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   | The Olympia Times                                       issue g2-102 |
   | January 26, 1999                                                     |
   |                                                                      |
   | turn 102  353 players                            http://www.pbm.com/ |
   +----------------------------------------------------------------------+

               Questions, comments, to play:  info@pbm.com

                             Olympia PBEM

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                        Player-contributed press



Be aware that the United Terrorist may be commiting some activities in
the near future. Please don't get angry with us....it is simply our
nature and fully out of our control. If you are inconvienced by any of
our actions we apologize before hand and offer you this...you are
helping the beast serve it purpose. So watch for weird things
happening in your neighborhood and have a nice day.
unit 4214
claim 1 275

                              -- United Terrorist [hb5]



Be it known that the Realm of Khazhad-dum doth be in
search of goodly folk to assist in the growth of mine
Realm. Be ye a Mason, Forester, Trader or other peaceful
sort, an be near to Harn or Port Aurnos, send thee a
missive an we shall endeavor to entice thee to come hither.

                           -- House of Aekinskald [hj8]



Hear ye! Hear ye! House Aekinskald hath been commissioned
to sell at auction the priceless Artifact know as the
Skull of Bastrestric [403]. Those Houses wishing to bid for
this item should send a courier to hj8@g2.pbm.com by the end of
Harvest. Highest bidder doth possess the greatest Artifact of
Magick known to Olympia!

                           -- House of Aekinskald [hj8]



Greetings to All Olympians,


I wish to comment on recent posts refering to Cheating
in Olympia.

The Vulture and other unnamed individuals seem hell bent
on the idea that LOTC is a group of gamers who are cheats
with each player running several faction.

I am not a member of LOTC. My character is Saggar
Stormchaser of the alliance SOA. I am speaking here
from personal experience.

I made friends with several of the factions in LOTC.
So last year I visited Belgium and spent 4 excellent
days there with all the guys, who showed me the utmost
of courtesy and friendship. I even went to their "Council
Meeting". I met over 20 of the guys involved in the game.
Furthermore, since then, I have met up with the guys in
Londan and also some have visited me in Ireland
(and more visits are planned, both LOTC to Ireland, and me
to Belgium..It is just a $200 flight away)

In Belgium AD&D is a very popular game. So when Codric and a couple
of mates found olympia they were very interested. Soon they told
their friends, and they told their friends...the snowball started.

Soon the group of AD&D gamers got together and formed their own
alliance. What better way of forming an alliance than by forming
it with friends from RL? This both allowed LOTC to grow in
efficiency and strength very fast indeed...and soon they became
one of the superpowers of the Olympian World.
The strength of LOTC is in their ability to sit down together
and plan out the turns. As any experienced gamer will tell you
co-operation and dividing out tasks allows a alliance to grow
for more rapidly.

SO I feel I am in a unique position of knowing the Alliance.
Now I can address the issue that I feel needs to be clarified.

Rumours of LOTC players running multiple factions are completely
false. The reason there are so many .be address in the game is
because the game is so excellent that members in LOTC got their
friends into the game as well.

These rumours of cheating is just an attempt to slander LOTC,
who have many enemies...and fine! Great! Everyone has enemies...
but people, please keep the spirit of the game alive. Rather
than being reduced to mere name calling just because your faction
or alliance is being defeated/attacked by another.

I enjoy the game of olympia too much to let a handfull of
disgruntled players destroy the atmosphere present in this
wonderful game.

I will now get of the soap box....

Prosperity and Peace to All,

Cliff Lynch.

aka
Saggar StormChaser,
Speaker of the House,
Southern Ossicus Alliance.

                            -- Brotherhood of Red [mg5]



It has come to my attention that certain G1 Vets have
mistaken meas the "Lord Foul" of G1 fame. Although
Honored I must pointout I have never resided in G1 and
only arrived here in Olympia G2 about the Season "Dark
night", month 8, in the year 5. So if your on a Holy
mission of vengange you,ll need to recheck you facts.

                                    -- Lord Foul [4172]



The Brotherhood of the Red God is currently unavailable for major 
work due to the large number of contracts we are engaged in. The 
Brotherhood is looking for new Warriors and other nobles who wish to 
take the Oath of the Brotherhood. The Brotherhood accepts individual 
nobles as well as whole factions into the order. If you are looking 
for a life of action and adventure then join the Brotherhood and see 
the world maybe even other worlds. Promotion for brave and 
resourceful men is quick and the spoils of war are large.

