Hey fellow Rapture citizens. Many of you have seen this guy on your journey in the deep sea. About 7-8 years ago I made this for my high school art class. The fall semester mid-term was a Halloween mask for every grade level every year and on Halloween we would parade them around the school. That art teacher was one of my most influential teachers of my life. I’ll include some of his notes for the assignment. I hope you guys enjoy. The piece has kind of degraded of the years sitting around. I have a pretty big head and if I put it on now my head will most likely get stuck in there like a real big daddy haha. I will follow up with a video so you can see the lights!
For those interested in making your own I’ll leave a basic description of the build below:

1. Blow up ball from those cages at Walmart is the base.
   
2. Wrap chicken wire around the outside to make a strong sphere. Tie with wire to hold the shape where needed. This structure needs to hold without the ball in the middle.
   
3. Make a chicken wire extension on one side of the ball for the “bib” area. This part is useful to support the mask when worn. It also extends an inch on the opposite side to support one of the braces for the metal cage part.
   
4. Traditional paper mache (papier-mâché) on the entire outside. I did multiple layers if I recall. This allows you to sand down once it dries to get a better shape. Let dry fully between each layer and sand at the end.
   
5. Draw and cut holes on paper outside for the eye holes. I traced the bottom of the clear plastic solo cups that I used for the “glass parts”. If you build it strong you could probably use some kind of actually glass but it will increase the weight. To make them even I just did some simple measuring and penciled in where they should be.
   
6. Cut holes on the sides for the brace that holds the outside metal. Additionally there are holes on the front and back to support the vertical piece that the side pieces reach in the middle. I used a PVC pieces for these braces and cut holes with a drill where needed. After the holes are ready glue down the pvc and let it dry.
   
7. Now you are ready to paint. I used a metallic spray paint and did two coats before adding and of the cups for the eyes or the metal. That’s up next.
   
8. Insert the eye piece into the holes. Use hot glue or a strong tape the inside to secure them. Because the base of the cups are thinner than the tops of the cups they can’t fall out. Cut the excess cup once you know how far they push through.
   
9. Metal circles around eye holes and pvc pieces. For this I used looked around in all the random stuff at the store. They all have a curvature to them so they fit well to the sphere. Glue on with a strong adhesive.
   
10. For the metal bracing I really don’t know what I used. I just walked around a department store and grabbed things when I saw them. It was easy to cut into the shape I wanted. Bend it to the shape you want to be across the front. It should rest an inch or two above the eye holes to give it an authentic look. I used PVC joints in the middle of the mask where it intersects. These got a spray paint treatment too. To make these parts secure I used tape to wrap the end of the metal for a snug fit in the PVC. Once you have your lengths cut secure the horizontal pieces into the PVC braces in the helmet with a strong adhesive.
    
11. Lighting: I used a Halloween LED light strand that has a battery pack. Put in the batteries and then wire it into the chicken wire on the inside of the helmet near the top. Snake the light strand in circles around all of the holes if it’s long enough. Use wire ties or tap to hold it down.
    
12. Run around outside with it on and freak out the neighborhood. Alternatively, collect Adam from unsuspecting people taking a “nap”.
    

[This post will function as the primary info-dump and planning post for the Siege of Fort Ko'Var. Let's get to it!]

Colenel Jethro Arvin looked around the Taronian 8th Regimental Headquarters at Waycross Road, surveying the plethora of attendees both junior and senior. It was a hell of a crowd; he hoped he didn't dissapoint.
First, there was of course his own senior staff, all in physical attendence now that Major Quoke had rejoined them. Also present in-person was Lieutenant Lenore McPherson, Intelligence Officer of the Praetorian 27th, and the Valyrran Major Zero, who arrived with Major Quoke and now stood silently off to the opposite side of the room from the Taronians.
There were also a plethora of attendees tuning in via hololith; Colonel Braithwaite and General Redlina herself plus a number of other Valyrran officers, presumably representing other elements to be allocated to the siege. There was also the lone small figure of a woman in a Minthelian jumpsuit; Arvin recognized her as the young aide who had guided him when he received orders from General Redlina to detain the Minthelian Lieutenant Sophy. It felt so long ago now.
The final hololith attendee, however, Arvin did not recognize: he wore a long white coat adorned with various bits of webbing and equipment over knee-high leather boots, and a simple steel helmet with a gold Aquila on it atop his head. The man introduced himself as Colonel Lilzton, commander of Task Force Liberation, the loyalist PDF remnants to the north of the fort. Arvin hoped he would get to meet him in person some time.
But now, everyone was assembled, and it was time for Colonel Arvin to begin his briefing.
"Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for attending this briefing. We have a lot to get through, so I'll begin without delay..."

INTRODUCTION:
Covering an surface area of about 12.5 square kilometers, Fort Ko'Var, previously known as "Saint's Gate", serves as the primary bastion of resistance for the entirety of the northern mountains. It is carved directly out of the rock in many places, and as it's Imperial name suggests, it controls all passage along the north-south mountain road. Both the town of Kan'Shae and the base of operations for Task Force Liberation are nominally cut off to the north of the fort; for these reasons, the position must be captured if we are to secure victory in this region.

THE TERRAIN:
The geography surrounding Fort Ko'Var only makes it's capture more important. To the east and southeast lays an expanse of high peaks, jagged cliffs, and all manner of other hazardous terrain, such that getting a cohesive fighting force over it is all but impossible.
To the east and northeast lies a river which continues uninterrupted to Westbridge Lake. It is believed to have been artificially-made by the fortress's builders to achieve 2 goals: 1) to prevent the bypassing of the fort by any kind of vehicular foe simply by driving around it, and 2) to supply the defenders with a ready source of clean drinking water, as the river ends in a large pool enclosed within the fortress itself.
Thus, strategically-speaking, Fort Ko'Var is a natural chokepoint which provides the only way past these obstacles, both natural and man-made. Tactically-speaking, the ground surrounding the fort is wide open, providing little cover except for a handfull of foothills that could be used as staging grounds and observation posts.

