Olympia Times g1-31 From: olympia@pbm.com (Olympia PBEM) Date: Thu, 26 Jan 1995 02:27:51 +0000 +----------------------------------------------------------------------+ | The Olympia Times issue g1-31 | | January 25, 1995 | | | | turn 31 186 players "World 3" | +----------------------------------------------------------------------+ Questions, comments, to play: info@pbm.com Olympia PBEM * * * Ho, everyone that thirsteth And hath the price to give, Come to the stolen waters, Drink and your soul shall live. Come to the stolen waters, And leap the guarded pale, And pull the flower in season Before desire shall fail. It shall not last for ever, No more than earth and skies; But he that drinks in season Shall live before he dies. June suns, you cannot store them To warm the winter's cold, The lad that hopes for heaven Shall fill his mouth with mold. -- A.E. Housman * * * =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Player-contributed press =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Because of fear of unrest and a large influx of immigrants to a continent with low resources, visitors to Eastern Drucartan are asked to procure a visa before entering the area. ( We define Eastern Drucartan as the area of Drucartan that is east of the Uldim Pass). If you want a visa, please send a message to John Sen[m6f], describing the nobles in the party, the size of the party, and the reason for visiting Eastern Drucartan. There is no fee, and requests will only be refused in rare ( i.e. I am bringing 2000 men to kill all nobles ) circumstances. -- The Sen Clan [di4] =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Attention all Olympiads! Anyone who wishes to send messages to those with the famous AOL pigeons communication system should know that the firewalls installed by AOL sometimes add a significant delay to all incoming messages. I have measured delays up to 36 hours. Please take this into account in your communications. -- The Mystics [nt7] =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= advertisement*advertisement*advertisement*advertisement*advertisement "These aren't just maps, they're works of art!" B. Altmiller, new player. "The maps are cool!" -- R. Skrenta "The maps far exceeded my expectations; any new player will likely find the information contained exceedingly valuable.... I am especially impressed by the clarity." -- Crimson Sage MAPS MAPS MAPS All map orders have now been sent. A new edition will be available shortly, with dozens of squares of player-supplied information. It seems that word is spreading, and everyone wants a map! Yet they are still available at the low, low, LOW price of only 50 gold! Don't sweat with a ruler measuring ditances on an ASCII map, while your opponent is able to leisurely encompass the world in a glance! Get yours today! Using Campaign Cartographer, the most powerful fantasy cartography program available, I have designed maps of Provinia which I am distributing via surface mail. These 7-color maps show all terrain features and internal locations listed in Skulking Vermin's Atlas. Each kind of terrain and internal location has its own graphical symbol: over Now, how much would pay for a beautiful, full-color, ready-for-hanging-next-to-your-computer map like this? Before you answer, there's more! We'll also throw in a map of known Olympia, based on lore provided by the Crimson Sage! It's sketchy yet, but you can plot the major sea lanes and measure the distances between continents quickly and easily with this beauty. Contains all the data in the Provinia map as well (just very, very small). You'll also get a full-page map key, and a letter from the Midnight Carnival on future deals. All for the low, low price of 50 gold! That's right, just PAY 50 to our representative in the Imperial City, the Illustrated Man (s5e) and e-mail us your carrier snail address, and two lovely 7-color maps will go winging their way to you pronto! And once you've subscribed, all future revisions of the maps will be available for half price! Act now, prices may rise with demand. EXTRA DEALS!!!>>> All your nobles left the IC? Not to worry! Send us the terrain descriptions of any 10 squares of land or coastal waters not in the Atlas, and we'll send you a map for free! Must be willing to have this information published. EXTRA DEALS!!!>>> We will make custom maps! Let us know the size, scale and quantity of any maps you want made, and we'll quote you a price! Want a blowup of your kingdom five pages wide by five pages high? Write the Illustrated Man (s5e) and we'll talk! This offer brought to you by... The Midnight Carnival ___ ||||| /\ =====----`==== oo oo /\ /\ -- The Midnight Carnival [nx2] =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= We have reached an area of Provinia that is not garrisoned. It is somewhat strange that any of Provinia is left unclaimed, but is of little concern since we are not seeking land. A few monsters are present, but nothing from which we cannot protect ourselves. We will continue onward to see if these areas might still have unknown knowledge for us to discover. -- Seekers of Knowledge [tt4] =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Wisdom from the Vikings Giver of the feast! Your guest is here. Where shall he sit? Fast temper grows in a far seat. Prompt him not to prove his mettle. -- The AEsir [tv8] =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= ----------------------- S. CAMARIS Update ----------------------- Dead calm. Or perhaps I should say UNdead calm. -- Compte du S. Camaris [b4q] -- The Crazy Quilters [vn7] =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= The Count of Chardia ==================== Chapter VI - The Tollusian Quarter ================================== Just a hundred paces from the inn where the two friends sat, eyes and ears attending well, whilst they imbibed the sparkling Kodva, was the small collection of huts known as Tollustown. Once, long ago, a mysterious colony had quit that land and settled here in Aethelarn, where it remains to this day. The village was a pictur- esque blend of Provinian and Tollusian styles and its inhabitants, gypsies of the sea, had preserved their customs and costume, as well as their native tongue. Our readers will follow us down its only road and enter a small wooden house, whitewashed like a country posada. A young, beautiful girl, with hair as black as jet and soft doelike eyes, is sweeping the earthen floor. Her brown arms, bare to the elbow, move with a restless impatience, and she taps the earth with her pliant foot displaying the pure and full shape of her well-turned leg. A few steps away, balancing a chair on two legs, leaning his elbows on an old worm-eaten table, a tall young man of twenty or so looks at her with an air of both vexation and unease, but the firm gaze of the young girl controls his mein. "You see, Mercedes," started the young man, "here is Blossom Bloom approaching again; tell me, is this not the moment for a wedding?" "Fernand, I have answered you a hundred times and really you must be your own enemy to ask me again..." retorted the girl. "Well, repeat it for the hundred-and-first, so that I might believe you mean it! Make me see that you are trifling with my happiness, that my life or death means nothing to you! Ah to have dreamed for so long, and to lose that hope which was the only stay of my existence!" "I was not I who ever encouraged your hopes, Fernand," replied Mercedes. "Do not accuse me of coquetry. I love you as a brother but my heart has always belonged to another. Is this not true?" "Yes, you have been cruelly frank with me," admitted Fernand. "But do you forget that it is among our people a sacred law to intermarry?" "You mistake a custom for a law, Fernand. And do not cite this custom in your favor. You are conscripted and only at liberty on sufferance. At any moment you will be called upon to take up arms. Once a soldier, what would you do with me, a poor orphan with no- thing but a hut and some ragged nets? Sometimes you pretend that I am useful to your fishing enterprise, and I accept, but only because you are the son of my father's brother and because it would hurt you should I refuse. But I feel that the fish that I sell, and the gold it produces to buy flax for the spinning, I feel very deeply that this is charity!" "Poor as you are I should not want another," begged Fernand. "Who would call a woman honest who loves another more than her husband? Be content with my friendship for that is all I can give." "So you can bear your own wretchedness but fear for mine." The young man scowled. "With your love, I could conquer anything. I could expand my fishing fleet, build a warehouse, become an owner." "You can do no such thing; you are a soldier and only remain here because there is no war." "Bah! I shall become a sailor then, with a varnished hat, striped shirt and a blue blazer with anchors on the buttons. Then you would love me! You are cruel with me because you are expecting one dressed as that! But he has betrayed you! Or the sea has betrayed him!" "Fernand!" cried Mercedes. "I believed you good of heart and I was mistaken! You are wicked to call to your aid jealousy and the wrath of Atnerks! I will not deny that I await him; and if he does not return I will tell you that he died loving me only!" He made a gesture of rage. "I read your intent, Fernand. You mean to cross your knife with his. But I promise you that fighting a man is a bad method of pleasing the woman who loves him! And now you have reminded me of the sea's treachery and he has been gone four months and we have had such terrible storms..." She began to cry. Fernand did not move to comfort the tears nor make reply although for each drop he would have shed life's blood. These tears were for another. Finally, he arose and paced awhile across the hut. He suddenly stopped before Mercedes, his eyes aglow and his fists clenched. "Say once and for all, is this your final determination?" "I love Edmond, and none but he shall ever be my husband," averred the girl. "But if he is dead--- If he has forgotten you---" "Mercedes!" A voice cried out joyously, just outside the house. "Mercedes!" To be continued... -- The Indomitable Gauls [wk7] =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= This is monthly notice if you wish to visit the environs of Cycarth and Redwine please be courteous enough to let m9l know (you can reach him at heyman@camis.stanford.edu. I do not currently plan to restrict access, but would like to know who is wandering around in my front yard. I would especially like to know if you plan on using any of the natural rsources (peasants, wood, and the like) in the provinces bt25 bt26 bt27 bu25 bu26 bu27 bv25 bv26 bv27 bw25 