Stuff worthy of Keiko and friends

While Keiko is def a common name before that cultural grandeur otherwise known as Nihon-koku, surely there's only one Keiko in Kalafina. I still remember saying something to my Blackburn supporting friend that...

Me: My fave Kalafina member is Keiko

Above statement was during a FB chat session where I forgot Tobias' reaction. Sadly, I've disabled my FB chat b/c I can only focus on one thing at a time. Maybe that's why I tend to see myself as 90% useless. Something justified by my past 10 yrs or so lol!

Anyway, this post is NOT really dedicated to Keiko b/c that'd make me into some horny fanboy lusting after her looks (this is NOT to say the other members ain't a bunch of lookers, just that I prefer Keiko's looks ala personal aesthetics). Rather, I suddenly remember this song...

A/N: Apparently Kajiura Yuki was the composer, not the singer. Emily Bindiger, on the other hand, was that *fill in the blanks yourself*...

At the same time, I've also got myself started into Shikata Akiko. Apparently, she's far less famous than her spiritual sisters. But hey, it doesn't prevent me from calling her a friend of Keiko and friends. At the end of the day, can you imagine certain songs which either party (or even both) is able to adapt?

Interestingly tho, that one thing I'm curious abt is how Kalafina and Shikata-san will fare in terms of adapting gaijin culture into their future works. I mean, it's totally wrong in calling Japanese a bunch of yellow racists just b/c the term gaijin means "either you're black, white, brown or just East Asian", no? I'm pretty sure these gaijin composers will have better luck in forming a collaboration or two w/the finest (?) oujo-san tachi ever known in Japanese culture.

So why am I using the b-word? Because I'm pretty sure no sane Japanese would ever contemplating a collaboration w/some unknown S'porean who is either self-delusional or... okay, let's stop at here.

P.S: In case you're wondering whether this blog starting to look like this ang-moh company, be wholly assured that I'm not the kind of Johnny Foreigner capable of punting some poor taxi uncle from that good ol' North East of England.
*this one added 4 teh lulz*

Hence without any further ado, let the show begin!

Then some more got vocal sio....

And lastly, in case you're wondering why I suddenly so kisiao...
...the song below actually made me ask that vital "what if..."

Server up (today) and down (?/tomorrow)

Gonna have a hand in typing something really boliao. Need to kick myself from the Neverwinter monster tbh...

First impression: PvP

Have to say it's the wonkiest part in the game. More oft than not, you live and die by the manner of your team. PvP in Neverwinter is basically futsal w/o the ball. That is unless you consider a person's head to be a ball. Dark humour aside, my first impression of which class is best for PvP is...

Devoted Cleric

Control Wizard/Scourge Warlock.

Domination is truly one hell of an arena where magic=imba. I'm not too sure whether the imba factor is equal, lesser, or worse than the Speed of Asuryan rule for High Elves (note: this is Warhammer Fantasy Battle I'm talking abt here). If your team ends up bereft of any magic user, then you're gonna eat shit for the rest of the battle. Trust me when I say this is worse than taking a bazooka to the knee.

If you end up having either DC or CW/SW, shit is gonna be a 50-50 ball. If you have both, then chances are that you're gonna beast the opponent (that is provided the other team doesn't have this luxury of a lottery).

In fact, this is why I don't really enjoy playing Domination. Possible layout of any team is quintessentially a case of handing your $$$ to the nearest IR casino. In short, chances of getting unlucky, semi-lucky, or literally lucky is basically probability maths at its finest.

Remember, ppl. In Domination, there's NO such word as "handicap" apart from losing your head in the process. Figuratively ofc...

My record for Domination

Arylos:

W-0; L-2

Myrreas:

W-1; L-1

My first impression so far on Domination, class-wise is this: Trickster Rogue is basically your only best bet in taking everything out of something. Hunter Rangers are def the hardest class to master in terms of Domination.

The one thing abt Trickster Rogue is using Stealth. Without Stealth, you're better off dead. Period. One of the trickiest part in getting up close and dirty w/the opponent is the fact that you do NOT try chasing down isolated buggers running abt, TR is all abt taking opponents down while they're still CC'ed or engaged in combat. If you see one bugger running away, be very sure that 'tis a trap.

On Hunter Ranger, this is where the problem comes in. Unless you're ridiculously good at mastering the archery front (i.e. range spec), chances are that you're gonna get yourself raped 10 times out of 10 tries. Domination is far more towards effective CC rather than outright damage dealing, and the worst thing abt Hunter Rangers is that they don't have any decent mechanic mitigating their tactical handicap.

Guardian Fighter is absurdly good in playing up the tank, but even more so in tanking opponents via being the decoy.

Great Weapon Fighter seem to have taken the worst piss in getting nerfed tho since others are now making noise over what they perceive as unfair bias catering to every Justice Wong. I mean if you're really out to please a bunch of ppl who got themselves hard done by the stupid lottery system, you better ask yourself why you're doing it.

Okay, enough abt me being my own Justice Wong. Let's try looking forward. So what kind of HR tactic works best in Domination? My answer is very simple: do a Trickster Rogue sans Stealth.

To pull this off (and trust me when I say I've yet to do so), you'll need Marauder's Rush as the offensive mainstay w/the wife (i.e. Marauder's Escape) being your sole means of falling back. In Domination, there's no room for error. In short, you'll have very little room for dodging Clark Kent's shit. Even then, you'll have to take the risk of getting yourself killed 9 out of 10 tries due to an opponent or two going Rogue.

After you get yourself into an effective MR-ME hit-and-run, there shouldn't be much of a prob in deciding which other 3 skills you should be using...

Whatever you do...

...do NOT try certain moves in Domination since they tend to be more PvE friendly.

