Chaos

[center]---- [url=http://www.otakuboards.com/showthread.php?t=18015]The End Of The World As We Know It[/url][/center] The possessed Ryan crossed the barrier into the mortal realm. The cool, crisp air flooded his lungs with a long-forgotten bliss. The Pits below were thick with rotting flesh, brimstone, sulfur, heat, and all sorts of bile. Even in a stranger's body he could fell the uncharacteristic euphoria of untainted oxygen. It was like being reborn- The surge of Holy Mana in the air shook the Morningstar awake from his rapture, and he finally came to terms with the reality at hand; the in the middle of the Vatican square was where he had warped to. And it was here that Simikiel had weaved his web. Seraphims crossed the skies; Archangels lined the buildings in ornate lines of glistening armor. The clear blue above danced with alabaster feathers as countless legions assembled. From the ground and buildings, easily over a thousand angels within the Holy Guard drew bolts, notching their bows back. For a single instant, Lucifer lost grips with his own self, and stared in disbelief as a tide of silver and blazed fletching hurled towards him, with a unified twang of hundreds upon hundreds of bows. Most of the arrows were vaporized by the aura of evil around this possessed Fallen, but with such a tide, escape is impossible. Rattled with easily over three hundred arrows, most piercing the sapphire armor with ease, the creature survived merely on the well of mana within. Ryan's life force had vanished, and only his magic signature remained, and though enormous, was fading quickly. Simikiel swooped low, landing with all six wings fully extended, some twenty meters in front of this hybrid. He drew his fabled blade and pointed it to his sworn foe. "The Angel of Vengeance does not tuck tail and run, Lucifer. You think to challenge those that have sworn to serve He who is Called 'I Am'? We are filled by his benevolence; we are borne of his grace. All creatures and expressions are His, and we must honor his gift. With His very hands he forged this blade. With His very spirit he has commissioned me to rid the world of the scourge. With His very being, I shall end this." And at that, Simikiel, in all his glory, charged Morningstar. He hacked, he slashed, cut, jabbed, perforated, and lacerated until the bloody chunks were no longer definable. Even then, Lucifer existed, his spirit whisking into the never. With a final, redeeming bolt of pure, unadulterated mana, the form of Ryan vanished, and with it, Lucifer disappeared back into the depths, back into his form. A primal magick tore the area in two, the epicenter where the Fallen Angel lastly lay. For miles on end a wasteland crumbled into the passage of time in a mere instant. The Angelic Guard survived wholly, but short of a direct intervention by the Hand of God, the damage was irreversible. Shockwaves were sent for miles and miles, and the world over felt affects of the banishment... ...And yet, it was the end. Ryan considered Lucifer his savior. He had fallen from God's grace, and thus, sought acceptance in any form. He would forever lack the bliss of feeling the divine presence, and thus, a void within him needed to be filled. Ryan was given this chance, power, and military control, even command over the prestigious Council. At the same time, his view was skewed from the obvious truth that he was being used. This surrogate father ultimately brought about his final moment, but, even in purging the body, none could sever this bind that the Morningstar wrangled the Fallen Angel into. Deep within the Pits, buried under the strain of Death and Torment, Ryan existed as a fragment of his former self, if only to say that Lucifer had the last laugh. Satan fully recognized this former Angel as being the cause of his demise, but the wretched creature still had use. And this wrath was not missing from the victim, either. Scorned and under constant waves and volleys of agony, Ryan saw, in his warped, degrading perspective, the faces of those that drove him to the edge and beyond. Sennen, Tarlain, Simikiel, even his own adoptive father all held the cards to his pain. But one, in particular, had started this. Vae, the Third, Ryan would have sneered. He had originally defied Ryan's request and set into motion the defection of Kenneth and the revival of Skye. So many things had come to pass over this creature's ambition, and he would be made to pay, one way or the other. It has been five years since that awful onslaught. The world, now unified in acknowledge and understanding of the power of the Kingdom of Heaven and the fury of The Depths, has slowly rebuilt itself. Most of the world population had survived the original war, though considerable damage had been done. Though the gates were sealed, though the humans were striving, the mark of the failed Armageddon had been made. New York was still in shambles. Jerusalem was in ruins. Rome had vanished off the face of the Earth. And yet that was only the beginning. Vae, long harboring ideals of rebellion, has decided to push his ambitions even higher. After officially proclaiming his threat to the Throne, he never ventured back to the Pits, and instead took refuge within the Valley Forge. Neither Heaven nor Hell could track him or his movements. Over the past five years, he has been biding, waiting, and gathering power. He is Evil Incarnate, he knows all the ins- and outs of his abilities. Using a massive necromantic wave, he unleashed hoards of undead, countless in number, upon the mortal realm. He appeared himself shortly after, and crafted his own entrance to the Gates of Purgatory. That was shortly over a month ago. The fighting has been fierce, but mostly only minor skirmishes have broken out. Heaven has turned a blind eye to the act, due to the fact that Medra would be content with the Throne of Hell. But, just a couple of hours ago, a few humans were swept up in a conflict and, obviously, were decimated. Heaven has taken this incident and declared it an act of war, seeking to kill two birds with one stone. But they will soon learn what it means to stand against the Demon God of the Night Skies.... [center]-----[/center] Now all that remains is the sign-ups. This does not have to be the culmination of all artistic writing, but some detail would be nice. You may choose between Heaven, Hell, Medra's hoard, or simply a wanderer. The sheet is as follows. These are the basics; feel free to add what you like. [b]Name:[/b] [b]Age:[/b] [b]Alignment:[/b] [b]Biography:[/b] [b]Weapons:[/b] [b]Abilities:[/b] [b]Physical Description:[/b] Be creative with your sign-ups, and please try to stay dedicated and remember even the small details of characters, because that just helps things flow.

