Star Wars OPEN Elite League Limmie

GM Post

HSN Headlines

• Ternardiel on the stand: “I have suffered under the weight of what I did ever since I did it.”
• “I vowed I would make something of myself, to show everyone that you could get out, that you could do something with your life.”
• Ternardiel recounted her anonymous attempts to repay store owners for the theft and damage
• Ternardiel: “I am here to be accountable for what I’ve done.”
• Rosty Bassell found competent to stand trial

TAG: jcgoble3

 

IC: Martin Vigo

It was great to spend time with fellow Limmie enthusiasts and team owners. Or at least those who took care of ownership duties while the actual owner played down on the field. The owner played all too well on the field as did the rest of the team and we suffered our first loss of the season. Madelyne certainly made out well for herself though. Everyone loved her cooking and she even found an ally who agreed in the hardships of allowing one of her children to play Limmie.

One of my best scores of the evening was the reference of a few good lawyers from Regan. I have my own legal team of course, but their type love to collaborate and share ideas. One of the first things I’d do in the morning is pass those names on to my own lawyers in case we need them one day. Last but not least I was able to gauge that at least one other owner was uneasy about the changes made to the league dynamics last year and those that could be made this off season.

Once our guests had made their way back to their speeders I told my own family to go home without me. The boys were quiet, sobered by the loss. My wife held Zoey asleep in her arms. “How will you get home?” She asked.

“Andres,” I replied as I gave her a kiss on the cheek. “Don’t wait up,” I advised as we went our separate ways.

When I arrived in the locker room the mood was much different than it had been after the wins we had enjoyed so frequently this season. It was quiet and here were long faces, but thankfully no arguing or yelling. Most of the players seemed focused. I took it as a good sign, that they were putting the loss behind them and concentrating on next week. The player I was most concerned about was sitting on a bench, leaning back with his head resting on a locker, his eyes closed as he tuned out the ever optimistic voice of Ty Allin. Before approaching Fortune I pulled Till aside.

“What do you say we give Andres a few days off this week?” I suggested.

He looked at me blankly for a moment. “I can’t say that’s a bad idea,” he replied after taking a minute to think about it. “He’s not going to like it, but we need him back in form when the play-offs start. You want me to tell him now?”

“I need a ride home, I’ll tell him then. The media is going to be pushy about our worries, doubts, and fears going forward. Don’t let them know you have any. Make sure the players do the same.” I instructed. “I’m going to let Fortune know I need a ride. Once everyone is cleared out of here you go home and get some sleep as well. Let’s meet tomorrow afternoon to finalize travel plans for Coruscant”

“Afternoon?” He asked, perplexed.

“That’s right. If we want to win next week you need sleep too.” I gave him squeeze on the shoulder before approaching Fortune.

He opened his eyes as I approached. “Stop talking,” he told Ty quietly. Ty followed the order and turned to acknowledge my presence.

“Well fought game,” I said addressing them both. “Andres when your done here, I need a ride home. Take all the time you need, I’ll be in my office.”

“Yes, Mr. Vigo. I’ll be along as soon as possible,” he assured me.

Andres and I followed Till out of the parking lot. I couldn’t be sure the head coach would actually rest when he did get home, but at least I had forced him out of the stadium for the night. I took a moment to adjust my seat, Andres chuckled. “Justyne usually sits there,” he explained.

“How’s she treating you?” I asked.

“Good,” he said simply.

I knew my daughter was high maintenance and that he had taken on raising a little girl as well. His success on the field during the first half of the season with so many new commitments had been impressive. It wasn’t my place to bring that up though. “Do you like Ralltiir? Would you want to stay if you hadn’t married my daughter?” I asked.

“The climate is favorable and the fans are phenomenal,” he replied.

“But you have concerns,” I prodded.

“Well, yea, it’s just like they will say on HSN tomorrow, if they aren’t saying it already. The Starkillers are pretenders not contenders. All the regular season wins don’t mean much if we can’t win in the play-offs. I’ve been to a Galactic Cup game, during my rookie season with the Mercs. There’s nothing I won’t do to back there. Whatever coach says, that’s why I was at the stadium so much last week. I’m not sure I see that kind of commitment from the rest of my team. Luck is only going to get us so far, we proved that tonight. In order to win a championship we have to play like champions.”

“Let’s go back a bit, did Till ask you to stay late every night last week?” I inquired.

He shook his head. “Okay, so maybe even I don’t always listen to coach, but I want to win. In order to win you have to put in extra time.”

“I think maybe you overworked yourself a bit last week. So this week I’m going to ask you do the opposite.” I saw a perplexed look on his face as he continued to pilot the speeder in silence. While he was quiet I continued, “You mentioned that you aren’t satisfied with the efforts your teammates are putting in. Have you discussed this concern with your coach?” I asked.

He pulled into my driveway and powered down the speeder, “I know I should have, but I haven’t.”

“This is what I need you to do,” I said turning to face him. “Go home and get some rest. You can do anything you want for the next two days. Sleep, spend time with your family, watch holos; just don’t think about Limmie.”

“Two days? I won’t have enough time to prepare for the game against Coruscant.” He protested.

I shook my head dismissing his concerns. “Coruscant is a short trip. I’m meeting with Till tomorrow and I’m going to pass along what you said this evening. When you report to practice again expect the three of us to have a talk. I want my star player to know his needs are being met.”

Andres sat speechless for a moment. “Whatever you say Mr.Vigo,” he said eventually with a shrug of his shoulders.

“Enjoy your time off,” I said in parting as I climbed out of the speeder.

The next morning on the way to school the boys were anxious to hear what I had been up to at the stadium after the game. Much to their displeasure I kept team business to myself. I reminded them that I would be looking over their transcripts before we left for Coruscant and that they had better be good.

That afternoon I revealed to Trey for the first time that I was coming to Coruscant. I assured him I had made these plans weeks ago. It wasn’t because of one loss to one of the most formable opponents in the league. It was mostly a pleasure trip I assured him. Though, as always I’d be observing. Before he really had time to react I changed the subject to what Andres had shared with me the night before.

“Who’s not committed?” Trey demanded.

“I didn’t ask for names,” I explained calmly. “When he gets back to the facility the day after tomorrow I promised him that the three of us would sit down and talk. His performance is down. Maybe that’s his own fault or maybe he has legitimate concerns. I don’t want anything in the way of a play-off win.”

“I’m willing to listen to what he has to say,” Till agreed. “Anything else, or can I go study tape now.”

“Study away,” I said making my departure.

Fortune arrived at the stadium ready to practice. He entered the meeting room in his warm ups with a bag slung over his shoulder. Till and I sat eagerly waiting to hear from him. He never bothered to take a seat, “I don’t like talking about my teammates behind their backs.” He stated, “Is there any way I can just tell them in person?”

I smiled and Till nodded. “I think you can handle it from here coach,” I said as I stood up from my chair.

---

OOC: The freedom tower is beautiful!



OOC: Thanks to Jedi Gunny for a little dialogue towards the end

It was the last day of the grading period and there was a line of speeders out front of the school to pick up anxious students. I took my place in said line and shut off the engine while I waited for dismissal. The boys travel bags were in the trunk along with my own and we would be headed for the spaceport after a quick stop for a late lunch. We were leaving two days ahead of the team, 3 days before the game. We’d visit Richard, play tourist, do whatever it is that fathers’ and sons’ are supposed to do when they get time away together. In order to get away with my boys I’d had to promise Maddie she could make any arrangements she wanted for our visit to Corellia. I suspected she was booking a beach house right now if she hadn’t already.

A stream of children began to file out the doors. They boarded transports or found their speeders, the next group to be let out included Tomas. He spotted the speeder and ran full speed to the passenger door. He hopped in the back seat out of breath, “Can we have lunch at Nerf Burgers Express?” He asked.

“We’ll see if your brother agrees,” I said nonchalantly. I pulled out my data pad and updated my incoming messages. The boys’ transcripts had just arrived so I opened Tomas’.

“My grammar teacher is tough,” he warned.

I looked over the marks he received. He had done outstanding in Mathematics and Engineering but he could do better in Grammar, History and Foreign Studies. At least he wasn’t in any danger of failing. “If you need help in any subjects make sure you seek it out. These grades could be better and you know it.” I turned my head to make eye contact with him. “What do you say you and I make a deal? Raise one of these grades without letting any of the others fall and next season I’ll let you help out on the field again.”

“During games?” He asked.

“Yes,” I answered, “During games. I’ll even let you help out at training camp, if you study hard enough.”

Just then the passenger door opened again and Spencer climbed in. “Let’s go, I’m starved.” He said as he slammed the door behind him.

“Just a moment,” I said pulling up his transcript. He had received the highest grade possible in every course. “Your hard work has paid off nicely,” I complimented. “Where do you want to go to lunch?”

“The Greenhouse, need to watch my caloric intake a bit so I can get my swim times down.”

Tomas groaned. “When you get the grades your brother gets you can chose the lunch venue,” I said as I started the engines.

Lunch and our flight went smoothly. We checked into our hotel late and went to sleep shortly after we found our room. Spencer and I each took a bed while Tomas used a pull out sofa in the adjoining lounge. The next morning we drank caf and made use of the gym. Spencer and Tomas even went for a short jog in a nearby park all before breakfast. We met Richard for breakfast. He had moved out 3 years ago when Tomas was just 7 and Spencer only 11. They were 10 and 14 now. Richard now 23; had never really had a bond with his younger brothers. It was up to me to start a conversation. I told Richard how well Spencer was doing in school and how proud I was of Tomas for his success in Limmie. Then I prompted Richard to tell us about what he had learned at Republican University and how he was applying that knowledge with the Sandskimmers.

