Staff at the Post-Apocalyptic Press came about an odd piece of equipment just over a week and a half ago, hidden underneath a bit of sand where the precious bits of paper are stored.  Found in a tattered cardboard box, any hint at operating procedures had long since rotted away.  After some experimentation, however, staff were able to get the item going, and found it to be a device used for recording movies, which have been in evidence in Burnt Oak for some time.  Having found blank cartridges alongside the ‘video camera’, the Press decided to film events ongoing in Hambone Slash that day.

The results are presented as follows.

(( OOC Editor’s note: These are formatted as introductions to the game and some footage of the gameplay itself. I didn’t think to hide the UI at the time, but will in the future. I’ve also done some cutting to the wait times on the second clip in the interests of time. ))

Last week’s Warzone found Aposiopesis Fullstop, Agustsa Jun and Psycho Baroque (Team One) pitted against TheBlackCloud Oh, Malice Shepherd and Paytok Ghost (Team Two) in the sim wide flag-capture game, characterized this week mostly by extended chases and takedowns.

Round one got off to a false start, however once the round began properly, the teams converged on the Potato Farm over the new ‘Careful Steps’ map, TheBlackCloud snatching up the flag early on, with a tight following towards the north by Agustsa, who was accosted by Malice.  The Mouse hid in the Warehouse to the west, then to the heavily fortified Barracks to the north, where Paytrok arrived after some time, presuming all others were incapacitated.  Not more than a minute later, Aposiopesis and Agustsa arrived, mowing down Paytrok as they made an effort for the flag.  Overtaking TheBlackCloud there and then, Agustsa claimed the flag and both escaped to the south without pursuit.  Agustsa took the flag to the south, around the murky pool, and finally to the arena, where his team was successfully able to keep the others off until the end of the round.

In Round Two, Aposiopesis reached the flag first, heading to the Barracks, while Pyscho fell early in a skirmish just north of the Arena.  Malice made an effort to chase her down, however he was accosted by Agustsa, and both eventually fell at the base of the Barracks, leaving Aposiopesis a solid view of her surroundings.  Staying put for only a few moments, Fullstop took the flag southwest, up over the huge hill that overlooks the pool.  This turned out to be a poor choice, as Paytrok took her out with a rifle as she moved towards the east.  Paytrok took the flag west along the cliffs surrounding the pool, but was eventually accosted by Agustsa as he reached the south-western side.  The flag followed Agustsa east once again towards the arena, where he waited as other combatants strove to catch up.  In an effort to shake off fighters from Team Two, Agustsa made his way back in to the arena, a gambit that put Malice out of commission and allowed Team One to escape northward.  An intermediate skirmish took Agustsa down, Paytrok taking up the flag once again, but almost immediately being taken down himself by Psycho Baroque.  Psycho took the flag to the Barracks and held it there for quite some time, until Malice arrived, taking down Aposiopesis, but himself being incapacitated by Agustsa.  The round ended, and the members of Team One were declared the winners of the round.

One last exhibition round was played afterwards - this time, contestants all agreed to fight with clobbering sticks only.  Aposiopesis grabbed the flag before TheBlackCloud could get to it, but the Mouse stole it and headed for the hills in a drawn out chase which took everyone back to the arena.  There, Agustsa grabbed the flag, but fell quickly to an arena trap.  Taking the opportunity to grab the flag for himself, Malice took the flag and was chased northward, but successfully held it for the remainder of the round with few casualties.  Upon inquiry as to who won, NeoBokrug declared that ‘Everyone did!’ and proceeded to reward all participants with copies of the Resident only Wastelands 1.75 HUD.

This Week's Winners - Agustsa Jun, Aposiopesis Fullstop, Psycho Baroque

For their efforts, Team One was also awarded a Victory Platter.

Team Two; Malice Shepherd, Paytrok Ghost and TheBlackCloud Oh

(( Editor’s Note:  War Zone is held in Hambone Slash every second and fourth Saturday of the month at 3PM SLT.))

More photos from this event available here.

The Fires of Stygian - Photo by Aki Shichiroji

The following report is based on the observations of Raze Repine:

A few weeks ago, Raze Repine, caretaker of the Fire Crystal, daringly approached the Tin Man while he hammered away at the old salvage masheen.  Raze displayed a photograph of the recently crafted Fire Crystal and NeoBokrug Elytis reacted with recognition as he pulled a mangled rat out of the salvager’s maw.

