The Ultimate Vampire Resource and Directory

- 100 faith in humanity.



I found this website while exploring the bowels of the internet.



http://www.fstdt.net/



It's a collection of the most ignorant, strange and outright mean quotes from religious nuts, racist, conspiracy theorists and much, much more.



For me, it's not so much the quotes that are shocking, but how easily they can be proven false. My favorite one so far:



"Some things can not be explained by science. Take for example, rainbows. Rainbows are a mystery and you can not touch them, just like god. Despite this fact, they are still there even though there is no scientific explanation for them. So next time you find yourself doubting your faith, think of god as a rainbow. I know that this can be a difficult concept for some of you to grasp. It is just like air you can't see it but you know its there"



How stupid/sheltered do you have to be? Seriously.



It's amusing to look through the site but the ignorance of the people behind these quotes gives me a headache.

Is it bad that the death of an animal bothers me more than the death of a human?



Last night a friend sent me an email with a video of a dog being set on fire - he didn't do it, it was in some middle eastern country - and I'm literally twitching with rage.



But just a few moments ago I read on the Escapist that a kid skewered his great-grandmother with a medieval sword and I can't help but laugh. Not at the death itself but the fact that the kid used a damn sword, but still.

Wow, the first time I've even been able to help moderate a website and it's on that okcupid dating site I haven't even been on in months. It was an automated message so I'm assuming anyone with a remotely clean record gets it but it's still kinda ironic.

This is why I hate squad respawn... and out of all the weird words Firefox registers, "respawn" isn't one of them, go figure.



anyway...

There I was playing a bit of Bad Company 2's multiplayer. Trying to sneak into the main camp of the enemy team to destroy their helicopter and tanks when they spawn. All was going well until a group of enemy soldiers spawned in camp. The Engineer class is kinda outgunned so I darted behind cover and waited for them to move on.



Unfortunetly for me, an ally squad-mate spawned on my character, not only that, he spawned out of cover. I immediately move in the opposite direction as he gets gunned down. But before the enemy soldiers could go back to what they were doing, my soldier blurts out "We got a man down over here!" and every enemy in the area turned toward where I was - hiding behind a crate.



Needless to say I died. Went out fighting but died. Reminded me why I hate squads though.

Using my favorite class on my current Morrowind playthrough. It's a custom class I made called Sentinel and is a rouge/mage mix.



Major skills: Short Blade, Sneak, Acrobatics, Conjuration, Alteration



Minor Skills: Light Armor, Athletics, Marksman, Illusion, Mysticism



The way I designed the class and back story it's engineered for role paying, not so much functionality. The idea was to make a class that could do everything a thief/assassin does without visibly carrying the tools on the character.



-Alteration to pick locks

-Mysticism to locate objects/enemies, steal from range and disarm traps

-Illusion to calm attacking enemies or help with stealth in crowded areas.

-Conjuration to summon my weapons for combat.



Since he uses magic for everything, if he were to be arrested or searched - not that it really does this in the game - the guards wouldn't find a tool or weapon on him, which I find damn cool.



The Assassins Creed style light armor ?I downloaded further adds to the awesomeness of this character.



Back story for description:

Sentinels were agents trained in secret by the Imperial Legion. The goal was to create a private order - similar to the Blades - to serve as assassins, thieves and spies for corrupt Imperial generals and their influential patrons. These specialized agents were trained in the arts of shadow and sorcery; able to kill a man without a sound and infiltrate the most secure facilities without touching a single lock. Unlike conventional Nightblades and Assassins, Sentinels relied on magic to pick locks, disarm traps and conceal themselves and their weaponry, this allowed them to effortlessly merge with civilian life and avoid detection by even the most experienced guardsman. Sadly such an ambitious and expensive project could not remain secret for long. Emperor Urial Septim discovered the project just two years after it began. The Imperial generals and noble patrons who funded it were arrested and executed for treason against the Empire while the Sentinels themselves were relentlessly hunted by the Blades. Many were slain in combat, while the remaining few either surrendered or were captured; spending the remainder of their days in the Imperial prison. Rumors persist that some Sentinels are still hiding amongst us, however there has been no evidence to back up this claim.

