Hey, new to the business of MMORPGs and it seems this is the one to play since it's been around forever and has been kept relevant for as long as they've been alive. I figured I'd get the most balanced perspective here since there are veterans and drifters alike on this sub. Just wanted to know how this MMO stacks against specifically ESO, since that's the only MMO I've played.
I'm looking for an MMO that allows me to easily join a community that Voice Chat is encouraged and stressed. Idk why in the age of technology it's hard to get a group together. Maybe I've only had bad experiences, but it just seems difficult to get a serious gaming group that sticks together in this game scape. What are your thoughts?

The shortchange scam at the tech boat is my least favorite thing about watching tech (I’m in style). I’ve had 2 scammers in as many months and they’re the same deal— ring up a bunch of random crap from the cases, 1500-2000 ish, pay in 20s and force me to count it out in piles, when it’s all counted out they grab the stack, indicate to something on the display then try to hand it back to me. I go to recount it and suddenly there’s a problem. They make an excuse, abandon the transaction and leave. Today the guy definitely had some partner that tried to make me feel bad for the transaction taking so long. The scammer kept trying to give me a tip too. Like 10 bucks. I refused it repeatedly. Then he said he was trying to give me the change for a gift receipt. It made no sense.
I know I can and should call a TL for these situations but there was literally no one that could have helped me. TL was on meal and ETL was at a stacked guest service counter. What do you do when there’s no one to call? I guess I handled it but I hate having to. Watch out for scammers y’all. They do be out here.

I have saved 10k to invest on a property. I am interested in doing a lot of things fix and flip, section 8, long term rentals, or short term rentals. I am 18 with a 760 FICO score and work as a real estate agent while still in college. I want to do real estate investing full time and as my career one day. I am struggling to get my start however.
I need help with getting less standard financing due to lack of work history, currently working in a commission based industry makes it hard, and lack of owning my own home or primary residence?
I like section 8 because of influencers online pushing it and fix and flips from things like hgtv but know they have their drawbacks aswell. But like I said I am a realtor so l do have a little knowledge but l'm not going to act like l'm a guru in the investing space. I am only looking to spend about 85-45k (75-35k financed) total on this first property and am willing to buy out of state(Kentucky). Just interested to hear opinions on what's really killing it in some markets etc. but first will probably just be a long term rental and hope to cash flow. Thoughts?
I know there is a lot of things stacked against me but I hope to break into this industry and find success even if it takes awhile. Thanks so much for the tips/help.

Hi,
I had a favorite video thats seemingly removed from my list. If she deleted, then I'm not looking for a mirror or link, just for a name of the channel. I had a friend bring her up too and I'm so curious as to what happened.
I remember it was a dark blonde haired Russian woman. She would do an intake in the beginning for hair salon "what are you looking for" type of thing while typing. Not super fast paced, casual. Then she'd do the haircut with scissors at one point.
Unsure: I believe she had long nails, and I remember her in maybe a green shirt (?). I think she waa chewing gum. and also um, well endowed boobs. Not trying to be creepy but genuinely was something I noticed across her videos and she had a "pretty girl" vibe I liked. (I'm a girl!)
One line from the video - "There isnt a lot of hair on the floor. I know you like that." or "I remembered you like that." lol I thought that line was funny so it stuck in my memory.

I'm going to Walmart to buy clothes, and getting a haircut and hopefully my hair dyed, but I don't know when yet exactly, it's in a few weeks I think. What kind of clothes do Walmart have? I prefer emo/masc clothes, im going with a supportive family member, but when I do get there, I wanna find emo or masc style clothes, preferably.
I want alot of information on the clothes they have at Walmart since I didn't really shop there for clothes (I used to with my dad and his gf but it's been a long time since that) so I want info now, and advice.
I'm not sure if I'll get shoes too or not, but I'll try, if I do I'm gonna get converse or vans related shoes this time. Question, do they have a men's section there? Only for men and transmasc people? And me since I'm mainly masc leaning but not a guy, just wondering for when the time comes. The same thing goes for emo clothes, like 2000s emo, yk? I think they have emo clothes but I'm not sure if they do in store, I know online they definitely do but I can't shop online.
Let me know what yall think and give me some advice and info if yall can! Thank you so much!!
P.s I want some lgbtq+ things too if there's any there!! I hope so!! ♡

When it comes to choosing toys for children, parents often focus on factors like fun, entertainment, and price. However, the importance of educational toys cannot be overstated. These toys not only provide enjoyment but also offer valuable learning experiences that can benefit a child's development in numerous ways.
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Improved Fine Motor Skills
Many educational toys are designed to help children improve their fine motor skills. Activities such as stacking blocks, assembling puzzles, or building with construction toys like PinToy wooden toys can help children develop hand-eye coordination, dexterity, and muscle control. These skills are essential for tasks such as writing, drawing, and using tools effectively.