Hunter Ranger's dos and don'ts:

(note that I'll only list down the melee build since I know nothing next to shit abt PvP range spec)

DOS
1. Marauder's Rush/Escape (your only friend in Domination)
2. Rapid Strike (your staple At-Will)
3. Aimed Strike (for much needed bleeding)
4. Hindering Strike ( if you don't have this as your Encounter staple, no matter what/where, you don't deserve to play HR)
5. Forest Ghost
6. Disruptive Shot (yet to hit 40 mark, DS atm is merely a theory)
7. Aspect of the Lone Wolf (for much needed survival due Wisdom being HR's secondary stat)
8. Aspect of the Pack (if you still dunno how insanely vital this one is, you don't deserve to play HR)

DON'TS
1. Every other At-Will
2. Every other Encounter
3. Every other Daily
4. Every other Class (I do love Blade Storm tho, just that it's ****ing useless in Domination)

Trickster Rogue's dos and don'ts:

(note that >> means combo sequence)

DOS

1. Deft Strike (combo set-up)

2. Bait and Switch (Stealth refill)

3. Deception (combined w/Sneak Attack)

4. Sneak Attack (refer to Deception. That plus bonus in running faster=tactical advantage via dodge)

5. Lurker's Assault (Stealth=BFF+BFF=Best Friend Forever+Badass Friend Forever)

6. Whirlwind of Blades (hit Tab>>execute this>>set off fireworks in the bathroom)

7. Blitz (hit Tab>>this>>your ranged BFF)

DON'TS

1. Bloodbath (negligible AoE damage, no idiot is gonna bunch him/herself closely to his/her buddy)

2. First Strike (can only slot 2 Class skills, sorry)

3. Tenacious Concealment (same as above)

4. Tactics (ditto as well. Quite a shame since Tactics is very damn effective as an Action builder)

5. Cloud of Steel (ammo limited=tactically limited. I was stupid enough not to realise this until too late)

One interesting issue abt the Trickster Rogue's play in Domination is this: At-Will attacks tend to be much weaker on the whole unless you max out Scoundrel Training. This might not seem so much of a great deal, but trust me when I say it will matter big time once you choose to up Duelist's Flurry till Rank 2 or even 3. DF has a chance to deal bleed damage unlike Hunter Ranger's Rain of Swords or Aimed Strike (which is 100% surefire success). With 10 hits available, however, you can try doing the maths yourself.

And before I go sleep...

At the end of the day, my suggestion is this: There are many ways to set the opponent up, go w/the one that you're most comfortable with. You can try doing more than 1 mean of combo/tactical set-up, but know what it means when I say Domination is outright crazy in terms of pace.

Next up:

Hollywood advocate the killing of Mr Bill.

Neverwinter champion the murder of Mr, Mrs, and Ms Dragon.

Guess which one is certified badass?

Server down...

Not the Google server ofc, but rather the Neverwinter server. You see, I alrdy got a new plaything after Marvel Heroes. Not that I'm gonna ditch Stan Lee and friends, but still Neverwinter is truly one hell of a challenge, Why? Because...

1. I tend to get myself disoriented easily.
2. My right hand tend to wander off too much.

Former is basically abt how the camera zoom while latter case is all abt hand-eye coordination. I still remembered the first time I played this for a few hours or so. Thankfully I managed to get used to the motion swaying. I dunno who was the wise magi advising the powers-that-be to do this, but surely utilizing the chaotic manner of camera zooming really works, Why? Because...

1. It gives you a semi-real feel of actual combat.
2. It sets your blood pumping.

Former is basically trying to create a visual illusion of being "there" while latter case is all abt either winning or dying.

But firstly, a solemn advice from yours truly...

This is a game I won't recommend to those below the mental age of 21. You see, there's no actual blood, gore, and body parts. Such details belong to series like God of War and Ninja Gaiden. My only problem with Neverwinter is the fact that it can get extremely addictive if you're not careful. In short, the CC* system can AND will promise you one hell of a free roller coaster ride.**

*CC=/=Crowd Control. Rather, CC=Chaotic Camera

**Either that or you can liken it to one hell of a free bungee jump.

Parents, you've been notified. Any Korean behavior from henceforth is no longer my problem.

Some tips (?) via personal experience

1. Be lagi sure to load yourself w/potions (pls use your brain before splurging like some super chio SPG due to diff types of healing potion healing diff amount of HP). You'll need them should you do a Han Solo.
(pardon my pun, may the President of United States forgive my temerity)

2. In the event where you decided to party, you can forget abt rule satu.

(exemption of any Devoted Cleric from the team equation, however, is exempted from rule dua)

3. In case of doubt, tank.

(unless you wanna risk getting tanked via choosing a DPS as your Chosen One. Using Control Wizard/Scourge Warlock, on the hand...)

4. This is NOT Diablo. In short, either you'll want to get used to whatever camera angle as threat generator or... well...

5. Apparently, you'll have to wait till lvl 32 to have a surefire way in getting rare gear. Until then, you better go grab every Many-Arrows Insignia you see.

6. Pertaining to rule lima, participating in orc skirmish should be a good start.

7. If you get an unidentified item in skirmish or dungeon rush, make sure you really need that item. In any case of doubt, ask yourself whether said equipment is applicable to your character.

(I actually realized it just now after allowing my head to cool down. Being socially inadequate is bad, worst if you happen to be...)

8. Daily quests is your best bet in getting rough Astral Diamonds, Refined Astral Diamonds is every gamer's BFF.

9. You can only do Invocation on 3 hallowed grounds:

a. Campfire

b. Altar

c. That area of Protector's Enclave with a certain hot chick.

10. Creating your own Altar is useful if you happen to fulfill three criteria, namely:

a. You're in need of heal.

b. You're in need of Ctrl+I (i.e. Invocation timer kosong)

c. You're under no risk of generating threat (then again, only stupid ppl will do that 10 tries out of 10)

11. If possible, try doing either Skirmish or Dungeon whenever possible. Both if you happen to have the entire day to yourself. This is to ensure you can get higher lvl loot since treasure chest loot is no diff from 50-50 ball at times.

(read: You may end up getting a higher lvl loot where in fact your current item is a better fit)

12. If you can't get everything in one go, kill monsters first. More oft than not, chest is more important.

(that is unless you get crap for reward)

13. Campfire is very important. On one hand, this ensures minimal wastage of potion (and with that $$$ wasted on potions). On the other, allow Wade Wilson to be my spokesman...

14. Try experimenting with diff skill sets. Neverwinter is NOT your everyday S'porean MMO b/c it requires a lot of trial and error in terms of finding your most effective game. Guess this might be also why Campfire spots are so frequent in-game.

