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Psion posted:ME1 has, as was mentioned, Lorik Qui'in. Who needs to cheat paragon/renegade when the game builds it in for you? It is disgustingly satisfying to cheat yourself infinite elements in ME2 and just research yourself every upgrade in the Tech Lab in between missions, just because you can.
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Aug 13, 2013 18:57
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Dr. Abysmal posted:I could see being surprised by the adept in ME1 if you're used to ME3 and making GBS threads out constant biotic explosions. ME1 adepts would have to do quite a bit of shooting because ME1 biotics were still more of a tool to disable opponents and supplement your guns rather than outright killing, although there were cases where you could send krogans into space or Shialas down bottomless pits. Early game adept can be rough because your powers are weak but by mid to end game once you've leveled them up you're a powerhouse. Your telekinetic powers will eventually be strong enough to ragdoll even a Geth Colossus and shields are no protection against them. Good thing pistols own bones in ME1.
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Aug 13, 2013 20:17
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DrNutt posted:Good thing pistols own bones in ME1. Yeah, it's honestly not a terrible idea to specialize in them even if you pick Soldier, they're pretty good. Not as good as Assault Rifles by the time you can afford the specter gear, but still a solid choice, and they don't suffer from the "you can't hit the broad side of a barn unless you invest a bunch of points" syndrome that Assault Rifles do.
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Aug 13, 2013 20:44
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No, pistols are the highest-DPS weapons in the game.
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Aug 13, 2013 20:50
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magimix posted:I feel like it is the end of an era... My 360 will never again be hooked up or powered on. In the months since I bought my current PC, I've progressively re-purchased on PC those games I own on 360 that I might still want to play. I'd re-purchased everything, bar one franchise. Mass Effect - the games that made me buy a 360 in the first place. Do none of the ME games have native controller support? I would assume at least 2/3 would. Also I assume that buying that DLC for Xbox would mean squat if you moved to the PC and you'd have to buy them all over again?
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Aug 13, 2013 21:01
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Edit2: Also, having to unlock difficulty levels; highest I can go at the moment is Veteran
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monster on a stick posted:Do none of the ME games have native controller support? I would assume at least 2/3 would. Pretty sure none of the games have native controller support on PC, not even ME3. And I'm definitely sure that DLC does not transfer across platforms, so yeah, you'd have to buy it all over.
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Aug 13, 2013 23:15
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I just noticed that you can take Marksman as a bonus power in the single player. My already overpowered infiltrator greatly enjoys this. 
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Aug 14, 2013 11:31
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Zoran posted:No, pistols are the highest-DPS weapons in the game. Aren't snipers a bit higher? In any case, I pretty much exclusively use pistols now because a X spectre pistol w/ maxed pistols skill is a machine gun you can shoot forever.
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Aug 14, 2013 21:21
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monster on a stick posted:Do none of the ME games have native controller support? I would assume at least 2/3 would. Join me in giving Bioware/EA all your money. All of it.
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Aug 14, 2013 21:25
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Zoran posted:No, pistols are the highest-DPS weapons in the game. I could swear that this was build dependent and only on sentinels or something. I'm pretty sure that sledgehammer ammo ARs are better than pistols on any class that has (or is given) the AR specialization except for sentinels because their class skill increases pistol stats.
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Aug 14, 2013 22:45
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It's any class except sentinels, actually; you need Master Marksman. With the Pistol Expert achievement and dual Medical Exoskeletons, you can have Marksman up for 20 seconds (20.8 if you're a Renegade) and cool down in 26.6 (25.3 if you're a paragon). Soldiers and Infiltrators with Commando specialization have it cool down in 20 seconds flat, which means Marksman can be active permanently. Shock Trooper Vanguards can indirectly have permanent Marksman, because Adrenaline Burst recharges in 20 seconds or less. However, Adrenaline Burst is usually better used on dual Singularities and the like. While Marksman is active, HMWP X with Scram Rail X, Frictionless Materials X, and Tungsten/Shredder Rounds VII will out-damage any other setup and will never overheat. Infiltrators get pistol heat reduction that lets them use dual Scrams instead. A note on ammo mods: Tungsten and Shredder are the best ones. Sledgehammer rounds don't add 50% more damage as "toxic damage," they convert 50% of the damage to toxic. Toxic damage is the same as normal damage except that it negates regeneration up to the amount of toxic damage inflicted. So if your gun is applying 200 toxic damage per second and the enemy has 210 regeneration per second, they'll