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oh-boy-me · 3 years

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Obey Me! Card Planning Tips

Hello! This game causes us all a lot of pain and suffering, but I’m MANAGING (?), so I thought I’d give what I’d consider some tips to maybe make things feel slightly more possible for you :)

I’ll split it into three parts and put it all under a read more.

Team Strength Calculation

Team Preparation

General Tips for Resources and Daily DP

Part 1: Team Strength Calculation

Each stage has 2 sins tied to it, as you’ve probably noticed. In chapters 1-20, the stats of these two sins are boosted for ALL cards (character and support) by 15%.*

In chapters 1-20, your team’s strength is calculated with the following formula:

Strength = 1.15(AttributeSin1Total) + 1.15(AS2Total) + Other5SinsTotal

For example, let’s look at Lesson 10-20, which is a Gluttony/Lust battle. My team is composed of Pandas Mean Profit (Greed), A Special Ceremony (Lust), and Colorful Panic (Pride). And I’m using zero support cards just so I only have to add up 3 numbers.

Strength = 1.15(24338) + 1.15(34921) + 122736 = 190884**

Keep in mind that the buffs only apply to the attribute sin scores. If the battle is Gluttony/Lust, the Pride scores will stay at their base values. This is the case for all lessons up through chapter 20, both normal and hard mode.

However, from Lesson 21 onwards, there are two changes. One, there is a primary sin and a secondary sin for each battle, marked by which icon is bigger in the preparation screen. (There always has been, but now it matters which is which.) In boss battles, both are primary. Second, the buffs have changed drastically.

Every card has its main sin, obviously, and its strength in that sin is the strongest. However, they still have strength in the other 6 sins as well. There are two non-main sins that a card is very strong in, two that it is average in, and two that it is terrible in.

The percent increase is now dependent on how good a card is in the battle's two attribute sins. (Remember that these buffs still only affect that sin, not the card’s total strength.)

If a card is the same sin as the battle’s primary sin, that sin gets a 160% buff

If a card is the same sin as the battle’s secondary sin, that sin gets a 90% buff

If a card’s second or third best sin is the battle’s primary sin, that sin gets a 30% buff

If a card’s second or third best sin is the battle’s secondary sin, that sin gets a 10% buff

Any sins lower than third best no longer get a buff

I’m not going to make a formula this time because it’s too long and situational. But let’s look at that same 3-card team again, this time with Lesson 21-5, a Lust/Gluttony stage in that order.

Pandas Mean Profit has an average Lust score, so it gets no bonus. Its Gluttony is its 3rd best sin, so that gets a 10% buff (10752 > 11827)

A Special Ceremony is a Lust card, so its Lust gets a 160% buff (17308 > 45000). Its Gluttony sucks, though, so that doesn’t get a bonus.

Colorful Panic has Lust as its second best sin, so it gets a 30% buff (10423 > 13549). Gluttony is its third best, so that gets a 10% buff too (9866 > 10852).

With the new system, the team’s Lust score has skyrocketed from 40158 to 65739. However, its Gluttony score dropped from 27987 to 26399.

This means that the sins of your cards suddenly matter more in battle. (And honestly I don’t think that’s a bad thing. I know people complain that it makes it harder, but. If my Comedy team in A3! is made entirely of Action/Drama cards with poor Comedy, I shouldn’t expect that team to do well. Idk why people think that shouldn’t apply to Obey Me.) Which brings us to part 2.

By the way, colored glow sticks raise the card’s total strength by 10%, and rainbow glow sticks raise it by 30%.

* It’s actually like 14.99% but it’s effectively the same. The “slightly under but so close that I’m just rounding for significant figures” thing will be consistent for all of these buffs.

** The actual in-game strength is 190881, 3 points off due to the .99% thing.

Part 2: Team Preparation

I’m so sorry. But someone has to say it. Are you listening? Great.

URs aren’t automatically better than SSRs. Honestly, they never were. They ESPECIALLY aren’t now. You’re not losing the battle because you’re using SSRs. You’re losing the battle because you’re throwing Wrath cards at a Sloth opponent.

Morning Voice is an Envy SSR card. My copy of the card is only level 10, and in a Lesson 21+ Envy battle, its Envy score is 6866.

What is my Level 90 UR Colorful Panic’s Envy score in the same battle?

3489.

Colorful Panic is a higher rarity and 80 levels higher. It has worse Envy. Why? Because Envy is its worst sin.

Obviously you aren’t going to be using a level 10 card in a battle, so for a more realistic standpoint, my copy of Resentment Runs Deep (SSR Envy) has 46108 Envy in the same battle. That’s 13x better than the UR.

I’ll repeat it one more time before I move on. The sin scores of a card are far more important than the rarity of the card. A random SR card of the right sin is better than a UR with no sin bonus. The most impressive thing about a UR is how hard it is to get one.

Anyway, what does this mean? Is it hopeless?

Well, if you wanted to binge all three seasons within the first month of playing, yes. But let’s assume that’s not the case. (Side note, but the feeling that our cards are never good enough is definitely exacerbated by the aggressive speed at which they release new lessons combined with the fandom’s apparent allergy to spoiler warnings, but that’s a point for another post maybe.)

