[Let's Play!] The Heaven's Devils

[arguskos]

"The wheels of prophecy e'er turn,
Gorion's ward hath come.
Crossroad of past, present and future,
The one foreseen, the one foretold."

"That which hath past is ne'er truly gone,
History repeats, though mortals choose not to see.
War and bloodshed be not new to the Realms,
A God that once hath been may be once again."

"Armies march and cities burn,
The rivers froth with tainted blood.
The corpses of those born not innocent
Feed the inferno of boiling hate."

"Bhaal's Servant deceived, Five led down a false path,
A hidden traitor lurks in thy midst.
The Servant of Bhaal knows death and destruction,
The face of an ally, the mask of a foe."

"The Children of Bhaal bring death to the land,
They slaughter each other, and feed their Father.
Death and betrayal walk together,
A river of tainted blood doth not cleanse."

"The storm approaches. We speak no more."

For whom was this meant, and what does it portent to? Food for thought....

In any case, welcome, welcome, one and all, to a Let's Play of something bizarre and crazy, the entire Baldur's Gate Trilogy, starting off in Candlekeep, and (barring circumstances) ending at the Throne of Bhaal itself. Now, onto the first update, and we'll see what people say. This is a large introduction update (50-ish images, ye be warned!) wherein you meet the core cast, start the plot, get a feel for everyone, and get a feel for how the LP is going to go.

Onwards! To destiny!

Update 1: In Which It Begins

http://i170.photobucket.com/albums/u250/bloodydoves/BGT%20LP/Image1.png
Note: When a character joins the party, you will be given a screenshot of their Record screen at that moment and their entire biography.
http://i170.photobucket.com/albums/u250/bloodydoves/BGT%20LP/Arcturus.png
http://i170.photobucket.com/albums/u250/bloodydoves/BGT%20LP/ArcBack1.png
http://i170.photobucket.com/albums/u250/bloodydoves/BGT%20LP/ArcBack2.png
http://i170.photobucket.com/albums/u250/bloodydoves/BGT%20LP/ArcBack3.png
http://i170.photobucket.com/albums/u250/bloodydoves/BGT%20LP/ArcBack4.png

http://i170.photobucket.com/albums/u250/bloodydoves/BGT%20LP/Image2.png
http://i170.photobucket.com/albums/u250/bloodydoves/BGT%20LP/Image3.png
http://i170.photobucket.com/albums/u250/bloodydoves/BGT%20LP/Image4.png
http://i170.photobucket.com/albums/u250/bloodydoves/BGT%20LP/Image5.png
http://i170.photobucket.com/albums/u250/bloodydoves/BGT%20LP/Image6.png
http://i170.photobucket.com/albums/u250/bloodydoves/BGT%20LP/Image7.png
http://i170.photobucket.com/albums/u250/bloodydoves/BGT%20LP/Image8.png
http://i170.photobucket.com/albums/u250/bloodydoves/BGT%20LP/Image9.png
http://i170.photobucket.com/albums/u250/bloodydoves/BGT%20LP/Image10.png
http://i170.photobucket.com/albums/u250/bloodydoves/BGT%20LP/Image11.png
http://i170.photobucket.com/albums/u250/bloodydoves/BGT%20LP/Image12.png
http://i170.photobucket.com/albums/u250/bloodydoves/BGT%20LP/Image13.png
http://i170.photobucket.com/albums/u250/bloodydoves/BGT%20LP/Image14.png
http://i170.photobucket.com/albums/u250/bloodydoves/BGT%20LP/Image15.png
http://i170.photobucket.com/albums/u250/bloodydoves/BGT%20LP/Image16.png
http://i170.photobucket.com/albums/u250/bloodydoves/BGT%20LP/Image17.png
http://i170.photobucket.com/albums/u250/bloodydoves/BGT%20LP/Image18.png
http://i170.photobucket.com/albums/u250/bloodydoves/BGT%20LP/Marchaud.png
http://i170.photobucket.com/albums/u250/bloodydoves/BGT%20LP/Vinton.png
http://i170.photobucket.com/albums/u250/bloodydoves/BGT%20LP/TwinsBack.png
http://i170.photobucket.com/albums/u250/bloodydoves/BGT%20LP/Image19.png
http://i170.photobucket.com/albums/u250/bloodydoves/BGT%20LP/Image20.png
http://i170.photobucket.com/albums/u250/bloodydoves/BGT%20LP/Image21.png
http://i170.photobucket.com/albums/u250/bloodydoves/BGT%20LP/Image22.png
http://i170.photobucket.com/albums/u250/bloodydoves/BGT%20LP/Image23.png
http://i170.photobucket.com/albums/u250/bloodydoves/BGT%20LP/Image24.png
http://i170.photobucket.com/albums/u250/bloodydoves/BGT%20LP/Image25.png
http://i170.photobucket.com/albums/u250/bloodydoves/BGT%20LP/Image26.png
http://i170.photobucket.com/albums/u250/bloodydoves/BGT%20LP/Image27.png
http://i170.photobucket.com/albums/u250/bloodydoves/BGT%20LP/Image28.png
http://i170.photobucket.com/albums/u250/bloodydoves/BGT%20LP/Rathelar.png
http://i170.photobucket.com/albums/u250/bloodydoves/BGT%20LP/RathBack.png
http://i170.photobucket.com/albums/u250/bloodydoves/BGT%20LP/Image29.png
http://i170.photobucket.com/albums/u250/bloodydoves/BGT%20LP/Image31.png
http://i170.photobucket.com/albums/u250/bloodydoves/BGT%20LP/Image32.png
http://i170.photobucket.com/albums/u250/bloodydoves/BGT%20LP/Image33.png
http://i170.photobucket.com/albums/u250/bloodydoves/BGT%20LP/Image34.png
http://i170.photobucket.com/albums/u250/bloodydoves/BGT%20LP/Image35.png
http://i170.photobucket.com/albums/u250/bloodydoves/BGT%20LP/Image36.png
http://i170.photobucket.com/albums/u250/bloodydoves/BGT%20LP/Image37.png
http://i170.photobucket.com/albums/u250/bloodydoves/BGT%20LP/Image38.png
http://i170.photobucket.com/albums/u250/bloodydoves/BGT%20LP/Image39.png
http://i170.photobucket.com/albums/u250/bloodydoves/BGT%20LP/Image40.png
http://i170.photobucket.com/albums/u250/bloodydoves/BGT%20LP/Glacian.png
http://i170.photobucket.com/albums/u250/bloodydoves/BGT%20LP/GlacBack1.png
http://i170.photobucket.com/albums/u250/bloodydoves/BGT%20LP/GlacBack2.png


