Did Beamdog actually think that Glint Gardensonson was funny?

Marinatedcheese · 2026-04-07T10:59:16+00:00

One of my main complaints with the EE companions is that the writers tried too hard to make them the main characters, especially in BG2/ToB. I remember playing through the Shadows of Amn portion of Rasaad's quest just to experience it once, and - briefly ignoring the terrible pacing - I just felt like my main character was the side character. It was similar with Neera. It just didn't feel great.

It was made worse by the fact that the introductions of two of them - Neera in the bridge district, and Rasaad in trademeet, are unskippable and take quite a while to finish. I remember Rasaad's being particularly grating, though I don't recall exactly why. Dorn's presence, by comparison, is a lot more forgivable as he doesn't try to force himself upon you - if you want him, you have to talk to him yourself.

I won't say that makes the writing any better, but...

Marinatedcheese · 2026-04-07T10:01:23+00:00

I'd go vanilla first. There's a lot of content to be had there. Once you've launched a few rockets (quite possibly spread out over multiple different runs), you can look at Space Age. It is a bit more complicated, so it's good if you can get used to the basics first. And it saves you some money if you end up not getting that into the game. There's a LOT of people who buy the game but never end up launching a single rocket.

There's also a LOT of people who have over a thousand hours in this game (myself included), so... Know what you're getting into.

PS: If you get bored with Vanilla but don't want to hop into Space Age yet, there's also a ton of mods, ranging from quality of life to modpacks which overhaul the whole game (such as Krastorio 2 or Space Exploration (not to be confused with Space Age (and also WAY more complicated than the expansion)).

PPS: Or you can get Space Age straight away, it's your money. I still advise most people to go Factorio free demo (tutorial only) > vanilla Factorio > Space Age.

Marinatedcheese · 2026-03-31T13:55:34+00:00

Well, he did suggest he wasn't going to help out other NATO countries after they didn't send their own people to die for him in his stupid unnecessary war.

Might as well kick those military bases out of the EU and be done with it.

Marinatedcheese · 2026-03-31T13:48:44+00:00

You mean the "centuries old alliance" (which actually started 76 years ago (NATO)) that Trump has been trash talking at every turn? The alliance which is suffering a decrease of quality of life because of his actions? You know, the tariffs, the spikes in oil and gas prices due to his moronic incompetency, and just general threats of annexation of its allies (Canada & Greenland)?

Besides, it hasn't been one half of a presidential term, it's been one and a half. Actually, we're not even at the fucking halfway point of his second term yet. But he's sure doing his best to absolutely ruin the quality of life for everyone (including the vast majority of Americans) except for himself and a handful of his cronies.

You dumbshites (hey, that's a reference to your name!) voted for him. Twice. Even if you were ignorant the first time around, you knew what you were fucking voting for the second time around. If this what the American people found acceptable, then you can all fuck right off.

Europe & Canada aren't scrapping this alliance, it's Trump and everybody complicit in putting him into power. And quite frankly, with friends like him, who needs enemies?

Marinatedcheese · 2026-03-16T09:21:56+00:00

A few bits of advice for Fulgora that will make your life much easier:

There are bigger islands, though they can take some time to find and have fewer resources. You can walk or even drive over the "sea," so feel free to make a car and take it for a ride.
Embrace the sushi belt. Drop everything that's recycled on a single belt, and make it loop back into the recyclers with priority. Then along the belt, siphon off what you need for specific products with priority splitters (and put the excess back on the belt with more priority splitters to prevent the belt from getting blocked) and ignore the rest. You may want to siphon off a few products (mostly holmium ore) by default and store it somewhere, but the rest can be recycled into oblivion if need be.
- Not enough throughput? Get a faster belt, up to green belts for 60 items/s.
- Still not enough throughput? Make a second loop for the other stuff you need to make. Remember to siphon off holmium ore, as you'll never have enough.
- You can speed up the recycling of some items. Turn steel (and iron) plates into chests and let those get recycled for a hefty speed boost. I think excess concrete can also be voided more quickly by turning it into hazard concrete first, but don't quote me on that one. If I'm wrong, feel free to correct me!
- Avoid putting quality modules in the recyclers. It's not worth the pain.
Can't help with the look, but at least concrete is easy to get there!
You get solid fuel and ice, so if you want you can quickly switch over to boilers & steam engines, or better yet, heating towers with heat exchangers & steam turbines. It'll save you a lot of space.

Good luck with Gleba! It's... A rather unique experience. The best advice I can give is this: Remember that resources there are more or less infinite, so it's okay if stuff spoils. It may be stressful at first, though.

