Virtute et Armis recently crossed a threshold attained by few; it reached its fourth year as a Guild.  To celebrate this momentous occasion, VeA held a gala celebration with former, current, and even new guild members.  Marking the occasion, VeA inducted Thalorn (a Night Elf Rogue) into the guild as its newest member.  Four years and still going strong!

The guild gathered in the Valley of Heroes at the very gates of Stormwind.  Spirits were high as the guild gathered, wondering what festivities were in store.  VeA's storied guildmaster, Zelec, was on hand to kick things off with a short speech and a round of promotions.  Several members attained higher rank within the guild, and a few initiates were welcomed into the fold as full members.

With fearsome rabbits a-flying, snowballs whizzing through the air, and the clash of mock combat pealing through the valley, the first activity was announced:

IT'S A SCAVENGER HUNT!

Baccharus announced a scavenger hunt; the many denizens of Elwynn forest have been hoarding stolen items from the local population, and it was up to the stalwart heroes of Virtute et Armis to reclaim as many unique items as possible within 15 minutes.  With a 100 gold prize on the line, competition was fierce.  Many Murlocs and Defias fell soundlessly at the onslaught, barely a look of surprise on their faces (but really, it's hard to tell when a Murloc is surprised).

As the competition neared its end, the bespattered members of the guild reassembled at the crossroad village of Goldshire, drawing some attention at the number of alliance heroes present.  Bags were emptied, contents tallied, and winners announced.  The grand prize of 100 gold was granted, a followup purse of 50 gold was disbursed, and a variety of additional gifts were handed about.

After this, it was time for the second activity:

WESTFALL TOWER DARTS!

To Sentinel Hill, the cry went up!  We shall play a game of darts from its highest tower!

"Darts?", the gathered people asked.  Baccharus explained the rules as an adaption of a Horde game entitled "Thunder Bluff Cow Darts", where the Tauren brave the skies, leaping from the plateau city and plummeting to their doom (this is where the term 'ground beef' comes from).  To play, other participants have to gauge their leap to land as close to the first leaper (and the term 'bulls' eye', too).  Obviously, a visit to the Spirit Healer is necessary, and so this game is rightly considered a rite of passage.

As the master of ceremonies, Baccharus leapt from the top of Sentinel hill, plummeting to the sandy soil of Westfall below.  Other than injured pride and some bruises, though, the intrepid Mage stood tall.  The fall wasn't enough to incur a visit to the spirit healer!  In true Virtute et Armis tradition, we adapted.  Baccharus climbed back to the top of the tower, limping slightly.  Bracing himself, he asked guildmaster Zelec to 'rough him up a little'.  Ever gracious, Z responded with a pyroblast that singed the top of the tower.  This time, Baccharus opened his eyes to the slender form of the Spirit Healer, and the games were on!

The top of the tower turned into a pitched battle as people dueled their health down before leaping from the top in an attempt to land as close to Baccharus as possible.  The group played two rounds of darts from different points of the tower, and the pile of corpses at the foot climbed ever higher.

After two rounds, the group was ready to move on to the final challenge of the evening, a competition known as the...

NAKED DEADMINES RUN!

The idea is simple - take off all your clothes.  Enter the Deadmines with 4 close friends, and proceed through the instance as rapidly as possible.  You may put on any items you find. At the end, the "most dressed" hero wins the day. 

The two groups barreled through the mines, though to be fair the Defias were laughing so hard that they didn't put up much of a fight.  Cookie wasn't quite sure what to do with his rolling pin, and Mr. Smite was quite smitten.

Next time, we're going to do it barefisted and pummel our way through.  Talk about 'beating' an instance!

IN CONCLUSION

At its zenith, the party included over 30 people all participating in celebration of our fine guild.  Four years and going strong, VeA is a testament to the fun factor of our favorite vacation spot - Azeroth!