Hey all, I am returned. And with this nifty new mask too.
... Actually not entirely a Theros joke, I got a mask modelled after Akali from K/DA that lights up to sound.


So, first things first, sorry to hear about the expenses Raven. Yeesh... If you ever need anything, all you have to do is shoot me a line. I don't know how much I can do, but I'll do what I can.

As to the costume, I went as Vander from the show Arcane. It turned out pretty good. Biggest problem is that it wasn't much of a costume by most measure since it's very low key. Basically, I had to awkwardly point it out to people I thought might recognize it.
Also, I am going to cut this damn mustache off as soon as I bloody can. My face was not meant for it, it clashes with my beard.

The only other convention related thing to share is that I'm somewhat frustrated. I'm out about 80 bucks because I bought some stuff that it turns out I already had. So... That's irritating. (Not exactly stuff I can just gift either for various reasons)

As to Huey, awesome! I hope you got to really spend some quality time with your chums. Or is it vogue to say droogs again?

And finally Aaarrrgh, I'm not much one for kids. I have difficulty enough understanding full sized people, but there are moments I think I'd envy and it sounds like you had one. I hope it all went well.

It's not a surprise, but the vast majority of people seem to have pretty awful taste.
I happen to find myself on My Anime List and thumbed through the top series of all time and... My Gods it's populated with garbage. Not entirely, but definitely mostly.
Even the things I don't think are actually bad are extremely basic fare and it all just served as reminder that, for lack of much else to characterize it, consumers gonna consume.

There's an anime analysis video you should see/likely have seen on this subject. The relevant bit is the last part of the last video in this playlist. I'd give a direct link, but it doesn't seem to be available on Canadian Youtube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQw4w9WgXcQ


Oh, here's the relevant bit in text version: https://myswordisunbelievablydull.wordp ... y-with-it/

What would you think of putting the M:EM Archive on AO3? Like, setting up an Archivist/Curator account there to post them and agree on a format to tag stuff and point back to this forum; the series function also allows for a clear organization of stories featuring the same characters/plotlines. It could bring new eyes to our work from a popular platform.

To be completely honest, I've been posting my stories there for a while. Didn't have a lot of feedback but hey

I am unfamiliar with AO3. Could you give a brief explanation of what it is?

Archive of Our Own, AO3 for short, is a site designed to be an independent fanwork archive, created as a response to hosting platforms being shut down for legal and economic reasons. It has a good system of categorization with rating, fandom and characters being clearly visible, and the writers can easily organize their work in series. This is how Healing Path looks there, for example.

AO3 is currently THE fanfic archive for countless fandoms - there are currently 1400 works tagged as MtG fanfics, for example*; while projects like ours, that generally keep canon at a careful distance, might not attract much outside attention, anthologies like the Innistrad one that are placed in fan-favorite planes might be suitable "bait"

*For complete disclosure, it's not a hugely prolific fandom compared to Humestuck (60k fics), Naruto (100k) or Supernatural (270k), which are numbers that convey the sheer size of the archive.

Gotcha. Thank you for the run-down.

I certainly don't have a problem with it, especially if it does happen to draw more attention this way. I doubt I would personally head out that way very often, but at least as a gut reaction, I am not seeing anything too troubling about the idea.

I finally found the time today to do this. Enjoy!

I was about as in the dark about AO3 as Raven, and share the sentiment that it seems like a good idea.

It's been a quiet week around here. I hope everyone's doing already. There's nothing particularly exciting on my end; just wading through another semester.

Pretty exciting over here. I almost bought a blender. But it was too expensive so I didn't.

Edit- Much more excitingly I just made a fantasy fantasy card in homage to of a fantasy fantasy card, of a fanfic, of a card game.

Reminds me I need to buy or borrow a blender for turkey day prep.

I do not own a blender, and personally, I have never thought to myself, man, I wish I had a blender. It has literally never come up.

Of course, I also own one toaster, which has never been used. My sister gave it to me as a present a few years ago because, in her words, "everyone needs a toaster." So far, I have not found that to be the case.


Very nice. I should touch base with those two again some day. After all, I'm never gonna give them up.

I was real upset when they killed the planeswalker uniqueness rule. I had plans for Syl and Chardis YMtC-wise and those plans largely revolved around only having one Syl or Chardis in play at a time. There were going to be the cheap cost reduction/tutoring dual walkers, then the more impressive stronger-with-each-other-around walkers CKY made and then a Syl and Chardis card that was all crazy. Without having to actually choose which one you want to keep in play though, it doesn't seem nearly as interesting.

Yeah, I also disapprove of that change. It doesn't make any sense from a flavor standpoint and dumbs down the game because it removes important decisions like the one you describe. I've always disliked the removal of mana burn for the same reason.

But I'm an old man, so I guess complaining about change is kind of my thing now...

*insert clip of Mushu going “I LIVE!”*

I am truly sorry that I have been gone, and it’s by and large not just been an “elsewhere” thing – I have not had the mental energy to socialize with any of my friend groups through the things I’ve had to put up with the last few months, between the new job woes, A/C breaking down, refrigerator going out, et cetera

I’m only now getting to a point where I’m making a point to get back in touch with people, and it’s less a “I’m feeling better now” and more a “I’m too worn down to actually worry about it”

Looking back over the last few pages that I missed, I know for me I tend to not have enough time and energy most of the time to stop by when I want to go into the same depth of conversation that I used to when I actually had free time and spent two hours per post, but dropping by without much to say feels like a waste or even a chore

Maybe I’ll drop by a bit here and there with shorter reports on what I’ve been up to, because it’s been far too much to get into right now



It exists – I can’t remember the name off the top of my head, but there is at least one service that will email your contacts if you don’t log in every X months, so that you can set it for precisely that


I recognize that url even without opening any of those links. Barinellos and I both have mixed feelings on Digibro (I think Barinellos is much less favorable than I on the matter)

Well, it's really good to hear from you, Luna. I really hope things turn around for you soon. We'll be here if you ever need to talk or vent or anything.

Happy Birthday, Luna! Whether you see this message in time for the day or not, I hope you have a good day today (your birthday) and a good day today (whatever day you read this)!

Huzzah and agreed!
A fine temporal anniversary for you!

Happy birthday! By my time zone, I just made it!