Asking for help after a long fall from grace.
I’m not the type to ask for help. I’ve never actually needed help until now. But after a long fall from grace, it’s time to put my pride aside and ask for help.
When I was 17, I joined the US Army. I didn’t join to serve my country or any other patriotic reason, I joined because I came from a super poor family, and I knew that I wanted better for myself. And boy did I get it! I traveled the world, and on my 2nd tour in Iraq, ended up severely injured, and ended up getting out on a medical discharge. I was last stationed at Fort Knox in Kentucky, and I liked the area so much I decided to stay. With no idea what to do with the rest of my life, I started looking into joining the medical field. I became a CNA. It didn’t take long for me to realize that I was working too hard for too little money, especially since I already had a bad back injury. So I used my GI Bill and went to college. Eventually, I ended up with a Masters in Nursing. Took 5 years, but was definitely worth it. I ended up moving to New York and stayed up there for about 12 years. I made amazing money, and had a great life. If there was something I wanted, I bought it. I went on vacations, cruises, had several vehicles I paid cash for, and owned a beautiful home that was paid for. I shared my wealth when able. If someone needed help, I’ve always done what I could. I worked as a Director of Nursing in a hospital up there. When Covid hit, I was one of the first to volunteer to go to NYC to help on the front lines. I loved my job and helping other people. One day at work, I hit my head on a metal box that was mounted to the wall. I was sent for a MRI. The doctors found a lesion on my brain, unrelated to me hitting my head. A few months passed, and I started experiencing some intermittent confusion, and extreme fatigue. Then the pain started. It would hurt my feet and legs so bad to walk, that I could barely stand. I started seeing a neurologist. After tons of testing, a spinal tap, MRIs, you name it, I was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis. I was supposed to go to the neurologist to get started on something for it the following Monday morning, but tragedy struck that Saturday night when my entire house burned to the ground while I was at the grocery store. The entire house was a total loss. Not being from New York, I had no family to stay with, and ended up having to move back to North Carolina with family. After getting here, my MS progression sped up. I started seeing a neurologist here, and was told that my MS is the Primary Progressive type, which is bad news. Unable to work, I filed for Social Security Disability. A year passed, during which I used up all my savings, and ended up moving in with my mom. They denied my claim without ever obtaining my medical records from New York. I submitted an appeal, and they denied that as well, without ever getting all my medical records. So I collected all my medical records myself, and contacted a lawyer. I have a hearing coming up, and I will be approved once I see a judge solely based on my rapid decline since applying. I can’t walk without crutches anymore. I can’t control my bladder, the fatigue has gotten so bad that I can sleep 16 hours without a problem. Now, I’m always in severe pain because I’ve got neuropathy throughout both feet, legs, hands, and arms. I’m going blind. My feet are contracted and I wear special shoes and see a specialist just for that. My pancreas decided to stop functioning right, and I have a insulin pump now, with a implant that monitors my sugar every minute and makes sure I don’t drop or spike. I see a specialist for that as well. On top of that, I’ve got rheumatoid arthritis, so my joints and bones are affected, while the MS screws with my muscles. I have severe muscle cramps and spasms all the time. And they hurt. Bad. The muscles in my legs are atrophied to the point where I have no reflexes anymore. As I said, it’s been a long fall from grace for me to end up here. I went from having everything, including great health, to having nothing and being completely crippled in 3 years. All while waiting for disability to approve me and pay out. They now owe me 2 full years of backpay. I qualify for full benefits from the Army, and I have more than enough work credits for fill retirement. But I still haven’t worked or had any income since I’m unable to. I’ve been basically living off my mom, who is also disabled and can barely take care of herself. Food stamps helps with food a little, but it never lasts all month. I have medications that I have to have and even with Medicaid, I still have a copay. I’ve borrowed from everyone I can, which isn’t much because as I said above, I came from a very poor family, and even though that had changed for me, it didn’t change for them. I’m right back where I started.
I typed all this to show that I am a actual person, with a legitimate reason for being in this situation. There’s nothing I can do about it at this moment, except ask for help. If there’s anything you can do to help, please message me. If you can donate anything, anything at all to help, I’d appreciate it more than you know. Transportation to appointments, medication copays, food, things needed to survive, are all too expensive for someone with nothing.
My Cashapp Cashtag is: @DimebagDesigns
Feel free to message me if you want to talk or have any questions.
And thank for reading my long post.

Hi everyone,
So I’m a Tasmanian who has been living on the mainland for close to 12 years. Now I’m considering moving back to Hobart. Key questions I have (and was hoping you might be able to help me out) are: - child care costs - what are people paying per day for children under 2? - how easy is it to get into child care? We would be based in Moonah area - schools - is it easy to enrol kids in the school you want? Have heard some stories about the Catholic primary schools being very tricky to get into!
Any advice would be welcomed! Thanks everyone 😊

One week ago, late at night on 5/19, I finally agreed to be taken to the L&D ER to get some IV fluids and testing since me, my husband, and our 20-month-old daughter had been fighting some kind of virus for a week (fevers, chills, sore throat, body aches). I had been having strong contractions since Mother’s Day (5/14) and being sick on top of that was absolute hell on earth. I was seen in the ER on Mother’s Day, but since I didn’t dilate past 1cm in 5 hours, they sent me home.
My mom took me in to be seen while my husband stayed home with our daughter. They got me hooked up to an IV and gave me some Tylenol to bring down my fever. They swabbed me for Covid/flu which both came back negative. I was still running a fever a couple hours later, and when they rechecked my cervix, I was almost 3 cm. They called my OB, who by some miracle was still on call for a few more hours, and she told them to get me ready for a 5am c-section. It was 3:40 am. I had a c-section scheduled for 39 weeks, and I was exactly 38 weeks. I had a history of a tear where the stitches came apart and I had to have surgery to get reinforced, industrial strength stitches. I also have prolapsed hemorrhoids, so between these two factors, my OB and I thought it best to have a primary c-section this time.
My mom rushed down the street to our house to wake my husband up and stay there with our daughter. We were both in shock that it was go-time and we would shortly be meeting our boy. I was so nervous, I threw up multiple times and had a small panic attack as they prepped me to go to the OR. They got me the spinal block and slowly I felt everything go numb. After some more puking and lots of moaning from the pressure and odd sensations, our boy was born at 5:41 am, weighing 7 lbs, 6 oz, 19 inches long. I heard the doctor call out that there was meconium in the amniotic fluid, and they worked on him to the side to get him to breathe/cry. They assured me he was okay, and soon I got stitched up and held him in my arms.
The next few hours were a blur. I didn’t expect to feel the pain from the incision so quickly, and so strongly. They gave me pain medicine that kept me fading in and out of consciousness. At some point, his breathing became labored and they took him to the NICU. He appeared to be doing better after monitoring him overnight, so they released him back up to the recovery room with me. All seemed to be okay, and for the next 36-ish hours, we got to enjoy being with our sweet baby, getting cuddles and working on breastfeeding. I was alone most of the time, especially at night, because my husband and mom were taking care of my daughter and coming to see me when they could.
Tuesday morning, I woke up to get my son out of his little bed after a sleepless night for both of us. He had been unsettled and crying weakly throughout the night, which I thought was just from gas or being hungry, as he was cluster feeding throughout the night. I picked him up and he was stiff, with an arched back and head cocked to one side. I called the nurse in, but by the time she decided to come, he had seemed to relax and they assured me he was fine. Later that afternoon when my mom was visiting, he did this weird posturing again and I remember saying aloud “look, what is he doing? That doesn’t seem right. I really think something is wrong.” Again, he loosened up and everyone assured me that his tummy must be upset or something minor, and not to overthink it.
Tuesday evening they were getting ready to discharge us. The pediatrician on-call had come by and cleared him to go home. When the nurse did his vital signs ~30 minutes later, he had a fever of 102. They took him to the nursery for blood tests and a chest X-ray. After about 45 minutes, I was thinking ‘this is taking a lot longer than I expected..’ and just then three doctors came in and sat around my bed. They told me that while doing the tests, he had a seizure and was rushed down to the NICU.
My world went blurry and I called my husband frantically to get here now. The next few hours were terrifying. They went to do a lumbar puncture after drawing blood for various tests, and he had another seizure. I now knew that the stiffness I had seen previously were seizures as well. They had him hooked up to an EEG to monitor seizure activity and started him on an anti-seizure medication overnight. They also had to start a feeding tube and oxygen cannula.
My husband and I barely existed overnight as we waited for any answers. We were terrified. The next morning, they were able to successfully perform the lumbar puncture and several other tests. We were told he had enterovirus and rhinovirus, and we’re awaiting the cultures to come back for the bacterial portion of the test. A couple days later, we were hit with the news that the MRI showed viral meningitis encephalitis caused by the viruses he contracted.
At this point, he is stable for the most part: no more noted seizure activity and his fever has seem to have subsided. He is still on oxygen and an NG tube for feeding. We are taking things day by day, hour by hour as he sets the course for us to follow in his recovery. Within a couple of weeks, the goal is to see his dependence on oxygen support slowly decrease enough for him to be able to eat by mouth again, and for him to regulate his temperatures. I want him home so badly with us. I want to hold him without wearing a plastic gown, gloves, and mask and without a million wires and tubes attached to his little body. I want to nurse him.
We will have to see if there will be any long-term damage from the seizures, fevers, and brain swelling, such as hearing loss/deafness, muscle atrophy, and possibly cognitive impairments. No matter what happens, we love and support our boy with all of our hearts.
Existing right now is nearly impossible. Between recovering from the c section, postpartum hormones, bathing, eating, pumping, and taking care of our toddler, I can hardly function. I feel like I’m fumbling around in the pitch black with my arms outstretched, looking for something to guide me. I feel so empty. I just want to see progress or get some kind of encouraging news to help me keep going. One day at a time, I guess. One hour, one minute, one second at a time.

One week ago, late at night on 5/19, I finally agreed to be taken to the L&D ER to get some IV fluids and testing since me, my husband, and our 20-month-old daughter had been fighting some kind of virus for a week (fevers, chills, sore throat, body aches). I had been having strong contractions since Mother’s Day (5/14) and being sick on top of that was absolute hell on earth. I was seen in the ER on Mother’s Day, but since I didn’t dilate past 1cm in 5 hours, they sent me home.
My mom took me in to be seen while my husband stayed home with our daughter. They got me hooked up to an IV and gave me some Tylenol to bring down my fever. They swabbed me for Covid/flu which both came back negative. I was still running a fever a couple hours later, and when they rechecked my cervix, I was almost 3 cm. They called my OB, who by some miracle was still on call for a few more hours, and she told them to get me ready for a 5am c-section. It was 3:40 am. I had a c-section scheduled for 39 weeks, and I was exactly 38 weeks. I had a history of a tear where the stitches came apart and I had to have surgery to get reinforced, industrial strength stitches. I also have prolapsed hemorrhoids, so between these two factors, my OB and I thought it best to have a primary c-section this time.
My mom rushed down the street to our house to wake my husband up and stay there with our daughter. We were both in shock that it was go-time and we would shortly be meeting our boy. I was so nervous, I threw up multiple times and had a small panic attack as they prepped me to go to the OR. They got me the spinal block and slowly I felt everything go numb. After some more puking and lots of moaning from the pressure and odd sensations, our boy was born at 5:41 am, weighing 7 lbs, 6 oz, 19 inches long. I heard the doctor call out that there was meconium in the amniotic fluid, and they worked on him to the side to get him to breathe/cry. They assured me he was okay, and soon I got stitched up and held him in my arms.
The next few hours were a blur. I didn’t expect to feel the pain from the incision so quickly, and so strongly. They gave me pain medicine that kept me fading in and out of consciousness. At some point, his breathing became labored and they took him to the NICU. He appeared to be doing better after monitoring him overnight, so they released him back up to the recovery room with me. All seemed to be okay, and for the next 36-ish hours, we got to enjoy being with our sweet baby, getting cuddles and working on breastfeeding. I was alone most of the time, especially at night, because my husband and mom were taking care of my daughter and coming to see me when they could.
Tuesday morning, I woke up to get my son out of his little bed after a sleepless night for both of us. He had been unsettled and crying weakly throughout the night, which I thought was just from gas or being hungry, as he was cluster feeding throughout the night. I picked him up and he was stiff, with an arched back and head cocked to one side. I called the nurse in, but by the time she decided to come, he had seemed to relax and they assured me he was fine. Later that afternoon when my mom was visiting, he did this weird posturing again and I remember saying aloud “look, what is he doing? That doesn’t seem right. I really think something is wrong.” Again, he loosened up and everyone assured me that his tummy must be upset or something minor, and not to overthink it.
Tuesday evening they were getting ready to discharge us. The pediatrician on-call had come by and cleared him to go home. When the nurse did his vital signs ~30 minutes later, he had a fever of 102. They took him to the nursery for blood tests and a chest X-ray. After about 45 minutes, I was thinking ‘this is taking a lot longer than I expected..’ and just then three doctors came in and sat around my bed. They told me that while doing the tests, he had a seizure and was rushed down to the NICU.
My world went blurry and I called my husband frantically to get here now. The next few hours were terrifying. They went to do a lumbar puncture after drawing blood for various tests, and he had another seizure. I now knew that the stiffness I had seen previously were seizures as well. They had him hooked up to an EEG to monitor seizure activity and started him on an anti-seizure medication overnight. They also had to start a feeding tube and oxygen cannula.
My husband and I barely existed overnight as we waited for any answers. We were terrified. The next morning, they were able to successfully perform the lumbar puncture and several other tests. We were told he had enterovirus and rhinovirus, and we’re awaiting the cultures to come back for the bacterial portion of the test. A couple days later, we were hit with the news that the MRI showed viral meningitis encephalitis caused by the viruses he contracted.
At this point, he is stable for the most part: no more noted seizure activity and his fever has seem to have subsided. He is still on oxygen and an NG tube for feeding. We are taking things day by day, hour by hour as he sets the course for us to follow in his recovery. Within a couple of weeks, the goal is to see his dependence on oxygen support slowly decrease enough for him to be able to eat by mouth again, and for him to regulate his temperatures. I want him home so badly with us. I want to hold him without wearing a plastic gown, gloves, and mask and without a million wires and tubes attached to his little body. I want to nurse him.
We will have to see if there will be any long-term damage from the seizures, fevers, and brain swelling, such as hearing loss/deafness, muscle atrophy, and possibly cognitive impairments. No matter what happens, we love and support our boy with all of our hearts.
Existing right now is nearly impossible. Between recovering from the c section, postpartum hormones, bathing, eating, pumping, and taking care of our toddler, I can hardly function. I feel like I’m fumbling around in the pitch black with my arms outstretched, looking for something to guide me. I feel so empty. I just want to see progress or get some kind of encouraging news to help me keep going. One day at a time, I guess. One hour, one minute, one second at a time.

