Make your own single elimination bracket
Old and new, little and big
2014.11.24 01:27 somethingissmarmy Old and new, little and big
A community for people interested in tools powered by naught but elbow grease.
2010.02.20 18:34 dnlslm9 Singles: Advice and Support
This is a support sub for single adults. This is not a dating, hookup or porn sub. Accounts, posts and comments in this community have very specific requirements. Make sure you read the rules before you post.
2013.06.20 03:53 Billobatch sell, buy or trade previously-owned men's clothes, shoes, and accessories.
A place for redditors to sell, buy or trade their previously-owned men's clothes, shoes, and accessories.
2024.05.03 00:51 Fuzzy_Smell_965 Pirate souls like (beware, this one is extremely long)
The release of Ubisoft's latest disaster Skull and bones made me realize how long it's been since we've had a good pirate game where you sail along the open sea, so lately I've been dreaming up my own pirate simulator.
The Endless Sea
Single player, open world, souls like
It takes place in the fantasy, sea filled realm of Solaria. You play as William, a 20 something year old human that is tasked with finding 5 pieces of a magic conch shell to pay off a debt you owe to the local governor. You start off with nothing but a frigate, barely any crew, and one or two starting weapons. And after a tutorial to get you accustomed to the game's main mechanics, you are let out into the open world with the warning that the further you venture from the middle start, the more treacherous the waters will be.
The story is semi-linear similar to tears of the kingdom, where you have the initial task of collecting all the artifacts, but there are 5 long quest lines in order to collect each shells pieces that you can do in any order.
Unlike most games in this genre, you don't create your own character, as William is his own established character with his own appearance and personality. He is basically a sarcastic yet likeable goofball who is kind of a douche bag and is willing to get his hands bloody, but is still a good person who is willing to do the right thing.
Character building is not all that different from other games in this genre.The main currency you will find is gold, and while it is used to buy stuff from shops, it is also used to boost up stats such as base health, base stamina, and base damage. Also, you can use it to buy skills that boost your character in various ways.
As for ship building, you can go to a harbour and use gold to upgrade its stats, decorate it with flair, and equip different weapons on different sections of the ship; front, left side, right side, and back.
While on foot, it is your typical 3rd person overhead view in games like Assassin's Creed, Sekiro, etc. For combat, the game is similar to the Witcher where you focus on parrying with humanoid enemies wielding weapons, where pulling off successful parries will open an opportunity to attack without getting parried yourself. While for larger monstrous enemies, you need to focus on dodging similar to every other soul's, and pulling off a dodge at just the right time will allow you to do a flurry of blows to do massive amounts of damage. You also have a gun in your off hand that can do crazy amounts of damage, but using it will put it on a cool down timer, creating a system where you need to pull off your shots whenever you can while fighting. There are also spell that you can equip up to three of that do all kinds of crazy things such as summoning a giant tentacle to thrash around and to damage to your enemies, shoot a stream of water that does minor damage but temporarily stunned them, and other stuff like that, and just like the guns they are on a cool down. You also have bottles of rum that act as your way of healing mid fight, but you will need to refill by buying or finding them.
As for ship combat, it is very similar to black flag, where you pan the camera to the part of the ship you want to fire from, and right click to aim, then left click to fire. With any variation in combat being the different weapons you can equip.
Whenever you get a ship to low enough health, you have the option of boarding it. Most of the time you just need to kill a certain number of enemies before the ship's crew surrenders, where you then steal any gold they had, take crew mates to add to your own, and steal any ship weapons that you can equip while at a harbour.
As for your crew, they are basically the life blood of your ship, whenever you take damage while at sea, you lose certain amounts of crew members, and when you run out of crew, your ship is sunk and you die. They also help you kill enemies while boarding ships, and you can even take one with you while on foot, and will act like permanent spirit summons from Elden Ring. You can of course get more crew mates from boarding ships, finding the cast away on island or in the middle of the sea, or hiring them from town. You also have legendary crew mates with crazy abilities that boost your ship once they're added to your crew, and even have their own unique personalities and dialogue while on the ship for following you on foot, and will participate in cut scenes if with you at the time. You will most find these guys in optional dungeons or side quests.
The size of the map is large, with there being the 5 major areas, and 5 mini areas. The stuff dotted across the map are islands that aren't explorable but only there for decoration, islands that are explorable but don't contain all that much, larger islands, fortresses, towns, and the many horrors that you will encounter while sailing across the open sea. Each section of the map also has its own unique theme with unique enemies, dungeons and encounters. And the map starts of as blank, but is reviled as you explore, similar to Ghost of Tsushima
The larger islands are where you will be spending your time on foot outside of the towns, and are what you would expect. Enemies to stop your path, hidden secrets such as treasure and items, mini dungeons.
Towns are basically hubs where you will start quests, progress main quests, shop for items/gear, upgrade your characteship, it's basically the town in every RPG ever. There is one for each region, both big and small, with the large ones being city sized and the small ones being small fishing villages. You are not allowed to fight or kill anyone while in the city, unless you are doing a quest that requires you to fight, in which case everyone will flee the scene when things are going down.
Fortresses are very similar to the ones in black flag, you first need to destroy the fortification while trying not to get hit yourself. After you do that, you and your crew will charge into the fort, where you will need to fight your way to the fort commander, who will act as a mini boss. Once you defeat him, you get a heap of gold, you completely reveal that section of the map, and you can fast travel between fortresses you defeated.
Dungeons are divided into two camps, mini dungeons that are on large/small islands or in the middle of the ocean, and the large dungeons that contain the different pieces of the magic conch shell. Mini dungeons are similar to the ones in Elden Ring, take at most 10 minutes to beat, have one or two items to loot, and end with a mini boss to get gold and or a legendary crew mate. The larger ones on the other hand are LARGE, containing tons of secrets, hidden pathways, multiple mini bosses, and end with a massive boss fight to collect a legendary item and a piece of the conch.
Bosses are divided into four categories. You’ve got the humanoid enemies that you can parry, but have unique attributes to make them trickier to fight, large monsters similar to any Fromsoftware fight in the last decade, legendary ships, and legendary sea monsters. Legendary ships are basically the hardest ship fights in the game, and are very elusive, really only being in the outer rims of each map section. If you’ve managed to defeat it, you automatically board them and fight their captain as a min boss, and are rewarded with a heap of gold and a legendary ship upgrade if you beat them. Legendary sea monsters are similar, as you fight them on your ship, but they have their own unique attack and movement patterns. Also, similar to the big octos from Wind Waker, they do not show up on the map, and reveal themselves if you venture too close to a flock of birds flying in a big circle. Killing them will give you a legendary item or spell.
Side quests are your run of the mill variable side quest that involve various activities and stories like hunting people/ships, doing errands, hunting for treasure, etc. And will give you gold, items, and crew mates.
All the collectables are completely utilitarian, they are either cloths, weapons, ship upgrades, crew mates, and spells. Any story that you want outside of the cut scenes you can read from the journal entries in the bestiary or item description.
Play time is in the range of Red Dead Redemption 2 and Tears of the Kingdom, the story will take you a good 20-30 hours to finish, while completing/collecting everything will take hundreds of hours.
submitted by Fuzzy_Smell_965 to gameideas [link] [comments]
The Endless Sea
Single player, open world, souls like
It takes place in the fantasy, sea filled realm of Solaria. You play as William, a 20 something year old human that is tasked with finding 5 pieces of a magic conch shell to pay off a debt you owe to the local governor. You start off with nothing but a frigate, barely any crew, and one or two starting weapons. And after a tutorial to get you accustomed to the game's main mechanics, you are let out into the open world with the warning that the further you venture from the middle start, the more treacherous the waters will be.
The story is semi-linear similar to tears of the kingdom, where you have the initial task of collecting all the artifacts, but there are 5 long quest lines in order to collect each shells pieces that you can do in any order.
Unlike most games in this genre, you don't create your own character, as William is his own established character with his own appearance and personality. He is basically a sarcastic yet likeable goofball who is kind of a douche bag and is willing to get his hands bloody, but is still a good person who is willing to do the right thing.
Character building is not all that different from other games in this genre.The main currency you will find is gold, and while it is used to buy stuff from shops, it is also used to boost up stats such as base health, base stamina, and base damage. Also, you can use it to buy skills that boost your character in various ways.
As for ship building, you can go to a harbour and use gold to upgrade its stats, decorate it with flair, and equip different weapons on different sections of the ship; front, left side, right side, and back.
While on foot, it is your typical 3rd person overhead view in games like Assassin's Creed, Sekiro, etc. For combat, the game is similar to the Witcher where you focus on parrying with humanoid enemies wielding weapons, where pulling off successful parries will open an opportunity to attack without getting parried yourself. While for larger monstrous enemies, you need to focus on dodging similar to every other soul's, and pulling off a dodge at just the right time will allow you to do a flurry of blows to do massive amounts of damage. You also have a gun in your off hand that can do crazy amounts of damage, but using it will put it on a cool down timer, creating a system where you need to pull off your shots whenever you can while fighting. There are also spell that you can equip up to three of that do all kinds of crazy things such as summoning a giant tentacle to thrash around and to damage to your enemies, shoot a stream of water that does minor damage but temporarily stunned them, and other stuff like that, and just like the guns they are on a cool down. You also have bottles of rum that act as your way of healing mid fight, but you will need to refill by buying or finding them.
As for ship combat, it is very similar to black flag, where you pan the camera to the part of the ship you want to fire from, and right click to aim, then left click to fire. With any variation in combat being the different weapons you can equip.
Whenever you get a ship to low enough health, you have the option of boarding it. Most of the time you just need to kill a certain number of enemies before the ship's crew surrenders, where you then steal any gold they had, take crew mates to add to your own, and steal any ship weapons that you can equip while at a harbour.
As for your crew, they are basically the life blood of your ship, whenever you take damage while at sea, you lose certain amounts of crew members, and when you run out of crew, your ship is sunk and you die. They also help you kill enemies while boarding ships, and you can even take one with you while on foot, and will act like permanent spirit summons from Elden Ring. You can of course get more crew mates from boarding ships, finding the cast away on island or in the middle of the sea, or hiring them from town. You also have legendary crew mates with crazy abilities that boost your ship once they're added to your crew, and even have their own unique personalities and dialogue while on the ship for following you on foot, and will participate in cut scenes if with you at the time. You will most find these guys in optional dungeons or side quests.
The size of the map is large, with there being the 5 major areas, and 5 mini areas. The stuff dotted across the map are islands that aren't explorable but only there for decoration, islands that are explorable but don't contain all that much, larger islands, fortresses, towns, and the many horrors that you will encounter while sailing across the open sea. Each section of the map also has its own unique theme with unique enemies, dungeons and encounters. And the map starts of as blank, but is reviled as you explore, similar to Ghost of Tsushima
The larger islands are where you will be spending your time on foot outside of the towns, and are what you would expect. Enemies to stop your path, hidden secrets such as treasure and items, mini dungeons.
Towns are basically hubs where you will start quests, progress main quests, shop for items/gear, upgrade your characteship, it's basically the town in every RPG ever. There is one for each region, both big and small, with the large ones being city sized and the small ones being small fishing villages. You are not allowed to fight or kill anyone while in the city, unless you are doing a quest that requires you to fight, in which case everyone will flee the scene when things are going down.
Fortresses are very similar to the ones in black flag, you first need to destroy the fortification while trying not to get hit yourself. After you do that, you and your crew will charge into the fort, where you will need to fight your way to the fort commander, who will act as a mini boss. Once you defeat him, you get a heap of gold, you completely reveal that section of the map, and you can fast travel between fortresses you defeated.
Dungeons are divided into two camps, mini dungeons that are on large/small islands or in the middle of the ocean, and the large dungeons that contain the different pieces of the magic conch shell. Mini dungeons are similar to the ones in Elden Ring, take at most 10 minutes to beat, have one or two items to loot, and end with a mini boss to get gold and or a legendary crew mate. The larger ones on the other hand are LARGE, containing tons of secrets, hidden pathways, multiple mini bosses, and end with a massive boss fight to collect a legendary item and a piece of the conch.
Bosses are divided into four categories. You’ve got the humanoid enemies that you can parry, but have unique attributes to make them trickier to fight, large monsters similar to any Fromsoftware fight in the last decade, legendary ships, and legendary sea monsters. Legendary ships are basically the hardest ship fights in the game, and are very elusive, really only being in the outer rims of each map section. If you’ve managed to defeat it, you automatically board them and fight their captain as a min boss, and are rewarded with a heap of gold and a legendary ship upgrade if you beat them. Legendary sea monsters are similar, as you fight them on your ship, but they have their own unique attack and movement patterns. Also, similar to the big octos from Wind Waker, they do not show up on the map, and reveal themselves if you venture too close to a flock of birds flying in a big circle. Killing them will give you a legendary item or spell.
Side quests are your run of the mill variable side quest that involve various activities and stories like hunting people/ships, doing errands, hunting for treasure, etc. And will give you gold, items, and crew mates.
All the collectables are completely utilitarian, they are either cloths, weapons, ship upgrades, crew mates, and spells. Any story that you want outside of the cut scenes you can read from the journal entries in the bestiary or item description.
Play time is in the range of Red Dead Redemption 2 and Tears of the Kingdom, the story will take you a good 20-30 hours to finish, while completing/collecting everything will take hundreds of hours.
2024.05.03 00:50 coaxialcity [M4F] The unnecessary hero and his equally overpowered lover?
"So he's slain the demon lord, he eliminated the Arcane Research Society cult, and he repelled the orcish invasion from the northern lands, single-handedly." The king was massaging his temples with his thumbs as he read through the list before him. This was even more prestigious than he imagined.
The court scribe nodded her head, blonde curls bobbing. "Yes! And that's not even all of it. I've yet to update it with how the hero discovered that mithril vein in the Maudskill Mountains, and..."
"Okay, enough, enough." The king sighed, slumping back into his throne. Yes, the hero was very powerful. Too powerful. It would take nothing more than the hero to recognize that he didn't need to obey the king, then he would easily be able to overthrow the royal family and commandeer the crown. And the people might just love that, given the new era of peace that arrive with the hero's deeds. He shuddered, shoulders quivering at the thought of the hero bursting into the throne room and demanding his seat. It was far too comfortable to give up. "Where's the list? The one of things that he has yet to accomplish?"
The scribe was more than happy to produce the parchment from her flowing sleeve, holding it out with both hands as an offering to the king. More accolades to add to the hero's legend! His story would be carved into the ages at this rate. "Yes, of course! This has-"
"No, no." The king swatted the parchment away with an errant hand. The secretariat gasped, and barely managed to juggle it between her fingers, grasping onto it before it fell. "I want the real list. The one of impossibles."
"B-but your majesty..." she stammered, eyes growing wide. That list was SSS-rank difficulty tasks, even for the hero that would be...
"Give me it," the king growled, and the scribe had no choice but to produce the parchment, her hands shaking a bit as she handed it over. He unfurled it, looking through the list. Something that the hero would fail at, preferably losing his life. He no longer needed a dog, if it could bite him back.
~~~
Hello! Welcome to another prompt, where I built this one off a previous plot I had in mind for another roleplay! In this one, the all powerful hero has accomplished far, far, too much, to the point where the king fears his power. So what does he do? Send the hero on a suicidal mission, one where he could not possibly accomplish!
Some key elements I'd like to see are enemies to lovers, hurt comfort, comedy, light-hearted themes though some dark themes can be suggested, forced inhabitation (the hero having to live in the cave with the dragoness just sounds goofy), fantasy, slice of life, and adventure! Some others that can be included are isekai (along with time travel, such as placing this into a modern era).
About myself: I'm 25+, prefer 3rd person, with about 2-6 paragraphs of detail and action in every reply. I try my best to be creative and drive the plot along! I'm usually able to reply a few times a day, depending on your timezone (I live in PST). I write female/male/non-binary, play a multitude of characters, but I would like the main character for me to be male. I use Discord.
About you: 21+, literate, and can write 2 or more paragraphs per reply. Preferably can reply a few times a day! Can play a multitude of characters as called for, knows how to move the plot, and loves world-building! Uses/prefers anime style face claims. Uses Discord.
The king's trying to figure out the best way to dispatch of this pesky, overpowered hero. Help him out!
submitted by coaxialcity to roleplaying [link] [comments]
The court scribe nodded her head, blonde curls bobbing. "Yes! And that's not even all of it. I've yet to update it with how the hero discovered that mithril vein in the Maudskill Mountains, and..."
"Okay, enough, enough." The king sighed, slumping back into his throne. Yes, the hero was very powerful. Too powerful. It would take nothing more than the hero to recognize that he didn't need to obey the king, then he would easily be able to overthrow the royal family and commandeer the crown. And the people might just love that, given the new era of peace that arrive with the hero's deeds. He shuddered, shoulders quivering at the thought of the hero bursting into the throne room and demanding his seat. It was far too comfortable to give up. "Where's the list? The one of things that he has yet to accomplish?"
The scribe was more than happy to produce the parchment from her flowing sleeve, holding it out with both hands as an offering to the king. More accolades to add to the hero's legend! His story would be carved into the ages at this rate. "Yes, of course! This has-"
"No, no." The king swatted the parchment away with an errant hand. The secretariat gasped, and barely managed to juggle it between her fingers, grasping onto it before it fell. "I want the real list. The one of impossibles."
"B-but your majesty..." she stammered, eyes growing wide. That list was SSS-rank difficulty tasks, even for the hero that would be...
"Give me it," the king growled, and the scribe had no choice but to produce the parchment, her hands shaking a bit as she handed it over. He unfurled it, looking through the list. Something that the hero would fail at, preferably losing his life. He no longer needed a dog, if it could bite him back.
~~~
Hello! Welcome to another prompt, where I built this one off a previous plot I had in mind for another roleplay! In this one, the all powerful hero has accomplished far, far, too much, to the point where the king fears his power. So what does he do? Send the hero on a suicidal mission, one where he could not possibly accomplish!
- To slay the dragon of chaos! Although, once the hero arrives at the mountains where the dragon dwells, she's nothing more than a girl, her latent power faded from the millennia that had passed (or other plot themes possible)! How could the hero slay her now, when she's not even a threat?
- Overthrow the elven kingdom! The elves command great power, being able to wield spirit magic and borrow the powers of the land. Once the hero arrives in their land, he discovers that the elves have their own plight, that the World Tree is fading. The princess begs him to help save her people, and a hero's duty is to protect~
- Defeat the specter of the Forgotten Cave! A hollow rumored to be the host of lost artifacts and treasures aplenty, guarded by a fierce otherworldly deity that can vaporize any who are foolhardy enough to venture in. But when the hero arrives, it turns out it's much, much overblown. Is she even a ghost?
Some key elements I'd like to see are enemies to lovers, hurt comfort, comedy, light-hearted themes though some dark themes can be suggested, forced inhabitation (the hero having to live in the cave with the dragoness just sounds goofy), fantasy, slice of life, and adventure! Some others that can be included are isekai (along with time travel, such as placing this into a modern era).
About myself: I'm 25+, prefer 3rd person, with about 2-6 paragraphs of detail and action in every reply. I try my best to be creative and drive the plot along! I'm usually able to reply a few times a day, depending on your timezone (I live in PST). I write female/male/non-binary, play a multitude of characters, but I would like the main character for me to be male. I use Discord.
About you: 21+, literate, and can write 2 or more paragraphs per reply. Preferably can reply a few times a day! Can play a multitude of characters as called for, knows how to move the plot, and loves world-building! Uses/prefers anime style face claims. Uses Discord.
The king's trying to figure out the best way to dispatch of this pesky, overpowered hero. Help him out!
2024.05.03 00:47 Reserved_Trout On Interacting With Online Spaces
Hi there,
So this is a new post for me since this time I'll be giving the advice. This post was inspired by the recent "Man vs. Bear" discourse that's been the talk of the town in subreddits similar to this one. If you're not in the know (and please correct me if I get anything wrong here) there was a poll on Tumblr that asked which scenario would women feel safer. In the woods with a bear or a man. The majority picked the bear.
This post isn't going to wade into that discourse, it's a single poll on tumblr. It's not that consequential. I will say that while the overall message is understandable and agreeable. The actual scenario is either poorly phrased at best, or blatant rage bait at worst.
What I want to talk about is something that I've noticed amongst men who are trying to be better. Basically, they take the words of spaces like TwoXChromosomes or the above mentioned poll to heart and think they are just as bad as the men those spaces are talking about. I won't lie to you, I used to feel this too. When I first started on my self improvement journey I would go to spaces like TwoX to try and listen to a woman's perspective. Most of the time I would feel like garbage. For a long time I felt like a creep in waiting. Someone who's just inherently predatory and that I should just shut myself in. However, with some work I've managed to pull myself out of that hole and have a better outlook. I'm not perfect, I've still got some kinks to work out. But I'm still better than I was before. Here are the methods and pieces of wisdom that helped me out.
Therapy
Okay, I know that therapy is mentioned a lot on here as the main method of treating issues that incels have such as Depression, OCD, Body Dysmorphia, and Anxiety. However, the reason why it's mentioned so much however is becuase it works. Having someone to talk to about how something like the tumblr poll makes you feel and having that someone actively help you work through those thoughts and feelings can really help. It's not easy, but it's worth it.
Journaling
My 2nd personal favorite method behind therapy. There's not much to say, other than it's a great way to get your feelings out without falling into any rabbit holes or toxic spaces.
Grounding
This helped me a lot too. I think we often forget that the internet isn't real life. There exists a wall between reality and social media that is often unseen. A vast majority of people in the real world are just normal and chill. They aren't going to bully you, insult you, or say that your gender is inherently evil. Again, that poll on tumblr is one poll. It's a single drop in an ocean. It will probably be forgotten in a few months anyway.
Don't Take it Personally
I definitely understand that reading some of the posts from spaces like TwoX can be hurtful or damaging to your mental health/self image. What I would recommend is to internalize the mantra of "If it don't apply, let it fly." If a woman on TwoX is venting about their shitty boyfriend, and you don't share any of that guy's traits. Congrats! She's not talking about you! You're in the clear! Plus, when viewing like that, it makes it easier to really listen and absorb what that woman is saying so that you can learn what behaviors are harmful. If you think that some of those behaviors apply, then congrats! You identified a potential problem that you can fix provided you're willing to do the work.
You Don't Have to do Anything
This is the final point. You are not being forced to look at these spaces. If they are upsetting you, then you can always just mute these spaces, or block them. You're not going to be arrested by the police becuase you wanted to care for your own mental health instead of forcing a mental breakdown over some random person's venting post.
You are not 3.5 Billion People
You are an individual. As are most people. Your gender does not apply in terms of your own self worth and if you're good or bad. You are capable of change, of doing harm, and doing good. In summation, you can't take accountability for the fuck ups of millions of shitty people. You can only take accountability for yourself and your actions.
This is my first post actually giving advice so if there's any criticism from veteran advice givers on this sub I'm open to it and I will make an effort to change my post accordingly. Hopefully this post comes in handy for others.
submitted by Reserved_Trout to IncelExit [link] [comments]
So this is a new post for me since this time I'll be giving the advice. This post was inspired by the recent "Man vs. Bear" discourse that's been the talk of the town in subreddits similar to this one. If you're not in the know (and please correct me if I get anything wrong here) there was a poll on Tumblr that asked which scenario would women feel safer. In the woods with a bear or a man. The majority picked the bear.
This post isn't going to wade into that discourse, it's a single poll on tumblr. It's not that consequential. I will say that while the overall message is understandable and agreeable. The actual scenario is either poorly phrased at best, or blatant rage bait at worst.
What I want to talk about is something that I've noticed amongst men who are trying to be better. Basically, they take the words of spaces like TwoXChromosomes or the above mentioned poll to heart and think they are just as bad as the men those spaces are talking about. I won't lie to you, I used to feel this too. When I first started on my self improvement journey I would go to spaces like TwoX to try and listen to a woman's perspective. Most of the time I would feel like garbage. For a long time I felt like a creep in waiting. Someone who's just inherently predatory and that I should just shut myself in. However, with some work I've managed to pull myself out of that hole and have a better outlook. I'm not perfect, I've still got some kinks to work out. But I'm still better than I was before. Here are the methods and pieces of wisdom that helped me out.
Therapy
Okay, I know that therapy is mentioned a lot on here as the main method of treating issues that incels have such as Depression, OCD, Body Dysmorphia, and Anxiety. However, the reason why it's mentioned so much however is becuase it works. Having someone to talk to about how something like the tumblr poll makes you feel and having that someone actively help you work through those thoughts and feelings can really help. It's not easy, but it's worth it.
Journaling
My 2nd personal favorite method behind therapy. There's not much to say, other than it's a great way to get your feelings out without falling into any rabbit holes or toxic spaces.
Grounding
This helped me a lot too. I think we often forget that the internet isn't real life. There exists a wall between reality and social media that is often unseen. A vast majority of people in the real world are just normal and chill. They aren't going to bully you, insult you, or say that your gender is inherently evil. Again, that poll on tumblr is one poll. It's a single drop in an ocean. It will probably be forgotten in a few months anyway.
Don't Take it Personally
I definitely understand that reading some of the posts from spaces like TwoX can be hurtful or damaging to your mental health/self image. What I would recommend is to internalize the mantra of "If it don't apply, let it fly." If a woman on TwoX is venting about their shitty boyfriend, and you don't share any of that guy's traits. Congrats! She's not talking about you! You're in the clear! Plus, when viewing like that, it makes it easier to really listen and absorb what that woman is saying so that you can learn what behaviors are harmful. If you think that some of those behaviors apply, then congrats! You identified a potential problem that you can fix provided you're willing to do the work.
You Don't Have to do Anything
This is the final point. You are not being forced to look at these spaces. If they are upsetting you, then you can always just mute these spaces, or block them. You're not going to be arrested by the police becuase you wanted to care for your own mental health instead of forcing a mental breakdown over some random person's venting post.
You are not 3.5 Billion People
You are an individual. As are most people. Your gender does not apply in terms of your own self worth and if you're good or bad. You are capable of change, of doing harm, and doing good. In summation, you can't take accountability for the fuck ups of millions of shitty people. You can only take accountability for yourself and your actions.
This is my first post actually giving advice so if there's any criticism from veteran advice givers on this sub I'm open to it and I will make an effort to change my post accordingly. Hopefully this post comes in handy for others.
2024.05.03 00:47 Raging_Highway 30 [M4F] Canada/Anywhere Canadian nerd looking for love but willing to build up to it
Well, here we go I'm 30 years old from Canada! I've been single for about 3 years now, mainly focused on my issues and what I want in life. I told myself I'd put myself back out there when I was ready and lo and behold, it occurred to me while doing laundry the other day that I was.
About me:
I'm a hopeless romantic, I put my heart and soul into everything that I do and I'm a little impulsive. When I find somebody I like and connect with, I'm not much of a test your options kinda guy, I like to give them my attention and try to make it work. I'm a believer in communication can fix most issues but I also know often times there are irreconcilable differences and it not working out isn't the end of the world.
I'm a huge nerd, be it pokemon, star wars, gaming, D&D, sports, philosophy, astronomy or anything almost I love learning about it and going deep and getting to the exciting deep lore of the things that interest me. I love talking about it if it interests you but I won't share if you'd rather not hear about it and I'm okay with it just being my thing.
I'm okay on my own, but I will make time for you because I want to. I'm not looking for somebody because I need to fill a void but because I'd love to find somebody who I feel adds to my life. I'm the kind of person who stays through thick and thin so if I commit I want it to be somebody I'm sure about.
I'm perhaps too open, I will openly share my life and any traumatic incidents I've gone through because I've processed and accepted them. I get it's a little weird or off-putting for somebody to be so cavalier about big events but I'm able to because I know myself and done the work to be okay with it.
Lastly, I want to make the person I'm with happy. I want us to communicate and keep things light and work together to keep the spark alive. I want us to do our own thing but find time to do stuff together. I'd love to read the same books and talk about them or play games together or just talk about life. I want a great connection with a foundation of great communication.
About you:
Genuinely, be yourself. I don't care about what you look like that much even though I will love to see you and fanboy over you if I'm into you. I don't care if we don't share interests if we can find a way to communicate and connect. I also don't care if you're Ryan Reynolds wearing a wig. If I'm into you, you'll be able to tell and there's no set criteria for that.
If anything I've said struck a chord with you and you want to take a shot on love, shoot me a DM and let's see where it goes. I promise I don't bite unless you're a pizza then yes, I will bite you. Thank you for your time and have yourself a fantastic day.
submitted by Raging_Highway to r4r [link] [comments]
About me:
I'm a hopeless romantic, I put my heart and soul into everything that I do and I'm a little impulsive. When I find somebody I like and connect with, I'm not much of a test your options kinda guy, I like to give them my attention and try to make it work. I'm a believer in communication can fix most issues but I also know often times there are irreconcilable differences and it not working out isn't the end of the world.
I'm a huge nerd, be it pokemon, star wars, gaming, D&D, sports, philosophy, astronomy or anything almost I love learning about it and going deep and getting to the exciting deep lore of the things that interest me. I love talking about it if it interests you but I won't share if you'd rather not hear about it and I'm okay with it just being my thing.
I'm okay on my own, but I will make time for you because I want to. I'm not looking for somebody because I need to fill a void but because I'd love to find somebody who I feel adds to my life. I'm the kind of person who stays through thick and thin so if I commit I want it to be somebody I'm sure about.
I'm perhaps too open, I will openly share my life and any traumatic incidents I've gone through because I've processed and accepted them. I get it's a little weird or off-putting for somebody to be so cavalier about big events but I'm able to because I know myself and done the work to be okay with it.
Lastly, I want to make the person I'm with happy. I want us to communicate and keep things light and work together to keep the spark alive. I want us to do our own thing but find time to do stuff together. I'd love to read the same books and talk about them or play games together or just talk about life. I want a great connection with a foundation of great communication.
About you:
Genuinely, be yourself. I don't care about what you look like that much even though I will love to see you and fanboy over you if I'm into you. I don't care if we don't share interests if we can find a way to communicate and connect. I also don't care if you're Ryan Reynolds wearing a wig. If I'm into you, you'll be able to tell and there's no set criteria for that.
If anything I've said struck a chord with you and you want to take a shot on love, shoot me a DM and let's see where it goes. I promise I don't bite unless you're a pizza then yes, I will bite you. Thank you for your time and have yourself a fantastic day.
2024.05.03 00:43 JPisaBrony [31/M] Minnesota, USA - looking for the love of my life
I am looking for the love of my life. someone who will truly love me for who I am. someone who wants to work through our differences and issues together. someone who values commitment, communication, adaptability, loyalty, and honesty as much as I do. someone who wants to put in as much effort as I do. someone I can love back just as much because when I love someone, I really love them.
I don't expect us to have all of the same interests and we should have some different ones so that we can learn from each other. what matters most to me is that we have similar core values and relationship goals. I do still have my preferences and those are:
If this post piqued your interest and you would like to get to know me better, then you should reach out. I am looking forward to meeting you.
submitted by JPisaBrony to MeetNewPeopleHere [link] [comments]
I don't expect us to have all of the same interests and we should have some different ones so that we can learn from each other. what matters most to me is that we have similar core values and relationship goals. I do still have my preferences and those are:
- I don't do drugs or smoke.
- I don't drink alcohol. I would prefer if you didn't but it is not a deal breaker.
- I would like to have kids one day. I don't have any kids of my own yet and expect the same from you.
- I am not a pet person. I am also allergic to cats.
- I am not political at all.
- I am a christian and am looking for someone who shares the same faith.
- I am only looking inside of the USA but I would be willing to relocate anywhere in the country for the right person.
- I am looking for someone between the ages of 25-30.
- I am looking for a woman who is single and wants to get married one day.
- I would like to swap pictures sooner than later. my basic info is: 5'8", brown hair, white, about 150 lbs.
- I want to voice chat / video chat using discord at some point but we can start with text first.
