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Voodoo Lounge Chapter 31 Prediction Blog (CONTAINS SPOILERS!)

nikvoodoo — Mon, 02 Jul 2012 03:04:11 GMT

Unlike half the population, I happened to enjoy last chapter. I don't even care that I got about...what? 75% of my predictions wrong last chapter? Don't care! Brontosaurus burger with a side of whale slaw as one member of the cast/forum said!

Sign me up for another 75% incorrect if the story keeps moving forward like this! Brown nose you say?

So drink your haterade and I'll just keep doing what I'm doing. As a side note to doing what I do...I'm changing it up and eliminating the percentile breakdown this time and see how it goes. If you miss it, comment and let me know.

Chapter 31's title is....

SPOILER

Family Ties

No...not those Family Ties....

There are two obvious picks for this chapter title: Saul and Tanya, or Angel/Scratch and the Family. We've hit somewhat of a stopping point with Saul and Victor. They need to formulate some sort of plan. Watching people bang their heads off a table trying to formulate a plan isn't interesting. Going back to the Colony right now is. [/img]

Lizzy will be manipulating Bricks

If we go back to the Colony, we're going to get a chance to see Lizzy in her new normal and the new normal is under the watchful eye of Bricks. Bricks, as we know, is a big ol' lug with a heart of gold.....and has a "don't fuck with my friends" attitude. You know what would actually be somewhat interesting to see? Someone from the Gatekeeper's inner circle who didn't appreciate the change in leadership and knows Lizzy is from Michael's tower tries to fuck with her and Bricks beats the ever loving shit out of them....ok well maybe not.

Regardless, Lizzy has been known to toy with the minds of those around her specifically that of Tardust. She seems to be in a good situation with Bricks, but she has to plan long term. With the baby coming in just a few months, she not only needs to look out for her future, but also the spawn. (Spawn spawn spawn spawn......). Bricks provides a great deal of physical protection, and I'd imagine emotional protection too. Anything she can do to keep herself alive.

We discover the fate of Tanya

Reason being? Oh that's easy!

Remember that Captain with the crushed legs? Remember who is the only one who has ever seen a slow turn happen? Tanya is either going to be in that room still and will be asked to give a consultation or she has been released and will be Army Strong. I'm not really sure how the injured soldier returning is going to play into the plot line of "it changed everything" that Michael mentioned, but she still has a role. And I do believe Tanya will have a hand in how it plays out.

No Dunbar Tower this Chapter

Ever notice how Kc brings us right to the brink of something awesome (like an interrogation of Burt) and then goes elsewhere and never returns? I've already alluded to the idea that we have nothing more to talk about with the Dunbar crew right now, so I think they take a back seat for the moment. Ultimately, they have a very large part to play in the rest of this season (how else are we going to get the band back together?) but there's nothing they can do now.

Dunbar is set for the season finale. Their path is decided they just have to figure out how to get there. Now we need to get to that exact same place with the two other groups of survivors we care about.

The purpose of the Map is revealed

This is one of those hedge bets. I feel like the map the Captain went back and got herself turned into a Para-Olympian for (watching the Olympic trials right now and keep seeing commercials for the Para-Olympics. GO USA!) is going to be reclaimed by Michael. Being the heartless prick he is can't you just see him yelling at her for getting hurt for going back to get the map?

I have harped on the existence of a (broken) satellite phone for a few weeks. Now I'm going to join in the chorus harping on the map. She went back and got broke for it. It better be worth her while, and more importantly ours.

Lizzy becomes aware of Burt at the Colony

I would imagine she would have been kept in the dark about it. If Burt is around and she knows about it, she'd be trying her damndest to get him out. Or at least get the same treatment as she is getting. I don't believe that the "big guy" Pete mentioned is Burt because there's no good reason to let those two even talk to each other and let them formulate plans. Nope....Burt is still chained to a wall in the hospital somewhere and Lizzy has absolutely no idea.

That's it. I've got to go watch people running, jumping, swimming, and gymnasting (gymnasting?) better than I could even do in video games. But in my defense all those Olympic Games for Nintendo were horse shit. Did you ever play the freakin' Winter Olympics one where no matter what button you touched that bitch fell on the ice? GOD! So annoying!

LEARN TO USE YOUR EDGES!!!! GOD!

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Voodoo Lounge Chapter 30 Prediction Blog

nikvoodoo — Mon, 21 May 2012 12:43:05 GMT

Ladies and Gentlemen, boys and girls and children of all ages.....Welcome back to the Voodoo Lounge!

There's been a lot going on in here! I've had to fire and retrain new bartenders. The cook staff was abandoned on an island with sharp rocks and sticks and told the survivor would be the new lead chef. We are now ready to serve YOU!

What an episode we got last week, right??!! My humble apologies to those who held a certain Lt. in high regard as he no longer shuffles on this mortal coil. There was certainly no way anyone would have predicted his demise would go down like that. We all assumed he was alive following the events of chapter 24, but had no idea it was for this purpose. He admirably stood up for his friends as his last act of defiance to Scratch and her brood.....

.....And I won the Angel War....

So where do we go from here? Onwards and upwards my friends! To new exciting adventures in this now Angel-less world!!!!

*looks around....sees no one. Tips his cap to the fallen* Rest well, Blonde Boy-o.

Chapter 30's title is....

SPOILER

Short Term Memory.

As a treat to those in the Reddit event earlier this week, I asked this question. Kc answered. So this may not be a surprise to some of you. Others...you're welcome!

This could be just about anything. When I used to play poker regularly players would ask me after a hand what I had. I'd say "Oh sorry. Don't remember." And I used it in everyday life when someone asks me to reveal something. "Oh crap. I so forgot. Bad habit from my poker game." I feel like this is something that could apply to a couple places. This could be Tanya revealing something to Michael he didn't know like what she was trying to bring up to him before he blew her off in 23...after all, he did just bring that tid bit of knowledge back up recently!

Could be that something horrible happens and in order to get past it, you have to have no short term memory. Don't attach yourself to places or things. They won't be here long.

Maybe it has to do with Scratch and Burt. Who knows. We shall soon find out!

Tanya Reveals What She Was Going to Tell Michael

Based on nothing more than a hunch (and the fact that Michael brought it back up to Kimmet last chapter part) Tanya and Michael will discuss what she wanted to tell him before she was attacked by Randy. It happens frequently with Mr. Wayland's story here. We don't think about something for a long time (6-10 chapters) and then it's brought back to the forefront and discussed soon after. Michael just told Kimmet that Tanya was their record keeper. As such, Kimmet is going to make use of that and make Michael talk to her about anything that might have been missed. I'm 90% confident this happens this chapter.

Riley Begins Her Training

It may not be something we see per se, but I think Riley begins her military training this chapter. Barring something zombie related happening, I don't see why we would need to actually experience the training of a new recruit. I can't imagine listening to Riley walk in formation to be exciting, riveting, edge-of-your-seat listening. So she'll begin training this chapter, but she'll just complain about it to Michael. I'm also very confident in this one at 90%.

We Will Not See Burt's Interrogation

You know how that Kc Wayland guy likes to torture us? He's kept us waiting to hear about Michael's arm. He waited for 2+ seasons until he showed us Ground Zero. He left the fate of Angel and Burt up in the air for so long. And now, he's going to take us away from Burt.

It's classic. Give 'em what they want and leave them wanting more. I feel the story is going to pull away from Burt and the Mallers...../colony.....for the time being. We will focus primarily on Ft. Irwin and The Other Tower. There's a lot of information CJ still has that she hasn't divulged. I feel like there's a bit more exposition to occur before we step towards the end of the season arc. We have finally resolved Season 2 dilemmas, now we need the last pieces of the puzzle to kick start Season 3's main story arc. What that story arc is....not certain, but I'm positive it won't involve information from Burt at this moment.

Will we see it eventually? Yeah I'd imagine so. However, I don't think it happens this time. 55% confident we don't Burt this chapter.

CJ Makes an Exposition Dump

I'm sure I could have phrased this title better, but I don't care.

I feel its been agreed by most of us here that CJ has a lot more information than she let on in the first place. We also agree that she sabotaged Victor's air tank. She knows more than she's letting on to. I feel like where we left her at the end of 28 leaves her not much room but to give us the info we're looking for out of her. And between her and Tanya, if there is a cure to be had they will have it between them. CJ figured out that the medication in Saul might be helping. Tanya put it there. Maybe there is a cure after all. Or maybe not a cure, but a way in which to inoculate the living from turning if bit.

If this is the case, that's a major boon for the living. Now if you succumb to your attacker you won't just turn around and attack your former allies. You'll just die like in any other war. Does CJ have room left to continue to manipulate Saul and Victor now that she's nearly killed them once? Twice? Nah. She has to be warming up to them more.

Or she's going to shoot them in their sleep. Either or. I'm 60% confident of an exposition dump from CJ this chapter.

We Will Not Go to Boulder

Not saying the characters who elected to go there don't go. I'm saying we don't get to experience it.

To me, I don't see a good enough reason to go to Boulder. I don't think the day to day lives of those people really make a difference to us as listeners. Kind of like the uneventful procurement of water by the tower....Boulder is an uneventful procurement of safety. For now. We will most likely get something from Boulder but it's way too early for us to go back to the people that just left us. All Kelly is going to do is try to get laid, Pegs will be all defiant and garden to her hearts content while a festering little bubble of spite/anger grows in her chest, and Datu will cry at Hope's successful eye surgery.

No Boulder. 100% Confident we don't see Boulder.

Now watch this is the first scene of Chapter 30.

We Discover Where Burt has Been...

Prediction for twitter user @radiopm.

I think the basic crux of this is we discover where the Mallers are. As WND hasn't been released as of publishing, you don't know how far I went to try to confirm my theory. But you will.

I believe we are safe in assuming the Mallers are at the colony for two reason. First, Durai went south. Durai knows about Angel enough to dictate Tardust film him. So they've obviously met back up. Secondly, they are in a place with solid medical facilities, and has a doctor who doesn't know enough to stay out of Scratch's way when she's on the warpath. This leads me to believe they have indeed reached the colony.

Now all that said, I don't think we're going back there and if we do....I doubt that would be revealed now. So I'm going to say 10% chance we discover where Burt is/where the Mallers are...

...if they're at the Colony now should we change their names to the Colonials?

Michael gets New Orders to Leave Irwin

Another prediction from the twitter verse. This is from @molonlabe88

Eventually, yes. I agree. But not quite yet. We still haven't established a new norm with Michael's position at Irwin. He needs to be proven trustworthy before I'd think especially bringing in an infected person, and not being able to persuade his friends to stay as he said he could. Michael is an unknown commodity at Irwin right now so I don't think he would be given marching orders yet. He will eventually. He has unique insight into the layout of LA and where things are and aren't. If retaking ground is truly a concern and priority of Kimmet's then Michael is the perfect person to lead a squad back to LA for some recon work.