TW is for mentions of abuse and sexual assault, no intense descriptions.
I spent my 20s bouncing around living situations because my mom died without warning right before my High School graduation. We grew up dirt poor and I found out a few years ago that she was months behind on rent too, but the house was owned by my grandparents or else we would have been homeless.
A little over a decade later, I found out that a cousin had been pulling the strings behind the scenes and manipulated my grandfather to change over his will. I didn't find out about this until everything was all said and done. My college fund was taken as well, since it was in my mom and grandmother's name, so he got control of it. My cousin even got the house I was told in my teens that I would likely inherit.
The ONLY thing that didn't get stolen through elder abuse was an irrevocable trust set up in the early 90s by my grandparents. I'm the beneficary, and a certified financial planner who has been a friend of the family since the 80s is the trustee. Basically, I can't get money out of it on my own, I have to go through her and she's legally obligated to act in my best interests. Apparently, there was SOME money my cousin didn't know about that went into the trust per my grandmother's will. However, I'm no "trust fund baby". I can't go out and buy luxury items let alone rely on the Trust to pay all my living expenses for the rest of my life.
Here's another wonderful kicker: I'm disabled physically and mentally. Autism spectrum, PTSD, generalized anxiety and major depression (likely related to the trauma and distress over the years). I was born with stickler Syndrome, which is a degenerative connective tissue disorder. Marfan and Ehlers Danlos are more well-known but fall under the same general umbrella, but Stickler is basically that your body doesn't produce collagen correctly, leading to bone, heart, vision, and hearing problems varying in degree from person to person.
I already have severe enough joint problems that physical therapy can't fix. I have fissures, cysts, and completely worn down cartilage and I'm only in my early 30's. I can't walk or stand for more than 20 minutes without severe pain and risk of falls, and I'm not supposed to use stairs frequently. Even sitting for more than 4hrs a day with breaks causes pain.
I've also been having neurological issues including 24+hr headaches and week+ long vertigo that seems to crop up randomly (even today, I was staring right at my laptop screen when I suddenly felt like I was drunk for no reason) and am awaiting an appointment for imaging tests and possibly Multiple Sclerosis testing. All of these things- diagnosed and not yet diagnosed combined, primary care doctors and therapists have agreed that I should be on social security and shouldn't exacerbate some of my conditions by continuing to work (unless I can find something that's fully accommodating).
I grew up in PA but bounced all around during my housing instability. The year before Covid, I was put back into housing instability when my housemate could no longer afford her inherited home and had to sell, so I had to leave the first stable and SAFE home I'd had in almost a decade, and my accommodating job as a result. I struggled to find that stability again, and while Covid was the first time I felt like I wasn't under pressure to find that stability immediately (I was living with a friend) it did fuck up my chances of finding employment once things started opening up again. My friend wanted his rec room back and told me I needed to move out (something he says he now regrets doing, but I understand). My only option was to move with an online friend in CA.
That went spectacularly, by which I mean he turned out to be incredibly histrionic and unstable and almost rendered me homeless. Other online friends helped shack me up in a motel and then let me couch crash for a bit. I ended up losing half my stuff including things from my mom and all my art from the past decade, because he kept changing the goalposts on how and when I could come get my stuff, and technically I was living with him off his lease, and didn't want to render him and his 7yo homeless by trying to take legal action.
My partner is one of his former best friends. Former because he's completed disgusted by what was done to me, and has heard a lot of flat-out lies from this person as to what happened. Shit like saying "multiple therapists warned me about him" to make me look like a terrible person, when 1. He only had 1 therapist and she moved out of network 2 months before this went down so he had none. 2. Feeding a patient's negative thoughts about someone based on hearsay and conjecture is a MASSIVE liability and something any therapist worth their salt knows not to do.
I was working night audit at a small hotel from February of last year until December, when I was immediately pulled and put on state disability by my primary care doctor after a fall while I was alone at work. California's state disability aid is based off taxed income, so there's a limit to how long you can use it. Mine runs out July 1st and after that I have no income and can't work. In CALIFORNIA. A lot of our homeless are disabled because it's so impossible to live in this state if you can't work full time.
I will be applying for SSI, but up until last February, I had NO medical records due to not being able to afford health insurance or stay in one place long enough for appointments. I had my PTSD and depression diagnosis, but not even records of my Stickler birth defect. You need ample documentation to apply for Social Security, and with a rare birth defect and specialists often having to be scheduled months in advance, that's not quick and easy task. I'll FINALLY be applying late this summer.
I acknowledge I'm WAY luckier than most people in my situation, because of the Trust, but that's where my current hurdles are. Like I said, I can't just pull from it willy-nilly, which I'm grateful for in some ways as panic-spending might have depleted me a while ago.
Back in April, the Trustee said that I could get a mobile home in a park back home in east PA, up to 75k$ budget. There are homes in that range, but I also have to keep in mind location and lot rent. With SSI being 914$ federally (PA has no state supplement), obviously I can't go for a park with a 800+ lot rent even with assistance programs like SNAP and LIHEAP. PA isn't a rent capped state thanks to a lot of legislators owning rental properties, so landlords can legally increase rent by a hundred per year (and they have). Ever since the housing crisis, mobile home parks have become the affordable option, and some parks have been bought up by corporations who are trying to price out Social Security recipients so they can get more money from people trying to get out of apartment living but who can afford lot rents closer to apartment rent costs.
Today, my top choice home got scooped up, and the Trustee is saying that she would rather I move back and rent so I can go see the mobile homes in person rather than relying on a local friend to do the tour with me on video call. Which, yes, I agree, except...
How the fuck am I supposed to do that when no apartment- independently or company owned- will rent to me when I am not employed and my only source of income is an irrevocable Trust? My credit score is 684 and climbing, I have no debt history, my current housemates can vouch for me in terms of cleanliness, respect, and always paying rent in advance. Even with all that, landlords want things like last two pay stubs, proof of 2-3x rent in stable income, or someone else who has those things to be on the lease with me.
Room rentals? Also borderline impossible. It took me almost half a year to find my current room rental. I have a cat with an ESA letter, but that doesn't allow me past no pets policies in most room rentals. I also got ghosted more than half a dozen times when I was talking with someone about a rental and then informed them I'm transgender, which could be anything, but I'm willing to wager more often than not it was discriminatory. My physical disability also means I can't get anything that requires frequent stair use, like a basement or upper level room rental, or one of the many split-level historic homes that have been converted into the only low-income apartments in the area. There's even apartment buildings so old they don't legally need to have elevators.
Section 811 exists for disabled folks, but county and city housing agency I contacted either doesn't have it, or it requires you to already be in crisis and unhoused. Senior centers can accept up to 20% resident population that's non-elderly but disabled, but either have NYC luxury apartment prices because of the amenities, or a huge buy-in.
I'm just so. Utterly fucking exhausted.
I spent most of my formative adult years just trying to get stability, while spending my formative childhood years in deep poverty with a mother whose mental health was deeply impacted by a stroke she suffered when I was 16 who laid her hands on my throat once, would alternate between being a loving "hip" mom and screaming at me over mundane bullshit, and would constantly tell me that she could have another stroke and die if I upset her. In my housing instability, I've been sexually assaulted, verbally harassed, or just lived with couples who were constantly fighting.
I want a stable and safe home where I'm not at risk of having to move within ten years. Housing in general is ridiculous, but it's like for us disabled folks, unless we have family or a spouse to live with? Not even the housing options meant to keep us from ending up homeless are available.
I already have my plane ticket (fully refundable) back home for September 9th since I had to book early to get a good deal and lock in my cat's registration for the flight.
I'm just worried that even though I have an opportunity a lot of struggling people don't, I won't even be able to get anything.
If I'm being forced to find a rental, it would be a miracle if I find something in time that won't turn me away for having a cat, relying on Trust for income, being queer, or being unable to use stairs.
I don't want to settle for a mobile home, but likewise, I honestly just want safety and stability. I don't care if it's fucking grandma floral wallpaper and 70's bicolour shag carpet everywhere. It's mine, and the Social security administration is going to force me to spend before I hit 2k$ in assets anyway, may as well throw an entire Lowe's at it.
I know this is a lot, and I honestly don't expect anyone to read it, but I'm so fucking tired and I just want stability before I die (of old age or health, since I guess I'm genetically per-disposed to breast cancer and strokes on top of the rest of all this shit).

