adiomino

It took me a looong time to decide weather or not this thread deserves an answer. It doesn't but on the other hand maybe it's time to clear some things and enlighten you a bit once and for all.


Let's start with a bit of history: Shattered was created for me. I didn't "work/plan/etc" to have it. To me it was "perfectly perpendicular" (as we say in RO aka it didn't matter) if I had an ally or not. My goals were different by the time I got SI. So, because Si was created for me I became Role Leader. I guess you all know what that means. If not then maybe you should check the announcements (hint: look for DS and simplyzero). --fail no 1 for former CoE members

SI is a bug testers/game mechanics alliance. I know things that few know and I dare to say I am very good at doing my job. You underestimated my intelligence and my potential. --fail no 2 for former CoE members

You are willing to trade SI for CoE. And you were "kind" enough to give me a hint on how to achieve that. The answer to this needs to be elaborated a bit.
First: you underestimated my friendship and loyalty. I would have NEVER EVER asked Eon to give SoS back to pipstickz so I can get SI back and you can trade for CoE. I would have simply moved to SoS and waited for your next move about SI. When I would have gotten bored by SoS see my first paragraph and you will understand what I would have done.
Second: I would never ever help Loreroot even if that means that I will lose some things especially if it comes in the form of a blackmail. NEVER EVER try to blackmail me because it will never work. NEVER EVER try to squeeze my hand like that. --fail no. 3 for former CoE members


I showed you what I am made of. I am not a whiner and a beggar. I took the matter into my own hands and ALONE I handled it (ok, not completely alone since Eon morally supported me all the way and I have to thank him for that). I got my ally back through my own powers. I didn't make forum posts complaining about the issue. I never came to any of you asking/demanding/begging for my ally back.
And with all the above, you all screamed bug abuse and other **** like that. You should be ashamed. You're like the young dog that barks at the passing cars showing how brave it is but when it gets hit by one it starts crying.

If you were noble and moral as you pretend, instead of whining and screaming and probably go to Mur/Council (to report me that I used bugs) you could have simply talked to me and asked me. You preferred to go to 3rd sources. I was the most reliable sources but I guess you are not brave enough to face me. Strength and Honor? I say BS. You have no idea what strength and honor are. You're weak and you are cowards. So don't come to be telling you know more about it then I do.

I wish to join GOTR, even though i made some poor choices i wish to be accepted back into my family

I'm surprised, you actually managed (in my opinion) to take a hugely overpowered and not well thought out creature and make it into an interesting one. Personally I don't really care for the idea of a toy soldier, but well done.

[b]I see more life than you do[/b]

The path
that has dust and leaves
the one I see untouched by others
I see less people
and I see more life
that
is the path I take
where the stars shine better at night
and the sun shines through the leaves
the grass is greener

And the path
that has cement and rocks
the hard asphalt
it has grown into civilization
and you see less life
and more people
that
is the path that you take
where the fire replaces the stars at night
the rush replaces the speed

We go our separate ways
and takes many days
and we grow tired
we will both fall on our knees
and we can't pick each other up
we are separate
but you end up with a larger scar
more hurt than me

(something I came up with randomly)

I hope it makes sense to everyone that reads it

*finishes reading everyone's poetry*

It looks like everyone is so caught up in colorful vocabulary.

Their's shows yellow and green

Mine shows purple and red



I wish I could come up with colorful poetry.

Hm...

it would be easier to come on i think. i alwys have my phone during downtime but im never near my computer

i actually do all my work and play all my gamea on my ipad

i was just thinking that if Md had a simplified mobile version it might just entice people to come on.

if i ever did become active again id have to sit down on my computer for the sole purpose of MD

im lazy

-.-

i was thinking things like just including the essentials

list coming?

anyways post opinions? i understand itd be quite a bit of work but eh just a little idea

and hello to all my old friends

and this was btw via my ipad xD

it would be easier to come on i think. i alwys have my phone during downtime but im never near my computer

i actually do all my work and play all my gamea on my ipad

i was just thinking that if Md had a simplified mobile version it might just entice people to come on.

if i ever did become active again id have to sit down on my computer for the sole purpose of MD

im lazy

-.-

i was thinking things like just including the essentials

list coming?

anyways post opinions? i understand itd be quite a bit of work but eh just a little idea

and hello to all my old friends

and this was btw via my ipad xD

In light of THIS anouncement today:
[quote]Ann. 2050 - [2011-10-05 16:29:58 - Stage 11]
The Council's investigation regarding Phantom Orchid has finished. She is sentenced to 1 month jail term starting from now for spreading the use of an exploit and not reporting it to higher authorities. Being a veteran she should have known this was not allowed. Also, the fact that she is a veteran made the punishment less harsh then it should have been. The players that were involved in the trades will not be punished but consider this as a warning.[/quote]

I have found that despite ongoing proceedings in the case, there still remains ONE objection regarding the behavior of Grido.

