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#disabled people can absolutely create their own art. they do not need to steal
death-limes · 4 months
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fuckin uuuuuuuuuuh sorry if this is a hot take or anything but “ai art is theft and unfair to the ppl who made the original art being sampled” doesnt suddenly become not true if the person generating the ai art is disabled
and its also possible to hold that opinion WITHOUT believing that disabled ppl are in any way “lazy” or “deserve” their disability or “it’s their fault” or any of that bullshit
i get that disability can be devastating to those who used to do a certain type of art that their body no longer allows in the traditional sense. but physical and mental disability have literally NEVER stopped people from creating art, EVER, in all of history. artists are creative. passionate people find a way.
and even if a way can’t be found…. stealing is still stealing. like. plagiarizing an article isn’t suddenly ethical just bc the person who stole it can’t read, and being against plagiarism doesn’t mean you hate people who can’t read.
the whole ableism angle on ai art confuses the hell out of me, if im honest. at least be consistent about it. if it’s ethical when disabled people do it, then it’s ethical when anyone does it
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small-reptile-cake · 5 years
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Vigilante AU (updated/fixed)
Concept:
We live in a world of injustice, where powerful people get to overshadow and overrule others basic human rights, and those with true power conceal themselves under the shadows at the risk of being killed or outcasted from society. However, in a city where hate and panic flood the streets, a select team of special people are willing to put themselves out there and defend those who can no longer fight for themselves. Virgil Sinclaire(18)
Powers:
Telepathy
Can read and invade the minds of other people with unsettling, fear inducing thoughts.
His range of hearing is of up to three blocks.
His powers caused him to be mildly agoraphobic; he spent a great part of his life hearing the sick thoughts of strangers on the street and the thousands of times he could simply tell when he was about to get mugged, making him afraid of leaving the safety of his apartment.
Now he wears headphones most of the time to muffle the voices.
Always lived in the same tall building, the higher he is the less he has to hear.
Born and raised in New York.
Studies/Interests:
Highschool dropout. In between his phobia and the terrible influence from his peers, he decided the education system wasn't for him.
Wanted to be an english major.
Enjoys writing scary/realistic novels.
Affiliations
Lives with his aunt and cousin.
Was lured into a group of thieves disguised as anarchists/protesters who claimed to fight for “True justice”, and that they would protect him. Truly, they were just hiding their true intentions and using Virgil’s powers to cause harm out of pure self gratification.
When their motives were unveiled, he still rejected becoming a part of the Alliance
Now, he belongs to his own neutral alignment in which he will not condone giving aid to those who he feels don't deserve it and will absolutely turn to revenge if necessary, even through unconventional means.  
Is still willing to help the Alliance, or the “Light Ones” as he calls them.
Patton Kane (22)
Powers:
Healing
His healing can range from treating people (whether it be physically or emotionally) to fixing broken objects (Only if they’re visibly torn, like a broken key or a broken cup).
The risk of healing people’s emotions is that it’s only temporary, and Patton will absorb both positive and negative emotions from the individual.
He can’t fix something that’s been set on fire (A book or clothes) because it’s simply beyond his reach to reconstruct something that's been turned to dust.
Studies/Interests:
A gastronomy student.
Often attends to baking courses/seminars during the week.
Teaches kids with disabilities how to bake on the weekends.
Part of his tuition was paid by working as a babysitter and a store clerk. The rest was obtained from his parents
Was an animal hoarder back in college even though he didn’t have the space or time at the moment. There were stray cats, dogs, even a rat that lived in the same building and got caught in a trap one day. He healed it and brought it home because he didn’t want the owner to find it and kill it.
His family had to talk him out of it and he even went to therapy to deal with the guilt of having to give his babies up for adoption.
Now he only adopts people as his children.
Affiliations
Virgil activates his fatherly senses the most and constantly getting invited to eat at Patton’s
He’s always encouraging the vigilante to go out, then ultimately visiting whenever Virgil just doesn’t feel safe enough to go out.
He also loves playing video games together as long as they aren’t horror themed.
Went to highschool with Logan, he was a few years older but since their parents knew each other and Logan didn’t bother socializing with people in his grade, they became close.
They would both occasionally help their peers though small gestures, such as easing someone before a test, or getting someone out of a fever. It was when they met Roman that he dragged them onto greater things and eventually led to forming the alliance.
Logan Altman (20)
Powers:
Super speed
Is ironically always worried about wasting time
The best thing about his power is having more time to appreciate each moment and scene as it happens before his eyes, analyze it, then carry on.
Will stutter whenever he tries to speak at a normal pace. Roman had to help him practice his speech so it wouldn’t give away his identity during superhero duty.
Needs extra calories, and therefore is often found snacking on protein bars, fruit (and obviously Patton’s famous oatmeal-chocolate cookies)
Can be very hot headed and impatient at times.
Studies/Interests
Majors in chemical engineering, takes up astronomy in his spare time, as well as philosophy and english.
Wants to learn german and spanish.
Uses his super speed to be able to take all of his classes during the week, complete his chores in time and always have some spare minutes.
Keeps a schedule that he’s very loyal to or else he might take up more than he can handle and stress himself out (Again).
Despite being so diligent of his work, he always falls asleep in time, makes sure to have a healthy diet and gives himself some time to relax and contemplate.
Affiliations
Has been friends with Patton since elementary, their parents know each other. Their relationship was very stiff at first as the sensitive hero used to infuriate him by taking too long to do things and getting carried away all the time. This led to some outbursts that were always forgiven as long as Logan apologized afterwards.
One day he went too far while Patton was particularly sensitive, causing him to cry. He’s learnt to control himself since then.
He and Roman were classmates in fight grade when Roman moved in, by then he wasn’t friends with anybody else from his generation.
They started to hang out after a few very intense debates regarding the historical accuracy of a few medieval TV shows, and if it was acceptable to deviate from the obscure reality of those times.
Genuinely loves watching Roman perform classics on stage. The first time he saw him was during english class when they were to bring presentations to class, he performed a paragraph from one of Chèjov's tales.
Despite often treating him like an idiot, he recognizes Roman to be brilliant in his own field. And having him in class was always an amusing experience.
Thinks of Virgil’s occasional presence as comforting, but ultimately disagrees with his views on society.
Is constantly trying to convince Virgil to retake his studies, expressing concern for his future.
Roman Garcia(20)
Powers:
Morphing objects as he touches them
He can only change the shape of an object, not the material it’s made of (if he touches a metal chair and shapes it into a sword, it’ll still be made of metal)
It used to be very difficult for him to create things as he couldn’t focus hard enough on a single shape at the time and the images in his brain would get jumbled.
