Causality and Resonance

"Mutagen War Histories" Part 2

2007-08-23T09:31:00Z

Department of Antiquity
Recovered Historical Document
"Architecture of the Mutagen War"
Authenticity Confirmed

Entry V - Master Researcher Krizjian's Log.

To think we could have contained the incident and tried through both diplomatic means and the right application of political leveraging to keep the true events quiet was a great error on our part. While our ill fated assassins sought to kill the ambassador, another of their operatives had also infiltrated our communications hub. While we went about cleaning up that tube in the bloody aftermath, this other agent had already downloaded and transmitted the tube camera footage to their waiting handlers. Containment of the truth would have saved so many lives, but the intricacy of the plans by the dissident factions staggers my mind even now. Within an hour the footage was doctored and recycled into the most provocative news release of our era. It was not presented as a string of accidents or even the work of assassins, with their agents whom had infiltrated our facility and an editing genius. That sad incident went from terribly tragedy to sensational news of human experimentation and the opening moves of a war that would devastate our world for centuries.

Even as we returned to our council chambers to discuss the situation, the news broke on every major network, around the globe, images of the ambassador being subjected to cruel mutation at the hands of our researchers, testimony by former employees of the project, which later was revealed were more sleeper agents, the ambassador's home country signed and announced their declaration of war within hours. We sat around in shock, disbelieving that events had escalated and spiraled so far beyond our control. Even calls to our respective governments yielded nothing, it seemed as though the whole world was aching for war, and they would get that wish, oh did they get their wish.

War, such a loaded word, both in intentions and final outcomes, death, destruction, economic losses, in a conventional war alone the costs would be dramatically high, but the war that came was far from conventional, and so ill prepared were we for what came next. While military formations massed on country borders, and naval patrols scoured international waters waiting for the first salvos to be fired by any side, we continued our work, and while we kept one eye on the news reports and orders from our controlling agencies, we knew our research needed to continue. Once more in our scientific blindness, our minds focused on the theory and practicality of our experiments and research, we failed to understand the depth of human madness, when the first real attack came it was even more of a shock to our facility and scientists.

It's all fresh in my mind, that day, I was preparing more samples for my agricultural mutagens. Test Sample thirteen of the new wheat enhancement, previous samples had yielded good empirical data, having increased size and yield by well over fire hundred percent, but it still needed to be perfected as the wheat samples would die within only four weeks of exposure, nutrient loss had been to high and I had to find balancing agents to solve the problem. I was applying the new test sample to the wheat sections in the main hydroponics bay, the mutagen spray canister had been somewhat fussy and wouldn't spray properly. I remember how annoyed I'd gone, and I'd cursed aloud "Work you stupid shit or I'll blast you into bits" A childish exclamation I admit, and yet it was also prophetic in nature as within mere moments a vast shudder ran through the complex followed by the concussive roar of underwater explosions. The warning sirens erupted within seconds, and people fled in all directions, fearing death was natural to many in those kinds of situation and with an unknown incident.

A series of new explosions rocked the complex as we all made for the shelters, machinery, plants and all manner of thing rained down upon us, the comm system began blaring static followed by the sub director's panicked voice informing the facility of what unknown thing threatened our lives.

"All personnel, evacuate, we are under assault, the enemy has breached Dome Six and is proceeding to systematically invade and capture storage facilities and the outer labs. Our security forces are fighting valiantly, but are losing ground rapidly, make for the escape subs and capsules, or shelters and offer no resistance to the enemy if you value your lives."

How haunting, bravery amongst a community of scientists and doctors was a mythical creature in this day and age, I know some of my co workers had tried to fight back and were cut down without mercy. Even as I ran down the corridors away from the battle, I kept asking myself the question that seemed forefront to the whole event. Why, why would they attack our facility, retribution, revenge, or some kind of sick game to further turn the world against the projects we were undertaking for the good of the planet. A massive explosion sent the deck plating beneath my feet to heave and fall away dropping me down three levels to land in a heap , knocked unconscious. I don't know what took place shortly after, only that somehow I had survived and was moved by someone into one of the bottom level shelters, when I awoke, I found myself alone.

But now in retrospect, my situation paled in comparison to what had transpired. Even now my heart shudders to think that attack was for one goal, to obtain our research, from the agricultural to the Sinistral Project, the enemy had been after the Mutagen, not for scientific exploration, no, gods no, they sought it for something far worse, the Mutagen War began with an attack on our research complex and others like it around the world, in a rush to obtain the Mutagen for the most vicious of reasons, weaponization.

Log Ends.

"Mutagen War Histories"

2007-08-13T04:21:00Z

Department of Antiquity
Recovered Historical Document
"Architecture of the Mutagen War"
Authenticity Confirmed

Entry IV - Master Researcher Krizjian's Log.

What began as the first step towards a bright future for us all, evolved into the ruination of everything we knew and loved. Advances made in bioengineering, genetics and the practical applications of Meta-Science, believed to be the final stepping stones to health and prosperity for the planet, became the garden path to hell. I truly believed in the work we did here at the Dephni Research facility. We had already isolated so many of the causes for common ailments, birth defects and all manner of mortal sicknesses. We prepared cures and vaccinations against all but the most incurable of disease. Our strides in bioengineering to make humanity better, stronger, and faster were believed to be the awakening of a new era. We were wrong, so horribly wrong, and even though it will never be enough, I despair that in the firestorm of death and destruction that has crossed our planet, my words might never reach any generation that might survive the catastrophe I helped create. One very careless accident led to all this. One simple mistake that was beyond anyone's control sparked all this sadness and death.

We thought we had the answer to all of the worlds problems, contained within our research labs beneath the ocean. Little did we realize that Pandora was with us, guiding our steps to re-open her box, and we did. Like willing sacrificial lambs we threw open the box of entropy and dispersed war upon all of us. The Ambassadorial visit had been planned months in advance. We were all excited to be able to finally showcase decades of work, incalculable hours spent testing, theorizing and making dreams into reality.

The Sinestral Project was one of our crowning achievements. Genetically engineering animals to larger sizes, meant to be used primarily for the agriculture sector to increase food supplies by enhancing the growth and intelligence of farm animals, we thought it would increase productivity of livestock by an exponential amount. Little did we know at the time it would become one of the more sought after elements of our research for military applications. In our age of high technology, those who brought about the final chapters of our society sought not higher technology, but lower tech means to disable and overthrow the global government. And we had delivered, oh how we had delivered. The beasts brought about during the mutagen war give me nightmares even now. I see glimpses of them from the observation deck, still roaming the islands beyond the Dephni Facility on the prowl for fresh meat.

But I digress; I remember exactly the sequence of events that led from this point to now, the moments orchestrated by Pandora to open her box and unleash upon the world the war and death that followed them. I remember the freshly polished floor, the poor research assistant moving quietly past the Ambassador's entourage, the escort submarine that was keeping station outside the main launch bay, and finally, the latest batch of mutagen material the assistant was carrying from the main labs to the cryo storage deck. It all seemed so innocent at the time, a simple accident causing all this, but the truth, which I now reveal, would devastate the fragile governments struggling to survive at this point. We thought it was a simple accident of fate that the assistant was present at that time and place. We'd planned to go through all the timetables for the days work to keep the ongoing work clear of the Ambassador and his staff, not to hide things you understand, but simply to keep the passages clear, the tubes open for his movements from section to section.