Distance is not an object as we are currently operating in most areas 
of Provinia and some of the other continents. Transport can be 
arranged.

Please visit our web site at
 www.geocities.com/TimesSquare/1843/borg.html
  or contact us at
     asgardian@bigfoot.com

   May the Red God smile upon you.

                                        -- Wodan [d987]



                                 Rumors



In conjunction with the Traveler's Guide, we have published
Maps showing the size and position of the twelve regions of
Olympia and the claims made on these regions. They can be viewed
on the Encyclopedia Olympia pages at:

http://www.spiretech.com/~jeffh/olympia/

Any who wish to report errors or clarifications to their territory
should respond to the address below.

Gate Crystals and other rare items:

We have received several requests to discuss some of the lesser used
and/or harder to find items in Olympia.  We will list the item, where it
may be found, and possible uses:

Gate Crystals
Occasionally found in mines when mining for iron, gold, or mithril.  One
of the rarest items in the game. Used with the skills Teleport [861] and
Forge palantir [894].  Some cities in Faery buy gate crystals for 1000
gold each, but better deals can probably struck with the various
alliances and factions in the main world.

Mithril
Found in mines through use of Mine mithril [723].  Can be used in the
skills Forge auraculum [881], Forge magical weapon [887], Forge magical
armor [888], and Forge palantir [894].  Cities in Faery generally buy
mithril for 500 gold each.

Mallorn
Found in mallorn groves through use of Harvest mallorn wood [705] and
for sale in many Faery cities.  Used to make drums for use in the skill
Summon wild men [658].  As most savage stacks carry a drum, any
landowner probably has a large collection that might be available.
Mallorn is also used in the skill Forge magical bow [889].

Lana bark
Found in circles of trees through use of Collect rare foliage [704] and
for sale in many Faery cities. Used by Alchemists to make blank scrolls
and in the skill Brew potion of death [694].

Avinia leaf
Found in mallorn groves through use of Collect rare foliage [704] and
for sale in many Faery cities. Used in the skill Brew healing potion
[693].

Farrenstone
Found in caves through use of Collect rare elements [696].  Used in the
skill Turn lead into gold [697].

Spiny root
Found in swamps, bogs, and pits through use of Collect rare foliage
[704].  No known use.  Rumored to have been a required ingredient for
skills in playtest that have since been removed.

Pretus bones
Found in sand pits through use of Collect rare elements [696]. Rumored
to have been a required ingredient for skills in playtest that have
since been removed.

                                  -- Encyclopedia Olympia

Next: Breeding

Submissions or suggestions may be sent to encoly@hotmail.com.
Do not expect a reply, as the editors wish to remain anonymous.




   I wonder who the LotC will invade next?



Nifft of the Black Claw and Freebootin' Frank Freek are closing in...



Hear the Vulture:

My imitator is quite humorous. He or she is actually bothered that he or
she is imitating me. That's a clear case of cognizant dissonance. My
imitator also uses the "I'm not biased, but the Vulture is" line. I can
only hope that he or she is being ironic. Further, unlike my perhaps
insane imitator, I am simply amused by detractors.

I will however follow my imitator's lead and grant the readers an analogy.
I was playing this board game, Civilization, with my tactical advisors.
You've probably played it or at least heard of it. I was controlling the
lands of Mumble, while my advisors were controlling such mythical cultures
as the Greeks, Chinese, Carthaginians, and Celts. Anyway, I'd compare the
Lords of the Crown to the Mumbles, while . . . . jeez, this is a forced
analogy. Forced like my imitator's analogy.

I would like to stay and relish my readers with additional thoughts, but I
spot some corpses; they are very foul corpses, but they will do.

The REAL Vulture (tm)




We are the Lords of the Crown. We will be the overlords of Olympia. We
are God's! You will bow before us! Those found kneeling may be spared.



This week in a tavern near you "A day in the life of Bolt"  Brought to
you by Bruce the Bard.

