• Activity
  • Votes
  • Comments
  • New
  • All activity

    2. Any significant changes to Tildes are extremely unlikely

      ~tildes.official Text 300 words
      I've been assuming that this is fairly apparent since nothing significant has changed here in years now, but I suppose it's best to be explicit. There is no intention to do anything like: Actively...

      I've been assuming that this is fairly apparent since nothing significant has changed here in years now, but I suppose it's best to be explicit.

      There is no intention to do anything like:

      • Actively attempt to attract more users
      • Implement new functionality or change existing functionality
      • Change the site's structure
      • Give any other people access to moderation/admin abilities or control of the site

      Or anything else of a similar level. The site has basically been in "minimum maintenance mode" for a long time, and I do not plan to start investing more time in it or otherwise trying to reinvigorate or reinvent it. I recognize that a lot of information and documentation on the site does not reflect this, but almost all of it was written aspirationally nearly 10 years ago, and those aspirations failed. To be clear, I definitely don't consider Tildes a failure—I'm proud and happy that we were able to create a small community that people (mostly) like being a part of. I enjoyed building it, and it's great that the community has managed to sustain itself for so long, but it's not the same as the goal that most of that writing had in mind. I should remove or update a lot of it, but there are very few new users and almost everyone here already knows how things work.

      I'm certainly happy to continue keeping Tildes running while people want to keep hanging out here, but you should only do that if you are satisfied with the state of the site. If you are unhappy with Tildes' current functionality, structure, design, userbase, culture, or any other major aspect, you should probably look for a different community (or start one, anyone can!). You should not pin your hopes on any major changes happening here.

      342 votes

    4. How often are you eating plant based meals?

      ~food Ask (survey)
      I'm not strictly talking about adherent vegan or vegetarian lifestyles, though those certainly do count towards this discussion. I feel like there's an absolute plethora of good, different reasons...

      I'm not strictly talking about adherent vegan or vegetarian lifestyles, though those certainly do count towards this discussion.

      I feel like there's an absolute plethora of good, different reasons to reduce animal based proteins. The big one for most people right now is obviously cost. Simple meals like meatloaf or stroganoff simply aren't worth it (to me) to make with beef when beef is $8/lb for 70/30. But lots of other reasons like the environment, animal welfare, and health consciousness exist.

      As far as a lifestyle goes, it definitely feels like the winds have shifted considerably. While IRL here in the southeastern US you do still have those "I'll eat 1 steak for every vegan who cries about it" types, online, that type of talk is extremely cringe in most contexts and circles. Now I just feel like when people say they are vegan, there isn't an instant visceral reaction from everyone like there used to be. I recall not too long ago, everyone's favorite joke was "how do you know someone is vegan? Because they'll tell you!" when all that person did was decline a burger. In fact, quite the opposite seems to happen today. There's a lot of "good for you/I wish I could do that" type comments. Just seems like things are shifting culturally.

      I'm not personally vegan or vegetarian, but I have drastically reduced my animal products. I make black bean burgers instead of regular burgers. I make my fried rice without any meat. I make a lot of curry that just happens to be vegan. I just bought groceries for the next 2 weeks and the total amount of animal products is 1 pound of ground pork, 1 pound of scallops, and 8oz of mozzarella cheese. That's it. Years ago I would eat animal products pretty much for every meal.

      Is it just me? Or have most people reduced their consumption too? It's hard to tell because everything at the grocery store is "protein protein protein" and there's a lot of social media content of body builders eating a dozen eggs and 3 rotisserie chickens for dinner and that type of content, but I'm not sure how much of that actually exists in real life. Seems too expensive for the average person.

      39 votes

    5. Trying to identify a Yixing Teapot, need help

      ~arts Ask (advice)
      I have found a yixing teapot at a consignment store in the US, and despite the usual advice of "assume it to be bootleg," it seems to be handmade, and from yixing clay. However, I am having...

      I have found a yixing teapot at a consignment store in the US, and despite the usual advice of "assume it to be bootleg," it seems to be handmade, and from yixing clay.

