May 2007
| Introduction By dawn1968 |
May has begun blossoming with lots of style and class. After all those April showers you may need to check your P *I* P *E* S... Oh wait! We want you to check out our Pipes instead! How about trying your hand at all our new games such as: ConnectaPipe, Dice Pipe, Drain Pipe, and Random Pipe! The dynamic duo of Mecir and firefly have outdone themselves once again! Those games + those graphics = totally awesome! Thank you both for another grand creation of fun for GoldToken.com!
Those of you who play checkers should definitely check out the new version of Restriction Checkers that has now been released. The three initial moves are either selected randomly from a list of 156 standard openings, or you can pick a specific opening that you want to play.
After taking the time to stop and smell the May flowers that blossomed from all our April showers, be sure to tune into http://silver-song.com/ and show your support for our hip and hilarious DJs! They are always pleased to have listeners tune in at any time!
In this month's newsletter, we have:
- Monthly News by Badger
- Birthdays & Special Announcements
- GoldToken Gathering & Picnic News
- Games Corner
- Club News & Announcements
- Locker n Rocker Room Newsletter Game
- Treasure Hunt Contest
- Puzzles-N-Riddles
- Honorable Mention's
- Tournament News by Sondra
- Testimonial Of The Month
| Monthly News by Badger |
As the years pass, and since taking over ownership of this incredible site in June 2004, I have watched our family based site grow from a small community, into a rather large one! GoldToken.com has been quickly expanding more and more each day with new players, features & games, so the time has come for our Support department to expand as well! GoldToken Support has added more customer service representatives to it's team to better serve you!
While the Support Team expansion was set in motion almost a year ago now, the Management Team and myself have been training confident, secure and experienced individuals since that time to place them into this role. Our training for this duty is extensive and it wasn't until this time that I felt it was finally time to proudly announce the expansion of our Support Team to make it official!
I would like to take this opportunity to sincerely thank and congratulate each of these special individuals for going through a long course of training to learn the support field and for doing such a great job during it! Their professionalism in the actual hands on experience from our support account over the past 6 months or so, have really impressed me! This job entails a lot of dedicated and devoted volunteer time from these members, so I can not personally thank them enough for their loyalty, devotion and long hard hours of work that each of them have put in to help other fellow players on our site!
The GoldToken Management Team, (including myself!), are still part of GoldToken Support and will continue to oversee, assist and manage all incoming and outgoing messages on a daily basis. If you need assistance with anything site related, please be sure to send a message anytime to that account for help!
everyone!
--Badger
 | Birthdays & Special Announcements |  |
Birthday Wishes:
-- Happy Birthday to MsLady on May 2nd! - From { Club }
-- Happy Birthday to supermann8 on May 2nd!
-- Happy Birthday to Nina on May 3rd! - From { Club }
-- Happy Birthday to our girl dawn1968 on May 3rd! - Luv from your friends, { Club } & { Club }
-- Happy Birthday to MBAfriend on May 4th!
-- Happy Birthday to * on May 4th!
-- Happy Birthday to carouselhorse on May 6th!
-- Happy Birthday to tweets on May 8th!
-- Happy Birthday to gunther mcbride on May 10th!
-- Happy Birthday to rabbitoid on May 10th! - From a friend
-- Happy Birthday to Dogrunner on May 10th!
-- Special Birthday to El Lobo Loco on May 12th from his V sweetie! XX
-- Happy Birthday to foxdancing on May 13th!
-- Happy Birthday to ttonna on May 14th!
-- Happy Birthday to WebbyDebi on May 15th!
-- Happy Birthday to Tony Rome on May 16th!
-- Happy Birthday to marlisam on May 16th!
-- Happy Birthday to maintenance man on May 17th! - From { Club }
-- Happy Birthday to stanley7 on May 18th! - From { Club } & { Club }
-- Happy Birthday to loraca on May 18th!
-- Happy Birthday to Beaupol on May 18th!
-- Happy Birthday to the loneranger on May 19th!
-- Happy Birthday to GeorgeF on May 20th!
-- Happy Birthday to Linda on May 20th!
-- Happy Birthday to porkpie1 on May 21st!
-- Happy Birthday to EagleAnney on May 22nd! - From { Club }
-- Happy Birthday to Lil Red on May 23rd! - From { Club } & { Club }
-- Happy Birthday to Misfit Lenrad6672 on May 25th! - From The Backgammon Tournament Club
-- Happy Birthday to Darla MIA on May 25th!
