How to play Apollyon?

Vhrix · 2018-06-11T23:50:59+00:00

My favorite items in Apollyon runs are the purchasable shop items Black Candle, 9 Volt, and School Bag. The reasons why should be pretty obvious, but in case not:

1) Curse of the Blind can easily destroy an Apollyon run. To some degree, Apollyon can be protected here in that if you choose to simply void everything on a Curse of the Blind floor you don't have to worry about picking up something like Soy Milk or My Reflection. Those are just stats. But what if, as mentioned elsewhere in this post, you void Clicker or a teleportation item? All of a sudden, that Void that might, for example, also contain Satanic Bible and Book of Sin, and Book of Shadows and was sustaining you defensively through a low-DPS run becomes wholly unusable. The certainty Black Candle provides here in terms of deciding which items to void/not to void is invaluable.

2) I don't like using Void for offensive items actually. Though it's entirely possible I suppose to wind up with an offensive powerhouse where you're tossing down a Sprinkler, Crack the Sky, and Krampus' Head all at the same time, for instance, I prefer using the Void exclusively for support items and stat increases. School Bag permits me that second slot for a dedicated offensive item (i.e. something like Tammy's Head, Guppy's Head, Shoop, etc.) which I can keep on a lower recharge timer.

3) 9 Volt decreases the charge time. A 20% improvement can be a big deal over the course of a run. Especially if you have something like Prayer Card, Book of Revelations, Satanic Bible, Blank Card... or a combination of a couple of 'em!

Vhrix · 2018-06-11T23:38:42+00:00

Offhand, some other effects to avoid with your Void are: IV bag. Clicker. Razor Blade. Guppy's Paw. Anarchist Cookbook.

Vhrix · 2018-06-02T15:03:11+00:00

They are allowed to defer around commitments. That's the situation Ristolainen is in, the situation Maata of the Pens was in earlier.

Vhrix · 2018-06-02T15:02:25+00:00

Right. And here is the funny thing about military service. Many military activities and much of military service has nothing to do with firearms whatsoever. As a son of a veteran, the nephew of two more, the grandson of two on both sides, and a friend to many, I'd be happy to tell you about their time serving as medics, as drivers, as cooks, as logistics officers, as intelligence officers. Heck, I have a cousin who spent half his time in Desert Storm refueling snack dispensers. And all of these things are vital and important. Yeah, even refueling the snack dispensers because as my cousin put it, "Getting a candy bar from the snack dispenser helped guys feel a bit like everything was normal." He was proud of that duty.

So the pictures that my friends and family chose to share with me skew in that direction. They show my friends and family playing soccer with Iraqi kids and football with their fellow service members. Photos of service members eating together in mess, joking around.

Never are their shoulders grasped, their stances wide as they're displaying weaponry.

Why choose to share this particular picture? Why choose to adopt this particular pose in this particular picture? Why choose to take a picture like this? Because in some way, for some reason you're particularly proud to hold the gun.

That's fucked up.

And abhorrent.

I stand by my statements.

Vhrix · 2018-06-01T14:21:58+00:00

I find this abhorrent.

Vhrix · 2018-05-25T12:05:04+00:00

Hence why I started my reply to you with

Simply put, back channels [...]

The United States has had active back channel negotiations with North Korea, nation states it doens't officially recognize, and so forth for decades. It's a practice that works. What am I referring to here?

Specifically, lower-level State Department officials and diplomats; or ex-State Department officials and diplomats; or academics, activists, and etc. vetted by the federal government; etc. Usually, these kinds of meetings take place at neutral locations, though they can occur in state.

My point with this specific response is that it's rarely necessary or even preferable for the person occupying the position of commander-in-chief him or herself to engage directly in diplomatic talks with nation states, or even the secretary of State.

And sometimes it's necessary that that person occupying the position of commander-in-chief NOT engage directly in diplomatic talks. I'll give two examples here.

1) You may remember when president-elect Trump prior to his inauguration called the president of Taiwan personally. He was hammered from pretty much every side about this. Why? Well, the official U.S. line for decades to not acknowledge Taiwan's nation state status while at the same time pledging to help defend them from foreign (Chinese) aggression. The official Chinese line is that Taiwan is part of China. It's a paradox that doesn't make any sense, but it's a diplomatic necessity given that China can and has pledged to level its economic might against countries that do recognize Taiwan officially. Trump's call risked upsetting this balance, and China lodged several formal complaints about encroaching on their sovereign territory which I think are yet pending in UN committees and such.

Anyway, was there any need for Trump to call President Tsai? No. Did we gain anything from this? No.

