From the Mouth of Sauron Date: 10-01-95 Issue: E-37 Note: all authors retain exclusive rights to their material. Reprinting is allowed for non-commercial game use only. The Mouth is edited by Brian Mason and Tom Walton. All correspondence can be sent to them at: Brian Mason - mason@chara.gsu.edu Tom Walton - kazandar@ix.netcom.com, Back issues of "From the Mouth of Sauron" and the general info files are available at chara.gsu.edu via anonymous ftp. First Word ========== Another long break between one Mouth and the next. Actually, I had this puppy ready to go on time, believe it or not. All that was needed was an editorial piece from yours truly and from Brian, and it was done. Duly inspired by my unusual promptness, I whipped off a note to Brian and watched with little concern as Netcom promptly bombed on connection to the mail server. Saying to myself "ah, well, I'll just send it again tomorr ow" I turned to other endeavors, sure in the knowledge that I, of all people, Would Not Forget. That thought, for those who don't know me, is just a wee bit on the sarcastic side. Life got very, very strange in the days that followed - more strange than it's been in years. I mean, you want weird, twilight-zone kinda stuff, and I was your man. I still am. Needless to say, I Forgot All About The N ote That Bombed. Well, not quite; I remembered writing and sending the note, but not the part about it dying en route to the server. So inbetween the bizarre moments that seemed to follow one after another, I waited on a response from Brian that wasn't coming. Now Brian's a busy guy, a well-known - indeed, should I say famous? - astronomer, and full- time family man to boot. I figured he was occupied with other things, and would eventually get back to me. It wasn't until October 2nd, when I was beginning to wonder just how late this issue was gonna be, that I remembered the part about the note dying. Oops. Hence This Month's Excuse for Why The Mouth Was Late. All of these excuses, in case you haven't noticed, hinge upon one crucial little detail: the high level of flakiness exhibited by one of the co-editors. And I'm not talking about Brian. Ah, well, at least it's here *now*. Hoping your life doesn't get anywhere near as strange as mine, Tom Dragons ======= Tom's note: I got this from one of my teammates in a game and thought a few of you might be interested in it. For Mike and anyone else who is interested, here is a brief recap of the Dragon battles I was able to find from Game #4. My Challenger: Mara Mage Rank 210 Artifacts Held: #15(Tinculin), #21(Staff of EarthMastery), #36(Suimbalmynas), #42(Collar of Might), #170(Anguirel) Battles Fought: - Uruial: Issued a Challange (No Enc), killed Dragon without suffering any wounds - Leucaruth: Replied Demand to Encounter - Fought battle recovering 17,000 gold Got Curses(70), and lost only 5 health - I also fought and killed Scatha and I believe Daelomin but I can't dig them up. I will look around a bit more. - Battle with Scatha: 28,000 gold, No wounds, Conjure Food(95) Demanded during Encounter - Battle with Aivnec: reacted to encounter with Attack, 8,000 gold, received Conjure Mounts (95) - Encounter with Khuzadrepa: Acted Haughty, got knocked down to 1 health. No real battle was fought so I think this may be a regular end to the encounter regardless of Challenge rank. All of these encounter except for the last one took place at Zaruk Dum (2004). I think this pop center is one of the main Dragon tourist traps. And since I didn't mention it before. My mage had a Challenge Rank of (255). I hope this helps, Ron Cudsworth Encounters ========== Ents ---- Here is a note about Ents. I attempted to destroy Dol Goldur (2950) - Keep/major Town with a 67 loyalty. I had two armies. #1. 1152 HI, 60 Archers, 200 MA. Minimal training and poorly equipped. Command:42 Morale:50 #2. 931 HI, 497 AR, 400 MA same stuff. Command:62 Morale:96 *Ents* & mage casting resistances. +750 artifact Result: Both armies wiped out. No effect on Pop Center. It would appear that I had enough attack strength to take out the pop center but not enough defense strength. I had hoped that the ENTS would have reduced the keep to a citadel - at least- which would have given me victo ry (I think). Ents then do not appear to reduce fortifications prior to combat as was thought a possibility. Thanks for including me in the mouth. Mike Hunnersen. P.S> I have never played 1650 - I am in 2 games of 2950. I like the pace of 2950 and have no intention of playing 1650 based on what I have been told about it. I do not like the over use/importance of Dragons however an d I agree that 2950 could have been much more improved as a second offering from GSI (based on what I have been advised of). Tom's note: I had this confirmed some months ago (Ents are a straight combat strength add, like Eagles or Dragons) but just realized that this was never included in the Mouth. Ents have a strength of somewhere between 25 ,000 - 30,000 points, if I remember correctly. Vampires -------- A response to the Thuringwathel encounter (i.e. vampire saying "little do I like finding others so near where my errands take me..." As a DS and FP I have fled this successfully. As a DS I have responded with ALLEGIANCE and gotten an amusing but safe response. (Don't have it handy but the ALLEGIANCE for her is quite different than for dragons. I blu stered about being one of the DS greatest servants, and she replies that if I'm so great I've surely heard of her; and that we'll meet again -- though we never do.) Jeremy Richman News from the Net ------------------------------------------------------------------- Post #1 ------------------------------------------------------------------- From: dcd@nasa.kodak.com (Dennis DeYoung) Subject: ME-PBM Strange Riddle Date: 25 Jul 1995 02:39:37 GMT >The riddle merely states the following letters (some have accents >on >them, but they are NOT listed here)... > > d r o u k n n a l t a o h n i Anyone ever seen this one? It's from a 2950 game if it matters. Please E-mail direct and post the solution if you have a clue. - Dennis ------------------------------------------------------------------ response from Kevin McGee (kdmcgee@aol.com) ------------------------------------------------------------------- Dennis, I have heard of other players getting that riddle, but I have yet to hear of a solution. - Kevin ------------------------------------------------------------------- Post #2 ------------------------------------------------------------------ From: galileob@crl.com (Noel Moss) Subject: Re: MEPM 2950 riddle help Date: 25 Jul 1995 22:44:02 -0700 Dennis DeYoung (dcd@nasa.kodak.com) wrote: : >>>Of them they were one of the three : >>> Larger and heavier than either of the other two : >>> A great hairy move was made in the third but many did not agree : >>> And back some went and were gladdened by the dew. : >My riddle list suggests the Stoors. : >the third refers to the Third Age. : Stoors is correct. Yeppers, The Stoors moved back across the Misty Mountains unto the Gladden Fields, thus the term 'gladdened by the dew'... ------------------------------------------------------------------- Post #3 ------------------------------------------------------------------- From: (100550.2441@compuserve.com) Subject: MEPBM 2950 Riddle Help Date: 29 Jul 1995 10:06:59 GMT I have this riddle in a 2950 game Developed to be a bearer of sound. It yet won acceptance for centuries around. >From Elf to Man and even to Dwarven kind. It kept all together and in knowledge did bind. Does anyone have any ideas? Thanks Mike Sankey ------------------------------------------------------------------- response from dcd@nasa.kodak.com (Dennis