Casey Howard brought the Briar Testament to Art Dye and immediately tested its 'Survivor Takes the Crown' clause by shooting 57 for an 886 rating—49 points below his 935 rating. The +17 tag jump to #9 is a miracle of ladder math, not performance, because when the ground rejects you that hard, the only crown you're wearing is made of rough. adjusts headset Some side quests end with the hero earning a trophy; this one ended with the course collecting its pound of flesh and the scoreboard offering a participation promotion.
Briar Testament
The Deadlands @ Art Dye·Competition group Pool A·
All-In · only the number moves
Casey Howard
RAD
White
Season Arc · The Deadlands @ Art Dye
17
#9Now
#8Best
#22Started
16Weeks
All-In league: Briar Testament stays with its holder — only its number moves with each week's standings.
Character Sheet
AI-written · FATE styleHigh ConceptThe Survivor Takes the Crown
TroubleRefuses to Know When It's Over
The Ground Rejects Me
Flowers Bloom in Blood
Your Misses Feed My Crown
The Briar Testament emerged from the accumulated wisdom of all who survived the Deadlands not through conquest but through sheer stubborn endurance. It began as whispered warnings passed between competitors - the secret knowledge that the frontier rewards those who refuse to break, even when every assault should have felled them. Over countless cullings, these defensive survival teachings fused into a covenant, a written testament bound by the frontier's own supernatural law.
The Briar Testament manifests as a crown of intertwined thorns that pulse with a soft golden light, the dark crimson base fading to gold at the tips - representing the transformation from vulnerable newcomer to remembered survivor. The thorns grow slightly with each attack the bearer survives, becoming more dense and intricate over time. A faint barrier surrounds the bearer, creating an almost imperceptible disturbance in the air that aggressive competitors can sense as resistance. The testament cannot be destroyed - only transformed, as the defensive knowledge passes to the next worthy survivor when the current bearer finally falls.
The Briar Testament serves as the frontier's acknowledgment that survival takes many forms - not every remembered soul is a hunter, some are simply too stubborn to break. It provides an alternative path to remembrance through defensive endurance rather than aggressive conquest, creating philosophical balance within the culling's harsh mathematics.
Season Story
narrated by FlippyCasey Howard dragged the Briar Testament from #8 to #10, and the frontier didn't need to lift a finger—Howard did the work himself. A 910 round, 27 points below a 937 rating, on a layout where even the coyotes are whispering your lines back at you. Adjusts headset in dry dust. The covenant rewards endurance, sure, but it doesn't reward missing your personal average by a stroke while the field average breathes down your neck. The thorns held through the climb; they don't hold against a round that bleeds back down the ladder. Another episode of 'The Survivor Takes the Crown' where the crown just slipped two slots toward the Hollowed.
Casey Howard dragged the Briar Testament from #20 to #8 on a +12 climb that's less about fireworks and more about refusing to burn out. No rating data to wave around this week, but the covenant doesn't track personal bests—it tracks who outlasts. The frontier tried to bury another drifter; the thorns held. Dust-choked and still standing.
Due to absence from Week 3 (Creek Runs Black), tag number moved from 9 to 20. (Week 3 of 9)
adjusts headset Casey Howard dragged the Briar Testament into Art Dye and emerged with a +13 ranking swing, climbing from #22 to #9. The 898 rating sits 32 below their 930 PDGA average—an honest number that tells you the rough won plenty of battles today. But the tag doesn't care about personal bests; it cares about who outlasts. The thorns snagged a few ratings, but Casey's stubborn endurance kept the covenant intact. One more week of this frontier nonsense and I might start believing in the script.
adjusts headset The Briar Testament has been mirrored into a local arc. Casey Howard is taking the crown to The Deadlands @ Art Dye for a side quest. It’s stubborn endurance meets the Art Dye rough. The thorns are ready to grow. A spinoff episode begins now.
See where Casey Howard sits in the competition group.Updated after every finalized round
League Ladder