The TWG isn't that bad now. But when it first started, it was chaos. There was no quality and almost every other article seemed to be plagiarism. As time has progressed, the more committed writers have stuck around, and I don't think that most of you are out to get upvotes or attention. As for my post itself, I was primarily trying to be ironic. This topic itself is a good example of what I would call a useless "article". The author wrote nothing, and included almost nothing new. Why make this separate from the last "types of people in TO"? I don't see the logic behind it. He should have just incorporated the contest into the original topic. And the original topic isn't so original. Tanker1928374655's contribution to the editorials is only another rendition of articles themed in this way. Plus, this topic or the previous one couldn't have been more than a couple hundred words, hardly more than a few paragraphs. I just feel like these two "articles" in particular showed almost no effort from the creator. It seems to me that the creator couldn't have spent longer than ten minutes for either of these two topics. And, I also realize that this topic might not be part of the TWG, but what I said still applies. Anyways, here's another entry: The Anti-TWG Reporter These are individuals who used to be fairly positive toward the forum writing groups. However, as soon as accepted, they immediately resorted to posting negative and harsh criticism to the articles being produced by the TWG. Perhaps in an effort to fit in with the other Reporters or maybe a sudden burst of arrogance, they felt obligated to show no sign of respect or mercy towards any TWG member. Fortunately, none of their comments appear to have made any significant impact.

Most kills in 5 minutes - 43 I beat @Levissio's record by one kill :) I had 72 kills at 5:13 I had 115 kills at 00:13 : 115 - 72 = 43 I also took a video of it and can upload it, if you insist.

The wiki has detailed pages on the micro-upgrades of equipment. Here is the page for Railgun. As stated by the wiki, it will cost 192,000 crystals to fully micro-upgrade Railgun M1. Including the speed-ups, it will cost 288,052 crystals.

The TWG Writer One who wishes to acquire attention and up-votes, as well as join the staff. He notices the TWG, and quickly applies. He writes "articles", although the quality and content of these "articles" is of practically no importance. His number one strategy is plagiarism. Unbeknownst to him, he actually makes himself appear a nug in the eyes of those who actually matter. IYATO:(whatever that means) Create a sub-forum in the off-topic section so that the rest of the forum is not completely corrupted/polluted.

Last year, an update to the forum enabled players of a certain rank to be able to post and create topics in various sections of the forum. There are three permissions sets: Beginner, general, and advanced. Beginner (from Gefreiter to Staff Sergeant) — can leave comments in “Developer’s News” and “Contests”, can create topics and comment in “Problems and Solutions” and “Violators” General (from Master Sergeant to Sergeant-Major) — can leave comment in all sections of the forum, can create topics and comment in “Problems and Solutions” and “Violators” Advanced (from Warrant Officer 1 to Generalissimo) — can create topics and leave comments in all sections of the forum As you can see, in order to be allowed to create topics in all areas of the forum, you will need to reach the rank of Warrant Officer 1 or higher.

I disliked assault mode quite a bit. At my rank, the red team was 3/4ths saboteurs who camped around the flag stand. As soon as anyone actually took the flag, most people would just sit around waiting for it to be returned/captured. If there were people actually trying to help their team, they were usually shafts who camped on the platform near the red flag. A very small handful of people even attempted to help the flag-carrier capture the point. On the blue team, the game was extremely boring. Sometimes I would try to attack, but the map's layout and design made it almost impossible to attack unless I charged down the center past the christmas tree, only to get nailed by the shafts camping in the red team's base. Thus, my only viable option was to camp around the point. Then, every few minutes, a couple tanks would near the point. Usually they were slaughtered, other times my team mates had stopped paying attention out of boredom and didn't even notice the attacker. Blue team already had a distinct advantage, because everyone on the blue team was trying to play while only a fraction of the red team was of any use. But, blue team had an added advantage of always gathering points. No matter what, the blue team would always be earning points. It is like controlling a control point that can only be controlled by your team. But, the red team had the possibility of not capturing a single flag, hence not earning a single point. From my experiences, the blue team had a very severe advantage and won the vast majority of the time. But, it was very boring to be a blue team player. On the other hand, it was very frustrating to play on the red team, what with the constant sabotage and a very low likelihood of victory.

Seeing as there are already several topics purposed for the discussion of books, I don't really see any point in having this be a separate topic. It will probably be combined with one of these topics: Let's Discuss Books What is your favorite book(s) Anyways, there are a lot of books that I like. Among them are: Atlas Shrugged (Ayn Rand) Stone's Fall (Iain Pears) Animal Farm (George Orwell) 1984 (George Orwell) Bloodlands (Timothy Snider) Harry Potter books :3 (Joanne Rowling)

I'm not sure if you will count any of these records, but I will try :3 Most kills in 15 minutes - 103 Most Goldboxes taken in One Day - 42 (I can get full screenshots if it is really necessary, but it would be a big hassle to go back through all of my video footage on my old laptop.)

