Welcome Comrades to the 24th Edition of the ConquerClub Dispatch!
It's almost been a year since the first edition of this publication was released, it has been great to see it grow and expand from 7-8 contibutor's to 23! And we look forward to more growth in the year to come. We want to thank the loyal readers who enjoy reading what our writers have put together each issue. And we look forward to finding new ways to make the newsletter more enjoyable and exciting each edition.
This edition is packed with content, take the time between turns to sit down and catch-up on the latest news and enjoyable articles from our reporters
We hope you enjoy this edition.
samuelc812 -
News Director In this issue, we welcome two new writers to the tournament section:
vodean and
superkeener . They make their debuts with an NFL Tournaments focus piece by
vodean and Player Spotlight by
superkeener .
amazzony returns with part 2 of her 2009 Year in Review story, which focuses on quotes from players and organizers. We were unable to put together a list of the large tournaments currently recruiting players for this issue, but you can always check the
Create/Join a Tournament Forum on your own for interesting tournaments to join. I'm still looking for a couple more contributors (especially someone who would be willing to do the "grunt work" of going through the Create/Join forum), so if you are interested, please PM
samuelc812 .
~Night Strike
Tournament Editor
2009 Year In Review Part 2 by amazzony show
In the previous issue I put together "2009 Year In Review" which highlighted the changes that took place in the tournament world in the past year. This time I've decided to ask different players and organizers what they remember most from 2009 and how they look back on it. Most messages that I got back were in a positive note and, though people weren't afraid to bring out negative things (thank you for your honesty!), the overall feelings were optimistic and hoping the tournament forums keep up their high level of performance.Blitzaholic , who thinks that bringing in tournament medals was important for the growth of tournament forums. Statistics support it because after tournament medals were introduced, the amount of tournaments created went up enormously. "I don't know if it is just me, but there are more and more "quick for a medal" tournaments", says reptile , but n00blet feels that "a lot of 'tournament-bites' have popped up since the medal came out for them, but that seems, from what I can tell, to have mostly died out as people have realized how much work they need to put into creating a successful tournament." denominator mentions that the rate that tournaments are coming out is awesome. "Plus, there's a wide variety of types running at any one time. I think 2009 was better just from the sheer volume of tournaments that ran." Though he adds that in his opinion some rules are abused. For example a quad tournaments with only 16 players means that only 4 teams are competing for the tournament win. He thinks the rules need to be changed to having 16 entrants, not 16 players. MarVal also feels that the minimum requirements are not good enough: "So the winner will only play 2 games (he means 16-player 2 round tournaments). Or am I wrong? IMO you can't call this a tournament, it must have at least more rounds in and/or more maps to play on it, before it can be called a tournament." DBandit70 also would like to see at least the 1 v 1 tournaments extended to a minimum of 32 players, doubles to 16 teams, and so forth.reptile says that "tournaments as a whole are moving in the right direction. Overall I think we have moved more forward than backward in tournaments. More and more people are getting excited about tourneys and creating their own with their own twists, this is a major plus. Also, the graphics that some of the tournament creators are doing now just makes the tournament that much more fun." Several other people agreed that creative themes are the ones that bring color and that there should be more of them. "More interesting and innovative tournament ideas, not necessarily "bigger" and more complicated though," Lindax said.barterer2002 thinks that 2009 was a great year for tournaments. There was a wider variety but also there was a much better effort in picking up tournaments that would have been abandoned in the past. This is particularly the result of the efforts of jpcloet and Lindax , who have worked hard behind the scenes to find TOs to rescue tournaments. jpcloet : "The TO [Tournament Organizers] [user]group members responded to my challenge around abandoned tournaments. The TD's took it to another level with Night Strike writing in a more specific process for rescuing a tournament in the Handbook and Lindax leveraging the TO group and making them aware of which tournaments are up for rescue." freakns : "I think tournaments are the best place for meeting new people and coming to know the CC world. As 2009 newcomer, I can say that tournaments were not only fun for me to play, but also gave me a chance to come to know new people, get into a clan, and feel like I belong to CC community. MarVal compliments TDs who make the Tournament Section a very good oiled and solid part of CC. keiths31 says that it is nice to see new faces around the forum. jpcloet finds the Tournaments area one of the most positive areas on the site. What else is there to say? Perhaps only - come, visit us!This article is reflecting the views of different people so please take it like that - summary of opinions of players and organizers. Thanks to everybody who helped me put together this article, including those whose quotes didn't get into the newsletter!
