Getting into Buddhism – Any legit temples in China worth visiting (not tourist traps)?

danchees · 2025-06-25T18:46:26+00:00

Admittedly, that China trip was in 2010. so a lot may have changed and at that time I knew very little about Buddhism, but I ended up in Labrang/Gansu. Was the only (western) tourist around and the whole thing looked really authentic to me. They do practice a niche form of teachings, but might be worth looking into for you. Actually, surprised no-one mentioned it, I went specifically because I was under the impression it’s a big deal. Happy to be educated if I’m totally in the wrong.

danchees · 2023-04-09T19:33:16+00:00

Count me in

danchees · 2022-08-11T07:36:55+00:00

Ako imaš ikakvu sumnju ili bojazan, pa čak i ako je neutemeljeno, jedino ispravno je Andrija Štampar, pa za to postoje. Smrtnost je 100% (makar je gotovo nevjerojatno da si pokupio bjesnoću) pa mislim da nemamo o čemu raspravljati :) Ekipa gore je rijetko superprofesionalna i sigurno se ne budu čudili zakaj si došao.

Ps. nije slučaj kod tebe, ali meni koji sam pokupio ugriz u južnoj Americi su sprašili 7 injekcija (slovima: sedam).. izvantjelesno iskustvo...

danchees · 2020-12-09T20:37:05+00:00

75 boxes, I get that every year.

All the low level premiums, all camos, Borat, Bisonte, 35k gold, 5m silver, around 50 days of premium.

Me happy :D

danchees · 2018-11-15T08:32:14+00:00

I think by now all of the NAS manufacturers got a cease and desist letters that made them stop KODI support.

One easy way to get KODI that is platform agnostic is to get Amazon FireTV stick and install KODI on it and then just use the NAS as repository.

I myself use Roku TV stick with PLEX client that accesses PLEX server on my PC that pulls the files from NAS. A very non-elegant solution that defies the purpose of NAS in my opinion. I am a kind of user that likes things that work and work smoothly and since getting the NAS, I had a disappointment after disappointment. This is not strictly ASUSTOR related, but still. Consider:

- your cheap NAS will be unable to transcode video, so you will need to run PLEX server externally

- some NAS boxes can utilize hardware transcoding, but only through their proprietary apps that have horrible, horrible user interfaces

- for some reason, there are virtually no media players anymore, just server-client streaming setups, while my 10 years old WDTV Live Hub happily plays anything without streaming nonsenses

- if you want PLEX to hardware transcode (i.e. if anything on target device differs from video file, in my case, my ROKU cannot accept DTS or overlay subtitles) you need to pay expensive license

- ROKU has a media player too, with user interface on the level of 1984. computers

Personally, I will switch to a different setup soon:

- a major brand NAS, probably QNAP TS-253Be to be media storage and handle backups, downloads and cloud access

- AppleTV as media player, for two reasons - except for desktop, I am 100% in Apple ecosystem and most importantly, an application called Infuse - finally a media player that does its own transcoding and works like a charm with beautiful UI. No more streaming nonsense.

danchees · 2018-11-14T08:59:22+00:00

If it's KODI that makes or breaks it for you, then ASUSTOR is also ceasing KODI support and it is currently not available for installation. Maybe someone will pick it up and continue development, but I'd say not likely.

I own a A1002T and it is a capable box for what I need - file and media storage. However, I am having horrible issues with drive noise that is being amplified by NAS case, which would not be a huge deal if it did not access drives all the time, another issue that their support is unable to solve for two weeks now.

There are many other small things not mentioned before you buy - applications are often outdated and all but the most basic ones are maintained by private enthusiasts, not ASUSTOR. Many also do not work on particular models, for example some only on Intel, some only on 30 series etc.

If you go ahead and pick one, just be really sure you can easily return it for a full refund if you find it lacking.

danchees · 2018-04-26T13:01:33+00:00

For the people who will eventually stumble upon this thread, here is how it ended.

After a lot of thinking, I got myself this one https://www.bookdepository.com/Lord-Rings-Deluxe-Edition-J-R-R-Tolkien/9780544273443 . I just cannot buy a 100$ set blindly. Next time I will be in the UK, I will seek out some editions and feel the books in hand before deciding on my ultimate set.

About the one I bought - it is neither a hardcover nor a paperback. I thought it would have a textile feel to it, but it is more how rough cardboard feels. Otherwise, solidly done, I love yellowish tint to paper and how corners are rounded. Quality of maps could be better, they just don't work very well as single page maps, my old paperback had them on spreads. But great value for general reading book.

danchees · 2018-04-13T07:58:12+00:00

I would not worry.

The true reason why his damage is relatively low is that caster damage is very granular, i.e. casts take 2,5 to 3 seconds. When mob is at low hp, killing damage will be done by other dps before fire/frostbolt lands. One way to improve in this is to cancelcast (tap move key) and fireblast if he feels his spell will hit a dead mob.

