unclevlad

https://apnews.com/article/maine-shooting-report-takeaways-8a0ced34568bcca551b5a61fe1baa676

Houston falls in the Big 10 finals. Not that surprising, they had injury issues, and nothing to play for, really. They might lose the #1 overall seed, but I'd be just as happy NOT to. They're not dropping to a 2 seed. OTOH...NC State beats UNC, and UNC *did* want the game. So, 3 of the 4 likely #1s fall today. It also means UConn finishes as the only 3-loss team. Houston and Purdue, 4 losses. Then I think we blow up all the way to *7* losses...until #18 (in last week's poll) Utah State with 6. The #1 seeds failed to win their conference tournaments at an amazing rate. EDIT: from this morning's first game, the Ivy League championship game. 17 conference #1 seeds failed to advance to their conference championship game...most in 25 years. That's a wrap because the 5 games today are all championship games, obviously enough. Bracket release is less than 6 hours away.

Steelers pick up Justin Fields, and only send back a 6th round pick...in other words, basically nothing. NFL.com counts this as a win for Fields, but I'm not so sure. It's complex; if Wilson plays decently, then Fields spends his 4th year...his pre-option year...on the bench. And it's a clear statement that no one wants Fields as a clear starter. OTOH, it also suggests that Wilson had better not take his starting role as a given. Both Wilson and Fields are essentially playing on 1 year contracts, and it's wildly unlikely they'll both get big money in '25. The losers for sure are the Bears, and all 3 of the current Steeler QBs. NFL.com also notes the Jets are losers, as...if Fields can only deliver a 6th round pick, then Zach Wilson's value as a backup is.............a 6th round pick in 2027? Steelers fans still have to be really nervous, as it's not at all hard to imagine BOTH of their new QBs failing miserably.

You can increase the font size on startup. Create a text file in your folder where the HD jar lives; I use RunHeroJar.bat. Then paste this line: javaw -Xmx1024m -cp .\HD6.jar com.hero.HeroDesigner 14 -Xmx1024m gives the Java machine more memory...a gig. I've got 16 gig, so I go big. If you've got less system memory, you can do less, like 128m. The last number there is the font size; you can make it what you want, but going too big may cause problems with labels and fields overwriting each other. I think 16 is fine, tho. If you're using a desktop shortcut, edit the shortcut; its execution line should look quite similar.

https://awfulannouncing.com/college-football/5-takeaways-college-football-playoff-agreement-espn-deal.html

ESPN is going to add a live Win Probability to their baseball graphics. One story here: https://awfulannouncing.com/gambling/espn-mlb-win-probability-sports-betting.html I agree. WP is meaningless most of the time, especially as a static number. Its transitions can be interesting...runner on 2nd, down a run, tries to steal third, gets thrown out. But generally, it's not needed or useful. And I also agree, it's pandering to the gamblers...if not with WP, then with follow-ons like live money line. Remember: ESPN has a branded sports book now.

Found an amusing poll over on Awful Announcing. "Would you vote for a presidential candidate whose VP candidate is Aaron Rodgers?" 90% NO...and over 1500 votes.

OH MY...MAJOR upset in the Big 10. Wisconsin trips up Purdue...#3, and an absolute lock to get a #1 seed...in OT. Something like 15 or 16 conference title games are today; saw a graphic showing there were still 18 AQs left earlier. Not sure how many games are tomorrow, tho.

Yep. Of course, and no offense...the fact that it's a Mr. P trivia question tends to narrow down the answer pool considerably........

And now Virginia has probably played themselves out. Coming into tonight's game with NC State, they were the 3rd of the Last 4 In...the Dayton-bound teams. So...extremely tenuous position to start with. NC State finished 10th in the ACC, 69th in the NET rankings. Virginia was 50th...and sinking badly late. Game tied at half, 29-29. Virginia had a 3 point lead with 6 seconds left...but NC State nailed the buzzer-beater 3 to tie, then scrapped to a small lead and watched Virginia miss multiple shots. NC State scores the last 9 points in the OT, to go from 1 down to an 8 point win. NC State has a shot at the automatic berth, but UNC stands in their way...and they've been solid for the last several weeks. And Kentucky's *very* erratic season continued, as they lost to Texas A&M. Kentucky was #9; A&M's NET ranking was 46. Wall to wall hoops still going on at this hour. Big Wes, Mountain West, Pac 12, and WAC.

And NYT had a story that only about 30% of Americans want TikTok restricted. They also mentioned, it's become an alternative to reach people...including by several in Congress. The TL;DR was, yes indeed, Republicans trying to do things Americans DON'T want, rather than what they do. Every day, in every way, I'm getting more and more confirmed...I will not vote Republican. Period. Not all Republican candidates are bad, but it doesn't matter to me now. And...yeah, VPNs are trivial. I've used BitDefender for anti-virus for...good lord, 10 years now? How time flies. Got it because it was a top-tier AV at that time, by the 3 big AV review sites. A VPN's built in. And it's not exactly expensive; just looking at NordVPN? Less than $5/month would throw in a password manager. So, not exactly expensive. And *Forbes*...that radical liberal institution!!!!...has a review of VPN packages! But hey, we know the farther-right Reps don't care about achieving anything substantive, they just want a crowing point.

