#also half the times it feels like its a fallout server now

[scratchyemporium]

when all your pizza rolls are gone

[thedo0zyslider]

28! or 37 or 39 👀

Sorry this took so long to get too! I did all of them lmao. Because of course I did :3. Hope u guys enjoy (ask game here!)

28. "...I don't hate you." "...you don't?" (Bonus: "No. Not yet.")

Jimmy stands in the entrance of Gobland, just sort of looking at it. He should go in. He doesn't really know how to, even if part of him wants too. The Sheriff isn't really sure why he's here, but he is. The blonde had simply felt a pull to come here once more. To do something probably, but he isn't sure what.

Eventually, after what's probably a ridiculous amount of time idly standing there, Jimmy decides to get it over with. He takes a few steps, rather hesitant ones, and walks into Gobland for one first time in what has to be.....well months at this point. Several of them. Maybe even half a year by now

Walking through the city is different now, after him and fWhip’s fallout. The people do not wave at him, or make small talk. No, not anymore. Now they just awkwardly shuffled past, and averted their eyes. He heard as whispers were made and spread around, making their way all around the empire in what has to be just a few minutes.

They'll reach the King sooner rather than a later. Which is either going to be good or bad, depending on if fWhip wants to even see him. He wouldn't blame him if he doesn’t, and doesn’t know if he even would want to that day.

They aren't close like that anymore. The two of them can't tell all those little cues from each other anymore.

Its almost sad, or perhaps even tragic, when you think about it.

So Jimmy doesn't, and keeps on walking.

He keeps on walking for a few minutes, navigating down paths he is no longer welcome on. The stone beneath him is more worn than before. He wonders what's been going on since their......breakup. The Sheriff wonders if he'd even be at home in this city again.

fWhip finds him in front of the storage room. The Goblin King stands at the entrance to the large room, his hands clutched at his side. Jimmy stops when he sees him, feeling his body go a little stiff. Now that there's here, he's not really sure what to do. Never quite thought that far, now did he.

"Hey, old friend." fWhip says, scanning over him catuously. His words are a call back to one of their other meetings before, when those weird little Hermits had been on the server. Jimmy pretends not to notice, and also tries not to flinch.

"Howdy." He says, acutely aware of his more southern accent and how it sounds. He's never really been too self conscious of it before, not really. (Expect for at the start, when fWhip would make blush and his heart flutter and Jimmy suddenly cared a whole lot about how the goblin perceived him. But that was a long time ago now)

"What brings you down here?" fWhip asks, idly shuffling his weight from side to side. Something Jimmy knows he only really does when he's nervous about something.

"I'm...not really sure." The Sheriff mutters, ignoring any urge to nervously fidget. He didn't feel like he should do that, lest it make this whole thing worse than it already was. "I just had a feeling...that I needed to come here."

"Oh, okay." fWhip responded, a little confused, but not saying much else.

It takes a few minutes of akward staring and standing there, before one of them had the confidence to speak once more. fWhip clears his throat, and finally looks Jimmy in the eyes for the first time that day. ".....Did that feeling have to lead you to me?"

"Probably, yeah." Jimmy says back, shoving his hands into his pockets to keep them still. Well, as still as they can be.

fWhip let out a snort, and flicked his tail in what seemed to be amusement. The Sheriff frowned at that, his ears moving downwards in displeasure as the goblin spoke. "Funny, it lead you to the one guy who hates you and-"

"I don't hate you." Jimmy interrupts, surprising even himself. He kicks his boots against the stone floor anxiously, the spurs on the back making a sound as he does so. fWhip cannot do anything but look at him in what has to be a confused sort of wonder.

"....You don't?" The goblin asks, clearly curious despite himself. It shines in his eyes almost hopefully. Like he's desperate for Jimmy not to hate him. The Sheriff doesn't want to dwell on why he would hope for that, so he keeps talking to avoid doing so.

"No." Jimmy says, wholly honest. "Not yet."

"Oh." fWhip nearly whispers it, just stating at him in what seems to be shock. The Sheriff kicks his boots against the floor again, doing nothing but simply existing under his gaze. (He wishes he could do so lovingly again. He wishes the goblin would look at him with stars in his eyes once more.)

The Sheriff soon leaves after that, not knowing how else fo further this interaction. fWhip doesn't even say goodbye, just watches him leave in what seems ro be bewilderment. Like he's processing all of that. Which is honestly fair.

In the coming days, Jimmy will wonder what would've happened if he stayed. He'll almost wish he had.

37. "Why? Why are you helping me?"

Cleo finally gets a chance to breath, quickly hiding herself behind a tree. Their chest heaves as they try to catch their breath. She'd just spent twenty minutes running from above five zombies, and was pretty exhausted from it. Cleo is amazed their rotting legs haven't literally fallen off yet from all the running and jumping and whatnot she'd been doing.

After a moment, another person slides in beside her. Cleo tries not to shift away as he does so. The person is Etho, her teammate. Or former teammate, they could say. Since he'd been infected a few hours ago. Yet still the white haired man refused to leave her side, and even gave his fellow zombies false hunts about her location.

And for the life of her Cleo couldn't not understand why.

"You okay?" Etho says, crouching next to them, a genuine concern lacing his tone. Cleo, whos plopped herself down on the floor while she can, just lightly glares up at him. Etho doesn't even seek to flinch under the harsh gaze and just takes it with grace.

"Yeah, I'm good." The zombie says, finally catching her breath enough to speak. Etho says nothing still, just starts to quietly shuffle around in his inventory for it. Cleo is almost glad, because she still wants some time to collect their very hectic thoughts.

A moment later Etho reaches down, holding some cooked mutton in his hands. Mutton from their sheep back at home. God Cleo misses home. "Here, take some extra food. I don't need it." He says, eyes blank and emotionless. Cleo wonders if these unnatural zombies can even feel emotions anymore.

"Thanks.....but why?" She asks, taking the food from him. But Cleo doesn't eat it. Some part of her is still scared that it's poisoned, even though Etho has yet to kill them. Or even try to for that matter.

"Why?" Etho repeats, titling his head to the side curiously. Like a cat. He always acts like a cat, even when he's not fully himself.

"Why? Why are you helping me?" Cleo asks, shifting a bit further away from her teammates. He is possessed now, but helps her still. She can't understand why Etho would do so, but desperately wants to.

She wants to know why he won't kill her, when his body should be screaming for him to do so.

"Because you're my teammate. And I don't wanna betray my teammates." Etho says it simply, like it's the most normal and non complicated thing in the world. Cleo just looks at him in bewilderment.

"But you're a zombie! You have a virus in you! It's not your fault if you go berserk and kill me! It's none of your faults!" She exclaims, throwing her arms up in the air. The zombie still doesn't get it. That explanation doesn't make sense. Etho isn't himself, they would never blame him for that! And they both know it!

"It doesn't matter to me." Etho says. "Your my teammate, from the start till the end." He still says it like it's the most simplest thing in the world, and Cleo kinda wants to punch the hell out of him for it.

"You promise?" She asks, filling that frustration away for later. They have bugger things to worry about during the apocalypse after all, like not dying.

"I promise." Etho says, and goes to sit down next to him. Cleo does not shuffle away.

They rest their head on his shoulder after a second, and decide their comfortable to stay like this until the rest of the zombies come to kill them once more.

39. "You have nothing to apologize for."

Jimmy finds himself at the Olipeligo one day, his boots crunching against the sand. He's never really been to the colorful, beach side empire before, having only seen it in passing glances, so he finds himself staring at the tents and large cherry blossom tree as he walks down the empires beach. He should've visited more really, maybe even come for a beach vacation. That would've been a nice stress reliver, especially in those darker months a while back.

It's easy to find the man he's looking for, the empire's ruler and its namesake. Mostly because Oli is currently playing a tune on his little lute, the sound coming from inside the biggest and main tent. Jimmy approaches it slowly, not wanting to startle the other, and slowly peaks through the open tent door.

Oli, who's currently sitting on the floor strumming, jumps in surprise when the Sheriff's shadow fall across his tent. He makes a yelp, and whips his head around quickly to see his new visitor. He almost looks like a cartoon character doing so.

Jimmy holds back a giggle at the sight. "Hi." He says, offering a friendly wave. Oli ignores the clear amusement on his face, and stands, wiping the sand from his clothes. Jimmy has to wonder how sand even got in this tent in the first place, or if it's just permanently stuck to the other like glue.

"Hello there!" Oli says, cheerful as ever, and puts his instrument against the tent's back wall. "Haven't spoken in a while, have we Mr. Sheriff?"

"No, not since I freed you, I think. Or the rift festival." Jimmy hums in response, trying to dig right into the reason he came here for. He wanted to say sorry, for the man he was all those months ago. Staying in Tumble Town and not running had given him a lot of clarity, and made him a better man. Facing the consequences of your own self destructive actions ill do that to someone.

Oli had stayed too, inside of running off to god knows what world. And it's been over a year since they talked, at all. It feels like they cannot have a conversation without discussing what had gone on in the past between them. And today, the bard seemed more than willing to drop his usual comedic persona for a bit. Or that he just wasn't in the mood to pretend, as evidenced by the frown he was failing to fight off his face.

"Oh yeah, that." Oli says, trying to sound as nonchalant as possible. he very clearly, yet understandably, does not like reminders of his imprisonment in Gobland. "Didn't really mean to cause you trouble with all that."

"It's fine, really. I've had to lock up worse criminals that you." Jimmy says, waving his hands in a dismissive manner. Oli invites him into the tent by holding the door flaps open, and Jimmy ducks his head as he steps inside. He's still surprised to feel no one swiping for his hat when he walks by, even if most people have long since stopped that behavior.

The bard goes to sit down on the carpet he had been before, his usual persona now dropped entirely as he speaks. "I still wanna say sorry for it. And for the weird stuff I said-"

"You have nothing to apologize for." Jimmy cuts him off, taking a seat next to the bard. Their decently close, and one man will occasionally shift closer, as if some magnetic field is drawing them together. The Sheriff finds he isn't bothered by that at all.

"I don't?" Oli says, a little stunned and his eyes widened. Like he had been convinced to believe that stupid imprisonment was truly his fault. Jimmy feels his stomach turn into knots at the thought of that.

"No, you don't." Jimmy says, and acts on a small impulse. He puts one of his hands over the bard's, and squeezes it in the most comforting manner he can muster. "It's not your fault fWhip has dumb rules about stealing."

"Finally someone understands a poor bard's perspective!" Oli exclaims, not even glancing at their now connected hands. He sounds more like his normal self for a moment, which reassures the Sheriff quite a lot. It shows he's not as upset or angry as Jimmy feared. Meaning this relationship is one of the fixable ones, thankfully.

"I should probably be saying sorry to you, actually." The Sheriff continues, years old memories flashing through his mind and the doubts he had felt at the time beginning to resurface. "I knew jailing you was a little unfair, but I went along with it anyways."

"No hard feelings Sheriff!" Oli smiles, bright like the sun. And Jimmy cannot help but return the expression, only doing so with a tiny bit of hesitance

"Really?" He asks, squeezing Oli's hand again. The bard squeezes this own hand back this time, and the Sheriff feels himself smile more confidently than before.

"None at all! Mainly because I quite like you, dear Jim." Oli says, and leans in like a cat would. His normal persona is back in full swing. It had been there earlier, just a little weak. Now he was doing all the endearingly weird voices again.

"You do..?" Jimmy asks, feeling his cheeks start to turn a little red at the words. Even though they shouldn't, because that's a phrase the bard would say to literally anyone. Oli sees the effect his words have, and grins an impish little grin.

"I do indeed~" Oli hums, leaning closer. Their shoulders brushed as he did so, the contact almost feeling warm and fiery. Jimmy just had to lean away from the other, the blush extending down to his neck. Not because he hated it, but because it was simply too tempting. And he didn't want to do anything stupid.

"Well if you like me so much, might as well show me around." He mutters, the Sheriff sounding a little sheepish even to his own ears. Even though he moved back, Oli had been a stupid little tease and moved closer once more. Jimmy was going to strangle him for it (lovingly, of course.) "I've always wanted to see this place!"

"Well let me take you on a tour then!" Oli says, standing suddenly. He takes advantage of their hands still touching as he does so, and locks their fingers together. Jimmy holds back a yelp as his body is suddenly jolted upwards. stumbling to keep his balance. "I'll even sing you a little tune as well!"

"That would be lovely." Jimmy smiles a little softly once he is steady on his feet again, letting Oli lead him out the tent. He ducks his head on the way out, no longer paranoid of something snatching his hat.

"....Thank you, by the way." Oli says, his shoes crunching against the sand when they are outside once more. He doesn't elaborate, because he doesn't need too.

"No problem." Jimmy says. The tour begins after that, and the Sheriff gets a pretty nice vacation day, if he does say so himself.

(And if that day ends with the both of them back in the main tent, tired and snuggled against each other in a sleeping bag only made for one, then that was for the Sheriff and the Bard to know, and absolutely no one else.)

[dxxtruction]

eps2.2_init1.asec

Mr.Robot: Season 2 Episode 4

break-down / character analysis / head canons 

(Spoilers obviously, but contains stuff up through end of season 4)

A: first scene

I love this scene a lot so I wrote a lot. 

(The Memorial Day situation)

Elliot had been pen-testing, doing white-hat hacking for some wall-street gig. (Timeline= ?-May 2014)

He was on some type of project where he needed to hack until it was un-hackable. (Seemed dedicated to his job there)

Elliot is court ordered into anger management with a shrink (Krista) after being fired for destroying the servers. Hs he claims he was locked in there and fell asleep then woke up in a destroyed room. (I still suspect this retelling to be halfway unreliable even though it’s how it’s told at least twice in the show.)

This happened Memorial Day weekend. - night or around 5pm presumably - people wanted to go clubbing etc. and Elliot did not. They couldn’t leave because Elliot was working. (He didn’t care about them enough to let them go, or was just dedicated to his job you choose.)

        2. (Job offering) 

Elliot is offered to work at all-safe by Angela around this time (Halloween 2014) but it’s been months since he had been working so what was he doing?

A bunch of Grey-hat hacks to get shady people arrested? Seems he may have just finished one when Darlene arrived. 

He sees some potential in accepting, because it a Trojan horse (both what you think it is and slang for a backdoor into a server network). 

He’s been thinking about it, though we don’t know how long he’s been sitting on this offer. “the right access the right malware.” His plan is to take down Evil Corp (It’s the first time he’s voiced this, and Darlene doesn’t take him entirely serious at first.)

      3. (Darlene and Elliot)

Darlene comes on halloween, she seems bothered by something that may have happened that night (if my timeline is right it could be she had a fight with Cisco because they should’ve still been together then) whatever it is Darlene feels she needs Elliots company that night. 

This is the first mention of init-1 the code between her and Elliot. He tries to excuse himself when Darlene first answers, with an excuse he’s going out. Darlene picks up that this is half-assed, showing us that despite her being gone she knows her brother well. (It’s little things like these that give hints as to the hosts habits and how much they overlap with MM’s)

“Great Darlene, haven’t seen you in a long time either. I’d love to hang out.” Judging by the fact Elliot is just now telling Darlene he’s been fired we can assume the extent of there communication is pretty much zilch. Darlene has been away from the city for some time, but I’m not sure its ever mentioned how long. 

Per tradition, they’re smoking weed while watching the careful massacre of the bourgeoise (1984). (Darlene is a talkative/hungry type of high and Elliot just chills... and maybe has deep philosophical conversations) This movie carries a lot of importance because it becomes symbolic of F-Society. It starts out with the masked man killing the bourgeoisie kids at a new years eve party, but I do wonder if thats the entire plot or not.

Darlene says several things about it: 

(A) The movie was made to disprove meritocracy. (showing the separation of class through the absurd ways in which the characters act.) 

(B) it was the source of their psychological dysfunction. (Probably because it’s x-rated, I think this line should only be taken as a joke)

In the dream sequence later in the episode Tyrell and Joanna are wearing similar outfits to the brother and sister in the movie (hinting how Elliot probably sees them)

We get clarification on Darlene having Panic attacks, this is something that has come up before. Elliot shows genuine concern for her mental well-being.

 “Since when did pretending everything is okay become the all mighty norm?” *proceeds to act like that at the beginning of season 2* 

Unlike Elliot, Darlene has a digital social life. Has instagram, and orders off postmates probably lives a normal life of a 23 year old who happens to be really smart and good at stuff. I definitely think all that go thrown in the trash the second f-society became more than just a what-if. By the beginning of season 1 she’s just as off the grid as Elliot is. (But like I just wanna see Darlene live her life again dammit.) 

Sidenote: I wonder who this one is. Part of me wants to say this is Elliot the  host, but I have my suspicions MM took over after Memorial Day, (or at the least started to front more often…). Though it does leave me asking why there are sudden amnesia barriers in the time leading up to 5/9. Fragment Krista says MM found it important to start messing with Elliots memories and his past and inadvertently this meant forgetting his sister? Was it a subconscious choice? I can’t confirm, but I still do wonder how much of Elliot we really see in flashbacks and how much of it is MM.

         4. (“Do you talk to mom?”)

Dialogue: “No. You?” (“Fuck no, she still shits on dad every time I talk to her… I wish I remembered him better.”)

I don’t have a note really, but this moment is fairly awkward given what we know about Ed—d. Not sure how I read Elliot’s face here, but I think he’s probably on the same page as her because- 

Elliot has kept the Mr.Robot jacket.

I believe this indicates the host and MM I think are (were) both protected from knowing about what their father did otherwise that shit would be trash. I wonder Does host Elliot also have the view of his father as his only friend? Anyway I definitely see this as a trigger for Robot, like, thats his clothes for one and ed—d is sort of the trauma he holds.

A switch definitely occurs once the mask is on. There’s an awkwardness where Darlene loses her laughter: does she know exactly what his disorder is? I think at the very least she suspects and picks up on these things. She knows that Elliot is forgetful and experiences moments of derealization because she’s dealt with those moments with him. They are siblings after all, and I think this scene is pretty much in here to hone that in.  

