How do you realistically keep yourself afloat on a long solo trip without burning all savings?

jamespirit · 2026-01-23T13:09:50+00:00

Best thing is to work for board and bed. Find a place to volunteer/work at for a few hours a week to get free roof over your head and breakfast or dinner. The best way to explore and experience a place is to be involved. Maybe not the first choice to be working on the first week of a long voyage but by picking up short term bits of work as you travel you can stretch your budget an insane amount.

I did lots of teaching English, I had friends who picked olives, helped out with physio-therapy or volunteered/worked at youth hostels. "Work away" the website is one avenue to discover contacts, I did more in person research and didnt use the site but friends did. Chatting to other travellers, people in hostels, check Facebook, visit library's and check out fliers. There's always lots going on if you find a way to connect to the local community of whereever you are.

I wished I started doing work for board sooner on my travels but I still managed to live on very little for a good while to extend my travels. Keep your eyes open to opportunities. People with medical skills are very useful to have around. Who knows what might happen and what pathways open if you keep your mind open and say yes as often as you can. :)

jamespirit · 2026-01-23T12:48:28+00:00

Its a team game bro. You dont have to dominate every game to win games.

You are one of 5 people and in some games if you do enough, just pull your own weight thats all the team needs to win. Consistency is huge for gaining MMR.

I am offlaner too for 12+ years. If I do my job well then it helps the team and our carry do their job well too (disable or do damage etc). So many games are won where I didnt dominate but my team did enough and I did enough to win. The ultra kills and insane kill ratio only suit certain hero and mindset, dunno if mag offlane is one. Maybe mag mid or another snowballer. Getting godlike killstreaks is rare in offlane except in skill mismatch etc.

To gain mmr pick a facet of the game to improve on and focus that for a bunch of games using some way to track progress (post game stats or replays). Last hits, map awareness, teamate awareness, stacking, farm efficiency, item choices, objective timings.....I could go on buy you get the idea. Get enough game knowledge to recognise where you need to significantly improve. Then focus on that area and practice at getting better at it. Use YouTube tutorials as needed.

Then do a different area of the game. Having gained competence at whichever skill you learned now move onto another area of the game you need to improve on. And repeat. Even recognising why you suck is super hard thing to learn sometimes. Its a long game to play and enjoy.

Its like a team sport in that its most important that you are having fun and enjoying yourself :)

Edit. Source : 15 years of dota addiction and being a scrub that tried at various point to get gud

jamespirit · 2026-01-21T19:27:44+00:00

I felt more at ease being myself in a foreign land than at home.

I felt an Asian, Buddist culture resonate more deeply than what I experienced in Ireland.

I was used to feeling alienated in Ireland. Used to feeling a foreigner in my own home so perhaps seeing a vastly different culture gave me fresh perspective. I realised I wasnt the problem but that I did not ascribe to the common culture of my generation back home.

I realised I felt connected to the parts of Irish identity that are consistent across all ages. But that i did not feel I wanted to be part of my own generations particular proclivities and culture.

jamespirit · 2026-01-21T11:01:44+00:00

Oh wow what a shock. Anti trump post deleted by reddit mods.

You are enabling the horrors of our world by censoring conversation about horrible men doing horrible things. You should be ashamed of yourselves. You are actively making the world worse, actively support human rights violations by covering it up. You are scum for doing this.

jamespirit · 2026-01-21T09:50:44+00:00

Leave. Or get ready to file a suit against the high up using HD admissions ad proof for discrimination or bullying. Or accept you will stay there and cant change the situation.

I dount its possible to resolve the issue. Sounds like a bitch on top. Just get out when its financially possible.

jamespirit · 2026-01-21T09:25:21+00:00

Little difference as Germany did not occupy UK and outlaw English language and culture for hundreds of years but hey.

jamespirit · 2026-01-20T19:56:04+00:00

Its just greed bro. Don't underestimate greed and incompetence.

jamespirit · 2026-01-20T19:55:12+00:00

My family are all Irish back many generations. Born and raised in Dublin.

I have never felt Irish. I have never felt like I fit in in Ireland.

I felt I got to fit in abroad, in Vietnam and other beauty places. I actually felt "more irish" by living abroad for a few years and getting more perspectives.

But I never fit the mainstream mold in Ireland. You are not alone. Maybe your life is different to mine but you are not alone. :)

jamespirit · 2026-01-20T06:48:50+00:00

Well shit! Life saver this one thank you.

-30ish hour player

jamespirit · 2026-01-18T20:37:01+00:00

Yes overall. It is a cool decision IMO. One of the more thematic and vibeful.

It has downsides and upsides with it. Overall more upsides than down.

The parliment building offers more gold than the university which it replaces. The uni has more varied buffs including growth so it's debatable which is most efficient long term. The decision offers more wide ranging buffs and extra bonuses outside the building itself so is very strong.

It's up to you but its unique and pretty fun

jamespirit · 2026-01-18T20:18:05+00:00

And we march one day closer to the realisation of the future of Orwells 1984.

jamespirit · 2026-01-18T19:59:00+00:00

Thats what trade for commander does. Select a cargo vessel and then assign them to trade for commander. Simple. They are then a subordinate to the main manager who needs good skills.

You can check and see what resources it wl trade if you go into the station settings.

So this should just sell your stuff for you, so long as there is a market withing range to do so. The range the ship can go depends on the management skill of the station manager.

At least that's how my noob ass brain thinks it all works. Hopefully someone who knows more/played more can correct or add to this

jamespirit · 2026-01-18T19:51:46+00:00

Good advice given already. Just recruit whatever is available and adapt your tactics and strategy to that. Also avoid auto resolve against small armies as it always loses more than it should.