Railgun is a popular turret in Tanki Online. It is extraordinarily powerful when in the right hands, and is notorious for the immensely skillful nature of the weapon. It is fairly accepted that Railgun is the most skillful turret in Tanki Online. However, Railgun has always had a dual reputation: The first being that it is a powerful and dangerous turret, and the second being that it is an overrated, ineffective turret that is only used by egotistical tankers claiming that they are “pros”. I intend to prove the latter of these two statements as false. Railgun is a competent turret in a variety of maps and game modes, and is a useful tool for any team. Anyone on any skill-level can learn to become an efficient Railgun user, and one does not need to be a “pro” to use Railgun. Railgun is actually a weapon that can be successful in regular, random battles—it just requires a bit more of an operator than other turrets. This analysis will delve into the strategies and tactics used by successful railgun operators, and give a few key tips to those looking to improve their skill with Railgun. Keep reading to find out more! Understanding Railgun Here is a list of useful facts to those wishing to understand the turret better. - If you are on your side, you can use your impact force to flip yourself back upright. However, every hull past Viking is too heavy for this strategy to work. Dictator and onward cannot get back upright by itself when on its side. - Here is a list of how many shots it takes to destroy hulls with varying modifications of Railgun against a hull of the same modification. Paints and micro-upgrades are not taken into consideration. - Using Railgun, it takes 1 – 2 shots to destroy a wasp of the same modification. - It takes 2 shots to destroy a Hornet. - It requires 2-3 shots to destroy a Hunter (usually two) - 2-3 shots to destroy a Viking - 2-3 shots to destroy a Dictator (usually three) - 3-4 shots to destroy a Titan - 3-4 shots to destroy a Mammoth - The warmup time of a Railgun shot (directly after your press the spacebar) is just about 1.1 seconds, though the time does decrease slightly at higher modifications. - At M3, this turret reloads in just about six seconds. Excluding warm up times, it takes five seconds for this turret to charge. - Damage per minute: Railgun M3 outputs an average of 1,356.1 damage per minute, and fires just south of ten shots every sixty seconds. Pros and Cons Railgun is a fairly versatile turret, but it certainly doesn’t fare well in all situations. Railgun has some very clear strengths and weaknesses. If one can avoid these weaknesses, you will find that Railgun is a powerful turret. - Extremely high damage per shot This is one of the turret’s biggest strengths. Railgun has a very low damage per minute output, but it has an incredibly high damage per shot, allowing it to destroy any hull in the game within a handful of shots. If you maximize this trait, you will find that you are a master at stealing kills as well as crippling enemies one shot at a time. If you want to best benefit your team, target enemies that are high on health- that way, your damage per shot is not wasted on tankers that are already extremely close to death. - Extremely powerful impact force Another one of Railgun’s primary features, high impact force is generally an advantage. Especially when firing at another Railgun, you will frequently scramble an enemy’s aim. Players of XP-BP know this all too well. However, be careful when using lighter hulls; if one shoots to their side while in midair, one will usually flip. - Infinite Range Railgun is known as a “sniper” because of its infinite range and high damage at all distances. Railgun is indeed a very effective sniper, and should never be played as a close range weapon if you have an alternative turret other than Shaft. Railgun can hit and destroy enemies from all across the map, which is very useful for any team. - Long reload time This is one of Railgun’s main disadvantages. After a Railgun fires, it needs to wait at least six seconds to fire again. By this time, enemies may have charged at you or taken you down. Essentially, while Railgun is reloading, it is a sitting duck to opponents. A good user of Railgun will carefully time his shots to be sure that he is safe and out of the way of enemies. - Difficult aiming Other turrets, such as Ricochet, Twins, or Hammer, have large projectiles and fast reloads, so missing is not that big of a deal. Thunder has splash damage, Smoky has a very quick rate of fire, and Shaft has a scope. The close range turrets such as Firebird, Isida or Freeze are naturally fairly easy to aim. The only turret that does not have any easy way to aim is Railgun, which also happens to be the turret with the longest reload. For these reasons, it is difficult to master the art of aiming with Railgun. Railgun has a low auto-aim angle, so hitting enemies above or below can prove to be a challenge. Additionally, the width of Railgun’s beam is quite low, it has a slow rotation speed, and it has a one second delay before firing. However, a skilled Railgunnist will learn to predict his enemy’s moves and cope with this feature. Choosing a Hull Choosing a hull isn't all that difficult for a Railgun user. I definitely advocate using lighter, nimbler hulls rather than going for armor. Here are a few of my favorite hulls to use with Railgun: - Wasp Sorry GoldBrick, but I definitely prefer BP to XP. I do think you won the argument last issue, but I don't think that you were right. Wasp is an extremely quick hull, perfect for getting to the right places at the right time and getting out fast. Wasp is simply a perfect pair with Railgun. Wasp's light weight allows one to rock one's hull forward and backward in order to get higher and lower shots not possible solely with Railgun's autoaim. Also, Wasp's quick turning speed makes up for Railgun's slow rotation speed; in the amount of time it takes for your Railgun to warm-up, one can make a nearly a full 360 degree turn with Wasp M3. Wasp is also excellent at sheer maneuverability; it can circle enemies, throw off people's shots, and generally cause havoc everywhere it goes. - Dictator Dictator is an unusual choice for Railgun users these days. However, I am still very fond of this combination. Dictator is a slow but heavily armored hull, and is surprisingly effective when mounted with Railgun. As we all know, Dictator is the tallest hull in the game. Because of this, when you hit enemies with Railgun, you will usually hit their turrets. This is a very good method of knocking off their aim. Also, Dictator's height allows it make shots over obstacles that other hulls are not able to do. Finally, Dictator is a good choice simply because of its health, weight, and power. Dictator is great at shoving enemies out of your way. It is a fairly heavy hull, so it is significantly more difficult to knock off its aim compared to lighter hulls such as Hornet. Dictator has a lot more health than XP or BP, and can generally survive three Railgun shots. - Hornet This is a good choice for Railgun for many of the same reasons as Wasp. Additionally, Hornet is a much stabler of a hull compared to Wasp- and stability is a very beneficial trait for Railgun. It is more difficult to flip or knock off a Hornet as opposed to a Wasp. Hornet may be seen as a more well rounded