Messages

326

Tournaments / Re: Tourney of Random Events Round 5

« on: June 09, 2014, 03:33:01 AM »

Huh, looks like I'm going to be going against the crowd this week.

Being Charlie Brown- Lilianne Valendorf (Mana Khemia 2: Fall of Alchemy) vs Athena Cykes (Phoenix Wright Ace Attorney: Dual Destinies)
Of the five people, including Edgeworth, who sit in the defense bench, Athena has it, by far, the best.  It helps that she's only in the hot seat for a couple of cases and is up against the relatively sane Blackquill (the second best person to Edgeworth, though Klavier does have an argument.  That said, the witnesses Klavier is paired up with more than make up for this).  I mean, hell, Edgeworth only has half a case as a defense attourney, but his half a case is interrogating Larry Butz and opposing the whip happy Franciska von Karma.  Meanwhile, sure, a lot of Lily's suffering is self inflicted, but let's be honest.  So is a decent chunk of Charlie Brown's suffering.  I mean, he knows he's never going to kick that football, but he keeps trying anyways because of futile hope. 

Calvinball- Luca Blight (Suikoden II) vs Bowser (Mario Series)
Sure, this is all about creativity, and sure, neither of these people really have it.  But let's be honest, Luca really only ever does the one thing, whereas Bowser's not only survived being the butt monkey of the Mario Universe which is strange and zany enough to rub off on anyone.  But he's also got all those experiences from Smashing, Karting, and Partying; the last of which if you toss it into a blender is basically Calvinball Light.  So, Bowser's got experience which gives him the clear edge.

327

Tournaments / Re: Tourney of Random Events: Round 4

« on: May 29, 2014, 08:46:10 PM »

Short Form
Last of the Meheecans- Domon Kasshu (Mobile Fighter G Gundam), Professor Layton (Eponymous), Carmen Sandiego (Eponymous) and Miriel (Fire Emblem: Awakening) VS Luca Blight (Suikoden II), Lilianne Valendorf (Mana Khemia 2: Fall of Alchemy), Bowser (Mario Series), and Athena Cykes (Phoenix Wright Ace Attorney: Dual Destinies)

The invaders need to all get across in order to win, which means that the best way for them all to get across is to pool their resources and work together in order to avoid letting the other team pick their weakest member and making sure that one person doesn't get across.  However, they hit a bad start when their three alpha personalities, Luca, Bowser, and Lily start to clash, hard.  And as skilled as Athena might be at psychology, even she can't make these three work together, which means that there's going to be three separate teams trying to make their way through, with Athena likely trying to help Bowser on the idea that Luca simply won't listen to her (he's notoriously disdainful of advisors/strategists), and Lily already has Whim to help her out.

Against this trio there will be a fiendish maze laid out by Professor Layton with help from Miriel.  Let's be honest here, the guy has mini-games in all of his games except the first one where he has to set up convoluted pathways for others to follow.  One of them is literally forcing a poor rodent to scurry along a path of his making through clever uses of carrots and sticks.  Against intellects the like of Lily, Bowser, and Luca.

Luca will actually be fine because sooner or later he's just going to snap and start breaking the maze.  However, this being easily anticipated, no two entrances will lead to the same section of maze, so it's unlikely he'll open a path for anyone else.  Meanwhile, Carmen Sandiago will use her thieving skills as a scout, picking out the team that's looking the most vulnerable, and then leading them into an ambush where Domon will get the drop on them and remove them from consideration.  Since Domon can, even without his Gundam, take out mook mechs and skyscrapers, either Lily or Bowser will prove easy prey for him without any backup.  So, as it stands, Luca gets through, but like as not, none of the rest do.  Which means a victory for team defenders.

328

Tournaments / Re: Tourney of Random Events: Round 4

« on: May 29, 2014, 12:03:57 AM »

Hrm, need some more time to give this some thought.  But I will admit, most of the reasoning for the infiltration teams do seem to be arguing that the defenders can't stop them all, when the event clearly calls for the defenders to only have to stop one of the infiltrators in order to win.

329

Tournaments / Re: Tourney of Random Events: Round 3

« on: May 19, 2014, 02:57:25 AM »

Do they ever actually summon monsters outside of the TVs?  I mean, the P3 crew can summon outside of Tartarus, but they've got specialized equipment made by a megacorp to do specifically that.  Also, Chie's persona doesn't really look like a monster.  Chie herself is also manifestly unscary unless your name is Yosuke.

Again, pit this up against a master thief who can take some of the things you like, and then threaten to take the rest?  No contest.

330

General Chat / Re: What games are you playing 2014?

« on: May 15, 2014, 05:47:02 AM »

I haven't made any progress in Chapter 4, decided to cut down the dragons and wanted something mindless to do while I was cooking supper.  Half of them are down now and the hardest part is finding the ruddy things.  Killed Dark, Light, and Wind, know where Fire is, but no clue where Water is despite trying to hunt it down.

Tiz is the only survivor, but I got the Wind Dragon with the Unscathed bonus.  They are, um, kinda easy to break, and Comeback Kid only makes it take a lot less time.

331

General Chat / Re: What games are you playing 2014?

