DUELMASTERS NEWSLETTER Date : 03/05/2004 Duedate: 03/18/2004 ZENSU ARENA DM-40 TURN-436 This Weeks Top Honors THE DUELMASTER IS CMOT DIBBLER THE DISC (411) (40-4011) [14-1-1,121] Chartered Recognition Leader Unchartered Recognition Leader CMOT DIBBLER POSITION IS EMPTY THE DISC (411) (40-4011) [14-1-1,121] Popularity Leader This Weeks Favorite SIANNA TWO FLOWER BEYOND THE PALE (337) THE DISC (411) (40-3914) [26-15-1,110] (40-4068) [3-1-0,33] THE CURRENT TOP TEAM WIMPS MOST FOWL (355) TEAMS ON THE MOVE TOP CAREER HONORS Team Name Point Gain Chartered Team 1. THE DISC (411) 33 2. WIMPS MOST FOWL (355) 32 THE DISC (411) 3. BEYOND THE PALE (337) 7 Unchartered Team 4. THAT 80'S METAL (394) 5 5. TACO GODS (152) 0DUELING FOR DOLLARS (236) The Top Teams Career Win-Loss Record W L K % Win-Loss Record Last 3 Turns W L K 1/ 3 THE DISC (411) 42 32 2 56.8 1/ 1 WIMPS MOST FOWL (355) 13 2 1 2/ 4 WIMPS MOST FOWL (355) 368 283 18 56.5 2/ 2 THE DISC (411) 8 7 0 3/ 2 THAT 80'S METAL (394) 87 68 1 56.1 3/ 3 BEYOND THE PALE (337) 7 8 1 4- 5 TACO GODS (152) 479 398 29 54.6 4/ 5 THAT 80'S METAL (394) 4 6 0 5- 7*APES OF WRATH (408) 4 4 1 50.0 5- 4 TACO GODS (152) 2 2 0 6- 8*GARDEN OF HORRORS (393) 3 4 0 42.9 6- 9*GARDEN OF HORRORS (393) 1 0 0 7/ 9 BEYOND THE PALE (337) 310 472 10 39.6 7- 8*ACHAIANS (412) 1 4 0 8-11*ACHAIANS (412) 10 30 3 25.0 8-11*APES OF WRATH (408) 0 1 0 '*' Unchartered team '-' Team did not fight this turn (###) Avoid teams by their Team Id ##/## This turn's/Last turn's rank TEAM SPOTLIGHT + ]H[ + ---:--- + ]H[ Out of the Past #3 ]H[ + ---:--- + ]H[ + Valamantis: Hallie O'Dene did not stay in Valamantis. She hadn't been able to get an audience with the ruler of the city-state, Garlor Shanmarrik, and the clerk to whom she had given her warning had been...disbelieving. Had, in fact, threatened her with imprisonment if she "stirred up unrest." A very proper bureaucrat, he'd been. Hallie considered slicing off his ears and nailing them to the wall, or possibly nailing the man's ears to the wall without slicing them off, but such action would serve no purpose but to express her anger, so she didn't. There really wasn't any point in that. She gave her warning to Arenamistress Sitalva, who was at least polite, and then went on her way. Carefully circling wide around the ruins of Old Valamantis and ghosts of the ancient city that came and went unstably above them. The people of Valamantis, in the person of the Lord's clerk, had chosen to ignore her warning, and there were others she had to find and warn, others who might listen. Arenamistress Sitalva did not exactly believe Hallie's warning about the danger from the Bloodgames, but she didn't disbelieve, either. She had already seen the mirage-like ancient towers above the bloody ground. She had seen those ghostly towers before, after other Bloodgames, had accepted them as a normal illusion there. Maybe she needed to re-think "normal." She couldn't imagine anyone resurrecting Old Valamantis for any kind of GOOD reason. The oldest levels of the city were Folstrom. And saturated with dark magic. Mordant: Mordant was like a stirred up hive of bees, full of activity, and hostile to any stranger who had the misfortune to get in the way. She guessed that she wouldn't have any more luck getting in to see Queen Talissen of Mordant than she had in Valamantis. Which was frustrating, since it was a serious warning she had to deliver. Well, she hadn't expected this to be easy.... After a moment's thought, she headed straight for the arena, bypassing the palace entirely. There would be people who'd listen to her at the arena, because she was one of them. Kakar was arenamaster in Mordant, she'd met him once. A grim man, but who wouldn't be if they had to live in Mordant? She avoided looking at the pitted