Ponythread LV:55 Ponythread learns Agility!

[Aotrs Commander]

AotrsWindDale:

Yeesh. After some more stat boosting (via Dalekeeper), and 3.Aotrs-ising the fighter classes (to feat/level), and pretty much a whole party paradigm shift, plus a virtual shopping spree (using Dalekeeper to add the items and deducting the money from my current) to buy the three characters without bows +1 composite longbows and three more Everlast arrows, I'm managing to just about handle it.

Everyone now uses a bow (the party either is a martial class or is an Elf), and modus operandi is now "summon two Greater Boneguards (reload if zombie lord until two of former obtained), send to extreme vision range, follow at distance with party; on encounter enemy, drop Entangle and endeavour to keep enemy statused/bottled up while dropping AoE spells while fighter-y types mop up enemies that close in melee or otherwise bombard with missiles." I'm managing about, what, two-three combats before having to rest because the casters have run dry... Though it tends to be now run out of offense, before running out of healing, so there's that. I can see why multiple casters is recommended. Without them to control the enemy, the fighters just can't do anything. Without super-special builds (and monk builds, at that...) you just can't tank in IWD2 at HoF level.

Melee really cannot have nice things indeed, at least in IWD2...



Still, if I'm lucky, come Wednesday, I might be getting Pokemon Black 2 for my Birthday, and I might have had enough by then! (At least this year, it isn't going to be such a nightmare; while Dad has managed to book the plumber in, at least I'll have the iron idiot this time around, and I don't have to go anywhere...!)



Why is there not enough non-depressing pony fics being written, that's what I wanna know... (Well, that's perhaps unfair, since most of the really good ones I'm following all updated at once over the weekend...!)

[Soras Teva Gee]

Trixie appears before you and offers to to turn you into a pony and send you to Equestria. You get your choice of pony type (except for alicorn) and place to be sent. However, the change is permanent; once you're a pony and in Equestria, you're there to stay. You retain all memories and personality you had before.

The question is, do you go or do you stay? Please explain your answer.

This exact question. I've. heard it before. Makes me. Speak like Shatner.

I'd go.

Yeah I mean it would be troublesome to never see the people I know again but you know what sooner or later I'd get over that. I'm not particularly attached to "reality" at all. Equestria would not be a first choice of fictional realities to move to but it is on the list of places generally better then Earth.

[Dirtytabs]

*BLAM.*

"You prancin' show ponies!"

Was it the reply you we're looking for? :P

Agh! Curse you, bushpony!

Spoiler

Show

What an odd coincidence that I arbitrarily stuck a horn onto him months ago. Ha-ha.

[Forum Explorer]

I would stay. This kind of thing always comes down to whether and how much you like your life. Equestria has many wonderful things, but I also would find the actual world there quite boring and notably lacking in computers and anime. Moreover, life-changing events of that magnitude tend to be extremely stressful and difficult, and need a pretty high level of justification, so being in doubt I would choose not to make the change.

Visiting Equestria in a non-permanent way would be awesome though.

Depends how attached and settled in you are in this world. I'm really not.

I think the sort of person who would throw away their family and friends to be dumped into a new world where they don't know anyone probably isn't the sort of person who would enjoy Equestria in the long run, to be honest.

But yes, sign me up for the two-week vacation package.

EDIT: I'd probably change my answer if I were old and was being offered a new life as a young pony, but that's closer to an afterlife than just moving there.

Honestly I disagree. I would love it in Equestria. Though I view Equestria as an actual utopia or close enough for me.

Knowledge that you're being deceived is the worst possible world. There is a desire for truth or reality or whatever you want to call it. So if people know that it's not real, even if it's impossible to perceive, it taints their entire experience. It's not especially different from finding out you're in the Matrix and wanting to escape even though reality kinda sucks.

On the other hand, a life lived entirely in deception that you never knew was a deception is both externally indistinguishable from the real life and internally indistinguishable from the perspective of the person deceived, so that it can only be judged inferior from a third person omniscient perspective.

Edit: That's addressed towards a more permanent or lasting deception. I don't see anything wrong with the 2-week vacation either, though it's deeply difficult to separate the virtual reality machine from it's assorted negative consequences in taking people's free time from other pursuits.

Now I think choosing to live that life would actually be almost as rewarding or close to living outside the Matrix. Just your concept of what has value would completely change.

[Pendulous]

Here's a random question, or rather a thought experiment, perhaps inspired a bit by the ethics class that I'm ignoring as I type this. It's a twisted version of Nozick's experience machine.



