Posts made by Auspice

@ganymede said in The Eighth Sea - Here There Be Monsters:

Ares / FS3.3 is different from FS3 v.2. FS3.3 is, from my understanding, more customizable insofar as what you put in as attributes. If 8th Sea follows BSG:U, and I think it does, then you have 6 attributes that go 1-5, and custom-input skills that go 1-7.

8th Sea is on roughly the same version as BSG:U, yes. When Faraday updates the core, Kraken is usually not far behind in updating T8S.

However, we have a host more action skills than BSG:U does.

The Ares version of FS3 is sort of... ramped up. It's the FS3 you know and love (or hate), but with a lot more added in. Die rolls show the numbers, not just the result. Combat is almost exactly the same, but with fewer bugs (no more instances of 'The NPC That Never Dies').

The biggest perk of Ares, IMO, is the scene system. A system that generates temp rooms on the fly, that logs the scene, and allows such functionality as highlighted ST poses ('scene/emit'), repairing poses on the fly ('scene/undo' to remove a pose, 'scene/replace' to wholesale replace a pose where it lies in the log, and 'scene/typo' to silently adjust a pose). In the end, you have a cleaned up, web-ready log (and scene/repose shows the last few poses, which is awesome for walking into a scene-in-progress).

As a note... T8S is not using the web portal fully (though CG is active on it!), so logs do currently need to be manually uploaded to wikidot, but the 'scene/log' command makes it super easy to just copy and paste the log over.

Class-related gripe:

My spec script this month is for an episode of New Girl. If you're unfamiliar, the main character Jess has a best friend: Cece. Now, Jess frequently calls Cece 'Ceec.' This is how I've seen it in closed captions and on production scripts both. It is not a rare diminutive. Jess uses it often; I'd say roughly once per episode.

In the class, we have a handful of shows we could have chosen to write for (New Girl, Brooklyn 911, Big Bang Theory, NCIS, Elementary, and The Walking Dead) and we were expected to watch a lot of our chosen show and at least a couple episodes of the others so as to better provide feedback for our classmates (each Sunday, I've had 6 scripts to review).

You'd think the instructor would be well-familiar, too.

And yet, one classmate out of them all (our 'review' groups have changed and if someone in your group doesn't post their script in time, you pick someone else at random to review)... has picked up on why I use 'Ceec' a couple times in the script (and only in Jess' dialogue). Everyone else, including my instructor (who took points off for it) has complained about me misspelling the name.

Last week I did provide a comment to the effect of 'I just want to clarify...' and I did point it out to my instructor (along with photos of the set to show that yes, I was referring to a part of the Loft accurately tyvm), but my god it's vexing.

I've watched a couple episodes of shows I can't stand so I can accurately review their shit... They can't do the same?

I take on reading challenges sometimes. Some fail (like reading/watching/playing through the Star Wars EU in chronological order). Some don't.

After my current class, I plan to read the works of Seneca (https://dailystoic.com/seneca/) alongside the New Testament (a specific translation of it, likely). Seneca lived in the same time as Jesus (and Seneca's brother is referenced in the book of Acts), so I want to see how the views, referenced events, etc., contrast and compare.

I am not a religious person, but I find religion fascinating and I look forward to approaching a new (I've had others) study of the Bible in this way.

I share here because others might be interested in a similar journey.

The books I plan to buy to start:
https://www.amazon.com/New-Testament-David-Bentley-Hart/dp/0300186096/
https://www.amazon.com/Shortness-Life-Penguin-Great-Ideas/dp/0143036327/
https://www.amazon.com/Letters-Penguin-Classics-Lucius-Annaeus/dp/0140442103/

There's also Seneca's Moral Essays, but those are around $25 (there's 3 volumes) a pop. So I likely won't buy them right off the bat. I've chosen that version of the New Testament (in spite of owning a couple copies of the Bible) because I'm curious about the methodology of the translation. Bentley translated each line literally, rather than relying on preconceived notions of what the text "should" be.

Trailer for Gotham by Gaslight movie.

I'm not a big DC fan to begin with and I'm honestly sick of Batman and Superman both. However, I've seen some of the animated films over the past few years and they've been knocking them out of the park.

(...but now I really want a Jack the Ripper era MU* to play on...)

I know I'm inviting ire, but... we've strayed into a whole new discussion here. It's not wholly off-topic, but I think it may be deserving of its own thread (as it's no longer explicitly about administration, but rather the state of the board in general).

Would people be opposed to a focused topic on the subject?