The Tin Man shook his head at Raze’s suggestion that the Crystal is a power source for the salvager, instead pointing to his head and holding out his hand.  Raze did not hand it over but related the accusation spoken by the Old Man, Gill…that the rust men destroyed the world around us.  The Tin Man considered this for a moment before pointing at Raze, pointing at the hammer in his hand, and then pointing at himself.  From this, one can safely assume that humans created the rust men originally.  Anyone judging a location for the blame of past destruction should probably spend more energy on finding their next meal or more iron scrap.

At the mention of Gill, NeoBokrug gathered up some mud, smeared it over some wood planks, and drew the image of several elderly men, implying that one of the men represented Gill.  When Raze asked about the Tin Man’s history with the Old Man, NeoBokrug shaped some mud into a crude salvager and smashed it with his hammer, apparently confirming Gill’s claim that he truly destroyed a salvager in the past.  By all accounts, Gill never elaborated on how or when he managed to do this (or even which salvager) and Raze shared his doubts with the Tin Man.  The Tin Man’s following reaction is intriguing and suggests the Old Man was involved in the sabotage of the Junkyard salvager.

NeoBokrug pointed to the sky and then to his eye before emitting an ear-splitting metallic scream.  Raze covered his ears with shock and fear.  Although this reporter wasn’t present to hear the sound for himself, Raze’s description reminds me of similar metallic screams heard before from another creature the Press has reported.  Brominites.  Perhaps we interpret the Tin Man incorrectly, but he seems to implicate the feeble Old Man somehow used those vicious metal monsters to destroy the Junkyard salvager long ago.  Could that be true?  Gill scoffs at the idea that he would directly engage the Tin Man in a physical confrontation but clearly the frail Old Man has some tricks up his sleeve to survive as long as he has.  If it’s true, the Old Man may be far more dangerous than anyone suspected.

Various additional questions from Raze about the Tin Man and Gill only produced a strange slow motion toward the horizon from NeoBokrug.  It wasn’t clear if this was in reference to his origins, Gill’s, or both of them.  Furthermore, the Tin Man drew a picture of the Old Man again and then pointed to the damage on his shoulder and to the ruined mud sculpture of the salvager…possibly suggesting that NeoBokrug was injured in the encounter.  Some of us still remember that broken Brominite impaled by the Tin Man’s staff near the burning masheen.

When asked if the Fire Crystal stores information (another claim from Gill), the Tin Man shrugged and pointed at the fractures visible on the Crystal’s surface.  Another strange series of gestures: the Tin Man pointed to the Crystal, then the Ripper in Raze’s hand, and then to himself.

The Tin Man's drawings - Photo/Texture work by Aki Shichiroji

Either changing the subject or moving to a different point on the matter, the Tin Man cleared the mud and drew the likeness of several rust-men.  He then put X’s through most of them.  He also pointed at the picture of the Fire Crystal.  Raze asked if the Crystal would be of any use to the Tin Man and the Tin Man held out his hand again.  Raze declined to give it to him and stated that it was not his decision alone to hand it over to anyone at this time.

In response, the Tin Man drew an arrow pointing at one of the X-marked rust men and then pointed again at the crystal.  This appears to additionally confirm that the Fire Crystal is indeed an item from the remains of a destroyed rust man, reformed by the salvager from those fragments collected by Wastelanders.  What information, if any, it still contains is a good question.  A broken cup glued back together may still leak water through the cracks.

At one point, Neo opened his mouth as if to speak but pointed at the damage in his neck.  Perhaps rust men were able to speak like us once upon a time but our Tin Man cannot due to his damage, perhaps non-repairable.  He also scratched his head when Raze asked the Tin Man if he was missing memory.

And then, the Tin Man suddenly opened up the back of his steam-hat, revealing a single pristine crystal with no fractures.  Several empty slots for additional crystals were visible before he quickly closed the hatch.  If there were still any doubts about the connection between the Crystal and the Rust Men, this revelation should clear them away.

Amusingly, the Tin Man gave Raze a bottle of water and led him to the ruins of Fort Stygian.

