Over the winter, 44 trees were harvested from the property, making for a lot of chainsaw work needed to chop up all the tree tops that fell all over the property. The tree removal company also created several new paths throughout the property, and even graded the back yard and large sections of the road. It looks awesome. We mainly focused our efforts to the Fangorn hill over to the Smuggler’s Den. It is already looking great, but there is so much more to do!

Thanks again for everyone’s help, it is always appreciated, and thank you Ted for your yummy Vegetable Beef soup and hot wings for the crew. With cooking like that, we could work all day! See you all next weekend!

What a great way to end the last day of the 2011 season; thank you all for being a part of it. We added 3 new club members for our 15th Annual BIG GAME, thanks for joining us today… hope you had a great time.

For our final chapter of the Aftermath Scenario, there was some switching around that needed to be done. Due to sporadic top five members for each team all season, we opted to only have three tunic-wearers for the BIG GAME. The morning of the game, Captain Brien of the Gray team had prior commitments and was unsure if he’d make the game on time. Because of this, an executive decision was made to promote his Co-Captain Stephanie to Captain and allow her to choose her Co-Captain and Tunic-wearer for the day. She chose Tyler as her Co-Captain, and husband Josh as her Tunic-Wearer.

For our two-hour game, since the Aftermath is all about survival, all supplies that had been gathered all season long (food, water, medical supplies, ammo, etc.) were perishable resources and had been used up, so they would not be carried over into the game.

Each team was allowed one player to act as a Medic, and was given 10 bandages with which to heal their teammates - minus the three Tunic-wearers who could not be healed as they had points available for eliminations. Both Captains had (5) life chips at 10 points each, for a total of 50 points possible, the Co-Captains each had (3) life chips at 10 points each, for a total of 30 points possible, and the Tunic-Wearers each had (2) life chips at 10 points each, for a total of 20 points possible. If eliminated, a chip was presented to Amy the Neutral Zone Referee and the points would be awarded to the opposing team. Any life chips in the players’ possession at the conclusion of the game counted for team score.

There were five flag stations (City, Pasture, Mine Field, Hornet’s Nest and Painted Forest) with single minute readings - totaling 120 points possible per flag station. There were (20)  Food canisters hidden across the field worth 10 points each which needed to be returned to the team’s home base to count for team score -for a total of 200 points possible.

Every three minutes Amy would waive a white flag that said “WATER” - when this flag was flying, one member from each team was allowed to shoot at a target in the range. The first player to hit the target was awarded one of (10) available water bottles. These bottles needed to be filled from the water source (same location as June’s Scenario) and returned to the team’s home base to count for team score. A full water bottle was worth 20 points, for a total of 200 points possible. It was reported by Amy that the Gray team’s marksmen were successful in getting 8 of the 10 water bottles to take onto the field. 

There was only one Winner-take-all mission - a Generator worth 200 points, if successfully returned to the team’s home base. It was reported that Bruce of the Gray team located the hidden Generator on the ridgeline of the Mine Field, but did not get it back to the home base before the horn sounded, so no points were awarded.

This year we also had a Teamwork Mission, but this time it was a little different. Every five minutes, Joe and Crystal, the Teamwork Mission Referees, would hand out a numbered envelope to a Blue and Gray player simultaneously. The first player to make it back to the Mission board located outside the Hornet’s Nest and successfully affix their line from the Aftermath Story would earn their team 10 points, total of 200 points possible. The Gray team got more of the teamwork mission, earning 160 points to the Blue’s 40 points. 

Both teams put up an amazing fight for the entire two hour game. The battles were mainly concentrated to the Hornet’s Nest and surrounding road territories. Both teams held their lines for most the game. The Gray team held the City, Pasture, Mine Field and Hornet’s Nest flag stations for most of the game. They were able to secure a total of 334 points in flag stations alone. The Blue team held the Painted Forest flag station the longest, as well as broke up total domination of the other flag stations, earning a total of 178 flag station points.

The Reds forces drew random flag station numbers out of a can, and would neutralize the associated flag station accordingly. They kept 88 points from either team. 

A little over half way through the game, the Blue team pushed past the Gray forces at Fangorn and raided the City, stealing the accumulated food and water canisters from the Gray team’s home base at the Armory to return to their own home base, after a quick stop off at the water supply to fill the water bottles. This proved to be the determining factor in the game, as when the horn sounded, Gray had no items at their base while the Blue team earned 130 points in food, and 120 points in water. 150 points were still left on the field, having not been recovered.