If this post piqued your interest and you would like to get to know me better, then you should reach out. I am looking forward to meeting you.
2024.05.03 00:42 AlexSetzelk I've played Warframe for 100 days straight (LONG APPRECIATION POST)
I didn't expect this to be so stupidly long. I don't know who's going to read it but here it goes anyway.
It's been years since I decided to play an online game again because of how time consuming they are. When I was younger I enjoyed games like Ragnarok Online, Lineage II or Guild Wars, but life goes on and you grow up and you have many other responsibilities. However, FromSoftware's soulslike masterpieces made me fall in love with video games again since 2021, and after spending like 1500 hours on those games and other great titles I asked myself "Hey, why don't you try an MMO or something?". Also, since I was a bit depressed back then, I finally decided to play a game where I could go deeper and deeper, get lost and forget about my daily worries.
Like two years ago, a friend of mine who has been obsessed with Warframe for years showed me some good stuff. He told me about the charactebuild variety, which is very important to me, and showed me the arsenal: katana robot, magnet robot, invisible robot, mind control robot, pixie robot, speed robot, music robot, ass robot(s)... He also told me about spaceship battles, open worlds and excellent storyline, so two years later I finally decided to give it a try.
On January 16th I decided to install Warframe, and it has been one of the best gaming experiences I've had in my entire life.
Not gonna lie, the beginning was... definitely not underwhelming, but a bit discouraging compared to what's to come. And I'm not talking about the tutorial. I think Awakening and Vor's Prize are a decent introduction to the game. Hell, that "new" cinematic is both amazing and necessary, but after that first impression my interest continued to decrease. Fortunately, I kept reaching certain highlights that served as milestones and made me want to move forward.
My main problem back then was the early craft time gating. This was a huge letdown for me because I wanted to try different stuff and didn't have the MR or the resources to do so. You want Rhino, so you kill the Jackal to get the blueprints. Then you farm the Plastids, only to find out that you have to wait 3 and half days until your Warframe is complete. Currently I really like the craft time gating because I find it very rewarding. Because I like to put in practice that kind of delayed gratification, but as a new player you want to try some things and you can't do it right away. I think it would make a much better impression on a potential new player if you could get Excalibur, Mag and Volt already crafted as a very early quest rewards to avoid the 3 day wait, or at least an option to skip the crafting time for the first frame you choose to build. Otherwise you are locked to your very first selection for a few days, regardless of whether you are comfortable with it or not, unless you decide to spend your free 50 platinum to rush the craft. But of course no one is going to do that, because you don't know yet if you're going to invest some money to buy more plat. Actually, I think such situation can backfire and kill the willing to do it.
Another important issue I remember is that, after Vor's Prize, you don't have many interesting things to do for a while, especially since the most useful advice is to complete junction after junction to reach The Second Dream as soon as possible. So you keep completing the nodes, one by one, with almost no relevant story, cinematics or lore involved. The first impression fades until it's completely gone. Eventually I thought "Ok, so I guess this is it. I'm going to kill the same enemies over and over again, just with more health and more damage". And, while this is still kind of true in the "endgame", I never expected how much the game would eventually open up.
To be honest, the mindless slaughter wasn't terrible for me because I was having a blast anyway, and really loved playing Excalibur. Slash Dash was becoming easier to control, Radial Javelin felt powerful and I found out you can toggle your Exalted Blade at will. I couldn't appreciate the usefulness of Radial Blind because the game was being too easy, so I didn't use it at all, and unfortunately this is another great issue in the early game: I can't express how easy Warframe is for almost the half of the Star Chart. For real. It's too painfully easy to the point where you can't possibly die playing the first planets, and anyone who played this game for more than two hours knows that I'm not trying to be cocky. It's a mindless button holder until you get to Uranus or so, and the only redeeming quality of this bloodfest is how good it feels to obliterate things. And no, I don't need the game to be extremely hard. I actually like the difficulty later on and I think it's progressively more and more adequate, but the early game almost discourages you from trying to figure out how to kill things because it's not necessary at all.
Hey. I swear this is an appreciation post, but not everything in the game can be perfect. Especially when you start playing it.
So I keep playing. Saya's Vigil is a nice addition to show you some of the game's possibilities. It's a cute quest with cute characters, they talk about some Sentients, you see the Eidolon, you know one day you will be able to kill it, you have a new open world... yeah, it was okay, but I had to stay away of Plains of Eidolon and completely skipped Fortuna and Orb Vallis because my friend recommended me to focus on completing the Star Chart, so my first real highlight was the Heart of Deimos quest. The New Strange got me interested with that weird transmissions and the womb of the sky thing, but Heart of Deimos was where I really thought this was much more than a pew pew game. This was the quest that made me start loving Warframe, and it was a smart move on DE's part to place it in the early progression.
I absolutely loved this quest, to the point that I even doubted if it could be topped in some way. Yeah, little did I know. I loved the environment, the Entrati family, the Necramech and the possibility of getting one in the future. Then the game decides to go full Zone of the Enders and gives me the Archwing. When I first saw how beautiful space looks in this game and how smooth the flying felt, I was in awe. Everything was getting better and better. Then I got my first Kubrow. My Taxon, both companions with their own mods to configure. I crafted Zephyr, and after a ton of Oxium farming I got the Archwing Segment to fly through open worlds. Then I found myself mining and fishing, hoarding resources that I know I would need someday while listening to some good music. I opened relics to get some Ducats. After Zephyr I crafted Valkyr, and the whole foundry waiting was much more manageable because I finally had more options to choose. I claimed things while crafting other things, increasing my MR little by little. Then I took a detour to visit Fortuna and Orb Vallis, and those lovely singing fellas gave me a friggin hoverboard to race and do tricks on. I paid attention to that Nightwave menu and started to complete Nora's objectives. A free battle pass with even more free rewards? Of course, sign me in.
I wondered how many things I had left to discover. "This game never stops giving", I thought to myself as a new Gift from the Lotus notification appeared in my Warframe Companion app, which I started using to get some extra resources with the extractors. Then I found out about the Twitch drops, too, and I started claiming rewards week after week. I was so in love I couldn't believe all of these awesome experiences were for free, so I felt compelled to contribute as soon as I could get a -75% discount. I finally got it, so I bought 2000 plat and spent a bit on some fashion and slots.
Character building still wasn't a big deal at this point because I didn't know about how much I could boost my Warframes yet. I knew about some mods and subsumable abilities, but nothing else. Adapters, Corrupted/Riven/Augmentation mods, Focus Schools, Amps, Arcanes and Archon Shards were all unknown to me, but now that I have much more knowledge of the game I have to say it's amazing to try your own things and play however you want. Not only what I mentioned is available to you, but also more than 50 different Warframes and a ton of weapons, both ranged and melee. It feels so good to try different things and see how they work together, so rewarding I can't stop looking at the Wiki to find out more about other unknown mechanics.
So my complaints were diminishing as I was making progress. However, there were still some gripes that I want to address here: being a soulslike player, one of my greatest fears was the boss quality, and sadly I hated a lot of them. I know this is something DE is working on and I appreciate it a lot (Jackal, Eidolons, Exploiter Orb, Ropalolyst, Archons, Orowyrm and The Fragmented prove that they are getting somewhere), but Vay Hek, Sargas Ruk, Tyl Regor or Lephantis were a torture for me, especially because I mostly play solo and they took forever the first time. I'm fine with the phased invulnerability timings because there are builds so broken that could kill any boss in one shot, but precisely for that reason you can work around them in other ways. This game has extremely good character movement, and that means a lot of possibilities. Luckily, as I said, bosses are improving with time, but it took a while to find another interesting one besides the Jackal.
My other great issue was the enemy variety. I've seen how Warframe looked in 2013 and I think that slower, strategic combat could be much more enjoyable than the lightning fast pace we have now, where you just can melt enemies with the right config. Melee animations looked better back then because you could actually see what your Warframe was doing. But yeah, I'm aware that we can't go back to those days because the game evolved into what it is right now, and honestly I also love the current gameplay because of how frenetic it is. What I mean is that sometimes I miss more rough enemies, maybe something like the Eximus but with more variety because most enemies die the same way. I'm almost grateful for guys like Drahks, Scorpions, Shockwave Moas, Nullifiers, Terras, Ancient Disruptors, Saxums, Thrax Legatus, Severed Wardens, Hollow Veins... Yes, those enemies can be VERY infuriating, but at least they make you turn your head to kill them first and eliminate their threats as soon as possible.
Again, I think DE is slowly taking care of that, and thankfully these concerns were alleviated for me as soon as I got to Natah quest because I knew something big was coming. The game was finally raising questions about important stuff.
And then I got to The Second Dream. This remains my favourite cinematic quest in all of Warframe, including The Sacrifice, The New War and Whispers in the Walls, and I don't know if anything will ever top its final moments. I couldn't believe what I was witnessing. Those levels of immersion, thanks to the astonishing visuals, immaculate writing, voice acting and OST, will never leave my mind. Generally speaking, DE worries about making the player feel involved because I think everything you do in Warframe actually matters (even some secondary quests give me that vibe), but here everything looks even more in place. Yes, I saw some humanoid players here and there before the quest, walking around Cetus and Fortuna, but maybe thanks to knowing that something called Duviri exists I thought it was a completely separate thing. Of course during my playthrough I was asking myself "So what the fuck is a Tenno? Is this the game's way of breaking the fourth wall to talk to us players? Is Tenno synonymous with Warframe? Are the Tenno inside Warframes? Are they controlling them from somewhere else?", and then you finally get the answer, and then some. And a new character creator. And 5 different skill trees yet to unlock.
The Second Dream changes everything about Warframe, and it can't be rushed. It can't happen before it happens. After 40/50/60 hours of gameplay the game grabs you by the balls and pulls you out of your comfort zone. This is not about what you could possibly think anymore, and from here DE makes a great job giving you new drops of information with each new quest, expanding their multi-layered timeline. The Orokin collapse, the Zariman incident, the Void, the Grineer Queens, the Dax, Transference, Continuity, some entity old as stars, how the Warframes were created and by whom... starting with The Second Dream, Warframe's storyline never stops delivering in the most unexpected ways.
Since I can't praise enough the story and lore because it's my favourite aspect of the game and I could go on for literally hours, I'll stop here to briefly talk about the OST. And more important, the sound design. Playing this game with headphones adds so much to the experience it's unbelievable. Everything sounds as it should. Voices, grunts, bullets, explosions, engines... I've recently watched an old video on PlayWarframe channel about the sound design and I could watch an extra hour of it. And about the OST itself I don't think I can say anything that hasn't been said before: This Is What You Are, We All Lift Together, Corpus Greed, Smiles from Juran, Octavia's Anthem, For Narmer, those chants from the Orokin Derelicts, the entire eerie score from Whispers in the Walls, Nine Inch Nails (I've heard this song for many years before I knew about the game, so go figure)... not a dull theme in this game as far as I know.
There's a lot more I want to say but this is taking too long, so I'll try to be brief from now.
The War Within, Chains of Harrow and The Sacrifice are almost equally good to me. And that means very good. I love them so much and I could replay them over and over. The New War is my second favourite quest of the entire game and I'm envy of those who played Scarlet Spear, Orphix Venom and other related events that prepared players for months until the main event came. My only "hated" moment on New War was when I had to play with the Railjack, and only because I didn't do any Railjack missions before this quest. Now I want to take the opportunity to talk about this: I currently LOVE Railjack and I find it spectacular because of how it feels and looks, but it's not very welcoming at first. After crafting it in Rising Tide you should have to play a mandatory mission where some mod rewards are guaranteed: for example one of the speed mods, because without it the ship moves so incredibly slow the thrill you should feel piloting it is non-existent. Thanks to this short mission you would get the main idea of how plexus works through modding, identifying new gear and levelling up some intrinsics. Maybe then you would be more interested in the Railjack, maybe then you would be ready and hyped to use it on The New War.
Angels of the Zariman plot felt very short but gave us my favourite tileset, some of the best new game modes (I personally love Void Flood) and Holdfasts standing, which is probably my favourite to rank up because of the Voidplumes and Accolades. I always have so much fun searching them. Duviri is... amazing in a generous amount of things, but not all of them for me. I don't want to sound elitist or harsh here because I can't imagine how hard it can be to make decent soulslike combat (actually some dedicated soulslike games also have trouble replicating FromSoftware formula, and not even FS formula is perfect in all of their games). Despite that fact, I still wish we get some more Duviri content in the future because it's so beautiful to leave it like this, and I also hope that Soulframe nails soulslike combat because it will probably be the game that make me buy a PS5.
VeilbreakeKahl's Garrison is great because, well, we're talking about Kahl here. Also bonus points thanks to Blue Girl.
Whispers in the Walls is absurdly jawdropping and I can't wait for 1999. I don't want to write another 20 pages about story and lore but I swear to God this has to be the best moment to play Warframe yet. My only fear is what can possibly come after facing the Man in the Wall because I don't think there can be anything more interesting or powerful than such entity. I know this is asking too much because we're talking about an online game, but I pray this story to have a proper ending, not something artificially long or forced unrelated stuff or poor retcon. I think this story should end with Wally's conclusion... unless the character alignment system eventually leads to turning some of the Tenno into the new antagonists, with a civil war as the third and final story arc. I don't know, but a new unknown villain after the Wall won't work for me.
Now I want to mention some other important things that I feel need to be addressed.
Early game: it begs to be improved. If DE finally makes the journey to The Second Dream interesting even for the most impatient players, this game will be unbelievably good right from the beginning. As I said, placing Heart of Deimos after Mars is a wise move, but some gaps are still need to be filled on many planets until Uranus/Natah. How, then? The good news is DE themselves already have the exact content they need because this content was once playable. Of course I'm talking about past events like The Gradivus Dilemma, The Hunt for Alad V, Ties That Bind, Eyes of Blight, Tubemen of Regor... there's SO MUCH story with great characters like Alad, Vay Hek, Tyl Regor, Sargas Ruk, Frohd Bek and many others.
They already HAVE the early game they need buried in old code and the only thing they have to do is re-release it, so new (and not-so-new) players can enjoy those little stories while making their way to the huge reveals. I was baffled by how much content I've lost because of these one-time events. How much they told, how much secondary characters shone and delivered. Even the bosses were introduced properly, such as the Ambulas or Kela de Thaym. And yes, I know the devs themselves already said that those events are pretty messy code-speaking to be reinserted in the game, but then why not make them playable with a single specific characteframe like they did with Kahl, Veso or Teshin in The New War? You don't need to redesign every event from scratch, you even have the assets and dialogues. I understand this may result in a significant inversion of time and money at first because it won't exactly be new content, but in the long run it would be extremely beneficial for the game.
I can't stress this matter enough because of how important it is. Those fragments added so much to the lore it's a shame they are now completely abandoned. For example, if you don't read about these past events you can't even understand why Alad is helping us in The Second Dream, or when he became Mutalist or why he's not Mutalist anymore. The game doesn't tell you about the Zanuka Project, or about Darvo's lineage. Or how close was Regor to cure the Cloning Decay Syndrome. If a new player gets hooked early on with these story fragments and not just by completing nodes one after another, it makes sense to be sure how invested they will eventually be, considering how much this game opens up as you progress.
Random points I don't know where to fit in: the best part about this game is that all of my issues (mentioned before or down here) not only have a simple solution, but I think they will be solved eventually. However, I would like to talk about the discounts that console players get. I honestly think that's not working at all. I don't want a platinum discount on my next purchase, I want to purchase platinum at a reduced price so I can buy whatever I want.
-The Wiki. I love the Wiki so much I almost spend more time there than in the game itself. I'm not asking to put every single article from the Wiki into the game, but I think the Codex should be much more complete than it is now. Maybe more guides about certain mechanics and modes would be great. I'm not asking to complete the Leverian or anything like that, even though I would love to because it feels so incomplete as it is now.
-One specific thing that pisses me off is that sometimes I'm sprinting and I get unrealistically stuck in a corner or a wall when there doesn't seem to be enough collision to stop me. It might be nice if you just slid a little off the obstacle instead. Also there's a lot of annoying ledges when I'm trying to jump to reach something. I hit them constantly and I can't go up any higher because of that, maybe it's because I'm a terrible player but it would be better if I could go up straight until I reach my destination.
-I can beat the Eidolon Teralyst alone in 10 minutes and I'm so proud of it because it's a fun boss and taking it down gives me an immense sense of accomplishment.
Community and devs: saved the best for the end. This is, unironically, the best gaming community I've ever seen. People around Warframe is, with some inevitable exceptions, very kind and welcoming. If you need something, people are willing to give it to you for free. I needed a Necramech Engine and wanted to trade it for another part during an Isolation Vault, but then a player decided to trade me the part for free. I tried to give her plat but she insisted on giving me just the engine with nothing in return. At least I managed to give her a Lobotriscid because I think they look cool, and she happily answered that she was going to put it in her aquarium. Those kinds of gestures are what make this community so great.
Yeah. This subreddit is great and awesome and funny and wise and horny and I love it so much. I really mean it. You make my day when I'm at work, but that's why I feel even worse when I see how a small fraction of them/us behave so ruthless with DE, especially in the Wiki comments. Don't get me wrong: I think positive criticism is necessary in Warframe, to the point I even think DE expects that feedback from us to balance the game, correct bugs or find out what players really want or need, but there are individuals out there who just want to be as unpleasant as they can. DE has the balls to always be at the front line, ready for anything those people could throw at them. Besides the great community, DE truly deserves an ovation here because of how amazing they are. Because they believed in their product and fought for it since 2012, and after a lot of struggle they succeeded in what they dreamed of. I love watching early updates with Steve, Scott, Rebecca and many other exceptional people. How enthusiastic and proud they talk about their own creation. And that's so inspiring, especially if you are trying to create any form of art yourself. They are in touch with us, share with us, play with us and laugh with us. They are not only devs, but also people who enjoy playing video games, like us, and that kind of closeness is lacking nowadays in the vast majority of video game companies.
So please, stop going bananas on the same people who are giving you a free fucking 3000+ hour game. They are not holding a gun to your head to play it, or pay for it, so next time you think about throwing your shit at these people try to be more human instead, then express as many thoughts about their product as you want, but always with the same respect they are giving you.
Well, I love Warframe. I love it so much that I wrote this corny fanboyish wall of text. I love it so much that I'm going to take a long break because I want Jade Shadows and 1999 to be released so I can play for another 100 days. I love it so much that I want to buy another 2000 plat as soon as I can, because I want this company to be as successful as it deserves.
Thanks for reading, you beautiful people.
submitted by AlexSetzelk to Warframe [link] [comments]
It's been years since I decided to play an online game again because of how time consuming they are. When I was younger I enjoyed games like Ragnarok Online, Lineage II or Guild Wars, but life goes on and you grow up and you have many other responsibilities. However, FromSoftware's soulslike masterpieces made me fall in love with video games again since 2021, and after spending like 1500 hours on those games and other great titles I asked myself "Hey, why don't you try an MMO or something?". Also, since I was a bit depressed back then, I finally decided to play a game where I could go deeper and deeper, get lost and forget about my daily worries.
Like two years ago, a friend of mine who has been obsessed with Warframe for years showed me some good stuff. He told me about the charactebuild variety, which is very important to me, and showed me the arsenal: katana robot, magnet robot, invisible robot, mind control robot, pixie robot, speed robot, music robot, ass robot(s)... He also told me about spaceship battles, open worlds and excellent storyline, so two years later I finally decided to give it a try.
On January 16th I decided to install Warframe, and it has been one of the best gaming experiences I've had in my entire life.
Not gonna lie, the beginning was... definitely not underwhelming, but a bit discouraging compared to what's to come. And I'm not talking about the tutorial. I think Awakening and Vor's Prize are a decent introduction to the game. Hell, that "new" cinematic is both amazing and necessary, but after that first impression my interest continued to decrease. Fortunately, I kept reaching certain highlights that served as milestones and made me want to move forward.
My main problem back then was the early craft time gating. This was a huge letdown for me because I wanted to try different stuff and didn't have the MR or the resources to do so. You want Rhino, so you kill the Jackal to get the blueprints. Then you farm the Plastids, only to find out that you have to wait 3 and half days until your Warframe is complete. Currently I really like the craft time gating because I find it very rewarding. Because I like to put in practice that kind of delayed gratification, but as a new player you want to try some things and you can't do it right away. I think it would make a much better impression on a potential new player if you could get Excalibur, Mag and Volt already crafted as a very early quest rewards to avoid the 3 day wait, or at least an option to skip the crafting time for the first frame you choose to build. Otherwise you are locked to your very first selection for a few days, regardless of whether you are comfortable with it or not, unless you decide to spend your free 50 platinum to rush the craft. But of course no one is going to do that, because you don't know yet if you're going to invest some money to buy more plat. Actually, I think such situation can backfire and kill the willing to do it.
Another important issue I remember is that, after Vor's Prize, you don't have many interesting things to do for a while, especially since the most useful advice is to complete junction after junction to reach The Second Dream as soon as possible. So you keep completing the nodes, one by one, with almost no relevant story, cinematics or lore involved. The first impression fades until it's completely gone. Eventually I thought "Ok, so I guess this is it. I'm going to kill the same enemies over and over again, just with more health and more damage". And, while this is still kind of true in the "endgame", I never expected how much the game would eventually open up.
To be honest, the mindless slaughter wasn't terrible for me because I was having a blast anyway, and really loved playing Excalibur. Slash Dash was becoming easier to control, Radial Javelin felt powerful and I found out you can toggle your Exalted Blade at will. I couldn't appreciate the usefulness of Radial Blind because the game was being too easy, so I didn't use it at all, and unfortunately this is another great issue in the early game: I can't express how easy Warframe is for almost the half of the Star Chart. For real. It's too painfully easy to the point where you can't possibly die playing the first planets, and anyone who played this game for more than two hours knows that I'm not trying to be cocky. It's a mindless button holder until you get to Uranus or so, and the only redeeming quality of this bloodfest is how good it feels to obliterate things. And no, I don't need the game to be extremely hard. I actually like the difficulty later on and I think it's progressively more and more adequate, but the early game almost discourages you from trying to figure out how to kill things because it's not necessary at all.
Hey. I swear this is an appreciation post, but not everything in the game can be perfect. Especially when you start playing it.
So I keep playing. Saya's Vigil is a nice addition to show you some of the game's possibilities. It's a cute quest with cute characters, they talk about some Sentients, you see the Eidolon, you know one day you will be able to kill it, you have a new open world... yeah, it was okay, but I had to stay away of Plains of Eidolon and completely skipped Fortuna and Orb Vallis because my friend recommended me to focus on completing the Star Chart, so my first real highlight was the Heart of Deimos quest. The New Strange got me interested with that weird transmissions and the womb of the sky thing, but Heart of Deimos was where I really thought this was much more than a pew pew game. This was the quest that made me start loving Warframe, and it was a smart move on DE's part to place it in the early progression.
I absolutely loved this quest, to the point that I even doubted if it could be topped in some way. Yeah, little did I know. I loved the environment, the Entrati family, the Necramech and the possibility of getting one in the future. Then the game decides to go full Zone of the Enders and gives me the Archwing. When I first saw how beautiful space looks in this game and how smooth the flying felt, I was in awe. Everything was getting better and better. Then I got my first Kubrow. My Taxon, both companions with their own mods to configure. I crafted Zephyr, and after a ton of Oxium farming I got the Archwing Segment to fly through open worlds. Then I found myself mining and fishing, hoarding resources that I know I would need someday while listening to some good music. I opened relics to get some Ducats. After Zephyr I crafted Valkyr, and the whole foundry waiting was much more manageable because I finally had more options to choose. I claimed things while crafting other things, increasing my MR little by little. Then I took a detour to visit Fortuna and Orb Vallis, and those lovely singing fellas gave me a friggin hoverboard to race and do tricks on. I paid attention to that Nightwave menu and started to complete Nora's objectives. A free battle pass with even more free rewards? Of course, sign me in.
I wondered how many things I had left to discover. "This game never stops giving", I thought to myself as a new Gift from the Lotus notification appeared in my Warframe Companion app, which I started using to get some extra resources with the extractors. Then I found out about the Twitch drops, too, and I started claiming rewards week after week. I was so in love I couldn't believe all of these awesome experiences were for free, so I felt compelled to contribute as soon as I could get a -75% discount. I finally got it, so I bought 2000 plat and spent a bit on some fashion and slots.
Character building still wasn't a big deal at this point because I didn't know about how much I could boost my Warframes yet. I knew about some mods and subsumable abilities, but nothing else. Adapters, Corrupted/Riven/Augmentation mods, Focus Schools, Amps, Arcanes and Archon Shards were all unknown to me, but now that I have much more knowledge of the game I have to say it's amazing to try your own things and play however you want. Not only what I mentioned is available to you, but also more than 50 different Warframes and a ton of weapons, both ranged and melee. It feels so good to try different things and see how they work together, so rewarding I can't stop looking at the Wiki to find out more about other unknown mechanics.
So my complaints were diminishing as I was making progress. However, there were still some gripes that I want to address here: being a soulslike player, one of my greatest fears was the boss quality, and sadly I hated a lot of them. I know this is something DE is working on and I appreciate it a lot (Jackal, Eidolons, Exploiter Orb, Ropalolyst, Archons, Orowyrm and The Fragmented prove that they are getting somewhere), but Vay Hek, Sargas Ruk, Tyl Regor or Lephantis were a torture for me, especially because I mostly play solo and they took forever the first time. I'm fine with the phased invulnerability timings because there are builds so broken that could kill any boss in one shot, but precisely for that reason you can work around them in other ways. This game has extremely good character movement, and that means a lot of possibilities. Luckily, as I said, bosses are improving with time, but it took a while to find another interesting one besides the Jackal.
My other great issue was the enemy variety. I've seen how Warframe looked in 2013 and I think that slower, strategic combat could be much more enjoyable than the lightning fast pace we have now, where you just can melt enemies with the right config. Melee animations looked better back then because you could actually see what your Warframe was doing. But yeah, I'm aware that we can't go back to those days because the game evolved into what it is right now, and honestly I also love the current gameplay because of how frenetic it is. What I mean is that sometimes I miss more rough enemies, maybe something like the Eximus but with more variety because most enemies die the same way. I'm almost grateful for guys like Drahks, Scorpions, Shockwave Moas, Nullifiers, Terras, Ancient Disruptors, Saxums, Thrax Legatus, Severed Wardens, Hollow Veins... Yes, those enemies can be VERY infuriating, but at least they make you turn your head to kill them first and eliminate their threats as soon as possible.
Again, I think DE is slowly taking care of that, and thankfully these concerns were alleviated for me as soon as I got to Natah quest because I knew something big was coming. The game was finally raising questions about important stuff.
And then I got to The Second Dream. This remains my favourite cinematic quest in all of Warframe, including The Sacrifice, The New War and Whispers in the Walls, and I don't know if anything will ever top its final moments. I couldn't believe what I was witnessing. Those levels of immersion, thanks to the astonishing visuals, immaculate writing, voice acting and OST, will never leave my mind. Generally speaking, DE worries about making the player feel involved because I think everything you do in Warframe actually matters (even some secondary quests give me that vibe), but here everything looks even more in place. Yes, I saw some humanoid players here and there before the quest, walking around Cetus and Fortuna, but maybe thanks to knowing that something called Duviri exists I thought it was a completely separate thing. Of course during my playthrough I was asking myself "So what the fuck is a Tenno? Is this the game's way of breaking the fourth wall to talk to us players? Is Tenno synonymous with Warframe? Are the Tenno inside Warframes? Are they controlling them from somewhere else?", and then you finally get the answer, and then some. And a new character creator. And 5 different skill trees yet to unlock.
The Second Dream changes everything about Warframe, and it can't be rushed. It can't happen before it happens. After 40/50/60 hours of gameplay the game grabs you by the balls and pulls you out of your comfort zone. This is not about what you could possibly think anymore, and from here DE makes a great job giving you new drops of information with each new quest, expanding their multi-layered timeline. The Orokin collapse, the Zariman incident, the Void, the Grineer Queens, the Dax, Transference, Continuity, some entity old as stars, how the Warframes were created and by whom... starting with The Second Dream, Warframe's storyline never stops delivering in the most unexpected ways.
Since I can't praise enough the story and lore because it's my favourite aspect of the game and I could go on for literally hours, I'll stop here to briefly talk about the OST. And more important, the sound design. Playing this game with headphones adds so much to the experience it's unbelievable. Everything sounds as it should. Voices, grunts, bullets, explosions, engines... I've recently watched an old video on PlayWarframe channel about the sound design and I could watch an extra hour of it. And about the OST itself I don't think I can say anything that hasn't been said before: This Is What You Are, We All Lift Together, Corpus Greed, Smiles from Juran, Octavia's Anthem, For Narmer, those chants from the Orokin Derelicts, the entire eerie score from Whispers in the Walls, Nine Inch Nails (I've heard this song for many years before I knew about the game, so go figure)... not a dull theme in this game as far as I know.
There's a lot more I want to say but this is taking too long, so I'll try to be brief from now.
The War Within, Chains of Harrow and The Sacrifice are almost equally good to me. And that means very good. I love them so much and I could replay them over and over. The New War is my second favourite quest of the entire game and I'm envy of those who played Scarlet Spear, Orphix Venom and other related events that prepared players for months until the main event came. My only "hated" moment on New War was when I had to play with the Railjack, and only because I didn't do any Railjack missions before this quest. Now I want to take the opportunity to talk about this: I currently LOVE Railjack and I find it spectacular because of how it feels and looks, but it's not very welcoming at first. After crafting it in Rising Tide you should have to play a mandatory mission where some mod rewards are guaranteed: for example one of the speed mods, because without it the ship moves so incredibly slow the thrill you should feel piloting it is non-existent. Thanks to this short mission you would get the main idea of how plexus works through modding, identifying new gear and levelling up some intrinsics. Maybe then you would be more interested in the Railjack, maybe then you would be ready and hyped to use it on The New War.
Angels of the Zariman plot felt very short but gave us my favourite tileset, some of the best new game modes (I personally love Void Flood) and Holdfasts standing, which is probably my favourite to rank up because of the Voidplumes and Accolades. I always have so much fun searching them. Duviri is... amazing in a generous amount of things, but not all of them for me. I don't want to sound elitist or harsh here because I can't imagine how hard it can be to make decent soulslike combat (actually some dedicated soulslike games also have trouble replicating FromSoftware formula, and not even FS formula is perfect in all of their games). Despite that fact, I still wish we get some more Duviri content in the future because it's so beautiful to leave it like this, and I also hope that Soulframe nails soulslike combat because it will probably be the game that make me buy a PS5.
VeilbreakeKahl's Garrison is great because, well, we're talking about Kahl here. Also bonus points thanks to Blue Girl.
Whispers in the Walls is absurdly jawdropping and I can't wait for 1999. I don't want to write another 20 pages about story and lore but I swear to God this has to be the best moment to play Warframe yet. My only fear is what can possibly come after facing the Man in the Wall because I don't think there can be anything more interesting or powerful than such entity. I know this is asking too much because we're talking about an online game, but I pray this story to have a proper ending, not something artificially long or forced unrelated stuff or poor retcon. I think this story should end with Wally's conclusion... unless the character alignment system eventually leads to turning some of the Tenno into the new antagonists, with a civil war as the third and final story arc. I don't know, but a new unknown villain after the Wall won't work for me.
Now I want to mention some other important things that I feel need to be addressed.
Early game: it begs to be improved. If DE finally makes the journey to The Second Dream interesting even for the most impatient players, this game will be unbelievably good right from the beginning. As I said, placing Heart of Deimos after Mars is a wise move, but some gaps are still need to be filled on many planets until Uranus/Natah. How, then? The good news is DE themselves already have the exact content they need because this content was once playable. Of course I'm talking about past events like The Gradivus Dilemma, The Hunt for Alad V, Ties That Bind, Eyes of Blight, Tubemen of Regor... there's SO MUCH story with great characters like Alad, Vay Hek, Tyl Regor, Sargas Ruk, Frohd Bek and many others.
