DUELMASTERS NEWSLETTER

Date   : 08/05/2003    Duedate: 08/18/2003

KATI-TEI ARENA

DM-41    TURN-414

This Weeks Top Honors

THE DUELMASTER IS

AFRICAN GREY
BIRDS (286)
(41-3317) [13-5-1,107]

Chartered Recognition Leader   Unchartered Recognition Leader

AFRICAN GREY                   J.L. GOTROCKS
BIRDS (286)                    THE FLINTSTONES (200)
(41-3317) [13-5-1,107]         (41-3972) [0-1-0,1]

Popularity Leader              This Weeks Favorite

LORONA                         AFRICAN GREY
WANDERERS (329)                BIRDS (286)
(41-3892) [19-24-0,93]         (41-3317) [13-5-1,107]

THE CURRENT TOP TEAM

WANDERERS (329)

          TEAMS ON THE MOVE            TOP CAREER HONORS
Team Name                  Point Gain  Chartered Team
1. WANDERERS (329)             17
2. BIRDS (286)                  4      BIRDS (286)
3. THE FLINTSTONES (200)        1      Unchartered Team
4. READY AND ABLE (333)         0
5. CAER SIDHE (116)             0      THE FLINTSTONES (200)

The Top Teams

Career Win-Loss Record           W   L  K    %  Win-Loss Record Last 3 Turns    W  L K
 1- 1 CAER SIDHE (116)          31  14  2 68.9   1/ 1 WANDERERS (329)           9  4 0
 2/ 2 BIRDS (286)               33  25  2 56.9   2/ 2 BIRDS (286)               7  4 0
 3- 3 READY AND ABLE (333)      10  10  0 50.0   3- 3 CAER SIDHE (116)          1  0 0
 4/ 4 WANDERERS (329)          244 295  4 45.3   4- 4 READY AND ABLE (333)      1  0 0
 5/ 0*THE FLINTSTONES (200)     17  21  2 44.7   5/ 0*THE FLINTSTONES (200)     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[ Andorians Abroad #12 ]H[ + ---:--- + ]H[ +

Not in Zuwayza:

     A deep drumming sound echoed through the house.
     "That will be the Sultan's men--or the Temple Guards, even!--at the door," the
merchant muttered.  "I dare not refuse them entry."
     The merchant hurried away, and Tankesh dismissed the man from his mind.  The way
his head ached, he didn't figure on wasting his efforts on peripheral puzzles.  The
important thing was to get on his feet without falling down.  He braced one hand
against the wall and pushed himself upward.  After a moment, the room stopped
wobbling around.  He took a careful step toward the small table that held his sword,
picked it up, and slung the belt around himself.  Headache or no, he could fight if
he had to, and just having the sword at hand gave him confidence.  He looked around
the room.
     The doctor was tidying away all sign that someone had been here, straightening
the cover on the divan, scooping up a small cup and spoon, a bit of bloodstained
cloth, anything that might be out of place, and gathering it all into a small bundle
which he shoved into his doctor's bag.  Not speaking, the man gestured for Tankesh to
follow him and darted out a door that had been concealed by a hanging curtain.
     No, Tankesh corrected himself as he scrambled to keep up with the man, not
concealed.  It didn't seem to be anything like a secret door, and the curtain was
probably merely to stop drafts.  Well, whatever.  He didn't suppose that mattered.
He would probably never see these people or this place again.
     The doctor led him down a long hall; some of the doorways opening off it had
curtains for closure and others had real doors of wood.  Even in what Tankesh guessed
was a service hallway, the doors were all surrounded by tiles painted with bright-
colored floral patterns, and the floor, also of tile, had a long strip of striped
carpet down it.  The door at the far end was locked and bolted, but the doctor had a
key and let them out into an alley.
     A blank-faced building on the side made a narrow path of black shadow, but for
the rest, the sun turned the alley into an oven.  The doctor didn't pause but led him
onward at a brisk trot, around a corner, and in through another door, across a small
courtyard, into a dusty hallway, out another door, and on and on through a maze of
buildings and alleys.  Tankesh wondered what kind of practice the man had that he
knew this maze so well.  They saw few people in their rapid passage, all of them
heavily cloaked and moving away.
     They ended up in another small courtyard, this one dominated by a spreading
cypress tree and a tiled pool of water with a fountain splashing gently into it.
     "I will leave you here," the doctor said quickly.  "The sage may be able to help
you return to your own world.  Fare you well, Traveler, and may the Goddess smile
upon your going out and your returning."  Before Tankesh could respond, he vanished
back through the gateway.
     "So you are a Traveler, eh?"  The voice came from the deep shade of the cypress,
unhurried and genial.  "It's been a long time since I Traveled, though I visited many
worlds in my youth.  Come sit here by the fountain and tell me how it is with you,
young man."
     Tankesh peered into the shadow but couldn't make out more than a vague presence.
With a slight shrug, he moved closer, noting with relief that the air was distinctly
cooler under the tree.  He sank down onto the rim of the fountain and squinted into
the shadow.
     The sage was very old, a shrunken, withered figure barely visible among a nest
of shawls.  How could he stand shawls in this heat?  "What's going on?" he asked.
     The old man sighed.  "It's a time of change, young man.  I have studied many
lifetimes and do not fully understand it.  There is always the possibility of
Traveling from one world to another, but the choice of destination is ordinarily
restricted, and the passage is difficult.  For some reason beyond my slender
understanding, this is changing...at least for now.  A world of which we know
nothing, have never Visited--your world--is coming into conjunction with ours.
Travel is easy, even happening by sheerest accident.  Thus, I gather, your presence."
     "The doctor who brought me here said the same thing, more or less.  But that
still doesn't tell me why ME, what happened to my companion, and how I get home!"
     The old man laughed.  "Why you and what happened to your companion, I cannot
guess.  As to how you might get home--"  He stretched one thin leg out in front of
him, and the sunlight burned on a crimson slipper with a curled toe.  "I don't think
my shoes will fit you, but there are other ways.  Quite simple, really.  Come into my
terminal."  He hoisted himself to his feet and headed for a door that was barely
visible under a deep arcade.