bw26 and bw27. By order of Darkman, caretaker of Dark Castle -- Dweezil [e5q] =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Beat the queues and get out of the Imperial city! Walk where few nobles have ever walked before. Learn the arcnae secrets of the sky. For a mere 400 gold coins You could be heading skywards with a return ticket valid for any month of the Year! To join our long list of satisfied customers and magi write to: -- Ferry master [z1s] =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Bring down Castle Olympique and its narcissistic, overly mothered owner! -- Captain Tarkus [c1s] =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= PILGRIMS AID SOCIETY The Pilgrims Aid Society in a freelance organization to assist new nobles in Olympia to get on their feet. If you have questions, comments, or queries, contact us! We know a lot more than we used to but less than we would like. -- Akmall Benhalla [p3p] =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= +------------------------------------------------------------+ | ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT AD | +------------------------------------------------------------+ Tired of remembering the code number for "Perform Common Tasks for Gold?" Ever lose valuable time because you inverted those pesky numbers in orders? Ever drop the wrong item? Nothing like issuing "drop 1 95" instead of "drop 95 1" to ruin your whole month! If this has ever happened to you, you need - DISPATCHomatic! DISPATCHomatic is a Perl script which replaces English words with Olympia codes. DISPATCHomatic provides some syntax checking, and can also mail the orders automatically*! What does all of this cost you? 500 gold? Less. 200 gold? No. DISPATCHomatic is ABSOLUTELY FREE. Send email to Mandrake <t8t@g1.pbm.com> with five province reports not in the Atlas, and I'll send you the program. If you send a city report, or 10 province reports not in the atlas, I'll provide free automatic updates. *DISPATCHomatic has only been tested on Un*x workstations. The Perl utility is required. +------------------------------------------------------------+ | ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT AD | +------------------------------------------------------------+ -- Mandrake [t8t] =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= The Olympia Atlas is accepting contributions, and is available for download! Be the first to contribute information for unexplored lands (Faery). In the tradition of Oleg's Map (tm), the Atlas is a compilation of geographical information useful for explorers, traders, and adventurers. Best of all, it's absolutely free! To contribute to the Atlas, simply send turn excerpts (cut out all the incriminating parts) that contain the following information: o) Mapping data (region & route info) o) City market reports o) City skills lists o) Inner locations and send it to sx6@g1.pbm.com. We'll include it into the next version of the Atlas. The Atlas is available by ftp from your nearest PBM ftp site (ftp.erg.sri.com in the USA, check the PBM FAQ for other sites), in the directory /pub/pbm/olympia, as atlas.X, where X is the turn of the last update. The Atlas is also available on the PBMGames forum on CompuServe, in the fantasy games section, as atlas.oly. Brought to you by the Skulking Vermin (sx6) -- Sludge [x0o] =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= With a great cheer from the pikemen, and a loud whimper from the wounded, the head of DR. PAIN was lofted on the tip of a pike and then flung across the bloody field. The AOO is not invincible, one of their most powerful factions is now ... headless. -- Angus McAttle [b6o] =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Ships sighted: Wrath of Akhenaten [er1v], roundship, 70% loaded, 8% damaged, "Made of genuine Birnam Wood", owner: Talice [a8i], with nine sailors, 28 crossbowmen, accompanied by: Selma [c3i], wearing golden helm [ij0g], "Queen of the Spiders", with five peasants, six soldiers, nine nazgul, 39 giant spiders, six cyclops Bones [if0q], skeleton, number: 10 Hmmmmmm. I like it. Leaves very little doubt about Talice's intentions. -- MacBeth [u0i] =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Greetings all travelers, I plan to land in Krussos this turn, and I would appreacate it if anyone claiming land would contact me. I did not see any in the claimlog, but I would still like to talk with you and anyone else presently in Krussos. Thank You -- Bootes [t3t] =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Still no one wants to let a poor newcomer know about how inns work? I am just curious. I didn't think they were so important that they needed to be kept secret.... -- Jonah [u9a] =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Now that The Great Unpleasantness is behind us, the shoot on sight orders are hereby lifted. Friendly visitors are welcome, but must still obtain a visa from the court. -- Pel [q1v] =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= I encourage all nobles who wish to be free of the AOO to strike out against them. Contact me if you wish to help in the extermination. -- Legoa [d3y] =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Oleg the Loudmouth's Holy War against the Ancient Odiferous Oligarchs gained many recruits since my last announcements. Even small factions can make