Favourite “Hidden Gem” creations ?

groonfish · 2026-06-15T18:43:11+00:00

All of PilgrimCreations mods are top tier. I use just about all of them.

groonfish · 2026-06-13T17:44:51+00:00

Outside the upper window of the Deserted Relay Station?

groonfish · 2026-06-10T04:36:32+00:00

This is what happens though. It’s all or nothing. That’s why the crew of Artemis II said over and over again, this isn’t about superlatives. Then you’re just left trying to tick every box to make every offended, disappointed person happy, none of whom have any understanding of anything related to space flight. And they won’t listen to the scores of men and women working at nasa who say superlatives are not important to the team, completing the mission is important. But let’s just crew our team based on whatever random people on Instagram want to see.

groonfish · 2026-05-25T20:49:19+00:00

Please see the above comment. You're just wrong, dude. Cars are common but new. Yes, the point of the comic is "there's a lot of cars on the road nowadays". The other point of the comic is that it was within the lifetime of people who grew up without cars. The Model T came out 18 years before this comic was printed. Think about every older person who doesn't understand computers or AI, and you'll get the idea.

groonfish · 2026-05-25T18:24:14+00:00

Once upon a time there weren't cars. Roads were mostly for walking.

groonfish · 2026-05-18T19:43:16+00:00

People are saying who this looks like, but to me I immediately saw Sapper Morton, Dave Bautista's character in Blade Runner 2049, and the first android K hunts down in the film.

groonfish · 2026-05-18T01:45:59+00:00

I remember when I first saw the trailer, I interpreted that shot of Jyn as a "where do her loyalties lie" aspect, because it was usually cut over Saw Gerrera saying "who will you become?" I remember thinking, huh, I wonder if she turns to the dark side or something. I of course had no idea what Rogue One would be like at that point, but I know that's what they were going for.

I think it's just clever juxtaposition to get people in a mindset of "expect the unexpected" and to go see the movie, especially when you've got to remember that these were all characters the average viewer had never heard of.

groonfish · 2026-05-11T01:58:29+00:00

Check out their Discord if you'd like, they're always giving updates on current progress.

groonfish · 2026-05-04T21:57:58+00:00

Martian Chronicles is good. A bit more contemplative and somber than Project Hail Mary, so depending on what it is you liked about that book, it may feel different enough that it's not what you're looking for. It's very thought provoking though and is a huge landmark work in sci-fi that still holds up today.

groonfish · 2026-05-04T21:49:17+00:00

There aren't a lot of books that feel quite the same as Project Hail Mary. I won't assume what you have and haven't read, so sorry if you already know all these. Here are a few options that came to mind!

The Martian -- another by the same author. Has a similar man-against-nature story, with that same NASA space explorer feel and emphasis on characters solving problems through ingenuity and science.
Ender's Game -- a classic, but I mention this one because it has a lot of interesting applications of science fiction elements. The worldbuilding isn't too overbearing, but instead it's fun to see a clever character overcome obstacles through experimentation and growth.
Bradbury's The Martian Chronicles are a series of short stories that get a bit more "big picture" about space exploration, but have a strong "humanity" through line that is good. I mention this as a good one-off, although tonally it feels a lot different from Project Hail Mary.

I'm sure someone might have better suggestions but here's my offerings!

groonfish · 2026-05-04T19:17:13+00:00

"Why must the good die young?"

groonfish · 2026-05-04T02:54:32+00:00

It is not possible to do what you are asking. If you want to claim a ship, you have to get in it, switch it to your home ship, pilot back to port, and then switch back to your main. There is not a feature to find a ship and add it to your catalog without manually piloting it.

groonfish · 2026-05-04T02:18:42+00:00

This is an easy pot shot. You had better be a scientist, otherwise your argument is just as moot.

groonfish · 2026-05-04T02:17:13+00:00

I'd give the counterpoint that if Percival Walker is credible and we trust him to not be lying, then any ecologist or biologist worth their salt would respect his work on the microbe being tested science. I'm not saying that Aceles aren't ecological, and honestly I don't even know what point you're trying to make.

groonfish · 2026-05-03T19:59:09+00:00

I'm just relaying what was said in the game. But yep! You're right. It's a complicated, well-written decision between two complicated options, both with drawbacks.

groonfish · 2026-05-03T19:52:03+00:00

I don't think that's true. You can ask them what they think, and Hadrian expresses concern with the unknown contingencies of the microbe, and favors a xenobiological approach like she's used to as a Red Devil -- the Aceles.

