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151

General Discussion / Re: Random Stuff Part IV

« on: May 07, 2018, 08:47:41 am »

http://brainchip.thecomicseries.com/comics/first/

Check this out, it's awesome.

I don't feel the payoff at the end was worth it. It became a jumbled mess IMO. But having a protagonist shift is an underused device, and I feel that was successfully done here. It was remarkably consistent in its worldview, even bringing back older elements we had forgotten about.

And the opening was pretty fun. It makes me wonder if this was one of the inspirations for the Rick and Morty episode with splitting possibilities, though the ability to talk with your other selves is a nice touch, especially since it helped get Ulf out of some sticky situations.

The Buddhist virus makes me wonder if the artist knew what Buddhism was or if they simply chose something absurd to offset the Christian virus. It was not subtle in its disdain for religion though.

152

General Discussion / Re: Random Stuff Part IV

« on: May 05, 2018, 11:08:52 pm »

http://brainchip.thecomicseries.com/comics/first/

Check this out, it's awesome.

Well, shit, now I'm sucked in.

Gives me an interesting idea for an RPG though.

153

General Discussion / Re: Movies: Any movie buffs?

« on: May 03, 2018, 04:06:47 pm »

I also didn't think that It was all that scary either. I know people who have a real freak-out over clowns, which I do not fully understand. And I'm sure the room full of clowns was really terrible for them.

154

General Discussion / Re: TV shows

« on: May 01, 2018, 10:34:16 am »

So how far behind am I? I saw an advert for Westworld Season 2 and went to ask a co-worker her opinions on subscribing to HBO for Season 2 only to discover that it's already begun and that she's already watched the first two episodes. Man, am I out of it!

155

General Discussion / Re: Movies: Any movie buffs?

« on: April 30, 2018, 12:33:11 pm »

I concur. While there's a lot of Black Panther material in Infinity War, you can easily follow along what's happening. You may see some characters that you'll know survived to the end of Black Panther, but those aren't terribly spoilery.

I had a conversation with a co-worker about must-sees. Thor: Ragnarok and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 1 and 2 are pretty major, as are the Avengers movies and the Captain America movies.

The ones that could be missed (but go back and watch them) would be Ant-Man, Spider-Man, Black Panther, and Dr. Strange. The last one surprised me, but honestly his origin story isn't going to add much to Infinity War. His MacGuffin will be blazingly obvious. Come to think of it, I don't know about how much the Captain America movies are needed. Knowing what happens at the end of Civil War will make scenes in Infinity War less confusing.

156

General Discussion / Re: Movies: Any movie buffs?

« on: April 30, 2018, 09:01:51 am »

I saw Infinity War last night with a friend. It was very entertaining, although looking back, I think it would probably be pretty awful as a standalone film if you haven't seen most of the Marvel stuff preceding it. Which I suppose makes sense, but still, most films give enough context to be entertaining on their own merit.

I wonder if there should be a rating system for whether it's a movie or an episode. Infinity War was certainly an episode. And that worked for it. It couldn't have done all that it did if it worried about exposition. At this point, it's assumed you saw all of the other movies in the MCU. Well, most of them anyway. There were some that you could've skipped, and I'm sure someone has already compiled a list of movies in order that you must watch prior to seeing Infinity War. Friend of mine realized in the first 5 minutes that she hadn't gotten around to watching Thor: Ragnarok. Oops.

So, a better episode than a movie. And that's all right.

Most characters seemed to have their moment to shine, which is an amazing feat in itself, but there were some castaways. Poor Mantis only really had one useful thing to do and was relegated to comic relief otherwise.

I know there are some people depressed by the outcome of this movie, but comic books have a history of retconning, especially when you deal with huge, cosmic forces like the reality stone and the time stone. This is really just the dark moment in act 2. I'm sure that the next movie will resolve this especially with Captain Marvel being brought into the fold. If I read about the movie timeline correctly, there's a standalone film with her meeting Nick Fury in the 1990s shortly before part 2 of the Infinity War. Perfectly good segue.

There are lots of comic book tropes happening here, and I have no doubt that we'll see the biggest one yet in part 2. Undoubtedly, people will call it a cop-out, and I can't disagree. But it's at least consistent. What would amaze me is if they don't fall back on it, which would impact future movies.