They already HAVE the early game they need buried in old code and the only thing they have to do is re-release it, so new (and not-so-new) players can enjoy those little stories while making their way to the huge reveals. I was baffled by how much content I've lost because of these one-time events. How much they told, how much secondary characters shone and delivered. Even the bosses were introduced properly, such as the Ambulas or Kela de Thaym. And yes, I know the devs themselves already said that those events are pretty messy code-speaking to be reinserted in the game, but then why not make them playable with a single specific characteframe like they did with Kahl, Veso or Teshin in The New War? You don't need to redesign every event from scratch, you even have the assets and dialogues. I understand this may result in a significant inversion of time and money at first because it won't exactly be new content, but in the long run it would be extremely beneficial for the game.
I can't stress this matter enough because of how important it is. Those fragments added so much to the lore it's a shame they are now completely abandoned. For example, if you don't read about these past events you can't even understand why Alad is helping us in The Second Dream, or when he became Mutalist or why he's not Mutalist anymore. The game doesn't tell you about the Zanuka Project, or about Darvo's lineage. Or how close was Regor to cure the Cloning Decay Syndrome. If a new player gets hooked early on with these story fragments and not just by completing nodes one after another, it makes sense to be sure how invested they will eventually be, considering how much this game opens up as you progress.
Random points I don't know where to fit in: the best part about this game is that all of my issues (mentioned before or down here) not only have a simple solution, but I think they will be solved eventually. However, I would like to talk about the discounts that console players get. I honestly think that's not working at all. I don't want a platinum discount on my next purchase, I want to purchase platinum at a reduced price so I can buy whatever I want.
-The Wiki. I love the Wiki so much I almost spend more time there than in the game itself. I'm not asking to put every single article from the Wiki into the game, but I think the Codex should be much more complete than it is now. Maybe more guides about certain mechanics and modes would be great. I'm not asking to complete the Leverian or anything like that, even though I would love to because it feels so incomplete as it is now.
-One specific thing that pisses me off is that sometimes I'm sprinting and I get unrealistically stuck in a corner or a wall when there doesn't seem to be enough collision to stop me. It might be nice if you just slid a little off the obstacle instead. Also there's a lot of annoying ledges when I'm trying to jump to reach something. I hit them constantly and I can't go up any higher because of that, maybe it's because I'm a terrible player but it would be better if I could go up straight until I reach my destination.
-I can beat the Eidolon Teralyst alone in 10 minutes and I'm so proud of it because it's a fun boss and taking it down gives me an immense sense of accomplishment.
Community and devs: saved the best for the end. This is, unironically, the best gaming community I've ever seen. People around Warframe is, with some inevitable exceptions, very kind and welcoming. If you need something, people are willing to give it to you for free. I needed a Necramech Engine and wanted to trade it for another part during an Isolation Vault, but then a player decided to trade me the part for free. I tried to give her plat but she insisted on giving me just the engine with nothing in return. At least I managed to give her a Lobotriscid because I think they look cool, and she happily answered that she was going to put it in her aquarium. Those kinds of gestures are what make this community so great.
Yeah. This subreddit is great and awesome and funny and wise and horny and I love it so much. I really mean it. You make my day when I'm at work, but that's why I feel even worse when I see how a small fraction of them/us behave so ruthless with DE, especially in the Wiki comments. Don't get me wrong: I think positive criticism is necessary in Warframe, to the point I even think DE expects that feedback from us to balance the game, correct bugs or find out what players really want or need, but there are individuals out there who just want to be as unpleasant as they can. DE has the balls to always be at the front line, ready for anything those people could throw at them. Besides the great community, DE truly deserves an ovation here because of how amazing they are. Because they believed in their product and fought for it since 2012, and after a lot of struggle they succeeded in what they dreamed of. I love watching early updates with Steve, Scott, Rebecca and many other exceptional people. How enthusiastic and proud they talk about their own creation. And that's so inspiring, especially if you are trying to create any form of art yourself. They are in touch with us, share with us, play with us and laugh with us. They are not only devs, but also people who enjoy playing video games, like us, and that kind of closeness is lacking nowadays in the vast majority of video game companies.
So please, stop going bananas on the same people who are giving you a free fucking 3000+ hour game. They are not holding a gun to your head to play it, or pay for it, so next time you think about throwing your shit at these people try to be more human instead, then express as many thoughts about their product as you want, but always with the same respect they are giving you.
Well, I love Warframe. I love it so much that I wrote this corny fanboyish wall of text. I love it so much that I'm going to take a long break because I want Jade Shadows and 1999 to be released so I can play for another 100 days. I love it so much that I want to buy another 2000 plat as soon as I can, because I want this company to be as successful as it deserves.
Thanks for reading, you beautiful people.
2024.05.03 00:42 _ComputerNoob My Review of KCL / KCL CS
I've getting a lot DMs about this from this sub so imma give u guys a review and answer questions since I can't constantly answer DMs.
TL;DR : The teaching is mid and not the best socially.
I will answer some questions but if there's just too many I will stop.
My background:
2:1 degree. A*A*A at A-level, AAAB in AS level (proper external AS level not mocks). Did the old GCSEs: 3As, 5Bs 1C (us Brits never liked the French so why learn their language am I right). Other offers: Warwick (3A*s), Durham (A*AA but reduced to AAA randomly - contextual maybe?), York (AAB), QMUL (ABB).
2019 applicant.
Firm: Warwick, Insurance: KCL (AAA).
Disclaimer: These views are from my experience as a domestic student and mostly for domestic students. I'm not sure if it can apply for intls cos I'm not one.
Social life at KCL:
Ye the rumours are true, it's bad.There's a lot of international students in the course who don't really like to socialise outside their own race which makes it hard to meet people.
The societies when I was there were pretty bad, they'd only meet once a sem so that adds insult to injury since it's hard to meet sociable CS students in general on top of the above issue. I tried to make friends outside my course, I really did lol.
Most of my friends went to UCL & LSE, some of the other London unis (met through UoL halls). Stay at UoL halls if you can but the allotment for KCL is really small, esp vs UCL & LSE.
Workload:
1st year & 3rd year are pretty chill and the workload won't be bad but 2nd year sem 1 is very tough. I had a job offer going into 3rd year so that skews things. 2nd sem OSC can be quite hard too (fun fact the lecturer went on a Twitter & called our entire class stupid cos they had to scale the exam lmao).
Definetely not an A*A*A level workload though (used to be AAA w/an A in Maths/Physics/CS/Electronics in 2019/when I applied).
P.s. KCL CS did not need A level Maths until recently you so you are not getting rejected for not having Further Maths. The course is less mathematical that it was years ago and it isn't pure maths heavy either.
Teaching:
The teaching is pretty hit and miss but when it misses it really MISSES lol, when it hits it also HITS.
The lecturers are just cunts sometimes e.g. one told us all sem no negative marking for their to be negative marking on exam day lmao and also a few dissertation supervisors decided to book their holidays the week of the deadline, 2 weeks before, etc sometimes with no warning.
One guy decided it'd be a great idea to make a uni-level maths exam with no method marks 🤓. So while teaching may be bad at most unis, it really shouldn't be that unprofessional.
The teaching is mostly online with lectures being pre-recorded and then seminars (LGTs - these are mainly just Q&As or a few extra examples) and tutorials being in person.
Careers & Employability:
The careers team decided to get rid of CV reviews last year and replace it with an AI (which is still the case). You're only allowed a single practice interview per semester too which I found out isn't the case at other unis too.
The variance of grad outcomes is huge. It ranges from Microsoft & Amazon SWEs to someone who just finished up a Data Analyst internship (as a First Class July '23 grad) on £11.40/hour. Some have even just gave up and went back to their home country to look for a job - one of them just got accepted into Imperial for their MSc and another into Cam for their MPhil. Can't get a job but get into Imperial or Cam, that's really crazy.
Most work at small fintechs or start-ups from who I know though.
This isn't an exclusively KCL problem though. It's the same range from my friends at UCL/LSE (they all did econ or engineering), some are ibankers at J.P. Morgan and some have just gone back to their home country and gave up on employment here or are working at companies I haven't heard of (no shame you gotta start somewhere - the first job is the hardest to get). A lot of failed ibankers, quants and consulting applicants tho so ye idk if your uni matters.
Facilities & Location:
Bush House computer labs are really good and my friends from LSE and UCL used to study with me there weekly and some of em even came daily to use them. Bare in mind the CS dept is only 3 floors of one small building vs probably a whole building at some other unis but the caveat is it's in Central London so ye decide what u think is better (city vs campus uni guys). The location is nice and central and Strand has been pedestrianised so it's a very nice vibe.
KCL vs X?
Well KCL used to be a safety school back in my day 👨🏽🦳. Most KCL CS students in my class were Edinburgh/UCL/Warwick/St Andrew's/etc rejects. Warwick reject represent ✊🏼. KCL was THE insurance uni and most people were here for not meeting the offer for their firm.
Not going to start a prestige war or war between the QS rankings vs domestic tho cos like I said above I'm not even sure it matters. In reality is going to St Andrew's instead of KCL going to drastically change your career prospects? No. Just go where you think you'll be the happiest. Happy student -> more motivated -> will apply to internships, do projects & grind leetcode -> success.
Prestige isn't everything and it might even be barely anything - \Eddie Abbew voice** : WAKE TF UP GUYS.
Jokes aside, I would've been much happier somewhere else and more motivated to apply for internships and stuff instead of just coast by, I did get 2 internships (Data Science & ML 🤓) - FTSE 100 companies so didn't do too bad for myself but deffo wasted potential from my assessment of myself 🧘🏻♂️.
Did I regret choosing KCL?
Yes, sort of. KCL had it's moments but I'd have been happier elsewhere.
I chose KCL > Durham as my insurance and it was the wrong decision (for me) haha. I almost dropped out in first year cos the KCL 'uni experience' was just depressing. My experience isn't universal but most domestic/British students had a similar experience to me from who I know (not just CS too lol). I felt pretty out of place as a domestic student sometimes (and I grew up in London lol) and it was pretty isolating.
I chose KCL cos of London and thinking I'd make friends from around the world (which did happen but it was really hard given the clique by race nature of London unis), explore the best city itw IMO (tied with NYC🗽) but tbh growing up in London was having friends from different races in the same friendship group but uni in London is division by race sometimes.
I was swindled by that sweet sweet London life & the open day. It's not all bad, walking across Westminster bridge to get to lectures was iconic. Getting to live in the west end was cool too. London is still the goat imo. Internationals almost always have a good time at KCL. And it did have it's moments tbh. UoL halls were amazing. Guys' Bar Sports night & Ministry of Sound Tuesdays >>>
Would the Durham colliegate system helped? Yes, it'd have been much easier to meet people as evidenced by being in catered UoL halls vs my time at KCL & private halls.
submitted by _ComputerNoob to UniUK [link] [comments]
TL;DR : The teaching is mid and not the best socially.
I will answer some questions but if there's just too many I will stop.
My background:
2:1 degree. A*A*A at A-level, AAAB in AS level (proper external AS level not mocks). Did the old GCSEs: 3As, 5Bs 1C (us Brits never liked the French so why learn their language am I right). Other offers: Warwick (3A*s), Durham (A*AA but reduced to AAA randomly - contextual maybe?), York (AAB), QMUL (ABB).
2019 applicant.
Firm: Warwick, Insurance: KCL (AAA).
Disclaimer: These views are from my experience as a domestic student and mostly for domestic students. I'm not sure if it can apply for intls cos I'm not one.
Social life at KCL:
Ye the rumours are true, it's bad.There's a lot of international students in the course who don't really like to socialise outside their own race which makes it hard to meet people.
The societies when I was there were pretty bad, they'd only meet once a sem so that adds insult to injury since it's hard to meet sociable CS students in general on top of the above issue. I tried to make friends outside my course, I really did lol.
Most of my friends went to UCL & LSE, some of the other London unis (met through UoL halls). Stay at UoL halls if you can but the allotment for KCL is really small, esp vs UCL & LSE.
Workload:
1st year & 3rd year are pretty chill and the workload won't be bad but 2nd year sem 1 is very tough. I had a job offer going into 3rd year so that skews things. 2nd sem OSC can be quite hard too (fun fact the lecturer went on a Twitter & called our entire class stupid cos they had to scale the exam lmao).
Definetely not an A*A*A level workload though (used to be AAA w/an A in Maths/Physics/CS/Electronics in 2019/when I applied).
P.s. KCL CS did not need A level Maths until recently you so you are not getting rejected for not having Further Maths. The course is less mathematical that it was years ago and it isn't pure maths heavy either.
Teaching:
The teaching is pretty hit and miss but when it misses it really MISSES lol, when it hits it also HITS.
The lecturers are just cunts sometimes e.g. one told us all sem no negative marking for their to be negative marking on exam day lmao and also a few dissertation supervisors decided to book their holidays the week of the deadline, 2 weeks before, etc sometimes with no warning.
One guy decided it'd be a great idea to make a uni-level maths exam with no method marks 🤓. So while teaching may be bad at most unis, it really shouldn't be that unprofessional.
The teaching is mostly online with lectures being pre-recorded and then seminars (LGTs - these are mainly just Q&As or a few extra examples) and tutorials being in person.
Careers & Employability:
The careers team decided to get rid of CV reviews last year and replace it with an AI (which is still the case). You're only allowed a single practice interview per semester too which I found out isn't the case at other unis too.
The variance of grad outcomes is huge. It ranges from Microsoft & Amazon SWEs to someone who just finished up a Data Analyst internship (as a First Class July '23 grad) on £11.40/hour. Some have even just gave up and went back to their home country to look for a job - one of them just got accepted into Imperial for their MSc and another into Cam for their MPhil. Can't get a job but get into Imperial or Cam, that's really crazy.
Most work at small fintechs or start-ups from who I know though.
This isn't an exclusively KCL problem though. It's the same range from my friends at UCL/LSE (they all did econ or engineering), some are ibankers at J.P. Morgan and some have just gone back to their home country and gave up on employment here or are working at companies I haven't heard of (no shame you gotta start somewhere - the first job is the hardest to get). A lot of failed ibankers, quants and consulting applicants tho so ye idk if your uni matters.
Facilities & Location:
Bush House computer labs are really good and my friends from LSE and UCL used to study with me there weekly and some of em even came daily to use them. Bare in mind the CS dept is only 3 floors of one small building vs probably a whole building at some other unis but the caveat is it's in Central London so ye decide what u think is better (city vs campus uni guys). The location is nice and central and Strand has been pedestrianised so it's a very nice vibe.
KCL vs X?
Well KCL used to be a safety school back in my day 👨🏽🦳. Most KCL CS students in my class were Edinburgh/UCL/Warwick/St Andrew's/etc rejects. Warwick reject represent ✊🏼. KCL was THE insurance uni and most people were here for not meeting the offer for their firm.
Not going to start a prestige war or war between the QS rankings vs domestic tho cos like I said above I'm not even sure it matters. In reality is going to St Andrew's instead of KCL going to drastically change your career prospects? No. Just go where you think you'll be the happiest. Happy student -> more motivated -> will apply to internships, do projects & grind leetcode -> success.
Prestige isn't everything and it might even be barely anything - \Eddie Abbew voice** : WAKE TF UP GUYS.
Jokes aside, I would've been much happier somewhere else and more motivated to apply for internships and stuff instead of just coast by, I did get 2 internships (Data Science & ML 🤓) - FTSE 100 companies so didn't do too bad for myself but deffo wasted potential from my assessment of myself 🧘🏻♂️.
Did I regret choosing KCL?
Yes, sort of. KCL had it's moments but I'd have been happier elsewhere.
I chose KCL > Durham as my insurance and it was the wrong decision (for me) haha. I almost dropped out in first year cos the KCL 'uni experience' was just depressing. My experience isn't universal but most domestic/British students had a similar experience to me from who I know (not just CS too lol). I felt pretty out of place as a domestic student sometimes (and I grew up in London lol) and it was pretty isolating.
I chose KCL cos of London and thinking I'd make friends from around the world (which did happen but it was really hard given the clique by race nature of London unis), explore the best city itw IMO (tied with NYC🗽) but tbh growing up in London was having friends from different races in the same friendship group but uni in London is division by race sometimes.
I was swindled by that sweet sweet London life & the open day. It's not all bad, walking across Westminster bridge to get to lectures was iconic. Getting to live in the west end was cool too. London is still the goat imo. Internationals almost always have a good time at KCL. And it did have it's moments tbh. UoL halls were amazing. Guys' Bar Sports night & Ministry of Sound Tuesdays >>>
Would the Durham colliegate system helped? Yes, it'd have been much easier to meet people as evidenced by being in catered UoL halls vs my time at KCL & private halls.
2024.05.03 00:40 JPisaBrony 31 [M4F] Minnesota / USA - looking for the love of my life
I am looking for the love of my life. someone who will truly love me for who I am. someone who wants to work through our differences and issues together. someone who values commitment, communication, adaptability, loyalty, and honesty as much as I do. someone who wants to put in as much effort as I do. someone I can love back just as much because when I love someone, I really love them.
I don't expect us to have all of the same interests and we should have some different ones so that we can learn from each other. what matters most to me is that we have similar core values and relationship goals. I do still have my preferences and those are:
If this post piqued your interest and you would like to get to know me better, then you should reach out. I am looking forward to meeting you.
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I don't expect us to have all of the same interests and we should have some different ones so that we can learn from each other. what matters most to me is that we have similar core values and relationship goals. I do still have my preferences and those are:
- I don't do drugs or smoke.
- I don't drink alcohol. I would prefer if you didn't but it is not a deal breaker.
- I would like to have kids one day. I don't have any kids of my own yet and expect the same from you.
- I am not a pet person. I am also allergic to cats.
- I am not political at all.
- I am a christian and am looking for someone who shares the same faith.
- I am only looking inside of the USA but I would be willing to relocate anywhere in the country for the right person.
- I am looking for someone between the ages of 25-30.
- I am looking for a woman who is single and wants to get married one day.
- I would like to swap pictures sooner than later. my basic info is: 5'8", brown hair, white, about 150 lbs.
- I want to voice chat / video chat using discord at some point but we can start with text first.
If this post piqued your interest and you would like to get to know me better, then you should reach out. I am looking forward to meeting you.
2024.05.03 00:39 nofuneral New to the group, veteran boycotter
I moved to Winnipeg from a small, northern community with my family in 2005. I used to go to all the grocery stores at first. I hated Superstore. It was always crazy busy and I hated bagging my own groceries. But their prices were so cheap that eventually I just got used to the crazy crowds and the headache shopping there. The grocery bill has always been part of our disposable income. If I had to get my vehicle repaired or some other unforeseen expense then it meant we had to cut down the grocery bill. There were always items I could get to stretch out food for my family. Lunch meat for $.99-$1.50 per 100 grams, apples for $.99-$1.50 per pound. No name products. I honestly felt that Superstore cared about getting affordable groceries to me. I felt that they worked hard to help me and my family eat for years and their no name products were good quality. Fast forward to 2022. I'm single, my kids are grown up. My vehicle got stolen and I didn't have a ride for 4 or 5 months during the spring and summer, just my bike. My condo is right across the street from Save On Foods. They seemed pretty expensive. Some stuff was cheap. After 5 months I got a new vehicle and I went to Superstore for the first time. I couldn't believe their prices. Apples were $2.99 or more. Lunch meat was $2.99 or more. No name French fries went from $1.79 to $2.99. So I stuck with Save On Foods. They're the same price. They're cheaper if you know how to find the deals. Then Superstore came out with that commercial. "Were freezing prices all over the store." I thought "You fucking asshole. You jacked up the price of groceries 60-80% and now you're gonna freeze price on products? You're supposed to do that before you jack up the prices." That was the day 18 years of having a good reputation with me turned sour. Superstore isn't on my side. Superstore doesn't have a commitment to help my family afford groceries. They keep their prices lower just to beat out the competition, not to help hard working Canadians. I've been sharing this boycott with all my friends and family, my coworkers. Time to stick it to the man. Time to fight back. We're not just sending a message to Superstore, we're sending a message to all the giant corporations. We're sending a message to all the food producers who took advantage of inflation to make record profits. This movement isn't going away. We're going to keep growing. It's going to spread to other countries. We're going to win. By the time Superstore takes the corrective action, it's going to be too late. It is too late. Let's do this! Let's work together! Let's all send them a message and hit them where it hurts!
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2024.05.03 00:36 heydawn TODAY'S RECAP 5/2/2024
TODAY'S RECAP
Steffy snarks at Ivy who gushes more at Liam. Steffy tries to match the gushing with her own gushing alone with Liam. Deacon and Finn take care of Sheila and get her story -- NOT at a hospital -- but at Deacon's apartment.Ivy, Liam, and Steffy at Il Giardino
(Liam, Ivy, and Steffy are now seated at a table for three).Liam: Glad they could give us a table for threeeee. 🙄
"Steffy:* Yeah. Mmm hmm. I'm soooooo surprised 😲Ivy wanted ME to join you! 😏😁
Ivy: Three is a crowd. 😏 Sooooo, Steffy. Missed me? 😏
Steffy: Totally! (💭 not even this 🤏 much). And obviously, you've made it completely, ridiculously clear how VERY much you missed THIS guy -- with that big , juicy kiss 💋 (💭 so desperate and over the top 🫤).
I know you flew ✈️ all the way here for to plant that kiss on Liam Was it worth it, hmm? 😏 (💭 She's embarrassing herself. Gawd. Is Liam into it? 🤔)
Liam: 🙄 (💭 Steffy is in that mood. Oh God. 🫣) Well, are we having fun yet?
Steffy: So why (💭 the fuck 🤨) are you even here? (💭 It's not like anyone wants you here or even remembers you. I do recall when you were pathetically copying me. Poor thing. Smh. 😆).
Ivy: I was visiting another very handsome man.Your grandfather. Uncle Eric. So glad he's doing better.
Steffy: Yah. But, admit it. You were really here for this handsome guy. (💭 You're so fucking obvious. Gah!)
Ivy: (💭 She thinks she's making me squirm, having fun, poking at me 👉 l dgaf. Ima put it all out there and shut this bitch down). Yeah. I wanted to see Liam. He's single. Why not?
(Reddit, you might want to mute the volume as Ivy directs her attention to Liam in an avalanche of gushing praise 🤢🤮).
Liam, it's been a long time and we've changed, but you are still the same kind, caring, sensitive, thoughtful, respectful, honest, perfect, funny, sweet, did I say amazing? handsome, ripped, buff, humble, perfect, sexy as hell, hot🔥, kitten and baby saving superhero genius you always were! 😍🥰🔥💕🩷
Why aren't women beating down your door? I would be! I see no reason to hold back my feelings. 😍 (Smoooooch 💋)
Liam: 😄 (Did you hear that Steffy? I've been tryna tell you!)
Steffy: 🙄 🍷 (💭 This dumb bitch is too much. Gawd. Let me gulp down some wine 🍷 bc I can't listen to this gushing blather without drinking).
Liam: 🥴 (💭 Such a familiar feeling, having women praise me for no reason. I've kinda missed this. Yah).
Ivy: Maybe I'm being too forward.
Steffy; Ya think? (Hard eye roll 🙄 and gulping more wine 🍷. Can't TAKE it, but I sure af am not going anywhere. I'ma sit right here, bitch, and protect MY turf. 😤).
Ivy: On second thought, nah. I'm being exactly as forward as I feel like bc why tf not? Liam, we've evolved and we'd be good together. 😍💋
Steffy: Okay okay okaaaaay. Enough of this gushing. Yeah yeah yeah. Liam is remarkable. He's amazing. He's all the things. 🙌 He's also Kelly's dad and we gotta go right tf now and see our daughter (💭 because I can't take one more second of YOU. 😖).
Ivy and Liam: Gooood to see you. Good to see youuuuuuu! 😍🥰 🤗 (Hugs. Smooch 💋). Call me. Mmm k.
Steffy: Okaaaay. Bye. Byeeeee. 👋 (💭 Git! Chop chop. Gawd. Painful). 🫤.
(Exit Ivy)
"Steffy:* Not even a little bit subtle, is she. Well, I'm direct too. Us Forester women. Ya gotta love it. (🍷 Gulping more wine).
Liam: 🤨🙄😏😄
(Steffy and Liam go to Steffy's)
Steffy and Liam at Steffy's
Steffy: All the gushing things Ivy said. All true. (💭 I'll just reel this boy back to me. I'll flirt in a way that trotts right up to the line and a little 🤏 over the boundary -- just enough to make him forget all about that dumb bitch, Ivy. It won't take much. Snicker. 😏).Liam: My ego is about to pop.
Steffy: Hahahaha 😀 (flirty laugh, big flirty smiles). I'm not after you. What about Ivy? I agree with all of it. You are amazing, remarkable, incredible. You're an amazing father. Kelly loves you soooo much. You should see even MORE of her (💭 meaning me). Finn won't mind. He knows YOU'RE Kelly's FATHER and you're sooooo important to Kelly (💭 meaning me. Never forget that you love ME. Yeah I have Finn, but you and I are bonded. She's no competition. Never has been. 😏).
Liam: 🥴 Yah. (💭 Uh. Sheesh. Stefffffy. Miss us. She knows how to get to me. Ivy who? 🙄)
Sheila, Deacon, and Finn at Deacon's
Finn and Deacon: She should be in a hospital! 🏥 Yah! 😦 She needs fluids! Mmm hmm. She was half dead! 😮 I know ! She needs medical help! Yah. Yah.Deacon: But she WON'T go. And you're a doctor, so.
Sheila: I'm just gonna stay right fucking here and recover (💭 bc suddenly, I forgot all of my nursing 👩⚕️ training and think it's fine to be dehydrated and malnourished and half dead, and to skip the hospital anyway. I'ma just hang out on the sofa). How did you find me?
Deacon: Well, it's like this, blah blah ten toes blah blah Sugar blah blah Lauren
Sheila: 🙄 (💭 Ack. I hate it when people bring up Lauren).
Deacon: Blah blah connected the dots ⚫⚫⚫ and did the math ➕➕➕ blah blah warehouse! Ta da!
Deacon and Finn: WTF happened to you? Yah. What? Tell us. Any day now. Waiting...
Sheila: Sugar! I was like, OMFG, this bitch. I better meet her. Well, she knocks me out, hauls my ass to that warehouse, and chains me up. I did my best ferocious Sheila 😡, but I was in chains ⛓️so it didn't have the usual impact. 🫤
Anyway (flashback to Sheila and Sugar in the warehouse).
Flashback Sugar: (perfecting the whispered, menacing voice with a hard to place accent). I've been waiting and waiting and obsessing and waiting and biding my time and waiting and imagining how I would GET BACK AT YOUUU and WAAAAAITING! Snarl, grr to get my REVENGE on you BITCH!
Sheila: (💭 🫤 Dang it. When I fuck someone up, they need to stay fucked. ppbbffrrtt. Sigh. Gah!)
Flashback Sugar: WE WERE FRIENDS! 😡😮 You FUCKED over the wrong gal, bitch! You gave me your stupid FACE! Then you made ME pay for your crimes.
Flashback Sheila: Oh, hold on there. 🤔 I have a salient point ☝️ to raise with you. Listen up. Let me correct you. YOU attacked Lauren's son. YOU served all of these years for YOUR CRIME! Don't put that shit on me. Nuh uh. I have enough crimes of my own. 😦 You can't put your shit in MY crime column. No. No. No. No. Nope. That one's on you. So there! Ya gonna let me go now that we straighted that shit out? 🤨
Flashback Sugar: (whisper yelling. How does she do that?) IDGAF! I was STUCK in the LOONEY BIN! It's all your fucking fault. I blame YOU bc I was paying you back for my face and -- never fucking mind. Your fault! Grr. Snort. 😤 Growl! 😈
I've been plotting and scheming and thinking and imagining and looking very much forward to FUCKING YOU OVER! Yah! Fun! 👏👏👏 HA! 😝🤪
YOU set me up! So, I'ma set YOU up! I'ma frame you for killing Steffy! Hehehe 😆. I'ma wear this spooky see through mask and go kill Steffy! Hahaha! And they're all going to BLAME YOU! It will be witchy and cool af! 🧙♀️🪄
Flashback Sheila: But -- and I think this is another important point ☝️ -- you look like me, sure, but you don't SOUND like me. So. Gotcha there. Not gonna work.
Flashback Sugar: Let me give you a little voice demo. Hang on a sec while I amp up the suspense. Hold on, while I pause for dramatic effect. Hehehe. 😏
(Sugar switches from whispery, accented SUGAR voice to Sheila's voice). How about now? 😏 How's this, bitch?
Flashback Sheila: 😳😲😖😫 DON'T HURT STEFFFFFFY! Fuck ME up instead! (💭 Only I'm allowed to shoot Steffy, GAH! 😵). (clanging and yanking her chain ⛓️) Grrr! Let me go! I'll get you for this! 😡 Don't you dare hurt Steffy! Grr!
Flashback Sugar: Ohhh, I'ma kill Steffy. 👹 And you'll get the blame. You'll spend the rest of your miserable life behind bars, ALONE, and Finn will HATE YOU! 😈 HAHAHA! 😆😂🤣 It'll be great! Pretty cool, huh? Just like one of your plans. (Snicker. Starts to leave). 😏
Flashback Sheila: NOOOOOOOO! (Trips Sugar)
Flashback Sugar: Bitch. Not cool. I'ma stomp you now and flatten your skinny, chained up ass. (🦶 Kick! Pow! 💥 Sheila is flattened).
Present Sheila: And that's the story of how a mother's love is the best, most perfect love. I love you. I love your children. I love your (💭 pain in the ass) wife. And I love Deacon. I'm full of love 🩷 and light!🕯️ and sunshine! ☀️ In fact, when you really think about it, I'm a fucking angel!😇
I tried everything in my power to save Steffy (💭 even though that irritating wifey of yours hates me.
Deacon: I LOVE you! 🩷💕
Finn: Mom. OMG! You did everything any perfect, loving mother would do to try to protect the family that she so lovingly loves with all the love in her loving heart! You're the best mom! You tried to save Steffy. 🩷💕 I'm so lucky to have such a caring, loving mom. (Hugs 🤗)
Mom! 🩷♥️🧡💛💚🩵💙💜 (💭 all I have to do is explain to Steffy that Sheila tried to save her. She'll be grateful, I'm sure. I think. I hope. Maybe. We'll see. I don't know. Oh gawd. 🙄). Mom 🩷♥️🧡💛💚🩵💙💜
Sheila: 🩷♥️🧡💛💚🩵💙💜 (💭 Well, if tryna protect that idiot, Steffy, getting kidnapped, chained up, starved, and left for dead was all I had to do to win my son's love, I woulda done this a long time ago. He loves me! 🥰 🩷♥️🧡💛💚🩵💙💜)
The end
2024.05.03 00:33 LiseEclaire [Leveling up the World] - Nobility Arc - Chapter 930
Out there - Patreon (for all those curious or wanting to support :))
At the Beginning
Adventure Arc - Arc 2
Wilderness Arc - Arc 3
Academy Arc - Arc 4
Nobility Arc - Arc 5
Previously on Leveling up the World...
DRYAD RULER
(+2 Empathy)
You have fulfilled the promise made to the dryads generations ago. The question is, will you bring them to salvation or get them all killed?
The crown felt uncomfortable on Dallion’s head, though not nearly as uncomfortable as the realization that he had made the final step. The conquest was put in motion and now he couldn’t turn back even if he wanted to.
A long time ago, he would have defined this whole thing as the final multiplayer battle, though that was back when he viewed things through the lens of video games. There was nothing fun about this. Any cheats and strategies were allowed and second place equaled death, or “the last loser to die.”
The dryad boost was going to increase his population, but in terms of warpower, there was a lot to be desired. Despite their native magic, less than ten percent were awakened. Even among them, the most skilled would need assistance passing the fourth awakening gate.
