TL:DR: I recently tried Fragrance Revival. They can’t match worth anything and seem to be slapping names on bottles to take your money. Classic bait and switch and few scruples. Order through Paypal as they can’t be trusted. They never even acknowledge they are advertising something that smells nothing like they claim and seem to be pasting form letters as responses.
The Long Read: I recently bought something advertised as “Body Shop Wood Musk Type” from their website, which offers an “instant refund” Hi. I just got my order and it smells NOTHING like Body Shop wood musk. it smells heavily floral and cloyingly of roses.
First Refund Request: I can’t even breathe it’s horrible. On the off chance this was an error, you are welcome to send the right one. otherwise, please refund me immediately.
First Response: Hello,
Thanks for reaching out to us.
We are dedicated to replicating or reviving the fragrance you love. Our scent experts gave it their best shot. However, we understand that replicating a scent can be tricky, as some people like the duplication while others do not.
To ensure you get the perfect fragrance, we'd love to offer a few options:

1. We're happy to try replicating the fragrance again at no additional cost to you. You can send us a sample, or describe the scent and what you feel is missing in the current version.
   
2. Alternatively, you can choose any fragrance you like from our collection, completely free of charge. You're welcome to keep the original product as our way of saying thanks.
   

No matter which option you choose, you get to keep the product(s) absolutely free! Consider it a gift for choosing us.
We're committed to your satisfaction. Please let us know which option you prefer, or if you have any other questions, and we'll be happy to help!
Second Request: Hi. I chose a scent from your collection that you specifically named body shop wood musk. Hence, I figured that you would know what it smelled like since you advertise it. Nobody can currently get a sample of it, which was why I was hopeful. What you sent me smelled highly floral and of roses. What musk was very herbaceous, fresh, and forest woodsy with a hint of ambergris, and something else, that I could not replicate. This is not even close to what that smells like which is why I thought it must be an error. If that’s not the case, I would like a refund because there is no hope of matching it. If you don’t already know what it smells like.
you really should take that name off your page because what you’re offering is not even close. I can’t believe that you’ve sold this and have not experienced this response before. Which is concerning. Anyone who is familiar that could tell you that it’s not close. It’s been off the market since the 90s, I’m sure you’ve had plenty of opportunities to perfect it
Will take the option listed on your website, which was a full refund. I could not give away the cent you gave me to to anyone without insulting them. No offense intended, but it truly smells awful. I am not allergic to anything or sensitive to things, but it gave me a headache and was overpoweringly awful.
NO RETURN NEEDED INSTANT REFUND POLICY. Who does that? We do. After being in business for over 10 years we figured out it’s the only way to successfully and ethically run this business.
If you are unable to match it, please refund. Per your policy, above.
Second Response: Hello
Thank you for getting back to us.
We understand the new scent might not be exactly what you were hoping for. Nobody likes a fragrance miss!
But, before you go, we'd love another shot at getting it right. We've learned that fragrances can react differently on each person, and we want to recreate the scent that you'll love.
Here's what we can do:
You don’t need to send us a sample. Just simply tell us what you liked about the original scent and what you didn't like about the new one. We'll use this feedback to create 1-3 small samples tailored to your preferences.
Choose the one that works for you, and we’ll use its formula on a new order equivalent to the original to be shipped to you (you can keep the original bottle too!).
If you're still not happy, a full refund is always on the table. Let us know how you'd like to proceed, and we'll get started on creating your perfect scent!
Best Regards,
Raphael Customer Service Fragrance Revival
Third Request: Dear Raphael:
Thank you for responding. Regarding your request for a description, I literally did that in the email you replied to:
“What you sent me smelled highly floral and of roses. What musk was very herbaceous, fresh, and forest woodsy with a hint of ambergris, and something else, that I could not replicate.”
My concern is that you market this product as “Body Shop Wood Musk Type,” implying that you know what this product smells like already and the fact is you don’t and scent me a product that isn’t close with the apparent intent to get my money and send me something I don’t want.
This is a classic example of “bait and switch.” In addition, you state:
NO RETURN NEEDED INSTANT REFUND POLICY. Who does that? We do. After being in business for over 10 years we figured out it’s the only way to successfully and ethically run this business.
And yet, even though I clearly gave you an opportunity to make it right by sending the correct scent, which any scent expert would know does not match and would realize by my description that the scent provided that you market as “Body Shop Wood Musk Type” is clearly either an an honest error or a deliberate deception, based on your company response most reasonable people would conclude the latter as no expert perfumer in good conscious could claim this scent resembles in any way what you advertised.
In short, neither the scent nor your claim to provide an “Instant” refund have been realized.
Please refund my purchase per your policy by close of business Monday, June 10th.
Respectfully,
Me
https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/topics/truth-advertising
We shall see what happens. If they don’t refund, I’ll request a refund through Paypal. I’m also filing a complaint with the FTC.

Synopsis:
An engineer from earth blends science and magic to achieve greatness in another world where skills and levels reign supreme.
—
Ethan was just a plain old engineer, but everything changed when he was reborn into a world of skills, levels, and magic. With his advanced knowledge far ahead of the time period he finds himself in, this new reincarnated life will be much different than his last, especially because he can construct, deconstruct, and reconstruct runes—something no one else can do.
But with royal politics, looming tax collectors, a mountain of debt, dungeon incursions, cults, and hostile fantasy races mixing together into a cocktail of bullshit that threatens to bury his dreams; Ethan must bridge the gap between steel and sorcery to grow stronger. — What to Expect:
- Weak to very strong progression with a Sword & Magic MC that kicks a whole lotta ass. - Fast pacing. A balance of action galore, politics, kingdom building, and slow-burn runecrafting. - Fun, satisfying moments. An extra shot of happiness when reading. Hardcore wish fulfillment. Hyper competent MC. - MC will trigger an industrial revolution, abolish slavery, revolutionize magic, modernize agriculture, communication, commerce, textile production, education, transportation, sanitation, weapons manufacturing, leisure & entertainment, and medicine. - Dark truths of a medieval-esque society going under change.
Join my Discord Server to have chat, bother me, ask me questions, or just genuine fun really - https://discord.gg/d57v5upvcx
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Chapter 10

