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Want Your Kid to Get a Sports Scholarship? Teach Them This Sport
When people think about college sports that will get them or their children into school for a healthy scholarship, they probably think about major sports like basketball, baseball, football, or soccer. Perhaps there is also some thought about volleyball and field hockey.
However, there is another sport that is making waves at the college ranks, and it may not be one that the average sports fan thinks of often.
So, what is this sport?
According to CollegeScholarships.org, Fencing is a lucrative sport to look into for parents who want their children's' gifts to be used to pay for college. It is not a new sport by any stretch of the imagination. It dates back in many forms to ancient civilizations. After all, it is essentially a for-sport version of sword-fighting. Fencing as we know it, however, began during the end of the 19th century.
It is an individual sport, although the individuals may be broken up into teams, and it judges the competitors based on their swordsmanship. The reason that it is a good sport for potential scholarships is that it is a very specific sport which, while not as big as the others, has some interest that schools are supporting athletes.
Fencing scholarships
Uniqueness makes some sports something of a novelty. While fencing isn't on your average ESPN broadcast, it is a popular enough sport to be in the Olympics. A bonus, according to CollegeScholarships.com, is that fencing offers monetary rewards in non-college competitions. This means there is earning potential for avid fencers that may be hard to come by even from athletes in the more popular sports.
Nine out of the top ten schools in the country have fencing programs, so the skill could have academic benefits for those who are willing to put in the time and effort that is needed to get to that level.
NCAA Scholarships
Currently, the NCAA has sponsored 34 men's division fencing teams in division I and II and 43 between the two in women's fencing. Division 1 schools are allowed five women's scholarships and four-and-a-half scholarships for men's programs. That four-and-a-half number is also the limit for Division II schools.
The scholarships are given to the best of the best, so there may be stiff competition, but those who are interested, motivated, and skilled enough can take a path that isn't always thought of to their education and possibly beyond.
An economist's point of view
On a recent episode of the podcast Freakonomics, economist Steve Levitt explained why fencing is such a good idea. Levitt sees fencing as a good path for those who don't necessarily want a career in athletics but want to scholarships that come with being one.
"The answer, I think, is you want your kid to be a fencer," Levitt said. "Okay, now you might say that sounds crazy college fencing even exists. And the answer is there turn out to be exactly 46 schools that have fencing. But the correlation between quality of school and having a fencing team is incredibly high."
Levitt also points to the other scholarships can get besides the normal one, and while fencing isn't a shoo-in for the young athlete, their chances of getting into one of the nation's top schools are 15x greater as a fencer as they are if they are trying to get in on sheer academics. Statistically speaking, this is not just a reckless claim.
Other sports may come with the glitz and grammar, but for those who care more about the quality of education and the school where they may receive it, the benefits of fencing should not be ignored. Nothing comes easy, but parents who have this in mind would be smart to explore fencing possibilities in their area.


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Fast loans from Freedom Cash Lenders can provide quick cash for emergencies and other short-term borrowing needs. Compare rates,terms and learn more.
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Know what you will have to pay in full. It is easy to want the money and think you'll deal with the fees later, but the fees do pile up. Demand a list of all fees that you are held responsible for, from the lender. Take this step prior to even applying for a cash loan and you won't end up paying back more than you should.
If you have to use a cash loan because of an emergency, or unexpected event, understand that many people are put in an unfavorable position by doing this. If you do not use them responsibly, you could wind up in a cycle that you cannot get out of. You could be in debt to the cash loan company for a very long time.
If you are thinking that you may have to default on a cash loan, think again. The loan companies collect a large amount of data from you about things like your employer, and your address. They will harass you continually until you get the loan paid off. It is better to borrow from family, sell things, or do whatever else it takes to just pay the loan off, and move on.
Before getting a cash loan, it is important that you learn of the different types of available so you know, which are the nice for you. Certain cash loans have different policies or requirements than others, so look on the Internet to figure out which one is right for you.
Be very clear on exactly when your cash loan needs to be fully paid off. When you take out a cash loan, mark it on your calendar, and understand the interest rate. Therefore, you need to be sure that you pay back your loan in full on, or before, the agreed payback date.
It is nice to deal with a payday lender who offers direct deposit. This will give you the funds immediately, without delay. This is convenient and safe since you don't have to carry a lot of cash with you in this case.
Make sure that you know how, and when you will pay off your loan before you even get it. Have the loan payment worked into your budget for your next pay periods. Then you can guarantee you pay the money back. If you cannot repay it, you will get stuck paying a loan extension fee, on top of additional interest.
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Between so many bills and so little work available, sometimes we really have to juggle to make ends meet. Become a well-educated consumer as you examine your options, and if you discover that a Freedom Cash Lenders Reviews is your nice solution, make sure you know all the details and terms before you sign on the dotted line.

subset: commoncrawl


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Add Zone For You
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Please email email@example.com if you have any questions or to request a quote. We really hope you find what you're looking for and discover a few things on the way.
|Sep 23 '20


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Discover how much of a difference it makes to work with a partner that's a fixture in the AT&T Solution Provider program. At MME, we're always focused on finding solutions to the problems you face. That's what sets our AT&T consulting services apart from the competition.
How Working With an AT&T Solution Provider Can Change Your Business
Outdated internet solutions. Data services that are slow and cannot keep up with the demand of your business. These are all issues our customers face on a regular basis. But when you already have enough on your plate as is, how can you possibly hope to find the time to make meaningful changes to your technology infrastructure?
That's where having an experienced consultant comes in handy. When you work with MME, you not only gain access to a full suite of services including telecom billing, consulting, and other solutions, but you also gain access to AT&T's best-in-class solutions that MME can offer as an AT&T Solution Provider. As an experienced partner with over twenty years working with AT&T, we know how to leverage their dynamic, industry-leading solutions such as FirstNet, high-speed internet options, and wireless broadband, and integrate them into your infrastructure.
In this blog, we'll talk about what sets apart our services from a conventional telecom solution provider, and how collaborating with an AT&T Solution Provider is one of the easiest ways to upgrade your company's technology.
What Solutions Does MME Offer From AT&T?
Why does the partnership between MME and AT&T make so much sense? Because we both have the same primary goal: delivering intuitive, simple solutions that align closely with customers' processes. Every solution we offer from AT&T is geared toward fixing stubborn technology issues, including:
With a contractual commitment to meeting 99.99% of AT&T's end-to-end availability, FirstNet is an incredibly effective, beneficial tool for first responders. With its own 24x7x365 Security Operations Center and end-to-end encryption, FirstNet also has its own dedicated network and can offer priority and preemption to ensure quick response times.
We wouldn't be an effective advocate on behalf of our customers if we didn't try to find them the best options for their unique situations. Our partnership with AT&T allows our team the access and insight we need to make sure the solution we procure, install, and maintain for your company is the right choice. With a wide range of internet options, we're confident we can find one that fits seamlessly with your needs. We provide internet solutions including:
- High-speed internet
- AT&T dedicated internet
- AT&T wireless internet
- AT&T fixed wireless for business
- AT&T wireless broadband
Every decision you make for your technology should have one essential goal in mind: to simplify and improve your processes. When you work with MME, we make sure that every AT&T solution we deliver for your company is installed with that same sense of purpose.
You're focused on the task at hand; shouldn't you have a partner that makes sure everything else is essentially taken care of? We didn't become an AT&T Solution Provider because of the status—we've nurtured that relationship because it puts us in the best position possible to deliver superior results for our clients. Our consulting options give our customers the most access to the highest-quality solutions, many of which are available from AT&T. Our consulting services include options for:
What Do You Need to Succeed?
There's no one-size-fits-all solution that makes sense for every company, even if the problems you face are relatively similar. You need something that works specifically for you—your personnel, your infrastructure, and your budget. With MME as a vocal advocate for your success, we're confident that we can cut through the background noise and deliver solutions that fit seamlessly with your company. For more information on how we can use our partnership with AT&T to your company's advantage, reach out to our team today.


