DUELMASTERS NEWSLETTER

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

AMEN-TEI ARENA

DM-63    TURN-308

This Weeks Top Honors

THE DUELMASTER IS

PIPE LAYER
WORKING MEN (289)
(63-2406) [12-3-0,119]

Chartered Recognition Leader   Unchartered Recognition Leader

RHYTHM METHOD                  MALICHAI
SURPRISE! (288)                WAY OF THE BLADE 2 (287)
(63-2400) [14-4-1,158]         (63-2396) [7-1-0,99]

Popularity Leader              This Weeks Favorite

SPEEDBUMP                      MALICHAI
WAYFARERS (248)                WAY OF THE BLADE 2 (287)
(63-2376) [18-30-0,84]         (63-2396) [7-1-0,99]

THE CURRENT TOP TEAM

WAY OF THE BLADE 2 (287)

          TEAMS ON THE MOVE            TOP CAREER HONORS
Team Name                  Point Gain  Chartered Team
1. SURPRISE! (288)             45
2. WAY OF THE BLADE 2 (287)    34      SURPRISE! (288)
3. WORKING MEN (289)           14      Unchartered Team
4. WHY KNOT (201)              12
5. TOMATO ENFORCER (284)        9      WAY OF THE BLADE 2 (287)

The Top Teams

Career Win-Loss Record           W   L  K    %  Win-Loss Record Last 3 Turns    W  L K
 1- 1*THE MOTHERSHIP 6 (297)     3   0  0  100   1/ 1*WAY OF THE BLADE 2 (287)  7  6 1
 2/ 2 SURPRISE! (288)           17   4  1 81.0   2/ 2 WAYFARERS (248)           5 10 0
 3/ 3 WORKING MEN (289)         12   5  0 70.6   3/ 3 WHY KNOT (201)            4  3 0
 4/ 4*WAY OF THE BLADE 2 (287)  23  15  4 60.5   4/ 4 WORKING MEN (289)         3  1 0
 5/ 5 THE EXILED ONES (31)     369 309 13 54.4   5/ 6 SURPRISE! (288)           2  0 1
 6/ 6 TOMATO ENFORCER (284)     82  91  4 47.4   6/ 8 TOMATO ENFORCER (284)     2  1 0
 7/ 7 WAYFARERS (248)          330 394  6 45.6   7- 5*THE MOTHERSHIP 6 (297)    1  0 0
 8/ 8 WHY KNOT (201)           131 214  7 38.0   8/ 7 THE EXILED ONES (31)      1  2 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

     Hail and well met warriors of AMEN-TEI!  Know me for who I am, Zontani Sharp 
Eyes, Spymaster extraordinaire of all Alastari.  RHYTHM METHOD caught the eye of many 
in the gladiatorial commission as he skillfully bested DRIFTER and was awarded 45 
points in recognition.  In one of the week's more notable duels, MALICHAI put down 
XINGARA, causing her to lose 7 points of recognition in the process.  Although 
WANDERING JO made a valiant effort, it did not suffice to topple the reign of 
victorious PIPE LAYER.  Informants "close" to the city champion have told me that he 
never fights without pantyhose on beneath his armor.  Watch out!   
     Many and various are the arts of battle.  In AMEN-TEI "art" is a word that has 
long since passed from the language!  I saw one fighter that warriors avoided when 
this week's challenge seeking began.  THE EXILED ONES is feared.  This much I can 
say.  Methinks more than a few here could name the guild it was that spent the better 
part of last week avoiding THE EXILED ONES.  Indeed it was SURPRISE!.  Loose talk at 
the arena has reached my ears and it but confirms the knowledge that many fighters 
are after XINGARA.  Watch your back!   
     Is not Death a warrior's foremost adviser?   Warriors, may this counselor stand 
ready at your right hand forever!  Perhaps even the strong cannot escape the vagaries 
of this world.  This week arena veteran DRIFTER was slain, despite a 23-14-1 record.  
Walk proud, warriors of WHY KNOT!  By striking down BRAWNE you have avenged the honor 
of your dead.  Your virtue is known to all in AMEN-TEI.  Dark alleys may hide both 
secrets and assassins.  In the arena there is only the brightness of steel.  Keep 
vigil always!   
     A thought before I go.  Each warrior practices one style, but must not the wise 
manager learn the secrets of them all?  More than a sharp eye must I keep, indeed a 
stout pair of legs must I keep as well!  The endless paths of Alastari await me!  
Till we meet again, remember:  a turtle walks slow, hides head in a shell, and harms 
no one; a lion runs to slay its prey.-- Zontani Sharp Eyes  

