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Kinda Groggy Thursday
Mar. 9th, 2023 11:49 pmNow that the red curse is in full swing, yeah, the old tiredness levels are pretty dang high. Why is biology like this, I ask. . .meeeh. At least the day itself wasn't too bad --
Work – Another really quiet day, with just like one credit card call and a lot of roster maintenance (cleaning up duplicates and deceased and all that). We’ll see if the streak holds through tomorrow – wouldn’t mind, it’s good for me not to be overwhelmed with crap while dealing with the red curse!
To-Do List –
1. Get in a workout: Check – another night on the bike, another night with Oxventure Presents: Blades In The Dark – “First Flight Of The Sparrowhawk!” After everyone’s positions in the balloon were decided (Mike declaring Barnaby was probably not cut out to do anything other than tug the ropes to control the burner and the vent flap in the top and that Percy would probably insist on steering/being captain, and Johnny saying that Kasimir would want to navigate and probably be the most sure-footed atop the balloon due to all the care he takes with his leg, leaving Hicks to bounce people with her pole), Luke made the engagement roll to decide their initial starting position! Three dice (for luck, daring, and their successful sabotages) got them a 5 –
But when Luke rolled for the others, the Railjacks got a 6. So, upon liftoff, the Aeronaughty Boys (minus their uniforms, which Barnaby chucked out first thing) were in second place, right behind the Railjacks! Behind them were the Lampblacks, then the Red Sashes, and finally the Billhooks, who were less interested in the race and more in putting out the fire in their basket. XD One of them discovered Barnaby’s dropped bottle and swore revenge, while Barnaby and Kasimir just laughed their heads off. XD But yes, the race was on, straight to the first landmark – the Sanctorum, the highest spire of the cathedral of the Church of the Ecstasy of the Flesh! The gang had to pass this on the right or be disqualified – fortunately, Kasimir noted the Railjacks taking a good route around it and got Percy to navigate them into their slipstream. However, since it was only a 4 on the roll, Luke started a clock for the health of the balloon – a generous eight segments, but still something to watch. More worrying, though, was the fact that the Lampblacks were having a bit of trouble getting around the spire, which had allowed the Red Sashes to overtake them –
And start getting out daggers and such, clearly intent on taking out the Sparrowhawk! Kasimir quickly pulled out a grappling hook he had on him and began swinging it, hoping to get it in their propeller and give them other things to worry about. However, before he could make the throw, one of them just straight up LEAPT through the open air and onto the rigging around the Sparrowhawk basket, intent on climbing aboard –
Cue Barnaby getting another 6 on a Skirmish roll and just SHOVING HIM RIGHT OFF with a hand to the face. Dude landed on a roof, and died on a roll of 2. The other Red Sashes were understandably upset and moved closer for a proper attack – Kasimir flung his hook, and JUST managed to get it caught in the propeller with a 4. It tangled up beautifully, and brought the balloon and its basket completely sideways, dumping out all the other Red Sashes. Another trio of 2s later, and the Spirit Wardens are going to have some climbing to do to get rid of all these bodies on rooftops! XD Kasimir and Barnaby were a little O.O over all the accidental murder, while sweet oblivious Percy thought all the dongs of the Spirit Bell were just marking the time. XD
However, all the accidental murder was NOT the complication on his success that Kasimir had incurred – instead, it was that they’d lost a fair bit of altitude, and were coming up on the next waypoint – the Lord Mayor’s house! A stronghold bustling with guards with spears! Kasimir yelled down to Barnaby that they needed more height now, and Barnaby obliged with another 6 as he tugged on the burner ropes and got them high. They thus proceeded unmolested toward the North Hook Lighthouse, the landmark that they had to slap on the way past (on the right, as always). Kasimir got his slapping hand ready and told Barnaby to bring them down a bit –
Cue Barnaby’s luck FINALLY failing and him only getting a 3 on the critical roll, revealing that the vents for venting gas just weren’t working properly. Kasimir took a Devil’s Bargain from Luke to get over there in a hurry and fix the problem (a panel put on the wrong way), and got the vent open, but at the cost of tearing the balloon’s envelope – there goes one tick on the clock! They did start to descend, though, getting ready to pass the lighthouse. As they did, though, the Lampblacks started to catch up with them. They were in good spirits however, telling the Aeronaughty Boys that they owned them a drink for taking out the Red Sashes. Kasimir said they’d drink to their memory and mooned them, and Luke decided to go all J.J. Abrams and have the moonlight reflect off Kasimir’s butt and into their eyes, blinding them. Mike got him to roll to see what effect it had –
Turned out the moonlight bouncing off Kasimir’s hindquarters actually blinded their pilot enough for her to steer them INTO the lighthouse! Not a full-on crash, but they weren’t in a great spot. Johnny immediately declared with pure delight that Kasimir had cast Moonbeam. XD But this kept the Lampblacks busy, and with the help of Hicks doing some dangerous hanging from the rigging, she managed to brush her hand along the lighthouse itself and fulfill that obligation so they could continue onward!
