Hi, I sell my own design screen printed t-shirts, and my store, that I opened in January has been doing OK. Better than I hoped at the start, considering I am looking at a niche market.
Anyway, I want to expand to add more options. Like choosing shirt size, colour, print colour. But also the ability to add a back print or something, and choose that from a selection. with various prices for each add on There are likely other options I want to mess around with.
So, what are the best apps to do this? I'm doing all of this myself, and I have been on a massive learning curve building my store, marketing, all of it. So, I'm hoping for something quite easy to use, intuitive, and something that wont seem out of place on my site, & also be nice & simple for the customers.
Thank you

With new chapters on the horizon, I thought I’d take a shot at explaining my current guess at Ging’s nen prowess. I am not going to go super in depth with evidence other than Ging’s general character archetype and maybe some other theories (Gon was made via Greed Island).
Ging’s ability is profoundly simple. Like his son, Ging is an enhancer and his ability is a feedback loop. He enhances his nen ability through nen. Not increasing his aura, just his ability to learn. Perhaps by enhancing thought or processing, or even simpler. His ability to learn with speed would help him reach Top 5 nen users at such a young age, and his deep fundamental knowledge of nen has basically been the extent of his presence (faces on fingers, adapting Leorio’s ability, commentary on Gon’a nen-less situation). I think Ging might be attempting to exploit the nature of nen, as seen in the theory of creating Gon through Greed Island cards. He’s lazy but ambitious, in the way of a problem solver that finds simple to get to a solution, rather than constructing an elaborate and grandiose solution. He’s more than capable of getting a 3 Star license but not really bothered by something that would require a lot of time working on and refining. This would lead me to believe that his ability is not an active ability, but a passive skill that allows him to take in and process information at very high levels.
This would fit in line with what he has already said, specifying that his ability is not to directly copy skills with his ability, something like Chrollo’s book. Exceedingly simple, but I can’t think of a caveat to fit into the contractual/sacrificial nature of Nen that would make his Hatsu make sense. Perhaps it’s so simple and effective that there is no major caveat. It contrasts well with the increasingly complicated nen beasts of the princes. It would also aid in baffling people like Pariston, who might overthink and expect a very specific ability. I also like this concept of an anti-specialist, a universalist, which would fall on the opposite end of the nen affinity chart (where Enhancer is). I also think it fits Togashi’s general writing style of trying to subvert expectations, and what he has done recently with expanding the nen affinity chart to having characters that have mixed affinities. Perhaps his “ability” falls less in line with a hatsu and more along the lines of an enhancement of skill itself, like how you can apply XP in a video game to a trait/upgrade that increases XP gain. Something like Komugi’s ability to just improve her gungi skills, simple yet effective.
TL/DR: Ging is good at nen because his nen ability is to improve his nen abilities

Hello GoG! Hope everyone is well, enjoying their games and tackling backlogs.
I am requesting the renowned rougelike deckbuilder: Slay the Spire!
Who am I and why should I get this game?
I'm yeti, a teen living in California who's had a crazy change in gaming preferences this year. For starters, I used to grind live service fps games for quite some time. It was all I played, until one day I woke up and realized that battles passes are SHIT. Anyways, after tons of saving and research, I played Elden Ring and never looked back to FPS games. Since then I've expanded my taste, which leads to now!
One day, I saw that Balatro was trending on the Steam Store, so I managed to save up and purchase it. And wow, that game gives you your money's worth. Who knew a game with a simple enough premise- stacking multipliers through poker hands- could be so addicting! I have around 50 hours and am probably 8% through everything in the game. It's quite a behemoth of a game. I guess once I started it was over for me, because I looked to find other rougelikes and games in the genre but struggled to find something that fit similarly. Someone gifted me Gungeon, it was really great but I still craved card rougelikes.
Someone on another subreddit recommended Slay the Spire, and I must admit it looks incredible. I've heard the replay value is amazing, and it seems perfect for me! If it counts for anything, summer break is also coming up for me, this game would be an awesome use of my time. It's also on sale right now, what perfect timing!!
What is Slay the Spire?
You slay the spire. oh, and I guess build decks and discover relics, or something.
Thank you for reading my request, and if I get this game, I will be eternally grateful and sink at least 50 hours in the first 3 months. Thank you!!
STEAM PROFILE
SLAY THE SPIRE

Renew your driving licence hassle-free with this ultimate guide. Learn the step-by-step process for renewal online / offline!
Table of Contents

• [Importance of Renewing Your Driving Licence]()
• [Documents Required for Online Driving Licence Renewal]()
• [Step-by-Step Guide to Renew Driving Licence Online]()
• [Fees for Online Driving Licence Renewal]()
• [Tracking Your Driving Licence Renewal Status]()
• [Offline Renewal Process]()
• [Renewing Learner’s Licence Online]()
• [Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)]()

Driving licence is an imperative, a must-have. It is a crucial necessity for all riders and drivers out there! And most importantly, it is a legal requirement. It is important to renew your licence online or offline, but on time. This will ensure that you can continue operating your loved vehicles legally and without any complications.
In the digital era that we are in now and here, the process of renewing your driving licence is a lot more convenient than it ever was, thanks to the introduction of online driving licence renewal services. In this comprehensive guide blog, we will walk you through the step by step process of how to renew your driving licence online (But then if you are someone who prefers a handshake over a hyperlink, we’ve got you covered too in our Renewal of Driving Licence Offline section!).
This Blog will be your one-stop to understand everything from the Documents required to answering your Frequently Asked Questions.

Importance of Renewing Your Driving Licence

A valid driving licence is your ticket to freedom on the roads. Renewing your driving licence is not a formality, but a legal obligation. That will ensure that you can continue to drive legally on Indian roads. Not renewing your licence could get you to some trouble. The consequences can range from hefty fines to even imprisonment in certain situations. It could also lead to the inability to claim insurance in case of an accident. However, on the other hand, a valid driving licence provides some extra benefits. It serves as a proof of identity, or proof of your address making it a crucial document for various official purposes. Renewing driving licence in India is a breeze. Don’t let a simple task turn into a major headache. Get the renewal of your driving licence done either online or offline, it is simple.

Documents Required for Online Driving Licence Renewal

Before getting started on the renewal of driving licence online, do ensure to have the following documents ready:

• Your existing driving licence
• Form 1 (self-declaration of physical fitness)
• Form 1A (medical certificate, if applicable)
• Form 2 (driving licence renewal form)
• Proof of age and address (Aadhaar card, passport, birth certificate, etc.)
• Two recent passport-size photographs
• Vehicle fitness certificate (only for commercial vehicle licence renewal)

The applicable documents have to be uploaded during the process of application for renewal of driving licence online. Hence, it is important to have digital copies or scanned versions of these documents readily available with you.

Step-by-Step Guide to Renew Driving Licence Online

As we discussed earlier, the renewal of driving licence online is an easy task, it’s almost a breeze. Follow the following simple steps to renew your driving licence online:

• Step 1: Visit the Parivahan Sewa website and navigate to the “Driving Licence Related Services” section under “Online Services.” Ensure that you are in the right authorized website, i.e., the official website of Ministry of Road Transport & Highways, meant for the renewal of driving licence.
  
• Step 2: Select your state from the drop-down menu and click on “Apply for DL Renewal.”
  
• Step 3: Click “Continue” and enter your driving licence number, date of birth, and the captcha code. Then, click “Get DL Details.”
  
• Step 4: Verify your details and click “Yes” to proceed. Select “Submit Request” and choose your state again.
  
• Step 5: Select your RTO (Regional Transport Office). If you choose a different RTO, you’ll need to apply for a change of address and pay an additional fee.
  
• Step 6: Select “Renewal of DL” and fill out the online application form. Upload soft copies of the required documents.
  
• Step 7: Pay the applicable fees online using various payment methods such as credit/debit card, net banking, or digital wallets. Download the payment receipt for future reference. Keep the Payment receipt safe, either in a screenshot form or a pdf form, for safety purposes.
  
• Step 8: Once your documents are verified, voila, you will receive your renewed driving licence via post at your registered address within 15 working days.
  

Didn’t we tell you that it is a simple task! Renewing your license online is fast, easy, and saves you a trip. Your renewal process happens at the comfort of your couch.

Fees for Online Driving Licence Renewal

The driving licence renewal fee would vary based on the type of licence, the duration of the renewal process, i.e., it depends on how much you have delayed to renew; it also depends on the mode of renewal (smart card or a booklet). The breakdown of the fees for the renewal of driving licence are provided here below:

• Driving Licence Renewal: Rs. 200
• Driving Licence Renewal (after the grace period of 30 days): Rs. 300
• Additional fees per year (for delay in renewal): Rs. 1,000
• Additional fees for renewal in smart card format: Rs. 200

If you are someone looking to renew your Driving Licence for Heavy Vehicles, the fee for application of heavy licence is Rs.1000. However, for passenger and heavy cargo vehicles, the Fee is Rs.1500.
Just a gentle heads up! Please note that these fees are subject to change and it may vary slightly across different States or Union territories, across the Country. It may not greatly vary from each other, but it is advised to check before making the payment.

Tracking Your Driving Licence Renewal Status

If the application process for your driving licence was a breeze, the tracking is as easy as it gets. It is a smooth sail! The following steps help you track the status of your application of renewal of driving licence:
Step 1: Visit the Parivahan Sewa website and navigate to the “Vehicle Related Services” menu under the “Online Services” tab.
Step 2: Select the “Application Status” option and enter your application number, date of birth, and the captcha code.
Step 3: Click “Submit” to view the current status of your application.
This convenient feature allows you to stay updated on the progress of your renewal application, ensuring transparency and convenience throughout the process. Thanks to Digital India initiatives, the status updates are also frequently forwarded via SMS.

Offline Renewal Process

If you are someone who is delightfully analogue, or if you get to face any technical challenges with the online process, you can always resort to the driving licence renewal process by visiting your nearest Regional Transport Office (RTO). The following steps delineate the offline process of renewing your driving licence:
Step 1: Obtain the driving licence renewal form (Form 9) from the RTO office or download it from the official website.
Step 2: Fill out the application form and gather all the required documents as mentioned below:

• Your existing driving licence
• Form 1 (self-declaration of physical fitness)
• Form 1A (medical certificate, if applicable)
• Form 2 (driving licence renewal form)
• Proof of age and address (Aadhaar card, passport, birth certificate, etc.)
• Two recent passport-size photographs
• Vehicle fitness certificate (only for commercial vehicle licence renewal)

Step 3: Visit the RTO and submit the duly filled application form along with the relevant documents. Remember, you have to hold hard-copies of relevant documents to submit at the RTO.
Step 4: Pay the applicable fees at the fee collection counter and collect the acknowledgment receipt. Depending on the RTO, it seems many places have UPI interface to pay. This depends and varies from location to location, hence it is advised to carry currency in hand.
Step 5: Your renewed driving licence will be mailed to your registered address once the document verification process is complete.
Visiting RTO for Offline Driving Licence renewal could sound overwhelming, which is not the case. However, in case you would like further assistance, you can seek help from your nearest driving school or an agent.

Renewing Learner’s Licence Online

Learner’s licence allows to practice Driving legally, to practice driving on public roads under specific conditions. This is significant to gain the necessary experience and skills before taking the test for a valid permanent driver’s license. Learner’s licence is a permit to demonstrate that you are authorized to learn how to drive. Remember, Driving without learner’s licence, though you are just learning, is still illegal.
If you are someone who is looking to obtain learner’s licence for the first time, applying for learner’s licence could be done online too. Visit the relevant website, select concerned state and click on “Application for New Learners License” from “Learner’s License” menu. Fill up the form. Since this is a new application for learner’s licence, you are required to visit RTO on scheduled date with original documents & fee slip. The fee for issue of learner’s licence for each class of vehicle is Rs.150.
There may be situations in which one holds a learner’s licence, and it has expired. You can renew learner’s licence online too. Follow the simple steps as detailed below:
Step 1: Visit the Parivahan Sewa website and select “Driving Licence Services” from the “Online Services” menu.
Step 2: Choose your state of residence and click on the “Expired Learner Licence Issue Again” option under the “Learner Licence” section.
Step 3: Enter your expired learner’s licence number and date of birth, then click “Submit.”
Step 4: Pay the applicable fees for the issuance of a new learner’s licence.
Once the process is complete, you will receive your renewed learner’s licence.
You are provided with a permanent valid driving licence after you appear and clear the driving test.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Q: Can I renew my driving licence after it has expired? A: Yes, you can renew your driving licence even after it has expired. However, if the expiration date is more than five years old, you will have to apply as if you apply for a new licence and undergo all the necessary formalities.
Q: What are the penalties if caught riding or driving without a valid Driving licence? A: The fine for driving without a valid driving licence can be anywhere from Rs.1000 to Rs.5000, depending on the state and the type of vehicle you are driving. In some cases, imprisonment is also possible for a period up to 3 months. Apart from the above, it is possible that your vehicle could be seized until you can produce a valid licence. Repeated offences may lead to disqualification from obtaining a licence for a certain period.
Q: Do I need to undergo a driving test for renewal? A: Generally, no driving test is required for renewing your driving licence. However, if you are over 50 years old, and if you’re applying for a commercial vehicle licence, or have certain medical conditions, you may need to appear for a driving test.
Q: Can I make changes to my driving licence during renewal? A: Yes, you can make changes to your driving licence, such as address or personal details, during the renewal process. You will need to provide additional documentation for the changes and fill out the appropriate forms.
Q: How long is a driving licence valid? A: A driving licence in India is typically valid for 20 years from the date of issuance or until the holder turns 50, whichever comes first. For commercial vehicle licences, the validity period is 5 years. Also, it is pertinent to mention that once the driver crosses the age 50, the renewed licence is valid for 5 years, and the application of renewal of driving licence must be submitted, closer to the date of expiry.
Q: Can I renew my driving licence online if I obtained it from another state? A: Yes, you can renew your driving licence online, even if it was initially obtained from another state. However, you’ll need to provide a No Objection Certificate (NOC) from the original licensing authority. While this is the most common practice, the rules may vary from state to state, it is important to check with the local authorities for specific regulations.
Q: What if I don’t renew my driving licence on time? A: If you fail to renew your driving licence within the grace period of 30 days after expiration, you’ll need to pay an additional fee of Rs. 300. Additionally, driving with an expired licence can lead to penalties, fines, or even legal consequences.
Q: Can I schedule an appointment for driving licence renewal? A: Yes, most states in India allow you to schedule an appointment for driving licence services, including renewal, through the Parivahan Sewa website. This helps avoid long queues and waiting times at the RTO offices. This is only when you would like to renew your driving licence offline. By following the steps in Section-3 of this Blog, you can easily renew your driving licence online.
Q: How can I update my address on my driving licence? A: To update your address on your driving licence, you’ll need to fill out Form 33 and submit it along with the required documents, such as proof of new address, to the RTO during the renewal process.
Renewing driving licence online is a convenient and time saving process, which ensures that you complete the formalities and even receive your renewed driving licence, all at the comfort of your couch. Renewing your driving licence is an essential requirement. It will ensure that you remain compliant the Rules and regulations of the Government and it permits you to operate your vehicles legally on Indian roads. By following the guide detailed in this blog post, we are sure that you will have a smooth process of renewing your driving license online.

Welcome back to this week's newsflash.

1. Janssen-Cilag submitted applications to EMA for Tremfya, a medication already approved for psoriasis, to treat ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease. Clinical trials have been conducted for Tremfya. Do you want to know more?
2. Struggling with ulcerative colitis? This article explores a traditional Chinese medicine called Banxia Xiexin decoction (BXD) that may improve gut health and alleviate symptoms. Do you want to know more?
3. The US FDA approves Boehringer Ingelheim's Cyltezo, a biosimilar to Humira, for chronic inflammatory diseases. This high-concentration formulation expands treatment access for patients. Do you want to know more?
4. Crohn's disease can cause severe pain and fatigue. But there's promising news! Researchers are exploring new treatments like stem cell therapy to improve outcomes for patients. Do you want to know more?
5. Struggling to tell Ulcerative Colitis from Crohn's Disease? New research suggests a simple CT scan might hold the key! Analysis of fat distribution in the abdomen showed promise in differentiating these two inflammatory bowel diseases. Do you want to know more?

