DiabloFans

Quote from "gamma11" »

oath of chaos... u sir... are an idiot... no censorship in america? if we fuckin saw what really went on in the war in iraq even 1/10 of what went on... bush would have been assassinated or impeached or both (not necessarily in that order)... i for one would have already killed cheney lulz...

You really should be careful what you say online because this stuff can be traced. In case you don't remember, or in case you aren't old enough to remember, during the wake of 9/11 the Writ of Habeus Corpus was suspended with a promissory from our good congress that it would have no effect on US citizens. Don't count on that. Suspended is suspended and they can do what they please now - especially since it is still suspended after more than six years. The suspension of the Writ of Habeus Corpus places the US constitution in a very precarious position.

Our honored forefathers placed an article in the constitution that allowed for its suspension in the event of an invasion, rebellion, or if in the interest of public safety. I can see 9/11 as an attack, but not as either of the aforementioned. They suspended it in order to free their hands so they could do whatever they wanted, however they wanted to do it. If it were truly suspended in the interest of public safety, internal security would have gone through a much more strenuous overhaul - this is where the National Guard is supposed to come in handy. The regular army would have a much larger presence in the middle east instead of relying on National Guard and Reserve recruits. I'm a veteran. I spent my time in the army in the European theater during the last years of the Cold Wars between the US and Russia, and during the terrorist antics of the Bader-Meinhof gang (you might know them as the Red Army Faction). Our government does what it wants regardless of consequence. A case in point is that torturing POWs is a direct violation of the treaties our nation is bound to through its membership in the United Nations. They don't give a shit.

If you ever stopped for half a second to think about it, part of the reason for the lack of media coverage on the war in the middle east may also have to do with corporate ties such as between media companies and major energy corporations. You can get media coverage on the war in Iraq, in English, by watching the news coming from countries like England and Australia if you wanted to see it so desperately.

The main point is that FBI software constantly searches the internet for keywords and flags them for further investigation. That is also not supposed to have an effect on US citizens, but I wouldn't count on that one either.

It's positively amazing what the computer you can put on your desk at home can do. I worked for the government most of my working life and I can tell you that the computers they use can make a state-of-the-art home computer look like a TRS-80. The FBI has more than 50 field offices and several hundred smaller offices scattered across the US. One supercomputer running in each field office (this is not a fact - just an example), and one minicomputer running at each of the several hundred smaller locations (you probably own a microcomputer), and they've got a search engine like nothing you could ever imagine.

You should really use your brain instead of your emotions...

Quote from "DiabloFoggie" »

As of the nudity in games, games like DN3D and Diablo were games made by adults who WERE kids that put in what THEY would have liked to have seen in their games, FOR older teenagers. Once younger teenagers got hold of it, adults with those "younger teenagers" realized they didn't want them to get those games with such adult topics. Thus the rating system. No, that never stopped us before, but there are plenty of parents out there that would stop you from getting D3 if it had semi-nudity (only topless that is). Blizzard has to make the game where as many can buy the game as possible without a hitch. At least that's my opinion.

The ESRB issues not just ratings, but content advisory, which was basically what was sought in the first place. Note that I used the word "advisory". I think it is ridiculous that anyone old enough (basically 14-16 years and older) to be influenced sexually by Mother Nature (who seems to defy all laws of the land regarding teenagers and sex) to have to have their parents permission to purchase a game. I can understand real pornography, but give it a rest on the games.

The ESRB was established in the mid nineties. It really wasn't sexual content that caused the parental obsessive-compulsion for ratings. It was extreme violence and really cool graphics that depicted things like a PC jerking the head off its adversary and having part of the spinal cord hanging from the neck while blood dripped to the floor. It was a game called Mortal Kombat. It was in the arcades for a period of time before it made it to the home console. At that point, parents were fainting all over the place. I remember that one well. It might still be the most controversial game ever released.

Before paying the insane amount of money to purchase a game, I always had the boys rent a copy to make sure it was what they really wanted. After watching the boys play for a while, I just could not understand why everyone was so up in arms. I'll bet more than half those kids watched the movie The Thing with Kurt Russell, and with their parents' blessings to boot.

By the way... if you guys get naked female demons, does that mean us girls can have male demons with a stallion's phallus and testes the size of coconuts - naked and detailed to the very last vein? Or do you think your numbers alone should keep the homophobics placated?

One thing I learned from playing Diablo, beginning with the first game in the series, was that I needed to use my head as much as my weapon. I don't have a clue what D3 is going to be like for loners, but with all previous games I was able to kill anything I wanted by being careful, moving cautiously, devising a strategy, making plans, and not being afraid to run or jump through a portal.

Though some of what I saw in the gameplay video just might undo all that loner learning. I hope that by the time D3 comes out I will have made a few friends to go demon hunting with. It really is more fun when you are with others.

I'm not sure if this is where this thread belongs, but it seems to me to be the most logical place.