COMMENTS

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Lullaby
08:03 Aug 13 2011

I love absolutely anything and everything about Morrowind.



Best. Game. Ever.

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Ocelot
08:38 Aug 13 2011

Indeed. Skyrim just might top it though if what I've read is even half as awesome as it seems.

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POST COMMENT

My current rankings in Bastion.



Story: Ranked 808 out of roughly 114,000 players.



Kid's Dream: Ranked 1,110 out of roughly 62,000 players.



Singer's Dream: Ranked 591 out of roughly 40,000 players.



Stranger's Dream: Ranked 358 out of roughly 20,000 players.



It's literally impossible to advance any further in the Dreams but I have my eye on the top spot in the Story section. Could very well get there tomorrow by the way I'm going.



These ranks are based on performance, the game doesn't actually have multiplayer.

Review of Bastion first and my own preferred strategies and tactics at the bottom, separated by "-----"



Bastion tells - quite literally - the story of a Kid trying to survive a sudden apocalyptic event called the Calamity, which has destroyed the world and sent the debris into the sky as disconnected floating landmasses. Throughout the journey the game is narrated by the Character Rucks in a ""storytelling" manner. Rucks describes everything from objectives, to the history of the locations and characters you encounter, to monsters and how flawlessly/horrible you preform in combat. All of this is delivered in an old western stye voice that oddly fits the environment.



The game has a lot of interesting mechanics and features to keep the player entertained.



*Combat*

The combat is varied and shifts nicely between hectic faced paced action to calm, slow paced engagements. While the variety of enemies isn't too impressive, the different combinations - as well as environmental factors - ensure you'll always have a challenge.



And if you ever find the game too easy, or want more of a challenge, invoke the power of the Gods to make your life hell. Once the Pantheon Shrine is unlocked, the player can activate God Idols which give the enemies stat boosts and special abilities, on top of what they already can do. These Idols also offer bonus EXP and money. The more you have activated, the harder the game will be, and the more of a reward you'll receive. My personal favorite Idol is one that causes enemy's to drop a grenade upon death. Bastion of Duty 4: Modern Warfare! That actually sounds kinda cool.



The game's level up mechanics are also very interesting. Once the player has access to the Distillery, they can equip Spirits to gain passive abilities. Each level up allows them to equip one additional spirit. These range from more life/damage to gaining an extra life to carrying more tonics. At base value, all leveling up does is increase max life, the rest is up to the player to decide. Weapon upgrades also work in a similar way and all of them can be changed freely.



*Music*

Listen for yourself.



Brusher Patrol

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BYaFbFLAQlQ&feature=related



Build that Wall

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-95BeFyMFYY&feature=related



Damn good songs from a damn good soundtrack. The developer Supergiant Games has released the soundtrack too if anyone's interested.



*Other*

The art direction and story are also really creative. The game;s main story is dealing with the Calamity sure but there's so much information on the Old World and the characters to learn as well.



On a closing note, the game is only $15 on XBLA. It'll also be available on Steam mid August. As of yet though PS3 owners are out of luck, tough break there. It's a good game, and for the price its a damn great game so take a look if you haven't already.



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These are just my strategies and opinions about the game, not part of the review but good for tips, tricks and tactics.



One thing you should get used to using is the shield. Not only can blocking nullify damage, but blocking at just the right time will deflect the damage, wounding or even killing the attacker outright. It also looks awesome to deflect projectiles back at the enemy.



*Loadout 1*

These is my second favorite loadout and works great from the early-mid portions of the game.



-Breaker's Bow

-War Machete



The bow is powerful on its own, and if you get the timing right it shoots a power shot which does even more damage. Upgrade the draw speed on the bow and you can let power shots fly rapid-fire.