But things worked against us; the submarine, crewed and commanded by the dissident faction, the assistant in the employ of that faction’s leader all this time as sleeper agent. We had no idea the intricacies of the plan. Even now it boggles the mind how such things could fall into place so easily given the security measures we had in place. The submarine's engines and the sudden "power spike" caused it to roll "out of control", sending it to collide with the facility which was ironically near the tube system the ambassador was traveling through. This led all persons in that section to stumble, and the research assistant’s supposed loss of balance and accidental unsealing of the bio case was like watching a stunt actor in a film fake a great fall, all the while maintaining perfect bodily control. This step, in turn, caused several mutagen cocktails to spray onto the Ambassador.

The mutagen, meant for primate class animals, had an instant and immediate effect. While the assistant had basic knowledge of the true nature of the chemicals, the area of effect was apparently not one of them. Not only had the Ambassador been affected, but the assistant and all the people within that tube were also subjected to the mutagen. The effect was immediate and horrifying. Within minutes of being exposed they all began to mutate, their DNA combining with the progressive mutagen and the super accelerated ape DNA. Within minutes they'd gone form intelligent distinguished visitors to raging animals. Lock down of the section was immediate, and while we scrambled to try and reach them to reverse the effect, it was too late. The uncontrolled animal nature was faster than any measure we could have taken. By the time we could reach the area, all but the Ambassador lay dead, killed in a bestial battle of dominance over a confined space. That single incident was the beginning of the end, and the end of a new beginning. While I hope life survives, I remain apart to live out the remainder of my life logging the truth of events, and in punishment to suffer for my crimes against the world.

Log Ends.
Entry V and VI to follow pending decryption.

Neo Ocianika

2007-07-31T20:11:00Z

Anjel's Notes

In an effort to engage our artists and other disciplines while we current work on more technical critical path, I have decided to begin work on my town concepts environment and architectural styling. Advance work on areas that will become impoortant especially graphical stylization and presentation, hand in hand with storyline and other elements will help us prepare for when the critical path tasks become more art dependant without drawing resources from current critical path work. With a large and eager community on hand, we can move and in this case drawn and model mountains. for the growth and bettering of our top Secret project. So say we all.

Neo Ocianika

A city connected to the Underwater Tubes Track I'm also working on. Will be a beautiful habitat zone both for players to rest between races and socialize, while also giving access to information, quests, equipment and other resources, including player owned housing and perhaps vending and other elements laid out in the Hooks and Design Doc.

Neo Ocianika Story Segment 01

Department of Civilization Expansion
Growth and Development Report
File: Zeta 103-NO001

Neo Ocianika, built from the excavated ruins of the Oceanus Metropolis Site has becoming in recent years one of the more progressively expanding new territories on the planet. With an ever growing economy supported on the financial tripod of the Federated Racing commission, the Department of Financial Entertainment, and the Department of Natural Resources. It has become a rising star among the many newly built and developed city complexes around the planet. While the economic boom is not projected to bust any time soon, population growth while rising is not as prodigious in it's growth curve. As expansion projects continue both in terms of urban development as well as further excavations by the Corps of Historical Research, an inclusive public relations campaign has been launched by city government to further attract new residents and business owners to the island city.

The RCI building sitting at the precise of heart of the city covers many functions beyond the day to day operations of all race related activities, but also serves as the communications hub and bastion for vessels at sea. Spread out from around central tower are both skyscrapers representative of the major economic and governmental powers but also the main business conglomerates and production facilities Sweeping outward from the central sector the variety of homes for the populace follow an interesting assortment of architectural styles, ranging from neo-technik to Victorian style homes on the outer perimeter of the sea promenade disk Which also plays home to a sea side market place bazaar for merchants and residents to sell their wares and discoveries. A fully functional Beast habitat, growth and development center lies on the northern sector of the city which also is home to connected hydroponics and botanical gardens. With growth, the levels reaching below the sea line into the former Metropolis complex, more production facilities and the citizenry will find modest apartment size rooms with a beatific view of the ocean and it's environs.

Given the nature of the mysteries surrounding both the original Metropolis complex and it's possible links to the Mutagen War and the myths and legends in regards to possible unknown life forms leaving both in the area and currently sealed and unreachable sectors of the old city, coupled with the reports of disappearances of many ships and persons. Most notably the disappearance and believed deaths of Dr. Darius St. Caspian and his team, adventurers and conspiracy theorists come in droves during the more habitable tourist seasons. Many struggling fisherfolk and former military types have even started their own tour companies, sanctions by the Racing commission to take the curious below the surface and around the old Metropolis, subject to pre planned routes so as not to endanger both lives and the construction of the newly annexed track being built within underwater domes and tubes.

In our ever changing world and the growing prominence of the Federated Racing Commission's power, Neo Ocianika is projected to become on of the premiere cities of the world. In conclusion we feel it required to set up our own working office in the city to both keep record of the growth and rise of this fantastic new habitation zone, but also to work with the various other agencies to unravel the mysterious that lie below.

Credits

AnjelusX - Concept, Story Elements
Elkhorno - Concept Development, Artwork (related through the Underwater Track)
Rasield - Concept Development, Artwork (forth comming)
Adonai - Concept Development, Storyline Consultation.
Asurael - Concept Development, Artwork (Related through the UT)
Alandur - Concept development, Artwork (Related through the UT)
AnjelusX - Base concept, compiling the ideas, being hawt.
Leunas - Concept development, Artwork (Related through the UT)
Naereus - Concept development (Related through the UT)
Taalon927 - Concept development (Related through the UT)
mjuricek77 - Concept development (Related through the UT and Sky Track)
robflorio - Concept development (Related through the UT)
Matt58 - Concept development (Related through the UT)
Arthursa - Concept development (Related through the UT)
Tandy - Concept development (Related through the UT)
Karenmcupp - Concept development (Related through the UT).

Notes

I freely invite collaboration by any and all community members whom are interested, Artists feel free to come up with representations and help me through art concepts to further flesh out and write for the concept. Musicians feel free to be creative with music that might be good accents for both this town concept and the underwater track. And the rest your input and ideas are always welcome and appreciated.

Oceanus Tubes Story Segment 02

2007-07-25T21:42:00Z

Department of Pre Mutagen Studies
Oceanic Metropolis Research and Theorem
File : 167 - XA32

Dr. Darius St. Caspian
Recovered Personal Log OMR-5D
Dated : 01.12.2946
Material Status : Authenticated

Eureka! We did it, I thought for sure we wouldn't be able to broach the sector 8 secondary sub level. With the majority of the connecting tubes either destroyed or flooded beyond our ability to traverse, it seemed impossible. However with not a fair amount of time spent in careful research and hours of side scan sonar work, we managed to find a maintenance shaft still clear between level 5 which traveled the vertical length downward to the sub level. Joachim led our party down the darkened shaft, which I must admit was a harrowing experience given the tight quarters around us and the unknown awaiting below us. At the bottom of the shaft we discovered not a mere junction but an actual access port complete with airlock, leading us to conclude we'd hit the mark and perhaps also learned a bit about just how well planned out the metropolis sections were.

