Board 8 > Tompic 10: Killing the Farming Business

(+) Yeah! (+)

Good luck chess players!

I looked in on that randomizer topic and it seemed really interesting and fun.

it is a lot of fun! As has likely been established by now on b8, I am a fan of silly chaos, and getting stuff from OTHER people is a notch farther on that scale than even a regular randomizer! Like I started my FF1 run a couple hours late and already had almost all the key items I needed. (and late game equips) I'd like to expand my repertoire to LttP and Mario 64 and maybe Metroid and Rogue Legacy, but I gotta actually get decent at vanilla for them first because there's only so much you can cheese those lol.

Roahm plays Spyro 6-7: Some desert levels. Still a pleasantly chill game with a pleasantly chill player!

Disgaea 6: I think I'm starting to get in the groove. I don't super like the focus on autobattle and idling, but that DOES mean a greater emphasis on teambuilding, which I enjoy. Still on the fence, but looking at it through the lens of "managing a team" rather than "fighting battles" will keep it in the rotation for now. I would've been all in on Melodia if they'd played her straight like Flonne 2.0 (but I guess that'd be kinda boring)

Wildermyth: Had an interesting fight going but I think I glitched a door out, softlocking me out of engaging the rest of the enemies :\

Chess kids went 1-3 yesterday, which is not great but sets us up for an easy one or two. 4-3 might be out of reach, but I think we can still get 3-4, and .500 is more or less our goal so we'd take it.

Marble League 2017 3 (Fidget Spinner Collision): I love the little moments of character, like Shining Swarm riding the spinner, or the fan that rolled onto the field. Not gonna lie, a part of me misses fidget spinners. A fairly good event for me, with Shining Swarm winning, and Team Primary taking bronze and moving up to 1st. Team Momo tho :( I wonder if this is the one I watched part of back in the day, or is history just repeating itself.

Chess kids wound up 3-4; we'll take it and it ended on a win so that's nice.

Disgaea 6: I think we're gonna call it on this one. I had some success thinking of it as a team management game with auto-battles, but then there was a map where you couldn't really do the auto thing because of the Geo Symbols. (or maybe you can set up DI to avoid the hurt zones but heck if I'm touching that stuff) And just moving my dudes across the map is....kinda....a slog. I don't know what it is that makes moving a big team around in THIS particular SRPG tedious, as opposed to other Disgaeas, or FE, or SRW, but we have hit a point of "do I really want to do that again? Nah."

Next up is POKEMON SNAP it was probably that or Legends and Snap seems the safer bet for my tastes. ....But today wasn't a great brain day so we're probably not starting it yet.

Wifebolo and I played I Love You Colonel Sanders, and it was....about what I expected. XD I was kinda hoping for some of the other characters to have routes, but alas. Was a good time though! We got the romance but no business partnership ending :(

Reaper Man up next in audiobook land. Guy wants to be a woman in his next life :O

Pokemon Snap: I LOVE IT. They could've given me a remaster of the N64 game with some new Pokemon and maybe one more level and I would've been happy, but they've added some nice bells and whistles too. Having different "stars" is a nice way to have multiple scenarios of the same Pokemon, although I wish I could turn in one per level at a time, instead of one per Pokemon. I think I am discovering my interest in animals runs deeper than I initially realized, so Snap comes along at a good time to capitalize it- it's just, like, hanging out with cool fictional ones! Am already kinda hitting a progress wall though- not getting the Jungle Illumina Spot and running out of scores I can easily improve for more Research Levels. Not sure I quite understand the route switching mechanic either. But....it's just.....nice! And I need more nice in my life, I think.

Deltarune: Beated! Was clearly not very close to beating Spamton Neo, so threw in the towel there, and the actual endgame was a breeze in comparison. I LOVED the Punch-out parts, and heck I was just doing Punchout in TEW. Queen is great. Susie's great. Toriel's great. Everybody's great. Gonna be a long [however long chapter 3 takes]!

We're on to Chrono Trigger next, finally redeeming a poll!

