesa regions.

Khmelnytskyi Mayor Oleksandr Symchyshyn wrote that there were dead and wounded after Russian strikes hit infrastructure facilities and homes in the city. Ukraine’s Internal Affairs Ministry confirmed the deaths of two people in Khmelnytskyi.

Missile debris fell on homes in Ukraine’s Poltava region, and rolling blackouts have been implemented in the area. Local authorities have also introduced blackouts in the Kirovohrad region to reduce the strain on the energy grid.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said that Russia launched over 60 drones and around 90 missiles in the attack. Commenting on the strikes, Zelensky wrote that they were clear evidence of Russia’s intent to harm Ukrainian civilians:

Russia is waging war against ordinary people’s lives. […] Russian missiles don’t have delays like aid packages to our nation do. Shahed [drones] have no indecision like some politicians. It’s important to understand the cost of delays and postponed decisions. Patriot systems should be protecting Kharkiv and Zaporizhzhia; we need air defense systems to protect people, infrastructure, homes, and dams. Our partners know exactly what’s needed. They can certainly provide support. These decisions are necessary. Life must be protected from these Moscow barbarians.

[ccohanlon]

instant pictures

When did sex become subversive again?

It lost its power to shock long ago, even before it slipped uncensored onto the shelves of neighbourhood newstands and video stores and late-night cable TV. A porno’ aesthetic, raw, proletarian, became part of our everyday vernacular, as commoditized and accessible as toilet paper. Despite the muted bleating of conservative politicians and religious folk, most of us didn’t give it a second thought.

And then we did. The digital age enabled us to transcend voyeurism, to generate our own product and share it, while remaining anonymous and remote. Even better, whatever we created could be almost instantly ubiquitous — distributed to everyone, everywhere, any time, forever. Like some weaponised virus, we could unleash it on the same virtual subconscious on which all media feeds and let it become part of a wider cultural pandemic, detected mostly as an insistent, visceral itch.

The discomfort is transient and random, like listening to a radio station tuned at the very edge of its frequency, not specific enough to be objectionable, still somehow there, intruding on our attention, providing a dissonant clamour of provocative and contradictory messages which, at once, disturb and titillate.

In an almost accidental way, I began tracing my personal response to all this with photography over a decade ago. Now, in these early years of the 21st century, porno’ imagery is, to coin a technology term, instant on in almost every medium and whether we like it or not, sex resonates in our subconscious more than ever. My pictures of it are instant in many senses of the word: automatic, ephemeral, unpredictable, disposable.

The images here were shot between 1990 and 2001 on various, cheap,, point-and-shoot Polaroid and Fuji analong instant cameras, using different formats of non-professional film. They were captured live or from a screen or, sometimes, both at once. The image effects, such as they are, were achieved in the camera, not with computer software.

A few of the subjects are acquaintances. Most are complicit strangers, whose intimacy was feigned even before it was filtered through the interlaced lines of a TV and superimposed on fragile emulsion.

These notes were first published in a small, digital monograph, Instant Pictures, in 2003. Later, in 2006, they were used as an introduction to a solo exhibition, 50 Polaroids, at Melbourne Art Rooms, in Port Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.

[Images from the monograph accompanying this text were censored by Tumblr.]

[prachicmi]

Valves Market is Estimated to Witness High Growth

Valves Market is Estimated to Witness High Growth Owing to Rising Constructional and Infrastructure Development Activities The valves market comprises products such as gate valves, globe valves, check valves, butterfly valves, ball valves and pressure regulating valves which are used to control the flow, pressure and direction of fluids. Valves are extensively used in power plants, refineries, oil & gas, water & wastewater and construction activities. These products play a key role in fluid transportation and management which makes them an integral component across various industrial sectors. Rising infrastructure development projects across both developed and developing nations are augmenting the demand for valves. Moreover, growing pipeline networks for oil & gas transportation is also favoring market growth. The Global valves market is estimated to be valued at US$ 83 Mn in 2024 and is expected to exhibit a CAGR of 3.5% over the forecast period 2024 To 2031. Key Takeaways Key players operating in the valves market are Tyson Foods, Inc., JBS S.A., Pilgrim's Pride Corporation, Wens Foodstuff Group Co. Ltd., BRF S.A., Perdue Farms, Sanderson Farms, Baiada Poultry, Bates Turkey Farm, and Amrit Group. The major players are focusing on capacity expansion plans and mergers & acquisitions to gain market share. Rising population and changing diets are expected to fuel the growth of the poultry sector which presents significant opportunities for valve manufacturers. With the growing poultry industry, demand for processing equipment including valves is also projected to rise substantially over the forecast period. The global valves market is estimated to witness growth across key regions such as North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, Latin America, and Middle East & Africa. This can be attributed to surging investments in oil & gas, water & wastewater infrastructure, and industrial development projects worldwide. Emerging economies with high urbanization rates like China and India also offer lucrative prospects for market expansion. Market Drivers The key driver behind the Valves Market Demand is the increasing constructional and infrastructure development activities worldwide. There is huge government focus as well as private investments toward projects such as roadways, railways, metro stations, power generation, water supply, etc. which involves extensive use of valves in various process applications. Further, the rising need for energy and growing focus on rural electrification has boosted investments in power transmission and distribution sector augmenting valves demand.

PEST Analysis

Political: The valves market is regulated by laws pertaining to safety, environmental protection and quality standards. New regulations regarding emissions could impact demand patterns. Economic: Changes in the global and regional economic conditions directly impact spending on industries like oil & gas, energy & power, and water & wastewater management which influences Valves demand. Social: Growing population and urbanization is increasing requirements for water, energy and other infrastructure development which boost the usage of valves. Technological: Advancements in materials and designs of valves are improving efficiency, lowering costs and enabling usage in newer applications. Digitalization is also aiding remote monitoring of industrial valves. The regions concentrating maximum valves market share in terms of Valves Market Size and Trends include North America, Europe and Asia Pacific. North America accounts for a major portion owing to strong presence of end-use industries like oil & gas and significant infrastructure spending. Europe and Asia Pacific are also sizable markets led by Germany, China, India respectively. The fastest growing regional market for valves is expected to be Asia Pacific led by increasing investments in water & wastewater management, power projects and industrial activities in China and India. Rising standards of living and initiatives to improve urban infrastructure will further drive the demand across developing nations in the region.

Get more insights Valves Market

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Ravina Pandya, Content Writer, has a strong foothold in the market research industry. She specializes in writing well-researched articles from different industries, including food and beverages, information and technology, healthcare, chemical and materials, etc. (https://www.linkedin.com/in/ravina-pandya-1a3984191)

[arjunvib]

How does an engine contribute to a car's powertrain?

The powertrain in a vehicle is the system responsible for generating power and delivering it to the wheels to propel the vehicle forward. The operation of a powertrain can vary depending on whether the vehicle is powered by an internal combustion engine (ICE) or an electric motor (in the case of electric vehicles). Here's a general overview of how a powertrain works in both types of vehicles:

Internal Combustion Engine (ICE) Vehicle - Combustion Process: In an ICE vehicle, the powertrain starts with the combustion process in the engine. Fuel (gasoline or diesel) mixes with air in the combustion chamber and is ignited by spark plugs (in gasoline engines) or compression (in diesel engines).

Power Generation: The combustion process generates energy in the form of mechanical power, causing pistons to move up and down within the cylinders of the engine. This motion drives the crankshaft, converting linear motion into rotational motion.

Transmission: The rotational motion from the crankshaft is transmitted to the transmission, which consists of gears that allow the driver to select different ratios (speeds). This enables the engine to operate efficiently across a range of vehicle speeds.

Drivetrain: The transmission sends power to the drivetrain components, including the driveshaft, differential, and axles, which transfer power to the wheels. The differential allows the wheels to rotate at different speeds, enabling smooth turns.

Wheel Movement: The power transmitted through the drivetrain causes the wheels to rotate, propelling the vehicle forward or backward depending on the gear selection and throttle input from the driver.

Electric Vehicle (EV) -

Battery Pack: The primary source of power for the EV, storing electricity in chemical form.Powers the electric motor and provides electricity for all electronic devices within the EV.

Battery Management System (BMS): Monitors battery cell conditions, including voltage, current, temperature, and state of charge (SoC).It protects the battery against overcharging, deep discharging, and overheating and helps balance the charge across cells. Ensures optimal performance and longevity of the battery by regulating its environment.

Inverter: Converts DC from the battery pack into AC to drive the electric motor.Adjusts the frequency and amplitude of the AC output to control the motor’s speed and torque. Critical for translating electrical energy into mechanical energy efficiently.

Onboard Charger: Facilitates the conversion of external AC (from the grid) to DC to charge the battery pack. Integrated within the vehicle, allowing for charging from standard electrical outlets or specialized EV charging stations. Manages charging rate based on battery status to ensure safe and efficient charging.

