Honkai: Star Rail Divergent Universe? Uggggh

 I haven't spent much time in Honkai: Star Rail lately.  With my characters at maximum and my account at maximum, I've just been getting the little stuff up to the final levels.

I went into one account and played Simulated Universe.  Then, I remembered the e-mail about Divergent Universe.  So, I went there.

Uggggh, if I wanted to remember stuff and be tested on it, I'd go back to school.

I think I'll stick to Simulated Universe.  I've only completed World 6, but I've tried World 7 and need something else to finish it.

I guess that Hoyoverse needs something to make sure people are still playing Genshin Impact and Honkai: Star Rail while Zenless Zone Zero is about to open up.  I'm not really up to playing Zenless Zone Zero.

I downloaded and tried Honkai Impact 3rd on my Mac.  Does anyone actually play that game?  It works okay, but the keyboard controls are very different.  It ran very well on my M1 MacBook Air, which isn't the strongest of the Macs.

Solo Leveling: Arise for 1 Month

 I'm at character level 47 and Reputation level 18.  It's been about one month.  To me, that's tremendous growth that I didn't see with Honkai: Star Rail until about six months.

How did I do it?

I played Gates often and mostly, Normal Gates.  I avoid Gold Gates. I have concentrated on three hunters, then later, on six.  I concentrated on a limited number of weapons, usually SR-rank or SSR-rank, but occasionally on R-rank weapons.  I tried to find level 25 artifacts but accepted level 20 artifacts in sets of four.

I've played all of the Gate keys that are given and then, in the morning, buy another 3 or 4 sets and play more.  Is this too much?  I don't know.

I'm still at the end of Chapter 11.  My Battle Tier is 9, with a total power of 99,762 with Woo Jinchul, Silver Mane Baek Yoonho, and Choi Jong-In.  I have some secondary characters, including the original three: Yoo Jinho, Lee Joohee, Song Chiyul, and somewhat later came Anna Ruiz.  My Army of Shadows level is 7/10 and total power is 16,501.  Mining level is 12.

I don't feel that I'm great but good enough.

It feels as though I'm going to have to be more aggressive soon.  I have spent some money but that was already after I was making progress.    The Custom Draw tickets must have helped some, although I had one SSR-rank character before spending money.  Somewhat like the Wish in Genshin Impact or Warp in Honkai: Star Rail, if you don't have 10 tickets, you can add to them by tapping on the 10 Draws button.

Hopefully, they'll fix more bugs and make things feel a part of the total, instead of several scenarios and characters brought from one scenario to the other.  However, it worked for a while with Honkai: Star Rail.

I look forward to more interesting ways to battle and grow.

Update 2024.06.13: I'm at Reputation level 19, character level 48.  I changed the Difficulty level to 11.  I got level 40 artifacts for the first time.  I should be able to raise the Difficulty Level to 17, but I'm not sure how well I will do.  I'm still working on getting Sung Jinwoo's weapons to level 60.  I've tried a few combinations of weapons to get myself through the end of Chapter 11, but it hasn't worked yet.  His artifacts are up to level 17, but obviously that isn't enough.  I got a necklace to go with the bracelet and even though they're not the same kind, they both help his statistics.  Oh, my Battle Tier is level 9 at just over 100,000.  Since I'm past the halfway mark for characters, they should be sufficiently powerful, but I'm not so certain.

I tried running the battles on automatic to see what would happen.  I noticed that up until the boss character, they took less damage than when I was in control.  I could still switch between characters and initiate skills, which helped.  Knowing what the game expects to happen for less damage will help when running the battle manually.

 

Update 2024.06.15: I'm at Reputation level 20, character level 49.  I'm getting the weapons to more powerful levels, thankfully.  The main character is okay and the Hunters are okay, as well, with a few SSR-ranked weapons.  Still struggling to complete chapter 11.  Baruka kills me regularly.  I think I'm doing better and then, I'm suddenly finished and not in a good way.  I'll get it but when?

 

Update 2024.06.16: I'm at character level 50.  Extra goodies are available.  Battle Tier 10 is available now, as well.  I watched some of the Solo Leveling anime last night.  More things make sense now.  The Knight Killer is on its way to level 80.  As it is an SR-ranked weapon, it's still weaker than the SSR weapons at level 60.

Update 2024.06.17: I completed chapter 11, barely completed, I should say.  The Knight Killer is at level 72 out of 80 now, and it's still not as powerful as the SSR weapons at level 60.  I switched it out with an SSR-ranked weapon and finished chapter 11.  The dark-oriented weapons together weren't working and I ended up using a wind-oriented weapon that provided some HP benefits.

In Bonds, the Hunters are showing some rewards for moving them to level 50.  I've been seeing more of the necklaces and bracelets since moving up in difficulty.  Those artifacts are helpful.  I would imagine that I'm going to have to go much nearer to difficulty 17 to get the other two artifacts in the sets.

