You can now insert images as comments when you seek for in-game help in Megathreads! Check out this mod post HERE for more information.
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Use this Megathread if you have general questions or need advice! e.g. asking for EX / Candy recommendation, gems usage, "Should I pull this banner?", "How do I build a team on this stage?", etc.
If you need team building help specifically for Champion Stadium, you may use the Champion Stadium Megathread to receive a quicker response.

Installing Pokémon Masters

Pokémon Masters is available worldwide except for Belgium and The Netherlands due to bans on loot boxes.
We will go over the two main platforms on installing the game, IOS and Android.
According to the official site, the game is most compatible in these devices:
iOS: 11 or higher / 64 bit / at least 2 GB of RAM
Android: OS 7.0 or higher / 64 bit / at least 2 GB of RAM
IOS:

1. Via Apple Store: HERE

Android

1. Via Google Play Store: HERE
2. Others

If the game is unavailable in your country or shows as not available for your device, you can download the APK directly from APKPure or QooApp.
You can also use VPN to download it from the application store, but it requires longer downloading time compared to the above recommended methods.
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Reroll Guide

Reroll means that you make a new account and look at what you got from your scout. If you don't like your first few multi-pulls, you delete the account and create a new one again and so on until you are satisfied.
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Why reroll?

• You're a new or returning player and you want to get your hands on meta Sync Pairs for easier clears.
• A favourite/meta Sync Pair has been released and you want to get him/her no matter what.

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How to Reroll?
If you're an existing player, delete your local data or cache first. Otherwise, do not link your account to Nintendo. Doing so will bind your Pokémon Masters account to your Nintendo profile permanently and can no longer be removed.
As of now, if you progress up to the point when co-op mode is unlocked, you can get at least 21.000 gems, the equivalent of 7 multis, earning at least 231/400 scout points (33 scout points per multi scout), allowing you to scout at least 77 Sync Pairs. Completing the following checkpoints will let you receive gems as completion rewards:

Gems	Notable Rewards	Additional Notes*
Starting the game (Part 1)	Finish Champion Stadium: Kanto Challenge (Normal)
150	MC & Pikachu, Misty & Starmie, Brock & Onix	You can reuse the same Sync Pairs after each round.
Starting the game (Part 2)	Special Completion Rewards: Champion Stadium (Normal)
500	Egg (BulbasauCharmandeSquirtle). Clear 5 quests to hatch it.
Blue & Pidgeot Guaranteed Scout	Finish Champion Stadium: Victory Road
5000	Blue & Pidgeot, your first 5★ Sync Pair
Choosable 4★ Sync Pair	Pick anyone.
Finish Chapter 1 (Normal)	90	Rosa & Serperior
Finish Chapter 2 (Normal)	200	Barry & Empoleon. Professor Oak and Legendary Arena unlocked.
Finish Chapter 3 (Normal)	150
Finish Chapter 4 (Normal)	170	Erika & Vileplume
Finish Chapter 5 (Normal)	160	Skyla & Swanna
Finish Chapter 6 (Normal)	200	Korrina & Lucario
Finish Chapter 7 (Normal)	250	Norman & Slaking
Finish Chapter 8 (Normal)	170	Pryce & Seel
Finish Chapter 9 (Normal)	240	Iris & Haxorus
Finish Chapter 10 (Normal)	250	SS Brock & Tyranitar
Finish Interlude 1 (Normal)	60
Finish Chapter 1 (Hard)	100
Finish Chapter 2 (Hard)	200
Finish Chapter 3 (Hard)	100
Finish Chapter 4 (Hard)	200
Finish Chapter 5 (Hard)	100
Finish Chapter 6 (Hard)	200
Finish Chapter 7 (Hard)	300
Finish Chapter 8 (Hard)	200
Finish Chapter 9 (Hard)	300
Finish Chapter 10 (Hard)	300
Finish Interlude 1 (Hard)	100
EX Plaza: Special Training: Battle Techniques	60

These missions are completed progressively as you play the game, so they are not listed in numerical order.
These missions can be completed multiple times as the player reaches new checkpoints.

Checkpoint (Missions)	Notable Rewards per level
Mission 1: Log in to the game	10 Gems
Mission 21: Raise team strength	10 Gems
Mission 3: Obtain Pearl	10 Gems
Mission 4: Obtain Big Pearl	10 Gems
Mission 5: Obtain 1★ Level-Up Manual	10 Gems
Mission 6: Obtain 2★ Level-Up Manual	10 Gems
Mission 7: Obtain 3★ Level-Up Manual	10 Gems
Mission 62: Evolve a Pokemon	10 Gems
Mission 91: Obtain a Lucky Cookie	10 Gems
Mission 125: Raise your player rank	10 Gems
Mission 262: Have a number of interaction(s) in Trainer Lodge	100 Gems
Mission 263: Reach friendship level 100 with a number of guests	100 Gems
Mission 264: Reach a certain friendship level with any guest	100 Gems

These missions can only be completed once but give a high amount of gems.

Checkpoint (Missions)	Notable Rewards per level
Mission 82: Link to your Nintendo account	600 Gems
Mission 89: Participate in the Battle Villa	1000 Gems

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If you are not satisfied with your pulls, click on the Poryphone at the right-bottom corner in the Pokémon Center -> Account -> Delete Save Data. Repeat the above steps until you pulled the Sync Pair you want.
Now that you're ready to go on an adventure, link your account through Poryphone Menu by tapping "Account", then "Link a Nintendo Account" to save your progress. After that, try to get any free Sync Pairs as you progress:

• Professor Oak & Mew: Complete his Sync Pair story and finish the bingo missions from Professor Oak & Mew Special Missions.
• Rosa & Serperior: Complete all bingo missions from "Rise to 6★ EX wtih Rosa!" and upgrade her to 6★ EX.
• Legendary Event Sync Pairs: Obtainable via Legendary Adventures. Reach the end of story to obtain the legendary Sync Pair, character-exclusive 5★ promotion tickets and event vouchers. Try to upgrade them to 5/5 20/20 as soon as possible and invest in their Sync Grids; they will be valuable assets for content clearing. Do note that exclusive materials such as Champion Spirit and Sync Grid expansion for these Sync Pair are only obtainable in event reruns, and hence event-limited.

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EX Gear Type Chart

Note that these co-op stages only drop 2★ Gear as the highest rarity for their corresponding Gear Type. 3★ Gear is restricted to Type Gear Events and Pokémon Masters Day every month, and they can be exchanged in the time-limited event shop and in the General tab for 3★ gear material co-op stage drops.

Stage	Gear Type
EX Brock	Grass/Steel/Rock
EX Misty	Flying/Fairy/Steel
EX Barry	Grass/Dragon/Water
EX Flannery	Bug/WateGhost
EX Erika	Fire/Poison/Ground
EX Skyla	Rock/Normal/Flying
EX Korrina	Fire/Fighting/Psychic
EX Pryce	Electric/Ice/Bug
EX Marshal	Psychic/Dark/Ice
EX Hau	Ground/Electric/Fairy
EX Clair	Dragon/Dark/Fighting
EX Janine	Poison/Normal/Ghost

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In-Game FAQ

1. When is anniversary coming?
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Half-year	28 February 6AM UTC
Full-year	28 August 6AM UTC