The thrill of excitement was palpable as we made preliminary scans of the atmosphere beyond the door. Our fear was that like the connecting tubes the sub level itself would also be flooded. Fortunately, or perhaps I should say praise providence, we completed scans with a great sense of satisfaction and relief. The area beyond the door was not only clear of water, but also the air recycling life support system was in full operation! It was beyond our wildest hopes. I was overcome with a feeling of good fortune that perhaps great historical treasures might remain untouched in this practically sealed off and lost area. Setting up remote scanners to detect any changes in the section, we returned to base camp and prepared to open the air lock and find what awaits on the other side.

Dr. Darius St. Caspian
Recovered Personal Audio Log OMR-7A
Dated : 01.16.2946
Material Status : Authenticated

"Words cannot describe this feeling, as I never imagined I'd be looking at the first concrete proof of a connection to the Mutagen Wars within this Metropolis. We've passed through the initial section beyond the airlock, to find it's filled with all manner of rubbish and artifacts. I could spend a lifetime just chronicling everything contained in that one room. But this, this is something else entirely..." {Static breaks and pauses}"This room which adjoins the first, is the largest hydroponics lab I've yet to see in the entire city. The plants here are massive - these bananas alone must be the size of my leg. Epiphany is ecstatic. I knew a botanist would come in handy. This find and the studies to follow could yield great data not only as to this Mutagen variant, but possible agricultural applications could improve food stores planet wide! [Static breaks again followed by shouts of surprise] "What is...what is that! Frederic pull back, everyone MAKE FOR THE AIRLO..." {log ends.}

Dr. Epiphany Corrin
Recovered Personal Audio Log OMR-3C
Dated : 01.16.2946
Material Status : Authenticated

{Static, Machinery Noises, Water Drops} "Anyone, anyone hearing this.... The others, I don't know where they are! I'm alone. How I'm still alive now is ..beyond me. They took the others, they came, and we ran, we tried for the airlock but it was closed off, barricaded from the inside, and even with our heavy tools and side arms we couldn't get past rubble." {Static, Sobbing}" They took Darius, they were everywhere, they're animals! The noise they made, it's .. it's beyond my ability to describe... Frederic is dead. I.. I'm sure of it.. I saw him fall through the broken floor. We've never been that far down in any sector. I'm trying to hide, but they ... they always find..wait.... " {Unidentified sounds, a scream} "Oh my god, how can they have survived, they're coming!" {Heavy breathing, sounds of running} "I haven't eaten, trying to escape, there's no where to go.. all the tunnels, flooded, blocked, or collapsed. Someone... someone save... Oh MY GOD, THERE"S EYES {Further screams} "THE EYES, NOT THOSE EYES! SAVE...." {Snarls, Unknown Language, Sounds Screams, Sounds of Feeding} "MOTHER, YOU WERE RIGH... {Transmission ends}

File Note.
Recovered logs were found in Secondary Sub Level 8, Equipment, along with various equipment and signs of struggle, blood stains, wall marks and other activities. No survivors or bodies recovered. No signs of an exit beyond the airlock found. Deaths labeled unexplained.

Oceanus Tubes Story Segment 01

2007-07-25T18:35:00Z

Geographical Survey Report 154-XA04
Oceanic Metropolis Research and Theorem
14.26.2945 PM ( Post Mutagen )

Having down exhaustive and at times perilous surveying and detailed analysis of the Oceanic Metropolis site, located in the Horatio Islands chain we have reach several conclusions and observations. Given the intricate structures built both on the ocean floor and the connecting tubes between sectors and the entry points on the various Horatio islands, it is clearly evident of a sophisticated level of technology. However through dating processes, the dates collected from both building materials and surrounding coral and rock formations pose an almost unbelievable result where the evidence not clear at hand. This metropolis and it's attached structures date back over three millennia. Making it one of the greatest and few truly surviving historical sites of the pre mutagen era. As many historians and archeologist are well aware and quite frustrated by, little is known what caused the mutagen war and the near destruction of life on our planet. Nor is the academic world clear what caused the rise and creation of the great beasts we now use and ride almost as an afterthought now.

The most baffling mysteries of this site is the lack of historical data within the many computer systems that once permeated the city, the lack of physical evidence of the original inhabitants, and the manner of power systems used which are still active to date. Many theorize that the now agrarian inhabitants of the Horatio Islands chain are descendants of the Metropolitans, there is nothing to suggest a clear connection beyond location. Given the level of technology that is found throughout the city and the ruins on the islands themselves, it is clearly impossible for technological expertise not to have survived amongst these peoples. Thus it seems logical to assume either the original inhabitants fled somewhere or simply died en masse. Though evidence for any theory is lacking, I am inclined to believe they fled the coming catastrophe of the Mutagen Wars. The lack of retrievable computer data, which shows evidence of being manual wiped as a opposed to computer core deterioration, this lends itself to the theory the inhabits fled instead of died out in some catastrophe or another. However, some of the darker theorists have concluded that perhaps this city was in actuality ground zero for the Mutagen that swept the world, while there is no corroborative evidence to support this, it is being considered.

The Energy system which is still to date in operation through out the site has yet to be identified. Neither the energy plant(s) location nor type has yet been found. Though we are continuing the search from our temporary base of operations in the nearly newly constructed city of Neo Ocianika, which is located in the previous excavated northern sector of the Metropolis. (It is, I must make personal notation, of some annoyance that many of the already explored sectors have since been annexed by the Federated Racing Commission, it is well known that profit usual overrides the search for historical data.) While power is sporadic in many sectors, especially on the lowest sea floor, many of the blast doors, larger gathering areas, and lighting systems are still active and even useable throughout the metropolis and it's connected environs, including the life support systems and various hydroponics areas. Even with our best technological equipment we have yet to detect even traces of the mystery energy systems, however several of our mounts react at times to some of the more vibrantly energized area, theories are being formulated at present as to why they react in such a manner.

In closing, the Oceanic Metropolis remains an archeological gem that while people have returned to inhabit this area, and the Racing Commission profits from it's beautiful scenery and even the perilous dangers found within, we will continue to study, analyze and hopefully one day solve the mysteries we have found and answer the questions we all have when this geographical marvel springs to mind.

Head of Project : Oceanic Metropolis Research Team
Dr. Darius St. Caspian.

Post report note.
Research and Categorical Images, both hand illustrated, holographic and photographic are found in files 154 - XA05 through XA07.

Realtiy Checks and Balances

2007-07-24T20:32:00Z

Reality checks and balances; what exactly do I mean this time you ask dear readers. Well it's actually something that I believe has been touched on before, yet I think needs repeating. People are always passionate about their ideas, especially highly creative people. And that, in and of itself is a good thing. Were people not passionate about their ideas many things would never have been created. There'd be no drive to create, to envision new ideas, or the drive to make things happen.