Well, I have to say, I didn't [b]intend[/b] on insulting anyone... It's just that I consider suicide a sin and an abomination. And I expressed that. ...Quite vehemently, too. >_>; Either way, you shouldn't let that get you distraught. Since when should you care what I think? Or anyone, for that matter? You can make up your own mind. Why pay attention to a blockhead who takes no consideration to the details and just generalizes. See my point? YOU have to be the person to let someone get under your skin. If you take a step back and look at what people say, you can pretty much find out, a lot of the time, they do it in regards to themselves, without much genuine care of others' feelings. So, please, don't take my inane statements too closely to heart.

*rolls eyes* I'll make this brief, because apparently people can't deal with someone expressing their opinions. What is it with people these days? You ask for someone's thoughts and when you get it you complain. The fact of the matter is that there is ALWAYS something you can do, no matter WHAT has happened or what will happen. In some shape or form you can help yourself or get help. That's the point I was driving for. And yes, I do think suicide is something that only someone looking for an escape will do. But I never said I wouldn't feel for them. I would and have gone to funerals mourning those that took their own lives, and you know what? I still feel the same way. If you can't deal with that, I'm sorry for seeing the point. Kamuro, I'd like to make the point you've made; have you live my life? I doubt it, so how exactly can you know what I've been through enough to judge me? I have very few options to deal with my own problems, but do you see a gun in my mouth? Tss. As for insulting anyone, I do not recall putting any specific names down. I was generalizing my comments. Granted, I can be a royal pain in the ***, but if you could take a second and realize that perception is also part of the problem, we might not have so much trouble. PS, just to return the favor: It's 'pathetic'.

A lot of sob stories here. Tch. Suicide is a weakling's answer to a problem. They can't do anything for themselves at all, can't fight back, can't resist, can't find some help, and so they take the quote-unquote easy way out. In whatever form of the afterlife or nonexistance there is beyond our feeble understanding, you will burn for it. No matter what happens, no matter how bad, you're just a coward in my eyes if you take your own life. Nothing is bad enough to kill yourself, to waste the potential you've been given. And if you believe otherwise you deserve whatever you get for being a foolish EMO child. *awaits the onslaught*

*rolls eyes* Jesus, this is so damned old. I'm tired of these horoscope things. They makes statements so general and so broad that eventually they do hit home on one thing or another. Point in case; December 1) Loyal and generous. 2) Sexy. 3) Patriotic. 4) Active in games and interactions. 5) Impatient and hasty. 6) Ambitious. 7) Influential in organizations. 8) Fun to be with. 9) Loves to socialize. 10) Loves praises. 11) Loves attention. 12) Loves to be loved. 13) Honest and trustworthy. 14) Not pretending. 15) Short tempered. 16) Changing personality. 17) Not egoistic. 18) Take high pride in oneself. 19) Hates restrictions. 20) Loves to joke. 21) Good sense of humor. 22) Logical. 1) Loyal, but not generous. 2) Hell yeah I'm sexy. 3) Yes. 4) No, neither. 5) Yes. 6) Yes. 7) No. 8) No. 9) No. 10) No. 11) No. 12) No. 13) Somewhat. 14) Yes. 15) Exceedingly so. 16) Not particularly. 17) No, I am in fact VERY egotistical. 18) Yes. 19) Who doesn't? 20) No. 21) No. 22) Yes. So out of twenty-two things they have to say about me, only ten are right, and three of those then are off the mark slightly. See what I mean? I've always hated this Zodiac crap, and I do not see the appeal of some constellation being associated with a planet and that somehow governs your life. Maybe if this was three hundred years ago when we were still in log cabins and thatched huts, but really people. Could someone PLEASE explain to me the appeal of this crap?

James is basically right. I've had my fair share of run-ins and I have to say I don't know what all the fuss is about. Sex is sex. Not being a virgin doesn't make you a whore, being a virgin doesn't make you a loser. Yeah, it's great, even better when you have it with someone you quote-unquote love. It's a person's choice to do what they want with their body when they want, I'll fight to the death arguing that, but I don't think people need to [b]fear[/b] it. Don't be pressured into something you don't want to do, people, BUT, don't be pressured into NOT doing something, either. You only live once. Enjoy yourself while you can. Take the opportunites that come your way. Sex is natural, and, yes, it feels incredible when you share yourself with another person, so don't hesitate because some inane morales are imposed on you. And if you do have intimate relations, please, use a rubber.[/obligatory public service announcement.]

I've actually met a "Shithead," thought it was pronounced "She-THEED" and shortly after it became a joke with a few friends. Nothing like going around school yelling out "WHAT'S UP SHETHEED?" and have some completely random person hollering back "NOTHING, HOW 'BOUT YOU?" and seeing the teachers go crosseyed in confusion.

