Archives: December 1998
The Fragboard Race:
Well as December 98 comes to a close, this month's top 5 fraggers on the SMS DM server are:
| Ranking | Name | Ratio | Skill | Kills | Deaths | Suicides |
|---|
| 1 | STRAND[SMS-T] | 4.2542 | 35082 | 4854 | 988 | 153 |
| 2 | Ubik[SMS] | 6.1965 | 34986 | 3154 | 460 | 49 |
| 3 | 2lt.Tempest[SMS | 3.1130 | 25971 | 5012 | 1434 | 176 |
| 4 | Ubik[SMS-T] | 4.3983 | 24180 | 3180 | 654 | 69 |
| 5 | Carnage [SMS]-T | 3.7221 | 18351 | 2866 | 673 | 97 |
Congrats, and Happy New Year! '98 was overall a great year for Steel Maelstrom, I believe '99 will be even better!
Posted 21:55 EST by 2LT Tempest
B Company, 1st Platoon News:
Congrats to Trainee Xanadu and Pvt Sniper for becoming the first Bravo Company members to pass their cadre test. Sniper is pretty lethal with a crossbow, and as he's been an SMS member since Dec 4th, he's successfully survived his probation. As for Xanadu, he was just plain kicking everyone's ass, and he'll become a full member as soon as his 2-week probation is up. Nice job, guys. Note: I wanted to get this announcement up sooner, but I'm still recovering from an 18-hour Mongolian cluster-fuck of a network reconfig...
Posted 17:27 EST by 2LT Kreth
A Piece Of My Mind:
I just stumbled across Quetiquette: Quaker's Etiquette. Now, I'm all for being civil and polite to one's fellow gamer (you know, the Golden Rule thing) but I had to snort in disgust at one item:
Someone facing a wall in the corner? It used to be a rather common practice, but it's generally a sign of being away from the puter. Be a good sport and don't hunt the guy down, though the sight of a free kill certainly is tempting. It's certainly laudible for you to do the same when away, but considering the amount of people that don't know such a thing it's a better idea to do this after you've found a spot that's not a place of a major firefight. In the long run, it'll give you more respect.
Right. When the hell am I ever cut some slack when I take the time to mess with the console or (foolishly) chat? I'll tell you when: never. Somebody usually comes up behind me and turns my head into a canoe.
And the truth is this: I enjoy killing stationary, defenseless players. I'm one sick bastard. The only time I don't shoot chatters is if I find myself in a 1-on-1 on some server and am b.s.-ing with my opponent. Well, I don't kill on purpose then.
I'll tell you something else: I pray that id incorporates something I read about in a Quake III preview...a sprite or other icon above the head of a chatting player. Obviously this is to be some Shogo-like indicator not to shoot somebody who is busy discussing his 1337 script or some such shit. To me, it's a big neon "Eat At Joes"-like sign that says "shoot me."
The guy behind Quetiquette may have good intentions, but Martha Stewart and rocket launchers don't mix. Nobody likes Rules Nazis, and nobody uses the salad fork in the Frag Pipe. Such effort is better spent elsewhere, IMO.
Posted 12:31 EST by CPT Rantage
Reading Material:
Remember the mass ION Storm defections that took place a while ago? Still curious? Go take a gander at Flamethrower's latest. While I can't vouch for the accuracy of it all, it makes amusing reading.
Posted 11:59 EST by CPT Rantage
Miscellaneous Rumblings:
Happy New Year to all of you out there. Be careful.
Posted 7:6 EST by CPT Rantage
A Company, 4th Platoon News:
First off, New trainee to alpha 4th platoon. Nick is Mangus....[SMS-T]Mangus........;).
Second off, I am back from vacationing with relatives so I'll be back in the game. 4Th platoon has gone down to few players since a-wals move. Hopefully new trainee will help ;)
Posted 23:2 EST by 2LT bIOHZRD
A Piece Of My Mind:
"SMS Ownz?"
Is that anything like "owns?"
I don't have to pay taxes on any of this owned shit, do I?
Posted 20:6 EST by CPT Rantage
Tempest's Ramblings:
Hmmm, apparently Steel Maelstrom is getting popular. This guy is certainly getting into the SMS spirit!
Posted 18:56 EST by 2LT Tempest
B Company, 1st Platoon News:
Now that the transfer has been officially approved, I would like to welcome aboard SSG A-Wal, who joins Bravo Company from Alpha Company, 4th Platoon.
