Ab Antiquo

Video 1 Uploaded - Timestamp: 10/15/24 Pre-Negotiations

Seyda's head and neck are visible as she is walking around the city.

“Hello and Happy October. Welcome to the Inaugural Wargas--War Games brought to you by the Angelarium! This is Seyda St. John Wolfe-Adaire coming to you from where I’m currently squatting out here in the city looking for the best possible angle for commentary! Last night, the draft for the games happened and we now know all our challengers and teams! In one corner, we have the team of Brom, Everly, and lillith and on the other we have Kataya, Vanitas, and Aydan! Tonight, these teams will strategize and meet for a negotiations meeting and then afterwards we will have a few weeks of bloody streets!

This morning I reached out to our Challengers and asked them what they felt their strengths and weaknesses were when it comes to war. For team Breverlith, Brom indicated that he feels his biggest strength is being a scrappy live fighter while he feels his biggest challenge is not having a sire or a partner to use as an anchor, which has the potential to increase his team’s overall budget. Lilith said her biggest challenge is lack of experience with war, so much so that she’s not quite sure what her strengths will be. She is excited to find out, though! And Everly said that her biggest strengths are theory, organization, and coordination and she is excited to see all parts of war brought all together. Everly also shared that her team has been communicating well so far, and she thinks this is a great sign of things to come!

For Vanaytaya, Kataya says that she feels her speed is going to be both an advantage and disadvantage but since this is her first time warring, she thinks her lack of experience is going to be her biggest challenge. Aydan shared that he’s getting old and slow and he thinks that may be a weakness, but looks forward to bringing his strategic skillset to help his team. At the time of this recording, Mrs. Schiaraffa had not yet responded to my text, but I’m sure he’s pretty locked in on behalf of his team.

But let me tell you all quickly how HARD it was for me to not lean into some of these responses I received and start offering advice out of the gate. I had to hand Annabelle my phone a few times because my brain was screeching so much!

Looking at the teams and their blood levels today and knowing absolutely nothing about what is up for negotiation, this is most likely going to come down to a hit count and damage done to get a winner. Both sides have a member who could end up being zeroed with some live fighting with Kataya being approximately 45 hits from a stake and Everly being approximately 56 hits, but unless someone gets ganked every day for the next 14 days, the rest **should** be safe from bleeding everything into the streets.

Next up is the negotiation meeting. Based on what I’ve been told, I definitely have some ideas on what I would come to the table with if I was part of these teams. It’ll be interesting to see what comes out of that. For now, this is Seyda St. John Wolfe-Adaire, signing off from my hiding perch in the city.”

***

Video 2 Uploaded - Timestamp: 10/16/24 Early AM

“Hey, City! This is Seyda St. John Wolfe-Adaire with some quick coverage from the War Games negotiation meeting. Right off the top, I’m gonna say that I definitely would not have taken the approach that either of these teams did coming in, but what came out of it was pretty interesting regardless. Terms were pitched by each side and were flat out denied by the opposition, there were stalemates and a huge clash in war philosophy that played out over the course of a few hours. I could probably talk for an hour and give a play by play breakdown, but instead I’ll give you the terms that were finally agreed upon and my take on each.

First the winning team will be determined by number of zeroes with a combination of damage, hits, and coin spent determining in the event of a tie or a no zero situation. This ended up coming on a concession really, as Brom and Vanitas, the chosen negotiators for their teams, were deadlocked with Brom wanting a hit count and Robert wanting blood loss. Considering that blood loss was part of the “default” rules of the Games and Brom weighing in with a 50k plus fat ass was a losing proposition, these terms are as favorable for Brom’s team as it could possibly get.

There was also a heavy debate on torpor versus nonresting. I’ll be honest, with the blood levels I see and a 3 versus 3, I don’t think this should have been as big of a negotiation issue as it ended up being. The original pitch was torpor until weapons are usable with no 2 week period since this event only lasts that long. This was declined due to non-resting. The topic came back up towards the end and a 12 hour torpor was agreed upon by both parties. Just 12 hours with no other restrictions and necro was not a topic brought into negotiations. To be clear, both sides seemed satisfied with these terms and walked away somewhat happy, but one team absolutely FLEECED the other team, got almost exactly what they wanted from the beginning with a pretty minor concession, and it took everything in my power not to react from where I was hiding poorly in the corner listening. It was WILD.