(at least for my current circumstances)

15. If you're good enough, less than 10 healing kit is enough. If not, make sure you have around 10 or so. Fighting monsters has nvr been such a pain in the ass (for me).

Stuff I made up myself 4 teh lulz...

Great Weapon Fighter

Bhaasmond of Baldur's Gate

[Male]

[Dragonborn]

Control Wizard

Sheallyn Tymoran

[Female]

[Menzoberranzan Renegade]

Hunter Ranger

Arylos of Cormyr*

[Male]

[Wood Elf]

Devoted Cleric

Cyrea Corellite

[Female]

[Sun Elf]

Trickster Rogue

Myrreas of the Dalelands**

[Male]

[Human]

Scourge Warlock
Kareis of Luskan
[Female]
[Tiefling]

To be cont'd...

*my 1st in-game character

**my 2nd in-game character

El Estratega: Once

A certain Anthony "not Hopkins" Vickers managed to write up this very interesting article. While Gibbo's gamble makes sense at the first glance, it seems that placing a huge bet on a season where 90% of the chips are down is no diff from Jeff Hardy doing a Swanton off the ladder ala #TeamXtreme vs #TeamDudleyville at Summerslam, TLC style.

To put things in perspective, this means either 1 of 2 scenarios.

Scenario 1: The Championship is quintessentially a Blackjack season where you know you're gonna have some weird talent tantamount to a 1 man #TeamMIT.
Scenario 2: In the face of low home crowd turnout and Michel "Baise Angleterre!" Platini's very own FFP, the Riverside will very soon witness its very own showstopper by New Year 2015. Not that I'm talking abt the Montreal Screwjob ofc...

Now if only we can see El Dinero himself appearing somewhere in RWS lol!

A/N of self-wankery: After some soul searching, I realised one terrible truth. I might be the only Kabukimono in Singapore.
They say this type of ppl forever cannot get a decent gf, let alone making it big.
Maybe that's why Maeda Toshimasu ended up becoming Maeda Keiji.
Maybe that's why Uesugi Kenshin was equally batshit crazy enough to have Keijirō as his left hand man...

That part which got ABBA lol'ing...

“其不可三也。发巨桥之粟，散鹿台之钱，以赐贫穷。今陛下能散府库以赐贫穷乎？”

曰：“未能也。”

“其不可四矣。殷事已毕，偃革为轩，倒置干戈，覆以虎皮，以示天下不复用兵。今陛下能偃武行文，不复用兵乎？”

曰：“未能也。”

“其不可五矣。休马华山之阳，示以无所为。今陛下能休马无所用乎？”

曰：“未能也。”

“其不可六矣。放牛桃林之阴，以示不复输积。今陛下能放牛不复输积乎？”

曰：“未能也。”

“其不可七矣。且天下游士离其亲戚，弃坟墓，去故旧，从陛下游者，徒欲日夜望咫尺之地。今复六国，立韩、魏、燕、赵、齐、楚之后，天下游士各归事其主，从其亲戚，反其故旧坟墓，陛下与谁取天下乎？其不可八矣。且夫楚唯无强，六国立者复桡而从之，陛下焉得而臣之？诚用客之谋，陛下事去矣。”

汉王辍食吐哺，骂曰：“竖儒，几败而公事！”

令趣销印。

《史记; 留侯世家》

司马迁著

Trans:

"This, then, is the third factor made impossible. Distributing the corn of Juqiao and the wealth of Lutai to the poor, is this what Your Majesty is now capable of via emptying the treasury?"

(Liu Bang) Replied: "I am unable to."

"This, then, is the fourth factor made impossible. After the defeat of Yin, education became the axis of society. Weapons were stashed away and covered in pelts of tigers' hide. All these were done in order to announce the intent of not waging war again. Can Your Majesty now cease all military actions and start focusing on education, never to  declare war again?"

(Liu Bang) Replied: "I am unable to."

"This, then, is the fifth factor made impossible. Releasing the horses at the peak of Mount Hua to prove the futility (of war). Can Your Majesty do without the cavalry?"

(Liu Bang) Replied: "I am unable to."

"This, then, is the sixth factor made impossible. Releasing the oxen beneath the trees of cherry blossoms to show no intent of stocking up supplies. Can Your Majesty truly do the same?"

(Liu Bang) Replied: "I am unable to."

"This, then, is the seventh factor made impossible. All who march under Your Majesty's banner have left behind their family members, tombs (of their loved ones), and ties of the past in order to follow you. Day and night, they looked forward in carving out their own niche of ground. If you are to reinstate the descendants of the other six warring states by exalting the nobility belonging to Han. Wei, Yan, Zhao, Qi, and Chu, surely your followers will return to their former masters. Going back to their respective family and tomb of their dead... who then can Your Majesty vie against for the entire land? This, then, is the eighth factor made impossible. Besides, the Chu faction has no capable rivals. If the other six vassal states choose to return under their former lord, how then can Your Majesty use them to your advantage? If you are to use this manner of strategy, surely Your Majesty will lose everything."

The King of Han stopped his meal and spat out whatever left in his mouth. Cursing aloud, he swore: "Useless scholar! You nearly ruined me!"

Hence, the command to retract his order.

《Annals of History: Marquis of Liu》

Written by Sima Qian

Analysis:

After the three #MomentImpossibru, Liu Bang only ended up getting more bad news. Quite a bit like Ricky "not Martin" Gervais only stopping short of calling the infamous 101 A-listers as A-sluts. Now let me assure that I'm not out to ruin anybody embroiled in the scandal. I mean if you're guilty of wanking, you're gonna get caught one fine day. If you end up playing the heroic hacker(s), either you'll go to jail or as what Jimmy Kimmel has implied, you're going to hell under 60 secs. 'Tis that simple. [1] So w/o further ado, let us look at the remaining 5 moments of IMPOSSIBRU!!!!!!!

Impossibru IV

I recently read somewhere that the wealth gap in UK is truly shocking. If 'tis indeed true that 99% of the nation's wealth are owned by the super rich, then someone better try asking that Iron Lady how successful her legacy has been thus far. What Zhang Liang suggested was no diff from distributing the national reserves to the mega poor. Not just 10% or 50%, but 100%.

