__________ __________/ \__________ <__________ Turn 1 __________> \__________/ _______________________________________________________________________________ The following message was sent on Tuesday October 07, 1997 at 08:12 PM EDT by Kent Rice to all players; Ah, finally, a real battle begins. Kullervo had chosen he of the far roving mind, Lemminkainen, to be his War Chief in the upcoming contest. Lemminkainen wasted no time, calling his battle lords to conference in the Hall of I.O.C. Impatiently he awaited their arrival, plotting far reaching strategies, and dreaming of the glory to come. He waited a little longer. Finally, he went looking for them and found them all drunk with the tournament messenger in the mess hall. "Is this any way to start a war? You're a bunch of louts." screamed Lemminkainen, and fired the lot of them. Thoroughly steamed, he left the castle in charge of the cook, and journeyed forth to the ruin of Steve's Hand, where he gained the Official Sponsoring, and cheered up immediately. "I'm in the money," sang Lemminakainen. *********************** Official Turn Report Template ************************ REPORT FOR TOURNAMENT ROUND A09, TURN 01, SIDE 1. ============================================================================== Statistics Start of turn Hero Exp. 0 Cities 1 Gold 4215 Income 40 Expenses 25 Larcenous Scouts disbanded. New build in I.O.C. of type Big Hairy Giants. Statistics End of turn Change from last turn Hero Exp. 24 -- Cities 1 -- Gold 3115 -1100 Income 46 +6 Expenses 0 - _______________________________________________________________________________ =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Tournament Game: "A09" Turn Number: 1 Gamefile Sent To: Apache (Orange) (tmholmes@erols.com) Date Sent: Tuesday October 07, 1997 at 08:14 PM EDT Date Gamefile Due: Thursday October 9, 1997 at 8:14 PM EDT (In GMT-0500: Thursday October 9, 1997 at 7:14 PM) -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- _______________________________________________________________________________ The following message was sent on Wednesday October 08, 1997 at 12:59 PM EDT by Holmes to all players; High atop Locker Room=92s castle walls Apache stood, shading his eyes against the rising sun, squinting to the north, then south. An uneven blotch, the faintest suggestion of a cloud bank on the horizon, faded and was absorbed into the clear blue sky even as he looked at it. < A perfect day to begin the tournament > he murmured to himself. Figures moved on the road to the south and the sentinels set up a cry.=20 Apache slipped away from his perch to greet his chosen warrior. -- Mohan knelt before the leader of the Athletes, bowed his head and presented his sword. This warrior had scarcely spoken three words during all the years of service under Apache and as soon as his work was finished he would disappear into the hills for days at a time. When it was time to fight, though, he fought with the ferocity of ten warriors. Apache grasped the sword and touched Mohan=92s shoulders with the blade.=20 < I dub thee, Sir Mohan the Mysterious of the Hills and Silent Killer of Kings. Rise, Sir Mohan and wreak havoc upon the land in the name of the Athletes! > < Yes my Liege,> muttered Mohan as he sheathed his weapon and strode from the Locker Room=92s banquet hall. -- A pudgy unit of Scouts waddled up behind Mohan, breathing heavily from trying to keep pace with his long strides. < Where we going Mohan? Huh? Where we gonna go? Why are you walking so fast? Wait up, Mohan, what are you...> Mohan whirled around and with a lightning quick flash of steel Mohan=92s blade rested under one of the Scout=92s chins. The scout trembled as he stood nose to nose with the Hero peering into those cold black eyes. < Go home Fat Boy, > Mohan hissed through clenched teeth. He whirled back around and disappeared down the road leading southwest from Locker Room. The Scout turned the other way and started towards home for a fresh pair of undergarments. -- All day he traveled until he spied the city of Sparta nestled at the base of a mountain range and just a league or so off the road. The shadows were long and by the time he closed the last hundred yards to the castle walls he was perfectly covered by nightfall. Mohan slipped into Sparta and noiselessly disposed of the drunken guards and the oversized Scouts. He managed to collect 175 gold pieces from their belongings and set up operations for the production of Wolfriders which were more suited for these northeastern forests. Mohan raised the Athlete=92s banner and peered east across the vast sea of trees. The moon, untainted by torchlight, hung bright and clear on the horizon.=20 His dark gray armor defeated any glare cast by the moonlight and made him almost invisible in the night. After some time, he moved away from the castle wall, shadow blending into shadow. -- REPORT FOR Round A, Game 09, Turn 1, Side 2 Gold at start: 4215 -Mohan the Mysterious emerges from the Locker Room -Scout disbanded in Locker Room Cities Taken - Sparta taken by Mohan, pillaged scouts for 175gp Units Purchased - Unicorns in the Locker Room for 1100gp - Wolfriders in Sparta for 450gp Final cities: 2 =20 Final gold: 2840 Income: 60 Expenses: 0 Hero Exp: 2 (+2 change) _______________________________________________________________________________ =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Tournament Game: "A09" Turn Number: 1 Gamefile Sent To: Rorqual (Green) (perrie_t@epita.fr) Date Sent: Wednesday October 08, 1997 at 01:01 PM EDT Date Gamefile Due: Friday October 10, 1997 at 1:01 PM EDT (In GMT+0200: Friday October 10, 1997 at 7:01 PM) -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- _______________________________________________________________________________ =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Tournament Game: "A09" Turn Number: 1 Gamefile Sent To: Avenger (Blue) (keirster@aol.com) Date Sent: Thursday October 09, 1997 at 02:24 AM EDT Date Gamefile Due: Sunday October 12, 1997 at 02:24 AM EDT (In GMT-0500: Sunday October 12, 1997 at 1:24 AM) -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- _______________________________________________________________________________ The following message was sent on Thursday October 09, 1997 at 02:25 AM EDT by Thomas Perrier to all players; (Disclaimer : please excuse any subtle or flagrant grammar error, as English is not my mother tongue.) At last, this terrible beast from another age is reactivated : the Metallian rises again in CNN Office ! For several years he lied in a sinister warehouse, remnant of forgotten years, but now this intrepid reporter had discovered him (unfortunately for his soul). The squadron of Scouts lazily patrolling the town is then rapidly consumed. Now that the city is under control, the first political action of the Metallian is to rename this place Kutulu, in honnor for the poor guy who willingly (sort of...) gave his life to allow him to recover a little energy. Then he heads east and stops at the gates of Sarajevo. But the small unit of Scouts guarding the walls doesn't even try to resist the assault of the Metallian, and the town is annexed before the inhabitants can realize what happened. Now the night is falling, and he can safely power down. Who knows what this giant machine imagines in its electric dreams ? REPORT FOR TOURNAMENT ROUND A, GAME 9, TURN 1, SIDE 3. ====================================================== New Hero (The Metallian) arrives in CNN Office. CNN Office renamed Kutulu. Gold at Start of Turn: 4215 The Metallian captures Sarajevo (pillaged 175 gold). New Build of unit type Wolfriders purchased in city Kutulu for 450 gold. New Build of unit type Wolfriders purchased in city Sarajevo for 450 gold. Final Cities: 2 Gold: 3490 Income: 60 Expenses: 0. Final Hero Experience: 2 Change from last turn: +2 _______________________________________________________________________________ =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Tournament Game: "A09" Turn Number: 2 Gamefile Sent To: Kullervo (White) (lingchih@cyberramp.net) Date Sent: Thursday October 09, 1997 at 09:20 AM EDT Date Gamefile Due: Sunday October 12, 1997 at 09:20 AM EDT (In GMT-0500: Sunday October 12, 1997 at 8:20 AM) -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- _______________________________________________________________________________ The following message was sent on Thursday October 09, 1997 at 09:22 AM EDT by to all players; John Steed returned to his apartment, having recently finished a training mission and earned a few moments of rest and relaxation. As he entered, his keen eye noted that there was a tape sticking out of his video cassette recorder, and he realized that his earlier training was to specifically prepare him for what was to come ahead. He turned his television on, inserted the tape, pushed 'play', and settled back in the Couch to absorb this cruicial mission briefing. A man hidden by shadows appeared on the screen. "Steed, this is Avenger. There's something strange going on at this year's Olympic Games. It would seem that one of the other three sides taking part are planning on sabotaging the format of the Games and returning us to the older, unprofitable way of running an Olympics. I'm sure I don't need to remind you what would happen if the Olympics were moved off the island and the Spectator government no longer collected the revenue from the Olympic Customs Office." "The total collapse of our economy," Steed said to himself. "We have to stop them." "Your assignment is to find out who is leading this attempt to destroy our economic system and to stop them. And Steed, you're going to need help on this one. It's too big for one man alone. We've got people already in place on the Olympic island, but you'll need another agent with you to help cover the most territory possible. More than that would be noticed and we need to work quietly on this one. Good luck." The videotape ended and Steed ejected it, and then took it to the incinerator and destroyed the message. "So, I'll need help? I think I'll call up some old friends from the Light Brigade and see what they've been up to. As to a fellow agent ... I know just where to find her." As he was picking up his umbrella and bowler hat, a short figure burst through his front door, screaming in rage. Steed turned around and sidestepped the crazed figure, allowing it to plunge through an open window onto the street. "Are you all right?" Steed solicitously called out to the figure, who turned around and was about to start screaming again when the Scout was unceremoniously run down in the street by a man on a horse. "Ah," thought Steed, "the cavalry is arriving!" Leaving a note on the table, he strode out the door towards Sapporo. Arriving in Sapporo, he approached a house known to contain friends of the Spectator government. A lean man with hollow eyes looked around fearfully, and beckoned Steed in. "I and my fellow Scouts are here to serve you, sir. As proof of our loyalty, we give you this 175 gold." "Excellent, my good chap, I'll get back to you just as soon as I can. However, I have one errand to run before I can take advantage of your offer. Good day!" When he was no more than a block away from the house, however, he heard a huge explosion and turned back to see only smoking rubble where the Scout building had once stood. "Foul fiends! Whoever has done this shall pay dearly for their crimes! I'd better notify my partner quickly before they suffer a similar fate. I also believe I'll visit the local airport to see if I can secure a faster mode of transportation over the local terrain." His pace quickened, umbrella swinging at his side. *********************** Official Turn Report Template ************************ REPORT FOR TOURNAMENT ROUND A, GAME A09, TURN 01, SIDE 4. New Hero? John Steed arrives in The Couch. Statistics Start of turn Hero Exp. 0 Cities 1 Gold 4215 Income 40 Expenses 25 Scouts pillaged in Sapporo for 175 gold Light Cavalry built in The Couch for 200 Giant Bats built in Sapporo for 160 Statistics End of turn Change from last turn Hero Exp. 2 +2 Cities 2 +1 Gold 4030 -185 Income 60 +20 Expenses 0 -25 Round R=A Game xx=A09. Next Player's Turn yy=02 Side z=1 _______________________________________________________________________________ __________ __________/ \__________ <__________ Turn 2 __________> \__________/ _______________________________________________________________________________ =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Tournament Game: "A09" Turn Number: 2 Gamefile Sent To: Apache (Orange) (tmholmes@erols.com) Date Sent: Thursday October 16, 1997 at 04:18 PM EDT Date Gamefile Due: Sunday October 19, 1997 at 4:18 PM EDT (In GMT-0500: Sunday October 19, 1997 at 3:18 PM) -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- _______________________________________________________________________________ The following message was sent on Thursday October 16, 1997 at 05:28 PM EDT by MW29@aol.com to all players; A09 Turn 2 Player 1 White Gor Bonecracker(mw29@aol.com) replaces Kullervo as the leader of the White forces. At Start: Cities:1 Gold:2124 Income:46 Expenses:0 At End : Cities:3 Gold:2154 Income:98 Expenses:0 Gor Bonecracker emerges in IOC for 1037 with a Devil ally. Gor pillages Los Angeles for 175. LemminaKainen pillages Athens for 175 (If anyone knows what LemminaKainen refers to or means please tell me.) Hero Experience: Gor 0 to 2. LemminaKainen 3 to 5. Build Bats in Los Angeles and Athens for 160 each. __________________________ "Great Gor, you have finally arrived. All is in chaos. No cities have been conquered, we recruit Giants of all things, and your cousin LemminaKainen is lost in the hills east of the city." Yes I am in control now and will put things right. We have wasted an entire turn so we must act quickly. I have brought She who forged the Bonecracker. I will send her to find my lost cousin. All his orders are to be cleared first by me. I rule now in these lands. Enough! I am weary from the many months I marched to get here. I cannot compose a proper message in my state. Summon the Minstrel and order him to send dispatches to the other Warlords. And order him not to offend the others for we do not know who is friend or foe in this strange land...... _______________ "You have your orders, can you compose a message of peace to these three great Warlords?" "Yes, they will be overwrought with friendship for our Lord when they read my fine words. Trust me, I will not fail the mighty Gor Bonecracker." _______________________ Send this to the Green Lands: Rorqual is from France and many do say he has no chance However remember Joan d'Arc and her Lance But will he war with the Great Gor Or is he a Dove who prefers only Love Gor went once to Paris and found a girl there to kiss And most of the city did he thus unfortunately miss His mademoiselle purred, We have much to do He did not have time to play Warlords Two Rorqual lost his head in the War of P-Twelve Now it rests comfortably on one of Gor's shelves We all now ask, How will you your Warlords be led Will they be Mighty? If not, they are dead Will they be like Napoleon One Must we all run, run, run Or will they be like Napoleon Three And cause us all