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Another one in General
Slarty
Raven v. Writing Desk
Member # 261
 written Wednesday, October 25 2006 04:56 Profile Homepage #0
"Exposed at last, King Micah rips off his face,
to reveal...."

That's from Exile 2. What's with all these?

[ Wednesday, October 25, 2006 04:57: Message edited by: Thahd Lemonade ]

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Slarty vs. Desk • Desk vs. Slarty • Timeline of Ermarian • G4 Strategy Central
Posts: 3560 | Registered: Wednesday, November 7 2001 08:00
Emancipated! in General
Slarty
Raven v. Writing Desk
Member # 261
 written Wednesday, October 25 2006 04:10 Profile Homepage #25
quote:
Originally written by Spookee Salmon:

Your logic would hopefully be able to be extended to other parts of life, where equally scared, fragile, and untrained folks might be in over their heads and not hear the proper options. One instance that I can think of is that of a first time criminal, freshly arrested. The arresting officer is lawfully bound to read a list of things to that criminal to protect that criminal. Would it be a hardship for a doctor, when counciling a patient, to also read a list of options? Maybe spend some time to hear the poor kids story and exercise some discretion? Perhaps hear that the home life sucks and offer up the judge hearing option before the parental notification option?
I'm not sure what you're trying to argue here Salmon. Yes, of course I would extend that to Miranda rights.

In theory having the doctor do that sounds great, but the law proposed doesn't say anything about that, and it's certainly not going to happen by itself. It's also hard to get that to happen.

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Slarty vs. Desk • Desk vs. Slarty • Timeline of Ermarian • G4 Strategy Central
Posts: 3560 | Registered: Wednesday, November 7 2001 08:00
Avernum Favorites in Avernum 4
Slarty
Raven v. Writing Desk
Member # 261
 written Tuesday, October 24 2006 19:00 Profile Homepage #16
BTW, the reason X isn't listed as a major character is that he is 100% insignificant to the plot and backstory of every game in the series. He has nothing to do with any major events or major quests, or for that matter any minor events.

The criteria for being a major character was mainly having major relevance to plot and story, and also having a large chunk of dialogue either spoken by or spoken about the character. Honestly, Anastasia's a lot closer to a major character than X is, and she's not either.

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Slarty vs. Desk • Desk vs. Slarty • Timeline of Ermarian • G4 Strategy Central
Posts: 3560 | Registered: Wednesday, November 7 2001 08:00
Kit Points in Avernum 4
Slarty
Raven v. Writing Desk
Member # 261
 written Tuesday, October 24 2006 18:55 Profile Homepage #6
Actually, it's easy to play bowless even with dedicated archers. Divinely Touched Nephils will get more than adequate skill in Bows and Sharpshooter naturally, with zero investment.

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Slarty vs. Desk • Desk vs. Slarty • Timeline of Ermarian • G4 Strategy Central
Posts: 3560 | Registered: Wednesday, November 7 2001 08:00
Emancipated! in General
Slarty
Raven v. Writing Desk
Member # 261
 written Tuesday, October 24 2006 18:53 Profile Homepage #22
quote:
Originally written by Spookee Salmon:

To reiterate, under this proposal the child can go to a judge, explain why the parental units should not be involved, and gain exception to the notification rule.
Bullcrap.

Yes, the legislation outlines this procedure; but procedures like this are NEVER implemented in a way that makes them readily accessible to people in crisis -- let alone troubled 15-year-old girls! Such girls would be unlikely to even hear about this option unless they happen to see a sympathetic and unusually legally knowledgeable doctor, and even then [I]how likely is a scared, pregnant 15-year-old who doesn't trust her parents to arrange for a hearing with a judge,[I] which sounds very ominous to children and also has the reality of taking some effort to arrange.

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Slarty vs. Desk • Desk vs. Slarty • Timeline of Ermarian • G4 Strategy Central
Posts: 3560 | Registered: Wednesday, November 7 2001 08:00
The FRAPGVRUKCP: now with twice the posting action! in General
Slarty
Raven v. Writing Desk
Member # 261
 written Tuesday, October 24 2006 18:34 Profile Homepage #9
2002 is an auspicious number; the number of nights after Shahryar's virgin-a-night policy began, that it finally ended.