The Life Chips turned into Amy were as follows:

Captain (Gray) - 50 points for Blue, retained Zero points

Co-Captain (Gray) - 10 points for Blue, retained 20 points for Gray

Tunic-Wearer (Gray) - 20 points for Blue, retained Zero points

Captain (Blue) - 40 points for Gray, retained 10 points for Blue

Co-Captain (Blue) - 30 points for Gray, retained Zero points

Tunic-Wearer (Blue) - 10 points for Gray, retained 10 points for Blue

In the closest BIG GAME in fifteen years (34 point difference) …

Team totals for BIG GAME XV:

The New Manhattan Alliance (Blue): 598

Reformed American Allegiance (Gray): 564

We were so proud of gamesmanshipin each and every player on the field today. Thank you thank you! We had NO PENALTY DEDUCTIONS this year so thank you for that too!

After the game, the BIG GAME picnic was a huge success. Thank you again to Ted’s family  (Randy, Tommy and Bob) for grilling up the delicious burgers so that Ted could referee the game. You guys sure can grill! Thank you for making the trip to visit every year! We all love you!

 We’d also like to thank our wonderful referees: Jon and Amy Baker, Joe and Crystal Neal, Natalie Rowan, Amanda, Jerry’s Girlfriend (I am sorry I don’t remember your name as I am typing…), Ted, Kathy, Shannon and Jen. It’s not always the most glamorous job, but someone’s got to do it, and we thank you for it! After everyone was fed, the awards ceremony went as follows: 

     BIG GAME XV winners - The New Manhattan Alliance (Blue):  

Captain Rendell Stiles and Co-Captain Jerry Collom

    Above and Beyond Award - Rod Stiles 

Sportsmanship - Bruce Lego (only 2-time winner in Splatmandu History!)

Shot of the Year - Jerry Collom, Rendell and Radley Stiles ”Blue’s Brothers”

Golden Crutch - HEREAFTER NAMED “THE JACKSON”

James Jackson - and he can never win it again

Funniest Moment - Tony Reigle “H2OH NO!”

     MVP - Stephanie Howley

Du Dog Award - The Adam Learn Family

The delivery of canned food goods to the Domestic Assault Shelter on behalf of the club will be this up-coming Saturday. THANK YOU SO MUCH for all of your efforts both throughout the season as well as the final outpouring of canned goods on BIG GAME. It was truly amazing the amount of donations received. Big thanks to The Weenie Kings - they donated a combined $60.00 for the Shelter as well.

UPDATE: Shannon and Kathy delivered the canned goods to the Shelter and, thereafter, spent the $717.00 cash donations (getting them about $800 worth of merchandise because of sale items). The cash breakdown was $100.00 from the Airsoft, $50.00 from Papa Shay and $100.00 from Ted’s Uncle Pete. The remainder being paintball sales and the donation jar. It is believed that the paintball sales generated about $315.00 - so the rest would be the donation jar. (Please remember that we converted the donation jar to a BOO fundraiser jar sometime in July or August - so Amy really raised much more than $152.00 that appeared in the jug at the season’s end - Actually, without the donation jar, we would not have had enough cash on hand to pull off the bare minimum BOO expenses).

This year’s total donation to the Shelter after the 2011 paintball season was complete is: $2,800.00. The running total that our club has now given to the Shelter to date….drum roll please…….

$37,934.35 !!!

The total is SOOOOOOOO CLOSE to $38,000! It is VERY POSSIBLE that this year’s BOO will put us past the $40,000 total donation! This doesn’t count fundraisers for Cyrus or The United Way - just to the Domestic Assault Shelter.

From Kathy:

This year’s cash donation was very, very specific to the ladies and children that were actually in the safe house when we arrived. After we dropped off the non-perishable items collected through the season and asked what the greatest need was, there were two ladies with their children (both who left their homes with nothing, not even socks, underwear, bras, etc. - just the clothes on their backs and flip flops on their feet). Nearly half of the club’s cash donation ended up being very specific to the immediate needs of these two families. I cannot express how grateful these ladies were (it’s too bad everyone cannot be there to get the “good feelings” of knowing right where your donation goes). One of the kids was celebrating her birthday this week, so Shannon and I decided to get her a birthday gift card as well.

As the ladies were getting the requested items out of the bags, one lady said to the other “This is just like Christmas!” - and the other lady replied “No way - I’ve never gotten this much for Christmas in my life!”. Before we left, everyone was hugging us….and I felt really good and very proud of what our club did and does.

Thank you all - we sure couldn’t do it without you!!!!!

This is truly a gift to these women, and it’s all possible because of the generosity of our members. Be proud of yourselves, we are! Thank you so much for your generosity this year. We know the economy has hit many of us close to home, so any donation is greatly appreciated.

Now that the Paintball Field has closed for the season, there is still much going on at Splatmandu. Starting the weekend of September 24th, we will begin preparations for our October 29th event.  We will be busy for the month of October, preparing the fields for SplatmanBOO Haunted Forest. If you are interested in helping out, we work on the fields every weekend, as well as the event is Saturday, October 29, 2011 - starting at 8:00pm. We can always use workers both in preparation/tear-down, as well as actors for the event! Anyone interested, please stop out to build or let Kathy know if you want to be an actor!