Ethan surveyed the men before him, schooling his expression. Cedric was one of his advisors, a lean man, taller than the average in Holden, and wiry, but with the unmistakable long and callused fingers of someone well skilled with a bow. It was odd to see such features, but Ethan wasn’t one to point it out or talk about it. A perpetual worried crease etched between his brows; he shuffled a stack of parchments.
Beside him, Roland stood with a hand on the pommel of his sword—a habit Ethan had grown accustomed to. Leaning back, Ethan opened his mouth.
“Alright, gentlemen. Let’s get through this.”
Cedric cleared his throat. “First, my lord, the harvest report.” He unfolded the top parchment. “The rains were late this year, my lord. We’re looking at a significant shortfall in barley and oats.”
Ethan frowned. “Roland,” he switched focus. “The scouting report on the bandits? Has Sir Thomas revealed something? What about the brigands?”
“Sir Thomas has been tight-lipped. The brigands have been bolder, my lord. Spotted them harassing farmsteads near Holden’s western border.
“Have we identified the culprits?”
“No, my Lord. But they seem organized, well-equipped. Too well-equipped, I might say.”
Ethan drummed his fingers on the desk. This wasn’t your typical ragtag group of cutthroats, that much was clear. “Some sort of a group, then.”
“Yes.”
“Mobilize a patrol. Set a few archers down range. Kill the bandits on sight, we can’t have them acting bolder.”
Roland nodded, his chin bobbing, face emotionless.
“Any other news? Have we received word from the neighboring barons regarding the proposed trade agreement?” Ethan asked.
“Yes, my lord. Sir Jack informed me that one of his ravens returned this morning; he says they spotted two men bearing the crest of the crown—”
“Tax collectors,” Ethan interrupted. “They should already be in Siez by now, then.”
Siez was a city two weeks’ ride from Holden.
“Well then, we must do something about the harvest,” Ethan murmured. He had some ideas, but all of them would require money.
“As for trade... Everyone has denied, like usual. Lord Ashton has been with Holden since Lord Baelgard’s death, but even he appears hesitant now. Cites concerns about the quality of our goods.”
“Hmm. Excuses.” Ethan sighed. “He doesn’t want to work with us anymore. He’s likely receiving pressure; I don’t blame him. I’ve offended quite a lot of nobles in my... teen years.”
Ethan cleared his throat. “We’ll send another sample,” Ethan decided, his voice firm. “Along with a personal letter outlining the benefits of trade with Holden, only this time, including soap; I’m sure he’ll latch onto the opportunity if he has some foresight.”
Ashton was playing politics, but they couldn’t afford to alienate their only potential trading partner.
The rest of the morning was spent in a similar vein—discussing minor squabbles amongst the populace, a few dead bodies that were reported, potential repairs needed on the crumbling town walls, and other matters regarding Holden.
***
Ethan entered the space sectioned off by iron grills inside the quarantined house in the outskirts of Holden. Covering his in a mask, he stepped over the grills, into the open hall with rows of beds lining both sides. He was here to take a look at the patients and if they were getting treated. They were. Undoubtedly. Some even showed signs of recovery. They stood up spotting him, then bowed.
“Lord Theodore! What an honor!” A woman said, then burst into tears holding onto her daughter’s hand. “Thank you for letting me live, Lord.” She sobbed as she buried her face on the sleeping child.
Ethan frowned, feeling uncomfortable. They hadn’t gone past their third stages of the disease. They weren’t even on their second one. That was why it’d been easier to treat them.
“Yes, my lord,” a man joined them, speaking. “You’re the only noble that’s spared us peasants a glance. Truly, thank you.”
Feeling even more uncomfortable, Ethan gently placed a hand on his shoulder. “I only hope you all get better.”
They smiled as he smiled back through the mask. Ethan quickly made his way out, then furrowed his brows as he met Miller outside. “Miller, why have you not pulled out those that have recovered? Letting them stay inside would only get them infected again or cause their condition to worsen.”
Miller’s face turned white. “My—my lord, but—but we cannot just remove them!” He took a deep breath. “If we let them go, they could infect others in Holden. If those infected catch wind of their neighbors recovering, wouldn’t they try to force their way into quarantine just to get healed and recover?” His eyes turned shifty, showing some sort of apprehension and panic.
Ethan glared. “Miller, you’re smart, are you not?” He narrowed his eyes. “Get them out of here, as soon as possible. I ordered everyone infected be brought in, logistics be damned! I’m paying it out of my pockets! You need not worry about those that might be infected. What do you even mean? We’re constantly on the lookout, if we found someone, they’d be here already.”
“Yes, about that, my lord,” Miller said nervously, looking away. “People fear. Many would rather stay quiet than let others know if they’re infected. Plus, it’s easier said than done. My men would get attacked. Anyone can get killed easily, they’re not Classed. or a large horde of desperate people might push forward in an instant.”
Ethan didn’t say anything. Gulping, Miller continued.
“And, my men are too few. There are not enough men to patrol and get the affected. Not to mention people would riot against it, fearing their loved ones are getting slaughtered for some ritual and that there’s no salvation. Especially given that a few dead bodies have been found recently,” Miller bowed, swallowed. “Forgive me for saying this, my lord, but people do not trust you.”
Miller slumped against his chair, staring at the ceiling. Ethan silently took his seat, thinking over what Miller had said. In the end, he could only sigh. “Get every infected here, do not worry about aurums.” It costed a lot of money—aurums—to get people treated. However, it wasn’t that much. Taking a moment to gather his thoughts, Ethan changed the subject. “Miller,” Ethan said. “How’re tests going?”
Miller frowned, a finger on his chin as he hummed thoughtfully. “We’ve encountered an issue; mostly with the later stage tainted. We’d expected it, too, however, we need some kind of a solution.”
“What issue?”
“Their skin is rotting; we cannot just have them use soap and hot water to keep clean. There needs to be something to address their wounds directly, first.” Miller sighed. “A [Healer], perhaps. But they’re expensive, my Lord. I am not sure if that is what you would want. Not to mention, another issue is that Sir Jack has yet to build something he calls nexus—he says you would know what that is. He’s currently using himself as said nexus, but says he would need to talk to you on that matter later to figure out some solution.”
“Is that so?” Ethan hummed, reclining back into his chair. Hiring a [Healer] would indeed be a pain. He was already paying Jack quite the sum each day, not to mention the [Beast Tamer] he’d had to hire to take care of Wynd. If he were to hire a [Healer] now, it would make a dent on his pockets that he wouldn’t be able to recover from. Not to mention, he needed to worry more about the financial situation now—the tax collectors would be arriving sooner or later, and the Merchants Guild would want their debt paid with interest. He couldn’t be stuck in a rut of indebtedness forever.
That said, soap would be excellent for the majority of the populace, the only time there would be an issue would be when someone’s already at the stage where their flesh starts to rot. If there were something, he had to consider it*... Are there alternatives?*
Unlikely.
Ethan took a breath, then leaned back into his chair, steepling his hands. What do I currently need?
Money. Money would solve a lot of his issues. Ethan hummed, stood up, then turned on his heel and walked out. Before getting out, however, he looked over his shoulder. “Tell Jack to keep working on updating the base spell. Make it more efficient, if possible. Leave the rest to me.”
I’ll figure something out...
He needed to—he wanted to.
Roland stood outside the carriage, and as he saw Ethan approaching, he turned to him. “My Lord.”
“Roland, let’s go,” Ethan said, grabbing the carriage’s handle, pulling the door open, and climbing inside. “We have work to do.”
“As you wish, my Lord.”
Reclined against the cushioned seat of the carriage, Ethan hummed. The solution to getting more money was rather simple.
My masterpiece needs to hit the market. Ethan smiled.
***
Ethan settled into a routine; he’d wake up with the first rays of sunlight filtering through his window. He’d stretch, and feel the satisfying pops in his back before heading outside to find Wynd already waiting for him, tail wagging excitedly. They’d take a brisk run through the dewy field. Ethan would spend a good hour playing with Wynd. The [Beast Tamer] Grandma Millie had a natural connection with Wynd, and Ethan was learning to understand how to handle a wolf under her guidance. Ethan knew that Wynd wasn’t quite a normal magical beast, heck, he was sure that Wynd would sooner or later hit some kind of magical puberty that’ll sky rocket his intelligence and allow him to speak or whatever, but regardless of everything, learning how to handle him was a good move. He was, after all, quite like a pet right now.
Regardless, he’d practice the [Elemental Spells] he knew: fire and water.
One day, he finally leveled it up.
[Elemental Spells] — Lvl 9 -> Lvl 10!
Warning: Level cap for [Elemental Spells] reached; satisfy the conditions to upgrade [Elemental Spells].
Interesting. Ethan thought, rubbing his chin. However, given that there was no information, he was confused so as to how to satisfy said conditions. I will figure it out, he shrugged, for now, I need to learn the other elements first.
Aside from that particular day’s highlight, his routine would continue as usual. After a satisfying breakfast, it would be time to get down to business. He’d perfected the basic soap recipe, and now it was time to ramp up production. With the success in making the first batch of soap, and the thought of making money, quick, in his mind, he’d started working extra hard to get more soap made. He found himself busier than ever. He’d sit in there for hours and create rune motes after rune motes. One by one, they’d materialize on top of his palms, swirling tiny fireflies.
Just like usual, one particular day, he was creating rune motes.
Ten… twenty… thirty… his brow furrowed in concentration.
Forty… fifty… and then, sixty rune motes. [Basic Rune Creation] skill leveled up, too, and a satisfied grin spread across his face the two times it did level up.
[Basic Rune Creation] – Lvl 5 -> Lvl 6!
[Basic Rune Creation] – Lvl 6 -> Lvl 7!
The number of motes he could create and the speed at which he did it had noticeably improved after each level. It drained his mana reserves daily. He’d often find himself with a dull ache behind his eyes, but he’d pushed on regardless, ignoring the beginnings of a headache and sometimes it’d blow into a full-blown migraine due to his stubbornness.
One such afternoon, as he slumped, massaging his temples, an idea struck him.
“Meditation,” he murmured. Perhaps focusing his mind inward, like calming a churning lake, could help manage his mana pool. It was usually like that in those novels he used to read back in middle school.
The first few days were frustrating. He sat cross-legged on a cushion, eyes closed, trying to clear his mind, but his thoughts kept flitting back to the ever-growing pile of soap base and the dwindling supply of rune motes (Jack hadn’t disappointed him, after all; the man was fast and his money’s worth, if not more. In fact, Ethan found it harder to keep up). Just as he was getting frustrated, a warmth bloomed within him, a gentle hum that resonated deep within something he could only describe as a core. He cracked open his eyes, a surprised gasp escaping his lips.
A notification appeared before him.
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Berfenw / Verb-noun	Ystyr / Meaning	Bôn y ferf / Verb stem
acennu	to accentuate, to stress	acenn-
achredu	to accredit; accreditation	achred-
adalw	to recall, to summon back, to revoke, to repeal	adalw-
ad-dalu	to repay	ad-dal-
ad-drefnu	to reorganise, to rearrange	ad-drefn-
adfeddiannu	to repossess, to regain	afeddiann-
adleoli	to relocate	adleol-
adlynu	to adhere	adlyn-
adsefydlu	to rehabilitate; to re-establish, to reinstate	adsefydl-
aduno	to reunite	adun-
adwerthu	to retail, to resell	adwerth-
afradloni	to waste, to squander, to spend extravagantly	afradlon-
angori	to anchor	angor-
ailadeiladu	to rebuild	ailadeilad-
aildrefnu	to rearrange, to reorganise, to restore	aildrefn-
ailddarganfod	to rediscover	ailddarganfydd-
ailddatblygu	to redevelop	ailddatblyg-
ailddefnyddio	to reuse	ailddefnyddi-
ailddosbarthu	to reclassify; to redistribute	ailddosbarth-
ailenwi	to rename	ailenw-
ailethol	to re-elect	ailethol-
ailfeddwl	to rethink, to change one's mind, to reconsider	ailfeddyli-
ailgartrefu	to rehouse, to rehome	ailgartref-
ail-greu	to recreate	ailgre-
ailsefydlu	to re-establish, to rehabilitate	ailsefydl-
ailstrwythuro	to restructure	ailstrwythur-
ailwampio	to revamp	ailwampi-
allbynnu	to output (in computing)	allbynn-
allforio	to export	allfori-
alltudio	to deport, to exile	alltudi-
allyrru	to emit, to give off	allyrr-
amaethu	to cultivate	amaeth-
amgodio	to encode (computing)	amgodi-
amgryptio	to encrypt	amgrypti-
amgylchynu	to surround, to encircle, to encompass	amgylchyn-
amharchu	to disrespect	amharch-
amlinellu	to outline, to sketch	amlinell-
amseru	to time, to date, to take your time	amser-
andwyo	to spoil, to ruin	andwy-
anesmwytho	to become or make uneasy, anxious or restless, to disturb, to disquiet	anesmwyth-
anfarwoli	to immortalize	anfarwol-
animeiddio	to animate (make an animation)	animeiddi-
anweddu	to evaporate, to vaporize, to produce steam	anwedd-
anwylo	to cuddle, to caress, to cherish, to endear	anwyl-
apwyntio	to appoint	apwynti-
aralleirio	to paraphrase, to reword	aralleiri-
arallu	to make changes, to alter; to alienate, to estrange	arall-
arddweud	to dictate (for transcription)	arddywed-
aredig	to plough	ardd-
arolygu	to survey, to inspect	arolyg-
asesu	to assess	ases-
atafaelu	to confiscate, to seize, to distrain	atafael-
atalnodi	to punctuate	atalnod
atgyfodi	to resurrect, to revive	atgyfod-
atodi	to append, to attach (document etc.), to add to	atod-
awdurdodi	to authorise, to empower	awdurdod-
awyru	to air, to ventilate, to aerate	awyr-
baldorddi	to talk nonsense, to babble, to prattle	baldordd-
beichio crio	to sob	beichi-
betio	to bet (money)	beti-
bigit[i]an	to provoke, to annoy, to pick a quarrel, to nag (De Cymru)
bipian	to bleep, to beep	bipi-
blaguro	to form buds, to put out shoots, to sprout	blagur-
blaseiddio	to flavour, to season	blaseiddi-
blingo	to skin, to flay	bling-
blysio	to crave	blysi-
bod gan rywun	to have, to possess
bod wrth eich bodd yn / gyda	to love, to be in one's element (doing / with)
bod yn edifar gan rywun	to regret
bod yn well gan rywun	to prefer
boddhau	to please	boddha-
boneddigeiddio	to gentrify; to ennoble	boneddigeiddi-
botymu	to button	botym-
braenaru	to fallow, to prepare for cultivation	braenar-
bragu	to brew (with malt)	brag-
brechu	to vaccinate, to inoculate	brech-
bridio	to breed	bridi-
britho	to go grey (of hair or beard), to dapple, to speckle, to fleck, to mottle	brith-
brodio	to embroider	brodi-
bronfwydo	to breastfeed
buddioli	to benefit, to profit	buddiol-
bwrw cenllysg	to hail (weather) (Gogledd Cymru)	bwri-
bwrw cesair	to hail (weather) (De Cymru)	bwri-
bwydo ar y fron	to breastfeed
byddaru	to deafen, to become deaf	byddar-
byrddio	to board	byrddi-
byrhau	to shorten, to abbreviate
byseddu	to finger	bysedd-
bywhau	to animate	bywha-
bywiocáu	to enliven
cadwyno (wrth)	to chain (to)	cadwyn-
caethiwo	to enslave, to addict	caethiw-
cafflo	to cheat (De Cymru)	caffl-
calchu	to lime	calch-
camdreiglo	to mutate incorrectly (grammar)	camdreigl-
camgymryd	to mistake	camgymer-
camsefyll	to be offside (in football, rugby etc.)
camymddwyn	to misbehave, to commit misconduct	camymddyg-
canlyn	to follow; to court	canlyn-
canoli	to centralize, to focus, to mediate	canol-
carco	to care, to take care of, to mind; to be thrifty (De Cymru)	carc-
cardota	to beg (for alms)	cardot-
carthu	to purge, to clean, to muck out animal dwelling	carth-
castio	to cast (especially in an acting part); to play tricks	casti-
catalyddu	to catalyse	catalydd-
cefnu ar	to turn one's back on, to forsake	cefn-
cenhadu	to propagate (message / faith), to conduct a mission, to proselytise	cenhad-
cenhedlu	to reproduce (offspring); to conceive (offspring)	cenhedl-
ceulo	to clot, to coagulate, to congeal	ceul-
ciwio	to queue	ciwi-
clatsio	to strike, to hit (De Cymru)	clastsi-
clatsio ymlaen	to crack on, to persevere (De Cymru)
clau	to clean (De Cymru)
clocsio	to clog dance; to make or repair clogs	clocsi-
clochdar	to cluck, to cackle, to boast
clodfori	to praise	clodfor-
cloffi	to become lame	cloff-
cloncan	to chat, to natter, to gossip, to prattle (De Cymru)	clonc-
clustnodi	to ear-mark	clustnod-
clwydo	to roost	clwyd-
clytio	to patch	clyti-
cnoi cil	to ruminate (chew cud, also figurative), to think over	cno-
coethi	to refine, to purify	coeth-
colledu	to cause loss to, to damage	colled-
conan	to grumble, to complain (De Cymru)
condemnio	to condemn	condemni-
costrelu	to bottle	costrel-
