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Thread: Helios 62 - Awards Edition & More!

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    Default Helios 62 - Awards Edition & More!


    Contents
    Democracy Humbled - The Great Athenian Siege of Syracuse 415BC-413BC Part 3 by grouchy13
    2011 Member Awards Interviews by Hobbes.
    Introduction to: Ancient Greek Religion by GHANDI, MATE
    January Forum Report: Mudpit, TWC University, & Garb's Fight Club by Leslie Knope
    January Forum Report: Thema Devia by Cahoma
    Mythology: Article IV by Narf


    From the Editor:

    Every year winter goes away. The ice thaws, the snow melts, and spring comes, bringing out the green in nature and reminding us of renewed life. I hope for most of TWC members that winter is going away or is already gone. I used to live in Canada and Alaska so trust me that I know what a cold winter feels like. There was a time when some friends and I went camping after graduating in Kananaskis Country. We all brought plenty of cold weather clothing, blankets, and comfy sleeping bags. That didn't matter. It got so cold that we actually had to spoon. Now just hold it with your train of thought. Let the record show we all had all of our clothes on, were all in our sleeping bags, and all our blankets were wrapped around us. That's how cold it was. During that camping trip we also created, by accident, scrambled pancakes. Now you know I know what a cold winter is like! This year the winter in Texas has been pretty mild. Ever since I moved back to Texas, there has been a week or so that's been insanely cold (every winter). This hasn't happened this year...but there's always some crazy Texas weather that surprises everyone. Last year there was the crazy Super Bowl storm that turned all of Texas into a frigid and icy land, as well as much of the rest of the United States as the storm system moved on.

    Some of you may be chuckling at reading that article. After all, only a few inches of snow/ice fell. Not so bad, right? Well, you're sort of right. It might not have been a lot of snow/ice, but for a state that's not used to lengthy winter weather, those few inches remained because the cities don't have proper equipment to deal with that. Usually when it snow in Texas, it stays on the ground for maybe a day and then it melts the next day. The 2011 Super Bowl storm lasted several days with very cold temperatures. What made it worse was that it rained first, then sleeted, and lastly snowed. That meant there was a sheet of ice under snow. Anyone who has experienced bad winter weather knows ice under snow makes driving very difficult. While the temperatures might not seem that bad during winter weather in Texas, I'm talking about temperatures around freezing, people should understand that freezing in Texas feels a lot different than freezing in, say, Canada. I remember going outside in (Calgary, AB) Canada when it was -5 to -10 (Celcius) in a t-shirt and jeans, but up there those temperatures didn't mean it was bad weather. I could be sunny and clear with no wind. In Texas, it's a different story. Usually when it gets to around 40°F (~4.5°C), that means there is bad weather like a storm. That's something a lot of people who live in colder places don't understand.

    But I was talking about spring and being all philosophical, right? The Helios has some new writers, like Leslie Knope and Glourious Cahoma, who are our forum reporters. Want to know what's been happening around certain areas on TWC over the last month or so? Check out their articles. I'm hoping that additions to this publication such as these will bring back new life to The Helios. You may even be mentioned! Also included are 2011 Member Awards interviews courtesy of Hobbes. who got a hold of several award winners. As I mentioned in the last issue, if there are any members who wish to write for The Helios, feel free to contact me and we can talk about what you want to do.

    Now, enjoy the articles, friends!

    _________________________________________________


    grouchy13

    Our first article, as in Helios 61, comes from the history-loving mind of grouchy13. Needless to say, if you want to learn a lot about the Athenian siege of Syracuse in great detail, then you're getting exactly what you want with grouchy13's articles.


    Democracy Humbled - The Great Athenian Siege of Syracuse 415BC to 413BC Part 3

    Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 
    Part 3 The Siege Begins


    Syracusan Delegation to Sparta

    As the year 415BC drew to a close and with the reorganisation of the Syracusan Democracy suggested by Hermocrates in place the Syracusans sent a delegation to Sparta and their mother City Corinth. The Syracusan delegation implored the Spartans to send assistance to them in Sicily and also to make War on the Athenians in their home theatre to divide the Athenians attention. At this time the Peace of Nicias still held throughout mainland Greece, at least for the mean time. As usual the Spartans were loathe to commit any of their forces outside of their Laconian heartlands lest the Helots revolt, instead opting to offer words of support. The Syracusans had more luck in Corinth where the leading citizens were very eager to support their former Colony against their erstwhile foe Athens. The Corinthians despatched their own delegations to exert pressure on the Spartans in the hope of bringing about some concrete form of assistance. It was in Sparta that the Syracusan and Corinthian delegations found another eager ally who would attest to the wisdom of supporting the Syracusans, namely the disgraced former Athenian General Alcibiades. Finding sanctuary within Sparta the Athenian renegade had took to dressing in the Spartan style complete with the long hair style known to be warn by the Spartans. He took to eating the coarse food of the Spartans and took active participation in the Spartans vigorous training. As always the opportunist Alcibiades saw the Syracusan delegation as his opportunity to win influence amongst his new hosts, A successful campaign against the Athenians in Sicily might not only win him the support necessary for the Spartans to reinstall him in Athens as tyrant but would also greatly reduce the Athenians ability to resist such a manoeuvre. Firstly though Alcibiades had to set Spartan fears over his dubious reputation at ease for not only was he fugitive turncoat with a price on his head but he was also the author of Campaigns that had previously put Sparta in great danger such as the Mantinean Campaign of 418BC. Alcibiades began by trying to play down the Spartan misgivings over his previous conduct and presenting himself as an enemy of Democracy, He began to outline a series of outrageous plans that the Athenians fostered to scare the Spartans into activity, Sicily would be just the beggining he claimed the Athenians sought to dominate Italy, Carthage and even Iberia the Athenians would then turn on the Spartans and dominate all the Hellenic peoples. Alcibiades urged the Spartans to support the Syracusans, with men and a Spartan Commander to marshall the Syracusan War effort and instil Spartan drill and discipline into the relatively inexperienced Syracusans. The Spartans reactions to Alcibiades fanciful claims are not recorded, they must not have been too impressed for their commitment included neither a Spartan army or commander however they did accede to send a half Spartan citizen known as a Mothax, one of a Spartan father and Helot mother. The Mothax in question was the unassuming figure of Gylippus whose father had been put to death for the accepting of Athenian bribes, a minuscule force of around 700 men all non Spartan Citizens was sent to support Syracuse it would include 4 Warships, 2 Laconian and 2 Corinthian. The Spartans showed a measured caution that the Athenians had not when preparing the expedition, this force was utterly expendable and would not put the Spartan state in any danger should it be destroyed the same could not be said the massive Athenian commitment.Gyl ippus the half Spartan outsider would prove his worth in the upcoming campaign, much to the later chagrin of the Athenians.



    An artists illustration of the heights of Epipolae in relation to to Syracuse

    The Battle for the Heights of Epipolae 414BC

    In the spring of 414BC with the arrival of further funds and more importantly a detachment of Cavalry the Athenians finally moved to take Syracuse. Nicias now had no excuse to hold off any longer, a plan was formulated in where the Athenians would depart from Naxos by sea disembark at a city called Leon just North of Syracuse and move to take the strategically important heights of Epipolae which conveniently would obscure their approach from the Syracusans. The Syracsuans heard of the Athenian arrival at Leon but failed to realize the importance of securing the heights and failed to fortify the position in time, they did however have the sense to despatch a force of 600 chosen men under Diomilus, a refugee from the Island of Andros with a keen hatred for Athens to hold the position as an advance guard while the main army would move to support them and fortify the position should Diomilus be successful in staving off the Athenian assault on the heights. The Athenians wasted no time in assailing the northern slopes and were surprised to find the heights empty, they immediately invested the place securing it in their own possession. The Athenians luckily had taken Epipolae by a mere matter of hours, as Diomilus approached he saw the Athenians in possession of the heights. Not to be discouraged Diomilus led a disorganised assault however the steepness of the final ascent had worn down the Syracusan attackers and their confused assault was easily repelled with the loss of half their 600 advance party including their commander Diomilus. The main army seeing the defeat of the advance party retreated behind the city walls. The Athenians erected a trophy to commemorate their victory, while allowing the Syracusans the customary right to collect their dead under a truce. The Athenians then fortified Labdalum on the Northern slopes, investing the place as a supplies dump and a secured location for the expeditions War Chest. After leaving a garrison in Labdalum the Athenians pushed ahead to fortify the dominating position of the southern approaches at a place known as Syce, the fort the Athenians built would be known as the “circle” and would become the main Athenian base of operations during the initial stages of the siege. The Athenians began to slowly build walls to surround the city with the "circle" at the centre, one stretched Northwards towards Trogilus while one swung towards the Southeast towards Syracuse itself to block access the Great Harbour.

    Syracusan assaults on the walls

    The Syracusans knew that if they didn’t act quickly they would soon find the Athenians completing their walls to that end the Syracusan commanders ordered an immediate assault on the Athenian positions, once again the Syracusan army advanced in poor order and was easily repulsed the Syracusan commanders realised the futility of continuing the assault and sounded the retreat. The main body retreated behind the walls while a detachment of Cavalry stayed attempting to harass the Athenian building parties as they collecting stones and material for the wall. However the Syracusans no longer had a monopoly on Cavalry with the Athenians possessing 650 Cavalry made up of a mixed force with horsemen despatched from Athens and with a portion sent by Athens local allies, this force joined with a detachment of Hoplites and launched into a ferocious counter attack in which the Syracusan Cavalry were routed for the 1st time in the Campaign. With the construction parties safe from Syracusan forays the Athenian walls continued to expand from the “circle” with the most frenzied building activity taking place towards the south-east, which would cut the Syracusans off from the shore of the Great Harbour and allow the Athenians to utilize the Great Harbour to house their own fleet. Following the series of reverses they had suffered the Syracusans were fearful of meeting the Athenians in armed combat and so resolved to construct their own counter walls to block the path of the Athenian siege walls and retain possession of the Great Harbour. In War desperate times call for desperate measures, something the Syracusans took to heart when their commanders ordered the sacred groves of Apollo within the city to be felled so the timber could be employed in the construction of the counter walls. Seeing the Syracusan counter wall expanding towards the Harbour the Athenians redoubled their own efforts and a construction battle commenced. At this point the Athenians came across the underground water pipes connecting the Syracusan water supply to the city and wasted no time in destroying them, fortunately for the Syracusans the city also had a number of springs within the city to supply them.


    Once again displaying their vigorous fighting spirit and ingenuity that had won their Polis a great Empire the Athenians noticed that the vigilance of the Syracusan sentries who guarded the counter wall waned towards the afternoon with many of the sentries retiring from the relentless heat to their tents leaving the walls dangerously undefended. The Athenians launched a lightning raid consisting of 300 Hoplites and light troops kitted out in Hoplite armour against the Syracusan counter wall while the main army was divided between Lamaches and Nicias and marched out to prevent a sally from within the city while the other force concentrated on destroying the wall. The assault carried all before them, the raiders being so successful they actually reached the main city walls but were too few in number to establish a hold on their position. The division devoted to dismantling the wall was however very successful and the wall was dismantled with the timber and stone being carried back to the “circle” to be used in their own construction efforts. The day was completed after the Athenians established another trophy dedicated to the this spectacular victory made up of the fallen armour of the Syracusans who had fell in the days fighting, so ended the Syracusan great sacrifice of Apollo’s sacred groves.