NFL Interviews by vodean show
This is vodean out here in NFL nation, where over the past few weeks, several NFL tournaments have advanced to their final regular-season weeks. At the risk of having to skip school and having to make a fool of myself, I am here, PMing some of the managers to see if I could get an interview. MTIceman41 , the offensive coach for the Indianapolis Colts, who finished first overall in the regular season of MG’s “1vs1 to Dubs NFL Tournament” , said I would say that overall my dice/drops for the games were average...being the only player to win all 10 games, I do feel confident in the playoffs...and getting home-field advantage is a plus.
Pixar is a great teammate and together we are a formidable team...if we continue to get average dice/drops, I like our chances throughout the playoffs
flexmaster33 ’s 2009 NFL Singles , the Houston Texans, coached by sportsgod24 , was the first to reach the Superbowl. He said, Well first of all, I would like to say that the Cowboys are my team (from Fort Worth) but ended up [coaching] the Texans (second favorite). I went 10-0 on my home map counting regular season and playoffs, which the the main reason I made it to the Super Bowl. I really didn't expect that since I have a basic map with USA, but I guess I know it a little better than everyone else. I haven't had any cold streaks in the tourny with dice and hope it wont start now. Can't wait to start the Super Bowl and win it for H-Town. This tournament has been really awesome, props to flexmaster for the running of it.
dowian2 .Superkeener (a writer himself) here to talk to us. On his tournament, he said The season has been going well. The only issue that has came up is 3 people have quit, well 2 quit, and 1 is on a site ban. But overall it has been a great tournament. The playoff race is starting to heat up and each game is becoming more crucial. There are many close division races such as in the AFC East with
pearljamrox2 &
jcstriker all tied up in the standings. Also in the NFC East with
nippersean &
HighlanderAttack . This is the 2nd NFL tournament I have run, and there are some returning people:
shoop76 ,
dshedd ,
Cubs24 ,
HighlanderAttack , and
acores2005 . Three of which made the playoffs in my 1st NFL tournament.
As far as a drug problem, I know that there have been some rumors of drugs being passed among players. These are not true. Also, the dice are not fixed.
Note: with any reference to players and conditions, drops and dice can be used interchangeably.
In Please by superkeener show
I wake up, get my coffee ready, light a cigarette, and login to Conquer Club. I do this all without getting my clothes on. After logging in I find that I have 8 new messages in my Inbox; I feel so loved. I eagerly open my Inbox to find that I have been invited to 8 games, 8 tournament games. No longer do I feel loved, but rather a slight feeling of hysteria. I feel obligated to win the tournament and anything short of total victory will result in the end of all good things. HighlanderAttack , this should be a breeze. I was wrong. I am always wrong when it comes to beating HighlanderAttack . I beat him once, the first time we played him in the tournament Greazzzzmaster's Think Fast Tournament (Game 5355393 ) since then it has been a brutal beating of epic proportions (9 losses in a row). This time, however, will be different. I will never lose to this guy again, his name is HighlanderAttack for Christ's sake. HighlanderAttack should contain. The new game is in the tournament NBA Season 2009-10 (Game 6301221 ) on Arms Race!. Yes, this time should have been different....... This time was no different. HA destroyed me.HighlanderAttack is a tournament guru that makes you hate yourself and your Conquer Club abilities. You may have felt the feeling of HA's ferocious annihilation. He is one of the tournament legends on Conquer Club, and after looking through some of his stats, rightfully so. According to Map Rank, HA's overall win percentage in tournament games is 52% (58% in 1v1 games), with a 70% tournament winning percentage on Arms Race!. However, HA has failed to win a game in 1v1 on either the Poison Rome or Vancouver maps, and with only 1 win of 8 attempts on the Land and Sea map. HighlanderAttack in a tournament, then you obviously have not played enough tournaments. He is currently sitting at 7295 tournament games, which is around 56% of his total games completed. HighlanderAttack : take this as a warning, we know your weaknesses, your days of winning tournaments are over!
Hello Conquerors!
Here again to provide you the latest and hottest news from the foundry.
In this issue we start with the first part of a foundry special by
natty_dread to continue with an article by
captainwalrus about the final head to head for the germany competition. Then
dolomite13 will show us some real events behind the CC maps and, to close, the map development section to keep an eye on the mapmaking process.
Enjoy it.