Encourages Social InteractionWhen it comes to choosing toys for children, parents often focus on factors like fun, entertainment, and price. However, the importance of educational toys cannot be overstated. These toys not only provide enjoyment but also offer valuable learning experiences that can benefit a child's development in numerous ways.Enhanced Cognitive DevelopmentOne of the key benefits of educational toys is their ability to promote cognitive development in children. Toys such as the PinToy wooden toys can help enhance a child's problem-solving skills, spatial awareness, and critical thinking abilities. Through hands-on play with these toys, children can learn to think creatively and develop their mental abilities in a fun and engaging way.Improved Fine Motor SkillsMany educational toys are designed to help children improve their fine motor skills. Activities such as stacking blocks, assembling puzzles, or building with construction toys like PinToy wooden toys can help children develop hand-eye coordination, dexterity, and muscle control. These skills are essential for tasks such as writing, drawing, and using tools effectively.

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As a parent, investing in educational toys like the PinToy wooden toysor other quality toys can have a lasting impact on your child's development. From enhancing cognitive skills and boosting creativity to promoting social interaction and emotional intelligence, educational toys offer a wide range of benefits that can support your child's growth and learning journey. Explore our selection of educational toys today and give your child the gift of fun learning experiences!
Original Article https://newbornurseryfurniture.com/blogs/nursery-furniture-1/the-benefits-of-educational-toys-for-kids

So I've got my world set to exploration with passive mobs. Foxes, deer, wolves and bears still attack if provoked but for the most part I'm just practicing avoiding them and keeping an eye out since they often don't make noise if they attack.
Since the drifters don't attack at all, I've been deep diving and exploring cave systems and getting over my fear of platforming/ parkour (need to balance inventory of loot and blocks). I often come across animal carcasses that have suffered fall damage (crushed) and have def fallen down deep sinkholes myself.
One morning after spending 3 nights in a very convoluted cave system (found 3 translocators, and 3 or 4 ruins and much needed tin), I found a shaft that was about 150 blocks away from the original entrance and decided to create a dirt stairway up. I think I made it about halfway (I always end up using 1.5 - 2 stacks of dirt so I can remember the way back if inventory was prohibitive) and I hear a baby bunny. I look around and don't see anything. I'm about 50 blocks up from the bottom of the sinkhole and still had 50 or more to go.
Then I hear a very distressed baby bunny and look up just as one landed on the block I placed only a second before. I look up. And it's a very long way up. I look at the bunny and just log off for the night. I'm not squeamish except for bugs. But that really bothered me for some reason. I spent another day before logging back on however. Instead of feeling upset at the game I felt like the world just got so much more grim.
A part of me was disturbed but another part was definitely steeled into getting better about falling (read: sprint-jumping) into sinkholes!
Anyone else have a brief moment of wtf?

Hi so this is a long story so apologies in advance. I’m going to try to give as many details as possible but still keep it as anonymous as possible since this may result in a law suit. So for some background we live in an apartment complex it’s on the smaller size and the parking lot is in an L shape and can fit around 75 cars. I have a car and so does my boyfriend which we stated prior to moving in and gave both of our license plates for their records. For context: We have had previous issues with the landlord/landlord company (never filed for some things but we were lied too about certain things prior to moving in, all that was recorded as well, because you can hear the person who showed the apartment to us on video tell us certain things all with his consent as he knew we were recording. For example that you couldn’t hear your neighbors on either side or down below since we are on the top floor and that the apartment wouldn’t reek like cigarettes by having the windows open cause other tenants violate the rental agreement and smoke in there apartments.) We have had to make a few calls because the guy who lives underneath us has put his hands on his wife and Or girlfriend (we aren’t sure) and a few others neighbors have called the cops as well. The first time that we called because we heard her screaming and him throwing glass (we had already called police) they basically told us that they couldn’t do anything and couldn’t evict him or intervene ???? The second time we called to try and lodge a noise complaint which we were hoping would actually get them to take action and we took video this time (she was screaming for help and our neighbor texted us that she already called the police) she basically told us if we called again it would be a negative mark against us as tenants. That leads us to today, I work from home so there are times that I don’t use my car often maybe once or twice every other week. The car also has battery problems so it’s a pain to drive and was planning on selling it. My boyfriends car is newer and he usually drives us places. I usually park in the same spot if I do use my car. I came home today (Saturday 10am) after walking to get a haircut that was down the street and when I came home there was a giant bright orange sticker (it took up a good portion of my back window) on the back of my car saying I had to move it by Monday 7am or it is to be towed. There was no case number and I called local police and they confirmed that they didn’t do it. This is where it’s hilarious it says if you have any questions to call them… the office opens at 9am on Monday so there’s no way to contact them through phone, or email before my time would run out to move the car. Tried to start my car to move it and bring it somewhere else and bam battery issue. I’m basically in tears at this point and a few neighbors are standing outside some smoking and some staring through their apartment windows. As I was getting out of the car I saw some were pointing and laughing at me. Some shit straight out of a movie. I ran inside sobbing due to the embarrassment I felt and it took some time to calm down. Not needed but I had just found out this morning my grandmother was in the icu while walking home after the haircut so it was an awful day. Even as I’m typing this now I’m still shaking. After some calming down and my boyfriend trying to help I tried to figure out what to do luckily I had AAA due to previous car issues and my boyfriends wonderful family let me tow the car to their house. The tow truck driver was amazing and urged me to seek legal help as he was baffled they would do this and covered the sticker as he was towing to take away some of the embarrassment I felt as people were watching from their window. On our lease when it comes to cars it says if they deem appropriate to tow they will reach out either through email or a phone call which never happened. We have never missed a rent payment and we keep the noise level low and never had neighbors complain about us, we don’t smoke and rarely have visitors, if we do they aren’t there longer then 3-4 hours during the day. I apologize for the long post but I’m not sure what to do and I don’t want to live here anymore and don’t want to go outside due to the embarrassment of a good portion our neighbors seeing what happened and making fun of the situation. Also they have signs saying 24 hour surveillance but the cameras broke and we’re taken down and never replaced 2 years ago. (Yes we have called and asked and the office told us they don’t have cameras) My car is older but it’s in good shape no dents or chipped paint and still looks brand new so I don’t think it’s an issue to do with old junk cars muddying the lot which there are some worse I.e. misusing tires or taped with cut tape and they never received a sticker of warning to tow. Please help on what the best decision to do here is.