Remember that having URs isn’t actually all that important. Now remember the sheer amount of SSRs they release since they also aggressively release events. Also remember that with every 10-pull, you’ll get at least one SSR+. (Also remember to never do single pulls; they're not worth it at all.) If you’re really struggling with a lot of battles, here’s how you can improve your scores while focusing on as few cards as possible.

Open an Excel document or Google Sheets page and make a chart that looks something like this:

[Image Description: An 8x8 Excel sheet. The columns are labelled with each of the seven deadly sins, and the rows are labelled Cards 1 through 3 and Support 1 through 3, with a blank row in between. The rest of the sheet is blank.]

Now choose a card you want to use. Doesn’t matter why you want to use it, maybe you like how it looks, maybe you worked really hard to get it, maybe you like its ability, maybe it’s just your current strongest card. I don’t care. For my chart I’m gonna use Pandas Mean Profit because it’s really pretty and I got it from the 100-pull pity reward.

Look at your card’s top 3 sins and put them into the chart. For the character cards, note who the card is, because you can’t double up. For reference later, also note whether it’s 1st, 2nd or 3rd best. (Be sure to do this through Contacts and not a battle so there are no buffs skewing the scores.)

Once that’s in, choose another card you like for a different sin and input that card’s top 3 sins. Envy is still completely empty, so I’ll put Resentment Runs Deep in next. It’s an SSR, but I really love the Refresh Team ability. Do this for one character card and one support card of each sin at first, if you can. It doesn’t matter what level they are right now. Then fill in whatever blanks you have with cards that specialize in that sin.

If a sin comes up more than 3 times, keep whichever ones are strongest in that sin without overlapping characters. Play around with it until you get something that works for you. Keep note of the sins you’re lacking cards for.

[Image Description: The same Excel Sheet as before, except filled in with various Obey Me card names. The cells in rows 2 through 4 are color coded to match the character of the card. Each cell marks in parentheses how strong the card is in the sin of the column it’s in from 1 to 3.]

Mine looks like this. This chart isn’t perfect (if you look, none of my cards had Envy as a good non-main sin, and Pandas and Bunny have too much overlap for the same character), but it works as a rushed example. I used the cell colors to mark the characters.

Are these the teams you should be using for each battle? No, obviously not. First off there’s no single-sin battle, and second off the game will still build the teams for you.

BUT, this greatly lowers the amount of cards you need to pour resources into. Instead of 42 cards, with this chart I only have to focus on 18 cards in order to be guaranteed that all my cards get at least a SLIGHT boost in each battle. The best-case scenario would drop it down to 14 cards.

Later on, once you’ve managed the cards on your chart, the next thing to do would be to find main sin cards to replace those that are only third best in their sin. On mine I’d definitely focus on a Gluttony character card next, but in general Sloth is the one you want to be the most proactive about.

That should help you get through at least Season 2. Season 3 is admittedly where the difficulty actually IS ridiculous, but Season 2 really isn’t as hard as we’ve been saying. It just requires more planning than “the first three URs I ever got.”

I do still apologize for the resources and Grimm it’ll take, though :’)

Part 3: General Tips for Resources and Daily DP

This section is just some extra tidbits to help you have the resources to get cards and upgrade them.

[Image Description: The “hard to swallow pills” meme. The pills read “You don’t need every single card and unless you’re a whale eventually you’re going to have to prioritize some events and ignore others or you’ll never have the resources to improve the cards you already have.”]

However, events ARE good for farming Grimm, so it’s not the end of the world if you want every SSR. The only issue will come up when you need hard mode items and never have any AP, but it’s manageable.

If you’re going to log in more than once throughout the day, you can do the 2-1 job distribution. If not, do three jobs with one character each so you get the daily task done

To save money for leveling up your good cards, complete the devil tree daily mission with N-rank cards.

Use vouchers over DP whenever you can (and use Raven to get vouchers). The 99 DP level-up sale IS worth it if you can afford it, because that’s like 50% off a 10-pull once you do two.

I’m not certain, but I THINK skill level also influences how often an ability activates? I feel like my Lv 10 SSR cards activate often but my Lv 1 URs never do. So if you’re relying on an ability, the permanent SSRs might be worth looking at over limited time cards.

Anyway, I hope this helps at all in our mutual suffering.

#obey me #gameplay talk

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captainofthetidesbreath · 4 years

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A couple of people remarked about the idea of swapping weapons on my post about fun weapon proficiencies in the Nein (Veth is proficient with the Star Razor!) and one person even wondered about a battle royale where everyone switched weapons.

Now, it’s not really possible to determine who would win that royale because that involves working out the many, many possibilities of not only a battle royale between the Nein (which is hard as is) but also working out all the weapon possibilities (which is even harder). But, I can make general assessments about the mechanics of each of the Nein using any of the other’s weapons.

My verdict is: Veth is absolutely screwed, Yasha is taking a bit of a hit here but she’ll be fine in most cases, Beau, Caleb, Jester, and Caduceus are having pretty normal days, and Fjord is learning it is goddamned sweet being a Pact of the Blade Hexblade. Fjord with Skingorger can and will quickly put the fear of Melora into anyone.

Here’s the breakdown:

Rules

This is a full weapon swap using the weapons the Nein has as of 2.106.

Each person forfeits all weapons they’re carrying and will receive two weapons: one primary, one secondary. These weapons cannot be a weapon they just forfeit nor of a type that matches their original weapons, i.e. Beau may have the Star Razor but she is not allowed the Staff of Withering because that is a quarterstaff like the Belabor.

