sugarvalves [1963573] —
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As the Co-leader of JFK and a member of Torn for 4,300 days as of today, DrGonzo is undoubtedly one of Torn's highest profile citizens, with his impressive stats and influence marking him out as a major player for much of the past decade.
In 2009 DrGonzo set up an oil company, and today that company makes half a billion a week. DrGonzo has augmented this income by taking nearly $80billion in mugged cash since arriving in the city on Saturday May 7th 2005 , and at the time of writing, he ranks 2nd behind only Bodybagger concerning attacks won.
Furthermore, DrGonzo maintains an impressive presence towards the top end of the leaderboards in busts and networth, and in 2016 he revealed he was the 7th strongest person in Torn with over a trillion acquired battle stats.
DrGonzo gave up this information voluntarily, and in this rare forum post, he also admitted he had ceased the use of Stat Enhancers once he reached the one trillion mark. In fact, as of late 2015 DrGonzo stopped training his stats entirely because unbeknownst to the rest of the city, he had a new mission to accomplish - a record killstreak.
"It started in Nov 2015 and ended around April 2016. I drastically changed the way I play the game around this time. I quit training in Nov 2015 and have been mugging and hosping since then."
DrGonzo's astonishing 8,304 killstreak remains Torn's longest uninterrupted killing spree to this day; with his nearest challenger falling more than three and a half thousand kills short. So how did DrGonzo accomplish this, and who was responsible for bringing such an epic chain of victories to an end?
"I just don't get attacked often. Bodybagger is really the only one that ever attacks me, and now that Sifonjerce is back, him as well. He (Bodybagger) is the one that ended it with a mug. No idea if he was ending the streak or just checking to see if I had money."
I was curious as to whether Bodybagger had indeed ended DrGonzo's streak, and if he had, did he know what he was doing when he attacked him on 30th April 2016? So I asked the SA henchman, and he gave me as straight an answer as you could ever hope for:
"Yes, I took it, and I was glad to take it. His streak means nothing to me. He means nothing to me. That record was fake."
Just kidding. What Bodybagger actually said was:
"If I broke his kill streak, I didn't do it knowingly. I don't know when it would have been. It could have been during a war, or for a mission, or as he suspects just checking if he had money."
There's clearly a lot of respect between the members of JFK and SA, but even so, it surprises me that nobody in Subversive Alliance or any other rival faction thought to curtail DrGonzo's streak before it went supernova. The feat took him six months to achieve, with the bulk of his work occurring between November 2015 and April 2016. There was ample time for someone to notice, make a move or band together with others to take a pop, but they did not. Were they too scared, too weak, or too distracted by other events? We may never know.
Perhaps DrGonzo's methods were simply too perfect, but I was intrigued as to whether there was more to it than merely mugging, hospitalising and avoiding training. A recent battle stats post by Proxima puts DrGonzo four places higher than he was in 2016, pegging him as the third strongest citizen in all of Torn City. DrGonzo attributes this leap partially to the removal of NPC's from the list, but it seems he has also adopted a new method of playing in addition to using stat enhancers once more.
"I only use SE's (stat enhancers) now. I would rather not tell everyone how I play, because that is how I can separate myself from those that follow all the guides. It's not hard for people to figure out if they look, but I'd rather not give them a reason to look."
As of February 2017, Ohadik's total of 4750 kills is the closest to DrGonzo's tally, but with his run having ended in late 2012 there is no chance of him proving a threat to the JFK Co-leader's record. In fact, not one of the current top 10 killstreak record holders are mounting a challenge at present, with Para's 3967 run coming to an end on December 6th 2016, and Critch's 2614 killstreak stopped on the 31st January 2017.
I asked DrGonzo why titans such as Bodybagger and Sifonjerce had failed to challenge his total, and he seemed to believe that their high-profiles and his lack of one contributed greatly to the gap which exists between their scores:
"He (Bodybagger) may one day (do it) or it could be someone else that flies under the radar like I did. Also, Bodybagger probably gets group attacked just so people can say they beat him."
