^The odds are nowhere near your favor, Val

I loved this part. Britain and Canada obey! We must force all the rights of freedom!

Sleeping, eating, being 'murican, being humble, nothing.

Seems to be a lot less to it up in the air and the focus is now more in the small hill in the center. Interesting...

As one of his forum minions, I am on it. :P

I'm obviously not being awesome enough! Not mentioned once! :P Kidding, of course. Well, I am only going to mention my close friends. @Valletta <-- Great to talk to. Great for a funny conversation. @lizerdgirl108 <-- Pretty much the same as Val. Convos with her tend to get... interesting. @TankCraze <-- Used to do a lot of YouTubing with this guy. Great personality. @Theawesomecooldude <-- Met him in a battle a LONG time ago, using strategy among the English players in it to win. A few weeks later, he ran into me by chance on the forum. I forget what he PMed me for, but we were planning on making a clan for a long time after that, back in our Warrant Officer days. He introduced me to Craze and us three have been pals ever since. He really got me into the community here. @Raphael2 <-- Just all around really helpful and nice frenchy guy. :D @Tommy60 <-- First person I ever added on skype. Really nice guy. First person I ever PMed as well. It was Tommy that got me on the forum at all. I was just in the FAQ and saw he was answering questions, so I sent a PM with another one. He is pretty inactive and we haven't spoken in a super long time.

Tanki- Actually rank up for once in like, 6 months. Major sounds like a good goal since I don't play THAT incredibly much. Life- Obtain this "life" thing. srsly, re-build my corrupted social life, maybe get a girlfriend Although, really, I don't really want to do any of this. Work takes too much work! ^_^

Comb-beh I-sai-dah Eye-raan Kung-gur No idea if I am pronouncing any of those right. (Well, maybe Iran)

Incredibly humble. People tend to think I am the most depressed and suicidal person they know just because I deny most things good said about me. I feel I am average, and less than in some areas. Everyone else is "No! You are a great person!" to get "Well, if you say so, it must really be true. *said with much sarcasm*" So, yeah. I might be a little messed up in the head somewhere. If you mean as in like, info such as birthday and full name and things like that... If I trust you, it isn't too hard to get it out of me at all. I might have some issues. :blink:

