From the Mouth of Sauron
Issue: E-7
Date: 02-04-94
Note: all authors retain exclusive rights to their material.
Reprinting is allowed for non-commercial game use only.
Editorial
I've only one thing to say this time around: the Mouth needs your
help! Yep, the magic well of articles and comments that filled this
electronic rag to overflowing nearly ran dry this issue. And the
Mouth is only as good as it's contributors.
So all you writers and question-posers, take keyboard in hand and
have at it! Anything, anything at all that's even remotely
connected to ME-PBM will get published. I don't do rejections
unless you get nasty about another player, and so far no one's done
that (well, in public anyway).
On the brighter side, there's a good deal of info on dragons this
time around. Some of this was discovered by yours truly, the hard
way. Oh, my aching dwarves....
TO WEI WANG: you didn't send your address along, and my system
doesn't pick it up. I can't put you on the mailing list until I get
it. If anyone out there knows who Wei is, please tell him this - I
can't find him.
Artifacts
No changes.
Encounters
Demon of Aglarond: apparently one reader didn't get the Mouth with
the correction to the Demon of Aglarond. The Demon is NOT a balrog,
but ranges the same area as 'a balrog' (White Mountains/Gap of
Rohan) and affects loyalty at pop centers. The Demon has a
guesstimated challenge rank of 50.
Radagast: Radagast seems to be either a character AND army
encounter, or just a character encounter. He appears as an old man
in brown robes feeding a flock of birds. Options are:
ATTACK the man
CAPTURE the man and take him hostage
INTERROGATE the man for info
FEED the birds
REQUEST the man's name
ALLOW the man to join you
SAY _____ (only one word)
FLEE
The results of only one option are known, and even this is
unconfirmed: FEED the birds = escape unharmed for Dark Servants,
learn new spells/get skill increase for Free Peoples.
Swamp Thing: actually, this is the lake encounter in the file. If
you kill the monster you'll most likely get a tidy sum of gold
(11,000 reported).
Thanks to Arnold Mohammed and Dena Kiker for this information.
Dragons
Angurth: DEMAND obedience = combat for Free Peoples.
Bairanax: Act MEEK = escape unharmed for all allegiances. FLEE =
combat for all allegiances.
Daelomin: DEMAND obedience = combat for Free Peoples and Neutrals.
Itangast: Say NAME = combat for Free Peoples and Neutrals. Act
MEEK = injured/killed for Free Peoples and Neutrals.
Klyaxar: Offer TEN thousand gold pieces = combat for Free Peoples
and Neutrals.
Khuzadrepa: Say NAME = combat for all allegiances.
Lamthanc: SAY "Riddle" = combat for Free Peoples and Neutrals.
Lomaw: Act MEEK = escape unharmed for all allegiances.
Ruingurth: SAY "Riddle" = escape unharmed for all allegiances.
Scorba: SAY "Riddle" = injured/killed for Free Peoples and
Neutrals.
Smaug: Offer ONE artifact = injured/killed for all allegiances.
Offer TWO artifacts = injured/killed for all allegiances.
Thanks to many people whose names I forgot to record for the credits
in this section.
Other Corrections and Notes
The Arthedain pop center at 0707 is Culwic, not Forwic.
From Doug Bergstrom
Question: How accurate is that equation for assassinations? Seems
abit odd to me since this is a hard action.
Question: Does anyone out there seriously think that the Dark
Servants could win a grudge match?
From Eric Schnurr
It seems that the loyalty of a pop center you get thru INFOTHR comes
in at 2/3 the Emissary rank that took it away. I haven't done much
Emissary work so please verify it and let me know. (I only have two
data points to work off of.)
In Your Ear
Nothing this time.
Personals
ME 27
Dem Forests Be Smoking Again!
ME 43
Are we having fun or what?
ME 104
You free peoples barely gave me a chance to join you and now you
complain that I am in first....OK already, it is just a game. Good
job!
Note: if you want your name or position attached to personals
messages, please indicate this. Otherwise, they go in anonymous.
ME-PBM Wish List
From Jeremy Baxter
increase the ratings of light troops by 50% so they are a viable
alternative to the heavy types in rough and mountainous terain.
Allow a free RECON from an army not moving evaisively each turn.
Disband armies automaticaly after you hit 100% tax instead of
knocking you out of the game.
Prevent Neutrals declaring for the winning side if the larger side
has twice as many active nations as the smaller. This would be fun,
If a neutral waits too long they have to declare for the losing side
- or even the odds by taking out one of the victorious nations. If
you wait too long the victors will just ignore you so preventing a
victory by inaction.
Spells to produce false armies, scramble character i.d.s, lie about
artifacts held etc - a bit like spreading rumours This way you could
try and convince a player that one of his allies just nicked his
prize artifact - etc.
Make the presence of characters in a town, especially agents doing
Guard Loc increase the chance of reporting foreign characters.
From Doug Bergstrom
Wish List:
1) Allow Eothraim startup to have characters at capital.
2) Make Vamuag hidden and give QA one decent commander.
3) Add a quick line to char description when assassinated..i.e.
Bain was found under boulders, Argeleb thought wine tasted funny,
Akhorihil didn't recognize the new guard...this would add a little
flavor.
4) Ask neutrals if they want to be in a grudge match prior to game
start (there is a "REAL" bias against them).
Editor's Note: I definitely agree with this last. Playing a
neutral in a team game is much harder than playing one in a regular
game. The coordination of a team allows them to eliminate you much
more quickly and with greater confidence, meaning they aren't as
eager to recruit you as they might otherwise be.
How I Got Shafted in ME-PBM
Nothing this time.