Web Fed News Yearbooks - May 2004

FEDERATION II: FOR RICHARD HEADS
The Anti-Guide for those who refuse to read Guides
By Elijah, Master of the Whinge

Federation II is a different game and apparently some people are having a problem coping with the change. Don't fret, the following article will help you anticipate changes and become a successful Federation II player. Now, you might be saying "Nobody ever reads the Guides!" I have taken this into consideration and have decided that I am not writing a guide, but I am authoring the anti-guide. People don't read guides, but they might read anti-guides.

BEFORE YOU ENTER

Those of you who are familiar with the character creation process will recognize much of this. Name, Gender... Race? What is this race nonsense you ask? I'm sure many of you are very confused at this point. What kind of race has Bella intended? A NASCAR race? A potato-sack race? Perhaps a spaceship race? Race refers to what kind of creature your character is. I've elected, "Human" but you can put in nearly anything in this spot. Jazir is a Chill'an and Marina is a Mermaid, for example.

Race allows you to start off the game role-playing. This does mean that you can't become a Wolf, Sheep, or Pirate suddenly when you hit the rank of Squire. It means you have to plan ahead. Of course, you could go with the non-specific, "Mystery" or perhaps, "None of your business!"

THE BEGINNING...

You are "birthed" into the Meeting Place, same as Classic Fed, except you might notice the PA doesn't work. The game isn't broken, enjoy the silence.

Once you have finished enjoying the silence, you'll likely run straight to the office block. You might notice that the Galactic Administration building has changed, as well as several of the locations along the way. Enjoy the new locations, don't complain on the comms that things have changed. (You might just end up like the previous owners of the Earth Mansion!)

Once you find your way to the new clerk you will attempt to "bribe 200". This is foolish. If you read the official guide or the bulletins you would know that the command is no longer "bribe 200". Do not complain over public channels that you don't know the command. This will likely lead to embarrassing taunts from those who bothered to read the guide, and will inform everyone that you would rather harass other players than learn to play the game yourself.

YOUR FIRST PROMOTION

So, you either figured out the command on your own, read the guide (gasp!) or were told by a generous player or staff member. Now you need to go to Jarrow and order a ship, right? Except that this is another command that has changed, and you now have to buy a ship.

Good, you buy the ship and walk to the Earth Landing Pad.

PANIC! Where is your ship? It's not on the landing pad! What did Jarrow do with it? You only have one option, reach for your comm unit and whine to anybody who will listen that your ship has gone missing. Doing this will inform other players that you didn't read the message Jarrow gave you, you didn't read the guide, and you'd rather harass other players. Your ship isn't on the landing pad because nobody's ship is on the landing pad!

You will eventually learn that you need to board a shuttle that will connect you to your ship.

A REVIEW

When in doubt, use the "comm" command and complain. This will fix all of your problems. In the event that you don't get a satisfactory response, or in the event that you don't like the response you get, use your comm unit to bash the game and the designer. If that doesn't make things better refer to your rank, the length of time that you have played classic Federation, or that you could design a better game.

Never read the guide before playing Federation II. Assume everything is the same. Bella is re-writing Federation because she has nothing better to do. Shut down your front-end and go out to lunch knowing that Bella has spent the past 15 years translating the Complete Works of Shakespeare from English into English. Because Bella doesn't want to come up with anything new or different, Bella prefers to do it once and repeat, or just repeat what somebody else has done.

BLOCKADE RUNNER CHAT: RON
With Blaze – Pirate Goddess of Fed II

The noisy din of pirates and buccaneers (the entourage) fades to the background as patrons of the club curiously watch a camera crew arrange equipment. Fresh rounds of drinks are ordered up, while Blaze rises from a corner table in The Starship Cantina to greet you with a warm smile.

"Welcome to the Blockade Runner Chat! I'm your hostess Blaze, and every couple of weeks I interview a different Fed personality as we explore in-depth the views that each guest has of our universe. Today we have a space cowboy who has recently returned to Classic Fed following a hiatus that had haulers breathing easy again. Please welcome DUKE RON of PRIVATE!"

Ron smiles at the lovely Blaze, "Now, how can I help you?"

Blaze orders up a round of beers and looks through her notes while Ron grabs the pretzels. She bites her lip as she looks at her notes in confusion.

Ron refills his beer glass

Blaze exclaims, "Welcome back to Fed, Ron... you were gone over a year!"

Ron nods, "Yes I was... about 13 months

Blaze exclaims, "Why'd you leave so suddenly? There was no fanfare at all!"

Ron says, "I don't believe in those silly goodbyes... if you're gonna go... go. There was a confluence of events... Both fed and RL... which told me it was a good time to go for a bit."

Blaze is impressed with the vocabulary. Ron chuckles and puts away the dictionary.

Blaze asks, "So you intended to return eventually?"

Ron says, "Well... I left the option open. I don't think one should burn all one's bridges."

Blaze still can't make sense of her notes, she looks up and nods and smiles at Ron. He wipes the table so the notes don't get wet.

Blaze muses, "Its the oddest thing... I have a set of notes here based on what you told me personally years ago... they say that you were given the Ron account by your cousin at the time you started playing Fed, which was about 3 years ago... "

Ron says, "Not true"

Blaze thumps another set of notes with her finger; they say something entirely different.

Ron says, "I was given the Ron character... by the original Ron. But he wasn't my cousin... I never met him"

Blaze asks, "Was there a cousin involved at all?"

Ron replies, "No"

Blaze says, "So if it was given to you by the original Ron, that would have been way back when Fed moved to the web"

Ron says, "I got the character in 99 I think... or thereabouts. Yes...after the move to the web"

Blaze asks, "You were the same Ron who had his duchy as a member of DUIT?"

Ron says, "Oh yeah... DUIT... I was part of that for a short time. Mostly I have avoided alliances. I had almost forgotten about DUIT."

Blaze furrows her brow as she makes some connections in her mind, "I'm perhaps more familiar with Fed history than some of my audience, so what you're telling me indicates something interesting... ."

Blaze struggles with the question, "Did you also play the character of the fabulous babe, KAO?"

Ron says, "Yes I did"

Blaze is blown away and Ron just smiles.

Ron says, "I told you I had been in Fed since 95"

Blaze says, "Yep, Kao had facs on my oldest sister's planet"

Ron pours Blaze another beer which she guzzles and requests a shot too.

Ron says, "That's how I got the Ron character"

Blaze exclaims, "My god, you (a real life guy) played a female persona and a horny one at that... for over 7 years!"

Ron asks, "Not bad RP, eh?"

Blaze is in awe.