Birth of a Tank "Patrol Duty" Find the previous article here: http://en.tankiforum.com/index.php?showtopic=184928 It was getting dark by the time we rolled back into the garage. That is really all I remember from that point on until the following morning. “So, tanks can rest?” I asked Rachel. “Well, really, its a complicated process and not really “sleep”, but I guess so.” “Interesting. So, what really happens then?” “It is pretty much what the human body does during sleep. Your consciousness that's stored within this tank is put into a sleep-like trance. While this trance is upon you, this garage will replace all worn down parts, sand out dents, refuel you, and you will come out of the trance feeling good as new.” “Well, being a machine is… interesting.” I thought aloud. “Anyways, what are we doing today? More training?” “Nope. That was all the training the government makes us give you. According to them, you are now fully trained and ready for combat, although we all know you really aren’t. New recruits like you aren’t usually put into tough zones right away. In that respect, you are nothing special.” “So, what is my first mission?” I asked. “You are to be based in a patrol squad in an area we tend to call ‘Silence’, because of how little ever happens there. It is on a military border, but it serves very little tactical advantages, so the enemy has basically let us keep it. We do keep a patrol there at all times though just to keep them from invading it for free.” “That sounds pretty easy. Almost boring, actually. So, there is going to be a squad?” I asked. “Yeah, no idea who they are yet. Probably some annoying 18 year olds who wanted to ‘live the life’ and join the military. That's how most of ‘em are. You seem around the late 20s by my guess. A lot nicer and so much less cussin’.” “Well, only time will tell. When do we go?” Rachel chuckled. “We are on our way now, silly!” I was confused. I was still sitting in the garage. “How can I be…” “I know it’s kind of confusing. Basically, these things are on four rails, kinda like an old roller-coaster. We can move them from place to place with a single command. We’re going about 70 miles per hour right now.” When we arrived it made it clear. Rachel was explaining what some of the devices in the garage did to me when a large jolt announced the end of our journey. The door slid open and I was surprised to see two guns pointing at me. “Oh boy! The new guy is here!” said the one on the left. “Welcome to nowhere, buddy!” the other added on. “Uh, hello…” was all I managed to get out before they started gawking at me. “Woah! You’re one of those new Thundering Mammoths!” said one. “Yeah! I’ve heard about these! Practically invincible!” squeaked the other. “Look at that gun! It's huge!” the first one said. “Hey can I…” I tried to get out just to be overtaken again. “Such a shiny paint job too! You must be on your first mission!” one of them said again. They were pretty quick, especially with their mouths, and were hard to keep track of. “WILL YOU TWO SHUT UP A MINUTE?” I bellowed. Needless to say, they stopped yapping. “Alright.” I started. “First, I would like to know your names.” “Aww, that’s an easy one!” one of them said. “I’m Darrel, and this is Easton!” “Sue us if we’re wrong!” Easton chimed in. “Well, nice to meet you both.” I said. "'Nice' might be too strong a word..." Rachel said to me. "So, why did the government place you out here? I thought your design was front line material." asked Darrel. "I really don't know. I'm a new guy, so that might be why." "Probably not." Easton countered. "They tend to get newbies up at the front lines all the time. Commanders are getting sick of it." "That's for sure." Rachel agreed, even though only I could hear her. "Then I really have no idea why I am here. Maybe they are buffing guard duty here? Anyways, what model tank are you guys?" I asked, trying to change the subject that was beginning to worry me. Why did they need a heavy tank on a patrol? "We are both 'Smoking Hunters'. Lighter hull than yours but a lot weaker too. This little pew-pew gun of ours does a lot less than yours, although it is quicker to reload." Darrel explained. Easton still seemed somewhat concerned. "Why would they need a top of the line heavy such as yourself in good old Silence? Nothing ever happens here. Do you guys think the enemy found out about the... ehem... you-know-what a little further in friendly grounds?" "Oh my Goodness, they suspect something. Tell them that is a crazy idea and the enemy would never find it." I did what Rachel said and added that the patrol had been a little underpowered anyways. After a long conversation with Darrel and Easton, whom turned out to be really friendly, we all went to the guard tower. It was my turn for night guard first, and I was supposed to wake Easton in 3 hours. In the mean time, Rachel fully explained everything to me. "Okay, so I might have lied a little about you getting an easy mission. You see, if you go about 20 miles further into friendly territory past this point, you would find Tank-I's crystal mine. If you didn't know already, these special blue crystals power every unit Tank-I uses. Wagamin, who runs their units on fuels containing the metals gold and silver, would like nothing more than to cut off our resources. I mean, right now, you are running on fuel consisting of little but these liquified glowing crystals. Tank-I tries to keep the guard and patrols going through here to a low to avoid suspicion, as there is really no tactical gain from owning this land. Unfortunately, there have been rumors that Wagamin has learned of this crystal mine and have been planning an attack. After much debate, Tank-I agreed to have one heavy tank placed here for any possible threat entering the area. You just so happen to be that tank. I'm sorry, I should have told you this earlier." "Wow." was really the only response I could give. I sat quietly and thought about what I had just learned. I was so stunned I almost forgot to wake up Easton from his garage. There was a metallic groan as he rolled out of it. That point was probably the slowest I have ever seen him drive. As soon as I felt the hose touch my back in my own garage, I was out. The next morning was our first official patrol. Once we had assembled, the two told me exactly where to go. "We have this platform that we can go to that gives a great view of the nearby enemy encampment. It's not that far, just this way." Darrel said as we started off. "Yeah, we could see any attacks coming a good while before they arrive from the platform." We drove along for maybe 10 minutes before arriving. Once we got there, I was able to respect the view the two had described. You could see the Wagamin flag in the distance blowing in the wind. There were a few wrecks lying around of poor souls that hadn’t survived a long time ago. “Hey, Darrel?” Easton asked. “Yeah?” “Does that seem odd to you?” he asked. “What are you looking at?” Darrel asked him. “That column of tanks lining up near their base.” “Wait, what!?” “I see them…” I said. “and I don’t think they are coming to play.” “We might need some reinforcements…” Easton mumbled with his fear clear in his voice. “Already on it.” Rachel quickly spat. “Well, lets dig in, boys. I have a feeling we are in for a tough time.” The two quickly agreed with me, and we started rushing back. “Well.” Rachel said. “A boring mission just got interesting.” I could not possibly agree more. To Be Continued ~Fjelstad1678~

