MIRAGE99.NFO 컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴 Today is December 31, 1993 .. and tomorrow, as is the tradition, I'll be conjuring up a list of new year's resolutions which will contain the usual bullshit resolving to study 9 hours a night, run 23 miles every morning, stop picking on R.Noble .. and, as is the tradition, I'll have broken them by the next day [Sorry R.Noble]. The coming of the new year is also a time for tying loose ends, wiping the record clean, defragging the human hard drive as it were. It all seemed like the perfect time .. to announce the official and permanent archiving of Mirage Designs. When I originally began compiling this file I had written a several page report on the history of the organization .. then decided against it. Instead, I'm opting to include just some of my abstract thoughts of the time, detail a little insight behind the Mirage concept and give out a few thanks, shouts and ever else. For those closely affiliated with the organization, this was a day long foreshadowed, where the question wasn't so much "will Mirage die" as it was "when will Mirage die". When Mirage was originally shaped I had a dream of what I wanted it to be, it was going to be different .. succinctly put, the artist would make up Mirage, rather than have Mirage make the artist. I wanted the group to be a collective association of personalities and talent, more of a loosely knit collage rather than a rigid company. This would be a contact for artists looking for distribution, advice, or project partners. There would be no regulated charge for production of graphics, the artist would maintain personal choice over the matter. No quotas .. production was to be a result of the artist's desire to create, rather than one of pressure. With time, it all began to change, as it became just another graphics group, and that's not what we had set out to do .. because as everyone knows, there are more than enough generic groups running around the scene. As of this time, I've been variably in and out of the scene, and of recent, more often out than in .. and everytime I came back in, it was in an attempt to revitalize a slacking Mirage. To keep an organization such as this running at a certain quality takes a lot of time and dedication, some- thing I found I was no longer able to give. Many other of primary membership had the same loss of inspiration .. for us it had lost it's luster. When you call your first boards, the scene is a place of mystery and wonder. Everyone want's to be the first to get 10,000 elite points and win .. but realization later comes that it's not all you expected, and often less. During my time I met a lot of great people, as well as a share of that, well let's just say weren't so great. I feel with the departure of the organization that I began just a litte over 3 years ago, that's it time for me to take a personal leave as well .. an extended hiatus from the national pirate scene. As they say, it was the best of times .. it was the worst of times .. now I'm closing the book on one of the most celebrated graphics groups in the short but ever changing time that we've all been around. -- Kaska �. Kaska [Mirage Founder] 컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴 Air Jordan : Admittedly, he never joined Mirage, but if he had, I'm sure I would've thanked him right here .. Agent 86 : An invaluable help both to the organization and myself. Yet another entry that will probably never be read, but if you happen to see this in Vegas or wherever yer at, drop me a line. Beez : One of the original three members, and you're still around .. along the way you've become one hell of an artist. Black Night : You organized the best courier system we ever had in Mirage, just too bad we were never able to implement it to its full effect .. maybe if we had you in the early days of the group. Bruce Lee : Just thought It'd be kewl to put him in here as well .. Crushed Ice : A G. Washington without the artistic talent Deadman X : iCE vs. Mirage on The Citadel .. damn, those were the days I still think about. Y'all can count that someday I'll make it out there again. Dragonbait : Your first .NFO file .. our very unofficial courier, scout, and all around kewl guy. Force Ten : NOW I'll merge wit ya .. Frozen T : Founder of iCE .. there were rumors around, but you always shot me straight. Luck wherever ya are .. G. Washington : The hardest working man in the organization, as well as one the best artists ever to hit the scene. Another vital piece of the rise of Mirage .. and as we've learned, certain people can't be replaced. Drop me a line when yer available .. Kafka K : Second kewlest name in the scene .. it was all about Social D's graphics that inspired my ANSI start. Lady in Black : Our un-official President of the Mirage fan club .. never did get Tempus, but it was enjoyable. Loki : Looks like LoL will outlast Mirage .. it wasn't for long, but the time you were around was valued. Metalhead : Though I don't give you as much credit for the group as Ren does, can't deny what could've been with "The Next Legacy" Mind Bomb : Wassup dewd .. volleyball anyone? Porizkova : Damn .. wish she was in Mirage .. Poseidon : Another Florida kid who thinks he can ball .. also the most productive VGA artist we ever had. Psylocke : Smoke Pot; Hail our leige Satan; Down with Communist Regime. R.Noble/Ren : Probably the person who's had the most influence on my life within the scene. Also, in my mind one of the best artists to come around, because everything he's done was completely original. And no .. can't say it wasn't fun. Ricochet : My San Leandro information source .. can only wonder what may have been if we got you involved back as Silk Slam Dunk : How many basketball players we got in Florida anyway? I'll check ya too .. Snibble : Miss those conversations en francais .. you also had some of the best coding I've ever seen. TANK : Same as always, thanks for RPM. Tempus Thales : I always thought that we had you right on the verge of coming over to the group. Still think that you're one of the best artists around, but I doubt if your basketball skills could match .. I'm gonna school ya someday Terminator2 : Seems a shame that we picked you up when the group was going downhill .. g'luck wherever ya go. TGiTM/Dodger : blah .. whatever happened to those application generators? Zandorf : Guess it was just something that was never able to get up off the ground again .. 컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴 And now, a real concise listing of anyone who was ever a part of the Mirage membership .. I'd like to thank all for their contribution. Atomic Playboy:Bad Karma:Beez:Black Ire:Black Night:Black Spyrit:Black Wolf:: The Black Legend:Bookwyrm:Captain Kaos:The Carnage:Cobalt:Coin Master:Cool T: Crushed Ice:Cue:Cyber X:The Dark Servant:Dark Wolfe:Dead End:Deep Freeze::::: Desolation:Dodger:Don Quixote:Dr. Freeze:Dr. Jekyl:Dreamevil:The Drow:Faust:: Flag:Fusion:G. Washington:Iceman:Icy:Igniter:Kafka Kierkegaard:Killer:Kronos: Logan:Loki:Magical Gangster:Malcolm X:Maltar:Metal Head:MicroFarad::::::::::: The Morbid One:Mr. Brownstone:Mystic Knight:Nhim:Nightblade:Outlawr:::::::::: Paul Muad'dib:Pnakotic:Poseidon:Prometheus:Pyro:Rasitlin:R.Noble:Razor::::::: Regurgitated Fluff:Ricochet:Samurai Sam:Shihear Kallizad:Slammer:Slyboy:::::: Soulforger:Terminator2:THX:Toxic Marshmallow:Vito:Vlad Drac:Voivod:Weapon X:: The Weeze:Zandorf:Zero:Zirkoid::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: 컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴 " We wanted to end on a positive note, so here's our biggest pack ever .. " " Frank Tire Pros / 2310 El Camino Real / Redwood City, CA / 415-3O6-9394 " " Golden State Warriors to win it all from '94 on .. " " iCE - ACiD .. all yours " " so .. anyways .. " " .. ya .. " " . " " To be a champion you have to believe in yourself when no one else will " - Sugar Ray Leonard 컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴컴 Mirage Designs (c)1993 going on '94 - Elite has been successfully redefined ..