Interview with Bloodwulf
Publication: Scenet.de - 1998

Interview with Bloodwolf (Ex-Trsi & Ex-Prestige) - Sysop of the Mortuary BBS. ( /X ) Mortuary is known as THE ELITE and THE FRIENDSHIP System in America. This is worth enough to make a little investigation - how friendly is the system really? What the heck is this man doing if he does not hang around his computer? (he`s alltime chatable!) What`s the concept of beeing so successfull!?!?? (Must Success have a concept? seems so... How about the war with DELTAFORCE/DELIRIUM and the behaviour of POLARIS and the PRESTIGE LEADING SHIP socalled as "to pay or not to die" ? further comments lateron...




Ghandy: Yo, my friend Bloodwolf, please introduce yourself. As Sysop and in real life... (your business/school/wife etc.)

Bloodwolf: Hello my close friend - my name is Stephen. I am 34 years old and am an Unknown in the Scene unless of course you've called the States and seen me on BEYOND DEATH Or SANCTUARY or WILDSIDE...I work in a Business that rebuilds ForkLift Motors and also am part owner of a Trick Store And Novelty Shop that sells all Kinds of practical Jokes Gags Etc... (EDITOR: ALSO DILDOS? HEHE) I am single and wish to remain that Way ... I am also a musician and have played KeyBoards for about 18 Years now and have been in numerous LOCAL Bands playing everything from Heavy Metal to Classical Music as well as In the Studio Professionally Recording both FOR other Bands and also my own projects.

Ghandy: In which groups have you been before TRSI? What was your job there?

Bloodwolf: I Was A Member OF FAITH..AFL..TRZ And TRSI..I am no longer a member oF TRSI For numerous reasons..My Job in TRSI was only to run The WHQ for Them..I Have ALOT of Respect for TRSI as an Old Scene Legend, but I also think it's time for the group to reorganize and think about their future and WHERE they are and also WHO they ARE before they gain a bad Reputation.

Ghandy: So, the most mailswappers or guys from the legal scene think, that Danse Macabre is (or ever was) the world-fastest BBS.. what is your opinion e.g. is it still online?? (I don`t know)

Bloodwolf: While I also like everyone else TRY to keep Up with current Events, I would say, that Danse Macabre as well as many Others are FAST in their own way and whats the difference if you get a Release 10 Mins slower than any other BBS? It's ludicrous, coz ALL BBS's have their SPEED factors..some get the not so important Utils Etc. DAYS before Others, but if You base the Speed only on Majors, then ALL The WHQ's should be Faster than any other Boards.. But this too has it's problems, as I have gotten ALOT of releases here first before even some WHQ's have so it's not so important WHO gets WHAT faster as we all have Our Days!


Ghandy: So tell me something about your concept of MORTUARY! What ideas did you have as you opened your bbs .. which ideas where not realized at Beyond Death from Soultaker?!?!?

Bloodwolf: My Concept of ANY BBS is to treat People the way they treat me hence the Original Concept Of /X..But things and people change and for any Sysop it's a daily Battle to control those that at one time were say MAJOR TRADERS in the Scene and then to see these same People reduced to Nothing but LEECHES..I never intended for /X to be abused in any Way and continue to this Day to control as best I can any abuse that the System takes from Anyone..The Concept OF /X was that of a friendly Atmosphere, but like all Atmospheres Times and People change Every once in Awhile and You have to Re-examine ... 1.Where You are 2.Why You Are and 3.What And Who You Are! I HATE the DELETE Key and I know I would'nt want to be deleted from ANY BBS, but ALL Sysops have their Way of running A BBS and I respect their Ways, wether they are Right or Wrong, becoz I know what ALOT of Sysops feel from talking with them on My BBS. As well as other BBS's../X was Originally a place where TRADERS could GET AWAY from the ABUSE they took from other Systems. ../X was Originally a Place where a Trader could grab a Ware or Two and not feel pressured that they have to upload or be deleted..And this Concept was great in the initial Stages of /X's Birth and Formation..But then the Board got very popular and A FEW Idiots like Kimble and Others logged in to change the BBS aTTitude and thats where the problems started..Ashame that People like Kimble DID and STILL do Exist in Scene as this SOURS an attitude of a normally friendly Sysop very fast and makes ALOT of Sysops wonder if IT was really ALL worth IT from the Beginning. ..It's tough being A Sysop..the demands of better and faster Systems and better Equipment costs ALOT of Money..some People have this kind of money to INVEST, but there are those like Myself, that try to run the Best BBS "WE" can and this deters others from calling, coz the Sysop does'nt have THE "040/33" or THE" A4000" & 10 Gigz of storage space and 30+ Nodes! Just one day soon I would like to see the friendship come back and all the business and EGO disappear, but I know this isn't possible, becoz like anything else - PEOPLE change and that change for some OF us IS very hard to swallow! Briefly on the subject of BEYOND DEATH and SOULTAKER... Larry was a CLOSE friend of mine and it HURT me DEEPLY when he went OFFLINE.. but he too suffered the "BETTER And FASTER" system syndrome, that ALOT of we sysops suffer and he had NO Choice but to 1.Go OFFLINE and 2.LEAVE the Scene ... ... as he does have also a family to support and if given that choice I think the family at home and NOT the One in the scene IS A BIT more important!

