The results are in for Match 8.
Agnes and Arpeggi, in their shrunken states, continued to fight, surrounded by the rising flames of their lilliputian tower, fists flying and Stand blows being taken one after the other.
“You… Callous mother fucker!” Arpeggi cursed, Agnes feeling the singe of a heat blast both from behind and from launched wood. “We’re not aiming for a massacre!”
“You’re not,” Agnes spat out, then, pulling a tab on the table, a massive geyser erupting and launching his so-called ally away, “I don’t give a fuck about this place, and we’re in a Stand battle… And it’s all worthless, greedy scumbags watching! Let the fire spread! Let this place hit the ground so they see what someone with style can do!”
“You heard it here, folks! Agnes talked you all down… C’mon, where’s your passion! Don’t run out and away, c’mon! And here I thought you cared y’had money ridin’ on this…”
Conqueror Worm’s laughs reverberated as Glitch and William found themselves cooled by Ocean Eyes’ nectar, which found itself dissolving quickly but, for the moment, a functional barrier for the injured fighters, watching and listening to what happened.
“Th… They’re fighting each other up there…” William remarked, physically looking as though he was straining to force Ocean Eyes not to hurry up there and tear them a new one. “Glitch, we don’t have time to keep the flames at bay and call up another KST, and if I let Ocean Eyes up there it’ll eviscerate them, and-”
“What’s this? The kid is holdin’ back, afraid of his own Stand! Hey, kid, don’t hate this part of yourself! Ocean Eyes, it ain’t your enemy, that’s a part of you, what makes you special, so don’t be at odds with it! Embrace what it says, because it’s what YOU’RE sayin’!”
William was speechless, there, but his companion was less inactive in that time. Tiger “Glitch” Ricky simply hissed, then, her and her Stand hopping up out of the flames in an effort to brutally, mercilessly pounce upon the self-styled villain and the ally he had come to blows with. If they moved fast, they could bite through that shitty little twink’s neck right now!
Arpeggi grit his teeth, scrambling to find his footing as he witnessed the pouncing cat-stand, finding it hard to breathe among all the burning rubble, fading fast then.
Is… Is this how it ends..? Crushed and mangled as some lowlife’s burnt-up game piece..?
“And it looks like Glitch is about to take it! Shout-outs to Tigran, the only real one here, watchin’ through the fire and the flames!”
“Heh… This is just a bit of a sweat,” Tigran Sins answered, stifling a cough, “I’ll see all seven of these bastards run through games until they’re all-”
Arpeggi didn’t hear what was said next, only hearing his own defiant heartbeat. If he didn’t act fast, Agnes would die… Good riddance, right? But… Ugh, no, even scum like him, they don’t deserve…
He clutched at NEXT LEVEL until his fingers bled, and Glitch and William, both looking at him past their Stands waiting to attack, made curious sounds as yet more crumbled away.
“Mrr?!”
And then, there was white. An overwhelming cascade of baking soda burst from NEXT LEVEL, smothering the flames rapidly as an obscured form zipped up the tower again, grabbing Agnes and hurrying away from the thrown-off Glitch.
“You… Why did you…” Agnes rubbed baking soda out of his eyes, coughing and looking at the form of Arpeggi in this new Stand. “Motherfucker…”
“I have responsibility over even a scumbag like you… You tailed me here, and I’m not gonna let you die and escape responsibility easy.” He turned, then, to William and Glitch, his new form revealed. “Now, actually help me, follow my lead, and I’ll kick your ass later. We need to survive this-”
All four of the fighters, then, felt themselves grow rapidly, their combined weight so close together crushing the table they were on, much as a nearby tabletop wargame that had been setup found itself buckling under the weight of Metra, Oh No, the Black Angel, and their motorcycle.
“Welp,” Worm said with a bemused laugh, holding up the slumped body of Tigran. “Your fire couldn’t hurt him, but smoke inhalation sure could! I guess that means…”
“The winner is FIRE, with a score of 65!”

Category	Winner	Point Totals	Comments
Popularity	Graveyard Shift	12-17
Quality	Graveyard Shift	19-20	Reasoning
JoJolity	BADD GUYS	24-18	Reasoning
Conduct	Tie	10-10