THE ROAD:
The road which makes Fort Ko'Var so vital runs directly through the mountain in a tunnel just to the west of the bulk of the defenses; this tunnel is capped on both ends by reinforced blast doors rated to withstand at least some punishment from anything we have at our disposal, and is furthermore enclosed by 2 of the 3 defensive tiers of the fort.
We can also assume the tunnel is rigged to blow at the defenders' discretion. Should this happen, the only road connection will be through the heart of the fortress itself, as there are connections on either side of the tunnel, winding up and then down an extensive series of switchback roads that would expose any vehicle to near-endless plunging fire from above. Needless to say, simply ignoring the fort and it's occupants is not an option if we wish to use this highway.

THE TIERS:
Fort Ko'Var is comprised of 3 main defensive tiers, each partitioned by 3 heavily-fortified walls. all of these are complete with bunkers, observation towers, and massive defensive hardpoints that make them formidable obstacles for any attacker, but each also has its quirks and weaknesses that might be exploited.
The outer wall is comparable to a hive city's curtain wall, at least in construction if not in sheer thickness. It rises above the 1st, lowest defensive tier on a gentle slope; this tier is largely home to Fort Ko'Var's rank and file barracks, commodities and maintenence facilities.
The inner wall is less a true wall, and more of a permacrete-reinforced cliff that rings around the 2nd Defensive Tier. The only way up without climbing is a handful of personnel entrances and the 2 roadways, one north and one south. This tier houses the primary vehicle and equipment storage facilities, additional support infrastructure, the secondary artillery batteries, the commoner prison facilities, as well several passageways leading to the road tunnel and beyond.
Lastly, the Final Citadel is not a wall at all, but is instead a massive, adamantine-sheathed, armored plateau that sits at the very top of Fort Ko'Var, complete with countless weapons portholes, pillboxes, a partial mote, and a miniature voidshield enveloping it. Inside this last bastion is the fortress's command center, essential supplies storage, the VIP prison facilities, the majority of the fort's munitions storage capacity, and on top of it is positioned a ring of anti-aircraft emplacements as well as Fort Ko'Var's pride and joy: her primary artillery batteries.

THE ARTILLERY:
Aside from the countless other weapons systems protecting the fort, her main method of reaching out and touching her foes with extreme prejudice is, was, and always has been her artillery. These systems come in batteries of 4 weapons each, and every gun is housed in it's own 360-degree turreted bunker.
For air cover, 8 Imperial-era Hydra Flak Batteries still play a key role in protecting the fortress, but these have been further supplemented by 2 batteries of T'au-made SAM launchers. These long-range munitions are deadly to any pilot who strays anywhere near the fort's airspace, and should not be tested lightly. The Hydra batteries, meanwhile, can also be turned towards anti-personnel duties easily enough, as well.
Onto the ground-to-ground weapon systems, the local auxilia garrison will of course deploy light artillery such as mortars, but for precise, in-close bombardments that can pack real punch, Fort Ko'Var relies on it's 5 batteries of Bombast Field Cannons; I'm sure you're all familiar with that platform by now.
But for more long-range needs, Fort Ko'Var relies on its primary armament of 4 batteries of "Earthquaker" Cannons, as the locals call them. These weapons are T'au-modified, extended-range variants of the venerable Earthshaker Cannon, and rebel reports have clocked it's maximum range with a standard powder charge at about 22 kilometers, increasing to 30 when supercharged. They pack the same firepower as an Earthshaker and, from what reports we have, roughly the same accuracy margins, as well.
Put together, all of these weapons give Fort Ko'Var a potent array of long-range fires, with which it can engage both land and air targets with ease. However, there are some hints that at least 1 or 2 of the above-mentioned systems do not have the neccesary ammunition to operate optimally. The SAMs, in particular, most likely do not have a large number of missile reloads; thus, the xenos gunners may be less willing to fire valuable missiles at something they don't perceive as a threat. Pilots, take note.

OTHER INFO:
Based on rebel reports, Fort Ko'Var is normally home to about 20,000 personnel, with 15,000 in garrison and 5,000 patrolling the mountains at any given time. However, based again on the rebel intel we have, this force has a far-larger ratio of Fire Warriors to Auxilia, something like 2 T'au for every 3 Auxilia. From this we can infer that the T'au value this installation just as much as we do, and are invested in defending it.
Unfortunately I can't get much more detailed than that; with the recent retreat of T'au troops all across the north, it could be that Fort Ko'Var is operating on a skeleton crew as manpower is transferred to other sectors, or it could be that it has been heavily reinforced by units retreating there. Therefore, be on your guard and ready to respond to any possible threat, battlesuits, tanks, superheavies, you get the idea.

OTHER DETAILS:
There are a few more things of note that I must make mention of.
First off, back to that water pool. It is located right at the easternmost point of the fort in the 1st Defensive Tier; this might be a tactical weakness in their ability to get fresh water if they were pushed back to the upper tiers, but the estern tip of the Citadel also hangs out past the 2nd Tier, over this pool and extends downward [OOC: think something like the top tier Minas Tirith], enclosing a portion of the water for the final defensive tier's personal usage.
Second, there is the main landing area. While a few smaller landing pads are scattered around the 2nd and 3rd Tiers, Fort Ko'Var's primary landing area is on the northern side of the 1st Tier, both bulging outwards and making a massive indent in the 2nd tier and the Citadel. Originally being designed for Tetrarch Heavy landers, this area is big enough to land a whole squadron of Mantas simultaneously.
Lastly, there is the escape tunnel. As shown by Imperial records, Fort Ko'Var possesses a single passageway buried deep in the mountain, leading to a secret exit somewhere west or south of the fort. However, I am informed that our new-found local allies may hold the answer to it's location, in which case I believe immediate efforts should be made to cut off this last avenure for reinforcement or evacuation.