DeYoung) ------------------------------------------------------------------- This from my brother Dan, the ME Guru: A couple of possibilities come to mind: Might be AINULINDALE, the Music of the Ainur (gods) which contains the story of creation and acts as a blueprint or kind of DNA code of Iluvatar's plan for the world. More likely, it could be a reference to the Common Speech which all three races used. It's also called WESTRON, which is the answer I'd try. - Dan ------------------------------------------------------------------- Post #4 ------------------------------------------------------------------- From: 4gja@qlink.queensu.ca (Allbutt Geoffrey J) Subject: MEPBM question?! Date: 11 Aug 1995 14:30:58 GMT Just a curious question about mages in battle. If the mage has a combat artifact, and casts a battle spell, does only the spell take affect? I ask this because I just did this, and and battle description only mentioned my hero casting a spell. No mention of using the artifact in battle. Did I waste my spell order (the artifact would have done more damage, but I was trying to maximize my attacking strength)? ------------------------------------------------------------------- response from Kevin McGee (kdmcgee@aol.com) ------------------------------------------------------------------- No, both the artifact and the spell affect the battle. The narrative only talks about the spell. ------------------------------------------------------------------- Post #5 ------------------------------------------------------------------- From: swater@esd.sgi.com (Adam Waters) Subject: GSI idiots Date: 22 Aug 1995 21:27:40 GMT Hi. I'v been playing with GSI as a customer off and on for about 10 years now and I've always found myself in the same position: I love the games, but hate the way the company is run. Here's my recent fiasco with those bozos. It's 7 days after my turn has run and still I haven't received it in the mail and I'm going out of town the next day. A typical situation I'm sure many of you have found yourself in. The turn is very late, and I need it now. So I call up GSI and tell them I'd like the turn e-mailed out to my friends address so I can put it through Acrobat, find out what happened, and return it. They ask me why I don't have it emailed out to my address. I tell them its because I have a unix box for which there is no Acrobat and I can't read it. (I also have to explain to them that I have an ISDN line to my service provider which is why I can't just dial in when I'm on vacation and get my turn... something they've NEVER even heard of...) Anyway, on our conversation goes. They tell me they can't email it out to me without first trying a test message, and that they can't email it out to my friend because he's in the game and "no one player can run two positions." I tell them that this is a grudge game where all 10 of us post our turn results every turn, and that my friend lives across town and that I'm going over to his house to get my turn so we can look at it together strategically (another thing they've aparently NEVER even heard of either...) No they say. Our tight and fair security policy forbids such hokey-pokey.... bla bla bla, crap, crap,crap. I don't even bother to try to explain to them how I could easilly run 10 accounts on my machine and play a whole team, or whip up an alias that forwards the e-mail to my friend, or even just make shit up and play multiple positions through snail mail for christs sake! What's the bother? They're idiots. They're inflexible. They're not going to change. And all I want is my damned turnsheet asap before I have to go out of town. So, to get the sheet, I have them fax it to the same friend's work number! GSI charges me five bucks to do this. I don't tell them it's my friends number for fear they'll throw a fit over the fact... which causes some trouble with the pick-up on his end also, but gets us the turn. Of course, GSI's low res fax is nearly impossible to read, but atleast we've got something. Oh, and the last thing to top it all off, was that while on the phone with them, when I was starting to get pissed off at how stupid they are, I was asked "not to get hysterical." SHIT!!! This is ANGER you jack-asses, not hysteria. So, to sum it up, it cost me about 13 bucks, one insult, and a heap of aggravation to run this turn. Plus, in the end I was forced to circumvent their moronic security policy and have my turn sent to another player, via an inferior route, which cost me more money. But I suppose when it comes down to it, the real idiot is me for patronizing such a terrible company with my business. I love playing MEPBM. It is the best pbm I've ever seen and I don't want to quit. But then, I guess the junkie always hates his dealer.... ------------------------------------------------------------------- Post #6 ------------------------------------------------------------------- From: dave@casbah.acns.nwu.edu (Dave Wenger) Subject: MEPBM: Scouting army oddness Date: 29 Aug 1995 15:09:43 GMT An enemy army was in one hex, and I ran into it with my army after each of us moved one hex. The two agents I told to (each) ScoArmy followed it to a totally different hex, in a different direction - the agents ended up three hexes S by SW, when the army they were trying to follow ended up one hex SE of where it started! How is this possible? ------------------------------------------------------------------- Post #7 ------------------------------------------------------------------- From: mikep@biosci.uq.oz.au (Mike Poidinger) Subject: MEPBM - Galadriel? Date: Mon, 04 Sep 1995 22:33:01 GMT Helloooooo Can anyone tell me if it is possible to get Galadriel's artefacts off her? IS it worth doing locate artefact true etc on them or are they completely unattainable? ------------------------------------------------------------------- response from Kevin McGee (kdmcgee@aol.com) ------------------------------------------------------------------- Well, you could try kidnapping her, or stealing them. If you're good enough. ;) ------------------------------------------------------------------- response from v011l6fc@ubvms.cc.buffalo.edu (DAVE ROSSELL) ------------------------------------------------------------------- Sure, it's worth doing and not too tough, either. Just steal 'em like you'd steal an artifact from any character or kidnap/assassinate or challenge Galadriel. Anyone know if Curses work on NPCs like Galadriel or Dragons? It'd be a great way for Freeps to rid the game of those troublesome worms. ------------------------------------------------------------------- response from kgiven@aol.com (KGiven) ------------------------------------------------------------------ This was discussed on CI$ about a year ago and the consensus opinion was no. Much of the question centered on whether they were restricted to 100 Health. There were reports of successful assassinations, though. Tom's note: my understanding is that the curses spell will be cast, but the dragon itself will be unaffected. This is also true of other NPCs, such as Galadriel, the Wizards, Tom Bombadil, and so forth. ------------------------------------------------------------------- response from dcd@nasa.kodak.com (Dennis DeYoung) ------------------------------------------------------------------- I've been told it does. We'll find out soon... ;) ------------------------------------------------------------------- response from Patrick F. McGehearty (patrick@convex.COM) ------------------------------------------------------------------- On a related note, what sort of encounter possibilities are there with Galadriel for Freeps? Do mages get special benefits? Any others? ------------------------------------------------------------------- response