Evening Füsters!
Congratulations to everyone for finishing out Periode I of Winterfüste ‘25! GG is happy to report that we’ve retained over 100 of the initial 125 players (which is outstanding statistically) and GG continues to experience an unprecedented level of engagement from everyone on the Spiellbrett . . . which is exactly why the Füste was created in the first place so thank you all very much! Now, it’s time for a bit of a shift as we move into Periode II (the second 3 week period of the game). Week 4 will quietly but effectively ratchet things up across the board: Doppelt workouts are introduced, the Fastentag get more intense, bonus requirements increase in size and scope . . . there’s a lot of things about to happen to your flank meat and none of them are going to make it happy! So let’s continue our collective assault into Periode II and make that meat regret it ever decided to stick to your ribcage in the first place!

Updates:

First and foremost: DOPPELTS. So, up to now you’ve been able to only complete a defined Singelt workout parameter. This week we introduce Dopplelts. The concept here is very simple. You either complete two individual Singelt workouts (e.g. complete a 4 mile walk and then a separate 1500 yard swim) to score your Doppelt OR you double a single workout and complete it within the Doppelt parameters as defined on the Schmerzenfüste webpage (GO HERE TO REVIEW). When you review the Doppelt requirements you’ll note that they are just a little less then actually doubling a Singelt, e.g. a Doppelt run parameter is 5.5 miles, not the full 6 miles required if you ran two separate Singelts. This is intentional and allows you a bit of a break if you decide to do a true Doppelt. Confused? Just review the webpage as linked above and if you still don’t get it, hit up GG via text for clarification.
How many Doppelts are available for Week 4? Well, we’re going to ease into things here and allow for two Doppelt workouts this week. So for the seven days of Week 4, you can do two Doppelts (which days you do them are completely up to you) and the rest of the days you’re back with the Singelts. Don’t worry, Week 5 and Week 6 will allow for more Doppelts each week so just keep your slayer cool here and we’ll get there together!
Please note that the walking parameter has changed for Periode II and you must now carry 20 pounds in order to reduce the mileage of your Singelt or Doppelt walks.
Bonuses for Week 4 are really going to see the mileage crank up. First, there’s the Long WInter Wog and no, you’re not seeing things, the mileage jumped from 5 miles last week to 7 miles this week. You’ll understand why as we get closer to the end of the game. On the bright side, this week’s Long Winter Wog is worth a Dopplelt for your daily workout so there’s that to comfort yourself with when you’re complaining loudly to no one who cares about your foot pain. Next, the second Parkenfüste bonus of the game drops this week with an increase in mileage from 3 to 4 miles of hiking. And finally, next Sunday will see the Groundhog Day Side Quest Bonus hit with another 4 miles on foot. So basically, Week 4 is going to see you covering at least 15 miles on those sore dogs! Hey, no one said the Füste was easy and trust GG, your flank meat is going to hate every minute of this week! Take comfort in the fact that Week 4 is the heaviest lift (from on foot mileage perspective) in Periode II! Pro tip, by reading the bonus requirement details closely, you may be able to find a way to combine either the Long Winter Wog or the Parkenfüste bonus with the Groundhog Day bonus. Hmmm, let’s think about that one. 🤔
There’s another Fastentag tomorrow (Jan. 27th) and it’s worse then the last three weeks. For Periode II, we move to a true 24 hour fast (yeah, GG doesn’t like it anymore than you do but it just works). Rules here are simple: fasting starts tomorrow at sun-up and goes till the sun rises again on Tuesday morning. No solid food and clear liquids only (clear juice with no added sugar is okay here, so are clear broths to include (if you dare) bone broths 🤢). Now, could you technically get up early tomorrow before sunrise, have a decent Füste friendly breakfast before starting your 24 hour sacrifice to the flank meat gods? Absolutely (and recommended). Good luck!
With a full 6 weeks left in the game, now is a great time to double down on your homework (and not just because you’ve got that 2 minute plank waiting for you in three weeks). 6 weeks is traditionally the amount of time it takes to see a noticable change in physique when starting a new or changed workout routine. So even if you’ve been a bit labile with your homework up to this point, you still have plenty of time to jump on the wagon here and forcibly replace flank meat with toned muscle! So get to it!

That’s it for the Week 4 updates (and GG thinks that was plenty). One point of clarity, many players have commented that at times the graphical presentation of the group rankings on the Bestenliste does not match the individual Bestenliste (e.g. the Grolarbär may show himself in 2nd place with a total +86p on the Bestenliste but below on the group graphs he shows having +90p). This is because the group graphs autopopulate as players report during the day and the individual Bestenliste is manually created each night by GG. So we’ve got a real old world vs new tech issue here that sometimes may present numbers that seem off (but they’re not!). Just know that the individual Bestenliste should always match the group graphs when it’s posted each night.

And finally, it’s time to say goodbye to several players who retired out during Periode I. Those who did it right by proactively communicating with GG: Ermine, Sea Lion and Tawny Owl. Thank you and we wish you the best in this new year! The others effectively ghosted GG (when you just stop reporting or responding at all) which is not great as GG continues to support those players in the system without knowing that they punched out and he’s just talking to an empty room (or cell phone) at that point. But as a socially awkward person himself, GG kind of get’s it. Who hasn’t secretly exited a party by the back door without saying goodby?

Okay, that’s if for this week’s updates. GG knows it’s a lot and apologizes (as a gift, if you read this whole thing then go ahead and text GG the 🌭 again to score yourself another simulated long dog sighting!). Stick to the game and don’t get intimidated as things get harder. You slayed Periode I and there’s nothing stopping you from doing the same over the next three weeks. YOU’VE GOT THIS, FÜSTER!

Cheers!