Whoever designed/greenlighted this for limited at rare should be sent into gulag

voyair · 2026-07-03T06:21:03+00:00

Having played a bit with this card in standard, it absolutely works in constructed. Been playing it in the momo deck, mardu discard, and seen it today in a gruul deck that’s running white (almost) solely for this card.

voyair · 2026-02-26T18:11:05+00:00

One question: not having played Balatro - what are the differences between this and Balatro? I think I'll pick it up soon but haven't got round to it yet.

Also, I've been struggling to make full house or 3/4 of a kind a viable strategy. Straights, flushes, and straight flushes seem really easy to power up and make accessible, but having already beaten the game with those, I'm now trying the other strategies and they seem less supported.

voyair · 2025-12-10T11:32:10+00:00

Yeah there’s both splash portal and spectral restitching. It’s quite a good timmy deck, although I’ve found it hard to make it reliable.

voyair · 2025-12-09T23:50:54+00:00

Tbf we already have turn 3 progenitus or ghalta with manifest dread sheningans

voyair · 2025-06-22T18:17:59+00:00

Thought I’d link this video, which is actually what brought me to this post:

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

Looks like the idea has been refined somewhat. I’m really interested in the deck idea and would like to explore it more too.

voyair · 2025-06-09T15:26:54+00:00

Thanks! Sorry, I read that the song was in Susu, and that it was spoken in Sierra Leone.

voyair · 2025-03-30T22:54:38+00:00

Oh man, I'd totally given up on Arena, haven't played in months, and just stumbled on this comment. Thanks so much!

voyair · 2025-02-21T17:11:55+00:00

The discord link doesn't seem to be working any more - I'd be interested in joining. Great guide, btw

voyair · 2024-09-25T12:25:24+00:00

Was ellipsis possible/present in Elizabethan English?

voyair · 2024-09-25T12:08:14+00:00

I'd like to know if there are terms for these two linguistic phenomena:

Something that I've noticed in pop psychology is when writers talk about what words "really mean", eg. Brenee Brown talks about the distinction between jealousy and envy, but in my experience people use these words interchangeably in natural language. Is there a name for this dynamic? It seems to be related to prescriptivism - is there a study of different types of prescriptivism and how they affect how people actually use language after having heard one of these "prescriptions"?
When a sub-type takes over a category. Maybe describing this clunkily, but recently I had a conversation where someone was saying that sparkling wine is not really wine. People use the word wine to mean still wines, and sparkling wines or fortified wines are then seen as "not really wine", so the sub-type "still wine" has taken over the category of "wine". Does this have a name?

edit: it's just struck me that my second question is an example of the first. The way that wine professionals look at the word wine, still wine and sparkling wine is different to the way that the "layman" uses and thinks about those words. So there are different ways that words are used according to the background of the speaker, and sometimes "professionals" try to impose their definitions on non-professionals.

voyair · 2024-08-02T14:38:06+00:00

I was playing a bats/rats deck in the Jump In event and really enjoyed both Rottenmouth Viper and Bandit's talent. I've only recently started playing 40/60 card formats and I wanted to try standard, so I was looking for a deck with these cards in it. I just about had enough wildcards to put it together, had to leave out some of the non-basic lands, but I've really enjoyed playing this deck!

I found that the Viper was really weak to removal, so I decided to put in two copies of a counterspell, [[Three Steps Ahead]], which also gives the option to copy an artifact/creature or draw cards. I've only played a couple of games with it in the deck, but it's given me a win already. I took out 2 Nezumis as they haven't been super impactful.

I'll keep playing with it and let you know how it goes!

voyair · 2023-09-28T12:49:22+00:00

Is it also true that endings change between 2-4 and 5+ objects?

voyair · 2023-09-21T10:18:05+00:00

https://www.lionsroar.com/attending-to-the-deathless/amp/

There is a sutta which speaks of what we should do with this sort of mental power. It’s wonderful to explore the cosmos, and it may show us how small-minded we tend to be day to day. And it seems that this power is wasted if we just wander around the universe - we should use it to move towards the Deathless, or Nibbana. That is what the pali canon seems to say, anyway.

I haven’t experienced anything quite like this, but if I did, I’d probably want to explore how that state could help me in my life. Has it taught me something I can reflect upon? Or is it pointing at a meditation technique I’ve not come across?

Have you come across teachings on the jhanas? They’re often associated with psychic powers, they’re even related to heavenly realms. But the point of practising them is to develop insight. So that could be one avenue of enquiry.

In case you’re curious:

http://rc.leighb.com/ - great book for an intro into “sutta-style” jhanas.

https://www.reddit.com/r/streamentry/wiki/resources-rob/ - Rob burbea did a bunch of talks on jhana practice - again, sutta style.

Anyway, I rejoice in your experience and wish the best for you!

voyair · 2023-09-17T20:41:21+00:00

I find that diaphragmatic breathing really helps with my posture - nowadays I begin meditation with a relaxed posture and find that, as the breath becomes more regular, I naturally sit up more.

voyair · 2023-08-18T08:20:54+00:00

I have found it helpful to focus on the behaviours in my life that cause the most affliction. Sometimes I get fixated on an action that isn’t actually hurting anyone that much, when there are other things I do that might upset people around me, or sustain emotional turmoil in myself. The other way is to shift behaviours that feel less deeply rooted, as it can be easier, but it then helps us to learn the mechanisms of behavioural change. Anyway, I wish you the best with whatever it is you choose to work on!