That's it for this week. Stay healthy!

C N'Faly Dante from Oregon declared for the draft but is waiting on a waiver to see if he can be approved for a 6th season in college: https://twitter.com/MattPrehm/status/1790792301511589996 Originally from Mali, Dante was a five star recruit out of Kansas in 2019, having moved to the States to further his basketball development. He has suffered through a litany of injuries throughout his career, starting in HS as a sophomore where he tore an ACL. He suffered through tendonitis of his knees as a freshman and was cleared late with eligibility issues, tore his left ACL in 2020, suffered an ankle injury that ended his season in 2023, and had knee surgery after one game this past season, which kept him out 14 games.
Through all of his injuries, he has been able to return to the floor each time and has turned himself into an NBA prospect. The athleticism he continues to possess even after the injuries he's suffered is impressive. He measured in at 6'10 w/out shoes at the combine with a 7'6 wingspan and 9'3 standing reach. 260 points. He's a 6'11 in shoes absolute unit of a physical specimen. Strong, wide, has huge hands, and is very quick in the open floor for a big man. He's gets off the ground quickly and powerfully and is a decent leaper that can elevate from a standstill and gather and power up quickly. He's not the smoothest guy laterally, but is certainly not slow footed by any means and is really mobile for his size.
Dante does all the things you want from a traditional big well. He is one of the very best finishers this class has. Over 80% at the rim. Generates a ton of contact. Elite offensive rebounder. His ability to power up from a standstill, his frame/strength, and his wingspan and large hands gives him a very large catch and finish radius and make it extremely hard to effectively contest his shots, he's an above the rim finisher in the halfcourt. He does a fantastic job making himself available for dump off passes and working his way into position for the catch down low. He catches most balls clean but not every one, but when he doesn't he has the ability to regather himself and finish with ease. He has effective ball fakes that get defenders off their feet.
He is an elite transition threat. He's one of the most dynamic guys at his size you'll see running down the floor. He's an elite transition finisher. He beats guys down the floor and catches lobs or seals defenders and finishes at the rim. He does a great job with seals in the paint. He was one of the most efficient post scorers in college basketball this year. His post game is fairly simple but it's economical, he has nice touch in the post, and the position he gains and the space he clears with his drop step usually gives him a shot right in front of the rim. He has decent footwork in the post...he has a step through move he likes to use in the post. He has a fake spin/hook in his arsenal. He prefers the right hand but will go left. He has the ability to catch balls under the rim and work his way above it. His large catch radius, how light he is on his feet, and his strength, make it easy for him to carve out space down low. That's what really gives him an advantage from the jump as a post scorer. He's pretty decisive in the post...he gets into his moves quickly, which both forces contact and makes him hard to contest.
He is a top class screen setter. He's a wall as a screen setter. He really walls off defenders and clears them out of the way, without being called for fouls, whether that be out of the DHO, off ball, or PnR. He creates a lot of open shots with his screens. He's also great at sealing defenders for drivers for easy baskets. His screen setting contributes to how good of a PnR roller he is. He's also a fantastic slip guy. He's so mobile for his size. His ability to get off the ground quickly and his leaping ability along with his hands and catch radius makes him a major lob threat. He really peels off screens in a dynamic way and with fantastic timing. It's very hard to stop him once he gets going downhill. In a traditional PnR set, it only takes him 1-2 dribbles for him to get to the basket.
He gobbles up rebounds on both ends. He's super strong with the ball as a rebounder. He's a force as a rebounder. He attacks balls in the air, and he is fantastic with positioning. He has natural rebounding instincts, knowing where the ball is going to be off the rim and placing himself in position to grab it. He does a good job keeping the ball high when he grabs an offensive board which makes him an elite put back guy. He can grab rebounds outside of his immediate area with his length and athleticism. He can reach back and grab balls in the air. He will rip balls out of opponents' hands. He often beats opponents for position for offensive rebounds. Once he has you on his back, you're in trouble.
Dante can make a midrange jumper on occasion. He shot 61% from the line. Similar ~60% the last three seasons. He'll never be a shooter, and his shot is a bit flat, but the mechanics are not bad from the midrange. Being able to make a midrange jumper will give him a little more dimension offensively and it wouldn't hurt to provide a little spacing.
His touch and skill on shots outside of the rim is not as good as it is around it. His post range isn't that large. He gets more inaccurate the further out from the post he gets, but he generally gets to his spot close to the rim regardless. He does have some intriguing face up game from both the free throw line and in the post. He likes facing up and attacking his man with a strong dribble or two and usually finishing with a hook or a layup, and he is very effective with these shots. He'll use his strength to drive opponents back on these shots as well.
He is mobile, gets great extension, and has a quick first step and accelerates to the rim, which gives him an ability to drive and finish from the FT line/elbows. He's a straight line driver and things can get a bit adventerous when he has to put the ball on the floor. He's fine with space, but if you close his space, he's not the most secure as a ballhandler. Not much in the way of advanced moves either. Not a part of his game that we'll see much of at all as a pro, but there is some raw ability there as a face up guy.
Dante is a bit of a mixed bag as a playmaker. He has the ability to make some really sharp reads and has pretty good vision. He will make kick outs from the post and can find cutters. He'll make skip passes from the block and hit shooters on the outside. He can find cutters from the top of the key. He does a good job finding the kick out on the double team. He will bait a double team and hit the kick out. That's an important skill for him to possess...he's not a black hole and you can end up getting burned doubling him. He's not an advanced passer overall, but he will make the right reads more often then not, and some impressive ones too.
He gets ahead of himself at times and that's where turnovers can come. Both when putting the ball on the floor, but he makes careless passes a little too often. He will travel on occasion when putting the ball on the floor. His touch and timing aren't always where they need to be. But for a guy who is really gonna be a pure play finisher at the next level, the fact he does have some playmaking ability in him gives him a wrinkle many in that category do not possess.
Dante is an expressive communicator and the heart of the Ducks defense this season. Can he seen pointing to and directing his teammates into position on the defensive end. He can switch a bit on the defensive end. He can hedge high. He's a drop big, but he has switchability and his mobility gives him versatility as a drop defender, he doesn't have to deep drop and can contain ballhandlers fairly high in drop. He uses his length really well as a drop defender...he uses his hands well too. He plays man and ball effectively, with the short space mobility to recover back to his man...he uses his length to disrupt ballhandlers. He gets his hands on quite a few balls as a drop defender, breaking up dribbles or breaking up passes. He makes himself big as a drop defender, which makes him a great rim deterrent.
He's got very good instincts as a rotater. Very good awareness overall defensively. Remains engaged and keeps his head on a swivel. He does a good job rotating over and covering cutters and opponents ducking in around the rim, and does a good job helping the helper. His awareness and his mobility along with the timing he has and his leaping ability makes him a very good shotblocker, both on the weakside and strongside. I think he can be even better, he does miss out on a few potential blocks just by being a bit late on the rotation, but his block percentage sells him short on how many shots he deters and alters around the rim. He's great with verticality, and he does a good overall job not biting on fakes. He's not massively foul prone. He'll pick up some cheap fouls, but he doesn't bite on fakes consistently. He contests with his hands up and tall, and the threat of his shot blocking sees a lot of offensive players looking to avoid his contests and being cute around the rim, or even avoiding taking shots in his vicinity.
He's a very good post defender. He anticipates post passes really really well. He nabs a ton of steals beating opponents to the ball off post passes. He has quick hands. He can be very aggressive with ball denial. He has really good instincts in reading the pass and taking it away and doing so without fouling. He does a good job sticking with an opponent's moves in the post. That along with his strength and length makes it hard to get clean looks off Dante in the post. The players that had the best success against him where the players who had the aggression and strength to seal and quickly take it to him, but very few had such capability. It's easier said than done.
Dante isn't the absolute smoothest mover from side to side but he is a very mobile one. His length also aids him on the perimeter, and he slides his feet well; he has the quickness to not just hang with but cut off drives on the perimeter. He's not someone you can target. I don't think he'll ever be a pure switch guy, but he can more than hang on the perimeter. You can't really just beat him for speed on switches. It may not always look pretty but he can hang with double moves on the perimeter. He does a good job forcing opponents to take the shots he wants them to take from all three levels. He will block jumpers, both on the ball, and when rotating out on contests.
The factors that make him an elite offensive rebounder make him great on the defensive boards as well...he has great technique as a rebounder. Boxes out, asserts dominant position, and he really goes after balls in the air. He really is a vacuum as a rebounder. He tracks balls really well. As a rebounder and as a shotblocker. The elevation ability is the cherry on top, along with his strong and large hands.
N'Faly Dante's length, strength, and athleticism is at the heart of his abilities on both ends of the floor but he's got real skill as a player on both ends as well. He's a mature player who has battled through a lot to get to this point. He's a plug-and-play guy with fantastic physical tools and someone you can envision can fulfill a 10-15 minute role immediately in the NBA. We will see what comes of his waiver process with Oregon, but his current focus is with the NBA as that process continues.
Are you all Thumbs Up, Down, or Across on N'Faly Dante?
Note: Accidentally deleted first post

A lore post about the ASS-U setting. Mostly for my own recollection (mods hope this is fine)
The Universe
Almost all known life in the universe inhabits a large, noncontinuous region in the milky way, about 5000 light years in diameter known as the Life Belt. This belt is slowly, but constantly expanding, and the non inhabited pockets of star systems of this belt are slowly and constantly shrinking. Within this belt are around 500 known advanced sentient species, including humanity, and countless trillions of nonsentient life forms, from single celled entities to full fledged, complex multicellular organisms. Of those advanced species, approximately 300 are carbon based life forms.
Interstellar Politics
Humanity falls under the aegis of the Consortium, a loose coalition of 150-ish carbon based, mostly oxygen breathing species, often with some form of central nervous system. Political groupings of this sort are an implicit standard in the galaxy, as species will often together based on biochemistry and physiology, due to simpler (relative) ease of communication, and greater likelihood of psychological alignment. As a Consortium political scholar succinctly put it:
"It's a lot easier to have regular and meaningful diplomatic contact with a species where you can both understand what light is, and that 2000 degree temperatures environments are unpleasant, rather than trying it with a living rock that only senses gamma radiation and communicates by spraying molten iron at you."
This political grouping also allows fairly straightforward exchanges of technology and culture, not in the least of which are the Standard Technologies, and the All Systems Science University (ASS-U).
Standard Technologies
The Standard Technologies are technical capabilities developed and maintained jointly (though not necessarily equally) by all members of the Consortium, for the sake of the prosperity of its members. Akin to Europe's Airbus, they pool resources and technical capability to develop and refine capabilities in a way that would be cost prohibitive for any one member. These capabilities are currently:

• Universal translation technology.
  
• Faster than light travel and communication.
  
• The Consortium Information Grid.
  
• Computation technology.
  
• Nanofabrication.
  
• Nuclear fusion.
  

The nature of these technologies is considered synergistic. No practical Information Grid without Universal Translators or advanced computing. Virtually no FTL travel without fusion. And little highly advanced computing without nanofabrication. And no new knowledge without the Information Grid.
With these technologies being standardized and widely manufactured, the total resource cost of turning or keeping your civilization interstellar drops significantly in addition to allowing virtually every Consortium species to be effectively post scarcity in needs, if not in wants. Access to the Standard Technologies tends to be one of the greatest draws of entering the Consortium. However, this benefit also carries a catch.
Access to the Standard Technologies is regulated by the Standard Technologies Act, legislation which requires universal access to interstellar travel, in addition to universal access to the Standard Technologies themselves, without regard for national, ethnic, economic or class factionalism. Failure to provide this access, will result in access to the Standard Technologies and their updates being restricted, an action which may very well eventually cripple any interstellar society as they would have to develop, obtain and maintain their own Technologies, a task which is nigh impossible to do at the same scale.
This regulation has a tendency of spurring civilizations to rapidly make societal alterations, and global (or interplanetary) improvements to material conditions following first contact, and initial exposure to the Standard Technologies. Which is just as the Consortium likes it.
"Imagine if Airbus decided that if your country's inequality level was too high, they don't sell you planes anymore. For anything. Not for cargo, or passengers, or defence, nothing. They wont let other people lend you planes too. No maintenance, or technical assistance either. Oh, and they're the only major aircraft manufacturers. Good luck trying to start Boeing from scratch."
--Exerpt from diplomatic debrief post First Contact.
"In this regard, we are societal chauvinists. Whatever international or local conflicts you have are not our concern. Whatever sectarian animus you hold is not our concern. Whatever class conceptions you have are not our concern. Everyone gets a fair shot at access. Or no one does. Don't like it? Not our concern. Your civilization will be crippled? Guess our answer."
--Unnamed Consortium diplomat.
Overview of Common Encountered Species
Ingen
"They're...programs. Robots? Uploaded consciousness from what I understand, infomorphs is their preferred term. Whatever you do, don't call them machines. They hate that."
--Exerpt from diplomatic debrief post First Contact.
The most numerous species of the Consortium, their total number is not completely known but likely numbers in the mid billions, due in no small part to the fact that the Ingen are an Uploaded species. Formerly being carbon based life forms, they decided meatspace held too many drawbacks, and uploaded their consciousnesses into a series of Matrioshka Brains around their home and colonized systems, existing as uploaded intelligence. Reproduction then became a simple matter of self replication, "forking" oneself, or combining efforts to make a new unique entity.
Due to their infomorphic existence, Ingen tend to want for nothing, most content to live out their lives in massive simulations. However a notable minority set out into the universe in mechanical bodies, to explore, conduct diplomacy or military action, obtain resources or simpl6y to alleviate "boredom from paradise". These mechanical bodies can range from being as simple as a bipedal android body used for direct engagement with other sentients, to being as large as a battleship, acting as both crew and vessel.
Technologically speaking, the Ingen are a powerhouse, being heavily responsible for universal translator technology, and the Consortium Information Grid. Many of their projects are literally planetary in scale, and their computational abilities are second to none. Militarily, and economically, the Ingen are the closest thing to a superpower in the Consortium.
Like with any other cosmopolitan civilization, the Ingen do have immigrants, alien individuals who come to be uploaded and join their society. Culturally, once uploaded they are considered the same as native Ingen, and are referred as such.
Farisians
"I dunno what you want me to say here. They look like humans so much it's actually freaking us out. And they kept staring at us. Not that we can blame them, we were doing the same."
"They're very...handsy. They touch your face, arms...it's like they're eyeing meat sometimes to be honest. One of a diplomat's aides may have made a pass at one of our security detail, we're still trying to suss out their cultural idiosyncrasies. Don't be fooled though, they're terrifyingly clever. Detail oriented to a tee. They ate up every scrap of information about our planet that we told them, and from the looks of some of them, we may have just been repeating information they already knew. Off the diplomatic bench though, they seem to like to take the piss out of us a lot. But they seemed really happy when we started giving it right back"
--Exerpts from diplomatic debrief post First Contact.
The Farisians make up a major power in the Consortium, holding significant territories, a highly capable military, and having a fairly large population. But their biggest claims to fame and of humanity's First Contact are their severe sex imbalance (~90% female), and their stunningly close resemblance to humans by galactic standards.
At a glance, a Farisian looks like a very tall, athletic human with pointed ears, solid colored eyes, and a thin layer of nearly imperceptible fur over their body. Anatomically and biochemically, enough commonalities exist that Farisians would be fairly comfortable, long term in a human friendly environment, and vice versa. This has aroused the interest of numerous Consortium scientists with hypotheses on the causes of this similarity ranging anywhere from a particularly odd case of convergent evolution, to panspermia, and common ancestry. Regardless of the reason, this similarity has made Farisians the unofficial main point of contact to humanity in many regards, a role they seem to have accepted with gusto.
Farisian history is unfortunately punctuated by tragedy. A global war pre First Contact, decimated over half of their population, with the use of biological and mutagenic weapons being responsible for degrading the genetics for males, and intensely hampering fertility in a significant number of females. Residue left behind kept this problem persistent, with only a few, genetically compromised males left. The species was only saved via the deployment of artificial gestation technology and advanced genetic engineering,. However, this has turned the Farisians into a technology dependent species in regards to reproduction, with artificial wombs, and access to them being significant cultural cornerstones of modern Farisian society and politics. This also enabled Farisians to become subject matter experts in bioengineering, with them providing significant Consortium expertise in xenomedicine.
Truvulians
"I kid you not, imagine shrinking a fat Squidward and giving him, like 10 more eyes. Best way I can describe it."
--Exerpt from diplomatic debrief post First Contact.
Diminutive and portly, Truvulians are known for their tentacled appendages, and excellent (not to mention numerous) eyesight. Notable for their impressive motor skills and visual processing, they are notable for starting the sport of "rock kissing" an extreme sport where a ship executes planetary slingshot maneuvers with a minimum of computational assistance. The less assistance, the higher your score.
Digonians
"When we get back to Earth, we need to have a long talk with the Americans"
--Exerpt from diplomatic debrief post First Contact.
Simply put, Digonians look like the Greys. A few more anatomical differences than the popular conception, but the base concept is nearly identical. As it happens, the Digonians set out to explore the stars around a century ago, fairly recently by galactic standards. However, their methods of gathering data on alien lifeforms were often...invasive. However, socially they have advanced and made apologies to the species that they may have caused distress to. Jury's out on if they mean it.
Iaxians
"We as a species need to make some significant changes, and soon. I'm being deadly serious. We just got a crash course on who we might become if we don't"
--Exerpt from diplomatic debrief post First Contact.
Iaxians are notable for being one of the few civilizations to receive sanction due to nonadherence to the Standard Technologies Act. Tribal and factionalized, the Iaxians used their newfound access to technology to immediately engage in, and exacerbate numerous power struggles throughout their colonized worlds. After sanction, their civilizations total quality of life plummeted as many factions realized they did not have the resources or expertise to create and keep their use of the Standard Technologies at a pre sanction level. This has caused numerous militant pockets of Iaxian society to take up arms and prey on Consortium ships transiting through the borders of Iaxian space, appropriating whatever technology and resources they can capture.

