Bad Company General Report Two Point Six

BAD COMPANY GENERAL REPORT

STATUS

Alright lads (and ladies)! I trust all is going well? Enough has happened recently to warrant another General Report. In fact that's probably the understatement of the century given what's been going on. But to begin with we should look at our status. There are a couple of points that need investigating, but we'll start with the new BCSn (enclosed). I would appreciate it if you would complete and return this Report! Now would be a good time to assess how well Brothers are doing, and to do so I need those BCSns! I need to know who's in a position to think about becoming a Priest, who will have Teleport soon, how powerful our Disciples are, etc. Don't forget, eh?

INACTIVITY

I've got a bone to pick with you lot! How come 8 inactive Brothers were available in the last BCGn, yet not one of them was taken? Eh? Do I detect a lack of interest in maintaining our numbers? Do I smell apathy?! Dare I suggest that updates of locations, maps and information are becoming increasingly sparse? It can't be true, can it? And where are these legions of Prospects we were expecting? The spectre once again rears it's ugly maw...dwindle, dwindle!

Well, we have two avenues here. One is I start hassling Brothers to do more, and the other is to take on enough additional Brothers in order to ensure success in the future. Hardly difficult given the number of spare Brothers we have. Expensive, but not difficult. I have chosen the latter option which means I now run the following Brothers;

Titus Groan #1867 (271), Septus Groan #7319 (225), Lupus Groan #8721 (94), Rictus Groan #4816 (92), Magnus Groan #5200 (90), Argus Groan #9356 (71) and Venus Groan #9891 (67). All of these Brothers have a number of Weeks between 220 and 270, though some of them are in a bit of a state. One in particular (Argus) has a Yell of 67, except he's Yelled Out. He's still an Acolyte, and he hasn't even got a Spyglass! In fact Magnus hasn't got a Spyglass either come to think of it...

But together they will be able to achieve exceptional things such as mapping vast areas quickly, Sanctifying more Temples for Teleporters, locating and building prime sites on The Island (like Fort I), fighting as a deadly unit, clearing Crypts nowhere near Temples (in just a couple of Turns), and serve as a veritable Talisman/White Lotus Elixir Factory in peace/war. Wondering whether or not we have enough Brothers to get things done will become a thing of the past.

They'll take between 15 and 30 Turns to get the Teleport Spell, but given they have such numbers of Make-Up Turns, in real-time this equates to between 10 and 20 Turns. 20 Turns after Teleport will see them as powerful as Titus is now, in all but Toughness and Badness. So we are talking about a force of 7 powerful Brothers with Teleport in under a year, all controlled by me. This adds a whole new dimension to Bad Company, as it means we can't fail in a Mission. Even if we tried! No other Brother bar myself is actually necessary in order to ensure success.

THE FUTURE

This changes everything. Given that Bad Company will soon have an incredibly efficient and effective kernel, we no longer need Prospects. In fact Monsters this young will be a liability as they could easily be killed by an enemy, and moreover are a security risk. I trust every (active) Brother in Bad Company, but with every Prospect we accept an additional risk. Besides, I've spent almost 7 years recruiting for Bad Company, and I'm sick of it! I'll honour any outstanding Initiations, but after that...

Naturally, if you want to Initiate another Monster, say a friend, then I'm obviously more than happy to see this happen. But a friend is a friend, and that's that. The only reason they would have an unconditional Initiation is because you say so. I'm also not saying we wouldn't Initiate other interested Prospects, who were previously unconnected with Brothers, but for these Monsters the entry requirements would be both severe and thorough. No slackers!

The way we will function as a group will remain more or less the same. No return to the old martial system as the way I see it things are working well now. But given the expense, there is going to have to be a modification in the way we distribute Reports...

REPORTS

The new Report List (BCRLn - enclosed) gives brief details of all Reports so you know where to get the information you need. They are already comprehensive, but if you can add to or update them then please do, and if you have ideas for new Reports don't hesitate to let me know.

As usual, the BCGns will be made available to all Brothers I know are active, regardless of their attitudes or efforts on behalf of the group. But if you intend going your own way, you will have to make sure I know you are active! Other Reports will only be distributed to Brothers who are operating within the group. By this I don't mean you will be shut out of the group if you don't pull your weight. A good example of this is Baddu-Bac, who does his own thing yet makes every effort to help the group when he can. And of course there are many other Brothers, some of whom don't appear to have any interests outside the group!

