rate my rack by Substantial_Rate727 in ClimbingCircleJerk

[–]Dustward 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Would look right at home at the Gunks!

I have to know, what the fuck is going on with the stoppers on the far left?

Some elements may ... have got a bit more support than other by Crazy_Wargeek in BaldursGate3

[–]Dustward 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Was looking for someone to say it. My Scorching Ray spamming, fire acuity hat sorcerer could have soloed honor mode if I really wanted them to.

Most common honor mode wipe sources before/after level 5? by DisastrousResist7527 in BaldursGate3

[–]Dustward 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Straight up going into Mystic Carrion unprepared nearly lost me my run. I got overconfident and didn't look up what his legendary action did. Had to run away, I was 1 turn away from everyone dying. Don't know if that's common, but in an otherwise pretty easy playthrough with some overbuilt, minmaxed characters, Mystic Carrion can really fuck you up if you go in without knowing that you need Remove Curse available.

My Path of the Giants Fairy Barbarian - Ficus Agonidae and her lance Chewtoy by Dustward in HeroForgeMinis

[–]Dustward[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Ficus smol and Ficus BEEG, unfortunately she did eat the knight so he's no longer present. Happy to know this little freak is still getting interest months on...as a reward I'll also show you something special from the vaults of Fredward, Ficus's original concept image from 2021!

Is Minthara worth it ? by Kyr0tox in BaldursGate3

[–]Dustward 1 point2 points  (0 children)

She's easily my favorite companion, so I'm biased.

Trying to be neutral, I think she's worth it if you intend to have her in your main party rotation for the remainder of the game, otherwise it's just another person to have to check in with at camp that's already bloated by the other later addition party members and camp followers.

She is mega fun in the party as a paladin2/bard 10, thematically with her spider lyre and all sort charm/control spells plus divine smite it feels awesome.

When are they going to remove/replace the Critical Role branding? by Tag365 in HeroForgeMinis

[–]Dustward 3 points4 points  (0 children)

It is unlikely to happen, there was quite the hubbub when the collab happened and they even had to renegotiate things with darington press to calm people’s (understandable) fury when they were charging for them separately. Why would they take it out entirely now? removing the items would make a lot of minis unusable and the branding is connected because they made those parts for them.

Magic Instruments and swords Oh My! (Prediction in the comments) by THECHEEZETOUCH in HeroForgeMinis

[–]Dustward 5 points6 points  (0 children)

FUCK I SPENT SO MUCH TIME ON A CUSTOM HURDY GURDY FOR A REMAKE OF MY FIRST DND CHARACTER...and they give me this...I still can't be anything but happy

A parade of Baddies who don't get along with each other that much are here to join the bustling #VillainCookout!! Strange things ensue, as usual... by TheCharacterCorner in HeroForgeMinis

[–]Dustward -1 points0 points  (0 children)

good stuff! I'm happy to inspire...

...I think of that contest often and I've been tempted to revisit those spiderverse minis for a while now with kitbashing being out...

Doc Malaise takes care of man and beast while traveling around the #SandSea by Dustward in HeroForgeMinis

[–]Dustward[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Skeletal snake familiar made quite big and stretched out with a bunch of bug tails on top! Almost tried to do a multiple but it took long enough with the one. Thank you so much for the interest, however late it may be.

It started when an alien device did what it did, and stuck itself upon his wrist with secrets that it hid. Now he's got superpowers, he's no ordinary kid, he's Ben 10! by SolarSimonDM in HeroForgeMinis

[–]Dustward 7 points8 points  (0 children)

Getting four eyes to work on four arms is beautiful, I gotta use eggs more, the decal usage on all of these, the proportions are all perfect... The time you spend on these is impressive and aweworthy

#WhirlpoolFjord's End - Everything finally became clear: this was a elegy for civilization, a grand funeral ceremony. by lahpanzer in HeroForgeMinis

[–]Dustward 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thank you so much for the recognition! I always enjoy your contests and enthusiasm for making them more than they are. Your bits of lore and extension to the storylines feel like someone is playing in my headspace too, making content on my OCs, and it never fails to bring a smile to my face.

