Arm the Homeless

The fact that about half of the active threads are new user introductions is either a very good thing or a very bad thing when considering the longterm longevity of this forum.

At least you can still buy it.
Better than Beamdog's policy of updating an old game (mainly either adding unwanted features or adding things that were already available with mods) and then making sure that the original version can't be obtained individually anywhere on the internet.

Speaking of Paradox, here's an interesting article from 2010 from them (well really from Gamersgate, which was part of paradox until shortly before this article.)
The best parts are when Berquist says that Steam is a bad platform because Valve can't be trusted to be impartial when they release their next AAA game, and the general theme that Steam can't "win," while since that point Paradox Interactive has done pretty much everything on Steam, even removing all of their games from Gamersgate without any prior warning.

Ditch the Timmy dragon cards, put Taigam into a deck with a bunch of dumb removal, card draw, and time walk variants.

I started watching the pony show again at season 5.
I'm legitimately curious to see whether anyone has watched season 5 or beyond.  It seemed like all pony threads suddenly and mysteriously died right when season 4 ended.

They banned it four days after the normal round of bans.  I've understood "emergency ban" to mean any ban that occurs outside the normal review schedule.
Of course, the timing shows that they really could have banned it on time if they had been thinking ahead, so maybe it doesn't count for that reason, but if anything that makes things worse.
I kind of want to dig through the archives to find their articles from Mirrodin standard, both with the skullclamp ban and with the later "affinity is dead this time for sure" set of bans.  I'm guessing that there will be a lot of promises that explain how they check and double check things now so that this can never happen again.
It's still amazing to me though that they let the combo get printed in the first place, given how obvious it was, and even more so that they didn't realize how combo-friendly an environment with poor instant speed removal and poor counterspells is.

Has there been an emergency ban for standard since Memory Jar?
While searching for the answer I found this rather amusing article.  I especially like this part:
 

Why would anyone preorder anything.
Just the fact that everything is downloadable now defeats most of the purpose, even without getting into how many companies treat the official release as a public beta.

Team fortress is still wining 21 to 20 though, so it's okay.

I was going to wait until the last second to join up (i.e. when SPUF had actually officially died) but it's almost impossible to post anything with those database errors.

Reminds me how in Alpha Protocol I did one run as a super sneaky spy who was never seen, but my death count was through the roof because of the number of people I shot in the head with a silenced pistol.
Then I did a run where I just ran into every room with a shotgun.  This was almost a nonlethal run, since I would shoot people in their kneecaps and then beat them into unconsciousness when they stumbled to the ground.

when are we going to discuss stirner again so I can have fun with post-leftist theory

you literally have to wait for it to do it by itself because win10 updating is literally malware
 
t.stallman

[This feels weird no matter how many times I relay posts.]
Hisako looks back to Eiko while still holding her stance. "Do you think we can trust this one? She says she's not dangerous."

Joan
"I see. Then, I'll be off. Your mother and I will probably be back later this evening."
Your father disappears around the corner, and you catch the sound of the front door shutting afterwards.
Tami, Hisako
Eiko opens her mouth to say something, but is interrupted as everyone is suddenly assaulted by a powerful burst of wind.
Announced by a large boom, a giant pillar of snow is launched into the air in the distance. The image almost resembles cannon fire impacting the ocean surface, but on a far greater scale.
At the same time, the storm clears somewhat, and a huge tree-like thing becomes visible at the other end of the nightmare. A thick branch quickly grows out from the main body and then explodes, throwing up another pillar of snow a moment later.
Needless to say, it's the youma.
[Youma sheet here.
Battle has begun. The youma is in position four, while everyone else is in position one. Talking's a free action right now though, so if you want to wrap up this conversation or anything like rather than jump immediately into combat actions, feel free.]

[Oh, and when the time comes, Tami has the first move.]

