Poli pocket games

My lists are always being updated and expanded when new information comes in—what did I miss or am I unaware of (even if the thread predates my membership in Reddit), and what needs correction? Even (especially) if I get a subreddit or date wrong. That also includes new lists that you think I should create. (Note that, other than the quotation marks, the thread titles are "sic". I only change the quotation marks to match the standard usage (double to single, etc.) when I add my own quotation marks around the threads' titles.)
The lists are in absolute ascending chronological order by the posting date, and if need be the time of the initial post, down to the minute (or second, if required—there are several examples of this). The dates are in DD MMMM YYYY format per personal preference, and times are in US Eastern Time ("ET") since that's how they appear to me, and I'm not going to go to the trouble of converting to another time zone. They are also in twenty-four hour format, as that's what I prefer, and it saves the trouble and confusion of a.m. and p.m. Where the same user posts the same request to different subreddits, I note the user's name in order to indicate that I am aware of the duplication.
I compile my lists manually, from what shows up in my feed. I choose what interests me (thus the low incidence of romance—I'm not a fan of the literary genre, though I'm fine with the theme, and like romantic movies—and of pure horror, and the preponderance of science fiction/fantasy lists, as well as the large portion of nonfiction), and questions that are asked repeatedly.
Thread lengths: longish (50–99 posts)/long (100–199 posts)/very long (200–299 posts)/extremely long (300–399 posts)/huge (400+ posts) (though not all threads are this strictly classified, especially ones before mid?-2023, though I am updating shorter lists as I repost them); they are in lower case to prevent their confusion with the name "Long" and are the first notation after a thread's information.
booklists, the sub that hosted my lists, went private on or before Sunday 29 October 2023, so all of my lists at the time were blocked, though I have another home for them. That's the sub Recommend_A_Book (with one or two exceptions).
:::
Recurring Reddit Topics (alphabetized with one exception)

Reddit: A How-to Guide thread (the title is currently a little grandiose for the present contents).
The American Health Care System list of resources, Reddit recommendation threads, and books (one post).
African Hair(care) list of resources and discussion threads (one post).
Filing Income Taxes in the United States list of Reddit resources, discussion threads, and references (one post).
For New Owners of Cats list of resources and Reddit recommendation threads.
[Incest] (not yet posted)
Learning English list of resources, Reddit recommendation threads, and books (one post).
List of Writing Advice Subreddits (not yet posted in a central place)
News & Fact Checking—see my post in "Where do I find true info about the Ukraine conflict?" (NoStupidQuestions; 18 April 2022)
Pizza Delivery Advice list of resources and Reddit recommendation threads (one post).
Sex and Relationships list of resources, Reddit recommendation threads, and books (four posts).
Tipping in the United States list of resources/references and Reddit discussion threads (one post).
Toilets: International Differences and Other Matters list of resources, discussion threads, and references (one post).
[Weddings] (not yet posted; controversies)
Women's Pants and Pockets list of resources and discussion threads (one post).
Worsening Search Results of Google list of resources, Reddit recommendation threads, and books (one post).

Books

Audiobooks list of recommendation threads (one post).

Nonfiction

General Nonfiction list of resources, Reddit recommendation threads, and books (four posts).
(Auto)biographies list of resources, Reddit recommendation threads, and books (one post).
Communism list of resources, Reddit recommendation threads, and books (one post).
Crime (Nonfiction) list of Reddit recommendation threads and books (one post).
Cults list of resources, Reddit recommendation threads, and books (one post).
Diversity Nonfiction list of resources, Reddit recommendation threads, and books (one post).
History (General) list of resources, Reddit recommendation threads, and books (one post).
The Holocaust list of resources, Reddit recommendation threads, and books (one post).
How-to list of resources, Reddit recommendation threads, and books (one post).
Information Technology list of resources, Reddit recommendation threads, and books (one post).
LBGTQ+ Nonfiction list of resources, Reddit recommendation threads, and books (one post).
[Leadership/Management] (not yet posted; see also the Self-help Nonfiction list)
Medicine/Biology/For Medical Students list of resources, Reddit recommendation threads, and books (one post).
Narrative Nonfiction ("Reads Like a Novel") list of resources, Reddit recommendation threads, and books (one post).
Native American History and Culture list of Reddit recommendation threads (one post).
Philosophy list of Reddit recommendation threads (one post).
Psychology list of Reddit recommendation threads (one post).
Science (General) list of Reddit recommendation threads (one post).
Self-help Nonfiction list of resources and Reddit recommendation threads (seven posts).
[South Asian Indians] (not yet posted)
The Space Race list of resources, Reddit recommendation threads, and books (one post).

Fiction

General Fiction list of resources, Reddit recommendation threads, and books (nineteen posts).
Anthropomorphic Animals list of Reddit recommendation threads (one post).
Antiheroes and Villains list of Reddit recommendation threads and books (one post).
Apocalyptic/Post-apocalyptic list of Reddit recommendation threads and books (three posts).
Beautiful Prose/Writing (in Fiction) list of Reddit recommendation threads (one post).
Books to Read in Your 20s list of Reddit recommendation threads (one post).
Circuses & Carnivals list of Reddit recommendation threads and books (one post).
Classics (Literature) list of Reddit recommendation threads (one post).
Compelling Reads ("Can't Put Down") list of Reddit recommendation threads (one post).
Convents/Monasteries/Religious Houses and Orders list of Reddit recommendation threads and books (one post).
Death Games/Hunting Humans Reddit recommendation threads (one post).
Diversity Fiction list of Reddit recommendation threads (one post).
Dragons list of Reddit recommendation threads (one post).
Dystopias list of Reddit recommendation threads (one post).
Emotionally Devastating/Rending list of Reddit recommendation threads, and books (four posts).
Feel-good/Happy/Upbeat list of Reddit recommendation threads (one post).
Female Characters, Strong list of Reddit recommendation threads (one post).
Female Rage list of Reddit recommendation threads (one post).
Historical Fiction list of resources and Reddit recommendation threads (one post).
Humor list of resources, Reddit recommendation threads, and books (one post).
Japanese Literature list of resources, Reddit recommendation threads, and books (one post).
Knights/King Arthur list of Reddit recommendation threads and books (one post). Includes paladins.
LBGTQ+ Fiction list of resources, Reddit recommendation threads, and books (one post). All genres.
Life Changing/Changed Your Life list of Reddit recommendation threads (one post).
Mysteries list of resources, Reddit recommendation threads, and books (two posts).
Mythology/Folklore/Specific Cultures list of resources, Reddit recommendation threads, and books (one post).
Obscure/Overlooked/Underappreciated/Unknown/Underrated General Fiction list of Reddit recommendation threads books (one post).
Philosophical Fiction list of resources, Reddit recommendation threads, and books (one post).
Pirates list of Reddit recommendation threads (one post).
Poetry list of resources, Reddit recommendation threads, and books (one post).
Readers 1: For Children Who Want to Start Reading list (one post).
Readers 2: Here are the the resources and threads I have about books for adolescents/adults who want to start reading ("Get me reading again/I've never read") list (eight posts).
Romance (not yet posted; very short)
Romany/Travellers (not yet posted; very short)
Science Fiction/Fantasy (General) Recommendations list of resources, Reddit recommendation threads, and books (thirty-five posts (eventually, again).).
- N.B.: The category is alphabetized under "Science Fiction/Fantasy", and the lists within it are alphabetized with that as a prefix, even when the prefix is not used (e.g., Hard SF).
SF/F and ___ list of resources, Reddit recommendation threads, and books (one post).
SF/F: Afterlife (Heaven, Hell, Valhalla, etc.) list of Reddit recommendation threads and books (one post).
SF/F: Alien Aliens list of Reddit recommendation threads and books (one post). (Includes Just "Aliens" and Other Stuff.)
SF/F: Alternate History list of resources, Reddit recommendation threads, authors, and books (one post).
SF/F: Artificial Intelligence list of Reddit recommendation threads and books (one post).
SF/F Artists list of links (one post).
SF/F Badasses list of Reddit recommendation threads and books (one post).
[SF/F: Body Sharing (Multiple Entities)] (draft; not yet posted]
SF/F: Business list of Reddit recommendation threads and books (one post).
SF/F: Character Driven list of Reddit recommendation threads (one post).
SF/F: Colonization list of Reddit recommendation threads (one post).
SF/F Comics (not yet posted)
SF/F: Cyberpunk list of Reddit recommendation threads (one post).
SF/F: Cyberpunk list of Reddit recommendation threads (one post).
SF/F: Deserts list of resources, Reddit recommendation threads, and books (one post).
SF/F: Detectives and Law Enforcement list of Reddit recommendation threads and books (one post).
SF/F: Epics/Sagas (Long Series) list of Reddit recommendation threads (one post).
SF/F: Erotica list of resources, Reddit recommendation threads, and books (one post).
SF/F: Exploration list of Reddit recommendation threads and books (one post).
SF/F: Fantasy *and* SF list of resources, Reddit recommendation threads, and books (one post).
SF/F: Fungi/Mushrooms list of Reddit recommendation threads (one post).
SF/F: Games list of Reddit recommendation threads and books (one post).
SF/F: Generation Ships list of Reddit recommendation threads (one post).
Hard SF list of resources, Reddit recommendation threads, and books (one post).
SF/F Humor list of resources and Reddit recommendation threads (one post).
SF/F: Immortals and Methuselahs list of Reddit recommendation threads (one post).
SF/F: Languages list of Reddit recommendation threads (one post).
SF/F: Magic list of Reddit recommendation threads and books (one post).
SF/F: Marine/Oceans/Water list of Reddit recommendation threads (one post).
SF/F: Medical list of Reddit recommendation threads and books (one post).
SF/F: Monster Hunting/Ghost Busting list of resources, Reddit recommendation threads, and books (one post).
SF/F: Non-human Protagonists/Main Characters list of resources, Reddit recommendation threads, and books (one post).
SF/F: Obscure/Underappreciated/Unknown/Underrated list of resources, Reddit recommendation threads, and books (one post).
SF/F: Organized Crime list of Reddit recommendation threads (one post).
SF/F, Philosophical list of Reddit recommendation threads and books (one post).
SF/F: Politics list of Reddit recommendation threads and books (one post).
SF/F: Powered Armor list of resources, Reddit recommendation threads, and books (one post).
SF/F: Psionics list of resources, Reddit recommendation threads, and books (one post).
SF/F: Religion list of Reddit recommendation threads and books (one post).
SF/F with Romance list of resources and Reddit recommendation threads (one post).
SF/F: Schools and Education list of Reddit recommendation threads and books (one post).
SF/F: Space Opera list of Reddit recommendation threads (one post).
SF/F and Spies list of Reddit recommendation threads (one post).
SF/F: Steampunk list of resources, Reddit recommendation threads, and books (one post).
SF/F: Supernatural Creatures (Miscellaneous) list of Reddit recommendation threads (one post).
SF/F: Terraforming list of resources, Reddit recommendation threads, and books (one post).
SF/F: Time Travel list of Reddit recommendation threads and books (one post).
Urban Fantasy list of resources and Reddit recommendation threads (one post).
SF/F: Utopias list of resources, Reddit recommendation threads, and books (one post).
SF/F: Weapons (Swords, Etc.) list of resources, Reddit recommendation threads, and books (one post).
SF/F Westerns list of resources and Reddit recommendation threads (one post).
SF/F World-building list of resources and Reddit recommendation threads (one post).
Seasons/WeatheClimate list of Reddit recommendation threads and books (one post).
Self-help Fiction list of Reddit recommendation threads and books (one post).
Spies/Espionage (Genre) list of resources, Reddit recommendation threads, and books (one post).
Stephen King: What Book Do I Start With? list of resources and Reddit recommendation threads (one post).
Survival (Mixed Fiction and Nonfiction) list of Reddit recommendation threads (one post).
Thrillers list of Reddit recommendation threads (one post).
Unreliable Narrators list. A stalled work in progress.
Vampires list of Reddit recommendation threads and books (one post).
Were-_s/Lycanthropes list of resources, Reddit recommendation threads, and books (one post).
Westerns list of resources, Reddit recommendation threads, and books (one post).
Zombies list of Reddit recommendation threads (one post).

Anime
If you are looking for something to watch, use the What to Watch? flair search first

"Obscure/Underappreciated/Unknown/Underrated Anime Recommendations (List)" of Reddit recommendation threads (two posts).

Looking to trade any of the following games for games on my want list. I'm only looking for complete in box games that are in excellent condition. Looking for CIB NES, SNES, Genesis, Gameboy, Turbografx, Neo Geo and some others. Full want list here - List
Gameboy
The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening DX CIB
Atomic Punk CIB
Bubble Bobble Part 2 CIB
Pokemon Emerald CIB
Pokemon Firered CIB
Revelations: The Demon Slayer CIB some box wear
Rhino Rumble with Box no manual
Car Battler Joe CIB
Cima: The Enemy CIB
DemiKids: Dark Version CIB
DemiKids: Light Version CIB
Golden Sun: The Lost Age CIB
Gradius Galaxies CIB
Mega Man Battle Network 5: Team Protoman CIB
Shining Soul CIB
Summon Night: Swordcraft Story 2 CIB
Super Ghouls 'n Ghosts CIB
Final Fantasy Legend CIB
Final Fantasy Legend II CIB
Final Fantasy Legend III CIB
Neo geo Pocket All CIB
Metal Slug: 1st Mission
Bust-a-Move Pocket
Fatal Fury: First Contact
Magical Drop
Pac-Man
Pocket Tennis
Puyo Pop
SNK Gals Fighters
SNK vs. Capcom: Card Fighters' Clash capcom
SNK vs. Capcom: Card Fighters' Clash snk
SNK vs. Capcom: Match of the Millennium
Nes
Adventure Island 3 cart
Cowboy Kid cart and box
Dragon Warrior II CIB
Dragon Warrior IV CIB
Frankenstein: The Monster Returns Cart
Mega Man cart
Ninja Gaiden III cart
Power Blade cart
Wayne's World cart
Bomberman 2 cart
The Jetsons cart
Sqoon cart
Zen: Intergalactic Ninja cart
Power blade II with box
Mega man 3 cib
Ps2
Chulip
Dokapon: Kingdom
Fatal Frame
Rule of Rose
Silent Hill: Shattered Memories
Under the Skin
Mana Khemia: Alchemists of Al-Revis -- Premium Box
Growlanser: Heritage of War -- Limited Edition
Growlanser Generations -- Deluxe Pack
Sega Cd/32x/saturn
Popful Mail
The Space Adventure
Kolibri CIB
Albert Odyssey: Legend of Eldean
Super Nintendo
Demon's Crest cart
Earthworm Jim CIB
The Twisted Tales of Spike McFang cart
Earthbound CIB minus box tray & scratch n sniff
Sonic Blast Man II cart
Turbografx
Godzilla
Air Zonk with outer box
Bloody Wolf CIB with outer box
Yo Bro CIB with outer box
Camp California
Exile: Wicked Phenomenon
Dreamcast
Bangai-O
Cannon Spike
Industrial Spy: Operation Espionage

I have both the Analogue Pocket and the Nintendo Switch to play all my Game Boy, Game Boy Color, Game Boy Advance and Nintendo Switch games. I've also accumulated loads of cartridges that I've played/collected over the years for different systems.
My question is are there any other devices that can be used either as a handheld or as a home console? I like the ability to do both whilst still using the physical cartridges and was wondering if there's any others?