THE PLAN:
Fort Ko'Var is a stronge defensive position, but not impregnable if approached in the correct manner. Our basic battle plan is simple enough: Task Force Liberation attack from the north, while the Taronian 8th, Praetorian 27th, and elements of the Valyrran 1st attack from the south. We crush the xenos and the traitors between us, and meet in the middle. But that is, of course, more of an outline than an actual plan, and so I'd like to offer my own thoughts on the tactics to be employed.
Fort Ko'Var's 3 defensive Tiers are very different from eachother, and thus will each require a different approach. The 1st Tier has the longest perimeter to coved, and also the least defenses; therefore, we should make our first strike fast and hard, overunning this first obstacle with haste and superior firepower. This has the added benefit of showing the enemy what we are capable of; with the traitor human Auxilia's morale breaking all across Gryllus, we may yet open up further weakpoints by forcing them to accept their inevitable defeat.
The 2nd tier is... somewhat different. Carved from the rocky cliffs themselves, it will not be possible to simply breach it as you would a traditional wall, but this particular facet opens up... another avenue of attack which myself and Major Baxton have been discussing for some time. It is risky, and as of yet we are not completely sure it is pheasible, but I believe we should consider the option of tunneling into the second tier rather assaulting up it.
The Final Citadel, quite frankly, will not be possible to capture quickly, not without a significant commitment of Astartes or other specialist forces. Therefore, unless one of the above is aquired and as much as it pains me to admit it, this final stage, at least, will most likely come to a plain and simple siege. I would recommend attempts be made to negotiate the remaining garrison's surrender and attempt to avoid needlessly wasting Guardsmen lives, but I do not think that this will bear much fruit considering the likelihood of the remaining troops by this stage being predominantly T'au.

"That concludes my briefing on Fort Ko'Var; I hope to see all of you again for our inevitable victory toast in that fortress's command center." Colonel Arvin finished up. "I would also like to give my personal thanks to Colonel Lilzton and TF Liberation, as well Captains Pekala and Vanian's Rebel Companies for providing much of this information."
"Now, with all of that said, I assume you all have questions or comments to make. The floor is now open..."

I've had this piercing for almost six months. It had been healing well. But about a week-ish ago, I wore too high pants for my mostly driving job and irritated tf out of it.
It's red and sometimes painful, mostly around the top ball of the piercing. There's some discharge, but I can't tell if it's lymph stuff or infection. There's no warmth, though.
It's pretty much always dangled this low. My piercer said it was normal.
The jewelry itself was what she pierced me with. It's implant-grade titanium and externally threaded. I use a saline spray twice a day (with the 0.9% thing). I'll sometimes spray directly and sometimes spray a q-tip if I'm removing some of the discharge.
But yeah. Do I just need to keep babying it or is it infected?

I ran 200,000 Plinko balls across five of the biggest online casinos to determine the average RTP within that threshold.
•All tests were demo mode on the highest risk with $1 balls
First let’s rank my findings from best to worst RTP %
1st - Roobet/ 105.92 %
2nd - Jackpot city/ 97.76 %
3rd - PlayOJO (PlinkoGo) / 95.50 %
4th - 7bit/ 95.21 %
5th - Stake/ 91.28 %
Roobet was by far the most consistent. Once the RTP started to dip around 90%, a couple 26x or a 130x would almost always hit and bring up the RTP.
Jackpot city was incredibly volatile. No consistency at all. RTP would sore to 500% then suddenly go dead for thousands of balls.
PlayOJO is just a cookie cutter game simulation and I feel has the most honest RNG system.
7bit acted more closely to Jackpot city, but was a little more consistent. Still too volatile to try to manage with adjusting bet size.
Stake.. My Stake.. My home away from home. Not quite sure how it scored so low because I myself have hit four 1000x balls in a single night. Plinko on Stake has felt little different recently though. I’m struggling to turn my $2 tips into $500. Up until the last few months, I’d be able to do that at least once a week.
Obviously, this is to be taken with a grain of salt. These tests are typically done with tens of millions of bets sometimes more.
I, with my scientifically declined mind, do although feel like 200,000 is a big enough number to determine an average short term RTP. Not the RTP a specific game would display over a month with many more bets than I placed.
If anyone has suggestions for an online casino game that they would like me to test, I’m open to ideas.
This was a painful 12 hours of testing.

I ran 200,000 Plinko balls across five of the biggest online casinos to determine the average RTP within that threshold.
•All tests were demo mode on the highest risk with $1 balls
First let’s rank my findings from best to worst RTP %
1st - Roobet/ 105.92 %
2nd - Jackpot city/ 97.76 %
3rd - PlayOJO (PlinkoGo) / 95.50 %
4th - 7bit/ 95.21 %
5th - Stake/ 91.28 %
Roobet was by far the most consistent. Once the RTP started to dip around 90%, a couple 26x or a 130x would almost always hit and bring up the RTP.
Jackpot city was incredibly volatile. No consistency at all. RTP would sore to 500% then suddenly go dead for thousands of balls.
PlayOJO is just a cookie cutter game simulation and I feel has the most honest RNG system.
7bit acted more closely to Jackpot city, but was a little more consistent. Still too volatile to try to manage with adjusting bet size.
Stake.. My Stake.. My home away from home. Not quite sure how it scored so low because I myself have hit four 1000x balls in a single night. Plinko on Stake has felt little different recently though. I’m struggling to turn my $2 tips into $500. Up until the last few months, I’d be able to do that at least once a week.
Obviously, this is to be taken with a grain of salt. These tests are typically done with tens of millions of bets sometimes more.
I, with my scientifically declined mind, do although feel like 200,000 is a big enough number to determine an average short term RTP. Not the RTP a specific game would display over a month with many more bets than I placed.
If anyone has suggestions for an online casino game that they would like me to test, I’m open to ideas.
This was a painful 12 hours of testing.