Whenever someone complains about flying you get a number of counterpoints that sort of ignore the bigger picture, and it's hard to force myself to take into account all the details in one go. So here they are as I see them, many of the counterpoints against flying being overpowered and why I disagree with them.
You may find that not all of them are true in your mind, but disproving one or two of these is not enough proof do do away with the issue.
📒Knocked prone = falling to death
Yikes. People treat this like some sort of Mike drop moment This makes combat extremely swingy. So we go from flying being overpowered to nearly instant death. This almost feels like it's a massive punishment to flying so in all honesty most would not suggest using this type of thing too frequetly at the risk of being accused of specifically targeting that character (you will be). Players might even say that they are fine with it ahead of time. But they rarely hold to that when the time comes.
Additionally, the ways you can limit someone's speed are often specific and limited. It's not like these abilities never appear, but if all the sudden they do then that's going to be a giveaway
That is unless you use it sparingly. But if you do... It will barely be useful anyway.
However, this also assumes that the character in question is both in range and has weak enough saves that can be targeted. Things like nets and bolas in my experience both never see play and are weak... When someone is even in range. 20/60 range for a bola? You're going to be attacking for disadvantage for sure. Might as well shoot a bow. And the save is only 10 strength? Assuming a character with +0 strength modifier and saves, and assuming you are shooting at disadvantage (bolas) you can at max expect to hit half the time and the save with only fail half the time. That's 1/4 chance to actually do anything if you can line up a shot. Just shoot some arrows at the guy.
What about walloping arrows? Firstly, I didn't know those existed until some tried to argue about using them on flying characters. Seeing as I've never seen these used before, I would 100% accuse you of targeting me if you whipped this out on me as a player. Never seen it before and will probably never see it again. It's like it's tailor made for flying characters... Still a DC 10. Maybe you'll get knocked, eventually.
If I'm not mistaken fall damage is 1d6 per 10 feet. If that's the case then a character flying at at level of 15ft above ground isn't in that much danger. That means if they did fall they'd be taking 1d6 fall damage and if you REALLY have to be petty about it then that would be 2d6 at max. The average damage there being 7 damage. Now if you are in the business of cheesing flying characters, they will learn real quick that this is the sweet spot of where to be to avoid any real damage punishment.
You might say that this is really risky at low levels and I would say DUHH. You could die at level one to being spit on by a llama my guy. However, this will be only after your speed reaches zero or after you are knocked prone. If the net result of that is 7 damage the you might as well just shoot at them or throw a rock or something.
Additionally, as you move up the levels this amount of damage is negligible
Lastly, this only solves a part of the problem. It can only really be applied to combat. Anything else and it generally doesn't work
📒Use ranged weapons Oh nah! It's not that simple.
Firstly let's recognize that as of last year only about a third of the monsters in the monster manual and the additional books have ranged options. And for most of them that do, the ranged options are weaker.
Now I know what you're saying: but the DM should snap his magic God of creation fingers to give almost every monster and enemy a longbow, and that the terrasque should magically have access to infinite massive boulders to throw with the exact same pdr as his whopping five melee attacks.
This effects everyone, not just the flying character. The reason so few monsters have decent ranged options is to make them come close and pose a threat personally. To solve this problem, a lot of enemies would need their ranged options added or buffed and they would have to be strong enough to he worth it -- otherwise it's mathematically easier to just jump the characters allies.
Even worse is if we actually give the enemies these buffs. Now all the sudden melee Martial builds are even more garbage than they already are. If ranged attacks have no mathematical opportunity cost to use, there is no reason for enemies to risk hp and such to come into close range.
Do you know who doesn't need melee viability? Casters. BOOM! You've literally made caster comparatively more powerful. most spells are ranged anyway, and some of those ranges are huge even without spell sniper. They probably don't care that much.
The worst issue here is that we now expect the DM to do EVEN MORE work than he already has. This will be one of many excuses to add to the workload of the DM. it certainly won't be the last in this campaign. The goal of running the game isn't just to make a good experience. It's also about doing that without breaking your back needlessly. DMs don't always need to be coached on the million and one ways they can solve a problem. The just need less problems.
📒 weather
Yes. This is an incredible solution that makes sense and isn't hard implemented. I actually love this one except for two issues. Firstly, it's extremely circumstantial. It can't be bad weather all the time, unless you set it up in a really believable way. Additionally, it doesn't work indoors or in caves unless you to some real bending over backwards. For what it's worth though it's a good and easy solution when it applies... Unless you make it subject to an easy save.
📒 Don't ignore strength
This actually helps the issue, however it's not a magic cure all. It also reopens the dialogue on why people ignore strength to begin with. Probably because it... Makes the game more complicated. Still though I think it helps to prevent the flyer from using strength based abilities or carrying things. If he isn't doing much of that, or if he's a caster or has a back like or caravan it largely doesn't matter.
Whole we're on the subject, pray the flying character isn't a caster. Even if you think neither is overpowered, putting two nearly overpowered qualities together won't end in something balanced.
📒But horses are equally useful.
You kiss you mother with that lying mouth? majority of players don't even use horses for obvious reasons. Barely any hp, can't attack on the same turn. Goodness forbid the horse has to make any form of save. Any combat involving a horse of non boss monster variety results in the horse being the first to go down. really easy way to depower an enemy. Where as flying characters can fly until zero hp, a player with a horse only has it until it dies. And that bad boy doesn't respawn like in a video game. And please don't pretend that land travel at high speeds is equally as useful as flying. It is obviously terrain dependant, where a flying person can avoid ground bound obstacles, horsey boy has to go around them, spending however much movement is required. Ground bound traps effect a horse as well. How well can your horse climb? A flying character has perfect climbing skills... Because they are immune to having to do it! Can your horsey boi swim across a surface of water to get to the other side? Probably not better than my wings that can fly across.
📒 Familiars are equally useful
Firstly it's not the same. Maybe nerf those too? Classic example of something many DMs find tedious to work around. Not absolute in it's power, but it is incredibly annoying on a great deal of fronts. Naming some other thing that gets under peoples skin doesn't make them both less problematic. Moreover, flying is still easily worse.
📒 It only solves problems for one character
What ever the hell that means. People behave as if this wasn't immediately apparent. As if other players not having it magically negates it's usefulness? If only one player is playing a class that this overpowered, does that magically discredit it's lack of balance. Why is this argument exclusively used for flying?
Moreover, players not being able to be hit by some things will just put more pressure on those who can.
This also brings up an entirely separate problem that compounds with it. Some players agency is actually too high. That sounds crazy I no know, but many players -- specifically casters -- have so much utility, damage potential, social interaction spells and whatever else, that they can basically just run off on their own and do whatever unchecked. I've seen plenty of occurances of caster players just ditching the rest of the party to do solo mumbo jumbo, solving every problem they come across by snapping their fingers to cast a spell. Fly makes this worse because that's a whole level three spell for free, and increases their incentive to do so because it's costless and doesn't need concentration. Even on a Martial build it further incentives people to go off on their own -- especially if the other players can't follow anyway. People think that the flying player is just going to stand around like an NPC or only go somewhere if the others can follow, when in reality they will fully utilize that moment to become a main character.
📒Narrow spaces People use these arguments all the time, and in theory they make sense. However there aren't mechanics for this. There is no listed wingspan in any flying race. That's a recipe for debate. Because if a player who really, really wants to fly(aka every character that has flight) sees you making these excuses that don't exist in the game then their patience for that will be very very limited.
📒Low ac, can't wear good armor
This has always been funny as an argument. Like heavy armor is just the bestest thing to have graced the table. But it's simply not. Not the best but remember in most cases you will literally be immune to melee, which gives you an incredible EFFECTIVE increase to ac if you stop to think about it. If you are a caster then this is worse. My guy the idea of casters being squishy has always been a lie anyway. Some of them already get decent armor options independent of heavy armor. Casters also get mage armor and shield, and misty step. Their effective ac is great if they are slightly prepared. Add ranged attacks to both of these and you are in a stupendous spot.
📒 All combat takes place indoors or underground.
This is actually categorically untrue. In my personal experience this is actually the opposite. However this is something that ultimately varies tremendously and is therefore not a valid solution. Sometimes it will be that way and sometimes it won't. Moreover, it's not as off all indoors encounter happen just below ceiling level. If the ceiling is 15 feet up fliers can reliably just effectively hang out on the ceiling. And if not, just staying above the space directly behind an ally solves this issue. If the ceiling is lower than 10 feet then this may actually be countered, but it's not a given that it will be.
Not ever indoor or cave dungeon is narrow and cramped. In my experience there have been plenty of open and sprawling spots because worrying about positioning is a massive headache.
I would also like to take this moment to remind everyone that combat is not necessarily the main issue with flying.
📒Casters counter them 1. Casters counter everyone, assuming they have the proper spells. 2. Casting technically isn't that common. 3. Okay, so now nearly all of my encounters must have casters? Often many encounters are centered around circumstance that causes the creatures and their conditions to vary wildly. Now I have to ignore all that just to challenge this one player?
📒 Don't challenge them. Just let them be overpowered.
This has always been silly. Even in a game where players basically demand to be overpowered, this isn't always as universally good as it sounds. I can prove it too... Because all forms of game balance in dnd and otherwise assume this isn't the case. So why are we changing our minds now. Seriously, a game almost entirely designed around combat and exploration, and both of those things are held up by bubblegum and boxtape? Not memorable. Might be fun cheesing the first dozen encounters or puzzles but eventually there will not be anything gained from it. Moreover, not every player even wants that! It might just be one out of four or six.
Moreover I feel like catering to this idea too much is deceptively toxic. Wanting to be powerful is not the same thing as not having a challenge. If a player wants to be strong with zero challenge then that player is low-key being sort is spineless. Play another game, or accept that you might have to think about your actions and your strategies to at least some extent. I run the type of game that if you at least have two braincells and use them you will probably be fine. Only players that have failed at my table or the ones that want excessive handouts. And it's arguments like these that sort of out people for not really wanting to underact with the came. Just circumnavigate it.
📒 This is only a problem at low levels
Also a lie. People say that because wizards get to use the fly spell at level 5 then that means natural flight is only overpowered until they get to do it. Except that's not really how it works.
Casters get the fly SPELL. It takes one level three spell slot minimum, same as fireball. Flying races don't spend any spell slots. Their fuel economy is unrivaled.
Casters get it for ten minutes. Flying races get it literally forever. Their endurance is unparalleled.
Casters have to use their concentration on the spell, and if they get hit they risk losing it just from taking damage. Flying races use no additional action economy, and don't risk falling just from taking damage. They are da biggest bird.
But let's be frank. What is overpowered is not determined based purely on itself. Often times, a specific combination of abilities is what makes it overpowered.
As you know, casters are extremely powerful. Some of them also don't use medium or heavy armor anyway. So there is already synergy here. Most casters have an overwhelming abundance or ranged moves to use. Sounds like it would be useful for something that rarely has adjacent enemies.
Now, nevermind the fact that flying as a racial trait is stronger that having it as a 3rd level spell. But! What if the already unnecessarily powerful wizards chooses the be a flying race? That would mean that they have an infinite 3rd level spell, resoursless, and they can use it to solves problems and avoid damage (both things that their spell list is designed to do) WITHOUT USING SPELL SLOTS OR CONCENTRATION. That's right, that means they can cast another concentration spell, effectively casting two concentration spells at once. There will never be an opportunity cost or major risk to casting fly again.
Wizards normally don't during battle because it costs a 3rd level slot and getting hit might mean you lose it anyway. These are now no longer issues, on top of casting a whole nother spell of concentration if need be.
Now, the overpowered option is even more overpowered.
📒 "Well, I have flying in my party and it's not overpowered because [DM put in significant extra effort adding in a bunch of stuff to stop if from being a solution to every problem]"
This is pretty much an admission that it's overpowered. If I have to warp the entirety of encounter design, level design, and puzzles to account for flying, it's classically overpowered. This is what we call a centralizing force. Generally speaking, features or abilities in a game that overly centralize the meta around stopping them are explicitly overpowered. This is actually the perfect example of a centralizing force in DND. You don't have to be omnipotent to be overpowered. Just excessively more overpowered than you need to be. Having counters is not disproof of being overpowered.
Additionally, anything that drastically expands my work load is overpowered. Deal with it, because I sure won't.
📒We play for fun at my table
You play for DM headaches more like it. We can have fun without breaking the DMs back. Stop advocating for the players so much that you disrespect the DM position
📒Yeah? Well I'm a DM and I have no issues with doing the work. Other DMs are just laszy!
You are an exception. Just because we can do the work doesn't mean we think it's worth it. I am absolutely meticulous enough to run this game. But largely I just don't think it's worth it. And most don't either. That's why there are so few DMs. Because people wag their fingers at the DMs that are reluctant to break their back over everything little ability or spell that the game would be perfectly fine without, the game as a whole suffers.
A few more things to remember:
📘 Your dm is probably in denial if he says this isn't an issue
This happens all the time in my experience. A session could actively be going up in flames and the DM or the player producing the issue will be shrugging their shoulders pretending nothing went wrong. I've seen games reached a screeching halt and be discontinued because of how difficult the players or their abilities were to handle, only to have the DM refuse to acknowledge that, or deny that there mishandling had any effect in the situation. Then I watch them make a new campaign and do it again.
📘Your dm is probably bending over backwards solving the problem. So if you don't encounter this problem, then this is why.
📘 People refuse to consider the amount of additional work for the DM. Even DMs have been conditioned the think this way. This is stupid, and the primary reason we have a DM shortage as it is now.
📘The worst issue here is that this ability seems to interrupt some specific DM styles more than others. This leads to DMs that aren't specifically having their styles countered will not take the issue as seriously. Just like how a DM who wants an adventure designed around a special plague will he annoyed when the paladin starts slapping key characters with lay on hands instead of going to find the plot hook mcguffin or negotiating for a cure.
TLDR: Flying is busted, and the DMs well-being is objectively more valuable than this measly ability. Remove one to maintain the other.
Edit: I love how people say "just ban it and be done with it" like people haven't been cooked and chastised for doing that for years on this sub. Like if you're out of arguments then say so LMAO.