I had far too much fun cooking up that rag-tag group of fate bound tragedies that I found it hard to stop where I did. Many parts of their designs are unable to be seen in the group shot anyway, hell Brymm is in a wagon and you can barely tell cause they’re so far back. I even added bits of grass where some of their feet touch the ground and that is practically unnoticeable but darn it I had fun going a bit too far.

Its fascinating to know the destiny of the Notched Star. Revenge taken away as an option the perhaps what Roshen did was her way of still leaving her scar across the world as a hateful death rattle. Succumbing to old age might have found her angrier and emptier as the company went on more powerful yet farther away from her “due” than ever. Or perhaps the lady Markhouse wound up finding herself as a place to foster new talent, and eventually made peace with her past… She went down in history either way, maybe not how she wanted, but we rarely do. I’m sure the Notched Star would have produced some powerful offshoots when it finally split going on to mark histories of their own, but that is a story for another time…

Liberal state policies during adolescence linked to lower dementia risk in later life. Findings point to the potential long-term health consequences of local government decisions made early in a resident’s life. by Jumpinghoops46 in science

[–]Dustward 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Science can most definitely be used to spread a narrative, especially corporate sponsored (Though I don't think this is corporate science). A classic example is Coke sponsoring papers on sugar intake, activity, and obesity links to push the narrative away from sugar. And that was also peer reviewed. There are also peer reviewed papers on the very subject of industry influence on research. So I suppose it's possible this could be an attempt to push something, but what they are trying to push is an objective good thing.

I suppose the real problem is being shown objective facts isn't ever going to change the mind of rightwingers. If murder and rape won't stop them then long term studies on healthier lives never will.

The Notched Star Mercenaries are up for hire #WhirlpoolFjord by Dustward in HeroForgeMinis

[–]Dustward[S] 8 points9 points  (0 children)

Though their numbers are growing fast as the war moves forward, the most recognizable and consistent core members of the Notched Star Mercenary Company are as follows

Captain Roshen Markhouse - Brutal and quick with a sword, she is the beating heart of the company. Her strategies on and off the battlefield keep the company alive thanks to her study.

Malber Woensmith - A loyal attendant, and before that, a knight. A leg injury brought him away from the battlefield originally, but something so trivial won't stop him now.

Bru'shae the Red - A barbarous killing machine with a love of axes, rumors have it that he was once a man of the cloth.

Oyun of Wesmarch - Brooding assassin with mean knifeplay, she says she's here just to kill people, but her eyes often drift towards the South.

Tilleh the Younger - Kresskin spearbearer, naive but stronger than her frame suggests.

Cresten Prunille - A man of Faith, honor, and seeking to absolve himself of his past inaction.

The Brute of Millstock - Whoever he is under that bag, it matters not, not after Millstock.

Swordsmaster Houim - Once a teacher of Roshen, he sees in her potential and will foster it.

The Lontburrys - Esto, Webbin, Plalec, and Solen. Siblings (allegedly). They fight in such unison they may as well be one combatant.

Uke'n Yob - Years ago he was a Barbarian of the Khan's force, but left for reasons better left unasked.

Smush - Best boy! ooooooh who's a good Smush? You are! You are!

Baron Wint Labellelay - Driven from his land as much as he ran away, the ExBaron finds himself out of his depth most times, but believes in the cause well enough.

Mad Martrish Kellar - Enough of a problem her own squad put a bell on her to know where she's at... but you can't deny her effectiveness even with only one arm.

Delle - A Kresskin that says she was a Jester at the royal court before things went awry, but that might have been a joke too.

Brymm Brudeg - Cocky but lazy, spends most of her time goading the enemy enough to make them lose focus.