And thus it was out over the open sea, near the crackling sparks of the lightning barrier keeping Volisport safe. The Railjacks were still ahead of them, but they were taking a cautious route over the water, keeping clear of the barrier – leaving open a dangerous racing line for anyone who wanted to take the risk. And Kasimir did, using the power of flashback (straight back to the score he and Lilith did for the Gut-Cutters at Gaddock train yard) to get himself a hip flask of leviathan blood distillate and hand that over to Barnaby (with VERY strict instructions not to drink it – he ended up using his final bit of load to get some of his whiskey to hand over with a label saying “THIS” to help Barnaby remember what was okay and what wasn’t), telling him that when he gave the signal, Barnaby should pour that in the propeller to give them a fantastic burst of speed. Or make them all blow up, but that was a chance they’d have to take, wasn’t it? Barnaby agreed, and when Kasimir yelled the go-ahead, actually poured the distillate CAREFULLY into the propeller. (Because if he couldn’t have a swig, it HAD to be dangerous!)
Cue a MASSIVE burst of speed as the engine sucked up the distillate and sent them PLOWING down the racing line. The Railjacks were utterly stunned as the Aeronaughty Boys passed them. XD However, the boost did not come without its drawbacks – namely, the balloon took more damage as the rip Kasimir had torn in the envelope fixing the vents widened; Percy did NOT take the jolt forward well and fell out of the basket, fortunately grabbing the rigging before he could topple to his death; and Barnaby – in addition to having to handle the propeller AND the burner – well. In order to get another die on the Finesse roll he needed to carefully add the distillate, he took a Devil’s Bargain from Luke, and the Devil’s Bargain was the continuation of a certain running gag – he spilled JUST ENOUGH to absolutely ruin his coat. XD Sorry, Barnaby, but the running gag must continue!
Even with all that, though, the gang were doing great, pulling well ahead of the Railjacks (and technically the Billhooks, who didn’t even want to BE in the race anymore but were basically “stuck in the skybox” thanks to their on-fire basket generating loads of lift for their balloon) and coming up on the finish line of the Barrowcleft lightning tower! Kasimir began using the rip in the envelope to help them lose altitude in time for the touchdown – but the Railjacks, despite everything (including the flipped barbs tearing up their own balloon) weren’t going down without a fight. I left it with the navigator preparing to use her OWN grappling hook to board them – we’ll see how this goes down and how the race pans out tomorrow! :D
2. Continue writing “Londerland Bloodlines: Downtown Queensland”: Check – Alice has found the Brotherhood’s “I Am Enlightened” flier on Kanker’s little podium thing (by his pile of entrails)! And because she has White Rabbit on her side, she didn’t even need to go bother Damsel to figure out where the symbol is – she could just follow him to the right building! You know, the one directly across from the chantry. XD She was a bit sour about this. But she’s in the right place, and planning her attack. Just brace yourself, Alice, because there is plenty of un-fun shit inside. . .