The keys for the Gates seem to be used more quickly or perhaps, I'm just trying to achieve more and more quickly, as things seem to be moving more slowly with the increase in difficulty.

Update 2024.06.18: I'm up to character level 51, Reputation level 21, and Battle Tier 11.  I'm starting to see artifacts of level 50.  The Knight Killer weapon is at level 78 and still isn't as powerful as an SSR weapon at level 60.

With the game update, Hunter Archive is working again.  I've got five mining teams and mining is now at level 13.  Armory has opened up more slots, but the cost is too high.  I still don't have a clear reason for the Armory or why Sung Jinwoo's weapons should be displayed like that.

Update 2024.06.20: Reputation level is up and so is mining level.  I have also increased difficulty to 13.  Level 50 artifacts have started to appear.

Update 2024.06.24: Mining level is up to 15.  Character level is 52 and Reputation level is 22.  I've upgraded weapons so much, my gold is low.  I'll have to wait a bit.  Other resources have been severely depleted, as well.

I tried to redeem the June codes, but none would work.  The article was new but apparently, they didn't see the codes until it was too late.  The money I spent went away when the new version of the game arrived.  I'm not exactly surprised but it did seem a bit short, considering that it was only a couple of weeks into the first month of the game when I paid.  If I buy again, I'll make sure it's on the first of the month.

My keyboard problem is gone.

Update 2024.06.25: 50 days of logins?  Is it going quickly?  I'm at Character level53 and Reputation level 23.  Progress is slow but steady.  Got the 50 days custom draw tickets and ended up with Meilin Fisher.  I've got plenty of artifacts but there aren't enough good weapons.  Genshin Impact was similar for me with the weapons and Honkai: Star Rail was similar with the Light Cones.

 

I just finished Chapter 12.  Now, earrings and rings are available to add, in addition to necklaces and bracelets.  This all sounds so much like Seven Knights II. I got the right runes and crafted the materials to level up the Ultimate skill Mutilate and more.

 

Well, I just finished Chapter 13, as well.  The Character level is up to 54.  Wasn't having much luck with the Avaricious Vulcan until I switched to Thetis' Grimoire, which is now at level 68.

I couldn't sleep and I'm almost finished with Chapter 14.  The final episode requires almost 150,000 in power, and that means that I'm about 25,000 short at the moment.

 

Update 2024.06.27: My Mining levels and Reputation levels are both up.  The 50th day Celebration bits are helping with getting the SSR-ranked weapons' levels increased.  I made sure to limit break two of the Hunter's SSR-ranked weapons.  In order to finish Chapter 14, I'm going to need something awesome to get to that power level.

Does anyone know what this secondary Hunter's Pass is supposed to do, other than confuse?

Update 2024.06.28: My character level is up to 55 and Mining level is up to 16.  Trying to enhance artifacts past level 14 is depleting my credits.  I went from over 1 million to just over 1 thousand.  However, my power was around 126,000+ and now, it's about 10,000 more.  I'll probably run out of credits and enhancement materials before I get to 149,000.

 

Update 2024.06.30: Mining level is up to 18.  Artifacts on main character and three most powerful hunters are at 16 for armor and 17 for bracelet, etc.  I'd like to go much higher, but I need resources to do that.  Battle Tier is up again, since I'm over 144,000 total power.

 

Update 2024.07.01: I'm up to character level 56, along with increasing the power on a couple of SSR-ranked weapons.  I've finished Chapter 14.  Power of Destruction is a battle mode that just opened for me.

Update 2024.07.02: Mining level is up to 19.  Credits are down but the total power is around 156,000 since I got a beast ring and have a four-piece beast set for Woo Jinchul.  Started Chapter 15 last night and failed by a few seconds.  Chapter 14 side story is not working out just yet, either but I'm partway through it.

 

Update 2024.07.03: Character level is 57.  I got Seo Jiwoo's weapon, along with Meilin Fisher's weapon.  I'm working on getting those up to helpful levels but I'm out of credits so often.  Every time I take a Hunter up a level, a pay for that.  Obviously, raising the level of weapons and artifacts will cost credits.

 

The total power is 161,509, which is good, but I still can't seem to finish the opening episode in Chapter 15, which requires 150,000.  Getting weapons up to level 80 is taking time and I've got two Hunter weapons and one main character weapon to get to that level.

Update 2024.07.04: Mining level is 20 and Reputation level is 26.  Power is slightly better with the main character's weapons at level 80 and level 79.  Tried to bring artifacts up but ran out of resources.  Difficulty has been at 16 for a couple of days and it's difficult to finish Red gates that are ranked S.