The Minnesota game was only 3 games into the next season, so...not a big difference. IIRC, I've heard both. MVP season then a very poor SB after 3 dominating halves in the playoffs...then 18/41. And it's probably worth noting, talking about the strip sack...Newton was sacked 185 times in those first 5 years, plus however many hits he had to absorb while running the ball...600 rushes in those 5 years. Then the 6 sacks in SB 50, and 8 in week 3? You can't dismiss the notion that he took permanent damage. If he hadn't flaked out as much as he did, tho...even after those last 3, bad seasons, I suspect he might've gotten backup jobs...if he'd accept them. The comment you highlighted suggests he wouldn't, tho, and put the two together? Bet his agent heard numerous variants of "don't call us, we'll call you."

That's pretty seismic...Donald's only 32. But 10 years of double teams is reason enough.

I can actually see his points. He's certainly not the only one thinking it's too much. Not making waves is *not* a bad thing...being reliable to do your job is a very good thing. But yeah, he's definitely in denial about where he fits in. Hey, dude, you were on top of the football universe...but you lost your mojo in that game 3 against the Vikes in '16...and were never the same afterward. The flake act usually wears thin fairly quickly when the performance isn't there...unless you're Aaron Rodgers.

That's true across the field. The CBS studio folks like to go with upset alerts? This year...that applies to everyone. And if they drop to #6, well, 11 beats 6 about 3 times in 8. The 5-12, 6-11, and 7-10 matchups are all fairly close to the same...12 wins 33%, 11 wins 37%, 10 wins 39%. By comparison? 13 beats 4 only 21% of the time. EDIT: yet another datum? Mississippi State's listed on the Last 4 Byes by Lunardi...so, 11 seed. In the SEC quarters, they're playing potential #1 Tennessee. MSU 38-19 at halftime. They've wrapped around Tennessee's offense like an anaconda for the entire half. Sure, there's an entire 2nd half. but wow. EDIT 2: separately, after turmoil that led to a suspension, more turmoil and issues as reported in The Athletic this morning, and a season to forget, Michigan has fired Juwan Howard. EDIT 3: Mississippi State never lets Tennessee get close; the second half lead was never less than 12. They win by 17. So they're in...and if UNC can win their ACC semi, that likely locks Tennessee out of a #1.

The Utah State women's coach appears to have company. Stanford fired their men's coach this evening, right after losing in the Pac-12 tourney. No tourney trips in 8 years; best record in the conference was 11-7, and the Pac-12's been a weak conference throughout that period, IIRC. 8-12 this year...10th out of 12 teams. The Pac-12 had 6 teams at 9-11 or 8-12...sounds like the NFC last season. Saw several other coaches got fired today.

Just finished my simple dinner. Somehow it's staying down, which is a bit surprising considering this. https://theathletic.com/5343141/2024/03/14/college-football-playoff-contract-revenue-split/ They're talking about the distribution of CFP money from ESPN. Article's probably paywalled for most, but there's numerous stories about this now. Fine. Just kick the Big 12 and ACC to the dirt, ignore the rest, and split off the SEC and Big Ten into the NFL minor leagues they think they are. (I *do not* think the Big Ten as a whole is anywhere near that level.) And Notre Dame gets $12M? FOR WHAT? And note, this doesn't count the relative value of the regular season contracts, which already pay the Big Ten and SEC far more than anyone else. The Group of 5 knows they're getting hosed...but reportedly, also know there's not squat they can do about it. They have about as much leverage as an overcooked spaghetti noodle. EDIT: took longer than it should have...but I'm watching the last Pac-12 basketball game of the night, and they're talking about the death of the conference. That slapped me in the face: the revenue distribution report doesn't mention the Pac-12. So, what does this mean for OSU and WSU, once this conference year is finished this summer? It feels like they have no assets to offer up, to reconstitute the league. The conference will nominally exist for the 24-25 season, as will the Pac-12 network, altho what they'll show is unspecified. It feels like this slams the coffin shut, and seals the lid onto any chance of it coming back.

52 games today. The most important... Texas Tech 81, BYU 67. If they were a 4? This might knock them down into the dreaded 5 seed...12's beat 5's MUCH more often than 13's beat 4's. This is one of my favorite sites to seek out...ODD little factoids. https://mcubed.net/ncaab/seeds.shtml For example, the 8-9 game is pretty much a tossup, as you'd expect. But in the second round? The 8 seed beats the 1 seed more than twice as often. Elsewhere...one of the bigger surprises, in the ACC. #2 Duke, looking at a #2 or #3 in the tournament...falls to NC State, the conference 10 seed, and nowhere close to making it, even with this result. NC State tried to give the game back...Duke scores to cut the lead to 5 with about 40 seconds left. They press. NC State breaks it...relayed up court, then to the bucket where their center has a gimme dunk. He misses it. AND hangs on the rim...which gets a goaltending call...and continues to do so with one hand, which gets a *technical foul*. Not quite as bad as it could've been...it's only 1 shot, and given that there was no possession (debatable if there's a goaltending call, but it's what they ruled and no one seemed to complain)...so it stayed a 2 possession game. NC State also missed 6 of 7 free throws in a stretch. But Duke only gets it to 2, NC State does hit a couple FTs when needed, and win by 5. Anyone can lose at any time....................

