by F1at1ined on Wed Mar 3 19:48:42 2010, filed in New Members

We were looking over our clan roster the other day, and noticed we had a glaring hole in the 'Camel Driver' field. Never truly knowing quite when camel driving will become vogue, or at worst a new vehicle in Halo (I mean, we already race warthogs and mongeese, so could camels be far behind?), we decided to snag us a bona fide member with solid camel driving connections. Luckily for us, we happen to know one such fellow, and now have a strong monopoly on licensed camel driving in Indiana. Let me present our newest Cirque - keworth2347!

I apologize to Keworth for the tardiness of this article, but Keworth has been a Cirque for perhaps 2 weeks or so. In many ways, he's been practically a Cirque for months, but it's nice to make it official. Joining us from one of our great sister GeezerGamers clans, Keworth brings a positive and infectious attitude into any party he joins or hosts. He can be found roaming the dunes of Sandtrap and skulking in the scrubland of Wasteland. You may see him zooming about in a warthog, or perhaps piloting an AC-130. He's a jack of all trades.

We call him 'Key', but in all honesty, if he could spell Kenworth, we'd be calling him Ken. However, for reasons unspecified, either his 'N' was broken, or maybe it was stuck, or he just had a momentary lapse when submitting his gamertag. And so keworth2347 was born. We're thrilled to have him join our ranks as a Cirque, and he becomes the second Cirque who has admitted to having some spelling issues when choosing their gamertag (and no, I'm not the other one..I couldn't choose Flatlined with L's as it was already taken - so I compromised LOL)

Key is a great addition to our growing family, and we are delighted to be able to call him a clanmate. If you see him online, be sure to tease him about the missing 'N'. In all honesty though, I expect you'll soon forget all about that and get used to calling him 'Key' - just as we all do. Please welcome our newest Cirque, and if you find yourself in need of some camel driving lessons, be sure to look him up!

by F1at1ined on Wed Feb 17 19:04:11 2010, filed in News

With the recent arrival of the newest installment of the Call of Duty franchise attracting a strong online presence in the first person shooter field on XBox Live, it may seem out of date that we are posting an article about a vehicle from Halo 3, one of its established competitors. However, the Warthog happens to be one of the best playable vehicles in a video game of all time, and it well worthy of an article all about it. It probably is one of the most iconic vehicles to appear in a videogame. However, there is more to this vehicle than just jumping in and aiming it towards the enemy. Here's some invaluble intel from our very own Addict3d 2Cha0s!

Revisiting the Halo 3 'Hog

One of the clan's resident Halo 3 diehards, Addict3d 2Cha0s is still very passionate about her love for Bungie's FPS masterpiece. One of her favorite elements in the vivid Haloverse is the Warthog, a vehicle that can carry up to three players and is an ideal troop transport, support vehicle, raider and attacking force. It has evolved as the Halo trilogy evolved. It went from being a popular doorway blocker in Halo:CE, to a moving deathtrap in Halo 2 (due to the lock on 'fire and forget' mechanism in play for the Rocket Launchers) to being a mobile tool of destruction in Halo 3 (where skillful drivers have a chance to avoid or shake what may have been a killing shot in Halo 2). But rather than me extol the virtues of the Warthog, I'll let Addict3d 2Cha0s do the talking. Enjoy the article, and many thanks to Addict3d 2Cha0s for the time spent typing this article up!


The Halo 3 Warthog is a fickle beast. She alternately can chew down the enemy, making for a very quick game, and plunge into battle ferociously, to quickly be shut down by the enemy before a single kill is made. This is a gamble few are driven to make for the thrill of the "good run".

Following are some tips and tricks that can be used as reminders to those familiar with Hogging, and offer direction for those who have decided to see what it's all about.



Awareness

It takes more than a skilled driver or gunner to keep a Hog up and running. It takes a focused Hog team. One of the first things gunners and drivers need to be focused on is the awareness that what they are looking at is not necessarily what the other sees. Gunners, remember that your driver cannot look around without turning the entire Hog. Drivers, always be aware of where your gunner is firing, and remember the turret turns very slowly. Keep that in mind before moving the Hog into an area with a threat.