Commentary:
First, yes I stole this from you, Anti Hero, but it works so wonderfully so take it as the compliment it's meant as. :smallwink:

Second, a few housekeeping matters. I've tried pretty hard to keep my timeline consistent and to fit things into the larger context of the setting, and believe I have. Still, minor errors may crop up. Forgive that, if you'd be so kind. Two other matters: whenever you see <talktalktalk> it indicates telepathic communication (pretty much gonna be between Marchaud and Vinton) and the very last image (where Glacian and Arcturus are talking) two lines are cut off of the end. They are as follows:
"Arcturus: We were friends once, long ago.
Glacian: I almost forgot, Arcturus, I almost forgot."

Third, I've taken a looooot of liberties here, as I think you can tell. It's early yet, so you haven't seen most of them (and hooboy do I have some planned, especially in ToB, when I have a few massive WTF moments all ready to go), but I hope you're all interested enough to keep with it.

Finally, on a deeply amusing note, during the fight with Silke she cast a lightning bolt (which dealt all that damage to Arcturus that a potion or two easily negated). Well, turns out that Garrick couldn't take the lightning as well as Arcturus, and that's why the image right after Rathelar's record screen/bio doesn't show Garrick (I scrolled up so the text box covered his charred corpse).

Think that's everything. Can't wait to hear what people think!

[Zarah]

This is a large introduction update (50-ish images, ye be warned!)

As soon as I saw your first picture, I stopped reading. Convert those things into JPGs, son. The first image alone took an ungodly amount of time to load, so there is no way I'm waiting that long to load 50 of them.

Also, an annoying thing I've noticed is that a lot of the LPs of this series (especially on this forum) talk about Baldur's Gate like everyone has played all the games and knows them inside and out. I, for one, have never touched one of the games and have no idea what the hell you're talking about in your introduction paragraph. I can't really tell you what to do for your LP, but some good advice is to treat it as if you're talking to a person who isn't at all familiar with anything Baldur's Gate (ie: me).

For example: Why is LPing the entire trilogy such a "bizzare and crazy" feat? What is Candlekeep? Why are you starting there? What are these "circumstances?" What is the Throne of Bhaal? Why should I care?

And most importantly, why should I read your LP?

