#I also found that rebuilding ability without activating the quest

[elysianstars]

So here’s a stupid Tears of the Kingdom story.

The first geoglyph I activated was by accident, without speaking to Impa. I’d fallen off a sky island (not my fault, joycon drift) and decided to make the best of it by gliding to something that looked interesting. Noticed there was a teardrop pattern all over it, but only one was solid green. Thought I’d investigate that, maybe it was hiding a Korok. Got a big surprise!

So. I assumed that was how you needed to activate every geoglyph. Glide right down from the sky and land on that precise spot, without touching the ground in between. I DID THIS FOR THE NEXT SEVEN GEOGLYPHS I FOUND.

SEVEN. GOING THROUGH HEAPS OF STAMINA FOOD AND SPAMMING GUSTS. BEFORE REALISING YOU CAN JUST STROLL OVER TO THEM ON THE GROUND AND STAND ON THE RIGHT SPOT.

Also, after jumping down wells without ladders, I kept getting out by warping to shrines. Finally figured out you can just ASCEND. That’s a PSA to anyone else who didn’t think of it, but I suspect that not one other soul has my insane geoglyph problem.

[fishoutofcamelot]

I saw your r recent contribution to the post about hard vs soft magic systems and I agree wholeheartedly. You also mentioned having a bunch of worldbuilding and stuff about the magic system, and I was wondering if you'd be willing to share some?

(For reference, this is the post in question)

Certainly! While the worldbuilding/magicbuilding hellscape i was describing in the notes is actually in regards to an original-content wip I've been working on, i also have a LOT of headcanons regarding the BBCM magic system too! (Do not ask about my wip's magic system, because i won't be able to shut up about it)

WARNING: long post ahead and mobile won't let me include a cutoff/read-more line. If you're not interested, get ready to scroll down like your life depends on it (and it does).

So! First things first. Here's what we know about the BBCM magic system:

Magic requires spells, most of the time. This seems like a no-brainer, but still an important distinction. There are a lot of magic systems that don't require vocalized spells - Avatar: the Last Airbender, Fullmetal Alchemist, and Ninjago, to name a few. Spells are rather common for wizard/witch/medieval fantasies, and are typically used to control and channel the intent of the magic. This suggests that the magic of BBCM is some kind of force or energy that needs spoken commands to control.

Spells are repurposed words from Old English, aka the language of the Old Religion. (Let's ignore the obvious anachronistic nightmare of the fact that Old English is exactly the same language they would've been speaking in this time period.)

The use of a spell causes someone's eyes to flare gold, plus that fancy wooshing sound effect that Arthur miraculously never hears. This suggests that magic somehow changes your physiology, although it could be also just be a side effect of channeling.

However, magic doesn't always require a spell. Though never fully explained, it appears to be something only innate magic users are capable of - Merlin, Morgana, Mordred. It is something less controllable than spellwork, typically governed by moments of strong emotion rather than logical intent.

The show consistently flip-flops between the idea that magic is something you're born with, and that Merlin is rare for being born with magic. It's never clarified just how someone acquires magic. Gaius asks Merlin where he studied, suggesting that it's something you can learn, while Balinor claims that you either have it or you don't. Though not confirmed fact, i suspect it's similar to how it works in the show Supernatural. There, some witches are natural-born, while others are taught (and some get their powers from spooky demon deals).

It has a life-for-a-life policy. Basically like the Law of Equivalent Exchange from Fullmetal Alchemist, a life cannot be created without another one being sacrificed first. This rule only canonically applies to creating life/the Cup of Life, and any other possible applications aren't addressed.

This rule apparently doesn't apply to animals, as Merlin brought a dog statue to life without killing anyone (that we know of), and Valiant's shield had three live snakes in it. However, it's possible that lives were taken as payment in the process of animation without Merlin's knowledge, but it never happens on screen so we don't know. So either a) animals don't have souls to exchange in the life-for-a-life policy, b) they do but it happens off-screen, or c) those animated animals aren't actually alive.

The Cup of Life infuriates me from a magicbuilding perspective. Ignoring the obvious question of how it came into the druids' possession, its existence isn't clearly defined. Does it require the fancy rain ritual that Nimueh gave it, or was she just extra? Why does drinking from it give you life, while bleeding into it makes you undead and also mindlessly obedient to the sorcerer who made you as such? Were there life-for-a-life consequences for creating an immortal army? Wtf happened on the Isle of the Blessed to allow Merlin to "master life and death", and what does that even mean? All valid questions that never get answered.

Spells sometimes need need a 'source'. Think the staff from "The Tears of Uther Pendragon" and Morgana from "The Fires of Idirsholas." It is unclear what makes these spells different/special.

There is a power hierarchy. Some spells are too powerful for some practitioners to cast, although the reason for this is unclear. Does it drain you of energy/life force? Do you exhaust/overwork your magic muscles? Do you get a little pop-up that says 404 Magic Not Found? Unclear.

Magic is something that can be trained and improved. For example, Morgana gradually became more powerful over time. Merlin naturally had a lot of power straight off the jump and just had to discipline it, but he's a ~special~ case so he doesn't count.

There are some subsets of magic that are definitively born traits. Morgana is a Seer, possessing this capability even before her magic manifested. Likewise, Merlin is a dragonlord, which he inherited from Balinor. Although Balinor did mention that it wasn't a sure thing he would have the ability until he faced a dragon, so there may be some variation in whether or not someone lucks out in the Magic Gene Pool. This may suggest that natural-born magic is hereditary, as both Morgana and her sister Morgause had it. Vivienne and Gorlois both probably didn't have it, otherwise you'd hear Uther bellyaching about it, which raises the question of where they got it? A grandparent, perhaps? Maybe they both carried a recessive magic gene or something...

Unless you're Merlin, magic can be taken away by the Gean Canagh. It's not explained how this is possible, though, as it's never explained how you acquire magic in the first place. But Merlin never lost his magic because he's "magic itself" which if you ask me is just a deus ex machina wrapped inside a headache wrapped inside a heaping load of chosen one bullcrap. But it's canonical lore, so we have to consider it.

Despite my previous complaints, i actually find the idea of Merlin being "magic itself" rather intriguing. Is he a creature of magic, like a dragon or a questing beast? Is his body made of magic, like how a statue might be made of clay? Does it run through his veins like blood? If this is the case, then why didn't he suffer more severe ramifications for losing his magic? Why didn't it kill him? How did it restrict his magic in the first place? Placebo effect? The fanon explanation is that he's "the living embodiment of magic" but that makes my bullcrap richter scale shoot off the charts because that makes NO sense whatsoever. "Son of the earth, sea, and sky?" What does that MEAN?

There is a vivid link between magic and the Old Religion, which has its own beliefs and rituals and deities. Primarily, the Triple Goddess. The Triple Goddess is actually an existing deity in Neopaganism and Wicca. This also suggests the existence of the Horned God, another entity from neopagan lore and her masculine consort/counterpart, but that is never confirmed.

WHO. OR. WHAT. IS. THE. FREAKING. DOCHRAID. She's described as a creature of magic, which suggests that humans/humanoids can be creatures of magic, fueling my theory that 'Emrys' isn't human.

Destiny exists. It is unclear who creates/writes destiny, who controls it, who or what is privy to knowing about it, and what that means for the concept of free will.

The crystal cave is a thing, i guess. It's the heart of magic, is haunted by Taliesin, and is filled with prophetic crystals. I actually skipped the episodes that involve this stuff because i disliked them, so i don't know much about the Crystal Cave. Apparently ghosts can manifest there tho???

The veil is a thing too. It is unclear how some spirits can retain their human figure and mentality, like Balinor and Uther, but others become dorocha. I imagine its also like Supernatural - being a ghost for long enough will drive you insane, and though it takes a while all spirits eventually turn into dorocha.

Creatures of magic exist. These are normal creatures who have magic imbued into them somehow.

Okay, i think that's everything we know. It seems like a lot, but keep in mind that all of those rules are VERY nebulous. But that at least gives us a jumping-off point!

So here's my working theory/headcanon.

Magic comes from a connection to the spiritual energies of the Triple Goddess. Kinda like a third eye, and for the sake of simplicity that's what we'll call it. The druids have adapted a way of life that revolves around faith and magic, likely in an attempt to cultivate and one day attain this Third Eye. Like Gaius, who trained with the High Priestesses, you can study and practice and discipline yourself into acquiring it.

Magic is a cosmic force owned by the Triple Goddess, accessible to anyone with the Third Eye link. Imagine the Triple Goddess as a milkshake and the so-called Third Eye as a straw. The studying and training that people dedicate their whole lives to is basically just looking for/building a straw.

However, some people are just naturally born with a straw in hand, but require practice and study to be able to properly use it. Or like Morgana, it takes a few years for them to even find it/activate it.

Spellcasting is essentially just sucking through the straw, and the vocalized spells gives that Magic Milkshake some purpose/intent/shape.

The bigger the spell, the more Magic Milkshake is required. Some people have bigger/wider straws than others, so magic comes easier for them. But with enough training and practice anyone can widen their straw/strengthen their straw-sucking muscles to cast with the big leagues.

The Gean Canagh devours your straw/Third Eye. Perhaps you have to rebuild a new spiritual connection from scratch, or perhaps it permanently severs any and all connection to the Triple Goddess. Like getting excommunicated from the Church, only worse.

The Crystal Cave was/is the Triple Goddess's home, but she's out of town on a business trip atm so she left the spirit of her most loyal follower, Taliesin, to look after the place. It's super powerful and has all those cool crystals because it's hella steeped in her magic juices.

While most magic users get a standard-issue straw, others get Fancy Premium Membership Straws. Normal joe shmoes like Gilli have plastic straws, while a Seer like Morgana has a metal one or something (can you tell this metaphor is starting to get out of hand?). Those Premium Straws are only hereditary in nature. So there's a Seer Straw, or a Dragonlord Straw, or a Disir Straw, but it's also not a sure thing you'll even inherit it at all. It's all luck of the straw draw.

Creatures of magic aren't just animals that possess straws, though. They've been made/produced using magic rituals and processes and spells. Like Nimueh's afanc, nathairs, wraiths, shades, etc. So probably like a thousand years ago, some especially powerful shmuck came by and invented dragons. Which leads me to an important question: WHO THE HELL THOUGHT THE DOCHRAID WAS A GOOD IDEA.

Im reluctant to say these creatures were invented by the Triple Goddess, though, for reasons I'll get to in a moment.

So this still leaves the whole Cup of Life, life-for-a-life policy thing to be explained. I do believe that the policy is universally applicable to the creation of souls, and i do believe that animals have souls too. But individuals get their souls exchanged for those of equal value. So every soul has a certain weight to it, and you need to exchange souls of equal weight to create one. So when Merlin brought the dog to life, some random dog somewhere dropped dead against his knowledge.

Creating undead armies involves killing them and then resurrecting them. That's what 'undead' means. Zombies. So yes, to raise an immortal zombie army, Morgause's spell probably caused a bunch of people around the world to mysteriously drop dead.

Which leaves two last things to explain: destiny and Merlin.

Destiny is, i think, a combined effort between human choice and supernatural predeterminism. That is, for the most part humans make their own choices, but there are occasions where the Triple Goddess has to step in and do some course correction. Uther starting the Purge was free will, but Arthur and Merlin's destiny was an act of divine damage control. The Triple Goddess sets destiny into motion and informs a chosen few about it.

Okay SO. That leaves Merlin. And this is the bit im kinda excited about.

