[THINK FAST!]

The nihilistic nature of our universe

[Pokemon Word Chain]

[Ask the next person a question!]

Uhm... I'd probably put the cardboard box in my cellar where it would be till the end of time along with all my other cardboard boxes which I occasionally use for shipping stuff... Cardboard boxes are for the most part useless.

... In case of a zombie apocalypse I could perhaps hide in it... Or something...

edit: Halloween stole my answer... And to answer his question, the answer is always pro squid! Squids deserve rights too.

***

And here's my question: What is the coolest thing you own?

[Just a quick question..]

I used to play Pokemon Reborn a few years ago, but lost touch. I recently found it again and am excited to play, but I remember when I used to play there was a troublesome bug. After so many pokemon were in the PC it would glitch and the game would crash. I wanna know if thats been fixed before I go on my pokemon catching spree. Any help would be appreciated, thanks

I made a full playthrough of the game last week and never encountered a single bug (Besides Fern that is...) so I'd say you don't have anything to worry about.

[Things that you DONT like on Pokemon Reborn.]

Hmmm, things I don't like... Bennet I supose?

It's not even that he's poorly written, since he's supposed to be the creepy introvert who claims to understand people and thinks he's mature but really isn't, and just ends up really pathetic. But in the end I'm just really repulsed by him in all his scenes towards the end, and kind of want to skip his dialogue because of its awkwardness. Hopefully once he returns he'll be nothing like his previous self and becomes the true villain I want him to be. I really wouldn't mind him Taking a Level in Badass or something.

[Which TMs should be added in the next episode?]

Getting Earthquake would be awesome, but alas... It's likely not to be released before the post-game content.

[Reborn Book Review Thread]

I've added that as well. I put it under visual novels, as it seemed to fit there. If this isn't where you wanted it let me know.

No, it's perfect. The "Kinetic Sound Novel" is really just a sub-genre of Visual Novels, and really means nothing more than the story being one continuous narrative rather than one with branching paths (like Clannad and Steins;Gate).

[Pokemon XY and XY&Z. Did the Pokemon Anime get better?]

Masquerain, on 21 May 2016 - 10:41 PM, said:

Sunmoon is like 6 months away, weekly episodes are fully capable of finishing the anime by then.

It's already been confirmed that Goodra is coming back (Yay!).

And sadly 6 months is nowhere near enough to wrap up the story in any meaningful way. Black and White had some great Gym Battles, but was really weakened by having its League only lasting 5 episodes. Meanwhile D&P, the season which according to most had the best league battles, lasted 9 episodes. If there are 6 months left till Sun and Moon, that means we'll have 24 more episodes. Ash gets his last badge in 2 weeks. Then there's the return of Goodra episode. And after that we'll perhaps have some more filler before the league itself. The league will last 6-9 episodes. This will leave us with in the best case scenario 10 episodes to end the Ash and Alain rivalry and complete the Team Flare plot. Not to mention wrap up the series and introduce Sun and Moon.

This is just a rough estimate, but perhaps you can see how 24 episode is not nearly enough time to wrap up the series.

[My Final Team after Blitzing Reborn in 8 days]

8 days? But gyarados was way back in episode like.. 9? 10? I'm confused.

I first started playing this game 2 years ago. I got 1 hour into the game and quit. By this time I had actually done the original Magicarp event and therefore had one. When I updated the game last week my old save file was still valid and I just continued off of that.

Hopefully this clears up any confusion.

[Tales of Maj'Eyal]

I don't know. I've had it in my library for a few years now but every time I try to get into it I'm discouraged by the incredible amounts of choices, items, abilities, places to go etc. I've never really been able to get into the game because of this.

Perhaps the genre is simply not for me? This may be weird, coming from someone who has played 500 hours of Europa Universalis...

[Pokemon XY and XY&Z. Did the Pokemon Anime get better?]

Don't forget kalos saga is at around 120 eps right now and it's still not even starting the league.. It may not get to 160 eps but it'll be close enough. Of course, the eps are more meaningful (subjectively anyway, for me the entire frog thing is utter bull- ) than previous seasons but the length is still there

Frog thing?

Well, Ash will be getting has final gym badge in 2 episodes it seems, and if Serena's arc is any indication, it won't be long between his final badge and the start of the league. My main gripe so far is that the release of Sun and Moon is hastily approaching, and I'm afraid that they will rush the end of the XYZ-series. This means that we perhaps won't get enough time to finish the Team Flare and League arcs. If anything I'd like the series to be longer just because I'm that fond of the current characters.

