#it's only been united for 300 years it makes no sense

[moonlayl]

"According to the United Nations, roughly 6,400 Palestinians and 300 Israelis have been killed in the ongoing conflict since 2008, not counting the recent fatalities." - X

Palestinian deaths: 6,407

Israeli deaths: 308

Palestinian injuries: 152,560

Israeli injuries: 6307

Palestinian children's deaths: 1,437

Israeli children's deaths: 25

Palestinians children's injuries: 32,271

Israeli's children injuries: 524

Palestinian women's deaths: 626

Israeli women's deaths: 36

Palestinian women's injuries: 8,953

Israeli women's injuries: 218

(this is total, so not just civilians.)

168.6 times more Palestinians were killed than Israelis

24.2 times more Palestinians were injured than Israelis

57.5 times more Palestinian children were murdered than Israelis

61.6 times more Palestinian children were injured than Israelis

17.4 times more Palestinian women were murdered than Israelis

41 times more Palestinian women were injured than Israelis

source: UN's Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs

but yes "Israel is protecting itself and not at all carrying out genocide or hurting innocent Palestinians. Israel has never hurt Palestinian civilians and this is totally an equal fight where both Israelis and Palestinians are equally wrong, equally at fault, and Israelis deserve to defend themselves by wiping out an entire region of 2 million Palestinians (most who are children) but the barbaric Palestinians better not fight back, defend themselves or hurt their oppressors.

Israelis are justified in their slaughter and oppression of Palestinians for DECADES because of the action of Hamas 3 days ago, but Hamas’ actions 3 days ago are completely wrong in every way shape or form, no question, despite the war crimes Israel has committed towards the Palestinian people and the people of Gaza for decades. That makes perfect logical sense

Israel has only started harming Palestinians because of Hamas, despite the fact that Palestinians were being murdered and displaced for more than 40 years before Hamas was ever a thing. Again, Israelis are perfectly justified in any horror or warcrimes they've committed and the UN will never condemn them and will sweep their infinite war crimes under the rug, but Hamas needs to be stopped which includes trying to suspend humanitarian aid to innocent Palestinians (even though most Palestinians aren't part of Hamas and this will affect the innocent people in need of help) and also cutting off their medical and water supplies (even though it'll affect almost a million innocent children stuck in an illegal blockade) but billions of dollars, supplies, and military support needs to be sent to Israel immediately!!!

The world cannot remain silent and the Israelis deserve our support, but please do ignore how the world's been silent for Palestinians all these years!!

We will show you videos of horror from other countries taken years ago, or even crimes Israelis have committed but spread the news that it was Palestinians who did such things, but we will not show any of the evidence of Palestinians refusing to harm women and children and instead taking Israelis as hostages, majority of them soldiers.

We will show you Muslims across the world celebrating the death of innocent people (when in reality they're protesting in order to call out their hypocritical governments who support an apartheid state) but we'll conveniently ignore how the people of Sderot (the city nearest to Gaza that Palestinians were recently able to enter after 16 years of being caged in Gaza) used to watch rockets hit Gaza and cheer on, calling it " best reality show" and "better than the world cup" back in 2014 which is one of the deadliest years for Palestinians (more than 2000 massacred).

Israel will warn the people of Gaza to flee and then go right ahead and bomb the only route they could possibly use: the Rafah crossing to Egypt and it will also threaten to target any humanitarian aid trucks trying to enter into Gaza (X, X, X)

Israel will also murder journalists, including an American citizen which is a war crime and illegal, but will face no consequences and try to frame Palestinians instead.

but remember! Palestinians are all terrorist islamist barbarians and you MUST support Israel and its oppression of Palestinians, otherwise you are antisemitic. Every Palestinian deserves to die and Israel is justified in carrying out mass genocide (by taking away electricity, water, and food) with the support of foreign countries because of the actions of Hamas, but Palestinians will never be justified in attacking their oppressors or defending themselves from 70 years of oppression. Shut up, these things aren't meant to make sense, just support Israel.

[bethanythebogwitch]

Easily my most popular post was about paddlefish, so this Wet Beast Wednesday it's time to give them their moment in the sun. Paddlefish are members of the family Polyodontidae and one of only two surviving members of the order Acipenseriformes, the other being sturgeons. The Acipenseriformes are one of the oldest lineages of ray-finned fish and diverged from the ancestors of all other modern ray-finned fish around 300 millions years ago. While paddlefish have been around since the Cretaceous period, there is only one living species, the American paddlefish (Polyodon spathula). Another modern species is the Chinese paddlefish (Psephurus gladius), but the last sighting of one was in 2003 and they were officially declared extinct in 2022. In this post, unless I specify otherwise everything I say will be referring to the American paddlefish.

(image: either an American paddlefish or a basking shark that got its nose caught in a hydraulic press)

Paddlefish are named for their very long rostrums which are packed full of electrorecepting organs called the ampullae of Lorenzini used to sense electric fiends in the water. The ampullae are not only on the rostrum, but also on the head and large skin flaps that extend from the operculum (gill cover). They are so sensitive that paddlefish are able to sense the movement of individual body parts of zooplankton. Paddlefish use their rostrums to detect their prey, which consists almost entirely of zooplankton. They are ream suspension feeders, swimming toward swarms of zooplankton with their mouths open. As the water passes through the gills, gill rakers filter out the zooplankton, which is then swallowed. Other fish that use this feeding method include basking sharks. While the rostrum is the primary method of prey detection, other ampullae on the head and operculum flap allow the fish to still effectively find food even if the rostrum is damaged or destroyed. When working fish fish on the Mississippi I caught multiple paddlefish who lost their rostrums to propeller strikes and were still doing fine. Electroreception is their main sense, with their eyesight being extremely poor.

(image: the skeletal structure of the rostrum)

As chordates, paddlefish have a notochord that runs from the head down the body. In most modern chordates, the notochord is only present in the embryo and is lost during development. This is not the case for paddlefish, who retain their notochord into adulthood, where is acts as a soft spine. While paddlefish (and their sturgeon cousins) are bony fish, they have lost most of the bone and now have skeletons composed almost entirely of cartilage. It is for this reason that early taxonomists initially miscategorized paddlefish as freshwater sharks. To be fair, they do look a lot like miniature basking sharks. Who crossbred with spoons. They also lost their scales and have smooth, easily damaged skin instead. Their skin is so easily damaged that just being caught in nets can leave scars. Paddlefish are large and long-lived. The American species reaches an average of 1.5 m (5 ft) in length, with the rostrum making up a third of that, and a weight of 27 kg (60 lbs). The largest recorded specimen was 2.16 m (7 ft 1 in) and an estimated 90 kg (198 lbs). Despite being one of the largest American freshwater fish, they paled in comparison to the Chinese species, which could reach 3 m (9.8 ft) and 500 kg (1,100 lbs). The largest Chinese paddlefish on record was 7 m (23 ft) long and was estimated to weigh "a few thousand pounds". The Chinese paddlefish also preferred larger prey, feeding largely on small fish and crustaceans. American paddlefish live an average of 5 to 8 years, but in the right circumstances can live up to 60 years, with females generally living longer. The Chinese paddlefish had an estimated average lifespan of 29-38 years. In both species, it is believed that human activity drastically reduced their average lifespans.

(image: an absolute unit of an American paddlefish)

(image: a reconstruction of a Chinese paddlefish from the Shanghai Science and Technology Museum)

Paddlefish travel upriver to spawn in spring. They prefer to span on shallow gravel bars that would be exposed to air if not for spring rainfall and snow melt. Because they require very specific conditions to spawn, spawning rarely occurs every year. Every 4-5 years is more common. Paddlefish are broadcast spawners, with both males and females releasing gametes into the water column. Fertilized eggs are negatively buoyant and sticky. They will sink to the bottom and stick to the gravel. Once hatched, larvae will be swept down river to develop in deep pools. They are born without rostrums, which start to grow almost immediately. Paddlefish mature late, with females becoming sexually mature between 7 and 10 years of age, with a few not maturing until as late as 16-18 years. Human activity is resulting in many individuals dying before becoming sexually mature. American paddlefish are cross-fertile with the Russian sturgeon (Acipenser gueldenstaedtii), producing a hybrid offspring known as the sturddlefish despite being separated by the Atlantic ocean and 184 million years of evolution. This was discovered by accident when scientists introduced paddlefish sperm too sturgeon eggs as a control group for an experiment. I made a post on the sturddlefish which you can read here.

(image: three larval paddlefish of different ages)

American paddlefish are classified as vulnerable by the IUCN. They are native to the Mississippi river basin that encompasses much of the midwest and south of the United States, but their range used to be larger, reaching into Lake Huron, the Northeastern U.S. and parts of Canada. This reduction of native range is due largely to human activity, mostly overfishing and habitat loss. Zebra mussels, an invasive species, are a major competition for paddlefish as theybith feed on zooplankton. Reintroduction programs have begun in some of the states they were extirpated from, and they have been introduced to China, Cuba, and multiple countries in Europe for use in fishing and caviar production. 13 states allow for sport fishing of paddlefish, some of them relying on restocking to maintain a population for anglers. Paddlefish meat is edible and their eggs can be used for caviar. Paddlefish can be raised in captivity, but must will not spawn in captivity and so establishing captive populations requires gonad extraction and artificial insemination. Poaching of wild paddlefish for their eggs is an ongoing problem. The extinction of the Chinese paddlefish is believed to be the result of overexploitation and habitat loss.

(image: a paddlefish with its mouth open)

[literary-illuminati]

2024 Book Review #8 – The Only Good Indians by Stephen Graham James

This has been on my tbr for long enough that I entirely forget what originally put it there – the only thing I actually knew going in was that the author was ‘the My Heart is a Chainsaw guy’ (I have not read My Heart is a Chainsaw yet either). Given the genre, that was honestly probably ideal. As was the fact that a blizzard hit a couple days after I started it and I’ve been reading it looking out on a frozen snowscape – it’s very much a winter sort of story.

The story’s told in five parts of wildly varying lengths, each with it’s own endearingly cheesy b-horror movie title and each following a different protagonist. The first four each follow one of a friend group who, as a bunch of fuckup teenagers, trespassed on hunting grounds that were really supposed to be reserved for elders and shot a bunch of elk they had no right to – including a pregnant young cow who was for one reason or another special. Ten years later, the Elk-Headed Woman drags herself back into the world, and begins getting her vengeance for the death of her and her child on each of them (and everyone they care about) in turn.

I have a longstanding opinion that a full-length novel is just too long to sustain a real horror story – by 300 pages things have fairly reliably collapse into urban fantasy or action or farce. The breakup into different parts solves this very well – they’re all very much connected and interwoven, but each feels like its own distinct narrative unit with its own tension and rising action.

And this is very much a horror story in the classic, just barely short of shlocky sense. A trespass against vague but understood sacred laws that leads to horrific and bloody retribution against everyone involved is as close to archtypal horror as you can possibly get, after all. The last section is even focused on a Final Girl! Specifically, it’s a subgenre that I can’t really name but feels very familiar to me – and one I’ve always been a huge fan of, anyway. It’s somewhere downstream of The Count of Monte Cristo, a story where the agent of supernatural doom spends the majority of the story consciously working in the background, manipulating events and exacerbating the protagonist/victim’s flaws to lead them to a contrived but tragic end? Think the netflix Fall of the House of Usher, but like about the exact opposite end of the socioeconomic spectrum.