Thank you all for an amazing 17th season. If we get pre-season (Groundhog) workers, we may even be around for a Season 18! Field work for Season 18 kicks off the first Saturday in February, 2012. See you there!

When Judgment day came, it came with no warning. No sirens, no emergency broadcast. Nothing. A winter had fallen, the likes of which that I have never seen before. It is not cold, but snow falls. The days remain long, and the nights short. We guess that it will be awhile before we can accurately tell the time of year. We dare not risk the chance of exposure in an attempt to find help.
The first year was the hardest. We spent most of it in the cellar of an old grocery store in Manhattan. There were 15 of us on the first day, then 26, then 45, then 15. Some left, most died from the fallout exposure. The original group never left the cellar. We became a family, but it was apparent the group was divided, different standing points on what should be done when the winter ends. No one saw it as a big deal at the time, when it’s safe, we will go our different ways.
When the first bomb went off, we grabbed every can of food we could, and stayed put. We had enough food to last us for a few months, but not forever. We would have to ration food if we wanted to survive. But, still, we let people in as they came along, sometimes arguments broke out, because of the hunger, but we never turned anyone down.
After the fallout stopped falling, and the wind swept away what remained, soldiers came. They were not under orders, they told us, but still wished to help. They camped outside, while we still refused to leave, dumbstruck by the thought of being outside. We traded with the soldiers, as they began to gain our trust. They asked us to come with them, out of Manhattan and into the country. We refused, stilled by our fear, and with heavy hearts, they said they would leave the next day. During the night, we were awoken by shouts, and gunfire. As a war broke out around our shelter, we could nothing but watch from the windows as the soldiers fell. Their attackers could not be seen; we only hoped they had not seen us. Two soldiers fled into our store, wounded and sickened by fallout that crept in through their wounds. We did all we could, but they died before day broke. We kept the gear when they died, planning for the future. Along with their guns, bio-masks and suits were in their gear. We had to be able to defend ourselves, in case the attackers returned. Months passed, and we dared to test the outside. Brian, Myself, and 5 others went outside with the gear. It was clear, for the most part, but the air was still, sick. Unbreathable. With only Brian and myself in the protective masks, the other 5 died. Leaving 10.
The city.. there was no city left. The bombs had torn it to pieces, and now the forest sought to take it back. Saplings sprung from parking lots, and grass waged a war with the concrete that had imprisoned it for years. We would have to find new shelter, inside our old cellar, we could not be found if any new soldiers came. We would have to warn them of their comrades. So we explored, searched for water, food and future sites to settle. We searched through rubble of once proud buildings, and found nothing but death. Food came rarely, and water eluded us best of all. We found two sites that were deemed worthy of supporting our group. However, a seemingly pointless argument broke out, between Brian and myself on which site we should choose. Brian wanted to be situated closer to the police station, deeming it a good fall-back point should we ever be attacked. While I found it more reasonable to make camp by Central Park, the open space allowing us to see anyone before they were to close. Seeing it as not a big deal, we took our respective sites. The void was opened between our groups, never to be sealed again.
We came into contact with other groups, people who survived the fallout. They had been unable to leave, due to the air. So we searched for the fallen soldiers, who would likely hold the solution. We gathered gear from soldiers who fell months before, and gave them a proper burial. We traded it to the groups, for whatever they could scavenge. It wasn’t long before a community was formed, but as the competition for food grew, and we were forced to search further to find food.
After the first year, with the help of the ingenuity of our community, we built a farm, and a system to filter the river water into drinking water. The farm was built on the far side of Central Park, hidden by a wall of trees, and our water filter was placed two blocks away from the grocery store, which was common ground between our groups. We began to grow into a strong force, but the competition between our two sides grew. Soon we would push our friendship to the limit.
We celebrated our success, but too early. During our celebration, our farm was burned to the ground, and water filter destroyed. My group claimed it was Brian, who was forcing us out of our new settlement. Brian’s people said it was me, trying to take control of the food supply. Tempers flared and soon blood was spilled. Soon the small fights between individuals turned into battles between large groups. Supplies continued to come up missing, housing was burned, weapons taken. The people looked to their leaders to end this nonsense.
We met, and agreed to end the violence.
Our communities expanded. Brian took to the south, and brought with him hundreds of refugees, and settled on the far side of town. Using the old buildings to make new. While I sent messengers north, who brought with them already established communities to form into one. As either side flourished, the tension between either side was almost tangible. Each side wanted this land for their own. And as communication came to a halt, whatever was left between the groups vanished.
It is winter now, but it apparent that once the sun warms this earth, it will also warm our blood and bring it to a boil. The final straw will come, and our sides will meet in a War to bring all others to shame.
A line has been drawn, with the leaders of the communities at the head, along with their most faithful soldiers and advisers at their backs. Each side fights for what they believe to be theirs, and only theirs. On one side Brian and the Reformed American Allegiance, on the other, myself and the New Manhattan Alliance