I'm extremely happy I was able to go into this fight blind. After beating it on a normal difficulty server with a friend of mine last week I wasn't sure what to expect for Dracula's Brutal specific mechanic(s) but it definitely wasn't that. Spoilers below of course so if you haven't fought him on Brutal yet, I'd recommend against reading on (what I have to say is worth 1000x less than experiencing it on your own).
After about 45 minutes of attempts I was able to finally bring down Dracula on Brutal, I was ecstatic seeing him fly to the middle to die, and went to send a message to my friend that I'd finished Brutal. All the time I was fighting him I had pretty much forgotten about the Brutal specific mechanics and it didn't even dawn on me that I hadn't seen anything new. Yet. Imagine my dumb face, giddily typing to my friend about how I beat Dracula, then hearing Dracula keep talking shit to me. Frantically grabbing my mouse again and trying to kill a bunch of adds with two counters equipped, not even thinking of switching my skills, watching his life quickly jump back up to full. I couldn't believe it. I honestly thought I was getting punked and it reminded me of Remnant 2's final boss (Remnant 2 spoilers ahead) where after killing him there's this final phase where a bunch of adds spawn and give you a panic attack thinking it's not over, only for it to essentially be a playable ending to the cutscene and you had already won. I was sure I just had to wait it out long enough and he'd be dead. Even after dying that first time I was kicking myself thinking I probably just had to hold out a bit longer and it was over. But after another few attempts and making it back to that phase it was clear that wasn't the case. I wasn't even getting close, dying when he was still 90% in these first couple attempts.
After taking a day off and coming back fresh I went back to Adam to pick up his shard and use that instead of my movement speed pendant. I also switched from using chaos barrier to using cold snap in the last phase. These two changes alone made a world of difference and I was able to take him down after a couple attempts. The cherry on top for this fight is when you die you pop right back by the portal with your blood again to keep going.
I REALLY like this fight, in general I really grew to love the combat in this game. I went from feeling helpless because enemies threw out more attacks than you could possibly deal with given defensive cooldowns, to learning how spacing and side stepping can be used to fill the gaps and it felt extremely satisfying at the end.
I doubt my build is optimal at all, but for anyone curious here's what I was using:

• 100% Rogue blood
• lvl 30 sword with crit power, damage reduction, weapon skill cooldown recovery, leech on Q (just the first sword I found)
• Shadowmoon chestguard + dracula's shadow everything else
• Veil of illusion for Phantasm stacks
• Phase 1/2: Blood Rite + Chaos Barrier
• Phase 3 (Adds phase): Void + Ball Lightning (pushback jewel) but he still healed to full. I sucked a this phase
• Phase 4: Blood Rite + Cold Snap

Anyways, I just wanted to gush about the fight because I thought it was so awesome, and the reveal of another health bar for Brutal was just that, Brutal, perfect for Dracula. The combat felt so satisfying and the encounter so polished. I'm going to miss this game.