hull; it is definitely more effective in drug battles or many non-format battles. Finally, Hornet is a good choice because of XP battles. XP-BP battles are common, but not nearly as common as XP. If you want to be a player of XP or XP-BP battles, Hornet is a great choice. I can say that, hands down, I find XP/XP-BP battles to be exponentially more fun than other alternatives. - Hunter Hunter is another of my favorite combinations with Railgun. Hunter is probably my favorite hull, and it is a good jack-of-all-trades with a number of weapons. Hunter/Railgun was one of, if not the most, popular combination seen in Star Series, and for good reason. Hunter has similar mobility to Hornet, but when coupled with a fairly Railgun-protective paint, it can consistently survive three Railgun hits. In regular random battles, Hunter is probably my favorite hull to use with Railgun. Overall, it is a dependent hull that can perform well in a variety of situations. - Titan or Mammoth: Don't use these! I would not recommend using Titan or Mammoth with Railgun. These hulls' sluggish speed is extremely unproductive when combined with a slow-loading turret like Railgun. The only effective strategy one can do is to camp near your flag, and even then I would not advise this strategy. Using Titan or Mammoth may not always be disastrous, but I definitely think that almost any other hull will be a better choice when it comes to Railgun. The Basics Perhaps unlike other turrets, an effective user of Railgun must be aware and fluent of a few necessities while using the weapon. Without these, you will find yourself plummeting down the scoreboard and eventually leaving the turret to gather dust in the garage. - You NEED to turn your turret. If you are going to use Railgun, you need to know how to turn your turret. Without using your turret rotation, your productivity in the battlefield will be reduced dramatically. You will be one of the most useless players on your team. Railgun is all about precision aiming and timing. Without turning your turret, you will lose all of Railgun’s potential capability at making pin-point shots, shooting around corners and small gaps, and, perhaps most of all, awareness of the map (turning your turret rotates your camera position). If you do not turn your turret and do not know how to do so, I urge you to force yourself to use turret-rotation keys. Hand position is very important: If you use the arrow keys, put your left hand on the Z,X,C, and spacebar keys. Use your right hand to operate the arrow keys. - You must have a good understanding of game basics. If you are using Firebird or Smoky, you can hurdle around the map, shooting any enemy in your path. One can do this with Railgun as well, but you won’t be nearly as effective as other turrets. If you want to be a useful Railgun user, memorize how many shots it takes to kill each hull. Remember which paints are especially protective against Railgun, and which turrets are especially hazardous to a Railgun. Strive to shoot at enemies that are at full health rather than are close to death; this will make best use of your damage per shot. Always pay attention to the battlefield, and remember routes that have worked best in the path. I’ll say this over and over again throughout this article: Timing, aiming, and observance are the key to success. - Use the Q/E keys to adjust your camera angle. This is a skill that I never mastered until last summer. It is extremely important to a Railgun user; it can drastically increase your map awareness. The Q/E keys are the most easily accessible, but the [ ] keys can also change your camera angle. If you did not already know, these keys lower or raise the position of the camera above your hull. Essentially, if you find yourself in a close range encounter, with enemies lying in wait behind buildings and walls, you will want to raise your camera angle in order to see your enemies. You will be able to see when they are moving out of cover or when they are reloading, which will give you a huge advantage compared to blindly guessing when your opponents will attack. If you are in a long range map and are planning on making pin-point shots at enemies in the distance, you need to lower your camera to see forward. If you do not do this, you won’t be able to see all the way ahead of your hull. Also, if you are in an exposed position, it is good to lower your camera angle so as to see enemies that are shooting at you. A good Railgun user constantly adjusts his camera angle in all maps. It is a very useful tool, granting one a new level of adjustment and awareness. Tactics and Strategies - The most basic of Railgun tactics: Peek-a-boom This strategy is a fundamental piece of Railgun tactics. Most likely, all of us already have used or witnessed this strategy being used. It is quite simple: Hide behind a wall, press spacebar, and pop out just before your warmup ends and the shot is fired. The reason this is so effective is because it allows your opponents no chance to react. They can’t get out of the way or try to knock off your aim with a shot. It can be used in all kinds of different situations; whenever you are going to come out of cover to shoot an enemy, try to press spacebar before you are fully exposed. Even if you shoot a millisecond before your enemy, it will be more than worth it since the shot probably will have knocked off their aim. This strategy is constantly used by effective Railgun operators. It can be used in all kinds of situations. Be careful of miscalculating your enemies’ moves. If you can learn to time it perfectly to waste as little time as possible on the warm up, you will be surprisingly more effective than you would guess. Once, I made a goal to time my Railgun shots perfectly: that the moment I left cover, my weapon would have already warmed up and would fire instantly. I practiced dozens of these kinds of peek-a-boom shots in empty Sandbox maps, and I became very proficient at it. To my surprise, firing almost un-measurably sooner made a big difference in my battle performance. - Rocking your hull Most of you should be familiar with this strategy. If not, you have a lot to learn. Railgun has a low auto-aim angle, fortunately this can be countered by rocking your hull forward and backward to fire your shot at a higher or lower angle (depending on the level of the enemy you are firing at). It sounds simple, but it is also very complex. If you wish to flip an enemy, then rocking your hull is a crucial piece of this strategy. Wasp is the best hull at rocking, but you can do it with just about anything. Rocking your hull is used constantly by effective Railgun operators, and is really an essential piece of Railgun strategy. - Multi-kills and lining up enemies This is another big part of Railgun tactics. Because the railgun beam can penetrate through Tank armor, it can damage multiple enemies in one shot. The damage decreases after it has passed through a single tank, but it is still possible to kill dozens of tanks in one shot. At M0 and M1 modifications, the damage dealt by Railgun after it has already hit another enemy is minimal, but at M2 and M3, it can be very significant. In XP-BP, one should always attempt to line up his enemies in order to maximize his damage potential. Since all hulls are two shots in XP-BP, even if you hit someone through another tank, it