creithio	to scar	creithi-
cribddeilio	to extort, to plunder, to take by force	cribddeili-
cribinio	to rake (Gogledd Cymru)	cribini-
crisialu	to crystalize	crisial-
croeshoelio	to crucify	croeshoeli-
croesholi	to cross-examine, to cross-question	croeshol-
cronni	to amass, to collect, to gather (together), to accumulate; to dam up	cronn-
crosio	to crochet	crosi-
crychu	to wrinkle, to crimp	crych-
crygu	to stammer, to grow hoarse	cryg-
cuddio rhag	to hide from
cwmpasu	to encompass, to circumscribe	cwmpas-
cwnnu	to raise, to put up, to rise (= codi, o cychwynnu) (De-ddwyrain Cymru)
cwrcwd	to squat, to crouch	cwrcyd-, cyrcyd-
cydlynu	to cohere, to stick or cling together, to form a whole	cydlyn-
cydweithredu	to co-operate	cydweithred-
cydymffurfio	to conform	cydymffurfi-
cyfannu	to make whole or entire, to unite, to integrate	cyfann-
cyfanwerthu	to sell wholesale	cyfanwerth-
cyfeddach	to carouse (b) [unusually, this verbnoun is feminine]; carousal
cyfeilio	to accompany (with music)	cyfeili-
cyflyru	to condition	cyflyr-
cyfodi	(form of codi) to lift, to rise, to raise	cyfod-
cyfosod	to place together, to juxtapose, to combine	cyfosod-
cyfrodeddu	to intertwine, to twist together	cyfrodedd-
cyfrwyo	to saddle (horse)	cyfrwy-
cyffesu	to confess (especially religiously)	cyffes-
cyhwfan	to wave, to flutter, to heave	cyhwfan-
cylchdroi	to rotate, to revolve	cylchdro-
cymedroli	to moderate, to temper	cymedrol-
cymodi â	to reconcile with	cymod-
Cymreigio	to make (more) Welsh	Cymreigi-
cymudo	to commute (travel)	cymud-
cymynnu	to bequeath	cymynn-
cynllwynio	to conspire	cynllwyni-
cyplysu	to couple	cyplys-
cysegru	to consecrate	cysegr-
cysodi	to type-set	cysod-
cysoni	to regularize, to harmonize	cyson-
cystuddio	to afflict	cystuddi-
cywasgu	to compress	cywasg-
c[y]weirio (S)	to mend, to put in order	cweiri-
chwerwi	to become bitter	chwerw-
chwilfriwio	to smash to pieces, to shatter	chwilfriwi-
chwyldroi	to revolutionize	chwyldro-
chwyrlïo	to whirl	chwyrlï-
dadbacio	to unpack	dadbaci-
dadlaith	to thaw [out] (De Cymru)	dadleithi-
dadlennu	to uncover, to unveil, to reveal, to expose	dadlenn-
dadrithio	to disillusion, to disenchant, to restore to original shape or form	dadrithi-
dallu	to blind, to become blind	dall-
damsang (ar)	to trample (on) (De Cymru)	damsang-
darfudo	to convect (heat in physics)	darfud-
dargludo	to conduct (electricity, heat in physics)	darglud-
dargyfeirio	to divert, to redirect, to diverge	dargyfeiri-
datganoli	to decentralize, to devolve	datganol-
datgarboneiddio	to decarbonize	datgarboneiddi-
datglymu	to untie	datglym-
datgoedwigo	to deforest	datgoedwig-
datgomisiynu	to decommission	datgomisiyn-
datgymalu	to dislocate, to disjoint, to take to pieces, to disassemble	datgymal-
datsgriwio	to unscrew	datsgriwi-
dedfrydu	to sentence (in court)	dedfryd-
deddfu	to legislate, to enact, to decree	deddf-
dengid	(= dianc) to escape (Gogledd Cymru)	dihang-
deigrynnu	to shed tears	deigrynn-
delfrydu	to idealize	delfryd-
deor	to hatch (egg etc.), to hatch out; to brood, to incubate	deor-
deud	(= dweud) to say (Gogledd Cymru)
diarddel	to expell, to excommunicate, to disown	diarddel-
diarfogi	to disarm	diarfog-
diasbedain	to resound	diasbed-
dichon	(= gallu) to be able (formal)	dichon-
diddyfnu	to wean	diddyfnu-
diengyd	(= dianc) to escape (Gogledd Cymru)	dihang-
difrïo	to revile, to denigrate, to disparage	difrï-
difwyno	to spoil, to mar, to defile, to pollute	difwyn-
differu	to differentiate (calculus)	differ-
diffygdalu	to default (on debt repayment)	diffygdal-
digolledu	to recompense, to indemnify, to compensate	digolled-
diheintio	to disinfect	diheinti-
dihoeni	to languish, to pine, to fade away, to wither	dihoen-
dihysbyddu	to drain (liquid from), to empty, to exhaust	dihysbydd-
dinoethi	to strip, to make bare	dinoeth-
diosg	to take off (clothes / shoes), to undress, to strip; to divest, to cast off	diosg-
diota	to imbibe, to booze, to tipple
diraddio	to degrade; to dismiss	diraddi-
dirprwyo	to deputize, to appoint a deputy; to act as a delegate, deputy or representative	dirprwy-
distewi	to be, keep or become silent, to silence, to hush	distaw-
distrywio	to destroy	distrywi-
distyllu	to distil, to drip, to fall in drops	distyll-
diweddu	to end, to conclude, to finish	diwedd-
diwydianeiddio	to industrialize	diwydianeiddi-
dodwy	to lay eggs	dodw-
dogfennu	to document	dogfenn-
dreifio	to drive	dreifi-
dryllio	to break to pieces, to shatter, to wreck	drylli-
dweud y drefn wrth rywun	to tell someone off
dyddodi	to deposit (layer of sediment, fat), to precipitate	dyddod-
dyfeisio	to invent, to devise	dyfeisi-
dyfnhau	to deepen	dyfnha-
dyfrio	to water, to irrigate	dyfri-
dylunio	to design	dyluni-
dylynu wrth	to adhere to, to cling to	dylyn-
dynesu	to approach, to draw near, to come nearer	dynes-
echdynnu	to extract	echdynn-
eilio	to plait, to braid, to interweave; to compose (song or poetry)	eili-
eilio	to second	eili-
eilunaddoli	to idolise	eilunaddol-
eneinio	to anoint	eneini-
enllibio	to slander, to malign	enllibi-
eplesu	to ferment	eples-
euogfarnu	to convict, to find guilty	euogfarn-
euro	to gild	eur-
ewyllysio (i)	to will	ewyllysi-
ewynnu	to foam	ewynn-
ffansïo	to fancy	ffansï-
ffieiddio	to abhor, to detest, to loathe, to hate; to be digusted at, to be revolted by	ffieiddi-
ffromi	to be angry, to rage, to fume	ffrom-
ffrwtian	to splutter (also of engine)	ffrwti-
ffrwythloni	to fertilize (impregnate), to become or be fruitful	ffrwythlon-
ffyrnigo	to become angry or enraged, to grow fierce	ffyrnig-
gaeafgysgu	to hibernate	gaeafgysg-
galarnadu	to lament	galarnad-
gefeillio	to twin	gefeilli-
geirio	to express in words, to word	geiri-
gellwng	to allow to go, to let, to permit, to leave to, to release	gellyng-
glasu	to turn blue	glas-
gloddesta	to revel, to carouse, to feast; (g) revelry, carousal, feasting
glynu (at)	to stick (to), to glue	glyn-
godinebu	to commit adultery, to fornicate	godineb-
goddiweddyd	to catch up with, to catch fugitive, to overtake	goddiwedd-
gogoneddu	to glorify, to extol	gogonedd-
gohebu	to report, to correspond	goheb-
goleddfu	to slope, to slant; to modify (in grammar)	goleddf-
goresgyn	to gain possession of; to overcome, to defeat	goresgyn-
gori	to brood, to sit on eggs	gor-
gorlenwi	to overfill	gorlanw-, gorlenw-
gorweithio	to overwork, to cause to overwork	gorweithi-
gorwneud	to overdo, to exaggerate
graeanu	to grit (road etc.), to spread gravel over	graean-
grilio	to grill (food)	grili-
grymuso	to strengthen	grymus-
gwamalu	to be frivolous, to waver	gwamal-
gwangalonni	to lose heart, to become discouraged; to discourage	gwangalonn-
gwarafun (i)	to forbid, to prohibit; to prevent, to hinder, to deny; to begrudge, to resent	gwarafun-
gwarantu	to guarantee (a product etc. by agreement)	gwarant-
gwastatu	to level, to make level or even	gwastat-
gwawrio	to dawn	gwawri-
gwelwi	to grow pale	gwelw-
gwersylla	to camp	gwersyll-
gweu	to weave, to knit	gwe-
gweud	to say (= dweud) (De Cymru)	gwed-
gwledda	to feast, to revel	gwledd-
gwreichioni	to spark, to emit sparks	gwreichion-
gwrteithio	to fertilize (with manure, compost etc.)	gwrteithi-
gwrthdystio	to protest, to remonstrate; to give counter-evidence	gwrthdysti-
gwrthryfela	to rebel, to revolt	gwrthryfel-
gwrychio	to bristle	gwrychi-
gwyngalchu	to whitewash	gwyngalch-
hadu	to sow, to produce seed	had-
haeru	to insist, to assert, to allege	haer-
halltu	to salt	hallt-
hamddena	to spend time at leisure, to relax, to take respite	hamdden-
haneru	to halve	haner-
hunanasesu	to self-assess; self-assessment	hunanases-
imiwneiddio	to immunize	imiwneiddi-
impio	to graft; to implant; to (cause to) bud / sprout	impi-
inswleiddio	to insulate (in a technical sense)	inswleiddi-
integru	to integrate (calculus)	integr-
israddio	to downgrade, to demote	israddi-
labelu	to label	label-
llabyddio	to stone (cast stones at)	llabyddi-
llaesu	to slacken	llaes-
llafnrolio	to rollerblade	llafnroli-
llafurio	to toil, to labour, to strive	llafuri-
llanw	(=llenwi) to fill (De Cymru)	llanw-
llawenhau	to gladden, to make cheerful; to rejoice, to be cheerful	llawenha-
lleisio	to voice	lleisi-
llên-ladrata	to plagiarize	llên-ladrata-
llesgáu	to languish, to become feeble, to feel faint	llesga-
llethu	to overwhelm, to swamp, to stifle, to crush, to overpower	lleth-
llewyrchu	to shine, to give light, to gleam; to be successful	llewyrchu
llochesu	to harbour, to shelter	lloches-
lloffa	to glean	lloff-
lluniadu	to draw (in a technical sense)	lluniad-
llurgunio	to distort (facts, the truth), to mangle, to disfigure, to corrupt	llurguni-
llwydo	to turn grey, to go mouldy	llwyd-
llwyfannu	to stage (theatrical or musical performance); to appear on stage	llwyfann-
llwyo	to spoon out, to ladle out	llwy-
llyfnhau	to make smooth, to level, to polish	llyfnha-
llyfnu	to harrow; to smooth	llyfn-
llythyru	to correspond by letter, to write letters	llythyr-
maglu	to snare, to trap	magl-
magu pwysau	to put on weight
malurio	to smash (to bits), to pulverize	maluri-
manwerthu	to retail	manwerth-
marchogaeth	to ride a horse	marchog-
martsio	to march (to make a marching movement)	martsi-
masnachu	to trade	masnach-
medi	to reap, to harvest	med-
meddalu	to soften, to become soft	meddal-
meddyginiaethu	to medicate, to treat medically	meddyginiaeth-
meiddio	to dare, to venture, to presume	meiddi-
meindio	to mind, to care	meindi-
meintoli	to quantify	meintol-
meiriol	to thaw, to melt	meiriol-
melynu	to become yellow; to make yellow or golden	melyn-
melysu	to sweeten	melys-
melltithio	to put a curse on, to curse	melltithi-
mercheta	to chase wowen, to womanise, to flirt	merchet-
merlota	to go pony trekking
methdalu	to be bankrupt, to be insolvent; bankruptcy	methdal-
mewnfudo	to immigrate	mewnfud-
moduro	to motor, to drive	modur-
modylu	to modulate (in physics)	modyl-
moelyd	to overturn (turn vehicle etc. upside down), to topple (De Cymru) (from "ymhoelyd")	moel-
moli	to praise (in worship / adulation)	mol-
morgeisio	to mortgage	morgeisi-
morio	to voyage by sea, to sail	mori-
morthwylio	to hammer	morthwyli-
mudferwi	to simmer	mudferw-
mudo	to move, to migrate, to move something from one place to another	mud-
nadu	to prevent, to hinder, not to allow	nad-
naddu	to shape with a sharp tool, to chip (at), to hew, to whittle, to trim, to carve	nadd-
negyddu	to negate	negydd-
nodweddu	to characterize, to be characteristic of, to distinguish	nodwedd-
nychu	to become weak or feeble, to waste away, to pine; to make weak, to enfeeble	nych-
nyddu	to spin (wool, yarn), to wind, to twist	nydd-
odi	to snow (Gogledd-ddwyrain Cymru)	od-
odli	to rhyme	odl-
olynu	to succeed, to follow (in succession)	olyn-
optimeiddio	to optimize	optimeiddi-
paldaruo	to talk nonsense, to blather (Gogledd Cymru)	paldaru-
parablu	to utter, to say, to speak, to babble	parabl-
parlysu	to paralyse	parlys-
paru	to pair	par-
pasteureiddio	to pasturize	pasteureiddi-
peillio	to pollinate	peilli-
perffeithio	to perfect	perffeithi-
picedu	to picket	piced-
pilio	to peel	pili-
piltran	to potter about, to fiddle (Gogledd Cymru)	piltr-
pistyllio ['r glaw]	to pour with rain	pistilli-
plagio	to plague, to afflict, to annoy, to pester	plagi-
pledio	to plead (in law), to offer as excuse or justification	pledi-
plicio	to peel, to pluck (feathers), pluck stringed instrument	plici-
plisgo	to shell, to peel, to exfoliate	plisg-
plismona	to police, policing
plymio	to dive, to dip, to sound (for depth), to plunge (into); to plumb	plymi-
poblogeiddio	to popularize	poblogeiddi-
pontio	to bridge, to span	ponti-
portreadu	to portray, to represent	portread-
prinhau	to become scarce, to diminish; to make scarce, to restrict, to curtail	prinha-
priodoli	to attribute, to ascribe	priodol-
prisio	to price; pricing	prisi-
puro	to purify, to refine	pur-
pwrcasu	to purchase	pwrcas-
pwyllgora	to hold, frequent or attend committees
recriwtio	to recruit	recriwti-
rhacanu	to rake (De Cymru)	rhacan-
rhagdalu	to prepay	rhagdal-
rhagfynegi	to predict (in a technical sense)	rhagfyneg-
rhaglennu	to program; programming	rhaglenn-
rhamantu	to romance; to romanticize	rhamant-
rhechain	to fart	rhech-
rhefru	to babble, to rant, to scold, to complain	rhefr-
rheibio	to seize by force, to ravage, to plunder; to bewitch, to cast a spell on	rheibi-
rheoleiddio	to regulate (control indirectly through rules, processes or effects)	rheoleiddi-
rhicio	to score (a scratch or notch), to notch, to groove	rhici-
rhincian dannedd	to gnash / to grind teeth (especially from rage)	rhinci-
rhoid	(= rhoi) to give, to put, to place (Gogledd Cymru)	rhodd-, rhoi-
rhwydo	to net	rhwyd-
rhychu	to crumple, to crease, to wrinkle, to become rumpled; to cut trenches / furrows / grooves	rhych-
rhyfela	to wage war, to war	rhyfel-
rhynnu	to suffer from cold, to freeze; to cause to be freezing cold	rhynn-
saernïo	to fashion, to construct, to build (as an artisan; also figuratively)	saernï-
samplu	to select or capture samples (in a technical sense)	sampl-
sarnu	to trample on, to spoil, to spill	sarn-
sboncio	to bounce, to spring	sbonci-
sbrotian	to rummage, to nose about	sbroti-
seboni	to soap, to lather; to soft-soap, to flatter	sebon-
segura	to idle, to laze	segur-
sengi (ar)	to tread (on), to trample on	sang-
Seisnigo	to Anglicize	Seisnig-
selio	to seal	seli-
serennu	to shine like a star, to sparkle, to twinkle, to shine brilliantly, to dazzle	serenn-
sganio	to scan (in a technical sense e.g. with a machine)	scani-
sglefrfyrddio	to skateboard	sglefrfyrddi-
sglefrolio	to roller skate, to rollerblade	sglefroli-
sgleinio	to gleam, to shine (be or make shiny), to polish	sgleini-
sgrinio	to screen (for disease etc.)	sgrini-
sgriwio	to screw	sgriwi-
sgwrio	to scour (clean / polish by rubbing), to purge	sgwri-
siffrwd	to make a rustling sound, to shuffle (cards etc.)	siffryd-
sleifio	to wriggle, to steal past, to slink, to creep	sleifi-
sleisio	to slice	sleisi-
smentio	to cement	smenti-
snorclo	to snorkel	snorcl-
sodro	to solder, to fix firmly in place, to place firmly	sodr-
steilio	to style	steili-
stelcian	to skulk, to stalk, to prowl, to lurk	stelci-
stido bwrw glaw	to pour with rain (Gogledd Cymru)
stilo	to iron (De Cymru)	stil-
straffaglio	to struggle	straffagli-
stryffaglio	to struggle	stryffagli-
stwna	to potter about, to fiddle about
suro	to sour	sur-
swatio	to crouch, to squat; to cuddle, to snuggle (up) in bed	swati-
sychlanhau	to dry clean	sychlanheu-, sychlanha-
syflyd	to budge, to move, to stir	syfl-
syfrdanu	to stun, to stupefy, to amaze, to astound	syfrdan-
syrffedu	to suffer from a surfeit, to feel fed up, to overindulge, to be bored stiff	syrffed-
taeru	to insist, to assert, to argue, to disagree	taer-
taflunio	to project (an image)	tafluni-
taranu	to thunder, to sound with thunder	taran-
teilwra	to tailor	teilwr-
teneuo	to thin (out), to dwindle	teneu-
tirlenwi	to landfill	tirlenw-
tonni	to undulate, to form waves, to oscillate, to surge up, to fall in waves (of hair)	tonn-
traddodi	to deliver (verdict, speech, sermon); to hand down, to hand over, to transfer	traddod-
traethu	to talk, to narrate, to relate, to speak (publicly)	traeth-
trafaelio	to travel; to labour	trafaeli-
traflyncu	to guzzle, to gobble up, to devour	traflync-
trawsgyweirio	to change key, to transpose, to modulate (in music)	trawsgyweiri-
treiglo	to mutate (grammar); to roll	treigl-
treio	to ebb, to drain away	trei-
tresio bwrw glaw	to pour (thrash) with rain
tresmasu	to trespass, to encroach, to infringe	tresmas-
troedio	to tread, to step	troedi-
trosleisio	to dub, to do a voice-over	trosleisi-
trydaneiddio	to electrify	trydaneiddi-
trydar	to tweet, to chirp, to twitter	trydar-
tryledu	to diffuse (in physics and chemistry)	tryled-
trysori	to treasure	trysor-
twrio	to rummage, to burrow (= tyrchu, turio)	twri-
tyllu	to make a hole or holes [in], to dig, to bore, to drill, to perforate	tyll-
tyrru	to pile up, to amass, to throng	tyrr-
tystio	to testify, to witness	tysti-
unioni	to straighten, to put right, to redress	union-
wado	to beat, to strike (De Cymru)	wad-
wyna	to give birth to lamb, to lamb
ymbarchuso	to make oneself respectable, to become respectable	ymbarchus-
ymbellhau (oddi wrth)	to distance oneself (from), to go further away	ymbellha-
ymdoddi	to integrate (into society); to melt, to dissolve, to merge	ymdodd-
ymdrochi	to immerse oneself (in water, or figuratively), to bathe	ymdroch-
ymdynghedu	to swear an oath, to vow, to pledge	ymdynghed-
ymddiddan	to converse, to chat, to speak	ymddiddan-
ymfudo	to emigrate, to migrate, to move (house)	ymfud-
ymgeleddu	to care for; to cherish, to succour, to provide shelter / comfort / food	ymgeledd-
ymgodymu	to wrestle, to grapple	ymgodym-
ymgolli	to lose oneself	ymgoll-
ymgreinio	to grovel, to prostrate oneself, to wallow	ymgreini-
ymgrymu	to bow, to stoop	ymgrym-
ymgyfarwyddo	to get acquainted with, to familiarise oneself with, to get used to	ymgyfarwydd-
ymgynnull	to assemble, to congregate, to gather together	ymgynull-
ymhél â rhywbeth	to be involved with something	ymheli-
ymhelaethu	to elaborate, to expand on	ymhelaeth-
ymlwybro	to make one's way, to wander	ymlwybr-
ymofyn	to seek, to desire, to want	ymofynn-
ymrafael	to differ; to disagree, to quarrel, to wrangle	ymrafael-
ymresymu	to reason, to think logically, to argue	ymresym-
ymryson	to compete, to contend, to quarrel	ymryson-
ymsefydlu	to establish oneself	ymsefydl-
ymsuddo	to sink, to submerge, to immerse oneself	ymsudd-
ymwrthod	to abstain (from), to refuse, to reject, to forsake	ymwrthod-
ysgafnhau	to lighten (load, weight)	ysgafnha-
ysglyfaethu	to prey upon, to plunder	ysglyfaeth-
ysgwyddo	to shoulder	ysgwydd-
ysigo	to sprain, to buckle (distort)	ysig-
ystreulio	to rinse	ystreuli-
ystwytho	to make or become supple	ystwyth-