                                      SPY REPORT

     Greetings, warriors of KATI-TEI!  Once again I've been called out of retirement 
for my abilities and insights into Spyreporting.  What's with JEHU?  He actually beat 
BIRDS' JACANA, and walked away with 10 more points from the fight.  Major screwup at 
BIRDS.  PELICAN lost 4 points to VISITING ORC.  Some new strategies, perhaps?  Maybe 
PELICAN will provide more easy wins...  KATI-TEI has a Duelmaster who doesn't sit 
back and get lazy.  He challenged WANDERERS' LORONA (19-24-0), which should prove 
(ahem!) interesting.  Try as she might, LORONA wasn't good enough at persuading 
AFRICAN GREY to step down from the Duelmaster's throne...  Advice to fighters with a 
1 will--give up fighting!   
     No matter the time or place, men will always duel.  KATI-TEI thinks WANDERERS 
and their 244-295-4 is too much!  If at first you don't succeed, give up...  In my 
day, no team with a 242-294-4 would scare me off!  What's the problem, BIRDS?  What 
do people see in LORONA?  Hers 19-24-0?  WANDERERS ain't talkin', but she's got 93 
points.   
     Warriors of KATI-TEI unite.  You have only your games to lose!  Is it my 
imagination, or are fighters getting younger every day?  To die so young, so 
gloriously!   
     Many other cities have retirement homes for aged warriors.  Any plans here?  Are 
you as tired of reading this as I am of writing it?  Actually, I guess I'm writing it 
before you read it.  Oh, well.  I don't want to overstay my welcome...-- Olaf Modeen  

DUELMASTER                     W   L  K POINTS      TEAM NAME                  
 AFRICAN GREY 3317            13   5  1   107       BIRDS (286)

CHALLENGER CHAMPIONS           W   L  K POINTS      TEAM NAME                  
 LORONA 3892                  19  24  0    93       WANDERERS (329)
 FOOTSORE 3910                19  17  0    91       WANDERERS (329)

ADEPTS                         W   L  K POINTS      TEAM NAME                  
-DONAL MAC AVERA 1209          9   0  2    54       CAER SIDHE (116)
-DIRK 3786                     5   2  0    48       READY AND ABLE (333)
-PENGUIN 3951                  4   0  0    39       BIRDS (286)
 PELICAN 3949                  4   4  0    36       BIRDS (286)