But not yet. That story arc might happen at the end of this season or into next. 0% chance in my opinion that Michael gets orders that require him to leave Irwin.

Ah....feels good to knock the rust off and get back to predicting. Now its high time that Kc bitch slaps me down and makes it so every single solitary one of these is incorrect. But what would be the fun in being correct all the time?

That's all for now. Fair warning, this may hit the back burner again for 31. I'll be in the midst of moving out of my apartment and may not be able to spare the time to think about things other than bubble wrap, boxes, bins, midgets, trampolines, whipped cream and sauerkraut.....don't ask me how those things are connected.

See you next time! Enjoy Chapter 30!

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Voodoo Lounge- Chapter 29

nikvoodoo — Thu, 26 Apr 2012 16:43:53 GMT

So I realize I've been a flake when it comes to the Lounge and predictions this season. There's been a lot going on outside the world of the forum and it is taking it's toll on my attention span. Along these lines, I am not able to do a prediction post for Chapter 29. I'm not even going to attempt an unfinished symphony version. I just can't do it this time. I'm hoping to get back on track for chapter 30.

But don't let it be said I don't take care of you my fine feathered friends. Just because I don't have predictions for you, the very very least I could do is provide you with a chapter title. And that is listed below. Thanks for your understanding, and hope I can get back in the saddle next chapter.

Chapter 29's title is....

SPOILER

Beyond Our Walls.

This is pretty easy to saddle either of our current groups with. More specifically Fort Irwin. There has been lots of rumbling about Ft. Irwin-ites having a grasp on the larger scope of what has happened in this world, and this could very well be what is going to be talked about. Especially since Tanya flipped her shit, Michael is going to have a discussion with higher ups pretty soon.

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Voodoo Lounge: Chapter 28 Predictions (CONTAINS SPOILERS)

nikvoodoo — Wed, 28 Mar 2012 23:49:10 GMT

You'll be happy to know that The Voodoo Lounge aced it's health inspection last month. At this time, we are back and better than ever! And just in time, too!

What an awesome chapter!! So many great things to chew on, and there's more great we're alive action to be had! So let's sharpen our focus and set our well trained prognosticating eyes to chapter 28!

Chapter 28's title is....

SPOILER

Last Dying Breath.

Umm..holy shit, right? Is it Kalani's dying breath? Might we finally hear from Burt and Angel? Is it a vow from a tower member promising vengeance? No matter what.... Intrigue!

Kalani's story is interrupted

I had this sinking suspicion on WND that Kalani's story hit a potential stopping point. This title is throwing me for a loop with my thinking. I know we all want the conclusion to Kalani's story (if for no other reason we'd be able to move forward again instead of backtracking like some nay-Sayers lately), and i see it going one of two ways: the story gets interrupted now so we're left guessing or it finishes now in order to propel a new story line. That title really is screwing with my head.....I'm flipping my prediction from WND and saying 49% his story gets interrupted (meaning we hear the end).

Michael is questioned about the chopper

Since I lost this last time, I'll roll the dice once more. This hinges on the rest of Kalani's story not taking the whole chapter to finish. You can figure one part to get through the war, and the confession to Pippin. Maybe Michael gets pulled in part 3 and that's our chapter cliff hanger somehow. Hard to say this happens with much confidence, but it's gotta happen sometime damnit!...............I just can't say it happens this chapter. 48% Michael is questioned this chapter about the chopper.

CJ learns of Sean's fate

Victor is very good at the tight lipped warrior. Just ask Kelly ( she might argue his zipper is tighter....). So in order for this to happen, the even tighter lipped CJ is probably going to have to show an emotion beyond anger and defiance. Her opening up about her experience in the attack might put her there.

The hardest part of putting this as a positive is I don't think this info Saul (aka He with diarrhea of the mouth) can spill on accident. Maybe CJ tells them something about Sean's physical characteristics and it jogs something in Victor. We the audience and Ft Irwin folk know what Sean looks like. Victor probably hasn't made the connection yet. 60% CJ discovers Sean's fate.

CJ and /or Sean is/are revealed to be a prison guards/correctional officers

Enough slash marks? Feels like old DOS Prompts on here all of a sudden...

There are lots of people claiming that CJ and sean were members of the Eastern Bay staff. I like it. I'm taking it as a prediction. It makes the most sense as to why the mallers can't go to the other tower themselves. Any one of them could potentially be recognized and blow the whole thing and Kalani was the perfect option for believability and leverage.

It would also explain the general obsession the mallers appear to have with the other tower. I'd want a modicum of revenge on my prison guards too if suddenly there were no rules anymore. This again is hoping Kalani's story ends quickly. 55% again this comes to pass.

The Tower Duo in LA become a Trio!

In the exploration of CJ and her back story (which I am praying happens or I'm automatically at 50% on my predictions already), we may finally be able to find common ground with Saul and Victor. Maybe it's the idea of putting an end to the Mallers. Maybe some piece of information The Duo has will light a fire in CJ to fight again. I see CJ more and more as a very sad character. When she says she describes how she went to patch up the hold brick by brick I imagine her powering through the moment, while choking back tears. Alone. Solitary. And she's closing herself in with the intention of never letting anyone else in again.

It's going to take some doing to convince CJ to join the new collective in LA. But between Saul's passion and Victor's cool head I think they will be able to present a solid case to her. Now....the question is will it happen now? Another hard one to call. I'm going to edge to the positive this time. 60% CJ agrees to join with Saul and Victor.

Kalani will Explain How and Why Pippin was Killed

While we all presume that Kalani is the rat at this point I'm still not entirely convinced he did it on purpose....but I'm pretty sure now that he at least did it on accident. I am, however, infinitely confident he killed Pippin. Now we have to understand why this happened. Maybe it's the selfish reason I was talking about on WND during the Season 2 finale episode. He was protecting himself from having his story blown. Maybe it's something more nefarious. Maybe he somehow contacted Pippin to get Hannah brought to the Tower but Pippin sold him out. If that's the reason: Built in Bullet catcher excuse!!

I really want this to happen this chapter. If for no other reason, I want to hear Michael ream out King Datu the Resourceful for accidentally vouching for Kalani's whereabouts during the assassination. 85% Kalani's story covers Pippin's assassination and why he did it.

That's it for this chapter. It's getting harder and harder to predict where the story is going (also because it's really really hard to commit the time to writing this blog!). I'm going to work on a better system for the future and hopefully get back to my regular Monday release schedule. Thanks for reading! Don't forget to listen to WND episodes and listen to me blow past the obvious points like how TOWTM could possibly know CJ was a woman to say "Leave her." I never said I'm perfect, but every once and a while it's nice to be humbled by some very simple Occam's Razor logic!

I may or may not wrap up chapter 27 on it's own. I might just wait to put 27 and 28 together as one post....being a new dad is like...time consuming man!

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Voodoo Lounge: Chapter 27 Predictions Unfinished Symphony Edition (CONTAINS SPOILERS)

nikvoodoo — Mon, 27 Feb 2012 16:51:07 GMT

OWNER AND PROPRIETOR NOTE: I posted the closed for health reasons because I don't have a post that I'd really like to share with the populace. I wasn't able to really complete this chapter's blog post and I was always the student that refused to take partial credit for partial work. It's either completely done and I get full credit, or it's partially done and I sit on it and don't turn in anything and take the zero.

I got stuck at the point I was trolling around the forum looking for theories. But since I have some predictions done now, and I have the chapter title from Kc to reveal to you....I'm going to post what I've completed and if I have time I'll swing back in to finish them before we start Chapter 27 this Monday. If I don't....I'll just enter this into the Canon as my official prediction blog and it can be sort of like my unfinished Symphony.

With the major plot "twist" we were left with at the end of Chapter 26, I'm starting to get some nice ideas brewin' in ye olde noggin....and much like the way I've run out of different ways to say BAM to introduce myself on WND, I'm starting to run out of zombie puns to start the blog....This disheartens me as I do so enjoy a good pun. But alas and alack, it must not be in the cards anymore. Enough of the garbage, lets get to the real stuff!

Chapter 27's Title Is....

SPOILER

The Thirty First. The most knee jerk reaction is this is obviously in reference to a calendar date. But we're so early in the month (supposedly around the 4/5 of August) I'm not exactly sure how this works. Might it be a reference to Kalani in some way? Is it the headcount of some group? The next level research (aka basic google search) brings us to The Thirty First of February, an episode of the Alfred Hitchcock show. The synopsis is:

Originally Posted by imdb synopsis

An inquest rules a wife's death as accidental, but when the widower returns to work, it seems someone is tricking him, including a letter accusing him of murder and one of his wife's letters appearing, revealing she had a lover. Increasingly the widower's own mind tricks him, rejecting logical explanations, instead angrily confronting his co-workers.

Uh....not sure how that works into the story at all other than you can sorta fit 10 pounds of Kalani is the rat into a 9 pound bag....

Or even better.....it could be in reference to an army unit! Ooh.....Oh I think I like that one....I might have to hang my hat on the military explanation!.

We Discover the Fates of Burt and Angel
I'm just getting this one out of the way quickly. No. Not happening this chapter at all. Just think of how will that happen? Saul and Victor are now going to be distracted by this Kalani revelation from the end of chapter 26. We all know Kc doesn't rush through his moments. 0% chance we find out about Angel and Burt this chapter. (I may just retire this one soon....it's really starting to feel like a cop out).

Kalani Will Be Made to Look Like the Rat
As I have made my opinion crystal clear: I do not think Kalani is the rat. That does not mean he can't look like it for a while. Think about this for just a second: There are two separate groups with information regarding Kalani. Chinwe has Saul and Victor with a dossier on Kalani of some variety. Michael has a journal (or two) directly from Kalani. To me it is more exciting (and creates WAY more interest) if the information is conflicting. What I think is most likely to happen is Kalani will look like he's the traitor from the information Chinwe has, but will be vindicated in some manner through his journals. I know a lot of you feel (somewhat) the same way. 85% Kalani will be made to look like the Rat this chapter.

Chinwe is Revealed to be CJ
Much like we believe Burt to be alive, we all believe Chinwe to be CJ. But until it's said in the story: It's not fact. It sincerely is as simple as Saul making a connection between Kalani's origin story and this place they are in now and *poof!* CJ connection made. And I'm pretty sure Saul is the one to make the connection since he was in the room for the Michael gender mistake in Chapter 11 as Kalani described the Other Tower. It's risky for me to put so many positive predictions on one half of the story line, but I'm going to anyway. 70% Chinwe is revealed to be CJ. The unwritten brother prediction to this is the place Saul, Victor, and CJ are located is the Other Tower.