Class is very much something the book cares about. All four protagonists grew up poor on a reservation with little in the way of wealth or opportunity, and by the time they’d turned eighteen all four of them were the kind of young asshole who made life just a little bit worse for everyone around them dealing with the same shit. Ten years latter the three of them who’ve survived that long have gotten over themselves and matured in their own way (and to their own degree), but none of them are exactly flush with cash or living lives of bourgeois respectability (though Lewis comes close). The precarity and only tenuous connections to the society around them just make them better prey for what’s hunting them, of course – in every case, death comes after the (either metaphorical or very viscerally literal) destruction of the few close ties they have, and the only one to survive is also the only one who could really expect people to come rushing to their rescue.

Speaking of close ties the protagonists have – the book’s conception of gender is fascinatingly weird, or at least fascinating in the sense that I’m not at all sure how intentional it is. Of the four main victims, one dies alone at eighteen, and the other three who survive the next ten years are all pretty much explicitly saved (or at least improved and uplifted) by a relationship with a woman who, if not flawless, is basically strictly his moral and practical better. Even the most consistent fuckup of the group has a redeeming feature of being willing to do just about anything for his daughter (despite having lost the chance to really be a big part of her life several times over). With one exception, these women all then die, messily, entirely and explicitly to fuck with and ruin the lives of their men. It’s like someone read Women in Refrigerators and went ‘well there’s an idea...’. It’s blatant enough that I feel like it’s got to be making a deliberate point, but (unless it’s just genre emulation) what the point is does escape me slightly.

Also on the note of stuff I’m quite sure is going over my head at least a bit – basketball! It’s a pretty vital thread running through the entire book, to the point that one of the big set pieces of the final act is literally a basketball game with the monster. Which, like, I watched enough bad anime as a small child to find contrived game-playing under unclear mythic rules with things that really want to kill you instinctively endearing, but I can’t really do anything with this except just point at it.

So as the title might imply, this is a novel that’s concerned with race – all but I believe exactly one character is either is either Blackfeet or Crow, more than half the book takes place on a reservation, and a chunk of the rest is spent having to deal with racist assholes of varying severity. Now, I admit that I have at this point a probably overly cynical view of books that end up on breathless ‘socially conscious horror’ or ‘s/ff from diverse creators you NEED to read’ lists online, but I was still rather pleasantly by how matter-of-factly this was handled? I suppose the best way to put it is that culture, upbringing and racialization deeply inform everyone’s characters, but it never feels like the book is preoccupied with providing some assumed naive and impressionable audience any Important Lessons or provide Good Representation to valourize or emulate? Which is probably just a sign I need to raise and re calibrate my expectations, but.

The monster doesn’t exactly work as, like, a coherent character in terms of her skills and abilities, but as a monster the Elk-Headed Woman is great. But then I love contrived fucked up tragedies and am a longstanding partisan of Spooky Deer Horror, so I suppose I would say that.

So yeah, fun read!

[maturemenoftvandfilms]

The Senator from Montana

CHAPTER TEN: The Bar Encounter    

Featuring Sen. Jon Tester  

I'm a twenty-five year old bartender at an Irish pub in Washington DC near the senate. It's Saturday and the United States Senate is grumpy because of a rare Saturday vote. Normally deserted on weekends, Capitol Hill is swarming with journalists, staffers and senators. I had just poured a drink when I glanced down the bar. There he was! Broad shoulder. Six feet tall. Pushing 300 pounds. Big arms. A flattop haircut and three fingers missing on this left hand (lost to a meat grinder at age nine).  

We normally don't see many politicians, but to my surprise, eating a plate of fish and chips was the burly senator from Big Sandy, Montana, Jon Tester. Just then as I was eying him down, he looked over and smiled at me. Truth be told, I‘m good looking and get lots of smiles and much more, but his smile was different. It seemed project at me.

Just then, I realized I poured the wrong drink and quickly decided to use it as an icebreaker.  

"This was a mistake, a Harp beer," I said holding aloft a frothy pint glass. "Anybody want it?"

Tester flashes a big grin and without missing a beat hollers, "Sold!"

Suddenly it's like we were the only ones there as walks up to the bar. His smile got bigger as I hand him the beer. Then I saw his blue eyes, yeaning for attention, for just a moment of lust. He immediately takes a sip from his drink then quickly turned his attention to me and say, "I bet a good looking young guy like you could clean up in a place like this.”

"I do with guys like you." I boldly said as I adjust my crotch and made sure he sees, but he just chuckles and finish off his beer.

"You really don't make any bones about it do you? He responded.

"Well senator, I was taught to say what's on my mind. I said.

"What's your name son." He asked.  

"Pete." I answered and smiled.

"Well, Pete, If you'd like to help me "clean up," meet me in the bath room in a few minutes sonny." He said. I couldn’t believe that someone so handsome and powerful was taking a shine to me. It sent chill bumps down my spine.

“Sure.” I said.

Then he winked at me as he got up from his barstool. I watched as he pushed his way through the crowd to the bathroom. God! Did he look wonderful! I knew that I should just chatted with him a moment and say goodbye, but I couldn’t. He was already under my skin like no other person had ever gotten.

A few moments later, I made my way to the bathroom and saw the same cowboy boots that the senator was wearing in the handicapped stall. No one else was in the bathroom, so I gave the door to the stall a knock. He slowly opened the door and I locked it behind me after I was in. Immediately Sen. Tester clutched me in his arms and we kissed. Suddenly a sense of urgency flowed from him as his kisses became desperate. He caressed my shoulders before sliding his hands down to my round ass and squeezed it as he crushed me to him. He kissed me for a long time before breaking his hold on me and we both panted for air.

"I'd sure like to fuck you, Pete." Sen. Tester whispered to me.

"I know, I know," I replied as he continued massaging my ass, "but I've never been fucked before."

The revelation that I was a virgin turned Sen. Tester's passion into a frenzy of deep kisses.

"How could I get so lucky with a virgin ass to fuck!" He sighed as grabbed me by the shoulders and forced me down to my knees. He unbuckled his pants and pulled out his fat, semi-erect cock.  

"Suck it." He ordered.

In a rush of passion, I was taking the senator's huge cock in my mouth wrapping my lips around it and circling the underside with my tongue. I sucked on it firmly and felt it grow in my mouth, mushrooming out. After a moment I slide my lips further down the shaft till my nose touched his pubes. He held the sides of my head and began fucking my face, his hips moved slightly as I sucked on his cock.  

After a few minutes sucking his cock, Sen. Tester showed me his strength by reaching down and pulling me to my feet as though I was as light as a feather. Then he embraced me and pushed his old tongue into my mouth. Then he broke our embrace and put his lips to my ear and whispered, "I'm going to give a fucking you'll remember for the rest of your life."  

"Grab the toilet." He added as he reached behind me and pulled down my shorts.

Sen. Tester got behind me gripping my hips and spread my ass cheeks with his thumbs. He spat on my crack and especially my pale pink button of an asshole before pushing two of his fingers up my hole, it hurt a bit at first, but I soon got used to it. He finger fucked me for a few minutes and I knew that my rectum ached for Sen. Tester's cock to slip inside it. He promised to be gentle with me when he stuffed three fingers into it. My eyes watered a little with the pain but it soon passed and I thrilled at the tender finger fuck that Sen. Tester gave me. By now my own dick was throbbing with anticipation of getting fuck by the senator's cock.

I heard him spit into his hand then felt the pressure as he pushed the head of his into my man pussy. I found myself pushing my ass back against his dick as he shoved the head of his slippery dick into my asshole.

"Take my cock!" The senator said almost angrily as he gripped my hips firmly and rammed his dick into me.

I stiffened up from the searing pain of his brutal entry as he pulled his dick half way out of me and slammed it back inside my asshole. He stroked slowly, working the whole 6" into me till his hips pressed against my ass. But the tightness of my tube soon got to him and the senator started fucking me hard and fast as he grunted with pleasure. The old man pumped his plump man meat into me over and over again as I moaned and grunted like a whore getting fucked.

"You like my cock don't you." The senator said as he slapped my ass while he pumped his dick in and out of me.

"Yes, I love it. Love it." I answered. I was pushing back against his thrusts enjoying the sound of skin slapping together, and that hard dick pounding my ass.

"Damn, you've got one hot ass." The old man said as he fucked me harder and faster.

"Fuck, I'm cuming!" The old man cried out suddenly as he grabbed my by the shoulders and slammed his dick as deep inside of me as it would go and came! I screamed out with pleasure as I felt his hot cum fill my asshole. Seconds later, I too shot off without me even touching it.

"Be here tomorrow at the same time." Sen. Tester whispered before giving me a long grateful kiss.

Then he was gone and I was pulling up my pants as fast as possible. I walked toward the bathroom door slowly as my asshole was throbbing painfully. I didn't see any sign of the big old man when I got outside. Suddenly I had to walk over to one of the tables and sit down I was feeling so dizzy. And damn at the moment I had enjoyed it more than any sex act I had ever experienced. I knew that I would be looking forward to seeing the old man again the next day.

[disabled-dinosaur]

Living with a progressive autoimmune condition is BORING. Boring because if you’re not working, all you do is sit at home and if you are working, you have to be careful how much time you take off for appointments and treatment plans.

First, I was a CNA/ medication aide working in the skilled nursing and memory unit section. When I could no longer lift 200+ lbs, I moved to the memory unit/ assisted living section, which was less heavy lifting as the residents were pretty much independent.

At that point, it wasn’t that bad and I was still searching for a definitive diagnosis. In 2014/2015, I was diagnosed with just degenerative discs and sacroiliac joint problems. So, no big deal— it was just back pain right? At one point, it was Fibromyalgia, then that flopped. I didn’t really have any symptoms of that, yet one doc still diagnosed me with it. Very briefly, afterwards, I was diagnosed with MS. That flopped too. It didn’t make sense either. Then, they said that I’m drug-seeking or crazy. So I quit looking for a diagnosis because I felt like I could keep going, until 2020. I had a major surgery, went back to work. 2020 came around and I knew I was feeling worse. I *still* felt like I could keep going.

In 2022, I moved to doing a desk job. That felt pretty good. I was happy and didn’t feel bad at all. I loved the group of maintenance men that I worked with. When something didn’t work out, those guys informed me and they were vocal about concerns or anything like that. I had their respect (I hope) and they had mine.

In May of 2022, I was officially diagnosed with Bechterew’s Disease (aka Spondylitis), a progressive fusion of joints beginning in the spine and moving to fuse what’s called peripheral joints like hips, hands, knees and shoulders. This year, my hands began bothering me, aching. My previous rheumatologist who has since retired had me on infusions for about a year and a half, from May 2022 until October/ November 2023. In December 2023, the new rheumatologist thought it was too much and we moved to injections that I give myself.

Ever since March, things have been going wacky. I woke up one day in March with fever-like aches and chills without the actual fever. The first noticeable change came from a blood test in March where my liver enzyme levels were through the roof (some liver damage). Normal liver numbers are supposed to be somewhere between 25 and 44 and mine were 109. 300 to 600 is when you apparently become jaundice, but they didn’t get that high, thank goodness. The second sign that something was wrong was decreased movement in ligaments and joints. Sitting down or bending anything was next impossible and very little sleep. I went through this pain until about early June and spent those weeks on 80 different medications and steroids trying to get that inflammation down. Fever-like chills and body aches eventually went away. I would wear thick socks, two pairs of leggings and a hoodie during that time. In May, when I spoke to my rheumatologist, she said, "Honey, had you felt like this in years prior?"

"No, I’ve never even had a cold this bad."

She said, "Honey, you’re going through your first major relapse/flare."