Many of us know that he has failed to react without biased behavior, and humiliated Phantom Orchid wrongly for her misguided use of a bug. Instead of humiliating Dst, who has commited equal or WORSE behavior such as harassment, and abuse of LHO spells, he chose to act upon Phantom Orchid without proper due process of the court. Such as notifying her before said humiliation, or getting her side to the story.

The community has shown over and over again, in several topics that they do not agree with the recent behavior that Grido has taken in this case. Many of them wish this to be undone, and to have this behavior have some sort of consistancy regarding ALL LHOs and ALL generic players of the game.

I would like to clarify that I do not dispute the punishment that Phantom Orchid has received, but rather the unfairness in the proceedings of the case and how it was handled.

I do not want the excuse of her being a precident, but rather, I want to fight for the behavior that was inflicted upon her and not properly due upon worse offenders.

If anyone recalls back when Fenrir Greycloth [or however he was spelled] harased Dst, there was only 1 official advertisement about his actions. And that was in the announcements.
Or even in the minor cases of Cyber Sex between Princess Katt and Dragual Monarth, there, too, was only 1 official advertisement about their actions. That too, was in the announcements.

Phantom Orchid not only received humiliation on the forums, the announcement list, but also in the trigger's box where Grido put up a link to the forum post stating what she had done. To me, that is not only blatant unfairness, but also disrespect before bothering to communicate before acting.

I want conistency, and I want fairness, And by Damn, I want the bias and the "Well my friend is better than you, so I'm going to protect them and keep their punishments secret from the world simply because I like them." To end.

There will be a poll, but I was unable to create one. I will as a mod to do so for me.

We are all adults. So start acting like it.

44 days ago I confided in Grido with a request for help with a situation regarding another player's sexual harassment towards me, along with using out-of-game judgments and prejudices to slander my character in-game, repeatedly. 44 days ago...

All I heard from him, after repeated requests - was "I will talk to Mur about this."

For the first month, I waited, and waited. I did not feel comfortable in-game because this situation has remained unresolved.

As head LHO and Inquisitor, I expected more.

There are clear rules/restrictions in place... yet, when evidence was presented to Grido, and I have not heard one word besides "I will talk to Mur" about this... no rush to the Council with this information.

At least I could have been given the e-mail address for council ( I did not want to publicly post my proof in forums because of the explicit nature of the content).

Contrasting the expediency with which he chose to act in regards to the 'exploit' with -this- situation... leaves me to question the legitimacy of the head LHO position.

In fact, I have questioned whether or not I will continue to play this game.

If the rules/regulations will only be -selectively- enforced (or evidence routed through the proper channels in a timely manner, especially for grave offenses), then I will more heavily consider leaving this game. Because it -should- be a safe place for everyone.

I confided in Grido with a very serious grievance, but gave up on him after 44 days...

Trying to swing/gather some votes to have your favorite as Queen by using what is left of your influence? I agree, it's not forbidden but I do question a bit the ethics of it. And honestly, I don't like seeing such things on the forum. But hey! That's just my personal opinion...


No offense Handy. It's not you I am questioning above .


Oh and just so you know if you think that I'm trying to influence this: I like both Handy and Lighty. I have no idea who I will vote with so I am taking sides.
And I will also shall not comment further on this matter.


May the best candidate win! Good luck to both of you!

After resigning from kingship I thought a long time about who would be the best candidate for the next king/queen. At first Lightsage was my choice but after a long time of consideration and talking with various people I came to another conclusion. Both Lightsage and Handy Pockets are very good candidates for kingship, but I think that what Marind Bell currently needs is a person like Handy Pockets. I talked with Handy Pockets about queenship and am sure that she is the best candidate. Marind Bell is lagging a lot but what is lagging the most is something Handy Pockets would be most able to improve. Even though her application is rather short I believe she will have the best influence on Marind Bell. From how I know her I am certain that she will be able to bring the best future to Marind Bell. I, as former king, hereby want to express my full support to Handy Pockets.

If there are any players looking for art work to be done...they can contact me here or in game. I would prefer a post here of the description of the Item or Avy you would like me to draw for you... as always I prefer to discuss payment..if any..only after the Item has been drawn and meets your approval...You can always decline if it does not. I will do only LIMITTED revisions...

If you are new to MD and/or you have little to offer in way of payment, prices will vary ...and some I will do for free...so don't be afraid to ask.