from v313mdm8@ubvms.cc.buffalo.edu (ROCHELLE NEWMAN) ------------------------------------------------------------------- It would appear to be highly variable, depending on the luck of the die.... ------------------------------------------------------------------- Post #8 ------------------------------------------------------------------- From: tps@shadowrun (Tim Schroeder) Subject: ME: surviving Itangast Date: 8 Sep 1995 00:03:39 GMT Anyone know how my lower-mid-level Dwarven commander/emissary/mage can survive his encounter with the dragon Itangast? And to think I purposely moved to the hills rather than the mountains, just to lower the chances of s omething annoying happening ... :-) Also, is there a compendium of dragon/encounter reponses out on an FTP site somewhere? ------------------------------------------------------------------- response from Patrick F. McGehearty (patrick@convex.COM) ------------------------------------------------------------------- There are WEB sites with lots of game info out there somewhere. I don't have the address handy right now. Maybe someone will post it for us. ------------------------------------------------------------------- response from freeman@hp-92.cae.wisc.edu (Samuel Freeman) ------------------------------------------------------------------- Phredd Grove's WWW page on MEPBM: http://charlotte.acns.nwu.edu/phredd/MEPBM.html Brian Mason's ftp site: chara.gsu.edu/mouth/ Hope that helps. ------------------------------------------------------------------- response from tripp@merlin.etsu.edu (Philip R Tripp) ------------------------------------------------------------------- http://charlotte.acns.nwu.edu/phredd/MEPBM.html ------------------------------------------------------------------- Post #9 ------------------------------------------------------------------- From: imivars@yeti.dit.upm.es (Ignacio Mas Ivars) Subject: Mepbm Date: Mon, 11 Sep 1995 20:39:55 GMT+1 Could anyone of those old and experimented players of Middle Earth tell me if the army icon is seen in all the maps when moving an army evasively?. I'm playing in game 64 with Allsorts (U.K.) and we have a great disscusio n with this subject amongst all the Dark Servants Team... Thanks for your time anyway... ------------------------------------------------------------------- response from polle@murazor.ping.dk (Paul Erik Lundstroem) ------------------------------------------------------------------- I'm not an old experienced :) player, but I'll try and answer anyway: Yes, army Icons always show up on maps! And, I think, on the 7 hex Recon Reports as well. It's more difficult to scout, and might not show up on the popcenter reports. Btw I'm Arthedain in Game 64 - good luck :) And my best to Witch-king Carlos! ------------------------------------------------------------------- Post #10 ------------------------------------------------------------------- From: ii030@rossegat.uji.es (BLASCO FELIP) Subject: ME PBM Help! Date: 12 Sep 1995 11:53:38 GMT Hi, I would apreciate any help in a ME pbm game I just started with some friends. Here, in Spain, is the firts one, so we don't have any XP. I just need some advises, or good moves, because I am scared. I play the Lord of the Dragon, 2nd Nazgul, and I only see enemies everywhere, the gold reserves are running out, I cant rise the taxes, the Dwarf is over one of my towns already,... I am just talking about my 2nd turn!!! I can image this in some more turns!!! I only want to survive, and if is possible to burn Lorien!! We are playing in the circa 1650. Thank you, Camaleon ------------------------------------------------------------------- Post #11 ------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Tom Fyfe & Colin Forbes (tomas@suilven.demon.co.uk) Subject: Middle Earth Web Site Date: Tue, 12 Sep 1995 22:40:31 GMT Players of Middle Earth PBM may like to know that Allsorts PBM Games now have their own Web site. This covers all their games, including both versions of ME. There are a variety of topics covered of interest to MEPBM play ers, as well as links to other sites of interest. The site is to be found via PBMWeb http://www.ftech.net/~pbmweb/ or direct at http://www.ftech.net/~pbmweb/allsorts/ ------------------------------------------------------------------- response from tandmb@sierra.net (Tony & Marcia Baldacci) ------------------------------------------------------------------- Boy, have you got a tough row to hoe (so to speak...) Get in touch NOW with the other Dark Servant players. Hit the Woodmen - HARD. Your best shot is to go after the weakest of your neighbors. Anyone else? ------------------------------------------------------------------- response from dchas1@giaec.cc.monash.edu.au (Dave Hastings) ------------------------------------------------------------------- I agree totally with Tony, contact your allies now and see if anyone is willing to help out. The Dog Lords cavelry army would be ideal, if you needed someone up your way rather quickly. Basically as the Dragon Lord you may not be in the game long, if the FP are played competantly. So to handle this, if you are going to go down, go down in style. As Tony said go for the Woodsmen, they are the weakest of your opposition. Don't just attack their population centers NUKE them, that's right burn them to the ground. Why well most likely you won't beable to hold them so, if you burn them to the ground no one can take them ba ck. Your other option, which is what I'd be doing at the same time is to attack your FP neighbours with characters, you can have a huge challenge rank with your Nazgul so use it, walk up and personal challenge the FP characte rs. if it's the start of the game no one should have a challenge rank as high (excepting Bain, Elrond and maybe Tarandor). Above all have fun. You could also ftp the mouth of sauron information and have a read of that. It's available at chara.gsu.edu Dave ------------------------------------------------------------------ Post #12 ------------------------------------------------------------------- From: cabai@aol.com (Cabai) Subject: MEPBM Encounter Date: 18 Sep 1995 22:37:50 -0400 If any one can help me with a werewolf, encounter. I'm in a 2950 campaign game. ------------------------------------------------------------------- response from Patrick F. McGehearty (patrick@convex.COM) ------------------------------------------------------------------- The notes I've got indicate that the only real choices are to flee or fight. If you do anything but "FLEE" (or ignore the encounter), you will fight. If you win, you might gain gold and possibly a lost list spell. The c hallenge rank of the werewolf is thought to be around 60-70 unless it is Caran-carach, in which case it is around 90. You don't specify what the abilities the character having the encounter might have. Oops, there is one exception to the fight/flee pattern. Dark Servants can escape by stating their allegiance. - Patrick McGehearty patrick@convex.com ------------------------------------------------------------------- response from v011l6fc@ubvms.cc.buffalo.edu (DAVE ROSSELL) ------------------------------------------------------------------- *Never* count on GSI being true to life. :) Actually, the only nation advantages I've heard for me-pbm are those of the dragon lord having only non-fatal dragon encounters. I don't know if this is true or not, although I suspect not. Guess we'll find out when we start recruiting all those dragons in game 210, eh Patrick? ------------------------------------------------------------------- response from Patrick F. McGehearty (patrick@convex.COM) ------------------------------------------------------------------ We'll be doing our best to keep you from being able