Trixie appears before you and offers to to turn you into a pony and send you to Equestria. You get your choice of pony type (except for alicorn) and place to be sent. However, the change is permanent; once you're a pony and in Equestria, you're there to stay. You retain all memories and personality you had before.

The question is, do you go or do you stay? Please explain your answer.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BgNn8RLHrhk

Yes, take me there.

But, you would have to elaborate a little. For example, you say I retain all memories I have. Does that mean I'm aware of everything that I've seen so far in Equestria? Do I get to choose where I live? Do I get to preemptively choose my cutie mark and job, or would one be "assigned" for me?

I think based on who I am, I would probably end up being an earth pony. If I have the option, I would probably want to be a unicorn or pegasus. I've never been a fan of action, heights, or anything to that extreme, so I wonder if being a pegasus would, maybe automatically, make me a little more open to that kind of thing. I always imagined myself being able to fly, and every time, one of the things that always comes to mind is, what if I randomly just lost the ability as I was flying really high?

Would we live in cartoon physics, or would this be more a realistic representation of what Equestria's universe might be?

[Pokonic]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BgNn8RLHrhk

Yes, take me there.

But, you would have to elaborate a little. For example, you say I retain all memories I have. Does that mean I'm aware of everything that I've seen so far in Equestria? Do I get to choose where I live? Do I get to preemptively choose my cutie mark and job, or would one be "assigned" for me?

I think based on who I am, I would probably end up being an earth pony. If I have the option, I would probably want to be a unicorn or pegasus. I've never been a fan of action, heights, or anything to that extreme, so I wonder if being a pegasus would, maybe automatically, make me a little more open to that kind of thing. I always imagined myself being able to fly, and every time, one of the things that always comes to mind is, what if I randomly just lost the ability as I was flying really high?

Would we live in cartoon physics, or would this be more a realistic representation of what Equestria's universe might be?

Also, could one read the pesudocyrilic that Equestria apparently has as a written language?

[Balmas]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BgNn8RLHrhk

Yes, take me there.

But, you would have to elaborate a little. For example, you say I retain all memories I have. Does that mean I'm aware of everything that I've seen so far in Equestria? Do I get to choose where I live? Do I get to preemptively choose my cutie mark and job, or would one be "assigned" for me?

I think based on who I am, I would probably end up being an earth pony. If I have the option, I would probably want to be a unicorn or pegasus. I've never been a fan of action, heights, or anything to that extreme, so I wonder if being a pegasus would, maybe automatically, make me a little more open to that kind of thing. I always imagined myself being able to fly, and every time, one of the things that always comes to mind is, what if I randomly just lost the ability as I was flying really high?

Would we live in cartoon physics, or would this be more a realistic representation of what Equestria's universe might be?

Also, could one read the pesudocyrilic that Equestria apparently has as a written language?

You'd have no trouble settling in, and have your choice of body. You get your cutie mark the same as everyone else, when you find your special purpose.

[Thanqol]

Here's a random question, or rather a thought experiment, perhaps inspired a bit by the ethics class that I'm ignoring as I type this. It's a twisted version of Nozick's experience machine.



Trixie appears before you and offers to to turn you into a pony and send you to Equestria. You get your choice of pony type (except for alicorn) and place to be sent. However, the change is permanent; once you're a pony and in Equestria, you're there to stay. You retain all memories and personality you had before.

The question is, do you go or do you stay? Please explain your answer.

I'd go.

I'd go because the sky calls to me, and I'd dearly love the chance to fly. I'm at the perfect time in my life for it; just finishing university, soon to leave home and build my own life. I have to make a similar choice soon, why not this one?

(Barring practical details such as 'would you seriously trust Trixie with this')

[Anarion]

Well, I'm certainly not saying that you'd be philosophically justified in compelling someone to use it, even if that would create the maximum possible utility. But I think a lot of people would choose it.

I also think that 'being deceived is the worst possible world' in not universally true, and closer to a societal or cultural norm than a fundamental truth. Which means it can shift.

Let's take the clearest example, where we just look at somepony's entire life.

Pony A lives in reality. She has whatever life she has and all of it was real.
Pony B through some trick of time travel or virtual reality lives the exact same life as Pony A, but it was all a deception. Pony B never learned this at any time.
Pony C also through the time travel or VR trick lived the exact same life as Pony A. However, C learned that it was a deception at some point or knew that it was a deception going in.

