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on the dissertation grind


Good evening, all. It has been a bit since my last post once again, and, my apologies. University sure does keep me busy. It's nice, though, having things to work on. I'm really enjoying my dissertation project about software for visualising hyperbolic geometry, and I might have a thing or two to post about it towards the Christmas holidays.

Now then, what have I been up to since last time? The honest answer is not too much, honestly. I have a few things to mention, but it's nothing terribly exciting. Unfortunately, not even any baked goods to show, since I've not really had the baking itch that much.

I have been playing a decent amount of Guilty Gear lately and having a lot of fun. Faust's new golf club move is hilarious and I'm getting much enjoyment out of launching all my items at my opponents. I've been playing a bit with one of my housemates too which is nice. They're a big Dizzy fan so are finally picking the game up now that she's out. They're not exactly an equal opopnent yet, but, even if they've got a long way to go, they're working on it.

Also, for Halloween, I got to dust off my Faust outfit, which was nice. Behold!

Don't mind Mini Faust, he's there to obscure my friend's face.

My continuted Magic the Gathering ventures have gone well, too. I'm currently testing out a decklist for Gandalf the White which aims to be a sort of control value list that is stuffed with lots of lovely artifacts and legendaries. I'm not proud enough to show it off yet, but I'll put it on the card gallery page when it's ready. Additionally, when I went to visit some friends from school near London, I went to a nearby card games shop and found a new Gisa for my colleciton, which is excellent news. And, one last piece of MtG excitement: I'm going to get to draft Mystery Booster 2 next Tuesday with my university's card games society. I'm very excited, since that set's pretty damn awesome! If I get any cool cards, I'll definitely post them.

I don't think I've got too terribly much else I want to mention. I'm looking forward to Arcane Season 2 releasing on Saturday, but, beyond that, there's not too much more excitement in my life. Just trying to survive the onslaught of work. And survival is enough! So, I'll see you in the next log post.

games guilty-gear mtg

link 2024-11-07 23:06 posted on  07/11/2024  at  23:06

Salutations. I'm just here with a brief update. I am alive and suriving university. Third year is pretty weird. My timetable is less filled, but I feel even more busy than ever. It's quite stressful, but I'm managing. I don't have terribly much to tell right now. I'm still at the usual shenanigans: D&D is good and I am enjoying running it for my housemates again, I have been cooking new MTG decks (my latest is Mirko, Obsessive theorist - see the card gallery page), and plenty of video gaming has been taking place. I'm also rewatching Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood, which I might write a little about in my next post, but not right now.

See you later.

games mtg

link 2024-10-14 14:59 posted on  14/10/2024  at  14:59

Salutations. September doth continue onwards, and university is nearing its beginning. Hence, I thought it might be time for a little blog update. What have I been up to? Well, lots of gaming! As I should be in the summer holiday. And also a few days out with friends. Keep your eyes on the Cuppa Conquest page because there might be a new review or two soon.

Splatoon 3's Grand Festival was last weekend, and grand indeed it was. Me and my friends got together as we always do, and it was great fun. Though, it was unfortunate that Team Present did not pull through. And, I'm glad that seasonal Splatfests will still continue. Also, Big Run was great. We managed to defeat The Triumvirate a few times which was cool.

I've started my second playthrough of Fire Emblem: Engage with my friend Ophelia. It's fun getting a second chance to make funny builds and try out units I didn't use the first time over.

I think the last thing I can really think of that I've been up to is MTG with my friends. I'm starting to collect the cards for my Gisa, the Hellraiser deck, since it's one of my favourites. And I'm currently building Azami, Lady of Scrolls, because it is astonishing that I haven't built a wizard tribal deck yet.

I think that's about all for now. Things are winding down before I head back to university. Which is probably when I'll make my next blog post. See you then.

games splatoon fire-emblem mtg

link 2024-09-18 18:06 posted on  18/09/2024  at  18:06

farming away


Salutations! Welcome to the mid-August update. I've not too terribly much to tell, but I do have a few things worth mentioning.

My RPG escapades are proving fruitful. I'm running D&D tomorrow, which is exciting, because I've missed playing with those players. And, I've started Rime of the Frostmaiden with some friends from home.

In my quest for the perfect MtG deck I am making progress. My second deck made by me, headed by Gisa the Hellraiser, is doing numbers among my usual playgroup. Many, many zombies get made, it's crazy. And she even acts as a zombie lord, which is something incredibly nice to have in the command zone. If you're at all interested, take a look at the decklist on the card gallery.

Lastly, I simply have to mention my latest obsession: a new farming sim called Fields of Mistria. I have been having a lot of fun. It's such a breath of fresh air to play a farming sim which is... er, well, not Stardew Valley. It has a number of improvements over that game and I am enjoying it so verily. I will perhaps write a little bit more in-depth about what is just so enchanting about the game.

The sprite art of this game is just so cute!

games d&d fields-of-mistria mtg

link 2024-08-14 21:49 posted on  14/08/2024  at  21:49

Hello all. A brief update on the site today.