      However, I am having trouble ascertaining identity beyond "yep that's a handmade clay teapot." It has some bamboo motifs that do not seem to fit in any of the online examples I have found concerning teapot shapes, and I have also had trouble in identifying the 3 makers marks present on the teapot. The marks themselves are under the lid, under the main body, and at the 'root' of the handle. Took pictures at multiple orientations for lighting purposes, and frankly, because idk which side is "up" for the characters. I have also included some images to indicate that it's made from clay, and that it's handmade, or at the very least not something pulled from a mold. The black and white and red flecks in the up close shots, the grooves in the bottom interior of the pot indicate it was made with hand tools, no dimples in the interior wall facing the handle to indicate use of a mold, as well as the bamboo branch 'loops' themselves all indicate to me that this had to be made by hand.

      Link to the album to the teapot in question: https://ibb.co/album/Zp9BnC

      It's a nice mystery to have. I can't imagine it to be anything worthy of a museum, the bamboo motifs certainly do make it seem like it's something quite special, however they also make it hard to discern what the exact geometry of the pot to be when looking at a chart like this: https://www.cnteaspirit.com/shapes-of-yixing-teapot-the-ultimate-guide/ (the closest I think is "Fang Gu" but it could easily be the "Zhu Gu" or "Zhu Duan" special forms, due to the bamboo). I have not seen any bamboo branch loops in any of the examples I have found, so my curiosity is piqued even more.

      I am curious to see what anyone can make out of the translations!

      13 votes

    9. Save Point: A game deal roundup for the week of August 16

      ~games Text 93 words
      Add awesome game deals to this topic as they come up over the course of the week! Alternately, ask about a given game deal if you want the community’s opinions: e.g. “What games from this bundle...

      Add awesome game deals to this topic as they come up over the course of the week!

      Alternately, ask about a given game deal if you want the community’s opinions: e.g. “What games from this bundle are most worth my attention?”

      Rules:

      • No grey market sales
      • No affiliate links

      If posting a sale, it is strongly encouraged that you share why you think the available game/games are worthwhile.

      All previous Save Point topics

      If you don’t want to see threads in this series, add save point to your personal tag filters.

      3 votes

    17. I run a speculative fiction book club

      ~books Ask
      If anyone wants a replacement for the Tildes book club (and thanks /u/boxer_dogs_dance for running it consistently for so long!!) I run one that might interest speculative fiction readers. Be...

      If anyone wants a replacement for the Tildes book club (and thanks /u/boxer_dogs_dance for running it consistently for so long!!) I run one that might interest speculative fiction readers. Be warned that it's a "dictatorship" where I pick every book, and I alternate between lesser-known books I've read and already enjoyed; and books that I'm interested in but haven't read yet.

      Here is the list of books we have read:

      • The Raven Scholar
      • A Song of Legends Lost
      • A Shadow in Summer (Long Price Quartet)
      • Allow Me To Introduce Myself [the only non-spec-fic we've done thus far]
      • Gods of the Wyrdwood (Forsaken Series)
      • Kalyna the Soothsayer
      • The Black Company (The Black Company)
      • Battle of the Linguist Mages
      • The Cloud Roads (Raksura)
      • Sanctuary Duet
      • Ten Thousand Doors of January
      • The Dream Hotel
      • The Element of Fire (Ile-Rien) [this is the only one so far that I hadn't read yet and didn't really enjoy]
      • A Portrait in Shadow
      • House of Suns [current month]
      • City of Lies by Sam Hawke [next month]

      The book club is in an "anyone can invite anyone but it's not publicly listed anywhere" Discord server dedicated to reading speculative fiction with about 1000 members, ~50 active), if anyone thinks like this list of books seems in line with your tastes I can dm you a join link! It's very low commitment and done with threads so you can read the current book or a backlist book and still talk about it + scroll through past discussion easily.

      I can also offer advice (how to pick books, how to do things in Discord in a sane way, etc) if anyone else is interested in running something like this

      15 votes

    23. What have you been watching / reading this week? (Anime/Manga)

      ~anime Ask (survey)
      What have you been watching and reading this week? You don't need to give us a whole essay if you don't want to, but please write something! Feel free to talk about something you saw that was...

      What have you been watching and reading this week? You don't need to give us a whole essay if you don't want to, but please write something! Feel free to talk about something you saw that was cool, something that was bad, ask for recommendations, or anything else you can think of.

      If you want to, feel free to find the thing you're talking about and link to its pages on Anilist, MAL, or any other database you use!

