Hello and welcome to another RetRollSpective, where we reflect on the history of marble sports teams that have competed in the tournaments of Jelle’s Marble Runs. This time, we’re going to uncover the history of the Strixes, a team that debuted in Marble ManiaX, but rotated their sights 270 degrees from being classical musicians! Read on to find out how this team has hunted the competition!
The official logo for the Strixes, designed by Tim Ritz.
The Strixes come from the bustling and creative city of Olkinhem, home to the very large and grand Royal Olkin Hall, the most spectacular venue among the city’s vast array of esteemed musical and creative establishments. Marbles from all around the world visit this famous theater to listen to the music performed at it. Nearby, surrounded by glorious rolling hills and valleys, a magnificent large white mansion was perched on the outskirts of the respectable city, a mansion that would later become the home and practice grounds for the team.
From a young age, each of the Strixes had been fascinated by music and strove to perfect their skills in the art. Tawny and Screech were the first to meet, growing up as very close friends, though Tawny was the older of the two. They had been members of the famous Olkinhem Youth Orchestra together for as long as they could remember, where they were joined by Specs in later years. Upon transitioning to the Royal Olkinhem Orchestra when they reached adulthood, they met Pygmy and Barn who were excellent additions to the friendship group, and while performing alongside the orchestra they formed their own smaller string ensemble, in which they named themselves the Strixes. Scops was the group’s close friend, who strove to act as their leader, and was in close relations with Tyto, the Orchestra Conductor whom the group had known for many years. The group’s agent, Eagle, lived in the middle of Olkinhem, a short distance from the group themselves and their grand mansion home. It was in this mansion home that the group of marbles practiced their esteemed instruments for many hours of the day, striving for classical perfection through dedication and passion. Seven marbles in total lived in the beautiful mansion: each of the group members, Scops, and Tawny’s younger sibling, Little. In this house were seven marbles who led a close-knit and luxurious lifestyle, yet never strayed from the path of friendship and determination which they valued far more than their success (as important as that almost was).
Members of the Strixes and family members huddle around their piano at their mansion on the outskirts of Olkinhem. (Art Credit: Phoenix)
The Strixes followed their values through all that they did, working to improve their friendship while fine-tuning their musical inclination and deep knowledge of music theory. They had a strong sense of logic and as a group would complete escape rooms and hold quizzes amongst themselves in their free time. This sense of teamwork in the face of adventure prompted them to begin recreationally participating in marble sports, where they took visits to their local sports stadium.
At the beginning of 2021, Screech caught wind of an upcoming unique sport and puzzle-based competition, Cranthym Challenges. The decision to take part was unanimous, and the group set to work immediately, training alongside their busy performance schedules. In the excitement of a new adventure, the group styled a new name for themselves, “Team Strix”, and selected a hashtag of “Flight and Fight” to accompany their determination.
This competition was to consist of ten different challenges, completed by 16 different teams.
“For the first time, I will admit we are nervous,” designated captain, Tawny, explained to a reporter outside the Royal Olkin Hall, a week before the team was set to leave for the challenges. “We’ve never done this kind of thing before; we train musically, and we’ve just discovered that renowned sports teams such as the Hazers, O’rangers, Savage Speeders, and others are going to be in attendance alongside us.”
Team Strix meets another Cranthym participant: the Banana Splits, who carried Fruit Circuit experience. (Photo Credit: Pesky)
Despite the prominence of many teams competing in the challenges, the competition itself was less well known, with many teams choosing to keep the reporting of it to a minimum alongside training for the upcoming 2021 Marble League. Full of nerves, unlike any musical performance they had ever undertaken, Team Strix made the journey to the location of the competition, a fairly isolated venue with accommodation and plenty of nature surrounding them at all times.
An introduction to the challenges had Team Strix silent for the first time in a long time, surrounded by reputable Marble League teams alongside others such as Guild of Wit, Amber Skies, and the Whizlers, who were teams that the group knew of from news of their respective local puzzle competitions. The competition was to be fierce and difficult, with each team truly testing their teamwork and perseverance to try to earn the Cranthym Crown, the ultimate prize. Although nervous and hesitant, an excellent start to the challenges saw Team Strix earn their first silver medal in the first event, featuring a maze.
“It was remarkable really, Specs really helped us out on this one, they were amazing, but we all did our part,” Screech admitted afterward. For their excellent performance, they earned nine points, only a single point behind the esteemed Marble League team of the Hazers, and a point ahead of the O’rangers. On the evening of the first event, the team chose to head into the nearby stretch of woods with their instruments, where they were able to practice in peaceful solitude, a reminder of what bound them together whatever their results.
The next few events didn’t go so well for Team Strix, as the second challenge, involving code breaking with a piece of paper that Pygmy hastily misread, saw the team place 13th earning no points. The next few events told a similar story, with the third challenge of navigation using a confusing map and the next two baffling the team with physical activity that they were not used to. It was the sixth event, a highly complicated quiz, that saw Team Strix’s next success, and they finally achieved a bronze, earning them eight points.
Joyous at finally having placed well, Team Strix decided to celebrate through an impromptu performance of their instruments in the dining room of the accommodation house, where all the other teams were able to dance and enjoy the music. Specific praise came from the Pinkies, a team who Tawny discovered were dancers, and glad to have the chance to demonstrate their passion alongside Team Strix.
“I don’t want to say this, but we aren’t doing that well. Only the places up to tenth actually earn points, and we’ve only earnt 22 points so far,” Screech confided to the sole reporter, Strigi, who had traveled with them from Olkinhem. Despite the difficulty of trying not to lose faith, the team continued to work together to get through, spending free moments playing music together as inspiration. Surprisingly, this tactic of dedication worked, and although there were only four events left, the team was able to clinch another 18 points leading up to the final challenge.
The dawn of the final challenge arose, dreary and miserable. Rain poured down, unrelenting, as the marbles made their way out in small huddles toward the large forest beside the stadium.
Team Strix approaches the final challenge of Cranthym Challenges. (Art Credit: Toffeeshop)
“And so, it all comes down to this…” the distorted voice of the host boomed down, while Team Strix shivered and peered into the forest, only to be met with darkness. “Make your way in, complete the puzzles, and they will lead you to victory…” Whispers broke out amongst the 16 teams, but Tawny rolled closer to the others in Team Strix. “Stick together, and we can do anything. Let’s put on our best performance yet.” Unanimously, they nodded and while other teams stared into the forest with looks of dread and fear, Team Strix broke out into smiles of dedication and the same adrenaline that took them through their many music concerts.
It was hours later, as the sun began to set, when the first team, the Whizlers, emerged from the darkness in the trees that seemed to swallow everything in its path. Just as the team realized that their hasty completion may secure their chance of winning, Team Strix rolled out in satisfied exhaustion. Upon noticing that they were finally finished, they broke out into cheers, congratulating the Whizlers on their win while celebrating a second-place finish. As the rain slowed to a halt, the two finished teams huddled under warm blankets, being provided with warm drinks as they discussed the challenge with each other.
“It was enjoyable, really, but I can’t say I’d have wanted to stay there much longer!” Tawny was overheard saying to the captain of the Whizlers, who nodded and laughed in agreement.
Amber Skies were the next to exit the forest, sometime later, closely followed by the O’rangers. Eventually, the Hazers also emerged, and the other teams remaining joined them in the following hour or so. Finally, it was time to return back to Cranthym Hall, as Specs was the first to notice that there was still one team to leave the forest. Putting aside the slight concern after being assured that there was a search party on the lookout, the teams all headed back to warmth with a now growing excitement to find out the final results.
Seating themselves a few rows back, Team Strix found themselves sitting aside two reputable Marble League teams, the Hazers, and Balls of Chaos, both teams who had also performed admirably and were excitedly awaiting the closing of the challenges. The three teams shared polite discussion, reminiscing over the challenges that they had had to face in their time at the Cranthym Stadium.
“That last challenge was a bit unexpected,” Anarchy of the Balls of Chaos said to Hazy, of the Hazers. “We actually really enjoyed it though. The thrill of potential danger; but the danger that can be avoided by working together. Honestly, I wonder if something could be done…” Tawny leaned over, laughing in agreement, as the rest of the team smiled and watched. “Count us in, we…” They stopped suddenly, looking out at the door where the Guild of Wit had suddenly appeared, wrapped up in blankets but looking cheerful. The captain, Witley, grinned at the Hazers, and Team Strix returned the relief that their fellow competitors were safe.
It was now that an elderly marble that Team Strix recognized only in passing, appeared and rolled to the center of the stage.
The awards ceremony followed the Cranthym Challenges, with Team Strix in a vintage uniform on the far right. (Art Credit: Phoenix)
“It has been so great to have you all here. Every single one of you has proved that with quick thinking, teamwork, and logic, even the hardest problems can be overcome. While I hope you take this knowledge with you where you go in life, the awarding of the Cranthym Crown is yet to occur.”
Team Strix smiled; while some of the challenges were new to them, friendship and loyalty as a team was something that they each valued massively through every task in life. With 54 points in total, the first team to roll up onto the stage was the Whizlers, which had impressively achieved the first position. Spectacular prizes including a marvelous crown, as well as a large trophy, were handed to the beaming team, who returned to their seats while their captain remained on stage. The Hazers were the next to head to the stage, having placed second. It was then that Team Strix was called up, with a total of 49 points that earnt them third place. Ecstatic with a wonderful result, Tawny led the team up to the stage where they all grinned endlessly to receive their flowers. Fourth place went to the Balls of Chaos, with the Green Ducks in fifth.
Although not the winners of the competition, the Strixes, ready to return to their original name, were satisfied immensely with their excellent performance.
The final standings of the Cranthym Challenges. (Design Credit: Stynth)
“I’ve never been prouder of my fellow group members,” Tawny commented upon the team’s return to Olkinhem. “It makes you think a lot about who you are and what you value, when you’re away from home, competing. We’ve started composing a great piece, ‘Strigi Flolkin’, which summarizes our experiences and values.
Despite the Strixes’ impressive showing at the Cranthym Challenges, the group returned to their ordinary life of hours of musical practice and performance, with frequent group outings as they had once done, participating still in recreational marble sports, escape rooms, and other fun and low stake puzzle-related activities. It was for this reason that it came as a surprise to the Strixes when later that year, Eagle informed the team that they had received an invitation from the esteemed Balls of Chaos, remembering their interest in a more dangerous styled sports competition, to participate in an upcoming competition. Marble ManiaX was to be hosted by the Balls of Chaos, where they had been granted input on teams that could be invited. The Balls of Chaos requested that Team Strix be invited to compete, citing their natural majesty as musical performers and enjoyment of the puzzles offered in the Cranthym Challenges. Immediately knowing that they would accept, the Strixes were overjoyed and began planning at once. They confirmed their participation in Marble ManiaX as the “Strixes”, honoring their priorities and staying true to themselves. In an attempt to fit in better with the theme of extreme sports, Scops suggested a hashtag change to “Silent Kill”, a change that strove to inspire confidence among the marbles entering new territory.
The Strixes’ Marble ManiaX team reveal.(Design Credit: Jelle’s Marble Runs)
Joined by Coach Scops and Manager Eagle, the five athletes flew to Hunluen with every intention of fighting for the championship, alongside maintaining their musically inclined backgrounds. They, of course, brought their instruments with them and continued the reputation that they had received during Cranthym, of dedication to both the competition and their music.
Marble ManiaX, an extreme sports competition of eight teams participating in five events, began with Extreme Diving. This was a dangerous event that was to involve the entire team taking a dive off of a diving board, with a long fall to the water. Having never approached this type of event before, the team was hesitant, but encouraging words from Coach Scops convinced them that it was okay having a go and that working together would be enough. Despite this, their uncertainty caused a difficult start to the competition, and the Strixes only earned 61 points in this first event, which was enough for a fifth-place finish. They had three points on the overall standings and were rather disheartened.
Unfortunately for them, this continued into the second event, where Specs and Screech were selected as the duo competitors for Domino Bowling. A final bowling result of 73 points was again only enough for another fifth-place finish, and another three points towards the overall standings, where they remained in fifth.
“It wasn’t our best, I’ll give you that,” Screech commented briefly, before hurrying away, leaving Specs alone with the reporters.
“They’re right. We could have done better. But it’s alright, we aren’t going to give up hope. Tawny is competing in the next event, and I’ve never seen them work at something so hard since they tried learning to play Mrollin’s Third Symphony in one day! I think we’ve still got a chance.”
True to Specs’ confidence, Tawny excelled at the next event of Extreme Funnels, having turned up in complete silence with nothing more than an entirely dedicated expression in an event of physical battles to be the last to exit a funnel. Tawny was able to use speed and skill to defeat the Constrictors, Noxious Ivy, and Shining Swarm within the event bracket to win, earning the team ten points towards the standings, and lifting the team into third place overall. A gold medal in a competition of only five events was excellent going, and the team celebrated relentlessly with hours of music that encapsulated their joy.
Tawny wins gold in Marble ManiaX’s third event: Extreme Funnels. (Photo Credit: Jelle’s Marble Runs)
This wonderful success was not the last, as the fourth event of the Obstacle Run yielded an excellent performance from Pygmy, the reserve. A difficult course featuring lots of uncontrollable bouncing was light work for the young marble, who ultimately earned bronze, and the team rose again, up into second place in the standings. There was one event left in the competition, and it was one that the Strixes feared most, due to its unpredictable nature. Although they were used to recovering from mishaps and working together to ensure smooth runnings of musical performances, they were not used to events that demanded physical strength in a confrontation.
“We are worried, yes, but in the end, we will just try to work together and see how it goes,” was all that the captain, Tawny, could offer the reporters in the tense hurry before the event began.
Their fears were well represented in the Super Collision results. Participating in the second match against the Marble League team Shining Swarm, they were unable to win a single round of the match and failed to move on beyond the initial heats. Their competitors went on to win the event, while the Strixes ended Marble ManiaX in fifth overall, due to placing seventh in Super Collision.
Still, the team was happy with their results of 23 points and spoke highly of their competitors, although fans theorized that a small rivalry was forming between them and the Constrictors.
In an interview discussing their performances and results, Barn spoke up first, “We’re glad we took part in this. It’s okay that we didn’t win, although we understand if other teams don’t have the same view. But for us, it isn’t about winning.”
Tawny agreed, and continued, “Winning is important, of course, but ultimately just like with playing music, it’s about giving things a go and doing them to the best of your ability above anything else. We aren’t a team really trained for extreme events, and we are barely even a sports group, but anything can be achieved if you work together.”
The Strixes, photographed on a stroll. (Photo Credit: Emp)
Following their appearance in Marble ManiaX, the Strixes returned to Olkinhem and received praise comparable to their standing ovations after performances at the Royal Olkin Hall. To honor the Strixes’ newfound success in marble sports, Tyto commissioned a sculpture of the team to be displayed outside of the Hall, to inspire marbles living and traveling around Olkinhem to give things a go and do them to the best of their abilities, following the wise words of Tawny. The Pinkies performed a dance routine with the Strixes’ string orchestra accompanying them at the sculpture’s dedication ceremony, which marble athletes and personalities from across Marblearth, including Jelle Bakker, attended.
In RetRollSpective, the Strixes are a team that has played their way to a number of small successes within sports, music, and logic, while edging their way up in the ranks of great marble sports teams. Best of luck to the Strixes in the near future, keep on rolling!
Credits
Writer: Phoenix
Editors: Edu G.J., Smacg13, Stynth
Artists: Phoenix, Toffeeshop
Graphic Designer: Jelle’s Marble Runs, Stynth, Tim Ritz
Photographers: The Emperor, Jelle’s Marble Runs, Pesky
Hello and welcome to another RetRollSpective, where we reflect on the history of marble sports teams that have competed in the tournaments of Jelle’s Marble Runs. This time, we’re going to uncover the history of the Constrictors, a team that debuted in MarbleManiaX but has competed around Marblearth under a variety of different aliases and tournaments. Read on to find out how this team has ensnared the competition!
The official logo for the Constrictors, designed by Tim Ritz.
When one thinks of who makes up the marble sports landscape, which teams come to mind? You have championship-winning teams with marble racing in their every swirl, like the Savage Speeders or the Raspberry Racers; rookie teams to the Marble League with much to prove, like the Indigo Stars or the Purple Rockets; or legacy teams whose success in lower-tier tournaments has not translated at the highest level, like the Limers or the Jawbreakers.
What the League has lacked, however, is a “journeymarble” team. “Journeymarble” is an affectionate term coined by the communities of smaller competitions, meaning a team who travels from competition to competition, never defined by their peak performance in one league alone. This has been the course of the Constrictors’ career and a way of life they know all too well.
The Constrictors members posing for a shoot. (Photo Credit: Phoenix)
“Me, my family, my friends… the way I was raised, life is about bouncing from job to job and getting good at what you can,” explained team captain Boa. All five marbles are from the towns that dot the Brace Isles’ southernmost islands, a region with a rich history and many contrasts. Boa and reserve Eryx were raised in Wyvermouth: Python in Plymsnake; and Ana and Conda next to the hills of Cornroll.
“I had to leave school early and let’s just say I had to earn my keep early, to support some people around me,” said Python. They shuffled between two jobs from dawn to late night; one as a cargo driver and another at a shipyard. “What we did was seven of us marbles had to balance these big steel beams on our heads and carry them around. What’ll hurt is if you rolled too quickly because then we all lost balance and the whole beam just keeled over.”
Ana and Conda had more well-off, carefree upbringings, whereas Boa and Python both cycled through odd jobs: concrete mixer, pearl plucker, marbsheep shepherd, and flea fumigator. They could have kept to that life, like all their cousins or neighbors, if not for a chance encounter between Boa and Conda in 2005.
“It took me three interviews, but I got a summer job at the fancy getaway in the area… the Eden Project,” said Boa. “Marble families from all over the Islands would spend the day there because it was this marvelous amusement park with all the attractions.” Boa ran maintenance on the Project’s prize attraction, a giant marble run that young marbles seeking a thrill would roll down in the thousands.
A view of the Plinko board at the Eden Project in action. (Photo Credit: JMR)
Conda also worked near the run, and after the park closed they would take turns racing down the Plinko board or talking about their hopes and dreams. “I would tell Boa that I dreamed of doing marble rallies ever since I was little, but it’s not anything my family was prepared for,” said Conda. “And Boa would say they also read those same legends of rally racers as a kid, but everyone they know said athletics is something only rich marbles can afford.”
And yet, by the summer’s end, they figured out how things could work. Ana and Conda had enough of their own savings, enough to support four marbles to take part in athletic meets for half a year. This gave Boa a chance to quit their job as well as call up their childhood friend, Python.
“My racing career’s really all thanks to that Plinko board, wasn’t it?” Said Boa. “I fixed it up, but I knew nothing about why it was there. All I knew then was that they paid a foreign marble with a flower in their cap to design it, someone called ‘Jelly Backer.’ “
Boa “testing” the marble machine during their shift. (Photo Credit: JMR)
In 2006, a new team burst onto the Fruit Circuit scene: the yellow Zesty Lemons. Nowadays we would remember that season for the Yarble Yellers’ dominant win, but Fruit Circuit posters at the time prominently featured the Lemons next to the Limers, the Passionfruits, and the Pomelo Power. “NO TIME TO BE SOUR,” announced one poster. “THESE CITRUS TEAMS ARE IN IT TO WIN IT.”
“Of course I remember the Zesty Lemons – because they got in the Fruit Circuit by beating us!” said Sublime. A year before they began competing, the four friends out of Cornroll hitchhiked to Lemono, a town outside of the Limers’ home base. Sublime and their team had just started organizing the Fruit Circuit, but kept to a summer tradition where they would host a sand rally on the local beaches.
“The Limers said if you beat their captain in the sand rally, they would offer you a prize,” said Conda. After watching a dozen young marbles ahead in the line try the race and lose, Conda was side-by-side with Sublime as the gate flipped open. Right away Conda could tell they lacked Sublime’s top speed, but they knew a trick to play. Conda slowed down ahead of a chicane in the track, and as Sublime rolled way up the walls, the future Constrictor rolled straight past them.
Conda beat the Limer by several lengths, and the whole team of four had just rolled over to celebrate when a dark marble with white swirls introduced themself. “It was this beautiful marble and their name was Greg Woods,” said Ana. “And they asked us if we want to meet again tomorrow to show off our talent more.”
The next morning, with the sun just risen, Greg Woods and the Limers were tracking the four yellow marbles’ racing times, jumping form, and pushing power. By noon, the future Constrictors were spent, and thought they were hallucinating Greg’s request: “I know this is sudden, but do you want to fly out with us this afternoon and join the Fruit Circuit?”
Conda and Sublime on the beaches of Lemono. (Photo Credit: ItsChamp)
In the Fruit Circuit’s early years, as the former Lemons and Limers tell us, the organizers kept hyping up rivalries that did not pan out. The Limers and the Zesty Lemons were both much better than the rest of the citrus-themed teams while also firmly in the midpack. Over the eight seasons that the Lemons competed in the Circuit, their highest season placement was sixth.
For all their talents, “I think we had to admit we were not the best at off-road racing,” said Ana. They lacked the top speed and endurance of the championship contenders, such as the Yarble Yellers or the Grape Nuts. That is not to say they did not try: the Lemons formed a quick bond with several Limers racers, who would take time out of their day to train with the newcomers.
The Constrictors and the Limers before a Fruit Circuit Race. (Art Credit: Bookity, BG art: Craiyon.com)
“I really admire their team and their backstory, which is why I made sure I showed them the ropes,” said Lemonlime of the Limers. It was the Limers who convinced the Cornroll marbles to adopt not just the Lemons team name, but also accept being named Lemon, Lumon, Lamon and so forth. It was also team captain Sublime who would work with Ana and Conda in the off-season on how to accelerate and turn into straights the right way.
Another factor the Lemons dealt with: because the Fruit Circuit was not well financed and had a small staffing budget, every full-time racer was also part of race organizing. “So you had Sublime doing marketing and sponsorships, while Conda, Boa, and I handled fan stand setup every race,” explained Python.
“It was fun but also a shambles because we were much quicker on the job than all these other athletes we managed,” Python continued. “Those racing marbles were so green, you’d think they never worked a day on a construction site!”
Conda added to that thought: “Well, we knew they didn’t. And that was a sore point for all of you.”
Some of the Constrictors’ handiwork with the stands. (Photo Credit: JMR)
By 2014, the Zesty Lemons were at a crossroads. Python seemed more interested in doing construction work at each Fruit Circuit event than training. On a trip back to the Brace Isles, Boa also kept pitching for an additional teammate, their “brilliant cousin” by the name of Eryx. Even their mentors, the Limers, were spending most of their time talking to the Circuit’s rising stars – the O’rangers and the Raspberry Racers.
While Ana and Conda felt they just needed to train harder to be a Fruit Circuit winner, the team was deadlocked. “Those two grew up in Cornroll and really didn’t understand how we saw things,” said Boa. “You bounce from job to job. You get good at what you can. We weren’t great at rallies, so let’s find something different.”
It was Boa who, after each long race week, would look into the local sports circuits that were expanding across Marblearth. What caught their attention were a series of articles on the MFC Championship League, a league not based around off-road racing but on complex triathlons or target events like archery. Soon the whole team would read reports of that season, each event recording record-breaking attendance, up to the final events hosted by a team sporting streaks of gold – the Tiger Eyes.
“Yeah, my first encounter with Boa was when they dug up my number and called me!” said Jaguar, captain of the Tiger Eyes. “I didn’t hang up because I heard of the Lemons, they had some good photo finishes in the Fruit Circuit. Eventually, Boa asked me how they could apply to enter the MFC. But I told them don’t bother, we are just coming off of another opportunity.”
Ana and Conda on a free weekend with Jaguar and the Tiger Eyes. (Art Credit: Turtle)
At the time, the Tiger Eyes had been the five-time consecutive champions of the MFC. Their league domination, and the sports grounds they called home, were in large part financed by a sports promoter whose identity is still secret to this day. The Tiger Eyes had backing far beyond any other MFC team – and the promoter was thinking of a global opportunity.
Three top-tier MFC teams, including the Tiger Eyes, were committed to jump over to a radically different league, with less of a focus on athletics and more on daredevil challenges. “Our benefactor was thinking about drama, non-stop action, something that will broadcast on every TV channel in Marblearth,” said Jaguar. “Something that can dethrone Marble Drama Island on TV every week.”
The new league needed teams, and the Zesty Lemons snatched up a spot – or, the Lemons without Python. The racer would not go into detail about why they left the team when they switched leagues, just saying that “that new tournament wasn’t worth it for me.”
But the remaining three members, plus Eryx the talented cousin, moved continents once more with a high-earning contract and a new team name: the “Flaming Vogues.”
The “Flaming Vogues” announced to take part in MarbleSports Evolved. (Design Credit: Fouc)
The MarbleSports Evolved (MSE) Championship, as the new tournament was called, dubbed itself “only for extremophiles”. Teams aimed to survive elimination events held from Hunluen to Polaria, until the top four standing faced off at the Evolution Stadium in Om. The Flaming Vogues competed for three seasons, culminating in a championship victory.
“There are two things with MSE we remember well,” said Ana. “It was quite loud, and the fireworks never stopped.” Tournament events tended to be MFC events on a larger scale, like archery, cornhole, or an endurance-length “extreme marble rally.” But every event began with a parade of marble celebrities taking VIP seats and would end with a large fireworks show.