The Great Comeback "Testing Grounds" Find the previous article here: http://en.tankiforum.com/index.php?showtopic=184854 My mouth was stuck open. I didn’t make any attempt at closing it either. I knew my new companions were doing the same. In this new larger room sat several gigantic metal monsters. “I see you are all impressed.” said Idler with a chuckle. “Naw, I see these kinds of things all the time back in Canada.” said Benny with a smirk. He began walking towards the metal beasts as if in a trance. I was close behind him, but Terry seemed to be glued in one spot. “You coming?” I called back to him. “You chaps go ahead, I think I need to change my trousers…” Terry murmured back. Me and Benny laughed as we quickly waddled out, but I don’t think he was joking. “Well, while we wait for Terry to come back…” said Idler with a roll of eyes. “I’ll show you two around the place.” He really did need to. Even though the garage wasn’t all that large, the metal beasts really did make you feel stuck in place. “Well, I get we can start with the basics. Here, we have our lightest model. We have not mounted guns on any of these, mind you. We will get back to why that is later.” As Idler said this, it suddenly became extremely obvious. I was so distracted by the pure size of these things I hadn’t even noticed the lack of armament. “Anyways…” Idler continued, “This hull is nicknamed the ‘Wasp’ because of its small size a great mobility.” “You call that small? That is the size of a Sherman!” spat out Benny. “Please do note that this IS the smallest one in the room, and by a respectable amount, sir.” said Idler with a small smile. “Now, next down the line we have a final model of the chassis you saw in the last room, the ‘Hunter’.” We heard loud footsteps rushing into the room to see a gasping Terry round the corner towards us. “G’day! I see you fellas were early up for tea!” he called. “Aww, don’t feel bad Terry! He was just telling us that that one is called the ‘Wasp’ and this one is the ‘Hunter’!” I shouted back. “That's great and all, but if you could tell me which one is called the ‘Loo’...” he said as he caught up, and we all burst out laughing. “Anyways, what is that really ugly looking one back there?” Benny asked. “What, the tall one? That is the ‘Dictator’, a name that I feel fitting. It is more or less our ‘Jack of all trades’ with decent speed, armour, and the thing turns on a dime. The turret being mounted higher does allow for decent view ranges and we plan to have this be escorts for any commanding units.” “So, what would be an example of a commanding unit?” I asked Idler. “Well, that would be the big one in the corner. It looks like a giant fortress on tracks, and because of its massive size, we have named it the ‘Mammoth’. Its terribly slow, but its armour allows it to completely plow through enemy lines. As far as doing that goes, however, this is not the main tank for the job.” “Do you expect something like that oval one over there to do it instead? This one seems perfect for it!” I said. “You would think that, but sadly due to its giant size and weaker engine compared to the large weight, it would be much more effectively used as a heavy support tank with some of our heavier guns. The other hull you just pointed out, the oval one, is called ‘Hornet’, and is basically a heavier, slower, and better armed Wasp. Whereas the Wasp is majorly stealth and recon, the Hornet can be used in flanking assault tactics.” “Sounds like an interesting tank. What about that short square one over there?” Terry asked. “That would be the Viking. Rather outdated currently. It’s like the Dictator, but a little worse in every respect. The plus is that it is a smaller target and the turret mount isn’t as awkward. Really, we have given up on that model because of the lack of space inside of the tank.” “I think that is all of ‘em…” I said looking around. Even the so called ‘light tanks’ were huge. “Actually, there is one more, but we are currently prepping it for you chaps to test for us. As I mentioned earlier, all of these don’t have turrets mounted. You see, all of these tanks share a turret ring. Likewise, all weapons we have developed are compatible with this turret ring. This being true, we can switch the weapon mounted on the tank as we please instead of having to build a new tank in which to mount a new gun. Thanks to the incredible suspension on these beasts, we can manage to mount even our heaviest weapon on all of them.” “So, where is this tank we are going to risk our hides to test for you chaps?” grunted Terry. “Oh, trust me my friend. We have worked out any large bugs. Nothing should explode or catch fire. You should be quite safe and comfortable. Oh, yes, about that. Your leaders were very specific that we improve our crew compartments for an Englishman such as yourself. Anyways, it is a distance away near our testing grounds. The Germans tracked us here, but from that, they haven’t found our testing facility. You will be brought there early tomorrow to test our newest weapon, the ‘Railgun’, named for it’s long barrel. Until then, you may go to your bunks. Goodnight.” As the three of us went back to our bunks, we cracked some jokes. “Boy, for such a short fella, he sure does talk a lot!” cracked Benny. “Well, if he didn’t talk, we might not have even seen him!” Terry replied with a chuckle. The second I saw the toilet in the bunk room, I yelled: “GET DOWN! IT’S THE LOO!” and we all burst out