BlackThorn

A note to anyone reading this thread:

I work on many avatars at a time, and some, just finish themselves...others take longer, not neccessarily because they are more difficult...but because the muse hasn't struck just yet....I have learned that if I push too hard...the drawing doesn't come out very well. I hope you all will try to understand. I'm a Toaist and I believe that art like life flows from the source and follows it's own path. Nothing is more beautiful to me than an uncarved block. That is why I love the challanges you provide to me...and as always...I prefer you describe the avy to me...rather than showing me a picture....Pictures tend to retard the artistic process by forcing form upon an unrealised idea...I literally have to forget what I saw before I can begin to draw again...If you are not certain of exactly what you want me to draw...then be general..and let me know to do it how ever I want...thats ok too....and don't worry about feeling obligated to buy it once I finish....If you don't want it...np...I will just place it hear in this thread for sale or sell it to the shop. Honesty is the best form of praise any artist can hope for because it praises the artist not their art...while it is very nice to hear that people like what I draw, when someone tells me something that they don't like about a drawing, like Couriose and Chewy did before, I know that they care enough to help me to grow and become better...
Price is also not very important to me...I know that previously some of my avys were selling for quite a bit of Gold...but what I really want is to provide avys that will enhance your enjoyment of the game. If you can afford to pay...great! If not, that's ok too. so don't let price be the reason you don't ask me to draw for you. Thanks for reading this...BT


THERE ARE AVATARS FOR SALE OR TRADE ON PAGE 2 OF THIS THREAD


For Ravenstrider...Oh, and it was free, because he made me laugh.
this second one is going to the shop...unless anyone wants it?

[quote name='adiomino' timestamp='1300842729' post='81130']
Posted description as instructed:

A clay model of a dovewing with a light shining directly overhead it. The shape of the dovewing is up to you, the artist.

The angle is also up to you.

Thank you Blackthorn!
[/quote]


Thank you I will begin working on it

[quote name='Aelis' timestamp='1300847185' post='81133']
A knightly man, wearing a white cloak with a sheathed sword on a sword belt. Shield is optional. Some small details on the cloak (so it won't be completely white) would be great, it's up to you! About the stance, maybe something mysterious or noble (or both), not offensive at all.

Hope that is a good description.

Thanks in advance.


~Aelis
[/quote]


A fine description, Thnak you. I will start on it right away.

[quote name='Mith' timestamp='1300877895' post='81142']
~artist's description~

A young man in the prime of his youth, grinning. contrary to his cloak almost shrouding his face and a bit of heavy armor plating showing, he exudes a very light aura. he embarrasingly covers the right side of his face with his right hand. on that hand there is a ring showing, where the MD mark should be. because his right eye is covered by his hand, only the left eye is visible and is staring at the viewer.

(view is chest and above, like he's sitting, right hand resting on a table, but the legs and the table arent in the avy.)

there. I hope I have provided enough detail. Thank you very very much.
[/quote]


A challenging request...I have never drawn an avy that was not head to toe...so to speak...this will allow for more detail...which in turn will take more time to complete. Still I accept your commision...and I would like you to contact me soon on YM...so that I can periodically show you the piece as I draw it...so as not to waste your time or mine with a drawing that would be unacceptable. bardofloreroot@yahoo.com
Thank You.



I am afraid I must admit defeat...I did my best but could not draw to your exact specifications...my applologies...but here is what I was able to come up with...let me know if it meets with your approval.

P.S. I was told by a very good, if not a little new, friend of mine here in MD...that I need to learn to use my Gimp better...and so to that end, I reworked the drawing in Gimp...and I have to agree...Gimp is pretty cool....Won't be giving up miy pencil anytime soon though. new version uploaded...old one tossed.

First of all, stopping such a thing means technically shifting it towards a black market not actually stopping it..lets be realistic. Plus from my point of view its far better to be credits than cash between players.

I totally disagree that people with money should be able to buy off their achievements and thats why certain things will never become trade-able.
Also think of this in this way, the people that are selling this stuff get the credits to spend, they kind of deserve it. Those buying a rare drach of completing their morph collection or whatever, wont be able to do that too much and i don.t believe they are a real threat.

I am open to suggestions anyway, but keep in mind i will not put a rule against something that cant be proved and that is not actualy cheating. You will have to be creative about this. One idea I can think of are alternate ways to increase achievement value, one example would be "initial owner" and "creature devotament" sort of features... tehnicaly there are ways to demoralize buyers from buying their way up, but i have doubts if their way is aimed to be up and if this is a smart thing to do at all.

You are asking people to rat others to you? Wear a hood raise the finger and condemn the person next to them because they do not fit your precious social rules? Are you so obsessed with creating your perfect little community? Last time i checked the nazi's where doing this. (Maybe a bit too extreme comparisson i admit, but the reason is pretty much the same, and the punishment as well).
But i am done with reason, i guess you are incapable of understanding it.

So proudly and for all to see, not in a pm or something i declare myself a violator. Do your worse tipu, or anybody else who wants to.
Good luck on creating a society of stupid mindless robots who without protection are incapable of doing anything.
An action like this will make the park more a place for group hugs than training.
Oh and the word training has only one thing certain about it: That you will get hurt.