Introducing Lotteria Bay RP - The City of Tomorrow Are you tired of cities driven solely by greed, where every corner turns into a money-making scheme at the expense of genuine roleplay? Look no further. Lotteria Bay RP is here to redefine the GTA RP experience. We've heard your frustrations and we're determined to make a change. Founded on principles of fairness, integrity, and community, Lotteria Bay RP promises an immersive and enriching roleplay environment unlike any other. What sets us apart? Let's break it down: No Pay to Win, Only Play to Win: Say goodbye to the days of feeling pressured to empty your pockets just to enjoy the game. In Lotteria Bay RP, we believe in a "Get Paid to Play" system. Your dedication and involvement in the community will be rewarded, both in and out of city! The PowerCash Lotto: Imagine winning real cash just for participating in our city. With our innovative PowerCash Lotto system, every month we contribute $100 of our own money into the pot. Additionally, profits generated by the city, from imports to donations, go into the PowerCash pool. It's a true non-profit initiative designed to give back to our players. Fair Economy, Affordable Assets: Sick of exorbitant prices for basic in-game assets? We offer a fair and balanced economy where players can affordably access MLOs and imports without breaking the bank. Our debadged imports are 100% compliant, ensuring a seamless integration into the city while working towards whitelist eligibility. Serious Roleplay, Longevity Guaranteed: At Lotteria Bay RP, we're committed to fostering a community of serious roleplayers who value quality over quantity. Our city is built for longevity, with a focus on creating memorable experiences that keep players engaged for the long haul. Join us as we embark on this exciting journey to create the city of our dreams. Whether you're a seasoned roleplayer or just starting out, Lotteria Bay RP welcomes you with open arms. Together, let's build a thriving community where everyone has the opportunity to play, thrive, and win. Visit us today and make Lotteria Bay your new home. We can't wait to see you there!
Our Best Features____________________ Jobs Custom Scripts_________________________San Andreas State Police Department Custom Clothing_______________________Los Santos Emergency Medical Services Unique Housing________________________Department Of Justice Government Unique jobs____________________________Mayor (Work in Progress) - (Mayoral Election) Amazing Police Cars___________________City Council (Work in Progress) - (City Council Election) Legal and Illegal Activities_____________Whitelisted Gangs Experienced Development Team/Staff_None-Whitelisted Jobs Rental Cars_____________________________Real Estate
Join our discord and check out some pictures clips, and teasers! When you are ready to hit that connect button! Which life will you choose, Civilian? Law Enforcement? Medical Service? or the Gang life? Lotteriabayrp

Over the course of the past few months I have been working on compiling a list of my 500 favorite songs. It was sort of challenge that I gave myself and I'm super pumped with how it turned out. There were a few rules (only 5 songs per artist being the big rule, among a few others), and here's the list I came up with. Thought it was fun, so wanted to share here and see if it might spark any discussion about song placement, lack of songs/artists, or see if anyone had any similar lists. All thoughts are welcome! (and if you don't care to comb through all 500 songs for your favorite song or artist I'm more than happy to help you track 'em down)

Trash Panda - Aging out of the 20th Century
Djo - Roddy
The Beatles - Don't Let Me Down
Snail Mail - Heat Wave
Phoebe Bridgers - Savior Complex
Joji - SLOW DANCING IN THE DARK
The Shins - The Fear
Talking Heads - This Must Be the Place (Naive Melody)
The Cranberries - Linger
Post Animal - Ralphie
Hop Along - Not Abel
The Beach Boys - Heroes And Villains
Electric Light Orchestra - Livin' Thing
The Monkees - As We Go Along
Blondie - Heart Of Glass
The Strokes - Oblivius
Chet Baker - It's Always You
The Beatles - Rain
Electric Light Orchestra - Telephone Line
Husbands - Must Be a Cop
Faces - Ooh La La
The Flaming Lips - Do You Realize??
Frank Ocean - Nights
Harry James - It's Been a Long, Long Time
The Turtles - Happy Together
Etta James - At Last
The Zombies - The Way I Feel Inside
The Beatles - Here, There And Everywhere
The Beach Boys - God Only Knows
Kanye West - Father Stretch My Hands Pt. 1
Briston Maroney - Sinkin'
John Lennon - Oh My Love
Herb Alpert & The Tijuana Brass - Ladyfingers
Squirrel Flower - Headlights
The Backseat Lovers - Maple Syrup
The B-52's - Rock Lobster
George Harrison - All Things Must Pass
Snail Mail - Ben Franklin
Laura Elliott - Grass Stains
Djo - Chateau (Feel Alright)
Tame Impala - Eventually
The Backseat Lovers - Snowbank Blues
Claude Debussy - Clair de Lune
The Weeknd - Save Your Tears
Talking Heads - Thank You for Sending Me an Angel
The Zombies - Time of the Season
The War On Drugs - Nothing to Find
Queen - Brighton Rock
The Dream Academy - Please, Please, Please Let Me Get What I Want
The B-52's - Strobe Light
The Cranberries - Dreams
Fugees - Killing Me Softly With His Song
Molchat Doma - Тоска
Tyler, The Creator - ARE WE STILL FRIENDS?
The Mamas & The Papas - Dream A Little Dream Of Me
The Chords - Sh-Boom
The Beatles - The Abbey Road Medley
The Ronettes - Be My Baby
The Who - Baba O'Riley
Dr. Dog - Where'd All the Time Go?
M83 - My Tears Are Becoming A Sea
Billie Eilish - everything i wanted
Outkast - Hey Ya!
Nat King Cole - Orange Colored Sky
The Notorious B.I.G. - Hypnotize
Four Tops - Reach Out I'll Be There
Foreign Air - Shut Up and Show Me
Leonard Cohen - So Long, Marianne
dodie - If I'm Being Honest
Briston Maroney - June
Post Malone - Sunflower
John Lennon - Isolation
Buddy Holly & The Crickets - Not Fade Away
Phoebe Bridgers - I Know The End
Kanye West - All Falls Down
Alvvays - Adult Diversion
John Lennon - Beautiful Boy (Darling Boy)
Clairo - Amoeba
The Beach Boys - I Know There's An Answer
Paul McCartney - Let Me Roll It
Frank Ocean - Ivy
Radiohead - Motion Picture Soundtrack
Djo - Mutual Future (Repeat)
Phoebe Bridgers - Scott Street
Childish Gambino - Me and Your Mama
Pink Floyd - Astronomy Domine
The Pied Pipers - Dream
The Beach Boys - All I Wanna Do
Djo - Change
Второй этаж поражает - Крайности
Little Richard - Lucille
King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard - Shanghai
Chet Baker - Deep In A Dream
The Beatles - It's All Too Much
Post Animal - Dirtpicker
The B-52's - Love Shack
EDEN - foreve/over
Kanye West - Ultralight Beam
The Zombies - Going Out Of My Head
Talking Heads - Found a Job
Snail Mail - Pristine
Tom Tom Club - Genius of Love
Tears For Fears - Everybody Wants To Rule The World
WILLIS - I Think I Like When It Rains
Chet Baker - But Not For Me
Naked Eyes - Always Something There to Remind Me
Tyler, The Creator - GONE, GONE / THANK YOU
Djo - Half Life
Trash Panda - Check Please
Briston Maroney - Deep Sea Diver
Beach Fossils - This Year
Momma - Medicine
Hop Along - Prior Things
Talking Heads - Road to Nowhere
Electric Light Orchestra - Turn to Stone
Briston Maroney - It's Not My Fault
Tyler, The Creator - NEW MAGIC WAND
Snail Mail - Headlock
Phil Collins - Take Me Home
Gotye - Somebody That I Used To Know
The Beach Boys - Do It Again
Tame Impala - Breathe Deeper
Ella Fitzgerald - Misty
Phoebe Bridgers - Waiting Room
Kanye West - Runaway
Daft Punk - Get Lucky (feat. Pharrell Williams and Nile Rodgers)
Dire Straits - Money for Nothing
Kendrick Lamar - Alright
Black Country, New Road - Concorde
George Harrison - If Not for You
Harry Styles - Cherry
Ms. Lauryn Hill - Doo Wop (That Thing)
Paul McCartney - Junk
Wings - Maybe I'm Amazed [Live]
Talking Heads - Houses in Motion
Del Water Gap - Ode to a Conversation Stuck in Your Throat
Pixies - Where Is My Mind?
Queen - Seven Seas Of Rhye
Paul McCartney - Jet
Sufjan Stevens - Death with Dignity
A Flock Of Seagulls - I Ran (So Far Away)
Tame Impala - Let It Happen
Led Zeppelin - Whole Lotta Love
Clairo - Management
Tommy James & The Shondells - I Think We're Alone Now
Fergie - Clumsy
Childish Gambino - This Is America
Prefab Sprout - The King of Rock 'N' Roll
Joy Again - Looking Out for You
Beach House - Space Song
John Lennon - Mind Games
The Weeknd - Gasoline
Weezer - Buddy Holly
Phoebe Bridgers - Sidelines
Tame Impala - New Person, Same Old Mistakes
Lana Del Rey - A&W
The Dillards - I've Just Seen a Face
The Doors - Break on Through (To the Other Side)
Julie London - I'm Glad There Is You
2Pac - California Love
Dean Martin - Everybody Loves Somebody
Snail Mail - Anytime
The Strokes - The Adults Are Talking
Jordana, TV Girl - Better in the Dark
Juice WRLD - Hide (feat. Seezyn)
The Wild Reeds - Get Better
Finom - Mine
Hop Along - One That Suits Me
The Killers - Mr. Brightside
Michael Cera - Clay Pigeons
Clairo - Bags
Prince - Let's Go Crazy
The Zombies - She's Not There
Blackstreet - No Diggity
Frank Sinatra - I've Got You Under My Skin
John Denver - Take Me Home, Country Roads
Harry James - I'm Beginning to See The Light
The Clash - London Calling
Charles Bradley - Changes
Buddy Holly - (Ummmm, Oh Yeah) Dearest
Eagles - Seven Bridges Road [Live]
Moxie - Honey
Faces - Stay with Me
Post Animal - How Do You Feel
New Order - Age of Consent
Natalie Imbruglia - Torn
Lana Del Rey - Doin' Time
Twin Peaks - Blue Coupe
Kanye West - Gold Digger
Fruit Bats - The Bottom of It
Frank Sinatra - Somethin' Stupid
Lorde - Perfect Places
Martha Tilton - Exactly Like You
King Crimson - 21st Century Schizoid Man
Glen Campbell - Southern Nights
Claire Rosinkranz - Frankenstein
Guillemots - Made-Up Lovesong #43
Fleetwood Mac - Say You Love Me
Frankie Valli - Can't Take My Eyes off You
The Crickets - Don't Ever Change
Paul Anka - Put Your Head On My Shoulder
George Harrison - Isn't It a Pity
Trash Panda - Off
Super Besse - Holod
Beyoncé - Hold Up
Charlie Burg - I Don't Wanna Be Okay Without You
Eagles - Peaceful Easy Feeling
Ella Fitzgerald - It's A Lovely Day Today
PERMSKY KRAY - Дорогой Человек
The Little Dippers - Forever
The B-52's - There's a Moon in the Sky (Called the Moon)
Patti Page - Old Cape Cod
Daft Punk - Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger
The Soggy Bottom Boys - I Am A Man Of Constant Sorrow
Trash Panda - Things Will Never Change
Hop Along - Well-dressed
Sixpence None The Richer - Kiss Me
TV Girl - Daughter of a Cop
LAUNDRY DAY - Jane
Tyler, The Creator - EARFQUAKE
Sigue Sigue Sputnik - Love Missile F1-11
Joji - Gimme Love
The Backseat Lovers - Pool House
The Weeknd - Take My Breath
Mild High Club - Homage
Doc Watson - Am I Born to Die?
Daniel Caesar - Streetcar
The Kinks - Sunny Afternoon
John Lennon - #9 Dream
Tame Impala - Elephant
Chuck Berry - You Never Can Tell
Pink Floyd - Wish You Were Here
KIDS SEE GHOSTS - 4th Dimension
Soft Cell - Tainted Love
The B-52's - Song for a Future Generation
Gnarls Barkley - Crazy
Lana Del Rey - Blue Jeans
Billie Eilish - Halley's Comet
Glenn Miller - In the Mood
Kid Bloom - Control
The Cinematic Orchestra - To Build A Home
Marvin Gaye - I Heard It Through The Grapevine
Brenda Lee - If You Love Me (Really Love Me)
TV Girl - Lovers Rock
Art Lown - Knew You Well
Dean Martin - Ain't That A Kick In The Head
Miniature Tigers - Like or Like Like
Electric Light Orchestra - Sweet Talkin' Woman
The Hunts - Ages
The Cars - Good Times Roll
Bill Withers - Lovely Day
Drake - God's Plan
Kansas - Point of Know Return
The Neighbourhood - Stargazing
The Clash - Rock the Casbah
Hop Along - What the Writer Meant
Briston Maroney - Under My Skin
Jack Stauber - Buttercup
King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard - Ya Love
Ginger Root - Loretta
Thompson Twins - Hold Me Now
Frank Ocean - Pyramids
Kate Bush - Running Up That Hill (A Deal With God)
Destroy Boys - I Threw Glass at My Friend's Eyes and Now I'm on Probation
Mild High Club - Dionysian State
Franz Ferdinand - Take Me Out
Kevin Abstract - Empty
The Frights - Crust Bucket
Stealers Wheel - Stuck In The Middle With You
The Shins - Fighting in a Sack
fun. - We Are Young (feat. Janelle Monáe)
Lil Uzi Vert - Money Longer
Miniature Tigers - Cannibal Queen
The Doors - Touch Me
Jean Dawson - Clear Bones
King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard - Catching Smoke
Molchat Doma - Люди Надоели
The Go-Go's - Our Lips Are Sealed
Billie Eilish - ocean eyes
BOYO - Crown
The 1975 - Somebody Else
Husbands - She's a Betty
Syd Barrett - If It's In You
Trash Panda - Atlanta Girls
Frank Ocean - Godspeed
Alice Phoebe Lou - Glow
Childish Gambino - Redbone
New Order - Blue Monday
Post Animal - Schedule
Harry Styles - Fine Line
Harry James - I'll Get By (As Long As I Have You)
Depeche Mode - Never Let Me Down Again
Chet Baker - I Fall In Love Too Easily
The Cranberries - Put Me Down
John Mayer - Edge of Desire
George Harrison - All Those Years Ago
Electric Light Orchestra - The Diary of Horace Wimp
Alex Clare - Too Close
Eric B. & Rakim - Know The Ledge
Peter Frampton - Show Me The Way [Live]
Simon & Garfunkel - Mrs. Robinson
Black Eyes - Deformative
The Righteous Brothers - Unchained Melody
Bonny Light Horseman - Deep In Love
The Walker Brothers - The Sun Ain't Gonna Shine Anymore
Cage The Elephant - Cigarette Daydreams
Hot Flash Heat Wave - Raindrop
Clairo - Sofia
Kendrick Lamar - PRIDE.
Camille Saint-Saëns - The Swan
Weezer - Say It Ain't So
C418 - Sweden
Lana Del Rey - Let The Light In (feat. Father John Misty)
The Postal Service - Such Great Heights
Pickin' On Series - Those to Come
Lana Del Rey - Grandfather please stand on the shoulders of my father while he's deep-sea fishing (feat. RIOPY)
John Mayer - Moving On and Getting Over
Field Medic - POWERFUL LOVE
Cage The Elephant - Flow
Joji - Run
The Who - Won't Get Fooled Again
Boston - Peace of Mind
Ben E. King - This Magic Moment
David Bowie - Starman
Beastie Boys - Sabotage
Harry Belafonte - Banana Boat (Day-O)
Gene Krupa & His Orchestra - Rhumboogie
The Cardigans - Lovefool
The Kinks - You Really Got Me
The Zombies - She's Coming Home
Michael Jackson - Thriller
Moxie - Blue Skies
The Mamas & The Papas - Straight Shooter
Peter, Paul and Mary - Don't Think Twice, It's All Right
Green Day - Brain Stew
Dua Lipa - Levitating (feat. DaBaby)
The Police - Roxanne
Britney Spears - Toxic
Tears For Fears - Head Over Heels
Rex Orange County - Pluto Projector
The Strokes - Call It Fate, Call It Karma
Portugal. The Man - Feel It Still
The Black Crowes - Twice As Hard
Ted Nugent - Stranglehold
fun. - Some Nights
Wings - Silly Love Songs
Paramore - Still into You
Peter Frampton - Baby, I Love Your Way [Live]
The Monkees - Last Train to Clarksville
Royel Otis - Oysters In My Pocket
The Backseat Lovers - Growing/Dying
Nelly Furtado - Say It Right
Post Animal - Goggles
Erik Satie - Gymnopédie No. 1
Childish Gambino - IV. Sweatpants
Steely Dan - Dirty Work
ABBA - Lay All Your Love On Me
Still Woozy - Goodie Bag
Arlo Parks - Black Dog
Goth Babe - Weekend Friend
George & the Handsomes - Sleepy Beats
boygenius - 20
The Mills Brothers - You Always Hurt The One You Love
Travis Scott - SICKO MODE
Pinegrove - Need 2
The Backseat Lovers - Sinking Ship
Franz Schubert - Ave Maria
Zac Brown Band - Knee Deep (feat. Jimmy Buffett)
Justin Timberlake - Mirrors
Simon & Garfunkel - Cecilia
The Cranberries - Zombie
Daniel Caesar - Japanese Denim
Billie Holiday - Easy Living
ISLAND - By Your Side
Phil Collins - Tomorrow Never Knows
Bob Dylan - The Times They Are A-Changin'
The Four Freshmen - Day By Day
Fleetwood Mac - The Chain
Billy Joel - Big Shot
Billie Eilish - Happier Than Ever
Yot Club - down bad
Rihanna - Stay
Fleetwood Mac - Landslide
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky - Swan Lake, Op. 20, Act 2: No. 10, Scene. Moderato
The White Stripes - Fell In Love With a Girl
Alvvays - Easy On Your Own?
Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit - If We Were Vampires
Blackway - What's Up Danger (with Black Caviar)
Albert Hammond - It Never Rains in Southern California
Matt Maltese - Jupiter
John Denver - Mother Nature's Son
Childish Gambino - Sober
Claire Rosinkranz - Pools and Palm Trees
The Cars - Just What I Needed
The Doors - Light My Fire
Blondie - Tomorrow Never Knows
King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard - Hell's Itch
The Japanese House - Saw You In A Dream
Franz Schubert - String Quartet No. 13 in A Minor, Op. 29 No. 1, D. 804
The Drifters - White Christmas
The 1975 - Robbers
George Harrison - Between The Devil And The Deep Blue Sea
The Frights - Tongues
Paramore - Ain't It Fun
Billy Joel - Pressure
Frank Sinatra - My Way
Art Lown - Going Back to Carolina
Bruno Mars - Just the Way You Are
Under The Rug - Lonesome & Mad
The Mamas & The Papas - Dedicated To The One I Love
Foster The People - Sit Next to Me
Weezer - Undone - The Sweater Song
Michael Jackson - Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'
Tia Blake - Plastic Jesus
Los Bravos - Bring a Little Lovin'
Lady Gaga - Bad Romance
Minnie Riperton - Les Fleurs
Billy Idol - Dancing with Myself
Cody Fry - I Hear a Symphony
Gringo Sapiens - Driver's Licence
Vacations - Relax
Glitter Party - time waits
Steve Lacy - Bad Habit
The Crystals - Then He Kissed Me
The Pied Pipers - Mairzy Doats
Mitski - Bug Like an Angel
James Ray - I've Got My Mind Set On You
Clairo - Bubble Gum
Masayoshi Takanaka - SEXY DANCE
Nat King Cole - (I Love You) For Sentimental Reasons
Sleigh Bells - Crown On the Ground
Olivia Rodrigo - favorite crime
No Doubt - Just A Girl
Foreigner - Long, Long Way from Home
Heart - Crazy On You
The Hunts - Darlin'
David Bowie - Heroes
Alice Phoebe Lou - Hammer
Thee Oh Sees - Toe Cutter - Thumb Buster
Roar - I Can't Handle Change
TV Girl - Birds Dont Sing
Laufey - From The Start
Chas McDevitt Skiffle Group - Freight Train (feat. Nancy Whiskey)
Metro Boomin - Am I Dreaming
Liana Flores - rises the moon
POP ETC - Speak Up
Jean Knight - Mr. Big Stuff
The Platters - Twilight Time
Derek & The Dominos - Layla
King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard - Homeless Man in Adidas
Charlie Burg - Lovesong (The Way)
Hot Flash Heat Wave - Gutter Girl
ABBA - Fernando
Mitski - My Love Mine All Mine
Savannah Conley - More Than Fine
Young the Giant - Mind Over Matter
Future Crib - Yer Movin'
Bob Dylan - Like a Rolling Stone
benches - Violent
Musical Youth - Pass The Dutchie
Olivia Rodrigo - vampire
Ryan Gosling, Emma Stone - City Of Stars
Maya Hawke - Thérèse
Current Joys - A Different Age
Wayne Newton - Danke Schoen
La Roux - Bulletproof
Jason Segel, Walter - Man Or Muppet
U2 - I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For
The Raconteurs - Steady, As She Goes
The Ink Spots - Into Each Life Some Rain Must Fall
Ace of Base - The Sign
Vulfpeck - 1612
Nordista Freeze - Hey GiGi
The Chainsmokers - New York City
Suki Waterhouse - Johanna
Pete Rodriguez - I Like It Like That
Calvin Harris - Summer
The Rare Occasions - Notion
a-ha - Take on Me
Rush - Working Man
Traffic - Dear Mr. Fantasy
Starbuck - Moonlight Feels Right
Van Halen - Drop Dead Legs
The Troggs - Wild Thing
Led Zeppelin - Good Times Bad Times
The Byrds - Turn! Turn! Turn! (To Everything There Is a Season)
Cream - Sunshine Of Your Love
Justin Timberlake - SexyBack (feat. Timbaland)
David Bowie - Suffragette City
Ludwig van Beethoven - Sonata No. 14 in C-Sharp Minor, Op. 27, No. 2 "Moonlight"
Avicii - Wake Me Up
The Who - La-La-La-Lies
The Spinners - The Rubberband Man
MGMT - Time to Pretend
Hootie & The Blowfish - Only Wanna Be With You
Sheck Wes - Mo Bamba
Claire Rosinkranz - 123
Ringo Starr - Photograph
The Proclaimers - I'm Gonna Be (500 Miles)
Duran Duran - Rio

