This one is real!
In case, god forbid, any one of you thought that the last Site Update on April 1st was real, I am here to tell you no. No it was not. And what better than the person who lied to you to tell you that this time, I'm really really serious. All of the content in this week's Site Update is 100% real, 100% unfaked, and 100% pretty darn interesting.
Level-up!
By now this is pretty old news, but if the underside of a rock has been your place of residence, allow me to introduce you to our newest Admin RightSideTheory! He's stepped down from his responsibilities as Journalist, and has taken up the mantle of the responsibilities of everything else! What a guy. I for one want to thank him for his work in the past on the Site Updates, and I look forward to the work he'll do in the future for the rest of the site.
Unfortunately, I bear some bad news. On top of RightSideTheory stepping down from Journalist, a good friend of mine and ex-Review Hub partner in crime Organite has also stepped down. As it turns out, the guy's just getting too pro at his fancy schmancy real life to continue his work here. So let's all give a round of applause once more for Organite as he walks off into the distant sunset, and thank him for his work here.
Dusting Off
It's been a full month since the 2v2 Dust Up Tournament's map submission deadline marked the beginning of the judging phase. Since then, the ForgeHub staff have been working hard (actually, they were just playing Halo... har har) and the end of the unsurprisingly long list of maps is in sight. As the mere size of the number of submissions has caused a bit of a set back, we will be pushing back the date of tournament phase over into May. So keep an eye out in the coming weeks for an announcement about the winning maps and map makers for the epic duels that are yet to come!
SilentJacket's Watercraft Competition
What?! Watercrafts? On a forging website?! That's right, my good friend, a certain member SilentJacket started up a competition a few months ago based around designing and drawing a watercraft. What does that mean, you ask? Need it be mechanically and structurally sound? Can I have robots riding dolphins? Well, yes and no to both, because although those sorts of crazy things are all allowed, the contest is in fact over. I know, I know, I'm dashing your dreams of being a master boat designer before they've even begun. At least you can still check out the awesome submissions. I even brought you a link (<-- There. It's right there. Spoiler: There's a link here too -->). Winners!
Forum Board Changes
Recently, we have felt that the forum boards of this site have become somewhat fractured over the years. First there was Halo 3. Then, ODST came along, and some new discussion boards were opened. After that there was Reach, whose discussion boards were recently all but abandoned since Halo 4 was released with its own. And so, with as many as four separate boards related to the same game, we felt that it would be best to link them all together into the same Forum, with the modest name of "Halo Discussion" for both Forge and General Discussion Brought to you by Transactionzero, here's the full list of the recent changes made to the Forums.
Halo 4 Forge Discussion > Halo Forge Discussion.
Forums merged into Halo Forge Discussion.
Halo 3 Forge Discussion
Reach Forge DiscussionAdding Halo 3 Prefix to Halo Forge Discussion
Adding Reach prefix to Halo Forge DiscussionHalo 4 General Discussion > Halo General Discussion.
Forums merged in Halo General Discussion.
Halo 3 General Discussion.
Halo Reach General Discussion.Adding Halo 3 Prefix to Halo General Discussion
Adding Reach prefix to Halo General DiscussionRetiring the following forums.
H3 Forging 101
H3 Forging 201
H3 MLG discussion.
H3 ODST discussion.
H3 Files
Forge Hub Favorites Returns
New Journalist xAudienceofone wanted me to drop a little hint at what he's been planning recently. Unfortunately, I've already given away the secret by writing that huge bold heading right above me. Ah well, it'll be our little secret. Keep an eye out in the coming weeks for more information about the new and improved Forge Hub Favorites, where all of you beautiful creatures get to vote on your favorite recent maps this site has to offer.
Tweet! Share! Like! Hashtags, and blue thumbs!
Wants some fun facts? Fun fact: Hippos sweat a red color which discoverers originally thought was blood. Need some more? Fun Fact: For a brief period in Japan's history, they almost completely adopted the English alphabet. How about another? Fun fact: Did you know that ForgeHub has its own Facebook and Twitter accounts? Well if you didn't I actually just linked you to them. Another fun fact! Fun facts all over the place up in here. Aren't we just having the best of fun? Yes. Yes we are. So much fun. *ahem* Carry on then.
Our New YouTube Account
Apparently our old one was outdated and everyone was laughing at it. So we traded it in for a shiny new one! In fact, this entire paragraph is a link to it. How fun!
The Guild
It's been a while now since the new and improved TRC guild was redefined. And since then, a lot of people have been confused about what, exactly, the Writers' Guild is for. Well, the short answer is that they do the same thing, but with a deeper analysis of your map. The long answer is- well, read on!
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The Testers' Guild
The new and improved testers guild functions much the same as it's previous iteration, though it has been streamlined for ease of use, and to keep up with the ever-changing landscape of Halo 4. Here, your all your hard work designing and building a map is made easier by our world class testers, who will play test your maps for you, and provide insightful and helpful feedback. If you would like to get your map posted, please, follow this link and post your map here, but not before reading the guidelines here. If you'd like to join this merry band of brothers, click here. The TG can always use new recruits, and there are plenty of pristine opportunities for advancement among their ranks.
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The Writers' Guild
A lot of people have been asking, "What's the difference between the Writers' Guild and the Testers' Guild" Well, the biggest difference is that we're better than them. I say "We" because your truly runs the group. And I say "group" because saying "PacMonster1 and I" doesn't sound very impressive. Actually it sounds pretty unimpressive. Are you unimpressed? Then sign up today! And while you're at it, being unimpressed and all, allow me to clear up any misconception: The Writers' Guild is fully active. There may be only two of us right now, but we will write critiques of any map that is submitted to us. Don't believe me? Well, post your map in our forum and see if you get a free Critique out of it!
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Community Customs
The Community Customs is an area of the Community Customs Subforum, completely open to any members of Forge Hub to use to arrange game nights, or testing sessions. Inside of this area lies subforums especially for long-running customs groups, like The Circle of Jerks, and the Bloodthirst: Infection Only Customs group. If you're interesting in applying for a subforum for your own custom group, please check here.
Question of the Site Update:
In the last serious Site Update, we asked what you'd like to see more or less of in this site. The answers were pretty varied, most of which were talked over and over among the staff. Rest assured, we have heard you pleas, and we have decided to try and be less ambiguous... About most things, at least... *ahem*
But for this week, we have another Question for you, "What other Halo fan site do you frequent, and what do you like about them? And if you don't visit any, why not?"
If you have any thoughts on this article, or the front page in general, that you would like to share with us then we invite you to post your opinions in the Front Page Feedback thread.