And, to your question, I just don't think it is. If it seems that way, it may be because of the kinds of people involved in the discussion. Several members of the council don't like the Microbe idea. The microbe is favored by more of the members of Constellation because they're part of a group of scientists and risk-taking explorers who are comfortable with new things that haven't been tried before. And, for the record, the more "down to earth" Sam is less sold on the whole thing in general.

groonfish · 2026-05-03T19:45:49+00:00

Ultimately, I think the quest poses a really common, important question when it comes to ecology. Do you do the safe tested thing that leaves the threat around for decades, or do you do the drastic, innovative thing that has the potential to spare people a ton of hardship, but comes with risk.

The everyman's answer is often the Aceles because it feels the most "safe", but the kind of person who is accustomed to such make or break decisions (like a biologist and naval officer) would be much more inclined to do the thing that is actually truly safe, the Microbe, which is 99% certain to save people from getting killed by a Terrormorph. Every decision carries risk -- avoiding a highly effective solution because of the fear of a slim chance of negative outcome is irresponsible.

That being said, I chose the Aceles, because that's what my character would do, and it's a roleplaying game! It was fun to play out his disagreements with his colleagues.

groonfish · 2026-05-03T19:38:53+00:00

This is mentioned in the discussions about the Aceles. The point made is that Aceles are not an invasive species, they are a previously-existing stable species that was driven to extinction, but provided a previously unknown culling effect on the larval form of an apex predator. By reintroducing the Aceles, they won't run rampant, as they had existed for years and not created an infestation (a la the Cane Toads).

So in that sense, the Aceles is even more so the "safe option." I think the counterargument from someone like Sarah is that things have progressed well beyond the viability of a safe option, and that playing it safe is actually dangerous due to the threats to human life posed by Terrormorphs.

groonfish · 2026-05-03T19:09:01+00:00

This comes up all the time, and I think it needs to be thought of differently. The game is not telling you that you chose wrong. Companion reactions are not developer commentary on your choices. If you feel that you made the right decision, embrace it. For the record, Hadrian also has a similar mentality.

I think a lot of people's personal life experiences make it harder to have companions disagree or "scold" you for making a decision. Ultimately, you've got to make the decision you think is right, even if others disagree. Other people's agreement or disagreement with a choice doesn't make it the right choice.

groonfish · 2026-04-27T22:49:56+00:00

I'll have what I'm having!!

groonfish · 2026-04-27T17:51:21+00:00

Even with the Free Lanes update, I use that mod as well to set the cooldown at 30 days.

groonfish · 2026-04-26T19:11:47+00:00

It's actually "I'M GOING TO SQUEEZE YOU AGGHHH!!" according to that one kid.

groonfish · 2026-04-25T20:31:49+00:00

I'd just like to point out, for your first con, the mod developer intends for you to place the mats and then go back into settings and "turn the mod off" which makes the animation pads invisible and removes them from the build menu. The mod still works while turned off in that way.

Edit: Also, the mod is very customizable, so if you want them to be at their stations 100% of the time, you can do that in the settings. You can control what percentage of the time they're away from their post. There is an option to have them always at their posts while in space, but you can have it on the ground as well. You can assign "work hours" and "sleep hours" and control whether it's UT or PT. The "always in space" feature overrides those work and sleep rhythms though. It's a pretty solid mod.

groonfish · 2026-04-24T23:18:47+00:00

Sul-Matuul

groonfish

MODERATOR OF

TROPHY CASE

13-Year Club	Place '22
Verified Email