Viable?

Liu Bang's answer was no diff from me asking Gervais whether distributing hacked photos of Jennifer Lawrence and Kate Upton would be enough to prevent more rape cases happening at Columbia University itself. [2]

Impossibru V

Education is good for preventing war, but educating ppl in ways of war ain't so. That is unless you're staring at war itself. Let me say out loud that war is nothing to laugh about. If you want to do so, please refrain from doing it in public. If not, I can assure you that even your father and mother will support you being stoned. [3]

Education together with a declaration of no-war, how attractive can that be? Surely like the prev Impossibru, surely every long suffering civilian would want it badly! Sadly, there's a reason why this is deemed Impossibru V. If Impossibru IV was all about assuming an unrealistic Robin Hood, then Impossibru V was pretty much being an unrealistic Confucius.

In war, you don't just appease the poor and suffering. I don't know how the children of Japheth view war itself, but it seems that we the Chinese do have an obsessive interest in maintaining the commoners firstly and foremost during times of unrest. In this case, it's better to be a Roman than a Chinese. Period. [4]

Impossibru VI

Horses in ancient times are not like those innocent victims plaguing UK quite some time ago. I know PETA will issue me a "wanted dead or alive, but preferably dead" bounty for my aforementioned statement, but meh.

You see, how the folks see horses were pretty much like Americans see the 2nd Amendment. Jokes aside, it's actually a necessity in times of conflict.

If the idea of sending beasts of war away to some ulu ulu mountain peak sounds familiar, you're not alone. I won't be so crazy to say scrapping the 2nd Amendment would make any sense, but exiling the ISIS to Iran would be a more appropriate picture. After all, animals bred solely for war purposes tend to die off pretty fast in the wilderness.

So would this be viable for Liu Bang?

Cavalry has always been a valuable part in ancient warfare. Due to the insane difficulty to training both the beast and master, relieving your army of vital tactical units is tantamount to giving yourself a harakiri.

Impossibru VII

Oxen were used for carrying supplies. Nothing wrong w/this, right? When it comes to war, ancient or no ancient, supplies will always make or break your chances of victory. During the Battle of Hanshui, this was exactly what Huang Zhong did. [5] In short, releasing vital livestock has got nothing to do w/whatever acts of mercy advocated by Buddhism.  Rather, this very act was meant to tell the masses "NO MORE SPARTA!!!!!" [6] through saying "NO!" to military stockpiling. [7]

So could Liu Bang do it?

Well, if he could do it, he wouldn't got himself beat by Xiang Yu during the siege of Xianyang.

Impossibru VIII

Apart from Impossibru I stated in my prev post, Impossibru II to VIII were all abt the King Wu of Zhou vs the King Zhou of Shang. While it's a tad likely that Zhang Liang's gf got some affinity with rocks coloured yellow, chances were that Zhang Liang's analysis was based on that military manual given to him by the Sage of Yellowstone [8] Since said manual was written by the famed Jiang Ziya, 'tis a no brainer to see Zhang Liang quoting examples from the relevant history.

I still remember annoying both my churchmates and NSF mates during my youthful years. How, you might ask. By mentioning Middlesbrough like some socially inadequate idiot. Sadly, this might have created a certain semblance of mockery directed towards my beloved Boro.

So what am I trying to say here? To see Zhang Liang quoting examples from the Zhou-Shang conflict is just like me mentioning Middlesbrough to the likes of Steve, Carl, and Benny. In short, it's called influence developed since young. [9]

Which now comes to Impossibru VIII, better known as Impossibru d'le Présent. This time round, Zhang Liang reminded Liu Bang where all his employees hailed from. Yes, you've guessed it. All, if not most of them hailed from the six vassal states under Xiang Yu. As it has already turned out, there were plenty of able individuals unhappy with Xiang Yu. It's like me paraphrasing that Original Guy earning enemies 10 x faster than whatever amount of ka-ching entering his BTC account due those distributors getting implicated. [10]

If Liu Bang was to heed Yiji's advice, however, he'd risk losing his entire base. [11] You see, the only motivation these lobos had was to have their own land. Feudalism has always been a history of fiefdom where your only ticket to recognition lies in having an acre of land or few. [12] Whatever Xiang Yu refused to give them, Liu Bei could promise them. By lobbying the support of the other six vassal states, these players would willingly transfer themselves back to their former clubs. There's no right or wrong behind the concept of pragmatism b/c we're all pragmatic to varying extent. [13]

At the same time, Xiang Yu was also that de facto dictator no one dared to oppose. Even if the six vassal states were to join Liu Bang's cause, Xiang Yu would make it double sure that they'd come back begging for their lives and everything else.

To put it in a nutshell, any attempt to undermine the power of Xiang Yu via bribing the six vassal states would come back and bite Liu Bang hard like a pack of ungrateful mutts. Period.

Liu Bang's final verdict?
Refer below...

P.S: Well, at least Li Yiji could have easily been more damn suay, I guess...

To be cont'd...
Now gonna sleep asap, Marvel Heroes tomorrow?

[1]: Now let's see if that Original Guy will hack this blog. *shrugs*

[2]: If you think I'm being both a misogynist and an outright asshole, you're only half correct. You can call a misogynist an asshole, but you cannot call an asshole a misogynist.

[3]: And when I say stoning, I can assure you that the ancient Jews were never guilty of smoking weed.

[4]: Pretty much like how it's better to be a Frey or Bolton rather than being a Stark. Jon Snow shouldn't count b/c he's Ned Stark's bastard.

[5]: http://unanswered-bloke-works.blogspot.com/2012/05/phase-gar-3.html

[6]: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rvYZRskNV3w

[7]: Due to significant sensitivities, I'd appreciate it if this comment fails to spark off whatever jest made in the name of nukes. I am serious here, guys.

[8]: Don't bother Googling for that term. I made it up myself. That pseudo-jerkass ah-kong he met tho was real.

[9]: More specifically 1996 if we're talking abt my beloved Boro.

[10]: As both Freakonomics and SuperFreakonomics might have implied, unintentional consequences tend to go beyond whatever foresight and results we human beings are capable of otherwise.

[11]: To further paraphrase this...