Communication

Because the gunner has better range of vision but the driver is in control of their destiny, it is imperative the Hog team use good communication. If you Hog a lot with the same person, you may be on the same page, otherwise assumptions will get you killed.

Gunner, communicate where you see baddies, and driver let your gunner know when you are approaching enemies when your gunner isn't facing forward. Prioritize your communication and don't hesitate to get loud when you see the missile pod!

Prioritize

Gunners, don't always keep shooting the same person until they are dead: prioritize by selecting the nearest threat to your Hog team. Drivers, pay attention to team callouts and prioritize where you need to take your Hog team for support.

When there is no immediate threat or need for Hog support and you are roaming, there is a neat trick to prioritizing where you drive that is especially useful on maps with lots of cover. Pay close attention to where your gunner is firing and drive directly away in the opposite direction. This keeps your Hog rolling to avoid rocket fire and stickys while keeping your gunner's target in sight. Visualize the map layout outside your field of vision as you drive by and imagine where your gunner is firing and you will have a good idea if their target is moving behind cover, adjusting where you take the Hog next to try and finish the kill.

Team Support

It takes the eyes of the entire team to protect their Hog and look for threats, calling out enemy Hogs, rockets, brute shots and missile pods. The Hog is such an important power weapon that making this a priority can win the game (this also applies to the hornet on Avalanche and the Banshee on Valhalla).

Timing is of the essence - if the team needs the big guns ASAP to run down the flag or take down a power weapon it is up to the members of the team, the two closest, to get this done, whether they are regular drivers/gunners or not. Once the threat has been dealt with, if you no longer wish to be in the Hog, communicate with your regular Hog team a place you can leave the Hog for them to pick up where you left off.

And remember, the Hog is not a mongoose! Please do not steal the team Hog sans gunner only to use it as a mode of transport, gifting it to the enemy.



The Hog is one of the things that keeps bringing me back to Halo. I don't claim to be an expert at hogging, I've only developed an affinity for it that naturally has resulted in observations and experience. ~CHa0s

by F1at1ined on Fri Dec 25 15:37:43 2009, filed in Off the Charts

Who needs guns? Who needs bullets? Apparently, these Cirques just make do with blunt trauma kills using handy dandy traffic cones. Not usually a weapon of choice, these objects become pretty deadly when propelled by explosions, rockets and grenades. Traffic cones are constructed and placed to mark an area that is hazardous and are used to deter and indicate an area to keep away from. Of course, in Halo, the cones enforce their protectiveness by killing helpless players. So who has the most kills with the cone? Read on!

1st - RoVino: 13 cone kills
RoVino proved to be the leading Cone killer, amassing a rather scary 13 cone kills. I am sure if you asked him, he would no doubt remember all of them, and probably exactly how he selected to finish off his enemy using the surrounding scenery rather than using precious bullets. 13 kills may not sound like a lot, but considering these are kills with a freaking traffic cone - an object not exactly famous for its brutality or legendary killing prowess - 13 kills is darn impressive. The number 13 might be considered unlucky for some, and there are 13 victims out there who will attest to that. Kudos to Ro for his impressive cone kill total!

2nd - Pharaoh Bender: 12 cone kills
Pharaoh is hot on RoVino's heels, coming in 2nd with a staggering 12 kills with the harmless looking traffic cone. There probably aren't many ways to be killed in Halo that are more humbling or humiliating than by traffic cone, and Pharaoh has ensured that 12 people out there have suffered that fate. I wonder if there is anyone out there who has died by traffic cone more than once? That would be an embarrassing stat to see. Congrats on the 12 kills, Pharaoh!

3rd - Adumbration: 8 cone kills
Adum sneaks into 3rd place, with a pretty cool total of 8 kills. Like the two who placed above him, Adum doesnt go out of his way to use traffic cones to kill. However, he is the 3rd best in the clan at using these little plastic cones of death. Personally, getting even one kill by traffic cone is pretty freaking impressive, so imagine that feat multiplied eight times. Nice work, Adum!