-- Happy Birthday to blue eyes on May 27th! - From { Club }
-- Happy Birthday to Arctic Warrior on May 27th!
-- Happy Birthday to angel28 on May 28th! - From { Club }
-- Happy Birthday to nw2425 on May 29th!
-- Happy Birthday to Nj on May 30th!
Anniversary & Other Wishes:
-- Happy Wedding Anniversary
goes out to psychospaz mom and her husband on May 14th! Many special wishes sent to you both! -- Happy 4 year Anniversary
to my loving husband Seedie on may 17, 2003. I love you from ~ baby * If you would like to announce any birthdays, anniversaries or other special events coming up for next month, please send GoldToken Support a message before the 25th of this month, so we can give them a shout out in next month's newsletter! (Please keep all announcements upcoming and not belated. Announcements submitted after the newsletter is published, can not be put in after the fact, we're sorry!)
| GoldToken Gathering & Picnic News |
| LETS_HAVE_A_PICNIC!!!! |
nylady41 from The Poiesis Club, would like to get the ball rolling with the NORTHEAST area, (or anyone that would like to come!!), for a special GoldToken picnic together! This would be a great opportunity for a meet and greet with fellow players and a complete day of fun! So lets come together everyone, and please feel free to bring the whole family with you!
If we can get enough GoldToken players interested and willing to come, then we can book the event!
PICNIC DATE IS: June 23, 2007 (With a Rain Date of June 30th)
PLACE OF PICNIC: Jersey City, NJ (Please see link below.)
The web site for the park where we would like to have our picnic at, (weather permitting of course!!!), is located here at this link: http://www.state.nj.us/dep/parksandforests/parks/liberty.html
Everyone can pack some nibble foods and come out for some wonderful views! Picnicking may be enjoyed at the southern end of the park located near the Administration Building. Picnic tables are provided with magnificent views of the harbor and skyline. I have seen grills there for cooking on, but do believe they allow you to bring your own grill as well. They also allow canopies to be pitched so people can have cover from sun in some areas. The park has a nice size parking lot as well!
If this of interest to you and your family or friends, then please send a private message to nylady41 as soon as possible. Thanks!
I hope to hear from you all soon!!!
- nylady41
| Games Corner by rabbitoid |
Chessgi
Of all the chess variants offered on GoldToken, Chessgi is by far my favorite. That is why, when Badger asked me to write an article for the GoldToken monthly, it took me only about a year to get to it.A quick reminder of the rules: the "only" difference of Chessgi from regular chess is that captured pieces are not permanently removed from the game: they are removed from the board, but made available to the captor to be dropped on the board as a subsequent move.
This simple rule make all the difference. While Chessgi still resembles superficially the regular chess, the differences are such that it must be regarded as an independent game.
Phases of the game
Regular chess is traditionally viewed as containing 3 main parts:- the opening phase: can be long. The dividing line between the opening and the middlegame isn't sharp. This phase of the game has been studied in nauseating detail. There must be thousands of books dedicated to it.
- the middlegame: that's where the main action usually takes place. It is less prone to detailed study, because each game is different.
- the endgame: when only few pieces remain. This part, as well, has been the subject of numerous studies. Though most games will arrive into the endgame in different positions, typical endgame combinations (say, king, rook and pawns against king rook and pawns) occur often enough so common rules can be derived.
I'm enumerating them here to underline the difference compared to Chessgi.
In Chessgi I enumerate only 2 phases:
- a very short opening phase: only a couple of moves, I'd say typically until the first exchange takes place.
- then a permanent middlegame.
Due to the putback rule there never comes a moment where there are only few pieces on the board, so an endgame doesn't exist in this game.
Strategy
There isn't any I was able to identify, not in the sense of chess strategy. In chess, it is possible to take the very long range view: sacrifice a pawn in the opening to have an open line far in the middlegame; place your bishops in the opening on the diagonal you'll use when you will have cleared those center pawns blocking the way, etc. Almost none of this exists in Chessgi. The permanent havoc of this game is such that no long range planning can evolve.Here are some strategic points which can be useful.
- The order of importance, in this game, of the factors to be taken into account when making a move are:
- speed (first, by far)
- initiative
- space for the pieces
- only then material advantage.
- The most important squares in the beginning are f7, and f2. This is true in regular chess too, but in this variant far more. A player must keep an eye on them, to attack and defend. that is why 1...e6 as black is far better than 1...e5, to guard against the white bishop on c4.
- Then why is 1.e4 better than 1.e3? because white has the initiative.
- A hole in g7 (g2 for white) is very dangerous. Other than dropping a pawn, a knight can be dropped there as well, with a check.
