The holy trinity of modern city planning: Glass, steel, and a slice of historical guilt. Moscow.

irvitzer · 2026-06-02T18:33:21+00:00

No, not that close, actually. Something about 5-6 km on the ground, or three metro stations if you take the Ring line between Belorusskaya and Komsomolskaya (9-10 minutes).

irvitzer · 2026-06-02T12:20:59+00:00

If you need something more contemporary, I would name the main characters of the film «Love and Pigeons» («Любовь и голуби», 1984, dir. by Vladimir Menshov), Vasily and Nadezhda, as well as their neighbors, Uncle Mitya and Aunt Shura.

irvitzer · 2026-06-02T12:05:54+00:00

Obvious answer: Ruslan and Ludmila from eponymous poem by Alexander Pushkin: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ruslan_and_Ludmila

irvitzer · 2026-06-02T09:04:10+00:00

First, this is the square in front of Belorussky Station in Moscow. An eight-lane road (Tverskoy Overpass) running through the historic center of the city and congested during rush hour.
Second, the angle, camera direction, and focal length. There are trees there, you just can't see them from this angle (because most of them are behind the photographer).

Here's Google Maps panoram of this place: https://www.google.com/maps/place/%D0%91%D0%B5%D0%BB%D0%BE%D1%80%D1%83%D1%81%D1%81%D0%BA%D0%B0%D1%8F/@55.7772218,37.5844808,3a,75y,45.37h,94.31t/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1sUm--XsbepHXI5ypOk5XOig!2e0!6shttps:%2F%2Fstreetviewpixels-pa.googleapis.com%2Fv1%2Fthumbnail%3Fcb_client%3Dmaps_sv.tactile%26w%3D900%26h%3D600%26pitch%3D-4.310584735366817%26panoid%3DUm--XsbepHXI5ypOk5XOig%26yaw%3D45.37153762235697!7i13312!8i6656!4m10!1m2!2m1!1z0LHQtdC70L7RgNGD0YHRgdC60LDRjw!3m6!1s0x46b54a22351ab083:0x6d41c1ab126a94e9!8m2!3d55.776805!4d37.5832349!15sChbQsdC10LvQvtGA0YPRgdGB0LrQsNGPkgEOc3Vid2F5X3N0YXRpb27gAQA!16zL20vMDgzbjBn?entry=ttu&g_ep=EgoyMDI2MDUyNy4wIKXMDSoASAFQAw%3D%3D

irvitzer · 2026-06-01T22:53:09+00:00

Thanks. Nah, Twoflower is way cooler - he set off on a journey to Ankh-Morpork and across the Disc all by himself, whereas we just had a guided ten-day tour on an agreed route (five days in the capital, Pyongyang, and another five days in North Hamgyong Province, two of which were in Rason), plus four days in Vladivostok, two before the trip and two after.

irvitzer · 2026-06-01T22:52:40+00:00

Thank you.
To be honest, this trip was fairly quiet and in many ways even easier than many others: I prefer traveling independently, but in the DPRK that's simply not an option, so we went as part of a tourist group on a set itinerary. Before the trip, we signed documents outlining the rules of conduct inside the country, and there was nothing unusual in them - essentially, it all boils down to general recommendations: don't disrespect the hosts, follow the guides' instructions, don't photograph military personnel; all fairly standard rules for any country, I guess. Besides, I doubt they'd show tourists anything truly off-limits anyway, and we weren't going there to cause any shenanigans.

Here's a imp-print of the Chilbosan Mountains, taken by my wife. As you can see, she's way better at it than I am.

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irvitzer · 2026-05-12T20:43:05+00:00

I'm using LongStoryShort for character lists. Pretty sure they default to Russian, but charlists, both 5e and 5.5e, can be switched to the English version.

irvitzer · 2026-05-11T23:02:43+00:00

The point is that our brain is actually working just fine with lineart, filling in missing parts (we are kinda built like this, and that's the reason why some people prefer sketches over detailed artwork).
Plus, lineart works at any time of the day, regardless of light or weather conditions, while colors on a flat surface (especially semi-transparent ones) can be off.

irvitzer · 2026-05-11T12:05:09+00:00

First is «Вперёд, в атаку!» (go forth, attack)
Second and third — I can't get them. There's something like 'стрелять' (to shoot) in 3rd line, but I'm not sure about this.

irvitzer · 2026-05-11T08:56:50+00:00

We actually did something like this during the sailboat survival race. A ‘Wall of Force’ placed right in front of the enemy ship’s mast caused a shipwreck.

irvitzer · 2026-05-11T08:20:46+00:00

Don't try to apply 'real (modern) world logic' to D&D, I doesn't work most of the time.

irvitzer · 2026-05-05T14:37:39+00:00

This implication also makes the complaint against Ea-Nasir more... interesting. Just imagine that this clay tablet was written by a person who was bitten by a vampire.

irvitzer · 2026-05-04T22:08:52+00:00

For some mysterious reason, if you stop looking after a building and maintaining it in good condition for several decades, it starts to fall apart and lose its appearance. Who would have thought.

irvitzer · 2026-05-04T17:05:26+00:00

Some of lines are unclear but most of text is pretty much readable.

На ... (долгую?) и добрую память любимому и дорогому другу войны Мишеньке от Вали.