I’m not the type to ask for help. I’ve never actually needed help until now. But after a long fall from grace, it’s time to put my pride aside and ask for help.
When I was 17, I joined the US Army. I didn’t join to serve my country or any other patriotic reason, I joined because I came from a super poor family, and I knew that I wanted better for myself. And boy did I get it! I traveled the world, and on my 2nd tour in Iraq, ended up severely injured, and ended up getting out on a medical discharge. I was last stationed at Fort Knox in Kentucky, and I liked the area so much I decided to stay. With no idea what to do with the rest of my life, I started looking into joining the medical field. I became a CNA. It didn’t take long for me to realize that I was working too hard for too little money, especially since I already had a bad back injury. So I used my GI Bill and went to college. Eventually, I ended up with a Masters in Nursing. Took 5 years, but was definitely worth it. I ended up moving to New York and stayed up there for about 12 years. I made amazing money, and had a great life. If there was something I wanted, I bought it. I went on vacations, cruises, had several vehicles I paid cash for, and owned a beautiful home that was paid for. I shared my wealth when able. If someone needed help, I’ve always done what I could. I worked as a Director of Nursing in a hospital up there. When Covid hit, I was one of the first to volunteer to go to NYC to help on the front lines. I loved my job and helping other people. One day at work, I hit my head on a metal box that was mounted to the wall. I was sent for a MRI. The doctors found a lesion on my brain, unrelated to me hitting my head. A few months passed, and I started experiencing some intermittent confusion, and extreme fatigue. Then the pain started. It would hurt my feet and legs so bad to walk, that I could barely stand. I started seeing a neurologist. After tons of testing, a spinal tap, MRIs, you name it, I was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis. I was supposed to go to the neurologist to get started on something for it the following Monday morning, but tragedy struck that Saturday night when my entire house burned to the ground while I was at the grocery store. The entire house was a total loss. Not being from New York, I had no family to stay with, and ended up having to move back to North Carolina with family. After getting here, my MS progression sped up. I started seeing a neurologist here, and was told that my MS is the Primary Progressive type, which is bad news. Unable to work, I filed for Social Security Disability. A year passed, during which I used up all my savings, and ended up moving in with my mom. They denied my claim without ever obtaining my medical records from New York. I submitted an appeal, and they denied that as well, without ever getting all my medical records. So I collected all my medical records myself, and contacted a lawyer. I have a hearing coming up, and I will be approved once I see a judge solely based on my rapid decline since applying. I can’t walk without crutches anymore. I can’t control my bladder, the fatigue has gotten so bad that I can sleep 16 hours without a problem. Now, I’m always in severe pain because I’ve got neuropathy throughout both feet, legs, hands, and arms. I’m going blind. My feet are contracted and I wear special shoes and see a specialist just for that. My pancreas decided to stop functioning right, and I have a insulin pump now, with a implant that monitors my sugar every minute and makes sure I don’t drop or spike. I see a specialist for that as well. On top of that, I’ve got rheumatoid arthritis, so my joints and bones are affected, while the MS screws with my muscles. I have severe muscle cramps and spasms all the time. And they hurt. Bad. The muscles in my legs are atrophied to the point where I have no reflexes anymore. As I said, it’s been a long fall from grace for me to end up here. I went from having everything, including great health, to having nothing and being completely crippled in 3 years. All while waiting for disability to approve me and pay out. They now owe me 2 full years of backpay. I qualify for full benefits from the Army, and I have more than enough work credits for fill retirement. But I still haven’t worked or had any income since I’m unable to. I’ve been basically living off my mom, who is also disabled and can barely take care of herself. Food stamps helps with food a little, but it never lasts all month. I have medications that I have to have and even with Medicaid, I still have a copay. I’ve borrowed from everyone I can, which isn’t much because as I said above, I came from a very poor family, and even though that had changed for me, it didn’t change for them. I’m right back where I started.
I typed all this to show that I am a actual person, with a legitimate reason for being in this situation. There’s nothing I can do about it at this moment, except ask for help. If there’s anything you can do to help, please message me. If you can donate anything, anything at all to help, I’d appreciate it more than you know. Transportation to appointments, medication copays, food, things needed to survive, are all too expensive for someone with nothing.
My Cashapp Cashtag is: @DimebagDesigns
Feel free to message me if you want to talk or have any questions.
And thank for reading my long post.

I rested my chin on the palm of my hand, overlooking the serene, green scenery of the rice fields outside of my classroom. The mountains stood tall and unmoving from afar, dividing the clouds that pass through its summit. I sigh in relaxation, appreciating the peaceful surroundings that one cannot find in the cities.
I snapped out of my quiet trance as a small truck carrying hay passed by the road, and I once again noticed the faint yet consistent mashes of buttons coming from my only friend in the province. Since our teacher announced that she had to leave class early, leaving us in class for the rest of our last period today, my friend over to my right has been playing the newly released game nonstop. The new MMORPG game, Alterra.
My blonde-haired friend Hirato was playing on a portable gaming console. His back has been arched towards the console for the past 15 minutes, his eyes are practically glued to the console’s screen. I inched my seat toward him to take a closer look. He was trying to defeat a monster resembling a three-headed snake—a Hydra. His character’s health was one hit away from hitting zero, but the Hydra was practically undamaged.
“Hey, Hirato,” I called him. “How long are you going to play that game?”
“Awww, I died!” He says exasperatedly, leaning back on his chair in annoyance. “I’ve been trying to beat this boss since yesterday and there’s no luck at all! I even have my gear maxed out for this level, and still...”
Hirato continued speaking as he packed his console into his backpack, “I wouldn’t have any problem at all had you continued playing video games with me. You could help me beat the boss, you know."
Then, Hirato started to make some "drama" in a weird, playful manner. "Come on, Naruki! We were best buddies since we were kids! Whatever must have happened between us, my best friend?” The bell rings across the school building, indicating the end of classes for the day. At the same time, I made a disgusted look at him after saying something corny that must have come from some TV show.
“Stop it with that little skit of yours. We are still best buddies, but I’ve grown up from playing games. Remember, we’re going to college next year and I’ve been preparing for it ever since.” I grabbed my bag from beneath my seat, and just as I stood up, the wooden plank I stood on creaked.
"That's not true, and there's no way you'll pass up on an MMORPG like Alterra! There's no way you stopped playing just for college." Hirato claimed, but he quickly switched into a pondering tone. “Though you made me think about college. You want to go to Tokyo University from what I recall, but I thought you were tired of the city because it’s too crowded there?” He asked.
“It’ll give me a greater chance to get hired for a job with a high salary. My dad also said that it takes some time to get used to the city when I’ve been living all my life in the rice fields.” I ignored Hirato's first statement--but it's true. There's no way I can quit gaming, so I lied to him about it, but I also don't want to take precious time off when I'm studying for a test that will literally decide my future.
“You’re already thinking of your future far ahead.”
“Well, do you want to stay in this school?”
As I took another step towards the door, the wood plank creaked again, filling the short silence in Hirato’s pause.
“...You make a point.” He uttered in agreement.
My school was a single-story building with multiple rooms, occupied by a few students in different grades. To add, we were also the only third-year high school students in the school. Everything here is made of thin wood and paper, and the wooden flooring creaked ever so often that if we step on it the wrong way, it might literally collapse the floor. This building was so old that I’d be having a family reunion with the souls of my family from five generations ago every school day.
The cool breeze of the late afternoon blew toward us as we made our way to the paved dirt road.
"By the way, Hirato."
"Hm?"
"I lied. I'm actually playing Alterra. Since it released."
"Wha-- Then why won't you play co-op with me?!" Hirato was almost screaming in my face, taken aback by my lie.
"Because you're stupid. Why would you cast "Damage Reflect" on Hydra's one-turn kill when you're barely alive? Plus, it won't even damage the Hydra because the game recognizes the reflected damage as an effect, and the boss is immune to any effect."
"Urgh... Watch me beat that Hydra tomorrow, you'll regret not playing with me!"
"Do your best, Hirato. See you tomorrow," I sarcastically said to him as I watched my best friend run to his home, probably excited to try out what I just said. After all, I'm way past his level, so I can't even play with him without ruining his casual experience. It's time to go home for me as well, but the next bus stop is an hour from now. Maybe I'll play for a bit while waiting.
It was the scent of fresh air and the quiet atmosphere that separates urban life from rural life. Most people prefer convenience, while the minority prefer peacefulness. I'm part of the latter, but I still want to get a job in the city. Even if I'm still unsure what I wanted to be in the future.
“Hey, you brat!” A faint, old man’s voice screamed from the rice fields beside the paved road. “Watch out, the ground is dangerous there! Didn’t you see the sign?!”
My thoughts were cut off as I heard him shout at me with great urgency. After my eyes dart to the old man, I abruptly turn to see that there was a sign on the side of the road on both sides that said [ENTRY CLOSED]. Why wasn’t there any blockage? But it was my fault for not paying close attention to my surroundings.
“I’m sorry, mister. I didn’t see it earlier.” I apologized in a nonchalant manner, mostly because I still didn't realize the gravity of the situation at this time.
“Let go of your bag. Climb over the fence towards me. Now,” says the man.
While I didn’t know what could be so dangerous about this road that warrants an urgent reaction, I trusted him. But before I could even drop my bag, the ground starts to sink with me in the center.
It was only then that fear started to settle within me. My heart sank from my inability to do anything as my mind tried to process what was happening and what was about to befall. My legs shook from the sinking ground as well, to control my balance. I cannot feel the center of gravity in my feet anymore.
In a desperate attempt to escape from the sinking ground, I jumped, trying to outrun the sinking before I go along with it.
Yet it was too late.
The ground crumbled beneath me, revealing a sinkhole. All the adrenaline in my body surges instantly, slowing down time and making the fall to my imminent death seem like an eternity. The rocks from the ground begin to break apart and fall as if it wants to bury me as well if I wasn't dead yet from the fall.
Strangely enough, I thought that when my time comes, I’ll accept Death and warmly embrace it, but it’s too soon and unfair. My arms are both outstretched to the sunlight above, as my mind screams, “I don’t want to die yet!”
The falling rocks fully cover the sunlight as I fully plunge into the darkness, and along it with me as well. Thankfully with the darkness blinding what seems to be my body being crushed and mutilated by the heavy rocks, it only felt like I fell asleep, never to wake up again.
Good night, world.
My eyes slowly fluttered open to a familiar ceiling; particularly, my bedroom. The dark blue-painted star walls and the transparent curtain were both familiar, yet in front of me was some child using my computer. The window outside is also blindingly bright which made it seem impossible to peek outside.
“Um...” I didn’t know what else to say, so I tried to get the young girl’s attention
“Mhmhm!” A proud, laughing sneer came from the child. Still sitting on my gaming chair, she turned around to face me, her shoulders crossed and an arrogant expression that ticks me off for some reason.
“Welcome to the afterlife, Naruhaya Tabito. I have chosen you to–wait, who the FUCK are you?!” Her arrogant expression transforms into a mix of confusion, panic, and surprise after she opened her eyes.
“I should be the one saying that!” I exclaimed back, but I did not get a response because she quickly turned to the monitor. Upon standing up from my bed, I notice that the sounds of mouse clicking and keyboard pressing were all attributed to her--playing Alterra?
If this was the afterlife... It didn't look too bad. The events that transpired earlier haven’t registered in my mind yet.
“Hey, am I really dead?” I asked her.
The young girl was typing before she exclaimed in panic, “No no no...! You’re really dead! I killed the wrong person!”
“I see.” I didn’t know how to react to my death, but I also didn't feel sad or sentimental. I didn’t have much going on in the real world before I died, after all.
The young girl paused her game as she turned around to face me. “It’s because you aren’t supposed to die! I may have pressed your name accidentally while I was looking for a suitable candidate in the Living Database...” She sighs as she sinks into her chair. “Well, I suppose it’s not that big of a deal.”
The girl stood on the gaming chair, clad in a red-colored robe with a two-pointed hat that almost resembled horns. Her red-toned eyes glinted with the light of the bright window.
“Naruki Haruhito, sit,” With one downward motion of her finger, I immediately felt a strong, compelling force that made me sit on the bed.
“My name is Filya, and I am the Goddess of Creation! Your Creator, and the One Above All!” She introduces herself with her arms crossed. It appears to me that she was trying to act superior and intimidating, but her haughty attitude, matched with her small stature, made it seem like she really was someone’s kid lost in my bedroom who was cosplaying as an anime character.
“You’re a child,” Even at this point in the afterlife, I do not believe her being the world’s creator for a bit.
“Wha–” Filya is taken aback by what I said. “I'm not a child, I'm a goddess! Respect and worship me, you dimwitted mortal, should you desire not to die a second time and leave your soul wandering in the empty void of space.”
While she was speaking, I couldn't move a single inch from the bed. Even if she was a goddess, it's impossible not to take her seriously because she looks like a child scolding her older brother.
Filya raised two fingers before saying, “As a token of apology for wrongfully smiting you, I’ll give you two choices. First choice: You can return back to the real world as a baby of a rich family, and you will be a prodigy who will basically have an easy life from that period until his death of old age. Of course, you won’t remember everything that happened here and in your past life. But that’s basically the same as having a guaranteed GAME CLEAR, in your terms.”
Having an assured future was my long-term goal when I was alive back then. It seemed like a compelling idea until I heard about the second choice.
“Second choice: You will be reincarnated in another world with all your memories intact, and I will grant you a power unique only to you, and it will help you fulfill the condition that comes with this choice.”
Curious, I ask her what the condition is.
“The condition?” A crooked smirk appeared on her face, turning her haughty tone into something vicious. “Conquer the world.”
My eyes widened in surprise, the weight of her words starting to add to my fear-turned-excitement.
“There is a prophecy in this world that if the reincarnation of Typhon–the cataclysmic world-ending being of the past–attains something of unimaginable power and influence, he will destroy the world.”
Filya speaks with complete urgency, “You must conquer the world to stop Typhon’s reincarnation from attaining such power because, at this point, no one in this world is showing promise to become the world’s strongest."
After a small pause, I asked her, "What do you mean?"
"The throne is empty and he can take it anytime.”
After she finished explaining, I was given some time to think about my decision.
A safe, fulfilled, and assured life? Or a dangerous life with a chance for absolute glory?
I could never pass up on this opportunity, I said to myself, and I thought I'd never hesitate. I can return back to the real world and be born to rich parents. I’d have tasty food to eat every day, get the games I want, and in the future, I’d die of old age with my life fully satisfied and fulfilled until the very end. While my life in provincial Japan was a bit bland and boring at times, it was a life I'd want to return back to.
But the concept of determinism disgusts me.
“Can you tell me more about which power you'll give me?” As soon as I asked her that, her lips curled into a smirk as if she already knew what my choice was.
“I can’t tell you which power because the World Administrator grants it to you. I'm simply the overseer of this world, I cannot decide things for you.”
“Then–”
“Ughh shut up!” Filya gritted her teeth at my continued barrage of questions. With one flick of a finger, I stood up on my two feet as she pushed me outside the door. “I’m giving you some traits to make your life in this world easier, on top of what you’ll receive.”
“Hey–” I tried to stop my legs from moving while she was pushing me, but I couldn’t. I should probably learn to stop resisting in the presence of this goddess. “I haven’t chosen yet!”
“But you’ve already made up your mind, right?” I could feel Filya using all of her body weight to push me towards the door, with her light grunts indicating her struggle. “Good luck-urgh, Otherworlder! May the Aether guide you among the river of stars.”
“H-hey, what does that mean?! Are you wishing for me to die again?”
“It’s a saying, dumbass!”
The door opened to a blindingly bright light, causing me to close my eyes. I could feel my body hover in the air, the strong gust of wind making it seem like I was flying. Wherever it will take me, I hope it wouldn't be somewhere dangerous.
The light seeping from my eyes significantly dimmed, and the cool breeze of the tropical, rural area that’s so familiar to me blew across me. Opening my eyes, I am greeted with a sight of a forest clearing and the chirping of the birds. I found myself still wearing the same black hoodie and gray pants from "heaven," or wherever I was reincarnated with the goddess, along with a pair of rubber slippers.
At the center of the clearing was a freshwater lake reflecting the afternoon sun. White ducks with yellow beaks are swimming gently above the lake–the kind that exists on Earth.
As I observed my surroundings, the thought that this was another world flew out of my mind. So far, there was nothing notable that separates this world from Earth.
I noticed a cold, slightly heavy weight of metal in my hoodie pocket. I pull it out to see a strange metallic plate with letters I haven’t seen before, but I could somehow read it. “Status Plate” is what it said.
The Status Plate glows blue for a quick moment before three holographic interfaces popped up from within it.
NAME: Luck LVL 10
Life Points LP : 110 Aether ATH: 110
Class: Dicemaster Equipped Weapon: Six-faced White Die
,,,
[Gift from the Goddess]
“By receiving the gift of the Goddess, you must not forget your true purpose in this world.”
10+ LVL UP↑
Class Set to Unique Class: Dicemaster
,,,
[Otherworlder’s Gift]
“Speak with goodness and greatness, for the vilest of words must be paid with your tongue.”
Granted the innate ability to communicate in Traevilyan.
,,,
[Dicemaster’s Covenant]
“Journey in isolation and hardship, Dicemaster. This is a covenant you made.”
Class Change is restricted.
Weapon Change is restricted.
Interclass Skill Sharing is restricted.
Portable storage class items are restricted.
LUCK is permanently set to -50.
When joining a party, your all party members' defense and attack is set to 0 until the party disbands.
All types of Evolution success rates are permanently set to 100%.
,,,
Message from Filya:
Item Attached: [Otherworlder’s Backpack]
"I made sure of granting you the trait to understand Traevilyan, Melsion's primary language! Aside from that, you'll find a guidebook on the fundamental aspects of Melsion. I wrote it myself, so be sure to follow everything there (* ^ ω ^). There is also a weapon selector at the end of the guidebook once you read everything. Make sure not to lose it!"
,,,
WORLD ADMINISTRATOR
Because of [Dicemaster’s Covenant], the backpack from [Gift from the Goddess] has not been granted.
Lots of terms I don't know here. And my name in this world is Luck? Ironic, considering my luck stat was basically negative.
From what I can understand, my unique class, Dicemaster, doesn’t have too many special skills to begin with. “The power I get should give me an advantage when starting in this world,” said the goddess. And the backpack that should give me a guidebook and a weapon wasn't granted. What kind of fuckery is this world playing at? Not that it might be useful after all, since my passive skill [Gift of the Goddess] didn’t allow me to use any weapon. That said, how am I supposed to fight monsters with a die?
I put the Status Plate back into my pocket before attempting to test my only skill.
And... I don't know how to cast a skill yet. Do I press it while my interface is active? Do I cast it verbally? Hoping it's the latter, I verbally spoke the name of my skill, “Dice Roll.”
A formation of blue crystals suddenly accumulated at a single point above my palm. I hovered my hand below the blue crystals that looked like it was materializing something, all while doing so instinctively.
“This must be aether, then?” I presumed as I carefully observe the translucent crystals.
The aether above my hand slowly faded into the air as the die materializes fully. It starts to spin quickly before coming to a complete stop as soon as it landed on my palm. The number on the top of the die is... one.
[DICE ROLL: 1]
Unlucky... I muttered a curse under my breath before pocketing the Status Plate and retracting its holographic menu back into itself.
Suddenly, I heard a high-pitched clicking noise coming from the other side of the forest clearing. Emerging from the forest is a beetle that was nearly as big as a dog. It stared at me for a few seconds before it clicked once again--this time, it was more high pitched that it hurt my ears.
The clicking noise soon multiplied exponentially from the background of the forest, and as if that isn’t enough to knock me to my senses, the beetle charged toward me, along with probably its entire family emerging from the forest. Without a weapon or even a viable skill for protection, there was only one thing I could do in this situation.
I started to run as fast as I can into the forest, relying on the belief that I was faster than the beetles and that I'd find help along the way. While running, it didn’t take long for me to assume what my dice roll skill does.
“What the hell, Filya, this class is fucking shit!”
Hello, I'm TSR and this is my first post here! I mainly post on RoyalRoad, but I plan to upload all my chapters here in HFY in hopes of getting feedback about the story and criticism as well. I hope you enjoy it!