[Reborn Book Review Thread]

Among those books not already mentioned there is none I could recommend more heartily than the wonderful tale that is Umineko no Naku Koro ni, a "kinetic sound-novel" (eg. a visual novel without branching paths) by 7th Expansion.

Umineko takes takes place in 1986, on the island of Rokkenjima where the rich Ushiromiya family is gathering in order to discuss what will happen to patriarch Kinzo's inheritance, since he has been ill in recent years.

While the arguments about the inheritance ensue, a typhoon traps all eighteen people on the island. The family then finds a mysterious letter from a person claiming to be Kinzo's alchemy councilor, the Golden Witch, Beatrice. Beatrice claims that she has been summoned by Kinzo to claim the inheritance, as the family has been deemed unworthy of it.Unless someone solves the riddle of the epitaph on her portrait before midnight on October 6th and becomes the family successor, Beatrice will claim everything that the family owns, including the ten tons of gold that Kinzo claims will be given to the successor. This is only the beginning of the strange and shocking events that will occur on the island during these two days. Panic, reasoning, romance, heated confrontations and a lot Mind Screw ensues.

But above all else this story is about finding the truth about what really happened during the meeting of the Ushioromiya's. No character are what they seem, and the puzzles and mysteries the story presents will leave you thinking about possible solutions even when not reading. And here comes the true beauty of this game, the true answers are never revealed. It is up to the individual to read this tale and piece together for themselves the truth behind the events that occour. No book has engaged me for as long, or made me think so in depth about something as Umineko. Therefore I recommend anyone even merely interested in what I've written to give try and read the book.

The first chapter of the Visual novel can be found here which takes about 10 hours to read through. Otherwise a great Manga adaptations of the story exists, and you can read more about it here

I welcome you all to the wonderful world of Umineko!

[My Final Team after Blitzing Reborn in 8 days]

It's been an interesting journey. I had originally found this game several years back and quit after playing it for an hour, only to return with renewed zeal late last week to find out how great a game I skipped out on playing. There's been some bumps on the ride, and several team replacements, but this is the team that carried me through this game. So without further ado I present to you, Team Ragnarok.

In-Depth Team description

Phoenix the Blaziken @Black Belt

Abillity: Speed Boost

Quirky Nature

- Flare Blitz

- High Jump Kick

- Brave Bird

- Bulk Up

This was my starter, and it has done good work throughout most of the game. Often it has been too difficult to set-up a sweep with it, but it's incredible coverage has always helped the team. Though I must confess that I didn't find it to be as overpowered as some people claim it to be.

Khonsu the Gyarados @Splash Plate

Abillity: Moxie

Adamant Nature

- Crunch

- Ice Fang

- Waterfall

- Dragon's Dance

Now this one has put in quite a lot of effort. I bought this one when I first played the game, and it helped quite a bit throughout the game. Thankfully it was blessed with an adamant nature and great IV's(21 atk, 26 def, 31, spd and blergh everything else) It's swept quite a lot of bosses, more so than Blaziken, and its bulk has come in handy many times. I wouldn't replace this thing for anything in the world.

Rhea the Roserade@Rose Incense

Abillity: Natural Cure

Modest Nature

- Giga Drain

- Venoshock

- Toxic Spikes

- Petal Dance

Again this one has done a great deal of work. I haven't bothered breeding it, but it's been a great wallbreaker throughout the game. Its petal dance took off 50% of Mega-Altaria's health during the Ciel fight. And it was the main reason I won the PULSE-Swallot fight. Sadly it was often rendered useless due to the typing of gyms, but in the end it has broken through many "walls", even when it was at a type disadvantage.

Summanus the Ampharos @Stone Plate

Abillity: Static

Adamant Quirky

- Thunder Wave

- Cotton Guard

- Discharge

- Power Gem

Ahh yes, Summanus, or otherwise known as the bane of Fern. This thing has great bulk, and it's Discharge and Power Gem helped provide great coverage throughout the game. Sure it never swept any teams, but when I needed a certain Pokemon paralyzed or softened up for another member to take out it always pulled through. This thing together with Roserade single-handedly defeated PULSE Swallot for me.

Tiamat the Azumarill@Splash Plate

Abillity: Adamat! <3

Adamant Nature

- Aqua Jet

- Play Rough

- Superpower

- Waterfall

And here comes the main sweeper of the team. Tiamat the Azumarill has OHKO'd more Pokemon than I can count. It's great coverage made it great in nearly every situation and during every fight it was the one I relied on to take out the opponent's main Pokemon. This thing is simply amazing.