[Mx.Silver]

As soon as I saw your first picture, I stopped reading. Convert those things into JPGs, son.
Yeah, no. At that kind of resolution if you want to be able to clearly read text it's pretty much PNG or don't bother.



Also, an annoying thing I've noticed is that a lot of the LPs of this series (especially on this forum) talk about Baldur's Gate like everyone has played all the games and knows them inside and out.
Given that the series is over a decade old and one of the most enduringly popular RPGs around, it's not an unreasonable assumption that most people who'd be interested in reading an LP of it have played the game before.



I, for one, have never touched one of the games and have no idea what the hell you're talking about in your introduction paragraph. I can't really tell you what to do for your LP, but some good advice is to treat it as if you're talking to a person who isn't at all familiar with anything Baldur's Gate (ie: me).

Yeah... that's not going to work with this one. At all. Again, if you haven't ever touched the games it'd take a while to explain why in full detail but suffice it to say that he's taking a very unconventional approach to it. One that probably won't match anyone else's experience of it.




For example: Why is LPing the entire trilogy such a "bizzare and crazy" feat?

Because it's really, really, long. That and he's doing it in an unusual way.


What is Candlekeep? Why are you starting there?
Because it's the starting location.



And most importantly, why should I read your LP?
Honestly, if you're completely unfamiliar with the game you probably shouldn't be reading it.

[Brother Oni]

Honestly, if you're completely unfamiliar with the game you probably shouldn't be reading it.

Taking a more neutral viewpoint, there are valid points on both your and Zarah's side of the argument.

Arguskos is taking a non-standard playthrough of the game in that as far as I can tell, in that instead of a inexperienced young ward of Gorion, he's playing a veteran adventurer brother of Gorion (at level 7, he's pretty much at the power level the original character is at the end of the game, give or take a level).
These changes will make little sense to anybody not familiar with the original story in the game, but it is such a classic game, you would expect most readers to know it, just like you expect most movie buffs to know the story of the 1933 movie of King Kong.
Whether Arguskos wants to analyze the original story by comparing and contrasting his LP or just tell his own story, is entirely up to him.

On Zarah's side though, if you make the assumption that your readers are all familiar with the story, you run the risk of alienating the readers that aren't.
This leads to a smaller potential audience, which is either bad or indifferent for Argukos - bad in that he may abandon the LP if he doesn't receive enough viewership, or no difference if he's writing for his own pleasure.

@Zarah: there's a LP of the original game (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=214896) currently ongoing if that may interest you more.

[ZeltArruin]

Interesting. I do like that I don't know what is going to happen next. Or more, I don't always know how you are going to get from A to B. Still, I like it so far, and I think I know why BG1 is going by so quick, might have something to do with you being level 7 and all.

[The Anti Hero]

Props to you for kick-starting this project so quickly.

Now that I see what you're doing, I'm even more curious about how you plan to go through this all. You're approach is certainly something that I have never seen before, let alone even thought of. You seem to really be taking the story and making it your own: the characters have fleshed out back-stories, and from what I've been getting, you've gone to great lengths to add your own twists to the universe. It's certainly both innovative and ambitious.

In that general vein of thought, I certainly grant that those who haven't played through the BGT will probably be confused by the LP; however, I have to say that I don't believe there are going to be too many people who are reading this that fall into that category.

Best of luck with the project! :smallwink:

[arguskos]

As soon as I saw your first picture, I stopped reading. Convert those things into JPGs, son. The first image alone took an ungodly amount of time to load, so there is no way I'm waiting that long to load 50 of them.
First, please don't call me "son". I'm twenty three dammit, I've earned the right to only get that from my grandfather and my dad. :smalltongue:

Second, I tried making them JPGs, and it slaughtered readability. I'm sorry for your connection issues, I really am, but it's PNG or bust here.


Also, an annoying thing I've noticed is that a lot of the LPs of this series (especially on this forum) talk about Baldur's Gate like everyone has played all the games and knows them inside and out. I, for one, have never touched one of the games and have no idea what the hell you're talking about in your introduction paragraph. I can't really tell you what to do for your LP, but some good advice is to treat it as if you're talking to a person who isn't at all familiar with anything Baldur's Gate (ie: me).
It's a decade old. I... really didn't think I had to explain everything to you at this point. While I admit, I am assuming the readers have played the game through once, I didn't consider that a BAD thing. I apologize for being less considerate than you may wish.