    Battle of the Marsh and the death of Lamaches

    As the Athenians wall protruded southwards it began to run the risk of cutting the Syracusans off from their harbour the Syracusans undaunted by the destruction of the first counter wall began the construction of a 2nd counter wall, this time running directly through the Lysimeleia marsh they attempted to provide extra protection by digging a ditch in front of the counter wall. The Athenians again began formulating another direct assault on this wall this time with troops employed on land and sea with the land troops being joined by a force despatched on their ships that would pass through the Great Harbour. No elements of this plan displayed the hand of the Cautions Nicias who had began to display the effects of Kidney disease that confined him to his bed within the “circle”. The plan bared all hallmarks of the more daring Lamaches who would command the raid in person, again the Syracusans were caught off guard by the Athenians audaciousness the Athenians entered the Great Harbour unopposed while a second force marched down from Epipolae. This force to prevent becoming bogged down in the marsh the Athenians employed an ingenious strategy in where they laid a walkway of planks across the marsh to attack the counter wall. The strategy proved a success as when the Syracusans attempted to defend the wall by forming into a line of battle they were immediately thrown back in face on the Athenian onslaught. The Syracusan right wing retreated headlong behind the city walls while the left wing become separated and made for the nearby bridge over the Anapus river. A group of Athenian troops marched to block this escape but were in turn assaulted by a detachment of Syracusan Cavalry, The Cavalry routed the Athenian shock troops rallied the shattered Syracusan left wing and launched a blistering counter attack on the Athenian right flank. The Athenian right struggled to hold fast in face of the renewed Syracusan onslaught and began to buckle sensing imminent disaster Lamaches moved in person with a group of Argive Hoplites and archers to rally the right flank. As he steadied the line he began moving across to a ditch on where he became isolated and soon became surrounded by Syracusan troops, Callicrates a renowned Cavalry officer dismounted and challenged Lamaches to single combat something highly valued and believed to be the truest form of valour amongst the Ancient Greeks. Lamaches accepted and the two men lauched into a frenzied assault on one another, both landing fatal blows and falling to the ground dead. The Syracusans carried both bodies away to the nearby fortress at Olypieum, the Athenian line once again began to route. On seeing this the Syracusan commanders noted the lack of troops manning the wall atop the heights of Epipolae rallied the retreating troops who had made it to the city, split their forces marching some to keep the Athenians on the plain busy and prevent them marching to defend the unmanned walls while a second force marched on the undefended wall running south from the “circle” completely destroying this uncompleted section. Buoyed by their success the Syracusans launched an assault on the “circle” where Nicias lay bedridden, despite his illness Nicias realised the dangerousness of the situation and ordered the few Athenian troops remaining within the circle to set ablaze the piles of timber stored outside the “circle” for use in the siege walls. The ensuing blaze was large enough to force the advancing Syracusans to retreat while the smoke from the blaze alerted the Athenians to the assault on the “circle”. As fate would have it the main Athenian army situated on the plain below Epipolae had beaten back the Syracusan diversion and driven them towards the city, they then began the march up Epipolae to reinforce their sole remaining commander as the Athenian fleet sailed into and took possession of the Great Harbour. The Athenians in the days fighting had destroyed the second counter, driven the Syracusans back into their city and took control of the harbour nothing now would prevent them completing the siege walls on Syracuse southern flank if they could now complete their northern siege wall the circumnavigation of Syracuse would be complete. They had however paid a high price for this victory, the death of the daring and bold Lamaches left the ailing and cautious Nicias in sole command how different the Campaign may have panned out should Lamaches lived to fight another day. The Athenians erected another trophy to commemorate their great victory and exchanged their dead with Syracusans including the brave Lamaches.

    Mood in Syracuse

    The mood in Syracuse had reached rock bottom, from holding the Athenians in utter contempt not 6 months before the Syracusans had been soundly defeated at every turn since the Athenians had seized the initiative and took the heights of Epipolae. They believed they could no longer defeat the Athenians in open battle while also believing the Peloponnesians had abandoned them to their fate. The feeling amongst the Syracusan Demos was a mixture of foreboding at the future and anger at the generals who had led them thus far who they blamed for the series of calamitous defeats. The Demos took the first opportunity available to vote in new generals, Hermocartes was relieved of command no doubt the work of the demagogue Athengoras who was also suspected of having a hand in the nomination of the new generals who were all fervent Democrats. Talk of surrender was openly discussed for the first time and some overtures were made to Nicias but these talks came to nothing. Nicias for his part hoped to take the city by treachery, his many spies within the city reported to him on the despondent mood of the Demos and he hoped to foster the support of the more radical elements of the Demos to betray the city to him. The few remaining native Sicel communities who had remained on the fence now through their lot in with the Athenians while many in the region believed the Athenians were on the cusp of a spectacular Victory. Supplies also began to arrive in greater quantities from the cities Magna Graecia in southern Italy, the very cities who had initially snubbed the Athenians upon their arrival to the region. Nicias was so confident of an impending Athenian victory he discounted the reports regarding the departure of Gylippus from Sparta, The Athenians domination of the Sea around Sicily meant they could have easily either intercepted Gylipuss small Naval force or at least blockaded the immediate area around Syracuse making a landing more difficult. In the end Nicias did neither, this inactivity on his part would have the most dire consequences for the expedition far outreaching any of Nicias previous strategical failures.

    Gylippus Arrives in Sicily

    Upon his arrival in Magna Graecia Gylippus received a series of incorrect reports that reported the Athenians had actually completed their circumnavigation of Syracuse, Gylippus believed the best course would now be to prevent the Athenians taking control of Magna Graecia. The situation now took a bizarre turn, the cities which had originally rejected to assist the Athenians against Syracuse now rejected Gylippus calls for them to support the Peloponnesian delegation. It can be said the cities of Magna Graecia were merely playing both ends to the middle by not supporting Gylippus as this could anger the resurgent Athenians who appeared to be on the verge of defeating Syracuse and establishing themselves as a regional power. When Gylippus reached Locri however he learned the actual situation on the ground in Syracuse was very different and endeavoured to make new allies, raise troops and march to assist the Syracusans. Gylippus and his fellow Peloponnesians landed at Himera in the north of Sicily to avoid the Athenian fleet Gylippus roused the citizens of Himera to join his small force and set off overland to reach Syracuse. On the way Gylippus proved very successful in raising further troops receiving assistance from Gela and Selinus, He was even able to take advantage of the death of a Pro Athenian Native Sicel King and amalgamate these irregular Sicel troops into his own force. His army had now swelled from the 700 troops who had departed from the Peloponnesus to an impressive 3000 Infantry and 200 Cavalry. While Gylippus approached overland further support for the Syracusans was approaching by sea in the form of Corinthian General Gongylus and 11 Warships fitted out by Syracuse’s mother city Corinth. Within the city walls of Syracuse and oblivious to aid so close to assist them the Demos began discussing the holding of an Assembly to vote on capitulating to the Athenians, at this crucial juncture the Athenians fatefully relaxed their Naval blockade, an unbelievable error which allowed Gongylus to sail into the city unopposed. This was another huge error on the part of the Athenians especially considering Gongylus had breached their blockade in just one vessel, the remainder of the Corinthian squadron were still in transit towards Syracuse. Seeing the desperation of the Syracusans and upon hearing of their desire to surrender he emplored them to continue the struggle, he reported that more vessels from their Mother City were on their way while Gylippus was approaching overland to support them. On hearing this the Syracusans abandoned the idea of holding an Assembly or making any further peace overtures, mustering their troops in preparation to join with Gylippus approaching army which they had learned would be approaching Epipolae from the Euryalas pass, the very same route the Athenians had used to seize Epipolae.

    The tide turns

    To compound their failure to maintain an effective blockade at sea the Athenians now amazingly failed to prevent Gylippus approach to the city, Whether through Nicias continuing illness or through a feeling of overconfidence the Athenians failed to complete their siege walls around the northern edge of Epipolae instead focusing their efforts to complete a second wall that reached towards the sea to the south of Syracuse, Gylippus on his arrival at the uncompleted Northern section of the siege walls resorted to a neat trick of physiological warfare by insolently despatching a Herald ahead of his forces to offer the Athenians a 5 day truce and safe passage should they leave Sicily no doubt to show the Syracusans he meant business while clearly indicating his aggressive intentions to the Athenians , The Athenians for their part didn’t even bother responding to the Heralds demand and instead mustered their own troops in battle order ahead of Gylippus forces, as his troops arrayed themselves into battle lines Gylippus noticed the disorder of the Syracusan forces while his own mismatch of troops from his various allies lacked cohesion over broken ground and were themselves not arrayed in proper order. Deciding that this was a very dangerous position for his troops Gylippus ordered an withdrawal to more open ground to the rear of his position, had the Athenians been commanded by a more bold or daring commander they may have taken the opportunity to capitalize on the confusion of Gylippus forces and attacked, an successful attack may have discredited the Spartan general and discouraged further resistance by the Syracusans. However the cautious Nicias choose to remain close to the walls and the opportunity to nip Gylippus in the bud slipped through their fingers. Sensing the timidity of Nicias Gylippus resolved to carry out a daring offensive the following day that would seize the initiative from the Athenians. The next day Gylippus ordered a two pronged assault on the Athenian position, the first assault would be a diversionary attack made up with the majority of his forces on the Athenian walls while the main attack would be on the Athenian fort at Labdalum which was obscured from the Athenians view in their current position defending the walls. With the main Athenian force pinned down defending the walls Gylippus launched his assault on Labdalum which completely overwhelmed the lightly defended position seizing the fort and all it’s contents, Nicias had in a spectacular oversight had allowed the Spartan to not only capture a considerable amount of Supplies but also the Athenian War Chest by failing to adequately defend this key position and it’s important contents.



    An artist's impression of the type of walls utilized in sieges by the Ancient Greeks, The use of walls by besiegers would often be opposed by the counter walls of those under siege to prevent encirclement.

    Gylippus immediately ordered the construction of a counter wall to block the path of the Athenian northern siege wall towards Trogilus and complete their circumnavigation of Syracuse. The Spartan now proposed a daring night assault on a weakly defended completed section of the Northern wall near to the sea, The Athenians however became alert to Gylippus forces approach and marched out in force to oppose him, Gylippus wisely decided to abandon the risky night assault on the wall. While both sides continued to build walls and counter walls Gylippus regularly brought his forces out to challenge the Athenians however Nicas refrained from rising to the bait, undermining his men’s morale while slowly rebuilding the Syracusans shattered confidence. Nicias was beginning to be very concerned over the safety of his forces, his illness continued to get worse and he recognised the superior skill and daring of Gylippus. Therefore he abandoned any idea’s of conquering Syracuse and sought to safeguard an escape route for own forces, instead of trying to harass or prevent the Syracusan building efforts or redouble the Athenian efforts to complete the Northern wall he decided to build a series of forts to the south of the Great Harbour at Plemmyrium to replace Labdalum as the main Athenian store and base of operation. With the loss of Labdalum the Athenians had also lost an escape route to the North while Plemmyrium near the ocean would provide an escape route via the sea. This location in time would prove a very poor choice, it’s proximity to a swamp, lack of adequate foraging and the ease from which the Syracusan could attack small foraging parties would in time highlight another spectacular command failure of Nicias. For now though he split his forces with those engaged in the fortification of the forts at Plemmtrium while the main force remained garrisoned at Epipolae. It would be this division of Nicias forces that would lead to the next encounter between the opposing forces.

    Next time Glyppus leads a series of assaults on Nicias forces while external powers begin to funnel more forces into Sicily resulting in Nicias second and most devastating deception of the Athenian Assembly, Join us next time for the fourth part of Democracy Humbled-The Great Athenian Siege of Syracuse 415BC-413BC.


    Hobbes.

    Who nominated members and/or voted for the winners of the 2011 Member Awards? If you did so then you may also be interested in reading some interviews from some of those award winners, thanks to our great writer, Hobbes.. It's your chance to learn more about some of our diverse membership.

    2011 Member Awards Interviews

    Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 
    -Heinz-
    Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 
    H: First of all thank you for allowing me to interview you. Tell us a bit about you. How did you join the site?

    HG: I joined back in 2006. I think in order to thank florin83 in the RTR Platinum 1.6 forum. Literally just to post a "thank you" to him saying how much he has helped me and others get RTRPE to work. Then I didn't post for a year. I came back for the M2TW mods. Specifically Lusted's Lands to Conquer at first. Then I saw Stainless Steel and Broken Crescent.

    H: How do you feel about winning this award? What do you have to say to those who voted for you?

    HG: Its a nice warm feeling to know some people out there appreciate just even a little of what you post. Its nice giving other men pleasure, and as my father once told me in a letter from prison, its very hard to give men pleasure when other men are watching. LOVE YOU DAD. I also want to say thanks to those that voted for me.

    H: You won the Funniest member award. Do people consider you funny in your everyday life as well?

    HG: Different people have different senses of humour, sometimes when i say something i think is hilarious, people look at me like I have molested their cat and posted a video of it online with a Nickelback soundtrack. And sometimes things which are obviously funny shouldn't be said or done in a work environment due to sexual references and unnecessary excessive touching. I know that now.

    H: Are there any comedians/entertainers or even members of the forum whose humour you appreciate?

    HG: There are loads of guy on here who I find funny. Caduet, Sphere, Legio, Jom, Harry Lime, Jimkatalanos are pretty entertaining guys. I get the feeling i would get on with these guys in real life having a pint with them or keeping them against their will in the back of my Ford Transit, maybe even chasing them through a forest after they wriggle free. As they savour the daylight one last time. The blackness is about to envelope them. Out of breath they whisper to me "why?...why?". Sometimes...sometimes I cry for days afterwards. I kept Legio's towel.
    On TV, I love Chris Morris and David Mitchell.

    H: Any closing comments?

    HG: want to say a big thank you to the guys who organised the awards. Thanks for giving up your time fellas.



    -Narf-
    Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 
    H: Hello and thank you for allowing me to interview you. First of all, I would like to ask to tell us a bit about you and how you joined the forum.

    N: I am a student in Denmark, I like listening to Muse, Coldplay, Eivor and other artists. I joined TWC, on June 22, 2010. I joined to find some kind people to converse with.

    H: Thank you for the answer. You were nominated for quite a lot of categories. What do you think of the members' opinion of you and your contributions?

    N: I was quite surprised, happily so. It gladdened me to see so many kind people thinking of me worthy to be in the member awards, I'm honoured that they think that I deserved to be nominated for the categories, and my love goes to them all with a thanks.

    H: You won the graphic artist award, tell us, how did your interest in graphics design begin? Anything particular you are proud of?

    N: It started with me wanting to have a signature and avatar, because I saw so many members that had cool and pretty ones. At that time I didn't know that I could simply request one and was to shy to ask if there was a place where I could request such a thing. So I got Photoshop and it started there. I like making the graphics, but I prefer the rewarding feeling of seeing what I have made being used. That is my motivation.
    I am quite proud of this and this.