Chrono Trigger: Actually I think this was a STEAM BATTLE winner somehow? Been a while, doesn't super matter. I have dabbled in roms and gotten pretty far on the DS version, but never beaten it. That changes here, I think! Although, I really like all the characters so I am gonna have trouble picking a party. At any rate, KRIS and NTRPT* (supposed to be Entrapta, but y'know, five characters) have successfully returned PEACH to her own time, and now I've gotta escort her to the castle where I am sure they will be very grateful! Some of the graphics and UI haven't aged suuuuper well, but the music holds up for sure, and the battle system is pretty neat. And you can pet the cat. Just now kinda getting into full gear, but looking forward to it! It invokes a lot of nostalgia for something I only ever got halfway through >_>

CT: Got TO THE FUTURE. It's nice and depressing :\ I think I did worse on the trial this time than before lol, and also got too cocky and got my first wipe against the Dragon Tank. We're off to a start!

Chrono Trigger, I've played that before. It's a pretty awesome game. Enjoy!

Just playing Dark Souls II, while failing to acquire a PS5 like always. Oh well!

Took the students to Disneyworld! It was not a complete dumpster fire like I had feared, and most of the dumpster firey stuff didn't relate to me specifically, so it wound up being a pretty good (albeit exhausting) time! My priorities seem to have shifted heavily from rides to shows and food (and getting to dang sit down and be in A/C once in a while) since last time, it's like I am getting older or something.

Pokemon Snap: Still having a blast! Got some new levels. Kinda hard to write this game up I guess, but it's really up my alley. I just like Pokemon themselves; what they are doing seems to be secondary.

Wildermyth: Not going too hot- I had my first two deaths of the game in fairly rapid succession. Second one I was just plain beaten, but the first one was some BS where, as best I can tell, the enemy's throw didn't check for obstacles, so my guy got thrown *through* walls two rooms away from the rest of my team, so he was immediately stuck in like a 3-on-1 with no hope of backup. They weren't my strongest, highest emotional investment guys, but neither were they randos that had just started (and most guys in the first category are starting to age out) so we're heading for a bad time I think. Gotta start actually using my LP!

My wife started playing Dragons Dogma. She loved Kingdoms of Amalur and we are hoping this will feel similar.

Lucha 1-34: Chavo promo, huzzah! Freshly turned Texano over Daivari despite Ryck. (**1/2) Sadly, we don't seem to be presenting Chavo as a major threat, it's all about Puma/Muertes, probably. I keep waiting for a Konnan heel turn, and I don't think that'll happen here but "if Konnan interferes Chavo gets the title" would be a cool setup for it. Lotta grudge matches today as Drago and Hernandez do a speed v. power kinda deal. Hernandez has been really leaning into the smug heel role, I kinda like it. Drago wins by DQ after Hernandez chokes him with a belt. I'm not sure I've seen a DQ before here? (***1/2) Muertes has words for Chavo, too. Alberto squashes Marty, pity. (N/A) Puma over Chavo rather quickly after Chavo suffers a mysterious injury and Texano wipes out the Crew. (**) Chavo also hecks around with Blue Demon and finds out. Who is Mexico, and what is this storyline?

Pokemon Snap: Got more new stuff, including the ability to just take pics around the lab, which I had been wondering about lol. Think the volcano Illumina is on deck probably! Man there are so many requests that I haven't even started to figure out

Aria 3-6- That Extracurricular Lesson...: We lost the crunchyroll password for a while but finally managed to reset it, so we're back in business! Alice is on a mission to figure out if Alicia ever gets mad or scolds Akari. Conclusion: No, she's real big on the positive reinforcement. Some solid character work and lots of Aria-shachou derp.

Finished Reaper Man a while ago and moved on to Soul Music, which I am quite enjoying as a musician. "One of nature's drummers" gets me every time.

I've been enjoying all the puns, references, and parodies in Soul Music but I had to take a moment when he hit me with a Thelonious Monk joke

I've just been following the NCAA Tournament and World Cup Qualifiers too.

USA has drawn 0-0 with Mexico on the 24th, then it's Panama tonight, followed by Costa Rica on Wednesday the 30th.

These will be Games #12 #13 & #14, ending the third round, and the crucial final games, which could result in USA either qualifying, or possibly be eliminated too.