Update 2024.07.09: Character level is 60 and Reputation level is 27.  The power level with the main character and top three Hunters is just over 171,000, which is still Battle Tier 14.  Going higher requires enhancing Artifacts.

I've been going through the Chapters is Hard mode and that's given me Essence Stones and Upgrade materials.  Two of the top three hunters have their weapons at a level where only a Limit Break can take them higher.  I have three other SSR-ranked Hunter weapons to raise to higher levels and one for the main character.  I've had the credits at around 58 twice this week.

As an aside, I'm glad I ignored the Zenless Zone Zero hype.  Honkai: Star Rail and Genshin Impact are on the back burner now.  Honkai Impact 3rd was with me less than one week.  I can't imagine why anyone would play it.

AI...AI...AI!

 Okay, so back in the mid-1970s, LISP was the language of choice for creating AI applications.  Then, along came Prolog from Japan.  A computerized psychotherapist named Eliza dominated the AI talk for regular people.

AI couldn't do anything but give developers headaches back then.

Now, we have all this computing power sitting in warehouse-like buildings, heating up the landscape so much that you can almost see it in satellite images.  How is it useful?

We can ask for photo manipulations.  We can ask for essays to be written.  We can ask for a workout routine.

Microsoft has just introduced a new type of laptop computer with dedicated AI, including a keyboard key.  However, aren't they the people who put Cortana in the dustbin?  Aren't they the people who put Clippy in the dustbin?

I've no doubt that in 40 years, AI will be useful for the average person.  Right now, I can see people using AI to cheat.  AI can also help to detect when someone is cheating.

I could see people training AI to hack.  Imagine when hackers have been trying so many combinations that they haven't slept for a while.  If they could train AI to hack, they could give it a list of things to try using example after example, and they could sleep.

Android 15 and iOS 18 are coming with some AI enhancements.  We'll see what works.  If Siri worked better than Apple PlainTalk from 1998, I'd be impressed.  Google Assistant is better but isn't much more useful.

People are worried about Skynet-type AI and they are far too early.  When someone gets that level of AI to work, I'd be impressed but it's more likely that humanity will eliminate itself long before that happens.

Update 2024.07.16: It's odd to me to see all these headlines about ethics and AI.  I've seen people use other people's work for years without paying for its use, without even giving credit to the author.

Update 2024.07.24: I'm waiting for Apple to not fix security flaws on iOS 17 to get us to move to iOS 18, which will include AI in multiple doses.  Apple hasn't been getting the operating system features ready in time for the release, so they've been releasing something with basic features and adding what they promised in spurts.  I understood this during the pandemic.  People weren't as coordinated as they should have been.

 I've seen people from Apple, Google, HP, and other Silicon Valley-based companies coming to shop after their 3 hour commute.  They want their own house and things are less expensive out here.  Well, they were less expensive before they arrived.

In any case, they've got to get it together and build software that isn't full of mistakes.  You'd think that they could train AI to look for mistakes in their programming code and highlight them to be fixed.  That might be the best use of AI right now.

Update 2024.10.23: Just saw this Siri vs ChatGPT article claiming that Siri is two years behind ChatGPT.  I have to question that Siri is only two years behind ChatGPT.  Maybe, this is the latest they're testing and not the one most people are using because that one seems to be four to six years behind everything else.

Update 2025.01.27: I'm amused today.  A startup from China has taken the lead in AI processing.  DeepSeek is a name that came to light last week and has smashed the stock prices of the companies benefiting most from AI.

I was amused that they were talking about it running on Apple M2 Max machines, not Nvidia's finest or Intel.  Apple hasn't been too successful with AI software but their Neural Processing Unit has been good, apparently, very good.  What happens when the M4 Max arrives?

Update 2025.08.10: The day after DeepSeek arrived and their source code was posted, Grok became much better.  It's almost as if someone wasn't doing very well and borrowed someone else's work.

I bought an iPhone 15, which won't have the enhanced AI processing available.  The interesting thing is that it hasn't appeared for the iPhone 15 Pro or iPhone 16 models, either.  They've recently lost some people to Meta (Facebook/Instagram).  Since they collapsed their car software, they should have got the phone AI to work with such fine developers.

Every week, I hear about one model progressing, but I suspect you could call it "inching forward", instead of "leaps and bounds".

When the AI software can figure out what's wrong with the AI software.they will make progress. 

Update 2025.09.02: Elon Musk is complaining that Grok isn't getting a fair shake in the App Store in comparison to ChatGPT.  Does someone want an underachiever?

Browsing my Instagram feed, I've noticed loads of AI-generated videos and photos.  Those are great if you don't have an artist handy but they should be making things happen, not AI. 

Solo leveling: ARISE first thoughts

 I've been playing this game from Netmarble since Wednesday evening (it's Friday afternoon) and it's like a combination of Genshin Impact and Honkai: Star Rail, which I've been playing regularly.