- Castling is far less useful in this game, compared to chess. I estimate that I castle only about one game in 10. Why? two reasons:
- First, it's a defensive move except in one situation: castling queen's side when the activated rook attacks something on its line.
- Second, The king is less well protected in its hiding place.
- White has the move, and this is a very serious advantage in this game. Black is actually under attack from move 1 and must keep it in mind.
Tactics
Here are some ideas. They are not exhaustive (hey, you wouldn't expect me to give away all my secrets, would you?)- There are two main approaches to a game (almost any game): defensive and offensive. In Chessgi, this is almost equivalent to losing and winning, respectively.
- Attack is the best defense. when a player is under attack, he mustn't lose any opportunity to launch a counter attack. At any cost.
- "Bad" exchanges may be very good. sacrificing a piece to get two pawns is usually a good idea.
- This is a continuation about the danger of castling: sacrificing a piece, even a queen, to get the other king moving out from his bunker is usually a winner - provided the player can come up with a good follow up.
- Parachuting a captured pawn to the 7th row is an obvious tactic, so look out for combinations such as: take a pawn with a piece, let the piece be captured, then parachute the pawn into the newly created hole.
- Remember: when you capture a piece, it is not yet yours. you must drop it first, and that costs a move. That price may be too high!
- When you are under attack, try always to drop pieces rather than move the king. Provided, of course, that your opponent permits you to do so...
- As an obvious consequence of the previous: The checks to be preferred are those where the attacking piece is immediately next to the king, or those given with a knight.
Further reading
As for all variants, the inevitable link to the encyclopedia of chess variants: http://www.chessvariants.org/other.dir/chessgi.htmlChessgi is also known as loop chess (the two are identical). Both are variants of a game known as crazyhouse chess from which they differ in one important detail: in crazyhouse, when a pawn is promoted to another piece and then taken, the taker receives only a pawn, while in Chessgi the taker retains the promoted piece.
The archenemy
The greatest danger to all games are the computer assistants. Regular chess is particularly prone to this plague.Chessgi is one game which has remained happily free from such interference. I think there are several reasons for it:
- The game never rose to sufficient importance to attract software writers.
- It is horribly complex. In regular chess, The number of possible moves in a typical situation is 30 (see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shannon_number ) ; in Chessgi I don't know of any studies but it must be in the hundreds, when several pieces are taken and can be dropped anywhere on the board.
- There is a zillions engine available (see http://www.zillions-of-games.com/) . It plays very badly, but could be used as an initial tutoring device.
| Club News & Announcements |
{ Club } would like to welcome the 18 new members that have joined us in the past few weeks, and we would like to extend an open invitation to any players out there that like something a little different to come and join us.
{ Club } offers sign ups in both 2 day and 3 day move challenges, and there are tours just waiting for you to join, so give us a look. What have you got to lose but a little fun? Come join the others that like something a little different.
We look forward to meeting old and new friends,
nisqually
| Joggle Jungle |
WELCOME TO THE JUNGLE!!!!
April's Winners are:
EVERYONE!!| Locker-n-Rocker Room Trivia |
| Brought to you by: The Locker Room Crew |
April Shower's *BRINGS May Flowers.. and this month the Locker-n-Rocker Room brings TRIVIA back to the Newsletter! It's time for the LOVE songs of yesterday and today, so name the Artist and Song!*
- All answers must be PRIVATE MESSAGED directly to the Locker Room Crew.
- Only one private message from each player is allowed. Any more than one will not be accepted.
- Please place in the subject line: Locker-n-Rocker Newsletter Trivia.
- All answers are to be submitted IN THE FORM OF A QUESTION. (EXAMPLE: WHO IS OR WHAT IS).
- Answers that are not in question form will not be accepted.
- Answers will be accepted only up to 9pm on the 15th of this month.
Artist and Song
1. Oh, give it to me straight from the heart
Tell me we can make another start
You know I'll never go - as long as I know
It's comin' straight from the heart
2. You gave me wings and made me fly
You touched my hand I could touch the sky
I lost my faith, you gave it back to me
You said no star was out of reach
3. I dream of moments we share
But you're not there
I'm living in a fantasy
'Cause you don't even suspect
Could prob'ly care less
About the changes I've been going through
4. There will never come a day
You'll ever hear me say
That I want and need to be without you.
I want to give my all.
Baby, just hold me.
Simply control me.
'Cuz your arms, they keep away the lonelies.
