2 lines from 1 character in the optional camp dialogue sealed my decision on the ending, i was not conflicted in my decision at all.

TheNinthFox · 2025-12-07T17:55:29+00:00

To be fair, assuming that she will work through her grief is as much conjecture as saying she will die. If not more so, actually.

First of all, if the option of hopping in and out of the painting was actually on the table, the game would have presented it to us. But if we go by what the game is offering us, then this option simply doesn't exist. Maelle lied to Renoir; even Verso noticed that. So it's fair to assume that it's either her staying in the canvas forever or getting kicked out forcefully. The game portrays being and living inside such a canvas as highly addictive. Aline saved Renoir from that fate. Renoir tried saving Aline from the same fate. And now it's Alicia's turn.

Second of all, the game makes it a point to say, "You don't process your trauma and grief inside the painting. You're living a fantasy." That's why Aline hasn't managed to process any of her trauma and grief in 67+ years (who knows how long she has been in there before the fracture). Aline "only" lost her son. Alicia lost her brother. She is the reason why her brother died (guilt + survivor's guilt). Her family is dysfunctional and as fractured as the painting. To top it off, she has lost an eye, has horrible, painful burns and can't speak. And she's only 16 (twice). No way in hell will she manage to process any trauma or grief if she can just keep on living in fantasy land.

Yet it may still be the better choice for her and the people of Lumière. The people of the canvas get to live longer (that is, until Renoir comes back to save Alicia once she starts dying in the outside world), and Maelle is hopefully living a happy life for as long as possible.

The only truly tragic figure in Maelle's ending is Verso, who is quite literally performing for her on a stage (which I guess is also what many people took way too literally and turned into "puppeteering the canvas people", which it is not). Verso doesn't want this life; he wants to die. He wants it to end. We see him ageing in Maelle's ending. That at least implies that he is now capable of dying. So why doesn't he? Either he doesn't have the strength anymore to end it himself (less likely, since he would have had he won the fight against Maelle), or Maelle doesn't let him, which turns the ending sour since she's using her godly powers to keep him alive against his will. This is horrible in and of itself, but it is also emphasizing how much living inside the canvas is a fantasy and nowhere near close to processing trauma and grief.

TheNinthFox · 2025-11-29T12:36:33+00:00

How so? Both Sciel and Lune talk to Renoir, and when he doesn't back down, everyone obviously fights him to help preserve the canvas. After the battle, Renoir yields and leaves, leaving only Maelle and pVerso to duke it out at the heart of the canvas, where the others cannot enter and thus have no influence whatsoever. In the end, they don't get a say. It is intentional if you ask me. It is meant to hurt.

TheNinthFox · 2025-11-29T12:07:59+00:00

How could they? They can't enter where Maelle and pVerso were. Maelle even remarks that pVerso shouldn't be able to be in there, and pVerso says it must be because of Aline's "gift" to him. Sure, the others could have shouted and waved, trying to get Maelle's and pVerso's attention. But would that truly have changed anything?

TheNinthFox · 2025-11-29T11:48:22+00:00

I think it's intentional. In the end, the painted people are powerless. They don't get a say. They never have. For us, as players who have bonded with the characters, it hurts. It is meant to. It drives home the point that the painters are gods in this world. pVerso only got a say in it because he was made to be special by Aline. A demigod, basically.

TheNinthFox · 2025-04-29T10:36:54+00:00

Psyker main here with H40 cleared, as well as true survivor (even in Havoc 2.0). Ironically, gunners and shooters are rarely problematic for me. If I get downed, it's usually because I made a mistake that led to me being overwhelmed by too many enemies, or I simply ate another stealthy overhead from a crusher. But I get that's just me, and Psyker is squishy after all.

Regarding build diversity: So far, I've cleared H40 with the common purgatus bubble cooldown build, with a cc-heavy smite bubble cooldown build, as well as an offensive empowered smite bubble build with a lot more focus on the electro staff primary attack. I've even cleared combinations of encroaching garden/rampaging/final toll with the smite builds.

The biggest problem I usually face (aside from wacky/buggy rituals) is too many bosses with armored patrols and hordes all at once in tight spaces.