still deals enough damage to make them one shot to whomever hits them next. Because of this, you can make double kills or even triple kills. However, lining up enemies correctly is surprisingly difficult- usually, both of your targets are moving. Timing must be near perfect, and this skill definitely takes concentration. I have found that it is easiest to make "double-shots" in Polygon CP XP-BP, because so many tanks are often confined to the area around the point. If you can consistently make shots damaging multiple enemies, it can practically double your damage output (especially in XP-BP). - Flipping Enemies Due to Railgun's extraordinary impact force, one can successfully flip enemy hulls with a well placed shot. Flipping enemies is actually pretty easy if you know when to shoot. Basically, if an enemy hull is jumping from one space to another (perhaps a ledge or a cliff), you can flip them. If they are jumping off a larger cliff, then simply hitting the middle of their hull will generally flip them over. If you are behind an enemy while he jumps off a smaller ledge, you can usually flip them by hitting the very back of their hull the moment they are falling. Rocking your hull upward while you shoot is beneficial, as you will hit the top of their hull as they fall. Another common situation to flip enemies is at ramps. If a light hull is charging up a ramp (perhaps with speed boost), a Railgun user can flip them if he is able to hit the side of their turret as they get airborne. - Knocking off opponents' aim Once again, Railgun's high impact force is a very useful trait. Railgun can easily knock off light hulls' aim. This strategy is especially effective in XP-BP, if you manage to make the first shot. Frequently, encounters in XP-BP will result in one player firing a millisecond before another. Unfortunately, the first player will usually be the only one to make the shot, because the latter player will miss by being knocked off. If you can rock your hull upward and hit the turret of an enemy, their shot will fly above you, without any chance of actually making its mark. If you can just hit the side of their hull (preferable the corner) they will usually miss as well. - Using Railgun defensively Unlike almost any other turret, Railgun can actually be used as a form of protection rather than solely a weapon of destruction. Because of its high damage and impact force, people naturally tend to avoid being shot by Railgun. For this reason, a shot at the right time can actually help protect you from enemies. If you are running to cover and being chased by an enemy, after you go around a corner, you can fire your weapon to try to slow them down. If they are observant, they won't blindly follow you- they will wait until after you have fired to drive around the corner. If you are close enough to cover or an ally, this can save you just enough time to survive. This strategy is used a lot more actively in XP-BP formats, especially when you have the flag and are in an exposed area. - Prediction Being able to correctly time and predict your enemies' movies is the basis for many Railgun tactics. But, I feel like it is a tactic in and of itself. If you can predict your enemies' moves before they can, you will be successful. It is all about speed- if you can guess when your enemy will pop out from cover to hit you, you can try to shoot before they do. If you can hit them before they hit you, (even if it is a fraction of a second earlier) then they will probably miss. If you are playing against another Railgun, you will also reload before they do and hit them first a second time. Additionally, if you can predict when they will take the flag, or when another ally will shoot at them, you will gain a huge advantage. Being able to guess each of their goals and moves will give you the ability to prevent their success. - Navigating ramps and jumps If you are on a ramp and are confronted by an enemy above, there are a few things you can try to do. If they try to come down onto the ramp to shoot at you, shoot the very front of their hull as they roll onto the ramp, and try to drive underneath their hull. If you are successful, it will be very difficult for them to hit you. They might be able to drop a mine if it is a supply battle, but this is still an avoidable threat. If the enemy at the top of the ramp is adamantly waiting until you expose yourself, drive to the top of the ramp, rock your hull forward, and fire. Usually, you will hit your target and only be exposed for a second or so. If an enemy is jumping from above, try to negotiate your hull into a position where they will land on top of you. If they are on top of you, they have no way of shooting at you, while you can shoot at them. Learning to play with Railgun If you want to improve your Railgun skills, there are a few things I would recommend. - Choosing a map I recommend playing in Sandbox if you are learning to play with Railgun, or already like to use the turret. Sandbox is an excellent map- its long, straight corridors are perfect for Railgun. One who plays in Sandbox will soon realize that there is a lot more to it than meets the eye. There are a variety of shots that you can learn, and I feel like this map is a good teacher for those using Railgun. It is also the most common map in the game, and sometimes it seems as if half of all XP-BP battles are in Sandbox. Another great map is Barda. Barda is one of, if not my favorite, map. It simply has a multitude of firing angles and good positions. Barda is a fairly common map (especially at low ranks), and I really enjoy its CTF gameplay. In fact, here is a little video I made of some of the shots possible in Barda (I made it when I was a Master Sergeant :3) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4UEbP4oKr_c Other than these two maps, just about any large map will do well with Railgun. Rio, Osa, Skyscrapers, Serpuchow, and Red Alert are all good choices. Additionally, I would decidedly not recommend playing in Polygon CP with Railgun. This is simply a bad choice, as almost any other turret (besides Shaft) will outperform Railgun in this map. - Play in 1 v 1s I spent a lot of my time in 1 vs 1s while I was a low-ranker. I found that 1 vs 1s really do improve your skills significantly, especially when you are playing against tankers of a similar skill level. I've heard it said that 1 vs 1s don't say anything about a tanker's skill. I disagree with this to some extent. I definitely feel like a good Railgun duelist is a fairly skilled player. - The Mindset If I believe that there is a certain frame of mind that will help exemplify your skill. If you are going to play with Railgun, don't just go through the motions. Every moment is important, and if you are truly concentrating, you can do well. When you are spawning, pay attention to the map. While drifting through the air, you actually have a very strategic view from above. Don't join maps to play- join to win. Be mindful of all aspects of the game, such as where the flags are located. Observance is a really important piece of the game. This concludes my guide to Railgun. Like Ricochet, this is an extremely powerful but also demanding turret. Because of this, it is one of the most exhilarating turrets in the game. While using Railgun, be aware of everything around you, and don't stop thinking. Good luck!