In their first season, the Flaming Vogues’ experience took them to the Final Four showdown in Om. There, they would be remembered for a championship battle with the Tiger Eyes on an obstacle course full of swinging weights and the dreaded “big balls” one had to bounce across with perfect accuracy.
“The rule was you pick yourself up and go to the start if you fall off, and the first team of four where everyone finishes wins,” said Eryx. “And in the end, it was between me and Felid of the Tiger Eyes, after we got battered a dozen times. And we were both aching, but they barely avoided slipping off the balls and got in before me.”
The Flaming Vogues and Tiger Eyes on the way out of Hunluen. (Photo Credit: Pesky)
After that season, however, the tournament started to crack. “Case in point… we were racing and the fireworks would start going off a few lengths before anyone crossed the finish line,” said Boa. “One time this scared the leader so much that we had a pile up right in front of the finish.”
In fact, what got Boa on the organizers’ radar was when they noticed a critical flaw in an event. For Extreme Relay, where out of each baton pass marbles speed up immediately through an accelerator, Boa saw right away that the lane walls were too short, though the organizers ignored their complaints.
“I took action into my own hands, that’s all. I got a ball bearing to go in front of a baton gate, then I just sped down the track to show how it goes wrong,” said Boa. They made the baton pass with the ball bearing, which went through the accelerator. The ball bearing shot out and skipped to the lane to its right, knocking loose the baton gate there. The organizers heightened the walls, but still suspended Boa for two events due to “tampering with equipment.”
With circumstances like these, the Tiger Eyes quit MarbleSports Evolved after Season 2. The Flaming Vogues’ Season 3 win comes with an asterisk, achieved without their top rival.
“I wish I could just say our first marble sports championship was the best,” said Conda, to nods from the whole team. “But when we rolled up to the podium and looked past the fireworks and the paid performers, you saw that two-thirds of the stands were empty.
“I talked to Boa the night of and asked, ‘why did we make this move again?’ We wanted something different, but really we picked a new tournament because we saw all those teams with those fans, working hard to become real champions. This competition didn’t feel real anymore.”
The “Flaming Vogues” on the top of the podium, but was it worth it? (Design Credit: Fouc, BG art: cppng.com)
Boa and the team were in contact this whole time with Python, who was now a fixture on the Sand Marble Rally circuit. “They didn’t tell me when I left, but I knew I was the weak link when we were the Lemons,” said Python. “So it would be nice to start fresh and make my own path. I went by Python’s Tub.”
Miracles do not happen overnight. Python’s Tub did not impress in their first amateur sand rally meets, but over time finished more often in the top half. With support from new racer friends they booked a trip to Knikkegen, where racers across the world were eager to qualify for Jelle Bakker’s 2016 Sand Marble Rally. Their new name was something friends thought rolled better off the tongue: Snake’s Tub.
Snake’s Tub beating Ghost Plasma for a pre-season race victory. (Photo Credit: JMR)
When starting alongside Marblearth’s best racers, the same issues from a decade ago started to show. Snake’s Tub could only reach the end of 2 races in the season before getting cut after Race 6. However, Snake’s Tub could own a pre-season performance that may have decided their qualification: victory in a 500-foot sand rally.
Starting near the front but knowing they were losing ground, Snake’s Tub displayed their teammates’ famous quick thinking. At a fork in the course, they slowed down and swerved left while most others turned right. Seconds later, they were the first marble to shoot down the course’s alternate straight and overtake the leading group. For the second half, Snake’s Tub would fend off pressure from future champion Ghost Plasma to take the win.
Getting commended by Ghost Plasma, Dragon’s Egg, and other elite racers after that race are some of Python’s favorite memories. The other is after their elimination from the 2016 season, and Jelle delivered an honorable mention award to each marble leaving the tournament. “I was on a call with Boa, just yelling out… I met Jelle Bakker first!” said Python. “The Plinko board designer who got all of us rolling!”
Python failed to qualify for the 2017 Marble Rally just as the Flaming Vogues were reconsidering MarbleSports Evolved. Over calls every night, Python emphasized they knew how their former teammates felt. “Them and I can say we won something in our lives, but it didn’t feel right,” said Python. “And I just told them what they were all thinking – it’s time for something different, just don’t go back.”
Snake’s Tub beating Ghost Plasma for a pre-season race victory. (Photo Credit: JMR)
MarbleSports Evolved was canceled in 2018, a year after the Flaming Vogues quit. The one marble sports event that every Marblearth channel tuned into arrived, but it was Jelle Bakker’s Marble League. However, by early 2021, rumors spread that the Bakker siblings entertained reviving the MSE concept, looking for a way to engage younger marbles less interested in traditional athletics. Reports were that Dion Bakker invested much of their personal wealth in the project and was in advanced talks with the Balls of Chaos to host and select participants.
“It was just like the Balls of Chaos to reach out to the Pinkies, who reached out to the Snowballs, who reached out to the Volleyballs and who reached out to us,” said Jaguar of the Tiger Eyes. “I told them, though, that we want to keep managing the MFC. But you need to invite this Bug Circuit team we know.”
That fateful day came in Fall 2021, not long after Felynia’s Marble League came to an end. The Bakkers, along with the Balls of Chaos on their side, drove under Buzznya’s maple canopies, then past the hills that surrounded the annual Bug Circuit’s grounds. The Bakkers looked for the Scorpions, who won all of the last three Bug Circuits and also sat on the Circuit’s managing board.
The Bakkers would goof and had to be told by Pincer, former Scorpions captain, that they needed to contact the second-generation Scorpions; even if they went by the old athletes’ names, their history lasts longer than even the original team. The new team would have been known as the Zesty Lemons, the Flaming Vogues, and Snake’s Tub before 2017. By then the Tiger Eyes referred that team to the retiring Scorpions athletes, promising they were worthy successors to the name.
Python, now a 2nd generation Scorpion, while surrounded by Bug Circuit rivals. (Photo Credit: ItsChamp)
“The Bug Circuit was a perfect fit,” said Conda. “Buzznya is beautiful, and apart from racing we take care of the birds at the zoo or the horses at the menagerie.” In all events except for short races, the new Scorpions had such endurance and focus that they were podium favorites. These athletes from the Brace Isles were winners, loved by the locals and could finish out their sporting career here.
“But an offer from the Bakkers, in real life… how can you turn that down?” said Boa. “I was half speechless the minute I saw they were driving down to our street.” The Constrictors thought the Balls of Chaos marbles spoke far too quickly, but they understood the offer from the Bakkers: Take part in Marble ManiaX, and they could compete under their own team name and possibly qualify for the Marble League.
“Isn’t it humorous that over a decade and a half of racing, we were never offered to choose our team name?” recalled Ana. They signed the deal that week and agreed to compete as the Constrictors.
“In honor of Python, the soul of our team.” “So the other teams know we’ll squeeze them out of contention.” And, for Python, “‘Cause you can never catch up to a snake and roll over it. No one can keep us down.”
The Constrictors announced to take part in Marble ManiaX. (Design Credit: JMR)
The first season of Marble ManiaX raged on in Hunluen, the home of the Balls of Chaos, in early 2022. The Constrictors were ready. Yet another cousin of Boa’s, Charmer, signed on to coach the team. Their fans packed a full section in the stands, whether they flew in from Buzznya or were Hunluen residents who once followed the Flaming Vogues.
The first event would be Extreme Diving, where marbles would leap from a skyscraping height onto the underwater target. The Constrictors showed right away they were last to jump, but not least: in their first jump, all but one stayed close to one another and to the bullseye, scoring one 9-point landing.
In the end, those 9 points made the difference in a tiebreaker among the top three, and as soon as the Constrictors dried off they would ascend the medal podium as the first event champions.
The Constrictors make their first dive with unerring accuracy. (Photo Credit: JMR)
When interviewed afterward on their Diving performance, Captain Boa was nonchalant: “where we grew up in the Brace Isles, we’d scale the cliffs around Plymsnake and jump off of them. So we knew exactly what it takes to dive well.”
Conda’s experience was also on display in the Domino Bowling event, shooting down the central lane with a 73-point run, part of their bronze medal performance in the event. While their teammates cheered them on, Conda turned and just said: “I was part of many events based on accuracy, so this event was pretty easy. I only wish I could equal Pinky Winky’s run.”
Conda after their high-scoring Bowling run. (Photo Credit: JMR)
Python admits to breaking the medal streak in Event 3, with a first-round loss against the Strixes in Extreme Funnels. As Tawny of the Strixes recalls: “It was quite humorous, because I congratulated Python on a tense battle afterwards. But they responded to me first with ‘It’s best to move on, I hate funnels.’ They tried to avoid me, but eventually we had a good chat.”
“I placed dead last in a funnel battle at the start of my rally career,” said Python. “And despite what my teammates think I am just shabby at it! Team Strix was all class though, they are some keepers.”
Python and Tawny out the gate into Extreme Funnels. (Photo Credit: JMR)
Boa finished sixth in the Obstacle Race, after an unfortunate incident right out the starting gate. In the third-round, the team captain rolled straight into a rubber barrier, costing them ten seconds of time they could not recover. That said, going into the final Super Collision event, the Constrictors were one of four teams that could win the tournament. With the Purple Rockets and the Strixes knocked out early, the team knew only they controlled their destiny: as long as they made the finals, they would win the tournament.
First, the Constrictors got past the Black Jacks in two chaotic rounds, with one Constrictor braking just in time to eke out a win. Then the team faced the Pinkies, and both took defensive formations that slowed the teams down to avoid contacting the fidget spinners.
But luck was again not on the veteran team’s side. Boa, at the formation’s center, held their breath as they were launched by one, two, three spinners. They ricocheted out of the stadium, smacking a trigger that sent out ball bearings that knocked out two other Constrictors with precision.
“Oh, we got an airborne marble!” exclaimed Greg Woods. The fans’ nerves were steadied, realizing Greg looked at a ball bearing and not their team captain crashing down to incur some lifelong injury. But the Constrictors lost the first half 2-5 and lost in full time 6-9. Another team went to the finals, and another championship was lost.
The critical moment in the Collision match with the Pinkies. (Photo Credit: JMR)
The Constrictors still left the event with hardware, beating the Balls of Chaos 5-3 to take a bronze medal. This concluded their Jelle’s Marble Runs debut, where the team stunned crowds by fighting for the championship throughout and finishing as runners-up.
If this sounds too much like their narrow defeat in the MSE seven years ago, there was a silver lining to it all: when the team first received their silver medals and remembered what the effort was for.
“We liked the music, and thankfully no fireworks… but what really mattered was the Bakkers coming out to award us the medals,” said Conda. “All of us teared up at that moment.” Boa and Conda, over the din, yelled to thank Jelle for building marble runs and bringing the team together many years ago. In Boa’s telling, Jelle did not say anything back but responded plenty through their kind eyes.
Runners-up again: the Constrictors receive their silver medals at the end of Marble ManiaX. (Photo Credit: JMR)
That was the last time much of Marblearth saw the Constrictors, but the story does not end there. All the athletes have their own memory of what happened after when the Black Jacks went back on stage with footage of incorrect scoring in their collision match.
“At first we sat to the side, thinking ‘gosh, this is like MarbleSports Evolved all over again,'” said Conda. “Every team was around the stadium looking at the footage, and we at least thought Captain Heart of the Black Jacks had a point. But it was a conversation between them and the refs, not for us.”
“But once I started seeing it turn into a shouting match between the Black Jacks and Dion and the crew… sorry, I felt obliged to step in!” said Boa. Six years ago they weren’t afraid of calling out the MSE organizers, and now they would intervene as a wiser mediator.
The issue, as Boa understood it, is that the Black Jacks thought of it as a fairness issue to acknowledge the scoring error, while the organizer thought of it as a financial issue. It was inconceivable to take a loss on the investment by acknowledging the error and possibly rescoring the whole tournament.
“Truth be told, I did not mediate very much,” said Boa. “In the end, the final offer was to run a tie-breaker as is and see what happens. The Black Jacks took it.” Every Constrictor agreed the overtime match was hard fought, and Ana hanging on by bouncing off of a wall domino made it 3–2 Constrictors, enough to justify the team’s win.
By the time every team left the stadium that evening, the pitch blackness of night was punctured only by Hunluen’s neon skyscrapers off on the horizon. We saw the Black Jacks roll alone to their team van, but also Ana and Python sprinting up to them.
“Look, Club, all of that nasty business is a part of sports… but in the Bug Circuit we are also looking for teams for an invitational this Spring…” we heard Ana say. “I know this is abrupt… why not come by if you’re interested?”
“Actually, the scheduling would work,” said Club of the Black Jacks. “That would work quite well.”
Captains Heart and Boa side by side in Marble ManiaX. (Photo Credit: JMR)
In RetRollSpective, the Constrictors are a team that has always been on the move but also never stopped evolving. Their career spans more than 15 years across five sports leagues, a journey that helped them gain street smarts, folk wisdom, and intuition for marble sports beyond raw athletic talent.
Following announcements by the Jelle’s Marble Association, the Constrictors were not one of four teams invited to enter the 2022 Marble League Showdown and therefore cannot qualify for the 2023 Marble League. Before the decision was finalized, we heard from Limers Captain Sublime: “the JMA would be nuts to leave them out. They are such quick thinkers and capable of such strength… no team is truly prepared for them.”
Prior to the announcement, the members themselves were more modest. “We went through a long career already, and we’re just thankful for any new opportunity we can get,” said Boa. “The Marble League is not our only priority. What will be our real legacy, I think, are our planned academies in Buzznya and the Brace Isles, where young marbles like we were will learn to reach their dreams.”
Best of luck to the Constrictors in the near future, keep on rolling!
Credits
Writer: Fouc
Additional Writing: Vector
Editors: Edu G.J., Smacg13, Stynth
Artists: Bookity, Turtle
Graphic Designers: Fouc, Jelle’s Marble Runs, Tim Ritz
On the peak of Mount Huaze, two marbles stand. Hidden in the mist, in the midst of training. When one speaks up.
“Do you think I made the wrong choice, Sensei?” Hazy asks.
Blurry responds, “I do not, but I must ask, why do you hold such uncertainty in your decision?”
“I…I can’t help but feel I just turned my back on my team when they needed me most. I just resigned like a coward and left Misty and Murky without guidance.” Hazy responds.
“Hmm, tell me Hazy, why did you resign?” Blurry asks.
Hazy answers, “I saw that my performances were not up to par with the rest of my team, so I decided to take a year off to improve myself.”
“Exactly,” Blurry continues. “You chose to leave the team so that both you and the team could improve. You saw the state they were in and chose to put your ego aside for the sake of your team. Such an act is not a show of cowardice, but of bravery and leadership. You recognized your shortcomings and decided to work on them instead of staying stubborn on a rocky path.”
“I…I never thought of it like that, it just always seemed like the sort of thing I should have done as their leader.” Hazy comments.
Blurry responds, “You did such an act through instinct alone, without even noticing it, proving that these traits have already been long ingrained in your heart. You already embody the traits of a true captain. Now you just need to obtain the skills of one too. Come now, these rocks aren’t going to move themselves.” They chuckle a little, then roll towards another peak.
Hazy gives Blurry a smile, then gives chase. And so, the two grey marbles roll down the mountain, resuming their training once more.
Special thanks to Icy for contributing this story, and to Toffeeshop for illustrating the featured image.
The official logo for Team Plasma, designed by Tim Ritz.
“Come on Phanto, you’re going to be late. The press is turning up already, the CMM van has been here for nearly an hour, let’s roll! It’s time to celebrate our success!” yelled Fearo, newly appointed captain of Team Plasma.
“I’m nearly done with the Ghostlings, just need to get Electrode back to their parents,” replied Phanto.
It had been over a year for the team of miners. After finishing fourth in the Herbotamia Invitational, the team had returned to the Ionise mine re-enthused about the excitement of marble sports.
“Seeing the Gliding Glaciers and the Solar Flares get their opportunity to compete on the big stage got us reminiscing about our time in the spotlight, it seems like eons ago,” said Ecto, a warm smile spreading across their face. “After a week or so back at the mine, we had a team meeting, and it became obvious that we had all been thinking the same thing.”
“Sports isn’t just a fun pastime,” added Gloomo. “It’s a way to bring people from all backgrounds of life together, exemplifying teamwork and fair play. We all sensed that this was our next step – to inspire others to have a go no matter their life circumstances. We wanted to see marbles try their best and be secure in themselves, no matter the outcome, excelling in whatever they put their mind to. And we knew if we wanted people to catch our vision, we had to lead by example.”
The five marbles worked long into the night planning their next moves. The morning sun flooded through the windows of their meeting room, illuminating a room full of tired yet satisfied marbles. The whiteboard was covered in ideas, but three ideas stood out:
Keep training – you never know what opportunities may arise and role models are important.
Start a youth team – if we can get this far, so can any marble who puts their mind to it; supporting others is important.
Check-in with the Gliding Glaciers and Solar Flares – no matter how they do, they need to be supported and encouraged.
And so that’s what the team did. In between working for the mine and tending the garden (Herbotamia in Bloom was just around the corner) the team kept on training, using the underground caverns as a training hub. One day, as the team finished their most recent training set, Fearo looked out across the cavern and had an idea. As the team ascended to the surface, Fearo shared the idea, and the team was onboard. They rolled as fast as they could to the head of the mine, Ion, and burst into their office.
“We should turn part of the mine into Marblearth’s first underground training facility,” blurted out Ghost.
After the initial shock of five large marbles storming into their office subsided, Ion agreed and the team got to work, converting their favorite caverns into a professional training ground. As work progressed, Marble League 2021 began. The team celebrated the successes of the Gliding Glaciers and commiserated with the Solar Flares.
“We need to call them as soon as we can,” said Phanto. “We know how it feels to come into a competition with expectations and then have the fans turn on you when you don’t live up to them.”
“They should be the guests of honor at the opening of the training ground,” suggested Ghost before disappearing down a tunnel.
The day of the opening arrived, and the mine was looking the best it had done for years. Right at the entrance was a large flower display in the shape of the Solar Flares logo to welcome the guests of honor.
“That day was special,” recalled Flare, captain of the Solar Flares. “We had been feeling really low after our less than successful entrance to the Marble League. We were being slated in the press and online, marbles claiming we were a joke and a wasted place. Then out of the blue, we got a video call from Fearo and the team. They had been so supportive at the Herbotamia Invitational and they had called to check in with how we were doing. They all shared stories of how they had overcome hardship in their lives, it was really moving. And then out of nowhere Ghost piped up and asked us to open their new underground training facility. We were blown away! How could anyone want us to do something so important? Fearo claimed that we epitomized the idea of resilience, keeping going in the face of adversity and they wouldn’t want anyone else to represent a core value that they shared. After the call ended, we were all tearing up. Just then we started to believe their message ourselves.
We arrived at a sea of flowers and bunting, red and orange to represent both teams. A cheer erupted from the crowd as we stepped out of the coach and I couldn’t help but smile and wave. A line of adorable young marbles greeted us, all in red uniforms and mining helmets – these were the newly formed Ghostlings, a marble sports team for young marbles that Team Plasma had started for kids in the local area. We got through the opening ceremony, including the obligatory ribbon cutting with overly large scissors, before being shown around the underground facility by members of the Plasmoids, Team Plasma’s youth team that had just finished reasonably well in the Herbotamia Marble Sports Cup. The facility was impressive, I’ve never seen a training facility make use of the natural features of a cavern before, it was ground-breaking. At the end of the day, we couldn’t thank Team Plasma enough for all of their support this year and the honor of opening their facility. I really hope we can compete with them again in the near future.”
It was a normal, slightly misty day at the mine when the lives of Team Plasma would change once again. The regular pile of bills and fan mail arrived (there was one fan who would send the team a different type of fancy pie every month – the team always looked forward to pie day), but this time it contained an uninspiring-looking letter. Ecto sorted through the usual mail and tasted this month’s pie, strawberry and rhubarb, before getting to this letter. A piece of pie hung awkwardly in front of their mouth as if it had been forgotten as Ecto’s eyes widened at the news. They immediately rolled out of the mail room towards the mine, their piece of pie a distant memory.
“You took longer than normal, you better not have started that pie without us again,” yelled Gloomo as Ecto rolled into view.
“You’ve got to see this, now,” panted Ecto.
The team huddled together. Suddenly cries of excitement echoed about the caverns – Jelle was expanding the Marble League and wanted Team Plasma to return. They had seen what had happened in 2018 and the unfortunate circumstances surrounding their retirement and were impressed at how committed the team was to exemplary sportsmanship, most recently seen in their support of the Solar Flares, that they had decided to offer one of the expansion spots to the team.
“We have to accept; this is what we’ve been working towards – it’s still on the whiteboard,” said Phanto jubilantly. The team agreed, ecstatic that their small but dedicated fan base would get to celebrate with them.
“I’ve been working on these, I hope you like them. I thought it would be a nice treat to celebrate our recent accomplishments,” said Ghost, pulling out from who knows where five brand new uniforms, shimmering in the dim light of the cave.
“Did you make these, Ghost?” asked Fearo. “These are amazing. I love the transparency, so ethereal. I didn’t realize you knew how to sew! Ghost, you truly are the heart of this team. You really are myst—”
Fearo looked up to see that Ghost had vanished.
(Design Credit: Minos Fylaktos & Tim Ritz)
The day the team had been waiting for had arrived. Last night JMR publicly announced their return. They had purposefully spent the day underground to avoid seeing the reactions of marbles across Marblearth. Phanto was finishing off the Ghostlings’ training session as the team in their brand-new uniforms rolled out to see hoards of media ready to go in front of the small stage that had been erected at the front of the mine. Angry clouds rolled across the skies, threatening to dampen their high spirits.
“This is more than I thought would be here,” thought Fearo, worried how the team would cope with so much attention. As the team rolled onto the stage, a sea of camera flashes erupted from the crowd.
And then it began.
“Rambutan, CMM. How does it feel to be back in the Marble League?”
“It’s great,” said Fearo, taking charge. “We are so happy to be back and we aim to do our best as always. We hope to prove ourselves as a worthy addition and make our fans proud.”
“Lapis, Brilliant Blue Corporation, Zuro’s number one news source. What do you think about the reaction to your team’s announcement?”
“To be honest, we’ve been working underground all day so we’ve been a bit out of the loop, but I’m sure we’ll take it in our stride.”
And then the avalanche began.
“Why did you agree to take a spot from a new team that deserved a chance to compete in the highest tier of marble sports?”
“What about the fan polls that showed they didn’t want you to return? Why should you get this opportunity and not the Quicksilvers or the Jawbreakers or a new team?”
“You’ve already had a chance and failed. Why do you deserve to come back?”
“We already have Ghost Plasma, why do we need you as well?”
“Why are you not letting the next generation compete?”
“Why do we need another red team?”
“Why are you letting your fans down by changing your uniform? Why not stick to the familiar classic look?”
“Why have you stolen the look of other teams like the Golden Orbs? Are you trying to deny them a chance to return by stealing their look?”
As the tsunami of sound and flashes rocked the stage, Fearo knew something wasn’t right. They could see their friends squirming, sweat beading on their brows. What should have been a celebration was quickly spinning out of control as a firehose of bitterness blasted the team. Fearo knew they had to stay strong for the team and could see the team trying their best. But Fearo was getting worried about Ghost. They had always been the type to stay out of the spotlight and had been worried about the press conference. Fearo had calmed their nerves, encouraging them to come on stage, assuming it would be a time to celebrate renewal, resilience, and redemption.
When Fearo heard the questions about the uniforms, they knew this had to end. Now.
But before a word could escape their mouth, Fearo heard a loud bang as a chair fell backward. They turned around to see Ghost sprinting offstage into the mist, tears streaming behind them.
“We’re done here. Come on, let’s roll,” yelled Fearo as they led the rest of the team offstage, leaving the cacophony of noise behind.
The four members searched high and low for their friend. A crumpled uniform was found outside the entrance to the mine as the rainwater started to discolor the exquisite design.
As the team entered the mine, they could hear muffled sobbing coming from the balcony overlooking their training facility. They found Ghost lying down, silently sobbing to themselves staring out at all they had worked on.
“Why bother? We’re clearly not wanted. We should return our invite and let a new team take our place. It’s what the fans want,” mumbled Ghost as tears rolled down their face.
“Hey, you don’t believe that, right?” said Fearo. “There will always be those who oppose you, no matter how much good you are bringing to the world. You can never please everyone. This is not how we thought our relaunch would go and I’m so proud of you for facing your fears and getting on that stage. We can’t let the opinions of others bring us down. We’re Team Plasma and we are not defined by others. We know who we are and will try our best despite the opinions of others.”
A loud crash interrupted the scene and the rest of Team Plasma turned around.
“We’ve been looking everywhere for you!” exclaimed Scorch as they burst through the doors, shadowed by the rest of the Solar Flares. “We came to surprise you on your big day. I’m so sorry they did that to you, what they did was not on. We love the new logo and the new uniform, they look so good!”
“But the fans aren’t happy,” whispered Ghost, who had rolled back upright.
“You may think that from those news people. But let me show you this,” Radiance said as they handed Ghost a massive card.
“Since the announcement we’ve been visiting other teams with this, have a look.”
Inside were messages for the team from the other Marble League teams.
