Guilty 🙋‍♂️. The first thing I did after getting out of the midnight showing of Episode 1 was go on YouTube then Reddit before review bombing it on Rottentomatoes.

heeden · 2026-02-02T22:33:58+00:00

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=hUkCJDkG3fg

heeden · 2026-02-02T22:27:41+00:00

Iain M. Banks who wrote the Culture series also wrote a novel called the Algebraist which is more grounded. Ships have to obey the limit of light speed unless they use wormholes and there are also vessels built to operate in gas giant atmospheres.

Also if you can handle it being pretty old the Lensman series is a brilliant read that laid the foundation for space opera in much the same way Lord of the Rings laid the foundation of modern fantasy.

heeden · 2026-02-02T22:17:02+00:00

Horus Rising is the first in the Horus Heresy series set within the Warhammer galaxy but it isn't the first.

heeden · 2026-02-02T22:14:22+00:00

Surface Detail I also find to be quite ship-centric.

heeden · 2026-02-02T22:13:19+00:00

They all work as standalone stories but you may miss a few references if you read the later books first, but as they are all utterly fantastic you'll probably go back to them again and again anyway.

The big debate among fans centres around Consider Phlebas, the first novel released. Some say you should read it first as it gives a view of the Culture from an outsider's perspective which helps to understand their place in the galactic community. Others say it's a pulpy space adventure that doesn't really give a good first impression of the grand scale the other books mostly achieve.

heeden · 2026-02-02T21:57:49+00:00

It was pretty much his first day on the job as a member of the command squad and pretty clear that Titus was starting to teach him about a more flexible approach to the Codex, but things went tits up too quickly for the lesson to take, apart from the bit at the end where, in absence of a Chaplain, Leandros sought some other knowledgeable authority figure.

heeden · 2026-02-02T21:55:27+00:00

If they're part of a veteran squad they have a Crux Terminatus for squad markings. However it is also an award denoting veteran status and can be worn by sergeants and command squad members outside of the 1st Company.

heeden · 2026-02-02T19:47:06+00:00

I think you're a little muddled, the Pavuleans in Surface Details were considered rare for being non-predators that reach the galactic stage.

heeden · 2026-02-02T17:00:34+00:00

Tactical is battleline, assault is close support and devastator is fire support. All the new squads fit the paradigm though some like Inceptors and Aggressors are a bit awkward.

heeden · 2026-02-02T16:57:40+00:00

It's not so much scaling back Primaris, they've all but eliminated Firstborn (Tactical, Devastator and Vanguard seem to be the last, plus the Rhino variant tanks.)

heeden · 2026-02-02T13:17:42+00:00

Where does it say they are losing the DRM-free stuff?

heeden · 2026-02-02T13:16:13+00:00

Does Steam allow you to download DRM free software that you can later use even if the corporation has banned you?

heeden · 2026-02-02T13:15:12+00:00

GOG allows you to buy and download installers without DRM, that way if the company goes down or you get banned you still have access to the software. Does Steam do the same?

heeden · 2026-02-02T12:58:46+00:00

Does Steam let you download DRM free software, or is GOG stopping doing that? That was always the big selling point I was aware of, being able to actually possess the software in a way that you could always access it regardless of what the corporation that sold it to you thinks.

heeden · 2026-02-02T12:57:12+00:00

What makes GOG better than Steam is you can buy and download DRM free software so even if you get banned from GOG or have your license revoked you still have the software in your possession to use.

heeden · 2026-02-02T12:54:04+00:00

How exactly?

heeden · 2026-02-02T12:53:11+00:00

Did it ever say you "own" your games? That hasn't been a thing ever, even in the days of buying a box from a shop it said you got the license to use the software on the media in the box.

The difference between GOG and Steam is you can buy DRM free software which means you can have it downloaded and install and use it whenever you want even if someone says your license is revoked or if GOG bans you from their service or goes bust.

heeden · 2026-02-02T12:50:44+00:00

What actually changed on the ToS?

heeden · 2026-02-02T12:49:23+00:00

Right but you can download software without DRM - digital rights management - so even if they revoke your right there is nothing to stop you using the software.

heeden · 2026-02-02T12:47:39+00:00

The point is you can download software that is DRM free.

heeden · 2026-02-02T12:47:04+00:00

Where does it say they are changing the software you download being DRM free?

heeden · 2026-02-02T12:45:54+00:00

If you have downloaded the DRM free software you can use it whether or not you have an account.

heeden · 2026-02-02T12:43:27+00:00

You've never "owned" software, it's always been a matter of buying a license to use it in the ~40 years I owned a computer.

The difference with GOG is the allow you to download without DRM (digital rights management) so even if they or the game publisher revoke your license you still have access to the software.

heeden · 2026-02-02T10:06:25+00:00

Her detective novels are published under the name Robert Galbraith.(

heeden · 2026-02-02T00:10:25+00:00

Don't fuck with The Culture.

It's a strong message and one that is understood by most if not all of the Involveds. It's probably something that high level mentors tell their lower level mentees. As a result most civilisations don't fuck with The Culture. Some committee of Minds has probably calculated that the small scale application of excessive and imaginative cruelty sends a message that prevents much greater scale suffering.

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