help im kinda new to modding have had stable load orders in the past but im trying a large load order list and i know thats gonna come with some compatability issues so need help trimming down or reorganizing ive been at this for a good 7 hours moving everything around deleting redownloading disabling enabling finding patches i did have it running with a lo almost exactly the same i think i moved stuff that i shouldnt have mmovedor downloaded something that broke it ive been trying to use the simple load order guide from nexus page as its confusing me as there are gameplay changes and gameplay overhauls faction overhauls and added npc but some of my npc/faction mods could be placed together or separate same with the gameplay mods i have the dlc and the creation club content that was given in the update installed and this is what i have for my load order used 1.98gb have 15mb left but wont let me use that last lil bit think it has to do with cache
Ps sorry for run on sentences shite grammar and no punctuation
LOAD ORDER
Unofficial fallout 4 patch
Workshop framework (will let me move in master file area)
Random encounter framework (will let me move in master file area)
Hudframework (will let me move in master file area but stays above def_widgets core)
Def_widgets core (wont let me move in master file area)
Munitions (will let me move in master file area)
Munitions vanilla ammo addon (will let me move in master file area)
Cap stashes give hundreds of caps (will let me move in master file area)
Awkcr all dlc(will let me move in master file area
Im guessing the above area is the master files area as they wont let me move anything below above them
Smm settlement menu manager
Immersive animation framework
Forced evolution super mutant addon
Minimal minutemen radiants
Automatron caravann fixes
Poseidon energy can have radar transmitter
Fallout 2287 gas masks of the wasteland
Gas masks of the wasteland with nac x
Fallout 2287 gas mask biped fix
Fallout 2287 universal gas masks
Follower revive system
Simple attack and death reaction
Realistic cardio
Immersive fallout (dlc)
Silents xp scaling xbox
[HTCW] high level perks 2 (full)
Synth sense
GO4 normal difficulty survival
GO4 Immersive cheats
Safe and trunk contents rework
Ugh. Canteen
Creation club delayed
Pulowskis shelter save point
Wasteland consumer 2
Commonwealth encounter pack
Snipers of the commonwealth
Raider gangs extended npc fixed
Worldwide ghouls
Doc drumlin
More legendary enemies
Aliens of the commonwealth
More companion slots human+automaton+dogmeat
Horrorghouls soundpack
Immersive pickup sounds
Realistic sound xb1
Clarity a visual overhaul
Nac x lite
Nac x far harbor
Nac x nuka world
Clarity + nac x patch
Cute water lite version for xbox
Wave.
Glowing sea glowing critters
Truly glowing nuka cola quantum and beverages
Immersive candles by munkyspunk
True tracers and bolt lasers
Fov 115
Genesis Nature
More vines
The fungal forest no lod
No borders
Valdicils item sorting (vis)
Immersive HUD (ihud)
Def_ui core
Def_ui_inv_config authors pick
Jedi hud
Immersive power armor hud 1k
Companion status hud
Paper vault boy
Survival stats widget
Holotime- hud clock widget
Def_ui_tags icon definitions (vis)
Def_ui_tabs inventory tabs (vis)
Def_ui_rollups pipboy VIS rollups
Def_ui_plugin scrap components
Def_ui hud framework patch
Ihud hudframework compatibility patch
Lock pick bar-xb1
More map markers (xb1)
Infantry battle rifle t48
.38 machine pistol
Police shotgun
Handmade assault smg
The automatic rifle
20mm anti power armor rifle
Ruger rifle pack (10-22 and .44)
.30 carbine pistol
Makeshift .32 smg
Edmonds dynamic power armor
Cheat terminal
Modern pharmacy iaf
Pbw the 9mm pistol
The assault pistol
Mg69 daks assault rifle replacer
The .22 pistol pack
Handmade assault shotgun
Handmade rocket rifle
Grenade expansion pack gxp classic
Pigs improvised explosive pack
Dogmeats packback
The attachment pack
The attachment pack implementation patch
Gunsmith overhaul
Gunsmith overhaul patch and weapon rebalance
Gunsmith overhaul and attachment pack compatability patch
Armorsmith extended v 3.02 full
Armorsmith far harbor
Armorsmith automatron
Apc transport
Apc transport nuka world
Beantown interiors project
PAC AIO
Crowded commonwealth
Plenty o exploration
Rsyios location pack
Lexington interiors xb1 or pc
Caves of the commonwealth default
Federal ration stockpile
Unmarked raider camps
Unmarked raider camps 2
Immersive drumlin diner
Pulowskis vip shelters xbox
Posiden offices by glitchfinder
Posiden offices no bugs
Dark hollow pond by glitchfinder
Jedis vault 111 starter pack
Roadside pines motel by glitchfinder
Nest survival bunkers
Military readiness program
Expanding boston
Far better far harbor
Bunker 13
Full dialogue interface
Start me up redux fdi version
Start me up redux nuka world patch fdi version
See through scopes goty
Gunfighter framework
glassy pip boy screen glare fix
Pip boy flashlight small
Pip boy light flashlight sound
Ugh mod managers cap

Background

I've been working with an all-in-one command project for the past few years and I believe I have fully perfected my format for using all in one commands. The goal of an all-in-one format is to accomplish many commands as wanted, in one command, hence the name. Command blocks have a character limit of 32,500 (this limit only applies in its gui: if you can source a command block with more than that by modded sources other than direct copy/paste, this limit is not applied). It seems like plenty, but it fills up pretty fast even with more optimizations than I ever thought possible. So I made more optimizations to the base way I even use an all-in-one.
It accomplishes a working all-in-one with 451 characters, and uses an additional 39 characters per additional command before actually caring about how many characters the command itself uses. This is, by far, the best I have found, and it's fairly simple too, with a bunch of neat tricks.

Other formats

Most of the time, I see some kinda format with a dying armor stand to separate the falling blocks. No offense to whoever made that, but... what were you thinking? The armor stand doesn't even have predetermined death time nbt??? So you are already committed to waiting a full second before it can even think about running??? When I see an all-in-one these days, it's usually this one which I don't know where it originated from.
There's also mrgarretto - Sure, it's nice if you wanted ye olde style all-in-one-command box, but it's generally not that efficient. It doesn't even work in modern versions, the activator rail falls through the redstone block and doesn't get placed. I'll pretend that's not a problem for now. Once again, it's nice if you want something simple and fast, and it even optimizes the command block layout for you, but that's just about it. Heck it even uses two commands just to get its command blocks activated, like.. WHY. YOU COULD HAVE JUST PUT THE AUTO AND COMMAND DATA IN THE SETBLOCK COMMAND. There's also a random STONE block in the base of the structure, and then it puts the command block to delete it, that's right, off to the side? The most reasonable thing is that it setblocks a redstone block next to the command that removes the all in one structure, in order to delay it a tick, but that's not even necessary as of one of the 1.19 versions (this is why it's somewhat reasonable), and now you can just set a command block as auto by default and it'll still have the delay. Even then, it could have used a different command to data merge it to auto, but instead it used a redstone block, which is only reasonable if it already doesn't care about space. All of this makes somewhat sense though, as it hasn't been deliberately updated to work nicely in modern versions.
Anyways that was my rant about other formats w/web generators. Moving on.

My format

As I'm sure some people will ask, is it a generator? Short answer, no. I have no intention of making it into a generator and nor do I recommend it, half of this is because I don't know html, the other half is because it is simply too limited unless you already make use of a million possible configurations. Sure, it's easy to input a few commands and let it do the work for you, but by the time you care enough to get into specifics and more advanced command, you might as well already be familiar enough with the nbt to just do it manually. This is how I do it and it just makes the most practical sense in terms of a long-term project: it's not even that much more effort. The hardest part about working without a generator is getting into the habit of removing all of the line-return characters before copying the command, to make use of as many possible characters as you can. This of course assumes you already separate command by line, which, you really should. Personally, I work with my all-in-one's in vscode for minecraft-specific text highlighting and easy multi-line editing with middle click.
Anyways, getting to the point, this is my all-in-one:

summon falling_block ~ ~1.8 ~ {BlockState:{Name:redstone_block},Motion:[.0,-2.0],Passengers:[{id:falling_block,BlockState:{Name:activator_rail},Passengers:[{id:command_block_minecart,Command:"gamerule commandBlockOutput false"},{id:command_block_minecart,Command:"setblock ~ ~-2 ~ repeating_command_block{auto:1,Command:'fill ~ ~ ~ ~ ~2 ~ air'}"}, {id:command_block_minecart,Command:"say Efficient All In One Format! Made by Lizard16."}, {id:command_block_minecart,Command:"execute align xz run kill [type=command_block_minecart,dy=0]"}]}]} 

Three parts, the start, the content, and the end. This runs as fast as possible: on the 4th tick after it was placed. This is due to a limitation in the way command block minecart delay must have been coded: they physically cannot run until the 4th tick of their life. Then on the 5th tick, the command block is activated that destroys the structure due to necessary delay due to command execution order. It works by summoning a falling block, the redstone block to power the command block minecarts, with its a passenger of the activator rail. Because the redstone block lands immediately, the activator rail stays in place where it was when summoned. The command block minecarts are then passengers of the activator rail, and the activator rail lands on its 4th tick: this does 2 things: make it impossible to move the minecarts with a player hitbox before they are ready to activate, and remove the completely quiet sound that minecarts make when landing for some reason that takes up the sound cap for some reason. The kill command is run as an execute command to do two things: to make it only kill the command block minecarts part of the structure, and to make it work on servers with the essentials plugin. It also turns off command block output every time: which is needed the first time, but can be skipped in future times, but there's no reason to not include it. Generally I respect people's gamerule choices: this is not one of them, there is literally no useful reason for command block output to be on, other than potentially debugging, but even then, just look at the command's last output instead of chat.
To use it, just copy the middle line, paste on a new line, and write the next command in the string. The commands are completely deterministic and they are run in the precise order they are as passengers.
The only "problem" with it is that it doesn't bother to check if the space above it is empty before summoning, because that'll use more characters for a mostly useless function. Everyone who has ever seen any kind of all-in-one should know they use vertical space, and I won't be concerning myself with this issue. However, I once again take pride in the fact that mine requires the least amount of empty space that I've seen, at a whole three blocks: the command block to run the command, the redstone block, and the activator rail.
If you already have the commands for a desired all-in-one, then any text editor that allows you to edit multiple lines separately will be easy to apply this to, I use vscode. Something else I like to do is align the lines such that the command is at the beginning, and at the end of that command, the formatting for the next command block minecart starts and ends there, which means most of the formatting for a command lies in the line above it. It's a bit weird to get used to but I think it's somewhat nicer to edit with.
Overall, it's nothing fancy: just the base format for making an all-in-one work, and to my knowledge, the optimizations I have made have made it the smallest one there is, which is useful to people like me who have a hard time fitting what they want in the character limit even with an insane amount of optimization: every character helps.
If I forgot anything or there's anything I aut to add, let me know!