      6 votes

    25. End of Series - Tildes Book Club discussion - July 2026 - A Psalm for the Wild Built by Becky Chambers

      ~books Ask
      Warning: this post may contain spoilers

      This is the seventh Tildes Book Club Discussion for 2026 and the twenty-seventh overall. We are discussing a Psalm for the Wild Built by Becky Chambers.

      ANNOUNCEMENT - My schedule has changed and I have joined an in person book group. I will no longer be coordinating these discussions for the foreseeable future. I want to thank everyone who has participated and contributed and read along while lurking. It has been a pleasure.

      I don't have a particular format in mind for this discussion, but I will post some prompts and questions as comments to get things started. You're not obligated to respond to them or vote on them though. So feel free to make your own top-level comment for whatever you wish to discuss, questions you have of others, or even just to post a review of the book you have written yourself.

      For latecomers, don't worry if you didn't read the book in time for this Discussion topic. You can always join in once you finish it. Tildes Activity sort, and "Collapse old comments" feature should keep the topic going for as long as people are still replying.

      And for anyone uninterested in this topic please use the Ignore Topic feature on this so it doesn't keep popping up in your Activity sort, since it's likely to keep doing that while I set this discussion up, and once people start joining in.

      20 votes

    30. What did you do this week (and weekend)?

      ~talk Ask (survey)
      As part of a weekly series, these topics are a place for users to casually discuss the things they did — or didn't do — during their week. Did you accomplish any goals? Suffer a failure? Do...

      As part of a weekly series, these topics are a place for users to casually discuss the things they did — or didn't do — during their week. Did you accomplish any goals? Suffer a failure? Do nothing at all? Tell us about it!

      8 votes

    37. What have you been listening to this week?

      ~music Ask (survey)
      What have you been listening to this week? You don't need to do a 6000 word review if you don't want to, but please write something! If you've just picked up some music, please update on that as...

      What have you been listening to this week? You don't need to do a 6000 word review if you don't want to, but please write something! If you've just picked up some music, please update on that as well, we'd love to see your hauls :)

      Feel free to give recs or discuss anything about each others' listening habits.

      You can make a chart if you use last.fm:

      http://www.tapmusic.net/lastfm/

      Remember that linking directly to your image will update with your future listening, make sure to reupload to somewhere like imgur if you'd like it to remain what you have at the time of posting.

      9 votes

    44. Waving goodbye, carrying my bundle on a stick

      ~talk Ask
      Just wanted to say goodbye to everyone. Sorry if I upset anyone, and thanks for all the fun little interactions. I didn't really get to know anyone too to well I suppose, but there are some people...

      Just wanted to say goodbye to everyone. Sorry if I upset anyone, and thanks for all the fun little interactions. I didn't really get to know anyone too to well I suppose, but there are some people I'll miss interacting with. The way things have gone over the past week, I've definitely outstayed my welcome. Or the welcome has outstayed me, I don't know.

      ta-ra, hope everyone can live their best lives.

      32 votes

    46. Defective D&D magic items

      ~games.tabletop Ask
      A while back I had an idea for some D&D magic items that were, in a shop keep's words, "Greatly discounted due to minor defects". The general idea was that these items would be a gamble to use...

      A while back I had an idea for some D&D magic items that were, in a shop keep's words, "Greatly discounted due to minor defects". The general idea was that these items would be a gamble to use each time, sometimes offering great benefits, sometimes offering catastrophic backfires, but all at a greatly discounted price any adventurer could afford. With my most recent addition (the Potion of Prior Authorization), it occurred to me that it could be fun to share my list here, for feedback and other potential additions to it. My hope is that the next time it's my turn to run a campaign, I can offer these items to my players.

      Weapons and Armor

      Broken Throwing Axe of Recall

      Weapon (Handaxe), Uncommon

      A heavy, pitted handaxe wrapped in frayed leather straps.

      • The Gamble: You can throw this axe at a target within range (20/60 ft). Immediately after the attack resolves (hit or miss), roll a d6:
        • 1–3 (The Pull): The axe locks in space and violently pulls you to its location, leaving you landing adjacent to the axe (or target) and knocking you prone if you travel more than 15 feet.
        • 4–6 (The Return): The axe flies straight back into your open hand.
      Shield of "Tag, You're It"

      Armor (Shield), Rare

      A beautifully polished steel shield painted with a vibrant red-and-white bullseye.