My attempts to get a conversation going were mostly futile though. Richard had always been distant from his siblings. He hung out with friends outside of the house more than any of my other children even before he left home. He was probably here now only because he knew he was obligated. He couldn’t shun me after I had given him the opportunities I had, but he hadn’t forgiven me for missing out on his childhood. As he got up to leave for class I pulled him aside. “Don’t shut your brothers out,” I pleaded. “It’s not their fault that I wasn’t a better father to you. We may need Tomas to play ball for us one day and Spencer has talents you have to see to believe. He built a droid that plays Limmie,” I said enthusiastically.

Richard waited just long enough for me to speak. “I’ll see you at the game,” he said indifferently. Luckily the time I spent with Tomas and Spencer was enjoyable enough for me to get my mind off the exchange. The boys spent a lot of time working out making sure they stayed in shape for their respective sports, but we spent even more time exploring museums, parks, historical landmarks and of course restaurants. By game time I was thoroughly exhausted.

We got to our seats early. Our seats were located front row center field. Hovechar would line up to play only a few feet in front of us when the game began. It was much different than being in our own private box. The boys were both wearing Allin jerseys and Starkiller ball caps, Richard arrived in an Odette Sandskimmers jersey with a Starkillers ball cap of his own. Even I was dressed down for the occasion in a pair of denim pants and a collared shirt with the Starkillers logo.

The dance team came out early and Justyne waived. Just before the team came out for warm-ups Tomas and I ran to find a fresher. As we were making our way through the concourse and back to our seats Tomas spotted a makeshift tent with a group of teens collecting funds. City Center Rehab Youth Program a banner read. He walked right over “What are you collecting credits for?” He asked.

“To help fund the youth programs at the City Center rehab clinic,” Ilena said. “It’s a safe place for adults, and for kids like us, to go for help for drug and alcohol addictions and to get treatment. We and about thirty other kids live at the clinic while we go through the treatment program. It’s tough to get sober, I admit, but the clinic provides the programs to try and get us back towards a normal life.”

“We’re trying to raise our goal of 20,000 credits today,” Jami said from the back of the tent. ‘Every credit helps!”

"Oh," Tomas commented with a shrug. He turned away as if to head back to our seats.

I pulled him aside and got down on my knee so I could be on his level. "Don't you think we should give them a donation?" I asked.

"Those kids took drugs, they shoulda known better. Why should we help?" He tried again to walk towards our seats. I put my hand firmly on his shoulder to stop him.

"Not everyone is as fortunate as us," I reminded him. "Some of their families may have struggled to put food on the table, or perhaps they saw disturbing things like a parent or sibling who died of an illness. When people suffer from a loss or any type of hardship they often turn to things they shouldn't to help them forget. Does that make sense?" I asked him.

"Okay then, let's help them out," he said eagerly. When I let go of his shoulder he turned back around and walked towards the table again. "Sorry I walked away," he said apologetically. "We, I mean my dad, he's willing to donate some credits." He turned to me and I pulled a stack of credits out of my pocket.

"I'm afraid I only have $500.00 credits on me," I explained. "But here's my card," I added handing the teen in front the piece of flimsy along with the stack of credits. "It has my contact information. I'll be happy to donate another $19,500.00" I said smiling gently. "I'll have a wire sent tomorrow morning."

This offer literally brought the house down. The youths' eyes bugged out, because they had been having a rough go of it thus far with the donations. To have one individual step up to cover their entire goal by himself . . . that was something special.

"I . . . I . . . thank you," Ilena said, completely shocked. She took the flimsy from the man and looked at it. Martin Vigo it said; that name sounded familiar. She had heard it before . . . Ava had mentioned him, or maybe it was just the HSN. She looked at the child's jersey who was with Vigo. Starkillers. This was the Martin Vigo. "We can't thank you enough, sir. It means a lot to us."

"Yeah," Robson, one of the boys, said. "That's going to go a long way towards keeping the programs alive."

"Enjoy the game!" Jami said excitedly. "And thank you!"

"I know we may have a conflict of interest in teams out there, but good luck to yours today," Ilena said with a nod. She was going to respect Vigo's decision to covertly provide a donation. A man in his position would want to get around without being noticed, so she wouldn't slow him down.

I had a feeling the girl recognized my name and was now in a hurry to get back to our seats myself. “I wish your Senators the best of luck out there today. May the best team win,” I said in parting as I steered Tomas back towards our gate.

“I hope you guys didn’t want Nachos,” Tomas told his brothers when we got back. “Because dad just gave all his credits to some kids collecting donations for a drug and alcohol rehabilitation center.”

“I thought you agreed it was a good idea to help them out,” I reminded him.

“I thought you were gonna give them $10.00,” he said.

“How much did you give Dad?” Richard asked suddenly interested.

“They said their goal was $20,000.00 for the day, so I gave it to them,” I replied with a shrug. “The stadium is half empty and I figured they would have trouble reaching that goal. Hopefully knowing someone cares will help with their treatment.”

I could see Richard making a mental note. It didn’t mean he would ever get past that I hadn’t been the best father to him, but he knew a good example when he saw it and he’d do the same when he got an opportunity. It made me proud.

Out on the field the players were warming up now. I couldn’t help but notice that Justyne and Andres were making eyes at each other. If he couldn’t focus and put some points on the board today I would have to intervene. I hoped it wouldn’t come to that.

Tag Trieste

 

IC: Lejique Beiron
A few days before game against Mando'ade

A knock at her hotel door interrupted a holo conversation with Arren, still back on Ylesia. She was unsurprised to find Zoa Vra at the door; after almost interrogating the woman the previous week, she had expected a follow-up conversation at some point, and now was as good as any, an evening off for the team in preparation for the fourth straight away game and last of the season. She motioned the forward in, and let the door slide closed.

"I didn't want to get involved," Zoa began without preamble, "but I have to know if you found something. You asked around, has nothing turned up?"

"Some." It was difficult to explain how hard this all had been, and she definitely had learned to respect what the police had to do all the time; well, real police, like CorSec back home.

She stepped into holo range so Arren could stay in the conversation. "We found some… stuff. Nothing solid but it might be enough, if we get the promised help."

"Agamar detectives, right before the Packers get here, who'd have thought?" Arren said brightly. "Anyway, they should arrive not long after you guys get back from your road trip. I'm sure they can solve this in a Coruscant second, so we should all be done in time for our rousing defeat of their home team."

Zoa crossed her arms. "You're putting a lot on these detectives. Peace City cops haven't found much, have they?"

"There's more to it," Lejique explained. "We've found some evidence and had some good luck so far, but I think someone's purposefully trying to sabotage the investigation."

"Which is insane," Arren said. "Sorry Lejie, but it's true. Why would they do that while they're in the middle of a reform, finding Kasin would be huge for getting some goodwill. And there's no evidence of it."

"Maybe." She sighed. "Honestly, we've only got one lead and it's not turning much up so far. But the ASF detectives should be able to look at what we've found from a different perspective. Maybe they'll be able to see something we can't because, really, the biggest wall right now is figuring out why. Who would want to hurt Kasin?"

Zoa shook her head. "I have no idea. Everyone likes her, she's basically the Lightning's poster girl. Maybe it's an attempt to hurt the team, we've been awful since she was gone."

"We've thought of that, but the team doesn't have a lot of serious rivals, it's sporting." She thought about it some more. "Right now our best idea is she was grabbed for her money. And the best news is that so far she hasn't turned up dead. That’s why we're still trying."

The Zabrak looked tired quite suddenly, and shook her head again to clear it. "Look, I have to keep doing what I'm doing for the team's sake, but if you need anything, at any time, I'm here. Just find Kasin, all right?"

Lejique nodded. "I'll try. And I'll let you know if we find anything solid." It was clear that Zoa didn't want to hear theories, and she respected how hard it must be to hear all this about a close friend; Lejique's professional relationship with the missing woman was for the best, it gave her some distance.

Zoa left, leaving Lejique and holo-Arren. "Any new ideas?" she asked, sitting down at the desk.

Arren sighed. "Not since five minutes ago."

--------

After returning to Ylesia

After four weeks away, Lejique had never been so happy to see the less-than-shining streets of Peace City, though there had been some changes since they had left.

Not too far from the current stadium, a large area of what had mostly been abandoned buildings and industrial was now a very large hole in the ground. Otta was apparently delightfully telling any news agency who'd listen about how the investors had started pouring in after poor Kasin's disappearance, and they were getting moving with the new stadium very quickly. The Hutt wouldn't confirm the actual size of the place (though most guesses fit the 200,000 to 250,000 range), but it would definitely be a step up from the 60,000 seat stadium that wasn't really fit to host playoff games; she suspected they'd petition to host one of the next couple finals after the stadium was finished. And then there was the naming issue; with so many investors, how did they decide the name? The Peace City Gardens would remain standing as a practice facility and for the university to use, along with rentals and other possible uses. The Hutt certainly had been busy.

And it opened another avenue of thought for their mystery: maybe Otta had arranged it to bring in investors, money, or just attention. There was no question that the team was concerned about low interest, especially after the two sudden demotions at the start of the season. Coruscant would be pegged to be first to go, but at the same time they were in a huge market; Ylesia's entirely population wasn't even a blip next to Coruscant's. Next up, at least as to their records so far, was a three way race between Agamar, Ylesia, and Kashyyyk; at least everyone on Ylesia would be smug if the Wookiees were demoted. Serves them right for thinking they could jump from LFL to ELL, and it wasn't like they could go back to being Ylesia's dev team, they were more than set with Eriadu now.

After a day of running around interviewing everyone and their ronto about the new stadium, Lejique finally had a chance to unpack from the trip, and check her messages.

The top one was from a Meh'tavesh, which she nearly deleted as spam until she remembered that was one of the ASF officers. They'd be there the following day. Next was a report from the Ylesian Police, Peace City detachment about an inquiry about a Weequay. His name was Terk, usually worked with a Rodian partner named Eepho Keld. Charges of multiple assaults, theft, arson, all pending as the pair had escaped the last time they'd been arrested. And these were most likely who had taken Kasin, she just had no idea what to do with the information. How did one find two people when they had the entire planet and possibly the galaxy to search? Still, she forwarded the information to the ASF pair; they might see more than she could.