Canada[25] sits in first, then it goes USA[22], Mexico[22], Costa Rica[19] and Panama[18], who are currently alive.

El Salvador[10], Jamaica[8] and Honduras[4] are already eliminated.

[#] = The number in the parenthesis is the number of points each country has in the rankings at this time. 3 points is earned for a win, and 1 for a draw.

USA crushed Panama so they will almost certainly qualify now.

Yeah, that 5-1 USA win was crazy. Christian Pulisic also recorded a hat trick with goals 1, 4 & 5 during the game, so you know it's a wild finish.

USA can only NOT qualify if they somehow manage to lose by 6+ goals in the final game against Costa Rica.

Also congratulations to Canada for coming away with the World Cup Qualification, it's second ever, first being Mexico 1986.

The full breakdown is as follows:

CONCACAF OCTAGONAL
28P 08W 04D 01L 23GF 06GA +17GD Canada [Q]
25P 07W 04D 02L 21GF 08GA +13GD United States [X]
25P 07W 04D 02L 15GF 08GA +07GD Mexico [X]
22P 06W 04D 03L 11GF 08GA +03GD Costa Rica [X]
18P 05W 03D 05L 16GF 19GA -03GD Panama [E]
10P 02W 04D 07L 08GF 16GA -08GD El Salvador [E]
08P 01W 05D 07L 10GF 21GA -11GD Jamaica [E]
04P 00W 04D 09L 06GF 24GA -18GD Honduras [E]

[Q] = Qualified for the World Cup
[X] = Guaranteed at least Interconfederation Playoffs
[E] = Eliminated

Game 13, March 27, 2022:
Canada 4 - 0 Jamaica
El Salvador 1 - 2 Costa Rica
United States 5 - 1 Panama
Honduras 0 - 1 Mexico

USA can finish the job tonight. Avoiding the disaster scenario listed in the previous comment should be very doable. Mexico has got less breathing room, but a draw or win would easily put them over. Costa Rica needs a lot of help to achieve that qualification spot, otherwise, the likely scenario is to face the OFC winner in June. That game has already concluded earlier today:

Solomon Islands 0 - 5 New Zealand

So, the 4th Place country in the CONCACAF results table will face New Zealand for one of the final spots.

Game 14, March 30, 2022:
Panama vs. Canada
Jamaica vs. Honduras
Mexico vs. El Salvador
Costa Rica vs. United States

United States gets the job done despite the loss, and qualify for the World Cup in Qatar.
Mexico does the same as well, although, they would win their final game instead.

Costa Rica plays New Zealand for one of the three final spots in June 2022.

The World Cup Draw is tomorrow.

CONCACAF OCTAGONAL
28P 08W 04D 02L 23GF 07GA +16GD Canada [Q]
28P 08W 04D 02L 17GF 08GA +09GD Mexico [Q]
25P 07W 04D 03L 21GF 10GA +11GD United States [Q]
25P 07W 04D 03L 13GF 08GA +05GD Costa Rica [I]
21P 06W 03D 05L 17GF 19GA -02GD Panama [E]
11P 02W 05D 07L 12GF 22GA -10GD Jamaica [E]
10P 02W 04D 08L 08GF 18GA -10GD El Salvador [E]
04P 00W 04D 10L 07GF 26GA -19GD Honduras [E]

[Q] = Qualified for the World Cup
[I] = Advance to Interconfederation Playoffs
[E] = Eliminated

Game 14, March 30, 2022:
Panama 1 - 0 Canada
Jamaica 2 - 1 Honduras
Mexico 2 - 0 El Salvador
Costa Rica 2 - 0 United States

Also, I took on the challenge of beating Dark Souls II without using bonfires, and I did it. Dying does not count against the challenge.

The game does have an actual reward for pulling it off, and that's why I tried it. The game awards the player the accessory:

Illusionary Ring of the Exalted

It's kind of a weird ring, as it makes your main character's equipped weapon invisible, and it seems to adjust the weapon's sound effects to be less pronounced.

There is a second type of this ring, but that one is far tougher to get. The player can access bonfires, but dying once counts as failing the challenge.