For example: Why is LPing the entire trilogy such a "bizzare and crazy" feat? What is Candlekeep? Why are you starting there? What are these "circumstances?" What is the Throne of Bhaal? Why should I care?
In order:
-The trilogy is around 150 hours of gameplay long, depending on amount of time spent faffing around and the number of sidequests you do.
-Candlekeep is a fortress library and the starting location of the game. We come back here later on.
-You start there because of the plot. I have no choice in that. Further, there is an in-LP reason given in the images. If you read them (yes yes, connection, I know) it becomes clearer.
-The Throne of Bhaal is both the expansion to Baldur's Gate 2 and is the final game location in the entire trilogy.
-Only you can answer that.


And most importantly, why should I read your LP?
If you are willing to let the images load, I think the LP's story will carry you well enough that you need not have background information. Much will be explained as we go.

Otherwise, because you're interested/bored/want to? I dunno, it's up to you man.


Yeah, no. At that kind of resolution if you want to be able to clearly read text it's pretty much PNG or don't bother.
Yeah, this wasn't my choice.


Yeah... that's not going to work with this one. At all. Again, if you haven't ever touched the games it'd take a while to explain why in full detail but suffice it to say that he's taking a very unconventional approach to it. One that probably won't match anyone else's experience of it.
This is also true. However, if you've never played it, it's actually not that confusing (since you won't be confused by my subversion of the actual game). In fact, a non-player may enjoy the story of the LP MORE than a seasoned veteran would.


Honestly, if you're completely unfamiliar with the game you probably shouldn't be reading it.
I actually disagree with this. I would welcome Zarah's commentary, for two reasons.

First, I pride myself on being able to deliver an interesting story, regardless on if you've seen the source material. If Zarah, who has no understanding of the material, can read and enjoy the story I've presented, then I will have succeeded at my job and will feel pretty good about myself. :smallwink:

Second, because a non-player will bring a fresh and interesting viewpoint to things. I feel that everyone has something useful to say, especially someone totally unfamiliar with what's going on by default.

Zarah, I am really, really sorry that you were turned off at first. I'd ask that you please reconsider and give things another chance. It looks intimidating, but I swear, I'll make a concentrated effort to explain things a bit better.


Arguskos is taking a non-standard playthrough of the game in that as far as I can tell, in that instead of a inexperienced young ward of Gorion, he's playing a veteran adventurer brother of Gorion (at level 7, he's pretty much at the power level the original character is at the end of the game, give or take a level).
As a note, this is 100% on he money. Arcturus is a 60-year old, level 7, ex-adventurer wizard. He isn't some whelpling or something.


Whether Arguskos wants to analyze the original story by comparing and contrasting his LP or just tell his own story, is entirely up to him.
I'm just telling my own story, but I think that a non-player can still enjoy Arcturus's story without needing to know what the normal situation is.


On Zarah's side though, if you make the assumption that your readers are all familiar with the story, you run the risk of alienating the readers that aren't.
This leads to a smaller potential audience, which is either bad or indifferent for Argukos - bad in that he may abandon the LP if he doesn't receive enough viewership, or no difference if he's writing for his own pleasure.
I agree this is a risk. However, again, I feel like a non-player is still going to be able to enjoy things. I may provide a small disclaimer or list of background items of immediate utility.


@Zarah: there's a LP of the original game (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=214896) currently ongoing if that may interest you more.
This is an excellent LP as well. Anti-Hero is doing a funderfull job and needs more attention.


Interesting. I do like that I don't know what is going to happen next. Or more, I don't always know how you are going to get from A to B. Still, I like it so far, and I think I know why BG1 is going by so quick, might have something to do with you being level 7 and all.
So, it turns out that level 7 characters are pretty brutalizing in BG1. :smalltongue: This will become reaaaally obvious later on, when fights end in moments and characters like Rathelar can tank major characters all damn week long (seriously, a great AC and over 100 hp in BG1 is absurd).


Props to you for kick-starting this project so quickly.
Had a buffer. Don't now.


Now that I see what you're doing, I'm even more curious about how you plan to go through this all. You're approach is certainly something that I have never seen before, let alone even thought of. You seem to really be taking the story and making it your own: the characters have fleshed out back-stories, and from what I've been getting, you've gone to great lengths to add your own twists to the universe. It's certainly both innovative and ambitious.
I've always wondered what Gorion's life used to be like and I had a group of characters laying around that I use in my fiction writing (Arcturus, Gareth, Rathelar, and Glacian), so I decided one morning to write a combined story of Gorion's life as the leader of those four. Originally, it was a fanfic piece, but I hate fanfic and never do the original characters justice, so it eventually morphed into what you see here.