Posted 8:54 EST by 2LT Kreth
B Company, 1st Platoon News:
Well, looks like Bravo Company is gonna hit the ground running. I have several new members to welcome aboard: Trainees AgentP, Justin, moonshot, MrUDK, and Xanadu, welcome to SMS... I'd also like to put out a request to you artistic types. Bravo Company needs a skin, and a logo. Send me your submissions, and we'll see if we can come up with a prize, like maybe a box of grid squares or something...
Posted 21:38 EST by 2LT Kreth
Tempest's Ramblings:
Hmmm, and they say there doing nothing to stop hackers:
A couple of hackers got into a bank computer system and funneled money out for themselves. The problem? They got caught. The bigger problem? They've been sentenced to die for this crime. Just when you were actually starting to believe computer crimes were insignficant
So kiddies, think twice before you try any hacking! :)
Posted 21:35 EST by 2LT Tempest
B Company, 1st Platoon News:
Ok, hot on the heels of the last announcement comes this one:
I have promoted SGT Kreth to the rank of Second Lieutenant and have placed him in charge of our first Half-Life platoon.
Posted 22:49 EST by CPT Rantage
Roster Changes:
Wow, talk about the power of advertising. I am pleased to announce that Bravo Company, our venture into Half-Life, is up and running. I have received three applications tonight from the following new trainees:
- Ice, from Connecticut
- Trinity, from Florida
- TBIRDX, stationed in Nevada
I'll be making a few more announcements regarding B Company soon, I suspect...
Posted 22:3 EST by CPT Rantage
Roster Changes:
2 new trainee's to mention. Welcome Trainee Cryo and Trainee Gunslinger to Steel Maelstrom. Their cadra's and testing date will be assigned soon.
Posted 15:15 EST by 2LT Tempest
Surf's Up:
Tempest's Ramblings:
I have decided for the POTD box to be removed. This decision came for two reasons.
1. I was getting too lazy to update it.
2. My AOL account terminates Jan 2nd and as a result I will no longer be able to update it. My new e-mail address after Jan 2nd will be TempestSMS@sympatico.ca.
Thanks to all who submitted pics to me over the time the POTD box was up! :)
Posted 15:13 EST by 2LT Tempest
Reading Material:
A revised draft of the SMS Rules and Regulations is now online. A link is also available in the Articles section.
The Rules and Regs have been updated to reflect the new clan structure as well as the Trainee/recruiting system and policies that have been changed or added in the last few months.
I would highly recommend that all Trainees and current members (as well as any individuals interested in joining SMS) review this section.
Posted 0:2 EST by CPT Rantage
Miscellaneous Rumblings:
Happy Boxing Day to all the Canadians out there.
Boxing Day, to those of you who aren't familiar with it, is a day on which all Canadians leave their homes at daybreak. If they see their shadows then they return inside for a day of beer and televised hockey. If they do not see their shadows, then they immediately engage in fisticuffs with their neighbors, and continue to fight until all but one of the participants are unconscious or surrender.
At least, that's how I think it goes.
Posted 20:16 EST by CPT Rantage
Miscellaneous Rumblings:
MERRY CHRISTMAS everybody. Don't drink too much egg nog and avoid the mistletoe when the sickly girls are underneath it, otherwise you may not be healthy enough to enjoy New Year's Eve.
Posted 23:3 EST by CPT Rantage
Gentle Reminder:
It's Christmas Eve. Get off of the damn Net and go spend time with your families, you geeks.
Posted 23:0 EST by CPT Rantage
A Piece Of My Mind:
PQ is reporting that everybody's buddy, Zoid, has released yet another patch (2.33-0005) for Quakeworld (you know, the precursor to Quake II) on Quakeworld.net.
Like anybody gives a shit, that is. I mentioned it here because I'm amused that people are still playing it.
I mean, color me jaded, but I stopped playing QW and Quake I when the sequel came out. To me, issuing patches for Quakeworld is kind of like making sure your web page is Lynx compatible.
I guess my angst comes not from the fact that people still like QW, but that the guy who is responsible for patching the more recent game (the 1-year-old Quake II) is busy fucking around with a game that -- as far as I'm concerned -- was plenty stable about a year ago. This is time better spent improving Quake II, God damn it!
Posted 19:47 EST by CPT Rantage
Roster Changes:
Trainee Carnage INC. and Trainee Strand passed their cadre test today and will become full members as of January 4th '99. Congrats!
Trainee Redlief and Trainee Panthers test will take place tonight and the practice.
Posted 17:56 EST by 2LT Tempest
Quake III News:
Well, a Quake3 demo apparently would be coming out sooner then I thought. This comes from the Quake3 messageboard sCary has put up and comes from a reliable source:
A.) He and Kenneth Scott will probably release a female player model pack after Q3:A ships.