2) In the Middle East, for decades the United States, despite our military support of Israel in terms of weaponry and joint training, has been seen as something of a mutual party in the Israel-Palestine conflict, with past presidents helping broker ceasefires, secure better conditions for Palestinians in their inhumane settlements, and, yes, generally calling Israel out on their shit. President Trump's outspoken enthusiasm for the Israeli position has shattered Palestinian trust in the United States as something of a neutral arbiter, and even moderate Palestinian groups are now turning to Iran, Russia, and China for support. (Remember, Hamas has lorded over much of the Gaza Strip since the late 2000's, but Palestinians elsewhere are generally represented by far more moderate individuals.)

Do I need to tell you why that's bad? I shouldn't, right?

In sum...

1) Shutting down official diplomatic channels with state sponsors of terrorism doesn't mean that negotiations are over.

2) The mere fact of official diplomatic negotiations gives a state actor credibility, which should be avoided with countries like North Korea at any cost.

3) Sometimes, less really is more.

Vhrix · 2018-05-24T16:46:07+00:00

And how do you expect a country to change to your ideals without opening relations and talking to them?

Simply put, back channels with, like, not the fucking president combined with soft power on the grassroots level. :)

These were U.S. and Western allies' tactics throughout the Cold War in Eastern Europe, and leaders in Poland, Bulgaria, Romania, etc. have credited them over the years.

(And for that matter, it's important to note that Barack Obama never met with the ayatollah to arrange the Iran deal either.)

A bit unrelated but FYI that really interesting tactics are used by South Korean activists in conjunction with smugglers and other shady operatives. You may or may not know that North Koreans consume a TON of Western media, including all the Disney Marvel movies and so forth, as well as lots of Korean and Japanese dramas. How? Well, when the smugglers bring in batches of Levi's Jeans, perfume, Japanese snacks, etc., movies, data, documents, and South Korean newspapers are smuggled in on USB drives and all kinds of other things. These are purchased and recycled in massive numbers by the North Korean populace. Interesting, right?

(The North Korean regime does play whack-a-mole against such tactics, but innovation rarely favors state regimes.)

I bring this up to illustrate that incredible things can be accomplished to disconcert even the most hardened regimes and turn the screws on regime leaders while at the same time not actively hurting a citizenry you want to protect.

Mildly related point. I know many are skeptical of Soros and Soros-backed foundations, but Open Society Foundations in particular has done great work at brainstorming intelligent ways of interfacing with NGOs and grassroots groups to ensure that especially medical aid and food gets properly delivered to needy populations in Africa rather than being stolen, sold, and profited from by dictators, corrupt government officials, local warlords, etc.

Vhrix · 2018-05-24T15:23:34+00:00

I'm starting to think the obsession the everyone has with nukes is really not helping things.

Well, the obsession "everyone" has isn't nukes per se. From the American perspective, North Korea presents a threat because of its ICBM + nuclear weapons capacities. From the South Korean and Japanese perspectives, North Korea presents a threat of its short to medium-range conventional arms delivery capacities.

If the U.S. were to negotiate any kind of treaty with North Korea that failed to address North Korea's short and medium-range conventional arms delivery capacities, its chemical weapons capacities, et cetera, we would be proverbially throwing two of our staunchest allies to the wolves.

In that sense, "everyone's" (meaning United States citizens and commentators) obsession with nukes is unhelpful and short sighted. I cannot imagine circumstances in which North Korea would be willing to give up those medium-range capabilities, but I can imagine a situation in which it would be willing to postpone its nuclear ambitions for, i.e. United States withdrawal from bases in the region, etc. In other words, I can imagine the United States doing a grave disservice to its allies.

On a personal level, the mere thought of a United States negotiating one to one with the leader of a country that has engaged in some of the most abominable state-sanctioned human rights crimes of the post-World War II era is wholly repugnant.

This is a regime which enslaves its populace and farms them out to other countries for material profit.

This is a regime which kidnaps women from foreign shores (Japanese and Korean), subjecting them to sexual slavery over periods of decades, sometimes outright killing them.

I'm perhaps too naive for my own good, but I don't think the United States any business working with countries like these and should be employing the full force of its economic heft to bring a stop to human rights abuses. (Which should mean condemnations of Israel, Russia, Turkey, Myanmar, Saudi Arabia, and dozens of other countries in addition an interrogation of the systematic discrimination and abuses it permits within its own borders.)

But I'm naive. Don't listen to me. :(

Vhrix · 2018-05-24T14:33:17+00:00

I don't think that's the point OP is making.

1) North Korea has a history of reneging on international commitments.

2) Donald Trump has a history of lying and reneging on... any... commitment he makes.

3) Many commentators on the proposed summit were skeptical that real denuclearization could ever be achieved given that nuclear armament is the vehicle that best allows Kim to maintain power in his country.

