The Sari Diaries- Tuesday 8/2/22

Dear Chippies, Parents, Family and Friends,

Realm Season VI: The Lost Compendium has officially come to an end and it was legendary…I mean beyond legendary but I’m just not sure of another word to use to describe the amazingness. We picked up this morning right where we left off yesterday- Chipindel was hopping, attacks were going strong and the White Team was trying to figure out how to proceed with their newly found key. They discovered that the key opened the treasure chest, and in that treasure chest, they found a black dragon and a Realm gift certificate. The black dragon allows a team to initiate a castle attack without the typical requirement of having all six of the other team’s houses. And the gift certificate was for a free catapult, which is the main piece of equipment needed for phase one of the castle attack.

So once this was all discovered, the White Team Round Table made the decision to initiate an attack on the Tan Castle. All Tans and Whites were called to the North Field to participate…every single member of each team, both the attacking and defending teams, plays a role in the castle attack. Phase One includes the take down of the catapult targets. Léa W and Ro-Buisha were the White Team members trained on the catapult, and they were incredible. As Tan long-bowers were trying to hit the targets on the catapult, the two of them worked together to hit the two large catapult targets. In the end, Léa knocked down the targets, which led to the start of Phase Two. During Phase Two, the White Team long-bowers were doing their best (two at a time) to hit the four targets at the top of the castle, while also dodging cannons (dodgeballs) being thrown at them from the Tan army members. Once Halle S and Chandler S hit all four targets, we moved to Phase Three. This one involves the entirety of both teams. The Tans were defending the windows on their castle from tennis balls being thrown by the White Team. The armies are able to throw cannons at each other, and also at those throwing the tennis balls & defending the castle. As people get hit, they are out for the remainder of the attack. The Tans and Whites reloaded with younger and younger team members as they got out. In the end, the entire White Team got out, which meant that the Tans had successfully defended their castle!

After a lunch break, we got back to it. Jacklin R and Julia E continued their investing in different manors, and Georgia S, Sadie M and Brooke R rocked it for their lumber house. And then, there was a final castle attack initiated by the White Team. I will start by telling you that it lasted over two hours…the intensity was insane! It began with the same catapult action but one of the catapult targets was hit by Jacklin R, one of the Tan long-bowers. But still, Léa W pulled through by hitting both targets before the Tans hit both of hers.

So onto Phase Two we moved. This was nutso…different than this morning, the Tan army members were throwing cannons that hit seven of the eight White Team long-bowers while they still had one target on the castle left to hit. That meant that Cate F was the lone long-bower up against a number of Tan army members. They eventually knocked all of the White Army members who were defending her out, so Lauren G (White Team Chief Sachem) jumped in. This was a big strategic decision. If Lauren got out, and we got to phase four, she would not be able to participate in the Round Table Flag Pull. BUT her efforts were definitely worth it. She got the entire remainder of the Tan Army members out…one by one throwing cannons at them. Her arm strength and endurance were truly incredible. And then the Tan Team made a crazy decision- Charlie K jumped in to try to get both Lauren and Cate out. It was a long and challenging dodgeball game between the two Chief Sachems. They were going back and forth, dodging, throwing and running. Meanwhile, Cate was still shooting arrows at the final target. At last, Lauren got Charlie out, and Cate could finish the job without worry of being hit by a cannon. The entire camp was watching her- the pressure was on and her skills were being put to the test. When the moment came, and she hit the target, the entire White Team flooded the field to congratulate her…it was a very, very special camp moment. As Lily Z just said in the office, “It is a moment that will go down in camp history- it was the greatest thing ever!”

Phase Three was next and it was another battle to remember. Most of this phase went exactly as it had in the morning but it ended in a much more exciting fashion. Taylor G had been getting White Team members out left and right with her Knight’s Cannon (with her name on it). But then, Lucy B was up…she was the final White Team member trying to break through those windows. As she was throwing tennis balls, she was dodging cannonballs like nothing I have ever seen…I mean ever. She had six Tan Warriors throwing cannons at her and she was jumping from side to side avoiding every ball that came her way- it was incredibly brave but the look on her face was one of complete confidence. And then she did something fierce, something I legit could not believe…she hit Taylor G with a cannon. The White Team was going wild. Finally though, Lucy was hit with a cannon and the attack was over…the Tan Team had successfully defended their castle once again!

And that was it…Realm at #TheRanch2022 ended. The two-plus days of action, battling, bonding and fun came to a close. Campers were exhausted but they were also proud of all that they had achieved. It is true, Realm is an intense game…it is a long game…and it is a confusing game. But it is an incredibly meaningful game on so many levels. Partly because Tan and White is important around here, and this game is worth mega points. But more importantly, Realm is a game that turns our camp into a small little world with its own economy, in which campers work together to do all sorts of things. And it is a game that leaves campers feeling like heroes for dodging cannons & shooting down castle targets. It is also a game where new friendships are formed through the randomness of the house selections- it creates opportunities for campers to work together with others of different ages in unique ways. And it is a game in which new skills are developed…not just learning how to raise fish and chickens and invest Twills, but also how to persevere in challenging circumstances, and how to lift a teammate up, and how to creatively problem solve. Realm is a program we live for at CRC, and one that helps strengthen our community each summer…WE LOVE REALM!

Before divulging the results of Realm, I want to take a moment to thank Cliff and the entire Realm Dev Team. As I am sure you can tell, this program takes an extraordinary amount of work, thought and creativity. Cliff, Marni, Sydney, Dylan and Abby created an unbelievable experience for all of us, and we so appreciate them!

Okay, now for the results…first the individual top-scorers.
1st Place: Chandler S 2nd Place: Jacklin R 3rd Place: Halle S

As for the team scores, they were close…in a game with close to 200,000 points, it came down to a differential of less than 2,000. Points are a combination of individual points (earned through target hitting, cannon connections and more) and overall Twills. In the end, the Tan Team came out victorious…they are the official Realm Season VI: The Lost Compendium winners. A huge congratulations to both teams…everybody should feel proud!

That’s all until tomorrow when we resume our regularly scheduled programming. Thank you and goodnight :).

Happy Camping and Love,
Sari