At the ruins of Fort Stygian - Photo by Aki Shichiroji

Sweating in the presence of the crater’s intense heat, Raze watched the Tin Man as he pointed at his steam-hat’s panel, to the crystal picture, to the ruins of Stygian, and then the lava, staring down at its fiery depths.  Looking intently at Raze, the Tin Man laid down, pretending to sleep and pointing to himself.  He pointed to the crystal and then to the horizon and beyond.

The gestures of the Tin Man are difficult to decipher but the ruins of Fort Stygian are far older than the rust men.  His motions hint at many things and pose just as many questions.  Were the rust men brought to life at Fort Stygian long ago?  Were the crystals a part of that process and also fabricated in this place?  Or did both come from some place far away, assembled together at Stygian?  And are the ruins of Stygian and its molten maw of fire the consequence of an accident in fabrication?  Was this where the rust-men turned on their creators?  The site of a terrible battle involving the rust men?

At one point, the Tin Man held out his hand and Raze, assuming their “conversation” was over, shook it.  The friendly gesture seemed to confuse the Tin Man.  Before Raze left, however, the Tin Man pointed at Gill’s tent and pushed the picture of the crystal against Raze’s chest with intentional force.  It appears the Tin Man wants Raze to hang on to the Fire Crystal?  Maybe he has no desire to see the Old Man, Gill, get his hands on it?

And then, another series of odd cryptic gestures from NeoBokrug occurred.  The Tin Man pointed to the sun and held up seven of his fingers, and then pointed to the ground.  He repeated a similar series…pointing to Raze, then to himself, then to the ground and held up seven fingers again.  What this means is anyone’s guess.

Scratching of the Heapkeeper - Photo by Aki Shichiroji

Finally, Raze wondered aloud if he should go to someone else with the riddles of the Tin Man’s silent hand language.  The Tin Man responded by picking up and rock and scratching a crude image of the Heapkeeper on the side of a twisted steel beam.  He pointed to the Heapkeeper’s image and then to the horizon and shrugged, finally shaking his head.  Raze was still perplexed and the Tin Man pointed to his eye, then to Raze’s eye, and then to the image of the Heapkeeper.  This suggests that the Tin Man wanted Raze to be on the look out for one of the Founders, the Heapkeeper, Spider Mandala.  It’s well known that the Heapkeeper is very familiar with the Tin Man.  Perhaps he can shed some light on these strange gestures and signs from the Tin Man.

Dassina and her excavation - Photo by Patrice Cournoyer

The hunting tigress, Dassina Andel, has turned a corner of the Junkyard into what looks like a gopher’s dream.  Starting by herself and then aided by fellow Renegades Psycho Baroque, Robin Varriale, and me, as well as my neighbouring Reaver, Gideon Switchblade, her initial digging revealed a block-like concrete structure.

Gideon Switchblade and Robin Varriale assist in the digging - Photo by Diamanda Gustafson

The excavators guessed it might have been some kind of fort, or perhaps a temple or monument… there were not many clues.  The work of digging at the hard rock was long and dangerous.  The stones occasionally shifted, at one time trapping Robin and Gideon. Destini Miles helped out by supplying some lumber to keep the rubble from falling back into the pit. Diamanda Gustafson observed and made some pictures.

Dassina has set up a tent and digs at night, while the others work in the daylight. She is also keeping a book of writings, a log about what she has found so far.

By the time daylight faded for a fifth day, enough rock had been moved to show some indication of what the building may have been in old times.  It has two levels at least, with a ladder of sorts connecting them. The top level is empty but the walls have holes that could have been used for lookouts or sniping.

Patrice prepares to strike - Photo by Diamanda Gustafson

The lower level is larger, and has an entrance to the ground. Inside are some squarish green objects, some kind of electrical masheen.. they hum and flicker. Also some kind of game with numbers that can be pressed.. maybe it’s broken as it only says “Access denied”. Gideon claims it is a code and he has broken it… but some think he is bragging, others that he is smart. As well some barrels and crates, but nothing useful or edible in them.

It could have a possible use for the restless Wasteland folk but so far it reveals nothing of value.. but maybe there is more to be learned.