Power shots are what won 1st prize on the grooving too. I've seen some YouTube videos to see how others do it and they all have upgraded bows where a single normal shot takes out the targets. But I managed to do it with an un-upgraded bow and perfectly timed shots. Kind of a pride moment for me.



The machete is a good melee weapon. It's very fast with okay power and can also be thrown. Fully upgraded I go for critical power. 100% Critical damage and both 25% critical chance upgraded coupled with the increase in attack speed.



*Loadout 2*

Now this is my favorite one.



-Army Carbine

-Brusher's Pike



The carbine is a bolt action rifle that behaves much like the bow with the power shot, just a lot more powerful. Upgraded I go for aiming speed reduced and raw power with armor penetration. Punching power shot holes in armored enemies from a safe distance makes life a lot easier.



The pike is a long range melee weapon, slow but powerful. Upgraded I go for quicker attack speed, knock-back, raw power and armor penetration. I stab it - it dies ... and drop a grande but that's beside the point.



As far as spirits go, my "must-have" two are:



-Lechale: Makes health for doing damage to an enemy but makes healing tonics heal less.

-Bastion Brandy: Allows you to carry 2 more tonics and tonics heal 100% life.



Brandy doesn't entirely cancel out the negative effects of leechale but it helps a lot. Both of them combined help keep me at fully health more often.



As far as Idols go, I have all activated except for the one that increases enemy damage because it really, really increases damage and on top of what they get from all the other idols, that's freakin insane!

Well this is an unpleasant way to kick off the morning.



I usually save my Poweraid bottles and pour soda in them to carry around or to just have more to drink before I leave my room. It's 1am now and I woke up kinda thirsty and wanting to kick off the day now instead of going back to sleep and tossing around for the next 5 hours or so. I went to the fridge and saw a Poweraid bottle half filled with a black-ish liquid.



I haven't seen any in there for a while but figured it was old and was hiding in the back of the fridge until my father cleared some stuff out. So I took it back to my room and took a swig before sitting down to play Bastion - which I will review in my next journal - but instead of drinking Pepsi or root beer like I thought, I took a big gulp of vodka. My dad's idea of a joke I guess. Nearly threw up on the spot and am still trying to get the aftertaste to go the hell away.



Not a pleasant way to kick off the morning at all.

COMMENTS

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XXFayeBelevidoricoXX
06:40 Oct 21 2011

Rum is better with coke... vodka is better with orange juice.

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POST COMMENT

I love these funny moments. I was watching The Dark Knight with the family today, there's a part in the movie where Batman's car is hit with an RPG and the on-board computer describes the damage and prepares to eject Batman from the car. Just before a motorcycle break off from the main car, the automated voice says "goodbye" and as soon as it said that, the power in my house went out. The timing could not have been any more perfect and I burst out laughing on the spot.

Finished my non-stop playthrough of Dragon Age Origins today, including all the main game and epilogue DLC: Return to Ostigar, The Stone Prisoner, Soldier's Peak, Awakening, Golems of amgarrak and Witch hunt. Had a hell of a lot of fun playing it too, and a bit sad that it's over. You know it's a good game if it makes you slightly sad when you beat it. Played it on Hard difficulty. Gives me a nice challenge without it getting overly annoying. And it balances the game out a little more when using DLC weapons/armor.



Anyone else do non-stop play through of games or am I the only one who has that much free time? And just to clarify, I do tend to basic bodily needs. Eating, drinking, hygiene and sleeping. But I cut off all ties, don't speak to anyone, or do anything else but play the game. It's a nice once-in-a-while escape from the annoyances of people and everyday life.



Anyway...



With some exceptions of fine-tuning character skills, I copied my original playthrough of the game, since I absolutely love how that storyline developed.



Main character wise

-Male.

-Rouge skilled with duel weapons.

-City elf origin.



