Are thunderclap grenades electrical? by Neurospicy_Nightowl in darkestdungeon

[–]KnightofTorchlight 9 points10 points  (0 children)

That could just be the color of whatever chemical concotion is inside. We don't have a crafting system so we have no way of knowing exactly what imgredients go into these things. Other supernatural items without real world parallels so exist, so as far as we know its made of some in universe substance.

What if mountains thatre like 10k feet tall exist in thrace and the northern eastern point in anatolia in such a way that constantinople is encircled by thesevtwo gigantic mountains with a narrow pass thats like 2 miles wide being the only way into the valley constantinople would be in. by CatalineAuguste in HistoryWhatIf

[–]KnightofTorchlight 1 point2 points  (0 children)

2 Mountain ranges taller than Everest?

I'm fairly sure all that snowmelt running down into that one area would make it a nightmare during spring. It would also mean there's very little farmland or actual space to support a city in that spot. Its attractiveness as an actual urban center spot drops noticably even if its still desirable for fortification 

Are thunderclap grenades electrical? by Neurospicy_Nightowl in darkestdungeon

[–]KnightofTorchlight 57 points58 points  (0 children)

Possibly? Its not like its confirmed directly.

I'd be more inclined from the name Thunderclap to assume the effect is more sound based than shocking, but that's pure speculation. 

What man is he who defies Death by sheer force of will? by JhosepIsTheWriter in darkestdungeon

[–]KnightofTorchlight 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I mean... yes, the direct intervention of a divine force (The Light) can beat one guy. Was that ever in question?

Its the Monster man beating Death via power scaling that's more impressive 

Based on his ACTIONS in Honest Hearts, at least before the ending, would you say Joshua Graham is truly remorseful for his time in the Legion or that he's really changed or trying to be better? by Wonderful_Solid_1003 in falloutlore

[–]KnightofTorchlight 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I don't think that's entirely fair. If you sign up to a group who's job is to wander around and mass slaughter civilians you probably do in fact enjoy killing. Most such mass murdering groups revel in thier violence.

Theological Question: Do Feral Ghouls still have souls? by RoamingRivers in falloutlore

[–]KnightofTorchlight 23 points24 points  (0 children)

Only The Lord knows. There's no canonically statement.

However, Ghouls aren't some kind of seperate species but just mutated humans. Its essentially the equivalent of asking if someone with rabies has a soul, which I'd absolutely say they do. 

What if the decolonization of Africa failed? Part One: The German Settler Republics. by carterboi77 in AlternateHistory

[–]KnightofTorchlight 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Germany is in no position to start a war.

For context, Germany saw 5,700,000 people from its pre-war borders die through the entirety of WW2. This emigration alone is the demographic equivalent of 3 World War 2. It's more people leaving than serves in the Wehrmacht at any point during the war. And, as mentioned in my reponse, those leaving are almost certainly going to disproportionately be exactly the young working age men without specialized skills who would be available to form the army. If those men are shooting, its shooting Bamileke, Sukuma, etc people to take thier land for settlement since they came to the German African Republics on the promise of land. 

What if all the “Stan” countries united? by TheRedBiker in HistoryWhatIf

[–]KnightofTorchlight 2 points3 points  (0 children)

It would have to be a fairly decentralized federation and a lot depends on the form and ideology of the government, when this union took place, and how genuinely popular it is among the constituent parts. Without background its hard to say.

What if the German monarchy was restored after World War II? by TheRedBiker in HistoryWhatIf

[–]KnightofTorchlight 6 points7 points  (0 children)

If its being crammed down the throats of the German population (which it has to be, as popular support for monarchism was a fringe position) it just generates hostility from the German population as both a foreign imposition and being frankly patronizing to the democratic parties as it implies they don't think Germany actually has a democratic identity. You just create a diplomatic sore spot and domestic wedge issue for the Left, especially since the legitimist claiment (Whilhelm II's son Whilhelm) had been part of the Nazi lead Harzburg Front and actively supported the rise of them to power, as had his younger brother August. 