DC-DC Converter: Steps down the high-voltage DC from the battery pack to the lower-voltage DC needed for the vehicle's auxiliary systems, such as lighting, infotainment, and climate control. Ensures compatibility between the high-voltage battery system and low-voltage electronic components.

Electric Motor: Converts electrical energy into mechanical energy to propel the vehicle. It can be of various types, such as induction motors or permanent magnet synchronous motors, each offering different efficiencies and characteristics. Typically provides instant torque, resulting in rapid acceleration.

Vehicle Control Unit (VCU): The central computer or electronic control unit (ECU) that governs the EV's systems. Processes inputs from the vehicle’s sensors and driver inputs to manage power delivery, regenerative braking, and vehicle dynamics. Ensures optimal performance, energy efficiency, and safety.

Power Distribution Unit (PDU): Manages electrical power distribution from the battery to the EV’s various systems. Ensures that components such as the electric motor, onboard charger, and DC-DC converter receive the power they need to operate efficiently. Protects the vehicle's electrical systems by regulating current flow and preventing electrical faults.

In both ICE vehicles and EVs, the powertrain's components work together to convert energy into motion, enabling the vehicle to move efficiently and effectively. However, the specific technologies and processes involved differ significantly between the two propulsion systems.

[zhejiangleihaoelectric]

[itsadmiralactually]

OF GENERAL DUTIES OF ADMIRALS.

ADMIRAL, (amiral, Fr.) an officer of the first rank and command in the fleet, and who is distinguished by a flag displayed at his main-top-mast-head. Also an officer who superintends the naval forces of a nation, and who is authorized to determine in all maritime causes.

The origin and denomination of this important office, which seems to have been established in most countries that border on the sea, have given rise to a great variety of opinions. Some have borrowed them from the Greek, others from the Arabic, while a third sort, with greater probability, derive both the title and dignity from the Saracens. But since no certain conclusions have been deduced from these elaborate researches, and as it rather appears the province of this work to give the reader an idea of the office and duty of an admiral at sea, than to furnish an historical or chronological detail of the rank and power with which admirals have been invested in different nations, we shall contentedly resign this talk to the ingenious lexicographers, who have so repeatedly entertained us with such critical investigations.

The ADMIRAL,, or commander in chief of a squadron, being frequently invested with a great charge, on which the fate of a nation may depend, ought certainly to be possessed of abilities equal to so important a station, and so extensive a command. His squadron is unavoidably exposed to a variety of perplexing situations in a precarious element. A train of dangerous incidents necessarily arise from those situations. The health, order, and discipline of his people are not less the objects of his consideration, than the condition and qualities of his ships. A sudden change of climate, a rand and infectious air, a scarcity or unwholesomeness of provisions may be as pernicious as the former, as tempestuous weather or dangerous navigation to the latter. A lee-shore, and injudicious engagement with an enemy greatly superior, may be equally fatal to both. He ought to have sufficient experience to anticipate all the probable events that may happen to his squadron during an expedition or cruise, and, by consequence, to provide against them. His skill should be able to counteract the various disasters which his squadron may suffer from different causes. His vigilance and presence of mind are necessary to seize every favourable opportunity that his situation may offer to prosecute his principal design; to extricate himself from any difficulty or distress; to check unfortunate events in the beginning, and retard the progress of any great calamity. He should be endued with resolution and fortitude to animate his officers by force of example, and promote a sense of emulation in those who are under his command, as well to improve any advantage, as to frustrate or defeat the efforts of his ill fortune.

The most essential part of his duty, however, appears to be military conduct. As soon as the squadron under his command shall put to sea, he is to form it into the proper order of battle, called the LINE. In this arrangement his is to make a judicious distribution of strength from the van to the rear, throwing the principal force into the centre, to resist the impression of the enemy's fleet; which might otherwise, at some favourable opportunity, break through his line, and throw the van and rear into confusion.

A competent knowledge of the seas, weather, and reigning winds, of the coast or region where he is stationed, is also requisite, as it will greatly facilitate his plans on the enemy. It will enable him to avoid being improperly embayed, where he might be surprised in a disadvantageous situation; and to judge whether it will be most expedient to attack his adversary, or lie prepared to receive his assault. When his squadron is forced by stress of weather, or otherwise, to take shelter in a road or bay, it will likewise suggest the necessary conduct of keeping a sufficient number of cruisers at sea, to bring him early intelligence, that he may be ready to cut or slip the cables when they shall be too much hurried to weigh their anchors.

As the forming a complete, strong, and uniform line is a very material article in naval war, the admiral ought frequently to arrange the squadron under his command into this order, that the inferior officers may observe to bring their ships, with great dexterity and alertness, into their several stations, and maintain the regularity of the line when they tack, veer, or sail abreast.

When the admiral intends a descent on an enemy's coast, or other attack which may be attended with complicated and unforeseen incidents, his orders should be delivered or drawn up with the greatest accuracy and precision: they should be simple, perspicuous, direct, and comprehensive; they should collect a number of objects into one point of view, and foreseeing the effects of success or defeat, appoint the proper measures to be adopted in either event. History and experience confirm the necessity of this observation, and present us with a variety of disasters that have happened on such occasions, merely by a deficiency in this material article. In the commanding officer, inattention, barrenness of expedient or a circumscribed view of the necessary effects of his enterprize, may be equally pernicious. And general orders ought to be utterly free from pedantry and perplexity, which always betray a false start and confused imagination, besides the probability of producing many fatal consequences.

When an admiral shall conquer in battle, he should endeavour to improve his victory, by pushing the acquired advantages as far as prudence directs; a conduct that merits his attention as much as any in the action! When he shall be defeated, he ought to embrace every opportunity of saving as many of his ships as possible, and endeavour principally to assist those which have been disabled. In short, it is his duty to avail himself of every practicable expedient rather than sink under his misfortune, and suffer himself to become an easy prey to an enemy.

He should be sufficiently acquainted with civil law, to judge with propriety of the proceedings of courts-martial, and to correct the errors, and restrain the abuses which may happen therein by mistake, ignorance, or inattention.

As secret treaties, propositions, or schemes of the enemy, may occasionally be submitted to his inspection, or fall into his possession by capture; and which it might be improper to discover to any person near him, he ought to have a competent knowledge of the modern languages, or at least those of the countries against whom his military operations are directed, to be able to comprehend with facility the full scope and purport of such papers.

He ought to be well versed in geometry, so as to be capable of ordering proper and correct surveys of unknown coasts, roads, or harbours to be made, and to judge of their accuracy, and detect their errors. To ascertain the situation and longitude of different places, he should be also sufficiently skilled in astronomy and the method of taking observations, which indeed is essentially necessary to the profession of a sea-officer, although too much neglected.

By his instructions the admiral is likewise to assist at all councils of war that relate to naval affairs: to visit, as often as convenient, the other ships of his squadron: to enquire particularly into their condition, and observe the men mustered, taking care that no supernumeraries are born on the books. He is directed to acquaint the secretary of the marine with all his proceedings relative to the service; and to attend him, on his return home, with an account of his voyage or expedition, and to deliver a copy of his journal.

Much more might be observed on this occasion. It appears however by the general outline which we have sketched, that the office and duty of an admiral requires greater skill and more comprehensive abilities that is generally supposed necessary to the command of a naval armament. And that he ought to be duly qualified to assist the councils of government, and enter into the enlarged system of protecting his country from an invasion by sea, or of mediating a descent on an enemy's coast; as well as to improve navigation, and open new channels of commerce.

Vice-ADMIRAL, (vice-amiral, Fr.) the officer next in rank and command to the admiral; his flag is displayed at the fore-top-mast-head.

Rear-ADMIRAL, (contre- amiral, lieutenant general des armees navales, Fr.) the officer next in rank and command to the vice-admiral, and who carries his flag at the mizen-top-mast-head.

Source: Naval History and Heritage Command

[the-hidden-writer]

A Piece of True Fiction: Chapter 8

An Alan Wake 2 fic. Spoilers for Alan Wake 2!

Summary: Aleksi Kesä manages to slip out of the spiral and film he was trapped in.

Saga Anderson, caught in the middle of Wake's horror story, finds a man that looks identical to her partner in the middle of the woods. He's lost, confused, and only seems to speak Finnish. Saga has to try and uncover the truth as well as trying to save her family. Where did he come from? How did he get here?

And where's her Casey?

Chapter Summary: Saga braves the basement to find Aleksi. Warnings: description of blood/gore Words: 3,417 AO3 Link: [Here!] [First part] [Previous part] [Next part]

A Piece of True Fiction

Chapter 8: Phantom

The Sheriff’s station is in ruin. There’s no trace of the methodical, organized state she’d last seen it in. Equipment has been smashed. Furniture has been toppled and torn apart. Paper, debris and bloodstains litter the floor. Broken bodies lie pushed up against the walls. It’s a bloodbath and it’s the second Saga has seen today.