[12]: On an unrelated note, I remembered Cyrgon asking Sparhawk why did he choose to go against him. Sparhawk's answer? Because he only desired a small corner of the world to live in, that Cyrgon was in fact threatening to take away Sparhawk's very own little niche.

[13]: Which reminds me of how terribly pear shaped Fàbregas' stay at Camp Nou went. Well, at least he nvr emulated Luís "not Suárez" Figo. That'd be utterly hard to stomach esp if Los Blancos end up pulling off this.

Forgot to add this, need to have Impossibru...

El Estratega: Diez

Recently, I realised two funny things abt FB.
The first thing is "what in the blue hell is the whole 'sharing w/friends of friends' system?"
The second thing is "why in the blue hell am I seeing my name listed together w/those 1.7 million+ FB'ers liking Park Shin-hye's FB page?"

Ultimately, I can only deduce two conclusions.
1. That American Jew has too much free time to burn.
2. Either someone I don't know got too much free time to burn or I got too much free time to burn w/o realising it.

Who you're gonna call?

汉三年，项羽急围汉王荥阳，汉王恐忧，与郦食其谋桡楚权。食其曰：“昔汤伐桀，封其后于杞。武王伐纣，封其后于宋。今秦失德弃义，侵伐诸侯社稷，灭六国之后，使无立锥之地。陛下诚能复立六国后世，毕已受印，此其君臣百姓必皆戴陛下之德，莫不乡风慕义，愿为臣妾。德义已行，陛下南乡称霸，楚必敛衽而朝。”

汉王曰：“善。趣刻印，先生因行佩之矣。”

食其未行，张良从外来谒。汉王方食，曰：“子房前！客有为我计桡楚权者。”

其以郦生语告，曰：“于子房何如？”

良曰：“谁为陛下画此计者？陛下事去矣。”

汉王曰：“何哉？”

张良对曰：“臣请藉前箸为大王筹之。”

曰：“昔者汤伐桀而封其后于杞者，度能制桀之死命也。今陛下能制项籍之死命乎？”

曰：“未能也。”

“其不可一也。武王伐纣封其后于宋者，度能得纣之头也。今陛下能得项籍之头乎？”

曰：“未能也。”

“其不可二也。武王入殷，表商容之闾，释箕子之拘，封比干之墓。今陛下能封圣人之墓，表贤者之闾，式智者之门乎？”

曰：“未能也。”

“其不可三也。发巨桥之粟，散鹿台之钱，以赐贫穷。今陛下能散府库以赐贫穷乎？”

曰：“未能也。”

“其不可四矣。殷事已毕，偃革为轩，倒置干戈，覆以虎皮，以示天下不复用兵。今陛下能偃武行文，不复用兵乎？”

曰：“未能也。”

“其不可五矣。休马华山之阳，示以无所为。今陛下能休马无所用乎？”

曰：“未能也。”

“其不可六矣。放牛桃林之阴，以示不复输积。今陛下能放牛不复输积乎？”

曰：“未能也。”

“其不可七矣。且天下游士离其亲戚，弃坟墓，去故旧，从陛下游者，徒欲日夜望咫尺之地。今复六国，立韩、魏、燕、赵、齐、楚之后，天下游士各归事其主，从其亲戚，反其故旧坟墓，陛下与谁取天下乎？其不可八矣。且夫楚唯无强，六国立者复桡而从之，陛下焉得而臣之？诚用客之谋，陛下事去矣。”

汉王辍食吐哺，骂曰：“竖儒，几败而公事！”

令趣销印。

《史记; 留侯世家》

司马迁著

Trans:
During the third year of Han, the King of Xiang launched an immediate siege against the King of Han at Xianyang. Filled with fear, the King of Han sought Li Yiji's counsel in a bid to undermine the enemy's power. Yiji advised: "During the ancient times when (Shang) Tang declared war on (Xia) Jie, the former honoured the Xia loyalists at Qi. Likewise when the Wu King attacked the Zhou (regime), he also honoured the enemy loyalists at Song. The regime of Qin was deprived of integrity, attacking worthy men serving their respective masters. Hence after destroying the other six states (i.e. Qi, Chu, Yan, Han, Zhao, Wei), none were left to carry on the legacy of those vanquished. Why not honour the descendants of the remaining six states? The civilians together with the nobility will then pledge allegiance unto Your Majesty. After displaying magnanimity, Your Majesty can consolidate power at Nanxiang. By then, the Chu will submit willingly."

The King of Han replied: "A good proposal. Take my seal and do what you need to do!"

Before Yiji managed to set off, Zhang Liang entered to pay his respects. The King of Han was having his meal during then. He then called out: "Zifang! Someone has given me good advice on how to undermine our enemy!"

After explaining Yiji's proposal, the King of Han then inquired: "How does Zifang think of this?"

《Annals of History: Marquis of Liu》

Written by Sima Qian

Analysis:

I'll stop here temporarily. Firstly, the whole hoo-ha was down to Xiang Yu declaring siege war on Liu Bang at Xianyang. Basically, it means Liu Bang managed to get himself into the ex-capital of the ex-regime. Knowing what kind of person is Xiang Yu, should it be surprising to know his reaction? Xianyang wasn't just the capital of the now defunct Qin dynasty, above all it's also the most damning evidence pointing the Chu faction as one bossed by a despot. Lest we do not know, when Xiang Yu entered Xianyang, he basically did two things.

1. Executing the Crown Prince Ziying. [1]

2. Allowing his men to loot the city. [2]

Li Yiji's proposal basically makes major sense due to Xiang Yu's repute being no diff from the two famous despots before Qin, namely the Jie King of Xia and Zhou King of Shang. Ironically, the former's demise actually brought about the latter's dynasty. [3] Therefore, surely what the Tang King of Shang and Wu King of Zhou had done should work equally well for the Liu King of Han, no?

We must know that Xiang Yu's vassals were quintessentially descendants hailing from the other six warring states annihilated by Qin prior to its namesake dynasty. By being Han d'Generous cum lauded d'Goodman [4], the both commoners and nobles serving under the Chu banner would surely flock under the new banner of Liu Bang's new world order!