Michael Gets "Interrogated" About The Helicopter
It's going to be one of the first things the military command structure would want to know. Information. And Michael as the leader of this group that just crash landed there must have some of what they want. Interrogation may be a harsh word for what I think will happen with him....it's not like he's going to be tied to a chair and have a lamp burning his eye brows off or anything...but I feel like there might be questioning about it this chapter. I'd hope not necessarily forceful questioning because then we're rehashing the Colony all over again. But he's got to be questioned about where he found the helicopter and where it's original occupants ended up. 65% Michael gets questions about the helicopter.

....This post seems to be doing the exact opposite of the last one.....maybe it's time I start thinking of stuff I don't think will happen that are popular theories around the forum!

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Lounge closed for health inspections

nikvoodoo — Mon, 27 Feb 2012 15:06:47 GMT

Voodoo lounge is currently closed for health reasons. We may have to skip chapter 27. apologies. We will reopen once medically cleared.

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Voodoo Lounge- Chapter 26 Wrap Up (CONTAINS SPOILERS)

nikvoodoo — Mon, 20 Feb 2012 14:58:09 GMT

Oh me oh my........well.......wasn't than an interesting development??!!

My apologies for not giving you the chance to vote this last time. Again, I was really really crunched on time when posting the predictions and it wasn't until after part 2 posted when I realized....."Well crap......" but I promise this next time will be better. After all, I'll have eons of time to get the vote up what with the whole March 5 release date....But enough of that house cleaning stuff.....lets see if I redeemed myself from an atrocious Chapter 25 showing.

Chapter 26's Title Is....
"Who Overcomes" and I'd have to say it had to be in reference to Chinwe (allegedly and most likely CJ). If you believe that she is CJ...there is NOBODY else it could possibly be who overcame anything this chapter.

The Zombie at the end of Chapter 25 was a Trap/Test
I said it wasn't going to be because...seriously...what sense did that make? and it wasn't. I also said it wasn't a cling-on but that evidently was true. I'm still trying to figure out exactly how that zombie was able to hold on but I've given up. There have been way too many pictures and way too many conversations about damn helicopters around here that my head is going to explode. I win this one

Saul and Victor go to the wreckage of the Tower
It had to happen to progress their story. Besides, they called their shot and I just followed like the good obedient pup that I am. I win this one too!

The Shot Was Taken by a Tower Member
I feel as if I didn't rush these predictions, I probably would have noticed the perspective a little better. Oh well. Can't win them all (See: Predictions, Chapter 25) and this one wasn't even close. Michael dispatched their assailant all by his lonesome so I lose this one.....at least it's just the first one!

Ft. Irwin is Overrun with Zombies Only
It's kinda hard to get a read on exactly what the make up of Ft. Irwin is. But it is most certainly NOT overrun or else the drive back to the barracks would have been very treacherous. So while it's not overrun and I got the prediction right it's obviously still a place that requires security details.

We Discover the Fates of Burt and Angel
I said Y'all ain't gonna like me for this one....

....and I was right.

No mention of Angel at all. We as the audience know there were some hints at Burt surviving the Tower Attack 2.0 But like I said: No way we discover the fates of two long lost Tower members. I did up the percentage, but knowing where Victor and Saul just left off......that number may drop next time. I win this prediction....and hell I may just keep predicting this until I get it wrong just to get a cheap win every once and a while.....

The Tower Crew "Trades Up" Their Helicopter
This prediction regarding the helicopter trade up is something that is going to happen eventually but it's not going to be for a while. Michael, who is convinced there is no one he knows that he cares for left in LA, is going to have to be convinced somehow that there are people surviving there that he needs to retrieve. Until then......no more chopper rides. I won this one as well.

People Who Don't Read Previous Facebook Posts will cause me to pull out my hair

100%. And it still seems to hold true even a month after I made the prediction! This one still doesn't count.

Bonus Prediction: The Survivors at Ft. Irwin are Primarily Military
I will welcome a debate on this subject.

As of this moment, the only people we've seen at Ft. Irwin (other than the Towerites) are military. If it walks like a duck, and talks like a duck......shoot it because ducks aren't supposed to be able to talk!

Point being, we've only seen military, so I'm saying this is a win for me. If this turns out to be untrue, We can steal this for the loss column later.

So that's that! Let's tally up for this chapter:

6 wins
1 loss

Bringing my season tally to:
8 wins
5 losses

Don't expect the next Voodoo Lounge until a week before Chapter 27 begins. So I will be on hiatus just like the show for the moment. As always, give me your feedback in the comments below! If you have a prediction, put it here! If you have a question or want some direct conversatin' with the Voodoo.....well you can always get me on twitter or you can email me at zombiepodnikvoodoo@gmail.com.

Because my internet crapped out during WND #29, Britt and I will get to the Voodoo Lounge this week or next. And you should certainly pay attention to that because there might be a contest announced. Not to mention the sneak peak to Chapter 27 Voodoo Lounge predictions!

Thanks for reading. Or scanning to get to the tally and see how I did. Or going to the comments without reading and leaving a message.

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Voodoo Lounge: Chapter 26 Predictions (CONTAINS SPOILERS)

nikvoodoo — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 13:00:00 GMT

After last chapter, I'd say this is the time to regroup, reset my jaw, and attack chapter 26 with vigorous logic and determination. Usually, I start this blog post Monday night of Part 3's release and then I'll edit and tweak for about a week until the next Monday arrives....However by having the next sentence you'll know I'm cramming to get this in under the wire....

.....Damn shame about your 49ers, Rev......

Now that I've tipped my hand and revealed that I'm writing this blog entry around 11pm Eastern (about 9 hours before this publishes...) no more wasting time, no zombie joke.....lets go!

Chapter 26's Title Is....
If you don't want to know...don't click under the Spoiler Tag...

SPOILER

"Who Overcomes" is apparently the title. However, if this is Kc screwing with me...I might cry. He gave it to me after my abysmal performance in Chapter 25. Maybe he was throwing me a bone....This could mean anything or anyone. It could be Victor and Saul, it could be the helicopter crew, hell it could be unknown survivors at Ft. Irwin.....I'm just leaving this here for you to discuss on your own.

The Zombie at the end of Chapter 25 was a Trap/Test
This is one of the more popular theories right now. I have a couple issues with a zombie in this universe being a test. They are too smart, too fast and too strong to really be controlled (at least from what we've seen). Besides....at this point if there are survivors at Ft. Irwin what would make them think there would be anyone flying in to the base? If it hasn't happened by now it stands to reason it won't happen.

If it was a trap/test it means that whoever is living there was keeping a zombie at the helipad, was able to get there before the crew got too far into the base.......I just can't buy that. I think it's far more likely that there are survivors and zombies living in the same vicinity as each other just like in LA. 15% chance this was a trap or test

Saul and Victor go to the wreckage of the Tower
Again, you think it's obvious (they said they would) but remember chapter 19 focused entirely on The Colony and had nothing to do with the Tower. Do I think it's likely we ignore Saul and Victor this chapter? Not really. I think we split our focus again at some point.....at least I hope so because I'm saying 85% Saul and Victor go to the wreckage of the Tower.

The Shot Was Taken by a Tower Member
Last thing we heard was a shot in Chapter 25. And it's really hard to get a perspective on it. We know the Tower members have guns. But as many people have pointed out, that didn't sound like a rifle and that's the only gun we know they have at this time (I think...). Sounded to me like there was some distance to that shot. By leaving us with the gun shot as a cliffhanger, I feel like the message is meant to be "Who took the shot?" so I'm playing directly into Kc's hands, and I'm going to say it was not a Tower member. 10% The shot was taken by a Tower Member.

Ft. Irwin is Overrun with Zombies Only
Well....since I think someone other than the Tower took the shot, you can probably guess which way this prediction will fall.

Story wise, it makes nearly zero sense to have the base be overrun. Does this mean they now have to clear the base to make a new home? Do they turn around and go back to LA? Do they just get eaten and we go back to other story lines? I think someone is alive there. There are obviously zombies there, we know that. But I think someone has found a way to survive at Irwin. The area to control may be huge, but so long as they have a secure home, it doesn't matter. 10% chance Ft. Irwin is overrun with just zombies

We Discover the Fates of Burt and Angel
Y'all ain't gonna like me for this one....

Nope. Still don't think so. We're getting closer though. Saul and Victor are clearly becoming the key to this mystery. Litmaster posted this (and the previous idea) in the Prediction thread and I think it's actually an interesting idea. He....she...............it......believes that the reason we heard the post credit sequence of Chapter 24 is because of Saul and Victor. I don't know that I agree per se, but I like the thinking. And since the Mallers were no where to be seen in the immediate aftermath of the collapse and had to have been far enough away to not become behemoth fodder......it's actually not a bad idea to think the Mallers/Saul and Victor end up exploring the wreckage around the same time.

But still.....I'm not entirely sold that this is how it happens. Why would Saul specifically sit by while he has the chance to kill Scratch and get Lizzy back? Saul is a rash and irrational person when it comes to Lizzy as we've seen. So...long story short (too late): 35% we discover the fates of Burt and Angel.

The Tower Crew "Trades Up" Their Helicopter
Another theory I've seen posted on the forum.

Can't say I agree with this one at all mainly because I believe there are survivors there who would stake claim to the helicopters as their own. Besides, when you have King Datu the Resourceful you don't need new things. You need busted old things for him to fix. Might they trade up eventually? Yes. But they would have to gain some trust first. That generally won't happen in one chapter. And now that the Tower crew lacks a certain grizzled Vietnam Vet they lack a certain intimidation factor they once had to influence those who could easily be swayed. 20% the Tower trades up their chopper this chapter.

People Who Don't Read Previous Facebook Posts will cause me to pull out my hair

100%.

Seriously.....how hard is it to read posts below you?

Ok that last one doesn't count.

Enjoy the off week as much as you can!! If you thought Chapter 25 was boring, may Chapter 26 bring you more of what you were looking for!

Bonus Prediction: The Survivors at Ft. Irwin are Primarily Military
I was just reading back over my predictions....and man oh man. Cop outs! I don't think anything will happen! So lets tie this ribbon 'round the old oak tree.