September 29, 2012: It took us one week to make it back to our old apartment. One week of gaining courage and dodging both soldiers and the angry mob. The second family, the Johnsons, decided to fend for themselves, and they were gone. We picked up pace after they left; it would be easier to move with just the two of us. We tried to scavenge for food but to no avail. Funny..how its come to this. To think that just over a week ago I was starting my final college semester, so close to obtaining my bachelors degree and starting my business career.
The front line seemed only blocks away now, by the sounds of the shots. But it was hard to tell when the sound reverberated off of the buildings surrounding us.
I was flooded with the thoughts of friends and family. Are they okay? Did they manage to escape? How are conditions back home? Are they… No. I don’t even want to think about that. I needed to go see if I could find my girlfriend. Maybe she never left home. From here I could see her apartment building was still intact. I left Jerry and went off alone.

December 21, 2012:
This day, of all days, a fitting end if there were any.
We made our way successfully from the riverfront and into the heart of the city. Chaos would be an under statement. Many of the resistance are still band together, taking out smaller patrols. We came into a close call earlier, when we were almost mistaken for the enemy. I do not know if we will be able to make it to the other side of the city before whatever is suppose to happen, happens. I am leaving this journal here, 5 blocks away from central park, for a record of what happened here should we come out on top. Hopefully whomever finds this, will have learned something.

Rendell, Brien and the rest of their group made their way through the streets towards their salvation. The grocery store they sought out was, conveniently, built on top of an old bomb shelter.
“This isn’t any easier, not knowing how much time we may, or may not have,” Bruce stated ducking behind a down truck, “Not to mention we have to worry about getting shot from two sides.”
Their recent encounter with The Resistance had put them in a very uneasy state. The Resistance has been pushed against a wall. There is nothing worse than fighting a man, or in this case, many men, whom have lost everything. Their methods are becoming more dangerous and risky. Eventually there will be none of them left if they keep this up.
“We are about ten blocks away,” Rendell noted, “If we stick to the rubble, we should be fine.”
“No, we are going to need to split up. One group on each side of the road, that way if one group is seen, the other can flank easily,” Brien argued. A few tense moments passed before Rendell agreed and split the groups up. Josh, Stephanie and Brien took the right side, Rendell, Jerry and Bruce took the left.
Two blocks from where they started, Brien’s tactic proved useful. A larger patrol on the street spotted Jerry when he lost his footing on some rubble. A gunfight ensued. Rendell and Bruce were running out of cover quickly as it was blown away by the enemy, but Stephanie and Josh swept from the enemy left, and Brien from the right. This gave Bruce and Jerry the chance to slide down into better cover, while Rendell moved higher to provide cover. They dispatched the enemy quickly.
“I’m fine, really,” Bruce was trying to force Jerry to sit back down.
“No, you aren’t,” Bruce said, and forced Jerry back down. Jerry had taken a stray bullet to the knee, and it wasn’t looking too good.
“Don’t worry, I can handle this,” Rendell enlisted the help of Bruce while Brien’s group guarded the street. They took three jackets from the downed patrolmen and rigged a stretcher. “We might be able to find those medics and see if they can patch him up; otherwise, we will see what we can find in the store.”
The final stretch to the store was an achievement worthy of the history books. Dodging both enemy troops and Resistance fighters, they made it to the store.
“We should barricade the windows with these shelves,” Bruce noted, and began to move the shelves. Brien and Stephanie joined in.
“I am going to look for bandages for Jerry. Josh, you should get on the roof and let us know if you see anything,” Rendell began to scavenge through all of the contents on the floor, tossing any food to Jerry to put into a pile next to him.
Once Stephanie, Bruce and Brien had successfully blockaded the windows, they joined in the search.
“INCOMING!” Josh yelled from the roof, followed by several shots coming from down the street. Josh opened the roof hatch, which was just above the counter on the left of the store. “I don’t know who they are, but they are in a hurry, and it looks like we are where they were headed. I think talking our way out of it is already gone.”
“Agreed,” Brien and Rendell stated together.
Rendell pulled Jerry over to the farthest window to the right and gave him a gun. The rest took several positions across the store, while Josh called out positions from the roof. The attack didn’t last long, and the only injury was a paper cut to Stephanie’s finger.
“They are pulling back. I don’t know why, I don’t think we got any of them– Oh..”
“What is it?… Josh? HEY!” Stephanie jumped onto the ladder and pulled herself up quickly. “You guys should get up here..”
They made their way to the roof; Jerry was left behind, much to his discontent. As the sun began its descent, the bombs were easily visible on the night sky. Hundreds of them were making their way back to Earth, where they would change the world into something new.
“We better go.. Hopefully we have enough food,” Josh said.
“I don’t think food will be a problem; the door to the basement was still closed when we got here, so it still should be stocked. Bruce and Brien, you two should probably work on getting it open. Stephanie, take watch, but come down once we get the door open. Josh, want to help me with Jerry?” Rendell had started his way down the ladder.
They went about their jobs, knowing that in a few hours, nothing would be left, no one would be left. The world as they knew it would cease to exist, and it would be their job to rebuild and help those who needed help. They had survived the war, but would they survive the Aftermath?