Things can only ever get better for these Brothers, as the quality of Reports is always increasing. As is our combined might. What I'm talking about are Brothers (who I won't name until they are considered completely inactive), who only pop up once every 6 months (if that) expecting a wad of Reports, and can't even be bothered to reply to a letter, let alone return a map! It's not that they aren't helping me - many of the things Brothers do don't help me. But they aren't helping any of us! Only themselves. Do you know where this information winds up? Because I sure as hell don't!

Bad Company exists for no single Brother, and all Brothers (including myself) are dispensable. This group exists to enable those Fuvites that would work together to be a part of a solid, reliable, powerful, and above all, advantageous organisation that elevates its members to a status they could not possibly hope to achieve alone. This group exists for all of us - we exist to serve every Brother that has an interest in Bad Company.

Thus I expect Bad Company to become smaller (yet stronger) over time, and would imagine that we will stabilise around a core of some 20 Teleporting Brothers in a year or so, with very few (if any) others involved in the operation of the group. And that, as far as I'm concerned, is that!

ZARGNOTH

Ok, things are looking pretty quiet in Zargnoth. We have found all 3 Sites and have investigated Site Y with only Site Z remaining. So far we've failed to locate any Darksiders. When Svensvenazuk arrives at Site Z we'll know more, but as things stand I don't think The Dark are anywhere near obtaining a Darksider Temple in Zargnoth. We'll have to wait and see what happens, but I suspect we will be able to defend Zargnoth with only a token presence. If The Dark had already Sanctified, I think we would know by now, eh? And if they haven't then they are in big, big trouble.

ShadowCult and The MLF look like they are going to abide by the rules on Temple X, but again, it is difficult to be sure. Neither The MLF or ShadowCult want a war with Bad Company, so they are unlikely to break these rules...The Light on the other hand are looking quite strong, and I suspect we'll have a Lightsider Temple in Zargnoth in the near future. It will make the task of defending the last Site against The Dark an easy one, especially as Lightsiders will be involved (to get the kills for Priest). The Zargnoth situation should settle down with us holding the balance of power.

In order to ensure The MLF (and hence ShadowCult) know we mean business, I (Titus) whacked an MLF Fort near The Blushing Lady. No MLF home, but a Darksider holding SSS Totems was Camped outside the Fort. Since fresh Tracks led off Northwest, I can only presume I intruded on a battle in progress between an MLF member (Vlad Zin or Horus), and Darth Vader. Naturally, Darth took it right in the chops and dropped on the spot - but Vlad Zin (?) got away...

WHAT NEXT?

This depends entirely on you and your position. If you haven't already obtained the Teleport Spell then you should be doing this as fast as you can. It is the single most important thing you can do to advance yourself, and the younger you are when you do this, the better you will fare. As soon as you have Teleport it is wise to immediately visit all the Temples you can, up to the maximum of 20. It doesn't take long, and Teleport is useless without a big bunch of SPs.

Some Brothers are advanced enough to seriously consider Priesthood. For this reason a group of tough Brothers will start whacking Tombs and Great Caves with a vengeance, probably near Fort I, in order to obtain the Talismans they need to make Priest. I imagine this will occupy the time of many of the older Brothers, but don't forget that if this isn't your bag then there are new structures to explore...and of course, there may be Brothers who will continue to hunt Darksiders or Fuvites at Forts, Temples, and other choice spots.

NEW STUFF

I'm not hearing much about anything new, so I don't know much - but here's what I've heard;

It would appear that one existing Dark Place has been programmed, with another 2 coming soon. Apparently you need an Item to get in this place, but that's all I know! It is possible that a Silver Temple Sword is required, but this is a long shot. Another 60 Items and a stack of Creatures have also been introduced, but I don't know much about this at all apart from that a new Item was discovered in an old structure, implying they aren't only available at the new structures.

I think using a Mushroom or Toadstool on a King Ock Mushroom Grove might work, but I haven't got a clue what this does. I know that Sunken Graveyards have been updated. And there is this remark by KJC about Bathing - it must be a reference to a Pond, and based on what I've heard so far, you're going to need an Item to get inside...

Other news is that Lvl 7/8 Weapons are in the pipeline, as are the means to use them. The programmers are now deciding whether or not to fix Armour (and Weapons?) so they work properly! They are also thinking about Priesthood, Demigods and Black Voodoo (Towers). I haven't got access to the net myself, so you Brothers should be looking at this for me, and telling me what you hear! You might find something vital.

OTHER STUFF

I'm going to be moving in the near future, so don't worry if you can't get hold of me for a while. If you absolutely have to talk to an experienced Brother, then Sverilix should be available, as will Tarrasque (when he returns from Peru). In the unlikely event that neither of these Brothers are available then The Count or Baddu-Bac will probably be able to sort out any problems you may have - in order that you know how to get hold of everyone, there's a BCBn enclosed.