Socal based around IE, but i do travel to OC/LA occasionally, and will also be in SD for Comic Con. hoping to work out some trades.
[FT]
Japanese games:
Vivo (NIS)
Nokosu Dice 3e (NIS)
Yura Yura Penguin (NIS)
Nanatoridori (NIS)
Nana (NIS)
Cafe Overload Oink (NIS)
Trick & Snipers (NIS)
Anima Bistro (unplayed)
Rumble Nation Deluxe edition (NIS)
Bus & Stop (new Saashi and Saashi game)
Other games, with new additions on top:
Dwellings of Eldervale + minotaur
Spirit island + Branch and claw + Jagged Earth + Natures Incarnate + spirits from Horizon box + holographic spirits pack
Project Elite All in
Street masters aftershock plus extras (mended edges)
Burncycle
Oathsworn + armory + update kit
Oltree (NIS)
Hidden leaders + expansion
Grimm Forest
Demon worker
Marvel united All in for season 1, 2, plus cardboard materials, season 3 all in pledge incoming, partially painted, plus multiple/most promos.
Innovation + expansion (older edition with subjectively better art)
Adventure tactics
Skull + Promo set of coasters (which adds another player so can boost player count to 7)
Project L Collectors Box
Moonrakers Base - effectively base game but in kickstarter box Lord of the Rings LCG Plus fellowship of the ring saga plus a few other character expansions
The Initiative
Marvel champions heroes - Drax, wasp, quicksilver
Warps Edge
Jaipur (Old and new edition available)
Unmatched: Little red and beowulf
Azul + playmat
5 Minute Dungeon: Big box + expansion
5 minute marvel
Above and Below Kickstarter edition
Ancient World
Android: Netrunner
Arkham horror Card game Return to Dunwhich, forgotten age, and path to carcosa boxes
Atlantic STorm
ATtack on Titan: Deck Building game with hange promo character
Banned Words
Battlecon: Trials of indines
Battlecon: Complete Unleashed Kickstarter collection (one of the two boxes has an edge split)
Beagle or Bagel?
Bios: Megafauna 2nd edition (NIS)
Bloodborne: Card Game + exansion
Brick Party
Broom Service: card game
Capital City
Captains of the GUlf
Carnival Zombie: 2nd deluxe edition KS + expansion
Castle Panic (older edition)
Castles of Mad king ludwig: secrets
Clinic Deluxe edition plus expansion
Consentacle (NIS)
Demon Worker
Dice throne: Seraph vs vampire lord
Dice thrones promos
Disc Duelers
Disney Sorcerers Arena: Epic alliances (NIS)
Dragon Pets
Dungeon Raiders (newer edition)
Epic spell wars battle of the wizards: Skullzfyre and Tentakill boxes
Escape from the Aliens in Outer SPace
Escape: Curse of the Temple
Fantasy Realms
Favor of the Pharoah
Flatline
Forged in Steel
Fort + expansion
Frostpunk
Fugitive
Funkoverse Harry Potter
Galaxy defenders + elite alien army
THe Game
GAP
Goonies: never say die
Gretchinz!
Grifters
Hollow Cell (NIS)
Horse Fever
Ignite Kickstarter edition with centaurs: unpunched
ISS Vanguard +close encounters + personal files (NIS)
Ivanhoe
Junk Art
Kemomimi Panic + promos
The King is dead
Labyrinth
Level 7 [omega protocol] + expansion
March of the ants
Maters Trials: Wrath of Magmaroth (NIS)
Monster Slaughter + kickstarter content
Mottainai
New York Slice
Nuns on the Run
Of Dreams and Shadows + Monster within expansion
Omen: Reign of war + expansions ( tales of the ancients, gifts of the gods, fires in the east, edge of the aegean, and heir to the dunes, condensed into two boxes, some edge whitening)
Ouch!
Overseers
Pandemic: The cure + experimental Meds
Pocket Paragons: Origins
Rattaneer
Reckoners Kickstarter edition
Revolution!
Sagrada + multiple expansions (NIS)
Sidereal Confluence: 1st ed
Starcadia quest
Sons of Anarchy: Men of Mayhem
Space Gate Odyssey
Spirit Island (NIS)
Spyfall + Spyfall 2
Squirmish
Summoner wars: Master set + expansions
Tabannusi: Builders of Ur
Taj mahal (printed rulebook, one token replaced using the spare)
Tapeworm (NIS, KS edition i believe)
Terror Below
Time of Crisis: roman empire in Turmoil
Time stories: Revolution, hadal project
Tokyo Jidohanbaiki
Tragedy looper
Trailz
Vindication + leaders + promo pack + promo mini
Warriors of God: wars of england and france
Whistle stop
Wits and Wagers deluxe edition
Wok Star
Word Slam (NIS)
Wordsy
World of warcraft; wrath of the lich king
Xia: legends of a drift system + Embers a forsaken star
Zendo
Zombicide collection: zombicide, season 2 prison outbreak, box of zombies (Zombie dogz), toxic city mall Zombicide Black plague: + wulfsburg + zombie bosses condensed into base box (some edge splitting), and wooden organizer.
[W]
Loop
Diamonds
Astro knights eternity stuff
Buurn
Too many bones content - (I already have base game)
massive darkness 2 darkbringer box + druids
20 strong
7th citadel
Kinsfire chronicles
7 wonders expansions beyond armada.
7 Wonders architects
Heat: Pedal to the metal Wyrmspan
Zoo Vadis
Unsettled content beyond planet 4.
Other wants:
Last of us remake + Last of us 2 remake for ps5
Final fantasy rebirth
Vinyl Records Video game/anime themed

