Alpha1Cowboy

Well...maybe we'll meet again there one day. Fair winds and following seas,

From what I understand the game is hard to get right now as it goes into a full release so most of my impressions come form its FBB forum .  I'm seeing a lot of early setting customization around the game.  

Dont Look Back By Black Site Studios

WWW.FACEBOOK.COM

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This is a group for fans of Don’t Look Back written by Matthew Burns, published by Black Site Studios We want to keep these rules simple Keep the discussion on topic. Dont be a jerk. No...

What I find kind of geeky awesome is that if you pick up the various expansions...they come in a VHS Cassette Box...like...first rule of marketing is know your audience right?

Anyone played this....seems it is still early on in its release. Definitely interested in co-op games that have a good hook or lend themselves to imagination and are moddable, but don't have such long play throughs

Might be a stretch guys depending on your commute but just wanted to put this option out there for anyone wanting to join a *secret* game club in Frederick,MD. 

They have two tiers of membership $150 a year or $20 a month or $300 a year or $40 a month depending on which way you sign up.   This is obviously quite a bit more than just gaming at the local gameshop type stuff as it's more of an actual private club.  Anyway..take a look if ya want. It is pretty amazing.

Not great times for Oracle..yeesh...first Amazon rips your guts out and then Google steps on ya

Grew up in a Methodist household.....parents went to Church pretty much every Sunday..never recall them having to force me or my brother..it was just an enjoyable thing to do..and growing up in a small town without the entertainment options we have today it was something interesting to do...looked forward to seeing my friends and our pastor was pretty much a TED Talks kind of guy...I never really found it boring and our Church Services were ..i think short at around 45 minutes.   After church we'd usually make plans with out friends or family for the afternoon and head out to eat somewhere (usually local bar) for lunch....or to Watch the Vikings play   (noon kicks offs in Minnesota)

On 1/8/2021 at 8:07 PM, cusideabelincoln said:

I have come across one drawback to the Quest 2, at least I can personally compare to PSVR.  For me there is a much smaller sweet spot to get the entire lens FOV to be in focus.  Apparently Reddit noticed this issue, and people say it's way worse than Quest 1 - or any other VR headset.  On the PSVR I can get the entire FOV to be in focus, but I can never keep it there because the headset moves around too much.  On the Quest 2 I can at least keep the headset in one position, but I can't find a position where the edges of the lenses are as clear as the center.  Some people speculate this can be fixed in software, so hopefully it will be updated.

 

And just like the PSVR I have a hard time getting smudges/oil off the lense, even after using a brand new microfibre cloth.

 

I wish a higher-end headset would adopt Virtual Desktop wireless streaming method, because it looks and works pretty well.  Whatever headset I buy next has to have a much higher FOV and be wireless.  I can't go back to wired.

Yes..this greatly depends on the space between your eyes...for some reason they made it so you only have 3 options whereas on the Quest it was a slider that covered the entire range...some people are more or less affected depending on where they fall. I got lucky...hopefully Quest 3 gets 110 FOC and sliding IPD back.   

16 hours ago, SilentWorld said:

What’s your wife’s opinion on everything in Russia? Does she still support Putin? I’m always interested in what people outside of my bubble think on topics like this. 

Pretty much no one in Russia really supports Putin...he's like background noise to most Russians....he's familiar and there's really no one better..or..that much better.  He hasn't completely run the country into the ground and has somewhat joined Russians in a national identity.  

Russia..Like the US has a sort of Boomer Generation that won't get out of the way and let younger leaders lead...and a lot of this spy stuff comes form that generation who venerated the power of the KGB....but as stated...these old men have lost quite  few steps...and aren't as capable as they were in their younger days.

The Russian Militray has pulled off some good Cyber Warfare stuff, but a lot of that is not neccessarily how good they are, but how terribly bad and cheap our private companies are in protecting assets.  I mean...when OPM got hacked like 8 years ago....it wasn't because of sophistication..it was because the systems there were running old software on old hardware.  

I've been told that the people carrying out these types of things are getting elderly and that's why the work is sloppy..as in the people in charge.  