black stone that most of the city was built of, and the windowless architecture. The Mordanti were a grim people all around. The arena was seething with activity and speculation, though it wasn't fight day. Rumors were flying; before she managed to locate the arenamaster, Hallie heard seven different versions of "an attack on the Queen!" which had been foiled by a gladiator, or maybe more than one gladiator, or maybe it had been made by a gladiator, or only reported by a gladiator, or.... The attack on the Queen, if it had happened at all, was the main topic, but there was a froth of other rumors in the background: monsters in various likely or unlikely places, out in the swamp, down in Valamantis, in the Syrinwald lake, or up in the mountains. A war that might or might not be happening between two different kingdoms in the south, and even the supposed participants kept changing--Trocar, Rocanis, Xochithlan, the wild Rirorni. Banditry around Tricorus; she shrugged that one off. There was always banditry around Tricorus. Arenamaster Kakar was closeted with a sober looking man, tall for a Kannar, and richly dressed. Kakar didn't actually refuse to listen to Hallie, but he made it clear that he didn't have much time to spare. Hallie shrugged. The way things had been going since she'd set out to spread the warning, his attitude was no surprise. She wondered in passing whether Khaldren could have managed some kind of spell that made people unwilling to listen. Not that it mattered at the moment. "I bring word of a powerful wizard who has come out of the past to spread disaster in our time," she began. "He is a wizard from drowned Krael, and he claims the intention to resurrect Celestinvael and other lost cities and build a new empire in Alastari." The tall man leaned forward, suddenly frowning. "Celestinvael is five hundred years dead," he stated. "How can this be 'resurrected'?" Celestinvael was also, Hallie knew, the closest of the dangerous ruins to Mordant, unless you counted Old Valamantis--which Khaldren hadn't mentioned. "I'm no wizard," she answered. "I don't know. But he stated his intention to use 'blood magic' to do it, which he believes will work even with the Arcanum in flux." She shrugged. "I don't know about magic, but he seemed confidant, and I saw him work spells of great power." "No doubt we've mages around who can confirm or deny this possibility," the tall man said. "I will carry the warning to Queen Talissen and set our magicians to work." Seeing her surprise, he added, "I am Allech Rabo, Her Majesty's Herald. I have the authority to take these steps." "Good! You might pass word to Valamantis, too--I couldn't get to see anyone but a damned clerk. If it's blood magic at work, well, there was a lot of blood spilled in Old Valamantis just over a month ago--" "Mordan!" The Herald leaped to his feet. "The Bloodgames! If blood magic still works, then the danger is extreme! I must go to the Queen at once!" "And I will speak to the gladiators of this city about the dangers ahead," Kakar said when the Herald had gone. "Doubtless they will be called upon to take arms against enemies of Mordant." Iaye: The first ground tremors made people uneasy, but no more than that. There had been small earthquakes for months now, mostly centered on Seam and its underground disturbances. They posed no threat to the island, except in the case of those boats who were just coming into the docks when tremor-waves hit. And even that...the sailors of Iaye were skilled, and they had learned to deal with it. But the mild tremors didn't stop, they were replaced by serious jolts, and the ground underfoot shivered like jelly in a bowl. All the sailors who could took their ships out of the harbor and around the island toward the center of the Trier. No