It’s difficult to tell what other random weapons the group has on them. I’m reasonably sure that both Caleb and Fjord were idly mentioned to be carrying standard daggers, so I will include those for the sake of bringing the secondary weapon count to a round total of seven. Here is what I’m considering everyone to be originally armed with and what those weapons are categorized as for this exercise:

Fjord - Star Razor (primary), Inescapable Lash (secondary), dagger (secondary)

Beau - Belabor (primary), throwing stars (secondary)

Caleb - dagger (secondary)

Veth - Tinkertop Bolt Blaster (primary), shortsword (secondary), Dagger of Denial (secondary), pistol (secondary)

Jester - +1 handaxe (primary)

Caduceus - Staff of Withering (primary)

Yasha - Magician’s Judge (primary), Skingorger (primary)

I’m allowing secondary weapons to offer opportunity to make up for receiving a primary weapon someone cannot use at all, though it would still be possible for someone to receive two weapons that are basically useless to them. Anyone would be allowed to use their secondary weapon as their primary method of weapon attack, i.e. if Jester has both the Magician’s Judge and Veth’s shortsword, she may ignore the Magician’s Judge entirely to prefer the shortsword for her weapon attacks.

The assumption is made that everyone is attuned to all their weapons if required and has the slots to do so if they receive multiple weapons requiring attunement. I’m not about to run the math on who does and does not have slots to attune to multiple weapons without losing attunement to any other equipment. (Yes, I know Yasha does not, but my post, my rules.)

Similarly, I will not do the nitty gritty of whether or not Fjord, Jester, and Caduceus can use a greatsword or two-weapon fighting given that they also have shields because that would require dissecting how fastidious the table is about the interaction between shields and weapons, and, generally, I have the impression that the table does not care that much—and, frankly, neither do I.

The primary weapon Fjord gets will be considered his pact weapon. This is extremely important for a lot of mechanical things we’ll get into later including in that it prevents him from conjuring himself a weapon he likes better, i.e. he cannot dump the Tinkertop Bolt Blaster and conjure himself a standard longsword instead because he will always summon the Tinkertop Bolt Blaster. Like everyone else may, he can opt to prefer whatever secondary weapon he gets, but it will not be his pact weapon.

Regarding the endless debate on what sort of weapon Beau’s throwing stars are considered, I’m ruling them as darts here. This is complicated enough as is.

Beau’s Maelstrom Gloves, by the way? She’d keep those. They’re armor, not weapons. Additionally, I believe that the crystal on Caduceus’ staff is his arcane focus. I consider the crystal separate from the staff itself, so Caduceus keeps it. Whoever receives the Tinkertop Bolt Blaster is also assumed to receive standard bolts as well but will not have any of Veth’s special bolts.

Proficiencies

So, firstly, who’s proficient with each other’s weapons? Proficiencies are as follows, not including the original owner of the weapon.

Primary weapons:

Star Razor (longsword) - Yasha, Veth

Belabor, Staff of Withering (quarterstaffs) - everyone

Tinkertop Bolt Blaster (hand crossbow) - Fjord, Yasha

+1 handaxe - everyone who is not Caleb

Magician’s Judge, Skingorger (greatswords) - Fjord

Secondary weapons:

Inescapable Lash (whip) - Yasha

Throwing stars (darts) - everyone

Shortsword - Fjord, Beau, Yasha

Dagger - everyone

Pistol - nobody

Jester, Caduceus, Caleb

This bunch is basically unaffected by swapped weapons. Jester, Caduceus, and Caleb do not use weapons as a primary method of attack at all. Regardless of what weapon they receive, they have no reason to make weapon attacks of any sort due to the way they typically function in battle.

They all also have War Caster, so they can cast a spell when an opportunity attack is provoked in lieu of a weapon attack. If they do decide to wield whatever they receive, War Caster also allows them to do so without issue.

As a minor note, all the weapons—with the exception of the Tinkertop Bolt Blaster, the daggers, and the throwing stars which all use Dexterity—use a Strength modifier. Of these three, only Jester has the Strength score (+3) to even consider wielding the other weapons. But, Caduceus’ (+2) and Caleb’s (+1) Dexterity modifiers are also not overly great for weapon attacks either.

But, that’s an aside. None of them benefit. None of them lose anything. Spending their actions to make weapon attacks isn’t necessarily worth their time, even if they did happen to receive a weapon they both have proficiency in and had a high enough ability score to use with any degree of effectiveness. In terms of the additional magical abilities of the Star Razor and the Belabor, none of them benefit clearly enough to really consider spending their action using that property over casting one of their own spells; it would help, but it would be of a minor and niche benefit to these three.

Beau

Beau is generally unaffected due to being a monk and can punch things. She would lose the sweet benefits of the Belabor, but she will not be hamstrung by receiving a weapon that she cannot effectively use. Beau’s Martial Arts, which allows her to use her Dexterity modifier instead of Strength for her weapon attacks, applies only to Jester’s +1 handaxe, Veth’s shortsword, and the daggers. But, y’know: pop, pop.

The most ideal primary weapon Beau could receive is Jester’s +1 handaxe because she can actually use it. Should Beau receive both the handaxe and Veth’s shortsword, or the handaxe and a dagger, she would be able to use them in two-weapon fighting. This would allow her, for example, to use her action to make two attacks with the shortsword, then use her bonus action to make one attack with the handaxe.