[OC Intro: The game is modded to increase basic jobs cost, seasonal events are disabled. Much of the crash details are based on NASA/SP-2008-565 Columbia Crew Survival Investigation Report recommendations especially Chapter 3 "Occupant Protection".]
The ship is without power, and Tightniks can't run the radar much without draining the batteries. He has only a few minutes of APU power left, goes over the best clearing he can find, and radars it. It varies by only a few feet from the aerodynamic glideslope there. He spots it out on the cameras and circles to go after that spot. He's only at two hundred feet now. With one hand on the stick, he uses the other to open the pressure equalization valve on the side hatch, then at one hundred feet, gets it undogged. Depending on how much damage he's going to get, it's less likely to be stuck closed and trap him. The dynamic vacuum this pulls in the cockpit rips most of the survival pack data cards from that rack and scatters them across the landscape. Crap, I'm gonna need those! Refocusing on surviving the next few seconds, he turns on the radar for the final approach, takes a last look around, then straight ahead at his forward camera and PFD, he clicks his HANS and shoulder strap locks in; after that, he can barely move, but that now is better than dying in this crash with a broken neck. He's a decent pilot and brings up the flare gently. Bringing up the alpha on this delta-winged ship, he balloons a little, but keeps the nose going up and restores a zero aerodynamic sink rate just above the highest terrain indicated by the radar altimeter. The ship bumps a little in the ground effect, and he can see the radar altitude cycling irregularly up and down about five feet at a time. Rougher than it looked from higher up! The body flap protecting the dead engines hits first, and the nose comes rapidly down. It hits, the screens go blank, and Tightniks is surrounded by airbags, some lifting his feet from the rudder petals and his hand from the control stick. It's blinding, it's disorienting, it's noisy, and, to his relief, it's long! It takes several seconds before the crashing cockpit stops moving. How many times did he flip over? Did he go sideways and roll? Am I rightside up? Are we really stopped on the ground? The airbags deflate, and he can move his arms. He gets his restraints loose and inspects himself. "Uck!" he says out loud (without the 'f'). No broken bones. His pressure suit can take his blood pressure. 116/81, pulse 112, blood oxygen 99 reads off on his left arm, I'll friggin' take it!
The ship is amazingly intact from what he can tell. He can't get any readings. The systems test meter seems to be working, but can't find any voltages anywhere. The ship seems to be completely dead. Behind him, 10 passenger seats are all surrounded by airbags and the back of the cabin ends in some sort of dirt-and-gravel and there's a bit of daylight seeping in around the edges. He was the only one on board, though, so their deployment was mostly academic (they might have stiffened the structure a little during the crash, but that's probably trivial.) Tightniks gets out of his spacesuit. The air on this planet is actually breathable. He gets the hatch open, steps outside and-
"A green shimmer erupts then disappears, and you hit the ground."
The human emerges from the glowing green mist and hits the ground. Groans. Pushes against that ground, trying to get back up. Where am I? What's my name? I remember nothing. Aren't babies born naked? He's got a dark blue button-down shirt on. A uniform? A shoulder patch. Gets up, looks around. I feel really heavy. I'm not that fat, am I? He picks up a small stone from the ground, this also feels heavier than it should. He rises to his feet and holds it out somewhat (he's unable to fully extend his arm) and lets it go. The stone hits the ground near his feet quickly and with remarkable speed. It's the gravity, it's greater than it is on- ...where am I from? This is- ...not my home planet? "Oooh..."
"Ka?" it says.
What is that? It's cute, at least.
It is not tame. He has no hope of catching it on foot. The creature seems to like the berries. Maybe if I gather some of those into one place and set some kind of trap...
33s: First trap.
I got one! The human lumbers up to the trap and gets the catch open. Do you bite? It doesn't matter much to me; I'm so friggin' screwed.
It doesn't. It looks at the human with a sense of wonder, actually. A blink and tilt of the head. Seems almost to be asking, Is it you? My purpose? My savior? Once out of the trap, which is totally wrecked, he has to make a new one from scratch, it follows him around like a imprinted hatchling bird.
Wiry little fella, you are. You're going to need some bulking up to do anything useful. The- ...'trimp', I guess... The trimp seems just barely able to feed itself. The human lets him into the broken ship's intact cabin, and it curls up comfortably in a passenger seat for a nap.
1m03s: Second trap.
"Apparently the Trimps breed if they're not working. Doesn't look pleasant."
What are they doing?
The trimps appear to be androgynous, and these two have paired off in the back of the ship. They're holding something carefully within a few hours, feeding it berries, grass, and- ...corundum.
Corundum?? Whatever that is, it isn't a baby.
1m35s: Third trap.
Only it IS a baby! The third trimp he trapped immediately joined the other two in raising it. They have a strange diet of food the human has found compatible with his own body, but they also eat rocks! They're careful to crush and sort aluminate minerals from silcate ones and only eat aluminate. Actually, they don't eat aluminate, they're only feeding it to the baby.
2m06s: Fourth trap.
All four are raising the same child, who is just starting to toddle. It seems these fellas have alumina or maybe even aluminum bones. The human takes a nap and wakes to find the first child grown up and they're starting to raise a second child, all five of them.
2m46s: Huts.
The human found a working bit of electronics. He calls it a pad, but maybe it's more like a smartphone. It has plans for two residential structures. The first, the smaller one, he can build right away, but the second one needs something called "drywall", and he has to figure out how to make that before he can build it. Huts and houses, apparently.
3m13s: 10 pop, full, first farmer.
The trimp he trained to farm and make paper took an incredible 50 units of food to get bulked up to do the work, and now it's not participating in rearing the child. But less than an hour after the trimp started farming and pulping, the child was out on its own, and the trimps did not start another. The ten seats on the ship were all full. Well, eleven counting the one up front that the human sleeps in. The pilot starts exploring the area.
3m28s: Battle.
Wait, what are you do-
The hostile roars and charges at the human, but one of his trimps jumps in front of him with a stick and they fight. It started right when the human got far enough away from the ship that the hostile non-trimps away from the ship began to regard him as leaving his own territory. After the trimp defeats the first enemy, it continues after other hostiles.
3m53s: Shield I in Z1c5.
The human is easily able to recover the loot in the territory cleared by the fighting trimp. Then he sees something glinting in the- That can't be! What the heck is that? It's a data card that fits his pad. It quite clearly regards trimp combat. He gets it loaded into his pad and studies it. I can do this, it just takes some wood. He returns to the ship to discover that they had already started on a new child before the fighter had even expired in battle. The human concentrates on his research.
4m38s: Mskel in Z1c11 defeated.
The remains of this one seem rather white and shiny. It's titanium! This enemy had titanium bones! He'll store them away. They'll be useful someday, I'm sure.
5m52s: Dagger I in Z1c20.
Where are these data cards coming from? The human wonders as he loads this one into his pad, It's for a weapon it calls a dagger. He blinks. I don't know what a dagger is. I'll take your word for it, data card. Needs metal. He has gathered some, but ore is plentiful. He can just dig and smelt it whenever he wants. For now, I'll continue researching.
6m18s: Arable in Z1c21.
It's an old cave that trimps like to live in. Why weren't they able to live there before? How could these friendly critters be confined to only the exact spot where THAT thing, he looks back where he came from, not remembering that he piloted the wrecked ship to its current resting place, crashed? This is really strange. I'll let them fill up this cave before advancing further. Wait, what about defenses? The hostiles never try to reclaim territory that they've lost, so he stops worrying about that fairly quickly.
8m22s: First hut is 0.3% first ever AP.
The trimps seem fairly easy to please in terms of living quarters. Two move into his first hut and start raising a child. The human has his tent, uniform, and the heater pilfered from his space suit. Not much of a mud fan.
9m59s: Miners in Z1c30.
Oh, what's on this data card? Sl3niw? Oh, I'm holding the pad upside down. Miners. I can teach trimps how to mine ores and smelt met- 200 units of food? Each job is getting more expensive to train a trimp for. He puts his bee nickels to his eyes and spots another data card probably 10 enemies away. "Sc"? Does that means science? I can teach trimps to do science??
13m57s: Scientists in Z1c40.
Due to the expense of training trimps, the human couldn't afford to build them shields until now, he's got Sh1-3 made for the fighter to capture the science training data card. 14m02s: One head went into that turtlimp shell, that of his fighter, but two came out: his fighter still has his head on, and he managed to get the turtlimp's head off. It rushes off after the deadly penguimp in the next cell. The shields are not doing all that much good, actually, but they're better than nothing. The human picks up and loads the science data card and- Holy runny sugar-free fudge crap! 1000 food units, but it'll endow them with the ability to speak. Good. I'm getting bored with no one to talk to.
14m28s: Bloodlust purchased and AutoFight enabled (that delay after getting it is an effect of jacking up the job cost.)
As the human buries this expired little trimp warrior, he comes to the sobering realization that he has more trimp graves in his growing trimp colony than he does live trimps. And yet they seem more hopeful now than before I got to know any of them. They seem to think I'm the solution to all their problems or- Those two look east somberly, then notice that he's watching them and smile back and wave at him. ...one problem that is specific, but very, very huge for them. [The only reason I say 'east' is because that's right on a map, and the game advances right across a row, then up. I might say 'northeast' on occasion for that reason.]
20m47s: Z1c73, Miners taken.
Are you my new mining foreman? The trimp who took to the mining training has dark brown fur that lays flat on its head. It's unusual in not having any bits that stick out from its head, ahoge or whatever. This one is relatively quiet, and while it has assimilated the mining and smelting knowledge, it needs to bulk up to do any mining. Smelting is relatively easy, and getting a strong natural draft going in a furnace is almost trivial with the increased gravity. This trimp builds furnaces like nothing. And likes to nap in holes it digs right on the spot; it's weird that way. [Puchim@s Yukipo, and furnaces are not explicit in Trimps.]
21m58s: Farming in Z1c80.
The resourcing "books" are not data cards but paper scrolls, apparently lost to the trimps. It seems that they were civilized in the recent past and some calamity swept over the planet to reduce them to this. Did I have something to do with it? Amnesia sucks harder than a Dyson- ...what's a Dyson? Whatever, it sucks. This disaster happening just before I crash in the only spot with trimps still alive would be a seriously crazy coincidence! Something is really, really wrong about all this. [The author has not sought or received product placement permission or fee from Dyson Technology Ltd. or any resellers of their stuff, just they literally suck balls and made my favorite vacuum cleaner.]
23m50s: Builder in Z1c90.
They've rescued an, I dunno, gelding trimp? It just started to build a shed around the piled lumber I left to build one. It's really slow compared to me, and just banged its thumb, but it is super cute with that long reddish head fur. That particular trimp is also fascinated with pink ribbons and likes to decorate its head fur with them. Because of its inherent inability to participate in rearing children, it isn't counted in the population. [Puchim@s Io, builder on the basis of Iori seen building in 1x10.]
26m02s: Zone 2, 44 pop, 5.5s RC with Z0/1.
It's some sort of tactical manual - tactical coordination. Coordination! He's starting to sort out some trimpese on the research he has done so far. It needs a lot of metal, so they won't be able to implement it for some time. Hopefully, they're still good one at a time, but these enemies seem to be getting bigger as we go along. Uh oh!
27m33s: Gym in Z2c5.
It's some sort of training dojo or sporting arena. The human examines the ruins, I think I can back-engineer drawings for this, get one built, and see what happens.
29m02s: 1g, 47 pop, 10.8s RC with Z1/2.
The two fighting trimps now with their gym and coordination are dodging and blocking enthusiastically, and making much faster ground against the bad guys then a little while ago when it was just one trimp fighting at a time and unable to avoid the enemy hitting back.
40m46s: Fresh turkimp in Z2c74, 63 pop, 7.9s RC, Sh1-10, Da1-5, Bo1-3, Ma1-3, Hm1-3, 6g.
Oh, wow, the laborers seem really hot after this turkimp. He cooks it up and tries a slice. It's really awesome! I have to work alongside his laboring trimps to share it, but I'm getting used to the gravity now. That scroll we found back in Z2c10 really helped. Trimps' techniques and appliances for handicapped individuals, and I'm really handicapped in this higher gravity. He joins the woodcutters with the turkimp; they're the most numerous resource laborer right now, building more gyms, enough that the block/dodge ability of the fighting trimps is almost caught up to the enemy's ability to cause damage.
43m15s: Zone 3, 63 pop, 7.9s RC with Z1/2.
I'm neglecting my science and trimp scientists are really expensive. Curiously, that grey-haired one can't speak all that well, only says "Tai" and "Shijou", but it can write and draw like nobody's business. It's the only scientist so far. [Puchim@s Takanya: Online references probably still claim that she can utter the first two syllables of any word, but she can actually utter only the first two kana syllables of someone's name, most often the given name of basis human Takane Shijou, who also has that habit. (All the utterances of the puchidoru are based on the speech foibles of their basis humans except maybe Piyopiyo, where I haven't seen anything match up so far.)]
47m32s: Finally, we can make drywall and houses. 59m30s: Z3c77, 94 pop, 7.8s RC.
Oh, those poor things are really struggling up at the front. These trimps are enthusiastic and know no fear, but I still feel like telling them to stop for a while. I don't have the heart to keep them from trying while they're still doing some damage.
1h05m24s: Zone 4, 107 pop, 9.3s RC with Z3/4. 1h15m26s: Zone 5, 120 pop, 8.2s RC with Z3/4.
"What is that?" the human asks. He has three scientists. His first does all the writing, but the other two can actually speak. One of them hops up on a rock spire beside the human to reach his eye level.
At the next ridge line, over the lowest and most passable gap in the terrain, this really mean looking hovering sausage monster.
"I dunno," the scientist trimp shrugs, "But it's making me hungry. Looks like a perfectly cooked frankfurter from here." [John Morell's dubious dirigibles.]
"Oh, yeah," the human nods, "that's a blimp."
"A blimp?" the trimp tilts its head quizzically at the human, "How could you know?"
"I wish I could tell you, little buddy," the human extends his arm braces to descend the pass on the side of the zone boundary in the boss enemy's direction, then grunts, "Let's go kill it."
1h16m11s: Z1c9, 120 pop, 10.3s RC with Z4/5. 1h33m34s: Zone 6, 151 pop, 7.4s RC with Z4/5.
1h33m54s: TP in Z1c3.
"What's this?" the human asks, having picked up the little square document with the curling corners.
"Oh," the hungry scientist looks at it, "It's a garden path, follow me."
"You want to lead me down the garden path?" the human says.
"Yeah," the scientist says.
"Are you kidding?" the human asks.
"No," says the other scientist, "We don't get human humor. Listen, these fighters can't go, let them wear themselves out here, then we'll take the next group through this garden."
"Okay," the human nods, watching two more trimps join the fray as he issues the Z5 coordination orders, "they're doing pretty well after all that block training research we just wrapped up." [That's a common artifact, even in normal games, Z5 Traintacular combines with many gyms, enough population to add several trainers, affording Blockmaster, which is expensive on a run zero, plus a break on Tion Z5, a 40% all-stat increase. I don't think Zach designed it into the game on purpose, it just worked out this way.]
1h34m07s: 151 pop, 10.5s RC with Z5/7. 1h37m44s: Drop from Z6c39, TP for 3.
"Now we have these access map frags we can use to route through the old trimpopoli," the scientist explains, "Atlimpis for food, Morimpa for gems, Everimp for metal, and Impazon for wood."
"What about the garden?" the human asks.
"Well, we got lucky with Tricky Paradise," the scientist says, "but you can randomize the route and maybe get lucky. What's with that look?"
"Somehow, I'm remembering 'frag' as something that blew up with deadly pieces," the human says. [Different video games - ones with better graphics and worse gameplay Ｏ(>▽<)Ｏ]
1h39m59s: Blues back up to the top on series I...
"Tai, Tai!" the first ever trimp scientist stops the human just before he upgrades the mace and dagger to Mk.6 and Mk. 8 respectively. It has a note for him.
"Why do you keep calling me that?" the human asks, "Do you think that's my name?"
"Shijou, Shijou," it nods as though to indicate, I KNOW it is. Then it proffers its note again. The human takes it and reads, "Don't upgrade the first row equipment right now."
"Why not?" the human asks.
"Shijou," it points at the end of the mapped route, where there's a scroll sticking out of the thistles.
2h24m07s: Zone 8, 224 pop, 12.2s RC with Z7/12.
"Your settlement is getting crowded, there's Trimps in the streets, and you're taking heat. You feel a sudden strong desire to create a map, though you're not quite sure how that would help."
2h49m10s: Zone 9, 357 pop, 9.5s RC with Z8/15.
"You can't shake the feeling that you've been here before. Déjà-vu?"
The trimps really seem to like the new high capacity mansions, and the village has rapidly expanded since they started building them.
"There's something familiar about this," the human says.
"Tai," the grey one that writes clings to his arm and shows him a note that says, "Don't give up now."
"We must persist," says the yellow one has found a foothold it can grab onto and grabs the human's shoulder gently, "If you give up to early, we'll never solve this. You'll be stuck here forever."
The human puts his hand over the trimp's paw on his shoulders, then looks at him, "I can die, too."
"No, you can't," the trimp says quietly, "Please don't test that, tall one."
"Death is just another path..." he remembers.
"Gan," the grey one squeaks. [That's the first two kana syllables of "Gandalf"]
"...one that we all must take," the human continues, "The grey rain-curtain of this world rolls back, and all turns to silver glass, and then you see it-"
"A green mist," the yellow trimp interrupts, "flash of fire, we're all gone and our progress forgotten. The wandering stars return to that day, and you again crash that ship- ...a little better every time."
"Wait," the human looks around, "have I been here before?"
"I-" the yellow trimp tries in futility to share what little it knows, "...or... somebody got just a little coolant into the-"
"Into the what?"
"This side up," the grey one's note says.
"Into the that," the yellow one points at the note, "It really helped. You- ...I don't think we've ever had mansions before."
Well, of course they didn't have mansions before. That was one of my ship's data cards. How did it get way out here? Will anything start to make sense?
3h02m13s: Zone 10, 387 pop, 8.7s RC with Z8/15; '28s: 11.1s RC with Z9/19. 3h16m41s: Tough snimp after food book, L10 rand dept from lo-hi-med 118/25/96, 4 Items.
"That's twice our frags led us to gem-rich Moria," the human says.
"Morimpa," the new red trimp scientist corrects, there now being 5 scientists. [There'd be more if there were more turkimp.]
"The question is how do we use all these gems?" the human looks at the village zoning plans again, "I like those mansions and all, but they use hardly any gems compared to, well-" he gestures at the pile of over two dozen thousand gems they've gathered, "-that! And still a lot of wood and lumber."
"I think there's something," the yellow one sighs, "I wish I knew more."
Quite some time later, after they're done looting that route for equipment plans, the trimps are again advancing through Zone 10, and he hears it.
"Tai?" the grey one wonders.
"Where are you going?" the yellow one asks.
"To the farm," the human answers.
"Whatever for?" the red one seems exasperated.
"Shijou?" the grey one sighs, then looks at the fighting front. It's been around long enough to remember, "Shijou!"
"You guys already get so much to eat this doesn't do you much good," the human explains.
3h32m33s: L11 112/35/78 rand sea, dropped from Z11c6 with disband, 4.
"What's wrong?" the red one asks.
The human comforts one of the wounded. Once trimps start into a zone fight, they have to finish before they bleed out. He's really bothered making them desert in front of that second turkimp. "They had a lot left in them," he sighs, rubbing his eyes, "but we can't keep that much dead turkimp at once, we have to leave it alive to use up all of this one."
"Shijou," the grey one presents a note, "We need this map right away, anyway. Don't worry about it, Tightniks."
"Tightniks?" he looks at the grey one, "Is that me? How do you know?"
"Tai," the grey one points at the top of the human's left breast pocket.
"Ah, crud," the yellow one curls its tail around in front of itself as trimps do when they're embarrassed, "Is that really a name tag?"
The human hadn't even noticed it since the green flash blew up his memory as he was stepping out of the ship.
4h04m22s: Block (sub-8h AP is only 0.3%), taking it, 504 pop, 9.8s RC with Z10/24.
It's a pretty thick book about using shields for block instead of hit points. The pad has the stats analysis. Sh3-1 is only giving us 9% of our hit points. Turning to his trimp scientists, he says, "It seems to me to be worth it."
"Let's," the yellow one nods.
"Shijou," it hands him a note, "It scales badly, but that won't matter for a long time. I think there's a way to undo it before it matters."
"Doing it." The human takes out his pad and starts scanning.
4h29m05s: L14 rand moun 137/26/80 is really good for a lo-hi-med. 4h30m52s: Hotels.
"Ah," the yellow one says, "I knew there was something. That must be it."
5h08m09s: L15 lo-hi-hi rand gard 129/28/82 (just got explorers). 5h09m32s: Picked up Wall.
"Dam," the human says.
"Damn?" the red one chuckles.
"No," the human says, "Earthen wall dam; it's a thing that makes artificial lakes by holding rivers back."
"Lakes?" the yellow one asks, "Rivers?"
"Oh yeah," the human says, "This planet doesn't have enough rain for those..."
5h48m21: Leaving Wall from about c70 to fetch Tion Z15.
"You can't resume the map from the same point if you start another," the human reads the grey one's note.
"We can go back to the same point on that route if we hold there and finish Zone 15, right?" Tightniks asks.
"Shijou!" it seems to be saying yes.
"Yes," the yellow one adds, "but we're out of Series III upgrades, and you need a fresh map route to start up Series IV."
"We should be okay," Tightniks says, "but if we have to start it over, I don't see that being a big deal." As they advance through the rest of Zone 15, Tightniks resumes his usual duties at the research desk instead building and running traps like he was before.
The trimps seem hopeful at this decision.
5h49m10s: Fresh turkimp. 5h50m16s: Zone 16, 1071 pop, 13.4s RC with Z15/75, 13m43s turkimp (skel in c1.)
"Z:16 Seriously? Another Blimp so soon?"
"So," Tightniks lowers his bee nickels and looks at the red one, "is it going to be boss fights at the end of every zone from now on?"
"Hmm," the red trimp looks up past the human at some random rock spire or cloud.
"Well?" the human persists.
"Yup," he says.
"Hmph," Tightniks grabs a Sw3-1 of the rack and advances towards the front, "Before then, we have another Mister Titanium."
"What does he like about skeletimps?" the red one asks the grey one as the human marches off.
"Shijou?" the grey one seems just as confused by that.
"He's not going back to the ship, and he's not getting himself killed," the yellow one smiles, "so I'll take it."
5h58m32s...
"Hey guys, go for the mortar!" the human suggests to his 75 fighting trimps in the Wall's boss fight.
"I can tell from your bedtime stories that you're used to the artillery in that other place," the yellow one gripes, "but fighting works differently here, there's no artillery."
And the human instantly collapses laughing, the scientists a little worried he might have injured himself in the planet's severe gravity. But he's okay, at least physically, "Mortar is the stuff between the bricks, fellas. That's is a brickimp, right?"
5h59m18s: Wall, 1076 pop, 13.3s RC, 1% AP for sub-8h finish, first L16 roll good 156/35/84 moun, 10 for the metal.
Beyond the Wall was a more edenic section of the trimpolis ruins, doubling the production of the lumberjacks. The trimps are actually really happy with the mode of all of the laborers moving between the three big jobs, along with the turkimp, except for the foremen specialized at leading the job. It isn't enough to boost their productivity, but the human goes to them with trays of sandwiches.
6h06m52s: 50 map run 0.3% AP...
6h19m13s: Zone 17, 1141 pop, 16.0s RC with Z16/94, no turkimp.
"Z:17 You climb a large cliff and look out over the new Zone. Red dirt, scorched ground, and devastation. Is that a Dragimp flying around out there?!"
"Hmm," the human surveys the new zone with his bee nickels, "Looks like crap. Any ideas?"
"You're the idea man," the yellow one groans.
"Set the map flag," he puts his bee nickels away, "We'll run a depth for practice and to load up on gems for more hotels."
"Righto," the red one gets to work.
6h44m34s: First DCP. (Draglimp Care Package; I refuse to call it a tribute.)
"Oh," the human says, "It's tame now, so it brings back gems in exchange for food?" He looks at his gaping scientists, "That's what it looks like, huh? Guys? Yo!"
"Tai..." the grey one sighs.
Draglimp, the dragimp imprinted on Tightniks, lands beside the human, drops some gems at his feet, and accepts some scratching behind its horns before diving into the food bowl.
"You tamed a dragimp???" Grey's note says.
"Well," the yellow one huffs, "I guess that happened."
8h18m53s: L20 depth of 154/27/79.
"Mapping up here?" the red one half closes one eye and tilts his head.
"Yeah," the human says while fitting together the depth map fragments, "With the coordination book not right at the end, we have an extra mark of coordination to take advantage of. Let's take our housing up to 2000 or so, shall we?"
"Okay," the yellow one says from a pile of logs, "What's all the wood for?" They had been collecting it for days now.
"The series upgrades follow a rather specific pattern," Tightniks explains, "Just on the other side of this blimp is Zone 21, where we should be able to find the Shield series V, right?"
"Shijou!" the grey one nods.
8h56m17s: 1% AP for 100 map runs, leaving it, 1751 pop, 24.8s RC with Z20/232. 8h56m54s: Zone 21...
"Ooooookay," Tightniks growls, "There is something off about this thing."
"Shijou?" the grey one looks at the yellow one with concern about their human starship pilot friend.
The human stoops, picks up the little green gem on the ridge between Zone 20 and 21, looks at it, huffs, and asks, "Any idea where this comes from?"
"Err..." the red one seems hesitant to say, "I think you made it."
"Really?" the human huffs, "How could that be?" Then he tosses it at Red, "See if anything reacts to it. It might be radioactive, so we should take turns to minimize exposure."
"Really?" Red's holding it now, "What makes you say that?"
"Because I'm pissed off for no reason I can figure out," the human says, "I think it's coming from that."
"Frags," the red one says quickly, "I think it's arranging a route. You're good with maps," it tosses the gem to the grey scientist.
"Shijou," the grey one says hopefully, and has a map drawn within a few minutes. [Whether it looks like the one in Puchim@s 1x61 is anyone's guess. That one annoyed me as well as Chihya.]
9h02m37s: L21 moun first roll was a decent 160/26/84. 9h21m00s: Starting run 5 of that map...
Tightniks had taken his anger out on some food and wood to build about 8000 traps. Now he's leaning against a rock spire in his increasingly tattered uniform. A nap begins, perhaps unintentionally.
Wild trimps are examining the pile, finding it unwelcoming, and also finding no place in the town, just mill about. It looks like they want to help.
"Ku?" it's a blue trimp, probably a farmer waiting for stuff to grow, climbs up on the rock spire the human is leaning against, starts patting him on the head, "Ku. Ku ku." [Puchim@s Chihya.]
9h23m09s: Still working that lap...
Tightniks wakes up from that nap, and the grey one is standing there. "Shijou," it says with a note of concern, although not much of one. The note it holds says, "It wasn't me."
"Oh, what wasn't you, buddy?" He stretches out a bit, feeling somewhat refreshed. It feels like somebody washed his face and hair while he was sleeping.
The grey one is also holding a small mirror, apparently broken off from a larger mirror and with the sharp edges filed down to make the edges safe.
The human takes it from the grey trimp and holds it in front of his face to discover that somebody has bound up all his hair into about twenty little pigtails. He touches them with his other hand to confirm. "Eh, whatever." He hands the mirror back and goes back to sleep. [Puchim@s Koamimami.]
9h30m08s: The following run...
"He's not throwing stuff every which way yet," the yellow one whispers to the red one, watching the human snoozing with his pad on his knee.
"You remember that, too?" the red one asks.
"'Remember'?" the yellow one turns to face the red one, "I s'pose that's better than imagining it."
"I remember it, too," the grey one says via a playing card sized note.
"If we're stuck in a time loop," the yellow one sighs, "maybe this cycle will be different."
"Tai..." the grey one admires him for a moment. Then thumbs in the direction of the mountain, "Heh, Shijou!" it laughs.
9h35m58s: Run 8, c9 of that map.
The scientists nap and take notes, and meditate and take notes, and draw stuff. The grey one often storyboards for the other nine because it's the best at drawing stuff. They have come up with a list, and most probably "order" (they're debating whether their ranking means "order" (sequence of things happening over the various loops) or "frequency" (what proportion of previous loops they have happened in). But they've come up with this, from first (or perhaps most often) to most recent (or perhaps least often):
- The ship crashes (they're pretty sure that happens every loop) - The human builds huts - The human teaches some of his trimps to speak and do science - The human builds houses - The human makes maps - The human builds mansions - The human blows up and gets himself killed somewhere around Z17 to Z21, often on a dragimp - The human only recently/occasionally builds hotels - The human only recently/rarely tamed a dragimp - The human only recently/rarely maps the Dimension of Anger
They're all agreed that that they have never finished the Dimension of Anger. What they are not all agreed on is that they've never done this conference to figure out whether they're in a time loop or what that might mean. [See also Star Trek: The Next Generation episode "Cause and Effect" ...which was sort of a time loop but they weren't going back in time. It's very interesting, but its meta makes no sense - no one ever went looking for the Bozeman in 80 years? No one who went looking for the Bozeman also got stuck? No one noticed the passage of time outside the little area of space where the not-quite-a-time-loop was happening? Errr... sci-fi writers, don't be half-assed about your time loops, lmao! Be like Harold Ramis- ...what am I saying?? (That would be Groundhog Day, which grafted a time loop into a romcom; there are no other sci-fi elements. But it was a full-blown time loop and not half-assed like "Cause and Effect".)]
9h54m06s: Dropped from Z21c95...
I think it would be a bad idea to bypass that green area, as much as I'd rather not face it. Both his domesticated trimps, which are breeding up a new group of fighters, and the wild trimps he has decided just now not to open the traps for, stare at him and point in that direction. He shoulders a huge Shield V-3 and grabs an Mace IV-2 as well and announces, "We're doing it." Thus equipped, he marches off into the Dimension of Anger.
10h27m53s: Taking Pi4-2; recently had taken Pa4-2...
The group at the front had expired, and the snimp in DoAc95 glares at the advancing colony of trimps, which had halted only because of it. It refuses to counterattack the vulnerable colony and its human, instead snorting and huffing, waiting for the next bunch of 232 fighting trimps to come in range.
Tightniks runs along the line of traps, releasing the recently tamed trimps, singing a song that he doesn't remember the meaning of, that he doesn't remember was crafted by an ethnically Chinese guy out of an African language, and later mastered by two caucasians over the internet before they ever met in person. "Baba yetu yetu uliye, mbinguni yetu yetu amina..." because it just happened to be stuck in his head. [Because the Doylian author decided on a whim to. Christopher Tin got it into Civilization IV and at the time (2010 July), I made the best video for it on YouTube, which got subsequently blown to shreds when Peter Hollens and Malukah re-recorded the song from scratch in their own voices and instruments in 2014, pity with no English translation, the purpose of my video.]
Noticing the last batch of metal he needs coming out of the furnace, he waves the waiting grey scientist to fire up the forge [to use the term properly and not as the game does], for it was time to wrap up the forging dies for the Spetum IV, Mark 2 pike heads.
"Shijou!" the grey one cheers, setting aside a snack that looks like maybe ramen, and starts jumping up and down on the bellows handle.
It takes a while for the human to chip out the tip in the two halves of the forging die, and then polish it, and then heat it up in the forge, and then quench it, inspect it, and put it into service crafting thousands of new pike heads for the fighting trimps.
But only one second passed on the map frame clock (10h27m54s) four cells behind that snimp, in the case being brooded over by this huge, and if it's honest, rather concerned megablimp.
10h35m45: Portal PB, 45 He, 4.247 He/hr, 1891 pop, 22.7s RC with Z20/232, no turkimp.
The last head of the map's boss monster goes limp as one of the fighting trimps' mace heads bounces of it, and the huge thing settles on its tail, resting on the package that seems to be the prize of this map. And there's a popping sound, and then something mechanical.
Is that a scroll compressor? Tightniks looks at the package. The deflating monster's lifting envelope material drapes over everything underneath it. "Red, Shijou!" he snaps and points, "roll up that side of it. Keep this part from sucking down on the extractor nozzle!"
All ten of the scientists jump in, literally, pushing the gas in the bag towards the compressor. Tightniks as well, rolling up the front.
Until he kicks, and nearly trips over, a smaller package that might be the explanation for the reason why the center of the monster's defense seemed to be a little away from the big package he could see. It's in the right place, he realizes. He gets it uncovered and reads stenciled-and-sprayed block letters on it:
"DT TIME PORTAL / THIS SIDE DOWN"
Perhaps the Dimension of Anger is so named because of the rage suddenly rising up in Tightniks' throat. It isn't so much as the free-floating aggression suddenly has an answer, there is definitely a fresh batch of rage and anger as he grips the nearest Mace IV, Mark 3 with both hands and gets it over his shoulder, its target obviously this object, anger at the realization he screams at the top of his lungs, "We are stuck in a mutha FAH-king time loop!!" His swing begins. [Tightniks almost never cusses, unlike Snugniks.]