Last was to check her holocams again, see if nothing had happened again. It might have been a waste of time but she was determined to see it through, at least until the Agamarian cops got here and tried to turn her in for breaking and entering. Did they have any power on Ylesia? She had no clue.

Though playing it at high speed, sound charts projected beside it, she still noticed a spike in volume and some movement. Rewinding it, she watched, in surprise, as a Devaronian poked around Kasin's apartment. How had he gotten in? Through the window like she had? Or maybe that's what he was investigating, and a knot of worry wormed its way into her chest. Please don't find anything, she hoped at a four day old recording.

Something flashed in the recording, and she recognised the Ylesian Police badge on the Devaronian's hip. Maybe he would find the- yes! He had pushed the chair away and was crouched where she'd found the blood. Finally the police were getting it.

Except that he wasn't. After another look around, the Devaronian pulled something out and worked at it for a few minutes. When he stepped away, all evidence of the blood was gone, though the bit she'd cut away was still obvious. After pulling the chair back over the spot, he checked everything again and left.

Lejique stopped the recording. That was suspicious, right? Maybe he'd collected the blood instead or something, but it still didn't seem right for a cop to be doing that.

She made a note on some flimsy to check after him, and sped through the rest of the recording. Nothing else had happened while she was gone, so she finished unpacking and called Arren; this was a lot of new information and they needed to make a new plan.

--------

Game day vs Agamar

The two ASF detectives were not exactly what Lejique had expected; experienced, professional, everything that the corrupt and incompetent Ylesian Police were not. They'd taken copies of everything Lejique had found out so far, with some careful editing of how they knew; stealing evidence didn't sound as bad as breaking in. Considering they hadn't sent anything in return, she expected that they had either found nothing or wanted to keep her out of it. It didn't matter, she had gotten in too far to give up now, and once things were done for the day she was going to follow something else, something she should have done weeks ago: contact Kasin's family. The ASF detectives had brought that one up when she was laying out what she knew, and though she suspected they'd contact the family themselves, she was going to as well. One way or another, she was getting more information.

And hopefully beating Agamar wouldn't put those two ASF guys in a bad mood. Ylesia's offense had been far better since calling up so many forwards from Eriadu, which lead to rumours that the original starters were going to get traded, probably at the draft. In the meantime, time to see if they could squash Agamar's defense.

TAG: Tim Battershell

 

GM Post

HSN Morning Headlines

• Closing arguments in Ternardiel trial were made today
• Prosecution: “The defendant admits she did it. She knew it was wrong. She stole from another being, just like you, who was trying to make an honest living. If you accept this, then you’re giving license to everyone with a sob story to smash windows and take whatever they want.”
• Defense: “Eponette Ternardiel, Jean Valerie, whatever her name is, she is a being who has spent her life making up for a moment of desperation. Are we going to punish her for the fact that she is just one of the millions of beings on the Vertical City crushed by a system that still hasn’t changed?”
• Jury now in deliberations to reach verdict

---

What We Learned: Week 6

There was a big fight in the office between us and the interns about including the Stewjon Metropolitans in this week’s WWL. The interns said this column is only for the Elite League. We said it’s for the best limmie teams in the galaxy. We won’t go into the details, but some hurtful things were said, some potted plants were thrown, and we can neither confirm nor deny that we are currently writing this column under the supervision of a counselor.

Agamar Packers – On the list of things of thing that Agamar did not need, a 21 point loss was probably somewhere at the top of the list, probably right below a four week course for Tim Dodd titled How to Be Classy (because he already is, of course).

Bakura Miners – The Evil Empire is alive and well and after a shutdown of the best offense in the League. Help us Vesper-Wan Lyndobi, you’re our only hope!

Coruscant Senators – We’re trying not to risk our caf by saying this, but we think it’s a good thing: the Senators have effectively depressed the free agent market this offseason. Their all-star team approach has shown that teams are better through steady drafting...which oddly enough is something we thought the Senators did super well.

Euceron Storm – We declared the Storm part of the Big Four at the start of the season and they repay us by attempting to repeat their pre-Big Four end-of-season slide? Not cool Euceron. Not cool.

Hapes Consortium Buccaneers – To justify to our editors why we all put in for three hours overtime last night, we spent all that time arguing whether Inviere or Chambers-Vayne is currently winning the gloating contest for jumping ship. Inviere avoided a total implosion, so you’d think she’d win, but Meredith might have done more to get where the C-Bucs are right now. If our editors would approve additional overtime, we could probably settle the argument. However, we’d have to use our expense account to order dinner too.

Kashyyyk Rangers – The only thing we can think of is that this is a vastly different League than when the Rangers left it. If we had to pick one thing, it’s probably the draft.

Mando’ade Mercs – We get it, okay? Mandalorians like to do things bigger and better than everyone else. However, given how well they’re playing to smaller crowds the Mercs might want to lop something like 3.4 million seats off of Mesh’la Vhetin

Nar Shaddaa Smugglers – Now that Kaitlyn Vehn is officially running for Mayor, her focus on the Smugglers organization is going to get diverted to campaigning. With the playoffs looming, this may not be the best time to try something new at Six Boroughs.

Ralltiir Starkillers – If you think the Starkillers are any less good today than they were this time last week, then you’ve got another thing coming.

Rydonni Prime Monarchs – If the Badger is smart, he told his team before Kashyyyk: “Just win one game--this game,” instead of looking at three must-wins. Now, with Hapes, the biggest must-win of the bunch, he better be saying, “No seriously everybody--just win one game--this game.”

Ryloth Rough Riders – What is this team doing in the playoff hunt?!?! No, seriously, we haven’t seen any of their games recently so we don’t know why they’re still in the playoff hunt. Can someone help us out on this one?

Ylesia Lightning – Clearly the shrine to Korlo is bad luck, but none of the females in the office will let us take it down. This might be a problem.

TAG: Bardan_Jusik CPL_Macja jcgoble3 Jedi Gunny JM_1977 Rebecca_Daniels Runjedirun Tim Battershell Vehn

 

Morning Headlines, College Edition

• Republican U Rolling. Scholars have won 6 straight to set themselves up for the top seed in the Crendan Division.
• Fight for fourth place in the Kayl'hen heats up with big matchups between the University of Kuat and the Coruscant Air Fleet Academy, and Chandrila A&M pins their faint hopes of making the postseason with a big road game against the Citadel University of Anaxes, who can capture the second seed with a win and a loss by the University of Coruscant.
• Rumblings of more offseason conference-shifting continue to swirl, mostly looking at attempts by the Big 20 and RAAC-14 to expand.
• President of the Chiss Athletic Association quoted as saying "We are glad to be away from these attempts at shifting the college sports atmosphere, because they aim to ruin competitive balance in the major sports".
• Taanab A&M goes into a crucial game against the Keldabe Military Institute for the top seed in the SEC

TAG: No One in particular

 

Daily College Updates:

• Kerry Trieste reiterates Bak10 is not considering expansion or realignment
• Trieste: “We stand with the CAA. Acting rashly today for the sake of expansion could very easily have ramifications in a few years.”
• Presidents of the Big 20 and RAAC-14 could not be reached for comment.

TAG: Trieste

 

GM Post

Bonus rolls to Bakura, Coruscant, Mando'ade, Nar Shaddaa, Ralltiir, and Ylesia. Will many things be decided this week? Probably. But will they be things that matter, like playoff seeding and qualification? Let's find out!

Week 8 Results

Agamar Packers at Ylesia Lightning (6-3)
Euceron Storm at Nar Shaddaa Smugglers (3-33)
Mando’ade Mercs at Ryloth Rough Riders (33-25)
Ralltiir Starkillers at Coruscant Senators (25-4)
Hapes Consortium Buccaneers at Rydonni Prime Monarchs (9-3)
Bakura Miners at Kashyyyk Rangers (16-5)

HSN Projections

• Nar Shaddaa secures Commissioner's Trophy with a win against Ylesia next week
• Bakura secures Commissioner's Trophy with Nar Shaddaa loss to Ylesia and either a win against Hapes or Ralltiir loss against Kashyyyk
• Nar Shaddaa secures top seed in Skywalker Conference
• Mando'ade Mercs secure second seed in Skywalker Conference and home playoff game in Semifinal
• Euceron secures third seed in Skywalker Conference with win against Mando'ade
• Winner of Agamar/Ryloth game secures third seed with loss by Euceron against Mando'ade
• Ylesia Lightning eliminated from playoffs
• Bakura secures first seed in Solo Conference with win against Hapes; is guaranteed to play a Galactic Cup Playoff game at home
• Ralltiir secures first seed in Solo Conference with Bakura loss to Hapes and win against Kashyyyk; is guaranteed to play a Galactic Cup playoff game at home
• Hapes secures third seed in Solo Conference; will travel to Ralltiir or Bakura for Semifinal
• Rydonni Prime, Kashyyyk, and Coruscant eliminated from playoffs
• Coruscant will have highest draft pick of 277 Elite League teams in 278 if Coruscant returns next season

---

Rossum Account Updates

• Client 24601: no bets, account balance remains at 1,000,000
• Client 214782: -40,000 credits, new account balance 325,000

---

As we approach the end of the season, it is time for All-Star Game and award nomination. Therefore, by the end of the day on June 29 please send me your list of nominations for the All-Star Game for your team only. These nominations will be used to create a massive ballot for voting after the conclusion of the regular season:

Head Coach: (I have this for most of you, but I know at least one of you had a head coaching change so I'm just curious who that person puts down)
Goalkeeper:
Defender:
Defender:
Defender:
Midfielder:
Forward:
Forward:
Forward:

Also by the end of the day on June 29, you may send me up to three nominations for each of the following awards. These players can be for any team, not just yours and will be used by me for creating a ballot for voting to take place after the conclusion of the regular season. Since this is due by the end of the day on June 29, please feel free to hold on nominations to consider Week 9 results in your nominations.