——————————————————————————————————————-
“Jerry and Dylan, you two are on point. I will take my squad and swing wide. Keep them off the asset until we are in position.” Rendell let go of his radio button as he finished. It had been less than ten minutes since their Water Guard had returned with his dead partner in his arms. The Alliance had mobilized all of his soldiers in order to secure the water source. This time they had gone too far.
——————————————————————————————————————-
“Open fire!” Brien had spotted Jerry climbing into a run down building near the water source. This had confirmed the injured guards story. The Alliance were going on the offensive, and were cutting them off from the water.
A hail of bullets tore at the concret Jerry had taken cover behind. Next to Brien, three men were cut down by gun fire from another direction. As the Allegiance turned its attention to the new threat, Jerry opened fire taking out another two of Brien’s men.
“Get better cover! And keep your heads down!” Brien nudged the last two men next to him and ordered cover fire and then sprinted towards the overlook Jerry was on. Sneaking around the side, he spotted a large group of Alliance at the water source, moving it with large containers. Quickly issuing new orders to Stephanie and Josh, he whipped around the corner and was met by Jerry.
“Fancy meeting you here.”
As battle erupted all around them as Stephanie and Josh engaged the main Alliance force.
A short scuffle between Brien and Jerry was ended by a stray bullet catching Jerry in the collar bone.
“You had better remember this.” Brien left him alive and moved back to his men.
——————————————————————————————————————-
“Jerry is down.” Dylan had carried Jerry back to the Alliance’s closest entry to their base, and their medic had made the call on the radio. “He will be out of combat for the next few hours.”
This was a huge blow. The Allegiance had already pushed them back off the water source. They were losing this battle before it had even begun.
“Dig in, and keep fire on the water source. Stop them from getting any.” Rendell began issuing orders to individual squads and preparing for a long day. An all out battle would destroy his numbers and leave his civilians defenseless. If they were going to win, they would have to thin out the Allegiance soldiers.
“They are here! They found us! Rendell, pull back!”
Jerry had forced himself out of care from the medics and joined the new fight. Cross had finally found their base, and was bringing down the hammer. Out gunned and out manned, Jerry and the few soldiers left on rear guard struggled to hold them off while waiting for the retreat.
“Rendell? Where are you?”
——————————————————————————————————————-
“Sir, we have stripped the Alliance of any water they had taken. Strike Team two is now attacking the Allegiance base. Orders?”
“This one,” Cross indicated a picture on the wall, “is going to come here and ask for help. Do as little as possible, but get them back to the water. Call of the strike on the Allegiance base.”
“Sir.. yes, sir.”
——————————————————————————————————————-
“Spread out. Get this line on lock down. I don’t know where they went, but they will be back soon. Keep that water line going!” Brien’s men were having a rough time. In order to get to the water, they needed to go up hill, which was wearing them out quickly. The Alliance had finally pulled out and Brien order his men to stop the push and dig in.
——————————————————————————————————————-
“So, you’ll help us then?” Jerry asked. He had dropped his gun and walked out into the middle of the gun fight. They had no water left for Cross’s men to take, and if they were here to kill them, well, they were already backed into a corner.
“For now. We will expect payment however..” The man Jerry found asked to be called Nate. He ordered the men under his command to stop firing once he saw Jerry approaching.
“Deal. Let’s get this done.”

With the assistance of Cross’s men, the Alliance was able to push back the Allegiance and take the remainder of the water stores. They gave up a few gallons to please Nate and his men as well.
“Thanks for the help.” Rendell said to Nate as he walked off with the last of his payment. He then leaned over to Dylan. “Follow him, see what you can learn.”
——————————————————————————————————————-
“Put this with the rest of the water, get it ready for transport.” Nate said, handing over several gallons of water.
“Sir, yes sir.”
Dylan pulled out his radio, smile on his face.

————-

 ”Team one, in position.”

“Team two, in position.”

Taking a quick glance at Brian, Rendell pulled up his radio.
“All teams, hold for Jerry’s signal.”

