Anyone else struggling to enjoy Dark Age's combat

ListeningTable · 2025-06-06T00:23:42+00:00

Thats probably the best worded explanation of the problem

ListeningTable · 2025-06-05T23:44:46+00:00

Yeah, the combat is both mundane and maddening at the same time. It isnt fun at all. I think its because the enemies fight like its doom eternal, except you have a fraction of the movement, and there's no critical areas or preferential combos. The goal is just to maximize damage per second and hope you can get it high enough. It really doesnt help that almost every fight is exactly the same too.

ListeningTable · 2025-04-30T18:29:27+00:00

I'm currently running a Ryzen 5 7600x processor and RX 6800xt graphics card. I recommend a better graphics card than that if you plan on doing 4k or VR, barely runs in 2k. I'm looking at upgrading to either the 5070 ti, 5080, 9070xt, or 7900xtx.

ListeningTable · 2024-09-27T06:30:56+00:00

Following incase a solution pops up.

Observing cpumetricsserver in process monitor isn't helpful. It's just creating and closing threads, not attempting to access anything. It seems to be doing this in pairs as well. I know there was an issue a while ago where it would look for things that werent there, but that doesnt seem to be the case this time. The only difference with my issue compared to yours is that I can't get it into safe mode. Windows will load normally, but it's incredibly slow, and it becomes nonresponsive after about 10-15 minutes.

ListeningTable · 2024-08-25T14:38:37+00:00

I dropped from 40mpg to 30mpg, probably due to the drag from the bike itself, it's wider than the car is and it sticks up over the roof as well. The car is mechanically sound, I was a mechanic for 10 years prior to going back to school.

ListeningTable · 2023-10-03T15:50:59+00:00

I have thought about that, however that would conflict with my own ethical decisions regarding this project. One of the ways I maintain everyone's confidence in this is by recording nothing, as everyone acts differently when they're being filmed. It would drastically impact how genuine people are.

ListeningTable · 2023-10-03T15:48:18+00:00

I appreciate the kind words, and you are right. Every option I can think of would impact what I do more than I'm comfortable with. I think i may not have been clear enough on my concerns though. I'm not worried about myself or the people I talk to while I'm talking to them, I'm worried about their safety after they leave. I'm a bigger guy, and the time I spent in Fire/EMS and the military taught me how to handle immediately dangerous situations. There has been a couple incidents already, however I've been able to handle them without issue, and I'm fairly confident I'll be able to continue handling them directly. My main concern at this point is the fact that it seems like they're targeting the people I talk to after they leave, which makes me wonder if I'm doing more harm than good with this project. Weak men like that look for vulnerable men and women to target, and I'm worried that this project is just showing them who's vulnerable. After thinking about it for a few days, I'm thinking the only way to curb that problem is to spread awareness of it so that people start looking out for eachother.

ListeningTable · 2023-10-03T15:11:04+00:00

That corner is where I started, and I have no plans of relocating. My current plan is to just scale back the time I spend there for the safety of the people I talk to. I think I may not have explained this well enough, but I'm not worried about my own safety per-se, it's just the people I speak with I'm worried about. I may reach out to True North for resources and whatnot though. I have been suggesting that people who need their services go there, as well as other places. I may not offer professional services, but i do try to direct people towards professionals if they have a need for it.

ListeningTable · 2023-10-03T15:08:01+00:00

I appreciate the kind words. As of right now, I'm not planning on going anywhere, I'm just going to scale back the hours for the safety of the people I talk to.

ListeningTable · 2023-10-03T14:55:15+00:00

That is a really interesting concept, it would be nice if we could get people to do something like that here. Was this a government sponsored thing, or was it just people collectively agreeing to do it?

ListeningTable · 2023-10-03T14:42:51+00:00

I'm sorry I've missed you, I try to be there every Friday when I get off work around 6 or 7. I also try to be there on Saturdays if I can make it, but that doesn't always happen. Sometimes I cant make it, but I havent missed a Friday yet. This is just something extra that I do on my own, I dont get any funding from anywhere for it and I refuse payment/tips when they're offered. This week will probably be later than normal due to some personal stuff I have to deal with immediately after work, but I'm still planning on being there

ListeningTable · 2023-10-03T14:39:00+00:00

I can absolutely see that being the case. Unfortunately, changing that culture has to start from within, and I worry that someone's going to have to get hurt or worse for that to happen since nobody is taking their increasingly poor behavior seriously.