Mr.Robot starts a whole speech about a plan to take down E-Corp. Elliot (in reference to everyone because I think this is a shared understanding) knows the hard part of this hack will be he fallout (“that’s the key, the follow through.”) 

More indicators he’s been really thinking about this for a while (At the very least since Memorial Day so 6 months; at most since his dad got leukemia). He (Mr.Robot) works out that E-corp will try to come back from the hack and there needs to be a way to stop the from happening. 

Destroy public confidence = destroy E-Corp  (And this is what Darlene’s been shown doing this season so far) 

He then takes off the mask and he’s gone quiet (dissociated?) Probably a switch back. (He looks at it in a way that makes me feel like he doesn’t remember putting it on.)

End scene. 

B: Darlene’s visit

“The only way to patch a vulnerability is by exposing it first. The flip side is exposing the vulnerability leaves you open for an exploit.” (I believe this line tells us this episodes logic)

(Plan discussion.)

The plan involves losing confidence in e-corp and Elliot has lost confidence in the plan. (though we are aware phase 2 isn’t necessarily just about losing public confidence, Elliot is later shown to not want this either). He sees it as too dangerous to continue on with, and he feels guilty about it given how Gideon was killed, he doesn’t want more people to die. 

However, I feel as if he probably already saw into all the vulnerabilities (because he’s like that). Already figuring they could be exposed (hence danger). He sees the best option would be to quit while they can, but Darlene is refusing. 

“What did you guys think was going to happen exactly?” - Darlene referring to Elliot as plural. (We love to see it)

Elliot says it wasn’t him who said everything. (Clarification that a switch did happen in scene 1.)

      2. (“This is what she does”)

What does darlene do? 

Likely: When she wants something but doesn’t give full honesty about it and doesn’t tell Elliot everything. In other words Darlene keeps secrets, and hides the important bothersome details. She sort of beats around the bush. (She does something like this in scene 1 she needs Elliots company but won’t talk about or say why then avoids confrontation of her mental health)

She’s doing it here not so much for her own comfort but the safety of her brother, because she knows he has vulnerabilities, and can be triggered and emotionally unstable. She doesn’t want to upset him because she needs him to help her and he can’t do that in an unstable state.

C: Chess 

1. (Meeting with Ray to play chess)

Chess isn’t really the focus here; Ray picks up on a lot of conflict happening internally, and as an exploit to get Elliot to trust him gives the chess board over. 

We see how guilt is burdening Elliot, and he is considering owning up to everything he did. Even mentions how it could stop Darlene from doing “crazy shit”. He doesn’t want to lose her either; or lose any more people for that matter. Losing people was not a part of saving the world he signed up for. There’s also guilt in general because of 5/9 because things are turning out bad. 

I’m fairly convinced Mr.Robot is incapable of feeling guilt, or is just hiding it behind the 10 layers of clothes. (Though I guess he’s never met Gideon so why should he care?). Anyway he is consistently focused on seeing everything through no matter the costs. 

I just find Mr.Robot coming in and saying he’d swan dive off a building for saying anything pretty funny (don’t ask)

He exaggerates a lot of the time but honestly sometimes he is dead serious about putting the body in pain or in life and death scenarios and so he can be fairly destructive so it’s hard to tell if he is joking, but hey MM (and to my hc host) does hard drugs, so...

2. (A game to end all games between us)

“Winner takes all.” (“Of what?”) “Us.”

(Mr.Robot really do be like “I’mma kill you or myself” Bitch I do not think..)

Robot says Elliot “will be absent from knowing. Losing time forever. A deep black void.” Basically he’s gonna throw him in a pit. And honestly it sounds confident, like he probably feels he can take full control since he’s been around the longest along with the core. (But we know he wouldn’t do it even if he could, the guy has a soft spot. Anyway this is like the IDK what number of times Robot be doing a loop around to get a point across to Elliot. He do be playing the long game and I think secretly he loves a good scheme.) (This is what Mr.Robot does.) 

Elliot gets visited by Krista in prison and has told her about the game. (Judging by the fact they meet in her ‘office’ and not in the “Kitchen table” setting we can assume they’re allowed to meet in a private location.) (Edit: disregard this bit I forgot about the reveal that he’d just imagining it on like two separate layers to feel safe enough to speak)

“Krista’s wrong annihilation is always the answer” (He’s just as bad honestly, Krista teach this boy constructive ways). He sees annihilation as self improvement, getting rid of parts of yourself that are ugly or unwanted. We create our identity around desire, and that means destroying parts that are undesirable so all thats left is practically a mask of who we are. (I think the tie into Whiterose through this spill about annihilation is a bit cheap but like I understand the choice) Anyhow Elliot’s pretty much agreeing to a western showdown and has no idea it’s all a rouse so Robot can have his point. 

4. The chess match

Ed—d apparently taught Elliot his first ways to code through teaching him computer chess. He talks like he really understands all the logic of chess which makes me think he was letting Ray win before. 

Mr.Robot definitely feels a bit uncomfortable with being associated with him just a hint in his voice. 

Ultimately they find out neither of them can either win or lose but Mr.Robot knew all along that would happen.

“Fighting for the future we want, it isn’t about playing chess is about what we do out there with them.” (peaking out of his ten layers to show he cares about the outside world, while also expressing how they need to get out of prison.)

“I want to be here Elliot, with you.” (God my heart.) 

D: Darlene and Cisco’s hook up

Darlene is very paranoid while walking around, she isn’t sure if F-society really are being offed. However in front of F-society she tries to comfort their suspicions. 

Cisco comes to Darlene to warn her about getting killed by DA… but he’s the one who ultimately gets offed. (Poetic cinema)

We learn Darlene’s the type to get upset and defiantly end up having sex in the bathroom of a shady dive bar with her on and off again boyfriend (also Cisco why didn’t you pull out before talking about Dark Army again, like dude lol.)

This is definitely the point they start getting back together. 

There a message in gold written on the wall that reads “There's an unequal amount of good and bad in most things. The trick is to figure out the ratio and act accordingly. Stay frosty all. Peace.” - its from this tweet: x 

Operation Berenstain is first mentioned. I’m in agreement the name references the popular conspiracy about alternate timelines. 

E: Leon lays it down

Leon asks Elliot if he wants to even be here, tells him he “has to dream in order to find out the future he’s fighting for.” (My initial though is I’m not sure if this means here as in prison or here as in alive, sorta feels like the latter)

“If you like it” (The future you envision) “then it’s beautiful, if it’s not then you might as well fade the fuck out right now.” (Hard) (definitely means the latter)

I appreciate Leon so much. “Existence could be beautiful or it could be ugly. But thats on you.” He’s really good for Elliot, really no bs, no loop arounds, he just tells it straight. And you know what? He listens to him because he actually goes to bed dreaming about it. 

“What is the future? Leon says one needs to understand that before they’re ready to fight for their existence.”

This dream sequence is so impactful, Leon’s influence. I’m not gonna go in on the shots, however we do get to see a really honest view on how Elliot truly sees the people that have been a part of his life in a variety of subtle ways. We see a lot of what he desires or seeks is happiness for everyone around him. 

“Will I reconnect for those I care for. Will I reunite with old friends long gone. See the ones I love find true happiness. Maybe this future includes people I never dreamed of getting close to. Even make amends with those I have unfairly wronged. A future that’s not so lonely. A future filled with friends and family. The world I’ve always wanted. And I’d like very much to fight for it.”

I bold texted that last bit because it really hits, and I think its what becomes the foundations for what Elliot ends up saying to Whiterose at the end. Not to pull a Darlene but this show is clearly trying to say how hard it is to find connection in a world of capitalist alienation. 

When Leon sort of digs into Elliot and asks if he really does want to die. Elliot’s dream confirms, no, we find out Elliot actually wants to live in order to improve the future, and he wants connections to be there. It’s what he’s always wanted. (Yet he still does the end all match right after this sequence because he’s convinced he’ll win and get that future on his own. Both these boys are very stubborn.) 

F: Do you remember the first command you ever taught me?

Init 1. 

What Elliot taught Darlene when her computer kept crashing. She says this in scene one, and its what makes Elliot stop making excuses. The same thing happens here, Elliot has no choice but to help. Thats what the code between them means: Drop everything and help me.

What is it? Init 1 is a run level in linux which indicates a single-user/emergency mode. Streamlining the route to only the root, while disconnecting from the network or multitasker. Used for administrative tasks.

Elliot has to stop the FBI from owning f-society and the only way to do that is by using Ray’s computer. (fuck Ray btw). Just to make sure, he asks Darlene is he is really needed by her or if she wants Robot. I think he needed the reassurance that Darlene still cares (and of course she does). 

The second part of the title is .Asec - android files preventing corruption from other programs. So the whole title translates to roughly; Help prevent corruption. And a nod to the way of doing it through hacking into the FBI android phone network. (These titles are genius and have so many layers)

G. Side stuff

1. The FBI have found Fun Society LLC through Dom. I love Dom but idk how I feel about her in these early episodes. She is a fairly good detective though. I think Romero’s character being linked to stealing power from the grid is a nod to the novel Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison. Ellison touches on social and intellectual issues faced by the African Americans in the early twentieth century. Also I noticed Dom’s supervisor is there and he’s already seen trying to sway the direction away from uncovering he truth. 

2. On that note so is Angela. I think we’re intentionally supposed to be annoyed with her because she’s staying at E-Corp even though she knows she’s being manipulated. 

“All of my dreams are coming true right now.” - as the bastard guys are being arrested. Not to say this slapped but it did.

We find out Whiterose and Price are in bed together on this thing and this has something to do with Angela and the plant negotiations in the lawsuit. On the phone Whiterose is fussy about moving her operation to the Congo quickly. (lets not try to reason how this plan of hers all works or what the hell it even is). Things are awkward knowing that Price is Angela’s dad, I can’t tell if he’s actually getting close because he wants to know his daughter or if its purely out of getting her around he and Whiterose’s fingers. (both? both.) 

In any case I think Esmail sets up the Angela as a counter vulnerability within the main plot, as she’s being open to exploitation by remaining at E-Corp. (refer to the logic set-up) 

3. I don’t care for Joanna’s appearance in this episode but she’s running out of money to pay of this guy who has information that could frame Tyrell for murder and is still seeing this guy she definitely hates or likes him but doesn’t love him. Complicated. She needs the severance package to pay this guy off. Tyrell is another vulnerability but he’s undercover.

H. Head canons I thought of while watching 

If Elliot hadn’t opened the door when he did Darlene would’ve picked the locks.

Darlene’s go to is always some type of asian food.

The weed is Elliots but the Bowl is Darlenes.

We see coats on the wall hooks in Elliots room, but I think the likes the cold because its grounding so he usually leaves without one on.

When Robot is high (on weed) he just talks like nonstop.

Not a head canon really but I notice Elliot never uses the backrests in chairs. However Robot becomes the chair he is the chair.

Darlene stopped going to dance classes after the hack, I think Angela has also stopped going.

Leons favorite subjects are philosophy and history

[arthurhwalker]

2019, Buying Guidance

Buying a computer, a smartphone, or tablet in 2019 is different than it has been in years past. Usually, I'm lurking in anticipation of my "next", and have a lot of ready recommendations for friends and family. That isn't to say there aren't a lot of great options, they just seem to be more arcane.

My current technology arc consists of incrementally shedding Apple, Google, Microsoft, and any hardware, or digital service, that doesn't provide me with a great deal of value. Also, I'm looking for those services and products that have a community around them, and with whom one can have some kind of relationship.

I look at everyone; Apple, Asus, Dell, Google, HP, Huawei, LG, Microsoft, MSI, Samsung, Vaio, before I make a purchase. I look at their products, support documentation, warranty, social media presence, how transparent they are with consumers, and whether or not they understand how to engage in basic marketing and commerce.

So, what's good? The plucky upstarts and potential market disruptors first.

Pine64

From the FAQ on their site:

"What is Pine A64? The Pine A64 is an index card sized 64-bit single board computer. It can perform like your desktop or portable PC with browsing the Internet, playing games, watching video, and execute programs like spreadsheets and word-processing. The Pine A64 board can also play ultra high definition 4Kx2K video."

I waited in the queue for almost a year to be able to buy this $99 laptop. They sell them at zero or little profit so people can tinker with them, learn, and make stuff. They're working on a tablet, more powerful "Pro" version of their laptop, and a phone. It can run 64 bit Ubuntu, Debian based Linux things, and Android 5.1.

I cannot wait to get my PineBook next month and start monkey'ing around with it. Also, it comes in completely unadorned white, AKA Stickertown! I need to start gathering my adhesive sartorial accoutrements now. 

Pop!_OS, and System76

I've been using their Pop!_OS with my Lenovo Thinkpads for a couple of months, and really like it. With Canonical focusing Ubuntu away somewhat from the desktop user, going to a curated version, like Pop!_OS, tends to deliver a better experience. System76 has a live Pop!_OS Chat where I've gotten help and guidance along the way.

I resisted installing Pop!_OS for a while, because it looked kind of cool. I know, right? Linux isn't supposed to be "cool". So I was wary, haha.

Pop!_OS is, basically, set up the way I would set up vanilla Ubuntu after some tinkering. It has AMD or Nvidia Drivers and GPU switching baked in, power management options, and the only thing I had to install with the terminal was GIMP. Everything else I know and love was in the Pop!_Shop. Pop!_OS 18.10 get regular updates, and they're always adding keen new things to their offerings.

Where vanilla Ubuntu is kind of squeaky, garish, and clunky, Pop! is quiet, nocturnal, and polished. It encrypts your install by default, full disk, out of the box with minimal effort. "Out of the box, with minimal effort" is something I say a lot with Pop!. It's just really (really) nice. I'm a fan, bought the t-shirt, put the stickers on my laptop, all the things.

I haven't tried their hardware, and while I'll be sticking with a Thinkpad for mobile computing, their mini "Meerkat" and Thelio Desktops are very compelling options. System76 isn't very transparent about the types of displays offered with their desktops, or their laptops, but have responded swiftly to my queries by email, and via social media.

They are very transparent about their internal components, and have an array of options, including AMD on their Thelio line, for folks looking to distance themselves from Intel. The Thelio desktops look very nice, with the only flaw being no IO up front. Everything else is custom, with open source daughter boards, and other keen aesthetic features.

I worry more about which configuration of Thelio I would get, than what I'd actually use it for. I just want one.

Recently, Pop!_OS got featured on the Linus Tech Tips YouTube Channel, as a gaming platform. A. Linux. Gaming. Platform. Yes, you heard that correctly. 

ReMarkable

This continues to be a good value, for a product that receives frequent quality of life updates. For minimalists looking to replace all the paper in their lives, this device delivers. I really like that they don't stop making it better, simply because the makers believe in the form factor and use case.

ReMarkable has a lot of competition in the hardware space, but I haven't seen much in the software space that is half as good. The ability to nest notes and documents in folders and organize your work is an incredibly attractive feature. The Linux-based operating system is incredibly stable, and reliable.

The ReMarkable tablet isn't fast, or cutting edge, but it feels really nice to use. It's easy on my eyes, and the hand taking notes and reading documents. It really is just like paper, only better, and taking up way less space in my bag.

Light Phone 2

I love E Ink devices, particularly when they aren't being used simply to read ebooks. Marketed as "a simple 4G phone with e-ink, messaging & other essential tools—a phone that actually respects you," the Light Phone 2's marketing is compelling. The promotional video hits all the right notes and feels for anyone that is in a love/hate relationship with their smartphone.

This is definitely me, and I ordered the couples package for my wife and I. From the two surveys I've received, and the updates they've posted, this is something I've only grown more excited for. The very simple and elegant aesthetics of the device are interesting to me, and I can't wait to have one in hand. It's gotten bad enough that I lurk on Ebay, looking for a deal or steal on their first Light Phone. Ugh, haha.

On to my favorite services.

Discord

I pay the monthly for their upgraded service. I'm not entirely sure what I get for my subscription, but I don't care, the service is that good, and I want to support it. For chatting with my friends, playing games, communicating, community curation, and similar, Discord is doing it right. Their user experience is good, even if the user interface is a little confusing at first.

The confusion comes with being used to Skype, or Face Time, and a distinctly limited feature set. With Discord I keep figuring things out, and saying "oh, it can do this? And, also, this? Cool". Discord also works pretty much everywhere, on everything, with no service interruptions (that I've been aware of). I can use with a Linux machine with a dedicated app, in a browser tab, or on my smartphone, whatever I want.

I can use it to communicate text, images, video, audio, broadcast my desktop, all the things. Keen. 

ProtonMail

End-to-end, client side encrypted, with servers located in Switzerland outside of US and EU jurisdictions, and available in English, Spanish, German, French, Italian, Japanese, Dutch, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Russian, Turkish, Ukrainian. I am getting a paid account soon, and their Linux bridge is in beta.

Obvious privacy advantages aside, I really like the service, the options they provide, and their pricing structure. They have a really nice web client, and dedicated iOS and Android apps. It feels like email done right, as a product that you pay for, as opposed to you being the product, or part of some other service you're passively subsidizing.

Feels good. Definitely considering a paid version.

Lutris and Steam For Linux

Linux Gaming used to be an oxymoron. It just wasn't that great, but with Steam Play + Proton I can play Skyrim, with a controller, on my Linux machine. I click a box, hit play, it downloads some things, and boom, I'm good to go. I haven't explored all the different games compatible with this new service, but it looks to be expanding every day.

Lutris is a newer service, and was recently added to the Pop Shop on Pop!_OS. From Wikipedia:

"Lutris is a FOSS game manager for Linux-based operating systems. Lutris has one-click installation available for hundreds of games on its website, and also integrates with the Steam website. Installer scripts are available for some difficult to install WINE games including League of Legends."