DIABLO: The Black Road, Book #2, Mel Odom

I was reading through some posts the other day when I came across one that mentioned The Black Road. The poster, whose name I cannot remember, referred to this particular addition to the Diablo series as sick. The following is simply my opinion of The Black Road...

I guess that in many ways, many people would consider the contents of this book in this manner. I, however, found that The Black Road, more than any of the other Diablo books, was profoundly, emotionally riveting. So much so that I read this book three times and still found it just as absorbing as the prior read.

When Odom got into Darrick Lang's head after Mat was killed by the skeleton, it was as if he spoke from the depths of his own emotions and memory. The darkness that pervaded Lang's soul was etched out in such brilliant detail that I could feel his despair - the feelings of worthlessness and guilt that had been instilled in him from both his birth and the death of his closest and only true friend. The latter for which he felt solely responsible. As Darrick Lang drifted away into the dark abyss of his very own soul, I found myself blotting the pages of the book to keep the tears from ruining the ink. I'm not talking about the handful of tears that accompanied Harry Potter's emotions at Albus Dumbledore's funeral: I'm talking about the upswelling of emotion from being drawn so intensely into the heart and mind of total despair.

The subtlety with which Kabraxis wields his evil is the most frightening of all forms of disguise - evil disguised as good. It is the most difficult to unveil - as Odom reaches out to his audience and shows how this is accomplished. The overall atmosphere of the story carried a darkness unmatched in any of the other books - even the outcome of the story was dark.

I tend to revel in the darkness. The darker the atmosphere, the darker and more piteous the content, the better I like it. It would be an absolute thrill to see another tale from the realm of Diablo secrete its way from the mind of this particular author. This man wields darkness so awesomely well that I would love to see him delve into the darkness of Diablo style necromancy - though I would never discount Zayl.

Quote from name="Elfen Lied" »

If you're a naughty little child fallen ones will take you into the labyrinth and the Butcher will hack your limbs off!! Now be good!

My generation already had a tale of this sort - except that you could substitute Satan for the fallen ones, Hell for the Labyrinth, and demons for the Butcher. It sure wrought havoc on going to the bathroom in the middle of the night when there was no nightlight to frighten the monsters back into the shadows. We also had sleepovers where the most gruesome story won a prize. There would be an extra prize if someone in the group actually threw up. My, how we focused on that extra prize!

I used to enjoy turning off all the electrical illumination, filling the house with the illuminations and shadows of candlepower, and entertaining my young sons with the short stories and poetics of Poe and Lovecraft.

What a good theme for a book - Prime Evil Bedtime Stories for Children... It would make the Brothers Grim look like Mother Teresa...

Wouldn't it be interesting to see what kind of collection this community could come up with - short fiction only?

Excellent post, indeed! Thank you very much for sharing this with us. I always love the opportunity to add to both my physical and digital libraries, and am ever appreciative of being pointed to worthy additions.

Quote from "sapien52" »

Girls defending their viciously invaded territories would make a great game!

Hmmm... Perhaps you can try to visciously invade the Amazons' homeland and see how far you get. Don't forget that the females are the superior gender in their class, not the only gender in their class. Don't think that their males would not take up arms against you if you assault their territory.

Quote from "sapien52" »

However, we might have to ditch the usual mouse and keyboard interface to make this work. I don't know... I think I am on to something.

I'm not certain what you mean by this, but hand-to-hand combat does pose an immense emotional and physical thrill for both sides. Wouldn't you say?

Quote from name="Elfen Lied

Sanctuary is a blue state. God has no place here.

Quote from Elfen Lied" »

I hope they don't bring God into the Diablo series, nothing against God, I am Protestant myself, but I liked the seemingly useless Council or Angels in charge. Their wasn't one demon in chage of Hell, seemed only fair Heaven mirriored (to a certain extent) this.

Heavenspeed is a little long winded, and while more correct, sounds a little weird. Godspeed is quickier, and anyone who has played enough medieval fantasy epics knows they had better hurry up and do whatever it is they are suppose to be doing.

Geez! All this because Tyrael used the word godspeed?

I agree with Elfen here. Sanctuary is a blue state. God has no place here. I hope they don't bring god into Diablo either; but I can't even begin to see them doing that. Even though I am considered to be a Secular Humanist, but follow Scientific Pantheism, I have nothing against anyone's God. I do, however, prefer the Angiris Council to stand in contrast with The Three.

The word god is a noun (not a proper noun) that denotes a supreme being or deity of the masculine gender whether the religion is pagan, pantheist, deist, monotheistic, or polytheistic. Jehovah is a proper noun that denotes a specific god and religion - and the same holds true for Apollo, Zeus, Baal (the principal god of the Canaanites), and Ra (the Egyptian sun god).