Later on he was diagnosed with ADHD. His family refused to medicate him and for many years he was forced to deal with it without knowing what it was and what to do about it. That, until he met a teacher that dealt with the same thing who was willing to educate him on he matter. From then on, he’s been learning to surpass it and perfect his technique.
Studies/Interests:
Drama school, also forms part of a few independent acting groups dedicated to performing musicals in small theatres.
Writes fantasy novels, as well as scripts for both theatre and film. He loves how different both formats are and the different things he can achieve with both
Can also write and listen in spanish, but is pronunciation is still too stiff to talk back.
Affiiliations:
Went to highschool with Logan, Patton was their senior.
Moved in to New York from Albuquerque with his little brother. Their entire family is from Venezuela.
Comes from divorced parents, had an abusive father growing up.
Doesn’t necessarily hate his brother, but is extremely weary of him growing into a villain since his powers are rarely ever used  for anything other than chaos.
Has a strong attachment to Patton due to the hero’s overbearing, fatherly attitude. Often rings him up at random times to just hang out and watch “Brooklyn 99″ together or learn new recipes. Whether they are in a bad mood or not, it’s always heartwarming to spend time with each other. He really hated Virgil at first for stealing Patton’s attention.
Is currently really fond of Virgil as he can understand the struggles of being forced to move apart from your family. He also really appreciates the vigilante’s willingness to listen
Devin C. Pierce (20)
Powers:
Shapeshifting
Uses his powers to his own advantage and to help those he cares about.
Doesn’t care about fighting evil or turning evil because good and bad are constructs and totally subjective.
Studies/Interests
Drama school
Takes up law as his second major, mostly influenced by watching fake trials on TV and watching legal dramas.
Totally didn’t show Remus “How to get away with murder”.
Affiliations
Met Roman on an improv night at a bar, they got a few good laughs by being absurd and original.
Roman doesnt know about his powers but they're still good friends. Is often asked to babysit Remus when Roman is out fighting crime.
Is constantly teasing Virgil because, in Devin’s words; he’s a “Hypocrite who thinks of himself morally superior to everyone”
Tells everyone the C in his name is for classy.
Remus Garcia (14)
Power:
Morphing objects as he touches them
His creations are always a lot more gruesome than Roman’s
They range from weapons, dick shaped statues, inedible food shaped objects to prank people and tiny versions of torture devices he saw in some horror game about the dark ages. They all decorate his room
Studies/Interests:
He also sculpts manually and enjoys painting. Most of his art is abstract. Only draws explicitly gorey scenes when he’s angry.
He learnt French in secret for years just to one day start pretending he didn’t know spanish anymore and piss everyone off.
Enjoys reading horror stories on the internet a lot. He even found Virgil’s blog while deep diving once, but he doesn’t know that.
Affiliations
Moved in with Roman because his parents were busy with work and couldn’t tend to his “needs” all the time
Constantly trying to get Roman to take him on his missions. Since Roman doesn't trust him not to kill anyone, it never happened.
Is old enough not to need a babysitter, is chaotic enough to need one and only Deceit can handle him.
Patton is greatly unsettled by him, but Remus loves when he comes over to cook for them. He tried to show him his sculptures once when he was younger and it didn’t go well at all.
He is constantly trolling Virgil whenever they’re around, thinking about disturbing things the moment he walks through the door.
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softbutchzenyatta · 6 years
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a weird random thing i was thinking about and likely wont make sense but i wanted to document it a bit
i have some mixed feelings on stories and pieces of fiction where the narrative is that a person cannot get better. narratives where the focal point is that the quality of someone’s life will never improve and that perhaps even death would be preferable.
on the one hand, this trope is commonly used by neurotypicals and able-bodied people who are using the misfortunes of the disabled and mentally ill to further their story and create a shocking and morbid plot twist to make their media seem that much darker. it’s offensive and cheap. it’s the people who make life so difficult and unbearable for a group of people directly mocking those individuals for being a victim of the oppression they perpetuate. using the absolutely life-ruining mess they created to their own advantage. it’s not a story that is good or quality. it is lazy, and like i said, cheap.
but, from the perspective of those people, disabled people and mentally ill people themselves who have felt the hopelessness of life not getting better, i think those stories coming from those people can be very interesting. especially since i’ve felt that way myself before. it’s a strange connection. i personally believe stories that depend on hopelessness and despair are almost always bad writing, but it’s different when it has that personal feeling because you know there’s some truth to it as opposed to just being Neurotypical Pity Porn, you know? you can tell it’s something the author deeply needed to express and that’s what makes it art
the reason i reflected on all this is because i was thinking about how shitty cases of the first example was, when i realized i was almost doing something similar with one of my own stories (if anyone remembers, the one of the professor, a mentally ill man who has been stripped of all individual rights, and the bouncer, his caretaker/guardian who is required to keep track of every single thing he does). i got concerned that i was causing the same level of harm as the thing i was criticizing, but there’s a clear line between them, i think.
it’s a story about a man who has given up because everything has been taken from him - he has been declared a danger to society and has been restricted in every way possible short of solitary confinement (though it might as well be worse that, as he’s not legally allowed to interact with people alone). he’s incredibly lonely but seems resigned to the situation, and the protagonist struggles to understand how someone can just give up on being a person like that, but slowly grows to understand as they get to know him. and that story comes from somewhere deep inside me, it represents a very seriously rooted issue that i have when i think about the reality of my life as a mentally ill person in the longterm. that’s what makes it different from the shallow, edgy stories of any other average author who might steal the concept of a helpless victim and masturbate to how cool they are for making them suffer even more
but i do like that people like me are able to write stories about experiences like that and express ourselves. it’s unfortunate that those stories might be taken by the wrong people for dishonest purposes, but the people who they are meant for, the people who do understand it, they are able to take hold of it, and form a connection to the story, and use it to improve themselves, and develop their outlook on life and feel at peace loving that story and knowing the author understands. and i guess that’s why i love writing so much. i’m so very passionate about writing and storytelling because of how it makes people feel and how important these stories can be, especially to soothe people who feel lost or uncertain in their real life. a good story will bring someone fulfillment - not everyone, but someone who reads it will become fulfilled. that’s what i think at least
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cnrothtrek · 7 years
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On the Borg
Throughout the years, there have been many suggestions and arguments made about what the Borg could represent. The most common one I have seen is to compare the collective to communism. Certainly, there are parallels, but I have other thoughts.