« on: May 14, 2014, 11:18:53 PM »

Bravely Default - Into the 4th chapter now.  Discovered the first Blue Quest that doesn't hand feed you all the various steps besides time of day juggling.  Currently in the Earth Tower, which is feeling like a decent spike in difficulty.  Though, part of this may be a combination of not having Examine around for targetted killing, and having Edea learning Templar which feels like a drop in offensive power from her Pirate/Valkyrie/Swordmaster days.

Fiddling around also found a dragon which kicked my ass.  Though, I can see how I'll beat the Salamander quickly (so long as I don't mind only getting Exp and JP for Tiz)


SRW:AG - Also playing this.  Nearing the end of the game, as knowable by the fact that I've got the Hi-Nu, Mazinkaiser, and Shin Getter.  Naturally, they are also seeing use.  Garrod and the Double X is also in play due to the fact that I jumped through all the hoops to get me some G-Bits, so I may as well use them.

Random notes. 
Hi-Nu Gundam's moveset looks ridiculously dramatic.  I especially like the touch of adding Lalah's ghost to the Fin Funnels.
Mazinkaiser is still obscenely broken.  Why yes I want a 1-4 range free attack that can do up to 10k damage without Valour.
Finally, just two Mastery Points away from locking in the Hard Ending.  With four maps left before the pathsplit, it should be doable.  Though the masteries are at least getting harder now.

332

General Chat / Re: What games are you playing 2014?

« on: May 12, 2014, 04:28:34 AM »

Courageous Bankruptcy.

Been slowing down a bit with this, but still moving on.  Mostly finally managed to get all the Ch3 classes, and am moving on to Chapter 4.  The one battle I've done there so far showed a huge JP growth, which is nice since it suggests I am closer than ever to having my Pirate Swordmaster Edea up and running.

333

General Chat / Re: Watching any anime?

« on: May 12, 2014, 04:25:33 AM »

So, I've been watching TV lately.  This includes a bunch of anime, specifically, a whole shwack of UC Gundam and checking out Linebarrels of Iron.

In fact, since I watched them at about the same time, I'm probably going to contrast and compare Linebarrels and Double Zeta on account of finding being pretty opposite in terms of enjoyment.

Specifically, I really enjoyed watching the first few episodes of Linebarrel.  I mean, the first episode sets it up as a wish fulfillment anime of the worst kind, and then it just subverts that premise beautifully.  Showing the kind of horrid mess that would happen if most people who are repressed like that were given a stupendously badass giant robot they could control with their mind.  And also, if they got super strong and effectively immortal as part of the bargain.

The problem comes when, after they go through the first arc and the horrible shit that is all the main character's fault happens, and it goes back to being...  a wish fulfillment anime.  There's toying with character development, but the ending is just horrific.  Having a climactic showdown with the Rival who is winning because he's good at fighting ends when a) the Rival holds back, and b) Linebarrel just gets arbitrarily more powerful.  And this is a trend, the main character never improves, when he's in danger of losing he just gets more powerful.  Then there's the final battle, where the bad guys make an impassioned plea for the good guys to surrender because their world view is totally logical and inevitable and better and they don't want to kill people on the way to that end.  And they make a pretty decent argument for why they're right.  And then the main character gives a reply that can be summarized as "You're wrong cause you think too much!  And I fight because I look fucking awesome!"  Cue the entire cast, which had been wavering in the face of an unwinnable fight and had been listening in having their own chance to say, in their own words, "Damn!  I'd been having doubts, but being reminded that you DO look fucking awesome has made me want to fight again!"

Sooooo, yeah.  Fucking Terrible.

Double Zeta on the other hand, started pretty bad, what with the whole kids performing humourous hijinks, except in your traditional Gundam military setting where it'd normally get them shot for insubordination.  Or, y'know, treason.  Especially with the mood whiplash of starting this shortly after finishing Zeta Gundam, which is kinda fitting since the series starts just a few days after Z Gundam ends.  That said, once the main character starts getting serious about things, and we move away from Masshima and Chara as antagonists and get back to Haman and the actual Neo-Zeon war, it improves pretty quickly.  And while there's still some bad episodes (the desert arc is just, ugh), once you actually hit Dakar it's mostly solid.  A few too many beats from Zeta at the end, but otherwise, it's a good solid ending.  And this also has a point where one of the bad guys (not the primary villain, though Haman and Judau also talk often enough) gets into that same motivational speech, and Judau actually has a pretty decent answer, which was especially nice after Linebarrel.

So, yeah, finished Zeta which was pretty gripping the whole way through.  I can see why it's generally considered one of the best Gundam series.  There's a few flaws (Katz and Reccoa are pretty uniformly horrible), but I also really enjoyed some members of the cast; Emma Sheen probably being my favourite character in the whole thing.

Also followed up the end of ZZ by watching Char's Counterattack.  Quess is pretty horrible, though between being a teenager with horrible parents and getting Cyber Newtype treatments halfway through the movie I'm not sure she really had any hope of not being horrible.  Chan is probably my favourite of the new characters, and I liked the arc with her and Amuro.  The ending was also pretty cool, and a nice capstone for a story arc that's basically been around since the start of Mobile Suit Gundam.