There is no Respect nor Honor in what you hope to achieve, but you probably want to be a savior so badly that your arrogance doesnt allow you to see that.
Sincerely Yours (Yes it is ironic)
TTL

Edited:Spelling mistakes

I have sat by for far too long while you lower mp's complained about every little attack on you, then use disrespectful language toward the person expecting him to change his ways. The park rules are player made rules, not the official game rules. I have recently seen people speak about the rules as though they were set in stone from the very beginning of MD, then when someone states that he will continue to train as he wants because he isn't breaking an official rule, he is called an idiot. Often, people say even ruder things than that. Now since you guy's seem to enjoy complaining so much I have decided to help you out with that.

If you haven't figured it out yet, Kz is one of my accounts. I enjoy playing characters that others consider evil, the more people who dislike them the better. How am I suppose to be considered evil and hated if I follow your made up rules? Yes, I could try another approach at that, but it so fun and effective this way. If I am not mistaken, players also consider MD a role playing game. If Eon and Kz's role conflicts with how you would like to play MD, too damn bad. I dislike seeing most of your conversations in chat, you don't see me telling you to stop though.

Kz will attack you a lot less if you don't complain about his attack's. He'll do 1-2 runs through the mp3's and if you don't complain then he won't attack you anymore. If you decide to complain about his attack then he will give you many more to complain about. I am also working on his combo, so it's not like I am attacking for absolutely no reason, though I would if I felt like it.

Passant the weak: Hmm, sorry, the smart KZ has broken my defense, so no healing for you for a while guys *shrugs*

I thought Passant's response to being attacked by me wasn't rude whatsoever so I will no longer be attacking him, unless he acts like the others later on.

Continue to yell "Kz, I am not idle!", I don't care.

You should just be happy as many people follow the community rules as they do, they are NOT mandatory.

You want to get back at me? Do your worst

Yesterday there was a somewhat heated discussion about what should be done, if anything about enforcing the Sparring Ground rules in Marble Dale Park. It was suggested that someone open a NEW forum topic about this issue and I said I would do it if no one else beat me to it. So here goes:

The problem (as I see it) is that there are, at any given time, a few players who have read the rules, understand the rules, and refuse to follow them at all, which seems disrespectful of everyone else. I am not talking about someone who makes a mistake-- I, myself, have almost attacked someone without asking just by accident, not noticing that they were not idle. Nor is it even about someone who may attack one person and then leave the park-- certainly that is disrespecting the rules, but these people are really just an annoyance. The folks that are the problem are those who sit in the park for hours, attacking all the weak players without asking until the other players are all bled dry and then either do not respond to pleas for mercy or else just say they do not care. One current player even blocked his PMs so that folks could not try to reason with him. These are the players in question.

Whenever this problem has come up in chat, there are various responses. Some say things like "grow some balls" or "suck it up". To these people I would say that I really do not believe that those of us complaining are whining. I certainly have had my share of losses, and when someone has attacked me outside the park-- even when it was someone who had not been obeying the park rules previously-- I have not complained at all. I just think that everyone should be expected to obey the rules as most of us do.

And a further point is this: people do not ONLY go to the park to fight or be attacked. It has become a gathering place for everyone to hang out and rub elbows with other active players. And if you have to start avoiding the place for fear of attack by a few bad apples, then the feeling of community is spoiled.

To sum up, this is a petition for there to be SOME enforcement of the rules of the Sparring Ground, and for there to be SOME repercussion for those few extreme players who flagrantly ignore the rules.

I understand that Shadowseeker had tried some enforcement in the past and for whatever reason, folks did not report offending players to him. He got discouraged and quit. So maybe the enforcement should be a small group of players? I think anyone trying to enforce the rules should be at least an MP5, but perhaps that is a good thing to discuss.

Also open for discussion is a fitting punishment. Perhaps someone ignoring the rules should be unable to attack in the park for a limited amount of time? More time if they go back to doing it afterward? Or maybe there is something that makes more sense that I've not thought of.

Anyway, I hope that some kind of positive change will come from this. Please do add your thoughts and comments and please SPEAK UP if you support this idea!

Thanks,
Princess Katt

[color="#4169e1"][i]If you didnt know by now, this weekend Japan was rocked by a 8.9/9.0 earthquake that was followed by a tsunami. Over 10,000 people have been reported dead, an entire fishing village has been reported missing, over 1.4 million households have gone without water since the quake and 1.9 million households without electricity. Recent news revealed that the 2nd nuclear reactor has just exploded.

This whole scenario has left Japan in a rather helpless state, officials have called a state of emergency and have requested aid from other countries. I was wondering as an International community, could we join hands and donate a bit of money to the Japanese Red-Cross or send over clothing or blankets...or something?

Please Share your thoughts.