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Slarty vs. Desk • Desk vs. Slarty • Timeline of Ermarian • G4 Strategy Central
Posts: 3560 | Registered: Wednesday, November 7 2001 08:00
The long awaited Census topic! in General
Slarty
Raven v. Writing Desk
Member # 261
 written Tuesday, October 24 2006 06:58 Profile Homepage #66
Might and Magic III *was* a terribly good game.

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Slarty vs. Desk • Desk vs. Slarty • Timeline of Ermarian • G4 Strategy Central
Posts: 3560 | Registered: Wednesday, November 7 2001 08:00
Episode 3: A New Game in General
Slarty
Raven v. Writing Desk
Member # 261
 written Tuesday, October 24 2006 06:54 Profile Homepage #104
Allow me to offer a starting contribution for your reviews page, Dikiyoba:

The best thing about Episode 3 is that my role in it is greatly reduced.

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Slarty vs. Desk • Desk vs. Slarty • Timeline of Ermarian • G4 Strategy Central
Posts: 3560 | Registered: Wednesday, November 7 2001 08:00
Spiders of all ages... in General
Slarty
Raven v. Writing Desk
Member # 261
 written Tuesday, October 24 2006 06:49 Profile Homepage #16
For a breakdown from the spring demographics, see this topic.

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Slarty vs. Desk • Desk vs. Slarty • Timeline of Ermarian • G4 Strategy Central
Posts: 3560 | Registered: Wednesday, November 7 2001 08:00
Exile I, Orb of Thralni problem in The Exile Trilogy
Slarty
Raven v. Writing Desk
Member # 261
 written Tuesday, October 24 2006 06:29 Profile Homepage #5
I don't remember how E1 handles monster movement, but I don't think the gazer will sit there totally unmoving -- I imagine every so often it will move a square away. Moving to one of those other ledges should certainly get him to move.

Maybe it's impossible, but I bet if you fool with it you can manage to escape.

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Slarty vs. Desk • Desk vs. Slarty • Timeline of Ermarian • G4 Strategy Central
Posts: 3560 | Registered: Wednesday, November 7 2001 08:00
Future of Geneforge in Geneforge Series
Slarty
Raven v. Writing Desk
Member # 261
 written Tuesday, October 24 2006 06:27 Profile Homepage #10
"Geneforge, Episode 5: Attack of the Vlish." Oh, wait...

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Slarty vs. Desk • Desk vs. Slarty • Timeline of Ermarian • G4 Strategy Central
Posts: 3560 | Registered: Wednesday, November 7 2001 08:00
Delicious Geneforge in Geneforge 4: Rebellion
Slarty
Raven v. Writing Desk
Member # 261
 written Tuesday, October 24 2006 06:24 Profile Homepage #30
Neither was challoth. Go stuff yourself ;)

On a hot summer day, when you want to feel like you're safely in the shade -- drink Thahd Lemonade.

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Slarty vs. Desk • Desk vs. Slarty • Timeline of Ermarian • G4 Strategy Central
Posts: 3560 | Registered: Wednesday, November 7 2001 08:00
Good news! in Geneforge 4: Rebellion
Slarty
Raven v. Writing Desk
Member # 261
 written Tuesday, October 24 2006 06:08 Profile Homepage #76
It's been stated that it doesn't apply to item use (missiles), but I would assume ranged attacks (Fyora breath, Firebolt) are treated the same way as melee attacks -- they always have been.

I'm still excited about getting a Melee/Magic PC.

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Slarty vs. Desk • Desk vs. Slarty • Timeline of Ermarian • G4 Strategy Central
Posts: 3560 | Registered: Wednesday, November 7 2001 08:00
Avernum Favorites in Avernum 4
Slarty
Raven v. Writing Desk
Member # 261
 written Tuesday, October 24 2006 06:03 Profile Homepage #12
I've always liked Formello. In E1 it seemed less boring than all the other Six Cities, possibly because it wasn't just plunked down in the middle of a big cave. (Except Dharmon; Dharmon was interesting and had that great description.) All those little windy tunnels were fun to explore. It's the main city in Chapter one of E2, which remains one of the best-balanced and (imho) most fun parts of any Spiderweb game. It's also near Motrax, who appears to be very popular among people who took this poll, and Solberg's Tower as well. And it must get some cachet from being the first contact with Bon-Ihrno.