In Star Trek, analogies are often held loosely, and shows are written to be intentionally vague. The nature of postmodern art is that the meaning is supposed to be left up to the viewer. What is true for you, is simply true. If the Borg speak of communism to you, then that is what they represent. Simultaneously, the Borg may speak to others of consumerism, or of colonialism, and that is equally true. They do not have to mean one universal thing to everyone.
Of course, when it came to writing my Voyager fanfiction, I had to make a decision about the Borg. I researched what others had to say. I do not like to make arbitrary judgements all on my own; I wanted to listen to what the Borg meant to the fandom before I decided on how to write them. Only then did I go back and rewatch Borg-focused episodes and features, with the goal of choosing for myself what I thought they could represent. What follows is my own interpretation, so take it for what it's worth.
The initial concept behind the Borg was to create an impossible adversary. “The Borg are the ultimate user,” Q told the Enterprise-D’s senior staff in the episode Q Who. “They’re unlike any threat your Federation has ever faced. They’re not interested in political conquest, wealth, or power as you know it. They’re simply interested in your ship, its technology. They’ve identified it as something they can consume” (TNG 2x16). They did not respond to the usual tactics. Discussion and diplomacy were useless. They did not listen, did not care to listen or reason with you. There was no reason; there was only consumption. They took what they wanted and felt no remorse.
The great irony of the episode is that it showed how much Q and Picard mirrored one another—and, by extension, the continuum and the Federation. Picard accuses Q of being egocentric and proud, and says that the Q wrongfully believe they have the right to judge so-called lesser species simply because of their superior abilities. Yet, Starfleet is just as haughty. Picard believes that they are prepared to face anything they find in the final frontier of space, because humanity has evolved and learned how to handle conflict. In the end, Picard is forced to face their very real frailty in the face of the Borg.
Picard’s words to Guinan at the end are, I think, the crux of the entire episode. “Maybe Q did the right thing for the wrong reasons…. Perhaps what we most needed was a kick in our complacency to prepare us for what lies ahead.” At the climax of the show, and in his reflective dialogue with Guinan, Picard begins to realize that the Federation has become too proud, just as he accused Q of being. Picard acknowledges his shortcomings, his weakness, and he admits to Q that he needs the entity’s help. The Borg cannot be defeated by Federation ingenuity alone, and attempting to do so would likely lead to their own downfall.
From there, the Borg developed a great deal more depth and complexity, often in controversial ways. Initially, they could be seen as an other creature, an alien. They were not anything like us. They were beyond anything we could comprehend. As they developed, however, they became too much like us, and that upset a lot of fans. For some, that took away from the fear factor; for me, it deepened it.
In fact, I see the Borg as being a projection, or a warning, of what humanity has the possibility to become. It is uncomfortable because it shows us the dark side of that which makes us human—the drive to be more, better, than what we are.
The quest for perfection is explicitly stated as the central goal of the Borg, and yet it is our own goal, as well. 'Anything you can do, I can do better.' This is the very thing that makes us grow as a species. Competition drives self-improvement. It inspires us to achieve higher and higher goals. When we see someone accomplish the improbable, we idolize them. Yet, the moment something great is accomplished, someone else immediately begins to work out how to push that accomplishment even further. We hunger and thirst to overcome challenges. We are constantly raising the bar higher. This is the essence of our species.
This, of course, is obvious. Still, many resist seeing themselves within the Borg. At least, they insist, we do not have to assimilate others to better ourselves like the Borg do.
Don’t we?
We colonize. We steal land and assets, and we exploit or slaughter those from whom we took it.
We appropriate what we like from other cultures without bothering to understand or appreciate the meaning of what we took within its rightful context. We are not interested in the culture itself, or the people who created those cultures. We simply consume them, assimilating their work into our own structure, divorcing it from the culture that gave it birth and life and meaning, and claiming it as our own.
We force or coerce minority populations to assimilate into majority culture. We do not hate you, we insist. We wish to make you better. Why would anyone resist? Everyone should want to be like us. Many times, this attitude can hide under a guise of tolerance; it is perfectly fine to be black, or Latinx, or Jewish, or female, or LGBTQIA+, or disabled, or old, or mentally ill, or poor—but only if you can think and act like the rest of us. Thus, we erase the other, and commit cultural genocide.
This is precisely what the Borg do, and they succeed because of it. It has made them a juggernaut, an unbeatable opponent, and it is easy to struggle with the fear that it is useless to fight back. “Resistance is futile,” they say, and more often than not, they are right.
Yet, something in you resists anyway, something that frustrates the Borg because they cannot understand it. Why would anyone resist an opportunity to be the best?
The cost of perfection is too great. Uniqueness and diversity are absolutely worth preserving; this is the lesson we learn as we watch the Borg. We cheer for the Enterprise, and for Voyager. We fall for Hugh, Seven of Nine, and One. We are incensed on behalf of the Borg children who never had a chance to be individuals or to make their own choices at all, until Seven gave them that chance. In this, we begin to understand why everyone must be free to be uniquely themselves, why we must respect and preserve diversity rather than appropriating and destroying others for selfish gain. In this, we come to understand that homogeny is death.
Then, along comes the spider—the Borg queen. Who, or what, is she? What does she represent?
The queen was left, as is the tendency, incredibly vague at her inception. This opened up a great deal of discourse about her. “I am the Borg,” she tells Data (Star Trek: First Contact). She is the personification of the collective consciousness, the one who is many. She is a paradox—an individual who is not truly an individual, but rather the composite of billions of individuals linked together to think as one mind.
She is the mob mentality.
She is internalized oppression that has been turned against others, oppressing them in the very same way she has been oppressed.
She is the authoritarian who insists that she acts with the will of the people, but who is blinded to the reality of her oppressive power over them. She does not fully comprehend that because of her power and privilege, she is merely bending them to her will.
She believes in what she is doing. She, like Q and Picard, believes her actions are for the greater good. Individuals are children, or second-class people. They are inferior and stupid, and they need someone to force them to become that which they have the potential to be but stubbornly resist. She may appreciate a few unique flourishes that they can add to the collective, and may appropriate some of their ideas and innovations for her own culture. Still, it will not change the fact that all others are inferior and must be assimilated for their own good, and the good of the collective.
It is a basic truth that power corrupts. We do not know how the queens came to be, but clearly they have begun to lose sight of the ideals that used to drive the Borg. The more we see the queens, and the more humans come into conflict with them directly, the more twisted and corrupt they become. In time, they almost seem to be human themselves.