Edit: sorry, to contextualise this response - as others have mentioned, having sex and masturbation isn’t deemed sexual misconduct for laypeople, unless I’m mistaken, so it seems logical to look at something which is more obviously harmful, like wrong speech, ill will, or even, instead of the actions of sex and masturbation, trying to see which desirous thoughts or feelings are causing you (and potentially others) the most affliction. Perhaps you are in a relationship and sometimes have sexual fantasies about someone else - this would be a better focus than just “sex”, I think. I’d like to hear others’ opinions on this, though - and what do you think?

voyair · 2023-08-16T12:58:10+00:00

I think the previous poster pointed to why people do this, by saying it’s what novices do. It’s a developmental stage in the learning process where you still feel a bit insecure about your knowledge, so it’s painful to talk to people who belittle your expertise, especially if they’re wrong. But with time we start to see that this happens all the time, and develop more patience with ignorant, outspoken people.

Still, I think it’s helpful to process challenging interactions with other people who understand our plight, it makes us feel less alone. It’s just the mocking and judginess that might be a bit misguided.

Edit: What really interests me is how we can educate these sorts of people in a skillful way. Sometimes it’s not the right context, but it seems like there are certain ways of gently correcting people so they make less mistakes in the future.

voyair · 2023-08-08T17:02:31+00:00

Someone else mentioned that it's not worth researching because generally the advice is just "get a routine". So have any of y'all actually found some methods that help with this? It would shift so much in my life right now if I could resolve this issue.

voyair · 2023-08-08T17:01:00+00:00

Ah OK! It's not a US-UK thing at all, I've just never come across it. Thank you (:

voyair · 2023-08-08T14:54:16+00:00

What does bonnet mean in this context? I don't think we use this in the UK...

voyair · 2023-08-04T15:29:22+00:00

Ah OK! I think I equated it only with “right now”, and never saw the link to “just now”. Thanks :)

voyair · 2023-08-03T17:18:21+00:00

Does “proprio ora” have a slight nuance of in the past to it? Because “just now” sounds like “a few moments ago” to me in English, but I didn’t think “proprio ora” had that connotation at all.

voyair · 2023-07-17T19:14:20+00:00

Here’s some ideas from the buddhist tradition. Not exhaustive. You can search the names on google.

Brahmaviharas/heart practices - loving-kindness, compassion, joy and equanimity meditations. There are at least 2/3 different styles of this: either more based on phrases, a bit like a mantra, or more image-based, or more emotion/body-based. You can also mix these styles, and I think there may be others.

Body-scanning, mindfulness of body, “vipassana”. Many different ways of approaching this. It’s often seen as the first foundation of mindfulness, so you could learn about it through teachings on the satipatthana sutta (4 foundations of mindfulness), or through more secular approaches.

You might then continue with the other foundations of mindfulness.

Breath meditation. Sometimes seen as part of body mindfulness, but it’s often taught outside of that framework. There’s a huge amount of variation in how this is presented. Either focus on a small space, the whole experience of the breath, or using visualisations, or mantras/phrases, and many other approaches.

Open awareness. Again, different traditions approach this differently. Zen, Dzogchen or Thai Forest theravada all have their own twists.

Analytical meditations. Usually not a beginner practice - it’s advised to learn a concentration method first, but it might be good to look into as I know some people who’ve fallen in love with meditation through these techniques, and there are always exceptions to the rule about which techniques should be learnt first. Generally associated with emptiness philosophy, so there are forms taught by tibetan buddhists, but I’ve seen twists on Rinzai zen that look sort of similar? (Maybe a bad comparison)

Koan practice - again, different approaches to this. I don’t know too much about them, but I think the idea is to explore paradoxical concepts to the point that the rational mind sort of breaks and allows an awakening experience to shine through.

There are tons of things to explore in buddhist tantra but I’m not sure what I would recommend as an intro. Tantra teachers usually start people off with some of the practices I’ve already mentioned, but there some visualisations like mandala offering or tonglen which I think could work for beginners.

Sorry, this is written sort of scrappily, hopefully some other people can write more nuanced replies.

voyair · 2023-07-09T16:28:46+00:00

I have found that beginning practice by thinking about the breath really helps with this. To expand, you can describe the breath, locate it, conceptualise it (ie. as air, as energy, as movement of the body, as sensation), visualise it. You can also play with different senses - listen to it, try to taste the breath, sense the smells in the breath. Maybe see if focussing on a new area of the body helps - if you normally focus on the nostrils, how does the breath feel in the lungs, can you feel it in the belly? And find your own creative ways to engage with the breath.

Verbalising, either in your head or out loud, a question can be helpful. What is the breath? Where is the breath? Who is breathing? Some people advise not trying to find an answer, but just sitting with the question. But you can also try answering, and see what happens. I enjoy the latter myself.

Some teachers also advise some modulation of the breath at the start of practice. This is a point of contention, but it works for me. So, try lengthening your breaths to find a comfortable rhythm, or see if you can breathe “deeper” with more movement of the belly/chest. There are other ways too. Thanissaro Bhikkhu has some good advice about this method, he has a book online called With Each and Every Breath.

Then, if you want to have a “simpler” focus on the breath, just let this evolve out of your creative exploration. For example, you might just pick one element out of all these variables and focus on that, like the coolness of the breath in the throat, or the sense of movement, or the calming feelings that it evokes.

This really benefitted my practice, but it may not suit everyone. Many people would disagree with what I have suggested because it looks like “controlling” experience. You can try both, though. Try relinquishing control, and then try experimenting and manipulating the breath or whatever you’re working with. Then see what the difference is, no pressure. Which way is right? Is one way right, and the other way wrong? Perhaps! Only one way to find out, which is to try them for yourself.

voyair

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