Beau would also benefit from receiving the Tinkertop Bolt Blaster, given that it uses Dexterity for weapon attacks but she would not be able to add her proficiency modifier to her attack rolls. But it would give her opportunity for ranged attacks.

She cannot really do anything else with any other weapons, but receiving a weapon that is useless to her, such as Skingorger, will not hinder her combat ability in any manner.

Yasha

The biggest thing for Yasha is that she is taking a hit to her average damage output. The damage die on her greatswords is 2d6 + bonuses, greater than any other weapon in the pool. This is particularly true for Skingorger which has an extra 1d8 acid damage when invoked in exchange for a point of exhaustion. Her weapon attack rolls remain the same for all primary weapons because she has proficiency in everything, with exception of the hand crossbow where she has to use her Dexterity (+2) instead of her Strength (+4). This is true for all secondary weapons as well, with exception of the throwing stars and the pistol.

Her worst case scenario is receiving the Tinkertop Bolt Blaster. She would receive her proficiency bonus for it, but the barbarian Rage damage bonus only applies to melee weapon attacks made using a Strength modifier. Effectively using a hand crossbow also means she needs to stay at range, which negates the advantages of Yasha’s mechanical build. She could make up some ground here should the secondary weapon she receive be a melee weapon. If she receives both the crossbow and Beau’s throwing stars or the pistol and she is stuck in melee range? Well, unarmed strikes get the Rage damage bonus because “an unarmed strike counts as a melee weapon attack” and it uses her Strength modifier. Less than ideal.

The most ideal primary weapon she could receive is the Star Razor. It has the highest average damage output of the weapons available to her, and she can take advantage of its versatile property to wield it two-handed for 1d10 + bonuses damage. It could also possibly benefit her to cast Faerie Fire to attempt to gain advantage on attacks against a target should she have the space to spend an action doing so. The radiant damage biteback when hit with a melee attack is also a nice complement to her Rage resistances.

Other than the hit to her average damage output, Yasha would generally do alright, provided she does not receive two ranged weapons, but her average damage output will suffer a wide variable amount.

Veth

Veth is screwed in this scenario except in exactly one case.

She will receive her proficiency bonus with the Star Razor, either staff, and the handaxe. However, none of those weapons are finesse weapons nor are they ranged. This means two things: Veth must use her Strength modifier (+0) instead of her Dexterity (+5) to make her weapon attacks, and more importantly, these weapons are ineligible for Sneak Attack.

In fact, there is no primary weapon she can receive that is eligible for Sneak Attack because the only finesse or ranged weapon the group carries is her Tinkertop Bolt Blaster. And per the rules above, she cannot receive it. Of the secondary weapons that she can receive, only Beau’s throwing stars can apply Sneak Attack because they are finesse and ranged weapons.

Additionally, not that it matters because of all the other factors, due to the fact that halflings are a small race, weapon attacks with heavy weapons, like greatswords, are made at disadvantage.

Regarding Brenatto’s Voltaic Bolt, I’m unsure of the mechanics of the spell, but given the name and its flavor description, I assume that the spell takes effect upon a hit with a ranged weapon attack with ammunition, similar to Hail of Thorns.

It’s most ideal she receive Beau’s throwing stars. She would do more average damage with them than she would with anything else because she can add her Dexterity (+5) as a bonus to the 1d4 damage and she can apply Sneak Attack. These throwing stars are the only way Veth would be able to make effective weapon attacks. If Voltaic Bolt does not require a weapon with ammunition and is simply “on a hit with a ranged weapon attack”, then it could be applied to the throwing stars! So, we’re getting somewhere now. However, Veth would run out of throwing stars quickly, so it is unsustainable.

Out of the primary weapons, I personally would say it’s most ideal she gets the Star Razor? She would not be able to use it as effectively as some other weapons on the list, but the chance of landing Faerie Fire on someone to gain advantage against them may increase her chances of doing any damage at all. In a royale scenario, which is where this started, it would also deny anyone else the ability to cast See Invisibility. Given that she cannot effectively attack anyone with her spellcasting (and I don’t think she has any direct damage spells that she can use in this scenario outside of the potential in Phantasmal Force), it may behoove her to remain invisible for as long as she can to avoid being targeted, and robbing the others of the ability to cast See Invisibility and the opportunity to unveil her with Faerie Fire will better keep her hidden.

If none of that matters, and she isn’t trying to prevent the others from finding her, then one of the quarterstaffs would be the best choice. She’d receive her proficiency bonus with them, so she’s more likely to hit with it despite a poor Strength. The magical properties of both—the Belabor’s ranged attack and the Staff of Withering’s 2d10 necrotic on a hit—would be of use to her if she’s preferring trying to hit things over than hiding and surviving.

Generally though, given she is without Sneak Attack in nearly all cases, there is no way that Veth breaks even in this scenario, let alone benefit.

Fjord

Fjord is generally having a great time because being a Pact of the Blade Hexadin is pretty sweet. He will be taking hits to average damage output with most of these weapons, but not by so much that it’s worth worrying about. The upside is that in no cases does he take a penalty to his weapon attack rolls, except with the pistol, because he has proficiency with everything which results in not having to use his Strength (+1) or Dexterity (+0) modifiers for any of them.

