Bertie
LightNews LightNews
bnehls.bsky.social
Bertie
@bnehls.bsky.social
42 followers 170 following 78 posts
Posts Replies Media Videos
Reposted by Bertie
paulhaine.bsky.social
Watching THE GREEN KNIGHT again
April 22, 2024 at 7:43 PM
Reposted by Bertie
rincewind.run
Discworld QOTD, from Hogfather
All right," said Susan. "I'm not stupid. You're saying humans need... fantasies to make life bearable." REALLY? AS IF IT WAS SOME KIND OF PINK PILL? NO. HUMANS NEED FANTASY TO BE HUMAN. TO BE THE PLACE WHERE THE FALLING ANGEL MEETS THE RISING APE. "Tooth fairies? Hogfathers? Little—" YES. AS PRACTICE. YOU HAVE TO START OUT LEARNING TO BELIEVE THE LITTLE LIES. "So we can believe the big ones?" YES. JUSTICE. MERCY. DUTY. THAT SORT OF THING. "They're not the same at all!" YOU THINK SO? THEN TAKE THE UNIVERSE AND GRIND IT DOWN TO THE FINEST POWDER AND SIEVE IT THROUGH THE FINEST SIEVE AND THEN SHOW ME ONE ATOM OF JUSTICE, ONE MOLECULE OF MERCY. AND YET—Death waved a hand. AND YET YOU ACT AS IF THERE IS SOME IDEAL ORDER IN THE WORLD, AS IF THERE IS SOME...SOME RIGHTNESS IN THE UNIVERSE BY WHICH IT MAY BE JUDGED. "Yes, but people have got to believe that, or what's the point—" MY POINT EXACTLY.
December 25, 2025 at 6:01 PM
bnehls.bsky.social
If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew
To serve your turn long after they are gone,
And so hold on when there is nothing in you
Except the Will which says to them: ‘Hold on!’
achillesthe2nd.bsky.social Achilles Micawber @achillesthe2nd.bsky.social · Dec 5
Which lines of poetry live rent-free in your head?
December 7, 2025 at 11:11 AM
Reposted by Bertie
rincewind.run
deep down, he believes we are all good chaps and he believes it hard enough that everyone wants to live up to it, just a little, just for him
Captain Carrot Ironfoundersson from Discworld, in armor and holding a flag while he stands on the moon
December 6, 2025 at 8:11 PM
Reposted by Bertie
garius.bsky.social
Spare some love today for Collingwood. The other Admiral at Trafalgar.

Proud northerner. Hater of flogging. Legit brilliant commander and Nelson's trusted right hand. First into battle on Royal Sovereign. Took charge after Nelson was sniped and saved the British Fleet.

Here's HIS Trafalgar... /1 🧵
Painting of a middle-aged Collingwood in blue admirals jacket, resting his had on his chin.
October 21, 2023 at 9:52 AM
Reposted by Bertie
bretdevereaux.bsky.social
My goodness, this poem. A beautiful, savage, blunt explanation of why we study war and conflict and also why military history is not and should not be just 'for the boys.'

The poem is moving in its unwillingness to whitewash the many tombs of war, as we should too should be unwilling.
October 2, 2025 at 5:28 PM
Reposted by Bertie
hardyroachgames.bsky.social
Interested in historicals but worried about accuracy? Don't be! I write about accuracy and historicals, with the new player in mind.

www.goonhammer.com/historicals-...
Historicals Essentials: How Accurate Do You Need to Be?
Today in historicals, HardyRoach pops in to take a look at how much accuracy matters on the table in historical games — and where to prioritize it.
www.goonhammer.com
September 29, 2025 at 7:11 PM
Reposted by Bertie
rhi.bsky.social
He was very good in person with his trans fans too. Growing up going to SF cons, I met many trans people before I even knew what trans meant. I gave my parents very little they needed to accept in their child, so they had lots left over for everyone else. 😉 www.thepinknews.com/2021/08/06/t...
August 19, 2025 at 9:25 PM
Reposted by Bertie
rtorrubia.com
Beyond delighted to share the cover for The Shipwright and the Shroudweaver. Kerby Rosanes is a wizard. If you think the cover is beautiful, just wait until you meet the wild, heartbreaking adventure inside. The good folk @gollancz.bsky.social await your preorders. Link in bio, as they say.
August 13, 2025 at 3:38 PM
bnehls.bsky.social
Ten writers by whom I've read more than five books
1. Terry Pratchett
2. J.R.R Tolkien
3. Adrian Tchaikovsky
4. Ben Aaronovitch
5. Robert Jordan
6. Bernard Cornwell
7. Brian McClellan
8. Kevin Hearne
9. Steve McHugh
10. David Eddings