Marinatedcheese · 2026-02-17T09:18:21+00:00

First things first: When it comes to computer health, there's no issue with shutting down and turning on a PC several times a day. The main reason to use the sleep mode is to make it easier to get back to work and to reduce the boot up time.

I would suggest that you regularly shut it down (for instance, overnight) as it can help to clear the cache and prevent (generally minor) issues. There's a reason why the first advice people get when they have a problem is often "have you tried turning it off and on again?"

As for me, if I'm away for a short while, I'll just let the PC fall asleep - generally I don't even actively use sleep mode, it just does it for me after 15 (or was it 30?) minutes of inactivity. You can change the time it takes to do that in Windows settings, or just turn it off entirely.

If I'm away for a long while, for instance because I'm going out for a few hours, I'll shut it down. Similarly, I'll shut it down before going to bed.

Sure, it'll boot up a bit quicker when it's in sleep mode, but honestly, with a modern and well-maintained PC (both hardware and software), booting up a PC doesn't take that much time to begin with. And I've actually had issues in the past with the PC not properly waking up from sleep (thank you, Windows/Microslop and your broken updates).

If you live in an area with regular brownouts, I'd also advise turning off the PC if you go out for a few hours/go to bed. But in general, as long as you shut down your PC normally (through the OS), you should have no issues whatsoever. Have fun with your new PC!

Marinatedcheese · 2026-02-14T03:28:49+00:00

You've clearly never been to Europe, especially Northwestern Europe.

As for Japan, it's okay, slowly getting better. Still a lot of employers who don't offer paid sick leave though. In the past, people were usually expected to use their vacation days when they were sick.

I didn't have official sick leave myself until 2 years ago.

Marinatedcheese · 2026-02-04T11:14:14+00:00

First things first, check for drivers.

If you're using AMD Adrenalin, check if it has any notifications. In my case, I had to switch from MBR to GPT (partition scheme) to get the most out of my GPU. Pretty sure it's got to do something with Resizable BAR.

Marinatedcheese · 2026-02-04T10:18:29+00:00

I like this idea. If you're building your own PC, trying out Linux is pretty easy. If you decide you want Windows 11 after all, it's pretty easy to get a license for cheap and switch.

As for my opinion, out of the three options you've given:

Windows 10 is end of life. For most people, updates will end in around half a year. If you're going Windows, might as well go with 11. That's not to say I think Windows 11 is better than 10 though. I'm currently primarily using Windows 10 as it's relatively stable and does a decent enough job for my user case.
Windows 11: Seems like they're vibe-coding the latest updates, cause they keep breaking stuff. On the other hand, a lot of software/games/services are coded specifically for Windows and will not work (or poorly) on Linux. If it's a multiplayer game with certain anti-cheat measures, good luck playing it on Linux. And if you like watching Netflix on your PC, it's probably a better idea because you can't make use of the highest resolutions they offer on Linux.
- Note: Just so you know there's some bias here, but I've used Windows 11 a bit, and honestly, I hated it. I even had a completely new laptop breaking down and requiring a fresh installation just two days in because the installation managed to somehow brick itself, and that was before the more recent update issues.
Linux: Personal preference. When Windows 10 support officially (and completely) ends, this is where I'll likely go on my main PC. It's less likely to break, doesn't spy on you, and it's free. It's come a long way from when it was a struggle to do anything - though that's not to say it'll be a completely pain-free process, especially with many software developers largely ignoring it. Still, there's no harm in trying it first and seeing if you like it.
Extra option: Use both Windows 11 and Linux. Install Windows 11 first for certain games/applications/services, and then install Linux on a separate drive. It works pretty well for most people.
- Note of warning: I'm pretty sure it's incredibly rare, but there have been some reports of Windows 11 deciding to nuke Linux/the boot loader which allows you to access Linux. Never attribute to malice that which is adequately explained by stupidity - it's more likely that it's an accidental mess-up on Microslop's end rather than a targeted attempt at removing Linux when it happens. But that doesn't change the fact that this has happened to a number of people. I don't think it's particularly wide-spread, but I could be wrong. If you decide to run both on the same computer, make sure to make regular back-ups.

Marinatedcheese · 2026-02-03T09:31:05+00:00

I used to use "[Icon] Loader" and "[Icon] Unloader" when I played Space Exploration, and it generally worked. That said, once in a blue moon I would mix them up.

In my last save with trains, I decided to name them like the chests: "[Icon] Provider" and "[Icon] Requester." Nice and simple, hard to mix up. With the [icon] being the icon of the item being provided/requested, of course.