The rouge is my favorite class in Origins and in just about every game with a rouge class. They're all about trickery and finesse/grace and are still decent at a straight up fight.



The goal was to get strength to 20 (17 with the 3 bonuses from the Fade) to get Wade's Superior Drake-skin Armor, and then spend points in Dexterity and Cunning. Got the skill Lethality which makes your Cunning score effect weapon damage instead of Strength, which is a godsend for a Rouge since a lot of skills also are effected by cunning. So not only do you still have strong attack power, but your skills also get stronger at the same time. Honestly don't see a point to a Strength Rouge with a skill like that available.



My two specializations in Origins were Assassin and Duelist and I had the skill Dueling activated the all the time.



My main team consisted of Myself, Alister, Wynne and Morrigan.



-I would use stealth before battle to scout the area, disarm/set traps and then attack any mages or archers in the rearguard.



-Alister is the tank character for obvious reasons. He gets the attention of nearby enemies and keeps my mages safe.



-Wynne is the obvious healer as well as the one putting various glyphs on the battlefield as the situation allows. Paralyzing enemies, neutralizing magic and just being an overall nuisance to the enemy.



-Morrigan is the obvious combat mage. Putting enemy's to sleep and using the Horror skill to do serious damage, as well as using paralyze and mass paralysis on whoever Alister is currently targeting. She's also set to use Cone of Cold on aby character attacking Wynne in melee combat, to which Wynne is set to use Stone fist on the frozen target to instantly kill it.



I did alternate my team every now and again but that was my main one. The only character I couldn't find a viable use for was Sten. I really like his character but he sucks in combat, or at least he's not suited to the way I wage war. It's odd too because Ogren behaves much the same way as Sten in combat but he does extremely well.



Here's the quick-ish version of the choice paths I took through the game. There's some more thoughts at the bottom if you want to skip this part.



*Origin

-Killed the Arl's son.

-Took sole responsibility for the killing.

*Ostigar/Lothering

-Helped the dog in Ostigar

-Persuaded the highwaymen to pay me, then killed them.

-Convinced merchant to lower prices

-Convinced the screaming Chasend guy to go away.

-Gave healing potions to the nurse.

-Gave the barman poison.

-Told Loghain's men to send him a message.

-Recruited Leliana

-Used Leliana to help recruit Sten

-Completed all Chanter's Board requests.

*Red Cliff

-Got the town fully prepared to fight: Smith working, Drawf, elf archer and barkeep fighting, free ale for militia and holy symbols for Templars.

-Kept Jowan in his cell.

-Went to Circle Tower to get mages.

-Forcibly took ownership of the bar.

*Circle Tower

-Recruited Wynne

-Killed the Templar enthralled by the demon.

-Saved the Circle Mages and recruited mage aid.

*Red Cliff

-Sent Jowan into the Fade to kill the demon possessing the Arl's son.



*Recruited Zevran during assassination attempt.



*Soldier's Peak

-Agreed to help demon destroy tower.

-Sided with the mage in tower to kill the demon.

-Drank the tainted blood. Why let research go to waste right?

-Killed the demon, sealed the fade.

-Let the mage conduct ethical research.

-Found the hidden sword.

*Ostigar

-Collected all of the King's armor, to which I gave to Alister

-Gave the king a royal burial.

*Honnleath

-Agreed to let the demon leave without the little girl.

-Solved the puzzle and killed the demon.

-Recruited Shale

*Denerim

-Found Alister's Sister

-Completed many jobs for the Irregulars, Collective, Interested Parties and the Crows

*Dalish camp and forest

-Did all the little Dalish side quests

-Agreed to talk to zathrian about curse

-Fought zathrian and got him to break curse on werewolves.

-Recruited Dalish aid.

*Orzammar and Deep Roads

-Sided with Harrowmont initially to do the proving battles.

-Convinced Shaper to open a chantry.