By popular demand, I guess...
I was kinda just being a smart-ass, but some of you wanted more so here it is: epilogues for every NPC as if they didn't continue to travel with Gorion's Ward and instead just decided to live their own life. Obviously, there are some implied alignment changes here.
This turned out to be longer than I expected and I kinda just threw it all together while I was working. Please excuse any typos or sloppy writing.
I want to apologize for one thing, though. Viconia's epilogue really only works if GW is a male, so I had to make that assumption for the sake of her story. If it matters any, I easily play just as many female GWs as I do male GWs. In fact, I probably play more female GWs because I don't care for the romances, frequently play the canon party, and want to nip the lame Jah romance in the bud.
But, to have them all in one place, I included my original smart-ass epilogues with the additional ones I created. Now, every character from BG1 and BG2 has an epilogue. I don't have the EE characters, though, because I play the original games and don't really know them.
So, just for funsies, which one is your favorite and why?
"Anomen continued to wait at the Copper Coronet for a party of adventurers willing to travel with him. Maybe it was the grating sound of his voice, or perhaps the way he leered at women, but he continued to remain alone. Eventually, he needed to find work to make ends meet. With Gorion's Ward having disbanded the slave traders and pit fights, Hendak had to find a new form of entertainment for the patrons. As such, he invented an all male review ladies night, and Anomen found work as a 'dancer'. He left the Most Noble Order of the Radiant Heart to join the less noble order of the pole. He also renounced his faith to Helm and instead allied himself with Waukeen because if you wanna see some groin, you gotta have some coin."
"Despite Gorion's Ward clearing the trolls from her keep, Nalia was not able to reclaim her lands and instead lost her estate to Lord Roenall. The lord offered to let her retain residence in her family's ancestral home, but only in exchange for her hand in marriage. Nalia found the proposition to be repugnant. Instead, she salvaged whatever wealth she could from her family's keep and moved to Athkatla to start a new life. She no longer helped the less fortunate, as she was now among their numbers and had her own problems. Nalia's lack of any practical skills combined with her sense of entitlement sent her into a life of failure followed by drinking and debauchery. She now spends more time back at the Copper Coronet than anywhere else. It is hard to say where she squanders her wealth more, the alcohol, or on the dancers during Ladies Night."
"After the incident with the Planar Sphere, Valygar was finally free of his past, could retire to his cabin, and pursue his true passion: writing. Ironically, the only inspiration he found ended up stemming from his family's checkered past. Valygar's only works that even had middling success were 'Tuesdays with Lavok' and 'Dude, Where's My Planar Sphere', with the latter being made into a production at the Five Flagoons Theater."
"Haer'Dalis continued to work as a performer at the Five Flagoons Theater. Unfortunately, it struggled due to poor management. It might have turned out better if an outside agent with fresh ideas had stepped in, but Gorion's Ward had better things to do than be a bard. While the work was generally steady, the returns were not great and the material was a little low-brow for Haer'Dalis' liking. The tiefling realized he reached rock bottom when he was cast as the lead in a play about a buffoon who apparently lost a plane-shifting apparatus the size of a small castle and had to find it before his parents returned from Neverwinter. After the opening night, he took his own life in his dressing room. His body was found the next morning with a note saying, 'Art is dead and I am art, so I shall join art in death.' Biff the Understudy stepped in for Haer'Dalis despite never having an opportunity to read the script. Nevertheless, the production was a resounding success and launched Biff's career to new heights."
“A heartbroken Garrick found work as a character actor at the Five Flagoons Theater, but eventually gained more success as a writer and director. He found it to be a mostly agreeable situation, aside from a tiefling primadonna who would constantly belittle his work and call it ”trite" and “drivel”. Fortunately, that situation worked itself out in time and Garrick found Biff to be much easier to direct. With the tiefling gone, his ideas had room to grow. He invented a new kind of love story, one where the protagonist doesn't always get the girl at the end but the journey to that ending would be quite amusing. He labeled this genre “the Comedy of Romance” and the works were mostly based on his own life. His plays were quite popular among the commoners, with his top selling shows being 'Sleepless in Saradush', 'Silverymoon Linings Playbook', and 'Crazy Rich Aasimars'. He eventually fully transitioned off the stage into the director's chair. By the peak of his fame, he was married to none other than Queen Ellesime."
“Aerie continued to work at the circus and WOULD NOT SHUT UP ABOUT HER DAMN WINGS. Even Quayle eventually grew sick of hearing about it. This put strain on their relationship. Things took a turn for the better when Ribald Barterman acquired a new curiosity for his shop. It was a magical ring which he sold to Quayle at a reduced rate out of sympathy. This ”treasure" was actually a cursed Ring of Deafness, which Quayle found to be anything but a curse and wore it for the rest of his days."
“Xzar and Montaron were both slain at the hands of the Athkatla Harpers, but this is actually where their story begins. Xzar, as he had done so many times before, had a backup plan of an arcane nature should death befall either he or the halfling. Their mortal essences were pulled to a pocket plane he created. There they could be channeled into restored bodies cloned at his estate. With this particular round of ritual, Xzar had incidentally made a slight error in the incantation and the two found themselves in a time suspended state in Xzar's pocket plane. It was only five minutes for the rest of the world, but it was fifty years for them. This turned out to be a pivot point in their relationship. Having only each other's company in this shadowy void, they were finally able to work out their feelings for each other. When they had returned to the prime material plane, they discovered their mutual animosity was replaced with love. Rather than pick up their life where they left off with the Zhentarim, they decided to pack it all in, moved to Bryn Shander, and start a bed and breakfast. Montaron rediscovered his halfling roots and love for the culinary arts while Xzar would perform seances to connect guests with their late loved ones. Scones and Bones became an overnight success and was consistently listed as a “must see” in Volo's travel guides. In their golden years, the couple co-wrote a memoir of their journey, ‘Brokeback Montaron’, which is sold in bookstores everywhere."
“After briefly crossing paths with Gorion's Ward, Mazzy Fentan continued her crusade as a de facto halfling paladin. She eventually found herself petitioning for membership at the Most Noble Order of the Radiant Heart in Athkatla after she had singlehandedly saved a village from an ancient dracolich. Despite the extent of her virtue and accomplishment, her petition was denied on the basis that halflings could not possibly be real paladins. This inspired her next crusade, one to break down vocational barriers for all demihuman races. Why couldn't halflings be paladins or dwarves be wizards? And why did gnomes always have to be illusionists? It simply made no goddamn sense. She began to get traction with her quest when she attended lectures by the wizards of the (sword) coast in Candlekeep. With their help, she ushered Faerun into a new ~~edition~~ era where there would be no vocational barriers for adventurers based on their race. Soon, the world began to see roguish halflings that also venerated Helm, while tending to the wilds as a druid. Half-orc bards also studied as wizards while manifesting natural arcane abilities as sorcerers. Tiefling paladins took their crusades to the wilderness and served as rangers, while sidelining as clergy to Mystra. The world was now a liberated place, free to not make any goddamn sense in a myriad of new ways. At one point, Lady Mazzy Fentan of Trademeet (now formally a paladin) crossed paths with a dwarven shadowdancebard and in that moment she regretted everything. Seriously, just take a moment and picture that. It would look fucking ridiculous.”
“Yeslick's clanhome was flooded once again. Despondent and without options, he took work at a smithy in Baldur's Gate but never stopped dreaming of finding both a clan and a home. He found a way to bring this dream to life after a courageous halfling paladin broke down the barriers for, among other things, dwarves to be wizards. Yeslick had an idea. He studied magic diligently until he was able to cast two spells of great importance: Water Breathing and Permanence. He then searched the lands for other clanless dwarves who would be willing to try something new. With the new clan he formed, Yeslick permanently gave all his fellow clansman the ability to breath underwater. They then moved into the flooded Cloakwood Mines and built the first underwater dwarven stronghold. Using his arcane powers, Yeslick also developed the ability to speak with the marine life that shared this stronghold. And, with that, the clan Aquadwarf was born. At one point, Valygar visited and wrote a play based on Yeslick's story. However, he couldn't even get it to stage at the Five Flagoons Theater. The illustrious director Garrick was quoted as saying, “A hero that can breath underwater and talk to fish? Nobody would go for that!"
“Keldorn finally retired from the Most Noble Order of the Radiant Heart and looked forward to a much simpler life. He rekindled his marriage with Lady Maria and life seemed to improve. It was rather early on when the couple discovered that Maria had become pregnant again. It was also not long after that when Peony, the housekeeper, also became pregnant. Maria started to ask Keldorn about this, but Keldorn started to get defensive and asked, ”Hey, who's the Inquisitor here?" Then Keldorn started to do the math with her to track the conception of Maria's pregnancy. She certainly did not want him to get to the end of that equation, so she quickly changed the subject. She suggested getting a new maid, but Keldorn chastised her for abandoning someone in their time of need who had been like family for years. He forbade Peony's departure claiming that his god, Torm, would not stand for it. Maria then made a passive aggressive comment about Torm being the god of loyalty, but she was mostly just muttering under her breath to get the last word in. Eventually, both children were born and had probably the most awkward upbringing of anyone in Faerun."
“After Gorion's Ward helped Coran take down a wyvern, the rogue brought the beast's head back to the mayor of Beregost for the reward and accolades. He thought this put him in a position to be a hero of great renown and perhaps, just maybe, people would stop mocking him for his flashy attire and completely superfluous eye mask. They didn't. He only gained acceptance when he crossed paths with a ranger who seemed indifferent towards Coran's keen fashion sense. Coran traveled the Sword Coast with his ranger sidekick, righting the wrongs against the ‘little guy’ and taking the law into their own hands when needed. This partnership dissolved when he discovered that the ranger thought Coran was the sidekick. As if! Coran tried to correct the ranger, whose argument was, 'Really, man, if that outfit doesn't scream sidekick then I'm Elminster's twin brother.' The ranger was not related to Elminster and shared no resemblance.
“Kivan never was able to get his revenge on Tazok. Unbeknownst to him, that honor was taken by Gorion's Ward. His thirst for vengeance continued to eat away at him until he found himself in a bat infested cave in the wilderness. It was then he snapped. He turned the cave into his secret hideaway, put together a disguise and started wandering the sword coast looking for evil-doers to punish. He would leave his calling card wherever he saved the day, a token of a bat with longer ears like an elf. And bats already had rather long ears so these bat ears were almost comically obtrusive. Nevertheless, his deeds were generally appreciated and the people stared calling him Bat-elf. For a short spell, another elf tagged along with him and tried to help, but he was so flamboyantly dressed that one could pick his sidekick out of the shadows blindfolded. Kivan eventually had to send him on his way. Unfortunately, his vigilante crusade abruptly ended after receiving a cease and decist order from DC Comics. Kivan could fight both monster and marauder all day, but his 14 Constitution wouldn't hold up against a lawsuit for trademark infringement.”
“Skie was deeply affected by both the death of her brother and the assassination of her father. And yes, her father was actually murdered and didn't lol-jk back to life in some crappy DLC. In any event, through these traumas, she came to realize the puerility of what she thought was her brilliant criminal masterminding. Instead, she decided to settle down and live a more responsible life as an upstanding citizen of Baldur's Gate. She took the reins of her father's estate after his death and rose to prominence as one of the Grand Dukes of the city. She maintained her relationship with Eldoth for quite some time, inexplicably, as he refused to get a job because he didn't want to take attention from his band which he swore was going to make it. However, the bard spent most of the day either lounging at Skie’s estate or gambling away his allowance with games of three-dragon-ante at the Helm and Cloak. Eventually, inspired by the book “Men Are From Menzoberranzan, Women Are From Immilmar," she decided to call it quits with Eldoth and sent him packing. Shortly thereafter, she met a man who was nothing like Eldoth and they settled down together to start a family."
“Eldoth's dreams of being a world-famous musician fronting the greatest band in Faerun never reached fruition. This was partly because he didn't actually have a band and partly because he didn't have the talent to write music. Instead, he just had a lute he purchased at Lucky Aello's Discount Store that only had one A-string and was missing the E-string. Also, Eldoth could only play power chords and he couldn't really sing and play at the same time. Most of the time he would just strum a chord or two and then talk about what the song would do next, often describing a solo and half playing it on an ”air lute" (while he was still holding an actual lute, mind you) to give people the idea as to how the song would sound when it was finally written. Yeah, he was one of those guys. After Skie kicked him to the curb, he bounced between various barmaids who clearly had low self-esteem, but not low enough to keep him around for long. Eventually, he got one of them pregnant and was forced into a shotgun wedding by the barmaid's father. He now works in the kitchen at the same inn as his barmaid wife. She helps the customers up front and he cooks eggs in the back. Eldoth continues to tell himself that this experience will just provide inspiration for his music and that someday he was going to get the band back together."
“After being rescued by Gorion's Ward, Xan made his way to Baldur's Gate to regroup. He spent an inordinate amount of time beating himself up over his failures and trying to muster the gumption to continue his quest to unravel the political turmoil of the region. However, it took him months to get to this point, and by that time, Gorion's Ward already sorted out the problems in the region. Discovering this, he deemed himself a failure yet again and sunk into a deeper depression. He pulled himself out of it when he met a woman who lost most of her family to violent deaths during the iron crisis, yet she still kept herself together and became a local success in a few short years. Xan immediately fell in love with the recently single Skie Silvershield and began to court her. They eventually married and started a family. At Xan's insistence, and inspired by his wife's name, their two daughters were named Sunshine and Rainbow. Xan was a staunch supporter of his wife's career and stayed home to raise the kids. When they were older and needed less attending, he followed a new dream and became a motivational speaker.”
“Korgan had his revenge against his backstabbing crew and employer, but he felt...empty. It was done, but he felt no satisfaction. Disgruntled and disappointed, he decided to lose himself in his cups at the Copper Coronet. Even this did nothing to alleviate his malaise. One night, having passed out drunk in a peasant room at the Copper Coronet, he dreamt of that final fight but something was different. In the background of the battle, there was a glow coming from the door of a shack and he heard the whispering of a language that sounded like it was from Kara-Tur. When he woke the next morning, Korgan returned to the rooftop and found the shack from his dream. He knocked and was greeted by a priest of Illmater. Korgan told the priest of his dream and he was led into the backroom where he found a man from Kara-Tur infirm and huddled over a cup of tea. The priest explained that he had just reincarnated this man of the faith using a heart delivered by a passing adventurer. Korgan took this as a sign, converted to the faith, and the two paired up to help those in suffering as a result of the schemes of others. The tales of Korgan and Yoshimo were not only told in many of a tavern by the bards, but also collected in graphic serials that were popular among the children of Athkatla.”
“Ajantis' death sent him into an afterlife at Everwatch, the realm of Helm. For his honor and diligence, the devout knight was granted an audience with his patron. Ajantis then told Helm what utter bullshit the god was. I mean, c'mon, he's the god of protection, the Vigilant One, and he couldn't protect a group of knights from a dragon's cheap illusion spell that a mage even tried to dispel with True Sight? It was like Helm wasn't even trying. Helm was stunned by the confrontation but also had no valid defense. Ajantis called Helm to a trial that was mediated by Tyr. After careful deliberation, Tyr determined that Helm was sleeping on the job and the judgment was to demote him to a lesser deity. Now, Helm was the patron of guards, but not actual guards that ever see action, just the ceremonial ones whose weapons and armor are super shiny and probably not even real. Ajantis was then granted Helm's old portfolio and became a god that truly protected his followers.”
“Viconia left Athkatla's government district perplexed. She was rescued from burning at the stake by Gorion's Ward and then immediately dismissed. She found this to be unusual behavior for a male. She was accustomed to men either trying to bed her or kill her, but this casual indifference was completely new. Viconia came to be obsessed with Gorion's Ward from a distance. She spiraled into a fantasy where the two of them had a future together. It was pretty bad. There were some extremely embarrassing vision boards involved and that wasn't even the worst of it. When her mania reached critical mass, her obsession actually collapsed and she had an epiphany. She came to realize that she did not need this man, or any for that matter. She started on a journey of self discovery and took a moral inventory of her past relationships. She wrote about it in the book, “Men Are From Menzoberranzan, Women Are From Immilmar”. She then used the revenue from the book sales to open Athkatla's first feminist bookstore. In Her Words became a mecca for women, particularly those who felt trapped in bad relationships. The community that emerged here created the group, Friends of Galia, which strove to free women from abusive relationships. Eventually, the bookstore expanded to include an apartment block above that became a shelter for such women. Occasionally, the partners of these victims would come around to In Her Words in an attempt to drag their partners back home. You can probably guess how a confrontation between a drunken 0-level commoner and a Drow priestess of Shar ends."
“Faldorn was defeated by Jaheira in Trademeet and lost her title of Arch-Druid. In truth, she was relieved to be relieved of the position. Years of pushing forward the Shadow Druid agenda led Faldorn to realize that she had lost touch with the real Faldorn along the way. After some soul-searching, she reinvented herself as a lifestyle guru and developed an entire line of organic health and beauty products under the name, She-Wolf. Both her products and seminars were all the rage in Athkatla, specifically among noblewomen who clearly had too much free time. Faldorn eventually gave up her residence in natural environs for a lavish estate in Athkatla's government district. Her following soon pressured her to petition to join the Council of Six after the fall of the Cowled Wizards left the position open (aside from a short-term replacement). Her petition was a success and she soon found herself on the Council of Six. Under her leadership, she created created the FDAA, the Food and Drink Association of Athkatla. Now, instead of draconian rules governing magic in the city, equally restrictive rules and standards were applied to the food and drink that the people consumed.”
“Barely surviving being gravely wounded by Irenicus, Tiax left Spellhold for Athkatla where he intended to do what he did best: rule. Learning from his past campaign mistakes in Baldur's Gate, he changed his slogan from ”Tiax Rules!" to “Make Athkatla Great Again”. Of course, what he thought would make Athkatla great was putting himself in charge as a despotic leader. But, he toned down that aspect of his platform and instead focused on the history of scheming and backroom dealing of the Cowled Wizards (as if he was any less evil or scheming) and promised the people he would be different than all the other corrupt politicians. Miraculously, despite his obviously apparent character flaws, he succeeded in replacing the Cowled Wizards' representative on the Council of Six. He decided to take their stance on restrictive magic to the next level and banned magic entirely. Since he didn't study the arcane himself, it was no skin of his nose. This move undermined his support base leaving him with only the most backwards and ignorant followers. He was ultimately removed from his position when he insisted the city build a wall around the planar sphere and was expecting that the city's wizards would be the ones to pay for it. After his removal, his few remaining extreme supporters organized an invasion of the main government building under the guise of freedom of assembly. All nine of these “rebels” were rounded up, tried, and sent to prison. Tiax was convicted of treason and reincarnated in Spellhold, which was now just a common prison. After his eventual release, he was prohibited from seeking any position of power in Amn."
"Edwin Odesseiron continued to lay low with the Shadow Thieves for a while. The Cowled Wizards suffered a crippling blow as a side effect of the conflict between Gorion's Ward and Irenicus. Edwin decided to step in and finish the job. His thought was that he could wipe out the Cowled Wizard remnants and then take credit for their defeat, thereby gaining him more clout among the Red Wizards of Thay. After many conspicuous mage battles in the streets of Athkatla, he succeeded. However, the people who noticed his efforts the most were actually the people of Athkatla. They were tired of living under the Cowled Wizards' iron fist and Edwin was lauded as a liberator and hero. He even had a statue in his image raised in Waukeen's Promenade. Edwin was initially nonplussed over people finally giving him the credit he always felt he so rightfully deserved. But, he quickly came to accept their praise and bought in to being a champion for the people. Edwin continued his agenda of liberation when a clearly insane gnome who found his way on the Council of Six tried to ban magic entirely in the city. Edwin and his followers were primarily responsible for having the madman removed from his seat.
“Shar-Teel, Safana, Branwen, and Alora all happened to cross paths with each other at Elfsong one evening. Shar-Teel was looking to fight a man, Safana was looking to shag a man, Branwen was recently petrified by a man, and Alora was just excited to be somewhere new. The four got to talking with each other and, despite having wildly different personalities, seemed to hit it off. Shar-Teel was sarcastic and aggressive, Safana was self-absorbed and man-hungry, Alora was kind and sweet, and Branwen was the matriarch of the group. You wouldn't think this lot would get along, but they actually did, and their differences merely become the fuel for innocuous hi-jinks week after week.”
"With Gorion's Ward's help, Cernd was able to rescue his child that he then abandoned again at the druid grove near Trademeet. He promised that he would return to raise the child, he just needed to run to the general shop in Trademeet for some pipeweed. He never returned, but that was pretty obvious since he didn’t even smoke. Cernd continued to wander Faerun. It came to light in Cormyr that Cernd had actually married, and had children, with numerous women in Cormyr, Amn, the Sword Coast, Tethyr, Calimshan, Turmish, Halruaa, Icewind Dale, Chondath, Sembia, Impiltur, the Silver Marches, and even the Troll Hills (don't ask). Furthermore, it was discovered that Cernd was not actually a druid, just a werewolf that had a Ring of Goodberries. The druid con was so that he could have a reason to abandon his wives and children and move on to a new situation. You would be surprised at how many women could fall for a guy that can conjure an impromptu picnic in the park. Unfortunately for Cernd, Cormyr was not the kind of place to run afoul of the legal system. For the crime of bigamy, he was sentenced to life in prison. He never set foot near a druid grove again, but he was allowed to participate in a work-release program tending to the gardens of nobles.
“Kagain returned to his shop and grew even more bitter, but not over what the death of Entar Silvershield's son had done to his reputation and business. Instead, he resented that even the Enhanced Edition of the game didn't give him a remotely decent companion quest. By Moradin's hammer, Cernd even had a pretty involved companion quest and the story there both starts and ends with a deadbeat dad! Also, Kagain can regenerate! Korgan can't even do that. And another thing! He was sick of people confusing the two of them as if all dwarves look alike or something. Ok, granted, they're both old dwarves with greying beards, but Korgan's beard is tied while Kagain's beard is brushed out. Of course, none of this made sense to anyone, even to Kagain who never actually crossed paths with Cernd or Korgan. However, the dwarf had nothing to do with his time except stand in his shop, isolated and alone, until he was done in by insanity and plantar fasciitis.”
“The death of Khalid shook Jaheira to the core. She convinced herself that she could never love again, certainly not so soon after his death nor with anyone that would be a child in her eyes. That would be absurd and rather tacky. After her escape from Irenicus' prison and deposing Faldorn from the druid grove, she took over as Arch-Druid. Being a Harper just wouldn't be the same without Khalid. However, the grove would allow her to explore a new, but comfortingly familiar, phase of life. She had barely been installed as the Arch-Druid when Cernd dropped off his child and disappeared again. He did not even stay long enough to tell Jaheira the child's name. Knowing he would likely not return, she named the child Khalid after her lost love. Realizing there were other children our there without families to care for them, Jahaeira would send her subordinates to wander nearby lands and bring them to the grove for a better life. Perhaps not surprisingly, many of these children happened to be Cernd's. She eventually renamed the grove to Kinder Garden in honor of the grove's new purpose of giving these children a kinder upbringing. Jaheira's headstrong personality served her well with these lost children, who all loved her as they would any mother. The Kinder Garden became the most thriving druid grove in all of Faerun. Jaheira eventually died in 1547 DR, with hundreds of children haven been rescued in her lifetime, and a memorial was erected in her honor at the grove. The inscription read, 'Nature's Servant Awaits.'"
“After being freed from Irenicus' dungeon, Minsc put his boots on the ground at the Copper Coronet. Being the simple man that he was, he found himself unwittingly recruited into fighting in the gladiator pits (before Gorion's Ward was able to free the slaves). Yet again, Minsc took a blow to the head. But this time, its effects were something completely new. No longer was he the slow-witted evil-slaying ranger, armed to the teeth and packing a hamster. Instead, his intelligence and wisdom started to blossom and he explored, through dissertation, the impact of modern civilization on the overall ecosystem of Faerun. Indeed, before Minsc started his work, the people of Faerun didn't even have the concept of an ”ecosystem". He left Athkatla to pursue a residency at Jaheira's grove where he could study and work in peace. He published works like, “The Intersection of Geopolitics and Biodiversity: Living More but Dying Sooner”, “The Essential Symbiosis Between the Savage and Civilization”, and “Moral Urbanization: Seeking a More Comprehensive Prosperity”. Minsc continued his studies and writing and ultimately produced enough groundbreaking works to have his own annex in Candlekeep. It was shortly after the dedication of this annex that Minsc disappeared from Faerun, never to be seen again."
“Jan Jansen's fate was the most impressive of all as his endeavors shaped the very fabric of Faerun for centuries to come. His story truly serves as a moral lesson for everyone and we should heed its virtue quite seriously. Helping Lissa and Jaella planted a seed of regret in Lissa with regards to her marriage to Vaelag. Speaking of seeds, this reminds Jan of a time when he was helping his Uncle Scratchy with his turnip farm. However, Uncle Scratchy was hoodwinked and the seeds he received were actually purple carrot seeds. You can imagine Uncle Scratchy's surprise when they sprouted and he suddenly had a field of purple carrots. Well, as you probably know, you can't make turnip stew, or turnip casserole, or turnip pie with purple carrots. But it just so happened there was a mage tower nearby and the resident mage needed a vast number of carrots. Apparently, her plan was to animate them as a kind of vegetable army to combat a myconid infestation in cave system rather close to her tower. Of course, animated carrots are quite self-assured and were immune to myconoid's confusion spores. Anyway, Jan had a once-removed cousin, Bobil, that was lost in those caves when he was a young gnome. He had wandered so deep that he found himself in the den of a solitary xvart who was obsessed with a magic ring. Bobil happened to purloin that ring but it turned out to not be magic at all. However, it was still worth enough for Bobil to buy himself a nice cottage in Trademeet. He then started his own turnip farm and had better luck than Uncle Scratchy. Wait, what were we talking about, again?”
“Boo continued his mission to study the sentient life forms of Faerun and determine their potential impact on the metaverse. He preferred the continued company of Minsc due to the ranger's kindness and protectiveness. Boo found this to be quite valuable in his current miniaturized state. Even after Minsc's accident, where his intellect began to expand, Minsc never lost his good heart and inherent kindness and the two remained the best of friends. It was a number of years later that the term of Boo's mission was complete. A team of his fellow people arrived on a spelljammer to collect the giant miniaturized space hamster. Minsc (and Boo) were on a retreat in a remote part of the Neverwinter Wood when a vessel shaped like a giant acorn landed in a nearby clearing. A number of human-sized anthropomorphic hamster-like beings, who called themselves the Ysoki, emerged and met with Boo. One had a strange crystalline device which it used to restore Boo to his proper size. Minsc naturally remained composed while all this was happening. He and Boo talked often and he knew this day would be coming. Boo returned to the spelljammer with his brethren to debrief on the mission. The Ysoki wanted to bring a sample back to their homeworld for further learning and study. Boo offered Minsc for the task, as the exemplar human would fit in nicely with the Ysoki's advanced culture and society. Everyone was in agreement and made the offer to the ranger. Minsc felt like he had made every contribution he could to the people of Faerun, so he accepted and boarded the ship. Boo, excited to finally be on a spelljammer again, took the helm and plotted a course for his homeworld. At his side sat his friend and faithful companion, Minsc.”