However, there has to be a level of balance to that passion, some objectivity. We can all be passionate about our ideas, but we also need to be realistic, both about the ways and means to push those ideas further and also the sum total of how things can or cannot be applied in different situations. In game design, passion for ideas of course helps tremendously to make things happen. But when designing a game, unless you're truly doing it all yourself, there has to be the objective thinking to go along with it. Compromise is not only a valuable ability but it is a necessity. In the case of TS, while we all want our ideas included and to be a key contributor to the overall game, we must be able to realize we can't clamp down, dig our heels in and not let anything else in. We cannot spend copious amounts of time day in, day out, fighting it out about 10 different ideas, systems, approaches and so on. We will never progress further the longer these types of discussions go on.

When we face these challenges, it takes more than just an ability to create things and think up things to make a great game. It takes the realization that as a team we must work and act together to find a working system that benefits the project and the creative process as a whole so we can continue to move forward and gain momentum towards the end result we're all striving for.

In this industry, which is full of idea people, more often than not ideas get knocked back by the decision makers, either because they aren't feasible, they're incomplete, or they are simply not compatible with the overall vision. As a team we have to unite our ideas into a workable form that we can then put in place and move on to the next task, system, area, etcetera.

We can't all have it our own way, but in no way does that mean we cannot all be a part of the end result or the next selection. It takes people with a broad view and the moral fortitude to make decisions based around the greater good rather then sticking to personal agendas, or holding out for one specific idea against all odds. Sure we have to fight for what we really believe in, but we must also be willing to make sacrifices in order to make the whole trip to the finish line (Pardon the racing analogies but they suit appropriately, considering).

Now of course I'm not going to tell you that your ideas are wrong, or that only one system has to simply be selected. But elements of all the good proposals could be perhaps combined, and ways found to include the good elements to make one unified concept or proposal that will be the most beneficial and productive for the game and project.

I admire anyone who has the passion behind their ideas to promote it, but clinging blindly to that and that alone will not provide us with a game at the end. It just leads to more circular conversations, arguments, and nothing being accomplished, which I feel is a large part of the slump. We have so many people unwilling to compromise and form a concept that will push us forward. Instead they're trenching in and fighting it out day after day and the project as a whole has its wheels spinning. Instead we need to make the required choices and sacrifices to move past the 10 or 20 options and form one or two really good ones that we can then build upon.

Now I am aware that people are and have been complaining about how the tasks seem to be repeating themselves and duplicating effort. Perhaps that is true to sum extent. But also when it comes to refining details, different aspects both need to be looked at, thought of, and created. Everything has to tie in, we have to think of how these new things will work with and fit in with what we've done, decided on, and created before hand. So yes, while at times it will feel repetitive to continue to go over certain parts time and time again, this is to ensure that we have a functioning system, rather then a bunch of separate parts that don't go together and just make a mess.

No one said game design was easy, and refining and getting key elements in place is and can be a lot of work. But it is vitally important to get these things done and in place so we can move once again into the fun parts and make an even better game. So while yes, hold on to your passion and be true to yourself, remember we're a team making one game. Choices need to be made, sacrifices will and must be done at times, and compromise will make us all winners, rather then a bunch of selfish, non-cooperative noobcakes.

Advisory Board Resignation Announcement

2007-07-24T18:38:00Z

I have already informed Rusel, but I would like to take this moment to announce that I have formally resigned from my position on the Advisory Board. After much thought and consideration I feel I do not have anything of value to contribute to the Board and its function within the community. My skills, experience and abilities are in my estimation not required in this area. I would like to clarify however that I do not have a problem with the Board itself nor the members therein; it is simply a case of recognizing my own abilities, strengths and shortfalls. Technical writing for the tasks is not an area I particularly excel in, and while I will continue to support the AB both as a mod and as a community member, I feel that there are others who would be more able to fill the role I had been selected for.

After spending time in that role and learning how the AB functions and its role, I feel that continuing would not be beneficial to either the AB or the project at large. This leads into something which I will talk about shortly in this post. First a matter of business. Following my resignation I have chosen whom I feel would be the most appropriate successor to my slot, so subject to Rusel and Dave’s agreement, I nominate Asurael to assume my position on the board. I feel he can bring his skills both as an artist and as a creative mind to the Board proceedings, and be a valuable asset for the function and continuation of the AB.

Now to be clear, I am remaining in my position as a moderator, and as a member of the community, so I hope no one panics and thinks I’m leaving totally. I still have faith in both the project and the community, even during this apparent slump we seem to be experiencing with dwindling numbers of active members and other issues, some of which I will touch on in another post or two later on today. So, I’m not running away on you dear brothers and sisters, I am simply doing what I feel is best for the project and community.

Now then onto the last part which I mentioned I would discuss in the above section. Even though we might not speak on it publicly, we are all here for various reasons. For many it is not just the obvious part of being in on the creation of a kick ass game through this community driven environment. But also, we seek to stand out, that’s unavoidable, and while some may and will deny it, it is true.

We all want to be seen, and to show our skills and abilities which may lead to us being scooped up either by DP, or by other development teams and game companies. This in reality is a fair goal and something that if it’s a dream of yours, should be pursued. However, achieving that and showing that you have skills, abilities, creativity and experience which would be beneficial to a company is something to aim for. Doing so for the detriment of the project and community isn’t going to make you look like an asset. Sure we need to show our strengths and skills, but in most if not all game development teams and communities, they function as a team and team players are required.

Knowing and accepting your weaknesses as well as your abilities, as well as being able to admit when you feel you cannot be a productive and valuable contributor to a certain function, is a very good sign not just of maturity but also that you are able to be honest both with yourself, but also any prospective employer. Being in on something for the sake of being in on something benefits no one, and when the truth gets revealed, damages your credibility more than ever by saying you failed at doing a particular thing. Learning to do something and saying you cannot at this time, reflects far better on both your willingness to be a part of something as well as how you can be counted on as a reliable member of a team.

Something I think we should all keep in mind, self honest, being aware of your own abilities and recognizing your limits is something that will serve you much better in life than hiding behind other’s glory and successes. We can all learn and adapt to new things, but only when we recognize we don’t know something or are unable at present to do something. Just my thoughts since I have you all here.

Anyway, I would like to say in closing that the members of the Advisory Board are working hard, and I appreciate their effort and wish them luck as they move forward. I’m always on tap to help when and where I can, so don’t hesitate to call on me.

Stage 5 Core Dump

2007-07-22T13:34:00Z

Odds and Ends, I think that sums up some of wot this is going to be about, as I'm going to pretty much do as the title suggests and dumping my core. So don't expect any really commonality of topics, but then again when is that anything new eh? So yes dear readers, fans, friends, enemies and all you others who for some inexpiable reason read the shit that comes out of my head at times, off we go on another delving into the brain of the Anjellic one.