1) >< just realised this thread is in the wrong spot (mod, please move)
2) ----> a link to donate to the NGO that you feel your money should be best spent. http://news.yahoo.com/s/yblog_newsroom/20110311/wl_yblog_newsroom/japan-earthquake-and-tsunami-how-to-help

[/i][/color]

I can't help but agree with the last part of cutler's part. I wish you luck in trying to recover the savellites. But... bahh hard to organize the words in my head right now

hmm!!,

After a long time, one of my wish came true, the creatures will now retain their xp on transfer......this is a great move, it will help in trading creatures like Joker ( which needs hell lot of xp to reach max.....i remember when i bought a Master Joker and finally ended up with lvl 1 Joker with zero xp)... i was actually pleading for entire status transfer and that also came true with the MAGIC crts :-). This makes me to think that..atleast at some areas I was making sense he he :-)....Anyways a big thanks to Mur.....


[url="http://magicduel.invisionzone.com/topic/8080-some-doubts-and-concern-with-crt-transfer/"]Tranfer doubts[/url]

-rider

I don't want to see new auras/crits. I want the ones already implemented to actually WORK!

[log=Removal of Black Water]
Grido: but the problem you have with something you don't know about, is that...you don't know what might happen if you leave the body out, either
adiomino: I believe that sasha's body will remain contaminated as long as she holds memories of the black water. But removal of black water has to do with her vulnerability and the memories associated with
Kiley: *looks over to Grido, then back to Blade* Is she contagious?
adiomino: black water.
adiomino: *he ponders and mumbles* Imagination
Blade Faryn: We're not sure Kiley.
Grido: Unknown, nobody around here seems to be showing too obvious signs of contamination though
Blade Faryn: If anyone, Adio would have probably shown signs... seeing how often he's been down here lately
Kiley: *cocks her head* Depends on incubation time I suppose.
adiomino: Black water is a transformative liquid.. and sasha is essentially its user although she has died from it. Because from her own memories and insane imagination it manifested in her body correct?
adiomino: So black water is not something to be removed physically..
: Kiley sits down, listening
adiomino: *turns to Blade* Perhaps sasha can remove it herself.
adiomino: *shrugs* With help of course
Grido: Prepared to take the risk?
: Blade Faryn nods to Adio
Grido: If she can't, then the soul might get currupted as well
adiomino: More like willing to, Grido *smiles*
Grido: the seperation is much like a protection mechanism
Blade Faryn: What's a challenge without some risk?
Grido: When it's someone's life in the balance, you mean?
Kiley: So by dispersing the "black water" you chance condeming her soul as well?
Grido: No, by rejoining the soul to the body, you chance it
Grido: and unless the soul is part of the body, the soul cannot have any chance of dispersing it
adiomino: *motions his hand* I'm thinking of how this would backfire
Kiley: ohh, then those that love her would loose her forever? Perhaps.
adiomino: You have a point, Grido.
Grido: I'm glad
: adiomino he ponders
Grido: That you are thinking of them, I mean
adiomino: Sasha must erase the memories associating her with black water.
adiomino: Or rather, let them go.
: Blade Faryn nods slowly at all of this
adiomino: *shrugs and whispers to Blade* I'll need to ask someone who knows a bit more than I do..
adiomino: And who holds more experience
Grido: Someone in mind?
adiomino: *turns and smiles to Grido* Perhaps mya or amoran.
Blade Faryn: *nods once more* That might be the best thing to do right now.
: sasha lilias the ghost, fades away into nothing
: Blade Faryn stares over where the ghost was once dancing, thinking
sasha lilias: (Remember to post onto the forums if you wish RP to be counted (
adiomino: Grido do you happen to know someone i could ask?
adiomino: Yes
adiomino: I saw ailith around yesterday.
adiomino: If I'm extremely lucky I'll see her today
Blade Faryn: I don't suppose any Necrovions might know?
Grido: And hopefully she'll be around more frequently, I've missed her
adiomino: *shakes his head* Hm..
adiomino: Me too grido
Grido: Ailith would be good to ask
[/log]


[log=Miiriam]
: adiomino he motions child and whispers to him
adiomino: Black water..
Miiriam: Black Blood?
Miiriam: *raises a finger to Adi* He has asked his question..
Eldar Doomspell: Miiriam, are you a sage?
adiomino: *frowns and sighs* Alright..
Miiriam: *looks back towards the man* I assume you ment Black..water.
Miiriam: Once the water has entered the body it manifests itself into what ever form the user imagines.
Miiriam: In most cases this is the water poisoning their insides, thus it covers all major organs.
Miiriam: Once this has happened....completely...only Granos would know how to remove such a thing.
adiomino: *mumbles* Then the black water will not be removed.. but it should be changed to a harmless state.
Miiriam: For someone other than Granos to try and remove this...abomination...would be like a dog doing tooth surgery on someone...
Miiriam: Nothing good would come of it.
*Burns*: *sighs* And we just leave out Braiton, right?
: adiomino nods to Miiriam
Miiriam: Braiton was not the creator, Granos was *she says as she looks at Burns* .
[/log]