For two whole months, from March to May, I had no idea what was going on. I quit my job on May 13th after Cody and I had discussed it. In June, I started to feel okay again after all the medications and injections. My liver was reacting to my flare 🔥 and trying to give me a sign. That was the first clue. All that time, I blamed the injections for the elevated liver enzymes, because one side effect is liver issues. Turns out, I had a GI problem causing this flare and symptoms and couldn’t eat anything solid but noodles with only broth and crackers. We avoided tubes and surgery, thank goodness. When something major happens in your body, your liver can decide to react and freak out. This might not happen to everybody— this was just my unique case. In late July or early August, after all the inflammation died down, my legs became really weak and somewhat tingly/numb. After joint inflammation comes muscle weakness apparently, like an after-effect. I fell about two or three times. I couldn’t hide my gait anymore and I’d rather have my cane than worry about what others think. I found it difficult to walk longer distances than before, so I swallowed my pride, started to use my cane more often and ordered a custom-fitted wheelchair for those longer distances. This is fitted to my dimensions. I went to a place in Missouri and it took a whole hour to measure. Out of desperation, I bought a semi-custom wheelchair back in late May. It gave me some freedom. And recently, I finally got out of this house for an outing that was longer than an hour. I had not gotten out of the house much since March, except for appointments. On Sunday, September 15th, I went to a museum and got lunch with my wonderful husband, using that wheelchair. We were there for about two or three hours. Walking for that long would’ve been impossible ever since all this started this year. It used to be that every once in a while, as I was driving, that my foot would be so weak that it would slip off the accelerator. That only happened a very few times. Lately, after the inflammation dissipated, the muscle weakness and numbness has been more persistent, so I’m getting portable hand controls that will attach to the pedals of my truck soon and I can attach them to any vehicle that I drive. But as of lately, I’m feeling great. After months of noodles and broth soup and crackers, I’m eating normally. I don’t know how long the muscle weakness/ numbness will last, but I’m not dwelling on it. The main focus is going to PT, dealing with treatment and going to appointments. It’s the little things that are worth more than the big things. When you look back, you’ll realise that those little things were actually the big things.

DON’T IGNORE YOUR HEALTH. When something feels off, keep persisting.

[darkmaga-retard]

Eric Zuesse

The U.S. Government now clearly does intend a blitz all-out nuclear attack simultaneously against Russia China, and possibly also North Korea, despite the scientific analyses showing that the consequence of such a WW3 will be at least a 50% die-off of the entire planet’s human population within just the first two years after the explosions.

On August 29th, MIT’s Dr. Theodore Postol, America’s leading nuclear-war scientist, headlined at The Quincy Institute, which is the leading think tank about nuclear war, “Biden's 'new' nuclear strategy and the super-fuse that sets it off: Biden's 'new' nuclear strategy and the super-fuse that sets it off: The military is already upgrading warheads capable of fighting a war with both China and Russia simultaneously.” 

Dr. Postol reports:

Although any technically accurate assessment of the physical consequences of the large-scale use of nuclear weapons instantly shows that “winning” a nuclear war has no meaning, the United States has strenuously emphasized the development of nuclear weapons technologies that could make sense only if their intended purpose is for fighting and winning nuclear wars.

The super-fuze is exactly that kind of technology.

It is now possible, at least according to nuclear war-fighting strategies, for the U.S. to attack the more than 300 ICBM silo-based ICBMs that China has been building since about 2020 with the copious numbers of available 100kt W-76 Trident II warheads. The rapid expansion in “hard-target kill capability” of the 100 kt W-76 warhead also makes it simultaneously possible for the U.S. to attack the roughly 300 silo-based Russian ICBMs.

Couching the development and deployment of these kinds of preemptive strike technologies in misleading terms like “enhancing deterrence,” does not fool the military and political leadership of Russia and China. It instead leaves them no choice but to consider ways of deterring a dangerous U.S. preemption-oriented nuclear-weaponized nation that is constantly striving for better ways to “disarm” large parts of their nuclear forces.

In that article he describes how the “super fuse” works.

[arbitrarygreay]

Do you think Adler being a bad judge of character comes from a tendency to associate personalities with positions(like the President) or bloodlines/relatives(like Bellweathers). Like if you live for so long you probably start making assumptions about how someone is going act. Do you think Adler has to reevaluate people frequently when they don’t fit the little box she first assigns them.

This ask is pretty great timing, since I'm ruminating on a post where I think about what capabilities Alder has in order to stay head of the military for 300 years, and what capabilities she doesn't necessarily have.

If you saw my post about Wade, that situation had some specific bad experiences coloring Alder's perspective. If we look at S3 with Minerva and Wade, Minerva got to have time during her retirement where she got to rethink their perspectives and get over the slights. Alder didn't. You do have a point about position, as Alder assumes that having Penelope will control VP Silver's loyalties. As I've theorized, though, Alder's judgement additionally deteriorates under stress, as S2 does, paralleling Liberia.

Let me be more specific: Alder knows that her snap judgement isn't great, so she simply just doesn't listen to that snap judgement often. Like ignoring intrusive thoughts, you know. That's why she can know that Abigail's dismissal of Raelle in 1x1 is preposterous, and can tell her story about her own shitbird (who was possibly one of Raelle's ancestors, and maybe even Willa herself? Alder said early days, but the details after that don't make any sense for that).

At that point, it doesn't matter why Alder's personality has poor snap judgement, if she never follows it.

But I do make this theory anyways, because we have to remember that all of this started by Alder at age mumbleteen throwing off millenia of tradition of keeping it all secret on the scaffold. That points to some kind of mindset in her quick decision making.

But, we have to go back to my post roasting Alder's pettiness, too. Even if she is compensating for bad snap judgement by waiting and thinking, that can also be counter-compensated by Alder just not giving a fuck about the results of that reevaluation, due to her power.

Alder in 1x10: Alder: Yes I've been seeing how the Bellweather unit has so much potential and performs well under pressure. Alder: Fuck them for helping Petra, though. War meat'd. Alder: Oh hey, Abigail showed up anyways. Good mettle. Alder: Fuck you for mouthing off at me, though. Insulting y'all now.

We see this in S2 with Alder's interactions with Petra and Anacostia. She expresses displeasure at how they go against her orders, but ultimately allows operations that will do good for the army to move forward. Anacostia returns the favor, mouthing off at Alder, going off with Scylla anyways, but still reporting to Alder about her observations in the testing center protest. She only holds the actual transgressions (puppeting the president) against Alder, not the petty stuff.

(Also if you read the tags on the post, I mentioned Ender's Game, where the big military strategy/tactic that Ender perfects with Dragon Army is to make units more agile, smaller units with trusted commanders given leeway to adapt and respond to changing situations much more quickly than large formations would allow for.)

[kstewdeux]

@sometimes-icanstillhear-sitboy

InuPrompt 2022: Headcanon (11.13.22)

Summary: Gramps has a doctor friend helping keep Kagome’s absences under wraps.

Inhaling deeply, Gramps watched as the elevator doors slip open while a growing sense of dread filled his gut. While he usually had the energy for these visits, it was getting harder and harder to avoid the truth. Especially from a man he had known since childhood. They’d bonded over their mutual beliefs so long ago. No one believed in legends anymore. The existence of the supernatural chalked up to make believe. It had been a common ground. A boy who had been taught about the history of the world and a boy who just desperately wanted to believe in such things. They’d both pursued different career paths. Gramps carried on the tradition of his house while the latter became a doctor but they still met on a nearly weekly basis.

Stepping onto the elevator, Gramps slowly turned and faced the door. The topic of the interview and mask incident would undoubtedly come up. A little girl thanking a dog earred man. The obviously false explanation that a sewage leak was to blame. In a way, Gramps was grateful the truth had been cleanly swept under the rug. But…the shrine had been involved.

Sure enough, when the doors opened once more, the small balding man with his turtle like appearance was already waiting.

“Come. I have found something new,” the man whispered excitedly as he continued glanced around to make sure they were alone, “You’re going to love it.”

“Hiro. Always a pleasure,” Gramps offered with a weary half-smile as he followed his friend through the empty halls.

“It’s quite extraordinary. The x-ray showed the tibia broken at three points,” the elderly doctor began with a nervous energy as he stopped and fumbled with his keys, “Yet one week later no sign of previous injury. None at all. The bone healed in less than a week. He said it was a mistake but I know what I saw and have the evidence to prove it.

“Do you now?” Gramps sighed before sighing heavily when the door opened and the dreaded conspiracy board was exposed, “I take it that-“

“That’s not all,” the man continued excitedly while locking the door, “I recently had another patient come in who had hereditary sensory autonomic neuropathy. That’s fifty confirmed cases right here in Tokyo. There are supposedly only 300 confirmed cases world wide yet I’ve seen fifteen patients in the last year alone. No relation to each other. At least not one they’d disclosed. Last one came in yesterday.”

“Is that so?” Gramps mumbled in a bored tone as he took a seat, “A blessing and a curse to not feel pain. I wish I had that-“

“Ah see but you wouldn’t. Usually it is quite degenerative. Takes it toll. Pain is the body’s warning sign. These individuals came to me for broken bones. Common injuries and much more severe ones as well. A deflated lung in this most recent case. She’d come in for shortness of breath,” his friend explained excitedly, “I documented it. Her lung was actively healing itself and I have the live footage of the scan to prove it. And another patient came in Wednesday with face tattoos that clearly weren’t tattoos. Smooth and flawless and the color...”

“Fascinating,” Gramps interrupted with what he hoped was a genuine smile, “Now-”

“Wait. Wait. I thought you’d find this interesting as well. One of the nurses on the pediatric unit told me about a haunting,” the man enthused as he moved to the board and pointed to a blue pin on the sprawling map of Tokyo, “Window blown out. Multiple accidents. Coma patient nearly thrown from the window. And best of all...”

The pause for dramatic effect made Gramps eye twitch. That was until he noticed very troubling photos among the clippings pinned to the board and his heart absolutely sank.

“Photographs of a mysterious man clinging to the hospital wall. Jumping from building to building. Rushing into a blazing fire and emerging without injury,” the man finished triumphantly before pointing to a nearby apartment complex, “Same description that was given by that little girl who said she was plucked from the air. Clear irrefutable evidence of demons among us.”

Scratching his nose, Gramp’s mind scrambled to find a way to dismiss these allegations that were actually probably spot on. Yes, a talk with Inuyasha definitely was in order. Surely, Hiro was not the only person who had such photographs and not the only one trying to get to the truth of the matter. Heaven help the boy if the conspiracy magazines started investigating.

“Have you shown these things to anyone else?” he decided on and his friend’s excited face fell.

“Well. No,” the doctor mumbled as he wrung his wizened hands and visibly deflated, “The photos are blurry and the witness wouldn’t go on record. But you see what I’m saying, don’t you?”

For a moment, the briefest of moments, Gramps desperately wanted to admit everything. His friend looked so defeated and miserable as he pushed the board back into his office. It was the shuddering sigh as the door clicked closed that did him in.

“You’re here for another note, right?” his friend mumbled as he crossed to the kitchen counter to grab his pen, “What is the excuse this time?”

A minute passed then two as his friend waited patiently - clearly disappointed that his old friend who used to be very interested suddenly acted like he dreaded meeting with him at all. It wasn’t a secret that this...hobby wasn’t widely shared amongst his other friends and acquaintances. In fact, Gramps was fairly certain he was the only person who knew the board and Hiro’s belief that something was out there.

“Kagome...”

Gramps warred with himself for a moment before saying to hell with it.

“Kagome is a priestess in the feudal era fighting demons alongside the demon you see in those photographs,” Gramps finally offered and immediately regretted saying anything at all. The reaction wasn’t what he expected. Namely, there wasn’t one. His friend stood stock still. Blinking slowly like he hadn’t heard anything at all. The silence grew so heavy and tense that Gramps almost took it back and claimed it was a joke. But, thankfully, Hiro beat him to the punch.