[quote name='Neuvoxraiha][color=darkorchid][FONT=Times New Roman] How it would alienate any Jewish people seeking to get a mortgage on their house...[/FONT'][/COLOR][/quote] Pfft. A Jew getting a mortgage? Please. *tilts head* And while I wait to get flamed for the political incorrectness, I'll recall that there was a teacher in Grey, Louisiana named "Randy Bonner." He was fairly old, too, so I think the joke passed his parents by. Still got a chuckle when I heard it.

I'd like to take this time to point out that not only is "American anime" an oxymoron, but that Adult Swim doesn't make anime. Adult Swim is a registered name under Cartoon Network/Turner Media's umbrella, not a dubbing company. They merely air the shows that they can buy the rights to.

What you guys are talking about were the old Ocean Group dubs. I forget exactly why but eventually, about midway through the Namek Saga [technically just before the Furiza saga] FUNi came into the rights for DBZ. I remember it clearly because it was the episode where Kakarot had just landed on Nameksei and interrupted Recoome's rampage, and, suddenly, Toonami restarts the series from the beginning. So that explains the dubbing in the middle of the series, because FUNi did not want to have to buy the original voice actors' contracts AND support their salaries as well. That also explains the current redub being played on Cartoon Network; FUNi is just making full use of their license. EDIT: And the FUNi dubs were also horribly slaughtered [or edited, take your pick, I prefer to express how badly they mangled the episodes.] just as the Ocean Group's was. They released "Uncut" versions but for the most part these were still heavily toned down in terms of content and speech. And, noticing the redubs of the first two seasons, FUNi is finally expressing more and leaving some of the stuff in. Now, if they would have just done that with the rest of the series I would be so much happier.

It amazes me how many people classify a "perfect" villian by such a horrible cliche. Cold and calculating? Hell, no. A true villian is someone who knows how to get into your head and turn you about. It doesn't need to kill thousands of people or tear people apart -- it needs to turn you about. A sadist who can thumb through your brain like an open book would be my pick. He enjoys his 'work' and he knows how to ruin you forever. There's no stopping someone who is DRIVEN and motivated to do something, especially when this person knows what the hell they're doing. Someone distant and stoic will only look at something with a degree of professional knowledge; someone with a desire to destroy and obliterate you will be so passionate about it they won't think twice about anything.

[QUOTE=James][color=#332E1D][font=franklin gothic medium]...Having one would probably be detrimental. I mean, think about it - that's the first place new members visit. If all they see is crap, they will think that posting crap all over the site is acceptable. You know? I'd rather that the first thing they see is clear, coherent posts site-wide. That gives an infinitely better impression. And it lets them know what they're in for, so that they can choose whether or not they'd like to stay.[/color][/font][/QUOTE] I'd like to point out that that IS the case, and yet people still do it, so that point is a bit moot. Sure, not ever member randomly clicks off the "New Topic" button and give us an obligatory "Jullo i r teh knew," but those that do obviously see the lack of such posts and still go ahead with it. Just making a point. *shrug* EDIT: On a more to-the-point note, why not combine all of the little individual forums' rules into a list and red flag it on the main page? Sure, it's on the sidebar, but I think people would notice it a) more if they had to scroll past it, and b) if it was 'freshened up' so to speak.

[quote name='RiflesAtRecess']As far as GTA is concerned, the rating should be fine. It's not like you can actually see the sex happening, etc. Why isn't this issue being brought up with God of War, which has an actual sex mini game?[/quote] Good point, actually. It's because God of War isn't as mainstream as the GTA series, and it's so easy to harp over Rockstar because they are so "controvercal." It's becoming a [i]fad[/i] to drivel over games now with parent groups and the media. It's sheer insanity. No, not insanity, I'm sorry, sheer [b]stupidity.[/b] It's a bunch of lazy fools who don't want to take responsibility for raising their kids and shift the blame to companies. It's people taking the easy way out instead of working with their kids to introduce this material in a controlled manner. Not to mention all of this liberal ******** these days, all of the "You can't spank your child, that will emotionally scar him," crap. Kids today just have no backbone. Hell, do you know how many hours upon hours I've spent going on blood-drenched killing sprees in games? I have a collection of PS2 games alone that reaches my knee, and only one does not feature killing and/or violence, but am I in a bell tower with a rifle? No. None of these kids that go to school and shoot up the classroom do it because games warped their minds; that's an excuse to shift the blame. They do it because they have no moral fiber. [quote name='Sage']Um , In Finland this game is forbidden from under 18 years old, but still there are hordes of kids even under 10 years playing it. It's simply because some parents buy it for their kid, probably thinking that it's only a stupid videogame, and then all the kids from the neighborhood suddenly pour over to play this magnificent masterpiece of everything immoral.[/quote] Tch. That's no different from any place in the world. Parents shirk their duties to [u]supervise[/u] what their kids do. I say supervise because this or any "immoral" game shouldn't be filtered; in fact, it SHOULD BE put out on the market. Make it educational and yet fun. Teach kids the difference between life and pixels. Let them experience blood and cursing and sex, because, you know what? It's in the [b]real[/b] world. It's in life. Get used to it. [quote name='Sage']I find this very concerning, because a) I've played GTA 1, 2 and 3, and seen Vice City and San Adreas being played, so I know what kind of game we're talking about, and b) I've worked with 8-year old kids who have played the game or seen it being played, and I've witnessed what it does to them.[/quote] What it does to them? What does it do, praytell. I'm interested in what a DVD can force a child to do. Pah. It morally degrades them into heathanistic monsters? Makes them lay out a hooker with a golf club? Sends them into murderous killing sprees involving pets and the old lady next door and a hapless mailman? What it does to them? No. It's what parents let happen. Like I said before, it's their job to oversee what goes on in their house. They have the power to correct this issue, but today's left field view does not appreciate restrictions. *rolls eyes* [QUOTE=Sage]I think you teenagers shouldn't pass this issue with a diminishing sniff or snicker. Even though you have no responsibilities over your minors, you should have at least some sense of what exposing to extreme violence and criminality does to their minds. I totally agree that there are worse things than GTA-games that young kids can see and experience, but these games are still no innocent toys for kids to play with! The only way to prevent these games from getting into the hands of preteens and younger is to make them Adults Only. Maybe then the parents would realize that not all games are mere toys...[/QUOTE] Why shouldn't I brush it off? It's not my problem. Hell, it's not even really a problem. It's irresponsibility in a tangible form, yes, but it's easily rectified. And why should we restrict this material? It's already rated M, which you have to be seventeen or older to get, without your parent or legal guardian being right next to you and approving of the choice. We don't need stricter rules regarding distribution, we need smarter parents. I agree it's sheer idiocy to allow an eight year old run rampant with this game, unsupervised, but I also think it isn't such a monumental problem as certain individuals in the media make it out to be. Nancy Grace comes to mind. And these preteens and younger kids? Guess who has to buy the game for them? PARENTS. A thirteen year old can't walk into a Best Buy, pick up a copy of San Andreas, or any M-rated game, and just walk to the cashier and be on his merry way. The stores can be sued for that, and they take a LOT of care to make sure that doesn't happen. So parents would still buy the game for the children. You think seeing 18+ instead of 17+ is going to make a difference? Pfft.