In A4, Formello and Silvar seem to have way more sane residents than the other cities, though that could just be because they had a kinder Shade.

Also, see Formello.

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Slarty vs. Desk • Desk vs. Slarty • Timeline of Ermarian • G4 Strategy Central
Posts: 3560 | Registered: Wednesday, November 7 2001 08:00
Census Slartificus in General
Slarty
Raven v. Writing Desk
Member # 261
 written Tuesday, October 24 2006 05:52 Profile Homepage #31
Dungeon Master II is a fantastic game but it wasn't released before 1990. Angband is also a fantastic game -- but it was first released in 1990.

Likewise, Pericles wasn't really a philosopher.

These answers took me a while.

Favorite adjective -- vertiginous
Favorite city founded before 0 -- Eridu
Favorite computer or video game released before 1990 -- Pool of Radiance (the plural is used in the third sequel, Pools of Darkness, but not the original). Partly for the engine, and partly for the story, which much like Exile II balances open-endedness with directed plot quite well.
Favorite historical war -- I had a very hard time coming up with an answer; after forming the question I realized I don't really like any wars. I ended up going with the American Civil War, but I'm uneasy about it.
Favorite method of execution -- drawing and quartering
Favorite philosopher other than Socrates -- Aristotle sucks, Plato rules!
Favorite poet -- Goethe, easily.
Favorite politican (living or dead) -- Vaclav Havel
Favorite scurrilous talk show host -- Ricki Lake, of course, but mostly for Hairspray
Favorite young children's book (i.e., a picture book) -- The Velveteen Rabbit

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Slarty vs. Desk • Desk vs. Slarty • Timeline of Ermarian • G4 Strategy Central
Posts: 3560 | Registered: Wednesday, November 7 2001 08:00
Wii vs. Playstation 3 in General
Slarty
Raven v. Writing Desk
Member # 261
 written Tuesday, October 24 2006 05:26 Profile Homepage #10
Tyro, you left off an "I'm happy with the next-to-next-to-last generation systems" option.

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Slarty vs. Desk • Desk vs. Slarty • Timeline of Ermarian • G4 Strategy Central
Posts: 3560 | Registered: Wednesday, November 7 2001 08:00
Emancipated! in General
Slarty
Raven v. Writing Desk
Member # 261
 written Tuesday, October 24 2006 05:22 Profile Homepage #8
My vote is No, a vehement No, and unlike Aran I would extend it all the way to prohibition.

I would be all in favor of requiring a 15-year-old who wanted an abortion to jump through hoops as far as talking to doctors and advisors of different opinions. But I stand resolutely behind the following two principles:

1) Adolescents need to have a modicum of control over their bodies; in the case of transfigurative experiences like pregnancy, which can easily be traumatic for mother *AND* child if unwanted by the mother, the adolescent NEEDS to have the final say. Pregnancy does many things to you physically and emotionally, and not all of them are good; it can be frightening and scarring. I'm not advocating abortions, but forcing things on an adolescent only makes things worse.

Let's not kid ourselves that "written notice 48 hours prior" means anything other than "requires parental permission" in practical terms.

2) Parents are not infallible, and 15-year-olds are not sponges. I'm all for limits to adolescent freedom and parental rights, but that does not extend to control of one's own body any more than it extends to control of one's own thoughts.

Frankly, I would be much more receptive to a law forbidding minors from getting abortions entirely. I wouldn't support that either -- but I can at least be sympathetic to abortion opponents, who often make reasonable arguments. I have no sympathy for those who would target vulnerable adolescents and strip them of their freedom in particular.

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Slarty vs. Desk • Desk vs. Slarty • Timeline of Ermarian • G4 Strategy Central
Posts: 3560 | Registered: Wednesday, November 7 2001 08:00
Census Slartificus in General
Slarty
Raven v. Writing Desk
Member # 261
 written Monday, October 23 2006 06:20 Profile Homepage #0
If you reply using the quote button and just get rid of the quote tags yourself, you will be able to keep the bold formatting for the questions without effort.