one wanted to get caught by a bigger wave than usual and shoved onto a rocky shore. Once the ships were safely away from the land, alarm turned to eager speculation. Did this herald new geysers for Seam? Would a volcano erupt and destroy the town entirely? Bets were placed. After all, Seam wasn't THEIR town.... Or maybe this quake would strike a little closer to home, like the one that had cracked open the Ogre's Tomb in Point. That thought sobered people. There had been...things in the Tomb, and it had taken all the warriors who could reach Point to deal with them. What else might be down there, to be released by a fresh earthquake? They didn't really want to know. Most of the ships were strung out parallel to the coast north of Point and Iaye. Far enough apart not to damage each other if something went wrong, close enough to pass messages along. The message that came up from the southern end of the line near sunset was unexpected, and more than a little alarming. Everyone knew there were ruins under the lake between Point and the island of Iaye. But nobody had expected them to rise. And none of the half-remembered stories of Krael made people happy about the great city's reappearance. DUELMASTER'S COLUMN Notes from the arena champ. Well, Queensryche again. Ya did pretty good, but not good enough! Maybe you've been banging them pots together too long, and ya didn't hear me comin'! I gotta go, busy man, sausages to make! Go on! CMOT Dibbler SPY REPORT Good day, friends and fiends, welcome to your friendly neighborhood spyreport. I doubt ZENSU will ever be the same. GARDEN OF HORRORS stable has parlayed this turn's 0-0-0 into a 3 space move up the rankings. This brings them up to 6th place. Good work, guys! And let's see, CRAZY LOON fought VETERAN MERCENARY and gained 20 points and contributed to WIMPS MOST FOWL's 4-1-0. TERIS has lost to KUNG-FU MASTER, falling 5 points, while helping make BEYOND THE PALE a 2-3-1 turn. This week's Duelmaster bout was between DANZIG and our Duelmaster CMOT DIBBLER, making a TV challenge. The attempts to dethrone the Duelmaster have failed, and CMOT DIBBLER remains ZENSU's top warrior for another turn. Can someone confirm a rumor for me? I hear the top team makes their losing fighters do dishes at The Victory Tavern until they win. Maybe? Oriental wise man once say, 'Hiding behind shields prevents proper sun tanning.' Inscrutable, but true. I also notice that the BATTLE SCHOOL stable was the most avoided team this turn. Come on ZENSU, what are you afraid of? And guess who avoided BATTLE SCHOOL stable the most? Believe it or not, it was WIMPS MOST FOWL. Anyone surprised? The most challenged warrior this turn was BEYOND THE PALE's warrior ARNIE EL SHEW. More fighters challenged him than challenged the Duelmaster! The Dark Arena is for those who cannot win, not who cannot lose with grace. Dignity in life or death is the warrior's creed. Is it really true that ZENSU has more dishwashers per capita that fighters? Just thought I'd ask... Thought for the day, a new sword shines bright, but the notched sword sings the sweetest. Always good to rest in ZENSU, but never good to wear out my welcome. Look for me in future turns. Until the sun next rises and my pen sets to paper-- Alarond the Scribe DUELMASTER W L K POINTS TEAM NAME CMOT DIBBLER 4011 14 1 1 121 THE DISC (411) CHALLENGER CHAMPIONS W L K POINTS TEAM NAME SIANNA 3914 26 15 1 110 BEYOND THE PALE (337) -FRY GUY 3655 17 10 0 110 TACO GODS (152) SUSAN STO HELIT 4013 9 6 0 106 THE DISC (411) JOPHAN 3846 18 46 0 100 BEYOND THE PALE (337) DANZIG 3954 14 5 0 93 THAT 80'S METAL (394) CHAMPIONS W L K POINTS TEAM NAME TERIS 3895 20 28 1 89 BEYOND THE PALE (337) CRAZY LOON 3961 10 9 2 83 WIMPS MOST FOWL (355) -LEADFOOT 3516 11 4 0 77 TACO GODS (152) CHALLENGER