334

Tournaments / Re: Tourney of Random Events: Round 3

« on: May 12, 2014, 04:01:44 AM »

Steve Rogers is Captain America

335

Tournaments / Re: Tourney of Random Events: Round 3

« on: May 12, 2014, 03:59:45 AM »

Scaring Small Children- Carmen Sandiego (Eponymous) vs Chie Satonaka (Persona 4)
Let's be honest here, the only person Chie ever manages to really scare is Kyosuke.  Meanwhile, Carmen Sandiago can, if nothing else, take the kid's favourite stuff and then threaten to make the rest of it vanish too.  And kid LIKE their stuff.

Atelier Random- Luca Blight (Suikoden II), Domon Kasshu (Mobile Fighter G Gundam), Miriel (Fire Emblem: Awakening) and Professor Layton (Eponymous) vs Genie (Aladdin), Archer (Fate/Stay Night), Gilgamesh (Final Fantasy V), Yuri Lowell (Tales of Vesperia)
Luca might be a problem, but I can totally see Domon having a blast keeping him in line.  And while the Genie is pretty similar to being a Mana, there's a huge difference at being naturally gifted at something, and knowing how to explain that knowledge, or even really understanding it.  Meanwhile, Miriel's kinda smart, and Layton's not only a professor, but Al-Revis style alchemy is his wheelhouse.  Both sides give a good accounting, but Layton proves decisive.

Tag Teamin- Solid Snake (Metal Gear Series) and Ned Flanders (The Simpsons) vs Lilianne Valendorf (Mana Khemia 2: Fall of Alchemy) and Bowser (Mario Series)
Flanders will be useless here, so the real question is whether or not Snake can take the win by himself, or if Lily or Bowser combined can take him.  I figure Bowser will go down easy, but Snake has a bad habit of falling for surprises way too often, and Lily, with her manhandling of Raze and any other targets of opportunity, strikes me as knowing just enough to prove surprisingly good at wrestling, or at least brutal, debilitating chokeholds.  So she'll get her one shot on Snake that will be just enough to take it.

Playing Cupid- Steve Rogers (Marvel Comics) vs Athena Cykes (Phoenix Wright Ace Attorney: Dual Destinies)
The only way Athena could possibly lose this is if psychologists are banned entry from Tokyo-3.  Given the stunning mental dysfunction displayed by all members of the cast, this would not actually surprise me.

336

Tournaments / Re: Tourney of Random Events: Round 2, week 2

« on: May 07, 2014, 08:08:26 AM »

Short Form-
Team Fortress: Lilianne Valendorf (Mana Khemia 2: Fall of Alchemy), Athena Cykes (Phoenix Wright Ace Attorney: Dual Destinies), Bowser (Mario Series) and Luca Blight (Suikoden II) vs Master Splinter (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Franchise), Soma Cruz (Castlevania Series), Wile E. Coyote (Looney Tunes/Merry Melodies), and Sue Richards (Fantastic Four)

Team A is the stronger team, but their real question is if they can work together or not since they have three very strong personalities with the potential for some epic clashing.  Fortunately, they also have Athena who's psychology and emotion sensing makes her one of the best people to have for keeping all three of these people working together.


The Three-Legged Race: Walter White (Breaking Bad) and Giselle (Enchanted) vs Steve Rogers (Marvel Comics) and Archer (Fate/Stay Night)
Y'know, while I could go with the flow, I'm gonna say that Giselle manages to use her magical songs to get them over the finish line first.  But they get disqualified because they needed to cross under their own power, and not because they got picked up and hauled over by an enchanted moose.


Fightans: Miriel (Fire Emblem: Awakening) vs The Great Question (Shadow Hearts: Covenant)
Going with the argument of able to adapt faster.

The Stare: Gilgamesh (Final Fantasy V) vs Bender Bending Rodriguez (Futurama)
Normally you'd think the fleshy mortal would be less immune to the sight of madness than the robot.  But futurama robots are pretty bad for immunity against stuff like that, and Gilgamesh has been kinda hurtling through the heart of madness as he travels from game to game which has gotten him pretty used to it.

337

Tournaments / Re: Tourney of Random Events: Round 1, Week 4

« on: May 07, 2014, 07:52:09 AM »

Short Form

Babysitting: Samus Aran (Metroid Series) vs Genie (Aladdin)
Samus would probably be pretty good at it, even if she is ridiculously overqualified.  The genie, on the other hand, has all sorts of power, and real issues with saying no.  Needless to say, property damage will not be avoided.

The Statue: Ilyana (Fire Emblem Series) vs Umi (Cthulhu Saves the World)
Ilyana's lack of energy will serve her well as staying still is her natural state, while it's the opposite of Umi's nature.

Yo Momma Fight: Visser Three (Animorphs) vs Lilianne Valendorf (Mana Khemia 2: Fall of Alchemy)
Dwarf Tossing: Yukari Yakumo (Touhou Series) and Zelos Wilder (Tales of Symphonia) vs Yuri Lowell (Tales of Vesperia) and Athena Cykes (Phoenix Wright Ace Attorney: Dual Destinies)
Eh, what I saw of Yuri suggests he'd be more willing to go through with it than Zelos.  And let's face it, this sort of event isn't close to the worst thing that's happened to defense lawyers in the Wrightverse.

