A close friend of mine became rather addicted to Neptune’s Pride 2: Triton in the early months of this year, after I introduced it to him. Part of his addiction has led to the playing of many games, far more than I’ve ever played, and in his time he even managed to secure a place in the group stages of the Neptune’s Pride 2 World Championship back in July (3 games of 6 people). Due to the importance of the game to himself and to the community of Neptune’s Pride, I persuaded Sam to keep a log of the major events and he went a step further to keep a detailed and entertaining diary. I will post the diary in short segments for you reading pleasure! Here are the previous entries: Days 1-3, Days 4-7, Days 8-11, Days 12-14 and Days 13-18.
Day 19
The end comes for us quickly now.
Many stars were overrun by the terrible hordes now slithering from their nests in the Yellow Stars. When hope at last truly left us, all forces were ordered home – all 600 ships headed for the home system of Old Big Bear, abandoning the surrounding stars to the mercy of Uppercut’s dim-witted monsters. All future investments will be made purely on Old Big Bear, but even so, we might not be able to keep them out of this last refuge of the Space Bears.
What can bears do against such reckless hate?
In other news the Cyan-Green war kicked off again with a public declaration of war by the conceited Lord Boru. As happy as it makes the bears to see Fox take on Boru, it now leaves Uppercut free to do as he likes in the North – Boru’s green army was the only thing that could have stopped them, and now they are moving South. Alas for the bears…
Day 20
Old Big Bear now stands alone, its sister stars drowning in the disgusting slime of out sluggish neighbours. Every star lost was another Science point lost, more industrial plants overrun, more bear cubs slaughtered. Alas that these evil days should be ours.
Lord Kirk sent a plea for cash from our ‘war chest’ so that he and Fox might stand a chance against the now openly allied Yellow-Green armies. It seems the Southrons are facing defeat, just as they dealt defeat to the noble Kfixirri. We refused, though this decision may not be the wisest, and it is likely we will change our minds. Even more likely, it won’t make any difference.
Day 21
Three space weeks in, and one space week to go. There seems very little doubt as to who the top two will be now. Curse their various appendages.
Kirk and Fox continued to request for assistance, and since there’s nothing we can do with the cash, the council decided to send the next influx of cash to the Southrons. A symbolic gesture now, but it is all we can manage.
The last Kfixirri star fell to Kirk today, though the fleet escaped the carnage, no doubt in a bid to buy a little extra time. Where they sailed to, and what they will find when they get there, is yet to be seen. In any case, we will never look upon their like again.
More bear stars fell to the slugs today, and Old Big Bear is at last surrounded. It is garrisoned with 1100 war weary space bears, with 1400 slugs perched on the adjacent star. It makes for a rather sickening sight.
Our once unstoppable economy is in ruins now. We are in the humiliating position of now getting more income from banking technology that we do from economic infrastructure. At least that’s something the slugs can never take away…
Day 22
$200 were sent each to Fox and Kirk, but they continue to cede ground, with Fox now back to his starting position almost. It will not change anything.
Wherever the last of the Kfixirri went, they found an army waiting for them. They were wiped out today – the first to fall.
There are now close to 2000 slugs next to Old Big Bear – I can’t defend against that. A rather different plan has emerged – if the Yellow army does sail for our homeworld we will, begrudgingly and with a heavy bear heart, abandon it to the invaders. Our 1500 ships will then escape the Yellow net and hurl themselves at the Green stars, in the faint hope that being attacked by so many ships will seriously hurt Boru, and allow Kirk to capitalise on it. A faint hope, but a hope nonetheless.
Day 23
As soon as the cycle turned, the slugs struck. They set sail for Old Big Bear with murder in their hearts, so the bears did the brave thing and fled, leaving the old and infirm to their fates. Poor things.
Uppercut did not try to prevent the escape of the 1500, and soon we were on our way to… “PapaBear,” or The Gorgornahath as it was called in happier times. If we could somehow convince Boru that the slugs have betrayed him, this might all work out, and our sacrifice would not be for nothing.
Old Big Bear, the cradle of our civilisation, fell to the slugs. We do not know what became of its inhabitants, nor will we ever. And nor do we wish to.