Just trying to put my mind back together :D He's been claiming that I was horrible and abusive and I'm still trying to make sense of the damn thing.
The facts are that he's diagnosed BPD, absolutely lovebombed me, trauma dumped about 5 minutes into the relationship, pathologically lied, faked illnesses (mostly schizophrenic hallucinations), etc. He fits the BPD criteria almost entirely.
His primary complaint about me was that I would talk mean to him, which is true. I absolutely got bitchy at times, mostly when he started talking about committing suicide or would tell the crazy lies (joined a gang at 15 and watched people die, slept with his teacher, brother stabbed him, etc.). I remember it really bothered me that he'd threaten to kill himself if I left and expected me to accept a relationship built on lies.
I figured if he wanted me to stay with him so badly, he could at least tell the truth, address the issues I had with the relationship, and not treat me like a child throwing a temper tantrum. When things got really tumultuous, I felt like I was disarming a bomb. I remember being torn between being extremely careful to not set it off, and just letting it blow if it was going to anyway.
I'm not excusing being mean, but it sometimes felt like the only way I could get him to listen to me at all. He would ignore my problems in the relationship, and would seemingly only engage when it became a fight. I never got physical like he did (he shoved me a couple times and would scream in my face), but I would get so upset feeling so trapped.
Did anyone else experience anything like this? It always felt like such a double standard, where he could act as badly as he wanted, but would become irrate when I would get upset at all.