I have most of BG1 plotted out in large terms (basically, here to two side quests, then Nashkel-->Bandits-->Cloakwood-->the Gate-->Candlekeep Mk. 2-->Endgame in rapid order). By the way, that's... about how many updates BG1 is going to be (around 6 or 7 from here, depending on how image heavy I want to get).

BG2 is quite a bit more difficult, for two reasons. First, because I made my job harder by making an executive decision about my plot changes for BG2 (ie. I've decided to do something stupid). Second, because, at present, Arcturus has no real reason to actually BOTHER with the plot of BG2. I think I have a solution, but yeah, it's pretty shaky right now.

ToB is actually pretty easy once we're there, and has two of the big WTF moments that I'm just waiting to drop on people (seriously, they're bombshells, lemme tell ya, they're half the reason I'm even doing all this jazz).


In that general vein of thought, I certainly grant that those who haven't played through the BGT will probably be confused by the LP; however, I have to say that I don't believe there are going to be too many people who are reading this that fall into that category.
I agree with both, and again say that I don't think it's as big an issue as folks think. So much is changing that it doesn't really matter. As far as most things are concerned, the readers will be learning them along with Arcturus and the others.


Best of luck with the project! :smallwink:
Thanks! Don't hesitate to be all "X is bad. Do X better dammit." (try to give more useful commentary than that though :smallbiggrin:)

And, if any of you know anyone else who would care at all about a Baldur's Gate Trilogy LP, please, have them come, read, and comment!

[Brother Oni]

I agree this is a risk. However, again, I feel like a non-player is still going to be able to enjoy things. I may provide a small disclaimer or list of background items of immediate utility.


Letting people know that this is in the Forgotten Realms setting then pointing them at Wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Forgotten_Realms) would be a good start for nearly all non-players. :smallbiggrin:

[Zarah]

First, please don't call me "son". I'm twenty three dammit, I've earned the right to only get that from my grandfather and my dad. :smalltongue:
Good. That means I don't have to go easy on you. :smalltongue:


Second, I tried making them JPGs, and it slaughtered readability. I'm sorry for your connection issues, I really am, but it's PNG or bust here.

Yeah, no. At that kind of resolution if you want to be able to clearly read text it's pretty much PNG or don't bother.

Sorry to burst both of your bubbles here, but nope. In fact, I did a little test to prove it.

Without looking at the filenames, try to figure out which one of the following two images is the JPEG and which one is the PNG:


http://img810.imageshack.us/img810/3578/toldyouso.jpg

http://img638.imageshack.us/img638/9219/toldyouso2.jpg


Figured it out yet? Well, here's the answer:


It's a trick question. They're both JPEGs saved with different compression settings in two different programs (Photoshop and IrfanView). Compare them to the original PNG taken right from the OP:

http://img26.imageshack.us/img26/5784/image1mgs.png

I for one can't see any significant differences, and any differences are, at worst, negligible. The text is still easily legible. Best of all? Both of those JPEGs are less than a third of the size of the original PNG, and that's not even pushing the quality settings anywhere near max.

So, in short, convert your images the next time (better yet, convert the images you have now too). Assuming you don't already have it, IrfanView is a free, downloadable program and has options to convert images in batches, so there's really no reason not to.

Also, you'll notice that I cropped out the rest of your window in that screenshot. It's a good idea to do that from now on too. In fact, IrfanView can do that for you in the first place if you use it to take screenshots.


I actually disagree with this. I would welcome Zarah's commentary, for two reasons.

First, I pride myself on being able to deliver an interesting story, regardless on if you've seen the source material. If Zarah, who has no understanding of the material, can read and enjoy the story I've presented, then I will have succeeded at my job and will feel pretty good about myself. :smallwink:

Second, because a non-player will bring a fresh and interesting viewpoint to things. I feel that everyone has something useful to say, especially someone totally unfamiliar with what's going on by default.

Zarah, I am really, really sorry that you were turned off at first. I'd ask that you please reconsider and give things another chance. It looks intimidating, but I swear, I'll make a concentrated effort to explain things a bit better.

