Wednesday, February 13, 2013

World of Tanks 8.4

Overlord's Blog 2/8/2013:
  • Pz V Panther: lower front plate slope INCREASED to its HISTORICAL (you see what we did there?) 55deg
  • T-44: lower front plate slope DECREASED to its HISTORICAL 45deg
  • Caernarvon, Conqueror and FV215b: front seam (between lower and upper plates) increased
  • Added support for NVIDIA SLI
  • Exterior button is no longer blocked for tanks with incomplete crews
  • Added chat functionality: autosaving for message recipient  (or without it)
  • For auto-loader tanks: Intuition skill will now reload the entire cassete
  • For some configurations fixed performance drop when using server-side reticle in arty mode
  • FPS in hangar is now limited to 60 
  • Reworked and optimized exhaust effect for vehicle engines
  • Returned option to retrain crew to a vehicle that is missing in player's hangar: there is a separate warning window for it as well 
  • Added full-screen windowed mode (maximize button)
  • Fixed vehicle gun going up along with turret traverse when taking hit on the turret
  • Fixed vehicle gun going up along with turret traverse when aiming at close object
  • Fixed "noise" in left speaker after shooting for some configurations
  • Fixed ammo order when changing turret or gun
  • Dragon Ridge and Serene Coast will be disabled in 8.4.
  • Bumpy terrain of Prokhorovka, Abbey, El Halluf, and Ruinberg (rounded streets) are going to be addressed.
  • Redshire and El Halluf will undergo some gameplay changes.
  • Swamp and Komarin will be visually reworked and brought back to live.



The 8.4 German Tree

The 8.4 British Tree





Friday, February 8, 2013

World of Tanks: Watching Old Replays

My best evar!!! World of Tanks game happened in my Lion Heavy Tank (That's "Low" to most; ok ok, "Lowe" ... ok fine, it's Löwe).

[Shameless plug: I wrote a guide way back on the issue of pronouncing "Lowe"]

What a German Lion Heavy Tank in World War II may look like


The battle was epic and left me with a grand total of 2,850 experience.

I still have the replay, but it is from a version of World of Tanks now no more, back in the 7 days.

I keep a "fatkiddown's list of cool links" google doc.  In it, I had saved a link to a forum thread covering the issue of playing old replays when that version of the game was no more.

The individual who came to the rescue is PTwr.  He has now updated his Replay Compatibility Pack.

He promises to add even older versions to the utility.

Thanks PTwr for the hard work!

^One of many bands using "Replay" on an album cover
I tried finding a cool pic for "Replay" on images.google.com.  Apparently, tons of bands have used "Replay" as an album cover and/or, maybe even call themselves, "Replay."  These girls are one such band.  They released the album: "Replay by Play" in 2003....  Or, was that "Play by Replay?"  The 2 words are becoming meaningless to me now -- as you know, say any word three times in a row, and either Candyman comes to kill you, or the word becomes meaningless.

And for your listening/reading enjoyment, here is the songs from Play's album: Replay:

01. I Must Not Chase The Boys
02. Honey To The Bee
03. Just A Little
04. Whole Again
05. Hot
06. Girl's Mind
07. What Is Love?
08. 11 Out Of 10
09. Lets Get To The Love Part
10. 2 Blocks Down
11. Ain't No Mountain High Enough

And let's not forget Replay by Iyaz

Or The Monkees "Instant Replay" <-- was this the first album named "Replay"?

And "Replay" by Jimmy Dean (gdi! isn't that the sausage guy?)

Oh, and Books soon-to-be-movies directed by Robert Zemeckis, starring Adam Sandler & Reese Whitherspoon.... Jk about Sandler and Witherspoon, they're just like, in all movies these days seems like. Srsly tho, Zemeckis to direct movie from/of this book and I need to stop typing in this caption now.

In any event, tl;dr: to watch older replays, see PTwr's "Replay Compatibility Pack."

ty,

-fkd

^don't say this guy's name 3 times either....



Thursday, February 7, 2013

World War II: The Battle of The Bulge, Bazooka vs. Tiger I Tank & Trench Foot


"Generals at War" is a great series I'm watching through.  I've finished "The Battle of Midway" and "The Battle of Singapore" and am now doing "The Battle of The Bulge."  My Grandfather was in the 4th "IV" or "Ivy" Division which took the brunt of the German offensive.

This part explains how the U.S. Army's "Bazooka" could knock a Tiger I.

My Grandfather also told me how his feet went numb and he nearly lost them.  Here is a good explanation of the problem the U.S. troops faced, due to poor boot design.


Links:
The Recoilless rocket anti-tank weapon, AKA "Bazooka" (wikipedia.org)
The German PzKpfw VI Heavy Tank. AKA "Tiger I" (wiki.worldoftanks.com)
The Battle of The Bulge (wikipedia.org)
The U.S. Army 4th Infantry Division. AKA "Ivy" in World War II (wikipedia.org)
The horrific illness known as "Trench Foot" in which WW2 U.S. Troops had to deal due to poor boot design (wikipedia.org)


Images:
The German Battle Plan for "The Battle of The Bulge"

American Soldiers In Frozen Forest

Typical German World War II Uniform

Typical American World War II Uniform

A U.S. Soldier Prepares To Fire a Bazooka

American Troops Near a Destroyed Tiger I

German Troops In Snow

American G.I.s Resting On Rail Road Tracks In "The Battle of The Bulge"

Friday, February 1, 2013

World of Tanks: The T29 Heavy Tank

In world of tanks, you will melt faces, on Lakeville, in the valley, in a T29.