From the beginning...
Cast

Part 2, Chapter 10

The next morning dawns cold and clear. It is plain that autumn is upon the land, and with the Great Glacier just leagues to the north, winter will come soon. The party goes about their morning business, eating (everyone), checking the state of the beard and deciding whether or not to shave it off (Arthur, generally, but also Atticus as Novos doesn’t grow a beard and Zander doesn’t shave his), climbing into armor (pretty much everyone except Dillium, Felicity, and Pocky), feeding and loading horses and asses (pretty much everyone, but particularly Zander, Arthur, Atticus, and Pocky), and finally packing up the pavillionsol (Dillium). Ready for the day’s journey, the group mounts up. On cue, the guide appears, apparently having prepared well ahead. If he’s irritated that the party slept all the way until dawn, he has the good grace to keep that to himself.
Felicity speaks up. “We’ve changed our minds, actually. I don’t think there’s any particular benefit in going to Dragon’s Perch—”
“I agree.”
“—so we’re going to go to Samek instead.”
“Samek? Hmmm. Do they know you are coming? If they don’t, it will take them a while.”
“No, they don’t know we’re coming, that I am aware of.”
The guide nods once and sets out. Much of the day is uneventful, and it does warm up to a comfortable level. By late afternoon, those with tender backsides are wondering when the ride will conclude when the guide raises his hand in a universal gesture of ‘stop and shut up a minute.’ The party still hasn’t learned that gesture, but fortunately there are no giants about [1]. “We’re here,” is all he says.
“Where?” “I don’t see anything.” “What are we supposed to see?” Like tourists on vacation, they peer around in all directions. They can’t see the entrance for the hill. Or rather, the entrance to the gnomish town of Samek is so well hidden in the side of the hill that for a while, only Dillium can see the faint outline of the round doorway. One by one, Flea, Arthur, and Zander finally pick it out. Novos is absolutely certain they are playing a prank on him. Arthur is first. Knocking on the hill seems odd, but practically before he gets a third knock, a small hole opens up around waist height. Two beady little eyes peer out (at Arthur’s belt).
“What!?”
“We are here—”
“So I see.” The window closes.
Zander walks up and knocks. The same window opens, and the same beady little eyes peer out.
“What!?”
“Do you know who I am?” Zander asks.
The beady little eyes look him up and down. “No,” and the window closes.
Dillium tries next. Knock, window, eyes. “Good day. We are here to see—”
“So see.” Window shuts.
Novos walks up. “I know how to do this.” Knock, window, eyes, increasingly aggravated tone. “Let us in.”
“No.”
Felicity has had enough of this. Walking up to the door, she stands for a moment gathering her thoughts. Knock, window, eyes, aggravated tone. “Good day. I’m here on behalf of the Duke of Soravia to see the wise men of your town, or those in charge.”
“Which ones?”
“What?”
“Which ones, the wise men, or those that are in charge?”
“How about if we start with the ones in charge, and perhaps they will decide to allow us to speak with the wise ones.”
The beady little eyes peer out, look around at the party, and appear to give that some thought. “Wait here.” The window closes.
Minutes pass. Tens of minutes pass. Novos gets bored and walks up to the door. He barely gets a third knock in before the window opens. A different set of beady little eyes peers out, and a different aggravated voice says, “What do you want now?”
“We’ve been waiting for a while, and—”
“—And you’ll continue to wait!.” The window slams shut unnecessarily roughly.
“Why you—” Rough arms grab Novos from behind and pull him away before he can do something regretful.
“We’ll wait, as they’ve asked,” Felicity says. She looks around to ask the guide how long they can expect to wait, but he’s disappeared.
The evening passes. As the cold sets in, Atticus and Pocky gather enough light branches for a fire. There’s no benches or logs to sit on, so they squat or sit on the ground. Arthur has taken to pulling off portions of his armor and working on polishing and repairing the scorch marks from the lava snakes [2]. Atticus and Mar debate the relative benefits of following the letter of the law versus being merciful, though in the end, both of them seem to be arguing the same things in violent agreement. Pocky falls asleep against Modred’s side as Beaker plays with a bone left over from… Wait, where did he get that bone anyway?
Finally, the reality that the night is upon them sets in. A proper camp is set, and watches begin. Zander takes the first watch, but sees nothing of interest. He does hear the chirping of grasshoppers, the droning of the cicadas, and the baying of the hounds. Suddenly, the hounds stop. Unnerved, Zander wakes Arthur, who has the next watch. Arthur, Atticus, and Zander take a turn around the camp, but cannot see nor hear anything that sounds like dogs. Arthur agrees to start his watch a few minutes early and Zander takes Pocky inside the pavillionsol to sleep. Arthur’s, and then Dillium’s watches pass uneventfully. Novos, as normal, takes the last watch. As usual, he is so wrapped up with his puzzle box that he notices absolutely nothing.
The cold morning brings breakfast, bickering, and an irritated Novos marching up to the door to bang on it. “We’ve been here all night,” he informs the guard.
“Yes. Yes you have.” The window closes.
Knock. Window. Eyes. “When will we see—”
“When it is time.” The window closes.
Before he can knock again, Dillium grabs his wrist, pushing him back, she squares herself to the door. “When it is time, please inform us.” She says to the closed window.
The window opens and two beady little eyes peer out. A slightly irritated voice replies, “What else would we do?” The window closes.
Several hours pass as the valley warms up. Arthur, Pocky, Atticus, and Mar all work on armor, doing the necessary daily ritual of dusting, oiling, checking rivets to make sure they are still tight and sound. Polish is applied, worked into the metal, and removed. Bickering, some good natured and others not, flows. At midmorning, the guide turns up suddenly, and squats down near the fire. Minutes later, the window opens and familiar eyes peer out. Felicity quickly crosses over to the door.
“Is the council ready for us?” She asks.
“Council? You wanted to speak with those who lead.”
“Yes. I assume that would be your leadership council.” Felicity replies.
“So it is. So it is. There certainly are a lot of you. You can’t all come.” The window closes.
Felicity thinks quickly and makes a motion to Dillium. Knocking gently, she waits for the window to open. “How many of us may come?” She asks sweetly.
“Uhm… “ The window closes. A minute later it re-opens. “Three.” The gnome says.
“Fine. I agree.”
“You agree? I mean, Yes, of course you agree. Come, come!” Suddenly in a hurry, the gnome opens the door, which slides open silently.
As Felicity and Dillium take a step toward the door, the guide steps up behind them. “Where are you going?” Flea asks imperiously.
“The little ones know me.”
“Which ones?”
The guide thinks. “Mayhaps all of them?” With a slight shrug, Felicity accepts that, and they all pass into a dark room, barely tall enough to stand up in.
Dillium is the tallest of the small group, and she has to stoop over to get through the passageway. The guide bends his head down a bit, but Felicity strides forward as if she owns the place, the top of her hair only occasionally brushing the ceiling of the passage. There are guards in dark metal armor in front and behind, but the guard who let them in the door is wearing a much more colorful shirt. As their eyes grow accustomed to the darkness, they note that there are luminescent lichens on the walls, providing a dim light that casts no shadows and fails to illuminate the armored gnomes.