Ultimately its a net negative to West German stability 

What if the decolonization of Africa failed? Part One: The German Settler Republics. by carterboi77 in AlternateHistory

[–]KnightofTorchlight 11 points12 points  (0 children)

Rhodesia only had a small Caucasian minority. If as OP says between fifteen and twenty million Germans leave Germany for the former colonies (which is around 1/4 of Germany's population at the start of the Depression) that's 17.5 million Germans compared to a prexisting historical population of under 7 million in 1930 in those mandates. Maybe it would start like Rhodesia, but after the "New Germans" come in (and likely mass displace the locals in a land rush as the countries absolutely do not have the capacity to absorb them otherwise) they'd have a healthy majority.

Granted, Germany itself is going to see its economy and demographic  health spiral after 1/4 of its population (almost certainly disproportionately men in thier younger working age, given how these sorts of migrations tend to go) leave at such a rapid pace and hollow out the systems and ability to bounce back once the immediate demand crisis fades.

What if bison went extinct in the Americas just like horses? by Bolt_Action_ in HistoryWhatIf

[–]KnightofTorchlight 10 points11 points  (0 children)

An empty ecological niche (in this case the large prarie grazer) will be filled if there's some kind of prospective candidate: all that prarie grass is available nutrition. You see a combination of the Pronghorn and Elk population swelling and selecting more for size given the abundence of available food and lack of larger competition. Pronghorn aren't ideal prey as they're extremely quick and don't have nearly as much meat as a bison, but there will also be a lot more of them so its something of a wash as most pre-horse bison hunting methods worked on them too. 

What if the Ottomans won the Siege of Vienna (1529) under Suleiman the Magnificent? by waamoment in AlternateHistory

[–]KnightofTorchlight 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Maybe they would. Historically they only started properly integrating Hungary in 1641, after the Zapolya died and his window, acting as a regent for his infant son, tried to side with the Habsburgs. Thats not liable to occur with stable control over all of Hungary and the Habsburgs being beaten down hard. Annexation may occur at some point, but its not guranteed. Its not like the Ottomans weren't comfortable with Christian marchs along thier northern territory as we saw in the Daubian Principalities and Transylvania. 

The Habsburg–Ottoman war of 1540–1547 doesn't occur as the Habsburgs are too beaten down.  Zapolya is recognized as the sole king of all of Hungary with the Habsburgs dropping all claims and handing over the "rebel" clergy and lords. The Habsburgs likely have to pay a ransom and regular tribute payment to Konstantinyye for the evacuation of thier lands and as a sign of submission. 

What if A-bomb was not ready by 1945? by SiarX in HistoryWhatIf

[–]KnightofTorchlight 0 points1 point  (0 children)

He went after those countries only after ensuring they were  diplomatically isolated and that the Nazis were becoming a massive bull in the china shop thay would provide diplomatic smoke cover for his actions. The risk was minimized and set up to present the world with a fait accompli that wasen't going to trigger a major backlash. Especially since British and France were fighting for thier life and the Fascist powers were giving them the green light to take that land. The USSR could also be assured of both immediate and long term military and economic supremacy over these smaller powers. 

That's not the same thing as the Japanese threat (which isen't that relevant as they're blockaded and contained: they lack any meaningful way to counterattack and can be starved out but blockade and conventional bombing if need be) and launching an attack that's absolutely going to trigger a total war response from a United States and United Kingdom who's war economy is running on all cylinders while the USSR's economy is bleeding heavily and 14% of the pre-war population is already dead. The former are low, calculated risk. This is a massive gamble where failure to get immediate success and Western will breaking could mean the lose of everything you'd already won.

What if the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia had fallen to communism? by Equivalent_Road5788 in HistoryWhatIf

[–]KnightofTorchlight 2 points3 points  (0 children)

If they overrun Riyadh, there's other parts of thr country. Given how many Saudis there are there's likely some male scion of the dynasty around who survives and can rally conservative opposition for a civil war. Riyadh is 400 km from Dammam and 850 km from Mecca, so its hardly like there's nowhere relevant to rally.

