North Star Church’s annual Tribal Wars pits local schools against one another
The Tribal Wars crew get ready for the food challenge, one of the most intense challenges students face. It requires mental strength, rather than physical as students must gobble down bizarre cuisine within a matter of seconds. “The food challenge was crazy, I had to eat an entire pizza pie, and I absolutely hate pizza. Luckily I didn’t have to eat sardines like some of the other students,” junior Mackenzie Hutcheson says.
January 23, 2015
Last Sunday, January 20th, Warrior Nation dressed in all black, getting their game faces ready for North Star Church’s annual Tribal Wars.
The event consisted of all Cobb County schools divided into two tribes: the Black Tribe and White Tribe. North Cobb along with North Cobb Christian, Kennesaw Mountain, Wheeler, McEachern, Marietta, Woodstock, and Walton consisted of the Black Tribe while Kell, Allatoona, Harrison, Mt. Paran, Etowah, North Paulding, Hillgrove, and homeschooled students made up the White Tribe.
“It was extremely neat to see all the schools gathered together. It was really crowded, but it was a nice way for students to interact and meet each other,” senior Jazmin McCarden said.
The event kicked off at 7 PM and as soon as students arrived, they devoured the delicious food local restaurant Cookout provided. Each lunchbox contained a burger, chicken nuggets, and fries. The first 200 students also received cupcakes from Miss Mamie’s. If the food failed to gather 200 students in North Star’s Compass Center, the activities definitely succeeded.
Students gather around to watch their peers tackle and punch each other in a twisted version of ‘“trashball”. Instead of hoops, students had to get balls into trash cans while dodging defenders armed with rubber shields. The rules? There are none. “That game is ruthless. I have no idea how people were okay with being shoved in the face with rubber shields, I probably would have cried,” senior Jazmin McCarden says.
“The food was really good, during the first half hour over 200 boxes were sold,” senior Sydney Dyke said.
Tribal Wars kicked off with the Gauntlet challenge, in which students piled into a super-sized bouncy house, where students had to reach the other side while the other team blocked them. The White Tribe won that challenge, but the Black Tribe soon redeemed themselves during the next challenge: River Rafting. Forty five students laid down on the floor while two students climbed on a makeshift raft on top of them. The object of the game was to send the raft to the end without the students falling off. The Black Tribe dominated in this challenge.
“The river rafting challenge was insane, it really required a lot of team effort and was a nice way for students to cheer on their teammates,” junior Jake Byrd said.
After River Rafting came Tribal War’s most anticipated challenge—King of the Hill. This game earned its violent reputation fairly, as students practically yanked on each other’s limbs. In order to win, the tribes needed to reach the top of the hill. This game resulted in a tie between the Black Tribe and the White Tribe. After King of the Hill, students settled down for a riveting speech from Pastor Mike, providing a cool down time the students as well a time to reflect.
“The event was a major success. I had a great time, and even though it was a competition, it was nice to meet people from the opposing side and just come together and hang out,” McCarden said.
The event continued with a few more challenges, including a food challenge, a game of noodle tag, and the final game of dodgeball, in which the Black Tribe dominated. North Cobb students left proud, having successfully defended their turf justly.
