***ALL INTERESTED POSTERS AND READERS PLEASE READ THIS!!! MAJOR CHANGES TO THE VENDETTA GAME ARE NOTED WITH ASTERISKS AND ARE IN RED!!!***

On Thursday March 1, Salem Lives unveiled it's biggest event to date: SALEM LIVES: VENDETTA. This interactive fan event is pulling readers into Salem's biggest mystery yet. A category titled "VENDETTA" has been created on the right side of the blog. Entries will begin to be posted in that category in the weeks leading to VENDETTA to keep readers and fans well-informed of what is to come. There will also be a short post made on the main page of the Salem Lives blog to inform readers of there being a new entry in the VENDETTA area of the blog so they can go check it out. This process has already begun with the sneak preview VENDETTA clip that was posted on March 1 and the MCF appearances list, which has also been posted.

As far as the story purposes behind VENDETTA, check out the VENDETTA page of the blog for info on that when it comes available. I can tell you that the story has been happening for quite sometime as the Mysterious Cloaked Figure (MCF) has been lurking around Salem since early Fall. Only now we are building to the real story, which is finding out this person's plan and what the residents of Salem will be up against. In the weeks to come, fans will be seeing the buildup to all this. Jack, Billie, Frankie, and Greta are at the heart of the action as the four of them team up to piece together this mystery as the police and ISA are having a hard time figuring out what this cloaked figure is all about. The readers will be taken on a journey with these four characters and the police and they will help investigate the mystery on their own.

How will the fans be a part of this? Well, it's up to them. Readers will be given the opportunity to get involved in the story in a way never done before. Readers will be given the chance to play the VENDETTA GAME. The official VENDETTA event began on March 1 with a post recapping all the MCF's appearances thus far and citing the actual episode dates so now readers are able go back and look at them for clues. There is also a VENDETTA SNEAK PREVIEW clip posted for clues and to setup this event. Readers can PM me (Phoenix) or comment in the blog whether or not they want to participate in the official VENDETTA GAME. The deadline to inform me of the your participation isMarch 20 as the game is starting on Tuesday March 20.

The game has similarities to Passions' online VENDETTA event from last year. Every Tuesday and Thursday a short scene will be posted. The scene will have to do with the MCF or Jack, Billie, Greta, Frankie, or the Salem Police or ISA investigating the MCF. It will be like cutting a small piece off a full episode and posting it separate from a full episode. These short scenes are very much like the clips from the Passions online events and will show the characters working through the mystery and this will help readers gain clues and hints to the MCF mystery. Some of these scenes may also contain the MCF committing certain acts. The first scene in conjunction with the game will be posted Tuesday March 20, the first day of the game. However, the VENDETTA event officially was underway on March 1 so there was a special short scene posted to officially begin VENDETTA, as previously mentioned.

The idea is to look back at the appearances, read the short scenes, and keep up with reading the normal episodes to collect clues. The reason doing all that is important is where the main part of the game comes in. ***Due to the fact that many are busy and the original way of doing this game was very time-consuming for all involved, the game has been changed. Ten players is the limit for this gane so please do let me know ASAP. The way the game will be played now is those readers who choose to participate in the game will have to comment as much as they can in the blog. The more a reader comments, the better. Why? Well, the reason is simple. The 5 top commenters during a period of Sunday-Saturday will get the upper hand in recieving clues to the MCF's identity and plan. They will also recieve points. The top commenter gets 5 points, the second 4, the third 3, the fourth 2, and the fifth 1. There will also be an opportunity to answer 3-5 trivia questions every week as a way of getting bonus points to help game players catch up to the pack and maybe even move up in the standings. The questions will be based on the Salem Lives episodes from the week that just ended and will be posted every Saturday night in the SL INSIDER. The answers will be due every Tuesday as that is the day the first short scene of the week is posted. The game players will be judged on correct answers and how fast they PM me the answers. The game player with the most correct answers and who submitted in the quickest time will be given additional points to add to their overall score. The highest amount of points possible are 10 points so the winner of the trivia challenge for the week will get the ten points and since there are ten players the 9th place finisher in the challenge will get 9 points, the 8th place player will get 8, and so on. Right before the next Tuesday clip is revealed, I will post the overall scores for the game. This will the comments score and the trivia score combined. The overal first place winner for that week will recieve a level one clue by PM. The 2nd and 3rd place winners for the week will be given Level 2 and 3 clues. There are 3 levels of clues in the game.

Level 1= Major clue (as in short clip scene, MCF letter written to a character, etc).

Level 2= Big clue (as in picture of a character, past episode clip, etc)

Level 3= Minor Clue (as in a riddle, something vague)

The goal is to get to first place every week as it gives you the best clue or, at least get in the top 3 each week to get a clue. Clues will be PMed to the top 3 winners every Tuesday. The game will work by this system until June 3. On that date, the game will take a one week break and will return for the second half of the game on June 14. The game will reach a new level as some game players with low total scores will be eliminated and the 5 finalists decided. Scores will be posted in the SL Insider every Saturday. The second part of the game will focus on the buildup to the grand finale of the MCF mystery. More info on that as that time draws near.***

Now why would anyone want to be a part of this? Well, on June 3, the top 5 players in terms of score will be announced as being written into the blog as minor characters during a big event. The portrayers of the characters will be decided by Roman and I but the 5 finalists will be asked for input. The higher your score, the bigger your character's involvement in the event. You will be given the chance to name your character as well. Then, when the game reaches it's end in summer, the overall winner will be revealed in the final Trivia Challenge which will ask the game finalists to reveal their guess for who the MCF is. The overall winner in terms of score will then be able to decide who the character created in their honor will interact with, some of what the character does, and will see their character play a part in a story that will be featured in the aftermath of the VENDETTA event. The winner will also be given a big surprise that will be revealed at the end of the game.

More updates and details will be posted in the blog, in the VENDETTA SONBC THREAD, and in the VENDETTA area of the blog as we go along. REMEMBER, THE VENDETTA GAME BEGINS MARCH 20. YOU MUST LET ME KNOW VIA PM OR COMMENTING IN THIS BLOG IF YOU WILL BE PARTICIPATING IN THE VENDETTA GAME AND TRIVIA CHALLENGE BY MARCH 20.

Also, be on the lookout for more VENDETTA info and story info pertaining to VENDETTA in the VENDETTA blog category. Again, I will post on the main page of the Salem Lives blog and in the SONBC discussion thread whenever new info is on the VENDETTA area so you all can go into the blog and into the category to read it. If you have any questions, please comment in the blog or PM me and I will get back to you as soon as I can. I know some may sound complicated here but I think this is fun and a great way to get readers involved in the action. Oh, and a note to readers of Salem Lives who end up not playing the game, YOU CAN STILL BE INVOLVED BY READING THE VENDETTA INFO AND SHORT SCENES IN THE VENDETTA AREA OF THE BLOG. REMEMBER, THE SHORT SCENES ARE BASICALLY SCENES TO FILL IN THE BLANKS LEFT DURING THE NORMAL DAILY EPISODES AND TO HELP THE MYSTERY ALONG FOR EVERYONE, NOT JUST GAME PLAYERS. JUST WANTED TO SAY THAT SO THOSE THAT DON'T PLAY DON'T GET LEFT OUT.