@rnmissionrun said in RL Anger:

@auspice said in RL Anger:

@rnmissionrun said in RL Anger:

@derp said in RL Anger:

@rnmissionrun said in RL Anger:

Why am I paying $89.95 a month for so-called business class cable internet that is so slow and unreliable that it's not even suitable for MU*ing most of the time?!? I don't even have the choice to switch providers, because there is only the one >.<

Monopolies are fun.

Hey, I don't even have one. I tether through my phone. Feel grateful you don't have that nightmare!

But seriously, that sucks.

I would be so happy if I could do that! Unfortunately, I have Sprint and my neighborhood is inside a so-called Sprint 'dead zone'. I can't even get 3g here.

Sprint will actually give you an 'extender' in your house (it does use your internet, so unfortunately it might not be of benefit for you ) if the tower doesn't reach you.

My parents had to do this because their house is in a dead zone, too.

You know, I applied for one of those and was denied. They told me to call the center to discuss other options. When I called and talked to them, the other options consisted solely of suggesting that I turn on WiFi calling.

All I could say is keep at it. I think it took my father a few tries to convince them to give him one.

Verizon, when I worked there, did a lot of the same BS. The 'Oop sorry no,' and as an agent it was because I wasn't approved to issue out things like that. It had to go up the line. But getting it up the line was a pain in the ass.

@rnmissionrun said in RL Anger:

@derp said in RL Anger:

@rnmissionrun said in RL Anger:

Why am I paying $89.95 a month for so-called business class cable internet that is so slow and unreliable that it's not even suitable for MU*ing most of the time?!? I don't even have the choice to switch providers, because there is only the one >.<

Monopolies are fun.

Hey, I don't even have one. I tether through my phone. Feel grateful you don't have that nightmare!

But seriously, that sucks.

I would be so happy if I could do that! Unfortunately, I have Sprint and my neighborhood is inside a so-called Sprint 'dead zone'. I can't even get 3g here.

Sprint will actually give you an 'extender' in your house (it does use your internet, so unfortunately it might not be of benefit for you ) if the tower doesn't reach you.

My parents had to do this because their house is in a dead zone, too.

@rnmissionrun said in RL Anger:

Why am I paying $89.95 a month for so-called business class cable internet that is so slow and unreliable that it's not even suitable for MU*ing most of the time?!? I don't even have the choice to switch providers, because there is only the one >.<

Monopolies are fun.

I hate this shit. I've worked for DSL companies and I hate this shit.

The poor quality of connection and the limited options. Thankfully in most parts of the US, you can choose between DSL or cable, but when they both suck...?

All I can suggest is to keep complaining at them, RMR.

@gangofdolls said in Health and Wealth and GrownUp Stuff:

Anyone have experience with this and have recommendations?

My experience is about 17 years old, but... I had to wear a knee brace after surgery on my knee. And part of the issue was the knee cap going out of place.

I have a lot of issues with wearing braces, bandages, etc... but the one that I was able to wear for the longest periods of time was a full 'sleeve' style that also had an inflatable section around the knee cap for added support. Being nearly 2 decades later, they probably have improved upon the design/style.

@aria said in RL Anger:

@Sparks and @Auspice -- I used to work in pharmaceutical distribution. Little known secret about the industry: a lot of manufacturers have programs to help you afford their medication at very little cost if your insurance doesn't cover it and you make below a certain income bracket. If you know what said medication is, try looking up who makes it and giving them a call.

My doctor actually gave me the info for the one for the medication I was on (trial packs). And a spiel of 'most people get it for free!'
The pharmacy tried. The poor girl spent about an hour on the phone system for it after trying on the computer.

They got the cost 'down' to $250.

@arkandel said in Random links:

@auspice My fellow acolytes in pineapple warned me to guard our secrets against the likes of you.

What about the hamolytes? Or the Peppriests?

@sparks said in RL Anger:

Second irritation, though, is that they have something they think might help which I should try, and my insurance has decided they don't want to cover it. Cost without insurance? Roughly $1100 per prescription.

Uggggh. I hate that. So much. My insurance won't cover the main drug they think will help me, either. It's not nearly so much, but it's still way more than I could manage.

So I've been (well, not right now; haven't been able to afford it for over a month) on one where I take three pills a day, then I still have an emergency med on hand.

Migraines fucking suck. I'm glad the ER was able to give some relief, even if it sucks to have to go.

The saga of long leg bear.

(PS, I am still mad at @Arkandel for not giving instructions on how to join pizza cult.)