Ron drawls, "Not that some folks didn't figure it out... "

Blaze asks, "Figured out that Kao and Ron were the same? Or that Kao was a guy?"

Ron says, "both"

Blaze asks, "Did you admit to it to anybody?"

Ron drawls, "Only 1 person in Fed... ."

Blaze asks, "Kao's Fedwife, Brenda?"

Ron drawls, "No... she was gone by then... "

Blaze drawls, "So she never knew... "

Ron says, "Not to my knowledge. But these days I am just Ron"

Blaze winks, "No wonder Kao was so into girls"

Ron chuckles... "She was into everything. And everyone"

Blaze winks, "And won't some of those guys be surprised!"

Ron says, "Makes life interesting"

Blaze exclaims, "Indeed!"

Ron asks, "But... that's the point of RP, is it not? So... if Fed is a fantasy... and you are dealing with fantasy characters, who cares who is on the other keyboard?"

Ron continues, "One thing you must understand, though."

Blaze listens.

Ron says, "I played Kao as a woman to the hilt. However, I never discussed RL stuff with people, or promised to meet them, or anything like that. It was strictly RP and I didn't worry about who was on the other keyboard. I played to the character."

Blaze says, "Well, as much as I hate to change the topic, lets talk about Ron then. The original Ron was Kao's duke, correct?"

Ron says, "Ok... yes. For a time"

Blaze asks, "When he left, that's when you got ownership?"

Ron says, "Yes"

Blaze drawls, "Because there are two phases to Ron under your ownership... "

Ron nods

Blaze notes, "There was subdued DUIT Ron... "

Ron asks, "Subdued?" He laughs and says, "OK"

Blaze winks, "Well he certainly wasn't the cowboy that you later became ;)"

Ron says, "Well, that's true"

Blaze asks, "Tell me about that transition, why you started to play him differently?"

Ron ponders while Blaze orders more beer and sips on hers.

Ron says, "To be quite frank... . I didn't much like the alliances and the cliques and the heavy emphasis on macro-hauling. So I decided to toss a wrench into the works. Ron is not a real social animal... so I didn't mind the reaction I knew I'd get."

Blaze winks, "I remember the first time I met the new Ron... you were trying to seduce some poor merchie by showing off your BIG GUN ;)"

Ron winks, "Oh yeah... the BIG GUN was a great marketing tool;) Pun intended"

Blaze winks, "Did that line work? ;)"

Ron drawls, "Oh yes... Happiness is a warm gun, spread legs and an open bar"

Blaze drinks to that!

Ron says, "So, I started shooting haulers"

Blaze asks, "How come?"

Ron says, "Because I could... . because they were there, and I wanted to make players have to deal with something"

Blaze winks, "So it is for their benefit? ;)"

Ron says, "No. I am not that disingenuous. It was for my benefit... but it did make people learn some things"

Blaze says, "Folks say that you run if they come after you."

Ron drawls, "That is true... I don't fight fair... Show me a fair fight and I'll show you World War I... . not a pleasant thing"

Blaze asks, "Do you even KNOW how to fight?"

Ron grins, "Oh yes. I can fight. Not well. I am a hunter, not a fighter. Different skills are required."

Blaze says, "You run for cover when they want to fight back"

Ron says, "When they try to fight back, I have won, because now they are active participants in the game instead of droning macro-haulers."

Blaze asks, "Have you kept track of your kills?"

Ron says, "Before I left I had over 400. I think about 50 in the 2 months I have been back"

Blaze asks, "How many of those were DD's?"

Ron says, "about 15 DD's. DD wasn't my goal. People REALLY got pissed when I DD'd someone"

Blaze says, "It does make folks more cautious about hauling when you are around though"

Ron says, "People are quite inventive, and I love that."

Blaze asks, "How do you react when folks get pissed?"

Ron says, "I usually ignore it. You should see the TB's I get"

Ron grins and drains his beer glass then pours another.

Blaze says, "Explain your method... hunting obviously requires a non-peace space loc..."

Ron says, "Oh yes, gotta have non peace space. I scout the universe, documenting where those are. Most of hunting is just waiting and watching."

Blaze asks, "Do you target specific haulers or duchies?"

Ron says, "Not really, but people are creatures of habit. I watch those and determine habits and routing patterns. I am an equal opportunity shooter"

Blaze smiles, "One could certainly say that you've created a whole new way to play FED without getting bored"

Ron says, "That's my goal. Fed has been kinda slow. A little pzaazz won't hurt."

Blaze asks, "Will you be making a transition to Fed II?"

Ron says, "I don't know. Haven't researched that much. Maybe."

Blaze points out, "No weapons here yet"

Ron says, "The thing I used to like most about Fed was its totally wide-open nature. Anyway, I am having a blast now that I am back. It is fun:)"

Blaze asks, "Any other role play scenarios that you'd like to do in Fed, that you haven't done?"

Ron winks, "Hmmm... .well, I have been Fed's most Fabulous Babe, and Fed's most dangerous Pirate, dunno what's left ;)"

Blaze grins, "Certainly that's more excitement than I could handle"

Ron says, "You used to handle it quite well, hehe"

Blaze smirks at Ron and says earnestly, "Well I do hope you stick around for a while :)"

Ron says, "Well, I'll probably stick around. Sex is good, targets are plenty."

Blaze exclaims, "All a man could ask for!"

Ron quips, "Or a woman"

Ron interjects, "I have a few friends now that I'm back... like starting all over almost. Still have some old friends, too:)"

Blaze asks, "Hmm I think that was all I had to cover, did you want to mention anything?"

Ron says, "Only that I think people should expand their RP in Fed, rather than be narrow and restricted. The beauty of Fed used to be that is was so wide open. IB has narrowed that somewhat but FED is still pretty flexible. That's what was so cool about it."

Blaze smiles, "Thank you for your time today, Ron! It was a total honor"

Ron asks, "You are quite welcome. Wonderful to see you again. Can we have sex now?"

The cinematographer hurriedly shuts off the cameras, since the Chronicle is PG-rated! ::fade to black::

Archives of previous interviews, including one with Kao and a couple of "Underground" articles by Kao can be seen at http://poopdeck.home.comcast.net/brc.html.

PRESS RELEASE FROM POUND HEAVY PRODUCTIONS

Due to a recent tragedy on the set of As The Waffle Burns, this production company (Pound Heavy Productions) has decided to cancel the show.

Shortly after the first airing of As The Waffle Burns, Hazed's physical showed she was pregnant. Chewbacon, Cruise and Elijah claimed it was their child. Fraternity tests were lined up and we were planning to remove Hazed from production. "Geiiga had another plan," said the set director.