to laugh, hee, hee, hee ________________________ Send this to the Orange Lands: In the war known as P-Eight, Apache built Bats, he thought they were great Now he fights in the War of A-Nine The bats he had built are no longer fine Many had heard of Geronimo's Bat Me thinks perhaps it was a bit fat Little Puppy did whisper in the dark of the Night That not once did it ever put up a fight Beware, Beware, You must have a care Do not take a dare and come to my lair For to your forests of ash and yew I send you not one bat but two Expensive they are and much do they eat Your bright orange unicorns will provide a nice treat ___________________________ Send this to the Blue Lands: Who is this Avenger with a mission to complete If he accepts it the women will be swept off their feet The say his hero is a mighty steed Does this come from word, action, or deed I know of no war in which he has fought Can he be threatened, Can his friendship be bought We share the mountains with their rare air Will he be cunning, Will he play fair The Giant Worms are now ruled by Four not One This makes him the favorite. He has already won Will they fight Orange, Will they fight Green When they attack, those heroes never again will be seen The Worms are enormous and very defiant They have put great fear into my giant Far far away are the Worms of Blue You will not end up in their tasty stew __________________________ Composed by the Minstrel of Gor Bonecracker, The Great Gor, during the Reverting Time in the second moon of the Bonecracker War also known as A-Nine in other Lands. _______________________________________________________________________________ =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Tournament Game: "A09" Turn Number: 2 Gamefile Sent To: Rorqual (Green) (perrie_t@epita.fr) Date Sent: Sunday October 19, 1997 at 02:25 PM EDT Date Gamefile Due: Tuesday October 21, 1997 at 2:25 PM EDT (In GMT+0200: Tuesday October 21, 1997 at 8:25 PM) -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- _______________________________________________________________________________ The following message was sent on Sunday October 19, 1997 at 02:26 PM EDT by Holmes to all players; Apache awoke with a start as the sunrise was still only a crescent of yellow brightness on the eastern horizon and the land was still shrouded in night=92s shadows. He jerked upright in bed then slowly gained his senses as he realized his whereabouts. Those giant, disease-ridden, flying hairballs with fangs were only dreams, most certainly brought on from that damned Organizer minstrel. No bats here, only a well earned day of rest. As Apache turned over and pulled the blankets back up around his shoulders he recalled the previous day........ For three solid days, from dawn =91til dusk, he had interviewed potential heroes to champion the Athlete=92s cause. Finally, late the previous evening, a large figure presented himself and his strange companion to Apache. For all his massive, muscular build, the man moved with cat-like grace. He introduced himself as Khazyari and claimed he would only require enough gold to pay his traveling expenses and to feed his famished Elemental who had acquired a taste for lamb=92s blood during their arduous journey. < Send the waiting applicants away. I have found our Hero >, Apache ordered. < Bring the coffers to pay our Champion, for he must travel to Sparta to begin his quest for victory. >=20 -- Mohan set out with a band of Wolfriders through the dense forests towards the ancient ruins of Harrison=92s House. He ordered the unit to stay behind as he slipped into the underbrush surrounding the decaying city. As he approached a crumbling building, he spied two necromancers arguing amongst themselves as to the ingredients of a potion or spell.=20 As they dropped their belongings and squared off to fight, Mohan emerged from the shadows with his sword drawn. Since they hadn=92t caught sight of him he leaned against the nearest wall and watched the bickering pair with amusement. Finally, the surprised sorcerers caught sight of Mohan and began to collect themselves, < Hail mighty Athlete! Heh, heh...It seems you=92ve caught me and my brother a little offguard...heh, heh.... although we WERE expecting you.....My name is Zilla and this useless lump of flesh is Rodan...How may we be of service? > Mohan thought for a moment, resheathed his blade, then motioned at Zilla and pointed west, < You...storm Tokyo. > He then looked at Rodan and motioned to the southwest, < And you...conquer Mt.Everest >. Mohan then turned and disappeared back into the forest. -- When Khazyari arrived at Sparta, the other Hero was nowhere to be found. No matter. Khazyari left for the ruins of Kay=92s Crypt with his ally, as per Apache=92s instructions. Upon entering the ruins Khazyari found himself face to face with a large Dragon. Before the serpent could react, Khazyari dropped his weapon, rolled to his left, then leapt upon the Dragon=92s back. His arm span was just wide enough to reach around the monster=92s neck and administer a choke hold. The giant serpent lurched back and forth, bucked to and fro, but to no avail. The Hero=92s thickly muscled arms were clenched tightly around its neck and locked by his hand=92s. Finally the Dragon ceased fighting and collapsed on the ground from lack of oxygen. Khazyari jumped down, grabbed his two-handed sword and waited for the subdued creature to awaken. The serpent stirred and its eyes fluttered open. < Yesss massster, how may I ssserve you? > he tamely asked Khazyari. < You must travel swiftly to Amsterdam and secure the city of the red-eyed peoples. This should prove an easy task for their minds are clouded from stink-weed and their reactions slow. Go now and I=92ll will meet up with you later. > =20 The Athlete=92s hero then turned to his ally and ordered it to take the far away castle of Olympia. -- As it came to be on this second day of the tournament; =91Zilla stormed Tokyo and ordered the production of Lt.Infantry troops, Rodan conquered Mt.Everest and set up Spider production, the Dragon acquired a contact high while securing Amsterdam and building Orcish Mob production, and the far reaching Elemental made his master proud by taking Olympia and setting up Wolfrider production. -- Apache awoke with a mighty hunger. He had dreamed of Giant Bats, singing Minstrels, headless Frenchmen, and special agents with Giant Worms during his marathon sleep. Apparently he had slept the day away for the sun crested the western horizon in a Red hazy ball, obscured by the mist and fog produced by the chilly October air sweeping in from the north. Clouds rolled in from the northwest, promising rain by the next day. How long would it be before the mountain passes were impassable due to snowfalls? -- -- =20 REPORT FOR Round A, Game 09, Turn 2, Side 2 Gold at start: 2900 - Khazyari emerges from Sparta for 1042 with an Elemental ally - Mohan visits Harrison=92s House and is joined by 2 units of Wizards - Khazyari visits Kay=92s Crypt and is joined by a unit of Dragons Cities Taken - Tokyo by Wizard, pillaged scouts for 175gp - Mt.Everest by Wizard, pillaged scouts for 175gp - Amsterdam by Dragon, pillaged scouts for 175gp - Olympia by Elemental, pillaged scouts for 175gp Units Purchased - Lt.Infantry in Tokyo for 160gp - Spiders in Mt.Everest for 700gp - Orcish Mob in Amsterdam for 300gp - Wolfriders in Olympia for 450gp Final cities: 6 =20 Final gold: 948 Income: 140 Expenses: 4 Hero Exp. =20 - Mohan: 5 (+3 change) - Khazyari: 3 (+3 change) _______________________________________________________________________________ The following message was sent on Tuesday October 21, 1997 at 02:26 AM EDT by Thomas Perrier to all players; The empire is burgeonning quickly. Realizing that it will not be feasible to expand in all directions without a few solid allies, the Metallian engages in the long and tedious process of recruiting a new hero (greatly speeded up by the new upgrade to his controlling computer, though). Arrives Guntar, a mighty barbarian accompanied by his pet Demon, so proud of himself that he refused to be rechristiened by his master ; hopefully for him the Metallian was already marching north, burning forests and drying swamps on his way to Scott's Secret. There he found a Devil, who quickly forgot his allegiance to Scott and offered his services to the impressive Metallian. You just can't trust a Devil for guarding for centuries your possessions ! Impatient to roam the forests after such a long time waiting in his prison, the eager Devil runs to Nagano where a few Scouts flee at the sight of his powerful weapon, the Grinder. The priceless blade, on which are written the words "Grinder, looking for meat ; Grinder, wants you to eat", is frightening indeed ! Meanwhile, the right arm of the Metallian, Guntar, finds his way to the Zak's Zone. A Pothole is rapidly dispatched to Hell, thanks to Little Demon, and Guntar discovers in all its glory the Chariot of Fire. Truly a gift of the (metal) gods for him : no more walking like second class infantry, and the inherent magical power of this vehicle certainly will help him gain the recognition of his capabilities by the Metallian... For that matter, the gates of Squaw Valley soon open widely for him to enter triomphaly in the city, driving his Chariot like a general of ancient Rome. REPORT FOR TOURNAMENT ROUND A, GAME 9, TURN 2, SIDE 3. ====================================================== New Hero Guntar arrives in Kutulu with a Demon for 1141 gold. Gold at Start of Turn: 3550 Guntar visits the Zak's Zone and finds the Chariot of Fire ! The Metallian discovers Scott's Secret and befriends a Devil ! Wolves take Innsbruck (pillaged 175 gold). The Devil takes Nagano (pillaged 175 gold). Guntar takes Squaw Valley (pillaged 175 gold). New Build of unit type Wolfriders purchased in Squaw Valley for 450 gold. New Build of unit type Dwarves purchased in Innsbruck for 450 gold. New Build of unit type Light Infantry purchased in Nagano for 160 gold. Final Cities: 5 Gold: 1874 Income: 120 Expenses: 8. Guntar : Final Hero Experience: 5 Change from last turn: +5 The Metallian : Final Hero Experience: 5 Change from last turn: +3 { -- - -- - -- - -- - -- - -- - -- - -- - -- - -- - -- - -- - -- - -- - -- } Thomas "Rorqual" Perrier perrie_t@epita.fr Rising from darkness where Hell hath no mercy and the screams of vengeance echo on forever, only those who keep the faith shall escape the wrath of the Metallian... Master of all Metal (Judas Priest) _______________________________________________________________________________ =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Tournament Game: "A09" Turn Number: 2 Gamefile Sent To: Avenger (Blue) (keirster@aol.com) Date Sent: Tuesday October 21, 1997 at 02:26 AM EDT Date Gamefile Due: Thursday October 23, 1997 at 02:26 AM EDT (In GMT-0500: Thursday October 23, 1997 at 1:26 AM) -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- _______________________________________________________________________________ =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Tournament Game: "A09" Turn Number: 3 Gamefile Sent To: Gor Bonecracker-B (White) (mw29@aol.com) Date Sent: Tuesday October 21, 1997 at 04:57 AM EDT Date Gamefile Due: Thursday October 23, 1997 at 04:57 AM EDT (In GMT-0500: Thursday October 23, 1997 at 3:57 AM) -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- _______________________________________________________________________________ The following message was sent on Tuesday October 21, 1997 at 04:59 AM EDT by Keirster@aol.com to all players; Steed entered the small Sapporo apartment with the bottle of champagne and dozen red roses tucked under his arm. Setting the champagne down in the ice bucket already on the end table, and the roses in an empty vase standing on the windowsill, he removed a business card from an inside pocket and placed it among the roses. Smiling quietly to himself, he exited and headed towards the airport with the intention of reserving a small plane - or local equivalent. Emma Peel arrived at her apartment exhausted after a long day of training. Her judo instructor had provided her with quite a workout today, as he had five of the other students attack her simultaneously. Naturally, she was able to defend herself quite effectively, but it certainly did take a lot of energy! As she opened the door, her trained eye quickly fell upon the champagne and roses. An amused smile played across her lips when she saw the card nestled among the blossoms. Turning the card over, she saw the four words that would always call her to defend the Spectator state... "Mrs. Peel - We're Needed." After a short detour to purchase some maps of the surrounding region and putting up Spectator political flyers to encourage angry mobs, Steed arrived at the Sapporo airport to reserve a flight on the next available transport, only to be told by the local yardmaster "Sorry, sir, but a young lady's just come in to hire the last two flights we have today. If you care to wait until tomorrow, we can probably arrange something for you at that time." "I think that won't be necessary," Steed said, as he saw the figure awaiting him on the tarmac. "I believe I'll be able to arrange something for myself," as he strode out to meet his partner. She was standing beside two creatures, one a large, leathery bat that was missing an eye and had a broken foreclaw, and the other was a shimmering angel that radiated strength, power, and command that would bring even the strongest heroes to their knees. "Hello, John. Are you all set to leave town?" "Mrs. Peel! Delighted to see you here! Apparently you prefer to stay off the ground as well. Shall I 'saddle up', as it were?" He started to grab the bat's harness when Mrs. Peel stepped in front of him. "Now, now, John, where are your manners? You know I've been waiting to try one of these bats out for ages. You go ahead and ride the Archon, I'm sure you can make excellent use of him. Or is it her?" "I'm not sure really, I think they're somewhat - genderless. But I certainly can't allow you to ride around with only that miserable bat for protection. I insist you take the Archon." The ill-looking bat turned its one good eye towards Steed and winked, almost embarassed to be involved in the conversation. "John, you were planning to ride north to collect some allies, weren't you? And that's why you felt I should take the stronger conveyance? Don't worry about me, I know of a swamp that holds nothing but miserable marsh gases - and another Archon. Off you go, I'll be just fine." And with that, she swung her leg over the bat's back, and dug her heels into its sides, spurring the beast into flight. With one last, baleful look out of the corner of its eye, the bat ponderously took off towards the southwest. "So, I guess it's just you and me now, old chap?" Steed looked upon the silent Archon with amusement. "Very well, lets see who we can scare up at McCuller's Fort....." The pair took off silently, flying beyond the confines of the city towards their contact, whom Steed anticipated would be very useful in the coming weeks. Meanwhile, back at The Couch, Hammond the light cavalryman inspected the unfortunate Scout whom he had trampled in the streets, finding