B.) Q3:A is very playable right now and a lot of fun but some technical issues such as security must be worked out before a test could be released.
C) That test could be released in a month or so at best
So the best possible time ID will release a Q3TEST would be late January or early Febuary because Activision slated Q3A's release for 1st Quater '99.
Posted 17:48 EST by 2LT Tempest
1st Platoon News:
Trainee Faust passed his Cadre match on Friday, and will become a full member of Steel Maelstrom on Dec. 28'th. Congrats!
Posted 20:47 EST by 2LT Reaperman
3rd Platoon News:
Well, I was hoping for some grapple-evasion drills (as proposed by EvilNun) tonight,
however the SMS servers were down during our scheduled practice time. I will scope out some
other good servers to use as backup when we find the SMS servers are NS. Then we could at
least have an "open" exercise.
On another note, looks like that clan
Silencer had in mind didn't come through. We'll try again next Sunday.
Posted 22:16 EST by 2LT Ping Ping
Files O' Plenty:
I've decided to run my own Q2 server. It seems to be ok, just as long as I don't actually play on it to. There's been a demand for an Action Quake2 server, so that's what I'm running right now. However, I can also run a Weapons Factory server if someone can tell me how to get the map rotation to work. This would give the 3rd Platoon a place to practice WF, and the AQ server would allow the 1st Platoon to actually play "Other Mods". Unfortunatly, I'll have to shutdown the servers during RA2 practice, and any time I wish to play Q2. Since I only have one computer to work on I can only do one or the other, not both! But it's better than a sharp stick in the eye.
The servers are running at the following IP: 24.3.235.76
with Action Quake2 on port 27910, and Weapons Factory will be on port 27911 when I get it working correctly. Help would be apreciated!
Posted 21:44 EST by SSG A-Wal
100% Nothing To Do With Quake:
Well, I'm glad to see that Cpt. Rantage is getting excited about that wild TF2 thing. This
game has the potential to completely revolutionize the way online, team-based multi-play
games are played. I am a fan of Quake and Quake2 CTF because of the gratification I receive
when a group of individuals (my team) work in unison to overcome an obstacle. I am not a
fan of the original Team Fortress, however, due to the fact that it was not (as some early
mods were) a well thought-out creation and hence feels as if it was "hastily" thrown or
patched together. TF2, on the other hand, will be built according to an actual blueprint
and will be way more polished and feature-rich than its predecessor. Throw in some of the
team-play goodies Rant was talking about and you have yourself a mod that will lend itself
perfectly (directly; that's why it's being made in the first place) to people that want to
experience full-blown group strategy and action. TF2 does have its critics: those people
that believe that it will be too complex to play or too realistic to be fun. Well, yes, TF2
could fail due to the complexity, but ever try to play Team Fortress for Quake? Talk about
key-bindings coming out the ying-yang or running around without direction which is pretty
much how most people play the game. And too realistic? Well, it could be a problem, but
not for people like me :)
I believe that TF2 will be found attractive to some (not all) of the people that play the
original mod and will actually create new fans that have never felt that charge you get when
a team successfully completes a very difficult objective through the use of teamwork
and firepower. We'll have to wait and see, but I'm positive this thing is going to
rock.
Rant/Ace: You think one of you will give a shot at the Commander class?
Posted 4:15 EST by 2LT Ping Ping
Mod Watch:
Gamecenter.com has a great preview of Team Fortress II worth reading. Among the interesting factoids about this 1999 add-on for Half-Life:
- You will be able to play TF2 in single-player mode against bots
- The game will contain 1400 digitized words in audio clips to use when communicating -- kind of like those used in LMCTF
- TF2 will come with quite a few scenarios, including escort missions in which your team must escort a computer-controlled character and prevent him/her from being assassinated
Damn, this game is sounding better and better. Go read the preview to see the screenshots as well.
Posted 8:51 EST by CPT Rantage
Ace's Ramblings:
Woo Hoo I Received An Early christmas present .My Wife had our second Son Thomas Mcewen. On Friday December 18 At 10:50 Am .Mom and babe are doing fine.
Posted 13:39 EST by XO Ace
100% Nothing To Do With Quake:
As one of the sons of bitches who had to go over there the first time Hussein got out of control, I'm always for dropping large quantities of explosives onto that giant stinking catbox known as Iraq. However, I also believe the timing is quite questionable, given Bill Clinton's current political situation and the fact that we've been playing this game with Iraq for years and nothing has really changed.