The day when I can play Fallout 76 without maintaining a Windows partition is on the horizon. *Cherubs blow heavenly horns of glory* I'd really like this to take off, and take a small, but painful bite out of Microsoft's market share. I don't hate Microsoft, but I'd like them to hurt bad enough they work a little harder to make Windows not suck so hard.

Among the big manufacturers, there are a few that are doing it right, in my humble opinion.

Lenovo

I recommend them, particularly if you need a machine for getting work done, and running Linux. I've been part of their INsiders Customer Advocacy Program since late 2015, and have gotten a candid look at their company culture. Previous to that, I had been using their products since late 2011, mostly for game and web development, digital art, and publishing my novels.

A Thinkpad running Linux is my weapon of choice. The Yoga Book, more recently the C930, continues to be a singular companion device, with little else competing with it in the marketplace. Lenovo warranty, support, and customer service is still five stars. No one, absolutely no one, is more transparent about the hardware you're buying, down to the tiniest detail, I can look it up easily.

In the consumer range, they make a pretty good gaming rig, that I wouldn't be embarrassed to carry around. In fact, the look, IO, and cooling system on the new Legion series gaming laptops is better than many Thinkpads, excluding the P-Series of course. I want to try a new Legion with Linux, now that Lutris, Gamehub, and Steam are making gaming on Linux easier than ever.

On the horizon, Lenovo has some additions to their Yoga line that fall into a totally new zone. In my "lurking" browser tab are the Yoga S940 Laptop, and Yoga A940 Desktop. These devices are in the "Smart" category, packed with features. For the professional that wants style, as opposed to the tuxedo and dress shoes Thinkpad, these are just nice looking machines. I could see people in sales, design, marketing, and other fields that deal heavily in aesthetics, wanting devices like these.

Lenovo A940 Yoga Review

Why do I have a lurking tab in my browser full of Lenovo things? Because they regularly run sales. For the consummate lurker, one can get a new device from Lenovo for 30-45% off retail with patience, and a keen eye for clickable coupons. Lenovo understands how to commerce.

LG

If someone told me they were going to get an LG Gram (any model) I'd understand the desire, even though I haven't owned one myself. The reviews are all pretty positive, some are MIL-STD 810G, good value for the money, and they have a keen aesthetic about them. Also, you can get a couple of the models in white, AKA Stickertown!

Because LG is trying to break into the laptop market, they seem to making a pretty good product, or trying very hard. I'd look at the warranty and support options, warily, just because they're a little new to the game.

Their Gram 2-in-1 comes with a full size Wacom AES 2.0 Stylus Pen, with tilt, and 4096 levels of pressure sensitivity. There's no screwing around with bundles or paying an extra Benjamin for the pen, they just include it with the product, like everyone ought to. Also, they're very transparent about their displays, internals, and specs, so you know what you're buying.

I've read in a couple of places that they are supposed to get better Linux support by the next Kernel, but that there are some issues at the moment. If you're looking for something to run Windows, give them a look, but for Linux maybe hold off, or just get a Thinkpad.

Motorola

A lot of how Lenovo does business has bled over into Motorola. I've owned a couple Motorola Phones, both from before they joined Lenovo. I have friends and family that own the more current models, and are very satisfied. I'll probably own a Motorola in the future, as I'm probably on my last Apple iPhone.

They make a keen, and modular product. Smartphones have always struck me as an opportunity to stack accessories and components to produce value for different use cases. Motorola Mods let one do exactly that, swapping a battery pack, for a game controller, for example.

Samsung

For core computing, and the aspiring digital artist, Samsung makes a nice thing. I've owned their Notebook 9 Pro, Windows Phone, and a Galaxy Book 12. Where Samsung does really well is in aesthetics, making a device that is both nice to look at, and nice to use. They are very transparent about what you get, market their devices well, and offer pretty good value for the money.

When I bought my Notebook 9 Pro, the only thing extra I had to buy was the Staedtler Pen Stylus, because, hey, it was cool. With the Galaxy Book 12, it came with everything, keyboard accessory, S Pen, a nice charger, and even a 128GB microSD card to expand the storage. There was none of the Apple/Microsoft nonsense where you're paying hundreds of dollars extra for things that should just be included.

Even Samsung's new el-cheapo laptop, the Samsung Notebook Flash, is pretty great. Aesthetically, it's compelling. It looks to have a decent 1920x1080 display, lots of ports, a microSD slot for expandability, and you can get it in white, AKA Stickertown! It has eMMc Memory, that is slower for read and write speed, but tends to be very reliable. 

Conclusion

What are you using? Have a keen service or computing product that has served you well? Drop me a line, I’d like to know all the things.

[pcfricker]

Fallout 76

Sooooooo Fallout 76 came out yesterday, which I would’ve liked to have been playing till midnight out of sheer excitement. That is, if it wasn’t mired with so many technical bugs and other irritations that would make it more of a chore than a joy to play. I haven’t actually played it yet, but from what I’ve been hearing I don’t think I want to. This is gonna be mostly hearsay, but it’s my rant post and I’m feeling motivated tonight so here I go.

I had learned my lesson from the rather lukewarm release of Fo4 and tried my best to not get too excited about it. Overall, I did keep a level head from the time it was announced ‘till the day it launched but I did still have an optimistic outlook about it. Even when it was confirmed to be online only multiplayer with no NPCs, I still had some hope for it cause I was ready to rock ‘n roll with some friends in the wastes. The online part actually got me even more excited because I could finally team up with some of my friends and explore the wastes together. We even had our roles all picked out and everything. One of us was gonna be the builder/weapon smith, one was gonna be our sneaky sniper, and then I was gonna be the tank of the group in my kickass power armor. We all exchanged words about how much we were looking forward to it. Knowing what I know now, I feel almost a little bit betrayed by how the game turned out.

As the release day grew closer and closer, more information about the game’s shortcomings came to light. Reports from the B.E.T.A. event that a lot of people went to in WV left most with a positive impression, but when the public got into the B.E.T.A. more issues began cropping up. From frame dips, to glitches, the game’s core workings, or lack thereof rather, started to become apparent.

Just a few days before release, everyone learned that there was also a really big security concern that someone on reddit brought up. This is where my hope begane to waiver. Most of the game’s functions like player health, stats, and lots of other important information wasn’t being checked by the servers to verify that nothing had been changed. You could literally open up a file and change your health so that your character could be effectively un-killable, or you could even give yourself boatloads of caps and buy anything you could ever want.

Not only that, information was sent to the servers in plaintext format which meant that anyone could run wireshark to skim information about who was connected to your particular server. Do I also need to mention that there are microstransactions in this game too? Yeah, I’m sure you can see where I’m going with that. So after all the bragging they did about how effective their anti-griefing system was, they basically left the keys to the mansion under the rug for people to abuse however they saw fit.

As for the glitches I mentioned earlier, don’t worry. Bethesda Game Studios has got you covered in the only way they know how. Their game still uses their antiquated Creation Engine, which was based off the already unsteady Gamebryo engine from Oblivion, which over the years has been patched and stitched together to work for a newer generation of games. Even Fo4 used it, and while still graphically impressive for the Fallout series as a whole, when compared to other games from that generation it still looked dated.

From frame dips, animation errors, and flat out freezing/crashing, 76 lays bear all the faults of Bethesda’s clunky engine. The reason Fo4 was at least liked despite it’s short comings was because it has enough substance that one could still have enough fun to overlook them. 76 has no such luxury. From the get go, you’re walking into this vast empty world with the only things to keep you company, outside of friends to play with, is the robots and mutated creatures of WV. The main story itself is just you following around the ghosts of people who have long since been dead.

I know I said the lack of NPCs didn’t really bother me, but now that I’m thinking about story progression it really does rub me the wrong way. I don’t want to go around cleaning up after people that have been dead for years before I stumbled across their corpse. If it were me, I would’ve taken a moment to feel bad for them and then move on with my hecking life. Why should I make his former problems mine? I’d much rather have someone come running up to me begging for me to help defend his home from a super mutant attack. I want to feel like I’m actually making a damn difference in this damn apocalypse, not clean up after dead people. Anyways, back to the bugs.

V.A.T.S. is just a dreadful mess. The percentages are constantly changing from 95% to 0% in half a second, which is hardly helpful. You’d be better off just manually aiming because at least then you could at least hit them reliably. This is one of the more egregious examples of a poor implementation that is a staple in the series. I could go on with the bugs, but its 12:30 right now and I want to sleep. So I want to get on to the final reason why 76 is so frustrating.

Bethesda is lazy, pure and simple. I’m not saying the employees are lazy, I’m looking at the people at the top making the decision to continue using old, buggy code that should’ve been overhauled *years* ago. They’ve had more than enough time to sort this shit out, but they didn’t because they wanted to get this game to market as fast as possible to capitalize on the “live service” train. Well it’s biting them in the ass now ‘cause their lack of experience and overall ineptitude is more apparent now than ever. They are falling behind in an area where they used to be the leader in, chasing after trends they used to set. Their continued use of their Creation Engine is going to be their downfall unless they give it a much needed tune-up, which it’s needed since Fo3.

It’s this very reason that no matter how much new content they add to it, it’s never going to be the game I and so many others wanted it to be. It’s going to take nothing short of a complete overhaul of the game in order to even have a hope of coming close to something like that. Which won’t happen, everyone knows it. Even if that does happen, the question still remains as to how many people were overworked to the point of mental, physical, and emotional breakdown in order to achieve that goal.

I’m willing to give Bethesda one more chance, because if they pull their head out their ass and get their shit together I think they can make great games again. As for Fallout 76, I refuse to support the behavior it represents.

[bastardrobocop]

on fallout 76

so, because im a fool i pre ordered fallout 76. frankly, i was going to buy it on release anyway because im starved for anything fallout and new california was a complete bust. 

anyway, this means i have had access to the “B.E.T.A.”, which isn’t really a beta. it’s just server stress tests. i’ve done every pc round so far and i feel like i can say pretty conclusively that it’s just not very good.

sorry, this is going to be a long meandering post

i dont know if its something they can fix in the like, week before they launch the game, but the delay/latency/feel is so fucking whack it’s unbelievable. the multiplayer fallout new vegas mod feels like it has better netcode. in addition, it is dreadfully optimized. i play on a laptop, so maybe take my perspective with a grain of salt, but i’m not the only one who has pointed this out. i use an nvidia 970m, which runs fallout 4 at around 50/60 frames per second. fallout 76 tops out at around 10-30 on average. just wandering the world, the framerate is atrocious. performance is best in small interior cells and in wide open spaces with nothing in it. in more dense and enemy populated areas, the game stutters hard. more than once ive had the game freeze for several seconds during a firefight. its honestly inexcusably bad most of the time. with poor latency and framerate chugging, the gameplay experience is trying. it makes literally everything painful, including just inventory management and crafting. 

the gameplay itself isnt too awful in that its just fallout 4 again but without the pretense of minimal rpg elements. performance problems can make some engagements suck, but most common enemies aren’t too hard. however, the real nasty ones that are higher level than you can be nigh on impossible to take down solo, which sucks because my friends arent always available and dealing with online randos is always bad. but it’s also the only way to get like, good weapons. but anyway, the core gameplay loop is almost the same. i say almost because the ‘workshop’ storage is your only storage. and it has a 400lb limit. which takes into account anything you put in it. this should seem like an obvious issue; you basically cant afford to store things if you gather valuable resources. im currently stuck carrying this big fucking rocket launcher which is useless right now because i dont have any inventory space for missiles, which weigh a ton. also, ammo has weight now. and you can’t scrap ammo for ammo parts like gunpowder or lead. and you can’t sell ammo either. so instead you just have to like, dump hundreds of rounds just on the ground since you can’t store them in the workshop because you need space for steel and adhesive and that M2 Browning that you can’t use yet but want to hold onto because it looks bitchin. however, you can bulk scrap with plastic, which reduces weight by about half. however, therein lies another problem; plastic becomes a precious resource because you can’t make a bulk pile of wood without it for some reason. plastic is currently more precious than literal gold. still, you get stuck holding a bunch of valuable scrap in your inventory which you can’t put into your stash because it’s full and you can’t go out and find more plastic because then you’ll be over-encumbered and you cant afford to drop this circuit board and you can’t build any more things in your camp because the budget is painfully low and even when you DO get enough plastic to bulk things the bulked stuff goes into your inventory and wont necessarily fit back into the stash and i’m still carrying this fucking missile launcher please god let me put down this missile launcher please oh please god

the ui is a disaster. it’s like they turned 4′s console/gamepad control scheme and doubled down on it; on pc, random keys are bound to multiple things and then also bound to a separate key, and you can’t re-bind things individually. so that means middle mouse is both ‘open favorite item wheel’ and ‘enter third person’ and ‘enter build mode’ when there’s also V which is also ‘enter third person’. you cannot change this. there will always be one button for this. there is still no separate binding for bash and grenade throw, of course. if you press escape, it opens the map. if you press m, it opens the map. to open the pause menu with things like ‘options’ and ‘microtransaction store’ and ‘quit the game’, you have to open the map with either escape or M and then press Z. there is no direct button to take you to the pause menu, as far as i can tell. when you go up to a workbench, there are three options; E to craft, R to scrap, Space to repair and modify. from this menu, if you want to scrap an item, you must mouse over it, and then select it. however, DO NOT MOVE THE MOUSE UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES. even if the prompt is open and asking if you want to scrap, say, a pump action shotgun, if you mouse over and the highlight moves over to your only power armor chest piece, it will scrap the power armor chest piece. even though it was asking if you wanted to scrap the shotgun. its potentially one of the most hostile interfaces ive ever seen. the bindings for ‘scrap mode’ and ‘scrap item’ in different menus also change. if i’m in the repair menu, G scraps an item. if i’m in scrap mode, spacebar does. the only good thing ive seen so far is the favorite wheel and also you can set it so you can see through your pip boy background while browsing it. 

the world feels desolate and boring. the lack of human npc interaction has been replaced with finding some dead persons holotape. there are robots. there is at least one AI. but all the questgivers are pieces of paper, holotapes, or voices on a radio. sometimes it’s a robot. you don’t actually interact though. there’s no interaction beyond listening and being told what to do. while im bitching about how the world feels, lets talk about factions. bethesda has kind of casually hyped up factions as being some kind of meaningful, cool choice. they’re literally nothing. there is no indication to other players what faction you are in. you can join every faction and reach top rank in every faction. you cant see if anyone is a member of your faction unless theyre in your faction specific base. there is no inter-faction conflict, there are very few faction quests aside from random events, and once you’re done with the main faction quest, you’re basically done for good except for repeatable ones. i honestly expected factions to be a meaningful choice, which was probably my mistake. i was hoping it would force you to commit to your current faction once you joined it, or would prompt you to abandon another faction in order to join a new one. but there’s just nothing. i was expecting something like, i dunno, destinys faction thing. like joining new monarchy. and maybe butting heads with members of other factions, like i figured the Brotherhood faction would be my enemy if i joined the enclave. but it’s just nothing. the world is nothing, the quests are nothing, everything just feels pointless. 

this is also a personal gripe, but there are like no energy weapon alternatives to small guns aside from the errant laser pistol, but ammo is extremely rare. the only new energy weapon i’ve seen so far is the plasma gatling, which is a big gun. otherwise, it’s just the crappy pistol/rifle converting laser and plasma rifle. no plasma pistol, just a pistol conversion. no laser pistol, just a pistol conversion. i’ve always loved energy weapons and just like. not getting any variety while guns and melee weapons get tons of variety is grating. there are many new ballistic weapons that look neat. the 10mm smg is back, and i am admittedly fond of it. however, 10mm ammo is painfully rare. i spend basically all my lead making more ammo for it. i can kind of get by with my laser pistol and my shotgun always makes up however much ammo i lose because a lot of enemies use shotguns, but my 10mm just goes up in smoke and there’s none to be found elsewhere. there’s a shocking amount of .308 because almost every early/mid enemy uses a hunting rifle, but i guess it makes sense because the big MG-32 thing takes .308 so they want you to be able to use it when the time comes. still, i’d rather be using an energy weapon. i want like. a recharger pistol. or the plasma rifle with all the tubes. or a pulse gun. just like. anything other than the ugly aer9 pistol conversion. i think the folks down at bethesda just dont like energy weapons very much; theyre leaps and bounds less viable than small guns. 

the enemies look okay. instead of raiders, you have the Scorched. they’re Marked Men, but weaker and also a cult formed by radioactive bats. there are super mutants, because bethesda cant be bothered to go outside of the comfort zone of Things People Recognize and also they hate lore i guess. the wild animals are kind of fun. theres a big toad that looks cute, and frogs that have MASSIVE arms that they run on, which looks funny. theyre small though. things like the mothman and snallygaster look neat. the flatwoods monster is okay. the grafton bastard is big and kind of easy to cheese out. there is a monster named after a flawed and racist interpretation of indigenous beliefs. theres a big sloth, who i love. the mole men (called mole miners) are intimidating and ANNOYINGLY precise with shotguns. they’re later game enemies and very aggressive. they drop a neat looking unarmed weapon that ive been using, called a mole miner gauntlet. it’s like a power fist with big claws. there’s a big bee called a honeybeast. ive basically covered all of the new monsters, though. everything else is from fallout 4 and dlcs. this includes things like anglers, which had obviously evolved on far harbor along with the lure plant so it doesnt make sense for them to be there, and gulpers which are big salamanders so i guess that’s more okay. there are swarms of bees that are just he same repeated png of a bee, spinning around. oh yeah, there are a couple new insect types; ticks and fireflies. both use the animations of the radroach and bloatfly, respectively.

solo play can be kind of boring and difficult. most randos you meet will either ignore you or call you a slur and run away. ive only had one guy break into my house and i murdered him. however, even though he had a bounty on his head, he was still allowed to get ‘revenge’ on me which meant he could spawn right next to me and this time he had a power armor suit, so he killed me a couple times before logging out to avoid my wrath. coward. if you’re out there dude, i’ll kick your ass. also, quick note about the bounty system; its kinda rough around the edges. i tried to save someones garden by shooting a ghoul that was stomping their flowers in the back. however, my shot somehow curved around him at point blank and broke a blackberry bush. from then on, i had a 20 cap bounty on my head. i had to hide from people in my secret enclave bunker and get my friend to kill me so i could perceive other people on the map again and also not live in fear of every tom dick and larry with a power armor frame and a bad attitude. 

i feel like i should wrap up. fallout 76 is not very good, but if they can work out performance and latency it wouldnt be too bad for just dicking around with friends. in terms of being like, a fallout game, it’s worse than 4. i haven’t gotten into story spoilers, but its not great. and it feels remarkably desolate for a game thats advertised as being a cool time with your buds. maybe itll be better when there are more people playing. i dunno. its just not very good. i dont recommend it.