Some say that the night is the calmest time of the day, others never find serenity in the silence of the night.
I remember those nights when I woke up after short slumbers. I absent-mindedly made my way to the sink, purposefully keeping my head down as I washed my face.
Then came that one night, when I kept my eyes shut longer than usual after I had closed the faucet. I remember how I gathered all the courage I had, and I lifted my head slowly. I opened my eyes to see the mirror in front of me, and there I was looking at myself. A twenty-five-year-old man with more than twenty-five grey hairs on his head. That sight turned my apathy into rage. Without thinking, I raised my hand and I started to pluck every grey hair. Every time I plucked a hair I cursed a moment of my life. Hair after hair, I lost count. After I had plucked the last one that I could find I took deep breaths, looking back at myself. My hair was completely dark, like how a young man should have.
In awe of what I had just done, I stared at myself. I brushed back my hair with my hand, and as I did, I saw one last grey hair that hid underneath. I was determined to do to it the same thing that I did, but when I saw it by itself, I felt pity for it; for myself. It seemed as if it were begging for mercy, screaming "what have I done?" I slowly let it go and looked back into my eyes. I took some other deep breaths, and I told myself: "From this moment until the time those hairs grow back, I'll do what I can. To learn how to live, to escape this burden that I hold in my chest." I went back to my room, changed my clothes, and wore my jacket and headed to the house door. I put my hand on the metal handle, I remember how cold it was that winter. I opened the door.
I remember when I took the first step of my journey late at night. The smell of rain fresh in the air. The still water on the roads reflected the yellow lamps, creating a frigid world sparkling with dazzling lights. I slipped my hands into my pockets, and wandered aimlessly through the streets. No sounds were heard that hour, everyone was dreaming in their sleep. I walked between cars and through alleyways, reaching places that I never knew existed. I felt alone at that time, but that solitude was comforting. When I walk alone, no one knows where I go. My feet took the lead, head lost in thoughts.
I found myself on top of a hill at the edge of town. From that hight, I could see where the street lamps stop, drawing a line that separate the light from the dark beyond. Just before the last few lamps, I saw an old building that was abandoned before I was born. From the hill looking down, I could see that it had a large yard surrounded by a wall and a single gate. Everything about that building seemed dead, it was in ruins. I never knew what it was used for. Heard that it was an old storage but I don't know for what. That night, I didn't have the clarity of the mind to consider my decisions. I began walking towards it, wanting to see it up close.
I reached the gate. Its old rusted lock held the door shut with chains, but to my surprise, one of the hinges was completely dislodged giving me an easy access. When I entered I looked around the yard, There were many things scattered on the ground. Old tables, broken doors, and other things that I couldn't figure out how they ended up there. Every step I made was followed by a creaking of wood or the shattering of glass. I remember the way the building towered over me from that angle. The dark, open windows looked like the empty eye sockets of a skull staring back at me. The sound of the wind howling almost like it was daring me to enter. The stillness of that moment stunned me for a minute, and when I turned my back to leave, I heard a sound of something small calling from behind a corner of the building. I slowly moved towards it.
There, I saw a cat that had fear on its face. Next to it was a wooden barrel. When I approached the cat, it hissed at me. I was confused by that, why did it hiss at me instead of escaping? Then I heard a meowing of a kitten echoing inside the barrel. I knew immediately what this cat was protecting, she was the mother of that kitten. I examined the barrel from afar, I noticed that it was upside down. The upper side had a small hole on it, I assumed that was where the kitten fill from. I was certain that the underside didn't have a lid, so all I had to do was to carry the barrel slightly for the kitten to escape. However, every step I took forward, the mother hissed harder and backed up little by little. She couldn't understand that I wanted to help. I was concerned that she would either scratch me to keep me away, or even worse escape and leave her kitten behind.
I looked around me, I saw among the debris a long, wooden cane. I took it to reach the barrel without getting any closer. I walked around to the other side of the barrel where the mother cat couldn't see me. I slowly extended my arm holding the cane, grabbing the barrel by inserting the handle into the hole. I used the cane as a leverage, raising the side closest to the mother. The moment the gap became large enough for them to see each other, I heard the kitten's meows change from an echoing sadness to a bright call of longing. The mother without hesitation grabbed the kitten and ran away as fast as she could. Never looking back. I stood there asking myself: "If I weren't here this night, I wonder, would that kitten have died in that barrel?" I looked up at the face of the building again. Perhaps my feelings that night were only for me to save the kitten. I walked towards the gate again, leaving the building behind.
I walked the streets looking down. Without noticing, I reached a park that had no fence. It was full of children's games and flowers. It seemed like a memento of my past. The swings dangling without anyone to push. Standing next to the slide, I could see that I was taller than it was. It all seemed lost and forgotten, but what was funny to me was how the roses had the same colour of the pale sand under the yellow light. I walked and walked at that park, felt fatigued at the time. I saw a bench left alone in the middle of the grass. I sat there, reflecting on my life. And after some time, I buried my face in my hands.
I heard the sound of steps crushing the grass. They were getting closer until they stopped. I didn't even have the will to look up. I heard a raspy voice: "What's wrong?" I weakly looked back. Saw the face of a concerned old man. Many wrinkles on his face, hair completely white. When I saw him I tightly crossed my arms without saying a word, facing down and away from him. I could feel him staring at me, then without a word, he sat down next to me. The lamps turned off in unison as the light of dawn began to colour the sky. The hum of the breeze was contrasting the bitter silence between us. I didn't know that man and I don't think he knew me, but the circumstances of that encounter make two strangers seem like lifelong companions.
After a while, I heard his voice again: "You know, I remember when I was your age, I had done many foolish things that I am ashamed to admit. I had thrown away the future that I could have had. I regret everything that I did. But I am alive, and you still have a life In front of you. Don't waste it. You are still young". With those words he stood up and left. I saw his silhouette getting smaller and smaller until I couldn't see him anymore. I might have imagined it but the air felt easier to breathe then. The melody of the songbirds were in harmony with the beats of my heart. Amazing is the mind; it shifts from emotion to emotion on a whim, just like how the black night is replaced by the first rays of the sun.
It is that night that I so vividly remember. Now, many years have passed, I sit in my bedroom every morning combing my hair. The signs of age evident on me, my hair is completely grey. I remember that bittersweet night while holding back my tears from spilling, grateful for a moment that passed. I stand up to begin my day. Just as I am about to put my comb back in its drawer, I notice a single hair that has been caught between its teeth. I take that hair and look at it with a smile. The upper half is dark and the lower half is grey.