Hex Warrior, which allows Fjord to apply his Charisma (+5) modifier, can be applied to every single primary weapon he can possibly get. It kicks in for the first weapon that Fjord touches after a long rest so long as he has proficiency and it lacks the two-handed property. Additionally, because Fjord is Pact of the Blade, this feature automatically extends to his pact weapon, regardless of the weapon’s properties. Pact of the Blade does not have limitations as to what magical weapons he can apply the ritual to, only limitations to what he can conjure for himself.

Since I have previously stated that any primary weapon he receives will be considered his pact weapon, every single weapon becomes covered by Hex Warrior, including the greatswords despite the fact that they are two-handed. This also means, because Hex Warrior extends to his pact weapon, the secondary weapon he receives can benefit from Hex Warrior so long as it meets the requirements, i.e. everything but the pistol. (Though I’m not sure how Hex Warrior interacts with a set of multiple thrown items like Beau’s throwing stars.) Fjord is not taking a hit to his attack rolls today, with exception of the gun. Again, Hexblade? Pretty sweet.

His least ideal primary weapon would probably be the Tinkertop Bolt Blaster, even though he can use it without any worries at all, in tandem with the throwing stars or pistol. This combination would leave him without melee range options, and Fjord’s typical strength in combat lies in his versatility at all ranges. He also cannot Divine Smite via ranged weapon attacks. He can, however, cast Banishing Smite through a ranged weapon attack.

By the way, Thirsting Blade, despite the name, does apply to pact weapons that are not bladed and pact weapons that are ranged weapons. If it’s your pact weapon, it lets you make two attacks per attack action. So, he can make two attacks per attack action with the crossbow. However, should he get the crossbow and the shortsword, he could make only one attack per attack action with the shortsword because Thirsting Blade applies to his pact weapon, which I’ve previously ruled would be the primary weapon he received.

That said, there’s no real way to hamstring Fjord here, even if he receives a weapon combination that isn’t ideal for him, such as the crossbow and pistol. He can rely on his talents as a spellcaster by attempting to kite his opponents, which he can do pretty effectively in theory and as we've seen in 2.98, and cast Eldritch Blast infinitely. His ability to Phone-A-Friend to fight for him can also quickly make up any weaknesses he faces in any lack of melee range options. The most that would happen is he needs to remain at range and loses easy access to Divine Smite.

Here’s a fun thing to consider though: can Fjord Divine Smite through an unarmed strike? I don’t care what Crawford says. Stunning Strike, which is applied to a melee weapon attack, works with unarmed strikes because “an unarmed strike counts as a melee weapon attack”. Therefore, per RAW and consistency, one can Divine Smite on an unarmed strike. However, Fjord would have to use his Strength modifier for the attack roll and damage on the unarmed strike itself, because Hex Warrior cannot apply; as a note, everyone is proficient in unarmed strikes. Generally speaking, it isn’t worth it enough to close distance to do so, but it might be worth attempting an unarmed strike to deliver a Divine Smite in specific situations should he find himself in melee range without a melee weapon.

*That entire paragraph made me want to see Beau punch Fjord, then him punch her back and apply a 1st level Divine Smite to it because he’s an asshole and it’s funny.

The most ideal primary weapon he can receive is Skingorger. As mentioned before, Hex Warrior would indeed apply to greatswords that are his pact weapon, so Fjord can use his Charisma modifier to make all his weapon attacks, where he would normally need to use his Strength modifier. Also, my best guess is that Fjord’s paladin fighting style is Great Weapon Fighting due to his recent rerolling ones on damage dice, and that style absolutely applies to greatswords. Given that one level of exhaustion would not affect his attack rolls, it is worth invoking Skingorger. Yes, he will miss the Star Razor’s radiant damage biteback, but I’m sure 2d6 damage with an additional 1d8 of acid damage and crits on a 19 will soothe that heartache very quickly. He already crits on a 19 against targets affected by his Hexblade’s Curse, but this would allow him to do so against everyone.

Fjord with Skingorger will absolutely put the fear of Melora into everyone.

#Critical Role #Critical Role things #cr meta

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addcrazy-blog · 7 years

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New Post has been published on Add Crazy

New Post has been published on https://addcrazy.com/a-12-months-in-the-past-chris-jones-took-it-in-stride/

A 12 months in the past, Chris Jones took it in stride

The ones four phrases—mouthed by using defensive lineman Chris Jones after he finished his forty-yard sprint at closing 12 months’ NFL integrate—showed to all of his supporters watching at a sports bar back in Mississippi, that sure, they did just see what they idea they’d seen.

Jones’s father, Chris Jones Sr., left work early to meet approximately a dozen different buddies who had accumulated to look at his son, the pride of Houston, Pass over., entire his integrate circuit. Of path, there without a doubt isn’t all that tons of fans to peer throughout the once a year accumulating in Indianapolis as visitors aren’t shown the important medical assessments and group interviews. Rather, they’re dealt with to an array of drills which might be both myopic—How excessive are you able to bounce? How a long way is you able to jump?—or totally inscrutable, an l. A. the punch, hand, shiver drill. But then there may be the 40-backyard dash, the defining event of the NFL’s Underclothes Olympics.