Ghandy: So let us speak about that story called DELTAFORCE/DELIRIUM! What is your opinion about "agressive-advertising" And why did you delete him? (he has created a tool adding a bbs-add-line under the file description for his Men-Tel BBS)

Bloodwolf: Heheheh DELTAFORCE..Hmmm..A LOOONG Time ago he logged into my BBS with these IDEAS of HOW the BEST BBS should be run and what he was going to do to get this IDEA he had to work..Again I "RESPECT"( And I mean that!) his concept of an AGGRESSIVE Style and maybe for Him IT worked, but he made ALOT of Enemies on this Board, becoz of his ARROGANT way of telling people WHO and WHAT he was and it was time for ME as well as my CO's to make an unfortunate decision so We Deleted Him.. The BBS ADDIES both in the LHA's and in the Upload Dir under every FileName was A SLICK Way to get his name out there, but was also a big waste of time as traders FROWN on IDEAS that are THRUST in their faces EVERY time they logon to a BBS and again his NAME got out there, but the WAY it got out was not so popular..He is as others are more than WELCOME to come back to /X IF they can control their ARROGANCE and LEARN to exist among those that take A friendlier approach to the way they CONDUCT themselves Here! (meanwhile due the war with several guys DELTAFORCE stopped using his agressive-advertiser.. He was deleted on several us and european elite boards. Polaris, Apollo, George Stark and others did not stop him .. he wanted to end the endless war - now his bbs is console only and not one of germanys fastest anymore. Maybe we can learn that agression can`t win the war to earn new traders - especially in this cardless times!)





Ghandy: Samir, Polaris and some other Prestige (ex-Zenith) members try to make lots of money with pay-distribution-sides and only want to allow MEGA-HYPE-ELITE GUYS to join their really successfull crew. Do you think this is the right way? Do U only want to have the mega-elites here? (I also think about the cool atmosphere, that they maybe destroy) ... what`s your opinion ??? I saw many public messages (ealls) for TRZ (Tristar / RedSector & Zenith) praying for only group releases support for 150 Dollars! For any other support you have to send them bloody 200 Dollars! Is success in illegal groups nowadays only founded on the ability to EARN MUCH MONEY IN SHORT TIME?