regenerate 10 instead. This effect is useless on anything that doesn't regenerate health. Master Marksman is a 50% ROF boost with 50% heat reduction. Master Overkill from the Assault Rifles talent gives an accuracy boost and 60% heat reduction. However, it can only be up for 15 seconds and recharges in 26. The downtime is sufficiently long that you can't get away with running dual Scram Rails X. This is an example comparing the two types of guns with an Adept, who has no special damage bonuses on her own. 294 HMWP X base DPS * 1.5 Marksman ROF bonus *1.05 Spectre Training 11 talent + 26% Scram Rail X + 7% Frictionless Materials X + 40% Shredder/Tungsten Rounds VII + 20% Pistols 12 talent = 894 Total DPS 384 HMWA X base DPS *1.05 Spectre Training 11 talent + 26% Scram Rail X + 7% Frictionless Materials X + 40% Shredder/Tungsten Rounds VII + 20% Assault Rifles 12 talent = 778 Total DPS Technically this only compares DPS while Marksman is up. Including downtime, the pistol's sustained DPS drops to ~834. There's also a +5% damage bonus for Renegades, so Renegade Infiltrators achieve absolute max DPS (1102) with Pistols because of dual Scrams (net +19%) and Commando (+21%) alongside permanent Marksman, whereas Renegade Soldiers get the most mileage out of Assault Rifles (919 DPS) thanks to Assault Training (+9%) and Commando. But the Soldier also gets 1056 DPS from pistols. As for other guns: an Infiltrator can run a single Scram Rail on a sniper rifle and everyone else needs dual Frictionless. He gets 839 DPS and a soldier gets 804 as long as you're accurate. But SRs are way more fun with dual Rail Extensions VII and High Explosive Rounds anyway. A Soldier can sustain 847 DPS with Shotguns running dual Frictionless Materials and using Carnage as often as possible. You'd better hope you don't miss your Carnage, though, or you drop to 780. Zoran fucked around with this message at 16:11 on Aug 17, 2013 |
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Aug 17, 2013 13:58
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So I spent this summer tearing my way through the entire trilogy along with all the DLC (bought on a whim for £4.50, woo) and it's been a really great experience. Mostly i'm just sad it's ended for now but i'm looking forward to what's in store for the future, even if it's without Shepard.  I haven't played video games for such a long time, and i'm glad that ME was the series to get me back into it. I don't think i've ever been so emotional over fictional characters, ha. I'm also really pleased how they wrote Shepard as a character, and especially how you could choose whether the Commander was male or female - with both voice actors doing a great job. I think any game I play now will have a lot of trouble living up to Mass Effect's standard. Now all I need to do is to convert my housemates into trying it out for themselves, although I think I need a break for a while - but i'm excited to see all the little things I missed before when I was so engrossed in the story... ...Like how the Cannibal's arm is made up of an entire loving human corpse  I tried to play other Bioware games like Dragon Age: Origins but it really did nothing for me, I got bored 10 minutes in. I think ME has awakened my childhood obsession of space exploration. Sorry, this is a long thread so I think a lot of what I said has been said before - just wanted to contribute to how much I enjoyed playing. Also this thread recommended playing as a Vanguard to me and it was fun as hell. Also i'm eagerly checking for the ladies' N7 hoodies to be back in stock in the Bioware store, god drat it. 
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Aug 18, 2013 01:44
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Juanita Xtreme posted:...Like how the Cannibal's arm is made up of an entire loving human corpse Oh, you've only taken a glimpse of the abyss of what's wrong with the series -- or rather, ME3 in particular  Although I'm glad you enjoyed it overall. It's a lot better than being bitter over THE ENDING for more than a year, like a lot of us are :I Burning Mustache fucked around with this message at 02:36 on Aug 18, 2013 |
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Aug 18, 2013 02:34
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Sniping in the single player is actually harder for me. After far too many hours of multiplayer, the time dilation and the fact that I can't reload cancel using the same button keeps throwing me off my rhythm. 
Smol fucked around with this message at 02:53 on Aug 18, 2013 |
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Aug 18, 2013 02:51
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Zoran posted:It's any class except sentinels, actually; you need Master Marksman. With the Pistol Expert achievement and dual Medical Exoskeletons, you can have Marksman up for 20 seconds (20.8 if you're a Renegade) and cool down in 26.6 (25.3 if you're a paragon). Well drat. Thanks for throwing the math up. I almost want to play through again and use only pistols now. It's just such a slog even as an AR soldier on Easy, and I can't not do the mako sections.
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Aug 18, 2013 08:29
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Burning Mustache posted:Oh, you've only taken a glimpse of the abyss of what's wrong with the series -- or rather, ME3 in particular Will people ever stop being bitter about ME3?
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Aug 18, 2013 10:48
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Akuma posted:Uhh I don't think that was some sort of criticism, just an observation. Yeah that was a bit strongly worded. It's only really an issue once you consider what would happen to the arm in the Synthesis ending  , which has been discussed at length I believe  Akuma posted:Will people ever stop being bitter about ME3? Not me!