How many times have we watched this happen? We put someone with great promise on a pedestal, hoping that maybe they can bring us closer to perfection. Then, they turn on us, and use us for their selfish gain instead. How do you fight back when, by the time you realize what has happened, the person in power has the ability to control you in every possible way?
That is the question.
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iamsarsa · 7 years
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Selphie headcanons
What does their bedroom look like? Selphie’s current apartment in Ul’dah is pretty messy. Books strewn about, bottles of gysahl wine *everywhere*. Papers scattered. She does like having art on the walls - and also a giant moogle statue that she stole “just cos.” She basically uses her apartment to sometimes sleep in, mostly just to store loot she does not currently need. Her Inn room however at the Forgotten Knight is pretty clean. Just the few essentials she needs. When Haurchefant was alive and would visit her, she would attempt to make it more “home-y” which led to her odd obsession of always having flowers and other weird objects she thought made a place a “home” 
Do they have any daily rituals? She bathes without fail, every morning. As soon as she gets up. Does not matter where she is, she will find someplace to clean herself. She does not like to be dirty! (This extends to her eating habits - for being such a boisterous person, she eats very daintily) I wouldn’t say this is daily, but it’s definitely a ritual habit she does every few days (she doesn’t go more then 2 days), in that she will usually make her way to Haurchefant’s memorial spot and sit there for a few hours.
Do they exercise, and if so, what do they do? How often? Haurchefant got her into exercising and before his death she would do squats/running with him, (occasionally he could convince her to do more, and regretted it almost immediately when she pushed herself too hard to do more push ups then him.) She still does this, but not quite as often 
What would they do if they needed to make dinner but the kitchen was busy? Just go eat somewhere, she doesn’t cook very often to begin with so she has no problem eating out at inns.
Cleanliness habits (personal, workspace, etc.) Her apartment is a mess, mainly because she uses it as a dumping place for any spare loot she does not need. Personally she’s very clean, always taking baths, even when she was still a rogue on the street - she would single out noble’s apartments where she knew they would be gone for a while so she could use their shower and steal their things. She heavily dislikes being dirty in any sense. After any serious battle where she gets extra grimy, she will just go and soak in a bath for hours if allowed. 
Eating habits and sample daily menu Answered
Favorite way to waste time and feelings surrounding wasting time gold saucer, and just in general fucking with rich people. Sometimes when she wants to be alone she’ll just go on walks by herself and sit/lay down underneath the sun. She doesn’t like to waste time perse, as she is always sort of kind of on the run, she likes to keep busy, but she considers everything she does to have a reason behind it, even if it wasting time.
Favorite indulgence and feelings surrounding indulging Alcohol and sweets. Her favorite drink is Gysahl wine and will FIGHT anyone for it she does not care. She feels anybody should be allowed to indulge so long as it doesn’t get out of hand (as it does with nobles.) If you work hard - it’s good to indulge. And just because you may be poor doesn’t mean you don’t deserve the right too.
Makeup? Not really. Maybe a little bit, and she would certainly dress up and wear make up if she needed too to infiltrate the nobles. but for the most part, no.
Neuroses? Do they recognize them as such? She is neurotic about making sure 129A is safe, and can blend in with Eorzeans. To the point where people are like “you’re making up really dumb plans because you’re freaking out.”  Also again, the cleanliness thing. 
Intellectual pursuits? Eh, she’s fairly smart already due to her clone nature. However most of the knowledge given to her was obviously battle related and mostly related to Garlean history. So she enjoys learning about the other City-States, the history of Ul’dah, Limsa, Gridania, etc. She studied Ishgard heavily when she met and fell in love with Haurchefant (becoming slowly angrier and angrier at the injustice on the lower class.) She also has a slight interest in Allagan history, considering what she is and how she was made, but is hesitant to learn more.
Favorite book genre? History. and Romance. She’s a sucker for crappy cheap romance novels, and will absolutely 100% read pervy ones as well. 
Sexual Orientation? And, regardless of own orientation, thoughts on sexual orientation in general? I’ve given this a lot of thought, and I don’t think Selphie really cares either way. However, she only really becomes sexual with those she truly loves and cares deeply for. So I guess demisexual, but it really does not matter what parts there are. If you manage to get her to love you, she’s open and willing. 
Physical abnormalities? (Both visible and not, including injuries/disabilities, long-term illnesses, food-intolerances, etc.) Her lavender hair has white streaks, and her... i wanna say it’s right i can’t remember off the top of my head, her right eye is white. As a clone made via Allagan technology, her body is subsisted by aether - a lack of aether will cause her to become ill, memory loss, and the gradual lack of her own personality - she would eventually become nothing more then a doll. When she was still held by the Garleans, they gave her regular aether treatments as she was the prototype and they did not yet know how to create a clone body capable of simply syphoning off aether in the world. (This was fixed with 129A’s model class.) She has to regularly inject herself with aether treatments to stave off any side effects (which she genuinely hates) She claims to be allergic to ALL vegetables but this is a lie and she just hates eating them.
Biggest and smallest short term goal? biggest: not being captured by Garleans, smallest: get a decent nights rest for once.
Biggest and smallest long term goal? Biggest: not dying amid the chaos. smallest: be as proficient with her fists as she is with daggers. (aka be as good a monk as she is a ninja)
Preferred mode of dress and rituals surrounding dress She typically favors tight fitting clothes, that are easy for her to move around in. Often shorts, thigh high boots to run in and the Arachne Shirt of Scouting. She has tried to wear this same outfit in Coerthas/Ishgard, and to a certain extent *can* (her body can withstand quite a bit, but she still feels cold and doesnt like the feeling. That and Haurchefant insisted she wear something warmer and she begrudgingly accepted.)She can, and does dress up to infilitrate noble events, although 9/10 she feels uncomfortable in all of it. She does enjoy wearing the Scion top that Tataru had made her, and often wears it to any meetings she may have with the Scions, or if she needs to meet anyone on behalf of the Scions.  She doesn’t really have any “rituals” other then again, she cleans her clothes pretty often, more often then most rogues from the street would. She does have a necklace she never takes off, from Haurchefant. She hides it so no one can see it, to deter thiefs/it breaking off/people asking about it. 
Favorite beverage? Gysahl Wine. She has a stockpile where ever she is staying (a larger one at her apt in Ul’dah) and always has a flask of it on her.
What do they think about before falling asleep at night? Haurchefant, Aea, what she’s going to do next, how best to protect everyone. she’s a night owl to begin with (obviously, thief.) so when she does lay down to go to bed, her anxieties keep her up even more.
Childhood illnesses? Any interesting stories behind them? No, as she was never a child.