Salbukk Award (player deemed most valuable to his or her team):
Ingbrand Award (rookie of the year):
Langann Award (head coach of the year):
Grames Award (general manage of the year):
Duchess Eldin Award (for sportsmanship and athletic excellence):
Zumtak Award (for perseverance and dedication to the sport of limmie):
Comeback player of the year:

TAG: Bardan_Jusik CPL_Macja jcgoble3 Jedi Gunny JM_1977 Rebecca_Daniels Runjedirun Tim Battershell Vehn

 

Sub-GM Post

Bonus rolls this week to (points in parentheses): Concordia (30), Eriadu (30), Tatooine (30), Druckenwell (28), Thyferra (30).

Limmie Futures League
Week 7
Byblos Red Wings at Concordia Crusaders (7–7, OT 7–7, shootout 5–2)
Eriadu Thunder at Tatooine Sandskimmers (10–10, OT 10–10, shootout 2–3)
Commenor Gundarks at Garqi Gunners (13–24)
Druckenwell Marksmen at Thyferra Force (15–3)

TAG: Jedi Gunny Bardan_Jusik Vehn Runjedirun Tim Battershell Rebecca_Daniels CPL_Macja

 

IC: Lilly Vehn
Six Boroughs, Nar Shaddaa
Storm 3, Smugglers 33

The wins at Six Boroughs, the wins by the Nar Shaddaa Smugglers, the wins by a team that seemed to rarely miss a beat despite losing Hall of Fame coaches Tover Micjaa and Meredith Chambers-Vayne continued to accumulate, continued to resonate, continued to put the galaxy on notice. There were whispers of a Galactic Final repeat. Nobody was saying anything loudly at this point in the season but the win against the Storm today had solidified the Smugglers playoff berth and a win next week against Ylesia would give them the Commissioner’s Trophy for what would be the second straight year. Then the playoffs would come and all bets were off.

Lilly loved the electric feeling that the fans got when the Smugglers were winning. The atmosphere was unlike anything she’d ever experienced and everyone was hoping to do something that few teams before them had done and that was repeat. A lot of cards had to fall their way but so far everything on that front was coming along very well. To keep that culture of winning coming to Nar Shaddaa required the scouts, in particular Lilly Vehn, to land the next Mylessa McCloud or Erin Windreaver. Both of them had helped guide the Smugglers to the promised land last year and all eyes were watching them put in a phenomenal season this year enroute to surely more awards and accolades.

Her list was mostly complete. She’d be sending a final report to Kaitlyn on next year’s draft prospects. Everyone wanted the Smugglers to come to the draft prepared and ready to land another killer set of rookies. Last year’s draft class was warming up the bench. With the starters that the Smuggler had it was hard to put them into the rotation as the veterans were just that good. One day they would get their chance but for now they would learn from the best. There were just a few more stops on their never-ending tour of the galaxy’s top young talent and her current destination was locked in as a certain valley on Bakura. There was a young woman from a proud family that Lilly needed to see. Yes, the Smugglers would come a courting. Get ready.

---

IC: Meredith Chambers-Vayne

Rydonni Prime

“Montes! Seal the deal, seal the deal!” Meredith shouted into her headset as the game wound down in what had turned out to be an incredibly tight defensive struggle.

Camille leaped and deflected a last second shot against her by Vesper Lynd as time expired. Miraculously, against the best defense in the league, against the team that nearly took the Smugglers to town last year in the Galactic Cup Final, the Hapes Consortium Buccaneers, led by Wai Linn, anchored by a developing goalie in Camille Montes, and supported on the shoulders of Limmie giants such as Adanna Inviere and Meredith Chambers-Vayne, had won and secured the third seed in the playoffs. The Monarchs wouldn’t be returning to the post-season this year.

“I frakking love you!” Meredith crowed as she pulled a tired Montes to her in a vicious bear hug.

“I love you too, Coach!” Montes grunted and then back-pedaled away from Meredith.

“Where you going, lady?” Meredith asked and then felt the cold, icy, heart stopping chill of Gundarkade being dumped down her back, drenching her headset, her clothes, and she didn’t mind one bit, she didn’t mind one damn bit.
Meredith spun and flicked her hair around, Gundarkade flying, hitting her players who were whooping and hollering, everyone having a good time, relaxed, feeling as if the monkey that had plagued the Hapes C-Bucs for the last twenty years was slowly starting to release its tyrannical grasp. And why shouldn’t they celebrate, Meredith thought, they were playoff bound, they were getting hot at just the right moment.

“We’re going to the playoffs!” Wai Lin roared as she pumped her fist in the air.

Somehow, someway, this victory felt even more sweet than last week’s scoring fiesta against the once proud Senators franchise. Meredith had wanted to blow off Adanna for romping up the score. After all, when you had your victim on the ground, why let up on delivering the killing blow? She’d only called off her dogs because Inviere could tell that Meredith was enjoying every score, every act of humiliation that the four time Galactic Cup champion could inflict on old enemies. With a few minutes left in regulation, Meredith had finally acquiesced and pulled the starters. Fine, Adannna, Meredith had thought at the time, have it your way.

Today they were playoff bound. They had defeated the Rydonni Prime Monarchs in a hard fought, tooth and nail struggle. Somehow this team had figured out how to play defense. Somehow they’d figured out along the way how to protect the bolo and play smart offensively. Still, Meredith realized as she shook off the remnants of Gundarkade, this squad had a long way to go to play with the big boys.

They’d decimated a weak Senators squad. That was a fluke, a rarity, something not to be that proud about. Everyone who followed the sport knew the Senators would be loud and strong next year. Nobody could play that poorly and stay in the Elite League basement forever. Course, between last year and this year, well, maybe the Senators needed some time in the PLL to give them some extra motivation at this level. They’d nearly taken the Smugglers to the finish line and then proceeded to secure solid wins against teams that were now on the outside looking in. Next week, this coming week, the C-Bucs would face their stiffest challenge yet. They would face the Bakura Miners who most likely would pull their starters as to avoid injury during the more crucial playoff games.

So now, in this very moment, as Meredith celebrated with her team because not doing so just wasn’t fair to these great ladies and all they had accomplished, a lingering sense of dread crept into her mind. The Miners were playing at home. She’d coach up her squad the best she could, she would prepare them to do battle with their deep reserves, and then she would privately mask her strategies so that Valerii wouldn’t be able to key in on too much if they ended up facing one another in the playoffs once more. The road to the Final was always tough. This year, in this moment, Meredith had never faced a tougher assignment. Turn a squad of hard working ladies into a squad of mean fighting machines that could go the distance with the greatest franchises of the ELL. Now was the time when she had to keep her ladies focused. Now was the time when she had to install the mindset of a contender. Bakura had to be absolutely licking their lips at the final game of the regular season. The C-Bucs, a team that had never accomplished much of anything, certainly nothing relevant in the last 25 years, had to go the distance, had to push themselves harder than ever before, just to reach the promised land.

And who would be waiting for them?

The Smugglers?

Another team?

Nobody knew.

Not even Meredith Chambers-Vayne.

Tag: Jedi Gunny,Trieste,CPL_Macja

 

IC: Christine Gamble
The Unmitigated Disaster Zone, a.k.a. Senator Stadium

Nothing here was out of the ordinary, Christine thought as she finally decided to give up and leave the game. The Senators were once again floundering on offense, and the defense was being shredded. Obviously having new starters every week was hurting any chemistry the team may have had, but conventional wisdom said that at some point someone had to get hot, had to find a spark and lead. But that was not to be found, and in Christine’s opinion, would never occur. They were beyond done; this was too embarrassing.

She sat on the bench with two minutes left in the first half, of which the Starkillers were already ahead by the score of 21-0. The Senators had exactly two shots on goal all half, both of which were easily intercepted by Ralltiir’s Wookiee goaltender. None of the starters had done anything worth remembering, and it seemed like every twenty seconds the Starkillers were on the break going the other way with the ball. Christine had done what she could, but Jul had completely dominated her. Now the veteran was someone else’s problem; Christine Gamble had had enough.

The Starkiller contingent of fans, which was basically the entire stadium now that all Senator fans had headed for the exits, roared as yet another bar point went over the hands of wearied goalie Jam Tarpals. The Gungan was getting drilled today by a disciplined Starkillers attack, never being able to rest because of the lackadaisical defensive effort of the Senator defenders. It wasn’t the kind of game you wanted as your first big league start, and Tarpals was rattled when the half ended soon after.

The locker room was like a morgue, but that was nothing new from prior weeks. There was no spark, no life, no anything in this environment other than the stench of defeat. It was almost worse than death, the feeling of complete embarrassment and humiliation that made you feel like less than a man or woman. You felt completely subdued, like nothing mattered anymore. They had one and a half games left in the season, but it was obvious that no one wanted to play those out. This team was done, ready to pack its meager belongings and be punted into next week. Was there room in the Inner Rim Limmie League, some would wonder, because that small league with such ‘powerhouses’ as Wroona, Telerath and Brentaal would love to have Coruscant in their league. That was a downright hideous proposition, but there was no hope of sticking around in the Elite League. Christine knew this. She didn’t like it, but the writing was on the wall.

The second half played out much like the first had. The Starkillers had eased up on the throttle by putting in their reserves, but to the Senators it was still an uphill climb. The LFL rookies, fresh off a decent season with Thyferra, were now being fed into the juggernaut that was any team who played the Senators. A team could barely score any points the prior week and put up thirty on Coruscant. Hell, Ralltiir wasn’t doing that well; they easily could have scored forty in the first half. Finally, with about fifteen minutes left, Sorcha Styles, Ava’s backup, punched a ball over the bar to break the scoreless streak. She quickly followed that up with another bar point. At least they had gotten on the board.