[winterbaby89]

I’m Falling For You

Summary: All it takes is one text to make Killian’s world stop… one text from his best friend since college to simultaneously break his heart and breathe new life into him, effectively turning his world on its head.

Killian is Emma’s rock. The one person she knows that will be there for her time and again. When the break up from hell, and residual fallout, puts her best friend, once again, in the role of caregiver and comforter, Emma can no longer deny the feelings that have been brewing within her ever since college.

Can the magic - and questionable mixture of alcohol and pain meds - during the holiday season finally force the confessions they’ve both been suppressing for years?

Rated M

A/N: This fic was inspired by the song of the same name, by Chester See. If you haven’t listened to it, I recommend it.

I want to thank and give all the love to the lovely ladies that helped me get this fic finished, be it by beta-ing, cheerleading, or being the second set of eyes that I don’t seem to possess… So, THANK-YOU @hollyethecurious, @ilovemesomekillianjones, and @kmomof4.

**Special thank you to @hollyethecurious for creating the fantastic aesthetic to go with the fic for my birthday week reblogs.**

Line break indicates change in scene or POV.

Also on AO3 and FF

All it takes is one text to make Killian’s world stop… one text from his best friend to simultaneously break his heart and breathe new life into him, effectively turning his world on its head.

Emma : I need you. Walsh and I broke up. Can you come get me? I’m at Mass General.

Killian : I’m on my way love, are you alright?

Emma : I will be.

“Hey Li, I have to go. I’ll call you later, yeah?” Killian’s slight panic must bleed into his voice because Liam’s response on the other side of the line is his concerned papa bear tone.

“Everything okay Kil?”

“Yeah, I’m fine, but Emma’s just sent me a text from the hospital, I’m heading there now.”

“Oh! Okay, well I’ll talk to you later little brother. Go take care of your girl.” Liam promptly hangs up, not giving Killian a chance to correct him.

“Younger. And she’s not mine, no matter how much I might wish it,” he mutters anyway, to no one in particular.

The whole drive to the hospital he is on autopilot, his thoughts lost in a swirl of memories.

Northeastern University four years ago:

Killian was glad to be back on campus after his summer in New York, as much as he loved Liam, his older brother could be a bit much, plus being back meant he’d get to see Emma again. All last year he tried to deny what he felt for her, but as the saying goes, absence makes the heart grow fonder , and fonder was putting it lightly when discussing how head over heels in love he was with his best friend. Killian was planning to tell her just that, as soon as he could make it to her dorm, after dropping off his stuff in his own.

Knocking excitedly on Emma’s door, Killian was confused when a half naked guy answered the door instead of his Emma.

“I’m sorry. I guess I have the wrong room, I’m looking for Emma Swan.”

“No you got the right room buddy, but she’s kinda busy,” the shirtless guy all but sneered at him with an unimpressed look on his face.

“Oh!” Embarrassment colored his voice as he turned to leave, tossing out, “Sorry to have bothered you. Can you have Emma text me when she’s unoccupied?”

“Sure thing… who are you?” Killian could hear the condescension oozing from every word the guy says.

“Killian?”

At the sound of Emma calling his name, Killian  turned back around. Based on the look Mr. Rude and Pretentious was wearing, he could tell that the guy wasn’t expecting Emma to come to the door, and he wasn’t too thrilled she was calling out his name either. Emma continued on, oblivious to the tension, “Hey. There you are. Where are you going?” As he looked at his best friend, Killian noticed her look of confusion.

“I was informed you were busy, so I was going to leave you to it.” Killian’s tone was curt and clipped, trying not to let his heartbreak show, which only caused Emma’s confusion to deepen.

“Busy? No, Neal was just helping me get unpacked. Why don’t you come in.”

Killian could see plain as day on Neal’s face, that he didn’t want another man around. “Emma, I don’t think-”

“Oh! I’m sorry. You two haven’t met before, have you? Killian, this is Neal. Neal this is my best friend Killian.”

That day was the beginning of the hopelessly tortured road to the end for him. He’d had to watch from the sidelines as Emma dated Neal (controlling, cheating arse ), then Graham ( poor sod was hopelessly in love with their friend Ruby ), then August ( guy found himself a great boyfriend in the hatter’s son ), and up until tonight it would seem, Walsh. Walsh had lasted the longest of the four.

They didn’t all end badly, but over the course of four years Killian stood by and watched as each time she would excitedly enter into these relationships, completely unaware of the effect it had on him. When things did go bad, he’d be there to help her pick up the pieces and rebuild, leaving her a little more guarded and her walls a little higher than before. When it went bad, it was bad , and Neal, the bastard, was bad enough for a lifetime.

Little did Killian know that Neal would have nothing on Walsh…

Two Hours Earlier:

Walsh really outdid himself tonight, Emma muses. He’s made a reservation for them at Mama Maria’s for their eight month anniversary. Although Emma suspects this evening to also be his last ditch effort to convince her to go with him to his family’s estate in Connecticut to spend Christmas. He’s been trying to persuade her since before Thanksgiving, after she’d told him she would be spending that particular holiday with her brother, some friends, and their families. Killian’s brother had come into town with his wife Elsa, and they’d all shared a nice intimate holiday with old friends at David and Mary Margaret’s. Since then Walsh has been insisting they spend Christmas with his family, since she’d had Thanksgiving with hers, but she has been steadfastly refusing.

Dinner is a tense affair despite being a celebration, because Walsh keeps going on about the things they must see, or do while they are in Connecticut. Emma’s had enough, and is trying not to snap at Walsh about how she is absolutely not going home with him for Christmas. She’s impatient to get home to a large glass of wine, her favorite pj’s, and the Princess Bride. Maybe I’ll text Killian to see if he wants to join me after his weekly call to Liam, she ponders.

When the server comes around inquiring about dessert, Emma tries to politely pass, but Walsh is insistent that she try the tiramisu because apparently it’s the talk of Boston. Emma sighs agitatedly, acquiescing to the tiramisu.

When the server brings the plate around, Walsh grabs her hand and squeezes as her eyes land on the ring neatly set into the ganache.

“Walsh…” Emma trails off as her brain attempts to grasp what her eyes are seeing.

Walsh must take her stunned expression as a good sign, as he begins his pre-composed speech. “Emma, I know most people wouldn’t consider eight months a very long time, but I believe we know each other well enough. I see no point in wasting any more time. So, marry me, become Mrs. Walsh Osmond.”

“Walsh. I’m sorry. But… no.”

“What do you mean, no?”

“I can’t marry you. I didn’t realize you felt this way, but I thought you knew, I’m not ready for marriage, I’m sorry.” Emma pulls her hand free of Walsh’s grasp, then standing from her seat, she pulls on her coat and heads for the door.

Walsh comes bursting through the door just moments after her looking incensed. “How could you do that to me Emma? Do you realize how much of a fool you just made me look? All of those strangers staring at me with pity. We will be getting married, and you will come with me to Connecticut for Christmas, so we can celebrate our engagement with my family.”

“Walsh, I am not some Stepford Wife , at your beck and call, to carry out your every whim. We are not getting married, and I am not going to Connecticut. I mean, we’ve been fighting about Christmas for the last several weeks. In all that time, what made you think I was going to change my mind and decide to go with you?”

“I knew you’d change your mind once we were engaged. My family is expecting us to come together, they’re already planning an engagement party for us that weekend, at the country club.”

“YOU TOLD THEM?! Why did you tell them before you even asked me?”

“Because I knew it was a sure thing.”

“A sure thing?! A SURE THING?! Well, buddy, you got that wrong… now you have to go home with your tail tucked between your legs, and explain to your family how you misled them. Because like I said inside, I’m not marrying you. We are through.”

“Don’t be like that Emma. You know we’ll have a large wedding in the spring, in Connecticut-”

“NO! Just stop right there. Walsh I have told you no, numerous times, we are not getting married, I am not following you to Connecticut. WE. ARE. THROUGH. You are deranged, and I have no idea what I ever saw in you.” Emma turns away from Walsh, planning to put this boy and this night in the rearview. The next thing she knows there is a burning sensation in her shoulder as Walsh jerks her back to him by the crook of her arm.

“Get back here. We are not done.”

Emma struggles against his hold, intensifying the pain in her shoulder. “Let go of me, you lunatic-” Her next words are cut off as Walsh’s fist connects with her face. Thankfully, Walsh lets go of her arm as she falls back from the force of the blow. She stumbles backward until she hits an antique light post, she tries to protect her shoulder from the impact. “You bastard,” she grits out as an intense burning sensation blossoms around her eye.

“Emma, it didn’t have to be like this.” Walsh approaches, fists clenching, looking like he’s going to continue his physical tirade.

Before he has the chance to swing again, Emma thrusts her good elbow upward and catches Walsh’s nose. She knows she has hit her mark when blood starts gushing like Niagara, causing him to stumble back clutching his broken nose.

Moments later the cops and paramedics arrive on the scene, alerted to the situation by concerned patrons watching the scene from inside the restaurant.

Killian arrives at the hospital having worked himself up into a worried frenzy, but he’s trying to contain himself, for Emma. He parks in the first spot he sees, barely managing to turn the car off before running into the ER to find her.

He is directed through the security doors, toward the nurses station, where he can get more information. As he comes around the corner, he spies David at the end of the hall. As soon as David sees Killian headed towards him, he moves to meet him halfway.

“How is she mate, is she okay? What the bloody hell happened?”

David puts an arm around Killian’s shoulders, with a wary look on his face. “Here, come with me. She’s been treated for a fractured orbital socket, and they had to reset her dislocated shoulder. She’ll be okay. But it’s probably best you hear the whole story from her.” David leads him along the hallway to Emma’s room.

Killian wonders why David came to the hospital, but isn’t in the room with his sister. Probably on duty and can’t stay too long, Killian thinks.

Opening the door he walks into her room; seeing his best friend on the hospital bed looking beaten to hell shatters his heart. Emma has massive bruising around her left eye, a sling protecting her right arm, and is sitting cross legged on the bed with an IV in her right hand. Looking at Emma the rest of the world fades away, and Killian doesn’t even notice as David shuts the door to allow them some privacy.

“Love. What happened?” Killian asks quietly as he makes his way to her side.

“Don’t worry Killian, I’m fine, promise.” She tries to give him a reassuring smile, but he is not fooled.

“Fine?! Darling, you’re always fine. But there is nothing fine about this situation.” He tries for levity, to curb his distress at her current situation. He does not want to tax her any more than she already is.

“If you think this is bad, you should see the other guy.” Emma gives him a cheeky grin as she banters back.

“Guy?! What guy? I thought you were in an accident.” As the words leave his mouth he sees the smile slip from Emma’s face as she looks down at her lap.

Without looking up, Emma says, “I’ll tell you everything that happened, but you have to promise me you won’t overreact.”

The weight of her tone leads him to sit at the end of the bed. As she continues to avoid his concerned gaze, Killian reaches out to gently grasp her free hand reassuringly. “Alright Swan, tell me.”

She tells him the whole sordid affair, from the tense dinner, to the proposal, to the brawl in the street. Never once does she look up from their joined hands. He sits in stunned silence, processing everything he’s just been told. The quiet in the room is broken by the nurse coming in with all of Emma’s discharge paperwork, and prescriptions.

“We would like to give you a dose of something stronger to help with the pain, so you can get some sleep tonight. Will there be someone with you?”

Without looking away from Emma, Killian responds before she can say a word, “Aye. She’ll be staying with me tonight.” When Emma looks like she is going to protest, he speaks up a little louder, “Please don’t fight me on this Swan, take the medicine, so you can sleep tonight.”

“If you’d like sir, bring your car around to the entrance, and we’ll wheel her out in a few minutes.”

Killian nods and leaves the room to retrieve his car, while walking down the hall he sees David is still there. Realizing that he is in the exact same spot as before the reason why David wasn’t with Emma hits Killian.

“Son of a bitch!” Killian curses, knowing that David has Walsh in custody. “Bastard is still here.” Killian storms down the hall with a murderous intent for Walsh.

“David, mate.”

“Killian?”

“The bastard is in there isn’t he?”

“Don’t even think about it Killian.”

“Oh, I’ll do more than think about it. Go get a coffee, give me five minutes alone with him.”

“Emma has already pressed charges, we’ll handle Walsh. Right now Emma needs you, and you’ll be no good to her if I have to arrest you, too.”

“Then don’t arrest me.”

“Not gonna happen Jones. Go take care of Emma. If it’s any consolation, she shattered his nose.”

As he is about to retort that it’s still not good enough, he hears Emma’s concerned voice call his name. Deciding the low life isn’t worth it, Killian gives David a nod, then turns on his heel to go catch up to the nurse pushing Emma towards the exit.

The nurse wheels Emma out, and waits on the sidewalk with her as Killian quickly brings his car around. Pulling up right in front of them, Killian puts the car in park, and moves out and around to help Emma get up. By the time he makes it to her side she is half asleep, thanks to the meds, but still cognizant enough to slap his hand away as he tries to help her get up out of the wheelchair. Emma makes it to her feet, but doesn’t even get a step towards the car before she’s falling sideways into Killian’s chest.

“Easy there Swan.”

“I’mng good. Mmm-got it. G’off me.”

Realizing exactly how high she is right now, Killian can’t suppress the chuckle that rumbles up from the depths of his belly. “Whatever you say Swan. As graceful as your namesake you are. Up you go, let’s get you in the car.”

After getting Emma in the passenger seat, Killian has to reach across her to get her buckled in, because she’s already half asleep, again . Whatever they gave her didn’t take long, and I’m glad, she needs her rest after tonight , Killian muses. He has to take it slow on the drive home to avoid throwing Emma’s injured shoulder into the door as he’s taking corners.

Finally making it to their apartment building, Killian has to carry Emma up the two flights of stairs to their floor. Maneuvering around her dead weight to unlock the door, Killian finally gets the two of them inside his apartment. Traversing the familiar terrain easily, Killian safely makes it to his bedroom, depositing Emma on the bed as gently as he can manage. As he is getting her tucked in under the covers, Emma burrows her nose into his pillow and inhales deeply. Killian freezes as she mumbles on a breathy exhale, “Mmmm, smells so good, just like Killian.” His heart stutters in his chest at her not quite declaration, thinking that maybe there is hope for him after all.

Two Weeks Later:

Curled up in her corner of the couch, legs tucked up under her, nursing her now lukewarm cup of cocoa, Emma is lost in her thoughts. She recalls her moment of panic less than a week ago, when she realized that she and Killian had been successfully cohabitating in his apartment. Domestic, and perfect, and just not in the cards for her, because she’s in love with her best friend, and he will never see her as anything more. She had to run, she had to protect herself, because if she had stayed at Killian’s another day, she would have ended up doing something to fuck it all up. She couldn’t lose Killian, so before he could push her away, she ran; to protect herself, and her battered heart.

The only reason she’s nursing a mug of cocoa instead of something a little stronger is because she had agitated and inflamed her shoulder. She’d tried to do too much, too soon, just to prove she could, which landed her with another round of pain meds and a stern talking to from her brother, sister-in-law, doctor, Killian, and even Liam (via Skype).

Of course it had been Killian to find her crying on her bathroom floor, unable to put her arm through the sleeve of her robe, because of the intense searing pain. The faint flush of his cheeks when he found her like that had to have been from the residual heat of the shower she’d just left. Always a believer in good form, and gentlemanly behavior, he hadn’t even tried to sneak a peek under her robe as he helped her get her arm into the sleeve.

Since the day she re-injured herself, Killian had been crashing on her couch every night. He’d make his excuses to not have to leave, and supply her with all manner of coffee, food, and treats. He made sure she had breakfast and dinner daily, and ensured she took her pills before he’d leave to get ready for work. She loved the attention and doting, and the more fanciful part of her brain kept insinuating that it meant more. But she couldn’t listen to that voice, that part was an idiot, and couldn’t be trusted anymore. Emma couldn’t let herself hope; hope was a dangerous thing for someone like her.

Emma is brought out of her musings and self-chastisement by Killian ringing the doorbell. She opens the door to reveal the man of her dreams, also the man who torments her dreams; his hands are full of take out from their, her, favorite Chinese place around the corner. She gladly lets him into her apartment, helping him juggle all of the take out containers.

As he goes to retrieve the silverware and drinks, Emma queues up Princess Bride for them to watch as they eat.

After they’re done eating, Emma finds herself more focused on Killian than her favorite movie, noticing the small things more than she’s ever thought to. There’s nothing new about his arm slung across the back of the couch, his hand absentmindedly playing with one of her curls. Everything appears to be the same, normal even, but her thoughts from earlier, and what could be, keep coming back to the surface, making her inspect and scrutinize everything for deeper meaning.

She’s startled out of another such musing when Killian turns to look at her with a pensive look on his face, she hadn’t even realized the movie had ended.

“Everything alright Swan? You seem to be somewhere else tonight.”

“Yeah. Sorry. I’m fine, just tired I guess. Everything okay with you?”

“I’m fine Swan. Wouldn’t want to be anywhere else. Or with anyone else.” Killian gives her a sweet smile, the smile she recognizes as her smile, before a slightly anxious look passes across his features, “Actually, there is something I need to talk to you about.”

“I find whenever a guy says that, I’m rarely in for a pleasant conversation.”

