MacSurvivor Castillo
- The Chronicles
Contents in Reverse Chronological
Order
1/17/06 - Banner Year and Board Room Cheer
The final four broke into two teams, John and Diane versus Jim and Mark. In the Banner
Year challenge, the web site that John and Diane labored on took a landslide victory
against Jim and Mark's creation. The Donald flew into the island to congratulate
the victors, and offered them a board room deal. Instead of pitting the two against
one another in a challenge, if they agreed on which one of them would take the immunity,
the other would receive a gift. John walked away with immunity, and Diane walked
away with MacSoft's Age of Mythology, an Apple mouse pad, and an Apple pad of paper.
Tribal council proved brutal, as the three remaining ex-Maclions had to vote off
one of their own. In the final tally, it was Jim who was voted off, leaving the final
three of John, Diane and Mark.
12/08/05 - Back to Back Tribal Councils!
Another MacSurvivor first! After this latest immunity challenge, due to one of the
teams not making any submission at all, there were two tribal councils held, one
after the other. Moe and Jim made up the team that did not submit a map for the challenge,
causing the double-council. Moe was voted off during the first tribal council, only
because she cast her vote late. Had her vote been submitted on time, it would have
been Jim who got voted off, giving the old iofthetiger tribe the stronger alliance.
With Moe gone, however, that gave the old maclion tribe the edge, and given that
old tribal alliances have stayed strong, Scott became the 2nd victim, and 6th castaway
voted off the island. Voter apathy, or conspiracy? Could Moe and Jim have an old
alliance from past contests? We may never know. One thing is for certain, and that's
the final four: John, Jim, Diane and Mark.
11/6/05 - Dawn of a new tribe
The two tribes merged on 10/15/05 into a single tribe, taking up residence in the
old MacLion camp. During the merge process, Helicopter Bob flew in, and castaways
were offered a ticket off the island. Hazel requested a ticket off the island. On
10/24, the first single tribe award challenge concluded, providing the tribe the
new name of Cybernauts. The first Cybernauts immunity challenge pit each of the castaways
against one another in a battle royale in the Tribal Council Arena. The final battle
took place on 11/6, and Jim walked away the champion. With the old iofthetiger tribe
voting together, Judd became the 5th tribal council victim, and the first member
of the Jury.
10/12/05 - Tigers fight off the Ghouls; Lions' First Tribal
It was a dark and stormy evening when the crew of the Venator approached the caves
near the Bay of Skulls. For months, unearthly skeleton ghouls had been coming down
from the hills and attacking the villages of Bagara. The iofthetiger tribe was now
taking the battle to the ghouls. Equipped with a limited number of weapons and ammo,
the Captain of the Venator and its First Mate, John and Scott, set forth to take
on the ghouls, while the other crew members, Moe and Hazel, stood by as backup. From
the Bay of Skulls, through the dark forest, the Scorpion Caverns, and finally the
Wintel Stronghold fortress, John and Scott cut down over 60 skeletons, nearly wiping
out the colony, and scaring the evil Cleric who had been spawning the monsters off
the island. This feat won favor with the people of Bagara, which was further enhanced
when the Venator presented Prince Dopi of Bagara with a brand new iMac. The Prince
declared the iofthetigers the champions of immunity.
Days laters, back on Castillo, the iofthetigers stayed up all night in celebration
of their first immunity challenge victory. On the other side of the island, the maclion
tribe prepared for their first tribal council, at which time, they would have to
vote a member of their crew off of the island.
9/25/05 - Clessidra Disk Drive Contest
The two tribes are currently engaged in an "Island Rush"
competition for the latest immunity challenge. On 9/16/05, the two vessels landed
on the island of Pinot at the same time, thereby kicking off a battle of vessels
called the "Disk Drive Contest". This battle took place in an interactive
iChat session on 9/25/05. Two members of the POM challenged two members of the Venator
in a "quick draw" trivia contest. The captains of both ships chose Ambassadors
who represented the crews. For the Venator, it was Scott Bender (the Venator's first
mate), and for the POM, it was Mark Pickett (the POM's captain). Also participating
in the quiz challenge were Hazel of the Venator and Judd of the POM. The contest
was neck-and-neck through the whole challenge,
with the Venator sprinting to the finish line at the end.