@aria said in RL Anger:

often encouraged to 'be the bigger person' and 'find healing through forgiveness'.

Pretty much my entire childhood right here.
And that may be a large part of it.

I ended up letting my ex-husband back in my life for a while. He felt bad, wanted to mend bridges, wanted to play nice for sake of mutual friends, etc... (Supposedly) and against all feelings to the contrary, I agreed.

...only to find he was pretty much using it as means to get 'intel' to badmouth me and use me as a scapegoat for numerous things.

I just want people to be happy and copacetic, damnit. And this guy it's just... yeah, @ShelBeast, it's still hard sometimes. Because of how close we were. Because of how important he (and his family) were for me.

But no, I shouldn't reconnect. I don't really want to. Because it'd never be the same and that would be painful, too.

Years ago, I had a falling out with a friend. It was over such petty shit, too. We worked similar jobs. Me, tech support at Zoomtown (Cincinnati Bell's DSL branch). He worked tech support for Time Warner, in Columbus. We'd hang out on weekends (I was renting a house in Cincy from his mother, so he'd drive down, crash there, we had a D&D group...).

And then I got a job with Clear Channel as a sys admin.

The first sign something was up was when he was supposed to pick me up for game night (my then-SO needed the car for work) and... never showed. And when I got in touch with one of the guys we gamed with, he went 'Oh, K said you weren't coming tonight.' So he ditched me, then lied about it to the group. Lovely.

He began avoiding me altogether. Then, one weekend around when I moved out of the house, I was in the kitchen with him and his father. I finally broached the 'wtf man?' subject. He then proceeded to rail on me about how it was unfair I got the job I did and he didn't.

Even his father pointing out: a) you're not qualified for it, b) you never applied in the first place... got nowhere. He was just so angry that I, someone a few years younger than he, had a better job.

I moved on. Kept contact with his father for a while. It hurt, but what could I do?
This was 2005.

The next time we had contact was, oh, probably 2012-ish or somewhere in there. I was on a game. Suddenly had a bunch of people come to me and share pages he'd sent them. See, he figured out I was there. I had no idea he was. But he went around paging people things like: 'Don't believe anything she says about me! It's all lies.'

Now, considering I'd never said a word about him, had RP'd with him, and obviously had no clue who the fuck he was... no one fell for it, thankfully, but it made my time there incredibly uncomfortable (until he left upon finding out that no, people weren't going to turn on me based on his say so).

It's always kind of sucked. At one time, I called him my brother. My chosen family. I moved to Ohio because he wanted me to, because he helped me get my initial job, etc.. I spent holidays with his family.

But the vitriol, I just couldn't anymore.

And then today, he wants to connect with me on a social media site. 12 years after the falling out. A handful of years after he was still being cruel towards me.

I'm trying to tell myself that it's because his father passed away a few months ago, which can make anyone rethink things... but I can't help but be really anxious about it.

@ixokai said in Magic, The Earth Way:

What comes to me after reading that is... magic of the earth is motion.

I've never seen it described this way, but I really like it.

@admiral said in Magic, The Earth Way:

That would be a really cool idea for a story.

Mathmagic. Castin' mathic. Theorem-slingers. Quantifying -faces-.

This actually is sort of part of the magic in the world of Grossman's Magicians novels. Mages have to be geniuses to manage all the math and shit required to be able to do magic to begin with.

It's not just math, but it factors heavily into it. It's part of why I love those books.

@twogunbob

I lack the patience to do mini painting. Full props to those that do.

<NOT MOD VOICE>

If I have explicitly attacked a single person, I do apologize for that (and would like a reference to where I 'name and shame'd someone as it were). I have been doing my best to avoid such behavior.

I may attack ideas and behaviors, which is acceptable behavior on the boards (at this time), but I do understand that in some situations, a person may misconstrue 'Your behavior is wrong' as 'You are wrong and your entire existence is wrong' (or similar concepts).

<MOD VOICE>

I am sorry I was not more explicit in the thread in question wherein I was recommending personal stories be taken to and expanded upon in a new thread.

The lack of mod voice was used to imply it as suggestion. Users were welcome to continue posting along the same vein if they so wished, but concern had been expressed about the time and place for such things and I thought perhaps a gentle nudge could be warranted rather than any explicit mod action.

In the future I shall strive to be as explicit and to-the-point as possible so as to avoid the risk of confusion, moving goal posts, or silencing attempts. I will not assume Users can ascertain the intent behind the words nor the 'voice' it is coming from.