First Previous Wiki
A group of Sprilnav had entered the room, dragged claws bearing paint across Kashaunta and Penny's faces, and left again. Another group of Sprilnav, this time Elders, had entered the room, leading to a hologram forming around Penny and Kashaunta to hide their faces behind perfect masks.
They carried a long black box on their shoulders. Kashaunta approached their kneeling forms, unlatching the box with her claws. Special sounds chimed from electronic locks, and the box flipped open, revealing a new Soul Blade. It was Azeri's Soul Blade, or the one he'd once owned at least. Given the new information Penny had on them, the sword wasn't truly 'his' in a literal sense.
They had then moved to a more central room on the flagship, complete with a massive kitchen, bedroom, and entertainment room. Kashaunta's quarters were lavish, though they were not as flush with finery and gold as Penny would have expected.
Penny wore Kashaunta's Soul Blade on her hip. The ancient weapon didn't seem to have the mind-altering effects the last one did. But it was beyond powerful, for sure. It also came with a stealth coating that could be activated to hide its presence.
Azeri's Soul Blade, on the other hand, definitely affected her.
Penny could hear the faint sounds of distant voices echoing in her thoughts. She could sense Cardi and Nilnacrawla in her mind more clearly as if she'd finally put on a set of glasses after not having them her entire life. So many things were clearer now, but so many weren't. Kashaunta had made a sacred agreement with her, at least in Sprilnav culture.
Backed by the Progenitors. All of them, apparently. And they were all sworn to silence, which Nilnacrawla and Kashaunta assured her would also include Twilight and Nova. She could understand that, but Nova's actions toward Penny in the past made her wary of relying on him for anything related to her safety.
And it was before the Judgment, now in nine days. Kashaunta's VIs had gathered the data, ordered it, and formulated responses. She'd designed them to sound like real people and real things that would be said, not just decent scripts with odd lexicon and grammatical habits.
"So," Penny said, looking at Kashaunta relaxing beside her. The Elder's carefree stance didn't fool Penny as to what had just happened. It had looked rushed, but she knew there was a larger purpose behind it than she believed. "The Pact. Were you truly this desperate to regain my trust?"
"I was," Kashaunta admitted. "And am. I have a tendency to manipulate people around me. This has made me good at being able to tell when a relationship is falling apart. Were I not to do something this extreme, we would have continued to fall apart, and eventually the rift would have been too large for even this to bridge.
I do not expect forgiveness or for you to understand my viewpoint and ideas. I have destroyed nations and entire civilizations. I have spent my fair share of time in evil, and use the threat of who I was and who I am against those who slight me. Reputation is important among our species, more so than anything but power. But they are linked.
A reputation of weakness will never exist with a person of strength. If it develops, the Elders will pile onto that unfortunate soul to plunder the riches they believe can no longer be protected. And once you fall, it is impossible to rise again. We do need each other, Penny. Perhaps you do not agree, yet, but this goes beyond the Judgment."
Penny wanted to argue. She wanted to listen to the voices demanding her hatred of the Elder before her- wait, what?
Penny frowned. She focused on them, and they appeared. A cacophony of voices, all Sprilnav in origin. They were definitely here and worryingly a part of her psychic energy. It almost seemed like they were the voices of those she'd freed. Which wouldn't make sense unless... her title was actually bearing conceptual power.
She supposed that it was possible then.
"Kashaunta," Penny said.
"Yes?"
"Why do you have faith in me, when, as you say, so many others have failed?"
"Because you possess Cardinality. You possess Humanity. You even have a Progenitor Title, though it is only a budding one. Your approach to this, besides a few mistakes on our part, is remarkably sound. You have moved away from hatred of the Sprilnav to that of Elders. And you have moved away from hatred of Elders and Progenitors to that of certain Elders and Progenitors, which I understand.
Ultimately, you have me convinced that you do not want to carry out a war of vengeance against me and my kin for the actions we did before your species had a name. I know it is difficult to overcome hatred, and more so with a voice in your head telling you to distrust all we Elders say and do. And I believe you can convince the Alliance to restrict its war to methods that are not as destructive."
Penny thought it was odd how much Kashaunta was stressing it. Either the Alliance wasn't considered a threat to the Sprilnav or it was. Kashaunta seemed to suggest it was, perhaps, to flatter Penny somehow. She didn't exactly buy it but would let it play out.
It would be important for Penny to learn more about the Elder's viewpoint before the Judgment to exploit it among other Elders to help win the Judgment. She'd have to portray herself and the Alliance as weak, which meant learning more about Sprilnav technology and power. The briefings from the last meetings before the previous Judgment had been enlightening on that front. But Penny wanted the best shot she could have on this.
"Such as?"
"Culture war."
"That has a certain meaning among my species," Penny said. "I am not sure if it translates correctly."
"I want your Alliance to begin to turn the population against slavery. Just that. Go no further. If you do that, the Elders will fight back. This will escalate, and the list of grievances will grow. We will have rebellions, and they can win with my help."
"And what comes next?"
"I take power, of course. I do not purge the Sprilnav who rose to the top, but reward them. I bind them by respect and loyalty instead of fear and hatred. Objectively, it will be better to have a single unified state than a disparate mess of warring territories. Quality of life, quality of death, and everything in between. We can go further, if you like.
Turning the Collective into literal heaven for those who die, where they can return to real bodies as often as they want for free. I can extend this to other species and, over thousands of years, wear away the animosity between the Sprilnav and the rest of the galaxy. I distribute gifts, I lower taxes, and use android labor to replace slavery entirely. Would you not agree that this is better?"
"I am not sure. How would you maintain the state, when threats come from within and without?"
"Limits on power, separation of branches of government. Police forces, military forces. We have police trained to de-escalate situations, even when they are armed with riot shields or actual guns. There will obviously be some requirement for state violence, but I will lower it as far as possible."
"There will be those who wish to be independent."
"And they can be."
"You are not concerned about that?" Penny asked.
"With even just the Autonomous Peoples' Stars, independence is risky. Dangerous. People do not start those movements because if they succeed, they get invaded by a border power. Earth has seen that happen in its history, particularly with Europe and Asia. Luna would have seen it as well by now, if not for the First Contact. The problem is the power disparity. Going from the passive backing of 500 thousand planets and a central militarized state to that of maybe 4 or 5 planets with disjointed connections and only garrison supplies is a massive drop."
"But with your plan, there would be no border powers."
"There would be, of course," Kashaunta said. "There must be. Nations without a significant outside threat, that is at least somewhat credible, have a more difficult time staying united. Without a 'them' it is more difficult to define an 'us,' as we know very well."
"That is quite a cold way of looking at reality."
"Those who do otherwise are smears of gore amongst the black of space, or rotting in the ground of their home planets. Elders do not remain Elders by stupidity alone. Eventually, a few lessons must be learned."
"Must?"
"Must, even if they are later forgotten."
Kashaunta let out a sigh. "You and I, Penny. We are vastly different people. I admire your idealism, and I envy it. But when it comes to control of societies and curation of national identities, I have a vast array of experience."
"You do," Penny agreed. "The Pact says we should not lie to each other, so I will no longer dance around my reasons for my misgivings. I do not trust you because you are everything that has ruined the fortunes of my species in the past, often promising things like you do. Security before freedom, usually. You are rich. You are very far above most Sprilnav and even most Elders. You are a politician and a state leader. History tells me to be wary of such people, especially when they possess high amounts of power. Authoritarian countries can, with proper management, outpace those which are not by refusing to limit themselves by morals and ethics.
You are a queen, a monarch. This title goes back to the days of barbarity among our kind, when we believed people were superior based on bloodlines and genetics, sometimes to the extreme of actual inbreeding. You are highly experienced with manipulation, having billions of years of experience. I likely would not know whether you are manipulating me, and even Nilnacrawla has billions of years less experience with Elders than you would on account of his separation from Sprilnav society for so long.
I have no other trustworthy sources for what you say and do. I am surrounded only by enemies, neutral people, and you and Lecalicus alone as actual allies. Truth be told, there is nothing that will stop you from going back on all that you say because people like you have made promises not to before. And they did it anyway.
Companies. Nations. People. With a galaxy full of sentient minds all seemingly built on the same energy and manners of thinking, I see just another politician trying to get in good with me because I can get her what she wants. I fear that, Kashaunta. I fear it a lot. More than I have ever said and ever shown. It is a fear so visceral it colors my view of your entire species.
Because if you've lived a billion years, who's to say you haven't done this all before? How many aliens you've offered this honor, only to cast aside when they die fighting impossible enemies? And yes, my fear of you is that you will betray me. That is a deep-seated and personal matter that I will not explore at this time, but betrayal is something I guard against with all my might.
I hate that you have so much power over me, that I know it, and that you know it. You could enslave me for the next ten days, and I'd do it, to save my species. The Judgment trial is another way of showing the powerlessness of the galaxy before the Sprilnav, the powerlessness of the Alliance before the Sprilnav, and me before you, Justicar, and Yasihaut. Because guess what? I can win this. It will be hard, but I can do it because I set my mind to it, and my mind is my will, and my will is my iron fortress, my gauntleted fist, and my beating heart.
I can, I will, I must. But through all of this, guess what happens if I win the Judgment? Yasihaut files another one. I am strong, Kashaunta. Stronger than any human in history. But even now, inside your sanctum, inside the greatest ship I have ever seen, I remain powerless against the might of your people and your laws. I hear you talk of millennia and galaxies and think of how much I have struggled over the mere ten thousand star systems of the Alliance and this single planet's slave problem. There's billions more.
I have fought against odds beyond comprehension, but even now, I have to break bread with my enemy so that I can continue to survive in the system they built. Because with all that you are, it is impossible for me to see you as anything but an enemy. I cannot understand the value of the Pact. I can only guess at it. But the galaxy's weight is resting upon my shoulders, and my back is bowing. My spine... is breaking. How much more? How many more?
I hate what this universe is. I hate how it is structured. I hate the concepts, the Progenitors, the speeding space entities, and whoever else controls it. For a person to even condone the mindless suffering in this universe is an act of utter insanity. When I see you in your ivory castle, perched upon your mountains of gold, I think of the poor. I think of the justice you deserve that I cannot carry out because of the very power you wield. Do you know how angry that makes me? Do you know that my dreams are still sometimes haunted by Yasihaut's torture? I am a broken person, Kashaunta.
Broken by the weight of who I am and all I must do. But you, you get to sit here and eat, oblivious or indifferent to my suffering. Because you cannot stand to look down for fear of seeing the filth in your claws. I dream of your death, Kashaunta. And a thousand more. I want to tear down your civilization and all others like it. I want to kill, and maim, and murder. I want to be that indomitable power which all others fear and respect.
I want to mount Yasihaut's head on a spear and shove another between Nova's eyes for the crime of daring to use their ultimate power against me. And I want to kill you, too, for being the one I am forced to rely on to survive. For your own power being what forces me to bow and scrape to yet another master. This is why I bear my hatred for your kin, Kashaunta. Why I hate the Elders, the Progenitors, all of it. Because of the inherent unfairness of the galaxy you have built and the banal and insidious evil you have built it upon. I hate you, this galaxy, this universe.
Because you all will never get the justice you deserve, because I cannot repay the sheer weight of atrocity hanging from your heads. And to make you feel what you all deserve, would naturally require me to have the same punishment. Because I can't win without sinking to your level, either by being one of you Elders or having to use your ill-gotten power for my own benefit. I am climbing the mountain, the air is cold, the night is dark, the wind is blowing, and the ice is slick. I stand on the precipice of death, as does all I have known and loved.
To save them, I must use you, an Elder buoyed by an ocean of blood, merely so I can float up a little higher, perhaps to the next cliff or perhaps to that mountain peak. I believe I am fighting for the people. For freedom, justice, and the rights of my kind to self-determination. And to do so, I must sacrifice my own freedom. My own justice. And my own self-determination. All for winning a pointless case, against a stupid Elder who I'd press against a block of red-hot metal, just so I could enjoy her screams. I was a woman, once. A simple woman, a good human.
Now I am a monster. I have killed. I have avoided killing when I should not have. Yasihaut is still alive. Ikirshi is still alive. Tiglath is still alive. Nova is still alive. Azeri is still alive, too, even if his name is dead. Look what I am, and what I've had to do to get here. What will I have to do to continue? I am evil now. Because I will compromise my principles, and claim to fight for freedom while happily breaking bread with an Elder who openly espouses galactic domination. And I can't even say no, for fear of what that would mean for those I know and love.
I am broken, but I can still move. I can still think. And I can still hate. None of you have the right to stand against justice, but I do not have the power to make you kneel to it. Instead, I am being forced into this yet again. I deserve to die for what I am and what I have done, but I cannot because of who and what I fight for. I will only descend into worse depravity. When I am free of the Judgment, I will likely kill the slavers and enjoy it. Because that is what I am becoming now. I'm becoming you. Just as you said I would, proving that I'm powerless even against that."
Thick tears fell from Penny's eyes. With no one else but the Elder in the room and a currently fulfilled promise of no cameras, sound recording devices, and not even guards, only Kashaunta would know how much it pained Penny to say all this aloud. The pain doubled her over as the weight of her realization came to her.
Kashaunta let her be, waiting for Penny's tears to finally run dry. It was an ugly thing. All of the past trauma and misery came roaring back, drowning Penny in a sea of torment and suffering. Cardi and Nilncrawla were powerless to stop it. Her soul ached. Her mind shook.
At least, Penny drew a rasping breath. "So. Now you know, Kashaunta."
"I do," the Elder said. "I can tell you have many feelings on the matter. We don't have to continue discussion."
"You're not upset?"
"No," Kashaunta said. "Not at all. Why should I be? You bared your soul to me in this truth, Penny. Knowing the power I do hold over you, you did so anyway. This only proves that I was right to trust you and your strength."
"This isn't strength. I sat here and cried like a little girl."
"It took strength for you to admit how you feel and why, especially to me. To trust that I would listen, and to express exactly why you wish for me and my kin to die."
"You seem... oddly okay with me wanting to kill you."
"Because I have been surrounded by people who wanted to kill me before. Only one of them, in the long history of my life, admitted such to this extent before making their attempts, and that is you. I understand and respect your motive for wanting me dead, actually. I would feel the same way in your position. You are right. The way things are is not fair, and is not just. I also know that you won't kill me if you have the chance."
"Why do you think that?"
"Well, you do not seem the type to kill your allies, unless they directly betray you. I will not pretend that I am innocent. But do you truly think that you will be able to look me in the eyes, your main supporter among all my kind, and stab me in the heart? Because if you do kill me, I would at least request the honor of you doing it with your own hands. Or even the Soul Blade, if you wish to be poetic about it."
"So no lobbing asteroids of antimatter at you, then?" Penny laughed.
"I would think not, though if we are at that point, the future is lost anyway. To grapple with your past, present and future is a part of life, Penny. This right here is the reason I made the Pact with you. Because you are an honest person, with the will to do what is necessary, and the power to carry it out."
"But you'll be preparing contingencies to kill me, won't you?"
"No," Kashaunta said. "We are past that now."
"You act as if your life is already ending. A once in a billion years Pact with a human, acting like you won't protect yourself from a person who wants to murder you, and being uncaring about your legacy. Why?"
"Because it is you or nothing, Penny. I have lived over 13 billion years. I have had more than a full life. I have made my peace with death. Not the man himself, obviously, but the idea of it. We stand at the crossroads. I will wait no longer for the rot to keep spreading."
"So you will back me in the Judgment, then."
"More than that," Kashaunta said. "I am willing to be your lawyer, and represent you in this trial. If you accept, that is."
"I would, but I must ask you one question. Do you even care about the Alliance beyond what we could do to help you?"
"Yes, and no. I care about their idealism, and that they have AIs with high levels of cognitive power. I care that they recognise the value of Sprilnav lives as more than collateral damage, which is why their war plans only blow up our planets if they lose and are about to go extinct. Humanity and the hivemind are mainly valuable to me because they are valuable to you, the same with the rest of the Alliance. But they to have the ability to put a decent bureaucracy in place, through Phoebe and Edu'frec, or even the hivemind if it expands."
"Would you care if we lost?"
"Yes, though I can force myself not to if I must."
It seemed like an honest assessment of the situation. There was one more thing.
"Are you actually a lawyer, then? And are you skilled with Judticar's laws? It's quite touching that you're still willing to vouch for me, but if you don't have any sort of law degree, I can't exactly accept that."
"Yes to both. While I don't have an Eonic degree, I do have several thousand years of legal studies, with about a hundred in Justicar law."
"Would that actually be sufficient?"
"Yes. When we Sprilnav say we have put a hundred years into something, that is a raw time. It does not include sleeping, eating, vacations, and so on. My implant tells me I spent 181 years specifically studying Justicar law."
"How did you have time?"
"Delegation is a valuable skill for the sanity of country leaders."
"I suppose," Penny said. "Do you think that you and I appearing together in court would be detrimental to my case?"
"The only avenue they could pursue is that you've 'turned' me to your side. But seeing as I am extremely powerful and have refused bribes of inconceivable amounts of wealth, that narrative will be poorly accepted by all but the most biased of Judges. Or High Judges, as the case will be. Unfortunately, I do not qualify as either a Judge or High Judge, but my credentials and power are more than sufficient for them to be unable to block my ability to represent you. You have, as Nilnacrawla may have told you, already paid me for your services. Your linear singularities are more stable than I thought."
"So the money finally shows itself again," Penny smiled.
Kashaunta shared her grin. "Yes. That it does. You are surprisingly profitable as a bonus."
"I'm sure everything else I do is the bonus. Like making the other nations end slavery."
"Well, that would actually make them more productive."
"So why..."
"Elders love feeling powerful. They love having power over others, and being able to show it. They are generally insecure, their brains polluted by eons of paranoia and propaganda. The weakness of Elders is something that the powers that be use to exploit them."
"And your ego?"
"They have to prove their superiority to themselves. I live and breathe it with every step I take in this galaxy."
Penny sighed. "That is an impressive level of narcissism."
"That word didn't translate."
"It is a way to say a person admires themself to an unnatural and unhealthy degree."
"Then it would describe me, except the degree is quite healthy and natural. Elders' egos also help to keep us going. Reputation isn't just an external motivation."
Penny nodded. "We still must discuss your approach toward people in general later. But we have other priorities, don't we?"
"The Judgment," Kashaunta agreed. "You and Yasihaut will attend the Fort Court, and will be even better protected than last time. The Underground beneath it is continually pulverized, as it sits on a mostly active volcanic system, with lava outlets designed to ensure tunneling is impossible. The mindscape side fortifications are similarly impressive, and Justicar has spent a considerable amount of money on ensuring the security of this Judgment.
His reputation hinges on it greatly, even more so as he is there in person as a Judge. This makes him more vulnerable than usual. But if you kill his body, he will live. I do not suggest you try it, however. What I aim to do is present an argument that the premise of the Judgment trial is flawed, as there is limited legal proof that you and the Alliance are a threat to the Sprilnav.
To do this, I have already helped to secure two things for you. The treaty with Valisada and the Pact of Blades with me. These items will ensure the common scrutiny and arguments used against aliens will be ineffective. You have proven yourself capable of adhering to and participating in our customs, especially the ones related to trust and binding agreements. You also have wisely avoided killing any Sprilnav for a while. This, especially in the context of the slaves and the 85th Grand Fleet, will be massively beneficial to your argument.
Beyond this, I also have an array of legal evidence to challenge Yasihaut if she brings up your hatred of her, or the previous Judgment's outcome, or the battle that crippled the Progenitors. Indrafabar will be helpful to us, as he will defend the honor of his kin. He will not allow the argument of you being as strong as the Progenitors be seriously considered. No matter what you say or what people think, this will be a question of whether you can convince Indrafabar and Justicar of your ability to be peaceful, and behind that the Alliance.
You will find it harder to defend the rhetoric the Alliance has put out, but I have secured this portion of the Judgment with my defensive agreements with them as well. You both are anchored to me and my reputation too strongly for any of them to ignore, which is yet another reason why I am hoping to help defend you in person."
"So you are staking your own reputation on me, too. Is that another reason you did the Pact?"
"It is. The reputational blow losing this Judgment could have will not be enough to topple me. But it is a catalyst. It is capable of starting a chain of downfall events that lead to my dethroning or even my death. I am aware of this and am doing what I can to stave off that process and shore up all my defenses. I also have a lawyer with an Eonic degree in Justicar law who will be the main defender of your argument.
My presence in the court will be for your protection and as a reminder of the fact that you have a backer, and that backer is me. I expect Yasihaut's counterparts to undertake a similar process, though she will find it easier due to her being an Elder. I will introduce you to him in ten minutes."
"That is very kind of you, Kashaunta. I know that we have had our differences, and that your past is quite a contentious thing. But if I put all of that aside, and look at you as you are here, and now, I am grateful that you are doing all of this for me and my people. I do not know whether I can repay you for the Pact of Blades, but your conviction and intelligence are traits I admire."
"You are welcome, Penny. I know I cannot atone. But I will help you build a better galaxy, just as it should be."
Penny patted her on the hed, and turned her gaze to the opposite wall.
"I'm afraid," she admitted.
"Fear in this situation is natural. There is no shame in it. Your strength will allow you to work through it. Whether it is the strength you carry in your soul, or that which your father and Cardinality bring with them. You can do this, Penny. We can win."
"And if Yasihaut files another Judgment?"
Kashaunta gave her a dark grin. "I have a plan for that, too. When the Pact of Blades is revealed in the court, my abilities to aid you will widen considerably. They will understand, and if not, Indrafabar will teach them. He was there, after all."
"And this isn't witness tampering or whatever?"
"That doesn't exist here," Kashaunta said. "Justicar's laws do not include that. He enforces that by his soft power. It makes things more fair between Elders, but not between Elders and others. As is by design."
"Kashaunta," Penny said. "While you are an okay person, by your current deeds, I can't really say I'm not going to take the guy with a billion years of legal education over your scant hundred."
"I do not need to be your main lawyer, I just need to have the job listed as such in the courtroom. If he requires it, the lawyer will speak over me and you in all matters."
"You and I, you mean?"
"I do not mean," Kashaunta said. "My language does not always follow your grammatical rules."
"Speaking of that, during the Pact, you spoke a language we couldn't translate for a bit."
"Can you repeat it?"
"'Eis nama kaste Penny Balica, sun lanci Dorima Kashaunta. Ko'ri, lanci nupa bes na Dorima'Pecunyanova. Sp'rkial'nova. Homo Sapiens.' And then you said, 'Tol, nopa shikai.'"
"It roughly means: 'This act is between Penny Balica and the Elder Kashaunta. Now, we are in the claws of the Progenitors. Sp'rkial'nova. Homo Sapiens.' And the second part means 'take it or leave it,' or more accurately 'take or leave.' That's about what I said."
"So Dorima means Elder, and Dorima'Pecunyanova means Progenitor?"
"Yes. The specific translation is 'mourning one' and 'mourning god' for those terms. Pecunyanova was the very first Progenitor, and Nova's grandfather, which he took a piece of the name of. Nova took in the powers of his entire family line when he became a Progenitor, including Pecunyanova's title of Everlasting."
"I can sense a deeper meaning beyond the mourning."
"The type of 'mourning' that the ancient language describes is a soul agony, of the type which drives the happiest souls to suicide and the most evil souls to tears. There are many more descriptions given to the agony of remembering the Source war, which is what defines the name. We mourn our species, our empires, our lost galaxies, and even the aliens that once lived with us. Imagine you were on Earth, and you had a nuclear war. No shields, no bunkers.
And all that survived the aftermath, the starvation and the proxy wars over the scraps that remained, was the equivalent of a single village. That is how close we are to extinction, Penny. Progenitors went mad with grief. Entire cities voted to activate nuclear arsenals upon themselves. 70 whole Grand Fleets drove straight into the black hole at the center of the galaxy, never to return. It is a trauma... a trauma difficult to even describe now, with over 99.99% of my memories of that war strictly sealed away.
By the end of it, we were burning reality itself to try and burn the Source to ash. We weaponized linear singularities, sending them deep into the Source's flesh. We opened spatial rifts in that bastard's galaxy-sized body. We live in a false vacuum, Penny. Our scientists learned that, and harnessed that. We sent weapons at the Source capable of writing entire concepts out of reality and capable of changing reality itself to kill. Weapons outright banned between the universal superpowers were thrown like chaff in the wind. The fear and madness of that time... nothing comes close to it.
And it is another reason why we commit so many atrocities. Because we have lost our power, any way of feeling like we still have even a scrap of it is irresistible. Others have fallen to the sweet bliss of drugs, or the digital equivalent. More Sprilnav than are alive now by a million times are stored in databanks, waiting for us to build a new universal empire."
"And... the Source?"
"The cursed thing lived. A mockery to us all, one which we know we are powerless to do anything about. It could come here even now and crush my flagship between its skin cells. It could crush this entire galaxy by wading through it in a few years. And no, it does not know or care about little things like the speed of light. It broke causality in many of its battles without care for those it killed. And what you don't know is that the Source war wasn't the first time people tried to kill it.
Other universal powers did and drove it back with lesser weapons than what we used. But power that could force it away did nothing when it came for us. That burning, blinding hatred. It was hell, Penny. And what is left behind is almost as bad. And let me say that almost as bad in this case is still constant agony. Constant misery. I was one of them once. One of the Elders that hated everyone in the universe for the crime of being happy after such a horrendous fall.
I killed many people. I destroyed planets. I killed children, babies, and smashed eggs with my own claws. In person. The depths of what I sank to are beyond depraved and evil, Penny. I refuse to lose hope again. This is why I am here, now, backing you. I cannot atone, but I can rebuild. The Source will feed you its lies but do not forget what it is. Who it is. And what it has done to us."
"Your retelling is not fully accurate," Exile said.
"I am aware of that, speeding space entity. I told the most complete story I know, and will not bring back millions of years of agony just to give a better one. It is not safe for her."
"How would it be unsafe for me?" Penny asked.
"Because I would go insane and kill you, obviously."
"And the Pact of Blades?"
"Unless the Progenitors got here in time, you'd still die. They'd kill me next, with only a slight difficulty if only one is sent, and that one is not Nova. No bond is truly unbreakable, but that is what it would take for me to break the Pact of Blades. I... my mind is built on a foundation of ash. Turn that ash back to wood, and the center will fall through."
Penny moved closer to Kashaunta. She moved her arm over Kashaunta's back. "I'm sorry."
"Thank you."

