I've had a very Chinese day today...

Guess this will probably have to do as the end of week update:

THF to 24.

Done with the Hippogryphs, and now to the 10 Eyes of Verthandi, which I presume will take about a year to complete.

Dagger skill over 250.

Final Polearm merit gotten, now on to Dagger merits.

I've gotten crap (except about average gil from the first two Moggiebag pulls) from the Anniversary event -- no, I DON'T want another Silver Moogle Belt.

Sunday Dynamis: Snow, pull got fracked up again, and I learned why we don't farm Snow after the run -- Dragons up the arse for the loss!

Wednesday (Dreamer) Dynamis: Qufim. Win. Another SCH piece (what is it with me and SCH pieces and CoP Dyna?)

Next Wednesday: Valkurm, and Tavnazia access.

Monday: More VNM's, this time starring Flies with massive AoE damage. Ow.

Still stuck on "What Price Loyalty"...

--------------

As I said, I had a very Chinese day today.

As in, "interesting times", and cursed "interesting times" at that.

Had an interesting Net read on an asshole this morning, a confrontation with a neglecting parent this afternoon, and a tactical nightmare tonight!

This morning: Read BG some more, and tend to like watching the drama and the squirming in the "Player Warning" fora.

So, color me unsurprised when I see a name from the last weeks of when I was on Siren: Saio.

He apparently decided he didn't want to spend 50 million gil on a KClub, jacked it, jumped servers, and a GM had to be fished up to get it back.

I had my problems with Saio on a Nyzul run, then got told he was on one of the big HNM shells on Siren (little surprise the guy comes across as an abject prick), so even less surprise that he would do something like this.

This afternoon: Out in RL. So I'm walking along, minding my own business, when I hear:

"FUCK YOU!"

And we're not talking about the type of FU from a 20 year-old punk.

This punk was about 9-10 years old -- and by no means any ghetto or street attached to him. White and with the glasses that would appear to be a professor's.

His mother (wheeling a wheelchair), was trying to get the little brat to mind and come back...

The first time I heard the little idiot say that, I was looking around like Booker T would: "Tell me you didn't just say that!"

The second time: "FUCK YOU! I'M TIRED OF THIS SHIT!"

Now, as I told the mother, I'm more than willing to swear a blue streak. But this is a nine-year old brat doing this to his mom -- in public!

The only reason I didn't belt the kid 10 across the ass is because I'd go to jail.

Talking to the mother, he only reason she isn't is because she believes that's illegal even for the mother to do in California. So she has to ask God for strength (ha ha -- He's got enough keeping someone like me from going postal.)

Then, I ask her to consider what this kid is going to be like when he gets a bit older...

Then she tells me not to false witness the kid -- at which point (and I make sure both kid and mom hear it) I leave, basically telling myself that I better get out before I do something to get myself put in prison.

Basically, if I wanted to do it within the law, I'd have been tempted to call CPS on the pair.

If I didn't, 10 for the kid, 10 for the mom, 10 more for the kid.

Let's just say, in about five years, if you see a kid (about 15) in the Inland Empire murder somebody, I'd lay odds on this one, if someone doesn't (within reason) get this kid in line.

Tonight: Nyzul. (After yet another failed attempt to get a group together for "What Price Loyalty".)

First run: 2 All floors, a Chariot, a Soulflayer, and a Lamps Order floor with Gears (penalty for killing) all over the bleeping place near every lamp! This on floors 6-10!!

Somehow, we win the damn thing.

Second run: First floor (11) goes down in about 45 seconds (spec. enemy). We get two more floors, and then get an All floor where discovery by Gears is a penalty.

So we tiptoe through the tulips, our main healer dies (again!), and, once we somehow win the floor, there are under five minutes left.

Oh, did I tell you that, in the middle of the run, I was told I had to go do something?

So, odds are, we go up with a weakened WHM, we lose...

So guess how many people in the group want to exit, take the tokens and the rank point, and get something out of the run?

Me.

1.

I won't name names -- the blame is not specific.

This happens ALL THE FREAKING TIME when I go to Nyzul.

We literally suicide the run by going to the last floor with badly insufficient time.

I never understood the tactics behind it. Odds are, unless we luck out in the draw, we lose if we go up.

We get an All Floor? We lose.

Get a leader floor? Chances are, we lose.

Lamp Order? We lose.

Lamps, same time. That's what we got. We lost.

Any Gear restrictions? Probably lose.

Very few win options with about 4 minutes to go, and, EVERY DAMNATED TIME we go through this with groups, I get stiffed out of a rank point and tokens because everyone else just thinks that THIS TIME will be the Free Floor.

Never understood the strategy.

Oh, and will someone explain to me how the Kaiser Behemoth has a range of what has to be about 40 yalms on that AoE spam of his???