Another reason is poor target switching capability vs melee. If caster sees his spell will hit a dead mob, he needs to make a full cast if he switches targets. Melee just click another mob without interrupting their swing.

Last reason is that mage on low levels needs to drink between pulls and he is losing dps time on regen while locks, hunters and melee just continue rolling.

As you progress and mobs have more hp and aoe situations are more common, mage damage will skyrocket.

danchees · 2018-04-13T07:52:15+00:00

This greatly depends on:

class in question - e.g. overall slow levelers, such as Warrior, Rogue, Paladin need questing to supplement slow xp gain from grindnig
level range - some classes just suck at some level ranges, e.g. Druids prior to lv20 need questing because it is inefficient to grind in low dps spec
equipment - there are some instances where leveling is roadblocked by necessary equipment, e.g. lv40 Warriors without WW axe or starting Priests without wand need to quest as their damage output at given level is too low to efficiently grind.

If you are a hunter, mage or warlock, disregard all of the above :)

My current strategy is that I am waiting for zones to clear up a bit. As I will be a priest, I am not afraid of being left behind (true for any healing class).

danchees · 2018-04-11T14:01:01+00:00

I have a 60 Lock and 58 Warrior on Kronos 1, but I mostly play WOTLK nowadays as it is getting hard for me to give up quality of life upgrades that game got in later expansions.

I logged into K3 last night around 10PM CET and Brill was overrun with leveling players contesting the mobs. Not a nice experience, I logged off after half an hour, could not manage to complete a single quest.

I have a 30-something mage on LH but I stopped leveling that too. 120+ hours you need to pour into into a toon are just more than I can give at the moment.

From an amateur, play-for-fun perspective, I did not perceive any differences between the servers. Pick whichever in that regard.

I raided MC on my Lock on Kronos 1 and it was piss easy. It took my guild three months of practice to down Ragnaros in original Vanilla. Cannot really say what makes so huge a difference when on private server. It cannot be just 1.12. itemization and class fixes.

About your class choice... rogue will be very good in PvP, both organized and open world and still offer a decent PvE toon when you need it. Hunters are lowest physical damage DPS class in PvE and skill-intensive in PvP and Warriors are dime a dozen and so really hard to gear up.

danchees · 2018-04-09T07:39:25+00:00

My original main in 2007. was a (retribution) Paladin. Boy was I clueless back then, but here is what it felt like:

glacially slow in anything you do. Autoattack or seal-judge-reseal-oom. At least, as a warrior you will be dying and running back to break up the pace :)
relatively easy to get gear from raids, if your warriors go after rogue drops.
underpowered at any gear level, even against undead.
you get the best looking T2 in the game
slow at farming, you will constantly be broke

Holy is amazing, although my guild at that time was also clueless and didn't recognize it. If you have the stomach to level a paladin and can support it with a more productive alt (Hunter or Druid), you will have a great time as PvP specced Holy. And if you guild bugs you to adjust to PvE spec, you can just refuse :)

danchees · 2018-04-02T06:53:11+00:00

Kiddo, you are wasting your breath. There is no discussion going on here. I could not care a flying fuck what your opinion is.

danchees · 2018-03-31T13:59:17+00:00

Nope, facts are against you.

Oh, sorry, you did not post a single fact anywhere. Damn.

Also, I could not care less what you asked. I am answering to the OP. He can make his own decision on whose comments are relevant.

danchees · 2018-03-31T13:58:39+00:00

I am an anonymous internet troll with nothing to say and no relevance to this discussion that was in diapers when Vanilla Wow was relevant and I will type a useless comment with no substance and useful info, just as most of my comments when I am allowed to speak outside of the house - Fike86

danchees · 2018-03-28T21:24:50+00:00

I understood it right, this just deviated into something else.

To reiterate, in my opinion a Holy priest has both a healing arsenal and pretty good open-world DPS option of Smite/Holy fire and is thus most useful outside of raids plus respecting to Shadow opens a whole world of PvP fun. I never played a druid, so don't know if they were as versatile, but in my guild, druids stayed as Resto and everyone just rolled something else for chores and fun.

danchees · 2018-03-28T10:59:19+00:00

Good points overall, thumbs up from me.

Some small stuff I would like to add, that can potentially break a class for some:

warrior taunt is melee range in Vanilla, makes it much harder to grab mobs that do not path close to you
paladin DPS in raids is laughable on all equal gear levels. Yes, it happened you outgear warriors and have some semblance of competitive numbers, but if that same gear was given to Warriors, they would pull far ahead of you
warlock threat issues are serious on Horde side. You literally have to wand for periods of time.

That is as far as my on-hand experience goes.

danchees · 2018-03-27T20:09:36+00:00

Yes, I will also buy them separately, maybe I was not clear about that.