Turn-ons? Turn-offs? She hates nobility, (she is grudgingly nice to Haurchefant’s father if only because Haurchefant loves him, she is indifferent towards his brothers, although she warms up to them after his death.), so don’t even try hittin her up if u a rich asshole. Being dirty even in the slightest. Turn on - idk i havent rly thought about this LOL
Given a blank piece of paper, a pencil, and nothing to do, what would happen? Answered
How organized are they? How does this organization/disorganization manifest in their everyday life? She’s not really organized at all. She keeps track of things in her head, nearly always refuses to write things down. She’s fairly good at this, she has a good memory. but there are times where she forgets where she needs to be, or where something is. 
Is there one subject of study that they excel at? Or do they even care about intellectual pursuits at all? As stated above she does love history - while her Garlean history knowledge was implanted in her as a clone, she strives to learn about Eorzea and would rather forget the Garlean crap.
How do they see themselves 5 years from today? She just hopes she’s not dead or alone.
Do they have any plans for the future? Any contingency plans if things don’t workout? Her plan was to disappear and let people fill in the blanks, hopefully presuming she was killed. However she was convinced that was a dumb idea and would do absolutely nothing. Her current plan is to just try and hope for the best as she continues to help the Scions. 
What is their biggest regret? Being unable to save Haurchefant and then Aea. There’s not a day that goes by that she doesn’t think “well what if i...” 
Who do they see as their best friend? Their worst enemy? The now... deceased Aea. While she attempts to consider 129A her best friend, she knows its not quite the same as the Aea who knew her like the back of her hand. Enemy - the Garleans.
Reaction to sudden extrapersonal disaster (eg The house is on fire! What do they do?) She’d probably be able to, surprisingly, calmly assess the situation and deal with it accordingly. She does well in these situations where there’s no immediate danger to her or the people she cares about, however in the case of the below....
Reaction to sudden intrapersonal disaster (eg close family member suddenly dies) She can’t handle it. As evidenced by Haurchefant and then Aea’s death. Aea had to essentially pull her away from Haurchefant’s body as Selphie could barely move, let alone speak. After a few moments of having been pulled away, and being eerily silent she instantly switched and had to be physically restrained because of how angry she became. She basically loses all control of her emotions. When Aea died, it felt like all time had simply stopped for her. Because she had to quickly escape to not die herself, she didnt quite have the time to react the same way she did with Haurchefant. But as soon as she was safe and away, she quickly lost control, but couldn’t bring herself to harm 129A, she just ended up angrily punching the ground before collapsing into tears.
Most prized possession? Most likely her necklace from Haurchefant. And all her alcohol.
Thoughts on material possessions in general? She doesn’t mind them, she knows the comfort that material possessions can give - but she doesn’t think it should be the life long pursuit. 
Concept of home and family? She considered home to be where she and Aea could sleep and be safe. When Haurchefant was alive, she considered the Inn room at the Forgotten Knight that they shared to be a “home” She basically considers home to be wherever the people she loves are at.  Her only family is Aea/129A and begrudingly Kuj’a. but she also believes that a family is one that you make - doesn’t need to be blood. 
Thoughts on privacy? (Are they a private person, or are they prone to ‘TMI’?) She’s a private person about her specific past - she’s tight lipped about where she came from. who she really is etc. But everything else? She is the BIGGEST blabbermouth. She does not care. Do not tell her that you started hooking up with so and so she will get drunk and loudly tell you how proud she is. When she and Haurchefant first got together, they had a drink at the Forgotten Knight and she spent 30 minutes telling everyone how much she loved him and in what WAYS she loved him. She once couldn’t help it and straight up told a noble in Ul’dah who was whining about a recent robbery that she was the one responsible. Honestly it’s a wonder she hasn’t been caught by guards because she quite frankly, does not care.
What activities do they enjoy, but consider to be a waste of time? She doesn’t really consider anything she does a waste of time... everything she does has a purpose even if it’s relaxing. 
What makes them feel guilty? The deaths of Haurchefant and Aea.
Are they more analytical or more emotional in their decision-making? She’s both. She usually does take fighting pretty seriously, and in  heavy serious battle with no emotional connection to her, she’s able to make pretty quick-thinking logical decisions thanks to her programming as a clone. However... she is also pretty impatient and has been known to just run into battles because of greed. (See: Aurum Vale when she thought Goldvine was actual gold.)  When it comes to personal decisions she is 100% emotional. She will not think things through. See - her straight up flying into a rage when confronting Ser Zephirin to kill him for killing Haurchefant, without thinking “hm maybe i should think of a strategy before i get myself killed.” no she just straight up tries to brawl and stab him in anyway possible. When it came down to protecting the Scions, and trying to make sure nobody would get hurt due to her connection the Garleans, she did not go about that logically either, thus coming up with the dumb idea to fake her death.
Would they consider themselves a Type A or Type B personality? I would say Type B, while she is rather competitive, if she does end up losing she’ll just kind of brush it off and be like “yeah okay whatever...” she may sulk, but it doesn’t stress her out. The competition itself is what excites her.
What recharges them when they’re feeling drained? Going on a good robbing spree of nobles in either Ul’dah or Ishgard.
Would you say that they have a superiority-complex? Inferiority-complex? Neither? Naw, Selphie can be pretty conceited but she doesn’t think she’s better then anyone else. (Other then nobles)
How misanthropic are they? Not at all, she enjoys being around others.
Hobbies? Answered.
How far did they get in formal education? What are their views on formal education vs self-education? No formal eductation unless you count things being programmed into her during the cloning process. Everything else is is self taught from living on the streets. While she was able to be self taught, she realizes she had the headstart of being a highly capable clone created using Allagan tech. So she believes everyone should have the chance to have proper formal teaching.
Religion? She believes in the Twelve/Hydaelyn same as anyone else. Obviously moreso as the Warrior of Light. She does have a certain love/hate relationship with it because as a clone she wonders if she’s even really a person. (Much to Thancred’s annoyance because why the hell would Hydaelyn choose her as a Warrior of Light if she wasn’t!!!) Her birth deity is Rhalgr, 
Superstitions or views on the occult? Not really. She does try and stay away from darker magic and arcane arts of Thaumaturgey and black magic as it kind of skeeves her out. 
