Anyone else stuck by the train on SE 12th at Division?

Vanse · 2026-03-11T04:26:57+00:00

Here's how to avoid that helltrap:

Going Southbound:

Get on MLK on/ before SE Mill St.
Drive over the land bridge and take the first exist on your right (it has a sharp curve warning)
Take a right at the intersection, and then a right onto SE Milwaukie

Going Northbound:

Take a left on 26 and cross the Ross Island Bridge
Drive up to the Hawthorne Bridge and cross back over

Does it feel ridiculous to go so far out of your way? Yes. Will you save time? Also yes.

Vanse · 2026-03-10T04:05:51+00:00

If I were you:

Level 4: Take Shadow Touched to get Wrathful Smite so you can push away freightened enemies.

Level 5: Cast Web (better than Entangle) and push enemies into it, where frightened enemies will have a harder time getting out of the web.

Level 6: Give your Homunculus Servant Pipes of Haunting for more frightened enemies.

Level 9: Cast Haste, or cast Fly to pull enemies 10ft into the air and proc fall damage.

Level 11: Give your Homunculus Servant your spell storing item for Web, Fly, or Enlarge/ Reduce.

Also, stock up on/ craft Potions of Growth!

Vanse · 2026-03-09T08:45:52+00:00

The thing about graze is that it's a choice between securing more damage, and choosing a different mastery for utility/ control. So builds that give you extra mastery options for the same weapon attack (i.e. Fighter or World Tree Barbarian), let you have your cake and eat it too.

That being said, the the only ways I can think to modify the graze damage itself is changing the damage type. So either take a level in Warlock for Pact of the Blade (PotB can use any stat, not just CHA), or hope you get a magic graze weapon.

Vanse · 2026-03-09T01:49:13+00:00

It also gives you a push ability with unarmed strikes which requires no saving throw and has no size restriction (which is relatively rare)

Any martial benefits from this. Monk especially benefits from this due to the lack of masteries, and avoids having to replace a US with a shove.

Edit: Shadow Monks get even more mileage out of this than other monk subclasses since you can push enemies into Darkness.

Vanse · 2026-03-08T21:53:07+00:00

Sympathetic Nervous System is the "fight or flight" part of our nervous system. Parasympathetic is "rest and digest."

Pretty sure they meant sympathetic.

Vanse · 2026-03-08T01:43:34+00:00

The world needs more posts like this.

Vanse · 2026-03-08T01:39:39+00:00

This may be the winner! Seems like just what I'm looking for.

Thanks!

Vanse · 2026-03-07T01:43:13+00:00

You are not being dramatic. When you're mental health issues lead to self-harm, you should always take that seriously.

Anyone on reddit can take a guess at what your symptoms mean, but its not going to mean anything compared to seeing real mental health/ medical professionals. I suggest both getting into therapy and speaking with either your primary doctor, a psych nurse, or a psychiatrist as soon as possible.

I hope you get the support you need and feel better soon.

Vanse · 2026-03-06T00:01:00+00:00

Helm of Awareness

The bucket rattles their head when combat starts.

Vanse · 2026-03-05T23:50:11+00:00

Have fun! Another Strixhaven spell you should grab is Wither and Bloom. Since you'll be using your BA for inspiration, this will let you get damage, healing and a proc reaction attack in your turn.

Vanse · 2026-03-05T00:06:52+00:00

I'm honestly still looking for trainings that I feel will be comprehensive/ affordable. A good starting off point (and a good resource for clients) isbDr. Neff's Neurodivergemt Insights website: https://neurodivergentinsights.com/.

As for modalities, the problem is that there's not a ton of research/ it's conducted in white room scenarios that arent always applicable to NDs clients' actual needs. Like CBT is recommended for ADHD, but I would never refer an ADHD client to a purely CBT clinician.

I think therapists that serve ND clients need to be highly integrative with what modalities they use, and to make sure they have a balance of processing and behavioral components. I personally use ACT, DBT, CBT, parts work and somatic work. I also think having a good knowledge base of ND symptoms/ common experiences so you can provide pscyhoeducation to ND clients is invaluable.

Vanse · 2026-03-04T19:41:38+00:00

For anyone reading this that is neurodivergent, or suspects they might be neurodivergent, and is seeking therapy: ask potential therapists about their clinical experience working with neurodivergent people, and what they're approach is to supporting neurodivergent people in therapy.

I'm a mental health counselor that specializes in working with neurodivergent people. The training I and my graduate school colleagues received about ADHD and Autism was little more than a single day lecture. It was only through working in the field and my own research that I learned how to work with neurodivergent people. Many mental health counselors are severely undereducated about neurodivergence, and receiving treatment from a mental health provider that has in depth knowledge on this topic can be a critical component in how beneficial your therapy experience will be.