The Triple Goddess is a reservoir of power, a cosmic force of spiritual energy intrinsicallu linked to the fabric of the universe. People can spiritually reach out and tune into/channel her supernatural frequencies. But as a milkshake cannot suck itself through a straw, the Triple Goddess likewise cannot cast a spell. She can influence destiny, but she can't physically cast any magic on her own. That's why she didn't create the creatures of magic.

So a few years ago, Uther hecked up big time. And people of magic, the Triple Goddess's followers and acolytes and straw connections, were dying in droves. I can imagine that all those Third Eye tethers snapping en masse was painful for her to go through. She relies on the tethers to remain connected to the real world, and if all the tethers snap then she will be cut off from Earth altogether. And Earth requires magic to continue existing/thriving, so that's kind of a no-no.

So, the Triple Goddess knew that the only way to save the world was through divine intervention. Thus began the destiny of the Once and Future King and Emrys. She knew humanity is bigoted so there was bound to eventually be a repeat of Uther, so she made OaFK resurrectable, so they could keep him on the bench in case anyone ever needs him again.

Where does Merlin/Emrys fall into things?

Well. The Triple Goddess knew that saving her people and the world would require an immense magical undertaking, something no ordinary magic user would be able to pull off. But she has the power, if only she could use it. But a human can. So the Triple Goddess decided to be reborn into the body of a dragonlord's son. Merlin. Emrys. Magic itself.

Of course, this whole Being Born As A Human Thing is tricky, and as anyone familiar with reincarnation knows, you don't usually recall your past lives. So she became Merlin, unaware that he was ever the Triple Goddess. (Although she did add a clause saying she'd be destined to remember her past life eventually, which got hecked up for reasons ill explain later)

That's why so many creatures of magic/magic users recognize Merlin by his presence, why thr druids carry such reverence for him. Whereas the sidhe and other individuals don't recognize him, because they are blinded by heresy. They may have a spiritual connection to the Triple Goddess, but do not use her magic as she intended, and she's too busy wearing jaunty scarves to excommunicate them herself.

Why get the Once and Future King involved when she could just save everyone herself? Well, the Triple Goddess prefers to let the humans keep their agency and save themselves, and would rather remain in the role of protector/helper. Its just her nature.

But if that's the case, then why did Arthur's destiny fail? It's simple: Kilgharrah.

Remember what i said about the Horned God, counterpart to the Triple Goddess? Yeah, that's Kilgharrah. Like the Triple Goddess, he's another power reservoir, but he's jealous because people worship her and not him. He is against everything she does and actively seeks the destruction of the Triple Goddess's magic/influence for Jealous Evil Reasons. To stop him, the Triple Goddess enlisted some of her followers to bind him into the body of a dragon (perhaps this is how dragons were created) so he would never be able to do that. Years later, the Purge happened and "Kilgharrah" got locked away, further cut off from his power.

When Merlin walked in, unaware that he used to be the Triple Goddess, Kilgharrah seized his chance at revenge and manipulated Merlin into setting him free. Then, once free, he decided to lay claim to the power vacuum left by the Triple Goddess's quasi-absence. He began controlling destiny in whatever limited capacities he could, using magic of his own to permanently bury Merlin's knowledge of his past life. Then he ensured that Arthur would die and the Triple Goddess's magic would never return. But since he doesn't have FULL control over destiny (his powers are still limited by his dragon form, after all), he couldn't rewrite the bit where Arthur gets benched in Avalon. He's probably conspiring with the sidhe to ensure Arthur stays trapped there forever, or else he would've come back a long time ago.

As for how the Gean Canagh took Merlin's magic...well, yes, it devoured his Third Eye straw, but those are created by a strong spiritual connection to the Triple Goddess. And since he's literally the big TG himself, all he had to do was find himself again (by returning to his old home, the Crystal Cave) to recreate a new one.

Over the last 1500 years, Kilgharrah/the Horned God has been steadily accruing followers and worshippers in the hopes that one will become strong enough to release TG's bonds on him. Then he can kill her once and for all and claim full dominion over the universe, with the sidhe to support him.

I imagine that's how Arthur's resurrection would happen - Arthur and the rest of the dead Round Table are in Avalon when they learn about the treachery and plot to kill Merlin/take over the world, and spend the next few hundred years fighting their way out of Avalon.

Okay, I think that just about covers it. God, that was long. Any questions?

[lapsedgamer]

Death Stranding (PS4)

Death Stranding is the culmination of four years of anticipation and, for me, mild concern. Hideo Kojima was taken from the height of his career at Konami and the more-is-more excess of Metal Gear Solid V, and thrust in to an environment where he had - seemingly - far fewer resources at his disposal but not even the slightest hint of oversight. The years of development steadily revealed a director who was in no way financially constrained, and whose Hollywood aspirations seemed to be more heavily indulged than ever. Yet to actually sit down and play the end result is to meet a new kind of Hideo Kojima game, one that is markedly different in tone and style, which indulges his need to spell out every bit of world-building and research but which provides a structure where that content can actually be appreciated, one where gameplay expresses theme and cinematic flourishes are a garnish and a dessert rather than the core of the experience. This is perhaps the most Hideo Kojima game yet, but it is also one of his most creatively successful.

Death Stranding opens in media res in the style of the best science fiction, dropping the player in to conversations full of of unexplained but curiosity-piquing terminology that invite you to sit, listen, interpolate and reason out how the story world must work. It is, if anything, too mysterious - the player is thrust in to a mission of nation-spanning importance without a grasp of some of the more important character relationships that are supposed to motivate it - but it cultivates the mindful, steady, curious mindset that is the primary tone of the game, and it sets the you up for the explanations and background reading that will turn from a trickle to a steady flow as you progress.

The gameplay cultivates a similar sense of patient contemplation and constant observation. Sam Bridges’ movement in the game world is engagingly tactile but demands a steady and considered awareness of the terrain and his own current state. The left stick does not merely direct Sam across the landscape in the fluid, effort-free manner of the modern third-person adventure but very noticeably shifts his centre of balance. Run down-hill at a clip and you’ll feel his front-heaviness start to get away from you; ease back or even pull back on the stick and he’ll continue to descend at speed for a time but with his body more strongly centred over his scampering boots. Stride across widely spaced broken boulders and you will become conscious of the need to alternate left and right movement to balance out Sam’s inertia, lest he begin to pivot off in to a spiral and eventually crumple on to one side. 

In time, this becomes second nature but never becomes automatic. The game doesn’t demand the constant, finicky persistence of a Bennett Foddy game, but nor can you simply set your eyes on the horizon. It’s the closest a game has come to the sensation of a good hike, your brain absorbed by the task of placing your feet while devising the best route across the terrain towards your ultimate goal in the distance. Even when the game gives you equipment and upgrades that make traversal easier, these are balanced such that you are using your focus in a different way, not abandoning it entirely. A rope may allow you to abseil down a precarious cliff-face and skip a lengthy walk, but the abseil itself - and any subsequent climb back up - needs care, lest you knock your backpack cargo on an overhang and send it plummeting to the ground below. Bionic legs that automatically assist your balance on rough terrain come with a dramatically reduced cargo-carrying capacity which will tempt you not to use them. Vehicles all come with jump buttons, not to greatly enhance their manoeuvrability but because of the absolute certainty you will wedge them, and their un-carryable tonnage of precious cargo, in between some boulders. (Their turning radii are even tuned so that you need to consider the best line to follow on paved highways.)

Movement itself is at the bedrock of the game’s hierarchy of goals. Your medium-term objective in Death Stranding is always a cargo delivery from one place to another, which must be completed according to certain conditions of volume of goods, speed, or cargo damage. Individual deliveries can then be manually threaded together, in the manner of Elite or any MMORPG fetch quest, in to an overall plan, which will boost your standing with multiple customers in an efficient manner. To play Death Stranding is to be conscious of the relationships between structures in space and the topography upon which they lie, and to exploit them to the best overall benefit.

This is game design and a tone which almost entirely reject conventional ideas of mastery and excellence. In Kojima’s other games, success depended upon acting with skill, speed, and excellence, but Death Stranding consistently rewards persistence, thoughtfulness, and planning, and denies you the opportunity to achieve a friction-free, graceful effortlessness. Even the game’s finale ranking system is grindable; Kojima simply does not care whether you reached your grade by doggedly completing a thousand shoddy deliveries or dramatically resolving one hundred excellent ones. A great Death Stranding player is not to be found weaving through the landscape like a death wind as in Metal Gear Solid V, but standing patiently in a river waiting for their stamina to rebuild, or contemplating the long way down a mountain rather than the swift, risky descent of a cliff face.

Which brings us to theme, and the first time in many years that Hideo Kojima has successfully communicated his game’s ideas through the gameplay itself. The core concept of connection is clearly expressed in the delivery-based gameplay, which as I’ve mentioned forces you to consider the spatial relationships between locations. The cargoes themselves tell stories about subtler connections: who might be sending which objects to who tells you about their collaboration, cooperation, and perhaps even attitudes. These connections are made concrete by your ability to build structures in the world, with each bridge or ladder or road speaking to the links between the previously-isolated denizens of the United Cities of America. These connections are in turn shared between the different players: structures and even misplaced cargo and vehicles from other players’ worlds will appear in your own, and vice versa, to be exploited, improved and recovered towards your now-shared goal of reconnecting America.

The game reinforces at every stage that you must collaborate to succeed. Structures are expensive, particularly in the early game, but by sharing with others you can create a better, less-frustrating and more survivable world. Hiking through the snow and rounding a hill to find another player has built a refuge for your cold, wet, hungry Sam is like spotting a warm cafe window on a cold and lonely evening. You will be rewarded for, and you can reward, this altruism: the sending kudos every time I come across a rope or ladder has conditioned me to smash the like button on every social network I use with a ubiquity and enthusiasm that I was sure had been washed away by cynicism. This may be the best and most positive argument yet that games have the capacity inherent in all art to influence people’s thoughts and behaviour.

Kojima’s newfound emphasis on thematic gameplay has not tempered his love of narrative exposition, but it does fit Death Stranding better than his previous, more action-oriented games. The opening couple of hours and the finale are exposition-heavy cut-scene-fests in a universe full of vaguely human ciphers with motivations that are relatable yet communicated entirely through exposition. (There’s some remarkable Hollywood talent here doing its best to sell it, but the scenes focused on each character are, enjoyably, completely incongruous with each other, like a low-key Spider-Verse treatment.)  But for the bulk of the game, all eighty contemplative hours of it, the player is left largely to their own devices, with the scene-setting and research-regurgitation coming almost entirely in the form of text dumps. In Death Stranding, more than any Metal Gear Solid game, there is time to mentally unpack the ideas about human connections Kojima is lecturing you about, and a setting and goals that actively encourage you to consider the implications. As narrative fiction it’s unsubtle, with cloth-eared dialogue and a bias towards expressing its ideas verbatim rather than through the characters, relationships, or even much of the plot, but viewed as part of a game, and of this game, it actually works well.

There is actually an idea I’ve been toying with, since Tim Rogers made the case that Hideo Kojima writes non-fiction, that perhaps he is a creator of edutainment games: that the nearest analogue of something like Death Stranding or Metal Gear Solid 2 is not Stalker or The New York Trilogy, but Crystal Rainforest or Granny’s Garden, or I guess Where On Earth Is Carmen San Diego (we never had that here, but we got the TV show), a game where you’re given a great deal of non-fiction knowledge in an enjoyable, interactive environment. True, Death Stranding lacks quizzes to test you on your acquisition of the knowledge, but I think that’s probably the least important part of any edutainment game’s design. I made the joke recently that Hideo Kojima spent one hundred hours reading about the words, concepts, and objects related to the English word “hand”, and by golly he’s going to make you sit down and do the same thing, but I’m not sure it was entirely a joke, or that it’s particularly negative for the game to work this way. Perhaps Death Stranding is the world’s greatest multimedia educational experience. Perhaps Hideo Kojima should just start giving TED talks and get it all out of his system.

