Y'all got spanked. Embarrassed. Humiliated. If it weren't for [TSD]NartFOpc's assistance in the Shotty CTF game, and the help of non-HBOer LOGIQ in the Adrift CTF game, it would have been a complete rout. But I'm not going to trample on a dead team's grave with a recap or write-up. Instead I'd just like to visit a few things that went wrong.

1. Notable absences. If Snipe and Avateur had played, it would have been a competitive night. Snipe had plans unfortunately, and Avateur refuses to play Halo 4. MoltenSlowa flaked out. Xenos kind of committed but didn't show up. CARDO's non-HBO friends and NartFOpc had to help out just to even the numbers out.

2. Disparate interests. Pkmnrulz saw the night as a chance to beat TSD in battle. IsThisThingOn and Malagate, seldom-active holdouts from the Golden Age of HBO, wanted to chill out and relive 2005. CARDO just wanted to play Halo. TSD, even though we had to bring some members out of retirement, presented with a united front and united with a common purpose. Except for UnrealChief whose purpose diverged at a critical moment near the end of the Shotty CTF game (he is currently serving out a two-game suspension).

3. Lack of leadership. Snipe was the ostensible captain of Team HBO, but did not act as such. This is probably because he had a feeling he wouldn't be able to play anyway, but regardless, the lack of leadership on HBO's side made planning and organizing difficult. There was no one person on the other side for me to negotiate settings/gametypes with, or to beat a team out of the HBO userlist. It got to the point where I was the one corralling Team HBO. That's not a good situation.

4. General lack of interest/malaise. This might be TSD's fault as much as HBO's: I might have done too good a job of recruiting the skilled and ambitious players from here, leaving behind only non-competitive canon-peddlers. With one email to our patented "mailing list" I had succeeded in rustling up a team of men, some of whom hadn't touched Halo in months but were nonetheless eager to compete. Even little kanbo, cooking pot on head, enlisted. Why not HBO?

I would like to play the real Team HBO. I know it's out there. Snipe, Avateur, etc. But I'm not going to force the issue, the challenge would have to come from you. If you can get the real Team HBO together, we're ready. Halo 4, Reach, or Halo 3, when the roosters are crowing and the cows are spinning circles in the pasture: ducks fly together.