a slip of paper promising 175 gold to whomever brought back proof of John Steed's death. The note was written on paper that had a watermark of a maple leaf in the background. "This wretch came from Calgary," Hammond murmured. "I'll find out exactly what's going on in that city. I'll borrow one of Steed's trademark sword/umbrellas as proof of his 'death', and figure out who is trying to kill him - and then they shall pay." He galloped off to Calgary, and upon his arrival he dismounted and wandered the streets, being sure to prominently display the umbrella. After walking for an half an hour, he grew tired and sat down at a small outdoor cafe. "I seem to remember that this is why I joined the cavalry," he muttered, rubbing his aching feet. "Nice umbrella." The voice behind him made him start in alarm, and he whirled around to see a beautiful woman approaching his table. "Where ever did you acquire it?" "Along the road - the former owner wasn't very interested in giving it to me, however, I was able to -persuade- him." As Hammond turned the umbrella over in his hand, he released the catch that held the concealed blade, sliding it a few inches out for the woman to see, and then returning it to its sheath. "Very nice," she said appreciatively. "Why don't you come with me, I might have something that would interest a man of your talents..." He followed her to a small room in an apartment block. "So, Steed is dead? Excellent! Here is your reward of 175 gold - you may leave now, our business is done." "Not quite done," Hammond snarled. "Who are you working for? Who wants Steed dead?" He drew the blade and advanced on her. Shock and fear registered on her face as she realized she had made a fatal mistake. She whirled around and headed for the hallway, heading down the stairs of the building towards the basement, with Hammond in hot pursuit. As she entered the basement, there was a sudden scream that was choked off into a horrible gurgle. The cavalryman slowly opened the door to see a huge spider feasting on her body. Nervous, but every inch the warrior, Hammond approached the spider and began, "Excuse me, but I may have an attractive proposal for you....." At McCuller's fort, torn walls lined with gargoyles, Steed and the Archon landed and began searching the ruins for their contact. Well, actually, Steed searched for an hour, and the Archon just stood there. A pebble clattered down from the wall, and Steed looked up to see one of the gargoyles wink at him. "You would have been going for weeks if I hadn't had an itch!" the gargoyle laughed, as it began to transform itself into other forms. A griffin, a pegasus, a unicorn, a minotaur - all shapes mastered by this demon in disguise. The chaos and confusion it would sow into enemy armies could only be countered by the iron will of an enemy hero. "My name is Legion - what are your orders, oh mighty Gelding?" "That's Steed, if you please." He was not happy with this mocking-beast of an ally, but would nevertheless make the fullest use of it. "I have two immediate tasks for you. Go to the cities of Garmisch-P and Lake Placid and recruit armies to help fight for the spectators. Use whatever gold you need from our treasury - but spend it wisely. It will disappear soon enough." "I hear and obey, Master Clydesdale. And after that, shall I be left to my own devices?" With a smirk, the demon changed into a dewey-eyed gazelle and bounded off. "That's Steed, you insolent fellow!" John called out after the beast. Shrugging his shoulders, he rejoined the Archon, and they flew over the mountains and hills towards C. d' Ampezzo and Yuri's Cenotaph. "On a mission again," Legion giggled, "Finally, after all these years, I am needed once again." Bounding along, the gazelle uttered a very non-gazelle-like laugh, which turned into a howl of delight as it made its way into Garmisch-P. "I think my old friend Dr. Frankenstein may be some help here." After stopping to casually slit a few throats of the local citizenry for fun and profit (taking a total of 175 gold) and deliberately leaving behind some incriminating evidence, it walked up the path to the doctor's lab. "Good evening, doctor! How are those cloning experiments coming along?" Now a well dressed man with an ivory cane, the demon approached the wild-eyed man in the white coat, who whirled around at its approach. "How can they be going anywhere when I'm underfunded? I need at least 300 more gold to start my cloning chamber, and the mayor won't give me a cent more! Something about 'messing with the natural order of things' or some such nonsense. The townspeople think I'm crazy! Me! Crazy!" "Oh, I think that's the least of your worries, doctor. Now they think you're a murderer! Of course, I'm here to help you. I happen to have the 300 gold that you need - but I think that all your clones will be needed for defense of your lab. You may soon have visitors." The well-dressed demon dropped a bag of gold on the table and left, already changing to a form more interesting. Shocked, Dr. Frankenstein looked at the gold and then at the disappearing figure. "Legion? Oh, damn." He quickly scooped up the gold and began adding chemicals to it to feed his experimental cloning chamber. Legion proceeded to Lake Placid, where it performed the usual trick of murder and mayhem for another 175 gold, and then set up a similar cloning facility from the plans he had stolen (along with some spare parts) for another 300 gold. As Mrs. Peel landed near the hidden vault in the foul swamp, the gurgling of the brackish water was the only sound besides the bat's heavy breathing. She dismounted and approached the vault, and as she approached, the ground began to shake and the water began to bubble. Slowly the door to the final resting place of the Archon opened and it revealed itself to her in all its glory. "Now there's someone who really knows how to make an entrance," she thought. "I have a task for you," she called out. "Go to the city of Grenoble and transform the lazy inhabitants into sturdy, hardworking fighters who will have an advantage in all these hills around us, and then capture a central city so we can control the Warbot Temple." The magnificence of the creature left her with a slight headache and nausea, and she and the ugly bat could only fly a little more that day before needing to rest. Meanwhile, the Archon did as it was told, landing in Grenoble and collecting its dues from the local church and putting a spell on it so that it would transform all who entered from fat, useless, lazy Scouts into stocky, dangerous, industrious Dwarves. The church coffers held 175 gold, but the components of the spell cost 450 gold, as such magic never comes without a price. Since the church was regularly attended, the army reserves were sure to grow quickly. It left the city to carry out the second mission, although it held doubts about the wisdom of sending it so far afield with no support. As night fell, Avenger looked at the satellite display and tactical maps. The amusing bit of rhyme from the Organizer forces even inspired him to write a little something of his own. While not having the talent of Gor Bonecracker's minstrel, he felt he should nevertheless respond in kind. The Bonecracker sings, the Bonecracker dances, But that's just because he's got ants in his pantses. With Archons and Worms, the Spectators can't lose, But with whom an alliance shall the Avenger choose? Not Gor the Bonecracker, his start was too slow. And besides, kitty-corner is no way to go. That leaves Rorqual or Apache, the Green or the Orange. Dammit, I forgot, that nothing rhymes with Orange. How could it be both, for there can be only one? But is there a solution in Practice One One? Not alliance, but truce - a non-agression pact. It's worked in the past, and that is a fact. No taking of cities in each other's homeland, But those on the borders aren't likely to stand. Leave me my eight cities, and I'll leave you yours, We won't try to break each other's homes' closed doors. But all in the plains, Oslo, Placid, and Seoul, And anything else we can try to control. So give me an answer, yes give me a sign, And then we can party like it's 2199. And now it is late, I am off to bed, With visions of battle dancing in my head. And Avenger shut down his computer and retired for the night. *********************** Official Turn Report Template ************************ REPORT FOR TOURNAMENT ROUND A, GAME A09, TURN 02, SIDE 4. ============================================================================== Statistics Start of turn John Steed Exp. 2 Cities 2 Gold 4090 Income 60 Expenses 12 New Hero? Emma Peel arrives in Sapporo with an Archon for 1232 gold. Gold Looted/Pillaged/Sacked in Cities: Lt. Cavalry captures Calgary and pillages Scouts for 175 gold Archon captures Grenoble and pillages Scouts for 175 gold Demon captures Garmisch-P and pillages Scouts for 175 gold Demon captures Lake Placid and pillages Scouts for 175 gold Armies Built in Cities: Orcish Mobs built in Sapporo for 300 gold Heavy Infantry built in Garmisch-P for 300 gold Heavy Infantry built in Lake Placid for 300 gold Spiders built in Calgary for 700 gold Dwarves built in Grenoble for 450 gold Hero Emma Peel visits Vault Of Saves and receives an Archon Hero John Steed visits McCuller's Fort and receives a Demon Statistics End of turn Change from start of turn John Steed Exp. 5 +2 Emma Peel Exp. 3 +3 Cities 6 +4 Gold 1508 -2582 Income 140 +80 Expenses 12 0 Round R=A Game xx=09. Next Player's Turn yy=03 Side z=1 _______________________________________________________________________________ __________ __________/ \__________ <__________ Turn 3 __________> \__________/ _______________________________________________________________________________ =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Tournament Game: "A09" Turn Number: 3 Gamefile Sent To: Apache (Orange) (tmholmes@erols.com) Date Sent: Tuesday October 21, 1997 at 02:47 PM EDT Date Gamefile Due: Thursday October 23, 1997 at 2:47 PM EDT (In GMT-0500: Thursday October 23, 1997 at 1:47 PM) -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- _______________________________________________________________________________ The following message was sent on Wednesday October 22, 1997 at 03:58 AM EDT by Thomas Perrier to all players; The Metallian, reading carefully the reports brought by the Remailer, instantaneously noticed the disguised proposal in Avenger's ballad. Although violently contrary to his inner feelings, this kind of alliance could reveal itself as beneficial in the long term ; it may as well be the first step towards defeat, and that's unacceptable ! Unclear about the orders he should give to his ambassador, he finally decides to defer the decision until comes his time to play. { -- - -- - -- - -- - -- - -- - -- - -- - -- - -- - -- - -- - -- - -- - -- } Thomas "Rorqual" Perrier perrie_t@epita.fr Rising from darkness where Hell hath no mercy and the screams of vengeance echo on forever, only those who keep the faith shall escape the wrath of the Metallian... Master of all Metal (Judas Priest) _______________________________________________________________________________ The following message was sent on Wednesday October 22, 1997 at 01:48 PM EDT by MW29@aol.com to all players; A09 Turn 3 Player 1 White At Start: Cities:3 Gold:2252 Income:98 Expenses:31 At End : Cities:8 Gold:127 Income:228 Expenses:31 Lemminkainen searches Domning Domain. Finds Archon. Lemminkainen pillages Antwerp for 175. Gor Bonecracker searches Dirk's Cavern. Finds 2 Ghosts. Experience: Lemminkainen:5 to 10. Gor 2 to 5. Giant pillages Stockholm for 175 Devil pillages St Louis for 175 Ghost pillages Mexico City for 175 Ghost pillages Helsinki for 175 New Builds: Antwerp Dwarves 450 Helsinki Dwarves 450 Athens Pikemen 500 St Louis Spiders 700 Mexico City Wolves 450 Stockholm Dwarves 450 ___________________________ Ah, the secret is out, P-Eleven he has played The Avenger will wish in the shadows he stayed He must fight on the defensive so he seeks an alliance It would be a stroke of luck and requires Apache's compliance He offers to fight over a few lonely cities Apache will take most anyway, on Avenger he must pity Such an alliance is only an illusion With a great defeat, it will be thrown in confusion If a Hero is killed or an Ally defeated And though his friend's protests are heated Into the breach the victor will rush Over the undefended home cities there falls only a hush In all towns the terror is felt The people known the blow to be dealt The Final Round reqires that in A-Nine at least Twenty cities be taken Even if your best friend calls you Forsaken The two Orange heroes both appear Mighty Joined by Wizards and a Dragon, who have been called flighty What if they should ever fly over the sea A bold decisive stroke all would agree Soon the mighty Wizards will fly into Seoul It is, however, not some barren old hole There they will find gold a' plenty I'll bet all I have they are there on Turn Twenty But what of your neighbor the metallic Green If you ignore him the green of envy will be seen It is this Metallian that approaches so proud I can't even think the noise is so loud He carries the Grinder and thinks he cannot be beat But the Bonecracker will split him from his head to his feet Now you have done it, You have raised his ire He comes after you in his Chariot of Fire _______________________________________________________________________________ The following message was sent on Wednesday October 22, 1997 at 07:16 PM EDT by Keirster@aol.com to all players; I just wanted to bring up a couple of interesting points in Gor's last message... <<>> I seek an alliance based on enlightened self-interest - and I wouldn't expect Apache or Rorqual to do anything different. My goal with the proposal is twofold: 1. I don't want to fight a war on two fronts - it means I will have to retreat into a defensive shell, and that's no fun! 2. Allow Apache and Rorqual to concentrate some of their other forces elsewhere if they do not plan to invade me - and then we can beat up on each other at a leter time. Gor wants the two of you to try to pincer me, as he can then expand both South into Green and West into Orange - with the slow start he got, he wants to take advantage of your first heroes moving away from him. <<>> Uh, no, not really. In the three opening rounds, your aggregate score is tallied to see if you move on to round D. A betrayal might be worthwhile in a late round, but not early, when people might be more willing to read your past history later and gang up on you as an untrustworthy so-and-so. <<>> Good advice, I might very well do the same. All I can say is that I must regard any flying column in my homeland as a deadly threat that must swiftly be neutralized with all force. Besides, it again takes potential armies away from the Bonecracker's home. Did he mention that his devil is within striking range of your cities? You may have your hands too full to mount an invasion of my hills. <<>> Well, Rorqual, at least he isn't going to pretend to be your friend! He wants an all-out North/South war, and if that's so, you might want to restrain your troops to the forests and stay out of my hills! I am willing to keep away from any cities