This autographed and framed Convention jersey will be worth millions some day!

The movers and shakers of cartoon video games who rocked the world!

Exclusive: Hear the Sounds of the Convention!!
--------------------

Yes you heard right! A West Coast ThinkTanks Convention will be held this summer in the Bay Area.

A sneak peek at the room we reserved! "Just add some computers, some TTers and stir!"

Date: Sunday July 9, 2006
Location: Oakland, CA
More info: Convention Registration Page and Details
Cost: $25 per person
Organizing Committee: Reagent X, Magenta, LC50, Tally Ho, Baba & MajorPain

This is an opportunity to not only meet your fellow TTers, but an extremely rare opportunity to play ThinkTanks on a Local Area Network (translation: NO LAG) in the same room with some of the finest players in the world!

Plus some exclusive extras including a commemorative Tank Skin designed especially for this event by Dr. Sawbones, and prizes from Bravetree to be given away at the Convention!

Can you imagine hearing your opponents tank exploding right next to you after you nail them with an area effect? Or better yet, can you imagine shouting "DIE YOU BASTARD!" directly to your opponent in person? No need to type chat messages when you can just HOLLAR!

There will be a pre-Convention Ho-Down on Saturday night. We have reserved a HUGE conference room (1550 square feet) with many tables. The room has high-speed internet access. At 10 am on Sunday morning, we begin set-up. We will set up 3 LANs. Idealy, each will have a dedicated computer to be used as a server. Ethernet swithes will be set up to accommodate 10 players per server.

Participants must bring their own computer with a registered copy of TT. You will also need a 10' ethernet cable, and an external mouse (and keyboard probably too if you want to preserve you laptop keys from getting mashed)). Non-participants are welcome to come also.

Continental breakfast and a simple lunch buffet will be provided. We have reserved a block of rooms available at the Convention Hotel for a negotiated rate of $99 for as king or double room.

For security purposes we have implemented a special registration procedure. When you register you will be invited to join a secure website where you will have access to the exact location of the Convention as well as other useful details.

We hope you can come join us! Woooot!

-Convention Organizing Committee

Registered Participants:
Reagent X
Magenta
MajorPain
HugoBrain
Slugthog
PREY
Baba
Dar
kj
Tank0r
LC50
Bolo
Pharmaceuticals
Tally Ho
VashStampede
Mystery Man
Ass Clone Army
t-34
pfffft

Last edited: Tuesday, July 25, 2006 at 9:09:57 PM

Grousem mugs

SoCal contingent (myself, Pharma, and Mag) is safely back home after the mother of all TT roadtrips.

N1 Hanksta... I had asked the boyz for a labeled pic.

BTW, that's the offcial LC₅₀ 's Magic 8 Ball in front of me. It correctly predicted that this would be the BIGGEST AND BADDEST TT EVENT OF ALL TIME!®. ... At least, until next year!

Big thanks again to Rx and Magenta organizing, and for MP and Prey for making the computer magic that enabled us to play. Vash did a great job DJing too!

TTWest has ended and Der Old Slugster is back in his hovel submerged in me bubbling tub enveloped in the aromas of clove and eucalyptus and the merest trace of lavender. Tripped over a little shaggy dog comin' in me door. Bet y'all cain't guess whut he had in his mout'.

Three short days but ah gotted ta meet some folx whom ah has knowed for as much as three years.

Rx wuz there. Not too much of a stranger Rx. We has chatted now and again on de net. In de flesh he turned out to be jest who he is, a bit shorter maybe. Rx bes de core, like in an apple dat ya throws over yer shoulder fer luck.

Magenta! Who'd a thought it. Now dere's annuder real nice fella. Not who'd a thought dat, but he wuzn't wearin' leathers and he di'n't have a belt made out of a Harley chain. Don't know why I thought he might or even if ah did. Younger den ah 'spected though. Fer some reason 'Genter surprised me most.

Rx and 'Genter is who made it all happen. Hard workin' fellers those. Great fellers those. We owes 'em, we certainly duz.

Major Pain, not much surprise there. MP and I crossed paths a couple years back when his band toured in Portland. Let him sleep in me spare room and use me super crapper. We Skypes now and again. Plus we be shootin' each udder ta deat' mos' days online in Medal of Honor. Well, one of us be shootin; me ta deat' mos'ly. MP hadn't changed much 'ceptin' he done traded paintbrushin' for network geekin'.