[QUOTE=Retribution][SIZE=1]I think it's blind of you to say that anger and love are not strong enough to be people's strongest emotions. Anger is not always created out of: Them: *random bad talk about you* You: Damn you all! Anger has much deeper roots, roots you have no idea where they lead to or where they came from. Just because it is an impulse doesn't mean it's any weaker of an emotion. Actually, I believe that makes it all the stronger. If one emotion has the power to quickly grasp you, then later persuade you it was the strongest, I would consider hate and anger very formidable things. Of course they're powerful, and we don't need to 'live it for a few more years' to find otherwise. Who is to say that the anger or hate we feel isn't an absolute? Step in another's shoes, and you'll see how truly blind you're being.[/SIZE][/QUOTE] Tch. Apparently irony comes in spades. I don't recall saying anger or love CANNOT be one's strongest emotion, because that would go against what I myself said. Please, if you're going to come down on me, use common sense. My point was all of these people saying "oh luv ish mah strongst emotoin i luv my gf teehee" and crap like that. Or the petty ones saying because a person made fun of them or said something behind their backs they felt the most intense rage of all human history. That's absurd. Hah, you're talking to the king of impulses. I have gone into blind fits of anger, hate, vehement fury even, and I know that all I have experienced from a spur-of-the-moment deal is nothing in comparison with a long-term, deeply seeded problem. At least for me. But I find it hard to believe that because someone told on you to a teacher you gained insight on your limitations of a human, or reached enlightenment because you stabbed someone with a pencil. Everything in life is learned through experience, so of course understanding of our emotions follows suit. Don't preach to me about hate or anger, please. Don't treat me like some naive fool, please. I haven't come as far as I have just to get that kind of treatment. [quote name='James][color=#332e1d][font=franklin gothic medium]Wrath is only a synonym for anger anyway; were still fundamentally talking about anger, whichever way you slice it.[/font'][/color][/quote] No, those are two different things, James. They have different connotations. It's a certain expression of the word and a certain understanding of the meaning. I don't know, maybe my thinking is skewed, but maybe the English language has so many ins and outs to express different things? ;D

satan665 brings up a pretty good point -- fans. When you press hard on an issue, size, style, battery life, screen clarity and resolution, game quality, game library, a lot of those issues will be moot. If you have a jaded fan of Nintendo, do you think he'd really vouch for a PSP even if it gave him backrubs at night? Fanatics of a certain company or brand will stick to it through the pits of Hell if it means the sales are good. Perhaps that is what we need to focus on more. A lot of people here have said they prefer the old-fashioned side scrolling type games that are like ye olde daes, and I have to admit, I really can lose track of time with some old NES or GB games. But the fact of the matter is, this whole argument comes down to is "who is more overzealous" and how loudly they can scream it. Both titles have great games. Both titles have stinkers. Both titles have their pros. Both titles have their cons. What it really comes down to is what you absolutely 'must' play, or rather what you won't play. It's an old sales gimmick. If you can't stun them, woo them. Give them what you know they want, even if it isn't cutting edge. Sad to say, but I think that might just be the case here. ThatOneOddDude, emulation is legal as long as you stick by some guidelines. First and foremost, you have to own an original copy of the game for the duration that you have the ROM. If you sell the game off, you have twenty-four hours to delete the ROM. Same goes for if you don't own the game at the time of when you download it; you must delete it within twenty-four hours. Secondly, you must not sell or pass on a ROM through any monetary exchange without express permission of the game's producers and license holders. Thirdly, you must break none of the original copyright terms, even if you don't own the original game. Emulation is definitely legal, just not appreciated. Hell, I've heard some gaming companies are putting subsections within the Terms of Agreements that null and void both the warranty and the proof of purchase if you download a ROM of that game. They don't play around much when it comes to piracy these days. EDIT: Goddammit, Charles, change your avatar. I am both sickened and hypnotized.