That's good. But be warned. If you haven't figured it out already, I'm going to make you work. Good LPs are earned. :smalltongue:


So, in order to help, here's my opinions:

The OP needs a bit of work. Even a short introduction to the game and a link to the Wikipedia page would be fine. Maybe a disclaimer for people like me that this might not be their cup of tea. I'd even suggest putting a section that clearly explains just what you're doing differently that even a BG virgin could potentially understand.

See, that's what my questions were for. I didn't want you to just outright answer them. I really shouldn't have had to ask them in the first place. If you're going to want people like me reading and commenting on this, then I'd recommend putting some pointers in. They don't have to be ridiculously detailed, but enough so that we're all more or less on the same page. Or at least enough so that I can follow along without wondering how the hell you're doing anything.


Finally, don't think that I'm picking on you or anything. I actually considered making this same kind of post when Anti Hero started his thread (no offense :smalltongue:). I've just been spending a lot of time on Something Awful lately.

[arguskos]

Sorry to burst both of your bubbles here, but nope. In fact, I did a little test to prove it.
And so you did. Well played. I'll fiddle with that program (care to provide a link, so I get the correct one?) and see what can be done. The OP is almost certainly not changing, since I don't have the time to remake it (when I do, it will be fixed; until then, I suggest opening it then going to make dinner or something, and when you come back, it should be done). However, everything forward will be in a more friendly format, assuming I can make the program function sans issues (I fail to foresee an issue on that front, but it may exist).


Also, you'll notice that I cropped out the rest of your window in that screenshot. It's a good idea to do that from now on too. In fact, IrfanView can do that for you in the first place if you use it to take screenshots.
That's not happening. I hate the look quite a bit, and if you don't prefer it, you can just damn deal. :smalltongue: It's not a critical issue, so I'm not bothering. I could have cropped it out myself during the initial capture, and chose not to, since I like the framing effect.


The OP needs a bit of work. Even a short introduction to the game and a link to the Wikipedia page would be fine. Maybe a disclaimer for people like me that this might not be their cup of tea. I'd even suggest putting a section that clearly explains just what you're doing differently that even a BG virgin could potentially understand.
I will provide a link to Wikipedia and a short "this is the pinnacle Western RPG, is party based, and runs on an engine based on an old version of D&D adapted for the computer" disclaimer. Otherwise, the actual gameplay isn't super important, given that this is NOT ABOUT the game, but instead the story told through it.

However, I will NOT be explaining what I'm changing. It'd actually detract from a new player's ability to understand what's going on. Believe me, it'd be harder to explain the original and then the changes and why they matter than the benefit someone would get from it. I could explain how in actuality, the protagonist is supposed to be Gorion's adopted child and this is a revenge plot of a different kind, but it wouldn't heighten your appreciation of a game you aren't playing, not seeing in its entirety, and would fail to add meaningfully to the story I'm telling.


See, that's what my questions were for. I didn't want you to just outright answer them. I really shouldn't have had to ask them in the first place. If you're going to want people like me reading and commenting on this, then I'd recommend putting some pointers in. They don't have to be ridiculously detailed, but enough so that we're all more or less on the same page. Or at least enough so that I can follow along without wondering how the hell you're doing anything.
I *did* already agree to explain set pieces as necessary, and plan to. If you want an in-depth explanation of the mechanics of the Baldur's Gate series, go here (http://www.gog.com/en/gamecard/baldurs_gate_2_complete) and do it yourself. This is a story, not a review, after all. :smallwink: No one really needs to know how I am mechanically twisting the game to do what I want, nor does it serve to enhance the story I want to tell.

However, as said above, when it serves to clarify a story point, I will happily include either a link or short explanation of what you, the reader, will need to know to understand what's happening. Think of them as editor footnotes. This is what I gather you really need.


Finally, don't think that I'm picking on you or anything. I actually considered making this same kind of post when Anti Hero started his thread (no offense :smalltongue:). I've just been spending a lot of time on Something Awful lately.
You should cut that out, then. Something Awful is as promised, after all. :smalltongue:

Regardless of if the above seems acerbic (and it likely does, it's been like an 18 hour day in a week of similar days and I am ****ing exhausted with no sleep in sight anytime soon), I mean no malice. I appreciate the assistance in making this better for the readers.

The next update, hopefully with some changes as mentioned herein, will be in a few days (likely, mid next week). The next three days are rough (two exams back-to-back tomorrow followed by a full essay assigned like ten minutes ago via email due Monday as half an exam score and two social engagements). Next week has some free time, it looks like, so I'll be doing things then. I can spend that time either updating the OP or getting a second update in, your call, though I prefer getting a second update.