What Are You Playing?

[DinoDerek]

I can see why it is a cult classic for sure. The dragon riding aspect is pretty cool.

Yeah there really wasn't anything like it. I personally loved the battle system. It borrowed some from the first two games (attacking from different sides) and the beserk attacks just look cool to me.

The story is actually quite sweet and like I said it took me until early disc 2 to find my attachment to the characters

Of the late Saturn RPGs I personally loved shining force iii a touch more but they are different games. And I mean just scenario 1 as I've still yet to properly sit down and play the translated 2/3 for some reason. But S1 stands on its own as a 35-40 hour rpg that's worth playing.

Shining the holy ark is a very close 3rd in that trio. Another game with a great story music atmosphere. Sadly I was probably 75% through the game when my save file corrupted a couple years back. Very frustrating. Ive been meaning to go back but it can be tough to just restart a dungeon crawler right away.

[PhantomSentry]

The legal game. I just dropped $1250 on a lawyer.

[storino03]

Details !

[PhantomSentry]

Details !

To start, the woman I had been with for going on three and a half years has manipulative and clever parents who feel the need to keep everyone they can under their thumbs. Early on in the relationship, her sister told me that it's easy for people to get ni her head and make her believe bullshit. She got in trouble for a guilty by association situation because she couldn't prove that she DIDN'T know something..even though she was doing chemo for that judge's wife. That judge refused to sentence her and another had to. She ended up having to serve 22 months. She's also what they call an "ARMY brat" so she has spent plenty of time on military bases. This is why she's comfortable following orders and having others do her thinking for her.

During that time, the older two children lived with her parents. Her parents are lazy and terrible so they gave the oldest (my daughter) reign of the house. She basically ran the show and got a taste for power.

Fast forward to when she got out...she soon ended up pregnant. I didn't judge her on it when we met and I'm not judging her now. If I had been locked up for nearly two years, I'd imagine it would be a highly promiscuous time for me too. She was about two months pregnant when I met her so clearly none of them are biologically mine. I've ALWAYS been afraid of a woman with kids. This time I could sense that I had found something special and I shouldn't back away. It was amazing. I love being a father and THE ENTIRE TIME she and I continuously found things in common. She's basically the female version of me. So many people have told me to go **** myself. Best advice I've ever been given.

Eventually her grandfather who has many health problems called her parole officer and begged him to transfer her to the county he lives in because (before the legal trouble) she was a nurse/cancer specialist. This got us living in the same town as her parents. Her brother and sisters all moved away because of their parents' meddling and attempts at control. It didn't take long for them to start trying to get involved in everything they could and cause strain.

Our daughter (who turns 13 this month) realized that running to her grandparents and blowing things out of proportion could get her the upperhand. Since smoking weed isn't an option because parole and not having medical cards yet, we started drinking and yes...it progressed. It BEGAN because the doctors at the hospital ****ed up her back when they did the interthecal or whatever for when she had the baby. She would often come in from work and collapse on the bed crying from the pain so she would drink enough to knock out the back pain. Eventually we were having more bad nights with drinking than good ones. I tried to put my foot down and say no more alcohol in the house. She would go around that and have friends pick it up and bring it over and then pay them on delivery. I found myself drinking when I didn't even want to because I knew she'd drink the whole pint if I drank none of it. I figured we could both get a small buzz and have a decent night instead of her getting hammered and turning mean.

I wasn't getting cooperation on not getting it. Every time she would bring up having someone get us alcohol, it would start an argument. If people would God damn listen, it wouldn't be this way...but anyway.

We end up at a friend's house and I'm in the room with our friend's son helping him get emulators and games on his new laptop. She comes in with alcohol. We share it for the same reason. WE GO TO LEAVE and we give the kids the keys to house since they're on bicycles and would get there before we did and they don't need to be mosquito food until we arrive.

They didn't go home. They rode to their grandparents. Our older son is 11 and autistic. He's gonna go where his sister goes because she's been the only constant in his life. Her parents conspire with the kids to get the police over and lie on me. They wrote statements that I don't know what they contain. The next day she calls her parole officer since you gotta if you encounter law enforcement. He says that because of the statements that I can't be living there and I ended up having to have my parents come get me and I've been at their house.