Bodybagger may indeed be capable of beating this record if he were to put his mind to it, but it seems that such an arduous task is not something Mr BB is interested in pursuing:
"No, I won't bother trying to beat that streak, too many groups enjoy attempting to take me down at the end of wars and during Torn events so I would just be wasting my time. To tell you the truth, I didn't even know that I broke his streak until you told me just the other day. It's kind of good that I did break it since it might give others the opportunity to attempt breaking the record."
With the hyper-aware nature of Torn's citizens these days, and the ease at which statistics are made available by sites such as Tornstats.com, it's hard to imagine anyone having the necessary combination of strength and subtlety needed to beat DrGonzo's tally anytime soon. But if someone were to manage it, they would do well to heed DrGonzo's advice on keeping your nose out of trouble.
"Honestly, I try to avoid the drama. For the most part, I avoid #lobby, the forums, etc. The last drama that I personally was involved would have been way back in the PT-JFK war days. The-storm put me on ignore."
"No idea what my reputation is. Low key I guess. (But) that's just me. New players should be more involved in the forums and chat so they can learn the game."
DrGonzo is not lying when he says he avoids the forums. This is a man who has posted just thirteen times in the last three years, two of which were attempts to guess the candy at Christmas, and five of them concerning a discussion of his own epic battle stats.
Clearly, DrGonzo is a man who knows how to operate in Torn City, and this is proven by the fact that he is one of only 48 people to reach level 100, with just 11 other players achieving this before him. DrGonzo also knows the value of Torn City too, having achieved the 1,000-day donator medal and maintained his status as a dedicated subscriber. But the area he has been most consistent in is his dedication to the faction which he leads alongside Z_junior - the fearsome Just Fer Killin.
"I've always been JFK, even when we were a 10 man faction. I suppose there were a few months when I first started that I was Ambulance Chasers until some other people signed up. JFK and VV merged. Nota/Me from JFK and Z_junior/Pandora from VV. We've switched out based off availability. There are others involved as well such as Hatered, who I think started JFK on Torn. Hatered, Nota, and Pandora have been preoccupied by real life or just had their interest wane."
Having been heavily involved in JFK's leadership since its merger with Vae Victis, DrGonzo has played a key part in one of the most unique factions Torn has ever seen. As well as their protracted conflicts with the likes of PT-Family and the 39th Street Killers, JFK was once notorious for using the idea of warring to make themselves a little money on the side:
"My memory isn't what it used to be and that was 10+ years ago. I did run across my old protection spreadsheet where JFK would offer protection for factions for a monthly fee. That was our money making scheme in the old, early days of Torn."
These days, JFK's main rival is Subversive Alliance, and having spoken to DrGonzo's co-leader Z_Junior (whose own Tornography will be published in the coming weeks) it seems there is a consensus among the top brass that war between these two superpowers is frighteningly imminent.
"SA is one of the best factions. Several of them have been chomping SEs like crazy. It only makes sense."
Are you and your faction prepared for war?
"Always."
DrGonzo certainly seems confident. Having previously told me of his desire to see warring in Torn have more purpose, he hinted recently that the availability of upgrades might be what eventually ignites this conflict. But after conversing with him for some time, it seems that the one thing that's kept him dedicated to Torn has nothing to do with conflict - quite the opposite in fact:
"Early on in the game, there was so much to figure out. Torn money was also a lot harder to come by. I remember saving $1m to buy a coat hanger so I could steal cars for income. And the time Hatered sent me an M16 which was better than the gun I had. Nowadays that is laughable. Today, the game is more about chatting with friends. A lot of us in JFK came from another game and have known each other online for over 15 years."
Many on the forums have complained of late about the lack of community shown in Torn City, but based on this and my other conversations with long-term players, it's clear that these friendship networks do exist, they're just not immediately apparent to those who casually browse the message boards. DrGonzo and his ilk have built these connections over years of shared effort, so for newcomers to expect to plug into that immediately seems highly unrealistic.
This sense of community is something which needs to be established by dedicated citizens with the patience and personality of people like DrGonzo. Such folk may not reap the rewards of constant forum karma, but they earn sacksful of the real thing through their clandestine cooperation and long-term strategic thinking.