“We’re so glad you’re returning. You amazed us at the Invitational and we’re sure you will do well in the Marble League!”
-Minty Maniacs
“We know what it’s like to go through adversity, don’t let the past hold you back.”
-Team Momo
“Don’t let the salt get you down!”
-Limers
“The opinions of fans can get you down, we know. But you have such a strong character that we know you will take everything in your stride. Roll on, Team Plasma!”
-Shining Swarm
“We’re glad such an inspirational team is joining at the same time as us. See you in the Showdown!”
-Wolfpack
“I am so glad you accepted my invitation. I know you will step up and prove to everyone you deserve to be here after the adverse events of last time. I believe in you and want you to be here. Plus, the new uniforms look great.”
-Jelle Bakker
“There’s also this,” said Flare as they dumped a large sack of fan mail, expressing similar sentiments of joy, all over the floor.
The front of Ghost’s face was re-flooded with tears, but this time of joy.
“I guess I should get my uniform again…I hope it’s not too damp,” said Ghost.
The five marbles huddled together.
“Let us not forget today. No matter what people say, we define our future and we are ready to compete. We will try our best and prove marbles wrong!” rallied Fearo.
“We are Team Plasma!” yelled the five marbles, the chant reverberating around the cavern.
“Oh, this may sound a bit strange but there are also 20 large pies at the front desk for you with a note that just says “PLASMAAAAAA!!!!” said Blaze, sounding slightly bemused.
Team Plasma will return to Jelle’s Marble Runs in Marble League Showdown 2022. (Design Credit: Fouc & Tim Ritz)
Hello and welcome to another RetRollSpective, where we reflect on the history of marble athletes that have competed in the tournaments of Jelle’s Marble Runs. This time, we’re not going to focus on the history of marble athletes, but on The Marblebase, the unofficial Discord server for all things Jelle’s Marble Runs. Read on to find out how this server has connected the community!
The official logo for The Marblebase (formerly Jelle’s Marblebase). (Design Credits: Spex)
Known internationally as a place where marbles can “meet and converse with fans around the world”, The Marblebase is an online server of about 9000 members that has become a major hub of discussion for the teams and tournaments of Jelle’s Marble Runs over the years. Although it may be something we take for granted, you may be surprised how important this server is not just to marble sports, but to the world of Marblearth.
The Base of All Marble Runs (Pre-2017)
Since the dawn of the online age, The Marblebase has been a unique location for marbles to gather on the Internet. The server has existed under different forms and different aliases throughout its history but has consistently served one essential purpose: connection.
The Marblebase’s beginnings as an online chatroom, developed by upstart developer Spheroid from Zuro and hosted on the Internet, limited the depths of its connections to the technology available at the time. That said, the feat of instant messaging captivated personalities across Marblearth, as they began using the chatroom to meet new friends, discuss current events, organize online game campaigns, and share music. The chatroom eventually expanded beyond a single channel to include categories, such as #general, #serious-topics, #gaming, #music, and, #sports.
Spheroid’s presence in Zuro led to many of the city’s residents using the online chatroom, including future athletes for the Kobalts, Azure, Royal, Cerulean, and Dodger. During their studies as doctoral students in mid-2014, the four friends were in the thick of a Marbles & Monoliths campaign when they saw the #sports channel light up with a notification. A user named Sapphire had shared a viral featurette about the rising popularity of marble sports tournaments, and the friends got together in person to watch the video together from their apartment.
The #sports channel within The Marblebase chatroom receives an important notification.
Sapphire, an athletics trainer from the nearby city of Elsham, had connections to Knikkegen: the host city of their “Marble League” sports tournament. Upon sharing the featurette in the #sports channel, The Marblebase as an online chatroom changed forever. Not only did #sports become dominated by discussions about the Knikkegen Marble League – #music was flooded with comments praising the soundtrack of the tournament; #gaming discussed ideas for a “Marble League” online game; #serious-topics was filled with comments praising Jelle for their work on the tournament and push through adversity; #general became a hub of discussion for all things Jelle’s Marble Runs, from discussion of their marble run projects across Marblearth such as the Eden Project in Cornroll to speculation about JMR’s next endeavors.
As for Sapphire, their activity on the Marblebase in mid-2014 led them to connect with the marbles that would become the athletes of the Kobalts, two-time Marble League Showdown victors.
“This was something else. It felt like a calling,” reflected Azure, the team’s Captain. “It would have been impossible for us to receive that calling if we did not have the opportunity to connect with Coach [Sapphire]. The Marblebase gave us that calling.”
Although the Kobalts’ application for the 2015 Knikkegen Marble League was not accepted, the team kept training. In 2016, they submitted an application for the rebranded Marble League, which was expanded to accept teams on an international rather than regional basis, and were one of the few teams to be accepted. The Kobalts placed ninth overall, a welcome start to their Marble League career, and a moment of vindication for the fan’s massive following online.
“It may be hard to imagine now,” Coach Sapphire admitted, checking the #roles-info channel to find only 220 fans repping the Kobalts in the present Marblebase Discord. “But we didn’t shy away from building a fan following on the premise that we met in an online chatroom. Ironically, that fan following was what led to the end of the service as we knew it…but the beginning of something truly amazing.”
In the months following the 2016 Marble League, the Marblebase as a chatroom began to struggle, with its increased membership causing latency issues, data losses, and online outages. Despite efforts by Spheroid to keep the website active, fans became frustrated at its frequent issues and looked to other social avenues to continue discussing the Marble League. One such forum hosted on Reddit, r/MarbleLeague, was founded in June 2017, becoming a community base for discussion of JMR. The business’s official presence on other platforms, such as MarBook and Twitter, also gave the community ways to message each other.
What all of those platforms lacked was the ease of instant messaging that the Marblebase had once provided – its endless flow of conversation that connected marbles to each other, and to the growth of sports, went missing once the online chatroom announced it was discontinuing its services, thanking its users for participating. Its users, among them Limers fan Lego, were unsatisfied, and began planning a new base for discussions on the Discord platform, headquartered in the booming technology area of Sancitron:
“[I still] wanted a place where I could talk to other people about the Marble League, mainly friends and anyone else interested,” Lego expressed in a recent interview. “Looked for a server but couldn’t find one, so figured I’d make it. Felt I could run it since pat and I had lots of experience running MarbCraft servers in the past.”
The Discord Era (2017-2018)
Lego and pat, a Gliding Glaciers fan, came together on Discord to bring that experience to users who were once active on The Marblebase. On 18 December 2017, the two posted an announcement on the online chatroom: they were opening a “Marble League Discord” server in hopes of bridging the connections that were once made purely online, within a platform more secure and with more longevity and potential.
The first announcement posted in the Marble League Discord.
Another up-and-coming fan, a musician and member of the recently established International Marble Sports Committee (IMC) known as Mellacus, saw potential in the initiative and offered to help the two friends with getting it off the ground. Lego and pat gladly accepted and welcomed them as a moderator just four days after the launch.
As word of the server spread, fans from all corners of the internet started to roll in, the vast majority sharing their passion for their team and marble sports in general in a friendly and welcoming way, posting their fan art and bantering about their team’s success and failures. Discord’s “roles” feature allowed fans to take the colors of their favorite team on the server, initially by asking a mod for their role of choice in a specific chat.
Unfortunately, not everyone was as keen to follow the rules as the majority of visitors. One of the first challenges for the growing team of volunteers running the server was a marble that went by the name Pamplemousse101 – an overzealous Limers fan who regularly got in trouble for encouraging those who were attending marble sports events to bring trash to throw onto the field. They were eventually banned for posting a video of them trying to break into the Savage Speeders’ stadium, claiming it was “for the meme”. Pamplemousse101 was also one of the many marbles that tried to launch a rival server that never caught on, the “Jelle’s Marble Server”. It lasted about two months before being shut down as the few marbles that did join were turned away by their frequent posts begging people to listen to their new podcast – each episode was an hour of them ranting to themselves about the art of trash throwing.
As the 2018 Marble League approached, interest in the server grew, which eventually attracted members from the IMC and its official media partner, the Marble Sports Performance Network (MSPN). With this increased presence, the “Marble League Discord” joined the committee’s communication strategy and became one of the main spaces for discussion and breaking news about the latest events.
The support also brought another IMC member to the server staff: Hershy, head of MSPN, who also provided some graphic assets for JMR. The news outlet gained a dedicated chat, where fans could talk about blog posts on the Marble League website (which included the original RetRollSpectives by Stynth), criticize the “1 on 1” interviews with ML athletes, take a behind-the-scenes look, and more. Very few other news outlets accompanied MSPN in reporting about the newest Marble League, but All the Marbles, a series covering breaking news and rumors, and Power Rankings, a collection of predictions by RandomTonio, did just that.
The first RetRollSpective release gets crossposted in the Marble League Discord.
However, the “Marble League Discord” experienced significantly less activity as the 2018 Marble League drew to its natural conclusion. Despite the miraculous upset that the Midnight Wisps led against the Savage Speeders, the excitement from the results of the season quickly died off, and fans went inactive as a result. The fans who stayed looked to other marble sports competitions to discuss – giving Hershy, head of MSPN, an idea: they would run a virtual sports tournament simulation series for fans of the server to follow.
Discussions about the first two seasons of “Marble Mayhem” were what the server needed in the Marble League offseason to maintain a reasonable level of activity. Perhaps inspired by the idea of offseason competitions, JMR decided to organize their own events, inviting all of the active Marble League teams to compete in special events during the 2018 Marble Rally. While these events were successful in gaining attention in other social spheres, they were less effective in the Discord, which had somewhat pivoted away from JMR’s organized sports – save for conversations about Red Number 3’s legendary season.
The first Power Rankings for Marble Mayhem Season 2 are published.
The anticipation surrounding the incoming Qualifiers for the 2019 Marble League, coupled with the return of the Hubelino Tournament, helped bring interest in JMR back to the server. Community members that had taken a hiatus for months went online again to speculate about which water events the Oceanics would host, who would make it through Qualifiers, what updated logos would look like, and an endless stream of other ideas. Excitement grew even in a moment of crisis – caused by the accidental deletion of the Jelle’s Marble Runs YouTube channel – as old videos were published to the new channel under a consistent upload schedule.
Although this reset was shocking and unprecedented, it led to the growth of the community as we know it today. Following a suggestion from RetRollSpective writer and server member, Stynth, the Discord server was renamed “Jelle’s Marblebase”. In addition to being a neat homage to the server’s origins as The Marblebase chatroom, the renaming also demonstrated respect for Jelle Bakker and their passion for building marble runs and organizing marble sports – a passion that would soon be shared with thousands of fans.
Growth and Community (2019)
The buildup to the 2019 Marble League began with the Qualifiers, taking place in January right as the last brick was set in the Oceanics’ Seven Seas Stadium. As surprised as the rest of Marblearth was by the early event, they were soon looking for anywhere online to talk about what they saw: shock exits from Team Momo and the Limers, the fight in the Team Primary fan stands, and the Green Ducks’ sterling debut.
Marble sports fans soon noticed a message pasted across many websites and many forums, from someone by the name of “LegoDude007”: “TALK WITH MARBLE FANS AROUND THE WORLD!”
It is unclear how well Lego’s first marketing campaigns worked, but what seemed more effective was Mellacus’s initiative. The striped marble was now head of the Jelle’s Marble Runs Committee (JMRC), formed on 13 February 2019 and starting with three IMC members. During Mellacus’s off days in Dunduei, they kept in touch with fans not only through JMRC convos but by chatting with the regulars in the Marblebase server.
The Marblebase inspires the Marble League Showdown system.
It didn’t take long to see the work of the JMRC coming into effect. In February 2019, Jelle agreed to hear from marble sports fans on who to invite for future Marble Leagues. Marblearth press would cover Mellacus announcing the “Fan Team Contest” – and asking everyone to check out the Marblebase.
The Marblebase, at this time, had 500 users and a circle of a few dozen regulars. That was before a rush of newcomers joined, eager to talk about marble sports news. Famous users who joined in this wave include Piney, Ocho, and Minty (February 2019); Spark and FamousOlSpiced, the advocates for the Hornets and Turtle Sliders respectively (March 2019); Flare and Ghost (April 2019); and JARS, Alayjo, and Fouc (June 2019).
Early 2019 was not just a story about growth. Hershy, who built up their MSPN channel through engaging with the server, faced contractual disputes with JMR that led them to distance themselves from the Marble League community.
In light of the split, subjects related to MSPN moved to a new server, where the organization would attempt to build a new era as an independent marble sports promoter; they, and multiple IMC members, would also drift off into new careers unrelated to sports. Combined with several who left after their teams failed to win the Fan Team Contest, the server chugged on with a new generation of regulars.
At first, what they found was drama. Ahead of the Marble League premiere in April, the marble sports world dealt with hundreds of teams wanting an invite to the top tournament. Several would use the Marblebase to market, lobby, or battle rap their way to getting enough votes.
The best community meme came after frustrations boiled over at a staffer for the Balls of Flame. As that team mass-mailed every other contender for support, Marblebase regular Darkarchon joked that all of Marblearth must “check em.”
“If you’re looking for a place to share your ideas, theories, chill with the greatest community ever, or straight up rant about why a certain team sucks,” wrote Lego in their initial marketing. “Join the Marblebase Discord!” Once the first wave of jokes wrapped up, this generation did all of the above.
As marble sports fans, they would react live to the Marble League in Summer 2019, or debate the various rule calls and design decisions made in Dunduei. More than the talking heads who had fought over the winners and losers coming out of every event, this generation also cared about improving the quality of marble sports.
When marble sports were not on the air, Lego, Mell, Minty and the mod team around them would organize more social events. Lego, the expert MarbCraft player, designed a roleplay SMP server for Marblebase members. Mell, speaking as part of the JMR team, would give exclusive premieres to the server, such as their Marble League soundtracks or the replacement of team logos to those designed by Tim Ritz that we have today.
These exclusive premieres were met with praise from the community, which also kept up activity on its own. Members who were commonly online late into the night, including Alayjo, Flare, KingOfBots, Minty, Novawolf, Shea, and others, participated in conversations that became known as the “Late Night Gang”.
The humble beginnings of “Late Night Gang”.
By the end of the 2019 Marble League, the server entered four digits – over 1000 members. After Marble League Showdown wrapped up and Jelle Bakker was off to create their sand rally courses, the server focused more on maintaining its core connections than gaining new users. Notable users joining after the Marble League include Mesp (July 2019) Icy (August 2019), Spex (September 2019), and Simon and Casen (December 2019).
Going into Winter, the server’s two driving forces – Lego and Mellacus – would each plan their most ambitious initiatives yet. Within JMR, Mell was planning out many details of a new marble sports venture, Marbula One. Throughout Fall, Mellacus would post exclusive behind-the-scenes updates while consulting with the discord community and the JMRC. Alayjo, now a JMRC member, would also reveal each M1 team reveal poster first to their Discord friends.
An M1 poster is revealed.
For Lego, it would be a trading card game that rewarded cards of marble sports athletes to people having conversations – cards that can be traded and form the basis of a server game, letting the athletes duel each other.
The Marble League Trading Cards initiative is announced on the server.
Before both projects would reach their fruition, Glassmas was coming up and the New Year right after. A present that only the server could offer was the Rolly’s, the first edition of which happened in December 2019. Leading up to the event, Lego had already given their sappy speech on the year of growth:
The Rolly winners themselves were a who’s who of server personalities. Longtime community leaders like Lego and Mell were rolling together with new leaders like Minty and Spex. There was also room for server regulars who had an opinion on everything, never letting a conversation or argument go by without them: people like Marbles For Autism, Akanon, and MarbleGuyy.
This was the Marblebase as many veterans remembered it: a little corner of friendship while the chaos of marble sports swirled around it. It was the next year that elevated the server to a whole new level.
The Viral Era (2020)
As the New Year rang in, it was the server owner that reached their goal first. Working overtime with longtime server contributor – and Balls of Flame meme originator – Darkarchon, Lego announced the release of the Marblebase Trading Card Game, powered by Dark’s “T. Roller” bot. Right away, the server would ring in a T.Roller Card Tournament that pitted community members head to head.
Just like the marble racing that drew Marblebase members together, these Tournaments would have their own upsets and dark horse runs. Server leaders with the rarest, high-stat cards could still lose a battle against a newcomer with upgraded racers they had trust in. And when one dice roll would decide a match’s end, server members would hop in and yell out that this moment was the “D-CIDER,” with an emoji to boot.
After Icy won the first Card Tournament, Grand won the second with three of the most elite athlete cards “P” can buy. The third winner was Spex, and the fourth was MarkusGwyndol, who fought to the end by putting their faith in one lucky card, their M1 edition Prim.
Marbula One, however, was not far behind. The first Marbula One GP was released on 15 February and was the first JMR event to have live premieres online. Thousands of marble racing fans found it easier than ever to log on and watch the race, but also to see a note in the description, to check out the “Official” server for JMR.
Hours before the first online premiere of Marbula One
As marble sports fans tuned in every week to react to the newest Marbula One race, the Marblebase also started to distinguish itself from the pack. For one, it hosted the Fast Finish aftershow with JMRC member Fouc, who now broke down overtakes and highlights in fine detail for all their listeners. For another, Lego also rebooted the Marblebase MarbCraft server and inaugurated it in style: a race down a MarbCraft recreation of the Savage Speedway.
Just as the new staff team, including admins like Minty and Spex, were settling into the bigger server, they were hit with a wave. After 16 March, millions of Marblearth residents who had not cared for sports would share an old clip of Comet tearing it up in the 500-Foot Race. The number of M1 premiere watchers doubled between Hivedrive and Greenstone alone.
The week of the Short Circuit saw the viral buzz continue, with even more promotion of the Marblebase during the premieres. After the premiere, Lego could have been popping more champagne than Snowy did after winning the race, as they announced there were now 3,000 server members.
Consistent with the rapidly growing server, trivia games, Marblearth Universalis streams, and regular server-wide activity make the server more alive than it has ever been. Prominent fans joining in March and April 2020 include members like Phoenix, Shino, Danda, Jøsh994, orbitball, Karlc, Droid, and many more. 18 May saw the announcement of the John Rolliver sponsorship for the 2020 Marble League, while the day later the Marblebase celebrated their own success of the 4000 member milestone.
Alongside the server’s milestone success, JMR themselves reached an amazing 1 million subscribers on their streaming platform for marble sports. To further the celebrations, the server worked together to sign a birthday card for Jelle themself, while Icy, a server member artist, celebrated their own birthday with a detailed piece of artwork that featured some of the most active community members at the time.
(Art Credit: Icy)
Other server members expressed their creativity in different ways: during an impromptu slam poetry reading in the #smack-talk channel, JMRC artist and Marblegs enthusiast Betawolfs shared an acrostic poem for Team Primary. Unable to find a better word to end the poem that started with the letter “Y”, Beta used “Yams” to cap off their masterpiece. They received help from Mesp, who jokingly responded with the term, “Yarbles”.
From there, an entirely organic Marblebase meme developed: the idea of a team called the “Yarble Yellers”. A legend was born among Beta, Mesp, Piney, Spex, and Stynth, who worked together to create the concept for the team and spread the word about them outside of #smack-talk, sharing the meme with the larger marble sports community.
As more fans across Marblearth heard about the meme, word spread as far as the Yahara Desert, where athletes that had once competed in the Fruit Circuit and Knikkegen Marble League years ago had been peacefully residing, enjoying their hiatus from marble sports. These athletes had competed together under the guise of the Yarble Yellers, and upon learning about the Marblebase meme, decided to contact the server. With the team’s permission, Marblebase staff added an equipable role for all server members to show their support for the Yarble Yellers during regular server banter and discussion.
The greater impact of the meme was that it revived the athletes’ careers, brought public interest back to the team, and led them to be formally recognized by officials working with Jelle’s Marble Runs – the JMRC worked with the Yarble Yellers to have their Knikkegen Marble League record for the 5 Meter Sprint count as the official Marble League record until Smoggy of the Hazers set the new record in Marble League 2020.
“I’m honored that it was recognized for so long,” exulted Yap, a member of the Yellers. “That’s one thing I will always love about Jelle’s Marble Runs. They truly believe in the integrity of the sports, and so does their community.”
Lego’s official message, celebrating 5000 members in The Marblebase.
Highly anticipated, the premiere of the 2020 Marble League, sponsored by John Rolliver took place on 21 June. Attracting server members from all over the world, those unable to attend the Marble League themselves tuned into the server’s voice channels for a large watch party, sharing thoughts and excitement with each other. Alongside the launching of this, the ML2020 Fantasy League began, operated by FuzzyCevin, which was ultimately won by the user YooooYuuuu.
The rush of new users joining during the 2020 Marble League was a new generation of their own. These were the weeks that brought in Nordique and Roilan (June 2020), Ghostly (July 2020), Vector and Kozakk (August 2020), and numerous others. The server reached 6000 members the day after the ML2020 premiere, then hits 7000 members near its conclusion on August 7.
In terms of activity, discussion in the Marblebase during this time has not been matched before or since. All the newcomers brought their own perspectives but shouted and exclaimed in unison watching each new event premiere.
The server officially did not have a loaded calendar at the time, apart from scheduling JMRC member Fouc’s ML aftershows. Instead, the Marblebase was active because the content was shared all the time, and connections were made. With fan networks or independent media forming on other online platforms like Twitter, MarBook, and web streaming, the Marblebase also became a server where personalities check in and out.
Notable marble sports personalities that had chatted and promoted their work in the Marblebase include Dan Orboole of The Marble Report; Termlinson of the O’rangers Twitter, one of the largest fan pages across Marblearth; Jaiden of Marble Sports Films; and ThesaurusDinosaurus, roaster of teams and destroyer of worlds.
When TMR’s Dan first stumbled into the Marblebase.
As sudden as the first rush was, a new phase was also immediate right after the Marble League finished. Many new fans shouted one more time and shed their tears at the closing ceremony, promising to check back in for next year’s Marble League. But a year was a long time to wait.
That said, JMR had not stopped uploading videos as Jelle directed both the Sand Rally and Marbula One seasons. The server continued to be publicized during JMR event premieres, and newcomers met a broad pool of regulars happy to chat and organize their own events. FuzzyCevin would be retained for several more fantasy league tournaments, up to the 2021 Marble League. Other server veterans got to host their own events, such as JMRC member Ghost hosting MarbChase or Ghost and Grand hosting game nights with new and old members.
In Fall 2020, the Marblebase still saw new members that are well known today, like Ramen, Crobatoh and The Emperor (September 2020), and Pickle and Edu (October 2020). While having a bigger core of regulars than before, Marblebase staff had to deal with growing pains: a mass of newcomers who enjoyed getting emotional or pushing the boundaries of the rules.
In the first of many moderation decisions to come, the staff team expanded to include representatives covering every Marblearth time zone, relied more on an automated reporting system as well as overhauled the rules channel to emphasize that the Marblebase is an all-ages server. To this day, server newcomers still remark that the Marblebase is more welcoming, polite, and overall nicer than many large Discord servers in their docket.
As the server kept growing at an insane pace, the demand for small, homemade competitions was also on a rise. Some users, alongside promoting their own tournaments in #creations-and-promos, also regularly posted results in #other-marble-talk, often leaving chat walls and interfering with conversations. In an attempt to minimize disturbances, the staff decided to outlaw live coverage.
A fellow custom competition holder by the name of Angus offered to welcome these events in their own server: originally built to host their “alternate universe” Marble League using computer software, Angus’s Epic AML also became the home for many of these enthusiasts who were redirected from the Marblebase and wished to share their creations with other fans. The partnership between the servers has kickstarted tens of series such as Angus’s Epic Extravaganza, North’s Marble Tourney, the Turtle Rally, and Vector’s Marble Sports League.
Moderators, some of which also serving on the JMRC at the time, have a presential meeting. (Photo Credit: Phoenix)
Into October, some incredibly exciting news, as staff discovered that the server had been approved to become a Discord Partner, a massively respectable title that allowed the server to be provided with a number of perks and further opportunities for the server to grow. With exclusive access to special resources and events, the first initiative the community joined as a Partner was a Discord-wide event of ‘Trick’ord Treat’, held in alliance with other Partner servers during the month. The server saw additional changes in November, as a moderator was promoted to Admin and the staff team took on a small expansion again, as Season 2 of Marbula One began.
Following the wide enthusiasm and success of the Trick’cord Treat event, an even larger one, planned by the staff team, was coming up on the frosty horizon. Announced suddenly at the start, this new event ‘12 Days of Marbles’ began on 13 December, a community-wide collection of fun puzzles and challenges for members to complete that was the first of its kind on the server. The server bot Trubbish would drop fragments of a clue at random intervals, and community members would have to fit these together to form a whole clue, and then attempt to solve the challenge.
With 28 challenges in total, each day consisted of either two or three challenges of puzzles, riddles, scavenger hunts, codes, and other things. Each solved challenge would award the server with a prize, a slowly building-up artwork made by the moderator and server artist, Piney. Each solve added a few marbles, until the final challenge where the artwork was complete.
(Art Credit: Piney)
The end of the 12 Days of Marbles event fell on the afternoon of Glassmas, where another new event was held by a small group. Organized by the newly added moderators, Aweshwa and Nugget, as well as by Grand and Phoenix, an afternoon of Glassmas-themed events for the community to enjoy. A posted schedule of fun activities and games was created initially in the thought of those unable to be with their family and friends over the holiday, though it grew to be larger than that and enjoyed by a number of community members.