“Can...can I meet him?”

The question posed was soft and unsure. Like he was expecting to be told this was a joke.

“Kagome should be returning in the next few days. I will ask when they come as they normally come together,” Gramps offered before blowing out his cheeks, “I trust you with this Hiro. I trust you like I’ve trusted you my whole life. So when I beg you not to repeat this. To not have any of this anywhere in writing...”

“No. No of course not,” the doctor breathed as his lips twitched upwards like he was finally getting over his shock, “I would never betray you. Never put your family in danger. I just want to see for myself. That’s all.”

A second’s pause.

“So I take it Kagome doesn’t have agoraphobia? I did think it was odd,” he teased happily as he shrugged his shoulders and readied his pen, “What excuse are we making up this time then?”

“Arthritis. Severe,” Gramps offered with a warm smile, “And probably something that would explain bruises. The feudal era has its dangers.”

“I imagine it does,” the friend laughed once as he tapped the pen against his lips, “Well, if she ever does need medical treatment, please know I am always available and can be discreet. Heaven knows there must be some injuries that...can’t be explained?”

The giddy grin at that comment had Gramps laughing once himself.

“You will call me. No matter what they decide, won’t you?” his friend asked after a moment as he jotted something down and ripped the prescription pad off, “I understand if he doesn’t want to be identified.”

“I will let you know old friend,” Gramps promised before his lips twitched upwards, “Maybe he can even help you understand some things that will help you with your...less than human patients.”

“I would like that very much,” Hiro hummed happily before sighing happily and moving to a cabinet, “This news calls for a drink. Do you have time?”

Gramps did indeed and the meeting was eventually arranged. Funny thing was, shortly after the meeting, Hiro looked up when a knock at his apartment window caught his attention.

There he was. The demon who had proved definitively that the crazy old doctor wasn’t all that crazy after all. In one graceful move, the boy swooped inside once the window was opened and looked around as he dusted his hands.

“You’re pretty easy to track. You know that, huh?” Inuyasha asked casually before making a face and laughing once, “I want to see the shit you’ve got on demons here while I got time.”

Nodding slowly, Hiro tried to steel himself for the inevitable. To be told he was a crazy old man and that everything - other than this boy - that he’d put together was just his own imagination.

“I h-have the board,” Hiro offered before clarifying when Inuyasha simply looked confused, “Records I mentioned. If you wish to see.”

Smiling, Inuyasha nodded once and leaned casually up against the wall. The man would never know how huge it was that Inuyasha had not only sought him out but that he actually felt comfortable in his presence. But to the half-demon, if Kagome’s grandfather trusted this man with secrets like this, Inuyasha trusted he could trust this old man as well.

“So...” Hiro breathed as he pulled the board into the tight living room and cleared his throat, “I’m not sure if these...”

“You’ve gotta be shitting me,” Inuyasha laughed as he moved closer and plucked up one picture, “That little shit’s still around?”

“Wh-”

A photo was flashed of a middle aged man with brilliant green eyes and a sly grin.

“I mean, you wouldn’t be able to tell. I only know from…well I’m not sure actually,” Inuyasha laughed once as he wrinkled his nose and scoffed, “But where the fuck has he been? That would’ve been nice to know.”

“Mr. Nakamura?” Hiro offered quietly - deciding to ignore the cursing in favor of learning more, “He works for some civil department I believe. Has a wife. A teenage daughter. They sometimes come in.”

Inuyasha snorted and continued glancing over the board.

“What did this dumbass do to get on your board?”

“Nothing really except his eye color changes often. Brown. Green. Sometimes blue. Thought it was odd so…,” the doctor admitted before realizing that Inuyasha knew who that man was which meant, “So Mr. Nakamura is a demon?”

“Yeah, he’s a kid now,” Inuyasha made a face and amended, “Then I guess. Fox demon, ya know? Shapeshifter but he had a thing for humans so I wouldn’t be surprised if the daughter’s only half.”

As Inuyasha confirmed a few more of the photos were probably demons and gave a truthful account of suspicious events on the board, the man went from being relieved he wasn’t insane to wondering how he could be a better doctor for those living in hiding.

“Tell me something. Since I apparently have multiple demon patients, is there anything I should know? Things to avoid?” Hiro asked as he wrung his hands, “Your...Kagome’s grandfather tells me you both are injured frequently.”

Inuyasha nodded absently before letting out a heavy sigh. A long pause followed while the half-demon moved to the other side of the very full and very large easel.

“Pain. I don’t really feel pain,” the half-demon admitted before clearing his throat and plucking up a different picture, “I mean, I do but I don’t. More...more cold. Dizzy. Hard to breathe. Hard to move. Like I know I’m hurt but I can’t necessarily feel the injury if that makes sense.”

Hiro did not think that made sense but he took mental note of it nonetheless.

“I mean, I’ve been hurt when I’m human so I know what pain feels like and it’s not that,” Inuyasha finished lamely before cocking his head to the side and adding, “And healing. It’s fast. Like bones. Bones fully heal in like a day so you’ve got to be quick in setting it or you’ll have to break it again. That’s probably why that guy came to you for pictures. The one you said. To make sure he set it right.”

“A day?”

Inuyasha nodded absently before slowly pinning the photos back on the board. Every so often he paused and opened his mouth like he wanted to speak but didn’t.

“Ya know, I was afraid all the demons were dead. That all my friends were...” the boy finally admitted in a strange tone before his eyes once again found the photo of the grown up yet transformed Shippo, “Well some must be but some aren’t. He’s not. Good…good to know.”

Smiling softly, Hiro had to agree. All these things were very good things to…

“Wait, did you say you turn human? Fascinating. Tell me more.”

Over the next few months, Inuyasha’s visits surprisingly became quite regular. To the point where Hiro stopped locking his window in the hopes that Inuyasha would simply let himself in to pin a new finding on the increasingly full board while he was away. That the boy would have new insight into demon physiology. New advice. It certainly was helping with his practice with absolutely fantastic results. A more aggressive regime and quicker action seemed to do the trick most of the time resulting in much happier patients. As a result, each month he found himself busier. Each new patient marvelously different in their own way. Despite having no specialty in the matter, twenty eight of the fifty individuals with that rare disease that blocked pain now had him as his PCP. It was absolutely wonderful.

And then Inuyasha’s visits stopped without warning. Months turned to a year and Hiro began questioning his own sanity. Perhaps there had never been a strange half-demon man who was interested in what he had to say. He truly was as crazy as everyone had always said. His old friend still talked about his granddaughter and the man but doubt creeped in. Perhaps it was just out of pity.

The board was disassembled. Pictures and clippings and ‘evidence’ thrown in trash bags. Absently discarded never to be seen again.

Life continued on until one day something changed. Specifically, it was an appointment for Mr. Nakamura’s annual. The man that Hiro’s ‘imaginary’ friend thought he knew. To say the old man was dreading this appointment would be the understatement of the century.

So it was, with a heavy sigh, wizened knuckles rapped at the door before turning the handle.

“Inuyasha apologizes for missing his appointments,” the green eyed, red haired man chuckled as his nine tails lazily swayed behind him. As the old man stared at the demon in all his glory casually perched atop the examination table, he couldn’t help but gape.

“He sent you did he?” Hiro breathed in awe and the far too amused fox demon nodded.

“You came highly recommended,” Shippo chuckled, “ I doubt you’ve had a human patient in years. Well, okay, maybe you’ve had one or two.”

Letting out a relieved laugh, Hiro smiled and closed the door behind him.

[sizzlingpatrolfox]

Hi do you have any idea why we are unable to re-chart LC in hot 100 ? When we had 5M streams, we were told only 75% are premium streams and we need more of them. This time we had 7M streams, so at least 5M should have been premium right? Apparently this is the weakest charts since the beginning of the year.

I am not worried much abt the song not re-charting but I have been seeing people really working hard for it and I am trying to understand what is happening. Initially I thought maybe it's just because we don't have enough sales/streams but every week we are increasing in streams and there are songs with much less streams.

Helloo. No, I really don't know either. Nobody seems to understand what's going on. The premium streams thing doesn't make sense to me exactly for the reasons you said; besides, not everyone who's charting with 10m streams has all premium streams.

There are some "theories" going around about how you need certain amount of points to re-enter, or something about how you need to re-enter at a peak position (a higher position that you had before) or something like that, but it's all speculation and nobody knows for a fact how it actually works. Maybe the sales are still getting filtered. But I've seen songs with 0.3k (meaning 300) sales and same amount of streams of like crazy (or maybe even less), and it's charting. I would guess like crazy is getting at least 300 sales a week. It's a really small number. I understand if it's not getting 5k a week, but 300 seems possible.

I don't care either about it recharting but I'm curious about how it works lol. I don't care if it re-enters because it's going to be impossible, not hard, but impossible to make it go higher the next week without millions of radio. I don't see the point in it entering at the 90s and then being out of the chart the next week. I would be all in for it to happen if there was a way it could higher the week after, but that's not the case, so. If anything, I think it could be more productive if it re-entered top 50 on spotify USA because I think it could give it some visibility. Especially the english version lol, but I know that's not likely. Even more so now that everyone's releasing music this week.

Still, bb hot 100 would be nice if it happened for the people who really want it to happen, and to maybe understand how it works. Even if it doesn't happen tho, I saw today someone point out how all of this helps towards increasing its RIAA units anyways, so even if it's not on the chart it should be still gaining units towards the million.

[ohthehypocrisy]

Rampardos for Pokemon Unite!

Season 1

Prev: Torterra - Scrafty - Starmie - Luvdisc - Boltund - Tinkaton

Now, I’m not really a dinosaur kind of guy. I wasn’t one of those kids that loved and revered dinosaurs for what they were and what they could’ve been like. That said, Rampardos fills me with a sense of nostalgia and familiarity when I see it. Maybe because I used one all the time back when I played competitively, using it as the ace for my Trick Room teams. I always loved using it to one-shot everything to win the battle. And even beyond that, it appeals greatly to me as a big lovable dino with a head case of hard headed bravery.

And now, it’s time for me to return the favor to one of my Gen 4 favorites. Let’s bring this ancient creature back from the Cretaceous era and into Pokemon Unite!

In all of the years of Pokemon, an extremely sparse few have ever had a stat totaling more than 150. There are the well known giants such as Mewtwo with its high Sp. Atk, or Blissey with her super high HP. But choice among them is Rampardos, having an Attack stat so high, it is the 4th highest Attack stat of all the pokedex, having only been beaten out by Deoxys Attack introduced in the generation before it.

Granted, the rest of its stats aren’t that great. A modest HP stat of 97 makes it kind of bulky, but its defenses are extremely low. Low Sp. Atk and Speed are also a burden on its ability to use moves, so a lot of what Rampardos can do is rather limited aside from hitting things really hard. Instead, let’s figure out Rampardos’s archetype by process of elimination. As an Attacker, Rampardos lacks the Sp. Atk needed to fire off strong hits, and I don’t think shooting rocks is Rampardos’s style. It doesn’t have the defenses to be an All-Rounder or a Defender, and there’s no way it can be expected to play the role of a Supporter. And so, with nothing else for it, Rampardos has gained the role of a...

Speedster

Basic Attack - Melee/Attack

A stamping stomp romp that deals damage to enemies close by. Can be used while the pokemon is moving, but deals less damage and has reduced range. Powers up the next hit of Headbutt, Zen Headbutt, or Head Smash when used.

The range of the basic attack is above average when standing still. The range of the basic attack while running is below average.

When mashed or held, the basic attack deals damage once every 0.5 seconds.