It takes a fair bit of storage but it works on my Google Pixel 6a fairly well, and it's better on my ASUS ZenBook Pro with Ryzen 7, 16 GB of RAM, and GeForce RTX 3050 Ti (laptop edition), even on very high settings.

I've seen a few reviews from people thinking that whatever phone they have is going to play it well.  I wouldn't expect that, especially since it's new and they need some time to fix the problems and make it work correctly before addressing performance.  The game guides you a bit frequently to items you can buy, but they didn't make the game without money any more than Genshin Impact was made without money.

I've been playing games long enough to say that I prefer to pay for games upfront and not be bothered later, but that's a thing of the past.  Even when you buy games, they bother you to buy more things.  Right now, I'm learning what I need, and not blindly looking at my wallet to solve the problems.  One game I play, Black Clover M, seems to work so that you never get what you want and I don't want to spend money on anything that "randomly" gives you items you might need.  So far, those types of choices always end up giving me more of what I've got, not what I need.

 The Special Summons bit where you summon and summon and summon and it chooses some good characters and weapons for you and makes you wait seemed to be a bad joke.  It made me wait two days and didn't instruct me to buy something but now, it just says Expired.  Maybe, someone in South Korea or elsewhere in Asia managed to get something good. but it was poorly implemented.  It's a new game on the market.  I don't expect everything to go my way.

Game Play

On the keyboard, E and Q are similar in function to Genshin Impact or Honkai: Star Rail.  F and R have higher functions.  Left-Click on the mouse is the basic attack.  Left-Shift has different functions.  For your Main Character, Left-Shift initiates more powerful attacks.  For your fellow hunters clearing a dungeon, Left-Shift cycles through the team members.  Right now, I have Lee Joohee, Song Chiyul, and Yoo Jinho.  The main character is Sung Jinwoo.  You can add your nickname, but it won't replace the main characters name.  All of my characters are at level 20 now and so are their weapons.  My reputation (account level) is at level 4.  It's a few hours later and my characters are above level 20 and my reputation is at level 5.  It's difficult to believe that it's moving more quickly.

The worst flaw I've found is that you use the block/menu to get to a function like enhancing a hunter and you want to enhance the main character, it throws you all the way out, and makes you start again, with a delay.  It's an annoyance, not a reason to quit playing.  They'll probably notice it at some point or already plan to change it.

There is a semi-automatic mode, so that the character will run in the direction of the enemies but you still have control over the battle.  It can perform the battle but I'm not sure it's ready for that yet.  I've ended the Gates battles with SSS level outcome a few times, but too many have been level S.  Still it's not been two days, and I have been to work and back a couple of times.  I play games, but they don't play me, right?

There are all sorts of nooks and crannies where they give you points and free stuff, but you have to look.

Instead of assignments, they have Gate Mining.  Once you clear a Gate, you should return to mine the Mana.  Obviously, you always need supplies.

Since I've never seen the anime or the written stories, I don't know a thing about the ranks and such.  However, I know that R is low, SR is better, SSR is even better. Whether it uses LR or UR as higher levels is something I have yet to see.

I'm using an SR-level weapon for the main character and R-level weapons for the other hunters.  Just like with Genshin Impact and Honkai: Star Rail, you can take multiple weapons of the same type and put them together for a stronger weapon.  There are other item to use for skills and weapon enhancement but I've already forgotten if the tutorial mentioned how to use them.

I'm guessing that, in a year, my main character will be complete and my other hunters will probably be just as amazing, just as I've done with Honkai: Star Rail.  I just need to pay attention to learn what I need to do.

I tried the Encore Missions and got artifacts that increase the characters attributes.  Being that I've accomplished one of the goals shown on the main page, I ended up completing a few of those "you have cleared this 100 times." situations.  I've now got a second SR-level weapon for the main character, for Slot 2.

I hope you have fun.  (I also hope that they do as well as HoYoVerse and make enough money to make this game even better.  They don't have to update it every month but right now, bug fixes would be ideal.)

 

Update 2024.05.11: It's been off-and-on for about 4 evenings since I started.  I'm still not 100% sure what I'm doing.  I'm at Reputation level 5 and Level 29 for my main character.  I've got enough artifacts and enhanced them enough to make battle better.  I'm at difficulty 6, so I'm still going slow.  I haven't spent any money, but I'm wondering if it gets you better equipment and better characters.  SSR equipment and characters would be helpful but things are still going fairly well.  I had one battle end at 7.01, so that was close.  When you're playing with the characters they want you to use, you need to end with the first one to get the full award.

Occasionally, I'll be fighting the boss and use the Ultimate at the wrong time and not have the raid leader on at the end.  Today, I've had fewer SSS finishes and even an A finish, as I've turned up the difficulty.