Favorite adjective --
Favorite city founded before 0 --
Favorite computer or video game released before 1990 --
Favorite historical war --
Favorite method of execution --
Favorite philosopher other than Socrates --
Favorite poet --
Favorite politican (living or dead) --
Favorite scurrilous talk show host --
Favorite young children's book (i.e., a picture book) --

"I know that you'll feel better when you send us in your letter and tell us the name of your... your favorite vegetable!"
Posts: 3560 | Registered: Wednesday, November 7 2001 08:00
Avernum Favorites in Avernum 4
Slarty
Raven v. Writing Desk
Member # 261
 written Monday, October 23 2006 05:55 Profile Homepage #0
Four questions about favorite characters and places.

Poll Information
This poll contains 4 question(s). 45 user(s) have voted.
You may not view the results of this poll without voting.

function launch_voter () { launch_window("http://www.ironycentral.com/cgi-bin/ubb/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=poll;d=vote;pollid=PqMlUYZTjeQh"); return true; } // end launch_voter function launch_viewer () { launch_window("http://www.ironycentral.com/cgi-bin/ubb/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=poll;d=view;pollid=PqMlUYZTjeQh"); return true; } // end launch_viewer function launch_window (url) { preview = window.open( url, "preview", "width=550,height=300,toolbar=no,location=no,directories=no,status,menubar=no,scrollbars,resizable,copyhistory=no" ); window.preview.focus(); return preview; } // end launch_window IMAGE(votenow.gif)     IMAGE(voteresults.gif)

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Slarty vs. Desk • Desk vs. Slarty • Timeline of Ermarian • G4 Strategy Central
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A4 contradictions in Avernum 4
Slarty
Raven v. Writing Desk
Member # 261
 written Monday, October 23 2006 05:27 Profile Homepage #16
Scratch that. You're right, Thuryl, it's in E3 as well. He is just so deranged there that he mangles his own name, so my quick search didn't find it.

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Slarty vs. Desk • Desk vs. Slarty • Timeline of Ermarian • G4 Strategy Central
Posts: 3560 | Registered: Wednesday, November 7 2001 08:00
A4 contradictions in Avernum 4
Slarty
Raven v. Writing Desk
Member # 261
 written Monday, October 23 2006 04:34 Profile Homepage #14
Elohi in E/A2: "Vyvnas-Bok has told us how the foul Empire tormented him, trying to elicit secrets of Vahnatai magical powers. If you had not arrived, soon he may have had to dissolve himself to keep from aiding them"

on the other hand, Vyvnas himself seems quite put together:

You stand in the presence of a Crystal Soul you returned. "Welcome, humans! I am glad at your presence. I am Vyvnas-Bok." Its voice is very friendly. It soothes you. The Crystal Soul sits there, waiting patiently for you to speak. You feel the warmth of its gratitude.

Jekknol on the other hand:

Glantris: "We thank you for returning the Crystal Soul of Jekknol-Bok to us."I2{He quivers with anger. "They tormented our ancestor's spirit! They told stories of invasions of our lands, of the death of our people! They nearly drove Jekknol mad!"

And this: "The book describes the experiments performed on the Crystal Soul Jekknol-Bok by the wizards here. They have been exploring its beliefs, its magical properties, and its ability to feel pain.They have also been trying to break the creature and bend it to their will, through a combination of magic and subterfuge. The journal writer is growing nervous, however. The Crystal Soul seems to be going mad"

and:

You replace Jekknol on its pedestal and wait for it to awaken. For a long while, nothing happens. Then you hear in your mind "Here? Where am I? What
is this place?"L2"Home? ... Who says that? ... You say I'm home? ... No, home is gone. Crushed and scattered. That is what ... no, this is another trick, my people are gone ... this is a trick. Another trick. I will not listen anymore."2And with that, there is silence. Sadly, though you have returned Jekknol-Bok to its people, its suffering seems to have not yet ended."

In A3, but *not* E3, Vyvnas seems to already have gone mad.

The best comparison may be the item descriptions in A2. Caffren projects "angry whispering of this being" and Jekknol projects "angry, vicious muttering of this tormented creature" while Vyvnas projects "soft, gentle whisper of the being". Honestly, Vyvnas could have been tortured enough to make him go crazy, but I think it's more likely they got mixed up at some point.