Do they express their thoughts through words or deeds? Deeds absolutely. She rarely if ever will tell someone she actually enjoys them or likes them. If she’s nice to you - she likes you. She rarely outwardly told Haurchefant she loved him (often times would just sort of hide her face in him and mumble it into his chest) but he quickly figured out the quirks she had that meant “i love you”
If they were to fall in love, who (or what) is their ideal? Haurchefant. LOL. No but he really was the ideal person for in that he believed in her, but he was also a very calming presence that was able to handle her nonsense. Thancred believes in her as well, but he’s not quite as calm and collected as Haurchefant could be, although she loves him all the same - it just means he’s less able to keep Selphie under control when she’s acting out of line. (And with the original Aea gone as well, yeah Selphie is not quite kept as under control as she should be.)
How do they express love? Little things like “did you sleep? did you eat?” she’d often bring snacks to Camp Dragonhead for Haurchefant. (Insisting that they were just “extras she had.”) She is also a very touchy-feely person to those she loves.. She won’t say I love you, but she’ll hug the moment she sees the person she loves and at night time she’ll curl alongside them and won’t let them go. It’s a pretty obvious thing because for the most part, she doesn’t like touching people. She gets put off by other people hugging her, or trying to shake her hand or whatever. But if she loves you, she wants to feel you. There were plenty of times Haurchefant would wake up in the morning to leave, only to find a Selphie clinging onto him still fast asleep.  When she does say “I love you” she almost always mumbles it and gets embarrassed. 
If this person were to get into a fist fight, what is their fighting style like? She does have pug/monk training, she’s pretty skilled. She learned how to fight mainly on the streets though, so she can be vicious and sometimes sloppy. 
Is this person afraid of dying? Why or why not? Answered
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vhalyria · 7 years
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Adolf Hitler and Donald Trump - a dangerous parity?
I’m worried. I’m so worried that I can barely sleep at night, and it’s giving me stomach cramps. Because we’ve been here before, and we need to talk about this. 
So, my unprofessional, biased ass sat down for a few hours and tried to collect everything it knew about Hitler and Trump, in order to see if it’s just a bad feeling that I’m having, or if my fear is justified.
As I said, I am not a journalist or anything else, I simply did some research alongside the stuff I still remembered from my history classes and books. Sources can be seen at the end, although many of them are in german, sorry.
I won’t go much into the reasons behind Hitler’s and Trump’s behavior, because I don’t care what turned them into the people they were/are. Also, I tried to keep this as neutral as possible, only relying on facts (and no, those aren’t alternative). There are probably a few things I’ve forgotten about, but feel free to add them!
1.) Where did they come from?
Hitler: Adolf Hitler was the oldest of three siblings, born in Austria in 1889. Growing up, he started to care less and less about school and eventually dropped out without graduation. After that, he applied for a place at an art school, multiple times, but got rejected every time. He has spent a few years in poverty until he joined the army in WWI. After that, he joined the NSDAP and eventually became their leader. The rest should be known.
Trump: Donald Trump was born in 1976, as the fourth of five children. His father, the son of german immigrants, was a real estate businessman. After graduating from High School, Trump studied economics and eventually took on his father’s business. He joined the Republicans in 1987, and became their candidate for the election in 2015.
2.) How was it possible for them to become so popular/get voted?
Hitler: Hitler made the people like him because he was using their anger and their fears for his own means. After WWI, Germany was financially and socially destroyed. The Treaty of Versaille asked them to pay a lot of money for reparation, they had to reduce their military force to an absolute minimum and due to the high sanctions and the new yorker stock crash, an inflation came over the country, causing many people to lose their homes and all their savings. The people were scared about their future and felt betrayed by the government, because it was them who had to pay for everything. Radical groups arised and Hitler not only recognized those fears; he built his policy on them. He promised to create many new jobs, that the countries that won the war will pay them back because they were the guilty ones in his eyes, that no one will have to be homeless and hungry anymore. He promised to take revenge on those countries, even if that meant starting another war. Hitler promised to “give Germany its pride back”, and people believed him.
Trump: The rich are getting richer, the poor are losing what little they have left. That’s how people in the US felt when Trump got voted. They didn’t trust their government, even having multiple jobs wasn’t enough to pay the rent anymore and on top of that, terrorists kill people all over the world. The citizens were afraid and worried, they wanted to find a way out of their misery and feel safe. And that’s what Trump promised to provide them; he promised to make “America great again”, to create work for the american people so that no one has to be poor anymore. He said he would lead the fight against terrorism, and his people wouldn’t have to be scared anymore. Trump promised “America comes first”, and the people believed him. 
3.) Personality traits that made people like them 
Hitler: The one thing that every history book and every documentation about Hitler never leave out; he was a great rhetoritian. He was able to inspire to people, to make them believe everything, to cheer for anything he says. He was confident and determined.
Another thing that made him popular, was that he gave his people someone else to blame for their misery than themselves or the government; the jews. According to Hitler, they were at fault for everything bad that has ever happened in Germany, and people felt comforted by that thought. It takes the blame from them by assigning it to someone else; it made living easier.
By that, Hitler also managed to make the germans feel like a community; united by hate towards a minority, but united, still. He fed them the illusion that he would lead them to wealth and happiness, and that everything will be turning out greatly for them, as long as they’re supporting him.
Trump: Trump is a rich man, someone who calls himself a successful businessman. He made it to the top, and that inspired the people. He makes the American Dream seem still alive, and on top of that, he promises that he will be the one to lead the United States into a bright future, with lots of work, wealth and unity. He is a confident person and by talking like the common people, he makes them feel like they could relate to him. Like Hitler, he uses the fear of the people and unites them in hate towards minorities; the mexicans are to blame, the people of color and the muslims. They are the reason for misery in the US, but he can change that, he can throw these people out of the country and “make America great again”.
4.) A list of the exact things they promised:
Hitler: 
- “Deutschland über alles” (”Germany above everything”)
- to overturn the Treaty of Versailles and stop reparation payment
- to “give Germany its pride back”
- to re-arm Germany and to enlarge their military force
- to create jobs (by expanding the army)
- a strong government and stability
- a better life for the lower and the middle class
- to make Germany “a power country” again
Trump:
- “America First”
- “Make America great again”
- to cancel Obamacare to reduce costs
- to build a wall to Mexico
- to send immigrants back to their countries so that american citizens can have their jobs
- to send troops back into war zones and to enlarge the military force
- banishment of muslims
- tax reduction
- to bring back manufacturing jobs
- to step back from several international trading agreements
- to lead the fight against ISIS
5.) Foreign policy
Hitler: Hitler wanted Germany to become a global leading power again and to expand the german territory. He worked on an intense connection to fascist Italy, while he had an anti-russia policy. Promised other countries freedom while already planning to take over Europe, Hitler eventually declared war to Poland, which led to WWII.