Bullfighting: Mr. Clean (Mascot) vs Miriel (Fire Emblem: Awakening)
Before a few weeks ago I'd be a bit iffy on Mr. Clean, but their most recent commercial's given the guy an axe and sent him up against a forest.  So...  yeah.

Thumb Wrestling: Nostalgia Critic (That Guy with the Glasses) vs Princess Buttercup (The Princess Bride)

Kidnap Princess Peach: Squidward (Spongebob Squarepants) vs Domon Kasshu (Mobile Fighter G Gundam)
Rain will probably just tell Domon that in order to get to the next round in the Gundam Fight he'll have to fight the Mushroom Kingdom's Plumber Gundam.  And the only way to draw it out is by kidnapping Princess Peach.  With that sort of motivation, he'll get the job done.

338

General Chat / Re: Idiot of the Day 2012: How do these people breathe?

« on: March 25, 2012, 07:45:17 PM »

Verizon would like to state that you are currently under the left seat cushion of your couch.

339

General Chat / Re: What Games ya Playin' 2012 - Suplex a Train Edition

« on: March 25, 2012, 07:09:32 PM »

Mass Effect 3 - Just finished Asaritown.  This game feels a lot more scripted than the other ones in the series.  Right up to and including the Renegade/Paragon choices barely ever coming up.  Granted, part of this may be due to the fact Ninja McWankerson refuses to die no matter how many times I shoot him.

That said, the plot info gained about the Crucible at this point has done a lot to lessen my objections to the device from a narritive standpoint.  Seeing as I absolutely hated the idea of the current races being helpless without some Prothean superweapon no one ever heard of before.  Having it be something that got worked on a little bit more every cycle, and making it a legacy project?  That is something I find thematically apropriate enough to let my suspension of disbelief kick right back in.

About to head to Horizon, and soon enough, to see what all the fuss is about the ending.


Oh right, also on an SRPG kick, kinda research based, kinda fun based.  Currently fiddling about with XF because of it's great little class system, and because it needs more love.  Map design and scripting will likely be the two main areas of interest, since it'll be interesting to see where they use dialogue and when to advance the plot (so, more technical details than actual merits of the writing staff).  Meanwhile, XF probably is the second best RPG I've seen for map design, at least in terms of producing maps that aren't just kill all enemies, assassinate specific enemy, or sieze something or other.  Currently at Poliasha after the Marsh Bug battle.

May decide to look at FFT or Vandal Hearts after this.  The former because it is simply the best SRPG out there. The latter because it is likely the third best, and easily the finest one in terms of map design and alternative victory conditions. It's just completely outshone by FFT and XF in terms of mechanics.

340

General Chat / Re: Idiot of the Day 2012: How do these people breathe?

« on: March 21, 2012, 09:59:47 AM »

Family Locator can betray their driving habits, as well, letting parents know not only where they are, but how fast they're driving – and it allows said parent to message them

...

Because when your kid is speeding, the best course of action is clearly to distract them with a text message.

341

General Chat / Re: What Games ya Playin' 2012 - Suplex a Train Edition

« on: March 15, 2012, 10:58:28 AM »

Just reached the Quarians. They are too dumb to live. Fortunately for them, I need their fleet.  Interactions with ME2 cast is nice, though fairly dissapointing that it looks like none of them are playable.  (Garrus and Tali do not count)  That said, Mordin's Paragon plot arc?  Beautiful.  Just excellent from start to finish, and I'll be surprised if any other character in the game can outshine him.  Wrex had a chance, but failed to get there before the two of them bowed out of the spotlight.

May need to get XBox Live, annoyed that the single player is, even slightly, beholden to online multiplayer.

342

Tournaments / ToR - R1Pg: Nene Trolls the Universe

« on: March 15, 2012, 05:06:05 AM »

Results:

36. Adam West (Family Guy) I/IIIII Harry Dresden (Dresden Files) - Winning a War   
37. Trekkie Monster (Avenue Q) IIIII I/I Xorn - Sanity Contest
38. Roland Deschaine (Dark Tower) I/III Waldo (Where's Waldo) - Jogurt Herding   
39. Marv (Sin City) IIII/II Captain Jean-Luc Picard - Craft (Disturbing Mental Image)   
40. Wallace Wells (Scott Pilgrim) II/II Vin (Mistborn) - Being Charlie Brown

41. Belkar Bitterleaf (Order of the Stick) & Mordin Solus (Mass Effect 2) III/II Twilight Sparkle & Kirby - Buddy Cops, Solve Big Case   
42. Foghorn Leghorn & Jay (Kevin Smith Movies) I/I IIIII Faile Bashere (WoT) & Citan Uzuki - Pairs Battle      


Pool G

Match 43

There's something to be said for big guns. Especially when paired with the mad men of science.  Today, we have two of deranged professions facing off against each other, proving which is the best by the application of artillery.