With no more reason to fight, it got really awkward and everyone just sort of ran out of Heartache Casino. William Eyelash, recalling his stand and lost in thoughts, was the last to leave, joining the others in leaping single-file out a window into a nearby alley.
There, though everyone else seemed tensely uninvolved, the Black Angel’s motorcycle revved, and she stared down Worm as he safely stowed Tigran inside his Stand-body, leaning on his golden sword.
“There’s still something I need, Jones… I’ll run you down to get it if it means saving the city.”
Worm laughed, gesturing with his sword. “This thing? You’re huntin’ me down for this… Ah! I see! You’re tryin’ to do that.” Callously, he tossed it, so suddenly they fumbled with it in hand. “Here ya go, then! I don’t much want what Jack Aurel’s cookin’ up either!”
The Angel, worn and exhausted, stammered. “I… You just… But…”
“Lookin’ forward to killin’ me, huh? Get in line, kid… Or waste your time right now! See, nobody here is botherin’, they can all read that it’d be a waste when I’m in such good health! City’s countin’ on you, yeah, and you won’t get many opportunities for bein’ called a hero as an adult. Make it count!”
Then, before anyone could say more, he darted through a nearby wall, waving William and the rest off with a, “Ah, we safely may trust to its gleaming and be sure it will lead us aright!”
…
…
“Asshole.” The Angel turned away, strapping the sword to their back and driving away. “Thank you, all of you. I’ll take this from here… Get yourselves help.”
There was silence as they drove into the sky, scarf billowing before them, and then Agnes started cackling. “You’re all fucking morons… If I didn’t burn that place down, we wouldn’t have gotten away, and some wannabe with no style would be going down as Los Fortuna’s worst villain! Fucking bow and grovel, Jack Aurel’s grave is gonna say ‘spat on by Agnes!’”
Nobody had the energy to dignify that with a response.
An anticlimax is leading into a super-climax, and meanwhile, an ant-loving little boy and an aid worker are racing through their dreamscapes, with a day left to vote there.
Narration:
What is, as of the 1990s, ‘Capital Island,’ was the epicenter of Los Fortuna’s founding several hundred years ago, in the midst of a bloody Stand User conflict, many militias clashing for superiority, in the 1680s, starting with the death of the era’s own Andrew Tiffany, the missionary William Mandolin, and towards its end, knocking people into their senses through the awakening of exactly what he had tried to warn them of.
A grand T-Rex by the name of Megalomania had survived, dormant, underneath the land through the might of its Stand, coated in a goldlike substance, and awoken in a deep rage by the conflict of the locals. Megalomania was met in battle by a man out of place named Aaron Bruno, ‘Sir Aurel’ to most, and Memory Management, and when slain, crumbled where it stood into a pile of bones, feet firm in the ground.
Los Fortuna’s natural history museum was built around this monster’s remains, and Sir Aurel would turn its golden coat into a ceremonial weapon. The power these symbols were imbued with, even with their old purposes lost, were of great importance to the city’s stability.
Scenario:
Outside Los Fortuna’s Natural History Museum, Early Evening
In the blink of an eye, the attention of everyone within Los Fortuna had been turned to the natural history museum. That made sense, of course - considering the looming dark clouds containing the ghosts of the dead within them, the scuffles of the stand users outside of the building, and the vague knowledge that a ritual with the purpose of destroying fate itself was currently being performed within it, it would be out of the ordinary for people to not be paying it any attention. Even those who weren’t stand users that were up to date with the situation were drawn to it by the unusual level of activity surrounding it, from emergency services and VALKYRIE forces alike.
And then there was Bert. They were invested in the whole situation, of course - keeping up with the latest reality-breaking ancient rituals was the least that a wannabe god like them could do. Their status as an observer did raise a few eyebrows - they’d had to shake off both emergency service workers and VALKYRIE forces, who’d both taken the time to try and encourage Bert to leave the area for their own safety, clearly underestimating Bert’s own prowess.
Within the chaos, one could be excused for not failing to notice the drones Bert had been sending around to overhear and oversee it all. First, they paid attention to the chief of security at VALKYRIE, Ugo McBasie, who seemed to be getting interviewed by someone from the Fortuna Hermod, an ODIN-owned news publication (not their usual guy at scenes like this… Wonder what happened to him). Bert had heard that the man was a violent and irresponsible meathead who’d caused plenty of trouble in the past, but he seemed to be keeping a thin veil of professionalism for now. However, Bert couldn’t help but notice a young man in a blue aviator cap standing a few meters behind the reporter and staring daggers at him, perhaps keeping him in check somehow, occasionally piping in for comment about how it was all they could do to surround the place and wait for an opening if they didn’t want a meat grinder on their hands.
Meanwhile, Los Fortuna’s own city council chairman, Raymond Delwin Shimizu was discussing something of note with someone else, who seemed to have just finished an interview of his own. Bert didn’t recognize him, but the interviewer had called him “Chief Prosecutor Cavallo”, and she seemed as if she knew what she was talking about, so Bert opted to believe her. The interviewer, Jillian Something-or-other, had been running all over the scene, trying to get interviews alongside her oversized cameraman Bert recognized as having been that really huge cop who used to hang around Aurelio a lot of the time not successfully doing his job. Not worth Bert’s time.
Cavallo scratched his head in frustration. “Chairman, please tell me that you’ve made progress of some kind here...”
Ray shook his head. “Not much. That stand user that’s working alongside Jack Aurel, Akiko Mizushima, is making it impossible to get in - anyone we do send in is as good as gone. We haven’t even been able to get Admiral Pineapples out. Judging by your demeanor, I assume that the board hasn’t made much progress either.”
“No, doesn’t seem like it.” Cavallo let out a long sigh. “Every day, it’s just more and more work… Now we’re stuck having to deal with this. If nothing’s done, the board’s thinking it might very well cause a disaster unmatched by… Well, anything but the earthquake from thirty years ago. Something like this, bending the rules of the city, and breaking free from it… Los Fortuna’s probably not going to let that slide easily.” He shook his head. “Where the hell is the mayor through all this? Watching anime at home or something, probably.”
Ray remained silent for a bit, thinking to himself. “Well, we’ve got emergency services ready to act for now, and we’re working on evacuating any susceptible areas, but it only works so much.” Before Cavallo could respond, another reporter came up to Raymond, ready with a batch of questions for him. “Well, Cavallo, our work isn’t done yet, so let’s get to it. Saving as many people as possible here should be our utmost priority.” And with that, the two men parted ways for the time being.
Having listened enough, Bert began thinking to themselves. This was a tricky situation - they clearly couldn’t get in as is, but they certainly wanted to. Learning more about the situation at hand would improve their knowledge of the mechanisms holding Los Fortuna together, and gaining control over the ritual somehow would certainly be a feat befitting of a god such as them.
Bert stood in front of the museum entrance, taking another look at the chaos in front of them and continuing to think about the next step they’d take. So many different possibilities, so little time. They thought, and thought, and then one of their drones’ eyes glanced upon someone familiar - a blue haired, red eyed woman wearing a mask, trying to blend in and clearly resenting it, skulking around the perimeter of the area as though she, too, wished to enter.
Yet despite her efforts, Bert recognized her.
“Emilie ‘Dread’ Delacroix!” They declared it loudly, thoughtlessly so, approaching her with a hand raised. “Are you perhaps looking to find a crevasse through which to enter that place as well? It’s quite fortified, isn’t it?”
“Hm?” She wasn’t bothered by the way Bert drew attention to her, still wearing her same very extra outfit under the also quite extra hooded dark robe she was using to blend in. “Ah, pardon me dearly for having failed to notice you… You are Bert, from that incident where we fought on equal terms, yes?”
“I am that same Bert, Emilie ‘Dread’ Delacroix, yes. Though I doubt I could be much mistaken for others…”
“We are both quite conspicuous individuals, yes,” Dread said, taking the conversation into a nearby alley before VALKYRIE goons on the scene could prove it was her, “but no, I’m not terribly nonplussed about my abilities to infiltrate that place… Simply, I am attempting to assess the probability by which my approach itself, through the barricades erected, might occur. If your intentions happen to be helping me sneak through, then it is simply not necessary on any fronts… I have formulated a plan now.”
Dread, now appearing alone, walked through that alley curiously, looking around her and beginning to see her opportunity of approach - there appeared to be a side door there, at which a certain fish-themed hero was sitting outside, looking, Dread knew from their DMs, at funny images of her wife atop the T-Rex skull in the museum.
Yes, certainly, this would be-
“Whoa, hey, it’s you!”
Damnable. Had she been spotted, or..?
No, no, wait. The one speaking, a man also in this alleyway who smelled of cannabis, holding what looked like a GAP bag, was speaking to someone on the opposite side of it, disembarking from a sportbike and handing it to the rider, who was wearing a very ornate-looking golden sword which Dread had sworn she’d seen somewhere before.
“Thanks,” the Black Angel told this young man, accepting the bag and producing its contents - a Roman helmet and black bird-looking tokusatsu cosplay? “Green couldn’t make it himself, huh?”
“I made it,” the guy said, pointing proudly to himself, before blinking. “Oh, you mean like… Showing up. Yeah, no, there was a thing with a mammoth coming down from the mountains, he’s helping East deal with that. Feel like lighting up before you go in? It’ll take the edge off..!”
The rider removed their helmet, coincidentally perfectly timed for the strawberry-blonde with pale blue eyes to stare him down incredulously. “About a million people live on this island, Weedboy. Now is not the time…” The Angel ducked into the nearby building to change, finishing, “shit, yeah, it looks just like the Flying Men do… uh. you should get out of here now.”
“You kidding?” He asked. “I don’t wanna bow out right before it gets good! That’s, like, saying I think you can’t do it!”
Well, these two appeared distracted, so Dread would continue along her way, walking right past them and towards the blockade, towards where Jo was sitting casually, only to be interrupted by-
“Holy shit, it really is her! Stop right there, Dread!”
Oh boy, here we go. This had been happening more lately, since a somewhat frustrating individual went and opened his big mouth about her dangers on Bifrost. Turned out that the head of VALKYRIE was literally in the server, so now she had a bounty on her head after a modicum of investigation into her after that public statement, and her casual admittance thereof!
Two armored guards were pointing guns at her as she stood there, unfazed.
“Don’t come any closer!” One of them, an older woman, said, turning to her younger partner and quickly telling him, “if she approaches, open fire. She’ll eat you alive if not!”
“This again, are you being serious?” Dread was less than pleased. “I am evil, and a murderer, unrepentantly so, yes, but I do not eat people. This rumor is being so blown out of proportion that I find it quite tiresome.”
“F-fuck off and die!” The younger moved to fire his weapon, only to realize there was a knife through him, catching the gun by the trigger after running from his shoulderblade to his fingertip.
Dread didn’t need the help, but like a true friend, Kimijo Kaneko offered it anyway
“Wh-what the-” The older woman cursed as her partner was cut open and dropped. “Fucking useless moron! HEY, EVERYONE, KANEKO BROKE RANK AND DREAD IS HERE TO! NOW’S OUR CHANCE TO-”
The distraction, then, was all it took for Dread to take her first kill of the day. Of course it was fine. She read the news, she knew how these VALKYRIE people were literally at war with poor people.
“Sh-shit, those people just died! More VALKYRIE corpses, and Jo again..!” The stoner declared in the background, and the Black Angel, now dressed exactly like the birdmen many had seen before, paused in her efforts to run past the opening created by Jo breaking formation.
Nobody could hear it or see her lips move, but she apologized under her breath, clenching her fist, but the disguise had worked. 32 Footsteps, the primary guard which would warp away anyone who tried to enter, apparently had instructions to allow in anybody dressed like this, yet none of the intended recipients of this deliberate loophole made their way in.
“Dread, hello, friend!” Jo exclaimed in high spirits, sheathing her knife, but still speaking quietly as she hurried back into place, “good to see you!”
“Yes, it is most certainly fortuitous for us to encounter one another…” Dread agreed, walking and talking with her as the pair were watched in horror. “By any chance, may I come into this museum? I am absolutely curiously intrigued by what is going on within here…”
“Sure!”
A VALKYRIE sniper was taking aim at Dread, then, as she entered, muttering under her breath, “got a shot lined up… I can take her out, and Jo a second later! Two bastards out of the way, at least, and-”
“Wait,” the youth in a blue aviator hat and goggles, speaking as VALKYRIE’s tactician, instructed, “hold your fire.”