Smothering his chuckle, Killian sobers once more, “Nothing bad, I promise. I just wanted to let you know that I’m not going to be able to bring you dinner tomorrow, you’ll have to fend for yourself. I am finalizing those contracts that I’ve been working on with that big client tomorrow, and then it’s expected that I take her to dinner afterwards.”

“Big client? You mean Tink? From Pixie Dust Development? The handsy one?”

“Handsy? What are you talking about, Swan? But, yeah, if I land this contract, it will put Jones Bros Designs in the black for years to come.”

“You know what, nevermind. I hope that the deal works out well for your company. Come on, it’s late, and you have to get up for work in the morning, we should really get to bed.”

“Absolutely, love. Your bed or mine?” he teases. His over the top flirtatiousness usually draws a laugh, or at the very least a good natured eye roll, but her traitorous thoughts from earlier choose that moment to come back to the forefront, making her wonder, what if? When she doesn’t respond with anything but a tense silence, Killian asks, “Are you sure you’re okay Swan?”

“What? Oh… yeah sorry, like I said, just tired.” Emma vacates the couch so Killian can lay down, since the man refuses to sleep in his apartment lately. She hurries off down the hallway to her room, listening to Killian settle onto her couch for the night. She also hears his tossed out reminder to take her pain pills just before she shuts the bedroom door behind her.

Emma has a fantastic boss, and her dream job, but unfortunately because of her bastard ex she is on administrative leave through Christmas. She can’t properly do her job until she is fully healed.

Most people would think that being a social worker would be a less than desirable job, but for Emma it is her way to give back to the kids like her. Orphans. As soon as Christmas is over, because of all the foster families that wait until the holiday has passed to send the kids back, she knows that she will be busier than ever, which just isn’t right.

So she really should enjoy the quiet that she’s got now, but she can’t stop herself from thinking about Killian alone with Tink. Every scenario she comes up with is worse than the last. Finally, unable to stand the thoughts any longer, she goes in search of that half full bottle of rum that she knows is hiding in her kitchen somewhere. Prescription warning labels be damned.

The bottle of rum, now empty, sits on her coffee table. Emma can’t keep herself from wondering if Killian had accompanied Tink home. With a set purpose, she gets up from her couch on wobbly legs, and makes her way back to her room. She is a woman on a drunken mission.

Killian is glad to finally be home, excited, elated even, at having secured a massive multi-million dollar contract for his and Liam’s architecture firm. Tink had been a little more aggressive than anticipated, after she’d had a few drinks at dinner. Luckily they had all of the paperwork signed and completed before they had gone out; she had looked a bit perturbed when he’d rebuffed her advances.

Kicking his front door closed behind him, Killian contemplates making his way over to check on Emma after taking his shower. Weighing his options, he realizes that it might be nice to actually sleep in his bed for the first time since she got hurt. As he is contemplating that luxury, Killian makes it through his bedroom door, stopping dead in his tracks at the sight before him. Emma Swan. Naked. Passed out, on my bed. Naked. I’d recognize the drunk hicca-snore anywhere. Naked. Why is she naked, in my bed? This is my bed, aye? Doubting that he’s actually come into his own apartment, since he’s so used to being in hers lately, Killian goes back out into the hall to double check the number printed on his door. It is.

Making his way back inside the apartment, and ensuring the door is secured behind him, Killian makes his way to the linen closet to get a blanket for Emma. He knows he won’t be getting any answers tonight as Emma sleeps solidly through his attempts to cover her completely. He affords her the softest and warmest comforter he owns, so as to ensure that her supple backside won’t be subjected to the cool night air; and to protect her modesty should she turn over at some point while she sleeps.

Having resigned himself to another night on the couch, at least it’s comfortable, Killian proceeds with his plan of taking a shower, and if he should have the need to relieve some tension that had stirred to life at the sight of Emma’s delectable assets, none need be the wiser.

She wakes to the sunlight streaming onto her face, wondering, why in sam hell is my blackout curtain not working? Starting to take inventory of herself and her surroundings, Emma comes to several conclusions rather quickly. Oh shit! This isn’t my bed. Why am I naked? Damn my head hurts like a son of a bitch, what the hell happened last night?

As she thinks back to the night before, she tries to mentally retrace her steps. Emma remembers having worked herself up into such a state of agitation thinking about Killian and Tink together, that she drank every last drop of rum left in the bottle. The last memory she has is getting up off of her couch with determination. What the hell was I so determined to do? Everything after that is fuzzy.

How did I get to Killian’s apartment? The key, that’s right, he gave me his spare key… Taking stock of her current lack of clothing, surely I must have taken them off before getting in his bed, right? Looking around the room, there are no clothes scattered on the floor. I didn’t? I wouldn’t. Did I really walk across the hall naked and break in to my best friend’s apartment, and pass out on his bed? Was he home? How much of me did he see? How did he react? Fuck! How awkward is this going to be? Deciding there is nothing for it, she gets out of his bed to face the music, before he comes to confront her.

Making sure the coast is clear, Emma gets up and dashes for Killian’s closet to find something to cover herself with. Picking her favorite hoodie of his and a really soft pair of boxers, she heads out in search of Killian, only to find him in the kitchen. His back is to her as he works at the stove, making what smells like… pancakes? He’s making me pancakes?

“So wanna tell me why you were passed out in my bed, love?” He turns his head just enough so she can see that damnable quirked brow of his, “Not that I’m complaining about coming home to a beautiful woman in my bed… I’d thought Christmas had come early.”

“Yeah… sorry about that… I was upset,” Emma mumbles as she avoids Killian’s gaze, afraid of what she might find.

“Upset? What were you upset about?” Killian sounds genuinely concerned, but she still refuses to look at him.

“Nothing, I was just upset, and got drunk, and I think it reacted funny with my medication.”

“Swan. You know you’re not supposed to drink with your medication.”

“Nevermind, you know what, just forget about it. I’ll just leave you alone. Sorry for bothering you.” As she turns to leave, she feels Killian’s hand gently wrap around her uninjured elbow, turning her to face him.

“Emma, love, stop. What is going on?”

Well hell! Way to ruin things Emma, way to ruin everything, like always. He knows something is up, he actually is quite perceptive. Honestly this may be my last chance to say something, I may have already lost him, and I can’t let him go, without at least telling him.

Emma brings her panic filled eyes to meet Killian’s concerned gaze as she solidifies her resolve. Now or never Emma , “I’m in love with you. That’s what, and I don’t know how to deal with it, along with the fact that you don’t see me as anything more than a friend.” Her voice starts out strong, but as she reaches the end, it is quiet as a whisper, and cracking as she struggles to contain her turbulent emotions.

“Now where did you get an idea like that?”

“Like what?”

“That I don’t see you as anything more than a friend.”

“You’ve never said anything.”

“When would I have had the chance? The timing was never right.”

“Oh.”

“Emma, I have loved you for so long, I can’t remember what it’s like not to love you. So, to clear up any possible confusion. Emma Swan, I love you.”

In lieu of a response to his declaration, Emma is on him. Her lips are sealed to his in a passionate kiss that he’d never even let himself dare to hope for. Apparently, she was going for action rather than words, but she had already said those five fateful words, and he’d thought his heart was going to burst when she had.

If we’re going the route of action then . He picks her up and though she startles to the point of exclaiming his name in an octave higher than normal, her legs wrap around his hips of their own volition.

“Do you realize how mad you drove me?” he murmured against her lips, not wanting to pull away any further than that, now that he’s been granted the pleasure of her kiss. Killian is relying fully on muscle memory to guide them back down the hall to his bedroom. “Seeing you naked on my bed, unable to touch you. And this morning, seeing you in nothing but my clothing, a man can only take so much temptation.” He presses the evidence of her torments against her as he pins her against his bedroom door.

“You’re not the only one that’s been tempted Jones.” Emma veritably moans as he grinds against her again.

“What say you, to us re-examining your outfit from last night?”

“But I wasn’t wearing anything last night.”

“Exactly.” With Emma’s giggle, Killian finishes the trek to his bed. As things are ramping up, kisses more heated, touches roaming over every expanse, a disheartening realization comes to him. “Swan, wait… wait, wait. I don’t have any condoms. I wasn’t expecting-”

“It’s ok Killian… I’m covered. I’m clean, and protected .”

“Aye?”

Emma nods bashfully at his enquiry.

“I’m clean as well, so if you’re still willing.”

“Yes, I’m willing, now get a move on Jones. I’m tired of waiting.” At the vehemence in Emma’s voice, Killian leans up off of her to remove his shirt. He notes the look on her face as his shirt clears his head, and soars across the room.

“See something you like, love?” he asks with a smirk playing on his lips. It takes her a moment to peel her eyes away from his toned chest to meet his gaze.

“Yeah.” Her voice is much breathier than normal, which causes his smirk to widen.

He helps divest her of his hoodie, and is unable to stay his thoughts “You are an absolute vision my love.” One of his new favorite things has to be the blush that creeps across Emma’s chest and face at his words of praise.

With a roll of her eyes, she deflects by saying, “Whatever you say, Romeo.”

Willing to let it be, and get back to the more urgent matter at hand, Killian gives her another kiss before pulling back, and nudging her hips so he can help her shimmy out of his boxers. When she’s completely bare he leans back up and showers Emma in kisses. He starts with her pouting lips, then works his way down her jaw, and all along the length of her neck, intent on showering every inch of her body with his affection.

“Killian-”

He can’t help but smile at the way Emma whines out his name in frustration.

Pausing his trail of kisses long enough to look up into her emerald eyes, with pupils blown wide, he asks, “Yes, my love?”

“You are still far too overdressed.”

“All in good time my love, I plan on taking my time, and taking care of you the way you deserve. I’ve been dreaming about this for far too long to rush any of it. Ladies first, then I will take you; I promise.”

“W-Wait… you’ve dreamt of this?”

Killian chuckles wickedly. “Of course I have. You are quite entrancing.”

Killian rests his chin just above her delectable quim, glancing up, he catches her eye. He wants to make sure she is alright with this, not wanting to cross a line, and risk pushing her too far too fast; the thought of pushing her away is unbearable. When Emma smiles reassuringly, he closes the distance, licking a line with the flat of his tongue from slit to clit, eliciting a moan from both of them.

“My love, you taste divine, I’ll never get enough of you,” he murmurs into her core, not wanting to stop for even a second.

Emma wiggles and jumps with the sensations of his attentions causing him to place his left hand across her belly to keep her still. Alternating between long licks, penetrating her with his tongue, and sucking on her bundle of nerves, he’s quickly driving her to the edge of pleasure. As she gets closer he uses his mouth to focus his ardor on her clit while guiding his fingers in and out of her to work her to completion.

Emma comes with a cry of his name on her lips, and he swears he’s never heard a sweeter sound.

“Still with me love?”

She hums out a pleasured sound of affirmation as he hops back off of the bed and shucks his pants. Killian then lies down beside her, playing with her hair, until she opens her eyes to look at him.

Bringing himself above her, once she has recovered, Killian’s right hand trails down her side from her pert breast to her hip, anchoring himself to her there. He slowly runs his silken steel shaft through her drenched folds, savoring the wetness as he coats himself in her essence. After teasing the both of them a few moments more he delicately pushes his throbbing cock into her tight sheath inch by delicious inch until he is completely buried in her to the hilt. Pausing to give them both a moment to adjust, he leans forward to capture her lips in a kiss to trump all kisses. He keeps his pace steady, trying not to thrust too hard, wanting to make it memorable for both of them.

Feeling his release building quicker than he’d like, he reaches down to caress her clit and whispers to her, “Come again for me Emma, I want you to come with me.” As he circles her clit faster, he feels the enticing flutter of her walls signaling her orgasm.

“Killian. Right there. I’m … I’m … OH GOD!’’

“Let go Emma, I’ll catch you. Come for me.’’ Watching as Emma falls so beautifully over the edge, he lets her take him with her. Killian murmurs her name lovingly as he spills his release inside her.

“That’s it love, that’s it.’’ He relaxes above her, momentarily forgetting he is putting all of his weight on her. Regaining his senses, he rolls off of her and pulls her to her side so they can lie facing each other to catch their breaths.

“I hope I’ve not worn you out, love. I am nowhere near finished with you yet,” he growls into her ear.

They both lose track of the hours, too wrapped up in the feel of one another to care, they spend the rest of the day in Killian’s bed.

Waking from, probably the best sleep she’s ever experienced, laying snuggled into a still sleeping Killian, Emma thinks back on the perfect and pleasurable day before. Emma finds herself wanting Killian, again .

She takes advantage of his slumber to peruse every facet of his beautiful body. Her hand starts at his cheek before skimming along his chiseled jawline. She moves to his neck, and leans down to place a gentle kiss in the hollow of his throat, then continues with both hands now, to smooth along his toned chest. She loves his thatch of chest hair as it rubs against her palms, and even more when it grazes her hardened nipples.  

He truly is a work of art, and she wonders if he’d be upset if she tasted him. She’s wanted to take him with her mouth since she’d seen him bobbing hard and proud against his stomach. Deciding she is going to treat him, Emma delicately shimmies her body down his, so as not to wake him before she wants him to.

Once she is level with his already hardened member, she licks her lips in anticipation; gently taking his generous length in hand, she extends her tongue to lick a stripe from base to tip. Killian shifts in his sleep at this, but does not wake, emboldened by her desire she opens her mouth to take him in fully. Unable to stifle the moan that crawls up her throat at the sensation of him in her mouth, Emma begins to steadily bob up and down along his length. She feels the ache in her core and knows she is wet, but this is about Killian, and his pleasure, not hers.

By the time Killian starts to stir from the sensations she’s lavishing on him, she can feel the wetness pooling and dripping down her thighs. The sound Killian makes is a mix between a moan and grunt. His hand reaches out reflexively tangling in her hair as she continues to work him over with her mouth. Voice still heavy with sleep, Killian finally speaks up, “Emma…” His voice trails off as another moan escapes his throat, and he gives a slight tug on the hair in his grip. “Love stop, or this will all be over too quickly. I’ve no wish to leave you unsatisfied.” At that Emma picks up her pace, intending to make him fall apart for her, just as she had fallen for him the day before. Any further protestations from Killian are staved off by another moan torn from his throat as he begins to spill himself down her throat. Emma tastes his release and swallows down every last drop before releasing him with a soft pop. She grins up at his sated smile like the cat that ate the canary.

After a few moments of quiet, with nothing but Killian’s labored breathing to be heard, Emma shimmies back to her place, snuggled into his side. “Well. Swan, wow. Christmas really did come early. But have no doubt, I will get you back for that.”

“I look forward to it. Best Christmas ever.” Emma hums out as she snuggles into Killian’s chest.

~ Fin ~

Walsh’s POV

Tagging some lovelies that have asked to be tagged, as well as some I believe might enjoy. Please let me know if you do, or don’t wish to be tagged. Happy reading.

@artistic-writer @captain-swan-coffee @flipperbrain @gingerchangeling @ilovemesomekillianjones @jennjenn615 @kmomof4 @laschatzi @seriouslyhooked @smutqueen27 @teamhook @ultraluckycatnd @xhookswenchx @yayimallamaagain

[godsavetheq]

1-30 c;

*GALE FORCE SIGH COMES IN FROM CENTRAL PENNSYLVANIA*

1: Do you try to stay away from walkthroughs?

Yes. I want to win through my own merit. But I need that old ass game guide magazine for Perfect Dark because I want to unlock all the things and beat all the things (Perfect Dark will be a recurring theme from start to finish so buckle up)

2: Company you're always loyal to?

For consoles, Sony for the most part. XBox is the devil. But I do most of my gaming on PC these days. 

For games, the Creative Assembly (which makes the Total War series of grand military strategy games). Although my loyalty is being tested because their cranking out fantasy Warhammer: Total War games like hotcakes now, presumably because their SEGA corporate overlords like the money they’re making off them. Though apparently they have a separate team that’s pretty far into developing the next historical Total War game so I’ll come back around when that comes out, probably.

3: Best game you've ever played?

What a hard question. You know I have 111 games in my Steam library? We’ll say 100 because some of those are like expansions of other games or test servers of WIP games. So 100 games just on PC, plus god knows how many PS1, PS2, PS3, PS4, N64, GameCube, and Wii games I’ve played. It comes to a point where I can’t objectively single out one game from all of my favorites, so I’ll take “best” as meaning like highest production quality and best execution of the game, and I’ll hand it to Resident Evil 7. So professional, so fun... so Shoney’s.

4: Worst game you've ever played?

Shower With Your Dad Simulator 2015. Yes that’s a real game, it costs like $1 and someone bought it for me on Steam and it is the simplest, stupidest game that it probably belonged on a free online game site to justify its existence in some way.

5: A popular series/game you just can't get into no matter how much you try?

Well there’s a lot of popular games that I can’t get into, but that’s partially because I’ve internalized that I hate them without having given them much of a chance (looking at you, Dota, League of Legends, Overwatch (Or as we in the trade call it, “$40 Team Fortress 2″))

But now that I think of it, World of Warcraft. I got my free trial and played it some with Perry & Good Old Boys™ from Steam, but I just did not enjoy myself. I also had a prejudice against this one before I played it but at least I tried it and confirmed that I didn’t like it.

6: A game that's changed you the most?

Fallout series I guess. Kind of got me into post-apocalyptic stuff, RPGs and the like. Kind of opened the door for fantasy for me somewhat. I generally don’t like fantasy and I like to make the distinction between sci-fi and fantasy to justify my liking Fallout but truthfully half of the shit in Fallout is too over-the-top to qualify as like realistic fiction. Still haven’t played Skyrim because it’s too fantasy, but I’d at least consider it because it’s not all that different from Fallout if I’m willing to excuse the magic and shit.

7: A game you'll never forget?

Surgeon Simulator. What a titan of ridiculously clunky medical malpractice. 