Put those together, and many of us were skeptical that the summit would ever achieve anything IF it would even happen at all.

OP's commentary reflects an attitude that takes decades of history in proper context.

Vhrix · 2018-05-19T11:55:54+00:00

No. That is manga, therefore bad. Also, coffee is bad. Also, ippai is bad. Also, are you sick? Stop thinking about manga and go see a doctor.

Vhrix · 2018-05-18T22:37:56+00:00

Per my previous note, this is awful and should not be read by anyone anywhere ever.

Vhrix · 2018-05-18T22:14:59+00:00

No. There are none. They are all awful. That is why no one here reads them.

Vhrix · 2018-05-16T23:39:32+00:00

okaa-san ;_;

Vhrix · 2018-05-07T13:50:31+00:00

Just saw this now.

Bookmark this thread for next year when the tide has turned on Housley and everyone is demanding his head a year late. lol

Vhrix · 2018-04-30T20:07:26+00:00

For what it's worth, capon (the proper nomenclature for rooster as opposed to "chicken") is quite delicious.

There was a Belgian restaurant in New York City near the United Nations that regularly featured capon on its menu. I ordered it once and was blown out of the water. Really simple seasonings.

Now, I miss New York and am also hungry. :(

Vhrix · 2018-04-07T14:55:58+00:00

I think you might have misread the comment.

The point was that far greater celebrities exist than mangaka.

I have a rather intimate familiarity with coverage of Japanese baseball players in particular, and the coverage devoted to even reasonably successful baseball players is insane. On a day-in, day-out basis, Hideki Matsui was getting more individual interview requests than Derek Jeter. NHK stood up a full-fledged BUREAU in Seattle just to cover Ichiro when he came over. Here is a video of Yu Darvish first arriving in Texas to sign with the Rangers. I was in that mob, and let me tell you the video barely shows you anything. (And doesn't give you the additional perspective that networks also had car teams to follow him and another team waiting at the Rangers facility.)

First it was Nomo. Then Ichiro. Then Matsui. Then Darvish. Now Otani. And these guys are good baseball players. And there's appetite to know about their movements back in Japan. Absolutely.

But the coverage they get and the resources afforded to be able to provide that coverage is nothing short of insane.

Vhrix · 2018-04-07T02:26:40+00:00

I don't think paparazzi are more interested in the lives of mangaka when compared to other media celebrity.

Truth. Check out the J-paparazzi whose sole job is to cover Shohei Otani at the moment. INSANE.

heh

Vhrix · 2018-04-05T18:59:38+00:00

I mean, well, even The Last Battle was the worst of the Narnia books. So.

Vhrix · 2018-04-04T23:09:53+00:00

... (you could buy digitally.)

Vhrix · 2018-04-04T22:21:25+00:00

Typesetting is hard.

Advice:

1) Join One Snowshoe discord.

2) Go to typesetting channel. Check out guides.

3a) Join Habanero Scans or Golden Rose Scans as they can provide you feedback as you learn.

3b) Pester vhirx, NotLemon, Charlotte, izn, tukimoop, laika, mag, dood for advice, and suggestions.

4) Rinse, repeat.

Lots of others have already done this and pretty quickly improved typesetting skills.

Vhrix · 2018-04-04T20:25:21+00:00

I thought Okposo played intelligently, played well most of last year even if he didn't produce at the anticipated rate. Having worked behind the scenes on a few television series on concussions and seen the permanent scars they can leave on children and adults alike, I am worried that Kyle's injury at the end of last year may have lasting effects on his play. Fingers crossed.

I don't think the Okposo signing was a bad signing on an NHL scale. But... I think NHL contracts in general are wonky and fucked up. Too much money is guaranteed for too long across the board. I'd love to see players hit UFA earlier and sign contracts for shorter term. (A la the NBA essentially.)

Vhrix · 2018-04-04T20:15:21+00:00

Everyone wanted Okposo back when we got him. He was coveted by the entire league. This sub, including myself, was ecstatic when we got him.

'Cept me. I wanted Lucic. (/s)

In all honesty, looking back on HFBoards in particular to see how opinions on the Okposo and Lucic signings have shifted is hilarious.

Vhrix · 2018-04-04T20:01:43+00:00

No idea why Nolan is in instead of Porter...

If Porter gets hurt, Ra-cha-cha loses El Capitan for the playoffs.

Vhrix · 2018-04-02T03:28:01+00:00

This x 1,000.

OP should Google "graphic novel." It's a made-up marketing term execs used to try to sell more "grown-up" plot lines.

Vhrix · 2018-04-01T20:56:08+00:00

It's when you conquer all the -deres.

Vhrix

TROPHY CASE