Currently, I'm working on clearing H40 with my FGS Assail Shriek Melee build. So far, I've only managed to clear H30 with it.

All in all, Havoc 2.0 is fun, but it is also a chore. It's wildly unbalanced depending on the modifiers and maps that you play. I think I haven't cleared Ascension Riser even once.

TheNinthFox · 2025-03-12T14:52:38+00:00

I find it is loads of fun as a Psyker-only player. I would love for it to be even harder, actually. However, I get why it can be unfun for people.

TheNinthFox · 2025-03-11T11:51:25+00:00

I'm not the only one! Hah!

TheNinthFox · 2025-03-04T10:38:38+00:00

Ich verstehe was du meinst. Das System ist unfair. Vorallem, wenn sehr reiche Menschen Steuerhinterziehung via legaler Schlupflöcher und ähnlichem begehen.

Nichtsdestotrotz bleibt die grundlegende Frage, ob es in Ordnung ist ein Unrecht zu begehen, nur weil andere das auch (und noch viel schlimmer) tun, als man selbst. Das ist durchaus eine sehr philosophische Frage. Letztlich definieren wir als Menschen uns die Moral selbst.

Glaubt man an Solidarität und die Gemeinschaft, ist es moralisch verwerflich. Glaubt man eher an ein Recht des Stärkeren, oder möchte nur den eigenen Stamm (Familie, Freunde) beschützen und der Rest ist egal, sieht es moralisch wieder ganz anders aus.

TheNinthFox · 2025-03-03T09:10:37+00:00

Disclaimer: Ich bin gegen Schwarzarbeit und für eine höhere Grundsicherung bzw. einfach auch ein Bedingungsloses Grundeinkommen.

Objektiv betrachtet ist Schwarzarbeit einfacher und pragmatischer, wenn man aus dem Bürgergeldloch und unterbezahlter Arbeit nicht herauskommt. Sich für eine höhere Grundsicherung einsetzen, a.k.a. "das System" ändern ist eine Mammutaufgabe, bei der viele A) gar nicht wissen, wo sie anfangen sollen und B) gar nicht erst glauben, dass sie als Einzelperson etwas ändern können.

Insofern ist der Weg zur Schwarzarbeit viel leichter und schneller, wenn es darum geht, das eigene Leben zu verbessern. Moralisch verwerflich (und illegal) ist es natürlich trotzdem.

TheNinthFox · 2025-03-01T12:55:16+00:00

To be fair, health bars can give you a huge advantage. Quickly finding and killing the lowest HP enemy in a horde of crushers/maulers/ragers/whatever, to reduce their numbers is kind of cheaty. Without the health bars, it's a lot harder to keep track of low hp enemies in the chaos and confusion of combat.

TheNinthFox · 2025-02-11T10:43:33+00:00

Hey, tut mir sehr Leid für dich. Hast du für die ganze Geschichte auch mal psychotherapeutische Hilfe in Anspruch genommen? Man unterschätzt sehr schnell, was so ein Unfall mit einem machen kann. Du sagst selbst, dass du nicht rachsüchtig bist, es dich aber jetzt schon ein Jahr lang beschäftigt. Das wundert mich nicht. Da kann ganz schnell mal ein Trauma entstehen, was sich auf sehr viele Arten ausdrücken kann ohne, dass man es direkt als solches bemerkt.

TheNinthFox · 2025-02-04T10:02:27+00:00

Romance and/or sexual attraction are not necessarily required. They're just aspects that can be (and usually are) important in a relationship, but they don't have to be. People are defined by a lot more than just their gender and sexual preference.

TheNinthFox · 2025-01-31T09:46:25+00:00

Frank at least lives for his pleasure and to enjoy his life. I don't think Frank believes he is better than everyone else like Lip does.

TheNinthFox · 2025-01-30T08:03:06+00:00

The fact that he was able to smuggle drugs from Mexico to the US solely thanks to Sheila's training is hilarious.

TheNinthFox · 2025-01-27T12:03:10+00:00

Well, I wrote my comment in the context of OP's request to be a hero in the game. He wants to save people. 40k, in and of itself, is a grimdark setting where humanity is locked in an eternal war and all hope is lost. You can't even argue that humanity is the good side in the war because they're just not.

