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Miles Letum

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“But as of right now we have no idea how far-reaching the effects of the Zaros Program are; for all we know we wouldn’t even be able to ban any players.” Mark H said to the group.
“So? So what if we can’t ban them, we could at least try!” Paul said, still laughing.
“If their leaders were to find out of a plot to ban them, we would lose any hope of any kind of alliance with them.” Mark H said, after a short pause.
After his comment, Mark H turned and left the room in disgust.
---
Mark H sat alone in his office, pondering the future; he had devoted several years of his life working on this game. In fact, the players no longer felt like random people from the globe that he’d never meet… Instead, they felt like they were people he had an obligation to protect.
Mark H was never much of a leader. From the time he was born, all the way up through his time at Jagex Studios, he had been content to follow the orders given to him. He wasn’t one to “blaze a path” like Timbo or the Gower brothers, but he did*’t mind. As long as he was working towards the greater good, he was happy.
But this time was different. Mark H was not just angry with the Gower brothers, but infuriated. Not many people at Jagex Studios really appreciated players, but Mark H was one of them. He understood that each individual was not just a paycheck, but a living breathing person who had idea, wants, and needs.

10-Jul-2010 20:06:16 - Last edited on 10-Jul-2010 20:43:35 by Miles Letum

Miles Letum

Posts: 3,644 Adamant Posts by user Forum Profile RuneMetrics Profile

What made him mad was not just the fact that the brothers were treating their own fighting force like dirt, but also the way they acted towards Runescape’s Coalition. When he watched the assault on Draynor, he did*’t see a wave of players rushing towards hordes of computerized devils, he saw hundreds of people losing avatars they had spent hours upon hours to build up. He did*’t see pawns in a chess game collecting resources, he saw people working for the greater good. And most of all, he did*’t see Runescape’s Coalition as a renegade clan, he saw them as a group with the pure intention of winning back the game.
As Mark H pondered all of this, Emilee appeared in his cubicle.
“What happening in there?” she asked, genuinely worried.
“They’re thinking about banning the leaders of Runescape’s Coalition, in order to take Varrock over for themselves.” He replied, staring at his desk.
“Why would they do that?”
“Our merchants did*’t return from the trade…”
“How many were sent?” Emilee asked, taking a seat.
“Three.”
“Just the three merchants?”
“Yeah.”
“How do we know they weren’t attacked by NPC*?*
*We don’t. Andrew and Paul are just looking for an excuse to flex their muscles.”
“Why would they do that?” she asked again.
“Because as of right now, for the first time since Runescape was created, they do not have full power over the game. In fact, they don’t even have partial power, if you think about it; in comparison to the guys running Varrock, they’re just a small fraction in the equation…”
“But we have a hell of a lot more players working for us then they do.” Emilee said.

10-Jul-2010 20:06:17 - Last edited on 10-Jul-2010 20:43:59 by Miles Letum

Miles Letum

Posts: 3,644 Adamant Posts by user Forum Profile RuneMetrics Profile

“But they are unorganized, and we have unqualified moderators running the show. A video was leaked onto the internet showing footage of Runescape’s Coalition at work. They are ridiculously organized… They have separate organizations: one for military, one for infrastructure, one for economy, etc etc.”
“But if we really wanted to, couldn’t we just invade them?”
“That’s what Paul and Andrew want you to think. Realistically, they have siege defenses, organized troops, and there’s rumors floating around that they actually have meetings for military leaders to discuss tactics. All we have is some tech geeks telling players to attack the ‘bad guys’. If we did fight them, the only way we would win would be by sure numbers alone.”
“Why don’t Paul and Andrew take note of what that clan is doing, and implement it over here?”
“Because they don’t have a single leader… sure they have a ‘head official’ that runs their High Council, but he’s not a dictator. Runescape has never been a democracy, and if Andrew and Paul get their way, never will be. Half the time we don’t even explain the reasoning behind half our updates, or admit when we’ve made a mistake. If we can’t even do that, how are we going to allow players to have a say over what goes down?”
“So what do you suggest we do?”
“I don’t know* But one thing is for sure, we need to become more organized. Having a horde of people means nothing if they don’t work together.”

