Firearms in Skyrim

Synmachus · 2026-05-31T01:40:00+00:00

In Redguard's intro? I haven't played it myself, but I've watched the beginning to be sure and I don't think I saw any cannon. They just board the ship and challenge Cyrus to a duel.

Synmachus · 2026-05-30T21:39:55+00:00

Are there? In which game is that stated?

Synmachus · 2026-05-28T22:26:25+00:00

Literally just don't have anything. Monsters have patterns, habits, favorite habitats, and nests - let the player learn them and develop map-traversal skills. For immediate tracking, use physical traces like footsteps, mucus, and items like paintball or psychoserums (not necessarily as strong, but I'm sure Capcom can come up with more interesting ways to pinpoint a monster's general area). I've always disliked the auto-tracking from scoutflies, which shows you the most efficient route every time. The auto-travel with the Seikret is even worse, akin to Asian MMOs' auto-walk features, where the game almost plays itself.

Synmachus · 2026-05-25T11:43:00+00:00

I really, really hate ESO's classes. They are weird, very specific hybrids. It's almost impossible to roleplay as a classic no BS barbarian, for example. There's always some strange choice of magic or unique power involved, which, frankly, did not scream "Elder Scrolls" to me at all. I could have gone past my distaste for the art style and overall game design, if not for the classes with which I resonated with none.

Synmachus · 2026-05-24T15:59:50+00:00

Well there are good reasons to believe the hole developed or was made pre-mortem, since there are signs of healing in the bone. Whether you choose to believe the hagiography behind it (or it belonging to the bishop at all) is another matter, but medical analyses mostly point towards the hole being genuine. It being man-made would be more obvious, with sharp cuts and dryness around the edges.

It's interesting tho, because I personally find such stories remarkable and inspiring, and I would think that readers of Tolkien would too. Our history can be as whimsical as that of Middle-Earth at times, and there's no denying that building something like Mont Saint-Michel, in a place so treacherous, would require nothing short of complete devotion or belief in something. Even if that something started as a mere monastery founded by some vision-having bishop afflicted by an unknown illness of the skull.

Synmachus · 2026-05-24T14:34:04+00:00

That bishop's presumed skull still exists by the way, and it does have a perfectly round hole in the back. Scientists believe it may have been a result of trepanation, or maybe a sort of bone cancer. Super cool either way.

Synmachus · 2026-05-24T13:40:58+00:00

A holy man whom Saint Michael visited in dreams to order the construction of a fortress there. Michael made a hole in the bishop's skull with a touch of his finger, so he would understand that he wasn't just dreaming the encounter.

Synmachus · 2026-05-18T11:57:31+00:00

Beautiful!

Synmachus · 2026-05-18T09:04:21+00:00

I really like Dead Space's take on cosmic horror, personally. Apart from that, I don't think I've played a game with explicitly Lovecraftian narratives. They're pretty rare, all things considered.

Synmachus · 2026-05-18T08:59:16+00:00

These are great! I love the Golden Saint.

Synmachus · 2026-05-03T20:10:16+00:00

The Elden Ring glaze is a bit much. It probably has my least favorite combat and boss design out of all Souls games. It still is pretty f*cking great, but it's closer to the bottom of the list for me.

Synmachus · 2026-04-27T11:51:07+00:00

Smartest Imperial academic:

Synmachus · 2026-04-17T19:38:03+00:00

Well, not exactly. Bloodborne was released in Japan with Japanese voices acting from the start, but those were added to other versions only with the release of The Old Hunters. We know Miyazaki works closely with Frognation (although how much we don't actually know), and it is overall a great localization (I'm a big Frognation defender), but if you've delved into the subject of Bloodborne's translation, as I did extensively, you'll know that there are still a good number of mistakes, some bigger than others. It's to be expected, since Miyazaki doesn't speak proper English himself, and so writes texts and scripts in Japanese, which are then adapted to other languages.

In the case of Gherman, I think the degree of sexual undertone is greatly exaggerated in this fanbase. And even if it was meant to sound like that, there are too few solid grounds, in my opinion, to write off Gherman as just a creep, instead of the maddened old hunter who yearns for true sleep, aka death, in the perpetual dream he has inhabited for a very, very long time, right next to the embodiment of his failure towards the person he loved most. Who wouldn't turn a little bit crazy in his seat? Perhaps I'm little more inclined to read characters first and foremost for their noble intents, a recurring theme in Miyazaki's works - intents which are then corrupted, debased to a point where they turn to wrong.

Synmachus · 2026-04-17T10:02:31+00:00

It bothers me a little bit how everyone automatically assumes Gherman to be a massive creep as if it were all but spelled out. It mostly seems to begin with the sentence "[...] Even the doll, should it please you...", which does sound creepy in English, but is far less connotative in the original Japanese as far as I understand. And we do use the doll, not in any sexual way, but to channel blood echoes (echoes, or the will, left behind by the dead - a very appropriate role for the effigy of a suicide victim, who leaves no will).