Yeah. I live in Metairie, just off Severn, and we didn't get an insane amount of rain or anything, but we got enough. Wind was pretty bad, but it could have been worse. We did lose power a few times over the night and from four to about eight we had none as well, and that sucked because there wasn't any cloud cover and my house has crappy linings. Got up to around eighty-two and took until ten to get down to seventy again. Tch. At least we didn't get hit as hard as Grand Isle. I mean, ****, shrimp boats just flying through the air and crashing into the bridge. Holy Hell. And from the looks of it, as it stands now, Dennis might veer off to the eastern seaboard instead of diving down the middle of the Gulf, and, honestly, I hope it does. Ivan was a pain in the ***, and we didn't even get hit. Hey, idea, maybe this might give Blanco the chance to get off her *** and prepare evacuation routes [i]before[/i] we need them? Haha! *grumbles, muttering curses*

[QUOTE=Zhara][COLOR=Gray][FONT=Garamond]-bangs head against keyboard- WTF, you guys? I did not make this thread so that you political extremists could argue over some stupid war that could quite possibly KILL MY FATHER. Gee, thanks for the support. I swear if this forum was adults only, I'd flame you jerks like crazy. And I would enjoy it, believe me. Please, PLEASE, leave your ranting about the war to some other thread, one made specifically for that reason. Why, you ask? BECAUSE I DON'T CARE. I really don't. I made this thread so that the few of us who still have hearts and/or souls could give me a little comfort before I slit my wrists out of sheer emotional agony. So this is to all of you who come here with your little rants and snippy little come backs prepared and ready for battle: LEAVE MY THREAD ALONE SO THAT I CAN BE COMFORTED AND SUPPORTED BY REAL PEOPLE. Thank you, that will be all.[/FONT][/COLOR][/QUOTE] ...Perhaps you should reread your original post. [quote name='Zhara]:animecry: [COLOR=Gray][FONT=Garamond]Hey, I don't know if this is an okay topic, but I found out that my dad's going to Afganistan, and I wanna know who here has family that's involved in the war, [u]different people's opinions, stuff like that.[/u] I'm crying while writing this, it hasn't even been twenty minutes since my dad told me. I'm looking for a little bit of support here, so don't flame me saying stupid stuff like "Your dad is an idiot for going to war, they never did anything to us!". Please, I REALLY don't need that right now. Or ever, in fact.[/FONT'][/COLOR][/quote] I underlined what you need to pay attention to. Just for the record, I am a real person, at least the last time I checked. I'm not wooden and I don't have any strings, so yeah, I think I'm real. If it makes you feel any better, I truly do hope your father comes back fine. The odds of him getting injured or whatnot are pretty low, even more so because he's going to Afghanistan.

This is a hard choice to make, simply because Sony has taken a giant leap [perhaps without looking first?] with the PSP in that it isn't a gaming device. It is a miniature entertainment system. A lot of people look at PSP and see games priced at 40 bucks or higher and laugh because they think it's a ripoff, and yet they don't know the truth. The amount of stuff you can do with a PSP is crazy. You can literally hack it. No joke. Like Charlie said, there is an emulator craze right now that lets you basically put any game console on your PSP provided you have enough memory and you don't get arrested by the feds. But the same device that lets you put your pictures and videos and music on your PSP can also let you put, say, Metal Gear Solid 3, or the original Super Mario Bros. on and play it like you would a console. In that respect, even though it is technically illegal unless you bought and currently own whatever ROM it is you downloaded on your PSP, Nintendo itself is left behind, to say nothing of the SP and DS. But aside from that, I would go with PSP. I'm a movie fan and music fan, and every now-and-then you just want to watch a movie and listen to some music. If you're stuck in a car on a long trip, you don't want to play the same games over and over again [okay, you might, but that's besides the case], you can just toss in Spider-Man 2, or Resident Evil or whatever. Hell, I know one guy that has an entire library of porn on his damn PSP. I'm telling you, they're doing some crazy stuff with these things.