The Stanley Parable because that game messes with you and is comedy gold

POSTAL 2 because rarely does a game execute low-quality production and lack of taking itself seriously so beautifully 

Hotline Miami because it fucks with you even worse than the Stanley Parable. I mean seriously, what a rollercoaster ride of mental fuckery. Am I a good guy? Am I a bad guy? All I know for sure is I’m killing a copious amount of Russian mobsters while masked figures in my head whisper nonsense at me and everywhere I go I see my dead best friend and........

Rollercoaster Tycoon (the old one for like Windows 98) because muh childhood

Destroy All Humans! 2 because they just don’t make any alien games that compare to it. Also muh childhood.

KHOLAT because it’s like a clinic in how to do horror right. And it came out at a time when it was a sad time to be a horror fan because Resident Evil was all “hurr durr our games need to be like Call of Duty” and there were no new Silent Hill, Outlast, or Slender games coming out. Of course eventually Resident Evil got good again, Outlast 2 came out, Silent Hills was SUPPOSED to come out (RIP)

Kerbal Space Program. I held out on this one for so long because I was turned off by the little green alien people and I figured it wasn’t serious. But holy fuck it’s actually like the best simulation of running a space program and designing rockets and shit oh my god like they train Astronauts with that game no lie.

8: Best soundtrack?

Slender: The Arrival. Honorable mentions go to Hotline Miami and Supreme Ruler: Cold War

9: A game you turn your volume off every time you play it?

None

10: A game you've completely given up on?

Five Nights at Freddy’s, like, all of them. I can’t beat all of the levels in any of them. I beat the five nights in the original FNaF but not the edgy sixth night. Didn’t even get that far in the second or third. Kinda lost track of which is which too...

11: Hardest game you've played?

Fucking Perfect Dark. I’ve been playing that game effectively for my entire conscious life and only just this summer have I begun to win A FEW levels on Perfect Agent difficulty. For context, I beat the entire game on Special Agent difficulty years ago, but at the time, I could not even beat the first level on Perfect Agent. 

12: Shortest time you've beaten a game in?

When I got GTA V for Christmas several years ago I did almost nothing but play it all day every day and beat it in a few days.

13: A game you were the most excited for when it wasn't released yet?

Probably Total War: Rome II. Honorable mentions go to Saurian, Resident Evil 7, Silent Hills (RIP)

14: A game you think would be cool if it had voice acting?

I dunno, I feel like most games that SHOULD have voice acting DO have voice acting. Nothing comes to mind.

15: Which two games do you think would make an awesome crossover?

I got nothing.

16: Character you've hated most? From what game?

I have to do it. Ashley from Resident Evil 4. I don’t care if you are the President’s daughter, you are useless and annoying.

17: What game do you never tell people you play?

I mean, games that I don’t like I guess.

18: A game you wish your friends knew about?

I got nothing, my friends know about most such things.

19: Which game do you think deserves a revival?

Spore, 100%. Nobody before or since has saw to completion a game where you literally design your own organism from a microscopic sea creature, evolving onto land, gaining sentience, building a civilization, uniting your planet and pushing out into space to build a space empire. It deserves to be remade, and done right this time.

20: What was the first video game you ever played?

The first REAL video game was GTA 3, but I may have played something stupid before that.

21: How old were you when you first played a video game?

I dunno, young.

22: If you could immerse yourself in any game for one day, which game would it be? What would you do?

Kerbal Space Program. I’d finally make that manned mission to Duna (Mars), baby. It has eluded me for so long, and to see it with my own eyes... 10/10

23: Biggest disappointment you've had in gaming?

Rome Total War - Alexander expansion. It seemed like such a simple thing. Make an expansion for Rome Total War about Alexander’s Empire. It was the most pitiful thing I’d ever seen. I mean, I know the original Rome Total War is old as dirt, but the base game and the Barbarian Invasions expansion were pretty good.

24: Casual, Hardcore, or in the middle?

In the middle. I tryhard sometimes and just fuck around other times.

25: Be honest; have you ever used cheats (like ActionReplay or Gameshark)?

I mean... do the cheats in GTA 3 count that spawn a bunch of guns and tanks for you? I didn’t use them to beat the game, I just wanted to fuck around because that’s the best way to play GTA 3 :P

26: Handheld or console?

Given those choices, console. Never was too into handhelds after Gameboy Advance. I had a DS Lite and was into Scribblenauts on that for a while, but since then, nah.

27: Has there ever been a moment that has made you cry?

Don’t think so, but it hit me in the feels when John Marston got killed by the crooked wild west cops in Red Dead Redemption.

28: Which character's clothes do you wish you owned the most?

The only thing that comes to mind is Trent Easton from Perfect Dark because he has like a fucking red velvet suit and it’s so ridiculous like he’s the head of the NSA you’d think he’d wear a black suit but no, bright red. I’ll take 20.

29: Which is more important, gameplay or story?

Don’t make me choose. Depends on the game I guess. I like Perfect Dark despite the fact that its storyline is an incoherent mess. Try to follow along.

It involves a plot between Cassandra de Vries, owner of a shady arms manufacturing corporation with private paramilitaries on the march in every corner of their corporate HQ as well as all over the city streets (I, too, voted for Trump so that he could legalize corporate-owned private armies) that also has a massive underground research lab hidden inconspicuously under the city of Chicago; Trent Easton, the fashionable Director of the National Security Agency, whose goons start shooting up Air Force One in a plot to kidnap and clone the President of the United States, and a mysterious tall blonde man known only as Mr. Blonde who wears evil clothes and, unbeknownst to the other two conspirators, is a massive alien dinosaur thing that sounds like a jaguar in disguise who eventually kills both of them once they’re no longer useful. But don’t worry! The plot to give the dinosaur aliens a super-weapon fails when some guy sends his on-staff professional mass-murderer to go kill endless corporate militias and NSA agents to get to the bottom of it with the help of a flying laptop that has developed a moral code and a different race of aliens who look much less impressive. Or something. So that game makes a compelling case against storyline, but in other cases it’s not so XP

30: A game that hasn't been localized in your country that you think should be localized?

Everything that I care about is localized to the US.

[mundanesalad]

In My Head

AO3 Link | SFW | No pairing Reworking of the end of the quest “Dangerous Minds” from Fallout 4.  Namely, I hated how the quest ended in game so I made my own.  Part of a series called Jury Rigging that is intended to be a bunch of short fix-it fic.

It was almost like a scene from a comic book.  The Backup stood silhouetted in the doorway.  She looked considerably more animated than the last time I saw her.  You could say that the giveaway was a toss up between being the only living human ever to break into Fort Hagen and the blood stained vault suit just barely visible beneath the oily black trench coat.  

No, it was the Backup’s face.  Sheer anger and determination that seemed to get more intense with every step closer.  Nothing quite like the loss of a family.  I couldn’t blame her, heck, I almost feel sorry for her.  

As dumb as they are trigger happy, the Gen 2’s in the room took a step back and stood their ground, save for the ratty one who accompanied her. The rouge synth produced a pistol from his jacket, clearly pilfered from one of my own as a testament of rebellion.  The Backup demanded answers.  I gave her the gist: yes, The Institute has her son.  She didn’t believe me when I told her that I had no idea where he is.  It’s clear that she’ll somehow she’ll hunt down the Institute and blast a hole into it with sheer willpower, but she’s not gonna like what she finds.  I would do the same.  

That’s why I can’t let her.  

“In a hundred years, when I finally die,” she smirked slightly as she cocked her gun, “I only hope I go to hell so I can kill you all over again, you piece of shit.”

The remaining synths sprang to life as anything that was left of this world was shredded by blinding blue lights.

Lynn suddenly snapped back into place. The memory lounger was a vice and she was about to be squeezed to death. Everything felt heavy and she was breathing in pins and needles. Without even thinking, her limbs kicked and clawed at the glass dome of the chair. She was no longer the bounty hunter Conrad Kellogg in Fort Hagan, she was Lynn Brockway, a temporally displaced lawyer searching for her son in a wrecked Boston but finding herself in the basement of the Memory Den.

Two figures stood silhouetted against the lounger’s frosted glass dome. They belonged to local journalist Piper Wright and the Memory Den’s medical expert, Doctor Amari.

“Lynn? Lynn can you hear me?” The doctor pleaded from out of sight. Lynn could barely see anything past the screen of her—no wait—Kellogg’s life.  Her voice was lumped in her throat and the most she could let out was a harsh cough. She needed air NOW . The lid cracked an inch before Lynn found herself tumbling to the floor of Amari’s office and mentally spilling out into a puddle. Piper ran over to help her up.

“Blue are you alright?” She said, a comforting voice after witnessing once again all that separated Lynn from her old life. Lynn took a deep breath and shakily stood up.

“I can’t believe…” she wheezed and gave a shaky smile, “...teleportation! He’s alive!” Everything felt warm and safe again, but a dreadful pit opened up in her heart.  She still had a chance to find her son, however he was being guarded by the most mysterious and dangerous entity in the Commonwealth. Lynn can't handle it alone, heck, she could barely handle existing in that moment. She took a step toward the door but collapsed. Doctor Amari gestured to a sofa nearby.

“You aren't going to want to move around so much right now. In order to fully explore the memories within Kellogg’s hippocampus, I had to inject you with some heavy sedatives,” the doctor ordered. “Everything will feel out of place for a bit, but it shouldn't hurt very much.  Mr. Valentine is waiting upstairs. You should take a rest, Lynn.”  

Piper half led, half dragged the sole survivor to the couch. Lynn, body too sluggish to move but too awake to sleep, stared up at the ceiling of the office. Doctor Amari’s office was a somewhat spacious room in the basement of the Memory Den, which happens to hold the title of the cleanest place in Goodneighbor. It had all the amenities a doctor's office would presumably have, such as stimpaks, bandages, a sink, rubber gloves, and whatnot.

Out of place, however, was a pair of memory loungers in the middle of the room. While she had been in one, Diamond City Detective Nick Valentine had occupied the other during her trance, serving as a way of processing the bounty hunter’s memories for viewing.

For now, Lynn was lying on the couch, Piper sitting beside her, doodling something in a note book.

Doctor Amari reassured the two that she’d be right back and left the room.

Lynn’s mind was over capacity in its analysis and mental replaying of the last few moments of Kellogg’s life.

Kellogg and company broke into Vault 111, decided Shaun was ripe for experimentation, killed her husband and everyone else she’s ever known, but decided that she was just marginally redeemable enough to keep alive.

But Kellogg stole more than just Shaun.

He had Shaun—had her baby—for ten whole years doing God knows what with him.

Lynn missed Shaun’s first word, his first steps, his first day of school. Learning what subjects he loves and teaching him to ride a bike and catching bugs and being a family. Shaun won't even remember her. She and her son are simply strangers with matching genes.

Kellogg stole everything from her.

Lynn actively tried to slow down but she was simply too anxious to process it all. She spent a long time staring into the ceiling fan before Piper said anything.

“So the bastard was in Diamond City the whole time and I couldn't sniff him out? I'm sorry I couldn't catch Shaun earlier,” she blamed herself half heartedly. Lynn snapped out of her fan-blade-induced trance. Piper was scribbling in her steno pad, crossing off clues and leads, taking a note of Kellogg’s residence and a possible story there. But the whole time, she was sniffling.

While Piper and Amari weren't witnessing it firsthand, they were still able to see what was going on in Kellogg’s head from the monitor in the waiting room. They’d seen everything. Both of them were right there with her.

“Imagine my own headline: Local Snoop Too Busy Digging Through Mayor’s Garbage to Notice a Kidnapping! ” There was a slight crack in her throat. She couldn’t imagine losing her sister, Nat.  Nat was all the family Piper had left in the Commonwealth, just as how Shaun was the only family Lynn had left from her time.  She felt herself tear up, but the reporter smothered it as best she could.

Lynn reached out and squeezed Piper’s hand.

“You did nothing wrong, Piper,” she said, “what matters is that my son still out there and that I will do everything I can to save him.”

“That’s a noble way of thinking, Blue. Let me know if there’s anything I can do to help you find Shaun.”

“I would be grateful for you to be there with me. Also, we should probably check on Nick before he rusts to death.”

Nick Valentine had his own steno pad he was writing in. Making connections, taking notes of possible locations the Institute would be, secretly doodling in the margins. Professional detective work. He had been alone in the waiting room, save for the overstuffed sofa he’s been lying on while Piper comforted the sole survivor downstairs in the doctor’s office. He heard some footsteps coming up from creaky wooden stairs.

“Well, I know you and Piper shop at the same office supply store,” Lynn smirked. The detective sat up and grinned.

“Hey, she’s awake!  How was the journey to the center of the jackass? Heard from the doc that the Institute’s been using teleportation to cover their tracks.”

“It was…painful. I hope I never have to see Nate…like that ever again,” Lynn stopped, “you didn't see Kellogg’s memories, too? I would have figured so…” she trailed off.

“No, I was acting less as a server to your client and more of the physical components of the computer.  I was out the whole time.”  He sighed. “Shame, too. Figured seeing the inside of the Institute might surface some old memories on where to find it.”

“Jog the cogs, you mean!” Piper quipped. This shook a chuckle from Doctor Amari, who had just entered the waiting room. She looked Lynn up and down but seemed to be focusing on Nick.

“Take it easy, you too Mr. Valentine. While it's most likely that certain neurons associated with memory will refire oddly after this procedure,” she paused, “to be honest, I’m not sure exactly what will happen since I’ve never had a memory exploration quite like this.”  

“I’ll make sure to take a note of anything that seems off, doctor. Thanks again,” replied Lynn.

“It's fine, in fact, it's amazing that the exploration was possible, using a synth brain to process cybernetic memories for viewing by organic beings. This could be groundbreaking for the Memory Den and my work,” Doctor Amari glanced at her watch and her expression changed from enthralled to a professional neutral.

“Unfortunately, right now I have to leave to fill some prescriptions and prepare for my next procedure. Take care.” The doctor promptly left the room, leaving Piper, Lynn, and Nick on the sofa. The three stood in silence for a few moments before the journalist decided it was a good time for a snack.

“Hey Blue, want a soda? Usually makes me feel better.”

“Sure, Piper,” said Lynn. She never really liked Nuka-Cola before the bombs fell, but there’s something endearing about 200-year-old flat soda. Piper stood to the side to rummage through her bag, presumably to find a bottle opener. Lynn looked back at Nick. She decided it was best to get down to business as soon as possible.

“What kind of leads do we have now? I figured that the Institute must be somewhere underneath the Commonwealth Institute of Technology, considering the name’s the-”

“You. The vault dweller,” a voice dark and all too real interrupted her. A pit as deep as the ocean opened up in Lynn’s stomach. No. Not this again. This can't be happening.

“I hope you got what you were looking for inside my head.” She looked down and saw only Nick, but she may as well have been staring down Kellogg once again. The hair on the back of her neck stood on end. Nick’s mouth moved but his voice wasn't the one coming out.

“I was right. I should have killed you when you were on ice.”

Suddenly, Lynn grabbed the bastard by the lapels of his jacket and slammed him into the wall. She didn't even realize what she had done until she found herself screaming.

“TELL ME WHERE THE FUCK THE INSTITUTE IS, YOU SACK OF SHIT! ”

“Lynn! What are you doing?!” Piper sprang between the sole survivor and the synth, trying to pry the woman off of him. She freed Nick, who took a few steps back from his assailant. Lynn was wide eyed and breathless, unable to form sentences.

“Kellogg did something—he’s in Nick! He was just talking! He’s still—he was talking! Through Nick!” Lynn couldn't articulate what she meant. She simply pointed at the detective.

“What did you say to me?” She paused after every word.

“I said that there will probably be a trail to the Institute at the CIT ruins, believe me,” repeated Nick. Lynn was still shaken. Why was Kellogg here?

“But what about the after effects! Of neurons refiring! There could be still traces of Kellogg in his brain!”

Piper cautiously approached Lynn and squeezed her hand.

“I…I didn't hear Kellogg speak. I heard Nick agree with your idea and then you tackled him,” admitted Piper.

“Lynn, when the doc was talking about this neuron business,” started Nick, concerned but defensive, “she was talking it affecting about you and not me, because I don't have any neurons!”

[kbroly]

Why Not to Buy from These Game Companies

Electronic Arts (EA):  They’re the worst company in the industry. They focus on loot boxes (aka “surprise mechanics” aka “GAMBLING”) to make their money these days.  All of their games are live service timesinks, are unfun, and more often than not yearly or bi-yearly iterations on the previous title (FIFA, Madden, NHL, NBA, Battlefield, etc.)  If you’re buying a game from EA, you should stop and reconsider what you’re doing.

Activision:  What do they offer besides Call of Duty anymore?  Spyro and Crash are making a comeback, but it’s clear they intend to monetize the hell out of them months after launch for no reason.  They’re out of licensed games, and frankly, out of developers, working Treyarch to the bone on 3 COD games in 4 years.  Yeesh.  Oh, right.  They have Blizzard.  I’m not sure if Blizzard started the microtransaction chicken and egg situation with this company, but Overwatch isn’t fun, Hearthstone is stale, and they had to create retro servers to get people to come back.  Oh, and that mobile Diablo game being announced in front of their most diehard fans and insulting them like the out of touch idiots they are.  What a joke.

2K and Warner Bros.:  I put these together because I’m not sure how to tackle them.  They don’t seem to publish many games, but the ones that do always seem to piss people off somehow, except WB’s Lego games.  Probably because they’re marketed specifically towards children and adding loot boxes, I’m sorry, SURPRISE MECHANICS, would be bad for them. As for 2K, it’s really Rockstar people care about and I think they could sell a game that doesn’t boot for 3 months and still sell 30 million copies at this point.  Their games are not fun, overhyped and they treat their workers worse than China does.

Bethesda:  Speaking of broken games, ta-da!  Fallout, Elder Scrolls, Prey, Rage, now even retro Doom.  Bethesda’s not into the whole ‘quality assurance’ thing because they just pawn it off onto their fans.  Don’t do their dirty work, and don’t buy their games.