CHALLENGER INITIATES           W   L  K POINTS      TEAM NAME                  
-BARNEE 3937                   4   1  0    31       THE FLINTSTONES (200)
-FRED 3935                     4   1  2    29       THE FLINTSTONES (200)
-PEBBLES 3936                  3   2  0    29       THE FLINTSTONES (200)
-ARTHUR AP ARVON 1214          4   3  0    27       CAER SIDHE (116)
 JEHU 3963                     3   3  0    26       WANDERERS (329)
 JACANA 3324                   3   9  1    25       BIRDS (286)
-MR. BEDROCK 3939              2   3  0    24       THE FLINTSTONES (200)

INITIATES                      W   L  K POINTS      TEAM NAME                  
 OSTRICH 3970                  2   0  0    14       BIRDS (286)
-GWYDION AP ARAWN 1215         2   1  0    13       CAER SIDHE (116)
-TALON 3743                    0   3  0     7       READY AND ABLE (333)
 J.L. GOTROCKS 3972            0   1  0     1       THE FLINTSTONES (200)

'-' denotes a warrior who did not fight this turn.

THE DEAD               W  L K TEAM NAME             SLAIN BY             TURN Revenge?

                                     PERSONAL ADS

African Grey -- Why would you rip my face off?  It's my feet that hurt. -- Footsore

A noble assassin?  That's a contradiction in terms.  Too bad I didn't get a chance to
kill him. -- Zephyre

And I drew the Khalhums Dwarf, who should have begged for mercy.  He needed it. --
Farmer's Girl

The Virginal Concubine is another contradiction in terms, and speaking of terms, hers
would shame a sailor!  What a mouth on that wench. -- Lorona

And a final standby makes us 4-1 for this cycle, with the wins being all against
standbys.  I don't mind! -- Jehu

Hmm, I suppose if the Birds avoided us, then they fought standbys, too?  After all,
who else is there? -- Leeta and Schendirk

18 July 2003
To All Managers -- I would like to take this time to announce that my alliance, The
Association, is no more.  Due to the dead weight managers of the alliance and their
lack of participation, DarkSpirit and I have formed a new alliance:  The Firm.  We
have taken on two members so far and are looking for a few more.  If you would like
to find out more about The Firm, you can diplo Dark Spirit, Unknowns XX in arena 15
or myself, Sungod, Sadists F2FII in arena 62.
                               --*  The Firm *--
                    Sungod -- Sadists F2FII -- 62
                    Dark Spirit -- Unknowns XX -- 15
                    Youngblood -- Wensinwasin -- 43
                    Tripwire -- Of Wolf and Man -- 1

26 July 2003
     Citizens of Alastari, a bright dawn has risen.  While you slept, a pernicious
force has entered the once-fair City of Aruak.  It fought alongside their treasured
warriors, it drank with their fans, and it slept with their women.  Now the masks are
coming off.
     Warriors, be afraid...be very afraid.  After years of Andorian managers ranting
that Aruak is the safest city in Alastari, the Frothingslosh Syndicate has selected
Aruak City as the home for its next epic 'contest'--Murder by Numbers II.  Our spies
have selected the warriors for extermination, and the executioners have had several
months to prepare.  Now a new age of darkness will descend upon Aruak, as the
Syndicate and its allies bring an entirely new level of competition to the arena!
Downchallenges!  Assassinations!  Small poodles as hors d'oeuvres!
     The Murder by Numbers II 'rules' will be announced next cycle.  However, we
invite all managers, from all corners of Alastari, to come to Aruak City and take
part...in one way or another.  Help defend the honor of a long heralded haven for the
pure, or join the forces of change in their siege of the ice-cream and cake
stronghold of the Dukes of Nerf-Dueling!
     This exercise is not for either the faint of heart or the weak willed.  Blood
will flow, brains will leak, and beer will be chugged.  Either way, we welcome you
with open arms and gleaming blades.
     This public service announcement has been brought to you by Frothingslosh Epic
Contests (tm), the number 86, and the letter 'K'.