Death Stranding is entirely itself in a way only an indie game or a Hideo Kojima production can be, and was destined to be divisive. Its patient, mindful pace and resistance to streamlining are bound to frustrate those who approach games as sport, and its needlessly convoluted plot and casual disregard for narrative will turn off those expecting an interactive movie from the supposed master of the form. But the past few months of going for long, productive hikes in the mountains, surrounded by ghosts and rewarded by lectures about puzzling scientific curios, has been a genuine pleasure. 

A modern classic.

[vintyvanora]

Inquisitor Verse (AU)

Okay so this is kind of a joke because it will probably never get used, but I got bored today while making answer keys and decided this was a good thing to do instead. All the details about decisions, companions, and advisors are beneath the “Read More” cause it got long...

General Information:

In Vanora’s inquisitor verse she arrives at Haven a day before the Conclave out of sheer curiosity to see how the South would handle the Mage Rebellion and broker peace between them and the Templars. Unfortunately, she had inadvertently put herself in the wrong place at the wrong time. When the Temple of Sacred Ashes exploded Vanora should have died along with everyone else. Instead, she walked right out of a fade rift and, eventually, into an unexpected new role as the Inquisitor.

Word of the Inquisition quickly spreads, traveling to the ears of former allies and family in Tevinter. Before any rumors can start that might damage the Inquisition Vanora reveals her true name and parentage, finding it endlessly amusing that a Tevinter Altus would end up the Herald of Andraste and the leader of the Inquisition. Predictably, most other people find it distinctly unamusing. That said, she has the ability to access all her resources in Tevinter without having to worry about hiding her identity.

Throughout her time as Inquisitor Vanora rejects people’s attempts to revere her as some sort of holy figure and the Herald of Andraste. She finds it unsettling, particularly as she herself does not believe in the Maker. She aims to make fair, level headed decisions and constantly keeps in mind the reputation and power of the Inquisition.

Major Decisions:

Allies with the mages

Allies with the wardens

Celene rules alone 

Leaves Stroud in the Fade

Morrigan drinks from the Well of Sorrows

Leliana becomes the new Divine

Relationships With Advisors:

Cassandra: Cassandra’s drive and purpose impress Vanora, who appreciates her energy and constant push forward. She speaks her mind and does not apologize for her beliefs, which Vanora respects. Although she isn’t the most diplomatic of the advisors, Vanora likes her all the same.

Companion Quest: Rebuilds the Seekers (also gets her Varric’s book)

Cullen: Although Vanora is initially suspicious of Cullen and how his bias against mages might affect the Inquisition, he proves himself to be a capable leader of the Inquisitions forces. While they don’t agree on the future of mages, Circles, and Templars, she respects his opinion and insight and appreciates that he is actively working to 

Personal: Encourages him to stop taking lyrium; tracks down Maddox and finds a way to break Sampson’s armor

Josephine: Predictably, Vanora gets on very well with Josephine. She appreciates and respects her political skill and her level-headedness (even if she doesn’t like her clothes). Vanora is incredibly grateful that there is someone with the political savvy to handle all the alliances/relationships/politicking while Vanora is otherwise engaged.

Personal: Assassinates the House of Repose’s assassins

Leliana: Despite the fact that Vanora isn’t keen on Leliana’s devotion to the Chantry and the Maker she greatly respects her prowess as a Spymaster and low key wishes she’d had access to her while living in Tevinter. As the Inquisitor, she relies heavily on Leliana’s information to make well-informed decisions.

Personal: Spares Natalie; “softens” Leliana

Relationships With Companions:

Blackwall: There is something off about Blackwall that makes Vanora suspicious of him. He’s cagey whenever she asks about the Wardens or his past which is a clear sign to her that he’s hiding something. Because of that she never quite trusts him, but he is a good soldier and has proven himself to be a formidable ally. 

Companion Quest: Pardons Blackwall/Thom Rainer

Dorian: Since they are both Altus from Tevinter it would stand to reason that Vanora gets along with Dorian. Although that is true, she finds him somewhat annoying with all his melodrama. He reminds her a bit too much of the people she was glad to leave behind in Tevinter. But at least they share many of the same opinions.

Companion Quest: Helps mend the relationship between Dorian and his father

Cole: Even by the end of Inquisition Vanora isn’t entirely sure how to feel about Cole. On one hand, he’s a fascinating once-in-a-lifetime discovery, but on the other hand there something almost childlike about him. 

Companion Quest: Becomes more human

Iron Bull: Initially, Vanora is hesitant to hire Iron Bull and the Chargers, particularly after finding out that he is Ben Hassrath. However, she does appreciate that he is upfront and doesn’t try to hide his role, which makes her much more amenable to him. They have very different ideas about mages but despite their differences and the fact that, by nature, Qunari and “Vints” don’t mix well, they get along well enough.

Companion Quest: Saves the chargers

Solas: Vanora has mixed feelings about Solas. On one hand, she finds his adventures in the Fade and research of magic to be incredibly interesting. On the other, she finds his superior, judgemental air can be abrasive and makes him difficult to work with at times. Nevertheless, his support of mages freedom and insight into magic and the Fade make her like him. (More or less.)

Companion Quest: Destroys the summoning stones, lets him kill the mages

Sera: Vanora cannot stand Sera and has, on several occasions, thought about kicking her out of the Inquisition. She finds her childish, immature antics incredibly irritating and she’s too loud and obnoxious. More often than not Vanora feels like an exasperated parent when dealing with her.

Companion Quest: Has Lord Harmond work for the Inquisition

Varric: Surprisingly, Vanora quite likes Varric. She enjoys his stories, as wild as they are, and at the very least knows to take everything he says with a grain of salt. He does, after all, make it abundantly clear that he is an excellent, and frequent, liar. 

Companion Quest: Tracked the source of the red lyrium and found the leak

Vivienne: While Vanora greatly appreciates having someone who understands all the subtleties of society, she has serious issues with Vivienne’s desire to reinstate the Circles, which puts a strain on their otherwise pleasant relationship. (Also she’s Orlesian and Vanora low key judges them and the “Great Game.”)

Companion Quest: Gives her the Snowy Wyvern heart

[unendingexhaustion]

dream: the guardian

much looser writeup this time bc if I prose’d it up it’d be a whole novel,, (hands u a barely edited version of the just-woke-up discord messages instead)  Edits, plot hole fixes, and general commentary are in the italicized Awake Thoughts sections

The whole thing was set in a fantasy kingdom in which positions of power are chosen by merit and the at-least-semi-sentient magical artefacts that belonged to that office. Those artefact masters formed a ruling council headed up by the current holder of the crown artefact, and the artefacts’ deep ties to the magic of the kingdom grants them magical bonuses that pertain to their jobs. (Awake thoughts: I think this would usually work via a democratic process up until the last handful of candidates, upon which the artifact would be brought out to choose the one it deems the best fit for the current times. The artefact master gets a certain amount of time to find a successor while their powers wane, and must hand it over to another when the artefact withdraws its support completely. In the past it was a much looser system, in which the current master of the artefact would have to go on a journey or hold some sort of competition until the artefact finds an heir that it likes. Also, what does like, the fuckin,,, secretary of agriculture get? a plow or something? lmao. Divisions of power in the upper echelons of government not very fleshed out, shame on you, dreambrain!) One of these artifacts was the magical sword granted to the kingdom’s guardian, a position that focused on both the kingdom’s safety as a whole and with the personal safety of the less combat-oriented artifact masters. The sword’s consciousness was made up of the imprints of the most powerful past guardians acting as something of a council through a psychic connection to the current one. 

The dream focused on the current guardian, a man in his early-to-mid 40s who’d shared a small aspect of the title with his wife the queen (it was a respect thing, the sword thought she was a certified badass and decided to let her use some of the council-protection functions) until a group of mages discovered how to brute-force take control of several artefacts, executed their masters, and imprisoned those whose artefacts they couldn’t seize in a brutal coup.

(Awake thoughts: the strike plan probably hinged on a massive magical disruption that shattered the artefacts’ powers, rendering them and their masters essentially useless and vulnerable. As a group of mages, the usurpers would be able to use their own arcane abilities to rebuild their stolen artefact’s powers at an exponentially faster rate than any of the original artefact masters. Our man the guardian is doing it too but much slower, and the imprisoned artefact masters are basically shit outta luck since they don’t have physical access to their artefacts anymore and the magical/psychic connection would be suppressed in some way. Both sides of the bond are still holding on, but given enough time and pressure, one is gonna give. Still feels a little plot-holey, but whatever!)

This is of course a Massive Failure in his duties in the guardian’s opinion, despite the fact that he had no way to stop it since the artefacts had their powers shattered during the attack and without them he was just a single swordsman against a cadre of powerful mages. (The sword thinks he did his best. he disagrees.) He managed to escape with both the sword and his life, but the sword’s powers have been almost completely destroyed, his wife is presumed dead, and he’s stuck in a terribly one-sided game of cat and mouse with the new rulers.

The new regime has eyes everywhere and he’s barely making it day to day, getting worn further and further down by the constant chase and many near misses. The voices in the sword are taking up more and more space in his mind and even occasionally piloting his body as he loses the will to carry on, living in a deep haze interspersed with moments of desperate furious terror when he gets too close to being caught since the sword must be kept from the usurpers At All Costs and he will not fail this duty too. (Awake thoughts: basically he’s at Rock Bottom here. character arc nadir. my subconscious insists on giving its characters depression and a fractured sense of self-worth. why does this happen so often.) The kingdom itself is dying as well, animals and plants and even geographic features sickening and warping as the corrupted artefacts leech poison into its magical veins.

But! During one of his near-miss escapes from the people hunting him, he pays this Absolute Bastard of a young woman to help him out and the magic sword is like “!!! Dude that’s your heir! The next protector! We want that one!” and he’s like “oh god no. why. please no” bc she acts like she’s sell him to satan for one corn chip (she wouldn’t. she’d think about it but she wouldn’t.) and she’s just some ne’er-do-well kid who can’t be older than 20 so somebody has to teach her how to wield a sword before the artefact boots him out? Guess He Has A Purpose Again. (the sword is smug abt this For Sure. it LIKES him!! It’s not planning a hand-off for a while yet, not that he knows.) and the rest of it is an antagonistic-allies-to found-family quest to rebuild the sword’s powers while combating the physical signs of corruption in the kingdom, end goal obvs being Kick Out Evil Mages, repair the artefacts, and restore them to their proper masters.  (Awake thoughts: also probably look into finding some kinda arcane IT person?? gotta fix whatever vulnerabilities got exploited in this. Seems like a glaring flaw in this government system. There’s probably been trickery afoot in order to claim power in the past but that’d get whoever kicked as soon as the artifact figured it out, and this is on a Whole Different Level. also, the artifacts are sentient,,, do they get trauma? idk awakebrain wasn’t involved with coming up with this premise but i feel like something whose natural autonomy is basically limited to the mind having that invaded/messed with would Probably fuck it up.)