[whoops sorry work has been killing me
I'll uhh, I'll update now]
Joan, Yukari
The two of you walk downstream for a time. No signs of a youma or mysterious occult happenings, but when you walk by one of the various bridges across, you catch the sight of an empty police car parked by the side of the road.
The area around the bridge's underside has been cordoned off with tape.
Aika
You receive a reply along the lines of "Huh? Uhh, fine, try out these two albums for now."
Listed are two albums by artists you've never heard of.
Tami, Hisako
"Hang on, Fujiwaka-san! Jeez, Alphard, take care of the girl!"
Alphard appears nearby, startling the girl apparently named Sango. She looks as unfazed as ever.
"Yes, yes. Are you coming along, three-tailed fool?"
"R-right!" squeaks Aleister, who is clutching a tree branch above for dear life. Once Aleister drops down, the two of them seem to lead Sango away.
Tami
Meanwhile, you charge forward.
Reckless movement to position two.
(Tami) Rolled 2, 4 = 11 <2d6+5>
Failure.
Or at least, try to, but the white tree fragments littering the area make it hard to navigate without getting hurt in the process.

Joan
It's a long walk to the riverbank, but thankfully, you don't run across any complications along the way.
Yukari
"Huh? Oh, take care."
Takeshi gives you those parting words as you make your leave. It's a bit far from here to the river by walking, so it takes a fair amount of time. It's still in the afternoon by the time you arrive, though.
Joan, Yukari
The two of you rendezvous near the riverbank. It's not a huge gap from one side to the other, but it's wide enough that people on the other side would look small.
Now that you're here, neither of you are quite sure where to actually begin investigating. The news was oddly vague when it came to location, after all.
Sen
"I'll think about it, but work keeps me pretty busy."
Ayako seats herself at the kitchen table while you dig around for something to eat. There's a probably a bunch of things, but if you wanted something quickly, cup ramen would be fastest to make.
Aika
You end up watching a show about girls living in zeppelins. The usually peaceful drifting of the main cast seems to have been interrupted when their airship runs into a bad storm.
"The Zvezda will start to break apart if this keeps up!!"
"Tch, I'm venting our helium stores. Everyone, prepare for landing!"
Mai doesn't seem to really get the more complex terms and concepts, but she seems to be having fun nonetheless.

my favorite part was when arin hanson showed up
 
 

shouldn't you spoiler that

Hisako
The girl practically jumps at the sound of your voice. Evidently having just noticed your presence, she looks at you, followed by your sword, and promptly covers her mouth to muffle a screech.
"..Eh? W-wait, my name is Asanuma Sango! I'm not dangerous so.. please don't hurt me!!"
[New character sheet get.]
"Wait up, Kazuaki-sa-..?"
Eiko jogs up to the two of you and briefly glances back and forth between you and the girl before putting on a baffled expression at the current scene.
Tami
Even though there's still the storm, you can see and hear basically everything that just happened from this distance.

Hisako readies her sword at the girl.
"Who are you? Announce your name!"

[Also it's about.. 3 PM or so? Maybe a little later?]

Joan
Your father comes down from the stairs, seemingly having packed the suitcase now grasped in his hand. He looks to you.
"Well, I'll be taking my leave now. Will you be fine by yourself?"
Hisako
Your weapon, a large cleaver-like blade practically long enough to be called a sword rather than a knife, once again manifests in your grip. You barely make it a few steps before being stopped, however.
The thick blanket of snow gathered on the ground as well as the dense storm makes them harder to see, but the area is actually strewn with what almost look like wooden caltrops sticking out of the earth, both large and small.
As you stop yourself from stepping on one at the last second, a young girl about your age enters your field of vision.
Tami
You enter the nightmare and find yourself in a forest during a snowstorm. Eiko is already moving forward, and just up ahead is Hisako and an unfamiliar girl trembling behind a tree.
Straining your eyes, you belatedly realize that the surrounding terrain is a bit perilous, white fragments of varying size from some sort of tree having been scattered about.
You don't see the youma, but it probably won't stay that way for long.
Aika
Mai smiles, seemingly satisfied with that answer, and returns to her plate.
You sink your spoon into the food yourself, sampling the rice steeped in curry sauce and interspersed with beef and various vegetables. It's probably a little milder than you'd prefer, but still perfectly palatable. Simple yet nourishing meals like this are probably one of life's greatest joys.