Longevity and dedication are attributes which DrGonzo seems to possess in abundance, and it's something he looks for in others too. On the 23rd of February he celebrated 3,000 days of marriage to the delightful Cappucino; although, if you were expecting a romantic gesture to mark this occasion, both you and Mr Capp might be left severely disappointed:
"This was more a marriage of convenience. We married women before and they always wanted to chat and required maintenance or had drama. So we married to get the marriage merits. Capp doesn't come online and more. We probably only talk a few times a year. It's great."
Another example of DrGonzo's commitment to the long-term can be seen in the employment records of his staff at Gonzoil. Many look on enviously at the billions of dollars made every month by this ten star Oil Rig, but if anyone thinks they can emulate his success overnight by following a few guides and throwing their cash around, they would be sorely mistaken:
"I started the rig from 0 stars. It's the employees that make the rig though. I have several employees that have been in the rig 2000+ days. I'm a big Clemson college football fan. So during football season, there are bonuses for Clemson wins."
So with a successful business behind him, the leadership of a top faction established, a strong marriage in place and plenty of records and awards attained, what is left for DrGonzo to do in Torn City?
"I am trying for more awards. Currently stealing jackets for 20k thefts. I am hoping territories and the other changes will revive my interest. I mostly keep coming back because I have so much time invested already. Plus I am friends with quite a few in JFK from online gaming before Torn."
With men like DrGonzo having achieved so much already, it will be interesting to see what the city does to retain their ilk once they've run out of awards to seek. Destructive warring, raging NPCs and territory battles might provide the fuel that keeps the fires of DrGonzo and others veterans burning, but in his early days, he said it was the challenge of learning the city's nuances that kept him coming back for more.
So to round off this interview, I asked DrGonzo how the Torn City he first encountered stacks up to today's version, and what he thought his fellow citizens would be surprised to know about him:
"I think overall Torn is better. There is much more variety in game play. The economy got out of control, but is somewhat stable now."
"When I started Torn, it was just me and my dog, Duke (From Raoul Duke). Now my dog is dead, I am married, and I have three daughters. My wife and daughters occupy most of my free time now. Not much to say, I am just a hillbilly in the mountains of Tennessee."
Correction; a hillbilly with the greatest killstreak ever seen in Torn City history.
In 2009 DrGonzo set up an oil company, and today that company makes half a billion a week. DrGonzo has augmented this income by taking nearly $80billion in mugged cash since arriving in the city on Saturday May 7th 2005 , and at the time of writing, he ranks 2nd behind only Bodybagger concerning attacks won.
Furthermore, DrGonzo maintains an impressive presence towards the top end of the leaderboards in busts and networth, and in 2016 he revealed he was the 7th strongest person in Torn with over a trillion acquired battle stats.
DrGonzo gave up this information voluntarily, and in this rare forum post, he also admitted he had ceased the use of Stat Enhancers once he reached the one trillion mark. In fact, as of late 2015 DrGonzo stopped training his stats entirely because unbeknownst to the rest of the city, he had a new mission to accomplish - a record killstreak.
"It started in Nov 2015 and ended around April 2016. I drastically changed the way I play the game around this time. I quit training in Nov 2015 and have been mugging and hosping since then."
DrGonzo's astonishing 8,304 killstreak remains Torn's longest uninterrupted killing spree to this day; with his nearest challenger falling more than three and a half thousand kills short. So how did DrGonzo accomplish this, and who was responsible for bringing such an epic chain of victories to an end?
"I just don't get attacked often. Bodybagger is really the only one that ever attacks me, and now that Sifonjerce is back, him as well. He (Bodybagger) is the one that ended it with a mug. No idea if he was ending the streak or just checking to see if I had money."
I was curious as to whether Bodybagger had indeed ended DrGonzo's streak, and if he had, did he know what he was doing when he attacked him on 30th April 2016? So I asked the SA henchman, and he gave me as straight an answer as you could ever hope for:
"Yes, I took it, and I was glad to take it. His streak means nothing to me. He means nothing to me. That record was fake."
Just kidding. What Bodybagger actually said was:
"If I broke his kill streak, I didn't do it knowingly. I don't know when it would have been. It could have been during a war, or for a mission, or as he suspects just checking if he had money."