 

Be sure to enhance your equipment.  It helps a lot.  Check your characters regularly.  They stop pushing you to do it fairly soon.  If you're not aware, you may miss opportunities.

Update 2024.05.12: I'm at level 31, Reputation level 6.  I'm stuck on chapter 8, Ready as You'll Ever Be.  I'm pretty much finished, and then, there is a second boss.  I was thinking "how did he go back to full health?"  Apparently, using light-oriented weapons helps.  We'll see if I can manage it.  I changed both weapons to light-oriented weapons and this helped a bit.  They're not as powerful as they need to be.  I finished the first boss more quickly, but there still wasn't enough time for the power held by the weapons.  This may take some time.

I used up all of my custom draws.  Now that the story isn't going forward, I don't have any way to get more, except to buy a package.  Hopefully, I can figure out something.  Maybe, one of the light oriented weapons and the SSR-level weapon at level 40.

 

With the Lycan Slayer weapon at level 26 and the Shadow Scythe at level 40, things were better.  It's especially interesting that the Lycan Slayer is a R-level weapon.  None of the light-oriented weapons had a lot of power but since I had so many of them and used them together (Advance is your friend!), it became powerful enough.

 Okay, be careful.  I had some extra Lycan Slayer weapons and I went to combine them to see if I could have a second weapon to complete the next mission.  I got a message I didn't understand, and the extras replaced my level 40 weapon.

Since I was failing so often, I didn't expect a SSS result.

Update 2024.05.12: So, I lost the weapon I was successful in using.  I sent a message to support but don't expect for it to be returned.  It's going to take a while for all those upgrades to be re-worked on another weapon.  Still, I'm at Reputation level 7 and character level 32.  It would be interesting to level up every day I don't go to work.

After sleeping overnight, I battled through a few gates and my Reputation level is up to 8.  Wish I had more resources.  After finishing the "You're Ready as You'll Ever Be" battle, the next one, "Protector of the Throne", is a bit more.  Without the Lycan Slayer at level 40, I've switched to the Lustrous Dragon Sword at level 29.  It seems somewhat more powerful and I feel that I've come closer, but with both Light-oriented weapons, I'm betting that it would be so much better.  I'm not giving up, but I might have to wait a while.

Update 2024.05.15: I'm up to Reputation level 9, character level 34.  Got the Lustrous Dragon Sword to level 40.  Increased my difficulty level to 8.  Still going.  Got more characters, including an SSR hunter, Woo Jinchul, but only an SR weapon for him.  Still working on "Protector of the Throne".

Update 2024.05.17: Woke up, did a few gates, and I'm now at Reputation level 10, character level 35.  Tried a Red gate with Woo Jinchul but took too long.  Have a new SSR light-oriented weapon but it's stuck at level 20.

Update 2024.05.19: Up to character level 36.  Making progress, but progress is slowing.  Getting weapons above level 40 will take a while.  Still can't get through chapter 8.  Stuck at "Protector of the Throne".  I could use another light-oriented weapon.  I got a response from support that they are passing my request to the correct team.  I suspect that means that no one is going to do anything about my missing weapon and that I just need to build another of its kind and be more careful.

Update 2024.05.20: Up to Reputation level 11, character level 37.  Working on making certain weapons more powerful.  Attempting to get through chapter 8 still.  I need a little bit of this, more of that, and a helluva lot of those.  I got a 12 days of logins achievement which seems strange.  Why not wait until 14 days?  The game still seems to have a lot of pauses.  Special Summons are back.  It doesn't seem to let me choose in each of the 15 drawings.  I believe that I understand how the guaranteed drawing works: US$21.99 once or US$9.99 subscription each month.  It doesn't explain whether you can cancel the subscription or not.  It's interesting but why would you pay US$21.99 for some characters or items you don't want?  You should be able to choose each time.

Update 2024.05.22: I'm up to character level 38.  When has that happened so quickly?  Within two weeks on Honkai: Star Rail, I was probably at level 12 for my main character.  On Genshin Impact, it took me months to get the main character past level 4.  Getting the weapons up to where they're good is another matter but even then, that's faster than the other two.  Well, Reputation level 12 is here.  Working on Light-oriented weapons and with two, not quite complete, The boss in Chapter 8 is still successful and my main character is not.  Two R-level weapons aren't extremely powerful, but one R-level weapon and one SR-level weapon should be enough.  My new Lycan Slayer is at level 35 with 1-Dimensional Advance while the Lustrous Dragon Sword is has no Advance but is at level 40.

Update 2024.05.25: I'm up to character level 40 and Reputation level 13.  I'm able to upgrade characters now and made changes to my top three hunters.  The SSR-level Thetis' Grimoire for the main character is excellent.  It feels as though battles are shorter and easier.  Whether this will work for the end of chapter 8, I'll try any combination that makes sense.  Anna Ruiz is a useful hunter but her weapon could use some help.  It has no Advance.