in your home ring as long as you do the same for me. Although I will say that if you want the gold in Max's Manor, you'd better get to it first. By the way, did you notice that his lead Ghost can take Barcelona in your forest next turn? That's going to be tough to get rid of if he builds Spiders. I don't want this truce to last forever, but let's say that it lasts through the end of Turn 8, side 4 (me), and then we can re-evaluate our options at tha t time. I'm prepared for a siege if neccesary, but I'd rather fight my way to the Warbot Temple! In conclusion, I'm out to win this and every game I play, but I see no reason why at least one other person can't win along with me. The only question is, do you want to be sandwiched between Avenger and Bonecracker, or do you want to only have to worry about one enemy tearing into your territory? Again, all I care about is what's best for me - but all you should care about is what's best for you, and invading me when I am at full strength is unlikely to be profitable for you as the Bonecracker empire expands at your expense. Nuff said until my turn report, Avenger. _______________________________________________________________________________ The following message was sent on Wednesday October 22, 1997 at 09:49 PM EDT by Matthew Wellens to all players; The Avenger has spoken and called to all The Three must fight all the way to Gor's hall Three against one are the odds I like That will put Gor's head on a long Blue spike Avenger did laugh at Gor's slow start last turn How confusing that with indignation he now does burn No natural alliance with Gor, his start was too slow Even though that alliance would have many prizes to show To fight as Blue is difficult, I know that is true For in another war, I am that color too Going Fourth is an advantage when a mistake is made Into history that other Warlords memory will quickly fade The gods gave us two heroes, one on each front to fight When mine see an enemy, they do not squeal with fright From beginning to end my battles will fairly be fought And hopefully not many lessons will I be taught If it be three against one, so be it I will fight and fight, I will not quit After my defeat, Peace will break out, amongst one and all Three Nobel Peace Prizes, to Warlords, what gall! Gor Bonecracker, The Great Gor mw29@aol.com _______________________________________________________________________________ =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Tournament Game: "A09" Turn Number: 3 Gamefile Sent To: Rorqual (Green) (perrie_t@epita.fr) Date Sent: Wednesday October 22, 1997 at 10:54 PM EDT Date Gamefile Due: Friday October 24, 1997 at 10:54 PM EDT (In GMT+0200: Saturday October 25, 1997 at 4:54 AM) -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- _______________________________________________________________________________ The following message was sent on Wednesday October 22, 1997 at 11:00 PM EDT by Holmes to all players; The storm that pounded the northeastern forests the previous night had spent its fury and dawn had broke in a clear, blue, rain-washed sky. = Mohan had summoned the unit of Wolfriders camped nearby and was on the move hours before the sun rose above the horizon. By early afternoon he had reached the crumbling structure known as Panagos=92 Crypt. A thoroug= h search yielded a black and orange studded headband that seemed to emit a strange glow. On the front of the stone altar on which the headband was found held the inscription < Blessing of Olympus >. = < Great, > thought Mohan, < just what I=92ve always wanted. A blessing. = Couldn=92t use another ally or anything like that....>. He tied the band= around his forehead and exited the ruin. -- As Khazyari approached Amsterdam, a strange smell caught his attention. = A smoky haze seemed to engulf the city. He began to sprint, fearing the city to be aflame, but when he entered the city and witnessed the inhabitants he begun to understand. People were milling around smoking funny little cigarettes; some passed out on the streets, others rolling on the ground in the midst of fits of laughter, and still others walking to and fro aimlessly as if they had forgotten something. He finally located the Orcish Mob that was supposed to escort him through the forests to the distant remains of a city. < Let us be gone for I begin to feel lightheaded, > he mumbled to the orcs while rubbing his eyes. They set out by midmorning and after losing the trail several times, they finally made their way to Hulseman=92s Keep by dusk. Khazyari found= Hercules=92 Spear while examining the ruins and after a few trial throws,= discovered that it traveled faster, farther, and more true than any he had tossed before. = < This weapon will be coated with the blood of my enemies in the coming days! >, he said to himself as he marveled at its craftsmanship. -- After listening to the last verse of the minstrel=92s message from Bonecracker, Apache summoned his scribe and personal guards. < Send this message back with that tone deaf minstrel..... I grow weary of your tiresome rhyme, Heed my words, for the very next time, Your jester enters within my gates, I=92ll send his head home on a silver plate! =2E....and tell him to sing it to Gor in that same, toneless manner. > -- -- = REPORT FOR Round A, Game 09, Turn 3, Side 2 Gold at start: 1084 - Khazyari visits Hulseman=92s Keep and receives Hercules=92 Spear (+2 ba= t) - Mohan visits Panagos=92 Crypt and receives Blessing of Olympus (+1 com)= Cities Taken - Seoul by Wizard, occupied - Paris by Unicorn, pillaged scouts for 175gp - Berlin by Elemental, pillaged scouts for 175gp - London by Wolfriders, pillaged scouts for 175gp Units Purchased - Lt.Infantry in Seoul for 160gp - Dwarves in Seoul for 160gp - Giant Bats in Paris for 160gp - Wolfriders in Amsterdam for 450gp Final cities: 10 = Final gold: 389 Income: 220 Expenses: 34 Hero Exp. = - Mohan: 8 (+3 change) - Khazyari: 6 (+3 change) _______________________________________________________________________________ The following message was sent on Friday October 24, 1997 at 03:54 PM EDT by Thomas Perrier to all players; The Metallian had all the time needed to decide about the future of the international relations of his empire during the period of inactivity following a hard day of massacre and slaughter. Clearly the situation had evolved since the last exchange of diplomatic messages. Avenger explained in more (reassuring) details his vision of the truce, while Gor Bonecracker again made allusions to headless green metallic French warriors... As destabilizing as these words could be, they have no impact on the Metallian ! Finally, the Ambassador in The Couch is convoked by the Metallian to be informed of his decision : "The truce is accepted ; of course it will be instantaneously nullified at the first sign of treachery". Then the hard but most satisfying work started all over again. Several cities were captured, barracks were built in new cities of the empire, and a new ally joined the growing ranks of Rorqual's army, a fiery Dragon ! REPORT FOR TOURNAMENT ROUND A, GAME 9, TURN 3, SIDE 3. ====================================================== Gold at Start of Turn: 1986 Guntar visits Van Koughnett Pit and finds a Dragon ! Devil takes Oslo (pillaged 175 gold). Demon takes Chamonix and Barcelona (pillaged 175 gold in both). Wolfriders take St Moritz (pillaged for 175 gold). New Build of unit type Light Cavalry purchased in Oslo for 200 gold. New Build of unit type Wolfriders purchased in Chamonix for 450 gold. New Build of unit type Spiders purchased in Barcelona for 700 gold. New Build of unit type Light Infantry purchased in St Moritz for 160 gold. Final Cities: 9 Gold: 1176 Income: 200 Expenses: 25. The Metallian : Final Hero Experience: 5 Change from last turn: +0 Guntar : Final Hero Experience: 8 Change from last turn: +3 { -- - -- - -- - -- - -- - -- - -- - -- - -- - -- - -- - -- - -- - -- - -- } Thomas "Rorqual" Perrier perrie_t@epita.fr Rising from darkness where Hell hath no mercy and the screams of vengeance echo on forever, only those who keep the faith shall escape the wrath of the Metallian... Master of all Metal (Judas Priest) _______________________________________________________________________________ =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Tournament Game: "A09" Turn Number: 3 Gamefile Sent To: Avenger (Blue) (keirster@aol.com) Date Sent: Friday October 24, 1997 at 03:54 PM EDT Date Gamefile Due: Monday October 27, 1997 at 3:54 PM EDT (In GMT-0500: Monday October 27, 1997 at 2:54 PM) -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- _______________________________________________________________________________ The following message was sent on Sunday October 26, 1997 at 01:30 PM EST by Keirster@aol.com to all players; As Steed approached the structure known only as Yuri's Cenotaph, he pondered the twists and turns that would soon be changing the face of this contest. In the clearing in front of the stronghold, he noticed that the soil was rich and moist, providing excellent farming soil if someone was to set up here. He bent down, letting the soil fall through his fingers. "Worms. Lots of worms in this soil." He approached the enormous entrance to the ancient building. "I wonder if...." As the double doors swung open at his approach he saw two gigantic worms rise up and slither towards him on the floor of the cavernous chamber. He stood his ground confidently, and they came to an earthshaking stop in front of him. "We bear a messssssage from your massssster," one hissed. "There hassss been an allianccce made with The Metallian - our forcccessss sssshall not conquer their ccccitiessss in their home ring for a few more dayssss." Steed considered this news. "What about Oslo, and Atlanta? Are they considered Green territory?" "They ssshall be ourssss, although The Metallian's forcccessss may try to hold them. They ssshall fall before our power!" "What about Apache's tribes and allies? And the Bonecracker in the Northwest? What is our diplomatic status?" "Orange forcccesss have given no indication of their decccisssion - we mussst asssssssume they plan to invade our hillssss unlesssss we hear otherwissse. The Bonecracker triesss to perssssuade the othersss to turn againssst usss." Steed nodded. "Very well, these are your instructions. One of you meet me in Sydney later today, and the other should capture C. d Ampezzo, and then wait for further instructions. Mrs. Peel is somewhat under-supported at the moment, and the Metallian makes me nervous. Who can read the heart of a machine? Truth is in actions, and we shall monitor his actions in the coming days, as I'm sure he will monitor ours. After all, just because we have an agreement, it doesn't mean we shouldn't build appropriate defenses in case of treachery by the other side. Wait on the eastern road." The worms left to their appointed tasks, and as Steed flew towards Sydney, where he knew somebody who owed him a favor (and 175 gold), he considered the lack of response from Apache. "Well, there's no rush at this time. He can decide next turn if he chooses to, as he can't take any of my cities right now anyway. What does his buildup of forces in Seoul mean? I'm sure he realizes that it was not included as part of Avenger's treaty proposal. I just wish I knew whether he planned a quick invasion or whether he just intened to hold on to the city. Perhaps he will give us a sign of his intentions." Arriving in Sydney, he received a message from his friend Hammond of the cavalry units, telling him about the success of his spider recruitment program and recommending it to Steed in case of enemy invasion. "Yes, the risks of invasion at this point are too great to allow a weak defesive presence in Sydney. We shall take Hammond's advice and recruit spiders in this place." Meanwhile the Worm that captured the previously neutral city of C. d Ampezzo, rose up to intimidate the population, and demanded "Who hasss the courage to fight for the forcccesss of Avenger?" A short, stocky Dwarf stood up and said "I and my many brothers shall join him, for we have heard of his prowess as a warrior and tactician, and of his honorable treatment of those who are height-challenged." Satisfied, the worm left the city. Meanwhile, Emma Peel flew to the seaside city of Rio and embarked on an extensive training program to toughen the fat, lazy scouts that were there and turn them into faster, harder, light infantry. While the training cost her 160 gold, she was able to recoup 175 gold from the sale of the workout tapes, making a profit in the bargain! As she received word of Avenger's deal with the Metallian, she knew that she would have to tread lightly near him. He appeared to be a sensitive soul, and one incautious move on her part could be construed as a violation of the truce. "He had just better remember that while his inner cities are untouchable for now, his personal safety is by no means guaranteed. It will be interesting to see his actions of the next few turns." She returned to the city, where she began scripting her next video where you could get buns of steel instead of flab. ********************** Official Turn Report Template ********************** REPORT FOR TOURNAMENT ROUND A, GAME 09, TURN 03, SIDE 4. =========================================================================== Statistics Start of turn John Steed Exp. 5 Emma Peel Exp. 3 Cities 6 Gold 1636 Income 140 Expenses 34 Hero John Steed visits Ruin Yuri's Cenotaph and receives 2 Giant Worms Gold Looted/Pillaged/Sacked in Cities: Giant Worm captures C. d Ampezzo and pillages Scouts for 175 gold. Emma Peel captures Rio and pillages Scouts for 175 gold. John Steed captures Sydney and pillages Scouts for 175 gold. Armies Built in Cities: Spiders built in Sydney for 700 gold. Light Infantry built in Rio for 160 gold. Dwarves built in C. d Ampezzo for 450 gold. Statistics End of turn Change from last turn John Steed Exp. 10 +5 Emma Peel Exp. 5 +2 Cities 9 +3 Gold 851 -785 Income 200 +60 Expenses 34 34 Round R=A Game xx=09. Next Player's Turn yy=04 Side z=1 _______________________________________________________________________________ =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Tournament Game: "A09" Turn Number: 4 Gamefile Sent To: Gor Bonecracker-B (White) (mw29@aol.com) Date Sent: Sunday October 26, 1997 at 01:32 PM EST Date Gamefile Due: Tuesday October 28, 1997 at 1:32 PM EST -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- _______________________________________________________________________________ The following message was sent on Tuesday October 28, 1997 at 11:20 AM EST by mw3119@IDT.NET to all players; A09 Turn 4 Player 1 White At Start: Cities:8 Gold:324 Income:228 Expenses:69 At End : Cities:10 Gold:728 Income:280 Expenses:69 Lemminkainen searches Cairn of Bazza. Finds 2374 gold. Gor searches Derek's Button. Finds 1 Demon. Gor searches Vallaincourthold. Finds Starter's Gun. Experience: Lemminkainen 10 to 13. Gor 5 to 11. Ghost pillages Melbourne for 175. Ghost pillages Montreal for 175. St Louis builds Bats 160, Lt Inf 160. Los Angeles builds Elephants for 1500. Melbourne builds Pikemen for 500. __________________________________ Alas, I have discovered my Minstrel grows tiring. In deference to Apache, who seems to have a visceral dislike of his musings, I have retired him. I found the Minstrel's banality and utter lack of imagination rather amusing. I can say for certain that these were my only turn reports that were remembered at least 5 seconds. Until my schedule lightens up, and I have time to find a new one, no songs will be sung in the camp of the Great Gor. _______________________________________________________________________________ __________ __________/ \__________ <__________ Turn 4 __________> \__________/ _______________________________________________________________________________ =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Tournament Game: "A09" Turn Number: 4 Gamefile Sent To: Apache (Orange) (tmholmes@erols.com) Date Sent: Tuesday October 28, 1997 at 11:22 AM EST Date Gamefile Due: Thursday October 30, 1997 at 11:22 AM EST -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- _______________________________________________________________________________ =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Tournament Game: "A09" Turn Number: 4 Gamefile Sent To: Rorqual (Green) (perrie_t@epita.fr) Date Sent: Wednesday October 29, 1997 at 01:06 PM EST Date Gamefile Due: Friday October 31, 1997 at 1:06 PM EST (In GMT+0200: Friday October 31, 1997 at 8:06 PM) -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- _______________________________________________________________________________ The following message was sent on Wednesday October 29, 1997 at 01:08 PM EST by Holmes to all players; < Can you hear that? > Apache asked the kitchen servant as he finished the last remains of his meal. The attendant paused and looked at an imaginary point in the air....