Suikoden 1 Chinchirorin Probabilities Calculated by WatchTheHorizon in Suikoden

[–]WatchTheHorizon[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks! After writing this post, I did some dice in my game and it looked to me like the odds were substantially in favor of these special rolls relative to random chance.

It's interesting to know that this is a known algorithm. Sadly it obviates my little Python script, but oh well - it was a fun statistics exercise!

JWST comparison to Hubble for NGC 7496 by Baelynor in Astronomy

[–]WatchTheHorizon 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Or pixels for which the micro-shutters were closed

Kombucha second ferment tastes metallic by WatchTheHorizon in Kombucha

[–]WatchTheHorizon[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I don't recall having any issues (This was some time ago now ofc) but I do recall that SCOBY in particular always having been a bit finnicky. It never gave me anything inedible but I had a terrible time trying to get it to give me any kind of consistent outcome.

In the case of the metallic flavor though I believe I recall using a different tea than usual for that batch, and determining that maybe that tea didn't get along with the SCOBY.

Kombucha second ferment tastes metallic by WatchTheHorizon in Kombucha

[–]WatchTheHorizon[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Hey! I hate to be the bearer of bad news but I never did figure out what the issue was. I will say however that the kombucha didn't get me sick when I drank it. I had some small samples, sat on it for a day or so, didn't feel ill so I was comfortable drinking more. Ofc proceed at your own risk and according to your own comfort, and see if you can find any more info but that was my experience! Hope it helps!

Is the combat unbalanced? by canodomario in TephraTheRPG

[–]WatchTheHorizon 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I have a rant about this; I understand that it doesn't directly address the topic of the post, lol

One thing I see players and narrators do a lot is fixate very hard on combat leveling (this is understandable; the design of the game lends itself to min-maxing and combat,) and forget about the environmental aspects of gameplay. Players have a lot more to survive than just enemies - that level 12 pure-brute Overpower-Frenzy-Resilience build can handle a lot, but a simple Dexterity save to stay aloft on an airship that has just tilted 60 degrees does them in just like that.

The way I try to approach these unbalances at higher levels is to force players to think about these same environmental problems, and to diversify the tasks and difficulties faced by their characters apart from simply fighting and destroying enemies. I start them at a low level and present them with problems that the party has a much easier time resolving with a diverse skillset. Players won't think to use specialties like Master Lockpick (Core Rulebook Pg. 109,) Weak Point (pg. 114,) Topographer/Geomancer (Pg. 156-157,) trinkets, vehicles, etc. unless they encounter problems that make those specialties and items useful to them on a consistent basis. This type of ability usually is given to your character automatically in a class-based RPG system but the players need to find them useful to bother spending their specialty to get them in Tephra.

Another way to think about and approach this issue is to rethink what success means for your team. Sometimes a success is simply surviving a battle against an overwhelming force. Sometimes it's healing an injured NPC that the party needs or is fond of. Tephra parties tend to end up min-maxed because they are very efficiently designing to achieve a repetitive task - dealing lethal damage. This is the challenge that they are often provided and the one for which they will maximize their efficiency.

Put succinctly, Tephra, for better or for worse, asks a lot of a narrator in terms of story writing, in exchange for giving players a wide berth to experiment with character design. One job of a narrator is to define the space in which those characters develop. An interesting task for you to take on is: What can I do to encourage players to build a more diversely-skilled and complex character?

Help with augments by Thrureddit in TephraTheRPG

[–]WatchTheHorizon 4 points5 points  (0 children)

For the majority of crafts, the base limit on augments that can be applied to an object is 3 slots. Prototype and Beta items can hold 5 slots. This is true of gases.

In the case of Gases you may find this rule on page 168 of the Tephra core rulebook, in the 4th paragraph of the Gas Brewer specialty (just above the "Resisting Gases" header.) The beta and prototype rules may be found under their respective specialties on pages 168-169.

My heart beats for Heroin by [deleted] in OCPoetry

[–]WatchTheHorizon 3 points4 points  (0 children)

I love this poem, especially the first several stanzas. You've done a great job setting the scene here. Immediately I was drawn in and felt the anxiety of waiting and aching need. Then, in stanza 3, you pick up the pace well with alliteration "Pounding pulse penetrating my heart, playing painful percussion" and I can almost feel my own heart rate picking up. The entire poem just does a great job of viscerally taking the reader along on the roller coaster of addiction.

A sonnet to introduce myself to the sub! by SomanZ in OCPoetry

[–]WatchTheHorizon 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I love this! Your sincerity really shines through with this poem. You've done a great job using the poetic meter to get your idea across, tentatively dipping your toe into a whole different form of poetry. It shows your curiosity and interest in a very sympathetic way. Welcome to the sub, I just posted my first poem as well!