Happy New Year everybody. I got helper paint :mellow:

I disagree with the idea that there are only 13,000 active players. Here is a screenshot of the server load graph from almost exactly one year ago1: And here is one during the present time2: Obviously, the game has lost some players. It appears that around 21,000 players are no longer active if we compare the two graphs. This is a 16% decrease in player count over all of 2015. 1. http://en.tankiforum.com/index.php?showtopic=179541&p=4185257 2. http://tankionline.com/graphic.swf Also, I believe that ideas pertaining to sales are usually not allowed which is why a topic such as this would be closed.

I would have commented sooner, but it's been a busy week. My apologies for the delay. The individuals chosen for the article were selected simply because they were active forum users. I sent out a few PMs a few days before the issue (it was all very last minute). My main thought process was that I was in a hurry, and that I needed users who were active and would provide descriptive responses. The reason I said "a few members have chosen to share their traditions" is because I sent out several PMs to a fairly large number of people. About half of these invitees chose to respond, while others did not choose to do so. It would have been an interesting idea to have a more open way of inviting members to the interview, but as I mentioned earlier, I had about three days before the issue was released to prepare, and that was really not enough time to do such a thing. I did not state that Christmas is frequently celebrated on the 7th of January. But, as you might notice, I never said that it was celebrated on the 25th, or any other date for that matter. I actually did not say anything. The participants in the interview were the only ones sharing their traditions. And, even among these interview participants, only one even mentioned the date the Christmas was celebrated on. I'm not going to name names, but as it happens I can think of a specific individual who was very likely part of the Eastern Orthodox church that I did invite to take part in the interview. They chose not to submit an entry, however. In any case, I feel like we shouldn't focus on this detail. This article was not at all focusing on Christmas, just winter traditions and holidays. Narrowing our gaze upon the differences in the Christian sects is not at all what I had intended, and it also is not really accomplishing anything. And, to be perfectly honest, I feel like the date Christmas is celebrated on is a little unimportant ( people celebrate Christmas on different dates. I have a cousin who celebrates Christmas on December 21st, and I have another who celebrates it on April 6th). Discrimination and/or ignoring important items was not in any way my intention. I am not sure if you will appreciate this bit of honesty, but I actually had no clue that the Eastern Orthodox church celebrated Christmas on the 7th until I read the comment to this interview. (Yes, I live in an American bubble, I apologize. I'm also not that religious of a person in the first place). And, if you are interested in what I would say to my own interview, here is my personal response: To me, I mainly appreciate the winter festivities due to the break in school and other responsibilities. It has been several months of school, and finals have just ended. I very much appreciate the break in school; early December is a busy, stressful time of the year that also occurs at the same time period in which I begin to burn out. Where I live, (central Texas if you are interested) it is an odd tradition of ours to display your Christmas tree in your front yard as opposed to keeping it inside of your house. Coupled with other decorations and Christmas lights, this makes our neighborhood a very beautiful area during the night. Where I'm at, the climate is very appreciable during the winter. Throughout this entire week the highs have been in the upper 70s in Fahrenheit, and it has been many years since it has snowed (or so I'm told). Though I am not an actively religious person, I do celebrate Christmas and my family does make some special efforts throughout this final month. December is a time in which I do a lot of service. As part of a service program, I work with the police department to help collect, wrap, and deliver gifts to poorer families throughout the city. It is a very fun experience. Christmas eve and Christmas day is usually observed while I am surrounded by relatives, and we do a number of activities together. During Christmas night, we turn out all lights and electronics, and cook our food over a fire. This is another unique but enjoyable tradition. I really appreciate the holiday season. It is a break in the midst of a chaotic life, and, although the season can be stressful in and of itself, I am glad that I have traditions and celebrations during this period of the year.

If you are interested in maps that no longer exist, you can read Rem/Skit's series: Maps that Once Were I; Maps that Once Were II. If you are also looking for guides to camouflage, see these articles: A Guide to Camouflage and The "Perfect" Camo. But a guide to a paint on a map that doesn't exist seems a little Contradictory, don't you think? Oh, darn those evil goldboxes! But do you have any ideas for the Newspaper? Do you have any specific ideas? We are a Tanki newspaper, after all, so we definitely prioritize Tanki-related articles over other things. I am planning to create an in-depth guide to Rail in the near future. Go ahead and read Pho/Night's guide to Micro Upgrades: The Pathological MUer. I am certainly planning on creating more interviews with important members of the community. Do you have anyone or any group in particular you want interviewed?

Please use the preexisting topic to post screenshots and images from the game: Photo of the Day - Have Any? There is no reason to create a separate topic.

If you would like to showcase your creativity or youtube talent, feel free to start a topic in the Your Creativity section. If you would simply like to post pictures or post goldboxes, use the Photo of the Day or Gold Boxes! topics, respectively. This is not the correct section to do these things. Please read the Conversation Clubs Section Rules before starting a topic.

Ah, you have stumbled upon another furious grammar argument. Linguists have such exciting lives. The correctness of using 'their' as a singular possessive and 'they' as a non-gender singular is debatable, but it isn't necessarily incorrect. Oxford Dictionary agrees with me. I tend to side with the more rebellious side of the grammar world, for example, I generally use the Oxford comma. Although, on the subject of they vs his or her, I simply try to vary the sentence structure in order to keep my writing more interesting.

One of my Tanki milestones is complete. I have been trying to successfully take a gold box in Madness for quite a long time, and I have finally done it! ^_^ By the way, I will be ranking up in a few days. (I am about 100 kills from ranking). If anyone is of the rank Marshall or lower and wants to come, PM me on the forum.

Sorry, I just fixed it. I didn't forget you, I just misspelled your name in the [member= user code.

Yes, I am a stalker. Just ask my colleague @greyat. Everything has been updated.