These are the only three logical possibilities. Either the world is real or it's not, and if it's not real either the pony knows that or not.

Pony A and Pony B are indistinguishable both from an internal perspective and to an external viewer that doesn't otherwise know the starting conditions.

Pony C is less happy than A and B because Pony C knows for some extended period of time that what she is doing is false, even if there's no way to escape it or ever realize anything else. That knowledge sours the experience compared to A and B, thus leaving C the worst off of the three.

This is obviously arbitrary where we purposely made all other things equal to the extent that Ponies A, B, and C all lived identical lives except for the postulated differences, but it demonstrates that, all other things being equal, the one who knows about the deception is the worst off.

Well, we don't usually oppose forms of entertainment categorically for being too compelling, absent actual physical addiction. Plus, there's no reason we'd have to limit the use of the machine to recreation. Video games and virtual reality are already used for training tasks that would be too risky to practice in real life, like say defusing explosives. Or maybe I want to simulate a college course in chemistry, complete with laboratory experiments that would be prohibitively costly in the real world.

Sure that's fine. Just want to avoid the dystopian future setting where all of society lets the world collapse around them Matrix-style.

Now I think choosing to live that life would actually be almost as rewarding or close to living outside the Matrix. Just your concept of what has value would completely change.

While I can see the reason behind this decision, I would point out that the guy in the Matrix who learned about reality and decided that being part of the Matrix was better was one of the bad guys.

[Thanqol]

While I can see the reason behind this decision, I would point out that the guy in the Matrix who learned about reality and decided that being part of the Matrix was better was one of the bad guys.

When the alternative is getting killed by giant robots, the choice is pretty reasonable. The rebels are the nutters ruining it for the rest of us. Join the Seers.

[Anarion]

When the alternative is getting killed by giant robots, the choice is pretty reasonable. The rebels are the nutters ruining it for the rest of us. Join the Seers.

But human curiosity! Would you really take the blue pill if they also offered you wealth, a nice car, blackjack and hookers? Wait...

[Thanqol]

But human curiosity! Would you really take the blue pill if they also offered you wealth, a nice car, blackjack and hookers? Wait...

No, the trick isn't taking the blue pill and staying asleep. It's taking the red pill and then offering to betray humanity to the giant robots in exchange for the car, hookers, magical kung fu etc. And then you go nuts and have fun as king of the world.

It's the best of both worlds. And you're keeping people from realising they're helpless robot chum and getting genocided faster than you can clap your hands. Join the Seers.

[Lix Lorn]

There have been a growing number of days where I don't think I can be me, either.

Hugpile on Phoe, guys.
(HUG)

[t209]

If Griffon is an option, I know I'd pick that. I mean, come on--hands and wings and presumably omnivorous? I'm sold.

count me in! I rather be a griffin in MLP verse. As long as I have hands and eat meat, I am in.
Edit: I wanted the Donkeys to be like dwarfs; determination, good smithy, and ability to enchant tools.

[Forum Explorer]

Let's take the clearest example, where we just look at somepony's entire life.

Pony A lives in reality. She has whatever life she has and all of it was real.
Pony B through some trick of time travel or virtual reality lives the exact same life as Pony A, but it was all a deception. Pony B never learned this at any time.
Pony C also through the time travel or VR trick lived the exact same life as Pony A. However, C learned that it was a deception at some point or knew that it was a deception going in.

These are the only three logical possibilities. Either the world is real or it's not, and if it's not real either the pony knows that or not.

Pony A and Pony B are indistinguishable both from an internal perspective and to an external viewer that doesn't otherwise know the starting conditions.

Pony C is less happy than A and B because Pony C knows for some extended period of time that what she is doing is false, even if there's no way to escape it or ever realize anything else. That knowledge sours the experience compared to A and B, thus leaving C the worst off of the three.

This is obviously arbitrary where we purposely made all other things equal to the extent that Ponies A, B, and C all lived identical lives except for the postulated differences, but it demonstrates that, all other things being equal, the one who knows about the deception is the worst off.



Sure that's fine. Just want to avoid the dystopian future setting where all of society lets the world collapse around them Matrix-style.



While I can see the reason behind this decision, I would point out that the guy in the Matrix who learned about reality and decided that being part of the Matrix was better was one of the bad guys.

Again I disagree that C is necessarily less satisfied. They likely would have a different definition of 'reality' and what actions hold 'value'.

Actually so many of the world's problems such as disparity, starvation, and pollution could be solved by being plugged into a nearly perfect virtual reality.