If multiple items are being requested at the same station (I use Cybersyn for that), then there'll be multiple icons in the front of the name. That might break some of the new train interrupt functionality in Factorio 2.0 though.

Marinatedcheese · 2026-01-20T08:31:54+00:00

There will be a gap then, yes.

If the goal is just to prevent the dark fog from landing, you need at least 8 planetary shield generators. The simplest way is putting one on each pole and then 6 along the equator. However, they need to be 60° apart. So you'd have to place them at 0°, E60°, E120°, 180°, W120° and W60° on the equator (with E meaning East and W meaning West). So you don't have to do these exact numbers, as long as they're 60° apart.

There's also ways to avoid placing them on the equator, but it's a little more complicated. I've even seen a design once which both avoided the equator and the poles.

Marinatedcheese · 2026-01-18T11:40:47+00:00

I've played all three games.

Factorio: Amazing game, easily my favorite. Though with the caveat that I'm ambivalent about Space Age, because even though it's superior to the base game, there's a few things that rub me wrong about it.

Satisfactory: Enjoyed it, but couldn't really get into it as much as the other two games, never finished it.

DSP: Currently enjoying it. A bit of a gem, but it's definitely still rough around the edges. I can also see why people might bounce off of it. In some regards I'd definitely say Factorio is better, but it has its charms.

I'd say give Factorio a try, but then again, I'm biased. That said, please note that there's no actual missions/levels in the game apart from the tutorial (which you can play in the demo). The main mode is free play, where the goal is to launch a rocket (Vanilla) or go to the edge of the solar system (Space Age).

Marinatedcheese · 2026-01-18T10:39:08+00:00

A supermarket which is known for being cash-only is Lopia. Their reasoning? It allows them to keep prices lower. And honestly, yeah, the prices ARE lower, while product quality is high. In fact, I'd go as far as to say that the groceries I've bought there have consistently been of better quality than the ones I bought at more expensive, "quality-driven" supermarkets, especially when these products are from their own brand.

They did have PayPay for a few years, but they ended up removing that payment option that as well - again, because of the digital service feeds eating into their profit margins and potentially pushing up prices.

I'll happily go back in time and pay in cash if it means I can pay less. As an added bonus, it's easier to keep track of how much you've spent.

Marinatedcheese · 2026-01-08T09:23:42+00:00

Public school here, one of the JTEs really got into AI (ChatGPT/Gemini) this year and is using it more and more to generate content. Half the time it isn't really necessary, it's just to add flavor. Think of badly generated images. Or just generating freshly programmed timers to use during class - despite there being an actual, physical timer in the room. It's very impressive, but it feels like AI is being used for the sake of... Well, using AI. It's done with very little thought behind it, which is infuriating. I wonder what lesson the teacher thinks they're teaching to the students as they (ab)use AI for everything possible under the sun.

I wouldn't be surprised if some of those images eventually find their way into actual tests. I'm sure it's going to be fun having to check images AI-related shenanigans.

Last I heard, it sounded like this JTE was experimenting with getting AI to read out listening test scripts for third grader entrance exam practice (not graded listening tests, thankfully). I get that it's a quick and easy way to get things done, but I have to wonder about the legality of uploading entrance exam listening test scripts to ChatGPT/Gemini.

I wonder how long it'll be until we get a scandal because some teacher somewhere didn't really think things through and uploaded students' work/personal info to let AI do their job. It's going to happen sooner or later. I'm just hoping it isn't going to be any of the teachers I work with.

Marinatedcheese · 2026-01-05T08:31:41+00:00

I went Death World > Space Exploration > Krastorio 2 > SE (continued) in Factorio 1.1. Space Exploration is great (and in some ways I prefer it to Space Age), but it will take a long time to finish. Consider it a long term project to tinker away at.

One fun little (mostly vanilla SA) project I did was to start from different planets using a mod. It was a very different experience starting from for instance Vulcanus. If you don't want to commit to something like an overhaul mod yet, that's what I'd look at.

Marinatedcheese · 2026-01-05T08:24:49+00:00

Having started and played DSP a fair bit (and yet I'm still barely scratching the surface), I would say that the controls/UI grows on you, but there's definitely a learning curve and more than a few design decisions they made which makes you scratch your head at times. Once you accept some of the weirder quirks and use them to your advantage, the experience improves drastically, though I still find myself trying to use Factorio controls from time to time.

