NP Comic for Saturday, Aug 31, 2024

[Darth Fluffy 339]

NP Comic for Saturday, Aug 31, 2024

Catalina got a strike. This is very unusual for someone who 'does not bowl'. She's either better than she thinks she is or lucky. Aiming straight for the pins is not generally as successful as curving toward the pins, and then just off the headpin, hitting it obliquely - so I'm guessing 'lucky' based on the previous comic where she discusses her 'strategy'.

Based on the response, Diane and Lucy don't get a lot of strikes, but they are 'good bowlers', so are probably picking up most of their spares. Guesstimate they bowl 170 to 180, maybe occasionally breaking 200 when they do get a strike or two. That's better than me when I bowled.

Note that bowling underhand and rolling the ball is normal. Throwing overhand is frowned on by the bowling alleys. Building a trebuchet on site is considered cheating.

It takes several seconds for the ball to travel and hit the pins, so Catalina's stance in panel one, standing on one foot while watching the progress does not seem jarringly unrealistic. Stunned by her success or not, she would probably have placed a foot down by the second panel; if she's incredulous, she isn't wanting to focus on her balance. In the third panel, she's adjusted her stance, but still hasn't dropped her foot. Unless she's planning on hopping on one foot, this does not seem realistic at all. Is Dan trying to make a statement? "I can do this" does not mean "I would do this".

In case anyone cares, I will post rules and description for a bowling dice game in the Games section.

[Pharaoh RutinTutin 1,619]

 

Ms Bobcat has become bored with the feline life style and wants to be a flamingo.

 

[mlooney 3,605]

3 hours ago, Darth Fluffy said:

Building a trebuchet on site is considered cheating.

Trebuchet would be the wrong medieval siege weapon to use here, due to the arcing fire and the fact the pins have over head cover.  What you need is a ballista, which fires a straight shot. 

[Darth Fluffy 339]

6 hours ago, mlooney said:

Trebuchet would be the wrong medieval siege weapon to use here, due to the arcing fire and the fact the pins have over head cover.  What you need is a ballista, which fires a straight shot. 

We are in the modern era, and Grace already has a cannon. They should use that.

[mlooney 3,605]

3 hours ago, Darth Fluffy said:

We are in the modern era, and Grace already has a cannon. They should use that.

That might impart too much velocity to the ball, and just punch through the pins with out causing any scatter.

[ijuin 596]

Bah! One simply needs a lower propellant charge!

[mlooney 3,605]

1 hour ago, ijuin said:

Bah! One simply needs a lower propellant charge!

Well, yeah, if you want a sub-optimal muzzle velocity you can do that.

[Darth Fluffy 339]

What we need is a bowling ball like that droid in the later Star Wars movies, with a remote so you could drive it like a drone.

[mlooney 3,605]

I'm fairly sure that either a self aware or remotely controlled bowling ball is against the rules.

[Darth Fluffy 339]

On 9/1/2024 at 3:59 AM, mlooney said:

I'm fairly sure that either a self aware or remotely controlled bowling ball is against the rules.

It should be. I bet it's not specifically addressed in any rules, because why would you have even thought of that? It could be feasibly done, today. It might even be feasible to hide that you were using such a device.

And that's  why we can't have nice things.

[mlooney 3,605]

I suspect that there are rules in place about the make up of a "legal" bowling ball that having remote controls in would violate.

[Darth Fluffy 339]

1 hour ago, mlooney said:

I suspect that there are rules in place about the make up of a "legal" bowling ball that having remote controls in would violate.

There appears to be more latitude than you'd expect. Off center weight, designed to increase wobble, is now common.