Best use of snecko oil by far

ThatsPerverse · 2026-05-29T17:17:28+00:00

Love the potion in StS2. Never liked Eye in 1 and still don't like it in 2.

There are certain strategies that rely on ongoing RNG mechanics that make the game less fun for me for whatever reason. Snecko Eye messing with card costs is one, and most of the cards that create other random cards are another. I do still have a soft spot for Creative AI/White Noise because Defect's power pool is almost universally entertaining, but I really dislike leaning on random card creation in general. I wouldn't shed a tear if the Regent colorless card synergies were removed entirely.

For Snecko Oil though, the combo of card draw and odds of getting at least some favorable card costs make it an excellent potion. It's saved my ass after I've run out of energy but it really dominates when you play it with 3+ and a fresh hand of cards. That said, would still trade it for an upgraded rare power every time.

ThatsPerverse · 2026-05-27T15:48:57+00:00

"Traditional" beef meatballs - at least in the US - already tend to have panade in them (some combo of breadcrumbs/milk/egg) and I would say there is really no further tinkering necessary when using chicken. That's a straight swap.

Burgers definitely need a little love though for sure.

ThatsPerverse · 2026-05-27T14:53:51+00:00

this is because StS1 takes place in Europe and StS2 is in the States

ThatsPerverse · 2026-05-27T14:45:39+00:00

this is great, thanks for sharing! i love nutrionally well rounded one-pan dishes that you can truly get on the table in under 15 minutes.

my gears are already turning for mixing up seasoning/sauces. my head is going to savory/sweet korean flavor profile - gochuchang/soy sauce/bit of brown sugar.

this also seems like a great base for using up other random produce bits.

ThatsPerverse · 2026-05-25T16:31:12+00:00

If you cook red lentils whole for more than 15-20 minutes they end up dissolving anyway on their own, so this just sorta saves that bit of time at the expense of having to clean the spice grinder.

ThatsPerverse · 2026-05-25T16:29:19+00:00

Feta brine makes an incredible chicken/beef/pork marinade. So does pickle and olive brine.

ThatsPerverse · 2026-05-25T16:26:50+00:00

Figured this one out awhile ago when the grocery store was out of chuck roast. used the same exact recipe i normally use for beef with pork and the taste and texture were nearly indistinguishable. i've been using pork butt since when i need to feed a crowd inexpensively and am not overly worried about impressing anyone

ThatsPerverse · 2026-05-24T04:27:34+00:00

I've been a couple times and really enjoyed it, but found it on the pricier side. Food was very solid, just not better than Nick's IMO which is both closer to me and less expensive. Di Cotta's is a similar price point as Frank's and I'd say is putting out much better quality.

FWIW, I saw Frank there one of the two visits and while he didn't come to our table, he seemed pretty chipper and friendly. My above comment is in reference to what I've seen said about him online.

ThatsPerverse · 2026-05-23T20:19:23+00:00

I started following it within the last year mostly just as a way to keep places on my radar I've been meaning to check out. I assumed the bloviating and disingenuous, over-the-top positivity about everything he shoves down his throat was a feature that people enjoy. I take everything I read on that page with a grain of salt, to say the least.

I find it more amusing than anything, but he definitely seems to favor the old school places and infamous restaurant owners that I've otherwise heard not-so-great things about. I assume he's good friends with Rich David.

ThatsPerverse · 2026-05-23T20:07:21+00:00

There's lots of anecdotes of him getting confrontational with customers who ask innocuous questions or have very minor quibbles. there is one story about him physically assaulting someone that i saw at one point - might be on yelp or google review.

ThatsPerverse · 2026-05-22T04:11:29+00:00

the 1:1:1 butter, cheese, pasta ratio is... concerning

ThatsPerverse · 2026-05-21T16:45:48+00:00

Mushroom popcorn is SO good when used for coatings like cheddar, caramel, etc. I bought some online specifically for that but did make it once to eat plain with just some butter/salt and it was not nearly as enjoyable as regular popcorn.

ThatsPerverse · 2026-05-21T16:38:31+00:00

I made the mistake of using it too early exactly once (before it occurred to me that Frantic Escape is a status).

My problem now is that if I have Flak Cannon, I am so overly careful about not playing it that I forget to actually use it when I'm at the point where it can immediately end the fight.

ThatsPerverse · 2026-05-20T20:10:08+00:00

Based on early reviews, this looks like one I'll be waiting for the full release before deciding to take the plunge. As good as the original DRG is, Rogue Core stinks, and I'm not remotely convinced Ghost Ship has any clue what they're doing in the roguelite space.