A Chip in the Marble (2021)
Barely a month after the wrapping up of the 12 Days of Marbles event, the second annual Rolly Awards Ceremony was to be held. After staff decided on nominations for the event, voting was released in mid-January for community members to select who they wanted to win each individual award out of sixteen. The awards themselves, featuring titles such as ‘JMRC Member of the Year’ which went to Stynth, and ‘Best Analyst’ which was claimed by Fouc, saw a number of different categories regarding positions, creations, message counts, and pets. The ceremony was held online in a character-based game, while the speeches and talking took place on the server, hosted by Lego. The ceremony and its awards were wrapped up with the creation of roles for each award, handed out to the winners that would stay with them for a year until the next Rollys.
The return of Fouc’s Aftershow was seen in late March, accompanying the latter part of Marbula One Season 2 amid the Crazy Cat’s Eyes’ unprecedented dominance. This led into April, when the server hosted a fundraiser, raising money for a mental health charity of the server’s choice. This was an immediate success, as the fundraiser reached its goal in three days. Alongside setting up a merchandise giveaway, the goal was extended multiple times following that, as the community continued to exceed expectations of support and positive feedback.
After a good start, fans were excited for the remainder of the 2021 season. However, the latest series was showing some issues, and this wear eventually culminated in a huge hit for the community: on 13 April, the Jelle’s Marble Runs Committee announced its dissolution due to “continued unresolved concerns”, with Mellacus confirming their own departure from JMR staff on the following day. Consequently, the server lost more than the official status, it lost the close connection to the channel.
“It’s safe to say that things have never been the same since,” an anonymous fan stated in retrospect. “What amazed me when I first came here was how accessible the marbles who contributed to making the show happen were. And now, that is gone. We could see a few things looked off, but we had no idea the problem was that deep. However, we couldn’t let that beat us down. We came together and worked on ways to ensure this community stayed fun and welcoming.”
Following the JMRC dissolution, the Marblebase Staff met the demands of the community by expanding their staff team, bringing on a record number of moderators: Roilan Estates, Stynth, Woef, Ramen, Ghostly, Phoenix, and Nate, as well as seeing the return of Flare. The eight new moderators worked to continue engagement with all members of the community at a time when JMR seemed to be in flux.
Every Marblebase staff member, past and present. (Art Credit: Phoenix)
In an attempt to keep up the spirits of the community, as well as encourage activity, events such as an official watch party for a past Marble Rally and a Marblebase Trivia Night occurred in June and July, with other events starting to occur on a more regular basis. Also in June was the hosting of the large ‘Marbles & More’ Partner talk show, where a number of community members came together for discussion.
The launching of a new community project, ‘Project Marblearth’ was seen on 30 June and promoted through the server. This project’s purpose was to chronicle the lore of athletes and teams that compete in the tournaments of JMR. A number of contributors worked together to develop and release detailed histories and information on the backgrounds and performances of each team and athlete, presenting them to the fans of JMR in the form of articles and RetRollSpectives, complete with artists, photographers, editors, and general report writers.
Closely following the launching of Project Marblearth, an exciting new game, ‘Jelle’s Marble League’, was first teased on 3 July. This news was followed less than a week later by an announcement from Lego, a celebration of another amazing server milestone of 8000 members.
Shortly after the announcement of the server milestone, the Jelle’s Marble Association (JMA), the new volunteer committee for JMR, was officially announced on 10 July, with a few server members including The Emperor, orbitball, Lego, and Merlin, among others, being credited as members of it.
With the 2021 Marble League beginning in the summer, server activity began growing again but was facing considerable drops compared to the previous year. Despite this, the ML2021 Fantasy League was still held with a great number of participants and was ultimately won by PCAYS. The summer season also saw further news on the upcoming Marble League game, with a Q+A session held with the game developers on 27 July. The server met additional growth during this part of the year, with new members such as (Dan)^2 joining. Due to this, the next milestone of 9000 members was reached in September, however, this member count dropped below in the following months, and would struggle to build back up again.
Over 9000!!!
4 December was the dawn of another brand new initiative, one that saw a number of Marblebase Community members joining a brand new Event Team. This team was to work together to hold regular events for the rest of the community to enjoy, beginning with a ‘Two Truths, One Lie’ event on December 11. This first event was hosted by the entire team together, consisting of JARS, ItsChamp, TripleHaven, Jacob, Quixotix, Spliff, Steel, Pesky, Mystic, Pickle, and Calibrate, started paving the way for a variety of different events and games that could be participated in.
With the founding of the Event Team, the torch was passed for the responsibility of the second 12 Days of Marbles event to them, with support from the staff team. Another 12-day long event, full of fun riddles, puzzles, and challenges that the server attempts to solve together. This event began on 12 December, starting with a long story introduction about a group of friends on a trip to the fabled village of Frostroll. On this trip they partook in a number of challenges alongside the server members, aiming to earn a cookie after each solution from the marble elves giving the challenges. These, in turn, would go to an elderly marble at the end, for a prize. The first challenge began promptly after the opening of the channel, as server members began huddling together to discuss the fragments of clues.
An excellent display of teamwork allowed the community to ultimately find a solution to the first set of challenges, including a larger scavenger hunt on the server’s 4th anniversary, which finished with the phrase ‘Happy Anniversary’. This special challenge was not the only anniversary special, as a large announcement from Lego accompanied a new anniversary role and some extra news. This news consisted of both the new Marble League Game being opened to the public early access period, as well as the return of the Marblebase MC server returning once more, soon after the newest update of MarbCraft.
At this point, 12 Days of Marbles was halfway through its range of events, and the following solutions in turn resulted in the collection of the required 24 cookies, with a final ‘Marblebase Glassmas’ solution. The final story was shared, which saw the elderly marble present them with their awaited prize, the potential M1S3 theme.
Similar to the previous year, the end of 12 Days of Marbles was followed immediately by a return of the Glassmas Day event, this time run by the Event Team members Jacob, JARS, Mystic, and Phoenix. This featured another afternoon of Glassmas activities and games for the community to enjoy, ranging from crosswords to creative haiku games.
The Base of Our Community (2022)
The year already began with an announcement from Minos: the launch of Minos Marble Orchestra, a new secondary channel that’s especially dedicated to all the original sounds we know from every JMR series. The channel would later go beyond the music and host a variety of extra content, including a Marbula One promotional video.
The start of a new year for the Marblebase brought high anticipation of an annual event – that was now reaching its third year. Throughout the month of January, nominations from the staff team, which was followed by voting from the community, created the awards that were to be presented in the third annual Rolly Awards Ceremony. Hosted by Lego, a great twenty awards were to be handed out to community members in the server for a number of things. Ranging from the community’s pick of Admin and Moderator of the year, which went to spex and Phoenix respectively; all the way to data-based awards such as ‘Most Ubiquitous Messenger’, awarded to Ramen. This event took place on another character-style chat room game, with the hosting taking place in a voice chat on the server itself.
Officially announced in December 2021, a year ago after a random mention on social media, a brand new tournament was set to begin: Marble ManiaX. This series was all about going big and extreme and taking familiar events to a new dimension.
The Marblebase was alight with activity in the wake of this announcement, especially as the theories on which teams would be invited ensued. From the Balls of Chaos hosting to five brand new teams joining the scene, some of which could become Marble League hopefuls, fans were curious to find out about the events soon and excited about what this series could offer. However, the excitement would soon fade.
The series was rife with controversy from the get-go: from delayed videos to a potentially standings-shifting error in Super Collision, fans in the server were thoroughly disappointed with the production and eventually discussed the numerous mistakes more than any event results.
Months of underwhelming activity followed by a mismanaged return to competition made for a new shift: unsatisfied fans left the scene, making room for a new batch of users who were hopeful for what was soon to come for marble sports in 2022.
In early April, coinciding with the celebrations of April Fool’s Day, a brand new channel was added to the server. Intended as a source of some genuine chaos for a temporary period of time, #hardcore-counting was the place where server members could test their counting skills under pressure, where a single mistake would result in immediate removal from the channel. Ultimately reaching a record of 255, the chaos caused by reset counts and members being banned from the channel was immense, until the channel was archived for the foreseeable future…
In early April, Reddit launched the second edition of r/place, an event in which communities would come together and place pixels on a massive canvas. The Marblebase server and r/JellesMarbleRuns came together to build the JMR logo on the canvas and spent countless hours defending it. There was hardship along the way. The logo had to be relocated several times due to getting overtaken by larger communities and a streamer, but through the combined efforts of the Marblebase, the subreddit, and their unexpected alliance with a large music fandom, the logo survived until the end and can be found at the top right of the canvas.
At the very end, a fan known as Pippin, who led the community towards the logo build and defense, commented:
“It wasn’t any one of us, it was all of us together. Together with others and their passions, we survived until the end.” Their attitude during the event earned them a special “Ambassador” role, but more than that, it influenced a later invite to become the server’s newest moderator. Pippin is, so far, the only addition to the team in a year that saw a downsizing of staff over the past few months.
April also saw the growth in server members, coinciding with activity related to Season 3 of Marbula One. Notable new members in this time included Mercy, High Noob, and Posh Pie Chris, who joined the ever-developing server culture to enjoy marbles with fans from around the world. It was around this time also in which the server name was changed from “Jelle’s Marblebase” to “The Marblebase” in order to acknowledge the effort and individuality that the server had to make its own thing.
Following the burst of confidence provided by perseverance and success with the r/Place event, a group of dedicated fans within the server organized a r/JellesMarbleRuns thread for feedback on the new teams entering the ML2022 Showdown. Through much deliberation and effort, the group leading these efforts compiled two separate polls, gauging fan opinions on possible new team uniforms they would like to see, as well as what four teams they would like to see added to the Marble League. These efforts were seen and acknowledged by the community with great positive feedback, including from official representatives of JMR and the JMA.
Near the end of Marbula One, while activity on the server was at its highest in recent months, the Marblebase Event team began some extra planning. Starting with a two weeks long intensive set of events, where each Event Team member, now consisting of JARS, Haven, Jacob, Pesky, Mystic, and Calibrate as well as a few staff who frequently assisted such as Ghostly and Phoenix, hosted a game or event for the community to enjoy. From anagrams to crosswords, these two weeks formed an activity-packed time before a new initiative was announced, allowing community members to begin hosting their own events with guidance from the Event Team. Crobatoh also joined the Event Team, following the indefinite reopening of applications.
Merely a few weeks afterwards, a new event was announced at the end of July. “A Marbellous Vacation” was to be a week-long event reminiscent of 12 Days of Marbles, where community members could take part in enjoyable puzzles and challenges such as riddles and word searches, completed as a server-wide team. While on a much smaller scale than the Winter’s 12 Days of Marbles event, the fourteen challenges that make up the event are very much alike in style, and ultimately lead to a final prize.
Once again, the community bonded together over the solving of a variety of challenges and were able to finally complete the final challenge and earn their reward…this RetRollSpective.
In RetRollSpective…
The Marblebase’s humble beginnings as an online chatroom underscore its importance within the marble sports community today. The Discord server has proven to be a hub for connections unlike any other – a refuge where marbles can “meet and converse with fans around the world” – among thousands of others who have done so for nearly 5 years. It is a testament to the dedication and passion that fans demonstrate: which Jelle models in their vision to bring the best marble sports can offer to Marblearth. Moreover, it is a testament to the work that staff members have put in: to make the Marblebase feel less like an online chatroom and more like home.
Congratulations to those of you who worked on completing “A Marbellous Vacation”! You bring out the best of the community and are living proof that if you’re passionate about something and give it your all, you will achieve your goals and be the best that you can possibly be.
(Art Credit: Toffeeshop)
Thank you for reading, and keep on rolling!
Special thanks to the Marblebase Event Team, Marblebase Staff, the contributors of Project Marblearth, and our community designers for helping craft this article!
Credits
Writers and Editors: Members of the Marblebase including Edu G. J., Fouc, Laurent Rollon, Ocho, Pesky, Phoenix, PippinPlover, Ramen Powder, Smacg13, Stynth, Vector
Hello and welcome to another RetRollSpective, where we reflect on the history of marble sports teams that have competed in the tournaments of Jelle’s Marble Runs. This time, we’re going to focus on the Bluefastics, a team that blends in with the history of the Hubelino Tournament. Read on to find out how this team has amped up the competition!
A fanmade logo for the Bluefastics, designed by MightyCucumber.
The Bluefastics origin story is one of fascination; fascination for movies, as all four of the original members met as workers for the Non-Descript Entertainment Company in Melbloue. Baloo worked as a design director, and designed sets for most of the Non-Descript Entertainment Company sets. Dory was a stunt double most of the time, and often worked with fellow stunt doubles Violet and Salvia, future members of the Valiant Violets. Gonzo helped in the scriptwriting department, working alongside another future marble athlete, Rambutan, of the Silver Lychees. Mako was an actor, generally one of the leading roles.
The four all worked on numerous film projects throughout their career but didn’t work together until 2015, with the release of the blockbuster film, The Foresters Awaken; a cinematic masterpiece detailing the age-long rivalry of the Foresters and Flaming Cobras; two teams that compete in The Bourne Network’s Marble Games.
“It really was quite the experience,” Mako said. “Baloo was the design director for the project, Dory and I were actors, and Gonzo did the scriptwriting with Lantana (another future Valiant Violet); all of our specialties, really. We really all became much closer after it.”
The Bluefastics continued to work on films into early 2016, most notably their own movie, Into the Big Blue, an action movie starring all four of the team members. Baloo described it as “the most fun any of us had ever had.” The team would direct one more film in 2016, which detailed the history of the Knikkegen Marble League. The Bluefastics starred as the winning team of the league that year, which helped develop their love for Marble Racing. The film was so well done that it caught the eye of Jelle Bakker, who hosted the league. Jelle had seen some of the team’s other films, and upon seeing The Knikkegen Performance, offered them a chance to compete in the Hubelino Tournament.
“It would be an honor to compete in such a high level of competition. We haven’t explicitly trained for it, but since we have been given this chance, we weren’t hesitant to accept it.” The team stated in a press release. Upon acceptance of the invitation, the Valiant Violets announced that they too would be competing in the Hubelino Tournament, joining the Bluefastics from their film days. Unfortunately for the Bluefastics, tragedy struck back on the home front shortly before the competition. There was a rumor that there had been a tragedy within the families of two team members, who would miss the season due to it. While it was never confirmed which two members stayed, the Bluefastics were now down half of a team. Frantically searching for replacements, Razzy and Rozzy, two members of the Raspberry Racers, were accepted onto the team and took the pseudonyms of the two members who had to withdraw for the season.
“It was a desperate situation, but we hope that we can make the most of it.” An anonymous team member remarked.
The Bluefastics competition experience did not start off well. A fifth-place finish in Funnel Spinning was a respectable result, as was their fourth place in the Catwalk. However, the team would have three consecutive bottom-three finishes in the next few events; the Halfpipe Crash, Elimination Maze, and Quartet Jump.
The team turned it around in the Pursuit Slalom with a gold medal, their first of the tournament.
“Our first ever gold medal…it’s rather spectacular.” The team remarked. “Outside of acting and stunts, we don’t really have that much experience in the competitive sports world, so we were a little stunned!” They would follow that up with another podium performance, earning a silver medal in the Swing Wave.
The Bluefastics’ Swing Wave Spectacular! (Photo Credit: Jelle’s Marble Runs)
“That was a solid result, and we hope we can keep the momentum up.” The team stated afterward. A fourth-place finish in the Combination Race scored five more solid points for the team, which they followed up with a fifth-place result in the Halfpipe Dash.
“While we may not be contending for the lead, we’re still happy with our provisional fifth overall,” the team released in a press conference. “After all, this is our first ever tournament.” The team put up another fourth-place finish in Event 10, the Relay Course. The tournament went on a break after this, as Jelle Bakker was preparing to host the pinnacle of marble competitions: the Marble League.
The Bluefastics took to the stands to watch Marble League 2017. (Photo Credit: Jelle’s Marble Runs)
“We figured that we might as well root for the Oceanics; a fellow blue team. We were relatively pleased with how the results turned out as well” One of the team members said. Following the conclusion of the 2017 Marble League, the team returned back to the Hubelino Tournament for its final two events: Block Push and Ball Battle. They would end the tournament in sixth place with 62 points, a respectable outcome for their first ever experience in the competitive field of marble sports.
“Certainly not the result we were looking for, but we cannot say that we are surprised. We did, after all, have no prior experience in competitions, so we managed with what we could,” the team stated in a press conference after the Closing Ceremony.
The Bluefastics finished sixth overall in Hubelino Tournament 2016. (Photo Credit: Jelle’s Marble Runs)
The Bluefastics were invited to the Marble League 2018 Qualifiers, but Razzy and Rozzy, who had helped the team win two medals in team events, left to return to Rubow and reform the Raspberry Racers. The other two Bluefastics declined the invite, stating that they felt they weren’t ready for such a high echelon of competition yet. They returned home to Melbloue to reunite with the other two members of the team.
“We were happy to be together again,” Gonzo remarked. “The two of us who stayed here are ready to give the Hubelino competition a shot.” And so they did. In late 2018, the Bluefastics set off to compete in the second edition of the Hubelino Tournament, and this time, they found more success.
“Perhaps it’s that chemistry, of all four of us being together again,” Dory exclaimed. The Bluefastics started off strong, with a bronze in the Swing Wave, and a silver in the Catwalk; two events they had done well in the prior season. The Bluefastics let off the gas slightly in the next two events, with Mako taking fifth in the Funnel Race, and Dory placing fourth in halfpipes. But the team won their first gold of the season in Block Bumping.
“We’ve found a newfound focus this year, and I think that is helping us with our results,” Baloo said. “Plus, some of the new events just seem to fit our strong suits. We’ve found we’re rather well suited for strength events.”
The team never left the top half of the overall standings, and never placed below sixth place in an event. They finished the season in fourth overall, with 52 points, as Gonzo placed sixth in the Maze, and Baloo finished the finale in fourth.
The Bluefastics’ Swing Wave bronze.The Bluefastics’ Catwalk silver.The Bluefastics’ Block Bumping gold, completing their trifecta of medals.(Photo Credits: Jelle’s Marble Runs)
“I’m rather happy with myself,” Baloo said while the podium celebration took place. “Sure, I didn’t podium, and that stings a little bit. But I still did my best out there, and as a whole, the team is still in a solid spot.”
“It was a marked improvement,” Mako remarked. “I was looking forward to competing again next season, but we’ve received word that the tournament is shutting down.”
The Bluefastics finished fourth with 52 points in Hubelino Tournament 2018. (Photo Credit: Jelle’s Marble Runs)
While fourth was still a top-half finish, the Bluefastics were just one point away from the treasured overall podium, which would have been an outstanding effort from the team if they had managed to secure a podium, despite only participating in one competition beforehand.
The only slightly disappointed Bluefastics returned back home to Melbloue, seemingly retired from the competitive scene. They returned to their roots in the film industry, and produced several more blockbuster hits throughout 2019, including Captain Marble.
Baloo stated that “It was nice to have a little break from competition…film has always been a passion of ours. Plus, we haven’t really found any competitions that have suited our interests of late with Hubelino being closed.”
This statement would be proven false just one year later when the Bluefastics were visiting Bermenghank for a summer vacation. Word had gotten out that a local league was starting up, called the Marble Games, run by SuperJackJack. The Bluefastics had been planning on shooting some film of the competition for a movie, but word had gotten out that the tournament was lacking one more team, and would be unable to start until another team filled the vacancy.
“We kind of played it by ear,” Gonzo said. “Might as well give it a shot, no?” And so the Bluefastics were accepted into the inaugural season of the Marble Games. Their debut started off strong, with a second in the Track Race, and a first in Block Pushing being their shining moments. They ended the tournament in fourth, a respectable debut after a year out of the competition.
The Bluefastics participating in Season 1 of the Marble Games. (Photo Credit: JackJack)
The Bluefastics had enjoyed their success in Season 1 of the Marble Games, and were overjoyed to participate in Season 2! Ultimately, their record in Season 2 would not be as impressive as their debut in the tournament, but Mako did manage to win a gold in the Tarmac Rally!
The team would finish in 12th, a noticeable decline from the first season, but their first tournament with more than eight participants. “It certainly added a new layer of challenge,” remarked Dory. “But I think we handled it the best that we could.”
Mako being swarmed by their teammates on the Tarmac Rally Podium! (Photo Credit: JackJack)
By now, the Bluefastics’ cravings for the competition had kickstarted into high gear. During the offseason between Seasons 2 and 3 of the Marble Games, the team had been planning on building training grounds back home in Melbloue. It was during the construction of this training facility that the team became acquainted with Stitch, a former athlete of the Knikkegen Marble League, who had been in the documentary that Bluefastics had released in 2016. Stitch had taken an interest in the team after their performances in the Marble Games, and offered to help coach them, and give them tips.
“I’m honestly surprised we made it this far without coaching,” Dory remarked. “So yeah, we accepted Stitch’s offer pretty easily.” The team began training harder than ever under Stitch, in preparation for their third season of the Marble Games. But before that, they received an invitation from none other than their old Hubelino friends, the Minty Maniacs! They had been invited to participate in the Herbotamia Reunion, hosted by the Maniacs.
“We’re hoping our experience in the Marble Games over these past few months has been enough,” Baloo stated. “We’re, admittedly, kind of shocked that the tournament is happening. We had thought all hope of that was lost after 2018.”
Baloo later received a call from the Valiant Violets, stating that they too had been invited to the Reunion, and were overjoyed to participate. The Bluefastics accepted the invitation, but noticing that they needed a reserve member to compete in the tournament, the team put up an advertisement in Melbloue, announcing an open tryout at their training grounds for the final spot on the team. The ad gathered a fair amount of interest, and at the end of the day, the team unanimously agreed on selecting Sulley, a local journalist, and former track star, as their reserve.
“I’m thrilled to be participating in the tournament, and joining the Bluefastics in their journeys!” Sulley beamed. “I’ve journaled about the team a little bit in my spare time, so to meet with, and now be a part of them, is something special!”
The team participated in the Herbotamia Reunion, hosted by the Minty Maniacs, but were not allowed to speak to the public about their results, as they were held to an NDA. They did remark, however, that they were “extremely thankful to the Minty Maniacs for hosting this splendid tournament, and would gladly do it again.”
“We were really grateful for it,” Mako said. “Honestly, we were really shocked to be able to return to a tournament that we had all but moved on from, so it was a little bit surreal.”
On their return to Bermenghank, the Bluefastics’ Season 3 audition for the Marble Games was a disaster. They failed to qualify and then placed dead last in the subsequent showdown. The team refused to comment on their performance and stated that they would be training for upcoming seasons harder than ever. In the meanwhile, reserve member Sulley suggested taking a break to film a movie, as it could help clear their minds, and get them back on track.“Honestly, when Sulley first suggested that, I was a bit hesitant. But I realized…maybe this is the break that the team needs to be kick-started in the right direction,” stated Stitch. The team returned to Melbloue and set off to shoot their newest film, a nature documentary titled I’m Blue, which detailed the environmental changes happening across Marblearth. There were rumors of a potential collaboration with the Jungle Jumpers in helping with an environmental protection fundraiser, but there was never a collaboration between the two teams.
The Bluefastics shooting their film “I’m Blue”. (Photo Credit: The Emperor)
“It’s a very important topic to raise awareness of,” Baloo remarked. “I’m glad that our film was able to reach so many marbles, and that we were able to spread the word of environmentalism.”
The Bluefastics returned for Season 4 of the Marble Games and managed to get through the qualifiers this time. “We’re excited to be back on the big stage again,” Mako stated. “When we were filming I’m Blue, it was a refreshing break, for sure. But now that we’ve completed that, our eyes are locked on that trophy again.”
“You really feel that competitive flare just running through you as you zip down a race course, ya know?” Baloo exclaimed. “Here’s to a more successful season than last time.”
Unfortunately, the Bluefastics’ Season 4 would be nothing to write home about. They would finish in 12th place overall, tying their placement from two seasons ago.
The Bluefastics, at the fourth season of the Marble Games. (Photo Credit: JackJack)
“It stings a bit, but we assure you, this isn’t our peak.” Coach Stitch said to the fans back home in Melbloue. “We will finish in the top five next season. We will pick up at least three podiums. We will be contenders, just like we used to be in the Hubelino Tournament. You can quote me on that.”
And then, the Bluefastics began one of the most magical runs of their career. And arguably, one of the most magical runs in marble sports history.
“Looking back on it…it’s really special. I still can’t believe that we pulled it off.” Gonzo, whose eyes glimmered as they recalled the moments, stated. “It was…otherworldly.”
After advancing out of the qualifiers, the magical run started with a fifth-place finish in Collision, to which Baloo remarked “A strong showing in a strong event to start us off…I’m rather pleased with that.” The Bluefastics would score eleven more points with another fifth-place finish in the Track Race, followed by their first medal of the season; a gold in Funnel Endurance.
The Bluefastics’ gold medal in Funnel Endurance. (Photo Credit: JackJack)
“We were overjoyed at that,” stated Coach Stitch, who met with the large swarms of Bluefastics fans who had made the journey to Bermenghank. “This team has been training day in and out for this, and we’re happy it’s finally coming together.”