When we say a hungry man is an angry man, we must also understand that a happy man is an eating man. When it comes to food and glorious food, there's no diff between Austin Powers and Fat Bastard. [5] So imagine the kind of feeling Liu bang was having while eating in peace.

Now it must be said that I'm a certified neutral in K-drama, but Zhang Liang's coincidental appearance do seem a bit like the female lead getting herself into trouble w/o knowing it, after which that main flower hero next door decided to pop in and say hi. As a result, that guy managed to save the girl from getting raped.

Upon seeing his boss' ignorantly blissful face, I guess Zhang Liang must be wondering why this particular scenario feels so ominous.

Ofc w/Liu Bang being Liu Bang, quite obviously he'd want to share his joy w/his friends. I mean if I manage to get a gf who happened to be rich, pretty, and intelligent, surely I'll do so as well, no? Check this out, peeps.

良曰：“谁为陛下画此计者？陛下事去矣。”

汉王曰：“何哉？”

良曰：

Let us see, then, why Zhang Liang saw the potential success behind Yiji's proposal as nothing more than Taylor Swift getting a 100% steady boyfriend by this Christmas.

曰：“昔者汤伐桀而封其后于杞者，度能制桀之死命也。今陛下能制项籍之死命乎？”

曰：“未能也。”

This was Zhang Liang mentioning the Tang King of Shang attacking the last Emperor of Xia with Liu Bang giving his most self-damning answer. We must understand that the act of honouring the Xia loyalists only took place AFTER defeating the actual head honcho mentioned. By asking whether Liu Bang was able to take down Xiang Yu ala how Nightcrawler actually took down Exodus, it's a bit like...

Me: Do you think our cubs can hold fort against teams hell bent in playing ball forward? I don't mean at 0-0, but something like 2-0 down like that...

Stange: Erm... not so confident lah.

Above skit has got nothing to do w/whether I'll earn a free trip to Incheon based on free merit. Rather, Liu Bang's reply was merely a case of "not sure if I can win or not."

 “其不可一也。武王伐纣封其后于宋者，度能得纣之头也。今陛下能得项籍之头乎？”

曰：“未能也。”

Jialat... one kosong down, so how? As if dissing not enough, Zhang Liang decided to reiterate the point that #TeamHan sucks. By invoking the King Wu of Zhou's example of honouring the Shang loyalists, we're seeing Zhang Liang beating his boss repeatedly w/a historical two-by-four. [6] Quite a bit like...

Me: Do you think we can pull one over Brendan Rodgers at Anfield later on?
Karanka: I'm not really confident of that...

“其不可二也。武王入殷，表商容之闾，释箕子之拘，封比干之墓。今陛下能封圣人之墓，表贤者之闾，式智者之门乎？”

曰：“未能也。”

I dunno whether Zhang Liang alrdy got gf by then or not, but if so, I suspect she must be his mentor's grand daughter. [7] Maybe that's why he mentioned King Wu of Zhou again.
By honouring an enemy vassal's household (i.e. Shang Rong), it's like Taylor Swift composing a song praising Harry Styles.
By releasing the enemy's son, it's like O Especial seeing his next match against Le Professeur as a dead rubber 90 mins run out.
By honouring the grave of a deceased loyal vassal (i.e. Bi Gan), it's like us winning that most lucrative 90 mins in modern football, after which there's a post-match press conference to attend.

Karanka: We got promoted and we deserved the win. However, Derby was a worthy opponent. I believe the fans shouldn't forget what Steve (McClaren) has done for this proud football club.

Can Liu Bang truly do what King Wu of Zhou had done? Liu Bang might be a scoundrel enjoying fine wine and the company of women thrice finer, but at least he's humble enough to recognise this before his finest servant.

To be cont'd...
...b/c even a genius needs zzzzzzzzzzz...

[1]: In short, this guy surrendered already, but still kill him.

[2]: In short, you're free to kop lui and hong chiobu.

[3]: However, it must also be noted that you don't happen to destroy any given dynasty within a few years unless we're talking abt terrorist dynasty.

[4]: Wah piang eh... damn cumbersome title siah...

[5]: Or even Godzilla for that matter...

[6]: And to think imagining yourself getting beat w/this is alrdy painful enough, let alone imagining Triple H being that proverbial Excellence of Execution.

[7]: http://unanswered-bloke-works.blogspot.com/2014/07/el-estratega-tres.html

P.S: Feel like adding this 4 teh lolz!

El Estratega: Nueve

It's been quite a topsy turvy past few days for me. On one hand, you're dealing with the unfamiliar territory where your team needs the international break as a tactical break. As if it's not enough, we got the world' greatest hackbang. If you think Annabel "not Lez Ann" Chong was crazy enough to do 300 blokes or so, surely there has to be someone batshit guano loco enough to do the entire 4chan. Don't understand me, never mind. They say misunderstood people tend to be either 100% sheer spastic or 100% pure genius.

Before I (re)start, here's a bit of imagery comparison...

As Nightcrawler famously said in Marvel Heroes...

"Let the show begin!"

[汉元年正月，沛公为汉王，王巴蜀。汉王赐良金百镒，珠二斗，良具以献项伯。汉王亦因令良厚遗项伯，使请汉中地。项王乃许之，遂得汉中地。汉王之国，良送至褒中，遣良归韩。良因说汉王曰：“王何不烧绝所过栈道，示天下无还心，以固项王意。”

乃使良还。行，烧绝栈道。]

《史记; 留侯世家》

司马迁著

Trans:

[During the first year of Han, the Duke of Pei became the King of Han, ruler of Bashu. The King of Han paid tribute amounting to one hundred gold coins and two measures of pearls. Acting on behest of his liege's orders, Liang offered these gifts to Xiang Bo. Upon requesting for the land of Han, the King of Xiang agreed to this proposal. After escorting the King of Han till Baozhong, Liang was sent back to Han.

Liang advised the King of Han: "Why not m'lord burn off all the bridges passing through, so that all will believe you have no wish to return? Via this message, the King of Xiang will be convinced of such."

Afterwards, Liang was sent away with all the bridges burnt soon after.]