But these scores were meaningless in a 25-4 drubbing, yet another complete disaster. The Starkillers had done everything they needed to, curb-stomping a helpless opponent to stay neck-and-neck with Bakura at the top of the Solo. How could one team so thoroughly dominate another at this level for three straight games, anyhow? Then again, the Senators weren’t an Elite League-caliber team anymore. They were beyond terrible. During the game, Anya Amasova, the team’s leading scorer, if that term could even really be used, had been injured on a hard tackle and had to leave the game, diagnosis that she had sprained something. Rookie Arienne Farfell, in her ELL debut, had been put through the meat grinder against Alyda Hovechar. The All-Star had dominated the rookie the entire game to the point where there hadn’t been any resistance.

Christine didn’t even bother to talk to anyone after the game, just walking back to the locker room. As she went, she could tell that a Senators fan, obviously smashed beyond the point of sobriety, giving her a very lewd gesture from the stands. She ignored the instigator and went back to the locker room, where she wanted to punch a locker and do some damage. But she had heard stories of players breaking their hands by doing such a thing, so she decided not to. She would rather have her hand fully functional than a fractured one and a dented locker stall.

When she got home, she just flopped down on her sofa and stewed on the loss. She didn’t want to take it out on her teammates, but something had to be done. This could not continue. Because there was no way in hell she could stand losing anymore; losing 12 straight contests in which you participated would do that for a player.

---

IC: Ava Killenger

Ava left the locker room and went to the location where the youths from City Central were waiting for her. She was so put-out she couldn’t stand it, but seeing the kids again at least gave her a glimmer of hope. Had they raised enough to meet the goal?

“Rough game,” Ilena said.

“I’ve come to expect that now,” Ava said glumly. “Did you meet the goal?”

“Hell yeah,” Robson replied. “We made a good 30,000 today.”

“Nice,” Ava said with a nod of her head.

“Well, it helped that one donor offered us our entire goal in one swoop,” Ilena said.

“Must have been generous,” Ava said.

“One Martin Vigo, I believe,” Ilena said.

Hm, Ava thought, that was curious. Why would Vigo offer to help youths in rehab? She was surprised he didn’t feel so far above the kind of “rabble” that these kids were stereotyped as that he would completely ignore them. Considering how his team had then gone and destroyed the home team today, obviously he had been in a generous mood. Ava didn’t feel the generosity after having Dev Poletin, who had been a CorTech teammate for her freshman year, smash her into the ground time and again, but at least the kids had something to hang their hats on. Good for them.

“You going to be all right?” Ilena asked as Ava was silent.

“It’s going to sting for a while,” the rookie admitted. “Let’s go grab some ice cream. Tab on me.”

“Hooray!” Jami, the youngest rehab kid, exclaimed. Despite the overall stench of defeat that hung of Ava’s head, at least getting away from this depressing stadium for a little while offered some sense of solace. The youths had raised their goal and then some, so they were happy. At least it wasn’t total defeat today.


TAG: Runjedirun

 

Daily Dose of College Updates:

• Republican University rolls past National University 25-8 to wrap up the top seed in the Crendan Division.
• University of Kuat slips past the Coruscant Air Fleet Academy 23-21 to take the third spot in the Kayl'hen.
• Chandrila A&M's hopes for making the postseason went up following a convincing win over the Citadel University of Anaxes 34-12, but were slammed shut with the University of Kuat win. The Rovers go home empty-handed, while the Defenders manage to stay hold of second place thanks to the loss by third-seeded University of Coruscant, who clings on to the fourth spot.
• Keldabe Military Institute blows out Tanaab A&M 40-12 in SEC title game.
• Prominent SEC Insider: "The Warriors are going to be a force to be reckoned with in this year's Galactic Tournament. They are just too big, too fast, and too good for most teams."
• University of Zeltros, Paradise, wins first conference championship in school history with nail-biter win over Yag'dhul A&M in the conference finals and then a nice win over the University of Bison 13-10 in the League Championship game.
• Paradise's Coach to the fans: "Welcome to Paradise, home of beach babes, long sunny days, and winning College Limmie!"
• University of Myrkyr wins a hard-fought game over the Royal College of Hapes in the Rim 10 Conference Finals to advance to the Galactic Tournament. Hapes waits for a chance at a wild card berth.

TAG: No One in particular

 

Power Rankings: Now with More Unlimited POWAH!​

1. Nar Shaddaa Smugglers – We are beyond impressed with this team. +113 point differential in eight games? We don’t know what to say. That’s phenomenal. Also, this is a response to those whiners in our department who kept complaining that the Smugglers weren’t getting enough love from us. Just focus on your jobs and let us do ours now that they’re on top, OK? 2

2. Bakura Miners – Did what they had to in order to stay on top of the Solo by beating Kashyyyk. This team is very dangerous, having beaten the other two 7-1 teams in convincing fashion, so they are the team to beat. But they slipped a spot because of those office whiners . . .
Editor Edit: We’re just going to blame this on Kashyyyk being a terrible team. 1

3. Ralltiir Starkillers – Whipped the Senators. Been there, done that, says the rest of the league. Prove us something that we haven’t already figured out. But is still a good team. N/C

4. Mando’ade Mercs – Stayed strong and actually won a road game! Yes it was Ryloth, but the Mercs won a road game! That’s cause for celebration right there. N/C

5. Hapes Consortium Buccaneers – Iced the Monarchs in a low-scoring game to lock up the third playoff berth in the Solo. These ladies have ice in their veins, just like their coach. Camille Montes looks like a dark horse contender for an Award. 2

6. Rydonni Prime Monarchs – They won’t make the postseason, but they did make a good impression on us this year. They have a defense that is rock-solid if they want to be. Draft a few forwards, and they should improve their offense dramatically. N/C

7. Euceron Storm – That’s not how you want to go into Six Boroughs and play against the defending champs. Now they are backed into a corner that they have to win in order to be in. If they lose, we may finally see the return of the last-minute Storm collapse, once patented by this organization last decade. 2

8. Ryloth Rough Riders – Played the Mercs tough before failing. They have talent, but just not enough defense. Actually, that’s an understatement; they don’t have defense period. N/C

9. Agamar Packers – Won a low-scoring affair to win a game. Never thought we would see the day that the Packers would hold any team to three points in a game. Now they need some help to break into the playoffs for the first time since their promotion four years ago. 2

10. Ylesia Lightning – Did what they could, and Korlo Penin can be a star in this league if he continues to improve this offseason. When the Lightning realize they don’t need Kasin Urdaaza in order to be good, look out! 1

11. Denon Demons – We want Denon! We want Denon! Say it with me! We want Denon!
Editor’s Note: Says the U of Denon graduate.
Writer Note to the Editor’s Note: Damn proud of it!

12. Stewjon Metropolitans – We want Mr. Met as well as Denon! It’s like a side dish, having a Denon steak and a side of comedy from the best in the business on Stewjon. Please, Commissioner, we want both these teams! N/C

TAGS to CPL_Macja, Trieste, Vehn, Bardan_Jusik, Runjedirun, jcgoble3, Tim Battershell, Rebecca_Daniels

 

GM Post

HSN Morning Headlines

• Jury still deliberating in Ternardiel trial
• HSN analyst: "The only thing we know is that this clearly wasn't a cut-and-dried case for the jury"
• Lokensgaard announces that he will personally present the Commissioner's Trophy as part of his planned visit to Ylesia for the Smugglers-Lightning game if Nar Shaddaa wins
• Lokensgaard: "It's my trophy, isn't it? Why shouldn't I present it since I'll be there?"
• If Miners or Starkillers win Trophy, Lokensgaard will present the trophy on before the Solo Conference Final

TAG: Rebecca_Daniels Vehn

 

IC: Charles "Chuck" Bonaven
Head coach's office, Mehsla Vhetin, Keldabe, Mandalore

Silence. Awkward silence. It was a strange thing to be sitting in the coach's office with Ms. Felps and Coach Braun. They were all doing their best to pretend that no one knew what the other's plans were, though of course everyone did know. Or at least suspected. It made for a rather abrupt meeting, one that Chuck was surprised to see Ms. Felps attend, especially down in the musty old coach's domain, instead of her lavishly appointed office upstairs. Maybe it was a sign that she no longer held all the cards. Or maybe it was just her trying to lull them all into a false sense of security. It was hard to tell what went on in the former dancer's twi'lek brain sometimes.

The silence was made all the more strange because the Mercs had won, and won big on Ryloth only a day ago. Oh, the final score hand;t been a blowout, though it was by no means a "close" game either. But the comfortable 33-25 win had been their first road win of the season, and with just one game to go (also on the road) that accomplishment should have been something celebrate, or at the very least come as a relief to team management.

But the win had been so much more than that. It had vaulted the Mercs into the playoffs, a place they hadn't been in for the past few seasons. The win had caused celebrations to erupt all over Mandalore at the news and the Mandalorian Falcon was met at the spaceport by throngs of fans chanting "oya, oya, oya" upon the team's return to Fenn Shysa Spaceport. For the players and team staff it had been a glorious moment. For Felps it had to have been the utmost failure, though probably only a temporary one.

"So...." Chuck began, trying to break the ice. "Given that we have our playoff seeding locked up..." he saw Felp's eyes flash at that. Not only had the team managed to secure a playoff berth, but they had secured the second seed and would host a playoff game. "... what are your plans for Euceron?"

Coach Braun was looking at Felp's mirthfully, he was loving rubbing her face in this. He was walking on thin ice there and Chuck seriously hoped that he wouldn't be forced to fire him after this season. "Now's not the time to let off the throttle." He winked to Chuck. "Sends the wrong message. We'll play like we have been, like it's any other game."

Chuck was surprised, but not shocked. Conventional thinking was to rest up starters after a playoff berth had been secured, especially if the seeding had already been determined and the team really wasn't playing for anything. It helped to avoid injury to a team right before the all important playoffs were to start. Then again, Coach Lu Braun had never seemed entirely conventional. The rest of the meeting was boring and still punctuated by awkward silences, but it mercifully did finally come to an end. Chuck and Ms. Felps left the Braun in his office and headed down the hall to catch the lift back upstairs. Chuck couldn't help but notice that the twi'lek woman was smiling now. He waited for them to enter the lift and the doors to close. "I thought you would be upset." he said quizzically.