I rested my chin on the palm of my hand, overlooking the serene, green scenery of the rice fields outside of my classroom. The mountains stood tall and unmoving from afar, dividing the clouds that pass through its summit. I sigh in relaxation, appreciating the peaceful surroundings that one cannot find in the cities.
I snapped out of my quiet trance as a small truck carrying hay passed by the road, and I once again noticed the faint yet consistent mashes of buttons coming from my only friend in the province. Since our teacher announced that she had to leave class early, leaving us in class for the rest of our last period today, my friend over to my right has been playing the newly released game nonstop. The new MMORPG game, Alterra.
My blonde-haired friend Hirato was playing on a portable gaming console. His back has been arched towards the console for the past 15 minutes, his eyes are practically glued to the console’s screen. I inched my seat toward him to take a closer look. He was trying to defeat a monster resembling a three-headed snake—a Hydra. His character’s health was one hit away from hitting zero, but the Hydra was practically undamaged.
“Hey, Hirato,” I called him. “How long are you going to play that game?”
“Awww, I died!” He says exasperatedly, leaning back on his chair in annoyance. “I’ve been trying to beat this boss since yesterday and there’s no luck at all! I even have my gear maxed out for this level, and still...”
Hirato continued speaking as he packed his console into his backpack, “I wouldn’t have any problem at all had you continued playing video games with me. You could help me beat the boss, you know."
Then, Hirato started to make some "drama" in a weird, playful manner. "Come on, Naruki! We were best buddies since we were kids! Whatever must have happened between us, my best friend?” The bell rings across the school building, indicating the end of classes for the day. At the same time, I made a disgusted look at him after saying something corny that must have come from some TV show.
“Stop it with that little skit of yours. We are still best buddies, but I’ve grown up from playing games. Remember, we’re going to college next year and I’ve been preparing for it ever since.” I grabbed my bag from beneath my seat, and just as I stood up, the wooden plank I stood on creaked.
"That's not true, and there's no way you'll pass up on an MMORPG like Alterra! There's no way you stopped playing just for college." Hirato claimed, but he quickly switched into a pondering tone. “Though you made me think about college. You want to go to Tokyo University from what I recall, but I thought you were tired of the city because it’s too crowded there?” He asked.
“It’ll give me a greater chance to get hired for a job with a high salary. My dad also said that it takes some time to get used to the city when I’ve been living all my life in the rice fields.” I ignored Hirato's first statement--but it's true. There's no way I can quit gaming, so I lied to him about it, but I also don't want to take precious time off when I'm studying for a test that will literally decide my future.
“You’re already thinking of your future far ahead.”
“Well, do you want to stay in this school?”
As I took another step towards the door, the wood plank creaked again, filling the short silence in Hirato’s pause.
“...You make a point.” He uttered in agreement.
My school was a single-story building with multiple rooms, occupied by a few students in different grades. To add, we were also the only third-year high school students in the school. Everything here is made of thin wood and paper, and the wooden flooring creaked ever so often that if we step on it the wrong way, it might literally collapse the floor. This building was so old that I’d be having a family reunion with the souls of my family from five generations ago every school day.
The cool breeze of the late afternoon blew toward us as we made our way to the paved dirt road.
"By the way, Hirato."
"Hm?"
"I lied. I'm actually playing Alterra. Since it released."
"Wha-- Then why won't you play co-op with me?!" Hirato was almost screaming in my face, taken aback by my lie.
"Because you're stupid. Why would you cast "Damage Reflect" on Hydra's one-turn kill when you're barely alive? Plus, it won't even damage the Hydra because the game recognizes the reflected damage as an effect, and the boss is immune to any effect."
"Urgh... Watch me beat that Hydra tomorrow, you'll regret not playing with me!"
"Do your best, Hirato. See you tomorrow," I sarcastically said to him as I watched my best friend run to his home, probably excited to try out what I just said. After all, I'm way past his level, so I can't even play with him without ruining his casual experience. It's time to go home for me as well, but the next bus stop is an hour from now. Maybe I'll play for a bit while waiting.
It was the scent of fresh air and the quiet atmosphere that separates urban life from rural life. Most people prefer convenience, while the minority prefer peacefulness. I'm part of the latter, but I still want to get a job in the city. Even if I'm still unsure what I wanted to be in the future.
“Hey, you brat!” A faint, old man’s voice screamed from the rice fields beside the paved road. “Watch out, the ground is dangerous there! Didn’t you see the sign?!”
My thoughts were cut off as I heard him shout at me with great urgency. After my eyes dart to the old man, I abruptly turn to see that there was a sign on the side of the road on both sides that said [ENTRY CLOSED]. Why wasn’t there any blockage? But it was my fault for not paying close attention to my surroundings.
“I’m sorry, mister. I didn’t see it earlier.” I apologized in a nonchalant manner, mostly because I still didn't realize the gravity of the situation at this time.
“Let go of your bag. Climb over the fence towards me. Now,” says the man.
While I didn’t know what could be so dangerous about this road that warrants an urgent reaction, I trusted him. But before I could even drop my bag, the ground starts to sink with me in the center.
It was only then that fear started to settle within me. My heart sank from my inability to do anything as my mind tried to process what was happening and what was about to befall. My legs shook from the sinking ground as well, to control my balance. I cannot feel the center of gravity in my feet anymore.
In a desperate attempt to escape from the sinking ground, I jumped, trying to outrun the sinking before I go along with it.
Yet it was too late.
The ground crumbled beneath me, revealing a sinkhole. All the adrenaline in my body surges instantly, slowing down time and making the fall to my imminent death seem like an eternity. The rocks from the ground begin to break apart and fall as if it wants to bury me as well if I wasn't dead yet from the fall.
Strangely enough, I thought that when my time comes, I’ll accept Death and warmly embrace it, but it’s too soon and unfair. My arms are both outstretched to the sunlight above, as my mind screams, “I don’t want to die yet!”
The falling rocks fully cover the sunlight as I fully plunge into the darkness, and along it with me as well. Thankfully with the darkness blinding what seems to be my body being crushed and mutilated by the heavy rocks, it only felt like I fell asleep, never to wake up again.
Good night, world.
My eyes slowly fluttered open to a familiar ceiling; particularly, my bedroom. The dark blue-painted star walls and the transparent curtain were both familiar, yet in front of me was some child using my computer. The window outside is also blindingly bright which made it seem impossible to peek outside.
“Um...” I didn’t know what else to say, so I tried to get the young girl’s attention
“Mhmhm!” A proud, laughing sneer came from the child. Still sitting on my gaming chair, she turned around to face me, her shoulders crossed and an arrogant expression that ticks me off for some reason.
“Welcome to the afterlife, Naruhaya Tabito. I have chosen you to–wait, who the FUCK are you?!” Her arrogant expression transforms into a mix of confusion, panic, and surprise after she opened her eyes.
“I should be the one saying that!” I exclaimed back, but I did not get a response because she quickly turned to the monitor. Upon standing up from my bed, I notice that the sounds of mouse clicking and keyboard pressing were all attributed to her--playing Alterra?
If this was the afterlife... It didn't look too bad. The events that transpired earlier haven’t registered in my mind yet.
“Hey, am I really dead?” I asked her.
The young girl was typing before she exclaimed in panic, “No no no...! You’re really dead! I killed the wrong person!”
“I see.” I didn’t know how to react to my death, but I also didn't feel sad or sentimental. I didn’t have much going on in the real world before I died, after all.
The young girl paused her game as she turned around to face me. “It’s because you aren’t supposed to die! I may have pressed your name accidentally while I was looking for a suitable candidate in the Living Database...” She sighs as she sinks into her chair. “Well, I suppose it’s not that big of a deal.”
The girl stood on the gaming chair, clad in a red-colored robe with a two-pointed hat that almost resembled horns. Her red-toned eyes glinted with the light of the bright window.
“Naruki Haruhito, sit,” With one downward motion of her finger, I immediately felt a strong, compelling force that made me sit on the bed.
“My name is Filya, and I am the Goddess of Creation! Your Creator, and the One Above All!” She introduces herself with her arms crossed. It appears to me that she was trying to act superior and intimidating, but her haughty attitude, matched with her small stature, made it seem like she really was someone’s kid lost in my bedroom who was cosplaying as an anime character.
“You’re a child,” Even at this point in the afterlife, I do not believe her being the world’s creator for a bit.
“Wha–” Filya is taken aback by what I said. “I'm not a child, I'm a goddess! Respect and worship me, you dimwitted mortal, should you desire not to die a second time and leave your soul wandering in the empty void of space.”
While she was speaking, I couldn't move a single inch from the bed. Even if she was a goddess, it's impossible not to take her seriously because she looks like a child scolding her older brother.
Filya raised two fingers before saying, “As a token of apology for wrongfully smiting you, I’ll give you two choices. First choice: You can return back to the real world as a baby of a rich family, and you will be a prodigy who will basically have an easy life from that period until his death of old age. Of course, you won’t remember everything that happened here and in your past life. But that’s basically the same as having a guaranteed GAME CLEAR, in your terms.”
Having an assured future was my long-term goal when I was alive back then. It seemed like a compelling idea until I heard about the second choice.
“Second choice: You will be reincarnated in another world with all your memories intact, and I will grant you a power unique only to you, and it will help you fulfill the condition that comes with this choice.”
Curious, I ask her what the condition is.
“The condition?” A crooked smirk appeared on her face, turning her haughty tone into something vicious. “Conquer the world.”
My eyes widened in surprise, the weight of her words starting to add to my fear-turned-excitement.
“There is a prophecy in this world that if the reincarnation of Typhon–the cataclysmic world-ending being of the past–attains something of unimaginable power and influence, he will destroy the world.”
Filya speaks with complete urgency, “You must conquer the world to stop Typhon’s reincarnation from attaining such power because, at this point, no one in this world is showing promise to become the world’s strongest."
After a small pause, I asked her, "What do you mean?"
"The throne is empty and he can take it anytime.”
After she finished explaining, I was given some time to think about my decision.
A safe, fulfilled, and assured life? Or a dangerous life with a chance for absolute glory?
I could never pass up on this opportunity, I said to myself, and I thought I'd never hesitate. I can return back to the real world and be born to rich parents. I’d have tasty food to eat every day, get the games I want, and in the future, I’d die of old age with my life fully satisfied and fulfilled until the very end. While my life in provincial Japan was a bit bland and boring at times, it was a life I'd want to return back to.
But the concept of determinism disgusts me.
“Can you tell me more about which power you'll give me?” As soon as I asked her that, her lips curled into a smirk as if she already knew what my choice was.
“I can’t tell you which power because the World Administrator grants it to you. I'm simply the overseer of this world, I cannot decide things for you.”
“Then–”
“Ughh shut up!” Filya gritted her teeth at my continued barrage of questions. With one flick of a finger, I stood up on my two feet as she pushed me outside the door. “I’m giving you some traits to make your life in this world easier, on top of what you’ll receive.”
“Hey–” I tried to stop my legs from moving while she was pushing me, but I couldn’t. I should probably learn to stop resisting in the presence of this goddess. “I haven’t chosen yet!”
“But you’ve already made up your mind, right?” I could feel Filya using all of her body weight to push me towards the door, with her light grunts indicating her struggle. “Good luck-urgh, Otherworlder! May the Aether guide you among the river of stars.”
“H-hey, what does that mean?! Are you wishing for me to die again?”
“It’s a saying, dumbass!”
The door opened to a blindingly bright light, causing me to close my eyes. I could feel my body hover in the air, the strong gust of wind making it seem like I was flying. Wherever it will take me, I hope it wouldn't be somewhere dangerous.
The light seeping from my eyes significantly dimmed, and the cool breeze of the tropical, rural area that’s so familiar to me blew across me. Opening my eyes, I am greeted with a sight of a forest clearing and the chirping of the birds. I found myself still wearing the same black hoodie and gray pants from "heaven," or wherever I was reincarnated with the goddess, along with a pair of rubber slippers.
At the center of the clearing was a freshwater lake reflecting the afternoon sun. White ducks with yellow beaks are swimming gently above the lake–the kind that exists on Earth.
As I observed my surroundings, the thought that this was another world flew out of my mind. So far, there was nothing notable that separates this world from Earth.
I noticed a cold, slightly heavy weight of metal in my hoodie pocket. I pull it out to see a strange metallic plate with letters I haven’t seen before, but I could somehow read it. “Status Plate” is what it said.
The Status Plate glows blue for a quick moment before three holographic interfaces popped up from within it.
NAME: Luck LVL 10
Life Points LP : 110 Aether ATH: 110
Class: Dicemaster Equipped Weapon: Six-faced White Die
,,,
[Gift from the Goddess]
“By receiving the gift of the Goddess, you must not forget your true purpose in this world.”
10+ LVL UP↑
Class Set to Unique Class: Dicemaster
,,,
[Otherworlder’s Gift]
“Speak with goodness and greatness, for the vilest of words must be paid with your tongue.”
Granted the innate ability to communicate in Traevilyan.
,,,
[Dicemaster’s Covenant]
“Journey in isolation and hardship, Dicemaster. This is a covenant you made.”
Class Change is restricted.
Weapon Change is restricted.
Interclass Skill Sharing is restricted.
Portable storage class items are restricted.
LUCK is permanently set to -50.
When joining a party, your all party members' defense and attack is set to 0 until the party disbands.
All types of Evolution success rates are permanently set to 100%.
,,,
Message from Filya:
Item Attached: [Otherworlder’s Backpack]
"I made sure of granting you the trait to understand Traevilyan, Melsion's primary language! Aside from that, you'll find a guidebook on the fundamental aspects of Melsion. I wrote it myself, so be sure to follow everything there (* ^ ω ^). There is also a weapon selector at the end of the guidebook once you read everything. Make sure not to lose it!"
,,,
WORLD ADMINISTRATOR
Because of [Dicemaster’s Covenant], the backpack from [Gift from the Goddess] has not been granted.
Lots of terms I don't know here. And my name in this world is Luck? Ironic, considering my luck stat was basically negative.
From what I can understand, my unique class, Dicemaster, doesn’t have too many special skills to begin with. “The power I get should give me an advantage when starting in this world,” said the goddess. And the backpack that should give me a guidebook and a weapon wasn't granted. What kind of fuckery is this world playing at? Not that it might be useful after all, since my passive skill [Gift of the Goddess] didn’t allow me to use any weapon. That said, how am I supposed to fight monsters with a die?
I put the Status Plate back into my pocket before attempting to test my only skill.
And... I don't know how to cast a skill yet. Do I press it while my interface is active? Do I cast it verbally? Hoping it's the latter, I verbally spoke the name of my skill, “Dice Roll.”
A formation of blue crystals suddenly accumulated at a single point above my palm. I hovered my hand below the blue crystals that looked like it was materializing something, all while doing so instinctively.
“This must be aether, then?” I presumed as I carefully observe the translucent crystals.
The aether above my hand slowly faded into the air as the die materializes fully. It starts to spin quickly before coming to a complete stop as soon as it landed on my palm. The number on the top of the die is... one.
[DICE ROLL: 1]
Unlucky... I muttered a curse under my breath before pocketing the Status Plate and retracting its holographic menu back into itself.
Suddenly, I heard a high-pitched clicking noise coming from the other side of the forest clearing. Emerging from the forest is a beetle that was nearly as big as a dog. It stared at me for a few seconds before it clicked once again--this time, it was more high pitched that it hurt my ears.
The clicking noise soon multiplied exponentially from the background of the forest, and as if that isn’t enough to knock me to my senses, the beetle charged toward me, along with probably its entire family emerging from the forest. Without a weapon or even a viable skill for protection, there was only one thing I could do in this situation.
I started to run as fast as I can into the forest, relying on the belief that I was faster than the beetles and that I'd find help along the way. While running, it didn’t take long for me to assume what my dice roll skill does.
“What the hell, Filya, this class is fucking shit!”
Hello, I'm TSR and this is my first post here! I mainly post on RoyalRoad, but I plan to upload all my chapters here in HFY in hopes of getting feedback about the story and criticism as well. I hope you enjoy!