Firstly, a new page: card gallery. This is for my various MTG ramblings and to show off my collection.

Secondly: I am forming a webring. It is called Wizard Webring and it is for people that like wizards and fantasy media. I made it because I've got a few friends making sites, and so when they're done we can link our sites together via it. But, if you're reading this and I've not mentioned it to you yet, feel free to contact me about joining.

That's all this update. No other news on my life. So, I'll see you in the next post. Until then.

site games mtg

link 2024-08-06 21:52 posted on  06/08/2024  at  21:52

in Norfolk


Hello all. 'Tis August, so I thought it's about time I updated the old blog. So, here I am!

First thing's first: behold my latest bakes! Fistly, brownies. I usually just make chocolate fudge cake because it's my go-to easy cake. However I wanted actual brownies this time, and took to BBC Good Food. The recipe is a bit expensive because it needs lots of dark chocolate, but it produced perhaps the nicest brownies I had had in a long time.

Secondly, an olive oil cake. I was a bit sceptical about this one but it was actually really lovely. The olive oil really enhances the texture. Can recommend! Shoutout to Lily for lending me her ultra-fancy actually-from-Greece olive oil for it.

The brownies' recipe is linked on the recipes page. The olive oil cake was made from a recipe book, though.

Cuppa Conquest was a fun project for my holiday in Norfolk. Now I am home though, so don't have much to add to it for now. Perhaps another time! Norfolk was great though, lots of nice places to go to, and we were right by the beach. Most relaxing!

Binham Priory

I got back from holiday just as Bloomburrow prereleases began, and on that weekend I met with some friends for lots of MtG gaming. We played with our new Bloomburrow Commander decks and it was so much fun. Miss Bumbleflower is an absolute beast! Of the 3 games I've played with her so far, she has won me 2 and got me joint second in another (me and the other last player were having an infinite value showdown and ended up calling it a draw because we were hungry). We also split the cost for a draft booster box of Phyrexia: All Will Be One, and that was really fun. 'Twas a great weekend!

One last thing on the topic of MtG: I keep making cards based on me and my friends' D&D characters, so I might make a page for those at some point soon. And I also might make a page to dump my MtG dekclists. Keep your eyes peeled.

Anyways, I'll see you in the next post. I must get back to having a whimsical and joyous summer! Until then!

bakes outings games mtg

link 2024-08-05 17:29 posted on  05/08/2024  at  17:29

hyped for Bloomburrow


Good tidings. I have one thing on my mind right now, and it's Bloomburrow. I am so excited for this new Magic set it's crazy. The cards have such cute art and the cards seem actually wuite powerful (a nice change after the last 2 sets). I have the Peace Offering Commander deck on pre-order and I cannot wait to go and collect it. I have 2 friends also getting Commander decks from the set and I'm very excited to get to paly with them. It's just been a while since I had some new cards, so I'm really looking forward to it.

I also have something to annoucne: a new page on the site, being Cuppa Conquest. It's my quest to find the best tearoom around by rating them all comprehensively. If you're interested, do check it out. I've just gone on holiday so there'll be lots of tearoom trips soon, so I should have a good amount of reviews soon! I will also add a map to it at some point to show my tearoom-faring adventures.

That's all. Might have some holiday photos posted here soon. Until then!

games mtg site

link 2024-07-19 21:02 posted on  19/07/2024  at  21:02

delving into dungeons


Hello all. Here's a little update on how my summer has been going.

Recently I made the trek to Warwick Castle with some friends. It was a very good outing. I had been there twice before, but both instances were many many moons ago. I think since then I have acrued a lot more medieval fantasy based interests (D&D, Fire Emblem, etc.) which made me enjoy it even more this time. I can very much recommend it. The castle and dungeons were great, the jousting was spectacular, and it was an all round good day out.

View of the castle, and armour in the great hall.

A project me and a freind have been working on this past week is assembling Ultimate Monopoly by jonizaak. We thought if we had a bunch of people over to play it one afternoon it'd be most hilarious. However, we didn't expect it to be such a pain to compile: it needs resources from Monopoly, Monopoly Stock Exchange, Monopoly: The Mega Edition, and Monopoly Super Add-Ons. It took us a while, but we got there. We're going to play the game in August, so after we're done with that I might make a follow-up post reviewing the chaos.

With said friend I also made an orange and almond cake. Not something I've ever made before, but it was very tasty. Can recommend. It was very funny to make though, requiring you to simmer an orange for an hour so it purees more easily.

Straight up simmering it right now... And, by it, hehe, let's just say my orange.

Dungeons & Dragons is a game very prevalent in my mind right now. I've been playing a lot with my group going through Lost Mine of Phandelver at the minute, and I'm likely going to be playing with another group too, soon. I'm looking forward to getting to make another character. Nothing's set in stone right now, but the updates to the Wizard in the 2024 PHB are really making me want to play an Illusioner. It's just a subclasss I've never really thought about before, but I think really suits my playstyle. I might ask if I can use the updated version since I really like the enw features it gets. We'll see. I'm just glad that I want to play Wizard again, because my old wizard was one of my favourite characters I've ever played. It's a much needed return to my roots.