He was a bit of a ****. However he was tricked into fighting what appears to be a hopeless war. He decided that was bull and made a deal to return to the Matrix under the logic that it wasn't actually that bad.

But human curiosity! Would you really take the blue pill if they also offered you wealth, a nice car, blackjack and hookers? Wait...

I would feel so scammed after taking the red pill. I asked for knowledge, not to be drafted into a war against machines under some very questionable logic. I would likely end up doing what Cypher did without all the crazy murder murder part.

[Eakin]

Let's take the clearest example, where we just look at somepony's entire life.

Pony A lives in reality. She has whatever life she has and all of it was real.
Pony B through some trick of time travel or virtual reality lives the exact same life as Pony A, but it was all a deception. Pony B never learned this at any time.
Pony C also through the time travel or VR trick lived the exact same life as Pony A. However, C learned that it was a deception at some point or knew that it was a deception going in.

These are the only three logical possibilities. Either the world is real or it's not, and if it's not real either the pony knows that or not.

Pony A and Pony B are indistinguishable both from an internal perspective and to an external viewer that doesn't otherwise know the starting conditions.

Pony C is less happy than A and B because Pony C knows for some extended period of time that what she is doing is false, even if there's no way to escape it or ever realize anything else. That knowledge sours the experience compared to A and B, thus leaving C the worst off of the three.

This is obviously arbitrary where we purposely made all other things equal to the extent that Ponies A, B, and C all lived identical lives except for the postulated differences, but it demonstrates that, all other things being equal, the one who knows about the deception is the worst off.

While I can see the reason behind this decision, I would point out that the guy in the Matrix who learned about reality and decided that being part of the Matrix was better was one of the bad guys.

The tragic thing is that all of us are actually Pony D. There is an objective reality, but you already experience it in a distorted way because your brain is really quite lazy. The more you learn about cognition and perception the more you discover that your brain is lying to you basically all the time. I think most people who learn this manage to rationalize it rather than feel their lives are tainted because their perception of it is imperfect. The difference between B and D is just a question of degrees. Except that A and D are accountants while B and C spend their times taking ski vacations on Mars

[Tvtyrant]

Depends. If I went there I could become the greatest fiction writer of all time, with extremely thought out societies and technologies. The fiction would center around a planet known as "Earth" and it would involve a few Mary Sues (looking at you Napolean!)

If I stay here I will not be famous, but I won't abandon my family either. So yeah.

[Thanqol]

Depends. If I went there I could become the greatest fiction writer of all time, with extremely thought out societies and technologies. The fiction would center around a planet known as "Earth" and it would involve a few Mary Sues (looking at you Napolean!)

Napoleon? Please.

Take a look at Joan of Arc. She was clearly dating the GM.

[Anarion]

Napoleon? Please.

Take a look at Joan of Arc. She was clearly dating the GM.

So what did all the historical religious figures do? Just straight up edit their character sheets with some extra zeroes?



Oh yeah. GIANTS ARE IN THE WORLD SERIES WOOOOOOO!

[Tvtyrant]

So what did all the historical religious figure do? Just straight up edit their character sheets with some extra zeroes?



Oh yeah. GIANTS ARE IN THE WORLD SERIES WOOOOOOO!

They clearly took the "special snowflake" merit.

[Tiki Snakes]

Ah, it's good to see the Tumblr moving again.

[OracleofWuffing]

Speaking of, should I try to color that answer to the music question now that I have some days off, or would someone rather I try to do another sketchy one where Jetty Pea fields the questions about her?

[Sean Mirrsen]

Here's a random question, or rather a thought experiment, perhaps inspired a bit by the ethics class that I'm ignoring as I type this. It's a twisted version of Nozick's experience machine.



Trixie appears before you and offers to to turn you into a pony and send you to Equestria. You get your choice of pony type (except for alicorn) and place to be sent. However, the change is permanent; once you're a pony and in Equestria, you're there to stay. You retain all memories and personality you had before.

The question is, do you go or do you stay? Please explain your answer.

I'd go, probably. But the reason for this is probably better explained through a slight modification of the premise.

Spoiler

Show

Imagine, if you will, that instead of Trixie, a random mad scientist-looking fellow approaches you with a proposition of the experience of a lifetime - literally. There exists a machine that will allow you to experience a life in a given reality, which for whatever reason can only be Equestria. Not a simulation, not a vacation, but a whole lifetime that you will get to experience.... within about an hour of earthside time. Half an hour to safely read your mind, half an hour to safely write it back, with changes. No time passes here regardless of how long you live on the other side.