Whereas other integrate moments are overcomplicated or understimulating, the forty is neither. It is simple,Gif-in a position and uncooked. It’s an opportunity for younger football stars, stripped of the physical and symbolic separation their game usually provides, to blow everyone away. However, it’s additionally an opening to explode for all of the incorrect motives—like Vick Ballard did in 2012, stumbling out of the gates and disposing of a tripod. Even future Hall of Famers like Tom Brady and Aaron Rodgers appearance again on their runs with a twinge of regret—Brady admitting “I used to be truly sluggish again then” and Rodgers trying to label his four.Seventy-one time as #fakenews.

The Law of the truly Huge Numbers way that, in reality, foibles transpire all over Lucas Oil Stadium all through the integrate. But the Regulation of Social Media way it most effective topics if a person sees it—and stocks it—making the forty-yard stretch of white paint the maximum likely level for embarrassment at this yr’s combine. Yet, with conviction equal to a natural Regulation, we will appropriately say that no person will pinnacle Chris Jones.

On his final day on the combine, Jones desired to face out. So while his peers donned green and gray tights, he opted for black ones. He notion they’d make him appearance quicker. As he walked up to the starting line, a person hollered, “Dang Chris, where’d you get Those black tights from?” He responded, “They’re the one and handiest.” In truth, that they had come from a huge pile of swag he’d been given by way of Beneath Armour, Nike, and Adidas. “I grabbed it all,” he says. “I didn’t let something bypass with the aid of.”

As he lowered himself into his beginning stance, Jones’s important concern become taking his time and controlling his breathing earlier than triggering the reputable timer. Although Jones become acknowledged for a fast first-step in college, his teacher, Pete Bommarito, clearly said the start of the run offered Jones with the maximum troubles, for the reason that a forty-backyard-sprint stance is one of a kind than a lineman’s ordinary pre-snap pose. But over the course of a month in Miami, Jones placed inside the paintings to ideal the technique. Keen on his sleep in Starkville, Jones got up at 6 a.M. each day to be the primary one in Bommarito’s door. In Indianapolis, he even ran drills in motel hallways to live sharp. That work paid off as he sprung out of the blocks, posting the second one fastest 10-backyard cut up among shielding linemen over three hundred pounds. However that wasn’t what might earn him viral reputation.

2011 NFL Pre-Draft crew Tablets

1) INDIANAPOLIS COLTS: Despite “Superman” at QB, the Colts have been overachievers ultimate season due to accidents, finishing at 10-6 and dropping a hard one to the Jets inside the 1st spherical of the NFL playoffs. When looking at this franchise, they are all approximately outscoring their opponent. They showed that they can “plug and play” at WR with the talent they’ve proven the last few years with the emergence of Garcon, White and Collie. However, the Colts universe nevertheless revolves round Manning and also you do not preserve your Ferrari parked in the road do you? No you guard it and that’s what the Colts will do early in this draft. They still had been near the pinnacle of the league with only 17 sacks allowed on Manning in 2010 However lots in their troubles on the OL had been disguised with the aid of Manning’s uncanny capability to examine defenses and get the ball out of his palms quickly. Look for the Colts to cope with the road at pick 22 in what is amounting to a pretty deep draft within the trenches. Carimi or Castonzo could be exquisite But are not anticipated to be there for his or her choose. I suppose Tyron Smith from USC may be an awesome fit here for them as he is large at 6’5and nevertheless has room to grow his frame at 290. Rackley from Lehigh could additionally be a strong choice here too if available. The relaxation of the draft have to concentrate on the defensive side of the ball. they are plenty deep at WR, Clark isn’t always getting younger at TE But this draft isn’t always true if you need a TE so they’ll bypass here. RB will be an alternative in rounds three-4 as Brown is bordering on a bust relying at the 2011 season and Addai, at the same time as showing awesome symptoms of lifestyles remaining 12 months, just can’t remember on for production and staying healthful. With Sanders now long gone in the returned cease, the Colts need to shore up their secondary. I really like them going CB, maybe even in the first and crossing their hands that the expertise at OL holds up until their 2nd pick. They also can constantly use assist on the DL role to loose up Freeney so this is an option as nicely.

2) HOUSTON TEXANS: every person’s favorite pre-season pick out to surprise did so once more, best on the drawback as common. They began out the season strong But misplaced a few near ones along the manner to once more finish a disappointing season at 6-10. Kubiak miraculously returns, typically due to the fact the offense is his forte and isn’t the trouble. that is why owner, Bob McNair gutted the protecting staff and elected to bring in “Uncle Wade” to shore things up and transfer over to a three-four the front. There is often a studying curve with that and getting the right employees up front is a venture so do not count on large strides in 2011. But, they’ll spend the majority of this draft searching out help on that facet of the ball and they will mainly discover it in a deep DL, OLB and first rate now not wonderful CB draft. The Texans know they want to fix the secondary that’s why they went CB inside the first in 2010 However Kareem Jackson disenchanted in 12 months 1. At #eleven, Peterson, Prince, Jimmy Smith or Rasi Dowling should all be to be had and likely are proper fits to as a minimum begin improving this secondary that has to play Peyton twice a 12 months. The alternative right information for the Texans is there are a decent amount of bypass speeding OLB’s in this draft that they are able to opt for in spherical 1 or 2 in all likelihood. Cushing and Barwin should make the transition excellent But including a man like Justin Houston of Georgia, Chris Carter, Fresno or Akeem Ayers from UCLA may be a terrific match. Of direction of paramount importance is always the NG inside the three-four and some groups were looking for that player for years. That is the anchor of this defense and 330 lb. gamers that still have quick ft do not develop on trees so it could take a while to get one.