Ubisoft:  The Diet Coke of the Gaming Industry’s shit.  They don’t do anything particularly shitty that anyone else on this list doesn’t do, but they clean it up to make it seem like they’re the good guys in all of this.  I guess when you make games in 40 different countries (or whatever it is, it’s a lot) you can better realize what works as universal PR.  It doesn’t make them any less terrible, though.

Capcom:  They have a pretty mean vindictive streak if you know what the telltale signs are.  It’s obvious they have a vendetta against Nintendo and its’ fans.  Instead of putting retro collections on a single cart/disc of slightly bigger size, they require you to download the rest to save them two cents on the dollar by not having to program something in half of a day.  You can see it in their fighting games by making their main fighting game an online only experience.  You can see it towards PC players by implementing insane DRM requirements, as well as hitting the platform months after release in certain cases.

Square Enix:  If you’re not on Playstation, they mean nothing to you.  They won’t even publish some of their games overeseas, requiring certain manufacturers to completely pickup the tab.  Even if they succeed, they’ll drop the ball and let the momentum for it wither up and die, only to half-ass it again in a decade and then give up entirely, blaming “tastes” instead of themselves (Dragon Quest).  They also don’t handle their IP’s well, taking a decade plus to deliver a mediocre product on what fans waited on for a long time (Final Fantasy XV and Kingdom Hearts 3).  But they bought Eidos and let them run amock with overpriced garbage that looks second rate and a generation behind.

Bandai Namco:  They’re just cookie cutter the majority of the time.  They deliver what you expect, and not really much more.  As a company, they’re completely unremarkable to an amazing degree despite everyone knowing they can do a hell of a lot better.

Microsoft:  Their strategy is multiplatform and services.  Their reach is as small as ever, and until they show something remarkable, it’ll only continue to get smaller.  They have Minecraft, but they haven’t really put their finger on the scale with it yet; or they’ve been really good at hiding it.  So it’s almost like they don’t control it.  Beyond that, they’re making it really easy to not want people to buy an Xbox.

Sony:  They’re Arrogant.  Some may say that Arrogant Sony is back, but the reality is they never left.  It’s in their DNA, people.  Their games drop to $20 fairly quickly and have for a long time.  Additionally, their games aren’t worth playing a couple years after the come out, as they become either dated graphically or the controls and mechanics aren’t as good as you remember them being (Uncharted, the Last of Us).

Nintendo:  They’re either completely inept or intentionally obtuse, refusing to give fans what they expect.  Good online multiplayer (Smash Bros. and Super Mario Maker 2) are a unicorn for them.  They miss basic features on their systems.  But the biggest of all is that it feels like fans have to fight them to get what they need sometimes.  King K. Rool and Ridley in Smash Bros. felt like a fight had to happen.  Earthbound on Virtual Console was just this jaw-dropping moment of rumors not being true while the reality is much more stupid.  One has to wonder how far this mindset permeates with other franchises, particularly Paper Mario, F-Zero and Metroid.

[terryblount]

Fallout 76 Wild Appalachia update available for download, full patch release notes revealed

Bethesda has released a brand new update for Fallout 76. Titled “Wild Appalachia”, this patch comes with a new questline, new crafting system, new seasonal event quest, energy and heavy weapons balance tweaks, challenge tracking and the ability to report a player.

Furthermore, the Fallout 76 Wild Appalachia patch implements a performance improvement for the Speed Demon perk, addresses a crash that could occur during the Scorched Earth event, a crash that could occur on Xbox One when opening the Map in areas like Charleston and Morgantown Airport and a crash that could occur when attempting to trade with another player.

?his patch also comes with some graphics tweaks and fixes. For instance, it fixes several issues that could cause visible seams in the environment or cause certain objects to appear to float, addresses an issue that could cause character models to become invisible after Fast Traveling or exiting a loading screen, renders correctly environment objects when looking through a specific window inside the Thunder Mountain Power Plant and more.

As always, this patch will be auto-downloaded from the Bethesda launched and you can find its huge changelog below.

Fallout 76 Wild Appalachia Patch Release Notes

WILD APPALACHIA

New Questline – Wasted on Nukashine

Begin this questline by finding and reading one of the Party Invitation Posters that VTU students have plastered throughout Appalachia, including at Train Stations, to join in the revelry.

Party Invitation Posters are also available for free in the Atomic Shop until 9:00 a.m. EDT on April 9. Once claimed, you can place the poster in your C.A.M.P. and read it to begin the quest.

New Crafting System – Brewing and Distilling

A new Brewing Workbench has been added that you’ll learn to build by completing the Wasted on Nukashine questline. Use it to craft a variety of new Wines, Spirits, Beers, and Mixed Drinks that will temporarily apply positive and negative effects when consumed.

Several Brewing and Distilling Daily and Weekly Challenges have also been added.

New C.A.M.P. Object – Fermenter

Some drinks require fermentation time before they’re ready to be consumed. Wines and Spirits can also be aged further to gain additional, more powerful effects.

The Fermenter C.A.M.P. object has been added to aid in this process and can be unlocked by completing Wasted on Nukashine.

Brew up a new batch of drinks using the Brewing Workbench and then use the Fermenter to select those concoctions and age them twice as fast.

New Daily Quests – Brewing and Distilling

Once per day, after you’ve completed the Wasted on Nukashine questline, you can speak to Biv to continue experimentation and occasionally learn new recipes.

Sometimes, you’ll be asked to imbibe various types of alcohol and perform specific tasks. Other times, you’ll learn a new recipe and will need to craft the brew to Biv’s satisfaction.

New Seasonal Event Quest – Fasnacht Parade

This repeatable, limited-time event will be available for one week, from March 19 – 26.

Travel to the town of Helvetia to aid the local Protectrons as they prepare for the annual Fasnacht celebration and parade. Guide the bots to the end of their parade route to claim new loot, which may include new C.A.M.P. plans, and gain a chance to earn a fantastic Fasnacht mask.

There are many Fasnacht masks up for grabs, and some are exceedingly rare. Trade with your friends to acquire any particular mask that catches your eye.

Check out our recent articles on Fallout.com to learn more about Brewing and Distilling and the Fasnacht Parade Seasonal Event.

GENERAL

Server Maintenance: The messages displayed when servers are taken offline for maintenance have been updated:

The message displayed when an individual server is shut down for maintenance is now: “Please join another World. This World will be undergoing maintenance soon.”

The message displayed when Fallout 76 is brought offline for maintenance is now: “Game Services are shutting down for maintenance soon.”

ATOMIC SHOP

Change Appearance: Players can now preview Atomic Shop items while navigating the in-game Change Appearance menu.

After entering Change Appearance from the menu on the Map, Atomic Shop items such as hairstyles and tattoos will now populate the list of appearance changes that players can preview.

Select an item and then choose “View in Atomic Shop” to open the Atomic Shop and unlock that item using Atoms.

Workbenches: Players can now also preview Atomic Shop items, such as paints, headwear, and outfits, from the list of craftable items that appears after entering a Workbench.

This functions much like previewing Atomic Shop items in a Workshop, or in the Change Appearance menu as mentioned above.

Additionally, a toggle has been added that players can use to show or hide unowned Atomic Shop items in a Workbench’s craftable item list.

BALANCE CHANGES

Energy Weapons: The amount of condition damage heavy energy weapons take per shot has been greatly reduced, and they should now last 4 to 5 times longer before needing repairs.

Energy Weapons: The amount of condition damage semi-auto energy weapons take per shot has been reduced by half, and they should last twice as long before needing repairs.

Energy Weapons: Base damage for semi-auto energy weapons has been increased by 10%.

Heavy Weapons: High rate-of-fire automatic heavy weapons have had their fire-rates reduced across the board, and weapon damage has been increased by +10% to maintain their original damage per second.

Dev Note: For high rate-of-fire heavy weapons, we wanted to drastically increase their effective damage per second against armor without pushing their baseline damage per second too high. This change in fire-rate provided room for a damage increase to help punch through armor more effectively.

Heavy Weapons: Weapon damage for all other automatic heavy weapons has been increased by 10% to 20%.

Heavy Weapons: The amount of condition damage automatic ballistic heavy weapons take per shot has been reduced by 75%.

Dev Note: We hope that some of these adjustments for energy and heavy weapons will help your guns feel more useful, from their durability to their ammo consumption rates. We know that some in the community have also been asking for weight changes for heavy weapons. While we haven’t addressed that in today’s patch, we do plan to make improvements with a future update and we will let you know as soon as we’re ready to share more details.

Flux: Different types of Flux have had their weights and sell values adjusted:

Stable Flux: Base value increased to 100 Caps.

Raw Flux: Base value reduced to 10 Caps.

Inert Flux: Weight reduced to 0.2 pounds, base value reduced to 0 Caps, and can no longer be sold to Vendors.

C.A.M.P., CRAFTING, AND WORKSHOPS

Budget Adjustments: Some C.A.M.P. objects, such as Turrets and Lights, now consume far less budget, but also have a maximum amount that can be placed in a C.A.M.P. or Workshop.

These object recipes in the crafting menu now display how many of that item have already been built by the player in a C.A.M.P. or Workshop, including how many they have stored, as well as the maximum amount that can be placed.

Dev Note: Adding a max count to certain objects allows us to reduce those objects’ budget costs, while allowing us to keep an eye on their specific usage, as well as balance and performance. As a result, you’ll be able to build more stuff, and we’ll have more flexibility to refine and adjust C.A.M.P. and Workshop structure balance and performance.

C.A.M.P. Placement Adjustments: Occasionally, new game content may need to occupy a space in the world that was previously usable as a C.A.M.P. location. When this occurs, a new no-build zone will be placed in that spot, preventing players from building there in the future.

If a player’s pre-existing C.A.M.P. location would overlap a new no-build zone on joining a world, a notification will now inform them that their C.A.M.P. cannot be placed, and they will be given one free C.A.M.P. placement.

C.A.M.P.: Several additional environment objects, such as grasses, ferns, and swamp fungus, will now disappear when the player builds C.A.M.P. objects on top of them.

Radios: Classical and Appalachia Radios can now be crafted and placed in C.A.M.P.s and Workshops.

DESIGN AND GAMEPLAY

AFK Timer: The timer that disconnects players after a period of inactivity is now 25% longer when sitting or sleeping.

Carry Weight Limit: A new “Destroy” option will now appear in place of the “Drop” option when a player who has exceeded the absolute maximum weight limit of 1,500 pounds plus the character’s current carry weight views items in their inventory.

Selecting this option will destroy the selected item. This can be repeated with additional items until the player’s total weight meets or falls below the absolute limit.

While above the absolute weight limit, items can no longer be dropped, traded, or consumed. They can only be kept or destroyed.

Dev Note: As part of our ongoing quest to improve the game’s overall economy, performance, and address items created as a result of exploit abuse, we’ve decided to implement a “Destroy” option for players who have surpassed the absolute weight limit. This should also help reduce cases of excessive item hoarding, as well as prevent duped items from being dropped and making their way into unsuspecting players’ hands.

USER INTERFACE

Challenge Tracking: A tracker has been added to the Map to help players take note of their current active Challenges at a glance, and enable them to monitor progress on the Challenges they choose to track.

Players can now access the Challenges menu directly from the Map and selecting a Challenge from the list will add it to the tracker.

Open the Map at any time to view any tracked Challenges, as well as progress toward Challenge completion.

Notifications will now display whenever progress is made toward a tracked Challenge.

Player Reporting System: A new “Report Player” option has been added, and will appear below the “Block” option upon clicking a player’s name in the Social Menu.

Clicking “Report Player” will open a reporting menu that features several reporting options, including: Cheating/Exploiting, Harassment, Offensive Name, and Real-World Threat.

Some reportable behaviors may fall under one of these categories. For example, offensive language can be reported using the Harassment category, and scamming or using bots can be reported as Cheating/Exploiting.

Selecting one of the above reporting options will send a report to the Bethesda Customer Service team for further investigation.

Main Menu: The background video that plays while viewing the Main Menu has been updated with a new Wild Appalachia themed video.

Main Menu: The Atomic Shop option on the Main Menu will now appear greyed-out with a loading spinner until the Shop is fully loaded.

Chat Volume Setting: A new Chat slider has been added to the Audio Settings menu and can be adjusted to increase or decrease the volume of incoming voice chat.

World Radios Setting: A new World Radios slider has been added to the Audio Settings menu and can be adjusted to increase or decrease the volume of all in-world radios. The existing Radio Volume slider has been renamed Pip-Boy Radio, and both settings can be adjusted independently of one another.

BUG FIXES

PERFORMANCE AND STABILITY

Performance: Implemented a performance improvement for the Speed Demon perk.

Stability: Addressed a crash that could occur during the Scorched Earth event.

Stability: Addressed a crash that could occur on Xbox One when opening the Map in areas like Charleston and Morgantown Airport.

Stability: The game client no longer crashes when crouching and standing up in mid-air while using Power Armor with a jetpack.

Stability: Fixed a rare server crash that could occur when building a structure.

Stability: Addressed a crash that could occur when attempting to trade with another player.

ART AND GRAPHICS

Animation: Characters in Power Armor now correctly play hand raise animations after using an Emote.

Environment: Both sides of the Brotherhood of Steel flag that hangs inside Fort Defiance now render correctly.

Environment: Fixed several issues that could cause visible seams in the environment or cause certain objects to appear to float.

Graphics: Addressed an issue that could cause character models to become invisible after Fast Traveling or exiting a loading screen.

Graphics: Fixed a rare issue that, under certain circumstances, could cause a player to become invisible and invincible after Fast Traveling.

Graphics: Decapitating another player during PVP no longer causes the character’s neck to appear stretched.

Graphics: Using the Social Menu to Fast Travel to a friend or teammate no longer causes the player’s character model or the game world briefly appear much darker than intended just before Fast Traveling.

Visual Effects: Sparking effects no longer appear to float in mid-air after attaching a Wire to or from a powered object in the player’s C.A.M.P.

World: The Weapons Workbench across from the Flatwoods Church has been rotated to prevent the game camera from clipping into a wall when accessing the workbench.

World: Environment objects will no longer fail to appear when looking through a specific window inside the Thunder Mountain Power Plant.

World: Structures and other environment objects now load correctly after using the elevator to access the rooftop of the Watoga Municipal Center.

C.A.M.P., CRAFTING, AND WORKSHOPS

Artillery: No longer fails to fire if a player is not present near the Artillery’s placement location.

Blueprints: Attempting to place a Blueprint on the terrain that contains multiple metal conduits no longer causes a “Nothing is selected” error message to display.

Blueprints: Attempting to place a Blueprint that contains metal conduits no longer causes the conduits to be split from the main structure into a separate Blueprint.

Blueprints: Individual Turrets can now be correctly added to a Blueprint using the “select” option.

Blueprints: The material requirements displayed when attempting to place a Blueprint that contains roof objects now match the actual material costs for placement.

Blueprints: Fixed an issue that could prevent various C.A.M.P. objects from being added to a Blueprint selection when using the “Grow Selection” option.

Blueprints: Being killed by another player while attempting to name a Blueprint no longer causes the Blueprint naming menu to remain visible while dead.

Blueprints: Fixed an issue in which a Blueprint would not be saved if a tamed creature was the only selected object.

C.A.M.P.: Fixed an issue that prevented certain environment objects from disappearing when placing the C.A.M.P. apparatus on top of them.

Columns: The Classic Column and Stone Pedestal Atomic Shop items can now snap on top of one another and busts can more easily be placed on top of them for display.

Crafting: Brick powered doors can now correctly be placed on corners next to an adjacent object, such as a wall, that had already been placed.

Crafting: Fixed an issue that could enable ASAM Turrets to be built in a player’s C.A.M.P.

Crafting: Fixed an issue preventing players from crafting the Civil War Era Top Hat, Confederate Hat, Costume Witch Hat, Halloween Skull Mask, and Union Hat, despite having learned the required Plans.

Defenses: Fixed an issue that prevented some defense items from being placed on upper-floors.

Doors: Now correctly appear aligned within the doorframe when snapped brick walls that have doorframes.

Exploits: Addressed an exploit that could allow stored C.A.M.P. objects to become duplicated.

Exploits: Addressed an exploit that could allow Blueprints to be duplicated when moving C.A.M.P. locations.

Exploits: Fixed multiple issues that could allow players to access unintended areas using certain C.A.M.P. objects.

Floors: The error message that displays when attempting to place an Upper Floor in an invalid location now correctly states that Upper Floors can only be snapped to the tops of Stairs or existing Upper Floor pieces.

Foundations: Addressed an issue that could allow players to stack Foundations under certain circumstances.

Modify: Fixed an issue causing the “Replace” option to become non-functional when viewing a broken C.A.M.P. object in the Modify menu.

Modify: Error messages no longer appear when rapidly selecting and deselecting multiple C.A.M.P. objects in the Modify menu.

Modify: C.A.M.P. objects destroyed by another player while using the modify menu no longer causes them to fail to render.

Placement: Tamed creatures are no longer permanently lost if the player’s C.A.M.P. cannot be placed upon joining a world, and now correctly reappear the next time the C.A.M.P. is successfully placed.

Placement: If a player’s current C.A.M.P. location is occupied and they choose the “Find another world” option they can no longer continue to interact with objects while waiting to join a new world.

Repair All: Fixed an issue causing C.A.M.P. object repairs to require more materials then intended when using the Repair All option.

Repair All: The material requirements displayed when attempting to “Repair All” with the Contractor Perk equipped now correctly match the actual material costs.

Scrapping: Bone Clubs and Bone Hammers now correctly grant steel and bone fragments when scrapped.

Scrapping: Hazmat Suits now correctly grant Steel, Rubber, Glass, and Lead when scrapped.

Shelves: Placing an object on shelves no longer causes it to appear to float.

Stash Boxes: A number of Stash Box type objects, such as toolboxes, coolers, and dressers, among others can now be correctly damaged or destroyed by players.

Turrets: Newly placed Turrets will no longer automatically attack the owner’s Wanted teammates.

Turrets: Fixed an issue that could prevent Turrets from firing at enemy creatures.