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I am Brian Niccol, President of Taco Bell. Today is the biggest launch in Taco Bell history as we bring breakfast to America. AMA!
As President, I have the absolute best job because I get to connect with Taco Bell's customers and restaurant team members every day. Live Más.
Proof: http://imgur.com/E7x2dJn
Edit: Guys, I have to go over to Huffington Post Live now. I love the passion and the questions were fun. I will try to answer a few more later. See you at the Bell! Thank you!
fritzly3494 karma
Hey Brian! Mod of /r/trees here. Our users love your food. We were hoping you might be interested in supporting reddit by advertising on our sub.
(just a reminder 4/20 is coming up)
Thanks for the gold guys!
RealTacoBell3588 karma
I'm glad you love our food. What's 4/20?
GobiasBlunke3333 karma
Let Pepsi release Baja Blast into the wild. It's for the good of mankind.
RealTacoBell3388 karma
Stay tuned!
bordss3199 karma
Only to America? When is this coming to Canada?
RealTacoBell5773 karma
When you take Justin Bieber back.
whoa_yall3176 karma
How much have your sales increased in Colorado since the legalization of marijuana?
RealTacoBell4610 karma
420% (But seriously what is 4/20?)
Asidious663122 karma
What do you think of this? http://i.imgur.com/pGxQt1a.jpg
RealTacoBell3898 karma
That is a poorly made Waffle Taco and should not happen. I'm sorry. Private message me and we will make it right.
_nosaj_2557 karma
Taco Bell always has dope ass commercials.
RealTacoBell3047 karma
Thanks. I will pass that along to a lot of great people.
thetruepunk2285 karma
I was in a test Market for your breakfast 4 or 5 years ago and you had an Item that had Guacamole and potatoes in it. Do you think more items like this will be coming? Thanks for breakfast this morning, was awesome!
Edit: Thanks for the Gold. Edit2: /u/lolzergrush Thanks for calling me out.
RealTacoBell2661 karma
We agree the food is awesome. Not sure everyone in America is ready for guacamole at breakfast.
cheeseheadfoamy2073 karma
Is there some type of dream food you would want to add to the menu, but haven't had a chance to yet?
Thank you for doing the AMA, it's always interesting to see what an executive thinks.
Edit: terminology
RealTacoBell3758 karma
ExaminedPear1839 karma
what's the worst thing about being the president of Taco Bell?
RealTacoBell2947 karma
It is the greatest job ever. Only thing better would be the CEO...
thoughtsfornow1750 karma
Brian! Thanks for the AMA! I am a 3-time-per-week Taco Bell consumer, and I wanted to know when the next sauce caption contest is coming. I got some winners...
RealTacoBell2177 karma
Private message Taco Bell on Reddit because we do have some new sauce packets coming. Would love your opinion.
I_smell_awesome1661 karma
What's your favorite kind of soup?
RealTacoBell2627 karma
Tortilla soup, of course.
Oh, and I_smell_awesome too.
_warning1389 karma
How does Taco Bell seek to keep menu items consistent between locations? Sometimes, burritos and tacos are great, but at other locations, they really suffer. I still love it 90% of the time, but the consistency makes me wonder sometimes.
RealTacoBell1600 karma
Sorry about that. We are trying to have orders be correct 100% of the time and when there are mistakes, we want to correct as quickly as possible.
mailzz1330 karma
Please recognize the Hadley, MA Taco Bell for its great employees and food. My buddy and I had breakfast there today and it was the best Bell experience I've ever had.
RealTacoBell1269 karma
Thank you for sharing, that is terrific. I will pass that along!
tokyofightsback943 karma
No question, just a heartfelt request. Please bring back the Bellbeefer!
RealTacoBell1620 karma
I'm terribly sorry. That is not happening anytime soon.
nmagod916 karma
Can you tell me why most fast food chains serve ONLY breakfast until a certain hour, and will you be avoiding this ridiculous policy? Sometimes I just want a damn big mac at 7am, I don't see why this should be impossible.
RealTacoBell1273 karma
We would love to serve Breakfast all day, but in order to make the food great and get you in and out quickly we need to serve from 7am until 11am. Just so you know, you can get anything you love on the Taco Bell menu beginning at 9am or 10am depending where you live.
GodBeard774 karma
Hey, really nice that you're taking the time to do this!
I always think of Mexican food as a great genre for breakfast- take Huevos Rancheros, for instance, or Chilaquiles. Sadly, Taco Bell breakfast looks very similar to McDonald's- a waffle wrapped around sausage? Another sausage egg burrito? A Crunchwrap with what looks like the contents of a... sausage egg burrito? Why bother to go to Taco Bell for breakfast for any reason other than it happens to be closer than another fast food place?
RealTacoBell1182 karma
We are just getting started with the breakfast menu. Have you had a Cinnabon Delight or AM Crunchwrap yet? It may change your mind.
Frajer716 karma
Is it fair to say that the average Taco Bell visitor is a 18-34 year old man?
RealTacoBell2050 karma
None of our customers are average. We have a lot of young males and females that come to Taco Bell. Its more about living mas.
ColombianBamBam652 karma
How does one get invited to these Taco Bell parties or get togethers...like friendsgiving for example (I believe that was the name of it)?
RealTacoBell733 karma
Keep tweeting!
alan_gre3nspan559 karma
What's really in your "meat"?
RealTacoBell1446 karma
This is going to surprise you... our beef is beef with wonderful seasonings and I eat it every day.
davidsmeaton506 karma
Hi there Mr Niccol. I have a question and a link that you might find interesting.
Question: Does Taco Bell support the current push for legalization of marijuana? I figured it might be something you guys would have a vested interest in :)
Link: Taco Bell's breakfast menu is being discussed on Reddit's front page right now. The man who posted the photos was not impressed with the quality of food.
Thanks for doing the AMA. It's great to see business people share their knowledge online.
Edit 1: I suspected he might dodge the question ;) Edit 2: Muchos Gracias for the gold, anonymous benefactor. May your Taco Bell Burritos always be hot, and your ass not! :)
RealTacoBell2277 karma
We make tacos, not laws.
Outlaw_Raven369 karma
Do you plan to expand the breakfast menu at all, in the future?
RealTacoBell605 karma
People love the Taco Bell Breakfast menu and there is definitely more to come. In fact, there are a few new breakfast items in test right now.
Sodazooka258 karma
Does anybody actually win the iPad if they take the survey on the back of the receipt?
RealTacoBell333 karma
Yes you can. You can find the list of the winners on our website.
larry15256 karma
Were there obstacles when you were creating the breakfast menu?
RealTacoBell434 karma
We had to have a menu that consumers would love, would be a terrific value, and our Team Members could execute flawlessly every time.
TheGnarleyGoat51 karma
Hi Brian. No question. Just a simple thank for a lifetime of great good that has helped to create an even better fanbase. (;
RealTacoBell46 karma
Thank you!


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There's no doubt Kim Karadashian has mastered the art of the selfie–she knows how to work her angles and always seems to find the perfect lighting for double-tap worthy photos on Instagram. But in an interview with Harper's Bazaar, Mrs. West reveals that she works hard for that body, too.
"My workouts are usually about an hour, maybe an hour and 15 minutes total, but I like to mix them up," says the Keeping Up With the Kardashians star. "Running takes me about 35 minutes on the trails, and then I'll come back and work my abs or legs. I like to listen to music while I work out, but I don't need it to pump me up or get energized," she added. According to the article, Kim K prefers to have a chef cook her meals because it's healthier, "Lately it's been fish and vegetables, or chicken and vegetables, something like that."
Another tip: The reality star says she usually only drinks coffee once per month. Yes, you read that right! And thanks to Kanye's influence, she also changes her diet every 10 days.
Is this a little too extreme for you? Check out how you can get a rockin' bod one step at a time below!
5 Basic Workouts for Fitness Newbies
If you've never been active, here's a great way to get started.
7 Ways to Maximize Your Gym Time
You paid premium price for that membership, so you might as well make the most of it.
5 Ways to Boost Weight Loss
Feel like you're waiting forever for results? We show you how to speed things up!
So This is How You Become a Healthy Eater
Trade your greasy pizza for a bowl of delicious salad.
PHOTO: Instagram @kimkardashian


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Kathmandu, 15th May 2014: Underlining its superiority over the rest of the South Asian teams, India cruised to its second straight win in the 3rd South Asian Basketball Association (SABA) Championship 2014 underway in Kathmandu, Nepal. After its crushing opening win over Bangladesh yesterday, incredibly India went one step ahead today in dismantling Sri Lanka 97-30.
Making full use of his deep bench, Indian Head Coach Scott Flemming utilised all twelve of his players yet again, with the result that multiple Indian players scored in double digits. Just like the previous match against Bangladesh, today too, India's pestering man to man defense restricted its opponents to less than 40 points in the game. In classical textbook fashion, defense converted into offense with the result that India scored a bulk of its points through easy transition layups. Sri Lankan players were left huffing and puffing against a much more physically imposing Indian line up. Tomorrow, India plays Nepal in what promises to be a cracker of a contest, especially considering the vociferous home support that the Himalayan nation has enjoyed throughout this competition.
Detailed Results
India 97 (Amjyot Singh 15)bt Sri Lanka 30 (Fernado Rosh 8) [Scoring in each quarter: 20-4; 26-9; 21-7; 30-10]
Upcoming Schedule for India matches
Friday, 16th May 2014, 2:00 PM (Nepal time): India vs Nepal
Saturday, 17th May 2014, 11:00 AM (Nepal time): Maldives vs India
About the 3rd South Asian Basketball Association (SABA) Championship 2014
The tournament, which began on 13th May will conclude on the 17t, and is being played on a round robin league format. Five South Asian teams— depending champions Bangladesh, hosts Nepal, Bangladesh and the island nations of Sri Lanka and Maldives are in the fray. The team with the best record at the end of this championship after four matches, will progress from the South Asian region to the Asia Cup tentatively scheduled for mid-July in Wuhan (China).