I really, really want to pursue my Master's in History or Public History. I am looking at MTSU.
I graduated from college in 2020 with a degree in Multimedia Production. I did my thesis on the history of Shrek and its effect on popular culture and animation.
Before this, I was in Architecture School for three years. I had significant issues with the program, so I transferred schools and got a degree to be out in eight years. I have roughly 50 history credits across music, art history, urban planning, the classics, and holocaust studies. I also have letters of recommendation from a university president, a friend who works in policy here in Nashville, and a professor who is a leading expert in their field, and a current c-suite exec at my company.
The problem lies in my writing samples. I have zero. When the pandemic hit, both of my UG institutions went through a wiped the drives of any alum. Since I was unemployed, graduated, and going through it, I did not think to save any of my papers, which sucks, because I had some absolute bangers. I do a lot of research and reports in my current role, but my ass would be grass if I shared anything with an outside party. Writing samples are a required part of the applicant package.
What does one do in this situation?

¡Hola estudiantes! Buenos días! Welcome to Spanish Saturday! It's the day of the week where we deepen our Spanish knowledge a bit more than before. How was your week? I hope it was fine. Today, we're learning about likes and dislikes. Let's begin.
But first, ¿Qué hora es? - What time is it? On my clock, it is 11:42 AM. So in Spanish I'll say, "Son las doce menos dieciocho de la mañana." Now it's your turn. What time is it? Say it out loud.
So continuing on with our lesson, we're learning about likes and dislikes in Spanish. What do you like to do? Answer in English. I like to read. I like to surf the internet. I like to cook. Persons also talk about their likes and dislikes in Spanish, and we shall explore that concept today.
To indicate what you like to do, use the following expression in Spanish "Me gusta + infinitive." The infinitive is a form of the verb that ends in either AR, ER, or IR. Spanish has three types of verbs. Each verb ends in one of the three previously mentioned endings, AR, ER and IR. For you to say what you like to do, the phrase "Me gusta" means "I like" (literally "It pleases me") and the infinitive form indicates what you would like to do.
For example, one can say, "Me gusta leer". This means "I like to read." We have an example of an ER verb in Spanish, as leer ends in the letters E-R. Leer means "to read." "Me gusta leer" means "I like to read" or literally, "It pleases me to read."
Below are some helpful infinitive verbs that you can use to describe your likes.