So I created a mega mod pack (around 325 mods) and the world in single player opens and runs just fine. But when I try to invite anyone they are instantly kicked out and met with the error message:
Java.lang.IllegalArgumentException: unable to fit 2557455 into 3
It was not a crash (I think) so I was not able to get the entire crash report from them, but nevertheless, they are not able to join.
I tried looking up the issue online to see what the issue was and it was apparently something to do with too much data being in one chunk/scoreboard, but I am not sure how to fix it because the world was brand new. Before this I made 3 other worlds that I deleted after one another and for some reason the map data from Xaero's maps remained (I don't know if this information is relevant to the issue but I'll just put it here just in case :))
Below is the mod list, and I was wondering which mods could be the potential issue here.

• MC Dungeons Artifacts (by chronos_sacaria)
• [Let's Do] Beachparty (by satisfy)
• Terralith (by Starmute)
• Another Emerald Expansion (by TriQue)
• Starter Kit (by Serilum)
• Cardinal Components API (by UpcraftLP)
• Ultris: Boss Expansion (by limesplatus)
• XL Packets Fabric (by tfarecnim)
• Savage Ender Dragon[Forge/Fabric] (by someaddon)
• spark (by Iucko)
• Void Totem (Fabric) (by Affehund)
• Brewin' And Chewin' [Fabric] (by MrSterner_)
• Clumps (by Jaredlll08)
• [Let's Do] Candlelight (by satisfy)
• [Let's Do] Meadow (by satisfy)
• bad packets (by badasintended)
• Comforts (Fabric 1.16.5 - 1.19.2) (by TheIllusiveC4)
• Not Enough Trinket Slots (NETS) (by Cookie_GD)
• Randomium Ore (by MehVahdJukaar)
• MES - Moog's End Structures (by finndog_123)
• Macaw's Doors (by sketch_macaw)
• CorgiLib (by Corgi_Taco)
• Macaw's Lights and Lamps (by sketch_macaw)
• Piercing Paxels ⚒️ (by AmyMialee)
• Farsight [Fabric] (by someaddon)
• Better Statistics Screen (by TheCSDev)
• ModernFix (by embeddedt)
• Dark Waters (by AzureDoomC)
• Pig Pen Cipher (by DarkhaxDev)
• MC Story Mode Armors [Forge / Fabric] (by chronos_sacaria)
• Mutant Monsters [Forge & Fabric] (by Fuzs)
• Friends&Foes - Beekeeper Hut (Fabric/Quilt) (by Faboslav)
• ESSENTIAL Mod (by SparkUniverse_)
• Simple Discord Rich Presence (Forge / Fabric) (by Sunekaer)
• Towns and Towers (by Biban_Auriu)
• BCLib (by Quiqueck)
• FTB Library (Fabric) (by FTB)
• Marium's Soulslike Weaponry (by mariumbacchus)
• Dungeon Now Loading 1% (by hexnowloading)
• Structory: Towers (by botanydev)
• Capybara [Fabric] (by ZestyBlaze)
• BetterEnd (by Quiqueck)
• Every Compat (Wood Good) (by MehVahdJukaar)
• Resourceful Lib (by ThatGravyBoat)
• Limited Chunkloading - Chunk cleanup[Forge/Fabric] (by someaddon)
• Macaw's Trapdoors (by sketch_macaw)
• TenzinLib (by CommodoreThrawn)
• FallingTree (Forge&Fabric) (by rakambda)
• Shulker Box Slot (Fabric 1.16.1 - 1.19.2) (by TheIllusiveC4)
• Artifacts (Fabric) (by florensie)
• AttributeFix (by DarkhaxDev)
• Enchantment Descriptions (by DarkhaxDev)
• DragonLoot (by pois1xlive)
• Nature's Compass (by Chaosyr)
• Name Pain (by naqaden)
• Cobblemon (by CobblemonMod)
• Macaw's Fences and Walls (by sketch_macaw)
• Kambrik (by Ejektaflex)
• TipTheScales (by Jaredlll08)
• Bosses of Mass Destruction (by Barribob)
• Konkrete [Fabric] (by Keksuccino)
• Tom's Simple Storage Mod (Fabric) (by tom54541)
• Wondrous Wilds (by Ineffa)
• Jade 🔍 (by Snownee)
• Spirit (by terrariumearth)
• Immersive Aircraft [Fabric/Forge] (by Conczin)
• Forge Config API Port (by Fuzs)
• EMI (by EmilyPloszaj)
• Ingredient Extension API (by Jaredlll08)
• [Let's Do] Brewery (by satisfy)
• Projectile Damage Attribute [Fabric & Forge] (by daedelus_dev)
• Mouse Wheelie (Fabric) (by Siphalor)
• YUNG's Better Ocean Monuments (Fabric) (by YUNGNICKYOUNG)
• Traveler's Titles (Fabric) (by YUNGNICKYOUNG)
• Nether Chested [Forge & Fabric] (by Fuzs)
• Universal Graves (by Patbox)
• Additional Lanterns (by SuperMartijn642)
• FTB Pack Companion (by FTB)
• Vanilla Hammers (by Draylar1)
• Goblin Traders [Fabric] (by MrCrayfish)
• Chipped (by terrariumearth)
• Alloy Forgery (by gliscowo)
• YUNG's Better End Island (Fabric) (by YUNGNICKYOUNG)
• Ocean's Delight (by scouter567)
• Item Filters (by LatvianModder)
• Friendly Fire (by DarkhaxDev)
• [Let's Do] API (by Cristelknight)
• Inmis (by Draylar1)
• [Deprecated] Farmer's Delight [Fabric] (by NewHoryzon)
• Login Protection[Forge/Fabric] (by someaddon)
• Lil' Wings (by terrariumearth)
• Fix Experience Bug (now with FABRIC and FORGE versions) (by MacTso)
• playerAnimator (by KosmX)
• Camps. Castles. Carriages. (by Eugene2000)
• Zoomify (by XanderIsDev)
• Repurposed Structures (Fabric/Quilt) (by telepathicgrunt)
• Beautify: Refabricated (by Suel_ki)
• Nyte's Rotten Flesh to Leather (by nyteTHC)
• Naturalist (by Starfish_Studios)
• Cloth Config API (Fabric/Forge/NeoForge) (by shedaniel)
• Icarus (by Cammie)
• YUNG's Better Dungeons (Fabric) (by YUNGNICKYOUNG)
• Thermoo (by TheDeathlyCow)
• Item Highlighter [Fabric] (by Grend_G)
• Farmer's Respite (Fabric) (by JustoPlayzz_)
• When Dungeons Arise - Seven Seas (by Aureljz)
• Sodium Extra (by FlashyReese)
• Fabric Waystones (by LordDeatHunter)
• Enderman Overhaul (by joosh_7889)
• Dark Paintings (by DarkhaxDev)
• Trinkets (Fabric) (by EmilyPloszaj)
• No Chat Reports (by Aizistral)
• AdventureZ (by Globox_Z)
• Resourceful Config (by ThatGravyBoat)
• YUNG's Better Witch Huts (Fabric) (by YUNGNICKYOUNG)
• Better chunk loading[Forge/Fabric] (by someaddon)
• Collective (by Serilum)
• Exline's Furniture Mod (by exlinegames)
• Decorative Blocks (by stohun)
• LambDynamicLights (by LambdAurora)
• YetAnotherConfigLib (by XanderIsDev)
• Nears [Fabric] (by DigitalPear_11)
• Goblin Traders (Fabric) (by Jab125)
• Things [Fabric] (by gliscowo)
• YUNG's Bridges (Fabric) (by YUNGNICKYOUNG)
• Connected Glass (by SuperMartijn642)
• Harvest with ease (by CrystalSpider)
• The Graveyard (FABRIC) (by finallion_13)
• Structory (by botanydev)
• Runes [Fabric] (by daedelus_dev)
• Visual Workbench [Forge & Fabric] (by Fuzs)
• Simply Swords [Fabric & Forge] (by sweenuss)
• Traveler's Backpack [Fabric] (by Tiviacz1337)
• Prism [Fabric] (by Grend_G)
• Convenient Decor (by mim1q)
• Create Fabric (by tropheusj)
• WMITAF (by ShaksterNano)
• Deeper and Darker (by KyaniteMods)
• GeckoLib (by Gecko)
• Polymer (by Patbox)
• Iceberg [Fabric] (by Grend_G)
• Plushie Mod (by Link4real)
• Amecs (Fabric) (by Siphalor)
• Paladin's Furniture (by UnlikePaladin)
• Cloth API (Fabric) (by shedaniel)
• Eating Animation [Fabric] (by theone_ss)
• Winterly (by PinkGoosik)
• Trails and Tales 1.20 [FABRIC] (by swutm)
• MC Dungeons Armors (by chronos_sacaria)
• More Mob Variants (by nyuppo)
• Good Ending (by orcinus73)
• Moonlight Lib (by MehVahdJukaar)
• Additional Additions Fabric (by dqu1jjj)
• Trade Cycling (by henkelmax)
• Architectury API (Fabric/Forge/NeoForge) (by shedaniel)
• Fastload (by StockiesLad)
• Dark Utilities (by DarkhaxDev)
• Mythic Upgrades (by TriQue)
• End's Delight (by foggyhillside)
• Immersive Armors [Fabric/Forge] (by Conczin)
• Let Me Despawn (by frikinjay)
• JourneyMap (by techbrew)
• Faux Custom Entity Data (by Jaredlll08)
• oωo (owo-lib) (by gliscowo)
• Bygone Nether (Fabric) (by izofar)
• Lootr (Fabric) (by Noobanidus)
• Roughly Enough Items Fabric/Forge/NeoForge (REI) (by shedaniel)
• YUNG's Better Mineshafts (Fabric) (by YUNGNICKYOUNG)
• Goodall (by Frogipher)
• Indium (by comp500)
• Critters and Companions (by joosh_7889)
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Hope all is well, folks!
I'm a writer currently looking for a digital artist whose primary specialty is fantasy semi-realism with a slightly anime-esque dreaminess to it. Provided samples are not from the project.
Just the best reference to the style that's been done already for the project.
The work will be for a fantasy doorstopper fiction series, and will be a long-term project. I did have an artist onboard, and they had provided many gorgeous pieces that were exactly what I was looking for; however, they've unfortunately taken an indefinite hiatus from art. After some time mulling it over as the project's developed further, I decided it was time to find a new artist.
Regarding resolution/dimensions, a lot of the work done was within the dimensions of 1705wx2500h in PNG, with visual progress updates provided periodically. Of course, depending on the needs for certain pieces, I'm open to these dimensions being altered to accommodate to things such as backgrounds, additional characters, etc.. The artwork will be utilized in a mixed media project where they will be printed/presented within their corresponding books, so large format is important to maintain crisp images upon publishing.
For characters with concept art already drafted, said material will be provided as reference, but I'll be asking the hired artist to reimagine and reinterpret things such as scenery, pose, outfits, etc.. For the rest of the characters, other references will be provided. I personally do not have an artistic hand, so drawing what I envision isn't easy for me; I tend to provide character blurbs, moodboards, "face-claims," etc., to give artists an idea of what I'm looking for. I would like for the artist to let me know what works best for them in terms of references.
To expand on the budget, I was working with commercial rates as follows: Full Color Bust Portrait: $160.00 (USD)
Full Color Half Body Portrait: $200 (USD)
Full Color Body Portrait: $240.00 (USD)