“Sir, she just made one of our senior officers fall into rotten pieces! She’s chatting it up with this fish-bitch like it’s nothing!”
“I know, and I’m appalled too, but I think…” The Blue Kid paused, contemplatively. “No, I know it. Dread is here to defeat John Aurel, just like the Black Angel.”
Spinning and pivoting through the air, “Lou” Reed, dressed like a dark, sixth Flying Man, landed atop the skull of the t-rex, which had apparently been adorned in a cute little pirate hat. It made for a fine vantage point, then, to look all over the halls of the Natural History museum, noting one, two, three, four spots, grotesque and morbid statues Remix had apparently erected of ghostly abominations.
She was exhausted, injured from the three-way skirmish she, Metra, and Oh No had been forced to undergo and riding like hell to get here, but she had made it this far, and others had managed to get in too. She couldn’t choke now.
Seven minutes… I’ll just have to destroy those, and be back here in seven minutes. Easy enough… I don’t think I’ve been-
“Green, Orange, and Purple… I don’t believe a ‘Flying Man Black’ was ever mentioned, nor that any of the brothers were into swords.”
Shit. That voice, too… Lou turned around, then, seeing someone standing behind her, a man with long dark hair, brandishing a hammer and looking up at her.
John “Jack” Aurel.
“Even if you are what you appear to be and not in disguise, you should realize that you aren’t welcome here. There’s nothing to be done in this museum worth dying for, and no way to accomplish any more foolish goal if I were to raise attention now. Care to waste some of the time you have left and explain?”
Of course this would happen. Lou removed her faux-beak, helmet, and goggles, staring down at him as her hair billowed in the ceiling fans’ wind. “Jack… I’ve come here to put a stop to this.”
“You’re that kid who’s always running around, huh?” Jack frowned, twirling his hammer. “I hear what you talk about through the grapevine… About how we’re all victims of fate, forced against each other by Gravity. That Stand Users are always going to be molded by this… You understand it too. You understand that people like us prey upon the weak, that it’s in our natures and our place in the world. I want to remove myself from that… Remove these people from that, and atone for what I’ve done.”
“By killing even more people! There’s no way they’ll get everyone away from your blast radius, and you haven’t even given them the chance to!” Lou protested. “It doesn’t have to be this way… Don’t say this is how it has to be! We can save this place, free everyone from gravity, without barreling towards its destruction! I don’t want to kill you, Jack. I want you to stop this crazy, self-indulgent crap and help me do something real!”
“You think everyone deserves this? That Stand Users will simply reform without this? The cycle has started, and it will push to the end even if the wave guiding it fades away completely… Bastards, the lot of us, and I don’t intend to run from what I’ve done. I’ll give you one chance to run away, kid… the worst I can call you is naive.”
Lou drew the golden blade, seeing Jack wince as he clearly recognized its significance, all as her Stand appeared behind her. “We both know I can’t do that, even if I can barely keep my balance up here. And hey, maybe I will die here… Maybe I am fated not to see this through. But then, someone is gonna finish this for me! Your security is already compromised!”
“Fascinating… And you are utterly convinced that, should it work, those he’s slain to commence this ritual to begin with will return outside the city?”
“Remix is full of himself,” Jo said, nodding quietly, “but he and Jack, they researched a lot… Akiko and I, for helping this finish, we can finally go home! Be done with the bad city…”
“She has made this place remarkably impregnable,” Dread agreed, thinking aloud, “anyone who waltzes in waltzes into her backrooms…”
“Unless they have a ‘pass!’” A voice from within Dread’s cloak spoke, and as Jo raised her knife at it in defense, the pure-white, terribly contorted form of Bert tumbled onto the ground, stretching and reshaping into their typical humanlike shape.
“Don’t worry, don’t worry, they are fine, with me!” Dread assured Jo, frankly thankful to have that weight literally off her back. Bert was very light, but even then it was hard to walk carrying someone, let alone not give it away. “We have… Some history, and so I thought I might as well indulge Bert’s request to see this place as well. I apologize for not mentioning earlier, but it was quite dire getting in here past guards attacking us.”
Jo didn’t seem to mind, continuing to lead the pair around, even passing Akiko who was casually, distractedly reading some manga while in a bit of a pirate mood.
They also passed by another scene, slightly more concerning, of an injured old man in a Hawaiian Shirt, close by the frontmost entrance of the place and clutching himself as his fleet of four Stand-starships remaining fired at Remix, who guarded against it with ghost-objects while a Flying Man Red tried to find an opening to strike.
“You’ve been at this for hours, old man, die already! You have no place in the world I mean to birth from your bloodied, pulped remains!”
Pineapples stood, then, leaning against the wall, trying not to show weakness.
“I think that guy is going to lose, at this rate… It’s a shame, too,” Bert, the loudmouth again, remarked. “He might have been a worthwhile pawn in wrestling control away from this operation.”
Dread, Jo, Remix, and Red all gave Bert simultaneous incredulous looks, all in completely unique ways.
Jo drew her knife again, about to transform, only to dodge out of the way of the injured ‘Lou’ Reed, blacked out, helmetless, being knocked away and into the floor, the shock of which made her rise quickly, feeling around. “Where’s the- Shit!” As she sat up, then, feeling around for the saber no longer in her possession, she noticed that she was smack in the middle of something else here.
Hurriedly, she rolled away, standing herself up and looking to the injured Admiral. “You… You’re one of those MFAs, right? How did you-?”
Weakly, he gestured to Remix. “He brought me here in a damned urn! I’ve been fending them off to buy others in the museum time to escape… Everyone in this hall here and Jack, those are the only ones left in the building, minus masses and masses of ghosts. They’re harmless, though… Don’t worry about them attacking unless that guy takes them.”
“I see…” Lou, then, smiled sadly, clutching her bloodied suit. She looked to Bert and Dread, then, moving to get between them and Jack’s incredulous accomplices. “You said you wanted to take him out, right? I overheard…”
“Well, Bert has let yet another cat out of the bag,” Dread admitted, “indeed, I came here with the intent of dethroning Jack Aurel before he had a chance to complete his little ritual. Few others would even be able to get in here.”
“So that’s my role, then…” Lou smiled, then, sighing, ducking out of the way of the Flying Man sending a kick her way, a gauntlet-clad arm emerging from her body, grabbing his ankle hard, and swinging him into the Jo who was shocked to hear Dread say that. “I can’t do anything about Jack… Too fucked up from that ED match…” She grinned, then, mouth bleeding as she stared Remix down. “But this old man and I can at least keep these assholes from interfering!”
Dread, then, watched passively as the five erupted into battle, she and Bert curious about what was to come as, from each hand, the Stand which emerged seemed to fire odd projectiles at their foes. “The ‘I’ll hold them off…’ You’re styling yourself as some sort of exceptional hero, aren’t you?” She seemed amused by that, the irony of their cooperation. “I’m evil, you know… And Bert, at least, is morally ambiguous. But if you’ve settled on putting the city in our hands, have you any advice?”
Over the sounds of laser fire, Lou quickly found time to answer, “yeah, there’s… I brought this golden ‘saber’ with me, and it must’ve fallen somewhere by the T-Rex… In, in a bit over six minutes from now, this ritual of theirs is gonna go through and rip this island open. Before that… They have these ‘failsafe’ statue things, and…” She took a breath, retracting and wincing from a blow her Stand had taken. “Look, I don’t have time to explain it, but you need to smash those up first! They’re there, made up of spirits fused together, to keep these guys safe from the consequences of their own actions… To ensure their safety, and at the same time act as a ‘failsafe’ for the ritual. Gives you the ‘power’ over it, too, in the way that right now Jack himself does… That’s important to stopping it. So you need to smash them first, and then, right as the time passes for the ritual, when the skull of the T-Rex in the center starts to split open and glow and its mouth starts gushing water… Embed the sword into the opening in its forehead, right as it starts to shape. That’s the only way to prevent this at this stage!”
“The forehead particularly, hmm?” Bert asked, pacing curiously and avoiding a cross split attack from Red, who barreled into Lou and was barely blocked. “Why there, per se? Why nowhere else on the thing?”
“Ngh..!” Lou grunted, saved from a follow-up by Pineapples. “I dunno, that’s just where you have to do it!”
“Black Angel… That’s what you’re called, yes?” Dread smiled, turning away. “You will be thanked for this victory… Try to live long enough to witness it firsthand, won’t you?”
“I’d… I’d love to,” Lou answered, smiling sadly, “for five years now, when I first learned there was anything worth a damn in this world, I’ve wanted to protect that… The dark pit of despair that was the first thirteen years of my life, and even so much since, I’d love nothing more than a world where no person is fated beyond impossible odds to suffer that.” She grew serious, then, raising her voice. “Go, now! Leave this to us!”
Bert and Dread approached the T-Rex, impressed at the amazing height and Akiko’s snazzy pirate duds upon the thing, the lab-grown being whistling with impression. “A T-Rex lived ‘til three-hundred years ago… Preserved whole, in this city. It’s astonishing, isn’t it, Emilie ‘Dread’ Delacroix?”
“A curious anomaly,” Dread agreed, examining it from afar, even noticing that alleged sword in the distance. “I wonder why it survived that long, so far after its brethren…”
“It’s because it was a ‘Stand User.’”
Jack approached from the same room in which Dread spotted glints of the golden saber, announcing his presence with that. “That was its ‘fate…’ A savage, cunning animal, ripped from where it belonged. to be a problem to solve and squabble over, to found this city on its literal bones.”
“John ‘Jack’ Aurel… You’d best stand down.” Bert, helpfully, started. “You cannot beat us… Even if we only had seconds to overcome you, I would be too much for you to handle!”
“No, he’s going to fight, I know it.” Dread, meanwhile, prepared Joywave, staring him down with a pointed, grinning lethality. “I suppose introductions are not necessary, with how Bert here loves to say my full name… I am not one to make things curt or brief, John, but consider yourself toppled, usurped, bloodied and dead.”
“The lab accident with a God complex and by far the worst, most grisly of Jo’s friends…” With no real amusement, no happiness in his eyes, Jack chuckled, looking them over. “Of course, right at the end, my final test isn’t some hero… It’s exactly the worst kind of Stand User! The apex predators that I’ve preyed upon, that stand in the way of saving everyone who’s died to reach this point! Of course it would be someone like me to gain entry, wouldn’t it?”
“You speak with such confidence you’ll raise the dead…” Bert was curious. “Even if it costs more lives, such a thing is… That is the realm of gods, John ‘Jack’ Aurel.”
“Not today it’s not,” Jack answered, twirling his hammer in his hand. “Both of you… You’ve been driven here, standing in my way, as agents of ‘fate’ itself. Isn’t that the reason you were ‘lucky’ enough to pass through our defenses… Because you were meant to stand here, and you were meant to watch as every horrible, cruel thing you’ve done amounts to nothing in the face of these circumstances.”
He looks the two intruders over with sympathy for a moment, before steeling himself and clenching his weapon, Stand appearing behind him just as stone-faced. “You may be the puppet of something beyond your control, but you must understand that I can’t let you ruin the plan I’ve bet my life on. I bear you no anger as people, but your role here is something I can’t ignore. I’ll waste our time no longer in arguing ethics, let there be no apologies or restraint until this is settled.”
The other conspirators had been instructed not to intervene if it came to this point, even if it risked the collapse of everything they had worked for. Not if it threatened lives. An enemy to make it this far was deserving of being dealt with reasonably. As the critical moment drew near, Jack readied all the fury that months of waiting had stored within him, and accepted that this may very well be his final true fight.
“Five minutes on the dot now, until ‘that time…’ If what the Black Angel said is true.” Dread looked to Bert. “What do you say we demonstrate incontrovertibly to John exactly how confused he truly is?”
OPEN THE GAME!
(Image credit to CaptainSpooky27!)
Location: A part of the Los Fortuna’s Natural History Museum. The area here is 75 by 75 meters with each tile being 5 by 5 meters. The ceilings here are 8 meters tall. The yellow tiles are the hallways and the green and purple tiles form the different rooms.
The white tiles have ritual shrines built on those areas. There are 7 shrines total and will be explained in further detail in the additional information.
The players start at the south of the map and Jack starts at the top of the map as represented by their tokens. The walls are represented by thicker borders and the dotted lines are the doorways.
At the top of the map, in the pink tile and yellow symbols, is the Golden Sword. It is currently pinned under 2 meters of rubble.
Each wing of the museum houses an exhibit, in the center is the main attraction a large T-Rex in display as denoted by the large grey circle.
The other exhibits are denoted by the letter on them:

• G: The geologic exhibit, displaying and teaching about different rock formations and types
  
• O: The two Oceanic exhibits, displaying the marine life and seabed of Los Fortuna.
  
• C: The climatography exhibit, displaying the different temperature maps and features across Los Fortuna.
  
• A: The Agricultural exhibit, displaying the various fruits and crops grown around Los Fortuna.
  
• T: The two Taxidermy exhibits, displaying a wide range of animals in roped off and glass displays.
  
• E:The Entomology exhibit, displaying photos and models of various bugs.
  

Goal: For the players, desecrate all the shrines and, when time runs out, have at least one of you, living and conscious, at the T-Rex with the golden sword in hand! For Jack, make sure the players don’t stop your ritual before it goes off!
The match will last exactly five minutes, unless of course players are dead before then. It doesn’t end just because players reach the goal.
Additional Information:
The shrines are 2 meter tall marked wood and metal structures, each having an strange carve effigy sitting in the center of them. In order to properly desecrate a shrine the players can do one of a few things, destroy the shrine outright, deface all the carvings made into the shrine, or destroy the effigy hidden within the shrine.
After destroying or defacing a shrine, the ghosts of the dead will begin harassing the players - three ghosts will move towards the player responsible for destroying the shrine (even in a situation where the stands are responsible: the ghosts will target Bert if a Perfect Hair minion destroys a shrine, and same for if anything affected by Joywave does so). These aren't strong, having flat 222 physicals and being partially see-through, but will increase in numbers as more and more shrines are destroyed. Strong enough hits can phase them out of existence, but they'll respawn ten seconds after at the spot that they previously were. They will go directly towards the players and can phase through any walls or objects that may be in their paths (but not out of any attacks), grabbing onto the players and trying to gang up on them once they're close enough to do so, dealing minor damage.

Team	Combatant	JoJolity
Red Carpet Rennaisance	Emilie "Dread" Delacroix	"Wow! It's a hand drawn original color illustration!" You’re a cultured woman, and this museum might very well end up being wiped off of the face of the earth quite soon, so you need to make the most of it while you still can! Make sure to visit and appreciate the various exhibits on display here! (Character Specific)
Suburban Regalia	Bert	"What a terrible person. If I wrote about someone like you, none of my readers would like it." So this man is playing at god, trying to control life, death, and fate themselves? What foolishness! Clearly, only you can do such things, and you do them best! Over the course of the strategy, prove your superiority to this “Jack Aurel“ and take him down a notch! (Character Specific)
???	Jack Aurel	"Where the hell did you go?! Come out, you fucker!" It's now or never. This is the culmination of all of your plans, and failing is absolutely not an option here. During the fight, hold nothing back, and make sure to thoroughly defeat your opponents so that no one and nothing will ever stand in your way again!

(Jack sheet plain text version)
Link to the Official Player Spreadsheet
Link to Match Schedule
As always, if you would like to interact with the tournament community and be among the first to get updates for the tournament, please feel free to PM a member of our Judge staff for an invite to our Official Discord Server!

The Game Corner has been missing since the fourth generation of games, most likely due to associations with gambling. While it is only a side feature and is unimportant in the grand scheme of things, I miss the Game Corner dearly. I want to start a discussion on the Game Corner, how to bring it back, and brainstorm ideas for a new Game Corner.