< Hear what, my lord? Begging your pardon sir, I don=92t hear anything....> < Exactly Alfred, nothing, > exclaimed Apache, < Gor holds true to his word and sends no singers today! I can enjoy my roasted venison in peace for a change. > The Athlete=92s leader sopped up the last remaining juices from his plate with a buttermilk biscuit and popped it into his mouth. < Bring me some more wine and call for my scribe. I must compose a few messages......it is time to communicate with my powerful neighbors. > -- Meanwhile, Khazyari was busy traveling all day and into the evening. = The Orcish Mob were good trailblazers when not under the influence of mind altering substances. By dusk, Khaz reached the long abandoned crypt built for a fallen Hero by the name of Luther. Inspection of the ruin revealed an elaborately decorated portal built into the stone floor. The door contained strange runes which Khaz was unable to read. = A large ruby in its center seemed to pulsate a reddish glow. Always up for an adventure, the Athlete=92s Hero unlatched the door and quickly jumped and rolled into the corner where he crouched, brandishing his sword. The gem ceased its rhythmic beating and.........nothing. Just as Khaz began to rise the door flung wildly open with a huge crash. For a few brief seconds the change in pressure created a vacuum that tried to pull everything into the chasm that had just been opened. A sulfurous stench permeated the crypt. Khaz began to gag and his eyes watered. Just then, the enormous figure leapt from the hole and into the chamber. A red, scaly creature which stood nearly 7 ft. tall, complete with horns and a tail. Its glowing yellow eyes were catlike and scanned the room from side to side, finally resting upon the choking Hero. < YOU!!! >, boomed the Devil=92s voice as he pointed a crooked finger towards Khaz, < Did YOU open this gate??!!! >. In two large steps the Devil loomed over the Hero, peering down into his eyes. Khaz nodded yes and adjusted the grip on his blade, ready to take a good swipe before being crushed like a grape. < YOU released me, Luther, from this prison that has held me for centuries. For this I am eternally grateful, > the Devil extended his clawed hand which Khazyari proceeded to shake with his own, dwarfed in the immense grip of the Devil=92s. < Glad to be of service, > replied Khaz, < let=92s go! Lot=92s of work = to be done........and you should really take a bath, Luther....you=92re smelling very ripe! > Khaz sheathed his sword and began to exit the crypt with Luther following behind, smelling each armpit in succession = <....is it really that bad? > -- The light was quickly leaving as the sun set on the western horizon. A lone scout stood watch in Rome. He checked to make sure he had a torch nearby. As the scout searched, a shadowy form crept out of the trees to one side of the road and melted into the bushes near the castle=92s entrance. < Ahh, here it is, > the watchman muttered to himself as he located the torch, < now where=92s my tinderbox...> When the scout looke= d back up, a pair of eyes stared back at him from only a few feet away. = Surprised, the scout flinched and inhaled sharply as the lightning quick flash of steel caught his helmet. A shower of sparks flew as the blade split the top of the scout=92s head down to his chin. The lifeless form dropped limply to the ground as the last spark settled onto the kerosene-soaked rags and ignited the torch. -- Message To Avenger: Greetings Avenger! I, Apache, leader of the Athletes, wish to apologize for my silence so far in these first few days. I haven=92t ignored your words. My advisor= s and myself have debated the pros and cons of a possible alliance, and now that your armies seem to allied with the great Metal-One we have discussed where you might be sending your forces. If you were also to ally with the Athletes, how would you attack the great Cracker-of-Bones? Pardon my questioning of your military strategies, but it would appear since the distance between you and Gor is so vast that your allies would be taking on the brunt of his armies.......This would leave your forest neighbors weakened and ripe for the picking! = Since Gor seems to be amassing forces on my northwestern border I am deeply concerned that my eyes in the field have also seen a great Spectator force to my south. You were correct in assuming that my units in Seoul were only there to protect and not to invade. Now that those units are greatly outnumbered and out-muscled by your own, we have almost entirely evacuated the city and prepare for defensive maneuvers. = Interested in hearing your thoughts on these matters....... Please don=92t be offended but I am contacting Gor as well. As a militar= y genius yourself, you can understand that a leader does not desire great battles simultaneously on both fronts. Looking out for the well being of my people I feel I must contact the Organizers as well, if for nothing else, to explore my possibilities. Awaiting your reply, Apache (This scroll will self destruct in ten seconds.................) = -- = Message to Gor Bonecracker: Greetings Gor! First, I must extend my gratitude for the cessation of the late minstrel=92s annoying incantations. I was able to enjoy my dinner withou= t interruption for the first time since the start of the tournament. Secondly, as you well know, Avenger has requested that I unite my forces with the armies in order to snuff you out quickly. He must know something about your adeptness in the field that I don=92t. To= this point I have neither accepted nor denied his offer. He assembles a large force on my southern border, similar to your force to my west. I ask that you state your intentions, please. I do not wish to fight on two fronts and must decide quickly where to send my troops, for they are blood-thirsty and are itching for battle. Please honor me with a quick reply as I am also awaiting an answer from Avenger as well. This is not a threat, just a diplomatic request for information. Awaiting your reply, Apache -- -- REPORT FOR Round A, Game 09, Turn 4, Side 2 Gold at start: 575 - Khazyari visits Lair of Luther and gains an evil ally (Devil) Cities Taken -Mohan captures Rome, pillages scouts for 175gp Units Purchased - Hvy. Infantry in for 300gp - Wolfriders in Rome for 450gp Final cities: 11 = Final gold: 0 Income: 240 Expenses: 60 Hero Exp. = - Mohan: 10 (+2 change) - Khazyari: 9 (+3 change) _______________________________________________________________________________ The following message was sent on Friday October 31, 1997 at 04:58 PM EST by Thomas Perrier to all players; Flying high in the skies after an incredible jump allowed by the newly found Jump of Lewis, the Metallian recalls what happended today : This has been a calm day compared to the frenzy of past events. He quickly dispatched a Mighty Injury in Dashorst Pit (ha ! how could you injure a machine made of steel, among other things ?) and stumbled upon the Jump of Lewis, an artifact created by one of the most famous athletes. Meanwhile the faithful Guntar arrived to the Barrow of Bruce, and thanks to his magical abilities and the mystical power of this place, managed to invoke two Elementals and, even more important, to take control of their mind. They dashed to the doors of Beijing, covering a huge number of kilometers, seized the city, went to sleep, all this in only a few hours. Clearly those beasts aren't derived from this dimension considering their life rhytm ! Now all nations are close one from the another, and clashes will break out soon. Let's see what our glorious neighbors are preparing, and don't forget that albeit being merciless with his ennemies, the Metallian is fondamentally righteous and always keeps his word. REPORT FOR TOURNAMENT ROUND A, GAME 9, TURN 4, SIDE 3. ====================================================== Gold at Start of Turn: 1511 Guntar visits the Barrow of Bruce and discovers 2 Elementals. The Metallian visits Dashorst Pit and finds the Jump of Lewis. Elementals take Beijing (pillaged 175 gold). New Build of unit type Unicorns purchased in Beijing for 1100 gold. Final Cities: 10 Gold: 586 Income: 220 Expenses: 55. Guntar : Final Hero Experience: 11 Change from last turn: +3 The Metallian : Final Hero Experience: 8 Change from last turn: +3 { -- - -- - -- - -- - -- - -- - -- - -- - -- - -- - -- - -- - -- - -- - -- } Thomas "Rorqual" Perrier perrie_t@epita.fr Rising from darkness where Hell hath no mercy and the screams of vengeance echo on forever, only those who keep the faith shall escape the wrath of the Metallian... Master of all Metal (Judas Priest) _______________________________________________________________________________ =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Tournament Game: "A09" Turn Number: 4 Gamefile Sent To: Avenger (Blue) (keirster@aol.com) Date Sent: Friday October 31, 1997 at 04:59 PM EST Date Gamefile Due: Monday November 3, 1997 at 4:59 PM EST -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- _______________________________________________________________________________ =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Tournament Game: "A09" Turn Number: 5 Gamefile Sent To: Gor Bonecracker-B (White) (mw29@aol.com) Date Sent: Sunday November 02, 1997 at 12:17 AM EST Date Gamefile Due: Tuesday November 4, 1997 at 12:17 AM EST -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- _______________________________________________________________________________ The following message was sent on Sunday November 02, 1997 at 12:17 AM EST by Keirster@aol.com to all players; John Steed rode the Archon towards Seoul, with the Giant Worm following behind him. "Intelligence reports the large force in Seoul has been vacated, leaving only a token garrison behind. We must investigate the motivations of Apache, and see if he has left any clues behind as to his intentions." After easily dispatching the unit of Spiders that had taken residence at the city gates, Steed visited the army's production facilities to speak to the Dwarf supervisor. "So, why did Apache allow us to take this city almost unopposed? And whatever shall we do with you and your staff?" The supervisor replied "My concern is for my fellows - Apache realized that Mohan and his allies had no chance to survive a concerted attack by you and your allies, so he chose to make a strategic retreat in the hopes that you would not destroy the city." "Not to worry, old fellow," Steed beamed. "I would never destroy anything that may still be of some use to me....." Meanwhile, in it's enthusiasm, the Worm overshot the castle boundaries and ended in the forest in front of a large Wolf. Well, actually, on top of a large Wolf, crushing it. Embarrassed, it returned to the castle. "Ssssorry about that, Ssssteed." In the South, Emma Peel relented in her decree to send the Archon towards the center unsupported, and instead rode to the Goransson Ruin where a cache of funds was supposedly buried and waiting for the Spectator troops. After an extended search, she found a treasure trove of 2498 gold. "Not too bad," she said to herself. "I think I can find a good use for this back at the Couch. In fact, I think it's time to be heading back there - I believe I may have forgotten a vital piece of equipment in my haste to leave." In the darkness, Avenger sat at his computer terminal late into the night, composing appropriate messages to each of the three other warlords in the battle. Apache, leader of the Athletes: Greetings, fellow Warlord! I must assume that I have not made myself clear in my previous messages - I do not seek an alliance between myself and anybody! I merely wish to secure my most important cities from potential invasion on two sides, and as proof of my desire to secure those cities I offer to refrain from attacking similarly situated cities of my neighbors. However, I am perfectly happy taking every other city I can get my hands on. I was wondering whether you would attempt a futile defense of Seoul, especially since you were vectoring armies there. As you have very sensibly vacated the city and avoided a dreadful Orange bloodbath, I will assume that you are interested in an arrangement such as the one I have described. Again, I offer safety for your eight home cities and just-captured Rome until Turn 9 in exchange for a similar guarantee from you for my cities. Considering the position your armies are in, and your lack of defenses in Mt Everest, Tokyo, and other cities near me, I will expect that you will find this a very equitable arrangement. You may, of course, choose to reject my proposal - and accept any consequences that may come of it. Currently, I am moving my hero away from your territory. I look forward to hearing your decision before I take my Turn 5! Rorqual, leader of the Reporters: Congratulations on retrieving the Jump Of Lewis before I was able to. Naturally, I am disappointed to not have the opportunity to take it myself! I also appreciate your direction of the Metallian away from my border - as you can see, I am doing the same with Emma Peel. I look forward to meeting an honorable foe such as yourself on the field of battle. Gor Bonecracker, leader of the Organizers: Well, Bonecracker, you've certainly made up for some lost time, haven't you? It seems to me that Apache and Rorqual both made early moves towards myself, leaving their borders with you relatively unmarked, giving you an opening which you have taken good advantage of. The question is, what now? Do you hold back and consolidate your