    H: You have taught some lessons in the TWC University. What do you think of it? What do you think of the people's feedback?

    N: They have been kind, everybody seems to be happy about the lessons I've taught. So that gladdens me a lot. It makes me want to teach more too. The Uni is a fantastic place, one of my favorites, where people can share knowledge and help each other. One of the best places on TWC for sure.

    H: Thank you very much for your answer. A final question: What can you say to someone who just started experimenting with graphics design?

    N: Have fun with it, don't let it become work instead of fun, try working on someone's request. Having a certain goal is great when training.. If you have any questions throw them to me and I'll try and answer them.

    H: That's it! Again, thank you for participating.


    -Legio-
    Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 
    First of all, tell us a bit about yourself. How did you join the site?

    I joined the site in March 2008. I had gotten Rome: Total War Gold Edition about a year beforehand (sometime in 2007, I think) but hadn't really played it much. Since I played on a laptop with no mouse I couldn't zoom in on the battlefield; I could only watch helplessly as my majestic squares of men were crushed in completely noobish ways. I kept trying to pull LOTR-style cavalry charges with my Equites (head-on into Gallic spear warbands). I played on and off until I reinstalled it and started looking for strategy guides and the like. This is when I discovered Total War Center. My first post was actually necroing a three year old thread in the SPQR:TW mod forums. Hahaha I want to punch 15 year old Legio. "More than I can count?" Pompous fool; you only had three.

    You have been a staff member for a long time. How did it all begin?

    I joined content staff in June 2008 as a librarian. Hader and Ragabash were joint chief librarians at the time. Wishing to contribute to the site, I sent a private message to Hader asking if he would take me on. He agreed and I became a librarian. I haven't left content staff since.

    The PMs
    Quote Originally Posted by Hader
    Quote Originally Posted by Legio Caesar
    Hi, I am Legio Caesar.
    Can you just explain to me what a librarian does and if I meet the requirements to join? It sounds cool-you patrol the wiki pages right?
    I take it you are not too familiar with the Script then? Well no worries. Basically, a librarian is going to search the site for articles written by members, and they then submit them for review in the Script to see if we will allow it to be publicised in the Scriptorium main. And yes, some members are assigned to keep the Script wiki updated.

    That is the basic idea of it; there is much more to it though, its a little more complicated than it sounds. However, with just a little hard work and dedication, it becomes quite an easy job, while still quite fun. If you wish to join, go to your Group Memberships section of your Networking profile, and apply the the librarians group there.

    -Hader
    Quote Originally Posted by Legio Caesar
    Quote Originally Posted by Hader
    Quote Originally Posted by Legio Caesar
    Quote Originally Posted by Hader
    I take it you are not too familiar with the Script then? Well no worries. Basically, a librarian is going to search the site for articles written by members, and they then submit them for review in the Script to see if we will allow it to be publicised in the Scriptorium main. And yes, some members are assigned to keep the Script wiki updated.

    That is the basic idea of it; there is much more to it though, its a little more complicated than it sounds. However, with just a little hard work and dedication, it becomes quite an easy job, while still quite fun. If you wish to join, go to your Group Memberships section of your Networking profile, and apply the the librarians group there.

    -Hader
    Sounds really cool! I will join!
    But where are those articles- in the Vestigia Vetustatis?
    The articles the Script has you mean? Those are all right there, in the Scriptorium main forum.
    CHEERS LEGIO CAESAR



    Tell me about content in general, and what your responsibilities are.

    Content is a large and wonderful branch of official Total War Center staff. We release publications, videos, and podcasts by the bucket and also take modder requests (such as promotional art, videos, strategy guides, and the like).

    Responsibilities past and present in the order in which they come to mind:
    ~Librarian June 2008-December 2009
    ~Chief Librarian December 2009-January 2011
    ~Assistant Chief Librarian from about January '09 until I was made Chief
    ~Podcast Contributor (I am in two or three with one unreleased podcast) 2009-2010
    ~Helios Writer (I wrote two articles for Astaroth. He is a very handsome German whom I had the pleasure of meeting in August) 2010
    ~Head of the A-Team (the branch that fulfills modder requests and helps assign them to other branches) 2010-present
    ~Picture of the Week, Unedited Picture of the Week Competitions Manager 2010-2011. The previous manager had disappeared due to personal issues (that dreaded real life!) and I stepped in. I also integrated POTW and its related competitions (more on that below) into official TWC content staff. The current manager is LuckyLewis. He is a fine man.
    ~I founded the Video of the Month competitions which now run alongside POTW under Lewis' jurisdiction.
    ~When jimkatalanos was content admin I was Content Advisor. This meant I helped him administer some areas of content. Not even going to try putting dates to it as he's been Hex several times now.
    ~I was also Advisor/Assistant to Astaroth and Aradan when they were Content Hex.
    ~Under Belisarius I was made (and still am) Content Deputy, which is a direct assistant to the twin terrors Belisarius and Omnipotent-Q (Omni came recently - previously I was assistant to just Belle)
    ~I ran several recruitment drives for content staff (Wiki, etc)
    ~I was Chief Editor of the Eagle Standard from January 2011 to January 2012
    ~Other things I will definitely remember once this is published and it will be too late to dazzle everyone with :'(

    You won the Calvin Content Staff Award. Considering the history behind its name, what are your feelings towards the fact that you won and the members who voted?

    I'm completely humbled. I remember reading Calvin's Eagle Standard and thinking on how great they were. He was one of the best members of content the branch ever had and I am a bit stunned that people think I would deserve the Calvin award.

    And finally, do you have any advice for someone who just joined the TWC staff?

    Jom really likes Eastern Europeans. If you go on his wall and post various Polish or Ukrainian songs (I recommend Nalyvaymo Brattia) he will take you in hand and train you to be a strong staff member. If you cannot post on his profile PM it to him. I do it all the time via MSN; he enjoys it so much. He calls me his Slavic pet and everyone laughs.

    On a serious note: we all begin somewhere. Seriously, read those PMs I sent to Hader. Look at people's early post history and don't be shy.


    -Sphere-
    Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 
    H: Congratulations on your award Sphere! Tell us a bit about you. How did you end up around these parts?

    S: I was active on the old Rome Total Realism site until it met an untimely death. When the RTR team migrated its operations over here I followed, and eventually branched out into the world of TWC.

    It was kind of like living a wholesome upper-middle class life when one day your father dies in a freak yachting accident. Your mother doesn't have the financial wherewithal to continue making mortgage payments on the ranch-style suburban house so you have to move to a condo on the less than desirable side of the city. She's working a low paying clerical job during the day and waitressing at night to keep the family above the poverty line. With mom never home, and no money for extracurricular activities like sports, you end up melding into the bad influences in the neighborhood. It starts out small, nothing hard, just marijuana and booze. Then you start using the harder stuff, and selling too. Next thing you know you are doing 8 to 12 for possession of a class 2 narcotic with intent to sell and illegal possession of firearm. Sitting in the cell of a medium security federal prison, surrounded by petty criminals, you ask yourself, how the hell did I end up here?

    So yeah, it was similar to that.

    H: You won the best Scientific poster award. Is Science something that has always interested you? How do you feel about discussing scientific issues with the other members?

    S: I don’t know if saying I am interested in science is correct. The process of science; repeating tests, peer review, eliminating systematic bias, etc. doesn’t really peak my interest, much in the same way that the field of statistics doesn’t really interest me.

    What does deeply interest me, or perhaps more accurately what deeply frustrates me, is not understanding how something works. For example, I don’t like using mechanical pencils that I haven’t taken apart and figured out how they operate. I get the same urge when flying in an airplane, but so far the FAA has not let me indulge my curiosity.

    Science appeals to me only in so far as it helps satisfy my curiosity. Thankfully, there are far more knowledgeable people than I lurking around the Athenaeum who help me scratch that itch.

    H: How do you feel about receiving this award?

    S: First of all I would like to thank my personal Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. I would also like to thank the Academy, but most importantly I would like to thank my parents. Without them this dream would never have come true.

    H: Any closing comments? Any advice for people who just started getting into Science?


    S: Develop an unhealthy love for math. Friends will betray you, family members will pass away, lovers will break your heart, but differential calculus will always be there when you need it.


    -rez-
    Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

    H: First of all congratulations on your award! Tell us a bit about yourself, and how you joined the forum.


    Thank you Hobbes and a big thank you to everyone who voted for me in the contest. I was up against some very worthy historians in that category. I joined TWC a long while back after I had heard about the amazing wonders of Rome: Total War. I believe my first few posts were made with the intention of increasing the Parthian unit roster for the Rome Total Realism modification. I was a little less concerned with history back then and a lot more concerned with making the Parthian faction uber badass.

    H: You won the Osceola Historical Posting Award. How do you feel about this?


    This is my second Osceola award and I have been doubly honoured on both occassions by the esteem that my fellow history enthusiasts have given me but also by the fortune of carrying the award that memorialises Osceola. He was a good man and he deserved better.

    H: Could you tell us how you interest in History began? Why Persian history in particular?

    I must confess I began my career in history with a heavy nationalist bias, as I am half Iranian, and if you look at my earlier posts you will be able to see the very poor quality of my historical analyses. The Persians have been given a rather poor representation by the classical historians (and those who take them as gospel) and I suppose I felt the need to rectify this erroneous image however I could. I am currently in the second year of my PhD where I hope to give a clear and balanced picture of the Persian army. My days of foolhardy bias towards the Persians are well behind me I hope

    H: What do you think about discussing historical issues with other members?

    I think it is an incredible way to develop your historical knowledge as well as your ability to analyse literature and interpret evidence. The endless ranks of people willing to debate any issue in the VV allow a budding historian to address a historical problem from many different angles he might never have considered otherwise. I owe my current historical competence to my years of argument in the VV with posters such as Phoebus, FliegerAD, Conon394, SigniferOne, Timoleon of Corinthos and of course SpartanJKM. Without their participation in my education I would be less than half the historian I am today.

    H: Any advice for someone who likes to post in VV, and for those who just started reading history?


    You can have a lot of fun making people look stupid by pointing out where they have made mistakes but you will learn a great deal more with polite discussion and a willingness to concede points and learn from people even if you stand on different positions. I would also advise newer historians to go directly to the primary sources rather than parroting off other peoples opinions. But most important of all is to simply talk and learn about what you love. Everything else comes naturally after that.


    -Gigantus-
    Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 
    H: Gigantus congratulations on winning the "Best Mentor" award! Before you became a mentor, you were just a new guy on the block, tell us, what was it like for you when you first joined?

    G: The first time I was considered worthy of this award in 2009 I wasn't really thinking of myself as a mentor and it came as quite a surprise when I received the PM notifying me of the award. I think it all started when I began my "Creating a World" series of tutorials, small tools and resources for M2TW. The more tutorials there were, the more member's questions had to be answered - in threads and in PMs. So you could say that it slowly developed into a sort of mentor\pupil relationship with those that came back for more. My favorite question, which still brings a smile to my face, was: "I want to mod, which files do I need?" That member is now the leader of the German mod 1648 which I am representing here at TWC.

    H: In what ways do you believe that you have helped members the most? How do you feel about being considered such an important contributor?

    G: It will not be in the answers that I provided, in my opinion, rather by being available for even the 'noobiest' stuff. This second award most likely also included some votes of my moderation\admin mentees - between the modders and themselves they certainly did their best to keep me busy with their questions.

    H: Could you tell us a bit about yourself?

    G: Due to my retirement in RL a couple of years ago I needed something to keep me busy. Seeing that there are no grown up men, only overgrown boys, and chess is kind of boring in the long run I developed an interest in the Total War series, starting with RTW.
    What got me into modding was the inability to build a watchtower on the small Balearic Islands in RTW. After several hit and misses and final success my triumph was overshadowed by the release of M2TW to which I then took with a vengeance. The rest of that story earned me several awards, with the mentor award(s) being the most satisfying as they are not technically based.

    H: Any final words to the members who consider you their Mentor?

    G: Several of my mentees have been going on to be members that are rivaling or even outshine my achievements and that is something I am unashamedly proud of and I hope they will continue in that way. For the ones that haven't reached that lofty height I will continue to be there for them and they can be assured of my continuous support.

    H: Thank you for your time!

    G: One is glad to be of service


    -GED-
    Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 
    H: First of all thank you for this opportunity! And congratulations! Tell us a bit about the mysterious GrnEyedDvl! How did you join the forum?

    I owned a coin operated video arcade and we had expanded into PC gaming. I was looking for a mod that added archers to Carthage in RTW that a customer had suggested to me.

    H: You definitely know about computers. Is this that has always interested you? Is it something you have studied?

    I wrote my first program at the age of 11 on a TRS80 Model 3 (yes that makes me old!).
    I currently have 2 degrees in Computer Science, one for networking and one for programming, though the programming one is very old and I dont keep as current on it as I should.

    H: Best Technical Poster award! Have you always been eager to help out with technical issues? When did you join the technical staff? How do you feel about the fact that you won?

    I have always helped people with technical stuff, whether its with computers or other things.
    I have been on Tech Staff since 2008.

    H: Any words for someone who is studying about computers and hardware or is trying to learn about these things?