As ambassador for the winning crew, Scott received the grand prize of an EZQuest external Boa Firewire DVD+/-RW drive. Hazel
received "The iPod Book", published by Peachpit Press. Mark received a
used Hammer external SCSI drive and MacPlay No One Lives Forever 2. Judd received
MacPlay Baldur's Gate II: Throne of Bhaal.
6/17/05 - Mapping the Island
In the third MacSurvivor award challenge, "Thirst for Knowledge",
the iOftheTigers were victorious in submitting a map of Castillo before the MacLion
tribe. Both tribes received books and software as a reward, with the tigers getting
first picks.
6/6/05 - Close Call at Tribal Council
In the second MacSurvivor immunity challenge, "Tribal Web",
the iOftheTigers were burned again by their rivals, the MacLions. As the tigers marched
with their torches back to the center of Castillo island to their second tribal council,
they contemplated the factors that kept them from victory, and wondered what they
could do to give them the edge they so desparately need. At tribal council, the question
put to them all is who should leave the island. One by one, the tigers cast their
votes. It was a very close
call, but with two votes cast for Hazel, and three votes cast for Tomas, Tomas left
the tribe.
6/4/05 - Tribal Web Challenge Concludes
The results of the Tribal Web immunity challenge are in: The winning tribe, with
a score of 3.23, is the maclion tribe. The iofthetiger tribe were right on their
tail with a score of 3.00, and although the tigers scored highest in the "Impact"
category, the lions took all of the other categories, and therefore walks away with
immunity.
3/8/05 - Identity Challenge Concludes
The results of the Identity award challenge are in: The winning tribe, by 4 days,
is the MacLion tribe. The MacLions have won a copy of Freeway Pro with Packs ($299
value). The ioftheTiger tribe has won a copy of Freeway Express with Packs ($179
value). Good job to both tribes for pulling through and surviving the Woz storm.
2/14/05 - Valentine's Day storm hits Castillo
Hurricane Woz hammered the island of Castillo on Valentine's day, with the castaways
left to fend for themselves. Castaways that had made progress in the recent award
challenge were provided tools to ensure safe cover from the storm. Unfortunately,
two castaways did not survive Woz. Storm casualties include James Satterfield of
the iofthetiger tribe, and Rick Davis of the maclion tribe.
Both tribes are now down to 5 members each.
1/8/05 - Fishing Accident reduces MacLion Tribe
In an effort to help provide food for the hungry MacLion tribe, castaway Jim Haney
took the fishing hooks into the deeper waters to find the bigger fish. A swift undercurrent
caught Jim off guard, and he lost the fishing gear into the sea. Knowing that his
team would not be pleased, he set out to find the gear. Unfortunately, the sea was
not kind to Jim, and it continued to thrash at him. Jim decided he best get out of
the water, but in the chaos, he turned towards shore only to snag his leg on a very
sharp object. He cried for help, and the rest of his tribe pulled him out of the
water and up to base camp. There in Jim's leg was a very large gash with a big fishing
hook hanging out. "At least I retrieved the fishing gear!" Jim shouted
in joyful agony.
The MacSurvivor helicopter arrived and took Jim away. The MacLion tribe is now down
to six members.
12/11/04 - And then there were 6
At the first tribal council, not a whole lot was said. The iofthetiger tribe knew
that they were only as strong as their weakest member, so it did not appear that
there was any difficulty in deciding who to vote off. As the votes were tallied,
there were 11 votes for Travis, and 1 vote for Tomas. Travis has become the first
person voted off of Castillo.
12/7/04 - The hardships of Castillo; First tribal council
Little did our castaways suspect that their first immunity challenge would be so rough! This "Membership
Challenge" round has tested the resolve of all the castaways. The rewards of the island are rich and plentiful, so
the ancestral ghosts of Castillo needed to be assured that the would-be winners of
this booty would be deserving.
As both tribes went into this challenge, they were asked to select a freeware or
shareware title to review, and as soon as their review was published, they would
earn their tribe immunity points. Upon successfully publishing a review, the reviewer
could then request another title. Most titles were awarded 10 points, but certain
titles were awarded 11 points. The Castillo host also provided an easy way to earn
bonus points by a simple visit to the Avalon Hotline server. Follow the trail of points earned.
This round started out very slowly, with just a few of the maclion castaways paving
the path. As some of the castaways became aware of the time involved in being part
of this contest, they begun jumping into the shark infested waters like lemmings
off of a cliff. The iofthetiger tribe was hit the hardest, losing three members during
this round, while the maclions only lost one. To add to the iofthetiger strife, the
maclions had pulled far ahead in the race to victory. All had seem lost for the tigers.