"Upset?" she responded with that sickly sweet demeanor of hers "Why not at all. This is the Mercs, they'll blow it in the playoffs." She grinned a toothy grin. "Now, when we get back to my office let's look at our expiring contracts and figure out what we want to do for next season."

TAG: No One.

 

Big Board, Week Eight​

Quinlyn Zha'rel, (Female, Half-Nagai, Defensive Back, Sposia Medical University)
Game Line: 1 tackle, @TBA, W 17-11
Analysis: Finally cooled off after a scorching start to the Big Board, but the team still won, so that’s what matters in the end.

Noj Elbog (Male, Human, Corner Forward, National University)
Game Line: 3 turnovers, L @RU, 25-8
Analysis: Ugly game from Elbog, but his entire team didn’t do any better. This could hurt his stock, though, especially since National has been eliminated from postseason contention with the loss.

Welnlseh (Male, Selkath, Corner Back, Manaan Technical Institute)
Game Line: 12 tackles, 3 forced fumbles, 5 loose ball recoveries, 2 interceptions, W vs. TBA, 35-15
Analysis: Monster game from this prospect. Back in the discussion for being a second or third-round pick in the Draft. Has decent upside.

Lowatha, (Wookiee, Male, Half Forward, University of Kashyyyk)
Game Line: 1 turnover, 2 shots on goal, L @TBA, 10-1
Analysis: Two terrible games in a row for the once-hot prospect. His stock is slipping to a later first-round pick, if not into the second round. Then again, his team seems to go as he does, so perhaps he is a star in the making anyways.

Megan Meeks (Human, Female, Corner Forward, The Ord Sabaok University)
Game Line: 2 bar points, 2 points scored, 2 shots on goal, 2 turnovers, 1 fumble lost, L vs. UCBV, 35-31
Analysis: Didn’t step up to the plate when her team needed her in the shootout loss. This game gives us some doubts about her ability to be a star when she is needed most. Looks to be a second-round prospect at best.

Kaat Stun (Hapan, Female, Goaltender, Ralltiir University)
Game Line: 4 saves, 13 PA, L vs. TBA, 13-0
Analysis: Had a solid game, but her offense didn’t bail her out, so this goes down as a hard-luck loss. Given her struggles this year, a win here would have been nice.

Elgin Cormorant (Umbaran, Male, Midfielder, UB Cape Suzette)
Game Line: 1 tackle, 1 loose ball recovery, L @AU, 4-3
Analysis: Did a very nice job in the midfield of a very tight defensive game, but his team couldn’t seal the deal. Not his fault, though.

Zelena Wiles (Human, Female, Half Back, PCNS)
Game Line: 2 tackles, 1 loose ball recovery, L @UBTV, 21-0
Analysis: Ugh, not what Wiles wanted to see this week in the rivalry game. This will hurt her stock.

Landra Wygins (Zelosian, Female, Corner Forward, Coruscant Polytechnic Institute)
Game Line: 1 goal, 1 bar point, 4 points scored, 3 shots on goal, 3 turnovers, 2 fumbles lost, W @UC, 37-6

Analysis: Decent game from the otherwise-struggling prospect in a huge blowout win for the Mean Green. However, they were just spoilers, because the opposition used backups to rest for the playoffs. Still doesn’t mean Wygins can’t do something on the field. Pans out as a third-round prospect.

TAGS to Rebecca_Daniels, Trieste, Runjedirun, Tim Battershell, Vehn, CPL_Macja, Bardan_Jusik, jcgoble3

 

IC: Martin Vigo

The game began with little fanfare. Richard was sitting next to me with Tomas on his other side and Spencer on the end near the aisle. There were several other Starkiller fans surrounding us. The first play of the game was a quick pass from Klick to Jul who made short work of the Senator defense and scored an early three points. As Tomas, Spencer and the fans around us celebrated Richard leaned over and whispered into my ear, “Does Tomas still worship Ty Allin?” He asked.

“He looks up to your brother in law,” I confirmed.

Richard shook his head. “I can’t believe you let him be around Ty. Ty is the opposite of you, you know that right?”

“I don’t have much choice,” I reminded him. “He’s married to your sister. Besides he helped get your brother unto a youth team. It was something I should have done. I never even saw your brother play ball until after Bat landed in the med center last year.”

“I’m worried about Bat,” Richard expressed suddenly. “I went to his wedding,” he confessed quietly.

“I’m glad someone in the family got to go,” I said. “How was it?”

“Georgia,” he said naming Bat’s new wife, “Works as a bartender still. The owner of the restaurant where she works arranged for them to have the wedding there. There were only a handful of guests, but it was nice. He has such a tiny apartment though. And plans to take a job that will keep him off world most of the time. Once I get settled on Tatooine I’m going to see if they are interested in moving.”

“You think Bat’s going to move to Tatooine?” I asked curiously.

“Sure,” Richard replied enthusiastically. “I’m paying someone to run supplies and fly the team shuttle anyway, why not help Bat, housing’s cheap out there.”

It was still early in the first half and already the Starkillers were beginning to run up the score on the Senators. I looked over to Tomas and Spencer who were thoroughly enjoying the game. Ty had seemingly effortlessly just stolen the ball from Ava Killenger. He held it for a moment before passing it long up field to a waiting Fortune who easily threw the ball into the net past the bewildered Coruscant keeper.

Bat had just turned 20 years old. I wished he’d continue his schooling. Instead he was going to be a parent. My track record with the children wasn’t good. If Richard stuck with school for one more semester he’d be the first and possibly the only one of my children to get a degree. Tomas may opt out early to play Limmie and even though I had high hopes for Spencer he was still three years shy of graduating from the academy. Briefly I wondered if one of my lawyers could get some of my funds back from said academy for their role in not helping my children finish their education. That thought led me to wonder if the school could countersuit me for dragging down their University graduation success rate by sending my children there. I didn’t dare think that maybe it was my wife’s fault for never going to University, because I knew she’d hear that thought and banish me to the guest room for a week.

“There’s something special about the team on Tatooine,” I said to Richard. “Can you meet me on Byblos next week? We should be there to congratulate Reeser on her season.”

“That could jinx the win,” he said shaking his head.

“I didn’t say we were congratulating her on a perfect season, even if she doesn’t win next week she’s still done outstanding down there and deserves our recognition.”

“I can be there,” he replied.

“Can I go dad?” Tomas asked suddenly. I hadn’t realized that he was listening.

I shook my head. “This is a business trip Tomas and some time for me to spend alone with your older brother. You get plenty of my attention.”

Our section stood on their feet to cheer for the Starkillers as they left the field at the half with a dominating 21 – 0 lead. As soon as things quieted down a bit I promised Tomas that if the Starkillers played any road play-off games I’d arrange to take the whole family. He seemed satisfied with that arrangement. Richard offered to buy us concessions with the funds I sent to him monthly for expenses.

I was enjoying an iced caf when the team came back on the field. Till stepped out and looked up into the stands. “Martin,” he hollered. “You want to come sit on the bench? You might not overhear all my play calls from up there.”

I swallowed the last bit of caf. In response to his wise guy remark I wadded up the wet napkin that I was holding and chucked it at the back of his head when he turned around. When it hit him all three boys burst out in laughter. There wasn’t much action in the second half. Our second and third string players were able to put a few bar points up and mostly protect the goal.

After the game we all said our good-byes to Richard. Tomas, Spencer and I had arranged for our bags to meet us at the team shuttle. The ride home was short, most of the players caught up on the action around the league. I noticed that Ty Allin had his eyes closed in an attempt to get some sleep. When we arrived at the spaceport Madelyne was waiting for us. She had Tomas’ bags packed for his Limmie tournament. I let her take him for an afternoon out alone before she dropped him off with the team for his trip.

Spencer and I got my speeder out of the satellite lot we had left it in and went over to the stadium to check on the construction site. We took a turbo lift down to the actual building area. It was mostly quiet, I found a chief engineer in the control room writing a program that was going to be uploaded to the main computer which would eventually be downloaded to several droids so they could build the lower level sections of the stands. “Why is it taking so long to build?” Spencer asked me quietly as he looked out at the empty shell that would one day be the home of our ball club.

“It’s best to take your time and get things right,” I told him.

He didn’t seem very convinced. He took a seat at one of the computers and pushed his way through the first layer of security. “Hey,” the engineer cried, “He’s getting into the system.”

“My son is good with computers,” I explained.

Spencer was reading the programs it wasn’t long before he found an error. “You need to fix this,” he called out. “The seats will be numbered backwards if you leave it as is.”

The engineer stopped what he was doing with an exasperated look, slowly stood up and made his way over to the station where Spencer was working. “Fix what?” he asked.

“This,” Spencer said pointing towards the screen. “Whoever wrote this didn’t account for where the droid would be when he started inscribing seat numbers.”

The engineer stood behind Spencer reading the program. “I wrote the program,” he stated. “I wasn’t finished, it most likely would have been caught long before it was downloaded, but you are right.” He turned to me. “Is this the son who goes to Republican University?” He asked.

“No,” I replied. “Richard attends Republican; this is Spencer he’s a sophomore over at the Secondary Academy. Spencer has the next several days off from school for mid semester break. He’ll be looking for something to do. I’d like to have him observe here a few hours a day.”

“How do you know I don’t have plans?” Spencer asked suddenly.

“I’ll pay you,” I told him.

The engineer didn’t look very pleased, but Spencer’s face lit up. The next morning we both got up and made use of the pool. He swam about 2 hours before we left for the stadium. He spent most of the day at the construction site and reported to me what he learned that evening. The next day we did it again. Then we picked up his mother and went to pick up Tomas at the Limmie field where his team transport dropped him off from the tournament. He was a bit disappointed that his team had been knocked out in the quarter finals. His coach assured me Tomas played well, behaved well and best of all didn’t suffer any injuries during his time away.