A few standing agents are huddled together in the Sheriff’s Office in various states of injury. Estevez hobbles in their direction and Saga follows, politely walking behind her. Saga greets the agents with an awkward little wave.

“Okay,” Estevez begins once she regains her breath. “Plan is that Anderson will head down into the basement with Miller and Young since they’re in the best shape. Take out as many of the Shadow-infested as you can and try and rescue any survivors.”

“Including Casey.” Saga adds.

Estevez nods then turns to the rest of her team. “Keep a special eye out for Anderson’s partner, Agent Alex Casey. If the name hasn’t given it away, there’s a good chance he’s connected to all this. Especially Wake.”

Saga wants to jump to Casey’s defense like the dozens of times she’s had to in the past when his name comes up, to state that it’s just a coincidence, but the words fall away before she’s able to. For the first time, she finds herself doubting something she had vehemently believed to be the truth for years now.

Is it a coincidence?

With the reappearance of Alan Wake and the proven existence of the supernatural, not to mention Casey being written into this horror story as a character just like her, the idea suddenly falls into the realm of possibility. Since she’d caught glimpses of Wake in the Dark Place, clearly time doesn’t work in the same way. Could Casey actually be the man from the books? A figment of Alan Wake’s imagination?

No… he couldn’t be. Saga’s read the books and had taken the time to thoroughly reread them after she first met Casey. While there are definitely some spooky similarities, there are also enough differences to distinguish the two. They aren’t one and the same.

At least Saga hopes that’s the case. If her work-friend-turned-best-friend turns out to be nothing but a fictional character, it would be the last straw in this nightmare.

By the time Saga has pulled herself out of the ocean of existential dread, Estevez has finished briefing the team and has started distributing what remains of supplies, including powerful flashlights, weapons, ammo, and emergency medical items. Saga gratefully takes a selection and stuffs them into her pockets.

Agent Miller is to lead the mission. He’d been the one to make it down, fix the fuse, and make it back alive in the first place. Saga is to be in the middle and be their main shooter, since she’d had the most experience with the Taken. Young is more inexperienced but is also unscathed, so he’ll bring up the rear and provide light and support. It’s a solid makeshift plan.

“I’d say good luck, but… well. Statistics.” says Estevez as they’re about to leave. “Stay safe, agents. I’d better see you up here soon.”

The three of them slowly begin to move through the station in their tiny formation, making it to the stairwell with no issue. The ground level is eerily silent and the many bloodied corpses prove why. The fact that the Taken-killed and killed Taken are indistinguishable chills Saga to her core.

It feels like her heart quickens with each step as they descend into the dark basement. There’s a noticeable drop in temperature, causing Saga to shudder. She’s been on intense cases before, even been injured in the middle of them before, but nothing nearly as personal that has kept her heart rate up quite as much as this one. A thought crosses her mind: is there a limit to the amount of adrenaline a human body can produce? If so, she should really start rationing what she has left.

The basement is just as destroyed as the station above, if not even more so with more corpses and broken FBC equipment littering the hall. Although the trio of flashlights makes it far easier to scan the surroundings, it also reveals the horror not-so-hidden within.

While they don’t encounter any Taken immediately, it soon becomes clear that they aren’t alone. Muffled gunshots resonate through the space and only become louder the deeper they go.

They also start to hear distorted voices.

“T̷̗̲̿h̷̙̤͒̑e̸̱̮̔̓̋r̴͙͉͕͐̽ę̸͘ ̴͎͆̈̈w̶̙͂ȧ̵̰̀s̸̢̆̚ ̴̰̭́̌͝ṫ̶̢̯̟h̵̢̓e̸̗̫̬̕ ̶̪̑̉w̸̖͉̳͆o̷̝̬̪͆̽ȓ̸͈̩̺̂̕d̵͖̰̓͠…!”

“T̴͈̝́h̵̠̀̕e̷̡̟̍ ̴̹̉͐m̷͍̈́a̵̰̱͂s̶͖̩̉t̵̛͇͍e̶͖̾r̴̭̥̀'̵͍͗s̵̻̭̎ ̸̡̘̄c̶̞̓h̴͙̪͑ō̷͇̅s̶̗̅é̴̤͎n̵̹̥̏ ̴͍͂o̸͇̯͒͐n̷̗̕͝e̷̬̔̈́!̴̦̈́͌ͅ”

With someone else to hold a flashlight, Saga is able to bring the pair down quickly and efficiently, although not without close calls.

After checking and clearing every room in the basement (and finding nobody alive) they reach the large set of double doors that lead to the morgue. Based on volume, they are in very close proximity to the shots being fired- with the source most likely being just on the other side.

The three of them share a glance, a silent question of ‘Are we doing this?’, before Miller throws open the door.

There are half a dozen Taken on the other side, pushing over each other to get through a doorway further ahead.

A foreign shout. "Kuolkaa jo, saatana!"

The queue of Taken are pushed back by a spray of bullets, sending one of them to the ground.

The words leave Saga’s mouth without thinking. “That’s him!”

From her shout, she accidentally draws the attention of three of the five remaining Taken. In the fraction of a second before either party makes a move, Saga is reminded of many horror movies she’s seen where the team of good guys faces a horde of zombies, maybe with an upbeat song in the background. At least those movie zombies didn’t cross the distance to the heroes in the blink of an eye.

“T̸͖͝h̵̘͛e̸͇͐ ̴͍̽r̵̭̓i̸̪̚t̷̙̚ú̴̯à̸̞l̸̖͌ ̶̗͌t̴̥̊o̶͜͝ ̸̭̓l̵͇̈́e̴͚̿a̴̱̾d̷͇̈ ̷̰̒ẙ̷̨ó̷͔ṷ̵̾ ̸̲̏ò̸̱n̷͈͑-!”

The Taken that rushes toward them takes a swing at Miller, who Saga manages to pull back at the last second. With three flashlights combined, it’s weakened easily, allowing Saga to unload a round and bring it down.

“Paula…” Saga hears Young murmur behind her. All these Taken are dressed in FBC uniform. She can’t imagine what it must feel like to have to fight a possessed friend. The very thought makes her heart ache.

Fuck the Dark Presence.

Saga elbows Young sharply, though not unkindly, as more Taken move in to attack. “Stay alert, I’m sorry but she’s already dead.”

It’s the only mindset that lets her keep fighting. The moment a person becomes Taken, all that’s left of them is the Dark Presence. Anything they say is just a poor imitation of the life they lived. The Dark Presence killed all the cultists, residents, and FBC agents. It had been the one to kill Thorton and Mulligan, not her. She’s already killed so many Taken, if she thinks any other way then the burden will be too much to bear and she can’t let that happen when she’s trying to save her daughter.

They’re too far gone. She has to think practically if she’s to survive the story.

Removing doubt from her mind, the three of them take out the other four Taken, one by one. The fifth makes it into another room, but if the gunshots are any indication, is soon felled too. 

Miller starts to maneuver their formation around the bodies and toward the doorway, calling out: “It’s Miller, hold your fire!”

The shooter doesn’t listen, firing warning shots through the door and preventing their team from moving closer.

Miller turns to Saga. “The fuse box is in there but I swear this zone was empty when I went down.”

Saga nods, although her mind is elsewhere. She decides to call out herself.

“Aleksi! It’s me!”

The barrage of gunshots finally ceases and there’s a hoarse, hesitant response. “Saga?”

Relief floods through Saga’s system. That’s him, that’s Kesä’s way of pronouncing her name, that’s his non-distorted voice. He’s okay.

“I’m coming in!”

Cautiously overtaking Miller, Saga enters the room, blindly trusting that the man won’t shoot. The first thing she’s faced with in the room is a sea of blood and bullets adorning the morgue’s tiled floor, along with islands in the form of mangled corpses. 

As her gaze trails upward to see more of the wrecked space, she spots the gun pointed at her from the edge of a countertop and the shock of dirty-blond hair peeking out behind it.

Swallowing down her nausea while wading through the pool of gore, Saga approaches what she now realizes is a makeshift barricade made of chairs, boxes, and whatever else could be scrounged together in this place. 

“Aleksi?” she tries again, softly.

It takes a moment before Kesä starts to rise from behind his barricade, though without lowering the pistol in his hands. Saga notices that there’s a selection of various weapons on the countertop, as well as sets of ammo that all look like they’d belonged to the FBC agents. The previously-unarmed Kesä must have used whatever he could find to defend himself.