Kirk declared that he had 200 ships headed for the front too, so even if this doesn’t work out, at least it will provide a little much needed stress for the treacherous Green tyrant.
As the cycle drew to a close, our last remaining star fell to the snails. We have no homes now, no homeland to return to. Just 1500 space bears, tanked up on space honey, sailing into the Green stars they once inhabited.
Day 24
It didn’t work.
The Green army was ready for us and the last of the Space Bears, that proud race that might once have brought civilisation to the galaxy, were slaughtered as they approached The Gorgornahath. We have no stars, no bears, we’re done.
The Boru-Snail alliance looks set to win this war – all the numbers are on their side and the Kirk/Fox Blue alliance look set to go the same way. I might say that it doesn’t matter who wins in a war of barbarians against barbarians, but the snails are so hideous that the prospect of their victory is repellent.
So it was all for nothing then. Boru and Uppercut will triumph and go on to colonise new galaxies, and there will be no one left to remember that once, there were bears.
And a fine civilisation they had too…
Epilogues and Thanks
Here ends the log. As I recall, Yellow and Green (Uppercut and Lord Boru respectively) went on to win this semi-final, and I seem to remember them doing quite well in the final also. Thank you to the community for reading this, to Seb May-Wilson and MMGaming for hosting it, and to Jay Kyburz for making the damn game in the first place. I can only apologise that nothing more exciting happened and that I didn’t do better than 5th place – reading the account of a player’s initial rise and then slow uninterrupted fall can only be so interesting, but I hope you enjoyed it anyway. And to Uppercut, Boru, and especially Kfix – may we meet again somewhere in space (if, indeed, we haven’t unknowingly done so already in the past six months).
Peace, Sam Ireland (The Space Bears)
And so ended the days of the Space Bears. A day of wolves and shattered shields when the age of Bears came crashing down. Alas that these dark days were ours. As an MMGamer, and as his friend come to think of it, I would like to pass on some thanks to Sam for writing these truly excellent and genuinely hilarious diaries. We’d also like to pass on a thanks to the Neptune’s Pride 2 community for the amount of positive feedback we received, we’re glad we entertained some of you for some period of time. Also, it probably is well worth saying to all five other participants (the barbarians): GG, WP all!
Seb out.
MMGaming.net 
Also here is something else well worth sharing. This is the final message sent by the Red Kfixxi people, send to us straight from Lord Kfix himself. It’s worth the read:
“I am very disappointed in you all.
The Kfixirri people developed space travel and introduced ourselves to the galactic community specifically to spread the message and fluids of love. We wanted to bring peace and refractory periods to all the beings we found, even the ugly ones.
Instead, we have been beset on all sides by ignorant little haters who only want to ruin things for everyone, and now it looks like the haters are going to prevent us from bringing our affection and genetic material to those so far not blessed.
Good work, haters.
I am particularly disappointed with the work of James T Kirk, who going on previous reputation was not averse to smearing a little genetic material of his own on other races from time to time.
And now his filthy, slimy claws are desecrating the beautiful Kfix, jewel of the firmament, cradle of the finest civilization you pathetic bestial life forms will ever have the privilege to behold. Like all beauty over the long history of the universe, the finest and most amazing creatures and their works are once again being dragged down and destroyed by the jealous, by the ugly, by the spiteful.
The only respite, the only light and warmth to flicker brightly for a time were the wonderful, proud, and very cuddly bears. Their good humour and indomitable strength in the face of the grasping, petty weaklings ganging up on the brave and beautiful allies of the Kfixirri people was stirring to behold. I feel a little stirring right now just thinking about my furry friends. Oh bears, you shone so brightly but all too briefly.
Well haters, have fun with your little ‘game’. Meanwhile, my beautiful people are burning under the particle beams raining death and terror on them, or asphyxiating in hard vacuum with the tears freezing on their cheeks, while the brutal fleets of Kirk and the fox thing continue their bloody work. And of course, the butchery will continue until someone standing on a pile of metaphorical skulls declares ‘victory’.
And what then of your empty little lives?
What then of your souls?”