In evolution, the mighty survive…yes that is true. But there is more to evolution than having the biggest, strongest and fastest ruling their environment. Let’s not forget the prime reason they survive in the first place; they adapt. Yes, adaptation is the key to taking advantage of your strength and quickness. It what makes you the ruler in the first place. No species can lay claim to ruling all aspects of their environment, they are the mercy of its whims just like the rest of creatures on earth. The ability to adapt, determines which species survive to the next generation.

Now, what the horse hockey does all this have to do with wrestling? Well, E-fedding evolves just like any other sport or game. Look at hockey and football for example. Players in the past were superstars in their own right. They ruled above those in their sport for their time. However, as the sport continued to exist…it evolved and changed until it reached a point where it was not the same type of environment as it used to be. In hockey and football, players started playing the sport earlier and earlier; did more practicing before reaching the pros; and conditioned themselves better as well. What you ended up with, was a more refined athlete who could play the game better. As these better conditioned players entered the game, rule changes had to evolve to adapt them to the game….such as padding in football, since now players were more muscular and through practice, could hit better and with more force. The point is…the game changed because the players changed, and the players changed as a result of trying to fit in the game.

In hockey, the best players were all-around players who played both offense and defense equally as good. In the 70’s it changed to a more physical game, where brute force was a good trait for a player to have. The 80’s and 90’s say the fast, play making, pure offensive player take over until the 00’s saw the combination of toughness and offense as the best tributes for a single player to have. Even in baseball, players have changed. While the 80’s and 90’s were the times for speedy players to rule the baseball world (Ricky Henderson, Tim Raines, Willie Wilson, Pete Rose, Ron LeFlore…etc) right now, the homer run hitters with massive biceps rule instead.

Back in the E-Fedding world…what rules? Well, that all depends on which Fed head you ask or which Fed you stop by and see. Some feds prefer long character development roleplays…other just want you to do promos that ‘hype’ the match…others still, want a combo of both…. Some don’t want either and just want their friends to win. Regardless, those at the top right now are in power as fed heads, Efed resource sites, Inter-Fed tournament directors or E-Fed forums discussion groups. What they say is seen as ‘truth” since they have the experience and accompishments to back them up. Right now they are the dominant species in the E-fed environment. Their strength lies in their ability to produce type written RP’s in the style of their choice….the style they believe in, have perfected and have been doing for years. But the base of their strength is still based on the type written word. What if the type written word was not as strong of a pillar of support any longer? How can you continue to be strong when your foundation has crumbled? What happens when the game changes under your feet? Why you adapt of course…when one part breaks, you replace it with another, or rely on something else to do the job for you.

But like any fight for survival, those at the top will fight to stay on top, using their current strengths. They will argue against your points and dismiss new ideas or suggestions. I’ve argued the point of changing the way RP’s are “WRITTEN” in more than a few articles over the course of this magazine’s life. But maybe that’s just it… maybe the time to argue over how to “WRITE” an RP has passed. Maybe we have done all we can with that present form? Maybe we have reacheda point where nothing more can be done with the present skills. Time to evolve and move on. But in which direction is the next step in the e-fed game? Where do we go from here?

I believe it to be… a more visual style. Right now, regardless of the style you use, all you are really doing is placing type written words on a computer screen. No pizzazz, no aides, no visual impact to prove your point. Now, this may have been great for e-feds 5-6 years ago, when computers were slow dinosaurs. Typing out a RP was the best way to do a promo. But we live in a high-speed computer age…the age of free picture and file downloads…the age of endless fonts and poser graphics. A world of Photoshop, digital cameras, youtube, myspace and facebook. Mere type written words may not be enough anymore. Right now there are some Rpers who place photos and other graphics in their RPs, to help the reader visualize things better, or to hammer a point home. Nothing wrong with that. Sounds like a start… a new step towards a different way of RPing. I myself have used totally visual RP’s in the form of comic strip panels. To me, that’s the difference between watching a wrestling promo on TV…where all the images are provided for you…by the person who wants you to see exactly what they wish you to see….or a type written RP, which is like listening to a wrestling promo on radio…where you have to “image” what is going on. When movies come out, which line up is more busy, the line up to “SEE” the movie, or the lineup at the book store to “READ” the book?

Just like sports were transformed when TV replaced radio coverage…maybe one day, visual RP’s will push aside the purely type written RP’s. When people had the choice between watching sports on TV or listening to it on the radio, the visual TV choice was always taken. The computer age has changed, sports has changed and the players in E-Feds have changed with better resources at their disposal. Will E-Fedding evolve in that direction? Who knows? But will you be prepared for when it does and survive? Will you "ADAPT". Or will you fade like the dinosaurs, despite their enormous strength and power?