Sounds tough, congrats!

Pokemon Snap: Struggled a bunch with Volcarona but got it eventually. Not actually sure what needs to happen next for progress, but at least it's fun just to mess around.

Apollo Justice: Wrapped up case 1 (what do you call this, 4-1?) and started the next one. I'm kinda enjoying this version of Phoenix actually! I already like Trucy but I knew I would going in. Eldoon however did not immediately win me over, and I don't love having the pervy doctor guy back. I feel like Gavin's gonna come back around somehow, which I don't know how but if Dahlia managed it...

Another B8 randomizer going, this time I erred on the side of light commitment and tried the Minesweeperlike they made specifically for the program. It's....Minesweeper, alright. Pretty low pressure, and I could've done something else small alongside it, but oh well.

We are officially in busy season now! Had spring break, had my birthday, right into the thick of the musical I go. We're doing Legally Blonde, which I like but it's pretty hard and we're pretty underprepared.

I think I'm in the home stretch of Dragon Age 2. Just finished the DLC quests which were both fun.

Wife and I also just finished a great K-Drama called Hotel Del Luna on Netflix.

Thanks Tom!

Finished up Soul Music, which I very much liked. As usual I kinda lost the plot towards the end lol. Felt like a change of pace so I picked up Emma by Jane Austen, but have just been relaxing on the commute and not listening much.

I finally beat Dragon Age 2. I get the hate but honestly I still really enjoyed it (except for the character assassination of Anders).

Starting Dragon Age Inquisition now.

Chrono Trigger: Got to the second dome o' people, took out the (first?) boss there. The bleak hopelessness of this whole section was one of the parts that really stuck with me from previous attempts at this game, and...yup, it's still like that.

Emma: I don't expect this to be explicitly explored in this time period, but I feel like Emma is into girls >_>

Aria 3-7- In That Gently Passing Time...: Backstory ep, with the origins of Aria Company itself, and a new character who used to be Alicia's senpai before leaving to get married. We have a nice lil' multi-generational party with the past, present, and future of Aria. (how old is this cat, tho?)

I tried 5-D Chess. I'm...not great at it, but I might be able to figure it out eventually. I have the basic concepts, but not a great grasp of strategy, vision, or mating patterns. Isn't it just 4-D though, since there's no z-axis?

we are past the hard part of the year! I'm not like, DONE, but things are back to average after being berserk

Bought, installed, and started messing with Vampire Survivors. It's....fun! Will slot nicely into the "eh I just wanna kill some time mindlessly" role on those days when even video games seem like a lot to handle. Got my first win, too! So far I like the Cross, Fire Breath, and Magic Wand.

My coworker was off six weekend during which I basically was doing two jobs. Now they are back doing 4 hour days so it's slightly less stressful but still requires overtime and is very stressful.

Still two weeks before she is back full time again.

overdue to buy a bunch of games to sit on my backlog forever
https://gyazo.com/a18bacc6d580964781fa64d8b1930eb3

Vampire Survivors is still very addicting lol, although I'm starting to find it hard to progress. I've got maybe half the characters and a few of the secrets, but can't consistently win and don't have Stage 4.

Yeah, I'm still alive, despite not posting here since nearly the beginning of April, oh no! And now it's the start of May. The year is going by fast for sure.

As for gaming, I have turned my attention to a replay of Golden Sun on GBA. I've put on over 8 hours, and I'm about half way through the first game at this time. One of the last completed segments thus far is Altin Peak, an area where the player takes on these guardian statues that have become alive, and flooded the region, and you're tasked with defeating them all.

Emma: We are alternating rapidly between lovely (unintentional?) queercoding and Office levels of pre-emptive secondhand embarrassment. Emma pls.

Tried Stacklands. Didn't actually care for it.

I signed up for Rogue Legacy in the next b8 multiworld randomizer, so I figured I should actually learn the game at least a little ahead of time. I am...not good at it. I almost gave up, but then I realized that part of the problem was unintuitive keyboard controls, and plugged in the controller I always forget I have. I have upgraded from "lost cause" to "noob!" It's a lot more fun now too. ....Still not sure signing up for it was a good idea, but in the worst case, forfeits are allowed I guess.