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Antifa terrorists rioted and rampaged across American cities for months.
These left-wing insurgents finally met their match.
And this video of police rescuing Antifa at a biker rally will leave you speechless.
South Dakota hosted the famed Sturgis Motorcycle Rally this month despite the coronavirus pandemic and the fake news media trying to scare Americans into not gathering.
The state's Republican Governor Kristi Noem rejected the fake news media fear mongering and did not shut down her state, nor did she impose a mask mandate.
Governor Noem's approach paid off as South Dakota's had the best response to coronavirus in the entire country.
Every year, hundreds of thousands of motorcycle riders gather in Sturgis the first Friday of every August for a ten-dayrally and celebration of bike culture.
Bikers ride to Sturgis from across the country and the biggest crowd ever was 739,000 in 2015, and this year despite the pandemic, the event drew just under 500,000 attendees.
But bikers looking to have fun and reconnect with friends from across the country were not the only ones in attendance.
Some scrawny Antifa punks showed up to cause trouble.
And trouble was what they found.
One of the Antifa goons kicked a motorcycle as it drove past a crowd.
That is a giant "no no."
Bikers immediately swarmed the suddenly panicked Antifa troublemakers and it looked like a couple of members of Antifa were about to get a taste of justice.
That's when police jumped in to save the terrorists from a beating the likes of which they had never seen.
"The demonstrators were allowed to conduct their demonstration in the middle of the 1st Block of Main Street where there were no motorcycles parked. After approximately 45 minutes, one demonstrator, Drew Wishon, 23 years old, from Rapid City, kicked a motorcyclist as he was passing by. Officers placed Wishon under arrest for Disorderly Conduct and he was removed from the scene. Due to the safety of everyone involved, it was decided that the demonstrators would be escorted from the area and no longer allowed to demonstrate. Officers escorted the demonstrators from the area and they left town," a Sturgis Police Department statement on the matter read.
You can watch the video at the bottom of this article.
Nine #Antifa fools thought to protest in #Sturgis🤦♀
The stupidest person on the planet kicked a biker.
Notice who saved his life – the police – whom they want to abolish.
The stupidest person on the planet was arrested, and the other 8 escorted out of town by police. pic.twitter.com/P1IQVd7sZR
— Mary K (@marykinva) August 16, 2020
If you want Great American Daily to keep you up to date on any new developments in this ongoing story and the rest of the breaking news in politics, please bookmark our site, consider making us your homepage and forward our content with your friends on social media and email.


text: Mesopotamia was in turmoil during the third millennium BCE. The conquest of Sargon the Great resulted in the formation of the world's first great empire. Akkad grew to be one of the world's largest cities, and northern and southern Mesopotamia were united for the first time in history. Enheduanna, Sargo of Akkad's daughter, is a fascinating character in this historical setting.


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N-tech research (previously NanoMarkets) provides market research and industry analysis for the advanced materials and emerging energy and electronics markets.
N-tech provides reports covering OLED lighting, OLED encapsulation, OLED materials and more. You can find n-tech's latest OLED-related reports here.
Company Address
PO Box 3840
PO Box 3840
Glen Allen, VA 23058
United States


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Citywide Bike Festival & Rodeo Scheduled for Sunday, May 19
Citywide Bike Festival & Rodeo Scheduled for Sunday, May 19
Otis Elementary School, 3010 Fillmore St., will play host to the sixth annual Alameda Bike Festival & Rodeo set for Sunday, May 19, from noon to 3 p.m. Everyone is invited to this family friendly event with the goal to inspire, educate and encourage bicycle riding.
The Alameda Bike Festival & Rodeo is a project by Alameda County Safe Routes to Schools and the Alameda Safe Routes to School Task Force in partnership with Alameda Unified School District, Alameda Recreation and Parks Department, the City of Alameda, Kiwanis Club of Alameda and the Alameda Elks Lodge.
Festival activities include: free bicycle tune-ups, a bike rodeo to practice skills and drills, discussions of planned bike improvements around the Island and a helmet and bike decoration station.
Local cyclists can receive helmet fittings and safety equipment giveaways of bells, lights or reflectors, and learn about BikeLink eLockers and sign up for a card.
Other features include bike-blended smoothies, the bicycle trivia wheel, free raffle prizes from local businesses including a bike donated by Alameda Bicycle and even a taco truck.
Pre-festival free bicycle education classes have been set for new riders. A family cycling workshop will take place from 9:30 a.m. to noon. Parents with children in second through sixth grades are invited to attend together, both with their own bikes and helmets. Youth attendees receive free reflective vests.
A learn to ride class will be held from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. to help riders advance past training wheels or learn how to ride a bicycle for the first time. Bring a bike, helmet and a dash of courage. One adult per family required, one adult per child recommended. Bicycles and helmets required. Email firstname.lastname@example.com for any specific needs.
Registration for the classes is preferred but drop-ins are welcome. To register or for more information, visit www.bikeeastbay.org/FCW. Learn more about the festival at www.alamedabikes.com.


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MoU Signing on Promotion of Industry Collaboration between ASIAN-AFRICAN and SLOVAC REPUBLIC
The Asian-African Chamber of Commerce & Industry (AACCI) and Indian Chamber of Commerce in Slovakk Republic (INDCHAM) signed the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on 22 November 2018 during Innovation Summit at Chennai.
The MOU was signed by Dr G D Singh, Founder & Chairman, AACCI and Rakesh Taurani, President & CEO, INDCHAM.
Under the MOU, AACCI & INDCHAM will strengthen business relations and develop reciprocal Co-operation and to establish a practical framework to facilitate the development of stronger business relations between the two Chambers.
AACCI & INDCHAM will develop strong institutional, trade and business relations between themselves, in order to establish a sustainable mechanism of dialogue and platform for discussions.
The signing of this MOU enables the two chambers to institutionalize the industrial collaboration mechanism and platform, which, in turn, helps to enhance closer ties in the fields of industry, investment and technical cooperation on an equal and mutually-beneficial basis. This will be instrumental in assisting Asian-African & Slovak Republic companies to tap the ever-growing global market and create business opportunities.