There's clearly a lot of respect between the members of JFK and SA, but even so, it surprises me that nobody in Subversive Alliance or any other rival faction thought to curtail DrGonzo's streak before it went supernova. The feat took him six months to achieve, with the bulk of his work occurring between November 2015 and April 2016. There was ample time for someone to notice, make a move or band together with others to take a pop, but they did not. Were they too scared, too weak, or too distracted by other events? We may never know.
Perhaps DrGonzo's methods were simply too perfect, but I was intrigued as to whether there was more to it than merely mugging, hospitalising and avoiding training. A recent battle stats post by Proxima puts DrGonzo four places higher than he was in 2016, pegging him as the third strongest citizen in all of Torn City. DrGonzo attributes this leap partially to the removal of NPC's from the list, but it seems he has also adopted a new method of playing in addition to using stat enhancers once more.
"I only use SE's (stat enhancers) now. I would rather not tell everyone how I play, because that is how I can separate myself from those that follow all the guides. It's not hard for people to figure out if they look, but I'd rather not give them a reason to look."
As of February 2017, Ohadik's total of 4750 kills is the closest to DrGonzo's tally, but with his run having ended in late 2012 there is no chance of him proving a threat to the JFK Co-leader's record. In fact, not one of the current top 10 killstreak record holders are mounting a challenge at present, with Para's 3967 run coming to an end on December 6th 2016, and Critch's 2614 killstreak stopped on the 31st January 2017.
I asked DrGonzo why titans such as Bodybagger and Sifonjerce had failed to challenge his total, and he seemed to believe that their high-profiles and his lack of one contributed greatly to the gap which exists between their scores:
"He (Bodybagger) may one day (do it) or it could be someone else that flies under the radar like I did. Also, Bodybagger probably gets group attacked just so people can say they beat him."
Bodybagger may indeed be capable of beating this record if he were to put his mind to it, but it seems that such an arduous task is not something Mr BB is interested in pursuing:
"No, I won't bother trying to beat that streak, too many groups enjoy attempting to take me down at the end of wars and during Torn events so I would just be wasting my time. To tell you the truth, I didn't even know that I broke his streak until you told me just the other day. It's kind of good that I did break it since it might give others the opportunity to attempt breaking the record."
With the hyper-aware nature of Torn's citizens these days, and the ease at which statistics are made available by sites such as Tornstats.com, it's hard to imagine anyone having the necessary combination of strength and subtlety needed to beat DrGonzo's tally anytime soon. But if someone were to manage it, they would do well to heed DrGonzo's advice on keeping your nose out of trouble.
"Honestly, I try to avoid the drama. For the most part, I avoid #lobby, the forums, etc. The last drama that I personally was involved would have been way back in the PT-JFK war days. The-storm put me on ignore."
"No idea what my reputation is. Low key I guess. (But) that's just me. New players should be more involved in the forums and chat so they can learn the game."
DrGonzo is not lying when he says he avoids the forums. This is a man who has posted just thirteen times in the last three years, two of which were attempts to guess the candy at Christmas, and five of them concerning a discussion of his own epic battle stats.
Clearly, DrGonzo is a man who knows how to operate in Torn City, and this is proven by the fact that he is one of only 48 people to reach level 100, with just 11 other players achieving this before him. DrGonzo also knows the value of Torn City too, having achieved the 1,000-day donator medal and maintained his status as a dedicated subscriber. But the area he has been most consistent in is his dedication to the faction which he leads alongside Z_junior - the fearsome Just Fer Killin.
"I've always been JFK, even when we were a 10 man faction. I suppose there were a few months when I first started that I was Ambulance Chasers until some other people signed up. JFK and VV merged. Nota/Me from JFK and Z_junior/Pandora from VV. We've switched out based off availability. There are others involved as well such as Hatered, who I think started JFK on Torn. Hatered, Nota, and Pandora have been preoccupied by real life or just had their interest wane."