gains, avoiding unnecessary risk by expanding too far? Will you spread to the center, which is as yet untouched? Or will you mount a full-scale invasion of one of your neighbors? I look forward to slaughtering your heroes sometime around Turn 12! Avenger nodded, satisfied. First blood had been drawn, and the wheels had been put into motion. Only four cities remained neutral, and each side had ten cities. This was about as even a start as one could hope for. Now, at last, the war could truly begin! ********************** Official Turn Report Template ********************** REPORT FOR TOURNAMENT ROUND A, GAME 09, TURN 04, SIDE 4. =========================================================================== Statistics Start of turn John Steed Exp. 10 Emma Peel Exp. 5 Cities 9 Gold 1017 Income 200 Expenses 68 Emma Peel searched Goransson Ruin & found 2498 gold. Armies Built in Cities: Built Elephants in Lake Placid for 1500 gold Built Pegasi in The Couch for 2000 gold Battle for Seoul against Orange: WarBOT v1.0a Armyset: Tournament b1-4 WL version: Mac CD Intense Combat: Off Terrain: Enemy city 3 or 4 prod Hero Bonuses Non- For- TOTAL Minus Fly Natural Item Hero tify City Cancel BONUS Enemy Item -------------------------------------------------------------- ATT: 1 0 1 0 H *2* 0 No DEF: 0 0 0 0 2 *2* 0 No Entered Final Attack Units: Strength Strength Survival % --------------- -------- -------- ---------- *Hero 5 7 0.81520 <-- Lives! Archon 7 9 0.57626 <-- Lives! Defense Units: --------------- Spider 4 8 0.18480 <-- Dies... Attacker wins with 2 unit(s) remaining Battle against Orange Wolfrider on road north of Seoul WarBOT v1.0a Armyset: Tournament b1-4 WL version: Mac CD Intense Combat: Off Terrain: Forests Hero Bonuses Non- For- TOTAL Minus Fly Natural Item Hero tify City Cancel BONUS Enemy Item -------------------------------------------------------------- ATT: 0 0 2 0 *2* 0 No DEF: 0 0 0 0 0 *0* 0 No Entered Final Attack Units: Strength Strength Survival % --------------- -------- -------- ---------- Worm, Giant 7 9 0.72675 <-- Lives! Defense Units: --------------- Wolfrider 4 6 0.27325 <-- Dies... Attacker wins with 1 unit(s) remaining Statistics End of turn Change from start of turn John Steed Exp. 12 +2 Emma Peel Exp. 8 +3 Cities 10 +1 Gold 15 -1002 Income 220 +20 Expenses 68 0 Round R=A Game xx=09. Next Player's Turn yy=05 Side z=1 _______________________________________________________________________________ __________ __________/ \__________ <__________ Turn 5 __________> \__________/ _______________________________________________________________________________ =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Tournament Game: "A09" Turn Number: 5 Gamefile Sent To: Apache (Orange) (tmholmes@erols.com) Date Sent: Monday November 03, 1997 at 10:04 PM EST Date Gamefile Due: Wednesday November 5, 1997 at 10:04 PM EST -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- _______________________________________________________________________________ The following message was sent on Monday November 03, 1997 at 10:07 PM EST by mw3119@IDT.NET to all players; (from mw29@aol.com) A09 Turn 5 Player 1 White At Start: Cities: 10 Gold: 939 Income: 280 Expenses: 113 At End : Cities: 10 Gold: 489 Income: 280 Expenses: 113 Lemminkainen has a few in Bob Heeter's Bar. Finds Pole of Bubka. Experience: Lemminkainen 13 to 16. Gor 11. Build Wolves in Montreal for 450. _____________________________ "Great Gor , you have returned. We despaired of ever finding you." I became lost in the hills in my rush to get here. Where is my Minstrel? "As you commanded, his head adorns a pike in the city square as a warning against others who would commit his crime. He cursed you as he stood before the block and his prophecy spreads like fire amongst the people. All the other Warlords were enraged at his previous words and planned to march on us. They have each sent messages." How I wish my cousin Lemminkainen were here to answer. I have not his understanding of strategy. His choice of giants has proved wise even though I cursed him for it. No doubt he has spent this time drinking and will run at the first sight of the enemy and leave the fighting to me. Well enough. It is battle where I am strongest. I have no skill for this diplomatic mincing and prancing. "You must try , Great Gor, we do not want to fight on two fronts. Remember it is your drunken cousin who would lead our armies against Apache." That would be a grim time indeed. I will do what I must. Now tell me of the Minstrel's prophecy.... _________________________ Noble Apache, your words of a peace between our peoples has surprised me given your prior silence. I will listen to any concrete proposal you offer. The strategic situation may require us to ally depending upon what occurs between Avenger and Metallian. Our metallic friend appears to have given up his natural advantage over our secret friend. If they do not fight each other and instead come towards the Temple, we will be forced to join together whether we want to or not. The next turn or two should tell. On our front, a deadlock seems to have appeared. I still have the starting initiative but long supply lines, and you will sieze control of the center on which I congratulate you. I will follow your example of wisdom for now and wait and watch. If our southern friends fall to fighting, then we will probably have the free-for-all the gods intended. If not, then we must talk. ________________________ Bold Avenger, you have spoken a riddle to which I have no answer despite my infamous association with Minstrels. Very simply, where and how are we to meet in battle on turn twelve? I find it difficult to believe you would march your heroes and armies across the entire diagonal just to take a couple of my cities. I have no intention of marching mine all that way. The time for war is not long enough. I never envisioned us meeting in battle at all unless one of the other kingdoms completely collapsed. I think perhaps this turn twelve hint may just be a way of further tormenting me giving me even more possibilities to consider. Already my limited strategic abilities are at the breaking point. If this is true, it would be an appropriate revenge for my Minstrel's ill chosen words. Please enlighten me. ______________________ Monstrous Metallian , we have had few words between us. I will say I was surprised at you giving up of your advantage over Avenger since your armies are so strong on that front and his strength faces Apache. No doubt your purpose behind that will be revealed soon. I fear that I am soon to meet the Grinder. So be it. I shall bring the Bonecracker. Gor Bonecracker, The Great Gor _______________________________________________________________________________ The following message was sent on Tuesday November 04, 1997 at 03:49 AM EST by Keirster@aol.com to all players; Once again, Avenger wearily sits at his glowing terminal in the darkened room and considers the events of the past turn. Response to Gor Merely an approximation, my dear Bonecracker! I'm sure we shall meet in battle at some point during this game, after all, we all must gravitate towards the center where the temple sits as a center of power. Mustn't we? Even if you concentrate most of your forces on Rorqual and Apache, I'm sure you'll be able to spare some for an assault on the temple - where I shall enjoy meeting you! But, I do not expect that to happen anytime soon. Nevertheless, in a twenty turn game (and I expect we all shall survive those twenty turns), there is ample time to meet all opponents on the field of combat. As much as I might enjoy having an easy victory against three strategy-impaired fools, the evenness of our start over the first four turns reflects well on our relative abilities. The length of the practice round, ten turns, saw a mighty battle brewing between myself and Kullervo (whom you succeded) and would have been interesting to complete if it had gone farther only a few more turns. As this round has more allies and a second hero, I find it likely that our troops would cross paths whether we focus them to our immediate neighbors or not. As I have (I believe) secured my immediate borders from any sneak attack, I plan on focusing towards the center, where I can begin to build a base of power. Even if everyone else reaches it first, I plan to hold it last. Your home cities do not interest me, as I'm sure you have guessed. Any stack I sent against you would be picked to pieces by the time it reached your border. It would cost you dearly, but a war of attrition between two players only leaves easy pickings for the other two. Message to Apache Mighty Warlord, there is little I can add to the Great Gor's response to your request for information on a treaty. The situation between myself and Warlord Rorqual is simple - if he is foolish enough to allow me the chance, I will kill The Metallian. I'm sure that if I give him the opportunity to do so, he will kill either of my heroes without a second thought. As I think neither scenario will happen, I expect that he shall move towards the center while Guntar takes on the Bonecracker's forces - a dicey proposition at best, with his buildup in Montreal. And what kind of alliance might you forge with the Bonecracker? Some time ago, he suggested that you use your Dragon and Wizards to fly over water and attack me. I see he has a flying item now, I wonder to what use he might put it? As I see it, your troops have a number of choices: 1. Defend against a sneak attack from me - well, I'd put some armies in defense against that possibility if I were you. I won't attack for a few turns, but who knows what I may decide after Turn 8? 2. Defend against Lemminkainen and his gold-stealing flying stack - difficult, costly, and time-consuming to do. Make the cost of attacking you too high and force him to lose too much in a combat. 3. All-out assault on the center or myself or the Bonecracker - risky, but potentially rewarding. 4. All of the above - almost certainly fatal, with so few troops! Let me tell you my heroes' plans: John Steed will be retrieving the command item in Langer's Lair, and will then move towards the center. Emma Peel will be looking for gold in all the right places. Neither is interested in moving against you at this time. The wolfrider I killed was a potential threat so close to me. That was in my best interest, not yours. I'm sure you see that sending a lone army towards me is unlikely to be in your best interests at this point as well. Remember, all my thoughts are meant to serve my best interest. If they weren't, I wouldn't give it. You just need to ask yourself whether my thoughts also serve your best interest. Message to Rorqual - good luck, you're going to need it! As I mentioned, Emma Peel is withdrawing from the front lines - please do not pursue her or you might find my troops getting a little nervous and trigger-happy! ************************************************************* Avenger sent the message, and leaned back in his chair. "The art of diplomacy," he thought, "is similar to slow dancing with your brother's ugly wife. The element of danger spices what might otherwise be boring, and one wrong move can get you an axe in the forehead." He shut down the computer and walked away. "Sun Tzu, eat your heart out!" _______________________________________________________________________________ The following message was sent on Tuesday November 04, 1997 at 03:49 AM EST by Keirster@aol.com to all players; Once again, Avenger wearily sits at his glowing terminal in the darkened room and considers the events of the past turn. Response to Gor Merely an approximation, my dear Bonecracker! I'm sure we shall meet in battle at some point during this game, after all, we all must gravitate towards the center where the temple sits as a center of power. Mustn't we? Even if you concentrate most of your forces on Rorqual and Apache, I'm sure you'll be able to spare some for an assault on the temple - where I shall enjoy meeting you! But, I do not expect that to happen anytime soon. Nevertheless, in a twenty turn game (and I expect we all shall survive those twenty turns), there is ample time to meet all opponents on the field of combat. As much as I might enjoy having an easy victory against three strategy-impaired fools, the evenness of our start over the first four turns reflects well on our relative abilities. The length of the practice round, ten turns, saw a mighty battle brewing between myself and Kullervo (whom you succeded) and would have been interesting to complete if it had gone farther only a few more turns. As this round has more allies and a second hero, I find it likely that our troops would cross paths whether we focus them to our immediate neighbors or not. As I have (I believe) secured my immediate borders from any sneak attack, I plan on focusing towards the center, where I can begin to build a base of power. Even if everyone else reaches it first, I plan to hold it last. Your home cities do not interest me, as I'm sure you have guessed. Any stack I sent against you would be picked to pieces by the time it reached your border. It would cost you dearly, but a war of attrition between two players only leaves easy pickings for the other two. Message to Apache Mighty Warlord, there is little I can add to the Great Gor's response to your request for information on a treaty. The situation between myself and Warlord Rorqual is simple - if he is foolish enough to allow me the chance, I will kill The Metallian. I'm sure that if I give him the opportunity to do so, he will kill either of my heroes without a second thought. As I think neither scenario will happen, I expect that he shall move towards the center while Guntar takes on the Bonecracker's forces - a dicey proposition at best, with his buildup in Montreal. And what kind of alliance might you forge with the Bonecracker? Some time ago, he suggested that you use your Dragon and Wizards to fly over water and attack me. I see he has a flying item now, I wonder to what use he might put it? As I see it, your troops have a number of choices: 1. Defend against a sneak attack from me - well, I'd put some armies in defense against that possibility if I were you. I won't attack for a few turns, but who knows what I may decide after Turn 8? 2. Defend against Lemminkainen and his gold-stealing flying stack - difficult, costly, and time-consuming to do. Make the cost of attacking you too high and force him to lose too much in a combat. 3. All-out assault on the center or myself or the Bonecracker - risky, but potentially rewarding. 