Three days earlier, the New Manhattan Alliance had gathered intel that what was left of the United States Army would be transferring a large haul of supplies to a storehouse somewhere just outside of New York. In order to bolster relationships with their counterparts, Rendell proposed to the leader of the Reformed American Allegiance, Brian, that they form several small strike teams to intercept and learn the end location of the convoy.
Braced for combat the two commanders of the rival factions overlooked their ambush. From here, it was easy to see that taking out the convoy would be easy. They had taken special care to make sure any scouts would not see their traps, and placed them after they had passed. Several make shift devices were place, designed to shred tires and hault the convoy.

“Asset is approaching the strike zone.” Stephanie’s voice came through on their radio.

“All teams, safety’s off. Fire on my fire.” Jerry and Stephanie had been placed in charge of the strike teams and in order to maintain their truce, they lead troops of the rival faction.
The convoy entered the strike zone completely unaware of their fate, and as the first shot rang out they knew that they weren’t going to make it out alive. Several minutes later, their was only silence.
Splitting the spoils of war, the information of the storehouse was shared among leaders and once they split, the truce was over.

Over the next few days, a battle raged over the storehouse. Each side approached from a different direction and had to battle through Cross’s defenses before making it to the storehouse. Rendell and his men were successful in breaching their line first and were able to acquire more than half of the food supplies before the Allegiance made their way inside. Choosing to take what he had and leave, the Alliance pulled out leaving the remaining supplies to Brian. Not without consequence however, because the remaining of Cross’s soldiers assigned to the storehouse attacked the Alliance’s command post, with the help of Allegiance. After a long battle, Rendell and his men found themselves backed into a corner with no where to go. Just before Cross’s men were able to make off with the stolen goods, however, the Alliance’s reinforcements showed up and were able to keep everything in their possession.

Each year we try to do a Night Game (a few years we were unable to due to weather) but we managed to fit one in this year! This year’s game was called Operation: Shaka Laka Boom.

All attendees of the Fish Fry were mailed special mission packets during the week that outlined their team objectives. There were two teams: the Escapees and the Guards. Escapees were mailed a coded letter, complete with a pen to decode the message. The Guards were each mailed ID badges and an Encrypted Fax transmission outlining the basic details of the intelligence collected, as well as a copy of the coded letter received by the Escapees. The fax also indicated that there might be a mole amongst the Guard staff, so be wary of discussing details of the mission with any other employees.

Details of the game were as follows:

FBI intercepted a letter sent to at least 9 different inmates from Sycamore Federal Prison. In the letter it indicated a possible Jail Break attempt on Saturday, September 10, 2011. Two Terrorists from the FBI’s Global Watch List were dropped off at the Big Tree Bus Terminal at 9:15pm with a key to unlock the gates. Evading the random Prison vehicle patrols (3 mini bikes, a golf cart and a dune buggy), the Terrorists had to release the other inmates - sounding the sirens which alerted all guards. Once the vehicle patrols returned and gave their report to the Warden, the rest of the prison guards immediately headed out to The Hornet’s Nest Guard tower. The generator was started, partially illuminating the Nest with but three exterior lights.

Vehicle patrols increased and additional guards began sweeping the grounds. The Escapees then had to sneak down to the City. If discovered, the Escapees had to return to the Prison walls in the Airport to re-spawn. The Escapees had to get their One ball (50 rounds max) weapons hidden in the Armory. Located within the M-89 was a cell phone detonation device, containing the 6 digit code with which to arm the “Ammonium Chorinate Air-born pathogen Bomb“, located within the Star Building. Each escapee had to make their way to the Star building. Once all team members made it alive, another briefing was held. When ready, the Escapees had to unlock the detonation device, turning the light from Yellow 2 clicks over to Green. Now activated, the 6 digit code from the Cell phone was inputted into the key pad, arming the device. The timer automatically defaulted to 30 minutes to detonation. Four red glow sticks would then be positioned on the outside of the Star Building so that Escapees could find their re-spawn location if eliminated. Escapees had two lives; if eliminated, they were to tag in at the Star Building to re-enter the game. If eliminated again, they were out of the game. Other than the Warden and Communications Officer (who had three lives), all Guards also only had two lives; if eliminated they had to tag back in at the Den in the Hornet’s Nest.  

For the Escapees, there was a “van” waiting at the Chateau with which to successfully escape. The guards would be tipped off to the approximate location of the getaway van, at a set point after the start of 30 minutes, having “captured and tortured intelligence out of one of the Escapees”.  All vehicles were now out of service by this point, as the search would be more focused on this portion of the property as well as protecting the Guard Tower.

