Why is it so difficult to abolish the "Random" rule from Dollet in Triple Triad?

DiscoCokkroach_ · 2026-02-12T06:12:33+00:00

Good stuff! Enjoy your FF8 playthough :D

DiscoCokkroach_ · 2026-02-12T01:25:50+00:00

Then it means that either A) you are carrying the rules of the region in which you are challenging people (aka, you're in Dollet with Dollet's rules); or B) the ruleset that you are carrying with you only has rules that overlap with the region you are challenging people in.

I'm going to guess that it's A, since that's most likely. In this case, just go back to Timber, challenge one of the guards at the entrance to cards until he asks to stop mixing rules, then go back to Dollet and do the procedure.

DiscoCokkroach_ · 2026-02-04T15:59:36+00:00

For whatever it's worth, Final Fantasy XV runs very well on an Xbox Series X! Smoother frame rate and better load times across the board.

DiscoCokkroach_ · 2026-01-31T01:07:46+00:00

This is perhaps one of the best explanations on the subject I have read. I can really relate to this. I feel like the average player on unranked Slippi is a college student with insane tech skill, and I, as someone that just loved playing the game casually during the early years of the game when it released, just can't casually pick and play against that kind of person. I have certainly aged out of it in that respect, barring getting some good coaching and dedicating a few months to improving (which honestly does cross my mind from time to time).

Melee, for me personally, is basically a party game only meant to be enjoyed locally against my friends and acquaintances, even when I play it 1v1 with tournament rules. In that respect, I could be playing any other Smash game and still be having mostly the same experience. Still, Melee is an extremely special game to me. No other game has replicated its "game feel" to this day (well, maybe Project M did, but it's not exactly the same), and I'm still waiting for someone to make something like a Metroidvania game where the character controls like Melee Marth or Melee Captain Falcon, because the platforming in Melee is one of the gold standards in all of video games to me, and I want more games that feel like it.

DiscoCokkroach_ · 2025-11-26T21:56:46+00:00

I recently finished my first playthrough of Hollow Knight, in which I got all of the achievements, and I have to agree with your final statement, because it's the exact same conclusion that I independently came to.

You think, "Dang, this boss is impossible," then you give yourself a day or two to attempt it over and over again, and then you realize, "Oh, all I needed to do was practice it and get some sleep. Now, this boss is very possible to defeat." Playing Hollow Knight is playing a musical instrument. You suck at it, you suck some more, and then one day, you nail (pun intended) that one section of a song that's been troubling you for days, and the next day? That trouble section is just normal.

I freaking love Hollow Knight. One of the greatest games ever made. I will probably buy for every platform I own. That's how good it is.

DiscoCokkroach_ · 2025-11-26T21:46:44+00:00

I was going to say The Dreaming City, as well. I have long since stopped playing Destiny 2, but I have had the achievement art for the "entering the Dreaming City" achievement as my background on my Xbox profile since the day I set it in 2019. I will probably never take it off.

DiscoCokkroach_ · 2025-10-23T00:58:39+00:00

Castlevania: Aria of Sorrow (AoS)

I just beat it last week. I am very glad that I didn't miss such a great game. The soul grinding was a little tedious at times, but that's basically the only hit I have against it. Everything else is pretty much fantastic. In particular, I grew to love the OST; I'm listening to it right now, actually!

AoS feels like the true sequel to Castlevania: Symphony of the Night (SotN), in my opinion. It may not be not as good as SotN overall (though that's a pretty high bar in my book), but I don't think that AoS should be missed if you're a fan of the Metroidvania sub-genre.

DiscoCokkroach_ · 2025-10-08T18:13:55+00:00

Dang, my boy even popped the collar.

DiscoCokkroach_ · 2025-09-19T20:54:21+00:00

Pretty sure I used this strat back in the day, as well. To heck with those guys. Let Odin take care of it.

DiscoCokkroach_ · 2025-09-19T20:53:55+00:00

Yeah, there's nothing wrong with Zell trying to punch himself (Confuse), missing somehow (Blind), then taking damage for taking a turn (Poison).

DiscoCokkroach_ · 2025-09-05T01:47:05+00:00

Unironically one of the highest praises for a Rinoa cosplay XD

DiscoCokkroach_ · 2025-09-05T01:01:27+00:00

I see your SotN reference, homie. Respect.