Each hit powers up Headbutt, Zen Headbutt, and Head Smash by 50%, to a maximum of 300%. Damaging multiple enemies accelerates the boost, 50% for each enemy hit. The boost expires even if the attack misses.

With the role of a Speedster, Rampardos has high expectations for its damage and mobility options. For starters, its basic attack is a wide ranged stomping attack that damages all nearby enemies. And this attack range is far reaching too, which makes Rampardos dangerous to be near. And for good reason, each hit powers up the damage of Headbutt, Zen Headbutt, or Head Smash when that attack is used, and can boost the move’s damage by as much as triple!

Now, of course, Rampardos cannot afford to take many hits, so the basic attack operates more as a risk vs reward, but the risk tapers off if you have allies nearby. One notable effect is that Rampardos can keep stamping the ground even while it's moving, but the range is reduced in exchange. The ability to keep attacking while moving is something all other Speedsters struggle with, including Gengar. While Rampardos loses out on range, each hit does still power up your head attacks, which results in a huge payout should you land that attack. 

Now, the attack boost accelerates if you damage multiple enemies with one stomp, but the risk is not worth it. DO NOT engage multiple enemies unless you have sufficient backup that can stun the enemy long enough to get those multiple stomps in. Hitting one enemy 6 times is enough to power up the head attacks to max, but hitting 2 enemies 3 times achieves the same thing in a shorter amount of time, and hitting 3 enemies two times does this as well. The problem is, no opposing player will let that happen if they can help it, and this kind of brashness is a good way to put a giant target on your back.

You’re playing as a Rampardos, that’s already risky enough. Use your head, metaphorically and literally.

Ability: Mold Breaker

When an enemy is hit from this pokemon’s attack, it will not activate that enemy’s ability.

Abilities that activate when the pokemon’s HP reaches a certain threshold are exempt, as they use the HP percentage as a trigger rather than receiving damage.

The Slow Smoke item (and other hindrance inducing battle items that have yet to be made) is not affected by Mold Breaker. Items like Razor Claw, which inflict a movement speed debuff on hit, do bypass abilities with Mold Breaker, however.

For such a straightforward ability, Mold Breaker is one of the most powerful. Rampardos already has a tough time dealing with the stunning options the enemy team has, so putting a stop to their abilities is one way it can smash through unopposed.

The effect is simple. If Rampardos attacks and deals damage to an enemy with an ability that will react to that attack, it simply won’t activate. The easiest example is Espeon’s Magic Bounce or Duraludon’s Heavy Metal. Both abilities grant the pokemon a protection from hindrances one time before going on cooldown. But if Rampardos inflicts a hindrance through one of these moves, the hindrance is overruled by Rampardos’s Mold Breaker. The hindrance protection is still there and will kick in when another enemy damages them with a hindrance inducing attack, but not if it comes from Rampardos.

A short list of all abilities and their interactions (not including pokemon from my own posts); Blissey’s Natural Cure will not cure the pokemon of hindrances inflicted by Rampardos, but it’s cooldown doesn’t activate. Cramorant’s Gulp Missile will not counterattack. Dragapult’s Clear Body doesn’t reduce the duration of debuffs inflicted by Rampardos. Dragonite’s Multiscale will not block damage received but it will not go on cooldown afterwards. Duraludon’s Heavy Metal will not stop the pokemon from being shoved or thrown. Likewise, Espeon’s Magic Bounce will fail to block hindrances. Garchomp’s Rough Skin will not deal counter damage. Gardevoir’s Synchronize will not inflict the same debuff or damage over time effect on Rampardos. Glaceon’s Snow Cloak will not block hindrances and will not make the pokemon invisible. Greedent’s Cheek Pouch will not produce a berry on hit. Machamp’s Guts do not increase attack when hit by a hindrance. Pikachu’s Static will not cause a counter stun to all surrounding enemies. Slowbro’s Oblivious will not store HP and cause the pokemon to receive full damage from Rampardos’s attacks. Sylveon’s Pixilate will not increase it’s Sp. Atk and Sp. Def, but the ability still triggers when it deals damage to Rampardos. Wigglytuff’s Cute Charm will not force Rampardos to approach the pokemon, but will still activate if another pokemon triggers the ability and Rampardos is in range. And lastly, Zeraora’s Volt Absorb do not generate an electric charge and will not boost its Attack.

Now, there are some pokemon I did leave out and whose abilities are in fact affected by Mold Breaker. However, they belong to the unevolved forms of pokemon whose abilities change after evolving. Larvitar’s Guts and Kubfu’s Inner Focus are negated by Mold Breaker, but these pokemon tend to evolve early on during the game, so the interaction is negligible most of the time.

The other abilities I left out seem to be the most notorious ones, such as the various boosting abilities like Torrent and Blaze. The devil is in the details, and Mold Breaker doesn’t stop these abilities from activating because they don’t respond to attacks or damage. Rather, if the pokemon’s HP falls below a certain threshold, they activate, and it doesn’t matter what causes it. Basically, the pokemon’s HP is the activator for these abilities, not necessarily the attacks that reduced the HP to that amount in the first place. So, unfortunately, Cinderace’s Blaze will kick in when you reduce it’s HP down, making it possible to retaliate with extremely quick feet flashes.

All you can do is deal more damage than the ability can handle. The pokemon can’t abuse it’s low HP powered ability if its HP is set to 0 (finger to brain gesture).

At the start of the game, Rampardos will start out as Cranidos. You can choose between Leer and Headbutt as your first move. By Level 3, you will have learned both.

Move 1: Leer

Gives all enemies in range a nasty look, stunning them briefly and reducing their Defense for 4 seconds. 8s cooldown.

Affects all enemies in a fan shape in front of the pokemon. Reduces defenses by 50%.

Leer stuns enemies for 0.5 seconds.

Reducing the defenses of your enemies is a powerful opening play, especially since the Mold Breaker ability prevents the debuff from being reduced or nullified. The range is limited and you only have 4 seconds to take advantage of the debuff, but it’s a great move to lead with against the bulky Defenders or All-Rounders you meet in the middle of the lane.

While 8 seconds of cooldown doesn’t give you much flexibility, it’s a matter of skill in how you use the move. Did you manage to get two or three enemies in one Leer? Good, now go buck wild. Oh, did you miss? Too bad, now you have to wait for the cooldown to come off of its timer before you can try again. Hope you don’t get KO’d in the meantime because of your itchy trigger finger.

Move 2: Headbutt

Charges forward head first, shoving enemies caught in the attack. Dealing damage to an opposing pokemon resets this moves cooldown. 8.5s cooldown.

Cranidos stops dashing at the point of impact. Enemies are shoved a fair distance away and are unable to act while being thrown.

If the enemy is immune to hindrances, the move will still have its cooldown reset if it successfully deals damage.

With reckless abandon, Cranidos charges head first, rudely shoving away any and all enemies along the path. While Headbutt is a simple and straightforward attack, in more ways than one, it does get a massive boost from your basic attack, which drastically increases its potential to KO. Not only that, its stun and shove effect cannot be blocked by abilities thanks to Mold Breaker, which makes it easy to throw the attack around with little repercussion.

Speaking of percussion, Headbutt resets its own cooldown when damaging an enemy from the opposing team, which is very powerful. Since the stun effect cannot be blocked, this means Cranidos can very easily bully an enemy into submission, KO’ing them with little counterplay. Now, it should be noted that Headbutt’s Shove effect is still blocked by protections such as Full Heal or Safeguard, which can give the enemy enough time to retaliate. Moreover, if the enemy you’re bullying has backup, don’t expect to last long, as Headbutt has limited range and you’re likely to be KO’d in return.

Also, this only works against enemy players. Wild Pokemon will not trigger the cooldown reset, so if you somehow mess up your aiming, you’ll have to deal with the long cooldown. Don’t get it wrong, Headbutt is a powerful move to use against your foes, but there’s a reason for that, and that’s because Cranidos has very little survivability when challenged.

I’m going to be saying this a lot, but use your head. Literally and metaphorically.

At Level 4, Leer becomes either Stealth Rock or Ancient Power.

Move 1a: Stealth Rock

Unleash a volley of floating rocks in random directions directly forward. Each individual stone targets an enemy and deals damage, reducing their movement speed and increasing the damage they receive from your next attack. The more hits Stealth Rock deals to an enemy, the greater the movement speed reduction and increased damage they receive. 9.5s cooldown.

At Level 11, Stealth Rock becomes Stealth Rock+.

More rocks are thrown. Extends the duration of movement speed reduction and increased damage.

One hit from Stealth Rock reduces movement speed by 10% and increases damage dealt by 10% for 5 seconds. Subsequent damage adds 10% more to each factor, but the duration of the effect is reset to 5 seconds. The effect caps at 75% reduction. The rocks disappear after dealing damage.

8 rocks are thrown with Stealth Rock. Stealth Rock+ throws 12 rocks and extends the duration of its debuff to 7.5 seconds.

If the debuffs are cleared by effects or by the timer running out and then reapplied, the debuff power starts over at 10%.

Stealth Rock and Stealth Rock+ linger in an area for 6.5 seconds before disappearing. The cooldown starts when the move is used.

Most Speedsters manage by constantly dealing damage while on the move. They don’t really have a penchant for laying traps like Rampardos here, but it does help in covering a large area to take advantage of.

First of all, you’re still a Cranidos when you learn Stealth Rock, or Ancient Power, and you don’t evolve until a little later, but I will be referring to little Cranidos as Rampardos from here on out.

Now, giving up Leer for Stealth Rock is a matter of expanding your influence. While the ability to reduce defense is greatly weakened, Stealth Rock also reduces the movement speed of all affected enemies, making it easier to chase them down. Don’t forget, these debuffs aren’t blocked by abilities thanks to Mold Breaker, which makes it easy when dealing with one trick Attackers like Glaceon. The attack is also difficult to dodge, as each will home in and attack any enemy within range. This activation range is very small, but Stealth Rock throws a lot of little stones that’s impossible to maneuver through.

Against opposing enemies, Stealth Rock is best used to deal with mobile Attackers and Speedsters, as they tend to zip around out of reach and attack when you leave yourself wide open. Stealth Rock casts a wide net not only to slow these jittery enemies down, but also drastically increases the followup damage. If you manage to get a few hits in with your basic attack, the subsequent Headbutt or its upgraded moves will surely One-Hit KO the enemy. It’s also a great plus for your teammates in that it makes these enemies easier to deal with. Stealth Rock increases damage received, not necessarily reducing their defense, meaning that any attack type will deal increased damage and secure the KO reliably.

However, Stealth Rock offers very little protection for Rampardos, as it doesn’t reduce their attack or limit their offense in any other way, making you prone to counterattacks, especially if they have hindrance protection. If you’re fast enough, you don’t have anything to worry about, but if your opponent has even the slightest edge, you might be on the receiving end of the respawn timer.

Move 1b: Ancient Power

Summons a force field of skull fossils to surround you, damaging nearby enemies. When damage is received, a skull fossil disappears in exchange for nullifying the damage. Each skull fossil that disappears in this way boosts the attack power and movement speed of the pokemon. 9.5s cooldown.

At Level 11, Ancient Power becomes Ancient Power+.

Increases the amount of fossils generated and prevents hindrances from affecting the pokemon when blocking damage.

6 Skull Fossils are generated when Ancient Power is used. Ancient Power+ makes 9 fossils.

Before Ancient Power is upgraded, damage is nullified but hindrances aren’t. Blocking damage increases movement speed and attack power by 10% for each Skull Fossil consumed. These boosts last for 5.5 seconds and reset each time the boost increases.