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10 Things to Consider When Hiring an E-commerce Marketing Agency
Choosing to work with an agency is a big stepping stone for any eCommerce business.Hiring an agency is a large investment and a long-term commitment, so it's natural if you are contemplating the idea with a little trepidation.
They are so many eCommerce agencies to choose from, each as impressive as the other, each promising to help you grow your company and help you turn your eCommerce business into the perfect success story.
With all those promises on offer, how can you possibly pick the best agency for your business?
Well, there is a simple and stress-free way to find the right agency, and it's all about knowing what to prioritize. Here are the ten things you must consider before deciding on an eCommerce marketing agency.
1. What Stage of Growth Is Your Business In?
Most eCommerce businesses fall into one ofMost eCommerce businesses fall into one of three stages of growth:
Startup or Early Stage
When you are just starting, your priority is creating a strong brand and a functional store. You'll be looking to use marketing tools and strategies that will help drive traffic to your store.
Established but Plateauing
If you have an established business, you'll want to focus on improving conversions from the traffic you already receive. You will need marketing tools and campaigns that attract a broader audience.
If you are looking to expand your store, you might need to create a more feature-rich eCommerce website that will help you compete against more famous brands.
At this stage, you could also be thinking about adding other features to support your expansion, such as different language and currency options.
When hiring an agency, ask what their experience is with other eCommerce businesses in the same growth phase as yours. All companies have different priorities, so work with an agency that understands how to align with yours.
2. Your Platform
What eCommerce platform your website runs on is an important aspect to keep in mind when choosing an eCommerce agency. Here are the most well-known eCommerce platforms on the market currently:
- Shopify
- WooCommerce
- Magento
- Wix
- BigCommerce
If your eCommerce platform is a bespoke build, look for an agency with the right technical skills in that programming language, plus experience in similar eCommerce websites.
If you want to know how to choose an eCommerce marketing agency, see if they are an accredited eCommerce partner with your preferred platform.
You could also look at whether they have accreditations for marketing tools and apps that your business uses on your website, for example, Google or Privy.
3. What Is the Vision for Your Brand?
By 2020, there were over 20 million eCommerce websites globally. And that number is growing by the day as advances in technology break down the barriers to launching a new online store.
With so much competition, how can you ensure your website stands out?
The answer is to focus on creating a stunning brand.
Building the right brand means having a detailed understanding of your audience. When they land on your website, your brand should immediately connect with them on a deep and emotional level.
A great brand has a voice and a personality. It should align with the type of customer you want to attract to your store. If you get branding right, you'll earn customer loyalty, whatever new competition launches in the market.
Focus on finding an eCommerce agency that understands the importance of the right brand. Check that they can work with your business to create a vision that reflects what you need and what your target customers want to see.
4. What Are Your Medium and Long-Term Business Priorities?
Before choosing an eCommerce agency, spend time looking at your business strategy. Gain clarity on your priorities for the immediate and long term direction of your business.
Many eCommerce agencies are multi-service, which means they specialize in several different areas such as marketing, SEO, or branding.
What you want for your eCommerce website comes from translating your broader business strategy into discrete business goals. Those goals will help you understand what services you need from an outside agency.
For example, maybe your goal for the next 12 months is to double your email list. You might want to focus on an agency that offers support for list building, such as experience in implementing list-building apps.
Conversely, if you have a marketing strategy that incorporates marketing promotions on social media, perhaps find an agency that can help you with that challenge.
An agency with the services and expertise your business needs to grow will help you create the technology and the marketing to meet your business targets now and in the future.
5. SEO Expertise
No marketing channel can beat google when it comes to converting traffic into sales.
Recent studies have shown that SEO referrals accounted for 65% of eCommerce traffic in 2019, and 33% of all traffic came from organic search results. What's more, conversion rates for this type of traffic was 14.6%.
In other words, no eCommerce business can ignore SEO. Not if you want to grow your business in 2021 and beyond.
Think about the importance of an eCommerce marketing agency with expertise in SEO before selecting the right support for your business:
Google Partners
Google has a partnership program. These are companies certified by Google for their expertise in the platform. Look out for the certification badge on the agency's website.
Proven Results
Look for the results the agency has already delivered for other eCommerce businesses. Proven results are more reliable SEO performance indicators than guarantees in SEO ranking or traffic on offer.
SEO approach
You want to look for an agency with a genuine long-term link building strategy and not one that promises immediate or short-term results for your online store.
6. Your Industry and Niche
Are you operating in a small eCommerce niche, or are you fighting hard in a fierce eCommerce industry against some tough competition?
How you answer this question will shape what you should look for in an eCommerce agency.
A small niche needs a different approach to branding and marketing than a business in a high-competition industry.
A useful example of this is your SEO approach.
With a small niche, it might be easy to rank for your chosen long-tail keywords. You can use that approach to generate regular organic traffic to your eCommerce website.
If you are in a competitive market, such as cosmetics, you will need a different approach. One that will help you stand out from the many other businesses operating in this field.
That requires an agency with experience in supporting companies like your own. Good branding, the latest technology, and innovative online marketing can help you get ahead.
The right agency can advise you on how your eCommerce platform can help your business gain a competitive advantage.
For example, if you are in cosmetics, influencer marketing in conjunction with platforms such as Instagram and Tiktok is highly effective.
That means building a website that isn't just about product and pricing. Instead, it might also prominently feature high-profile influencers.
Understanding this is essential to designing a website that supports your marketing.
7. New Trends
eCommerce often follows trends. That is true for niches, technology, and marketing approach.
If your eCommerce business follows a current eCommerce trend, make sure you pick an agency with the know-how to support you.
Here are a few trends to look out for in 2021:
3D Images
As technology improves, customers have raised their expectations when it comes to shopping online. For high-value purchases such as furniture, customers want to see more than just a website image.
Smart eCommerce businesses are jumping ahead of the competition by offering advanced technology such as 3D imagery.
Before choosing an eCommerce agency, make sure you speak to them about what technology will help you push ahead of your competition.
The Subscription Model
Different eCommerce models require different user journeys when it comes to building your website.
One of the most popular types of eCommerce models at the moment is the subscription. Early innovators such as the Dollar Shave Club exemplified that.
If you are in the early stages of your business, think about the different types of eCommerce models you could operate, and speak to an agency for their guidance and expertise.
Customer Service Bots
As online shopping grows in popularity, companies are attempting to replace some of the experiences people get when shopping in a brick-and-mortar store.
One way many companies are trying to get ahead is through having fantastic customer service.
Advances in AI have allowed businesses to adopt excellent chatbots for their websites. That is something you might want to consider, especially if you are in a highly competitive industry.
If you haven't heard of the term frictionless pay, chances are you'll come across it soon in your eCommerce business.
Payment technology is getting better, and customers want that smooth (frictionless) experience when paying. That means they don't have to do the cumbersome tasks of entering credit card information or address details.
ApplePay is an example of the payment options you can add to your online store to give your customers a better checkout experience.
When searching for the best agency for eCommerce marketing, talk to your prospective agency about what types of payment setups they can recommend for your eCommerce website.
Single-Product Stores
You may have spotted a trend for single-product stores.
This trend is the natural result of online eCommerce becoming more global. It is easier than ever before to create a niche business with one product and market to the whole world.
If you are a single-product store or want to move your eCommerce business in this direction, look for an agency with experience in similar types of websites.
8. Price-Driven Versus Luxury Brands
If you want to sell a luxury brand, you're going to need more than a free Shopify template to be successful.
Price-competitive websites have a very different look-and-feel to the luxury market. It is vital to look for an agency that can support how you position your eCommerce business within your particular industry.
When people buy a luxury brand, they tend to have a high level of brand loyalty. They care about brands that have a unique voice, strong values, and a solid reputation.
These customers will expect a website to reflect this luxury everywhere, from the overall design to how seamless and high quality the functionality is.
In comparison, price-competitive websites often emphasize features such as discounts, offers, sales, and price-based advanced search technology.
9. Social Media Marketing
Many eCommerce businesses have been successful when using social media to market their business. That is especially true of small startups who don't have the brand recognition or advertising budget of their bigger rivals.
Even customers see the value in using social media when shopping online. In a recent survey, 87% of online customers cited social media as a tool they use to help them make purchasing decisions.
If you are in the early stages of your business or have a limited budget, focus on one or two social media platforms instead of all of them.
When it comes to choose an agency, pick one that can help you grow your brand on your preferred social media platform. Look for case studies and customer testimonials to help you make your decision.
10. Innovation
We talked earlier about innovation in technology driving eCommerce trends. But what about using the innovative ideas of an agency to help push your eCommerce business forward?
The best eCommerce marketing agency does more than give you technology or marketing support for your business. They add value to your business by using their creativity and experience to bring you innovative solutions.
That innovation will help you set your business apart. It is one of the best benefits of investing in an agency rather than doing everything yourself with off-the-shelf eCommerce tools.
If you want to know how innovative an agency is, look at the types of services they offer and their approach to branding and creative work. It is also helpful to read through some of their past projects with other customers.
Finding the Right eCommerce Marketing Agency for You
As you can tell, there is no one perfect eCommerce marketing agency out there, but there is a perfect marketing agency for your specific company. It all comes down to what you need and what your business priorities are.
You can chat with our team and we will help talk you through what your eCommerce strategy should be, and whether our agency is a good fit for your business.
To do that, just fill in this contact form and one of our consultants will get in touch with you to start that conversation.


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text: SPX DAILY VIEW – LOOKING FOR A MEAN REVERSION SET UP stephenbalsam Uncategorized November 18, 2019 1 Minute Share this:TwitterFacebookLike this:Like Loading... Related Published by stephenbalsam I have been trading electronic emini futures since they started . I have trained 100s in the method I use. This blog is just informational purposes and TRADE at your OWN risk! View all posts by stephenbalsam Published November 18, 2019


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Are you 18 years old or older?
Sorry, the content of this store can't be seen by a younger audience. Come back when you're older.
The Leo Leo changing mat is made in organic natural canvas cotton with a soft luxurious cotton lining. The changing mat is as a blank canvas in which you can personalize as you like. Embroider it with the baby name initials or try plant dye it the color you love the most.
Or use it as it is, simple and without any unnecessary dye.
Folded: 24 x 20 cm. Unfolded: 45 x 72 cm
100% GOTS cotton
30C wash
Leo Leo Copenhagen
Leo Leo is a family brand based on play and creativity. The luxurious and timeless designs for babies and children are created with the philosophy that there is no wrong ideas when you play, only great ambition and imagination. The organic collection is designed in a dreamy, tonal colour palette with the aim to give a calm and harmonized effect on their surroundings.


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2008 Surge
New Troops
With the situation deteriorating the United States and its allies increased the number of troops in Afghanistan. The US added 21,643 troops in early 2008 bringing the total number of troops to 48,250. The increase seemed to have little impact. The Taliban carried out a daring raid on June 13th when the liberated all of the prisoners in Kandahar jail freeing 400 Taliban fighters and 800 other prisoners. 2008 was the most deadly month for US troops to date with 113 servicemen and women losing their lives.