Bloodwolf: Samir is a story all Himself..Here is a Guy, that has taken ALOT of abuse in print and MAYBE some of it IS justified, but he KNOWS "WHAT" he wants and will do what he has to get IT! We are friends and at one time I hated him with A passion like ALOT still do, but I grow tired of HATE..It's such an UGLY word to hate especially while so many boards get busted and the scene slowly dies. Samir is an intelligent Leader..wether you LOVE him or hate him he has accomplished what ALOT of groups only wish they could..Pay Sites are something that EVERY Group NEEDS to survive and buy Originals , CC's Etc..To Survive as a group they NEED a source of Income so the idea of a PAYSITE is not strange to Anyone..The way their WHQ ZION's Hideout IS run - I do NOT agree with but it works! The seperation OF PD and WAREZ is A Good Concept, but traders have a hard enough time calling to Upload to one Dir let alone To 3-5 Etc..And if the mistake "IS" made uploading to the wrong Dir the penalty IS also a bit stiff, as again Traders rely on the Credz they attain from supporting a BBS. So to take like 10 Times the Credz for a mistake coz other Boards they are used to don't have this policy is a bit crazy BUT it works for them so more POWER to their Concept of running a BBS this way.. And PRESTIGE are the MOST active (illegal) AMIGA Group in the Scene, so again You HAVE to respect their wishes and their way of running a BBS!! (EDITOR: I do respect them for the best illegal group at the since some months, but the prizes are hard to pay on!) I NEVER thought after being the ELITEST BBS in the scene, but IT too has it's place and there are those that don't AGREE with the way I run my BBS either so again I say we all run our Houses differently and while SOME ELITE Rulez have been incorporated into the Building Of /X. The Atmosphere IS not that of a STRICT ELITE Board where the rulez if broken can be disasterous and all the hard Work, that a trader does do can be LOST in an Instant...Briefly POLARIS is also a good friend and will ALWAYS be Himself..We all have IDEAS of HOW we should ACT and treat people and NOONE is exempt from Feelings OF HATE or REVENGE, so HOWEVER Polaris conducts himself Is" HIS" Business and those that do NOT agree with it still deal with it wether it's RIGHT or WRONG!

Ghandy: What is it for you to be a member of TRSI? What do you think about that group? (legal part / illegal part?)

Bloodwolf: As I told You in the beginning I am no longer a member of TRSI. But wish them the Very BEST of Luck In their Future..the way the group was run and SOME of the people in the group were a MAIN reason for my leaving to go back To independency.. I also need some time to sort out my own personal Feelings about ALL Groups. In General as I don't agree with ALOT of the WAYS some groups run their Organizations, but these are the BUSINESS Aspects and while SOME groups take Business too seriously there are others, that don't take IT SERIOUSLY enough. And I guess theres a "FINE LINE" that is drawn between Friendship & Business and ALOT of the Groups have not found that Line, but we ALL hope that they will some Day..For the betterment of any Organization - there is ALOT of Business but there also has to be a "CALM" in that business, so that NOONE goes off the DEEP END and brings down the REST of the members..groups are families in a sense and this SHOULD play an important part in the WAY they conduct themselves and also in the WAY they handle different situations, but so many times this is not so true and that is a real Shame.. We are ALL in this for a REASON, wether it be for Fun / Business / whatever the reason and we should all remember, that WE are the LAST of a dying BREED and that MAYBE someday what we knew as a place to have FUN or grab a ware or two will no longer BE there for our convenience, as it gets increasingly harder to call out and trade OR just say HELLO!

(EDITOR: You don`t know HOW right you are!! That`s exactly my idea of the scene e.g. i had to call on BILL to upload privatly this interview. I wanted to make it as a chat, because that`s more interesting & exciting! There was NO way to do so. It gets harder and more expensive to call for "free" e.g. to upload a little textfile to realize this interview and that makes scenelife quite difficult...)

Ghandy: Please tell me, what do you think about the scene right now? With the young guys tradin` and all those busts and AT&T ??!?!?

Bloodwolf: The Scene Today IS that of BUSINESS and not much more..the Friends that WERE are slowly diminishing, because of this BUSINESS as CC's are impossible to get and those that have them treat them with KID GLOVES..Also seems that alot OF Scene people have disappeared not from Busts, but from Disgust over what the Scene has become and IT's LACK Of FUTURE...the scene will ALWAYS be there no mAtter what happens. (EDITOR: AND NO MATTER HOW LAME IT WILL BE) But the AMIGA is dying a slow death and the PC is getting busier..as for young traders this will never stop..Hehehehe we were all YOUNG at One Time were'nt we?...about the Busts they SUCK! And always will, but with the abuse that CC's and the Phone Companies have taken it was inevitable that some day IT would happen .. we can only beef our security up and hope for the best in the future..I wish all those that were busted the very best OF luck and say that ALL in the Scene are Rooting for them to come out OF IT UnScathed and not too bummed!

Ghandy: What /X Coders do you prefer? What Demo-Groups do you prefer? What illegal groups do you prefer? What are the best Traders at the moment / past?