We've already heard that there were folks in military uniforms (granted we've also been told that it doesn't mean they're alive). I already stated my belief that they were the ones to take the shot (granted after last chapter's horrible score....take that with a grain of....rock....salt....). But I think it's an interesting dynamic to see both a complex full of civilians (The Colony) and now we see a structured settlement run by Military folks. The Tower was a healthy combination of both. 75% Ft. Irwin's survivors are primarily military. Now...lets just hope they aren't douche bags like the guys in 28 Days Later

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Voodoo Lounge: Chapter 25 Recap

nikvoodoo — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 13:00:00 GMT

Another Chapter is in the books, and this is just about as bad as I've ever done. Ever. But it's to be expected. It's very hard to figure out exactly where the story is going to go off the Season ending Cliff Hanger. Yes we had thoughts and ideas, and yes.....one of those ideas happened to very much come to fruition....but hey. There were people that predicted that Tim Tebow and the Broncos would beat the New England Patriots last weekend.

Those people were just plain out and out wrong.

I'm just a little wrong in comparison.

The Helicopter Will Go To Fort Irwin
All that really needed to happen here was the helicopter stay grounded and the crew gets attacked harder in that field. Nope, King Datu the Resourceful just had to go and get himself redeemed and fix the damn chopper....I was wrong and so were you with a 12-3 vote.

The Journals Kalani Left Behind Will Be Read
This one really hinged on Lady being stuck in the backpack and as soon as I heard about the "Pass the Pup" game, I knew I was in trouble. When the helicopter went down, I knew I was in deep shit. When Riley went missing, I knew I was proper fucked. Journals obviously didn't get read so I lose again and once again so did the forum with a 9-5 vote.

The Story Splits Off in Narration 3 Ways
I'm prepared to fight this one to the death.

I said "the story would be told from three perspectives." And it was. Michael and crew, Saul and Victor.....and the unknown source that replayed the end of chapter 24, but from a location we didn't hear it from before. You can say "bullshit" and "shenanigans" all you want, but we heard what conversations sounds like inside the chopper. We've heard what they sound like outside the chopper. Now we've heard what a conversation sounds like some distance from the chopper. Was it Burt? Who knows. But my interpretation is that was perspective #3, and that means I win (cheaply) and so do you with a 10-5 vote.

We Discover the Fate of Angel and Burt
I said it was too early. Most people said I was crazy and we'd been waiting for 5 months to find out if they survived. Turns out....it was too early. No information about Burt and Angel. But Michael presumes them to be dead. Michael also presumes Saul and Victor to be dead....so...yeah. Here's your grain of salt. Take it.Win for me, and a narrow victory for the forum 8-7.

We FINALLY Figure Out Where Durai Went (aka: We see the Mallers new Home)
You know....I'm going to stop making this prediction, and that's the chapter it will come true. Once again....no mention of Durai. No mention of where the Mallers live....and I don't know why I didn't just say no to this. If I didn't think we'd learn about Burt and Angel, why in the blue blazes of hell would we know where the Mallers moved to? Stupid Nik......stupid. I lose and thankfully y'all are lemmings and follow me into the abyss and you lost too with an 8-5 vote.

Tanya Will Reveal What She Discovered
These types of predictions paid off in spades for me before. Not so much this time.

I connected the thought of Kalani's journals to Tanya revealing what she wanted to tell Michael before. But when we didn't get to Kalani's journal, I sorta figured we wouldn't get to this. I did get the tiniest glimmer of hope when Riley was writing in her journal and everyone started talking about all this emotional stuff......and then I got let down. Stupid Vet.....stupid. Final loss of the chapter for me and all those hopeful for answers to questions took this one on the chin too with a 12-3.

Not a good way to start the season for me here in the Voodoo Lounge.
2 Wins
4 Losses

Well that's the end of this wrap up. I thought it was a fantastic chapter, and it's putting us in the right direction for the Season story arcs. We have Saul and Victor trying to figure out where to go from here, Michael and crew are about to encounter.....who knows what.....but there we are. But here's a question I have: Add up those vote totals. They generally add up to 15. There were 17 people who voted...So uh......ouch. That hurts my head a touch......

Keep your eyes out this upcoming Monday for the Chapter 26 prediction blog. Send me your thoughts about the upcoming chapter in the comments below, In the Voodoo Lounge Predictions thread, Hit me up on twitter @nikvoodoo, or you can email me at zombiepodnikvoodoo@gmail.com.

I'll be on Episode 27 of WND to preview some of the Chapter 26 predictions (including the chapter title!!!), and I would have been in charge of keeping Britt and Greg in check with their awkward flirting. Turns out it's gonna be a sausage fest with Greg, Beez and myself. Look for it sometime next week! Also, I'm going to try to get the episode length back up to a respectable 1.5 hours. ;)

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Chapter 25 Predictions!! (Contains Spoilers)

nikvoodoo — Mon, 26 Dec 2011 13:00:00 GMT

Before we get started with the blog as you know and love it: Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, happy Kwanza etc etc. I hope you had a wonderful time with family this weekend, and that Santa brought you all the zombie survival gear you will ever need.

The wait is nearly over. The reason Monday's were created is returning. We've complained. We've begged. We've threatened hunger strikes. We've Occupied Wall Street all in the hopes of getting We're Alive back.

Finally......We're Alive.......RETURNS!

As you all remember we've lost a lot in Chapter 24. Kalani sacrificed himself for the good of the Tower. Angel and Burt may have met horrible fates at the hands of the Mallers. Some random redhead chick got a facial via a .38 Special.....

But we do not look to the past here in the Voodoo Lounge. We look to the future. So sit back and relax next to me on the white leather couches in the brand new modern Voodoo Lounge!

By the way, if you drop red wine on these bad boys, I know a certain well dressed individual with a hole in his hand I'd like to introduce you to....

For those new to the Lounge here's how this works. I come up with a prediction for the chapter (or I get the idea from you via email, twitter, facebook, forum post etc), and I make a statement. I'll give a brief (chortle) analysis of the prediction and why I think it will, or will not come to pass. Then I give it a percentage of happening. 50% is the break. Over, I think it will happen. Under, I don't think it will. The closer I am to 50% the less confident I am. If I say 85%, that's pretty up there. 55%....I'd rather take my chances at Russian Roulette. After the chapter concludes, look for my recap to round up the predictions and for the season running tally. Get it? Got it? Good!

The Helicopter Will Go To Fort Irwin
One of the more popular theories around this particular forum.

There are many reasons why the helicopter and survivors should go there. But there are just as many reasons it/they shouldn't. Remember that Michael, the Military Intelligence man, had planned on scouting it out first. In addition to that, you have left behind Saul and Victor (the only people that could presumed to be alive at this moment). Does Michael leave them? I'd wager no....no matter how much he wanted to punch Saul in the face for "setting up" Pegs in Chapter 24.

Going to Ft. Irwin right now presents a finality that I don't think Michael and crew would be comfortable with, and remember: Tanya is on the chopper and is not going to voluntarily allow Saul to be left behind. No way, no how. Are we going there eventually? Yeah I'd have to think so. But I really don't think we can do it so soon. Not happening: 5% the Chopper crew goes to Ft. Irwin

The Journals Kalani Left Behind Will Be Read
Well....they'll certainly be read.....but the question becomes.....when? I think it truly depends on the content of the journals he left in Bills desk. If the information is a wrap up to a storyline that played out earlier, it makes sense to tie a ribbon 'round it now and be done. If it's setting up something else...well, then it can come once the helo crew seemingly have no where else to move forward plot wise.

I still don't believe Kalani was the rat so I don't believe this would be a confession (I stand by my theory that the Rat is alive because it makes more sense to have a living person take that heat) and beyond that....I'm not sure what he would have written in there that he needed to keep it secret. Maybe it's how he's going to tell us who Hannah was (well....duh....he certainly can't tell us any other way!). I've gone around and around trying to think this one out and I'm going to say that they do get read this chapter because of Lady. Lady being in the backpack will need to get out at some point and an adult will find the journals then and read them. Possibly Tanya who now knows what everyone wrote in their journals. 70% Kalani's Secret Journal gets read this chapter.

The Story Splits Off in Narration 3 Ways
You may say this is a lame prediction, but I don't care. 3 factions. 3 story lines. Makes sense to me. Obviously Michael et al is one. Saul and Victor is the second. Lizzy with the Mallers is the third. The real "trouble" becomes how to weave the stories together. But that's not my job. We've heard all three of these groups narrate/tell the story from their perspective in Chapter 24 stands to reason we'll hear from all three in chapter 25....the caveat to this prediction is if we don't hear from three, we might just stick with one story the whole chapter (a la chapter 19) 80% the story will be told from three different perspectives in Chapter 25.

We Discover the Fate of Angel and Burt
It is widely accepted/presumed that the two people discovered in the post credit sequence of Chapter 24 were Angel and Burt. Again, we know Burt had a fall that he potentially could have survived since the adjacent Tower to the Tower was shorter. We don't know where Angel was when the Tower started to collapse, we just know he wasn't on the roof when Michael was looking.

However unlikely the odds are, it appears that they both survived their horrible ordeals. We know for certain that the second one found was alive because they were breathing. But with all that said....I don't think we'll know this chapter. That would be like a magician making an Elephant disappear and then tell you five seconds later how they did it. It's way too early to discover if they are alive or dead. We need to stew over it for a while. 15% we find out the fate of Angel and Burt.

We FINALLY Figure Out Where Durai Went (aka: We see the Mallers new Home)
Now that Scratch has fulfilled her vendetta against the Tower (and picked up a pair of trophies in the process), it's high time she headed home. Durai is already asking questions about her whereabouts and despite working with idiots who don't question her....she's got Lizzy there to sew the seeds of discontent. Scratch can't stay out much longer or risk retribution from someone who shouldn't be trifled with (though if you remember my prediction from WND 22, I think she will trifle with him later on...). 65% We see the new Maller home.

Tanya Will Reveal What She Discovered
Remember way back when? Back when the Tower stood? And some douche nozzle named Pippin was sent in to undermine the tower's defenses and ferret out Pegs? Remember how Michael and Tanya got into a fight about his 'tude and how she had something to reveal regarding the journals?

Yeah me too!

If Kalani's secret journal gets read, it would bring the subject of journals back up. Especially with Tanya there reading a secret journal....it's a pretty short mental leap to go from "Secret Journal" to some discrepancy in the journals she scanned. I hate it when I do this, but I'm all in on Kalani's journal's getting read now and thus, I'm all in on this prediction too. I went 70% above, I'll do it here too. 70% Tanya says what she found when scanning the journals.

So that's that. Come on back the Friday following part 3's release for the recap. Remember you can follow me on twitter @nikvoodoo and send me your predictions there. I'm always connected to email zombiepodnikvoodoo@gmail.com, and of course the Voodoo Lounge threads in Episode Discussions. Don't forget to go to the Voodoo Lounge Poll and chose if you agree or disagree with my predictions!

Don't party too hard New Year's Eve and Day. You've got some where to be at 12pm Eastern on the 2nd!