Prey, reserved, not unexpected. Fullback sized. That took a bit of gettin' used to. Gracefully generous. Prey lent his brand new iBook when Der Slugster's tiny Mac proved incapable of rebounding from the OSX10.4.7 vs GarageGames up-chuck. Overwhelmingly generous. Prey allowed dis Old Feller to triumph against him in a scrum match. Stout fellow he.

Bolo! I knows dere is folx who t'inks dat Bolo gots some secret codes runnin' dat makes him so good at de game. Well, Bo don't need no codes! He dat good! Ya wants to know why? Focus, kiddies, focus. You watch Bolo play, you kin almost see de invisible wires runnin' from his brain into dat li'l cartoony tank. Bo says he's gonna come out West again some time. If he do, he best bring some of dat corn-fed Angus wit' him or Granpa Sluggy gonna send him back for it.

Mystery Man. Mostly we talked private stuff on account of we gots some of de same crazy. We gonna keep dat private too.

T-34. You is, maybe, a bit too serious, comrade. Of course, ah is maybe a bit too not serious enough.

Vashstampede. Ah wuz expectin' some angular Asian dude in a black duster. His computer kept pukin' up the game but that let him DJ de sounds. Which wuz good an' he let me pick a couple, 'specially Meatloaf singin' Paradise by the Dashboard light, speakers kinda close though. Next time ah will endeavor to place m'self at a greater distance so Vash will be more comfortable lettin' it all hang out. More than that, I appreciate your consideration for me aging auditory system.

Pharmy! Really, dood, me doctor does count 'em. 'Sides ah couldn't have anyway. But you knew dat. You ain't afraid? Dat ain't mah leg you is yankin' on.

LC50 is a man fightin' de good fight. We owes him ta hug a few trees right beside.

Hugo is Quebec French. What more can be said.

Appears ah is runnin' out of steam.

So a quick shot at De Ho, who stayed way too little time with a bunch of folx who spent a goodly chunk of time wonderin' where de heck he wuz 'cause he wuzzn't wit' us which is where we wanted him ta be.

An' let me finish wit' Granny and de kids. Baba. Tall and looks taller. When ah gits hit by dat drunk driver ah wants Granny in de ER. Dar doin' his bes' ta outsprout his dad an' bein' a lot more growed up than any of us can credit. KJ, so in control of de job of little brudder me flabber is thoroughly gasted. Mrs. Baba willin' ta share de three of them with us. Next time aroun' if ah gets ta pick me parents ah wants Mr & Mrs Baba.

Anyway, dese is me thoughts while degrimin' m'self in me bubblin' bathtub. Ah hopes ah got everyone in an' if ah didnt give ya too many words this time around it jest means ah hasn't come across dose words yet. Ah hopes me inane babbling didn't drive anyone too insane or me caterwallin' make anyone too ill.

BTW, ah calculated all de way home and has some mean numbers for ya regarding 'cliff diving'?.
...granpa sluggy...

Addendum from..rmk (the other me). People it was truly a joy to spend some time with you. Thank you.

Last edited: Tuesday, July 11, 2006 at 4:32:45 AM

I never would have guessed when I started playing TT almost three years ago that I'd be at it for this long. After participating in the BIGGEST, BADDEST TT EVENT OF ALL TIME (no false advertising there!) I know the biggest reason that I still enjoy it is the friends that I've made along the way. For me this was not just a collection of some of the finest players that TT has to offer, but some really nice folks that I truly enjoyed getting to meet face to face.

WOOT! For T-34, Hugobrainz, Bolo, MysteryMan, Granpa Sluggy, LC50, Pharm and Magenta making the trip to Oakland and making this event all the more special. A number of us live fairly close but these guys put in some travel time to get here & I'm glad they did. It was also great to meet my Northern CA neighbors RX, Baba, Dar, KJ, Tally Ho, Prey, Vash and Tank0r. GG's everyone!

Thank you Magenta for getting the ball rolling. I still remember when you brought up the idea of getting this together a few months back. You were determined to make it happen & did a great job of organizing.

Thanks also to RX. You deserve a lot of credit for keeping TT alive through your countless contributions to the game and making the TTWCC the success that it was.

Thanks all for the good times this weekend & I hope to see you all at next year's event, wherever it may be. I know I'll be there!

MP

Where's my wallet? They sent my luggages to Juno. Has anyone seen my shoes? I may have left them at the hotel. I love wandering SFO airport halls at 2:30 in the morning. I'm hungry - chinese food, anyone? %)

LC, what's the take on the 2007 Convention? B)

Last edited: Tuesday, July 11, 2006 at 4:24:54 PM

Three World Competitions happened all on the same July 9 day!
1- The TT East & West Conventions in Oakland and Pittsburgh
2- The World Cup in Germany
3- Independence Day hot dog eating competition on Coney Island.