This is all you need to realize in order to see through the fog of lies, propaganda, and attempts at manipulation surrounding the stock. The media, government, and SHFs don't give a flying fuck about you or me. They only care about their pockets being stuffed full of OUR MONEY. The time has come, once again, to take back control. This is our stock. Not theirs. They can scare off new investors, but we are the diamond handed apes of old.
It doesn't matter how we re-take control. If you don't care about "we" then it's on "you" to bring about change in the corrupt system. No one knows why this movement started again, but most of us know that the sleeping giant that is GME investors has once again entered the fray. It is once again a call to action to fight the good fight. To stand up for a company that represents good in this world. A company that cares about our passions, including video games, late night releases, and even trading cards.
I like the stock. DFV likes the stock. We all like the fuckin stock!
It's an honor to be on this journey with all of you. We may not know each other personally, but most of us would be proud to know there are like-minded apes fighting alongside one another still to this day.
Good luck to you and yours. I will hodl for you. 🏴‍☠️👑s through and through

WARNING: This story contains strong language, mild violence & fictional political radicalism.
(Note, this story portrays the human side in a morally negative light. If you do not like that, then turn back now.)

ULJJAK KASERKOR, ANDZAKTAR, THE HOMEWORLD, ANDZAK EMPIRE, 11,772 A.C.

Standing in the centre of the Andzak Governing District, in the heart of the Andzak Empire, is the Tree of Civilisation. While there is no direct translation into Human Standard, the meaning of the tree, including its name, stood for the long continuity of Andzak civilisation and the Andzak Empire.
Surrounding the tree were the marvellous palaces of the Imperial Government, the Imperial Advisory Council directly appointed by the emperor among them. The palaces were meant to be opulent and expensive, as if you were a lowly governor coming in from the Outer Provinces, the rows and rows of perfectly symmetric crystalline walls combined with the mirrors to allow the Andzak aristocracy to witness the superb influence of the Imperial Authorities.
Looking into those spotlessly clean mirrors was me, Deputy Governor Uljjak Kaserkor. According to Imperial audits of my activities, I am a "sub-par administrator, foreign to both the Andzak Empire and it's traditions, and the Andzak aristocracy" as Councillor Dlirij once said. In short, they've been looking for an excuse to exile me to a low-ranking advisory position on a third-band world out in the middle of nowhere.
And, as such, I am keeping this diary to myself, so in the event that Councillor Dlirij or one of his cronies tries to bring up charges against me, I am capable of fighting them effectively.
So, what am I doing, thousands of lightyears from my homeworld looking up at the Tree? I am here to report to the Advisory Council of an intense gamma-ray disturbance next to the uninhabited system of [UAG-2113]. Gamma ray disturbances of this scale usually mean the development and testing of superluminal weapons, which are severely restricted under the [Interstellar Accords].
Superluminal weapons are capable of obliterating entire solar systems if given enough energy. The most powerful superluminal weapon ever tested by the Andzak Empire vaporised 3 light-years of space, and fried every unprotected electronic within 117 light-years.
So this means it is understandable that the Empire might be concerned by yet another civilisation in hold of these excessively powerful weapons, especially if they don't know who has them, and they're being tested in the Centauran Reserves, an area that has barely been explored by the Empire due to the Centauran Pandemic a hundred years ago.
By my side, is the Military Advisor Vraxh Huljukrj. To be honest, we don't get along, and while I technically outrank him, stripping him of his rank would be an essential guarantee that the Regional Military Consul would be pissed. Vraxh has gotten into the Armed Forces through nepotism with the Consul.
"So you're bothering the Advisory Council with third-world bullshit just because one sensor buoy near a system nobody's ever heard of in the middle of fucking nowhere read some extra spicy particles?"
Vraxh, for whatever reason, still won't understand the severity of the situation, despite me having explained it to him at least a hundred times over the past 2 weeks we've been travelling here.
"I have explained this to you half a dozen times Vraxh, if you pester me about this decision one more time I will eject the rest of your belongings into space!"
To be honest, I haven't been particularly kind to him either. He kept bugging me with intentionally annoying overexaggerated questions over the 2 weeks we've been travelling here, so while he was in the bathroom, I ejected the bed in his room into the vacuum of space. While he wasn't amused, I found it incredibly funny.
"Okayy, fuck! Fine.."
Maybe I'll have even garnered his false support when the aristocrats in the Advisory Council wonder what I'm doing there.
Me and Vraxh right behind me walked up to the meetings desk. Behind the desk, is a short and relatively aged Andzakian in the uniform worn by imperial servants. He is looking at his holopad, appearing to have not noticed the two borderworlders at the desk. I attempted to grab his attention.
"Hello, sir?"
The imperial servant didn't appear to be surprised, and just looked up at the two with a condescending glare, confirming that he did infact know they were there, and just didn't pay any attention.
"Imperial Advisory Council case #1,714?"
He said the words sharply, as if he had already thought of them hours in advance.
"Yes, sir. A gamma ray disturbance in syste-"
"I don't care. Wait in the lobby, when you are called, arrive on time."
The servant interrupted me rudely, before pointing at a sitting area in the lobby.
I walked over to the lobby and sat down, with Vraxh reluctantly following me. After half an hour of awkwardly silent waiting, the loudspeaker in the lobby called,
"Uljjak Kaserkor and Vraxh Huljukrj, attend conference chamber C-1 immediately."
I immediately got up pulling Vraxh with me, before hastily making my way over to the conference chamber.
The guards at the door opened the heavy chamber doors with a loud thunk.
Sitting in the furthest conference seat was- god damn it, I shouldn't have come!
Sitting in the fanciest conference seat of them all, was Councillor Dlirij, with the biggest shit-eating grin I've ever seen.
"Deputy Governor Uljjak Kaserkor. What matters do you disturb the Advisory Council with this time?" Dlirij said, in generic aristocratic government drone.
I steeled myself with my own government training, before responding through nearly clenched teeth,
"Councillor Dlirij, thank you for coming to address my meeting."
Saying it was my meeting whilst also not using the formal address style was something I knew would piss Dlirij off, but thankfully he couldn't do anything about it according to the formal rules of the palace.
Indeed, Dlirij's grin reduced and he just looked me in the eyes, before saying,
"Deputy Governor, get straight to the point. What do you have to show me?"
I laid out a briefcase on the table, opening it and beginning to explain.
"3 weeks ago, an intense gamma event occured in the uninhabited system [UAG-2113], 3,679 light-years from the Homeworld."
I took a deep breath.
"As you would know as a Councillor, Councillor Dlirij, gamma-intense events in this fashion nearly always signal the activation of a superluminal weapon, legally considered an ultraintense weapon by the Interstellar Accords and thus prohibited for any Interstellar State to possess them aside from the Andzak Empire, the Union of Galactic Republics, and the Ksirlok Dependency."
I paused.
"I am requesting an Advisory Council initiated investigation into what caused the disturbance. If this is not achieved, it could be greatly threatening to the order in the Galaxy."
I then handed Dlirij the papers, which he started to look through.
In the silence while Dlirij looked through the papers, Vraxh had said nothing. I gave him a subtle glare for him to contribute, which he did. He reluctantly said, without thought,
"Councillor Dlirij, the Military Consulate will be the next to be contacted, if we do not succeed here."
I was not pleased with what Vraxh had said. He tried to challenge the Councillor's authority with a threat to go to the military establishment if we got nowhere here. I opted to remain silent though.
Dlirij looked at Vraxh with a glare of anger, before looking back down at the papers.
A few more awkward minutes passed, before Dlirij passed the papers back to me.
"So, you spend 2 weeks travelling to the Imperial Homeworld and the most honourable palaces of the Empire, with your little sidekick, just to bother me, Hasjaxhar Dlirij, with gamma radiation readings from one isolated buoy, nevertheless in the Centauran Reserves, where it has been proven by the Imperial Surveying Authority that there is no intelligent life?"
Dlirij's hand moved underneath the table.
"Councillor Dlirij, I believe you are mistaken by what I have given an explained to you, please-"
At this moment the guards burst through the door, before knocking us both out with the butt of their plasma rifles.
...

SEVEN FOUR EIGHT, NEW YORK CITY, TERRA, ALMIGHTY CELESTIAL STATE, 147 A.R.

"...Comrades! On this date, July 16th, 147 years since the Revolution, humanity has taken yet another great leap under the leadership of the State. On this day, we have successfully detonated a superluminal weapon."
"A weapon that breaks the laws of the universe, a weapon that propels an object at thousands of times the speed of light, before dropping it back into realspace just before it hits its target. A weapon that, prior to today, the distant enemies of humanity cannot have dreamed of. A weapon that has just obliterated the Wolf 359 star system. Due to the ingenuity of our technology, not only do we get to witness the flash of our excellence, but we can also observe from this distance with our electronics intact!"
"Today, from this date, humanity is not only indivisible, but invincible! We, led forwards by the State, shall never be destroyed by those distant in the void, and our Black Banner shall soon fly on every planet in the Milky Way!"
The crowd cheered.
From my position, it looked fairly typical for a propaganda gathering. Soldiers surrounding the speaking Party official on a tall podium, with the Black Banner of the Almighty Celestial State flying calmly but sternly in the wind. Mounted to structures surrounding the gathering area are various slogans of the Celestial State, among them "HUMANITY INDIVISIBLE" and "THE STARS ARE OURS".
Truth be told, I am not an avid supporter of the ideology or the State. I come from a rural background in the middle of nowhere in North America, and have only joined the Armed Forces because the Party Militia showed up for their quota of soldiers.
In the State, all jobs are connected to, and thus in support, of the Armed Forces. While I was perfectly happy to continue living a solitary life with my family in rural America, I honestly didn't have much choice, and so here I am.
After the gathering, we are told to go back to our barracks and thus be assigned roles by the commanding officer.
I come through the door, and am immediately escorted to the commanding officer with two elite Party Militia members to my side.
"Soldier #7,487,782,311. Due to demand, you are being changed from Military Communications to Reconnaissance starting immediately. You will be transported to the Orbital Station, before boarding a Javelin class reconnaissance ship. The ship will not set sail into the void immediately, so the new crew can get accommodated."
"Got it, commissar. I will be ready in 5 minutes."
The commissar seemed to offer a pleasant nod, before stamping my identity card with the official Government stamp. It read,
"ALMIGHTY CELESTIAL STATE
#7,487,782,311
APPROVAL TO LEAVE THE MANHATTAN DISTRICT
ISSUED BY C.O. #2,349,522 - IF DISCREPANT CONTACT NUMBER ON SLIP"
I packed all of my belongings into a state-issued carrying pack.
Looking at how many belongings I have, pretty much just my uniform and Communication Device made me reminiscent for a time I never lived. How was the world before the Revolution? According to my family, the world was far better before the Revolution. They even had food that they could buy from private individuals, and not just State rations, which I find hard to believe.
The Communications Device had a light next to it's camera that blinked red every few seconds. This was to indicate that the camera was actively recording and watching me. I decided to stop thinking treasonous thoughts, and finished folding and packing my uniform, before taking my carrying pack with me.
After leaving the barracks, I walk past a building with the Emblem of the Celestial State painted on one of the walls, with artistic sunrays surrounding it. There are soldiers saluting the emblem, surrounded by armed party militia, while reciting the pledge of loyalty. I continue walking between two barracks towards the rocket area.
This base is lucky specifically to have it's own dedicated orbital rocket area. If I was stationed out west, I'd likely have to spend hours in the back of a troop transport vehicle being driven to the nearest site.
After a few minutes of walking down the bleak path, I reach the rocket area. There are people queuing to get in the rockets, and I join the queue. All of the soldiers infront of me look at the very least uncomfortable, and some look terrified. While looking ahead of me, a place ahead of me I see a vaguely familiar face.
"Eight one four, do I recognise you?"
His eyes go wide, and he recognises me almost immediately.
You see, this is a childhood friend of mine. Was my neighbour, in the rural countryside and the absence of the state, fuck, even when some parts were controlled by the Resistance, we could play forbidden games from the pre-revolution world.
I moved away from him probably 4 or 5 years ago with my family, which ended up being a mistake. It was in a larger community where the Guards showed up and conscripted me alongside a number of my family members.
"Yes, yes! I recognise you! An-"
Without even thinking, I cover his mouth with my hand.
"Don't!"
His face goes white and he realises the mistake he was about to make, and thus addresses me the proper informal way.
"Seven four eight, how have you been?"
"I've been decent. Can't say too much to be honest. Just bumbled around trying to look for something to do. Then I ended up here. You know how that's like."
Eight four one chuckles.
"Yeah, I know how it is."
We both tried to avoid treasonous language, which prevented us from having a meaningful discussion. It was nice to catch up though.
The line slowly moves forwards. I am close enough to the entrance of the orbital craft to hear a commotion ahead involving my friend.
"Soldier #8,142,327,494! Present your identity documents!"
The Soldier ruffles through his carry pack looking for his identity documents, and after a while, finds them.
"Eight one four! These documents do not have the commissar stamp!"
Two militia members point their service rifles at my unfortunate friend. I am enraged and know what is about to happen, but there is nothing I can do. I look around and see the guardsmen in the guards building, as well as a few guards snipers in watchtowers above us.
I helplessly watch as a third guardsman knocks him to the ground with the butt of his rifle, before he is hand and leg cuffed and escorted away. New militiamen come out of the guards building to take up their positions. I just silently hang my head, performing a neutral expression.
I arrive at the front of the line.
"#7,487,782,311! Your permission slip!"
I feel for it in the pocket in my pants, as that's where I left it.
Except, my pocket is flat, with no identity documents, I frantically feel inside the pocket, and do not feel them.
My face goes white and it feels like my knees are about to give way.
I look inside my carry pack with the guard giving me an intense stare. I find my documents, and hand them to the guard. He checks and verifies them, and I am let past. While walking past the guard, I hear over my shoulder from the other guard,
"Seven four eight. Do not forget the location of your identity documents next time. You know the consequences."
I walk aboard the ship without holding up the line, and sit down in a cramped troop transport seat. It wouldn't matter, entering orbit only takes a few minutes.
I look out of the orbit craft door towards my friend being escorted away into the distance, he gives me one final, depressed look, before him and his escort round the corner.
After a few minutes, the last soldier in the line is boarded onto the ship, and a loudspeaker voice calls to the gathering area that the ships will be leaving.
The landing door closes and the ship shudders. Due to the lack of windows, I have no idea what is going on outside. I am pressed back and down into my seat, as the ship accelerates into the sky.
The acceleration gradually slows until I can only feel the shudder of the ship fighting the atmosphere as it leaves. Gradually, gravity weakens and I begin to feel no weight in my seat.