Why the Game Corner was Removed

The most likely reason for the removal of the Game Corner is its association with gambling. With games like roulette and slot machines, the gambling comparison is almost too obvious. Bulbapedia states that games with gambling must have an age rating of at least 12, something that Pokemon will not do. Because the Game Corner is such an insignificant feature to Pokemon games, it is simply easier to remove it entirely than to rework it.
The increased PEGI age rating comes from the presence of simulated gambling. In order for something to be defined as gambling, there must be consideration, risk, and prize. All three must be present for it to legally be considered gambling.
Consideration is the wager. It can have any value and as such, almost anything can be a consideration, even cryptocurrencies. This site uses World of Warcraft gold as an example of consideration, so in game currencies absolutely could be defined as a form of consideration.
Chance is the uncontrollable element that can determine the winner. The amount of randomness required for something to be defined as ‘chance’ can vary though.
Prize is similar to consideration, but it is what you receive if you win. Also similar to consideration, it does not need official value to be defined as ‘prize’.
As stated before, all three of the above must be present for something to be defined as gambling. Since in a game like roulette, the coins could be a form of consideration and prize and the nature of the game obviously has chance involved. That said, by removing just one of those elements, the roulette game could make a comeback.

Bringing Back the Game Corner

Unless the gambling laws drastically change in the near future, it is very possible to work around gambling regulations by playing your cards right. For example, roulette could be brought back as it is if the player was not required to risk any coins. I noticed this exact same strategy in the recent Super Smash Bros. direct when revealing the new spectate mode feature. In it, they clearly state that “there is nothing to lose”, removing the possibility of there being consideration; therefore, this new spectate mode cannot be gambling. The same strategy can be applied to Pokemon’s Game Corner games, making them perfectly legal.
But given the current gaming environment filled with controversies over loot boxes and other gambling-like mechanics, it may not be very tasteful to bring back the roulette wheel even with this legal loophole. Which is why I think the Game Corner needs to be re-branded as an arcade. Arcade games do not carry the negative connotation of gambling and they often enjoy the luxury of being exempt from gambling laws. Additionally, changing the vibe from a casino to an arcade means that there is more flexibility with prizes. High scores or world record times make for a satisfying reward without involving money. Additionally, the Game Corner could be found in more environments than just its own building in a single city. Many cities could have their own Game Corners (maybe with their own assortment of games) and they could be found inside other buildings too. A Game Corner on the S.S. Aqua in particular sounds fun to me. I see this re-branding benefiting the Game Corner in every way with no drawbacks.

Building a Better Game Corner

While reworking the old Game Corner to be compliant with the law is nice, there is still so much that could be done with the Game Corner. Mainly, new games! There are loads of areas to pull inspiration from to build up a good group of games.
Classic arcade games could have a Pokemon twist added to them. Snake is almost too easy of an example. Put in a purple snake, have it eat Oran berries and call it Ekans. Or maybe a Pac-Man clone where you play as a Munchlax while trying to avoid Ghastlys. Or perhaps Doodle Jump but it’s Jumpluff Jump. So many simple games already exist that could easily be made for the all new Game Corner.
Inspiration could also come from what we already know of the Pokemon World. Charjabug Racing could be turned into a simple top-down racing game. The Bug-catching Contest could also be brought back in the form of an arcade game. But the best idea would be to bring back old side games into the Game Corner to continue being enjoyed. Pokemon Pinball fits so well it hurts. Pokemon Snap might be a bit complex, but bringing back a simple map to play could easily fit into a modern game.
Multiplayer games have their own place too. Though I never played them, Pokemon Jump and Dodrio Berry Picking were multiplayer only games in gen 3. I would like to see more of these kind of games, especially with online capabilities. Imagine Pokemon Stadium mini-games making a comeback with online play in this new Game Corner. As suggested in this thread (I thought of this concept days ago, but they posted the same idea mere hours before I actually started writing this so they win), the trading card game could be added to the main games as well and the Game Corner is by far the best place. Alternatively, abandoned mobile games such as Pokemon Duel could fit in well too. And if you want to play online but no directly against someone, spectating matches (similar to the example above with Super Smash Bros.) could be done, as well as high scores and leader boards for the other arcade games.
I realize that the list of games I suggest is a lot and asking for way more than what the Game Corner deserves. The Game Corner as we know it serves basically no purpose other than to hide Team Rocket’s secret base and maybe lock away some Pokemon or TMs. There is no reason to bring it back or to build a better one (especially to the degree I would like), as it is side content that will certainly not sell more copies of a game. However, there is value to be found in the Game Corner and there is value in past side games. I hope that one day the Game Corner returns and brings with it new and old games to make for a more complete gaming experience, no matter how crazy I might dream.
What do you hope to see in a theoretical future Game Corner? Any new game ideas? Or maybe it is too closely tied to gambling and should stay out of Pokemon. Lets share some ideas to make this small part of Pokemon a little bit better.

Nor does it need to be.

• If two people go to a casino and one doubles their money while the other loses it, does it make any sense at all to say that the winner is more meritorious? Do you provide more to society by betting on black than red?
  
• A person may recieve inheritance simply because of the circumstances of their birth. Or they may recieve gifts or charity from others, which may not be motivated by rewarding merit.
  
• People can get money through illicit means. They may bribe politicians and exploit legal loopholes, or they can just steal, embezzle, or defraud.
  

Merit, isn't about outcomes, so much as about intent and ability. A person who does everything right but fails is more meritorious than one who does everything wrong but succeeds. The person at the top of a pyramid scheme is not meritorious; they are not being rewarded for their contributions to society, and we shouldn't pretend otherwise.
I know everybody and their mother is going to get all defensive and try to draw some deeper point out of this post, but I'm not trying to do anything like that. I don't care what (if any) position this supports, I just want to establish it because it's true.

Betfair, being the biggest online betting system in the world Auto-Lotto Processor Review is visited by so many gamblers since it was launched in 2010. If you are new with using Betfair, its Betfair forum would be a great source of information as well as a venue in meeting people who are also into online betting. As an online betting exchange, people visit Betfair because of sports betting, horse race betting, online poker, and casino. Incidentally, did you know that many people who are into online betting use this as another income source Indeed, some people treat online betting as another way to earn an income because they get to win substantial amounts of money. Just imagine mixing fun and excitement to another source of income.
​
Losses will definitely be encountered quite often by newbies as they master the rules and formulas in online betting. For beginners, they must remember that losing is much a part of online betting as winning is. What is great is that you can use your losses as a way to keep on learning from your mistakes in order to get better each day.With regards to online betting, how can you increase your chance in winning First, you should definitely learn the ins and outs of the game. If you bet in sports or horse races, you must definitely know the lingo used in these activities.
​
You should also learn what information and statistics to look for and how to properly analyze these. Remember that placing a bet simply based one one's feeling of luck is not a good basis. Also, it is not advisable to make a bet on your favorites even though these do win once in every three races. Second, expert advice on online betting is something that you must look for. You will be able to find these experts sharing their betting tips and advices on different blogs and articles, and even on radio and TV. The opinions and views of the experts could definitely help you in learning more about the players and teams. Just always remember that the experts are humans, too. And this means that experts, in some occasions, may also be wrong. In fact, I believe that no one could be 100 percent sure that his or her bet will be the most likely winner.
​
Third, a betting system which is effective and accurate in making predictions is something that you must look for. When using a betting system, you need not spend so many hours doing your research and study of statistics and information. All you need to do with a betting system is to follow the easy instructions and your chances of winning will be definitely improved. The Betfair Loophole System is the best betting system which is available now.
​
https://healthinfluencer.net/auto-lotto-processor-review/

I've uhmmed and ahhed about this. A bit of background. I've been married for about 22 years to the most amazing woman I've ever met. I'm in my 40s but look fairly young for my age. I'm not super fit but not bad. Our sex life is probably fairly good compared to most people our age but we don't have any kids.
A friend of ours was having his birthday at the end of the month - he had a bunch of mates with the same birthday so they all agreed to sort out a casino night over at one of their houses. I was invited along with the wife and thought I'd give it a go. Haven't played in a casino in years.
The guy running the blackjack table didn't know what he was doing, I spotted a couple of obvious loopholes and proceeded to clean him out, encouraging others to join in. After a bit of time on the blacjack I shifted over to roulette, where I managed to roughly break even but because I had large amounts to play with it looked better than it was. Another half an hour at blackjack and I was up again, then on to poker. I played the other players off against each other, but just held my place. A couple of girls in their mid-30s asked us if we wanted drinks so I asked for a vodka and tonic, and told them very specifically how they should make it - I then told them that nobody gets it right first time, but that if they should be the first I'll tip big. They came back with the foulest vodka and tonic I've ever tasted and tipped them a black chip (top of the pile at the time), complimenting them on how it was one of the best I'd ever had. They fell for it completely and pretty much wouldn't leave me alone the entire time.
Then I got the other guys at the poker match to play off against each other, then waited for them to go into dick measuring contest mode, at a point where I had a flush and beat them down, ending the game and taking everyone's chips.
The chips were given out so it wasn't real money but there was prizes. I caught up with the wife - she'd been talking to lots of interesting girls. My two new friends were a bit bored now that the poker had finished so we went to the blackjack to play. I then made a few cocktails for the girls and a few other guys, when the winner was due to be announced. The winner of the night was the guy that had the most chips. They were about to announce it when I turned up. I dropped my big chips onto a plate - apparently someone had won at 35 - 1 on roulette and betted big. Comparing the chips wasn't work well, so I emptied my pockets and brought my smaller chips forward at which point it was unanimously decided that I won. First prize was a bottle of reasonable champagne, which I promptly poured for anyone who had a birthday this month (and the two girls, obviously).
There was then a present opening session for one of the guys who's birthday it was that day. I caught up again with the wife who informed me that everyone had been talking about me the entire night. I asked her what she felt about the girls - she said she knew what I was trying to do, and that it was working.
Still, I carried on. At about 3am things were dying down, everyone thought it was an awesome night and I went to get my cab with my wonderful wife. The two girls wanted to come with, but I had to let them down gently - the knives they gave my wife were like nothing else.
TL;DR - owned the night like a boss, went home and did my wife seven ways from sundown, making two 30somethings as jealous as hell in the process.