The corridor stretches on for ages. There are branching tunnels to either side, and once, down. Tiny faces can be seen in the dim light as word spreads of the Big’uns. Dillium’s back is screaming by the time they finally reach a room and stop. A door on one side of the room is guarded by two more of the dark-skinned, dark-armored gnomes and a small fire is burning in the middle of the room. The benches around the room are designed for shorter legs and smaller butts, so the guide simply squats down. Dillium sits and starts to work the kinks out of her back. The guards don’t speak, but every once in a while, a face peers in through the open doorway they came in. Some faces are much smaller than others, and a motherly hand frequently grabs the tot and hustles them along.
The trio waits.
***
Pocky and Zander practice sword work as Atticus watches and occasionally tosses out suggestions. Mar naps. Arthur works on removing scorch marks from his armor while Novos plays with his puzzle box and loafs. Something draws Arthur’s attention. As he looks up, he sees eyes staring at him intently peering out from a bush. Without breaking eye contact, he feels around until he grabs Novos’ head and points it at the bush. Novos stares, uncertain what he’s meant to be looking at. “Zander!” Arthur hisses. He points at the bush with too many eyes. Well, two is too many for a bush. Zander looks. He looks some more. Arthur looks away for a moment, and when he looks back, the eyes are gone. Everyone runs over and crowds around the bush. Novos sees what looks like prints—paw prints not unlike Modred’s pawprints, though Modred is being lazy over next to the pavillionsol. Novos looks around, but sees no other paw prints. The men walk around the bush looking for other tracks, but only manage to obscure everything.
***
An hour passes. The guide lounges as if he has nothing on his mind. Dillium meditates, while Felicity tries to work out what the team’s next move should be. Somewhat abruptly, a young gnome opens the door and comes through. “Ready are you?” The darkened room has only a few dim lights. An ancient gnome sits on a three-legged stool in the middle of the room, a small rod in his hand. Eight or nine other gnomes cluster around the small room, some sitting on tiny gnome-sized benches, others standing. Any whispering that might have been going on ceases when the Big’uns come into the chamber.
The eldest speaks. “Warren. Several turnings it has been since last among us you came. Tell. What is the state of the above-realm?”
“They grow bolder. I have seen them throughout the valley, and without fear. If you are to act, you might contemplate doing so soon.” The gnomes chatter amongst themselves in a foreign tongue. The elder lets it go for a few minutes, then he raps on the floor with his rod. Silence returns.
“As I have feared it is. Soon must we act. Well to see you it is. Not so long to visit should you wait.” Turning his attention to Felicity, he inquires, “Please to tell name and purpose for disturbing.”
Felicity tells who she is, and allows Dillium to introduce herself. Flea announces that war is soon to be upon the land. The Duke of Soravia needs friends and allies for the coming conflict, and wishes to include the gnomes. The gnomes chatter nervously, and some of the chatter sounds of anger or fear. Again, the elder waits several minutes and then raps his rod upon the ground.
“Aware of the duke we are, but no call to extend friendship hand we have heard. What does the duke wish of us?” The chatter now is less nervous and more fearful.
“The danger to us all is great, but the duke understands that each should contribute within their talents and means. I suggest that your greatest assistance may lie in logistics, and supply. Perhaps providing some of the greatly admired gnomish craftsmanship would help to raise funds. Any assistance that you willingly provide for the benefit of one and all is exactly enough.” The chatter and babble of the gnomes in the room sounds almost relieved, but still a touch fearful. The elder allows it to go on for several minutes before he raps on the floor once. Saying something in gnomish, he raises his hand. One by one, the gnomes lift their hands out parallel to the floor. It takes a moment or two, but finally all of them agree.
“Determine what we can contribute, we must. If any. As talk we must, a favor for us could you do.” He speaks a few words of gnomish before continuing.
***
“So what is inside that puzzle box you keep playing with?” Arthur asks. He seems more tired of the delay than curious, and is simply passing the time. Mar casts an irritated glance at Novos.
“Dunno. Perhaps a great treasure. Maybe all the misfortune in the world. Probably nothing. Dillium gave it to me months ago.” He continues manhandling it, pushing, prodding, tapping, and so on.
Zander comes over and plops down next to Novos. “Can I have a go?”
“Sure.” Novos hands the box over to Zander, who takes it gingerly in his large rough hands. After a minute or two of working with it to no avail, he hands it over to a beckoning Arthur who seems to have seen something the others missed. He didn’t. Atticus and Mar both have a go before Pocky takes a turn. In three deft moves, the box is opened, revealing an empty space in the middle, roughly large enough for three large silver coins stacked on top of each other. He shrugs as he hands it back to Novos.
With a sigh, Novos starts trying to close the box.
*** “Many generations ago, when but a babe my own great-grandsire’s great-grandsire was, did Callarduran Smoothands of a king tell us. When nigh was the time would he arise. Half of a golden crown he gave us, and a tomb of a great warrior king showed he us. When greatest was our need, take our half of the golden crown to the tomb we are to do, and with the other half reunite it. Drawing close the time is. Our enemies the tomb have discovered we fear. The other half of the crown have they stolen. Taken our birthright, they have. The other half of the crown return to us?” [3]
Dillium recognizes Callarduran Smoothands from a lecture that seemed to last forever, but probably was just before lunchtime. Callarduran is the god of the Svirfneblin, and is held in high regard—perhaps more so than the head of the gnomish pantheon, Garl Glittergold [4].
“Who are these enemies?” Felicity asks.
“Evil ones they are. From us they rob. Our people they kill. Monsters they are.”
An older gnome arrives from the darkness. He is wearing dark armor, and carrying a soft bag made of what appears to be moss. The eldest reaches into the bag and withdraws an arc of gold. It certainly appears to be what you’d expect half a tiara or head band to look like, but it is nearly entirely devoid of ornamentation or decoration. The full crown must be rather plain indeed. Dismissing the trio with a “Think on your words we will,” Felicity, Dillium, Warren (the guide), and Ser Reginald the gnome are escorted from the hall and out of Samek.
Ser Reginald greets them as friends, and chatters through much of the trek up to the surface. He says he is one of a very few remaining ‘royal escorts,’ first named soon after Callarduran Smoothands gave them their half of the crown. They have, over many many many many many many generations (he was unable to count them all), been responsible for guarding the crown and preparing for the arrival of the king. He’s fought the evil ones, and admitted to hunting and killing them in their beds, but would not give a physical description of them. He also admitted that he knew precisely where the tomb was, but had never been inside, “as the time was not yet to hand.”