• Additional characters incurred an percentage fee based on the original aforementioned price to be included in addition to the original price.
• All portraits included a simple background. Complex backgrounds incurred an additional 10% fee based on the original aforementioned price to be included in addition to the original price.

Due to the nature and current state of the project, there is a Non-Disclosure Agreement upon boarding, as well as a Commission Sales Agreement. With the Non-Disclosure Agreement, there is a request for portfolio omission that will be lifted upon publishing (e.g. when each book is published, all featured work by the artist that is in said book will then be free to publish in the artist's portfolio.) Previously, the portfolio omission fee agreed upon was 10% of the original price of each portrait. I strive to make agreements in the artist's favor in a situation like this, as I understand that this level of discretion impacts the portfolio.
As far as deadlines go, perhaps maybe a month to two months per portrait, three months at most. I know my budget may be small for what I am asking, so if it means extending the deadline, I am more than willing to accommodate. I respect the time, labor, and energy that goes into the craft.
All exchanges after hiring will be handled via e-mail. I'm stationed in the US in Central Time; ideally, for effective correspondence, I'm looking for artists who live in adjacent time-zones (Pacific, Mountain, Central, and Eastern Standard Times.)
Along with commissioning multiple portraits over time (so far, I'm aiming for at least 20 portraits, and that's just with characters currently established) when the time comes for the series to be published, I am ensuring royalties. I'm looking for people who enjoy the fantasy genre that believe in the collaborative space I am creating within it, and want to share that vision with me.
Thank you for taking the time to read this.