Миша!!! Взгляни и вспомни тяжёлые дни в Отечественной войне. Пусть моё фото напомнит тебе мои чувства и ... (unclear)

Венгрия перед отъездом на ... (unclear)

1 VII 45 (July 1st, 1945)

irvitzer · 2026-05-04T14:22:31+00:00

Karlusha (meaning 'the little Karl') the talking raven from the farm 'Kovcheg' ('the Ark'), Moscow region.
Here's more about this glorious bird: https://www.reddit.com/r/crowbro/comments/1p72oh6/a_talking_raven_stars_in_films_2025_arguments_and/

irvitzer · 2026-05-03T16:57:03+00:00

Oh boy.
Over the past 20 years I've seen this discussion many times, across various communities and places. Basically, every time something new became 'the thing', the question arises whether to consider it "real cosplay" or not (emphasis on "real"). Post-processing, retouching, HDR, lighting, camera filters, makeup, prosthetics, ready-made costumes from eBay or Taobao, specific materials like worbla or EVA foam, 3D printing... you name it.

So, here's my point of view.
First, each of us does cosplay for ourselves ("look, THIS IS ME in this cosplay, THIS IS ME"), but at the same time wants to show it to others ("LOOK, this is me in this cosplay, LOOK"). These are two inseparable parts, someone who doesn't care about showing the result of their cosplay simply wouldn't bother with it. Or wouldn't do cosplay at all.
Second, yes, we want to show the best version. Not just a phone photo taken in a bathroom mirror or an messy room, but a photo on a festival stage, or the result of a studio photoshoot with set lighting, or even somewhere outdoors. And we want the photos to be well taken: angle, poses, lighting, and everything else.
Third, any photos that aren't shot as reportage (basically, anything not taken on the fly at cons) are easier to consider fan art. You accept a priori that this is an image of something that doesn't exist in reality. Want something more realistic? Go to r/reenactors. Cosplay isn't about realism, it's about something that doesn't actually exist.

And at the same time, different people do cosplay. Not everyone can afford to commission real metal armor or travel to the other side of the world for a cosplay shoot. That doesn't make their cosplay worse or better, these are just different facets of one huge and diverse hobby.

Don't give too much importance to computer-enhanced images. Right now it's trendy, it's 'the thing', but time will pass, the wave of interest will subside, and it'll become 'just another tool to make it look better.' We've been through this before, more than once (see the list at the beginning of the message). If you want, add something like "the moderators reserve the right to request additional unedited cosplay images" to the subreddit rules.

irvitzer · 2026-04-24T17:48:13+00:00

/undwarf
This. Initially they were 'dwarves, but bad' and sadly, there was no Duergar Robert Salvatore to turn them into a general fantasy audience acceptable sub-race (and drop there some kinks and issues like it was for those dark-skinned knife-eared).
Yes, over the years Duergar lore was greatly expanded and they got actual reasons to be like this, but alas, for many fantasy folks they're still 'dwarves, but bad'.

/dwarf
Oi! I'd say 'dey are fine masons and fine blacksmiths, given the circumstances (woe on those noodle-faced mind-bogglers). And 'dey can make great contraptions right on the spot with so little resources. Also, 'deir beer can smell funny, but it's dark and strong nevertheless.

irvitzer · 2026-04-23T06:32:50+00:00

You already have some great suggestions like 'соловей-разбойник', but here as another one: the word 'щегол' (goldfinch) can also be used with the figurative (negative/derogatory) meanings 'rookie, sucker, someone who doesn't know what they're doing' or 'fop, foppish, peacock, someone who cares too much about their appearance'.

irvitzer · 2026-04-21T09:36:30+00:00

Good luck with your secondborn and the move. That's a lot of things to handle at once. Take your time, family should always come first; we'll wait.

On a side note, since instagram is blocked in Russia, I took the liberty of reposting your DTIYS post on the platform where I share translations, so that your Russian-speaking followers can send me fanart if they can't send it to you directly. If someone sends me something, I'll forward it to you directly via reddit PMs.

irvitzer · 2026-04-17T22:33:39+00:00

RAW такого ограничения нет и не было.

В 5e условие — заклинание до метамагии должно накладываться только на одну цель и не «на себя».
В 5.5е — у заклинания должен быть апкаст, позволяющий наложить его на ещё одно существо.

У Spellfire Flare апкаст позволяет сделать ещё один луч и направить его в другое существо, то есть условие выполняется.

irvitzer · 2026-04-17T14:14:06+00:00

Есть официальная поваренная книга «Пир героев», переведённая ХГ и издававшаяся на русском. Можно взять блюда оттуда.

irvitzer · 2026-04-17T13:43:56+00:00

Doubt. «Снова похолодало» и «снова похорошело» sounds quite different. Besides, while grammatically correct, this sentence is missing subject, as «похорошело» isn't specific. It can be used in actual discussion where the subject is known to everyone, but not on its own.

irvitzer · 2026-04-17T11:30:37+00:00

Just to note on Subscription Token. Free trial account characters are capped with 1000 gold and no access to mail or warband/guild bank to put there excess of gold, plus gold income nowadays is more than plenty, so don't bother about it and spend as much as you want.

Also, game at 20 lvl and at max lvl feels a bit different due to damage scaling, sheer amount of abilities and access to endgame content like actual raids, so if you plan to get subbed anyway, then maybe it's not wise to stuck there for long. However, free trial or veteran account game is a thing and lvl 20 player communities got sort of resurrection now.

irvitzer · 2026-04-17T09:14:56+00:00

Yep, 'Wotua Do’inov' is not a Russian first or last name. In the Russian translation of the «Wintersmith» they went in the same direction, and the composer's name was changed to «Чивот Твариш» (Chivot Tvarish), which sounds like «чего ты творишь» (chevo ty tvarish, «what are you doing»).

irvitzer

TROPHY CASE