The last two terms are that succours and all other scrolls are fair game and that duels will be allowed and will be arranged by the combatants and commentators. With the negotiations about the scrolls, it was made clear that Brom’s team doesn’t have any active anchor points while Robert’s team has several. I won’t say this turns things into a 3 versus 6 or more by any means, but it’s probably 3 versus 3.5 when you have the ability to move your anchors. The duel thing, I’m not sure I understand because just because duels are allowed doesn’t mean that any of the combatants have to accept one, but if I’m understanding the WHY, I think that will be an interesting strategic strategy that I honestly don’t think will pan out the way people are thinking it will. I’m not going to say what I’m thinking in this moment, but if it comes to pass I’ll let you know.

And that’s all I have for the negotiations. Before I sign off, Vanitas did finally reply to my outreach and said that his biggest strength was not telling me his weaknesses. I see you, Sir.

This is Seyda St. John Wolfe-Adaire signing off and heading back into the streets to get you some coverage!”

Video 3 Uploaded - Timestamp 10/16/24 Mid-Day

“Hello, Everyone! This is Seyda St. John Wolfe-Adaire out here in these streets that are way too clean for my personal enjoyment to provide a quick 12 hour update on our War Games, hosted by The Angelarium! I expected some quick blood in the streets after the closing of negotiations, but it appears that is not the case. The team formerly known as Vanaytaya, who have officially dubbed themselves Team Invictus have struck first blood, landing three hits on lillith for a total of 1,150 damage done so far. There’s a strategy being deployed by lillith currently that I haven’t quite put my finger on yet but I’m sure that’ll play itself out soon and I’ll break it down as soon as it does. Meanwhile, Breverlith has yet to strike. Fun fact, though. Yesterday I checked Brom’s blood levels and they seem to have increased by a few thousand prior to today. Last minute werewolf, perhaps? It’s a little slow out here, folks. I could probably get a drink and a quickie in before my next update. Until next time!”

Video 4 Uploaded - Timestamp 10/16/24 Evening

Another video flips on and starts playing. In this video, Seyda looks like she’s behind a bush and she’s whispering loudly.

“Hi, Everyone! Seyda St. John Wolfe-Adaire checking in for a quick report. A few moments ago, lillith came sprinting past and into Brom’s Insanity. I checked and there were 2 hits, one on Aydan and the other on Vanit—-

Aydan is kicking down the door! He’s kicking dow—-he has kicked down the door and hit lillith and then Brom. Oh that was a lot of blood on the street. The fat ones always bleed so beautifully. And there is Vanitas getting ready to hi—-that is a very suspiciously shaped suitcase he has with him. The Mayor won’t like that. No she won’t. And Vanitas with a pair of hits and more fat blood on the side—and there’s Everly! We’re in for our first live fight of the games and the vials are flying! Not all of them are hitting people, but these folks mean Busi—Ahhhh!”

The screen is flooded with a bright light probably of the UV variety and then a clattering noise is made as the phone lands face down on the pavement.

Good evening, citizens of RavenBlack City. As the first War Games unfolds, I am going to attempt to bring you some perspective from those involved in the events. After last night’s negotiations, I tracked down each team’s designated negotiator for a brief conversation and have some snippets to share with you.

<soundbite>

Annabelle: How did your team choose you as the representative?

Robert: We first appointed a team captain. That's Aydan. Aydan requested I negotiate, Kataya had no qualms.


<soundbite>

Annabelle: What are you looking forward to most in the War Games?

Robert: I was most looking forward to the negotiations, actually! And I can't wait to see my team work.


<soundbite>

Annabelle: Is there anything you’d like to say to those who are interested in the war games?

Robert: Go for it, I suppose? See you next year?


<soundbite>

Annabelle: Last night was the kickoff negotiation meeting. Overall, how do you feel that went?

Brom: I’m a bit saddened we focused more on the “war” and less on the “games”. But all in all, I’m content that things progressed to an amicable state.


<soundbite>

Annabelle: How did your team go about choosing you as the representative for the negotiations?