Foundry News show
First Nations of North America quenched The Hive and Chicago available for beta-testing
Foundry Special - Part 1:The Melting Pot by natty_dread show
Introduction Beginning of a map The Melting Pot . This is a subforum of the Foundry, moderated by MrBenn , where anyone (yes - even you) can post their ideas of new maps. A map begins when someone posts such an idea, and others comment on that idea, showing their (dis)agreement and support. Melting Pot MrBenn, Foundry Moderator in charge of the Melting Pot wrote: For a while there was a blurry line dividing map ideas and map drafts; this confusing separation caused headaches for mapmakers and the foundry mods alike. The idea of the new structure is to provide a feeding ground for ideas in the melting pot, and for the best ideas (or ones most likely to succeed) to be lifted into proper development. The new structure has been designed to help people pay attention to the elements required to help a map develop through the foundry, and to make it easier to shepherd maps through the process. Hopefully it will also help to attract commentators to specific areas where they feel able to make a valuable contribution.
Map development Design Brief for the Cartography team to review. If the map passes this inspection, it is then moved on to the next forum, Gameplay Workshop , where the playability of the map will be honed to perfection. Recycling Bin Support your CC Mapmakers! And if you do, give them your support and feedback! The Gameplay Workshop . Stay tuned for the next issue!
Germany Competition by captainwalrus show
With the first round of voting done, the two finalists have been selected. Maps F and I were the two most popular maps in the first round of voting, and so a runoff is being held between just those two. Click image to enlarge. Click image to enlarge.
History 101 - WWII Pearl Harbor by dolomite13 show
WWII Pearl Harbor map by cairnswk . Sunday December 7, 1941 FRANKLIN D. ROOSEVELT - 32nd President of the United States wrote: Yesterday, December 7, 1941 - a date which will live in infamy - the United States of America was suddenly and deliberately attacked by naval and air forces of the Empire of Japan.
What led up to that Day in Infamy? FRANKLIN D. ROOSEVELT - 32nd President of the United States wrote: No matter how long it may take us to overcome this premeditated invasion, the American people in their righteous might, will win through to absolute victory.
The Warnings Ships and Aircraft National Geographic About.com Images Japanese Footage of the Attack on Pearl Harbor FRANKLIN D. ROOSEVELT - 32nd President of the United States wrote: With confidence in our armed forces - with the unbounding determination of our People - we will gain the inevitable triumph - so help us God.
Further Reading questia.com
Maps in Development show
To see the full sized preview of the following maps just click on the title of the map, to visit the map development thread Melting Pot Western Fur Trade Mapmaker: isaiah40 Description: A map of what is now western Canada and northwestern US fur trade during the 1700's through the 1800's.
Gameplay Workshop The Conquer 500 Mapmaker: dolomite13 Description: Dolomite has pulled his old project back from the bin, and restarted development. Steer your own racing team and pit crew, to win the race around the Conquer 500 race track. The competition is harsh, and the drivers play dirty...
Present Development: Recently moved from the Melting Pot, the discussion is currently focused about the best layout for lanes.
Nordic Countries Mapmaker: natty_dread Description: The scandinavian peninsula and its surrounding lands is the subject of this map. From the cold Iceland to the lakes of Finland, from Cape Nordkinn to the small Danemark, this map covers a forgotten part of an over represented Europe on ConquerClub.
Present Development: Recently moved there's a poll running to determine bonus zones.
Switzerland Mapmaker: pamoa Description: This map intends to represent the Swiss multiculturalism as well as it's crossroad position in Europe. The major cities are grouped into bonuses considering the languages or their touristic importance rather than their geographical location.
Present Development: Balancing the starting drop
Graphics Workshop 13 Colonies Mapmaker: Industrial Helix Description: Yankee doodle went to town riding on a pony...
The 13 original American Colonies from Maine to Georgia. With a focus on regions far surpassing states from a territorial perspective.The land mass has ships to its right and Indian Territories to its left, but beyond that is other all a simple game play map.
Present Development: Only few adjustments are needed. The final forge seems around the corner for this map.
Japan Mapmaker: RedBaron0 Description: Modern Japan with an ancient graphics styleand a standard gameplay. A nice addition for ConquerClub, when quenched.
Present Development: Waiting for the final forge...
Central America Mapmaker: lgoasklucyl Description: Winner of the Central America competition, this map is a representation of the Central American nations with classic gameplay and smooth tropical graphics.
Present Development: Refining graphics
Final Forge Atlantis Mapmakers: Nemesischild &
Premier2k Description: Atlantis is shrouded in mystery with a mythical history of warefare, prosperity and misfortune. Prepare yourself to play on it before it sinks into the ocean "in a single day and night of misfortune" again...
Present Development: After fixing some issue, it looks that the map is only waiting for the last check
Chess Mapmaker: john9blue Description: A map based on one of the oldest games, to put it simply. It's a lovely rendering of a late-game chess match, with auto-deploys on held pieces and attack routes based on piece movement. That alone makes for a different and engaging gameplay, sure to set this map apart. So grab the speed clock and claim checkmate soon.
Present Development: Developing xml and small version.