Because of that, the initial plan had to go through some changes. Too weak to settle the fallen south, or settle in the unoccupied barren lands of the west, the dryads would have to directly face the Order’s war clerics in the eastern forests. From a purely strength perspective, the clerics had the upper hand, but hopefully the dryads’ numbers and environment were going to balance things out.
“Worried?” Euryale asked as she entered the dryads’ throne room. The sun gold armor had changed appearance, turning more regal than defensive.
“A bit,” he admitted.
“I thought you’d spend some time watching the procession. It’s not every day that you get an entire world to follow you.”
Dallion couldn’t even force a smile.
“I can sense them just fine from here.” The emotions were so intense that when combined with his magic vision, they allowed him to get a near-perfect image through the walls that surrounded him. “I’ll try to unbanish the dryad guardians back home.”
The items he had gotten from Canopa, among a few other places, were a lot more experienced. Although minuscule when compared to the millions in this world alone, they’d act as commanders and crack troops. In that aspect, it was fortunate that they stuck together. Back when Dallion had attempted to acquire the mage enclave, he had plans to use them as his special forces, just as the archbishop was doing with the copyettes. Now, they’d be given far more significant roles, which required Moon vows.
“Hey.” The gorgon placed her hand on Dallion’s shoulder. “I’ll be with you till the end. There’s no need to worry.”
Sadly, that brought as much concern as it did relief. Eury was someone who could handle herself well in battle. Even after Dallion’s massive level increase, he’d be hard pressed to win against her without the use of magic and companions. Reading her emotions, he knew that she would die for him and if he messed things up, that was how things were going to end up.
“I know.” He stood up. No weakness. He told himself, using music skills to shred the threads of doubt within him. “Time to see the archduke.”
Concentrating, Dallion linked the world to his personal domain, then to a spot in the real world.
DUZHD VI has been added to your domain.
The CITY is Level 11
ROSSA has been added to your domain.
The CITY is Level 12
ZDRAVETS has been added to your domain.
The CITY is Level 10
LOZE has been added to your domain.
The CITY is Level 10
VECHER has been added to your domain.
The CITY is Level 11
VJATUR has been added to your domain.
The CITY is Level 10
Rectangles emerged as one after the other Dallion moved the major cities into the real world. The moment they did, they too started moving, depriving anyone of the opportunity to strike them with magic rockets.
Small towns and villages remained in the aura sword, in case anyone wished to return at a later time. Until then, the world guardian would remain the only entity there.
And now, time for the push. Dallion moved the new set to the very border with the Order’s domain.
You have broken through your one hundred and twenty-eighth barrier.
You are level 128.
Choose the trait you value the most.
A green rectangle emerged. Increasing his reaction to ninety-five, Dallion kept pushing the cities further into enemy territory.
Facing anyone else, the action wouldn’t have achieved anything. However, the archbishop’s strength was also his weakness. Unlike everyone else, he didn’t have real settlements, only a massive war force that he had placed within monasteries and citadels throughout the world. For infiltration and intimidation, that approach was unparalleled. When it came to domain control, though, such meager settlements were bound to lose when compared to vastly larger cities. Having millions of dryads emerge in a scarcely populated area had quickly shifted the balance of power, taking out chunks of Order territory and adding it to his own. From this point on, the only way for the Order to reclaim it was to go on the offensive and attack the cities, which would be considerably more difficult. And just to make sure, Dallion went on to gin things up by playing one more trump card.
Using the link, Dallion moved to his personal realm. Night had fallen, but the glow of the remaining dragon heart still added an orange hue to the blackness.
“Nice play,” Gen said.
All three of Dallion’s echoes were waiting, standing a few feet from where he had appeared. While all shared his face, time and personal preference had made them very different. As Jeremy had said, each echo came with its own personality, which inevitably led to changes.
“Are you sure about this?” Gen, the veteran, asked. He was the first echo that Dallion had created. Constantly there to provide advice, he had maintained the realm since the early days, restructuring and repairing everything from individual plants to mountains and islands. “I’m not sure you’ll be able to keep this place clean without me.”
“Always a smartass.” Dallion shook his head. He knew that the echo could see exactly what he was thinking, and knew perfectly well that the step wasn’t going to be easy. Yet, it was necessary and not only because of the promise or the current war. If Dallion needed to grow, he had to let part of his past go.
Reaching in the air, Dallion summoned the dragon heart. As the orange crystal appeared in his hand, the hue in the sky vanished. In its place, an endless number of green stars emerged, along with all seven Moons.
Combining attack and carving, Dallion slashed the Moonstone with his finger. A small fragment chipped off. No larger than an adult’s thumb, it contained the power to grant divinity for a matter of minutes; or in this case, something a lot greater.
Dallion caught the fragment midair, then went to Gen and pushed the fragment into the echo’s chest.
ECHO TRANSFORMATION
GEN has been granted the spark of life!
Link with DALLION SEENE severed.
GEN had grown into his own entity.
All current skills retained.
GEN is Level 14.
A green rectangle appeared, as the former echo was covered in orange light.
“Thanks for everything you did,” Dallion said. “I’ll try to keep this place livable.”
Gen laughed, then disappeared in a cloud of fading particles.
DIVINE CREATION - GEN
(+1 Reaction)
You used a fragment of Dararr’s Garnet to bring an echo to life. Gen has been transported to Sandstorm.
A stab of sadness swept through Dallion as the echo was moved out of his personal realm. It felt like a thorn in his heart, but not for a single moment did he allow it to take control.
Taking a step to the side, Dallion stood in front of July. This echo had kept the most boyish appearance of the group. He had been “born” the same day Gleam had become Dallion’s familiar and retained a good relation with all creatures and guardians within the realm ever since. Even now, both Gleam and Ruby rested on his left shoulder.
“You’ll need to give him some space, you two,” Dallion said as he sliced off another shard of Moonstone.
Reluctantly, Gleam fluttered off, followed shortly after by Ruby.
“Don’t worry, you’ll still get a chance to see each other. I’ll make sure of that.” Dallion pressed the gem into the echo’s chest.
ECHO TRANSFORMATION
JULY has been granted the spark of life!
Link with DALLION SEENE severed.
JULY had grown into his own entity.
All current skills retained.
JULY is Level 21.
July looked down as the orange glow surrounded him, trying to hide his tears. He was by far the most emotional of the bunch.
“Take care out there,” Dallion said. In the very last moment, his former echo looked up, just before disappearing like the first.
DIVINE CREATION - JULY
(+1 Reaction)
You used a fragment of Dararr’s Garnet to bring an echo to life. July has been transported to Sandstorm.
Two echoes were gone. Only one remained—Ariel. He had been by far the most powerful echo in the realm, taking on the role of realm protector and overall loner. Unlike the rest, he had kept his hair white, in a sign of uniqueness, very much as his character suggested. During Dallion’s development, he was the one most pushing him forward, often arguing or talking back.
“Nothing to say?” Dallion asked, slicing off the final piece. “That’s very unlike you.”
“I’ve plenty to say. I just don’t want to see you crying.”
Touche. Dallion thought.
“Didn’t think you’d actually do it,” Ariel added, despite himself.
“You never thought highly of me.”
“No. I always did, even when you didn’t.” He looked at the orange piece of crystal. “I just never dreamed you’d be given a chance to do this.”
With a forced laugh, Dallion pushed the Moonstone fragment into the echo’s chest.
ECHO TRANSFORMATION
ARIEL has been granted the spark of life!
Link with DALLION SEENE severed.
ARIEL had grown into his own entity.
All current skills retained.
ARIEL is Level 42.
“You better help the others level up,” Dallion said as orange covered Ariel. “That’s your problem now.”
“Seeing the way you did it, I doubt I can do worse,” the other replied. “And don’t even think of cheaping out on gear! I know exactly what you can do.”
The glowing light quickly dissolved into particles, leaving Dallion alone.
DIVINE CREATION - ARIEL
(+1 Reaction)
You used a fragment of Dararr’s Garnet to bring an echo to life. Ariel has been transported to Sandstorm.
“Well, that’s that,” Dallion said, although he knew that the echoes could no longer hear him. They were no longer part of his realm nor were they echoes. From this moment on, there would be no thought sharing, no reminding him what he was supposed to do, and no jokes on his behalf.
The pain in his heart had increased threefold. Dallion had yet to have children, let alone have them “leave the nest” but he imagined the feeling would be the same. The trio had literally been part of him, born in awakening trials, through internal revelations. From things that had kept him back, they had become part of his realm that propelled him forward… and now they were their own entities out there in the real world.
“A hundred and twenty-eight levels and you remain a softy,” Gleam said, fluttering around Dallion. “I guess that’s what makes you you.”
“Look who’s talking.” Dallion kept the smile on his face. He could easily use his music skills to get rid of the pain, but this time, he chose not to. It was good to experience some pain from time to time. With what was coming, it was certain there’d be a lot more of it.
One by one, the Moons in the sky faded away, leaving only the Orange Moon. The hint was not at all subtle, but still, it was a good one.
Alright, Dallion thought, summoning his carving tools. There’s no point in keeping it any longer.
A new gemstone was diligently given shape and added to his Moon emblem.
MOON EMBLEM
5/7 Complete
A yellow rectangle emerged. No sooner had it done so than Dallion returned to the dryad throne room within his aura sword.
“Get Dark,” he said to Eury, making his way to the nearest window. “We’re heading to Lanitol.”
Hello, all!
I'll be taking a brief vacation from posting for Orthodox Easter :) Hopefully that will give you a lot of time to speculate about how the endgame will develop :P
Be well and see you Tuesday :)
submitted by LiseEclaire to redditserials [link] [comments]
Adventure Arc - Arc 2
Wilderness Arc - Arc 3
Academy Arc - Arc 4
Nobility Arc - Arc 5
Previously on Leveling up the World...
(+2 Empathy)
You have fulfilled the promise made to the dryads generations ago. The question is, will you bring them to salvation or get them all killed?
The crown felt uncomfortable on Dallion’s head, though not nearly as uncomfortable as the realization that he had made the final step. The conquest was put in motion and now he couldn’t turn back even if he wanted to.
A long time ago, he would have defined this whole thing as the final multiplayer battle, though that was back when he viewed things through the lens of video games. There was nothing fun about this. Any cheats and strategies were allowed and second place equaled death, or “the last loser to die.”
The dryad boost was going to increase his population, but in terms of warpower, there was a lot to be desired. Despite their native magic, less than ten percent were awakened. Even among them, the most skilled would need assistance passing the fourth awakening gate.
Because of that, the initial plan had to go through some changes. Too weak to settle the fallen south, or settle in the unoccupied barren lands of the west, the dryads would have to directly face the Order’s war clerics in the eastern forests. From a purely strength perspective, the clerics had the upper hand, but hopefully the dryads’ numbers and environment were going to balance things out.
“Worried?” Euryale asked as she entered the dryads’ throne room. The sun gold armor had changed appearance, turning more regal than defensive.
“A bit,” he admitted.
“I thought you’d spend some time watching the procession. It’s not every day that you get an entire world to follow you.”
Dallion couldn’t even force a smile.
“I can sense them just fine from here.” The emotions were so intense that when combined with his magic vision, they allowed him to get a near-perfect image through the walls that surrounded him. “I’ll try to unbanish the dryad guardians back home.”
The items he had gotten from Canopa, among a few other places, were a lot more experienced. Although minuscule when compared to the millions in this world alone, they’d act as commanders and crack troops. In that aspect, it was fortunate that they stuck together. Back when Dallion had attempted to acquire the mage enclave, he had plans to use them as his special forces, just as the archbishop was doing with the copyettes. Now, they’d be given far more significant roles, which required Moon vows.
“Hey.” The gorgon placed her hand on Dallion’s shoulder. “I’ll be with you till the end. There’s no need to worry.”
Sadly, that brought as much concern as it did relief. Eury was someone who could handle herself well in battle. Even after Dallion’s massive level increase, he’d be hard pressed to win against her without the use of magic and companions. Reading her emotions, he knew that she would die for him and if he messed things up, that was how things were going to end up.
“I know.” He stood up. No weakness. He told himself, using music skills to shred the threads of doubt within him. “Time to see the archduke.”
Concentrating, Dallion linked the world to his personal domain, then to a spot in the real world.
DUZHD VI has been added to your domain.
The CITY is Level 11
ROSSA has been added to your domain.
The CITY is Level 12
ZDRAVETS has been added to your domain.
The CITY is Level 10
LOZE has been added to your domain.
The CITY is Level 10
VECHER has been added to your domain.
The CITY is Level 11
VJATUR has been added to your domain.
The CITY is Level 10
Rectangles emerged as one after the other Dallion moved the major cities into the real world. The moment they did, they too started moving, depriving anyone of the opportunity to strike them with magic rockets.
Small towns and villages remained in the aura sword, in case anyone wished to return at a later time. Until then, the world guardian would remain the only entity there.
And now, time for the push. Dallion moved the new set to the very border with the Order’s domain.
You have broken through your one hundred and twenty-eighth barrier.
You are level 128.
Choose the trait you value the most.
A green rectangle emerged. Increasing his reaction to ninety-five, Dallion kept pushing the cities further into enemy territory.
Facing anyone else, the action wouldn’t have achieved anything. However, the archbishop’s strength was also his weakness. Unlike everyone else, he didn’t have real settlements, only a massive war force that he had placed within monasteries and citadels throughout the world. For infiltration and intimidation, that approach was unparalleled. When it came to domain control, though, such meager settlements were bound to lose when compared to vastly larger cities. Having millions of dryads emerge in a scarcely populated area had quickly shifted the balance of power, taking out chunks of Order territory and adding it to his own. From this point on, the only way for the Order to reclaim it was to go on the offensive and attack the cities, which would be considerably more difficult. And just to make sure, Dallion went on to gin things up by playing one more trump card.
Using the link, Dallion moved to his personal realm. Night had fallen, but the glow of the remaining dragon heart still added an orange hue to the blackness.
“Nice play,” Gen said.
All three of Dallion’s echoes were waiting, standing a few feet from where he had appeared. While all shared his face, time and personal preference had made them very different. As Jeremy had said, each echo came with its own personality, which inevitably led to changes.
“Are you sure about this?” Gen, the veteran, asked. He was the first echo that Dallion had created. Constantly there to provide advice, he had maintained the realm since the early days, restructuring and repairing everything from individual plants to mountains and islands. “I’m not sure you’ll be able to keep this place clean without me.”
“Always a smartass.” Dallion shook his head. He knew that the echo could see exactly what he was thinking, and knew perfectly well that the step wasn’t going to be easy. Yet, it was necessary and not only because of the promise or the current war. If Dallion needed to grow, he had to let part of his past go.
Reaching in the air, Dallion summoned the dragon heart. As the orange crystal appeared in his hand, the hue in the sky vanished. In its place, an endless number of green stars emerged, along with all seven Moons.
Combining attack and carving, Dallion slashed the Moonstone with his finger. A small fragment chipped off. No larger than an adult’s thumb, it contained the power to grant divinity for a matter of minutes; or in this case, something a lot greater.
Dallion caught the fragment midair, then went to Gen and pushed the fragment into the echo’s chest.
ECHO TRANSFORMATION
GEN has been granted the spark of life!
Link with DALLION SEENE severed.
GEN had grown into his own entity.
All current skills retained.
GEN is Level 14.
A green rectangle appeared, as the former echo was covered in orange light.
“Thanks for everything you did,” Dallion said. “I’ll try to keep this place livable.”
Gen laughed, then disappeared in a cloud of fading particles.
DIVINE CREATION - GEN
(+1 Reaction)
You used a fragment of Dararr’s Garnet to bring an echo to life. Gen has been transported to Sandstorm.
A stab of sadness swept through Dallion as the echo was moved out of his personal realm. It felt like a thorn in his heart, but not for a single moment did he allow it to take control.
Taking a step to the side, Dallion stood in front of July. This echo had kept the most boyish appearance of the group. He had been “born” the same day Gleam had become Dallion’s familiar and retained a good relation with all creatures and guardians within the realm ever since. Even now, both Gleam and Ruby rested on his left shoulder.
“You’ll need to give him some space, you two,” Dallion said as he sliced off another shard of Moonstone.
Reluctantly, Gleam fluttered off, followed shortly after by Ruby.
“Don’t worry, you’ll still get a chance to see each other. I’ll make sure of that.” Dallion pressed the gem into the echo’s chest.
ECHO TRANSFORMATION
JULY has been granted the spark of life!
Link with DALLION SEENE severed.
JULY had grown into his own entity.
All current skills retained.
JULY is Level 21.
July looked down as the orange glow surrounded him, trying to hide his tears. He was by far the most emotional of the bunch.
“Take care out there,” Dallion said. In the very last moment, his former echo looked up, just before disappearing like the first.
DIVINE CREATION - JULY
(+1 Reaction)
You used a fragment of Dararr’s Garnet to bring an echo to life. July has been transported to Sandstorm.
Two echoes were gone. Only one remained—Ariel. He had been by far the most powerful echo in the realm, taking on the role of realm protector and overall loner. Unlike the rest, he had kept his hair white, in a sign of uniqueness, very much as his character suggested. During Dallion’s development, he was the one most pushing him forward, often arguing or talking back.
“Nothing to say?” Dallion asked, slicing off the final piece. “That’s very unlike you.”
“I’ve plenty to say. I just don’t want to see you crying.”
Touche. Dallion thought.
“Didn’t think you’d actually do it,” Ariel added, despite himself.
“You never thought highly of me.”
“No. I always did, even when you didn’t.” He looked at the orange piece of crystal. “I just never dreamed you’d be given a chance to do this.”
With a forced laugh, Dallion pushed the Moonstone fragment into the echo’s chest.
ECHO TRANSFORMATION
ARIEL has been granted the spark of life!
Link with DALLION SEENE severed.
ARIEL had grown into his own entity.
All current skills retained.
ARIEL is Level 42.
“You better help the others level up,” Dallion said as orange covered Ariel. “That’s your problem now.”
“Seeing the way you did it, I doubt I can do worse,” the other replied. “And don’t even think of cheaping out on gear! I know exactly what you can do.”
The glowing light quickly dissolved into particles, leaving Dallion alone.
DIVINE CREATION - ARIEL
(+1 Reaction)
You used a fragment of Dararr’s Garnet to bring an echo to life. Ariel has been transported to Sandstorm.
“Well, that’s that,” Dallion said, although he knew that the echoes could no longer hear him. They were no longer part of his realm nor were they echoes. From this moment on, there would be no thought sharing, no reminding him what he was supposed to do, and no jokes on his behalf.
The pain in his heart had increased threefold. Dallion had yet to have children, let alone have them “leave the nest” but he imagined the feeling would be the same. The trio had literally been part of him, born in awakening trials, through internal revelations. From things that had kept him back, they had become part of his realm that propelled him forward… and now they were their own entities out there in the real world.
“A hundred and twenty-eight levels and you remain a softy,” Gleam said, fluttering around Dallion. “I guess that’s what makes you you.”
“Look who’s talking.” Dallion kept the smile on his face. He could easily use his music skills to get rid of the pain, but this time, he chose not to. It was good to experience some pain from time to time. With what was coming, it was certain there’d be a lot more of it.
One by one, the Moons in the sky faded away, leaving only the Orange Moon. The hint was not at all subtle, but still, it was a good one.
Alright, Dallion thought, summoning his carving tools. There’s no point in keeping it any longer.
A new gemstone was diligently given shape and added to his Moon emblem.
MOON EMBLEM
5/7 Complete
A yellow rectangle emerged. No sooner had it done so than Dallion returned to the dryad throne room within his aura sword.
“Get Dark,” he said to Eury, making his way to the nearest window. “We’re heading to Lanitol.”
I'll be taking a brief vacation from posting for Orthodox Easter :) Hopefully that will give you a lot of time to speculate about how the endgame will develop :P
Be well and see you Tuesday :)
2024.05.03 00:28 coaxialcity [M4F] The unnecessary hero and his equally overpowered lover? [Fantasy, Romance, Comedy, Light-hearted]
"So he's slain the demon lord, he eliminated the Arcane Research Society cult, and he repelled the orcish invasion from the northern lands, single-handedly." The king was massaging his temples with his thumbs as he read through the list before him. This was even more prestigious than he imagined.
The court scribe nodded her head, blonde curls bobbing. "Yes! And that's not even all of it. I've yet to update it with how the hero discovered that mithril vein in the Maudskill Mountains, and..."
"Okay, enough, enough." The king sighed, slumping back into his throne. Yes, the hero was very powerful. Too powerful. It would take nothing more than the hero to recognize that he didn't need to obey the king, then he would easily be able to overthrow the royal family and commandeer the crown. And the people might just love that, given the new era of peace that arrive with the hero's deeds. He shuddered, shoulders quivering at the thought of the hero bursting into the throne room and demanding his seat. It was far too comfortable to give up. "Where's the list? The one of things that he has yet to accomplish?"
The scribe was more than happy to produce the parchment from her flowing sleeve, holding it out with both hands as an offering to the king. More accolades to add to the hero's legend! His story would be carved into the ages at this rate. "Yes, of course! This has-"
"No, no." The king swatted the parchment away with an errant hand. The secretariat gasped, and barely managed to juggle it between her fingers, grasping onto it before it fell. "I want the real list. The one of impossibles."
"B-but your majesty..." she stammered, eyes growing wide. That list was SSS-rank difficulty tasks, even for the hero that would be...
"Give me it," the king growled, and the scribe had no choice but to produce the parchment, her hands shaking a bit as she handed it over. He unfurled it, looking through the list. Something that the hero would fail at, preferably losing his life. He no longer needed a dog, if it could bite him back.
~~~
Hello! Welcome to another prompt, where I built this one off a previous plot I had in mind for another roleplay! In this one, the all powerful hero has accomplished far, far, too much, to the point where the king fears his power. So what does he do? Send the hero on a suicidal mission, one where he could not possibly accomplish!
Some key elements I'd like to see are enemies to lovers, hurt comfort, comedy, light-hearted themes though some dark themes can be suggested, forced inhabitation (the hero having to live in the cave with the dragoness just sounds goofy), fantasy, slice of life, and adventure! Some others that can be included are isekai (along with time travel, such as placing this into a modern era).
About myself: I'm 25+, prefer 3rd person, with about 2-6 paragraphs of detail and action in every reply. I try my best to be creative and drive the plot along! I'm usually able to reply a few times a day, depending on your timezone (I live in PST). I write female/male/non-binary, play a multitude of characters, but I would like the main character for me to be male. I use Discord.
About you: 21+, literate, and can write 2 or more paragraphs per reply. Preferably can reply a few times a day! Can play a multitude of characters as called for, knows how to move the plot, and loves world-building! Uses/prefers anime style face claims. Uses Discord.
The king's trying to figure out the best way to dispatch of this pesky, overpowered hero. Help him out!
submitted by coaxialcity to RoleplayPartnerSearch [link] [comments]
The court scribe nodded her head, blonde curls bobbing. "Yes! And that's not even all of it. I've yet to update it with how the hero discovered that mithril vein in the Maudskill Mountains, and..."
"Okay, enough, enough." The king sighed, slumping back into his throne. Yes, the hero was very powerful. Too powerful. It would take nothing more than the hero to recognize that he didn't need to obey the king, then he would easily be able to overthrow the royal family and commandeer the crown. And the people might just love that, given the new era of peace that arrive with the hero's deeds. He shuddered, shoulders quivering at the thought of the hero bursting into the throne room and demanding his seat. It was far too comfortable to give up. "Where's the list? The one of things that he has yet to accomplish?"
The scribe was more than happy to produce the parchment from her flowing sleeve, holding it out with both hands as an offering to the king. More accolades to add to the hero's legend! His story would be carved into the ages at this rate. "Yes, of course! This has-"
"No, no." The king swatted the parchment away with an errant hand. The secretariat gasped, and barely managed to juggle it between her fingers, grasping onto it before it fell. "I want the real list. The one of impossibles."
"B-but your majesty..." she stammered, eyes growing wide. That list was SSS-rank difficulty tasks, even for the hero that would be...
"Give me it," the king growled, and the scribe had no choice but to produce the parchment, her hands shaking a bit as she handed it over. He unfurled it, looking through the list. Something that the hero would fail at, preferably losing his life. He no longer needed a dog, if it could bite him back.
~~~
Hello! Welcome to another prompt, where I built this one off a previous plot I had in mind for another roleplay! In this one, the all powerful hero has accomplished far, far, too much, to the point where the king fears his power. So what does he do? Send the hero on a suicidal mission, one where he could not possibly accomplish!
- To slay the dragon of chaos! Although, once the hero arrives at the mountains where the dragon dwells, she's nothing more than a girl, her latent power faded from the millennia that had passed (or other plot themes possible)! How could the hero slay her now, when she's not even a threat?
- Overthrow the elven kingdom! The elves command great power, being able to wield spirit magic and borrow the powers of the land. Once the hero arrives in their land, he discovers that the elves have their own plight, that the World Tree is fading. The princess begs him to help save her people, and a hero's duty is to protect~
- Defeat the specter of the Forgotten Cave! A hollow rumored to be the host of lost artifacts and treasures aplenty, guarded by a fierce otherworldly deity that can vaporize any who are foolhardy enough to venture in. But when the hero arrives, it turns out it's much, much overblown. Is she even a ghost?
Some key elements I'd like to see are enemies to lovers, hurt comfort, comedy, light-hearted themes though some dark themes can be suggested, forced inhabitation (the hero having to live in the cave with the dragoness just sounds goofy), fantasy, slice of life, and adventure! Some others that can be included are isekai (along with time travel, such as placing this into a modern era).
About myself: I'm 25+, prefer 3rd person, with about 2-6 paragraphs of detail and action in every reply. I try my best to be creative and drive the plot along! I'm usually able to reply a few times a day, depending on your timezone (I live in PST). I write female/male/non-binary, play a multitude of characters, but I would like the main character for me to be male. I use Discord.
About you: 21+, literate, and can write 2 or more paragraphs per reply. Preferably can reply a few times a day! Can play a multitude of characters as called for, knows how to move the plot, and loves world-building! Uses/prefers anime style face claims. Uses Discord.
The king's trying to figure out the best way to dispatch of this pesky, overpowered hero. Help him out!
2024.05.03 00:24 Tadeh1337 I just want to thank everyone for joining this subreddit! All of your posts have been amazing! 🤩 This has been my fastest growing subreddit I have created, which I am proud of and honored. As we come close to 250 member I want to do something special ‼️. Read description below ⬇️
As a thank you (and to make things fun) I will be posting a title with a date 📆 (example: XX, XX, 2024 Petunia Subreddit Competition). Here is how it will work:
1) Under that post, each and every one of you can comment and show off the best single images you guys have taken of your petunias (either under the sun or at night glowing).
2) The competition will be held on the 1st and 15th of every month.
3) The competition will end 3 days after the post. So the 4th and 19th.
4) You should only upvote one image under the post (making sure to not vote yours).
5) The winner 🏆 of the image (with the most upvotes votes) will have their image replace the profile photo of this subreddit FireflyPetunia for two weeks!
6) This competition will be held biweekly.
Here are some rules ‼️
1) Do not upvote your own post 2) Winners, do not repost the same photo for the next competition. 3) Winners of the competition, please send me a PM with the image in the highest resolution possible. 4) Have fun! Show off your petunias! 🌱✨
submitted by Tadeh1337 to FireflyPetunia [link] [comments]
1) Under that post, each and every one of you can comment and show off the best single images you guys have taken of your petunias (either under the sun or at night glowing).
2) The competition will be held on the 1st and 15th of every month.
3) The competition will end 3 days after the post. So the 4th and 19th.
4) You should only upvote one image under the post (making sure to not vote yours).
5) The winner 🏆 of the image (with the most upvotes votes) will have their image replace the profile photo of this subreddit FireflyPetunia for two weeks!
6) This competition will be held biweekly.
Here are some rules ‼️
1) Do not upvote your own post 2) Winners, do not repost the same photo for the next competition. 3) Winners of the competition, please send me a PM with the image in the highest resolution possible. 4) Have fun! Show off your petunias! 🌱✨
2024.05.03 00:21 DisplayNameee The More I Play Resident Evil 6, the More I Like It
Obviously Resident Evil 6 has glaring issues. It's 95% an action game. The camera takes control from you every 5 minutes. You have to run through the alley for hours to unlock all the skills in a timely fashion. Chris has amnesia, which is stupid. Piers is kind of a dork. The unlockable costumes can't be used in the Campaigns unless you have the Switch version (which kind of makes that version the best, imo), etc.
But, it is the natural progression of how things were going. Resident Evil: Code Veronica ramped up the cheesiness. Resident Evil 4 ramped up the action. Resident Evil 5 introduced coop. And Resident Evil 6 took all that, smashed it together, and made a colossal game that absolutely would not be made today.
Each campaign is as long as a standalone single-player AAA game. That's not even speaking in terms of being a modern release. The games released around that time were shorter or longer than each campaign on your first playthrough, but generally around the same length. You can actually play as your coop partner in each of the campaigns, unlocking your own weapons along the way, which is not something that is as common in coop games like this as you may think.
There were so many little nods to old games, and the franchises as a whole, that we get throughout the experience.Sherry is all grown up, looking great, and has a cool healing factor from the G-virus. Wesker has a snarky kid who is actually pretty charming in his own way and (fight me on this) gets some C-virus strength boosts that allow him to 1v1 a tyrant thing. Chris is still jacked as fuck, ready to punch any boulder. Chris, Wesker Jr., Sherry, and Piers have some cool dialogue between them, depending on who you pick to ride with on the elevator section (Jake is kind of a douche here, as well as Piers, but it's still pretty cool). Hunnigan is back and ready to assist with super helpful dialogue! And that final touch with the lipstick on the rocket launcher was about as Ada/Leon as you can get. And there's plenty more!
But I think where this game really shined was how they implemented coop across the different campaigns. By no means are you likely to run into somebody playing the game at the right spot right now, but imagine when the game came out. You would just be trucking along through whatever campaign you picked around launch, and all of a sudden, you're playing with someone else in up to 4-player coop! Nobody saw that coming. That would have been such a surreal experience (assuming you were able to stomach all the negatives at the time and just enjoy the game for what it is (I swear, the camera being taken from my control was the longest negative for me to get over).
It would be really cool to find a group of 8 people to play with, or even 4 and just pick those specific chapters, just to experience that part. That was such a cool idea that has unfortunately been lost to time and how many different games people play. It would even be cool to watch a few Resident Evil streamers set that up and just romp through the campaigns, timing it to where they could actually take advantage of that mechanic.
The multiplayer was fun, too. And you actually get to use your costumes there in all versions, which is cool. Not to mention the fact that I don't think we are going to see costumes like those from Capcom again any time soon. But it was fun and had a lot of cool elements. The grindy achievements and trophies were a drag, but the games were all fun. AND the multiplayer wasn't some standalone title that game with the game. It's actually in the game! Shocking, I know, for those of you who have only played recent Resident Evil games.
Anyone. This games deserves a third look for people who hated it twice like me. I could not stomach the game for so long, but now, every time I see that "searching for players" notification show up in the Campaign, I can't help but think "man, wouldn't that be so cool?" The game is dope. It's got it's problems, but I think I'm finally ready to say that I like Resident Evil 6.
submitted by DisplayNameee to residentevil [link] [comments]
But, it is the natural progression of how things were going. Resident Evil: Code Veronica ramped up the cheesiness. Resident Evil 4 ramped up the action. Resident Evil 5 introduced coop. And Resident Evil 6 took all that, smashed it together, and made a colossal game that absolutely would not be made today.
Each campaign is as long as a standalone single-player AAA game. That's not even speaking in terms of being a modern release. The games released around that time were shorter or longer than each campaign on your first playthrough, but generally around the same length. You can actually play as your coop partner in each of the campaigns, unlocking your own weapons along the way, which is not something that is as common in coop games like this as you may think.