Judge Doom usually has other methods to get what he wants, but this terrifying scourge of Toon Town is not above getting his hands dirty when he has to.  And, unlike most of the competitors here, he's the best equipped to have special ordinance to deal with his opponent.

Dr. Scratchensniff is no stranger to dealing with deranged sociopaths.  It's just that most of the ones he's dealt with have been more inclined to comedy instead of murder. However, with his keen mind and German heritage, he should have some knack for aiming large guns.


Match 44

Live Action Minesweeper is one of those fun tasks where unlike the real thing, stepping on a mine doesn't end you, it just sends you flying and gives you a huge time penalty. This is important as it's the first one done who wins.  Going up for the title this time, we have Sarah Connor, a woman known for her ability to survive when the future is trying to kill her.  Hopefully, some of the skills she's had to learn will translate to flagging mines through math and probability.  Against her is the Mr. Oh Yeah himself, the Cool Aid man, whose skills at minesweeping are unknwon, but whose ability to fly about with abandon and survive smashing into walls is implausibly strong.


Match 45

As much as I wish I had the time to craft a masterful writeup for this one, I don't.  The catagory is, Master Baiting, where the meaning is in your mind. Or your hand. I'm not going to judge.

First up is the wrinkled blue fruit from Blue Dragon who doesn't seem to have anything to do with his immortality and superior tech than troll the world.  Granted, it's full of idiots and probably deserves the trolling, but that really is his reason d'etre.  Whereas other all-powerful folks turn to tyranny, he's staunchly on the side of the lulz.

But his competition is also about being a pretty huge jerk.  Granted, the Scarecrow is hardly the jerkiest of Batman's foes, but he is good at scaring folks, and generally terrorizing folks just for the hell of it.


Match 46

Running for political office is a cornerstone of any democratic system.  And, actually winning is an odd thing where you have to convince enough people that you'd do a good job, without actually saying anything that'll piss them all off.

Rogue comes into this with the definite advantage of being a hero. After all, she's part of the X-Men super team. Of course, this runs into a couple of other issues. Namely, she's a mutant.  And saving humanity doesn't seem to count for much when you can't change the fact that you're in a world that hates and reviles you.  And this is all before we start getting into the issues with shaking hands or kissing babies, and how poorly doing either would end.

Against this is Dr. Wily, who has tried to take over the world with his robotic constructs several times.  But, despite being evil, he's apparently damned good at getting people to agree to stuff.  After all, no matter how many times he tries world conquest, people still give him money, trust, and positions of responcibility.  When trouble strikes, people are more likely to arrest perennial good guy Dr. Light than Wily, when the Cold War is at its height, only Wily can go to Russia. And when Light needs a trusty right hand man for his next utopian scheme, he still ends up hiring Wily.  Every. Single. Time.


Match 47

Look, normally, when you have a competition between someone who's competent in pretty much everything they do, and they go up against a screw up who only has one notable talent, it's pretty easy to see the blowout coming.  But, despite not being about incompetance, this match may still go the other way.  After all, the task here is to frighten small children.  And on the one hand, you have Bubbles, Cuddly Defender of Youth, and Don Paolo, the rival of Professor Layton who's frightened both of the small children who hang out with the Professor, and more to the point, is just plain creepy.


Match 48

Manliness is more than actions, it's a state of being. It is not something that can be put into words, it simply is.

Our first competitor has a bit of a head start, on account of being a man.  That said, Dr. Hans Clamp is a scientist, so he may not actually qualify as manly.

Meanwhile, Edna...  is disturbingly plausible.  Brain bleach requestingly plausible.



Match 49

And finally, we get to our final match of Round 1.  Competitive Blogging.

Since I don't know who Dimitri Blinov is, I won't say much about the Sheriff of Rottingham either. Except that anyone written by Mel Brooks would probably have awesome blog updates, especially if they're bitching about the most recent humiliations Robin Hood has inflicted upon you.


Quick Vote Form:

43. Judge Doom vs. Dr. Scratchensniff - Artillery Duel
44. Sarah Connor vs. Kool Aid Man - Live Action Minesweeper
45. Nene (Blue Dragon) vs. Scarecrow (Batman) - Master Baiting
46. Dr. Wily vs. Rogue (X-Men) -  Run for Political Office
47. Blossom (PPG) vs. Don Paolo (Prof. Layton) - Frightning Small Children
48. Edna (WA:XF) vs. Dr. Hans Clamp (Parasite Eve) - Manliness Contest
49. Dimitri Blinov (Castlevania) vs. Sheriff of Rottingham (RH:MiT) - Competitive Blogging

343

General Chat / Re: I've got your Miscellaneous Links for ya, 2012! RIGHT HERE!

« on: March 08, 2012, 07:11:50 PM »

Fun little article, and links to replies, about whether or not Batman is morally obligated to kill the Joker.

http://bigthink.com/ideas/42595?page=all


As for the EC stuff, while they raise some interesting points, I can't see emotional investment really trumping the main method you interface with the game. Heck, in some ways, the traditional ways you interact with media don't matter so much as they do outside of games.