    Use an old machine for a test box, and don't be afraid to break it!


    -lolIsuck-
    Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 
    H: First of all congrats on your award! Tell us about yourself, why did you join TWC?

    Well, thank you again. I joined TWC on december 18, 2010 to check out some mods, TATW in particular. I actually forgot about the site for a month and downloaded it only in January. From then on I payed regular visits and from February/March I started spamming wich explains my post count. I was always interested in modding but didn't start to look into it until this summer and I have started work on my own mod a few months ago.

    H: You were voted the fastest rising Newb. How do you feel about it?

    I'm really happy I won an award but I also think I didn't deserve it. That's the reason I didn't expect it at all. I was thinking of something like 5 votes because of all the nominees I felt I was the one that deserved it the least. My contributions are almost non-existent, at least less then the other nominees. Maybe it's like the people that repped me when I was wondering why people voted for me said, they either confused it with the fastest spammer competition (which I would have lost^^) or people judged by my rep I must have done something extraordinary.

    H: Where are you active the most?

    From February on I was very active in the Coliseum but I left that after the summer and went to the Thema Devia instead, which is of course a huge improvement-_-. From the beginning I have been active in the M2TW forum. I also randomly visit other parts of the forum except the ETW, NTW and S2TW forums as I rarely play the games and the mods don't really appeal me.

    H: Any advice for someone who just joined?

    Contribute, don't get infractions, don't become a brony (I advice you not to go to the Coliseum as it's their stronghold) and finish school.

    Ow and don't get addicted to TWC... (You'll fail but just saying)


    -Jom-
    Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 
    H: Jom, congratulations on your awards! How do you feel about being voted the best Debater and best Political poster?

    J: I feel very grateful to everyone who has voted for me as, just like last year, I faced very stiff opposition and I hold everyone else who was against me in the polls in very high esteem, so it was by no means a foregone conclusion; any one of us could have won, and I am gratified that it was me, but I also think that everyone else who featured deserves some recognition. Unfortunately the awards are something of an all or nothing, with no prizes for second place, even though some people certainly merited something, as each one of the people against whom I was competing are individuals for whom I stop and take the time to really read what they have posted, as it is always something cogent, relevant, and thought-provoking.

    H: Did you become active in the D&D forums immediately after you joined or where you participating in something else at the time?

    J: Oh not at all. My join date is 4th June 2007, but I believe I first joined to post a question about a mod I had downloaded but couldn't get to work. Ironically for an administrator on a site such as this, Total War modding is really a closed book to me, and even the meanest startpos editing modifications show infinitely more capacity for modding than I have ever possessed. I'm not sure why the D&D forums didn't catch my eye at the time, but I think in the end I am grateful that they didn't, because back in 2007 I was rather impetuous and headstrong, two characteristics that generally get you both disliked and into trouble in the D&D. I first really started posting in there at the beginning of March 2010, after suddenly becoming aware of the world outside the Total War forums, where I had occasionally been brought back by the release of Empire followed by Napoleon.

    H: What is your opinion on the D&D forums? How would you judge the post quality there? Also, which is the sub-forum you post in the most?

    J: Now that is a tough set of questions. I will answer the easiest of the three first, and that is the third: I mainly post in the Political Mudpit, as I consider it very important to be au fait with current events. I enjoy knowing what's going on in the world, and the Mudpit can give what is often a unique perspective on the stories that some newspaper articles may lack in that people who actually live in the countries concerned and are being impacted by the events are able to describe them to us. Obviously this can be both extremely useful, but also counter-productive and a source of great irritation, which brings me onto the answer for the other two questions. The D&D, and the Mudpit in particular, is something of a poisoned chalice. It's a great source of news and opinion, but there is a great deal of noise, irrelevance, and bias to sift through to get to the interesting, well-articulated, and above all accurate posts. There are some who wear their agendas on their sleeves, and there are others where it takes a few weeks to notice the trends, but once you have noticed them they stay apparent. The post quality varies wildly from poster to poster, but I am lucky in that I know enough to be able to discard what is not accurate or objective, and to keep the important, interesting stuff.

    I'm not exaggerating at all when I say I have learnt a great deal from reading the Mudpit over the past two years. I consider myself much better versed in world affairs and geopolitics than before, but this is unfortunately due to only a few posters rather than the majority.

    H: Any tips for aspiring debaters?

    J: Think before you post. Read and re-read what you are about to post, and please source any claims that aren't common sense or widely-known fact, especially if it's statistics. And try and be as objective as possible. There is nothing uglier than a poster with an obvious axe to grind opening a thread (or threads) about the same kind of issue again and again. It's what drags the Mudpit down from what it could be, although it is symptomatic of the internet as a whole; its anonymity affords those who normally wouldn't express their views for fear of being shunned for their extremity a platform to diffuse them.

    Make sure there's always some train of logic in your posts. A good post should respond directly to what someone posted previously, without distorting what that person was trying to get across in his post. Be honest in your debating; it's very clear when people aren't, and it's very off-putting.

    H: A bit about yourself

    J: I'm sure most if not all of your readers will already be familiar with me, especially as I had an interview in this very publication not too long ago. I live in the suburbs of Paris and am an English teacher at a local and, unfortunately, very deprived school. The work isn't exactly glamorous, but I can feel like I'm making a small difference — presenting these children with what is probably their first (and maybe last) native speaker of English, allowing them to put their knowledge into practice in a slightly less artificial environment than the usual roleplays that take play in class. It's not what I plan to do with the rest of my life, however, and I intend to move back to Britain at the start of the summer to go back to university as a post-graduate. After that, I'll see where life decides to lead me, but I'm sure it will always be in a pedagogical role, whether at school or university, in French or English; either would be fine.


    -Ishan-

    Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 
    H: First of all, congratulations on your four (!) awards. Tell us a bit about yourself. How did you join the site, what was it like back then?

    I: Thanks, the credit goes to the TW community itself who thought that i was worthy enough.
    Well there is nothing much to know about me, I’m 24 years old & an electrical engineer who just likes to play a few games lol. I live in Kashmir, India which is quite known for its scenic beauty. Nonetheless it's a violent place which is regularly attacked by terrorists or freedom fighters from their perspective lol, anyways life's good, I have nothing to complaint about and it’s a lot peaceful now as the Indian army has restored order here. I was born and raised in different parts of the country and I throughout my life lived like a gypsy, changed 12 schools because either my father (who works for the Indian central government) had to move into a new city or I was thrown out of the school by the dean lol. Lots of mischiefs, adventures, quite of painful memories & physical injuries etc like everybody else but, like I said earlier, life’s good and nothing to complain about, live life to the fullest. Anyways…so how I stumbled upon TWC?

    I came to TWC in search of some cheat codes for M2TW when I was awfully bored by beating the game over and over again, naturally i didn't found what i was looking for at first because it wasn't exactly a cheat code that i was trying to find. I wanted to make ancillaries, which characters received, to be transferable. By default few of them were already but not all of them so at that moment i found M2TW mod workshop and from there i learned how to mod minor things. Within few days it took a hold of me and i wanted to mod the game rather than play it. For about 3 months or so i remained a guest but when i was stuck at one modding problem I made my account solely to PM Gigantus to help me with my modding problem or just to create threads in mod workshop. TWC was the first forum i had ever joined, so needless to say it's very dear to me, almost all of my time is spent here lol.

    So in a nutshell, one can simply say that i joined the website because of gigantus lol. I used to wait all day for his replies lol as I quite enjoyed modding the game and wanted to solve the issues that I encountered almost immediately, I’m quite impatient lol.

    Sir Ron (Irishron) & Gig were the first people i met and because of them i hung around mod workshop that much. Many other helpful members in the mod workshop also helped me in improving my modding skills throughout the years and were almost always available 24/7. People like Eothese, Taiji, makanyane, wilddog, Squid, SigniferOne & countless others made the mod workshop a library. I really wished that I had joined the site back in the days of RTW as I would’ve definitely done a lot more things and would’ve had the opportunity to interact with more RTW modders who unfortunately are inactive presently.

    "What was it like back then?" I really don’t have a clue because the mod workshop and M2TW GD forums were the only places I used to hang out. After approximately 2 years i met Mr.MM in the basement section of the forums which is for software\hardware discussion and he convinced me to join content staff under him, he also helped me a lot of numerous things and taught me quite a few things about wiki, although makanyane was the one that explained typical things about wiki coding. Some of you won’t believe but it was MM who told me how to use MSN etc, earlier the world of chatting & needlessly killing of time was pretty much non-existent to me lol, I still don’t chat much but from time to time I chat with some of the precious friends I have made here. MM was the one that told me about every corner of the website, curia and what not. Love you brother!

    So one can easily summarize that TWC was, is & will remain fun as long as cool people don’t abandon it; without these people newbies like me wouldn’t have hung around for so long. God Bless all you cool people out there!

    H: Could you tell us how you feel for receiving the awards? What do you have to say to the members that expressed their opinion?

    I: Well lol I was quite surprised to see that I won in 4 categories because other nominees deserved them as well & I’m honoured that members feel that I’m worthy enough. Certainly the after effects is what always puts a pressure on an individual because when you receive something from a group of people and are tagged as “xyz” then one really has to live up to that mark, so I really hope that I can live up to the expectations of my fellow members because in the end I’m an average gamer like everybody else. I have my limits as well & have the tendency to lose patience on certain occasions, so during those times I rely on my comrades in the den to walk me through the mine field, without them I couldn’t have achieved all of this.

    Anyways if I ever screw up or if any of you guys don’t like the way I’m doing things around the forums as a staff member then don’t hesitate to confront me via PM and talk about it, perhaps I’m not seeing something obvious or vice-versa.

    H: You were voted the friendliest and most helpful member of TWC. What do you think of the community in terms of respecting and helping each other? What do you think is your biggest contribution?

    I: Well as far as the respect goes on TWC I have always practiced the same principles that I followed in RL, which is, you don’t have to respect anybody anywhere, it’s really up to you to decide. Don’t respect people just because they are on certain positions. Give respect to those who give respect to you, if you don’t feel like it then don’t bother, regardless to say don’t disrespect people either lol. If your heart is in the right place then respect is something that will automatically generate for worthy people, it takes time to know a person so do it when you feel that particular person deserves it.

    As far as the help goes, I think TWC works just like we live in RL. In a community it’s essential to help out each other, human is a social animal after all & by helping each other out and being friendly with each other is how a community fosters; I mean who would bother to buy or build a house in a locality that has a high crime rate? So a decent and friendly environment is the laying foundation of any successful community. Many people have worked hard to make what TWC is today so we all have to ensure at least it stays that way & doesn't degrades. Had certain people been rude and idiotic to me & you then we wouldn’t be here now would be?

    And my biggest contribution? Well I would say my participation in mod workshop and staff work, still I believe I haven’t done anything “big” per say, I love to think that there is much more to work on because imo progress has no limits.

    H: Were do you post more often?

    I: Well my sole resting place is Medieval II section, earlier I had an average of 80-100 posts per day lol, it was when posts were counted in the moderator den also, but then few of us requested to disable the post counter and Squid disabled it. Recently my posting has been quite reduced though due to a lot of site work, unfortunately. But I browse Total War section heavily, Basement and TD (unwillingly) because I try to moderate those areas as well with my fellow moderators.

    H: You are a moderator, how did this happen? Why did you choose to become one?

    I: Well it all happened unexpectedly, I was recently patronized by Squid and, in addition, at that time I was also serving as an assistant director in the wiki team so I was already familiar with mod tools as I was a local moderator there. I used to report a lot of misplaced threads from the Medieval 2 section and Pontifex Maximus was the one who noticed my reports and my attitude, he just asked in the report about me and gig and Sir Ron were already familiar with me & so said that I might be a worthy addition.

    After that YD23 was the one who approached me via PM, I was both quite excited and a bit hesitant but YD’s cool and friendly attitude really convinced me and thus I had no reason to deny. Back then I was a major noob lol, YD23 was the one that introduced me to the gang & really watched over me and explained everything I wanted to know when I was new to all of this, guys like Sir TFON in the den worked really hard on me. YD was one of the politest moderators I know, he has a certain hand in shaping my attitude whilst moderating, he's sensible and more mature than me I would say.

    H: Now that you are considered the favourite member of moderation stuff, could you tell us a bit about moderating itself and what your approach is? Do you find it difficult? Is it hard to cope with some people's reactions?

    I: Before I proceed further with this I would like to mention my own favourite moderator, who is Darth Red. Even though he wasn’t even nominated iirc, I truly believe he’s the best moderator. He is one of the most active moderator and a leading one from D&D section. The amount of crap he tolerates and the way he resolves issues & conflicts via friendly PMs is just astounding, if he’s infracting someone (which is very very rare) then he has a bloody good reason to do it and only when all methods have been failed. He works more in the background so that’s why he’s not known enough but D&Ders will certainly know him. He’s one of my best friends that I have made on TWC & always watches over me when I lose my cool. Respect brother!