[log=Mya]
adiomino: Mya, shall we go on about discussing the removal of black water?
*Mya Celestia*: How long has the person been infected?
adiomino: Hm..
adiomino: A few weeks
adiomino: *he ponders* Two
*Mya Celestia*: *shakes her head* Not good
adiomino: *frowns* Time is a big factor, then isn't it?
*Mya Celestia*: Yes
*Mya Celestia*: but...
adiomino: Well.. sasha lilias has been in a state above equilibrium. Her body not decaying at all as time passes by.
*Mya Celestia*: Tell me what you think Black Water is first.
adiomino: Ah.. *smiles*
adiomino: I believe that black water is a manifestation.. first of all an abomination. It is a transformative liquid that takes advantage of one's imagination and manifests into one that is vulnerable to it.
adiomino: It transforms according to the affected's imagination and memories associated with it.
*Mya Celestia*: You can quote the information, but do you understand it?
adiomino: *chuckles* You caught me.. though only have of it was quoted. Well the way i see it..
adiomino: Is that sasha was for one insane.. her mind was vulnerable and the black water took control of her mind.
adiomino: She had a vivid imagination.
adiomino: It appeared to her in the form of voices..
adiomino: They controlled her thoughts and eventually led her to her death.
*Mya Celestia*: You know that Black Water is a spell right?
: adiomino nods
adiomino: A spell doc
*Mya Celestia*: Do you know who cast it?
adiomino: Who cast it? Hm.. well granos was the creator and he used it to his will. So did Braiton.
*Mya Celestia*: I mean on sasha
adiomino: Hm..
adiomino: I do not. Though i believe she came to the fountain of dark vibrations to.. well she succumbed to the black water there. As far as i know
*Mya Celestia*: *shakes her head* It doesn't work that way.
adiomino: Ah..
*Mya Celestia*: The fountain of dark vibrations doesn't contain black water.
adiomino: Hm..
*Mya Celestia*: I'm afraid at this point you've got a lot of jumbled information.
adiomino: That certainly leaves me confused
: adiomino nods
adiomino: Well then.. what is in the fountain of dark vibrations? Sagewoman told me something.. but i must have forgotten.
ChildOfTheSoul listens to the conversation
*Mya Celestia*: At one time it was tainted.
*Mya Celestia*: Taint is different from black water
adiomino: Interesting.. Mya could you explain the taint? I'm foggy on that.
*Mya Celestia*: Well
*Mya Celestia*: *exhales with a slight frown* I'm not sure it would help you
*Mya Celestia*: Much of what happens in this realm is of the mind. Essentially sasha has to have the will to get better.
: adiomino nods slowly
adiomino: So.. if she wishes it then the black water will disappear?
*Mya Celestia*: You might be able to delute the black water, but in the end it's up to her.
ChildOfTheSoul: so will controls everything...
*Mya Celestia*: Yes
[/log]

[center][size="7"]Eight[/size]

[size="7"]∞[/size]

[i]The opposite of the center[/i]

[/center]





Balance. What means balance? First of all it is a word with many meanings. The word itself could even refer to accounting, or to justice, or stability or sound or other things. When trying to communicate something to someone, first you need to be sure the words you use have the same meaning for the one you try to communicate them too. Excuse me if i assume that you think about the balance i refer to as a good-bad, full-empty, male-female sort of thing. Well, its not that far from what i mean by balance, but it is two complexity levels less than what i will eventually reveal in this book.

A very interesting and accurate meaning of balance is this one:

Balance = desirable point between two or more opposite forces (source Wikipedia)

In general, this is close to the meaning of balance i will need you to understand in order to fully understand the things i will try to describe. I will use on different occasions different wording for balance because it will put more focus on one or the other meaning.

When I was little, my father asked me one day what I think about each thing having its counter, something to balance it, something opposed to it. He talked about things like fire and water, good and bad, but with a certain feeling that there is more to it than just opposing things. He obviously was talking alone and just needed someone to pretend to listen to him and I was the perfect subject for rhetoric talking. I guess he never imagined I will take his question so seriously that 20 years later I would elaborate an entire structure model on how things balance and even do wild experiments with this.

If you are already familiar with my previous book “Mastering the Void” you already know I will not limit this to a simple metaphysical talk about general mysteries of life and universe and such useless talks. Anyone can ask general questions and pretend to be smart talking hard to understand shit to people that want to believe anything. No, the things i share here are secrets, discoveries of my own, applied things, things that you might consider theories but for me they are based on reality, not just potential truth but actual facts about things i did and managed to understand only much later. Of course i will keep certain things for myself because they are beyond what i can explain in words, or too dangerous in the wrong minds, or simply because i want to enjoy abusing them before sharing them eventually.