6 minutes ago, CitizenVectron said:

 

Definitely. As long as it follows The Rule of Cool (Rule of Cool - TV Tropes - warning, TV Tropes!) then it gets a pass from me. It's why I don't care about sound in space or curving turbolasers, etc. As long as it's cool and it moves the plot forward, it's fine.

 

Rule of Cool:

 

The 80's in a nutshell

Skip to 3:21 for the fun...talk about storm troopers having bad aim....I think he kills the same 100 guys a couple of times with umm..unlimited ammo

 hack?

15 minutes ago, CitizenVectron said:

Something that is talked about in the fantasy writing community is the idea of soft vs hard magic systems, and I think it applies to Star Wars since it's just space fantasy:

 

Basically, soft magic is where you don't have rules, and hard magic is where you do. Systems with cause-and-effect and "mana" (or some cost) are typically hard magic. A good rule for authors to follow is to never have soft magic be used by the point-of-view character to solve problems. It can be used to create problems, or a third-party can change the course of the narrative with it (Gandalf, for example). Hard magic is better for solving problems since it follows the rule of promise-and-payoff.

 

So if you've ever watched or read something where the hero pulls something out of their ass at the end and it didn't feel earned, it could be because it was a version of soft magic. But on the other hand, soft magic can be great for inspiring awe since it's usually left vague and undefined, and only surfaces to push the plot forward. That's why the Force is so cool (though it exists somewhere between hard and soft, really).

Oh yeah...star wars definitely doesn't have rules....or the rules apply uniquely to each individual. Kind of like how in Harry Potter certain wizards were stringer or weaker or could do one type of magic better than another.  

Pretty much every 80's film was about pulling shit out of your ass to win the day..just rewatched The Last Starfighter last night...Death Blossom anyone?  

Moving close to that Popcorn Flick to Popcorn Television...but in the end...it's all about the fun

21 minutes ago, Spawn_of_Apathy said:

...or like when Qui-gon and Obi-wan use the force to run away from the destroyers at super fast speed, and then we never see them or another Jedi use a burst of speed like that again. lol. They just move at regular speed from there on out. 

Emporer Palpatine definitely did when they came to arrest him and I think i saw Mace Windu do it..but that might have been a force jump.  

I think in the novels it says it drains a Force user but those aren't techncially canon..depending on the book and time period.    Hard to recall..I've read so many.

8 minutes ago, Spawn_of_Apathy said:

oh I’m well aware of the levels of deus ex machina the force can be to move the plot or get heroes our of a tight spot. I never assumed it couldn’t be explained. 
 

they made the beacon seem like a signal flare to Jedi. Not something that would create a powerful bond between the two making Grogu low jacked. And the Luke and Leia thing was always explained as being possible because of their strong connection to each other. Even still, it’s something used as the story needs it, as there are times they seemingly don’t have this power when they need the tension and suspense of two close Jedi not being able to just sense the other is alive or their exact location in the galaxy. 
 

if Jedi powers were consistent there’d almost never be any tension ever if a Jedi is around. Heck, Luke shouldn’t have even needed his lightsaber. 
 

I’m not going to get hung up on it. I’m sure there will be an interview or something at some point giving a canonical explanation for everything in the episode. It’s just a thought I had after seeing the episode. In the end this didn’t affect my enjoyment of the scenes. 

Technically..if Luke went to Tython and investigated he would have found a whole lotta dead storm troopers and a couple of wrecked ships including Mando's and conisdering we've seen X wings thoughout the season having tracked Mando's ship having saved him and having been in contact with Cara Dune...and considering she borrowed a Prisoner who "died" on Morak..this might have led Luke to the destruction there and sightings of Slave 1....and it can be entirely plausible that it was a combination of the force and investigation combined.

Wait....I thought R2 saved Grogu..... when he came in and started chirping so long I figured that it was because it was some sort of long ago reveal....because I thought when Anakin went to the Jedi Temple he had R2 with him..

Overall great season..great episode.