10-Jul-2010 20:06:17 - Last edited on 10-Jul-2010 20:44:16 by Miles Letum

Miles Letum

Posts: 3,644 Adamant Posts by user Forum Profile RuneMetrics Profile

“I’m sure Timmy will be onboard with whatever you decide.”
“One thing is for sure, Timbo has always been committed to doing what he thinks is right, even if that meant standing up to the CEO himself.” Mark H concluded.
---
“Seriously, he took command like a pro, mate.” Joker explained.
“We need people like that – charismatic.” YouKnowIt added.
“Agreed. Especially if this guy knows what he’s doing, like you say he does.” Mike said into his microphone.
“So it’s unanimous?” Courtney asked.
The High Council was debating Joker’s request to promote the squad leader of the transport squad to the military rank of Sergeant.
“Yeah, I’d say so.” YouKnowIt replied.
“Remind me, what powers would he gain from this promotion?” Courtney asked, via a Skype Call.
“He’d outrank Privates and Corporals, in addition to being able to lead platoons of troops.” Joker answered.
“I’d say we put him to work immediately – test his skill.” Mike suggested.
“How so?” YouKnowIt retorted.
“We know that swarm that attacked the squad was Al Kharid-based NPC*. Send a recon squad down there to see what they have going on.” Mike explained.
The vote passed unanimously.
The newest, first, and only member of the Lower Council, a female player who asked to be called Sally, had been personally invited to attend by YouKnowIt, and spoke up for the first time: “I’d like to petition the High Council to set up a special sub-organization within the Varrock sector of the Coalition.”
“I’m going to need a bit more information than that,” Joker laughed.
“You were personally invited, don’t been afraid to speak up!” Mike smiled.
“Well, since the plan is to eventually take other major cities, I was thinking that in each one, a sub-organization could exist… like a type of university that does research. The Lower Council, who could perhaps have a wing in each major city, would govern over their university, and take on the responsibilities of it.” She explained.

10-Jul-2010 20:06:21 - Last edited on 10-Jul-2010 20:44:55 by Miles Letum

Miles Letum

Posts: 3,644 Adamant Posts by user Forum Profile RuneMetrics Profile

“I like where this is going.” YouKnowIt commented.
“The university-type thing would have people researching exactly how this game engine works, and how to exploit it. I mean, lets be honest, I’m sure fortifying positions and building guard towers and walls aren’t the only things we’re able to accomplish now. It’d be the university’s job to come up with and test new technologies.” She continued.
“I’m not sure if I want just anyone working with potentially game-changing innovations, though…” Joker replied.
“That’s why I was going to suggest having a special university that was based on invites only; the people that were invited would be the best and brightest from the universities that were based in the major cities, and would research and test whatever the High Council deemed ‘Top Secret’.” She finished.
“I like it.” YouKnowIt added, simply.
“I definitely feel like the new ideas these organizations could produce would give us the edge over both Jagex and the Zaros Program.” Courtney added.
“So we’re voting to establish a Lower Council wing in each major city occupied by Runescape’s Coalition, and to create ‘universities’, which also have wings in each occupied major city?” Joker asked.
“That’s correct.” Mike explained.
“Is this unanimous?” YouKnowIt asked.
After a long pause of silence, Mike said, “Seeing as no one disagreed, Courtney put that down in the records as a unanimous pass.”
---

10-Jul-2010 20:06:23 - Last edited on 10-Jul-2010 20:45:11 by Miles Letum

Miles Letum

Posts: 3,644 Adamant Posts by user Forum Profile RuneMetrics Profile

Steve, the newly promoted Sergeant, crouched down behind a large rock, flanked on either side by the rest of his squad; he was currently playing the game with a PS3 controller, having downloaded a special stack of coding from Volaticus himself.
As he pushed in the right analog stick in to use the mounted telescopic scope that was mounted onto his magic longbow (the first invention to be pumped out of the Varrock University), he saw that the mining pit north of Al Kharid was filled with NPCs mining an assortment of ores******* to AD, come in AD.” Steve spoke into his mic.
“This is Alpha Dog, reading you loud and clear Squad Leader.” Joker responded.
“We have major NPC activity in the mining pit, as suspected by Head Master.”
Courtney, who was sitting next to Mike and listening to the conversation over skype, asked, “Codenames?”
“We honestly don’t know what the (explicit) we’re dealing with here. If the Zaros Program can alter the game coding at will (which goes beyond the scope of any other AI introduced into this game) we don’t know what else it is capable of. No reason not to be too careful.” Mike answered, nervously listening to the conversation.
“Requesting permission to engage multiple tangos.” Steve rang out.
“Permission denied.” Mike answered.
Silence.
“Care to elaborate?” Joker said with a smile.
“Why kill them yet? Ten more are more than likely to be ready to replace them as soon as the others realize they are missing. Study them. Find out where they are taking the ore and what it’s being used for.” Mike explained.

10-Jul-2010 20:06:24 - Last edited on 16-Jul-2010 18:32:57 by Miles Letum

Miles Letum

Posts: 3,644 Adamant Posts by user Forum Profile RuneMetrics Profile

“Agreed. This is, after all, a recon mission, not a pre-emptive strike.” Joker told Steve.
“Understood.” Steve said calmly.
Over Skype, Mike and Courtney could hear Steve typing commands to the rest of the squad.
“We’re going to proceed further into Al Kharid.” Steve announced.
After what seemed like hours, Joker asked, “What do you see, mate?”
Vaguely, the group could hear Steve mutter a sharp explicit under his breathe.
“There are I.E.D.’* hidden on the group. One of my men almost stepped on one.” Steve muttered.
“What’s an I.E.D.?” Courtney said to Mike.
“Improved Explosive Device. A home-made bomb.” Mike explained.
“What’s the damn thing made of?” Joker asked.
“It looks like soft class mashed around a chinchompa, to be honest with you…” Steve said, after examining the object.
“Goddam… Be careful out there…” Joker responded.
Steve and his squad moved pass the improvised mine field and continued deeper into the enemy territory. As the made their way into the urban portion of the area, they could hear a faint thumping noise coming from the distance.
Steve told his squad to follow the noise, and try to see what it was; as they moved closer, they passed by white-bricked building after building. Finally, they rounded the corner of Al Kharid’s palace. The thumping, by this point in time, had grown so loud that the other members of the Skype call could hear it perfectly.

10-Jul-2010 20:06:25 - Last edited on 16-Jul-2010 18:33:23 by Miles Letum

Miles Letum

Posts: 3,644 Adamant Posts by user Forum Profile RuneMetrics Profile

“Head Master, you’re not going to believe this.” Steve announced.
Mike glanced at Courtney quickly, and then asked, “What is it****?*
*They’ve got a whole freakin’..” Suddenly, an ear-splitting explosion came through the microphone.
“Christ!” Joker yelled into the microphone, in response to the shriek.
“GODDAMIEDTHEYSEEUS(explicit)” Steve screamed aloud.
They next few moments of the voice chat were characterized by Steve’s continuous shouts of mature words, along with the deafening sounds of explosions and button mashing.
Finally, after a few minutes of what sounded like a raging battle, Steve’s heavy panting came through Mike’s speakers.
*That… was… intense…” Steve gasped.
“What the hell happened?” Joker exploded into the mic.
“One of my boys stepped on an IED, blowing himself up and damaging the squad member next to him. We were watching a massive army of Al Kharid soldiers march back in forth in formation when this happened; after the explosion went off they all took notice and engaged us. The poor guy that had been damaged got piled, and did*’t last more than a few seconds. I lobbed a couple Chins into their ranks, but obviously they’re not just normal soldiers because I don’t think the Chins managed to kill any of them. Thankfully, me and the last guy tele’d out before they could finish us off.”
Joker’s response was a single adult word, which happened to start with an F.
Mike looked at Courtney and muttered, “We’re in over our heads here.”
---
“All right, so that’s the plan? For sure?” Mark asked Paul.
*Yeah. We give them a chance to explain themselves, and no matter what the answer is, we put the plan into action.” He responded, leaving the office.
---
Mark H put his head into his hands, thinking.

