Turn-based games do not require reflex and quick situational problem solving skill since they give you all the time in the world to ponder the problem and come up with a counter measure. In some games like Fire Emblem you can even manipulate the "luck" factor (RNG) and control the outcome exactly as you need, whether it's a speed bonus on level-up or even enemy's AI. You do take into consideration your opponent's point of view, bait and trap them but real-time games take it to another level as it takes only seconds to react and decide when to go forward and when to step backward. In turn-based games I can sometimes ignore enemy phase completely, thus it's all about my own turn and how I can get what I want. In real-time game there is no moment to zone out, as inconcentration leads to a gameover screen immediately. It also trains patience as you cannot bulldoze your way through everything. There must be a wait time before the reaction, step back, dodge, go forward 2 steps, go back 1 step, in accordance to the enemy's simultaneous action.
In conclusion I guess the most important thing I've "learned" from real time games is to wait and to step back when needed.
This all sounds pretty funny. I need to play sports. When I used to play badminton my reaction was actually pretty good. Some think it's a game for old people to play in the park but when the pros play a badminton match sounds quite loud and somewhat more violent than expected.
Last time I ordered a delivery worth $30 of half-half chicken (fried and sweet-sour), which while fresh, crunchy outside, moist inside and non-greasey, made me regret spending knowing I could get something similar from my nearby grocery store at the end of the day at 50% discount about $10, but obviously with lower quality. For $30, you can also have an all-you-can-eat at a sushi bring-your-own-wine restaurant, so there's that regret.
This episode is about a high school student (about grade 10) who is the only working person in the family after her mom became sick and her dad was laid off and became alcoholic. She berates her father every day for not having a job and pretty much acts miserably to her plight. The father does secretly try to look for jobs every day but due to his age in the 50s, has a lot of difficulty (first question he's asked is always his age). He silently suffers his daughter's insults every day without explaining his action and struggle. In the end he's able to land a job at a construction company while filming the show.
This ep is a reminder to me that no one likes somebody who acts miserable. The daughter is understandably a teen with a lot of burden, but acting angry, angsty and woe-is-me has some kind of off-putting quality. Perhaps it's not fair, but that's how it is, and it seems one must stoically faces one's challenge. That doesn't mean you should not communicate or explain yourself, like the father who keeps building misunderstanding with his daughter and doesn't bother showing her his efforts to not be a lazy alcoholic.
Can probably be described as the Chinese counterpart of Sherlock Holmes/Elementary. They even address this in one of the scenes with background Sherlock Holmes theme, though the outcome of the scene leaves viewers amused.
Minestrone is a thick soup of Italian origin made with vegetables, often with the addition of pasta or rice. Common ingredients include beans, onions, celery, carrots, stock, and tomatoes.
How to make:
$0.99
Follow the package direction, makes 4 servings. Add your own fresh ingredients.
I'm wearing a dental splint on my lower teeth. I can think and concentrate better mainly because it provides my jaw and teeth with support. My problem started when I had braces, originally intended to treat underbite.
Anyway the cost of this splint coupled with sessions at the dentist, x-ray, etc reaches more than $2000. I'm not paying for this (long story) so it's alright, but money isn't the only thing costly about chronic pain. Relationships, years of my life, my happiness, education, career, my family, my self esteem and pride have all been costly. How much compensation does one think is enough?
Chicharrón is a dish generally consisting of fried pork belly or fried pork rinds; chicharrón may also be made from chicken, mutton, or beef. The Grilled Pork Garlic package is more crunchy, with slightly smaller pieces. You can taste the pork fat in the Old Fashioned Style package like it's not completely fried. That concludes my recent fascination with chicharron.
Hitting 'em notes, actually succeeding with these songs, though my voice is not stable or able to project like professional singers or anything. Originally I just wanted to do this to improve my speaking voice, which seems to work a bit. Bang Bang and Chandelier were the hardest so far.
Webber Naturals Omega-3 Fish Oil $11.27/210 soft gels
Centrum Forte Essentials Adults $9.97/100 tablets
Centrum for Women $10.77/90 tablets
Equate Tea Tree Oil $14.97/100ml
Centrum's effect on my work performance is noticeable not only by myself but by others. This proves 2 things: either Centrum is very effective and/or my diet is terrible.