June 6th’s Fight Night played host to CCindy Pfeffer, Ridley Hooper, Robin Varialle, Aposiopesis Fullstop, TheBlackCloud Oh, VoidTraveler Seetan, Ntchwaidumela Nadezda and Mystik Merryman.   This week, eight new map configurations were featured, proving to be a challenge for all fighters involved.

Round One

Filling a requisite eight contestant tournament style match, Ridley and CCindy started things off on the spike, pit and gas ridden ‘Fox Hunt’ map.  Fighting ripper versus knife, blood flew early and while Cindy hit a pit, Ridley began to wage his gambit on the various gassy spots on the map, also switching to a knife mid fight.  The match saw much spike and poison damage as Ridley appeared to be intermittently healed and poisoned multiple times.  Finally, CCindy’s patience won out as Ridley fell after being killed by spikes.

The spike and gas-ridden ‘Spiderweb’ map was featured next, as Aposiopesis and Robin fought it out - startingout knife versus ripper, then Aposiopesis switching to a ripper and Robin to a rifle mid fight.  Gun battle proved to be a wise choice as both combatants managed to avoid the vicious spikes found all over the arena, but eventually Robin won as his shot with a rifle proved to be more accurate.

TheBlackCloud confronted VoidTraveller’s knife with a board with nails, on an old test arena.  Both recieved saw damage, but in the end TheBlackCloud was victorious.

Ntchwaidumela Nadezda and Mystik Merryman go knife to knife on the 'Eye of the Tiger' map.

The last match of the round pitted newcomer Ntchwaidumela against Mystik, knife to knife.  Playing on the new ‘Eye of the Tiger’ map, both had to deal with lots of pit traps, making for a long but entertaining match.  Ultimately, Ntchwaidumela won out, sending Mystik to Redemption Round, along with Ridley, Aposiopesis and VoidTraveller.

Redemption Matches

On the Julienne Fries map, Hooper fought Fullstop knife to board with nails.  Both ran afoul of spikes and saws, but ultimately it was Ridley who was downed by spikes on this vicious map.

Next, Voidtraveller took on Mystik, pipe versus knife, on the new ‘XN-Irritant’ map, which is full of gas traps.  Both parties gambled considerably on the 50/50 chance of poison versus healing gas, and in the end it became evident that Mystik had gambled too much, eventually falling, leaving Voidtraveller victorious.

To finish off redemption rounds, Aposiopesis fought VoidTraveller, board with nails versus pipe, on ‘The Middle’ arena map - characterized by lots of spikes, gas and mines.  Both recieved much gas and spike damage early on, but an errant mine was the last straw, taking Void out and allowing Aposiopesis to advance to the final round.

Round Two

‘Bad Day’ was the next new map to be featured this week.  On it, CCindy fought Robin knife to rattler, eventually switching to a board with nails.  CCindy recieved poison damage early on from Robin’s rattler, but held on, attempting to use the map’s many gas traps to her advantage while avoiding major spike damage.  Unfortunately, this attempt to heal more often than be poisoned proved to be too much of a gamble for CCindy, as she fell to massive poison damage, allowing Robin to win.

The Foxhunt map made a return appearance for TheBlackCloud’s fight against Ntchwaidumela, dosing both combatants early with poisonous gas.  Despite getting some good hits in with her board with nails however, TheBlackCloud lost to Ntch and his knife, concluding the second round.

Final Round

Aposiopesis, having advanced to the final round, returned to fight Robin and Ntchwaidumela on the new ‘SOS’ map, which features clusters of all manner of trap - namely, many mines and spikes, peppered with saws in the corners and gas here and there.  The three began respectively with board with nails, rifle, and ripper, though Robin switched to rattler in the middle of the fight.  Ntchwaidumela fell early to spikes and poison, and while Aposiopesis and Robin exchanged blows many times, spikes were Robin’s ultimate undoing, as he was struck not once but twice, leading to his downfall. Thus, Aposiopesis Fullstop thus claimed this June 6’s cash prize.

Aposiopesis Fullstop won Fight Night this week, clawing her way back to the top after initial defeat in round 1

Fight Record, June 6, 2009

These and more photos from this event can be found, as always, at the Post-Apocalyptic Press Flickr Pool.  Fight Nights are typically held every other Saturday at 3PM PDT in Hambone Slash, the Wastelands.