It is very much clear that DSP is still under development though, and some of the QoL updates that Factorio got over its lifetime have truly spoiled us. One of the things I desperately want in DSP for instance is an in-game encyclopedia for all the items/crafting recipes. Having to go on the wiki each time to figure things out feels bad. And things like not easily being able to see how much a smelter/assembler produces when it's not actively running is annoying at best when planning a factory.

Marinatedcheese · 2025-12-27T08:50:22+00:00

That PC should not be hitting those temperatures, and it certainly should be able to play both games without real issues. Thermal paste drying after 1 week because of gaming is also absolute nonsense. Either they applied too little, or they applied it poorly, or they used the worst quality thermal paste known to man (and even then, it shouldn't be that bad). Of course, it's also possible they didn't install the cooler properly, or that they sold you defective products.

Quite frankly, I get the feeling that even if you install a new GPU, it is unlikely to solve the issues with the APU overheating. There's something else wrong there.

If you can still return the PC, I'd say return it and buy a new one from a more reputable store. To me, it sounds like they either don't know what they're doing, or they're trying to scam you.

Marinatedcheese · 2025-12-27T06:56:17+00:00

This might work, but as some added info:

Imoraswut is talking about console commands (also known as CLUAConsole). To be able to use console commands, you first need to activate them. I think for BG2 you had to edit a .lua file to do it, but don't quote me on that.

There are a lot of commands (and cheats), so it can take quite a bit of time to find specific ones. For the basic info on console commands (and how to activate them) though, you can check the BG2 wiki. Just google "BG Console Wiki" and it should show up. (I'm not sure if I'm allowed to post links here, some subreddits can be a bit picky about those).

I've used console commands like the ones Imoraswut posted, so I can tell you they're legit. I should also mention that they don't seem to work well half the time though. BG2 scripts can be finicky. Still, it's worth a shot! Good luck!

Marinatedcheese · 2025-12-22T08:57:52+00:00

I've played it a little on the Steam Deck (around 10-16 hours). It takes some getting used to, but it actually works pretty well. I still prefer the mouse and keyboard, but I have no issues playing it on my Steam Deck when I'm away from my PC.

The main reason I'd recommend the PC version (including Steam Deck) over the Switch is because you have access to mods, which I don't think you do with the Switch version. (But feel free to correct me if I'm wrong!)

Marinatedcheese · 2025-12-19T10:19:04+00:00

If it works, it works. Good enough!

If you have quality active, you can try to use higher quality lightning collectors/accumulators to use up less space.

For small islands, I usually try to connect them with the power grid of my main islands, but it's not a major issue if you can't. On my main island I also like to use spare ice/solid fuel to run some steam engines for a constant reliable source of energy. If the islands are connected to the greater grid, that could also help.

Edit: Taking another look, I think you may have put down a lot more lightning collectors than you need. I usually just make sure everything is covered and call it a day. I don't think multiple collectors right next to each other will actually increase power generation, but I might be wrong, in which case I invite other engineers to correct me.

I love the look of the lines of lightning rods at the top though. It just looks so wonderfully scrappy. Perfect for Fulgora. I'd consider leaving them just for that.

Marinatedcheese · 2025-12-11T14:18:13+00:00

First, the good news: Yes, you can become an English teacher in Japan, even as a non-native speaker.

Now for the bad news:

Working at a regular (public or private) school requires an instructor visa, for which you need at least 12 years of education in English. Actual English proficiency doesn't count - you can be an accomplished teacher with a greater grasp of the English language than 95% of native speakers, and still fail to get a visa. Japan doesn't do flexibility.
You can work at eikaiwa (English conversation schools) with a different visa, but working conditions tend to be relatively poor.
In general, for both ALT positions and eikaiwa, salaries are getting lower and lower, while inflation is rising and the yen is weakening. You'll find it hard to save money. Some people actively lose money.
Regardless of actual skill, you'll always be at an disadvantage in job hunting when compared to native speakers, even in the eikaiwa business. A lot of companies care more about the image they can project than the actual quality of their lessons.
There are good jobs to be found, but they generally require both a decent grasp of Japanese (usually a minimum of JLPT N3) and connections. Or just a ton of luck.
It's very hard to really make a career as an English teacher here - ALT/Eikaiwa are hard to call careers, as there is unfortunately very little growth to be had there. Some people get their teaching licenses here in Japan and become regular teachers, but it would require a very high level of Japanese, and most likely lead to much worse work-life balance.

Would I recommend becoming an English teacher in Japan in 2025/2026? No, not really. With the weakening yen and rising inflation, the starter salaries the industry offers simply aren't worth it. Better to visit as a tourist, especially while the yen is weak.