However, along with the new blood that came into the iofthetiger tribe came a new
energy and spirit for victory. Both new and old members made an unbelievable last
minute effort to bring their team to victory. As the last days, hours, and even minutes
approached to the end of this round, several reviews were submitted in hopes to earn
their teams some points. In fact, during the last 10 days of this 90 day bout, there
were a total of 9 reviews submitted, 6 of them by the iofthetiger tribe. On 12/6,
coming back from a 40 point deficit, the iofthetigers came within 1 point of the
maclions.
Unfortunately, it wasn't enough. There was one last minute review submitted by the
maclions that push the maclions out of reach. Finally, there was the 10 bonus points
the maclions had on reserve for winning the first award challenge that sealed the
fate of the iofthetiger tribe. Great effort by both tribes, but in the end, it was
the maclion tribe that prevailed. This brings us to the first tribal council in which
a member of the iofthetiger tribe will be voted off the island.
Cudos to all that participated in this round, as each castaway that turned in a review
will be awarded with a prize.
11/5/04 - Volcano
explodes, Lava rivers rush, Castaway caught in current
In the Fire Mountains in the North of Castillo, the volcano Tidebb has unexpectedly
erupted after years of inactivity. Fire, smoke, ash and lava shot out of the angry
volcano, and could be seen from everywhere on the island. As the lava rivers rushed
down the mountain, they destroyed everything in their path. Most of these rivers
went out to sea where the ocean quickly cooled the lava into fantastic rock sculptures.
One lava river, however, flowed near a remote village of castaways known as the iOftheTiger
tribe. One of the tribe members, Narinder, who had gone off to meditate on the cliffs,
was caught without warning in the path of the fire breathing river. Narinder made
a last second attempt to escape the lava by jumping off of the cliffs into the waters
below. However, just as he landed in the water, the lava also hit the water. This
created an explosive and magnificent hardening of the lava. After the smoke cleared,
the castaway's body was found engulfed in the hardened lava, sitting at the top of
the newly formed rock sculpture. The tribe member is now a permanent part of the
cliffs of Castillo, serving as a reminder and a testament to the awesome powers of
the volcanoes that lurk in the Fire Mountains of Castillo.
Archeologists from around the globe chartered helicopters to check out the aftermath
of Tidebb's eruption. One archeologist in particular, Hazel Valera, stopped to meet
with the tribe that had suffered their terrible loss. As she pulled out her G4 Powerbook
to survey the damage, and as she recorded data with a Griffin iTalk attached to her
Apple iPod, they all soon realized that they shared a common passion: Apple technology.
As the conversation ran into the night, Hazel missed her flight out, and has now
been welcomed as the iOftheTiger's newest tribe member!
10/25/04 - Turbulance
hits the MacLion tribe
Things were quite peaceful on the north cliffs of Castillo, with the new iofthetiger
tribe. However, down in the south, thinking that things couldn't get any more stable,
the maclion castaways were doing their nightly fire dance ritual. It was about a
quarter to midnight, when Patty noticed a sneaker floating in the nearby lagoon.
Curious, she waded out to the shoe to investigate. As her tribe mates watched, Patty
disappeared out of their sight, as did the shoe. Moments later, as the water grew
still, Patty thrust through the surface of the water screaming, "Shark!"
Alas, it was too late, as she quickly went back down again locked in the jaws of
the great white.
Meanwhile, back in the USA, Mac Guild Island Tours had received an inquery regarding
a tour to Castillo. The would-be traveller explaimed, "I've heard Castillo is
a good place to get away from it all and maybe do some fishing."
After a sad and sleepless evening after their loss, the MacLion's awoke to the sound
of a helicopter approaching their beach. Sure enough, it was a Mac Guild Island Tour
helicopter, and emerging from the helicopter is Mark Pickett, the newest member to
the MacLion tribe.
10/20/04 - Another Helicopter approaches
Castillo North
Flipping through his 250 channels of nothing to watch on TV, James Satterfield quietly
contemplates to himself, "Is this all there is?"
Then, on one of the channels, an infomercial appears talking about exotic trips to
uncharted islands. As one offer came up for a helicopter tour to the Isle of Castillo,
James exclaimed out loud, "I'll take the tour! Hell, I need a vacation anyway!!"