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Slarty vs. Desk • Desk vs. Slarty • Timeline of Ermarian • G4 Strategy Central
Posts: 3560 | Registered: Wednesday, November 7 2001 08:00
The long awaited Census topic! in General
Slarty
Raven v. Writing Desk
Member # 261
 written Monday, October 23 2006 04:21 Profile Homepage #39
quote:
Originally written by Lenny:

Hey! :o (Btw, is that smiley supposed to be yelling? cuz that's the most ridiculous face I've ever seen, and yes that includes my creepy aim smileys.) You try to come up with the questions. It's much harder than you think.
That *is* a ridiculous face. But as you may recall, I *did* do a census topic once. (With good questions.) Perhaps you're right and it's time for another.

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Slarty vs. Desk • Desk vs. Slarty • Timeline of Ermarian • G4 Strategy Central
Posts: 3560 | Registered: Wednesday, November 7 2001 08:00
Good news! in Geneforge 4: Rebellion
Slarty
Raven v. Writing Desk
Member # 261
 written Sunday, October 22 2006 20:35 Profile Homepage #66
Scout creations?

Has the engine changed enough to make those -- well -- existant, let alone useful?

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Slarty vs. Desk • Desk vs. Slarty • Timeline of Ermarian • G4 Strategy Central
Posts: 3560 | Registered: Wednesday, November 7 2001 08:00
What affects success of stealing an item? in The Exile Trilogy
Slarty
Raven v. Writing Desk
Member # 261
 written Sunday, October 22 2006 19:39 Profile Homepage #3
Nothing.

To steal without being seen, you can't have anyone in your line of sight.

Edit: You can obstruct lines of sight using the Fire Barrier spell, but you won't get that for a very long time. Alternately you can fool around with opening and closing doors and trying to get mobile characters out of the room, but if an immobile character is there, you're out of luck.

[ Sunday, October 22, 2006 19:43: Message edited by: Rotdhizon Calzone ]

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Slarty vs. Desk • Desk vs. Slarty • Timeline of Ermarian • G4 Strategy Central
Posts: 3560 | Registered: Wednesday, November 7 2001 08:00
The long awaited Census topic! in General
Slarty
Raven v. Writing Desk
Member # 261
 written Sunday, October 22 2006 19:37 Profile Homepage #30
And once again the oldbie/newbie debate emerges. The problem is trying to pigeonhole everyone into only two pigeonholes. Oldbie and newbie cease to be useful terms when you use them like that.

There are different levels of oldbiehood, so some might distinguish Drakey's from Alorael's, but for practical purposes and for almost everyone here there is essentially no difference. I might classify Kel and Aran as 'neo-oldbies'. I might call myself a 'pseudo-oldbie' since I am not really an oldbie at all, but camouflage well.

Newbiehood correlates to some degree with noobishness but mainly just with time, and there are levels of this as well. This label is more subjective than oldbie.

There are certainly users who don't fall into either category, and categorically. Dikiyoba would be a good example. I propose the term 'midbie'.

Really, the 'favorite user' questions are so stupid, so socially ranking and jealousy arousing. Stupid, stupid, stupid.

Anyway, I'll answer the interesting questions...

Current:
Book you are reading? Modern Psychotherapies
Game you are playing? Live-a-Live, Zelda 3, Magic Stones, Battle for Wesnoth

Fav:
Cartoon? The old X-Men series, the Super Mario Bros. Super Show, and of course Captain Planet
SW oldbie - Servant of Trinity
[i]SW midbie [/i] - Dikiyoba
SW newbie? - Arghhhhhhhhh (R.I.P.)

Have you ever?
Been in love? Yes, twice.

Random
First quote that pops into your head? "...while to my shame I see the imminent death of twenty thousand men, who for a fantasy and trick of fame go to their graves like beds, fight for a plot whereon the numbers cannot try the cause, which is not tomb enough, and continent, to hold the slain!"
Name a song that makes you sad - Ziggy Stardust
If you could remove a person from history, who would it be? I wouldn't.

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Slarty vs. Desk • Desk vs. Slarty • Timeline of Ermarian • G4 Strategy Central
Posts: 3560 | Registered: Wednesday, November 7 2001 08:00

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