Escapee Objectives :

• Within 30 minutes, if the bomb were to explode within the walls of the Guard Tower facility (Inside the Hornet’s Nest walls), all guard members would be killed allowing for a successful getaway for all living escapees. Guards located within the Den would survive, unless the bomb made it inside the Den prior to detonation.
• If the guards were to discover the bomb , several members of the squad were trained as Bomb Squad to disarm the weapon, rendering it useless. All escapees that had made it to the getaway van at this time would have successfully escaped; all others would be caught and returned to prison.
• The Escapees could just tag the Chateau - getting in the “van” and were safe. If they opted to do this however,  their game would be over as they “got away” - they could not fire their weapons or participate in the game further.

What actually happened:

Guards: Warden Ted, Communications Officer Kathy, Guards: Jon, Crystal, Pee Wee, Johnny, Natalie, Bill, Lori, Bomb Squad: Nate, Joe Vehicle Patrols: Karl, Rod, Tony, (also Joe), and Shannon (filming from Golf Cart)

Escapees: Josh, Rendall, Radley, Ray, James, Brien, Tommy, Amy, Mike, Jen Terrorists: Stephanie, Jerry 

Teams were divided and individual briefings were started at 8:15pm. Nate explained the rules to the Guards, while Jen explained the game to the Escapees in the Airport Tower. The “Mole” was heavy on the minds of all the guards, so accusations were flying around amongst all at this point. Tony - who is always blamed for everything - was even patted down to see if he possessed a pen - the one thing that all were sure was the tell-tale sign of being the mole. (It doesn’t help either that incriminating photos of Tony had surfaced from “surveillance photos of the barracks” that were shown to random guards throughout the day. click here for photos) Tony did not possess a pen, so the subject was put-aside for the time-being. Warden Ted released the first Vehicle patrol on to the field at 8:45pm. Vehicle patrols were to just make sure everyone was behaving themselves at this point - standard Guard behavior. 

At 9:00pm, Terrorists Jerry, Stephanie and Jen snuck out of the Airport Tower to the Big Tree in the Pasture and awaited the 9:15pm start. Once game was on, the Terrorists snuck to the Airport - narrowly missing Vehicle patrols - and unlocked the gates. Several small groups immediately ran for the bush while others stayed behind in the Airport Tower for a time as a distraction for the Vehicle Patrols, who had by now ramped up their search. Most Escapees made it to the Armory without trouble, but several were spotted and had to return to the Airport to re-spawn.

Jetting across the City, a few more Escapees were caught heading up into the woods nearest Fangorn. Amy slipped and twisted her knee slightly and opted out of the game at this point. She “held Shannon (the Media) hostage” in the Golf cart and used the rest of the evening to hunt her husband Jon from the cart, shooting him twice. (Don’t believe this was in the rules as we said NO SHOOTING from vehicles - but I guess family friendly-fire can be allowed at times… :)  )

Three Escapees were alone in the Star Building for quite some time waiting for the rest of their team. To keep the game going, Jen designated that those Escapees that successfully made it inside the Star Building were safe from elimination once inside and began waving a red glow stick so that Escapees could find their way to the building. This rule became apparent as there was a close-up shoot-out between Karl and Stephanie while the Guards were clearing the building.

James, Ray and Tommy reportedly snuck all the way to the ALL-STAR Saloon in the Mine Field rather than the Star Building. As soon as they discovered their error, they snuck their way to the proper building. After 10:30pm all Escapees were inside the Star Building and the briefing for part two of the mission was explained again. After James handed over the detonation Cell Phone procured from the M-89, Stephanie armed the bomb, starting the 30 minute detonation timer. Slowly the Escapees dashed from the Star Building. Jerry was reportedly friendly-fired almost immediately upon exiting the building, and returned to re-spawn, only to be eliminated by a Guard a few minutes later. Rather than leave the field, he opted to stay in the Star Building to help other eliminated Escapees find their way back to the building. Josh and Tommy also opted out of the game at this point and watched the rest of the game from the Neutral Zone. By now Warden Ted had cut the Generator, choosing to fight in darkness to better hear the approach of the Escapees. Since the “Mole” was still heavy on Warden Ted’s mind, he apparently lost trust in Nate as well, and when Nate approached to tell him that he had lost sight of Tony (that was Nate’s main objective way to keep tabs on him) Ted bayoneted Nate!

In the final 30 minutes of the game, craziness ensued - Guards and Escapees had some hidden one-ball battles, dodging the now-bright moon and keeping to the shadows whenever possible. Bill and Pee Wee were told of the “escape van” at the Chateau and began to guard that area of the field, while all other Guards continued to sweep the fields - minus the Warden and two others who guarded the Nest. 

The 30 minutes having now expired, the whistle blew ending the game, and all players “froze” momentarily so that the bomb could be found. Stephanie was just steps outside the Hornet’s Nest wall, near the far opening closest to the Chateau. It was determined that since she was so close to the opening of the Nest, the bomb killed Warden Ted, two other Guards and herself in the detonation.  