Anyways, having to manage this Hellion Youth activates his latent Dad Instincts, to which she reacts like a feral cat being acclimated to humans. (spiky at first but steadily warming up and reluctant to show it for quite a while....) BUT! In the dream they did actually perform a blood ritual that bound them as family for some forgotten plot reason even before they considered each other as such! (setup for a fun awkward period of “we’re family by oath, but does the other see me that way? :c” from both sides.) Bonus points for the sword, who was out here being a hive mind of approximately 9 annoying relatives from the very beginning lol (Final Awake Thoughts: in the dream the queen did straight up die, but awake me thinks that’s stupid and I do not want to fridge her. She got super injured and was definitely dying but somehow gets rescued. She gets to run a political intrigue/spy subplot while recovering and uses her connection to her artifact to backdoor her way into her usurper’s mind for Highly Unethical fun and profit. Psychic warfare hours baby!! The imprisoned artefact masters get their own subplot somehow too, not sure how but it’d be fun. Unlikely alliances between former rivals forced into a terrible situation together?? spot the tropes i’m fond of lmao. ANYWAYS i’m a little sad that this doesn’t exist, it would be a very fun novel but unfortunately i do not have the time, ability, or focus levels required to write one.)

[themothyards]

Destiny 2 Reveal Stream: Notes

Here are my notes from the reveal stream, with some concluding thoughts at the end. All of this information is available from the Bungie reveal stream, and is not speculation unless marked as such:

Story:

In the beginning of Destiny 2, the Last City has fallen. Dominus Ghaul, leader of the Cabal Red Legion, has laid waste to the Tower and to the City itself, and his legions have torn our home apart. 

The reveal trailer shows us fighting through the tower in the first campaign mission, called “Homecoming,” in which we battle alongside the Vanguard until Amanda Holliday deposits us atop some kind of Cabal ship, where we attempt to face down the bad guy.

Unfortunately, we fail, and Dominus Ghaul succeeds in deploying some sort of device that places the Traveler in a cage, instantly draining the Guardians of Light, and causing us to lose our powers. We cannot go back to the Tower.

In response, the Vanguard scatters. Ikora has fled to Io out of anger, Zavala is on Titan healing and having an existential crisis - “Are we Guardians even without the Light?”, and Cayde-6, in attempting to play the hero, has gotten himself into trouble on Nessus. Apparently, the Speaker has disappeared. More on these new worlds below.

In the campaign, we will have to track down and collect the Vanguard, as well as fight the new Red Legion enemy, led by Dominus Ghaul. Dominus Ghaul believes that he, based on his past experiences (which were not elaborated upon), is most worthy of the Traveler’s blessing, and does not understand why Humanity was chosen. He has come to Earth to prove his worthiness, and sees humanity as being in his way. He is not a “psychopath” bent on genocide. Luke Smith described him as “Having his stuff together,” and “Like Alan Rickman in Die Hard.”

Destiny 2 is a game about loss, and transitions into an experience about recovery and reclaiming what is ours.

Classes:

Shown classes remain the same: Hunter, Warlock, and Titan. Nova Bombs, Defender Bubbles, and Golden Guns were shown but not remarked upon. However, new Super abilities were showcased:

Titan Sentinel: A Titan with a voidlight shield that can be used to block damage, thrown at enemies, or used in melee combat. There also appeared to be some new kind of Striker Titan Dash and a different sort of ‘Ice Wall,’ neither of which were discussed.

Hunter Arcstrider: A Hunter with a staff of arclight that focuses on acrobatic melee combat. 

Warlock Dawnblade: A Warlock with a sword made of solar light that can be used in melee combat or to fling ranged attacks. Warlocks also appeared to be able to place some sort of buff zone beneath them, one of which “empowered” the player.

These look pretty awesome.

Weapons:

Weapon loadouts have been revamped to give players more flexibility. Weapons are now divided into three categories:

Kinetic

Energy

Power

New weapons:

A variety of new weapons were shown. In addition to hand cannons, sniper rifles, shotguns, pulse rifles, and shotguns, we saw:

A type of SMG

Grenade launchers

Minigun-like machine guns

A type of fast-firing rocket launcher

I assume we will learn more about this in the coming days. It appears that weapons such as hand cannons occupy the kinetic slot, but I would like to see more information about how these slots will work.

Worlds:

Destiny 2 features four playable worlds: 

Earth: The European Dead Zone is now the location of Destiny’s largest playable area, and this is the zone where Humanity flees and attempts to rebuild after the Cabal attack. This camp was founded by Hawthorne, who features in the D2 Preorder, and who once left the City to live in the Wilds.

Titan: Titan, Saturn’s largest moon, is covered with a Methane ocean with 40 ft waves, and features a human utopia, a relic of the Golden Age, sinking into ocean. There is no landmass on Titan.

Io: A sulfuric moon of Jupiter, Io is the last place the Traveler touched before it appeared on Earth. Io is a sacred place to the Guardians, and to Warlocks in particular. In the trailer, there appear to be the remnants of some kind of civilization.

Nessus: A centaur, or type of icy minor planet. The Vex have transformed Nessus into a machine world, and it now features native vegetation, large canyons, and plateaus based on tepui, a type of South American highland plateau.

Quests

Destiny 2 has revamped the map system. Now, players will be able to use an area map to navigate and discover locations and events. These include:

PatrolsAmbient enoucntersCollectable materialsAdventures*Treasure maps*Public events with treasures*Lost sectors*

*denotes a seemingly new feature

Destiny 2 will emphasize the sense of exploration that players experience. For example, players will be able to discover and unlock secret, hidden dungeons, which will contain both loot and bosses. There appear to be many, many secrets to discover.

Furthermore, there will be more interaction with NPC’s, resulting in numerous side-quests and further adventures.

Map:

Destiny 2 features a revamped map system that players will use to uncover and navigate the new areas. Waypoints, such as those corresponding to the activities listed above, will show up on this map. It will also show WHERE and WHEN public events will take place.

In addition, players will no longer have to ‘go to orbit’ to navigate to new locations. The world navigation system will now be usable from anywhere.

Co-operative:

Co-operative play was heavily emphasized by all presenters. Bungie attempted to strike a balance between easy matchmaking and ensuring that all players are comfortable with the strangers they are matched with. The notable new features are:

Clans: Clans will no receive official, in-game support. These will offer rosters, tools for fireteam building, custom banners, and shared clan experience and progression. Achievements, whether done solo or in a group, will benefit your clan.

Guided Games: Guided games are a new way for solo players to find a fireteam without joining a clan and while being able to ensure they have a positive experience. Solo players will be able to see a brief summary of clan information, as well as the activity proposed, and will then be able to join the clan for that single activitiy without committing to the clan.  Guided games will open up your party to more players, in case one of your fireteam members must drop out of the activity.

Crucible: The Crucible has been revamped for 4v4 combat across all game modes. There will also be a new attack/defend mode called “Countdown.” I assume we will learn more in the coming days.

PC Gamers:

In partnership with Blizzard, Destiny 2 for PC will be available exclusively through Blizzard’s Battle.Net.

Other Notes:

“More cinematics than ever.”

There will be a new raid.

There will be new strikes. The strike played at the reveal is called “The Inverted Spire.” You will traverse Red Legion territory to a Vex Stronghold, where you will fight a 3-stage boss.

There will be more quests and story missions

There may (SPECULATION: ENTIRELY UNCONFIRMED) be new vehicles.

There will be “More to do than any game we’ve ever made at Bungie.”

Main takeaways

Community, community, community. Destiny 2 was referred to several times by different people as “A world I want to be in, where I can always find people to play with if I want to.” Bungie appears to be focused on making all of D2′s content accessible to more players. This, to me, is a great thing.

Exploration: the words “Open World” were not used, and from the gameplay demo of “Homecoming,” that mission at least appeared quite linear. That’s not to say the rest of the game will be that way, and if the new map system is any indication, we can look forward to a lot more exploration. 

I, personally, cannot wait to see the new worlds. It seems like Bungie has done a lot of work to make each location feel unique.

Gameplay-wise, it sounds as though Bungie has learned from D1, and is looking for ways to make D2 more engrossing and meaningful for all kinds of players. If the new strikes have harder, more involved boss fights, it sounds as though we can expect more than the bullet-sponge boss fights that dominated D1.

The revamped weapons system also sounds great, and I can’t wait to hear more about it. 

I am unsure about the Crucible being reworked for 4v4. Reference was made to it being “For PvP Players,” although what that means remains to be seen.

And, most importantly: Throwing Knives return.

[greatfay]

(I'm the one who asked about Blackwall): what do you hope to see return in da4 from dai and what do you hope is changed or cut out?

Ok just to make sure I got this right, what I liked in DA:I and would like to see more of and what I didn’t like in DA:I and would prefer they cut or altered? Cuz I have a lot tbh. More under the cut.

More Please:

Crafting system. I really liked it, love how you can change your companions’ armor (unlike in DA2 or ME:A) but it still has their “look.”

Banter. Memorable characters are a staple of the Bioware games, but unlike in Dragon Age II, I rarely triggered dialogue between companions in DA:I. Hopefully that changes in DA4.

Soundtrack. Trevor Morris was amazing… too bad most players don’t know this since the devs thought the game would be “more realistic” if the music barely plays. Even combat wouldn’t trigger music for me, all you’d hear is grunting and swords clashing. Ambience just made me feel empty in this game (which doesn’t help the large empty regions).

Pretty places. This game is really bright and colorful compared to the first two. I hope that if DA4 is indeed taking place in Tevinter, we get to see variety in landscape and regions the way we did with Ferelden and Orlais. Just fill it with some damn cities/villages! I hate empty worlds.

Clear cut story. I’ve heard criticisms that Inquisition’s story is oversimplified and pretty cut and dry compared to DA2 and some hail this as a drop in narrative quality in the franchise (psh, they should aim that criticism at the damn fetch quests). However, the game has a straightforward, classic hero’s journey plot that is overall very grand and enjoyable, and that makes it actually similar to Origins. I like that the story can be summed up in 4/5 big moments, with smaller plot points and subplots in between.

Face creator. Honestly there’s a whole subreddit dedicated to the hot OCs you can make in this game and I’m here for it, I have now saved Thedas with an Angela Bassett look-alike (if she were an elf), a Rami Malek look-alike, and a much more idealized version of myself. 

Could Be Better:

Specializations. First two games let you get two specializations, DA:I only gives you one. And I’m cool with that tbh, just wish they were a little more expansive and interesting. Also, companions used to get their own unique specializations and/or abilities, and in DA:I, this led to some questionable creative choices. Giving the big healing ability to Knight-Enchanter instead of Necromancer for example, then giving the time power to Necromancer instead of Knight-Enchanter (when the rest of the abilities support the other).

Also jumping into DA:I right after finishing DA2, I was disappointed to find that this new special Rift Mage tree just recycled the abilities of the Force Mage + firestorm.

Armor/Weapons. I actually liked most of the gear in this game (except the helmets, which looked ridiculous in design for the most part). Wish there were more! I feel like it should be possible to get every armor part and weapon that you can see in-game; it used to be a staple of the genre that when you defeat a boss, you get their stuff, but not every boss in this game drops their gear; some who do don’t even drop the same thing *cough, Alexius*. I remember searching for the Venatori Mage helmet for hours before finding out it’s not in the game (though you can get the regular infantry helm for some reason, and it’s ugly soooo).

Supporting characters. In DA:O and DA2, you’d see recurring characters pop up in other quests and you could get attached to some of them. In DA:I, most of the people you get quests from are forgettable and one-offs.