《Annals of History: Marquis of Liu》

Written by Sima Qian

Analysis:

Continuing where we left off previously, allow me to rectify a common misconception on the correct Han. Whenever PRCs call themselves the Han people, it's a reference to history. Ethnicity has got nothing to do with this since the original residents of Han were anything but Chinese. Sounds confusing? Do not fret.

Just like America in the beginning wasn't populated by white Americans, likewise the land of Han in the beginning wasn't populated by the Han Chinese.

The land of Han in this context is most likely referring to Hanzhong plus the surrounding area of Ba. Many years later, this very territory would part of the state of Shu. [1] Terrain wise, this was an area easily defensible and difficult to breach. Going by the Law of Inverse Military [2], it also means easily defensible, BUT difficult to launch an attack. If my estimation is spot on, it means there could only be two main routes to advance.

1. Via the Yangtze river flowing east. Liu Bei tried pulling off this stunt in a bid to seek revenge on Sun Quan. As it turned out, the Battle of Xiaoting (better known as the Battle of Yiling) proved to be Liu Bei's military swan song in ways more than just one. [3]

2. Via the northern tip aka Hanzhong. [4]

Route 1 was a no-go as the onus for Liu Bang was to allay whatever suspicions legit.

Route 2 was the only viable path since it's easier to say "ninja" [5], which was why Zhang Liang advised Liu Bang to burn all the bridges.

In Rurouni Kenshin, the notorious villain Shishio Makoto once stated that it takes an assassin to understand an assassin. If I sound guilty of shameful plugging, it's b/c the Kyoto Inferno sub-plot actually got that part in the original manga. [6]

For Zhang Liang's case, it takes a conman to know another conman. Without a doubt, Fan Zeng should AND would have sensed something amiss. Understanding Xiang Yu was alrdy imba enough, having the same lvl of imba INT against Fan Zeng should be seen as 2 x scarier.

Why I said this is b/c of one very simple reason: Zhang Liang was NOT telling Liu Bang to say "I quit!"

Rather, it's giving Xiang Yu the false impression despite Fan Zeng's vehement argument otherwise. Reverse psychology has rarely been so high end b/c we're talking abt nailing 2 targets for the price of 1.

In short, 'tis one thing to claim you have nothing, quite another to prove it beyond doubt. [7]

RL Application

If you are Karanka, what would you do during this entire international break? What's over is alrdy over, no point whining like Ser A.Fergie himself b/c we're not gonna get ourselves into Howard Webb's good little black book. I rather every single process to be done low-profile mode. After all, it's not really bad thing for major sports media caring nothing next to shit abt your team at best.

Interestingly enough...

...nothing is said abt Liu Bang paying bitcoin currency where donating tribute was concerned. Why? Because when you spend, you don't spend virtual currency cursed with 0 value. If you're guilty of crimes like being a pedo or rapist, you do NOT depend on BTC for survival unless you're pretty sure all those BTC tributes will fetch you a tidy sum of real $$$. Like say... £85.3 million? That plus the Feds are capable of tracking down this kind of childish bullshit anyway...

[良至韩，韩王成以良从汉王故，项王不遣成之国，从与俱东。良说项王曰：“汉王烧绝栈道，无还心矣。”

乃以齐王田荣反，书告项王。项王以此无西忧汉心，而发兵北击齐。]

《史记; 留侯世家》

司马迁著

Trans:
[Upon reaching Han, the King of Xiang refused to allow Liang to return (back to his home country) due to his ties with the King of Han. Instead, Liang had to follow Xiang Yu eastbound. Liang said to the King of Xiang: "The King of Han has burnt all the bridges, hence showing his sincerity in not returning."

At the same time, he informed the King of Xiang about Tian Rong's rebellion. Therefore, the King of Xiang decided to ignore the land of Han while deploying his troops up north against the vassal state of Qi.]

《Annals of History: Marquis of Liu》

Written by Sima Qian

Analysis:

As it turned out, Xiang Yu remained distrustful of Zhang Liang. And why shouldn't he? After all, whatever suspicion against Liu Bang has never been your classic schoolyard bullying culture where forgive+forget is the only enforced golden rule.

Interestingly, Zhang Liang only told Xiang Yu the most damning truth after seeing through Xiang Yu's intent. By disallowing Zhang Liang to return back where he really belonged, Xiang Yu was exhibiting a sense of distrust 100% warranted. On the other hand, Zhang Liang saw through such a situation, hence stashing that proverbial ace in his sleeve beforehand.

Coincidentally, the King of Qi back then also decided to declare vassal independence. To Xiang Yu, this was no different from declaring rebellion. You see, vassal states back then were equally valuable to your everyday global politics. Inter-state diplomacy was quintessentially a coalition government boasting one common goal. Unfortunately (and quite naturally), differences are bound to get out of hand if we're talking abt coalition government. Ditto for inter-state diplomacy under one head honcho. For Xiang Yu, bumping off that troublesome son of a bitch=only priority. After all, no one was able to convince him that Liu Bang should be that greater threat. Either that or nobody even ****ing bothered doing so.

RL parallel

This really feels like the whole under-reported 4chan fallout due to 101-gate itself. Like Xiang Yu's merry castle of cards, it seems that infighting aplenty will plague the board for quite a while. Actually come to think of it, who's really that son of a bitch Tian Rong? Those who disseminate or those who dissent? Or maybe there can only be 1 Tian Rong and he's somewhere laughing at 101-gate plus 4chan-gate.

In footballing speak, it means...

No player is bigger than the team. Recruiting too many new players might actually have a desirable effect in this very context.

To quote Tony Stark in Marvel Heroes...

"That was money well spent."