DUELMASTER                     W   L  K POINTS      TEAM NAME                  
 PIPE LAYER 2406              12   3  0   119       WORKING MEN (289)

CHALLENGER CHAMPIONS           W   L  K POINTS      TEAM NAME                  
 RHYTHM METHOD 2400           14   4  1   158       SURPRISE! (288)
 RAZORTOOTHROTEY 2360         16  16  0    99       TOMATO ENFORCER (284)
 MALICHAI 2396                 7   1  0    99       WAY OF THE BLADE 2 (287)

CHAMPIONS                      W   L  K POINTS      TEAM NAME                  
 XINGARA 2352                 23  19  0    88       THE EXILED ONES (31)
 SPEEDBUMP 2376               18  30  0    84       WAYFARERS (248)
 WANDERING JO 2411            19  16  1    82       WAYFARERS (248)
 GORDIAN 2104                 12   4  0    69       WHY KNOT (201)

ADEPTS                         W   L  K POINTS      TEAM NAME                  
 BRAWNE 2518                   3   1  1    43       WAY OF THE BLADE 2 (287)
-CURVACEOUS CORRY 2387         8   7  0    39       TOMATO ENFORCER (284)
-BLACK ARCANUM 2509            3   0  0    37       THE MOTHERSHIP 6 (297)

CHALLENGER INITIATES           W   L  K POINTS      TEAM NAME                  
 SILENUS 2517                  3   1  1    33       WAY OF THE BLADE 2 (287)
-COPERNICUS 2403               2   0  0    32       SURPRISE! (288)
 HANGMAN 1631                  7   9  1    31       WHY KNOT (201)
 PASSER BY 2513                2   5  0    26       WAYFARERS (248)

INITIATES                      W   L  K POINTS      TEAM NAME                  
-SEVERIN 2394                  3   3  0    24       WAY OF THE BLADE 2 (287)

INITIATES                      W   L  K POINTS      TEAM NAME                  
 HOBO JO 2520                  2   1  0    22       WAYFARERS (248)
-WISE 2404                     1   0  0     9       SURPRISE! (288)
-KILLER KINCY 2512             2   2  0     8       TOMATO ENFORCER (284)
-BRUTAL BIRDSMAN 2514          1   1  0     4       TOMATO ENFORCER (284)
-SINISTER SANDRO 2462          0   1  0     1       TOMATO ENFORCER (284)

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

THE DEAD               W  L K TEAM NAME             SLAIN BY             TURN Revenge?
CUTSHOT 2472           1  1 0 NO INDICATION 204     MARKOS 2393           304 NONE    
MEAT 2526              0  1 0 WAY OF THE BLADE  287 BLACK ORC 20          308 NONE    
DRIFTER 2397          23 14 1 WAYFARERS 248         RHYTHM METHOD 2400    308         
HALF HITCH 2490        7  7 1 WHY KNOT 201          BRAWNE 2518           306 JUST REV
TOOL BRINGER 2408      0  1 0 WORKING MEN 289       HIGH ELF 19           308 NONE    

                                     PERSONAL ADS

Malichai -- Drat.  You're too fast.  You need to SLOW DOWN. -- Speedbump

The Virginal Concubine is a joke, you know.  The suggestions she made!  NOT virginal
at all! -- Drifter

Xingara -- My, you're moving even more slowly than I am!  Hang in there, and we may
both live to see the Isle. -- Wandering Jo

Gordian -- Alas, I was unprepared for you, or would have split you as legend demands.
-- Passer By