Vampire Survivor: Finally got the Randomazzo! Still can't get the coffin OR the W on the Forest though. But I did re-do my powerups in an effort to spend more efficiently, and that seems to have helped.

Vampire Survivor: Beat Forest and got coffin! Got to 29:50 on Green Acres, kinda salty lol

Started Into the Breach! It is not quite what I was looking for, but it's also not what I thought it was, and it's also quite fun. I got to phase 2 of the final battle after some struggle runs, but couldn't hold out there for long. I've bumped it down to Easy for my current run and...it seems to live up to the name. Since Vampire Survivors isn't exactly relaxing, and since right before bed is my most common "let's do something fun and low impact" time, they'll kinda share that unofficial slot in the rotation for a while I think

Had a few issues with my PC. One of the cooling fans was making this *lovely* choking noise, and it turned out to be the one inside the power supply box. So, over the last two days, it was doing some work to disassemble that component, and reinstall a new one. It's working now.

Computers have their adventure moments!

I was at a place that served borsch, and tried it because Apollo Justice. I'm a big fan!

Computer seems to be working fine since the fan change.

Borsch? I'm not sure what that is, but if you enjoyed it Tom, that's what matters most.

Still rotating between Dark Souls II, Skies of Arcadia and Golden Sun.

Still haven't found that elusive PS5, availability hasn't changed since it released.

Yep I'll get a PS5 eventually.

Playing through Dragon Age Inquisition right now.

Yeah, the PS5 is tough to find.

Awesome, enjoy!

almost to the end of the school year wooo!

Emma: Chugging along. Kinda enjoying the parallel construction we seem to be going for with Mrs. Elton and Jane Fairfax. (who has won me over) I've gotten used to all the "satisfaction" and "intimacy" but sometimes she'll still drop phrases on me like "and suddenly he was making violent love to her" (he was confessing) or "there could be no doubt that the brothers had penetration" (insight).

Still having an easier time engaging with "whatever, let's kill a half hour" games than anything "official" in my rotation. Hoping that changes with work wrapping up, but in the meantime I've been into Wingspan and Vampire Survivors. Bailed on Rogue Legacy for the last Randomizer and did Slay the Spire....but had a heck of a time for some reason. I picked a Key run, not fully understanding what that meant, and I don't know why I found that SO much harder but it took me a lot of runs. Thankfully I didn't actually have to BEAT the final boss, because it was a struggle just to get there! Kinda OD'd on roguelike deckbuilders in the meantime. Played some FTL for the first time in forever, still kinda suck at it but might pick it back up.

This weekend my wife and I are finally doing our Chicago trip we have been wanting to do for years.

eyyyy

Hitting the zoo, aquarium, museums and ComedySports

it is SUMMER BREAK BAYBEEEEEE
theoretically that means less audiobooks and a lot more everything else! I did say that last year and not really deliver, but last year I had shakier mental health and most of my energy was going towards transition stuff that is mostly resolved by now!

Rain: It's been long enough that I have lost track of many of the plot points and minor characters, but....man, still hits the feels pretty hard. It wrapped up pretty recently so I'm looking forward to getting to the finish! Think she's doing other stuff so I'll check that out after.

Marble League 2017 e4-8: Nice to get back to this! For whatever reason, it continues to be easier to engage with than real sports. The Savage Speeders are way out in front but at least a lot of the teams I like are trading 2nd around!

Wifebolo had Cheer Up! Love and Pompoms out from the library and I finally had a sitdown with it myself. It's cute, and it's relatable despite being about high schoolers. Found myself nodding along with the trans one several times in a short book.

Emma: I accidentally got spoiled by a coloring book of all things, but I was starting to suspect we were gonna wind up there eventually anyway. Really don't get what anybody sees in Frank Churchill to begin with!

I just watched through the latest Marble League last week. Snowballs are out of everything right noe and it saddens me.

Starting Marbula 1 next but 2 races in I'm really missing them.

Awesome Tom, enjoy your summer break!

Last comment of page 9, woo!