There were so many little nods to old games, and the franchises as a whole, that we get throughout the experience.Sherry is all grown up, looking great, and has a cool healing factor from the G-virus. Wesker has a snarky kid who is actually pretty charming in his own way and (fight me on this) gets some C-virus strength boosts that allow him to 1v1 a tyrant thing. Chris is still jacked as fuck, ready to punch any boulder. Chris, Wesker Jr., Sherry, and Piers have some cool dialogue between them, depending on who you pick to ride with on the elevator section (Jake is kind of a douche here, as well as Piers, but it's still pretty cool). Hunnigan is back and ready to assist with super helpful dialogue! And that final touch with the lipstick on the rocket launcher was about as Ada/Leon as you can get. And there's plenty more!
But I think where this game really shined was how they implemented coop across the different campaigns. By no means are you likely to run into somebody playing the game at the right spot right now, but imagine when the game came out. You would just be trucking along through whatever campaign you picked around launch, and all of a sudden, you're playing with someone else in up to 4-player coop! Nobody saw that coming. That would have been such a surreal experience (assuming you were able to stomach all the negatives at the time and just enjoy the game for what it is (I swear, the camera being taken from my control was the longest negative for me to get over).
It would be really cool to find a group of 8 people to play with, or even 4 and just pick those specific chapters, just to experience that part. That was such a cool idea that has unfortunately been lost to time and how many different games people play. It would even be cool to watch a few Resident Evil streamers set that up and just romp through the campaigns, timing it to where they could actually take advantage of that mechanic.
The multiplayer was fun, too. And you actually get to use your costumes there in all versions, which is cool. Not to mention the fact that I don't think we are going to see costumes like those from Capcom again any time soon. But it was fun and had a lot of cool elements. The grindy achievements and trophies were a drag, but the games were all fun. AND the multiplayer wasn't some standalone title that game with the game. It's actually in the game! Shocking, I know, for those of you who have only played recent Resident Evil games.
Anyone. This games deserves a third look for people who hated it twice like me. I could not stomach the game for so long, but now, every time I see that "searching for players" notification show up in the Campaign, I can't help but think "man, wouldn't that be so cool?" The game is dope. It's got it's problems, but I think I'm finally ready to say that I like Resident Evil 6.
2024.05.03 00:18 KaptainCracker Westra Royal Marines [A3] [Recruitment][NA][New Player Friendly][Fictional]
TLDR Upfront:
Westra Royal Marines are a completely fictional unit. Not simply set in our world but a completely fictionalized world.We are modeled after the UK Royal Marines with our own twists to it. We are a Lite milsim unit, meaning we do have ranks for Chain of Command and set roles. We also expect people to take ops and training sort of seriously but outside of that we are pretty casual. Our difficulty has been tweaked to be challenging but not to the point where it's frustrating. We also only have the mods we use and nothing super niche that we will use once in a while.
After this you will wait for us to accrue at least 2 more recruits to conduct a training class. This Class will be used to form the basis of your fireteam. You can get used to working together and then upon your completion of our training phases you will be made a full member and placed as a fireteam within our unit. Completion of your Training is required within a certain amount of time of joining and a class being able to be formed. If no class has been formed for a significant period of time the unit may make an exception and allow you to simply test out of the recruit level.
If any of this interests you or you just want more information feel free to shoot me a message or join our discord: https://discord.gg/rz3EACNWdm
A Recent FTX: https://youtu.be/NAO-xmYmQGg
submitted by KaptainCracker to FindAUnit [link] [comments]
- New Player Friendly Completely Fictionalized unit.
- Set in Cold War Era
- Milsim Lite (Trainings and tactics but none of the bs)
- Dynamic campaigns
Westra Royal Marines are a completely fictional unit. Not simply set in our world but a completely fictionalized world.We are modeled after the UK Royal Marines with our own twists to it. We are a Lite milsim unit, meaning we do have ranks for Chain of Command and set roles. We also expect people to take ops and training sort of seriously but outside of that we are pretty casual. Our difficulty has been tweaked to be challenging but not to the point where it's frustrating. We also only have the mods we use and nothing super niche that we will use once in a while.
What does your unit do?
We do quite a few things, mainly our bread and butter is general infantry missions. Finding the enemy, eliminating them, securing key points. These are the things we focus on the most. But we do offer other missions depending on the campaign, anything from sabotaging enemy critical assets, Recce, or preparing areas for assaulting forces. This gives us a wide range of operations to do, not focusing too heavily on one and allowing a variety so it's never too boring.Do you only play in the 1960s?
No, our intent is to progress through time so eventually getting to the 70s 80s and adding more gear and possibly more mission sets for us to do.Well what roles do you offer?
We offer a lot of the basic roles most do. While we try to make interesting roles a the end of the day without making super niche roles but below are the current roles we have (these are subject to change)- Rifleman
- Machine Gunner
- Grenadier
- Sharpshooter
- Sapper
- Combat Engineer
- Anti-Tank Specialist
- Medic
What is your training like?
We have 2 trainings for new members. The first is an Orientation to get you on the server with our mods, key binds, a kit etc. This is so when you get on for Operations you are not being a burden to the unit trying to prepare for an op while also trying to get all of this set up for you. After you do this you will be allowed to attend any operation we have.After this you will wait for us to accrue at least 2 more recruits to conduct a training class. This Class will be used to form the basis of your fireteam. You can get used to working together and then upon your completion of our training phases you will be made a full member and placed as a fireteam within our unit. Completion of your Training is required within a certain amount of time of joining and a class being able to be formed. If no class has been formed for a significant period of time the unit may make an exception and allow you to simply test out of the recruit level.
What's your schedule?
While training will be based upon the recruits ability to attend, the ideal time would be Sundays. Beyond this our ops happen at 8pm CST on Saturdays with fun ops, liberation nights, and other games happening whenever organized.If any of this interests you or you just want more information feel free to shoot me a message or join our discord: https://discord.gg/rz3EACNWdm
A Recent FTX: https://youtu.be/NAO-xmYmQGg
2024.05.03 00:17 Ur_Anemone My ex was cheating with EIGHTY women - how you can see if your partner is lying
 | Just 🤦♀️ submitted by Ur_Anemone to afterAWDTSG [link] [comments] CAUGHT IN THE NET My love rat ex was cheating on me with EIGHTY other women – how you can find out if your partner is a lying lothario Make sure to always invoke Clare's Law when dating strangers LYING lotharios beware! Fib on your dating profile and a secret network of women will be sure to find you out. Relationship-seekers are digging the dirt on potential suitors through a web of private, female-only Facebook groups called Are we Dating The Same Guy? (AWDTSG). They use the pages to find out if other members have been up close and personal with men they have met on apps including Tinder, Bumble and Hinge — as well as check for romance red flags. In fact, some fellas have had their pics and details shared so many times on AWDTSG, they have become notorious. It comes as recent figures showed 61 per cent of men use singles sites in the UK, compared to 39 per cent of women. Group member Paige Appleby, 29, from Leigh-on-Sea, Essex, was horrified when suspicions that her ex had been fooling around were confirmed on AWDTSG. The marketing manager, who had been seeing Dave, 31, from Putney, South West London, for three months, popped in his details and was faced with replies from 80 other women revealing they had been dating or in touch with him, too. I saw his face in a photo from when we were on holiday. The post — from someone else – said “Girls, I am dating this guy”. Women from the UK and the US had been sleeping with him at the same time as me. - Paige Paige says: “I joined AWDTSG after ending things with Dave. Things had been going well between us. We met online, he’d met my family and we’d gone on holiday. “But then I caught him on Instagram with another girl. He insisted she was his sister, but a closer look at social media suggested they had also been together. “My friend said I should search for him in the group and I thought, ‘What’s the worst that could happen?’. “Then I saw his face in a photo I’d taken when we’d been away together on holiday.” Recalling how another member was asking about Dave, Paige said: “The post, from someone else, said, ‘Girls, I am dating this guy — is there any tea? (gossip)’. And I couldn’t keep up with the responses. “There were women from all over the UK, even America, who’d been unknowingly dating him and sleeping with him — mostly around the same time. “He’d spun us all different lines and fake excuses and sold us all the dream of being the ideal boyfriend. “He was sleeping with us without protection and there were even pregnancies. He was playing with our feelings. It was so messed up.” Paige said one other girl’s story sounded very familiar, with accounts of Dave lovebombing her at the start, painting himself as a genuine guy who wanted to settle down with “The One”, and claiming he “never got female attention”. But she added: “The comments showed that wasn’t the case. “We all looked similar, too, so he clearly had a type. It was a lot to deal with.” Paige told how Dave’s picture has since become a running joke on the AWDTSG pages, with comments including: “I see this man more than my own family.” And she added: “It is both hilarious and frustrating knowing that girls are still being blindsided by him. Thanks to AWDTSG, I also discovered a so-called match was catfishing me as well as three other girls in the group.” The romeo con artist used a fake profile and someone else’s photos to chat up women. “The man we believed we were speaking to was married with children and obviously went by a different name,” Paige explains. “Some girls reached out to the genuine person in the images, who confirmed he has never had a dating app profile. His photos had been stolen.” Alongside general relationship advice and weeding out lies, other AWDTSG stories are more sinister, with women warning of men who may be abusers, scammers or fraudsters. Invoking Clare’s Law — the right to know if your partner has an abusive past — is always recommended in this instance or if anyone feels they may be in danger. For Amy, 49, a solicitor from Telford, Shrops, the group was a way to warn others about Steve, who made off with her life savings of £57,000 and two cars during a three-year “romance”. ‘He ruined my life, I feel so violated' Amy, whose name has been changed as cops probe her case, says: “He ruined my life and took my emotional and financial security. I feel so violated. “I posted what happened and his photo in the AWDTSG groups as a way to try to prevent him from doing the same to someone else. If it stops another woman giving him any money, it’s worth it.” Anna Rowe, 51, co-founder of lovesaid.org, a support group that backs defrauded daters, believes the forums are useful. The expert, who has been a victim of a romance scammer herself, says: “From exposing Jack the lads to more serious situations, I think the AWDTSG groups are brilliant and paramount for safety. “And it can work both ways. Some posts ask for information and a woman will say, ‘I know this guy, he’s lovely’.” Paige says: “The groups help girls vet the wrong ’uns and have changed the way I date. I feel sorry for whoever I settle down with because he will be called out on every suspicious action and may find himself being posted.” She added: “I still believe there are good ones out there. I’ve started seeing someone I met in a bar. Luckily, nothing has come up about him in the group.” |
2024.05.03 00:12 Double-Plane-7250 Losing my mind, how do i just break up with her. 25M & 24F?
Throwaway acct for obvious reasons. Bit of a read because i am going crazy right now.
I need a good and diplomatic way to break up with my gf based on context below.
Basically I come from a religious ethnic background 25M and I have a gf 24F.
The issue is she just told me after 4 months ago that she is not a virgin when i explicitly said in our second date that my deal breaker was previous sexual partners. My almost exact wording is that " hey, you don't have to give an exact answer if you don't want too, but i have never had sexual relationship with anyone and i believe intimacy is reserved for marriage. I wont judge you for your past but if we don't share the same values, its best to cut things off and pursue other people more compatible. Its better to do this now, while no one is really invested because virginity is my main criteria.
I try hard to just be honest no games.
Her response, I am a virgin too. Okay no problem i am not paranoid, I trust in God. We dated, and i dated maybe 5 women prior ( all short term) but when i date its for marriage. So 4 months down, she wants to chat. Basically tells me she is not a virgin ( wont share her number on here) but that all of them were mistakes, ect ect.
Now i want to break up with her due my preference, but honestly, her friend group / my friend group, heck even my own family are saying the same thing: past doesnt matter, she loves you, at least she is honest, you wont find virgin anywhere especially 20+/ we all settle at some point in life with someone who we can just tolerate and just deal with it.
This has caused me a week of sleepless nights until my body shuts down at 4 am or so and its impacting my work. My brain is moving at 1 million miles per hour, like i dont even know what i feel. Like i held my self together (no porn or the other stuff) and this is it, for her!? On the other hand there is disgust involved. So is it pride, disgust, even insecurity. I dont feel lesser or that i cant perform but idk what is involved here. On one hand, is it because i only make 85k i cant get a virgin, or if my body fat goes below my 16% can i get one now? What about 15, 14, 13, i dont even know. Maybe i failed at life and should have just hooked up in highschool like the rest, did i do wrong following this stupid rule while no one else does. Am i child in matters like this because everyone lived that phase during their youth. Did i genuinely screw my one life up. Like i dont know, maybe i didnt become elon musk rich that i failed. Or do i still have time to find one when i break up with her. But i know other people who got one so what gives. My mind is just rambling all night until it crashes. Food has lost all of its taste too.
The only real upside is i lost 1 kg on the weightscale so maybe i should keep this going to go down a bit more haha as an easy cheat code.
So thank you for reading all that, my main question now is how to proceed correctly and diplomatically so one's feelings are hurt.
My current thinking is, i cant yield on this point, its does to much damage to me and no therapists either. When i break up with her, i still have hope and if i cant find a virgin... then honestly whatever i have food water, a good house, loving family, friends. Most people arent that lucky anyway, might as well stay single all life, i am more than prepared to accept. Maybe i can adopt a kid or get a surrogate from those services with some donated eggs. I feel like if i am destined to lose, i might as well choose how i lose.
On the other hand, i have now discovered prayer more intensively to ask God for one since i was slacking before. I hope he has things in order and will take care of me because i got no other solution but what i mentioned. I am going to go to the gym 5 days a week, and sign up to college to learn accounting so i can complement my current deegre. I will make more money be more fit and hopefully that translates to something. My brain oscallates between positive and negative outlooks all the fricking time from my work till i sleep. I could do my whole day in the office in 1 hour of good productivity now it actually takes a full day.
I need to write this somewhere because i cant talk about it with closed ones, they shut me down to quick and i cant hold this in my brain without it exploding.
Oh yes, in regards to my current GF, she is pretty funny, brunette, decent family background with no criminals or onlyfans. She is pretty patient, has tried hard to communicate this week but i have been blowing it off which is not fair to her and honestly breaking up would do us both a favor. I really wish she just said i am not what your looking for and we could have been on our way on the second date like all the other ones. Honestly i asked her this when she told me and basically she wanted me to give her a chance and once i see her for who she is then we can move forward.
What do i do here, not just for relationship but even for my life. Go to gym more? Eat kale? I dont know anymore. I wish she was terrible, this would have been a 2 second descision but she is allright and i feel bad but i know i have to do this. Can someone also give me some good verbiage as well to smooth as much of this over? I am at a critical juncture in my life here.
submitted by Double-Plane-7250 to relationship_advice [link] [comments]
I need a good and diplomatic way to break up with my gf based on context below.
Basically I come from a religious ethnic background 25M and I have a gf 24F.
The issue is she just told me after 4 months ago that she is not a virgin when i explicitly said in our second date that my deal breaker was previous sexual partners. My almost exact wording is that " hey, you don't have to give an exact answer if you don't want too, but i have never had sexual relationship with anyone and i believe intimacy is reserved for marriage. I wont judge you for your past but if we don't share the same values, its best to cut things off and pursue other people more compatible. Its better to do this now, while no one is really invested because virginity is my main criteria.
I try hard to just be honest no games.
Her response, I am a virgin too. Okay no problem i am not paranoid, I trust in God. We dated, and i dated maybe 5 women prior ( all short term) but when i date its for marriage. So 4 months down, she wants to chat. Basically tells me she is not a virgin ( wont share her number on here) but that all of them were mistakes, ect ect.
Now i want to break up with her due my preference, but honestly, her friend group / my friend group, heck even my own family are saying the same thing: past doesnt matter, she loves you, at least she is honest, you wont find virgin anywhere especially 20+/ we all settle at some point in life with someone who we can just tolerate and just deal with it.
This has caused me a week of sleepless nights until my body shuts down at 4 am or so and its impacting my work. My brain is moving at 1 million miles per hour, like i dont even know what i feel. Like i held my self together (no porn or the other stuff) and this is it, for her!? On the other hand there is disgust involved. So is it pride, disgust, even insecurity. I dont feel lesser or that i cant perform but idk what is involved here. On one hand, is it because i only make 85k i cant get a virgin, or if my body fat goes below my 16% can i get one now? What about 15, 14, 13, i dont even know. Maybe i failed at life and should have just hooked up in highschool like the rest, did i do wrong following this stupid rule while no one else does. Am i child in matters like this because everyone lived that phase during their youth. Did i genuinely screw my one life up. Like i dont know, maybe i didnt become elon musk rich that i failed. Or do i still have time to find one when i break up with her. But i know other people who got one so what gives. My mind is just rambling all night until it crashes. Food has lost all of its taste too.
The only real upside is i lost 1 kg on the weightscale so maybe i should keep this going to go down a bit more haha as an easy cheat code.
So thank you for reading all that, my main question now is how to proceed correctly and diplomatically so one's feelings are hurt.
My current thinking is, i cant yield on this point, its does to much damage to me and no therapists either. When i break up with her, i still have hope and if i cant find a virgin... then honestly whatever i have food water, a good house, loving family, friends. Most people arent that lucky anyway, might as well stay single all life, i am more than prepared to accept. Maybe i can adopt a kid or get a surrogate from those services with some donated eggs. I feel like if i am destined to lose, i might as well choose how i lose.
On the other hand, i have now discovered prayer more intensively to ask God for one since i was slacking before. I hope he has things in order and will take care of me because i got no other solution but what i mentioned. I am going to go to the gym 5 days a week, and sign up to college to learn accounting so i can complement my current deegre. I will make more money be more fit and hopefully that translates to something. My brain oscallates between positive and negative outlooks all the fricking time from my work till i sleep. I could do my whole day in the office in 1 hour of good productivity now it actually takes a full day.
I need to write this somewhere because i cant talk about it with closed ones, they shut me down to quick and i cant hold this in my brain without it exploding.
Oh yes, in regards to my current GF, she is pretty funny, brunette, decent family background with no criminals or onlyfans. She is pretty patient, has tried hard to communicate this week but i have been blowing it off which is not fair to her and honestly breaking up would do us both a favor. I really wish she just said i am not what your looking for and we could have been on our way on the second date like all the other ones. Honestly i asked her this when she told me and basically she wanted me to give her a chance and once i see her for who she is then we can move forward.
What do i do here, not just for relationship but even for my life. Go to gym more? Eat kale? I dont know anymore. I wish she was terrible, this would have been a 2 second descision but she is allright and i feel bad but i know i have to do this. Can someone also give me some good verbiage as well to smooth as much of this over? I am at a critical juncture in my life here.
2024.05.03 00:08 Ambitious_Bird434 teacher looking to transition to coding
Hello everyone, so I'd like to ask if you think going to a coding bootcamp could be a worthwhile choice for me and I'll list some key facts about myself so that you can have some context and understand who I am, what I've done in my previous jobs, and what led to me thinking about this.
TL;DR: I'm a teacher and I don't like teaching anymore. Too much burn out. I am in a lot of debt because that's life. Bad things happen to people and sometimes pure grit isn't enough to keep up with inflation and other things. I want to make a career transition and change to my salary. I've recently been considering coding but I also have to work a full time job and pay the bills and all that stuff. Moving back home isn't an option because my dad died in a house fire when I was a teenager and that same house ended up being foreclosed in 2018 because my mom couldn't keep up with mortgage and I had to move out. I want to help retire my mom and I want to live a better life than I am right now. Could coding bootcamps open up doors and opportunities for me? Or am I better off learning for free? Is it even worth making a full switch to tech because the people I'll be competing against will be super young and have 4 year computer science degrees? (My degree is in psychology)
Thanks!
Long version:
-I'm currently a 31 year old technology teacher and technology coordinator. I have been teaching tech for 4 years since 2020 and have stepped up to add tech coordinator responsibilities for the past 2 years. Part of my job includes teaching tech curriculum to grades K-8 and also to help manage everything related to technology for my school site. I teach very basic (I suppose to tech savvy people anyways) concepts related to technology and computer science. I know enough to make me smarter than a middle schooler but not enough to be employable in an actual tech coding position. For tech coordinator, this includes but not limited to: IT support, device repairs, replacing projector lamps, troubleshooting peripherals, managing Google Admin Console, etc. I'm just barely scratching the surface here but just to give you an idea.
-I landed in my current position because in 2020 I was let go from my teaching job due to COVID. I was job searching and fortunately an edtech company took a chance on me and hired me.
-Before I was a classroom teacher, I worked in education as a paraprofessional, after school teacher, and summertime aide. Most of my professional working life as an adult is from the education field outside of small time cashier and cooking jobs.
-Although I would love staying as a teacher, fact is I'm burnt out. Teaching is hard work and anyone who has ever worked with youth K-12 can probably attest to the grind. Teaching doesn't pay me enough to want to continue staying.
-The main reason why I want to switch into coding is because of money reasons. I guess its a controversial opinion to have because many people will say things like "do what you love, forget about the money" or "don't do it for the money or you'll be even more unhappy" but in my opinion and from my own lived experiences, the fact is having money changes your life a lot. It doesn't mean it should be the source of happiness but it sure can make life a lot easier and grants you more opportunities in life. I basically got screwed over in life several times and as a result I've accumulated a lot of debt over the years due to different things outside of my control. Not to make a sob story but just to illustrate a few examples: Losing my home and my father in a house fire when I was 13 years old was hard. We were already poor, now I'm just more poor and my dad is dead. My mom was always busy working so I'm basically just raising myself as a teenager until now. We lost that same home again in 2018 permanately to a foreclosure because my mom as a single parent couldn't afford to keep up with the mortgage over the years, so I had to start borrowing loans to live out on my own because relying on family wasn't an option. Mind you, I wasn't just living at home doing nothing and being a bumass. I tried to contribute as much as I could, I worked long hours to help pay the bills as soon as I graduated college. I wanted to go to go on to graduate school and study but I never got the opportunity because of all the extra jobs I needed to take to help my mom with bills. When COVID happened, I didn't have a full time job for a while and lived off credit cards. My mom to this day does not have a place to live and she lives with my grandparents. Meanwhile I'm just kinda fucked by rent and loan payments and poor paying education jobs. I'll admit I contributed to some of my debt due to trying out gambling but quickly learned my lesson and stopped.
-The last reason I want to switch to coding is because after my edtech company hired me and exposed me to the world of tech, I quickly found out this could be a viable out for me because I found myself eagerly looking to learn and grow and get better at all things tech related and coding as well. I don't have a limited mindset anymore as I did in undergrad and I have a growth mindset now. Although granted, that one time I took an undergrad comp sci class in college, I didn't do so horribly. I think I made it out with a B+ or B- at least. But I used to be scared of coding and now I'm not. I'm sure there will be frustrations and challenges that come with learning it but I mean I'd be disgracing myself as an educator if I told myself now I can't do something after years of telling my students they can do and become what they want to if they work hard at it.
-The conundrum now is I have to keep working full time as a teacher to keep myself a float and pay off all these loans and to pay rent. I just don't know how I can kickstart myself into a boot camp anyways. I know there are free options out there but I'm someone who needs structures and goals set for me. I like to know I can access people to talk to and they'll be ready for me and to be able to network after graduating a boot camp too. In the meantime all I've been doing is self-studying as much as I can.
But anyways with that said, does anyone have any thoughts or suggestions in good faith? Thank you for your input. I don't think I should treat a single forum on reddit as gospel and I'll certainly plan to talk to more people about this but I figured it'd be good to reach out to some kind of tech community out there and start seeing what people have to say. The goal for me is to figure out a decision regarding if a coding bootcamp could be worthwhile, and if not (in your opinion) what then is the next best option for my situation?
Thanks in advance.
submitted by Ambitious_Bird434 to codingbootcamp [link] [comments]
TL;DR: I'm a teacher and I don't like teaching anymore. Too much burn out. I am in a lot of debt because that's life. Bad things happen to people and sometimes pure grit isn't enough to keep up with inflation and other things. I want to make a career transition and change to my salary. I've recently been considering coding but I also have to work a full time job and pay the bills and all that stuff. Moving back home isn't an option because my dad died in a house fire when I was a teenager and that same house ended up being foreclosed in 2018 because my mom couldn't keep up with mortgage and I had to move out. I want to help retire my mom and I want to live a better life than I am right now. Could coding bootcamps open up doors and opportunities for me? Or am I better off learning for free? Is it even worth making a full switch to tech because the people I'll be competing against will be super young and have 4 year computer science degrees? (My degree is in psychology)
Thanks!
Long version:
-I'm currently a 31 year old technology teacher and technology coordinator. I have been teaching tech for 4 years since 2020 and have stepped up to add tech coordinator responsibilities for the past 2 years. Part of my job includes teaching tech curriculum to grades K-8 and also to help manage everything related to technology for my school site. I teach very basic (I suppose to tech savvy people anyways) concepts related to technology and computer science. I know enough to make me smarter than a middle schooler but not enough to be employable in an actual tech coding position. For tech coordinator, this includes but not limited to: IT support, device repairs, replacing projector lamps, troubleshooting peripherals, managing Google Admin Console, etc. I'm just barely scratching the surface here but just to give you an idea.
-I landed in my current position because in 2020 I was let go from my teaching job due to COVID. I was job searching and fortunately an edtech company took a chance on me and hired me.
-Before I was a classroom teacher, I worked in education as a paraprofessional, after school teacher, and summertime aide. Most of my professional working life as an adult is from the education field outside of small time cashier and cooking jobs.
-Although I would love staying as a teacher, fact is I'm burnt out. Teaching is hard work and anyone who has ever worked with youth K-12 can probably attest to the grind. Teaching doesn't pay me enough to want to continue staying.
-The main reason why I want to switch into coding is because of money reasons. I guess its a controversial opinion to have because many people will say things like "do what you love, forget about the money" or "don't do it for the money or you'll be even more unhappy" but in my opinion and from my own lived experiences, the fact is having money changes your life a lot. It doesn't mean it should be the source of happiness but it sure can make life a lot easier and grants you more opportunities in life. I basically got screwed over in life several times and as a result I've accumulated a lot of debt over the years due to different things outside of my control. Not to make a sob story but just to illustrate a few examples: Losing my home and my father in a house fire when I was 13 years old was hard. We were already poor, now I'm just more poor and my dad is dead. My mom was always busy working so I'm basically just raising myself as a teenager until now. We lost that same home again in 2018 permanately to a foreclosure because my mom as a single parent couldn't afford to keep up with the mortgage over the years, so I had to start borrowing loans to live out on my own because relying on family wasn't an option. Mind you, I wasn't just living at home doing nothing and being a bumass. I tried to contribute as much as I could, I worked long hours to help pay the bills as soon as I graduated college. I wanted to go to go on to graduate school and study but I never got the opportunity because of all the extra jobs I needed to take to help my mom with bills. When COVID happened, I didn't have a full time job for a while and lived off credit cards. My mom to this day does not have a place to live and she lives with my grandparents. Meanwhile I'm just kinda fucked by rent and loan payments and poor paying education jobs. I'll admit I contributed to some of my debt due to trying out gambling but quickly learned my lesson and stopped.
-The last reason I want to switch to coding is because after my edtech company hired me and exposed me to the world of tech, I quickly found out this could be a viable out for me because I found myself eagerly looking to learn and grow and get better at all things tech related and coding as well. I don't have a limited mindset anymore as I did in undergrad and I have a growth mindset now. Although granted, that one time I took an undergrad comp sci class in college, I didn't do so horribly. I think I made it out with a B+ or B- at least. But I used to be scared of coding and now I'm not. I'm sure there will be frustrations and challenges that come with learning it but I mean I'd be disgracing myself as an educator if I told myself now I can't do something after years of telling my students they can do and become what they want to if they work hard at it.
-The conundrum now is I have to keep working full time as a teacher to keep myself a float and pay off all these loans and to pay rent. I just don't know how I can kickstart myself into a boot camp anyways. I know there are free options out there but I'm someone who needs structures and goals set for me. I like to know I can access people to talk to and they'll be ready for me and to be able to network after graduating a boot camp too. In the meantime all I've been doing is self-studying as much as I can.
But anyways with that said, does anyone have any thoughts or suggestions in good faith? Thank you for your input. I don't think I should treat a single forum on reddit as gospel and I'll certainly plan to talk to more people about this but I figured it'd be good to reach out to some kind of tech community out there and start seeing what people have to say. The goal for me is to figure out a decision regarding if a coding bootcamp could be worthwhile, and if not (in your opinion) what then is the next best option for my situation?
Thanks in advance.