Brom: Admittedly, I was voted in before I had the opportunity to say anything else. From their perspective, I have the most experience in these kinds of situations. Being as I’m here to enjoy the camaraderie of it all, I just accepted without a fuss and we focused on putting nails in wood.


<soundbite>

Annabelle: What are you looking forward to most in the War Games?

Brom: The opportunity to teach those that haven’t had their own experiences, namely Lillith and Kataya for this particular venture.

I’ll go on to say that I’m also self-centered enough that I’m here to prove a point to some of the smaller factions and solo’s out there in RavenBlack. That you don’t need a sire, clan, or family to make a stand. I don’t deny the importance of those to the ones that have them, but for the skeptics like myself, there’s no shame in being your own benefactor and fighting for what you believe in.

It isn’t about winning or losing. But doing what suits you, and being true to yourself.



Thank you, Robert and Brom, for speaking with me and I look forward to talking with both of you and your teammates soon!

Happy War Games!

Seyda reporting on these War Games:

Alex Ayres wrote: ↑

Wed Oct 16, 2024 10:36 pm

Seyda reporting on these War Games:

I don’t know what you mean with this, but please keep my wife’s name out of your mouth. I won’t ask twice.

Video 5 Uploaded - Timestamp 10/17/24 Midday

The next video cues up and plays. In this, it is clear that Seyda is wearing her warring leathers and has a pair of UV goggles on her head like they are sunglasses.

“Hello all! Seyda St. John Wolfe-Adaire coming to you from our much more bloody city with updates. First, my apologies on how last night’s video ended, but I was just out here in these streets, minding their business, before I was bliiiiiiiiinded by the liiiiiight...of Everly’s UV bombs. So, I did what any self respecting warrior would do and I ran home and laid with my head in my wife’s lappy until my eyeballs worked properly again. But, I’m on to you now.”

The blonde points at the goggles on her head then points at her eyes with two fingers and then she moves them towards the screen.

“Anyway, yesterday started slow but then picked up later on in the day. To start the day, The Shroud, which is what the team of Brom, Everly, and lilith have named themselves, set up a long play where Everly was shadowed, Brom was tucked into Insanity, and lilith was the only person hittable without breaking down a door or dropping a UV for most of the day. Then, The Shroud activated and lilith ran a sprint route, hitting two targets, and then ending up inside Insanity with Brom. Invictus then activated and Aydan broke down the door and hit both Brom and lilith, Vanitas then slid in, dropped his precarious suitcase, and landed a pair of hits. Soon thereafter, Everly activated to kick off the first live fight of the Games with Aydan taking on both Everly and Brom. During this, Everly slapped down a pair of UV grenades and this is where it gets interesting. Aydan caught one of the grenades in the face, bless his eyeballs, and the other seems to have tagged Brom, as at the end of the fight, he was only hit twice, but was showing 3 hits worth of damage. All in all, when taking the UVs into account, each of the three livefighters ended with two hits taken each, which tucks the victory into the solo Aydan’s hands.

Overall, by the end of the day, The Shroud suffered a combined total of 4698 blood lost and 13 hits taken while Invictus bled for 1135 blood and 6 hits against. I haven’t done an official coin usage total, but based on what I’ve been able to see so far, The Shroud spent less. Moving into today, The Shroud is gonna have to switch something up because a few more days like this and any chance of victory is going to be out of reach unless they can deliver a zero.

Now, I want to talk about the first controversy of the Games. As I’ve mentioned a few times, Vanitas showed up to the area around Insanity and dropped a suitcase that looked like it was sized to fit my lovely brother in law. Then, about 3 hours after the live fight, the suitcase vanished and it was discovered that an associate of The Shroud punted that suitcase, hopefully closer to the shoulders than the jewels but I digress. This sent the Games Committee into a conference that lasted most of the overnight and into the morning. The summary of that discussion was that there was an outside interference rule for the Games, which the *intent* was to keep the competitors as the only players in the game. Considering that a Louis Oberon and an associate are both non-competitors, the Committee had to confer to figure out what exactly to do at this point. After a healthy debate on whether or not Oberon is a person or an object, you hot bitch, you, the Committee decided that because they did not clearly specify the outside interference rule, and because these things had already been introduced as strategy on both sides, that it would be allowed with extra parameters in place around reporting to ensure that there is truly no outsider interference and cost totals would be accurate. Both teams were informed of the Committee’s ruling by yours truly and they are both back to business.