2 Why hasn't my Pokemon evolved? It's at Level [X]!
Evolution requires an evolution item available in the Training Area (Evolution Material Area). Upon earning the Evolution Materials, you need to go to the Sync Pair Stories to trigger the Evolution Story.
3. Should I save to do 11 multi-scouts instead of single scouts?
You can now get x11 units instead of 10, so yes, but we strongly recommend you to save gems for Poké Fair or Master Fair banners (which has a higher rate for 5★ characters).
4. How many gems are required to receive a Sync Pair of my choice?
36.600 non-paid gems (or 36.300 gems + 100 paid gems for a daily single pull), which is the equivalent of 400 scout points. Scout points do not carry over between banners.
5. What does [X]/5, [Y]/20, etc mean?
When you obtain a Sync Pair, they're at 1/5 Sync Move level. Rolling a dupe of that Sync Pair, or using a Move Candy will increase it by 1 level. 3/5 is the minimum for most sync pairs to complete their Sync Grid, but some Poké Fairs have grid expansions that require their Sync Move to be completely maxed out at 5/5 for their full Sync Grid.
At the same time, Sync Pairs are at 0/20 Potential when they're just obtained. Giving Sync Pairs Powerups will raise their Potential and stats. When a Sync Pair is given 20 powerups, their star level will be increased. Getting a unit to 5★ 20/20 is mandatory for it to further upgrade to 6★ EX (if it has one).
6. How do I Unlock The Level cap of my units?
Training Area (Cap Unlock Area), (Cap Unlock Area 2), Exchange in the shop, Events.
7. Where do I get the manuals to level up my sync pairs?
Training Area (Level up Area), Exchange in the shop, Events, random drops in Trainer Lodge.
8. How do I get Sync orbs?
Training Area (Sync orb Area), Exchange in the shop, Events, Champion Stadium Master Mode (6K & 7.5K), random drops in Trainer Lodge.
9. What are Theme Skill and how do I get items to power them up?
Theme Skill is a new ability that raises the stats of your Sync Pairs if any of them has a common position, type, region, trainer group, or other features with another pair (or pairs) in the same team. Skill Spheres, which can be obtained in Theme Skill area and Champion Stadium Master Mode, are required to upgrade them.
10. What Lucky Skill should I roll for [X]? How do I get Lucky Cookies and Scrolls to unlock a Sync Pair's Lucky Skill?
Refer to Sync Grid Builds & Lucky Skills (by u/MomoSpark) for more details.
In general, the choices of Lucky Skills follow the roles of Sync Pairs:

• Striker: Critical Strike 2 (3★ Crunchy, RECOMMENDED)
• Support: Vigilance (3★ Creamy), unless the Sync Pair already has Vigilance in his/her kit
• Tech:
  • Refer to Striker if the Sync Pair's kit is Striker-based (e.g. Marnie & Morpeko, May & Swampert, P Serena & Whimsicott, etc.)
  • Refer to Support if the Sync Pair's kit is a tanker and/or a healer (e.g. Prof Oak & Mew, SS Leaf & Venusaur, etc.)

There are exceptions to some Sync Pairs. For example,

• Iris & Haxorous favours Lessen Confusion 9 (2★ Crispy) to increase DPS under confusion with Confusion Boon 5 in grid.
• Serena & Delphox and most other sleep-inducing units favour Troublemaker 1 (3★ Crunchy) to increase the accuracy of sleep-inducing status moves.
• Zinnia & Rayquaza can go for either Dauntless (3★ Creamy) to mitigate SP ATK debuffs after each use of Draco Meteor, or Weather Surge 3 (3★ Deluxe) to stack with her weather-based multipliers.

Lucky Cookies and Lucky Scrolls can all be obtained in Battle Villa (Single Player & Co-op), Blissful Bonanza, and Legendary Gauntlet. Legendary Gauntlet can provide unlimited 3★ Lucky Cookies as well as Deluxe Cookies exclusive to that mode after each successful stage clear, and their drop chance increases with longer win streaks.
11. What are the Sync Move effects of 6★ EX Sync Pairs of different roles? Who should I promote to 6★ EX first?
Each role gives different effects to Sync Moves when upgraded to 6★ EX.

• Striker: Sync Move becomes AoE. (Its power is not reduced against multiple targets.)
• Support: Sync Move raises sync buff by +2 instead of +1 when it is used for the first time. (Each sync buff raises damage output by 50%.)
• Tech: Sync Move power x1.5

Support is usually prioritized for promotion to 6★ EX because its EX effect effectively doubles the damage of all allied sync pairs after first sync and is more widely applicable across most game modes, and the increased stats from raising the support's Potential greatly enhances its bulk to tank stages.
For Strikers, if their kit has a very high DPS (e.g. SS Red & Charizard, Diantha & Gardevoir, etc.), or includes a powerful Sync multiplier (e.g. Steven & Metagross's Haymaker, Barry & Empoleon's Inertia, etc.), you are highly recommended to upgrade them to 6★ EX to apply the damage to all opponents. This applies to Tech, but only if the unit is a Sync nuker (e.g. Marnie & Morpeko, May & Swampert, etc.).
Promoting Support-type units to 6★ EX is not a must, but it's always an added bonus, especially if their Sync Move can provide any additional effects via passive or grid skills.
Always remember to upgrade Rosa to 6★ EX because the materials are obtainable for free.
12. Which Sync Pair should I use my candy on?
Refer to Which Sync Pair Should You Give Your Candy To? (Infographic) (by u/MuddyDummy) for more details.
Always save your candies unless the Sync Pair is exclusive to Seasonals, Poké Fairs or Master Fairs. Most Sync Pairs are usable at 1/5. You can always "accidentally" pull the unit you've been looking for from the normal pool, but you never know when limited Sync Pairs will rerun again. This may not apply to Sync Pairs that are your favorite.
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Common Technical Questions/Errors

Below lists all common technical errors you may encounter during the game, as well as how you can fix it. You are strongly encouraged to contact DeNA with any problems at [[email protected]](/) if any of these advice do not help.

1. Error 20103 — Please check your connection and try again: Usually caused due to lack of connection or sudden disconnection. Try playing the game in a place with more stable connection.
2. Error 10102 — An error has occurred. Restarting the game: This error is often triggered because it detects your phone is rooted, or that you are using external applications which allows opening multiple accounts on the same device. For rooted phone users, make sure you hide your rooted status.
3. Game crashed mid-battle: Restart the app and clear your cache. This option is available in the bottom-left corner of the title screen.
4. Does Pokémon Masters work on emulators? No. As of now, PM is not compatible with any of the emulators (including Bluestacks, Nox, etc.) However, playing two accounts on the same device is possible on Android by cloning with Island.

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Tools

• Events Countdown Timer (created by u/antocs, updated by Thunder#4694)
• Sync Grid Helper (u/endurance12916)
• Sync Grid Planner (u/stdk12)

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Guides

• A Beginner’s Guide for Building Teams and Training Pokémon (u/Stitch426)
• Pokémon Masters: Tier List & Resources (PokemonMasters Guide Writer Team, Gamepress)
• Pokémon Masters EX: Datamine Analysis (PokemonMasters Guide Writer Team)
• Sync Grid Builds & Lucky Skills (u/MomoSpark)
• Eggmon Compendium (u/Zinfogel)
• Pokémon Masters Damage Formula (u/stdk12)
• More guides can be found HERE.

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Reminders

• To receive quicker response from other fellow users, it is strongly recommended to enlist your roster, Lucky Skills, Sync Grid builds and other information deemed necessary, such that you can be provided a strategic team with higher chance of success when battling.
• If you would like to provide images and videos, you may use external websites such as Imgur, Gyazo and Streamable to embed links.
• Do not force your own playstyle onto others as it is completely subjective. Different kinds of players, veterans and novices, casual and hardcore, may all share different opinions and playstyles. It is fine to give suggestions, but forcing your ideas and way of playing onto others is not something to be condoned here. No one's way of playing is completely right.