The next morning, the bodies of the potential fathers were found. The Galactic Authorities were notified and soon swarmed the set with investigators and forensic bots. Halcyon and Marina were interviewed first and reported they went out for drinks with Geiiga the night before and Hazed was their designated pilot.

Authorities were notified by the IRS of an audit that revealed Halcyon and Marina received large deposits to their accounts the same morning the bodies were found. This provoked an audit on Geiiga and Hazed. As suspected, all of Hazed's money went to Geiiga. However, Geiiga's account reflected transactions to Halcyon and Marina's account. Investigators arrested Geiiga, Halcyon and Marina and interrogated them. Halcyon was the first to spill the beans, Marina soon after she heard that he squealed.

Their stories matched: With Hazed pregnant, Geiiga felt he lost his source of income. He killed Cruise and Elijah, but left Chewbacon alone since his alcoholism made him impotent and eliminated him as the father.

In Geiiga's interrogation, he revealed Chewbacon attacked him after he murdered Cruise. "I was wiping the blood off my knife and he came into the room shouting, 'Dammit! Don't hurt her, she's carrying my baby!' I really didn't have the time to listen to his drunken whining, so I just wasted him. Always wanted to since he walked on the set."

Geiiga was charged with three counts of murder. Halycon and Marina were charged with obstruction of justice and lying to Galactic Authorities.

"With three cast members dead, we would've likely cancelled," said the chairman of Pound Heavy Productions, "but this event wiped out all of our cast members, so there wasn't another option."

FROM THE SOCIETY NEWS DESK: WEDDING REPORT
By Lady Lulu 'Buffie' Capturfilingham

Goin' To The Chapel Of Love, Part Deux

This week, I will regale you with the splendid wedding of Nuhira and Furgas. This wedding actually took place before the wedding of Snowstar and Jazir, but unfortunately I misplaced my notes. Terrible, I know. And I apologize to the lovely couple. But better late than never. This was the second wedding I had attended in the original Fed. Keep those invitations coming in, dearies!

The wedding took place on the planet of Namek. The guests gathered in a large meadow off the landing pad. In the center of the meadow was a large Wakatanka Tipi. Inside the tipi was a large altar built with black teakwood with an ankh carved on the front panel of the altar. The location could only be described as powerful and peaceful, all at the same time. Quite impressive.

The ceremony took place in two parts. The first part was Vampire ritual, performed by Urissa. The bride and groom each sliced their palms open, letting their blood flow into a ceremonial goblet, and each drinking their co-mingled blood from the goblet. How romantic! And, painful!

The second part was a Lakota ceremony performed by Chamberlain. A Shaman danced and chanted around the young couple. He was invoking the protection and approval of the union of Wakatanka. He shared the sentiment of all in attendance, I assure you. The couple then recited some beautiful vows to each other and the rings they exchanged were exquisite. Chamberlain then held up a wanapin, encircling them and tying it between them, thus joining their spirits forever.

I had never before today witnessed a Lakota wedding, and was truly impressed with the ceremony. I was exceptionally moved and whispered my wish to a butterfly, and then let it go as instructed by Chamberlain. I'm sorry, dearies... but I cannot divulge what my wish was. That is between me and the Great Spirit.

The bride was adorned in a beautiful creamy white elk skin top and skirt adorned with a gold beadwork design around the neckline. What an elegant and appropriate dress.

I must comment on Furgas's outfit, though. He looked like death warmed over. And, that gown he had on? It looked like he rushed over from the hospital right before the wedding started. And Furgas, dear... Save the showing of the intimate parts for the honeymoon. We all had quite a show whenever you turned around, didn't we, dearies?

And a special hello to Deathiscome in original Fed. The young pup was challenging Thejunior to a duel one night last week and claimed that TJ (as he is known) was cheating. He quickly turned on me, claiming that he was roaming around the Fed spaceways when I was in high school and was above reproach. Well, this reporter nearly choked on her pencil. Yes, dearies, I still use a pencil for taking notes. Well, I had to inform the mistaken Deathiscome that this plucky reporter has been around a lot longer than 1995. Too many years to even mention, as I am a lady, and we certainly do not discuss our age. But, anyways, poor, misguided Deathiscome, I have mentioned you in my column and I hope to see you soon!

Also, I must add that if you have any juicy tidbits of gossip, scandal or unaltered logs, you can send them my way and I will try to get it added to the column. I am especially looking for any dirt on a certain demi-goddess who shall remain nameless... but you know what I mean ::wink:: ::wink::

Ta ta for now, Dahhhhhhlings!

BLOCKADE RUNNER CHAT: FANCY
With Blaze - Pirate Goddess of Fed II

The noisy din of pirates and buccaneers (the entourage) fades to the background as patrons of the club curiously watch a camera crew arrange equipment. Fresh rounds of drinks are ordered up, while Blaze rises from a corner table in Old Earth Taproom on Mercury to greet you with a warm smile.

"Welcome to the Blockade Runner Chat! I'm your hostess Blaze, and every couple of weeks I interview a different Fed personality as we explore in-depth the views that each guest has of our universe. Today's guest is the master of events in Old Fed, conquering everything from planet puzzles to cerebral competitions to arena battles... Please welcome DUKE FANCY of TOONTOWN !"

Blaze smiles, "Well welcome to the Blockade Runner Chat, Fancy! And thanks for meeting me on such late notice"

Fancy says, "You're welcome"

Blaze asks, "It seems that I've known you forever... you started playing Fed when?"

Fancy says, "In November of 1996. The last month before AOL went flat-fee."

Blaze asks, "And right from the beginning, you played using the Fancy-Fancy theme. How'd that come about?"

Fancy says, "Well, I've enjoyed the Top Cat characters since I first discovered the cartoon. Fancy-Fancy is the romantic among the group, and I was going for that kind of character."

Blaze asks, "Didn't you play another character from the cartoon at one time also?"

Fancy says, "Yes, I once also played Choo-Choo, under the name of Chooch, which he was called for short on the show." He winks and adds, "Someone once told me later that in Italian, "Chooch" means "jackass". Something tells me that the creators of the show may not have known that."

Blaze giggles, then asks, "Chooch, I seem to remember, was one of the first to discover and report the 4X bug in Old Fed. How'd you happen across that information?"

Fancy says, "I noticed the bug when I tried selling goods to my own exchange. I checked the treasury balance right before selling, and right after selling, making sure to wait for the exchange to have updated right before that process."

Blaze asks, "This was years into the game existing on AOL and the Web... were you surprised to discover it?"