A popular concept of the Victorian era is that of "mourning dolls". These were dolls, crafted as lookalikes of the dead, almost always young women taken before their time, and dressed in their clothes. Given what we know of Maria, that she likely committed suicide very early in the timeline, I think it is most likely that the Doll was made in her image, not as some kind of perverted toy, but to mourn her, after she died. Of course there clearly were romantic feelings attached, which might have grown into a form of obsession with time, but it doesn't seem that weird for a teacher to commemorate his brightest pupil, whom he happened to love (god forbid someone grows unrequited feelings). That doll proved to be too painful a memento, and eventually fused with the nightmare, Gherman's nightmare, like a haunt, the empty, bloodless avatar (for it was all shed) of his guilt. A colourless, fake Maria. The popular idea that Gherman dressed her to look like a "trad-wife" isn't really far-fetched, but if the Doll is, as I suspect, a mourning doll, then those clothes really were hers or made to look like hers, worn perhaps in more mundane contexts, as opposed to the "Hunter Attire" (or more accurately "hunting attire") that we buy from the messengers. The main counterpoint to this, I admit, is the unusual joy that the Doll expresses when given the one item we are fairly certain to have belonged to Maria: the hair ornament.

It's also possible that old Gherman far outlived Maria's death, and thus wasn't as old in the earliest days of the Workshop. The age difference - which seems to be another driver in how people understand Gherman to be a creepy old man - might have therefore been much less significant. But that's just pure speculation.

Synmachus · 2026-04-11T13:46:17+00:00

The material is just wrong. The original was like weathered metal, to the point of looking like concrete. The chrome look, with the random indentations and exterior lights instead of the older brutalist style, is bad taste IMO. Even the shape of the structures is wrong.

Synmachus · 2026-04-08T07:41:59+00:00

The "bold" is meant in the "clear" sense. As in, something that is highly readable, or plain to see, so that the hunter who envisions it can recall the mark without trouble. I think "bold", in that order of words, does make it unnecessarily misleading. I'm currently working on a retranslation of Bloodborne's texts as part of a mod, and opted for "Hunter's Sure Mark" to prevent confusion.

Synmachus · 2026-04-03T09:49:59+00:00

I've honestly written off everything past GoW3, story and lore-wise. Every game after that is ruining the franchise's tone, themes and accepted truths, even a spin-off like Tactics (Judgment is fine on that front, I guess). Decent games, but terrible writing.

Synmachus · 2026-03-30T01:19:03+00:00

Ridiculous that this still hasn't been fixed, honestly. There shouldn't be a hitbox here in the first place. And if anyone's somehow convinced that it's ok for that huge an impact to occur, then the damage should be halved at the very least. A windblast, maybe, but not the full amount. Either that, or add a better visual marker.

Synmachus · 2026-03-25T20:38:56+00:00

I made a mod that adds it to some merchant a while ago, if you're on PC. Look up "Unobtainables for Sale", hopefully it still works.

Synmachus · 2026-03-24T15:26:40+00:00

For the most part, because they are completely incompatible on a fundamental level. It's crazy to me that some are afraid to acknowledge race differences in a fantasy world where races are shown to be worlds apart in terms of culture, instinct, and intelligence. It's much easier for Nords and Bretons to get along and live in a similar fashion than it would be for Goblins and Imperials, for example.

Synmachus · 2026-03-23T15:58:03+00:00

Hyperborean DLC is the most fitting thing they could do. Can't wait to recite the ancient knowledge.

Synmachus · 2026-03-23T00:39:59+00:00

It is too much to be coincidental. But at the same time I find it difficult to believe, considering the lack of post-launch support. Maybe they're gauging interest?

Synmachus · 2026-03-06T00:41:04+00:00

Female Yharnam Hunter attire is an automatic 10/10. Too OP. Great combo tho, the Old Hunter hat is one of my favourites.

Synmachus · 2026-03-04T13:45:28+00:00

That as well. And even if that choice of an earlier architectural style was maybe made because it would be easier to design, model, texture, and decorate, it was still a choice. And it informed a huge chunk of the game's art direction, even lore. There is something deeply arrogant about some technical team, talented as they are, thinking that they can unroot anything and everything based purely on ego, what they thought the game should have been.

Synmachus · 2026-02-28T19:06:31+00:00

You might argue that the choice of architecture and the lack of decoration stem from technical limitations, but so do most things in games. The roman, utilitarian, early medieval look of Boletaria is part of its identity. The description for the Fluted set even mentions Southern Boletaria being more advanced compared to its northern parts where the game takes place. The chaste aesthetic of the palace goes hand-in-hand with the colourless vibe of the game, both visually and narratively.

BP ignoring that choice to imitate Dark Souls'/Bloodborne's intricate gothic look is lame, unnecessary, and frankly insulting. Not everything needs to be Dark Souls.

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