2024.05.02 23:59 softtechhubus Building Resumés That Secure Job Offers
 | Building Resumés That Secure Job Offers submitted by softtechhubus to u/softtechhubus [link] [comments] I. IntroductionThe Significance of a Well-Crafted ResuméA well-crafted resumé is the foundation of a successful job search. It serves as a powerful marketing tool that showcases your qualifications, skills, and achievements to potential employers. In today's highly competitive job market, a strong resumé can make the difference between getting an interview and being overlooked, opening the door to new career opportunities.Understanding the Purpose of a ResuméThe primary purpose of a resumé is to provide a concise and compelling overview of your professional background, highlighting your relevant experience, education, and abilities. It should be designed to capture the attention of the hiring manager and demonstrate how your unique qualifications align with the specific requirements of the target position.The Evolving Landscape of Resumé TrendsThe landscape of resumé writing is constantly evolving, with new trends and best practices emerging. From the increasing use of applicant tracking systems (ATS) to the growing importance of personal branding, understanding and adapting to these changes is crucial for creating a resumé that stands out in today's job market.II. Understanding the Target JobResearching the Company and PositionTo create a tailored and effective resumé, it's essential to thoroughly research the company and the specific job you're applying for. Gather information about the organization's mission, values, and culture, as well as the key responsibilities, required skills, and qualifications for the position.Exploring the Company's Website and Online PresenceStart by thoroughly exploring the company's website, paying close attention to the "About Us" section, mission statement, and any information about the company's culture and values. Additionally, review the company's social media profiles and any news or press releases to gain a deeper understanding of the organization.Analyzing the Job DescriptionClosely examine the job description, paying close attention to the specific skills, qualifications, and experience required for the position. Identify the key responsibilities, as well as any industry-specific terminology or buzzwords that should be incorporated into your resumé.Networking and Informational InterviewsConsider reaching out to your professional network or conducting informational interviews with individuals who work at the target company or in the industry. This can provide valuable insights into the company's culture, the specific role, and the qualities they look for in ideal candidates.Identifying the Desired Skills and QualificationsBy understanding the employer's needs and preferences, you can align your resumé to showcase the skills, experiences, and achievements that are most relevant to the target job. This will help you present yourself as the ideal candidate for the role.Aligning Your Qualifications with the Job RequirementsCarefully review the job posting and identify the required and preferred qualifications, skills, and experiences. Assess your own background and determine how your abilities and accomplishments align with the employer's needs.Highlighting Transferable SkillsEven if you don't have direct experience in the target role, carefully consider the transferable skills you possess that may be applicable. These could include communication, problem-solving, project management, or other cross-functional competencies.Emphasizing Relevant Achievements and AccomplishmentsWhen presenting your qualifications, focus on highlighting your most relevant achievements and accomplishments that demonstrate your ability to perform the job successfully. Quantify your impact whenever possible to provide tangible evidence of your value.III. Formatting and StructureChoosing the Appropriate FormatThe format of your resumé should be selected based on your career history and the specific requirements of the job you're applying for. Chronological, functional, and combination formats each have their own strengths and are suitable for different scenarios.Chronological FormatThe chronological format is the most traditional and commonly used resumé format. It focuses on your work history, presented in reverse chronological order, highlighting your progression and achievements within each role.Functional FormatThe functional format emphasizes your skills and competencies rather than your work history. This format is particularly useful for individuals with gaps in employment, career changers, or those with limited relevant work experience.Combination FormatThe combination format is a hybrid approach that incorporates elements of both the chronological and functional formats. It allows you to highlight your most relevant skills and experience while still providing a chronological overview of your work history.Structuring the Key SectionsA well-structured resumé typically includes the following key sections: contact information, objective or summary statement, work experience, education, and skills. The order and emphasis of these sections may vary depending on your background and the targeted position.Contact InformationYour contact information should be prominently displayed at the top of your resumé, including your name, address, phone number, and email address. Consider also including your LinkedIn profile or personal website, if applicable.Objective or Summary StatementThe objective or summary statement at the beginning of your resumé serves as a concise and powerful introduction to your qualifications and career goals. It should be tailored to the specific job you're applying for and highlight your most relevant skills and experiences.Work ExperienceThe work experience section is typically the longest and most important part of your resumé. Present your relevant work history in reverse chronological order, focusing on the roles, responsibilities, and achievements that are most relevant to the target position.EducationIn the education section, include your academic degrees, certifications, and any relevant coursework or training programs. Highlight any academic achievements, such as high GPAs or dean's list honors, that demonstrate your intellectual capabilities.SkillsThe skills section allows you to showcase your relevant technical, language, and soft skills. Carefully align the skills you highlight with the requirements outlined in the job posting, and consider organizing them into categories for better readability.Achieving Visual Appeal and ReadabilityThe visual presentation of your resumé is as important as its content. Ensure that the layout is clean, organized, and easy to scan, with appropriate use of white space, font styles, and sizes. The overall design should be visually appealing and professional.Selecting an Appropriate Font and SizeChoose a professional, easy-to-read font, such as Times New Roman, Arial, or Calibri, and maintain a consistent font size throughout your resumé, typically between 10 and 12 points.Utilizing Consistent FormattingMaintain a consistent formatting style, including consistent use of bold, italics, and capitalization. Ensure that your resumé has a clean, organized appearance with appropriate spacing between sections and entries.Optimizing for ReadabilityBreak up large blocks of text with clear section headings and bullet points. Use concise, action-oriented language, and avoid using lengthy paragraphs or dense blocks of information.Ensuring Compatibility with Applicant Tracking SystemsMany companies use applicant tracking systems (ATS) to manage the initial screening of resumés. Ensure that your resumé is ATS-friendly by using a simple, clean design and incorporating relevant keywords throughout the document.IV. Crafting an Effective Summary or ObjectiveThe Purpose of a Summary or Objective StatementThe summary or objective statement at the top of your resumé serves as a concise and powerful introduction to your qualifications and career goals. It should be tailored to the specific job you're applying for and highlight your most relevant skills and experiences.Writing an Attention-Grabbing Summary or ObjectiveCraft a compelling summary or objective statement that grabs the reader's attention and clearly communicates your value proposition. Use strong, action-oriented language to convey your unique strengths and how they align with the employer's needs.Highlighting Your Most Relevant QualificationsIn your summary or objective, focus on showcasing your most relevant skills, experiences, and accomplishments that directly address the requirements of the target position.Demonstrating Your Fit for the RoleClearly articulate how your qualifications, expertise, and career goals make you the ideal candidate for the job. This will help the hiring manager quickly understand how you can contribute to the organization.Tailoring Your Message for Each ApplicationAvoid using a generic, one-size-fits-all approach. Customize your summary or objective for each job application to ensure it resonates with the specific employer and position.Keeping it Concise and ImpactfulLimit your summary or objective to 2-3 sentences or a short paragraph. The goal is to provide a succinct, yet compelling, introduction to your candidacy.V. Highlighting Work ExperiencePresenting Relevant Work ExperienceWhen highlighting your work experience, focus on the roles, responsibilities, and achievements that are most relevant to the target position. Prioritize the information that showcases your qualifications and demonstrates your ability to perform the job successfully.Organizing Your Work HistoryPresent your work history in reverse chronological order, starting with your most recent or current position. This allows the hiring manager to quickly understand your career progression and achievements.Emphasizing Key Responsibilities and AccomplishmentsFor each role, focus on describing your key responsibilities and quantifiable achievements that demonstrate your value and impact. Use clear, concise language and avoid generic or vague statements.Tailoring the Content for Each ApplicationWhen applying for different positions, carefully review the job description and adjust the content of your work experience section to ensure it aligns with the employer's specific needs and preferences.Quantifying Achievements and AccomplishmentsWhenever possible, quantify your accomplishments and achievements to provide tangible evidence of your impact and capabilities. This can include metrics such as revenue generated, cost savings, process improvements, or other measurable results.Identifying Quantifiable MetricsCarefully review your work history and look for any achievements or contributions that can be expressed numerically. This could include percentage increases, dollar amounts, or other quantifiable data.Incorporating Relevant Numbers and StatisticsIntegrate the relevant numbers and statistics into your bullet points, using them to highlight the scale and impact of your accomplishments. This helps to provide concrete proof of your value and capabilities.Balancing Quantitative and Qualitative InformationWhile quantitative information is powerful, it's important to also include qualitative descriptions of your responsibilities and achievements. This provides a well-rounded picture of your professional experience.Using Powerful Action VerbsUtilize strong, action-oriented verbs to describe your work responsibilities and accomplishments. This will help you communicate your skills and contributions more effectively.Crafting Impactful Bullet PointsBegin each bullet point with an action verb, such as "achieved," "managed," "streamlined," or "developed," to convey your hands-on involvement and the results you delivered.Varying Your Verb UsageAvoid repetitive use of the same verbs throughout your resumé. Instead, use a diverse range of action-oriented words to add variety and impact to your descriptions.VI. Showcasing Education and CredentialsIncluding Relevant Academic AchievementsIn addition to your educational background, consider including any relevant academic achievements, such as high GPAs, dean's list honors, or specialized coursework that aligns with the target job.Highlighting Your Academic PerformanceIf you have a strong GPA, typically 3.5 or above, consider including it in your education section. This can demonstrate your intellectual capabilities and dedication to your studies.Emphasizing Relevant Coursework or ProjectsIf you have completed coursework, research projects, or capstone experiences that are directly relevant to the target role, highlight these accomplishments to showcase your applicable knowledge and skills.Showcasing Awards, Honors, and DistinctionsAny academic awards, honors, or distinctions you have received, such as being on the dean's list or graduating with honors, can help to further strengthen your educational credentials.Highlighting Certifications and Professional DevelopmentIf you have earned any professional certifications, licenses, or participated in relevant training or development programs, be sure to include this information to demonstrate your commitment to continuous learning and skill enhancement.Featuring Professional CertificationsProminently display any professional certifications or licenses you hold that are relevant to the target position. This can include industry-specific certifications, software certifications, or other credentials that validate your expertise.Highlighting Relevant Training and DevelopmentInclude information about any specialized training programs, workshops, or professional development courses you have completed that are aligned with the requirements of the target role.Positioning Credentials for Maximum ImpactConsider the order and prominence you give to your educational credentials and professional certifications based on their relevance and importance to the specific job you're applying for.VII. Emphasizing Skills and CompetenciesIdentifying Transferable SkillsCarefully review the job description and identify the key skills and competencies required for the position. Then, assess your own background and highlight the transferable skills you possess that are relevant to the target job.Recognizing Cross-Functional AbilitiesLook beyond just the technical or job-specific skills required and consider the cross-functional abilities you have developed, such as communication, problem-solving, or project management.Showcasing Soft SkillsIn addition to hard skills, be sure to highlight your relevant soft skills, such as teamwork, adaptability, or critical thinking, as these are often highly valued by employers.Aligning Skills with the Job RequirementsCarefully match the skills and competencies you possess with the specific requirements outlined in the job posting. This will help you effectively demonstrate your fit for the role.Matching Skills to Job RequirementsTailor your skills section to directly address the specific skills and qualifications outlined in the job posting. This will help demonstrate your fit for the role and ensure that your resumé resonates with the hiring manager.Prioritizing the Most Relevant SkillsCarefully review the job description and identify the most critical skills and qualifications required. Ensure that these are prominently displayed and emphasized in your skills section.Incorporating Relevant KeywordsIncorporate relevant keywords throughout your skills section, mirroring the language and terminology used in the job posting. This will help your application be recognized by applicant tracking systems (ATS).Organizing Skills into Logical CategoriesConsider grouping your skills into relevant categories, such as "Technical Skills," "Communication Skills," or "Leadership Abilities," to make your resumé more scannable and easy to digest.Incorporating Relevant KeywordsIncorporate relevant keywords throughout your resumé, including in your summary or objective, work experience, and skills sections. This will help your application be recognized by applicant tracking systems (ATS) and increase the likelihood of your resumé being selected for further consideration.Identifying Relevant KeywordsCarefully review the job posting and identify the key skills, qualifications, and industry-specific terms that are mentioned. These are the keywords you should aim to incorporate into your resumé.Strategically Placing KeywordsIntegrate the relevant keywords seamlessly into your resumé, ensuring they flow naturally within the context of your experience and qualifications. Avoid keyword stuffing, which can appear unnatural and negatively impact the readability of your document.Balancing Keywords and ReadabilityWhile incorporating keywords is important, ensure that you maintain a focus on clear, concise, and compelling language. The overall readability and flow of your resumé should not be compromised in the pursuit of keyword optimization.Recommendation: Are you Feeling frustrated that your resume isn't getting you anywhere? Wish you had an easy way to create an impressive resume that actually lands you job interviews? This free online resume builder could be the solution you've been looking for. Click here to learn how you can effortlessly build a professional resume guaranteed to get you noticed by recruiters. VIII. Tailoring Resumés for Specific JobsThe Importance of Customizing ResumésGiven the highly competitive job market, it's essential to tailor your resumé for each position you apply for. A one-size-fits-all approach is rarely effective, as employers are looking for candidates who have the specific skills and experiences they're seeking.Addressing the Employer's Unique NeedsBy customizing your resumé, you can directly address the employer's specific requirements and demonstrate how your qualifications and background make you the ideal candidate for the role.Increasing the Relevance of Your ApplicationTailoring your resumé helps to ensure that the information you present is directly relevant to the target position, making it more likely that the hiring manager will see you as a strong fit.Standing Out in a Crowded FieldIn a highly competitive job market, a customized resumé can help you differentiate yourself from other applicants and increase your chances of being selected for an interview.Strategies for Tailoring ResumésWhen customizing your resumé, focus on aligning your qualifications, experiences, and skills with the requirements outlined in the job posting. Adjust the language, emphasis, and order of information to ensure your resumé directly addresses the employer's needs.Analyzing the Job DescriptionThoroughly review the job posting and identify the key skills, qualifications, and experiences the employer is seeking. This will guide the customization of your resumé.Rearranging the Order of SectionsConsider reordering the sections of your resumé to place the most relevant information first, ensuring that the hiring manager's immediate attention is drawn to your strongest qualifications.Modifying the Content and WordingUpdate the content of your resumé, including your work experience descriptions, skills, and accomplishments, to directly align with the specific requirements of the target role.Incorporating Relevant KeywordsStrategically incorporate the keywords and phrases used in the job posting throughout your resumé, ensuring that your application resonates with the employer's needs.Tailoring Your Summary or ObjectiveCraft a customized summary or objective statement that clearly articulates how your background and goals fit the target position.IX. Proofreading and PolishingChecking for Errors and ConsistencyBefore submitting your resumé, thoroughly proofread it to ensure there are no typos, grammatical errors, or inconsistencies in formatting, dates, or other details. Even a single mistake can diminish the professional impression your resumé makes.Reviewing for Spelling and GrammarCarefully read through your resumé, checking for any spelling, grammar, or punctuation errors. Consider using online tools or having a second set of eyes review your document.Ensuring Consistent FormattingVerify that your resumé maintains a consistent formatting style, with uniform use of fonts, spacing, bullet points, and other design elements.Double-Checking Dates and DetailsThoroughly review all dates, job titles, and other factual information to ensure they are accurate and consistent throughout your resumé.Seeking Feedback and RevisingConsider asking trusted colleagues, friends, or a professional resume writer to review your resumé and provide feedback. They may identify areas for improvement or suggest changes that can enhance the overall effectiveness of your document.Obtaining Objective FeedbackAsk individuals who are unfamiliar with your background to review your resumé. They can provide a fresh perspective and identify any areas that may be unclear or need further explanation.Incorporating Constructive CriticismBe open to feedback and use it as an opportunity to improve your resumé. Make revisions based on the suggestions and insights provided to strengthen your document.Continuously Refining and UpdatingTreat your resumé as a living document that requires regular review and refinement. Update it as your experience, skills, and career goals evolve over time.Recommendation: Are you Feeling frustrated that your resume isn't getting you anywhere? Wish you had an easy way to create an impressive resume that actually lands you job interviews? This free online resume builder could be the solution you've been looking for. Click here to learn how you can effortlessly build a professional resume guaranteed to get you noticed by recruiters. X. Additional Tips and ConsiderationsUsing References EffectivelyWhile references are typically not included on the resumé itself, be prepared to provide a separate list of professional references upon request. Choose individuals who can speak to your skills, qualifications, and achievements.Selecting Appropriate ReferencesIdentify references who can provide positive, credible, and relevant feedback about your work performance, skills, and character. Ensure that they are willing to speak highly of you.Providing Accurate Contact InformationEnsure that you have the correct contact information for your references, including their full name, job title, organization, phone number, and email address.Informing References in AdvanceNotify your references that you may be providing their information to potential employers and ask for their permission to do so. This will help them be prepared to provide a thoughtful and well-informed recommendation.Handling Employment Gaps or Career ChangesIf you have gaps in your employment history or are transitioning to a new career, address these factors proactively and positively. Explain any employment gaps concisely and emphasize the relevant skills and experiences you've gained, even if they were acquired in a different context.Addressing Employment GapsWhen faced with employment gaps, consider using a functional or combination resumé format to focus on your skills and qualifications rather than a strictly chronological work history. Provide a brief, honest explanation for any gaps, emphasizing how you used the time productively.Highlighting Transferable SkillsIf you are changing careers, identify the transferable skills and experiences you have that are relevant to the new role. Showcase how your background, even if it's in a different industry, has equipped you with the necessary competencies to excel in the target position.Emphasizing Relevant AchievementsDraw attention to any achievements, volunteer work, or personal projects you've undertaken during employment gaps or career transitions that demonstrate your continued growth and commitment to professional development.Addressing Potential Concerns or ObjectionsConsider potential concerns or objections a hiring manager might have about your qualifications and address them preemptively in your resumé. This could include addressing a lack of direct experience in the target role or explaining any potential red flags in your background.Anticipating Potential ConcernsCarefully review the job description and consider any areas where your background might not perfectly align with the employer's requirements. Proactively address these concerns in a positive and constructive manner.Providing Clarification and ContextIf there are any aspects of your background that may raise questions, such as employment gaps or career changes, use your resumé to provide clear and concise explanations that address these potential concerns.Highlighting Relevant StrengthsFocus on emphasizing the strengths, skills, and experiences you do possess that are relevant to the target role. This will help to minimize the impact of any potential weaknesses or gaps in your background.Recommendation: Are you Feeling frustrated that your resume isn't getting you anywhere? Wish you had an easy way to create an impressive resume that actually lands you job interviews? This free online resume builder could be the solution you've been looking for. Click here to learn how you can effortlessly build a professional resume guaranteed to get you noticed by recruiters. XI. ConclusionThe Role of a Well-Crafted Resumé in the Job Search ProcessA well-crafted resumé is a crucial tool in the job search process, serving as a powerful first impression and opening the door to new career opportunities. By following the strategies and best practices outlined in this guide, you can create a compelling and effective resumé that showcases your unique qualifications and increases your chances of securing job interviews.Final Thoughts and RecommendationsCrafting a strong resumé requires time, attention to detail, and a thoughtful approach. Remember to regularly review and update your resumé to ensure it remains current and aligned with your career goals. Continuous improvement and a willingness to adapt your resumé to the specific needs of each employer will give you a competitive edge in today's job market.Ultimately, a well-designed and meticulously crafted resumé can be the key to unlocking new doors and propelling your career forward. By tailoring your resumé to the needs of each employer and highlighting your most relevant qualifications, you can position yourself as a standout candidate and increase your chances of landing the job of your dreams. Recommendation: Are you Feeling frustrated that your resume isn't getting you anywhere? Wish you had an easy way to create an impressive resume that actually lands you job interviews? This free online resume builder could be the solution you've been looking for. Click here to learn how you can effortlessly build a professional resume guaranteed to get you noticed by recruiters. |
2024.05.02 23:54 samsungjello Ranking the Top 52 Eurovision Song Contest Countries since 1975: Coming into their own (#20-#16)
T-Minus 1 week until the next edition of the very contest we all love and enjoy. We are approaching the best of the best that this contest has to offer, as we are in the top 20! These countries represent 40 of the 50 highest ranked songs since 1975, which just shows how much all of these countries have contributed to the longest running singing competition.
We are getting some big hitters now! At #20, we have Turkey, who first participated at the start of this time period and is really a late bloomer to this competition, as they started to get consistently great results in the 2000s, the last full decade they would participate in. Coming in in front of Turkey is our second Nordic nation in Finland, who like Turkey really struggled to place well at this competition until their Magnum opus arrived, which really shook the foundation of who could win at this contest, and since then have really started to come into their own, embracing their wacky nature. Above them is Austria, who is the oldest ESC nation on this list so far, getting their start in only the contest’s second year, 1957. They actually had one of the longest winless streaks in Eurovision since their first win in 1966, taking 48 tries after that to claim their second crown. Our first “Big Five” nation comes up at #17, with Spain, as they are part of some of the wackiest results ever at this contest, and in back to back years as well! The reason why they are the lowest ranked “Big Five” nation is because they really bottomed out in the 2000s and 2010s, only recently finding redemption in the early 2020s. And at #16 on our list is Malta, who have participated in every edition of ESC since ‘91, and is the best performing country to never win Eurovision, considering that they are the only country in the top 20 to not have one ESC crown on their resume, which is a big shame, considering the bangers they have given us over the years.
Some Notable Artists: Athena (Turkey), Blind Channel (Finland), Bravo (Spain), Chanel (Spain), Chiara (Malta), Anabel Conde (Spain), Sergio Dalma (Spain), Destiny (Malta), Sertab Erener (Turkey), Thomas Forstner (Austria), Grup Etnik (Turkey), Hadise (Turkey), Käärijä (Finland), Lordi (Finland), Ira Losco (Malta), Manga (Turkey), Betty Missiego (Spain), Şebnem Paker (Turkey), Pihasoittajat (Finland), Alf Poier (Austria), Anneli Saaristo (Finland), Cesár Sampson (Austria), Mary Spiteri (Malta), Conchita Wurst (Austria), Zoë (Austria)
What a difference a year makes! Coming off high from their win in 2014, their first in almost 50 years, Austria was set to host this year’s edition. As such, they had a free pass to the Grand Final, with their song “I Am Yours” performed by The Makemakes, an Austrian pop rock band. I didn’t think much of this song when I initially heard it, so imagine my shock when I saw that it didn’t receive a single point on the final scoreboard. I actually don’t know why this got last place, maybe this entry is an example of the douze points system rearing its ugly head, or maybe no one remembered to vote for this song at the end. Either way, this is a confusing entry in the Hall of nul points. And because there were so many countries that year, this song sinks far to the depths of this club.
A common theme you will see here for countries like Turkey or Finland or any non Western European Country (besides Portugal), is that with the language rules, they would struggle to do well at all, especially in the 80’s and 90’s, where English was overtaking French as the dominant language of Eurovision. It would take some time for these countries to find a formula that transcends language (see Turkey 1997 for more details), but for now it would be rough sailing for Turkey and these other countries to appeal the juries. That doesn’t mean that bangers weren’t being sent in though! This song seems like it would be the opening for a space odyssey or something, it just has that feel. Unfortunately, a little nervousness would doom this performance, scoring zero points** in Belgium.
Ok, so I kind of take back what I said about only Western European countries doing well in this era of ESC. Spain, like Portugal, struggled mightily when they entered in 1961. They already had two last place, nul point entries by the year 1968, where they would pull off one of the most infamous wins in Eurovision history, pipping the United Kingdom by a singular point. The year after they would have another infamous win at this contest, sharing the win with the UK, France, and The Netherlands. Since then, it would be alright for Spain… until this year, where they would have *another last place, nul point entry. This one probably didn’t deserve the honor, and I say “probably” because after listening to this song, I’m confused on where it should place. Probably not last though. People say that ESC was not ready for this type of music, which I probably agree with, I just don’t know when ESC would be ready for this type of music though.
** Turkey only has two entries that have scored nul points at ESC, with the other one being in 1983
Like I said, tough sledding for the non Western European Countries, especially tough for the Nordic nations, who really were seen as jokes at this competition for the longest time (really until Sweden and Norway went back to back in ‘84 and ‘85). Fortunately for Finland, this time period gets rid of two other last place, nil point performances in 1963 and 1965. This also doesn’t count their 1 point performance in 1968, but I think you get the point. They have finished last six** Other times since 1975 however, and since they do not have as many hits as their Nordic contemporaries (sans Iceland), they are only 19th. Anyway, while Germany ran away with the contest singing a song about peace (another ESC staple), Finland would obtain last place with a song about peace, in particular a song about protesting nuclear bombs. While Germany’s song was a neatly composed song that was nice on the ears, this one is the complete opposite, so it’s fitting that this one finished last. I would say more but I don’t want to listen to this song again, so…
** Six last place performances in the Grand Final, they have an additional two last place finishes in the semifinals.
Malta surprisingly has not had an entry receiving nul points (though 2016 and 2023 are very, very close). But they have struggled to qualify in the last 8 years, only qualifying twice in that span. This entry was one that did not make the cut, a decent ballad that just didn’t work with enough people, which is unfortunate. Malta used to rule with dramatic ballads, in fact, all of their top 3 finishes (sans 2002), were ballads, so they do know what they are doing in this department. Maybe like Ireland, their type of ballads just don’t work anymore in modern Eurovision, which is sad to say, but maybe Malta can reinvent themselves and be back on top one day!
Surprised? Like I said earlier Malta have sent in some classics to this competition, this one included. Despite the fact that there are at least 3 other songs with higher placements, none of them were able to outperform Destiny, our second COVID participant! Before this entry, she was more well known for winning Eurovision for Malta! Well, it was actually Junior Eurovision, but still, that is a heck of an achievement to have in your locker. She has also appeared on Britain’s Got Talent, and she has also won the X Factor in Malta, so safe to say she definitely has the talent to compete! From the ESC website, she says that her dream was to represent Malta and obtain that first victory for her country, and with the support of former Maltese entrant Ira Losco, she would get the chance to do so with her song “All of My Soul” for ESC 2020… and well you know what happened after that. But for 2021, she will have another opportunity to achieve her dream with her new song “Je Me Casse”. This song is just energy personified. Destiny said that her influences for singing were Lizzo, Beyonce, Aretha Franklin, Cardi B, and Megan Thee Stallion, women who are known for their energy that they bring to every performance. She definitely brings it here, with her song about empowerment and breaking free. Destiny has a powerful voice as well, which really helps bring out the emotion in this song, commanding the attention of everyone who watched it! When I heard this song for the first time, I immediately thought she would win, the song just has that winning energy surrounding it, and Destiny is the main reason why. Unfortunately for Destiny and for Malta, while this song would finish in the top 10, it would not be the one for the country, as they end up 7th, which is pretty respectable considering the stacked lineup for this year. Even more unfortunately for Malta, they haven’t qualified to the Grand Final since that year (even though it’s only been two years). Who knows, maybe in the future Destiny can come back for Malta to get the elusive crown, if Portugal can win one, anything is possible.
The most points Turkey has ever received at Eurovision, which is crazy to say considering the renaissance they were going through at the time. No it’s not their only win that takes the top spot (3 way battles tend to make the winner’s score weaker, and according to my formula Turkey didn’t even win this year), but rather the entry after it, that does. Meet the rock/ska band Athena, regarded as one of the best rock bands in Turkey. The band got their start in 1987, formed by twin brothers Gökhan Özoğuz and Hakan Özoğuz. After releasing their first album, they switched their style from rock centered to ska centered, which is like a fusion of punk rock and ska music (basically there are a lot of trumpets, trombones, and woodwind instruments). Once they switched their style they caught fire in Turkey, which culminated in a large tour of their country as well as opening for the Rolling Stones(!). They were selected by the Turkish broadcaster to be the host’s act for ESC 2004. I was wondering what this song was, considering that I didn’t recognize it when I started writing this piece. But then the song started, and I was like “Oh, this song”, which is nothing against the band, because this song is pretty decent! The ska influence still rings large in this entry, with the horns blaring throughout the song. Songs like this tend to be really catchy, with this one being no exception. Other examples of songs like this that I can name off the top of my head are “Alcohol is Free” in 2013 and Turkey’s future entry in “We Could Be The Same” in 2010. While "For Real" may not have been immediately recognizable to some compared to the other two, its infectious charm quickly captures attention. It finished 4th, showcasing the future promise of songs from this region, while continuing Turkey’s strong period that would disappointingly end with their withdrawal in the early 2010s.
This entry is ranked 65th of all songs since 1975.
Their best result in decades, and it is in the most sexy Spanish way! After a turbulent 2010s, which included several finishes in the 20s, a last place finish (which contained a legendary voice crack), it seemed to be more of the same in the 2020s, as their 2021 entry only received 6 measly points and a 24th placement. Then Chanel appeared. Born in Cuba, Chanel Terrero Martínez moved to Spain at the age of 6. Once she moved to Spain, she began taking acting, singing, and ballet classes, culminating in her beginning her musical theater journey when she was 16. Chanel featured in many Spanish shows and musical productions, and she almost got the part of the musical West Side Story, directed by Steven Spilburg. Notice how I haven’t mentioned much about her singing, it’s because her musical career started very recently! Chanel decided to participate in Benidorm Fest 2022, with her debut single called “SloMo”. This song had a lot of hands in production, as Chanel worked with stars like Jennifer Lopez, Britney Spears, among others. The effort would be worth it, as she won the Festival, claiming her ticket to Turin for ESC 2022. The last time Spain finished in the Top 5, you would have to go all the way back to the year 1995, with Anabel Conde delivering a Eurovision classic with the song "Vuelve conmigo", which finished 2nd to Norway’s entry. That song was a slow, methodical ballad, this song is the complete opposite, it leaves almost everyone (including the singer) breathless! Like with Destiny, this song is pure energy, but this entry falls in line with the typical “sexy Spanish energy”, and when you look at the performance (this link is for the Benidorm version), I mean, the woman literally says “booty hypnotic” about 6 times! Singing wise, it’s nothing special, but the performance really takes this to another level. It’s like Spain got the memo that Latvia sent out about how performance really drives an entry about 20 years too late. But they definitely got the message alright! It must be difficult to be a fan of Spain at Eurovision, considering that the country has been swimming in mediocrity along with its fellow Big Five brethren (except for Italy and sometimes France/UK, but definitely with Germany). But when the stars align, this is what Spain can do, and it’s so amazing when they do it! Spain in this contest's history really surprises you when they do well, and then you wonder why they can’t do this more often, only to disappear until the next great performance, rinse and repeat. Maybe after this entry and last year’s one (which got robbed of a better placement), Spain can finally flex their might at this competition, and one day we may go back to Spain for an ESC!
** This song is one of the Top 50 ESC songs since 1975.
48 years between podium finishes, but what a way to do it! Austria occupies an interesting place within ESC lore. At the beginning of their journey, they weren’t much of anything, and it took a certain Udo Jürgens performing three times in back to back to back years to finally take the crown for the country. Since then, nothing much, just wading in the ESC waters, with the occasional decent tune once in a while. Then comes 2014. Austria up to this point were not known to be that influential in Eurovision, but then there was Conchita Wurst, who changed that perception in about 3 minutes. But first, some backstory. Conchita Wurst is the drag persona of Tom Neuwirth, who had a long career before joining the ESC stage. He was the founding member of a boy band in the early 2010s, and before that embarked on his singing career through an Austrian casting show. In 2011, Tom would start appearing as Conchita Wurst, a name literally meaning “Vagina (Spanish slang) Penis (German slang)” Conchita is also well noted for having a beard, a decision consciously made because as Tom/Conchita put it, “you can achieve anything, no matter who you are or how you look”. In 2012, Conchita almost became the representative for Austria at Eurovision, but narrowly lost out to Trackshittaz by 2% of the vote. In 2014, Conchita would not need a vote, as the national broadcaster would select Wurst and the song “Rise Like A Phoenix” to perform in Copenhagen. Now Conchita’s inclusion in ESC did not come without its outroar of disapproval, specifically from conservative groups in Eastern Europe. There were even petitions made for the local broadcasters to cut out Conchita’s performance entirely. Of course there were comparisons made between Conchita and Dana International, not only because of the LGBT likeness but also because of the threats and disapproval they both received prior to the contest. This disapproval would extend onto the ESC stage, as Armenia’s representative that year would make various remarks about how Conchita wasn’t living a “natural life”. That wouldn’t stop the drag queen however, as Wurst would go on to deliver a stunning ballad, appropriately about how she would rise from the ashes of her haters to become stronger. It reminds me of James Bond music, just with the horns and the overall vibe of the song. The entry was meant to be serious and on that note it succeeded, and overall it just has the commanding energy that so many winning songs demonstrate. This entry would not only win for Austria, breaking a nearly 50 year drought*, but would become one of the most iconic ESC entries of the 21st century, maybe even ever! Like with 1998, this would open the door for LGBT visibility in this contest, something that would only be embraced more and more in the years since this song took gold.
** This song is one of the Top 50 ESC songs since 1975. *** He would say that those comments were a joke, but you get the picture **** The 2010’s (and some of the 2020s) overall were really an era of breaking droughts. You got Germany (first since 1982), Azerbaijan (first ever), Sweden (first since 1999), Denmark (first since 2001), Austria (first since 1966), Sweden (first since 2012 lol), Ukraine (first since 2004), Portugal (first ever), Israel (first since 1998), and the Netherlands (first since 1975) all winning. Maybe countries like France (1977), Spain (1969) the UK (1998), even Ireland (1997, and who am I kidding, this drought will not be broken for a long time) could break their droughts as well?
All of the songs on this list have surprised me, sans Austria and Spain. Finland’s best ever performing entry prior to 2023 was Lordi’s “Hard Rock Halleujah”, an entry that broke the barrier on what type of entries could win at this competition. Lordi’s song will forever remain in ESC lore, and for Finland it would be at the top of a surprisingly lackluster list. Outside of Lordi,there is only one other entry that has a score of over 150 (basically Top 7ish) prior to 2023, which was Blind Channel’s song “Dark Side” in 2021. Finland when it comes to the power of Scandinavia at this contest are really only above Iceland when it comes to performance and impact. The other three countries are loaded with iconic songs and impact to this competition, something that Finland has been lacking, until recently. Of course there’s Lordi and in 2021 there was Blind Channel, but both of those songs demonstrate what Finland can bring to this competition, which is hard party rock, and that is perfectly demonstrated with the song many people thought should have won, “Cha Cha Cha”, performed by Käärijä. Käärijä, or Jere Mikael Pöyhönen is a rapper and songwriter, known for his bowl cut and his shirtlessness, with the ladder having a nice sentiment driving it.*** There are many more things that he is known for and has done, from how his name is a play on the word for gambling in Finnish, to how he mostly performed shirtless due to the fact that his original yellow suit would get too hot, but you are all here for me to talk about the song, so let’s get to it. There are many similarities between this song and “Hard Rock Hallejah”, but the similarity that matters most is the fact that these songs are so unapologetically themselves. They both invite you to join their worlds, promising a hell of a time if one were to accept the invitation. While Lordi’s song involved the “acrocoplis” this song involves a party, a crazy party, nonetheless. I think what works the best for this song is that despite the fact that all of the lyrics are in Finnish, the first time that has happened for Finland since 2010, the chorus is where everyone can let loose, and boy does it let you. The roars you hear when the audience says “CHA CHA CHA CHA CHA CHA CHA EY” are really a testament to how much energy this song has (I feel like I’ve said this a lot today). This song is pure fun, and it’s such a joy to go through all of the acts with Käärijä. Did this song deserve to win? Well… yes and no. This song did get the highest televoting percentage of any entry not named “Stefania”, even surpassing Portugal’s entry in 2017. And if you see my contest ranking, according to my formula it placed first. On those fronts, it deserved to win. Does this song carry more winning energy than Sweden? Yes, but then I’m reminded of 2007, and how the more serious song (“Molitva”) won over the more campy fun song ("Dancing Lasha Tumbai"). From the history of ESC, the more serious songs win out most of the time, so I can see why this song didn’t surpass Sweden. Do I think this song deserved to win? Well I’m torn. Both songs have the potential to win, and I love both of them for different reasons. I could talk about it more, but this is a Finland post, and this song could have the impact of Ukraine 2007, even if it didn’t win. What this song has done is raise Finland’s profile in ESC and in my rankings, because without this song Finland may be below Iceland in the rankings.