5. When I’m feeling blue, all I have to do
Is take a look at you, then I’m not so blue
When I’m in your arms, nothing seems to matter
My whole world could shatter, I don’t care...
Members who have not won a contest in the last 6 months, will win one of the NEW GoldToken Gel Pens!! Best of all, guests who have never won a prize before, that find all 12, will win a 2 month Silver membership!
-- Locker Room Crew
| Treasure Hunt Contest |
This months treasure hunt is MAY flowers! Be among the first ten players to find all 12 GoldToken logos hidden among different player's profiles! Each logo will be featuring our theme of the month, so try and spot them! A special thank you goes out to firefly for providing all our GoldToken logos for this wonderful and fun adventure!!
Everyone can play! Guests included! Once you have found all 12 logos, please send a private message to the Contest Director with "Profile Treasure Hunt" in the subject line to see if you've won! Be sure to keep an eye on the "Who Is Here?" page to see if you spot our logos that are randomly placed and hiding on any player's profile!
Hooray! to last month's LOGO winners!! The winners are:
1) laura lee
2) Honeybear
3) Nancy
4) birdstoe
5) Silkwood
Last months logos were hidden on these players profiles, (you may still be able to see some of the logos by looking at these profiles):
Aftershock
dizzy
emereth
FRISKA
GeorgiasGrandad
Harts
Kyanite316
jerryshome2
katinka
loopy laura
mcr_63ls
Sneaky Snake
Thank you to all 12 players for allowing us to borrow your profiles for this fun hunt!
Members who have not won a contest in the last 6 months, will win one of the NEW GoldToken Gel Pens!! Best of all, guests who have never won a prize before, that find all 12, will win a 2 month Silver membership!
** Please note: Sharing logo locations before the contest ends will disqualify you, so please play fair. **
-- Contest Director
| Puzzles-N-Riddles |
Welcome to our Puzzles-N-Riddles section! If you think you know the answer to this months riddle or puzzle, then be the FIRST player to post the correct answer on the discussion board and Badger will have a GoldToken key chain pen just for you!
This Months Puzzles-N-Riddle is:
Question:
Casey lives on the twelfth floor of a modern elevator apartment building. Whenever she gets into the automatic elevator on the ground floor, and no one else is in the elevator, she pushes the button for floor 6, gets off on the sixth floor, and walks up the stairway to the twelfth floor. She would much prefer to ride the elevator all the way up to her floor. Why does she do this?
What is the answer? (Remember to post your answers only on the discussion board!)
and 
everyone! to last months winner: janine!!! WOOHOO way to go!!!! -- Contest Director
| Honorable Mention's |
A special THANK_YOU goes to both hANDYman the Rebel and GUINESS14 for each adopting over 15 players of all levels, this past year! It is players like you that make GoldToken the warm and wonderful family site it is today!
We are sending you both an extra special and unique GoldToken Thank You gift. So, watch your mail!
| Tournament News - By Sondra |
- See the tournament sign up page here: http://www.goldtoken.com/games/tournaments?toc=F
- Be sure to join our sponsorship tournaments for a chance to win a membership if you are a guest, and look for our combined Cube Galore tournaments!! These are a great way to get those elusive gammon tournament ratings!!
- When playing in tournaments, make sure you read our Tournament and Ladder Rules and Provisions Page for all pertinent rules concerning tournament play.
GoldToken would also like to take the time to send a big congratulations out to all our recent tournament winners!!! If your name is on this list, please send Badger your mailing address and a link to the tournament for your prize!
Thank you for participating in our site tournaments!
-- Sondra
| Testimonials Of The Month |
I started in GoldToken in Oct 2000. And really not knowing what I was doing, there was a very special lady that has always been there for me and she showed me what to do. There was just maybe 600 members and invites started coming my way. I still play them, they are like family to me. Then when clubs came into play and someone that I hold so very dear to me messaged me saying: you chicken get a club going and join the fun! I was involved in the first tourney that clubs had and we all had a blast. GoldToken to me is SO very special.
The players and Management are the most caring people I have ever meet on the net. I want to thank: Chad, Taylor, Badger, Kran, Matt, Mark007, Mecir, you all are so great. This is my home forever. I don't need another site to make me happy. You all will always hold a very special place in my heart.
-- **YANKEE ROSE*JR FRANK PAB
| Wanted |
- Do you have a special story, poem or testimonial you would like to share? How about some club news, announcements or any other special events? Then don't delay, send GoldToken Support your submissions today! We look forward to hearing from you!
** (Please note: All submissions are added on a first come first serve basis.) **
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