As i said elsewhere Abrams and Johnson could take some pointers from Filoni and Favreau on world building and character development.   There's a way to handle fan service while also expanding the story and creating emotional connections

my kids are happy about that...

31 minutes ago, CitizenVectron said:

 

Tarkin in ANH was more like a Soviet sub captain (military) and Vader was the party officer on board. The party officer can ruin the reputation of the captain and override them in some areas (and possibly get them kicked out/killed after a while), but is not in charge. Obviously ESB and ROTJ retroactively changed who Vader was in the overall hierarchy. 

Considering that ultimately it was Snoke/Palpatine in Charge....it made sense that he kept the same type of hierarchy. Indeed he was treating both Ren/Hux with the same level of authority. It was only in Episode 9 that all of a sudden we had these other higher ranking military figures show up.....yeah...they really made a hash of that aspect...but I'm hopeful that Moff Gideon and maybe Thrawn fix it depending on what they do with the characters.   

Tarkin was the one in charge though..Vader was just an enforcer that had little to do militarily. 

"Governor Tarkin, I should have expected to find you holding Vader's leash. I recognized your foul stench when I was brought on board." -Princess Leia --A New Hope

3 minutes ago, CayceG said:

 

So this is good. 

 

As Mandalorian has shown, being influenced by other parts of the back-catalog can make for some wonderful content, while retreading the ground of previous entries in canon maybe isn't the best (as the prior discussion has covered).

 

 

I do wonder where the Thrawn thing is headed. I mean..it seems that this could be a link to the Chiss Ascendancy in the Outer Rims.....I did like in the novels the idea that the Imperial Remnant wasn't his caricature that the 1st Order was...that they carved out their own space and seemed to have support from some worlds who did not want to be part of the Galactic Alliance.....it really started exploring the grey areas and failures of the Old Republic and such.  

54 minutes ago, CitizenVectron said:

 

Let's be real—most of the Imperial officers in the OT were jokes as well, and there was humour (albeit dryer) when they died.

There's a big difference.  Tarkin was not afraid of Vader and Vader respected Tarkin.  Now...the focus shifted in Episode 5 and 6...but the writing (before Star Wars Legends was a thing) did not make a jokes out of Imperial Officers....Thrawn, Palleon,Daala.....were written very well and gave form to a Post Episode 6 Imperial remnant.....Thrawn so much so that they brought him into canon...and also seem to have course corrected with the Mandalorian and Moff Gideon.   

People want competent villains. It makes for a much better story and adds realism. Hux/Ren was obviously  Tarkin/Vader...and the first movie gave us that although a much paler imitation..Rian Johnson just destroyed that dynamic by immediately playing Hux for straight laughs when more could have been done to expand the idea of this larger scale war going on.   The clone wars and Mandalorian really have done a good job at that piece from a military perspective where the larger films have failed...well...Rogue One did alright

7 minutes ago, SaysWho? said:

 

Hux being comedy relief was great. There wasn't anything particularly notable about him in TFA.

 

Let's face it: people didn't think Lucas, after the PT, understood Star Wars. Star Wars fans are bad. I wish I could make a SW film just to piss them off tbqh.

He was merely bad there...a little over the top acting and miscast..maybe needed an older actor, but the idea was to build him into something like a Thrawn or Gideon even....or it should have been.  That's what fans were looking for.  Hell..Moff Tarkin was badass too....

No one was asking for Space Colonel Klink

*of course..I play Star Wars Legions and Armada and Rebel Assault and Xwing tabletop games ...so ymmv

Rian Johnson didn't do ther series any favors.  He turned General Hux into pure comedy relief...he ruined the character so bad they had to give him a comedy sendoff.  That's why Thrawn is so admired...he wasn't scared of Vader or other force users..one of the things I liked about many of the novels is that the military leadership of the Empire/Former Empire and their arcs was really interesting.    That's why Moff Gideon is getting a lot of positive buzz thus far in the Mandalorean.....personally..I don't think Abrahms or Johnson understood Star Wars at the level they needed to in order to craft their stories or  not nearly as much as Dave Filoni.