to afford to hire armies for those Dragons to join. :-) Seriously, what to people think about Dragons? How big of an advantage can they be for the Dark Side if a serious effort is made to recruit them? Anyone care to relate some "war stories"? ------------------------------------------------------------------- response from dchas1@giaec.cc.monash.edu.au (Dave Hastings) ------------------------------------------------------------------- In Australia we had a huge debate between the FP and the DS of game 1. This was all due to the fact that Northern and Southern Gondor had just come stomping into Mordor with 9,000 troops. Now the people we had defending Mordor were lucky if they had 1/3 of that amount of troops, so of course the Gondors were having a great time in Mordor. The Dog Lord and the Blind Sorcerer who had been playing around up north turned around to help out in Mordor. On the way back to Mordor the Dog Lord was lucky enough to have his emmissaries run into not one but two dragons. Even better they joined the same army. This way when the Dog Lord got to Mordor he faced off 7000 troops at the IK capital, with 3000 troops and 2 Dragons, and 2000 IK heavy infantry. The FP troops were totally anialated, thus saving our hides and causing Nor then and Southern Gondor great distress. Out of our email debate that occured following this, the general concensus was that, dragons were an unfair advantage to the DS, but with out dragons, the DS really can't face up to the FP. This is due to the FP having s uch a Huge economic advantage over the DS. Maybe if dragons didn't give out such a huge damage, things might be a bit fairer. Well that's my view from game 1 in Australia. (Oh yeah I was playing a DS in that game) Dave The New AllSorts WWW Site ========================= AllSorts, the company that took over ME-PBM in the UK, now has a WWW site for your enjoyment. The URL is: http://www.ftech.net/~pbmweb/allsorts/games.htm The forum URL is: http://www.ftech.net/~pbmweb/allsorts/forum/ A Letter From I.C.E. ==================== Tom's note: This letter has been reprinted in whole as received from Paul Lundstroem. Hi Tom and Brian!! I had an idea about writing some 'articles' to the Mouth about the various Characters found in both MePBM 1650 and 2950. I thought that maybe some of your readers would like more info on the Characters they are ordering a bout and occasionally killing off :) As you probably know by far the most of those characters are ICE creations, especially in the 1650 scenario. I was a bit worried about ICE's reaction to me writing anything about 'thei r' characters, so I asked them about it (having followed a thread in a Roleplaying Newsgroup about AD+D and TSR's way to handle the Internet - ghastly)!! This is what I got back!! I thought it might be useful for you, Tom (with the game you're writing). Also I wanted to ask you if you'd think it was something to go ahead and write something about the different characters - from ICE's Middle-earth??? For the Mouth, that is! As far as I can read from the mail from ICE, the y're not totally against it - but my Legal American is a lot worse than my written English :) If nothing else, this gives you the e-mail adress of ICE!! Let me know what you think, friends! Paul, Denmark ************************* Copy of e-mail from ICE follows: ************************* To: Paul Erik Lundstroem, The correct email address to contact ICE is: vaice@aol.com I will have to investigate your request about using quotes from ICE products on the internet. Particularly with our Middle-earth line, we need to be careful to protect our intellectual property rights. Here is how our p resident responded to another user on this topic: I appreciate your interest in our firm and our works. We hope you understand, however, that any request regarding the authorization to use our intellectual property in the context of shareware publications or commercial online offerings creates certain peculiar and imposing problems for our firm. ICE wants to promote its name and its products and we want to support interested consumers and creative talent; however, we are forced by law to carefully police the use of our copyrights and trademarks. With regard to publications based on the works of J.R.R. Tolkien, we face additional constraints. The Estate of J.R.R. Tolkien is extremely sensitive to the i dea of diluting or mixing Middle-earth-related material with other materials, particularly in the context of a non-Tolkien fantasy setting. They also specifically prohibit us from granting permission to third parties to republish Middle-earth-related material outside of a marketing or review context. Therefore, we are sorry to say that we cannot grant you permission to use our work in your MUSH. Generally, ICE is willing to sanction your firm's use of our other game systems in the limited context of non-commercial, non-profit shareware publications targeted at and published for a controlled consumer group, provid ed: (1) that you first submit for specific, written approval a clear copy or summary of the proposed publication to ICE via "vaice@aol.com" on internet email. (2) that you publish the appropriate rights statement(s) pertaining to our trademarks and copyrights relating to the game(s) from which you are deriving material; (3) that you publish the appropriate credits statement(s) pertaining to the original designer(s) of said game(s); (4) that you make clear that the material is "published with the permission of Iron Crown Enterprises, Inc., Charlottesville, Virginia USA, which reserves all rights in its intellectual properties"; (5) that you make clear that the material is "published for non-commercial use" and that the material "should not be republished for commercial use;" (6) that you make clear that the material is "published on a non-profit basis" and that the material "should not be republished for profit;" and (7) that you make clear that "any questions pertaining to the use of the material by any party, especially third parties retransmitting the material, should be directed in writing to ICE, P.O. Box 1605, Charlottesville, V irginia USA 22902-1605. Again, we have no problem with you and your associates making limited, non-commercial use of some of our intellectual property in shareware, so long as you provide proper reference our books and games and that you provide reasonable credit citations for said publications. Of course, we will need copies of all written publications within which are property appears. (Placement on your mailing list should satisfy this requirement.) Please note that this letter does not constitute a waiver of our rights with respect to our intellectual property interests, nor does it constitute a blanket license or approval for the use of said property. Also remembe r that ICE shall not permit any use of said property outside of the narrow context of sanctioned shareware. We wish you good luck in all your endeavors. Take care. For ICE, Pete Fenlon President Hope this helps. Address any follow up questions Attn Pete at vaice@aol.com. Thank you, Deane from ICE Sales -- Paul Erik Lundstroem, Denmark (polle@murazor.ping.dk) Tom's note: one thing that I.C.E. failed to mention is that you may mangle the works of Tolkien in any manner you wish if the mangling is done through the use of parody, sarcasm, or humor. Parody is protected under freed om of speech laws; nothing can be removed from it's purview. I also doubt, based upon my reading of copyright laws with respect to intellectual property and literature, that any action could be taken against someone who wrote about Tolkien's world - or characters set in Tolkien's w orld - so long as a profit was not made upon the writing. The