      • The Gamble: Grants +2 AC. When a ranged attack misses you, you can use your Reaction to attempt to deflect the projectile. Roll a d4:
        • 1: The projectile is redirected directly at you, automatically hitting for normal damage.
        • 2–3 (Random Target): The projectile is redirected at a random creature within 15 feet (excluding you). Roll randomly among all valid creatures in range (friends, foes, or innocent bystanders). The original attacker makes a new attack roll against that target's AC.
        • 4: You perfectly direct the projectile back at the original attacker, dealing maximum weapon damage on a hit.
      Dagger of the Overzealous Assassin

      Weapon (Dagger), Rare (Requires Attunement)

      A sleek, razor-sharp obsidian dagger that whispers encouraging murder tips to its wielder.

      • The Gamble: When you hit a creature with an attack using this dagger, you can declare an Overzealous Strike to deal maximum weapon damage plus an extra 3d6 Necrotic damage.
      • The Catch: The dagger demands follow-through. Immediately after resolving the attack, you must use your reaction to move adjacent to the next closest creature (friend, foe, or bystander) and make a melee attack against them. If no other creature is within reach, you must stab yourself.
      Helm of the Backseat Driver

      Wondrous Item, Uncommon (Requires Attunement)

      A sturdy iron helmet imbued with the spirit of a long-dead, incredibly critical dwarf adventurer named Barnaby.

      • The Gamble: While worn, the helm grants a +2 bonus to AC and Advantage on Initiative rolls (as Barnaby yells warning signs).
      • The Catch: You have Disadvantage on Stealth checks and Concentration checks. Barnaby never stops giving loud tactical feedback ("Watch the flank! No, your OTHER left!"). If you ignore his advice during combat, Barnaby pouts: the AC bonus drops to +0 until the start of your next turn.

      Wands, Rings & Cloaks

      Wand of Aggressive Empathy

      Wand, Rare (Requires Attunement by a Spellcaster)

      A twisted birch wand that vibrates with intense emotional resonance. Has 3 charges (regains 1d3 charges at dawn).

      • The Gamble: When casting a healing spell through the wand, spend 1 charge. The target receives maximum possible healing for that spell slot.
      • The Catch: The exact amount of HP restored is instantly dealt as Psychic Damage to a random creature within 50 feet (ally, enemy, or bystander--excluding the target and caster) as they are overwhelmed by the target's previous pain.
      Cloak of Screaming Invisibility

      Wondrous Item, Very Rare

      A magnificent crimson velvet cloak that smells faintly of throat lozenges.

      • The Gamble: You build up an "invisibility bank" by screaming at the absolute top of your lungs. For every 1 second (or 1 full round) you spend screaming out loud, you gain 10 seconds (or 10 rounds / 1 minute) of total Invisibility.
        • Attacking or casting spells does not break this invisibility.
      • The Catch: The screaming can be heard up to 300 feet away, instantly alerting the entire area to your presence before you go stealthy. While screaming to store up time, you cannot make Stealth checks or cast spells with Verbal (V) components.
      Ring of the Overconfident Gambler

      Ring, Rare

      A flashy gold band set with a single spinning die where the gem should be.

      • The Gamble: Before rolling a d20 for an Attack, Ability Check, or Save, you can call out a range of 3 numbers (e.g., "14, 15, or 16!").
        • If the die lands on ANY of your called numbers: It counts as an automatic Natural 20 (Critical Hit / Highest Success).
        • If it lands on ANY other number: It counts as an automatic Natural 1 (Critical Fail).
      Ring of the Dramatic Entrance

      Ring, Uncommon

      A flashy ring adorned with a polished ruby that sparkles a bit too brightly under ambient light.

      • The Gamble: Whenever you enter a room or combat encounter, you can trigger a flash mob of illusionary fanfare (pyrotechnics, trumpet blasts, and a choir shouting your name). Roll a d6:
        • 1–3 (The Hecklers): The illusion fails embarrassingly--a lone slide whistle plays as a phantom crowd boos. You take 1d4 Psychic damage and have Disadvantage on your first attack or initiative check.
        • 4–6 (Main Character Energy): All enemies within 30 feet who can see or hear you must succeed on a DC 13 Wisdom save or be Stunned until the start of their next turn out of sheer awe.