Hello. Some of you may know that many characters in media are autistic-coded, ADHD-coded, and so on... but the problem is that they sometimes have inadequate representation, because of ignorance simply put. Many YouTube commentators have poured out reviews and their own thoughts about neurodivergent "rep" in media. I have thought quite a bit about the possibilities of the "Byronic" phenotype being prominent in some fictional well-known characters.
When I mean Byronic, I don't intend to imply the 19th century archetype but the theoretical personality phenotype.
Warning: Overanalyzing characters.
I give you at least 3 characters which I speculate to show at least some Byronic-coded tendency:
Number 1: Linus van Pelt
This is surprising as you may not expect a Peanuts character to be on this list. But trust me, anyone who knows enough about Linus knows how precociously insightful, philosophical he is for a 6 or 7 year old, yet in other aspects he has not grown so much. Especially when it comes to going outside of his comfort zone concerning his safety blanket, which may reflect a delay in adapting to emotional independence. He uses the safety blanket as a shield from stress and potentially the terrifying outside world, yet at the same time he is quite the old soul and knows a lot about the outside world. I know that many Byronic-like persons are very prone to addiction. Linus went through severe withdrawal symptoms after his blanket was removed from him.
In one comic strip, Linus gives a speech that threatens to change the educational system in a particularly terrifying and politically educated way. At such a young age, he is already so disillusioned, yet is also deluded by his childhood imagination with an inflexible belief that a Great Pumpkin being will one day arrive to him. This plus the blanket is the triad that defines Linus's byronic traits. He mentors Charlie Brown, and also mentors other characters. He and his sister both have the quality of being able to give "advice" often, yet Lucy's tends to be.... unpractical.
Linus is capable of reciprocal relationships but he also has this annoying byronic tendency of attempting to recruit as a primary mode of relating at times, as in, recruiting Great Pumpkin believers.
Linus is definitely not the edgy, meanie type of Byronesque personality. He even once said he'd rather not have a warped personality. He's more of the ideological-philosophical variant.
Number 2: Daria Morgendorffer
I watched all of Daria episodes, so I know exactly how she's like. She is not only sardonic and an angsty teen, she is more than that stereotype of the unpopular brainy chick; she's riddled by her profound disillusionment of society, the matrix, the system, 1984 and everything. This is one of the most classic Byronic traits; severe disillusionment from a young age, which amplifies other traits.
Her disillusionment creates serious chronic angst, which makes her deeply unsatisfied and unhappy with her circumstances. As she said, she has low esteem for everyone else. She even was meta-edgy by once defining the word edgy as a corporate marketing master plan. This angst, and her disillusionment affect so many aspects of her life, and she is deliberately blunt and honest about what she really thinks. Unlike what autistic people typically do (unintentional brutal honesty), Daria deliberately shocks others by stating the raw truth.
Daria is also known for hiding her emotions, and keeps a muted or flat affect, and a monotone voice. This may be also part of her own byronic traits, as she simply doesn't care about emulating fake emotions. Daria knows what she is supposed to emulate, but chooses not to do it. She proves this by 1. mocking how social situations are scripted or expected to be in the matrix (such as the "we were born here" dialogue in the party episode) and 2. once faking Brittany's perky voice with a very monotonous change in intonation.
Daria possibly learned to define herself in a rigid, narrow idea of herself thanks to the constant reminders of how much of a "brain" she is.
Daria seems more like a "reactive byronic" - she developed as a defense mechanism from years of ostracization, yet as with most Byronic individuals, she always had predispositions.
Number 3: Garfield
Ah, what can I say about this feline.... a foodie, Monday-hater, dog-kicker, mouse-friend, and mailman-catcher. The internet's lore has metamorphosed and corrupted him into a monstrous beast, and although this is not canon, it could very well be a reflection of what fans perceive subconsciously about him - his deep, profound unsatisfaction with life, as in fatigue, addiction, and many believe he is in fact chronically depressed. Or even, bipolar - he does have episodes of inflated sense of self, especially when he does stand-up comedy (he is blind to how much his jokes suck), or constant irritability.
Garfield definitely has mood swings and has strong antipathic states. It also was said about him by his creator Jim Davis that he is not very good with politics. He also uses a lot of sarcasm as a coping tool, to deal with his Groundhog day, unfunny, uncreative life that Mr. Davis has made him to live until the strip is no longer updated.
Garfield is also a strongly oppositional, rebellious cat, defying everything Jon says, and pranks him many times. Jon Arbuckle also displays some obvious signs of very odd autistic-coded behavior and thought patterns, to the point where fans have portrayed him as a schizophrenic (Garfield minus Garfield). The sneaky cat always seems to manipulate and torment Jon.
He has a very vivid imagination which can often fool him.
Garfield is a very intelligent feline - yet he is also quite insecure, especially around his birthdays. Aside that, I do not see too much proof that he may in fact be Byronic-coded but there are some mild substantial evidence or hinting.
Notes:
With Linus, and Garfield, I do not see much dysfunction within their respective love lifes, strangely.
P.S. I also speculate Wednesday is on the more Byronic side, but I haven't watched sufficient content from the Addams Family or Wednesday to verify my theory. Many fans suspect she is autistic, but I think she really just is intentionally edgy and brutal, and just has an overly selective mind accompanying that.
I also see strong verbal skills in a few characters.

Briefly, I have had a J-1 visa in the past that was funded by the U. S government (No, not a Fulbright scholarship) for an exchange year at a U.S university. I have not yet completed the 2 year home residence requirement (in fact I stayed a total of 1 year in my home country before having to leave again for studies). Subsequently, I became a physician (FYI did medical school in a country other than my home country) and now I am on a J-1 to do medicine residency in the U.S. Question is fairly simple but the lawyers I talked to don't seem to give me a striaght forward answer: Will I be able to apply to a J-1 waiver through CONRAD 30 or HHS to waive both J-1 home requirements? Does CONRAD 30 and HHS fall under an IGA waiver? Does having a previous J-1 which was funded by the U.S gov (unfortunately I know it complicates everything) stand in my way of obtaining a CONRAD 30 or HHS waiver (FYI I'm in primary care, IM specifically)? Thanks for the help

Briefly, I have had a J-1 visa in the past that was funded by the U. S government (No, not a Fulbright scholarship) for an exchange year at a U.S university. I have not yet completed the 2 year home residence requirement (in fact I stayed a total of 1 year in my home country before having to leave again for studies).
Subsequently, I became a physician (FYI did medical school in a country other than my home country) and now I am on a J-1 to do medicine residency in the U.S.
Question is fairly simple but the lawyers I talked to don't seem to give me a striaght forward answer: Will I be able to apply to a J-1 waiver through CONRAD 30 or HHS to waive both J-1 home requirements? Does CONRAD 30 and HHS fall under an IGA waiver? Does having a previous J-1 which was funded by the U.S gov (unfortunately I know it complicates everything) stand in my way of obtaining a CONRAD 30 or HHS waiver (FYI I'm in primary care, IM specifically)? Thanks for the help

We all think the gold standard is the Power of Attorney (financial and health). And it’s my mission in life to let you know that sometimes it is not, especially in California.
My father and I did everything we were told was necessary: PoAs, will, trust, and so on. No one (banks, doctors) would honor them. Even the court-appointed lawyer for my father was amazed that these were not used and asked for full copies of everything because there must be something wrong with the papers (nope). And having him consider that I was out to take away all my father’s income was special.
I had to move on to the six-month long conservatorship battle using my own lawyers. I have been granted this oversight for my father and he will (finally) be moving soon into a nice facility, once I post bond. The bond requirement is due to many people actually being there for the money, although I was asked to use a corporate fiduciary, which I find ludicrous if the legal system is so worried about my father’s money disappearing. Why hire a company whose very definition is to make itself profits?
It was a long journey and made for so much stress at a time when he should have been in care. But had I not done this, I could have been liable for elder abuse because of his living conditions (he will not allow me to maintain his house, appliances, plumbing). Now he can say “no,” and I can nod and do the right thing.
I made it through, many thanks to this forum, and now move on to the next stage, which might be hospice, and might be memory care. I still need to push his primary to actually make a diagnosis and a prognosis.

Hey Grim Dawn'dit, hope the gaming is good this weekend! I was attempting to have chatgpt-3 help me as I can't remember - nor care to - where I left off with my last session of curating tools+a mod list - no idea what is relevant anymore.
The mod itself is relatively simple in assumption change left-click to path-find movement instead of attack; I rethink the functionality might even already exist in the game to change default-attk but as I've tried to change this it seems that I can only left-click move with a mouse & not with a/my keyboard rebinding from Caps Lock (now L-click) which annoys me !!
what the 2021 gpt describes - Set up the modding environment:

• Ensure you have the Grim Dawn game installed on your computer.
• Download and install the Grim Dawn Modding Tools from the official website.

Create a new mod:

• Launch the Grim Dawn Modding Tools.
• Click on "New Mod" and provide a name for your mod.
• Select the appropriate folders to create your mod's directory structure.

Define the mod's files and folders:

• Locate the "database" folder within your mod's directory.
• Inside the "database" folder, create a new folder named "records."
• Inside the "records" folder, create another folder named "skills."
• Within the "skills" folder, create a new text file named "default_attack.dbr" (or any other desired name).

Edit the "default_attack.dbr" file:

• Open the "default_attack.dbr" file using a text editor (e.g., Notepad++, Sublime Text).
• Add the following code to the file:

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databaseDefaultAttack.dbr { recordName = "Skills/DefaultAttack" skillName = "Default Attack" skillDisplayName = "Default Attack" skillDescription = "Move to the target location" skillAutoCast = true skillPrimaryMethod = true skillSecondaryMethod = false skillSecondaryTarget = false skillMode = 2 skillTargetRadius = 0 skillMaxLevel = 1 } 

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• Save the "default_attack.dbr" file.
• Return to the Grim Dawn Modding Tools.
• Click on "Build" to compile your mod.

Install and test the mod:

• Locate the "mods" folder within your Grim Dawn game installation directory.
• Copy the entire mod folder (the one you created earlier) into the "mods" folder.
• Launch the Grim Dawn game.
• On the main menu, click on "Custom Game."
• Enable your mod by checking the box next to its name.
• Start a new game or load an existing character.
• Left-clicking on the ground should now trigger pathfinding movement.

I would happily report-in if this process did work however I see neither any indication of mods loaded nor a working left-click-caps-lock keybind path to find.