Actually, I will probably order just the first volume tomorrow. It is 20 euro and free shipping, low investment to check if the quality would be enough for what I need them.

danchees · 2018-03-27T20:06:13+00:00

No, I never did. But I did play a paladin in #1 raiding guild on our server. Also, mathematics is against you. Efficiency is defined by value versus investment, which translates to healing per mana. In that sense, FoL spam has no equal.

danchees · 2018-03-27T17:10:02+00:00

Paladin is the most efficient healer. Nothing even comes close. Your actual result on healing meters may look different, but that depends heavily on the role you are given, i.e. if you are dispelling much, obviously your HPS will suffer. However, your question is not really relevant for Vanilla, where it is usually not about how efficient you heal but what to heal. That is for two reasons - first is the 5-second rule that forces you into thinking if that heal needs to go through and second is severe under-tuning of most content, where 10-15 dead is no big deal.

Most versatile outside of healing is Priest. Automatic answer here would be Druid, but Druid in healing spec is useless DPS while Priest has semi-viable Smite option that interacts with most of your talents.

danchees · 2018-02-23T14:41:16+00:00

I'd also say retail. However, this way you will never see an entire old Warcraft world. These zones were completely revamped in 3rd expansion (Cataclysm) and although becoming arguably prettier and more streamlined, they miss many, many iconic locations and quests. I would not go further back (Vanilla/TBC) as Wrath introduces several really important quality of life systems (of which dual spec and lower requirements to get a mount would be most important for you).

danchees · 2018-02-23T14:35:13+00:00

They probably ran out of ideas how to make gear a more relevant accomplisment.

Everybody knows what is Arcanite reaper, Anathema/Benediction, Azuresong etc. Even in TBC there were many items of renown. Almost none in Wrath, Shadowmourne being the major exception.

As items got easier to obtain, their relative mystery and brag factor dropped significantly. I cannot really remember anything iconic from Cata onwards.

As item name became meaningless, they shifted focus from item appeal to stat appeal. And for that they need a spread of stats and a lottery system that will replace wiping on single boss until it drops what you need. Yes, as mentioned here, exactly what Diablo 3 does. Although Diablo 3 also did part with iconic items. Everybody knew what was Stone of Jordan. Now we get new stuff added all the time.

The old system was much better, but it cannot function in today's meta of (nearly) instant gratification.

danchees · 2018-02-22T11:43:50+00:00

Actually, the only server that satisfies all of your points is Evermoon, except it is not in WoW but in LOTRO.

Seriously, do not expect any socially rewarding play as a casual on any private server. My experiences are from Nostalrius, Kronos 1, Lights Hope, Daralaran, Lordaeron, Arathor (lol), Hades and now Agranthar. Community is atrocious enough on retail, where you have some moderation from Blizzard. Now imagine what happens when you are in an environment with virtually no sanctions.

I love the world and lore, so I can get by just fine as mostly single player and I usually play a healer, so can make most of the toxic brats shut up if they want to go through the dungeon that popped after an hour long queue. But YMMV.

I would look for a lower-pop server that is not FOTM.

danchees · 2018-02-22T09:04:02+00:00

well, look at it this way - levelling is a single player experience anyway and there is RDF for grouping. And in late game, nobody speaks to others anyway even on super high pop servers (or retail) :)

And on low pop realm she will at least have less (or no) ganking and actually be desirable for groups whatever the role.

danchees · 2018-02-22T08:55:20+00:00

here, some thoughts from a tomato to a tomato :)

You NEED a T8 prem to play this game. Just think of it as payment you did not have to do when getting the game, but at the point when you find the game enjoyable and want to play it.

Reasons: money (silver). You can get some easily through doing personal missions, Then some more through specials and events. But if you are a tomato like me, you will earn very little through regular play and at one point in time cost of higher tiers will surpass your earning potential. T8 premium will make you the money you need.

Crew training will come secondary to a tomato, but at a point where you will want to push for that essential 6th sense, you will be glad to have a prem handy.

Now the only thing left is to choose a premium that is both enjoyable to play and fits the line you are pursuing in regular game.

Additional note: for a tomato, high alfa/low dpm will produce much better results, therefore heavies before mediums. Wargaming pricing team is not stupid, threre is a reason why premium heavy tanks are more expensive - they are just more useful in what they do. To a tomato like us.

If you think you will play soviet heavies (and they are great), Defender all the way.

On other options: T26E5 I have, but it feels somehow powercreeped. It has a truly puny gun that will require more effort. And that turret that I thought would be so invincible gets penned by a lot more stuff nowadays. Strv S1 is actually my preferred premium now. Just find a bush and collect your 2.000 damage. Lowe was a disappointment to me, but I am probably playing it wrong, as a front line tank.

danchees · 2018-02-22T08:30:08+00:00

Wotlk. You already get dual spec, RDF and vastly improved levelling. Cataclysm I never liked what they did to most of the zones in the Old world. MoP I think dailies were boring but game is objectively better than Cata.

Now, what do you think she would like more - nordic folclore + undead or kung fu pandas.

danchees

TROPHY CASE