      Footwear & Accessories

      Boots of the Nudist's Escape

      Wondrous Item, Uncommon

      Light leather boots with wing patterns stitched on the sides.

      • The Gamble: Allows the wearer to cast Misty Step up to 2 times per day as a bonus action.
      • The Catch: The teleportation magic only transports organic material and the boots themselves. Every stitch of clothing, set of armor, backpack, weapon, and gold purse stays behind in a tidy, disappointed pile right where you were standing.
      Boots of Unpredictable Friction

      Wondrous Item, Uncommon

      Boots made of polished glass soles that constantly alter their texture.

      • The Gamble: As a bonus action, click your heels together to cast Expeditious Retreat (allowing you to Dash as a bonus action).
      • The Catch: When the spell ends, roll a d20:
        • Even: The soles become hyper-adhesive. Your movement speed drops to 0 until the end of your next turn.
        • Odd: The soles lose all friction. You immediately slide 15 feet in a random direction and fall Prone.
      Bag of Withholding

      Wondrous Item, Uncommon

      Acts like a standard Bag of Holding, but suffers from severe separation anxiety.

      • The Gamble: Reaching in to grab an item requires an action and a DC 12 check:
        • Strength (Athletics): Ripping the item out by force.
        • Charisma (Persuasion): Coaxing the bag into letting go.
      • The Outcome:
        • Success: You pull the item out cleanly.
        • Failure: The bag snaps shut, dealing Bludgeoning Damage. It refuses to open for anyone until the start of your next turn.
      Mirror of Honest Feedback

      Wondrous Item, Rare

      A handheld silver mirror that speaks in an insufferably smug voice.

      • The Gamble: As an action, hold the mirror up to an enemy within 30 feet to deliver a devastating personal critique. The target makes a DC 14 Charisma Save:
        • Failure: Target takes 4d6 Psychic damage and is Frightened of you for 1 minute as its self-esteem crumbles.
        • Success: The mirror turns to you instead, roasting your life choices. You take 2d6 Psychic damage and have Disadvantage on your next attack roll.
      Feather of Uncontrolled Flight

      Wondrous Item, Uncommon

      A bright peacock feather that twitches nervously when held.

      • The Gamble: As an action, hold the feather above your head to gain a Fly Speed of 60 ft for 1 minute (no concentration required).
      • The Catch: You can only fly in a straight line at full speed each turn. You cannot stop midway unless you hit a solid object (taking 1d6 Bludgeoning damage per 10 feet traveled). Changing direction requires your action and a DC 13 Strength (Athletics) check to manually shift your momentum.

      Consumables & Scrolls

      Potion of Prior Authorization

      Potion, Uncommon
      A colorless liquid that, for unknown reasons, appears jet black when inside of any container. Has a surprisingly bitter taste.

      • The Gamble: As an action, you drink this potion to submit a preemptive claim for emergency medical coverage. The coverage remains active for 1 hour. If you are reduced to 0 Hit Points while the claim is active, you do not immediately fall unconscious; instead, you immediately roll a d20 to process your claim:
        • 1 (Claim Denied -- Pre-Existing Condition): Your claim is flatly rejected. You fall unconscious as normal and immediately suffer 1 automatic Death Saving Throw failure due to processing delays.
        • 2–10 (Claim Denied -- Out-of-Network): Your claim is denied on the grounds that the damage type, enemy, or environment was non-covered or out-of-network. Nothing happens, and you fall unconscious at 0 HP as normal.
        • 11–19 (Claim Approved -- Subject to Deductible): Your claim is approved! You immediately regain 50% of your maximum Hit Points. However, to cover your deductible, you instantly lose gold equal to Your Character Level multiplied by 10 (or your highest remaining spell slot if you are broke).
        • 20 (In-Network Miracle): Fully covered with zero copay. You immediately regain 50% of your maximum Hit Points and gain Advantage on your next roll out of sheer bureaucratic relief.
      • The Fine Print: If you have taken damage from the same type of creature earlier in the day, the DM may rule the damage a "pre-existing condition," imposing Disadvantage on your claim roll.
      Potion of Delayed Reparations

      Potion, Uncommon

      A bright pink, fizzy liquid that tastes like strawberry soda and impending doom.