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Attached Thumbnails

The Voodoo Lounge Returns......Soon!

nikvoodoo — Mon, 14 Nov 2011 15:00:00 GMT

Click the title to open the post. Epic is contained within and won't preview on the Blog homepage.

The Voodoo Lounge Returns......Soon! from Nikvoodoo on Vimeo.

P.S.- Just in case you weren't aware, I'm only slightly an egomaniac.

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Survival, Inc. #3: Finland and Riverside, CA

nikvoodoo — Tue, 06 Sep 2011 17:16:38 GMT

Nikvoodoo: So Revolver, before we get started: How about that new opening graphic??!! Pretty sweet, eh?

TCM Revolver: I like it. Kind of a survivor man gets his ass beat by zombies kinda feel.

Amazing what a quick google search can provide! Thanks to Kc for assisting us making it look awesome!

Now...on to the blog!

Summer is coming to a close. Labor Day is upon us in the U.S., beaches are closing up, children are going back to school.....I'm about to kick your ass in the Zombie Haters Fantasy Football League....

The closing of the beaches is a sad thing, means the "intelligent" people on the Jersey Shore are packing up and going back to the rest of the USA. That just leaves Snooki... *shudder* And as far as that Fantasy Football comment, your a Bills fan... nough said.

First of all, it's "you're" when you trying to say You Are. Second, New Jersey went through enough last week with Hurricane Irene...leave them alone. And third, I will have you know that that there are at least 4 really decent fantasy sleepers on the Buffalo Bills.....meaning there's nobody awake to actually play the games every Sunday.....

But we're talking about forum extra curricular activities. Let's get back to doing what we do best: Destroying people's survival plans for their own good! Where to first this installment?

FINNLAND!!! The home of... wait, what comes from Finland again??

Uh...... well.....sadly the only thing I used to think of when I thought of Finland is the former professional wrestler turned politician, turned self inflicted bullet catcher Tony Halme aka Ludvig Borga

May he rest in as much peace as that man can ever find...

Whoa! Did it get dorky in here, or is it just me??

.....Yeah, maybe just a little.....okay...a lot....

But thankfully, since joining the forum I now have a new way to remember Finland! And that is Luna Guardian! So let's continue our tour of the world and check out Luna Guardian's map.

Before we do any grading of any kind, we would both like to tip our hats to Luna Guardian, who not only presented us with a map, but also gave us 3 very detailed contingency plans should anything go awry with his main plan. His, thus far, is the most thought out survival plan we've encountered. But being so thought out, has actually trapped him in ways we don't think he considered.

You'll note in his map that there is a huge concentration of dots in Southern Finland, and then a few straggler dots to the north. Well, Luna intends to raid his home city of Espoo (second most populous city in Finland) as well as Helsinki (the most populous city in Finland) before heading North to "The Stronghold" which, as you can see....is in the middle of Bum.....well you get the idea.

As always, we grade on Population first. This is the true indicator of how survivable your situation is. So as I said, Espoo and Helsinki are the two most populated cities in Finland, but the fact that he's planning on incorporating nearly the entire country in his escape route opens the debate floor up to this question: Should we consider the entire population of Finland and not just the two cities? To which I say: Yes. Even though his plan to get north to his stronghold involves sailing there and avoiding everyone on land, it opens up bad possibilities. There are 5 million some odd people in Finland, and the unofficial failing line of demarcation is 1 million people. So Luna gets an F in terms of population

I concur. Surviving in one city will be hard enough� There is no way to have to contend against an entire country. I can imagine the people in Finland are WAY more friendly than Americans. In a survival situation, it�s every person for themselves.

Luna's plan is also unique in that his plan to raid both Espoo and Helsinki is a great and solid plan but plans to leave all that behind and go to where there is nothing else he could raid from. If he were to run out of major things like medical supplies, he'd have to retrace his steps back to Southern Finland from his stronghold to get them. There's nothing near his location. We again appreciate the thoroughness of the plan, but going so far away from the major metro areas (despite the obvious advantage of distancing yourself from the masses) means you put a huge limit on what you can obtain easily. So if he were to stay in the city, I'd give his plan an A. But by leaving, I want to give him an F. Since he's planning on raiding before he leaves, I think proximity to resources averages out to a C.

Sorry dude, no way. When this whole thing takes off, you HAVE to some food that is ready to go. Canned food, packaged food, frozen food, etc. I�m not buying it. What are you going to do until you bag your first wild game? What about the trip up to the stronghold? If you are out hunting and break your ankle? If you don�t have the right supplies, you are boned. And as a hunter, I know there are some days you come home empty-handed. OR, got forbid you run out of ammo. To even get enough food to sustain you long enough to get set up, you would need a large truck. Not exactly ideal for navigating through a zombie apocalypse. This in my book is a big fat F

I totally agree, but his plan is to raid as much as he can in the populated area first, before he sails. So he'd have supplies to start off with before he gets up north....I think we're agreeing that leaving the metro area makes this a total failing proposition, but I think the plan to raid before he leaves southern Finland should give him something. If you don't agree with the C, what if we go to a C- or a D+? It can't be an out and out fail.

I can agree on a D+. Reason being, you will be raiding at the same time EVERYONE else. Supplies will be short and chaos will be at it�s max. Unless you are going to be a total ass-hat and not offer to take any other survivors with you, you will need a large vehicle to haul enough, food, ammo, water, propane, etc to get you off to a good start.

Well yeah, but the raiding at the same time as everyone else is going to happen no matter what. I'll say Espoo provides plenty as it's his home city, but probably will be slim pickings by the time he makes it to Helsinki. We're never gonna see eye to eye on this. So let's just go ahead and stick with the only grade we've been able to remotely agree on and say D+.

So now that we've taken the icy travel up north in Finland, lets talk about Luna's Tower that he's dubbed the Stronghold. Much like Hardkor, we've been given a Tower with no picture because google cars probably don't do so well on frozen tundra. But Luna was kind enough to provide us with the basic idea of what it looks like:

So immediately, it concerns me because it's a log cabin. And log cabins don't provide much in terms of protection. However, the really nice advantage (and we have to take him at his word on this) is that the cabin is literally in the middle of nowhere dead center of a field. Should something approach you would be able to see it from a great distance and have time to react. And in contrast to so many of the Tower's we've graded so far, windows are not really a hindrance here. There's only a small handful of them. And there's a nice balcony that you can sit on and watch the sun rise every morning with a hot cup of coffee and a bran muffin....

Luna's stronghold isn't ideal to me (I'd much prefer concrete of some variety), but being able to see what's coming and being in such an isolated area add some points. I'd be willing to say B- for the Stronghold.

I agree with your B- , but for different reasons. A log cabin is a great stronghold. Granted, it doesn�t have 14 stories to set up traps, or whatever. But those walls are solid wood. Unlike a regular house which is layers of plywood, insulation, and sheetrock. These walls are frickin logs that have been stripped of their bark and pressure treated. All you have to worry about is barricading the windows and doors and your set. �see, I�m not always negative nancy :)

I guess I have lingering fears from the Evil Dead series...any log cabin to me equals Deadites and a possessed hand beating you half to death until you saw it off with a chainsaw while maniacally laughing...and lord help the tree that tries to rape me....

Next, and last, is proximity to natural resources. He's got water nailed down. There's a river that passes very nearby to the Stronghold location. Finland is also famous for reindeer, so Luna and whomever he has with him can survive on Dasher, and Dancer, and Prancer, and Vixen year round. Disadvantage has to be that there wouldn't be much to do about farming that far north. I'm sure you could find some crops you can farm, but it's got to be limited by the shorter warm months coupled with the general lack of precipitation during those times. Remember: Finland is on the same plane as Alaska. They are very similar in climate make up. So the animals and water are great! The farming is......not so good. I think that warrants a B-.

No objections here. Farming will be essential in order to survive. There are certain minerals and nutrients you need from veggies. There will be stuff that grows in the wild, but you have to know what you are looking for. If not, you may end up eating the wrong thing and� game over.

Here's the Final Grade for Luna Guardian and his Survival Plan in Finland:
Population: F
Tower (aka Stronghold): B-
Proximity to Resources: D+
Proximity to Natural Resources: B-

Giving Luna Guardian the passable, but not stellar grade of C-.

Finland is just one hell of a rough place to try to survive in. And as the Luna said on WND episode #22: They are still trying to master the fine art of fire....good thing he was joking or else that would be an automatic F grade overall no matter what!

Ok, I'm not gonna lie we've been to two of the world's four corners with the last two locations, lets go back to the good ol' U.S.A. And actually, we're going to next door to the location we all know and love as the setting of We're Alive, and we're headed to Riverside, CA for GodofInsanity's (GoI) map.

Mr. Revolver...your initial thoughts?

I like it. There looks to be a plethora of supplies nearby. And if all else fails, he could head west and meet up with Michael and the tower folk

Riverside is a medium sized city with just a hair over 300,000 residents calling it home. That's just over double what Cupcakezombie has to deal with and she got a B+, but it's still on the low end. I think we can just knock the + off and give GodofInsanity a B.

Ok....now everyone go to the "tower" and by Tower I mean massively huge complex! Like....really really massively huge. First look at that thing via satellite...ok now take a Street View tour of the facility and realize that thing is basically two huge avenue blocks unto itself. Now, there's a couple obvious advantages: It's a frozen food processing plant, so you can steal from your Tower to feed yourself (I'm sure that's a bonus to be tacked on later), it has some very nice already built natural defenses like tall stone fences, multiple buildings to hide in, and the buildings themselves (with the exception of the front facade) look pretty solid.

But by golly are there a lot of weaknesses. Starting first with the sheer size of it! I'd say it would be neigh upon impossible to firmly secure the entire perimeter of this place and keep it safe. Especially that parking lot which is basically wide open into the facility itself, and protected only by a chain link fence. I know defending a position is easier than overtaking one, but man....you'd need a massive amount of support to try to protect this place from an attack. And much like CCZ's Tower in Dunedin, it's an island and can be surrounded making defense really really hard.

GoI has made considerations for the the obvious weak entrances (the "store front" as it were), but to count on a chain link fence is.....not great. I realize the fence is topped with barbed wire but chain link fences are used to act as a sheer annoyance to most people in normal days. If a horde of zombies is pressing against that fence, it's coming down and it's coming down rapidly.

I want to give it a good grade because of the ingenuity, I really do, but I cannot conceive of how you can keep two avenue blocks, and that many buildings secure. I have to say we go low and say D+

I am hesitant to agree with you. But I see your points. First starting off, it will be a pain in the neck to fortify. After you allow in other survivors and get some people that can help with you, it would become much easier and more comfortable. My counterpoint is that it looks like you could section this baby off and secure it in stages. I would like to up grade him and give him a C. But I suppose we can meet in the middle and give him a C-. If you down, that is.

