Alliance Tournament Monument

The Alliance Tournament Monument, with all 17 plinths.

Despite being one myself, I have to admit that I don’t really pay much attention to what happens to the capsuleer alliances out in null sec. The alliances come and go. The alliances take space and then lose it (to be fair, I rarely pay attention to gains and losses in the various wars between the empires either). They make broader coalitions only to have those coalitions fall apart as they begin to backstab each other for hopes of further advantage. Sure, after the fact I find the histories written up on the great soap operas of null sec space to be fascinating, and (unsurprisingly) I always appreciate when a battle or some epic struggle culminates in a battle that the Powers That Be seek to commemorate in a landmark or site. But, truth be told, for someone who prides himself on seeking out knowledge on the history of New Eden, I often find myself woefully out of date on current events in New Eden’s perimeter.

A closer view of the central statue.

One thing that even I paid attention to, however, was the Alliance Tournament. How could you not? Even for those of us who can’t appreciate the finer tactics and strategies that go into the countless choices made during a tournament match, it’s still fun to see some of the best known alliances in the cluster duke it out for the title of champion, and I say this as someone who’s inclination to engage other capsuleers is, shall we say, tenuous, at best. But the fact remains, it was exciting to watch the matches as teams fought against each other, inevitably lost track and left the boundaries of the tournament area, and, yes, even the inevitable Tournaments scandals can be entertaining in their own way. Not to mention the color commentary both during the match and after that revs people up for getting on the applicable so-called Hype Train.

Plinths stretch into the distance.

Given the vaunted history of the Alliance Tournament, it’s a little surprising that CONCORD has waited until now to recognize the history of the Tournament and to erect a monument in honor of past winners, particularly given the fact that the Tournament has been on hiatus for a few years now. But the fact remains, a monument has gone up at long last, and recognizes each of the winners of the tournament over its 16-tournament history, along with the Alliance Open held in YC122. It’s a simple, if elegant, site: 17 plinths, one for each tournament as well as the Alliance Open, sit in a half circle. At the center of that half circle stands a large, golden, winged woman reaching for the stars.

Querying the statue through Aura yields the following:

“Throughout history humanity has struggled for survival, fortune and glory. The fight to exceed nature’s limits continues but as often the combat is within and between ourselves.

While the need to hunt for food is long behind us, and life itself is seldom a daily struggle for survival, we still crave the fearful rush that comes with the imminence of death.

There is both terror and majesty in combat: from the steel swords and wooden shields of ancient conflicts; to the masses of kilometers long spacecraft unleashing firepower to equal that of entire planetary wars.

No matter the tools, no matter the arena, all clashes of arms meet and fulfill the same purpose: the need to fight, and the determination to win.”

-Khumat Mebroh, Chief Executive Officer, Independent Gaming Commission

And then, of course, there are the memorialized winners, one for each plinth at the site:

The semicircle stands above Manarq V

• 1^st Alliance Tournament (YC 107): Band of Brothers
• 2^nd Alliance Tournament (YC 107): Band of Brothers
• 3^rd Alliance Tournament (YC 108): Band of Brothers
• 4^th Alliance Tournament (YC 109): HUN Reloaded
• 5^th Alliance Tournament (YC 110): Ev0ke
• 6^th Alliance Tournament (YC 111): Pandemic Legion
• 7^th Alliance Tournament (YC 111): Pandemic Legion
• 8^th Alliance Tournament (YC 112): Pandemic Legion
• 9^th Alliance Tournament (YC 113): HYDRA RELOADED
• 10^th Alliance Tournament (YC 114): Verge of Collapse
• 11^th Alliance Tournament (YC 115): Pandemic Legion
• 12^th Alliance Tournament (YC 116): The Camel Empire
• 13^th Alliance Tournament (YC 117) Pandemic Legion
• 14^th Alliance Tournament (YC 118): The Tuskers Co.
• 15^th Alliance Tournament (YC 119): VYDRA RELOADED
• 16^th Alliance Tournament (YC 120): VYDRA RELOADED
• Alliance Open (YC 122): Templis CALSF

Plenty of space left for more.

As you may notice, it’s been 3 years since the last official Alliance Tournament, and there’s no particular indication that they are going to be picked up again any time in the near future. I have no doubt that there is quite a lot of logistical work that goes into holding the Tournament each year, and I can’t fault the Independent Gaming Commission for being wary of committing more resources to an intense endeavor. Though there is no official news on this particular subject, it was quickly pointed out after unveiling the monument that there were plenty of spots left to be filled in for that circle around the golden statue. Hope, as always, springs eternal.

Basic Information:

• Attraction: Alliance Tournament Monument
• System: Manarq
• Security Rating: 0.8
• Region: Genesis
• Potential Hazards: Because this is CONCORD space, if you’re below a -3.0 security status, you’ll have to deal with some rather unpleasant policemen.