      • The Gamble: Drinking this potion instantly heals you for 4d8+4 HP.
      • The Catch: At a time to be determined by the DM, between now and 1d4 hours later, a spectral glowing fist materializes out of thin air and punches you square in the jaw. You take 2d8 Bludgeoning Damage, and must pass a DC 12 Constitution Save or be stunned for 1 round.
      Potion of Schrödinger’s Healing

      Potion, Rare

      A murky gray liquid locked inside a completely opaque lead flask.

      • The Gamble: Upon drinking, the DM rolls 4d4 for healing, but does not reveal the total to you. Your HP on your character sheet does not change.
      • The Outcome: The healing exists in quantum superposition. The exact moment you take damage that would drop you to 0 HP, the potion's health retroactively triggers 1 microsecond before damage is applied, potentially saving your life (or leaving you dead if the roll was too low).
      Scroll of Almost Fireball

      Scroll, Uncommon

      A scorched leather parchment that smells faintly of sugar and lemon juice.

      • The Gamble: Casts a 3rd-level Fireball spell (20 foot radius, range 150 ft).
      • The Catch: Instead of fire, the point of impact explodes with billions of aggressive Fire Ants.
        • Creatures in the area take 8d6 Piercing/Acid Damage (Halved on DC 14 Dexterity save).
        • The area becomes Difficult Terrain for 1 minute. Anyone starting their turn in the zone takes 2d6 Acid damage and must pass a DC 12 Constitution save or suffer Disadvantage on attack rolls due to ants crawling in their clothing.
      Scroll of Summon Bear (Subjective)

      Scroll, Uncommon

      A scroll bearing a crude drawing of a furry creature. The definition of "Bear" is left up to cosmic interpretation.

      • The Gamble: You cast the scroll to summon a creature for 1 hour. Roll a d4:
        1. The Ursine: A standard, extremely territorial Polar Bear. It attacks the nearest creature every turn (friend or foe).
        2. The Huntsman: A large, hairy, and very flamboyant Human Barbarian named Barry appears. He speaks with a booming voice, has a glorious handlebar mustache, gives great fashion advice. Barry wields a great axe (1d12 damage). He will defend you as long as you regularly compliment his mustache.
        3. The Softie: A tiny, mundane Koala. It has 3 HP and 0 attacks. Whoever carries it gains Advantage on Wisdom saves and immunity to being Frightened because it is absurdly calming to hold.
        4. The Drop Bear: A carnivorous Koala lands on the head of your target, dealing 3d6 Slashing Damage and blinding them until they spend an action to pull it off.
      47 votes

    48. Save Point: A game deal roundup for the week of August 9

      ~games Text 93 words
      Add awesome game deals to this topic as they come up over the course of the week! Alternately, ask about a given game deal if you want the community’s opinions: e.g. “What games from this bundle...

      Add awesome game deals to this topic as they come up over the course of the week!

      Alternately, ask about a given game deal if you want the community’s opinions: e.g. “What games from this bundle are most worth my attention?”

      Rules:

      • No grey market sales
      • No affiliate links

      If posting a sale, it is strongly encouraged that you share why you think the available game/games are worthwhile.

      All previous Save Point topics

      If you don’t want to see threads in this series, add save point to your personal tag filters.

      4 votes

    49. Tildes Minecraft Weekly - Season ending on Sunday August 30th!

      ~games Text 263 words
      Server host: tildes.nore.gg (Running Java 26.2) Verification site: https://tildes.nore.gg BlueMap: https://tildes.nore.gg/map/ Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/TildesMC Plugins and Data Packs Data...

      Server host: tildes.nore.gg (Running Java 26.2)
      Verification site: https://tildes.nore.gg
      BlueMap: https://tildes.nore.gg/map/
      Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/TildesMC

      Plugins and Data Packs Data Packs:
      • Age Lock [Vanilla Tweaks]
      • Armor Statues [Vanilla Tweaks]
      • Bat Membranes [Vanilla Tweaks]
      • Cauldron Concrete [Vanilla Tweaks]
      • Cauldron Mud [Vanilla Tweaks]
      • Custom Nether Portals [Vanilla Tweaks]
      • Husks Drop Sand [Vanilla Tweaks]
      • Mini Blocks [Vanilla Tweaks]
      • More Mob Heads [Vanilla Tweaks]
      • Nullscape - End terrain upgrade
      • Player Head Drops [Vanilla Tweaks]
      • Renewable Dragon Stuff
      • Silence Mobs [Vanilla Tweaks]
      • Terralith - Overworld terrain upgrade
      • Wandering Trades [Vanilla Tweaks]