Where to begin, where to begin, I suppose we'll start with the area that's become in some ways a central aspect of my life or at least online life as of late. Funny how these things work I suppose, but anyways I'm wandering , here we go. Project Top Secret, holy shit, I must say I jumped into this one with both feet and more or less went up to the hair line with it. Not might you that I'm complaining, it's been a helluva ride thus far and it's likely to continue one for quite some time. Anywho. My activity as far as the tasks and wot not goes has I'm sure noticeably cooled. Mind you it's not due to lack of interest of some such nonsense, though yes Rus we went over this when you thought I'd buggered off. I simply don't have anything to add presently to the current stream of things. When thing move into an area I don't have either experience in or any real coherent thoughts to post I'm simply not going to. I'm not going to go babbling into those discussions blindly. When I know I don't have something significant to add, I'm not going to waste forum space doing nothing. When things once again move into areas I can contribute to, excel in, show off in and so on, then expect me to do just that like I did before.

Moderation there has been more often then otherwise a pretty simple matter, there's been moments, but that's normal of any online community and it's something i take some measure in pride in. Though haha I must touch on something, which isn't really related to TS operations, contributions or the like, but something of well great astonishment to me, even though it's not monumental. But seeing one's name mentioned by Dave in interviews early on, on the MMO sites and wot not, was a rather bizarre moment, granted it's just a simple mention about being brought in to mod, but at the same time, was passing strange to me lol. Not that I'm complaining of course, but still lol was quite a "WTF" moment when i first saw it on the interview article on MMORPG.Com and the other subsequent interviews and so forth that followed. I couldn't help but laugh at the irony of it all. But hey it's an honour to be noted even in a propaganda type situation (As everyone knows, I'm all about the propagandizing).

Anywho, with the advisory board fun, which seems to be in my mind working rather well, well, well enough as any new aparatus can with the usual birth troubles and so on, while I haven't been vocal in it to a large degree, mainly because my fellow AB members have been pretty thorough thus far or as Tandy and I more or less noted from the get go, they've been repeating and saying this we've been pointing out for a while so I observe and will add wot and when i can , till once more we come to things I have more direct coherent thoughts on. Anyways, all in all P:TS is likely to be something I'll be involved in till it's completion or elimination lol. Who knows maybe I'll even score a job out of it of some sort, though haha, I'm not going to set my life on it, cause well I'm just like that.

Moving on.

So my network of contacts grows and grows, TS has something to do that of course, but also just my mad ninja networking skills lol, I have to laugh when i remember wot flamingbeard said a couple months ago about myself and the guild being more like an Internet gaming syndicate lol, yeah i really think between me and some of my posse we're online gaming gangsters lol we know people, we meet people, corrupt them , make contacts out of them and have such a vast reach across the board it's amusing when things come up. As everyone knows my rather bizarre and probably annoying ability to know things either I'm not supposed to, or that they thought I wouldn't find out before they tell me. I take great pleasure in my information network, always have. But more then that i just love networking and making contacts through out the world and the various communities, and attached to this is making connections for friends and contacts. Your welcome guys by the way, I just thought I'd say it again, remember me when i need something though lol.

Next!

Alright now for something more serious, something I've gone round the twist about several times back and forth, each time I get closer to it, then back off and nothing gets said more about it. My writing, you know my exposure almost daily to Rus is having a large impact on me I think. Though to be honest, having Tandy around is probably of equal value, sorrie Mr. Demaria, but while I really like having a professional writer on the daily discourse part of the dark list having a top notch editor on tap really makes my day lol. Anyways, i digress, So what about my writing, well other then here and there random spurts it's more or less none existent. Now contributing factors, well a large chuck of my creative spark died out a couple years ago, and no Allison, I'm not blaming you , just how things worked out. That and with Oracle's virtual death, it left me without a writing home, sure I know there's plenty of sites and yes Donna, i know, i know, don't start i know lol. I haven't been ready to make a big return to the online rp community, i felt like a refugee no matter where I popped into, i haven't been ready to set up shop anywhere new. That mood however is changing so i might just start going along. Between Epiphany and many others riding me pretty hard about getting back into writing, I know I need to stop being a lazy git and start doing it. And yes Adonai, you've beaten that into my head too many times as well, so right fuck you very much I'm starting to listen and I've even got the spark to write some today even lol we'll see if i can muster up the energy, but times come, with my birthday on the horizon once again, I know I'm not that old, but time doesn't wait for anyone so if I'm gonna do it, i need to piss or get off the pot and start writing like I know i want to. It's something I can do, I've given up to many other of my potential "talents" as I've been told so letting this one go i think is just criminal of me.

But then I'm a sinner, always have been, always will be, I'm going to hell with a first class ticket, but giving up my ability to write i think is a sin even I'm not willing to commit. So here we go, ya'll have won the war, i surrender and will start writing again. So keep your eyes open as I plan to start off with some short posts, old chars and maybe new ones, to find the groove again, so don't expect miracles right off, or Anjel standard uber sized posts and shit, or even regular rp, but who knows, i know I owe too many people rp lol, Form a line damnit , form a line, and yes i remember who some of those people are, Donna, Shelly, Jennifer, Chris, AJ, probably Katy, Kelly, probably I even owe promises to Rob and Cin lol, fucked if I remember all the people, and yes Jamie I know lol, I owe you too broham or you owe me, I dunno which lol.

Now then.

What else? job searching continues, stress problems, well I've been stressed some lately, and my hearts acted up a bit, I'll be honest about that, though it's not serious and I've kept in touch with my doctor about it, so no panic attacks alright, I'm not due for an eminent heart attack or anything and the air bubbles aren't back, just some strain I think, and I think that largely has to do with the fact i haven't been engaging in my normal stress relief activities much lately, But I just addressed that about writing. I think some of this stress is self imposed because I'm full to bursting with storylines and have been keeping them and my writing bottled up. along with being a fussy bitch about playing video games with so many starts and stops of my collection of games and not actively playing things. Some personal stuff sure, but nothing that needs to be aired in public, I'll keep that between the parties involved, though I really could launch my mother into outer space sometimes.

Anyways i think I've wore myself out for the moment, my arms a bit achy today, probably slept funny or something so I'm gonna wrap up this dump for now and maybe write another one later on. Now I'm posting this on all my blogs since it covers so much different shit, and I'm well aware that many of you dear readers have no two sweet clues who many of the people I've referred to are, and that's alright, cause well that's wot happens when you spend your time networking and talking to the world as I do, but for sake of saving myself time I put it all in here. now then i bid you all a good day/night/wotever. Enjoy.

~Anjel

Red Leader! Red Leader! Stay on Target!

2007-06-24T19:33:00Z

Something that happens more often than not in the flow of conversations and discussion within each task and group, which although it has it’s merits, continues to drain on productivity; is the, albeit inevitable, movement off tangent and into the realms of future planning and talk about task points and tasks. Sure we all keep looking ahead and want to expand on the deliverables we’re tasked to complete, and there’s nothing wrong with discussing these things ahead of time. However, it’s a matter of time and place, more time then place usually. We need to work on keeping focus on the tasks at hand in the task group discussions so that we can have a much better and higher turnaround time for submissions. We’re given a certain amount of time and the more and more we go off tangent and discuss the future rather then the current, we lose time, and time in any project is invaluable.