Mouth most definitely qualifies as a not-for-profit endeavor. The Second Battle of Osgiliath ============================== By James Vigil Beside the east bank of the Anduin, outside Osgiliath... Ecthelion II, Steward of Gondor and Commander of the Army of the Anduin, sat his horse calmy and tried to peer through the clouds of dust kicked up by the late afternoon winds. Through the haze, he could make out a group of horsemen as they emerged from the sable-clad ranks of the opposing host and rapidly approached. Behind him, in serried lines stretching nearly a mile, silently stood a host of North Gondor heavy infantry. As they drew near, Ecthelion could make out the device of the Dark Lieutenants emblazoned on the shields and helms of the riders. The lead horseman was an enormous figure. Tied to his saddle was a wickedly spiked mace. Ecthelion drew himself up and prepared to carry his part in the play that would follow. The riders were almost upon them. Suddenly, without word of command, they halted. The lead rider spurred to within a few feet of Ecthelion. From within the steel helm came a rumble of low laughter. Then a black gauntl et swept the visor aside. Dark eyes regarded the Steward of Gondor for a long moment. Then Gothmog, Lieutenant of Barad-Dur, spoke. "Thou hast come girt with sword," said Gothmog in a mocking tone. "But wouldst thou wield it?" Without waiting for Ecthelion to answer, the Pertoreg rose in his stirrups and roared in a bellowing voice that easily carri ed to the watching soldiers of both armies. "Hear me! I am Gothmog! By ancient right I issue this challenge. If he be not craven, then the Lord Ecthelion must face me. I am Gothmog! I have spoken!" Although the Steward of Gondor had long before decided what his answer would be, this did not make the moment less distasteful. He could feel thousands of eyes on him. Then, slowly but firmly, he shouted his response. "Hear me followers of darkness! Your doom is near. Let all depart now who would not face the wrath of Gondor!" Then, addressing the massive horseman before him directly, Ecthelion said "your challenge is refused. Let the issue be decided on the battlefield." Gothmog spat in the dust. A jeering roar came from the massed ranks of the Dark Lieutenant army. Although the faces of his commanders remained impassive, Ecthelion saw the disappointment in their eyes. Ignoring the cat calls from the ranks of the enemy, he slowly turned and rode back to his troops. It was little comfort to Ecthelion that he was not the first North Gondor commander to refuse a challenge. Argirion had also done so before Gothmog only a few months before, at the battle where Osgiliath had first been l ost. Trumpets now blared and Ecthelion cleared these thoughts from his mind. Battle was now imminent. The wind kicked up again and visibility was obscured. Ecthelion peered through the dust. He had already given his orders. They were simple and straightforward - fight to the last. Fancy tactics would be of no help aga inst what they were about to face. Off to the left there were yells and he turned to see his small band of archers loosing their shafts at an unseen target. Then suddenly, men were throwing down their weapons and beginning to run. A screaming roar tore t hrough the air and Ecthelion momentarily blanched and halted. Ahead in the dust was the shadow of an enormous shape. "Stand, stand Men of Gondor," Ecthelion shouted. Another screech ripped the air and Ecthelion smelt d ragon-stench. Off where the right flank should be, he heard the battle-cries of men and orcs, and the growing clatter of combat. The baying of wolves was heard, growing louder. The next minutes were a jumble. Ecthelion had ordered all his forces to advance and to close with the enemy. But the high winds and dust made it impossible to see more than a few feet. Trolls and wolf-riders would loom out of the haze with little warning. Ecthelion had drawn his sword and now wielded it with a growing anger. Beside him was his bodyguard, picked men of the Tower of Guard in their distinctive black and silver uniforms and winged helms. Such was their skill that before long all their nearby foes had either been cut down or fled shrieking. The din was tremendous. Ecthelion felt a touch on his arm. A runner from the left flank. The young man's sword was notched and he was bleeding freely from a deep cut in his arm. "My Lord, our battalions nearest the city walls are broken. Som e are fleeing towards the river," he panted. "Return," answered Ectheion. "Advise the city militia to open the gates to allow all who may to escape within." The soldier nodded and ran away. Ecthelion turned back just as a group of trolls charged again. Once again, the swordsmanship of the Guardsmen won out, although several more men were struck down. Ecthelion led the remainder in a charge that drove the e nemy back. Dust enveloped them once more. The noise of battle suddenly lessened. Again, off on the left, Ecthelion heard the baying of wolves, but farther off this time. Nearby, came the groans and cries of the wounded. There was an occasional shriek as singl e combats were fought to their grim conclusions. The time had come. Ecthelion turned to order his men to retreat. As if a curtain had been pulled up, the late afternoon sun blazed again. Ecthelion was stunned to see only a pitiful handful of his guards remained abou t him. Across the fields lay heaps of slain of both sides. As Ecthelion opened his mouth to speak, he noticed that the eyes of his soldiers were wide and staring in fear. They gestured at something over his shoulder. Ecthelion turned. The enormous armored head of a dragon loomed directly above him. The sun glistened on silvery scales. A long forked tongue lolled from the mouth of the beast, hemmed by glittering rows of razor sharp teeth. The maw was smeared red. No one moved. The tongue flicked in and out lazily. Then Lamthanc reared up and hissed. His eyes fell on Ecthelion and a sudden recognition blazed in them. The beast spoke. "So, the Lord of Minas Tirith," hissed the Great Wyrm. "You live?" Ecthelion attempted to answer but couldn't. Then, as if a spell was broken, the sword in his hand blazed with a white light and he raised it before the daunting eyes of the Dragon. "Yea, we live," said Ecthelion slowly. "And we will defy you and your Black Master as long as breath is in us." The Dragons jaws gaped in laughter. The dreadful eyes gleamed. "As long as thou drawest breath? Not long! Not long!" Lamthanc stretched a claw and gestured at the heaped Gondor dead all around. "Thou art the last." "So are you, dread one," said Ecthelion calmy. "Look about you and see." The Dragon's eyes narrowed. Then the great head slowly swung around to the left, then to the right, gazing at the broad fields and hillsides. The army of the Dark Lieutenants was either dead or dissolved into knots of fugitives. Suddenly Lamthanc's head snapped around. To his horror, Ecthelion was slammed to the ground by a stunning blow. All around him was a moist warmth and a stench. Dazed, he felt himself pulled into the air. As he slipped into unconsciousness, he thought he heard braying laughter. Ecthelion awoke to the sounds of rushing water. As his eyes slowly focused, he was aware that some hours must have passed. Around him, the branches of trees rustled in the evening breeze. Anxious faces loomed over him and he realized that he was alive. Alive. The Steward of Gondor pulled himself up on one elbow. The banks of the Anduin were a few feet away and he realized they were still on the east bank of the river. Shaking his head, he turned and recognized a soldier of h is guard, Urthel. He gestured the man to his side. "Urthel, how came we here? What