4. All of the above - almost certainly fatal, with so few troops! Let me tell you my heroes' plans: John Steed will be retrieving the command item in Langer's Lair, and will then move towards the center. Emma Peel will be looking for gold in all the right places. Neither is interested in moving against you at this time. The wolfrider I killed was a potential threat so close to me. That was in my best interest, not yours. I'm sure you see that sending a lone army towards me is unlikely to be in your best interests at this point as well. Remember, all my thoughts are meant to serve my best interest. If they weren't, I wouldn't give it. You just need to ask yourself whether my thoughts also serve your best interest. Message to Rorqual - good luck, you're going to need it! As I mentioned, Emma Peel is withdrawing from the front lines - please do not pursue her or you might find my troops getting a little nervous and trigger-happy! ************************************************************* Avenger sent the message, and leaned back in his chair. "The art of diplomacy," he thought, "is similar to slow dancing with your brother's ugly wife. The element of danger spices what might otherwise be boring, and one wrong move can get you an axe in the forehead." He shut down the computer and walked away. "Sun Tzu, eat your heart out!" _______________________________________________________________________________ The following message was sent on Wednesday November 05, 1997 at 09:20 AM EST by Holmes to all players; Apache=92s war council was assembled inside of the sweat lodge. The leader of the Athletes always held his military meetings here....the very same one his ancestors had sat under centuries ago. Its=92 animal hide walls had been replaced, one by one, many times over the years as well as the leather thongs and the massive log supports, but it still held for Apache=92s people. He could feel the spirits of= his forefathers watching over them at this very moment..... < Three-Toes, bring the war council up to date on the recent movements and communications! > Apache barked at his head advisor. As the members sat around the crackling fire and passed a pipe, ThreeToes unrolled a scroll and began to read.... < Steed and the Spectator forces have acted as we believed they would....Seoul has been lost and minor casualties have been reported. = The Spectator Hero now moves away from Seoul with his allies....> The members of the Athlete=92s council nodded and besides the occasional murmur, remained silent. <....Furthermore, Avenger of the Spectators has sent us a message declaring once again that he seeks no alliance and offers a mutual understanding that we shall respect each other=92s home cities and shall not attack until the 9th day of this first round of battle..> Mumbling broke out from the council as they whispered amongst themselves. Apache spoke, < Quiet!....Read on Three-Toes....>. <...Avenger believes he can inflict devastating damages deep within our territory and warns of this if we choose not to agree to his proposal..> Angry voices arose from the circle. Some cursed the arrogance of his communications, some of ultimatums, and others shouted for immediate war. When the din rose so much that Apache=92s ears ached, he stood and shouted, < Is this not what we expected!!?? Mighty chiefs, is this not what we wanted!!?? You all bicker and whine like old squaws!! We are warriors... remember? Do not speak as if you were otherwise....I convened the council to discuss my options.....>. Apache sat again and motioned for the chief advisor to continue, glaring angrily at the circle of councilmen. <...Gor Bonecracker, leader of the Organizers, has responded to our message a little more diplomatically. He claims he will listen to any proposal we offer and suggests that some kind of Alliance may be required between our forces....depending on the actions of the Reporters and the Spectators. His words seem true...but his actions show otherwise...>. The lodge once again began to stir restlessly, but somewhat reserved as all eyes fell on Apache who sat calmly at the circle=92s head, puffing on the pipe. His gaze was stony and his face stern.....he nodded at Three-Toes. The advisor continued, <...Lemminkainen has moved his aerial forces just a few leagues away from Irwin=92s Vault which is situated within our territory....>. He paused to allow the murmurs to subside, then continued, <...Our mighty Khazyari is en route to that ruin as we speak and shall be disappointed to find it plundered! > One council member spoke, < My lord, I suggest that we attack this Lemminkainen! He shall have our gold but we shall have his head!> Another spoke, < ...And then we can add Steed=92s to the collection!!> = The chiefs and advisors whooped and hollered in agreement. Just as the assembled circle threatened to lose control Apache rose and bellowed, < Cease these mindless chattering and BEGONE!!...I will think better on my own! >. Apache retained only his scribe and Three-Toes. = The advisors and councilmen filed out of the lodge until only those three remained. Apache finally spoke, < Scribe, send this to our powerful enemies....> = -- Avenger: You seem to anticipate my every move. For this I must commend you. A great military genius, indeed. As you will notice, I have done very little to defend my home cities from a Spectator invasion. If you wish, you could plunge deep within my territory.....but remember that the forces that you use must not leave their posts too lightly guarded for the Athletes will retaliate if this were to happen. At the moment I have no desire to strike at your home cities even though my unit of Wolfriders was so mercilessly slaughtered. That army was little more than a fly to your mighty lion and posed no threat, but such is war. = The Athletes shall wait and watch the mighty Avenger to see if his words do indeed speak truth.... -- Gor: Yes, our northern border seems to resulted in a standoff and I believe we should hold onto these forces rather than dwindle them down into nothing while the south grows stronger with every day. You and I may need some of these armies to fend off invasion from the south. What you speak of rings true; If Avenger and the Metallion remain united it would suit our needs to fight side by side, but if battles break out along their border then yes, it will be a free for all. I can do nothing to prevent the plundering of Irwin=92s Vault by Lemminkainen so spend the gold wisely. I suggest a guarded non-aggression pact until more unfolds to our south.....As I stated, we can=92t afford to bicker among ourselves while the southern powers reinforce those borders. The Reporters appear to be massing their forces near yourself....we shall see what happens. Berlin is yours, as it could have been for the past few days. If you would like something a little more set in stone, please suggest it. I hesitate because your Hero and flying armies are soaring over my forests now, yet you suggest possible peace. Awaiting your reply. -- -- = REPORT FOR Round A, Game 09, Turn 5, Side 2 Gold at start: 171 - Mohan visits Ivan=92s Pallisade and receives 2,449gp - Elemental vists Warbot Temple and receives the game's 1st blessing Cities Taken -Dragon, 2 Wiz=92s, Elem, Dwarf, & Lt.Inf capture Dublin and occupy Units Purchased - Spiders for 700gp & Lt.Infantry for 160gp in Dublin - Spiders for 700gp & Lt.Infantry for 160gp in London - Spiders for 700gp in Paris Final cities: 11 = Final gold: 200 Income: 240 Expenses: 86 Hero Exp. = - Mohan: 13 (+3 change) - Khazyari: 9 (no change) _______________________________________________________________________________ =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Tournament Game: "A09" Turn Number: 5 Gamefile Sent To: Rorqual (Green) (perrie_t@epita.fr) Date Sent: Wednesday November 05, 1997 at 09:21 AM EST Date Gamefile Due: Friday November 7, 1997 at 09:21 AM EST (In GMT+0200: Friday November 7, 1997 at 4:21 PM) -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- _______________________________________________________________________________ =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Tournament Game: "A09" Turn Number: 5 Gamefile Sent To: Avenger (Blue) (keirster@aol.com) Date Sent: Friday November 07, 1997 at 06:39 PM EST Date Gamefile Due: Monday November 10, 1997 at 6:39 PM EST -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- _______________________________________________________________________________ The following message was sent on Friday November 07, 1997 at 06:39 PM EST by Thomas Perrier to all players; First my opinion about our different stories. I think it may be a bit late to "standardize" our vastly divergent stories ; perhaps we should have agreed on a universe in which our stories take place at the very beginning of the round. Now it may be interesting to imagine how so different realities will react when interacting one with the another : I don't know which caracter will be the most disconcerted, with the Metallian facing John Steed, for example ! ---------------------------------------- Let's examine the situation, now that one fourth of the game elapsed : The map is almost symmetric, and so is our repartition. The truce with Avenger is going along quite well (except for a little hesitation of the Metallian and the resulting concerns of Avenger) ; it will last three more turns before being reaxamined, and our friends we will not betray. North of the Reporters' land, impressive stacks of armies are piling up ; will it degenerate in an attrition war or will cunning prevail ? The following turns will naturally decide. War is inevitable : one side offered a truce which was accepted, and there aren't too many places left to expand, except maybe for the center... Speaking of the center, even the distant Apache is not so distant now that he has massively invaded the inner mountains ! No doubt he's firmly decided to hold it. The Metallian will have to hire a new ambassador for Locker Room ! This turn, a Kneecap Hitter merely rebounced upon the Metallian's rear left leg (did you think this machine was shaped like a human being ?), who barely noticed the "Clunk" it made. He was all too absorbed by his discovery : Max's safe, hidden in a secret room of the manor. The door opened itself, with the master of Metal in front of it, and revealed 2447 gold pieces... And Guntar found Tonya's Fanclub, a strange but nevertheless powerful artifact, in Vicker's Finale. REPORT FOR TOURNAMENT ROUND A, GAME 9, TURN 5, SIDE 3. ====================================================== Gold at Start of Turn: 751 The Metallian visits Max's Manor and receives 2447 gold. Guntar visits Vicker's Finale and receives Tonya's Fanclub (+1 command). New Build of unit type Spiders purchased in St Moritz for 700 gold. New Build of unit type Spiders purchased in Nagano for 700 gold. New Build of unit type Elephants purchased in Chamonix for 1500 gold. Final Cities: 10 Gold: 298 Income: 220 Expenses: 85. Guntar : Final Hero Experience: 14 Change from last turn: +3 The Metallian : Final Hero Experience: 11 Change from last turn: +3 { -- - -- - -- - -- - -- - -- - -- - -- - -- - -- - -- - -- - -- - -- - -- } Thomas "Rorqual" Perrier perrie_t@epita.fr Rising from darkness where Hell hath no mercy and the screams of vengeance echo on forever, only those who keep the faith shall escape the wrath of the Metallian... Master of all Metal (Judas Priest) _______________________________________________________________________________ =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Tournament Game: "A09" Turn Number: 6 Gamefile Sent To: Gor Bonecracker-B (White) (mw29@aol.com) Date Sent: Sunday November 09, 1997 at 02:10 AM EST Date Gamefile Due: Tuesday November 11, 1997 at 02:10 AM EST -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- _______________________________________________________________________________ The following message was sent on Sunday November 09, 1997 at 02:10 AM EST by Keirster@aol.com to all players; John Steed rode south to a small cave where he was supposed to meet one of his last contacts, a man named Mike Langer. However, when he arrived, he found the cave deserted, and only a large weightlifter's belt with the word "Cavalier" inscribed onto it on the ground. As he picked up the belt, he felt a heady rush of power, and he looked at the belt in surprise. The mere act of picking up the belt made him feel stronger and as if he had more stamina. "Tomorrow," he thought,"I shall test my limits of strength and speed. Now I wonder what will happen when I actually put the belt on...." As he buckled the belt around his waist, he felt a rush of self-confidence, as if he could accomplish anything he put his mind to. "Such power in such a small object," he said to his awaiting escorts as he left Langer's Lair. "Surely our government cannot lose with this power at our disposal!" The Worm hissed at him, "Perhapssss - and perhapssss not. And don't call me Sssshirley!" With a withering glance at the snickering worm, Steed mounted the Archon and moved along the lakeshore road. At the end of the day, he received a messenger from Seoul, who brought him a tasty bag lunch (Seoul food). The messenger gave Steed the scroll and awaited further instructions. Steed scanned the scroll, noting the possibility of an alliance between the Bonecracker and Apache. Apache's request for a truce may very well be honored by the Bonecracker, but at a cost of Berlin and a large amount of gold. Steed shook his head in sympathy. "We shall not add to Apache's troubles in his homeland. I am pleased that he has accepted Avenger's proposal. His description of his lone wolfrider as a fly to our lion was amusing, if not entirely accurate. Even the lowliest bat may become a deadly enemy when supported by the right troops." Steed considered the garrison's next move. "This is what we shall do. Send all dwarves away from Seoul. Move the spider and Light Cavalry from Sydney into Seoul. Send any spiders in Seoul for laps around the city until they are too tired to move and must rest for the day. This way they shall not be able to attack Mt. Everest in their next turn. I believe that Apache will see this as a sensible defensive strategy for the garrison there, limiting their attacking ability, but not leaving the city defenseless in case of a concerted attack." "A great military genius, indeed!" Avenger had written on the scroll. "He flatters me and warns me in the next breath. Now there's a Warlord I can relate to! He takes risks, sending all his support troops into Dublin, while realizing my Worm and Dwarf could take Mt Everest and tear into his homeland like a deadly tornado. I appreciate his courage, and we will do nothing to give the impression that I will break our agreement. The question I have now is.... What sort of 'alliance' will Bonecracker suggest for the Athletes?" On the other side of the Spectators' territory, Emma Peel began her long track back to Aubert's Crypt. While she knew the crypt was heavily guarded, she was confident in her ability to conquer the monsters that dwelled within. "It seems my task is to be the financier for this mission while John goes out and has all the fun in the front lines. I'll have to have a word with him when I next see him! At any rate, I had better secure the TV rights for this event - I can't believe that we've waited until the last minute. What would Ted Turner say?" Leaving marching orders for the local dwarves, Emma flew off towards the Crypt and its awaiting treasures. The dwarves crept off to the hills to guard against the possibility of a sneak attack, even though nobody believed the Metallian would do such a baseless thing, while a spider from Rio was called in to reinforce Grenoble. As Mrs. Peel left the vicinity, she thought to herself, "If you're going to turn your back to the enemy, you'd better be wearing a decent suit of armor!" After