1. Cocinar - to cook
   
2. Dormir - to sleep
   
3. Hablar - to talk
   
4. Jugar - to play (a sport)
   
5. Tocar - to play (an instrument)
   
6. Correr - to run
   
7. Cantar - to sing
   
8. Bailar - to dance
   
9. Escribir - to write
   
10. Navegar - to surf (the internet)
    

Okay.
Your first assignment is to create a photo story listing five activities that you like to do in Spanish. You are to go online and download five images that represent activities that you like to do, and write one sentence in Spanish that explains what you like to do. For example, you may download a photo of a woman cooking and write, "Me gusta cocinar." (I like to cook). You are to do this activity five times. If one of your activities is not listed above, feel free to use the internet and find the infinitive form (ends with AR, ER or IR) to create your sentences.
One sample response to the question above? Me gusta coser. - I like to sew.
Okay.
Conversely, you can say what you do not like to do. To say what you dislike doing, use the following sentence construction in Spanish, "No me gusta + infinitive" (I do not like ....) or literally (It does not please me to ...) For example, "No me gusta correr," (I do not like to run).
Now you are to do a similar exercise as the one listed above. You are to compile a photo story of five photos found online of activities that you do not like doing. You are to download the pictures and write one sentence in Spanish saying that you do not like to do this activity using the sentence construction, "No me gusta ...." Don't forget to use the infinitive form of the verb. (It must end in AR, ER, or IR.)
One sample response to the question above? - No me gusta bailar. - I do not like to dance.
We shall continue the lesson on likes and dislikes in our next class, including asking persons directly what they like and dislike doing.
For today's home-work, you are to write out ten sentences highlighting activities that you like doing, and ten activities that you dislike doing (that have not been listed here) in Spanish. That means you are to go online or to your Spanish dictionary and find ten new verbs and create sentences expressing your likes and dislikes.
For today's Culture Corner, we're learning about the coca leaf, a Latin American plant that is the source of cocaine. A video on the coca leaf is attached below https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2nV8GoTaWuE Coca: The World’s Most Addictive Plant
And that does it for today's Spanish Saturday. I hope it went well. I hope you left today's class with more Spanish knowledge than before you started. Remember, it takes 40 minutes of daily Spanish practice to improve your knowledge. So get to it. Until next time, ¡Vámonos!