Verified? (This bot cannot verify AMAs just yet)
Date: 2012-05-15
Link to submission (Has self-text)
Link to my post

Questions	Answers
Are you hiring? I'd love to move to Canada.	Absolutely, We are looking for several positions and if you are sincerely looking for a job, message me :)
Does being a Casino Manager makes you keep your distance from gambling?	AMAZING question, It actually makes it worse. I had never gambled a day in my life until I took that position. It is the same across the board. Never met another manager that doesnt gamble.
Will you quit this job if you had given the choice?	I could not ask for a better job. Excitement every single day. Learing to control personal demons such as gambling and alcohol is always a fighting battle given the situation.
You are 100% right. U of Waterloo in Ontario conducted a study and they concluded that "casino employees exhibited rates of problem gambling that were over three times greater than rates that past studies have found in Ontario’s general population." -Link to uwspace.uwaterloo.ca.	I know my stuff ;). It's a weird feeling.
What do you play, and wht stakes do you play ? Also.. Does your entire salary go straight back to the casino after payday?	I like to play 1$ slots and blackjack for the most part. On blackjack my average bet is probably 60-75$. My salary does go back, but a portion of it does. I am pretty good at controlling myself, gets better by the year.
How is your daily routine in the casino?Do you get any perks?	They pay my cell phone bill. I get paid any expenses you could imagine. I get free tickets and merchandise all the time. Golf passes dinners etc.
Have you ever caught someone counting in blackjack?	Several times. With the security features we use, shuffle machines and cutting off 2-3 decks from the back, it's nearly impossible. Hell we will even teach you how to do it if you'll stay a while ;)
How did you get into the Casino business?	I applied to become a dealer, years ago. I just worked my way up. Its an amazing business.
Ever had somebody die on your floor? Or at least horribly injured?	Yes 2 people have died, one from a massive stroke, and another from a heart attack. We have had at least 25 heart attacks since I have worked there.
Do heart attacks happen more often when people win big or lose big?	There has never been a direct correlation between winning/losing big and our patrons having heart attacks.
Interesting. Thanks for the response.	Anytime :) I cant believe the responses already!
Statistically, you have the best chance of surviving a heart attack in a casino. The average response time drops from like 15 minutes in your home to something absurd like 30 seconds.	We are very quick to react. This and we have first aid training as well as AED on site.
What the highest single bet you have witnessed?	Here in Alberta, the maximum per spot on blackjack is 1000. I did witness a total table wager( by one player) Of 15,000. This was after he split 6 times and doubled once. He won evry wager on that hand.
Whats the luckiest person/win streak you have seen? (Not just 1 win but someone winning for a while or doing something crazy and it working)	I watched someone win 24,000 on a slot machine. I reset his machine and he won 24,000 the next spin. I had the machine investigated by AGLC and all was well. He was 80 so I don't think he could cheat. Lol.
Do Casino's pump high levels of oxygen into the gambling areas, if so is that allowed? Have you ever caught anyone having sex or masturbating in the Casino? Do the Slot Machines ever get tampered with by cheaters? What is the penalty for tampering with slot machines?	No we do not pump oxygen into the casino, It is not allowed. I had to fire an employee for masturbating in the customer bathrooms. Slots are rarely successfully tampered with, but it does happen quite often. The penalty is a fine and up to jail time. You can get in a LOT of trouble for trying something that is nearly impossible, like cheating a slot machine No problem :)
How...did you catch the guy spanking it? I fear to know yet I must ask for I can't think of a logical, sane way you caught the dude.	I walked in to the washroom to check on the status of the last cleaning, and I caught him beating it with the stall door open... he forgot to lock it. was very obvious and he didnt even try to deny it.
Nobody forgets to lock the door when they are wanging it.	He was off shift in 45 mins too... just couldnt wait.
It isn't illegal, what can the casinos do?	We reserve the right to remove any patron at any time for any reason.
Do you still have to cash their chips if you kick them out?	If they did not steal them, then Absolutely.
What is the best and worst part of your job?	The best is seeing a person win big. The worst is seeing someone leaving in tears and me knowing they are broke and have kids.
Have you ever cut someone a break?	Several times.
You've seen everything, have you seen Casino with Robert DeNiro in it and how accurate is that film?	I have seen it, and I have yet to see a movie that ACTUALLY portrays a real casino whatsoever.
Most movies don't portray anything realistically.	Good point. Casinos seem to be reallly far off though.
What about Croupier with Clive Owen.. good film..	Cant say ive seen it. Will watch.
What's the most desperate attempt to cheat in a casino you have ever seen?	A guy in the middle of a hand, did not agree with the way a dealer "flipped" their hole card so he took his bets off the table (approx 1400$) and tried to pocket them before we could count what he had bet. He then tried to replace his bets after we asked with about 800$. It was very very easy to catch the amount that was originally on there. Cameras/pit boss/dealer all agreed to the exact amount. He was later found trying to cash out $600 in chips (after losing) lol.
That actually sounds pretty clever. He should have just gone for a smaller amount though.	It wasnt bad. But he was on a high limit table with a lot of people watching
Any pranks you or your employees pulled?	Yup, I am known as the prankster. I like to send new employees looking for left handed roulette balls or polish for the blackjack shoes. After they waste an hour or so I tell them. And they are laughed at by patrons and employees. Its all in good fun. Never had a complaint.
What happens to a cheater once you found them out? Is it just a case of the cops getting called straight away?	I review the situation, and If I deem it cheating, a review is sent to AGLC and the patrons information gathered along with a police investigation. They will be prosecuted.
Do you catch cheaters? What were some cleveinvolved cheating schemes?	I have caught cheaters, almost always at blackjack and threecard poker. The most common way they cheat is called "pressing". Having a partner distract the dealer for a second while they use slight of hand to add chips. Some people are very good at this, so good its tough to see on camera even.
To be clear.. what they do is when they have a good hand, someone distracts the dealer and the guy with the good hand attempts to increase his bet? What do you do when you catch something like that?	We ban them Immediately. And other casinos recieve the memo an do the same.
Have you ever caught prostitution going on in the casino? What is the process of banning someone? Do they get put into a system? Do you have a banned wall?	Yes we catch dirty prostitutes all the time. The ban process is easy. We take what info we have on them, take a recent photo from a surveillance screenshot and then post it to the banned wall :)
How is the security in the casino? Edit: no i'm not planning a robbery...	The guards are pretty well trained. Also we have over 200 cameras. You are on camera within 1 KM of the casino. Also, all doors locked with special proxy cards that only have access to certain rooms, depending on position.
ONE KILOMETER? Are you kidding me? This is very secure, oh my.	Cant tell if sarcasm. Detector is broken.
No sarcasm. This blows my mind. I always thought you guys have over the top security, but such a radius around your casino is mind blowing :). Great AMA btw, thanks for your time!	I love the response im getting! This is awesome!
What is the process in working your way up from dealer to casino manager? How long did it take, what kind of background did you have prior to becoming a dealer? Also did you have to take any classes or anything like that either at an outside school or a company school to teach you all the ins and outs of the job? Did you ever think you'd be doing this or just sort of fall into it? What kind of responsibilities do you hold? I saw in your other posts that you mention throwing out people masturbating on the clock, helping people with gambling addictions and catching cheaters, but what is an everyday entail for you? I imagine you have to be a man with many hats (VIP guest liaison, worker ally, eyes for the bosses etc) Also last question I swear, what do you think of organized cheaters and the exposure they are getting such as Bringing Down the House/21 or the History Channel show on Breaking Vegas?	It took me 4 years to get where I am. Went from dealer to pit boss to pit supervisor to games manager. I haven't taken any special courses really. Some training sessions but that's about it. You need to have the gift they say. As for responsibilities. I am in charge of running every department when I am on shift. And I am in charge of all the money. The movies have not done anything except make us money. People come in all the time thinking they will count cards and win, and we smash them.
In my expeirence, the 'Summon Technician' button rarely works. Thoughts?	In my casino, it is attended to immediately. We are the only casino that I am aware of that does this.
Are employees allowed to gamble in the casino where they work? Or is just the manager that is allowed - I noticed you say you gamble off the clock. I live in England and am sure this is against nearly all casino policy.	Only waitresses and guest services may gamble in our casino. No gaming worker is allowed to gamble in their own casino in alberta.
Any moral qualms sometimes?	Never, Its a persons choice on what the wish to gamble.
Give it a few more years.	I've got over that a long time ago. During my dealing days.
a follow up, sorry for that.. How do your co-workers react to yout gambling, does this make it awkward in any way?	Actually, I tend to go to different casinos with my co-workers, awkwardness is never an issue.
Since you know a lot about security and cheating, do you know any loopholes in your or any other casino?	Our casino is very secure. Some of the other casinos on the other hand..
For example?	That I can't really disclose. Although. It's quite funny which one is the worst. I will leave it at that. I'm sure that comment alone will help some people.
Many years ago my mom had a gambling addiction. We werent sure how severe it was, we just thought she would go to the casino and have some fun and risk $200 or so. The casino hooked her in with the whole VIP treatment and rewards as an incentive to come back. One weekend she lost all her life savings ($300,000) It impacted our family a lot, as we were pretty much broke after she lost all our money. Even to this day we havent recovered, i missed out on college to work instead and been on my own since. My mom whos supposed to be close to retirement age is still working to support herself. I know casinos are for entertainment, but more often than not stories like this happen. How do you feel when a family is affected deeply because of gambling problems?	Honestly that is the only hard part of the job. But after the years, I've become mostly desensitized to it.
Have you ever seen Ocean's Eleven? Did you just laugh and laugh and laugh?	Not a fan of those movies :(
Have you ever been to Montecarlo? Do you think there are many differences between the european casino scene and the US/Canadian scene?	Never been to Montecarlo, but from everything I have learned about it, It is very similar to our casinos in Canada (barring a few different table games). They have a lot of the same slot machines and their security is VERY high.
So, do you get hookers?	Not once in my life.
Is there a certain amount of time that people are allowed to gamble before some sort of intervention takes place? (e.g. can't gamble for more than 24 hours straight, etc.)	Our casino is only open for 17 hours at a time maximum. That is the law in this province. But under certain circumstances, we do offer help to people we notice becoming chronic gamblers.
What Kind of help do you offer out of interest? I get that the human factor is probably the reason its offered as the business side must actually like chronic gamblers.	We offer councelling (not directly, but sources) and different programs such as VSE. VSE= Voluntary Self Exclusion. You will be excluded from gaming in ALL of Alberta. If caught in gaming facilities you can be arrested.
Favorite Ice cream flavor?	Vanilla for the most part. Although I do like neopalitan.
Have you ever caught your employees stealing chips? Edit: i cant spell.	I try to hire employees that I trust with the chips so that I dont have to worry about them. It has never happened to my knowledge.
You mentioned that you try to hire employees that are trustworthy with the chips etc. Do you have to run any criminal history checks, bankruptcy checks etc before you hire people? Do you use continuous shuffle machines to deal blackjack or do you deal from a shoe? If from a shoe, how many decks? How do you combat card counters? What is the food chain like? Here we have Dealers < Floor managers < Pit Bosses < Duty managers < Casino manager. Where do you fit in? How do the high rollers rooms work? Can someone walk in and flash cash to get in or do you need to gamble a certain amount first? What perks do high rollers get?	Yes background checks and credit checks are run on ALL employees. We offer both continuous shuffles and shoes We use 8 decks and cut 3 off the back, as well as use a shoe cover. Very hard to count cards like that. In our casino I would be considered 2nd in line. High rollers are treated very well. Comped tabs etc. free trips to shows and all that jazz.
Have you ever seen a man eat his own head?	Nope!
Ever seen a card cheat get his hand smashed by a ballpeen hammer ?	Never had to use violence for a cheating patron. Drunk patrons on the other hand....
Great AMA! You answer almost everything!	Thanks! I try to answer everything, I know i miss stuff but you guys comments lots! hard to keep up!
Here's my question: How do your responsibilities differ from a Pit Boss? Are you in charge of the food and alcohol people, too? How much time per shift do you spend on the floor and how much time do you spend interacting with individual guests?	I am in charge of all departments when I am on shift. Pit boss is strictly in charge of the pit. I am always on the gaming floor interacting with guests. Its the best part of my job :)
Any suicides? I live near Niagara Falls and we hear stories all the time of people who blow it all in the casinos and take a dive over the falls.	Yes unfortunately. :(
Are you from Edmonton by chance? If so care to comment why CH is still allowed to play in the poker rooms after being caught ripping off casinos with his bad beat scam?	Not from edmonton, but I do know who you are talking about. It is the discretion of the casinos. He should be banned but they have failed to file charges.
They are still aware of what he did and as a pretty frequent player it sort of sucks having to sit at a table with someone you know was using dealers to set up bad beats....	You play at yellowhead?
How does the casino decide what background music to play? do you hate those songs now?	I ususally pick it. I pick it depending on the majority of the crowd. (old people = classic rock, young people = new music.) We have lots of playlists it doesnt really get too bad.
I notice a lot of times my favorite slot machines are removed from the floor and never to be seen again. Do you guys store them in a basement or sell them to other casinos? Recycle them for parts?	Machines are regulated by AGLC, they send us new ones and take old every week.
How long does training for croupier last? Are there opportunities for college students?	Training is usually a month long. Its easier to get a job as a dealer if you are young. Young people seem to learn a lot easier.
What is the longest you've seen a customer play a machine? Any 24-hour slot machine marathons?	Open to close 4 days in a row. (17 hours a day)
What is your coin-in on an average Saturday night? Biggest New Year's Eve coin-in you can remember? What's the average toke rate?	Over 1.5 million. Best tip rate for a week was 30 ish.
How much do you make? What's your educational background? Edit: saw that you can't answer how much you make. So how'd you get into the job?	I walked in an applied for dealer. They loved my attitude and hired me on the spot.
So you were hired as a dealer and then moved up in the ranks? Sounds like a sweet job and a managerial position involving actual job duties.	Absolutely.
Just curious (and maybe you don't know)-- how exactly is the software sold for the newer digital games? Order "Three of Game A, three of game B" and remain stuck with it? Order them configured one way, but the software can be replaced for a token sum? If so, is it an in-house operation, or a "vendor service has to be called? They can load any firmware specced as compatible with the box? I notice there's always one or two machines in a bank of (physically) equivalent units which have an unpopular game (like the one which starts belting out Dean Martin songs at 600 decibels in attract mode) so they sit relatively unused, but they never change them. Is it laziness, cost, or technical limits?	I dont deal with the digital games sorry!
The Ontario Lottery Corporation is in the process of rolling out an online casino. From an industry persepective, what are your views on online casinos? Is the software designed to give you gains but take back once you win-loss ratio is too high?	Online casinos (legit ones) Run by pretty much the same stats as a real casino. Same odds of winning almost exactly.
Can you see why kids love Cinnamon Toast Crunch?	Its magically delicious, or wait.. damn lucky charms
What's a good starting job to get at a casino that will eventually get you into a managing position?	Dealer is the absolute best.
Thanks for the swift response.	No problem.
Just in case you are still answering at all...what's te stupidest/seemingly impossible thing you've seen/heard of a dealer doing? Most awesome/badass?	I had a dealer deal a full table of blackjack entirely fucking backwards. I almost pissed myself no joke.
If some patron is winning a lot of money, would you kick them out? Say for instance a guy is playing Blackjack and went from 1000 dollars to 100000 dollars and wants to continue playing. He is literally just owning the table winning 9/10 hands. Would you kick this guy out or let him keep playing?	Nope, its good in house advertising to have big winners :)
Not sure if this was asked already, but is there really oxygen pumped into the casinos like people say there is? Or is it just the shiny lights and excitement that will keep you going all night?	No oxygen pumped in. Its the lights and atmosphere.
What was the most someone won in one night?	1.1 million dollars.
If I were looking to move to Vegas, how difficult do you think it'd be to get a decent paying job working in the casinos? I have a friend who moved there and is looking for a roommate, but I'm nervous about taking the step without a job lined up.	As long as you have a good head on your shoulders and the motivation, its pretty easy to get into the business.
What''s your salary roughly?	Thats actually the only thing im not willing to disclose. Sorry pal.
Who is your favorite porn star?	Hootie McBoob.
Do casinos usually offer part-time jobs as croupiers?	Always have part time positions open. Especially for weekends.
I saw that you didn't like Ocean's Eleven, but how did the guys get all those hooker flyers into the vault?	Lol your guess is as good as mine ;)
1) How's the pay? 2) You already mentioned that you worked your way up from a dealer. Is there much higher that you can go? 3) How has the economic downturn affected business?	The pay is great You can go to managing a whole casino, given time Business has actually gone up. Alberta isnt very effected by it.
How often do you feel like De Niro?	Every day.
Are there or have there been times when you know someone is cheating or doing something "unethical" but you just can't get the evidence? If so, do they still frequent the casino? do you feel like they do it on purpose to piss you (the casino) off because they know that you know?	I dont need evidence, if someone is suspected of cheating they are gone. AGLC backs us 100%
I live in vegas and recently a guy robbed a casino and stole like 100k of chips, whats the process of making sure he isnt able to cash those chips in. (He was wearing a mask) So does the casinos like remake all new chips or what?	We track our 100$ chips very carefully. when people cashout 100 or more, we know about it. If we dont see them playing, we watch that person closely.
What is the best way to get a room comped for a weekend (I always seem to get Sun-Thur offers)? What is the average bet / hours required of play (assuming black jack)? Is it true you should expect 30% of your losses returned in the form of comps?	I wouldnt count on getting 30%, maybe 5-10%. Average bet should be about 50-60$
Lots of questions have come up about players cheating, but what about the house? I know people who have seen casinos get busted for rigging games. I have certainly played at blackjack tables where the dealers seemed to have an uncanny ability to predict hands, I even once had a dealer reveal a blackjack without using the little peek thing. Dealt, asked for insurance (with great intensity), told us we should have taken the hint and flipper her card. Have you seen any cheating by the house or have any reason to think it happens?	Never have I seen cheating by the house. I guarantee it doesnt happen in any legit casino in Canada. There are inspectors at all times. I truly believe that it doesnt happen. As a dealer myself I could "predict" my handsquite often. Because you do it so many times in one day you are bound to get it right.
How many bones have you witnessed being broken? or families ruined because of gambling everything away? a lot or a ton?	Maybe 5 broken bones, probably 50 families :(
Have you ever felt the need to tell some poor old folks: "Take your welfare checks home." ?	Nope, they usually play small just to pass the time. They are very nice.
How prevalent is patron on patron theft? For example, leaning over and grabbing a few of someone else's chips while they're not looking, or tapping their stack with a drink (which happens to have tape on the bottom) or things like that?	Doesn't happen very often chip wise. But it does happen if people leave credits in a machine, drop money on the ground, or leave money in an ATM. We will hunt the patron down and force them to pay back the money.
Why do Asians gamble so much and where the hell do they get all of that money?	I dont want to speculate where they get it..
What would be the best way to go about robbing a casino?	Not trying ;). No one gets away.
What do you do with underage kids or kids with fake IDs? do they ever show up?	Kick them out and file a report. If they have fake ID, file it with the police.
I went to the casino for my first time last week. Slots are boring as shit. Do you recommend a black jack guide to get the hang of things? Thanks.	Always good to go in knowing basic strategy. check out wizardofodds.com.
How much do you earn on average yearly?	Cant disclose that :(
What's your take on Scorsese's 1995 "Casino"? :D:D.	Would watch again.
Did you read the novels by Mario Puzo about the inner workings of a casino? Would you say that they are accurate?	Not yet, in process.
What's your favorite Canadian province besides Alberta?	Ontario.
My question is why did you use a combination of Photoshop and real-life obfuscation for your badge? Carefully torn and placed pieces of pink and black tape, then some kind of 1990s-era Photoshop airbrushing around the perimeter...	I was looking for something quick. And I never really used a site like this. I know, I suck.
What are your thoughts on the Martingale method of gambling on Red/Black in Roulette? I have had moderate success waiting for a run of 4 of one colour, then betting $25 on the opposite colour, then doubling each time until I win.	Its a very bad system for the most part. you risk a lot to win a little.
How often do customers claim the dealer misheard/misinterpreted what they said to do? E.g.. the customer was playing blackjack, didn't want to hit, but the dealer misheard them and dealed them a card, which caused them to bust.	5 times a day at least. I usually give them the benefit of the doubt.
Are there any games that people can beat long run other than bj?	You can't beat BJ in the long run. There is no way to make money.
Since Counting cards isn't illegal, if you catch someone do you still black ball them and tell all the other casinos?	No. Unless they actually cheat, they aren't black balled.
What is the craziest thing you've seen?	I answered this a little further down bud.
Have you ever seen a guy eat his own head?	Hasn't happened to date..
Have you seen a live unicorn?	Nope, it was dead.
What's the largest sum of money you've seen someone lose in one day?	100K on blackjack.
So you admit that you are a liar? EDIT: I do believe this means you have to forfeit your casino to me.	Rules are rules I guess :(
Have you ever seen a queen in her damned undies, as the feller says?	Once back in 06.