3. Keep up with YouTube Subs: Check – and both videos in the Subs were so short, I was able to fit in a bonus video too! Yay! :)
A) Started with a video that’s been sitting in my Watch Later for a while now – “Alton Towers TV Adverts (1980-2022)” by Theme Park Attraction! A collection of different Alton Towers TV Spots, from the park’s opening all the way up to the modern day, featuring ads for both the park itself, specific rides (only one each for Oblivion and Smiler, but a surprising number for Air) and specific areas (Cbeebies Land was VERY heavily advertised). It was a fun little trip through time, comparing the goofiness of the oldest ads to the – well, goofiness of the newest ones. And I won’t lie, I got a little happy thrill the first time I heard them use “Hall of the Mountain King” in an ad. :) Ugh, I so wish the world was in a better place, because at this point I would SO just hop in a plane and head over there.
B) Then it was into the Subs for today’s Josh Way – “SKETCHY: Tár vs. Leopold!” A micro-video (just over a minute long) of an evening sketch Josh did of the protagonist of the movie “Tár” (Lydia Tár, a conductor accused of sexual abuse, according to my quick Google) versus Bugs Bunny as Leopold Stravinsky. Just a very quick, very fun thing juxtaposing the movie he’d just watched with some classic Looney Tunes shenanigans! :p
C) And then we finished on the Thursday GrayStillPlays minisode – “Busting 5 Movie Myths in GTA 5 #shorts!” We had in this short – Gray showing that Superman’s cape CAN get sucked into a jet engine (along with the rest of him, though fortunately he doesn’t shred); Flash CAN climb a mountain at speed (he just has to glitch up it Skyrim-style); you may not be able to escape teleporting Jason Vorhees but you CAN stop him with the spray gun atop a fire engine (fire engines may not always be available where you are); Magneto CAN pick up a submarine (so long as he holds his special magnetic-powers-enhancing gun); and he CAN parkour as the Invisible Woman when she’s invisible, it’s just SUPER hard (again, so long as she holds her special Let Gray Line Himself Up On This Pipe gun, it can be done). XD Good times!
4. Get my tumblr queues sorted: Check – three ask replies into the Valice Multiverse queue tonight. :) And in non-tumblr news, kept up on all my various comments and answered Moose’s messages, yay! All caught up for ten seconds. XD
*nods* Not bad at all. Feels good to get something out of the old Watch Later! And now it is time to head to bed -- one more day to go before the weekend! Fingers crossed it's a decent one -- night all!
Work – Another really quiet day, with just like one credit card call and a lot of roster maintenance (cleaning up duplicates and deceased and all that). We’ll see if the streak holds through tomorrow – wouldn’t mind, it’s good for me not to be overwhelmed with crap while dealing with the red curse!
To-Do List –
1. Get in a workout: Check – another night on the bike, another night with Oxventure Presents: Blades In The Dark – “First Flight Of The Sparrowhawk!” After everyone’s positions in the balloon were decided (Mike declaring Barnaby was probably not cut out to do anything other than tug the ropes to control the burner and the vent flap in the top and that Percy would probably insist on steering/being captain, and Johnny saying that Kasimir would want to navigate and probably be the most sure-footed atop the balloon due to all the care he takes with his leg, leaving Hicks to bounce people with her pole), Luke made the engagement roll to decide their initial starting position! Three dice (for luck, daring, and their successful sabotages) got them a 5 –
But when Luke rolled for the others, the Railjacks got a 6. So, upon liftoff, the Aeronaughty Boys (minus their uniforms, which Barnaby chucked out first thing) were in second place, right behind the Railjacks! Behind them were the Lampblacks, then the Red Sashes, and finally the Billhooks, who were less interested in the race and more in putting out the fire in their basket. XD One of them discovered Barnaby’s dropped bottle and swore revenge, while Barnaby and Kasimir just laughed their heads off. XD But yes, the race was on, straight to the first landmark – the Sanctorum, the highest spire of the cathedral of the Church of the Ecstasy of the Flesh! The gang had to pass this on the right or be disqualified – fortunately, Kasimir noted the Railjacks taking a good route around it and got Percy to navigate them into their slipstream. However, since it was only a 4 on the roll, Luke started a clock for the health of the balloon – a generous eight segments, but still something to watch. More worrying, though, was the fact that the Lampblacks were having a bit of trouble getting around the spire, which had allowed the Red Sashes to overtake them –