has happened? Where is the army. And what of the Great Wyrm?" "My Lord," said Urthel, "sad tidings and woe. The army is dispersed or dead. Yet all was not lost. The dragon is departed." Ecthelion nodded. "What happened?" "He seized you with his tongue and raised you on high. Then he let you drop, laughed horribly, and bounded away to the north," said Urthel. Ecthelion was puzzled for a moment. Then he remembered. They had just had a tremendous stroke of good fortune. It was said that the great dragons gave their aid capriciously and that if all was not well, they would oft en depart whence they came. This must have been what happened. He turned again to Urthel. "What of Osgiliath?" In answer, Urthel helped his commander to his feet and led him towards a nearby clearing. On a knoll, they could see the highest towers of a keep in the distance. Even in the darkness, the White Banner of the Stewards w as visible, flapping bravely. Ecthelion smiled and clapped Urthel on the shoulder. There was a rustle in the bushes behind them. The two Gondorians spun around. All around them were dark shapes, cloaked and hooded. Urthel went for his sword, but felt his commander's reassuring hand. "No, Urthel, these are friends," said Ecthelion. Ecthelion stepped forward to meet the figures. Their leader moved ahead of the others. Ecthelion could see the gleam of bright eyes beneath the hood. "So," said Ecthelion. "You have come. You are overlate. The army is destroyed." Ecthelion spoke with growing irritation. He suddenly realized how exhausted and spent he was. He looked down for a moment and saw the dark figure was holding a heavy sack with both hands. "What have you there?" the Steward asked. A low voice came out of the hood. "Vengeance." The figure dropped the sack. Ecthelion watched as Urthel stepped forward and began to untie the rope that held it. As Ecthelion looked up, he saw the dark shapes had already withdrawn into the woods. In a moment they were alone again. "Well, Urthel, what is it?" said Ecthelion. The guardsman rummaged in the sack a moment, then a wide grin spread across his face. He turned and stood and Ecthelion could see that from each hand dangled a head. One was the huge head of a half-troll with a broken helm. The other had elvish features. Gothmog and Celedhring. Far above in the clouds, tiny shapes wheeled and circled. If a watcher had keen enough eyes he could see the Great Eagles as they gathered their wings and sped north and west with the tidings. Night fell in the valley of the Anduin. Amid the croaking of frogs, Ecthelion and his small band of survivors stole away through the rushes. A full moon rose. Tomorrow would be another day in the War of the Ring. Navies ====== By Bob Tweedy While many others might dispute me on this, I believe a navy to be a major advantage. While the QA navy is small and would be destroyed by the Corsair, Harad, NG or SG fleets in battle on the high seas, it is still a fact or and must be considered by all FP/Neutrals with access to the major rivers or the Sea. An example of this is in game 113. The usual battle for Osgiliath (3024) was in progress, with the pop center changing hands many times. The SG and NG fleets were all there, having transported troops from their starting positions. After being captured by one side or another twice, it had become a village and thus could NOT SUPPORT A HARBOR. This meant that all the FP ships were beached and would NOT defend themselves if attacked. I (being the QA player) sailed up and wiped them all out. I also destroyed a small Noldo fleet coming down from the north. It was mutual annhihilation, but well worth it considering the quality of Noldo troops. The LR fleet can give the Northmen and Dwarves fits and tie down many troops if they can hang on to their navy for a time. The Northmen can move quickly between areas under his control with enough troops to make a difference using the navy. I usually divide up my fleet like this: take all the warships and one transport into one group. The rest of the transports go into the other. So, I can attack enemy fleets while losing only one transport. Also, the warship group can move into the same shore/harbor hex with the transport group and pick up the empty transports after the troops have gone ashore, making raiding much quicker. An example: Teldumeir of the Corsairs is short on cash and has sent reminders to Celdrahil of SG that Celdrahil owes him money from a card game some months ago. Celdrahil, being very busy with matters of state, 'forgot' the game and doesn't want to pay. Teldumeir, peaceful man that he is, sends 2500 stout fellows on 10 transports to hex 2628 to try to reason with Celdrahil. Meanwhile, Adumir of the Corsairs also tags along with 18 warships and 1 transport, in case bandits happen along while transporting Teldumeir's money home. He also moves to hex 2628. Unfortunately, as so often happens with Celdrahil, reason fails. Teldumeir must resort to persuasion and issues Destroy Pop Center orders. This anchors the ships automatically. Adumir issues Pickup Ships orders for 10 transports and moves back to hex 2136 where his good friend Eadur is waiting with 2500 more persuaders. On the following turn, Adumir Transfers Ships (10 transports) to Eadur and moves to 2225 to continue persuading. Eadur issues Put Troops on M The ratio ends up being landing 1 army on the coast every two turns, if you have everything ready. I have done this; it works well. Most players aren't used to using navies like this and tend to leave them sitting at home, or use them for one-shot raids. The Blind Sorcerer nation has the ability to move about the open seas without getting lost. If nothing else, have him post a camp on the Harnen river and give the QA ships to him! Take a look at your map sometime and see where navies can go. From Mirkwood to the Sea of Rhun via the River Running, up the Harnen river to 3533; up the Anduin to 2721; up the Mitheithel to 1713; and up the Baraduin to 1211, and the leagues of coastline to raid. Doesn't look like much, but there's a lot of enemy backfield there, especially for the DS. It's important to remove the harbors of the pop centers you're not going to use for navies to prevent enemy navies from landing on them, if the pc's are not in shore hexes. Remember, ships can land only where there is a harbor, port or shore hex. Fortifying river hexsides containing pop centers will stop movement of enemy navies, giving you time to do something before they hit you. Extensive planning must be done for any use of the navy, but the shock effect of having a large army somewhere the enemy thought it couldn't be is worth it. Not to mention the army rampaging about, pillaging, burning and disrupting the enemy's planning. On Population Center Improvement (or as Chris Evans prefers, the UpYours Order) ============================================== Brian Mason In a recent issue of "From the Mouth of Sauron" Brian Lowery posed the following question regarding the above order. > Population Center Improvment (550): > > Until recently the sum of loyalty and emissary rank required to > improve a population center was: > > 70 Village > 90 Town > 110 Mtown > 130 City > > For over a year I never saw the above fail. Recently in 2950 >game 16 half of my camp improvments with a Emis/Loyal totals of >70-74 have failed. Any thoughts? From checking my own database, I find the following data. The columns are the pop center upgraded to, the numbers are the combined emissary and loyalty rank, while the yes/no flag is whether it works or not. These are for both 1650 and 2950 games. Village Town Major Town City -------------------------------------------------------- 72 - Yes 52 - No 110 - Yes 154 - Yes 91 - Yes 57 - No 163 - Yes 91 - Yes 67 - No 94 - Yes 71 - No 97 - Yes 77 - No 100 - Yes 79 - Yes 104 - Yes 84 - No 93 - Yes 95 - Yes 99 - Yes 100 - Yes While the results seem to confirm the numbers above, their are a few exceptions. If anybody else has any other data, please send it along and we'll tabulate the results. "The Gift" ========== By Gary Drebit "But why doesn't he understand?", King Hoarmurath asked drunkenly. "I don't know, my King", Lord Greco replied. "Perhaps our message was unclear", he added. The King threw his goblet at him, missing him by inches. "However, my King, your message sounded clear to me!" Greco stammered. "I simply asked for coordination. To vote on which one of us would be the hub of our 'Circle of Dark' and I'm treated by a whimsical threat by the Dog Lord?", the King asked pouring himself another drink. "Perhaps it was the fact, that you were considering threatening the Cloud Lords army at Minas Arthor two weeks ago Sire." Greco offered half ducking. The King straighten to his full 6'9" height and loomed over his 'Advisor'. "Greco, you know that Minas Arthor is important to our Nation. If the communication between the Fire King and our people at Osgiliath had been better, 3 weeks earlier, we would not have moved our army to Minas Anor and that opportunity to get in behind the Northern Gondors lines would not have been there." The King moved back to his chair but instead of slumping into it, as Greco had anticipated, he spun around and pointed a bon ey finger at him. "Coordination! The choosing of a leader! The division of strategic points, that alone; will save our circle!" the King stated with conviction. "But how dare the King of Dogs threaten me with this letter." "This is not a threat;" Hoarmurath read, "it is a simple statement of fact: those who attack or kill a member of another Nation will be destroyed by the rest of us...", Hoarmurath crinkled it in his hands and threw it into the hearth. "The vote for the hub of our circle has not been taken!" he whispered with disdain. "Our communications with the Cloud Lord and Quiet Avenger have been positive," Greco offered. "They understand our position and we have offered to help the Cloud Lord in any coordinated event for allowing our glorious capture of Minas Arthor. Perhaps if the Dog Lord was in our position he would understand? His armies are in battle and many towns fall to his banner; where the confusion of battle is not a problem for him." Greco moved to the map table to sit accross from his King. "Surely, he must understand that well coordinated small armies will capture more territory and create more confusion then marching with a large army?" The King looked up from his map. "It is a shame that this strategy will be lost because we are unwilling to share in our territories. I'm afraid, Greco old friend, that we must also travel with a large army to ensure that when a 'coordinated' capture takes place that we hold the town. This way, it is our decision." "But first we must send a message to the Dog Lord." The King looked up with haunting eyes. "He has embarrassed us in public and I'm too old to be pushed!" "But Sire..." Greco urged, but the Kings dark eyes cut him short. "The Dog has put me in a position of either cowing to his letter or responding," the King said. "If we cow to his letter, no one will respect our Nation or our people. The death of our circle will be his undoing, not mine! Find my personal messenger and have him see me. Now go." Dismissing him with the wave of his hand. "But, my King..."Greco started. "NO BUT'S" Hoarmurath shouted, slamming his fist on the map table. "I'd rather burn with Saron then continue awaking every morning to this pain. Perhaps, in another time, there will be another war to fight and Saron will call me again. Now leave before I lose my temper with you!" The King turned his back to his Advisor. Lord Greco remembered that evil look in his Kings eyes. He had seen it before. He left without hesitation. * * * It took several days for the messenger of the Ice King to reach the realm of the Dog Lord. He rode hard and determined. He avoided old battle sites and ruined population centres. Many times he saw refugees of human, elf, and troll. All looking for a new beginning. His message was memorized and he knew that this could also be a new beginning for his Nation as well. The 'gift' was light to carry and he touched it often to ensure that he had not lost it. The fate of all the world rested on his, and the Dog Lords, shoulders. Also, the lingering death the Ice King described for him was another incentive. The guard, to the throne room, gulped as he knocked on the steel door. "I told you I do not want to be disturbed when my pets are eating!" The King shouted. "My Lord, there is a messenger from the Ice King here." The guard announced. "Tell him to wait!" The King shouted again. "He bears a gift from the Ice King, My Lord. The messenger would not release it." The guard replied. "Then remove all of his weapons and present him before me. Ensure there is a full compliment at his side." The King shouted. "Have someone come in here and clean up after my pets, they are thirsty for drink after there meal." No one had ever seen the 20 or so dogs, chained into the throne room, eat. But many have tried to guess what the meal was during the clean up. The torn flesh, bone and muscle could be beast, elf, human, or troll. Every one hoped it was not the last choice. The messenger stood with two guards at his side. He was striped of every weapon and anything that could be used as a weapon. The guards were very good, for the consequences were all to chilling. "Your 'Gift' messenger, let me see it." The King demanded. The messenger opened his bag as the 'pets', of the Dog Lord, howled and strained at there chains. The messenger hesitated a moment before he dumped the decapitated dogs head on the floor of the throne room. The crack of bone, when it hit the floor, was not heard over the howling of the dogs. Some fluid from the brain was starting to leak from the ears and open mouth. The messenger did not see any of this as both guards seized him and started to beat him savagely. The thirty seconds or so for the Dog Lord to regain order among his animals was enough time to break three of the messengers ribs. Also, some blood was starting to drip from his left ear. The Dog Lord strolled over to the messenger and grabbed him by his hair. "Pray you have more to say Messenger or I kill you where you stand". The messenger grabbed at the jewel encrusted knife at the Dog Lord belt and drew it from it scabbard. The King with his free hand grabbed the wrist of the messenger before any of his guards could react, breaking it at the base of the hand; but the knife did not drop from his grasp. "He sent you to kill me?" The King laughed. "You are pitiful for a Nation of agents." "No Sire" he replied through swollen lips. "Our lives..." he began to choke. "Our lives are like this dagger, my Liege. We have a choice but only two. I could ride back carrying the hilt of this dagger or you can send me back with the point buried in me. But before you choose, this is my Kings message. 'I feel that you have embarrassed me and my Nation to the rest of the Circle of Dark. This is of your choosing. If you wish us as an enemy, I will cause you, and anyone that joins you, as much harm as possible.' "My King knows we will not rule the lands, we may not even survive at all. But we feel certain that a life with Saron will be far better for you, then the hell he will put you through!" The messenger said. " He also comm anded me to add." 