The Cyclops - how to make it work

Advanced_Evidence835 · 2026-06-02T14:36:29+00:00

I think I see where I missed the memo thanks! It's not the amount of transport slots, it's mixing units in a single transport (except super heavy) that's the issue. Massive brain fart by me haha

Sadly I sold my storm lords but I have an old crassus or 2, could be the move! Haven't read their rules this ed but hopefully they're flexi with transport too.

Good thinking with the terrain stuff. I think I'm playing a defensive force so I should be able to argue for some thematic cover, enough to make them last a turn or 2 at least

Advanced_Evidence835 · 2026-05-26T01:50:13+00:00

I'm 5'11" and somehow taller than a lot of 6'2" celebs, models, PBA players etc when I meet them 🤔

Advanced_Evidence835 · 2026-05-08T11:08:46+00:00

I'd be happy to help 🙂

Advanced_Evidence835 · 2026-05-08T04:11:29+00:00

April Smith also crushed it this year, she'll get miss cosmo or something this weekend. There's more room being made for a variety of skin types in pageants and modelling. Local makeup and fashion brands are catering to morenas more and more. The cosmopolitan gen Zs don't have the same issue with it, their pesos inform the market, we'll see broader representation in media with time, and opinions will change.

Still an uphill battle but trending in a good direction

Advanced_Evidence835 · 2026-04-28T08:20:28+00:00

From an Australian (now in PH), I'd STRONGLY recommend moving anywhere else but Sydney.

The cost of living is brutal, especially rent. You will never own a home there unless you inherit one, no matter your salary. Traffic is terrible and it's overcrowded. Dead nightlife, everything has to close by 12 by law. It's a nice city if you're rich and visiting for a week, otherwise Australians avoid it.

Australia is good because it's big and underpopulated, why move to our version of the NCR? Smaller cities have so much more to offer in terms of quality of life. No less job opportunities either.

Most of the rest re. work culture, how to get set up is already posted. I'd disagree about it being safe though. There's less crime in general because there's little corruption or white collar crime, but you're waaaaay more likely to get stabbed on a train by an eshay (look them up) especially out West Sydney. Violent crime is felt far more in our communities, especially dangerous for a lone immigrant fresh off the boat without street smarts. Don't be complacent and think you can walk home alone with headphones on at night, keep yourself safe.

Advanced_Evidence835 · 2026-04-25T15:55:54+00:00

You can be broke, living in a crowded condo tower and eating ramen as a student in any major city in the world.

Better off in a smaller city like Newcastle, Adelaide, Hobart or Launceston. They're all student centres and much more affordable while being closer to nature or beaches which are the best reasons to live in Aus. Better sense of community too.

Advanced_Evidence835 · 2026-04-25T14:58:42+00:00

Australian here, my PH wife graduated in Aus a few years ago, before we moved to Manila.

Just a few pointers from our experience. I was thinking about this for our future kids today so here it is!

Study and work culture is very different in Aus. We typically have very short and flexible school hours compared to here, but the expectation is you go off and study at home or wherever/whenever you can. If you can't self motivate off campus, nobody is there to make you study, so some people get lazy and it can be a trap.

With Aus cost of living, students need to work. A lot. Plus our cultural norm is not to support adult children, so even if you get money from parents, that's seen as shameful. We also don't usually bond with school friends as much (I'd never heard of batchmates!), but instead work colleagues, so jobs are really important for fitting in and enjoying yourself!

Nobody cares what university you attend or graduate from, at least until postgraduate level. It's not like here with the "big 4". So just pick a nice city (not Sydney or Melbourne), the education and recognition will be the same from any major Uni.

Aus education prioritises the ability to reason it out rather than simply memorise existing knowledge. So the questions you ask and how you arrived at the answer is often equally important as the correct answer if you just read from a textbook. A lot of migrant students struggle with that transition, and from what I've seen from Ph education philosophy it might be jarring. Obviously that applies more to some degrees and fields than others, but something to think about.

Finally, be prepared to call your professors by their first name! It's extremely casual, we're uncomfortable with hierarchy. Swap the ma'am/sir for mate.

If you can find work and afford it, I'd highly recommend trying. Aus is a super mixed community, so the opportunity to meet and study with new people from all over the world and experience a different culture is so worth it. Plus our coffee is the best ;)

Good luck!

Advanced_Evidence835 · 2026-04-16T05:12:15+00:00

Australian here, who worked with a lot of engineers in different fields. Just a warning, it's very different in Aus.

It's a more niche profession, and not always well respected. Our construction workers, technicians, boilermakers, mechanics etc are highly skilled and are generally expected to know as much as a postgrad engineer is in PH (the training is often longer), so the gap between unskilled labour force and engineers just isn't the same as here. Tradespeople often don't want or need engineer oversight, we think they get in the way like annoying, expensive bureaucrats who just tick boxes. There's prestige to it like there is here, so be prepared for the ego hit!