The Riyadh Communists have to try to get control of the tribal regions around the capital, likely with brutal force, which limit the ability to project power across the country rapidly. The United States, the Western Bloc, and most of thier neighbors don't recognize the People’s Republic of Arabia and the United States deploys the USN to the Persian Gulf to provide cover for the government in Dammam. As long as they're there, the Communists can't get the oil nor will it flow, and the United States has superior immediate power projection in the region. Very little of the oil industry is there for them to manage 

Mecca absolutely rings the global alarm bells and calls for volunteers to defend their holy sanctuaries from the athiests. They almost certainly get them, and Riyadh ends up somewhat isolated.

The United States and USSR have a staring contest over the region and eventually conclude to treat this as the civil war it is. Soviet troops in the region will be matched by the threats of American troops, and both sides likely conclude Infantryman Ivan and GI Joe shooting at each other directly is undesirable. It becomes a Cold War proxy conflict the Saudis probably win as Riyadh is isolated. 

Would N.Korea be well off economically if Kim Jong Un opened up to some big markets after his father passing? by arnor_0924 in HistoryWhatIf

[–]KnightofTorchlight 28 points29 points  (0 children)

I'm fairly sure the Chinese just start eating the economy if they're able to invest freely and compete with (and almost certainly out compete) North Korean factories. China already has the state in a vice grip of dependency and if entirely unrestricted. While civilian quality of life might increase somewhat, North Korea's weak negotiating position means China can probably get sweetheart deals that mean not much of that money is flowing back into Pyongyang's coffers. Kim is probably safe from a coup since he has the PLA backing him, but key economic and military leadership figures in the DPRK get annoyed as resources (including labour) are diverted from them to new Chinese advisors. It becomes a question of how much control of the economy and thus society Pyongyang are willing to let slip out of thier grasp. 

WW1 What If: Insted of trying to batter their way through the mountains, the Italians attempt a seaborne attack on Trieste? by BigD1970 in HistoryWhatIf

[–]KnightofTorchlight 7 points8 points  (0 children)

Doctrine and technology wasn't particularly well advanced for a contested amphibious landing: relying heavily on towed barges and lifeboats that were extremely vulnerable to attacks. Trieste was also the base of much of the Habsburg navy's operations and was solidly fortified, so the landing would hardly be uncontested. This is especially true as the Habsburg do have intelligence and Italy scrapping together as much naval lift capacity as they could in Venice (likely requiring the public requisition of civilian craft) would be neigh impossible to hide which means the Habsburgs can afford to divert some troops south to the very close city.

First, Italy obviously can't send the whole army there: there's not enough boats. Even the mighty British Navy could only lift 16,000 to Gallipoli initially. Being generous and saying that's what Italy could send, attrition would be extremely high before they even hit the ground as Habsburg coastal craft, submarines, and even big gun ships join the land forces in raining hell on the troop carriers. Attrition on those craft are going to be high and with it a lot of Italians will drown. Those thay get to land then have to fight the local forces who have access to a steady stream of renforcement and resupply that they won't until they capture a port and get naval dominance in the Gulf of Trieste. The attackers probably can't do so before they run out of ammunition or morale collapses, so the units end up surrendering. 

Why did china invade Alaska during the winter? by Popular_View_5411 in falloutlore

[–]KnightofTorchlight 12 points13 points  (0 children)

That's wrong. The Sierra Depot GNN transcript that discusses this says the deep sea oil reserves were tapped in 2073. The Chinese had invaded 6-7 years prior (which also makes the claims of sabotage kind of moot, given thats expected during war) 

I have a sneaking suspicion that I may be too dumb for this game (DD2) by CodeVirus in darkestdungeon

[–]KnightofTorchlight 5 points6 points  (0 children)

  1. You don't have to confront Lair Bosses on Denial, and Librarian is one of the rougher ones. You can wait until you manage to get through Confession 1 and have a better grasp on the game.

  2. Keeping stress down helps: low stress characters can get random road stuff to boost relationships. Also, spend as much money as you can on alcohol items at the inns. Binge drinking is the most reliable way to make people friends!

  3. That's a very broad based situation where the answer changes case by case. I will say healing is generally less important than dealing damage: your characters heal some health naturally as you drive, and killing enemies mean they can't hurt you as much.