After one final day off our schedules returned to normal for two days before Zoey, Lucie and T.J. arrived when Ty, Andres and Justyne left for Kashyyyk. I had to leave myself the next day to meet Richard on Byblos. He and I found a bar to watch the Starkillers game at. We ordered our food as the players took the field. I noticed Till was playing our starters. He was probably hoping Bakura would lose and maybe even Nar Shadda. We weren’t out of the running for a first round bye or the commissioners’ trophy, at least not yet.

Tag: Jedi Gunny

 

GM Post

HSN Morning Headlines

• Jury finds Eponette Ternardiel innocent on all counts
• Any further punishment would be left up to the Commissioner of Elite League Limmie
• Miners statement: “We welcome Eponette back with open arms and are relieved that justice was served.”
• No word on whether Ternardiel will play in Truce Day Game. Ternardiel to be evaluated for game preparedness during the week

TAG: Vehn

 

IC: Falene Trieste
Miners practice facility, Salis D’aar, Bakura



The usual chatter in the locker room died off progressively as if a wave had passed through the team. Falene looked up from tying her cleats when the silence hit her, but almost didn’t need to. She was pretty sure she knew who had just entered the locker room.

Ponie was standing in the doorway of the locker room, looking back at the team. “It’s good to see you all again,” she said, an edge of nervousness in her voice.

If there was any ice, it was broken the moment that Lizbit wrapped Ponie in the biggest hug that her tiny frame could muster. “I missed you so much,” Comstock said into Ponie’s shoulder, “so so so so much.” They were the unlikeliest pair--one a girl from the streets of the Vertical City who had now seen the inside of their prisons, the other from the clouds of Bespin--but stranger duos had existed in the galaxy with just as much affection.

Every member of the Miners stopped what they were doing, some of them in states of half dress, and came over to welcome back their teammate who had been gone for eight weeks, stuck in a Nar Shaddaa jail. No one wanted to ask what it had been like--nobody figured they’d hear anything good about it and didn’t think that it was anything Ponie wanted to talk about anyways. Some of them shook Ponie’s hands, others gave her hugs, but every single one of them went out of their way to welcome their teammate back.

When it was Falene’s turn, Ponie, who had received all the expressions of friendship and team spirit from everyone else, was the one who this time initiated the hug with Falene, sniffling with the onset of tears. “If it wasn’t for you, I’d be in jail,” Ponie said, “You believed in me.”

“We look after our own,” Falene said, “You’re a Miner. It’s just that simple.”

“Well, you’ve got damn good attorneys because my hometown doesn’t return a heck of a lot of not guilty verdicts, especially not to beings represented by public defenders,” Ponie said, wiping her nose, “so they did something right.”

“No, you did something right,” Falene said, taking Ponie by the shoulders, “Don’t forget that. You did everything you could to make this right. You owned up to what you did, even when it meant losing everything you’ve worked your life for. Now, let’s get you dressed and out there for practice so Hulu can drive you insane again.”

Ponie smiled, a strained smile that suggested life had not been easy for her these last two months, but she still smiled. Falene went back to her stall to finish getting ready for practice, but kept an eye on Ponie, like most of her teammates who were adjusting to having her back in the locker room. She watched as Ponie pulled her shirt off, revealing bruises and the occasional scar across her torso. Falene’s breath hissed in through her teeth quietly, as if sucked by the vacuum of space.

No one asked the question, but Ponie must have felt everyone looking. Her own eyes were directed into a corner of her stall, in which her jersey had loyally hung throughout the entire ordeal.

“Not everyone’s a Miners fan in there,” was all she said, not looking at her teammates, but so all of them could hear. It was all she’d ever say on the topic.

Falene had to look away, but she wasn’t sure it would do any good. Something told her she’d never forget that pattern of bruises and scars.

---

Bakura Gardens, Salis D’aar, Bakura
Truce Day

There was nothing like the Truce Day Game. At least not on the Miners’ schedule, anyways.

Last year’s had been a thriller, an overtime victory that sent the Miners to the playoffs. Today could mean nothing. A Smugglers win--their game with Ylesia was already underway and Valerii had strictly forbidden scoreboard watching by her squad--and a Ralltiir loss--that game had not yet started--meant that what the Miners did here today would mean nothing.

Or today could mean everything. If the Smugglers lost, the Miners could take their second Commissioner’s Trophy in three seasons and lock up home field advantage for the playoffs. A loss coupled with a Ralltiir win would mean that the Miners would see these Buccaneers again in this same stadium in a week.

Falene didn’t want to see the Bucs again. She didn’t want to give them any hope for their Semifinal game. You didn’t let an opponent back into a fight if you could help it. This Hapan team was good. They’d outdefended the best defense in the League last week. New leadership had reinvigorated the franchise and returned them to the playoffs. But as Falene waited to take the field, she didn’t want their reinvigoration to stop right here.

Today was not just special for the fact that it was Truce Day with its usual pomp and circumstance, the blue and gold bunting, the military tributes to Bakurans in uniform. It was not just special because the Queen Mother was in attendance with Falene’s cousin, the Chume’da, a welcome home party for one of Bakura’s own who had made good--made very good in fact--out in the big wide galaxy.

Today was special because Alana Glencross would not lead the Miners onto the field for the first time since she accepted the captaincy. Today, in the darkening afternoon light that would give way to night for the fireworks that would burst above the stadium at the game’s conclusion, that honor went to someone else.

She passed up from the rear of the line where she got a slap on the back from Niskat in her traditional last spot. “Let’s go.”

“All right, here we go,” Falene said as she passed by.

Everyone, all the way up the line, had something to say to her. “C-Bucs have nothing on us,” Alesh said, who set aside her Hapan loyalties for this day.

When she reached the head of the line, Alana Glencross looked into her eyes and said, “Take us on out.”

The Miners hit the field, running, as they always did and today it was Eponette Ternardiel in the lead. She’d been deemed ready to play by the coaching staff. Ternardiel would resume her starting position on the half back line with Falene. The fans gave the team a standing ovation as always, but when Ponie was announced as the starting left half back, they raised their voices and hands in applause louder than for anyone else, including their perennial all-stars. This was a moment that did not come very often and the Bakura fans honored her for her trials and tribulations.

Today might be Truce Day, but the return of Ponie was a victory for her, for the team, for justice.

“Come on, Lin,” Falene said as they readied for the start of the game, “I hope you’re ready because there’s gonna be two firework shows tonight.”

TAG: Jedi Gunny Vehn

 

GM Post

HSN Headlines

• Deputy Commissioner Gondorf announces League will take no actions against Ternardiel
• Gondorf: “This was always a local law enforcement issue. The League has no jurisdiction in this matter. This is off-field conduct”

TAG: Vehn

 

College Headlines:

• Republican University steamrolls Cinnagar Imperial College 27-6 to advance to the Crendan Division Finals vs. UC Bella Vistal
• Atalanta University cancels all classes in the morning so that a victory parade of the conference champion Titans can proceed through campus
• University of Tatooine at Anchorhead wins RAAC-14 title game with laugher over Theed University
• Druckenwell Technical University advances to the Galactic Playoffs after winning conference championship outright

TAG: No One

 

IC: Adanna Inviere
Bakura

It felt odd to be back on Bakura as the acting GM of another team, Adanna thought as she settled into her box at Bakura Gardens. It didn’t seem like that long ago when she was wearing the dark blue and yellow jerseys of the Miners, or the black and orange of the Senators when they were on the road here. The Gardens had always felt so intimate for Limmie; it was what she liked about it. In an era of major stadiums, the small size of this place was comforting. It was just you and 100,000 of your best friends, or enemies as was the case today.

The C-Bucs were going to the playoffs this year after a year off. The offense was resurgent, and the defense, once maligned, now had traction and was making stops. Then again, the Miners were ranked better in both categories, scoring points in bunches and making key stops. This was a team to fear, but it was also about time the Miners tasted defeat to the bleached-blonde Hapan’s team. She had not been so impressed with her Senators tenure, when the Miners had bossed the undermanned Senators around for two wins. Now she was at the helm of a decent team, one that she had built with her own hands. That even included robbing Gark S’rily of Alysha Romax and Abbey Waters, two players who had fallen out of favor on the Galactic Capital but had fit in fine here. What they had traded in return had flopped epically for the Senators, so she had made out well in a hyperlane robbery of her former employers. But that was life in Limmie.

The interesting matchup today was seeing how Camille Montes, who had shut down Rydonni Prime the prior week, would do against a team that had an offensive pulse. The Monarchs had struggled to score all year, so that had made things easier in the 9-3 win. But Bakura was a whole different beast. They could score, and could score some more. They would even run up the score on you if they could because they were just that prolific on offense. As a former defensive back, she hated to see that. Her defenders would have to be staunch today to pick up a win.

But the big issue was seeing how the playoff picture would shake out. It was no secret that this game was meaningless for the C-Bucs; they had the third seed, and would play on the road next week. They wanted the playoff win over whoever their opponent would be then, be that the Miners or the Ralltiir Starkillers, both of whom deserved to be knocked down a peg after spectacular seasons. Adanna was starting to hate Ralltiir for their ridiculously lopsided wins over her team over the past few years, and she wanted another crack at them. But if they won here today, there would be a rematch at the Gardens next week. Either way, Adanna wanted the playoff win; this game was inconsequential. Hopefully Meredith understood that, and would take precaution. Sometimes it was better just to let things go if they weren’t working and try again later. She just hoped no one got injured, and they would be ready for the playoff game.


She had met with the Queen Mother before the game, who had given her some words of praise for what she had been able to do in this first season of her tenure. That meant a lot to the Hapan, and she wanted to make sure that the support would continue after this season and into next year. But first there was a matter of this game.