Silenus -- Those were my FAVORITE ribs, you know. -- Hobo Jo

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

TOOL BRINGER was butchered by HIGH ELF in a 1 minute bloody Dark Arena fight.
MEAT was dispatched by BLACK ORC in a 1 minute Dark Arena battle.
RHYTHM METHOD easily killed DRIFTER in a 1 minute gruesome one-sided Challenge match.
MALICHAI outwaited XINGARA in a popular 8 minute gory Challenge contest.
RAZORTOOTHROTEY demolished SPEEDBUMP in a 1 minute mismatched Challenge competition.
BRAWNE was vanquished by GORDIAN in a 1 minute mismatched Challenge fight.
PIPE LAYER overpowered WANDERING JO in a popular 1 minute mismatched Title brawl.
HANGMAN was handily defeated by SILENUS in a 1 minute uneven melee.
PASSER BY was viciously subdued by AMBITIOUS GUARD in a 2 minute gory duel.
HOBO JO vanquished TRUSTWORTHY SCRIBE in a 1 minute one-sided duel.

                                    BATTLE REPORT

             MOST POPULAR                        RECORD DURING THE LAST 10 TURNS     
|FIGHTING STYLE               FIGHTS        FIGHTING STYLE     W -   L -  K   PERCENT|
|LUNGING ATTACK                   6         LUNGING ATTACK    33 -  18 -  0      65  |
|SLASHING ATTACK                  3         WALL OF STEEL     14 -   9 -  1      61  |
|AIMED BLOW                       2         SLASHING ATTACK   10 -   9 -  2      53  |
|PARRY-RIPOSTE                    1         STRIKING ATTACK    9 -   9 -  1      50  |
|STRIKING ATTACK                  1         BASHING ATTACK     5 -   5 -  1      50  |
|BASHING ATTACK                   1         TOTAL PARRY        5 -   7 -  0      42  |
|TOTAL PARRY                      1         AIMED BLOW         4 -   7 -  1      36  |
|WALL OF STEEL                    1         PARRY-RIPOSTE      2 -   4 -  0      33  |
|PARRY-LUNGE                      0         PARRY-LUNGE        3 -   6 -  0      33  |
|PARRY-STRIKE                     0         PARRY-STRIKE       0 -   0 -  0       0  |

Turn 308 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-RIPOSTE      1 -  0     SLASHING ATTACK    1 -  2         5  LUNGING ATTACK 
LUNGING ATTACK     4 -  2     PARRY-LUNGE        0 -  0         2  TOTAL PARRY    
AIMED BLOW         1 -  1     PARRY-STRIKE       0 -  0         2  SLASHING ATTACK
                              STRIKING ATTACK    0 -  1         1  AIMED BLOW     
                              BASHING ATTACK     0 -  1         1  STRIKING ATTACK
                              TOTAL PARRY        0 -  1     
                              WALL OF STEEL      0 -  1     

                               TOP WARRIOR OF EACH STYLE

FIGHTING STYLE   WARRIOR                     W   L  K PNTS TEAM NAME                  
LUNGING ATTACK   PIPE LAYER 2406            12   3  0  119 WORKING MEN (289)
AIMED BLOW       RHYTHM METHOD 2400         14   4  1  158 SURPRISE! (288)
TOTAL PARRY      XINGARA 2352               23  19  0   88 THE EXILED ONES (31)
SLASHING ATTACK  WANDERING JO 2411          19  16  1   82 WAYFARERS (248)
Note: Warriors have a winning record and are an Adept or Above.

The overall popularity leader is SPEEDBUMP 2376.  The most popular warrior this turn 
was MALICHAI 2396.  The ten other most popular fighters were PIPE LAYER 2406, PASSER 
BY 2513, RAZORTOOTHROTEY 2360, GORDIAN 2104, RHYTHM METHOD 2400, SILENUS 2517, HOBO 
JO 2520, MEAT 2526, TOOL BRINGER 2408, and DRIFTER 2397.

The least popular fighter this week was HANGMAN 1631.  The other ten least popular 
fighters were WANDERING JO 2411, BRAWNE 2518, SPEEDBUMP 2376, XINGARA 2352, DRIFTER 
2397, TOOL BRINGER 2408, MEAT 2526, HOBO JO 2520, SILENUS 2517, and RHYTHM METHOD 
2400.

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

RHYTHM METHOD (63-2400) SURPRISE! (288)