Ancient Power creates a damaging effect around Rampardos that deals small amounts of damage very rapidly. The rate of damage decreases the less fossils you manage to keep.

Ancient Power and Ancient Power+ last for 4.5 seconds before disappearing.

Rather than investing in a projectile option, Ancient Power augments Rampardos’s defensive capabilities by granting it great protection. When used, it summons a force-field of Skull Fossils to surround and protect it (are these fossils its dead relatives? Oooh, don’t wanna think about that). 

The field of fossils damages nearby enemies, increasing its offensive capabilities when engaging in melee combat with other pokemon. However, this isn’t the main draw of the move, though it is very handy against Wild Pokemon. The real boon of Ancient Power is the ability to nullify damage completely, in exchange for losing one of these fossils. Losing fossils in this way does reduce the damage you deal to nearby enemies, but in return, it grants Rampardos a small Attack and Movement Speed boost. Not only that, it stacks with each fossil lost to blocked damage, drastically increasing Rampardos’s destructive potential when all fossils are lost.

Ancient Power makes 6 fossils that protect you, resulting in a possible 60% attack and movement speed boost if all fossils are used up. Ancient Power+ makes 9 fossils, bringing up the possible power boost to an insane 90% attack and speed boost. Not only does Ancient Power protect Rampardos, but it also rewards it for being reckless in this way. What’s the counterplay?

Patience. Both attacks only last for 4.5 seconds, so a smart opponent will wait until the fossils disappear before reengaging Rampardos. This is really bad for it, because afterwards Rampardos has to wait 9.5 seconds of cooldown before it can use the move again. And even if it manages to get the boost, it only lasts for about 5 seconds before the boost goes away. Granted, this boost time resets each time a fossil is lost, but it’s a lot less time than you would think, especially given Rampardos’s frailty and lack of protection.

Using Ancient Power to dive into team fights is also not without its risks, as the Ancient Power boost only provides a limited number of protection against hits. In the heat of battle, it’s very easy to lose all of those fossils and then get KO’d before accomplishing anything meaningful. Also, until the move upgrades to Ancient Power+, it doesn’t block hindrances from effecting you, which can make the mid-game a difficult endeavor.

Even so, the move is very useful in handling opposing All-Rounders, Defenders, and Supporters. All-Rounders and Defenders will not want to risk engaging Rampardos if it has Ancient Power fortifying it, and Supporters will have very little counterplay to challenge Rampardos even if it uses up all of its fossils and is vulnerable to damage again.

Now, keep in mind that most of this applies to Cranidos as well, as the little butt head learns all of these moves before evolving. But once it evolves into the mighty Rampardos, its stats gain a huge spike in power, greatly boosting its power level.

At Level 7, Cranidos becomes Rampardos. At the same time, Headbutt becomes either Zen Headbutt or Head Smash.

Move 2a: Zen Headbutt

Harnesses psychic power into your head before charging forward. While charging, you are resistant to hindrances and your defenses increase. Upon impact with an enemy, reduces your cooldown by half and stuns the enemy briefly. 8s cooldown.

At Level 13, Zen Headbutt becomes Zen Headbutt+.

Increases speed and travel distance. Reduces cooldown by 6 seconds on hit with an enemy.

Zen Headbutt and Zen Headbutt+ increase your defense by 60% while charging the move. The extra defense and hindrance resistance carry over when the attack comes out.

It takes a full second for the move to fully charge and attack. You can turn and aim while charging Zen Headbutt, but turning speed is very slow. Aiming before the move comes out is unaffected. 

Zen Headbutt stuns enemies for 1 second.

Your cooldown is reduced when you damage an enemy. The damage range is similar to that of an explosion and can stun multiple enemies. However, the cooldown doesn’t reduce any further if you damage multiple enemies.

Eject Button can be used to change Rampardos’s location while charging the move.

Rampardos forfeited a lot of brain power in evolving, but that doesn’t seem to have stopped it from learning the big brain move of Zen Headbutt. Not only is the range greater than Zen Headbutt, but it’s also much stronger and even more unstoppable thanks to the power of harnessing the mind.

The ability to become resistant to hindrances while charging the attack grants Rampardos the ability to break through conventional means of hindrance, allowing it to bypass moves like Mr. Mime’s Confusion or Snorlax’s Yawn, all of which would have stopped the dinosaur in its tracks. The extra defense is a great plus too, though it doesn’t do much considering Rampardos’s frailty.

One downside is that the move doesn’t automatically refresh itself when it deals damage, but the extended travel distance and ability to stun multiple enemies is a fair trade-off. Also, that is a full second of stun dealt on hit, giving you just enough time to get off two basic attacks. If you hit multiple enemies, your next Zen Headbutt will practically triple in damage, and that extra stun basically reduces your cooldown down to 3 seconds instead, basically!

Combined with Stealth Rock or Ancient Power, Rampardos suddenly becomes a formidable Speedster to watch out for. Stealth Rock reduces the enemy’s ability to escape while Ancient Power makes it nearly impossible to counter Rampardos’s aggression before it gets to attack again. And do not forget, Mold Breaker is able to stun enemies regardless of their ability, making the attack much safer for Rampardos.

It should be noted, though, that the attack is easy to dodge. While Rampardos is charging, it takes a full second for it to reach full power before attacking. It’s designated direction is easy to guess as Rampardos faces which way it’s going to run at, and turning is drastically reduced while charging. If Rampardos misses, you’ll have to wait 8 seconds before using Zen Headbutt again, and you might not survive that time if the enemy is really aggressive.

Zen Headbutt+ increases the travel distance and attack speed, the two combined means that Rampardos runs further in the same amount of time as regular Zen Headbutt. It’s great to use when engaging enemies sooner, but the attack might send you further into enemy territory than you intended. The major upside though is the drastically reduced cooldown if you get a hit in, which brings Zen Headbutt+ back to the effectiveness of Headbutt, back when you were a little Cranidos.

This must be what they mean when they say brain over brawn. Use your brain power to beat your enemies to death!

Move 2b: Head Smash

Charges forward head first recklessly, running in a straight line. You are completely immune to hindrances while charging. Any enemy you collide with are picked up and dragged along. Upon collision with a wall, the attack explodes, dealing damage to all enemies caught in the move as well as those nearby. If you reach the maximum distance before the move ends, you will stop charging and be stunned briefly while any enemy you caught will be thrown a short distance. Reduces the cooldown of this move by 2.5 seconds for each enemy on the opposing team you damage with this move. 15s cooldown.

At Level 13, Head Smash becomes Head Smash+.

The attack will keep going until you run into a wall.

Picked up enemies are incapacitated and cannot use moves or items to escape. However, if the enemy has hindrance protection before colliding with the move, they will be damaged but will not be picked up by the attack.

If you fail to hit a wall with Head Smash, Rampardos will be left unable to act for 0.5 seconds while any picked up enemies will be shoved a bit from the stopping point. The cooldown of the move kicks in when the move ends by hitting a wall or failing in this way.

The impact deals damage equal to 4.5x Rampardos’s Attack stat.

In life, there are three things that you absolutely do not want to be hit by; a lawsuit, a hospital bill, and Rampardos’s Head Smash, which incidentally you can get all three if you own a Rampardos, constantly.

With what might possibly be the longest cooldown timer for a move in the game (so far), Rampardos’s Head Smash counts down to an agonizingly long wait time of 15 whole seconds. That’s a quarter of a minute! There’s only 10 of those in a whole match! For such a long wait time, you’d think the move would be worth using, and it is. Instead of a nauseating recoil factor, Rampardos only has to deal with the timer, which is a fantastic trade-off.

Like a bulldozer, when Rampardos uses Head Smash, it picks a direction and prays. It prays that it will pick up an unfortunate victim and carry them off to a brand new world, unless it hits a wall, in which case the only world they’re going to is the Distortion World, because of how hard Head Smash hits. Head Smash doesn’t deal damage until the attack lands on a wall, in which case a massive shock wave is released and deals damage to all in range, including the unfortunate passenger. Not only does Head Smash deal legitimately bonkers damage, it gets its own cooldown reduced for each enemy you picked up. If you’re lucky enough to pick up the entire enemy team, Head Smash’s cooldown is reduced by 12.5 seconds, giving you roughly 2 seconds of wait time until you can use the attack again.

Using this move to deal damage requires using it properly. If you aim in a direction where there is no wall, Rampardos will keep running until it tires out. When this happens, any enemy is thrown weakly and Rampardos stops moving for a bit before it can act again. Missing the wall in this way actually causes you to miss out on the big damage at the end of the move, and chances are you’ll be left alone, all by yourself, with half of the opposing team ready to rip into you. Head Smash+ fixes this by forcing the move to keep running until a wall is found, but it doesn’t increase the damage and any survivors will immediately retaliate. Because of the extra distance you can run, you’ll most likely end up far away from your team, devoid of backup squaring off against a bulky All-Rounder or Defender (the most likely to survive your Head Smash, if they were at full HP).

However, if you’re playing for the team, you’ll just have to accept that it is a great sacrifice that can be made on your part. I mean, Talonflame, another fellow Speedster, literally plows and runs over their enemies for the greater good. Though it should be stated that Talonflame has better escape options than Rampardos, utilizing Fly, Flame Charge, or Brave Bird to either finish the job or make a quick getaway. When Rampardos charges, it’s to deal great damage and KO the enemy in one go, regardless of what comes after.

Rampardos does have a slight advantage, though, and that’s the fact that the move is powered up by your basic attack, just like Zen Headbutt. If you can bring up the damage, you can KO just about anything. And barring hindrance protection, your Mold Breaker ability will grab just about anyone and limits their counterplay. 

When you mess with the bull, you get the horns. When you mess with a Rampardos, you get a free ride to the underworld. Watch yourself.

Unite Move: Rampaging Rocker

The pokemon’s movement speed drastically increases and forces the pokemon to run. While running, the pokemon is resistant to hindrances and any enemy the pokemon collides with are damaged and shoved to either side of the pokemon. In addition, any obstacles made by pokemon from either team are destroyed upon collision. The enemy receives increasing damage each time they are attacked again.

Rampardos’s movement speed increases by 2.75x.

Repeated attacks increase the damage dealt by 25%.

The Unite Move lasts for 8.5 seconds.

When the ground starts rumbling and trees and walls are falling, left and right, it’s not a natural disaster that’s causing all of this, it’s Rampardos, pure destruction given form. Rampaging Rocker unleashes the fully fury of the ancient era of dinosaurs, letting Rampardos run wild, destroying everything in sight.

When activated, your movement speed nearly triples, which is already scary enough, but Rampardos then starts charging head first at everything and everyone. Getting hit by Rampardos in this state sends the enemy flying, but it doesn’t hurt that much at first. But then, getting hit a second or third time will result in the damage slowly increasing, and by the fourth hit, half of your HP is already gone, and the fifth hit threatens to take it all away!

Not even putting a wall in front of Rampardos is enough to stop its rampage, as the Unite Move grants it the power to destroy walls and obstacles made by the opposing pokemon. It’ll break the walls made by your teammates too, but more importantly, it just means that literally nothing can stop Rampardos from running through the entire enemy team. (Heracross, whom I made a moveset for, had this same ability with the move Brick Break, so this is an intentional callback)

If that wasn’t bad enough, the Unite Move is backed by Mold Breaker, which prevents pokemon from using their abilities to escape damage dealt by this move. It also stuns and shoves enemies freely, meaning it can be used to knock enemies away from points of interest, such as Regieleki or Rayquaza. In drastic examples, it can be used to knock away enemies defending their home Goal Zone, putting them at major risk of being KO’d while your teammates score a sneaky goal.