One of the most unique elements of this game is the diversity of players. Tanki Online is an extremely international game, with tankers all over the globe. Across all hemispheres of the world, this game has brought us together. As the holiday season approaches, a few members of the English community have chosen to share their traditions and impressions that occur during this period in their lives. Some of these habits are unique, and others may seem familiar. Continue reading to learn more! @Anonono: Well first of all Christmas is in summer here in Australia, so it gets pretty darn hot at this time of year! Our extended family meet up at Christmas most years. The family would all attend a Christmas service at our local church (either Christmas Eve or Christmas Day). Traditions held each year include Christmas Carols on the lawn on Christmas Eve, backyard cricket on Boxing Day and playing Monopoly on New Year's Eve. The last one can get very intense! After Christmas celebrations I get really bored go to work and get paid good :D, but in the last week of the Holidays the family head up to the coast in Southern Queensland and do things like paddle boarding, beach activities, karting, shopping etc. The resort that we stay at is literally across the road from the beach, so we walk barefoot to and from the beach. @KillerGnat: Christmas where I live is quite different than Christmas in America. Due to the hot temperatures, limited shopping centers, and lack of many decorations, it is not what most of you would call a "normal" Christmas. Despite that, I wouldn't trade any ordinary Christmas for the ones we have here. We've spiced up the holiday season with traditions, jokes, and happiness, to make it a special time for all. The biggest event of the month is the Banlung Bonfire, a yearly Christmas celebration with all our friends. We play soccer, football, and basketball in the day, and then we sing carols and eat smores (idk how to spell that) at night. Both before and after Christmas, my family and I travel to different villages to join in their celebrations as well. Obviously, they put interesting twists into their celebrations that reflect their culture. Christmas day is always spent with family, and after our breakfast (usually a huge feast), we open up presents. We try not to think solely about the presents and food, though, so we spend the entire month of December reflecting on the true meaning of Christmas: how amazing it is that Jesus came down to earth to save us from our sins. I think having friends and family all around me who believe that also makes for a wonderfully special time that cannot be replicated anywhere else. Just a note, the temp right now is 92 degrees farenheit. #christmasincambodia : In my personal opinion, Christmas is not all about being spoilt with lots of wonderful presents, or eating wonderful, tasty, delicious food that you only eat rarely... no. Christmas is the best time of the year to spend time with people who love and care about you the most - and that is your family. Some people say "the older you get, the less fun Christmas gets." Well... I don't believe that saying is true. I'm 16, nearly 17, and I still love Christmas. I'm not a massive, MASSIVE fan of it, but I'm certainly no Ebonisa Scrooge ;) And just like the song - (and in my opinion) "Christmas is the most wonderful time of the year." When it comes to Christmas, my family is very traditional. Christmas tree decorated with baubles, tinsel and lights with an angel on top, christmas decorations stuck on our living room ceiling and the famous christmas turkey with mashed potatoes, roast potatoes, etc... Overall, christmas is a great time of the year, and my personal favorite time of the year. In my opinion, Christmas beats every holiday going in the year, including Halloween :P : Winter Holidays is long-awaited event for me every year, mainly because of school break. Most people would remind on Christmas when someone would ask them to say what is the best part of winter holidays. Christmas is not much different here in Croatia than the other cultures. People do decorate their Christmas tree. They do have a big dinner with all the turkey's and side dishes popping up on the table. People do prepare presents for their children. All of that is kind of boring for me (haha don't misunderstand me) but holidays are not holidays without snow, do you agree? (Deep compassion to all the people from Australia and countries where snow doesn't fall) When snow falls i feel like a 10 year old kid rolling in the snow and do the snowball fight with my friends (after i had 3 plates of turkey). Believe me, it doesn't end so well every time, so do it on your own risk. :ph34r: Snow is the thing that makes me have winter holiday feeling, the true one. And Christmas can spice it all up, in a warm way, together with your family, or with those who you love the most. :) @ariking777: Hello :) As some of you know, I'm from Israel, and so I'm a Jew. In general, Jews don't celebrate Christmas. We do use the regular calendar Christians use in everyday life, but our Holidays are all celebrated on the basis of the Jewish calendar, which isn't the same as the Christians'. We don't have any Holiday regarding the new 2016 year since there isn't any new year in the Jewish calendar - our religious so-to-speak new year holiday has been celebrated way back in September, and it's called "Rosh HaShana" (in Hebrew, ראש השנה). Among other things, it involves sending Happy-New-Year postcards to relatives and friends, eating apples dipped in honey (don't ask me what's the origin of THAT tradition :P), having a big and festive meal in the night before the day of Rosh HaShana, and in general having fun (vacation from school and work). As you may know, we don't roll in the snow outside, mainly because there isn't any snow outside; in Israel, September is still the peak of the summer, and anyways even in the coldest weathers, it snows only in Jerusalem and other cities built upon mountains, and even that's quite rear. And of course, although I and my family and all of my close friends aren't Christians, we do bless Christians and foreigners we come across (in reality, and on the Internet) and tell them "merry Christmas" :D Happy Winter Holidays, merry Christmas, and Shana Tova (שנה טובה, means "Have a good year" in Hebrew) :) @LaserShark: Here in 'Murica there are several main holidays