The deep secrets I won’t openly share will be written in this book in concealed form, but the concealing is not visual, but logical, structural. I will give you the right seeds to grow in your mind and discover the secrets on your own. In this way only some will manage to do that, but they will feel the things they understand after this are so natural and obvious.


[center]
[size="5"]Stages of balance[/size]
[/center]

A stability point between points can be found between any number of points. Take for example a group of people each with opposing views on a given subject. Eventually they could reach a middle point where all could agree on or give up an equal part of their original view in order to agree with each other. Its no doubt about that. In the same way two opposing forces will find a middle point where they will be canceled or made equal, same way this will happen with regardless how many points involved. Nature however gives as a clue. This balance makes sense as long as they are more than one forces. One, be it point of view, or force, is balanced in itself, unity...and you shall see soon that nothing is one.

Or better said Nothing IS one... that is if nothing could be anything at all, but “nothing” isn’t and therefore it “is” all the impossible things that are unreachable by the things that “are”.

Confused? You should be. Our brain can’t normally handle concepts such as NOTHING or INFINITY but it can assume what they are or what they mean and as long as you understand you can’t understand fully certain concepts you will actually understand them much better than those that assume they know. Its a paradox, i know. For example a child could consider “one billion billlions” as equal to infinity, but an adult would have a more respectful appreciation to what infinity is and wouldn’t give it an actual value regardless how big that value is. In the same way, ignorant people could consider “void” as a space with no air and no particles, sinply because a space without even the space wouldn’t make a sense. Now try to respect the fact that none of us can understand “nothing” for what it is and stop considering it as an empty space.


--


Hey that's enough reading!
... a teaser page from what i am working on now, hope you enjoyed it. It more like a note and might end up different in the final version. It will be signed Mur i think, not Manu, mainly because i lost my fucking mind in the process...nono, i mean, beacause i will use a slightly styled way of putting things, something that only my Mur side of me could do, and actualy its responsable for the discoveries so ... i owe "him" that

I am still having a hard time deciding if i should totally separate symbols analysis from the 8fold balance subject. I could combine them nice, but it would limit the symbols subject pretty much. I am thinking to write something extensive about symbols, both graphical and logical symbols (not sure how to name symbols that have no drawing). I realised nobody ever wrote the things i have to say on the subject, but i am lazy, i cant even move on with the "Eight" subject.. i shall see...

[log=From TTL, Question 2, Day 50]
Miiriam: Sasha is not dead, yet she is not alive.
Sunfire: hah was it you that stroke without honor on me when i was defenseles
ElementalSage: ok brb in abit
vanaisa: not ready
vanaisa: i mean not set
Miiriam: To be able to bring Sasha back to a state of "living" you must have a balance.
Miiriam: Light and Dark balance, as do Water and fire, Earth and Air, all things must have a counter part.
Miiriam: Thus...for her to live there are three parts that must be balanced.
Miiriam: Mind, Body..and soul.
: Keida huggles Kiley
Miiriam: Her mind must wish to be brought back, and there must be another that wishes for her not to be.
Miiriam: Her body must be brought back from the grasp of black water, whilst anothers taken over by it...
Miiriam: Her body must be brought back from the grasp of black water, whilst anothers taken over by it...
Brute Heretic: Sounds like shes' got a rival if shes already dead
Miiriam: And finally...her soul must be brought back to a "living" state...but....another must.."die".
Miiriam: Without this balance she will die
[/log]