Fancy says, "It did surprise me to discover it, yes."

Blaze asks, "Did it affect your hauling habits in any way after that?"

Fancy says, "Well, I would try to set my stockpile right below stock on hand when stuffing deficits full, to minimize the overcharge. And I continued to eliminate deficits as I always had, bringing the deficit to -1 ton, then selling a bay the size of my ship's cargo hold to put the stock on hand over 600 tons in-stock."

Fancy continues his explanation, "I also tried to fill deficits on other planets the same way - sell 999 tons to what was presumably a -1000 ton deficit, then sell a 612-ton or 613-ton bay after that to put the exchange 600+ tons in-stock."

Blaze asks, "So wait, you would only import enough to leave you 600 tons out of deficit?"

Fancy says, "When I was doing serious hauling-in, I would first get all the commodities out of deficit, and about 600 tons in-stock. THEN I would build on those."

Blaze says, "Ahh thus selling that last 600 tons without the stevedores nicking half."

Fancy says, "Right - the stevedores wouldn't nick any if the exchange was in deficit at the time of sale. That made sure the exchange got all the goods it paid for."

Blaze inquires, "Do you export also?"

Fancy says, "And yes, I exported as well. I tried to do both at the same time - export somewhere, then import from that same place, if possible."

Blaze asks, "This is some serious hands-on management you speak of... do you use any types of macros?"

Fancy says, "I sometimes used a hauling trigger with the workboard when exporting. I would manually configure it, and have it trigger on the "Your bid is accepted!" message you get when successfully accepting a job off Transportation Central. I stayed by my computer at all times while doing that. I still had to type the ACCEPT # commands. But no macros while hauling."

Blaze says, "So you were very much in control of what you bought and sold"

Fancy smiles, "Right"

Blaze asks, "Are you looking forward to the complete changes facing you in Fed2's economy?"

Fancy smiles, "Yes, this ought to be interesting. I'm eager to take on the challenge. I just wonder when we're going to get to join the Galactic Traders Guild."

Blaze states, "Hmmph *some* already have!" She resumes the conversation, "You seem to aptly tackle anything challenging in Fed... do you consider yourself to be highly competitive by nature?"

Fancy says, "Yes. I enjoy the challenges. I'd really love to be the first player to solve one of the new puzzles that Fed II will have. I kind of view Fed II here as like being able to play the Classic Fed back when it first started up so many years ago."

Blaze asks, "How many official events do you participate in in Old Fed each week?"

Fancy winks, "I have lately been participating in pretty much every one that runs. Aside from the ones I host, of course."

Blaze asks, "How many cerebral seasons have you won?"

Fancy says, "Lots of them. I'd have to count them up to give an exact number."

Blaze winks, "Well what do you do with the award posters you've received?"

Fancy says, "I've got them safely stored around the house."

Blaze pictures an entire room in Fancy's house wallpapered in event posters and Fancy chuckles.

Blaze asks, "You never used to participate in the fighting events before... when and why did you start fighting?"

Fancy says, "I started when Fed II first appeared, and it became clear that Classic Fed will sometime go bye-bye, along with everything done in it. At that point I realized that it wouldn't really matter much if I had a fatal accident with forgetting to re-insure or mis-insuring, since it would be gone anyway sometime after Fed II goes live. Also, I figured I might as well give it a try while I still could."

Blaze asks, "And now you excel in that too... leading the Fighting League in points this season. Does that amaze you?"

Fancy smiles, "In a way, yes it does. Of course, the fact that I've participated in practically every event I can has also helped, I'm sure."

Blaze sound dubious as she asks, "Surely there are some events you don't enjoy though..."

Fancy says, "Well, if I have an event where I'm getting blown up repeatedly, and not winning much that night, that doesn't make it very enjoyable."

Blaze asks, "What are your favorite all-time events in each league?"

Fancy says, "In the Cerebral League, Fedpardy of course. When there was an Exploration League, I liked the Scavenger Hunts the best. And in the Fighting League, well, I'd have to say a tie between Guts & Glory and the Cup of Fearlessness. There's a limit on how many times you can lose a fight in those."

Blaze asks, "You host Fedpardy now, and have for hmm around 3 years. That being your favorite cerebral event, do you miss playing it?"

Fancy says, "I do, yes. Last year, however, I got a chance to play a special edition in which Galinfenner wrote the whole thing so that I could participate as a player."

Blaze asks, "Just so you could get a fix?"

Fancy says, "That was fun, even though I didn't end up being the winner."

Blaze asks, "Who won, and where did you place?"

Fancy says, "Jazir won, and I pulled out second place. I think Priscilla came in third."

Blaze asks, "How come you've never competed in the ultimate event challenge... Fed Survivor?

Fancy says, "I didn't feel I had the time to participate in it when it ran. If it were to run now, I would feel that I have the time to participate, and would be able to make it to Survivor each night."

Blaze asks, "You viewed much of the prior series though, right?

Fancy says, "I read through the transcripts from Fed Survivor IV, so I got a feel for it. I hadn't really paid much attention to the ones before that, aside from occasionally tuning in."

Blaze asks, "From your impression of the combination of politics with talent, is that the sort of event you'd feel comfortable with?

Fancy says, "I might be able to handle the politics. I'm sure I'd do quite well with the talent part."

Blaze asks, "Is any place besides First a "loser"?"

Fancy says, "Not the way the League standings are set up. It used to be that way when the prizes were for free hours and only 1st place won free time."

Blaze asks, "But to you... do you say that you "lost" an event where you placed 2nd or 3rd?"

Fancy says, "Only if I felt I really should have won, and blew it."

Blaze asks, "Event participation is drastically down. Any thoughts on why?"

Fancy says, "Probably the biggest factor is that the game isn't being advertised right now. All efforts are going into getting Fed II ready for going live. Also, I think a lot of people enter Fed and type TIMEOUT OFF simply to exist in there and make their own planetary exchanges run faster, and let builds progress, or let duchy treasuries accumulate funds without having to be at their machines. The pool of players for the events is therefore smaller than it appears. It would be nice if more players would take part in the events. That would make them livelier."

Fancy muses, "I hope it's not because they feel they don't stand a chance against me."

Blaze asks, "So do *you* think that your stellar record of winning events keeps others from participating?"

Fancy says, "I hope not, but I'm aware that it may be a possibility if others think they can't win."

Blaze notes with a wink, "Well they won't win if they don't participate"

Fancy nods and adds, "And without anyone participating, the events don't run."

Blaze asks, "Any suggestions to those who may feel that way?"