I was sad to not see Ant-Man, and I actually wonder where he and Wasp will fall in the timeline. Will this take place during the great purge of humanity? Perhaps we'll see him in part 2.

157

General Discussion / Re: Random Stuff Part IV

« on: April 23, 2018, 11:21:42 am »

Well, in TTRPGs, it's probably best to use the units you're the most familiar with.

This is true for everybody. We work best with what is familiar to us. I still use feet and pounds in everything. I recognize that it would be easier overall if America switches to metric, but there would be a period of growing pains. I'm guilty of this too. If we suddenly went metric I'd be thrown off if someone told me to drive 800 meters and then turn left. I'm actually pretty bad about being told to turn left in 300 feet too, but it'd be worse if it were metric for me.

So yeah, it would be easier to use the units people are familiar with in TTRPGs. Seems like RPGs would be the best place to change systems since it's not that important to get the units right in a game. Not like getting confused cooking something or sending directions.

158

General Discussion / Re: Random Stuff Part IV

« on: April 23, 2018, 08:54:23 am »

Well RPGs are an area where I actually kind of get this, especially if the setting is medieval where you wouldn't have a standardized system in-world anyway and people would use their actual feet etc. to measure things.

I think you may be giving them too much credit. If they were really in it for the verisimilitude, then they would have different measurements of feet based on the king of the land they are visiting. Then you get into funky physics like an arrow being fired in Kingdom A at only 2/3 the distance of it being fired in Kingdom B.

I think this really boils down to grognards. Especially in Pathfinder, which exists solely because D&D players did not want to leave behind D&D 3rd edition, so they published their own rulebook of the open license rules and continued using the same rules for another 10 years. Pathfinder players are not known for being progressive.

159

General Discussion / Re: Random Stuff Part IV

« on: April 20, 2018, 04:37:12 pm »

If you really want to have some fun, go to any discussion group of the Pathfinder RPG (based on 3rd edition of Dungeons & Dragons) and suggest that the game should be published in metric. People will spiral into a frothing fit to tell you why metric is a bad idea in their RPG.

My favorite "argument" is that if the game changes so that each square is 2 meters instead of 5 feet (which the Star Wars RPG actually did do BTW), then the iconic "5-foot step" would have to be renamed to the "6.56-foot step" and that's too hard to memorize. Some people are so entrenched in imperial that they can't even fathom renaming it to a "2-meter step." Yes, 5 feet sounds like quite a large step; it's not a literal single step.

I'm pretty bad at metric, but I've had some practice with the Torg RPG in 1990. It used metric even when it was an American publisher. Now that it's owned by a German publisher, metric is even more natural.

160

General Discussion / Re: Random Stuff Part IV

« on: April 20, 2018, 04:28:50 pm »

My problem with estimating centimeters is that because I'm in the United States, the only time I use centimeters is in science, and in those cases the actual values they quantify don't really matter, and I end up thinking of centimeters as short inches.  However, I've noticed that in my mind I sometimes think of it being about 1.5 centimeters to an inch, not 2.5 centimeters to an inch...

Wait... WAIT. I know the US uses a lot of Imperial units, but do you seriously like not even use cm and m on a daily basis? Like, do schoolkids not have standard 15cm/30cm rulers? Do people not know doorframes are about 2m high? Is it not common knowledge that 1 mile is 1 kilometer, 609 metres, 34 centimetres and 4 milimetres? Okay that last one is maybe not common here either but still, this blows my mind that you guys are using feet and inches for... most things?

Oh yeah, very little metric happens in America. There are some exceptions.

As stated, there are races that are measured in meters. You can buy a 2-liter bottle of soda, but don't expect anyone to figure out how much soda is in 300 milliliters.

Many wrenches are sold in two sets to account for cars (and whatever else) built with metric bolts.

I always hear of street drugs being sold in the realm of grams, but I don't have firsthand knowledge of that. But a lot of medicine lists ingredients in milligrams.

When people aren't up for running a marathon (26.2 miles, I believe), they may sign up to run a 5K or a 10K. 

Aside from the scientific community, everyday life in America is almost exclusively imperial measurements. Unless I'm washing down 500 mg of ibuprofen with a 2-liter Coke after running a 5K, Americans would just stare at me blankly if I try to use anything metric.