"A deep and addicting game once you've scratched the surface"
(a squaresoft/square-enix series)
I myself would give this game a 3.5/5. It is a game with endless freedom and customization and gets very enjoyable once you understand the system. The downside is that this very own complexity and openness can be overwhelming and off-putting to new players.
Story
As someone who has completed more than one playthrough now, I'd say I regret looking at a guide and spoiled myself some major plot points - yes, there are plots! But you have to find little pieces of them through seemingly non-related sub quests and put them together. The general idea is to find the fatestones and save the world from the evil god Saruin, even though most characters just start out doing their own thing - some are treasure hunters, some want to avenge their family, some have lived a secluded life and now want to go explore the world - and acidentally stumble on a fatestone or two on their journey, then gradually realize something sinister (Saruin's awakening) is going on. As you take on quests, usually from notes and people in pubs, and progress through the game, the Minstrel will tell you tales about the history of the world. Some characters may have their own secret background that you'll only find out when you pick them as the main. Some storylines will need 2 or 3 playthroughs to play out.
Design
The world design is varied, there are snowfields, desert, mountains, numerous towns and cities, and certain characters can travel around with their horse or wagon adding some fun variety. You also have map skills, like climb, jump, pick herbs, mine, detect hidden chests, dig up treasures, you can also see monsters roaming about and decide to fight them or to dodge and run away from them, which is an art in itself. You can also trade items and cash with some monsters. However, most dungeons look too much the same, the castles are just empty hallways, if you're in a cave eventually you can't even tell where you are and which cave you're in since they all look the same. Some dungeons require specific map skills that you have no way of knowing beforehand, so you may find yourself unable to proceed because you haven't equipped "Jump" to jump pass a hole on the ground. In this case, you'll have to trek all the way back to town to equip Jump. One dungeon is especially punishing, as if you leave it, the quest is marked as failed. For some others, if you fought too many monsters on the way, you may find an empty room at the end, since the time requirement (called the "Event Rank" system) has passed, and the quest is marked as failed. This is why it is a bad idea to "grind" battles in Romancing Saga. However, 80% of the quests don't have time constraint.
Graphics
Graphics wise, some people are put off by the character model, thinking they look weird or creepy. I myself don't find it bother me at all. I enjoy the FMV style, especially the Barbara dancing cutscene. Looks like waterpainting, very colorful and artistic. Sadly, there are not a lot of those.
Music, sound
The music is amazing (except for the South Estamir theme). I especially love Gray's theme and sometimes listen to it on repeat outside of the game. Battle themes are exciting and very pleasant to listen to. For this aspect I'd give a 10/10. There is voice acting for every dialogue, sometimes they're ok but sometimes pretty hammy.
Replayability
The battle system is what makes the replayability of the game. Besides the 8 main characters, there is a wide variety of side characters you can recruit. This means that you can start every new game with a new set of party members, each with their own strength and weakness, though their weaknesses can be improved by using the right weapons or magic. For example, using a lot of martial arts will make your character more sturdy and faster, using bow and foil will improve their accuracy. Anyone can equip any weapon or magic, and each type of weapon or magic comes with their own techniques and spells. There are hundreds of techniques and 8 schools of spells with around 10 spells each, out of those you can also fuse them to make new spells. These techniques and spells can combo with each other depends on your character's skill, speed, order of attack and their row placement, to form flashy team attacks and vortexes. You can pick different classes for your characters, each with their own specialty - Castle Knight can deflect attacks for others, Rosalian Mage can fuse 3 spells together to make 1 new spell, Swordsman deals extra damage, Rosalian Officer has extra defense, Estamirian Rebel inflicts status ailments more easily, Herbalist can tell apart different herb types etc. With this complexity, coupled with the non-linearity of the game, it's possible to make no two playthroughs alike. You can have a team of purely fighters or purely mages or a combination of both, exploring dungeons in any order, even finding a way to get past super powerful bosses and gain access to tough dungeons early in the game with the right customization. With each New Game+, the number of jewels you earn from quests are multiplied, which makes upgrading classes easier.
All in all I'd say Romancing Saga is a good game, with some flaws. The learning curve is steep, the turn-based battle system can get dragged out at times, the slow running speed and little direction given during the game can turn some players away. The randomness factor in learning (called "glimmering", or "sparking") techniques and increasing stats can be fun or frustrating, though there are also tricks you can exploit in the game. If you want a unique RPG experience, try Romancing Saga.
