The long night has passed, and both the Candy Ghoul and the Black Rider have disappeared into the open wastes, leaving sugar and terror in their wake. What lies ahead for The Wastelands?
UPCOMING EVENTS: Monday night is Movie Night! Head north to Burnt Oak and the Boat House at 6pm SLT for an hour of music courtesy of DJ Giuseppe Spicoli, then make way to the Drive-In at 7:00 for a feature film – along with classic ads and trailers.
The Hunt of the Living Dead may be over, but there are many new scavenger hunts in SL. Some may be far less ghoulish – but that might only add to the hilarity as a filthy herd of Wastelanders stampedes through charming, glamorous, or painfully mundane sims. Discuss the potential candidates in this Forum thread.
Get your weekly dose of organized bloodshed this Saturday at 3pm SLT, when Fight Night returns to the Arena of Hambone Slash! The Arena Map Makers will be out, allowing spectators to create their own custom map for the next round. Don’t forget, maps can be saved and added to the regular rotation by clicking Export, copying the data from Local Chat, and pasting it in a post to the Forums here.
Later, at 5pm SLT (barring an impromptu bonus Movie Night,) DJ Aposiopesis Fullstop will spin a variety of tunes from The Pipe Bomb in Malady Bog.
EVENTS HIGHLIGHTS: Saturday the 30th was action-packed as Wastelanders barged through an assortment of ghoulish sims for the last day of the Hunt of the Living Dead, seeking out the hidden brains – and the free loot within.
Then it was back home to Hambone Slash, where War Zone was set to take place. Vicious combat, cunning strategy, and surprise steals kept all players on their toes as the two five-man teams faced off for control of the Wastelands flag. After winning both rounds, Team Two came out the winner, captained by Dassina Andel. No Warzone platters this time, but prizes were still given out to all participants – the Warzone Bucket-O-Treats, a collectable Halloween pumpkin bucket filled to the brim with treats, including Sharktooth Candy, Perfectly Preserved Twonkies, and a brand-new weapon: the Vicious Clobberin’ Stick.
On Sunday, the Estate skies went dark as midnight, and the long night of Halloween began! The Curse of the Crimson Throne Pathfinder campaign returned to Hambone Slash for a short session, and the intrepid adventurers made their way through a once-elegant mansion that had become a zombie-infested bloodbath – haunted also by the capering harlequin Jolistina. Fortunately, they were able to knock her out and prepare her to be taken into custody – though she may have had other plans in mind….
Halloween events began in earnest thereafter, as RedZone hosted a live music event at the Atropine with a wide range of guest DJs: Giuseppe Spicoli, Karu Seetan AKA Kurobe, JR Wahrhaftig, Aposiopesis Fullstop, Rance Alva, and Gomi Mfume. The music played on from 1pm SLT to 9pm, the styles spanning from RedZone’s own haunting jam session to hip hop, metal, retro, R&B, and more, and a bevy of costume-clad Wastelanders showed up to get down.
All the while, the Candy Ghoul (Sandusky Kayvon) and the Black Rider (NeoBokrug Elytis) roamed the Wastes, dealing out delicious candy and horrible fiery destruction.
Monday’s Movie Night was a blast from the past, featuring 1984’s “Cloak & Dagger,” a surprisingly dark children’s crime drama. His mother dead, his father emotionally distant, Davey Osborn has retreated into a world of video games and imagination. He’s created a new guardian figure in the form of imaginary friend and super-spy Jack Flack. Obsessed with spies and secret missions, Davey stumbles into real-life espionage as a dying FBI agent gives him an Atari cartridge containing top-secret data – which, of course, no other adult will believe. Soon, Davey is running for his life, confronting kidnappers, and packing heat as the body count rises.
ESTATE NEWS: Be sure to check out Vikki Placebo’s main page for the-wastelands.org! All the info you need, with a new and grungy look. Neo is also reworking the Forums and Wiki with a new style and additional features. If you find any bugs, submit them in this forum thread.
Neo has revealed that the weapons system of the Wastelands Game is due for an overhaul soon, and he’s looking for input from the players. If you’ve got a creative idea for new weaponry, have ideas on how to improve game balance, or have issues about the current system you’d like to see resolved, speak up in this Forum thread!
It’s now November, which means there will be a new Land Token in the salvage spawn! Arguably the single most valuable piece of salvage there is, redeem it to Neo for “a free 176 or 234 prims plot with 4 weeks of tier!” Not a landowner yourself? It can be traded or sold to those who want it.
And don’t forget that the revised Wastelands Referral Program is still going strong! Have your friends check out the Land Store at http://land.the-wastelands.org to see the available plots and prices – if they purchase any Estate-owned plot and let Neo know BEFORE BUYING that you’re the person who inspired them, you’ll get a hefty cut of the purchase price!
RP NAME-DROPS: On that long, dark, and haunting night, the Candy Ghoul was seen once more, twitching and jittering beneath his heavy, food-laden hat. All ghouls have their compulsions – it seems that delicious candy was his. This reporter managed to speak with him a while – a pleasant ghoul, one could almost call him naive – though his words were strained from sugar rush, rot, and fear.
He spoke of a dark Master who compelled him to walk the Wastes, his back bent beneath a load of treats he was never allowed to take for himself. The Ghoul gave grim warnings against the Black Rider, a fearsome figure astride a fast and monstrous beast. The Rider is an apparently invulnerable entity who will lay waste to all who approach him, offering no reward and showing no mercy. Even the smallest children were brought to the brink of death by the Rider’s unforgiving rage; they came struggling to the Candy Ghoul as we spoke, begging him for candy to help heal their wounds.
I can only imagine that the Black Rider and the Candy Ghoul’s Master were the very same – locking the Ghoul in an insidious cycle of murder and servitude, compelling the Ghoul to take that candy he so desperately wanted and give it freely to those battered scavengers that limped to his side – themselves living proof of the torment that would follow his slightest disobedience. As the long night gave way to morning, both Rider and Ghoul vanished.
This was not the only alarming visitation, however. Some Wastelanders were shocked to see the Tin Man himself some nights ago, returning briefly after his long and mysterious absence. Whatever connection he has with the Salvage and Healing Masheens must still be strong, despite the distance. Suffice it to say, any combat or conflict near any of these Masheens is intolerable to him, and those who fight near them do so at their peril.
In response to the Black Market’s territorial attacks on scavengers in the Junkyard, Jubal Quintus has called for resistance – an effort he’s calling “Quarinteen.” Something about the way he spoke makes this reporter think he speaks of something more than mere clan rivalry. Those who want more information can seek him out at his old red rail car near the Bunker of the Wastelands proper.