It is important to note that this article is only a thought experiment for the purposes of reconsidering our implicit assumptions and societal conceptions of the necessities for civilization and what is “normal” behavior for humans. In the article about mysticism I pointed out that I was a psychotherapist not a theologian. Here I need to point out that I am not an economist either. This thought experiment is not advocating for any kind of specific new political or economic reality. Instead it is a way to reconsider the things we take for granted and meditate on new ideas that might allow us to conceive of a healthier and more stable society.
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If we didn’t have gold what would money look like?
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If we didnt have nonperishable precious metals like gold and silver, what would money look like. There are not many other goods we can make hold value in such a small and convenient package like gold, platinum, and silver to a lesser extent do. All the noble metals have a high luster, malleability, and do not spoil with age. How would society store value without them?
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Well there are a couple examples of how money developed in places without gold. My favorite is an island called Yap where there was little to no money. Instead native Yapese used 20ft tall limestone disks that weighed hundreds of pounds. So how did this money work? How do you put a 200 lb stone in a vending machine or slide it across a bar?
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The Yapese never moved the stones they used as money. Instead they kept an oral and collective ledger of who owned what stones. Money that can’t fit in your wallet might seem like a crazy idea, but think of how your debit card works. There is a collective ledger somewhere out there that changes every time you slide your card even though no physical money is moved.
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How did Yap money work?
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On the island of Yap, the acquisition and distribution of rai stones were closely tied to prestige and social merit. The process of awarding rai stones was based on various factors that reflected an individual’s status, achievements, and contributions to the community.
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The primary means of acquiring rai stones was through social recognition and acknowledgment of an individual’s accomplishments. These accomplishments could include successful leadership, acts of bravery, or notable achievements in various fields such as agriculture, craftsmanship, or diplomacy. The more esteemed and respected an individual was within the community, the higher the likelihood of receiving rai stones.
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The recognition and awarding of rai stones were often carried out through public ceremonies and gatherings. These events provided a platform for the community to acknowledge and celebrate the achievements of an individual. The stones were typically presented by influential community leaders or elders who acted as the arbiters of social merit.
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It’s important to note that the awarding of rai stones was not a purely individualistic pursuit but rather a collective decision that reflected the consensus of the community. The opinions and judgments of community members, particularly those in positions of authority or with significant influence, played a crucial role in determining the social merit of an individual and their eligibility to receive rai stones.
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The rai stones bestowed upon an individual were not meant to be hoarded or accumulated solely for personal wealth. Instead, they served as symbols of prestige and social standing. The possession of rai stones demonstrated an individual’s contributions to the community and their ability to garner respect and admiration.
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The Yapese monetary system served as tangible representations of honor and status, reinforcing the social fabric and common good of Yapese society.
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So in answer to the original question “How could society store value without gold?” We would store it through a reputation system rewarding benevolence, generosity and innovation. The people who gave back to society the most would be awarded the most value in the form of reputation, not by how many precious metals they owned.
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How did gold change our conceptions of society and culture?
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Gold has long fascinated humanity with its allure and intrinsic non-perishable value. The presence of gold on Earth almost did not happen at all. If there were a few changes to astrophysical geometry you may not have been able to buy gold jewelry in the store. So, why is there gold on earth?
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The symbolism of gold in mythology usually relates to to the concept of the Self, a central archetype in Jungian psychology representing the totality of the psyche. Because the ancients associated gold with being so rare and so precious, it came to represent knowledge of the authentic and hiddens self. Fair tales that have to do with reclaiming a lost treasure are metaphors for self discovery and reclaiming lost parts of our identity. In fairy tales, gold often appears in the form of a golden key, a golden crown, or a golden apple, serving as a powerful symbol of the transformative potential of self-knowledge. These objects are typically guarded by mythical creatures or hidden in remote locations, emphasizing the arduous nature of the journey towards self-understanding.
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The origins of gold as an element on planet earth trace back to the formation of the universe itself. In the earliest moments following the Big Bang, only light elements such as hydrogen and helium were present. It was within the cores of massive stars, through the process of stellar nucleosynthesis, that heavier elements like gold began to take shape. These elements were forged through the fusion of lighter nuclei in the intense heat and pressure of stellar environments.
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As these massive stars reached the end of their lives, they supernovae explosions. These scattered their noble metal enriched contents into space. The remnants of these supernovae, containing elements like gold, spread across the cosmos in the form of dust and gas. This dust and gas later condensed into rocky masses of meteors that had high concentrations of gold.
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The earth itself almost had no gold. While the primordial Earth held minuscule amounts of gold, it was not until later stages of our planet’s evolution that the precious metal became concentrated enough for us to mine or value them. The late heavy bombardment period, around 4 billion years ago, witnessed a barrage of meteoritic impacts bombarding the Earth’s surface. These meteorites, originating from various sources within the solar system, carried with them a wealth of elements, including gold.
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If it was not for this coincidental bombardment of asteroids there never would have been enough gold on earth for you to wear gold jewelry. There certainly would not have been enough for us to use as money, let alone build a monetary system around. So what would have happened if we never associated gold with money, power, or value?
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Why is gold associated with money and currency
Gold is durable, divisible, and portable, making it an ideal medium of exchange. Additionally, gold has intrinsic value due to its luster malleability and non reactivity to other elements, which further contributed to its use as a form of currency.
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The use of metal coins as a form of money emerged around 600 BCE in ancient Lydia (present-day Turkey). These coins were made from precious metals like gold, silver, and bronze, and their value was determined by their weight and purity. Gold, due to its scarcity and durability, became a preferred choice for coinage.
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Over time, gold became widely accepted as a standard for money. Its scarcity, divisibility, portability, and resistance to corrosion made it an ideal medium of exchange. Gold coins became a trusted and standardized unit of value in many ancient civilizations, including the Greeks, Romans, Egyptians, and Persians.
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In medieval Europe, goldsmiths played a crucial role in the evolution of money and debt. People entrusted their gold and other valuable assets to goldsmiths for safekeeping. In return, the goldsmiths issued receipts, which could be used as a claim to the deposited gold. These receipts gradually started circulating as a form of paper money or representative money. This practice laid the foundation for early banking systems and the issuance of paper-based instruments representing value.
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The concept of the gold standard gained prominence during the 19th and early 20th centuries. Under the gold standard, the value of a country’s currency was tied to a fixed amount of gold. Governments held gold reserves to back their currency, and individuals could exchange paper money for gold at a predetermined rate. The gold standard provided stability and confidence in the currency, as the money supply was limited by the availability of gold.
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The gold standard era began to decline during the 20th century, particularly after World War I. The need for increased flexibility in monetary policy, and the costs associated with maintaining gold reserves led many countries to move away from the gold standard. Gradually, most countries shifted to fiat money, where the value of the currency is not backed by a physical commodity but rather by the trust and confidence in the government issuing it. This meant that even though there was scarcity and competition for money like there had been for gold, money was no longer backed by anything real.
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Put simply, even though we do not use gold as currency or the basis for the economy any more, gold still informs our ideas about money and power. Even new forms of money like crypto currencies and NFTs are based on these old notions of scarcity that come from our ancient relationship to gold. Our ideas about money, debt scarcity and our relationship to power are informed greatly by the function that gold has played in our economy.
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What does money without gold look like?
In isolated or preindustrial societies, without gold, people had an understanding that resources were meant to be shared and distributed evenly. When a need arose in society others met the need with gifts or loans. The understanding in these cultures was that safety was found in generosity and compassion not hoarded material goods. They took care of others because when they need help others will take care of them. Social merit functioned like a kind of insurance.
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In these barter, communal, and gift economies power does not become the most precious resource. Instead reputation and social merit become the most precious resources. Because wealth and value cannot be hoarded materially then society allows for individuals to accrue value by being useful, inventive and generous. These systems reward people who innovate and live compassionately because societal regard becomes the most important resource, not electronic debt or precious metals.
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This is because things like food, clothing and tools often degrade and lose value over time. There is no way to horde wealth because all things that contain value slowly lose that value if they are hoarded. When there is no way to horde wealth with precious metals or an electronic debt ledger, then everything is depreciating all the time. In these cultures money and value are always trending back to equality because everything is losing value all the time.
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People are incentivized to share and live communally in gift economies because clout and reputation become more valuable than any good or service. These systems are empowering because when needs arise society is naturally incentivized to meet those needs not ignore them. Material wealth is always decreasing in value so social wealth has more value. Value is stored in the social ledger of reputation not a material ledger of debt.
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In debt and precious metal based systems value is disempowering because wealth tends to snowball. The people with more money have access to more power and likely use that power to get even more money ad infinitum. In these systems society is incentivized to ignore others’ problems because the endless competition is for non-perishable money that increases in value, not reputation for being a benefit to society. Actually, in this system other people’s problems are a GOOD thing for me because they mean others have less power and are less likely to get the money we are all in competition for.
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Why does the non-perishable nature of precious metals like gold lead to scarcity, competition and inequality?
The scarcity of precious metals allowed individuals and institutions to accumulate and hoard wealth, creating disparities in the distribution of resources. The accumulation of gold and other precious metals became a means of showcasing one’s economic power and social status. This concentration of wealth in the hands of a few individuals or entities often led to economic inequality, with limited access to resources for the majority of the population. It also led to imperial wars and conflict. This happens when the purpose of a society becomes hoarding power instead of building sustainable or equitable systems.
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Is there an alternative system?
What did non industrial societies do before there was gold?
Barter and gift economies operate on different principles that can have positive psychological and environmental effects. In a barter economy, individuals engage in direct exchange, which fosters social interaction and builds relationships within communities. The act of bartering requires individuals to negotiate and understand each other’s needs, creating a sense of cooperation and interdependence.
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Gift economies, where goods and services are given without the expectation of an immediate return, promote social cohesion and reinforce communal bonds. By focusing on reciprocity and sharing, gift economies prioritize the well-being of the community as a whole rather than individual accumulation of wealth. This can contribute to a sense of psychological well-being and social harmony.
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Moreover, both barter and gift economies can be more environmentally sustainable compared to the hoarding of precious metals or debt based systems. These systems rely on the utilization of resources within the community, promoting local production and reducing the environmental impact of long-distance trade. In debt based systems production is outsourced to the cheapest place where the workers have the least power.
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While the nonperishable nature of precious metals like gold has shaped a scarcity-based money system conducive to wealth hoarding, alternative economic systems such as barter and gift economies offer psychological and environmental advantages. These systems promote social cohesion, reduce economic disparities, and foster sustainable resource utilization.
Key Characteristics of a Gift Economy:
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Gift Circulation:
The primary mode of exchange in a gift economy is the circulation of gifts. People give goods, services, or resources to others without an explicit agreement for immediate return or compensation. The act of giving is motivated by social bonds, altruism, and the desire to contribute to the well-being of others.
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Social Relationships and Trust:
Gift economies are deeply rooted in social relationships. Trust and reciprocity play a vital role in sustaining the system. Gifts are not seen as isolated transactions but rather as a way to build and maintain social connections within a community or group.
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Non-Monetary Transactions:
Unlike traditional market economies where goods and services are exchanged for money, a gift economy operates outside the realm of formalized monetary transactions. The value of gifts is not determined by their market price or exchange value but rather by the relationships and meaning attached to them.
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Abundance Mindset:
A gift economy often operates on the assumption of abundance rather than scarcity. It is based on the belief that there are enough resources and goods to meet the needs of individuals and the community as a whole. The act of giving is seen as a way to create and reinforce a sense of abundance and well-being.
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Social Obligations and Prestige:
In gift economies, there are social obligations and expectations associated with giving and receiving. Individuals are motivated to contribute and give back to the community, as failing to do so can lead to reputational consequences. The act of giving and generosity often brings prestige, respect, and social recognition within the community.
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Reciprocity and Sharing:
While direct reciprocity is not expected or demanded in a gift economy, there is a general understanding of the importance of reciprocity over time. Recipients of gifts may feel an obligation to reciprocate or share their own gifts with others in the future, creating a cycle of giving and receiving.
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In Conclusion:
Economic systems that prioritize collaboration, generosity, and a departure from the notions of individuality, competition, ego, and scarcity can indeed contribute to mental well-being and foster a more harmonious society. One such alternative economic concept is the idea of gift economies, which emphasizes the practice of generosity and the exchange of resources without the expectation of immediate reciprocation.
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What’s the point?
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We assume that ways that our culture and systems works are the only ways it can work. This can limit our intuition, creativity, and stifle our ability to imagine a better world. What if those asteroids had missed our planet billions of years ago and dumped that gold into the black void of space? Would our culture or monetary system look anything like it does now? Again the point of this article is not to change the monetary system. Instead it is to reflect about how and why we assign value and purpose in our lives and culture. It is a reflection on what money means to a society and the way those implicit assumptions affect our psychology and well being.
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Many people misquote the bible that “money is the root of all evil” however that is not what it says. The quote is that the “love” of money is the root of all evil. We all interact with money daily but rarely think about what it is and that the way we think about money changes the role it plays in our lives and how we behave.
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We often talk about values in an abstract and hollow way in politics, religion and identity. We seldom talk or think about what value itself actually is. How do we decide what has worth to us and what doesn’t. These assumptions about what is valuable and good and what the point of our societies should be is often based on outdated and unhealthy assumptions it does not occur to us to reconsider. By moving away from a mindset that prioritizes individual accumulation, gift economies encourage a sense of collective responsibility and interconnectedness. This shift in perspective can have positive effects on mental health, promoting a sense of belonging, trust, and reduced feelings of isolation, paranoia or competition.
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Most of the patients that I see suffer from a profound sense of separation and disconnection. Our civilization would benefit from assuming the intrinsic value of all beings and the importance of meeting collective needs rather than amassing individual wealth. Not just in economics but in our lives we should prioritize collaboration, generosity, and move away from the emphasis on individuality, competition, ego, and scarcity. What a person or society values is one of the best indicators of who they are. Reflect on where you unconsciously place value and what that says about you. We have limited time on earth and it is important to stay in touch with what we want the purpose of our life to be. Where does your worth lie?
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