Fancy says, "I was kind of nervous when I went to play a Fed event for my first time ever, but I did all right with it. I found them fun to play, win or not, and became a regular "event animal". None of us started off as great players. Even I was a beginner once. With practice, anyone should be able to become good as well."

Blaze asks, "Let's say that Fed2 isn't in the future, hypothetically. If there were no events in Old Fed, would you continue to play at all?"

Fancy says, "Right now, I would still play, because of the love life that has blossomed. But before that, without the events, I probably wouldn't have found much reason to have continued playing. My challenge in that case would have been to try to recruit planets for my duchy, competing with all the other dukes and duchesses for planets."

Blaze exclaims, "And even your love life is the result of an former event, Fed Dating Game! Describe how that happened!"

Fancy smiles, "I learned about who was on the list of date-seekers, and asked about some of the ones I knew something about, and had met before and liked. Antonia was among those, and Gypsy, the hostess, had a slot available for a mystery man for Antonia's night. I agreed to be one of the mystery men, and the rest, as they say, is history."

Blaze asks, "Ooo so you already had an eye on her, and arranged a possible way to hook up?"

Fancy smiles, "I had met her before, and remembered her as a nice gal. I hadn't had strong feelings for her before going on the show, but we did have the common interest of finding a good date. It worked very well. And the strong feelings for each other developed with the date resulting from the show."

Blaze asks, "What about your responses to her questions made her pick you?"

Fancy says, "She told me that the honesty of my responses attracted her. And that's true. I simply answered her questions as honestly and straightforwardly as I could."

Blaze asks, "Who was your competition?"

Fancy says, "Hmm, that I'm having a hard time remembering. If anyone has a log of that show, it would contain who the other mystery men were."

Blaze smiles, "Well I thank you for your time today, Fancy! I know there's an event about to begin right now that you must get going to."

Fancy smiles and nods his head. "Thank you for taking your time to interview me, Blaze," he says.

Blaze turns back to the camera and informs her audience that Fancy hosts Fedpardy every Tuesday at 10pm eastern in Classic Fed, and occasionally hosts special editions in Fed II. Everyone is encouraged to join the fun of Fed's longest-running event!

Archives of previous interviews can be seen at http://poopdeck.home.comcast.net/brc.html.

JUST CHECKING
Hiding or Playing?
by Elijah

I was recently reflecting on various people I know in Federation and the amount of time they spend in the game. Part of this is because I know that I had a problem with spending too much time in the game.

I use to spend many hours in Federation, pretty much from the start of my "free-time" to my last waking moments. I could easily spend 7 hours or so on the game. Much of that time I was doing nothing but waiting for something to happen.

"As with all other groups of addicts, the extreme amounts of time spent on their addiction lead to sacrifices in the other areas of their lives..."

My psychologist recently yelled at me; apparently I spend much of my life hiding from life.

"In children this can be particularly dangerous, since it threatens their development and permanent view of the world around them."

I started playing Fed before I entered Middle School, a time of pain. It started shortly after we lost my father and he could only find a defective version of himself to offer. A time when friends stopped being friends. It started when I was hurting.

"People with underdeveloped social skills, from the slightly insecure to the very geeky, are drawn by the social ease..."

I stopped pursuing relationships outside of Federation; they were too hard... painful. I stopped pursuing life. I was disconnected.

"...on-line users may begin living artificial lives that prove dangerous to their health and emotional stability."

I used to spend most of life sitting on my computer staring at a screen - waiting for something to happen.

"When obsessive computer use interferes with family, friends, school, or employment, causing financial, relationship, or physical problems, and continuing despite efforts at control, then it is a serious problem."

My time in Federation for a while was a serious problem. A problem that is not unique to me. I have found that after a certain length of time Federation stops being a game - but becomes a hiding place. I have started to spend less time in Federation - so I can play more when I am there.

Do you hide in Fed or play in Fed?

(Quotes from "Computer Addiction" http://cse.stanford.edu/class/cs201/projects-95-96/computer-addiction/)

FROM THE SOCIETY NEWS DESK: TRADING WITH STYLE
by Lady Lulu 'Buffie' Capturfilingham

The Trading Game

Hello Dahhhhhlings! So good to see you again! There has been a grandiose new feature added to Fed II, so I decided to give you some tips and advice to make the most of your trading experience. The exchanges are once again alive, and, while the Trading Guild is not quite open just yet, it is never too early for Yours Truly to dispense with some matronly advice for all you prospective Traders. These tidbits were obtained and refined from my many years of dabbling in the Federation Exchanges. Yes, I once traded regularly on the commodities markets. Don't be so shocked. Do you think I could afford to keep myself accustomed to my lifestyle with what Hazed pays her columnists?

When you are jetting around the solar system, carting Holos and NanoFabrics from Venus to Castillo, keep your ship in tip top form. Nothing can be more embarrassing than having those stevedores popping the cargo hatch on your ship, and finding cobwebs in your hold! Just taking 30 minutes to clean that hold can make a world of difference and save you from those embarrassing incidents.

And, speaking of NanoFabrics, don't neglect your wardrobe. Running from exchange to exchange on different worlds with heaven-knows-what kind of atmosphere is no excuse for not looking your best. Now, no-one expects you to look like you are attending the Slarti's Benefit for the Cargon City Museum, but some fashion tips are definitely in order. Let me explain. Keep the commodity that you are trading in mind. If you are hauling artifacts, I would think dressing in loose fitting khaki with a pith helmet is the cat's meow. However, if you are dealing in Microscalpels, the proper dress would be sea foam colored scrubs... and a surgical mask would be in order. And, if you were dealing in Petrochemicals, dress as a Halliburton executive.

Above all, dahlings, when running into the exchanges and buying and selling commodities, you are going to see other Traders in the exchanges. By all means, do say 'Hello' for goodness sakes. We are all civilized beings. We are not on scripts (I hope, anyways). So, please, acknowledge your fellow Traders with some idle chitchat while the stevedores load your cargo hold. You never know what the small talk will yield. I have gotten my best pieces of gossip when I least expected it. I am sure some of it was obtained while making groats.

Now that you have my secrets, I am sure you will all be the most stylish Traders in the Universe.

I received the loveliest note from Nuhira following my write-up of her wedding to Furgas. A thousand pardons for not knowing what planet I was on, dear. The wedding did not take place on Namek, but on PahaSapa. Darn my reading glasses. Ta ta for now, Dahhhhhhlings!

SLAVES FOR THE NIGHT

Classic Fed's channel 11 was abuzz with excitement this past Thursday night, a blast from the past having spontaneously developed – a slave auction! Duchess Urissa took her gavel in hand, encouraging the growing audience to place their bids on their favorite squires, thanes, even commanders as the potential slaves were put on the auction block one by one.