three) JACKSONVILLE JAGUARS: Forever on the recent seat, coach Jack Del Rio will need to get immediate production from this draft if he goes to stick around for a while. in this QB pushed league, it is no marvel that he has had in general subpar seasons with preceding bust Byron Leftwich and now the very average David Garrard. Should this be the 12 months the Jags appearance to in the end land a franchise QB? nicely there is a lot of intensity at that function However franchise QBs? I don’t suppose you have more than a pair that would turn out that manner But nobody in an effort to assist immediately. If they cross QB early, it tells you all you want to recognize about GM Smith’s feelings on Del Rio’s long time ability as coach. Garrard is serviceable at quality and won’t be prevailing any championships, let alone a division with Peyton Manning around any time quickly. So what is going to the Jags do? They should pass generally protection yet again in this draft with a focal point on WR as nicely. Sims-Walker turned into an enigma closing year and is most possibly now not going to be resigned after underachieving. Mike Thomas regarded true last yr But Hill, Dillard and Underwood aren’t exactly household names at WR. They need some assist right here. At pick out 16, they probable will not have a shot at inexperienced or Julio Jones within the draft unless they trade up and they have too many needs on defense to provide away alternatives. A man like Torey Smith or Tandon Doss can be a great match inside the second. On protection and in all likelihood in the 1st spherical, they may cross where the expertise runs deep at DE. Jordan or Kerrigan might be top compliments to Aaron Kampman who’s coming off a season-finishing knee harm and this may additionally disguise some of the worst secondary play within the league. If there have been a sport changing Protection on this draft, that might be the choose But sadly for the Jags, that does not exist this yr.

four) TENNESSEE TITANS: The coolest news is the Titans have the eighth select inside the draft as a praise for their disappointing 6-10 end. The awful information is they want a QB and you can argue that all 7 teams in front of them, besides perhaps Cleveland In the event that they genuinely like McCoy, also needs one. The depth at this role rings a bell in my memory of 1983 But I don’t preserve as a whole lot hope that we are searching at the next Marino, Eason, and O’Brien, extra like lots of Todd Blackledge. Out are Jeff Fisher after sixteen seasons and the controversial Vince younger, we suppose. Kerry Collins remains serviceable But isn’t the answer so Search for the Titans to peer what takes place in front of them. If a guy like Gabbert, Mallett or even Newton (new and advanced VY?) are to be had, they’ll pull the trigger to create the new face of the franchise going ahead. the next biggest need for the Titans might be shoring up their DL which has been pedestrian due to the fact “Fat Albert” became the Redskins problem. there may be a chance that Nick Fairley Ought to fall and deliver the Titans the hazard to add him to the mixture. This would be a good flow despite the fact that there are questions on his determination and choice (assume Gaines Adams from several years ago). I really like Stephen Paea as nicely right here as someone who can upload some size and strength to this DL. As for the rest of their draft, I like the Titans to recognition at the OL side of the ball with Munchak now the HC in Tennessee and if the Titans pass for a TE on this shallow function within the draft this year, it’s going to tell you what the brand new regime thinks of a longtime prospect Jared Cook.

NFC SOUTH group DRAFT desires

1) NEW ORLEANS SAINTS: The 2009 High-quality Bowl champs had a difficult year defending their crown with a rash of accidents and an getting older protection in 2010. The Saints face a few decisions inside the offseason with a number of their loose Retailers (each time we have FA once more) and so will need to focus on replacing a number of Those capacity missing parts. Further, the NFC South has unexpectedly taken flight with arguably some of the pleasant younger QBs in the game sandwiched into this division with Ryan, Freeman, Brees and whoever the Panthers in all likelihood choose with the primary choose this year need to discover help in pressuring opposing QBs. With the 24th pick, they may Leave out-out at the definitely impactful DE skills However nevertheless Could locate an impact participant to help in the five method of the competitive style DC Gregg Williams like to play. If D’quan Bowers is surely in freefall, he can’t slip beyond the Saints who will get splendid ability upside at this choose for a man who changed into arguably the top DE inside the early draft prognostications of February. The rest of the Saints draft has a whole lot extra to do with FA. they have selections to make, albeit smooth ones, on the RB function where Reggie is due a big $eleven.eight million revenue for 2011 and Thomas already a unfastened Agent after an injury-plagued 2010 put him in Sean Payton’s doghouse. Chris Ivory became out to be a extremely good find as an undrafted FA, reinforcing the idea to neglect approximately taking RBs early. both manner, he will want assist In the event that they pass on so Search for spherical three to be where the Saints cope with this need. In spherical 2, I see the Saints looking to certain up their OL where there may be respectable depth at the position. OT Bushrod and C Goodwin are unrestricted FA’s this year so they will at minimum want to add a few assist to the offensive the front to defend their funding in franchise Drew Brees. I suppose Rackley out of small-school Lehigh Could stay on the board until this select and could be a superb locate that could without problems put him inside the starting lineup proper away If they lose both guys to FA. The rest of their draft in all likelihood will focus again on the defense, specially LB and S in which Darren Sharper seem like the elderly 5 years after their Super Bowl season and Roman Harper is also a FA this yr. unfortunately this position lacks proper playmakers so the Saints likely will not discover their substitute on this draft.