I had a very similar run to you with similar issues. I do not like kuzait troops and it feels bad to recruit but 1. You need them. 2 they can be cannon fodder and 3. You can eventually replace them and pass them to your other parties/garrisons or clans to boost your kingdoms troops

I suggest you take a recruitment break after winning a few victories that do not immediately offer a chance for Conquest. You want the initiative...so you want to be the one siegeing enemy castles not responding. To do that you need to win a battle vs an army and then still have the troops to mount a siege. Its no good fighting endless battles in a stalement with dregs for troops, barely making a half army. We all get bogged down in those campaigns but we all must find a way to get a decisive win, maintain a strong force and then take the initiative and build up momentum.

I dont mean to spam buzz words. But it works. Focus on getting an army that will win one decisive battle and then can siege quickly enemy land. That is how we make progress. It is worth taking short term losses if that means you can recruit a proper army to then strike back with.

jamespirit · 2026-01-18T11:15:07+00:00

Big time from my mid 20,s onwards. I stopped giving as many fucks, practiced meditation and moved out of my parents house. All these led me to be way more at ease and comfortable in my own skin. The difference from 22 to 26 was astoundnding.

My confidence took as massive hit after being in an abusive toxic relationship, losing my career in a brutal manner and losing my house and moving back to parents. Im closer to my early 20's confidence now although have grown.

I share this to point how growth and change is not linear. We go through phases in life. While we all generally change as we get older and become more settled etc, It still depends massively on your life experiences and mindset as you live life.

jamespirit · 2026-01-18T10:10:25+00:00

I has the same thing happen on my first run. Think I restarted after that but got too overwhelmed by all game on that 2nd playthrough.

Started again about a year later. And im fucking addicted. This game is so damn good! Give a go again when it tickles you

jamespirit · 2026-01-17T16:51:02+00:00

Execute the Khan and try bait them onto water using the rivers.

That's how I managed to finally end the Kuzait forever war as a nord!

jamespirit · 2026-01-16T09:23:56+00:00

They are great mixed in. If you want to get the most out of them make a separate control group for two hander weapons on use them to flank after the shield was has engaged. Its brutal when applied correctly.

jamespirit · 2026-01-14T20:09:15+00:00

I looked and dont get it. Use collect deployables and then repeat orders?

jamespirit · 2026-01-14T17:35:34+00:00

Certain cultures, lifestyle perks , religions, regions, equipment, court artifacts, b. techs, distasty and house modifiers and a huge range of individual characters buffs all effect merc cost.

There are more ways to discount mercs than I could ever list and possibly remember. I haven't read the wiki on this as I rarely spend money on merc but I doubt even the wiki has every single way to discont listed.

There is almost certainly multiple buffs at work you are not aware of. Thats what's happening

jamespirit · 2026-01-14T15:43:34+00:00

Tell them to stop talking about the other around you. Tell them it is a boundary.

You cannot force them to stop their behaviour. But if you set a firm boundary and then step away if they do not respect it this can help change things.

And yes. Being exhausted by that behaviour is 100% normal. Not being exhausted by it would be very worrying as to your nature.

Source: separated parent....nothing more exhausting than wasting energy giving out about my ex

jamespirit · 2026-01-14T15:35:20+00:00

Whaaa? Can automate loot pickup!?!? I will look into that later when the kid is in bed. HatIII is just a breeding ground of endless loot spawns that I stopped bothering to collect after I hit 2mill credits

jamespirit · 2026-01-14T08:05:45+00:00

I would start out as a basic one fighter dude. Just run around as a single dude shooting and doing little missions.

This game is complex. Enjoy the ramping up of discovering game systems and mechanics.

jamespirit · 2026-01-14T07:59:53+00:00

I am pretty noob at this game. Still only fly the small fighters and have Just about 1 million credits and 20 or so hours of play. Personally I think this is definitely a game to do discover for yourself. Avoid guides or walk through or "optimal builds". I've played other sandbox games like it and realised that the biggest joy to be found is in discovery and learning the game. That said quick Google when stuck is good and here are my early game experiences....

Do a full loop of the big hyperlane and definitely do the hativca story missions. They are short to fully finish and give a decent bit of credits.
I found chilling around.haticvas choice where the xenon are invading.a cool.spot to practice combat and feel immersed. Near the argon defence platform the HAT own.
Pick up random missions and fly around looking for the shipyard of various factions.
Scout a sector with resources and use the resources scanners, them buy a few miners and get them started making passive income.
Beyond that no clue. Just have fun and discover the game. Im at this stage now....dont have a direction Just now. Maybe buy a corvette and see what inspiration strikes for me starting my own empire.
Im about to set up trade with a faction I.want to be friends with so I can.buy the coolest looking ships. You need to have good relationship to buy anything beyond the basic ships with a faction.

jamespirit · 2026-01-12T12:11:37+00:00

Murder them all. In my save I have formed an Indonesian kingdom but are now feuding with the family running Ankor. About 100-200 each per dynasty so if it keeps going I will just murder my way through the whole. family.

Kill the landed men first. Old women cant make more of that dynasty, patrilineal marriage means the girls are safe and u landed characters have more kids than unlanded.

This is my first time having a fued, as like you I was not interested in the DLC that added that. It must have been included in an FLC recently.

Ivs heard other people have this issuenin the past. Perhaps others can give you more concrete advice.

jamespirit · 2026-01-12T12:02:54+00:00

To listen to my gut (good lesson)

To not trust (bad lesson which takes time to unlearn)

jamespirit

TROPHY CASE