    Anyways back to your question, I would say moderation is a prime necessity to run a forum successfully. Like there is no point of sitting in a library to study if there is no silence, so moderation itself does the same job, it tries to maintain the decent atmosphere required for the development of forum by providing a comfortable and friendly environment to its members. In my opinion, moderating itself is like baking a cake, you raise the temperature too much and you might end up burning it or lower the temperature too much then it might not bake properly\evenly. So it needs to be balanced, which of course can only be achieved by a group with different & flexible mindsets not a single individual, under the supervision of active & dedicated administration. Nonetheless we do make mistakes and learn from them so no one’s perfect here, except squid of course as he wasn’t designed by sim to make errors lol (j\k).

    And about my approach? Well it’s nothing complicated really. I’ve been always polite with new members as they’re new and you never know when that guy might get hooked up and produce some outstanding mods and such for us. Pretty much every one of us is easily approachable and willing to talk & help out the guy if he is new & not a troublemaker, so my behavior\attitude I would say is not exceptional or different from other moderators. There are of course certain users, I would say only a handful, that tend to enjoy in needlessly bothering moderation by not following ToS or by trolling other members, if I’ve never spoken to them then I try the friendly approach with them at first if they’re trolling in my assigned area, if that fails then I don’t waste my time on them, I mean if someone is doing it intentionally what else are you going to do, right? Infractions in early stages seem to keep these users in check & then there are other methods in which we usually involve a senior just to make sure we're not doing anything harsh.

    I spot a lot of rule breaks all across the forums & it’s quite understandable because no one really posts by keeping ToS sheet right beside him\her so at those stages we come and remind these users were they’re incorrect and normally they appreciate the fact that we PMed them instead of infracting them, friendly approach firsthand has always worked out best for me, of course this is something I learned & was taught by my seniors. Infractions are given only when we think that someone is doing something intentionally, like I may simply edit out a censor bypass and if I spot it again then I might edit it out again and via PM tell him\her the rules just to make sure he knows what he’s\she’s doing. So even after that if he stills repeats then it’s quite obvious that he doesn’t really gives a damn, so at that point I simply hand out a note and then penalties rack up if he keeps repeating it. So as you can see, it’s always on the user, if he wants to stay out of trouble then he simply can.

    As far as the difficulty goes, I don’t think it’s a major headache, that’s really for hex because as a moderator if I’m exhausted or frustrated then I know I can always back out and pass it on to my seniors. If someone is really beyond my control then I cry upon GED’s shoulder lol and trust me you don’t want to piss off this guy haha, if you’re dealing with GED then your best defense is to be honest and feel sorry about it, trying to be over-smart with him will not result any favourable results. Mostly we sort everything out by a group discussion; there are mentors and hex like Jom and Gigantus to take over. If there is some technical difficulty then Bolk, squid or pann are usually the people I run off to.

    "Is it hard to cope with some people's reactions?" Normally no because by now I think I have seen and experienced the usual stuff one could throw at me, reactions are something you’re already prepared for but actions are something you aren’t, so sometimes it could be a little tedious to manage the chaos. In any case, something unique always seems to come up every now and then and all you can do is learn from your experiences. Moreover, fortunately I don’t moderate the D&D section; people like Jom, Darth Red, Gert & DimeBagHo etc are the ones that get some real heat from people, seeing the nature of the forum, I’m pretty sure D&D moderators get more nose bleeds than TW moderators lol, moderation in Total War area and Common community forums is quite different.

    H: Any comments on the posting quality in the site? Anything that would make your life easier as a moderator?

    I: As an active member if I thought that posting quality in the site was poor then I wouldn’t have stayed here, so of course imo the quality is nice, much better than any other TW forum of course. Again in the end it depends on the topic and the member himself, like a member may give an excellent post in a modding thread but may post something poor to your taste in EMM\D&D fora. Besides people only see what they want to see, so I may ignore some of the posts that I consider spam or rubbish when viewing a thread but I know whose post not to skip like if, Heinz is posting something then obviously I won’t close the thread without reading his post because I may be losing a good laugh. On several occasions when I’m tired and quite frustrated I often view his posts to have a good laugh and chill out, we never moderate when we’re stressed out as generally that may lead to a poor decision that may upset a member(s).

    GAC forums consumes quite a bit of my moderating time because there is a lot of spam there which I understand because the crowd that dwells here consists primarily of ppl that are neither interested in modding nor in debating someone; they just want to hang around and have some fun, I mean that’s the intended purpose of this section anyways. But some people try to troll members & test moderation there. So if people & especially TD posters cooperates with moderation, which some of them do, then that certainly makes my\our job easier. But what really helps a moderator is a report, basically the fact remains, is that we can’t be everywhere all the time so if members really want to help out moderators in making their job (which is to maintain a peaceful environment on the forums) easier then please report if you spot anything that you consider is noteworthy for moderation.

    H: And finally any advice to the members?

    I: LOL I’m terrible at giving advices, many friends that I have in RL can confirm this. Anyways with respect to forums: just be yourself, enjoy the forums & don’t bother too much about forum rules because when you’re doing something wrong, unintentionally, we will remind & guide you anyways. And always remember in the end, we’re all gamers and this is just a gaming forum so don’t take anything emotionally & then get upset over it, although I know easier said than done as sometimes a thing or two gets to you.

    With respect to RL: Never betray or use your friends for your personal gain or pleasure. If someone does that to you then never forget it & learn from the experience. Try to avoid fights as much as you can but if you’re cornered and don’t have any choice then give your 100% to it, never back down from a fight.

    H: Any closing comments?
    I: Cooking is fun and exercise daily. And if you're good at something then always remember there is a person somewhere nearby who can beat you at it, this helps to keep one's ego in check.

    H: Thank you for your time!
    I: You’re welcome brother.


    GHANDI, MATE

    Let me introduce, GHANDI, MATE, who is back working in Content. His article is a quick introduction to the religion of the ancient Greeks. You readers are lucky, getting articles about Greek and Norse religion!


    Introduction to: Ancient Greek Religion

    Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 
    Richard Gordon describes Ancient Greek Religion as a series of grids superimposed on top of one another: a topographic grid that works geographically; a temporal grid that deals with divine associations with calendar dates such as festivals; and a social/thematic grid that concerns religious hierarchies within the normal structures of society, as well as the details of how divine cults worked.

    The first grid is a topographic one, dealing with the importance of places such as cities, and their relationship with the divine and supernatural. It is a hierarchical grid starting at the top with main city temples, as temples were often the most important buildings within a city, and the important, ‘high ranking’ deities related to the cities. For example the temple of Apollo at Corinth which formed the city centre. There were also ‘lower ranking’ temples such as that of Hera in Olympia – the term ‘lower ranking’ used here not to describe the deity as low compared with other gods and goddesses, but to show it is not the ‘main’ deity of the city – down to shrines to lesser and demi-gods such as Heracles or Hygeia, found on street corners and villages and on roads. Many places had associations with the divine, whether it be Olympian deities, their restricted manifestations, for example Apollo Boedromios, who was thought to help with law suits, or founder heroes, for example Bottos at Cyrene. Topography distinguished between Olympian divinities and those of the underworld, the so-called “chthonian” divinities, as well as between Olympians and heroes. This grid could also be adapted and used for colonies to show their dependence on mother cities. As well as this it all fit into a larger PanHellenic grid to show religious unity of Hellas.


    The Temple of Apollo at Corinth

    The second grid is temporal – everything fitted into its place in a calendar year. For example fairs, markets and festivals associated with certain deities. Some of this was known by all such as festival dates, however much was only known to local experts such as the local initiate women.

    The third grid is social, and is the traditional system of rules for civic cults, for example, aristocratic cults privileged over popular cults, males religious rules were above those of women and children, and citizens above those of resident aliens and slaves. Not only social but supernatural, for example the cult of the Nymphs which linked landscapes, genealogies, patterns of mythic narrative, women’s rites of passage, and themes of wildness and domestication and destruction and fertility.

    Another important part of Greek religion is the practical aspect, as well as the theoretical grid aspect. Sanctuaries such as the Athenian Acropolis, Delphi – the so-called “Omphalos” or “navel of the world”, and Olympia were important and sacred places of worship. They had boundaries indicated by markers and were considered separate from the normal world. They were places to congregate for rituals and festivals, and had places for votive offerings such as statues, for example korai and armour. Votive offerings were voluntary dedications to the gods, and were often ad hoc, as well as symbolic. For example dedication of armour would be to thank the gods for a military victory, and also in some sanctuaries which were panhellenic, this often had a second purpose of showing off a cities military might in front of other cities. This was important to cities as religion was very competitive in a way, with many cities building bigger and better temples than the others to try and prove their worth to the gods.


    The Sanctuary at Delphi

    Festivals often took place in sanctuaries and were designed to maintain a good relationship with the supernatural powers. They were pleasant and happy experiences with good food, company and entertainment. As well as this they were considered so important that Athens even had 60 days per year devoted to festivals. They were often agnostic, and included a procession, a sacrifice, a contest and a banquet.

    Innovation of divinities and cults was continual, and welcomed even, if it was in the interests of contemporary politico-cultural interests. This led to a religious system and its grids that could be partially recomposed when needed. For example, the specialist healing cult of Asclepios at springs which had always been there but were now being interpreted differently, making it the aforementioned topographic grid which had been changed in this case. However, whilst religion was open to a level of change, the right to do so was held only by the community of adult male citizens. Any individual who attempted it, especially foreigners or women, were severely punished, usually by execution.

    Last edited by Lord Rahl; March 05, 2012 at 09:51 PM.

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    Default Re: Helios 62 - Awards Edition & More!

    Leslie Knope

    In the last issue of The Helios, I asked if members would volunteer to become forum reporters. Leslie Knope volunteered to do that and for this issue has taken on reporting on the Political Mudpit, TWC University, and Garb's Fight Club. I must say, he did a fine job. Let's hope he continues to report uniquely


    January Forum Report: Mudpit, TWC University, & Garb's Fight Club

    Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 
    Political Mudpit

    The new year has come and gone, and oddly enough the world has not ended yet! Or else we would have seen a topic about it on the Mudpit. But before we begin an introduction is in order: "Hai". Alright first of all I have to say that I am an occasional peruser of the Mudpit, I take occasional comment in the Mudpit from time to time, before I flee to locations unknown. As such you can expect a neutral tone in the report and frankly I want to avoid this post in becoming a bully pulpit like what occurred (in my opinion) in the previous incarnations of these forum reports. Think of my version as the fifth incarnation of the Doctor!

    But enough of idle banter, the world of the Mudpit waits for no one:
    Republican 2012 Presidential Candidate Profiles
    Naturally any news pertaining to the primary race for the GOP is important during this time of the year and especially coming

    So as a civic duty and part of my community service, here is a snap shot of the candidates according to the candidate profile thread by TheDarkLordSeth

    May I present "The possible leaders of the Free world!"


    Mitt Romney


    Quote Originally Posted by TheDarkLordSeth View Post
    Abortion: Flip-flopped from pro-choice to pro-life. Generally a fence-sitter.
    Budget/Economy: Supports the Balanced Budget Amendment to the Constitution. Seeks to cap the level of spending per GDP. Supported the first stimulus bill, but opposed the 2nd stimulus package under Obama. Reduce corporate tax rates and reduce regulations of banks. Opposed bailouts of auto-industry. Allow small businesses to by-pass some regulatory statues of larger businesses. Supports line-item veto.
    Gay Issues: Opposed same-sex marriage legislation as governor, however has generally been a fence sitter on gay issues. Also opposes civil unions, but supports partnership tax benefits similar to married couples. Supports gays in the military. Has flip-flopped over constitutional marriage ban several times.
    Crime: Supports mandatory "three-strikes" sentencing law. Supports GPS tracking of criminals for life. Supports the death penalty.
    Drugs: Opposes marijuana decriminalization. Supports the war on drugs.
    Education: Supports the status quo. Supports Bush's No Child Left Behind law. Opposes teacher unions, whom he blames for failing teacher standards. Supports school prayer.
    Energy/Oil: Supports funding for alternative energy sources, including biofuel and nuclear power. Also supports expanding oil refineries to strengthen America's oil supply to drive oil prices down. Supports drilling in ANWR.
    Environment: Supports stronger state role in environmental regulation instead of stronger federal regulation under the EPA. Believes in climate change.
    Foreign Policy: Supported the Iraq War. Supports the Afghan War. Has flip-flopped about Libya. Critical of Russia and China. Supports military action against Iran to prevent nuclear weapon development. Would support unrest to free Cuba and Venezuela from socialist regimes.
    Trade Policy: Is mixed about free trade. Has criticized both aspects of free trade and protectionism under Bush/Obama. Highly critical of Chinese currency manipulation and lack of labor rights. Supports pressuring the Chinese into labor rights reforms and regulations.
    Guns: Supports tighter background checks and re-instate assault weapon ban.
    Healthcare: Opposed to Obamacare and federal level mandates - supports repealing most parts of it. Strongly supports state-level action on healthcare coverage, such as his own 'RomneyCare' plan in Massachusetts.
    Homeland Security: Supports the Patriot Act and wiretapping, especially of mosques with foreign funding. Increase military spending to 4% of GDP, add 100,000 more servicemen. Renegotiate NATO treaties to influence greater European military expansion and cooperation. Let Guantanamo Bay continue and remove terrorist access to lawyers, no habeus corpus for enemy combatants.
    Immigration: Generally supports status quo. Supports a border fence. No in-state tuition for illegal immigrant families. Does not support prison time for employers who hire illegals. Does not support a path to citizenship. Seeks to reform to hi-tech VISAs. Rarely enforced immigration policy as governor.
    Social Security: Generally supports the status quo.
    Taxes: Supports abolishing the corporate tax. Supports abolishing the capital gains tax on people with incomes under $200,000. Opposes the FairTAX proposal. Opposes raising taxes on the upper class. Cut taxes as governor, but significantly raised fees for services.
    Delegates: 6