ADEPTS W L K POINTS TEAM NAME SCOOTER 3985 11 6 0 60 WIMPS MOST FOWL (355) -MINISTRY 3993 5 2 0 58 TACO GODS (152) ADEPTS W L K POINTS TEAM NAME OLD BIDDY 4035 10 2 0 53 WIMPS MOST FOWL (355) TURKEY LURKEY 4003 10 5 0 49 WIMPS MOST FOWL (355) ARNIE EL SHEW 3930 7 25 1 47 BEYOND THE PALE (337) -THE MAD CARROT 3862 3 1 0 42 GARDEN OF HORRORS (393) CHALLENGER INITIATES W L K POINTS TEAM NAME TWO FLOWER 4068 3 1 0 33 THE DISC (411) DUCKY LUCKY 4048 5 3 0 32 WIMPS MOST FOWL (355) -ODYSSEUS 4014 3 5 1 31 ACHAIANS (412) INITIATES W L K POINTS TEAM NAME -MENELAOS 4016 3 5 0 20 ACHAIANS (412) BLONDE GRENADE 4069 2 2 1 20 BEYOND THE PALE (337) GREAT WHITE 4082 1 0 0 15 THAT 80'S METAL (394) -SANITARIUM 4058 1 0 0 9 TACO GODS (152) NOBBY 4081 1 0 0 8 THE DISC (411) -IRON MAIDEN 3872 1 4 0 7 THAT 80'S METAL (394) MOTLEY CRUE 4075 0 3 0 3 THAT 80'S METAL (394) -PATROCLOS 4078 0 1 0 1 ACHAIANS (412) '-' denotes a warrior who did not fight this turn. THE DEAD W L K TEAM NAME SLAIN BY TURN Revenge? CHUNKY MONKEY 3983 4 4 1 APES OF WRATH 408 CRAZY LOON 3961 435 INEPT ASSASSIN 4080 1 1 0 THE DISC 411 BLONDE GRENADE 4069 436 SAVATAGE 4051 1 3 0 THAT 80'S METAL 394 ODYSSEUS 4014 433 PERSONAL ADS Danzig -- Ah, poo. -- Susan Blonde Grenade -- Am not sure what grenade is.... May I take a photo? -- Two Flower Motley Crue -- A motley decision on your part to challenge me. Try someone closer to your experience level. -- Ducky Lucky Apes of Wrath -- Your wrath must know no bounds at the death of Chunky Monkey. I assure you that Crazy was running with a 5 KD. We mourn your loss. -- Wimpy Ghost of Chunky Monkey -- I am now a killer. I have two kills and am going for more. I hope your manager can dig up someone to come after me to revenge your death. I will enjoy killing him/her/it. -- Crazy Loon Crazy Loon -- Knock it off. We Wimps do not go around acting like the other macho teams. We are humble at all times. Change your tune of fight by the light of torches. -- Wimpy Arni El Shew -- Like the other Wimps, I really needed the skills. Thanks. -- Scooter Scooter -- Didn't anybody ever tell you not to leave that thing on the stairs? I tripped over it and could have broken a leg! -- Arnie El Shew The Venomous Concubine is, indeed, as one of the fans observed, a stupid idiot. -- Sianna The Veteran Mercenary's worthless, too. Why are we fighting standbys? -- Jophan P.S. Not that I mind winning. Whew! I didn't think I was ready for the Khalhums Dwarf, but I guess I was. -- Teris Two Flower -- (bursts into tears) You laughed! -- Blonde Grenade Susan -- (gloomily) My specialty, ma'am. -- Jophan Crazy Loon -- (heavy sigh) -- Arnie El Shew 25 February 2004 Readers, and especially those who volunteered warriors -- My apologies for the sudden lack of episodes. I've been sick, but expect to be back at the keyboard soon. -- the Scribe 3 March 2004 MONGO'S MARDI GRAS MADNESS DUELMASTERS AUCTION Mongo, aka Matt McIntosh and ex-Warden of the Dark Circle, is auctioning off his entire collection of Duelmasters warriors and stables. Don't miss out on this chance to own some fantastic warriors! There are ADM warriors available in every class from Primus to Freshmen, as well as over a dozen Basic stables. Does a Slasher with +4 attack, +4 decisiveness, +3 initiative and +2 riposte sound good? How about a Lunger who received the benefit of a TC prize, has TVed three times after graduating--and still hasn't maxed out his skills!? How about a Striker in the Freshmen class who has decisiveness for a favorite learn and the MAUL for a favorite weapon!? Or perhaps you prefer playing in Basic. Then how does a stable with four Adept class warriors who have a combined record of 41-19-9 sound? Or maybe a stable with three 21-Will warriors? Or perhaps a stable with four Initiates and a