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Ubuntu users often face issues with their system sound. Especially after installing Ubuntu or upgrading to the latest version, the sound on the system stops working. If you are facing the same issue in any of your Ubuntu versions, this article is for you.
The no sound issue can occur as a result of a faulty hardware, unsupported drivers, or simply the absence of a driver. In any of the scenarios, the sound will not be outputted from the device resulting in a very bad situation. Especially if you love listening to music or watching movies from your Ubuntu PC, this can be annoying.
So, here are the methods that you can try to fix the Ubuntu no sound issue. We recommend to follow them in the same order like we listed them. This will make sure that you tried the easiest fixes before getting into the complex ones.
1. Make sure that your Hardware is working fine
The first and most important thing you should check before going to fix the no sound issue is the hardware of your computer. If you enjoyed the sound on your system just hours before upgrading to the new OS, your sound hardware might be doing good and no further diagnosis required. But, if you are having this sound issue on an old PC which you just turned on after several months, you should suspect the hardware as well. If you are not proficient in checking the hardware, you could consult an expert to help you out.
If you don't want to consult an expert and wanted to make sure that the hardware is working fine, you could try installing a Windows OS (Preferably Windows 10) which comes with the audio driver built-in. If the audio is working fine on Windows, you can confirm that the hardware is working fine. You can also try unplugging and plugging the audio devices such as headphones, speakers, etc. to diagnose the hardware.
2. Check volume and speaker settings
You cannot hear the sound without turning the volume up. Make sure that your speaker is not muted and the volume is high enough. If everything seems to be alright in that part, now let's dig a little deeper in your Ubuntu speaker settings screen. Click on the Sound icon > Sound Settings. It will open the sound settings window where you can adjust the settings of your speaker.
Based on the version of the Ubuntu you are using, this screen may vary slightly. In the Sound settings, make sure that the correct speaker is selected, the volume is not muted, and the profile is correct. You can try changing them and use the Test Speakers button to test the output. Also, you can turn off the Over-amplification feature to see if it is working.
3. Check the ALSA Mixer and Reload
For those who don't know, alsamixer is a graphical mixer program for the Advanced Linux Sound Architecture (ALSA) that is used to configure sound settings in the Ubuntu. In simple terms, we can use it to diagnose the issue with your Ubuntu sound. To configure it yourself.
- Open the terminal in your Ubuntu.
- Type
alsamixerand press the Enter. You will see something like this in your terminal.
- Press F6 and choose the sound card installed on your system. In most of the cases, the system will automatically detect the correct sound card. If not, you can manually change it.
- You can select the volume control using the left and right keys and up and down arrow keys to increase and decrease volume levels.
- The muted volume control will display "MM" below the volume bar. So if your audio mixer is muted, just press the M button on your keyboard and it will change to "OO" which means the mixer is not muted.
- Once you are done with the configuration, press Esc.
Now, to make sure that all the changes take effect, you can reload the ALSA by typing
sudo alsa force-reloadin the terminal.
4. Reinstall the ALSA Mixer and Pulse Audio
If configuring the ALSA mixer doesn't solve the issue even after reloading it, you can now try reinstalling them using the following commands.
sudo apt remove --purge alsa-base pulseaudio
sudo apt install alsa-base pulseaudio
This will reinstall the ALSA mixer and the Pulse audio on your Linux machine and make sure that everything is working fine. Many of our readers reported that this method worked for them. So, if any of the above methods didn't work for you, just reinstall the ALSA mixer and Pulse audio on your Ubuntu system.
5. Edit speech-dispatcher file
This method doesn't have much success rate. However, you can still give it a try. Speech-dispatcher is a daemon that programs can use to output speech. So, in case this function is creating complications with your audio devices or programs, we can simply turn it off by running the following command in the Ubuntu terminal.
sudo gedit /etc/default/speech-dispatcher
In here, change
RUN=yes to
6. Install Ubuntu Audio Development Team Driver
Like in any operating systems, Ubuntu also comes with a bunch of sound drivers to support the hardware. So, if your system is extremely outdated and you have the most advanced hardware powering it, this can sometimes cause issues with the sound output. So, you can install the Ubuntu audio development team driver by running the following commands. If the driver is already present in your OS, the commands will simply upgrade them to the latest version.
sudo add-apt-repository ppa:ubuntu-audio-dev
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get dist-upgrade
We hope you fixed the issue by now. If not, do not hesitate to leave a comment and let us know what are the problems you are facing. We will try our maximum to help you out and provide the necessary guides which will help you to solve the problem.


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Welcome to the Grapevine! This section of Smark Henry is where we round up all the important founded and unfounded rumors floating around the pro wrestling scene that you may have missed over the past few days. Remember to take everything with a grain of salt!
John Cena penciled in for SummerSlam
It seems John Cena vs. Roman Reigns is set to happen for SummerSlam this August, as Cena's filming schedule for Argylle will not get in the way of the booking. Cena is expected to return to SmackDown soon to start building the match. (Source: Wrestling Observer Radio)
We say: Well then, bring it on. This should be a lot of fun.
2021 WWE Draft reportedly moved to October
This year's WWE Draft has been reportedly moved from August to October, closer to the season premiere of RAW and SmackDown. The tentative dates for the two-night Draft are either October 1 and 4, or October 4 and 8. The October 4 show is the RAW season premiere. (Source: Andrew Zarian)
We say: That always seemed to be the case, although we'd rather have the Draft go back to being a post-WrestleMania affair, because the true season-ender is WrestleMania.
Photo from WWE


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Card draw simulator
|Derived from
|None. Self-made deck here.
|Inspiration for
|None yet
Valentin1331 · 19534
Darrell snoops around to capture Evidence on his Note Book and his real Tog Material
Please don't forget to press the ♥ if you like the write-up and want to say thanks :)
Credit: Fantasy Flight Games
Now that the Scarlet Keys - Investigator Expansion has hit the table, it's time for some deck guides with the new investigators! This deck is meant for multiplayer, with at least one other investigator dedicated to enemy management.
The number of variables may be overwhelming for beginners, requiring you to pay attention to your Evidence, keep track of the ones on cards in play, be aware of what is in your discard pile, ready exhausted assets, take additional actions, move automatically when you empty a location and drop clues. For that very reason, this is one of the most fun decks I have ever played, and it never gets monotonous!
Disclaimer: This deck guide was created before the Campaign Expansion was released. Some cards and assumptions in this guide may be made irrelevant later on. I will keep it updated with a changelog if that is the case.
Table of Contents:
Main Strategy
Drop Clues Forwards
Collecting Evidence
Customizable Cards
Other Cards
Upgrade Path
Make Your Own Deck!
|Enemy Management:
|Encounter protection:
|Card Drawing:
Main Strategy:
This deck is centred around 2 main mechanics:
- The newly improved clue-dropping for double benefits: the direct effect obtained while dropping one or more clues and (ab)using the compensation tools introduced in this box: Research Notes and Press Pass.
- The well known Scavenging (2) that plays your Items and let you commit Newspaper (2) and The Raven Quill for 2 and get them back to your hand.
Drop Clues Forwards:
This deck takes full advantage of the clue-dropping mechanic introduced in Dunwich and is improved in TSK. Dropping clues used to feel wrong. Gaining a clue was not only complicated and time-consuming, but it was also using cards and resources. Placing them back on your location felt like a step backwards toward the game's resolution. Let's see how this changed now:
Benefits of Dropping Clues:
The clue-dropping cards compensate for the loss in tempo with a pretty powerful effect:
Captivating Discovery makes you draw 2 cards per clue dropped. In this deck, we benefit from dropping a lot of clues, so you will often draw 4 to 6 cards and drop 2 to 3 clues based on if you find a weakness and if you would rather wait to draw it or not. Choosing when you draw your weakness is a powerful effect and should not be underestimated.
Dr. William T. Maleson was always the #1 Meat shield in the game. Let's now use him for his other benefit: re-drawing Encounter cards you don't want to see. If you are playing with 2 or more players, you will most likely be paired with another investigator dedicated to enemy management.
- Shuffling enemies back is a great way to stream them towards your fighter while taking your share of treacheries. You can also use William's capacity for filtering out tests that would threaten you if Ruined Film seriously depleted your sanity
- The upgraded version is icing on the cake: protect your team at any location, choose between 2 cards instead of 1, and most importantly, discard the encounter card that you didn't select, potentially getting rid of really annoying cards like Ancient Evils or Beyond the Veil.
Quick Study was niche, but it can finally shine now.
It allows you to drop a clue to succeed at more or less any test, thanks to the +3. With the Research Notes, you are also granted 1 Evidence that you can turn immediately into a +2 with Darrell's ability. With this +5 at any stat, Darrell Simmons can break any test the scenario throws at him.
Analysis completes the set. This seemingly weaker card actually has the highest clue-dropping capability and can be committed to any test.
- This can be used to secure success on a critical test if your clues do not matter so much anymore, like during a fight with an Elite enemy.
- Alternatively, you can use it on a teammate that would like to fish certain tokens like / for instance.
Forewarned was an option, but unfortunately, only being able to drop 1 clue for an effect that is eventually not so critical since Quick Study can help us pass almost any test and Dr. William T. Maleson sorts the annoying cards like Ancient Evils.
Double the Gain:
This deck can drop a significant number of clues each turn, which is the fuel for our new shiny toys, turning each dropped clue into a potentially huge profit:
Newspaper (2) rewards you for dropping your last clue by giving it back to you the next time you discover a clue. This means that it works with the ability of Research Notes!
- Since it is not unique, you can have 2 copies in play, increasing the speed at which you collect back your dropped clues.
- Note that Newspaper (2) does not exhaust, and thus, it can be used multiple times per turn!
Research Notes collects 1 Evidence per dropped clue, and since it is not unique, you can have 2 in play. This means that with each clue dropped, you gain 2 Evidence (1 on each copy) that you can use to get clues later.
- The best way to use the Research Notes is to drop clues on lower shroud locations to accumulate Evidence and collect them back easily. Then spend the Evidence on a high-shroud location to test (0) and gain clues easily.
- Another positive thing about Research Notes is that you can drop clues at a non-VP location and then use the Evidence to easily empty locations with Victory Points.
Press Pass gives you an additional action if you dropped a clue during your turn. With this deck, given a few setups turn at worst, it should be possible every turn. This virtually makes Captivating Discovery or compensates for the action spent on Research Notes to get the clues back.
What's best is that it is not unique, so for the additional price of a Relic Hunter, you can get a second additional action per turn!
You can drop a clue with Quick Study to increase your while using the on Research Notes. This combo dramatically increases the chances of spending all your Evidence stored on one copy in a single test, while collecting an additional Evidence on your second copy!
Same goes for Analysis, which can help you to succeed by a significant number while getting all the clues dropped back.
Knowledge is Power gives an huge burst in tempo by allowing you to perform the ability on the Research Notes without spending the action and any Evidence since it ignores all costs. As this is considered on the edge of how Knowledge is Power should be used, I only used 1 copy of Knowledge is Power not to break the game completely. If you do not mind, then go for a 2nd one ASAP; if you do, remove the one copy.
Once the engine is running, this deck will allow you to gain various benefits out of dropping clues: collecting Evidence, drawing loads of cards, guaranteeing success to a test, choosing your Encounter card or boosting a skill value.
- All the Evidence collected will then translate into even more cards with Empirical Hypothesis, lower test difficulty with Darrell's ability and easy clues no matter the shroud value.
Icing on the cake: you will do all of this without spending any of your 3 basic actions, thanks to Press Pass.
Collecting Evidence:
As discussed in the earlier section, the clue-dropping mechanic will generate an insane number of Evidence. Let's review where:
Darrell's Kodak is in play from the beginning of the game. Mainly thanks to Dr. William T. Maleson, you can sort out the Encounter card that you draw and keep only the ones that would enable you to collect an Evidence on the Darrell's Kodak and that you feel confident enough you can collect before it is gone. For instance, if you draw an enemy and want your fighter to kill it before your turn so you can investigate, you will not be able to collect the Evidence on it. So be smart!
Research Notes, as explained earlier, will collect 1 Evidence per clue dropped and per copy on the table.
Empirical Hypothesis will also collect Evidence. regularly as it is highly likely that you will succeed by 3 or more at least once a turn, especially while testing on the Research Notes.
While you are likely to play most of your Evidence on the turn when you get them, you can still collect and store a high number up front to prepare for fast cycling of your deck and therefore seeing your Ruined Film often.
As every good Deck, Scavenging (0) and Scavenging (2) bring a fantastic value in 2 different ways:
Fast setup:
Short Supply place a lot of your Items in your discard pile from the beginning of the game. Play Scavenging (2) to play them as soon as you succeed an investigation by 2 or more (which should happen every turn). Scavenging (0) is already good to tutor your Items.
- Scavenging (2) and Arcane Enlightenment is your priority for Mulligan, and you shouldn't feel bad doing a hard mulligan for it. If it turns out that both copies go to your discard pile because of Short Supply, you are still very likely to get at least one back with Resourceful. If not, well... cycle fast with Captivating Discovery.
- Some cards are more annoying than others if discarded by Short Supply since we cannot get them back with this deck: besides Quick Study and Empirical Hypothesis, I want to emphasise on Arcane Enlightenment. This is your second priority for the mulligan, and you should not shuffle it back. which will prevent you from having 2 Newspaper (2) in play. If it is a victim of Short Supply, you will not be able to play both Research Notes before you cycle your deck once.
To play items from your hand , commit them to tests and then Scavenge them into play directly. Except for the Hiking Boots and Press Pass, they conveniently all commit for tests.
The Schoffner's Catalogue is here to pay for your Items since you can cycle it. Note that it says Item assets and therefore cannot pay for The Raven Quill, unfortunately.
Higher value:
Newspaper (2) and The Raven Quill are both Items that commit for , which is fantastic to play them in a loop to oversucceed. This works before you even upgrade your Scavenging.
Customizable Cards:
- The Raven Quill is another cornerstone of this deck. You name the Research Notes and let it tick its own boxes at the end of each scenario. Before you have the Research Notes in play, you can loop it with Scavenging (2) to commit it for and return it to your hand.
- For the upgrades, we will choose the Spectral Binding first, for 1xp, making the one copy of Research Notes not take any slot and therefore making it possible to replace the second copy of Arcane Enlightenment and still have 4 hand slots.
- As the The Raven Quill gains more experience, we can choose Interwoven Ink, which readies another asset when we use the ability of the attached Research Notes. The assets that we can ready this way are Press Pass for another additional action during your turn and more clue-dropping shenanigans, Empirical Hypothesis to collect another Evidence during the same test, Scavenging (2) if you still have some setup to do, Hiking Boots or Quick Study in more specific situations.
You do not really need to tick any box on this card to get value, but as you run out of upgrades for your deck, there are 2 that can be interesting:
Peer review: if you do not need more card draw and want to support your team, this makes it more likely for you to gain an Evidence and get the most out of it by offering others to draw cards.
Research Grant: depending on what your team needs the most, being able to help your teammates with paying for their cards can be extremely useful, especially in the early scenario and late campaign when cards tend to become more expensive.
The interaction of the two:
To clarify the way The Raven Quill - Interwoven Ink works with Empirical Hypothesis, here is the sequence:
- Use the on Research Notes with The Raven Quill attached.
- Succeed by 3 or more and exhaust Empirical Hypothesis to collect an Evidence on it.
- After resolving the test, Interwoven Ink will ready Empirical Hypothesis, which is then ready to use again for another Evidence.
- Exhaust Empirical Hypothesis immediately to collect an Evidence during the same test.
Disclaimer: This interaction requires an FAQ to be 100% confirmed, but as of now, it is the most probable interpretation of the rules.
Other Cards:
0xp Cards:
We are using Schoffner's Catalogue because, contrary to events, it is not wasted if you discard it with Short Supply at the beginning of the game. It is also since we use Scavenging (2) and if you have it in your hand, simply commit it to any test before recurring it. It also has a slightly better tempo than Crack the Case, as it won't be re-shuffled in your deck once your deck is running out of cards and, therefore, won't take one draw.
- Once all your items are in play, the catalogue is not useful anymore, and Crack the Case becomes better as it brings some cash to fuel Plucky (3).
- Another idea is Astounding Revelation, as you do not need to drop a clue to use it while searching your deck with Captivating Discovery. I did not go for this one because it is "only" 2 resources.
- Cryptic Writings is also available as an alternative. It can be played fast when drawn via Captivating Discovery/Empirical Hypothesis and worst case scenario it commits for a .
- You are free to use whichever of these cards you want to play the most, they will all do amazing.
Resourceful, as explained, compensates for Short Supply that could be trashing both Scavenging (2), affecting the set-up pace tremendously.
Deduction and Sharp Vision accelerate the rate of collecting the clues you've dropped, bringing additional tempo. We upgrade later to Deduction (2) to get another tempo boost.