You will be thrust into life as a foal, and as your brain develops you will gradually start "remembering" the things you know in this life, nudging the development of your personality until, at about the age of 18 years, you are more or less exactly who you are here, personality and memory-wise. This will not overwrite the "pony you" completely, however, as the experiences of your life to that point will still be present, and your "old self" will simply exist as an ever-present reminder that when you eventually, inevitably, die, you will return to the life you had here, keeping both the memories you had before you entered, and the memories of the life, family and friends you made when you were a pony/griffin/dragon or whatever you were born as.

Would you still go?

The linkup process ensures that whomever you end up as, you will be a good match for him/her. Your talent, should you be a pony, would be something you find deeply interesting. Your race would be a close match to what is your actual, lifetime desire rather than the momentary "I want to be a dragon!" thought you may have when you are presented with the choice. Given that the machine "sees" the whole timeline of the universe it puts you into, you are almost guaranteed to have a lifetime you would find interesting, rewarding, and wholesome, unless you purposely choose to steer it off course.

What would you think of returning to the life you have here after having a fulfilling life as a magical creature of Equestria? What do you think you would do once you would come to understand that you would be returning to this life when you die, Equestria-side?

How does this explain my answer to the original question? Simple. That's how my avatar works. I don't much care for a universe I leave behind, I already know where I will return. ^_^

[Siosilvar]

Ah, it's good to see the Tumblr moving again.

You're welcome. Glad to know I could remind people that it existed. I'd post myself if I had any time...

I'd go, probably. But the reason for this is probably better explained through a slight modification of the premise.
-snip-

As cool as it would be to live in Equestria (or in any of the fictional universes I like), I'd have to say no to both the original question and to this one, but for different reasons.

In the former case, I've got too much going for me here to just give it up. Sure, stress just kicked in what with university and all, but I've got a caring family, great friends, so on and so forth; you've all heard the lines before from others, I'm sure. Ponies are great, maybe even better than humans are, but for all my adventuresome self, I can't leave behind the people who love me and I love. A bit sappy of a reason, but I'm a pretty sappy person.

In the latter case... how do I relate to other people after having spent an entire lifetime - a fulfilling one at that - as something fundamentally else? Even if it were a life as a different human being in another part of the world, I have a full set of life experiences and so feeling the strongest connection to the elderly with just as many. I think if it were just a "vacation", as you put it, I'd be a lot more willing to take the jump.

[Grif]

So what did all the historical religious figures do? Just straight up edit their character sheets with some extra zeroes?



Oh yeah. GIANTS ARE IN THE WORLD SERIES WOOOOOOO!

I'd say Bismarck clearly gamed the dice.

[Dirtytabs]

So what did all the historical religious figures do? Just straight up edit their character sheets with some extra zeroes?



Oh yeah. GIANTS ARE IN THE WORLD SERIES WOOOOOOO!

Hitler, though not a religious figure, must've, then the GM caught him
Answering the latter, do I see another Giants fan!?

[Deadly]

I guess I kinda owe a ponythreader some airships ...

Spoiler

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I love Joseco's Luna. She looks so badass

[DigoDragon]

If I stay here I will not be famous, but I won't abandon my family either. So yeah.

"Don't abandon, when you can make 'em canon!"
I'd say take your family with you. I know my daughter would love to go (Incidently, she said she'd be an earth pony).

I love Joseco's Luna. She looks so badass

His overall work is quite brilliant. I wish I had his kind of free time to put out that much artwork in a week.

Though to be fair, I've been spending nearly 2 hours a night completing my run through the MLP series for wav sound bites to use in that Skyrim mod I'm building.

[Grif]

His overall work is quite brilliant. I wish I had his kind of free time to put out that much artwork in a week.

Though to be fair, I've been spending nearly 2 hours a night completing my run through the MLP series for wav sound bites to use in that Skyrim mod I'm building.

This interests me. Do you mind if you share the sound bites you have collected so far? It's for my Sword of the Stars mod. (Kind of neglected it of late, due to lack of free time and uh... disinterest ^^;)

[Sean Mirrsen]

This interests me. Do you mind if you share the sound bites you have collected so far? It's for my Sword of the Stars mod. (Kind of neglected it of late, due to lack of free time and uh... disinterest ^^;)

If you ever have the need, and can find an OBJ converter for the file format, I still know some modelling. Why settle for portraits and sound bites when the ships themselves can be properly styled?