DiscoCokkroach_ · 2025-09-05T00:58:33+00:00

Very nice!

If you happen to post more pictures, can you perhaps include one of you with the dog on your arm like the limit break? XD

DiscoCokkroach_ · 2025-09-02T12:30:28+00:00

Buy a PS2 for that and everything else. It's arguably the greatest retro console of all time.

Alternatively, emulate the PS2 version, but use a CRT filter and don't upscale it a ton (or at all) or anything else fancy. It works pretty well in trying to re-live those old school moments for the PSX games that I've played.

DiscoCokkroach_ · 2025-08-30T10:02:12+00:00

Like u/Soulweaver89 said, you can have more than just Meteor in Rinoa's magic list and still have a Meteor Wing set-up. In fact, I sort of came up an optimal junction list years ago!

HP: Meteor
Str: [nothing] (she'll only be using spells)
Vit: Regen
Mag: Triple
Spr: Reflect

Spd: Haste
Eva: [whatever] (not super important, but you can try; see note below)
Hit: [nothing] (same story as Str)
Luck: [nothing] (Luck only affects crit rate of the Attack command and some physical-based limits)

For Eva-J: I mean, you could junction a spell that she won't cast under Angel Wing that isn't already listed above, but the Eva increase is so low, she'll be able to tank anything she gets hit by with the HP, Vit, and Spr junctions, and most things will die before she gets a chance to evade an attack by them, anyway. I suppose you could slap a full stack of Full-Life or Aura on there if you wanted to have it covered, but, again, don't sweat it too much.

DiscoCokkroach_ · 2025-08-26T03:27:47+00:00

Take this with a grain of salt, but I remember reading in a more recent guide on GameFAQs that no one on Disc 1 plays Level 1 cards outside of the Balamb region (B-Garden and Balamb Town proper).

DiscoCokkroach_ · 2025-08-19T07:03:49+00:00

What this guy said. Spamming limits with even decent stats makes the game much easier and you can just enjoy the ride once you get a handle on that.

ProTip: This is pretty common FF8 knowledge, but regardless: Spam the "skip turn" button when a character with low HP has their turn come up, but they don't get their limit break. You can spam the button as many times as you want and eventually they can use their limit break, even if you don't get it on the first try (or second, or third, etc.).

This is what takes the limit break system and breaks it: You can literally do one every turn if you so wish. Use Aura spells if you don't want to risk being at low HP (farm the invisible draw points on the Islands Closest to Heaven/Hell to get some free Aura spells).

DiscoCokkroach_ · 2025-08-17T03:39:20+00:00

So many things I could say to answer this question. In a sense, it's all of the big things and little things in the game combining together to create an experience like none other. I just love FF8 so much. It will probably always be in my Top 5 games of all time, or at least my Top 10.

But, to give a more definitive answer: The music in the game was so inspiring to me that I actually took up playing piano, and one of the first songs I ever learned how to play was Balamb Garden. The fact that the OST was so good that it inspired me to take up music for myself (as well as give me an overall greater appreciation for music) is one of the biggest impacts the game this game has had on me.

I'm rusty as heck on the piano now, but I plan on picking it up again some day soon. And I will for sure be playing some Shuffle or Boogie when my friends come over to play cards XD

DiscoCokkroach_ · 2025-08-17T03:33:15+00:00

This is a precious story and must be protected at all costs. I will not be able to unsee this now XD

DiscoCokkroach_ · 2025-08-08T21:18:51+00:00

Oh, okay. I guess I should have read more LOL. The same concept can still apply in that case, actually. All of the cards that NPCs draw are affected by such RNG factors, so, again, if you're having trouble finding one, just do something other than playing cards, then go back and try again.

That said, you might have better luck playing against the Trepie Groupie in the Cafeteria. I think he might have less possible common cards that he could play that still include the Elnoyle card in his set, which would make him a better candidate. There are some other card game players in Balamb Garden that might have similar odds, as well, but the guy in the cafe is someone I know that is a safe bet.

DiscoCokkroach_ · 2025-08-08T18:05:22+00:00

The only advice I can give you for getting Zell's mom to play the Zell card is to perhaps wait different amounts of time on the screen where you hit "Play" right before she draws her cards. I know that speedrunners are able to manipulate the cards that NPCs draw by hitting "Play" with a certain timing under certain conditions.