Trump: Trumps goals when it comes to foreign policy are to work together closely with Russia, to step back from several international trade agreements, to impose penalties on several branches of import, to fight against ISIS and to support Israel in their conflict with Palestine, to name a few of the endless plans he talked about
6.) The role and value of women
Hitler: Hitlers policy understood women as barely more than birth machines. His propaganda made it look like being mother to (the more, the better) aryan children is the best thing to ever happen to a woman. It was socially unacceptable for a woman to go to work, they needed to stay at home to look after the children and to keep the house clean for their husbands. Women were a thing to be owned, their opinion didn’t matter. Emancipation was seen as something “evil” that the jews brought into Germany.
Trump: Trump treats woman without respect and like a thing to be owned. According to him, a woman’s worth it determined by her attractiveness and they should feel honored when he gropes them or makes obscene comments about them. Trumps policy is anti-abortion, he wants to take the right to decide over their bodies and lives away from american women. 
7.) The treatment of minorities
Hitler: Hitler used the jews as scapegoats for everything bad that happened. It was their fault that people lived in poverty, that women wanted to have a say about their lives, that germany lost the war etc. His party supported and encouraged violence against jewish people (the ”Kristallnacht”, for example), and they got socially seperated from the rest of the society. Sad peek of Hitler’s anti semitism was the torture and killing of millions of jews, within Germany and from other countries, in concentration camps. Over six million jews had to die. 
Homosexuals and people with disabilities often got the same treatment.
Trump: Not only once did Trump say what he thinks about Mexicans; they are rapists, criminals, they’re bringing drugs and misery into his country. “Some sure are nice, though.”, he says. He’s using them the same way Hitler used the jews; he blames them for everything. They are stealing jobs from americans, they are endangering the public safety, all they do is create chaos and crimes.
 His opinion about people of color isn’t better; he stated that he doesn’t support the Black Lives Matter Movement. “If Black lives matter, go back to Africa”, is what he said. He also believes that racism would not exist anymore. On several occasions he has encouraged his supporters to verbal and physical attacks towards people of color. He also claims that the era of slavery was a good time for the US and ignores police brutality towards poc’s.
Trump wants to ban muslims from entering/staying in the US. As we all know he already tried to do that a few days ago, but fortunately, a court declared his action to not be legal. Trump also made fun of people with disabilities.
8.) How they deal with the media
Hitler: Adolf Hitler knew how to use the media for himself. “The press is an instrument for education to bring 70 million people to an unified world view”, is one of the things he said. The principle was easy; every newspaper or radio station that wasn’t supporting him by reporting what he wanted them to report about, got banned. Resisting journalists and leader of companies got fired and also arrested in some cases. Hitlers party used the media for their propaganda, freedom of speech and press didn’t mean anything anymore.
Trump: Trump hates the media. While he enjoys the attention given to him, he can’t deal with negative reports. He calls those journalists “liars”, claims that they are spreading “alternate facts”, that only his point of view is the truth. Trumps party sees journalists as “part of the opposition”, and says they should “just shut up and listen”. Apparently, there were already plans made to ban the press from the White House. During Trump’s inauguration, the first journalists already got arrested.
(Personal) Conclusion:
Their differences:
- Hitler knew how to make the media work for him, Trump doesn’t (yet)
- Trump grew up wealthy and with academic success, Hitler grew up poorly and dropped out of school without graduation
- Trump’s politic is pro-russia, Hitler’s was anti-russia
- Hitler wanted to expand the german territory while Trump want to build a wall
- Hitler’s policy aimed to start a war
And, most importantly:
Their similarities:
- Power hungry, radical, racist, misogynistic
- use prejudices against minorities, support violence against them
- “America First” and “Germany above everything” are the same damn thing
- Unite people through hate
- mainly voted by people who aren’t wealthy, scared for their future
- creating jobs by extending the military, taking “stolen” jobs “back” from immigrants/women
- wanting their countries to be the first in everything, don’t care what it takes
- against freedom of speech and press
- enforcement of military power, getting ready for war
- give their people a minority to blame for all the existing misery
- aggressive, short tempered, determined
- no respect for human life
I don’t know about you, but I think this is terrifying.
Like I said, I have probably forgotten about a lot. Feel free to add!
Sources: x, x, x, x, x, x, x, x, x, x, x, x, x, x, x, x, x, x, x, x, x, x, x, x, x, x
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weblistposting-blog · 7 years
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New Post has been published on Weblistposting
New Post has been published on https://weblistposting.com/a-way-to-keep-apps-from-invading-your-privacy/
A way to keep apps from invading your privacy
Apple’s iPhone was born 10 years in the past, launching a telephone transformation that changed the way consumers use and depend on their gadgets. A whole lot of that utilization hinges on cellular apps. They tap into the records stored on your smartphone to remind you approximately appointments, find shops and eating places near you, or inform you whether there are heavy visitors on your shuttle. But that comfort comes with a fee: the lack of a few privacy.
Your Privacy
Information approximately your location, sports, and accounts are being shared with the app maker’s computers. It can then be used for marketing purposes, be offered to other businesses, or even be stolen if the app — or the app maker’s servers — are hacked.
“Apps may request administrative privileges in your records, and people privileges will be utilized by the app later on, or by a few malware, to steal your personal data,” says Ed Cabrera, leader cyber security officer at TrendMicro, a digital security organization.
As an example, a recreation might have to get right on entry to for your cell phone app in order that it is aware of while to pause for incoming calls. However, that get admission to may also permit the app’s maker to pay attention in.
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The net is as secure as you make it and consequently you need to take several steps for protection from identification robbery in order no longer to grow to be one of the sufferers.
Online purchasing shouldn’t be dangerous, sometimes a little bit of skepticism can prevent A variety of hassle. one of the quality alternatives is an at ease technique of payment, like PayPal or WordlPay, 2checkout, and so on. They have fraud-prevention rules in the region to Guard both the purchaser and the seller from potential troubles.
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Alola, A-L-O-L-A Alola - Pokemon Sun & Moon
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Well, it’s been long enough since SM came out that we should have all got our kneejerk reactions out of the way, and it’s been long enough that I’ve cleaned it out once and I’m starting it again (Shameimaru has too), so buckle up cause I’m gonna say some bad things about the sacred cow. Yep, that means spoilers too.