Rookie who have a combined record of 23-6-1? The quality of the lots is excellent. All you need to view and bid on the lots is go to: http://members.aol.com/jvmerlino/mardigras.html If you want to be on the mailing list to receive regular updates on the auction, just send an e-mail to JVMerlino@aol.com. Merlin, aka John Merlino and also an ex- Warden of the Dark Circle, will be running this auction for me. I just moved to New Orleans and am likely currently stumbling around the French Quarter...because it's Mardi Gras! So I have named my auction in honor of this occasion. The auction will start on Saturday, March 13th, 2004, and will continue for several weeks. But you should get your bids in early if you want your best chance at owning any of these fantastic warriors and stables. Many thanks to all for your interest and your bids, Mongo 5 March 2004 Style Masters Symposium Hosted by Hammer The years have slipped by and many DM Managers have come and gone since the last Hammer's Handbook was compiled and printed. There is now a stirring within me to begin writing and editing yet another Handbook with a distribution date sometime in 2005. This Handbook will be made available via Email with a possibility of burning the info to a CD for distribution. Special arrangements will be made to provide the information via printed page to those contributors who are serving sentences behind bars. The working title of this new Handbook is "Style Masters Symposium Hosted by Hammer". Distribution of this Handbook is projected to be MAINLY for those DM Managers who contribute information/articles to Hammer by June 2004. Informative and entertaining articles should focus on insights regarding Any or All 10 Style Masters for both the Basic and ADM arenas as well as Tourney competition. Articles focusing on Weapons/Armor are also encouraged for inclusion. Whether you are a Newbie Manager without a clue or a Jaded Veteran; everyone has discovered something about this gaming experience that is both Insightful and Entertaining. Email Your Articles to HammerDM@fastermail.com or send them via Diplo to either Flower Hammerz (372) in DM 28 or Casino Hammerz (576) in DM 33. Length and Content of the Style Masters Symposium Hosted by Hammer will be Determined by the Quality and Quantity of Contributors Combined with the Literary Efforts of Hammer who is currently overseas for an indefinite period of time. Articles Contributed for this Project should be of Sufficient Length and Content to Warrant being Included to Receive the Finished Document when Hammer has completed this literary work to His satisfaction. Managers contributing articles are also requested to include a DM Bio of Themselves along with any Notable Successes and/or Failures during Their DM Career in Basic, ADM and/or Tourney Play. A listing of Active Stables would also be Helpful for Anyone Seeking to Reply to Contributors via Diplo, Email or Snailmail. May Your Blades Be Sharp And Your Wits Sharper! -- Hammer of Flower Hammerz (372) DM 28 and Casino Hammerz (576) DM 33 18 March 2004 St. Valentine's Day Massacre Update We are pleased to announce that the kLk sponsored St. Valentine's Day Massacre kill contest in DM 36 is off to a great start. We are also pleased to announce that in addition to the 10 team rollups we are also able to offer the renaming of a dark arena warrior as a prize to the manager with the most kills. The contest is only 2 turns old and is still wide open. There are currently 5 managers tied with one kill each. Anything can still happen so hurry up and get into the arena. On a personal note, no other alliances have entered the arena in force to challenge the kLk dominance. We were expecting The Firm to put up a fight for their supposed home arena. But, they were a no