Today is my 8-year floxiversary. I don’t spend much time on the sub anymore–Just popping in here and there to answer questions when I can. I take this to mean that i've healed from floxing and all the many forms of pain I endured as a result. I know that stories of healing are reassuring for so many, so I want to make sure to celebrate where I’m at today by sharing my story of healing and what helped me.
In 2016 I took 4 pills of Cipro and started noticing Achilles and plantar pain pretty much right away. I didn’t realize what had happened, so on 5/14/16 I actually ran a 5k blacklight run, experiencing pain throughout the run. (My doctor didn’t tell me to avoid exercising while on Cipro). A few days later, I was bed-bound.
Since I was completely unable to walk and had full-body pain about 2 weeks into floxing, it was a rough beginning. I had almost all of the classic floxie symptoms. I felt like my whole body was falling apart or turning against me. It was very scary because there wasn't quite the floxie community there is now and there was very little information available--most of it scary!
I was bed-ridden and couldn't even get myself to the bathroom...I was desperate for any help but my doctors were baffled and even if they did acknowledge the possibility of FQ induced disability, they didn't know what to do about it.
I saw anecdotal reports of diet changes and magnesium being helpful, so I immediately cut out allergens and inflammatory foods from my diet. I took Mg and used it topically and in baths. I cut out gluten, alcohol, sugar, and caffeine. I drank a lot of bone broth and also used collagen powder and a probiotic.
My personal experience is that stress and anxiety made things so much worse. It was very difficult to not panic and I shed a ton of tears. I didn't know what it was at the time but I started noticing things that caused (what I now know as oxidative) stress really made symptoms worse, so I instinctively started to avoid them.
As the months went on, I was able to accept what was happening more and more. I started letting friends pop by to check on me. My mood lifted significantly, despite the challenges. As my mood lifted, my symptoms started improving a tiny bit. Around 3-4 months, after acceptance and getting care from loved ones, I was able to shuffle-walk to the pool at my condo (maybe 50 steps from the door).
I started by just floating in the pool, so grateful to not be in bed. After a bit, I would kick around, my weight supported by a pool noodle. After a month or so I was able to swim a bit and I started building strength. Swimming helped me walk again. If I skipped a day, it would set me back. As long as I kept swimming, I could walk short distances.
The only medical professional I found helpful was a chiropractor who uses an acupressure technique of finding bundled nerves, tendons, and muscles and releasing them through what is essentially a really strong massage. I saw him weekly for about 4 months and now go once a month. He recently passed, just a few days from his 99th birthday.
After about a year, I was feeling pretty good and have luckily done fairly well since. I still have flare ups and had a major relapse in March 2020 from the stress. I had started drinking a lot (didn't most people?!) at the beginning of the pandemic, which lasted about 8 days before I relapsed. I sometimes still wake up with sore Achilles and calves which I'm managing with foam rolling, a muscle massage gun, exercise, meditation, and staying calm.
I definitely subscribe to the “healing from floxing takes time” camp, because after 4 years of being active in this sub, I’ve seen many people come and go. People generally come here with a lot of fear and questions and we do our best to support them. Eventually, most people get better!
My life has returned to as normal and enjoyable as possible. I exercise regularly with walks, hikes, yoga, low impact bodyweight workouts, and swimming, when possible. My diet is still very strict. In the true fashion of healing more and more over time, I recently started sprinting, which for some reason doesn’t hurt as much as jogging or walking long distances. Also, I got to enjoy a trip to Japan this year where I had to walk 20k steps a day.
For me, meditation, breathing, and journaling practices are all very supportive for stress reduction. I love water, so swimming, baths, and hot tubs are all helpful, as well. Mindset is the most important thing. I have "The 5 minute gratitude journal" by Sophia Godkin that I do every morning. I practice the art of radical acceptance--being present to what is and accepting it, sometimes even welcoming the tough things that are coming my way. The path to not suffering is to let go, ya know? I like the book "Radical Acceptance" by Tara Brach and the follow up "Radical Compassion." Accepting things doesn't mean I'm not sad or frustrated when symptoms pop up here and there. But, I try to accept them and not stress, because they eventually pass. The other thing is to mindfully lean into what is good in our lives. Like my post said, I do things within my abilities, with grace for myself. This is where I have found my freedom.
Tldr: Healed from completely bedridden to about 95%. I think the keys to recovery for me were time, diet, radical acceptance, positive attitude and compassion for myself and the doctors who weren't helping, love from family and friends, supplements, swimming, rest, and meditation.