Update 2024.05.27: I'm up to character level 41 this morning.  The Reputation level is halfway between 13 and 14, with that +2 after each gate keeping me humble.  The custom draw tickets have added to my weapons.  I'm doing everything I can to get those weapons up to level 60.  It's odd to have an SSR-level light-oriented weapon for hunters and not for the main character, which has SR-level and R-level light-oriented weapons.  Either way, gotta keep trying.

I'm up to Reputation level 14.  Weapons are going closer to level 60.  There is still much to do.  Playing Battlefield of Trials and I'm at Floor 8, having completed or cleared the others.  I tried to add a quick video of it but it seems too big.  Perhaps, I can link to it later.

Update 2024.05.29: It's been a couple of hours since the update became ready.  It's been three weeks and they've added content, changed a few things, and fixed bugs and improved performance.

I've completed chapter 8 and gone up to character level 42.  I can't say that it was pretty but with Thetis' Grimoire at level 60 and the Lustrous Dragon Sword at level 40, it was enough.  Improving the Hunters and their weapons probably helped, as well.

Getting through the Gates, I've noticed that the Hunters are more able.  They've finished a couple of Rank A Gates without a problem.  I'm still working on learning how to use Anna Ruiz and her bow in close quarters.

With the custom draw tickets, I got Silver Mane Baek Yoonho and Moonshadow, among others.  I feel lucky to have any SSR-level equipment or hunters.

I heard from support and they said that they cannot restore the Lycan Slayer as it was, as I caused the problem, and to lock my weapons in the future.  I didn't know that you could destroy a weapon so easily.  With everything else being repetitive, you'd think that the game would make sure I understood.

Update 2024.05.30: I'm up to character level 43 and Reputation level 15.  Things are easier but on occasion, I don't have enough power to defeat the enemies in Chapter 9, not yet, anyway.

Update 2024.05.31: I just completed two episodes of Chapter 9.  I got the new job title of Necromancer.  Then, after the second and final episode, I got the new job title of Monarch of Shadows.  Each came with an extra 30 points to spread around the abilities.  There was also a new outfit, and Instance Dungeons were opened, as well as new slots for artifacts you get from Instance Dungeons.

Update 2024.06.02: I'm at character level 45 and Reputation level 16.  The difficulty level is up to 9, but I'm probably going to change that soon.  I'm partway through Chapter 11 but I'm seeing a warning that my group isn't powerful enough.

I've been experiencing a problem where certain keys on the keyboard don't function after playing the game on Windows.  There are more than I'm going to mention but specifically, the "d", Enter, and Backspace keys don't work after playing.  At some point they're better, but it's not like I use Enter or Backspace in the game at all, so it doesn't make sense.  In a few days, it will be a month that the game has been available.  It feels as though some new functionality is available every few days.

Update 2024.06.07: I'm using a keyboard I got from Temu for the Steam Deck and it's awkward since my Windows computer is a laptop computer.  Anyway, the other day, I got a 40 days of log-ins which seemed a little off since I haven't even been playing for 30 days.  I'm at Reputation level 17 and my character level is almost to 47 but has some time to go.

I was watching a video of someone explaining how to get to a certain level of performance on Solo Leveling: Arise and I noticed that I'm not far from his levels.  That's just crazy because he's probably spend a couple hundred dollars. I have spent US$40.88, which is much more than I usually spend unless I'm buying a game. I'm wondering what happens when I have my characters maxxed out.  Will I find it fun?  On Honkai: Star Rail, I'm in maintenance mode, where I just keep things going until I see something interesting.  Who knows?

Update 2025.06.13: Looking back at this is interesting.  I'm at Character level 106 and Reputation level 66. I'm at maximum on Mining level which is now 40 and my Difficult level for gates is 41.  I have 5 Sung Jinwoo weapons at level 110 and I've got one Hunter weapon almost there.  I'm down to spending $3.99 per month.

Honkai: Star Rail Main Character at Maximum

 It hasn't been a year but here is version 2.0 now and my main character is at maximum.  That took a while, especially since I didn't use any real money.  Am I the only one?  Probably, that is the case.  Still, the main character on the other account needs more Eidolons to be complete, but I'll take one complete over none.

Update 2024.02.14: Both accounts are at maximum, as well.

Update 2024.04.24: On the account where my main character is at maximum, I also have Yukong and Dan Heng at maximum.  They don't have all of the Eidolons, so they could go higher in the future.  I'm almost afraid to do a warp, in case I get another character to take to level 80.

I'm still working on my other account's main character, which is on the path of Preservation.  With Dan Heng Imbibitor Lunae, who is much more powerful, I'm trying to balance progress on all characters.  I want my main character to be more powerful, but he doesn't always seem that powerful.