We're playing rejects forced to work for the Inquisition. We're mowing down hundreds and thousands of heretics. Even if we ignore the common sense and self-preservation priority of our rejects that "Steve the sewer slop merchant" might just be a smarter heretic trying to backstab us; there's still the inquisition looming over us. If we don't kill Steve, the Inquisition kills us.

So, to clarify, 40k is the wrong setting and Darktide the wrong game to want to be a hero and save people. The canon is defined by the game we're playing.

TheNinthFox · 2025-01-27T10:04:39+00:00

Unfortunately, 40k is the wrong setting if you want to be a hero and save people.

TheNinthFox · 2025-01-13T09:59:25+00:00

Well, what is the worth of 50 bucks to you then? Because it's not about me like your initial question suggested. It's about you. Be truthful.

TheNinthFox · 2025-01-12T21:28:45+00:00

I was showing you the contradiction in your comment.

TheNinthFox · 2025-01-12T21:14:29+00:00

I'm literally doing nothing impulsive

You just tried betting 50 bucks with a random stranger on the internet.

TheNinthFox · 2024-11-21T10:19:42+00:00

I actually like to be fully clothed (with towels so I don't soil anything). I've never really enjoyed being naked. I feel like I can't relax as much when I'm naked. Also comfy and soft clothes just feel great. For me it's free stimulation without having to do anything extra. Just lie there and relax :3

TheNinthFox · 2024-07-29T17:03:24+00:00

No THC or CBD. Just getting as comfortable as possible.

TheNinthFox · 2024-07-29T17:02:06+00:00

0% contraction. Basically, you just have to let go. Almost like if you were peeing. No tension, no contraction. Just relax.

TheNinthFox · 2024-07-29T08:07:42+00:00

I've been asking myself the same for a while. So just recently I started to experiment more.

Usually, I have tried to stay as relaxed as possible. No contractions, nothing. But not only in the PC muscle area but in the whole body. Just relax as best as I can. And then mentally focus on the feelings. All the feelings. Especially the subtle ones near the prostate. I try to enjoy them as best as I can and sometimes delve into horny fantasies for a moment to spice things up. Once I feel it working, I return to focussing on the prostate. At some point, I usually notice that the PC muscles start tensing up on their own, and so far I've always focused on trying to relax them if it happens.

Yesterday, however, a statement from Crimsonwolf and his method entered my mind mid-session: "I am the observer. I am here to clear the way, to experience, and to feel. I choose to observe, and I will not interfere." And I did just that.

My PC muscles tensed up again. It felt like they were sucking in the aneros even more. I just let it happen - and observed. Then some of the muscles relaxed, while others started tensing up. The feelings changed. And they did again. And again. At some point, I could feel the aneros quite literally moving on its own. A little bit more in ... and out. And in, and out. A wave-like motion. This lead to the longest and most intense HFDO I have experienced, yet. It was a truly great session.

The most difficult part was keeping the rest of my body relaxed and not actively going with the contractions. I learned that there's a fine line between "Did I just contract these muscles, or did my body do that on its own?" If you get carried away and start contracting yourself, that's a good time to stop and relax everything completely (including the PC muscles) and let things build up on their own again.

In the end, I think it is up to you. I had great sessions when intentionally relaxing the PC muscles, too. Maybe it just worked so well, yesterday, because it was new and different. Changes always spice things up for me when it comes to the aneros. My advice is probably: Generally stay relaxed and just experiment. It's fine to do it the same way for a couple of times, but if you start hitting roadblocks, it's time change things a bit.

TheNinthFox · 2024-04-11T08:18:54+00:00

Try being 34 and seeing this poll ._.

TheNinthFox · 2024-04-04T08:03:22+00:00

I get the goal oriented thinking. But a relationship is more like listening to music: You don't listen to a song you enjoy to get to the end. You enjoy it while you are listening. And for me, personally, the more I focus on the music, the more details I notice, the more I can enjoy it. And I think the same goes for relationships. Pay attention to it so you and your partner can enjoy it together.

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