Enemy encounters. In DA:O and DA2, enemies come in hordes, making crowd control pivotal to survival. In DA:I, you get small parties of enemies (3 - 6) with high health and defense, making overall DPS more important. I think they did this to be more realistic, but this is Dragon Age. Zombies dig up the corpses of dragons out of the ground to raise their gods and elves are part-spirit and a trickster god stole a piece of the sky and horned gray-skinned humanoids go to sex doctors to pop their corks under an oppressive religious order. There’s no room for heavy realism in Dragon Age, let’s be real.

Narrative-based quests. I miss when quests would start with a character actually talking to me! With actual cutscenes and dialogue! In Inquisition, quests either start with a brief chat with an unremarkable NPC, or by reading a fucking note someone left on a table. This is so lazy and boring. Maybe Bioware didn’t have the funds to do proper quests, but I’d prefer a handful of real ones than the dozens of “Oh look, I found a letter on this door that says this person left treasure somewhere” quest.

Party AI. I’d love to have more control like in past games; I want to set it like the gambit system in FFXII, where you can say “If ally uses this ability, character A will use this ability on targeted by ally.”

No Thank You:

Fetch quests! “Collect x amount of these and return for XP” is so boring. What happened to more narrative-heavy side quests?

Inventory limits. I’m so over this, lemme hoard like the junk rat I am, gdi.

War Table operations. If you don’t follow guides on the wiki, you’ll have no idea what the results of these operations will be. There’s no riddle or clue left in the descriptions that suggest that choosing a particular advisor will result in the mass genocide of your Inquisitor’s clan (yeah, fuck that, do NOT choose Josephine for the Protect Clan Lavellan operation).

Miscommunication. The devs and the writers don’t seem to be on the same page. In cutscenes and dialogue, Cassandra will say “We should give mages a chance to prove they don’t need chaperones” and then you’ll give mages some freedom and she’s like “CASSANDRA GREATLY DISAPPROVES.” Happens with a lot of other characters, too.

Requisitions. They’re a waste of resources and I never do them as they have zero effect on my gameplay experience. Don’t even need them in the beginning, just finish 4 quests to get the power needed in the Hinterlands.

Some Ideas:

Integrate side quests into the main story. They’re already sort of mandatory; getting XP in this game is impossible without doing the side quests and you end up under-leveled for the main quests, so might as well write them to be more story-related and use them as opportunities to introduce recurring minor characters. The DLC for DA:I was great tbh, all tightly made stories that didn’t pussyfoot around. I finished Prey recently and that game did a great job with side missions; all of them felt personal, and having voiced characters in your ear as you finish objectives makes them feel more active.

The character classes you can pick in the multiplayer should actually be in the game. I think some of them are mentioned by name, but you don’t otherwise see them.

Loyalty missions. Mass Effect 2 did this best and there’s something like this in Inquisition, but not all of them are equal tbh, they don’t involve scripted events and cutscenes and plot lines that reveal more about your companions. Pretty much Dorian, Solas, Sera, and Iron Bull are the only ones that get it. ME2 gave us: returning to the facility where Jack was tortured as a child so she can blow it up, Garrus hunting down the former protege who betrayed his squad, Jacob locating his presumedly dead father crash-landed on a planet whose flora fucks with everyone’s mind, Miranda relocating her little sister (and her adopted family) to keep her creepy-ass father away from her, Samara hunting down her wayward serial killer daughter (the whole investigation + seduction scenes were dope), Thane trying to rebuild his relationship with his son who is trying to follow in his father’s bloody footprints—I could go on. Those weren’t just “Pop in here and beat an enemy and then leave” kind of quests, they were involved and offered the player choices and were super emotional.

[gregzillagt]

Gregzilla’s Thoughts on The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild

Breath of the Wild is a very good game.  Very good.  Great, even.  If you’re a Zelda fan or a fan of open world adventure games then I absolutely recommend it.

I just wanted to make that very clear so I don’t get ravaged for having plenty of negative things to say about it.

(I’ll keep this free of major spoilers, but I think this game is more enjoyable the more blind you go in, so if you want absolutely nothing spoiled then maybe play it before you read this.  If that’s all good, then read on.)

(Reviewing the Nintendo Switch version)

-I am not a fan of open world games, but it’s one of the best open worlds I’ve experienced.  Most open world games nowadays bore the shit out of me, as they’re usually just tons of space without much meaningful content.  Lots of repetition, lots of samey quests, and a severe lack of discovering anything truly special.  BotW doesn’t avoid this entirely, but the beautiful environments, likable and active NPCs, fun abilities, and varied terrain go a long way to making it more fun to explore than its contemporaries.

-Gorgeous visuals, a strong contender for best art style in the series.  When the sun shines on the grassy fields, it creates a beautiful lushness the likes of which I haven’t seen in a game before.  Characters are also much more expressive than Twilight Princess or Skyward Sword, capturing a bit of that Wind Waker charm that I’ve really missed.

-Combat has some great new additions, especially the new Flurry Rush, which rewards you for performing a dodge at the very last second.  It gave me a Platinum games vibe and I hope stuff like this carries over to future games.

-One of the hardest Nintendo games in recent memory, and a complete reversal from the hand-holding of Skyward Sword, which is incredibly refreshing.

-The puzzles in the shrines and dungeons utilize Link’s abilities and the player’s spacial awareness very well to create some fun problem solving situations.  Another breath of fresh air after the dull, tedious challenges of the previous two 3D Zelda games.

-The Master Sword actually feels like a very special goal to work towards, something many of the recent Zelda games really lacked.

-Many of the side quests are fairly engaging.  I particularly enjoyed the quest requiring you to find locations based on pictures (outside of one or two that were overly vague).  In general there were several quests that I felt the need to go out of my way to do, which I can’t say about many side quests in games.

-Voice acting is not particularly good.  Outside of a few good performances, most of the voiced characters sound forced an awkward, like a mediocre anime dub.  Zelda herself, while not a bad actor, has a very unfitting voice - she’s supposed to be around 17 but ends up sounding 30.  I’m glad they tried it once, but unless the quality is upped considerably then I think I’d prefer they stick to text and grunts, or maybe Hylian.

-I was not a huge fan of the main story.  Most of the big events revolve around characters from Link’s past who you don’t really interact with as a player, while there are four perfectly good characters you DO actually go on quests with and are active in your adventure that would have been more satisfying to see stick around in the story.  Additionally, Link is often recognized and hailed as the legendary hero, which is a story element I don’t really enjoy.  Wind Waker Link is really the only one I enjoy as a character, because he (and the player) actually has to prove himself due to his complete lack of legendary status.  BotW brings everything back to “Link is destined to beat the bad thing,” which is pretty tired at this point.  Zelda’s character development via flashbacks was one of the better aspects, as they gave her more conflict and personality than most Zelda incarnations.

-This is probably one of the most boring incarnations of Ganon to date, having basically zero impact on the gameplay experience until you actually go to face him.  Outside of summoning enemies into the world now and again, the world seems to be doing pretty alright even as the demonic pig cloud is hanging around the castle.  The primary motivation is to save Zelda, as well as PREVENT the world from getting its shit rocked, which isn’t a terrible motivation, but certainly pales in comparison to Ocarina of Time, in which you actually get to see the direct results of Ganon’s takeover.  For the most part it’s very easy to forget Ganon’s even there, which doesn’t make him a particularly strong villain.

-The shrines, while having very good puzzle design, feel completely detached from the world.  I’m glad the puzzles themselves are improved, but at times it feels less like I’m playing a Zelda game with better puzzles, and more like I’m playing a Zelda game that temporarily turns into Portal whenever I enter a shrine.  The big open world and the enclosed shrines feel totally separate, and I would have liked to see more of these kinds of puzzles utilized in the actual overworld.  It feels incredibly artificial, and at first it’s not an issue, but as the game went on I found myself getting very bored at the concept of the shrines, as it turned the whole experience into a formula.

-The dungeons are a similar issue.  While they have some of the best puzzle design of any dungeons in the series, they all look basically the same and don’t have much personality.  No dungeon really feels special or standout from the others, they’re all a pretty samey aesthetic.

-The bosses have the same issue as well.  The main bosses of the game all look almost identical and don’t really feel that different, which is one of the biggest disappointments for me.  I also found them incredibly frustrating, doing unreasonable amounts of damage and often attacking erratically, which could often feel like too much to handle considering switching between weapons and shields can be a bit more awkward this time around.

-The final boss is the exception, it feels much more polished and up to the series’ standards, though it was a bit strange how easy it was compared to the dungeon bosses.  I died many, many times on all the other bosses, but I played through the final boss twice and didn’t die once.  Regardless it’s a satisfying finale, probably one of the better ones in the series.

-The scenes BEFORE the dungeons, involving some of the more memorable characters, are very exciting and fun, probably some of the most engaging moments in the game.

-Enemy outposts are fun to take on at first, but it didn’t take long for me to just start ignoring them.  I didn’t find much desire to experiment on ways to take them on when it was usually just a better idea to pick my strongest weapon and wail away, or use bombs and arrows to set them ablaze.  

-This is more of a personal opinion, but I just am not a fan of the emphasis on equipment and picking up tons of items survival game style.  I really just don’t dig when games stuff your inventory full of tons of shit to keep track of.  I much prefer Zelda to leave the RPG elements on the lighter side, and stick to just a few weapons and permanent arsenal upgrades, as I feel that creates a stronger sense of progression and makes every item feel special.  I can see why Nintendo tried the survival game angle, and it certainly has its charm, but I hope they don’t try it again.  I know Zelda is often referred to as an action RPG, but I never wanted the RPG side of that to be that prominent.

-There’s some very fun and likable NPC characters, made even better by having schedules and not just standing around waiting for Link to show up.  Highlights include the painter Pikango, the Sheikah tech lab scientists, and of course Sidon, the internet’s new favorite fish boy crush.

-Optional minibosses in the overworld are a very fun addition, though there’s several of each type, which makes them feel less special.  

-The music is surprisingly sparse for a Zelda game.  Considering the vast open world I can see why they would try this, as the mellow piano tunes certainly compliment the calm atmosphere.  I do wish there were a few more memorable tunes though, because when I think Zelda, I think truly masterful soundtracks.  The Hyrule Castle theme is by far one of my favorite tracks in the series, however.

-Shield surfing is the best.

-Pretty much every NPC species is something we’ve seen before.  Rito, Gorons, Zora, and even Koroks are back.  There’s plenty of likable characters in the bunch, but it would have been nice to visit a region with a whole new species instead of just reusing old ones.

-Finally, while exploring the world is absolutely enthralling for a good while, I unfortunately began to feel my typical huge open world boredom as the hours racked up.  Over time the rewards for exploring began to feel less exciting and more formulaic, which sadly just seems inevitable whenever I play a gigantic game like this.  I just prefer the smaller, tighter, more intimate worlds like Majora’s Mask and A Link Between Worlds, or other games like (shocker) Dark Souls and Bloodborne.  This is more of a personal opinion, again, but I really do gravitate towards games with a more hand-crafted and dense feel, where every single inch has something new and interesting.  BotW certainly comes closer to capturing that feeling than most giant open world games, but in the end when a game is this gigantic, it’s bound to bore me sooner or later.