Update 2024.05.05: It's been a year since I started Honkai: Star Rail.  Given my trouble learning Genshin Impact, I didn't think at the start of Honkai: Star Rail that I'd have much progress, let alone, have all of my characters at level 80 and have my accounts at maximum.  I'm still struggling with Genshin Impact, although those accounts are at level 42 and the main characters are at the maximum level but it still feels as though I'm just out of the tutorial stage.

I'm still waiting for the Year of Linux

 Back around 2005, I got my parents x86 machine because my adoptive dad was suffering from Alzheimer's Disease and wasn't really coherent enough to handle a computer.

I'd been experimenting with BeOS on my PowerPC 604e-based Mac Clone from Power Computing.  The Power Center 120 was fairly powerful but at some point, I bought the upgrade processor card, which was quite an enhancement.  Still Mac OS 8.5 was slow.  BeOS certainly showed me how good it could be.  However, BeOS was lacking almost everything except an internet connection.  Mac OS X was coming along but wasn't quite finished.

When I got the x86 machine, it was running some version of Windows that wasn't very reliable.  Having run Windows NT at work and finding it only somewhat more reliable, I decided to replace Windows at home with Ubuntu Linux or FreeBSD.

After trying multiple times to install FreeBSD and having 90% success and not being able to fix it, I installed the Ubuntu distribution of Linux.  It was a more user-oriented version atop the Debian distribution.

It was sufficient.

About the time I became familiar with GNOME, they introduced Unity, which was their own User Interface.  It was better, and worse.

However, people kept shouting "This is the Year of Linux!" and I kept wondering how they were going to get grandma and grandpa onto machines running Linux, if I was taking time finding out how to use it.

A lot of time has passed and a lot of releases have been released and macOS is past X and both Macs and Windows machines are running 64-bit operating systems.

There is also a handheld Linux-based machine called Steam Deck.  You can regularly find machines running Linux and buy them easily, if you know where to look.  If you want to count them, anything running ChromeOS is a Linux-based machine.

 

I spent some time with KDE on Steam Deck after adding a keyboard and mouse.  It's quite comfortable, although I didn't do much.  Things are better, if you get the best desktop environment for you.

I always thought that a simple machine for e-mail and web browsing would help grandparents deal with family.  Why isn't there a self-contained family machine or perhaps, recycled machines re-purposed for that?  The only reason I need Windows or macOS is so that I can run specific software.

Certainly, Linux is better for everything than it used to be.  Valve's work on Proton and funding of related software has assured that gaming on Linux is the best it has ever been.  SteamOS in handheld mode and desktop mode is quite good at running games.

I've been looking at converting my mid-2012 MacBook Pro with GeForce 650M to a Linux distribution, but I can't decide which.  I considered Kubuntu and Arch.  Kubuntu will probably be easier to install, but will it accept the Nvidia driver for my 650M?  Arch is used for SteamOS but will it be easy to install for Mac?  SteamOS itself has too many requirements for newer equipment that it won't work.

I'm currently looking at an article on Gaming on Linux that Linux is in second place on Steam, above macOS.

It shouldn't be much of a surprise that macOS users on Steam are playing less.  Those paying for Counter Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO), found that their game had been removed and all the money they spent was just gone.  There was a download to Counter Strike 2, without an executable.  All of the Valve games that introduced Steam to Mac users were 32-bit, so no more Half-Life 2, Portal, or Portal 2.  Yes, Mac users are not playing on Steam as much.  Linux is doing better.

I really hope that there will be more than Steam Deck pushing Linux distributions forward.

Update 2024.02.27: I've been in Steam Deck desktop mode today.  As a successful operating system, the Discover application presented me with software updates to be installed.  I didn't have to fight with anything.  I clicked "Update All" and everything was fine.

I also wanted to download the Heroic Games Launcher for Linux.  That was a bit more tricky.  I downloaded the wrong version at first and it asked how to open it.  My first thought was to find "tar" and use that, but it didn't seem to be that kind of archive.  Then, I was reading the page and noticed "and Steam Deck", and that one ended up showing up in Discover, and the installation was easy from there.

There is a new Linux-based gaming device like Steam Deck, the Orange Pi Neo that runs Manjaro Linux Gaming Edition with an AMD 7840U.  That's more powerful than Steam Deck and hopefully, better organized than the ASUS ROG Ally or Lenovo Legion Go devices running Windows.  Ayaneo started to do something similar and then, installed Windows instead.

Update 2024.10.05: Arch Linux is going to be collaborating with Valve.  This is an important step, not just for Steam Deck but for Arch Linux users in general.  With so many distributions and a few attempting to be "the game distribution", this may show everyone the way.

We need easy-to-use alternatives.  I can live without Windows, except for gaming maybe, but I can't give up my Mac just yet.