      Plugins:

      • BlueMap - Provides a live 3D rendering of the game world
      • Clickable Links - Makes http URLs in chat clickable (only for registered players)
      • CoreProtect - Records all block/container/mob changes (Anyone can look up changes with /co inspect)
      • DebugStick - Gives the ability to craft debug sticks in survival
      • EasyArmorStands - GUI for editing armor stands
      • GSit - Sit on stairs/slabs!
      • Hexnicks - Enables Tildes usernames to be displayed
      • hsrails - Allows for 4x speed rail travel
      • LuckPerms - Locks down unregistered users
      • Otherside - Fix for mob farms involving Nether portals
      • Rapid Leaf Decay - Increases the speed of leaf decay by 10x
      • WorldEdit - Used for occasional admin stuff
      • WorldGuard - Prevents unregistered users from changing anything in the world

      The server operates on a soft whitelist. Anyone can log in and walk around, but you need a Tildes account to gain build access.

      We recommend you install our mod web-chat so that you can chat while in your web browser. It turns the server into an old-school chat room.

      <- Previous Thread

      25 votes

    50. What internet discussion sites remain?

      ~tech Ask
      I'm using the phrase 'internet discussion site' pretty informally, so I hope my meaning will become clearer as you continue reading. I got rid of Snapchat around 4 years ago now. At some point in...

      I'm using the phrase 'internet discussion site' pretty informally, so I hope my meaning will become clearer as you continue reading.

      I got rid of Snapchat around 4 years ago now. At some point in 2023 I noticed a sharp downtick in discussion quality on Twitter, and got rid of it as well. About two years ago, frustrated with the lack of human interaction and the vying for attention, I deleted Instagram. Near the end of 2025, I stopped using Discord. The final nail in the coffin has now arrived, since I'm unfortunately coming to the conclusion that Reddit is no longer worth visiting, leaving me almost entirely cordoned off from internet communication at a time when more humans are using it than ever before.
      I won't bother repeating my personal reasons for this exodus since I feel confident that most people on this website have feelings on the matter that at least approximate my own.
      Realistically this is a sign that it's time to prioritize interaction in the real world, and that's certainly a worthwhile thing to pursue. But bluntly society has restructured around the internet in a pretty substantial way, and I don't think it's an unreasonable ask to find various forms of forums on which more meaningful discussions can take place.
      Here is my personal survey of the current landscape:

      • tildes.net: Basically good. I really enjoy this website and I think in a lot of ways the 'bar/pub/cafe' model for a forum, where you can peer through the window but require permission to gain admission, is the only viable model for future online discussion places as the internet becomes ever more saturated with bots and bad actors.
      • lobste.rs: Also basically good, for the same reasons as tildes. In some aspects, limited by the fact that it has a particular focus. In other ways, that's a really good thing. Maybe in a perfect world there would be a lobste.rs equivalent for every hobby, and we would return to an early internet forum world.
      • Hacker News: Also basically good but perhaps a bit less so than the above two. I think most of the things posted on there are interesting, but a lot of the discussion has lately felt less insightful than it used to. I think a different tildes post noted this as well, but it's very caught up in the AI news cycle, often to an unfortunate degree.
      • Rateyourmusic: The core site is enjoyable, and the forums are usually fun to check in on every now and then. Certainly a worthwhile place to visit if you enjoy music.
      • Stackexchange networks: This is cheating since this is obviously many sites. I'm a mathematics student and I've found MSE and MathOverflow to be really wonderful places to learn and converse, albeit with some very arcane and strict rules for posting. The philosophy SE seems also generally of a high quality, and there are many other SE sites that I occasionally stumble into and am pleasantly surprised by. Unfortunately I expect its time is finite, since the UX has slowly but surely been degrading and the site traffic dropping.
      • Fediverse networks: These sites clearly have potential, but for whatever reason it's still just not there. I drop into lemmy and Mastodon occasionally, but the posts are rarely of high quality. In many ways they just feel like "Reddit/Twitter but with a different name".

      Surely these can't be all, right? It's a little soul-crushing to think how many people are online at any given time and how hard it is to find a place not drowning in noise. Maybe this is just my lament.

      98 votes