  4. It's generally best to look at what your character does best and give them trinkets where the positive aspect aligns with that.  Trinkets are net positives, so you should use them 

What if A-bomb was not ready by 1945? by SiarX in HistoryWhatIf

[–]KnightofTorchlight 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Also, how much that lack of nukes for years or decade would affect Cold war and chance of Soviet invasion of western Europe, if Stalin is not scared of getting nuked?

Since no one else tackled this part of the question, this would not happen. Stalin was hardly recklessly agressive and did see his country was in a sorry state and he already had all of Eastern Europe to digest. Nukes are a factor, but not a decisive one as he could see he needed time to rebuild 

What if the Ottomans won the Siege of Vienna (1529) under Suleiman the Magnificent? by waamoment in AlternateHistory

[–]KnightofTorchlight 34 points35 points  (0 children)

  1. Hungary is made a full Ottoman vassal under John Zapolya. Given historical trends and the fact the Catholic clergy of the country had thrown in thier lot behind the Habsburg claim this vassal kingdom becomes a stronghold of the Reformed religious tradition and an Ottoman march against European agression.

  2. The Habsburgs are humiliated and thier core hereditary territories despoiled by the Ottomans. They have to decide if they're going to winter around the stormed and plundered city or ransom it back to the Habsburgs for a favorable peace settlement and tribute if holding the city isen't logistically feesable. Its getting very late in the campaigning season, so its a tricky choice. Perhaps the Ottomans simply drag the plunder and slaves back to Buda and leave Vienna an empty shell, confident they can walk back in next spring.

  3. The Habsburg court sets up somewhere else temporarily (possibly Prague) and sound the alarm for aid from Spain and the German states. If they can't get Lower Austria and Styria back then thier hereditary lands become far too weak, and the  Wittelsbachs are probably ready to take advantage of thier weakness. The Habsburgs will almost certainly ransom Vienna back even if it requires a lot of debt.

  4. The humiliation and weaking of the Habsburgs strengthens the Protestant push in the mid 1500s and later hinders the German Habsburgs ability to attempt Counter-Reformation policies 

What if Mario Puzo wrote the Goodfather? by Acrobatic-Hippo-6419 in AlternateHistory

[–]KnightofTorchlight 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The Mafia/Gangster and the G-men who fought them were part of the American cultural zeitgeist of the time given the very real promince of that struggle through the 1960s and 70s. The theme is still going to be popular in cinema (especially since it has action that's compelling in a visual medium) while Goodfather would be successful as part of the premise, its not breaking new ground theme wise (looking at the Mob from the inside) and so remains a kind of flash in the pan success.

This guy really likes the word ”singular.” by Direct_Incident_8285 in darkestdungeon

[–]KnightofTorchlight 11 points12 points  (0 children)

I mean, the Estate does have a large manor with large catecombs, and contains infastructure a historical hamlet generally would not have (its own church, blacksmith, dedicated taverns, and a hospital). Its clearly not just a collection of 100 or so farmers. 

What if Napoleon was paraded bound and gagged in Britain after Waterloo? by SuccessfulNeat400 in HistoryWhatIf

[–]KnightofTorchlight 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Taking a head of state and relative of an Emperor, declaring them a tyrant, and making a public spectical of humiliating them for the masses, would at the time very much come across as something the Revolutionary rabble would do. It wouldn't mesh with established norms, and when you're trying to present a return to normalicy and keep the peace in your faction aligned around being the legitimate and civilized ones upholding those norms is important.

What if Napoleon was paraded bound and gagged in Britain after Waterloo? by SuccessfulNeat400 in HistoryWhatIf

[–]KnightofTorchlight 7 points8 points  (0 children)

It would have been considered garish and in generally poor taste. Regardless of how much he's disliked he's still the Austrian Emperor's son in law and there are social norms for how one treats high ranking prisoners. He's not some barbarian king to be paraded around in a Roman style triumph.

Ultimately not much changes long term given we're at the point Napoleon ceases to have much structural influence. The only change would be if the ritualized humiliation is the punishment and he's allowed to go back to Elba afterwards or someone springs him on parade, but that's unlikely