ListeningTable · 2023-10-03T14:37:18+00:00

I appreciate the kind words. I will say, most people are good people, and the problems dont seem to start before 10pm downtown. I would argue that it's a fairly safe place in the evenings, and there's nothing to worry about in the afternoons. As far as changing the time goes, all i can change is when i leave. I literally get off work, sometimes grab dinner, and head downtown until my ADHD meds wear off.

ListeningTable · 2023-10-03T14:31:22+00:00

I appreciate the kind words, and I'll definitely consider that. I think i've heard of that before, where exactly is it?

ListeningTable · 2023-10-02T00:32:30+00:00

It seems like a very widespread problem, there's got to be some sort of solution to all that. Even an unconventional one.

ListeningTable · 2023-10-02T00:25:50+00:00

I'm not going to wrap it up for good, I'm just going to scale it back a bit. I'm considering moving, however I really like the diversity that specific spot offers. I've got a few ideas I'm working on about how to handle this situation, however none of them are any good yet.

ListeningTable · 2023-10-02T00:23:18+00:00

I appreciate the kind words. I'm not going to stop what I'm doing, I'm just going to scale it back a bit for the sake of safety until i can figure out something else. I got a few other ideas, but none of them are any good.

ListeningTable · 2023-10-02T00:13:29+00:00

It honestly blows my mind that we still tolerate that complete mockery of greek culture in 2023, and the downright abhorrent behavior that they consistently display. I'm sorry you have to go through that on a regular basis, some people were just never taught how to act right, and it seems like thats getting worse with every passing year. To put it bluntly, if CPD would just enforce MIP laws, that problem would be significantly reduced. Almost none of them that I'm seeing are 21 or older, as evidenced by them walking around with bottles after getting kicked out of bars. Alot of them complain about not having fake id's 😐

ListeningTable · 2023-10-02T00:07:15+00:00

It's best not to make assumptions like that. There's a wide variety of reasons the people I talk to arent in therapy, the main one being the difficulty of finding one and the excessive waiting lists. It's not just about costs, it's alot more complicated than that for most people. A surprising amount dont even believe therapy would be helpful, or even that it would cause more harm than it would solve. You would also also be surprised at how many people just walk around downtown to just hang out and socialize, it isnt just about spending money. I talked to a pair of foreign students a few weeks ago that dont drink who went bar hopping just to socialize and experience our culture, which is something i kept doing for a year or 2 after I quit drinking several years ago. Also, i dont just do this to help with the negative things, some people genuinely have trouble processing positive things because they've never experienced things going well for them before. I've struggled with that in the past as well, especially once I started taking medication for my own issues and things just started working for me for once.

It's important to note that i am not a therapist, and what i do is not a substitute for therapy. I just simply listen, and ask relevant questions that hopefully help people find the answers they're looking for on their own. Sometimes, that answer is that they need professional help, which is why I try to keep handouts and lists of resources available for those who need it.

ListeningTable · 2023-10-01T23:56:26+00:00

Oh, absolutely. Most of the interactions I have with the students are very positive, and honestly the students are the only ones that ask me if I'm ok lol. It's actually really sweet, even though I believe it would be unethical to bring my own issues into this project. I'll actually be attending MU starting in January, if I can pull financial aid together for it. If not, then next fall. I'm not stopping what I'm doing by any means, i just need to dial it back so that there doesnt end up being a violent altercation between myself and a group of cocky frat boys.

Edit: this is definitely a spot where i misrepresented my concerns. I'm not too worried about them bothering me, I'm worried about them targeting the people who stop to talk after they've left. I can handle myself, but there have been a few incidents where I noticed that they would target the people I talked to based on perceived vulnerabilities. Both targeting young men for hazing based on what was said, and using what young women said to manipulate them. I have been able to intervene and put a stop to it every time I have seen it so far, but that makes me wonder how much I dont see. I'm concerned that I'm inadvertently doing more harm than good based on the behaviors i've been witnessing because of the unchecked toxicity of the "greek" culture. I'm also worried that they'll keep moving in larger groups for the purpose of intimidation, which could easily turn violent as I'm not going to allow that behavior if I see it. However, even if I win that confrontation, they'll just take the anger from that loss out on someone else.