Last updated: 2012-05-19 15:36 UTC
This post was generated by a robot! Send all complaints to epsy.

Verified? (This bot cannot verify AMAs just yet)
Date: 2012-06-16
Link to submission (Has self-text)
Link to my post

Questions	Answers
What is the most fucked up thing you have ever seen in your gambling ring career?	There was a younger couple that used to come into one of my main rooms that i used to work all the time. They were happy, recently married, and the woman was pregnant with his child. They would come in to have a little fun and try to win some money. Well one day the husband left early to go to work and left the lady to herself to spend what she had left and go home, problem was she spent a lot more then what was "left" (always the case btw). Well, at this point i see she had spent more than her usual play, and i front her $20 so she could try and win some of that money back (that is common practice BTW). She didn't. So she came to me for more money and i gave her 20 more. Boom, gone in the matter of seconds. Then she comes to me and asks if she could do anything for more money. I tell her no and that she needed to figure out what she was going to tell her husband. well, 15 mins later i see her walking out of the mens restroom with some guy. I don't know what happened in the restroom but she suddenly had more money to spend on the games. She lost it all. Including her husband. Game rooms are full of regulars who gossip all the time. Word got back to her husband and her child was born a bastard..... Over video slots.
"I don't know what happened in the restroom" Back massage, his shoulders were really tense from all the gambling. It's a shame how gossip blows things out of proportion.	Awesome!
How pregnant?	She was about 6-8 months? i dont know but her belly was very round with a baby inside.
How'd she look?	She was cute.. really was.
120 outstanding warrants?!? How the fuck did you get it all (some of it?) dismissed?	Well i had gotten arrested because the lawyers that were hired for me that were supposed to handle my citations were trying to get out of all them with out the owners of the game room paying for them through some stupid loophole that ended up to be complete shit. I understand why they tried to do this because i think the total cost of the citations was upwards of $75,000, and nobody wants to loose $75k. However i ended up getting fucked because of it. I spent a couple days in jail before i was called in to see the judge personally, I was getting a lot of attention by the guards and the inmates because word had spread pretty quick that i had been one of Houstons most wanted list. The judge was a really nice guy and told me that it was in my best interests to plead not guilty in my initial plea, with out saying that directly. 4 days later when my hearing started up the cops never showed up, the judge called me up to talk to me and told me to keep my nose clean and reminded me of how luck i was.
What kind of hearing? I looked you up and I don't see any charges filed for gambling operations... And you wouldn't get cut lose because a cop doesn't show up for your initial appearance.	I never ever ever ever said gambling charges. and all my charges that i did have got dismissed.
So you became a snitch, then?	No, i don't get where you are getting that from.
Does the house always win? What was your best WTF experience?	Overall? Yes, we always won. However, there are people who have luck on their side that day or sometimes always it seemed. Take this guy named able (actual name) this motherfucker would come down drop like 1000$ on a machine loose it all come back the next day and hit triple 7's playing all lines and win 3k. He would do this multiple times on solid machines (which are machines that couldn't be cheated or chances are highly unlikely to be cheated i should say). Now it wasn't everyday or even every month, but the he did it consistently enough to where he was making some insane money doing this. If the bastard wasn't walking with jackpots he would at least walk out the a couple bills.. Crazy.
Thank you for doing this thread. Were there any moments where you thought that you were in the shits due to the police (apart from when you were caught)?	Yes actually, at least in my rooms. There was a false door to let you in that was completely barred up and had reflective tint to hide the interior which was still hidden by a false wall. To get in you had to ring the door bell which was hidden, i had cameras to see the people on the outside waiting to come in. Once inside you were in a fake store front, full of old ass cloths and useless shit hanging on racks that no one would ever want. If everything was cool and i knew you or had someone vouch for you i would let you in the second door at which point you would pick your poison and try your hand at luck. Funny thing, cops were always hanging outside of our joint because of this nice little restaurant next door down, so i would see cops all the time. At first it freaked me out but after a while you stop caring because I see them so much.
Any Scorsese-esque tales of gangster-brutality to tell?	Kinda. Shit never got really out of control because everyone knew that being in the room was a privilege and most didn't want to blow a chance at not being let back in. But you would have new people that would come in with regulars, which is how you get in to the room as a guest, and how the room makes new guests. Problem is, every one knows a few bad apples and chances are you are going to have to deal with them. Long story short we had a couple of younger guys, and its always the younger men who start shit, trying to cheat the machines. I saw what they were doing and i called it in. Not even 3 mins later i had a guy who i never met come in with out me letting him in, circled the room, spotted the dudes, sat behind them at another machine and scoped them out till he saw what he was looking for. Seconds later he pulled out a gun on them, had them empty their pockets and leave with him. Never saw em again. I do want to say the chances of the guys getting killed at that point were very unlikely because everything was done and every precaution was taken to make sure no heat was brought on the rooms. I imagine they got 86'd spooked by the guy.
What are the qualifications to be able to get in the room?	You have to know someone, or you have to know where the room is and you take a chance when you ring the doorbell. The doorbell was hidden and there was a false wall behind the initial storefront, so if you didn't know about the bell i wasn't going to hear you knocking over that and the bells and whistles of the slots going off. If i happened to catch you from the corner of my eye on one of my security cameras, the only way i would let you in is if you were a middle aged or older woman. other than that i wasn't going to take a risk.
Wow, I have always wondered if that was possible since I was a little kid and saw Donald Duck do this. The end result doesn't seem worth it though...	It works something just like that yes. I remember seeing that cartoon as well. And if you were doing that to a room.. your going to have a bad time.
How many grandmas did you have coming in monthly with their social security checks?	God,.... to many to count.
How did you prevent word getting to the police (before the bust up) about your illegal gambling ring? Did you only let in friends-of-customers? Did you have any way of advertising your business, or did you just let the customer base build up gradually?	Well initially you don't have to worry about police because most rooms are hidden in plain sight and people are excited to have found a new place to gamble so they keep it very hush hush. But as your business grows via word of mouth and gossip through other game rooms, the odds of the police finding out are very high, be it other game room owners ratting you out or a disgruntled player who lost all their money and felt they got cheated, which is all the time.
So did the owners pay off cops or how do they stay in business if the cops know?	The real idea is not to shut down the establishment but to leave it open so they can continue to raid it. Wait till the room recoups the costs and make some profit and start all over.
Sounds like what they do to MMJ dispensories in CA.	Havent been to one =* (
So the dept. needs a quick loan, they raid the den?	No, it the fines go to the county from my understanding, but that does not mean that the Dept. does not get a kick back. I don't know how that works. But having experienced that kind of corruption i don't see why that's not completely possible.
How much is seized in such a raid would you say? I mean in terms of assets and equipment.	Nothing. They (the police and county) want the operation running. to make more money in the future.
Can you spot someone out or their element, and try to take them for everything? Or do you wait for lady luck to do if for you?	Lady luck robs people blind who don't know what they are doing, but in the same hand will grace them with blind luck. We just spot the big spenders, take good care of them with any want within reason and let the probability do the rest.
I'd like to hear about the "Any want within reason" part.	"You want sushi from your favorite place downtown? Let me make that call! Ill have it delivered". No sex, no drugs.
Define "Big Spender" in terms of back-room gambling dens.	Oh its nothing compared to Vegas, but people that would pay 25 big blinds to buy into a hand. Which is pretty pricy, but no one would go crazy, you see pots get up to 3k-4k but that reserved for the REAL players, not people with just a lot of money. slots could get up to $20 a hand, once or twice its not terrible, but try sitting in front of a machine for 2 hours and see how deep your pockets really are lol.
Did you know your license expires in five days?	I was waiting for this comment, and yes i do thank you.
What the benefits of back room gambling over legit casinos other than lines of credit and throwin down tangeable goods as bets? (Or is that movie ttalk)	The number one benefit to our guests was convenience, gambling is illegal in TX and you have to make a 5 hour drive or so to cross state lines to Louisiana, and the casinos just over the border are as good as airport casinos (which will rob you blind with very LOW odds of winning). So if you want to really have a chance you are talking about an 9 hour drive to a REAL casino.
Lake Charles is less than 3 hours from Houston. Casino's in Oklahoma are a couple hours North of Dallas. Please clarify your generalizations.	Right, sorry. I never really cared about the time it took to get the lake Charles because it was such a money pit and my guests always complained about it. (not to dismiss your correction) still 6 hours to Oklahoma is a drag.
How much did you make off it?	Ah, Good question. I wasn't the owner of the operations, just a trusted employee. I made $30 an hour for running rooms.
That's it? I ran a poker room(I didn't own it, I just ran it) and I made more than $2500/week. You were getting screwed.	Yeah, i never said that was all i made, that was just my base pay.
When it was raided, what was your punishment? How did people in the casino react?	Well, the cops came in and told the guests they could go one by one after getting their ID's and making sure they didn't have any warrants. So once the guests seen that first guest walk out the door the calmed down pretty quick. Me on the other hand? not so much. The cops lined up 6 deep found a seat and literally opened a book of laws and citations concerning building codes and gambling and started writing tickets. It was like an assembly line for citations, i was forced to sign them all, yes forced, or i was going to have a very bad time. After i had signed off on all the tickets they left. Because the real idea is not to shut down the establishment but to leave it open so they can continue to raid it. Wait till the room recoups the costs and make some profit and start all over.
How many people were involved in the whole operation and for how long did your work there?	Well, I ran 3 different rooms, each with their own games and guests. There was 6 other room operators like myself and we all knew each other. I had to deal with 3 people for money drop offs, pick ups and other random crap like book keeping. The other operators had a couple other people that they had to deal with that i had no idea about. Of course this was by design and there were more people in charge of them, we just never knew how deep the rabbit hole went. I worked for these people for 1 1/2 years before i got stung and left 5 months after that.
Houston has a vice division?!?	Yes they cover two aspects of Houston underbelly, Game rooms and Asian spa's. So basically Gambling and prostitution.
I've been to the Asian spa's in Houston before. Better than going to a strip club.	Yeah, at least you get laid.
Dude, I know what Vice does. I was just making a Houston joke. Lol. Sorry...	Ok, i didn't know if you were serious or not, i was just trying to clarify.
How did you end up getting caught? What was the bust like?	My girlfriend had gone out drinking with a few friends and wanted to come home early, so she gave me a call to pick her up and i did just that. I had seen the blue and reds flashing behind me and i knew my gig as a free man was up, and that my future at that point was very uncertain. The cop came up to the car and had this really weird look on his face, like he was surprised, and scared with a half caulked smile on his face at the same time. He didn't ask me if i knew why he had pulled me over, only to simply step out of the car. He immediately handcuffed me and put me into his car. He was nice enough to let me call my girlfriend to come pick up the car and talk to her about it. When we were finally both in the car i asked him why was there such urgency to arrest me. He told me that when he had punched in my plates that he got a notice to arrest me before he even knew why. As we were sitting in the car he was talking to the dispatch or whatever, it was a lady and i remember her saying "I have never seen anything like this before" I laughed and arrogance swept over my body. He was loading all my warrants onto his computer as we were driving and from the point of my arrest to the jail the warrants were still loading in. Before we got out he asked me "Shit son, what the hell did you do?"