-Got the dwarf girl to go to the Circle Tower.



*Found Sten's sword

*Killed Flemeth



-Started Morrigan romance option

-Killed Caridin for the Anvil

-Convinced Branka to destroy the Anvil after making a crown

-Gave the crown to Bhelen. He reminds me of Cao Cao: Skilled ruler but an ass hole, no offense Cao Cao.

-Recruited Ogren.

*Denerim

-Finished Crows assignments and let the assassin leave in peace.

-Gave collective papers to the good Templar.

-Killed K.

-Killed the Irregular's leader's son.

-Dueled the guy who wanted a duel.

-Started the pickpocket/break-in missions.

-Got the tracking ring from Morrigan.

-Ended Morrigan's romance option.

-Found location of the Urn of Sacred Ashes.

*Haven and temple

-Convinced the cult leader to let me pass.

-Did not pour the blood into the ashes.

-Killed the cult leader.

-Killed the High Dragon - a bitch of a fight

*Red Cliff

-Healed the Arl. Went to Denerim for the Landsmeet.

*Denerim and Alienage.

-Helped Leliana kill her old mentor.

-Started Leliana romance.

-Killed Zevran's old friend.

-Helped the various people in the dungeon.

-Sent Wynne and Leliana to rescue Alister and my character.

-Helped the Templar investigate orphanage.

-Killed the slavers and freed the slaves.



*Helped Wynne find her first student.

*Helped Ogren hook up with his old flame.

*Brought Shale to cadash thaig.



-Got enough support ot overrule Loghain.

-Beat Loghain in a duel and killed him.

-Got Alister and Anora to marry.

*Red Cliff

-Convinced Alister to do Morrigan's ritual.

*Climax

-Saved the market district and Alienage.

-Killed the Arch Demon without needing support.



*Awakening

-Recruited all available party members.

-Fully fortified the Vigil.

-Had the thief join the army.

-Let the murder go because of lack of evidence.

-Did all companion side quests.

-Chose to save the city instead of burning it down.

-Killed the Architect and the Mother.

*Witch Hunt

-Still had Morrigan's tracking ring.

-Let Morrigan go through the portal.



I was slightly disappointed with the Holem's DLC. It said it was supposed to be very hard but aside from the Harvester, it was pretty damn easy. Granted the Harvester was pretty annoying the first time through but it's easy afterward.



The first time against the Harvester I tried to do things strategically. Distracting it with one character while the other three kill the skeletons. Worked fine for the first phase but then the skeletons kept spawning at an insanely rapid rate and boss level ones kept spawning and killed my team in the first few minuets.



Then I just said "Fuck it" to strategy and got the whole team to just sworn the Harvester with everything. Arrows, special moves, and the bombs I saved from Awakening. The damn thing went down almost instantly.



One thing I love about my character is that he is almost impossible to hit. His defense is in the 160s at max level. Combine that with the lifebringer ring and he is practically a god.



Witch Hunt was a great cliffhanger to a great sequel that hasn't been made yet. I really didn't like DA2 because of being confined to Hawk. Sure he's customizable to some extent but it feels like they intentionally put less effort into his character, as with the game as a whole. And the apparent story problems like Leliana still being alive - even if you take her head off in Origins - further proves the sheer lack of thought that went into the game.



I'm hoping they get their act together for DA3. You can't have Origins drop hints at an epic sequel in front of you and then create a steaming pile of shit.



On a final note. I love the character models in Origins, especially the female elves. Pointy ears look damn cute on a girl for some odd reason.

Found out why my athlete's foot wouldn't go away despite a variety of treatments. It wasn't my hygiene that was the problem; it was my grandfather's home. Two months at my dad's house and - aside from the scar from attempting to carve it out with a knife - the athlete's foot is gone.



Sadly this also means that I'll get it again when I go back to grandpa's house to finish up my last semester. But after that I'll be heading off to university so it'll go away again, for good if I'm lucky.