So we're clearing out the basement, and part of that is selling a bunch of wargaming stuff I had lying around. For sale is the following:
GW Minis:
Indomitus Necron Half NOS - $140
Indomitus SM Half NOS - $140
Dark Imperium DG, Built - $100
*A few bits fell off but are included
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GW Terrain:
Sector Imperialis Basilicanum NOS - $130 (Willing to negotiate)
Large Magnetized Terrain Set - $250 (Willing to negotiate)
*This set is made up of what I believe is a basilicanum set, administratum set, and 3 ruins sets. Various spots have been magnetized for easier breakdown and storage. Some magnets have fallen off, but can be easily reglued or replaced. I do have the various bits for lights and column stubs bagged up, just not in the pictures.
Ryza Pattern Ruins Half NOS - $20
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3rd Party/ Proxy
Raging Heroes, various Iron Empire - $150 (Willing to negotiate)
*This is a set of minis I've collected years and years ago. Has troops and various characters. Some bits are separated or misplaced. If purchased, I'll take another look and find every missing bit I can to include.
Mad Robot Miniatures, Galahad Battle Tanks - $50/ea (Willing to negotiate)
*Have a relatively recent post with these showing a complete breakdown of the parts. Missing a few bits. 3 of the kits are magnetized, 2 are completely unassembled.
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Secret Weapon Miniatures, Tablescape Tiles x24 - $250
*This is a BIG one. Unfortunately SW Miniatures is no longer around, and this product was discontinued even before that, but info can still be found online. Essentially huge 1'x1' injected plastic table tiles somewhat like the ones GW used to do. A normal set was 16 tiles, but I grabbed an 8 tile expansion for a full 4x6' table. They're painted from when me and a friend first started getting into airbrushing and had some weathering pigment applied. Must be stated again, this is a big set of tiles and weighs a considerable amount as far as plastic wargaming is concerned.
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*Timestamps/ Pictures*
https://imgur.com/a/cgKrWjn
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Prices are without shipping due to the various sizes of the items here and depending if anyone decides to buy multiple items. I'm leaning towards splitting the shipping cost, but I honestly have no clue what some of this stuff would cost (especially that tablescape box). Willing to do local sales around 48146, or Ann Arbor, MI.
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Please feel free to ask any questions/ make offers or if clearer pictures of an item are needed. I just really want this stuff to go to people willing to actually use it, instead of me wasting some great quality plastic.
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Thanks for taking a look!

My wife bought this red and black "Expert Grill" brand bluetooth dual probe BBQ thermometer.
Online, people complain about the low range of the communication, but otherwise it seems to be a pretty decent little remote sensor. The one little caveat which I think might cause problems for the typical HA user, is that the device powers-down when there isn't a phone connected to it.
I'm not a programmer, and my preferred tinkering domain is more in the physical or electrical areas.
I'm wondering, is this device interesting or useful enough to warrant an integration to Home Assistant?
I followed some guides and obtained the BTSNOOP HCI logs of my phone connecting to, getting some readings, and disconnecting from the thermometer. I also looked inside the device and made notes of what's inside. Will that be enough data for someone to be able to create an integration using the stock firmware?
On the subject of firmware... I have noticed that the SOC of this device is "WLT8258" which seems to be a similar device to the Telink TLSR8258. I found that the PVVX online "Telink OTA Flasher" utility https://pvvx.github.io/ATC_MiThermometeTelinkOTA.html seems to connect to this device and doesn't generate any error which might offer a handy means of uploading a firmware "update" should one exist for it.
The only other chips I cold find inside was the LCD driver chip "TM1628A", and battery charge/power control IC "2SES-01NG-004984" This device uses a rechargeable lipo pack inside which appears to have it's own protection circuit on the pack. This device is recharged using a USB-C port on the top, which doesn't pass any data lines to the board, so no firmware update over USB.
If This could be integrated into HA, I would use it for monitoring my swimming pool solar heater performance, and possibly automating the heater to shut it down if there's not enough solar energy available, if the performance is negative(cooling the water), or if the pool is too hot. All of those situations have been affecting my pool now that the weather here on the prairies is warm enough to go outside and play. I already have HA control over my heating and filter pumps thanks to a pair of Sonoff Mini DIY WiFi remote switches, so the last piece of the puzzle is getting temperature feedback to close the loop.
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Thoughts?

I recently completed a RTW award on ANA and wanted to share my experience to help others with this amazing award. I spent a long time researching before going through with booking --Hope this can help the next person! I did make a few mistakes/learnings along the way hope some can take into consideration. Overall, I spent 125,000 points transferred from Amex MR & ~$950 for 8 segments going East from the US in Business.

Routing

DEN-YYZ-LHR, VIE-BKK-SIN-DPS-SIN-HND-SFO - can paste into GCMap which results in a total of 21,526 mi; within the 22,000 Business Category.
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Routing	CarrieClass
DEN (Denver) - YYZ (Toronto)	AC (Air Canada) / Economy
YYZ (Toronto) - LHR (London)	AC (Air Canada) / Business
VIE (Vienna) - BKK (Bangkok)	BR (Eva Airways) / Business
BKK (Bangkok) - SIN (Singapore)	SQ (Singapore) / Business
SIN (Singapore) - DPS (Bali)	SQ (Singapore) / Business
DPS (Bali) - SIN (Singapore)	SQ (Singapore) / Business
SIN (Singapore) - HND (Tokyo)*	NH (ANA) / Business
HND (Tokyo) - SFO (San Francisco)*	NH (ANA) / Business

*I was later able to change the times on the SIN-HND segment, and change the last segment from HND-SFO to NRT-SFO for better timing purposes and a longer stay in both locations. See bottom of this post for details regarding changes after ticketing.
The total portion of my time is about a month, with a majority of my time spent in Europe between LHR and VIE, a small portion of time in Bali to break up flights, and about a week in Japan before flying home.

Research Process

I had been targeting Spring/Early Summer 2024 for this award for awhile but hadn't nailed down a particular date. I wanted to travel during shoulder season to maximize value, crowds, and decent weather across these regions. I was just waiting for the award calendar to open up for most of the carriers. I started looking about a month out (April) and doing some random searches/looks to see what flights were coming available and possible routings. In my research I found that most flights leaving from the US to Asia booked up fastest right after being released at the edge of the booking window (ex: ANA opens up bookings on its metal 355 days out; and within say 3-4 days of release most of these flights are snatched up and go into Waitlist status in Business). I had originally been planning on flying West from the US and starting in Asia, however, after doing a few mock bookings this soon became apparent it would be near impossible (Especially since Japan in spring is peak season with the Cherry Blossoms, festivals, etc). I would occasionally find a random flight departing from the US to Asia within a month of the edge of the booking window; and try to plan flights around that going westward, but it would disappear extremly quickly and my plans would be spoiled. As a result I found for this time of year it would be easiest to go east from the US through Europe first, and then ending in Asia and snatching my return flights at the edge of the booking window when ANA's flights opened/other carriers.
I would definitely recommend being flexible and don't have your heart set on going one direction originally due to concerns about time in the Air vs. Jetlag etc. I had been reading a few articles/discussions about the best direction to take and really had my heart set on going westward originally; but would say after going through this process to ignore choosing a direction initially and try to do a few samples in either direction to see what is easiest. I think I wasted a-lot of time/frustration originally trying to go westward rather than just seeing what was easiest with the most connection opportunities.
Another research point is that domestic US Business availability/North America is extremly hard to come by. United basically was only offering Economy segments domestically; I didn't see any J fares. AC Departures from US up to Canada was nearly the same thing. I did randomly see consistent J availability from SMF - YVR on a CRJ AC was offering nearly every day, and from ORD on a few dates but didn't think going out of my way was worth it. It was at a bad time and on a relatively undesirable (IMO) CRJ so I could see why that route had wide open availability. The problem was once you made it to YVR; you usually had to connect to YYZ or YYC internationally and I had the same issue finding J space domestically in Canada; so it was a dead end. I ended up just booking my first segment in Economy on AC up to Canada - didn't want to waste valuable hunting time looking for a short segment in J domestically when the biggest fish looking for space was internationally. Don't obsess over having every segment in J especially your first flight. If space opens later you can always switch into a higher class on the same flight.
For research and booking I used FlightConnections to get routing ideas based on Star Alliance carriers. I then used United's monthly award calendar (without being logged in) to see Saver availability, and then confirmed this on ANA's website. I was going to use some other tools but didn't find them useful. I paid for a day trial of point . me but found it slow and cumbersome without the filtering I needed. I didn't find Aeroplan that useful either. If I was to do this again I would explore paying for ExpertFlyer Pro and using that to search more easily.. would have probably been faster. The trial wasn't long enough to be that useful for when I was researching/booking, but it did give me some ideas - and looking back I would have easily paid for a month or two of Pro Membership to speed up my searching. Overall though, I just stuck to FlightConnections + United + ANA confirmation.

Booking Process

The time had come to where the edge of the booking window was approaching the dates I wanted. I had a few routings in mind and had saved multiple variations targeting the 22,000 mileage cap. I had a few options but nothing nailed down; so I started the process to transfer 125,000 points from Amex to ANA. Even though as a "best practice" most say to not transfer until you have the flights chosen or held, I had read some conflicting points online stating ANA does not do holds, so didn't want to risk this. I was confident based on my research I would be able to piece something together as I had a-lot of backup options chosen. I attempted to transfer late on a Friday afternoon online but got the message the transfer was unsuccessful and had to call Amex; did that early Saturday morning and they completed the transfer for me manually. Turns out I didn't have a "Call Center Pin" setup; so make sure you go into your account and set one before trying and the transfer online should go through, according to the agent. This ordeal added to my stress during the process -- if you are going to be transferring MR please make note!
I was on edge waiting for the points to deposit the entire weekend, and kept tabs on my various options. US - Europe had a-lot of options on AC; and I also had a few backup options on TAP. The "riskiest" flight for me was VIE-BKK as I really needed to get out of Europe to Asia; and there weren't many options since I was booking really close to the edge of the booking window. I couldn't see any long haul availability on Turkish/Ethiopian/other European Star Alliance carriers; so I was pretty much banking on EVA with my backup as Egyptaiothers. I noticed that Singapore seemingly doesn't publish any saver J availability to partners on long haul flights; but it does have pretty decent availability in J on short haul interasia flights. It seems like the cutoff is around 4.5 hr; but found good availability from some cities in India and even Dhaka in Bangladesh to SIN I could have used to connect to with a mix of EgyptAir / Air India / Singapore if EVA didn't work out but honestly this was a last resort and I didn't want to; but at least I had a plan. During the weekend my original VIE-BKK flight selection disappeared; but luckily they had another flight the next day I was able to book into instead. They also had other options within Europe I could have fallen back on like LHR and AMS. I didn't want to depart from LHR unless absolutely necessary as the UK Departure tax would have been ~200 pounds; something that can be avoided if possible. Definitely look into 5th freedom routes for "hidden gems"; I know Ethiopian offers some too. Apart from this; within Asia there were alot of options, and I wasn't concerned about getting back to the US from Japan because I was purposefully booking on the edge of the booking window for ANA to ensure I had availability.
Points were finally deposited early Monday morning sometime between 1am - 9am EST. I saw them in my account when I woke up early which was perfect as I was targeting calling the ANA Call Center around then, some posters online had said calling around this time resulted in the shortest wait. I waited about 1.5 hours and got a nice agent who helped me. Of note; when I called the very first thing she confirmed was my point balance. It seems like they won't even entertain booking something for you (or at least this agent in particular) if you have 0 points; so I am glad I transferred my points before. She was very helpful in quickly researching and confirming the flights -- at the same time I was on the ANA website with the multi city booking tool confirming the space was there too alongside her. She questioned at first about me backtracking by going from SIN - DPS - SIN but realized I had to do this to connect with SIN - HND as there weren't any direct flights from DPS and was fine with it. At the end of feeding her the flights she said the routing I desired was greater than 22,000 miles (~23,5000 miles) and would trigger the next bucket to be 135,000 points -- my heart sank.
This is where my mistake came in... Originally I had 2 inter-european segments, and also wanted to fly from HND - IAH instead of HND - SFO. The entire time I had been researching with gcmapper to get the distances; I had been using nautical miles (nm) in the calculations rather than statute miles (mi)! The nautical mile calculation had been below 22,000 so I thought I was in the clear the entire time. The agent was super helpful and understood my mistake and I did some research in the background for a few minutes. I ended up dropping the inter-european segments and switching from HND-IAD to HND-SFO which made my routing 21,526mi which was below the 22,000 threshold according to gcmapper. She came back to me and quoted 21,523mi, so we were pretty close in our distances after this... 3 mile difference hah. Disaster averted.
After she confirmed all the segments had availability she put me on hold and calculated the taxes and fees ~($950). The majority of the taxes and fees were from the 2 ANA segments at the end of my trip; with fuel charges. I got sent to an automated phone system to input my card info, and returned back to her (don't hang up!). She told me that she had to have the fare desk ticket the itinerary and I should be getting an email or callback. Sure enough ~2 hours later she called me back and said I had to re-enter my card info as they had some issue with their system; the flight hadn't yet been ticketed. I took the opportunity to change one of the segments during this callback to a better time I had found and she helped me change it since It hadn't yet been ticketed -- I was flustered on the first call when she said the milage was too high.
Something interesting I noted is during the time between calls I was able to see the reservation on the ANA App; and an alert said "Complete Payment by *date*" which was 3 days from the present. So it looks like technically they will "hold" a reservation for up to 3 days while waiting for card payment. It sounded like the Agent was willing to work with me as well when I needed 135,000 points instead of 125,000 points; but I didn't want to spend more or risk the timing with transfers. I wouldn't bank on this at all. Just FYI though. After this second call I got an email about a half an hour later with my receipt and ticket/itinerary and PNR. I was able to select seats and finally relax after the ordeal.
After all of this, I probably spent about 12 hours spaced out during 3 days of the booking process plus my previous research over about a month. Definitely set aside some time for yourself during booking and research.

Change Process

Something I hadn't seen much of online was the process for making a change to an existing RTW booking - I ended up doing this as well, so hopefully this can help some.
About a week after booking I noticed one of the flights opened availability from SIN-HND on ANA at a better time. I was originally flying overnight but wanted to fly during the day to help minimize jetlag, and jumped at the chance. Also I wanted to spend more time in Singapore so this helped. Note you can only change the date + time of a flight; it must be the same routing and carrier and class (except you can move up a class if one becomes available and your original ticket allows for that class). I called around 2PM EST and it only took about an hour to get through this time. The agent simply told me I would owe the difference in taxes/fees for the change. There wasn't any penalty or call center charge assessed for this. I had read somewhere that apparently you'd be charged a 1,000 point fee for the change but this wasn't the case for me. The difference amounted to some small amount around a dollar or so which I happily paid. The agent shared something helpful to me -- she asked I save a card on the ANA website to my account rather than doing it on the phone. This would help the Fare Desk charge faster without needing to call me back like last time, I guess they have issues with their credit card system on the phone with some credit cards. I ended up doing this with her on the phone guiding me and she confirmed she could now see my card. The change ended up going through an hour later with a new ticket/itinerary and recipient emailed to me; no second call necessary.
According to the fare rules denoted on my PNR; you can do a similar change with date/time only up to 4 days (96 hours) before departure - also during the trip itself I believe as well. (full endorsements/restrictions on the ticket: NO MILEAGE CREDIT/NH FFP/NON END/RRT/DT CHNG UPTO 4DYS B4 NEW FLT)

TLDNeed to know Tips

• Successfully booked ANA RTW in Business at 125,000 points transferred from MR ~950 in taxes/fees. ANA was the culprit for majority of costs with fuel surcharges on 2 segments I flew.
• Don't have your heart set on going a particular direction upfront - go with what is easiest to book, and be flexible!
• Make sure you have Call Center Pin set in Amex if using MR before transferring to ANA to avoid issues.
• ANA seems to not hold for RTW for point transfer time if you have no points; I was asked upfront if I had the points before the agent would assist me. I had to transfer before.
• You can store a card online in ANA's system before calling which can help the Fare Desk/agent speed up processing to avoid callbacks/payment issues. You can store up to two cards. They were willing to hold itinerary up to 3 days awaiting card payment, and possibly for more points (but not with 0 points in my account) - did not test this. Use this info at your own risk. I wouldn't bank on it with points -- risky.
• Used United's award calendar without being logged in + FlightConnections; consider paying for ExpertFlyer too, also be savvy about the booking window(s) of carriers and book against the edge for the best availability especially with ANA.
• When calculating distance with gcmapper use statute miles (mi) not nautical miles (nm)!
• You can change flight(s) after booking as long as its simply a date+time change - no change in routing/carrier. Class change upwards is allowed if your original ticket allows for it. I was not assessed a penalty/fee for the change like some claimed online - could depend though. You are responsible for paying the difference in the calculated taxes/carrier imposed surcharges if any before the trip departs, but not once it has commenced if you make a change.
• Thanks to u/the_fit_hit_the_shan for letting me know you can change flights based on co-terminal airports, ex: HND/NRT. I'd imagine DCA/IAD or NY area airports are similar in this regard. I was able to utilize this after being made aware by switching from HND-SFO to NRT-SFO a day later at a better time.

I hope this was helpful - pardon the length - just wanted to be as detailed as possible and give back to the community after all the help I received. Since this is all fresh in my mind please feel free to ask questions and I'll try to answer. I sincerely feel all the effort was worth it for the value I received - best of luck booking!

NCSEnjoy Illinois 300 at World Wide Technology Raceway
Start Time: approximately 3:30pm EDT on June 4th
Television: FS1 @ 3:30pm EDT
Radio: MRN @ 3:30pm EDT
Race Length: 240 laps (300 mi / 482.8 km)
Race Stages: 45-95-100
Track Information: World Wide Technology Raceway is a 1.25 mile (2.01 kilometer) oval located in Madison, IL USA.
Weather Forecast: NASCAR.com / AccuWeather.com
Current Standings at NASCAR.com
Race Center at NASCAR.com
NASCAR Drive at NASCAR.com
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ROUND 8: Spain 🇪🇸

FORMULA 1 AWS GRAN PREMIO DE ESPAÑA 2023
Fri 2 Jun - Sun 4 Jun
Barcelona

Session	UTC
Free Practice 1	Fri 11:30
Free Practice 2	Fri 15:00
Free Practice 3	Sat 10:30
Qualifying	Sat 14:00
Race	Sun 13:00

Click here for start times in your area.

Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya

Length: 4.655 km (2.892 mi)
Distance: 66 laps, 307.104 km (190.825 mi)
Lap record: 🇳🇱 Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing-Honda, 2021, 1:18.149
2022 pole: 🇲🇨 Charles Leclerc, Ferrari, 1:18.750
2022 fastest lap: 🇲🇽 Sergio Perez, Red Bull Racing-Honda, 1:24.108
2022 winner: 🇳🇱 Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing-RBPT

Useful links

• F1.com: Race
• Wiki: Race Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya
• Live weather prediction and radar (by Forzonex)

Streaming & Downloads

This is not the appropriate place to request or share streams and downloads. Please do not post information about streams and downloads in this thread. Thank you.

Live timing leaderboard

For those of you who are F1 ACCESS members, you can check the position of the drivers throughout the race on the official live timing leaderboard

Race Discussion

Be sure to check out the Discord as well.

Good causes

• 🇺🇦 Want to support Ukraine? Here's a list of charities.
• 🏳️‍🌈 Support Stonewall to help improve the lives of LGBTQ+ people.

Upcoming events in other racing series

Currently none...

ROUND 8: Spain 🇪🇸

FORMULA 1 AWS GRAN PREMIO DE ESPAÑA 2023
Fri 2 Jun - Sun 4 Jun
Barcelona

Session	UTC
Free Practice 1	Fri 11:30
Free Practice 2	Fri 15:00
Free Practice 3	Sat 10:30
Qualifying	Sat 14:00
Race	Sun 13:00

Click here for start times in your area.

Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya

Length: 4.655 km (2.892 mi)
Distance: 66 laps, 307.104 km (190.825 mi)
Lap record: 🇳🇱 Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing-Honda, 2021, 1:18.149
2022 pole: 🇲🇨 Charles Leclerc, Ferrari, 1:18.750
2022 fastest lap: 🇲🇽 Sergio Perez, Red Bull Racing-Honda, 1:24.108
2022 winner: 🇳🇱 Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing-RBPT

Starting grid

Row	Lane 1	Lane 2
1	1. 🇳🇱 Max Verstappen 1:12.272 Red Bull Racing Honda RBPT	2. 🇪🇸 Carlos Sainz 1:12.734 Ferrari
2	3. 🇬🇧 Lando Norris 1:12.792 McLaren Mercedes	4. 🇬🇧 Lewis Hamilton 1:12.818 Mercedes
3	5. 🇨🇦 Lance Stroll 1:12.994 Aston Martin Aramco Mercedes	6. 🇫🇷 Esteban Ocon 1:13.083 Alpine Renault
4	7. 🇩🇪 Nico Hulkenberg 1:13.229 Haas Ferrari	8. 🇪🇸 Fernando Alonso 1:13.507 Aston Martin Aramco Mercedes
5	9. 🇦🇺 Oscar Piastri 1:13.682 McLaren Mercedes	10. 🇫🇷 Pierre Gasly 1:12.816 Alpine Renault
6	11. 🇲🇽 Sergio Perez 1:13.334 Red Bull Racing Honda RBPT	12. 🇬🇧 George Russell 1:13.447 Mercedes
7	13. 🇨🇳 Zhou Guanyu 1:13.521 Alfa Romeo Ferrari	14. 🇳🇱 Nyck De Vries 1:14.083 AlphaTauri Honda RBPT
8	15. 🇯🇵 Yuki Tsunoda 1:14.477 AlphaTauri Honda RBPT	16. 🇫🇮 Valtteri Bottas 1:13.977 Alfa Romeo Ferrari
9	17. 🇩🇰 Kevin Magnussen 1:14.042 Haas Ferrari	18. 🇹🇭 Alexander Albon 1:14.063 Williams Mercedes
10	19. 🇲🇨 Charles Leclerc 1:14.079 Ferrari	20. 🇺🇸 Logan Sargeant 1:14.699 Williams Mercedes

Note - Gasly penalised 6 grid places for impeding other drivers during qualifying.

Useful links

• F1.com: Race
• Wiki: Race Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya
• Live weather prediction and radar (by Forzonex)

Streaming & Downloads

This is not the appropriate place to request or share streams and downloads. Please do not post information about streams and downloads in this thread. Thank you.

Live timing leaderboard

For those of you who are F1 ACCESS members, you can check the position of the drivers throughout the race on the official live timing leaderboard

Race Discussion

Be sure to check out the Discord as well.

Good causes

• 🇺🇦 Want to support Ukraine? Here's a list of charities.
• 🏳️‍🌈 Support Stonewall to help improve the lives of LGBTQ+ people.

Upcoming events in other racing series

Currently none...

Everything you need to know about the Le Mans event!

Context, insight, history, experiences, legends, heroes, stories, classes, resources, discussion, times, and everything else you will need to understand this phenomenal event. If you've not had a look at that thread, make sure you check it out!

Session Times

Session 1: 10:00 Local, 08:00 UTC, 04:00 ET, 18:00 AEST – 3 Hours

Session 2: 15:30 Local, 13:30 UTC, 09:30 ET, 23:30 AEST – 3 Hours

Track Information: 13.626km (8.467mi) Circuit, located in Le Mans, Pays de la Loire, France
Track Website
Official Test Day Entry List
Track Map with Marshal Post and Slow Zone locations
Le Mans Weather

Streaming

There is no video streaming of the Le Mans test day
Radio coverage thanks to Radio Le Mans

Live Timing

Social Media

• Twitter Hashtags: #FIAWEC #24hrLeMans #LeMansCentenary

Jump into /WEC's discord server! We have a channel entirely dedicated to Le Mans action, plus voice chat, team ranks, and a very friendly bunch of people!
^{Remember to sort by "new" to stay up to date!}

Location: USA, TX
Price range: $20k is the edge of actually affordable, <$15k would be much smarter and more comfortable. $30k max if I'm being as reckless with financing as most Americans these days.
Lease or Buy: Buy
New or used: Budget says used, but not 100% opposed to new with the state of the used market.
Type of vehicle: SUV preferred, open to small truck or crossovewagon.
Must haves:

• 4WD w/ 4LO (or very robust AWD), 8in+ ground clearance, decent approach/breakovedeparture angles, full-size spare
• reasonable maneuverability (not super wide, decent turning radius).
• reasonable long-haul highway comfort/manners (cruise control, no death wobble or excessive wandering)
• room for 4 adults and their gear, good cargo space for extended camping, room to sleep in total area behind front seats
• buttons (not touchscreen) for key functions (climate, radio, lights, vehicle modes) full-size spare,
• acceptable fuel mileage (min 18mpg highway)
• decent visibility (no major blindspots, stupid big flat hood, tiny rear windshield, etc)

Desired transmission: Automatic preferred, manual not a total dealbreaker
Intended use:
50% of anticipated miles will be adventure trips w/ a partner or friends (ie 90% highway, 10% remote offroad). NOT intended for deliberate rock-crawling or hardcore wheeling, overlanding, etc.
Other 50% will be occasional grocery-getting, poor-weather commuting, and cross-town errands and socializing in a highway-heavy city with clogged arteries and narrow neighborhood roads.
At home, I want it to have good utility for giving friends rides, schlepping furniture and bikes, and being a reliable source of mobility in crises.
I DON'T need a typical commuter, and willing to accept compromises in efficiency as result. My "daily driver" is my bicycle, including for most local errands. Expecting 5-10k mi/year, majority highway.
Is this your 1st vehicle: Yes (but as a someone who has been driving for 15 years)
Can you do Minor work on your own vehicle: Fluids, pads, sparkplugs, pads, bulbs: yes. Intend to do more, so important for this work to be somewhat cheap/easy in a driveway context.
Can you do Major work on your own vehicle: Likely not anytime soon. Important for these systems to be dependable and not crazy expensive to have work done on.
Additional Notes:

• Safety is important (people drive insane everywhere these days but especially my area, also many deehogs on expected trips).
• Real off-road capabilities needed for responsible, self-reliant travel in remote areas, but not in a recreational enthusiast way. Don't intend to make wheeling/overlanding a hobby or expect to have similarly-equipped friends to bail me out in these situations. Terrain including but limited to sandy arroyos, steep loose-rock. I don't want to be in a vehicle punching above its weight, I want to be in one that's in its element.
• Major weather events that I'd like the vehicle to handle reasonably well include: downpours on oil-slicked roads, and occasional ice and snow storms (generally with no plowing, salting, or sanding). I realize this points more to AWD and good tires for close-to-home usage.
• Renting a true 4WD vehicle only when I need it: No, in those situations I want it to be my vehicle that I know, trust, and am personally responsible for, and I don't want to deal with the additional logistics of renting.

Vehicles you've already considered:
Initial bumpers: nothing larger than a 4-door short-bed Tacoma/Frontier, nothing smalleless capable than a Crosstrek.
Most likely contenders so far:

• Lexus GX 470
  • + Full-time 4WD with Torsen seems like best of both worlds of 4WD/AWD for all of my adverse-condition capability desires
  • + Probably the best-driving of the "trucks"
  • + (y'all know the rest, I won't go too deep)
  • - difficulty in finding affordable one in good shape
  • - Efficiency of FT 4WD w/ v8
  • - Honestly too fancy, I dislike most luxury trappings
• Toyota 4Runner (3rd-5th Gen)
  • + 4Runner shit
  • + Full-time 4WD found on a few select trims too (but probably too competitive of a market for me to seek them out)
  • + Efficiency of V6 a bit better (don't think I need more really)
  • - pretty rough around the edges for the price, not impressed with brakes in particular
  • - Market is crazy, hard to justify vs value proposition of the GX
  • - 5th Gen feels too big (esp wide)
• Subaru Outback (2010s+)
  • + Perennial do-it-all underdog.
  • + 5-10mpg better than the "trucks"
  • - Worried that it just won't cut it for expected offroad (AWD losing power to wheelspin and low articulation, CVT issues), and the most capable versions (XTs, Wilderness) compromise efficiency, affordability, and repair costs/ease to the point of having no real advantage vs anything beefier.
  • - Low ride-height not an asset on truck-filled Texas roads
  • - "Car" advantages pretty minimal, feels closer to a unibody SUV.
  • - Not super impressed by real-world reliability and cost/ease of repair of 2010s models

The Maybes:

• Nissan Xterra (2nd Gen)
  • + More affordable version of GX/4R
  • - ...but at a commensurate loss in reliability and comforts (especially vs GX). Out of production, and well-cared-for survivors seem rare.
• Toyota Tacoma (4-door, short bed)
  • + It's a Taco
  • - I can't really justify a truck bed (I know, I know, that hasn't stopped 95% of Tacoma owners before me), and would need a Softopper or camper shell to keep gear safe, and maybe also an extender to sleep inside a 4-door version.
  • - A bit longer than I want for trails and parking lots
• Nissan Frontier
  • (see Tacoma/Xterra)

The Close-But-Probably-Nots:

• Toyota FJ Cruiser
  • - trash visibility
  • - Big exterior, small interior
  • - Cult Following and Toyota Tax
• Other Subarus (Forester, Crosstek)
  • + Better visibility/ride height (Forester)
  • + Better maneuverability, angles (Forester, esp Crosstek)
  • - Less cargo space (esp Crosstek)
  • - Less powecapability
  • - No real additional value proposition over Outback
• Jeeps (Wrangler Unlimited, Cherokee, Grand Cherokee)
  • + Most efficient smaller 4WDs
  • + Ease of maintenance
  • - Reliability below my acceptable threshold for remote and solo
  • - Wrangler too off-road focused for 1000mi+ roadtrips.
• Honda CRV, Toyota RAV4, etc
  • See Forester
  • - below off-road capability threshold.
• Old stuff
  • It seems like they stopped making what I really want in the mid-2000s. ~'95-'05 Cherokee XJ/ZJ, Pathfinder, Rodeo, Trooper, Montero, Sidekick, Tracker, etc. The few that are left often fit the budget, but with serious concerns about reliability, safety, and remaining life. Ultimately, I don't think I'd trust one of these long-distance or in the backcountry unless it was a really prime specimen (which is rare/expensive).

TL;DR: Please confirm that a 4Runner or GX is the only thing that really makes sense, than an Outback won't cut it, that I did good research, and that I look good in this dress.
(Or please point out if I'm off-base or missing something)
Thanks!

NXSPacific Office Automation 147 at Portland International Raceway
Start Time: approximately 4:30pm EDT on June 3rd
Television: FS1 @ 4:30pm EDT
Radio: MRN @ 4:30pm EDT
Race Length: 75 laps (147.53 mi / 237.42 km)
Race Stages: 25-25-25
Track Information: Portland International Raceway is a 1.967 mile (3.17 kilometer) road course located in Portland, OR USA.
Weather Forecast: NASCAR.com / AccuWeather.com
Current Standings at NASCAR.com
Race Center at NASCAR.com
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NCTSToyota 200 at World Wide Technology Raceway
Start Time: approximately 1:30pm EDT on June 3rd
Television: FS1 @ 1:30pm EDT
Radio: MRN @ 1:30pm EDT
Race Length: 160 laps (200 mi / 321.87 km)
Race Stages: 55-55-50
Track Information: World Wide Technology Raceway is a 1.25 mile (2.01 kilometer) oval located in Madison, IL USA.
Weather Forecast: NASCAR.com / AccuWeather.com
Current Standings at NASCAR.com
Race Center at NASCAR.com
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"Fuck it all!" said Stalin. "Atomic bomb! Beria modestly lowered his eyes. Kurchatov was a little late, but he also lowered his gaze and nervously tugged at his beard.
"So, does it explode?" Stalin asked, tapping the pipe against the iron side of the bomb.
"Of course, Comrade Stalin!" Kurchatov replied, feeling that the question was directed at him. "How... How it will!"
"How it will fucking blow!" Beria chimed in.
"They've really invented something," Stalin said, exhaling. "And tell me, does it explode powerfully?"
"I'm telling you, Comrade Stalin, it will blow as much as it can!"
"How it will fucking blow!" Beria supported again, making scary eyes behind his glasses, as if to say that if it blows, it will really blow.
"And what does Comrade Zhukov think?"
Zhukov seemed to have dozed off, but woke up just in time.
"It's a useful thing," the marshal said, jingling his medals. "The army needs it."
"Right," Stalin wisely remarked. "But it needs to be tested. Right, Comrade Voroshilov?"
"Definitely, Koba," the iron commissar supported.
"And on whom? The Jews?"
"It's not worth it on the Jews," Beria boldly said. "We've already tested gases on them. It's not fair."
"Indeed, indeed," Stalin pondered, releasing puffs of smoke. "The Jews might take offense. Thank you, Comrade Beria, for the timely remark. By the way, will you yourself not be a Jew, Comrade Beria? Stalin, as usual, made a successful joke, and everyone laughed. Kalinin and Kurchatov laughed, shaking their beards, Zhukov giggled, Voroshilov laughed out loud, and Beria smiled subtly and said:
"No, Comrade Stalin, I'm Mingrelian."
"Mingrelian, warmed his cock on the stove," Stalin joked again successfully, and the company laughed a little more. Finally, Stalin tapped the bomb with the pipe and remarked:
"It's good that we had a laugh, but we haven't decided yet on whom to test our atomic bomb."
"On the Japanese?" Voroshilov asked questioningly. "We have plenty of Japanese prisoners, and the war isn't over yet, we can catch more. There are still Germans left from that war too."
"Germans and Japanese are a well-tested people," Stalin said. "We've already fought Germans and Japanese. But the atomic bomb should be tested on a nation that we haven't studied yet from the perspective of a battle. Am I right, Comrade Kurchatov?"
Fuck would Kurchatov object.
The bomb was loaded onto the plane and they set off to drop it. In the plane, there were pilots: three-time Hero of the Soviet Union Comrade Kozhedub and three-time Hero of the Soviet Union Comrade Pokryshkin. Kozhedub was the commander of the crew because he shot down 62 enemy planes during the war, while Pokryshkin only shot down 59. That's why Kozhedub rudely told Pokryshkin, who was talking to the technicians:
"Stop talking nonsense, Comrade Pokryshkin! It's time to fly and drop the bomb!"
"Sorry, Comrade Kozhedub," Pokryshkin said and climbed into the plane.
Kozhedub turned the ignition key, pressed the pedals, pulled the levers, and the red-starred plane sped along the concrete strip of the secret airfield.
"They've taken off," Voroshilov said, wiping away a tear.
The plane flew very high. Kozhedub even dozed off from the monotony of the scenery outside the window, while Pokryshkin, out of boredom, started reading poetry:
Late autumn. The crows have flown away. The forest is bare, the fields are empty. Only one narrow strip is not compressed. It brings a sad thought...
"What kind of poetry are you reading, Comrade Pokryshkin?" Kozhedub asked without opening his eyes.
"Poetry by Comrade Stalin, whose else," Pokryshkin replied.
"Well, well. You take the controls for now, and I'll take a nap. Is it still a long way to fly?"
"About a thousand five hundred kilometers," Pokryshkin said, checking the map.
"Alright, then I'll doze off. Wake me up when it's time to drop the bomb."
"And fuck you," Pokryshkin thought vengefully.
The decision was made to drop the bomb on America, it was a great idea of Comrade Stalin. However, he had no idea that Truman had also built an atomic bomb and they were bringing it to drop on the USSR. Not just on the USSR, but on Moscow, to kill Comrade Stalin and the Politburo. But Truman had no way of knowing that Comrade Stalin and the Politburo had already left for a large underground bunker that was built precisely in the hope that the bastard Truman would decide to drop an atomic bomb. The plane, under the control of American pilots, named "Enola Gay," was flying directly toward the Soviet plane. It was called "Enola Gay" because there were faggots on board. That's not surprising, because America has always had many faggots, so finding suitable ones among the pilots was not a problem. It was Truman's subtle mockery of the Soviet people. Like, the Americans would fly in, drop the bomb, and Stalin and the entire Politburo would perish. The Russian people would learn about it from the newspapers the next morning and say to each other, "Did you hear? The Americans bombed Comrade Stalin and the entire Politburo!" - "What faggots!" And indeed, there were faggots there. What a humiliating incident. In short, the faggots were flying toward the Soviet plane of Kozhedub and Pokryshkin, listening to Glenn Miller, and the Soviet pilots had no idea. The flight paths of the planes intersected somewhere over Japan.
"Look, Comrade Kozhedub!" Pokryshkin said, nudging his commander with his foot. "Look... a plane!"
"What is this?" Kozhedub wondered, opening his eyes. Indeed, a large plane was flying towards them, seemingly American.
"These are Americans flying, Comrade Kozhedub," Pokryshkin reinforced his suspicions. "They're flying in our direction! And behind us is Moscow!"
"Let's ask them," Kozhedub decided and opened the window.
"Hey, guys!" he shouted in English, sticking his head out. "Where are we headed?"
"That's what we'll tell him," the Americans thought, but said aloud, "Just around. Taking a ride."
"So are we," Kozhedub lied, and to himself, he noted that there was a big bomb hanging under the tail of the American plane, probably atomic. After hiding back inside, he said to Pokryshkin, "They're bringing an atomic bomb, those faggots. Call Comrade Stalin."
Comrade Stalin sat in the underground bunker and argued with Voroshilov whether the bomb would explode or not, when a telephone operator approached and said, "It's for you, Comrade Stalin."
Stalin asked sternly, "Who is it?"
"It's Pokryshkin, Comrade Stalin!" the pilot hurriedly spoke on the phone. "The Americans are here, Comrade Stalin! Those bastards are also carrying a bomb!"
"Why did you become dumbfounded over it?" Stalin asked.
"We're flying, Comrade Stalin! We just got delayed. It doesn't look good..."
"Hmm... Well, wait a little there, I'll consult with my comrades."
Covering the phone with his hand, Stalin said, "Pokryshkin is calling. He says the Americans are also carrying a bomb, bastards."
"We'll shoot them down," Voroshilov said. "We'll send the fighter squadron immediately."
"I wish you'd shoot them all," Stalin grumbled. "Even a fool can do that."
Here's what we'll do. Get Truman on the other line for me. And he opened the line himself and said to Pokryshkin, "Keep them detained for a while, and we'll make a decision."
"Yes, Comrade Stalin!"
Pokryshkin covered the phone with his hand and said to Kozhedub, "Do whatever you want, Comrade Kozhedub, but we need to detain the American plane. Comrade Stalin will make the decision."
Kozhedub leaned out of the window again and said, "Hey, guys! What's hanging under your tail?"
"A bomb," the Americans said.
"Why is it so big?"
"Just because," the Americans replied, "no big deal. What about you?"
"We have one too," Kozhedub said.
Down below, the Japanese were gathered, wondering what was happening. They tried firing their anti-aircraft guns, but it was all in vain—the planes were too high. Emperor Hirohito called upon the kamikaze pilots, ordering them to fly and shoot down the enemy planes. But the kamikaze, as expected, took their time with the ritualistic songs, drank sake, and tied headbands... The Japanese, what can I say.
In the meantime, Stalin was connected with Truman. "Hello, Mr. Truman?" "Mr. Stalin? How are you, and how's the weather?" "Thanks to your prayers. Here's the thing—a little plane of ours was flying over Japan..." "Well, that's good for you." "But then yours was coming towards it..." "Well, we're at war with them." "But why the bomb?" "Well, we're at war with them! And besides, you have a bomb too." The Americans, those bastards, also called Truman, of course. "We're at war with them," said Stalin. "We'll drop a bomb on them now." "Then go ahead." "No, you go first!" "And you'll deceive us." "We?! Have we ever deceived anyone?!" "Oh, plenty." "And you, even more so." "And you communists, one can't trust communists." "And you bourgeois, one can't trust bourgeois either. Lenin said so. " "Your Lenin is an idiot!" "And your Lincoln is a Jew and a faggot, and Washington is a fool, and Jefferson is a moron, wipe your ass with your constitution on Independence Day. And in general, fuck off." Stalin wisely said, "I'll hang up now." Truman couldn't find anything to say and fell silent. "Alright, Mr. Stalin," he said. "We'll drop the bomb. But you drop one too!" "We'll drop it, we'll drop it," Stalin assured him. The Americans did drop the bomb, and they flew back home. The bomb fell, and it exploded! The next morning, the Japanese went out all over the country, reading newspapers and telling each other, "Did you hear? The Americans dropped a bomb on Hiroshima!" - "Those bastards!" And indeed, they were bastards. What a shameful incident, even for the Japanese, despite being a yellow-faced people. And our planes kept flying over Japan. Then Truman called Stalin and said angrily, "Hello! Mr. Stalin, this isn't fair!" "You got screwed! You got screwed!" Stalin rejoiced. "This is unworthy," Truman said. "Well, who cares." "We didn't agree on this." "So what?" "You promised to drop the bomb too!" "But we didn't. We'll drop it on you now, haha!" "Then we'll drop another one on you! We still have it!" "Wait a moment, Mr. Truman, I need to consult with the Politburo," Stalin said, getting serious. "It's quite possible that they have another bomb," Beria said, after listening. "Don't we have one?" Stalin asked. "Not yet, Comrade Stalin," Kurchatov was scared. "But we'll make one soon!" "Too late," Stalin waved his hand. "So, what should we do?" "Let's drop it there. I suggested testing it on the Japanese," Voroshilov proposed. "Alright, but not right away. Let Truman squirm a little," Stalin said and contacted Truman again. "Hello, Mr. Truman? Well, we're considering it."
The Red Star plane circled above Japan, running low on fuel. The heroic crew finished their last can of canned meat when a message finally came from the ground: "Drop it closer. Stalin." "What do we have there?" unshaven Kozhedub rejoiced, pulling the map closer. "Let's see... Osaka... Yokosuka... Nagasaki..." "They're all bitches and bastards over there," Pokryshkin said, licking the can from the inside. "Which bastard was the last one?" "Nagasaki," read Kozhedub. "Well, fuck 'em then," said Pokryshkin, pressing the button.
Thus, in 1945, there was no nuclear war between the two great powers.

ROUND 8: Spain 🇪🇸

FORMULA 1 AWS GRAN PREMIO DE ESPAÑA 2023
Fri 2 Jun - Sun 4 Jun
Barcelona

Session	UTC
Free Practice 1	Fri 11:30
Free Practice 2	Fri 15:00
Free Practice 3	Sat 10:30
Qualifying	Sat 14:00
Race	Sun 13:00

Click here for start times in your area.

Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya

Length: 4.655 km (2.892 mi)
Distance: 66 laps, 307.104 km (190.825 mi)
Lap record: 🇳🇱 Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing-Honda, 2021, 1:18.149
2022 pole: 🇲🇨 Charles Leclerc, Ferrari, 1:18.750
2022 fastest lap: 🇲🇽 Sergio Perez, Red Bull Racing-Honda, 1:24.108
2022 winner: 🇳🇱 Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing-RBPT

Useful links

• F1.com: Race
• Wiki: Race Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya
• Live weather prediction and radar (by Forzonex)

Streaming & Downloads

This is not the appropriate place to request or share streams and downloads. Please do not post information about streams and downloads in this thread. Thank you.

Live timing leaderboard

For those of you who are F1 ACCESS members, you can check the position of the drivers throughout the race on the official live timing leaderboard

Race Discussion

Be sure to check out the Discord as well.

Good causes

• 🇺🇦 Want to support Ukraine? Here's a list of charities.
• 🏳️‍🌈 Support Stonewall to help improve the lives of LGBTQ+ people.

Upcoming events in other racing series

• [Sun 4 Jun, 08:00 UTC]: 2023 Jakarta E-Prix

ROUND 8: Spain 🇪🇸

FORMULA 1 AWS GRAN PREMIO DE ESPAÑA 2023
Fri 2 Jun - Sun 4 Jun
Barcelona

Session	UTC
Free Practice 1	Fri 11:30
Free Practice 2	Fri 15:00
Free Practice 3	Sat 10:30
Qualifying	Sat 14:00
Race	Sun 13:00

Click here for start times in your area.

Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya

Length: 4.655 km (2.892 mi)
Distance: 66 laps, 307.104 km (190.825 mi)
Lap record: 🇳🇱 Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing-Honda, 2021, 1:18.149
2022 pole: 🇲🇨 Charles Leclerc, Ferrari, 1:18.750
2022 fastest lap: 🇲🇽 Sergio Perez, Red Bull Racing-Honda, 1:24.108
2022 winner: 🇳🇱 Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing-RBPT

Useful links

• F1.com: Race
• Wiki: Race Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya
• Live weather prediction and radar (by Forzonex)

Streaming & Downloads

This is not the appropriate place to request or share streams and downloads. Please do not post information about streams and downloads in this thread. Thank you.

Live timing leaderboard

For those of you who are F1 ACCESS members, you can check the position of the drivers throughout the race on the official live timing leaderboard

Race Discussion

Be sure to check out the Discord as well.

Good causes

• 🇺🇦 Want to support Ukraine? Here's a list of charities.
• 🏳️‍🌈 Support Stonewall to help improve the lives of LGBTQ+ people.

Upcoming events in other racing series

• [Sun 4 Jun, 08:00 UTC]: 2023 Jakarta E-Prix

Bought a brand new PowerBoost for 62k a couple weeks ago (8k under msrp, 0% APR) and I love it.
Pros:

• This truck is fast and works great as a 7.2kW generator (have not tried 240 V plug yet). I did run a blower and some other tools off the 110 plugs and it worked like a charm.
• I am at about 700 mi right now and average about 21 mpg. Best I've gotten is 28 mpg going 55 mph on flat country roads (5 passengers and dog in back). MPG has been improving with break in.
• Adaptive cruise control, work surface, zone lighting, and 360 cameras are awesome! Also like the wireless android auto and customization of the system. Wasn't going to get Fx4 package but I do like it now that I have it.
• Dealer threw in all-weather floor mats and I bought Rough Country seat covers for the back seats. All looks good.

Cons:

1. 10-speed transmission has taken some getting used to. Some rough up and down shifts, but seems to be smoother as the truck learns (and I am just getting used to it). Was thinking about getting it tuned, but probably not necessary.
2. Electric motor makes a slight high-pitched noise when in drive (at least I think it is the motor). It varies and is not always audible, especially if windows are up. Dealer said it is a normal noise and everything I've read about it seems like it is not uncommon. May go away eventually.