I don’t normally start with Narrative but good lord the pacing in this game is absolute garbage. It has probably the slowest start of any Pokemon game so far - the entire first island (of four) is just mind-numbingly slow and boring, with most of the game mechanics unavailable, and while being on rails early on isn’t unusual for a Pokemon game, it feels incredibly blatant in SM, to the point of being obnoxious due to the presentation. As the game continues, it looks like we’re going to reach a high point when a Nihilego busts into the Aether Facility, but then it just... continues being totally tepid. Then it looks like you’re going to reach another high point where Lusamine goes completely bonkers and fuses with the Mega Beast, except then you don’t actually fight her - you battle her exactly like you would a trainer, despite the fact that she’s just turned into pokemoncthulhu.
In general, SM’s plot feels pretty thin on the ground and schizophrenic. The world-building is really stellar, but there’s no sense of pressure, unlike the previous two games - there’s no big effects on the weather threatening to wipe everyone out, the villains haven’t managed to steal a march on you and build a doomsday laser or anything like that. In theory, you even go into fight Lusamine because you’re on a rescue mission.
On the positive side, the island challenge idea is a lot more interesting than gyms usually are (in part because the premise of a gym - that is, you’re dojo hunting, a practice that hearkens to Japanese jidaigeki and martial arts films, although it allegedly has its roots in real life - has become diluted over time), and they do a much better job than usual worldbuilding. Unlike previous regions, Alola really seems like a place where people live and have lives, rather than being a series of hubs to train your Pokemon in.
A spot I think might be an issue of real contention are Team Skull. On the one hand, they’re hilarious; on the other hand, while villain teams have always been pretty goofy (except arguably Team Rocket who are pretty worrying since they’re a legit mafia and sometimes undertake straight-up terrorist action), Team Skull are really hard to care about, which becomes a problem when the game sometimes expects you to drop what you’re doing and put them in their place, since the tone is pretty wobbly.
Overall, while SM deserves praise for actually mixing up the formula in a main-series game (which hasn’t been done before - all experimentations on the formula were relegated to side games), it’s obviously been a shaky process for them, and SM’s tone and pacing are wildly schizophrenic, which isn’t improved in the post-game (unlike ORAS’ amazing Delta Episode).
For Narrative, I give SM a 3 out of 5: it has a fantastic concept which is hampered by a schizophrenic execution, but the attention to detail elsewhere is spectacular.
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I could talk about the Audio but being real here, I’d basically just be sharing my opinion of the soundtrack, without any real objective basis near or far. If you’re interested, that opinion is that it isn’t as good as XY or ORAS’ soundtracks, but it’s still a Pokemon soundtrack so it has great tunes and the audio quality is just fine.
Instead, let’s talk about the Technical side of things. Although the game essentially runs on the same engine as XY and ORAS, they’ve changed up the UI a bit, putting moves on the right and letting you see known type effectiveness against the target at a glance. You can also now check your move details straight from the combat menu, and tapping Y twice auto-applies your last-used item, which is great when you’re on a catching spree.
On the other hand, let’s not even freaking talk about the PSS replacement. Well, we will talk about it because otherwise there’s no point in having this site but jeez. You’re now only online when engaged in Festival Plaza (and then you have to go through a double-prompt to actually get online). Want to interact with a friend? You need them to also be on Festival Plaza, and online, at the same time as you, then refresh your guestlist until they turn up, then make them a VIP to guarantee you’ll be able to interact with them at all. Yes, you can make this easier by disabling other aspects of the system, but then you’re disabling other aspects of the system to get it to do something that should be simple, and overall it’s a huge step back from the XY/ORAS PSS system. Forget about pickup trading/battles - they’re gone.
I’m also going to have to dock the game for being really laggy when it wants to be. Apparently this isn’t a problem on the New 3DS but it was a big one whenever the effects got a bit interesting; my 2DS chugged like an autistic fratboy.
All things being equal, I’ll give SM a 3 for the Technical: it took some steps forward, and some steps back, and came out about average.
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Let’s talk about the elephant in the Gameplay room first: I like Z-Moves. They’re a lot of fun, they add some surprise swing/comeback potential, and they generally don’t feel as incredibly powerful as Mega Evolutions in the previous two games have been. The little dances are also great, particularly since several of them incorporate actual hula choreography.
In terms of challenge, this game manages to be more challenging than ORAS or XY, largely because of Totem Pokemon: when they come in, their own take on Z-Power activates, giving them stat buffs, which helps to avoid the traditional problem with creating a challenge in a a boss fight in Pokemon; setting up has a big opportunity cost, in which time (because the AI doesn’t normally switch) the player can just swap to something more useful for hosing whatever the boss is trying to do. On top of that, several of the Totem bosses are dangerous picks to begin with: Totem Wishiwashi’s Schooling gives it incredible stats even before its Z-Power kicks in, Totem Mimikyu gets a free turn to do whatever it wants thanks to its unique ability... and then there’s Lusamine’s Clefable in her Cthulhu-Lusamine form, who is probably the hardest Pokemon in the game to get past. It’s not very threatening - it’s limited to Metronome (Shameimaru assures me it has Cosmic Power and STAB Moonblast but it used neither against me) - but even with a big level advantage and possibly a type advantage, it’s an incredible wall.
There’s also a sort-of-new gimmick regarding how most Ace Trainers now work: they won’t even look at you if you haven’t beaten everyone else on their route, but their fights all involve a clever tactic or a showcase of a game mechanic that wouldn’t be out of place in the competitive scene. The very first Ace Trainer, for example, runs a suicide lead with Stealth Rock and a Red Card to force you to start switching and taking entry damage, and it gets more interesting from there.
Unfortunately, the game does tend to fall into the same rut most Pokemon games do, but let’s be honest: if you’re old enough to be reading this site of your own volition you probably knew what you were getting into when you bought the game. It also revamps some older concepts, such as replacing the widely-disliked HM system with Ride Pokemon, which isn’t perfect, but it’s definitely a big step in the right direction. It’s a shame the Ride outfit looks so dorky though.
Oh, and I had a weird glitch when I fought Kukui: he broke all the rules and used two Z-Moves in succession, but that might be because my ailing 2DS was in sleep mode for like 18 hours between rounds, so I’m not weighting it as a Big Huge Bug.
For Gameplay, I’d rate it a 4: it’s definitely moving in the right direction and is a step up from previous Pokemon main-series games, but it’s still weighted down by a few flaws here and there.
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Overall, SM represents a pretty bold new step for Pokemon, with an attempt for a main-series game to put its narrative front and center. That said, it’s clear that there’s a long way to go in terms of presentation and execution if they want to continue the trend in a fashion that will satisfy both brand-new players and franchise veterans.
And the awesome JoJoMon pictures is from this guy’s tumblr..
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