In Main6E, Martial Flash does not add STR to the flash damage. Built to have 4 DCs, and it'll add your HTH DCs. <MANEUVER DISPLAY="Martial Flash" DEFENSE="SPECIAL" DOESDAMAGE="Yes" DOESKNOCKBACK="No" DOESBODY="No" DURATION="INSTANT" TARGET="DCV" USESEND="Yes" KILLING="No" ADDSTR="N" ACTIVECOST="10" CATEGORY="Hand To Hand" OCV="-1" DCV="-1" BASECOST="4" PHASE="1/2" DC="4" INPUTLABEL="Sense Group" OTHERINPUT="No" EFFECT="[FLASHDC]" WEAPONEFFECT="[FLASHDC]"> <EXAMPLE>Hearing</EXAMPLE> <EXAMPLE>Mental</EXAMPLE> <EXAMPLE>Radio</EXAMPLE> <EXAMPLE>Sight</EXAMPLE> <EXAMPLE>Smell/Taste</EXAMPLE> <EXAMPLE>Touch</EXAMPLE> <EXAMPLE>Unusual</EXAMPLE> </MANEUVER>

And...here we go again... The #1 attention queen is at it again. Aaron Rodgers (and Jesse Ventura) sits atop RFK Jr's choice for VP, as an independent. Rodgers is going...hmm, yeah, I'd be interested. So much for focusing on the Jets, should he do it....even considering no independent has a snowball's chance of winning. Elsewhere...Raiders make it official, Jimmy G. is gone. And the Chargers have to cut Mike Williams, a good big-play wideout, to fit under the cap. All teams have to be under the cap at this point, so today's moves are likely the last subtractions.

There is just something intrinsically WRONG with Cleveland winning a title................shocking, even.................

Today sees the big conferences' tournaments move into high gear. Several had their early round games; Big 12 has 14 teams this year, so 11-14 played to eliminate 2 to get to 12. 4 games today, top 4 seeds get byes to the quarters. A-10, ACC, American, Pac 12, Big East...it's wall to wall basketball, with multiple games on FS1, ESPN, ESPN2, CBS SN, and USA Network, plus BTN, Pac 12, and ESPN+, and a couple on Peacock. I count 43 games today...starting right about now (9:30 Mountain) and running all day...last tip is the 4th Pac 12 game, scheduled for 9:30 PM. Utah State coach...her record was awful. 24-90 over 4 years, 5-25 this year. So it's understandable, and suggests the decision was made some time ago. Can argue the AD basically let her have the season with the players.

Methinks the future of most secondary-market team broadcasts may have arrived. Last year, the D'backs games were shown on...I think it was Bally Sportsnet's channel, but who knows the branding. Even after the production was taken over by MLB. Now, tho...it's not listed in my Xfinity channel listings, and Bally says it's not available in my area. If I want to watch the D'backs? DBacks.TV. $100 for the season. Or a full MLB.TV pass, if I wanna spend more. The good news? I'm no longer in their blackout area. So, it's a mixed bag. And to be fair...$100 for the season really isn't bad, for a fan of the team. And it helps clean up the ridiculous broadcast-area issues...I'm still in the Padres' broadcast area. Who are you kidding? But I've beaten that horse many times....

I'm thinking the DEX roll, which is being made by the attacker, is to keep the attack on line, so that the weapon doesn't deflect on impact. But, yeah, that mechanic is rather easier to envision when it's a melee attack, and rather harder to justify against a ranged attack. It really would be MUCH simpler to do it as Negation on an activation roll, and blow off the less-than-clear original text. Chris's works OK *for melee*...but is this applicable to a gunshot? A DEX roll by the attacker makes no sense. Side point about the limitation, from Chris's suggestion. An 18 DEX means a 13-...which means the equivalent activation is a 7-. That's not -1/2, it's -1 1/2, and it doesn't get worse.

Finding out about the Dhan'iell sounds like classic conspiracy theory or Area 51 type foo. Hacking, breaking into secret sites (which might include government sites), chasing down vague bread crumbs. ANY description is believable, because they're total aliens, who knows what they look like, or how their biology/physiology works? It's pure fantasy time. I'm hearing a being where the initial reaction will be TERROR...which means NPC to me. EVERYTHING is horrifying; it's absolute, pure nightmare material, FAR past what people can learn to accept, IMO.