[quote name='Retribution][SIZE=1']Yeah! Nuke the whole damn place and kill millions of innocent civilians that want peace just as much as you do! Let's go and destroy the rest of the world with nuclear fallout! See the gap in your logic?[/SIZE][/quote] Hah. Right. There is no gap in my logic. First and foremost, we are not fighting an armed militia. We are fighting civilians using subversive tactics. You shoot one, another runs up and grabs the other's gun. They don't want peace, they just want to be left alone, whether it's killing all occupationists or waiting for others to do it. Secondly, peace is forged from war. There's no way around that. And, subsequently, war comes from peace. It doesn't ever end. And just so you know, the fallout wouldn't destroy the rest of the world. If you use tactical nuclear strikes in the center of populated areas, and only that, the fallout would be less than the Hiroshima bombing. And do you think the United States will drop a hydrogen bomb over some little town? No, that's not cost effective at all. In fact, we could make do with daisy cutters, and leave all possible radiation problems out. Besides, a desert doesn't have anything to poison from fallout. It would settle deep in the sand that spans for hundreds and hundreds of miles. [quote name='Retribution][SIZE=1]Old Vietnam rallies [I]did[/I] make sense. They were protesting a war that was waged to stop the spread of communism, and prevent the Russians from getting the upper hand in a [B]Cold[/B'] War. Note the word Cold. Meaning inactive. Stagnant. Pointless. Not happening. They were protesting a war waged out of the blue, for causes that should've been buried with WWII.[/SIZE][/quote] Yeah, if it was a Cold War, then why are fifty-six thousand Americans on the wall? Either protecting a free country or stopping or delaying Soviet advancement was key during the time. It's just like today; the public cries out if we don't do anything, and they ***** if we do. Please, leave your bleeding heart ideals at the door. [quote name='Retribution][SIZE=1]As for the war in Iraq, I don't think it was a good idea, but now we're in there, we need to do all we can to help them out. Which is what we're doing. Trying to empower their police force so that we can pull out, but this isn't going to happen soon. [B]Yay for Bush! The man who entered a war without an exit strategy![/B'] Hoorah![/SIZE][/quote] Tch. It's people like you who cause the problems in this country. Tell me, do you recall the time you were president and waged war against your enemies flawlessly? I seem to be missing that in my history text. Do you honestly know how hard it is to be firm and yet just at the same time? Ask Mister Bush, he's certainly been trying. The Iraqi people could work their own country if they would stop milking this for all it's worth. They could hire private services to train their police and rescue aid departments. They could shape their own government and take matters into their own hands. They could, but they'd rather be lead by hand.