'This is not a threat; it is a statement of fact'. "My King is expecting me back. How shall I carry this dagger?" The messenger asked with more fear in his tone then he wanted. * * * Hoarmurath, the Ice King, had locked himself within the thrown room and had taken to drinking. His messenger is a week over due and scouts in the area had not seen him. His time was consumed with drink, and scanning over the latest news from his agents. If he and the Dog Lord do not come to an understanding the battle lines will shift, and Saron will not be pleased. Greco Had taken to the Dungeons lately. The Kings Advisor had found solus in making Valacar scream for mercy. The Northern Gondor emissary had been taken from Minas Anor 9 weeks ago. The extraction of information from him had been easy and not as painful as Lord Greco would have liked, but he was sure there will be others. He was of no use to the Ice King anymore and Greco had kept him alive to boost his spirit. The pain that the burning poker inflicted was much more interesting then facing his Kings wrath. Neither the King or his Advisor noticed when the lone rider appeared at the gate of the Ice Kings Capital. The rider had been sorely beaten and rode slumped within his saddle. The horse was no longer being controlled by the rider and had come home on its own. As the animal entered the courtyard, the rider fell. Interference with the Kings messenger was punishable by the whip, no one moved to help the troll. As the Messenger lied on the cold flagstones, he moved his arm to his side to touch the gift. It was light and easy to carry. He had touched it often to ensure he had not lost it. The jeweled encrusted dagger was worth about 100 gold pieces and it would have feed him for a year. If he would have lost it, he would not have lived a year. The Nazguls had every evil characteristic Saron could have hoped for. They where fearless, cold hearted and ruthless. They also had a characteristic that sometimes drove them to extremes. PRIDE! But in this war, at th is time; PRIDE will not be a factor. At least... not today. Untitled ======== By Dave Rossell Celleth wiped the sweat out of his eyes and stood with a groan. Bones popped as he arched his back, and he began to curse his backbones with the quiet creativity of the hill-born. Too many weeks in the saddle to count. L ots more to come, probably. We're about bled dry, tho. Sniff, pinch nose. No use thinking on what can't change. No generals listen to likes of us, eh old girl? Pat the horse's neck. "Easy there girl." Then he set to checking the girth, the straps, the buckles, hands and eyes moving carefully over the bits of leather that meant his life in a battle, muttering soothing nonsense to the horse all the while. Third mount since the campaign began several months ago. "You know that, third mount." The soft brown eye looked, blinked, uncomprehending. A brown mare, with white socks on her rear legs and a white blaze on her forehead. "Maybe I'll name ya when this fight's over." No name yet, hadn't come with one. He fingered the gouges taken out of the saddle by sword cuts and rubbed at the dark bloodstains; his blood, blood of his first horse, Merisel. Horses died too often to get attached to 'em. "Well, you're a good 'un, anyway." Spit, kick dust over the wet spot. Shore do breed 'em pretty in the desert. Deep chest, lots of stamina. Part of the spoils from Maros. Cavalry skirmishers got no business down here, no business. He shook his head. Give me some good hill country with rocks and streams and pines, and then, *then* we'd show these pirates how to fight. He patted her neck again. Skirmishers got no busines down here where trees grow so full a vines ya can't see thru 'em. With snakes and bugs and heat enough to fry an egg on that nice shiny armor those Dunedan lords and their horses wore. He spat and leaned on the saddle to look out over the horse's back to where the lords' horses were kept. Huge, hulking beasts looked more like draft animals than anything else. "They say there's more of 'em out in the bay, old girl. Reinforcements. The flower of Gondorian manhood." Chuckle. Rub a chin covered with five days' stubble. "Can't replace us skirmishers so easily I reckon." No, how can you replace Kilrain, Chara, Fessenden, Diral, Osterling, Mumford, ah, so many too many, half gone now, leaving flocks and farms come down kill these pirates. Kill their families take their flocks burn their farms. Bugle call, three short bursts, dim and blurry with distance. "C'mon old girl, time to mount up. We gotta make sure none of these fool lords lets any pirates get away." Swing up into saddle, creaking leather. Check sword, bow, kit, trace gouges in leather that almost was a leg. Rub caul-pouch under jerkin, just for luck, not that luck matters but doesn't hurt. Just in case. Take reins, settle in, walk to rally point. "Time to roust out some pirates, old girl. We gotta fulfill our duties to our lord. He's a good man, is Argirion, tho' you haven't met him. Says if we don't fight these pirates down here, we'll have to fight 'em back home. S'pect he's right." Rub nose, spit, meditate, pat her neck. " Time to fight the Enemy, protect our homes." Well, my home. Time to kill more men scatter more flocks burn more farms. Too much thinkin, no time for that now. Time to kill men, stay alive so I can get home and maybe take with me one of these desert horses with no name. Last Word ========= From Brian Mason Time is nearly linear. The perception of time, however, is logarithmic. I had the pleasure when I last visited the U.S. Naval Observatory in Washington, D.C. to see one of their cesium clocks. This device is responsible for setting time standards for the United States and is defined according to a particular transition of the Cesium-133 isotope. One second is approximately equal to 9,192,631,770 periods of this transition. Ultimately, though, time is at the whim of astronomy as even this exceedingly precise time must occasionally be updated to reflect celestial reality. One second IS one part in 86,400 of a mean solar day, and as the tidal friction of the earth with the moon comes into play the earth slows in its rotation rate. Time is actually slowing down, but VERY slowly. Remember when you were growing up, say in about the third grade, that summer seemed to go on forever. The period of time for the long summer break from school seemed an eternity and you could remember every detail. The reason for this is relatively simple: you view time based on what you've experienced thusfar. Time flies as you get older because compared to how much you've experienced the period of time between individual events is short compared with your whole life. When you're eight, a summer is slightly over 3% of your life. For me, this past summer represented about three-quarters of one percent of my life. While the length of time only changes by a miniscule amount, our individual worldview alters the way we perceive time, and thus, the older you get the more "time flies." Well, you may say, "ok, fine Brian, this is all very well and good, but where's the usual bit of pithy pabulum puking that we're used to from you? How does this relate to me-pbm encounter tables and the depredations of dragons?" Well, it does, actually. In the way of an apology. I've not been keeping up with my work. This issue of "From the Mouth of Sauron" is late because I didn't realize how much time had passed. However, my biggest faux pas is in not getting a map I'm making to Tom finished in a timely fashion. It's still not done, but it is getting done. You see, folks, my dog didn't eat my homework. My homework was delayed by a non-linear perception of a linear phenomenon. To borrow a phrase from a person I once knew... ..`till our Reimann space-time world-lines intersect once more... Brian