    Rick Perry


    Quote Originally Posted by TheDarkLordSeth View Post
    Abortion: Firmly pro-life. Only allowed for cases of rape and incest. Defund Planned Parenthood. Against embryonic stem-cell research.
    Budget/Economy: Supports the Balanced Budget Amendment to the Constitution. Opposed both stimulus bills under Bush and Obama.
    Gay Issues: Passed a ban on same-sex marriage as governor. Supports a constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage on the federal level.
    Crime: Does not support three-strikes law. Very strong supporter of the death penalty.
    Drugs: Supports states rights about marijuana, has no problem with states that allow medical marijuana, but opposes it in his state as governor. Seeks to make demote drug law enforcement down to the state level rather than the federal. Supports stronger action and expansion of the War on Drugs to the Mexican cartels.
    Education: Supports more privatization of education. Supports vouchers for school choice.
    Energy/Oil: Supports more oil drilling and refinement. Opposes subsidizing alternative energy development without market demand. Mixed on climate change.
    Environment: Supports stronger state role in environmental regulation instead of stronger federal regulation under the EPA.
    Foreign Policy: Supported the Iraq War. Supports the Afghan War, but also supports withdrawal timeline. Critical of China and Sudan. Supports forming a stronger alliance with India and condemns Pakistan.
    Trade Policy: Generally supportive of NAFTA and free trade agreements.
    Guns: Firmly pro-2nd Amendment. Opposes tighter gun control regulations.
    Healthcare: Vehemently opposed to ObamaCare. Supports a full repeal and is central to his campaign. Supports tort reform.
    Homeland Security: Supports the Patriot Act, but mixed on wiretaps. Increase military spending. Let Guantanamo Bay continue, no habeus corpus for enemy combatants. Opposes the creation of the Department of Homeland Security.
    Immigration: Supports path to citizenship for illegal immigrants. Supports in-state tuition for illegal immigrants. Supports more border enforcement from troopers. Opposes the expansion of the border fence.
    Social Security: Supports privatizing aspects of SS. Give state employees the choice to opt out for tax-credited private retirement accounts. Supports drastically reducing medicaid/medicare.
    Taxes: Supports the Bush tax cuts.
    Delegates: 1

    Newt Gingrich


    Quote Originally Posted by TheDarkLordSeth View Post
    Abortion: Pro-life. Supports appointing pro-life judges and defunding Planned Parenthood.
    Budget/Economy: Supports the Balanced Budget Amendment to the Constitution. Limit spending to per capita inflation growth. Believed stimulus was necessary, but very badly executed. Supports modernizing government record keeping and transactions to save billions on waste. Asserts that at least $150 billion of taxpayer money is given to crooks each year. Supports making the Federal Reserve more transparent and answerable to Congressional oversight. Opposes the Paul Ryan budget.
    Gay Issues: Opposed to same sex marriage and civil unions. Support Don't Ask, Don't Tell. Opposes amending the constitution to prevent gay marriage.
    Crime: Supports three-strikes law. Supports death penalty.
    Drugs: Supports the War on Drugs. Supports heavier sentencing.
    Education: Supports the voucher system. Supports shrinking the Department of Education and delegating education to state responsibility. Supports creationism in schools and school prayer. Permanently maintain 'God' in Pledge of Allegiance.
    Energy/Oil: Supports more oil drilling and refinement. Strongly supports expansion of nuclear power as a viable alternative to non-renewable resources.
    Environment: Opposed to the Kyoto Treaty. Views Green credits as tax loopholes. Skeptical of climate change as man-made or dangerous. Believes the Green movement would destroy industry.
    Foreign Policy: Supported the Iraq War, but not Iraq occupation. Supports the Afghan War. Critical of China and Pakistan. Wants friendly relations with Russia. Supports more action in support of regime change in Iran and North Korea.
    Trade Policy: Supports mutual trade and not free trade or protectionism.
    Guns: Pro 2nd amendment. Silent on gun issues.
    Healthcare: Vehemently opposed to ObamaCare. Supports tort reform. Supports reforming medicare to preventive health and defunding medicaid. Supports interstate commerce across state lines for insurance companies to promote competition. Supports introducing FDA reforms to drive down drug costs. Does not support Tea Party healthcare proposals.
    Homeland Security: Supports the Patriot Act, but wants reform to prevent abuse. Increase military spending. Let Guantanamo Bay continue, trials via military tribunal. Contain nuclear threats from China, North Korea, Iran, Russia, and Pakistan.
    Immigration: Supports guest worker programs. Supports National Guard deployments on the border. Deport 55,000 illegal immigrants with multiple criminal records. Support English as official language.
    Social Security: Supports privatizing SS. Give the choice to opt out for tax-credited private retirement accounts. Supports drastically reducing medicaid/medicare. Support 50% reduction in FICA taxes.
    Taxes: Supports a flat tax and the abolition of the capital gains tax. Repeal marriage and death taxes. Cut middle class tax rate.
    Delegates: 1

    Ron Paul


    Quote Originally Posted by TheDarkLordSeth View Post
    Abortion: Pro-life. Against federal level action on abortion, but leave the issue up to the states. Opposes stem-cell research. Defund Planned Parenthood. Ban partial-birth abortion.
    Budget/Economy: Supports the Balanced Budget Amendment to the Constitution. Opposes both economic stimulus bills. Opposes corporate subsidization. Supports abolishing the Federal Reserve. Supports a hard currency standard such as gold or silver. Supports reforming the welfare system and across the board cuts to all government departments. Seeks balancing the budget within 2 years of Presidency. Cut all foreign aid.
    Gay Issues: Against federal recognition of gay marriage. Supports abolishing marriage licenses. Allow marriage as a private contract between two consenting adults without state oversight.
    Crime: Opposes three-strikes law. Opposes the death penalty. Opposes defining hate crime.
    Drugs: Opposes the War on Drugs. Supports general decriminalization of most drugs and regulate them. Full legalization of marijuana. Supports medical treatment for drug addicts instead of incarceration. Believes violence and prison population will decrease when the War on Drugs ends. Legalize prostitution.
    Education: Supports abolition of the Department of Education. Public schools maintained on the state and local level. Opposes voucher system. Supports tax credits for private school and home schooling. Supports creationism taught in schools alongside evolution.
    Energy/Oil: Supports more oil drilling and refinement. Opposes subsidizing alternative energy development without market demand. Mixed on climate change.
    Environment: Supports strong deregulation of the EPA. Opposes regulation of greenhouse gases. Wants to neither inhibit nor support alternative energy industries.
    Foreign Policy: Abolish pre-emptive war without just cause or a declaration of war. Opposed to the Iraq War. Supported Afghan war, but supports withdrawal. Opposed to intervention abroad in general. Use diplomacy and trade rather than force to spread democracy. Supports ending embargo on Cuba. Defund the UN. Cut all foreign aid. Close most American bases in the Middle East, Europe, Australia, Japan, and South Korea.
    Trade Policy: Opposed to free trade agreements such as NAFTA, CAFTA, and the WTO. Supports free trade without bureaucracy.
    Guns: Firmly pro-2nd Amendment. Opposes tighter gun control regulations. Abolish the ATF.
    Healthcare: Opposed to ObamaCare, but no worse than Nixon reforms. Supports a full repeal and is central to his campaign. Supports tort reform. Supports deregulating the FDA extensively. Support opt-outs of medicare. Abolish medicaid and replace with pro-bono volunteer health clinics. Supports euthanasia. Abolish HMO managed insurance. Supports ending embargo on foreign drugs to drive down prices. Allow prescription drug cost negotiation with the market. Allow insurance companies to compete across state lines for more competition.
    Homeland Security: Opposes the Patriot Act. Opposes warantless surveillance. Abolish the Department of Homeland Security. Abolish TSA. Abolish the draft. Opposed to waterboarding. Close Guantanamo Bay. Habeus corpus for all suspected terrorists. Create more oversight and transparency of the CIA.
    Immigration: Opposes path to citizenship for illegal immigrants. Opposes in-state tuition for illegal immigrants. Remove birth-right citizenship for immigrants in the Constitution. Supports more border enforcement from troopers. Supports the expansion of the border fence.
    Social Security: Supports gradual privatization of SS. Give those under 40 the choice to opt out for tax-credited private retirement accounts. Supports abolishing medicaid, drawing down medicare.
    Taxes: Supports the Bush tax cuts. Opposes the FairTAX and the flat tax. Supports simplifying the tax code and closing loopholes. Supports gradual reduction of the income tax to nothing. Supports abolishing the IRS. Supports abolishing the marriage, death, estate, and capital gains tax.
    Delegates: 4

    Jon Huntsman


    Quote Originally Posted by TheDarkLordSeth View Post
    Abortion: Firmly pro-life. Supports a right to life amendment to the Constitution. Make 2nd-trimester abortions illegal.
    Budget/Economy: Supported the debt ceiling raise agreement. States that he would run the budget and economy very similar to how he did in Utah. Supports comprehensive job growth reform.
    Gay Issues: Opposed to gay marriage, but supports civil unions. Supported repeal of Don't Ask, Don't Tell. Generally agrees with Obama on gay rights.
    Crime: Supports status quo.
    Drugs: Supports status quo.
    Education: Supports vouchers for school choice. Opposes Bush's No Child Left Behind. Supports expansion of UCAT system for technical schooling.
    Energy/Oil: Supports cap and trade legislation. Opposes energy subsidization. Supports more domestic oil production.
    Environment: Believer in climate change. Supports capping greenhouse gas emissions but also supports deregulation of EPA. Mixed record.
    Foreign Policy: Supported the withdrawal from Iraq, but wants a permanent troop presence to aid the new regime. Supports withdrawal from Afghanistan and opposes nation building. Opposes intervention in Libya and Syria. Supports warming relations with China and south-east Asia and pressuring North Korea to drop its nuclear weapons program. Supports the establishment of a diplomatic corps to promote trade and diplomacy with the world.
    Trade Policy: Supports relaxing of trade barriers between Asia and America.
    Guns: Firmly pro-2nd Amendment. Opposes assault weapon ban.
    Healthcare: Has switched positions on healthcare from supporting healthcare reform to opposition, citing concerns over individual mandate. Supports other measures of ObamaCare like mandatory insurance for children. Supports combining aspects of ObamaCare with free market reforms.
    Homeland Security: Silent on the issue.
    Immigration: Supports path to citizenship for illegal immigrants. Supports in-state tuition for illegal immigrants. Supports more border enforcement from troopers. Opposes the expansion of the border fence.
    Social Security: Supports expanding SS.
    Taxes: Reform the tax system to a progressive and flat rate of 8%, 14%, 24%, and a corporate 25%. Close loopholes and benefits. Cut sales tax on unprepared food by half. Cut taxes on businesses with income underneath $5 million.
    Delegates: 0

    Rick Santorum


    Quote Originally Posted by TheDarkLordSeth View Post
    Abortion: Radically pro-life. Full constitutional ban on abortion with a Right to Life amendment. No abortions even in cases of rape, incest, or threat to female health. Opposed to contraceptive initiatives. Investigate Planned Parenthood and other birth-control initiatives.
    Budget/Economy: Supports the Balanced Budget Amendment to the Constitution. Opposed both stimulus bills under Bush and Obama. Opposed the budget controversy and supported debt ceiling increase. Audit the Federal Reserve. Supports lobbyist gifts to Congress.
    Gay Issues: Firmly anti-gay. Supports a constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage on the federal level, no civil unions, no partnership benefits. Condemns homosexuality as sodomy. Opposed to adding sexual orientation to hate crime definition. Opposed to protecting sexual orientation in employment. Supports Don't Ask, Don't Tell.
    Crime: Strong supporter of death penalty. Against rehabilitation based on sentencing.
    Drugs: Supports the War on Drugs. Supports increasing sentencing for drug-related offenses.
    Education: Supports status quo. Supports creationism and school prayer in school. Voted to provide federal funding only to schools which allow school prayer.
    Energy/Oil: Supports more oil drilling and refinement. Opposes funding alternative energy sources. Supported Bush's Energy Policy and investment in hydrogen cars.
    Environment: Against climate change legislation. Supports forest and fish wildlife preservation.
    Foreign Policy: Supporter of the Iraq War. Supports leaving an indefinite presence of 20,000 troops in Iraq. Supports the Afghan War. Opposes time table withdrawal from both countries. Supports loosening rules of engagement. Supports regime change in Libya, but opposes Obama's execution. Supports military action against Iran. Condemns Pakistan. Supports expanding NATO across Eastern Europe. Supports strengthening embargo against Cuba. Supports sanctions against Venezuela. Supports regime change in North Korea.
    Trade Policy: Very supportive of free trade agreements.
    Guns: Pro-2nd Amendment. Opposes tighter gun control regulations. Supports heavier sentencing for gun violations.
    Healthcare: Vehemently opposed to ObamaCare. Supports a full repeal and is central to his campaign. Supports tort reform. Supports privatizing Medicare.
    Homeland Security: Supports the Patriot Act. Supports cell phone surveillance. Increase military spending. Let Guantanamo Bay continue, no habeus corpus for enemy combatants.
    Immigration: Oppose path to citizenship for illegal immigrants. No in-state tuition for immigrants. Oppose guest worker citizenship. Support temporary guest worker visas. Support expanding the border fence. Support making English official language.
    Social Security: Supports privatizing aspects of SS. Supports raising the retirement age. Give the choice to opt out for tax-credited private retirement accounts for people under 50. Supports drastically reducing medicaid/medicare.
    Taxes: Supports the Bush tax cuts. Supports current progressive tax system with more cuts across the board. Abolish estate tax and death tax.
    Delegates: 6
    I'm sure some of some you didn't even bother to read the profiles and that's fine their stance on many issues like gay rights, limited government and the economy are pretty similar (Paul might have exceptions in certain areas).
    • US Marines Urinate on Taliban Corpses

    I think it goes without saying that this was a most regrettable act, and whether you see this as reckless and short sighted or the expected by-product of their combat environment,

    Other Interesting Topics




    TWC University


    An Excerpt from a conversation with Saga. Available at the end.