Once he’s fully stood up, Saga takes a good look at him. She checks for bloodstains, which she thankfully doesn’t find. That being said, he looks far from fine. His pale skin is slick with sweat and his wide, unblinking eyes shimmer with unshed tears. One hand clings to the fabric of his shirt over his chest, despite no visible injury that Saga can see. The other hand shakily holds the pistol in her direction, refusing to lower it even as they make eye contact. 

She watches his shoulders heave as his own fingers claw into his chest. A panic attack, maybe?

Behind her, she notices agents Miller and Young make their way into the room. Aleksi’s shooting arms swings in their direction and he curses under his breath.

“Hey, it’s okay!” Saga says hurriedly, gesturing with her flashlight. “They’re with me, they’re okay.”

Kesä looks to Saga again, and she does her absolute best to convey that they mean no harm. If he’s in a panicked state, she can’t rely on him to not do anything rash. 

Deciding to risk it for his sake, Saga pointedly holsters her own pistol. After a few seconds, Aleksi puts down his, but then his free hand shoots up to join his other one to clutch his chest. He doubles over, hissing through clenched teeth.

Saga rushes toward him. “What’s wrong? Are you hurt?”

She reaches out to touch him and, to her mild surprise, he pulls back, hissing a response under his breath.

“Ja kuka helvetti se sinäkin olet?”

Saga retracts her hand, startled. Aleksi’s hands are suddenly at his sides, shoulders pulled taut, angry and scared, but then his eyes jump between Saga’s hands and her face and he breathes out, reaching up to press his hands against his own face. After a moment, he looks back up and waves at Saga to come closer.

“Tilanne vain pahenee pahenemistaan”, he says, gently placing a hand on Saga’s shoulder and letting her put one on his. “Aluksi luulin, että olin vain hämmentynyt. Että palasin kyllä kylälle, pääsin karkuun vanhoilta kavereilta.” He croaks out a chuckle. “Ehkä luulin, että ne pähkähullut sarvipäät seurasivat minua tänne, että tässä oli joku salaliitto takana.”

“Mutta ei tämä paikka olekaan minun kotini. Teitä jenkkejä on ihan liikaa, kylän raitilla ei mikään ole omalla paikallaan, ja hullujen sijasta puolustaudun hirviöitä vastaan. Sekä näitä-” he gestures towards the bodies of the Taken with his free hand- “että sitä pilveä. Ja vaikka niitä kuinka ampuisi, ne eivät kuole. Ja vaikka kuolisivatkin…”

Aleksi clutches at his chest again, voice agonised and hoarse. “Minulla on huono olo, Saga. Tahdon vain kotiin.”

He finishes his speech and the room is silent barring his heavy breathing. Saga doesn’t know what to say. Saga doesn’t know what he said, but she really, really wishes she did.

Agent Young is the one to break the silence. He clears his throat awkwardly. “I don’t think there are any other survivors, Anderson.”

That strikes Saga as an odd detail. He’s probably right, but especially given the number of dead in this room alone, for Kesä to be the only one unharmed feels suspiciously unlikely. She’d thought he’d be the most at risk, being unarmed and all. Had all these other agents succumbed to the darkness except for him? Or, a frightening but possible alternative explanation, had Kesä been trigger happy and shot everyone he saw without considering if they were Taken or not?

Saying that he survived because ‘Wake wrote it that way’ would be so easy, except Wake had pleaded innocence. It’s another irregularly shaped puzzle piece that only serves to thicken the mystery and leave her no closer to solving it.

“We should report back with Estevez.” Miller suggests. “At least we got someone.”

Saga can’t tell if he’s being genuine or sarcastic and she goes to retort when there’s a sudden soft, low rumbling sound. She looks to Aleksi, who is holding his stomach. He shrugs apologetically. 

She feels like such an idiot. She hadn’t stopped to even consider that he might be hungry, even though she’d heard him presumably puking up the contents of his stomach when she first found him. She knows that Casey had already drank plenty of coffee but had no idea when was the last time he’d eaten something solid. She feels like kicking herself for the oversight.

Then again… when was the last time she’d eaten? Getting caught up in this whirlwind of horror feels like it’s changed her perspective. Bodily needs and the passage of time feel like an afterthought. The way they’d be in a novel, Saga thinks grimly.

She extends a hand for Kesä over the countertop and makes a beckoning motion. “Come on, we’ll take you upstairs and I’ll find you something to eat.”

Kesä peels one hand away from his chest and takes her other one. When their skin makes contact, Saga shudders involuntarily, but puts it down to being a static shock. 

She helps him over the barricade and notices that he’s finally abandoned his singular shoe, as well as his socks. He understandably grimaces when his feet reach the other side and sink into the blood. She does her best to navigate him out of the puddles quickly.

Saga doesn’t let go of his hand the entire time, even as the four of them move out and make their way back to the stairwell. The journey is clear of Taken, but even so, they stay in formation (with Kesä sandwiched between Saga and Young). Kesä leaves a trail of bloody footprints on their path. With fairytales and nursery rhymes still dancing around her head, Saga can’t help but think of it like a fucked up version of Hansel and Gretel.

They reach the office that holds Estevez and the four other FBC agents. Estevez forces herself to stand upon seeing them, now with a freshly bandaged leg.

Miller is the one to break the news. Upon hearing that no other agents made it, Estevez falls back onto her chair with a weary sigh. Saga knows the feeling. While she feels responsible for Casey, Estevez must be feeling the weight of her entire team.

Despite the fucked situation, she still acts professional, agreeing to Saga’s request for food and listening to her suggestion that the diner might still be open. She sends Agent Young (who volunteers with the reasoning that he needs fresh air) to go and fetch something for everyone. 

Saga isn’t one to stress-eat, but after burning so much energy fighting Taken, the thought of fast food is divine. Plus, she’s pretty sure Casey does like to stress-eat, so there’s that.

While they wait and the FBC agents talk among themselves, Saga sees that the remaining agents have managed to recover some of their files. She silently filters through the pile until she comes across the one she’s looking for.

Casey’s file is there, albeit water-damaged. Saga’s hope for information quickly disappears when she discovers that the file is empty barring the singular headshot that she’d seen earlier. It had somehow managed to hang on for dear life to the file via a paperclip. There goes that lead. Saga places it down on the table when she spots something.

The ink on the label that had clearly said ‘Alex Casey’ has been soaked and smudged, with many letters just leaving illegible black splotches. The remaining letters spell ‘Ale■   ■■s■■’. 

It leaves Saga feeling unsettled. It’s as if the proof she has of her partner’s real self is slowly slipping away, even down to the name. And the file’s seemingly the only one water-damaged. 

Where did the water come from?

She looks at the man in question. He’s still holding his chest and is staring into space. Saga debates trying to deduce what he’s thinking, but before she gets the chance to try, Agent Young returns with a plastic bag.

“The waitress was acting strange,” Young comments as he starts to distribute individually-wrapped burgers. “The place was empty and she talked like she was expecting me. Gave me a discount, though. I got twelve in case we need to feed the captives.”

Saga starts to do the math in her head but Estevez beats her to it.

“Twelve?” she asks. “There’s eleven of us.”

Young looks genuinely shocked at the statement. “No, twelve. There’s the seven of us, Agent Anderson, Agent Casey, then…”

He trails off and the other agents in the room stare at him expectantly.

“...Oh shit, yeah, no, eleven. My bad.”

Some of the other agents smile at his slip-up. In the face of disaster they’ll use anything as an excuse for happiness, even silly mistakes that shouldn’t be funny.

Estevez smiles too, small but genuine. She looks tired. “No harm done. Casey can have an extra one, I suppose.”

Saga notices that Kesä perks up at the mention of Casey’s name. She really wants to find out more about what’s going through his head, though something else comes to mind first. 

Agent Young had thought there were twelve.

“Hey, Estevez? Where’s Jaakko Koskela?”

Estevez’s smile falls and she looks up at Saga with surprise and confusion written all over her face. “How should I know?” she answers.

Saga starts to feel uneasy again. That déjà vu sensation starts to prickle at her skin. 

“He’s just as involved with the Cult of the Tree as Ilmo is,” she tries to say with an air of nonchalance to hide her impending fear. “You’ve arrested Ilmo, don’t you want him too?”

“Jaakko Koskela’s been presumed dead for years. Didn’t you know?” Estevez says as if she’s the one talking crazy.

No he isn’t, Saga thinks firmly but doesn’t verbalize. I talked to him earlier.

She doesn’t fight the fact further. Instead, she accepts that it’s another morbid twist of the horror story. Her heart goes out to Ilmo. He’d been adamant that there’s something wrong with Jaakko. Was it more than just brotherly love? Does he recognize the story’s twisting of reality too? Is it linked to what’s going on with Casey?