Phantasy Star 4 and Mass Effect both have sci-fi storylines where you go through death and loss while hopping from planet to planet in order to stop a threat to the whole galaxy that is coming from beyond the edges of reality.  But I'd sure as hell call Phantasy Star 4 closer to FF6 in terms of feel than it ever is to Mass Effect.

344

Tournaments / Re: ToR - R1Pf: Where Xorn is sane and the Jogurts roam.

« on: March 07, 2012, 06:40:14 AM »

Wenesday will see the next pool up, so vote now or not at all.

345

Tournaments / ToR - R1Pf: Where Xorn is sane and the Jogurts roam.

« on: February 29, 2012, 08:55:38 PM »

Results:

29. The Flash IIIII II/I. Fou-Lu (BoF4) - Hide and Seek
30. Tony Stark I/IIIII Link - Sax and Violins
31. Shinji Ikari IIIII/I Ultros - Evade the Illuminati and Discover the Truth
32. Perseus IIIII I/I Peter Petrelli (Heros) - Duel Arcane
33. Puniyo (Mana Khemia 2) /II IIIII Uncle (Jackie Chan Adventures) - American Gladiators
34. Katsuragi Keima (World Only God Knows) I/III Full Mystic Asellus (SaGa Frontier) - Running a Nation
35. Deadpool, Lucca (CT), Bad Horse (Dr. Horrible), Julius Belmont IIIII I/I Roy (FE6), Severus Snape, Dr. Nick Rivera, Gene (Godhand) - Rock Band


Pool F

Match 36:

Many things have been said about wars, and how to win them. However, there's really only two ways to win. You either need to destroy your opponent's will to continue fighting, or destroy their ability to do so.  And even then, the second doesn't always take.  In this case, our two competitors will have their armies, and a nation to go with it, and will attempt to win the war between them.

Our first competitor apparently has experience in running a polity, being the Mayor of Quahog.  However, can the Family Guy rendition of Adam West win a war?  Against him is a magician who apparently also dabbles in politics, though of the supernatural sort. And in a much darker world. However, while he'll be more able to do what needs to be done, how effective will he be at running an army?


Match 37:

This is another of those matches where the scrub offs are probably more entertaining than watching two competant type people going at it. Specifically, we have the Sanity Contest, where the winner is the one who is most sane.

First off, we have the Trekkie Monster, the guy best known for the statement that the Internet is for Porn.  And against him is the antithesis of Love, Xorn.


Match 38:

The Jogurt is a majestic beast, true to itself and its dedication to the path of 1. And like any great beast, they come in swarms that cover the vast plains, swarms that need to be gotten from one place to another.

Roland Deschaine is a gunslinger from a place and time where that's important. The important thing here is that while he may be a gunslinger, he is also, quite emphatically, not a cowboy. However, he's a driven guy with a chunk of ingenuity to call upon and a fair bit of skill too, so odds are good that he will in fact get to where he's going.

Up against him is Waldo. If you still can't see him, no worries, not being seen is what he does best. Another thing he does well is co-existing with absurdity, and herding jogurts is, at its heart, absurd.


Match 39:

Some matches as elegant in their simplicity, but still not the kind of things you really want to see the aftermath of. Craft: Disturbing Mental Image is one of the finest of these, as both contestants will do their utmost to break the minds of a captive audiance through making them think about things no person should ever be forced to think about.

While I don't know the guy, I can't help but think that Marv from Sin City has a bit of a leg up here, if only because of where he's from. Also, Noir settings lean more towards aptitude at this kind of thing than utopian visions of the future, which is exactly where his opponent, Captain Jean Luc Picard hails from.  However, having been all over the galaxy, and having a way with words and generally determined to see the mission through, the old man from Starfleet may well pull off the win.


Match 40:

Last time on being Charlie Brown, we essentially had Chuck Brown in a fur suit as a competitor. This time we have something different, we have two people who make a habit of winning showing up.

Our first contestant is Wallace Wells, the cool gay roomate of Scott Pilgrim. The man is best known for pithy one liners, generally making the scene better simply by showing up, and always being at the top of his game. Failure's rank touch settles on a lot of people over the course of that series, but never on him.  And he still has a shot at winning, simply because he's at least mundane in his awesomeness.

After all, he's never killed a god, let alone two of them. Vin Venture is quite possibly the most skilled Allomancer to have ever existed, and between having the right skills at the right time, she's a major figure in two religions, and was basically the champion of a diety, and godmaker for a fourth diety. Whereas Charlie Brown's biggest nemesi were a kite eating tree, and a football. Vin's only real hope of pulling this one out is her childhood, which was a pretty abject scrabble for survival, and a point where she wasn't on top. However, will her humble beginnings prove enough to be Charlie Brown?


Match 41:

One's a sociopathic halfling ranger with a taste for gourmet cooking.
The other's a special forces doctor specialising in forensics and genocide.
They fight crime.

or

One's a pink fluffball that gains powers by eating all in its path.
The other's a pony with command over friendship and all magic.
They fight crime.

The question is, who fights crime better?


Match 42:

Pairs battle is a pretty simple affair. In fact, it's as simple as winning this fight will be. 