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Aug 18, 2013 13:04
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Akuma posted:Will people ever stop being bitter about ME3? No I will not.
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Aug 18, 2013 18:04
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Akuma posted:Uhh I don't think that was some sort of criticism, just an observation. Well I've basically relegated the events to (since I suppose this is still technically the no spoiler thread) Shepard unites the galaxy, lands on Earth, something-something, goes to the Citadel, fights evil clone, dancing with Garrus, celebratory party. That's completely logical and sane right?
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Aug 18, 2013 18:12
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Kibayasu posted:Well I've basically relegated the events to (since I suppose this is still technically the no spoiler thread) Shepard unites the galaxy, lands on Earth, something-something, goes to the Citadel, fights evil clone, dancing with Garrus, celebratory party. That's completely logical and sane right? Except for the Garrus part, yes.
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Aug 18, 2013 18:14
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Is there an explanation to anything Cerberus does in ME3? It seems to me that it would've been smarter to let Shepard & Co. do whatever they want to do, and reveal their wild card right at the end. The only explanation I can think of is TIM being indocrinated, but it seems quite unclear just how indoctrinated he was in the beginning and the middle parts of the game. Smol fucked around with this message at 18:36 on Aug 18, 2013 |
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Aug 18, 2013 18:33
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No, and that's perfectly consistent with Cerberus's inexplicable series-wide story arc of going from a fringe terrorist group to an established movement to the evil empire. Mass Effect is better when you focus on the micro-level stuff. Its macro-level plot is terrible.
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Aug 18, 2013 19:08
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Are accuracy mods any good for squadmates or should you boost their damage instead?
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Aug 18, 2013 19:11
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Smol posted:Is there an explanation to anything Cerberus does in ME3? It seems to me that it would've been smarter to let Shepard & Co. do whatever they want to do, and reveal their wild card right at the end. He was entirely indoctrinated all the time, even during Mass Effect 2 somehow, as revealed in some tie-in comic book or other. This naturally makes the decision to give him the Collector Base at the end of ME2 complete lunacy rather than Renegade Pragmatism, so in ME3 it was somewhat annoying to see it basically made canon, since he has the Reaper Babby even if you blew up the Collector Base in a gigantic nuclear explosion.
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Aug 18, 2013 19:21
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Karpaw posted:Are accuracy mods any good for squadmates or should you boost their damage instead? Raygereio fucked around with this message at 19:51 on Aug 18, 2013 |
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Aug 18, 2013 19:35
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Akuma posted:
I think after hearing about how terrible the ending was from people before actually playing the game, I kind of prepared myself for the worst. But I also made sure to download the Extended Cut right away, so I was kind of spared most of the heartbreakingly frustrating aggro that came with the ending the first time around. I had no idea that so much of that stuff wasn't explained before the EC. But even so, I really didn't think that after that it was the MOST terrible ending i'd ever seen. (Although I will admit I felt a lot better when Bioware announced that Shepard survives in the 'Destroy' ending. ). That being said, I'm really gullible and am lured in easily by all the emotion, especially just before you make your final decision, so my brain has kind of skimmed past most of the plot holes. The way Shepard looks at her abdomen pouring with blood and still attempts to get up carry out her orders, even to the last second really killed me. So I was more distraught by all the sad music and stuff instead of actually concentrating on the plot properly.  I was also more taken with noticing differences within the characters, like with the fact that you begin to see Shepard doubt herself for the first time, that maybe it won't work, and that she's actually beginning to be affected by the choices you make. Part of me thought it would've been interesting to explore that just a tiny bit further, but I suppose it doesn't make for interesting gameplay. I can't imagine Mass Effect: PTSD edition hitting the shops any time soon. Smol posted:Is there an explanation to anything Cerberus does in ME3? It seems to me that it would've been smarter to let Shepard & Co. do whatever they want to do, and reveal their wild card right at the end. Yes, I did find this really problematic. At first it lures you in and it seems to just be a wild goose chase until the end of the game when it's kind of ... sort of ... revealed? Although it was very, very disturbing to find out what they were doing, something felt like it was kind of empty or missing. There didn't seem to be a real basis as to why, apart from "research, lol, you don't understand". Cerberus never presented itself as a real threat to me most of the time, unless that was the point.