Walls: Addressed an inconsistency in how Walls can snap to Roof objects.

Wires: Fixed an issue that prevented Wires from being added to a Blueprint.

Wires: Can no longer be attached to broken C.A.M.P. objects.

Wires: Can no longer be attached to C.A.M.P. objects that cannot be wired.

Wires: Fixed an issue that could cause a Wire to appear to float in mid-air.

Wires: Can no longer be placed while attempting to lock an object, such as a resource collector.

Wires: Fixed an issue in which moving objects with Wires attached could cause them flicker or grow in size.

Wires: Fixed a rare issue affecting Wires that could prevent the player from building for a short time.

Workshops: Vehicles in the Wade Airport Workshop now correctly disappear when C.A.M.P. objects are built on top of them.

CHALLENGES

General: Addressed an issue in which partial progress toward repeatable lifetime Challenges could cause them to incorrectly appear complete in the Challenge menu.

General: Corrected a variety of typos across several Challenge descriptions.

General: The Halloween Costume Skull now correctly counts toward Challenges that require the player to wear a mask.

Character: The wording of the “Fully Rank up a Perk Card” Character Challenge has been updated to “Rank up a Perk Card” to match its completion requirement.

Combat: Both Cargobot and Vertibot kills now correctly count toward the “Destroy a Vertibot” sub-challenge under the “Kill Different Kinds of Robots” Combat Challenge.

Daily: Fixed an issue that prevented certain Daily Challenges from being offered in-game when they were scheduled to be available. These Challenges will now correctly appear going forward.

Daily: Harvesting Wood from fallen logs now correctly counts toward “Collect Wood” Daily Challenge progress.

Daily: Junk piles and other non-flora material no longer incorrectly count toward “Harvest Wild Plants and Fungi” Daily Challenge progress.

Weekly: Scrapping Rib Cages or Pelvises that have attached Spines now correctly counts toward “Scrap the Bones of a Skeleton” Weekly Challenge progress.

Weekly: Dabney Homestead now correctly appears in the list of acceptable photo locations for the “Take Photos at Workshops” Weekly Challenge.

Weekly: The “Take a Photo at the Nuka-Cola Quantum Plant” sub-challenge text for the “Take Photos at Factories” Weekly Challenge has been updated to refer to “Kanawha Nuka-Cola Plant” to match the location’s name on the Map.

Weekly: Firefly kills now correctly count toward “Kill a Firefly with a Pickaxe” sub-challenge progress under the “Exterminate Critters with Farm Tools” Weekly Challenge.

World: Fixed an issue preventing the “Use an Agility Bobblehead” sub-challenge for the “Use Different Kinds of Bobbleheads” World Challenge from completing for some players.

COMBAT

Exploits: Addressed an exploit that could allow players to repeatedly fire critical attacks without consuming critical charge.

Stealth: Players will no longer get stuck in the [Caution] stealth state when no enemies are nearby.

VATS: Firing in VATS with a 0% chance to hit will no longer cause all subsequent shots fired to miss until the player exits and re-enters VATS.

VATS: Queuing a critical hit and then exiting and re-entering VATS no longer causes that critical to miss.

VATS: Firing immediately after entering VATS no longer always causes that shot to miss.

VATS: Fixed an issue causing VATS to always initially display a 0% chance to hit, and sometimes repeatedly switch between 0% and the correct calculated hit chance.

ENEMIES

General: Fixed an issue that could cause invisible enemies to spawn at the Sunshine Meadows Workshop and prevent players from claiming it.

General: Fixed an issue that could occasionally cause an enemy to become invisible.

Bee Swarms: Are now visible.

Corpses: Enemy corpses that have no loot now correctly display 0 inventory weight when viewing the corpse’s transfer menu.

Legendary Creatures: Now always drop a legendary item on death.

Protectrons: Now correctly take damage over time when they have been set on fire due to a crippled limb.

Respawn: Approaching the corpse of an enemy that was killed at long distance no longer occasionally causes the corpse to disappear and the enemy to immediately respawn.

Scorchbeast Queen: Fixed an issue that could cause the Scorchbeast Queen’s corpse to despawn more quickly than intended, which prevented players from collecting her loot.

ITEMS

Armor: Medium Leather Left Leg armor can now correctly drop as loot.

Absolute Weight Limit: A large stack of items that would put the player over the absolute weight limit if withdrawn all at once no longer prevents them from transferring part of the stack into their inventory, so long as those items do not cause them to exceed the absolute limit.

Absolute Weight Limit: Players who have exceeded the absolute weight limit can now correctly pick up Notes, Holotapes, and Caps.

Exploits: A maximum of 5,000 items can now be sold to a Vendor in a single transaction.

Exploits: Addressed an exploit in which certain circumstances could allow players to alter the damage of a weapon with the Mutant’s legendary effect.

Exploits: Addressed an exploit related to item transactions with Vendors.

Flora: Exceeding max carry weight when collecting flora now correctly causes the character to become overencumbered.

Fusion Generators: Pre-placed Fusion Generators that can be found outdoors in the game world now correctly have a chance to contain a Fusion Core.

Mods: Brotherhood of Steel Combat Armor Mod descriptions no longer incorrectly state that they offer Radiation Resistance.

Paper Bags: Dying in harvested flora no longer prevents the player from collecting the items in the paper bag they dropped on death.

Paper Bags: Fixed an issue that could prevent a Paper Bag from being created after dropping an item on the ground.

Power Armor: If a player is disconnected from a server while their Power Armor is deployed or present in a Power Armor Station, it will now be correctly recalled to their inventory.

Treasure Maps: Players can now correctly dig for loot at the Treasure Mound associated with Toxic Valley Treasure Map #3.

Weapons: Plasma weapons can now correctly spawn with 2-star and 3-star legendary effects.

Weapons: The Salvaged Assaultron Head no longer consumes all Fusion Cell ammo when fired for the first time.

Weapons: The Assassin’s Laser Pistol mod now correctly increases movement speed while aiming.

Weapons: The Victory Squared pose can now correctly be used in Photomode when a two-handed weapon is equipped.

PERKS

“Search” Perks: Bonus loot awarded after using a “Search” Perk, such as Pharma Farma, on a container is no longer lost if a second player loots that container before the original player collects those items.

Wasteland Whisperer: Can now correctly be used to pacify Mole Miners.

PVP

Turrets: Engaging in PVP in a C.A.M.P. that has Turrets no longer causes them to fire indefinitely at participants after combat is finished.

Turrets: Addressed an issue that could cause Turrets owned by a player who killed their Wanted teammate to remain aggressive toward the formerly Wanted player.

Turrets: Destroying a Workshop owner’s Turrets while attempting to claim that Workshop no longer causes the attacking players to become Wanted.

Turrets: Will no longer become hostile toward their owner if that player was killed by another player in their own C.A.M.P.

Wanted: Killing a Wanted teammate no longer prevents Fast Travel.

QUESTS AND EVENTS

General: Implemented improvements to the way characters are saved upon completing quests.

An Ounce of Prevention: Controls will no longer become unresponsive if the player is killed by an enemy while interacting with the Sympto-Matic.

Bureau of Tourism: Fixed an issue that could prevent the player from continuing the Bureau of Tourism quest after logging out and back in.

Cold Case: The “Search by BOX NUMBER” option now correctly appears in the Clarksburg Post Office terminal, and no longer blocks Cold Case quest progression.

Events: Dying immediately after Fast Traveling away from an Event Quest no longer respawns the player at that Event.

Exploits: Addressed an exploit that could allow players to complete Into the Mystery without having begun the quest.

Exploits: Addressed an exploit in which the Safe for Work quest could be repeated.

Exploits: Addressed an exploit that could allow players to repeatedly farm Stimpak rewards granted after completing the Mayor for the Day quest.

Falsely Accused: The Falsely Accused quest no longer needs to be completed in order to start the Jailbreak or Patrol Duty events.

Feed the People: Items that are added to the player’s inventory while viewing the hopper’s transfer menu can no longer be accidentally placed in the hopper.

Holotapes: Master Holotapes can now be correctly loaded into the One of Us Now and Coming to Fruition quest terminals even if the player is carrying a large number of non-essential Holotapes.

Mission: Countdown: Fixed an issue that could prevent Mainframe Cores from being crafted. Additionally, Mainframe Cores and Damaged Mainframe Cores can no longer be scrapped.

Morgantown Airport: Quest markers for quests like An Ounce of Prevention no longer incorrectly direct the player to enter the airport terminal if there is no objective within to complete.

Protest March: Fixed an issue that could cause protest marchers to take longer than expected to reach the event area.

The Messenger: Mr. Messenger will no longer self-destruct unexpectedly, and will now only self-destruct if players completely abandon him. This issue also prevented some enemy creatures from spawning, and Mr. Messenger may now be attacked slightly more often.

Tentative Plans: Added missing dialogue for Mr. Fluffy to instruct the player to build a Generator.

SOUND

Fissures: Fixed an issue that could prevent pre-placed sound effects from playing near Fissure Sites.

Weapons: Applying a Suppressor to a Radium Rifle now correctly reduces the rifle’s gunfire sound effects.

SURVIVAL

Diseases: Rattle Hands now correctly reduces damage dealt by ranged weapons by 25%.

Exploits: Addressed an exploit that could allow players to duplicate the damage bonuses offered by the Adrenal Reaction mutation.

Food: Mutt Chops condition now correctly decreases over time, and eventually spoil.

Food: Stacks of food that spoil now correctly create an amount of spoiled food equal to the number of items that went bad.

Mutations: Adrenal Reaction’s damage bonuses have been restored to their original values.

Mutations: Fixed an issue that prevented Adrenal Reaction’s positive effects from being applied to players who had the Mutation prior to Patch 6 release.

Stats: Effects that decrease the player’s S.P.E.C.I.A.L. stats can no longer reduce them below 1.

USER INTERFACE

Controls: Fixed an issue that could prevent the player from selecting items on the Map or scrolling down in the Stash and Pip-Boy menus.

Inventory: Addressed an issue that could cause the player to unintentionally drop an additional item when spamming the “Drop” button.

Inventory: Fixed a visual issue that could cause Power Armor pieces to appear to duplicate when equipping them using the Power Armor transfer menu.

Inventory: Fixed an issue in which certain invisible and unusable creature weapons could be unintentionally looted, adding “phantom weight” to the player’s inventory.

Inventory: Items looted from Super Mutants no longer occasionally disappear from the player’s inventory.

Localization: Long item names in the Atomic Shop in languages other than English now correctly shrink to fit the item preview window.

Localization: The word “Max” that appears onscreen upon reaching 25,000 Caps is now properly localized for the following languages: Japanese, Korean, Russian, and Simplified and Traditional Chinese.

Login: Increased the font size of the error message displayed when attempting to login with an unauthorized account.

Menus: On PC, clicks along the left side of the Challenges menu no longer fail to register for 21:9 resolutions.

Nameplates: Turrets and Tamed Creatures that are owned by a player no longer display placeholder text below the owner’s name.

Notifications: Players who receive carry weight bonuses from perks, items, mutations, or other effects no longer incorrectly receive an “overencumbered” notification on joining a world.

Notifications: “C.A.M.P. cannot be placed” notifications will no longer appear upon exiting Vault 76 with a new character that was created after this notification was received with an existing character.

Pip-Boy: On PC, pressing the “E” key while viewing certain tabs in the Pip-Boy no longer causes the player to use a Stimpak.

Player Icons: The icon that appears on the Map for Workshop owner now updates correctly if that player changes their Player Icon.

Respawn: Game controls no longer become unresponsive if a player who had just launched a nuke is at the respawn menu when silo lockdown begins.

Trade: Fixed a rare issue in which offering multiple items for trade could cause their Cap prices to update incorrectly.

Transfer: Fixed an issue that could prevent a player from transferring a very large stack of items to or from a container.

Fallout 76 Wild Appalachia update available for download, full patch release notes revealed published first on https://touchgen.tumblr.com/

[mikemortgage]

Fallout 76 is shaping up to be Fallout with friends

WHITE SULPHER SPRINGS, W.Va. – I can think of no better place to have been given my first taste of Fallout 76, the latest entry in Bethesda Softworks’ blockbuster post-apocalyptic Fallout series, than The Greenbrier Resort in West Virginia.

Not only is the 250-year-old hotel property a featured location you can visit within the heart of the game’s sprawling free-to-roam map of the Appalachia (properly pronounced app-uh-latch-uh by locals, so I’ve learned) region, it’s also home to one of the most famous nuclear bunkers in the world. Built by the Eisenhower administration, the shelter sits under the west wing of the hotel and was designed to house 1,100 people – the whole of the U.S. Congress, including aids. It was kept in operational readiness for some three decades before being decommissioned in the early 1990s after an investigative journalist outed its existence.

After passing through a 25-tonne steel and concrete door that clanged shut to seal us in and walking through decontamination facilities that made me feel as though we were entering a concentration camp, the dozens of game journalists in attendance sat down for a press conference in an underground auditorium where the American government would have convened in the event of a nuclear war.

It was a bit eerie, to say the least.

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Interestingly, though, it wasn’t the bunker but rather the resort itself that felt the most fitting representation of Fallout’s persistent narrative themes, which have always been concerned with some of the more peculiar particulars of American culture — capitalism, commercialism, militarism, optimism, exceptionalism. The resort, a retreat for America’s upper class for centuries (it’s hosted more than two dozen sitting presidents) is a socialist’s nightmare. Signs lure people to experience “living as few others have,” and arguments about American luxury cars dominate patrons’ conversations in the bar. When I entered my hotel room the TV was playing a never ending series of ads for the hotel’s impressive medical and plastic surgery facilities, which promise to make guests “look as young as they feel.” The resort actually played host to — I’m not making this up — something called the Old White Club up until just a few years ago.

And once I finally began playing Fallout 76, parts of the game felt like a perfect reflection of the deeply consumerist culture in which I was immersed at the resort. It’s set, as are all games in the series, within an alternate universe in which Americans embraced the great possibilities of science, futurism and nuclear power after the Second World War to a dangerous degree, making it easy for them to place their trust in powerful companies — like Nuka-Cola, makers of suspiciously efficacious soft drinks, and RobCo, manufacturers of all manner of helpful automatons — that promised better living through technology. It’s a culture even more obsessed with and accepting of invasive consumerism than the America of today.

Of course, the most recognizable of Fallout’s fictitious corporations is Vault-Tec, a private contractor hired by the U.S. military to design and create a series of enormous fallout shelters — or vaults — which also served as cover for some of the company’s shadier activities, including massive, involuntary and immoral experiments in human psychology. As in past games, the Vault-Tec logo and its cheery blonde Vault Boy mascot are found everywhere in Fallout 76, from your character’s Pip-Boy wrist computer to the automated camp construction system you take with you into the wasteland.

While other Fallout games are set 100 years or more after the nuclear war — which takes place in the latter half of the 21st century — Fallout 76 takes place just a couple of decades after the bombs have fallen. What that means is that the people of this world — including our character, who emerges from Vault-Tec’s Vault 76 at the game’s outset — still remember the world from before. How the pampered consumerists of Fallout’s fictional future American utopia adjust to the newly desolated world could make for some fascinating storytelling.

Complicating this possibility, though, is Fallout 76’s unique angle on the Fallout experience: It’s an online multiplayer game.

Now, before Fallout purists get up in arms about the series’ move away from a single-player experience, know that Fallout 76 is not a massively multiplayer online role-playing game with hundreds of players falling over each other. The number of players per server is capped at just 24, which means accidentally bumping into another player in the game’s huge world — which is four times that of Fallout 4 — should be a rare occurrence. One of the developers told me that there have been times when he’s played for so long without running into other people that he’s actually forgotten he was playing online. It supports typical multiplayer features, like player-versus-player skirmishes and party creation for taking on more difficult objectives as a group, but all of this is optional. You can block anyone and everyone on your server so that they can’t see or interact with you and play the entire game alone.

The phrase I kept hearing floating about throughout the preview event was “Fallout with friends,” suggesting that Fallout 76 plays almost exactly like any other Fallout game, except that you can have your friends join you, should you like.

However, one of the big differences from other Fallout adventures is that there aren’t any non-player human characters. That means no settlements, no quest givers, no random folks met on the road. If you see another human, it’s someone else’s avatar — another survivor from Vault 76.

If this seems odd, given that we know from other games plenty of people outside the bunkers survived, Bethesda assures us that this question is answered. In fact, it looks like the subject of what happened to the Appalachian locals who survived the war — and there were likely plenty, since West Virginia was spared a direct hit and is largely protected by mountains — will be crucial to the primary plot, which centres on following the trail of someone called the Overseer, the woman who ran Vault 76 and exited the bunker before the rest of its inhabitants on a mysterious mission.

So how are Bethesda’s writers telling a story without any human NPCs? It appears as though a lot of the exposition comes from what we find in the environment. Fallout has always been known to tell compelling stories through scavenged notes, computer terminal files, journals and holotape recordings, and these discoveries play an even bigger role in Fallout 76. World lore and tales of survival are waiting everywhere to be discovered, providing players with engaging anecdotes, side-quests, crafting recipes and more. The amount of narrative material I discovered during the three hours I spent playing has left me with full confidence that the franchise’s focus on captivating — and often humourous — storytelling has survived the transition to an online world fully intact.

For me — and I’m sure plenty of others who have been with the franchise since its beginning more than two decades ago — this is all I really needed to know to stoke my interest enough to give Fallout 76 a shot when it launches on November 14.

It is assuredly an online game, but from what I’ve seen it manages to maintain the atmosphere of its single-player roots in important ways that other franchises that have migrated to multiplayer — including Bethesda’s own Elder Scrolls Online — have not. Combat, crafting, character development, exploration, and, most importantly, the sort of bold storytelling that isn’t afraid to place America’s obsessions under a microscope have all survived the transition such that they are not just familiar but welcomingly intuitive.

In other words, it feels like Fallout, and now you can play with your friends.

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