Clan War News By Georgerx7di (TSM) show
O&H Defeats LOW! Blitzaholic wrote: jpcloet wrote: To O&H, I see the bar being set similar to G1 who lost 28-12. Simply stated for point of reference.
hmmmm, I don't think so JP. LoW is good but have dropped a little from their split up, and O+H is better than what some may have you think.
You and a lot on CC may be surprised here, I will go out on a limb and say LoW wins 20 to 16 over O+H, with O+H giving them a strong challenge, maybe even 19-17 in favor of O&H. It will be close.
Reptile wrote: 1. How did they get such a lead over you guys? Dice? You guys have some players who are away?
Well, when we took the challenge we knew we were in for a battle. Blitz put it best when he said that O&H is better than some may think. They are a very respectable clan that has not played in many challenges yet, but have a bright future. I think the thing that have helped them the most is the addition of so many "random" maps: the agreement was that 28 of the 36 maps would be random. We consider ourselves pretty versatile, but I guess the randomness fell on the wrong maps
. It will be a hard challenge to come back and win—we need to win 10 of the final 12 just to tie—but you can bet that it will be a hard fought battle all the way till the end.
2. Any comments on their players or their play?
Danryan has done a good job heading this up for O&H, I believe he organized most of it himself, but also all their players have made very few mistakes. I will admit a lot of the games came down to a couple good turns deciding the outcome of the game, however I do not want to take any credit away from O&H as they have played very strong in each of the games i have been a part of.
3. Some will say that the split with TOFU has hurt you guys, any response to that?
There is no doubt that the split hurt us. We lost the top quads team and 3 of the best doubles teams on CC. Do not be confused and think it was on bad terms, we have no problems with any of the TOFU players. Chariot of Fire is a damn good leader and just wanted his chance to do things his way. It was an unfortunate of how quick it all happened, leaving LOW a little crippled, but we have been recovering and are still doing so.
TSM vs THOTA Update skillfull ’s turn appeared to have been started by someone other than he. Time ran out before Skillful deployed, Game 6019138 Some arguing and drama ensued, some of it playing out in the public challenge thread. Monki he was upset with was ChipV, not a Monki at all. A CLA game was confused with a clan war game, and all had a good laugh about it. Other Top Clan Wars:
Interview with O&H Player Danryan by murphy16 show
Murphy16 Interviews co-leader of Outlaws & Highwaymen Danryan
Clan League Update by jpcloet show
The League is about 60-65% completed and it is this time of year where clans begin to separate themselves. In Div1A, Knights of the Round Table are walking all over the previous season champions THOTA 5-0, and doing so on the road. This has put them now into 1st place in their division. As it stands, Both IA and KORT have a significant lead over THOTA which would put THOTA out of the playoffs. THOTA's chance to get back into the race is right now as they are now starting their next week with IA. This head-to-head matchup with IA will likely decide their playoff fate.
Hey guys. For our second edition of 2010 and the newsletter's one year anniversary we sure have an explosive issue for you! First off, I would like to announce the introduction of three new members to the Freestyle team
FoxMists ,
deathcomesrippin and
stahrgazer . This brings the grand total for the team in this section to seven! I hope they enjoy working for the newsletter and you guys enjoy reading the articles they offer. This fortnight we have on offer for you an article on the dice analyser by
Minister Masket . This will be the first in a series of articles on plugins and addons. We also have
ARMY of GOD 's top 5 topics of the week, an in depth article on the new manual deployment and nuclear spoils features by
stahrgazer and another tale from
elfish_lad . Not to mention an interview with cheating and abuse moderator
lord voldemort . Spoilt for choice eh? Enjoy
Nagerous Hot Topics By Army of GOD show
1. Let us put down the swords and hold out our hands, Haiti needs our help. Freemiums! Test your luck in 72o's Wheel of Premium! Want to end farming once and for all? Consider joining PAGANS 72o's generosity knows no bounds! Just hope your artistic skill doesn't either... The temptation , she calls. XD
Plugins and Addons Part 1 By Minister Masket show
Stop right there. Yes, you! I see you about to post your "Rigged Dice!" thread in the forum after losing your third game in a row. Well guess what sunshine? We've all been there, it isn't a scenario unique to you.here's the link.
