On Saturday, July 13, Gala Film is thrilled to premiere “Chicago, I’m Home,” a stand-up comedy special that promises to bring laughter and heartfelt moments to your screens. Taped in front of two sold-out crowds at the iconic Studebaker Theater, this special captures the essence of comedian Barry’s journey and his deep-rooted connection to his hometown of Chicago.
Barry’s return to Chicago is more than just a performance; it’s a homecoming. The Studebaker Theater, a venue steeped in history and cultural significance, provides the perfect backdrop for this special event. The crowd’s energy, the theater’s ambiance, and Barry’s dynamic presence combine to create an unforgettable experience.
Real Life, Real Laughs
“Chicago, I’m Home” is the culmination of Barry’s real-life experiences, intricately woven with over fifteen years of honing his craft as a stand-up comic. His stories are relatable, touching on universal themes with a uniquely Chicagoan twist. From navigating the bustling city streets to the quirky characters that define the Windy City, Barry’s humor is both personal and universally resonant.
A Journey of Fifteen Years
Barry’s comedy career spans over a decade and a half, marked by countless performances, relentless dedication, and a deep passion for making people laugh. This special encapsulates his journey, reflecting on the highs and lows, the lessons learned and the moments that have shaped his comedic voice. It’s a testament to his perseverance and the love he has for his art and his hometown.
Why You Should Watch
“Chicago, I’m Home” is not just a stand-up special; it’s a celebration of Chicago’s vibrant culture and the indomitable spirit of its people. Barry’s witty observations and engaging storytelling will have you laughing out loud while also giving you a glimpse into the heart of the city he calls home. Whether you’re a Chicago native, a comedy fan or someone looking for a good laugh, this special is a must-watch.
Tune In on Gala Film
Don’t miss the premiere of “Chicago, I’m Home” on Gala Film, free to watch and ad-free. Plus, you’ll get rewards for watching!
Join us as we celebrate Barry’s comedic journey and his heartfelt tribute to the city that has been his muse.
Get ready for an evening of laughter, reflection and a whole lot of Chicago charm. Mark your calendars, gather your friends and prepare to be entertained by one of the funniest voices in stand-up comedy today.
Watch closely for more updates and exclusive content surrounding the premiere.
Chicago, we’re coming home with Barry, and it’s going to be a night to remember!
Moving toward the decentralized world of music we’re creating together, Gala Music is pleased to offer an exciting feature called NextUp, our innovative community governance system. The future of music means a more democratized and community-driven approach to the art, empowering you to have a direct say in curation and addition of new music and artists on Gala Music.
“Next Up” is designed to bring decentralized governance to the forefront of Gala Music. This feature allows our community to vote on new artists and tracks, making you an integral part of shaping the platform.
Every week, the Gala Music community is invited to vote, deciding on three tracks to add to the platform and one new artist
To learn more about the vision of Gala Music and our plans for a more decentralized world of music, read the Whitepaper.
How Does It Work?
Eligibility to Vote
If you have a Gala Account and a transfer code set up, you are eligible to vote. The transfer code is necessary because all voting is transacted on GalaChain, ensuring transparency and security. You can set up a transfer code in the Security area of your account’s Settings page.
Each Gala Music account gets one free vote. Additionally, for every Jukebox Node you own, you receive an extra vote, up to a maximum of 20 votes per voting period.
$MUSIC to Enhance Voting Power
Think of your $MUSIC as a great way to endorse your favorite artists and tracks, giving them an edge. In addition to your free vote, you can purchase additional votes for 5 $MUSIC each (any quantity. The world of web3 music runs on $MUSIC, so let’s let the $MUSIC do the talking.
Why NextUp Matters
The introduction of Next Up is a pivotal moment for Gala Music. Beyond a simple voting system, it is a testament to our commitment to decentralization and community involvement. By participating, you are helping to curate the new music and artists that will define the industry’s future, ensuring that our platform reflects the diverse tastes and preferences of our community.
Be a Part of the Future
With Next Up, we are laying the foundation for a robust and inclusive governance system. But this is just the beginning. Your feedback and participation will be crucial in refining and expanding this feature to make it even more impactful in the future.