For now, this is Seyda St. John Wolfe-Adaire, signing off!”

Annabelle wrote: ↑

Thu Oct 17, 2024 10:25 am

Alex Ayres wrote: ↑

Wed Oct 16, 2024 10:36 pm

Seyda reporting on these War Games:

I don’t know what you mean with this, but please keep my wife’s name out of your mouth. I won’t ask twice.

Just a joke for anyone who watched the Wild Thornberry’s. Nigel Thornberry was a nature documenter and his wife was the camera woman and he would pop out of random places and such, kind of like Seyda popping out of bushes documenting the War Games.

The fact that you’re her wife and also documenting the War Games makes the comparison even funnier and more accurate. That makes you Marianne Thornberry née Hunter (appropriate given your threat).


Request denied. Not saying I will use her name again, but if for whatever reason I have to, I will. As I have in the past.

I’m sorry you didn’t find the joke funny, though. I thought it was hilarious.

Video 6 Uploaded - Timestamp 10/18/24 AM


“Hello, Everyone! Seyda St. John Wolfe-Adaire back again for a War Games update. A few interesting things have happened since my last update. The first is The Shroud came out with a completely different strategy, which kept them ahead in day two’s hit count for the first part of the day. After that, the suitcase gets threatened by a member of The Shroud which went nowhere good. Then, there was a moment where both teams activated almost simultaneously in the afternoon. Invictus started dropping locations and set up for a run and were talking through what they were gonna do. While this conversation is happening, The Shroud starts to move. Then, Invictus starts to move! The Shroud shows up, Vanitas is gone. There’s a tiny pause as everyone is checking locations and then Aydan slides in. Some shots are traded, some displacements happen and THEN both sides deploy similar strategies to try to draw the other out! At this point Invictus had evened the hit count and they all essentially sat like turtles for quite a bit as they were both hoping to get the other side to jump. A few hours later, Invictus goes on the move again, taking a few swipes and moving into the lead, and then about 30 minutes before the day closed, Everly moved through with her hits which ended the day even at 7 hits scored for each side, but she also started to scroll Kataya as well. My lovely wife was caught in a scroll fire there, which sidenote, she’s pretty when she flies.

Yesterday, I was asked quite a few times what I was thinking strategically rather than just the play by play so in this video I’ll oblige. Over the past two days, Invictus has given up the same amount of hits that The Shroud gave up on the first day alone. Right now, The Shroud has 7,511 blood damage against them and 20 total hits given up to Invictus’ 2,656 and 12. The Shroud is still leading my subjective coin spent calculation.

For those of you watching that don’t understand Everly using Scrolls of Turning on Kataya, and overnight Brom also scrolled Kataya, this is indicative that The Shroud KNOWS they are in trouble when it comes to blood loss and hits against, and they realize that the only way they can win is by zero. So, they have switched to deploying what we call a maximum damage strategy on Kataya. This means they are willing to forgo their cost gains to try to get the one zero for the win. But I’m going to be deadass honest. Brom, if you’re gonna take time you could have spent fighting to go to The Angelarium to threaten a suitcase, and you’re going to tell my wife in an interview that you’re here fighting for all those who have no one who loves them or whatever the hell that was, then when you deploy maximum damage, **you gotta holy water the bitch first**. You spent close to ten THOUSAND coins to take 120 blood off that lady when 1 holy water would have taken 158. Your mouth is bigger than your skill right now and you need to correct your basics and shut your face swiftly.

But, I also want to take a quick moment to talk about who I think is the shining star of The Shroud right now. When I asked lillith about her strengths and weaknesses, she didn’t know enough about war to be able to give a strength, but after two days I can see it clearly. That woman can EXECUTE. It doesn’t matter what you give her to do, she accepts it without question and she delivers quickly. If I had to go into a war and it was me and twenty lilliths, I could beat anybody. Period. Discipline to that degree is hard to find and I’m impressed by it.

As far as today is concerned, though, Invictus is already 3 hits ahead. I’m interested in seeing what The Shroud continues to do throughout today. Until the next update, I’m Seyda St. John Wolfe-Adaire signing out.”