The Frothingslosh Syndicate

29 July 2003
           *     *     *     *The Third Annual Turf War*     *     *     *
     Yes, it's time again for alliances to go to war!  TW3 will be held in DM 47
(North Fork) at a date to be  specified later--right after Crip's Incomprehensible
Contest is over...but I'm sure everyone wants to get their teams there soon!  Here
are the rules:

1.  Each alliance must have a leader declare the arrival of his alliance.  The leader
    will be responsible for verifying any and all teams/managers who declare to the
    alliance he/she is leading.
2.  Each manager, team declaring for the contest must have approval of the leader,
    donate one Roll-up Certificate ($5) to the prize pot (send it to me by diplo, by
    snail, or a note to customer service), and declare his/her team by diplo, p-ad or
    snail.
3.  Each team may declare one warrior as champion.  All points scored by a champ are
    double!
4.  Prizes are as follows (mostly...there WILL be some things added as the prize pot
    grows with entry donations--this list is not final!)
    *  Highest scoring alliance -- Rename Arena 47 for a period of 6 months, one half
       of the total prize pot donated; roll-up certs.
    *  The Alliance with the most returns from the DA will get to re-name the DA
       monsters for a period of 6 months.
    *  The alliance with the most warriors listed as style masters will get to pick
       the Alastari city/arena to host the next Grand Tournament.
    *  The warrior with the most front page honors/awards will have the Arenamaster
       named after him for a period of 6 months.
    *  The Alliance with the most front page Honors/Awards will have the honor of
        picking the *slow* arena to host the Fifth Annual Turf War.
    *  The team with the most listings as Style Master will find out the favorites of
       one of their warriors.
    *  The warrior with the most listings as Style Master will fight at my expense
       for five turns (I will transfer to the manager's account).
    *  The Alliance with the most kills will be able to re-name the stand-in warriors
       for a period of 6 months.
    *  The warrior that scores the most total points will fight at my expense for 5
       turns (I will transfer $7.50 to the manager's account).
    *  The team that scores the most total points will receive an extra share of
       roll-up certs from the prize pot.
     There may be more categories to come, and the prize pot still has to be
divided...I'm open to category/prize ideas--and further donations to the prize pot.
     The contest will run for *TEN* turns; prizes will be awarded at the end of the
11th turn.
     Scoring will be as follows:
* 5 points per fight, doubled for each of the following conditions met:
     -- Two Alliance     -- Champion
     -- Challenge        -- Two Champions
     -- Bloodfeud        -- Challenger losing
     -- Kill
     (Note:  DA losses are exempt, but DA wins will be *tripled*!!!  Ex:  Happy
Slasher goes to the DA and dies, no points are lost.  If he wins, his team scores 60
points!  If he was a champ, he scores 120 points!)
     Use the following chart to calculate scores:
Conditions Met:       0     1     2     3     4     5     6     7
Points Per Fight:     5    10    20    40    80   160   320   640
* Awards/Honors and Style Masters will each be awarded points also.  Find the total
number of each (do note add Awards and Style Masters together) and consult the graph
below.  Champs that score an award or style master count as two.
     1 --   5      7 --  320
     2 --  10      8 --  640
     3 --  20      9 -- 1280
     4 --  40     10 -- 2560
     5 --  80     11 -- 5280
     6 -- 100     (x2 for each extra)
Note -- These categories *count as "triple"*--they will be figured for each team,
*AND* again for each alliance *as well as* for each warrior!
*  Each and every mention in the Spy Report is worth 5 points...period.
*  TVs will be scored on the same scale as Awards/Style Masters, but the total points
will be x10.  TC's will be scored as TV's, but x10 more.
Number of TV/TC's          Points Scored (TV/TC)
     1      50/ 500
     2     100/1000
     3     200/2000
     4     400/4000
     +     x2/ x2 (for each extra)
     Each alliance will start with 5000 points, scores for *fights* will be added to
the winner's total *AND* deducted from the losers.
     Come  one and all, defend your turf and the honor of your alliance...or your
own!
                    Asmo Dius, TCB
                    Arenas, DM 47, DM 73

1 August 2003
     Assurnasirbanipal invites you to Talcama to participate in the third BATTLE
ROYAL contest.  It is a Delarquan contest so brutal that even some of Talcama's most
notable managers will refuse to participate.  The rules are simpler than any other
contest:  You may not avoid any other contest team.  There are no silly rules for who
can and can't compete.  Any team in Talcama is eligible to compete.  The scoring is
also quite simple (+1 for a win, +1 for a kill (+1 for the win), -1 for a loss) and
the first team to reach 25 points is the winner.
     Scoring will be live--the results for the turn posted in the newsletter.  The
winner will be able to fight their contest team in Talcama for free for 6 months but
more importantly will win a contest against some of the best managers who play the
game in one of the hardest contests in the game.
     First turn for BATTLE ROYAL 3 is Talcama Turn 465, which is due August 30.