161

General Discussion / Re: Random Stuff Part IV

« on: April 18, 2018, 08:47:26 am »

I find it interesting how there's a tendency to overstate the amount of time we wait.

For example, I was walking into work and was behind my co-worker by about 15-20 seconds. I could see him up ahead in the parking lot, but he quickly vanished from view. When I arrived at the elevator, the doors were already shutting, and he was whisked away to our office.

When I arrived, he told me that he was standing in the elevator lobby for what must've been 4 minutes before anyone realized nobody pressed the call button. I literally followed him into the building and was certainly not 4 minutes behind him. I don't think he was attempting to lie. I've seen this happen a lot, including in my own tellings. We'll say that something took a long time when it might have only been 30 seconds.

I think it's for dramatic flair. While 20 seconds is a long time to wait before replying to someone's question, it's more dramatic to say, "It took Bob 5 minutes to tell me my ass didn't look big in these pants." It's not as grandiose to say that I waited 20 seconds for a response. That doesn't sound long at all.

162

Other Games / Marvel Strike Force

« on: April 12, 2018, 08:42:25 am »

Anyone on here playing Marvel Strike Force? It's basically a Final Fantasy type gameplay where you pit Marvel characters against others. From what I understand, it's a reskin of a Star Wars mobile game.

I'm curious if there are any dedicated players here since one aspect of the game has players working cooperatively to accomplish some goals (similar to an MMO raid). I'd rather team up with people I kinda know. Or at least feel like I can trust.

163

General Discussion / Re: TV shows

« on: April 11, 2018, 10:25:54 am »

What's wrong with The National Anthem?

I just read the plot summary on Wikipedia, and the answer is everything. Everything is wrong with that.

The story is icky, but what impressed me about that episode is the gravity they gave the situation. It's totally absurd, but they still handled the kidnapping as a very serious event. It was the reaction to the events that made the episode so good. Initial disbelief and then the oh shit moments.

And then there's the reaction from the hoi polloi. At first, they were razzing a political figure. But when it actually happened, it turned into a case of be careful what you wish for. The reality of it hit them, and it wasn't so risible anymore. I mean, as much as I hate Trump, if he were ever in that situation and televised, I'd be feeling sorry for him too.

Not my favorite episode, but it is a fascinating look at public figures and how people view them. Even if it is super gross.

164

General Discussion / Re: Movies: Any movie buffs?

« on: April 06, 2018, 09:15:55 am »

Has anyone seen Unsane? It looks really cool but I want to hear from some other people before I spend money to see it in the theater

Pretty sure someone has seen it.

Nope, Unsane is unseen.

I had to say it.

I'm interested in this movie as well.

165

General Discussion / Re: Movies: Any movie buffs?

« on: April 05, 2018, 09:40:00 am »

So I saw Ready Player One. It was fun. Pretty predictable and not particularly deep but a fun romp. It was made for my generation—or at least felt like it, which would be an even bigger praise if they can pull that off for everyone.

I've not read the book, so I don't know how much I would have groused if I had. I know some scenes were left out for the movie. It's a shame because seeing Joust on the screen would be pretty cool.

My favorite scene apparently wasn't in the book at all: an homage to Kubrick's The Shining. It was really well done and quite enjoyable to watch. I question how the scene plays for people not familiar with the movie, but then the whole scene revolved around not seeing the movie.

I'm glad that the plot wasn't that deep because it allowed me to focus on picking out pop culture references. I may possibly have to see it a second time to look for more references, which I'm sure is all part of their evil plan.

166

Other Games / Re: Terraforming Mars

« on: April 04, 2018, 11:58:23 am »

Well, my wife finally got to play a game with more than 2 players. We had 5 players. It was a huge shift in how the game plays out. We didn't have nearly as many cards on the table since 5 of us were all increasing the temperature, oxygen, and oceans. The snowballing effect was lessened with 5 players since the game ended sooner.

We didn't use the drafting rules since there was an utter newbie and one guy who wasn't entirely secure in his knowledge of the game. I wonder if we should've used it anyway. I worry that the draft variant really screws over the newbie since he doesn't know the power of some of the late-game cards or what is needed to deny victory from people down the row.