The night's first slave, Tharghan, was purchased by Tmb for a mere 35 megs. Folks were holding onto their wallets in anticipation of the possible slaves yet to come! Things were just heating up though as Smok entered the stage, quickly being sold to an extremely eager Lirimaer for a cool 500 megs. Rumor has it that Smok actually financed his own purchase! Ron was deeply disappointed by losing that bid, as he was anxious to use Smok for target practice.

Next on the block, Erasmus may have raised some eyebrows without raising his bids, with some interesting poses. Nonetheless, Lirimaer snatched the winning bid and took home her second slave of the night for 201 megs. At that point, Smok froze Liri's account, cutting the lady off from buying up all the slaves! Party at Chez Lirimaer!

Fizlock gave us quite the show, dressed as a fireman and lassoing a bull with his 14-foot hose, while jaws dropped in awe. Bidding was furious between Ron, Smok, Snowstar, Urissa, Japresnik, and Haralawn, all apparently in need of some fires to be extinguished! Urissa finally snagged the man with the hose for a nice 500 megs.

Everyone was startled to see a commander enter the auction block, but as Vixen's name was likely to attract it, there was a bidding frenzy. Eventually Apollo took himself a vixen home for a whopping 550 megs!

The last slave of the night was strutting her little round body, clacking her spines, and patting her missiles as SeaUrchin offered her slavely services to either haul or fight. Snowstar noted an opportunity to gift her warrior husband Jazir with a target and joined the bidding war, but Garrick eventually won the pet urchin for 300 megs.

Several participants and audience members expressed an interest in more slave auctions in the future. Others are holding out for the return of the lottery.

TORRID TEXTUAL AFFAIRS
by Elijah, Corresponding Reporter from Federation II

When told of blossoming fed-relationships I find myself not capable of warm fuzzy feelings; instead I am generally only capable of mean-spirited snickering. I am never impressed by Fed-Romance. In my mind it is a joke. Most anybody with a spybeam can see why I have come to my conclusion; some of the things people say in faux-passion are hysterical.

But I must acknowledge that despite my laughter at sexual puns, Fed-Romance is not always a laughing matter. The destruction of real life marriages can be attributed to the textual affairs of Federation players. These "fed-marriages" or "c-sex" experiences have woven their way outside of the computer screen and into the real life marriage of its players resulting in separation and divorce. I suspect that many Federation players don't believe that their textual affairs count because it is just a "game."

In fact, according to infidelitycheck.org most men do not consider online affairs adultery. The site claims that just "...46% of men believe that online affairs are adultery." Despite the common belief that online affairs are not adulterous, women and their divorce attorneys apparently disagree because one-third of divorce litigation is caused by online affairs.

Online romances are definitely dangerous to real life relationships. Why are they so common? Based on my own, much regretted, experiences I think I can point to the root of the attraction as being exactly what I discussed in my online-addiction article a couple weeks back. The ease of social relationships and the ease of "safe" intimacy.

I don't have a solution for the problem that I believe online romance is. I do however encourage you to consider your beliefs on the matter, and if you have a partner, his or her beliefs on internet romance. Intimacy may come easy on the internet, you might feel safe in chat rooms or in your "house" on your planet, but the feelings of your real-life are important and should be respected.

That being said, as I stated before, I do find that online romance, when not destroying marriage, is hysterically funny. (It is so often done so badly!) I am collecting quotes for a contest I plan to run of things Federation players say in their romance that are just pathetically gross, creepy, or hysterically funny. I don't feel winning this contest is something to be proud of so, with just a smidge of regret, I will conceal the identities of the quoted.

BLOCKADE RUNNER CHAT: ALMANDOT
With Blaze – Pirate Goddess of Fed II

"Welcome to the Blockade Runner Chat! I'm your hostess Blaze, and every couple of weeks I interview a different Fed personality as we explore in-depth the views that each guest has of our universe. We have made it to the Bigtime, my friends...we were a Fed2pardy question this week! Today we have a former Old Fedder who was the Duke of Treempire. He has made a return in New Fed...controversy following him! Please welcome ALMANDOT!"

Almandot arrives and Blaze smiles, greeting him.

Almandot says, "shubisha"

Blaze asks, "So what's shubisha mean anyhow?"

Almandot replies, "everything"

Blaze winks, "But I like specifics"

Almandot states, "supercalafragilisticexpialadocious"

Blaze asks, "But... as a greeting??"

Almandot says, "It has a few additions to the definition. I had a dictionary definition written out a few years back. Don't have it anymore"

Blaze exclaims, "It must have said more than just "everything"!"

Almandot says, "there are many phrases in the English language that it really doesn't matter what words you say, the message is the same"

Blaze asks, "Is there anything it DOESN'T mean?"

Almandot frowns, "well it's not a curse word :("

Blaze says, "Ok, well lots of Old Fed Only folks will have no idea who you are."

Almandot says, "old old fed only folks will"

Blaze asks, "When did you play Almandot as a character over there?"

Almandot ponders, "November 1996 until... let's see I have to look up a few Fed News archives to see when I got banned"

Blaze asks, "How'd ya get banned? And it made the News?"

Almandot says, "no they make sure not to mention specifics for that kinda stuff in the News. But there was a nice little period where they went through making new rules for anything and everything that pissed a staff member or friend off. Right before the rule that lets dukes ban people from their duchies. The archive I look for is when they start giving names back to people who got DDed and got the names taken from them"

Blaze says, "Well that's a policy they have... not sure when that started though"

Almandot says, "it started after I DDed Teenangel and someone took the name and Hazed erased them so she could take it back"

Blaze asks, "How'd you DD Teenangel?"

Almandot says, "shot her down twice"

Blaze asks, "A fighting event?"

Almandot says, "Teenangel DDed because she was macroing without watching the screen while hauling. Apparently that warranted a sudden shift in ib's philosophy when prior to that they said if you DD from doing that you're SOL. And predicaments like Onyxgod getting hacked, DDed, and name stolen didn't warrant giving the name back to the original owner before, but this did"

Blaze asks, "How'd that affect YOU?"

Almandot says, "everyone around her duchy...uh Myangel's duchy? I forget the name, went on a hissy fit and a we-hate-Almandot parade because I was a classic snert for shooting someone down apparently :P"

Almandot finally finds the reference to his ban date, "ah ha October 2000"

Blaze asks, "So you got banned from Loverly?"