We don’t have an unlimited amount of time on the project, and while we aren’t being rushed, we have to maintain a consistent level of productivity to make the project a success. Keeping focused on the task at hand so we can complete our submissions and get them up for decision and furtherance of the tasks is a priority compared to looking ahead and picking each petty detail a part before we get to those elements when those refinements are necessary. We’re doing this in steps and we need to take those steps and leave firm results with each one. We’ll refine things more and more as we get to the proper time and place, but we won’t get there if we’re constantly going round and round on future things without finishing up the current things.

So something I would like to impress on everyone is the need to keep their focus on the tasks at hand. When the submissions are prepared and ready, then feel free to continue to pursue those topics and look ahead, but when we still have a list of things current on the docket we must tackle those head on and make sure we get them down tight before we can move forward. The further we go the more and more elements will be open to us to work on, but unlike a book, we can’t skip to the end.

We can accomplish much with the time we have for each task, but something I think everyone should keep in mind, just because we’re given a firm timeline for when submissions are due, we don’t need to push to the last moment before we make the submissions. The more productive and efficient we are, the further ahead we’ll get without lots of time lag.

We’re all striving for something, and one of those things is to prove to the industry and, I think ourselves, that we can do these things. Showing we can take and execute these tasks in an efficient and timely manner is a good work ethic for us to achieve, and will reflect well on our abilities as a community and as designers. I know we’re capable of it, and you should too, so let’s go balls to the wall and start getting things done. Leave the future projections for after the submissions are in and fulfill each task to the best of our abilities. While we must be aware of the big picture, we can’t stop to discuss it every third post.

As an attachment to this one, something else that was pointed out to me, which I very much agree with, is the need for summation. We need to start condensing our big discussions and making use of bullet points and have large descriptions filled in below as footnotes and continuations. This will help both our information management but also for others to navigate through our ideas, proposals and submission material. So I’d like everyone, myself included (heh), to keep that in mind and develop this habit to help us keep information readily available without having to dig through a mountain of text to find what’s relevant.

Sure it means work, but that’s what creating a game is. Sure it’s fun, sure it can be interesting and exciting, but it still is work in the end, and if you want to make it into the industry, be prepared to work and work hard. We can have fun along the way, but there’s work to do, so let’s make sure we get it done. We are the TS community and we will prevail.
_________________

Project Evolution

2007-06-21T08:32:00Z

It's been a while since I've written one of these, and that's for several reasons. Mainly an overkill of motivational posts are generally counter productive. Secondly and perhaps parallel to the first reason is with the several changes and new things to develop touching on each one of them separately would likely keep me writing bale fulls of virtual "paper" to cover each one. So where then am i leading to this?

Well really it's an overall scoop of things, hence the title of this thread, being , "Project Evolution". The Project has evolved over the last month or so, and more changes are coming as time moves along. With the forth coming formation of the Advisory Board, of which there are still even in my mind some questions to be answered about how this aparatus is meant to function, still it is a good sign, if I read things correctly in regards to community involvement. Then also there's the institution of the Zero Tolerance policy that was delivered from Dave as a mandate on the overall flow of conversation. Now if you haven't heard about this, which isn't likely as I'm quite sure it's made it's rounds through the community conversation and gossip mill, then I'm sure you can find out readily enough, as I'm not going to repost it here. Though I will touch on it again in a bit.

Then also I was going to write a post in regards to Big Picture awareness which as Rus had pointed out in a post of his own a week or so ago, I decided to hold off on it until now. With every task, every area of element creation for the game, interactions with the whole are something that need to be kept in mind.

1. How will beasts interact with the Track environments?
2. How will the characters and beats interact?
3. How will the towns fit in with the tracks, characters and beast?
4. How does the natural abilities and skills fit the framework of Gameplay?

And so on....

Now of course, not everyone is a big picture thinker, and that isn't a bad point as too much big picture awareness detracts from one's ability to focus on thought son some of the tasks at hand, so before you all start howling at me about "OMG I can't think in such broad dimensions" It's not a pre-requisite to contribute and be involve din the project. However, learning to at least some sense of Big picture awareness is a good skill to develop both in regards to future game design experiences but also is helpful in other areas of your life so give it some thought.

One of the guiding tenants of this Project, not only to build a kick ass game, or to build a strong community of gamers working together but also a learning experience, so consider this a life lesson, that being "how to focus on work while keeping one eye on the large frame of eventualities that will arise and things go forward.

Personally I'd like to think that members if not all but a good many of those whom take a role in the AB (Advisory Board, only explanation of the abbreviation I'll give from this point on) Will have a good sense of Big Picture Awareness, as we need those whom are in some form of leadership position not just the admin and mods, but community members who can see the ways everything links together and help the community as a whole connect the dots.

But I'll leave the AB for last in this now long post, I know many aren't going to read the whole thing, but I'm sure some will, but I digress.

The Zero tolerance policy, in regards to how circular arguments and protracted policy and process debates will no longer be tolerated. While some see it as a severe crackdown or some kind of "Nazi" move by Dave and the rest of the Admin, quite honestly, it's a step that needed to be taken and a mandate I have been waiting for, for quite some time. In all honesty all those arguments, debates and conversations, accomplished very little and were counter productive. Now I'm not going to start throwing stones as I'm as guilty as anyone for taking part in them, I suppose I couldn't help it, my nature and love for a good pissing contest sometimes gets the better of me. But the bottom line is, schools out kids, it's time to pull on our big people pants and get to work. In a traditional game design environment, such things would never be tolerated and people would like get fired for being idiots of that nature.

Of course we're not in a traditional environment, but we are a game design team, sure we're or most of us are amateurs anyways, but the reality is, this is a learning experience on how things work, even in a loose form such as we've had, If such conversations and the like continue that would certainly not be a good way to prepare people for the real GD (game design) environment works. now of course I'm not saying people don't argue about things in the real world, but not continuously going around and around , like a record baby, right round, round, round. Like we have been on many issues, though of course we still have our concerns, bitching and chewing about them isn't going to help anything, so it's time to stop that nonsense, provide solutions to problems should they arise, but handle thing sin a mature way.

Things aren't;' as strict as some of the more vocal dissidents have complained and whined about, discourse about things is always a good way to keep things in sight, but fighting back and forth over and over again is simply un-productive and we're not here to hose the decks with our cranky attitudes but to work on and produce a game. To learn, and to make something really great happen. We're representatives of the gaming community, I don't care if people contest me on this, it is true. We're a group of gamers whom are here to prove it can be done. to prove that gamers can work together to create a game while the industry thinks we can't. We're taking our gaming destiny in our hands and proclaiming that "We have a voice in what we want to play and see happen" Constant pissing and moaning just makes us look like the unthinking idiots that many industry types think we are.

So it ends now, and now is the time to show em what we're made of. Sure we're working in some unclear terms still, but even in the chaotic environment, our talents have shone and those who persevere are both impressive and reflect on themselves how well they can adapt, learn and create both awesome ideas and solutions.