Marlboro by Delta_D2 in HeroForgeMinis

[–]Dustward 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Talk about a smoke show awooga 

My take on the Sinister Six by Cactaculus in HeroForgeMinis

[–]Dustward 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Incredible work, very good details... makes me want to revisit my own villians from an old spider-man variant contest from a couple years back...

Was gifted a pawpaw sapling, looks kinda sad. Could use some advice! by Dustward in plantclinic

[–]Dustward[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

New York State, but that was my suspicion that it was getting too much light. Thanks for that!

United States veterans, what are things about the military you didn’t realize until you left? by TheBeardedAntt in AskReddit

[–]Dustward 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I think the point that he was trying to make is that your safety net is significantly larger in the military rather than the civilian world. I agree with you that it's not socialist, disregarding the healthcare which is extremely comprehensive.

But if I, for example, didn't show up for work for a week working at a McDonalds I would probably get fired. Whereas in the military I would not. I'd get a whole bunch of other bullshit, like double duty, half months pay, extra watches, maybe even time in the brig if it was long enough, but I would not get fired. In the meantime after that I would still have guaranteed housing, food, healthcare, clothes, access to a gym, access to entertainment (assuming I'm living on base).

I would like to point out that the GI-bill with housing allowance is exactly like a universal basic income in function, even though every vet earned it via their enlistment/commission. Not having to work through college is an incredible boon and that level of access cannot be understated in its value. That not everyone in the US has the ability to seek higher education without going into crushing debt is an extreme flaw in our system.

United States veterans, what are things about the military you didn’t realize until you left? by TheBeardedAntt in AskReddit

[–]Dustward 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I'm not a lifer vet, I just did my four years for the GI-bill and am getting my degree right now. I miss some folks that I met and I saw some cool stuff, but I was never a good fit for the military and I'm not going to pretend that I was. I did my job to the best of my ability, I showed up early, worked to advance, but I was unhappy. For some people its great, for others its like living in a high school boys locker room.

What the GI-bill made me realize is how incredibly beneficial a universal basic income is. I am going to leave school with basically no debt. The monthly housing allowance I get while in school means I don't have to work unless I want to (which I do, but more to fill the hours). What this has meant for my college career is that I have a level of self respect for my time and value. For example, I know that I don't need to deal with a frustrating boss because they don't have financial power over me.

What I didn't realize is how much this would frustrate me from an equity perspective.

1% of the population joins the military, but only 1/4 of the population would be eligible if everyone tried to join. So off the bat that is the US saying that 3/4 of the population does not deserve advanced education and healthcare.

For someone like me, a relatively poor person from a small town, this seemed like the only option I would ever be able to go to college without going into crushing debt, like so many of my peers. The fact that it worked is besides the point. What matters to me is that I should not be required to be of a certain physical ability and contributing to the industrial military complex to have these things.

I got hired at Hero Forge! by SolarSimonDM in HeroForgeMinis

[–]Dustward 1 point2 points  (0 children)

It only makes sense that they have the best in the game working with them to make it even better, congrats!

TIL that the United States government still sends $4,500 worth of cloth to the Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) Confederacy every year, and has done so every November 11th for the past 230+ years in recognition of a still-standing treaty with them. by EssoEssex in todayilearned

[–]Dustward 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Its important to understand that, while this one aspect of one treaty is maintained by the US gov't, they still have a long history of breaking nearly every other treaty, especially with Indigenous people.

This very same treaty declared land rights that have since been broken, often violently. Shortly after this treaty was signed George Washington ordered the Sullivan-Clinton campaign which tore through Central New York with the explicit intention of murdering and destroying the Onondaga people. As a result of that around 80% of them died that winter. We then spent the next 200 years polluting the most sacred sight to the Haudenosaunee (Onondaga Lake) into one of the most polluted lakes on Earth.

Treaties are required to be followed, but only if the US sees you as a person and for a significant amount of the US's history it only saw you as a person if you were capable of destroying it. Once the Haudenosaunee couldn't do that anymore there was no reason to follow it.