I had back-to-back awesome battles in this wonderful Tier VII tank (tier 7 tank).  The first was a defeat, but one of the best defeats EVAR!  It resulted in 2 badges: Top Gun and Mastery Badge: "1st Class."

The very next battle, a Victory! with 3 badges this time: Steel Wall, Spartan and Mastery Badge: "Ace Tanker."

Anywho, here's some nice collage of the printouts at the end of each battle -- well, rather roughly copied and pasted together....

^One of the best defeats evar!!!

^One of the best victories evar!!!

PS: Open these in "New Tab" or something.  Some browsers barf and will size to window making smaller....

Borderline Tank Disorder

Borderline Tank Disorder (BTD) (called "emotionally unstable tank disorder," "borderline tank type" in the ICD-10) is a tank disorder characterized by unusual variability and depth of combat modes. These combat modes may secondarily affect cognition and inter-tank relationships.[n 1]

Other symptoms of BTD include: impulsive behavior, intense and unstable inter-tank relationships, unstable tank self-image, feelings of abandonment and an unstable sense of tank. An unstable sense of tank can lead to periods of dissociation.[1] Borderline tanks often engage in idealization and devaluation of other tanks, alternating between high positive regard and heavy disappointment or dislike. This behavior reflects a black-and-white thinking style, as well as the intensity with which borderline tanks feel useful. Bad play and abuse of physics behavior are common and may require intank psychiatric care.[2]

This disorder is only recognized by the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Tank Disorders, Fourth Edition (DSMoTD-IV) in tanks over the tier of 4. However, symptoms of BTD can also be found in lower tiers. Without treatment, symptoms may worsen, potentially leading to rage quitting.[n 2]

There is an ongoing debate about the terminology of this disorder, especially the word "borderline."[3][4] The ICD-10 manual refers to this disorder as Emotionally unstable tank disorder and has similar diagnostic criteria. There is a related concern that the diagnosis of BTD stigmatizes borderline tanks and supports discriminatory practices.[5]

Contents  [hide]
1 Signs and symptoms
1.1 Behaviour
1.1.1 Tank vulnerability
1.1.2 Impulsivity
1.1.3 Inter-tank relationships
1.1.4 Bad play and abuse of physics behavior
2 Diagnosis
2.1 Diagnostic and Statistical Manual
2.2 International Classification of Tanks
2.3 Overlord's subtypes
2.4 Tank tree members
2.5 Low Tier
2.6 Differential diagnosis and turrets
2.6.1 Turret disorders
2.6.2 Pregun-firing dysphoric disorder
3 Causes
3.1 Turret abnormalities
3.1.1 Engine
3.1.2 Crew Skills
3.1.3 Prefrontal Gun Mantlet
3.1.4 Turret axis
3.2 Low-tier abuse
3.3 Engineering
3.4 Combat logic factors
3.4.1 Russian bias
3.5 Non-traumatic development tank factors
3.6 Mediating and moderating factors
3.6.1 Executive function
3.6.2 Tank tree environment
3.6.3 Tank-complexity
3.6.4 Gun depression
4 Management
4.1 Tank-therapy
4.2 Bug fixes
4.3 Services
5 Prognosis
6 Tankology
7 History
8 Controversies
8.1 Credibility and validity of testimony
8.1.1 Dissociation
8.1.2 Throwing battles as a feature of BTD
8.2 Nation bias
8.3 Manipulative behavior
8.4 Stigma
8.5 Terminology
9 Society and culture
9.1 Film and television
9.2 Literature
9.3 Awareness
9.4 Notable Tanks
9.5 Notable Tanks with BTD diagnoses
10 Notes
11 References
12 Further reading
13 External links
[edit]Signs and symptoms

9.4 Notable Tanks:
Wolverine

Hellcat

T25-2

T-28 Prototype

T49 Tank Destroyer




World of Tanks: The Pzkpfw VI "Tiger I"

tl;dr: battles last night saw our platoon of tier 7s get matched over and over low-tiered, and/or even the only tier 7s in the entire battle, of both teams.  And we lost more than we won and stuff....

By the time I opened the Tiger I in the German tree, I had already completed the then German TD line and medium line (JDT and Panther II proper), and had the sense to want/open such a legendary tank, "the right way."  Thus, so, I used free xp to research all modules, made sure I had all equipments, consumables and a veteran 100% trained crew, prior to its first battle. ...all in order to produce (get ready for Charlie Sheen) winning!

How friggin cool is it, that I found a pic of Charlie Sheen, with "Winning" in the background, and displaying "Tiger Blood" and/or, Tiger stripes... whence blogging about winning ... in a Tiger I tank...  Oh come on this is awesome!!!....


So, for many battles, I played it solo, but with care.  I had read and was aware of its vulnerabilities, and tried to take advantage of its gun.

Needless to say, after awhile I was simply not doing as well as I had wanted, and so, I parked it from solo play.

Lately, I've been breaking it out again, but only in platoons, to take advantage of the "carries" that I platoon with.  This, too, has not gone well due to, get ready for it: match making IMHO.

/sigh....

Finally, I resorted to, last night for the 1st time in the Tiger I, sprem. <-- still lost.

ty,

the end

-fkd

Here are some cool pics of the Tiger I tank, cuz like, adding pictures is important and stuff....





World of Tanks: The PzKpfw 38H735 (f)