A Newts Tale By elfish_lad show
I’m pretty sure that ?’s don’t read the CC Newsletter. Pretty sure they don’t even know the Newsletter exists. Hell. I'm not sure they are aware of anything other than "OMG what the frick deal is this map and why do these dice suck and I think I'm done with this site and I still have time before my mom gets home to go look at some more porn!" And I will go out on a limb and add that out of those few players who utilize the message boards (and we are not Legion are we?) that reading the newsletter isn’t high on the list of priorities of gamers. Just a guess. Maybe nude Elf pictures would help circulation (and holy poop, I wrote that and then looked for the picture... you have got to be kidding me). very odd group as you well know. Nonetheless, if fellow newts did read this fine publication with more regularity, what would you tell them?always has a couple of thoughts about everything doesn’t he? Here is the first thing I would tell fellow newts: don’t take candy from strangers. I know from personal experience that it is difficult to resist. It looks so good. It's looks so yummy. But if common sense were to prevail you would realize that you are really the only snack being offered. For crap's sake think: Hänsel und Gretel .kielhalen also known as a "keelhauling" or an "ass-whooping". And it will be your own damn fault. Because there isn't anything CC can do to help you. Like specific game filters or anything. Or stages of map entry by experience level. You are just out to sea on your own. In your little row boat and your 1000 points. And that three masted frigate you see there on the horizon? It's not bringing piña coladas !!!that ???)
The Sanity of Change by stahrgazer show
In Over the Hedge Michael Fry and T. Lewis quip, “The more things change, the more they remain…insane.” Well, Conquer Club has recently taken a leap over the hedge with a few new gameplay options that could either be sheer genius or total insanity, depending on one’s perspective.No Nukes! OMG! What the heck was this lunacy??!! Nuclear Spoils I quickly threw a Beware! note into my clan forum. Some knew about it, even to the extent that, at the time, it seems, many of the CLA were prepared to boycott the setting – or at least, lump it into settings like speed and freestyle, disallowed for most clan challenges. Another Agent and I wondered whether lack’s notion of “new strategy required” was accurate, rather than the main complaint one can hear, “nuclear spoils is all about luck!”. We decided to put it to the test; to see if we could figure out a strategy for this new spoils…and where else but Arms Race! where nuking the opponent is already part of the game?Slaylark and I decided to take that to a new level. How happy we were when I got the US bonus President in round 1! How dismayed we were when Slaylark’s first card turned out to be…you guessed it…President! We decided to stack for a few rounds and move the stack before Slaylark cashed. My first card was the USSR Bunker1. We decided to hang back around Samara in hopes of luring the opponent into taking the bunker. Our strategy worked! We held President, offloading it just in time for Slay’s nuclear strike, then laughed wildly when I was able to nuke 6 armies off the Russian bunker; the ones the opponent had moved when he took the terr, plus the three his teammate had deployed so he could hold off against Samara. lackattack : Nuclear spoils "forces one to develop a new sort of strategy;" it’s not all about luck.Controlled (Manual) Deploys Manual Deploy were unimpressive. Perhaps that’s because I started with AoR and Feudal team games, where “where to place” is a no-brainer. Simply put, starting with those games, I didn’t get it; what’s the big deal; Yawn! Knowing that others enjoy the setting, I asked a friend, nemrehs1 , what he found appealing about it.nemrehs1 wrote: Although i prefer to just play automatic, manual is pretty good too. It makes for strategy. Rather than having a lot of 3's scattered around everywhere on the map at the start, you have the choice on where to put those initial troops, so you can make better use of your drops
nemrehs1 wrote: Usually mostly everyone deploys all their troops on one spot so it could turn to a build game even before the game truly starts.
Game 5854684 , his favorite game on that setting so far. His team went second but good strategy with their deploys enabled them to take and keep bonuses and the lead in early rounds. nemrehs1 wrote: I think it is good at times, but it sucks when you have to nuke your bonus and regain it. It might be good for assassin, but you could also eliminate another target and the nukes go in the order as to how long you have had the card in your hand
deathcomesrippin wrote: Speaking of nuclear spoils, some guy nuked my last province in an assassin game to give the win away. I thought it was a gutsy play.
“Adds a twist to the game play,” applies to both. What about those who think we should not enable these new variations for CC maps? The main dangers in this life are the people who want to change everything - or nothing. (Nancy Astor) nemrehs1 wrote: …kinda fun if you get bored of regular card settings.
...insane!
show: Interrogation of Lord Voldemort
Q. Hi there lord voldemortHarry Potter ?viewtopic.php?f=213&t=50982 Lord Voldemort !
Stay Tuned for the next issue of the ConquerClub Dispatch for an interrogation of
pimpdave . Post any questions you may have for
pimpdave here -->
Interview with pimpdave Submitting Your Own Articles If you have a story you think the ConquerClub Community would find interesting, you can submit your articles to
samuelc812 or
nagerous . If the CC Dispatch Team enjoy it than you may just see your article published in the Newsletter!
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Should coincide well with voting for the conqueror cup 