    Pardon me for evoking that old saying that we all know: "Knowledge is Power!". And if that isn't enough to get you to sign up for some internet classes here in TWC...well maybe the fact that you can get some snazzy awards (Oh yeah:, ,), interested? Well too bad there aren't any classes open right now, but if you are a person with some free time on your hands and some appropriate knowledge to pass down, be a Professor and give back to the community! Your generosity will be appreciated by your eager students, and you also get an award...

    At the moment these are the only active classes:



    Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 
    Quote Originally Posted by Saga

    Well, if one is to speak about the TWC University, then it require you to run a round around Hader who is the big Boss there. He is the one who moderatess and administrates the whole TWC University, and doing a good job at that, so all should rep him for that, great job, Hader .

    Anyway, the TWC University
    is, effectively, All the TWC members very own place to share knowledge with each other from a unimaginable variety of subjects, all in a dynamic school-course-forum-like setting. People are teaching here, making courses which take a lot of work to make and guide and help over the "Course of the Course".

    What makes all this possible is the willingness to share knowledge and the willingness to learn, obviously this is a very giving and positive place with a structure build on the principle of sharing knowledge freely.

    Here: A small quote from Hader:
    Hader Says:
    The University is open to a variety of courses, though emphasis is still on any of the skills that would be useful to members of our modding community. All that it takes to participate in a course it the willpower to do so! As long as you show up and do the work your professors give you, you should do just fine here. And in due time we can send you out the University doors into the modding world, ready to make the next biggest mod TWC will ever see. You all grow up so fast...


    What is available here is completely limited ONLY to what the Professors are currently teaching, personally I am currently teaching about GIF Animation in Photoshop, nd Legio, Hader, SonofPeverel and StealthFox are currently teaching English to all who are willing to learn.

    Beside that there's many completed courses which people can look at and learn from even though the Professor that made the course may no longer be available to help you with your questions.






    So yea I think that sums up the Sub-Forum quite well.



    Garb's Fight Club

    Born from an angry fist fight between God and his Mom, Garb's Fight Club has not lost the intensity of the debates of yore, but sadly the debaters have dwindled at the moment with only a single debate about Humanity's right to exterminate aliens species as being the only topic at the table. Regardless, the debate between Aanker and .Mitch.is a spectacle that should not be missed by anyone.


    The main points of the two debaters:

    1. Mitch: Believes that humanity does not have the right.
    2. Aanker: Believes that humanity does have the right.



    Glourious Cahoma

    Another member who volunteered to be a forum reporter was Glourious Cahoma. It's come to my understanding that he believes he is a sort of "King of the Thema Devia". Let's see what his take is on it.


    January Forum Report: Thema Devia

    Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 
    The Thema Devia... A place for everything that doesn't fit anywhere else. A place for good times, fun, and some of the weirdest things ever.

    A good example would be the What Would The World Be Like If The Great Emu War Had Never Happened? thread.

    Well certainly, we can all agree on one thing. The world would be VERY different.
    Quote Originally Posted by Vatterholm View Post
    Many things would be different.
    -China would be split in half.
    -Emus would take power and conquer Tanzania
    -The separation of South Sudan would happen a lot faster.
    Indeed. If the emu's had just pressed the advance, we'd be seeing emu generals of the Great Emu Nation.

    Post

    And even a new coat of arms!


    Post

    Luckily for us, the emus are a peaceful people(birds?), the war was won by the emus as the Australian military had to give up due to lack of success and what must've been a huge loss of dignity.

    But the Thema Devia isn't all about silly little things like wars and such. It's about what's important in life. Things like beards. The Beard Thread offers a variety of awesome posts, ranging from pictures of the glorious beards of TWC'ers to hilarious infographics and just general chat about beards.
    Wether you prefer moustaches, soulpatches, full on wizard beards, or something in between, the beard thread is for you.
    Quote Originally Posted by Putasokinhet View Post
    I have a bit of a conundrum when it comes to facial hair. If I go two days with out shaving I look like 100 miles of bad road. I grow hair under my nose, a little under my chin, and a little patch on each cheek. And I just look like someone you would see in the weekly blotter for criminal menacing or something lol. But then when I shave I look like some freshfaced 15-year-old.

    As for women:

    Based off my experience in life, and a quick Google search to see some polls and surveys to confirm my thoughts, I think it's safe to say most girls in this day and age don't like beards.

    Some people can pull it off though. Depends on the person and the type of beard. The well-trimmed scruffy look seems the least likely to gross out a girl.
    Sadly, many people(me included) have troubles growing a beard. So far, there's nothing to do but hope for a cure, or maybe just give it some more time.

    For women not liking beards though...
    Quote Originally Posted by Lord Rahl View Post
    Agreed. You must teach her why facial hair is superior to a clean baby face. Seriously, name one man who is more badass without facial hair.
    You can't! The general consensus is that beards = awesome.
    Hobbes agrees!
    Quote Originally Posted by Hobbes. View Post
    Here is a demonstration of how a beard can contribute to a higher quality of life

    Before
    Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 


    After
    Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 
    Beards... Is there nothing they can't do?

    The great threads in the TD are too numerous for me to talk about them all, but here's a few more you should definitely take a look at:
    Badass parenting: Father shoots daughter's laptop over disrespectful Facebook posting
    Angry dad showing his disrespectful daughter the consequences of her actions.
    The Ultimate Automotive Showdown Thread - Clash of the Continents
    Cars, cars, and more cars. Who makes the best ones? Which is the best one? Go read and post about it now!
    The Beer (Booze) Thread
    The thread title has the word "booze" in it. I don't think I need to say any more...


    Narf

    No one can question the time and effort Narf puts into her articles about Norse mythology. We again are graced with her deep knowledge of the subject, plus dwarves! Enjoy.


    Mythology: Article IV

    Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 
    Loki's Punishment

    After Loki had caused Balder's death, he realized that the anger of the gods could not avert, and he fled. He built a house on a mountain as a hiding place, with four doors so he could keep watch on all sides. By day, he transformed himself into a salmon and hid in a nearby river. One night he sat in his house and was wondering what tool perhaps the gods would use to catch him, so he invented the fishing net. Soon he realized that the gods had discovered him, and that they were not far away. He threw the net into the fire and ran down to the river. The Aesirs noticed the shape of the netmask in the ash and understood that it might be a tool to catch fish. Quickly they created one and went down to the river. They pulled the net through the water, but Loki squeezed in between two rocks on the bottom, so the network went over him. The Aesirs tried again, this time with weights to weigh down the net, so nothing could pass under it. Loki swam ahead of it, but realized he would soon be out in the open sea and therefore jumped over the net and swam back upstream. Aesir pulled the net through the river a third time, now with Thor wading in front. Loki could choose between the perilous seas or try another leap with the risk that Thor would take him. He decided to try to jump over the net as quickly as possible, but Thor caught him by the tail - that's why the salmon is so narrow at the rear. Now the mercy of the gods towards Loki had run out. Killing Baldur was the last offense. The Aesir took him to a cave where they put three flat stones on edge and cut a hole through each of them. Then they caught Loki's sons, Vale and Narfe and transformed Vale into a wolf who tore his brother to death. The gods took his intestines out and used them to tie Loki solid, suspended between the three stones. The ties turned into iron. Skadi hung a poisonous snake over Loki's head, so its poison would drip down in his face.

    Loki is doomed to lie there until he wrests himself free at Ragnarok. Sigyn, his wife, standing next to him and picks up the poison in a bowl, but when it is full, she must pour the poison out, and while it drips into Loke's face. As he twists so violently in pain the whole earth shakes. This is called an earthquake.


    Gods


    Odin, Warrior-God..


    Odin

    Odin, king of the gods, was big and frightening - certainly no gentle father figure. He was the Kings, nobles and poets' god and their god of war, magic and wisdom. Odin's magical mastery was famous. He could change shape at will and his magical abilities made him a formidable opponent. He had only one eye, the other he had given in charge at Mimir's Well for a sip of the source of wisdom.

    Odin was hailed for victory in war, but he thought mostly of himself and was often accused of injustice when deciding who was to come out victorious in wars.

    Ragnarok

    Fate could not be averted. This idea culminated in Ragnarok (fate of the gods), the inevitable world destruction. Ragnarok adumbrated by three years of fierce fighting followed by three years of terrible winters without a summer in between. Then a great earthquake break all ties to rupture. Fenris is let loose, and also Loki. The Midgard Serpent looking towards the land and cause major flooding. The ship Naglfar, built of dead men's nails, tears himself away. It is manned by giants and Loki stand in the bow. Fenris runs with open mouth. Midgard Serpent spews venom. The dragons against Vigrid, plain, where the last stroke must stand. It brings together with the gods, einherjar led by Odin, who must take care of Fenris. Thor must kill the Midgard Serpent, but later succumb to the poison. The wolf will swallow Odin. Fire, smoke and steam are soaring. The sky darkened and the stars disappear. Earth is engulfed by the sea. But Ragnarok is not the end of everything. A new world will emerge, green and lush, and a new era begin. Crops will grow unprovoked. The children of the old gods will sit in the grass, where Asgard formerly stood, and talk about times past. The world will be populated again by two humans, Lif and Lifrhrasir who have hidden themselves in Yggdrasil. Thus, the end include a new beginning and a new cycle will begin.


    Themes.


    Andreas stone with a relief of
    Odin at Ragnarok swallowed
    by the Fenris Wolf...


    Tyr and Fenris

    The Aesir kept Loki's son, Fenris, in Asgard to keep an eye on it, but only Tyr was brave enough to care for it. When they saw how big it eventually was, they decided to link it. They provided a great iron chain to the wolf, and suggested it as a game to test their strength against it. Fenris showed no respect for the link and let them do as they wished. When the link was on, the wolf freed himself with a single jerk. The gods immediately forged a new link, twice as strong, and begged the wolf to try again, saying that it would gain great fame if it could also break the new one. It sounded good in the wolf's ears, and again. it was linked. Although it had to work a little more into it, he broke quickly free. Now the gods were afraid that they would never get Fenris chained. They sent word to the dwarfs who forged a link called Gelipnir. It was fine as a silk ribbon and made of six magical things: the sound of cats paws, a woman's beard, a fish's breath, a mountains roots sinews of a bear and a bird's saliva. Æsir brought Gleipnir to the wolf, who examined it closely. "I do not think I will win much fame by breaking the thin strip." he said, "If it is forged with magic, then it does not come around my legs, that's for sure, I want nothing to do with magic." The Aesir said it as easily could break such a thin ribbon over when it previously had broken the heavy iron fetters, "But if you cannot break it here, we will liberate you, You will not be any threat to us." Fenris replied: "If I cannot get free, there will probably be a long time before I get free, this game, I do not like. But people shan't believe, I'm a coward, I'll let me tie, if one of you put your hand in my mouth as a pledge that there is no fraud involved." The Aesir looked at each other and did not know what to do until Tyr voluntarily put his hand in the wolf's mouth. So the wolf allowed itself bound, but the harder it struggled to get free, the stronger the link. All The Aesir laughed, except Tyr. He lost his hand.


    Gods


    Freya, goddess of love, marriage
    and the dead sit here spinning clouds.


    Goddesses

    The Nordic pantheon contained several powerful goddesses. The most prominent was Odin's wife Frigg and Freya, of fertility and sensuality goddess. It has been suggested that the two may represent two aspects of a goddess - Frigg, wife and mother, and Freya, lover and free woman. They have certain features in common: they invoked at birth: shall assist the birthing and participation by the child's naming. There were other goddesses associated with fertility, some of which are perhaps only aspects of Freyja and Frigg: Saga, Hlin, Vor, Syn and Snorri seems to be aspects of Frigg, while Sjofn, Lofn and Gefion may be aspects of Freja. Fulla and Gna was Friggs maids. They waited Frigg, wore her jewelry box, took care of her shoes and was privy to her secrets. Some goddesses were Jotuns who had god status by marriage. Skade, Njords wife was the daughter of the giant Thiazi, but was recorded among the Aesir and seems to have had her own cult. Frey's wife, Gerd was also of giants lineage.