Almandot says, "no the banning from duchy rule went in during October 2000. That was after the Teenangel incident which happened shortly before I was banned from Fed. You also know when I got banned by looking at when the end of the first event league was heh"

Blaze asks, "Was your banning from Fed related to this somehow?"

Almandot says, "no not at all"

Blaze winks, starting to look exasperated, "If that's not related to your ban, then what happened?"

Almandot says, "I got mad, stopped caring, and started pissing around at ib"

Blaze winks, "Being a crybaby?"

Almandot says, "probably. When Web Fed started I made a character named Santa, had Rudolph and some reindeer and walked around just having fun and such. The name got used up as an official name for Christmas events etc.."

Blaze asks, "How'd they use a name that you already had?"

Almandot says, "The name went away. They didn't steal it or anything. Few years later after they had it for the Xmas events, it had been purged because it hadn't been used in forever...they'd moved on to the Fatherchristmas character or something. I asked the events hostess at the time, if they needed it and if I could have it back."

Almandot continues, "She said I could and they had no need for it. So I buy time on it and start advancing it. Got a TB from a staff member objecting to it. I mail Hazed with the TB and explain I'd asked first and gotten the name and I'd paid for the account etc. Hazed responds not to worry about it"

Blaze asks, "But?"

Almandot says, "Hazed responds again saying she changed her mind and she wants to take the name back. But I can't have a refund; I can have the leftover time (which I'd mostly used up advancing the character) transferred to some other account"

Blaze asks, "Why didn't you accept that offer?"

Almandot explains, "I paid $30 with the purpose of getting Santa to squire for an Xmas planet I had planned. I'd used up $23 advancing the thing and then get told it's being taken away even though I specifically asked beforehand if I could have it. I was 17 years old and I thought that was BS, said I thought that was quite lame "

Blaze asks, "So then what?"

Almandot says, "so I found another crash bug (I'd found several, reported them all up to that point) and gave it out to a few people"

Blaze asks, "Bugs to make the game crash??"

Almandot says, "ya. My friends had fun with it and they made a bunch of free alts and made ib think I was doing it so I got locked out and that was that"

Blaze asks, "How on earth did you figure out such a thing?"

Almandot says, "funny thing, I'd found something weird with Fed a few weeks earlier with text displays and I mailed Hazed asking and she said "ya, it's a special code thing" to which I said okay and noticed I could crash the game with it heh"

Blaze says, "But ultimately, if you handed out the bug info to others then you ARE responsible, and would be banned from any game for that."

Almandot says, "ya of course. But nothing happened to the people I handed it out to that had fun with it and that's what was important"

Blaze asks, "You wanted ib to know it was you?"

Almandot says, "ya I was quitting the game"

Blaze drawls, "But you returned..."

Almandot says, "only for Fed 2"

Blaze points out, "For Old Fed too"

Almandot asks, "I did?"

Blaze says, "Using Rikkytikki's alt persona"

Almandot asks, "when was that?"

Blaze says, "Oh say 2 years ago"

Almandot says, "Imagine that. What'd I do while I was there?"

Blaze says, "Well you solved some challenging player puzzles in record time... you excelled again at the events."

Almandot smiles, "neat :)"

Blaze exclaims, "I rather thought so!"

Blaze asks, "But moving onto New Fed...why'd you return for this?"

Almandot says, "I wanted to see it. Nothing special"

Blaze winks, "You have a bug here named for you already"

Almandot says, "Two. And I crashed the game. And had the richest player bank account. And my ship's cargo space is currently Cargo space: 1717487047 / 1717487047"

Blaze asks, "All accidental discoveries?"

Almandot says, "some was accidental, others was typical things that can go wrong in the beginning of a game before checks go in"

Blaze asks, "So you are pretty familiar with code that will typically be unchecked?"

Almandot says, "Well, being familiar to code won't really help much. Either a check for something is in or it isn't"

Blaze says, "You said "typical"...that indicates familiarity with game coding"

Almandot says, "oh. Well I'm familiar with game coding. But when I say typical I just mean okay they forgot to check that you shouldn't be able to pay negative price for something and end up being paid, or they didn't think of some situation. Like dying several dozen times before the first death even kicks in"

Blaze asks, "That crashed the game, right?"

Almandot says, "ya. The second one DDs the character then it tries to kill it again the third time and kaboom"

Blaze asks, "Which is it... three times or several dozen times?"

Almandot says, "Well it never gets to the several dozen because it crashes on the third. For some reason they have some weird timer with how death events take place :P Either way they decided to put back the 1 command / second thing here, which is pretty lame"

Blaze winks, "Perhaps because of you?"

Almandot says, "nah. I found it but it's a dumb timer system I think so the delay is a cheap fix, and other people would have ran into it eventually. But hey with the command timer, at least macroers won't have to worry about stevedores anymore and they get to advance at the fastest pace without being noticed again."

Blaze asks, "You have a coded a game similar to Fed before, in fact. Was that ever intended to actually play in?"

Almandot says, "I code for another online game. That gets played in all the time. A large group of Fedders have gone there over time."

Blaze says, "I'm referring to your other hobby"

Almandot says, "forensics team? :P watching baseball?"

Blaze winks, "The one where you recreated Fed on your own server"

Almandot says, "oh shrug. I haven't touched that in months. But of course it's not for players because that's copyright stuff"

Blaze asks, "Seriously, Dot, why would you spend your valuable time on such things?"

Almandot says, "I'm not spending valuable time. I'm sitting around bored when I do stuff like that"

Blaze asks, "And you just create code in your own language to replicate this one?"

Almandot says, "that's how it would have to go, now wouldn't it?:P"

Blaze asks, "What language is that?"

Almandot says, "lpc on an ldmud driver with a modified lpmud library"

Blaze asks, "But why do THAT instead of coding a new land in your other game?"

Almandot says, "I do that stuff on my other mud. Doesn't mean I don't get bored with nothing to do there. And it's considerably less effort screwing around with something you're merely simulating rather than creating"

Blaze winks, "That true enough"

Almandot says, "it's not like I stayed up all night working feverishly on anything here :P"

Blaze asks, "Do you think you are a better coder than Bella is?"

Almandot says, "Depends. In most cases no. I don't know C++ so I'd be laughed at in most coding worlds. Testing, debugging, modifying, and enhancing existing code might be another story... conceptual design might be as well. You can't say really"

Blaze says, "I'm gonna go back in history a bit...the New duke puzzle had just been introduced to Web Fed after almost a year hiatus. You were among the dozens of barons who worked on the puzzle."

Almandot winks as he corrects Blaze, "baroness"

Blaze asks, "Ahh yes, baroness...why WERE you a baroness anyhow?"