Hey everyone. So, for the last week or so, I've been trying to find some procedural generation algorithms that would work for me and a prototype that's been in the works.
After lots of searching, testing, failing...I landed on probably the laziest method I tried....Now, this is not to bash anyone doing something like this, or someone thinking of trying it. I just thought some people may find this useful when trying to find a starting point.
The Issue
I suck at math and wanted nice handmade *rooms* in our *procedurally generated* dungeons.
Dungeon Outline
The main thing that was discussed was using prefabricated rooms. We needed spaces big enough to fight numerous enemies in, as well as consider the fact that up to 4 players could be fighting in the same areas.
The first hurdle was designing spaces that are fun, but could also be used as jigsaw pieces to combine with others. Now, I am used to doing 2D projects, and have never touched procedural generation (in 3D) until now.
Here are a couple examples of the prototype rooms:
Room module #1
Room module #2
A couple things to note about the modules:

1. Each module is 128x128 cells on a gridmap, the cells are (2, 2, 2) in size.
   
2. Each module has the exact same exit/entrance locations.
   

Exits/entrances marked with red square
The Placement
Whenever a new dungeon is generated, it follows this algorithm:

1. Initialize the grid - create a dictionary of grid positions and starting values

https://preview.redd.it/cri5cbqd1g0d1.png?width=570&format=png&auto=webp&s=d4cf8b68db244f389afbc78d7c9dfa49ffb51291

1. Walk through the entire grid and generate the "absolute path" - the absolute path is stored in a separate dictionary and is used to check against the entire grid later on.
   
2. Start adding rooms - this is done using a class which stores grid position and room type. Whenever a new room is added, it is stored in an array.
   

Room class
Add room to array

1. Once the generation of the grid and absolute-path is complete, we can physically add the room modules

When a module is placed in the world, there is a 50% chance it can rotate on it's Y axis at 90deg intervals. This only rotates the grid map as well as the props placed within the module. Since all modules have their main doors at the same positions, there is no need to try and match up certain modules or do any fun math calculations...
Once the algorithm is finished, we have something that looks like this:
https://preview.redd.it/soz4gl4e2g0d1.png?width=1142&format=png&auto=webp&s=ab075456f88a03482343c502a94efbb43b1ce7d7
This is working on a 5x5 grid. The far left module is 0, and the last is on the right - the lone module one space above the rest.
terrible representation of the main path
Once this is complete, we then check all the empty grid spaces and if they're connected to a grid space that already has a module, we give it a chance to spawn "filler" or "secret" modules. These are modules that contain small puzzles, chests, cool visual pieces, etc.
Conclusion
We have found this system to be very lightweight. Although it's not the most sophisticated system, it provides different enough dungeons that you aren't running into looping dungeons - so to speak.
This example is only utilizing 3 prefab modules, and will be expanded to, well, many.
What's Next?
We plan on taking the system a step further and allowing sub-modules within each quadrant to be randomly selected. Since all of the main modules are 128x128 tiles, we can divide this into 32x32 sub-modules and have them "randomly" generated as well.
full-module split into 4
The main thing next is cutting off unused hallways. The plan right now is to write some logic into the modules themselves that find either a cutoff point where walls should be placed in the case the hallway doesn't lead anywhere, OR, just adding walls where the door should have been. Either one of these would work, although the latter solution will mean stretches of dead-end-hallways. Considering that the image above is a basic test modules consisting of a square room surrounded by short halls, this may not be much of an issue.
Additional Steps
The major thing to consider here is performance. Once the world gets more detailed, more props are being spawned, lighting, AI, VFX, it'll start to chug pretty heavily.
One upside of this system, is we've already divided the world into "chunks" - this being each 128x128 module. So based on player location on the grid, we can disable neighboring cells.
The main reason we decided to test this form of generation, was the fact that placing prefab rooms then trying to connect them with path finding was a pain in the ass. So far, it feels pretty natural running around these dungeons, main exits/entrances on each module don't feel too "square" - I think this depends massively on how you design your modules. Sometimes we create weaving hallways into more open spaces within a module, and this combined with other geometry from other modules, makes it feel pretty cool.
That's all for now, might make another post once the world is more put together. I happy to answer any questions and if YOU have any ideas on how to improve upon this, drop it in the comments!
Cheers,
bn