** This song is one of the Top 50 ESC songs since 1975. *** Basically Käärijä said that going topless should be more accepted, no matter what size you are, which is a pretty cool message if you ask me.
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The Countries
| Placement | Country | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 16 | Malta | 140231.278 |
| 17 | Spain | 138804.573 |
| 18 | Austria | 125761.301 |
| 19 | Finland | 120225.116 |
| 20 | Turkey | 118659.853 |
Some Notable Artists: Athena (Turkey), Blind Channel (Finland), Bravo (Spain), Chanel (Spain), Chiara (Malta), Anabel Conde (Spain), Sergio Dalma (Spain), Destiny (Malta), Sertab Erener (Turkey), Thomas Forstner (Austria), Grup Etnik (Turkey), Hadise (Turkey), Käärijä (Finland), Lordi (Finland), Ira Losco (Malta), Manga (Turkey), Betty Missiego (Spain), Şebnem Paker (Turkey), Pihasoittajat (Finland), Alf Poier (Austria), Anneli Saaristo (Finland), Cesár Sampson (Austria), Mary Spiteri (Malta), Conchita Wurst (Austria), Zoë (Austria)
The Worst Years
Austria 2015 The Makemakes - I Am Yours
Contest Ranking: 26th (last, 0 pts) My Ranking: 39th (last, -3.9)What a difference a year makes! Coming off high from their win in 2014, their first in almost 50 years, Austria was set to host this year’s edition. As such, they had a free pass to the Grand Final, with their song “I Am Yours” performed by The Makemakes, an Austrian pop rock band. I didn’t think much of this song when I initially heard it, so imagine my shock when I saw that it didn’t receive a single point on the final scoreboard. I actually don’t know why this got last place, maybe this entry is an example of the douze points system rearing its ugly head, or maybe no one remembered to vote for this song at the end. Either way, this is a confusing entry in the Hall of nul points. And because there were so many countries that year, this song sinks far to the depths of this club.
Turkey 1987 Seyyal Taner and Grup Lokomotif - Şarkım Sevgi Üstüne
Contest Ranking: 22nd (last, 0 pts) My Ranking: 22nd (last, -2.1)A common theme you will see here for countries like Turkey or Finland or any non Western European Country (besides Portugal), is that with the language rules, they would struggle to do well at all, especially in the 80’s and 90’s, where English was overtaking French as the dominant language of Eurovision. It would take some time for these countries to find a formula that transcends language (see Turkey 1997 for more details), but for now it would be rough sailing for Turkey and these other countries to appeal the juries. That doesn’t mean that bangers weren’t being sent in though! This song seems like it would be the opening for a space odyssey or something, it just has that feel. Unfortunately, a little nervousness would doom this performance, scoring zero points** in Belgium.
Spain 1983 Remedios Amaya - Quién maneja mi barca
Contest Ranking: 19th (last, 0 pts) My Ranking: 19th (last, -1.9)Ok, so I kind of take back what I said about only Western European countries doing well in this era of ESC. Spain, like Portugal, struggled mightily when they entered in 1961. They already had two last place, nul point entries by the year 1968, where they would pull off one of the most infamous wins in Eurovision history, pipping the United Kingdom by a singular point. The year after they would have another infamous win at this contest, sharing the win with the UK, France, and The Netherlands. Since then, it would be alright for Spain… until this year, where they would have *another last place, nul point entry. This one probably didn’t deserve the honor, and I say “probably” because after listening to this song, I’m confused on where it should place. Probably not last though. People say that ESC was not ready for this type of music, which I probably agree with, I just don’t know when ESC would be ready for this type of music though.
** Turkey only has two entries that have scored nul points at ESC, with the other one being in 1983
Finland 1982 Kojo - Nuku pommiin
Contest Ranking: 18th (last, 0 pts) My Ranking: 22nd (last, -1.7)Like I said, tough sledding for the non Western European Countries, especially tough for the Nordic nations, who really were seen as jokes at this competition for the longest time (really until Sweden and Norway went back to back in ‘84 and ‘85). Fortunately for Finland, this time period gets rid of two other last place, nil point performances in 1963 and 1965. This also doesn’t count their 1 point performance in 1968, but I think you get the point. They have finished last six** Other times since 1975 however, and since they do not have as many hits as their Nordic contemporaries (sans Iceland), they are only 19th. Anyway, while Germany ran away with the contest singing a song about peace (another ESC staple), Finland would obtain last place with a song about peace, in particular a song about protesting nuclear bombs. While Germany’s song was a neatly composed song that was nice on the ears, this one is the complete opposite, so it’s fitting that this one finished last. I would say more but I don’t want to listen to this song again, so…
** Six last place performances in the Grand Final, they have an additional two last place finishes in the semifinals.
Malta 2017 Claudia Faniello - Breathlessly
Contest Ranking: DNQ (16th 2nd Semifinal , 55 pts) My Ranking: 22nd (41st, 0.062)Malta surprisingly has not had an entry receiving nul points (though 2016 and 2023 are very, very close). But they have struggled to qualify in the last 8 years, only qualifying twice in that span. This entry was one that did not make the cut, a decent ballad that just didn’t work with enough people, which is unfortunate. Malta used to rule with dramatic ballads, in fact, all of their top 3 finishes (sans 2002), were ballads, so they do know what they are doing in this department. Maybe like Ireland, their type of ballads just don’t work anymore in modern Eurovision, which is sad to say, but maybe Malta can reinvent themselves and be back on top one day!
The Best Years
Malta 2021 Destiny - Je me casse
Contest Ranking: 7th (255 pts) My Ranking: 6th (398.4*)Surprised? Like I said earlier Malta have sent in some classics to this competition, this one included. Despite the fact that there are at least 3 other songs with higher placements, none of them were able to outperform Destiny, our second COVID participant! Before this entry, she was more well known for winning Eurovision for Malta! Well, it was actually Junior Eurovision, but still, that is a heck of an achievement to have in your locker. She has also appeared on Britain’s Got Talent, and she has also won the X Factor in Malta, so safe to say she definitely has the talent to compete! From the ESC website, she says that her dream was to represent Malta and obtain that first victory for her country, and with the support of former Maltese entrant Ira Losco, she would get the chance to do so with her song “All of My Soul” for ESC 2020… and well you know what happened after that. But for 2021, she will have another opportunity to achieve her dream with her new song “Je Me Casse”. This song is just energy personified. Destiny said that her influences for singing were Lizzo, Beyonce, Aretha Franklin, Cardi B, and Megan Thee Stallion, women who are known for their energy that they bring to every performance. She definitely brings it here, with her song about empowerment and breaking free. Destiny has a powerful voice as well, which really helps bring out the emotion in this song, commanding the attention of everyone who watched it! When I heard this song for the first time, I immediately thought she would win, the song just has that winning energy surrounding it, and Destiny is the main reason why. Unfortunately for Destiny and for Malta, while this song would finish in the top 10, it would not be the one for the country, as they end up 7th, which is pretty respectable considering the stacked lineup for this year. Even more unfortunately for Malta, they haven’t qualified to the Grand Final since that year (even though it’s only been two years). Who knows, maybe in the future Destiny can come back for Malta to get the elusive crown, if Portugal can win one, anything is possible.
- This song is ranked 68th of all entries since 1975
Turkey 2004 Athena - For Real
Contest Ranking: 4th (195 pts) My Ranking: 4th (401.842*)The most points Turkey has ever received at Eurovision, which is crazy to say considering the renaissance they were going through at the time. No it’s not their only win that takes the top spot (3 way battles tend to make the winner’s score weaker, and according to my formula Turkey didn’t even win this year), but rather the entry after it, that does. Meet the rock/ska band Athena, regarded as one of the best rock bands in Turkey. The band got their start in 1987, formed by twin brothers Gökhan Özoğuz and Hakan Özoğuz. After releasing their first album, they switched their style from rock centered to ska centered, which is like a fusion of punk rock and ska music (basically there are a lot of trumpets, trombones, and woodwind instruments). Once they switched their style they caught fire in Turkey, which culminated in a large tour of their country as well as opening for the Rolling Stones(!). They were selected by the Turkish broadcaster to be the host’s act for ESC 2004. I was wondering what this song was, considering that I didn’t recognize it when I started writing this piece. But then the song started, and I was like “Oh, this song”, which is nothing against the band, because this song is pretty decent! The ska influence still rings large in this entry, with the horns blaring throughout the song. Songs like this tend to be really catchy, with this one being no exception. Other examples of songs like this that I can name off the top of my head are “Alcohol is Free” in 2013 and Turkey’s future entry in “We Could Be The Same” in 2010. While "For Real" may not have been immediately recognizable to some compared to the other two, its infectious charm quickly captures attention. It finished 4th, showcasing the future promise of songs from this region, while continuing Turkey’s strong period that would disappointingly end with their withdrawal in the early 2010s.
This entry is ranked 65th of all songs since 1975.
Spain 2022 Chanel - SloMo
Contest Ranking: 3rd (459 pts) My Ranking: 3rd (481.959**)Their best result in decades, and it is in the most sexy Spanish way! After a turbulent 2010s, which included several finishes in the 20s, a last place finish (which contained a legendary voice crack), it seemed to be more of the same in the 2020s, as their 2021 entry only received 6 measly points and a 24th placement. Then Chanel appeared. Born in Cuba, Chanel Terrero Martínez moved to Spain at the age of 6. Once she moved to Spain, she began taking acting, singing, and ballet classes, culminating in her beginning her musical theater journey when she was 16. Chanel featured in many Spanish shows and musical productions, and she almost got the part of the musical West Side Story, directed by Steven Spilburg. Notice how I haven’t mentioned much about her singing, it’s because her musical career started very recently! Chanel decided to participate in Benidorm Fest 2022, with her debut single called “SloMo”. This song had a lot of hands in production, as Chanel worked with stars like Jennifer Lopez, Britney Spears, among others. The effort would be worth it, as she won the Festival, claiming her ticket to Turin for ESC 2022. The last time Spain finished in the Top 5, you would have to go all the way back to the year 1995, with Anabel Conde delivering a Eurovision classic with the song "Vuelve conmigo", which finished 2nd to Norway’s entry. That song was a slow, methodical ballad, this song is the complete opposite, it leaves almost everyone (including the singer) breathless! Like with Destiny, this song is pure energy, but this entry falls in line with the typical “sexy Spanish energy”, and when you look at the performance (this link is for the Benidorm version), I mean, the woman literally says “booty hypnotic” about 6 times! Singing wise, it’s nothing special, but the performance really takes this to another level. It’s like Spain got the memo that Latvia sent out about how performance really drives an entry about 20 years too late. But they definitely got the message alright! It must be difficult to be a fan of Spain at Eurovision, considering that the country has been swimming in mediocrity along with its fellow Big Five brethren (except for Italy and sometimes France/UK, but definitely with Germany). But when the stars align, this is what Spain can do, and it’s so amazing when they do it! Spain in this contest's history really surprises you when they do well, and then you wonder why they can’t do this more often, only to disappear until the next great performance, rinse and repeat. Maybe after this entry and last year’s one (which got robbed of a better placement), Spain can finally flex their might at this competition, and one day we may go back to Spain for an ESC!
** This song is one of the Top 50 ESC songs since 1975.
Austria 2014 Conchita Wurst - Rise Like a Phoenix
Contest Ranking: 1st (290 pts) My Ranking: 1st (602.765**)48 years between podium finishes, but what a way to do it! Austria occupies an interesting place within ESC lore. At the beginning of their journey, they weren’t much of anything, and it took a certain Udo Jürgens performing three times in back to back to back years to finally take the crown for the country. Since then, nothing much, just wading in the ESC waters, with the occasional decent tune once in a while. Then comes 2014. Austria up to this point were not known to be that influential in Eurovision, but then there was Conchita Wurst, who changed that perception in about 3 minutes. But first, some backstory. Conchita Wurst is the drag persona of Tom Neuwirth, who had a long career before joining the ESC stage. He was the founding member of a boy band in the early 2010s, and before that embarked on his singing career through an Austrian casting show. In 2011, Tom would start appearing as Conchita Wurst, a name literally meaning “Vagina (Spanish slang) Penis (German slang)” Conchita is also well noted for having a beard, a decision consciously made because as Tom/Conchita put it, “you can achieve anything, no matter who you are or how you look”. In 2012, Conchita almost became the representative for Austria at Eurovision, but narrowly lost out to Trackshittaz by 2% of the vote. In 2014, Conchita would not need a vote, as the national broadcaster would select Wurst and the song “Rise Like A Phoenix” to perform in Copenhagen. Now Conchita’s inclusion in ESC did not come without its outroar of disapproval, specifically from conservative groups in Eastern Europe. There were even petitions made for the local broadcasters to cut out Conchita’s performance entirely. Of course there were comparisons made between Conchita and Dana International, not only because of the LGBT likeness but also because of the threats and disapproval they both received prior to the contest. This disapproval would extend onto the ESC stage, as Armenia’s representative that year would make various remarks about how Conchita wasn’t living a “natural life”. That wouldn’t stop the drag queen however, as Wurst would go on to deliver a stunning ballad, appropriately about how she would rise from the ashes of her haters to become stronger. It reminds me of James Bond music, just with the horns and the overall vibe of the song. The entry was meant to be serious and on that note it succeeded, and overall it just has the commanding energy that so many winning songs demonstrate. This entry would not only win for Austria, breaking a nearly 50 year drought*, but would become one of the most iconic ESC entries of the 21st century, maybe even ever! Like with 1998, this would open the door for LGBT visibility in this contest, something that would only be embraced more and more in the years since this song took gold.
** This song is one of the Top 50 ESC songs since 1975. *** He would say that those comments were a joke, but you get the picture **** The 2010’s (and some of the 2020s) overall were really an era of breaking droughts. You got Germany (first since 1982), Azerbaijan (first ever), Sweden (first since 1999), Denmark (first since 2001), Austria (first since 1966), Sweden (first since 2012 lol), Ukraine (first since 2004), Portugal (first ever), Israel (first since 1998), and the Netherlands (first since 1975) all winning. Maybe countries like France (1977), Spain (1969) the UK (1998), even Ireland (1997, and who am I kidding, this drought will not be broken for a long time) could break their droughts as well?
Finland 2023 Käärijä - Cha Cha Cha
Contest Ranking: 2nd (526 pts) My Ranking: 1st (732.848**)All of the songs on this list have surprised me, sans Austria and Spain. Finland’s best ever performing entry prior to 2023 was Lordi’s “Hard Rock Halleujah”, an entry that broke the barrier on what type of entries could win at this competition. Lordi’s song will forever remain in ESC lore, and for Finland it would be at the top of a surprisingly lackluster list. Outside of Lordi,there is only one other entry that has a score of over 150 (basically Top 7ish) prior to 2023, which was Blind Channel’s song “Dark Side” in 2021. Finland when it comes to the power of Scandinavia at this contest are really only above Iceland when it comes to performance and impact. The other three countries are loaded with iconic songs and impact to this competition, something that Finland has been lacking, until recently. Of course there’s Lordi and in 2021 there was Blind Channel, but both of those songs demonstrate what Finland can bring to this competition, which is hard party rock, and that is perfectly demonstrated with the song many people thought should have won, “Cha Cha Cha”, performed by Käärijä. Käärijä, or Jere Mikael Pöyhönen is a rapper and songwriter, known for his bowl cut and his shirtlessness, with the ladder having a nice sentiment driving it.*** There are many more things that he is known for and has done, from how his name is a play on the word for gambling in Finnish, to how he mostly performed shirtless due to the fact that his original yellow suit would get too hot, but you are all here for me to talk about the song, so let’s get to it. There are many similarities between this song and “Hard Rock Hallejah”, but the similarity that matters most is the fact that these songs are so unapologetically themselves. They both invite you to join their worlds, promising a hell of a time if one were to accept the invitation. While Lordi’s song involved the “acrocoplis” this song involves a party, a crazy party, nonetheless. I think what works the best for this song is that despite the fact that all of the lyrics are in Finnish, the first time that has happened for Finland since 2010, the chorus is where everyone can let loose, and boy does it let you. The roars you hear when the audience says “CHA CHA CHA CHA CHA CHA CHA EY” are really a testament to how much energy this song has (I feel like I’ve said this a lot today). This song is pure fun, and it’s such a joy to go through all of the acts with Käärijä. Did this song deserve to win? Well… yes and no. This song did get the highest televoting percentage of any entry not named “Stefania”, even surpassing Portugal’s entry in 2017. And if you see my contest ranking, according to my formula it placed first. On those fronts, it deserved to win. Does this song carry more winning energy than Sweden? Yes, but then I’m reminded of 2007, and how the more serious song (“Molitva”) won over the more campy fun song ("Dancing Lasha Tumbai"). From the history of ESC, the more serious songs win out most of the time, so I can see why this song didn’t surpass Sweden. Do I think this song deserved to win? Well I’m torn. Both songs have the potential to win, and I love both of them for different reasons. I could talk about it more, but this is a Finland post, and this song could have the impact of Ukraine 2007, even if it didn’t win. What this song has done is raise Finland’s profile in ESC and in my rankings, because without this song Finland may be below Iceland in the rankings.
** This song is one of the Top 50 ESC songs since 1975. *** Basically Käärijä said that going topless should be more accepted, no matter what size you are, which is a pretty cool message if you ask me.
Final Thoughts
So what do you think? Do you believe that Finland deserved to win last year? Which country here has delivered the biggest impact to ESC? Will Malta ever join the winner’s circle at Eurovision? And who will be next?2024.05.02 23:54 savvylikeapirate The Ways a Human Loves (pt. 1)
Ji'nur'kakf’Eng had worked with humans before. He served on a multi-species science vessel for six standard months. To his pleasant surprise, he had been enfolded by the strange, new species. The few that spoke clicking languages could say his full Name. The rest called him nicknames like “Vamps” and “Batman”, with a strange accompanying song that followed him through the decks. There was some sort of cultural thing about his appearance that nobody had time to explain. Of the nicknames he had been given, he honestly just preferred “Jin.”
This new vessel was a promotion, being the Head Medical Officer of a ship was something he had wanted as soon as he realized his calling to heal. But the ship itself was… very different. Unlike the vast and nearly spherical Galactic Federation ships, this one was a smaller reconnaissance-class gunship from the Terran Union. She was shaped mostly like a triangle, with actual wings (wings!) for in-atmo flight. The front came to a distinct point, with another point on either side sitting more towards the wings and coming less far forward.
“She's a Falconidae model,” Captain Ntuli said, seeing his confusion. “Terran designers will go on kicks and design things based on Earth animals. It's a type of hunting bird.”
“Oh, I see,” Jin answered quietly. He was a man of science, but being on a ship designed to look like one of his species’ major predators made him quickly chitter to the spirits that it wasn't some kind of omen. “What’s her name?”
The captain grinned, her teeth incredibly white in her dark brown face. He didn't shiver at the sight, having forced himself to get over the teeth thing within the first month of his previous post.
“Her name is T.U.S. Kissimmee Asp.” She said proudly. “It's a pun in English, so I don't know if it translates to K'ohe'la.”
Oh! She could use the clicks of his tongue! That was a pleasant surprise.
A tall, red-haired female in grease stained coveralls leaned out of the ramp hatch. “We call her Kissy when she's being nice, and Asp when she's throwing fits,” she interjected, wiping her hands with a rag.
Captain Ntuli sighed, gesturing towards the other woman. “This is one of our Engineering officers, Miss Josephine Drakonos.”
“Just call me Josie! There's another Drakonos on board and it could get confusing as hell otherwise.”
Josie offered her hand with a smile. Jin knew this bit of human greeting. He unclasped the wings around his shoulders and stood straighter, offering his own four-fingered hand to shake hers.
“I'm Dr. Ji'nur'kakf’Eng. Most humans prefer to call me Dr. Jin.” He finished with a greeting click that may have been out of her hearing range, but it was polite.
“Oh, you're the new doc? Cool. We, uh, might get kinda familiar. Engineering can be rough some days,” she said sheepishly.
Jin laughed lightly at that, a crackling sound in his lower throat.
The captain led him onto the ship, Josie scurrying off to yell at some Ensign. She toured him through the slightly cramped galley, letting him nod and click his hellos to the personnel there. (“Oh my God, he's Batman!” “More like the man-bat.” “Could you assholes not be racist for ten fucking minutes?”)
Jin was pleasantly surprised that he wasn't the only non-Terran on board. There were a few Ryeté in the rec room, making humans shriek when they extended their second set of jaws to quickly snatch food out of their hands. A Shex sat in the navigation seat, adjusting things with their tentacles. There was even an Ah'gua as the communications officer.
“The humans call me Penny,” she said, returning his greeting click with a hiss-click of her own. Her feathers were a purely tropical shade of yellow with bands of cobalt blue. “You have no idea how nice it is to actually use my upper voice box to talk. Finally! Someone with working ears!” she whistled.
Jin sent his own click-squee-chirps, quickly arranging for the two of them to commiserate over lunch after the first few shifts.
Captain Ntuli led him out of the bridge towards a small office towards the point of the left wing. “You'll need a quick debrief with our security officer before setting up shop in the medbay,” she said. “Meanwhile, I'll be on the bridge. We're launching in 45.” She gave Jin a firm pat on the back, and he tried not to wince. That was uncomfortably close to his wing joints.
He reached out and knocked on the door, a clipped voice replied, “Come in.”
Sitting behind the desk, in a neatly pressed uniform, was a dour-looking version of Josie. Same red hair and dotted skin, only this one wore her hair tied high on the back of her head. She also looked decidedly less friendly.
“Have a seat, doctor.” She waved towards one of the stools in front of her. Jin was briefly glad that they didn't have those silly chairs with backs.
“I am Head Security Officer Marinne Drakonos, and I have a few things to go over with you.”
She pulled something towards her that looked like a list, but he didn't try to read it first. He didn't want to be impolite.
“Let's go over your credentials here. Honors Graduate of Xinfuah medical school, residency at the refugee hospital on Queree IV, and a six month tour on the GFS Chordata. I take it you have experience with all of the species aboard this ship?”
“I do, yes.” Jin answered with a nod. “My concentration was Aviary and Mammalian medicine, but I have worked with Cephelapods and Reptiles.”
“Good. You were hired before I could go over your file, and I would truly loathe to have someone unqualified,” she said quietly.
He noticed that her eyes were gray, like steel, that there was something hawkish about her profile. The fur on his back rose. All humans were predators, he knew, but this one seemed more predatory than he was used to.
“This vessel will have a large number of ground missions, and something always goes wrong, no matter how hard anyone tries to prevent it. It is the nature of such things,” Officer Drakonos continued. “The cases you get may range from crushed limbs to quarantine level 4 decontamination. I must do my due diligence and know you are prepared. How sensitive is your hearing?”
The question took him off guard. “Um, slightly above average for my species.”
“Hm.”
Her gray eyes roved over the fleshy dish around his nose, his prominent and ridged ears. K’ohe’la had the best hearing above water in the galaxy, with the nocturnal subspecies of Ah’gua coming in second. Jin’s ears twitched under the scrutiny. They were rather attractive by his own kind’s standard, but she surely wasn't admiring them.
She huffed a breath out through her nose. “If you do not have earplugs, they can be provided. At 1400 tomorrow, you will attend the ship-wide briefing and walkthrough of evacuation, crash, and hostile boarding procedures.”
Jin’s ears twitched in surprise. “Do you expect these things to happen? I thought this was a reconnaissance vessel doing planetary surveys for a mining company?”
Officer Drakonos shrugged. “I always expect the worst and believe in being prepared. There will be drills for all of these scenarios, and anyone not following procedure could face disciplinary action.”
She said those last two words with more glee than Jin thought was appropriate.
Three weeks had passed, and Jin had grown more comfortable with the crew, his few fellow scientists, and Penny. O’Donnel played some strange instrument called a Violin. Korfin was the fighting game champion in the rec room. Reyes had a truly delightful collection of poetry. Even the Captain had surprised him with her melodic singing voice during karaoke night (an event he swore to never attend again).
The first survey went off without a hitch, and so far he had only treated a few burns and joint sprains from over-eager engineers and security personnel. Nothing had seriously gone wrong.
He heard the echoing voice of Officer Drakonos in his head say “Yet.”
True to the earlier predictions of Josie, he did see her regularly for small things. Right now, that was a small second-degree burn on her forearm.
“I didn't know it was still hot!” She whined.
Jin crackled in his chest and twitched his ears. He heard something like that from her almost every three days.
“You need to be more careful,” he chided, applying the disinfectant spray. “Otherwise you're never going to take over from Jerimovich.”
“Sweet Christ, you sound like Marinne. It's always 'think of the performance review Josie', 'show qualities of leadership Josie', and 'you're lucky I don't report the still in the bay, Josie'. Ugh.”
Jin jerked back. “There's a distillery in the engine bay?”
“No,” she replied too quickly. “And there isn't a shrine to Danny Devito either.”
“Who is-?”
“Don't worry about it.”
He sighed, reaching for another nozzle to apply the spray on bandage.
“Out of curiosity,” he asked, “How are you and the Security Officer related? Unless you aren't and I'm just being racist.”
“Oh. Yeah, I guess you wouldn't realize. She's my twin sister,” Josie answered, sighing with relief from her burn.
“Twin… oh! When single-bearing mammals have two at once?”
“Yep. It's not that uncommon these days, and our mom is a twin herself.” She shrugged. “Anyway, I'll head back to-”
“JOSEPHINE, MOVE!”
They both jumped and spread apart from the door, and Officer Drakonos burst in with the shex navigator, Firek, on her back. His color was a muted gray instead of his normal shifting chromatophores.
“Set him here,” Jin jumped to attention and guided her to the water tank he had just for Firek. “What am I looking at, illness or contaminate?” He asked, placing electrodes and setting an intravenous patch on the unconscious male.
“Contaminate. Some jackass snuck some blue rass on the ship and smoked it next to a ventilation shaft. Went straight into the bridge.”
Jin nodded and prepped to flush Firek’s secondary lungs and gills, then paused for a brief moment. “Get Penny out of there. She won't be as sensitive as him, but she takes in a lot more. And put out an alert for the Ryeté and anyone with allergies. If anyone starts hacking or having swollen eyes, send them here immediately.”
She nodded, then quickly strode out of the room, her comm already in hand.
Jin adjusted the salinity in the tank, and prepped an oxygen station for when Firek could breathe air.
“Hand me that,” he gestured at the frozen Josie. “I need the beak-appropriate mask, and go push the blue button next to the door twice. It’ll turn on my extra oxygen supply. Don't bother with the yellow one unless Korfin or Kurlok show up.”
“Uh, yeah!” Josie shook out of her surprise and moved quickly.
Officer Drakonos surged back into the room, with a coughing Penny hanging onto her shoulder. “I cleared the bridge, just in case. At least until the filters pick it up.”
Jin got Penny settled, checking her vitals and pressing one of her small pseudo hands over the mask to hold it down. Her lungs were rasping, and there was a faint whistle that told him her upper and central voice boxes had a bit of damage. His ear twitched, picking up the repeated pings of the officer’s comm.
“Fuck!”
Jin flapped for a moment and looked behind him. Officer Drakonos’ face was red, and he could hear her heartbeat pounding in her chest.
“Josie, tell me to not make an example,” she growled.
“Marinne, you’ll get fired if you airlock an idiot for smoking rass.”
“I didn't say anything about airlocking.”
“No!” Josie shouted. “Whatever weird, evil thing going on in your head is not worth it.”
Officer Drakonos inhaled deeply and shook her comm towards her sister's face. “I have now thirteen allergic or adverse reactions out of a crew of thirty people. That is forty-three percent of my charges. For at least two of them, this could have been fatal. Someone is going to pay for this.”
She turned on her heel and marched out of the medbay. Jin swore that the air was colder in her wake.
He glanced a Josie. “Does she normally-?”
“Act like that? No,” she replied. “If anyone had died it would be worse. If something this bad had happened to me? There might be bodies.”
He shivered. “Why would the captain have chosen someone like that to be a security officer? Sounds like an incident ready to happen.”
“Nah, that's what makes her good at her job.” Josie looked at him with the same steel colored eyes as her sister. “Marinne cares. A lot. She puts herself in the position of a mama bear who would do anything to protect her cubs.”
“So this is a… protective anger? Even for those she doesn't know? Those not kin or even the same species?” Jin's people only had something like that on an individual basis. Or a colony would feel emotions as one. One person acting like this for near strangers seemed too much.
“Oh yeah. And she was serious about making whoever did it an example. Humans pack bond, remember? If she thinks they're hers, then they are.” Josie shrugged. “Vengeance is one of her love languages.”
When the next roll call came, they were now a crew of twenty-nine. (“I bet she airlocked Talley!” “Not until he was in pieces.” “Shut up, she is our boss you chucklefucks!”)
Jin watched her, sitting at the back of the mess hall. Her eyes scanned and assessed everyone. Firek was colorful again, sipping his fish paste through a straw. Penny spoke with a slight rasp that only he could hear. O’Donnel’s eyes were still swollen, but he'd be okay. Korlok was already back to snapping up his lunch with both sets of jaws.
Her eyes, cold and metallic things that they were, touched him in turn. They were possessive. Satisfied.
Jin hadn't ever felt anything like this, been subject to a care that was coupled with rage. It was uncomfortable, but something in his chest settled. He was, at least, on the shield side of that care.
submitted by savvylikeapirate to HFY [link] [comments]
This new vessel was a promotion, being the Head Medical Officer of a ship was something he had wanted as soon as he realized his calling to heal. But the ship itself was… very different. Unlike the vast and nearly spherical Galactic Federation ships, this one was a smaller reconnaissance-class gunship from the Terran Union. She was shaped mostly like a triangle, with actual wings (wings!) for in-atmo flight. The front came to a distinct point, with another point on either side sitting more towards the wings and coming less far forward.
“She's a Falconidae model,” Captain Ntuli said, seeing his confusion. “Terran designers will go on kicks and design things based on Earth animals. It's a type of hunting bird.”
“Oh, I see,” Jin answered quietly. He was a man of science, but being on a ship designed to look like one of his species’ major predators made him quickly chitter to the spirits that it wasn't some kind of omen. “What’s her name?”
The captain grinned, her teeth incredibly white in her dark brown face. He didn't shiver at the sight, having forced himself to get over the teeth thing within the first month of his previous post.
“Her name is T.U.S. Kissimmee Asp.” She said proudly. “It's a pun in English, so I don't know if it translates to K'ohe'la.”
Oh! She could use the clicks of his tongue! That was a pleasant surprise.
A tall, red-haired female in grease stained coveralls leaned out of the ramp hatch. “We call her Kissy when she's being nice, and Asp when she's throwing fits,” she interjected, wiping her hands with a rag.
Captain Ntuli sighed, gesturing towards the other woman. “This is one of our Engineering officers, Miss Josephine Drakonos.”
“Just call me Josie! There's another Drakonos on board and it could get confusing as hell otherwise.”
Josie offered her hand with a smile. Jin knew this bit of human greeting. He unclasped the wings around his shoulders and stood straighter, offering his own four-fingered hand to shake hers.