Oberon The Sylveon@Leftovers hopefully at some point...

Abillity: Cute Charm

Adamant Mild

- Moonblast

- Wish

- Protect

- Toxic

And finally I've saved the best for last. I've had many good Pokemon on the team (namely Gyarados, Blaziken and Azumarill) but in the end Sylveon was the thing that carried me throughout the majority of the tougher fights during the later parts of the game. This thing's stall abilities are incredible. I naturally had to go back several episodes to get this move-set through chain-breeding, but in the end it was all worth it. The majority of trainers I faced had no way of dealing with this thing. Majestically it made easy work of Pokemon like Arceus, and the majority of Terra's team.

***

Thanks for reading this somewhat long wall of text. But I felt this was a good way to gain some closure on my journey throughout the Reborn region. If you have any comments, or ideas as to how I can improve the team, I'd love to hear them. Despite what may look like an invincible team I often lose the majority of the Pokemon during major fights. And Poison and Flying types have given me no end of troubles... Despite this I'm confident in this team's ability to move forward, and I gladly anticipate how it will handle upcoming threats.

- Tartar

[Memoirs from a Certain Warrior from the Underworld]

Boredom is poison to us all

So, by want and caprice, I wander aimlessly in search of brief respites from the agony people call life

“I will indulge myself for just a bit”

It sounds bittersweet does it not? A world so dazzling as ours relegated to mere vanity

Existence is the driving force behind life, but in the face of eternity even the mightiest bastion of fortitude crumbles

Ashes to ashes. It sounds so bittersweet…

With these words of acknowledgement, I will surely be able to drink my black tea without putting any sugar in it for at least nineteen years

Of course I will enjoy this little show of ours. What kind of play will I see unfold? For it is not often I mingle with brethren

Naturally I will always be betrayed by my hopes as my endeavors end in disappointment

But that time is not yet here

A girl once said that expectations are the same as tea leaves

Without them you can’t ever brew any tea

And you’ll end up with just hot water

… Therefore it is better for hopes to turn to disappointment than hopes turning to apathy

But using too many tea leaves would make the tea unfit for consumption, would it not?

Perhaps hot water without any tea leaves is better after all

That’s why I’ll take my time and temper my tea leaves, and mix and stir in just the right quantity

I can’t drink tea that’s bitter after all…

We all create our own fate and play with it

We fool around in that little microchasm

But life is not a cruel game completely devoid of meaning

If we assume that I am not a traveler from hell, but a survivor from a sunken ship hopelessly defying my fate

In that instance this little theatre of ours would be an excellent block of wood to cling onto, would it not?

Kekeke…………. I guess there is no problem here?

[Pokemon XY and XY&Z. Did the Pokemon Anime get better?]

I guess the XY&Z anime has less fillers, cause 6 gen gave us the less pokemon!

If you look back to other seasons most filler episodes were about introducing new pokemon. Since we have probably covered them all by now in XY, there are less reasons to create new filler episodes.

Definitely, this was my main gripes with the D&P and Advanced Generation seasons. Especially Diamond and Pearl was bad at this. Sure it had some great League battles, but it took 160 episodes to get there...

[Pokemon XY and XY&Z. Did the Pokemon Anime get better?]

I started watching it, and I truly do like the episodes involving Team Flare and the Zygarde cores and all that because there is certainly an element of mystery there. To be honest though, just like what turned me off from it during the BW season, I can't stand the stupid filler episodes where nothing happens other than copy/paste "ash meets new trainer and new pokemon, helps them. team rocket. goodbye", so look up episode summaries or something if you don't wanna waste your time with episodes that ultimately don't do anything. XYZ is better than XY but only marginally so far.

This was actually the thing that I liked most during the XY series, there is far less filler than in previous series. If we go over what has happened this XYZ season so far:

- 4 Serena focused contest episodes and 1 And Eevee to Sylveon evolution episode and 1 Eevee focused "filler" episode".

- 2 Greninja evolution episodes, 1 Noivern evolution episodes and 1 Noivern training episode (could be considered filler?)

- 5 Team Flare and Zygrade focused episodes.

- 5 episodes focussed on Ash's rivals and battles.

- 1 Citron centered episode

And that leaves us with 7 episodes (or 5 based on how you categorize filler) in the past 24 episodes. This is a really good ratio for plot relevant to filler episodes if you think about it, and the closest Pokemon has ever been to being filler free.