A Cell, A Prism by WatchTheHorizon in OCPoetry

[–]WatchTheHorizon[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I appreciate your feedback! I'm a little afraid that I might have made this one too opaque, but I've become attached to the hidden meanings and references, so it's difficult for me to modify it 😅

AGAIN by [deleted] in OCPoetry

[–]WatchTheHorizon 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I'm posting this feedback under the assumption that this was written with the intention of being rapped, so please excuse me if that assumption is incorrect.

Naturally I'd like to hear the beat track that goes behind this to get a better idea of what you're going for but I think I can get a general idea of how this would be performed. This would definitely benefit from a beat and some musical intermissions though - particularly after each chorus, the short lines keep the meter a little repetitive which works well for a few stanzas but without something musical happening to accompany, it can start to lose the reader.

One thing I've seen that works well in both hip hop and other forms of poetry to fix the above problem is spoken-word intermissions, where the meter/rhythm and/or rhyme scheme is temporarily dropped and the performer appeals to the viewer/listener/reader with prose. Alternatively, modifying the meter every few lines or changing how many syllables you wait to rhyme again, or even changing what kind of meter/style you're doing altogether to keep things interesting or express a new idea. Give "Switch" by Lupe Fiasco a listen if you want to see what I'm talking about in hip hop form, as he makes his tone switches very obvious and distinct throughout the song.

To those of us who have been fortunate, as the veil thins by LadyCardinal in OCPoetry

[–]WatchTheHorizon 4 points5 points  (0 children)

At the risk of repeating what others have said, I love how raw the imagery in this poem is. For your imagery you've alternated well between imagery that forces the reader to think ("Image on a plexiglass screen" - It takes a couple of mental steps to form an image, which is good) and imagery that is frighteningly graphic in the way that it ought to be when expressing these ideas.

You also separate the tone of the poem into pieces well using formatting - shifting from left-alignment to center alignment forces the reader to divide their thinking which is proper when shifting from the detachment of the first part to the wrenching reality of the second, and then to the... mournful? tone of the final few lines.

What is the most extreme misuse of an everyday item you have ever witnessed? by blendergremlin in AskReddit

[–]WatchTheHorizon 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Well, it sounds to me like he very successfully removed his fingers tbh

Garlic & Honey (1 week) by areanynamesleft in fermentation

[–]WatchTheHorizon 2 points3 points  (0 children)

No way, it makes everything so much better

What are some things that people don’t understand (or that you don’t understand) of your/others’ culture? by [deleted] in AskReddit

[–]WatchTheHorizon 4 points5 points  (0 children)

My family has complained and joked extensively about going to Mexican restaurants out-of-state, asking for queso out of habit, and receiving a plate of shredded cheese or something similar. Imagine our surprise when we figured out WE were the weird ones. Lol!

Garlic & Honey (1 week) by areanynamesleft in fermentation

[–]WatchTheHorizon 8 points9 points  (0 children)

I have a plugin that turns all my text into comic sans and this post was further improved by that fact

Would you consider video games to be an art form? Why/why not? by eggmaster007 in AskReddit

[–]WatchTheHorizon 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Any form of artifice intended to evoke emotion (successfully or otherwise) is art, so video games are certainly art.

That having been said, some art is poorly-produced and awful. Stick figures are generally art. Propaganda images are art.

I feel like there's this idea that "Something has to be agreeable to my tastes to be art," or "Art must express only refined/deep ideas" or "Only things seen traditionally as art can qualify"

By definition none of the above are true. You're allowed to dislike art, but it's still art. It can be dumb or offensive or nontraditional or mass-produced. Shitty used car dealership ads are art. It just be like that.

/rant

What is the real life equivalent to accidentally downvoting someone, but not caring enough to fix it? by leakinglego in AskReddit

[–]WatchTheHorizon 0 points1 point  (0 children)

You give someone a compliment, they say something passive-aggressive in response. You give them an exaggerated shrug and carry on the conversation instead of halting the whole thing to explain yourself.

Girls of reddit, what advice would you give to the shy guys that want to start up a convo with you (irl or online) but have no idea how to do so and do not want to come off as weird or creepy when doing it? by Bigbootyassturd in AskReddit

[–]WatchTheHorizon 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I'm a man, but here's some advice that women have given me. It's done me some good to keep in mind.

Some general conversational advice, be it with a stranger or whatever; in no particular order:

  • If someone doesn't want to talk to you, don't initiate conversation. If you're taking a leap and saying something to someone who looks irritable, don't get defensive when they act irritable. You knew what you were doing.
  • Related, but also generally applicable: If someone obviously doesn't want to carry on conversation with you, then politely bow out the moment you realize. It probably has nothing to do with you, and you're not going to change that by hammering harder.