NOTICE: This was taken from a group chat with the participants. u/AnActualCriminal , u/avamir , u/HalfDrowShaman , u/DragonWisper56 . That's why it is weirdly formated; I tried my best.
The party enters the spirit world, that land of infinite mist where concepts have form. Last time the group had discovered the location of the Exalted beacon and now they can see the spirits domain on the horizon(?). The domain of the of the spirit is a shining citadel made of crystal and marble. There are lines of silver and gold throughout the whole compound. Light radiates like miniature sun. In place of a sun or moon floats a giant metallic eye... watching. As the party arrive they notice something, there are no shadows in this realm
Crispin: *Crispin is jostled awake by Ichor and spills out onto the ground covered in tar.*
"Eugh. What? Oh yeah. Exalted Beacon. Shit tracks."
Riva: Riva seems... ill at ease, guarded.
Crispin: *Crispin looks at the giant metal eye for a bit too long.* He get's sunspots
Riva: "Don't look into the giant lights, imp." Riva lets out a loooonng sigh.
Agnur: Agnur weaves illusion around them it would be bad if they were spotted
Drow: *the drow casts soul shadow and light eater to give herself some magic sunglasses*
Riva: Riva just squints. "Do we attempt to kill everyone, or do you think there's a possibility of converting them back from... this?" She gestures vaguely.
Agnur: They took our friend, they made their choice
Riva: "I tend to agree with you. But at the same time... killing the zealous because of the new religion they picked up isn't the greatest look."10:33 AMRiva makes some... warding circle shades? and places them on her face.
Crispin: "Let's fucking defile this place. Stupid giant sexy eyes blinding me."
Riva: Riva grimaces at the whole "sexy eyes" thing. Ugh. "Works for me. Let's do this."
Agnur: regardless of sexing eyes how are we going to get in?
As the party walks up up to a tall wall around the citadel.
Drow: I can just walk up this
Crispin: "I can fly. Lookit."
*He does, in spite of his wings looking like one of those oil spill ducks from a Dawn ad.*
Drow: *the drow walks up the walls casually* *she makes it to the top and then shoots some ephemeral ropes out of her armor, tethering them to the wall*
Riva: Riva takes a rope and begins climbing up... in a manner like Adam West Batman, admittedly. But she isn't going to ask for a memory from Crispin so she can teleport up.
Agnur: Agnur climbs up
Ichor: *Ichor slorps up a rope with peculiar viscosity as Crispin lands at the top.*
The group looks over the wall
As they do they notice how...still it is. Nothing is out of place, there is no dirt or dust, no noise or bustle. Only silence except for a few sentries. Moving through the streets are some weird creature. It is like a shadow except shadows don't exist here. The aren't light however, just not shadows. Silver "shadows" will do for now; they stalk the streets. On top of towers however sit zealot priests in pale robes, watching
Drow: "sentries. Some kind of... Silver shadow monster..." "you wanna go in hot or cold guys?"
Crispin: "I can make a distraction. Gotta call in a debt though." *Crispin rattles a bag of teeth.*
Riva: "They don't seem to be tethered to the priest but they seem kinda similar to the undead type shadow. There is something soul adjacent about them. Probably touching you does some sort of damage to your spirit." "I wonder whether killing the priests would rid us of the... spirits."
Crispin: "Guys I think we're being too thinky here. These are order guys right? All this strategy plays right into their hands." *He rattles the bag again.* "C'moooooon."
Agnur: I mean it would give us some cover...
Drow: "why don't I just sneak ahead and try to grab one of those guys first" "just make sure I have backup"
Riva: "That works for me."
Drow: *the drow begins sneaking along the wall as best she can towards the nearest priest tower*
Ichor: *Ichor clings to the outside of the top of the wall, trailing behind Drow.*
Drow is able to sneak up the tower un-noticed. The guards are spaced out because they have a giant eye in the sky( literally). She gets behind the guy and hear muttered prayer. *the drow does a series of actions in rapid succession. First she creates a bubble of mute, then she taps the man on the back making him go blind and deaf, and finally she grips him by the neck and begins choking him out*
Drow: [do we want this guy alive or dead?]
[]= telepathic cummunication
Agnur: [he can't talk if he's dead. lets get information first]
Drow: [ok let me disable him...] *the drow touches two hands to the man's head and begins dripping horrors into his mind until he passes out from fear* [ok. What do you guys want to ask him?]
Agnur: [what the fuck is he and what does he do. we need to know how dangerous he is]
Crispin: [Where's our boy? And do these shitheads know we're coming for him?]
Drow: [ok! I'll try the normal way first, if he doesn't comply I'll kill him and ask his soul] *the drow creates an illusory similacrum of herself and places it inside the man's mind, she asks his inner consciousness the following questions and listens for his answers* "hey guy, who are you?"
"You will pay infidel!!! The great and glorious Exalted Beacon will end you! Their (he goes into like a thousand titles and compliment I am not writing) will force you to kneel before them. All shall kneel before them so sayth their loyal preist and servant Atticus!!!
Drow: what does this exalted Beacon look like
Exalted Beacon is beautiful a statuesque, thirty feet tall, being made of the most stunning marble, crystal and precious metal. Their voice is a chorus, their eyes are brilliant rubies. They have a mosaic halo of gold with eyes on it. They also float above the ground because they are to good to tred upon it. The rest is repetitive praise
Drow: *within the zealot's mind he sees the drow prance about, threatening him. Then he sees the exalted beacon launch a bolt of light through the sky, exploding the simulacrum of the drow**the exalted beacon stands tall in the distance and booms at him*"I have come to save my loyal servant" "tell me thy purpose servant, so I shall have it known"
(this is an illusion)
"Thank you my master! I am but a mere secondary sentry, but one of the ones that joined you willingly unlike those plebian villagers. ( he just continues blubbering thanks)
Drow: "good! And have you been enjoying the powers you have been granted? Describe your abilities to me, compare yourself to your cohort" "you have done well. If you are worhty I shall grant you more powers"
Thank you lord. You have granted me the ability to smite those in your name with radiant light. I could fight toe to toe with the lowest of mages. I am slightly above average amongst my cohort but I serve well enough guarding the domain. I am also tasked with commanding the Vestiges of Shadow you have given me. Like hounds of war they hunt down the non-believers and drain them of energy before I can bring them to you.
