Ragitsu

...do we have to make this political?

"The thought had crossed my mind." "At which point you promptly cut it down, correct?" "Yes." (A discussion about "Doing the right thing.")

Music from a 1992 DOS game being piped through 1987 hardware sounds this good?

For tkdguy ->

Ripe green Mediterranean olives (often preserved in brine) are second only to bacon when it comes to foods that marvelously pair with scrambled eggs.

Rumor has it he enjoys a good flan.

Sure, an implication of quality exists, but I'm referring to the whole package: the writing (holy crap), the combat, the MMORPG-esque items (what's wrong with the classics?), the romances (which you touched on...they move at a breakneck pace compared to the partners in the second game and they're often needlessly vulgar for the sake of vulgarity), the racial designs (how do you botch Elves?), the music, the voice acting (performances that feel so very contemporary by comparison), the focus on explosive spectacle* instead of a slow-burn, the recycled Larian assets (including their particular favored genre conventions), lore discrepancies, et cetera. Honestly, they'd have been better off creating a brand new adventure in The Realms. You'll notice I hadn't mentioned the titular city. * The invasion angle adds too much of a science-fiction element, in my estimation. In addition to the aforementioned inconsistencies, I have two pet peeves: 1.) There is no day/night cycle; the present scene shifts to nighttime when you deliberately choose to make camp/rest, but it is entirely under your control. In the original game (a quarter-century old by this point), night comes whether you desire it or not. Ultimately, xx3 carries a degree of artificiality reminding you that the world is - at least in this regard - catering to the player instead of functioning like a living environment. 2.) Minor spoiler. Collapse view Of the returning characters, at least two of them are not represented by their original voice actors; their replacements are a bad fit, to say the least. Finally, how about a horde of bugs - from nearly game-breaking to merely tiresome - that puts the state of Florida to shame?

"I didn't come here to insult you; you do a fine job of that on your own."

"You grappled with this somewhere between lunch and that inconsiderate bowel movement; it was a momentary curiosity you were happy to relinquish. I grapple with this every day."

"You grappled with this somewhere between lunch and that inconsiderate bowel movement; it was a momentary curiosity you were happy to relinquish. I grapple with this every day."

Robert Sloan: Martin, is it so bad where you're from? Martin Sloan: I thought so, Pop. I've been living on a dead run, and I was tired. And one day I knew I had to come back here. I had to come back and get on the merry-go-round, and eat cotton candy, and listen to a band concert. I had to stop and breathe, and close my eyes and smell, and listen. Robert Sloan: I guess we all want that. Maybe when you go back, Martin, you'll find that there are merry-go-rounds and band concerts where you are. Maybe you haven't been looking in the right place. You've been looking behind you, Martin. Try looking ahead.

horse sense /ˈhôrs ˌsens/ noun INFORMAL noun: horse sense common sense.

Plus, she's voiced by industry legend Kath Soucie.

Picture a setting where the average tavern is using Longsword+1s as spits for flanks of beef, where every household features a Decanter of Endless Water, where Beads of Force are scattered amidst the pebbles (okay, slightly hyperbolic here, but not by much) and where you are likely to uncover half-consumed Potions of Healing in a residence's refuse; that abundance of magical items sets a specific tone. While, yes, the availability of these treasures does carry some long term mechanical (i.e., game-related) consequences for a D&D campaign (specifically, it makes creatures impervious to mundane weaponry less threatening and increases overall survivability), it also diminishes the wonder and appreciation associated with discovering what is ordinarily an in-setting rarity* and real-world impossibility. Now, picture an adventure where the PCs journey into the wilderness and chance upon deep forest ruins; after cheating death twice over in what remains of the central tower, they reach the pinnacle only to find a skeleton clad in battered field plate while still clutching a blade curiously untouched by rust. Big difference. Also, the way in which the PCs and NPCs speak and think has zip zero to do with system mechanics or winning/losing. When the bartender says "Hey, dude, how's it hanging?", it creates a different atmosphere than "Traveler, what burdens do you bring from the road?"...even if they both amount to the same sentiment. Considerations that many contemplate for D&D also apply to Pathfinder, Warhammer Fantasy, HERO Fantasy, GURPS Fantasy and even collaborative storytelling completely removed from any sort of ruleset. * "High magic" settings exist and can be fun, but that is purely a matter of taste; what one considers "mundane" or "fantastic" in that context is likewise subjective and the point of this extended conversation.

https://gallerix.org/fullpic/037de89036331c8724240ad825e0c609/

https://tonymcmillen.wordpress.com/tag/henchmen-humor/

Pasta? Pizza?

Brownie!

I finally obtained an SW copy of this bad boy. It's nice to have a supplement that isn't packed with a load of Skills, Feats, Prestige Classes, et cetera.