EIGHT ONE FOUR, NEW YORK CITY, TERRA, ALMIGHTY CELESTIAL STATE, 147 A.R.

As I round the corner, I see my friend's look on his face. Steeled sadness. I appreciated it in a world of no emotion.
The guardsmen around me had tied my leg cuffs too tightly but were also forcing me to hurry up and walk at their speed.
As I am forced underneath the temporary holding shelter, my leg cuffs are cuffed to a support beam of the structure. The guards then walk into the commissar's office, while a guard in a watchtower keeps an eye on me.
I see the landing ship my friend is on slowly start hover into the sky. Blue plasma shoots out of its 4 engine ports. It stops increasing in altitude, turns around and rapidly accelerates. I see it shoot off into the distance with a vapor cone around it's tail. The extremely loud rumble of it's engines slowly gets quieter and quieter, until it disappears from view.
The guards return from the commissar's office.
Both with neutral steeled expressions return to the shelter. I am held down and injected with a needle, and my vision slowly fades to black.

Paper handed GameStop today after buying in market open. In a financial position not to YOLO like last run up, before SHTF and SEC fucked it all up.
Correct me if I am wrong.. Shorts get into fucked position, take loan and bring in a shit ton of liquidity, and short the hell out of it. Fear hits and they profit of paper hand bitches like me today. Then they set call options for the spike again and profit off it. And then rise and repeat. And when shit gets too hot they have the SEC and hedge buddies fuck it up by preventing retail to by and halt trading.
Am I wrong in this assumption?
How does it MOASS if they can do this and just have the SEC in their back pockets to fuck it all up and take a stupid SEC violation instead of the MOASS occurring.
Technicals show a MOASS but how can it realistically happen.

Hello Reddit!
35 cis het woman here looking for an intellectual, emotional, and physical connection with someone special.
Physically I’m 5’1”, brunette, tattooed, and plus size. I’m active and healthy and will probably out-hike you (I’ll DEFINITELY kick your ass in Beat Saber) but if you’re looking for “skinny” or “petite” (aside from height) I’m not your girl.
I’m polyamorous and married. I’m not looking for a hookup or a fling. I’m hoping to find a deep connection with someone that can grow into an actual relationship, so it’s preferable that you’re experienced in poly and understand what that entails.
I’m a general nerd and have a large variety of hobbies. Gaming, crafting, karaoke, kayaking, Lego, traveling, live music, and dining out are some of the favorites! No children (and don’t want them but it’s okay if you have them) so I have a lot of free time to pursue new hobbies, hyper fixate on those hobbies, and then drop them for something new lol.
Kinky and on the S side of the slash. My preference is to find a d/s dynamic but more about that in the other post on my profile.
I’m HSV2 positive and sexual health/safety are a priority for me. Please only reach out if this fits the risk profile of you and your partner(s).
I look forward to connecting soon!

I naturally fell into babysitting around the age of 14. Through friends and family, I got leads for babysitting to score some cash, which definitely beat having to work at a restaurant. The job had its ups and downs, but overall it wasn’t a bad gig at all.
Yet, as many good experiences as I had, they were all eclipsed by one night.
A new family in town talked to my dad at work and it turned out that they needed a babysitter. I happily took the job and found myself watching their 10-year old boy a couple of weeks later. There was nothing out of the ordinary about the family themselves. They were the model citizens of suburban America, complete with the white picket fence and blue shutters. Nothing about their house was strange or even unique. Their son Avery was very mild-mannered and polite. Even their car was basic. Not that these were bad things, but I expected it to be a very boring night.
What I did not expect was the uncomfortable, inexplicable feeling that I got when I set foot in the house. A chill ran through me, but there was no draft. I rubbed my arms as I gazed at their staircase as we passed. They gave me a brief tour of the house before they left a note of instructions and all the usual information I expected from a job.
While trying to figure out what was making me so uneasy about the place, I noticed something about their basement door when I passed it. A padlock was placed on the door, along with a deadbolt in place.
"Any questions?” The father asked as my mind was pulled out of my curiosity.
"No, sir. Everything looks great!”
So they left and Avery and I played some games before I made dinner. A couple of times, I thought I heard Avery call me into the den. Both times, I found him sitting on the couch in what most recognize as the TV-zombie state. He denied having called me, and I went back to making dinner. After the third time, I told Avery it wasn’t funny and that he should stop.
“I’m not doing anything, I’m just watching TV!”
His voice went to that higher tone of pleading, sounding desperate for me to believe him.
“Avery, I know it’s my first time and sometimes you wanna test things out, but I’m trying to get dinner ready so if you call me again, I’m not checking on you, okay?”
“I didn't say anything.”
The child glared at the TV with a pouting face, and I began to feel bad. As many times as I’ve heard lies, I was starting to sense that he was telling the truth. So what was I hearing?
“Hey, it’s fine. I’m not mad. Promise.”
Avery turned his head back towards me, seeming to test if I was the one fibbing now.
“How about I let you stay up a little later if we forget about it?”
“Do you really promise?”
“Pinky promise.”
With our contractual pinkies interlocked, spirits were raised again and I was able to finish dinner. Although I didn’t finish without hearing Avery’s voice calling me once more. I ignored it, and when Avery didn’t mention it at dinner I figured it was him fooling around again. The whole time we chatted as we ate, I couldn’t help but feel that something was not right about this house.
As hard as I tried to not look, my eyes kept diverting to the heavy padlock and chain on the basement door. Curiosity got the best of me and as we were cleaning up, I couldn’t help but ask.
“So Avery, what’s the deal with the basement door?”
“What do you mean?”
His words did not match his demeanor. It was obvious he didn’t make eye contact as he forced his sentence out.
“C’mon, you know what I mean. The padlock, chain, and deadbolt. Y’all have dangerous chemicals down there?”
Avery’s face grew paler and he stared at the wall for a moment.
“Hey, it’s okay. You don’t have to tell me. I didn’t mean to…”
“Dad said no one can talk about it anymore.”
This really threw me off, and I couldn’t possibly finish my sentence now. A thick veil of tension materialized between us.
“So you…you guys aren’t allowed to talk about it?”
Avery shook his head.
“Ah, okay. That’s cool. No big deal.”
It was nothing but a big deal.
Was their dad doing something illegal down there? Or was it something strange that no one could do anything about it? Maybe their dad was in denial about something going on. There were waaaaaay too many questions going through my head now.
“Hey, how about we put on a movie?”
“Yeah, sure.”
“What am I saying? Everyone likes movies, right?!”
Now excited, we decided on a fun movie that quickly pulled our minds away from the mysterious basement door. Well, that’s not entirely true. Maybe Avery was distracted, but it was killing me. As we ate popcorn, I couldn’t help but watch Avery, wondering what was going on in that little head of his.
Was there something awful going on in the house and there was nothing I could do to stop it? Or maybe the dad was just…
“Stop,” I told myself inwardly.
Mulling over it all endlessly was not doing myself any favors.
So the movie ended, and I ushered the drifting child to his bed. Now, the house was all to myself until twelve, so I had a good three and a half hours to myself. Immediately, I began texting my friend to tell her all about the weird experience I was having that night. She dismissed it, saying that I was getting spooked by a new place. This annoyed me to no end. I’d been at bigger, way creepier-looking houses but never got weird vibes like this.
Then…I heard it.
“Stephanie…..”
I went instantly still and listened intently.
“You didn’t hear that, Steph. Just keep texting your friend and…”
“Stephanieeeee…”
There was no mistaking it this time. It was definitely coming from the basement.
The acoustics couldn’t have been from Avery upstairs. The voice sounded like a little girl’s. In fact, I’m not even sure he could make his voice like that, anyway.
Slowly, I stood up from the couch and approached the door. Maybe like earlier, I was just hearing things. Maybe being creeped out by the house was starting to mess with my head. That made sense…right?
“Stephanie?”
I jumped back from the door, almost wetting myself in the process. There was no way I could dismiss it as anything else now. There was a little girl’s voice coming from the basement.
“H-hello?” I responded.
I couldn’t keep my voice from shaking.
“Is this Stephanie?”
“Y-yes, it’s Stephanie.”
“Can you help me?”
“Who are you? Why are you locked in the basement?”
“My name is Meredith Rosenberg. They’re kept me locked up for a long time now. The police were almost on to them and that’s why they moved. Can you get me out?”
A cold shock washed over me and made it hard to respond. Was I actually babysitting for a family that kept a little girl prisoner?
“Oh my God…um….how long have you been locked up with them?”
“Ever since I can remember.”
I felt somehow hot and cold at the same time, and wanted to throw up. This all made sense now with what Avery had told me. Of course his father didn’t want him talking about the door…
“I just need to find the keys and I can…”
“They’re hidden in the garage underneath the metal shelf. It’s inside a magnetic key holder.”
“Okay, just hold tight.”
In a panic to free the poor girl, I darted into the garage and began feeling the space underneath the bottom shelf and sure enough, there was a magnetic key holder there. Running back, I popped the key holder open and began to insert the key into the padlock.
“Did you find it?”
“Yes, sweetie. I’m almost there!”
“Oh, please hurry! Sometimes they come home early!”
This sent me into even more of a rush, and I barely managed to fumble the key into the padlock. I finally heard the successful click of the padlock, pulled the chain off, and slid the deadbolt to the right.
“I’m coming, Meredith. Hold on!”
I turned the doorknob and threw open the door, only to be met with darkness. Now full of adrenaline, my hands felt around for the light switch. Finally finding my purchase, I flicked the light on which lit up most of the stairs.
“Meredith?” I called out.
Unless I was remembering it wrong, it sounded like her voice was just on the other side of the door a minute ago. In fact, it was quite strange that she wasn’t waiting for me at the top of the stairs. Wouldn’t you immediately run out of a basement that you were locked in for God knows how long?
“I’m down here!” The little girl’s voice called out.
Judging from the distance, it sounded like she was calling from somewhere at the bottom of the stairs. My brain suddenly began piecing all the details of this interaction together and the idea of going down into the basement became absolutely terrifying.
“Meredith, you can come up now! The door’s open!”
I couldn’t hide the tremor in my voice. Why I was scared of a little girl was beyond me, but much like the house itself, something felt very wrong here.
“I hurt my leg, owww! When you said you were getting the key, I went back down to get some of my things and got hurt. Ahhh….”
Her sounds of pain filled me with sorrow, but an invisible force was holding me back from taking another step into that basement.
“Can you move? Maybe pull yourself up on the railing?”
“I can’t! It hurts too bad!”
“Okay, sweetie umm…”
“What’s wrong? Won’t you help me?”
“I-I it’s just…really dark down there and…and I don’t want to get hurt too. Is there any way you can get to the stairs? Any way at all?”
“I tried to sit up, but my shoulder hurts too much.”
“I thought you said your leg got hurt?”
The words hung in the air like a noose. It was only after I said it that I realized there was several things seriously wrong about all of this. A question popped into my head I didn’t even have time to think about until now.
How did she know where the padlock key was?
A deathly silence took up the space between me and wherever this girl was. It was a standoff, and I couldn’t think of anything else to say. There were questions I could ask her to figure out what was happening, but I felt that her answers weren’t going to be honest. Perhaps at this point, the truth was too frightful to know.
"Meredith? Are you still there?"
It was a stupid question, but it was the only thing my mind could conjure. The additional silence only unnerved me, so I decided to try and get a better look. Fishing my phone out of my pocket, I clicked on the flashlight. It didn’t do me any good because of the awful range, so I did the one thing I’d already told myself not to do…
I took a step forward...
Maybe it was the angle of the stairs or the lighting, but that one step gave me more information than I ever wanted to know. I caught a better view of the bottom step, which was essentially a ledge into a black abyss. Something looked different on this step, but it took a second to register what it was.
The step was wet, a pool of some unknown liquid overflowing into the darkness of the basement. I knew for sure that the father hadn’t mentioned any flooding so it would be way too random for that. So I stood there, watching in frozen curiosity as the puddle then suddenly rippled…and I realized the abominable truth.
It wasn’t water.
It was a puddle of saliva…and something was drooling into it from the dark.
A wretched chuckle emanated from the horrid void beyond the step, and it cemented me even further into place. It was a wet chortle, and positively evil.
“How did you like my voices?” The thing said from the dark. “I’ve been practicing."
The epiphany creeped down my spine…it was now talking in Avery’s voice. Everything in my body screamed at me to run. I heard the screams but I couldn’t respond no matter how hard I tried.
"A pity though…almost got you."
At this, the most gruesome face peeled back the shadows and revealed itself, along with its unearthly mandibles and small fountain of saliva. My faculties finally came to and I threw myself into the house and kicked the door closed. In mere seconds, I had the door bolted and chained. Leaning against the door, my chest heaved as I struggled to catch my breath.
Just as I felt I was safe, the door shuddered as a terrible blow rocked it. I screamed and ran upstairs to grab Avery.
I practically dragged the poor kid out the door and called the police. It wasn’t until the operator came on that I realized I was about to report a monster in the house. Thinking quickly, I told them that I heard a burglar in the home.
It wasn’t long before the police and Avery’s parents came home. Nothing was found, even in the basement, but I didn’t even care at that point. I just wanted the hell out of that house and away from whatever that….thing was. Avery’s parents kept glancing at me funny the whole time, probably because they knew I had their basement key. I shoved it into their hands before I hugged Avery and got into my car to drive home. That poor kid has to live in that house with that thing, but there was nothing I could do about it.
As long as I am alive, I will never….ever set foot in that house again.
And as for basements go, I can't go into them anymore. I just simply can't...

venting First time posting about this anywhere. Here’s my story. Hoping someone else’s in close to the same and maybe they can help me out.
It all started August of 2022. Woke up one night with a ringing in my head that wouldn’t stop. It finally subsided and I moved on for a couple days. Then it came back but not nearly as loud a couple weeks later. I didn’t pay much attention to it into the winter time. Went and saw an ENT, had mris, had my hearing checked and bloodwork done. It all come back great so really no answers. I started to think it had to be my neck because that was basically all that was left that could give you T. I’m a painter for 20 years and had a couple falls over the years. Neck was always stiff but nothing crazy. Started going to to PT for it and noticed some improvement. Then I went to an NFL football game in January 2023 with no hearing protection. Didn’t think it would matter cause my hearing was supposedly fine and I thought the T was from my neck. After the game my ears rang for 2 weeks straight. Family almost baker acted me because I was starting to talk crazy. Then it finally just stopped thank god. Since then it’s been on and off for a year and a half. I have earplugs in my pocket everywhere I go. It’s not just the T but the noise that feels like it goes right into my soul. I hate loud places anymore and won’t even go. I’ll have months straight where my T doesn’t bother me and I’m starting to think it’s gone and then boom it comes back. It’s not super loud, I can’t usually hear it if I’m outside. It’s when I’m in a quiet room, or driving in a vehicle or trying to go to sleep I hear it most. I hadn’t had problems with the T in months and then I started playing tennis again. Right away it was back, like my neck bouncing around brought it back. I accidentally bumped into a parking post pretty hard a few months back and had minor whiplash and my ears bothered me for a week. I helped a friend move one day and carried heavy stuff and that also spiked my T. Also when I move my neck to the side my T gets louder. Pretty convinced at this point is my neck causing it but then I think why did the football game or loud noises cause it to spike too. Like even if you don’t have ear damage and your T is from cervical issues can noise still flare it up? Other weird stuff like alcohol or tobacco don’t flare up my T like they say it does. I drank all day a couple weeks ago and didn’t hear it all day. I have an ocd type brain and this shit has consumed my thoughts for almost 2 years. When I’m outside 99 percent of time I can’t even hear it. Only in super quiet rooms or when I’m about to go to sleep. Sometimes I think I may just have hypercausis instead of T because certain sounds drive me crazy. Friends and family say the normal things like you’ll get used to it but I just can’t. Have an appt in a month with a neurologist because lately I’ve been having headaches too so want to see if it’s related to the T. Also might go see an osteopath doctor in my area, anybody had luck with those? Well anybody that’s read this far I sincerely appreciate any feedback. Sorry for the long post but this is the first time I’ve really just gotten this all out.

In my game every time i try D4C and attempt to use the self clone ability it proceeds to do the animation normally yet when it plays the audio que and finishes nothing happens, i thought that maybe it was within the pocket dimension but no such luck, can someone help me?

Looking for a few more people for our flag football team in the Frisco Reg League. We're the Fighting Mongooses. We have belts and team shirts already, so all you need to do is show up in shorts with no pockets :).
Games are Tuesdays at 6:30 6/04/24 - 8/27/24 at the Bacchus Sports Complex in Frisco, last four weeks are playoffs though so if we suck it up don't need to worry about any August games!
Anyhow DM me on here and I'll send you my number and we can talk more or I can answer any questions you have.

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