Posted 20:4 EST by CPT Rantage
Miscellaneous Rumblings:
Roster Changes:
I'm proud to announce the addition of Carnage INC and RedLeif to Steel Maelstrom. These two will defintly make us a force to be reckoned with! See the Roster section for their info...
Posted 19:21 EST by 2LT Tempest
Battle Time:
I apoligize to Clan ROKS for the delayed response of posting the results of the battle. ROKS beat us by 59-58 (it was by one I know that) and the other time by 92-62 I believe. GG's ROKS! :)Maybe we'll get ya next time!
Posted 15:27 EST by 2LT Tempest
Roster Changes:
Steel Maelstrom welcome STRAND to the clan. For those of you play on the SMS server or check out the fragboard (which I hope this is all of you) you know that Strand is quite a force to be reckoned with! Welcome to SMS Strand!
Posted 18:33 EST by 2LT Tempest
3rd Platoon News:
3-Platoon rocked tonight. Again, this was simply an exercise conducted
on an open server where there were a bunch or environmental variables (unfair teams
, etc.) that made the games less than perfect, but we triumphed nonetheless. On the
first map that we were organized as a team, we whupped 10 to 2. On the maps that we
didn't win we still dominated key areas and fulfilled key objectives which resulted
in SMS members having the highest personal CTF scores of anyone else in the game.
3-Platoon was a blue wall when using a predominantly defensive strategy
and an unstoppable juggernaut when going "all out" offensive. Even when
we lacked some offensive "oomph" we were at the very least an irritating (and
disease-carrying) flea to the opposition's defense. It was very nice to
witness regular and consistent communications between members; no matter where I was at
any given time on a particular map I still knew exactly what was going on everywhere else.
Congratulations guys (I consider that a neutered term, Nun :), we had a good open
excercise.
EvilNun has been the first to recommend the practice of a seldom used but very
important tactic: grapple evasion. We saw a few opposition members
using this quite liberally tonight especially once they grabbed our flag. Nun
pointed out the fact that, when good at it, you are virtually free to escape and evade
weapons-fire. And that's what happened. We saw this technique being used on us a few
times and I'd say that, when they had a good escort, the flag stealer got away 90% of the
time. She has proposed that we practice this tactic so that we could re-inforce our
offensive capabilities, which seem to lag only slightly behind our defensive (which are
rock solid). If any of you have any other ideas or areas to exercise,
please let me know.
Silencer has proposed that we have a scrimmage with another CTF clan as soon as
next Sunday (the 19th). If he can work this out I'd like all of you to be there, as it
would be a closed (and near-perfect) CTF environment. We haven't had any real "structured"
practices yet, but a friendly scrimmage with another clan is the best practice we could
possibly get. Again, let me know if you can't make it.
And finally (whew, my fingers are tired) I'd like to thank the P-Funk-Dude for
coming out tonight; it really felt good to play with most of 3-Platoon at the same time.
Hope this didn't ruin your afternoon football game, and no, we couldn't tell if you had
been drinking or not :)
3-PLATOON RULES!!!
Posted 22:44 EST by 2LT Ping Ping
Roster Changes:
As of yesterday, Ubik is now a full member of Steel Maelstrom.
Posted 12:5 EST by 2LT Tempest
Roster Changes:
Promotion, [SMS]Wicked is NOW A FULL MEMBER.....welcome and good job... he kicked my ass on a score of 2 to 1 on 3 DIFFERENT arenas. we had 2 practice matches then 3 matches...the person that won got a point...any questions ask me...
Anywayz he's IN
Posted 22:6 EST by 2LT bIOHZRD
A Piece Of My Mind:
Jesus, I hate my damn ISP.
Currently, the Roster and SMS Login sections are not working...apparently Active Server Page support here at dysfunctional Tidalwave.net is as flaky as everything else.
I am currently seeking a hosting service that provides at least 10MB of space, 2 e-mail addresses, unlimited usage, 1 datasource and scripting options: preferably ColdFusion but ASP is fine. If you know of such a service that is reasonably priced please let me know.
Posted 18:40 EST by CPT Rantage
Battle Time:
We are having yet another re-match with the CT guys again. However, I fucked up and forgot to remind the people who were supposed to play against them, I forgot myself even today!! Shyte, anyway, it starts at 9:30pm EST.
Posted 18:38 EST by 2LT Tempest
Surf's Up:
Thanks to Rantage's post about QuakePost, I came across a site I've been looking for for a while; it's called The bullseye. It's a Quake2 crosshair site where you can download dozens of Crosshairs, I settled for a one I like and it helps, however, I didn't find the SiN crosshair, I wanted one where when I aim on an enemy it turns red, but can't find that anywhere, oh well. Anyway, check it out.