It’s a lead worth looking further into. Frustratingly, the first place that comes to mind to investigate further is Coffee World. Again. With history appearing to change in real time, maybe things had changed there since she’d last investigated? Would the notes she’d found written by Jaakko still be there?

She looks over at Kesä again. He’s busy eating his burger, his focus entirely on the food. Saga’s glad that at least that part of him hasn’t changed. Even so, she gets the feeling that something about his demeanor has changed. While the confusion and fear is still evident, the way he holds himself looks ever so slightly different, something more stiff and solemn.

Maybe it’s because he’s satiating his hunger. Saga doesn’t dwell on it.

Surely he’d be fine if she left him with (what’s left of) the FBC for another hour or two? She’ll have to trust them to take care of him if she’s going to get to the bottom of this mystery.

She watches as he puts down his food and squeezes his eyes shut, his expression unreadable.

She doesn't know how long she’ll be able to bear seeing him like this. She’ll fix this. She’ll save him.

As long as she can figure out how.

Finnish Translations:

"Kuolkaa jo, saatana!" = "Drop dead already!"

“Ja kuka helvetti se sinäkin olet?” = "And who the hell are you in all this?"

“Tilanne vain pahenee pahenemistaan." = "This situation just keeps getting worse and worse."

“Aluksi luulin, että olin vain hämmentynyt. Että palasin kyllä kylälle, pääsin karkuun vanhoilta kavereilta.” = "At first, I thought I was just confused. That I did manage to get back to town, that I managed to escape from my old friends."

“Ehkä luulin, että ne pähkähullut sarvipäät seurasivat minua tänne, että tässä oli joku salaliitto takana.” = "Maybe I thought that those horned madmen followed me here, that there was some kind of conspiracy at play."

“Mutta ei tämä paikka olekaan minun kotini." = "But this is not my home after all."

"There's too many Americans around, nothing on the main street is where it's supposed to be, and instead of madmen I'm defending myself against some sort of monsters." = "There's too many Americans around, nothing on the main street is where it's supposed to be, and instead of madmen I'm defending myself against some sort of monsters."

"Sekä näitä että sitä pilveä." = "Both these ones and that cloud."

"Ja vaikka niitä kuinka ampuisi, ne eivät kuole. Ja vaikka kuolisivatkin…” = "And no matter how much I shoot at them, they won't die. And even if they die..."

“Minulla on huono olo, Saga. Tahdon vain kotiin.” = "I feel bad, Saga. I just want to go home."

Thanks for reading! I'm very excited for what comes next :3

[collapsedsquid]

In the lands that would become Poland, several workers’ councils took control of cities and provinces with industrial assets. These were the exact opposite of the Hungarian councils that wanted to maintain the old order as much as possible, since they wished to overturn the past forms of government and replace traditional elites, such as large landowners and imperial police. In the Dąbrowa coal basin, for example, several workers’ councils sprung up quickly at mines and factories as it became clear that the Austrian occupation there was collapsing. This area was home to thousands of workers in heavy industry and had been in the Russian Empire before the First World War. Using their experience from the Revolution of 1905 – when the first ‘soviets’ (councils) were set up – some of the same figures led the charge to replace the local government with revolutionary councils.

A small group of communists started to disarm local Austrian units on 2 November 1918 and used those weapons to found a Red Guard. With around 300 rifles, the loosely connected councils gained some real power. Overnight, between 9–10 November, workers with the People's Militia (Milicja Ludowa) took control of all command posts, banks and the county treasury. Local leaders announced independence on 10 November, declaring ‘From today onward, both civilian and military power will be in our hands’. The speakers implied that ‘we’ meant the working class of the Dąbrowa Basin. The next day, German troops responded by trying to take control of the area but failed, and the soldiers were disarmed. The People's Militia, in addition to the boost in arms they gained from the abortive raid, managed to derail an armoured train and commandeer it.

Over the following days, factory workers and miners elected representatives to councils. The remaining German soldiers stationed in the area gave up their weapons after 11 November. This created the opportunity for one of the only organised political forces in the area, the workers’ councils, to take over civil administration as well. Thus, with mostly socialist and communist representatives, the administration unified the various local councils into a de facto government for the region called the Council of Workers’ Deputies (RDR). The first parliamentary session took place on 19 November, with Henryk Bicz from the Polish Socialist Party as the presiding member. The council included representatives from all the region's mines, factories and steelworks.

The new centralised council, based in Sosnowiec, organised six departments to start the business of governing. Among them were departments addressing business, culture, health, food distribution, education, the military and a secret section for undermining counter-revolutionary forces.The RDR defined counter-revolutionary threats quite broadly. For example, when the Warsaw government offered to provide aid in the form of food and medicine, the council refused. At least a majority of the representatives did not want to be associated with what they labelled the ‘Paderewski’ government in Warsaw, in reference to the pianist-turned-diplomat for the Polish cause, Ignacy Jan Paderewski.

From the surviving record, it appears that the RDR also managed one of the most fundamental functions of governing, that is, tax collection.Unsurprisingly for socialists, the main targets of their tax plans were the factory and mine owners. The RDR used existing Russian law on the books as the basis for their activities but changed the tax rates to ensure that they could extract as much as possible from the businesses operating in the region. A report from April 1919 claims that tax receipts were quite robust over a three month period, indicating that business owners saw the RDR as a legitimate local government in some sense.

Not all workers, however, were allied with the RDR's leftist stance. The National Workers’ Union (NZR) and other ‘Polish’ unions had strong backing since the Revolution of 1905. During one incident at the Saturn mine, a group of nationalist workers attacked socialist unionists who were gathering for a meeting. In the melee several men were killed, leading the RDR to order that all ‘white guards’ be removed and disarmed. The civil authorities were apparently thinking well into the future since they also offered that the families of the fallen men should receive a pension for the rest of their lives.

Gotta set up a Soviet of Worker's Deputies to destroy the false bourgeoisie government so we can really get going on that zoning reform.

[khushiambient]

How Is A Film Advertised: Things You Should Know About Advertising A Film

Marketing a movie is no simple task, but we’ve got some strategies and creative ideas to shed light on the entire process. Many film companies have successfully employed these tactics to promote their movies. In recent years, there has been a lot of buzz around movie promotion and marketing. It’s crucial for a movie to be marketed effectively to reach as many people as possible. Producers must dedicate ample time and resources to promote their films. After all, how can you expect tickets to sell if people aren’t aware of the movie? If ticket sales fall short, the movie could end up being a flop. Timing is a key factor in movie promotion, and getting it right is essential. Therefore, you need to be aware of some strategies that are mentioned in the section below going for film advertising.

What Is Film Marketing?

Film marketing is the strategic process of promoting and advertising a movie to its target audience. It involves creating awareness, generating excitement, and ultimately driving ticket sales or viewership. Film marketing encompasses various elements, including trailers, posters, social media campaigns, press releases, premieres, and partnerships with other brands or media outlets. The goal is to build anticipation, engage the audience, and ensure a successful launch for the film in theaters or on various distribution platforms. Effective film marketing is vital for a movie’s commercial success in a competitive entertainment industry. Unlock the Power of Film Marketing and Advertising in India with Khushi Ambient Media Solutions. Elevate your brand’s visibility and connect with your target audience like never before. Let’s make your cinematic dreams a reality. Get in touch with us today to start your journey to movie marketing success.

Identifying potential partners enthusiastic about collaborating on film promotion

Whether it’s a big-budget blockbuster or an independent film, establishing partnerships with various brands and celebrities is essential for an effective movie marketing strategy. To promote blockbuster movies, official collaborations or unofficial product endorsements play a vital role. When a producer has the support of a strong celebrity presence, they can leverage the celebrity’s vast social media following to boost the film’s promotion. For instance, consider Salman Khan, who commands a staggering reach of approximately 70.2 million people on Facebook alone. Associating with such influential celebrities on social media significantly broadens the film’s audience base, creating a substantial platform for movie promotion. These partnerships enable the film to rapidly connect with a massive audience in a relatively short period, amplifying its reach. Join hands with Khushi Ambient Media Solutions today and unlock the potential of your brand’s advertising success. Let’s create memorable marketing campaigns together. Contact us now and let’s make your brand shine.

Some notable brands that have proven to be effective partners in this endeavor include Nokia, known for its innovation and global reach, which can help create captivating mobile campaigns to engage audiences. 93.5 Red FM, a popular radio station, provides a platform for extensive on-air promotions, enhancing the film’s visibility through its wide listenership. Lux Soaps, with its association with glamorous stars, can add a touch of allure to movie promotions. Make My Trip offers opportunities for travel-related tie-ins, tapping into the wanderlust of potential viewers. Lastly, Close Up Toothpaste can provide a fresh and vibrant angle to promotional activities, leaving a lasting impression on the audience. Partnering with these esteemed brands can bring diverse and impactful marketing strategies to the table, contributing to the movie’s overall success.