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Aug 18, 2013 22:06
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Smol posted:Is there an explanation to anything Cerberus does in ME3? It seems to me that it would've been smarter to let Shepard & Co. do whatever they want to do, and reveal their wild card right at the end. The entire point of Cerberus' operation was that it was trying to control the Reapers, but they didn't readily know how to do that. TIM is pretty honest with why he's trying to stop you, if I recall. That's why they got to Mars before you, researched Reaper artifacts at Firebase: Glacier, and operated Sanctuary . It becomes evident pretty early, but not clearly stated, that by TIM and Cerberus trying to stop you in destroying the Reapers, he's falling into their hands by hindering the galaxy from presenting a united front to something that is technologically and numerically superior to anything that sapients can do. Cerberus is by all means stupid on this because they really could have pulled the wild card at the end and taken control of the reapers. They just wanted to be a dick about it and rub your face in it every step of the way. As for Cerberus and its army, it may seem like an army to us, but to the rest of the universe it's just another fighting force. You don't see Cerberus trying to conquer planets, you see them pulling smash and grabs and occupying strategic locations. But all of their research is focused on making the Reapers more malleable to them or outright creating a Reaper that is obedient to only them. At Horizon is the first instance where Reaper and Cerberus forces are actively fighting each other supporting the notion that TIM's entire campaign was clandestine and did not want to draw the ire of the Reapers themselves. No one wants you to just up and take their army with the press of a button. And for what reason does TIM want to do this? Human dominance. 
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Aug 19, 2013 07:17
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I didn't see a Dragon Age thread (or general Bioware thread), so I figured I'd ask here. But is there a better place to ask about it? Is Dragon Age basically Mass Effect, just with fantasy instead of sci-fi? Do the games interact in the same way as the ME games (like, save game transfers)? Is each game connected through one continuous story, or are they all separate? Is there one game that is just flat-out better than the others?
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Aug 19, 2013 15:22
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There's a dragon Age thread here, but it's mostly grumpy people who didn't like the last game. As for your questions: dragon Age: Origins isn't much like Mass Effect at all, dragon Age 2 took several cues from the ME games (notably the dialogue wheel). There are save-game transfers but you play as different characters in each game. dA:O is pretty much universally considered better than dA2, which was developed in like a year and seems a lot like a rush job.
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Aug 19, 2013 15:35
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And I'd like to throw in that if you play DA 2 without any expectations you might find something in it you like. For example, I found it refreshing that the plot didn't revolve around saving the world. I also liked that you spent more time in one city than other games, so it gave things time to develop. It's not a perfect game, but I think it deserves more credit than it's given. That said, I hope DA3 is a lot better.
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Aug 19, 2013 15:46
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2house2fly posted:There's a dragon Age thread here, but it's mostly grumpy people who didn't like the last game.  Thanks for the info. DA:O seems like a good starting point (considering it's also the Origins and everything). I'll head into that thread from now on.
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Aug 19, 2013 16:07
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Crows Turn Off posted:I didn't see a Dragon Age thread (or general Bioware thread), so I figured I'd ask here. But is there a better place to ask about it? I liked the ME series better, but DA:O is a fine game and I would recommend it. There are some caveats here but mostly this is due to the difference in the style of the game: - it's a lot longer. 40 hours. More if you are a completionist. - specifically there are two 'levels' that are very long (the Fade and Orzammar) that people tend to complain about but a lot of that is because we've played through the game a few times. Many players enjoy these levels the first run or two. - if you are an achievement hound, there's one (Traveler) that will take a lot of careful dedication and there's almost no way to get it unless you know about the achievement before playing. Anyway, get it. Dwarf Noble origin tends to be one of the more popular ones because of the political stuff you get to deal with and the many callbacks in the game.
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Aug 20, 2013 00:09
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monster on a stick posted:I liked the ME series better, but DA:O is a fine game and I would recommend it. There are some caveats here but mostly this is due to the difference in the style of the game: I haven't been able to even attempt a second playthrough because of the thought of doing either of these sections again. I played through the first time at launch and time still hasn't dulled the pain.
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Aug 22, 2013 21:58
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Black Milk Clothing limited-edition Mass Effect fashion for women (and crossdressers). Ladies, would you like to wear this swimsuit graced by the image of my glorious space waifu?
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Aug 23, 2013 00:18
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The MSJ posted:Black Milk Clothing limited-edition Mass Effect fashion for women (and crossdressers). Ladies, would you like to wear this swimsuit graced by the image of my glorious space waifu? Oh wow, I saw those on Tumblr and thought those were photoshoped. Who would buy those?
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Aug 23, 2013 00:28
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I like how they had to use the phrase "Don't cross Omega's boss!"
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Aug 23, 2013 15:01
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SgtSteel91 posted:Oh wow, I saw those on Tumblr and thought those were photoshoped. Who would buy those? The N7 dress isn't awful.
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Aug 23, 2013 20:04
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Waltzing Along posted:The N7 dress isn't awful. I was talking about the ones with comic book pages. The N7 ones are alright.
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Aug 23, 2013 20:06
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SgtSteel91 posted:I was talking about the ones with comic book pages. The N7 ones are alright. Par for the course, really. Now if I could nab some N7 boxers...
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Aug 23, 2013 20:10
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magimix posted:Now if I could nab some N7 boxers... Just go Commando...
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