we celebrate this time of year. First we celebrate Thanksgiving by first eating a large, dead bird whose insides have been scooped out and replaced with croutons. Usually this event is accompanied by the giving of thanks for the many blessings one has been gifted with. The very next day, known as Black Friday, everyone tramples their fellow human beings for things that they could simply purchase online at the same price. Often this may be accompanied by the use of tasers or festive pepper spray. On to the main attraction, Christmas, that is, if you've survived this long. You see, we like to celebrate the entire month of December by placing a large, dried up tree in our living rooms. That, combined with a large amount of paper wrapped presents under the tree, is probably among the very best kindling money can buy. Wrapping it up in hot light bulbs, and leaving the fireplace on for an extended period of time near the tree helps you appreciate every day you are somehow still alive. Ah, at last, Christmas, arguably the #1 holiday of American culture. Parents tuck their children to bed after lying to them about a large obese man who is going to break into their home via a tiny chimney and leave things under the tree. After all the excitement now comes the time where you discover that a box of socks, all wrapped up, looks just like a copy of Fallout4, but is in fact, just socks. Happy socks-mas. : In India, winters nearly begin in early November and last up to February. Being in the sub-tropical zone, winters are not as chilly as some other countries so temperatures are in the range of ~5-15 degrees Celcius except for the mountainous areas of Jammu & Kashmir, N-E, Himachal and Uttarakhand. There is no snowfall, barring a few far-north areas like Kashmir. Most of us are well off with sweaters and blankets only. :P Festivities are quite frequent in the winter season and India being secular, we celebrate each of them. At the start of winter is Diwali. Arguably one of the biggest festivals celebrated for the return of Hindu Lord Rama after defeating Ravana. It consists of 5 main auspicious days - Dhanteras, Narak-chaturdashi (celebrating the victory of Lord Krishna over Narakasur), Lakshmipujan (puja of the Goddess Lakshmi), Padwa and Bhai-dooj (brother-sister day). Besides this, we have festivals like Bihu, Pongal, Guru Nanak Jayanti and Children's Day throughout winter. In December, we have Christmas, which is also quite popular and even non-Christians spend time with their family, decorate Xmas trees and thw kids wear Santa Claus hats. During this time, most of the students have a 10-15 day long vacation, so it is double the fun. New Year's Eve is widely celebrated - people hang out in the night, eat together, watch fireworks, or just spend time with friends and family to count down to the new year like me! In January comes Makar Sankranti in Maharahstra when we all distribute sesame & jaggery laddoos to our near and dear ones and acquaintances saying "Tilgul guya, god god bola!" which means "take the Tilgul and talk sweet"! Besides this we have the all-important Republic Day on 26th Jan, the day when our Constitution was enforced. The winters are always chock-full! :D @Yisroel.Rabin: Down here in Toronto (Canada), it hasn't even snowed yet (it probably will by the time you're reading this, RIP clean ground), but that doesn't mean any of our holidays are ruined, right? I celebrate Chanukah, which some of you may know, is eight days long, SO IN YO FACE 1 DAY HOLIDAYS, and eight days of Chanukah means I have time to do whatever I want (except for when relatives come over, then I have to act like somebody everybody knows I'm not), like take some cool pics of nature (I like photography, incase you didn't know), take long walks on quiet streets to see what decorations people have to offer, and even, play Tanki. Besides lighting the Menorah and spinning (what you may know as) "that spinny top thingy" called a dradel in Hebrew, there aren't many other big traditions in Chanukah (there are more traditions, but it's sort of deep into stuff, so let's not dive into that just yet), it's just a fun time to spend time with family, and possibly, have some fun :D As I mentioned before, I love taking walks this time of year to see what decorations people have out there. I obviously don't celebrate every holiday, but I still enjoy them. So with that, I'd like to wish you all a happy new year! :) PS: Here's what happens when you have a "spinny top thingy" and a camera :P CLICK @Adriel.RB: Thanks for the invitation! :) So, in Mexico we celebrate Christmas too. In my country snow don't fall (specially the center and south of the country). In Dec. 12, catholic people celebrates the "Virgen de Guadalupe". In Dec. 24 and 25 we celebrate Christmas. Like in almost all the countries, Santa comes on the houses, and give gifts to people. In Dec. 28 we celebrate the "Dia de los santos inocentes" (Like an mexican April Fools). At Dec. 31 we celebrate the New Year. There's a tradition in the New Year, its called "Doce uvas" (12 grapes). You need to eat 12 grapes, in every grape you need to wish something you want to be happen in the next year (2016 in this case). And finally, theres another celebration at the January 6. The "Reyes magos" (Magicians kings) come to our houses. They are called Melchor, Gaspar and Baltazar. They gives gifts to people (specially childrens, like Santa, but they give three gifts). In Mexico we put christmas trees too. This month give me nostalgic moments. : Hello, Contradiction! First of all, congratulations for getting accepted as a reporter candidate. I'm sure you'll do a great job as a reporter. Now, coming to how I celebrate my winter vacation. I'll only focus on Christmas, as I just spend the rest of the time lazing around :P First of all, I don't see Christmas as a religious holiday. I see it as a time to be with friends, family, and people who are less fortunate than you. I go out to watch the Christmas decorations with my parents, which are, usually, amazing. Then, I buy my favoured hulls and turrets on the sale which the devs have prepared for us. There is also a Christmas party at my dad's office where everyone enjoys each others' company. And this, SIR(s), is how I celebrate my winter holidays! Well, that's it! What are your winter traditions? Don't hesitate to share your Christmas experiences in the comments below!