Arcane Enlightenment is for holding the second Research Notes, so you can have 2 Newspaper (2) in play too. When you don't need it, it also commits for 2 .
True Understanding brings an added value, especially on treacheries like Locked Door, since you can then discover the clue before it is discarded, thus collecting the Evidence on your Kodak, which would be impossible otherwise.
Higher XP Cards:
Hiking Boots will bring good value as you will empty locations more or less every round (depending on the number of players). We prefer it over Pathfinder because it is cheaper in XP and is Scavengeable since it's an item. The is the cherry on top.
If there is one thing that I hate as a cluever, it is to spend my actions playing assets rather than investigating. No wonder Unearth the Ancients (2) is one of my favourite cards; playing your assets as you keep getting clues.
- The targets are Dr. William T. Maleson, Empirical Hypothesis, Arcane Enlightenment and Quick Study.
- When you have all your Assets in play, it turns into a commit which is always nice.
Plucky (3) brings interesting stat boosts, a skill pump to get rid of your excessive resource, and most importantly, a very needed Horror soak for the Ruined Film and the fast cycling speed once fully set up.
Quick Learner (4) is an excellent way to spend your last bits of XP when you are done with all the rest. With 2 Press Pass in play, you will have 5 actions each turn, so 3 of them with -2 test difficulty. Spending 1 Evidence with Darrell's ability almost assures you to bring any test to (0) difficulty.
- Alternatively, dropping a clue with Quick Study or spending 1 Evidence on your first action if you need to take a test will compensate for the downside of Quick Learner.
- Finally, you can use your first action to do something that doesn't involve a test, like moving, playing Captivating Discovery (which activates Press Pass for 2 additional actions with -2 difficulty), clearing someone's Weakness...
At the very end, if we do not know what to do with our XP anymore, Versatile can be a fun option.
- Bring whatever makes you feel good, but I thought that Breaking and Entering was a cool card to bring. The "add" stat helps to compensate for the fact that you're probably using it as your first action, and so you get +2 difficulty with Quick Learner, and it helps collect Evidence on enemies easily!
- The other cards that we can add with the 4 more slots available are Exploit Weakness and Shed a Light because the -2 difficulty during 3 turns with Quick Learner opens a lot of doors for testing at difficulty 0 by using 1 Evidence with Darrell's ability.
Upgrade Path:
Scavenging x2 Scavenging (2) x2 - 4xp - Total 4xp
Arcane Enlightenment x1 + The Raven Quill x1 Press Pass x2 + Relic Hunter - 7xp - Total 11xp
Hawk-Eye Folding Camera x2 Newspaper (2) x2 - 4xp - Total 15xp
True Understanding x1 Plucky (3) x1 - 3xp - Total 18xp
Empirical Hypothesis x1 Unearth the Ancients (2) x1 - 2xp - Total 20xp
Lucky! x2 Quick Study x2 - 4xp - Total 24xp
Dr. William T. Maleson x1 Dr. William T. Maleson (2) x1 - 2xp - Total 26xp
Eureka! x2 Hiking Boots x1 + Knowledge is Power x1 - 3xp - Total 29xp
Quick Learner x2 - 8xp - Total 37xp
Deduction x2 Deduction (2) x2 - 4xp - Total 41xp
True Understanding x1 + Crack the Case x1 Sharp Vision x2 - 2xp - Total 45xp
Make your own Deck!:
To understand some of the archetypes and cards available to Darrell, there is This Great Video made by Veronica from Until the End of Time. I will try to explain here a couple of them that I have also considered and explain very briefly the strategies of each deck.
Here is another proposal for a Deck that uses Darrell's test reduction to reduce the difficulty to 0. This deck is better for True Solo and Flex and is also super fun to play!
- Combine the shroud reductions of Old Keyring (3) and Flashlight (3) to bring locations with a shroud of 4 and less to 0 and get an additional clue. This also allows you to play Shed a Light if there are more than 2 clues. If the shroud is 5 or more, you can add Gumption or spend an Evidence from your Darrell's Kodak.
- For enemy management, you can use Exploit Weakness thanks to your Flashlight (3) that reduces the difficulty of evasion tests and if the enemy has 3 or more evade value you can complete with Gumption or with spending an Evidence.
- Finally, one fun way to collect Evidence on enemies with that deck is that you can evade it, then use Belly of the Beast to collect a clue and the Evidence on it, and if you bring the test difficulty to 0, you can discard it during the same action!
- Since the deck highly benefits from certain events, I added a lot of draw with Practice Makes Perfect to abuse Perception (2) on investigations and Unrelenting on evasions.
- The weak spot of this deck is the lower Evidence count. To absorb the horror of the deck reshuffling and Ruined Film, we take advantage of the Cherished Keepsake and Scavenging (2) combo and why not Plucky (3) later.
- For a level 0 version of that deck, here's how I would approach it.
Since Darrell can turn any test to a difficulty 0, are not an issue to him. We can imagine a Deck like this that would also take advantage of the cursed cards available, for instance, to heal himself with Spirit of Humanity or to draw cards with Deep Knowledge.
- This also allows Token of Faith to bring a steady flow of that can be used later for A Watchful Peace.
There is also a basic Scavenging (2) Darrell Deck possible that simply cycles Ice Pick (3), and other than that, is relatively similar to a Minh Deck. But come on, I couldn't come back to the community with Yet An-Other Freaking Deck using this combo.
To create your own guides, find the template I have created here
|31 comments
Oct 12, 2022
Very nice looking deck! I was trying out Darrell with another deck that takes advantage of forcing tests down to 0 by using Shed a Light, Exploit Weakness, Flashlight, Gumption and of course his evidence system backed up by his Darrell's Kodak but also Hawk-Eye Folding Camera and Empirical Hypothesis. He is certainly much fun to play and I'm going to try this one out soon!
Oct 12, 2022
Thank you for the shout-out!
Oct 12, 2022
The main assets on this (Newspaper II, Research Notes, Press Pass, Maleson, and Arcane Enlightenment) are so hot, looks like such a great engine when it gets going. In my first campaign game with my Darrell, I managed 3 clues and 4 evidence with one action and felt like a god!
Oct 12, 2022
I love your decks! Thanks for posting this, I'm definitely going to try it out. Do you have any dedicated fighter in the works that uses a TSK investigator/player cards?
Oct 12, 2022
Oct 12, 2022
"Knowledge is Power gives an huge burst in tempo by allowing you to perform the ability on the Research Notes without spending the action and any Evidence since it ignores all costs."
I may be wrong but imho this isn't working this way. Knowledge is Power let's you surely ignore the action cost, but you should not get to discover any clue without spending evidences.
My arguments are:
Oct 12, 2022
Oct 12, 2022
Knowledge is Power's FAQ defines De Vermis Mysteriis's cost as everything before colums, by the (rule) book.
Old Book of Lore's FAQ answer they very carefully never define spending secrets as a "cost" of any kind.
I will add, instead, that Divination's FAQ explicitly says that spending charges is not a cost.
Oct 12, 2022
This means that you cannot, for example, discover clues with Divination without having to spend charges even with Knowledge is Power, because it only ignores cost, and that part of the spell is not.
Oct 13, 2022
"Knowledge is Power reads:
Old Book of Lore reads:
If I use Knowledge is Power on Old Book of Lore, do I need to spend a secret to use the "immediately play that card" part of the ability? Clearly Knowledge is Power does not allow me to ignore any costs of the card I'm about to play (c.f. ruling on De Vermis Mysteries), but does the "may X to Y" templating here mean spending a secret here a cost? Thanks!
To answer your question(s):
Knowledge is Power allows you to ignore ability costs on the chosen asset, which includes costs printed in its text box; this means you are able to immediately play the card you fetched with Old Book of Lore without spending 1 secret.
Feel free to reach out to us if any more questions arise!
Sincerely, Alex Werner, FFG Game Rules Specialist"
Oct 13, 2022
Thanks, i missed this.
I still think this is an oversight and i can't help thinking it contradicts the ruling on Divination, but ok.
Oct 13, 2022
I was a bit torn on whether I should add this card to the deck or not. It feels weird and inconsistent, but as it works, I felt like it had to be there, with a little explanation in the guide as to why I did not put 2 copies and how I felt about this combo.
As a cooperative game, I think it makes perfect sense to house rule it as not working and play another copy of Unearth the Ancients (2) instead! We avoid certain cards and combos at my table, no matter if they are allowed or not, when we feel like it breaks at least one aspect of the game. This one will probably be one of them soon.
Oct 17, 2022
May I ask for true solo deck with 0 xp?
Oct 17, 2022
I love your ideas for this deck! I played Darrell through Standard-Difficulty Edge of the Earth partnered with Wini in late July/early August 2022 (pre-Taboo update). Unfortunately, that means I didn't get to try out Research Notes and the related archetypal cards, which could solve the clue compression and evidence density problems I had.
Some questions I have about the build:
I'll admit that Forced Learning probably hurt me as much as it helped me, but it did let me handle having seven assorted copies of MILD SPOILER in my deck at one point. Even so, I don't think I would include it again. The consistency problems it added to my deck gave me a slow start more than once. Though this next problem is Edge of the Earth-specific, it's still a problem. While the large deck size prevented me from drawing MILD SPOILER multiple turns in a row, Forced Learning made me discard a lot of cards I would have liked to draw when I saw one of those MILD SPOILER copies.
Oct 17, 2022
To explain a bit further, I thought about Forced Learning too, but my experience is that it doesn't work with combo decks, and this one heavily relies on a few assets to function: Research Notes, Press Pass, Scavenging (2). In this situation, Forced Learning makes it much harder to find these, diluting all the searches.
I hope that answers at least partially your questions and makes you want to try that deck!
Oct 24, 2022
I ran a slightly different different version of this build through the Dream-Quest and it worked beautifully. The engine stalled when I ran out of clues and couldn't investigate, but that's pretty true of any Seeker build. Loved it. It's going to be hard to move on to another build for the next game
Nov 03, 2022
Maybe I've missed something in the write up, but can you explain why the 0xp deck has 32 cards in it?
Nov 03, 2022
I made the change, so it should be correct now!
I hope you like the deck, and let me know how it goes if you decide to take it on a ride!
Nov 03, 2022
Nov 09, 2022
I started playing this in our Innsmouth Campaign. All I can say is WOW! This is a fun deck. I decided to play it as described without any personal modifications. It's amazing! I love how the Scavenging and the Resourceful play together. Resourceful is specifically to get back Scavenging and Lucky! Then Scavenging, once in play, can be used to continually return any of the items that you can continue to contribute to skill checks (if needed) or get them into play. Both of my Arcane Enlightenment hit the discard right from the beginning. I thought I was going to struggle. Nope! We were able to succeed quite majestically. Thanks for a FUN deck!
Nov 09, 2022
One thing I forgot the mention, you don't have to spend the XP to upgrade The Raven's Quill card if it made it into play. You can also spend XP to check the boxes. So there are multiple paths to upgrade the card.
Nov 14, 2022
About The Raven Quill, indeed, if you play a campaign, it will upgrade itself, allowing you to spend your xp elsewhere :)
Let me know how it went when you're done with the campaign, and I hope you're still enjoying it!
Nov 18, 2022
I'm fucking sick of these non 0 xp decks
Nov 18, 2022
Nov 18, 2022
I used to propose 0xp decks for my campaign guides, but 2 things changed my mind:
Nov 18, 2022
Nov 21, 2022
So just out of curiosity. What difficulty would you suggest playing this deck at?
Nov 28, 2022
This looks amazing. I just built a Darrell Deck focused on the "get shroud to zero" and then saw this. Will definitely need to try it out once I finish my current game.
Nov 28, 2022
If you are more interested in hard/expert, then I suggest looking at the Difficulty 0 alternative that I propose in Make your own deck! at the bottom of the guide.
Dec 02, 2022
Question about the Newspaper, how often do you actually have 0 clues? I've played a couple of games with the level 0 deck and you have 0 at the beginning, again once you drop some clues with captivating discovery, but otherwise it seems like they only help like 4 times a game total. Could you explain the pattern you would typically use?
Dec 04, 2022
I'm such a fan of your great work for all the decks you built ! Thanks a lot for sharing with us. Like many others, I had huge expectations with the capacity of Darrell and I thought had seen all the combos available for him, with evidence and such, yet you got me with Knowledge is Power ! Still think of it as a glitch. :) About the interaction between The Raven Quill and Interwoven Ink, I would agree with your first 3 points but not with the fourth. You first fully resolve the ability, after that you exhaust The Raven Quill, and then you could no longer exhaust Empirical Hypothesis since the criteria isn't met at the moment. What do you think of it ?