[Later that day...]
As the helicopter approached the north cliffs of Castillo, James noticed a small
encampment. "Can we land here to check this out?"
The pilot, Bob, turned to the other side (as if he were looking into a camera), and
grinned. "Why, of course... why not?"
As the helicopter landed, the iofthetiger tribe began to gather near the landing
site. James walked up to the dazed tribe, and just then Moe grabbed on to James and
yelled, "Okay, take off Bob! Quick!"
James Satterfield, welcome to the iOftheTiger Tribe! May your stay be a pleasant
one.
10/15/04 - Shark attacks two members
of iOftheTiger tribe
Along the north shores of the Isle of Castillo, our hapless castaways of the iofthetiger
tribe have suffered tragedy.
Tribe member Alex wanted to help out his team by doing some fishing. Unfortunately,
Alex became food for a great white instead. He cried "Shark!", but it was
too late. By the time his tribe came to his rescue, there was nothing left but a
single shoe and a fishing spear that had floated to the surface.
Tribe member Suzie, realizing that her tribe needed the fishing spear that Alex left
behind, made a brave attempt to retrieve it from the waters where Alex had perished.
Unfortunately, it appears that Alex did not completely satisfy the shark's appetite.
As Suzie felt herself being consumed by the cold steely teeth of the shark, her last
action as she cried out "Shark!" was tossing the fishing spear upon land.
Scott, leader of the tribe, ducked out of the way just in time, as the spear brushed
by him and thrust into the tree behind him.
The iofthetiger tribe grabbed the spear, and sadly walked back to camp where they
spent the remainder of the day in silence as tribute to their fallen tribe members.
The next morning, a helicopter landed 100 yards from the iofthetiger's base. As the
remaining tribe members gathered near the helicopter, John Gebhardt emerged from
the helicopter and walked over to the tribe.
"I've been touring the island, and noticed your camp. I'm looking to get away
from civilization for awhile. Would it be okay if I stayed with you?"
Scott walked up to John and shook his hand. "Welcome to the iofthetiger tribe!
Allow us to show you around..."
The helicopter took off, and the iofthetigers walked back to camp with their new
tribal member.
8/31/04 - Member of the iOftheTiger
tribe replaced
Bruce is unable to complete his stay on the Isle of Castillo, and so parts with his
tribe.
Later that day, a single engine plane is spotted flying near the northern region
of the Isle of Castillo. The plane begins to smoke, and it appears to be out of control.
It's heading down, straight into the cliffs! Just before it explodes on the cliffs,
the pilot jumps out of the plane and parachutes down to the water. The parachute
entangles the pilot as he fights to surface. After a struggle, he emerges to the
cliff staircase, and proceeds to climb up. At the top he finds a small cottage, and
notices smoke coming from the chimney stack... and the iOftheTiger tribe welcomes
their new member, Scott Travis.
8/24/04 - Round #1 - Award Challenge - Concludes
The Winner: MacLion tribe
8/10/04 - MacLion tribe formed
A diverse tribe of Mac Guild members from all over the US sailed to the southern
region of the Isle of Castillo. Their ship entered a small bay with a single small
rough sand beach. They jumped overboard, swam to the beach, and proceeded to enter
through the gate that passes through the cliff at the end of the beach. Beyond the
gate is a small cave dwelling where your group will be residing during you stay on
the Isle of Castillo.
Original Tribe:
Diane Love (MD)
Lane Smith (TX)
Patty Maloney (CA)
Jim Haney (CA)
Jim Melton (CO)
Judd Spitzer (FL)
Rick Davis (KY)
Diane Love was selected as Tribal
leader.
8/10/04 - iOftheTiger tribe formed
A diverse tribe of Mac Guild members from all over the US sailed to the northern
region of the Isle of Castillo. This part of the island has nothing but steep cliffs,
so the would-be survivors jumped overboard, swam to the cliffs, and proceeded to
climb the long treacherous rock stairway up. At the top of the cliffs, they found
a small cottage which would be their new home for the next several months. They have
become the iOftheTiger tribe of the Isle of Castillo.
Original Members:
Susan Pate (TX)
Narinder Dogra (CA)
Alex Levinson (PA)
Moe Bradley (FL)
Scott Bender (TX)
Tomas Lovato (CO)
Bruce Giancola (CA)
Scott Bender was selected as Tribal
leader.