The Bluefastics continued their dominant, magical run with a fifth-place finish in the Penalty Shootout, followed by a bronze medal in the Long Jump. A fifth in Catwalk, fourth in Elimination Race, and silver in the Snow Rally ensured that the Bluefastics would finish the first half of the season with all of their finishes in the top five.
The Bluefastics’ dominant stretch was eventually heard of by Cable Marble Media (CMM), who sent a duo of reporters over to interview the team at the halfway point of the season.
“How are we doing this? Quite frankly, we don’t know!” Mako laughed, in an interview with CMM reporter Rambutan, now a member of the former Fruit Circuit and Orbit’s Marble Trials team, the Silver Lychees. “We’ve been training really hard with Coach of late, but even then…it’s still unfathomable that we’re doing so well.”
“We just need to keep pushing,” Baloo stated. “If we slow down now, we open the opportunity for any number of competitors to catch us.”
Rambutan, using their former scriptwriting experience with Gonzo, described the team as “a very well-rounded group, with high aspirations for the championship,” and predicted that they would go on to win the tournament.
The Bluefastics training for Season 5 of the Marble Games. (Photo Credit: JackJack)
The Bluefastics would start out the second half of the season with another fifth in the Sprint Race, followed by their first bottom half result of the season; an eleventh place in the Steeplechase. They would bounce back, firing off back-to-back silvers in the Timed Endurance and Obstacle Course.
“Years after the Hubelino Tournament ended, the Bluefastics are steamrolling the competition in the Marble Games.” Reported CMM. The team only had four events left to go, chasing their first championship. They would get fifth in Curling and Moguls, and an eighth in Diving, meaning that in the first 15 events, they had 14 top-half finishes.
“Unreal.” Coach Stitch reported. “I would say that I can’t believe that it’s happening, but I know these marbles, and I know that they have the talent to pull this off.”
And pull it off they did. An eleventh place finish in the Marble Marathon by Baloo secured the Bluefastics their first ever championship, with 207 points, a gold medal, three silver medals, and a bronze.
The Bluefastics triumphant at last, standing on top of the overall podium in the Marble Games Season 5. (Photo Credit: JackJack)
“We did it! We actually did it!” Baloo exclaimed, triumphant atop the final podium. The Bluefastics had won it all and decided to follow up their victory by going on tour. Sulley was in charge of planning the trip and booked visits to Belark, Rosaka, and the Agatia Woods. The team landed in Belark first, home of the former Fruit Circuit team, the Blueberry Bonanza. Belark was renowned all across Marblearth for its wonderful Blueberry Fields, which spanned across the excerpts of the region. Baloo managed to reserve a private tour in the fields with the captain of the Blueberry Bonanza; Bonza.
“It was an honor to give them the tour!” Bonza stated. “I’ve always been a big fan of the team, ever since the Hubelino Tournament back in 2016. Once the tourney halted I had thought they dropped off, but lo and behold I saw them on CMM detailing their tremendous season in the Marble Games!” Bonza laughed. “Glad to see ‘em on top of the podium there.”
The next stop on the tour was Rosaka, where the Bluefastics enjoyed several dance performances at the local theater.
The Bluefastics in Rosaka. (Photo Credit: PeskyBird)
“The culture here is really special,” Mako remarked. “I love the cherry blossoms that surround the city, too.” The Bluefastics rolled on out of Rosaka and headed to the Agatia Woods next, where they met with the Avocado Apes, another former Fruit Circuit team. The Apes and Bluefastics went on a woodland running excursion, where they participated in a dirt race together.
“We really had a blast on our tour, and in the tournament,” Gonzo stated, fresh off of winning the dirt race with the Avocado Apes. “And that means we auto qualify for the sixth edition of the Marble Games, too!”
The Bluefastics returned back to Bermenghank for the sixth season of the Marble Games, where they auto-qualified. Their championship title defense would not go how any of them imagined. The field was expanded to twenty teams for the season, and the Bluefastics would finish in fifteenth out of twenty. They put up a few solid performances, namely a fourth in the Obstacle Course, and a third in Block Pushing and the Solo Tower Descent. But nothing that would compare to their outstanding championship performance from Season 5.
The Bluefastics in the Season 6 Closing Ceremony. (Photo Credit: JackJack)
“We are, no doubt, disappointed with our result.” The team released a statement following the conclusion of the season. “We hope to reverse the course for next season, whenever that may be.”
The Bluefastics, after a gauntlet of tournaments, finally returned home to Melbloue for a brief break.
“We wanted to return home to spend a little time with our friends and families before going back out there and training,” Dory said. “I think that’s one aspect of competitive marble sports that is often overlooked; just how demanding the life of an athlete is! But it’s worth every sacrifice, and that’s why we keep on persevering. As a team.”
In RetRollSpective, the Bluefastics are a team that has bonded over their love for film, as well as competition. They’ve managed to keep their flair for competition alive in the Marble Games, and also develop their films in the movie industry further beyond any of their wildest dreams. Best of luck to the Bluefastics in the near future, keep on rolling!
Credits
Writer: The Emperor
Editors: Bookity, Skyfall_707, Smacg13, Stynth
Graphic Designer: MightyCucumber
Photographers: The Emperor, JackJack, Jelle’s Marble Runs, PeskyBird
There are races where nothing happens, And there are turns where a season happens.
Twenty racers will roll onto Felynia’s Mirage Meowntain circuit this weekend in the most competitive Marbula One season ever. It’s big enough news that the race will decide the season-long struggle between the Crazy Cat’s Eyes and the O’rangers. Even more unprecedented is that six racers can still win the individual championship, staking a claim to one of the greatest racing marbles of all time.
But what determines greatness when so many are in top physical form, have podiums or race wins under their belt, and have years of racing experience?
As reporters, our job is not to tell you what the answers are. But we can show you how the Marbula One championship contenders are preparing for their moment of truth. These are the days before our greatest athletes climb to the top of the Meowntain.
“The Scheme”
For each racer (here the Kobalts’ Royal), every column represents a distinct point total,along with the final championship points they’d finish with.The racer is guaranteed to win the championship with those points as long astheir competitors place below the positions marked in each of their rows. (Credit for all permutations tables: Jøsh994)
Scientists by training, lovers of reason, the Kobalts still beat themselves up over “why they didn’t start Marbula racing five years earlier.” But by now they finished their debut season as the second-best rookie team, their Marbula circuit was topped off and the whole team threw themselves into racing analytics.
Stopping in Zuro before flying to Felynia, Royal – an original 2016 team member and the Kobalts’ close-out racer – opened their eyes wide at the dozen books stacked before them.
“We’ve developed the most advanced racing analytics for you to read through,” said Captain Azure. “Those two books analyze how you can go pole-to-win and become Racer Champion. The book to your right explains the lower-risk strategy of staying in the top five and blocking Clutter–”
“This is great work and I appreciate you all,” said Royal. “But I won’t have time to read this today. I invited some friends from the track this Season for a visit.”
Shock, horror, a bolt from the blue: these words barely describe the rest of the Kobalts as they raced to stop Royal from opening the doors to the team headquarters. “This is not a joke, Royal!” warned team manager Dodger. “You should know the amount of top secret research here that other teams could steal!”
“You all should relax and just watch me handle this,” said Royal, who blocked Azure’s last lunge toward the door handles. In came a gaggle of racers, as colorful as a rainbow, who have run all six of their season’s races: Mimo of Team Momo, Iceberg of the Gliding Glaciers, the Turtle Sliders’ Dash bringing their whole posse, and more.
A tour around Kobalts headquarters. (Credit: Fouc) (Background Credit)
The Kobalts only showed the guests a few rooms without any trade secrets, but that was enough to make them marvel. “This is a mo-momentous building,” said Mimo. “I’m embarrassed to have not known Zuro was so high-tech!”
“Truth be told, I’ll say that you guys are one of the best additions to Marbula One,” said Thunder of the Thunderbolts. “The Electron Expressway is so well designed. Every part of this building was built with care. Now I see how you race so well on any type of circuit because you think things through.”
The day peaked when Royal treated everyone to lunch, passing desserts around a giant bowl of fried rice and peas. With some good food, even the rest of the Kobalts joined in on joking with the guests: they vented over the few track features no racer enjoyed or talked about all the gossip they overheard from the top teams’ garages.
Royal (2nd from left) would win it all at the Honeydome. (Photo Credit: Jelle’s Marble Runs)
With a full heart and a full belly, the Kobalts waved their guests farewell. “It was a great plan of yours in the end,” said Coach Sapphire. “We really did need that time off from work.”
“Who says that wasn’t work?” smirked Royal as they pulled out their phone. “The whole meal I was recording everything shared about training habits. We heard Mimo talk about keeping the lead… Mocha on hard contact racing… Dash leaking many of the Cat’s Eyes’ training routines when the Sliders visited them…”
The rest of the team broke into laughter. “This is amazing,” said Cerulean. “You really are the smartest of us all!”
“The Rivals”
While fending off Aryp, Clutter must also challenge Royal to snatch the last team championship podium from the Kobalts.
Clutter, as always, went to practice at the next track alone. The one marble who calls themselves a “Red Hot Mess” with pride, the Balls of Chaos star always felt like training at the strangest hours. The one time they agreed to Coach Harmony’s exercise routine was in the build-up to the Momotorway GP, admitting some professionalism could help them overtake Red Eye in the title battle.
Clutter finished eleventh at the Momotorway, plus had to suffer through Team Primary’s Prim taking pole there the day before. “Never again!” said Clutter in an interview. “Rules are meant to be broken, and I am my own marble. I do not live by the schedule, I live in the now.”
The sun had only risen for a while, long enough for some BoC diehards to sneak onto the stands, banging pans or blowing into any trombone or rolled newspaper they could find. For a few minutes, Clutter hopped off the track to greet those ragtag noisemakers.
Face to face with the racer, the fans were screaming about how Clutter was the team’s best athlete. Then the fans got a taste of Clutter’s wit: “Well, don’t get your hopes up. I might not feel like racing Sunday morning.”
The fans went quiet until someone asked: “That’s a joke, right? You’re going to be the champion, this is what we’ve waited six years for!”
“And I waited longer than that to encounter a true adversary!” said Clutter. “Find me a rival that’s at my level and you guys will get the show you want.”
Like Coach Harmony and the BoC athletes before them, the fans came out of that conversation with Clutter thoroughly confused. But for now, they’ll go back to their cheer: “Never sputter when we have Clutter!”
Clutter at the start of their third Momotorway GP. (Photo Credit: Jelle’s Marble Runs)
Aryp went to practice at the next track alone, something they’re now resigned to. Yellup from Mellow Yellow offered them a ride to the circuit grounds, which they were happy to accept.
Memories raced through Aryp’s mind whenever they were by themselves. For a few seconds, it was their brilliant last lap overtakes and a bronze medal at Tumult Turnpike. Then it was their first trip through the fog on the way to Misty Mountain; some late night talks about nothing with Coach Secondary; and the mornings when only Aryp came into the team office, passing by a painting of a cube crossed out in red.
Then something more solid formed in their mind: a Balls of Chaos marble Aryp faced three times and had not yet beaten; a racer who loves to race hard and make sneaky overtakes; a racer who, when Prim and Rima first trained Aryp for Marbula One, made sure to mention: “you keep your friends close and your enemies closer. Study their style well.”
Clutter, Marbula One’s firecracker; Clutter, who has evaded Primary’s attempts to overtake them for two seasons straight. And even if Prim thinks about sculpture now more than about courses, even if Rima prefers now to paint landscapes more than race in front of them, Aryp felt nearly rejuvenated at the thought of catching Clutter once and for all.
“Hey, Aryp, are you okay? You haven’t said a thing in five minutes,” said Yellup. “Watch out too, you don’t want to lean too far out the window.”
“I’m fine, thanks for asking,” said Aryp. “It’s just when I can feel the wind around me, it reminds me of racing… It makes me feel alive.”
Aryp, Clutter, and Starry battling at Tumult Turnpike. (Photo Credit: Jelle’s Marble Runs)
Aryp would get ready for their Mirage Meowntain session right as Clutter’s time was up. The chaotic racer caught a glimpse of Aryp’s tricolored streaks, and shouted right away: “You finally dare to challenge me, Prim!”
“Wrong marble,” said Aryp back. “Curses, it’s Aryp,” said Clutter. “Why not relay to your teammate that it’s the height of cowardice to avoid me!”
Then Clutter noticed Aryp stayed silent. On the other end of the stadium, Team Primary’s racer, glittering in the sun, stared at their rival. The audience started to cheer and holler at them both, noises the racers blocked out of their minds.
As they stared each other down, they knew why the other was there – and why this week the other will get their just desserts.
“The Surprise”
Starry doesn’t need to win the GP to be champion – but really must place above fifth.
Team Galactic, holders of Polarian technology, always find a way to travel a day faster than any other team. Among all the advanced machinery next to their paddock, one stands out: the machines that assemble all kinds of turns, curbs, and splits together.
The Galactic marbles’ high-speed racing has always been tempered by the way they lose control out of turns, so the team’s routine is to have the two racers practice turn entry back to back. Starry practices for ten minutes, followed by equal time for Cosmo.
Cosmo, the team’s Marble League captain but Marbula One rookie, was not eager at the first switch: “Coach, Starry, there’s nothing for me to do today. Only Starry needs practice because they’re the ones who can still win.” But, Starry insisted, we have to follow the routine. And Cosmo went through the turn and heard Starry in the background: “Eyes on that split, we can’t repeat what happened on the O’raceway. Try going into it with some backspin.”
Cosmo switched to Starry and stayed silent while watching them work through a chicane. Starry switched to Cosmo and Starry made notes: “Stay on the outside line there. You wouldn’t want to be caught in a marble train on the inside.”
Six switches later, as the desert sun above spared no one, Cosmo stopped in their tracks. “I’m sorry, Starry, what is the point of this? It doesn’t help either of us to show off that you’re a racer and I’m not.”
Cosmo is stuck in the midfield at the Short Circuit. (Photo Credit: Jelle’s Marble Runs)
“That’s just preposterous. This is our routine and we work together, it’s not like you’re just my mechanic or my servant,” said Starry.
“Maybe I should be for this week!” said Cosmo. “I wasn’t good enough to be your teammate. I failed at Midnight Bay. I heard you talking alone to Coach Black Hole this morning. You guys have a game plan without me.”
Apart from last year’s outburst at the Honeydome stewards, Starry is not known for their emotions. But right now those emotions were on full display: “This is nonsense, Cosmo. It was me who wasn’t good enough for you. It was the rest of our team who didn’t prepare you enough and convert your talent on the track.”
“Besides, you pushed much harder on Midnight Bay than I did two years ago,” said Starry. “Now that is nonsense,” said Cosmo. “I studied your races from Season 1 carefully…”
Raw moments like these are why Starry and the team follow their routine: every athlete knows they have the right, if not the expectation, to criticize and suggest improvements to each other. The routine also keeps Starry mentally aware and committed to not repeating any racing mistake that they’ve seen before.
Starry battling for the lead at the Misty Mountain Q2 race. (Photo Credit: Jelle’s Marble Runs)
As for the conversation with Black Hole, Starry asked: “Don’t tell me you thought Coach Black Hole was going to replace you or something silly?”
Cosmo bit their mouth and let Starry explain: “Coach heard a rumor that Royal Stardust is sending us some sort of message, so they were going out to double-check.”
Just then Coach Black Hole returned to the garage, and indeed with four royal emissaries in tow. They set down a Polarian projector, and in an instant the Galactic racers were immersed in a hologram, hovering in the air and looking down at Polaria’s ruler.
“My best regards to you, Cosmo and Starry…” mumbled Stardust as they flipped through note cards. “With a podium in both Marbula One championships in sight, the citizens of Polaria told me they wanted to display their gratitude…
“Every point you two won was hard-fought, against Marblearth’s best. Every risk you took was what a championship-winning team must do.” Now Stardust was speaking off the cuff and belting out their words: “This week, our faith in you is absolute. Look down on Polaria, and fight for us all!”
(Credit: Fouc)
That was when Starry and Cosmo saw beside Royal Stardust thousands of marbles standing in formation, and a select few taking on purple uniforms. The purple marbles formed not just the Galactic logo, but a message: “GAL FOREVER.”
The two Galactic racers teared up. “I’m right here for you, Starry,” said Cosmo. “Last week we lost the battle, but this week we’ll win the war.”
“The Legacy”
Red Eye controls their destiny with a front-row qualifier and a silver – but to win the Team Championship, it might take a record-breaking performance to fend off Clementin.
No crowds were forming for the reigning Racer’s Champion, the marble with the most Marbula One wins, an athlete known by every parent and child in Felynia. For, apart from race weekend appearances at the last two GPs, Red Eye has gone missing.
Statistics say that Red Eye should not fret: up to each season’s penultimate race, they earned more points this season than the last one. The first half of Red Eye’s season also featured their finest racing ever, ending in three-for-three podium finishes. But faced with uncertainty, and the threat of a credible challenger, athletes fall apart.
Never had Red Eye lost their cool more than at the start of the Stardust Accelerator. What seemed like a pole-to-win race for the Cat’s Eye was derailed by Mocha pushing them off the starting racing line. Red Eye beached onto the first sector attenuator, watched 15 marbles overtake them, and screamed over the team radio: “Cleocatra’s Curse!!”
The garage had no response.
(Photo Credit: Jelle’s Marble Runs)
Red Eye would finish in P8 at the Accelerator, but then would crash again early at the Short Circuit helices, mired in the midpack to finish in P12. Their famed acceleration seemed so blunted on the new tracks, as the analysts flocked instead to study the steady position climbing from the O’rangers to Team Galactic.
The last thing Red Eye said at the Short Circuit was from their last public interview this season, maybe for good reason. The Racer’s Champion cut off another racer at a press conference to say: “The truth is I have my doubts about this season’s race management. I certainly think the team management is not fighting enough for me.”
The day after, Coach White Eye would read out Red Eye’s last public statement so far: “I am deeply sorry for the comments I made… It does not reflect the marble I strive to be, and shows character flaws I must eliminate.”
A moment like that also reminds us of Coach White Eye’s trial by fire, the coach who had the most successful Marbula One season ever. Now, they have to defend their racers against race control while also rebuffing Felynia press calling to ax Yellow Eye next Marbula One season. With both their racers retreating from view, only White Eye spoke on behalf of the team at press conferences.
Happier times: the CCE celebrating a win at Mellow Meadows. (Photo Credit: Jelle’s Marble Runs)
What we also know is that White Eye has been seen out late with other coaches of top teams, such as the Green Ducks’ Coach Bombay or the Savage Speeders’ Coach Quickly. And it was Speedy of the Savage Speeders, in an interview, who may see the situation most clearly:
“Of course the Crazy Cat’s Eyes are changing their attitude. I will say that Coach Quickly and I met them in private recently, and they are as kind and as entertaining as ever. But, as defending champions, there will always be too many pairs of judging eyes wanting them to fail. You wield your outbursts like your personal sword and silence your best shield.
“Red Eye might be seeing what I saw. If you think you’re the greatest of all time, every race you’ll run until you retire is the most important race of your life. The moment you mess up on one, others will question you and others will challenge you.
“It’s not an easy life. Red Eye should take as much alone time as they need to decide how much they want it.”
Red Eye pulling away from Speedy at the O’raceway. (Photo Credit: Jelle’s Marble Runs)
Two days after White Eye’s team returned to Felynia, the coach finally answered a question on Red Eye’s location. “I apologize for the secrecy, which we decided upon to protect Red Eye,” said the coach. “For the last three weeks and until the qualifying day, Red Eye is spending as much time as possible training in the Cat’s Dunes. They wish to be undisturbed there.”
The Cat’s Dunes, where the Cat’s Eyes athletes trained in 2019 and came out in 2020 as a top-tier team; the Cat’s Dunes, into which Felyni urban legend says Red Eye ventured and was taken in by the rally racer Crazy Cat’s Eye. Yellow Eye, who reappeared at the press conference that day, dismissed the craziest theories spreading among the press.
“I promised Red Eye that I’ll visit them there before the race,” said Yellow Eye. “There I’ll tell them they’re my mentor… that they brought marble sports to our city… and that there’s always hope.”
“One Day”
Each column shows the position O’rangers must reach in the race to win the Teams title,given a CCE placement and the teams’ gap in race weekend bonus points.Without bonus points, Red Eye must finish in the top 5 to have a chance at the Teams title. Should Clementin climb into the race’s top 8, it presses Red Eye to go for gold. (Table credit: Glitternova)
These are happy days for Marblearth’s Orange Army. The O’rangers’ gambit to undercut the Crazy Cat’s Eyes ahead of the final race worked: Orangin dominated Yellow Eye at Midnight Bay and finished the GP in a ripping sixth. But the day after just began for the young racer.
Our first glimpse of Orangin was when they left the Helarve hotel around Midnight Bay at 4 in the morning, flying with the team back to Orlango for two nights. Just the walk to the plane gate was enough time for hundreds of O’rangers fans to cheer at them, chest-bump them, or get all philosophical.
Talk to an O’rangers fan right now, and many will assure you they knew all along that Orangin would be the greatest. “Orangin’s performance at the Electron Expressway was a tour de force… a testament to how much they put into training in the off-season,” opined one supporter. A younger fan yelled out more bluntly: “WE’RE GOING TO WIN THE LEAGUE! THE O’S ARE SEALED TO WIN NOW!!! THE O’S WILL WIN THE LEAGUE!”
Orangin chasing after Starry at the Electron Expressway. (Photo Credit: Jelle’s Marble Runs)
Orangin’s mediocre Season 2 was its own strange blessing because it meant they were spared from endless autograph signings, the encounters with strangers who act like they’re lifelong friends. If every fan told the truth, they would have received letters of support – not anonymous hate mail – the day they were revealed as the team’s second racer in Season 1.
These fans weren’t always there, Orangin thought. They were now at Orlango, the guest of honor at the team’s Mandaring, looking at 20,000 orange marbles cheering for them.
Orangin as they began to gain positions at Midnight Bay. (Photo Credit: Jelle’s Marble Runs)
Mandarin was to Orangin’s side, roaring like a commander. “We started from nothing, O’rangers nation! For the fans who were with us all the past five years, you have waited for this,” said Mandarin. “For the fans who just joined, get ready for the party of your lives. We will win Marbula One, we will once again be world champions. And Orangin’s efforts will be known forever!”
“OOOOOO,” went the crowd, jumping up and down their seats. There was Orangin, such a legend that it felt like the ground shook for them at that moment.
Once the fans left and the grounds were covered in orange confetti, Mandarin was about to talk to Orangin one on one when they saw the racer drive out in the O’Marbles bus. “Oh, good grief!” said Mandarin. “That kid needs to lay down, they’re on three hours of sleep!”
A marble keeps training even as the sun sets… (Photo Credit: Jelle’s Marble Runs)
The O’raceway was closed for visitors today, not that fans would visit when there’s partying to be had in downtown Orlango. Clementin was practicing laps on their own. “If my times get less cursed on our home track,” they thought, “that’s a good start.”
“Hey Clem, what’s going on?” The older O’ranger stopped dead in the sand to see Orangin come out of a bus parked below. “I ought to drive you back right now,” barked Clementin, “because you need to get rest.”
“Yeah, I can rest… next week. I thought you’d like the company!”
“It’s fine, Orangin. Coach Rango and I need to focus.”
“Well, your issue is focusing too much and losing awareness of your surroundings! You need someone to train with and press on you, Clem. Come on, help me get on the conveyor.”
“If you want to goof off, Orangin, you can do that next week too.”
“It’s not about goofing off! If you’re getting this mad now, imagine how flustered you’ll be this week racing! I keep telling you, once I was less angry at myself for opening lap setbacks I was climbing the midfield better–”
“And I’m about to get angry at you for distracting me.”
“… Maybe I want to distract you for a while, Clem. I’ve been distracted this whole week, you know, by people who don’t know me and people who didn’t believe in me. You believed in me from the start, you know. And I believe in you.”
Orangin was swerving through the turns now, past the first attenuator, enjoying how their words echoed around them. “If you think you can win it for us,” they said. “Go ahead and catch me first!”
It was now dusk, and every turn of the O’raceway shone under the floodlights. Clementin saw Orangin about to turn into the sandy straight.
Clementin rolled off the edge and onto the track. “Alright, let’s roll.”
Three seasons and counting: Coach Rango and the O’rangers racers. (Photo Credit: Jelle’s Marble Runs)
POSTSCRIPT: “Coach”
On a winter day this year, over some chili and with one of the few opposing coaches they can open up to, Coach Rango asked Coach Mellow: “So what’s it like to win?”
“Hah, why ask me? You have more wins under your belt than me…” It took Mellow a moment to realize Rango referred to Mellow Yellow’s Marble League Championship.
“And I want to be clear, it’s not so different from winning events or races… The big difference is that for four or five minutes, you can get as wild as you like,” said Mellow. “Us coaches are supposed to be cool under fire, to keep calm for our athletes. But for five minutes after you win the season, nobody cares!”
Coach Mellow remembered how they leaped for joy in Felynia, locked in an embrace with Yellup and the team, while thousands of marbles in the stands joined them in applause. That race weekend, those memories could not escape Rango’s mind either.