I'm glad to see that AMD has posted a new timeline for Steam Deck, ROG Ally, and Legion Go APUs.  Hopefully, a graphically stronger Steam Deck will be available in 2025.

Update 2025.01.02: SteamOS seems to be the most used distribution of Linux.  That's not really a surprise, since many of us are playing games on a Steam Deck.  I'd love to see the majority of Windows users on a Linux distribution, since they don't really need the compatibility with certain software the way a business user or creative person does.

I haven't heard anything new about the Manjaro Linux Gaming Edition .  Bazzite Linux has some usage, and Valve is about to push SteamOS for Lenovo Legion Go or any other portable that would be a good fit.

Someone out there, impress us.  Show me a distribution of Linux that's so good that I wouldn't want to return to Mac or Windows.

Update 2025.06.13: I saw some PC World video today at a Micro Center.  They seemed to be making a joke about The Year of Linux.  He said "5 or 10 years" but I've been hearing about it so much longer.

SteamOS is up to version 3.7.8 on Steam Deck, but version 3.8 for the Lenovo Legion Go S or aother devices.

I saw something about Manjaro Linux on the Neo Orange Pi.  It should be available toward the end of the year, but I suspect that they're guessing.

I would really like to run Linux instead of Windows 11, but I'm not sure it would be a success for me. 

Update 2025.06.26: I saw a negative rumor.  Fedora, which used to be Red Hat Linux may stop containing 32-bit support.  Bazzite is based on Fedora, which is for games, won't be able to run many games without 32-bit support.

 I've been hoping that developers would embrace 64-bit-ness but there seem to be levels-upon-levels that have to work together.  Those games that don't depend on outside libraries too much seem okay, but many games require those libraries for various functionality. 

Update 2025.12.19: With the Valve announcement for a new VR headset, living room console, and more, they've given SteamOS much more of a platform.  Then, there are the Lenovo Legion Go handheld consoles.  If SteamOS worked with Nvidia GPUs, I'd try to install it on this laptop computer. 

Honkai: Star Rail with all characters and their light cones at level 80

 It's been more than half a year since I started playing.  I've added quite a few characters.  Some are strong and others are not so strong.  It's a trip that I'm at a point where all of my characters are at level 80.

That's not to say that they're 100% complete. That would be 21 on one account and 20 on the other.  I'm still working on Light Cones and more.  However, how can you deny the awesomeness of having all of your characters at the highest level possible?

Even at level 80, the characters sometimes struggle.  Multiple teams make it easier to succeed.

I wish that I could do so well in Genshin Impact.  I've done okay, being at AR 41 without spending a penny but it seems impossible to have all that you need when you can't get to some of the locations to find upgrade materials.

Now that I've received my free fancy Warp tickets, I'm probably going to wait to enjoy having all of my characters at maximum, for a while anyway.

Update 2024.01.06: Used my Warp tickets and got no new characters.  Adding a couple of Eidolons was better.  It's still amazing that I haven't spent any real money.  Being at account level 68 now, I'll be a the maximum some day.  I've got a couple of Light Cones up to level 80 on each account and brought others up to level 70.  I've also managed to increase Traces levels, though I'm not doing those in any predictable way.  I just have some resources from working to Ascend Light Cones, and used those to upgrade Traces.

Update 2024.01.16: All light cones that are in use for all characters are at level 80, also.  Still working on Traces.

Update 2024.01.17: After I got everything set, Dr. Ratio comes along and undoes my numbers slightly.  He's at level 40 on each account, and I happened to have the same Light Cone on each account that was never used, at level 1.  He's a third character with Imaginary damage on one account and the second on the other.

Well, a couple of hours later on one account, Dr. Ratio is at level 60 and the Subscribe for More! Light Cone is at level 50.  That's not bad for about an hour of upgrading.  Of course, there is more to be done and the other account needs to be handled.

Got the other account up to 60 and 60 for Dr. Ratio, plus some of the Traces have been upgraded.

Update 2024.01.21: Dr. Ratio is at level 70 on both accounts with some of the Traces upgraded again.

Update 2024.01.27: Dr. Ratio is at level 80 on both accounts and the Light Cones are both are level 80.  More of the Traces are upgraded, but it's slow going.

Update 2024..02.12: I did my two warps on each account.  Got another Tingyun and Guinaifen on one account and Misha and Imbibitor Lunae on the other.  I wish I had appropriate Light Cones, but that isn't going to happen apparently.

Update 2024.02.18: Guinaifen is and 80 and her Light Cone is at 80. I've got Imbibitor Lunae at 76, Lynx at 71 and Misha at 50.  I probably need to complete some seasonal events to get the items I need for Misha.

Update 2024.02.20: Imbibitor Lunae is at level 80 and Misha is free to rise from 50 to 60 now.  Seasonal events have provided the needed materials.