Congratulations to our top three! Notching kills with a passive object such as a traffic cone is no mean feat, so to record 8 or more kills with them is good work, gentlemen. When researching this, almost all the Cirques who have logged a lot of time in Halo had at least one traffic cone kill. As always, second accounts weren't considered. Considering the rarity of the cone kill, I suspect the top three would not have changed much.

Here is the rest of the Cirque top 20. Once again, I am still not in it. Stupid cones.

4th - Dolphan117: 7 cone kills

5th - sro26: 5 cone kills

T6th - Addict3d 2Cha0s: 4 cone kills

T6th - ThePacifier: 4 cone kills

T8th - Alphawolf 45: 3 cone kills

T8th - A Mad Bloke: 3 cone kills

T8th - Erickbob: 3 cone kills

T8th - LegendCalledJim: 3 cone kills

T8th - RevDotNed: 3 cone kills

T8th - PylDryvr: 3 cone kills

T14th - I DiabolicDon I: 2 cone kills

T14th - IXI Quasar IXI: 2 cone kills

T14th - Kelstek: 2 cone kills

T14th - KitKatGrrl: 2 cone kills

T14th - Mania76: 2 cone kills

T14th - StarsCup: 2 cone kills

T14th - the dihn: 2 cone kills

If you're not on this list, chances are you are either one of those people who respect the boundaries of the traffic cone, or are just not as lucky as the ones listed in the top twenty. Or perhaps you are one of the people who believe it is easier to kill with high explosive bullets, energy weapons, grenades and lasers. Congrats to all in our top twenty, and kudos to the few other Cirques who managed at least one kill with the mighty cone.

So, to conclude - yes, they are orange. Yes, they are plastic and do not move. Yes, they rank right up there in terms of lethality as teddy bears, the Swiss navy and girl scout cookie sellers. However, as proven by our top twenty and especially by our top three, be wary. These harmless cones may suddenly deliver a fatal blow to the cranium. Happy Holidays, everyone, and remember - watch out for the cones! Oh..and don't turn your back on them, or this might happen...




Ohh...and just in case you think they need guns to hurt you, watch out when they hang out with other construction equipment...

by F1at1ined on Tue Nov 24 21:26:22 2009, filed in New Members

Well, it finally happened. The Cirques decided having one token Englishman with a funny accent was not enough. Or perhaps they just decided to add another after they were so successful with the addition of me. Yeah, lets go with that theory. Fortunately, we had a perfect candidate waiting in the wings. When he decided to apply, we didn't hesitate. So you could say that we did indeed Get Shorty.

This past week, the Cirques added a new member to the ranks, with Shortbloke passing a series of rigorous tests to prove himself worthy of clan membership. By rigorous, I mean non existent. By worthy I mean he has to have proven adept at betraying his own team to the high standards set by Quasar, Sro26 and Alphawolf, and a willingness to try to dihncliff dihn or run dolphan over with a Scorpion tank. Having logged a ton of gaming time in CdG parties, he was practically a clan member already. Now he is officially one.

Rather than try to hunt for a suitable US based English geezer, the Cirques snapped up one of their longtime allies and running mates from GeezerGamers. Shortbloke accepted an invitation to join the clan this past Monday, and is now a fully fledged Cirque. Shortbloke, or Shorty for..er..short (we already have a Bloke, so he has to be Shorty, or Short), has practically been a Cirque for the better part of a year, so when he requested to join, it was pretty much a no brainer.

Shortbloke is a passionate Halo player and has teamed up with a lot of our clan members at all times of the day. Though he is based in England and has a five hour timezone difference at least to overcome, Shorty was able to be a regular teammate for Cirques who were able to play at earlier times of the day stateside. He also professes to having a job that allows him to game at odd hours, which means you may never know when he might show up.

In addition to bringing an odd accent and strange vocabulary to our ranks, Shorty is also a keen video montage maker, and has already created two CdG Funtages, which are up on You Tube. And these were done when he was not even in the clan. Imagine how passionate he will get now that he's fully indoctrinated into the clan!

We are delighted to finally have gotten Shorty, and he will be a wonderful addition to our ranks. If you see him online at odd times, be sure to say 'ello mate, cheers or wotcha.