laughing. Early the next morning a guard came into our room and escorted us back to the development wing. Idler was there and brought us to a basic rail car powered by electricity. About 10 minutes down the track we arrived at our destination. “Well, here we are. The testing grounds are about 50 meters above us.” Idler said. “Wait, you mean they are actually on the surface?” said Benny with surprise. “What, did you think we did this all in a small room underground? No, we need space! We have kept it secure for the moment, lots of very well trained snipers on the perimeter. They never know what hit ‘em!” “Great to know… now about that tank?” I asked. “Oh yes! It’s on it's way to the surface as we speak. We mounted the ‘Rail’, as you can call it, on it earlier. The hull itself is our second heavy hull, appropriately named ‘Titan’. It is a lot like the Mammoth, but a little less armoured. The difference in metal allowed us to mount an incredibly heavy engine inside with a decent amount more torque. The thing can plow through anything, we’ve even got it to push the Mammoth around.” “But that thing is HUGE! The Titan must be the size of a building!” “I think you will be rather surprised.” Idler said with a chuckle. We stepped into an elevator that started slowly creeping upwards. “Well, each of these tanks have 3 manned positions. We need a driver, gunner, and commander to scan the battlefield through the hatch or viewports. So, which of you did what?” “Well, I was assigned to be the commander of my Sherman, but I was well trained to be a gunner as well.” I explained. “I think we were all commanders of our units.” said Benny, “... but I was also trained to drive the Grant in Africa.” “Well, I quite like my commanding role.” said Terry with a grin. “Well, it's settled then. Benny here can drive it, Eric can fire the gun, and Terry can sit on his rear and drink tea while spewing orders.” Idler said smirking at Terry. When we arrived at the surface, the Titan was sitting there waiting for us. “Why, that isn’t a large machine at all!” cried Terry “No, but it gets the job done. Now, lets climb in. You will notice that there is plenty of room inside.” Once we got inside the metal monster, Idler taught us how to operate all of the equipment and devices that looked decades before their time. There was even the rumored tea maker from the good ol’ Brit tanks! “So, when IS tea-time?” I asked Terry. “Ah, the true Englishman knows, but you need not.” he said with a smile as he poured us all a cup. “Well, time to get started.” said Idler as he climbed out the commander’s hatch. “Put your radios on, I’ll run you through the drill.” “Yes, sir.” we all replied. I sat down at my scope next to what would normally be the breach of the gun. I had my turret rotating devices and fine tuning knobs to focus in on the target. Idler had informed me that the lead on this gun was tricky, as it took a second for the gun to fire, but once it did, it fired a beam at darn near the speed of light that could cut through nearly everything. “Alright!” crackled through the headset. “Start her up, Benny.” With a roar, I could tell that Benny did what was told. “Good. Terry, direct him towards that large yellow barrel.” “Yessir.” he chanted back. “Turn it left!” he yelled. There was a bit of a jolt and I could feel the hull moving. “Now straight on!” I looked through my scope and saw the yellow barrel getting closer. “Okay, stop her there.” Idler chirped. “Now, we don’t like that barrel, do we Eric! Time to test your finger on the trigger. Line ‘er up and put one through it!” I looked through the scope, made some slight adjustments and pulled the huge red trigger. There was a large whirr as the gun warmed up and and with a huge jolt and a flash, the barrel was 20 yards away with a huge hole through it. The beam took a second to fade, but didn’t appear to do any more as it faded. “That’s it! You really are quick on that trigger, son. I’ve seen gunners when I was in the field that take 3 times that long to line up the shot.” Idler called out. “Why, thank you. I don’t honestly think I am that good.” I said back. “Ah, but you are. Anyways, lets get back to this. We’ve got an old T-34 sitting over the hill to the West that you can shoot at too. Get ‘em there, Terry.” “On it, sir. Right, Benny.” The tank jumped again. Terry directed Benny around things in the way and eventually got us up the hill with very few problems. “We’ve got it running and its rolling forwards, Eric.” Idler reported over the headset. “Spotted it, Eric.” called Terry. “T-34, 11 o’clock!” I swung the turret to meet the target and lined up the shot with my estimated amount of lead. I cranked back on the trigger with a rush of adrenaline and with a blinding flash, I was looking at a burning heap of metal. You could see a clean hole through the entire tank straight through the engine block. “Great shot! Glad to see our gun works. Spin it around a couple of times and test the gun depression and elevation.” I did what he asked and he seemed pleased with it. “Well, that's pretty much all we needed to test for that one. We can keep playing with it for a while though. Doesn’t take much to fire it. Incredibly energy efficient….” and as he rambled on about that while Terry kept having Benny drive around and Idler having me test accuracy on the move, I started to think. With power like this, winning this war might not be as hard as we thought. To Be Continued.... ~Fjelstad1678~