[log=Same Place, Same time, When I showed up]
: TTL thinks for a moment what miiriam said before "Her body must be brought back from the grasp of black water, whilst anothers taken over by it..."
TTL: Her body is in the gazebo and you must be forced to go there...
Brulant: TTL. We do not force.
Brulant: *walks over and stands by Miiriam* Good morning, Miiriam.
TTL: (@ brulant taken over = To capture physically)
Miiriam: Hello Pointer...
: Brulant sends a note to TTL
Brulant: You're never going to forgive me for that, are you? *chuckles*
Miiriam: *shrugs* Forgive, yes. Forget, no. First impressions are always the most important.
Brulant: *nods and smiles* Wise words.
Ingenuitas Magnu.: the kiddies still raging ?
Brulant: *turns his head to looks at TTL* Either way, TTL. We do not force. Everything must be done of their own accord.
Brute Heretic: define raging?
Ingenuitas Magnu.: two hours ago you both were getting it off.... *amusing* lol
TTL: *looks at Brulant* But if in order to bring Sasha Lilias back to life we need to force we will not do it?
Brulant: Would you really sacrifice the life of one for another so easily?
: Phear Wolf starts to breath more calmly, his ears down as he falls asleep
TTL: *nods* Yes
aaront222: SHOUTS: Luuuppppuuuussss!!! *run up to her and epiccc huggg* !
Brute Heretic: and you'd give your own life before asking another?
Ingenuitas Magnu.: anyway I'm leaving the park bbs =) *smiles as the rebron sage leaves*
TTL: no
TTL: and i never said anything about asking
: Phear Wolf opens one of hois eyes, angrily staring at aaront
Brulant: That's despicable.
TTL: *grins* Thats the way you see it
Brute Heretic: i see, sounds more complicated than catching lighting if you ask me.
Brulant: Do you think it would work if we took an unwilling replacement
Miiriam: *looks between the two* I see cracks in the foundations....
TTL: I think that the replacement need to be unwilling for it to work
TTL: if somebody is willing to die it will not work
Brulant: *glances over his shoulder at Miiriam* It's called free thought. After we iron these out we will be unified. It just shows that we're thinking.
Miiriam: We shall see....
TTL: Brulant i already know miiriam is the one that needs to die...
Brulant: *grins* And besides, TTL is a newer member to our cause. He's more like one of those fancy pillars than the foundation.
Brulant: *looks back at TTL* As did we, TTL.
Brulant: xrieg has surmised as much for a long time.
Brulant: But morally, most of us stand against it. There has to be another way.
TTL: It is in her own words that the replacement needs to be taken over
Brulant: It is our last resort, TTL
TTL: I rest my case then
TTL: If you think moral is more important than logic... i rest my case
Brulant: *turns back to Miiriam* Did TTL use our question for the day?
Miiriam: It is amazing....how words when spoken must be constructed correctly for the listener...
Miiriam: Otherwise they may perceive the answer wrongly....
Miiriam: *nods Brulant* Yes
Brulant: Normally I'd agree with you, TTL. But when dealing with lives, I tend to trod the more moral path.
Miiriam: He did.
Brulant: Even a few weeks ago I would have agreed with you unconditionally, but not now.
Brulant: And, we need to discuss it. We do not decide things we just two people of the group.
TTL: I know... i just stated what i was thinking
Brulant: I know *smiles* I'm not trying to chew you out or anything.
: TTL grins
: Brulant sighs and stands up
Miiriam stands silently
Miiriam: I shall make my departure now.
Miiriam: *picks up her bag and salvaged pictures* Farewell...
Brulant: Goodbye, Miiriam, and thank you for shedding more light on the topic.
[/log]

There was a request for an easy-to-use GIMP tutorial to make raw avatar scans upload-worthy, so I made one.
GIMP is free software; go to [url="http://www.gimp.org/"]www.gimp.org[/url] to download.

I start off by cropping and resizing in MS Paint, because it's waaaaay easier to do this in Paint. Then I go to GIMP for contrast and transparency.
This tutorial is complete with all of the steps I use for my own uploads, so it will work for yours.


Steps:

Copy the image file to have a backup.
Right-click the image file and select Edit, it opens in Paint by default.
If you have lines or stuff (for example from lined paper) obscuring your drawing, use the eraser tool to get rid of them. Don't worry about the white space left behind; whiter-than-paper stuff goes away with contrast.
If you need to stretch or compress the image to make it look better, now is the time to do so, for minimal quality loss. Either Select All (Ctrl+A) and drag the selection handles, or use the resize functionality.
Select All (Ctrl+A) and drag to the top left corner to cut off extra space.
Click outside of the selection.
Drag the bottom right corner's handle to cut extra space off the canvas.
Maintaining aspect ratio, resize to 100 pixels wide. If it turns out to be more than 160 pixels high at this point, undo (Ctrl+Z) and resize to 160 high instead.
Using the bottom or side handle of the canvas, increase the space to 100x160 pixels.
Select All (Ctrl+A) and drag the image to the center.
It will certainly look weird at this point, having bars of white, but they will disappear with contrast in GIMP. Save (Ctrl+S) and close Paint.

Right-click the image file --> Open With... --> gimp-2.6.exe (a newer version may be named differently)
Image --> Mode --> Grayscale
Colors --> Brightness-Contrast
Increase the Contrast slider until the background is uniform, then fiddle with the brightness and contrast until it looks good. With my scanner's images, I normally have to change the contrast about 60 and the brightness about -30.
Image --> Mode --> RGB
Colors --> Colorify (NOT Colorize; they are different) --> Custom color --> enter "f1efd6". This is the color Mur specified; its purpose is to make the avatar blend better with the background of MD.
If you didn't draw the MD letters somewhere on your image, add them now with the Text Tool. It's in the toolbox on the left; click it and click in the image where you want to add text, type in "MD", pick a font and size it.
Layer --> Transparency --> Add Alpha Channel
Select --> By Color --> click on the backgound, hit Delete (or cut with Ctrl+X).
Save As... --> Select file type (by extension) --> GIF image --> (converting to indexed by default) Export --> type in author name in the comment box and Save.
And you're done. [img]http://magicduel.invisionzone.com/public/style_emoticons/default/smile.gif[/img]