Aftermath:

Hellions ODB 130, ODA 133 and ODA 153 travelled to LaPorte, Indiana for the 26-hour “Deadlands: Exodus” Viper scenario at Sherwood Forest Paintball on October 10-11. The Hellions fielded 8 players under the command of Peppermint Patty of Team In Contempt on the Smith and Roberts side wearing Blue arm bands.

The game seemed to revolve primarily around the Role-Players and special characters more than any other Viper scenario. That left little for other players to do other than tag along or run around and shoot the other team. Home team, ESP (not to mention a few others such as Dave Cillio also wearing ESP jerseys for the event), ran mission after mission for the Red team racking up a huge lead early on. Patty did a commendable job as general especially considering that the job was dropped on her at the last minute.Helllions' Kevin "Buckshot" Buchaniec was issued an orange pumpkin bucket and blue plastic shovel in his role as Prospector. Lani "Skye" Fox accepted the role of RTO at Blue base and constantly fed the team missions. The Hellions stuck with their assigned missions and did their best to rally the Blue side, which seemed to spend most of the time on its heels.

Night play was also focused around special characters. Red sent an indestructible player to destroy Blue base. Blue tried to reciprocate by sending Hellions in Gen-3 night vision to assault Red base. Unfortunately, "RPG Rules" were in effect which meant they could only sit 50 yards away and attack those who ventured out into the darkness. Lots of players from both sides left the field early with the prospect of 'blowing the base' removed. The breathing room allowed Blue to come back and narrow the score.

The Hellions came out and ran mission after mission on day two and led their Blue allies in pushing Red back to their base several times. Lonnie "Grendel" Colson fired the "shot hear 'round the field" when he switched Buckshot's Metadyne Havoc launcher from an empty CO2 tank to HPA remote line to destroy an objective with seconds left on the mission. It went off like a cannon, destroying the objective, the Nerf rocket and probably the O-rings as well. If the Blue team thought it had any hope of winning, it evaporated minutes into the final battle. Red took control of the entire field before the re-spawn, and Blue never managed to gain any real foothold afterwards.

Hellions won Most Formidable Opponent Award. A selection of photos from the event is available for viewing in the Gallery. The Hellions also were noticed by several players to be carrying a new, as-yet-unnamed Tippmann marker.The team has been sworn to secrecy. Listen for more news in the very near future coming from Tippmann.

Story Line:

The story takes place in the "Weird West" in the last 19th century. The history of the Weird West is identical to real-world history, up until July 3, 1863. On this date, a group of American Indians from various tribes, led by a Sioux shaman known as "Raven," performed the Great Ghost Dance in an effort to drive out the European settlers. This ritual created a conduit to a spiritual realm populated by powerful malicious entities known as the "Reckoners."

The ultimate goal of the Reckoners is to turn the entire Earth into an evil, haunted wasteland — literally a Hell on Earth. However, the Reckoners cannot directly enter Earth's realm unless the overall fear level of the entire planet becomes sufficiently high. To this end, they use their powers to create monsters, madmen, zombies, and other creatures and villains that will sow fear and terror throughout the land.

The unleashing of the Reckoners has had a number of important side effects. Magic was revealed to be real, although it involves challenging otherworldly spirits, "manitous". These same manitous can possess a recently deceased body and reanimate it, creating a "Harrowed". Harrowed beings are sometimes under the control of the spirit (who uses the opportunity to spread fear) and sometimes under the control of the deceased being. Scientific progress rapidly advances as the Reckoners support experimental designs that normally would not work. This progress drives Deadland's technological level from historical levels to a "steampunk" setting. The Reckoners create "ghost rock," a mineral that burns hotter and longer than coal and supports the steampunk technology.

Event Information:

Dates:  October 10/11, 2009
Location:  Sherwood Forest, LaPorte, IN
Web Site:  Sherwood Forest's Deadlands Forum or Viper Scenarios' Deadlands: Exodus Forum
Time:  Arrive 0900 - 26 Hour Scenario
Cost:  $45 for Early Birds, $50 for Pre Registrations, $60 for Walk On's
Registration Form:  Viper Enterprises Paintball Scenarios Release & Registration Form
Buy Paint/Air:  Viper Online Payment System
Side:  Smith and Roberts under Peppermint Patty of Team In Contempt
Uniform:  Multicam
Special Equipment:  Bring Night Vision and/or bright flashlights.

Additional Information:

• Friday night is a Texas Hold Em Tourney - 500 rnd buy in.
• Buckshot will be arriving Friday night to set up the team canopy / tables.
• Paint will be $65 per case; Air is $15 for all weekend air.

Schedule of Events:

Friday
0900 - Camping opens
1700 - Check in and paint sales open
1800 - Roleplayer orientation
1900 - Check-in closes
2400 - Quiet time - Camping area needs to be quiet

Saturday
1200 - 1530 - Game on
1630 - 1800 - Dinner
1800 - 2400 - Night Game (May be earlier or later depending on participation)

Sunday
0900 - 1230 - Game on
1230 - 1300 - Break to prep for Final Battle
1300 - 1400 - Final Battle
Awards and doorprize drawings to follow

Special Notes:

Due to dusk coming so early there will be having a modified "Dinner Battle." Instead of the usual pre dinner battle stand down and staging Viper will be rolling right into the dinner battle at the end of the daytime segment. Viper will still be using his "Slapsticks" that everyone loves, but there will be a point count at 4:15, and another at 4:30 when Viper stands down.