 9: vision of Bolt [z990]:
 9: Location:   Cave [d349], in province The Shadowlands [dd70], in
 9:  Provinia 9: Loyalty:   Oath-1 9: Health: 100%
 9: Combat: attack 80, defense 30, missile 0
 9:  behind 0  (front line in combat) 9: Break point: 50% 9:
 9: Current aura:   78 9: Maximum aura:   23 (3+20) 9: 9: Skills known:
 9:    Combat [610] 9:  Stealth [630] 9:    Magic [800]
 9: Perform common tasks for gold [802], journeyman
 9: Tap health for aura [806], journeyman 9: Heal [807], apprentice
 9: Modern magic script [808], apprentice
 9: Shroud abilities from scry [809], apprentice
 9: Detect ability scry [811], apprentice
 9: Dispel ability shroud [812], apprentice
 9: Advanced meditation [813], apprentice 9:Artifactconstruction[880]
 9: Forge auraculum [881], apprentice 9: Advanced sorcery [920]
 9: Teleport items [922], apprentice 9: 9: Partially known skills:
 9:    Survive fatal wound [611], 0/28 9:    Sneak
intostructure[639],0/21
 9:    Conceal self [641], 7/28 9:    Hinder meditation [814], 0/21 9:
 9: Inventory: 9:   qty  name   weight 9:   ---  ----     ------
 9:   600  gold [1]      0 9:     1  Banner of theSkeletons[k360]
    0
 9: 1  orb [q629]       1 9:     1  Magic potion [z201]      1
 9:   ====== 9:        2 9: 9: Capacity:  2/100 land (2%)

Come back next week for a tale about a clown called Bobo.



Oh, for a still.  I could make my own Scotch.



Well, Well....There appear to be a lot of Vulture wanna'bes
out there. They say that imitation is the highest form of
compliment. In that case Thank you to all those who think I
am so great.

Well there appears to be a lot of activity for the coming
turns. Several Armies are on the move, and my friends and I
shall dine on the most delicious of corpses soon.

On Provenia, It appears that the Rimmonettes are in for a little
suprise. Their war with the pressured Lords is going well enough,
but a key faction on the Rimmon council is ready to sell out his
allies. So much for All for one.

Camaris, LOTC are showing their aggression again by launching strikes
on PLATO. Sources in PLATO however reveal that LOTC have bitten off
more than they can chew. AS PLATO are preparing the mother of all
counter attacks...Watch This Space!

Also the Bandit Lords appear to be ready to do what they do best.
Provide me with dinner! They are poised to destroy the puny Island
of Ossicus and they are rumoured to be already to break their long
standing treaty with Jackel, despite TIBS dissaproval. Will Eric
sit by and watch his old allies be destroyed or will he come to
the aid of Jackel against his good friend Snakeman?

And finially, I have saved the best till last.
It appears Cendage is unable to keep his troops in line. Yes friends
you have heard it here first. A "serious" disagreement has arisen
in the Dragon Leadership. Cendage supports Crodric, but the long
standing truce prevents him from joining in the attacks. His senior
advisors both disagree on this matter. One is said to be "ready to
kill the PLATO scum", while the other is ready to split from the
group. Cendage is trying his best to balance both views. But
me thinks that the Crimson Dragons will become mere puffs of hot air.

Well my friends, I must fly. My dinner awaits but I have far to fly
before I can feast...Camaris awaits.

The One and Only Vilture.



Something is rising from the ashes



The Vulture Speaks:

 I've been circling Cormyr for months now, and
I'm damn near starved.  I'm not sure where PLATO
and the LotCees get thier gold, but they must have
a big account to keep that many pikemen sitting
around on thier helmets.

 Now up north I hear it's a different story, dead
critters all over Mount Olympus, and big armies
marching around fighting everything but each other.
I think I'll head up to Provinia and see what there
is to eat up there.  If that doesn't pan out, I hear
that there'll be some Couchkateer Tartar in the
north and I'd love some of that.

The Vulture
(flapping north for all he's worth)



 Fellow Olympians,
 Well it seems the BORG are some real battle-hardened mercenaries.
 They have 1 enemy who has less then 200 troops and all of the
 sudden they have too much work.
 Suppose I have an enemy, maybe even a small alliance that
 I want to defeat and I hire the BORG,
 what do you think will happen ??
 It will cost me a lot of money and the BORG will get kicked
 of this planet.
 I just want to wish Maddog lots of luck and kills.
 And 1 question, do you have newbie manual or something
 because I really like your style.

 The Raven



The news at hand

Reports have a Lords of the Crown force in Central Camaris marching
on King Oleg's mythical castle of Camelot. The force is said to
number over 1,000 men with more reinforcements flooding across the
Straits from Holith.

In other news from the Lords of the Crown, it seems the Muskateer
juggernaut has started rolling with two castles captured and another
under serious threat. This reports have not been confirmed and as
usual the only media interviews the Lord's leaders were prepared to
grant ONN was puff pieces on Ashley's Birthday party.