show. Guess they proved what they are really made of. *evil grin* Perhaps another alliance would like to step in to give us a challenge. We are throwing down the gauntlet. Perhaps the Chaos Inc. boys I keep hearing about would like to step in and challenge the kLk for arena dominance. If you don't show up, Chaos, don't feel bad. FAR better managers than you have been invited into Jhans but have chosen to pass on the offer. So if you consider yourself worthy to compete, like fierce competition, and enjoy arenas where the personals are as fierce as the fighting, come visit JHANS DM 36. We're already planning our next contest, "Capture the Flag," and have a storyline being actively worked on in the arena. Whatever you like about DM you can find it in JHANS. Bookie mgr. of Suicidal Dreams and Director Jhans Board of Tourism kLk Alliance LAST WEEK'S FIGHTS CMOT DIBBLER devastated DANZIG in a 2 minute mismatched Challenge Title fight. SUSAN STO HELIT demolished JOPHAN in a 1 minute one-sided Challenge melee. TURKEY LURKEY defeated ARNIE EL SHEW in a crowd pleasing 3 minute Challenge duel. INEPT ASSASSIN was dealt death by BLONDE GRENADE in a 1 minute Challenge fight. SIANNA demolished VETERAN MERCENARY in a 2 minute gruesome mismatched competition. TERIS was defeated by KUNG-FU MASTER in a 1 minute one-sided struggle. CRAZY LOON devastated VETERAN MERCENARY in a 1 minute gruesome one-sided competition. DUCKY LUCKY lost to THE USEROUS MERCHANT in a 5 minute duel. OLD BIDDY won victory over TWO FLOWER in a 6 minute veteran vs. beginner duel. SCOOTER defeated DANGEROUS CRIMINAL in a exciting 1 minute fight. MOTLEY CRUE slimly lost to NOBBY in a 2 minute novice's bout. GREAT WHITE demolished PERSISTENT BEGGAR in a 3 minute mismatched match. BATTLE REPORT MOST POPULAR RECORD DURING THE LAST 10 TURNS |FIGHTING STYLE FIGHTS FIGHTING STYLE W - L - K PERCENT| |LUNGING ATTACK 4 TOTAL PARRY 23 - 14 - 0 62 | |PARRY-RIPOSTE 3 AIMED BLOW 6 - 4 - 1 60 | |TOTAL PARRY 3 PARRY-RIPOSTE 18 - 13 - 1 58 | |STRIKING ATTACK 3 SLASHING ATTACK 18 - 15 - 4 55 | |WALL OF STEEL 2 STRIKING ATTACK 24 - 21 - 1 53 | |SLASHING ATTACK 1 LUNGING ATTACK 36 - 40 - 2 47 | |BASHING ATTACK 1 WALL OF STEEL 10 - 12 - 0 45 | |AIMED BLOW 1 PARRY-STRIKE 3 - 7 - 0 30 | |PARRY-LUNGE 0 PARRY-LUNGE 2 - 7 - 1 22 | |PARRY-STRIKE 0 BASHING ATTACK 2 - 11 - 1 15 | Turn 436 was great if you Not so great if you used The fighting styles of the used the fighting styles: the fighting styles: top eleven warriors are: SLASHING ATTACK 1 - 0 STRIKING ATTACK 1 - 2 4 LUNGING ATTACK BASHING ATTACK 1 - 0 AIMED BLOW 0 - 1 2 STRIKING ATTACK PARRY-RIPOSTE 2 - 1 PARRY-LUNGE 0 - 0 2 PARRY-RIPOSTE TOTAL PARRY 2 - 1 PARRY-STRIKE 0 - 0 2 SLASHING ATTACK LUNGING ATTACK 2 - 2 1 TOTAL PARRY WALL OF STEEL 1 - 1 TOP WARRIOR OF EACH STYLE FIGHTING STYLE WARRIOR W L K PNTS TEAM NAME STRIKING ATTACK CMOT DIBBLER 4011 14 1 1 121 THE DISC (411) PARRY-RIPOSTE SIANNA 3914 26 15 1 110 BEYOND THE PALE (337) LUNGING ATTACK SUSAN STO HELIT 4013 9 6 0 106 THE DISC (411) TOTAL PARRY DANZIG 3954 14 5 0 93 THAT 80'S METAL (394) SLASHING ATTACK CRAZY LOON 3961 10 9 2 83 WIMPS MOST FOWL (355) Note: Warriors have a winning record and are an Adept or Above. The overall popularity leader is SIANNA 3914. The most popular warrior this turn was TWO FLOWER 4068. The ten other most popular fighters were ARNIE EL SHEW 3930, CMOT DIBBLER 4011, SIANNA 3914, CRAZY LOON 3961, SCOOTER 3985, MOTLEY CRUE 4075, SUSAN STO HELIT 4013, BLONDE GRENADE 4069, DUCKY LUCKY 4048, and NOBBY 4081. The least popular fighter this week was GREAT WHITE 4082. The other ten least popular fighters were OLD BIDDY 4035, INEPT ASSASSIN 4080, JOPHAN 3846, TERIS 3895, TURKEY LURKEY 4003, DANZIG 3954, NOBBY 4081, DUCKY LUCKY 4048, BLONDE GRENADE 4069, and SUSAN STO HELIT 4013.