Coach Rango looking out of the garage on Race Day. (Photo Credit: Jelle’s Marble Runs)
“Never celebrate early,” repeated Rango to themselves on race day. On the flight out of Polaria and Marble League 2020, the coach insisted to Mandarin that they jinxed the team with one interview. “I told the press we’d win because underwater racing was our strength and collision was a strength. I was too proud.”
Mandarin nodded but reminded the coach not to get wrapped up in superstitions. Nonetheless, from that season onwards Coach Rango followed an array of rituals.
They insisted on always being the last one leaving work at the training facilities every night, so Rango could feel like they were on Coach Quickly’s level. Not only would Rango have regular one-on-ones with the O’ranger athletes, but they insist on training side by side with them to have a better feel for the athleticism. Those sessions usually ended with the athletes winning and Rango out of breath.
But, ahead of Season 3 of Marbula One, even Rango improved their fitness to the point where they could do sprints with Clementin and Orangin. When they prepared racers for Marbula training, Rango focused on blocking maneuvers, hard racing, and testing how their racers would react if challenged down a straight. “Never hesitate, believe in yourself,” Rango would say. “The role of training is to prepare for every scenario.”
That Rango rushed back into view as soon as the lights were off at Mirage Meowntain, the marbles sprung out the gate and the coach saw Glimmer beat Clementin to the punch. “Scenario 7, Clem!” yelled Rango into the team radio. “You know what to do!”
Clementin fighting through a four-marble lead group. (Photo Credit: Jelle’s Marble Runs)
The moments right after Felynia’s Grand Prix will always remain an orange blur. In that final sector, Clementin and Rango thought solely about blocking Bumble off. They didn’t notice Mandarin, in the garage along with the whole team, laughing over comms. “Royal finished first, it’s over! We did it!”
Moments like an orange blur of pit crew leaping into the air, embracing each other, embracing Rango. Like an orange wave of team fans shrouding the track grounds in the “OOOOOO” chant, first booming, then hoarse. Like an orange tsunami the team could see on TV in Orlango, as the fans in a fully packed Mandaring started doing the wave.
Moments like a flash of orange in front of Rango’s eyes, when they stepped out of the garage and Clementin hugged them right away. “You did it, Coach,” said Clementin. “Without you, nothing would be possible.” Then Orangin came up too, and Mandarin and Kinnowin and a crew of dozens all in an orange oval.
But before the O’rangers would lift that trophy of gold, before they’d party the night away under orange lights, Rango would remember their moment. The athletes were off to shake and congratulate each other, and usually, the coaches would too. Not today for Rango.
Today, Rango was free to roll over to the O’rangers fan section, who were now spilling onto the race ground. Rango was free to scale up a palm in the Iris Oasis next to the track, surrounded by fans, and scream:
Until you couldn’t tell Rango chanting apart from the fans following their lead.
(Photo Credit: Jelle’s Marble Runs)
POST-POSTSCRIPT: “The Journey”
Red Eye couldn’t stand looking at the statue any longer. The racer had just sprinted out of Felynia Coliseum, whose walls blotted out the stars for any marble under their shadow. The statue was a gift from Team Primary, depicting the three Crazy Cat’s Eyes’ Marbula One victory last season. A marble-sculptured Red Eye was hoisted by their teammate and their coach, waving last season’s team trophy high.
Those fantastic depictions of Red Eye scared them. Logically, Red Eye knew everyone still felt they were Marblearth’s best racer. But there they were late at night, holding an empty sheet of paper, their mind wandering. They rolled further south and back to Mirage Meowntain, back to the Iris Oasis at the track’s heart, with only the moon high above to keep them company.
“My goodness,” cried out a voice nearby. “You are the most pensive marble sports champion I’ve seen.” Red Eye turned to see a marble rolling out of the shadows, a racer dressed in streaks of white and maroon.
“How did you find me… Speedy?”
(Art Credit: u/thinkdoodler)
Two marble racing greats used that night to speak heart to heart. Speedy is the winner of two Marble Leagues and one Marbula One Racer Champion. Red Eye is a back-to-back Marbula One Racer Champion, the second title defender in major league marble sports.
With other marbles Speedy had surprised, it would be the Speeder who had everything to share. Not so that night. Right after Red Eye started with a “maybe only you would know,” they would reminisce about all of their Grands Prix, plus all they learned about their fellow competitors.
Speedy either nodded in agreement or gave short retorts on why Red Eye should change their mind. As Red Eye said they “were reaching a bit” by deflecting off of Orangin to seize the lead in Mellow Meadows, Speedy replied: “You only feel bad because you overtook Clutter. Would you feel bad if it meant beating me?”
Later, Red Eye chuckled: “There must be some racing secrets you haven’t shared, right?”
“What is there for me to say?” said Speedy. “There’s nothing I can teach you.” Prodded again and again by Red Eye, Speedy relented:
“I can teach you one thing. Take this off-season to see the world. Very soon, you will be too important in Felynia to have time off for yourself. Appreciate Marblearth’s beauty. Meet the amateurs who view you as a hero and who want to race against you one day.”
“Have you visited Zuro on your own?” Speedy asked Red Eye. The Crimson Cat said they haven’t because training always came first. “Make it your first destination,” said Speedy. “Rent a boat and spend a day piloting it into the rainforest. Invite Royal with you.”
The Kobalts’ Royal overtook Red Eye on Mirage Meowntain’s final lap. (Photo Credit: Jelle’s Marble Runs)
Red Eye had to leave, they said, because a speech for their victory parade tomorrow still needed writing. Parting with a light bump up on each other, the two racers went separate ways.
The Cat’s Eye thought they would take the rest of the night to figure out what to say because earlier that day they had spent hours just scribbling one sentence:
I’m sorry I still haven’t won for us on Felyni soil.
And yet, after meeting Speedy, Red Eye crossed out that sentence. Starting over, the whole speech flowed out of Red Eye’s mind like the rivers on Felynia’s shore:
I am so happy to see the city here to celebrate our season. It was a season of ups and downs, but with your support, I raced harder than I ever have…
I want to announce that over the next month, I will venture out of Felynia to the rest of Marblearth… To visit continents I have not yet seen, to tell everyone I meet about Felynia and of our culture… I will arrive in Bermenghank a wiser athlete and a faster feline.
We will win the 2022 Marble League together!
(Photo Credit: Jelle’s Marble Runs)
As for Speedy, they first watched Red Eye roll out and then stayed next to the water until the sun rose. What did Speedy do for that hour by themselves: reflecting on their own fall in performance, or thinking about the next Marble League?
Close your eyes at Iris Oasis, and the quacks from ducks splashing in the lagoon sound like early morning off the coast of Accellaise. Maybe all this great marble did for that time was remember Accellaise – home.
Hello and welcome to another RetRollSpective, where we reflect on the history of marble sports teams that have competed in the tournaments of Jelle’s Marble Runs. This time, we’re going to focus on the Ruby Rollers, a team that blends in with the history of the Hubelino Tournament. Read on to find out how this team has pecked at the competition!
A fanmade logo for the Ruby Rollers, designed by MightyCucumber.
The land of Hummilon, nestled in the heart of the Herbotamia region and known for its “Aviary Topiary”, the largest bird zoo on Marblearth surrounded by one of the largest gardens in the world, may not come to mind as the ideal atmosphere for begetting marble sports athletes. Such a rural region stands in stark contrast to the great wonders of the modern world, such as La Colina Umerun in the heart of Numerun, the Cat’s Dunes outside the bustling city of Felynia, Mount Huaze in…who knows where, and other inspiring locations that stand as landmarks to attract marbles around the world. This was, however, the optimal atmosphere for Rolla, Rollew, Rollo, and Rolly to meet, become acquainted, and be inspired to form a team called the Ruby Rollers.
The four came from around the world, bringing birds rescued from injuries and birds from endangered species to be nursed back to health and protected in the captivity of the Aviary Topiary. Their work did not always overlap, so it took them some time once graduating from university to cross paths while at the zoo.
“I come from the suburbs between the Big Marble and Philamarblia,” Rollew stated, “where we have one of the most advanced economies in the world. I earned my degree from a university there and thought of working at the city’s zoo. But I have always loved traveling, and there is no place to travel that compares to the Aviary Topiary.”
“I met Rollew just before a trip back to Greshen,” recalled Rollo. “They had brought a group of ruby roller pigeons from Cairoll to our medical facilities…we began talking for hours about pigeons. I missed my train to Chlorotopia. It was worth it.”
“Wingdon, being on the Brace Isles, was a magnificent place to study ornithology,” Rolly noted. “But there just isn’t a lot of source material around when everything is so industrialized.”
“On the contrary, I know what it’s like to truly experience wildlife,” claimed Rolla, a native of Bright Hyu City. “I enjoy coming here to bring birds together as they are and getting to release them as they become stronger. What I didn’t expect is that I would become friends with Rolly and Rollo as they were onboarding a flock of ruby-throated hummingbirds!”
The four laughed. Years after their performances in the Hubelino Tournament, I was fortunate enough to be able to interview the Ruby Rollers in a special suite at Pepper Field, hours before they would reunite to compete in the Herbotamia Tournament Reunion. Other teams were gathered on the field conversing and practicing, but the Rollers, as they assured me, did not need much time to do that.
Rolla passed me a piece of paper with the outline of a red-eyed and red-beaked pigeon on it. “This was a logo we drew up when we were just getting to know each other. We, uh, may have bonded over birds that have ruby coloring. Hershy added the text when we joined the Hubelino Tournament…”
The original logo for the Ruby Rollers. (Design Credit: Hershy926)
“But that wouldn’t be for a while,” Rolly assured. “If it wasn’t for the Herbotamia Tournament coming to do one of their friendlies here, we would have never thought of getting into sports.”
In 2011, the Minty Maniacs, Black Jacks, and Golden Wisps were traveling to Spiceno to meet Team Phoenix for the first time when they stopped in Hummilon for a day trip to visit the Aviary Topiary. Calling ahead of time, they planned to hold a short friendly in the center of the gardens – a relay race. Management approved the request with the confirmation that no spectators would be present.
“Except they didn’t account for us…” Rollew trailed off, chuckling. “I mean, we also didn’t count on becoming so invested in something that seemed so casual. It looked more fun than anything.”
Reaching for their work notebook, Rollo flipped to the last few pages. “Here! Thanks for a fun day being friendly and supporting what we love. Feel free to reach us at this contact. Stay fresh! -Minty Fresh. Yeah, of course, I have it saved.”
The four friends at Aviary Topiary established contact with Minty Fresh sometime after the end of Herbotamia Tournament 2011, which remained in the structure of a friendly round between the four teams. The next year, though, brought a new development: Herbotamia Tournament 2012 would become an official regional tournament for Herbotamia, and that five teams would compete in its inaugural season.
At the time, there were very few renowned teams in the region besides those that were already a part of the tournament. As fans wondered who the new team joining the Herbotamia Tournament would be, the management at Aviary Topiary received a call asking about the next time that Rolla, Rollew, Rollo, and Rolly would all be present.
That day, the four received a visit from the Minty Maniacs, Black Jacks, Golden Wisps, and Team Phoenix—personally inviting them to compete in Herbotamia Tournament 2012 as the Ruby Rollers.
“To say that we were surprised is an understatement. We had never shown them anything that would give them confidence in our athletic skills, or the lack thereof,” Rolly reflected.
“But we had shown them friendship,” Rollo continued. “And even though they were officiating the competition, they still wanted it to be a competition with their friends. So, they reached out to us.”
“And we couldn’t say no, nor did we want to say no,” added Rolla.
“We did know we would miss our jobs here,” said Rollew, “but we also knew that they would be waiting for us when we got back. A chance like this was not going to wait for us, though!”
The Ruby Rollers accepted their invitation, leaving Hummilon over the weekend and taking a leave of absence from their jobs, one that they anticipated would only be a few months. On the contrary, it would last nearly seven years before the team would formally disband and return to their careers.
From 2012 to 2015, the Ruby Rollers competed in the Herbotamia Tournament as the underdogs – with clear inexperience to the other four teams that served as a veil, allowing for them to score upsets when least expected. Placing fourth in their rookie season, the Ruby Rollers earned third overall in Herbotamia Tournament 2013, and, in 2015, edged out Team Phoenix to earn their first championship.
In early 2016, a poll done by the Herbotamia Times made it official: the Ruby Rollers were the most popular team in the region. Fans came in droves to visit the team as they toured around the region to celebrate their victory. The team’s largest crowd was in none other than Chlorotopia, where even members of the Minty Maniacs showed up to the rally with the Rollers’ trademark white caps, with a red eye and beak outline of the ruby roller pigeon stitched on.
“To say I’m proud of my friends is an understatement,” remarked Minty Fresh. “We’ve done the best that we could in the past few years, and I think it’s about time for us to move on with what’s after the Herbotamia Tournament. The Ruby Rollers, though, are going to go places.”
The Minty Maniacs were preparing to retire from marble sports and go into the food industry, as the cost of maintaining a tournament without sponsorship began to loom over the Herbotamia athletes like a shadow, even for something so casual. As they began encouraging their fellow teams to seek other opportunities, such as a spot in the 2016 Marble League, they were approached by Jelle Bakker themself. Although Jelle was focused on running the 2016 Marble League, they missed running a regional tournament and offered the Maniacs a sponsorship for their tournament to continue in 2016. The Ruby Rollers, who had applied for Marble League 2016 but were rejected due to their similarity to the Surculo’s Rojo Rollers, encouraged the Minty Maniacs to accept the sponsorship. “This is our chance to gain the recognition as a sports league that we deserve, and to continue to do what we love as friends,” the team released in an official press statement to the Times.
The first season of the Hubelino Tournament was an experiment for regional tournaments that complemented the Marble League, which was an experiment for international tournaments. (Design Credit: Jelle’s Marble Runs)
Hubelino Tournament 2016 differed from the original tournament in that it was recorded for the Internet (a first for a regional tournament) in the hope that it would be appreciated by a wider audience, and that it featured artificial courses using Hubelino tracks, bricks, and other special parts. The tournament was conducted without a live audience to preserve the original “friendly round” atmosphere of the competition and featured eight teams competing for eternal glory. The teams joining the existing five were also sourced from the Herbotamia region: the Bluefastics, Green Gang, and Valiant Violets being those teams.
Rolla smirked. “We were excited for the new challenge that these teams would present.”
“And we were also eager to make new friends,” added Rollo. “Chasing a repeat championship was exciting in its way, but so was building our network of athletes and friends.”
“Well, yeah. But we also wanted to win,” Rolla continued.
The Ruby Rollers made their Jelle’s Marble Runs debut in Season 1 of the Hubelino Tournament in November 2016. Competing in the Minty Maniacs’ Pepper Field, the Ruby Rollers debuted last in Funnel Spinning, surprising fans tuning in to watch the team for the first time. Longtime Rollers fans knew, though, that they were in a prime position to score the upsets that the team was best at. And that was nearly what happened in the next event – as the Ruby Rollers earned their first silver in the Catwalk event.
Soaring across the catwalk like a flock of pigeons, the team propelled Rollew to the end, earning 12 points in the second event. (Photo Credit: Jelle’s Marble Runs)
Rising to fourth overall, the Ruby Rollers continued to place in the top five in between other podiums: a silver in the Pursuit Slalom, bronze in the Combination, and two event victories in the Elimination Race and the Swing Wave. Now, the team had medaled on an international stage, and while they were popular among hardcore fans of the Hubelino Tournament, attention from outside of the tournament was geared towards teams such as the Minty Maniacs and Black Jacks.
“We weren’t discouraged by that,” assured Rollew. “Sure, it would have been nice to get that recognition. But it wouldn’t stop us from what we were looking to accomplish.”
“Our odds of winning as we neared the end of the tournament kept going up,” Rolly said. “Of course, so did the Green Gang’s.”
The Ruby Rollers earn their second gold medal of 2016, standing alongside the Bluefastics and the Green Gang on the Swing Wave podium. (Photo Credit: Jelle’s Marble Runs)
It was in the eighth event of the tournament when the Green Gang made a key advancement, winning the event convincingly and earning gold with the bonus of doubled points. The Ruby Rollers raced to finish with a silver, but coming down the final stretch the Black Jacks were able to pull ahead and earn a silver, guaranteeing that the Ruby Rollers would earn bronze and lead the standings over a tiebreak in points with the Green Gang.
Following the event, Jelle’s Marble Runs announced that a tiebreaker would be held but provided no further information for nearly three months.
“International sports have changed so much since then,” noted Rolly. “Marbles didn’t have much experience coordinating the logistics of bringing marbles together, booking stadiums…there weren’t even a lot of stadiums at the time. Pepper Field had booked for other exhibitions through April.”
Come April, Jelle’s Marble Runs returned to Chlorotopia to make a special announcement: they were canceling the tiebreaker and had booked the stadium for at least four extra events to decide the champion of the Hubelino Tournament. Two events would take place before the 2017 Marble League, and two afterward.
“It was certainly an odd circumstance,” admitted Rollew. “But we knew of several events going on over the summer besides the Marble League that would have made scheduling all four events consecutively very difficult. We could tell that Jelle wanted to do their first regional tournament justice.”
The Ruby Rollers earn bronze in the Relay’s third-place match. (Photo Credit: Jelle’s Marble Runs)
Returning to compete in the final third of the season, the Ruby Rollers placed fourth in the Halfpipe Dash and earned a bronze in the Relay Course. The team led the standings before attending the 2017 Marble League, joining the seven other teams, who they had indeed become close with.
“Was there tension between us? I can’t say that there wasn’t. We all wanted to see who would win, and each team wanted it to be themselves,” Rolla recalled.
“But we still found a lot of enjoyment in watching the Marble League with them. Some of our events were adapted by Jelle’s Marble Runs, which was a nice tribute to their work with us,” Rollo continued.
“We also got to meet the Rojo Rollers,” added Rolla. “That was…interesting when they didn’t qualify.”
“Not their best moment. But the moments where we weren’t at our best were coming up, sooner than any of us hoped.”
The Hubelino Tournament teams look on as the 2017 Marble League opens with Funnel Spinning. (Photo Credit: Jelle’s Marble Runs)
Following their midseason entertainment, the eight Hubelino teams returned to Chlorotopia together but parted to train in their respective home cities – except for the Ruby Rollers, who had reserved training facilities in Chlorotopia with a new head coach, Rollin. They adopted an alternate training regime under Rollin, which they hoped would maintain the Rollers’ standing in the top spot to win the championship. But team members felt differently, even at the moment.
“It never felt quite right,” admitted Rollew, “the way they were telling us to push the blocks, to aim for the ball in Ball Battle. It would have been transformative for any other team, but for us, it was the wrong way to roll.”
The team’s doubts ultimately were proven correct when they finished in the bottom half of the standings for Block Push and Ball Battle. The Green Gangcapitalized on both events, earning a bronze in the former and winning the latter, to come home to their home village of Taygrania with the championship. With 83 points, the Ruby Rollers finished second overall.
The Ruby Rollers’ debut JMR season looked excellent to anyone unaware that the team could have been repeating champions. (Photo Credit: Jelle’s Marble Runs)
“We were quite down on ourselves.” Rolly passed me a news article, headlined GOLD RANG FOR THE GREEN GANG, and showed the team in front of a large crowd outside of Pepper Field. “We never held events with spectators, but when all of the teams left the arena felt more empty than it ever had been. And we could hear fans roaring outside in joy…but not for us.”
“It’s fun to compete in marble sports, but I think a lot of the fun fell away for us when we didn’t win. Is that selfish? Probably,” admitted Rollo. “But we became so discouraged after that. To the point where we declined the Marble League.”
In the largest expansion in the Marble League’s history, eight teams were being added to compete in the 2018 Marble League Qualifiers. Before reaching out to any other marble sports teams, Jelle first reached out to the eight Hubelino teams that they had worked with. Some, on account of their existing uniforms or scheduling, were not formally invited. But it was Coach Rollin that made sure the Ruby Rollers were presented with an invitation…and Coach Rollin that was promptly fired, with the invitation being declined in the process.
“They weren’t reading the room. It was time to let them go,” Rolla said bluntly.
Returning to Hummilon for the first time in several years, the Ruby Rollers secured a sponsorship from the Aviary Topiary and began renting out training space in the local gym. After reaching out to several candidates, the team hired Ruby from nearby Fantum to work with them as their new coach.
“Nice to finally introduce myself,” said a marble who had been sitting in the suite with us from the start of the interview. In the meantime, they had been working on a painting set deep in the mines of Fantum. “I’m Coach Ruby, the pleasure is all mine.”
Rolla rolled their eyes.
“It was a pleasure to start working with the Ruby Rollers in their element. I’d followed them for years as a fan, but the pressure was always on them. Things were different when they were home.”
“They were,” agreed Rolla, sighing.
Beginning construction on a formal training facility and small arena, The Nest, the Ruby Rollers steadily trained during the 2018 offseason. Communication from JMR remained unclear during the second season of the Hubelino Tournament, but the eight teams, save for Team Phoenix, were interested in running the Herbotamia Tournament if things didn’t pan out.
The second season of the Hubelino Tournament complemented the rise of regional tournaments but was overshadowed by the thriving popularity of the Marble League. (Design Credit: Jelle’s Marble Runs)
Then, just before the Amazing Maze Marble Race tournament, Jelle’s Marble Runs formally announced that the Hubelino Tournament would return for Season 2.
True to their promise, the Minty Maniacs, Golden Orbs, and Black Jacks withdrew from the Marble League, joining the Bluefastics and Valiant Violets with members replacing those who left for the Raspberry Racers, and the reigning champions, the Green Gang. Confirming that the Ruby Rollers would return for Season 2, the Minty Maniacs released an application for a team to fill the eighth spot in the tournament. After receiving just enough interest, they closed submissions, consulting with the six other teams to select the Bumblebees as newcomers.
In contrast to Season 1 lasting nearly a year, the Minty Maniacs worked with JMR to have the eight events of Season 2 filmed and broadcasted in just under one month. Meeting in Chlorotopia at the start of October 2018, the teams immediately got to work setting up the arena for the Draw. On 03 October, the Ruby Rollers were sorted into Group B, meaning that they would face off with the Bluefastics, Valiant Violets, and Golden Orbs at the start of Event 1: the Swing Wave, an event they had won in Season 1.
The Ruby Rollers settle into Group B for the first event of Season 2. (Photo Credit: Jelle’s Marble Runs)
However, the Bumblebees would take the win this time in the Swing Wave, as the Ruby Rollers lost in their heat to the Golden Orbs and Valiant Violets. Finishing sixth in the event, they vowed to their fans that the best was yet to come.
“We kept telling our fans, ‘this doesn’t shake us, we’ll be on top before you know it’. But I think we were more worried than anyone else,” admitted Rollew.
Advancing past the group stage in Catwalk, the Ruby Rollers were prepared for an intense final match, but were knocked out in a clear victory by the Bluefastics. They took a bronze medal over the Golden Orbs following a tight third-place match while the Bluefastics lost to the Minty Maniacs, earning a career-first gold medal. They led the standings, while the Ruby Rollers rose to fifth.
A Ruby Roller nearly misses the green zone to win 10 points. (Photo Credit: Jelle’s Marble Runs)
Just missing out on a podium in the Funnel Race, the Ruby Rollers fought off the Minty Maniacs in the race-off to advance to the Halfpipes final. Although they finished ahead of the Bluefastics, the Bumblebees would win their second event, and the Ruby Rollers would earn their second bronze medal.
Following a tie for fourth place in Block Bumping and their third bronze in the Relay Race, the team remained unmoved in fifth place with 34 points. With two events to go, the Rollers were safely out of the basement (occupied by the Season 1 champions) but 20 points down from the top of the standings, which had just been reclaimed by the Maniacs.
“It wasn’t insurmountable. If we could earn a podium above a bronze and the teams above us let their guard down…the issue is, they didn’t,” mused Rolly.
“Neither did we,” Rollo added. “But the end of the season…stung a bit.”
Coach Ruby chuckled, much to the ire of their team members, who glared in their direction.
“Don’t say it,” pleaded Rolla.
“I have to, sorry. It’s just incredibly ironic that two teams inspired by bees and pigeons couldn’t get along…but also couldn’t stay away from each other.”
The team collectively groaned.
The Ruby Rollers’ bronze in the Relay Race. (Photo Credit: Jelle’s Marble Runs)
The final two events presented the best possible situation for the Ruby Rollers to pull the rug under their competition and make an impact—if not a championship, then a podium, at least. Longtime Rollers fans took to Team Phoenix’s online blog, the Firebird Sports Diary, with rumors that the Ruby Rollers had engineered a practice maze in The Nest specifically to train as best as they could for the Maze and Big Tower events. They “claimed” they had seen the Rollers scaling the highest point of the indoor greenhouse within the Aviary Topiary, with the intent of navigating their way down as fast as possible. The “big upset” was coming, they claimed.
Fact-checking sources could not verify the claims, with the Ruby Rollers clarifying in a series of official statements following the tournament that the rumors were false.
“But they sure were good publicity,” admitted Rolla.
Swax passes the Ruby Roller on the way to earn the Bees’ third gold of the tournament. (Photo Credit: Jelle’s Marble Runs)
Rather, the Ruby Rollers’ traditional methods of training prepared the team as best as they could…but they could not prepare the team for the Bumblebees, who would finish ahead of them in every moment that mattered. At the cusp of advancing to the final and guaranteeing either gold or silver, the member running for the Rollers got stranded on the track. As they advanced to the end of the maze, the Bumblebees’ Swax got as close as a length before passing to finish second, leaving the Rollers with their fourth bronze of the season and locking them out of the title fight.