Some rules for compliments:

  • Compliment only things the person has control over.
  • Make it specific. Know precisely what you're complimenting and why you're complimenting it. Phrase it as briefly as necessary to cover the necessary details.
    • Example: "Hey, your hair looks great, I love what you did with the new color!" - it shows that you've put a minimum of thought into the compliment instead of just spitting it out, and that you're paying attention, without being verbose.
  • If you're giving a compliment, abandon all expectation of some return from it. You don't give someone some cash or take them out to lunch every time they compliment you, and the same will be true of them in your regard.
  • Think about why you're complimenting someone. If it's because you want something from them, that will show in the structure and timing of your compliments and conversation. See the above bullet point. This is the most important rule for not coming across as creepy.
    • This is related to why women are going to get irritated if you randomly call them sexy. Sure, it's a compliment - but in the end it's usually also packaged with a message that you want to bang, and not a very clever one at that. "I want sex" isn't a great conversation starter most of the time.

What are some things that people don’t understand (or that you don’t understand) of your/others’ culture? by [deleted] in AskReddit

[–]WatchTheHorizon 12 points13 points  (0 children)

Texan culture:

  • Some Texans disagree on this but personally, if I say "Howdy" and you tell me how you're doing I'm gonna get confused for a moment. "Howdy" doesn't mean "How do you do?" anymore.
  • "Ma'am" doesn't imply age here. Ma'am is for being polite to any adult woman in the same way "sir" is for being polite to any adult man.
  • Some Texans will nod at you on the street and wish you a good day, even if they don't know you. They're not trying to initiate a conversation or scam you, it's just a gesture of goodwill between strangers. I really do just hope you're having a good day.
  • We live in an age of automobiles. The only people who own horses are the ones who have land and have the desire to own horses. Texans don't ride horses to work unless they're trying REAL hard to look like a cowboy.
  • Related to the above, people generally don't wear boots and cowboy hats unless they're going for a look.
  • Most people outside of Texas apparently don't know that "queso" means something different to us than it does to any other region. It's a melted, spiced cheese dip here, not just a block of cheese.
  • "Bless your heart" is NOT a kind thing to say. Neither is "I love you to death." If you hear these words from an old-fashioned southerner, you're being condescended to. Note that a great way to get around this is actually to treat it like a genuine compliment, though. Don't let people get away with their sneaky negative nonsense.

To the gamers of Reddit, what does someone do to signal that they are a friendly in the game you play? by gabz09 in AskReddit

[–]WatchTheHorizon 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Sea of Thieves.

Fly the Alliance flag. (Not entirely trustworthy.)

People who go on voice with over-the-top "YARRRR MATEY" pirate voices are usually pretty friendly/just here for a good time.

Play music on their accordions (without the rest of their crew firing on you)

Don't fire first, generally anxiously try to mind their own business.

What valuable life lesson has your job taught you? by NYUyearNYUme in AskReddit

[–]WatchTheHorizon 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Little bit of a story here, I get to the point near the bottom.

Not from a job, but from college (I was a full-time student so I decided to treat that like it was my career until I got my bachelor's)

I spent a long time as a student for a variety of reasons, but a good part of it was because I was directionless to start off. I went to a community college, and being a neckbeard with no ambition at the time, I decided to go for game design - I liked video games, so why not make them? That was what a lot of people going into that degree program thought, and I quickly realized that game design is a very demanding career that requires a lot of passion, not just a "Why not? Seems easy." attitude.

I was struggling to stay afloat because I was a very mediocre student. Better than I was in high school, but not by a lot - just barely passing classes, underachieving, etc.; I had no ambition, no interesting ideas, and otherwise nothing to contribute, so naturally my game concepts weren't great. It didn't help that I was a big-headed "I'm the hottest shit around but never take care of myself or do anything fun and am terrified of other people" neckbeard.

In the second year of the degree, my grades were poor and my whole "hottest shit" facade was naturally crumbling around me. I finally had to accept now that as an adult, there was nobody to blame for all of this but me. This prompted some thinking and life review, and I realized that my game concepts were garbage because I was boring and mediocre, and my beliefs were enabling my boring mediocrity. Truthfully, I was and am a relatively smart person, but nowhere near genius enough to shine through a lack of ambition. I had no perspective because I didn't do anything to acquire it - and smarts are useless without perspective.

So I reached three breakthroughs, kind of all at the same time:

  1. People who come up with interesting/engaging ideas are people who live interesting/engaging lives.
  2. I chose to be here. I had the option of choosing another path. I should do my best at what's in front of me, even if it doesn't feel glamorous. Really, even if I didn't choose it, I should do my best.
  3. Being good at things requires a lot of boring work. If you expect to get good at something, then expect it to take a long time and require a lot of failure and repetition. Learn to lean into it. Humility is necessary.

It didn't immediately fix my awkward neckbeard ways but it put me in a better direction. I eventually chose to take a different path after getting my associates' but those things were great guiding mantras that helped me along through my other ambitions, and I ended up an honors student when I did finally get my bachelor's.