And start getting out daggers and such, clearly intent on taking out the Sparrowhawk! Kasimir quickly pulled out a grappling hook he had on him and began swinging it, hoping to get it in their propeller and give them other things to worry about. However, before he could make the throw, one of them just straight up LEAPT through the open air and onto the rigging around the Sparrowhawk basket, intent on climbing aboard –
Cue Barnaby getting another 6 on a Skirmish roll and just SHOVING HIM RIGHT OFF with a hand to the face. Dude landed on a roof, and died on a roll of 2. The other Red Sashes were understandably upset and moved closer for a proper attack – Kasimir flung his hook, and JUST managed to get it caught in the propeller with a 4. It tangled up beautifully, and brought the balloon and its basket completely sideways, dumping out all the other Red Sashes. Another trio of 2s later, and the Spirit Wardens are going to have some climbing to do to get rid of all these bodies on rooftops! XD Kasimir and Barnaby were a little O.O over all the accidental murder, while sweet oblivious Percy thought all the dongs of the Spirit Bell were just marking the time. XD
However, all the accidental murder was NOT the complication on his success that Kasimir had incurred – instead, it was that they’d lost a fair bit of altitude, and were coming up on the next waypoint – the Lord Mayor’s house! A stronghold bustling with guards with spears! Kasimir yelled down to Barnaby that they needed more height now, and Barnaby obliged with another 6 as he tugged on the burner ropes and got them high. They thus proceeded unmolested toward the North Hook Lighthouse, the landmark that they had to slap on the way past (on the right, as always). Kasimir got his slapping hand ready and told Barnaby to bring them down a bit –
Cue Barnaby’s luck FINALLY failing and him only getting a 3 on the critical roll, revealing that the vents for venting gas just weren’t working properly. Kasimir took a Devil’s Bargain from Luke to get over there in a hurry and fix the problem (a panel put on the wrong way), and got the vent open, but at the cost of tearing the balloon’s envelope – there goes one tick on the clock! They did start to descend, though, getting ready to pass the lighthouse. As they did, though, the Lampblacks started to catch up with them. They were in good spirits however, telling the Aeronaughty Boys that they owned them a drink for taking out the Red Sashes. Kasimir said they’d drink to their memory and mooned them, and Luke decided to go all J.J. Abrams and have the moonlight reflect off Kasimir’s butt and into their eyes, blinding them. Mike got him to roll to see what effect it had –
Turned out the moonlight bouncing off Kasimir’s hindquarters actually blinded their pilot enough for her to steer them INTO the lighthouse! Not a full-on crash, but they weren’t in a great spot. Johnny immediately declared with pure delight that Kasimir had cast Moonbeam. XD But this kept the Lampblacks busy, and with the help of Hicks doing some dangerous hanging from the rigging, she managed to brush her hand along the lighthouse itself and fulfill that obligation so they could continue onward!
And thus it was out over the open sea, near the crackling sparks of the lightning barrier keeping Volisport safe. The Railjacks were still ahead of them, but they were taking a cautious route over the water, keeping clear of the barrier – leaving open a dangerous racing line for anyone who wanted to take the risk. And Kasimir did, using the power of flashback (straight back to the score he and Lilith did for the Gut-Cutters at Gaddock train yard) to get himself a hip flask of leviathan blood distillate and hand that over to Barnaby (with VERY strict instructions not to drink it – he ended up using his final bit of load to get some of his whiskey to hand over with a label saying “THIS” to help Barnaby remember what was okay and what wasn’t), telling him that when he gave the signal, Barnaby should pour that in the propeller to give them a fantastic burst of speed. Or make them all blow up, but that was a chance they’d have to take, wasn’t it? Barnaby agreed, and when Kasimir yelled the go-ahead, actually poured the distillate CAREFULLY into the propeller. (Because if he couldn’t have a swig, it HAD to be dangerous!)