Guides
How to build a Rosalian Mage with all fusion spells
How to make fusion spells with 0BP cost and with status effects
How to build an Imperial Scholar with all fusion spells
Spells needed:
Flame of LifeReviveHoly WaterFold TimeFreeze TimeStrengthen PullSnowstormTremorPhantom WarriorEnhance SpellMind BlastCosmic TideWay of FocusSong of Souls (pyro, out class, Blazing Foil)Flame of Life + Self-Immolation+ Summon Elemental (Fire)+ ReviveHasten Time (hydro, in class)Fold Time + SnowstormPetra Delta (terr, out class, Earth Foil or Feather Spear)Pulverise + Freeze Time+ Mind BlastTremor + Freeze Time+ Enhance Spells+ Mind BlastAnti-magic (dem, out class, Eule Staff)Enhance Spells + Armor Blessing+ Bind to Earth+ Way of FocusGalactic Rift (cosmo, in class)Cosmic Tide + Strengthen PullRain of Life (bew, no opposition)Way of Focus + Holy Water
Imperial Scholar - Fusion Spells with status effects:Energy Bolt + ReviveLower STRShockwave + Mark of Awakening Lower DEXStarbeam + Earthen Grasp Lower WILBird of Fire + Fold Time PlantWater Blast + Summon Ele (ae) Lower DEXTremor + Summon ele (pyro) STRTremor + Wave of Life STRLightning Illusion + Fold Time AGI Snow Storm + Fold Time AGIBlood Curdle + Fold Time Lower AGIBlades of Wind + Fold Time Lower AGICosmic Tide + Freeze Time Lower AGIBlades of Wind + Freeze Time Lower AGIBlood Curdle + Freeze Time Lower AGISnowstorm + Freeze Time AGISunray + Mindblast Lower INTStarbeam + Mindblast Lower INTCosmic Tide + Mindblast Lower INTWave of Life + Mindblast Lower INTHellfire + Mindblast Lower INTBird of Fire + Mindblast Lower INTBlood Curdle + Mindblast INT
Status effect spell combos in a team of Imperial Scholars:
blood curdle → sunray → hellfire → wave of life (lower INT)blood curdle → lightning illusion → blades of wind → lightning illusion → blades of wind (lower AGI)blood curdle → blades of wind → lightning illusion → blades of wind → lightning illusion (lower AGI)
Channeling weapons:
serpentbrand (hydro)phantom sword (illu)flamberge (pyro)icesword (aero)axe of king (pyro)eternity staff (dem)serpentstaff (terr)khellendros (aero)yucomb (hydro)featherspear (aero)malystrix (pyro)chalice (hydro)
I've found the size 0 pants in Reitmans Petite line to fit me well and don't cause further muscle tension/chronic pain. With the 28 inch length, I can save from having to alter them at a seamstress. The dark color is just what I need, and pocket design is simple; there is also no zipper, which is nice. At $28.5, I think the sales could go lower.
It's quite something, when I realize that I used to play Fire Emblem straight for more than a year. I've played and replayed FE4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, a bit of Shadow Dragon and some of its sequel. The time spent on each stage can take up to an hour or more, not to mention when I went "hardcore" and started to play for minimum turn count, which took a lot of thinking and reseting. I can't speak with utmost certainty, but playing for LTC (low-turn-count) strategy did something to my mind and problem solving skill, which translates somewhat to real life problem solving skill, even if it can't be compared to real life learning from experience.
I didn't finish Shadow Dragon for some reason, but I tried again today on Merciless Mode, and it was hard, but tedious and unfun. Aside from the fact that I'm probably over Fire Emblem, the rescue/drop mechanic is not yet present in this game and on this difficulty mode you're basically just hoping your units don't miss when attacking enemies, which doesn't leave much for strategy. There's the diversion tactic by using your flyer to lead enemies away, item trade chain (instead of rescue/drop chain) and then there's forging super weapons and later warping, but when forging's available is when the game gets much easier and warping simply breaks the game.
Son is able to break the fabric of time and talk to his now deceased dad from 30 years ago through the radio frequency affected by a rare aurora occurance. By alerting his dad and saving him from his supposed death, a chain of events from the past is altered, leading to a serial killer of the time surviving until present days.