But fortunately, my wife's faith in the game was restored as she won this game. She beat me by 3 points. The newbie actually finished in a comfortable third. I think that I do better than her in building long-term engines, but the shorter game had different requirements that my wife was better able to navigate.

Now that she beat me, it's time to introduce her to a different game. *cackle*

167

General Discussion / Re: TV shows

« on: March 26, 2018, 11:02:09 pm »

Your first is Robz second last and your last is my first. Nice.  There's some agreement on a couple of others, though.

Anyone else want to make a list?

It is interesting how people rank the various episodes. Some real divergence here, though some episodes clearly stand out as the best ones being so high on multiple lists.

I can't make a list like this because I can't just rank them. I can, however, classify them as episodes that were still enjoyable to watch but didn't make me go ga-ga, episodes that did make me go ga-ga, and episodes in between. This list would be:

Didn’t Jingle My Holly
Playtest
Men Against Fire
Metalhead
Arkangel
Crocodile
The Waldo Moment

Neutral
Hated in the Nation
The Entire History of You
The National Anthem
Be Right Back
Black Museum
Fifteen Million Merits
Shut Up and Dance

Really Liked
Nosedive
Hang the DJ
USS Callister
San Junipero
White Christmas
White Bear

It's interesting that Men Against Fire placed so low on my list because the concept is really kickass. I actually had contemplated writing an RPG one-shot that features that very concept but with different execution. I don't know why the episode didn't trip my trigger like the others.

While I can't quantify all of my entries, I am most certainly happiest with San Junipero and USS Callister. That would likely place White Bear and Nosedive at #3 and #4, though which order depends on my mood.

168

Other Games / Re: Terraforming Mars

« on: March 26, 2018, 01:18:20 pm »

For that size of game there is too much luck. I think the straight options are better than people think they are

I may be daft today. What do you mean by straight options?

169

Other Games / Re: Terraforming Mars

« on: March 26, 2018, 01:15:22 pm »

This game is really hyped and I absolutely don't get it.
I don't think the game is horrible, but I feel like I could play RFTG for a similar feel and get 5 games played i the same amount of time, each with about the same amount of relevant decisions as the single Terraforming Mars game.

Apparently I like the game more than you do, but I cannot disagree with your assessment one bit. The luck factor is quite huge in this game. I don't think it's as bad as RFTG because each card in TM (aside from those limited to early game) can do you some good. There's not as much synergy bonus as with RFTG (*cough* military strategy). At least that's my impression of it. But that luck factor is undeniably there. 

Like pacovf said, the theme is great. I absolutely love seeing certain cards working when Mars is still frigid/oxygen-poor/arid and then seeing the cards that require warmth/oxygen/moisture to work. And maybe that makes TM a better experience than a game.

I think I may implement the drafting variant. It makes hanging onto the cards more difficult, and there is some interaction. For example, if I'm built in the NW quadrant of the planet, I sure as hell don't want to give away the card that causes a volcanic eruption there. Note to future self: Don't build in the NW quadrant. My wife doesn't like it when I introduce new variants; she wanted to continue playing with beginner corporations even though the rulebook strongly suggests you go advanced after your first game. But drafting does two things: a) lets you mess with the other players' hands and b) gives you an idea of what cards may be out there. Granted, if you're playing 3+ players, you'll have no idea who took what.

I do like TM, but I am grateful for not buying it.

170

Other Games / Terraforming Mars

« on: March 26, 2018, 11:58:48 am »

Since I introduced my wife to Terraforming Mars, she's been obsessed with defeating me. We've played four 2-player games so far. She enjoys the game, but she gets frustrated that she hasn't been able to build as good of an engine as mine. Part of it is shuffle luck, which TM is notorious for, but I also have a little more experience than her and can pull off some dick moves (the latest dick move was taking 1 action per round to her 2 in the final round so that I know she can't take any more actions and then bump up my money production so I could win the Banker award that she funded).

But the sheer luck is starting to sour my opinion of the game. The discussion of interaction in the Dominion clone thread makes me think of TM because there isn't a whole lot you can do to slow down other people. Some cards are detrimental to others, but they are usually minor. I think that's probably for the best because if you have a huge attack, that sends the game down a different path that I might not find as enjoyable.