It was around dusk near Xen when Demos woke. Shortly after Wily made his intentions clear that Demos realized he had no choice but to undergo the transformation if he wanted to live and claim his revenge. A small drone, only reaching as high as Demos' waist, but easily twice the width, floated by on a vacuum drive that allowed it to skim the floor by bare millimeters, and Demos followed it to a bench-like table near the far wall. It was a boxy creature, with many ports over its outer tin shell in which various arm-like tools emerged. There was a small, circular ring on the top plate that served as a small holographic projector. Demos had climbed on the table and lay prone, and the giant generator that etched the representation of Wily turned, and the doctor "followed" his creation. At the same time, the cylinder atop the drone sprung to life, and a diminutive copy mimicked the full-sized projection's movements, but maintained stationary. From above the workbench a large mechanical limb descended, with over a dozen tentacle-like extensions with clawed tips. "Don't worry, Demos. This won't take long." The drone reached up with a three-fingered arm and pierced the skin of his neck. A small probe extended from the center of the "hand" and suddenly, Demos saw no more. It took only a few hours, due to the many different appendages able to do the labor that would have taken an aging human weeks, and the computer mind quickly made calculations that would have taken even longer. First his armor was stripped away, and then the heavy-knit black jumpsuit was cut away. Bronzed skin over etched synthetic muscles was peeled away and very suddenly the reinforced skeletal frame and hydraulic structured limbs were exposed to the cold air. Many of the hand-like claws on the tentacles glowed red-hot, and began disassembling the Reploid. He was in many pieces in mere minutes. His fusion core was shut down and removed. His main CPU was taken out and separated. His wiring was completely striped out. He was a husk. The small drone split open at the top and revealed that its interior was almost entirely storage space, which was filled with complicated machinery. The arms sprouting from the ceiling made constant reaches within to pull out pieces. Three dedicated themselves to retrieving parts and the other seven labored. The first to be installed was the new power core, but it was not a typical generator with a radioactive power cell, but rather a large, segmented series of conductors. These were made from a mixture of copper, cast iron, and titanium with tempered gold plating. This essentially was Demos' new power core and basic frame. It was not completely solid, but rather, was made up of highly condensed composite layers with a honeycomb mesh pattern that ensured stability. The tubing, no thicker than a standard wire, was made up of over 200,000 layers and ran throughout his body like veins. These conductors were layered over by a double-plated lead skin to protect the other internal machinery from radiation damage. These essentially made up a body-sized core although there was a traditional-yet-advanced active uranium ore deposited within a small particle accelerator in his chest - the standard for second-generation Wily Bots. Now that the basic structure was updated, the arms swiftly recast new hydraulics, gears, and joints. These were a titanium alloy with iron and lead ore mixed within the composition; they had tremendous strength yet were flexible enough to withstand many times the strain of their maximum output and exceptional heat resistance. With that done, the synthetic muscles were grafted back onto the cybernetic limbs, the thick skin over the muscle. A new jumpsuit, polyester threads interwoven with thin, thread-like iron stripes, was stretched on. Next, his armor had undergone heat tempering, had a new finish and thin, honeycombed skin of plated iron ore, meant as a reinforcement of the main suit. It was some time later that Demos awoke and found himself strung up against the ceiling. His eyes snapped open at some random inclination. He did not know what had forced him awake, there was no comm-- All form vanished within his mind as his body raged. He knew nothing; felt nothing, saw, heard, smelled nothing. A blinding torrent of energy flowed under his fingers, up his arms, down his back, through his legs, within his head. Every inch of body was filled with euphoric strength; every speck of steel and flesh carried an inner light, an inner fury. Waves of power filled his hands, his mind, and his whole body. Over and over again, timed with each breath his automated body functions forced in, it pulsed, this never-ending gift. He never experienced something so complete before. As pure energy ran through his body, through the conductors, he could offer no feelings as he lowered gently to the ground, the countless wires attached to his torso and limbs acting like a pulley system. He knew nothing, not the fact that he was still strung up to Wily's lab, that he was slowly descending, not that he was standing on his feet now, not that the cords disengaged and swiftly withdrew back into the ceiling as the tiles above closed back together. He only saw his strength and was blinded by his potential. It was absurd. He had never felt such a surge. It didn't seem possible that he could feel so vibrant. It didn't seem possible that he could feel so vivid. It wasn't possible that he could feel alive. He had often thought what it would feel like to have an actual body, to feel blood pumping through his skin, to know what a beating heart felt like, not just electrical impulses. And this, he thought, is probably as close as I'll come. "I see you're functional." Finding a moment of clarity as the raging sea of energy dwindled to a steady, gentle pulse, Demos spun quickly in his new body. '...New body? No. This is still me. This is me. This is what I was made for.' Demos registered the hologram of Wily, and slowed his heavy breathing. Everything he did was foreign. Every action seemed new. The haze that surrounded his mind was slowly clearing, but not quickly enough in his mind. "It is marvelous, isn't it? The power that you wield? It took years to design, to work out. I cannot tell you how disappointed I was when Zero had his little temper tantrum. I had originally planned to eventually upgrade him with the TITAN project, but I feel you justify that. What is it like, Demos, what is it like to freely control pure energy?" The Elite Squadron Commander could offer no response; he was still working his best to absorb the diagnostic he ran on his body. "I can only imagine. To freely adapt your power signature over every inch of your form, as easy as flexing a muscle. From the crown of your head to the soles of your feet, you can express your power as simply blinking an eye. The ports in your hands, though small, are made of melted diamonds with titanium filaments that act as transformers for outgoing energy." Demos almost absentmindedly checked his palms, and, sure enough, there were pearl white crystals that were no larger than a dime. Almost as if he had accessed a memory file, he suddenly drew a plethora of information in on these gems. He seemingly knew out of nowhere how these small orbs were connected directly to his conductors, how they tunneled incoming energy through convection energy transfer using the filaments, how the diamond focused energy like a prism. "The conductors within your body flow under a total of ninety-seven percent of your surface area. They are, effectively, your circulatory system. Energy is carried through them like blood. They are your life. They can transfer energy generally outward of your body as a mass, but only from your ports can you truly manipulate the signature. "And likewise, the ports can absorb energy as well, and add it to the potential within your core. It is not perfect, and cannot assimilate, say, a charged particle cannon blast, but they are essential to your existence none the less. "And let us not forget the cache within your body. You've sensed it, right? The stores? Like little pockets, no? These are special. Iron ore and uranium fused together using a high-density particle accelerator; they are designed to magnetically detach themselves at a specific energy reading. I suppose it would not take much to guess just what that signature is." At this, a tile on the floor in front of Demos slid back, and a small metal arm rose up. It had three thin, curved claws on it, like those of a hawk's talons, in a tripod shape. The arm rose to about waist level and leaned in, about a foot from Demos' form. He lowered his arms, eyes darting to the hologram of Wily. It was in the original position from when Demos had first arrived. It gave a wicked smile. Demos snapped his attention back to the snares before him, in just enough time to see the spikes lunge for his face. -- As the dagger tips dug into the side of the bridge of his nose and one in the very center of his forehead, he collapsed to his knees, and the arm pushed harder, sending his head into recoil. His limbs twitched and he shuddered often. ?Hmm. Fool. You really are just like the rest,? Wily growled through digitally gritted teeth. ?Did you honestly think you?d just be free to go? That all my efforts were some generous effort to save your life? Hmph.? The hologram began walking away, towards a modest-sized control panel, as if it was simply habit that drove the projection. ?Why would I want Zero? I said it myself; he is a failure at all he does. Any attempt to reprogram him would be outdone by getting revenge. And why stick with revenge when I can accomplish my original goal?? Wily?s persona turned and looked at the quivering Demos. He knew the Pure Strain Wily virus would not take fully, but it would rewrite some of his subsystems ? enough to make him a pawn, enough to make him controllable. After a few minutes the claw disengaged and withdrew back under the floor where the tile replaced itself. Demos kneeled in a daze for a few seconds but soon stood with a slightly confused glance crossing his eyes. He looked over at Wily, unsure of where the past minutes went. He last remembered the overwhelming euphoria calm itself as he manually lowered his power output and Wily explaining his upgrades. ?Go, Demos. You have work to do.? Demos, still thoroughly confused, nodded once, and disappeared as his body scattered into the air. -- -- -- Thermal scans now showed a massive collection of ordinance swiftly keeping pace with the Impact as Havoc tried to maintain a very constant heading and speed. These...things obviously knew the Hunters were there, or at least someone had entered the Aquaduct. Literally hundreds of these cybernetic droids seemed to ghost around them, weaving an impossible path through thick collections of pipes. Bringing up a night vision rendering of the main viewing panel Havoc could identify a twenty-millimeter laser burst cannon on each of the spider-like drones. Upon further inspection, he found that they were all leveled generally at the Impact, rotating on the core shell as these acrobatic climbers scurried along. But from what he could tell, they had no intention of firing, as the cannons had not even been warmed up...at least not yet. Havoc reached up to the control panel and pressed a modest black button for a brief second, saying, ?Maintain radio silence,? before returning to his control stick. He did notice a slight hitch in the movement of the droids the moment he engaged the communications port, but they almost instantly regained their pace. That confirmed that they were indeed simple robots, most likely on a group-level command system. All it would take for them to open fire was a certain signal, whether it be the Hunters or something else, and they would have a very serious problem on their hands. For a few more tense minutes the HAPC [i]Impact[/i] lumbered along just over the mass of surging water with little lateral movement. Havoc tried his best to stay as far away from the net of scurrying drones that enveloped the cavernous tunnel. Constantly cycling between different types of views he was quite suddenly greeted to a portion of the tunnel that had been blasted deep into the earthen ore that surrounded it. Over the bare rock were sheets of metal that looked like they were fairly recently forged. From this, small lean-to huts and mesa-like dwellings covered the high sidings. In the middle of this manmade valley was a fairly decent structure, similar to a pyramid in shape, with various satellite receivers and burst-transmission emitters dotting the outer structure. Havoc took a sharp breath when he switched to the thermal band and saw the cut-away was dancing with heat signatures. ?Proteus.? ?Trust me, I see it. A little hard to miss.? Havoc nodded once and scanned once more on an infrared scan and swore as he saw lines of blurry figures emerging into the valley from the caves. He looked around to the segmented plasma screen around him and jerked hard on the control sticks. The Impact compensated and slowed swiftly but did not buck as hard as it should have. Above, each drone now stopped and took direct aim at the Impact, and the barrels of the cannons glowed slightly golden. Havoc threw forward the throttle control to his right, and tilted the control sticks forward. The result was the Impact leaning forward at a slight twenty-degree angle and roaring as the plasma engines shifted to full output. ?Light ?em up!? Havoc roared as he heard the release of energy from above.