Having been heavily involved in JFK's leadership since its merger with Vae Victis, DrGonzo has played a key part in one of the most unique factions Torn has ever seen. As well as their protracted conflicts with the likes of PT-Family and the 39th Street Killers, JFK was once notorious for using the idea of warring to make themselves a little money on the side:
"My memory isn't what it used to be and that was 10+ years ago. I did run across my old protection spreadsheet where JFK would offer protection for factions for a monthly fee. That was our money making scheme in the old, early days of Torn."
These days, JFK's main rival is Subversive Alliance, and having spoken to DrGonzo's co-leader Z_Junior (whose own Tornography will be published in the coming weeks) it seems there is a consensus among the top brass that war between these two superpowers is frighteningly imminent.
"SA is one of the best factions. Several of them have been chomping SEs like crazy. It only makes sense."
Are you and your faction prepared for war?
"Always."
DrGonzo certainly seems confident. Having previously told me of his desire to see warring in Torn have more purpose, he hinted recently that the availability of upgrades might be what eventually ignites this conflict. But after conversing with him for some time, it seems that the one thing that's kept him dedicated to Torn has nothing to do with conflict - quite the opposite in fact:
"Early on in the game, there was so much to figure out. Torn money was also a lot harder to come by. I remember saving $1m to buy a coat hanger so I could steal cars for income. And the time Hatered sent me an M16 which was better than the gun I had. Nowadays that is laughable. Today, the game is more about chatting with friends. A lot of us in JFK came from another game and have known each other online for over 15 years."
Many on the forums have complained of late about the lack of community shown in Torn City, but based on this and my other conversations with long-term players, it's clear that these friendship networks do exist, they're just not immediately apparent to those who casually browse the message boards. DrGonzo and his ilk have built these connections over years of shared effort, so for newcomers to expect to plug into that immediately seems highly unrealistic.
This sense of community is something which needs to be established by dedicated citizens with the patience and personality of people like DrGonzo. Such folk may not reap the rewards of constant forum karma, but they earn sacksful of the real thing through their clandestine cooperation and long-term strategic thinking.
Longevity and dedication are attributes which DrGonzo seems to possess in abundance, and it's something he looks for in others too. On the 23rd of February he celebrated 3,000 days of marriage to the delightful Cappucino; although, if you were expecting a romantic gesture to mark this occasion, both you and Mr Capp might be left severely disappointed:
"This was more a marriage of convenience. We married women before and they always wanted to chat and required maintenance or had drama. So we married to get the marriage merits. Capp doesn't come online and more. We probably only talk a few times a year. It's great."
Another example of DrGonzo's commitment to the long-term can be seen in the employment records of his staff at Gonzoil. Many look on enviously at the billions of dollars made every month by this ten star Oil Rig, but if anyone thinks they can emulate his success overnight by following a few guides and throwing their cash around, they would be sorely mistaken:
"I started the rig from 0 stars. It's the employees that make the rig though. I have several employees that have been in the rig 2000+ days. I'm a big Clemson college football fan. So during football season, there are bonuses for Clemson wins."
So with a successful business behind him, the leadership of a top faction established, a strong marriage in place and plenty of records and awards attained, what is left for DrGonzo to do in Torn City?
"I am trying for more awards. Currently stealing jackets for 20k thefts. I am hoping territories and the other changes will revive my interest. I mostly keep coming back because I have so much time invested already. Plus I am friends with quite a few in JFK from online gaming before Torn."
With men like DrGonzo having achieved so much already, it will be interesting to see what the city does to retain their ilk once they've run out of awards to seek. Destructive warring, raging NPCs and territory battles might provide the fuel that keeps the fires of DrGonzo and others veterans burning, but in his early days, he said it was the challenge of learning the city's nuances that kept him coming back for more.
So to round off this interview, I asked DrGonzo how the Torn City he first encountered stacks up to today's version, and what he thought his fellow citizens would be surprised to know about him:
"I think overall Torn is better. There is much more variety in game play. The economy got out of control, but is somewhat stable now."
"When I started Torn, it was just me and my dog, Duke (From Raoul Duke). Now my dog is dead, I am married, and I have three daughters. My wife and daughters occupy most of my free time now. Not much to say, I am just a hillbilly in the mountains of Tennessee."
Correction; a hillbilly with the greatest killstreak ever seen in Torn City history.
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