Previously, on Hell’s Kitchen…
The final 10 were given a challenge not seen in over a decade, creating their own menus in the revival of Red vs Blue Menu Night. While the blue team worked together, with a strong concept provided by Melody, the red team found themselves being led by Thomas, whether they liked it or not. However, as the chefs were returning to the kitchen to begin cooking their dishes, disaster struck, as Travis re-injured his ankle, and had to be taken to the hospital. Despite being down a man, and Grace feeling shortchanged by not getting anything on the menu, the blue team’s cohesive selection still managed to impress Ramsay and his special guests: three previous winners of Hell’s Kitchen. The red team’s menu had mixed results, which led to friction between Thomas and some of his teammates
In service, the blue team’s menu had the edge in popularity, but thanks to poor communication between Grace and Carole, the kitchen ground to a halt multiple times. Meanwhile, the red kitchen managed to push out their food in a timely manner thanks to strong teamwork on entrees. With the red team named the winners of service, it was time for the blue team to nominate two chefs to send home.
At elimination, though, everyone was in for a shock when Travis, who had been one of the early favorites, returned and announced that due to injury, he would be leaving Hell’s Kitchen for good. Ramsay still insisted on hearing from the blue team’s nominees, who were Grace, Carole and Melody after they failed to come to a consensus. But with Travis’ dream of becoming the next head chef at Gordon Ramsay Steak in Vancouver, British Columbia already having come to a heartbreaking end, Ramsay gave everyone another chance to show him why they were the chef he was looking for, but assured them that he was not taking any more excuses from now on.
https://reddit.com/link/1ctwn9g/video/oifsieupww0d1/player
And now, the continuation of Hell’s Kitchen…
After witnessing the shocking withdrawal of Travis from the competition, no one was in a celebratory mood as Ramsay dismissed them to the dorms for the night. Carole said in her confessional that he had been the main one supporting her in the blue team, and now it felt like she was truly on her own. As the blue team returned to the dorms, a very upset Melody unleashed her frustration, saying that Travis did not deserve to go home tonight over either Carole and Grace, and they needed to cut the bullshit and start thinking and working as a team. Lauren said in her confessional that it seemed like something snapped in Melody tonight, as she was well and truly fed up with the drama, which definitely made two of them. Even so, after noticing that Melody was sitting alone and nearly in tears, Lauren went over to comfort her, as Melody admitted that she hated to have to talk that way to her teammates, but she was sick and tired of the drama. Lauren assured her that it had to be said, and was proud of her for stepping up. Meanwhile, Grace said in her confessional that Melody seemed to be losing her composure, and would hopefully go down in flames soon.
On the red team’s side of the dorm, Faye was also feeling sadness over the way Travis had gone out, as she admitted to Michael that it reminded her too much of her own exit last season, only at least she had made the choice to walk away, while Travis never had one. Meanwhile, another chef had mixed feelings on the sudden turn of events, as Thomas said in his confessional that Travis had been a strong chef and a good person, and while losing him would cut the competition down, he would have rather seen him go out with dignity. Ramona and Everett, meanwhile, continued to stick closely together, with Ramona saying in her confessional that it felt good to have the security of the immunity pass, because she and Everett were definitely the most likely to be nominated if service went wrong, though she admitted she would feel some guilt if he went out because of it, but this was her career and future at stake. Everett said in his confessional that he couldn’t afford to worry about what might happen if he went up on the chopping block, and was just focused on trying to help the red team win.
The chefs were still trying to take in all the events of the night, but finally, tiredness overtook them, and they turned in for the night.
Challenge
The next day, the final 9 came downstairs to find Ramsy waiting for them, as well as a detailed diagram of a cow. Ramsay explained that he still had not forgotten the disaster that was Steak Night, and that was why, for this next challenge, he wanted to give both teams a chance to prove how far they had come by preparing dishes using five cuts: ribeye, top sirloin, hanger, flank, and striploin. Thomas said in his confessional that the red team had no business fucking this up, as they had several chefs who were strong on the meat station in services, while Lauren was nervous in her confessional, as she wasn’t sure about Grace or Carole. Since the blue team had one less member, one chef would have to prepare two dishes, which Lauren volunteered to do. With their instructions having been given, Ramsay told the chefs that their time started now.
The chefs rushed into their respective kitchens and quickly tried to sort out who would be responsible for which cuts of steak. In the blue kitchen, Lauren decided to take on the hanger and flank steak, while Grace took the ribeye, over Carole’s objections, and Carole was left with the striploin, while Melody took the top sirloin. Grace said in her confessional that she fought for this ribeye and she was going to carry her team to victory whether they liked it or not, while Carole said she would’ve felt much safer if anyone else were cooking the ribeye besides Grace. While Carole still seemed undecided on which direction to go with her New York Strip, at least one chef already had her dish planned out, and that was Melody, who went into detail in her confessional on how she wanted to plate her top sirloin. Meanwhile, Lauren was working hard to manage two separate cuts of meat, saying in her confessional that taking on the extra workload could either make her look really good in front of Chef Ramsay or totally blow up in her face.
In the red kitchen, Thomas was on the top sirloin, Ramona had the ribeye, Faye had hanger steak, Michael had flank steak, and Everett had striploin. Ramona said in her confessional that she had to deliver on the ribeye, as she already had the most losses of any chef here, and didn’t need to add any more to her resume with black jackets approaching. Thomas was confident that he could handle the top sirloin, as he said in his confessional that no one still here should have any issues cooking meat, and he would be disappointed in himself if he didn’t achieve perfection on this dish. Michael noticed Ramona seemed to be having some trouble with her ribeye, and tried to offer some advice, but Ramona said in her confessional that she had to do this alone, and told him she had it under control. Michael was annoyed, saying in his confessional that this was still a team effort, and it was no time to let egos get in the way. Meanwhile, Faye and Everett were seemingly in good spirits, with Everett saying in his confessional that meat was where he felt the most at home, and if he failed at this challenge, he might as well go home now, while Faye said in her confessional that it was nice to see Everett so energetic, and she hoped his dish could match that.
With the time nearly up, the chefs put the finishing touches on their dishes as Ramsay called out the final seconds and told the chefs to bring their plates to the pass. Ramsay then announced that he would be joined by a special guest judge for this competition, who was a familiar face to viewers of MasterChef: Ramsay’s former co-host on that show, Graham Elliot. The chefs were starstruck, with Melody saying in her confessional Graham was the best, and easily her favorite judge on MasterChef…after Ramsay, of course. After exchanging a warm greeting, Ramsay said it was time to get down to business, starting with the battle of the flank steak. This round would pit Lauren against Michael, with Michael saying in his confessional that this was his first time going against Lauren in a challenge, and he knew it wouldn’t be easy to take her down, given how consistently strong she had been. After tasting Lauren’s dish, both Ramsay and Elliot had high praise, saying the meat was tender and nicely cooked, although Elliot did say he might have done something different for the garnish. Lauren was second-guessing herself in her confessional, but In the end, both judges gave it four stars out of five. Michael said in his confessional that as expected, Lauren put up a good dish, but he was confident in his as well. Indeed, Michael’s flank steak was also found to be nicely cooked, and despite the somewhat simple presentation, Ramsay said this was a great start for both teams, as again, both he and Elliot each gave it a four.
With the score tied at 8, it was time for the battle of the hanger steak. Lauren stayed where she was while Faye brought her dish up to the pass. Elliot was impressed that Lauren had cooked two dishes for the challenge, although he noted that the hanger steak could’ve used a little more cooking time, which Ramsay agreed with, saying that was the one thing holding it back, and Lauren kicked herself in her confessional, as she said she should have been able to stay on top of it. Elliot only gave it a three due to the undercooked steak, though Ramsay said it still delivered enough flavor to get a four. Faye’s dish also got mixed reviews, as both chefs praised the cook of the meat, but questioned her garnish choices, with Ramsay pointing out that the presentation seemed slightly off. Elliot said she got the most important part right though, and gave it a four, to which Ramsay agreed, which put the red team ahead 16-15. In the third round, the teams’ ribeye dishes went head to head, for which Ramona and Grace stepped forward. Unfortunately for Ramona, her ribeye was badly overcooked, and Ramsay took her to task for serving something practically inedible to him and his guest. Ramona groaned in her confessional, as she couldn’t believe she had fucked up this badly. Both judges gave her a one, and Ramsay said she was lucky to get even that. Grace’s dish got mixed reviews, with Ramsay saying the presentation was shocking, while Elliot noted that the ribeye again was overcooked, though not nearly as much as Ramona’s. Ramsay said this was not what he expected from these chefs at this stage of the game, and gave Grace a one, but Elliot was more generous and gave it a two, as at least it had some flavor.
With the scores now tied at 18, it was time for the battle of the top sirloin, as Thomas and Melody brought their dishes forward. Melody’s dish earned praise for it’s stylish presentation and garnish, and after tasting the steak itself, Ramsay noted that it was cooked perfectly, and said this dish was a strong four, but Elliot went a step further and said it deserved a five, which made Melody giddy in her confessional, as she never could have imagined hearing those words before. Next was Thomas, with Elliot again noting the stunning presentation, and after tasting, he said that these two had really raised the bar today. Ramsay agreed and said it was the best pair of dishes yet, and this time, he would be giving out a five. Elliot agreed, giving Thomas a perfect score, which he took with a calm smile in his confessional, as he said Melody gave him a good run, but he never had any doubts. With the red team now back in the lead 28-27, it was time for the final round, as Everett and Carole would face off in the battle of the New York Strip. Everett went first, with Elliot saying, after a long pause…that the strip was absolutely delicious. Ramsay agreed, also praising the presentation, and said this was one of Everett’s best dishes yet in Hell’s Kitchen, as that deserved a very strong four. Elliot gave the same score, bringing the red team’s total up to an impressive 36, meaning Carole needed close to a perfect score to keep the blue team in it. Everett was absolutely fired up in his confessional, saying this was just the boost that he needed, and there was no stopping him now. Meanwhile, Carole presented her dish, which got good marks for presentation, but as Elliot sliced into the strip, he said it looked undercooked, to which Ramsay agreed, and said it was a great shame. Though it was only a formality, both Elliot and Ramsay gave the dish a two, giving the red team a 36-31 win.
Reward / Punishment
Ramsay thanked Elliot for helping him judge the challenge, and once he had left, Ramsay turned back to the chefs and congratulated the red team on winning the challenge, in particular praising the efforts of Everett and Thomas. He then said they were in for a fun reward, as he was sending all of them off for a day of paintball, followed by dinner at an exquisite LA steakhouse. Ramona was relieved in her confessional, as she knew she could have blown it for the red team with her ribeye, while Everett was ecstatic to have redeemed himself in this challenge, as he said in his confessional that he was still a beast at cooking meat. While the red team ran off to get changed, Ramsay turned his attention to the blue team and said that for today’s punishment, he had decided to put it towards a good cause by volunteering them for community service, which meant picking up trash on the side of the road. Grace moaned in her confessional, as she said that they always seemed to save the worst punishments for her. Ramsay reminded Melody that she still had that punishment pass, and offered to let her use it. Melody replied that she was never a paintball type of girl, and would rather help out the environment. Ramsay accepted her choice and told the blue team that they too would be changing…into their stunning orange uniforms.
The red team came back downstairs, and Michael joked in his confessional that it looked like Hell’s Kitchen had turned into a prison, while Faye apologetically said goodbye. While on the way to the paintball ground, the red team talked amongst themselves in the car, with Thomas saying that no one else was going home from the red team, and Michael agreed, saying they were all getting black jackets. Faye wondered aloud who their biggest competition might be from the blue team, but everyone quickly agreed that Lauren was the strongest. Ramona said in her confessional that she knew everyone was sleeping on her, but she would simply have to prove them wrong in service. Later, the chefs arrived at the paintball ground, and Faye said she hoped none of them would go easy on her just because she was a woman. Everett joked that she had nothing to worry about there, and the team ended up having an enjoyable afternoon, with Ramona and Everett trying to team up against Thomas, but he was able to shoot both of them. Michael said in his confessional that it felt great to just get outside and let loose without having to do some exhausting punishment. As evening approached, the red team were then taken to dinner, which Everett said in his confessional was some of the finest quality steak he had ever tasted, though not quite as good as the home cooking back in Oklahoma, which got some laughs from the others. Faye said that the next winner was sitting right here at this table, to which the others enthusiastically toasted, and the chefs continued to bond as a team over their meal.
While the red team were living the good life, the blue team were working in the hot sun to ensure that the environment could do the same. While the others tried to get on with their task, though, Grace’s constant complaining quickly got on all of their nerves, as Carole said in exasperation in her confessional that they were all well aware of the fact that Grace didn’t want to be here, and she didn’t need to broadcast it every five seconds. Lauren joked with Melody that she wouldn’t mind going on that paintball reward just to take a few shots at Grace, which Melody said in her confessional was tough to argue with, as even her optimistic outlook was being challenged right now by Grace’s incessant whining. Carole said in her confessional that she and Grace were definitely the most vulnerable on the team, but as long as Grace kept this up, she was making the decision easy for everyone, and as far as Carole was concerned, that was perfectly fine. Despite having their patience tested, the blue team worked through their physically exhausting community service and, for the most part, left feeling that at least some good had come of it.
Back in Hell’s Kitchen, the blue team arrived first and tried to unwind in the dorms until the red team returned later in the night. Grace quickly became annoyed with the red team talking about their reward, while Ramona said in her confessional that she didn’t mind rubbing it in her old rival’s face a bit. Lauren said in her confessional that the red team could have this one, as she was keeping her eyes on service. As the night dragged on, another topic came up, that being Travis, as everyone on the blue team aside from Grace admitted to missing him, and Lauren jokingly said even the punishments just weren’t the same now. Faye sympathized, as she said it was tough to watch a chef who had put everything on the line and pushed through an injury go out like that, even if this was a competition. Thomas agreed and said that everyone here deserved a chance to fight for their dream, as for these chefs, it was a potentially life changing opportunity, and he knew he would be devastated to lose it. Michael said in his confessional that it was no time for fucking around anymore, as they all needed to cook like it was their last night in Hell’s Kitchen.
The chefs chatted amongst themselves for a while longer before finally trying to get some sleep.
Pre-Service
The next day, the chefs went downstairs to begin prep, as Ramsay said that this was the stage in the competition where he wanted to see the best begin to shine, and warned that there would be nowhere to hide for chefs who were struggling to keep up. With that, he told the blue team that despite being a man down, he expected absolutely nothing less than a stellar performance, and told the red team not to get too comfortable with their challenge win, as they still needed to be locked in for service. With all nine chefs seemingly read to go, Ramsay allowed them to get started on prep.
In the blue kitchen, Melody and Lauren were in good spirits, though Melody admitted she still missed having Travis here, despite the fact that the blue team was all women now. Carole said in her confessional that the ladies should have no problems taking this service, as while she didn’t mind the format change, having all girls on one team was how it was done in the old days, and it would be even better if Grace was gone. Grace, meanwhile, seemed to be in a bad mood after her ribeye flopped in the challenge, as she said in her confessional that it couldn’t have been as bad as Ramsay said, as much as she respected his opinion, and refused to acknowledge Melody’s attempts to talk to her. Melody said in her confessional that nobody wanted Grace here, but the least she could do was try to reach out, as futile as it seemed. Lauren said in her confessional that in order for the blue team to win tonight, they needed Carole and Grace to step up big time, as she and Melody couldn’t do all the work here.
While the blue team was hoping for a miracle, the red team seemed loose and ready to go, with Michael saying that he had a good feeling about tonight, as there were no excuses for losing to the blue team now. Ramona said to Everett that this was their redemption night, with Everett agreeing and saying they were going to kick some culinary ass, and Faye said it was great to see both of them committed to bouncing back and leading the red team to another win. Everett replied that Grace was going home tonight for sure, which got some laughs from the others, as Michael said in his confessional that this was the one thing he was sure literally everyone else could agree on. Thomas, though, said in his confessional that everyone being this hyped up actually worried him, as he hoped they weren’t getting distracted and forgetting that they still had to earn the win. Michael encouraged him to lighten up, as they had a virtual all-star team here, but Thomas still maintained his serious demeanor, with Ramona saying in her confessional that this guy seriously needed to get a hobby.
Ramsay reminded the chefs again that he was looking for these chefs to show him why they deserved to become the head chef of Gordon Ramsay Steak, and with that, he called out to Marino and told him to open Hell’s Kitchen.
Dinner Service
Guests began to enter Hell’s Kitchen by the dozens, as it was once again the center of the culinary world for tonight, filled to the brim with celebrities and Hollywood elites. It was not long before orders began to make their way back to both kitchens.
In the blue kitchen, they were looking to Grace on appetizers and Carole on fish to give the blue team an early edge, while Lauren was on garnish and Melody was on meat. Early on, Grace managed to successfully deliver her first table of lobster tail risottos and capellini, with nicely cooked tails from Carole along with an acceptable order of scallops. Carole said in her confessional that they absolutely needed to keep this up, as both of them were effectively cooking for their lives right now. Unfortunately, communication issues cropped up again, with Grace not talking to Carole and bringing up her dishes without waiting for Carole’s scallops. Ramsay called out for the scallops, saying food was dying at the pass, and demanded to know why the fuck they couldn’t just work together as a team. Carole did eventually bring up the scallops, but they were raw, much to Ramsay’s disgust, and Grace said in her confessional that Carole just needed to get out of here as she clearly wasn’t cutting it. Despite these issues, and an overly salty risotto from Grace, the blue team did manage to finally start getting appetizers out into the dining room, with Ramsay even praising Grace’s risottos at one point, and telling her that’s what she could do if she would focus more on cooking than starting shit with her team. The blue team did eventually complete appetizers and began working on entrees.
In the red kitchen, Everett was working appetizers, while Michael was on fish, Ramona was on garnish, and Thomas and Faye were together on meat. Everett was glad to be working closely with Michael again, as he said in his confessional that they made a good team in the last service on meat. Early on, that familiarity seemed to be paying off, as Everett and Michael worked in sync with each other on the first few tickets and got their orders out in a timely fashion. Things did get bumpy, however, when Everett served mushy, overcooked capellini, and started dragging on orders, while Michael served overcooked scallops due to them getting mixed up on their times. Michael said in his confessional that they needed to get it together quickly, as they couldn’t afford to be falling behind so early in service. Meanwhile, Ramsay wanted to know where the energy was, as right now, Everett was going quiet and not responding when asked for times, and nothing was going out. Michael urged Everett to wake up and fight through it, and Everett did manage to get his next attempt at the capellini accepted. In his confessional, Everett said he was trying his best to keep it together, and admitted he had been thrown off his game, but he was far from done. With Everett’s newfound determination, the red kitchen finally had some life again, and after Ramsay praised both Michael’s scallops and Everett’s risottos, the two of them managed to get their rhythm back and serve the rest of their tables.
In the blue kitchen, they looked fo Melody to lead the way from the meat station, and thanks to strong communion between her, Lauren on garnish, and Carole on fish, they managed to get their dishes to the pass for the first table, but Carole’s turbot was undercooked, which left the entire order waiting for her, but she was able to recover quickly on her second attempt. On meat, Melody said in her confessional that it was pretty overwhelming to have to serve all of the blue team’s customers by herself for the first time, but despite dragging a bit on orders, she managed to push high quality Wellingtons and New York Strip out into the dining room consistently. Lauren, meanwhile, seemed at home driving tickets from the garnish station, and the blue team was finally starting to settle into a groove. Melody did serve a rare New York Strip, while Carole served raw turbot, but both were able to bounce back, and entrees were soon flying out to grateful diners. Melody and Lauren once again had no problems communicating and working in sync from their stations, with Lauren saying in her confessional that she and Melody could probably run the kitchen by themselves. But it was Carole who once again held up the kitchen when she inexplicably fired off halibut despite it not being on the ticket, which got her schooled by Ramsay for not paying attention to the ticket when he was standing less than five feet away. Despite this, the blue team managed to complete the rest of their entrees, and were soon ready to get started on desserts.
The red team was starting on entrees with Thomas and Faye on the meat station, and Faye said in her confessional that with meat being a station she felt comfortable in, she hoped tonight could be the night she stood out for the red team. On the first ticket, she and Thomas managed to serve beautifully cooked Wellingtons and New York Strip, along with nicely cooked turbot from Michael, but Ramona was holding the table up by dragging on garnish. Though she eventually managed to bring it up, Ramona would continue to drag on her section, frustrating her team, but especially Ramsay, as he kept calling out for times, with Ramona becoming flustered and not responding to her team. Ramona said in her confessional that the nerves were absolutely getting to her right now, and she seriously needed to bounce back. Meanwhile, Faye ran into some trouble on her Wellingtons, as she undercooked them for one table and said she would need several minutes for a refire, though she was able to recover. Thomas also had a rare mistake as he served undercooked New York Strip, and Ramsay said he didn't expect that from the executive chef. Thomas kicked himself in his confessional, saying that could not happen again, and he did manage to serve a beautiful New York Strip on his refire. However, on the next ticket, Ramona served a pot of runny mashed potatoes, and also seemed lost on what was actually going, as she couldn’t recall the ticket when Ramsay asked her. Ramsay had seen enough and took her into the pantry, asking her what the fuck she was doing, and if it was some kind of joke to her. Ramona insisted it wasn’t and said it was just nerves, but Ramsay replied that she needed to shake those nerves right now, or he would send her out the front door, immunity pass or not. Ramona said in her confessional that it was do or die, and she did manage to finally serve acceptable garnishes. Faye was still dragging on Wellingtons, which frustrated Ramsay, but finally, the red team managed to complete their remaining entrees.
Both teams finished their desserts in good time, and Ramsay told them to clear down.
Post-Mortem
Ramsay had the teams line up and started by saying that this was still not the complete performance he had been looking for. For the blue team, appetizers had been underwhelming, but they improved on entrees. For the red team, it was a decent start on apps, followed by a nightmare on entrees. However, he noted that one team in particular had a slight edge, and that was the blue team, as despite their issues, their customer comment cards gave them a satisfaction rating of 90%, to 84% from the red team. Ramsay said that the fiasco on entrees cost the red team this service, and told them to think long and hard about which two should be going up for elimination tonight. With that, he dismissed both teams to the dorms.
Back in the dorms, the red team’s deliberations were kicked off by Thomas, as he said he hoped everyone could agree that Ramona had dropped the ball tonight on garnish. The others seemed to agree, with Michael saying it was her worst performance in a while. Ramona only half-heartedly fought back, as she said she was better than this, and knew she still deserved to be here, but said if they wanted to put her up, it was their choice. In her confessional, she said she knew that immunity pass wouldn’t last forever, and it was better to get her bad service out of the way now, than during black jackets. With the first nominee having been an easy choice, the second would be more challenging, as Everett acknowledged that Michael and Thomas both had great services despite each having a mistake, and didn’t deserve to go up, which left either him or Faye. Thomas said that he felt Faye had struggled on meat, and that Ramsay rightfully had high expectations of both of them, due to his experience and her being a past chef, so he would vote for her. Michael, though, said that he had to vote for Everett, as he was just too inconsistent at this stage. Faye seemed torn but said she had to vote for Everett, even though they were friends, as he had struggled the most of the available options. Ramona was left with the deciding vote, and said in her confessional that it was impossibly difficult, as Faye had been a mentor for her here, while she had also bonded with Everett.
On the blue team’s side of the dorm, everyone was pleased to have won service and avoided having to send anyone home…well, almost everyone. Lauren admitted to Melody that it sucked having to put up with Grace for another day, while Melody tried to get her to think more positively, as if they were winning with Grace on their team, Ramsay definitely had to be taking notice. Lauren smiled and said she was definitely right about that, and the two of them continued chatting together while Carole sat off by herself and pondered her future in Hell’s Kitchen, In her confessional, she said she was damn lucky that the blue team won tonight, as she and Grace would have gone up otherwise, and that could have been it for her and her dream. Meanwhile, Grace felt that she had done well, and could have done even better without Carole getting in the way, saying in her confessional that it would be nice to get rid of dead weight, but she would settle for seeing someone from the red team go home.
Elimination Ceremony
The red team entered the dining room anxiously and lined up before Ramsay, who said that this was supposed to be the best five on the red team, but instead, it looked like two completely different teams, and while he didn’t know what the hell was going on, he was going to get to the bottom of it. With that, he asked Thomas for the red team’s first nominee and why. Thomas announced that the red team had nominated Ramona, due to her terrible performance on garnish, and being the weakest chef on the team. Ramsay asked for the second nominee and why. Thomas hesitated briefly before announcing that…the red team was nominating Everett, due to his declining performances and up and down service on appetizers. Before getting to any elimination pleas, though, Ramsay told Ramona to step forward and had her hand over the immunity pass. As she did so, Ramsay said that if not for the pass, Ramona would have gone home tonight, and urged her to take advantage of this second chance, before sending her back in line. Ramona appeared visibly shaken as she went to rejoin the red team. Ramsay said that the red team now had 30 seconds to talk amongst themselves and come up with another nominee. In the huddle, the chefs quickly determined that Faye would go up, as she had been their other consideration. As they broke the huddle, Thomas announced that Faye was the red team’s new nominee. Ramsay accepted this and told Everett and Faye to step forward.
Deliberation music
First, Ramsay asked Faye why she should stay in Hell’s Kitchen.
Faye: “My time away from Hell’s Kitchen gave me a whole new perspective on cooking, it made me realize why I’m doing this. It’s for my family, it’s for me, I can’t imagine doing anything else. That’s why I’ll never give up on myself or my team.”
Ramsay asked Faye if she thought she was a better chef than Everett.
Faye: “...Everett is a fighter, chef, and a good teammate, but yes, I do believe I’m stronger than him in terms of consistency and leadership.”
Ramsay moved on to Everett, asking him why he should stay in Hell’s Kitchen.
Everett: “This competition is a marathon, chef. I’ve had my ups and downs, I’ve had my stumbles, but I feel like I’m just on the cusp of hittin’ my stride.”
Ramsay said he had been waiting and waiting for Everett to emerge, and it seemed like he was trending downwards.
Everett: “I’ve had a slump, chef, I ain’t gonna deny that. But I’m fightin’ through it. I know I can be your next head chef.”
Ramsay asked Everett if he thought he was a stronger chef than Faye.
Everett: “Chef…”
Dramatic music
Ramsay waited on Everett’s answer, and after a tense moment, he finally spoke…
Everett: “Chef…at this time, no, I can’t say that I am.”
Faye glanced over at Everett in shock, as did everyone else from the red team, and even some of the blue team.
Ramsay: “I appreciate the honesty. Please, give me your jacket, your time is done in Hell’s Kitchen.”
Elimination music
Everett handed over his jacket and shook Ramsay’s hand.
Everett: “Thank you so much for this opportunity, chef.”
Ramsay: “Let me tell you something, young man, you have so much passion and fightback within you, I’ve seen it throughout this competition. Unfortunately, I didn’t see enough of it in service, or just now, but I hope you can find it again, because you are bloody talented. I wish you all the best.”
Everett thanked Ramsay again and waved goodbye to his team as he exited Hell’s Kitchen.
Everett’s comment
“Oh man…when I first entered Hell’s Kitchen, I never thought I’d be walkin’ out the door like this. I thought I was headed straight for the top, no problem. Each day was like this crazy mixture of anxiety, thrills, and drama. I fought, and I fought, and I fought for my place, until, I guess I just couldn’t fight no more. I’ll always have good memories of my time here, but I sure as hell wouldn’t do it again! (laughs)