Harnessing the power of online platforms to engage and captivate a wider audience

Marketing agencies serve as the swift and expert solution for building a fresh fan base within the film industry. Through paid marketing, a film can swiftly gain recognition among a vast audience in a short span. Leading marketing agencies effectively present the film in the market, employing advertising strategies across television, online platforms, radio, and more. These agencies represent a contemporary avenue for promoting movies, leveraging their capacity to connect with diverse audiences across multiple platforms. Elevate your brand’s success with Khushi Ambient Media Solutions which can be your Partner for Film Marketing and Advertising in India.

Establish Your Distribution Channel

Don’t overlook the potential of offline channels when promoting a film. Building offline distribution networks is a fantastic strategy to captivate fans. This approach involves the dissemination of tangible materials like stationery documents and personalized printed items to engage audiences effectively.

Organizing engaging quizzes and contests to captivate and entertain the audience

Engaging in contests and competitions online stands out as a highly effective method for boosting audience participation. These activities strike a perfect balance between offering low risk and promising high rewards. Contests consistently ignite excitement and generate buzz on social networking sites, providing a significant advantage when it comes to promoting a film. For example, ahead of the release of the movie ‘Mary Kom,’ the producers orchestrated a pre-launch contest on Twitter to promote the film. In this captivating contest, the fortunate winner had the incredible opportunity to meet Priyanka Chopra and enjoy a screening of the movie alongside her. This approach represents one of the most ingenious advertising strategies employed for blockbuster films.

Engaging actively during press conferences

Press conferences represent one of the most influential tools for generating publicity. They play a crucial role in shaping the audience’s perception of a film. During these events, the press conducts interviews with key actors and directors involved in the movie. The primary challenge lies in skillfully and effectively engaging with the press. In addition to journalists and media outlets, social media influencers and fans are also invited to attend these gatherings. Another effective marketing strategy involves organizing mini-press junkets in major cities to promote the film. This approach allows fans to interact directly with the film’s star cast, creating a more engaging and personal experience.

Showcasing Of Trailers

Movie trailers are essential in sparking excitement among the general public for an upcoming film. They are distributed through various channels, such as television, YouTube, and social media platforms. Additionally, you can catch them on the big screen during intermissions or before the main feature begins when you visit the theaters. For avid movie enthusiasts, these trailers are not only entertaining but also intriguing. They serve their purpose effectively by generating anticipation. Many people still prefer to catch a movie on its opening day, and these trailers play a vital role in spreading the word and igniting excitement throughout the masses. Elevate your brand with Khushi Ambient Media Solution today and captivate your audience like never before.

At Khushi Advertising, we specialize in creating impactful marketing partnerships with the film industry to help you achieve your desired results. Through our collaborations with leading production houses and blockbuster movies, we provide a unique opportunity to introduce your product or service to a national and global audience. Our approach is rooted in the idea of how brands can shape consumer behavior, influence their choices, and seamlessly integrate into the narrative of a story. Our primary strategy and ultimate goal revolve around presenting and promoting your brand to the audience in a way that enhances visibility, recall, and resonance.

This blog originally posted here: https://khushiadvertising.com/how-is-a-film-advertised-things-you-should-know-about-advertising-a-film/

[etymologyofmind]

The Hounds of Hell

The bridge of the Vellouwyn lurched as an energy discharge off the port side collapsed a pocket of subspace into a temporary antimatter void. The implosion wasn’t close enough to significantly damage the ship, but shields and ablative plating had taken a beating during their encounters over the past week, and the ship’s energy systems were having a hard time reconciling inertial dampeners to compensate as well as they could at full capacity. Durok sneered, knowing that the attack had been intentionally off the mark, and that while they were being hounded by their pursuers, they were also being toyed with, effectively helpless to counter the assault.

All throughout the ship at floor level, vents periodically gawped open as sensors tripped their mechanisms, and stray equipment and debris from structural damage was captured by the stow-ways, dragged out of the way by R4T units hiding in their conduits to police potentially harmful stray detritus. Around him on the bridge, various crew members had donned their station restraints, giving some stability and a moderate impression of safety as the ship jostled them around, and the captain worried for them all the same; others, unable to constrain themselves to a single operational area, were unbelted and reliant on their ‘sea legs’ to keep them from careening into consoles or other equipment as they went about their work.

“Bonn! Give me a damage report update. Lieutenant Simyarn, I could really use an effective evasive pattern if you’ve come up with anything fancy, something special, perhaps away from the anti-matter weapons?” Nearby at an unmanned science station, a lighting module overloaded, showering the area in distracting, but harmless sparks. Not for the first time, Durok lamented that the Federation’s lighting modules all reacted that way to fluctuations in power systems, at an exchange for effectively cost-free lumens, as the devices were efficient enough to be powered and controlled passively without requiring connection to energy systems of any sort, cultivating their charge from ambient energy sources. Unfortunately, those sources tended to be nearby ships systems which were connected to the grid, and tactical shifts in distribution and quick cycles of energy across different conduits and grids tended to trigger sensitive receptors in the equipment to overload. Three crewmen flinched or ducked at the sudden, distracting crackle of the bursting light, and Durok wondered if it were worth the exchange.

Lieutenant Raoul Simyarn’s hands flew across the Conn panel in a feverish dance, his eyes darting around the console to gather as much information as he could while he worked. The viewscreen, which he was ignoring, showed a pair of flanking vessels, much smaller than the Vellouwyn but significantly more maneuverable and dangerously over-armed, and as Durok watched, the closer of the pair launched another emerald-hued antimatter torpedo into their trajectory. Simyarn’s palm skidded along an edge of his console, and the whole ship veered alarmingly as lagging systems tried to catch up with the barrel roll that he set her spinning into. The torpedo cruised past the ship’s underbelly, and a subscreen on the viewer popped up to track it on one of the ventral sensor arrays. The missile came dangerously close to triggering in proximity, and Durok knew that if they wanted to, their pursuers could have remote detonated the device and crippled the ship. Instead, it twinkled off into the dark of space ahead of them for a distance before detonating into another hueless antimatter void which spun reactive forces into their wake, trigging more light units to overload and sending a menacing shudder throughout the vessel.

Junior Lieutenant Hubert Bonn grabbed the back of the captain’s chair as he lurched across the deck, thrusting a Padd with the most recent systems updates into Durok’s hands. The Tellarite looked queasy and unimpressed by their circumstances, and glared at the ships on the viewscreen. “Shields are holding at 74 percent, for now, up from the mid forties last time they pinned us down, but not quite the nineties I had them to this morning. This back and forth is overloading our emitters, and the crystal projectors won’t take the strain of it without maintenance much longer: we’ll start losing peak performance and it will slide from there. Ablative shielding is good in some places, seized in others, and gone at key points. We won’t be able to recover those without spacedock, so either way we need to report in after this. Phasers are good, but targeting is off: something they’ve got keeps us from getting a solid lock, so they are better used as sweeps, and it’s not particularly helpful if we’re not committed to the act and VERY lucky. Our rail guns are still offline because their disruptors overwhelmed their magnetic control systems, and our photon torpedoes and manual warheads will still work, if we can hit someone with them. We might be better off dropping them as dark mines, but that’s a last resort, as you know, since it’s bloody illegal.”

Durok growled. The enemy had been dogged in their pursuit of the Vellouwyn for days now, appearing and disappearing at seemingly random whims, pushing the ship off course at every encounter and herding her toward unknown goals. At their second encounter they’d decided to fight back, and while the ship’s weapons had proven capable of disabling, or at least severely deterring their pursuit, the next encounter had had more ships to worry at their heels, and the attacks began to come with more frequency. Repair crews had been unable to make meaningful work of addressing the ship’s systems, as their disruptors carried feedback signals which wreaked havoc with ships systems even as the shields dispersed them, making it dangerous to work on live grids while they were under attack. Worse still, several ship’s systems were under quarantine, as the same effect had a contagious impact on the Vellouwyn’s bio-porous network, and they had been forced to slough off several clonal nodes of insulation generation membranes, and sequester others deeper within the hull where they were less likely to suffer colony destabilization.

Bonn continued to list systems of note, cycling through the tactical, into the life support and operational management systems, stopping for a colourful epithet about the inertial dampeners as Simyarn veered to avoid another attack, and then down into the power and propulsion sets. Thorough and comprehensive while being very concise, Durok was quickly up to speed with the ship’s status, and appreciated his officer’s effectiveness in crisis. The outlook was poor, but the situation wasn’t yet over with. At the end of the report, Durok thumbed the Padd in confirmation and sent Bonn back to his stations. Jamming a black-nailed thumb on the communications panel he had queued up on his armrest, Durok barked out to one side: “Petty Officer Roundhouse, have you got a course for us? We may only have one shot at this idea of yours, we need to make it count.”