“I'm Dr. Ji'nur'kakf’Eng. Most humans prefer to call me Dr. Jin.” He finished with a greeting click that may have been out of her hearing range, but it was polite.
“Oh, you're the new doc? Cool. We, uh, might get kinda familiar. Engineering can be rough some days,” she said sheepishly.
Jin laughed lightly at that, a crackling sound in his lower throat.
The captain led him onto the ship, Josie scurrying off to yell at some Ensign. She toured him through the slightly cramped galley, letting him nod and click his hellos to the personnel there. (“Oh my God, he's Batman!” “More like the man-bat.” “Could you assholes not be racist for ten fucking minutes?”)
Jin was pleasantly surprised that he wasn't the only non-Terran on board. There were a few Ryeté in the rec room, making humans shriek when they extended their second set of jaws to quickly snatch food out of their hands. A Shex sat in the navigation seat, adjusting things with their tentacles. There was even an Ah'gua as the communications officer.
“The humans call me Penny,” she said, returning his greeting click with a hiss-click of her own. Her feathers were a purely tropical shade of yellow with bands of cobalt blue. “You have no idea how nice it is to actually use my upper voice box to talk. Finally! Someone with working ears!” she whistled.
Jin sent his own click-squee-chirps, quickly arranging for the two of them to commiserate over lunch after the first few shifts.
Captain Ntuli led him out of the bridge towards a small office towards the point of the left wing. “You'll need a quick debrief with our security officer before setting up shop in the medbay,” she said. “Meanwhile, I'll be on the bridge. We're launching in 45.” She gave Jin a firm pat on the back, and he tried not to wince. That was uncomfortably close to his wing joints.
He reached out and knocked on the door, a clipped voice replied, “Come in.”
Sitting behind the desk, in a neatly pressed uniform, was a dour-looking version of Josie. Same red hair and dotted skin, only this one wore her hair tied high on the back of her head. She also looked decidedly less friendly.
“Have a seat, doctor.” She waved towards one of the stools in front of her. Jin was briefly glad that they didn't have those silly chairs with backs.
“I am Head Security Officer Marinne Drakonos, and I have a few things to go over with you.”
She pulled something towards her that looked like a list, but he didn't try to read it first. He didn't want to be impolite.
“Let's go over your credentials here. Honors Graduate of Xinfuah medical school, residency at the refugee hospital on Queree IV, and a six month tour on the GFS Chordata. I take it you have experience with all of the species aboard this ship?”
“I do, yes.” Jin answered with a nod. “My concentration was Aviary and Mammalian medicine, but I have worked with Cephelapods and Reptiles.”
“Good. You were hired before I could go over your file, and I would truly loathe to have someone unqualified,” she said quietly.
He noticed that her eyes were gray, like steel, that there was something hawkish about her profile. The fur on his back rose. All humans were predators, he knew, but this one seemed more predatory than he was used to.
“This vessel will have a large number of ground missions, and something always goes wrong, no matter how hard anyone tries to prevent it. It is the nature of such things,” Officer Drakonos continued. “The cases you get may range from crushed limbs to quarantine level 4 decontamination. I must do my due diligence and know you are prepared. How sensitive is your hearing?”
The question took him off guard. “Um, slightly above average for my species.”
“Hm.”
Her gray eyes roved over the fleshy dish around his nose, his prominent and ridged ears. K’ohe’la had the best hearing above water in the galaxy, with the nocturnal subspecies of Ah’gua coming in second. Jin’s ears twitched under the scrutiny. They were rather attractive by his own kind’s standard, but she surely wasn't admiring them.
She huffed a breath out through her nose. “If you do not have earplugs, they can be provided. At 1400 tomorrow, you will attend the ship-wide briefing and walkthrough of evacuation, crash, and hostile boarding procedures.”
Jin’s ears twitched in surprise. “Do you expect these things to happen? I thought this was a reconnaissance vessel doing planetary surveys for a mining company?”
Officer Drakonos shrugged. “I always expect the worst and believe in being prepared. There will be drills for all of these scenarios, and anyone not following procedure could face disciplinary action.”
She said those last two words with more glee than Jin thought was appropriate.
The first survey went off without a hitch, and so far he had only treated a few burns and joint sprains from over-eager engineers and security personnel. Nothing had seriously gone wrong.
He heard the echoing voice of Officer Drakonos in his head say “Yet.”
True to the earlier predictions of Josie, he did see her regularly for small things. Right now, that was a small second-degree burn on her forearm.
“I didn't know it was still hot!” She whined.
Jin crackled in his chest and twitched his ears. He heard something like that from her almost every three days.
“You need to be more careful,” he chided, applying the disinfectant spray. “Otherwise you're never going to take over from Jerimovich.”
“Sweet Christ, you sound like Marinne. It's always 'think of the performance review Josie', 'show qualities of leadership Josie', and 'you're lucky I don't report the still in the bay, Josie'. Ugh.”
Jin jerked back. “There's a distillery in the engine bay?”
“No,” she replied too quickly. “And there isn't a shrine to Danny Devito either.”
“Who is-?”
“Don't worry about it.”
He sighed, reaching for another nozzle to apply the spray on bandage.
“Out of curiosity,” he asked, “How are you and the Security Officer related? Unless you aren't and I'm just being racist.”
“Oh. Yeah, I guess you wouldn't realize. She's my twin sister,” Josie answered, sighing with relief from her burn.
“Twin… oh! When single-bearing mammals have two at once?”
“Yep. It's not that uncommon these days, and our mom is a twin herself.” She shrugged. “Anyway, I'll head back to-”
“JOSEPHINE, MOVE!”
They both jumped and spread apart from the door, and Officer Drakonos burst in with the shex navigator, Firek, on her back. His color was a muted gray instead of his normal shifting chromatophores.
“Set him here,” Jin jumped to attention and guided her to the water tank he had just for Firek. “What am I looking at, illness or contaminate?” He asked, placing electrodes and setting an intravenous patch on the unconscious male.
“Contaminate. Some jackass snuck some blue rass on the ship and smoked it next to a ventilation shaft. Went straight into the bridge.”
Jin nodded and prepped to flush Firek’s secondary lungs and gills, then paused for a brief moment. “Get Penny out of there. She won't be as sensitive as him, but she takes in a lot more. And put out an alert for the Ryeté and anyone with allergies. If anyone starts hacking or having swollen eyes, send them here immediately.”
She nodded, then quickly strode out of the room, her comm already in hand.
Jin adjusted the salinity in the tank, and prepped an oxygen station for when Firek could breathe air.
“Hand me that,” he gestured at the frozen Josie. “I need the beak-appropriate mask, and go push the blue button next to the door twice. It’ll turn on my extra oxygen supply. Don't bother with the yellow one unless Korfin or Kurlok show up.”
“Uh, yeah!” Josie shook out of her surprise and moved quickly.
Officer Drakonos surged back into the room, with a coughing Penny hanging onto her shoulder. “I cleared the bridge, just in case. At least until the filters pick it up.”
Jin got Penny settled, checking her vitals and pressing one of her small pseudo hands over the mask to hold it down. Her lungs were rasping, and there was a faint whistle that told him her upper and central voice boxes had a bit of damage. His ear twitched, picking up the repeated pings of the officer’s comm.
“Fuck!”
Jin flapped for a moment and looked behind him. Officer Drakonos’ face was red, and he could hear her heartbeat pounding in her chest.
“Josie, tell me to not make an example,” she growled.
“Marinne, you’ll get fired if you airlock an idiot for smoking rass.”
“I didn't say anything about airlocking.”
“No!” Josie shouted. “Whatever weird, evil thing going on in your head is not worth it.”
Officer Drakonos inhaled deeply and shook her comm towards her sister's face. “I have now thirteen allergic or adverse reactions out of a crew of thirty people. That is forty-three percent of my charges. For at least two of them, this could have been fatal. Someone is going to pay for this.”
She turned on her heel and marched out of the medbay. Jin swore that the air was colder in her wake.
He glanced a Josie. “Does she normally-?”
“Act like that? No,” she replied. “If anyone had died it would be worse. If something this bad had happened to me? There might be bodies.”
He shivered. “Why would the captain have chosen someone like that to be a security officer? Sounds like an incident ready to happen.”
“Nah, that's what makes her good at her job.” Josie looked at him with the same steel colored eyes as her sister. “Marinne cares. A lot. She puts herself in the position of a mama bear who would do anything to protect her cubs.”
“So this is a… protective anger? Even for those she doesn't know? Those not kin or even the same species?” Jin's people only had something like that on an individual basis. Or a colony would feel emotions as one. One person acting like this for near strangers seemed too much.
“Oh yeah. And she was serious about making whoever did it an example. Humans pack bond, remember? If she thinks they're hers, then they are.” Josie shrugged. “Vengeance is one of her love languages.”
When the next roll call came, they were now a crew of twenty-nine. (“I bet she airlocked Talley!” “Not until he was in pieces.” “Shut up, she is our boss you chucklefucks!”)
Jin watched her, sitting at the back of the mess hall. Her eyes scanned and assessed everyone. Firek was colorful again, sipping his fish paste through a straw. Penny spoke with a slight rasp that only he could hear. O’Donnel’s eyes were still swollen, but he'd be okay. Korlok was already back to snapping up his lunch with both sets of jaws.
Her eyes, cold and metallic things that they were, touched him in turn. They were possessive. Satisfied.
Jin hadn't ever felt anything like this, been subject to a care that was coupled with rage. It was uncomfortable, but something in his chest settled. He was, at least, on the shield side of that care.
2024.05.02 23:52 Exotic_____Butters02 O Sister of Mine: Episode One - Taken (Part 1)
Synopsis: After eight years of living a nomadic life, one filled with constant danger, Duck and his family have finally found a home in a school for troubled youth. It didn't come with out cost, friends either died or were taken away during a raid from the Delta. But that was over, the residents of Ericson's won, the Delta was defeated and they can finally live in peace.
But one fateful day, months after the Delta was gone, Duck is faced with a terrible discovery. Three horrible words that made his blood run cool.
"Clem is missing!"
Now Duck must undertake a journey like no other. He doesn't care how long it might take. He will get her back. one way or another, he will get his sister back.
____________________________________________________________________
The cool winter breeze wisps around him faintly, as he sits by a fire, reflecting on his past… Coloring with his best friend, pretending to be Robin, solving mysteries… Were this another life, he'd be roasting hotdogs over the flame. Fishing with his Dad. Toasting marshmallows with his friends until they reach that perfect, golden-brown skin. Instead he was thrown into this hellish world, one that brings out the worst in humanity. One that transforms people into monsters; mentally and physically. One ruled by the dead.
Duck closes his eyes, taking in all the senses. The smell of woodsmoke. The feeling of snowflakes gently landing on his skin. Hearing the light creaking of titanic metal power lines. He smiles softly as he remembers this place. It was the last place he felt at peace. As close to peace as one can feel in this hellscape anyway. His smile grows as he hears the sound of crunching snow behind him. “I recognize your footsteps old man.”
Chuckling, Kenny sits down next to his son. “Nothin’ gets by ya, huh kiddo?”
“Nope.”
Duck looks at his father and can’t help but beam. They sit together in silence for what feels like forever, enjoying each other's company.
“It's been a while, hasn't it?” Kenny asks.
“Yea, it has.”
He pauses for a moment, “So we're still having our talks here?”
“Yea, I mean, this was the last place I’d spent some time with you. At least before everything went to shit.” He looks down with a woeful tone in his voice. Memories of that day begin to fill his mind. The cold bite of the blizzard, friends lost, enemies gained.
Kenny sighs, “Yea, that was a shitty day wasn't it.”
Wanting to change the subject, Kenny then glances at his son’s hat. “Still wearing that dirty old thing I see.”
Duck turns his gaze towards the campfire, taking off the old cap from his head and staring at it. It’s a crusty thing, the once orange and white colors now faded, along with the memories that come with it. Duck’s smile falls as older memories start to surface. Kenny knows that look.
“Hey,” he gently grasps Duck's shoulder, “it wasn't your fault, you had no control over what happened, no one did.”
“I know, it just feels like I could've done something, anything, to save her.” Duck takes a breath to keep the tears welling up in his eyes from falling.
After a few minutes of silence, Kenny speaks up, “So, how’d the rescue go?”
Duck then goes on about what happened on the boat. How they snuck aboard. How they encountered Minerva after her and Lilly’s manipulation of Violet. How Minerva was brainwashed into killing her own twin. He tells him everything. Right up until the events on the beach. “So I’m the last one to the cart before Louis. Helping Vi into it. I suddenly hear someone shouting Clem's name. I turn around and see Minerva chuck a grenade at Clem and AJ, yelling ‘fuck you!’ Next thing I know the grenade goes off, the horse goes crazy and bolts because of the explosion, dragging everyone away..”
“Shit.” Kenny contemplates this.
“Yeah.” Duck sighs as continues the story, “Later, after we returned back to the school, I practically flew out of the cart and went searching for Clem, AJ and Tenn. At the time, I didn't know Louis followed me. So you could imagine my reaction when he accidentally stepped on a stick.”
Kenny chuckles, with Duck joining him. “Poor guy nearly pissed himself.”
As Duck continues his story, tears start to well up his eyes. “AJ found us, I expected to see Clem with him, so as you can imagine I was worried. When he told us what happened, I just- I dunno.”
Kenny pulls his son into a hug. Duck lets his tears fall, he tries holding it back but the sobs come in heaves. The combination of his father's embrace and recounting the events of that night overwhelm him. He feels it all as if he’s put right back in that moment, lost and helpless. His ribcage shudders as his tears dry and sobs soften. Duck clears his throat.
“So, how's Clem been?” Kenny asks after waiting a few moments.
“Better, lately. She's been moving a lot more the past few weeks. She's actually to the point where she can help fish for a bit. I think she might be better than you, dad.” Duck laughs as Kenny gives him a playfully offended look, but regains his composure, “She has a boyfriend now too.”
Kenny’s eyes widened a bit. “No shit?”
“No shit.”
“So, who is it? Was it what's his name, Gabe is it? Was it Gabe?” Duck could help but laugh at his father's guess.
“No dad, It's not Gabe, thankfully.” and with an annoyed tone Duck reveals, “It's Louis.”
Now it’s Kenny's turn to laugh, “She’s dating Billy Joel!? That her boyfriend?”
“Yep.” He said, popping the ‘p’ as he spoke, “I don't understand what she sees in him. He's loud, annoying, and has a flair for the theatrics. The only thing I will say is that he's decent at the piano.”
“Hell, sounds a lot like a kid I know.”
“Hey!” Duck smiles.
“You’re right… you’re right. You never were too good at piano.”
“Hey…”
Kenny grins before getting back to their previous conversation. “So how’d you find out?”
“It was a few days after AJ brought Clem back. I was wandering around the school, when I heard Louis playing. I went in to talk to him, I walked in, looked at the piano and saw a carving that had a ‘C + L’ on it. As soon as I saw the heart around it, I knew they were a thing. I had a long talk with him.” Duck remembered his impromptu speech. “But, as long as Clem is happy, I'll tolerate him. Besides, if he hurts her, it won't be me that he'll have to worry about.”
Kenny chuckles, “Yep, Clem always had that fire in her… Must’ve gotten it from Lee. I swear… those two have gotta be the most protective sumbitches I’ve ever met.” Kenny looks up, and thinks for a moment.
“Yeah, she’s a fighter, that’s for sure. I’m glad someone like her is there with you, to watch over you and all.” Kenny cheekily looks over to Duck, knowing this’ll get a rise out of him.
“Hey, I’ve protected her plenty too y’know!”
He laughs, before getting more sincere “I know. You’ve come so far since before this all started. Grown, more than any kid your age should have to. I never got the chance to tell you… I am just so proud of you.”
Duck takes a moment before the words come out, for once he’s left speechless. Kenny looks at him, with a look of deep recognition and understanding. The blustering blizzard winds rustle his hair and eyepatch, as Duck looks back up at him.
The flames slowly die as the two talk. Kenny looks down at the small tongues of fire with a look of sad longing. Duck follows his gaze and sighs. “Time to go?” Kenny nods.
Duck hugs his father. “I miss you dad, so much. I hope you're happy wherever you are.”
“Me too son, me too.” He gives his son a warm, fatherly smile, “Let's talk again soon, Duck. Can't be sitting on my ass in the snow alone now, can I?”
Duck smiles bittersweetly, “Sure dad, we'll talk again.”
They say their goodbyes and the world fades into darkness.
____________________________________________________________________
Duck awakes on a soft surface. A crisp, cool smell of the imminent arrival of autumn fills his lungs. He stretches his legs, wiping the sleep from his eyes. As he sits up, several satisfying pops run along his back. Being tall has its advantages, but some days he envies Clementine’s height just so he doesn't have to deal with his back joints stifling up.
Getting up from his bed, he observes the empty room. AJ and Clementine are gone, obviously, he figures they went on their morning walks. Ever since she got her new leg, the two have gone and started walking every morning so she can get her strength up. Willy still boasts about how he made it for her in less than a week, he’s trying to find ways to improve it though. Two months later now and Clementine’s almost ready to start helping outside of the walls again. AJ is really looking forward to going fishing with her. Soon, Duck gets up and starts making his way outside for his work.
Walking into the courtyard, Duck soaks in the crisp early fall air on his skin. He knows they’ve gotta start storing supplies before snow comes. Scanning the yard, his eyes land on Violet. She’s holding a piece of paper and knelt in front of a cross, it’s been a while since Duck saw her doing this. Making his way to her, he hears her hushedly speaking to the small wooden cross. Duck finds a spot beside her. If she’s surprised by his arrival, she’s not showing it. The past few months have been hard on Violet. She shut people out for the first few weeks after getting back from the boat, a mixture of guilt and depression. But she is getting better, and Duck makes sure to be there for her when he can. After all, he’s no stranger to loss.
“So, how's the eye?” He asks hesitantly.
“It's better. Still can't see shit through it, but it's better.” She answers, “at least I have one of my eyes working, sorta.”
Duck smiles. “On the bright side, you'll be back to kicking walker ass before you know it. Meat cleaver in hand, cutting down an entire herd single handedly.”
Violet chuckles, “single handedly, huh? I like the sound of that.”
The two sit in silence for a few moments before Violet speaks up. “Do you… think that they watch us? Tenn, Minnie, Mitch, Sophie, everyone who didn’t make it?”
Duck thinks about that. “Maybe.” He answers, “If there's anything after this life, then maybe they do.”
Violet then turns towards him, eyes still filled with regret. “Kenny- I wanted to-”
Before she can continue Duck butts in. “Violet, I’ve said it before and I'll say it a million more times. There is nothing for you to apologize for, not any more. Yes what happened on the boat was shitty, but Lilly got in your head. You're my friend and a mistake ain’t gonna change that, okay? So you can stop apologizing, because it’s not yours or mine or anyone else’s fault..”
She looks pensive but leans in and nudges his shoulder with hers, “Yeah. Maybe you’re right.”
“I always am,” he grinned back, then his face became more sincere, “just know that despite everything, you're still my friend Vi. Flaws and all.”
“Thanks Ken.”
After a minute or two, Duck stands up. He offers Violet a hand up and she takes it. “Well, I gotta go, Ruby is expecting me in the greenhouse.”
Violet smiles and waves him goodbye as he heads off to help Ruby. As he makes his way over, he can’t help but look at the trees, their leaves now a beautiful mix of gold and green. Soon they’ll turn to browns and reds, then slowly, one by one, fall from their parent tree and float down and down to the floor. He always admires the beauty of the colors, especially during the transition period between summer and autumn. It’s one of the few things in this world that brings him some semblance of peace. That was until he, Clementine, and AJ were brought into Ericson's. Ever since that day, he knew this could be a new home.
As he arrives at the greenhouse, he draws a long breath, taking in the smells of the plant life growing within. He strolls in only to find Ruby swearing up a storm, her hands firmly gripping a stubborn root. Chuckling, Duck moves over to help her.
After what seems like forever, the two finally manage to uproot the root with a tumble. Laughing, they get up and Duck starts tending the rest of the plants.
Hours later, Duck hears a frantic yelling. Someone’s calling for him. He and Ruby share a worried glance as they quickly leave the greenhouse. As they enter the main courtyard, Duck sees AJ on the bench surrounded by everyone. The poor boy’s hyperventilating, tear marks stained his cheeks. Duck runs straight over to him.
“AJ, what happened?” He notices that Clementine isn’t around, “Where's Clem?”
“She's… She's…” AJ's breath is very shallow, Duck feels the fear in his eyes. Something is very, very wrong.
“AJ, slow down, take deep breaths.” Duck inhales and exhales deeply, motioning AJ to mimic him. After a few moments, AJ calms his breath and smiles meekly at Duck for helping. “Good, now AJ, do you know where Clem is?”
AJ looks him in the eyes, like he was about to cry again. AJ looks down, shaking his head before continuing. Duck’s blood runs cold.
“Clem is missing.”
submitted by Exotic_____Butters02 to TheWalkingDeadGame [link] [comments]
But one fateful day, months after the Delta was gone, Duck is faced with a terrible discovery. Three horrible words that made his blood run cool.
"Clem is missing!"
Now Duck must undertake a journey like no other. He doesn't care how long it might take. He will get her back. one way or another, he will get his sister back.
____________________________________________________________________
The cool winter breeze wisps around him faintly, as he sits by a fire, reflecting on his past… Coloring with his best friend, pretending to be Robin, solving mysteries… Were this another life, he'd be roasting hotdogs over the flame. Fishing with his Dad. Toasting marshmallows with his friends until they reach that perfect, golden-brown skin. Instead he was thrown into this hellish world, one that brings out the worst in humanity. One that transforms people into monsters; mentally and physically. One ruled by the dead.
Duck closes his eyes, taking in all the senses. The smell of woodsmoke. The feeling of snowflakes gently landing on his skin. Hearing the light creaking of titanic metal power lines. He smiles softly as he remembers this place. It was the last place he felt at peace. As close to peace as one can feel in this hellscape anyway. His smile grows as he hears the sound of crunching snow behind him. “I recognize your footsteps old man.”
Chuckling, Kenny sits down next to his son. “Nothin’ gets by ya, huh kiddo?”
“Nope.”
Duck looks at his father and can’t help but beam. They sit together in silence for what feels like forever, enjoying each other's company.
“It's been a while, hasn't it?” Kenny asks.
“Yea, it has.”
He pauses for a moment, “So we're still having our talks here?”
“Yea, I mean, this was the last place I’d spent some time with you. At least before everything went to shit.” He looks down with a woeful tone in his voice. Memories of that day begin to fill his mind. The cold bite of the blizzard, friends lost, enemies gained.
Kenny sighs, “Yea, that was a shitty day wasn't it.”
Wanting to change the subject, Kenny then glances at his son’s hat. “Still wearing that dirty old thing I see.”
Duck turns his gaze towards the campfire, taking off the old cap from his head and staring at it. It’s a crusty thing, the once orange and white colors now faded, along with the memories that come with it. Duck’s smile falls as older memories start to surface. Kenny knows that look.
“Hey,” he gently grasps Duck's shoulder, “it wasn't your fault, you had no control over what happened, no one did.”
“I know, it just feels like I could've done something, anything, to save her.” Duck takes a breath to keep the tears welling up in his eyes from falling.
After a few minutes of silence, Kenny speaks up, “So, how’d the rescue go?”
Duck then goes on about what happened on the boat. How they snuck aboard. How they encountered Minerva after her and Lilly’s manipulation of Violet. How Minerva was brainwashed into killing her own twin. He tells him everything. Right up until the events on the beach. “So I’m the last one to the cart before Louis. Helping Vi into it. I suddenly hear someone shouting Clem's name. I turn around and see Minerva chuck a grenade at Clem and AJ, yelling ‘fuck you!’ Next thing I know the grenade goes off, the horse goes crazy and bolts because of the explosion, dragging everyone away..”
“Shit.” Kenny contemplates this.
“Yeah.” Duck sighs as continues the story, “Later, after we returned back to the school, I practically flew out of the cart and went searching for Clem, AJ and Tenn. At the time, I didn't know Louis followed me. So you could imagine my reaction when he accidentally stepped on a stick.”
Kenny chuckles, with Duck joining him. “Poor guy nearly pissed himself.”
As Duck continues his story, tears start to well up his eyes. “AJ found us, I expected to see Clem with him, so as you can imagine I was worried. When he told us what happened, I just- I dunno.”
Kenny pulls his son into a hug. Duck lets his tears fall, he tries holding it back but the sobs come in heaves. The combination of his father's embrace and recounting the events of that night overwhelm him. He feels it all as if he’s put right back in that moment, lost and helpless. His ribcage shudders as his tears dry and sobs soften. Duck clears his throat.
“So, how's Clem been?” Kenny asks after waiting a few moments.
“Better, lately. She's been moving a lot more the past few weeks. She's actually to the point where she can help fish for a bit. I think she might be better than you, dad.” Duck laughs as Kenny gives him a playfully offended look, but regains his composure, “She has a boyfriend now too.”
Kenny’s eyes widened a bit. “No shit?”
“No shit.”
“So, who is it? Was it what's his name, Gabe is it? Was it Gabe?” Duck could help but laugh at his father's guess.
“No dad, It's not Gabe, thankfully.” and with an annoyed tone Duck reveals, “It's Louis.”
Now it’s Kenny's turn to laugh, “She’s dating Billy Joel!? That her boyfriend?”
“Yep.” He said, popping the ‘p’ as he spoke, “I don't understand what she sees in him. He's loud, annoying, and has a flair for the theatrics. The only thing I will say is that he's decent at the piano.”
“Hell, sounds a lot like a kid I know.”
“Hey!” Duck smiles.
“You’re right… you’re right. You never were too good at piano.”
“Hey…”
Kenny grins before getting back to their previous conversation. “So how’d you find out?”
“It was a few days after AJ brought Clem back. I was wandering around the school, when I heard Louis playing. I went in to talk to him, I walked in, looked at the piano and saw a carving that had a ‘C + L’ on it. As soon as I saw the heart around it, I knew they were a thing. I had a long talk with him.” Duck remembered his impromptu speech. “But, as long as Clem is happy, I'll tolerate him. Besides, if he hurts her, it won't be me that he'll have to worry about.”
Kenny chuckles, “Yep, Clem always had that fire in her… Must’ve gotten it from Lee. I swear… those two have gotta be the most protective sumbitches I’ve ever met.” Kenny looks up, and thinks for a moment.
“Yeah, she’s a fighter, that’s for sure. I’m glad someone like her is there with you, to watch over you and all.” Kenny cheekily looks over to Duck, knowing this’ll get a rise out of him.
“Hey, I’ve protected her plenty too y’know!”
He laughs, before getting more sincere “I know. You’ve come so far since before this all started. Grown, more than any kid your age should have to. I never got the chance to tell you… I am just so proud of you.”
Duck takes a moment before the words come out, for once he’s left speechless. Kenny looks at him, with a look of deep recognition and understanding. The blustering blizzard winds rustle his hair and eyepatch, as Duck looks back up at him.
The flames slowly die as the two talk. Kenny looks down at the small tongues of fire with a look of sad longing. Duck follows his gaze and sighs. “Time to go?” Kenny nods.
Duck hugs his father. “I miss you dad, so much. I hope you're happy wherever you are.”
“Me too son, me too.” He gives his son a warm, fatherly smile, “Let's talk again soon, Duck. Can't be sitting on my ass in the snow alone now, can I?”
Duck smiles bittersweetly, “Sure dad, we'll talk again.”
They say their goodbyes and the world fades into darkness.
____________________________________________________________________
Duck awakes on a soft surface. A crisp, cool smell of the imminent arrival of autumn fills his lungs. He stretches his legs, wiping the sleep from his eyes. As he sits up, several satisfying pops run along his back. Being tall has its advantages, but some days he envies Clementine’s height just so he doesn't have to deal with his back joints stifling up.
Getting up from his bed, he observes the empty room. AJ and Clementine are gone, obviously, he figures they went on their morning walks. Ever since she got her new leg, the two have gone and started walking every morning so she can get her strength up. Willy still boasts about how he made it for her in less than a week, he’s trying to find ways to improve it though. Two months later now and Clementine’s almost ready to start helping outside of the walls again. AJ is really looking forward to going fishing with her. Soon, Duck gets up and starts making his way outside for his work.
Walking into the courtyard, Duck soaks in the crisp early fall air on his skin. He knows they’ve gotta start storing supplies before snow comes. Scanning the yard, his eyes land on Violet. She’s holding a piece of paper and knelt in front of a cross, it’s been a while since Duck saw her doing this. Making his way to her, he hears her hushedly speaking to the small wooden cross. Duck finds a spot beside her. If she’s surprised by his arrival, she’s not showing it. The past few months have been hard on Violet. She shut people out for the first few weeks after getting back from the boat, a mixture of guilt and depression. But she is getting better, and Duck makes sure to be there for her when he can. After all, he’s no stranger to loss.
“So, how's the eye?” He asks hesitantly.
“It's better. Still can't see shit through it, but it's better.” She answers, “at least I have one of my eyes working, sorta.”
Duck smiles. “On the bright side, you'll be back to kicking walker ass before you know it. Meat cleaver in hand, cutting down an entire herd single handedly.”
Violet chuckles, “single handedly, huh? I like the sound of that.”
The two sit in silence for a few moments before Violet speaks up. “Do you… think that they watch us? Tenn, Minnie, Mitch, Sophie, everyone who didn’t make it?”
Duck thinks about that. “Maybe.” He answers, “If there's anything after this life, then maybe they do.”
Violet then turns towards him, eyes still filled with regret. “Kenny- I wanted to-”
Before she can continue Duck butts in. “Violet, I’ve said it before and I'll say it a million more times. There is nothing for you to apologize for, not any more. Yes what happened on the boat was shitty, but Lilly got in your head. You're my friend and a mistake ain’t gonna change that, okay? So you can stop apologizing, because it’s not yours or mine or anyone else’s fault..”
She looks pensive but leans in and nudges his shoulder with hers, “Yeah. Maybe you’re right.”
“I always am,” he grinned back, then his face became more sincere, “just know that despite everything, you're still my friend Vi. Flaws and all.”
“Thanks Ken.”
After a minute or two, Duck stands up. He offers Violet a hand up and she takes it. “Well, I gotta go, Ruby is expecting me in the greenhouse.”
Violet smiles and waves him goodbye as he heads off to help Ruby. As he makes his way over, he can’t help but look at the trees, their leaves now a beautiful mix of gold and green. Soon they’ll turn to browns and reds, then slowly, one by one, fall from their parent tree and float down and down to the floor. He always admires the beauty of the colors, especially during the transition period between summer and autumn. It’s one of the few things in this world that brings him some semblance of peace. That was until he, Clementine, and AJ were brought into Ericson's. Ever since that day, he knew this could be a new home.
As he arrives at the greenhouse, he draws a long breath, taking in the smells of the plant life growing within. He strolls in only to find Ruby swearing up a storm, her hands firmly gripping a stubborn root. Chuckling, Duck moves over to help her.
After what seems like forever, the two finally manage to uproot the root with a tumble. Laughing, they get up and Duck starts tending the rest of the plants.
Hours later, Duck hears a frantic yelling. Someone’s calling for him. He and Ruby share a worried glance as they quickly leave the greenhouse. As they enter the main courtyard, Duck sees AJ on the bench surrounded by everyone. The poor boy’s hyperventilating, tear marks stained his cheeks. Duck runs straight over to him.
“AJ, what happened?” He notices that Clementine isn’t around, “Where's Clem?”
“She's… She's…” AJ's breath is very shallow, Duck feels the fear in his eyes. Something is very, very wrong.
“AJ, slow down, take deep breaths.” Duck inhales and exhales deeply, motioning AJ to mimic him. After a few moments, AJ calms his breath and smiles meekly at Duck for helping. “Good, now AJ, do you know where Clem is?”
AJ looks him in the eyes, like he was about to cry again. AJ looks down, shaking his head before continuing. Duck’s blood runs cold.
“Clem is missing.”