However, with a podium in reach, the Ruby Rollers were not ready to give up. Finishing first in their heat eliminated the Minty Maniacs and Black Jacks, two-thirds of the reigning top three, and gave the Rollers a window to finish third overall at best.
“We’re not all extremely competitive athletes. Whether we deserve to win or not is something we have argued about since we formed as a team…but we all appreciate being recognized for our efforts,” Rollew said. “After earning medals in more than half of the events, we hoped we would be recognized for more than fifth overall.”
Nearly racing down the final stretch of the Big Tower unopposed, Bumble rushed to arrest Rollo’s momentum in the middle, sprinting down the final chicanes to win the Hubelino Tournament in an upset over the Minty Maniacs, and the Big Tower event in an upset over the Ruby Rollers.
Bumble prepares to sneak past Rollo in a come-from-behind victory. (Photo Credit: Jelle’s Marble Runs)
“All I remember in the final moments of the race is trying to get back to the yellow chicane as fast as I could. I don’t even remember crossing the line. It was all a blur,” Rollo reported. “I didn’t believe it when race officials handed me that silver medal. For all I knew, it could have been fourth.”
Rolla recalled the moment much more clearly. “That impact clearly hurt Rollo. I don’t care what the medics said. Nor do I care that the Bumblebees needed to race to win the championship with their fourth gold or silver or whatever.”
“That wasn’t it. Rollo was just in the heat of the moment,” Rolly objected. “Perhaps in a moment of uncertainty or distress. But not incapacitation.”
“No matter what we think it was, it would not have changed the outcome. We lost. We need to learn to live with that,” advised Rollew, “and keep on rolling.”
The four went quiet.
With 51 points earned, the Ruby Rollers’ fifth-place overall masked just how well they had done in Season 2 of the Hubelino Tournament. They had never finished in the bottom two and had only placed outside of the top half in the first event. No other team had matched their consistency, and only the Maniacs matched them in terms of medal count.
The Ruby Rollers finished fifth with 51 points in their final Hubelino Tournament. (Photo Credit: Jelle’s Marble Runs)
Did it matter? Fans began to doubt as much when the Ruby Rollers returned to Hummilon, halted construction of The Nest, and resumed their careers traveling around the world to bring birds to and from the Aviary Topiary. When contacting the members of the team for a statement on the discontinuation of the Hubelino Tournament and the incoming Marble League Showdown, Coach Ruby was effectively ghosted.
“I wasn’t sure what to do. Nothing was specifically entrusted to me to continue maintaining, but I also didn’t want to retire any of the team’s assets or branding. I began training with a potential reserve for the team…”
As if they were summoned by name, the final member of the Ruby Rollers rushed into our suite. “Sorry, I’m late! Can I get a time check?”
“Hello, Rollin. It’s 5:43 pm.” Coach Ruby grinned. “Even before I learned that they had coached the team at one point, I could tell Rollin was passionate about the Ruby Rollers. They offered alternative skills to the team that I had been training that I knew would make everyone else stronger in competition.”
“Even if we didn’t see it at first,” admitted Rollo, “we grew to appreciate that Rollin was there at all. As a team member, they have pushed us to trust ourselves and take more risks for the first time in a long time.”
With the Ruby Rollers reuniting in the public eye for the first time since November 2018, Coach Ruby organized a special press conference following the announcement that the Herbotamia Tournament Reunion would be held in autumn 2020. With the construction tarp unraveling from the unfinished shell of The Nest, the team expected a small crowd to be in attendance when they confirmed that they would compete in the tournament.
They could not have been more wrong. Stranded in bumper-to-bumper traffic on the short stretch of highway from the Aviary Topiary to The Nest, the Ruby Rollers had no choice but to roll in order to make it to the stage on time. As they passed over a kilometer of vehicles crawling down the highway, fans cheered in glee, wearing the Rollers’ trademark white caps and blasting the fanbase’s signature song, a parody of The MarBeats’ “Roll Over and Roll Out” with the Ruby Rollers’ theme dubbed in.
“We started training together again in March. This felt like the recognition we had been craving for so long, and we knew from that moment on we wanted nothing but more of it.”
Coach Ruby gazed back out the window of the suite. Below us, the Minty Maniacs and Bumblebees were playing an impromptu match of bugby on the vast open area of Pepper Field.
“Unfortunately, we lost touch with the other teams when we disbanded. Even the Minties. But now might be a good time to rekindle that community, don’t you think?” Rollin asked.
Rolla sighed. “Our call time is over an hour away.”
“And that gives us even more time to catch up with everybody before we win this tournament,” Rollo said confidently. Rolla smiled warmly. “Let’s roll.”
Thanking me on their way out, I watched the six Ruby Rollers enter the arena about a minute later to the welcome embrace of the eight other teams.
I exited the suite not long after, filtering into a growing crowd of fans from across the Herbotamia region. I was surprised to see a few other teams take the field: the Yarble Yellers, Grape Nuts, and Team Plasma lining up alongside the Bumblebees.
“We didn’t want to leave out either Team Phoenix or the Bumblebees, so we decided to make this a twelve-team tournament modeled after the Showdown. These teams are regional anyway, so we get to preserve the original spirit of the Herbotamia Tournament,” explained a marble next to me, who identified as Spearmint, the manager of the Minty Maniacs. “I understand you interviewed the Ruby Rollers?”
I nodded. Spearmint smiled warmly. “We understand what it’s like to be so close to winning, and then to lose it…it’s hard to not feel discouraged and to not lose interest in what you do, even if you love doing it. We also understand that finding your way back to it can be the most rewarding experience…I hope the Ruby Rollers get that moment.”
There was limited seating for family and other close friends, but I was fortunate enough to get a top-notch view from the bleachers. The audience was asked to hold their applause until the end of the tournament, and they did great at following the rule—better than me!
You may be asking, “who won the tournament?” I am not at liberty to tell you: every athlete and member of the audience was required to sign a strict NDA prior to entering Pepper Field. What I am at liberty to tell you, though, is that the tournament was tightly put together and a joy to watch. The passion that each athlete displayed was inspiring, and there was virtually no pressure—aside from the occasional competitive jest.
What I am also at liberty to tell you is that rumors were widespread online concerning the potential results, with the Firebird Sports Diary receiving the most traffic it had since the Hubelino Tournament. Among the rumors, the moderators of the blog released an official poll asking fans who they thought won the Herbotamia Tournament Reunion. You may be asking, “who won the poll?” By a clear margin, it was the Ruby Rollers.
In the year and a half since the Reunion, the team has remained together, and although they have yet to enter a marble sports tournament, they have been active in other ways: restarting construction on The Nest, electing Rollo to serve as their team captain, changing their other team member pseudonyms to Agate (Rolla), Garnet (Rollew), Eudialyte (Rolly), and Carnelian (Rollin), selling iconic merchandise, promoting photos from training, and remaining in touch with other Herbotamia alumni. Their most recent statement thanked the Bumblebees organization and the Royal Family of Buzznya for being so grateful to host the Ruby Rollers during a trip to the region, the team’s first excursion from Herbotamia as a collective since Marble League 2017.
In RetRollSpective, the Ruby Rollers are a team that has flown under the radar in recent years but has contributed greatly to marble sports history in their career. Their consistency within the Hubelino Tournament and potential to pull off stunning upsets make the Ruby Rollers an entertaining team to watch, whenever and wherever they choose to compete. Best of luck to the Ruby Rollers in the near future, keep on rolling!
Hello and welcome to another RetRollSpective, where we reflect on the history of marble sports teams that have competed in the tournaments of Jelle’s Marble Runs. This time, we’re going to focus on the Purple Rockets, the reigning champions of Marble ManiaX who entered Marble League Showdown 2022 as an expansion team. Read on to blast off and discover what this team is made of!
The official logo for the Purple Rockets, designed by Tim Ritz.
Hailing from the frigid city of Sheetersburg, the Purple Rockets are a team that made their professional sports debut at the Stardust Classic in 2014. But before that, they were all members of the Astrophotography Club at their university in Sheetersburg. The five original team members met while at Astrophotography Club, where they instantly bonded over their love and passion for Marble Sports. One afternoon, on an astrophotography excursion into the woods, Orbit set up a maze made in the snow outside, where they competed in races amongst themselves.
“Something clicked that afternoon.” Dwarf reminisced. “I think that’s when we became more than just friends. We became a team.”
The original logo for the Purple Rockets. (Design Credit: Laurent Rollon)
Shortly after graduating from university in 2013, the team began training day and night. They had been taken under the wing of one of their former professors, Rocket, who began coaching the team. The team participated in an exhibition tournament in Sheetersburg in the winter, where they won three of the four events, to everybody’s surprise.
“I didn’t expect us to have this much skill!” Blast stated. “We might be able to get up into the higher leagues soon!”
And sure enough, later that year the Purple Rockets were given an invitation to the Stardust Classic, a regional tournament that would be held in Polaria by Royal Stardust.
The Stardust Classic logo. (Design Credit: Phantasm)
The Purple Rockets started the tournament with a bang. After receiving an ovation from the crowd during the opening ceremony, Sulfur made it to the finals of the Sprint Race in a very fast time. In the final, Sulfur sprinted to the finish line in a photo finish with Radiance from the Solar Flares, a team from Meteorine. Timing and scoring revealed that the two marbles had tied, and a race-off was held between the teams. But Radiance would not hold on to the field this time, as Sulfur earned the Purple Rockets the first gold of the competition.
“It was a momentous occasion,” Sulfur beamed on the podium, above Radiance and Astron, from Team Galaxy. “I’ll treasure it.”
The first podium of the Stardust Classic. (Art Credit: Fouc, Laurent, Phantasm, Stynth)
The Purple Rockets wouldn’t win another medal until Event 4 of the competition: Diving. The team had pinpoint accuracy in this event, where they set the event record with an 11.76. Orbit, who had scored a bullseye in the event, remarked: “We’ve won two golds now, and we have our heads up high! The standings are close, and I’m hoping we can make a statement run soon!”
The team would go on to win one more medal, a bronze in the Black Hole Funnel. They finished the 2014 Stardust Classic in third place, just a few points behind the Solar Flares in second, but well behind the champions, Team Galaxy.
“We know we have the potential to be great, now.” Coach Rocket said. “We’re going to drive ourselves forwards next year, and win it all.”
The team returned to Sheetersburg triumphant after a successful season and spent the winter teaching local students astronomy and building a training facility. They would return to the Classic in 2015 with their heads held high, and eyes set on the overall victory.
Saucer and Blast in the Polarian Wilderness. (Photo Credit: The Emperor)
The 2015 Stardust Classic kicked off with the Dirt Race, an event the Purple Rockets had not done well in during the prior year. This time, however, Saucer would deliver a bronze, earning the team another early medal. From there, the team did not let go of the championship at all, with their performance as dominant as Team Galaxy’s (now known as Team Galactic) the prior year. Orbit won gold in the Hurdles, the team won the Relay Run and Block Pushing, (even over the newly-formed Shadow Riders; whose claim to fame was Block Pushing domination) and Sulfur finished second in the Sprint. The Purple Rockets had clinched the championship victory before the final event, which hadn’t been decided yet.
“We’ve achieved our wildest dreams this year,” a happy Blast stated through tears of joy. Following the Sprint Race, which was the penultimate event of the tournament this year, Royal Stardust approached the team and offered them a chance to host the final event back in Sheetersburg. They accepted without hesitation, and the final event of the 2015 Stardust Classic would be the Rocket Ring GP, the Purple Rockets training track. Dwarf raced for the Rockets and earned them another silver medal, their sixth medal in eight events. The Purple Rockets won the championship by thirty-three points over the Blood Moons.
Unfortunately, the Stardust Classic disbanded following this season when several teams withdrew from the competition; Team Galactic joined the newly founded Marble League, and Royal Stardust became busy monitoring the region of Polaria. The Purple Rockets, slightly disheartened, disbanded for the time being, and went along to pursue careers in the space field.
Orbit became an astrophysicist and helped design components for the International Space Marble. Dwarf became a Team Galactic superfan and would be found in a Team Galactic uniform cheering them on from the stands in every Marble League event. Sulfur became a rocket designer and helped design many rockets, including the one that took Astron to space. Saucer and Blast joined coach Rocket as astronomy professors at Sheetersburg University and helped run the Astrophotography Club.
Orbit, the Captain of the Purple Rockets! (Design Credit: Phantasm)
“We needed a break, and we each managed to pursue our paths now. Maybe one day we will start competing again, but for now, we’re content.” Orbit stated at the time.
Over the next few years, the Purple Rockets’ lives would be relatively uneventful, save for Dwarf’s life as a superfan of Team Galactic. To date, they have not missed a single event and are often one of the sign-bearers in the stands for the team. The team scarcely met with one another, but a moment they all shared was during the 2017 Marble League when Starry won Team Galactic their first-ever gold.
“That day… I was in tears,” Dwarf reminisced. “It was monumental.”
After the 2020 Marble League, Orbit was working on a new part designed for the ISM when they caught Cosmo, the captain of Team Galactic, in a special Cable Marble Media segment. There, Cosmo announced that the Andromedome would be hosting a Stardust Classic Reunion, inviting previous competitors to compete in a special exhibition tournament.
The Purple Rockets members all met on a “Nyoom Meetings” video call, and decided that they would give competing another shot. They attended the reunion, and their results once again were impressive. After a poor result in Block Pushing, the team won the Black Hole Funnel and placed second in the Starlit Speedway Grand Prix. They would finish the reunion in third place overall, just nine points behind Team Galactic.
The final standings of 2020’s Stardust Classic Reunion. (Design Credit: Laurent Rollon)
“For not competing in several years, I think we had a very solid result.” Blast stated.
Following the reunion, the Rockets craved more competition and sought out other competitions to take part in. Saucer and Blast did not wish to compete and returned to their jobs as astronomy professors, but the rest of the team continued to search for competitions. Orbit managed to find a local youth league that was starting up, called the Marble Sports Games, and managed to reserve a spot for the Purple Rockets based on their impressive Stardust Classic results. It was during this time that Smokey and Smoggy, two marbles from Rocketvok with the same names as members of the Hazers, managed to get in contact with Coach Rocket. Smokey and Smoggy joined the team shortly after, and the Purple Rockets were ready to roll in the Marble Sports Games. The tournament was hosted by The Emperor, a long-time Team Galactic fan and future member of the Jelle’s Marble Association.
“We’re excited to be allowed to participate with the Purple Rockets,” Smoggy said. Unfortunately, the Purple Rockets’ debut in the Marble Sports Games would not be as successful as their Stardust Classic runs. The inaugural edition of the tournament was hosted in the Blueberry Bowl. The Rockets started the season with two poor finishes in the 10 Meter Sprint and Quartet Diving. Entering the third event, Balancing, they sat in fourteenth place. The Rockets blasted off with a silver medal in Balancing, which vaulted them up in the standings, to sixth.
“That’s a solid start. Now we need to keep the momentum up.” Coach Rocket said in an interview after the event. Unfortunately, the momentum would not continue for the Rockets, with poor results in the Slalom, Collision, the Dirt Race, and Obstacle Maze.
“We miss Saucer’s expertise from the Dirt Race back in the Stardust Classic,” Captain Orbit remarked. “But, alas, we have to make do with what we have. And we currently aren’t doing enough.”The Rockets wouldn’t medal again until the eighth event of the tournament, Speed Skating, where Sulfur delivered a bronze medal. However, even with the medal, the Purple Rockets fell in the standings, to dead last. After another set of poor performances, Smokey managed to deliver the team one final medal in the finale, the Marathon. Even though they had two silvers and one bronze, the Purple Rockets ended the tournament with 82 points, in dead last.
Smokey on the Marathon podium! (Photo Credit: The Emperor)
“We didn’t have a bad season…” Orbit exclaimed. “Sure…we got last. Not great. But we still had 82 points, which isn’t terrible by any means! The other teams were just better than us. We need to work harder, but you can mark my words, someday, we will be back.”
Besides their three medals, the Purple Rockets didn’t have a single top-half result. The team returned to Sheetersburg in the offseason to train and meet up with Saucer and Blast, as well as dabble in their origin of astrophotography.
“It’s great that the other members get to keep competing!” expressed Blast. “I’m happy we all got what we wanted, and that we’re still friends despite not being on a team anymore.”
The upcoming winter edition of the Marble Sports Games, hosted by the Valiant Vanillas in Vanillsinki, seemed to favor the Rockets’ advantage training in the cold, wintery atmosphere of Sheetersburg. However, the Qualifiers would not reflect that. The team finished in eighteenth with no medals earned, and their highest result was a fifth-place finish in Balancing. They would look for redemption in the B-League, however, and they found it. Orbit started the B-League off with a fifth-place finish in Funnel Spinning. However, in the next three events, the Purple Rockets won three straight silver medals and would finish the B-League in second place overall.
(Photo Credits: The Emperor)
“That was much more like it!” A very happy Orbit beamed on the overall podium. The Purple Rockets’ fine form appeared to be returning from the Stardust Classic. The team was jubilant and decided to take a small vacation during the offseason. They visited Hunluen, Rocketvok, and Meteorine during their trip. While in Meteorine, they took a tour of the Solar Flares’ hometown and managed to meet a few of the local fans. The Solar Flares had recently been given an invitation to the 2021 Marble League Qualifiers.
“It’s always been a dream of ours to compete.” Dwarf stated. “We’ve been performing rather well in these minor leagues…one day…I think we might have a shot at the bigs.”
Following their vacation, the team returned home to Sheetersburg, but in better spirits. They had performed exceptionally in the B-League and knew that they had the potential to do well.
Orbit, the Purple Rockets Captain, in Sheetersburg. (Design Credit: The Emperor)
“We believe that we have a shot at qualifying this time,” Smoggy said in a hopeful voice. Alas, it was not meant to be for the Rockets, as they placed fourteenth in the qualifiers, just four points off of the final spot, which went to the Oddballs, a team that had formed around their dedication and passion for the Marble Rally Athlete, Oddball.
“It’s an improvement…but we still can’t make the final push when it matters.” Coach Rocket said. “We’ll be giving it our all in the B-League again, though. Don’t count us out yet.”
The Rockets’ Season 3 B-League would be admittedly worse than the prior season, placing fourth, fifth, sixth, and last in the four events. The team barely scraped by the relegation bubble, placing eighth overall. But that wouldn’t be the most disappointing thing that the Rockets would deal with at the end of this B-League. Smokey and Smoggy announced that they would be leaving the team, stating that they had “lost the spark of competition” that they had once had.
“It’s a shame to see them go, but we wish them all the best,” Orbit said through tears.
The four remaining Rockets returned to Sheetersburg, disheartened, but still, determined to keep their legacy going. They met up with Saucer and Blast and decided that it would be best to take a break from training, and get out and do something together, as friends. They unanimously decided to take part in watching the 2021 Marble League from the stands, and all donned Team Galactic uniforms. Despite the team failing to qualify for the main league, the Rockets still showed up for every event.
“I missed this, ya know?” Dwarf said. “Being a superfan is always a blast…I get to show up to the events every day wearing my uniform, holding signs, and supporting my favorite team…with my friends now! It’s great!”
Saucer echoed Dwarf’s sentiments, stating: “I missed being a team…and I think Blast and I have decided…we’re going to re-join the others once this Marble League is done!”
The team sat in the Team Galactic fan section for the Marble League Showdown, where they saw Astron win gold in the Sprint, and Starry win silver in Marblocross. As they left the stadium, united once more, the Purple Rockets were hungry for more competition…and more competition they would have.
The Team Galactic cheering section during the 2021 Marble League Showdown! (Photo Credit: Jelle’s Marble Runs)
It was the time of year again for the Stardust Classic to be up and running. However, with Team Galactic returning to Galakonur to focus on their training for the upcoming Marbula One Season 3, Royal Stardust needed a different hosting venue. And that was when they approached the Purple Rockets.
“It was truly…well…I fainted upon hearing the announcement, but I was told that it was a truly amazing moment.” Saucer said. “We were going to be hosting the 2021 Stardust Classic.”
The Mayor of Sheetersburg, Shuttle, offered to renovate the Rockets’ training facility for them and turn it into a new and improved, large-scale stadium. The Rockets graciously accepted, and soon, construction of the Space Station was completed.
“We cannot thank Mayor Shuttle enough for this opportunity.” Coach Rocket said. “We have reached out to them in regards to potentially becoming our team manager, and helping settle and manage the finances of the organization.”
The Purple Rockets invited seven former Stardust Classic teams to compete in the tournament. Since the Reunion one year prior, Royal Stardust had expressed interest in maintaining it as a yearly tradition. Several teams from the Reunion would be returning for the new edition, including the Stargazers, Supernovas, Asteroids, Crazy Comets, and Blood Moons. The Rockets also invited the Shadow Riders, a former Stardust Classic team, who had emerged from retirement to participate in the Team Quadrilla Marble League. The final invite was sent out to an up-and-coming youth team, known as the Eclipses, from Pesky’s Marble Championship. All seven teams accepted, and the Reunion was underway.
The teams competing in the 2021 Stardust Classic. (Art Credit: Laurent Rollon/Phantasm)
The Purple Rockets got off to exactly the start that they imagined, scorching the competition in Balancing with a 427. The Sheetersburg inhabitants, who had come pouring into the Station to view their home team, were overjoyed. The Rockets’ next endeavor, Funnel Endurance, would be a lesser success, with Blast taking home just a sixth-place finish. Similar to their first roundabout in the Marble Sports Games, the Purple Rockets experienced a midseason collapse. A fifth in the Newton’s Cradle, seventh in Block Pushing, and dead last in the Vacuum Wave saw the Purple Rockets fall to dead last, with three events remaining.
“It’s certainly not what we had in mind. Perhaps we put too much effort into hosting…” A disappointed Saucer stated. “I’m up next in the Sand Rally, so I’ll look to right the spaceship.”
Saucer’s bronze was a step in the right direction, as was the team’s bronze in Collision Course. The Rockets entered the final event in sixth and had an outside chance to win it all, with Dwarf on the track in the Rocket Ring GP.
“We have an outside shot, eh?” Dwarf said. “Well…we’ll need a lot of other things to happen for us to even have that shot, we don’t control our destiny. So, I say, it’s best to just go out there, and enjoy. Give the crowd a final hurrah!”
The track map for the Rocket Ring GP. (Design Credit: Laurent Rollon)
And Dwarf, for the most part, did that. While they only finished in fourth, securing that the Rockets would not finish on the overall podium, Dwarf was one of the most exciting racers to watch on the track and had several highlights on display upon the conclusion of the tournament.
“That pass on Cupid in the final lap…wow. Most beautiful overtake I’ve ever seen,” remarked a CMM reporter, who interviewed all of the teams after the tournament. The Purple Rockets would end up finishing fifth, with 56 points, but only 13 adrift from the victorious Stargazers.
The final standings of the 2021 Stardust Classic. (Design Credit: Laurent Rollon)
“The chemistry we used to have, back when the five of us originally started competing…we need to get that back. Once we do though…I think we’ll be back in our early form.” Blast stated.
The Sheetersburg residents were beginning to get excited. The Purple Rockets had built up a lot of small successes over the years now, and there was a rumor that they were a frontrunner for a new, big event coming up soon. But for now, they had their eyes focused on finally qualifying for the Marble Sports Games, hosted by The Emperor (now a JMA Member) once more, and shortly after the conclusion of the Stardust Classic, they flew over to Burnsville for the fourth edition of the tournament. During their training regiments, Coach Rocket received a formal invite to a new, upcoming tournament hosted by the Balls of Chaos and operated by none other than Jelle’s Marble Runs.
The Purple Rockets’ Marble ManiaX team reveal. (Design Credit: Jelle’s Marble Runs)
“We were stunned. Jelle’s Marble Runs had just reached out to us, inviting us onto the big stage.” Orbit exclaimed. “It hasn’t been revealed to the public yet, so our fanbase doesn’t know yet. But just picturing their reaction…it’s going to be priceless!” The team accepted the invite for Marble ManiaX, which was set to begin later in the year.
“Even with that shocking news, we figured that the time between tournaments would give us enough of a chance to rebuild that chemistry that we once had…” Blast began. “It didn’t.”
The Purple Rockets Season 4 Qualifiers were a disaster. They only managed 13 points; their lowest accumulated in any tournament, let alone a qualifier with 20 spots available for points. Suddenly Balls of Chaos’s selection didn’t seem as promising. “It’s an embarrassment, but we assure you, we can overcome it.” Sulfur assured the public. The Purple Rockets were once again stuck in the B-League but now had to balance between two tournaments, with Marble ManiaX about to start. Thankfully, their start to the B-League was relatively good, and to end off the first half of the league, they won a bronze in the Heat Wave.
The Purple Rockets’ first Marble Sports Games medal since Season 2! (Photo Credit: The Emperor)
The Rockets were ready to roll in Marble ManiaX; their first competition on the big stage.
“We’ve been asked…how are we going to juggle two tournaments at once?” Orbit stated at a press conference. “And the answer is…we simply love to compete. And that hunger for the competition is going to drive us. We’ve got Shuttle back in Sheetersburg, who’s agreed to help manage the team. And then Coach is with us every step of the way on our journey through these competitions.”