Looks like you all had a super time and that is all good.

Sluggy will you be the old wise man on the mountain with those riddles? (in your next life maybe)

I hope to cya in game soon.

Del--- thanks much for the T-shirts! Awesome job! And kudos to Dr. Sawbones for the design.

Of course, the shirts could not have made it without a little help from the bulging muscles of T-34, who lugged them across an entire continent to get them out to us West Coasters. We are in his debt.

Granpa Sluggy--- great post. I can speak for us all by saying that we're proud to be your grandkids. :)

I had a REALLY GREAT time!! I really needed that lift in spirits especially now...

Special tx to rx and the us government for the use of the machine I played on and for the delicious snack in the parking lot :)

Special tx to baba for picking up my lazy ass at the airport!!

Special tx to the setup committee mag, rx, lc, bab!!

Special tx to mm for putting up with me for 5 days and letting me stink up his bathroom 5 times

Special tx to sluggy for the entertainment (im gonna be in your area pretty soon :) )

Special tx to pharm for the m's

Special tx to hugo and pain for the hacky sack lessons

Special tx to ho and prey for reassuring me that I was beating on degenerates :)

Special tx to t-34/delta for the shirts and sunglass cases

Speical tx to vash for the music

Special tx to tankor/rx/baba/magenta for the rides

Im down for the next one!!

Tx to gg for the poster

B

Times like these I wish I wasnt on the other side of the globe.

One question... MysteryMan - what happened to your forehead? Is that third degree sunburn or from bashing your head against the keyboard XD

Stay safe people.

Squid

Really, talk about dropping the ball with the images at both gatherings.

At least in Chicago, we has live video and a host of pics for people to gander at. Where are all these Mulitmedia types that play this game?

GET ON THE BALL!

Question: Is Mystery Man's forehead red from beating his head on the table? Whaddupwitdat?

And Tally, what a beatnik. It all comes into focus...

Thanks to those who bothered to pose, flash a little gang sign or just salute the Klingon High Command. I was with a bunch of stiffs who just wanted to stand there and get their picture taken. I tried to take on a superhero stance, but it just seemed out of place.

Last edited: Wednesday, July 12, 2006 at 1:38:58 PM

Much video and pics were taken but we decided we would not share them with the general public

B

@ Rabban: it's never out of place to pose like a super hero :P

Indeed tons of pics were taken by lots of people, I'm thinking Magenta, Baba, Rx, T-34... I think though they're doing penance to have had so much fun away from their wives, so they have to stay away from TT - PTT for a few days! Also since the room was very hot we all played naked so maybe there's that PG-PR13-A18 ratings involved too... :S

About MM, you know his play style: ÜberCamping + California Sun = 3rd degree burn! It's not the Midlands, dude!

Is Bolo going to make a run for public office? Does he not want to distribute incriminating pics on the Internet? Many questions this does raise. Hummm.
Mayor Bolo? :(
Senator Bolo? Or the big one :[
President Bolo? :S

All rise please.

http://www.crooksandliars.com/posts/2006/07/09/bolo-gate/

Edit: They've taken the page down! The conspiracy grows deeper...

Last edited: Wednesday, July 12, 2006 at 6:45:41 PM

Tx to Hugo and Pain for the hacky sack lessons....

OMG I LOVE hacky sack!!!

20 years ago I could keep the sack going for over 100 kicks! Shoulder stalls, chin stalls, betweent the legs stalls, shoulder blade stalls etc.

I still have my seepa* and play with my three kids.

Good to see all you ugly mugs!

Someday.... XD

^ cool! Mp and magenta and brainiac are pretty good at digging the hack, whilst pharm, mm, bolo and LC are nooooobs with potential!.....
.
tally is malign at an all-out american parking lot football tourney with dar, kj, tankor and mm!

T-34, mm and bolo win the beer drinking competition![with a californa size beer mug on top of everything else![/sup]

Bolo wins the Poster ^{and dedicate it to the freebie goddess}

I had 1 fb in 2 games...

So you want images?
Just had to iron out the copyright to these gems...

pre group photo

With that classic line "we're just getting further and further from the goal"
at play

at play 2

Dar's spin move

Tankor scores

Last edited: Thursday, July 13, 2006 at 12:10:08 AM

Hehe if I would have been there would have been some fun football. Next convention if I go im bringing a soccer ball. :P Seems like you guys had tons of fun. I couldnt make it cuz that was the day after my quincenera. Heres a pic from my quincenera: 1st one Roach and me 2nd one roach and me making a fool of ourselves dancing :P

(If my bro sees this sry bro just couldnt resist putting a pic up of you busting a move :P )

Nice videos Baba!