So there ya have it.  I know this sounded very negative, but just know that I really did have a good time with Breath of the Wild, and I think it represents a very good change of pace in Nintendo’s game design.  The fact that they were so willing to totally rebuild the Zelda experience from the ground up leaves me very hopeful for them to be more adventurous like this in future games as well.  There were plenty of moments I truly enjoyed myself, and it really is a beautiful world to explore.  But for me, I just don’t think bigger is always better.  It’s very much worth playing, and I’m glad Nintendo gave it a go, but it’s not personally my ideal Zelda experience.

[mingmagazine-blog]

Nutrition 101 - Strength Training and Sleep

Strength training by way of lifting weights is obviously important to obtaining and maintaining a good physical condition. Sleep is equally important, though.  If you are not getting the rest you need, you will not have the energy to lift the weights you need. Don’t worry, I know a few tricks to lifting the right weights and getting the right amount of sleep.  In case you missed them, head over and check out Nutrition 101 – Introduction for a great overview to managing your health, and Nutrition 101 – Calories Matter to get a handle on your eating.

Lift Heavy Weights

The first rule of Fight Club is that you do not talk about Fight Club. The first rule of Strength Training Club is “get strong.” A rather disturbing study found that Millennial-aged men have significantly less grip strength than the generations who came before them.

Basically, guys, we’re not as strong as we used to be and we’re dying younger. Even worse, men start to lose muscle mass around the time they turn 30. Anywhere from 3-5% of your muscle mass vanishes with each subsequent decade. The less muscle you have, the slower your metabolism becomes which is one of the reasons why weight gain happens as you age. It’s also why fat loss gets harder the longer you put it off. Your first task before you pick up the dumbbells and start repping out curls is to get strong in the primary big compound movements. Focus on squats, bench, deadlift, row, and weight-carries. Strength training provides your body with the stimulus it needs to ignite your metabolism, ramp up testosterone production, and begin the muscle building process.

Strength has also been shown to be a key determining factor for longevity. The stronger you are throughout your life, the less likely you are to die an untimely death (outside of an accident, of course). Essentially, that makes strength training the fountain of youth. But you don’t need to lift at your max effort day in and day out to build strength. Doing that will give you a one-way ticket to getting injured.

The Key to Lifting

Guys, lifting heavy weight is awesome. But you don’t need to treat your gym routine like a virgin who is seeing a boob for the first time. Don’t let your little head tell you to do more than your big head can handle. Start slow when you’re hitting the gym for the first time in a while (or ever). If you’re new to strength training, or if you haven’t consistently worked out for more than a year, focus on full-body workouts to get the most bang for your buck. Look, all those “bro splits” or bodybuilding style workouts you can get off bodybuilding.com are great for people who have been consistent for more than a year or two. For you, they are not.

Sticking to 3 full-body workouts a week will allow you to do all the fun stuff—squats, bench, rows, curls—while allowing you to build more strength without taking precious time away from your family or career responsibilities. Furthermore, you will do more work in less time while allowing your body ample time to recover.

Men tend to think that they have to treat the weights like an aroused puppy treats their ankles. But fellas, that’s not the case. Muscle isn’t built in the gym. It’s broken down there; it’s built while you rest. And sadly, if you’re not getting enough sleep, you’re damaging more than your ability to recover from the gym.

Go the F*ck to Sleep

Building a career, having a family, buying a home, traveling, and all the other stuff that happens as adults are tiring. We often go to bed super late and try to make up for it the next day with coffee or energy drinks.  This is not the rest your body is looking for. Without actual rest, you are missing out on your strength training potential. There simply is no substitute for letting your body take a break and repair itself from the heavy reps you did that day.

Sadly, the Center for Disease Control found in 2016 that nearly 35% of Americans get less than 7 hours of sleep a night. What does little to no sleep do to you? It increases your risk of hypertension and weight gain, weakens your immune system, and it can tank your testosterone levels even further.

God, no wonder you don’t feel like the man you want to feel like. You don’t lift, you eat like a toddler, and you don’t get enough sleep. Look, your body handles its rebuilding and recovery processes while you sleep. Thus, sufficient sleep will keep you mentally strong and alert, while regulating and maintaining your hormonal health. The National Sleep Foundation recommends that adults over the age of 26 should get 7-9 hours of sleep a night. Of course, exercise is one of the activities experts recommend to improve your sleep. There are other things you can do to get more shut-eye, though. Remember the acronym SLEEP.

Sleep in a cold room

Sleeping in a colder room can reduce your overall body temperature, making it easier to fall asleep. This is in part because melatonin, which is responsible for helping you sleep, works to lower the bodies temperature. So a chilly room can help you produce more melatonin and get better sleep.

Leave yourself 30 minutes of no screen time before bed

The blue light of your electronics makes your brain think that it’s still daytime. Numerous studies have found that taking a break from your phone or computer 30 minutes before going to bed can prevent you from not getting to sleep.

End any caffeine consumption before 3 PM

Caffeine has a half-life of 5-6 hours. If you’re putting caffeine in your body after 4 or 5 PM (that includes your fancy pre-workout drink), you are interfering with your ability to get solid sleep.

Establish a relaxation ritual to wind down your mind before bed

As a writer, words are always floating in my mind. And as an entrepreneur, it’s hard for me to “turn off” at the end of the night. But this is why it’s so important for me to have the same ritual every night before I get ready for bed. I drink a glass of water, brush my teeth and floss, and then I take a few minutes while I lay in the bed to breathe and expel all the thoughts or issues of the day from my mind. If I can roll over with an empty mind, I will sleep. If not, I will be tortured by words or creative projects I’m working on. You have to wind down the conscious mind if you want it to successfully hand the reins over to the sub-conscious mind.

Pursue the Robbie Farlow rule 

The bedroom is for sex and sleep. Keep all electronics — phone, computer, tablets — out of your bedroom. It is a sacred space that should never be breached by attention-demanding electronics. Sleep is important for all aspects of health: mental, physical, and emotional. If you want to be the best man you can be, don’t skip sleep.

Hold up, bro. I thought this article was about manly shit like heavy lifting?!

A Great Strength Training Program

The Internet is filled with exercise programs. Use that massive machine called Google and you can have a 6-week, 8-week, or even a 12-week strength training program designed by some massive meathead delivered to your inbox in seconds. Unfortunately, most of those programs are designed by guys who have been in the Church of Iron for years. And you can barely make it up the stairs without getting winded. Sorry, “brah,” but those programs are not where you need to start and can even hurt you.

If you haven’t been a regular in the gym for more than a full calendar year, you need to start back at the basics. And the program I have below is one that has caused every man I have worked with during the past year to send me an email telling me that they have not been this sore in years.

But hey, if you’re not up for seeing what it actually feels like to “work out,” then please keep doing what you’re doing. Instead, grab this strength training program below and my guide on how to make your 30s better than your 20s and finally stop struggling to erase your Dad-bod. The program that will redefine your body and help you burn off that pesky and hideous belly fat is below

Head on over to Side Quest Fitness to get the full guide to this strength training workout. Each exercise is hyperlinked so you can see the proper form.

Legs and Shoulders

Dumbbell Goblet Squat – 5 sets of 6 reps

Rest for 1 min between sets

Neutral Grip Dumbbell Overhead Press – 4 sets of 10 reps

Rest for 1 min

Superset

Dumbbell Goblet Reverse Lunge – 3 sets of 10 reps per side

Dumbbell Lateral Raises – 3 sets of 10 reps

Rest for 1 min between sets

Dumbbell Step Ups – 3 sets of 10 reps per side

Rest for 1 min between sets

Superset

Seated Dumbbell Front Raise – 2 sets of 12-15 reps

Seated Dumbbell Rear Delt Raise – 2 sets of 12-15 reps

Rest for 1 min between sets

  Chest and Back

Hammer Grip Incline DB Bench Press – 3 sets of 12, 10, 8 reps

increase weight each set

Rest for 90 seconds between sets

3-Point DB Row – 3 sets of 12, 10, 8 reps

increase weight each set

Rest for 60 seconds between sets

Superset

Standing Dumbbell Row – 3 sets of 8-10 reps

Dumbbell Floor Press – 3 sets of 10-12 reps

Rest for 60 seconds between sets

Superset

Dumbbell Bicep Curl – 2 sets of 12-15 reps

Dumbbell Overhead Tricep Extension – 2 sets of 15-20 reps

Rest for 45 seconds between sets

Dumbbell Bent-Over Rear Delt Raise– 2 sets of 15-20 reps

Rest for 60 seconds between sets

Full Body

Superset

Dumbbell Deadlifts – 4 sets of 12 reps

Bodyweight Reverse Lunge – 4 sets of 8 reps per side

Rest for 60 seconds between sets

Superset

Dumbbell Split Squat – 3 sets of 10 reps per side

One Arm Standing Dumbbell Shoulder Press – 3 sets of 10 reps per side

Rest for 60 seconds between sets

Bodyweight Hip Thrust – 3 sets of 15 reps

Rest for 45 seconds between sets

Superset

Dumbbell Incline Bench Row – 4 sets of  8-10 reps

Dumbbell Incline Bicep Curl – 4 sets of 10 reps

Rest for 60 seconds between sets

Pallof Press – 3 sets of 12 reps per side

  **Robbie Farlow: Sith Lord of Strength, Token Ginger of House Slytherin, NASM-CPT,  Level 1 Certified Precision Nutrition Coach, and Ordained Dudeist Priest Facebook: Side Quest Fitness Website: http://www.sidequestfitness.com/ *Copyright © 2015 Side Quest Fitness, All rights reserved.*

[wanderbitesbybobbie]

REAL TALK: Things That WOULD Happen When You Decide To Move Abroad Alone

“Where are you from?”, that’s the usual question I would always get when I decided to move to Australia 9 months ago. It is a remarkable journey and living a thousand miles away from home taught me so much about life, love, and the things I am capable of that I never knew before. Mainly, the reason why I left was because I wanted to put myself in an uncomfortable situation where I will be pushed to be the best of what I can be. For many of us, living abroad is a huge leap of faith and courage and yes, I absolutely agree. It takes a lot of courage, most especially if you decide to move to another country all by yourself. It would change you in so many levels.

A lot of people would think that living abroad is a luxury, as you get to make money of bigger currency than your own. A lot would think that life would be easier because you wouldn’t have to deal with the countless predicaments happening in your homeland. But, tell you what. Here are some of the things that are bound to happen when you decide to leave your home behind and it’s nothing like a fairy-tale like what you’ve been imagining:

1. REBUILDING EVERYTHING FROM SCRATCH AND ADJUSTING TO LONELINESS

It’s not just about settling in a whole new environment and living in a new house and a new country. It’s also about figuring out how to perform your daily activities like learning your ABCs when you were still a child. It’s basically trying to discover how to literally start from zero. When I first came here, I had to familiarize myself with the new currency until I just got used to it. I had to learn how to catch the bus and educate myself with the railway system. I relied on maps (I still do until now), and it’s always about getting lost and finding your way back. Going to the supermarket, eating out and sitting on a table for one, listening to music with your headphones plugged in for hours while spending time alone, these are the kinds of things that are BOUND to happen.

It is an exciting feeling at first, but as time passes by, it’s also that feeling that would make you question why you are doing this. You would constantly start talking to yourself, asking yourself questions and answering those questions yourself. You will be left alone with nothing but your own thoughts. At the end of the day, you have yourself only. The feeling of loneliness would always linger. Even though you are with your new found friends, it’s always a different feeling when you are talking to someone from home.