Ready to make your voice heard? Ensure your Gala account is set up with a GalaChain transfer code. A new voting round kicks off at the beginning of every week, so cast your vote now and be part of this revolutionary step towards a more community-driven music ecosystem.
Stay tuned for more updates and be prepared to welcome new artists and tracks every week with NextUp. Let’s create the future of music together.
Here are some basic poker tips for anyone looking to enhance their gameplay and increase their chip stack. Even though it involves elements of luck, poker is a game of skill.
Tip 1: Play to Learn
Poker is one of the most popular games in the world, not only for its intrinsic connection to money, but also for the multitude of strategic nuances that come with the game’s intricate balance of math and chance.
The best poker players will still tell you that they don’t know everything about the game. To some degree, the more you play, the more there is to learn.
“The more you know, the luckier you get in poker.”
-Doyle Brunson, poker champion and best-selling author
Doyle Brunson played professional poker for over six decades, until his death in May of last year at 89 years old. If you want to learn poker from a master from the absolute pinnacle fof the game, check out his books, Super System and Super System 2.
The moment you start thinking of yourself as an experienced poker player, you’re opening yourself up to untold vulnerabilities. Don’t get cocky– It never hurts to acknowledge that you could be missing something, especially in a game that’s so deceptively complicated.
Tip 2: Play the Opponent
You may have heard the standard poker advice, “Play the opponent, not the cards.” This is more than just stock advice – It’s a system to live by. Poker is not a game about your hand. Your hand is merely a single aspect of your strategy, while your opponent has the power to bring you victory or defeat depending on how you deal with them.
The “Showdown” event in which players must reveal their cards to determine a winner is rarer than it seems, especially on a player by player basis.
Consider that an average player in a Texas Hold’em ring game (9 seats occupied), will only participate in 2 showdowns per 100 hands dealt– That’s only 2%. But the other 98% of the time, that player still had cards in their hand. What they did with their chips in those other 98 hands matters far more than the showdown hands.
When you’re able to spot the patterns in your opponent’s betting habits, you can truly start to play the opponent. You can always make guesses about the cards they’re holding, but you’ll never know for sure until the rare moment of showdown. With your hands, the best you can do is to play aggressively when the odds are in your favor.
In the same way that you want more chips in the pot when you have the nuts, you want to see more cards with fewer chips when you think you might have a losing hand. More community cards (turn, river) might turn your hand around and make you a winner, but no matter what you’re doing to the pot, you don’t want your opponent to know your position. Assume that every player is playing from that same place of mathematical responsibility, betting hard when their hand is strong and softening up when their hand is weak while also trying to hide their intentions.
Remember – Chances are that neither you nor your opponent will have a chance to see one another’s cards. That means that whoever played the other more effectively will take down that non-showdown pot. Only 20-25% of hands in a ring game will even make it to a showdown at all, so patterns tend to matter more than hands.
Tip 3: Chase with Caution
Whether you’re calling preflop with a couple of low suited connectors or holding out to see the suit you want on the turn, chasing a draw is generally a risky move.
“Chasing” in this context means that you have most of a good hand. If the cards you want fall, then you’ll almost always have the winning hand. If they don’t, you’re sure to lose if it comes to a showdown.
Some draws are worth chasing. For example, let’s say you have 5♠/6♠ and you get to see the flop with no preflop raise. If you see a flop of 3♥/4♣/10♦, you’re in a good position to chase your straight if the price is right.
Any 2 or 7 will make your straight, so if you can see the turn, go for it. Additionally, there’s currently no chance of someone drawing out a flush on you to beat your straight. However, by calling instead of raising, you’d run the risk of revealing that you’re on a draw and trying to minimize the bet. Therefore, when chasing a straight like this, you’d better be ready to commit some chips to the chase, then ditch the cards if it loses economic reasonability.
Be very careful with draws in every situation. Someone with a made hand is almost certainly looking to price you out and take the pot before your draw hits, and they’ll almost always recognize when you achieve the hand you were drawing for.
With straight and flush draws, it’s better to play against others who are chasing draws than to chase them yourself. If you are chasing, present your betting actions as having the made hand already.
One unlikely advantage to chasing straights and flushes can come from playing in early positions on the table. This will help mask your intentions, lending legitimacy to your check and waiting to see how the rest of the players will act before you decide to pay for your draw.
