Started playing yesterday, I can agree. I just need to get used to playing slower. It's so easy to put it on speed three and then suddenly I am falling behind and can't deal with the issues anymore.
Games developed by Paradox have been like this for decades and it's fine. The player base is aware of it and buys the game with the expectation that it will take an additional 2 years and several dlcs for the game to be actually good. Everyone knew Victoria 3 won't be good on release.
And crucially, the developers of Paradox are also aware of that and delivery a product that is still somewhat enjoyable on release. They know where to cut corners that will be fixed with dlcs and what needs to be focused on for release.
But when Paradox is just the publisher things don't work out that well. Because the developers might not actually plan their game around that kind of thing. And when they are then forced to release early, their game is still a huge mess.
The transaction with kinguin is safe. They even offer a cheap protection against non-working keys, so you are guaranteed to get a working key.
The big issue is the keys themselves aren't always obtained legally. And then it can take a while for the key to get deactivated. By that point you are usually out of luck trying to get your money back or a new key.
You can also summon scratch and he will find it for you. Apparently he even finds chests that don't have a visible survival check. But I can't confirm that because I never have him summoned.
It's just easier to advertise a single big game rather than several smaller ones. Even if you are interested in games it's impossible to keep track of everything that's being released. More casual players are aware of even fewer games. That's why AAA games still sell so well because they are the only games a lot of people are even aware of.
If the companies have to split their marketing budget between multiple titles, they would reach a much smaller audience. And even if one of the smaller titles would be a hit, it probably sells fewer copies for a lower price.
In BG3 encumbrance is so pointless. The increased carry capacity and reduced armor weight make it a non-factor. The few times you actually reach it you just sort by weight and send some of the heavier stuff to camp. You can even do it during combat. So they should have just gotten rid of it. You are bringing all your resources at all times anyhow and the inventory manamgent is still terrible.
The current system is just a minor inconvenience because you will have to go to your camp when you reach a vendor and want to get rid of some of the extra stuff. I would much prefer it if they either stick to the base rules, with base weight values and encumbrance starting at 5x the strength value. Then one would have to make actual decisions on what to bring. But right now, even with 8 strength you never have any issues. Or they just get rid of it.
And that's how I feel about encumbrance in general. Most games have such absurd high carry limits that the system doesn't add anything and just becomes an inconvenience and annoyance.
It's not the standard, it's just something that started to pop up in some university courses. Anything before that we usually are just graded 1-6/A-F. But even 15 years ago when I attended University there were a few courses that required a 70%+ for passing and what I have heared this has become more common. It's basically to weed out people and reduce the number of students since university is usually free.
I blame the school grading system for it. 70% and below is already a failing grade in many courses. So by extension anything that gets rated 7 or below is asscoiated with failure.
I am not from the US, so I don't know how long this grading system has been in use there but here in Central Eruope that's a rather new thing. That's why a 5/10 didn't feel as bad 20 years ago while today a 7/10 feels worse.
MapTools is the only FOSS virtual table top software I am aware of. It has all the features one would need, extensive dice rolling commands, a shared map and tokens, it even has fog of war options. But out of the box it's very barren. You can download user created libraries and frameworks. Since 5e is very popular there are tons of resources available. And only the host has to download and install them manually, connecting players will download them automatically when joining.
But don't expect it to be as neat and tidy as the paid options. It gets the job done and you can do a ton of stuff with it but it isn't anywhere nearly as intuitive as some of the other tools. Especially the host/gm will need to invest some serious time into the software.
Gaming laptops aren't a scam, they fill a niche. For people like me they are the best option available. I travel frequently and then stay there for usually a few months before having to travel again. So a desktop doesn't work for me at all. I need a decent computer for work. Most business laptop that fill my needs are also on the heavier side. The ones that are portable usually have integraded gpu's, which just doesn't work for me. So the step from business laptop that fills my needs to gaming laptop is minimal.
All of the drawbacks of a gaming laptop are barely affecting me. And while this seems like an edgecase, there are a lot more people who have needs that a gaming laptop fulfills and can't be met by other devices.
I can recommend the Acer Nitro 5 series. Have it for a few years now. The main drawbacks are
Portability - You will run into this issue a lot with gaming laptops. But the Nitro series is probably one the lower end when it comes to portability. Especially if you go with the 17 inch screen. It's heavy and big.
Speakers - the newest series apparently upgraded them, but the one I have has terrible built in speakers. I use a headset anyhow while playing. So doesn't concern me. But it just can't be used to watch movies together in bed.
Fan noise - It can get very noisy, especially during gaming session. If you are using a headset, you aren't noticing it. But it can be distracting to others in the room.
Batter life - It's just bad, even if you aren't gaming. But again, while playing you are usually plugged in anyway.
Overall none of the big issues affect me. But could be a dealbreaker for others.
The big pros:
Available in 17 inch - which was a must for me.
Decent cooling - Just make sure you get a 2021 or later model.
Easy to upgrade internal storage & ram - you can put 2 additional SSDs inside. And even upgrading the ram is super easy. This also means they aren't charging absurd amounts for upgrading the stock variant from 256gb to 512 or even 1tb.
Performance for the price - It's not a end of the line model but for the price you will get decent performance.
I haven't played a Paladin yet, so I am not sure how the mechanic is implemented. But the oathbreaker subclass exist in BG3 and you can't choose it on character creation. So there is some way of becoming one.
I don't think it matters nearly as much as the article makes it sound. Especially since multiclassing is super viable in 5E and BG3 removed all kinds of requirements for multiclassing and even allows you to respec. Meaning even multiclass combos that struggle if played out at level 1 can just be recreated later. And that means you can recreate the toolkit of a Bard fairly easily and focus more on the aspect you actually enjoy.
I think any class with ritual casting is going to feel very rewarding in your first playthrough, assuming you don't forget to utilize it. So you have Bard, Cleric, Druid, and Wizard, and Arcane Trickster and Eldritch Knight. But even any class with just cantrips are already going to give you a lot you might not be used to from other RPGs.
The only class I wouldn't recommend for the first playthrough might be Paladin. The oath just limits your choices in certain situations. And while you could break your oath and become an "Oathbreaker", I personally don't feel this is the best for the first time playing. I think being able to explore all options available without having to consider your oaths makes for a better first-time-playing experience. But Paladin is on the list for my second round.
Edit: I forgot that BG3 made changes to Arcane Trickster and Eldritch Knight, they can both also ritual cast. In general, there are a lot of changes made that make the game way more open and allows you things to make it fun.
Can second Mechabellum. It's super fun, the right mix of casual but still competitive. The match duration makes it great for squeezing in a game or two. And I love how the game has weekly tournaments built in. They even have one for each timezone. The built-in competitiveness without having to register on external sites really reduces the entry barrier.
You will always feel stress in your back during long sessions. Humans just aren't meant to sit for that long. Good posture, stretching, and strengthening your back muscles are a necessity and no chair will replace that.
Dedicated gaming chair companies are usually rather bad for the price and won't outperform any office chair for a similar price. The only advantage some provide is their reclining ability. But that's not helpful for gaming or working and I only used it for watching movies on my PC. But overall I found the design of gaming chairs uncomfortable. The race care seat just isn't what you need in an office chair.
Good office chairs are expensive. If you are fine with spending a lot, Herman Miller Aeron is top notch. You can go for some lower priced Herman Millers as well, they even added some "gaming chairs".
For a more budget friendly option I can think of the Sihoo M57 or HON Ignition 2.0.