Naga Soft-Support:
I usually test her on every single patch. Got 75 games on her in support and some in offlane role at 42% winrate. Picking her is basically soft-griefing. I think she's actually in a worse state since all other heroes are 15% stronger and Naga's Deluge is basically a sidegrade to Rip Tide.
Deluge facet is ok now, you can sustain it after the B-letter patch with a null talisman. Her ult together with shard is absolutely cracked as a save, but unfortunately it comes with a 140s cooldown. It's also too easy to grief your team unintentionally or even if you use it correctly they will still flame you. People get tilted regardless of how you use it really.
I've seen people talk about using Ensnare and Deluge in lane, but you should always skill Illusions for lane. Illusions are way too good to pass up. I'll leave this example right here just to illustrate how obnoxious illusions are at bodyblocking and you can shave off big chunks of HP if they don't respect you. It's a multifaceted tool for dragging, blocking, trapping, killing couriers under tower, you can block the wave for your mid, deny runes, scouting. Heck you can stack 4 camps with illusions. Creativity is the ceiling with illusions.
Deluge Build: Null > Treads > Rod > (Shard) > Aghanim. You still need some right-click to clear waves after using Deluge and Treads is the most efficient item to do that.
Rip Tide Build: Null > Brown Boots > Diffusal > Dagger > (Shard). You can slap in an Orchid if you want.
I'm not saying these are the best builds, but it's the best ones i've found because who even plays her as a supp? Items is the problem, there simply aren't any 1500-2000 gold items for agi supports. So you're looking at an item pool of: diffusal, orchid, rod, shard, dagger. Aghs is too expensive in most games. Meteor used to be good on her when it was 2500, but now it's 3500.
Overall the main problem hindering her as a support will always be her abysmal damage contribution. You can see it here, where even in a game i won my contribution is miniscule. So i seriously doubt she'll ever really be viable unless she gets free damage somehow. She does have some story as a support/jungler with Aui playing her in the past. It is possible to play her jungle lvl 1 now (match ex), someone griefed me when i was playing offlane doing this. If you can somehow play suicide lane 1v2 i wouldn't call it bad, but it's not suited to pub game climate.
Of naga's alternative playstyles level 1 jungling seems like the most interesting options.
Rating: F-tier - not recommended unless you like losing MMR. Good counterpick vs Disruptor only.
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Sven Soft-Support:
The barrier facet is strong, very strong, but it doesn't really change that much when Sven is a god awful support to begin with. Maxing warcry is a no-brainer. The rest of his kit is just bad though. Stun's too short, cleave does nothing until later on and ult is too weak at lvl 6 for a hero without items. I've maintained an even streak of 6W - 5L (ranked games only). Even if this is a nice w/r stat, I'm playing below my regular MMR and when i play other heroes the games feel free, where as Sven is like an uphill battle.
Items: Mek/Crest/Shard/Vlad/Drums - Stacking a bunch of dirtcheap survival items seems to be best on him. Later into the game i think Armlet is good if you need damage, as you only use ult in several small 5 second windows and because of that the drain doesn't matter.
Overall great against purely physical drafts, but if the enemy mid is magical, Warcry barrier is so bad.
Rating: E-tier - playable, but not good. Has a strong niche vs physical.
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Terrorblade Soft-Support:
Zapping people down to 1 HP with Condemned sounds like a lot of fun, but it's clunky as hell to play. And sometimes you'll wander randomly into things that one-tap you while at low hp. For me one of those things was tormentor aura lol. The items you want are too expensive and overall it feels like planets need to align for this kind of strategy to work. From my experience immortal games are too fast paced for you to afford any of the items you want (armlet, dagger, dagon, shadowblade, etc)
I think the better play is to just play TB support like we did a few patches back with drums, treads, (yasha), orchid, vlads and other utility items. Then slowly transition into cheese as the game progresses.
Rating: D-tier - The hero is at least viable if you just build him like normal utility support.
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Jakiro Soft-Support /w Diffusal:
No yeah this is just bad. Kept thinking to myself, "i could have dealt more damage and done more just by being alive if i had save items". The hero is not boasting a huge winrate in the first place either.
Rating: F-tier
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Void Soft-Support - Timezone:
Tried one game, MoM, Treads, Drums, Dagger.
Main issues: Can't farm at all, you have no wave shove. MoM is nowhere fast enough to farm with.
The ult might be good, but 1 good spell doesn't make 1 hero good.
There is also this joke, it gave me a good laugh.
Rating: F-tier
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Underlord Offlane - Right-Clicker Cleave
So this is perhaps the best build i've found and it's pretty straight forward. Cleave facet with Mask of Madness. Pit lvl 1, aggro a lot and fuck with the enemy's right-clicks if they are melee. Pit gives you a lot of free hits as they have to choose to contest last hits or not get hit. Max atrophy. Wether you want to go Pit or Firestorm doesn't really matter, though Pit doesn't scale well. Cleave from aura will be faster for farming than Firestorm so just use that and save your mana. You only need 50+ stacks to really get rolling. I mostly use Firestorm to stack with.
The build is simple Bracer(s) > Treads/Phase > Mask of Madness. Anything else is up to you. MoM's usefullness will wear off eventually so just dissassemble it for some other items.
You get sustain, the right-click can range anywhere from 200 to 500 atk dmg and the cleave aoe is screenwide (This is right after MoM). You can clear ancient stacks with a few stacks.
Ideally you have some teamates that can start fights first or doesn't mind getting initiated upon like Lifestealer, Morph, etc. This is so you can always maintain high aura stack count and just ULT right on top of the enemy team with like 300-400 dmg just start cleaving away. If this is not the case, then itemize as if you would get initiated upon.
It's usually best to buy standard Underlord items after MoM. As there is a major con to continuing down the right-click path. If your team is starting to lose, it gets harder and harder to maintain high base atk as you have less space to work with. Right-clicking is also more investment heavy than say Auras+Firestorm items because anti-kite gear like BKB, Aghs and Harpoon cost more.
I tried carry Underlord, but it doesn't work because you get kited and Atrophy stack dmg is too variable.
Rating: A to C - honestly have no idea because sample size too low and i don't generally play the hero, but the farmspeed feels incredible.
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Lina Magic Soft-Support
Lina support is not new, but she's been in a bad spot for almost 4 years after Fiery Soul changes. I felt like she was back in 7.35. So i kinda just want to put it out there that she's good again. The burning facet is a no-brainer, it's just more damage. As the map is larger, there are more creeps (this is your sweetspot), supports are actually allowed to farm now and she's good at taking advantage of that. Her item pool also has strong items like: eul, crest, lens, null talisman, dagger, shadowblade, shard. Her counters are also almost non-existent save for Nighstalker and maybe Nyx.
Skills: Stun lvl 1 > Dragonslave max > A Value point in Fiery Soul for farm purposes.
Item Build: (x2Branches, Nade, Faerie Fire, x2 tangos, circlet) > Manaboots+Wand > Eul/Lens > (Shard) > Crest > Aghs/Hex
You have almost infinite sustain if you just backpack eul and crest before using manaboots.
Shadowblade is also a strong consideration if you lack initiators and have something like Dark Seer or SK who want to follow up rather than lead in. Think of it as a scouting item, the duration is long that you can just walk in and linger in farm spots.
Gameplay is easy, right-click non-stop in lane (ex), from max range. Stun when carry tries to last hit. Wins every single lane as long as you respect your own limits and don't stray too far from your offlaner. You effectively repress the enemy's ability to play offensively, giving your offlaner (whatever shitty pick it might be) a good lane. Doesn't matter if they have LS vs your Pudge, you will win lane. Same for fights, throw spells and back off when on cooldowns. Eul, crest and passive makes you both fast and deceptively hard to kill. Io lanes are the only ones where you should leave lane and go make stack for yourself or someone else. Lina is terrible at rotating, but she's so good at pressuring that rotations usually come your way instead.
Rating: B-tier
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Here's my Dotabuff https://www.dotabuff.com/players/19696934, usually hang around 5.900 MMR. I have burned around 500-800 MMR playtesting various shit like in this thread.

I've been a fan of his work ever since his first sample-free album, "水に流す". Back then he was still relatively unknown, and was still mostly making sample-based music. He went on to release three more sample-free albums before taking a bit of a hiatus. These albums usually revolved around a simple, common theme, like driving along a road at night, floating in the sky, or a summer that lasts forever.
His early sample-free work felt so touching and personal, a lot more grounded. I like to call these first four albums the "classic era". When he released his fifth sample-free album, "我思う、ゆえに我あり", something just felt a little off. By the third song, you could already tell he was going in a more "experimental" direction, a trend that would continue on in his discography. Don't get me wrong, it was a great album, and for the most part the overall upbeat and energetic style was a nice change of pace, but it just doesn't hold up as well as his first few albums.
Following this release came one of his most notable works, "新世界の弟子たち". While still taking a radically different approach than the classic era, it managed to blend elements of what made his early work so great with his new experimental style. Definitely one of the highlights in his discography. Shortly after, he released his seventh sample-free album, "ピアノの独り言". At first glance it appears to harken back to his early work, after all it is titled "piano soliloquy", and the album cover solidifies it as essentially a love letter to the instrument itself, but something about it just felt more sterile and forgettable.
While there were a few great songs on it, overall it just felt hit-or-miss, like something crucial was missing. The general tone of the album just didn't feel nearly as personal, and I think this is where his discography really started to go downhill. After another hiatus came a tape-only release, "シュロップシャーの景色". This album came the closest to recapturing the classic era, "a collection of aural images dedicated to the natural beauty of places I visited" according to desert sand. It definitely felt much more personal, and it being a tape-only release served as the album itself being a physical memento. As you listen through the album, you can feel his inspiration shining through in every track. This concluded what I like to call the "maturation era" when desert sand still seemed to be attempting to develop a specific sound but couldn't really decide which direction to go in.
After another hiatus, he released his ninth sample-free album, "သေမင်းတမန်". A departure from his typical all-Japanese titles, it was already apparent that this is was going to be an intentionally experimental release. It seems to take a vastly different approach than any of his previous work, including new sounds and techniques never before used, as well as focusing on a darker subject matter, "messenger of death". Personally I wasn't a big fan of this album at all, while it's good to try new things and experiment, this album was too different than any of his previous work for me.
Following that, he released "暗涙に咽ぶ". I'll admit, I've never sat down and given it a proper listen, but at the same time I've grown too tired of his new style to really want to. This album seems to continue the same trend, as do his next two collaboration albums. Suffice to say, I like this "experimental era" the least, there's just something missing in it that made his early work so charming and special and I hope one day he can return to his classic style. While it may not be for everyone, I'm sure there's some fans who enjoy or even prefer the new direction he's going in.
What are your thoughts on his work?