                                  LAST WEEK'S FIGHTS

AFRICAN GREY bested LORONA in a action packed 1 minute master's Challenge Title fight.
FOOTSORE demolished VIRGINAL CONCUBINE in a 1 minute one-sided melee.
PELICAN was luckily beaten by VISITING ORC in a 2 minute bloody duel.
JACANA was bested by JEHU in a 1 minute fight.
OSTRICH savagely defeated J.L. GOTROCKS in a 1 minute bloody amateur's match.

                                    BATTLE REPORT

             MOST POPULAR                        RECORD DURING THE LAST 10 TURNS     
|FIGHTING STYLE               FIGHTS        FIGHTING STYLE     W -   L -  K   PERCENT|
|STRIKING ATTACK                  3         PARRY-LUNGE        2 -   0 -  0     100  |
|PARRY-RIPOSTE                    2         BASHING ATTACK     7 -   3 -  0      70  |
|PARRY-LUNGE                      1         SLASHING ATTACK   14 -   7 -  1      67  |
|LUNGING ATTACK                   1         PARRY-RIPOSTE     11 -   6 -  0      65  |
|BASHING ATTACK                   1         STRIKING ATTACK   18 -  16 -  2      53  |
|AIMED BLOW                       0         LUNGING ATTACK     4 -   4 -  0      50  |
|PARRY-STRIKE                     0         WALL OF STEEL      4 -   5 -  0      44  |
|SLASHING ATTACK                  0         PARRY-STRIKE       1 -   3 -  0      25  |
|TOTAL PARRY                      0         TOTAL PARRY        0 -   2 -  0       0  |
|WALL OF STEEL                    0         AIMED BLOW         0 -   0 -  0       0  |

Turn 414 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:

PARRY-LUNGE        1 -  0     STRIKING ATTACK    1 -  2         4  STRIKING ATTACK
LUNGING ATTACK     1 -  0     AIMED BLOW         0 -  0         2  SLASHING ATTACK
BASHING ATTACK     1 -  0     PARRY-STRIKE       0 -  0         1  BASHING ATTACK 
                              PARRY-RIPOSTE      0 -  2         1  PARRY-RIPOSTE  
                              SLASHING ATTACK    0 -  0         1  TOTAL PARRY    
                              TOTAL PARRY        0 -  0         1  WALL OF STEEL  
                              WALL OF STEEL      0 -  0         1  PARRY-STRIKE   

                               TOP WARRIOR OF EACH STYLE

FIGHTING STYLE   WARRIOR                     W   L  K PNTS TEAM NAME                  
BASHING ATTACK   AFRICAN GREY 3317          13   5  1  107 BIRDS (286)
STRIKING ATTACK  FOOTSORE 3910              19  17  0   91 WANDERERS (329)
Note: Warriors have a winning record and are an Adept or Above.

The overall popularity leader is LORONA 3892.  The most popular warrior this turn was 
AFRICAN GREY 3317.  The ten other most popular fighters were PELICAN 3949, OSTRICH 
3970, JEHU 3963, LORONA 3892, FOOTSORE 3910, JACANA 3324, J.L. GOTROCKS 3972,  0,  0, 
and  0.

The least popular fighter this week was J.L. GOTROCKS 3972.  The other ten least 
popular fighters were JACANA 3324, FOOTSORE 3910, LORONA 3892, JEHU 3963, OSTRICH 
3970, PELICAN 3949, AFRICAN GREY 3317,  0,  0, and  0.

The following warriors will travel to ADVANCED DUELMASTERS after next turn:

AFRICAN GREY (41-3317) BIRDS (286)