Chances are that everything will run smoothly and I'll be available, but you never know. If you are looking to qualify for Priesthood then get in touch with me immediately to ensure you get your name on the Talisman List as soon as possible. If you don't get an immediate response then write to Sverilix and get him to hold your name (and the date), and I'll get your details off him when I've got another address sorted out.

I'll be ready to start work on obtaining these Talismans in mid to late December, at Fort I. It will not take me long (just a few Turns) to Bestow my remaining Talismans, so I'll be able to help the next Brother on the list almost straight away. To date, Sverilix is the only other Brother on the list! If you are involved in this then keep plugging away and drop anything you find in Fort I. This now includes 'Sider Swords and Statues! If for any reason Titus isn't at Fort I, then the next Brother on the list should dunk these in a Temple - it'll all work out the same in the long run.

I'd better make what is going to happen absolutely clear, as you might not appreciate the scale on which I intend to do this. I can't speak for Sverilix, but as far as I'm concerned I'm going to set up a Talisman Factory at Fort I. This will primarily exist to enable Brothers to get to Priest, but this is by no means the only reason. Certain Items are hard to find - Silver-Plated Armour, Dragonbone Swords, Great Fuvite Swords, Dragonhide Shields, Heavy Iron Shields, or perhaps even better! If you see any of these types of Item in Fort I, UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES TOUCH THEM!

The reason why they are there is because some Brothers (such as myself) can't find these Items, as we already have them. The only way for me to get these Items again is drop the ones I have in the Fort, and try to find more. For example, if you see me in the Fort I'll be fighting with Gator Armour and a Trident. There will most likely be a load of very tasty gear lying around, and to touch it is a very definite no-no. The same applies to any Talisman left in Fort I when this is going on, and even afterwards (unless you are top of the list for Priesthood). Using this method we can tell a Brother he's top of the Talisman List and he can start work on his Talismans, without having to issue a BCGn to let all Brothers know exactly who is always top of the list, although there will obviously be periodic updates.

Don't touch 'it' under any circumstances, unless YOU OWN IT. If you placed it there yourself then you own it. And if you were given it by a Brother, then you own it. You can do what you like with anything you own, or anything else not mentioned above. But let's not be silly! An Oil Lantern is not mentioned above, but if you removed it you'd have a very angry Brother on your case. If in doubt, ask me or Sverilix, or another Brother who you can be sure knows the score.

Of course, when these things start to pile up, they will be distributed to other Brothers. That's the whole point. But I have to be able to trust you not to wog stuff from Fort I, in order to help Brothers get advanced gear. I'm not suggesting any Brother would knowingly do this, which is precisely why I'm letting you know. If we can create an atmosphere of trust and security at Fort I, then many senior Brothers will have no objection to dropping their stuff in order to help young or badly equipped Brothers get the really good gear. And isn't that what it's all about?

I keep mentioning Sverilix like he's the only senior Brother, which patently isn't the case. Tarrasque, Baddu-Bac, The Count, Bosworth, etc, may be at the Fort working on their Talismans. Unfortunately it will very difficult to run a scheme where we keep track of what happened to every single Talisman. There will be far too many to keep track of, which will mean that if we did this we might well wind up with a situation where some Talismans are hanging around, and every Brother thinks they belong to some other Brother.

So if you drop a Talisman in Fort I while we're doing this, (bar Great Fuvite Swords which we need to make Priest - sod Shadow Swords, they are Talismans), you effectively give it to the next Brother on the Talisman List. Of course this doesn't apply to the good gear we are trying to duplicate - every Brother is going to know exactly what he's stashed in the Fort regarding these. But since we're going to accumulate large numbers of these Items, we're going to need a list of exactly who owns what, and any Brother adding (or removing) a special Item (not a Talisman) to (or from) the stash (whatever the reason) must tell me he's done it.

One more point - there is one circumstance under which you can help yourself, and that is if you genuinely feel we are in danger of losing the Fort, ie., if we are under attack and enough Brothers have died to jeopardise the security of the stash. In which case you should make it your responsibility to grab as much as you can and get out of there. These rules will only apply to Fort I, unless a potential Priest decides to use another Fort for the same purpose (in which case we'll deal with that when the time comes). Apologies for being rude - but this is the only way we're going to get a system going where we can outfit the entire group. If you want a particular Item, whatever it is, place your order now!

Swabber & Swoopstake,

Titus Groan

BAD COMPANY