2.  YOU WILL GET REJECTED AT SOME POINT

The moment I stepped foot in Sydney, my first priority was to find a job that would sustain my expenses here. Sydney, as a matter of fact, is one of the most expensive cities in the world. Of course, I had to find a job that is somehow parallel to the unbelievably high cost of living. I thought it would be easy, as I am an experienced chef technologist back home with a Bachelor’s Degree and all that comes in between. But apparently, that’s not always what would make you “QUALIFIED”. Your level of education would not make you the best candidate for the role. It’s not your nationality, it’s not your gender, nor your age. In my industry, it’s always your skill that is the most relevant. They wouldn’t care if you have a Masters Degree, a PhD, a PRC License, or whatever. I have been rejected several times and I constantly asked myself why until I figured it out. I also experienced getting fired in the sales industry. It might be a little embarrassing to say, but let us all admit. Not everyone of us has the ability to do sales.

It might not just be career-wise, but also in other aspects of living abroad. Struggles like finding a house to live in, trying to get medicare, and finding the right person to tell your frustrations is a never-ending ordeal.

 3. THE STRUGGLE OF FITTING IN

The thing is, when you decide to move in a country outside your own, you will always have that destitution of trying to fit in. Cultural difference is often a set-back and language barriers would always draw you to the ground. Questions like “How do I say this nicely and without being rude in their language?” or “Would they accept me even if I’m not originally from here?”

It is something that I have fully accepted when I decided to move to Australia. No matter what I do, I am still a citizen from another country. I have no roots here, therefore I would never fit in 100 percent. This is not my home, but I would be forever grateful that Australia has allowed me to call it my second home. Somehow, I receive some of the benefits of living in a first-world country and I am being treated fairly. I receive good education and my instructors and colleagues would treat me like I am their own. That is good enough for me perhaps. If there’s one thing that I have learned here, it’s to never isolate yourself from the people that you would meet along the way. Keep an open-mind and be welcoming of others’ opinions and backgrounds.

4. MAKING LONG DISTANCE RELATIONSHIPS WORK

One of the hardest parts of living abroad on your own is the fact that you live further away from the people you love. Idealistically , it’s easier with technology nowadays because we now have Viber, Skype, Facebook, and all other social media platforms that would allow us to keep in touch with our loved ones. However, there would always be a down fall. It’s a niche, communication is the most essential part in a long-distance relationship. For the people back home, it tends to be easier because somehow they are in their comfort zone, living with their families and having their own sets of friends around them. But, for the person living abroad it’s a whole new struggle. The worries of miscommunication, fear of being left out, and the sense of belonging would tear you apart. It is a relentless battle with time most especially if there is a time difference.

Questions and phrases like “Are they OK?” , “I wonder what they’re doing back home”, “It’s meal time there, I wonder if they’ve already eaten.”, “What are they having for lunch/dinner?”, “I wonder where they are at the moment.”, “Are they thinking about me?” You are constantly missing them. No matter how hard you try, there will always be a part of you that is longing for them.

Even if you are not a clingy type of person, the feeling of wanting to belong in their daily lives even if you’re far apart would make you cling even more. It is heartbreaking that some of them would never understand you and what you are going through while you are far away from home.

5. FEELING GUILTY ALL THE TIME

Admit it, deciding to live abroad is factually a selfish choice. Yes, it takes guts and extraordinary amount of motivation. You would think of it is an adventure and it is actually good that you are doing what you want to do and going to where your dreams are taking you. However, it is DEVASTATING to your parents and loved ones. No matter how hard they try to keep it from you, they are sad that you left.

I am blessed to have a Mom who supports me all the way, but I know that in exchange of my thrilling quest to find myself is her grief. This is the first time that I have been separated from my Mom over a long period. In my entire years of existence, I have been beside my Mom. From doing the groceries, shopping clothes, walking our dog, I do everything with Mom. When I left for Sydney, my Mom did an impressive job of hiding her tears from me. She was holding it in. The fear of having her precious daughter miles away from her, living in a country where cultural views are far from what we were used to is always there. My Mom showed me how to be brave, and for that I am forever thankful.

Making the decision of moving abroad is a massive step. It simply allows you to explore the world and open opportunities. It teaches you so much about independence. It is definitely a challenge. At the very end it is still worth it because nothing worthy comes easy. 🙂

“There is a palpable fear to living in a new country, and though it is more acute in the first months, even year, of your stay, it never completely evaporates as time goes on. It simply changes. The anxiousness that was once concentrated on how you’re going to make new friends, adjust, and master the nuances of the language has become the repeated question “What am I missing?” As you settle into your new life and country, as time passes and becomes less a question of how long you’ve been here and more one of how long you’ve been gone, you realize that life back home has gone on without you.” – Chelsea Fagan

      REAL TALK: Things That WOULD Happen When You Decide To Move Abroad Alone was originally published on WanderBitesByBobbie

[flowermandalas]

Balancer: Build Your Resilience in 6 Steps

Build Your Resilience in 6 Steps

  In recent posts, I’ve talked mostly about ReBalancer, the force that kicks in when our default stabilizer, Balancer, gets thrown out of whack by the UnBalancer. ReBalancer handles out-of-the ordinary stresses, but ReBalancer alone can’t keep us on an even keel. For that, we need Balancer to be healthy and strong.

Balancer doesn’t ask us for much. Much like our immune systems, it chugs along on autopilot, making minor course corrections when needed. Only when it encounters something it can’t handle does it call on ReBalancer to provide assistance.

This Balancer/ReBalancer tag team works very well most of the time. But if Balancer is weakened through too much stress for too long, or was never very robust to begin with, we become much more vulnerable to UnBalancer. Then if Balancer gets overwhelmed by a sudden stressor (an accident, a death, a financial crisis, etc.), it may crash before ReBalancer can take over. Recovery from such crashes can take a long time, and if the crash is sufficiently severe, the damage can be permanent.

It’s always helpful to teach ReBalancer new tricks, such as Mini Self-Care, The Experiment, and other techniques described in earlier posts. But it’s equally important to deliberately strengthen Balancer itself. Just as we can help our immune systems to better handle assaults to our bodies, we can better equip Balancer for handling whatever UnBalancer throws our way.

To do that, we need to build Resilience.

Resilience is the ability to bounce back. In a physical object, it is elasticity, the tendency of an object to return to its original shape after it’s been deformed. In an ecosystem, it is the environment’s capacity to rebuild itself. In a person, it’s the ability to recover from shocks to our systems. Without sufficient resilience, we are overcome by obstacles in our path. With it, nothing can keep us down.

Resilience in materials is intrinsic, but in people it’s a dynamic quality. Like a muscle, resilience can be damaged by too much stress or can atrophy if neglected. But it also gets stronger with exercise.

Human resilience has two aspects: physical and psychological. Both are partly determined by nature, partly by nurture. Just as some people are born with greater resistance to disease, some of us show signs of greater psychological resilience even at very early ages. But the larger share of resilience is the product of our own efforts to build and maintain it.

In the Balancer/ReBalancer/UnBalancer framework, resilience is the property of Balancer that allows it to spontaneously recover from the negative effects of UnBalancer. Rather than calling in the troops for reinforcement, a resilient Balancer takes a momentary hit, adjusts to the impact, and bounces back, carrying us along with it.

When I was young, I was fascinated by the properties of natural and man-made materials. I still remember experimenting with the bounciness – the resilience – of round objects. I studied tennis balls, rubber balls, badminton balls, golf balls, glass marbles, ball bearings, always looking for something that could bounce higher than the last thing I tried. I ended this quest when I found, in the toy section of our local pharmacy, the Super Ball.

Super Balls, invented in 1964 by chemist Norman Stingly, are made from an amazingly elastic synthetic rubber called Zectron. When dropped, a Super Ball bounces nearly to the height from which it fell. When thrown down hard, it can easily bounce over a house.

In my therapy practice, I see many people whose resilience has been beaten down or in whom it was never sufficiently developed. They’re like worn-out tennis balls.

After we deal with the problems that brought them into therapy, much of our work together involves creating a more resilient approach to life, so they can transition from worn-out tennis ball to Super Ball.

These are the six main factors I’ve found that can build psychological resilience and keep Balancer on track:

Creating a resilience-friendly environment

Adopting a growth-oriented viewpoint

Bolstering support from individuals and systems

Increasing emotional adaptability

Practicing balance-enhancing activities

Monitoring for signs of imbalance

1. Create a Resilience-Friendly Environment.

Stress is one of the most insidious challenges to building resilience. It can be a constant strain on Balancer, gradually wearing down its efficacy and slowing its response time.

Basic ways to reduce stress often recommended by therapists include changing your emotional relationship to the stressor and practicing stress reduction techniques such as meditation or coloring. But the most effective method is often to remove or change the stressor itself.

Begin resilience-building by evaluating your environment – your home, your car, your job, your relationships. Focus specifically on ways to reduce unnecessary stress. Jobs, schedules, or aspects of your home, neighborhood, relationships, or weekly routines that interfere with living a peaceful life are all candidates for stress-reducing changes.

Removable stressors can range from simple things, such as sharpening dull kitchen knives, creating a system so you don’t misplace your keys, or replacing a cell phone that keeps losing its charge, to more challenging ones like ending a toxic relationship or transitioning from the wrong job. Regardless of the source, though, the first question to ask yourself is, “Can this change?” and if the answer is “yes,” change it!

I encountered a striking example of the efficiency and effectiveness of removing the stressor several years ago. I was working with a bright, affable 12-year-old boy who, despite an obvious interest in learning, was always getting suspended from school. When I asked him about the events that led to his suspensions, I noticed that he always smiled when he talked about getting his teachers angry. I visited his home and discovered that he had an angry and imposing stepfather. Provoking his teachers was my young client’s way of dealing with his resentment toward his stepfather – he could provoke his teachers and they wouldn’t hit him, but his stepfather might.

A typical intervention in cases like this is family therapy, so with the family’s permission I returned a week later. My client lived in a house adjacent to his mother’s business, and there was a constant interchange between the two locations, affecting all members of the family in some way. During the session, I asked each family member to imagine what their lives would be like if they woke up the next day and all their problems were solved. The first thing each one said – even the five-year-old – was that they’d be living somewhere else. A month later, they moved, and very soon afterward, my 12-year-old client stopped acting out in school.

A related aspect of creating a safe, resilience-friendly environment involves “cat hairs.” When you find yourself overreacting to a comment, a tone of voice, or a situation, or you inexplicably feel sad, angry, jealous, or some other difficult emotion, you might have a problem with cat hairs.

Of course I don’t mean literal cat hairs.

The term “cat hair,” in this context, comes from an experiment with lab rats. Researchers wanted to see if rats are genetically programmed to fear cats. They placed several rat pups who had been exposed only to people and other rats – never to a cat – in a cage and monitored their playfulness for several days. The rats played together freely until the researchers took the smallest cat stimulus they could think of, a single cat hair, and dropped it into the center of the cage. Soon, the pups stopped playing and ran to the edges of the cage, trembling with fear.

After 24 hours, the researchers removed the cat hair. They continued monitoring the rat pups, but days later, the rats had not returned to their baseline playfulness. Where there had been a cat hair, the pups seemed to feel, there might still be a cat.

Fear and trauma can leave an indelible imprint on us, too. Our automatic fear-handling mechanism makes us prone to reacting to our “cat hairs” with fight/flight/freeze responses. Such triggered reactions can negatively affect our jobs, relationships, and many other aspects of our lives, cheating us out of a more full version of ourselves. Fortunately, we have more options than rats do for dealing with our “cat hairs.”