Finally, they reach the doorway to the outside. With a warning to shield their eyes lest they be struck blind by the sun, Ser Reginald leads the group out to find the rest of the party scrambling to their feet. To the consternation of Ser Reginald, they take the time to break camp, saddle their beasts, and mount up. Ser Reginald wants nothing to do with the horses, so the party creeps along at gnomish walking pace. It is quite possibly the slowest escort quest ever.
Several hours later, the group approaches yet another clearing when they everyone hear a loud rumbling WHOMP! Everyone recognizes it as the sound of rocks falling inside a cave or building. Ahead, a cloud of dust pours out of a cut stone entrance into a hill. “We need to get a move on. The evil ones are already inside!” cries Ser Reginald.
Leaving the horses and asses outside, the party enters the main hall. Arthur asks Atticus to remain with Pocky and the animals, but Mar accompanies the group inside. The moderately sized room has two doorways, though both appear to have been blocked by the recent rock movement. A few minutes of contemplation leads Arthur to believe that one side would take considerable effort to unblock, while the other could be done rather quickly. As he gets to work, the others take in their surroundings. Just inside the door is a carving in an archaic form of common that says “Allies Over Enemies”. Zander notes that there is some indication that there is a test, and one of the mostly broken archways has the word ‘Wit’ carved above it. Felicity notes that according to the archaic writing, there are two tests inside. Dillium is drawn to the faded frescos, though they tend to depict war and destruction.
Soon enough Arthur has the passageway cleared well enough, and the party groups up to go into a large room. The door slides shut smoothly behind them, though there is a door on the far side. Arthur inspects it, “just in case” it is unlocked. It isn’t. The room is more or less devoid of decoration or ornamentation, but there are four columns, one each corner of the room. Novos looks at the column, but fails to note that each side has a letter on it. He does see that he can turn the column one quarter turn, so he does. Once it turns, it refuses to turn again. Members of the party spread out to try to understand the test. Someone notices that there is a small mark on the wall beside each column, but it takes everyone writing down the letters on each column before someone decides to make an effort to coordinate. Arthur suggests that since each column contains an “L”, they should turn the L’s toward the center. Novos points out that he can’t turn the column any further, but Zander turns another column easily. Mar turns another one. As Novos leans up against his column, it turns. The party realizes that the columns can be turned to spell words, and Mar identified the word that was spelled out when they entered. This gets the group going, and with some tactics employed, spell out a word that they hope will open the door. As the last column clicks into place, the door opens smoothly.
The doorway leads to a huge cavern with a five-foot wide natural stone bridge crossing what appears to be a deep, wide chasm. The cavern is pitch black, and while there might be some air movement, the ceiling is too far above and the floor of the chasm too far below to see. The party sets up a marching order with Arthur in the lead and Novos in the rear. Dillium Lights up her staff so that the humans can see and they set out. Ten or fifteen paces across, the party is surprised to come under attack by arrows and javelins. Everyone dodges out of the way of the poorly thrown darts, but one strikes home. No one can see where the javelins came from, or whether it is some sort of trap or if they were thrown. Unfortunately, no one notices that one of the party members has fallen off the stone bridge, either. At the other end of the bridge is a door that opens easily, and everyone makes it into a small foyer. Except for Felicity, who lies at the bottom of the chasm, nearly impaled by a stalagmite. [5] Novos disappears and makes his way to the bottom of the chasm where he finds Felicity and feeds her his last healing potion. Zander pulls out his Wonderous Figurine and activates it. A good-sized wyvern appears on the bridge. He tells it to go down into the chasm and bring back the human. He might have said ‘woman’ but the stone wyvern doesn’t know the difference anyway. It takes off and glides down into the chasm below, and when it finds a human, the wyvern grabs it with his sharp claws and brings it back up to Zander. Novos picks himself up, dusts himself off, and winces at the fresh puncture wounds. Zander, a little annoyed, tells the wyvern to go get the other one, and he does, fresh puncture wounds and all.
Meanwhile, Arthur, Dillium, Mar, and Ser Reginald continue on into a large room. The room is dominated by a huge stone in the middle, with some sort of gemstone embedded in. They also see a dog-like creature standing on the stone, with a piece of golden metal in one hand and a bow in the other. Ser Reginald shouts, “The evil one has the other half of the crown! Get it!” Arthur races forward and Smites the creature.
Mar snarls, “Gnolls. I should have known their stench. She manifests a Spiritual Weapon and attacks with it, then casts a Guiding Bolt. The gnoll, clearly outmatched, fires his bow (missing) and climbs down off the stone. By this time, Novos, Zander, and Felicity have come in (minus the wyvern). Novos speeds over to take a flanking position on the gnoll, but the recent puncture wounds from the wyvern still ache, and he misses entirely.
Around the same time, a larger group of gnolls, armored and armed with swords and axes, enter from the other side and take up positions. One of the larger ones raises his axe to cut down Novos, but one of the gnolls barks out something in a barking sort of bark. All of the gnolls stop and refrain from attacking. Except the one with the huge gash down his front from Arthur. He comes up with a sword and stabs at the air near Arthur. Dillium, likewise shouts for Arthur and Novos (and Mar) to stop.
“Who leads?” asks the female gnoll, as she wraps her shawl around her.
Zander raises his hand. “That would be me. I am the leader of Task Force Chimera.” He sheathes his sword and meets the female gnome in the middle of the room. “I am Zander Roaringhorn, from Cormyr. Perhaps you’ve heard of me?”
“Raa’ka. Ssand’r. Sand’r.” Her mouth doesn’t quite make all the sounds as she tries to get his name right. She tells Zander that they are here to fulfil a prophecy that tells of an Alpha Gnoll that will arise in their hour of need. Unfortunately, the crown is… not what they expected. Arthur climbs up on the stone and agrees that the gemstone in the middle seems to connect two pieces of a crown—there’s three pieces total, rather than the two that both the gnolls and gnomes thought.
“Give me the crown!” Ser Reginald cries. Mar snarls.
“I will not. Perhaps we should put the crown together, and then figure out what to do. It is obvious neither of us have the whole tale.” Ser Reginald, thoughtful, agrees.
“You put your piece in first, then.” He says.
“No you put yours in.” Raa’ka replies.
Arthur says, “How about you put them in together. At the same time,” clarifies when the gnolls seem unsure. He jumps down from the stone and gives Ser Reginald a boost up. Raa’ka needs no help.
Gently placing the two pieces of the crown in small cutouts in the stone that appear to be made exactly for their pieces. Ser Reginald and Raa’ka watch for a moment. “Now what?” The crown welds itself together before their eyes. The gem in the center pulses, then shines brightly. Then the whole crown sinks down into the stone. “NO!”
The room rumbles and shakes. The giant stone is cracked into pieces as Raa’ka and Ser Reginald leap to safety. As the dust swirls around and the rumbling fades away, all hear a booming voice.
“AT LAST I AM FREE!”