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Spot LNG Prices Soar on Hebei Plan to Switch From Coal Heating
Even as China swelters under the summer sun, the country's gas market is heating up in anticipation of winter, with the spot price of liquefied natural gas (LNG) soaring after Hebei announced a major drive to switch from coal to gas power for heating.
The LNG spot price – the price of purchasing the commodity the same day – usually surges in October and November as heating systems are turned on across northern China. But the rise is happening much earlier this year in anticipation of major changes in market demand, according to the Shanghai Petroleum and Natural Gas Exchange.
The LNG spot price climbed from 3,700 yuan ($544) per ton at the start of July to 4,500 yuan per ton on July 20, before falling slightly to 4,362 yuan per ton on July 25. Even so, the latest price is 45% higher than at the same time last year, with populous Shandong and Jiangsu provinces seeing even higher prices of 5,000 yuan per ton and 4,800 yuan per ton, respectively.
The rise in the spot price correlates with China's increasing consumption of natural gas, which increased by 17.5% year-on-year in the first half of 2018 to 134.8 billion cubic meters, while natural gas imports rose by 39.8% year-on-year to 48.1 billion cubic meters.
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'Don't Breathe' is latest movie to use Detroit as its scary setting
August 30, 2016 update: 'Don't Breathe' -- set in Detroit -- tops box office on opening weekend
In the trailer for "Don't Breathe," three teens contemplate robbing the house of a blind man as a way to leave their Detroit hometown behind. "Yo, I got our ticket outta here," says one of them. "Rumor is this guy is sitting on at least 300K. Boom!"
The preview shows an overhead shot of an economically challenged neighborhood. There are glimpses of a relatively nice house (the blind man's, it turns out) amidst the surrounding signs of decay, like overgrown weeds.
Director and coscreenwriter Fede Alvarez says in the film's production notes that the Motor City's empty lots and deserted homes add to the film's unique character. "Usually, you try to find a scary house on a nice street, but it's the other way around here. It's a scary street and this is the only well-kept house left. With everyone else gone, a story like this one could happen here."
► Review:Reality supplies greatest frights in 'Don't Breathe
"Don't Breathe," which opens today, has earned good reviews and online enthusiasm for being a taut, claustrophobic thriller. It's predicted to replace "Suicide Squad" as the weekend's box-office winner. Estimates are it could earn $11 million or more, a big opening score for a project reportedly made for less than $10 million.
Besides being a potential little-movie-that-could story, "Don't Breathe" is the latest in a slew of movies to use Detroit in a fictional story or as a filming location — sometimes both — for something ominous and scary. The list includes recent indie films like 2015's "Lost River" and 2014's "Only Lovers Left Alive" and "It Follows." It extends to big-budget efforts like 2016's moody "Batman v Superman" and older titles like the original 1987 "RoboCop" (rebooted two years ago).
The trend is keeping Detroit on the big screen, even now that production work here has dried up with the elimination of Michigan's film incentives.
But the Motor City tends to be typecast, much like a character actor who's always playing the bad guy. At what point does using a location to evoke poverty and menace slide into the equivalent of cinematic ruin porn? It's a question that local filmmakers have been thinking about for a long time.
"It's frustrating to learn that ('Don't Breathe' is set in Detroit), because I think we'd like to get away from the quote-unquote gritty aesthetic," said filmmaker Ted Houser, codirector of the newly launched Detroit Film Society. "It seems to be a shorthand for an aesthetic, which is a little troubling."
To illustrate his point, Houser jokingly imagined the talk at production meetings for such films: "Oh, it's Detroit! It's gritty! Give me more rust!"
► 'Transformers':Detroit bids farewell, but is it forever?
A scary street
"Don't Breathe" takes place in Detroit for important reasons and was the story's chosen city from the very first script, according to producer Rob Tapert.
"I think Fede (Alvarez) saw themes in the characters that mirror the challenges the city has faced," said Tapert via e-mail. "Detroit is a city with real character, and setting the movie here gives it a specificity to stand out from others."
For most of the film, however, Detroit is played by a stand-in. The bulk of filming was done in Budapest, Hungary, in 2015 over the course of seven weeks. The production prepped and shot exterior footage in Detroit for about a week with Alvarez, the lead actors and what Tapert calls the "excellent support" of a local crew.
Tapert said film incentives play a notable role in decisions on where to shoot movies, adding that the elimination of Michigan's incentives last summer "added significant pressure to our budget" (and occurred after "Don't Breathe" had committed to doing the exteriors here).
In an interesting twist, production designer Naaman Marshall constructed on a Budapest soundstage a replica of a yellow brick house in Detroit found by a location scout. The overall look of the film — and even the street fashion of the costumes — are designed to reflect aspects of Detroit.
The home is identified in the movie as 1837 Buena Vista, an address that is not where the movie filmed (and that doesn't exist, according to a drive through the street near the Rosa Parks Boulevard intersection and a search of Wayne County's property tax listing system). Tapert says the house's actual location is being kept private to respect the tenant.
Tapert is one-third of the metro Detroit trio famous for making the groundbreaking horror flick, 1981's "Evil Dead," with director Sam Raimi, a Michigan State University buddy, and Raimi's childhood pal Bruce Campbell.
Tapert and Raimi's Ghost House Pictures made "Don't Breathe" with Sony Pictures.
Alvarez is no stranger to metro Detroit. He was chosen by Tapert and Raimi to direct the 2013 reboot of "Evil Dead" and visited southeast Michigan back in 2011 to absorb Raimi and Tapert's hometown region. At the time, Raimi was back in his hometown filming "Oz the Great and Powerful" in Pontiac.
Detroit has been a muse to those who grew up here and also to outsiders like Ryan Gosling, who wrote and directed "Lost River." He got the idea for his strange, brooding, post-apocalyptic thriller about a dying city from wandering around Detroit during his off-hours from filming 2011's "The Ides of March." Although the city in "Lost River" is fictional, Detroit is its easily recognizable canvas.
"Only Lovers Left Alive" was the brainstorm of pioneering indie director Jim Jarmusch, who envisioned Detroit and Tangier as residential hubs for a hip vampire couple (Tom Hiddleston and Tilda Swinton). A fan of the Motor City, Jarmusch just completed a documentary on Iggy & the Stooges.
The biggest critical hit of recent Detroit horror movies is "It Follows," written and directed by David Robert Mitchell, who grew up in Clawson. Praised for the depth and eerie tone of his tale about teens facing a curse transmitted by sex, Mitchell alludes to the Detroit setting with a subtle mention of 8 Mile, but uses Detroit's suburbs to convey an Anywhere Suburbia, U.S.A feeling. He filmed a tour-de-force terror scene in the city at the old Packard Plant involving a young woman tied to a wheelchair, waiting for something awful to arrive.
► Review:Roberto Duran biopic sticks close to formula
A well-rounded picture
Documentary filmmaker Juanita Anderson sees complexities to Detroit's role in such horror films. "If Detroit is just a fictional setting for a scary movie, let's take it at that," said Anderson, who's area head of media arts and studies at Wayne State University's department of communication.
But problems can arise if Detroit is only showing up in movies to telegraph poverty, crime or even near-total annihilation. For instance, in 2010's "Vanishing on 7th Street," it was a city where almost the entire population had disappeared.
And in Detroit-connected horror and crime films, the lead characters are usually white, a choice disconnected from the reality that the city's residents are mostly African American.
In broad terms, the Motor City's big-screen image mirrors Hollywood's overall problem with representing the real world.
"I think it illustrates the importance of having a diverse body of people, culturally, ethnically and racially, making films," said Anderson.
Sultan Sharrief has grappled with how Detroit is portrayed in movies for a long time.
"What inspired my filmmaking career to a certain extent is who gets to tell the story. We have a ton of filmmakers here who want to tell their stories," said the director of 2012's "Bilal's Stand," which was screened at the Sundance Film Festival. It's about a Detroit high school school senior torn between his family's taxi stand and dreams of attending college.
Sharrief considers Detroit "an easy target" for films wanting to create an ominous ambiance. "Just the name Detroit says that," he said, acknowledging the city's stereotype.
But Sharrief is out to change Detroit's screen image. He just wrapped filming in Detroit on "Street Cred," a pilot for a PBS docu-series. The show would follow local students as they learn the behind-the-scenes aspects of getting a film made, from finding investors to feeding the crew and so on.
Sharrief said stories from and by Detroit filmmakers are vital to a more well-rounded picture of the city. "If you don't find a way to tell your story, someone else is going to do it for you."
Until there are more choices for film-goers, the city may continue to be seen as, well, a pretty scary place. Like the one described in the opening paragraph of the Associated Press review of "Don't Breathe": "To all you Detroit-area robbery crews, we should probably warn you right away: It's just not a good idea to pick 1837 Buena Vista Street for your big — and final — score. Take our word for it, walk away."
► Review:In 'Equity,' women bankers get a shot at greed
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Colombia dropped five places and has become the world's 15th least peaceful country, according to the Global Peace Index (GPI).
Latin America
The index, released Wednesday, showed an increase in peace throughout the world and in 16 of 23 countries in Latin America.
According to the GPI, Colombia is the least peaceful country in Latin America and the Caribbean while Chile scored highest.
Colombia's low score was mainly due to its high homicide and crime rates, political terror, and the country's armed conflict.
The country did improve in terms of displacement.
The world's most peaceful country is Iceland. The least peaceful country is Somalia.