With Everett’s elimination, Ramsay told Faye to get back in line, and addressed the chefs collectively as the final 8, saying that tonight should be a reminder to each of these chefs that a downward spiral at this point was unacceptable, as things were not going to get any easier. With that, Ramsay told them all to get some rest, because tomorrow, he was going to start separating the chefs from the cooks.
As the chefs went back to the dorms, several of them had confessionals. Thomas said that Ramona was definitely a bigger liability than Everett, but hopefully losing her immunity would wake her up. Michael said that it sucked that Everett left when he was far from the worst tonight. Ramona was clearly still shaken from the experience, as she said she felt awful about Everett going home when she had a worse performance, and knew she had to bounce back tomorrow or it would all be over for her. Melody said that between Travis and Everett, watching their fellow chefs go home was just getting more and more difficult, but she knew there were still seven more between her and the grand prize. Grace said none of these chefs were on her level, and she was going to keep being herself and kicking ass in the kitchen, regardless of her team’s hate for her. Lauren said that with only four on each team, there was nowhere left to hide, and everything they had done up until now was just the warm up for the real tests that lay ahead.
​Placement
https://preview.redd.it/rpdx9533yw0d1.png?width=2447&format=png&auto=webp&s=52806b2d14807ba57be90bfa8261368e2dbea4cb

Getting to the meat of grocery-store violence, racism accusations
Niigaan Sinclair Posted: 6:46 PM CDT Thursday, May. 16, 2024
Opinion
The Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs recently severed its relationship with the Food Fare grocery store after two incidents where advocates accused staff of “racially” targeting Indigenous customers.
In response, one Food Fare manager, Tarik Zeid, promised to train workers — many of whom are immigrants and have little knowledge about Indigenous peoples — on “conflict resolution, de-escalation techniques, and appropriate responses to challenging situations.”
It’s entirely possible Indigenous customers are being targeted by Food Fare staff. I don’t know and my attempts to find out resulted in a lot of hearsay.
What’s definitively possible is this is not really a racial conflict but one that derives from history, poverty and Canada’s affordability crisis.
Several sources have pointed out (from the AMC and elsewhere) that at the centre of all the violence at Food Fares is one simple thing: meat.
Meat may be the problem. Let me explain.
In a 2018 interview, I spoke with Russ Rothney and Louise Champagne, the former owners of Neechi Commons — the community-based grocery store, artisan co-operative and restaurant in Winnipeg’s North End.
It was surprising to learn the store’s downfall was not due to a lack of shoppers or increased food costs, but theft — particularly of frozen meat.
Everyone knows the most expensive item at a grocery store is often meat. For people on very tight budgets, meat (decent versions of it, anyway) is often out of reach.
Steak, pork, chicken and ground beef are some of the most lucrative items to sell on the streets.
Theft of frozen meat was what forced Rothney and Champagne — who operated a successful store on Dufferin Avenue before expanding — out of business.
That interview was the first time I heard of the black market for meat in Winnipeg.
Since then, I’ve had police officers share stories of trunks full of hamburger, back lane sales of steaks, and fistfights over prices and quality of meat.
This all may seem a bit weird for those who have not struggled to pay for groceries, but it’s true.
Frozen meat constitutes a large foundation of the underground market in Winnipeg and appears to be the common denominator in the Food Fare incidents.
Check the evidence.
Last March, Winnipeg police arrested 32-year old Keifer Kent and charged him with more than a dozen grocery store thefts and stealing more than $10,000 in goods.
The primary stolen items? Meat.
“In many of the incidents, the suspect would physically assault security or store employees and threaten them with bear spray or sharp-edged weapons,” police said in a news release at the time.
Sound familiar?
The Free Press reported violent incidents between Indigenous customers and Food Fare staff on two occasions this spring: April 28 and May 5. Both times, individuals were accused of shoplifting meat.
On May 14, another young man was accused of shoplifting and left, only to come back later and allegedly confront and assault workers — sending three to hospital.
The motivation for the incident is unknown and the investigation is ongoing, but what is more likely: a teenager stealing food for himself or selling it?
Poverty is driving individuals who don’t want to enter the highly profitable but highly illegal and dangerous drug trade and instead sell something easily shoplifted and sold for a high margin.
It may also be that the stakes of thefts in smaller shops like Food Fare are much higher, leading to the spate of violent incidents.
Ask any of the big-box grocery stores on the outskirts of the city and they will tell you theft of meat is their primary problem. Stealing from a big corporation isn’t often noticeable or cause for the business to fold.
As one source who works for a front-line, North End social justice agency told me, it’s a way “poor families” can get cheap access to decent meat.
Add in that much of Winnipeg’s North End, Point Douglas and downtown communities are located in a “food desert” — where fresh food is almost impossible to find, never mind afford — and buying stolen meat sort of makes sense.
Sprinkle in an unaffordable economy and what was a petty crime in the downtown can turn into an epidemic of crime that can lead to violence.
It may just be more than racism.
[niigaan.sinclair@freepress.mb.ca](mailto:niigaan.sinclair@freepress.mb.ca)
https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/local/2024/05/16/getting-to-the-meat-of-grocery-store-violence-racism-accusations

With all the chatter in the sub surrounding TCW and its problematic nature, I decided it would be a good time to vent a little about an episode that stuck with me as a child. That being season 3's third episode "Supply Lines".
This singular episode could have had so much more to offer in terms of storytelling, expanding the culture, values and beliefs of the Twi'leks, exploring the nature of Ryloths past and their distrust of outsiders. While all these are done within the episode itself, it is often through a couple lines of dialogue and not explored much further.
"Supply Lines" biggest problem is that it splits the episode runtime in half in order for one of George Lucas's obligatory "Jar Jar cameos". This inclusion fucking baffles me beyond belief. Why have Jar Jar in an episode that could of, (In my opinion) been a standout of the show if it had been given the time to flesh out the ideas, themes and characters within the usual runtime.
The reason that this episode has stuck with me so long is that it gets so much right from the themes to the characters and of course the music. The piece that is played during the two "main" characters last stand is beautifully done and could have hit so much harder if we got to know the characters just that bit more. Couple all that with the fact that this episode is one of the few in TCW that have the good guys lose and the lost potential of "Supply Lines" becomes much clearer.
I guess this brings me to my final statement, that being that the EU contradictions are not TCW's major problem, but the sheer amount of simple, small changes that could have improved the show to an insane degree. From having Pong Krell not be a separatist, to the inhibitor chips simply being a failsafe, the show could have been something truly special. Unfortunately, due to writing errors, George's not so great influence on the not just Filoni, but the rest of the show's writers and the inconsistent main characters of the entire show, we are stuck with a fun, but severely flawed piece of Star Wars media.
Thank you for reading this and I'd love to hear your thoughts.
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We are just wrapping up a month (April 19th to May 18th) in Playa Flamingo. We had a great time, and did less than 10% of what we had bookmarked before arriving, but that’s a good thing and just enjoyed a Pura Vida life for a few weeks. This experience is applicable if you’re staying in Brasilito, Conchal, Flamingo, or Potrero.

• MyTanFeet got it right and you should trust their advice. Especially the videos.
• If you’re a vigilant and alert driver and don’t mind swerving (duck, dodge, weave, go with the flow and hang loose man), you’ll be fine. If you are 10 and 2 and stay perfectly in the lines and must obey traffic laws, don’t drive here. (I ended up doing all the driving). There are only lines on 1/3 of the paved roads, and only highways (2 lane roads) are paved. The side streets are all dirt and rock roads with variable ruts and pothole conditions (just go slow until you’re used to it). Small SUV is fine for clearance, but get something with a beefier engine with sport mode for hill acceleration. The Hyundai Tuscan was perfect, the Suzuki struggled badly.
• Only rent from Adobe. We had people visiting us for a week at a time and they had bad experience with Budget (arguing about insurance) and Avis (ran out of SUVs and downgraded to Sedan that we couldn’t get anywhere off-road with). I stopped by the local Adobe office twice, once to replace a windshield wiper that was worn out before thunderstorms. 10 mins in and out with a smile on their face. The second time we had pulled on the trunk handle when closing it and the inside panel of the hatch came loose. 3 guys hustled out of their office to look at it, and after 10 mins of no success they drove me home, and brought me a new car (same model) an hour later with no fuss and all paperwork pre-completed.
• Rainy season starts like a light switch on May 1st +/- a few days. It was sunny and 95 with great visibility, then turned hazy and now in mid May it’s like a tropical rainforest and everything is lush and trees are blooming. We only got “wet” 3-4 times during the month unexpectedly. Lots of lightning, minimal thunder. Territorial views help to see it coming.
• There are plenty of resorts and all inclusive, but just go to Hawaii or Cancun for that. We rented a 3 bedroom AirBnb with territorial views on south hill of Flamingo. Having a view on the hill is wayyy better than being on the beach. Lots more to see. And less bugs at night from the beach.
• Booked sailboat with Serendipity Charters lucky 13 (mixed group, semi-private charter) for a sunset cruise out of Flamingo Marina. We loved it so much we went two more times, had the same crew and met the owner and made new affluent friends on each trip. We saw the catamarans with 40 people on them and shook our heads. It’s like taking a smaller adults only dinner cruise vs a Carnival cruise ship. You can book direct on their website for better pricing than TripAdvisor. Don’t let the weather forecast scare you.
• In this area, assuming you want to eat a bit more local and not “at the resort”, our favorites were Gracia Mar Vista (although they were only open 1/3 of the several times we tried to go), Gracia La Vid (amazing wood fired pizza). The Potrero Brewery and the food truck style park was great too. Coco Loco has a cool vibe but we’re disappointed with food price per value. Margaritaville is 2x the price and, is a typical resort if that’s your thing.
• Book a date night in advance (several weeks probably) for Road Less Traveled in Potrero for the Chef’s Choice 9 course meal for the private chef experience with 4 stools at their kitchen island.
• Great soda restaurant experience, frequented Azul and Soda Brasilito.
• $40/hr massages on beach in front of Margaritaville. Look for yellow towel tables. Amazing and better than home.
• We drove to Tamarindo a few times. It’s where the ladies wanted to go shopping for trinkets and casual dresses. Farmers market was meh.
• Grocery prices in Flamingo are pricey. Do a stock up trip once or twice a week to Mega Súper past Huacas toward Tamarindo.
• Super market here means mini mart, Mega Super, Maxí Palí, and Walmart (Liberia) will feel more like home. They have 1/3-1/2 of what we find at home, so you may get creative or stick to simple foods. The meats we had were all great, just expensive. Cheese here is weird and expensive, possibly not pasteurized. The groceries that last a week at home only last 3 days here. Don’t overstock. Fresh fruits everywhere and tons of sliced pineapple, watermelon, etc to be found. The prices at the soda are significantly cheaper than groceries. Get snacks for groceries and eat your meals out.
• Language Barrier: Very few speak English, unless it relates to money or a food menu. The Google Translate app on your phone in conversation tab is your friend. We managed just fine.
• Currency Conversion: 500:1 is hard. Simpler method is to see something in thousands, just drop the 3 digits to the right of the comma separator and double it. 10,000 C = 10, x 2 = $20 USD. 3,250 C = $6.40 USD.
• Paying in Cash: We used cards for anyplace we went that had a roof. Use cash for anyone you pay on the street. Everyone takes US $10s and $20 bills. Bring $300-500 for trinket vendors, massages, etc. We never hit the ATM, and only got a few colones bills back, just paid in USD.
• Credit Cards: Every business, grocery store, and restaurant uses the same BAC (Bank of Costa Rica) credit card terminal that has a tap card. There are no pins, signatures and tipping. Tap your card and go. We used our Amazon Prime credit card here with no hassles.
• Beaches: Spring break or California beach? Tamarindo. Boogie boarding or low key sandy beach? Flamingo. Other beaches are okay, just not as great and many don’t have easy access/parking. We hoped for better snorkeling but it was sub par. All of the boat trips will let you snorkel and get your fix, but go to the Caribbean side for the cool stuff it sounds like.
• Weather Forecast: The apps don’t work since they don’t have weather services down here (ex. No radar). It’s all based on satellite images of storm intensity. Use Weather Underground to play back what it did for the last few hours and if there is a yellow or red cloud in your vicinity, expect to get wet. If you Google search for Hawaii coconut forecast, it’s pretty much that. Just keep your eyes on the skies and territorial view.
• Activities: We found our one way driving radius was an hour and a half. Anything East of Liberia was too far. This is mainly since the top speed you hit out here is about 50mph on winding backroads as we describe them in the US and no fousix lane highways, so it just takes awhile to get anywhere. We could have stayed overnight out there but just ran out of time and motivation to do it. That eliminated many of our bookmarks. We just lived the beach life and chilled in the pool.
• Rain Jackets and Swim Suits: Yes, you need a rain jacket. More importantly, bring 3-5 pairs of swim suits. Several pair are always drying outside. The rain here is warm so it’s easier just to get wet while wearing swim gear than trying to stay dry. We swear by the boxer brief lined swim trunks now.
• Shirts and Sweating: As thin and light as possible. The Under Armour tech tees and Willit sun shirts were my go to. My Roblox shirt was too thick. Cotton is a no go.
• Plane Landing at night (LIR): It’s disorienting here on your first night. Get a room at Hilton Garden Inn when you land, and book your Adobe car to pick up at the hotel the next morning around 8:30-9:00. They will meet you in the lobby with no fuss. Ask for a late check out and hit a nearby waterfall first thing in the morning and come back and shower before driving to the beach towns.
• Power Outages: It happens once or twice a day, comes back on in 30 seconds or 30 minutes. You get used to it, no stress.
• Diamante: It was okay, depends what you’re looking for. Only 5 zip lines even though one is Superman. I like the 10-12 Zips in the rainforest and this is more hill peak to hill peak zig zagging down. You can take an ATV tour out of Potrero up there for added exhilaration.
• Road Trip to Nosara: We randomly decided to do a drive down to Nosara. We took Route 160 out and 150 back. You want a miserable pot hole mostly dirt road adventure, 160 is it. That must have been what the roads used to be. White knuckled for 2 hours of it. 150 is freshly paved and was a saving grace coming home. Wasn’t too much to see that we hadn’t already experienced. Just got some lunch and drove back home.
• Length of Trip: If you’re not traveling around, 7-10 days is perfect. We did a month to test if we like long term travel. After 29 days, we’ve found that 14 is a sweet spot for us. If you stay longer and have family and friends come in for a week at a time, you will have different vibes and activity interests to re-discover or re-explore and keep it fresh.
• Traffic laws? You mean suggestions. Just add a few speed bumps where we want you to slow down and yield signs on one lane bridges. In straightaways outside of the towns, it’s fine to go 15-20 kph over the limit (others will be too). Watch for speed bumps in any 40kph zone. There are 14ish speed bumps on the 1.5hr drive between Liberia and Flamingo and a handful of yield or stop signs. Doesn’t need to be more complicated than that. Never saw a stop light. Just pass whatever is on the road (dog, person, biker, horse, kid, dirt bike with 3 people) when you can see ahead of you, don’t need a passing zone or sign to do it. If something is up ahead that you’re slowing down for, throw your flashers on. Turn em off when it moves. The end.
• Buying Stuff: Just like camping at home, you need to bring it with you. There is no Walgreens, only 7-11 equivalent places. You can get a few things at the corner store but there are no malls here or Amazon or deliveries. It makes you appreciate living “off the grid” in a way.
• Pura Vida: The rules and laws that exist down here are mostly non existent or suggestions. Just live life, preferably in the slow lane. They don’t complicate anything down here. It makes me realize how consumeristic and hectic and scare too easy we are in the states. You do you, they do them. You’ll see some funny stuff and have some stories (walking your horse while holding rope out the car window, dirt bike wheelies, 3 people on mopeds, etc.)
• Local Resident Vibe: The primary industry here is tourism. Everyone is very friendly and welcoming. You’re going to see low quality of living as you drive around (ex. Shanties), that’s just how they live here. We may call it poverty back in the states, but they are just living their life just like you are living yours. I never felt threatened or unsafe in any way. Only saw police twice in our entire trip, and they were just strolling around casually. The nicer the area, the more we avoided it. The more rustic it was, the more we were intrigued.

I hope it helps! Have a great trip!