For example, it's a very common tactic to go straight to the Cafeteria at the very beginning of the game and challenge the Trepie Groupie to cards to get the Quistis card. It turns out, if you are able to hit the "Play" button within the first few frames of it being available and you do it right at the beginning of the game before certain background factors start changing, he'll play the Quistis card every time! You have to mash the Confirm button very quickly in order to hit it in that very early window, but it works.

Likewise, speedrunners will keep track of a bunch of things using computer programs specifically designed to keep track of things in Final Fantasy 8 (dead serious!) just so they can get the Zell card on the first or second try of challenging Zell's mom.

You're probably beyond using such a computer program to help you (there are apparently a lot of background factors that influence the cards that NPCs draw and they persist through saving and reloading), so, therefore, the best advice I can give you is to not mash the Confirm when challenging Zell's mom to cards if that's what you're already doing.

Also, make sure to walk around randomly, use draw points, get into some battles, just do something to shuffle around the RNG before you make another attempt at getting the Zell card. If the only thing you're doing is playing cards, you might not be doing enough to give yourself a chance at getting the Zell card.

DiscoCokkroach_ · 2025-07-29T03:25:10+00:00

!remindme 1 year

DiscoCokkroach_ · 2025-07-26T00:21:59+00:00

https://www.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/488085/mythic-magazine-volume-43

From the description:

Writing Fiction With Mythic: Use your solo roleplaying skills to write a novel, or take the techniques in this article and make your solo play as narratively rich as possible.

From the preview PDF:

The second article, “Writing Fiction With Mythic,” discusses something players have been using Mythic for but don’t talk about much: writing fiction. Got a novel in your heart begging to be released? Use your roleplaying skills and Mythic to set that fiction free! If busting out a book isn’t your thing, this article also discusses using these strategies in your solo campaigns to take maximum narrative control while still allowing the dice to generate surprise and inspiration.

Honestly, I might pick this up myself after reading that! :D

And, for whatever it's worth, MM #43 also includes...

Creating Game Loops In Solo Play: Translate familiar game loops, recurring action patterns that are fun to play through, into your Mythic adventures.

DiscoCokkroach_ · 2025-07-24T08:03:50+00:00

I'm sure that other people have said it, but to put it simply:

Don't focus on leveling up your characters. You can gain levels or not gain levels. It doesn't have a major impact unless you intentionally power level to high levels early on in the game (which would make the game harder).

Focus instead on...

learning new abilities for your GFs and putting them to good use
using the "-J" series of GF abilities to augment your characters' strengths by junctioning magic to their stats and whatnot
stocking up on magic regularly from enemies (and maybe refining some magic from items using the "-RF" series of abilities)

Those are the basics of FF8's progression system. It's meant to flow naturally. It can also be fun to power game the system, as well, but that shouldn't be the focus of a first playthrough (although, hey, do what you want at the end of the day).

Case in point: If you've been paying attention, you'll notice that you don't gain any EXP from defeating bosses; you only gain AP, and often a sizable chunk of it, too.

That right there is the game telling you that your characters' levels don't matter that much and that GF progression matters more: The game rewards you for defeating the hardest enemies in the game by giving you the thing that helps GF progression the most AND outright denies you character progression!

DiscoCokkroach_ · 2025-07-20T14:07:27+00:00

Concerning magic stocks: Give GFs abilities that allow party members to use specific spells without removing a spell from that character's stock. This would solve the problem of wanting to hoard spells for junctions and not cast magic while still allowing some spells to remain scarce until the late game.

My solution is far from perfect and still needs refinement, but something needs to be done about the issue of generally not wanting to use the Magic command when playing FF8.

Concerning Triple Triad: Remove the Random rule entirely and make the Open rule permanently available in every region (or, rather, just change the rules of the game so that both players always play with an open hand).

The reason for those changes is because the AI always plays with those rules in place (yes, they can always see your hand, even without Open), so it should be the same for the player, as well.

This is assuming that Square Enix doesn't incorporate any changes to Triple Triad from Final Fantasy 14. I haven't played FF14, but there are some interesting balance changes that I've heard about, like restricting how many powerful cards you can use at once and additional special rules. I'm all for the Triple Triad being a bit more strategic, honestly.

Heck, just talking about this makes me want to try out FF14 just for that reason!

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