There are possible ways on the board to block some strategies. Like putting the ocean geyser (whatever it's called) on an ocean tile adjacent to the capital so its owner can't benefit from that. Or placing an artificial lake next to someone's city. But those are still hugely based on the luck of the draw. I pointed out that one reason for my victory in one game was because her corporation benefited from claiming hexes with steel and titanium, so I claimed many of those spaces first to deny her access to them.

I wonder if there are ways to level the playing field without imposing an actual handicap. I suppose I could take the beginner corporation while she gains the benefit of an advanced corporation, but the beginner corp has the benefit of essentially starting with 72 credits, which is not shabby. It just would mean I don't start off with a focus, which could also be an advantage (I played a game where I started with 20 steel and didn't draw any buildings until the third turn).

I feel like the game may go better with more than 2 players. Cards like ants and predators can only really target one other person in a 2-player game. At least if there are multiple targets, then you can beat on the leader for a bit. We just haven't had anybody around to fill in another seat at the table.

171

General Discussion / Re: TV shows

« on: March 26, 2018, 10:02:40 am »

It's also being tried in a limited capacity in China. I find the real-world implications interesting, and I hope that my credit score is never tied to how patriotic I am.

172

General Discussion / Re: TV shows

« on: March 26, 2018, 09:07:36 am »

I think that the intent behind the dialogue in Black Mirror would be more pernicious than any f-bombs. It's generally a bleak show. Even the episodes with happier endings tend to have grim moments.

The show deals with dark elements such as extortion, murder, slavery, rape, oppression, censorship, xenophobia, jealousy, capital punishment, corruption, and greed. These are far more uncomfortable to watch than any f-bombs they throw in there. Really, if you're going to tackle those terrible tenets, then there's no point in being shy about f-bombs. 

I'm a little surprised to see White Bear so low on Rob's list. What about that episode didn't you like? I rather liked the mental screw that took the audience for a ride (main reason why I show people Dark City while fast forwarding past the spoilerific narration at the beginning).

I'm also a little surprised about Silverspawn ranking Nosedive so low. Why no love for that? Though it admittedly is a bit derivative of 15 Million Credits.

173

General Discussion / Re: TV shows

« on: March 23, 2018, 04:53:26 pm »

I actually have seasons 2 and 3 of the Magicians languishing on my DVR. I enjoyed the first season, but I wasn't sure that I was into it enough to continue watching.

But I may reconsider that now.

I am curious what kept you from being into it? I will say I had all of season 1 and 2 to watch when I started and binged through both seasons very quickly.

I'm not quite sure. Maybe I just couldn't identify with the students. And they seemed awfully whiny, kind of like why I feel that Rent is overrated.

But the Narnia/Wonderland story was wickedly twisted.

I'm sure I'll give it a go again. I only have so much television-viewing time, so my thresholds for shows have gotten lower. I gave up watching Gotham, Arrow, Legends of Tomorrow, the Flash, and Supergirl for that reason. Interestingly enough, I did start watching the first two episodes of Black Lightning.

174

General Discussion / Re: TV shows

« on: March 23, 2018, 01:58:15 pm »

I actually have seasons 2 and 3 of the Magicians languishing on my DVR. I enjoyed the first season, but I wasn't sure that I was into it enough to continue watching.

But I may reconsider that now.

175

Other Games / Re: Dominion clones

« on: March 21, 2018, 04:31:55 pm »

Physically, there's a glaring flaw, which is that upgraded cards can be distinguished by feel, and cards of varying thickness don't shuffle properly.

Yeah, there is that. I try to be as forgetful as possible when shuffling. The most I've had in a card was 4, but you could technically have 6, not that you'd want to. Imagine how obvious that card would be.

Are you talking riffle shuffle? If so, I would have to agree with you. I slide the cards together since they're sleeved. Maybe that makes a difference?

In terms of gameplay, the restriction of caring whether an upgrade fits in the top, middle or bottom feels like it was forced by the physrep and then turned into a feature that complicates and frustrates more than it challenges delights.

It can be frustrating to find that one card you want only to have no available slots that turn or end up putting 2+ spoils on one card, but many games have limitations to make things challenging. It'd be like finding 1 Buy per turn in Dominion frustrating, though I'm amazed at how many deck-building games don't have a buy limit. Since Dominion was my first deck-builder, this feels very odd to me.