(Wow, this is long and I'm not quite done yet, heh)

As far as the AB goes, I'm waiting to see more clarified definitions of what the roles of it are, and how it will function in regards to both the project and within the community. While I think the concept could potentially be a good step forward, I have my concerns as I'm sure many others do. I'm supportive of the idea, and I'm hoping the members who ultimately get selected for the posts really work hard in the areas they're given, but keep in mind that they are still members of the community as are we all. So personal agenda's one hopes do not become more important then the good of the community and the project. This section i think is directed at both the candidates that are awaiting interviews but also the end result members of the AB. Whatever you do, you have been selected to help lead the community and provide guidance , solutions and advocate the wishes of the community. (My personal view on how it will work, not the total mandate given as yet)

So when you're facing your interview or making your decision on if you will serve or not, some things to keep in mind.

1. This is a position that is for the good of the community and while it's a chance for you to show all of us what you're made of, don't forget the rest of us
.
2. Make no mistake, it will entail work, if you think it's just something you can get in to further your own agenda without having to actually do anything you are mistaken.

3. Furthering the project, making a great game, and sticking it to the industry, you are the higher profile representatives of the community, you're being put into the spotlight, don't let us down.

4. Mistakes happen, if and when you make one, don't spend your time just appologizing, learn from them and work to make sure they're not repeated.

:5. And lastly, if you cannot do that work, cannot partake in the process , or time gets away from you, do not sit on your hands, if you can fill the role and do the job, do it. If you cannot, don't idle, but make room for someone who can. Recognition is nice, but if this project fails, it the failure not only falls on Dave and the Admin, but on us the members of the TS community, but also the gaming community as a whole , indirectly perhaps, but still it's true.

So keep these things in mind candidates, the overall project success will bring benefits to all of us, a giant failure, benefits no one, beyond learning from it, which while great, if we totally fail we might not get this shot again. We're strong, we're creative, and I personally don't believe we will fail, but keeping the truths about it, and knowing what it will mean in mind, keeps us humble and motivates us to push the envelope and work our asses off to pull this thing off.

We taking our shot at creating game, lets make sure our aim is true and that we nail it. We can do it, we will do it, and our community will show em what we're capable of, never forget where we came form, but lets blaze the trail for the future of gamer created content and games, but also the future of gaming in total. We will prevail and kick some ass!

Quod Erat Demonstrandum

2007-06-16T20:46:00Z

It's a given that my posting rate as of late has fallen off. That's not to say I've been gone or the like, I've just not had much to say at present, given my nature to sometimes take a step back and watch things develop. Having been yelled at by several sources at this point about this, I suppose time has come to break the silence and give proof of life once more. I've noticed outside of the occasional sporadic post influx both here and on the TS boards that Cm representation has fallen off and several of our members have gone MIA. Now of course that's a personal choice by many of you and I'm sure you have your reasons.

And while it's against our principals and mantra to prune the membership of CM, it does lead one to ask where is everyone, what's everyone up to presently and what direction are we all moving in , in regards to the TS project and any other endevours CM could take part in. I'm guilty of silence and being MIA myself in a way so Im not throwing stones, simply voicing thoughts I've had for a while now. We're only as strong as we present ourselves to be, both creatively as well as communicatively.

We have a good cast of various talents and assets within CM and while we are a leaderful group, we need to step up and begin our operations again in regards to the TS project to help move it along. Granted leadership is being discussed on the boards, but discussion and having community members step up to help kep the forum momentum are two different things. I see many of you with a great ability to help leverage the TS Community forward and into better avenues, but only if you actively work and post to do so. Many of us have various motivations for being both involved in the TS project and for being a part of CM. We can only accomplish our personal goals as well as our overall goals if we work to do so. doing nothing garners nothing. Q.E.D.

New User Introduction Dj Anjel Remix

2007-05-30T00:00:00Z

Greetings and Welcome to the Top Secret Project!

As you can see the majority of the work we'll be doing will take place on the forums. As such it can look rather intimidating at first glance, but really it's just takes getting used to. That said we'll now break things down a bit so you can familiarize yourself in a relatively short amount of time.

Firstly, as you will have heard, this project is brought you by Acclaim, and is directed by none other then David Perry, the genius behind many #1 games and a leading industry professional.

Secondly, as you will have discovered the overall genre of the game we are working to create is racing in an online MMO format. But contrary to popular belief, as we move from task to task, we're taking the racing genre as a base and moving into new territory to make something new and exciting!

Now then, starting out, feel free to introduce yourself in our

Introduction Area!

This is the place were you can tell us a little bit about yourself. Where yo
u're from, what skills your bring with you, and your expectations.Also allows the community to meet and greet you and welcome you to our great community of creative and talented people.

As you have seen, the forums are broken down into various sections, each related to game design and development as well as various discussion areas for related topics from Industry Discussion, to off topic areas for members to just shoot the breeze and talk about anything under the sun.

Milestone 1

Now the main hub of activity related to the content and concept creation and submission takes place in the Milestones section. Each Milestone is broken down into various tasks and discussion areas, which we, as a community complete to add content and elements to the game. At present we are working on the general concepts and elements, as time goes on we will be refining these elements to become core components of the final game.Currently we are on the above linked Milestone 1.

Each task included in the Milestones has instructions and submission requirement information posted at their beginning to help you understand the needs and aims of the respective tasks.

Following along with the areas already listed, we have already accomplished quite a bit, and to get your bearings on what has been completed we have the constantly updated

Design Document

Which lays out the steps we have taken and the elements that have been decided on as well as components we are refining for the final product? Feel Free to read over it as well as the rest of the Wiki for more information.

The Research and Discussion Area

Is the section of the forums dedicated to looking at all manner of ideas in their corresponding sub forums and discuss them, exchange information and analyze them both for either further development in the game, or other ideas for later avenues of creation or simply to learn more. One of the key goals of this project beyond creating one awesome game and community is also the exchange of knowledge and a learning experience for those interested in game design and its various elements.

Community News Site

You will have taken note of the Latest Site News header on the top of the forum, this area is used to inform members of what tasks are opening as well as the dates for when their various phases are completed. A further resource for current community news, is our above linked Community News site. Where news both in regards to project progress, task introductions, as well as related community news is kept current and updated.

Now then, I'm sure this is quite overwhelming at first, so we have begun a new resource to help filling the blanks and answer any questions you might be having.

The Top Secret Mentor Program!

Mentors are community members whom have stepped up to help new users like yourself acclimatize yourself to the top secret Environment and answer any and all your questions. As well as dive in and start helping out almost immediately with support from both our Mentors as well as the community at large.

Lastly we have a great team of Moderators who are always open for questions and are here to help.

So again I bid you welcome and we look forward to having you join us and help us in our MMGDP (Massively Multi User Game Development Project) come to life and deliver one kick ass game to the world!