Drow: "I see. How goes your training with the vestiges of shadow? Tell me every relevant detail about them"
Riva: Riva waits expectantly for him to spill the beans.
Of course master. They are made from the shadows of your prisoners at the throne. Screaming you praises for all eternity. This torment shatters there soul to create these vestiges in place of their shadows. From then on they act as loyal servants and drain the disgusting essence of show from a persons being. Without you intervention a person could not survive long without it. That shadow needs to be replaced with your energy to remain among the living.
Drow: *the drow relays this information telepathically*
Riva: [ "I wonder if their shadows, and parts of their soul, can be returned to them." "Another idea. Can you mimic a vestige, Drow? We are terrible nonbelievers, and you could bring us to this being. Once we have a way of dispelling its power, of course."]
Drow: [yes, I should be able to mimic one][he also mentioned the eternal torment of the civilians was how they separated their souls to make the shadows][if we disrupt that maybe we can have them despawn without killing the guy]
Riva: ["He said he drained the non-believers of energy before bringing them to this being... so if we can get in, perhaps we can disrupt this ritualized torture, and perhaps that would rid us of the vestiges? And perhaps drain this being of power."]
Drow: [yes my thoughts exactly. Now, for the last question]"servant Atticus. Tell me where kyrgrin is now."
Your most hated prisoner? At he very center of the citadel where you can keep an eye on him.
Riva: After relaying the information telepathically, Riva might ask Drow to ask whether Krygin was being used as a power source. Perhaps word it as some sort of test for Atticus. "Remind me, my servant... What treatment is Krygin receiving?" (Or something along those lines)
No your holiness. The prisoner's magic is incompatible with ours. You bound him everyway you could so he couldn't conspire against you. You worried that killing him wouldn't be permanent enough for your plans. Wizards have escaped death before and that welp is harder to kill than a cockroach. He is to be bound until the universe ceases to exist.
Riva: Riva makes a quiet, "Hm." And considers.
Crispin: "Checks out. He's not a powerhouse but last we saw him a fucking bomb was turning him into a puddle. Krygin's hard to kill."
Agnur: It was a fucking black whole....I love that little guy
Riva: "If this being is using his power to bind Krygin personally, I wonder if disrupting his power will free Krygin. Now to figure out how to disrupt this being's power."
Agnur: I mean if we mess up the palace it could help, or at least distract it
Crispin: "They're spirits, yeah. Purity. Order. The grosser and more chaotic we are the better."
Agnur: should we call in crispin's debt
Riva: "Ah! Yes, that would... ha. That would definitely do it. Ha ha." She had neglected the symbolism of things. And if anyone could make a mess, it'd be Crispin.
Riva + drow: With the questions done, and Atticus disposed of, Team Kryginator decides to move closer to the goal. Using Drows abilities at illusion, she feigns being a Vestige bringing the group (who pretend to be tired so to look like their energy is drained), and move closer into the area where people are being kept. [now crispin!]
Crispin: *Crispin rips open the pouch the way he opens most things. Tearing it open upside down like a dysfunctional kindergarten with a bag of dorritos, completely ignoring the draw-string.* "Been playing a lot of poker in my down-time..." *Teeth clatter onto the ground. Dozens. Each one with a name in low Sylvan etched onto it. They transform into tiny pallid creatures with gangly limbs, dragonfly-like wings, and rows upon rows of needle-like teeth.*
"I've been winning." *The tooth fairies scatter, each one set on either harassing a guard or knocking over something expensive.*
The giant eye focuses on the distraction and the party feel the energy of the domain shift aggressively. The tooth fairies will likely be driven off but it will certainly distract everyone. Guards from across the citadel converge in this area. The group moves at a light jog; *Crispin strolls languidly until Ichor picks him up and moves at a better clip*
*the drow vestige leads the pack hoping that the other guardians will let her through* The party charges through the gates. The guardians are too distracted to pay close attention to the vestige and entourage
Agnur: Agnur cuts himself and draws runes of corruption on the wall ever once in a while. The runes cause the walls to pucker like wounds as the natural energies of this place try to fight off the intrusion.
Ichor: Ichor leaves a trail of tar
The party sees the prisoners as they reach the "throne room". It is like a giant colosseum like structure. The Exalted Beacon floats in the center eyes closed; it hasn't noticed you. Around the room are hundreds of people in various states of torture such as having silver bars impaling someone. The blood runs like rubies in here. It should be discussing but something makes it beautiful. All of them ar screaming praise and begging for release. The influence of this place is makes what should be discordant noise into a choir. Silver shadows prowl but currently accept you as prisoners.
Patrolling a silver shadows with priest overseeing them.
Drow: Drow sneaks behind a priest while invisible. *the drow tries to grab him and swiftly stab him in the heart. She plans on taking his form and turning him invisible simultaneously* A invisible body drops down quitly. *for now, the drow simply takes her post and waits for the right time to issue some more interesting commands*
Riva, Ichor and Crispin hide. Crispin is in the form of a rat
Agnur: Agnur activates his Teumessian pendant and starts sneaking around. when agnur reaches one he tries to club them to death as quietly as possible. His pendant warps fate so no one is looking; he bashes a mans brains in and tries to hide the body. He dies before he can scream
Crispin: *Crispin transforms, shrieking at the top if his lungs like a baby on fire, lugung at one if the priests. The shriek is pitched and sustained specifically to counteract the choire-like atmosphere of the room.* The blood sprays across the room.
Drow: Drow gives the shadows contradictory orders to confuse them
Riva: Riva concentrates, and draws a circle. Unlike the vast majority of ones she done, however, this is strangely... green? This is very much not her affinity, but she knows the basic forms. And from this circle, she calls on the Alseid clans of the Earthen planes. Unlike a fire elemental, she doesn't bind it to her will directly, but rather asks and *pressures*.*If successful, some of these looking dudes/dudettes/etc. bound from the circle. Riva would direct them to release the hostages, Unbinding them from Thews of Earth (silver), and heal them." The Alseids have a green glow which pushes against the natural energies of the citadel.
Asleids( nice earth elemental adjacent dudes)