The good thing is that there is a lot of room for expanded stories post Episode 9 that 

Give it a decade and VR and a lazyboy will replace this easily.    I actually really enjoy laying back in mind and watching movies in the tilted position....I feel like it allows the neck to rest

Week 10 Feature Game
Indianapolis Colts (+2.5) at Tennessee Titans
(Remember you are betting against the spread, not just the outright winner)

Tennessee 15,000

QUESTIONS
1) What will be the first scoring play of the Feature Game? Colts TD, Colts FG, Colts safety, Titans TD, Titans FG, Titans safety, or other? ($900 for the correct call)

Tennessee TD

2) Which team in the Feature Game will have the greater Time of Possession? ($800 for the right team)

Tennessee

3) Who will score the first touchdown in the Minnesota @ Chicago game? ($1,000 for the correct answer)

Minnesota

4) Name any Quarterback who will be sacked 4 or more times in Week 10. ($900 for the correct player)

Joe Burrow

5) Call the winners:
L.A. Chargers at Miami
Seattle at L.A. Rams
Buffalo at Arizona
($800 for EACH correct named game winner, $1,500 bonus if you call all 3 correctly)

Miami

Seattle

Buffalo

6) Making people miss: Name the player who will have the most yards after catch (YAC) in a single play this week. ($1,500 for the right guess)

Adam Thielen

7) Road trip: How many visiting teams win in Week 10? ($900 for the correct call)

5

8) Name the player who will rush for the most yards AND the player that will have the most receiving yards in week ten. ($3,500 for each player named correctly, $7,500 bonus if both names are called)

Dalvin Cook    Stefon Diggs

On 11/2/2020 at 2:47 AM, Fizzzzle said:

The point is Republicans are trying to play your emotions. YoU ThInK ThIS iS BaAd? IMAGINE HOW MUCH WORSE IT WOULD BE!!!!"

Redneck americans absolutely have real concerns. They are absolutely ignored by the general elections.

 

I guess I could say it like this... Redneck americans are being gaslit by things like abortion and the death penalty to get them to vote against their own interest on everything else.  I suppose my point is that these are still people who are not being heard by the government, and they deserve to be heard.

 

I kind of contradicted myself there. Ultimately rednecks are people, too. Their views don't matter less.

They aren't being gaslit..... when confronted with facts they refuse to acknowledge those facts.  When my own family tells me the Dems are gonna take their guns I simply ask them how.   I explain what it takes legally to make a new constitutional amendment and who votes and ask them to list the 33 states that would ratify taking their guns.  They can't do it...they can't even come up with 5 legitimate states that would vote to ban firearms completely...so they clearly know its not true...

Week 8 Feature Game
Dallas Cowboys (+9.5) at Philadelphia Eagles
(Remember you are betting against the spread, not just the outright winner)

Eagles $8000

QUESTIONS
1) What will be the first scoring play of the Feature Game? Cowboys TD, Cowboys FG, Cowboys safety, Eagles TD, Eagles FG, Eagles safety, or other? ($800 for the correct call)

Eagles FG

2) Which team in the Feature Game will have the most rushing yards? ($700 for the correct call)

Eagles

3) Protect this house: How many home teams will win in Week 8? ($900 for the correct answer)

8

4) How many touchdowns will be scored in the New Orleans @ Chicago game? ($800 for the correct player)

6

5) Call the winners:
L.A. Rams at Miami
L.A. Chargers at Denver
Pittsburgh at Baltimore
($700 for EACH correct named game winner, $1,200 bonus if you call all 3 correctly)

LA RAMS

LA Chargers

Baltimore

6) Which team will score first on Thursday night, Atlanta or Carolina? ($700 for the right name)

Carolina

7) Name the QB that will have the most passing yards in Week 8. ($1,000 for the correct call)

Aaron Rodgers

8) Name the player who will rush for the most yards AND the player that will have the most receiving yards in week eight. ($3,500 for each player named correctly, $7,000 bonus if both names are called)

Kareem Hunt   Amari Cooper