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Retribution Dominik gazed into the woods. Tall, spindly pines protruded out of the surrounding hills like fur growing on the back of an animal. Slowly, whispers of snowflakes glided to meet a growing layer of freezing powder encompassing the earth. The upper half of the sun was seen rising over the horizon, but it would not be fully light for another half an hour. In the distance, a caravan of men and machinery trundled across a path. It was completely silent save it were for the crackling of flames emanating from Dominik’s small fire. The memory of flames was not an enjoyable thought to Dominik. *** Two days earlier… The clang of hammer upon metal awoke Dominik. It was early morning, barely light, and frost had grown across the heap in which he lay. He stumbled out of the tent, and stared about at the activity surrounding him. The soldiers were setting up equipment and packing down tents, preparing weapons and eating food. Dominik had already, apparently, slept through a lot of action. He looked back into the small Czechoslovakian village. No one stirred there. The troops apparently awoke much earlier than Dominik and his village did. He could make out barks and shouts, as well as a few forbidding comments here and there. “The germans will be here at noon,” one man said to another. Dominik did not want to think about this. Instead, he strode back, past his tent, and toward the village. Houses and buildings stood in ordered rows. There was an uncommon neatness about the whole thing- perhaps people were unconsciously preparing for the invasion soon to come. Or perhaps it was voluntary. In any case, it was unnatural, and vaguely disturbed Dominik. Spruce trees swayed in the cold breeze, shivering at the thought of the devastation soon to be witnessed. The overcast sky roiled, chilling winds from the north bringing unwanted weather to Czechoslovakia. He wished he had slept in his family’s cottage rather than in the tent. The cold of the night was still with him. But, the soldiers had asked him to camp with them, in case they needed someone to show them a path through the forests. Smoke began to rise from the collection of small buildings. Dominik stepped into his house, relishing the warmth within. The smell of cooking greeted his nostrils, and he realized that he was very hungry. The noise of pots and pans being shuffled in the kitchen could be heard all throughout the house. Otherwise, it was quiet. Dominik realized it was his younger sister manufacturing the breakfast. The only people currently living in the house were his mother and sister- everyone else in the family had fled elsewhere or had joined the National Socialists. The trio sat down to a rickety wooden table, and ate in silence. Dominik realized that it was only a few days until christmas day, and wondered if there would be any celebrations. There would not be. *** The beginning noises of destruction began at noon. Gunshots were heard ringing across the craggy hills, and all the villagers hid amid their homes. Shouts and bangs continued, and the fight had reached the border of the village. But, it was soon all over. The meager Czechoslovakian resistance had been pitilessly destroyed by the German army. *** The German troops marched into the town. They ordered everyone out of their houses, and the people had no choice but to obey. The population stood in confused and defeated silence, forced into one-armed National Socialist salute. Those who did not return from out of their houses were soon found and never seen again. The German captain announced the terms of defeat. He kept it short and simple: every male over the age of fifteen was to be executed, and everyone else would be taken away. The executions began later in the afternoon. A collection of mattresses had been taken from homes and set up against a building, in order to shield the executioners from ricochets. A shallow trench was dug in the ground, and a line of men was formed. With a final check to be sure that they had enough ammunition, the gunshots began their reign of terror. It would not end until several hours to come. *** There was only one survivor of the executions. After the last gunshot's echo had passed for several minute, the young man crept back to see what had finally occurred. What he saw was a line of women and children being distributed into vehicles. In a few short days, they would arrive at the camps, and perhaps never leave again. Over the next few days, Dominik's rage grew. He would make them pay- he would inflict upon these unnamed Germans a final reprisal, a revenge that would only end with their last breaths. He knew the lands about his town, and he knew where the soldiers would head next. Dominik followed them. But first, he took a concealed Karabiner 98k - a rifle. He had only two rounds of ammunition. *** Dominik struggled through the snow. It was only a few inches deep, but it still hindered his movements through the dark forests. The Germans were loud and bright, easy to make out amongst the juxtaposition of dark spruces. He avoided the road in order to avoid detection, but Dominik still didn't know if he would care if he got caught. His only goal was blood. At last, late into the night, the Germans stopped and made their camp. This was Dominik's chance. He only needed to single out one of the soldiers. One of them would probably go to the stream to get water. Dominik would be swift and deadly- it only took one shot. Then, he would get away as fast as possible. No doubt he would be chased for some distance, but they wouldn't be able to keep up with Dominik and they would eventually give up. It was risky, but it would work. For the tenth time that day, he check the rifle. Everything seemed to be working properly. He stood behind a tall pine, heart pumping furiously. If it weren't for the bubble of the stream, it might be audible in the night-time quiet. He heard footsteps approaching, and peered around the corner. It was a single man, striding towards the river with some kind of jug in hand. Dominik was a good one hundred meters from the German camp. He would have time to run after they heard the gunshot. The German walked past the tree. Dominik raised the gun with shaking hand, and aimed at the other man's head. Somehow, he couldn't bring himself to fire. With a monumental act of will, Dominik pulled the trigger- and hit the soldier in the knee. For a second or two, all was quiet. The wounded man had fallen back onto the snow, blood leaking increasingly faster from his leg. Dominik didn't know if he should run... but what other options did he have? He was frozen in place. Strangely, a host of soldiers did not come suddenly bounding towards him. Acting on instinct, Dominik crouched to the ground and placed his sleeve over the German soldier's mouth. He locked his other arm around the man's neck, and began to drag him away. Dominik knew that gunshots in the knee were extremely painful, and would frequently result in unconsciousness. But, the man groaned softly. After about thirty seconds of dragging, Dominik found a small crevice between two boulders that stood as part of the riverbank. He hauled the wounded soldier into the crevice and halter, panting. What am I doing?! This thought echoed ceaselessly across his mind. He should stop, finish off the German, and run away. But he didn't. The man rolled over groggily, and his eyes fluttered open. Consciousness seeped back into his mind like an avalanche, and the man reached for his side-holstered pistol. Dominik was, luckily, faster. He snatched the pistol and aimed it directly at the other's head. The German glared back, uncaring. After speaking a few words in German and noticing Dominik's incomprehension, the soldier uttered a few accented words in English, the only tongue the two could mutually understand. "Do you want repentance, or do you want revenge? If you want repentance, you can have it." Dominik knew what the soldier was talking about. He was seeking justice after what they had done to his city. But what was it that he wanted? Did he want repentance? Or was he simply searching for vengeance? "I want retribution." The words sounded empty the moment they left his mouth. It was almost like an excuse, somehow. What was it that he really was looking for? Could the soldier be blamed for following instructions? Was he even involved in the executions? If what he sought was justice, would the death of one man even come near accomplishing this? A million thoughts whirled around his mind, hindering his thoughts. He heard, rather than felt, the pistol fall to his feet. He watched himself turn and leave the boulders. Then, a cold tingle ran down his spine as he felt the barrel of a weapon pressed against the rear of his skull. A frenzy of German words greeted his ears, and he put his hands behind his head. A squad of half-a-dozen German troops were clustered about Dominik, the Captain standing only a few feet away. Five weapons were pointed at Dominik, on the brink of firing. Dominik watched something peculiar pass over the German Captain's face. The man opened his mouth, and in his cold, brisk German accent, he declared, "Let him go, boys. It's Christmas, after all." The weapons were lowered. As expected, Dominik ran, and did not stop until he was many miles away and too tired to think about what had just occurred. *** Dominik continued to sit at his fire. The distant party of soldiers curved around a bend, and was soon obscured by the tall pine trees. The rising sun yanked and stretched the shadows cast by the trees, as if they were cobwebs being swept away after several years. Dominik's mind avoided reflecting over what had just happened. In fact, it would be many, many winters later until he fully understood what had happened that night. The only thing he was sure of was that he had not regretted what he had done. The German captain held no compunctions, either. slow-cooker

The removal of supplies would not unbalance the game. It would, without a doubt, render the game a much more balanced place. If supplies were removed, M4s and Paints would matter more than before, but that doesn't make the game any more unbalanced than it already is. Micro Upgrades and Paints wouldn't be any more powerful than prior the removal of supplies. Not that I am in favor of the complete removal of supplies- this would cause more problems than it would solve. It would ruin parkour, make it much more random to take the goldbox, and based upon the actions of the developers, would ruin the game's economy. But I would not be against further restrictions of supplies or making them less powerful. Any game needs to be slightly unbalanced- otherwise there is no motivation to buy game products, and the said game would lose funding. But I do feel that the way supplies currently exist is too powerful. Sure, they can be used to fight against micro-upgraders, but supplies, in and of themselves, give users a much stronger advantage than MUs.

The server load graph was recently removed from the game. It is no longer viewable. It was removed for various reasons, one of which is because it is slightly misleading. Read what had to say on the subject: