Greetings traveler,

Welcome to the fortieth edition of the alcarin.com newsletter.
There is an archive of the previous newsletters in the Townhall and the columns are added to the Town Square, so you can always read it again.
Although there are few visible updates, quite a lot of work has been done this month. The most time consuming was having to remove all of the old virtualavenue counter images that did't work anymore. Furthermore, there is a new User Online Campaign running at the Forums, titled "The Dark Maiden", a free form pirate rpg. The Elfstone MUD has made quite a lot of progress as well, with a lot of new spells designed. In the column, Wouter continues the Jonathan Saga.
Enjoy reading.

This letter's content:
1. What's New
2. Coming Up Soon
3. Column: Men with a Mission

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WHAT'S NEW:

18/02/2004 - new riddle in the Wyvern Inn

06/02/2004 - new campaign running at User Online Campaigns forum: The Dark Maiden

Visit http://www.alcarin.com/townhall/updates.htm for the latest updates.

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COMING UP:

With the counter images removed, I will have some time for the other running projects. The Elfstone MUD has been worked on quite a lot the past month and will continue to be worked on in the coming month. We've still got a lot of spells to design and we'll need to get the MUD's initial playtest back online. The other major item in progress is the Landlord RPG. Again, I didn't get to that this month. Hopefully, in the coming month I will.
The upcoming D&D mission "The Crypt", a small dungeon for level 7 to 9 characters, is in progress as well. Jan Willem v.d. Brink, author of Agmanor's Treasure, Burglary in Dobnell, and Yiddobi's Dwelling, has digitalized the maps for me. With the maps finished, I can start the work on writing the mission itself.
Furthermore, there is a new prestige class for Dungeons & Dragons waiting to be added to the site. I may add a D&D version of some of the spells I've designed for use in the Elfstone MUD, to the site as well. Another point that is still waiting, is the Elfstone geography pages of the northern parts of Nen and four cities in that area. In the coming month, I will try to create the legends at least.

For up to date news on these major projects and other major developments on alcarin.com, see the Announcements forum at http://www.alcarin.com/forum/viewforum.php?f=9

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COLUMN: MEN WITH A MISSION
A column by Wouter vd Zandschulp; wouter@alcarin.com

"The clumsy goat"

Jonathan the Goat was a big hit in town. Not only his own town. Goat milk was popular, even among children. They wanted to become just as cool as Jonathan by drinking it.
"I will become just as strong and handsome as Jonathan the Goat!"
The image of Jonathan the Goat rose and rose. The managers of Goat Milk Inc. were very happy. Not long ago they didn't even make enough money selling goat milk to make a second little sign saying: 'We do NOT sell actual ink!' and now a sign with golden letters was put there.
Jonathan was so popular he managed to feel quite good, even though some thoughts kept haunting him. The more the thought about the old man and his betrayal of his creative talent haunted him, the more he swelled in his popularity.
Sure, acting like a goat wasn't always that much of a creative challenge anymore, since the public wanted him to do the same every time, but all the attention he got afterwards hit him at his sensitive spot; the crowd that loved him... or at least... his goat-version.

Time went by and the manager of Goat Milk Inc. convinced Jonathan to participate in a new big advertisement stunt to make the sales of Goat Milk really go to the roof. This was meant quite literarily, since he intended to make the factory bigger by adding another floor on the first one. He therefore made up evening long shows hosted by Jonathan the Goat, where Jonathan could entertain a much bigger audience at once. He would sell tickets and goat milk during the show.

Jonathan had talked to his manager about his own ideas, but the manager insisted on the familiar goat stuff. Before the show Jonathan looked in a mirror and saw his own head disappearing underneath his goat mask again. Happily he heard the audience: "We want Jonathan... the Goat..."
He got a bit sad. He wandered around and thought about old days. He was in a bar with the old man and was not hearable. Later they got to a castle and he demolished stuff with his clumsiness. His clumsiness seemed to have decreased while his confidence was increasing. He looked in the big audience.
"Wow, quite a turn up" he thought, but it did not even make him happy. "Wow, even Gandalf turned up... or Gandalf? Isn't it...?" He looked again, surprised.

A big sign featuring Jonathan's goat-like head was put up. The decors where put up. The proud manager of Goat Milk Inc. knew the audience did not care about him but was impatiently waiting for Jonathan the Goat, so he cut his announcement short. He was a bit nervous, too.
"Ladies and gentleman, I give you Jonathan... THE GOAT!!!"
Cheers went up. Jonathan got in the picture. Everywhere children with flasks of goat milk where waving.
"I want to be like him!" they told each other.
Jonathan looked at the audience and said: "Hello..."
He seemed a bit startled by all of them and walked backwards... into an apparently quite essential part of keeping the decor up, since it came falling upon him. Jonathan tried to get up, thereby destroying a bit of the paperwork.
His totally unheroic appearance startled the audience. They thought it might be meant funny, but it looked a bit to real to be done on purpose.
Especially the child fans where totally quiet.
"Oops" Jonathan said, after which he tried to get himself together off stage, thereby walking into a lever, which made a sign fall on the audience.
"I am sorry... woops... I mean..."
When later a desperate attempt to juggle some balls, put in his hands off stage by an angry goat milk manager, resolved in a lot of audience members that where already hurt getting balls on their heads, the disappointed fans threw their flasks of goat milk to Jonathan and walked outside, to buy some cow milk from the new mascot Mr. Cow from Cow Milk Inc. (we do not sell actual Ink!!!).

Jonathan lay under the remains of the room. The manager of Goat Milk Inc. knew he probably would not even get to increase his production by using the basement, let alone building. Jonathan just said 'Oops' as some sort of excuse. The manager said: "You're fired." He left the building.
The old man walked up to Jonathan. No-one else was left in the room.
"Well done" he said. "I had a feeling you might do this. That's why I came. Come with me now, I've got a plan to get you famous again... but now because of your artistic talent..."
Jonathan looked at him.
"You are the greatest," he said.
They left the building together.

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Well, that's it for this month's newsletter. I hope you enjoyed it.
Lord Gildor
"May the stars guide you on your journeys"
http://www.alcarin.com

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