    Freyja

    Freya, powerful, passionate and beautiful, was the main goddess of the Vanir. Besides being a fertility goddess, she was the goddess of sexual love, a specialist in magic and receiver of the dead. Freyja is included in many myths. portrayed as both attractive and greedy. She was subject to the Jotuns lust - when they attack Asgard, it was often to get her - but were even accused of "running around at night by men as a goat in heat 'and having all the gods and elves as her lovers, including her own brother.


    Art


    Dwarfs were skilled blacksmiths and made a necklace to the beautiful goddess Freya.

    Brisingamen

    The story of how the goddess Freyja met got her famous gold necklace Brisingamen shows the covetous and vain side of her character. One day Freyja met four dwarfs. They had started to forge a thing of gold, as so often, the dwarves were known for their ability to process precious metals. It was an exquisite necklace, they worked on, more beautiful than anything Freyja had seen before. She had a great desire for the necklace. And of course, should no other than her neck wear such a magnificent piece of jewelry. Freyja asked if she could buy it, but the dwarfs would not sell. She offered them a large quantity of gold and silver, but they would still not sell off with the necklace. Freyja was inflamed with lust for owning it. She offered them more and more, but the dwarves were not interested until they eventually showed the price. "We have everything we want. The only thing we could desire, Freya, is you. If you want to spend a whole night with each of us, we will give you each have our share of the necklace. "Freyja was shocked. She looked at the four hideous misshapen dwarfs, who grinned impudently at her, but her desire necklace was like a blazing fire. Four nights did not seem too high a price for such a necklace, and no one would really get to know. So she accepted the dwarven conditions. Freyja stayed with the dwarves four nights, 'and each had his way with her. When she had kept her part of the agreement, they held their own and gave her the necklace. Freyja went home with it and pretended that nothing had happened, and the necklace was one of her most treasured possessions.



    Art

    Sea ​​gods

    The sea was of utmost importance to the Northern European peoples, both as a food source and as a means to gain glory through "travel, trade and raids. The best known was the sea god Njord (one of the Vanir), but Aegir, which seems to · have personified the very large ocean, reigned also there. Aegis lived far from land, and Viking poetry talking about Aegir's throat that swallows ships at sea. Aegir and his wife Ran received the drowned in their hall on the ocean floor. Sagas says that if the drowned sailors appeared totheir own funeral, they had been kindly received by Ran. It was considered best to have some gold on them at sea, so you do not arrive empty-handed to Rans dwelling. Aegis and Rans hospitality was not only a cause for fear. Aegir was famous for his lavish feasts in his hall. Thor visited the jotun Hymir to get a large tub that could hold mead to Aegir's feasts, and a sad-poem for a drowned son will the father take revenge on Aegir, but mention him at the same time as the 'beer-brewer'.

    Njord and Skadi

    Skadi was the daughter of the giant Thiazi, killed by the Aesir after stealing their golden apples. She married the sea god Njord, and the myth of the marriage, tells of a relationship between a fertility god and a representative of winter and darkness. When news of Thiazi's death reached his daughter. Skadi armed herself with a helmet and breastplate, and went to Asgard to avenge her father. The Aesir offered her compensation for the death of Thiazi and the agreement included, that she might choose a husband among the Aesir. But she could only see the feet of potential grooms and only choose from them. The unmarried gods were lined up so that only their feet were visible. Skadi studied them all. A pair surpassed all others in purity and whiteness. She was sure that they belong to Balder, the finest and whitest of the gods, so she chose him. As the owner of the feet were exposed, it turned out to be Njord, the sea god. His feet were so clean because the sea constantly washed them. Skadi was a bit disappointed, but nevertheless, they were married. The marriage was difficult. Skadi was the daughter of a mountain giant and longed to live in the mountains, while Njord only felt at home near the sea. They tried to get it to work: they agreed to live alternately nine nights in Thrymheim, Skadi's mountain fortress, and nine nights in Noatun, Njord's house by the sea. But they were each very unhappy when they were with the other. Njord could not endure to be up in the mountains, where the wolves howled, and the latter could not keep the high seas off and hated the seagulls scream. Eventually they decided to live separately, and Njord was the sea, while Skadi went up the mountain, where she was often seen skiing or with snowshoes on.



    Themes.


    A pair of harness fittings designed as stylized eagles,
    a bird is often associated with Odin.
    The oversized beaks and tails emphasize their ferocity.


    Odin's Animals

    Odin needed no food. He lived only on mead, and gave his food to two wolves, Geri and Freki who sat at his feet. He also had two ravens, Huginn and Muninn (thought and memory), That each morning flew out into the world. In the evening they returned and sat on his shoulders and told him everything they had seen. These creatures are often depicted with Odin and reflects his role as god of war: wolves and ravens are traditionally associated with battle and death, both in poetry and in fact (after a battle they would often eat the corpses). Another animal that belonged to Odin, was the horse Sleipnir, one of Loki's offspring. It had eight legs and could bear Odin through the sky and the sea. Sleipnir was considered Odin's greatest treasure.

    The God's Treasures

    The gods held special treasures made ​​by the dwarfs, the most skilled craftsmen in the world of myth. Odin had a spear, Gungnir, which could pierce everything, and a gold ring, Draupnir from which every ninth night dropped eight rings of equal weight and value. Frey owned a ship Skidbladnir who always got good wind in the sails, which could be folded and stored in your pocket when not needed, and a golden boar that ran over the sea and sky faster than any horse and illuminated the night with glimpses of his brushes. The greatest treasure belonged to Thor. It was his hammer, Mjølnir who never failed its target, and always returned in his hand. The gods had great faith in the hammer and considered it the greatest treasure of all, since it protected them against the Jotuns. Mjølnirs powers were so special that it was used only in battle but also for blessings, for example, blessed Balder's funeral ship, and by holding it over the bones of Thor's two goats they were brought back to life after being slaughtered and eaten.

    The number Nine

    It is not known why the number nine was so important in Norse mythology. Odin hung nine nights from Yggdrasil to learn nine magical formulas, Heimdall had nine mothers. Aegir had nine daughters. Nine nights Hermod traveled to Hel for Balder, Frey waited nine nights on his bride Gerd. Njord and Skadi stayed nine nights with each other. Every ninth night dropped several rings from Odin's ring Draupnir. Thor must falter nine steps away from the Midgard Serpent, before he dies. A big party that lasted nine days, was held every nine years in Uppsala, where there was sacrificed nine specimens of every living creature, including humans.


    Themes.


    Runestones as this was thought to contain magic
    or protective forces.


    Runes

    The early Northern European Runic alphabet was designed to inscriptions on wood, stone and metal and consisted of straight lines that were easier to 'grate' than curved. Runes were not used for long documents. They are known almost entirely from memorial stones, "karvestokke" (Carving in wooden sticks) used in trade and weapons. Runes are believed to possess magical powers and could be 'thrown' as witchcraft or to provide protection if you wore them. Odin, god of magic, had obtained the runes to the world through a self-sacrifice: he hung nine nights from the world tree Yggdrasil.


    Odin And the Poet's Mead

    Odin was the god of poetry of art, which might explain his prominent role in the poetic sources. Odin himself spoke only in poetry and poetic ability and inspiration came from him. One of his chosen, he gave for example the ability to compose poetry as fast as he could speak. It was Odin who got the precious mead for the gods and humans. The mead was originally brewed by the dwarves from the blood the Kvasir, a being created by the gods as a symbol of peace after the war between the Aesir and Vanir. Kvasir was so certain that he could answer all questions. He traveled widely and shared his wisdom, but was eventually killed by two dwarfs, who mixed his blood with honey and made it into mead. By drinking the mead you got ability to poetry or eral wisdom. The mead was later taken from the dwarfs the the Jotun Suttung after they had made the mistake of killing Suftungs parents. With cunning won Odin this priceless mead for the benefit of gods and humans. He seduced the giant's daughter Gunnlød who guarded the mead, and when she gave him permission to take three mouthfuls, he emptied the whole tank and in the guise of an eagle, he flew back to Asgard, where he gylpede it up. Are few drops fell outside of Asgard and it was man's share.


    Ship Burials

    The Anglo-Saxon epic poem Beowulf describes a magnificent ship burial, given the Danish king Skjold, where the deceased king was laid down in the ship loaded with many valuable gifts and with a golden banner at his head. The ship is pushed from the land and carry him away. In Norse mythology Balder also receive a prestigious ship burial. The ship is sent burning out to sea. These mythological burials reflect the actual burials: a magnificent funeral in a ship to a woman from the ninth century, surrounded by rich treasures found in the Oseberg in Norway, and sea burials are also known from other parts of northern Europe.



    Once again, I thank my excellent team of writers for their continued hard work in making The Helios what it is, and your support as a receptive and interested readership.

    After reading this edition, now would be an excellent time to pay a visit to one of the other TWC publications, which can be done by clicking on either of the images below.


    Last edited by Lord Rahl; March 05, 2012 at 08:01 PM.

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  3. #3
    MorganH.'s Avatar Finis adest rerum
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    Default Re: Helios 62 - Awards Edition & More!

    Very,very nice ! A great issue !

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    Boustrophedon's Avatar Grote Smurf
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    Default Re: Helios 62 - Awards Edition & More!

    Glorious, just glorious! I hope to be back in action for the next issue as well

    Oh Narfie your pieces are so pretty and informative ^^

  5. #5
    Jom's Avatar A Place of Greater Safety
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    Default Re: Helios 62 - Awards Edition & More!

    A fine effort from this edition's writers and from the editor.

    "For what it’s worth: it’s never too late to be whoever you want to be. I hope you live a life you’re proud of, and if you find that you’re not, I hope you have the strength to start all over again."

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    Lord Rahl's Avatar Behold the Beard
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    Default Re: Helios 62 - Awards Edition & More!

    Thanks, guys.

    Hmm...it seems two of the JUMP tags don't work.

    Oh, and sorry for my personal rant at the beginning.

    Patron of: Ó Cathasaigh, Major. Stupidity, Kscott, Major König, Nationalist_Cause, Kleos, Rush Limbaugh, General_Curtis_LeMay, and NIKO_TWOW.RU | Patronized by: MadBurgerMaker
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  7. #7
    Narf's Avatar Reach for the Stars.
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    Default Re: Helios 62 - Awards Edition & More!

    Yes, Good job. All of you.

  8. #8
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    Default Re: Helios 62 - Awards Edition & More!

    Great job everybody
    And lol @Cahoma's article.

  9. #9
    René Artois's Avatar Dux Limitis
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    Default Re: Helios 62 - Awards Edition & More!

    Yay.
    Bitter is the wind tonight,
    it stirs up the white-waved sea.
    I do not fear the coursing of the Irish sea
    by the fierce warriors of Lothlind.

  10. #10
    Tonno's Avatar Protector Domesticus
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    Default Re: Helios 62 - Awards Edition & More!

    mah, grouchy pretty much owned you guys with his story...

    Just kidding, GREAT job by everyone, realy nice stuff can be find (well at least in last 3 numbers I red) to read, keep up with the good content!!!
    "For after the their baptism the Croats made a covenant, confirmed with their own hands and by oaths sure and binding in the name of St. Peter the apostle, that never would they go upon foreign country and make war on it, but rather would live at peace with all who where wiling to do so; and they recived from the same pope of Rome a benediction on this effect, that if any other foreigners should come against the country of these same Croats and bring war upon it, then might God fight for the Croats and protect them, and Peter the disciple of Christ give them victories."
    Constantine Porphyrogenitus >>De Administrando Imperio<<

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    Default Re: Helios 62 - Awards Edition & More!

    Great job everyone, it's sad I couldn't provide an article in this edition due to university exams but I'll provide one in the next.
    Under the patronage of Emperor Maximinus Thrax
    "Steps to be taken in case Russia should be forced out of war considered. Various movements [of ] troops to and from different fronts necessary to meeting possible contingencies discussed. Conference also weighed political, economic, and moral effect both upon Central and Allied powers under most unfavorable aspect from Allied point of view. General conclusions reached were necessity for adoption of purely defensive attitude on all secondary fronts and withdrawing surplus troops for duty on western front. By thus strengthening western front [those attending] believed Allies could hold until American forces arrive in numbers sufficient to gain ascendancy."
    ~General Pershing, report to Washington, 26 July 1917

  12. #12
    Genius of the Restoration's Avatar You beaut and magical
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    Default Re: Helios 62 - Awards Edition & More!

    That was fun

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    Nice interviews.
    Now I'm just curious, but what is the window of eligibility for fastest rising newb?
    Last edited by Ishan; April 20, 2012 at 02:53 PM. Reason: Double Post (server acting up)
    for-profit death machine.

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    Default Re: Helios 62 - Awards Edition & More!

    Are you asking if the awards process is still going on? If so, then it's over.

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