The one major downside to this move, as with all of Rampardos’s moves, is that, barring Buddy Barrier, Rampardos has no defensive buffer when using this Unite Move. It is completely possible to get KO’d while attacking or approaching the enemy menacingly, especially given Rampardos’s weak defenses. Granted, this is extremely difficult for the enemy to do, as Rampardos gains a massive movement speed boost while using this Unite Move, and also it is resistant to hindrances, so only an opposing Unite Move can really stop its rampage. Still, the objective for the enemy is to survive and evade until the Unite Move wears off, in which case it becomes safe to engage Rampardos again. Having teammates hold the enemy down with their own hindrances can make this difficult, and opposing Attackers and Speedsters shouldn’t be expected to last very long against this battle plan.

Even so, Rampardos has the edge when engaging in a team fight with this move, as your teammates can cover your weaknesses while you single out the weak and weakened enemies to secure the point. They’re gonna feel that one in the morning.

Holowear

Dinosaurs have no sense of style or fashion, but even Rampardos knows it can’t rock a fancy hat. It would obscure that magnificent dome and would be difficult to take seriously. Rest assured, the clothes are completely holographic, so there’s no danger to bashing its head against a wall and ruining an expensive looking hat.

Firstly, there’s Sporty Style, putting Rampardos in a jersey and body armor and some athletic shorts. No helmet though, as Rampardos doesn’t need one. Then there’s Conductor Style, giving it a scarf, a whistle, a fancy shirt and tie, and a train master’s hat. Matador Style gives Rampardos an exotic looking shirt, a red cape, and one of those fancy hats bull fighters wear. With Demolition Style, Rampardos puts on an orange bright vest, a tool belt, and a pair of safety goggles that rest on its neck. And finally, Delivery Style puts Rampardos in a brown worker’s shirt and shorts and a small cap and a satchel full of packages and presents. 

The general idea is that Rampardos will be using these holowear to express itself while running over its enemies, just with more personality.

Strategy

Rampardos’s fight starts at the loading screen, where you can see which pokemon are on the opposing team and what they’re running. Against multiple Attackers, Rampardos has the edge, especially if you employ ambush strategies to stop a team fight before it begins. Opposing Speedsters will be tricky, as they’re more agile than you, but all the same, you can take them out in a couple of hits with the element of surprise. It’s the Defenders and All-Rounders you have to worry about, as being underleveled when you engage them means your attacks aren’t as strong as they could be, and you’ll be on the receiving end of the respawn timer more often than not, unless you step up your EXP farm game.

At the start of the game, farming will be a little difficult, as Headbutt’s cooldown reset effect only works on pokemon from the opposing team, not wild pokemon. You’ll have to work with Leer until you reach Level 4, where it becomes either Stealth Rock or Ancient Power. Stealth Rock is useful against long range Attackers that like to keep their distance with hit and run tactics. It also works well against Speedsters who like to dive in and deal high burst damage before escaping. Stealth Rock sets up a No Trespassing Zone that’s too risky for them to cross, limiting their available range and weakening them greatly if they get caught in the field of floating rocks. Ancient Power, on the other hand, is useful for dealing with melee attackers who employ rapid fire attacks to deal damage, such as Defenders or All-Rounders. It makes it difficult for them to approach you and also rewards you for their aggression, as each hit powers up Rampardos through Ancient Power’s protective effect. 

At Level 7, you evolve from Cranidos to Rampardos, and then you’d have to choose between Zen Headbutt or Head Smash. While Head Smash is capable of ludicrous damage, Zen Headbutt is for reserved smashing. It makes team fights a little safer as it boosts your defense while charging and makes you resistant to hindrances, making it very difficult for the enemy to stop. It’s best used when you are rushing into battle as backup, stopping the enemy dead in their tracks with a well placed Zen Headbutt, threatening them with another, and pushing them back. With Head Smash, though, you can crash the party and carry off the offenders, running them over and crashing into a wall to deal great damage. The more you got in one go, the better, as Head Smash will also reduce it’s own cooldown as a reward for smart aiming. Missing with Head Smash is really bad, as it means you failed to get multiple enemies in one charge and you’ll have to deal with the high cooldown afterwards. The attack is to be used smartly, as it can literally make or break a team fight for your side. And it cannot be overstated that both moves are powered up by your basic attack, dealing triple damage with a maximum of 6 hits on any enemy.

The real problem is Rampardos’s lack of bulk. While it’s not the frailest of the Speedsters (it’s actually bulkier than Gengar, Zoroark, and Dodrio stat wise), it doesn’t hold up to repeated stray hits, and it lacks elusive or self-sustaining abilities. Literally it’s whole game plan is to just hit things so hard, they can’t counterattack, because they’ll be in respawn resting off a killer headache. Cranidos and Rampardos are really effective at this too, but the problem is handling multiple enemies in one go. Sure, moves like Head Smash, Stealth Rock, and its basic attack do help a bit in dealing spread damage, the attack is spread too thin and makes Rampardos very vulnerable to counterattacks. Stealth Rock is great at slowing the enemy down and limiting their retreat, unless they choose not to retreat and confront you. Sure, Head Smash hits like a train, but bulkier enemies will survive the attack and will be poised to counterattack, especially if they have backup. Your basic attack will dramatically increase the power of your headbutting attacks, but engaging just one enemy will be risky, and it’s all lost if you get KO’d before you can use the attack.

What Rampardos can do really well is opening up holes in the opposing team’s fortifications. Many pokemon rely on their abilities to shrug off hindrances and damage, but that protection is ignored thanks to the Mold Breaker ability. Espeon and Glaceon rely on their abilities to shake off surprise hits and respond appropriately, but they are defeated by enemies that can apply multiple hindrances in one loadout. Rampardos doesn’t give them that chance and can ruin their day with just one attack, removing them from the fight via blunt force trauma. In other cases, Rampardos can deal such a huge amount of damage, it leaves the entire enemy team weakened, even if it gets KO’d too early. This huge chunk of HP it takes away gives the team just enough of an opening to capitalize and break through.

Playing Rampardos requires dealing big damage not for yourself, but for the team. It requires recognizing problematic opponents and eliminating them from the fight before they can meddle with your teammates. The rest of the opposition can be held off with a well aimed Head Smash or Zen Headbutt, and even after being KO’d, your team is in such a good position they can afford to press on even with 1 less player. 

In this sense, Rampardos has earned the title of a Speedster, using its high damage to poke Skull Fossil shaped holes in the enemy’s defenses, reducing their ability to respond to the opposing team’s aggression. Smashing.

-

And that’s Rampardos for Pokemon Unite! I know I’ve been churning out these posts really fast, but really, I’ve just found myself some extra time on my hands. Don’t expect this to last, but do consider this as an apology for my late uploads early on in the season.

The next post is probably going to be a Defender, one of my personal favorites from Gen 4. Who’s it gonna be? Follow and find out!

[writers-republic]

Taken Away by London Knight | Writers Republic LLC

ABOUT THE BOOK

It’s been 300 years since humanity has fled from the Ai that destroyed Earth with nuclear weapons. Most of the humans that remain live underground, in the caverns of Mars. A small band of specially chosen soldiers is given a mission to reclaim Earth, to see if it’s fit for colonization. They’ve trained their whole lives for this mission. Still, nothing in the cosmos could possibly prepare them for what they are about to unearth.

The human brain can only fit so much stuff in it, so instead of learning a little bit about a bunch of topics, they chose a bunch of soldiers and make them learn a lot about a smaller number of topics. As a unit, this made them stronger... But if someone died, that knowledge died with them.

People thought that meeting intelligent life would bring peace. They were wrong. When the soldiers landed on the planet’s surface to investigate something that should not be flourishing human settlements. The squad encounters very bad and dangerous circumstances and suddenly survival became the most requested need.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

London Knight is an emerging sci-fi author on a mission to create plots that entertain and inspire through the power of action-packed, macabre storytelling. For as long as he can remember, he has had an imagination as limitless as our universe. What started as writing to make sense of his random thoughts turned into crafting adventurous stories infused with science fiction. In addition to his experiences, his best friend has served as quite the inspiration throughout the last decade.

London Knight’s debut book is titled “Reincarnated in an Alien’s Body: Trapped on an Alien version of our Own Universe.”

A huge risk-taker even in the face of seemingly insurmountable challenges, this passionate novelist has his sights set on becoming a distinguished writer among sci-fi lovers and people unfamiliar with the genre alike.

[cindybanksteam]

Should You Buy a Home Warranty?

We’re buying a house. Should we buy a home warranty?” Seems like a relatively tame question, right? But post it on Facebook or Nextdoor and watch the impassioned responses roll in. You might as well ask, “What political party should I belong to.

Who knew people were so fervent about home warranties! Everyone has their own experience; expect to hear a few people call them “a scam” or at the very least a waste of money. Others will regale you with their tale of how having a warranty saved them from a freezing winter because they couldn’t afford to fix their furnace without it.

In the end, the decision is personal and largely based on how comfortable you are coming out of pocket if one of the more expensive items in your home, like the air conditioning unit or hot water heater, should malfunction and need to be replaced. We’re breaking down three important particulars so you can make an educated decision.

Know the cost

“A basic home warranty costs about $350 to $500 a year or more,” said Money Talks News. “A warranty typically covers kitchen appliances, plumbing, water heater, heating and electrical system components, sump pump, whirlpool tub, and ceiling and exhaust fans, according to Angie’s List. “‘Enhanced’ plans, purchased for another $100 to $300, provide added coverage for such things as a washer and dryer, air conditioning system, refrigerator and garage door opener. Optional coverage can be added, including for pools and septic systems.”

You can typically break down the annual cost into monthly payments if that’s more comfortable for you, but the cost of the warranty itself isn't the only thing you’re responsible for paying. Service calls will typically also cost you; put in a work order for a broken microwave or a tub that won’t drain and you’ll be responsible for paying for the privilege of having a professional come check it out, and—hopefully—fix it.

“Home warranty deductible, or service call fees, is an important concept to master if you want to understand how to find the cheapest home warranty plans for your needs,” said Review Home Warranties. With most home warranties, a deductible or service call fee will be required, “with an industry average of approximately $75 per visit. Some companies, like American Home Shield or TotalProtect Home Warranty, let their customers choose the amount of a deductible, which depends on the amount of premium. The higher the premium, the lower the deductible.”

Consider your peace of mind

Many homeowners opt for a home warranty for major “just-in-case” scenarios. Just in case the air conditioning unit crashes and burns. Just in case the hot water heater dies. Just in case there’s some other expensive repair that pops up, without the ability to comfortably pay for it. With the cost of some of these items running into the thousands—the average for a new air conditioning unit and installation, per HomeAdvisor, is $5,413!—the peace of mind factor is huge.

“For a homeowner who doesn't have an emergency fund or who wants to protect their emergency fund, a home warranty can act as a buffer,” said Investopedia. “Home warranties also make sense for people who aren't handy or who don't want to worry about tracking down a contractor when they have a problem. Warranties can also make sense for people with expensive taste in appliances.”

But…understand that not everything is covered

There’s always a chance that the item you need repaired is not covered under your warranty for one reason or another. “Having a home warranty doesn't mean the homeowner will never have to spend a penny on home repairs,” said Investopedia. “Some problems won't be covered by the warranty, whether because the homeowner didn't purchase coverage for that item or because the warranty company doesn't offer coverage for that item. Also, home warranties usually don't cover components that haven't been properly maintained. Furthermore, if the warranty company denies a claim, the homeowner will still have to pay the service fee and will also be responsible for repair costs.”

In our case, limitations spelled out in our home warranty contract regarding the replacement of outdated parts and refrigerant costs for our broken air conditioning unit meant we had to come out of pocket for $1,500. The lesson here: Read the fine print so you’re prepared.