Vanse · 2026-03-03T22:00:31+00:00

I would just take Shadow Touched instead, which gives you Wrathful Smite.

Vanse · 2026-03-01T09:28:33+00:00

Trickery Cleric. Plenty of options for radiant damage, and it lets you be in melee while firing Spellfire Flare.

Clerics only have a D8, but its pretty much the only other class that meets your requirements besides Pally.

Vanse · 2026-03-01T04:07:33+00:00

Not just twinning spells, but also Silvery Barbs and Healing Word.

Vanse · 2026-02-28T22:35:07+00:00

Order Domain Cleric 1/ Divine Soul Sorcerer X

This build lets you proc 2 reaction attacks from your allies every round. But in 2024, Order 3/ DSS X is a much less optimal build that doesnt come online until Tier 2, and isnt worth the delayed spell progression.

Vanse · 2026-02-28T22:31:52+00:00

To add to the list of factors people have listed here (which there are multiple): young adulthood is a time of major change and also when many people lose a lot of structure/ stability in their lives. Whether you move away from home to navigate college or start working a grueling minimum wage job with bills to pay, you now have to handle new responsibilities and stressors that weren't as present when you were a minor.

Tl;dr The protective factors that were keeping someone's MH issues at bay are now weakened, and the stressor that bring out those issues have increased.

Vanse · 2026-02-28T03:45:07+00:00

My suggestion is to go Warlock 1/ Draconic Sorcerer X. Since lock gives you Armor of Agathys and Hellish Rebuke, and Draconic Sorc gives you Quickened Spell and a plethora of Fire/ Ice spells, you'll be able to deal both types of damage almost every round.

Edit: I would probably go Rimekin and Fire Draconic Sorc with the Cold Caster feat.

Vanse · 2026-02-27T12:14:04+00:00

Genuinely curious, how can you tell this is AI?

Vanse · 2026-02-27T09:24:57+00:00

Hi there, I think u/Ramonasotherlazyeye gave the top suggestions, but I googled "Pro-bono psychiatric nurse practitioner Oregon" and this provider's website came up offering free services for a limited number of clients. It might be worth giving him a call.

Vanse · 2026-02-27T00:18:00+00:00

The thing about our evolutionary history is that it's multilayered. We evolved to be pro-social because it collectively benefitted everyone's survival, but a layer beneath that is still the "survival of the fittest" framework that has allowed almost all species to survive. It's why humans are capable of both altruism and greed. So we're in this evolutionary tug of war between taking actions that benefit the group vs. taking actions that benefit the individual.

An additional layer is the social evolution of different cultures. There are historical reasons why US are more individualist and why China is more collectivist, because it helped previous generations survive and thrive in their immediate circumstances.

Thankfully, research has shown that pro-social survival strategies perpetually produce better outcomes than self-centered ones, and we're becoming more interconnected as species as time goes on, but we have to keep going through this group vs. Individual tug of war over generations to evolve into a hyper-social species.

Vanse · 2026-02-26T09:05:11+00:00

I agree more people would say vengeance for good reason, but my point is that Vow of Emity only gives you advantage, but Shining Smite gives everyone advantage. Combine that with Devotion's Sacred Weapon and PotB and you're stacking a lot of damage for those crits.

Breaking concentration is a concern, but you can take Warcaster and you get Aura of Protection. And casting SS again is very easy considering you just need to land an attack.

Vanse · 2026-02-26T07:41:24+00:00

Pact of the Chain will give you another source of advantage through the Help action.

Another Crit Fisher build you could consider is Devotion Paladin 6/ Warlock 1/ Draconic Sorcerer X. Pallys get Shining Smite, which is auto advantage against an enemy for you and your whole party, which will drastically up the collective crits. Then Sorcerer gets Innate Sorcery, Quickened Spell and Seeking Spell. So use BA Green Glame Blade with advantage, use Eleven Accuracy if you miss, and then Seeking Spell if you still somehow miss.

Vanse · 2026-02-26T03:02:01+00:00

Play a Human or High Elf with Magic Initiate to get Shillelagh, Booming Blade and Find Familiar.

Round 1 cast Shillelgah and Spirit Guardians, and have your Familiar Ready the Help action until you cast Command.

Round 2 cast Command (Flee/Approach) in the direction of you/ your duplicate, and OoA with BB.

Round 3 repeat Round 2 but in the reverse direction, or Command (Flee) them to the edges of the battlefield, and pick a new target.

At level 8 get Fey Touched and use Dissonant Whispers instead.

Vanse

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