[项王竟不肯遣韩王，乃以为侯，又杀之彭城。良亡，间行归汉王，汉王亦已还定三秦矣。复以良为成信侯，从东击楚。至彭城，汉败而还。至下邑，汉王下马踞鞍而问曰：“吾欲捐关以东等弃之，谁可与共功者？”良进曰：“九江王黥布，楚枭将，与项王有郄；彭越与齐王田荣反梁地：此两人可急使。而汉王之将独韩信可属大事，当一面。即欲捐之，捐之此三人，则楚可破也。”

汉王乃遣随何说九江王布，而使人连彭越。及魏王豹反，使韩信将兵击之，因举燕、代、齐、赵。然卒破楚者，此三人力也。

张良多病，未尝特将也，常为画策，时时从汉王。]

《史记; 留侯世家》

司马迁著

Trans:

[However, the King of Xiang refused to deploy the King of Han. After making him a marquis, he (Xiang Yu) ordered him (the King of Han) to be executed at the city of Peng. Liang was forced to flee, after which he returned back to the King of Han (i.e. Liu Bang). By then the King of Han had already defeated the three generals of Qin (i.e. Zhang Han, Sima Xin, and Dong Yi). Making Liang the Marquis of Chengxing (trans: Chengxing roughly means success [Cheng] and integrity [Xing]), they attacked the lands of Chu from the east. Upon reaching the city of Peng, the Han army were defeated. Retreating till Xiayi, the King of Han dismounted himself and asked: "It's my wish to cede the land east of the pass. Who then can I give this territory?"

Liang replied: "The King of Jiujiang, Qing Bu, is a fierce general under Chu. Yet, there are already cracks in his relationship with the King of Xiang. Peng Yue and the King of Qi, Tian Rong, has staged their rebellion in the land of Liang. These two generals can also be persuaded as a short term measure. Yet, only m'lord's general, Han Xin, can be trusted with major affairs. Since you have desired to cede the land, you must cede it to those three (i.e. Qing Bu, Peng Yue, and Tian Rong). Once you do so, the forces of Chu can be defeated."

Hence the King of Han sent an envoy (i.e. Sui He per recorded in Qing Bu's account) to persuade Bu while doing the same for Peng Yue. At the same time, the King of Wei, Bao, declared rebellion (against Liu Bang). As a result, Han Xin was sent to quell the uprising due to the states of Yan, Dai, Qi and Zhao following suit. However, it was those three (i.e. Han Xin, Qing Bu, and Peng Yue) who were responsible for the defeat of Chu.

Zhang Liang was know to be frail in health, hence never fighting a battle. As the chief planner, he always followed the King of Han.]

《Annals of History: Marquis of Liu》

Written by Sima Qian

Analysis:

One thing of note before I continue-Tian Rong got KIA [8] halfway through. With that being said though, that was only after Zhang Liang made the bribery proposal to his boss. At that time (i.e. Liu Bang getting arse beat at city of Peng), the Han army was at its all time low. Sounds eerily familiar? Depending on your club allegiance, this can either mean Man Utd or Middlesbrough. Since I'm El Bastardo Locales himself, it means Middlesbrough shocking form thus far.

Like Louis "van Goal" van Gaal, Karanka has also spent quite a hefty bag of northern quids. Unlike Man Utd, however, we're actually facing a somewhat massive turnover. They say desperate circumstances call for desperate measures. Enlisting the aid of the Three Bandidos was something of a super desperation move, but boy did it work wonders.

Telling Liu Bang to cede his hard earned lands to those whom he'd rather piss on is just like telling Tom Cruise to do this:

Yet, Liu Bang had no qualms doing so!

Why?

Because Zhang Liang said so.

This is no different from Guo Jia knowing Cao Cao, Zhou Yu being close to Sun Ce, or Fa Zheng understanding Liu Bei. Indeed Zhang Liang understood Liu Bang 100% just like how he knew each and every individual he had observed.

If you ever want to be Karanka's field strategist, surely you'll have to possess the same nature of knowledge complete with the exact extent, no?

Okay, I'm digressing here.

Liu Bang's final decision is just like the West telling Iran and Syria that...

"Hey, why not be friends since we got a common enemy somewhere near your backyard? You allow us to arm the Kurds with any weapons, but chem and nukes. In return, we allow you to bomb North Korea. Deal?"

Ofc that's NOT gonna happen. I mean, can you imagine the Feds and Anonymous cooperating to deal with whoever is that OriginalGun? Okay, I admit that joke is wee bit too far. My apologies if Anonymous are truly pissed off at the OriginalGuy for making a fool out of 4chan since I truly doubt OriginalGuy is never part of 4chan. Let alone being a man of net integrity.

Meanwhile at somewhere not so far flung, Wei Bao decided to stir up his own shit and fling it at his ex-boss. They say those capable of screwing you the hardest tend to be those knowing you the best. Or at least those capable of screwing you big time tend to be those knowing you quite well. [9]

Per expected by Zhang Liang, only Han Xin waas capable of major affairs in war. After all, do we expect Liu Bang to trust the likes of Qing Bu, Peng Yue, and Tian Rong when it comes to this kind of thing? Their beef was with their ex-boss, NOT their current boss.

It's just like Man City vs Arsenal. Do you expect Samir "not Nazri Nasir" Nasri to say "**** Deschamps!" unless it's a case of wrong identity?

Hello! This lad is a footballer, not some local 369 or foreign sah-lak-kow, okay????!!!!

In short, two factors apply for Han Xin here.

1. His ability as the bastard child of Ares

2. His status as the bastard subject of Liu Bang [10]

To be cont'd... b/c I need dinner and zzzzz liao...

[1]: Or better known as Liu Bei's base.

[2]: You are only allowed to quote me whenever mentioning this term. Don't even try bothering web search engines since I can guarantee you plenty of pr0n, but NO such term.

[3]: http://unanswered-bloke-works.blogspot.com/2012/11/dude-wheres-my-war.html

[4]: Don't quote me on whether Hanzhong truly existed as a name back then.

[5]: Unrelated to ninja, but it must be stressed home that you don't travel rough terrain like this.

[6]: Haven't seen movie yet, but heard the song alrdy.

[7]: Inversely speaking, you can also easily bluff the other party via the vice versa method.

[8]: KIA=/=that Korean car brand, but rather=Killed In Action

[9]: Due to potential implications caused by the content of this post, I'm not insinuating any revenge pr0n agenda. And neither am I implying the hackjob was an inside job since the crux is all about the extent of understanding the infrastructure BEFORE whatever planning done.

[10]: This is no joke b/c he actually angered Liu Bang by demanding to be made the King of Qi. Employees, please take note. The fact that you work for S.A.L.T Entertainment doesn't mean you have the right to demand a romantic date with Park Shin-hye. Ofc as it turned out, Han Xin actually became the King of Qi at the cost of his life N years later.