Almandot says, "I'd gone baroness a few months before the puzzle went in. People claimed I switched to be the first duchess but I'd actually done it a few months prior for no real reason... someone said something during an event"

Blaze asks, "No special bragging rights in it for you then?"

Almandot says, "only afterwards"

Blaze says, "So... you were actually the 2nd player to complete the "new" duke puzzle on the Web. An amazing feat considering the backlog of barons attempting it."

Almandot says, "3rd"

Blaze asks, "JopeJope and Jaime first and second?"

Almandot corrects her again, "Jopejope and Cyto first and second"

Blaze says, "Ahh that's right, Cyto. Did you three work together?"

Almandot says, "Cyto, Jaime and I, yes. Worked off and on with other people earlier on"

Blaze asks, "There were cries that you all cheated... how would that be possible?"

Almandot says, "I don't know how that would be possible."

Blaze asks, "Were there specific accusations of how you cheated?"

Almandot says, "eh. Most "cheating" accusations came well after I was gone from Fed so I never really heard most of them. Apparently there's something about Cryptosporidium tossing out solutions to people or something. I don't really know the details. There were plenty of accusations that I cheated in the sense of getting the answer from other players though"

Blaze widens her eyes as she asks, "Did you?"

Almandot says, "I'll get to if I did in a second. The ultimate answer is no though"

Blaze listens.

Almandot says, "Cyto completed it and then I completed it within the hour so everyone's minds jumped to the conclusion that after Cyto solved it he instantly gave me the answer and I was on my way. So for a long while everyone thought I got the answer and so I was bombarded with IM's and TB's asking for the solution"

Blaze rolls her eyes.

Almandot says, "As well as people discrediting me. This was due to the fact that they didn't know the answer. And you might say "well of course it's due to them not knowing the answer" but I mean that more specifically because they thought it was some syntax thing like play psalm 23 in the old puzzle"

Blaze says, "Ahh"

Almandot says, "When in fact we'd known about blasting for quite a long time. It was a matter of us figuring out what to do with the TDX to charge it up beforehand. So by the time we got to Horsell with Cyto about to duke, the solution was already known between us (so long as it ended up working). So of course I knew what to do at that point"

Blaze nods and says, "Sure, that makes total sense."

Almandot says, "of course people don't really care to put that into hindsight sometimes. In fact I dare say the three of us over-solved the duke puzzle. We really solved it, we didn't just complete it"

Blaze inquires, "How so?"

Almandot says, "whereas most other people either went through the motions they were told to, or chanced upon figuring out what to do with the TDX ta da. We had researched a lot"

Blaze asks, "Did you use War of the Worlds? Or what tools?"

Almandot says, "Not War of the Worlds. We scrounged around the Internet. Found references. Another game helped a bit too because it gave us the definition of the TDX. It informed us of what it really did and the ratio to which it could be modified to exponentially enhance its blast"

Blaze smiles, "Wow very cool"

Almandot says, "so that led us to conclude we needed to figure out how to do that. And it came down to it would either be the urban spaceman, miner, or one other mobile I forget who"

Almandot grins suddenly, "The ironic thing, which no one will believe me on but I did tell a few people about it when it happened, is that I had a dream months before the puzzle went in again telling us that exact solution"

Blaze narrows her eyes, "Think Ming came to you in your dreams??"

Almandot says, "who knows :P I just remember you had to go to some undercover underground person and get the TDX enhanced and blow them all to smithereens"

You ask, "Do you get a rush from solving a puzzle like that legitimately?"

Almandot says, "it was fun while it lasted. People would ask me to go to Horsell with them as one of the people to hold something. They'd get someone else. They'd fail for their first trip and I'd get a TB from them saying "hehe that other person doesn't know what I'm really up to, they think I messed up." and I'd get a TB from the other person "hehe I wonder if that person knows what he managed to do""

Blaze giggles.

Almandot says, "I think it was the day after we completed it that another crew found out about the TDX by randomly trying every object on all the sol mobiles. And so we pretty much knew the rank was gone to hell in the upcoming days"

Blaze asks, "Did you ever design your own planet?"

Almandot says, "sort of. I designed 2 or 3. They had arenas and such. They were pretty lame. Arenas were good though. My planet sucked so I didn't reward it with good descriptions"

Blaze asks, "What's your favorite thing about Fed? Puzzles? Fighting? Cerebral? Annoying folks? "

Almandot says, "hrm. Watching people getting upset at stupid things like Onyx or what's his name... Ron. Or better yet when someone says something on 9 that shatters their protective bubble. YOU'RE A SNERT!!!! omg lol {{{}}}}}}} let's all get that snert and show him that there's no place for imagination and uniqueness in a space age role playing game "

Blaze asks, "You think folks take others too seriously in the game?"

Almandot says, "no. I think certain people don't use enough rationality sometimes. Someone was telling me the other day how the friend of mine who played Viceroy should have been banned because they crossed the line and were hurting people's feelings or something."

Blaze thinks, then asks, "Viceroy was the fella who spoke of himself in the third person, right?"

Almandot says, "ya. I bet they tried to say something and Viceroy ripped them a witty response and they cried and that incident defined him :P And later another friend sort of ripped off the idea as Magnate"

Blaze winks, "There are some hypersensitive gamers, for sure"

Almandot says, "I don't even think they're hypersensitive. I think it's just they're locked into something with the game and outside that environment they're just angry because it's a disturbance to their chat room activity. It's really been a pity that the rules of the game have just been changed to lean more and more towards them. I sort of understand it because those are mainly the only people paying for the game, but whatever."

Blaze notes, "That's an interesting take on it." She smiles and wraps up, "We're out of time, Dot, but do have anything else to say?"

Almandot says, "yes. Follow your dreams. You can reach your goals. I'm living proof. Beefcake... BEEFCAKE!"

Blaze snickers and asks, "Beefcake??" A cursory glance at him shows a very nondescript man.

Almandot says, "I used to have a description worthwhile that made nice use of ansi. Course that's useless since even if you turn ansi on it goes off every time you login"

Blaze smiles, "Well I look forward to your occasional visits once Fed2 goes live"

Almandot says, "I'm not paying, so won't happen"

Blaze protests, "Adventurer Almandot has a nice ring"

Almandot says, "This will be erased though"

You ask, "GroundHog Almandot?"

Almandot exclaims, "Mogul Almandot!"

Blaze smirks, then says, "Well good luck to ya. I have an hour in which to splice, edit, and make ya pretty for publication." She sighs at the daunting task ahead of her.

Archives of this and previous interviews can be seen at http://poopdeck.home.comcast.net/brc.html.