Join the Sweepstakes
There’s still over two days of play time to accumulate Tickets for the 44th Weekly Sweepstakes event that wraps up at 7am PT on Thursday, July 11th!
The total prize pool for each weekly Sweepstakes is 113K $GALA!
Win as many chips as you can each day to gather entry Tickets… G
At Gala Games, our community-powered entertainment ecosystem thrives on the vibrant interactions within our robust Discord community. Here’s why our Discord is the core gathering place for our ecosystem
What is Discord?
For those who might be unfamiliar, Discord is a free voice, video and text communication platform designed for creating communities. Initially popularized by gamers, Discord has expanded to accommodate a wide range of interest groups and communities. Here’s a quick rundown of its key features:
Channels and Servers: Discord operates on servers, which are essentially individual communities. Each server can host multiple channels, where different topics and activities can be discussed. Channels can be text-based for written conversations or voice-based for live audio chats.
Text Channels: These are akin to forum threads where users can post messages, share links, and engage in discussions on specific topics. Each text channel can be dedicated to a particular subject, making it easy to find and participate in conversations that interest you.
Voice Channels: Voice channels allow for live audio conversations. These are perfect for real-time discussions, whether for gaming, casual chats or team meetings. Users can drop in and out of voice channels as they please.
Community Engagement: Discord’s user-friendly interface makes it easy to join and navigate multiple servers, allowing users to engage with various communities. Features such as direct messaging, group chats and integrated media sharing enhance the social experience.
Bots and Integrations: Discord supports bots—automated programs that can perform a variety of tasks, from moderating discussions to playing music. Additionally, Discord integrates seamlessly with other platforms and tools, making it a versatile hub for community interaction.
Accessibility: Discord is accessible via desktop and mobile apps, as well as through web browsers, ensuring you can stay connected with your communities wherever you are.
Discord accounts are free, with upgradeable features for subscription members. By joining our Gala Games Discord server, you’ll have access to all the above features and more, tailored to enhance your experience within our ecosystem. Whether you’re here for the latest updates, to share your ideas, or to connect with like-minded individuals, Discord provides the perfect platform for fostering a vibrant and engaged community.
There are plenty of unique perks to be found in the Gala Games Discord community, and some are listed below. The bottom line is this: For full and total connection to our thriving ecosystem, you’ll want to become part of this community.
Always Updated
Our Discord community is the first to know about the latest updates and happenings. Whether it’s a keen-eyed community member spotting something new or rapid developments that require immediate communication, Discord is our go-to platform for real-time updates. Sometimes you’ll even see information tossed about from the company’s leaders and founders that has not yet circulated through the entire team.
Team Engagement
Our team members actively monitor and participate in the Gala Discord server, bridging the gap between the team and the community. This accessibility allows us to listen, respond and support our community promptly, ensuring their voices are always heard.
Valuable Discussions
In our decentralized web3 ecosystem, community input is crucial. The Gala Discord community is a breeding ground for innovative ideas and discussions. As NFT owners and node operators, our community’s opinions shape our projects and we take this responsibility seriously.
Building Connections
Our Discord community is more than just a platform for updates and discussions; it’s a place where lifelong friendships are formed. In today’s digital age, fostering safe and friendly connections among members from around the world is a priority for us.
Our Community’s Importance
The success of Gala Games is rooted in our community. Their support and engagement have driven our achievements over the years. We recognize and celebrate this, continually striving to create the best web3 community experience. Join our Discord to witness the best of web3 community action and become a part of our journey.
Eternal Paradox Season 5 is well underway. How go your battles, Captain?
The first Conquest event of the season took place last weekend, with the top three spots being claimed by SquareXII, BTB-I and Eternals. Of course, there’s a lot of battle left in the season. Time will tell if these early leaders can hold their advantage through the next two Conquest battles.
Today we’ll set aside Conquest, however, and focus on another aspect of the fight for the Ring. The Arena is different from meeting on the field in a large set piece battle. Eight Mercenaries enter the Arena… no soldiers to hide behind, just two teams duking it out to see who is best.