You'd have to work really hard to secure the backside of that facility with so many loading doors (I count at least 7 or 8), butted against that flimsily protected parking lot. It looks to me like that entire building is internally connected. So once they are in, they are in. And seriously...it's an entire city block, and it can be surrounded! C- is unacceptable to me. I thought D+ was being generous, but the more I have to argue, the more I want to give it an F because I'm thinking of worse scenarios than I had originally. Let stick with the D+.

But fret not my friends: For GoI lives in a city, therefore his score for proximity to resources is bound to be pretty solid....and it is. Now comes into play all those things that his chosen Tower provide him: Food, water (I'd assume there's water in that factory....there always seems to be a tank of water in every factory), propane tank, lots of diesel trucks, freezer trucks....and we still haven't left the walls of his Tower.

Now outside of that his resources are a little more spread out than I like (but then again, I'm the spoiled NYC brat who has repeats of everything every two blocks), but still we have access to medical supplies, gasoline, hardware (both of the Home Depot and of the Rambo varieties), and much much more. Being spread out over 7 miles isn't ideal to me but it's certainly not horrible. I also adore the addition of the Secret Service and FBI field offices as places to raid. Nice touch! I would say it's a B+ for resources since they are so spread out, but like I said his Tower provides so much that would alleviate the need to leave for certain things meaning we get a bump up to A-.

It�s an urban area. Not much of a surprise here. Some of the travel isn�t ideal, but not horrible. When the going gets tough, there are a lot of houses to raid. I agree with your grade.

Now onto the final category for Riverside, CA: Natural Resources. There are two natural sources of water: The River (which I'd assume gave the town it's name) and a lake (which apparently contains fish) nearby. And uh...that's kinda it really. The area of Riverside looks pretty barren so farming might be out of the question on a large scale, but there are a couple of parks nearby that could be used Colony style and converted. Being a little closer to nature might provide more animals to hunt, but they weren't mentioned so we might have to go about as low as we did in NYC for natural resources and say C-.

I dig that vibe you are laying down, but it needs a small town point of view. There are mountains to the east and a river to the west. Now I�m not sure that you would want to drink out of that river, but there is a chance it will have some fish in it. As far as those mountains go, there has to be wild life up there. It may not be deer or any other big game. When it comes to survival, anything goes. I would imagine you will find squirrels, chipmunks, rabbits, etc. Probably some birds also. I say we upgrade him to a solid C.

Man...you and I just can't agree on anything this time.

I really don't feel like the mountains provide all that much in this case. It's not like the mountains by you that are flush with greenery and thus supports a vibrant ecosystem. It looks to me like that mountain range is an elevated desert. I feel like the barren nature of that mountain range can't even knock the - of the C for me. NYC has millions of sewer rats one could live on, would that have given me a better grade? There's also millions of pigeons one could eat too and they are certainly in everywhere. Besides, by it's very nature, deserts have trouble supporting life. That's going to make hunting so much harder if you have to spend 90% of the day tracking the one animal in your general area. But...I got my way with his Tower's D+, I'm willing to budge this time. We'll compromise and give it a C.

So here's the Final Score for GodOfInsanity's plan in Riverside, CA
Population: B
Tower: D+
Proximity to Resources: A-
Proximity to Natural Resources: C

Which gives us the final grade of C+. It's not ideal, but it's still a solid Urban Score.

Before we depart Riverside, I want to get geeky in here once again: Click on GoI's first Veterinarian listing and then make sure you're on the Satellite view. Ok now go southeast to the Grocery Store and then due south from that until you have the Trees centered in your window. and zoom in not quite all the way but about 80% magnification.....Tell me that doesn't remind you of the original Legend of Zelda overhead map!

Revolver, that brings #3 to a close. We already have one entry for our fourth installment So we are looking for one more entry to make it into that Survival, Inc. How does one go about getting that done?

First they need to make their map using Google Maps. If you don't know how: Go here for instructions. Once you've done your work, it's time for us to do ours. Email the map link to zombiepodnikvoodoo@gmail.com.

Perfect. That's it for #3. Look for #4 later on in September....though it might be a little more hostile. Week 4 is the week Revolver and I go head to head in fantasy football.....we might not be talking after that week.

I came here to do two things, drink beer and kick ass. Looks like I'm all out of beer.

DON'T SING IT! BRING IT!!!

....Anyone know any good mediators?

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Survival, Inc. #2: Sparta, IL and Dunedin, New Zealand

nikvoodoo — Fri, 12 Aug 2011 16:00:00 GMT

Nikvoodoo: Mr. Revovler, despite some hiccups in terms of clarity, I'd say the first edition of Survival, Inc. was a resounding success.

TCM Revolver: Yea, we forgot that there are about 18 billion different types of zeds out there.

Well despite the miscommunications about the types of zombies, lets be clear now: We are talking a generic Zombie apocalypse where there are hordes of some kind of zombie attacking your location. We aren't calling them fast, slow blah blah. We are simply talking about your survivability in a horrible situation. And thus far, New York City is a sucky situation vs....uh...Podunk City? Is that where you live?

yea... To get to my town, drive until you hit B.F.E. then keep going 20 or 30 miles.

Well, you are a thriving metropolis compared to our next submission to Survival, Inc. That being the hometown of our very own Hardkor, who lives in Sparta, IL. And here is Hardkor's map!

We are going with the belief that approximately 5% of the population survives in the Z-day world here because...well it tends to create nice round numbers. Hardkor lives in an area that has only 4,500 people. Now I figured, oh well that obviously can't be true. After all, there has to be towns surrounding him right, Rev?

Ok well I panned out on Google Maps and I'd be shocked if in the immediate area could equal the 4,500 in Hardkor's area. 5% of his population gives a grand total of 225 other survivors. You got an A for your population, but we just got our first A+ grade for Survival, Inc. That is a very highly survivable number. Aside from the fact you still have to deal with 95% Zed Heads trying to eat you of course.

Hardkor has decided to make his home a former paper factory. And since his town is so small and out of the way (Again, see A+ rating for population) it actually isn't even on street view, so we can't see what the place looks like. So we have to go by Hardkor's description from his application e-mail:

As my "Tower" I have chosen an old printing plant that closed in the mid-90s. The building is basically a large concrete and steel monstrosity on the southeastern edge of town. The inside is mostly wide open and compartmentalized so parts of the building can be sealed off if not needed. There are three main entrance points: The main entrance to the office area, a side door used by workers, and a loading dock area with large "steel shutter" style doors. The office area can be sealed off with the side door used as a main entrance and the loading dock used for storage.

And also the description on the map that you can read yourself.

So basically, a big concrete warehouse that may or may not still have printing equipment still inside.

Ok ok ok�. First things first. That building is frickin HUGE!! It will be very hard to secure / keep secure. Wide open spaces of that magnitude are a recipe for disaster. There is no cover, nowhere to hide and a lot of room for zeds to get a running start. My next concern, it looks to be a single level. If you have a huge hoard of zeds, and they figure out they can get on top of this structure, you have access points that are weak, or that you had never even considered.

I have to agree with you, Rev. If his Tower were to be breached, it's absolutely lights out. Open internal spaces are the death of you because there's no where to hide, and nothing to have the waves of zombies break against. It's just a straight shot to your position.

But it's not all that bad. Concrete building is obviously better than someone who chooses a house to hold up in. In addition to the security of concrete, there aren't a lot of entrances (and unlike most places would have a lack of windows to secure), but my concern truly falls to the fact that he's not planning on shoring up all those entrances. I mentioned in my Survival, Inc. evaluation that loading bay doors are weak and require extra special attention. By not addressing this issue, it drops the grade of his Tower to a C+. Without explosives, the walls probably won't come crashing down around him, but not securing the flimsy loading area is a major setback. And like Revolver said, Large spaces are hard to keep secure, and he's not going to have a lot of help near him to assist...after all, there's only 225 other people in his town that survived.

Ok, so what about Resources, Rev? Stores and things of that nature? Does Hardkor improve in that regard?

uuummm�.no. Small towns lack the availability that larger towns do. There is that strip mall of �gun stores� That has to be a plus. There is also a hospital, pharmacy and a walmart. 225 people will go thru a lot of food, and depending on injuries, medical supplies.

True...that series of gun shops really is the only saving grace to protect Resources as a failing grade...Man...this isn't looking good so far. We've got an A+, a C+, and a now proximity to resources score that is a C-.....please tell me we can save this man!!!

It's not looking so good....but there's potential because he doesn't live in a city

The biggest thing to find during any sort of End of Days Scenario is water, and once again the small "podunk" area comes through by being able to farm and toil the land, while also providing animals to hunt (that don't require a trip to the zoo and an elephant gun). And especially by virtue of that Water Tower right next to the Tower chosen, I'd say that will net Hardkor a solid A for Natural Resources.

So to wrap up Hardkor's plan and Sparta, IL:
Population: A+
Tower: C+
Proximity to Resources: C-
Proximity to Natural Resources: A

Bringing the final grade to a very good passing grade of B.

Moving away from Illinois now, we are going International for the first time! We're headed not exactly to a land down under�.but we are going to its next door neighbor to visit CupcakeZombie (CCZ) and Dunedin, NZ.

Dunedin, NZ is a relatively small city, though it is larger than Revolver's Podunk-opolis. From what I find there is about 130,000 residents of Dunedin which would leave 6,500 survivors in addition to CCZ. We gave Revolver an A for 3,000 survivors, she's got double the "trouble" so we'll call it a B+. Sound about right, Rev?

I have always wanted to try Hell Pizza!

....I rarely know what you're talking about....

Anyway, I see she has a Tower marked. Let's take a look, shall we? One of the very first things I note is the fire escape up the entire side of the building. Meaning you have to do one of two things: You need to secure it so it can't be used against you (block every window it's connected to, secure the ladder that reaches to the ground so it's IMPOSSIBLE to reach from the ground without assistance) or you need to destroy the structure entirely and drop it off the building. But honestly, that issue is much smaller than the one I discovered when I took a streetview tour around the block. Cupcake's chosen Tower can be surrounded on both sides meaning you will have to defend yourself on two fronts. Two very vulnerable fronts.

It's a good concept, but all those windows... I know I had a lot of windows on my tower but damn dude!

Now, I know you don't like the amount of windows, Rev�but that's going to happen basically no matter what Tower you chose. Buildings have windows. Windows are a necessary evil and we know we have to block those out regardless. Windows can be blocked off, but this is going to have to happen on both sides of the Tower. To me, that's a huge drawback. That's a lot of work. And could result in a lack of materials around to actually make it happen. I think I'm counting like 10 windows connected to the fire escape plus 4 floors�.on two sides�.I think we have to go C.