Why so many and what were they for? You mentioned below that you were at the casino when you got busted, but here you say that you were on the way to pick up your GF. What gives?	Ah, sorry about the hole there, I had addressed this but in another question. Ok so when i got raided i was basicaly forced to sign the tickets for the citations given. From that point i had a court date, the lawyers told me to not show up to court because they had "back doors" or whatever and would try to swing a deal. Looking back it was a fucked situation, yes you can say i was stupid for not going to court.. but i was looking at 120 fucking tickets i had to answer for... I didn't have that kind of money, so i didn't. That's where the warrants come from. So a year or two had passed and i was rolling around Houston with all the warrants as one of Houston's most wanted with out a felony charge. It was only a matter of time before i got pulled over. Things got real shitty with my contact after the warrants were issued and i was rolling solo. A big part of me thinks that i was sandbagged from the jump, and there was no "back door"..... or maybe there was, because i was summoned by the judge to talk to him personally.. I don't know.. I honestly don't.
How were you caught?	A raid, I had about 7 cops in uniform beating down on the storefront with 3 detectives waiting for them to do their job so they could do theirs. I was really freaked out because i saw them on the cameras and how many, which seemed like 100 at the time. I called my main contact and was told to hide or destroy the books and hide what ever money i could in the secret hiding spots. I had people inside gambling and they were freaked out as well, but they couldn't go anywhere because there was only one exit. It took me about 5 mins to hide the books and money (which seemed like an eternity when cops are beating down your door). I opened the door and said "can i help you gentlemen?" they yolked me up by my neck and slammed my head on the security bars. I still have the scar on my forehead.
Did they find the books and money?	No they did not, i hid the books in between the stacks of soda we had in the stock room for restocking the fridge. The money came up missing, they must have found it cough cough
Did they find the hidden money/books?	No they did not, i hid the books in between the stacks of soda we had in the stock room for restocking the fridge. The money came up missing, they must have found it cough cough.
Was there a distinct "illegal gambling culture" or did it just seem like a regular time at the casino?	Yes, there was and is an illegal gambling culture, and a very complicated one at that. Once you added in the police into the equation it gets really stupid because the police know you are there.
How did you get involved in such an operation? Was it through friends or completely by chance?	It was through friends i had grown up with.
What stuff did you deal with?	That's a vague question, but I'm going to assume you are talking about the types of gambling my rooms were involved in. Slots, Video slots, blackjack and poker were the main games, however i could always call in a bet if some one wanted some action.
How does an illegal gambling ring even work? Can you describe the setup?	Part of this answer was taken from another answer There was a false door to let you in that was completely barred up and had reflective tint to hide the interior which was still hidden by a false wall. To get in you had to ring the door bell which was hidden as well and i had cameras to see the people on the outside waiting to come in. Once inside you were in a fake store front, full of old ass cloths and useless shit hanging on racks that no one would ever want. If everything was cool and i knew you or had someone vouch for you i would let you in the second door. Once you got inside it was pretty sweet, bright red walls with all kids of action happening all around you.
Did anyone ever try anything from the Oceans movies?	No, we had too many money drops and pick ups to have a substantial amount of money to make it worth going through all that trouble. But I guess if you were desperate and needed money gun point robbery was always an option.
What is the biggest payout you've ever seen made? What's the biggest loss you've seen someone incur in one bet?	10k payout. I have seen some one loose their life in the matter of 5 hours. I think the total loss on his part was only $1200 but by the end of his run he was sweating buckets. A large part of that $1200 was to pay his back child support, and was to show the courts that he could make a good faith payment so he did not loose custody of his 5 year old daughter. His mind set was to win a little extra money so that he could take her do Disney Land after he got rights to see her again. He lost it all... and he lost custody and visitation rights to his daughter. He was crying the most heart wrenching cry ever. I gave the man a total of $100 to try and win some of it back (which was WAY breaking the rules) but i couldn't help it.... I'm crying right now as im typing this.... I felt so bad for him.. he just wanted to take her to Disney Land. so he could be a good dad in her eyes. But he was so wrapped up in his sickness that he wasn't of any kind of rational mind. From my understanding he killed himself... And that is the most i have ever seen anyone loose.
IM coming to houston in July, can we hang out?	Sure?
Did you ever go there to gamble personally? Or was it strictly for work?	When it was slow and no guests were their i would pop in a couple dollars in a crappy nickle machine and waste time. But i knew better than to come and waste my money. Funny thing, after i started to work in the game room i lost my luck. I couldn't win a friendly bet or otherwise. So i don't gamble at all anymore.
How does one get introduced into this type of situation?	Friends of friends when you are growing up.
Did you wear some sweet-ass black shades?	No, i needed to keep my eyes pealed at all times. couldn't really worry about looking sweet.
So what was the punishment for having that questionable odor in the toilets?	A fine. I will have you know, that my restrooms were very clean. They were writing tickets for anything they could. It's about making money for them, just like it was for us. I'm telling you, the HPD has the best racket in town.
Texan here. Do you think our state should legalize gambling like our neighbor, Louisiana? We already have a lotto system and some politicians think gambling would be a great income for the state. Also, how rampant do you believe or know gambling to be in Texas, and more especially Houston?	No, i don't like what gambling does to people and family's. In the end it destroys them. Its worse than alcohol, drugs and prostitution. Yes you can have fun with it, and it is fun to play, but it becomes a habit, a culture, people work just to dump money in casinos, when that money could be used for anything else and have more substance. That is my opinion. Really though, you have to ask, what do you really walk away with when you gamble? because i promise you, it certainly not coming out on top.
Why would anyone trust your organization? You could rig the games and no one could complain to any authorities. It has potential to be worse than a carnival.	Well, you are right to a certain extent we can and did tilt the machines. But we had to make sure people were winning money. If people don't see other people making money then your not going to make a lot of money. If a room is ran right, some one should win about every 5 mins, less if the room was full.
So as long as you can pay the fines, they don't fuck with you? How much are these fines?	Depends on what they can tag you for and what they think the establishment can handle with out going under. My fines were at about 75k which is pretty steep, but i ran a nice establishment.
Any colorful players/pimps? Any sad gambling addicts?	No pimps or anything of the sort, i wouldn't let them in if they wanted. That would only spell trouble for the room, and part of my job was to screen that crap out. Sadly yes, the addicts were what made my job so soul deadening at times. I had to keep them coming back by offering 20-40 bucks (depending on what they spent) so they could try to win some money back, but they always loose way more than they could afford because they are riding the high from gambling, some people experience that "High" more than others and they are always the most desperate and sad.
How do illegal gambling rings operate, with a decent amount of customers I assume, without coming to the attention of the police. How does security work in terms of cheaters or fights?	As far as security goes, on Fridays and Saturdays we would hire some one to sit in the false room, but that was just for show, i could make a call and in less than 5 minutes i would have a 100% bad ass walk thought my door strapped and ready to go. The police know about the rooms, thats the thing, people dont understand. For the HPD and Harris county, its a racket. You allow the places to operate, make money, then raid them and slam them with a shit ton of citations. anywhere from $75k-200K worth of fines would come down on their head (depending on how serious the room is) and the rooms have to pay it. After this happens they allow the rooms to recoup their money lost, allow them to make some profit and hit em again. This is the way of a TRUE racket.
While you were working did you ever have to call in the badass? Did you ever have to get physical yourself with a drunk/disorderly guest?	No, i never got involved with any one, 99% of the time every one was chill and 85% of my guests were middle aged folk with nothing better to do. If something did go down and i couldn't get the "bad ass" to get there fast enough i had a can of mace.. however i found out a little mace went a long way in a room with only one exit and OK ventilation when i sprayed the smallest amount out in the room. I think i was coughing for a good hour thanks to that.
Thanks for stating this, wasn't sure if you were gonna. not in that racket, but i'm well aware of the symbiotic relationship crime & law enforcement have, & have seen law enforcement and criminal culture dance around each other like that. they kinda...NEED each other.	Its very true.
What kind of amenities did your casinos have? Drinks, food?	Yes! We didn't server alcohol, because drunk people + Loosing all their money = a really bad time. But we had a refrigerator full of sodas, water, juice and we would have fresh food delivered throughout the day from our contacts. One of the perks of working there.
Were people allowed to have booze if they brought it in?	Nope, many people tried to sneak booze in, but i would just grab it up as soon as i seen it and throw it away.
Did you know the Donalsons?? The family's houses were raided last year and HPD walked out with over 1.5m in cash from illegal game rooms. Just curious as to how tight-knit the underground gambling community.	I might have been working for them for all i know.. i had contacts but i never knew who was really running the show.
Did you carry an handgun in case this went all Costa Rica?	No, i had a guy for that who would show up faster than any police would even in the whitest and richest of neighborhoods.
What does "running 3 rooms" involve? Differently stated, what was a typical nights' responsibilities? What kind of hours did you work?	40-70 shit sometimes 80 hour weeks. (yes i would get overtime) we had different rooms for different games running at different times. We had a slot room for primary slot machines obviously. That room ran from 11am-11PM. We had a blackjack room that was mostly blackjack tables and a few slots for the wifes to play on while there husbands played and that ran from 4pm-3am and finally the poker room. The poker room was small but full of big spenders. We had a few card dealers mostly ex-casino dealers that moved state. that ran from 8pm-4am.
I don't want to sound like a stalker, but according to your licence you're almost 32. I looked at your reddit history, a year ago you posted that you'd be in the restaurant serving industry for 8 years. So when did this all happen?	I have been in the restaurant industry off and on for 8 years. In between the 8 years i have worked with my mother opening an commercial A/C repair business, When i was 24 i was renting out clubs and throwing shows, I had started an independent record label with some really talented artists releasing 2 EP's and one LP (getting into the music industry was crazy in retrospect), oh and running illegal gambling rings lol. Bartending and serving is what i always fall back on its easy to get in and get out of.
You talk a lot about people offering blow jobs for money. Have you ever taken a blowjob? Any more stories like that? And were any of them some sexy broads?	No i never took a BJ, there were cameras everywhere and i had a pretty chill gig so i didnt want to jeopardize that. There were a few cute girls from time to time, But I had a girlfriend at the time and i am a faithful boyfriend.
Sorry if this comes off as dumb, but do people actually take babies as forms of payment nowadays? I'm completely serious in asking.	Sadly yes. I was half joking when i said that.
How much cash did you have to lay-in to be able to pay off all the potential winners? Was there ever a situation where you have several winners at once and got close to running out of cash?	All the time, I would just make a call and get more cash brought in. I would get a drop in the morning to start my day, lunch and around 7pm were my regular drops. Jackpots situations like the one that you mentioned were the exception to bringing in extra cash.
Where was your business located? What area? Did you have any located in the Alief district?	Thank you for your interest in the AMA =-)
How did you get let into the room in the first place? Referals? Did you have call girls working the room as well?	Nope, no call girls, you could go down the street to the hundreds of "spas" littered everywhere. Yes referrals are the primary way to get in. Some time you get people who hear about the joint when they are in other game rooms who come and see if they can get in with out some one i know or am familiar with.
How many hours a week?	I would work 40-70 hours a week
Does that mean parts of the police force were on the take?	Not the police themselves (well shit maybe i don't know) but it was making sure the joints pony'd up when they hit you with the citations.
What got you started in the gambling business and having an underground operation?	I needed a job, and had friends who knew people.
Any pictures of the inside? I'm finding it hard to visualise what an illegal gambling den actually looks like!	I have some on my old phone, but it i dont have the charger for it. Ill try here soon.
How do you feel about gambling being illegal?	I don't know that it should be legal it hurts people and lives..... but in the same hand, i have seen how people will always find a way to do something that they really want to do, and others will go out of their way to provide them with it.

Last updated: 2012-06-19 15:47 UTC | Next update: 2012-06-19 21:47 UTC
This post was generated by a robot! Send all complaints to epsy.