Arena Overview
The Arena measures the strength of your Mercenaries, but also your battle tactics and persistence to achieve victory. Each Arena season lasts one week. You’ll have seven days to climb the leaderboard and improve your ranking.
As you win in the Arena, you’ll advance through five ranks – each with three tiers within them:
Silver
Gold
Platinum
Master
Legend
As your rank increases, so too will your rewards from each win and your eventual prizes at the end of the Arena season. While these ladder ranks boost your resource and Honor gains, what matters for Arena Victory Points is your rank versus other players.
You can always see your relative rank displayed on the front page of the Arena. At the end of each Arena season, players will receive AVP based on their final position. At the end of each full season of Eternal Paradox, players will receive $ETIME based on their AVP rank. 20% of the total seasonal ETIME reward goes to the Arena. The top finisher gets 15% of that portion of the seasonal prize, scaling down to .02% at rank 120.
Each battle costs one Arena Point, which can be refreshed through Arena Point items or by spending Diamonds to get additional points. 10 points will cost 500 Diamonds the first time each day, but each consecutive purchase will make the price go up.
When you win Arena battles, you will receive Honor Points. These can be spent in the Honor Shop to get Mercenary Gear rewards or Summoning Stones.
Arena Edge
The Arena relies mostly on the strength of your Mercenaries. This is your Mercenary’s overall stats, however, which can be boosted in several key ways:
Mercenary Level
Mercenary Rank
Skill Level
Mercenary Equipment
Mercenary Research
Awakening boosts
Rarity bonuses
Immortal Stats
Obviously, pumping up your Mercenaries and Mercenary Research is always a good policy to perform well in the Arena.
There are other ways to get an edge, though. Many of the other ways to boost your Mercenary stats for the Arena are frequently overlooked by players. These are a little bit harder to reach than the above, and it’ll take more grind typically to get less bonus. For the top of the leaderboard though, this kind of refining endgame stats is another crucial tool in their kit.
Land
One of the buffs that can be assigned to Legendary or Ancient Land is “Arena Mercenary Speed +10”. Speed is a very small stat typically, with 10 being comparable to a decent piece of Mercenary Gear.
With only four Mercenaries on the field, getting to take the first shot can be the difference between victory and defeat. Keep your eyes peeled for great land to park on and soak up some speed buffs.
Contribution
The “Mercenary” section of Mercenary Group Attributes contains big bonuses for your team. Contribution doesn’t come easy, however, so you’ll have to make some critical decisions about what to prioritize.
It is worth noting, however, that Mercenary Group Attributes can be refunded and respent easily. Maybe at those crucial points in the Arena it’s worth reallocating your points?
Titles and Skins
Certain titles and skins give boosts to large groups of Mercenaries. This will also affect their performance in the Arena, and even a little bit can be a lot of help.
These items don’t come around often, and you may have to work hard to get your hands on the best titles. If you can get them they’ll provide a welcome boost to your Mercenaries.
Collection
The Mercenary Collection can be accessed through the Tavern. Here you get to assign Mercenaries to certain pre-set groups based around a theme. When you complete a set you’ll receive a bonus. The size of the bonus depends on the Rank of the Mercenaries assigned.
There is only one Mercenary Collection currently available that influences the Arena… but it’s a direct boost to Mercenary Speed. As we’ve already stressed, the chance to strike first is potentially a huge advantage.
Fighting for Glory
The Arena is a different sort of test for a Captain, but great rewards await the victors!
Aside from the obviously nice prize of $ETIME based on your AVP at the end of a Season, you can also fight for the prestigious titles and skins awarded to the victors:
God of the Arena title: +5% Mercenary Attack, 1st place in AVP
King of the Arena title: +3% Mercenary Attack, 2nd or 3rd in AVP
Lord of the Arena title: +2% Mercenary Attack, 4th through 10th in AVP
First place in AVP will also receive the Dragon Castle skin for the next season, granting +5 Mercenary speed!
There are many rewards to be gained in the Arena… but you’ll never grasp them if you don’t get in there and do battle!
We’ll be back next week with a brief breakdown of the meta in the Arena, along with some tips on how to build a winning team. Until then, level up those Mercenaries and get after that leaderboard! There’s only two days left in this week’s Arena competition!
