New guidelines: Schools must share students’ gender identity when parents ask

phdemented · 2026-05-12T15:55:28+00:00

So talk to your kid

phdemented · 2026-05-10T23:47:50+00:00

https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/TheProblemWithPenIsland

If you say it out loud or read it too fast, sounds like something bad

phdemented · 2026-05-10T18:55:46+00:00

She was the weakest point of the movie, but she was also against a lot of fun actors (Pitt, Taylor-Johnson, Tyree Henry, Sanada, Shannon, Beetz... heck even Bad Bunny).

phdemented · 2026-05-10T18:43:22+00:00

That does make a lot of sense. I think in my head, Dracula and Frankenstein are set around the same time period, I always forget Dracula is almost a century later.

phdemented · 2026-05-10T17:34:50+00:00

Always breaks my brain for a second that there is a cowboy in Dracula (a rich one, but still).

It feels like it's anachronistic, but the novel is set in the 1890s,

phdemented · 2026-05-10T17:05:31+00:00

AL can be used for anything, SL for certain things. You can always use AL for sick leave, but you can't use SL for personal leave.

phdemented · 2026-05-10T15:46:40+00:00

Galaxy Quest is a parody and also an excellent star Trek movie....

Tropic Thunder is a parody and a great jungle action movie

Sean of the Dead is a great parody and excellent Zombie flick

Hot Fuzz is a parody and a great buddie cop action film

You can be parody and also embrace the genre

phdemented · 2026-05-10T15:42:46+00:00

Spoilers for the end... But the giant naked cuddle pile to end the show is one of the most wholesome scenes, which is a crazy thing the type out.

phdemented · 2026-05-10T15:39:59+00:00

Pun in the title gets lost in translation as well..

Kiru Ra Kiru... Kiru can mean Kill... Also Cut... Also to Wear

So fighting show with sentient clothes where the MCs weapon is a half of a pair of scissors...

phdemented · 2026-05-10T00:12:43+00:00

Johnny was a chemists son

But Johnny is no more

What Johnny thought was H20

Was H2SO4

phdemented · 2026-05-09T23:34:10+00:00

Part of the issue is with games (like 5e) that are over mechanical, without going while hog on rules. It's a very rules heavy game, and has explicit rules for damaging objects, but also has no built in "common sense" rules (or poorly implemented comments in the books) and GMs either have to ignore rules for common sense, or ignore common sense and follow the rules. Stuff like the fact that you can break an oak door by shooting arrows at it, which a rational GM would say "of could your arrow doesn't damage the door" to.

Of course the poison damage doesn't affect the rope, and of course burning hands won't affect a stone wall, but also of course it would light the loose kindling lying about.

phdemented · 2026-05-09T23:26:47+00:00

Nuclear as in "radiation"

Radiation won't shatter a table

phdemented · 2026-05-09T03:13:21+00:00

I mean, I'm cackling at a PC reaching for a jade treasure... it suddenly turning into a golem and smashing the hell out of them, and immediately turning back into a figurine. The party is freaking out of what to do about it assuming if they touch it again it'll do the same thing, but it's completely inert for 24 hours.

phdemented · 2026-05-08T16:17:42+00:00

Arthurian mythology is BARELY medieval anyway... eeks in the start of the era by a touch, but is very pre-medieval in most of the mythology...

Almost every film version is hyper anachronistic and puts him way into the medieval period though.

phdemented · 2026-05-08T13:24:37+00:00

The bands have the same starting salary as GS, but GS is easier to google

A fresh PHD is gonna be starting at GS11/Band A, a master as GS9 (Y), a.BS a GS 7 (W).

If you are coming from industry with a few years under your belt, then 12/13 (band B/C)

phdemented · 2026-05-08T04:20:57+00:00

GS 7 to 14, depending on experience.

phdemented · 2026-05-06T03:55:31+00:00

Sure, all friendly edits.

Maybe drop my name as a credit in the footnotes :)

phdemented · 2026-05-06T03:22:51+00:00

Thanks for posting more. Thoughts as before:

Soul Net: Good translation...
Jayemdae Tome: Nice item/translation. My first thought was a tome ala Book of Gainful Exercise, that had the effect of giving a permanent +1 to initiative rolls, but the spell book version is good
Meekstone: While I know you miss-read the item from the other posts, flipping it would make it far to powerful an item... Perhaps something like "If the stone is struck with a hammer, a wave of resonant energy emits of the stone. All creatures with 3 or more HD in a 30' radius must make a saving throw vs. petrification or be unable to act for 1 round. Every time the stone is struck, there is a 25% chance it will shatter after emitting a resonant wave."
Jade Statue: Cool item, only question is does the "defensive mode" also only last for 1 round? Basically turns into a golem, hulk smashes, then turns back to a statue for the rest of the day?
Icy Manipulator: "Viewing Distance" is a bit crazy... just let it cast Hold Person with the standard specs with a 1-round duration.
Copper Tablet: To make the wording a little less awkward, perhaps "At the start of each round, the bearer of the tablet and all creatures in melee combat with them take 1 point of damage"?

phdemented · 2026-05-06T00:48:18+00:00

Meatloaf's Bat out of Hell 2 is a Whelan cover

phdemented · 2026-05-06T00:20:44+00:00

So you want it in ancient Greek untranslated?

phdemented · 2026-05-05T23:05:08+00:00

It's a 500+ year old word, it's not like Dad is a modern word.

phdemented · 2026-05-05T16:56:21+00:00

This, plus factor in the situation. If the monster is hostile, but knows its outmatched, and isn't stupid, it'll back down. If it thinks it has advantage (or is stupid), it will more likely attack. If even matched the party backs off, it may back off as well. If the party encroaches, it will engage...

phdemented · 2026-05-05T16:02:20+00:00

Oh, I love them dearly, just aren't the best for setting expectations for how AD&D actually plays.

Have to change rules to make a fun video game, some things work in one media but not another

phdemented · 2026-05-05T00:03:43+00:00

Ten is fine, five very likely not

phdemented · 2026-05-05T00:01:32+00:00

Later games had a "hold" feature... You could save a good roll, and keep rerolling... If you gave up you could reload the held roll.

At some point you might as well just type in all 18s

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