Further north TIB's seems to have successfully squashed Lord Bane
with no further resistance expected. Reports close to the Icy Black
President say the recent war has whetted several important members of
TIB's appetite for blood. Small nations surrounding TIB's have
reported quiet diplomacy from the cold Black Ones asking if they are
being threatened by anyone and could TIB's lend a hand. ONN predicts
TIB's will be back in battle very shortly.

Stay tuned for an ONN special The Northern Continents: Quiet and
Peaceful or just Quiet??

ONN - Olympia News Network - Keeping you up to date




 I'm a bit disgusted with the latest Vulture's comments.
Lets begin with the quotes.

>The recent discussion on the list has been
>interesting, with certain folk going out of character
>and accusing others of cheating.  That term is probably
>too strong, if all they are doing is absuing game bugs.
>Not particularly honorable, but not actual cheating.

 According to the rules as I remember them, abusing bugs
for fun and profit is explicitly cheating.  On the other hand
every group that has done anything of note seems to have
abused bugs, so maybe there's a sad fairness to the whole
tawdry affair.  Another quote:

>Now if the Lords are running multiple positions as some
>suspect that would be a different story, but that is probably
>impossible to prove and therefore not worth discussing.  If
>our Absent God Atnerks were to take notice and investigate
>that would be a Good Thing (thanks to fellow carrion bird
>Martha Stewart for the rights to use her material--ARE YOU
>PAYING ATTENTION PEOPLE?) but in light of His recent lack
>of involvement don't hold your collective breath.

 Actually, it's fairly easy to prove this false, since the Lords
hold regular meetings and IRC chat sessions, and other stuff where
you can meet them individually.  In other words, the reason that
PLATO and the RM are getting the stuffing kicked out of them is
that they badly underestimated the size of the opposition.  That's
what you get for relying on a single vision too much.  There are
others who have made the same error. Atnerks, on the other hand,
has the credit card numbers in his Big Book of Players, which is
why he is the All-Knowing One.  Onward.

>Lots of rumors about action on Camaris, but no reports
>of any signifcant actual battles.  One wonders where
>the BEagles will land on this question.  Will they continue
>to support the LotC, who have grown to become vastly
>larger than Eridanus and his pals, or will they jump
>to aid PLATO and preserve some semblance of the balance
>of power.

 What a remarkably silly notion.  Prehaps they'd rather win.
Of course, if you ask Eridanus, he'll tell you how much he's
come to trust in and rely on PLATO's promises and oaths. You can
learn alot about people by talking to them more than you talk
about them.  One more.

>I've been reading some fantasy literature
>lately with all this spare time I have, about another
>world where a great battle was fought called World War II.
>If you are familiar with it, the parallels to our world
>of Olympia are striking.  If you ignore the politics and
>some of the other nasty habits of some of the combatants,
>then the LotC can be cast as this place called Germany.  Harn
>is France, and the IC is called Belgium.  PLATO is England,
>while the Rimmon folk are Russia.  EAGLE is clearly Italy.
>We need two more players to fill out the cast--an America
>(TIBS?) and a Japan (SOA?).  In the version I read Germany
>loses of course, the bad guys always do.  Here in Olypmia
>though it may not turn out the same way. Anyone who is
>familiar with this story is welcome to comment.  ;)

 A silly and fairly offensive notion to some.  Also badly
summarized, but I see no point in correcting errors in such
an overstretched analogy.  I do object to characterising Germany
as the "bad guys".  If you study the intellectual climate of
pre-WWII in the upper classes of what would now be called the
"First World", but then was called "the civilized nations" (as
I have, it happens), you'd find the same racist, class-bound,
psuedo-scientific thinking that was the underpinning of the
National Socialists in Germany.  As the hideous and informative
post-war experiments of Stanley Milgram (see any introductory
psychology text) showed, there but for good fortune and good
intent went any nation.  It was a short step from the internment
camps of America to the gas chambers of the Third Riech, and
we were fortunate not to take it.  It was no step at all from
the firestorm of Dresden to the hell of Stalingrad to the
silence of Hiroshima.  There was heroism and valor and fear and
hatred and terror and nobility and depravity in that war, and
no side had an exclusive corner on any of it.

 "War is all Hell, boys.", as General Sherman said.  Examine
the propaganda of the Pacific Theatre on any side, and you'll
see the darker side of a nation's heart.  Olympia is a game,
in which I am pleased and moved to have made friends and allies
around the world.  Let's avoid invoking the demons of another
history to sully it.

 Enough.  Play ball.

              -You Know Who I Am