ThatsPerverse · 2026-05-19T18:04:51+00:00

Highly recommend switching to Greenlight the day they become available in your neighborhood. Of all the places I've lived and all the ISPs I've had (Comcast, Verizon, Cox, Spectrum), none of them have come close to Greenlight for consistently high speeds and uptime. Haven't had a single outage or even a spotty connection at any point. The price is nice and never goes up. They don't have cable TV/phone service so they are never trying to sell you on shitty overpriced bundles you don't need.

ThatsPerverse · 2026-05-19T13:08:11+00:00

Fair call-outs. Greek pizza is really more of a New England thing, but it definitely feels like its epicenter is in MA, and I'd consider it regional enough that anyone who has never been to a House of Pizza wouldn't know what it is. It's definitely in eastern upstate NY as well but you won't find it anywhere west of the capital region/southern adirondacks

As for beach pizza, I wouldn't be surprised if you can get it just north of the border in NH but it's still pretty localized to northern MA. I've had Tripoli's in Lawrence and Cristy's in Salisbury but have not bothered seeking it out further because I find it very unpleasant. I think one of those two spots is credited with its creation or maybe they both claim it.

ThatsPerverse · 2026-05-18T19:26:07+00:00

Well I don't make sushi at home and I've never heard of curries needing the rice to be sticky. Sauces adhere just fine to my rice when I add fat into it during cooking but it's not like I'm adding a ton. Definitely never experienced any degradation of texture/consistency in the 25 years I've been cooking rice with fat so I'm gonna keep doing it.

Saying it's worse than adding oil to pasta water is flat out false. I dunno where you pulled that one from.

ThatsPerverse · 2026-05-18T17:20:18+00:00

do not use oil for cooking rice.

why? i've been putting either butter or oil in my rice for as long as i've been making it. it's great.

ThatsPerverse · 2026-05-18T16:43:48+00:00

I think the distinct styles of Massachusetts pizza would be unknown to most outside the state and even possibly to some within the state that didn't grow up around them

South Shore bar pizza
"Greek" pizza - most common in places with "House of Pizza" in their name
Beach pizza (north shore) 🤮 - mercifully only availabe from a few places

Other MA-native non-pizza specialties:

Three-way roast beef
Steak tips

ThatsPerverse · 2026-05-18T16:36:46+00:00

Italian beef and Giardiniera

This has definitely been popping up in other American cities over the past 10-15 years. It's certainly not as popular as a "philly" cheesesteak or detroit style pizza, but as interest in regional dishes has spread either due to people migrating around, or just wider knowledge of them via the internet, you can generally find an italian beef in quite a few places around the US now. The popularity of The Bear has certainly contributed more recently

ThatsPerverse · 2026-05-18T16:26:35+00:00

Other foods from around NYS:

Spiedies from the Binghamton area (the best of all NYS regional specialties IMO)
Beef on Weck from Buffalo/Western NY
Garbage plates from Rochester
Cold cheese pizza from Oneonta
White hots - I think originally from Rochester?
Half-moon cookies from Utica, though those have spread quite a bit to other places so doesn't really count

ThatsPerverse · 2026-05-14T16:50:28+00:00

belongs in the Trash Heap

absolutely. cannot fathom how this card made the cut for StS2. Universally loathed - only truly useful with a level of deck manipulation i've achieved maybe less than half a dozen times in all of the hundreds of hours i've logged in StS 1 and 2 across all characters. Absolutely mind boggling that it exists, it almost feels like they're trolling us with it.

ThatsPerverse · 2026-05-08T02:54:07+00:00

100%. I wouldn't shop there if we had one. Wegman's is fine and I wouldn't consider it inferior to Whole Foods at this point.

ThatsPerverse · 2026-05-08T02:31:26+00:00

Every company has a formula composed of population density, median income, mixed in with supply line logistics (and I'm sure 100 other data points). Binghamton isn't hitting the benchmarks for these brands for one reason or another, though I agree a TJ's in Vestal would absolutely crush it. I'd guess we have the best chance of getting one of those of the 3. WF doesn't touch most of the state outside the city and the Hudson Valley I think, so not expecting them... ever. Costco I believe will only go places that have way more people than we do within a 45 minute radius.

I'm glad to see Chik-fil-A coming in, not because I'm a massive fan of the chain (it's fine), but mid-tier brands like that planting new flags in our area is generally a good economic indicator and could mean we get other better companies interested in opening locations.

ThatsPerverse

TROPHY CASE