TLDR - I lived at IT for my freshman year and worked there as an RA my sophomore year. Management is unprofessional, negligent, incompetent, and employs predatory strategies when it comes to charging and collecting money. The building has issues with maintenance, security, and community. They treat their residents and employees like shit. I cannot recommend you live there.
Please chime in with any anecdotes you can add.
I lived at Illini Tower for two years, one as a resident and one as an RA, so I can offer plenty of insight regarding the goings on of the building. Here are my experiences.
Year 1 – Freshman, Resident (2022-23)
I chose Illini Tower (IT) as a freshman because it was, at the time, actually cheaper than university housing, it is well situated on campus (close to my classes on South Quad, close to Main Quad, and it is close to Green Street), and, based on the tour, seemed like a very nice building. I didn’t have a standard for dorms, so I didn’t know how my experience compared to that of others until I made some friends living in university housing. I did not meet my RA until November and there were no events held for the first 75% of the year (until the end of the spring semester when upper management was there to help with leasing, and they needed to put on a good face). What this means is there was pretty much no community, one of the things that I know lots of people are looking for their freshman year as they come to a new place with new people. I recognize that this had more to do with my RA specifically than the building itself, but it also means that the RA’s were not held to a high standard and were not required to do anything; something that I can’t hold against my RA because I know being a student is a full time job, and if you’re not required to plan and host events, I can’t blame them for not doing it. On the topic of RA’s, later in the year, they were paid $20 per positive review of the building that mentioned their name. This resulted in RA’s telling residents to leave reviews in order to receive part of that $20 dollars. The Google review for the building is highly inflated because of this.
Water damage is a common topic when IT is mentioned, and that’s because for the last three years straight, at least, there has been a major flood in the building. The main event my freshman year occurred during Christmas break and was the result of a burst pipe which was in turn the result of an improperly closed window. I know the residents whose room flooded, they had been reporting their window for a while (which could not fully close), trying to get it fixed, but management never addressed the problem. This resulted in flooding (inches of water on the floor) in many rooms and water pouring into the lobby. The affected residents were moved into other rooms while theirs were fixed, but the group of four girls from the room where the flood originated, were placed in a cramped staff room on the first floor with one bed for a few weeks to a month.
Also common were, and are, fire alarms. My freshman year we had quite a few a week, until they (I don’t know who) determined it was a sensitivity issue and adjusted it (allegedly the alarms were tripping on any minor thing). Not too long after this, my roommate came home drunk at 3am, put chicken on the stove, and passed out. My other roommates and I woke up to our room filled with smoke. The fire alarm never went off. I don’t think we had another alarm all year.
The other major event of my freshman year was the building trying to charge us for “food and beverage tax” (a few hundred dollars), something that was not in the lease we signed. It took me coming down to the front desk multiple times (which never resulted in anything as no one ever seemed to be available), me calling the office multiple times (the phone just goes to the front desk, so same result), and, finally, my father calling every day for over a week demanding to speak to someone in order to get them to remove the charge. They eventually did, but as is a recurring issue with this building that I’ll detail more later, they were borderline unreachable if not just flat-out dodging people’s calls because they know they’re doing something shady. Management is a problem area for IT, as they’ve had four building managers in 2 years, and only one of them has been any good. She left because she couldn’t deal with upper management. Not a good sign.
Year 2 – Sophomore, Resident Assistant (2023-24)
This experience starts in my freshman year. I was interested in being an RA because I got a fully comped room and max meal plan, and asked at the front desk in October and they took my name and phone number, so they’d know I was interested. I was told I’d hear something soon. I came back about a month later and a month after that, with them taking my name and number again and telling me the same thing. No one could offer any actual information, and apartment leases started filling up in OctobeNovember, hence me asking so many times. I wanted to make sure I had somewhere to live. Finally, over Christmas break that year, I received a call from Antazah Blalock, the assistant general manager to schedule an interview when I returned in January. On the day of the interview, I went down to the desk and told the RA’s working there that I had an appointment with Antazah. I waited for about 20 minutes before being told she was out of the office and to come back tomorrow at the same time (they said they’d tell her). I came back the next day at the same time, waited a while again, and then was told she was out sick and that they’d just have her call me and schedule another interview. I waited about a week, she never called. I started going down to the front desk every day to ask for her and only got my meeting when I happened to catch her when she left her office, at which point she put me in a room with someone else who explained to me what an RA is and sent me on my way, saying I’d hear more information soon. Some time passed and I occasionally checked back in. Eventually, they posted on Instagram that applications were up. I applied and waited about two weeks with no word. I eventually reached out to the provided email, suggested for if I had questions, and never heard back. I started going to the desk every day for a few days asking about it. Again, if it seems like I’m doing too much here, I needed to make sure I had a place to live for the next year. Eventually, I just decided to renew my lease at IT and gamble on getting the job. After more hounding on my part, I eventually (in May, right before I was headed home) was told I got the job and would be getting an offer letter shortly. That came in July, and only after I asked for it a few times. That was just the hiring process. I called multiple times over the summer and was always directed to a call center who couldn’t answer my questions and said they’d have management call me back. They never did.
The offer letter we all signed stated that we would be paid hourly and receive a fully comped meal plan and room (this’ll be important later). For those unaware, the duties of an RA are to essentially foster a community on their floors and within the building. We plan and run events, check in with our residents, and try to help them adjust to life away from home. When move-in week started, many of the residents came to us with a multitude of problems. We had a ton of complaints from residents that their rooms were missing things, had notable damage, smells, or that whole appliances just flat out didn’t work. With what people were paying to live there, I can understand the frustration. Most of the rooms were not move-in ready and they were waiting for people to complain before they did anything, resulting in a huge backlog of maintenance requests that took weeks to resolve. Many times, work orders would just be checked off without staff coming to the room at all.
The rest of the post will be broken into sections by topic