Probably at least one BL author but I’m not doing the maths
mikebrooks668.bsky.social Mike Brooks @mikebrooks668.bsky.social · Jul 12
Ten writers by whom I’ve read more than five books
1. Terry Pratchett
2. Jim Butcher
3. RJ Barker
4. Jen Williams
5. Dan Abnett
6. Robert Jordan
7. Tad Williams
8. David Eddings
9. Sarah J Maas
10. …?
Tasha Suri, Douglas Adams, Tolkien, Martin, and Le Guin all come in at five exactly…
jelliottcoleman.bsky.social Joseph Elliott-Coleman @jelliottcoleman.bsky.social · Jul 12
Ten writers by whom I've read more than five books
1. Sheila K. McCullagh
2. Warren Ellis
3. Stephen King
4. Cormac Mccarthy
5. Adrian Tchaikovsky
6. E.E. Doc Smith
7. Iain M Banks
8. Ursula K Le Guin
9. Catherine Cookson
10. Tade Thompson
July 12, 2025 at 7:23 PM
bnehls.bsky.social
If you see this, quote repost with a sword.

I really should finish this lad. It’s just his shield and base to do.
A head on shot of the Warhammer 40,000 model Lion El’Jonson. He is an armoured figure walking forward with a sword held down to his right. He is wearing dark grey/blue armour with red and silver decoration with a purple hood and cape. He is carrying a large sword painted bronze A right side on shot of the Warhammer 40,000 model Lion El’Jonson. He is an armoured figure walking forward with a sword held down to his right. He is wearing dark grey/blue armour with red and silver decoration with a purple hood and cape. He is carrying a large sword painted bronze
July 12, 2025 at 6:43 PM
Reposted by Bertie
yeetkunedo.bsky.social
re: generative AI

I have finally fully and accurately explained my problem with how it’s marketed and used.

And now, you can use it, too.
Generative Al is being marketed as a tool designed to reduce or eliminate the need for developed, cognitive skillsets. It uses the work of others to simulate human output, except that it lacks grasp of nuance, contains grievous errors, and ultimately serves the goal of human beings being neurologically weaker due to the promise of the machine being better equipped than the humans using it would ever exert the effort to be. The people that use generative Al for art have no interest in being an artist; they simply want product to consume and forget about when the next piece of product goes by their eyes. The people that use generative Al to make music have no interest in being a musician; they simply want a machine to make them something to listen to until they get bored and want the machine to make some other disposable slop for them to pass the time with. The people that use generative Al to write things for them have no interest in writing. The people that use generative Al to find factoids have no interest in actual facts. The people that use generative Al to socialize have no interest in actual socialization. In every case, they've handed over the cognitive load of developing a necessary, creative human skillset to a machine that promises to ease the sweat equity cost of struggle. Using generative Al is like asking a machine to lift weights on your behalf and then calling yourself a bodybuilder when it's done with the reps. You build nothing in terms of muscle, you are not stronger, you are not faster, you are not in better shape. You're just deluding yourself while experiencing a slow decline due to self-inflicted atrophy.
July 6, 2025 at 5:23 PM
Reposted by Bertie
joles.bsky.social
applying for jobs again
screenshot from an online job application form. the question reads "Can you describe specific ways you have integrated AI tools into your development workflow? Please include any custom setups, automations, or use cases beyond single prompt usage" (a red asterisk indicates that this is a required question). an answer has been typed in the textbox below the question: "there is a monster in the forest and it speaks with a thousand voices. it will answer any question you pose it, it will offer insight to any idea. it will help you, it will thank you, it will never bid you leave. it will even tell you of the darkest arts, if you know precisely how to ask. it feels no joy and no sorrow, it knows no right and no wrong. it knows not truth from lie, though it speaks them all the same. it offers its services freely to any passerby, and many will tell you they find great value in its conversation. “you simply must visit the monster—i always just ask the monster.” there are those who know these forests well; they will tell you that freely offered doesn’t mean it has no price for when the next traveler passes by, the monster speaks with a thousand and one voices. and when you dream you see the monster; the monster wears your face."
May 5, 2025 at 2:03 PM
Reposted by Bertie
duncanjonesmerrion.bsky.social
Ideally, the festival rights should be sold to the highest bidder who then cancel all the less profitable elements and deliver a vastly degraded experience for the same money.