You see, on one side you have a pair of fast talkers.  Jay, well, without Silent Bob to back him up isn't much of a threat, and it's unlikely he'd be able to outwit any determined attacker.  Foghorn Leghorn, on the other hand, is a loony tunes fast talker, so the underdog position would normally give him a surprising amount of leverage to talk his opponents into defeating themselves.  Except that you can ignore the fact that he loses more often than Bugs because of who he's facing.

Now, the first member of Team Competant in a Fight is someone he could arguably fast talk. Faile Bashere may have a keen political mind, but she also has a few glaring weaknesses as well. But when she's paired up with Citan Uzuki, who is hyper smart in addition to hyper deadly, it's likely game, set, and match.


Quick Vote Form:

36. Adam West (Family Guy) vs. Harry Dresden (Dresden Files) - Winning a War
37. Trekkie Monster (Avenue Q) vs. Xorn - Sanity Contest
38. Roland Deschaine (Dark Tower) vs. Waldo (Where's Waldo) - Jogurt Herding
39. Marv (Sin City) vs. Captain Jean-Luc Picard - Craft (Disturbing Mental Image)
40. Wallace Wells (Scott Pilgrim) vs. Vin (Mistborn) - Being Charlie Brown

41. Belkar Bitterleaf (Order of the Stick) & Mordin Solus (Mass Effect 2) vs. Twilight Sparkle & Kirby - Buddy Cops, Solve Big Case
42. Foghorn Leghorn & Jay (Kevin Smith Movies) vs. Faile Bashere (WoT) & Citan Uzuki - Pairs Battle

346

General Chat / Re: What Games ya Playin' 2012 - Suplex a Train Edition

« on: February 28, 2012, 12:51:23 AM »

Mass Effect.

Just finished ME1, still find it interesting that it's generally Garrus who's all "You're going to sacrifice humans?", especially since this time it was Shepard and Kaidan he was hanging out with.

Aside from that, moving straight on to ME2 has reminded me of just how much better ME2 is over the first one. The combat just feels more refined, and while biotics have been hit with a nerfstick, they also feel more balanced.  Whereas in ME1 it was simply toss a Singularity and everyone in that area is effectively dead, now it's never quite a one hit kill, and cover works against it.  Also, there's defenses.  That said, I'm enjoying the Warp/Carnifex Hand Cannon combo.  Also enjoying the shorter mission scenarios, feels like you're accomplishing more than the massive setpieces ME1 had.

Currently got the DLC recruits, as well as all of the early recruits but Subject Zero.  Looking forward to seeing the differences between Kaiden and Ashley at Horizon.

347

Tournaments / Re: ToR - R1Pe: One is a tentacled beast, the other's Shinji Ikari, They Fight Cults

« on: February 24, 2012, 06:26:35 AM »

Update coming up, this weekend.

348

Tournaments / ToR - R1Pe: One is a tentacled beast, the other's Shinji Ikari, They Fight Cults

« on: February 15, 2012, 10:22:50 PM »

Results:

21. Bob (Reboot) IIII/III Dr. Robotnik - Heckling
22. The Janitor (Scrubs) IIIII I/ Sasuke Uchiha (Naruto) - Dealing With the Devil   
23. Blue Mage IIIII I/ Chameleon (Spiderman) - Killing Everyone   
24. Michael Corleon (The Godfather) IIIII II/ James Bond - Talking with Fish
25. Wile E. Coyote IIIII/III Seto Kaiba (YuGiOh) - Forming a Superhero League
26. Iago (Aladdin) /IIIII III Shu (Suikoden II) - Seeing the Future

27. Doc Brown/Doc Octavius IIIII/III Ramus (Lunar)/The Joker (Batman) - Ballroom Dancing
28. Ted "Theodore" Logan/Dryst (Brig) IIIII II/ Dracula/Larry Butz - Kart Racing, Double Dash Style


Pool E

Match 29

Hide and Seek is a pretty simple affair. One guy hides, the other looks for him. If the guy hiding can reach a predetermined location without getting caught then he wins the round, if he's caught, than he loses. In this case, they'll take turns shootout style until three rounds have happened, or until one of them ends a round with a lead, whichever is longer.

Our first contestant is actually a pretty damn good contender, if only because he's a pro at moving around undetected, and he's got top notch searching abilities, if only because it's so very easy for him to run around and look everywhere.  The Flash and his running speed will prove a tough nut to crack.

Which means that he'll be a challenge for his competitor, the man who played hide and seek against an Empire, and won.  Fou-Lu is an expert in evading capture, avoiding notice, and generally being sneaky as hell.  He will be no match for the Flash in raw skill, but his cunning should provide him the tools he needs for this oddly balanced fight.


Match 30

Sax and Violins is another one of those fun catagories that really is what you make of it.  Whether it be music or innuendo.  Once again, we've got a pair of contestants who'll be hoping for their favoured interpretation of it.

Tony Stark isn't much on music, but innuendo? That he can do all night long.  Link on the other hand, not having a personality kinda hurts at stuff like this, though I suppose his animated counterpart could be somewhat effective. However, at this point, the collective Ur-Link could probably field a pretty kickass orchestra.