Godspeed, from the middle english, is a departing well-wishing for a successful or prosperous journey. The archaic definitions of the word speed are prosperity and luck. Though, based on its origin, the god in godspeed probably does refer to the Biblical god. The semantics, however, give it the relief of generalization so that the word godspeed doesn't necessarily speak in terms of Christianity. Though I would think that the use of Inquisitors in the Diablo lore would utterly reek of it.

It's all in the semantics. It's just a friggin' word.

This is fantastic! I wish I had time to study this bizarre dimension - Necromancer entering the Arcane Sanctuary

What a waste of undead flesh - Necromancer completing Radament's Lair

What a pity. I was beginning to enjoy the darkness - Necromancer completing the Tainted Sun

Great. More junk. Just what I'd expect to find in a sewer - Necromancer completing sewers beneath Kurast

Ku'e'lei's(? can't find spelling) immortal ashes. I wonder if they'd miss any? - Necromancer completing Golden Bird

Ah! The slow torture of caged starvation - Necromancer entry into the jail

It's been years since I waded through sewers for fun - Necromancer entry into sewers

What the hell is that? - Necromancer


Isn't he just to die for?

I would think my username would be a clue. Not only am I a female, but I am probably one of the few "senior citizens" of Diablo. I love Diablo - every aspect of it. I played D1, D2, and LOD, and I intend to play D3. I really love all the gore!

You could safely assume that my (albeit female) personality has a necromantic shade to it. There's a tiny urn that hangs on a chain around my neck that totes real human ashes. Before they cremated his body I had them remove his necktie (which was tied around his dead neck for seven days) and give it to me. It is a beautiful necktie with a bald eagle on it and I couldn't see turning it to ash along with him. Now it is a treasured keepsake with the unmistakable smell of death imbued into it. I have two friends that won't come in my house because he's in here too.

May the Dragon protect you...

Quote from "Siaynoq" »

Who cares what gender Killing Lil Thingys is? That user never posts anymore anyway.

Besides, a lot of you work hard to scare away our female members as it is.

Well, It's rather hard to scare me off. I stand my ground and defend my territory no matter how viciously it is invaded. No, this is not an invitation to try.

Quote from name="Elfen Lied" »

No No No. His Sin War Trilogy rewtire huge parts of canonical lore from the games. BLizzard have stated that what he wrote is now the offical ore. Even more so than the games.

He didn't rewrite any of the Sin War Trilogy after it was published.

Okay, thanks for answering. I appreciate that. I read after I posted this that this lore is in the game manuals. I am one of those people who throw game manuals in the "read me if need be" pile and use them for reference only. I see that by doing this I missed some interesting aspects of the game. I can't find the D1 or D2 manuals now and I believe they may have been left at my last house. I guess I'll just order the battle chest in order to reclaim them. All the manuals are in there, aren't they?

I have all the Diablo books and I've read them all. I thought they were great. I've been thinking of reading the Sin War books again.

Quote from "OathofChaos" »

Late Husband's remains huh? Ashes or corpse? I wouldn't mind either way as long as the corpse doesn't produce that much of a smell... but a little febreeze would remedy that scenario!

Spoken like a true necromancer. It is just his ashes. They are entombed in a cast bronze eagle urn, though I dare say that not all of the ashes made it into that urn. There is a tiny urn filled with a tiny portion of his ashes that I like to wear around my neck. It makes me feel as though I'm not so alone, and I have him around to swear at when things get out of kilter. Some people think it's wierd and sacrilegious... "Is that an urn?" "Are there really human ashes in it?" "No! Please don't open it and show me!"

He was also a true Diablo fan. Part of my crying when D3 was announced was because he's not here to play it with me. We had so much fun playing together on our own network and Bnet too.

Quote from "OathofChaos" »

You, sir/madam, should bring pics so I can squeal like a school girl and look for ways to do the same! Bwahaha.... I want pictures! And I want to come over and live there too.... is that too much to ask?

I'll remember that once I get moved and get everything set back up again. So I'll make you my buddy and keep photos in mind. Believe me, the gothic lighting is coming down when I move and cheap wal-mart fixtures will take their place. Collecting is an expensive and financially draining habit.

So long as my late husband's remains are not a problem with you, you can sleep in the spare bedroom...

Quote from "OathofChaos" »

Where can I get one of those candelabra? I want one! Gimmarz plx.

I got mine at Lowe's home improvement center. I lucked out and got them cheap because they were being discontinued. You might do an internet search for something similar, look especially at stores geared toward household lighting.

I've been tempted to pull the wiring, seal the cracks, and put actual candles in them. You can find candles, daggers, swords, dragons, wizards, eagles, and fairies everywhere you turn in my house.

My house is decorated in a gothic style much befitting of my love for Diablo. I have wrought-iron, candelabra style chandeliers that hang fairly low. In my sudden burst of joy when Tristram was played, I lept up out of my chair, fists in the air, and shouted "Ouch! Goddam!"

So, yes, I cried...