TS Taskgroups and CM Participation

2007-05-26T18:10:00Z

I've been asked now by several people as to why the current task group sign ups isn't full of CM people. My answer should be obvious to you guys, but perhaps I should state it anyways, though i suspect you guys know already. We've not going to issue a mandate that you guys join every single taskgroup for every single task. It goes against our Princioples to start issuing, "You must be present for everything" orders. I personally don't want to see you guys burning yourselves out on every single task. Focus on the ones that interest you personally and the ones you feel you have direct and valuable input. When things kick into higher gear and we have several running all at the same time, It's better to focus your efforts to deliver the quality we're known for in direct interest then trying to spread ourselves to thin on some areas were we don't feel we need to show up in just for the sake of showing up in. We're all representative of CM and we're all representing ourselves and our personal interests. So keep that in mind. If you feel you don't have any real interest or nothing to add to a certain task, then kick back and conserve your energy or work to prepare for the future. Cause it's gonna be bright and CM can ride the waves of change, leading the charge on the important issues and delivering quality content and ideas. That's what we're about, stepping up when we have the goods but providing the means to allow others to step up and shine in the community when they have the goods by need a little help getting there. We leverage our own empowerment and we leverage the empowerment of the community at large.

So say we all.

Nephilati Story Piece

2007-05-25T22:35:00Z

Card Symbology was the corner stone of his entire culture, his race specialized in the art of card usage, combination and manipulation. It was a craft as old as their race's history and was their leading science as well as the main focus of their magical abilities. Some sects within the core of the Nephilati society focused on different operational aspects of the cards, from breeding manipulation to weapon specialists and spellcraft. He himself was a generalist.

Taking classes in the Nephilati high institute on a diversified path to enable him to combine Symbology with his already exceptional skills as a beast rider. He wanted to be both a warrior and a scholar for his people. to stand against their enemies and yet have meaningful discourse with their allies. Not so different form the path his father had taken before him. The subtle differences lay in those areas they went for. Where his father gained a mastery level not only in combat and tactics, but healing, he sought to attain mastery in breeding and beast enhancement. He didn't have the patience for healing, though he knew how prized and necessary it was for supporting a rider and their beast companion.

With an affectionate hand he patted his dragon's chest upon which he leaned against as he studied. They had bonded when they were both very young, and while he had progressively trained to ride a variety of creatures, Mezohur was by fair his favorite amongst his personal stable. They'd been through many races and trials over the 22 years of life they shared together. Stretching forward he flexed his wings slightly to relieve a cramp from having had them folded against his back for a prolonged period of time. He longed to ride across the open grasslands outside of town. But with another test of his Symbiologic Competency forth coming he knew he had to focus on the task at hand.

"Connecting a web of cards to create a network magic network from strengthening to final weapon discharge, will result in greater damage and better chances of disabling one's opponent" he read aloud from the text he held firmly in his grasp. His final aim was to become an Enforcer, one charged with both protecting his race and city, but also the secrets and lore of both card Symbology and also the Nephilati Race. With attack card methodologies he excelled, but he always knew that during the testing, situations of both complex tactics and increasing difficult if near nigh impossible creature encounters were the main course of the questions he would face.

Coming up both with tried and tested tactics as well as card combination innovations would ensure his progression to another level. With a faint chuckle, followed by a patient sigh, he delved deeper into the text and took that knowledge in while applying it with his own theories to create his strategies of combination, effect, status change and attack. As complex as it was beautiful, Card Symbology was a fine art and he wished and strove to be an artist of great success.

Let's take a walk.

2007-05-25T05:11:00Z

We know where we've been in terms of work done, and selections made, we
know what we're working on now, and we have some hints as to what's to
come. This is all well and good, even though there have been plenty of hiccups, and a great
amount of process discussion. All these things have taken place and are
happening now. But I'd like to move away from that and focus on something
entirely different. That being the question about who "We" are.

We, as the community, are a mass group of people working together to create a
game.

We are a community of aspiring developers, artists, writers, programmers
and various members of other disciplines.

We, as the community, are also the individuals that make up this dynamic
community.

The community we have now is the foundation for the future community for
the game we are trying to make. There has been discussion about how we can
build up our community. I have touched on advertising for this
project to increase the members of our community, for as we grow and gain
new members, we're building up our community talent pool and strength, and
bringing in people to help us work towards our overhead team goal of
creating one kick ass game. But something that's been getting lost
in the translation and process discussions, I think, is our sense of community. We
encourage collaboration, we want to create content and make magic happen.
And sure we don't get along all the time, but as days go by I've seen the community
becoming more and more tight knit. Touching on this community growth,
something that might get lost is that while we're all one big team, we're
all individuals with our own thoughts, our own goals, and our own reasons
for being here. We, as a community, need to build ourselves up to allow not
only ourselves to deliver the best we are capable of, but to allow the
work of our fellow community members to grow and shine with us. That is
the spirit of collaboration, to work together with others to bring about
great results. This trend has been growing and it's a wonderful thing to
see happening.

But we're also losing members. Sure we gain new members, but we've lost
many others, and while it might not get talked about often, or up front,
it is happening. Now who is to blame for this happening? The process,
perhaps in part, which is why there's so much conversation about it. The
choices made? Sure not everyone is going to be happy with the art style we
have, and sure not everyone is happy with the direction we're going with
beasts and cards, or the way all the other hooks are going. But what else, because that
doesn't explain all of it, does it?

I think not. We have and are a community, we are a team, and we are
individuals, So we firstly as individuals must decide what we want out of
this experience and work towards that. We've made friendships and some of
us have joined groups and smaller teams within the ultimate team.
Some see this as a problem, while others, like me, fail to understand the
complaints, but I digress. We are, in the end, on a large team working towards a
goal, and that big team is what forms our overall community. So, as a
community we need to find ways to invigorate and inspire, motivate and
work together, firstly towards our main goal of building one awesome game,
but we also have a chance to build on a great community full of talented
people. We're responsible for our own actions and how they impact our
community, so as a community we need to come together and strengthen
ourselves as a community and team to help not only our creation reach a
successful conclusion, but help our community reach greater and greater
heights.

We can work to strengthen our community and come up with solutions to help
us not lose members during the low points. It's the nature of people to
band together around a certain idea, or a certain goal. We form
friendships and teams and groups, because within any large community,
smaller groupings happen. That's the nature of people, and how large
communities happen and societies are built. This doesn't have to have a
negative effect on the community. Groups and teams help further individual
expression, and allow people to feel more connected, first to the ones
they're close to, and then by extension, to the community at large. We have
started the foundation. The foundation of our community is each of us as
individuals, and then we form our friendships and our collaborations
becoming the roots for the eventual growth of our community, which with
our work and love and a growing awareness and sense of community can
blossom into an even bigger, stronger, and more powerful team to bring the
game we want to make to life.

So I submit to you my team mates, my overall team members, and to my
fellow community residents, help me lead a charge to help strengthen our
community. Let’s build on a foundation to carry us as a strong team into
the tasks and throughout this project to create our kick ass game. The
community we build now will form the core of the community for the game
we finally produce, and the stronger we are from this point onwards, the
stronger we'll be when we launch our game and bring in even more people to
experience our creation. So I ask for you to offer your ideas and
solutions on how to build and strengthen our community, both as individuals,
as groupings, and as our Massive team. The time for complaining I think has
ended. We need to move boldly forward. Together we can accomplish much,
both individually and as a unified community.

I'm ready to take that step forward. Who's coming with me?