This made my day. :D

http://en.tankiforum.com/index.php?showtopic=183165

I am technically a Christian, but faith is not of great importance to me. I almost find myself as Agnostic. So, do I believe in an afterlife? I would like to think that there is, and who knows. It's not really like a dead person could come back and tell us. So, until that day comes, I will never know. Until then, I am going to live life to the fullest, because (unless reincarnation ends up being true) its the only one I have.

I'm sorry, I can't say it is hard for me. :-/

Troll tactics: Mount an Isida behind your standard turret, fire the isida at the standard turret. Voila! Infinite heath! But seriously... probably... Freeze for defending and attacking, and Shaft for those long range clutch shots when they get away with the flag.

Still the 16th here, you're fine. XD

ERMEHGERD MEH B-DAY! Thank you so much guys! I had a great day. :D

Fjelstad1678

@OP, do you mean this box? If so, the above solutions will not work. If you mean the notification that pops up when a friend invites you to a battle, then the checkbox will work.

Finish high school, drop everything, buy a nice house (donno where, kinda like to go to Europe someday...), pay off EVERYTHING, and live happy the rest of my life. Ya know, give me time to meet the ladies, maybe settle down and start a family. With no commitments, I would be incredibly active online. I would do an awful lot of traveling too. See the world, like I have always wanted to. I would go and learn to do everything I want too, such as get a piloting license. Who knows, in the future, I might even be able to visit the moon. At this point, I am almost breaking my billion dollar life budget. If I had money, I would be so happy. People say money can't buy happiness, but I think it can if you spend it right. Of course, since I have no intentions of ever having children, I would probably donate the amount remaining to charity when I reach the point of death. If you can't tell, I have put lots of thought into this in the past.

Major. It is the opposing team's drugging that keeps me at this rank.

I hate it when it snows. It tends to snow a lot here, so I get to hate things a lot.

1) Summer 2) Nothing, like always. 3) Freeze.