Lets make this a little rosier since we've just torn down her Tower: She is in close proximity to a Chocolate factory and that's kinda awesome.

Chocolate Factory FTW baby!! But you can't drink chocolate (unless you want to end up dying of diabetes before the zeds get ya). There seems to be an abundance of water around her, but something just doesn't seem right...

Her Tower is really close to the water, but the huge draw back to that water is revealed when you zoom out. It's Salt Water. Now of course, we know salt water can be made potable once you've treated it, but that's an extra step and to do it on a large enough scale would become a large (albeit necessary) hassle. So that lowers the score, but then again, the brewery nearby has a fresh water spring below it, so that might cancel it out the salt water deduction.

Not to mention the HUGE supply of beer!!!

I am glad to know that even though the world is collapsing around you, your priorities are in order.

Now Rev and I had this argument when discussing the Spring at the Brewery: That spring is really deep and once the electricity goes away that pump isn't going to work to bring the water to the surface. But, take a page out of the Tower playbook and attach a generator to it and BAM! Water!

But in addition to all that, saltwater=fish so she has a sustainable protein source. Though being more of an urban setting could be a draw back in terms of growing things. CCZ has said that there is farmland about 10-12km out from her Tower, so that's serviceable, but you can't count on being able to go that far consistently. So since it seems like so many of her natural resources come with conditions and variables I'm willing to go as high as C+. I'd love to go higher but there's just so many variables, especially when it comes to water.

I'm willing to agree. The harbor is one thing that a lot of other people don't have. With that ocean there and a fishing pole, you would essentially never run out of food. (but will probably get REALLY sick of seafood).

You obviously don't live near the coast. If the seafood is fresh you will never get tired of it. Of course, I don't eat fish literally for every meal but there are indigenous people in villages around the world survive solely on fish and they seem to do just fine.

Let's deal with something easier: Stores. Dunedin is a metropolitan area and as such has lots of good things to raid including those things we desire the most: Pharmacies and hospitals. Medical supplies can't be over looked. But in addition to those things, there are gas stations and even more stores than are labeled on the map which are beneficial to the cause. And like any good city: It has a gun shop for those who desire to take on the hoards of death knocking on your front door.

So since my neighborhood set the standard and I got an A (though it probably should have been an A+ to be honest),CCZ Scores an A-. There's just not quite as much stuff around as there is in NYC, though the stuff she does have near her is excellent!

So Here's the Score for Dunedin, NZ and Cupcakezombie's Plan:
Population: B+
Tower: C
Proximity to Resources: A-
Proximity to Natural Resources: C+

Which is going to bring Cupcakezombie's Survival Plan in just barely on the B- side, very very close to a B.

Now as we learned last time, Rev, this is the part where everyone on the forum starts to disagree with us and point out how we should consider factors X, Y and Z. What should those people do?

Time to nut up or shut up... make your own map, sent it to us >>> Zombiepodnikvoodoo@gmail.com<<< And put your plan where your mouth is!

If you don't know how to make the google map, we've already created a handy, dandy thread detailing how to make it and that thread is located here. We already have a submission for Survival, Inc. #3 so if you want your plan reviewed later this month, get hoppin' on those plans!

Congratulations to both Hardkor, and Cupcakezombie on their ability to survive the zombie apocalypse with solid passing grades. The bill for our services are already in the mail and on their way to you...We accept cash, checks, or money orders only. No credit.

...And CZ, I am still waiting on my crepes!

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Chapter 24 "The Harder They Fall" Wrap up (CONTAINS SPOILERS!)

nikvoodoo — Mon, 01 Aug 2011 12:00:00 GMT

.................................................. .................................................. .................................................. .................................................. .................................................. .................................................. .................................................. ..................................................

........ummmm holy shit balls. That was.....wow....Thank you Kc, Shane, Cast, Crew everyone! What a great way to leave us hanging for the break! I loved the post credit sequence (that'll learn all those folks that don't listen all the way through!), Kalani's final flight nearly made me cry on the subway (which is not necessarily recommended, ROCK ON KEVIN FLOOD!), and when I heard the heightened voice of Jim Gleason describing Burt coming across (before the line snapped) I knew something terrible was about to happen....man. Just awesome! There are some predictions from the past that I suppose in retrospect should have come back for this one, but I got 14 to get to right now, no more dawdling, lets see if the Voodoo Lounge leaves season 2 with a winning record!!!

Saul Will Attempt to Trade Pegs
I could try to massage this into a win, but it's obviously not one. Saul was thinking more rationally than I gave him credit for. I do not care that I may have alienated the hardcore Saul fans by my insistence that he was a bastard. But here's something I would definitely like to point out: Michael definitely believed it was possible, and I almost got the inkling that if put in the same situation.....Michael might have traded Lizzy for Pegs. Don't know if that's actually true or not, but Michael projected that onto Saul really hard....anyway, Prediction for me is a loss, but a win for the forum at 5-4.

We Learn Saul is Bluffing
There's no way we can learn he's bluffing until next season, I said. Saul is such a bastard and is going to trade Pegs, I said Nope, no way now how he's actually bluffing, I said! Or we can learn in the first 12 goddamn seconds that he's bluffing. As soon as I heard "I got her" without hearing how he got her, I knew I was hosed on these two predictions. Lose again, forum wins again 6-3.

Burt Dies Saving Lizzy/Saul (The Heroic Sacrifice Theory)
Well, Burt might be dead....and honestly probably should be dead, but he didn't do it in a sacrificial way, and he certainly didn't do it saving Saul or Lizzy. But of course, we didn't see the body so.... I win, so did the forum 9-1. Britt wins too....she's been calling for his death for a while. At least until he turns up in traction in the Maller encampment.

NOW There Will Be A Massive Zombie Attack
Well, if I didn't consider what happened at the hospital to be a massive zombie attack, I certainly can't finagle it into a win here either. The zombies present weren't so overwhelming that the Mallers had to leave...and they were on the ground with the zombies. They were capable of holding the zombies at bay, so no massive zombie attack. Now...if you ask Steven and any of the other Red Shirts if there was a massive zombie attack, I bet you'd get a different answer. But we never liked them anyway. Loss #3 on the blog for me, and a loss for the forum who went 9-1 with me P.S. Who here didn't cheer out loud when Steven got his block knocked off by Burt?? That was awesome!

The Rat Is Revealed
Told ya! The rat isn't coming back unless they are forced to, and nothing forced their hand yet. We got a little more contradictory information about the rat again: Was it Kalani and this Hannah situation?? But Scratch said something about a woman a few chapters ago?? WTF!!!!???? Is the Rat a tranny? Ok, that's it! Everyone drop trou and lets see what you got! Either way, no rat so Win for the blog, but a draw for the forum with a 5-5 split vote.

The Tower Leaves for Fort Irwin
We technically don't know their final destination....is it most likely Fort Irwin? It is the only plan they had in place since Michael returned from the Colony: Get a chopper, get to Fort Irwin. Might they stop somewhere else? Yeah sure but there really was no mention of where they were going.....

....They're going to Fort Irwin. The way I worded the prediction (on purpose) was if they even take off in the helicopter with their plan partially intact, meant I was going to lose. So I do, and so does the forum 6-3.

There Will be Only One Working Helicopter
Uh.....yeah. Legend...........wait....for....it...........ARY way to have one helicopter not be functional. Win for me and the forum (9-1). Good prediction, Gd!

The Mallers Located the Other Tower
No mention of where the actual sane portion of the Mallers might be located. The only mentions we got of Durai were in passing. But sad thing to note, whatever scanner/radio set up the Mallers have to monitor the Tower is mobile. Either that or Scratch is just that much of a psychic she knows what channel the Tower is on at all times. I got it wrong (I see a pattern forming thus far....) but at least you were right there with me again 6-4.

Bricks Turns on The Mallers
He didn't, but something kinda interesting is it almost seemed like Tar wanted to turn on Scratch specifically when he barked out the "Hash it out" stuff. I didn't think anyone would give Scratch that much lip...ever. Bricks seemed most perturbed about going behind Durai's back, and we know how much Durai hates being lied to...wonder who Scratch pins this little plan of hers on.....Once again, I lose, and so did the forum 11-3.

Scratch Will Tell Saul Lizzy is Pregnant
Because of the endgame I had in mind (The Mexican Stand Off at LAX) this prediction seemed awfully tempting...and I'm not lying when I said I went back and forth all week long switching between 51% and 49%. And Monday morning at 2am, it was at 51%. The last thing I did before I went to bed was change it back, and I'm glad I did. I won because of my last second indecision, and so did you, forum!

We Will Learn About Scratch and Angel's History
As has been pointed out in the discussion thread, there is more evidence mounting that Angel and Scratch knew each other before the outbreak. In what capacity still remains to be seen, and the evidence is classic the Kc "Is this evidence, or is it not evidence?" Going into Season 3, we'll probably learn more about it if Angel did indeed survive the collapse of the Tower. Especially since he'd be in the possession of Scratch. I win, as does the forum 9-5.

We Learn the Purpose of Pippen
You know what's amusing? When I first tallied my win/loss and posted it in the Chatbox I considered this a loss because I didn't hear the conversation about Pippin and the rat....My connection dropped during that very conversation revealing exactly what Pippin's purpose was. Wouldn't you know it? I started to bounce up and down on the subway when I finally heard that conversation! So happy! I win and the forum was right there with me (9-4)!

We Find Who Randy Is/Was, and the Events at the Water Pumping Station
Since this was established in the comments section of the Prediction Blog, I will again point out that GD_Elite is absolved from this being his prediction.

Randy is definitely a plot point that will come out eventually, but again since it's Michael's plot line it's going to be really hard to pull out of him. And there certainly wasn't an opportunity to do it this chapter. It was filled with Angry Michael, Annoyed Michael, Sorrowful Michael, Raging Michael, Excited Michael and numerous other facets of Michael, but Introspective Michael didn't come out to play. And I still believe Pegs is the only one who is going to get Michael to open up and she was busy saving everyone's asses. I win this as does the forum 11-3.

A Main Character Dies at Scratch's Hand
I was really close to making this prediction "A Main Character Dies," but I really wanted to make it more specific. Had I made it generic, I would have won three times over: Kalani, Burt and Angel. Don't care how much wishing and pining is going on right now, they are presumed to be dead, so I would be able to call it a win on that regard.

While Scratch created the circumstances that resulted in the three (presumed) deaths, she wasn't the one that caused any one of them to die. So I lose this time, and the forum did too 9-5.