For the first 3 or 4 days, she's calling me and crying and miserable. I'm steadily scared that her parents are going to get in her head and turn her against me. I'm not sure right now but it seems to have worked. Eventually she stopped talking to me and I got a ride to town to see what's up. She lets me have the baby from the Sunday I showed up to the following Friday. She would only talk to the baby when she called.

We go to a nearby location so I can bring him back. I asked her "Do you not love me anymore?" and she started tearing up and said "It's not THAT! They're talking about taking ALL of the kids if I have anything to do with you! I'm trying to keep the kids! They're already building a DHS case against you!" and I can understand that. I told her very early on that I wouldn't respect her if she ever placed me above the kids.

I haven't seen my son in 12 days, even though I named him and signed the birth certificate. I have no idea what she really feels or what's true. No law enforcement or DHS workers have contacted me in person or even by phone. I don't know what's real or what's a lie. All I know is that two year old baby is all that I'm hanging on for. I can't enjoy games. I can't follow a storyline for a movie. All I can really distract myself with is message boards and stand-up. I actively try to give myself nightmares because I CAN'T HANDLE having dreams where everything is back to normal and then waking up to find out IT ISN'T REAL.

What I do know is that I can't give up on my son. Even though he isn't biologically mine, he and I are deeply bonded and this is abusive to him and to me. IT SEEMS like our daughter has found a way to get the power back and run the household using her grandparents who are also using her parole situation along with their brainwashing bullshit. It's also abusive to the eldest son because the last time I talked to him on the phone, he was still calling me dad.

I don't want my baby to forget me. I'm crying right now typing this. I've contacted a lawyer and paid him and am going to try my hardest to at least get a piece of my heart back. I barely wanna live.

[storino03]

That's a lot to take in. Fighting for something/someone you love isn't a crime. Do what you have to do, but also know that, in the end, things may not turn out in your favor. Try your best, know you did your best, but continue to find joy and happiness in Life; whether it's with them or not.

[Best1989]

That's heartbreaking, man. I hope you can get it sorted out soon.

[PhantomSentry]

I'll do my damnedest. I can go to bed at night knowing I did all I could.

Even still...it's totally ****ed up to know how truly beautiful life can be and then have that yanked out from under you. Even if this does end with me being totally boned and having nothing...

Zero regrets. Until recently, it's been the most amazing and rewarding experience of my life.

Though THIS gets to me. How can her grandparents be okay with helping to twist their granddaughter into something awful? When she was in Kindergarten, she had a BUNCH of her long hair that she had been growing since birth cut off and made into a wig for her best friend who had cancer because she was being made fun of at school. That's the most selfless and beautiful thing I've ever heard of anyone doing.

She ALSO knows that I would give my life for hers without a second thought AND I HAVE PROVEN IT! She and I went to a free trip to the public pool that the church she attends was providing. I was swimming in the deep end and looked back to realize she was following me. She had water halfway up her chin and she said "Daddy...help.." and sank. I immediately got behind her and grabbed her by the waist and started shoving up to keep her head above water. The thing is, it was the 9 foot so it was also pushing ME down. THEN I got a scratchy tickle in my throat and had a coughing fit....underwater.

My first thought was "F*** it. If it ends like this, it ends like this." but then I realized I would just drown and she'd follow me right after so I had to let go of the fact that she'd have her head underwater and would just have to hold her breath. I grabbed her by the side and struggled us to the side of the pool so we could hold on and catch our breaths.

I look up and what are the lifeguards doing? YAPPING WITH EACH OTHER. I was furious. I didn't say anything because I KNEW there would be a lot of foul language coming out of my mouth so we got out and went to the shallow end and just went down the slides over and over until it was time to go home..... so how could she just not care about anyone other than herself and a sense of power? I've shown my devotion to my family very regularly and if that doesn't let her know that I really love her, what the hell COULD!?

[Kou The Mad]

Holy ****.

[xelement5x]

Holy ****.

Seconded.

Good luck Phantom.

[PhantomSentry]

Hopefully the judge won't be in a big hurry and I'll be fully heard out. I'm not good at lying and that's always been obvious. I could speak a whole book on this. I figure they'll only speak so much as not to show their hand. Mine will be laid out on the table. If people actually listen, it should be obvious that I'm the one that's genuine.

Thanks to all of you.