Reminders of traumatic experiences that trigger strong emotions can often be removed. Sometimes these are physical objects, but more often they are habitual actions. For example, if a certain phrase or tone spoken by a friend, relative, or romantic partner reminds you of a bad relationship or a difficult childhood, you can ask him or her to change it. Most people will comply with a request like this when it’s presented in context.

When cat hairs can’t be removed, we can learn to see them merely as hairs. If your emotional response seems stronger than the situation merits, ask yourself what triggered it. Did the triggering object, words, tone, or action really mean what you felt it did, or did it just stir something inside? Over time, triggers that we understand to be only triggers – not cats but merely cat hairs – they gradually become less threatening. Then we can use our fight/flight/freeze mechanism as designed, to protect ourselves from actual threats rather than reacting to cat hairs.

What to do:

Notice what is causing increased stress or a triggered response. Simply paying attention to the feeling and looking at what caused it often provides some relief.

Remove the stressor, when possible.

Change your relationship to stressors that can’t be removed. For most of us, our attitudes toward stressors and the emotional responses they generate are more than half of the stress. Even triggered responses can be detoxified by changing our relationship to them.

Accompany the stress or triggered response. Feelings that are pushed aside tend to stay stuck, frozen within us like an ant in amber. Feelings that are fully experienced soon become different feelings. Sadness can turn into acceptance. Anger can turn into understanding. Envy can become motivation.

Develop self-soothing skills. When we are able to self-soothe, sometimes even the cat becomes just a kitten, purring on our laps. (More on self-soothing in Step 5.)

COMING NEXT: How to Adopt a Growth-Oriented Attitude (and more!)

Related Posts: The Under Toad and the UnBalancer The Balancer/ReBalancer Tag Team A Mini-Lesson on Mini Self-Care Gyroscopes and Personal Flywheels Hanging in the Balance Balancing the Books The Experiment How to Design an Experiment Build Your Resilience in 6 Steps

Books: From Paths to Wholeness: Fifty-Two Flower Mandalas “Maybe our attempt to ‘change the world’ didn’t die with the ’60s after all. Maybe it is alive, in its own form, in the generation that succeeded us. Maybe what we planted still grows and we shall all, one day, reap its harvest.” – “Change” Print: Amazon  –  BookBaby  –  B&N  – Books-a-Million eBook: Kindle  – Nook  – iTunes  – Kobo

Also available: 52 (more) Flower Mandalas: An Adult Coloring Book for Inspiration and Stress Relief 52 Flower Mandalas: An Adult Coloring Book for Inspiration and Stress Relief Paths to Wholeness: Selections (free eBook)

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from Balancer: Build Your Resilience in 6 Steps

[mingmagazine-blog]

Nutrition 101 - Strength Training and Sleep

Strength training by way of lifting weights is obviously important to obtaining and maintaining a good physical condition. Sleep is equally important, though.  If you are not getting the rest you need, you will not have the energy to lift the weights you need. Don’t worry, I know a few tricks to lifting the right weights and getting the right amount of sleep.  In case you missed them, head over and check out Nutrition 101 – Introduction for a great overview to managing your health, and Nutrition 101 – Calories Matter to get a handle on your eating.

Lift Heavy Weights

The first rule of Fight Club is that you do not talk about Fight Club. The first rule of Strength Training Club is “get strong.” A rather disturbing study found that Millennial-aged men have significantly less grip strength than the generations who came before them.

Basically, guys, we’re not as strong as we used to be and we’re dying younger. Even worse, men start to lose muscle mass around the time they turn 30. Anywhere from 3-5% of your muscle mass vanishes with each subsequent decade. The less muscle you have, the slower your metabolism becomes which is one of the reasons why weight gain happens as you age. It’s also why fat loss gets harder the longer you put it off. Your first task before you pick up the dumbbells and start repping out curls is to get strong in the primary big compound movements. Focus on squats, bench, deadlift, row, and weight-carries. Strength training provides your body with the stimulus it needs to ignite your metabolism, ramp up testosterone production, and begin the muscle building process.

Strength has also been shown to be a key determining factor for longevity. The stronger you are throughout your life, the less likely you are to die an untimely death (outside of an accident, of course). Essentially, that makes strength training the fountain of youth. But you don’t need to lift at your max effort day in and day out to build strength. Doing that will give you a one-way ticket to getting injured.

The Key to Lifting

Guys, lifting heavy weight is awesome. But you don’t need to treat your gym routine like a virgin who is seeing a boob for the first time. Don’t let your little head tell you to do more than your big head can handle. Start slow when you’re hitting the gym for the first time in a while (or ever). If you’re new to strength training, or if you haven’t consistently worked out for more than a year, focus on full-body workouts to get the most bang for your buck. Look, all those “bro splits” or bodybuilding style workouts you can get off bodybuilding.com are great for people who have been consistent for more than a year or two. For you, they are not.

Sticking to 3 full-body workouts a week will allow you to do all the fun stuff—squats, bench, rows, curls—while allowing you to build more strength without taking precious time away from your family or career responsibilities. Furthermore, you will do more work in less time while allowing your body ample time to recover.

Men tend to think that they have to treat the weights like an aroused puppy treats their ankles. But fellas, that’s not the case. Muscle isn’t built in the gym. It’s broken down there; it’s built while you rest. And sadly, if you’re not getting enough sleep, you’re damaging more than your ability to recover from the gym.

Go the F*ck to Sleep

Building a career, having a family, buying a home, traveling, and all the other stuff that happens as adults are tiring. We often go to bed super late and try to make up for it the next day with coffee or energy drinks.  This is not the rest your body is looking for. Without actual rest, you are missing out on your strength training potential. There simply is no substitute for letting your body take a break and repair itself from the heavy reps you did that day.

Sadly, the Center for Disease Control found in 2016 that nearly 35% of Americans get less than 7 hours of sleep a night. What does little to no sleep do to you? It increases your risk of hypertension and weight gain, weakens your immune system, and it can tank your testosterone levels even further.

God, no wonder you don’t feel like the man you want to feel like. You don’t lift, you eat like a toddler, and you don’t get enough sleep. Look, your body handles its rebuilding and recovery processes while you sleep. Thus, sufficient sleep will keep you mentally strong and alert, while regulating and maintaining your hormonal health. The National Sleep Foundation recommends that adults over the age of 26 should get 7-9 hours of sleep a night. Of course, exercise is one of the activities experts recommend to improve your sleep. There are other things you can do to get more shut-eye, though. Remember the acronym SLEEP.

Sleep in a cold room

Sleeping in a colder room can reduce your overall body temperature, making it easier to fall asleep. This is in part because melatonin, which is responsible for helping you sleep, works to lower the bodies temperature. So a chilly room can help you produce more melatonin and get better sleep.

Leave yourself 30 minutes of no screen time before bed

The blue light of your electronics makes your brain think that it’s still daytime. Numerous studies have found that taking a break from your phone or computer 30 minutes before going to bed can prevent you from not getting to sleep.

End any caffeine consumption before 3 PM

Caffeine has a half-life of 5-6 hours. If you’re putting caffeine in your body after 4 or 5 PM (that includes your fancy pre-workout drink), you are interfering with your ability to get solid sleep.

Establish a relaxation ritual to wind down your mind before bed

As a writer, words are always floating in my mind. And as an entrepreneur, it’s hard for me to “turn off” at the end of the night. But this is why it’s so important for me to have the same ritual every night before I get ready for bed. I drink a glass of water, brush my teeth and floss, and then I take a few minutes while I lay in the bed to breathe and expel all the thoughts or issues of the day from my mind. If I can roll over with an empty mind, I will sleep. If not, I will be tortured by words or creative projects I’m working on. You have to wind down the conscious mind if you want it to successfully hand the reins over to the sub-conscious mind.

Pursue the Robbie Farlow rule 

The bedroom is for sex and sleep. Keep all electronics — phone, computer, tablets — out of your bedroom. It is a sacred space that should never be breached by attention-demanding electronics. Sleep is important for all aspects of health: mental, physical, and emotional. If you want to be the best man you can be, don’t skip sleep.

Hold up, bro. I thought this article was about manly shit like heavy lifting?!

A Great Strength Training Program

The Internet is filled with exercise programs. Use that massive machine called Google and you can have a 6-week, 8-week, or even a 12-week strength training program designed by some massive meathead delivered to your inbox in seconds. Unfortunately, most of those programs are designed by guys who have been in the Church of Iron for years. And you can barely make it up the stairs without getting winded. Sorry, “brah,” but those programs are not where you need to start and can even hurt you.

If you haven’t been a regular in the gym for more than a full calendar year, you need to start back at the basics. And the program I have below is one that has caused every man I have worked with during the past year to send me an email telling me that they have not been this sore in years.

But hey, if you’re not up for seeing what it actually feels like to “work out,” then please keep doing what you’re doing. Instead, grab this strength training program below and my guide on how to make your 30s better than your 20s and finally stop struggling to erase your Dad-bod. The program that will redefine your body and help you burn off that pesky and hideous belly fat is below

Head on over to Side Quest Fitness to get the full guide to this strength training workout. Each exercise is hyperlinked so you can see the proper form.

Legs and Shoulders

Dumbbell Goblet Squat – 5 sets of 6 reps

Rest for 1 min between sets

Neutral Grip Dumbbell Overhead Press – 4 sets of 10 reps

Rest for 1 min

Superset

Dumbbell Goblet Reverse Lunge – 3 sets of 10 reps per side

Dumbbell Lateral Raises – 3 sets of 10 reps

Rest for 1 min between sets

Dumbbell Step Ups – 3 sets of 10 reps per side

Rest for 1 min between sets

Superset

Seated Dumbbell Front Raise – 2 sets of 12-15 reps

Seated Dumbbell Rear Delt Raise – 2 sets of 12-15 reps

Rest for 1 min between sets

  Chest and Back

Hammer Grip Incline DB Bench Press – 3 sets of 12, 10, 8 reps

increase weight each set

Rest for 90 seconds between sets

3-Point DB Row – 3 sets of 12, 10, 8 reps

increase weight each set

Rest for 60 seconds between sets

Superset

Standing Dumbbell Row – 3 sets of 8-10 reps

Dumbbell Floor Press – 3 sets of 10-12 reps

Rest for 60 seconds between sets

Superset

Dumbbell Bicep Curl – 2 sets of 12-15 reps

Dumbbell Overhead Tricep Extension – 2 sets of 15-20 reps

Rest for 45 seconds between sets

Dumbbell Bent-Over Rear Delt Raise– 2 sets of 15-20 reps

Rest for 60 seconds between sets

Full Body

Superset

Dumbbell Deadlifts – 4 sets of 12 reps

Bodyweight Reverse Lunge – 4 sets of 8 reps per side

Rest for 60 seconds between sets

Superset

Dumbbell Split Squat – 3 sets of 10 reps per side

One Arm Standing Dumbbell Shoulder Press – 3 sets of 10 reps per side

Rest for 60 seconds between sets

Bodyweight Hip Thrust – 3 sets of 15 reps

Rest for 45 seconds between sets

Superset

Dumbbell Incline Bench Row – 4 sets of  8-10 reps

Dumbbell Incline Bicep Curl – 4 sets of 10 reps

Rest for 60 seconds between sets

Pallof Press – 3 sets of 12 reps per side

  **Robbie Farlow: Sith Lord of Strength, Token Ginger of House Slytherin, NASM-CPT,  Level 1 Certified Precision Nutrition Coach, and Ordained Dudeist Priest Facebook: Side Quest Fitness Website: http://www.sidequestfitness.com/ *Copyright © 2015 Side Quest Fitness, All rights reserved.*