The Exalted Beacon starts to wake from it's trance. As this is happening Agnur notices a false wall of crystal which he deduces Krygin is behind.
Agnur: Teleports over to the wall but finds no way of opening it.
Drow: *the drow continues concentrating on the shadows, trying to get them to help break more chains* *she drops her illusory shadow and instead creates a bubble of sensory deprivation around the exalted beacon* *trying to stall it's awakening*
The "shadows" help confused but do so. Some blink out of existence as they free the human they were made from.
Ichor: *Ichor spews themselves as much as possible. Spattering the room.*
Agnur: I summon bram and he starts hitting the wall with the force a earthquake. I impower him. The crystal starts to break but it accelerates the Beacons notice
Ichor: *Ichor readies to surge at the beacon like a geyser the instant it becomes aware. They're likely not strong enough but they can hold attention.*
Drow: "Someone get a big portal ready! We gotta get kyrgin and these civs out" *she mentions the civs to appease the others but does not care at all about them*
Agnur: Agnur takes bottled rage and pours it into bram to increase his attack power
A red glows around Bram and his blows triple in power. Soon the wall will break. The Beacon wakes and tears through the illusion and the halo flares! "Who intrudes on my domain"
Riva: Riva tries to portal the civilians out of the crumbling tower, back to somewhere outside where she's been before. It's a little strange in this realm, but she shuffles them out as quickly as she can. And has one of the Alseid's go out with them to try and heal the wounded and keep them moving. Riva gets ready to crank out a bigger gate for Krygin...
The civilians try to escape as quick as they can. Every peson saved seems to dim the Beacon's glow
Ichor: *Ichor surges forward and Crispin lights the tar with a firebolt. A geyser of flaming tar would slam into the Beacon like a locomotive.*
The Beacon slams against the other side of the room but grabs at Ichor. It's touch burns( though because Ichor likes fire it is more of an acidic burn) "Do you Challange a god!!"
Drow: *with all the civs freed, the drow releases her other illusions and pulls out her spell grenade launcher. She launches a ball of incendiary darkness at the pillar*
Agnur: I enhance the runes I places around the castle to weaken it
The darkness slams into the wall and it shatters and the walls shake as the walls start to corrupt
Ichor: "BalaNCE MUsT bE rEStOReD!!!" No one but Krygin really speaks primal tar, but that's what they say
Crispin: *Meanwhile Crispin is saying every swear word he knows at the top of his lungs. Every obscenity. Every vile act one can do to a hole. Fulness and impurity of another kind.*
As the smoke clears Krygin is revealed. Krygin "sits" boneless with silver chains around his wrist. He sits in a circle of salt surrounded by a circle of pure water.
Agnur: Agnur uses a piece of Sorrowsore to pollute the water
The Beacon begins shooting flashes of divine energy at Ichor while a translucent "reflection" of it appears before the rest of the group and punches the ground before disappearing
Drow: *the drow goes invisible and prepares to bolt. She leaves behind 3 illusory duplicates to continue fighting*
Ichor: *Ichor can't take much more. They try to hurl the Beacon into a wall and retreat. Too much Tar has been used up.*
The Beacon is slammed into the wall leaving a crater. The beacon begins to charge up a divine blast.
Riva: *Riva kind of... kicks some corpses over at him(Krygin)? Can he eat that? Us that to reconstitute himself? while she redirects the Alseids to poop on things, kick over the salt, and piss into the pure water.* *Kicks corpses at Krygin. She'll try and open a portal once he's able to... uh... move? Slither?*
As soon as Krygin can slither he slides forward a a burger on grease and swallows the corpses whole like a a snake. Bones shift under skin. He isn't 100% but he can walk now
Crispin: "I missed this repulsive fucker."
Drow: *the drow runs next to the portal and launches an ephemeral rope at kyrgin, grabbing and pulling him like a child down a slip and slide to the portal* *her other clones try to distract the beacon while she does"
Krygin: "Wait what?! AHHHHHHHHHHHHHH"
Several reflections of the beacon strike at illussions. Shattering the area around them
Ichor: *Ichor doesn't have time to grab a corpse. Headed for a portal. Crispin grabs some deer poop, ignites it, and throws it before fleeing.*
drow: *the drow grasps the weird slime creature they just saved and falls backwards through the portal like a trust fall*
Agnur: Agnur summons up all his rage greif and desperation from the past while and pours it into a curse. calling favors from fae, demon, spirit and monster he brings rot and decay to the pure. bram carries him out
Riva: *Riva keeps the portal open until everyone is out, then tries to snap it shut.
At the last second the beacon grabs the portal; not magically just pulling reality open but then Agnur's curse hits them like a truck. So hard in fact that a small piece of crystal fractures. The Beacons cries in pain and the portal closes.
Drow: Hey job well done guys. Where are we riva? *the drow immediately takes out some tea and begins sipping*.
They were in an Ithicar hospital.
Ichor: "LAWyeR. ArE yOU All rIGhT?!"
Krygin: Krygin shakily stands. "I'm ... free. I'm free. I'M FREE!!!!" He tries to jump for joy but hurts himself. He gives Ichor a goopy hug
Riva: Riva thanks the Alseid's in greek, and they make appropriate polite noises in their ungulate sorts of ways, and disappear.
Drow: Hey krygin, nice to meet you. I'm your savior, the Drow.
Krygin: The just looks at drow with the placid expression of a frog. "Sure, I'm used to dealing in favors"
Drow: *score, the drow thinks* Also Riva. You owe me too! The rest of you... We should get drinks later
Crispin: "Waaaaay ahead of ya." Pulls out a bottle of medical alcohol and drinks
Drow: *the drow taps his alcohol bottle with her tea vial*
Riva: "Sigh. I'll add it to the tab."
Krygin: "I... must... throw a feast!" "You are all invited!"
Riva: "Glad to see you back, Krygin."
Krygin: "I'm glad as well Riva
Crispin: "You just ate a corpse!"
Drow: Don't act like you've never eaten a corpse crispin. I know I have
Crispin: "Not a whole one! I'm small!"
Riva: "There is much to catch up on." Riva doesn't mention the Pact being mostly empty, and Krygin probably being the only one left to fill a position, EON, Belial's disappearance and reappearance, the assault on Lemarcia, etc. etc.
Krygin: (he needs to catch up on so much. He doesn't even know about sorrowsore!) "Yeah, I was gone for a long time"
Agnur: "we're just glad your back." He says as he rest a kind hand on Krygin's shoulder
El Fin
/uw Here's a big shout out to the players of this post! They were great. I can't belive Krygin's been gone for two months!!!! I was going crazy!!
Also not kidding about the feast. In a few hours of posting this.