A. Water Damage
As I mentioned before, water damage is a hot topic. There was one major flood this year and at least ten minor water damage incidents. Water damage happens, especially in such a large building. And when you give a bunch of kids who have never lived away from home their own bathroom and kitchen, it just magnifies the issue. Management can’t keep college kids from being stupid. Where they fall short, however, is in their response. This year, we had a resident hang a shirt from his sprinkler so he could steam clean it. This set off the sprinkler and the fire alarm. We all evacuated and waited for the fire department to arrive. When they got there, they needed to get into the fire alarm control room to turn off the alarm and the sprinklers. This room is locked and the only key belongs to the building manager, who lives in the building but was nowhere to be found. We waited around for at least half an hour before he showed up to unlock the door, the whole-time water just poured out of the sprinkler and soaked the rooms below.
As far as I’m aware, most of the affected residents were not relocated and instead had loud dehumidifiers placed in their rooms and their drywall and ceiling slowly fixed. They did not check for or do anything about mold growth. In conversation with the maintenance staff, I was told that if the building sustained much more water damage, it would need to be completely gutted and redone in order to be safe to live in.
Management can’t always keep water damage from happening, but what they can control is the response. In both major floods of the past two years, and all comparatively minor incidents (each of which still affected at least a few floors and usually the lobby), their response was [poor]()[[AS1]](#_msocom_1) .
B. Security
Another big issue with the building is security. For the entirety of my freshman year, the security cameras did not work. This year, fortunately they did. The building has 6 key entrances/exits. The two lobby entrances, the back door by the rec area, the south fire escape, the north fire escape, and the garage. The garage is always unlocked. It has been all year. We brought it to the attention of management. Nothing was done. The fire escape doors do not always close fully, and sometimes are left unlocked for long stretches of time. The lobby has two entrances. One is always locked and the other is unlocked between 9am and 11pm, while there is someone at the front desk. At nighttime it is locked so that, in theory, only residents can get in. The issue is, there was no security guard at any time of day. During the day, anyone can walk and in no one bats an eye. We get dining hall staff, postal workers, door dash, prospective residents, people’s friends, families, whatever. All of whom have business in the building. It’s hard to differentiate between these people and someone who doesn’t belong, and since the RA’s are the one’s working at the front desk, even if we identify someone that should’ve be there, all we can do is call the police. We’re not in a position to get them out of the building. At nighttime, residents come and go and people can slip in, or residents will just let people in, giving them the benefit of the doubt that maybe they just forgot their key. We have had homeless people sleeping in common areas, homeless people stealing door dash deliveries, and for a few days, a convicted criminal (convicted for breaking and entering and stalking) who was stalking a resident was reported to have been wandering the building. I’m told this resident sued IT over the lack of security. Even if we shored up the lobby security issues, people can still come and go unseen from the garage.
C. Management
The building has three managers. During my time working there, we had Michael Mulholland (general manager), Antazah Blalock (assistant general manager), and Adedoyin Akisanya (resident life manager – essentially head of the RA’s).
Michael and Adedoyin lived in the building, with Michael being the one who had the keys to the fire alarm control room who was unreachable. Michael was all talk, and never did anything. The printer was broken for the entire year, and he always said he was working on it. The regional manager came in at the end of April and had it repaired in a day. When it came to ordering supplies for building events, we were told he’d order things but he never did. This made doing our (the RA’s) jobs very difficult. He did not meet with us until November, with communication always being an issue. He would give Adedoyin things to tell us in our meetings and was unavailable when we had questions or otherwise needed clarification. Up front, he was nice and seemed good enough, but behind the scenes I’m not really sure what he was doing all day. This is just my experience as an employee. I’ve heard of issues with him from resident’s, but nothing I’m confident enough in the validity of to share.
Antazah oversaw finances – resident fines, rent, stuff like that. At one point we were having issues with residents leaving the trash rooms messy and not putting trash in bags and putting them down the chute. Her proposed response was to fine the entire floor, something known as collective punishment, which, if not illegal (which it might be), is at least highly unethical. We had to talk her out of it by bringing up potential repercussions. She is unreachable and generally does not seem competent at her job.
Adedoyin Akisanya is head of the RA’s and his duties officially include settling roommate conflicts that cannot be handled by us, managing event preparation, and just managing us. He was unprofessional from the beginning. During the first few weeks we arrived, while doing training and getting ready for move-in, as well as throughout the first semester, he encouraged us to clock in for hours we did not work, also called fraud or time theft. He also would deliver instructions from Michael and then tell us how Michael was being stupid and how we should do something else instead. He spent a great deal of time shit talking both Michael and Antazah, commonly during our staff meetings, he constantly gossiped about some RA’s with other RA’s, flat out bullied one of the RA’s on multiple occassions, bragged about having keyed one of his fellow RA’s cars the year before (he was an RA in 2022-23), tried to sell RTS packages (Return to sender – packages that arrive by mistake and need to be sent back. They never were. We had over 50), would leave to go to the library and study or go to the gym while on the clock, and just generally didn’t take his job seriously. This attitude trickles down to the RA’s. If your boss acts like his job is a joke and tells you that your job is a joke, you’re probably not going to take it seriously either.
Most of the issues above wouldn’t directly affect residents, but I believe it’s still relevant. It shows the general mismanagement of the building and reflects the themes of negligence, incompetence, and, at times, deliberate malfeasance (this will be expanded upon later).
D. Resident Assistants and Community
The building has fifteen residential floors and each has an RA. As mentioned previously, RA’s are responsible for helping to build a community. We are all full-time students as well. We were told at the beginning of the year that we needed to have an event and a meeting with our floor once each month. The first two months, we were held to this. We each did a few events, most with low turnouts (most residents don’t want to do stuff with the RA, which I understand). Adedoyin told us that we didn’t really need to do floor events or have floor meetings anymore if we didn’t want to (His own decision, not from higher up). Most people stopped or didn’t put in a lot of effort. Yes, ideally everyone would be so dedicated to the job that they’d pour their heart and soul into events for the love of their floor, but realistically, management needs to hold the RA’s to it. We were held to a low standard throughout the job. We did four or five building events each month. These typically had a better turnout and, in my opinion, were actually pretty successful. Management did not make running these events easy. As mentioned before, Michael would request a list of supplies about two weeks in advance, encouraging us to go all out. He would usually drag his feet on ordering, if he ordered at all, usually resulting a scramble to pull something together at the end. All of this would seem to indicate that management doesn’t care too much about building a community.
Other responsibilities of the RA’s included working at the front desk, helping residents with personal and academic issues, and being on-call after hours. The phone number for the on-call phone did not week for about two months, during which time, afterhours, residents could not get into their room if locked out. The number provided to residents directs them to a call center, which then directs them to the on-call phone. For those two months, the number for the call center never worked. They didn’t ever fix it, the school year ending beat them to it.
E. Maintenance
Maintenance is comprised of 3 or 4 guys and they work weeks, trading off being on-call during the weekends and at night. They would often check off work orders without actually going to the rooms (I think with the idea that if it was important, they’d just submit the order again), requiring residents to put it in two or three times. My fridge leaked for about a month, with me putting in multiple work orders. They eventually came, replaced the fridge lightbulb, and left. It still leaked. I just fixed it myself one day. I did lots of maintenance for my residents and those on other floors, including stopping toilets that were overflowing, fixing leaks, fixing air conditioning, and repairing fridges, all because it was hard to get anything fixed otherwise. We had a resident get stuck inside their room one Saturday morning (lock broke in a weird way, not his fault) and he was in there for about an hour and a half while I called all the maintenance guys trying to figure out who was on-call and who could come in. The building will also bring in contractors to do larger jobs, and they will start work as early as 6:30 AM and, at times, have entered resident’s rooms as early as 7:30 AM. Additionally, the building has four elevators (the only way to access residential floors from the lobby) for all 500+ residents. They all had expired inspection certificates for the duration of the year and for the better part of the year, the sensors on the doors did not work properly. I’ve been hit by them quite a few times and I’ve seen some people get their arms caught while trying to activate the sensor. The stairs in the building are only for fire escapes, so you can’t reliably use them as an entrance, and only the first five or six floors can realistically use them to exit. The elevators are slow, as you can only wait on two at a time and everyone must use them. There was a day when three of them were down.
F. Hiring Process
Now, a story. Again, this won’t directly impact residents, but I feel reflects the poor management of the company. We were told in August of last year that re-hiring would begin in November, at the latest. In November, we were told that they’d start first thing after Christmas break. In January we were told the applications would release on February 5^th. They came out at some point in March. Throughout this time, again wanting to make sure I had a place to live the following year, I asked Adedoyin Akisanya if he knew anything. He assured me at least five times over the course of 4 or 5 months that I had nothing to worry about and was being rehired. He also told me everyone else that was being rehired and the reasoning for not hiring those who weren’t being rehired. Again, unprofessional. Separately, Antazah had been telling people that they were being rehired. They were not. When applications came out, we submitted them and waited. Sometime in mid-April we finally heard back. Or at least those being rehired did. Everyone that wasn’t coming back had no idea decisions had even been made. The only reason I knew I wasn’t coming back is because my friend, who did get an offer letter, asked if I’d gotten one. Adedoyin conducted all the interviews by himself and passed the information on to Michael and Antazah. Multiple times he told us that he was conducting interviews based on “how fun people would be” and “who he wanted to be friends with”. He would come out of interviews and make fun of the applicants or share other details about the hiring process of some of the current and prospective RA’s. When I found out I wasn’t rehired, I went to talk to him to find out why. I did not put a foot wrong all year and went well beyond what was expected of me. He told me it wasn’t up to him and he had no idea. He then called an “emergency” meeting to tell all the RA’s (most of which weren’t being rehired but had been told that they were and were super pissed) that it wasn’t his fault and to talk to Michael and Antazah. He then called me down after the meeting to tell me why I wasn’t being rehired, all while playing with a stapler, laughing, and refusing to look me in the eye. He said this wasn’t his decision, and that all the reasons he gave were what Michael and Antazah had told him. This was the first I’d heard of any of this. As I mentioned, I don’t think I put a foot wrong all year, and no one had ever given me any idea or told me that I was doing something wrong. All of the others not being rehired had also never been told they were doing anything wrong. Essentially, everyone was blindsided by this. That’s not how you manage people. If you have a problem with them, you tell them and allow them to improve and grow.
Anyways, I met with Michael and Antazah and they both said that I “had done nothing wrong” and that they had just received better applicants. Why are they hiring nine people with no experience as an RA over someone who has a year of RA experience and has “done nothing wrong”? That’s just bad business. They then told me that I was the first alternate AND that “someone had declined their offer letter”. This, at least to me, STRONGLY implies that I was getting the job. They told me to come back after the weekend and they’d have an answer. I came back to talk to them every single day that next week and every day they postponed. I kept coming back because, again, it sounded like the job was mine. If I am the first choice alternate and someone already declined the job, then that means I fill in. Finally, the following Monday, I was told that everyone had accepted their offer letter. I’m not sure what happened to the person who declined. This was 1 week before I was to leave for the summer, leaving me one week to scout for an apartment. Because I had been told I was a shoo-in all year, I hadn’t even thought about a backup plan. Because they made it sound like I was going to be filling in for someone, I continued to delay my search so I could focus on final projects and tests, which were also going on during all of this. I was more than a little stressed. They put five of us out on our asses with no warning right in the middle of finals and now we were all scrambling to find housing for the next year, with almost all the reasonably priced units having been filled. I relied on the savings from being an RA to help me get through school. Not having to worry about food or rent is really nice.
Again, this is a personal anecdote that doesn’t affect anyone else. I have big personal grudge against the building and its management. But I think this is reflective of and in line with management who does not care about its residents or employees.
G. Deliberate Malfeasance
Finally, the worst part. As I mentioned earlier, Antazah attempted to collectively fine floors for issues caused by individuals. Additonally, as mentioned before, the RA employment contract entitled us to hourly pay, a comped meal plan, and a comped room. March 8^th, 2024 was payday. None of us received our pay. We talked to Adedoyin. He told us that it was probably fine and that we’d get paid eventually. He got paid, so of course he didn’t care. We went to talk to Michael. He said he’d look into it. We all knew what that meant, but we gave him some time. Next payday came and went we didn’t get paid. This went on for a month and a half. We talked to Adedoyin again, as he was the most accessible, and he started getting pissed and said we were being annoying and that we’d get paid eventually. Again, he got paid so he didn’t care. We needed this money. Michael still hadn’t fixed anything. Again, this is in breach of our employment contract. It should’ve been as simple as sending that contract to payroll. Eventually, I reached out to payroll myself and was told that because we were being provided food and housing, that we didn’t get paid hourly anymore. Again, in breach of the contract. I told this to Adedoyin and he got angry that I went over his head. Nothing was done about the problem. Eventually, another RA and myself reached out to the University (The Private Certified Housing Office to be specific) and the next day we were paid in full. I am confident they never would have paid us if we didn’t do something.
Now, despite food and housing being free, parking was not. This means I needed to pay parking each semester. Now, I have been unable to access my resident portal all year. I got the issue resolved in the fall and was able to pay the first semester fee. The issue resurfaced about a month later. When the time came to pay for the spring, I was unable to access my account to pay. I made this issue known, multiple times, to both Michael and Adedoyin, and nothing was ever done. For about three months, I’ve been racking up late fees, with no way to do anything about it. I’d asked them to fix it many times now. Now, about a week ago, I received a bill from IT. The charges are as follows:

Parking Fees: $312.65
Turnover: Trash/Cleaning – Deep Clean Bathroom: $60.00
Turnover: Trash/Cleaning: $60.00
Meal Plan: $241.55
BHOM Liability Insurance: $13.50
Late Charges: $82.30
I admit I owe both the parking and liability insurance, and am happy to pay them, but as mentioned, I can’t access the payment platform, so I can’t. As for the bathroom deep clean, I deep cleaned my bathroom before I left, and for the trash, I know I didn’t leave anything there. In fact, one of the rehired RA’s did my room check and can confirm that the bathroom was not left dirty and that I didn’t leave any trash. As for the meal plan, my employment contract entitles me to a comped meal plan, so I should not owe them anything for that. And finally, the late charges are only tacked on because I cannot access my resident portal to pay. I did not miss a single payment as a freshman, I was on time for my parking payment in the fall, and I have made every effort to get into my account so that I could pay my balance. I have emailed the address that I was told to contact with any questions twice, with no response, and I have called to no avail. I don’t really know what to do about this at this point. I know they’ve done this to at least one other group of residents.
Conclusion
That’s my two cents on Illini Tower. I cannot recommend that you live there, as a freshman or otherwise. I believe the university, specifically Private Certified Housing, need to look into this place. I feel like they wouldn’t want to put their name on the building if they knew what was going on. If you’re looking for freshman housing options, I recommend FAPAR and the Six Pack for university housing, and Newman or Presby if you’re looking for private certified. I’ve heard good things about all of them but do some research to find what’s best for you. IT’s prices have been drastically increasing year to year (exceeding inflation), with no improvements in their offerings. If you are living there in 2024-25, I would recommend photographing your room when you move in and when you move out, taking precautions for flooding when you leave for breaks, and being very persistent when dealing with management. Hopefully this was helpful to any prospective students.