Bloodwolf: My ALLTIME Favorite /X Coder right now is noCTURNE...He IS by far the BEST I have seen and has a ton of IDEAS for new Doors and Utils for /X...he and I have worked together ALOT and he has taken some of my ideas and made them A Reality! ..The WORST /X Coders are Guyz, that have to release FIXES for their Utils the Day after they release them. I remain NEUTRAL on favorite Groups, coz I think they ALL are good, but I guess IT would be PRESTIGE as they have NON STOP released Game after Game ahead OF most everyone especially LAtely...Best Traders - Is a tough one coz some Traders are searching for CC's to trade Again..FURY/PSG is a Killer Trader ..POLARIS/PSG kicks Major ASS...at present the way things are it's tough to pick "THE BEST" trader..If you consider the Past then theres a whole lot of em... Especially MARIO/TRSI, but right now is a tough choice for BEST Trader, as ALL are trying to SLAM WAREZ as fast as they get em to the FASTEST Boards!

Ghandy: Near The End: Which are your friends / your enemys in scene?

Bloodwolf: Close Friends In No PARTICUALR ORDER are MARIO/TRSI , Seven // , -[/Xac]- , Marksman/PDY , Incubus/TRSI , -X/ARLOCK- , SAMIR/PSG , Polaris/PSG , Exocet/ATX , Lytox!/ATX , Speed Master/HLM , /Vitro/PDY , noCTURNE/OGN , STRIKER/PSG , Apollo/CLS , MAZ/DLM , Gordon&Cockroach/TRSI , Nostromo/PDY , DeathKnight/PSG , ECS/TRSI And the List grows each and every Day...On the ENEMY Side I am sure that I have made Enemies like Everyone else and all I would say is thats life we all have To have SOMEONE to hate Us and that makes our Friendships even MORE important, than they already are Presently! In closing I would like to say, that ALL Traders wether Friend or FOE deserve some sort of Respect for what they do and I wish ALL the Best of Luck for the Future and hope we see One Another as much as AT&T will allow Hehehehe!



Ghandy: Tell me a small and FAST comment to the following names/groups/ persons/boards: [...]

Bloodwolf:
THE EDGE...CooL BBS have gotten ALOT of Traders from there!!!
Soultaker..RIP My Friend...The Handle SOULTAKER will go down in History!
Mcloud...He needs to free Himself OF all his life burdens and concentrate on his group A bit more, but I HAve no Problems with him and think he's a Good M8!
AT&T..In Plain ENGLISH "SUXX" But we need some Way to Call our Friends Hehehe!
Mario..There are not enough Lines here to say how I feel about MARIO..He IS the closest Friend I have and he and I have been together for A LOOONG time in the Scene..I love Him like he Was Family and will do Anything to help him, if the Need ever Arose!
ECS....Another good Friend. He has been with me on /X for awhile now and we have had MANY a late Night Chats..Also a good Trader when he has CC's to call USA!
DELTAFORCE...He IS UNIQUE among the Scene Sysops and Traders..His ARROGANT and relentless ways have made him A Name and all I can say is good luck M8! So far You've done what you set out to DO!
Apollo...A close friend and a cool group leader..we too have had many many Chats and I have alot of respect for Him!
Samir...shrewd and calculating and a close close friend samir and I go back a ways too..all around a great Guy!
Sabine/Afl..She was a close friend back in the old Days, but now who knows what happened to her..Does she still LEAD AFL? (EDITOR: Sabine has married in usa before some months. She visited America for 6 months after plundering every piece of money she was able to get! Now she`s back in Germany after she has lost her job at the "Dresdner Bank" and homeplace, cauz Ultra/Afl kicked her out!) Now Sabine is again living in Berlin without any money and much, much old bills to pay.. seems she`s still leading the never ending force called AFL.)
USRobotics..There Modems are second to None! But their TECH support leaves ALOT to be desired!
Calypso/GOD...a Bit ARROGANT but Cool..Have Nothing bad to say about him
Marriage..to the BBS ALWAYS! To A Woman "NO WAY!!!" (EDITOR: You can`t imagine how difficult it is to work & to be part of the scene and to live together with your girlfriend! That`s really wired and a bit depressive! What ever you do - the woman OR you OR your group is not satisfied! That was enough reason 4 several real scene legends to kick the girlfriend / computer out of the window.. hehehe )
Future of the scene!?..If ALL continues the way IT IS now not so bright, but I feel that there will be again a CC Supply and We'll be back to Semi Normal Some Day.

Ghandy: Thank you my friend Stephen for this very interesting and long interview!

Interview performed by Ghandy