Ok.....now it's time to see if the Voodoo Lounge made the playoffs with our regular season record!
Scorecard for this chapter:
7 Wins
7 Losses
0 Draw

That brings my Season 2 final record to:
32 Wins
21 Losses
2 Draws

So that's 55 predictions on record for Season 2 and gives me a winning percentage of 58% on the season (ok well last 1/3 of the season, but that's semantics).

The Voodoo Lounge is now closed for renovations. But check out my other blog project I'm working on with They Call Me Revolver Survival, Inc. We're going to try to help you get through the lull with some kick ass entertainment by rating your zombie survival plans.

Thanks for reading this season it's been a lot of fun to do this and to have people read it and respond. I never thought anyone would, so I am grateful to you all! Writing without an audience is unfun. Writing with an interactive audience kicks ass! So even though I'm done for the moment, you can bet that come one week before the release of Chapter 25, the lounge will be back, better than ever, stocked to the brim with top shelf alcohol (for those over 21 of course), and back to our old prognostication ways! Until then, you can follow me on Twitter, or contact me via email at zombiepodnikvoodoo@yahoo.com.

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Survival Inc. #1: New York City, NY & Rapid City, SD

nikvoodoo — Fri, 29 Jul 2011 16:00:00 GMT

Nikvoodoo: Say Revolver�.are you getting sick of that arrogant prick, The One With the Markings, claiming he will be able to get us no matter what our plan is?

They Call Me Revolver: Ima start hucking bricks at that douche.

Uh�.the man dodges bullets and catches arrows for a living�chuckin' bricks at his noggin' probably wont' accomplish all that much. You have to admit�..TOWTM is kind of a pimp�.and if we don't have a solid plan of attack he just might get his way. So what do you say�.how about we make a plan to survive in our towns and give ourselves grades on our given techniques. What do you think we should grade it on? What things should we look for?

Well my pasty friend, what is essential once the outbreak has occurred? Shelter, Food, water. Sure, you can stay at home and make regular trips to the local supermarket. Too bad everyone else that is still alive has thought of that, and possibly the zombies too. Which is why we are taking your city�s population into consideration. Natural resources are a must! A way to replenish your food and water supply without having the luxury of Safeway.

Pasty? Really....we had to go there?

Well, lets not poo poo all grocery stores and things of that nature. Your proximity to resources like that will be pretty key to get you started. Hospitals, pharmacies, clothing stores and things like that are important. If society ends, you can go on a guilt free "shopping" spree.

Ok, that's true. Now for shelter. As KC would put it, we are looking at �Choke Points�. Ways in your tower, be it welcomed or un-welcomed. Also ways to fortify your tower, escape routes and ways that enemies can attack you.

Well�.I think I'm basically screwed in terms of population�..but I might be ok in terms of some of those other categories out here in NYC. Do you want to go first or shall I?

Please, be my guest.

Sounds good. First of all: We grade on population. Uh�.there are nearly 8-10 million people in the city of New York (probably more) at any given time. No matter where an outbreak of anything starts, NYC and its residents are basically fucked. Unlike L.A. which is spread out laterally (and has about 5 million fewer people), NYC is stacked vertically. The only thing that might save NYC from being an abject failure with population is the further away from Manhattan you are, higher the probability you'll have a chance to react. If you are anywhere on the Island of Manhattan and are below Central Park, you're gonna be dead before you know what happened. Also, due to the high population density, it may take longer to get to the outer boroughs because it has to work through so many people first�..But I feel no matter how shiny you can buff a turd to a high gloss shine�.it's still shit. NYC gets an F in terms of population. Do you agree, Rev?

NYC may be the city that never sleeps, but it�s going to die pretty G.D. quick during a zombie outbreak.

Ok, let�s get to something more impressive: My map!

So the first thing you'll probably note: there is a whole lot of blue pin marks in a very concentrated area. Reason being, this is what every single neighborhood in NYC looks like. There's a lot of things available at the tips of your fingers, however lets talk about my selected stronghold: The police precinct.

Unlike the Street View Picture, the chain link fence and simple cinder block wall were destroyed in a nasty storm last September and have been replaced by a solid concrete wall reinforced with rebar. The entrance to the parking lot is still open, but that can easily be blocked off by a few things, and the top can be reinforced with barbed wire or something to that effect. Another advantage is that parking lot does have a gas pump, so you wouldn't need to go anywhere to get gas for a little while.

Near the edge of the fence by the precinct is a balcony which can be a look out post and a mini sniper's nest. From this position, you can see well in three directions, but the wall blocks the view to the street. It's also a liability if something can get onto the top of the fence, so my plan would be to block off those windows entirely, and lower a ladder down from the roof to give some extra protection.

There are three main entrances to the precinct: front door, a service door, and a loading garage door. Securing the garage door would be key because those doors don't take much to destroy. The front door is glass and can be easily blocked off (or even filled in with cement if need be to totally close it off. The other big security risk are the row of windows along the street level. They are over 6 feet off the ground and are relatively small, so sneaking in them is going to be hard, but they are metal window frames so if you can get a welder (probably from the car garage) you can weld them closed and secure a piece of metal over them if need be.

There are obvious advantages to e police precinct, including holding cells, and weapons. You would also have access to police vehicles (cruisers and also in this case a Mobile Command Center Truck).

So overall, fortification of the Police precinct is going to take some doing, but if you can get it done, it's going to be an amazing strong hold with some great natural defenses and perks. Revolver and I give my "Tower" the grade of B-

Now if you look around the area, you see a lot of apartment complexes in the area. Now why wouldn't I choose that just like "We're Alive?" Well look at how big those are. The Tower is small. These are mega modern buildings. They have multiple entrances (upwards of 20 per massive structure), have multiple staircases, and elevators, and would be impossible to defend with a small band of people.

Basically, every dot on this map is a resource that is within a mile of the Police Station. I want to point out the multiple pharmacies in close proximity, and also there's a few vitamin worlds and GNC's in the area which will come in handy when food starts to run short: Take your vitamins to keep your health up and even appetite suppressants to keep the hunger away. There are also a lot of parking garages (which require you to leave your car keys) and a car dealership all within spitting distance. The other thing I wanted to point out is the Fedex Express center. This is a gigantic center where all Fedex shipments in Queens and parts of Brooklyn end up. Its a little more of a hike, but you have access to all the many many things that people could buy online. NYC in general is a place you can get whatever you want whenever you want it. NYC gets an A in terms of Proximity to resources.

As for Natural Resources: There's a couple of lakes within a mile of my chosen fort which you can use for hydration. And water is the biggest thing. I understand it's NYC and there's a bottle of water every 3 inches here, but eventually those will go away. Water is going to be very important for every survival guide. But that's about it. Being an urban jungle, there aren't many animals around here. There are raccoons, squirrels, birds, cockroaches, and rats. That's really about it in this general area. So because there's a near by water source, but nothing else in terms of sustainability in the vicinity. C-.

So overall, if you're going to survive in an urban jungle, hopefully you have a park nearby that has a lake. And man you better hope that you're in a small city that doesn't constitute over half of your states population�..

Here's the Tally
Population: F
Chosen Tower: B-
Proximity To Resources: A
Proximity to Natural Resources: C-

Revolver and I give surviving in my neighborhood in Queens: C-.

So now that I've depressed myself to a level I cannot even imagine how I can survive if the shit hits the fan, lets take a little more rustic look into a smaller city setting and delve into Revolver's plan.

Yeah, NYC is the suck�.unless you want sushi at 4am. Rapid City on the other hand, just sucks. Unless, a zombie outbreak has occurred.

I live in a �city� of 60,000 people. Assuming that 5% of them are left after all the festivities, I have to contend with 3,000 people (That gets me an A for population by the way).

May I present to you�.My map.

The tower I have chosen is currently an office building. Doesn�t sound the most comfortable, but has only 3 ways in. It is an 11 story structure that has a generator already built in. *bonus* Also fortifying the city block should be rather easy. Since a majority of it is parking, it�s just a matter of setting up barricades.

Well, the one huge issue (aside from creature comforts) with your specific Tower is that is a whole lot of glass to cover up especially on the ground level. I could take one of those bricks you were aiming at The One With The Markings and mess your Tower up something' fierce with one shot. But the built in generator is a nice touch. So how do you grade the fortification of your tower?

You have a great point there, which is why my tower gets a B.

On to food, there are 3 grocery stored within a mile of my tower. I should be able to get started with supplies from there. Like I stated earlier, grocery stores are not a means of survival, but a way to get started. There are 2 "Urgent Care" centers with in 4 blocks of me and a hardware store. Not good odds that anything will be around by the time I get settled. *frowny face*

3 city blocks away from me there are 3 city parks, with a lot of land to start a farm, grow livestock etc. Also there is a lot of wild life around here. Deer, Turkey, Fish, Buffalo, and if you�re a badass, Mountain Lion. So there are other sustainable sources of food in my little town. That gets me an B.

Now food will only get you so far. My people demand water, and I say unto thee, �I�m not your water bitch!� There is one golf course and a man-made lake 3 blocks away from my Tower of power. The man-made lake is supplied by a natural stream so it shouldn�t dry up unless there is a drought. (then we all boned). All I have to do is boil it for 10 min and have some great drinking water. I gets a A- on this one.

And the Tally Is
Population: A
Chosen Tower: B
Proximity to Resources: B
Proximity to Natural Resources: A-

So in summation, My tower and escape plan will land me a sold B+ If I was able to find a better location I could easily move myself up to an A. But alas, I am too lazy to look at this time. Living in a smaller community may seem boring, mundane and even shitty, but when the zombie out break occurs, you can all come and stay with me in my tower. BOOM!

Yeah stay with Revolver and be bored out of your mind, or come live with me where it will be a friggin' adventure every time you leave! Not to mention: It's New York City! Can you imagine how much fun you could have in this place with no authority to stop you? You could spit off the top of the Empire State Building! Throw pennies off the top of the Statue of Liberty! Hell, you could go smoke in Central Park (because you can't smoke in public places like that anymore)!

Ok, Lets weigh our options, Bored and alive or Excited and dead. Hhhmmm

�..so might get your ass eaten off in while trying to get to those fun places.

Well, there's our survival plans, but what about the masses, Revolver? Shouldn't we assist others in the planning of their End of Days plans?

We have been blessed with a gift and it would be down right rude not to share this. People need us. We�re like Batman (me) and Robin (you).

I think if they were to send us a link to their hometown on a google map all decked out like ours, with some descriptions of whats around them and why they chose what they chose we could give them a grade on their survival plan as well! So, if you want Revolver and I to grade your getaway, send an email to zombiepodnikvoodoo@gmail.com with the subject Survival, Inc.- *Insert Town/City Name here* and we can get this underway! So create your plan, let us know what it is, send us a link to your google map and prepare to get graded!

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