TAG: Vehn, Trieste

 

IC: Meredith Chambers-Vayne
Bakura Gardens, Bakura

Meredith knelt down and ran a hand across the precisely clipped blades of grass. The old ritual returning. She'd done this so many times as a player. Come into this environment and won and lost. She'd been booed in victory and screamed at in defeat. Here at Bakura Gardens there had been so many memorable clashes. So many greats who had played the beautiful game. She'd done her time in the trenches and now she would remain on the sidelines. Occasionally, really in moments just like these, she'd want to run out with her players onto the pitch. Show the galaxy she still had what it took. Still could pursue another ring, as if she didn't have enough, but then she would stop at that white painted barrier that surrounded the field delineating the sideline from the actual playing field and flash to her husband, Polis Vayne, flash to her children, their loving smiles, their laughter, and acknowledge in all the ways that made it so hard to acknowledge that the time for heroics on the field, the time for being the center of attention, of getting the glory, had long since passed. Still that fire never truly went away. That was what had made her so great. That was what had made her a four time Galactic Cup champion.

She'd cut her coaching teeth last year with the victorious Nar Shaddaa Smugglers. Now the training wheels were long since in the past with the head coaching gig with the Hapes Consortium Buccaneers. She'd molded the team into the beginnings of a contender. Now she had to make sure they stayed healthy down the stretch. Their playoff seed was locked up. So was the Miners. The game today, for all intents and purposes, was pretty pointless. A loss or a win wouldn't change a thing. Besides, there was no way in all the hells known to humanity that she was going to let Valerii see any of their particularly potent defensive or offensive packages. She had made her decision and when she gathered the team around her in the huddle she only had one thing to say.

"You ladies have fought hard this season. Now I'm asking you to bite your tongue, to hold your pride, and sit on the bench. I'm resting the starters for today. I need you to understand that this is for your health. You rest today and we can fight hard tomorrow. That doesn't mean we're going to roll over and give the Miners a victory. That does mean that we're going to play smart and not push anyone too hard today. Everyone understand?"

A chorus of affirmatives reached her ears.

"Okay ladies, break on three...."

Tag: Trieste,Jedi Gunny

 

IC: Christine Gamble
Senator Stadium

Christine sat in front of her locker stall for the last time this season. She knew that it would all end today, the worst campaign any team could possibly have in this league. If she was still with the Senators next season, it would likely be in the Premier League, or perhaps even worse. If that happened, she would demand a trade. “Hometown” be damned; she was too good for the Premier League. Someone would want her, likely for a small price tag, but they might value her. Then again, she would likely ride the pine and be done for as a starter because she hadn’t impressed anyone this year. All of a sudden, a trade didn’t sound so nice.

She didn’t recognize the players around her on first glance; this was not the team that had been built in the prior offseason. This was as bad as it could possibly get, an LFL team with a few now washed-up veterans who were plugging away until they could find new gigs next season. Someone would want Maximus Qorbus next year, and if the Senators were smart they would move him. That likely meant her as well, and she would welcome a chance to actually win a game for once. Because no team ever lost this badly in the Elite League. No one.

And then the dagger came down. Jed Ortmeyer was announcing the starting lineups. Jam Tarpals would start in goal once again, but the last one had been an utter disaster. Left Corner Back . . . Calmerung D’jukk. The team likely wanted to see if their former hot prospect was worth anything, or if they would be better served in cutting him. Full back . . . Bernie McAllister. Another judgment start. Right Corner Back . . . Steen Roggers.

For the first time in her playing career, Christine Gamble was not going to start in a game she had suited up for. It was obvious that her time here was close to being done. This game was meaningless, yes, but if the coaches had no faith in her, then there was no point anymore. She cursed silently under her breath, but knew there was nothing to say.

When the team came out onto the field, she looked up to see about 25,000 total fans in the stands that could seat 1 million. Virtually all of them were decked out in Rydonni Prime’s colors, and were chanting their heads off. Christine wanted to shut them up, but then realized that if anything, she would barely see the field today. She had a feeling that this might be her last game as a Senator. And if that meant she wasn’t here when the demotion hit, then she was all for it. Screw the Premier League, she thought as she became acquainted with the team bench, she wasn’t going there. She would be a winner someday. Whether that was here or elsewhere remained to be seen.

---

IC: Ava Killenger

Once Roggers had been announced as a starter, Ava knew that this was it for the year. The coaches and front office had wearied of their starters and were benching them. Christine was going to be bench-riding in this one, and the rookie feared she would too.

Sure enough, Sorcha Styles was going to start at Full Forward instead of her. Ava was relegated back to the bench where she had begun. It wasn’t the worst thing, but it didn’t make her feel any better about things. Then again, she hadn’t exactly inspired much confidence this year on the pitch; she had struggled mightily, and the only reason she hadn’t been pulled was because the team was that bad, and also because the other Full Forwards had been injured. So she had played, and struggled, and was now benched.

As she sat on the bench, it felt like she was back on Thyferra, because a lot of her old teammates from there were now putting on this pathetic uniform. Yes they gained experience from this, but at some point wasn’t it better to just let the Force be competitive and sort things out in training camp? Hm, camp, that seemed like a long ways away. Ava just hoped she wouldn’t have to go into that after having lost nine straight.


TAG: CPL_Macja

 

GM Post

What We Learned: Week 8

The males in the office are relieved that the C-Bucs made the postseason. The females in the office are crying because the Lightning didn’t. That’s the Elite League for you right there.

Agamar Packers – Okay, our stat interns must have been asleep on the job because we had NO idea the Packers could still make the playoffs. Screw the Truce Day Game--we’re going to be glued to the Packers-Rough Riders tilt.

Bakura Miners – A 9 point win against a team made of approximately two thirds Wookiees for the Miners is like a 90 point win against any other team in the galaxy. It was a little touch-and-go, but the Miners survived and that’s what counts.

Coruscant Senators – We didn’t get caf last week. Life was dull and boring. Here’s a positive: the Senators will have the top draft pick! Well, unless Lokensgaard brings in any new teams who decide to draft. Assuming the Senators come back next year. But if he doesn’t and they do, two straight years of number one picks is a positive, right?

Euceron Storm – Did we jinx it by putting them in the Big Four? We totally jinxed it. Oh no...are we sleeper agents for the Bassells? Did we get activated to destroy the Storm’s entire season? Nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo.

Hapes Consortium Buccaneers – We settled our argument from last week (and expenses a couple dinners in the process): the Queen Mother is really the genius for hiring both Inviere and Chambers-Vayne. The question is how hard does Chambers-Vayne play her troops with nothing to gain and on Truce Day? Oh wait, we’re talking about a former Smuggler. She’s going to want to cream the Miners and end their hopes for a Commissioner’s Trophy and help out her old employer.

Kashyyyk Rangers – So apparently cobbling together a roster of players in one offseason after leaving the LFL and losing your Elite League-level talent just doesn’t plain work. Way to go, Lokensgaard.

Mando’ade Mercs – We’re willing to bet the Manda’lor is furious that after four straight years of missing the playoffs that he’s missing them again?

Nar Shaddaa Smugglers – Who forgot to tell the Smugglers that they’re supposed to bottom out after a championship? It’s not like Kaitlyn Vehn got mad about everyone talking about Martin Vigo as the greatest GM in the League today.

Ralltiir Starkillers – If the Starkillers go 8-1 and wind up with just a home Semifinal game, Madelyne Vigo should write a letter to Lokensgaard. He’ll fix things up really quick.

Rydonni Prime Monarchs – If we know Setarcos well (and we do), to have beaten the team who holds the head-to-head tie breaks against the other 8-1 teams and not be headed to the playoffs probably means there is a fist-sized hole in the wall at the Grande Villa.

Ryloth Rough Riders – If the Rough Riders make the postseason, we’re going to take the proverbial rules of limmie and tear them into tiny little pieces and use them for confetti at the inevitable Rough Riders victory parade.

Ylesia Lightning – Oh good, Korlo played well. The shrine is no longer threatened. But we better light some more candles for Kasin to come home soon because seriously everyone, where is she?

TAG: Bardan_Jusik CPL_Macja jcgoble3 Jedi Gunny JM_1977 Rebecca_Daniels Runjedirun Tim Battershell Vehn

 

IC: Polis Vayne
Thyferra

Polis knew that something had to give here. His Thyferra Force team, which had supposedly been reinforced by the addition of many former Senators players, was tanking at the wrong time. They were now just barely clinging on to the last playoff spot for the Championship bracket. Lose to Garqi today, and be relegated to the loser bracket once again. That would make it consecutive years for this once-proud franchise. Just like the Senators, Polis thought.

He didn’t want that to happen. He had taken over for Jed Ortmeyer as head coach here when Ortmeyer had been called up to Coruscant several weeks prior. However, neither of them had done well, losing games while barely scoring any points. That couldn’t continue. But Polis didn’t know what the future held for him. He was struggling here as a head coach, and if a thorough cleansing of the organization came down soon, he might be axed because of how he failed to use his players to win games. Falling into the loser’s bracket would mean destroying everything Jed had worked so hard for, and then he, the Team HoF member, would be blamed for all of it. He couldn’t lose this game.

His team was a motley collection of players now. Many veterans he had once played with were now stuck down here, like Riff Persnor and Maff Biskis. Their careers likely were over after this season, because they had been shot down hard and likely would never recover. He had talented but struggling prospects like Raley Tenegat and Patti Meter, both first-round selections who had never lived up to their college numbers. Now they were trying to prove they still belonged. Fringe players like Mekmek and Marrett Wingo were trying to play hard in case they could earn a Senators roster spot for next year. Young and inexperienced players like George Wulson and Oola Ban never got much playing time, and thus wanted to see what they could do with more playing time. And Polis had to try and balance all of this out.


Although Garqi was struggling, the Senators organization wasn’t exactly the model of consistency anymore. Every opponent was a very real threat, especially after the past two losses. Polis knew going in that this would be a challenge; he just didn’t know how much that would be until the game got going.

TAG: Tim Battershell