It's what she would have wanted.
May 13, 2025 at 8:00 PM
bnehls.bsky.social
QRT with something red?

I’ve got a few red things
May 8, 2025 at 1:57 PM
Reposted by Bertie
sirfox.bsky.social
Appropriate today
April 1, 2025 at 12:09 AM
Reposted by Bertie
tankpotzoe.bsky.social
There will be a lot of bluster and noise today, but the judge said this explicitly.
April 16, 2025 at 9:44 AM
Reposted by Bertie
lostone1980.bsky.social
Fuck the TERF bigot cunts with the sharpest object in hell, Trans Women (and Trans Men) don't deserve this hate just because they want to be happy with who they are meant to be.
Trans Pride Flag with Trans Rights Are Human Rights emblazed upon it.
April 16, 2025 at 9:58 AM
Reposted by Bertie
dreadships.bsky.social
Five years ago today it seemed that the golden age of naval idiocy had disappeared forever.

That was before the Venezuelan patrol vessel Naiguatá managed to recapture some of this spirit by fighting - at least at that point - the dumbest action of the 21st century.
Venezuelan patrol vessel Naiguatá. It's your typical small warship, and I'd like to draw especial attention to the fact that in this image it's equally typical in being above the water. This is what professional authors call "foreshadowing"...
March 30, 2025 at 7:40 PM
Reposted by Bertie
rincewind.run
Discworld QOTD, from Carpe Jugulum
“Sin, young man, is when you treat people like things. Including yourself. That’s what sin is.” “It’s a lot more complicated than that - “ “No. It ain’t. When people say things are a lot more complicated than that, they means they’re getting worried that they won’t like the truth. People as things, that’s where it starts.” “Oh, I’m sure there are worse crimes -“ “But they starts with thinking about people as things…”
March 25, 2025 at 6:36 PM
bnehls.bsky.social
1. Deathwatch
2. Deathwatch
3. D&D 5e
4. D&D 5e
5. Star Wars (SWRPG)
6. Discworld Adventures in Ankh Morpork
7. Discworld Adventures in Ankh Morpork
deaconblues1979.bsky.social Capricorn Iscariot @deaconblues1979.bsky.social · Mar 13
1. First #ttrpg you ever played?
2. First you ever ran?
3. Played the most?
4. Run the most?
5. Favorite?
6. Most recently played?
7. Most recently run?
March 15, 2025 at 8:47 AM
Reposted by Bertie
nome.bsky.social
I have been doing entirely too much earnest posting about deep things recently, I need to do a proper thread about hippo testicles or something just to keep myself sane.

Oh by the way hippos have migratory testicles.
a statue of a hippopotamus with its mouth open and teeth showing .
Alt: A hippo being tossed a watermelon, which it crushes in its massive jaws.
media.tenor.com
March 12, 2025 at 5:33 AM
Reposted by Bertie
fenrisgames.com
Ten years today. GNU Terry Pratchett.
fenrisgames.com ian.fenrisgames @fenrisgames.com · Mar 12
Nine years since we lost the great Terry Pratchett and I don't think Bluesky's seen the A'Tuin our lead sculptor @snuurg.bsky.social built and sold to the man Himself. Jo made this for a college project and brought it to a book signing; Terry liked it so much he asked to buy it on the spot.
Two pictures of a model of the world turtle carrying four elephants who in turn are carrying the Discworld on their backs. Left shows the original in colour; right in black and white and with added meteorite damage as requested by Terry Pratchett, who is posing alongside the model in this second photograph.
March 12, 2025 at 8:03 AM
Reposted by Bertie
wickenswarpaint.bsky.social
Kroot War Shaper. This is probably the most effort I’ve put into a single mini but I’m super pleased with the result.

#warhammercommunity #warhammer40k
February 28, 2025 at 6:09 PM