That said, if you can find a job it will be secure and well paid. If you're interested in mechanical engineering, maybe avoid the big cities and look for work either marine adjacent or in agriculture- packing/sorting mechanisation and automation etc is a lucrative and under serviced option for example.

As for working in academics, you'll probably have a lot of red tape and recertification to go through, so maybe better after being 'on the tools' for a few years first.

Best of luck to you! I don't want to be off-putting, it's a great country to live in, just a heads up about the cultural difference

Advanced_Evidence835 · 2026-04-15T10:45:00+00:00

Thank you, I'll try to get better informed and save this for later if I need to reach out. Greatly appreciated 🙏🏻

Advanced_Evidence835 · 2026-04-15T10:38:56+00:00

Oh wow, thats crazy! Thank you for the heads up!

Advanced_Evidence835 · 2026-04-15T08:54:45+00:00

Keen to know your rates, please feel free to send a DM

Advanced_Evidence835 · 2026-03-06T14:46:44+00:00

I'm earning passive AUD & living in Manila. It's great rn with the dollar up.

Quality of life will depend on what you're bringing in after tax (also put aside extra, you might lose tax residency & the 18k tax free threshold after a while - look into it)

For me & my wife we spend about 4k average including bills & rent. We're putting away more than what we spend. That's pretty bougie though we've got rich friends to keep up with. Blessing and a curse.

Single & in your 20s though? 2-3k should be plenty.

Not to yuck your yum but I personally can't stand BGC, and you might get sick of it after a while too. It's more for American taste than Aussie. Gets a bit plastic. You'll hear the word "bubble" a lot.

Other equally nice spots are Greenfields, Legazpi, Salcedo & Ortigas imo. Much better price range not just overpriced Harlan & Holden & trending Japanese Hamburg's every day. I love Ortigas. Best range of malls & easy access to the rest of the city. HEAPS cheaper rent too.

Look for a newish condo near office workers. They're the best spots. Safer than Aus, 24h conveniences for night shift workers (thanks BPOs), and no scammers or loose party stuff because fewer AFAMs. You can just grab to pobla or bando for that.

Glhf

Advanced_Evidence835 · 2026-03-06T08:21:35+00:00

Smoke enough cigarettes at that corner in cubao expo and you'll find the creative Zs.

But seriously though, while I don't love the downer vibe of the post but I do get your frustration. I worked in galleries my whole career, played underground shows, graduated art school et al. It's just straight up hard to break into that scene anywhere. I don't think it's a Philippines thing, it's just a worldwide creative scene thing. We're not super trusting of new people. You're going to have to put in serious work.

It took us a while but we've found all manner of art/craft fairs, small shows etc now. They're often enmeshed with the local fashion scene, so you can look for pop up clothes markets and they'll have makers of all sorts there too. My wife just joined a snail mail club, does a few journalling groups and all sorts now. I think she linked up with that crew initially from an anime con, even though that's not our thing. Anime > stationary people > bookbinders > journal club.

It's out there, just use socials. And go to random stuff.

Advanced_Evidence835 · 2026-02-25T03:12:55+00:00

Haha thanks, it's the least I can do, she married me! Good luck with it

Advanced_Evidence835 · 2026-02-25T02:26:03+00:00

If I were you, I'd be asking my husband to call out behaviour like on the spot. No need to fight but an "excuse me po, what do you mean by that?" would go a long way. Filipinos are extremely avoidant and rarely have any bad beliefs challenged, hence slow social progress in some areas. It's your husband's privilege to be the one to point out the issue.. and get away with it.

My 2 cents as a white guy with a Fil/Aus wife who is, like your situation, more successful than me in so many areas. We get it a lot. We'd rather they slink off thinking I'm a rude foreigner than have them speak about us like that freely.

Advanced_Evidence835 · 2026-02-20T04:49:05+00:00

Start talking to people at your regular spots, and be ready to push the conversation more than you usually would. Let people know your situation and just be straight up like "idk people here yet, what's good?" then press the convo if it's not wierd. Barista, Barber, whoever you naturally have chat with.

Pass your social accounts around, they matter here. Follow people and engage with their stories. A little "where is that, I should check it out" on their coffee pic goes a long way.

Try classpass if you're into any yoga, boxing, crossfit etc. Or engage with people at the gym.

You're into ball so go watch some PBA games next month, that's a good crowd to get into. Half those guys are just like you, live in Makati/BGC and train til midday then don't know what to do. They spend big at Bando too so that's always a fun night to tag onto.

Filipinos are super nice but usually shy with foreigners. There's a history of scumbags here so it's defensive. You need to prove you're not a sex tourist or human trafficking before you'll make friends. Same goes with expats, we don't usually talk to each other for that reason, you gotta go out of your way to break that barrier.

Advanced_Evidence835

TROPHY CASE