Several decks away in a lab behind the deflector and sensor arrays on the belly of the Vellouwyn, a Tiburonian crewman was busily manipulating a holographic model of their current sector of space by hand. Her brow was knit in concentration, making the severe swoop of her eyebrows into her hairline more profound. In real time, tactical data feeds to her station plotted the position of two of their pursuers, the last known trajectories of the other ships which had dogged them recently where they did not match the ship signatures of those who were currently engaged, and a number of other astronomically interesting objects in the region as reference points. A Barzan ensign, Tendan Omar, worked nearby, helping to keep the link between her simulation and the various feeder systems running at peak efficiency, while a striking Kiley, Pratt Denning, was working out formulas for a chain reaction. As Durok’s voice coughed out over a hidden speaker, she frowned and kept working. “Nearly, captain. It will work. It has to. Just be ready to vent our charged warp plasma as we skim the gas giant.”

Back on the bridge, Durok nodded, knowing the motion would not translate through the coms, and tapped the signal closed with a confirmation chime. Leveraging himself out of his chair, leaving the restraint to snake back into its concealment, he strode toward the forward operations console, bracing himself on the back of his flight controller’s seat, careful not to jostle Simyarn as he focused on flying. Tapping Junior Lieutenant Sim Wu on the shoulder encouragingly, he leaned in to review the outputs of the particle systems specialist’s weapon console, nodding at the tracing algorithms he had running on the sensor readouts. The man was smart when it came to event driven programming and had produced a spectral review of their previous engagements that was currently tracking a small spike chain in energy signatures before one of the alien ships fired an antimatter weapon. “If you see your shot, take it Mister Wu.”

The Human man nodded, and Durok looked up at the viewscreen. “Sato, Jendunn, get these bastards back up on my viewscreen. I need to see if I can’t buy us some time.” Behind him at the communications station on the upper bridge, an Aenar woman’s antennae swerved slightly, while the Trillish Human beside her cast a disapproving look of acknowledgement at the back of his head, over his partner Ensign’s shoulder. The two of them had been working at parsing the sparse communication they’d received from the enemy in the past week, or intercepted in subspace traffic, and were still trying to work out if the language was based more on a computational sequence or some biological derivative. Neither of them had made as much progress as they’d have liked, but the material was sparse, and contact more aggressive than communicative. The Sato Ear for Language was legendary in Star Fleet, literally, but the attackers barely used anything that might resemble it.

A long set of moments after his order, the viewscreen changed again; the ships previously on display collapsed into a corner, where the ventral sensor overlay had appeared for the passing torpedo, and the rest was filled with an aggressive, stark, metallic figure. Repeated analysis had told them these were not Breen; study of their language told them that, despite its sound, it was not Breen language, study of their ships and tactics, while aggressive like their Alpha Quadrant comparison, suggested they were not, in fact, Breen. The thing on screen, however, looked Breen, and had the same strange droning buzz when it vocalized, setting Durok’s hair on end. It looked Breen, with the visor hued in green, although the colour and configuration of the armour was slightly different, it was very close to Breen. Durok ran his tongue over his teeth and considered his play.

“We are of Star Fleet, from the United Federation of Planets. Likely you do not know of us yet,” he began, skipping all the pleasantries. “We tried speaking with you before, as it is the way of our coalition to entreat peacefully with new met civilizations. When that failed, we defended ourselves, and rather than engage with us, you escalated.” Still receiving no response from the unemotive entity on screen, he went on. “You have plagued us for a week, and we tire of patience. You may think you have us figured out, and that you can run us down for the kill, but I assure you that is not the case. I will give you one more warning: our ship is on a mission of peace, but our kind value our lives more than we value yours. Tell us what you want and we will consider your request. Otherwise, be on your way, or face the consequences.”

For a long moment there was nothing, and then there was a blast of garbled audio signal which made several of his crew wince before the audio filters kicked in, and dimmed the noise. Behind him, Sato’s eyes went wide, and he started tapping a new set of instructions into the computer, and the chaotic static sound played again, twice more in the background on the bridge. Durok turned around to face the communications station, and Jendunn passed her hands blindly, accurately over controls to help Sato with his effort, the two muttering back and forth for a moment, before suddenly the signal was split into a half dozen audible threads overlaying the background garble of data. A deeply artificial, almost metallic synthesized voice translated several languages simultaneously into one common message: “Run. Hide. Flee. Prey.”

Durok turned around, snarling defiantly, as the figure on screen began to convulse with a new message, which the captain did not need to have translated to know for laughter. Its face disappeared from the screen, and Wu sat up at attention as the two pursuing ships returned to take up the larger viewscreen. A moment later and with a flurry of commands, a fan of lower energy phaser spread burst from the aft canons in a colourful array, and a fraction of a moment later a green hued torpedo belched from a seamless port on the lead ship’s forward hull. As it crossed the thin phaser threshold, breaking a number of the feeble streams, Wu swiped his hands across the controls and the computer recalculated the trajectory based on emitter feedback. Suddenly the streams all converged on the antimatter weapon, linking together into a bright red point which breached the device’s hull and detonated it practically within the launch tube of the pursuing ship.

The result was instantaneously catastrophic for the alien vessel, and the implosion encompassed the entire vessel in a cascade reaction, sucking the normal matter in and annihilating it to produce a pulsar-esque compressed particle stream, ripping the vessel through an event horizon and rendering it into oblivion, before the reactive shockwave blew its remaining mass into a devastating cloud of shrapnel. The second vessel was flying close enough to get caught up in the explosion, and while it was not outright destroyed, it was disabled enough to knock it out of warp, leaving it behind on long distance sensors. A number of bridge crew cheered, save Wu, who was busily harvesting additional tactical data from the successful ploy, but most knew it was, if anything, a temporary reprieve.

“Excellent technique, Mister Wu.” Durok said, patting him on the shoulder again before returning to his chair. “Raoul, get us back on the course from Astrometrics. They’ll send more dogs to hound us before we make good on any escape, so the plan still stands. We have to reach that nebula, and the system on its edge is the perfect place to try their plan. Bonn, update the repair crews on their priorities, and take only who you need: they won’t get to finish the work in all likelihood, and the crew need rest. Take volunteers after you pick the essentials, but don’t ‘motivate’ them. Work with Chief Engineer Vantel, and check in with Shurel to see if the weapon is ready.”

The Tellarite nodded and set to his work, while Chief Conn Officer Simyarn set about coordinating course updates with the astrometrics lab. Durok decided to leave the language team to pore over their new epiphanies: he’d be briefed on their findings when they were ready, and instead stood to move to the aft turbolift corridor. “Durok to Ve Sudan;” he said, waiting for the computer to acknowledge his hail. “If you’re able, come take command of the bridge. Else send Adonnas. I’m going to check on Paine.” He commanded, knowing that the second and third shift bridge officers would be relatively fresh compared to the fourth rotation, which had retired barely two hours before, mid-battle. Some of their shift’s rotations were still on station, and he knew that, were Paine Thomas at her post, they’d have been mandatorily rotated by now, but Sudan could handle that just as well: the Betazoid Lieutenant Commander had a keen sense for fatigue among the crew, and knew when they were reaching, rather than riding, their limits. He got a simple ‘Affirmative’ from her, and stepped off the bridge with a last look at the ant hill of its crew compliment, smiling with concern before turning left to his preferred turbolift station, which had been prioritized for command needs in a crisis.

“Sick bay ICU,” he instructed as he stepped into the dimly lit can, feeling the throb of fatigue budding behind his eyes as he braced for what he always considered to be an awkward period of contemplation as the lift shuttled through maglev tunnels between bulkheads. He dreaded what he’d find when he arrived at his destination: Paine was his first officer, and in the year that they’d served together thus far, he’d come to respect and rely on her. She was as true and stalwart a warrior as he had ever encountered, at any time, anywhere, so to see her laid low by the disruptor infection which had impacted the crew stationed in the aft deuterium storage bays when the first attack had taken them unprepared was a demoralizing sensation. Many of the others had been treated and were recovering, as the Vellouwyn’s medical team was among the most brilliant he’d ever seen, but three of his crew were still unconscious and in various states of suffering, with Paine being by far the most overwhelmed.

Before he returned to his rotation, perhaps to get some rest, but more likely to revisit the plan with his strategic teams before they reached their next destination, he would spend some time at their sides, speaking quietly of what he knew of them, what was important to them, their motivation and inspirations. He did not know, and nor did Chief Medical Officer Barr, whether they could hear him or not, but he felt that if anything would motivate them to stave off death, it was the things of value found in their lives. It was the least he could do to remind them of their worth.

And now...

[kaidatheghostdragon]

Do deliveries get treated like the case files? Business meetings? Taxes?