All in all that game was a success and everyone had a great time. Hopefully we will have interest to continue doing our Fish Fry Night Games in the future !

In Remembrance of the September 11, 2001 tragedy, Splatmandu was closed for play on Sunday. We are all looking forward to an excellent BIG GAME XV next Sunday though!

On Sunday, we added eleven new club members; thank you for joining us! As was explained in the briefing, August Scenario was our “twist” so no added suprises for this month. Today’s Scenario was in preparation for our BIG GAME XV - to be held on September 18, 2011. To determine the field pole lever starting colors, we played FIVE different games, each with a 5-10 minute break in-between. A set number of Ted’s Reds Specialty Characters guarded each of these locations. If eliminated, they were to move on to join the other Reds for the next location to be battled for.

We started things off in the Painted Forest for the pole nearest Fort Tippmann. With a 15 minute time limit, this made for some intense battles in and around Fort Tippmann. Gray controlled the location the longest, even going so far as to stand the lever upright with Gray at the top, but it was not placed INSIDE the base - rather leaning against it - so it didn’t count. With moments remaining in the game, BLUE swept the area, properly turning the pole lever to their color and winning Painted Forest Location #1.

Next we were off to the City. Still with a 15 minute time limit, the Reds were successful in holding back both Blue and Gray forces - thereby keeping the City Location # 2 NEUTRAL for the start of BIG GAME XV. Both Blue and Gray made some great attempts and sneaky eliminations of several of the Reds players. Jerry, Rendell and Radley were only a few feet from the pole inside Rent-A-Car when the horn sounded… they wouldn’t have made it anyway though right Rod? (Rendell and Radley’s father - also a Reds - was waiting inside the UpJohn posted on the pole).

After a 10 minute breather, we then battled it out in the Pasture. Once again there were intense battles and sneaky movements due to lower visibility in the narrow tree-lined paths of the pasture. Blue centered their attack from the right, while Gray attacked from the left, making for some suprise attacks on all sides. Although Gray initally controlled the Airport Tower, in a final push, Blue made a run for the flag pole, successfully turning it to BLUE, winning the Pasture Location # 3.

We then headed to the Hornet’s Nest. Most of the Reds defenders were situated inside the Den and were successful in keeping back both the Blue and Gray teams for most of the 15 minute game. Mid-way through, Captain Brien of the Gray team made a mad-dash for the pole, getting the pole lever in the base with Gray showing, but somehow the lever balanced itself at the top - never falling inside the base completely, which would not count as a successful turn. A few minutes later, another great move was made… this time by a Blue player, who grabbed the pole lever and started running out of the Hornet’s Nest! Referee Ted caught this player and returned the pole lever to the Hornet’s Nest - back in the neutral position on the ground. Then in the final moments of the game, both Gray Captain Brien and Tyler made a run at the pole, but as the horn sounded, it was accidentally placed in the base the wrong color - thereby giving BLUE the Hornet’s Nest Location # 4.

The final battle for the Mine Field was a 30 minute game. This battle was the most fragmented - most of the battle was held outside the Mine Field proper, mostly between Blue and the Reds, nearest the Hornet’s Nest wall. About half way through the game, Tunic-Wearer Josh turned the lever to Gray. There were many great gun-fights, and even a bayonnette to Captain Brien from Blue to the top of the head from the Livery. Sneaky move blue! In the final minutes of the game, Blue tried several attempts at the pole, each resulting in elimination before reaching it. Co-Captain Jerry took a hard fall on one of his attempts but with assistance was able to walk off the field under his own power. The horn sounded giving GRAY the Mine Field Location # 5.

This sets us up for an interesting BIG GAME XV, to be played out on September 18, 2011. Although the game designers have not yet revealed what sort of perks will be available to each team for BIG GAME XV, here is the final break-down of each team’s collection of supplies gathered throughout the season:

BLUE

• 29 food cans (21 small, 8 large)
• 5 water
• 15 bandages (14 small, 1 large)
• 8 Reds food cans (7 small, 1 large)
• 18 Ammo (16 small and 2 large)
• 190 Gallons of Gasoline
• Painted Forest, Pasture and Hornet’s Nest Flag Locations

GRAY

• 15 food cans (all small)
• 3 water
• 3 bandages (2 small, 2 large)
• 8 Reds food cans (7 small, 1 large)
• 16 Ammo (15 small and 1 large)
• 160 Gallons of Gasoline
• Mine Field Flag Location

Please join us for the conclusion of Aftermath 2011 Scenario  with BIG GAME XV Sunday, September 18, 2011! Afterwards will be a cook out and awards ceremony so come on out!

On August 21st we added 5 new club members, and August 28th we added 7 more! Thank you all for coming out and giving us a try!

Hopefully the weather will be a little more manageable in the up-coming weeks so it will feel a little better putting a mask on! See you soon.