The Purple Rockets hold a press conference ahead of their busy early 2022 season. (Design Credit: Laurent Rollon)
The Purple Rockets’ big stage debut could not have gone much better. Competing with some of the best prospective teams, as well as three Marble League teams, they won a joint-silver medal with the Black Jacks; the first podium tie in their history.
The Purple Rockets take their turn on the second step of the podium for Marble ManiaX’s first event! (Photo Credit: Jelle’s Marble Runs)
“Looks like we’re blasting off again!” Rocket said with a wink. Following the event, Sulfur caught a quick flight to Burnsville, to compete in the Track and Field event in the Marble Sports Games’ B-League. The Rockets’ representative did not compete well in it and crashed out early on. Thankfully, in the next event of Marble ManiaX, Sulfur was crashing into dominoes, and not off of the course, and the Purple Rockets earned their second silver medal in two events.
The dynamic duo of Orbit and Sulfur team up for another medal in Extreme Bowling! (Photo Credit: Jelle’s Marble Runs)
Blast was the next one up in the Marble Sports Games, and in their first event in the competition, snagged a top-half finish in Funnel Endurance. Meanwhile, in the Marble ManiaX edition of funnels, Dwarf put up a solid showing as well, with a fourth-place finish, which rocketed the team up to first place overall.
The Purple Rockets’ next endeavor would be for the B-League Finale at the Marble Sports Games; the Gravitrax Slalom. And the Rockets delivered another great performance, with a silver medal, to ensure that they would advance to the Qualifiers for the next season.“We are happy with how this season turned out.” Coach Rocket said. “This team has a lot of heart…I know I wouldn’t have been able to compete in the sheer number of tournaments that they have. But they persevere through it all and are still flying high in Marble ManiaX, too.
The Rockets win Silver in the Marble Sports Games’ Slalom! (Photo Credit: The Emperor)
The Purple Rockets finished the B-League sixth overall, enough to secure advancement to the Season 5 Qualifiers. With that locked up, they returned to Hunluen for the Obstacle Run, the fourth event of Marble ManiaX. Saucer was selected to participate, and after placing poorly in the first round, they finished in the top three in every remaining round and delivered the Purple Rockets’ third silver medal in four events.
“We are looking forward to taking this home,” Saucer remarked after the event. And the final obstacle in the Purple Rockets’ way was the daunting event of Super Collision. An obstacle, it appeared, that the Purple Rockets were not ready to handle.
“It was the most heartbreaking thing, and then when we watched the rest of the event unfold on the sidelines…we panicked.” Orbit remarked. “But…that panicking turned out to be for naught. The Constrictors went out in the semifinals, and we had done it.”
The Purple Rockets had won Marble ManiaX. It took them just three silver medals, becoming the first team in JMR history to win a tournament without any gold medals.
The Purple Rockets on the top step of the final Marble ManiaX podium; triumphant at last! (Photo Credit: Jelle’s Marble Runs)
“It just goes to show you…if you put your mind to it, anything is possible.” Coach Rocket stated. “And I believe that we’ll be back again soon. You can quote me on that.”
In RetRollSpective, the Purple Rockets’ history is full of ups and downs. The team has astronomical potential, as we’ve seen in the Stardust Classic and Marble ManiaX, and has fought through all of the obstacles that have been thrown their way. Best of luck to the Purple Rockets in the near future, keep on rolling!
Thank you to The Emperor for creating the Purple Rockets and the lore surrounding the team!
Credits
Writer: The Emperor
Editors: Edu G. J., Skyfall_707, Smacg13, Stynth
Artists: The Emperor, Fouc, Laurent Rollon, Phantasm, Stynth
Graphic Designers: The Emperor, Jelle’s Marble Runs, Laurent Rollon, Phantasm, Tim Ritz
Hello and welcome to another RetRollSpective, where we reflect on the history of marble sports teams that have competed in the tournaments of Jelle’s Marble Runs. This time, we’re going to focus on Team Phoenix, a team that blends in with the history of the Hubelino Tournament. Read on to find out how this team has burned the competition!
A fanmade logo for Team Phoenix, designed by MightyCucumber.
To discover how this team formed and evolved, we head to Spiceno, a town in the Herbotamia region that’s well known for its pepper farms and cuisine based on locally grown spices.
Despite their common home, each member of Team Phoenix came from a different background: Nix worked for the family restaurant; Nixy offered technical assistance services for home computers; Phee was a senior in high school; Phoeny was searching for their first job. On the weekends, a common interest united them: racing.
The four members used to race for fun during frequent gatherings at Hot Spot Park, a public venue that gained a reputation for being a good location for fitness activities. As time passed, their interest in analyzing marble sports set them apart from other amateur athletes, eventually attracting another marble to their discussions. This was Phoenix, who eventually became known for racing in the Marble Rally. “We would stay in the park for hours just talking about how we did and what we could do to improve,” said Nixy.
A subject that became more present in the conversations was the slow rise of team competitions, such as the “turf tournaments”. The five friends were curious about these events, eventually trying them out. The group was excited about this new possibility, except for one of them, as Nix disclosed: “Our friend ‘Big’ Phoenix wasn’t very keen on moving with us into wider marble sports; it didn’t give them the same thrill as pure racing. In the end, their choice worked out pretty well for them.”
The newly formed Team Phoenix believed that variety is the spice of life, and began to search for a competition to join. In early 2011, the opportunity appeared at an open street race. At the race, the friends were approached by Minty Flav of the Minty Maniacs, who listened to them talk about their struggles to complete the switch from racing to other marble sports disciplines.
“Yeah, it was surprising, but we were glad to see somebody offering us a place to play as a squad. Two days later, we heard back from Flav to let us know everybody was fine with having another team, and that all of them would meet us in marble to make it official,” Phee told us.
For their debut in the 2011 edition of the informal tournament, the team didn’t impress, taking last overall. “My partners and I were having fun while trying out new things. We were learning, adapting, but it was a blast!” Phoeny said about their first year, highlighting the good reception they had from the other teams who already competed against each other.
The next year saw a change that raised the level of competition: the establishment of the official Herbotamia Tournament, which would now expand to five teams and be held at the Herbotamia Recreational and Sports Club (HRSC).The growth of the tournament came quickly for a team with low experience. Despite the concerns, Team Phoenix headed into this new phase with a desire to grow as athletes and to also share their sporting experiences with the world, launching a blog that was administered by the tech-savvy Nixy: the Firebird Sports Diary soon gained a small but loyal following.
A few weeks before the start, the four members, alongside the other teams, traveled to Hummilon to meet the Ruby Rollers and officially invite them to fill the expansion slot. “[Minty] Fresh told us a story of how the Rubies sneaked into a friendly match they had while they were on the way to Spiceno to welcome us, and how they kept in contact since then. Once we arrived at their workplace, Rolla approached me with a big smile, I didn’t even need to talk to notice how excited they were to join a properly organized cup. It was clear they were the logical choice.”
The five teams that composed the first official Herbotamia Tournament. (Photo Credit: SuperJackJack)
The tournament got started. Team Phoenix wouldn’t contend for the title, though the squad obtained their first gold ever by winning the Halfpipe Crash. “It was big! The other teams applauded us; our fans on the internet were hyped. We love to share moments like these, moments that we will carry for the rest of our lives”, Phee remarked. They eventually obtained an overall third-place finish, beating one of the original three members, the Golden Wisps, a result that indicated an improvement for the team of friends, both individually and as a group.
Unfortunately, things didn’t go well in the 2013 season. While nobody could match the domination of the Golden Wisps that year, Team Phoenix slipped and finished in last place. Despite the poor performance, they were happy for the Ruby Rollers, who achieved a bronze in the overall standings, as the teams had established a friendship off the course, through the years of competing against each other.
In 2014, another disappointing finish made them reevaluate their training methods. Nix explains: “We were in a bad slump, we had to figure out another way to prepare ourselves. We realized that we just needed to have fun together, like good friends.” On their free weekends, the group of friends, including ‘Big’ Phoenix, pushed each other to their limits, discussed moves and tactics, and participated in some amateur events. By remembering the early days, they were ready to rise again.
The team’s first challenge of 2015 happened before the season even started, as the HRSC announced to the athletes that the club could no longer fund the Herbotamia Tournament. Nixy opened up about this tough moment: “We were shocked in the first hours, unsure if we could continue to compete. After the initial despair, an ember of hope appeared—in the next few weeks, Spirit from the Golden Wisps told everybody they were holding a raffle in hopes of making the season happen and they trusted me to promote it on our blog. That’s what we did, and the response was very good, as many of our fans asked us how to participate and the raffle tickets sold out quickly!”
After this hurdle was cleared, they kept training with seriousness while also having fun. Team Phoenix finally looked to become champions and was en route to their best campaign in history. They ended up achieving their highest finish so far but settled for a second-place as they were edged out by the Ruby Rollers for the overall title. According to Phee, there was no reason to be sad as both teams had built a good relationship over the years: “We were happy for each other, and we also participated in the Rollers’ title celebration party. That fan rally was unmatched in tournament history, we never saw anything like that again.”
Team Phoenix and the Ruby Rollers enjoy the day together. (Photo Credit: Pesky)
However, after the season was over, the future was uncertain. The Minty Maniacs disbanded, leading the rest of the participant teams to suspend their activities. During their sabbatical, the four friends returned to the “turf tournaments” alongside their regular lives, while ‘Big’ Phoenix became a founding member of the group which established the first professional rally series in the region.
But in October 2016, they received a signal of hope to rebuild. Minty Flav of the Minty Maniacs relayed the proposal of a potential new promoter to all Herbotamia Tournament athletes. Nix shared the team’s view of the moment: “Everybody was stoked when we learned that Jelle Bakker, responsible for the fastest-growing marble sports series in the world, was interested in our league. My mind went back to when our big friend raced at their first broadcasted sand rally, and since that experience was positive, the support we gave them on that occasion returned to us. They encouraged us to go for it, giving us the confidence to accept the proposal.” Phoenix’s opinion was short but relevant, as they had just won the inaugural Herbotamia Rally season in their hometown of Spiceno.
The official logo for Hubelino Tournament 2016. (Design Credit: Jelle’s Marble Runs)
Jelle and the teams reached an agreement, and the championship was reformulated as the Hubelino Tournament. The friends were excited to prove themselves in the eight events of the 2016 season against the other squads they knew and three new challengers: the Valiant Violets, Green Gang, and Bluefastics. In the weeks before the first event, Team Phoenix continued to push each other and even had a friendly match against the Ruby Rollers with no stakes involved. The teams shared tips and tricks during their time together and imagined a rematch of the previous year’s title battle.
The season began with an event that would eventually become a staple of marble sports: Funnel Spinning. Phee had a fast start, which in funnel racing doesn’t mean a good result. Phee finished in seventh, only ahead of the Ruby Rollers, both performing below expectations for both teams. While their friends in red shot up the standings, Team Phoenix constantly failed to deliver and couldn’t get past sixth in an event.
The squad needed a resurgence as soon as possible, and it came with a win in the fifth event, the Quartet Jump. The team delivered the much-needed result in the last run, right after seeing the Golden Wisps take the lead. Phee was one of two competitors who landed in the maximum ten-points zone. Alongside Nixy’s eight points and no towers knocked down, they scored a total of 24 points and stepped up to the top of the podium for the first time that season. This gold also brought another surprise: the team’s blog, which usually had a maximum of only 200 regular visitors in the previous four seasons, gained thousands of views and new followers who were curious about the recent success they saw in the video.
The final positioning of the Team Phoenix marbles, in the run which gave them the Quartet Jump gold. (Photo Credit: Jelle’s Marble Runs)
Unfortunately, this was the only top-half result for Team Phoenix, who eventually finished seventh by the end of the series as initially scheduled.
“We are very analytical marbles. We knew something was wrong, but we couldn’t understand why. We thought a lot about our failures, and this possibly held us back, not only because we demanded a lot from ourselves, but we also didn’t have the time to spend pondering these questions with such a tight schedule”, Phoeny said about their poor showing. “As soon as we learned about the calendar extension, we changed our mindset to just have fun while competing.”
Team Phoenix had nothing to lose, as they were far from title contention even with the four additional events. The more relaxed approach paid off, with Team Phoenix winning two consecutive silvers. The first came in the Halfpipe Dash, in an attempt to “bump draft” the Green Gang and steal the win in a close final that allowed them to overtake the Golden Wisps down the last section. The second came in the Relay Course, where Nix mastered the looping section of the track in every heat, but the team was edged out by the Valiant Violets in a photo finish for the gold.
The photo finish of Team Phoenix’s near-miss on another gold in the Relay. (Photo Credit: Jelle’s Marble Runs)
Despite their better performances, it still wasn’t enough to move them up the standings before the pause for Marble League 2017.
All Hubelino Tournament teams were invited to watch the action at the Bakker Bowl. Everybody on the roster felt that this experience would help them to get motivated to continue the good work for the final two events.
“Watching Marble League 2017 was an exciting moment, for sure. Having the opportunity to witness the best and even interact with them inspired us to keep moving forward as much as we inspired some fans we met there”, Nix said.
Team Phoenix returned to Herbotamia with their sights set on the final two events. They obtained another silver in the Block Push, once again beaten out by a small margin versus the Golden Wisps; and a bronze in the Ball Battle that saw them go through two tiebreakers: a semifinal loss against the eventual champions, the Green Gang, and a win over the Bluefastics in the third-place match.
Another tough break in a tight result, this time in the Block Push. (Photo Credit: Jelle’s Marble Runs)
In a blog post, Nixy congratulated the tournament’s success and commented on the final event:
“It’s been great to go out there, prove ourselves and be part of these great moments. We won matches and moved on through the phases by small margins, including in the bronze match in which all four of us stayed on the board in the tiebreaker. We just had a tough break in the semi, the red ball was in an optimal position to be pushed onto our side, next to the Gang’s gate exit. Anyway, congratulations to them, they deserved this championship after a spectacular campaign with eight medals in twelve events.”
Firebird Sports Blog, 2017
Team Phoenix finishes Season 1 of the Hubelino Tournament strong in fourth overall. (Photo Credit: Jelle’s Marble Runs)
The turnaround was complete. The four consecutive medals not just vaulted them up to fourth with 68 points, but also were a record in any JMR series. This was a true rebirth for these four friends, who were proud of themselves and were encouraged to make bold choices.
“While we were overjoyed after such a strong year, we had to think of our future,” revealed Nixy.
The phoenix is a symbol of rebirth. Above is a logo for Team Phoenix, which was used during Hubelino Tournament 2016 and later carried over into their new venture. (Design Credit: Hershy926)
All Hubelino teams were invited to join the Marble League 2018 Qualifiers, and less than one month before the major series kickoff, Team Phoenix had to come to a decision. “Honestly, we wanted to worry less about what we were capable of in competition. We eventually decided to step down to help our long-time friend fulfill their dreams.” continued Nixy.
Observing what their Hubelino rivals did with their invitations, Team Phoenix decided to take a completely different approach. Going forward, the Phoenix name would live on in the Marble Rally. How did this happen? Nixy continued: “Back in Knikkegen, we met Fantasy, a regular racer of the sandhills. During that conversation, I mentioned our friendship with a fellow racer and regional rally champion, ‘Big’ Phoenix. After this meeting, we kept in regular contact. Later that year, Fantasy revealed to me before anybody else that they were tired of being too average and wanted to retire from the Sand Marble Rally and give their spot to somebody who could become a serious championship contender. They felt ‘Big’ Phoenix could be that marble.” The four agreed, especially after being present to watch Phoenix’s performance in the Herbotamia Rally 2017 final, held in Chlorotopia. Although Phoenix failed to clinch a second championship, the members of Team Phoenix envisioned their future in that athlete. “We felt they were more competitive than any of us could be, and that’s what is needed to win titles. So when we contacted Jelle to respond about Marble League, we withdrew our spot and proposed that Phoenix be entered in the next Marble Rally season in place of Fantasy.”
With their decision made, Team Phoenix left the competitive stage as athletes to become the staff for their big friend, coaching them in preparation for Marble Rally 2018. The group built a gym in Spiceno in order to offer a better structure for a world-class professional racer. However, they also used nature and the streets, pushing each other during race simulation workouts, recapturing some of the joy that brought them together in the first place.
Several months of training would be put to the test on 19 May 2018 at the Sand Marble Rally 2018 Qualifiers. A top-four finish in their group was needed to advance to the main series. All of Phoenix’s training and effort was rewarded with a victory in Group 4, even beating the already qualified Slimer. On the Firebird Sports Diary, now repurposed to share news about the campaign, Phee posted: “This performance overcame any expectations. It was awesome to boost the confidence in our work, we’re heading in the right direction. Thank you for your support.”
In their first international championship race, Phoenix raced close to the podium in a fierce battle with Grasshopper, ending with a fourth-place finish, a great result for a rookie. The team behind Phoenix was happy for a strong start but also felt that better results were in reach.
The five friends established themselves in Knikkegen during the season, and could often be seen visiting the sandhills to tune their skills. This choice eventually proved to give them an edge, especially during the hiatuses between rounds. Phoenix had a very consistent season, finishing all races, with six top-ten finishes in eight races, and a win in the season finale that allowed them to overtake Superball and Black Knight and finish in second overall.
Phoenix stands on the top of the podium after Race 8 of the 2018 Marble Rally. (Photo Credit: Jelle’s Marble Runs)
When they returned to Spiceno, the local fans partied in the streets to celebrate the podium finish, including a stop at Hot Spot Park, where everything started. Meanwhile, the training routine was praised by fellow competitors and the press, leading to an interview with a magazine. Here’s an excerpt of said feature, by Nix: “At the time, a few marbles told me I was crazy to step down and put my effort behind someone else. Those who knew about our connection always supported us, but for those who doubted, today I can say that the bet paid off and our biggest achievement involved being out of the spotlight.”
However, their world was soon turned upside down. Dark clouds formed above the party atmosphere as Phoenix was caught up in the “not a marble” controversy involving Red Number 3. “We were home, enjoying our vacation when I saw my friend’s ‘cheating accusation’ all over the internet. I was shocked, I couldn’t believe it. None of us gave any interview for TV regarding any of Big’s competitors, we don’t know where these claims came from”, said Nixy. Unable to travel, the team contacted the marble who helped kickstart Phoenix’s career: Meteor, the talent scout who offered them the opportunity to take part in the first-ever broadcast rally race. Meteor happened to be in Bifornya when the news broke and gladly accepted the request to reach out to Red on behalf of Phoenix and their staff. The team also released an official statement on the Firebird Sports Diary, supporting their friend and denying the declarations released to the media.
A screencap from the Firebird Sports Diary of Phoenix’s official announcement. (Design Credits: Hershy 926 & Stynth)
After that event, public appearances became rare in the months before Marble Rally 2019. An exception was the Practice Race for the already qualified marbles where Phee gave their thoughts after enduring this difficult moment: “We’ve stayed by Phoenix’s side all the way; it was a delicate situation that required our full support. We’re also thankful for the fans who never gave up on us. We hope to turn it around this season.”
Unfortunately, Phoenix’s third-place finish didn’t translate to good performances in the main tournament, ending with a 19th place finish out of 20 in the overall standings and relegation to the Showdown. The team released the following statement after the last round: “What went wrong? Phoenix was under pressure from public opinion, influenced by past events. Despite our best efforts to put that behind us, they couldn’t concentrate during the entirety of this Sand Marble Rally season. We don’t know exactly what goes on in the mind of a top-level athlete, so we decided to take a rest and be in a stronger position before planning for the future.”
Team Phoenix explores the gardens during their pause. (Photo Credit: The Emperor)
The pause turned out to be beneficial for everybody, and by the end of the winter, work began at the Team Phoenix gym, barely a week before the Herbotamia Rally 2020 opener. About the new year’s training, Phoeny said: “Phoenix told us they had recovered their confidence and wanted to race as soon as possible. We agreed to do part of the local league schedule. We have reinvented ourselves so many times in our lives, and this was just another fun challenge.”
Phoenix got off to a slow start, and their friends followed every race to analyze and build strategies for the upcoming races. Eventually, they heated up, scoring a podium in the last race before traveling to take part in the group practice in August. The team was established at a training site near Knikkegen when a setback occurred. “‘Big’ called me to let us know that the JMRC announced in the athlete briefing that the Showdown and Qualifiers had been canceled and they had decided to make the next Marble Rally season invite-only and Phoenix had not been chosen. It’s massively disappointing, especially as Phoenix had regained their mojo and they made this change so close to the start of the competition. There wasn’t much we could do, besides telling our fans that we were out and packing our stuff to return home”, disclosed Nixy. After taking the detour, Phoenix blazed down the paths of the remaining rounds of the Herbotamia Rally.
Team Phoenix pays a visit to the Hot Spot Park, just a few days before the Herbotamia Reunion. (Photo Credit: The Emperor)
The team already planned to stop by home – though not in the way they expected. The team was invited to the Herbotamia Reunion, a closed exhibition match featuring Team Plasma, the Grape Nuts, the Yarble Yellers, and every Hubelino Tournament competitor. While exact details of what happened at the competition are kept secret due to an NDA signed by all in attendance, one thing is for sure: “This event gave me flashbacks to what motivated us to form a team, it reignited that feeling”, said Phee.
The return seemed to be just a one-off when an unexpected opportunity appeared, and (part of) Team Phoenix would compete again. They were aware of the struggles of the Banana Splits, who were missing three members due to scheduling conflicts, to enter the inaugural Midnight Melee in the region of Harva. They reached out to the Banana Splits and offered to support them. The teams temporarily merged to form the Burning Bananas. Nix stayed behind while the rest of the team arrived in the Clock Coliseum to compete under new names: Nixy became Ash; Phoeny became Pyro, and Phee became Sear.
The logo for the Burning Bananas. (Design Credit: Laurent Rollon)
During the opening ceremony, Pyro looked at the CMM camera and shouted: “Time to bring the fire!” They were chosen to debut in the Funnel Endurance and used their knowledge to finish fourth, a hot start for the squad. Later that night, the fans watched Sear powering through the Hurdles, winning the heat, but getting knocked out in the semi-finals for seventh place. After night 1, the Bananas were in fifth overall, ahead of the hosts and Marble League 2018 champions, the Midnight Wisps.
On the second night, the competition went outdoors. Two team events were held at Midnight Hollow, an environment that somewhat resembled the “turf tournament” experience. Coach Peel sent Ash and Sear to join Banana and Split. They rolled down the balancing beam and looked promising, with one finisher in Ash, but a miscoordination pushed them down to ninth. Block Pushing came right after, and while the Wisps showed their true potential winning by a wide margin, the Bananas recovered to achieve a double fifth, in the event and in the overall standings. At this point, they were the best team without a podium.
Another night meant two more events. During Ghost Plasma’s demonstration down the trail of the Nature Run, the teammates were observed giving tips to Split. This proved to be valuable in the race as Split won a bronze medal in a very tight finish, just behind the Candycorns and the Dragon Roses. The Midnight Tower came next, a long and complex course with five different sections. Ash executed a nice start and led down the Hubelino track that wrapped around the Helarve Clock Tower, but lost pace entering the Midnight Bay circuit, eventually being knocked out in their heat after a fifth-place finish. They did, however, have the best time among those who didn’t move on to the final.
On the penultimate night of the tournament, Ice Hockey was the only slated event. The Burning Bananas once again had a first-round elimination leading to a ninth-place finish. The Bananas were fourth overall, still within reach of the silver medal spot but out of title contention as the Wisps were confirming their favoritism to win.
They hoped to close out in style at the Midnight Bay Grand Prix. Positioned in thirteenth, the captain, Banana, didn’t impress and moved up only one spot in twelve laps. The Burning Bananas fell down to seventh in the final standings, just five points from second, a satisfactory result for the squad that was built last-minute.
The final standings for the Midnight Melee. (Design Credit: Laurent Rollon)
After the closing ceremony, Ash attended the press conference. When questioned about their participation as a late entry, they responded: “We didn’t come with the mindset to win, we wanted to have fun. I’m happy with how we did, but most importantly, happy to help fellow athletes to be here, happy to play with so many great teams, and happy to be part of the history of a new series. I can relate this to my Herbotamia Tournament times. Who knows, maybe we can still compete with the best? Thank you to the Banana Splits for giving us this opportunity to play, and also to the Midnight Wisps and the marbles of Helarve, they put up an excellent show.”
The three marbles returned to Herbotamia and their current jobs as Phoenix’s staff. To fight back the uncertainty regarding their friend’s international racing career, the Team Phoenix gym expanded to take care of two more professional athletes: Arecibo, a former Telescopics member, and Sarge, an experienced off-road racer, who both had recently joined the Herbotamia Rally series. Thanks to the growing demand, a fifth member joined them. Known as Fawkes, they were recruited due to their previous experience moderating the team’s blog. The squad also often takes part in friendly matches in the region. They sent us a final message: “A good friendship can take you to places you didn’t even imagine.” From the Marble Rally racer’s words, “Team Phoenix is still Team Phoenix, just in a different position.”
Team Phoenix gathering with “Big” Phoenix. (Photo Credit: NordiqueWhaler)
In RetRollSpective, Team Phoenix is a team that may not have found major success in competition but has been “reborn” to continue its commitment to marble sports. Best of luck to Team Phoenix in the near future, keep on rolling!
Project Marblearth 