My quest of learning Magic: The Gathering is going well too. I've made a deck centred around Sefris of the Hidden Ways that makes a ton of value by going through dungeons super fast. It's super fun! If a little strong for the rest of my playgroup. I've managed to find a fourth person as well, so I'm no longer stuck playing 3 player Commander. Huzzah!

I think that's all I have to tell for now. Summer is going well. I have lots to occupy myself, and when I'm not occupied I am quite happy to just sit there and chill. It's nice not having to work constantly any more. So, I shall see you in the next post. Until then!

outings bakes games d&d mtg monopoly

link 2024-06-29 14:42 posted on  29/06/2024  at  14:42

stuck in revision hell


Hello. It has been a hot minute. Let's just say that the revision season was a painful time. That's all. At least exams are over now, and I have a prosperous summer ahead of me. So, what's new?

Not much to show on the front of bakes. I wanted to bake more this term as a way to relax between work, but I just couldn't muster the energy most of the time. That does not mean it was a fruitless term, however. Behold yond marble loaf I concocted a few weeks back. I'm jolly well pleased with it if I do say so myself.

As ever, the recipe can be found on the recipes page.

I've been going to card games at uni this term which has been fun. I've got to play as lot more MtG which is nice. I've even got to play with some friends from home over webcam. So, I'm a lot more experienced in playing. What I need experience in now is deckbuilding, which is something I will improve over the summer. Right now, I ahve a home-made Ghoulcaller Gisa deck, which is a bit janky, but I'm working on it. And, I have an Ephara, God of Polis deck which I borrowed from a friend. They're both very fun, but being such a fan of ghouls, I'm looking to keep improving my zombie deck. We'll see how that goes.

When I've not been revising or playing MtG, I've been up to my neck in TTRPGs, which has been nice. Tomorrow, I'm starting a game of Lost Mines of Phandelver as a halfling death cleric, and I also started playing Vampire: The Masquerade as a Malkavian vampire, while also running my own D&D game. After a relative draught of RPGs last term, my thirst is verily quenched now.

Other than that... Not much to tell, really. I've mostly just been working. So, thank goodness I've got a break. It's nice to just have the time to work on projects like this. Updating the site feels nice. So, I'll see you in the next update. Until then.

bakes games mtg d&d mtv

link 2024-06-13 23:12 posted on  13/06/2024  at  23:12

playing MTG


Hello! It has been a hot minute since the last post. You've got my university's bloody exam season to thank for that... Revision is plentiful and difficult, but I'm surviving. I get a week or so of respite now, which is pleasant.

My last post was just after my birthday. I've not been up to too much since then, really. I did mention I had acquired a loaf tin, which I've put to good use by making a lemon drizzle cake. It's a non-stick tin too, so it came out of the tin like a charm!

You can find the recipe in the recipe repository, which I've updated to include links to every bake I've posted on the blog and a link to their respective recipes. Huzzah!

Now that I'm back at university, though, I've started going to card games on a Thursday. It's very fun! The people there are nice, which is good because I was quite scared about going since I didn't know anyone. Last week I played three games, winning one, which I was very pleased with. I've not had times to make any deck modifications though due to exams, so I'm heading back in tomorrow with my un-modified copy of the Gonti precon from Outlaws at Thunder Junction.

I do, however, plan to make a new deck at some point using Myrkul, Lord of Bones. I unpacked him from a booster of Commander Legends: Battle for Baldur's Gate I opened recently. It was a lovely surprise, since he's my favourite god of the Forgotten Realms. And it was even more of a surprise to see he's in the top 100 commanders on EDHREC! A card that I liked being good? Preposterous!

Anyways, that's all. I'm signing off for now. See you in the next instance.

bakes games mtg

link 2024-05-01 15:05 posted on  01/05/2024  at  15:05

getting into MTG


Hello all. A brief update for you as to what I've been up to.

The holidays from university have been going well. I've had lots of opportunities to catch up with friends from home, which has been nice. Though, a lot of it has been spent merely doing work, which sucks, but it's whatever. It's what I'm paying for, after all.

Most excitingly, I've finished Rise of Tiamat. Lyle has served me very well, and I'm glad to see them finish their adventure and get an opportunity to rest. The only issue is that now I crave more D&D... Hopefully we'll have another game up and running soon.

I've been spending the rest of my spare time looking into Magic: The Gathering. I've wanted to get into it for a good while now, but I kept forgetting to. One of my friends that I live with is also investigating it currently, so I am too.

I was very quickly drawn in by the existance of the Lord of the Rings set. The cards are all so cool and so flavourful. My favourite is easily Saruman of Many Colours. His mill/steal based effect is so flvaourful. It is just like how he destroys all of the natural resources of Isengard for his own use.

I very much look forward to my birthday on Sunday, for hopefully then I shall receive some cards, which is a most exciting prospect. I look forward to getting a chance to play the game.

games d&d mtg

link 2024-04-04 12:49 posted on  04/04/2024  at  12:49
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