Congrats Dark Angel!! We hope to see you at next year's convention!

NIN! Football! Hacky sack!

Dang, we just played TT.

Dammit.. I wanted that poster... Next year Bolo... Next year...

-ACA

Nothing new there...

Wow. That is all I can say! Hopefully we can have a Mid-South convnention or maybe I can make it out West. Good to see you all had fun. :) Yeeehaw!!

@ All we got EXTRA Think tanks TT convention East versus West T-shirts to sell, exactly like the ones you see in the pictures above.

They cost only $ 16,00 US each plus US postal costs to your door. We have Adult mediums to X-Large. Send me an email in my TT profile for more information.

Next convention should be in Omaha.

Right in the middle. Also next summer I'm going there :)

I finally figured out how to convert sounds from my voice recorder into a form that I could edit them.

Listen to a recording of one of our matches recorded LIVE at the convention in FULL STEREO ! :) (mpeg4, 7.5 MB, 5 min).

Last edited: Sunday, July 16, 2006 at 10:55:15 AM

How was the heat in your convention room? I remember the heat in Chicago's room being rather unpleasant. Also, which brewpub did you visit?

@Rx Am I hearing the modified "hit me" sound from your computer in that^ sound recording?

^ It is possible you are hearing some modded sounds from Baba's computer. He was running some cool sounds he got from Tank Dork and he was only 2 computers away from me. He sent the sounds to me and I am adjusting some of the volume levels to make it more reasonable to play (and not freak out the neighbors, my pets and my wife!). I'll post 'em shortly.

As far as heat was concerned, this time our room opened to the outside, so it was actually fine. The room was at least 3 times as big so there was plenty of room for air circulation.

We went to the Pacific Coast Brewery in Downtown Oakland. The brews were excellent, and the food was OK. Sluggy especially loved the waitresses.

Last edited: Sunday, July 16, 2006 at 9:25:08 PM

Looks like you guys had alot of fun. To bad I missed it.

So how much pre-game drinking did you do??? How much after?? I saw sluggy having some in the middle of the match... Did it impair your driving?? Lol

Do you guys have any more pics... Post some more.

What were the scores of some of the matches?

Last edited: Friday, July 21, 2006 at 12:53:58 PM

Haha if I didn't know better, and if he had glasses, I'd say T-34 was George, from Seinfeld, and Tank0r's gender could be debateable, lol. ;)

No offense, Tank0r, I know you take things a bit too seriously. :P I'm still looking forward to our 1 on 1 BM match when I get me new computer. XD

:) ,
--==Niko-ST-==--

%)
P.S.- Looks like just recently Mystery Man took a direct hit to the forehead playing paintball. 8o

Last edited: Friday, July 21, 2006 at 1:36:06 PM

Is that what it was... I thought he got hit with something but I didnt know what...

Wanted to thanks again for organizing this convencion ,it was great to see ya ,talk and play with ya all.
Look what I did with mine t-shirt. :) %) Great memories on the wall. :) Hall of fame names on it too... :)

^{link edited -Rx}

Last edited: Tuesday, July 25, 2006 at 9:01:09 PM

I see the all-powerful hugobrainz "dazzled" his XD

Well, guess he needs the recognition he deserves

^^thats cool... Thats a great keepsake. Is that a "buisness" card in the bottom right?

Did everyone registered come or are some just not in the pic?

Last edited: Tuesday, July 25, 2006 at 2:22:58 PM

^ From the main pic you can see it's ID card , made by Magenta and LC50 ( think)

There are more pics on mac.com but somehow they haven't been posted here. Maybe it makes sense not to broadcast our mugs here on the internet for everyone to see. Morale of the story: come to the convention if you want to see us! :)

^{including the funny pic of Pharm taking care of his 'asthma' and LC50 coming out of his tent in the morning}

Hey T-24: Wow that is quite a sight! I bet that thing will be worth millions some day!

I copied the image to my server so you can now link directly to it.

Thanks Rx ,it is defenetly looks better on top.
It's in my office , what a swit memories it brings back every time I look at it...Listen to Sluggy talking =1000000$ , blusting guys' heads of (with out lag) =priceless! :P

Is it just me or does LC50 look like the Man in the Yellow Hat...

Does anyone know where MP is???

Dude if you are still out there drop
me a line.

Just use the mac group I guess.

Like ur logo, vash.