[mangodestroyer]

Call me crazy, but I'm pretty sure my store would still be making lots of money if my wage was doubled.

Yes, I am aware that there is a fuck ton of labor that goes into running a clothing store. You have to pay the accountants, marketing team, upper management, truck drivers, customer service representatives, supervisors, and so much more. And sometimes, merchandise gets handled quite a bit. It needs to be kept neat, organized out onto the floor, go through price changes now and then, etc.

Thing is, I, a single employee, work with LOTS of merchandise everyday. Mere penny's worth of my labor goes towards a single unit, if even that. And the raw materials and labor that went into PRODUCING those clothes probably isn't as much as people think. It's pretty obvious these clothing items are being marked up at absurd prices so that you think you're getting a deal when you get a 20% off coupon or whatever.

Also, I wasn't even hired on as a service desk employee. And yet I often find myself working the till during a 4-8 hour shift. This isn't even the busiest time of the year for us, but it's really not uncommon for the place to be bustling with activity. And while working the register, I easily ring up tons of orders that are at least $50. Hell, I often find myself ringing up orders in the $150 to $300 range, with the occasional $500+ purchase. I'm also selling credit cards on top of that, which also earn the company lots of money because of the fact that these cards have a high interest rate and most people wait to pay them off when their bill arrives in the mail/online.

Not only that, but I also fill online orders sometimes. Whether that be through store pickup or through mail.

So I pretty much know how to do almost everything in the store. Aside from supervising and some operations tasks (even if I still help out with trucks and whatnot). I can do all of this fairly efficiently. ESPECIALLY since I've been working here two years. And within an hour, I can easily end up selling so much merchandise, that the money earned just from me alone ends up being far, FAR more than my weekly wage. Just in that hour.

So, yeah. How can you even justify giving the average worker a measly $12.50 an hour? Let alone one who is more experienced and efficient? With the cost of living these days, it just isn't ethical. Rent is insanely high, gas prices have gone up, and food isn't getting any cheaper. If my wage was doubled, I might actually be able to live on my own.

No, shit. Companies are greedy af. This is why I'm happy for the worker strikes and hope they do cause serious damage for the CEOs. The U.S. owns 25% of the world's wealth, so poverty shouldn't even be nearly as much of an issue as it currently is. And no one needs a billion dollars. Give me a break!

I've also become disgusted by how materialistic we are as a culture and try to cut back on frivolous purchases. I mean, I see people come here multiple times a month, buying so much dumb shit for their wardrobes that they really don't need. I once had a girl come in purchasing $400 worth of clothes. Admitting this wasn't the first time she'd done so that month. That she'll have to get a third job to support her shopping addiction when she already works 60 hours a week. Ngl, I kind of wanted to slap some sense into her right there and then. Just why??? She's already so busy, so she probably doesn't have much time to even enjoy the outfits she's wearing. And tbh, I doubt many people are giving it much thought either. And if you don't need to work more than 60 hours a week to survive, why the fuck would you? Wouldn't you rather, idk, pick up a hobby or something? Hang out with some friends? Spend some time out in the sun?

I guess capitalism isn't my thing.

[bestecosolar4]

Choosing the Powersource 1800 Solar Generator for the Home

Everyone has been preparing more than usual in the past 2-4 years since they are constantly being told about how disasters can strike at any moment and how EMP attacks could occur, even the Bible talks about times when nations will go to war against nations. With all of this kind of information, it only makes sense to get right with God and start preparing, even Noah prepared. The solar generator we are focusing on today is the Powersource 1800 Solar Generator, we will list some features, our recommendation and the run times for some appliances. There are some bigger unit generators available but due to the fact that we are trying to focus our products towards the majority of consumers, we are discussing the most affordable solar powered generators.

The solar powered generator that consumers have been purchasing for over 3 years is the Powersource 1800 Solar Generator. As you can probably tell, the 1800 stands for 1800 watts of power and its solar powered. This generator is able to power your electronics with the 1800 watt battery bank and can be charged either by the included 90 watt solar panel or the included wall adapter. The way it works is truly as simple as plug in play because once you receive this, you take it out of the box, plug in the cable to the generator and the other to the panel and you are good to go and have power. The run times for this unit all depends on what is being powered, but here are the most common devices and their run time. A cell phone is 63 hours at 5 watts, what this means is you could use your cell phone for 63 hours if you needed to before you would have to charge the generator again. A laptop would be about 22 hours at 20 watts, a lamp would be 10.5 hours at 40 watts, a sump pump ½ HP would be able to run for 1 hour at 300 watts, and a microwave for 12 min if its at 920 watts. These are just some of the devices people use when they are using the Powersource 1800, you can always get more creative and think about other appliances like hot plates, coffee makers and toasters.

This unit is mostly geared towards families and couples who demand a higher standard of living. The cost is around 1697.99 and is well worth the money if you have no clue how to deal with terminal wires, solar panel installations, amp configurations, electrical box and charge controllers because the Powersource 1800 Generator provides you with everything you need to just plug and play. This is a huge time saver for parents because they need the assurance of something they can rely on when they have kids running around scared when disasters do happen and nothing is worse than having a unit not working because the wires are not properly installed and the charge controller not correctly optimized.

Some of the features that are included in the Powersource 1800 is the four 115 vac power outlets, to keep this simple, we are talking about 4 outlets like the ones you see in your home today. This is an excellent feature if you have many devices you want to charge at the same time, like your smartphone, laptop, or if you want to cook with your hot plate while brewing coffee at the same time and even breast feeding with a pump for those who have infants.

Also, the bright LED light turns on automatically when the power outage occurs to provide illumination over the AC outlets. This is very helpful during complete blackouts so you can find where to plug in your lamp. There is also a an audible alarm that signals 10 minutes before the unit runs out of battery power. Another useful benefit when you don't remember how much power you have used, perfect for parents to stay alerted and plan accordingly. Another key feature is that you don't have to use this only for emergencies you can also use it for outdoor professional activities, like power for outdoor photography, camping and for those secret cabin getaways you own.

The Powersource 1800 Solar Generator is the original solar generator that was built for and meant for emergencies, backup power and small to large families needing a reliable power source during disasters. If you have thought about this unit before, remember thousands of customers have purchased this and thousands are still purchasing this because of the quality and craftsmanship. This unit is built in the United States and shipped in the USA and other countries where customers truly need a backup solar power solution.

If you need any kind of information on this article related topic click here: Best Solar Generator

[animal25]

Akbash: Dog Breed, Personality Health, Care Full Info

The Akbash dog is a large, significant canine. Size can range from 28 to 34 elevation with weights of 80 to 140 pounds. Obviously, the males are on the larger end of the scale.

These tykes are substantially white with maybe a touch of” biscuit” color, especially on the head. Beast-guarding tykes have been chosen for their white color to match the flock so they aren’t mistaken by the goatherds for bloodsuckers, the utmost of which are dark.

Coats can be short or long but are double carpeted and thus heavy on the slipping side. The fleece may have a surge to it and longer hair is on the tails of the legs and the bottom. Natural cognizance hangs down, however, in some countries they’re cropped.

Despite being white, these tykes aren’t albinos, and they’ve dark colors around the eyes, nose, and mouth. Numerous Akbash tykes are born with double dewclaws on the hind legs, analogous to Great Pyrenees and Briards. While these are big tykes, they’re unexpectedly nimble and quick for their size.

A slight bow in their reverse gives some suggestion of their running speed.

Origin: Turkey

Height: 24 to 33 inches and Bitches 20 to 30 inches

Weight: 120 pounds and bitches 90 pounds

LifeSpan: 10 to12 years

Size: medium

Color: Shades of white, light biscuit, or grey are acceptable

Breed Characteristics Of Akbash

The Akbash Dog’s essential characteristics are those that allow it to succeed as a beast guardian. These tykes have the size, strength, and courage to challenge large bloodsuckers and the speed and dexterity to chase line bloodsuckers.

History Of The Akbash

No one knows the exact origin story of the Akbash canine but nearly everyone agrees to the supposition that this strain was developed by ancient townies of western Turkey, to cover their herds. Some reports suggest that Akbash ancestors date back to 750- 300 B.C.

It’s believed that this large strain was bred about 3000 times agone and the motive behind this picky parentage was to produce a canine that can be easily distinguished from other bloodsuckers.

Some also believe that Akbash is a close kinsman of notorious European white flock tykes like tetra mountain gundog, kuvasz, komondor, and Pyrenean mountain canine.

Over time, this canine strain got indeed more, performing their jobs as flock guardians more directly than its Turkish counterpart.

For illustration, they’ve sharp sight and acute hail which keeps them largely apprehensive of their girding. Also, their heavy, altitudinous, regal appearance and robust constitution make them a tough contender to wolves and other creatures.

Due to the veritably same reason, Akbash is still used largely, not only by goatherds but also by security officers & deliverance groups as service and backing tykes.

Till the 1960s, this landrace strain was confined to the western regions of Turkey. In 1978, Two Americans David & Judy Nelson introduced Akbash to the rest of the world.

Nelson was so in love with this strain that he ended up importing dozens of Akbash tykes as foundation stock, to America, to increase the number.

Akbashbash was officially added to the guardian canine group by the American department of husbandry. likewise, at the same time, this department began using Akbash in its bloodsucker control program.

In 1998, the United kennel club honored this guardian strain but it’s still to be accepted by the American kennel club.

Appearance

The Akash tyke’s body is muscular, long-lawful, and slightly longer than altitudinous. They’re able of running at great speed and have acute senses of sight and hail they cover color is each over white.

Akbash canine fleece white, rainfall resistant, double, short to medium length fleece is coarse and matting, with veritably little odor.

This canine strain has a head with important jaws. The V-shaped cognizance is set high, with slightly rounded tips, flat to the cranium, and worn as a pendant.

Turkish Akbash tykes may have cropped cognizance It has almond-shaped eyes that are set piecemeal and diagonally. The eyes range in color from light golden brown to veritably dark brown.

The neck is muscular and strong, with a medium length, and bends at the crest. The nails are blunt, slate, brown, or white in color. The pads are generally thick, hard, elastic, and dark. Its tail is long and reaches the hocks.

Temperament

The Akbash Dog is a calm, independent, and steady home companion and guard canine. With his mortal family, children, and other faves, he’s devoted, gentle, and tender. He’s naturally suspicious of nonnatives and can be territorial of other tykes.

Including family faves and children, but remains frosty and suspicious of nonnatives It’s also naturally cautious of other tykes and may reply aggressively to intruding tykes in its own home. Despite its independence, the Akbash Dog responds well to introductory training. The Akbash Dog, when duly mingled and trained, makes an excellent family pet and home guardian.

Personality

The Akbash is a gentle canine who’s veritably defensive of their family. They are independent and like to have their own space from time to time. Firstly bred to cover flocks of beasts, they still have those strong guard instincts moment.

These pups are largely intelligent and, though they do not have explosive energy, are relatively nimble and strong if they smell peril and need to act.

However, they will growl or bark at nonnatives, but they aren’t exorbitantly aggressive towards them If they smell anything amiss. However, you can’t do much better than the Akbash, If you want a watchdog and guardian who’ll warn you of anyone who might approach your door.

This canine needs a strong and harmonious proprietor who can also be sensitive to their requirements when training. They can be fluently trained, but make sure to fraternize them beforehand with other tykes or faves who might live within the house.

Because they’re independent, they generally do not have any separation anxiety from their mortal counterparts. Make sure to give them some space, as they like to be on their own formerly and for a while.

More details:https://animalatoz.com/akbash/