a big contribution to the war effort. Thanks to all who have seen the light. -- Oleg's Replacement [d4w] =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= The First Order faction [pd6] is looking for work! Need gold! We can do it all: mine, build inns, build temples, etc. Contact Domnall ua Neill [n1y] to strike a deal. -- Domnall ua Neill [n1y] =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= To a city at last. After nearly a year since last seeing civilization, we are going to port. It has been a long and lonely journey, and still we have not found a home. -- Hans Shadowspawn [r2y] =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= The Tai Lung's captain would like to contact anyone sailing in the northern unexplored regions to exchange data and avoid duplication of effort. -- Hidenka Sencho [az7t] =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Rumors =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= OLYMPIA'S TRIAL OF THE CENTURY BEGINS Prosecutors, Defense spar over noble ID evidence OPI- IMPERIAL CITY, PROVINIA: Against a heated backdrop of last- minute legal manouverings and sympathy plays, the trial of accused double-murderer Viliz began today, with many in attendance supporting either side doubtful that the case will be resolved on its merits. Viliz, represented by his attorney, Duke Marat, attempted to turn the tables on the Crown's prosecuting counsel by asking for the court's permission to demonstrate that Viliz had severe physical limitations that would have made him physically unable to commit the murders. Presiding Judge Atnerks refused the request, noting that the court could take judicial notice of many other murders that Viliz had avowedly committed, and also noting that the proposed demonstrative evidence was of doubtful probative value, since Viliz is accused of having plotted and carried out the murder aided by a company of over twenty armed men. Viliz reacted badly to the judge's ruling, howling in a bloodthirsty rage and screaming that he would cut the judge's head off as soon as the trial was over and he found the judge alone outside of the safe haven of Imperial City. Doubts of Impartiality Marat, speaking for Viliz in a press conference outside of the courthouse, said his client could not get a fair trial. "Being as the media have unfairly and irresponsibly reported my client's threats to cut the head off every non-AOO noble in Olympia, and then start cutting off the heads of AOO nobles, and then slaughter the other nobles in his own faction, my client is known by all to be vicious, irredeemable killer with no ounce of fairness admixed in his brutality. How can such a crazed mad dog expect a fair trial?" Crown Counsel responded with an opposite position, feeling that the fame and well-known bloodthirst of Viliz would tend unfairly to lead a jury to acquit him, despite the overwhelming evidence of his guilt. "Given that Viliz kills people merely for standing within reach, what is the likelihood that someone would actually stand up for justice against him, and give him reason for anger?" Scientific Squabbles Marat, in opening remarks, tried to deflect the focus of the jury's attention away from the most damning piece of evidence against Viliz: the fact that his noble ID was found at the scene of the crime. Marat accused the crown of shoddy work, noting that the turn reports were all generated in the course of one night, and that other mistakes and bugs had been found in the turn reports. "How many times," asked Marat, "have we been told to ignore random failure? How many times has an attack failed because of a coding error in the source code? Who among us does not know aboout the body of a loved one shipped many tens of provinces away from its natural resting ground because of someone's mistake? Now, an attack and dead bodies are sought to be pinned against Viliz merely because several eyewitnesses state that it was his noble ID that was present when this murder was committed. I say that this is wrong, and that no man should suffer because of faulty code." Overwhelming Evidence Crown counsel admitted that there had been errors in procedure in the past, but that the evidence here was overwhelming. "It is true that we did not apprehend him at the scene, but we have all the other kinds of evidence that could be imagined." He mentioned the fact that drops of Coddington's blood were found on Viliz' sword, that Coddington's possessions were held by Viliz, and he discussed how, when police were brought to the scene by the insistent barking of a neighbor's dogmatix, they found Viliz' noble ID at the scne. "Perhaps one element of this crime could be reasoned away, but altogether they point to one man as the murderer, and that man is Viliz." ====LATE ADD=== Police reports have been received indicating that Viliz has escaped custody, perhaps with the aid of his childhood friend Basetrestric ther Archymonaged, and that he has fled west, leading the police on a bizarre low-speed chase riding a white bronco. police have said they do not plan to stop Viliz, as he is reputedly holding a pike to his head, and thereby threatening to harm himself if he is stopped. More details to follow. PHOTO: Viliz, in happier days, is shown holding up the severed head of a noble new to the game who was suspected of having something Viliz might have wanted. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= "Blessed Are The Peacemakers", from Oneness, Great Principles Shared By All Religions "Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God." - Christianity "Shall I tell you what acts are better than fasting, charity, and prayers? Making peace between enemies are such acts; for enmity and malice tear up the heavenly rewards by the roots." - Islam "The noble minded dedicate themselves to the promotion of peace and the happiness of others - even those who injure them." - Hinduism "When righteousness is practiced to win peace, he who so walks shall gain the victory and all fetters utterly destroy." - Buddhism "How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him how brings good tidings, who publishes peace." - Judaism =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= If anyone has any information regarding what a "Golden Ring" does then please email an152895@anon.penet.fi. Thanks in advance Anonymous Quizzer =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Dear Squire Adam, Not on your life! But to show I'm a good sport: Try scrying zz99 and see what you get. --- F.D. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Now open for buisness!!!! Olympian Exterminating. We specialize in the removal of pesky rodents. We are running a specail, removing all (Ma)Rats from a Provina for $19.95. -Olympian Exterminating =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Praise the gods! After 8 weeks at sea, with barely even a sight of land, the captain has decided to explore the shore we've just sighted! It appears to be a forest, with the unwelcoming name of "Blisterleaf", but we are so delighted to be away from the close stench of the ship, that we would walk into the "Big-Nasty-Carniverous-Leaf" forest at this point! =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Too bad the rule of Dr. Pain's dead body doesn't get to continue. The peasants enjoyed having a ruler who was worse off than them. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= The forces of good are gathering & armies are mustering. The spirit of Dogmatrix and Oleg are alive and working today! The doom of the AOO draws nigh! -Samuel Adams, an equal opportunity offender =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= When a country is governed with tolerance, The people are genuine and honest. When a country is governed with repression, The people are more deceitful and dishonest. --Tao Te Ching, Lao-Tzu =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= F R E E O L E G T H E L O U D M O U T H ! ! ! "Free Oleg the Loudmouth? Hell, I'd pay someone ELSE to have him!" Q: What do you do with a captured Oleg the Loudmouth? A: I hear his brain makes good eatin'. Q: What do you have when you get a captured Oleg the Loudmouth and a dead Dr. Pain? A: A good start. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= They have sown the wind, and they shall reap the whirlwind. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= The Leviathon has risen. The pirate Swishbuckler is defeated. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Clifford's City Market Database: 63 city reports and growing. Send in a city market report not yet in the database and you will receive a report each week on the commodity of your choice. For further info, write to w4t@g1.pbm.com. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Well, it looks like I have landed somewhere, now to find somewhere I can quarry and join the 30 odd other landowners! =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= "You know your worth when your enemies Praise your architecture of aggression." -- D. Mustaine "Evil has no friends, and therefore need not concern itself with loyalty." -- Conrad Bland =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= To all considering a voyage south to the lands beyond Ilion: BEWARE! While the Pilgrims' Aid Society has not yet issued a travel warning for this area, it has become a dangerous part of Olympia. Venture there only at your own peril. -One who knows =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= The Great Oracle of Aethelarn speaks: A great and fundamental change is going to occur in Olympia before the next Harvest. The age of Men will end and the age of Magic will begin. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= ATTENTION NEWBIES!! ATTENTION NEWBIES!! ATTENTION NEWBIES!! As you may well figure out, lines have been drawn in the sands of Atnos. For those of you new to the game, heres a template you can use to help you in deciding which side of the fence to be on (no straddling!). AOO = bad guys Oleg and "hordes" = good guys Not too difficult now is it? (this has been an unauthorized plug for Oleg by the Nobles for the Ouster of the AOO, or NO-AOO, a non-profit orgainization.) =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Citizens of Olympia are invited to attend the First Annual Silly Rumors Awards, to be conducted in Imperial City on the 31st of Dark Night. Nominations are now being accepted, particularly in the Oleg, MAFOC, and AOO categories. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= How safe a city is Trion? =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= It's not "Ma Rat", it's Marat, a Middle Eastern town where the First Crusade killed and ate the entire civilian population. Surely an ideal role model for the AOO leader. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Hmmmm, After digging through the muck that covered these pirates, I discovered that they are not pirates at all! Instead they are monsterous Cyclopses! I begin to feel the loss of my spectacles more than ever. Oh how I hope my companions come soon to get me. I have no desire to become dinner to ravenous cyclopses. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Posted 00aa to 99zz Several nobles post in the times requesting to be informed of visitors to their lands. It would be simpler for travelers to find these requests if the nobles would attempt to use some standard, easy to see header that includes a quick indication of the lands in question. May I suggest one line starting with the word "Posted" and then followed by a description of the land in question. The first line of this post could be used as an example. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Folks with flying stacks are warned that flying stacks over ocean are treated like ships. If you try to fly into a province with a port you must first enter the port before you can fly to the province. If you try to fly to a port province by name (i.e. Fly aa55) you will not be able to and the stack will hover over the water for 15 days, then fall in and die. (I know, this happened to me. If you are not sure of the location of ports or ocean provinces adjacent to ports, then use compass directions instead of province ID numbers. If I was trying to fly from ab55 to aa55 then Fly N would work, as would Fly aa1a (the city ID #), but Fly aa55 would fail since ab55 is ocean. Note that the FLY N order would put me in the city. A further day would be required to enter the province. A series of exploration orders using flight could have problems with this uncertainty even with directions used instead of ID #s. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Heard outside the Flailing Arms.... "Rumor has it that Oleg the Loudmouth is out of house and home and hard pressed to keep his skin. Me hopes he manages to keep it some how so's we got someone to slander....." =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= We stand there, waiting for the bell, That will tell us our masters have condemned us to hell, Buttons will press, missiles will fly, What will we think while we're waiting to die? - Eric Boyle =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Aric squinted against the setting sun as he readied his lariat to catch the last horse in this area of the plains. Soon his entire party would be mobile, and he would leave Provinia for greener pastures. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Hey Pel! This time maybe you win. Next time maybe you lose. Or the time afta that... We gotta win only once. You gotta win ALL THE TIME! Not even you THAT LUCKY! =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Alas! Oleg the Prisoner! "Remember Oleg the Loudmouth!" =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= At last we are free of the dread continent Provinia. It will be nice to finally get back to civilization. The savages of Provinia are worth visiting, but I wouldn't want to live there. Police states are always so chilling. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Todays lesson: Never attack rats with only peasants, you might get captured =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Since that old degenerate Shelley keeps cropping up in the Times, let's remember one of his more political screeds: An old, mad, blind, despised, and dying king,-- Princes, the dregs of their dull race, who flow Through public scorn,--mud from a muddy spring,-- Rulers who neither see, nor feel, nor know, But leech-like to their fainting country cling, Till they drop, blind in blood, without a blow,-- A people starved and stabbed in the untilled field,-- An army, which liberticide and prey Makes as a two-edged sword to all who wield,-- Golden and sanguine laws which tempt and slay; Religion Christless, Godless--a book sealed; A Senate,--Time's worst statute unrepealed,-- Are graves, from which a glorious Phantom may Burst, to illumine our tempestuous day. "Leech-like to their fainting country cling" is particularly good. Anyone you know? =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Dress rehearsal. Now if you two wouldn't mind just moving back ... there ... good ... Everyone ready? And for goodness' sake, remember what we're doing. We always use the same costumes more or less, and they forget what they are supposed to be in you see ... When Queens have to they do it by a cerebral process passed down in the blood. ... Good. Silence! Off we go! =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Market Survey: I am interested in the potential profits of bounty hunting. Has anyone made a serious reward offer with satisfactory payment procedures? Please address "serious reward and payment plan" responses via the times, and include an e-mail address. I will contact you directly if I am willing to pursue your target. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= The world, it seems, does not extend into infinity. Who will be the next to explore the boundary of our fair realm? Is Olympia truly a Moebius strip, as the legends say, or is there more to our world than that? =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Up