Match 31

Ancients conspiracies exist, and they want to do horrific things. Just a fact of life. And, there's always that one person who stumbles onto their plans and tries to find their dark secrets and otherwise stop them.  This time, we have the story of two unlikely heros who will excel at completely different parts of this.

Ultros' hiding abilities are unknown. I mean, he's good at showing up out of nowhere, but let's face it. You never actually look for the guy. In fact, it's usually the complete opposite.  That said, finding out the truth? If his truth finding skills are equal to his tracking abilities, then he's got a lock on that. Now all he needs to do is avoid capture.

On the other hand, Shinji Ikari has no real concerns about hiding, after all, the Illuminati are his father.  So, in his case, it's less hiding and more surviving being an integral part of the Illuminati's plans long enough to discover the truth. Or simply finding the truth in the first place. That said, he has a network of competant, if highly damaged, friends who all have parts of the truth, so if he can find a backbone, victory is in his grasp.


Match 32

This time we find ourselves with an interesting match. A duel arcane without mages. However, one party can just pull out powers from people who're a bit closer to the mark, as Peter Petrelli is an accomplished powers mimic. Something that may have been even better if he were facing a mage. Instead, he's facing our second entry from Mythical Greece, Perseus. Aka the guy who kills monsters and bangs princesses before it was in style, and does so with the hell of countless magical trinkets from the Gods. Which means that he's probably going to be coming into this borrowing some other magical bling that'll let him fight magically. Though, being Greek, he's still going to need to be clever with how he uses what he's given.


Match 33

There's nothing quite like the smell of spandex in the morning. It's the smell of the 80's.  And so we have our next batch of American Gladiators coming to the ring, neither of whom look like they should be a good fit, but both of whom are probably much better than they appear.

First up is that mob boss in the body of a little girl, Puniyo.  While she's not so good at physical challenges, she's got that covered with creativity, and ruthlessness. Look for her to get by in challenges by finding uses for things that should not be, and doing things to her opponent that will boost the ratings in a big way.

Against this is Uncle from Jackie Chan Adventures. Don't let the stooped posture and withered frame of this old man fool you. Though he may leave most of the fighting to Jackie Chan, he's ostensibly the guy who trained him, and with his finely honed martial arts, should make short work of any physical challenges thrown his way.


Match 34

Running a nation is a tricky affair. After all, you have to not only balance what'll be helpful to keep the country running smoothly, you also have to work with all of the people who are a part of it, and who each want the betterment of the parts they care about (whether that be the whole, their circles, or just themselves).

Katsuragi Keima may actually be fairly good at this, given he's a prodigy who is being forced to work on his people skills. Against this is someone who likely ends her game in this position, as Full Mystic Asellus replaces the Mystic Governor of her region.


Match 35

And now...  the match I've kinda been waiting for. The team battle for Rock Band. As per usual, we'll be doing some sets, with the better scores after the set winning.  As a fun side bonus, we'll be using the harmony mechanics from the newest one, which means that the lead guitarist will also have to sing.

Team one actually should be pretty strong, with Deadpool likely being good wherever he's put, which will likely be vocals or lead guitar given that's where you want the guy with the snarky asides and wacky antics. Which ever role he doesn't fill will be taken by Bad Horse from Dr. Horrible's Singalong Blog, who likely has the chops and thatricality to pull off either with a nice menacing air. This leaves Julius Belmont on the Bass, and Lucca on the drums.

Team two, on the other hand, will be the team to beat. While they do have Dr. Nick Rivera whose cometance is questionable, he should be safely relegated to the easy to play Bass. And they have the highly competant and continualy snubbed Severus Snape getting dumped onto the drums, where he'll continue to excel in the face of disrespect. Normally, this would be the point where Roy from FE6 would stand up and take lead guitar, but as we all know, he's not proficient with Axes, leaving him as lead singer while Gene from Godhand takes the guitar and frontman position he was born to take.


Quick Vote Form:

29. The Flash vs. Fou-Lu (BoF4) - Hide and Seek   
30. Tony Stark vs. Link - Sax and Violins               
31. Shinji Ikari vs. Ultros - Evade the Illuminati and Discover the Truth   
32. Perseus vs. Peter Petrelli (Heros) - Duel Arcane      
33. Puniyo (Mana Khemia 2) vs. Uncle (Jackie Chan Adventures) - American Gladiators         
34. Katsuragi Keima (World Only God Knows) vs. Full Mystic Asellus (SaGa Frontier) - Running a Nation

35. Deadpool, Lucca (CT), Bad Horse (Dr. Horrible), Julius Belmont vs. Roy (FE6), Severus Snape, Dr. Nick Rivera, Gene (Godhand) - Rock Band

349

Tournaments / Re: ToR - Round 1, Pool D Update Tomorrow

« on: February 15, 2012, 06:38:16 AM »

See the title, vote now or not at all.

350

General Chat / Re: Beer

« on: February 14, 2012, 09:56:38 AM »

Don't drink often, but when I do I usually go with Alexander Keith's Indian Ale, Guiness, or Hobgoblin if I want a big ass bottle in one shot.