The Paradox of Theseus’ Gaming Tower

Yarr I’m way behind on my comics schedule! Between having my birthday and setting up a gaming computer to hook up to the TV with Xbox controllers, I guess it hasn’t felt like I’ve had much free time. But it has been a dream of mine for some time now to set up a PC to the TV with Xbox controllers in order to play our ever-building backlog of Steam games.

I’ve been Frankensteining together a gaming computer. It doesn’t need to run the best and most ridiculous games, just mid-level gaming, so that’s why I figured on just chopping together parts from what I already had. I had one machine with a decent processor and a good amount of RAM but no GPU and only a 300W power supply. I also had a computer that ~10 years ago was my gaming computer, so it had a 500W power supply and a decent GPU for its time but a problem with its RAID set up or hard drive or something. I don’t recall.

In my memory the gaming computer was super rad, but looking at it now my mediocre modern computer has a better processor and more RAM, so I decided to move the power supply and the GPU from the old computer into the new one.

Alas, I think I might just chuck the old GPU and get a new one, it isn’t quite so great as I remembered it being. But at least I don’t have to buy a new power supply (I’m not going to be getting a GPU that needs more than a 500W power supply… at least I don’t think so).

IN THE MEAN TIME, Doc and I have been playing a lot of games on the Theseus’ ship of PC gaming systems I built. We’ve especially loved playing Crawl. That game has been so much fun, I don’t even know where to begin with it. Suffice to say, it is like a strange frenetic dungeon-crawling brawl Lovecraftian horror party game? If that makes sense?

Other games we’ve been playing a lot of on the patchwork system: Everything, Niddhog, Spelunky, and of course I set up Morrowind to be playable on it with Xbox controllers through lots of mods. Yes I know we’re late to the party on a lot of these. That’s why I figured my old equipment would be good enough to build something to play these games.

Also. I am on a strange-ish quest, unrelated to the gaming tower I’ve been working on. Allow me to explain.

In the original game of Morrowind (non-Game of the Year edition and without Tribunal or Bloodmoon) there was special “ash storm” music that would play whenever ash storms occured. It had vocals, but no words. Just choral “aah aaaahh aah ahh” etc.

However, in the GotY edition and (seemingly) all download-able versions of Morrowind on the market today, the music does not play and in fact all music ceases and you just hear the wind blowing effects any time there’s an ash storm.

I’m trying to locate the original ash storm music in the game’s assets, and I wonder if it is even in there in the GotY edition. I’m starting to think it might not be.

I want this music so I can mod my game back to playing it during ash storms. If anybody knows where it is in the assets, or knows where I can download it, that would be much appreciated.

I am thiiiis close *holds up fingers and you notice that the space between them is not very large at all* to actually buying another copy of the original Morrowind for PC so I can get the assets off of that, so I can mod my Game of the Year edition to play the ash storm music that was in the original. Oy. I just REALLY LIKED that ash storm music, but nobody else even seems to know what I’m talking about but I swear I’m not imagining this. Also why am I so obsessed with this?

Seen Any Elves?

Seen Any Elves?

One of the things that Nords apparently love to say over and over is “Seen any ELVES??” And then they burst out cackling like they just said the funniest thing in the world.

And I just don’t get it. At all. Like, is it supposed to be a threat? Is it supposed to be funny? What is going on?

I don’t think Master Aryon understands what the Nords are going on about, either, but Steen just needed to vent. And I’m sure Aryon has… opinions on Nords.

I’ve also just noticed that apparently, in this comic, Mistress Steen and Master Aryon live in the Desert Golfing world. This was unintentional, but this is my headcanon now.

Also, I’m going to go do 24 Hour Comics Day tomorrow… and I’m super nervous. I don’t know why I put myself through this every year, but I’m always glad that I do.

Sleepy Time

The very first time I had ever played Morrowind, I didn’t realize that I had the Tribunal DLC installed. The very first night that I slept on the very first time I had ever played Morrowind was in Caius’ bed (with his permission). I was tired and beat up due to my walk from Sedya Neen to Balmora. And then, of course, a Dark Brotherhood assassin attacked me immediately. This was confusing enough, but even more confounding was Caius’ refusal to assist me in any way.

So I got rid of all the DLC and played Vanilla Morrowind for my first playthrough, and didn’t install Tribunal or Bloodmoon until after I’d defeated Dagoth Ur. The proper way to do it, if you ask me! It doesn’t make any sense that you’d be targeted in this way when you’re some nobody fresh off the boat.