End of part 10.


[1] Unlike last chapter.
[2] in Chapter 8
[3] Modified slightly from Race for the Crown, Adventures of the Potbellied Kobold, by Jeff Stevens Games.
[4] The Gnomish Pantheon
[5] Remember, stalagmite “might” reach the ceiling, and stalactites hang on tite to the ceiling. Or, you can do the boring National Parks Service way of remembering.

Hello, just looking for advice on how to navigate this situation.
Last week a doodle came in and it had never had a haircut at a year old. Obviously, it was pelted with matts and had to be shaved. We told the pet parent how sometimes their skin will get itchy now that it's finally hitting air after so long, they signed a digital agreement which included how any consequence that comes from removing matting is not our fault, and the dog had no injuries when it left.
4 days after the pet parent is furiously texting my boss and is "very unhappy" we didn't tell her that we cut her dog. She then proceeds to send 2 blurry photos with a tiny red spot circled, and then also circled a nipple (lol). My boss who is new to owning a grooming shop (as in, has had it for over 2 years and somehow this hasn't happened) blew up my phone frantic about what to do. I told her some options at other shops are usually send the pet parent to the vet, if the vet determines its our fault, we pay the bill and my boss sends it to her insurance that she should have for her business. Pet parent didn't want to do that (we all know why). Second option is to tell her she signed the agreement, her dog was matted and she let her chew on her skin for 4 days before telling us anything, its not our fault, and to ignore her. Third option is to refund her the money and skip the headache if she didn't want to deal with arguing.
My boss went with the third option after trying to have me walk her through literally all of this while I had a difficult groom on my table. Whatever, not my business, I don't care.
Except now the receptionist let me know on the sly (since she's tasked with doing the calculations for my payroll, idk why), that my boss instructed her edit the commission for that day and to remove that dog from my pay. She apparently said, "I will not have that come out of my pocket."
I just found this out and honestly I'm fuming. It's not a small amount of money and it was no small amount of work. I know this is illegal and this is wage theft, but I'm wondering how to go about confronting her on this. I obviously want it over text so there's a kind of paper trail, I have proof that she edited my daily commission (she had the receptionist rewrite a new page of this week's totals, I have pictures of the old one), but I'm not sure she'll listen when I tell her this is wage theft.
I'm definitely quitting over this and I have an interview with a different salon on Tuesday and I'm almost grateful she did this so now I don't have to give two weeks. On another hand, I'm so mad that I'm literally being stolen from.
What would you (other groomers) do in this situation?