Cue a MASSIVE burst of speed as the engine sucked up the distillate and sent them PLOWING down the racing line. The Railjacks were utterly stunned as the Aeronaughty Boys passed them. XD However, the boost did not come without its drawbacks – namely, the balloon took more damage as the rip Kasimir had torn in the envelope fixing the vents widened; Percy did NOT take the jolt forward well and fell out of the basket, fortunately grabbing the rigging before he could topple to his death; and Barnaby – in addition to having to handle the propeller AND the burner – well. In order to get another die on the Finesse roll he needed to carefully add the distillate, he took a Devil’s Bargain from Luke, and the Devil’s Bargain was the continuation of a certain running gag – he spilled JUST ENOUGH to absolutely ruin his coat. XD Sorry, Barnaby, but the running gag must continue!
Even with all that, though, the gang were doing great, pulling well ahead of the Railjacks (and technically the Billhooks, who didn’t even want to BE in the race anymore but were basically “stuck in the skybox” thanks to their on-fire basket generating loads of lift for their balloon) and coming up on the finish line of the Barrowcleft lightning tower! Kasimir began using the rip in the envelope to help them lose altitude in time for the touchdown – but the Railjacks, despite everything (including the flipped barbs tearing up their own balloon) weren’t going down without a fight. I left it with the navigator preparing to use her OWN grappling hook to board them – we’ll see how this goes down and how the race pans out tomorrow! :D
2. Continue writing “Londerland Bloodlines: Downtown Queensland”: Check – Alice has found the Brotherhood’s “I Am Enlightened” flier on Kanker’s little podium thing (by his pile of entrails)! And because she has White Rabbit on her side, she didn’t even need to go bother Damsel to figure out where the symbol is – she could just follow him to the right building! You know, the one directly across from the chantry. XD She was a bit sour about this. But she’s in the right place, and planning her attack. Just brace yourself, Alice, because there is plenty of un-fun shit inside. . .
3. Keep up with YouTube Subs: Check – and both videos in the Subs were so short, I was able to fit in a bonus video too! Yay! :)
A) Started with a video that’s been sitting in my Watch Later for a while now – “Alton Towers TV Adverts (1980-2022)” by Theme Park Attraction! A collection of different Alton Towers TV Spots, from the park’s opening all the way up to the modern day, featuring ads for both the park itself, specific rides (only one each for Oblivion and Smiler, but a surprising number for Air) and specific areas (Cbeebies Land was VERY heavily advertised). It was a fun little trip through time, comparing the goofiness of the oldest ads to the – well, goofiness of the newest ones. And I won’t lie, I got a little happy thrill the first time I heard them use “Hall of the Mountain King” in an ad. :) Ugh, I so wish the world was in a better place, because at this point I would SO just hop in a plane and head over there.
B) Then it was into the Subs for today’s Josh Way – “SKETCHY: Tár vs. Leopold!” A micro-video (just over a minute long) of an evening sketch Josh did of the protagonist of the movie “Tár” (Lydia Tár, a conductor accused of sexual abuse, according to my quick Google) versus Bugs Bunny as Leopold Stravinsky. Just a very quick, very fun thing juxtaposing the movie he’d just watched with some classic Looney Tunes shenanigans! :p
C) And then we finished on the Thursday GrayStillPlays minisode – “Busting 5 Movie Myths in GTA 5 #shorts!” We had in this short – Gray showing that Superman’s cape CAN get sucked into a jet engine (along with the rest of him, though fortunately he doesn’t shred); Flash CAN climb a mountain at speed (he just has to glitch up it Skyrim-style); you may not be able to escape teleporting Jason Vorhees but you CAN stop him with the spray gun atop a fire engine (fire engines may not always be available where you are); Magneto CAN pick up a submarine (so long as he holds his special magnetic-powers-enhancing gun); and he CAN parkour as the Invisible Woman when she’s invisible, it’s just SUPER hard (again, so long as she holds her special Let Gray Line Himself Up On This Pipe gun, it can be done). XD Good times!
4. Get my tumblr queues sorted: Check – three ask replies into the Valice Multiverse queue tonight. :) And in non-tumblr news, kept up on all my various comments and answered Moose’s messages, yay! All caught up for ten seconds. XD
*nods* Not bad at all. Feels good to get something out of the old Watch Later! And now it is time to head to bed -- one more day to go before the weekend! Fingers crossed it's a decent one -- night all!