10-Jul-2010 20:06:26 - Last edited on 16-Jul-2010 18:33:44 by Miles Letum

Miles Letum

Posts: 3,644 Adamant Posts by user Forum Profile RuneMetrics Profile

“Mark, are you sure you want to do this?” Emilee, concerned, said to him.
“It’s for the best.” he replied, without moving.
“I’m going too.” Timbo, who was standing next to Emilee, added.
Mark H looked up and said, “Timbo, you don’t need to do this.”
“Yes I do. I won’t let Paul, Andrew, and their pet CEO tear this game down with incompetence.”
Mark H nodded and said, “Let’s log in, then.”
Emilee, near tears, said, “I’m coming too!”
Timbo putting his arm on her shoulder, “Em, I never liked this company much anyway. But they’ll probably have you replace Mark H, and we need an inside person.”
She nodded, knowing what was coming.
Timbo, moving into Mark H’s cubicle, sat down at the computer next to his; together, they logged into Runescape.
---
“Sooner or later they’re going to call our bluff.” Joker yelled into the mic.
“NO! Jagex has never been decisive before, what makes you think they’ll do anything this time!” YouKnowIt retorted.
“Because this time their company is on their line, and they’re losing money. We’ve known for years that the money runs this game!” Joker yelled back.
Courtney, trying to bring some order to the High Council meeting, asked, “So, what exactly is the situation? Explain it to me as if you were explaining it to the whole coalition.”
“We are outnumbered two enemies to our south, and the great unknown to our north, and west. As far as we know, the River Salve protects us to the east.” Mike calmly said.
“And Jagex is going to try and kill us because the naïve (explicit)s think we killed their unprotected merchants.” Joker angrily added.

10-Jul-2010 20:06:27 - Last edited on 16-Jul-2010 18:34:06 by Miles Letum

Miles Letum

Posts: 3,644 Adamant Posts by user Forum Profile RuneMetrics Profile

“But we haven’t gotten word from them yet! How do we know they’re going to attack us!?” YouKnowIt jumped in.
“You know very well how Jagex works! Question their authority and they jump you in the back alley!” the shouting was picking up again.
“Guys.” Mike said, stepping in.
“Ok, and exactly how strong is this other ‘enemy’?” Courtney asked, already knowing the answer.
“Let your sergeant answer that.” Joker ejected.
Steve, who was sitting in the corner of the room, as far away from the long table where all the shouting was going on, said, “They have more soldiers than we have total population, total cooperation, and they’re not as weak as we expected.”
“And they know we know about them!” Joker exploded again.
“It is logical that they’d strike us now that the element of surprise is gone.” Mike solemnly said.
“Thank you! Finally someone understands!” Joker yelled again.
Sally, still the only Lower Council member, who was sitting next to Steve in the corner, timidly added, “Should I shift all research in the University to things that could help the war effort?”
“Goddam it! You said yourself this is a Coalition, not an Army!” YouKnowIt interjected, aimed at Mike.
“YouKnowIt: that is true, but we must start preparing for war. If our instincts are correct, we may be fighting a two front war within the next few days.” Mike explained.

10-Jul-2010 20:06:32 - Last edited on 16-Jul-2010 18:34:25 by Miles Letum

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