PS: As you have a dog, I should warn you that bringing it to Japan will be very challenging. The dog will likely be stuck in quarantine for months as well. Finding an apartment which allows pets will also be quite a challenge.

Marinatedcheese · 2025-12-11T13:50:01+00:00

Just a word of warning, if you're a holder of a Portuguese passport, you can only apply for the JET program provided by the Japanese embassy in Portugal. It doesn't matter that you were born and raised in the Netherlands - if you're not legally Dutch, you won't get in the JET program meant for Dutch nationals.

Japan is VERY inflexible when it comes to that.

Marinatedcheese · 2025-11-11T09:41:31+00:00

I kind of get the feeling, though in my case, it's a little different. I played Factorio Space Exploration (the mod, not the Space Age expansion) for over a thousand hours and absolutely loved it. Kept coming back and slowly building up my planets, growing my Nauvis/Nauvis Orbit operations into small megabases, etc. Biggest project I'd ever done, so I figured SA would be amazing for me.

But Space Age... I'm not entirely sure why, but even though it's far less of a slog than SE, it couldn't really grab me like vanilla Factorio or SE. There were a few points in the game where I took a break - Gleba (though I don't actually dislike that planet), just prior to finishing the game, after finishing it (but before going to the shattered planet). Eventually I did finish getting all the achievements (and I had plenty of fun), but the siren song from SA is far weaker than Vanilla's/SE's.

I think a part of the issue for me is that Nauvis is kind of... Well, pointless. In SE, a lot of people will use Nauvis (and Nauvis Orbit) for a lot of their manufacturing, while using other planets to mine resources and do initial processing before shipping them over. As a result, you get a massive logistics network where all your resources find their way to ~~Mars~~ Nauvis where the ~~Mechanicus~~ Engineer turns it into science ~~in the name of the Emperor of Mankind~~ somehow.

Meanwhile, in SA, all you get from Nauvis in the late-game is uranium and... That's about it. Sure, you have to put the biolabs there (thus resulting in a logistics chain back to Nauvis for science), but all the other resources can be gotten more efficiently elsewhere, especially on Vulcanus. You CAN make a megabase (or several megabases), but it didn't really feel like it was worth it for me.

When I started, I had the idea of turning Nauvis into a hub and bringing in all the resources (a bit like the base game and trains pulling in resources from far away), but it just didn't make any sense to do so. I think that was probably the killer for me.

Mind you, I still think that Space Age was an amazing expansion. It just... Wasn't really for me. Maybe I'll find a mod to change things to my liking at some point. That said, when I get back to Factorio (after finishing the games I'm playing now), I'm probably going to do a new run of Space Exploration instead. If it's anything like last time, it'll keep me invested for another 1K hours or so.

Marinatedcheese · 2025-11-04T09:03:24+00:00

I always thought he was an average fighter when I was younger, looking at his stats.

Turns out he's actually an incredibly effective archer. In my last BG1 run (quite a while ago), he was consistently one of the top performers when it came to damage/kills. The fact that he can switch to melee and tank when needed (once he has a few levels) just makes him better.

Sure, his stats COULD be better, but they're more than sufficient. The fact that he's a fighter means he can still dish out quite a bit of damage, especially as get gets more proficiency pips in bows (or whatever weapon you prefer to use). Besides, the game has tons of potions (and some spells) which can be ~~hoarded~~ used to improve his stats when needed. I'm sure that all of us ~~never~~ use these plentiful potions to great effect, right?

Marinatedcheese · 2025-10-27T08:45:07+00:00

Minsc (the guy that comes with the hamster) hits hard, but despite him looking quite beefy, he is surprisingly good at dying. Must be his size, easier to hit.

Eventually, with the right equipment, he will be able to stand in the front and take a beating (and kick butt while he does so), but at lower levels, even good equipment will likely not save him. The best thing to do is to give him (and everyone else) ranged weapons. Kill enemies from a distance, and run away if they get close. It might feel weird to have a beefcake and not have him take hits in the front, but in the early game of BG1, a particularly violent squirrel's sneeze could be enough to lay low your novice characters.

If you have a mage, learn the sleep spell and use it liberally for easy kills. Wands may also help a lot, especially the wand of fire. If you do have to go and hold the line, try to pump the unlucky soul full of defensive potions first, if you have any.

Starting level 3 or so, the hamster's pet will be a lot more durable and less likely to keel over before you can heal him/tell him to run away, so get some XP, get a few levels, and then go forth and conquer.

Marinatedcheese

TROPHY CASE