watching his heroes and their allies move through the land, Avenger assessed the relative positions of the Warlords for his historical record. The first quarter of the contest was over, and history demanded an accounting at this time, just before the battles began in earnest. "The Organizers started slowly, but freedom along their border allowed them to overcome their initial neglect. Swift and decisive movement by their heroes allowed them to capture a powerful flying artifact and use it to move to a position where they can steal a cache of gold from the organizers. By creating powerful hero stacks, he will be very difficult to stop unless he makes a mistake." "The Athletes made an early push south and neglected their west. Now they are paying for that decision with the loss of their gold - unless the Organizers see fit to allow them to keep the gold in a spirit of generosity? The Athletes push to the middle in an effort to make up lost ground." "The Reporters made an early push east, but were able to cover their northern borders in a defensive position. Their hero's speed captured the other flight artifact, giving them a tactical advantage over the groups to the east. They also appear to be consolidating their forces into a few primary stacks, difficult to stop but easier to avoid." "The Spectators, faced with advancing enemies on both fronts, quickly proposed a minor treaty to both the Athletes and Reporters, and it seems to have successfully guarded their borders while they build up defenses. Spreading out their defenses gives a flexibility that the Organizers and Reporters lack." Hey everybody it's fun time, fun time.... ********************** Official Turn Report Template ********************** REPORT FOR TOURNAMENT ROUND A, GAME 09, TURN 05, SIDE 4. =========================================================================== Statistics Start of turn John Steed Exp. 12 Emma Peel Exp. 8 Cities 10 Gold 167 Income 220 Expenses 101 Hero John Steed visits Ruin/Temple Langer's Lair and receives Anton Geesink's Belt No battles to report for this turn. Statistics End of turn Change from start of turn John Steed Exp. 15 +3 Emma Peel Exp. 8 +0 Cities 10 +0 Gold 167 +0 Income 220 +0 Expenses 101 +0 Round R=A Game xx=09. Next Player's Turn yy=06 Side z=1 _______________________________________________________________________________ __________ __________/ \__________ <__________ Turn 6 __________> \__________/ _______________________________________________________________________________ =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Tournament Game: "A09" Turn Number: 6 Gamefile Sent To: Apache (Orange) (tmholmes@erols.com) Date Sent: Tuesday November 11, 1997 at 01:42 AM EST Date Gamefile Due: Thursday November 13, 1997 at 01:42 AM EST -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- _______________________________________________________________________________ The following message was sent on Tuesday November 11, 1997 at 01:45 AM EST by mw3119@IDT.NET to all players; (from mw29@aol.com) A09 Turn 6 Player 1 White At Start: Cities:10 Gold:656 Income:280 Expenses:150 At End: Cities:14 Gold:2219 Income:384 Expenses:103 Lemminkainen is now level 2. Strength 6. Lemminkainen searches Irwins Vault for 2451 gold Experience: Gor 11. Lemminkainen 16 to 19. Dwarf occupies Orange Berlin. Loot 9. Ghost pillages Green Beijing for 550. Loot 14. Ghost pillages Moscow for 850. See Warbot. Devil sacks London for 500. Loot 9. See Warbot. Builds: Berlin: Lt Inf 160 Stockholm: Archers 1000 Mex Cty: Lt Inf 160, Bats 160 Melbourne: Lt Inf 160, Bats 160 Moscow: Bats 160 Montreal: Bats 160, Spiders 700 Warbot(2) (1) Siege of Neutral Moscow: WarBOT v1.0a Armyset: Tournament b1-4 WL version: Mac CD Intense Combat: Off Terrain: Neutral city 1 or 2 prod Hero Bonuses Non- For- TOTAL Minus Fly Natural Item Hero tify City Cancel BONUS Enemy Item -------------------------------------------------------------- ATT: 0 0 1 0 *1* 0 No DEF: 0 0 0 0 0 *0* 0 No Entered Final Attack Units: Strength Strength Survival % --------------- -------- -------- ---------- Ghost 5 6 0.52921 <-- Lives! Bat, Giant 1 2 0.15178 <-- Dies.. Bat, Giant 1 2 0.05539 <-- Dies.. Defense Units: --------------- Griffin 6 8 0.47079 <-- Dies... Attacker wins with 1 unit(s) remaining (2) Siege of Orange London: WarBOT v1.0a Armyset: Tournament b1-4 WL version: Mac CD Intense Combat: Off Terrain: Enemy city 3 or 4 prod Hero Bonuses Non- For- TOTAL Minus Fly Natural Item Hero tify City Cancel BONUS Enemy Item -------------------------------------------------------------- ATT: 0 0 1 0 H *1* 0 No DEF: 0 0 0 0 2 *2* 0 No Entered Final Attack Units: Strength Strength Survival % --------------- -------- -------- ---------- Devil 7 8 0.53578 <-- Lives! Giant 6 7 0.27877 <-- Dies.. Spider 4 7 0.10219 <-- Dies.. Pikeman 4 5 0.01260 <-- Dies.. Dwarf 4 5 0.00130 <-- Dies.. Defense Units: --------------- Unicorn 6 8 0.46422 <-- Dies... Wolfrider 4 6 0.21454 <-- Dies... Wolfrider 4 6 0.09208 <-- Dies... Infantry, Hv 4 7 0.02491 <-- Dies... Orcish Mob 2 4 0.00019 <-- Dies... Attacker wins with 1 unit(s) remaining _________________________________ "And the Fate of the World shall Rest upon a Metallic Hinge." (From the Prophesy of the Minstrel) Alas, it came to pass that all eyes turned to the South and the fearsome Metallian. The armies of Gor, Apache, and Avenger all waited to see who would feel his wrath. To the North and enemies must become friends. To the East and those cities would know chaos and death. All prayed that the steely gaze passed them by. Humbled indeed were the other human warlords whose fate would be decided by a machine of metal. Did its steel heart rejoice at the power it held? ___________________________ Apache, an explanation of my actions. You can judge whether they were fair or not. (1) I felt I had no choice but to sack London because of the Spiders there. With two cities producing Spiders, I would quickly be overrun. (2) Because of my slow start, I am outnumbered on each front. You lost more, but I lost better. Given my small number of troops on this front, I felt I had to restore a balance. My long supply lines force me to retreat, and London is once again yours minus the spiders. (3) I have taken Berlin as you suggested. So as not to pressure you, I built the weak Lt Inf. Had I built Wolves or Spiders there, you would have been justified in putting it to the sack. (4) You have little gold thanks to me, but will be able to capture Atlanta and Munich this turn and can get gold there. Atlanta would be a good choice for pillaging to keep it out of the Metallian's hands. It seems you will dominate the center. I have no intentions to fight there, but I will fight anyone who takes Moscow. (5) My actions on both fronts seek to preserve a balance until I can figure out the course this war will take. I am boxed in in Montreal, and if I dare leave its walls will be overrun by the Green Horde. On our front, we wait to see how the Blue/Green dynamic plays out. I will respect your holding of the center if you respect my holding of Moscow and Berlin. I seek no conflict with you over those 5 cities. I would characterize our current situation as a Cold War.Strength will be respected and weakness punished. Regardless of how the Blue/Green dynamic plays out, I consider our front to be a secondary front. The bulk of my troops will be sent South unless you massively reinforce this area. I think we are in for a rather intriguing game of chess. ______________________ Avenger, I agree with most of your 5 turn summary. Congratulations on such a good start. I doubt many Blue warlords have achieved parity by the 5th turn. ______________________ Btw, Sorry this turn took so long. I was delayed by endless Warbot calculations. It seemed every piece I moved required a Warbot check to see if I had just committed suicide. Things are definitely getting interesting. _______________________________________________________________________________ The following message was sent on Tuesday November 11, 1997 at 12:00 PM EST by Keirster@aol.com to all players; "This is an interesting turn of events," Avenger murmured to himself as he viewed the latest tactical map. "The Bonecracker has taken one central city, captured Dublin as Apache expected, but also sacked London and Beijing, two cities that Apache and Rorqual had invested a lot of money in, gold that now fills the Bonecracker's coffers. Now how do I turn this to my advantage?" He pondered, sitting silently as potential scenarios played themselves out in his head. Finally his eyes rose to his terminal, and he chuckled. "I guess mom was right after all - honesty IS the best policy!" Apache, accept my sympathies on the loss of London and the spiders therein. It seems to me that you have a serious problem on your western front, and so I need to ask you two questions: How can I help, and, What's in it for me? I am willing to re-negotiate our current treaty, given your current situation, but as it stands right now I have much to gain by waiting for it to expire and then invading you while your forces are busy defending against Lemminkainen. So, if you have any suggestions for a renewed (and revised) treaty, I shall be glad to entertain them. The Organizer forces have grown rich and powerful, and consequently I see them as a greater long-term threat than yourself. Rorqual, accept my sympathies on the loss of Beijing and your unfinished Unicorns. That's a lot of cash to simply throw away like that. I hope you find a way to kill that ghost invader without any danger to your armies. With Bonecracker's elephants arriving in Montreal on Turn 8, you're going to have your hands full pretty soon. Gor - nice moves, the only question I have now is this: Will your power threaten myself anytime soon? Avenger sent the message and left the room. Further study of the tactical map would help influence where he moved his armies over the next three turns, and he would await the coming diplomatic messages with great interest. _______________________________________________________________________________ The following message was sent on Wednesday November 12, 1997 at 04:16 PM EST by Thomas Perrier to all players; Hmmm... Gor opted for capturing and pillaging Beijing. Don't worry, Avenger, I already found out how to slain the intruder with very little damage. I just hope Gor realized that the capture of Beijing entailed the death of his Ghost. Is this part of an elaborate strategy ? Does he think the gain of 550 gold counterbalance the loss of a Ghost ? Someone established that this game was of the Cold War type. It's certainly true, except that none of us holds the kind of power nuclear weapons gave to those possessing them, thus maintaining equilibrium. As a result, this equilibrium will certainly soon fall apart in our game ! { -- - -- - -- - -- - -- - -- - -- - -- - -- - -- - -- - -- - -- - -- - -- } Thomas "Rorqual" Perrier perrie_t@epita.fr Rising from darkness where Hell hath no mercy and the screams of vengeance echo on forever, only those who keep the faith shall escape the wrath of the Metallian... Master of all Metal (Judas Priest) _______________________________________________________________________________ =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Tournament Game: "A09" Turn Number: 6 Gamefile Sent To: Rorqual (Green) (perrie_t@epita.fr) Date Sent: Wednesday November 12, 1997 at 10:34 PM EST Date Gamefile Due: Friday November 14, 1997 at 10:34 PM EST (In GMT+0100: Saturday November 15, 1997 at 4:34 AM) -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- _______________________________________________________________________________ The following message was sent on Wednesday November 12, 1997 at 10:35 PM EST by Holmes to all players; Mohan began the trek to Munich before dawn. With the help from a unit of Wolfriders he was able to traverse the last few leagues through the forest without any mishap. Outside of Munich=92s walls waited a robed figure, incessantly chattering to himself. Mohan silently approached the wizard and whispered into his ear, < Rodan....we meet again! >. The wizard whirled around, staggered backwards, and grabbed his chest....< You gave me an awful fright, my lord...> Mohan smirked....< Are we ready Mage? >. The Wizard nodded, still trying to calm his rapidly beating heart. < Let=92s go, > the hero muttered. With the Wizard=92s magic, they levitated over the walls and dispatched o= f the unsuspecting Griffin with relative ease. Knowing that the Athletes needed more gold to supply their armies and clothe their citizens, Mohan destroyed Munich=92s Griffin production and loaded up the gold that was t= o be spent on that into a sack and handed it to Rodan...< Carry this! > -- Khazyari could only watch from a distance as the Organizers betrayed Apache and captured London. Tendrils of smoke could be seen rising from the far away city and since the walls still stood, he assumed that London had been sacked. < Tis not enough to steal the gold from us.....but Lemminkainen also oversees the sacking of our city! >, Khazyari thought to himself as he felt his blood boiling. < Move out!! > he shouted to his troops. The small army moved through the forests and halfway to London he ordered everyone but Luther to stay behind. The Hero and the Devil then proceeded on to an empty London, which still smoldered, and reclaimed the city in the name of the Athletes....looting 79 gold while in the process. < Any little bit helps, I imagine. > They then vacated the city and returned to the camp which was situated between two lakes. As night began to take the land, a unit of Unicorns were warmly welcomed into the camp. -- Avenger, I accept your sympathies but require no aid in my endeavors. I=92ve made= my bed, now I must lie in it. I will defend my western border and still attempt to guard against a possible invasion from your forces.....I hope you retain more honor than some of the Warlords who speak with forked-tongues. May the Gods smile upon your armies.... Gor, I, too, enjoy a good game of chess....and it would seem that you=92re several pieces ahead of me at the present time. I welcome the challenge of playing you.........your move. - Apache -- -- = REPORT FOR Round A, Game 09, Turn 6, Side 2 Gold at start: 303 Cities Taken - Khazyari/Devil retake empty London, loots 79, and occupies - Mohan/Wizard take Munich and pillage Griffins for 850gp = - Elemental takes empty Moscow, loots 79, and pillages Giant Bats for 80 Units Purchased - Pikemen in Munich for 500gp - Lt.Infantry in Munich for 160gp - Spiders in Munich for 700gp Final cities: 12 = Final gold: 31 Income: 260 Expenses: 99 Hero Exp. = - Mohan: 15 (+2 change) - Khazyari: 11 (+2 change) -- -- WarBOT v1.0a Armyset: Tournament b1-4 = WL version: Mac CD Intense Combat: Off Terrain: Neutral city 1 or 2 prod Hero Bonuses Non- For- TOTAL Minus Fly Natural Item Hero tify City Cancel BONUS Enemy Item -------------------------------------------------------------- ATT: 1 2 2 0 *5* 0 No = DEF: 0 0 0 0 0 *0* 0 No = Entered Final Attack Units: Strength Strength Survival % --------------- -------- -------- ---------- *Hero 5 10 0.94570 <-- Lives! Wizard 7 12 0.77424 <-- Lives! Defense Units: --------------- Griffin 6 8 0.05430 <-- D