2) CAROLINA PANTHERS: The Panthers have the unenviable role of being rewarded for having the worst group in 2010 with the primary select in this 12 months’s draft. This spot is constantly greater of a burden than a blessing and the economic and bust risk at this spot is greater than Jamarcus Russell’s urge for food at an all you can eat buffet. The Panthers went Clauson in spherical 2 at QB in 2010 and he become to be a can’t Pass over, prepared to play prospect coming out of Charlie Weiss’s system. This became clearly now not the case as Clausen appeared lost via his 10 begins remaining yr with three TDs and nine INTs. The question for new HC, Ron Rivera is, do you burn two top selections in consecutive years for a “franchise” QB? if you do, which one do you’re taking this 12 months with a deep magnificence However full of growth or bust ability. Rumor abound regarding them taking Newton However I just can not trust that they are critical in taking him with the primary choose. He may additionally turn out to be a terrific pro QB, But top pick out? What number of strolling, misguided, big armed QBs do we should see before we recognise that this isn’t the prototype for a prevailing QB in the NFL? My bet is finances are going to play a role in deciding this pick out right here as properly. they’ll go Dareus at DT right here or Vonn Miller at OLB given Rivera’s penchant for protection. On The alternative aspect, it could be hard to withstand a skills like AJ inexperienced or Julio Jones although it is the top pick out within the draft and WR’s normally run at around a 50% bust ratio. If green clearly is the second one coming from Calvin Johnson, are you able to pass him up with Steve Smith getting lengthy within the enamel and the want for factors on this division? I say That is the interior play here as they study what the Bucs have given Josh Freeman to work with earlier than they determine that Clausen isn’t the answer at QB. with the intention to be the first of many surprises on this year’s draft.

three) TAMPA BAY BUCCANEERS: become it the time table, did the Bucs overachieve or are they without a doubt an up and coming younger group some years far from contending? 2011 will cross a protracted manner to answering that query. at the same time as the Bucs just ignored the playoffs with a ten-6 record, they nevertheless have many regions of want and Talib brought to that trouble with his offseason antics gambling target practice together with his mother on his sister’s boyfriend. This definitely complicates things because with Ronde Barber having perhaps a year or so left, their secondary unexpectedly could be very young and beatable. As mentioned before, the way to improve the backend of the defense is to use greater stress up the front and last yr, the Bucs have been one of the worst at that notching simplest 26 sacks all season. The Bucs will move OLB right here and are said to like Houston However I assume they might not be capable of bypass on Bowers if he freefalls to their twentieth pick (reminding Bucs fans of the fall that Sapp took right into their lap before). both manner, they will Search for someone to strain the passer which is a ought to inside the NFC South. As for the relaxation of the draft, the Bucs are going to need some help at ILB in which they just do not appear to admire the work that Barrett Rudd has accomplished over time main the crew in tackles two consecutive years. he’s rather undersized and could need a large agreement this 12 months and the Bucs can be greater willing to appearance to replace him thru FA or the draft. The Bucs may also need to find a CB someplace inside the first 3 rounds and also will want to add to their suspect OL and RB function as they may lose Davin Joseph RG to FA. Cadillac Williams is a FA this 12 months and is a exceptional story and cherished in Tampa But they may want to upgrade right here as well In the event that they don’t believe that Kareem Huggins can come back from tearing up his knee. That is an vital draft for the Bucs If they have long term plans on constructing on the 2010 season and up to now Marc Dominik has been as much as the mission finding high-quality expertise inside the center rounds like Mike Williams WR inside the 4th and Cody Grimm S within the 7th.

4) ATLANTA FALCONS: The Falcons came off one of their first-rate seasons in franchise history at 13-three But a disappointing loss to eventual champions, inexperienced Bay proved that this team nevertheless has some missing parts to be determined if it’s miles going to contend for a Awesome Bowl. One component that they learned is that Roddy White by using himself isn’t enough to overcome the elite defenses. Matt Ryan needs some other weapon as Harry Douglas was no longer the solution and Tony Gonzalez is at the crease of his HOF profession. I just like the Falcons to study a speedster with their twenty-seventh choose a great deal inside the mould of a DeSean Jackson as a way to back up the defenses. I really like Titus younger, Boise Country, Randall Cobb, Kentucky or Maryland’s Torrey Smith to fill this need if nevertheless available and as a minimum certainly one of them if now not all ought to be. The Falcons also may fit to the TE position seeing that handiest Kyle Rudolph in reality initiatives as a 1st spherical talent at TE and he Should get on the field with Gonzalez in two TE units and examine a number of the intricacies of the game from one of the excellent. every other location in which the Falcons need to find assist in is the secondary. They might usually use extra assist up the front to apply strain But they have been exposed as opposed to top QB play like Aaron Rodgers in last yr’s playoffs so I would not be amazed If they went CB in the first and regarded to discover their speed WR inside the second or later. At 27 they may no longer find the likes of Patrick Peterson or Prince Amukamara at that spot But Ras-I Dowling out of Virginia could be a terrific locate and is a excessive man or woman man that’s a part of Dimitroff’s winning method considering taking up for Wealthy McKay as GM.

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