- Also, Ace posted this yesterday, but I'm having the same prob. Whenever I take a screenshot in Q2, my Pc freezes, WTF is up with that!??
Posted 18:36 EST by 2LT Tempest
Miscellaneous Rumblings:
I've updated the Links section...added a few items and cleared out the dead wood.
Posted 18:36 EST by CPT Rantage
Surf's Up:
Quakeport is a new Yahoo!-type site that provides links to gaming-related pages.
Is this a good thing? You bet your ass. Ever since Joost Schuur's Slipgate Central shut down, it's been hell trying to find a page containing the information you want....especially since the "major" pages seem more interested in promoting their own hosted sites.
Personally, I hope Quakeport thrives (and stays in its current ad-free format) because the Quake 'community' needs this kind of impartial service.
Posted 18:23 EST by CPT Rantage
100% Nothing To Do With Quake:
Ace's Ramblings:
Hey does anyone out there Know why.When I take a screenshot my computer freezes.This has just started happening .Can someone tell me how to fix this. Thanks.
Posted 20:16 EST by XO Ace
Gentle Reminder:
Today is the one year anniversary of the release of Quake II. Wow, how the last 12 months have flown by...
And, of course, it is the fifth anniversary (!) of our old pal Doom...the game that gave us all w00d and introduced us to the joy that is multiplayer third-person gaming.
Posted 20:29 EST by CPT Rantage
Battle Time:
Steel Maelstrom did not get to face clan Triad last night, this was partly my fault, I arrived half an hour late due to scheduling probs, however, I see no reason why the CT guys couldn't wait a bit for me to show up, oh well. He resheduled it to next Saturday at 9PM...
- Facing ROKS tomarrow at 9ish...same people as last tuesday.
Posted 17:27 EST by 2LT Tempest
3rd Platoon News:
Thanks to EvilNun and Silencer for joining me tonight for an open CTF battle. I don't know about you, but it sure got my blood flowing. Even though this was an informal practice, it was nice to see the regular use of secure, key-bound communication. Hopefully we can put those l33t skills to use again next Sunday.
P.S. Silencer was really kicking ass tonight as he was doing laundry at the same time as quaking :)
P.P.S. Yes, PFunk-dude. Sobriety is not a requirement for CTF practices, only battles. And yes, I would encourage you to have football on the tube while at practice. Any extra amount of adrenalin you can bring with you the better :)
G'nite all...
Posted 1:6 EST by 2LT Ping Ping
Miscellaneous Rumblings:
I've created a SMS logo for Half-Life for any members who are aspiring graffiti artists. Contact me and I'll mail it to you.
Posted 18:15 EST by CPT Rantage
Roster Changes:
Welcome Trainee DaKilla to Steel Maelstrom...he's currently going through his training process, a cadre will be assignined to him soon.
- Steel Maelstrom battles clan CT tonight at 9PM EST..results will be posted tomarrow.
Posted 13:24 EST by 2LT Tempest
3rd Platoon News:
Ok, folks. PingPing has officially fixed the voltage problem his mobo was giving his new video card (which is why he missed the SMS group practice) and has compiled the times and days of the week that you all have mailed to him. It looks like Sunday will be the official CTF practice day, barring any unforseen scheduling conflicts, at 8PM EST. I'll stop talking in 3rd person, now. Boy I'm tired :)
I'm not expecting you all to be there this Sunday (the 6th) due to short notice, but I'll be kicking around the SMS CTF server for an "open" game for some simple exercise. Next week I'll have some drills for us to go through, and any help from 1st, 2nd, or 4th platoon would be greatly appreciated.
Posted 3:4 EST by 2LT Ping Ping
Battle Time:
Roster Changes:
Trainee Solid Snake has been added to clan SMS.......welcome, and have fun.
Posted 15:42 EST by 2LT bIOHZRD
New Patch:
Ok Guys version 3.20 of quake 2 has been released.I'll ask nick to switch over the servers.
Posted 20:53 EST by XO Ace
A-Wal's Quote of the Day:
Your gona get a kick out of this. I checked my horoscope today, and here's what it said.
"You don't have to salute as a gesture of respect, but at least try to refrain from laughing."
Honest to God! That's really what my horoscope for today says.
Posted 11:23 EST by SSG A-Wal
4th Platoon News:
Trainee Zapp is up for his "initiation" tonight. Good luck. He will be fighting Pandemic (if he ever gets his celeron to run stable at 450), or me if pande Is NOT on.
Posted 16:46 EST by 2LT bIOHZRD