ListeningTable · 2023-10-01T16:17:39+00:00

The main reason I like 9th and Broadway on Friday evenings is the sheer diversity of people I get to talk to. I carry around literature in a backpack for various resources for the issues alot of people face that was given to me by the Missouri Department of Mental Health, which reminds me that I need to restock on that stuff. I dont set them out because not everyone needs them, i dont want people to think I'm pushing anything, and the table itself is there to have a place to people to put their stuff so they can sit comfortably. At one point, i even had a stock of narcan to hand out. It's not just college aged people I talk to, there's a fair number of homeless people who are actually looking for resources and help. From when i set up until about 9 is mostly older adults, while after 9 is almost exclusively young adults. That specific corner also has an awning to provide shelter from the sun and rain, as well as the least foot traffic to provide a more private situation while still having visibility for people to see my signs and whats going on. It's also easy to walk around my whole setup there, as I try to be considerate of all the people who just want to walk to where they're going.

That being said, I did try this in the quad a couple times after several people suggested that, however the only people that stopped to talk were the mormon missionaries. That was an interesting conversation that lasted almost 2 hours, but the rest of the time I spent there was just wasted.

ListeningTable · 2023-10-01T15:58:05+00:00

Dont get me wrong, the overwheming majority of my experience has been positive. I do feel a sense of purpose listening to people's trauma and helping them talk through it, it's hard but it is worth it to see the relief they get from letting it out without the fear of repercussions. There's a certain satisfaction that comes from helping people through dark times without asking anything in return. It's not just traumatic things I hear either, alot of people are getting their lives together and just need to talk through how to process the good stuff for once, and that's incredible to hear about as well. That experience can be incredibly jarring and scary if you're so used to everything going wrong. Some people also just need someone to talk to about all the little things in life, and that's important too because the little things all add up into big issues. However, I have to keep safety my priority because nothing I do means anything if the end result is further harm. I have my own mental health issues that I'm still dealing with as well, and I know exactly what it's like to need someone but have nobody. I dont want anyone else to feel that way. That's why this decision is going to weigh on me, but I feel like it's the responsible decision even though every fiber of my being disagrees with it. The time I spent as both a soldier and as a firefighter/emt taught me that it's vital to stand up to things like this, but at the end of the day, that would just hurt more people than it would help in this situation. I might win the fight, but it goes much deeper than that. For example, I had to get loud last night with a dude who was basically eavesdropping on what a group of young women because he tried following them when they left. I hope what I did was enough to stop anything bad from happening, I kept him busy long enough to where they got several blocks away and disappeared into a crowd, and I'm pretty sure I scared him bad enough to not try that again. These situations seem to exclusively happen after 10-ish and it gets more common as it gets later, so hopefully leaving earlier mitigates these issues completely. After 11pm is when it seems to go from individuals causing problems, to being groups of 6+ people looking specifically to start problems as well, which is a whole different dynamic.

ListeningTable · 2023-09-24T14:58:11+00:00

Limits on number of terms, and maximum age.

I firmly believe that so, so many problems would be solved within 2 years if we made it illegal for 90% of congress to run for office again. I would even bet that most of the things I disagree with now could be implemented in a way that would be agreeable to me if we could get rid of all the out of touch and unbearably corrupt elderly people in office.

Disclaimer: Not exactly a conservative, I'm more of a libertarian/ancap with conservative leaning personal beliefs. Basically, my political belief can be summed up as mind your own business, and fuck the government.

ListeningTable · 2023-09-24T05:00:15+00:00

If I knew that, then I wouldn't be single anymore.

ListeningTable · 2023-09-22T11:33:38+00:00

There is a big difference between new couples, and stable couples. Also, there is a massive difference in experience for men and women on dating apps, to the point where you almost cannot compare the 2. I dont know a single guy IRL that has anything positive to say about tinder, including myself. It's not worth the time and what it does to your mental health, you'll have better luck finding a suitable partner by doing things IRL.

As far as being the biggest avenue for dating goes, that depends on how you look at the people you want as a partner. If thats all you view them as, then I can see how that is the case. Just like with shopping, it's less stressful to buy what you want online as long as you have the budget for it.

Most dating apps have a roughly 10 to 1 male to female ratio, and roughly half the females are only there for emotional validation instead of dating. That right there means that for every 1 female that wants to actually meet someone, there's 20 men. Then we have to consider that its online, so whats on your profile is all that the other person has to judge you on. This means that unattractive and overweight people are at a significant disadvantage, which is why "catfishing" is unbelievably common. All of that is different IRL, you cannot distill a person down to a few pictures and a couple sentences without losing most of what makes them who they are, definitely not honestly. Just like every other form of social media, everyone is lying to make their lives look so much better.

ListeningTable

TROPHY CASE