The problem with ideals is that we usually forget them for the sake of our own happiness. A world where everyone understood and everyone could relate and put things in perspective. How lovely. A shame we're all too blind to make it happen. [I suppose this is what you're aiming for, some philosophical ******** rant, or you just spent ten minutes writing a minature self-help guide.]

Cervantes can be very dangerous, I'll agree with you there. I hate having to fight him during Weapon Master, because he usually has some super-deadly weapon, like the poison ones or the healing ones... Argh. But if I'm playing as Nightmare and I see a character back all the way up and do a stance change or charge up an attack, I'm gonna stop trying to hack them into itty-bitty pieces and get on the move. And for that roll with Taki? Not always effective. When I play Nightmare I'm always on the move unless I'm in the crouched stance. In addition to that, a lot of his attacks cover his flank because of the way he swings his sword. I'm not saying he's invincible, but he's above-average in just about everything about him. Once you not only practice with him but also [i]train[/i] yourself with him, you become very adapted to his speed and thus can counteract the faster characters.

Evil Eye is one of his deadliest moves because it starts off as a regular swing, but is an instant stun and there is hardly any time to guard break. Same thing with his grabs, he doesn't require much movement to get a hold on someone, whereas most characters need the swinging animation to grab someone. Nightmare just reaches out. God, I hate Cervantes. Yeah, his moves are trickier, and he has that lame-*** spin-on-my-sword-yarharhar move that I loathe, but in a contest of wits and power, Nightmare wins. He has the reach, a huge advantage of power, and can have good speed if you use him right. Also, Nightmare's stances are very important, because he has some VERY deadly change-ups if you do things right. Eh, Taki is usually dead within ten seconds of a match starting with me. Most people I know can't play her well, and I find myself lacking sometimes unless I go through a few matches with her and get used to the moveset. I prefer sticking with characters I know.

...First off, not only are you outright wrong, you're also spamming. What is the...point of this topic aside from you being completely inane?

[QUOTE=Bloodseeker]always played as Xaihou Dun in DW3. I played as several other characters for a while, but none of them matched up Xaihou Dun, except for Lu Bu, but I never really had any fun playing as that character. My friend played as Guan Yu... he used to get pissed when he couldn't keep up. With DW4, it was a toss up between Xaihou Dun and Zhou Tai. Both of them are badass. In DW5, its either Zhou Yu or Guan Ping so far. For some reason, I don't like Xaihou Dun as much in this game. I wished that Cao Pi was a better character... I like his attitude and his weapon is pretty cool too. Damn, they turned Lu Xun into a bottom-class loser in this game![/QUOTE] Heh. Guan Yu. "I am to be my own opponent? This shall be difficult!" I felt DW4 Xiahou Dun suffered a lot from the autolock. He needs to be able to turn to attack his enemies, because he swings hard and fast, plus takes those long steps to do it. Finally, someone who agrees with me! Sure, Cao Pi looks sheerly wicked, and his weapon ain't too bad, but he sucks. He attacks quickly, when it comes to swinging his doublesword, but there is so much lag between actual swings. His C5 is pretty good though, since it has the death element attached. But, regular moveset, range, speed, Musou, all suck. Eh. Lu Xun hasn't been any good since DW3 with his final weapon and his C4. He sucked horribly in DW4, but with the timebomb orbs and a final weapon that actually matters in terms of stats, he's all right. I'd use him before I used Xu Chu or Zhang Jiao.