Lets see how much i can flex my knowledge of societal logistics.

America runs on a "just in time" delivery system where long-haul truckers are the backbone. If there are any truckers/postal workers that are from or regularly work with amity, maybe theyre immune, but AP grocery stores, restaurants, gas stations, and anything else dependant on out-of-town shipping is gonna notice a sharp decline deliveries as various shipments are increasingly forgotton, and if refunds arent an automated service, they are gonna lose a lot of money as calls and meetings get ignored for being "unimportant, dont look here."

In fact, automation might actually be a saving grace here, as workers are just following shipment orders, which are largely a menial task. However, ANYTHING that falls through the cracks, whether a glitch in the system, a shipping mistake, etc, is gonna be a total loss for Amity as corrections require someone to follow up on a complaint that will be eternally ignored. Grocery stores and gas stations will be hit the hardest, most likely, as large shipments like that aren't automated for financial security reasons - its literally a person's job to manage stock and know what to order and when.

Amity is gonna have to quickly learn how to be self-sustaining, which would throw this idea into a deconstruction au starting at the end of that episode. There is a solution that occurred to me while writing this: a management business slash distribution center with 100% Amity Park employment, but stationed at a nearby town. All shipments, orders, and mail to AP is routed through that business, which falls outside of the perception filter, and they handle complications and shipping mistakes, and all shipping from the distribution center to AP homes and businesses are handled by AP truckers.

The extra hassle is gonna be a big incentive to become self-sustaining. An extra distribution center causes a lot of logistical problems. For one, it adds an extra day or two to shipping times, which decreases fresh food quality - goodbye bananas. (However, I learned recently that the midwest has a native fruit tree that grows something called pawpaw fruits, which allegedly taste like bananas.) Secondly, lots of things are regulated: medications, chemicals, etc, so specialized businesses dependant on specific regulated resources are gonna be a hassle and a half to keep stocked up. Even little things - like co2 canisters for the refillable whipped cream cans that restaurants use - you dont think about until its a problem. Labeling the AP distribution center as, well, a distribution center SHOULD solve most of those problems because its clear that its a transportation service and not like a laundering or trafficking scheme or something.

But building and setting up the distribution center will take months, which means Amity is going to suffer a chronic shortage of a lot of modern conveniences, both big and small, for that long.

And thats just the world of shipping.

Chain businesses that answer to a foreign HQ are gonna go under, as HQ continues to drop the ball on logistical needs of the AP branch.

Banks are gonna lose their federal insurance because someone on the outside keeps forgetting they exist. Their gonna struggle keeping fresh bills in circulation as they aren't receiving replacements.

Non local insurance policies can't be created, ended, or updated, as everyone in AP is left on hold indefinitely. Local insurance policies are the only option, and they are VERY aware of the constant property damage.

In fact, government funding for maintenance, roads, and relief grants are gonna stop coming in, which leaves Vlad, as the only local billionaire invested in Amity, as the only source of maintenance money. That is a massive power-play available for him, OR a great redemption arc if you prefer.

On the plus side, the IRS disappeared basically overnight, so the 20-30% (idk, just a guess) federal/state (does illinois have state tax?) tax revenue that Amity generates is now suddenly free to circulate internally - because whats the point in paying taxes if no one is enforcing it? - which will be a massive relief for all the other financial problems they're now suffering. If Amity doesnt already have a city tax, it would likely be downright necessary to install at this point, taking up the revenue that is no longer going to state/federal, in order to recapture the costs of maintainance which now fall solely on the town itself.

The slow climb of technology will stop as newer models of phones, cars, computers, etc, being brought in are hit or miss. This isn't a big issue if the ambiant ecto was already causing interference here. Between this and the sporadic gas/diesel shipments, the Fentons stand to make a lot of money off of ecto-powered tech to fill the void. An everyone knows au usually implies good Fentons, so they could be relied on to, in turn, use that income to continue to improve Amity and keep it circulating locally.

For utilities, I'm not entirely sure how local or regional they are for Illinois. If Amity is lucky enough to have a power plant, then electricity isn't an issue. The Fentons are also more than capable of busting out solar panels and industrial sized batteries, not to mention generators running on ambient ecto (which is a canon invention) if the city is starting to have brownouts from lack of maintainence/attention.

Water is the same - anything on local wells is safe, but if Amity is watered by the great lakes, there might be maintainence issues again. Again, I dont know illinois well enough to guess which is the case here. The biggest water usage is farmland, which literally measure how much food they can potentially grow by how much water they have access to, so infrastructure to keep the farms closest to Amity running will be the highest priority, especially if Amity has to become self-sustaining.

Internet and cell coverage are utilities, which will now fall on Amity Park to build and maintain locally. Again, the Fentons will probably have this handled. I'm not an expert at how cell towers work, but my understanding is that they're owned by the entity that built them, sometimes a big cell company, sometimes a smaller cell company, sometimes a local infrastructure business, and usage is either leased out to some/all the big companies, which means that the tower counts as part of their network, or they're charged per device that connects, which falls under roaming. Dont quote me on that. I might be entirely wrong! At any rate, AP will likely have cell service, its mostly a question of how expensive it is and whether or not its a money sink because cell companies keep forgetting to pay for using the towers, or at worst, whether or not amity's cell service is isolated from the rest of the world because its a constant hassle to maintain licenses and connection to the global network.

Internet, otoh, is black magic to me and i dont know how it would be affected. If it has to be run locally, maybe Amity decides to be one of those cities that sets itself up to have free wifi available anywhere within city limits, so the City of Amity Park is the only entity that has to deal with the hassle of maintainence with the outside world, and civilians and businesses just piggy back off of it.

I realized I haven't touched on emergency services yet. Amity might already have a local 911 dispatch because of rampant ghost attacks to separate them from nearby towns. If they dont, then 911 isn't gonna work if their phone service doesn't connect globally, and thats gonna have to be rectified quickly. I'd imagine Amity Park is large enough to have a handful of police and firefighter buildings, multiple emergency clinics, and at least one hospital. Local 911 dispatch without access to the outside world means no relying on neighbors when the local response teams are overextended, which is normal protocol. Amity will have to overcompensate with extra cops, firefighters, and emts or settle with having occasional "bad days." Probably the former, considering the constant ghost attacks.

The hospital probably isnt equipped to handle everything, as hospitals tend to specialize in one particular field of long-term recovery and trade patients with nearby hospitals to fit their long-term recovery needs after handling emergency first aid and diagnosis. They have to go a similar route as the dedicated AP distribution center, placing AP employees in the neighboring town hospitals to maintain inter-patient logistics and ordering resources through those hospitals instead of directly. If AP hospital has a specialty, its gonna be liminality care, and most of their resources regarding that can come from the Fentons or the ghost zone directly.

Speaking of the ghost zone, it can potentially provide a great deal of relief. Yes, the portal is what caused all of Amity's problems, but in an everyone knows au, it also represents a potential trade route. Allies like the yetis and dora's kingdom would be more than happy to provide relief, aid, supplies, and even a free workforce if danny just asked while Amity was in a bad way. At that point, Amity might be even more inclined to remained cut off from the rest of the world to protect their allies and trade agreements.

In summary, the reality guantlet episode could be what turns amity into a secret hidden liminal eldritch city.

Why doesn't the justice league know about Amity Park?

Okay so it's been a bit sonce I watched the show but one of the things in DpxDC is the anti-ecto acts, which I love, but correct me if I'm wrong, I THINK ??? they only show up in reality trip? SO: What if Danny, when using the gauntlet to undo everything, also got rid of the Anti-Ecto acts? but this is babys first time editing reality so he uh Fucks Up A Lil'. As a result when Danny used the reality gauntlet to wipe the AEA from existence he accidentally wiped Amity Park from perception. A big 'nothing matters over here' jedi mind trick, and now no ones looking at Amity. So, the Justice League actually WERE looking into and monitoring the situation in Amity, but when the perception filter closed them off, all of that suddenly went ignored.

This is noticed when someone (Alfred, Dick, Tim, literally anyone) realises theres just. A BIG dusty pile of case files semi abandoned somewhere in the cave when going through a (time period)ly cave cleaning.

They put it down because it's Not Important.

They come back to finish the cleaning the next day and do the exact same thing, but there's nothing to actually distract them this time and it pings as weird. Because why would case files be not important? They are by definition important, because only things flagged as important go into case files.

They try to get someone else to read it, because as long as they don't read the information in the file, they don't put it down.

That person goes to read it, gets a line in and then says something like 'that isn't important' and goes to leave. Person A pushes it and person B ALSO catches on.

Que the Batfam trying to figure out hey, what the fuck actually?

Meanwhile, how is Amity fairing? Canon compliant everything's going alright? Or have knock on effects to No One Look Here started to show?