So I was having an honor duel outside of Squin, lost horribly. Made the mistake of not hearing the bell, got myself into a wee bit of a coma. Crumbs & Co. were trying figure out why a Slavemonger was administering first aid to me at the same time as them. Short story short, bit of a brawl occurred, town guards got involved too. Did a gear check and realized my shoes were nowhere to be found. Grabbed Beep's jacket off the ground, picked some shackles and headed to the police station.
I looked at everyone's shoes. Prisoners, guards, looked in all of the barrels/chests. They weren't there. So, now I need to find the guy who took them. Only problem is, I don't know where the rest of the Slaver group that got away went. Is there a rough patrol route? or a base they would head to? We were outside the East entrance of Squin, just down the road after taking the first left. They were heading North-West, which forks to South and North.
I'm assuming they headed North towards Stack, but not sure really. Would they skirt around the edge of vain, or take the longer route pass the Hub? They had no slaves, so nothing to drop of either though.
Sorry for the long post. I just was my shoes back.

Many of those around me don’t eat pork so I’m limited with proteins to add to my boards. Anyone with significant experience making boards that can share their secrets about making turkey slices look pretty on a board?
I know rolling the slices and stacking them is an option but it’s not my fav bc it feels messy and sometimes the rolls look a little too long (cutting them in half makes them too small — maybe it’s the turkey I’m buying?). For those that have successfully used toothpicks on turkey in a pretty design, how did you do it? Any other ways to present turkey slices that you can recommend?
Thank you!

New Beginnings - you've never ARKed like this before!
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New Beginnings is a brand new ASE PVE community Launched 5/25, looking for core members to play and grow with us! It is our goal to provide extensive content and extend your gaming pleasure well into late game with new features and enhanced end game content that will keep you coming back for months and years to come.
Enhanced content: We have Over world super bosses from 3 tiers each stronger than the last and the final tier will require maxed breed lines, capped saddles, and well organized compositions to beat. These bosses are stronger than the Ark bosses you have faced before but very rewarding with exclusive rewards only obtained through events and superbosses!
Quests are added to make your progression even more rewarding and give milestones to chase for epic rewards some will take a very long time but will be worth the mileage. Our quests have a unique UI that you can explore that also give you player stats and leaderboards.
Admin hosted events: We host many events for our community to keep things fresh and entertaining, many of our events are PvPvE and will be hosted on a exclusive event map with PvP enabled with safe zones for PvE events. Among these events we host: Paintball tournaments, Downhill doedic derby, Darts, Maze runs, Ovis soccer, Dodo Olympics, Battle Ship, Capture the flag, Admin hosted Boss runs, Shiny parties, and much more!
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🖥️ Server Setting 🖥️

• XP Multiplier: 3x
  
• Harvest Amount: 5x
  
• Taming Speed: 10x
  
• Breeding: 30x
  
• Crop growth: 2x
  
• Player food consumption: 0.5
  
• Player water consumption: 0.5
  
• Player weight stat: 15x
  
• Player movement speed stat: 5x
  
• Player crafting skill stat: 5x
  
• Player fortitude stat: 5x
  
• Wild dino Food consuption: 1.5x
  
• Tamed dino Weight stat: 15x
  

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📀 Mod List 📀

• Shiny dinos!
  
• Ark additions
  
• Shads Atlas imports
  
• Krakens better dinos
  
• Roleplay appearal
  

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🏰 Structure Mods🏰

• Structures plus
  
• Ckf remastered
  
• Ckf science fiction
  
• Ecos Highland homes
  
• Ecos rp decor
  
• Ecos Primal decor
  

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🧺 Qol Mods 🧺

• Lethals reusables
  
• Awesome Spyglass
  
• Awesome teleporter
  
• Immersive taming
  
• Dino Storage v2.0
  
• Hg stacking +1000 - 50
  

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🏎️starter Kit to help you get started 🏎️

• Hide armor
  
• Metal tools
  
• Canteen
  
• Awesome Spyglass
  
• Awesome teleporter remote
  
• Reusable bola
  
• Reusable spear
  
• Lvl 100 pteradon with saddle
  

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🌎Maps 🌍

• The Island (Extension Cie)
  
• Crystal isles
  
• Fjordur
  
• Gen2
  
• Rotational map (currently Extinction, rotates every month)
  

(Event Map coming soon!)
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Hope you will join us!!
(Would love to see new players come enjoy the server and make lasting memories with us!)
🧑‍🤝‍🧑Discord 🧑‍🤝‍🧑
Link in my bio

-- xac5f9rQs6
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