Airdate: Yotday, 30th Zardas 400

[Side note: You will find extra information occasionally given in square brackets which is not part of the narrative, but is purely added for further clairty. This is, after all, fiction!]

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“Good evening everyone and a very warm welcome to Alpie’s Big Deal, the show where luck and good judgement can be paid with a life changing sum of money! Tonight, someone could leave with up to one million zeela!” There’s a huge rupture of applause from the 250-strong audience. Ruhina explains the basics of the rules, and the amounts in the 24 boxes are shown on the screen:



“Here to help us open those boxes are our Box Club!” The Box Club walk out to cheers from the audience, in lines of twelve from two partitions in the audience stands. There are two rows of six on the podium of the gameboard with boxes 1 to 6 on the front row and boxes 13 to 19 on the back. This is mirrored on the right side of the stage, the front row for boxes 6 to 12 and the back row for boxes 18 to 24. “They’re kindly going to open the boxes for us and offer advice to our contestants, and they will also try to raise money for good causes along the way.”

“I think it’s time to meet our first contestant, don’t you? Please welcome today’s player, Nika Donraydra from Sheskel!” The audience are clearly pumped as Nika runs from backstage to centre stage to take a seat at the table next to Ruhina.

“Tell us a little about yourself, Nika!”
“Well, I’m Nika Donraydra and I’m 38 from Sheskel [7 miles northwest of Vestara] and I drive trains on the Vestara metro!” Ruhina jokes around with him by saying that she hopes today’s game doesn’t go off the rails! “I have been married to my beautiful wife Artine for nearly sixteen years now, and we have three wonderful children Doneri, 17, and our twin boys Lito and Akros who are fourteen!”

The camera pans to the Supporters Bench where Artine and Doneri are sat. With them is Nika’s long-time best friend Kel, whom he met at school.

“Let’s say, Nika, you won a hundred thousand zeela tonight. A truly life changing sum of money! What would you spend it on?”
“Well, our car is ruined at the moment and the children are growing up so I want to treat myself to a nice car if possible! I’m sure there’ll be a couple of great holidays too, and I certainly want to take us all skiing in Delerak! [a country in the northern continent of Norvarsi] Also, Doneri is doing really well at school and would love to study psychology at the Vestara University of Neuroscience.”

“Brilliant Nika! I wish you all possible success this evening, and I hope you can take home a lot of money! First things first, you must choose one of these 24 boxes to be yours, so what takes your fancy?”
“I’ve never had lucky numbers or anything like that, but I keep looking at number 9…” “Why thank you!” exclaims Meffy. “Yeah I’ll take Box 9 please!” The audience applaud as Meffy brings the box to the table, wishes Nika good luck and heads back to the Box Club podium.

Ruhina explains how we will open the other boxes in turn to find out what isn’t in Box 9, and how occasionally the Banker will call to try and buy the box off him – but for as little as possible. “We will open six boxes in the first round, and we’ll do that after the break!"

“Welcome back to Alpie’s Big Deal! Before the break, we met Nika Donraydra who is here to hopefully win one million zeela! He selected Box 9, and the contents of that box will be his, unless he decides to sell the box to the Banker, but we’ll talk about that later.

“In the first round you will open six boxes, and those celebrities selected to open their box will attempt to predict that box’s contents. If they get it right, we will add 2,500z to your charity pot. We’ll talk about your nominated charity later on in the show, but for now, I wish you the best of luck, and let’s open six boxes!” Huge applause – the stage lighting changes from orange to a light blue.

“The first box we will open is Box 8!” Nika’s looking positive and determined already.
“Hi Merla!” Exclaims Ruhina. “We want to see a low amount here of course because whatever is in that box, isn’t in Box 9!”
“Good evening Nika, I wish you the best of luck! I think I’ve got ten zeela in here.”
“That would be great!”

Box 8 – Merla – 75,000z

There are groans from the audience for that. “Not the best of starts,” says Ruhina, “but there’s plenty of money left on that board! Where next?”
“Let’s try Box 22 next please.”
“Finori! Please have something a little less than what Merla had!”
“I hope it’s smaller than the lingerie they used to make me wear! I’ll say… ten thousand.”

Box 22 – Finori – 20,000z

“Close! That’s not too bad, we want more than twenty thousand anyway don’t we?” says Ruhina, which is met with applause.
“Right okay, Box 4 next with Tristan.”
“Hi Tristan! Glad to have you back on television, it’s been a while hasn’t it?” Tristan laughs. “Not long enough, I was enjoying my break!” The audience laugh. “This will be a low one Nika, don’t worry, I’m going for 30z!”

Box 4 – Tristan – 500,000z

Huge groans around the studio, but Nika’s still smiling almost as much as he was at the start of the round. “You don’t need me to tell you that that’s a bad thing! Can we find some blues now please Nika?!”

“I think Donita can cook me up a good result, don’t you?” There are mixed groans and laughter to that terrible pun. “Box 21 Donita, please have a blue?!”
“Absolutely my darling, 500z.”

Box 21 – Donita – 200,000z

“You’ve done it again!” shouts Ruhina, while Nika chuckles slightly and says “It’s not going too well so far is it?”
“There’s plenty of time to find some low numbers, but you must start doing it now!”
“Okay, okay… Box 10 please.”
“Good luck Nika, there’s definitely a blue in here, I’ll go for 750z!”
“I hope it is,” says Ruhina, “as a correct guess puts 2,500z in the charity pot. Plus, we’re desperate for a blue!”

Box 10 – Tiluna – 100z

“There we go!” Finally something the audience can cheer to. “Do that again one more time, and then we’re going to hear from the Banker!” “Box 2 please!”
“I’m going to go for 750z as well Nika, good luck!”

Box 2 – Jacinda – 300z

“Good stuff!” Applause from the audience. “Six boxes have gone, and two huge sums of money have gone from the gameboard. The Banker will like that.” Ruhina explains the Banker’s role in the game, and shortly afterwards, the phone rings.

The conversation is rather brief, and Ruhina hangs up. “He welcomes you to the game Nika, and he says he’s here to make things difficult for you… His first offer to buy Box 9 is 19,000z.”



That announcement is met with close to zero expression from the audience. Nika raises his eyebrows somewhat but looks underwhelmed.

“If you say no deal, we play on and you need to open five more boxes before he makes a new offer for your box. If you say deal, 19,000z is yours and we will find out whether or not that was a good deal! Nika Donraydra… Deal or No Deal?”
“It’s not a bad sum of money, I certainly wouldn't turn my nose up at that sum of money in normal circumstances but I believe there's a lot more to play for there, so NO DEAL!” The audience applaud an answer they were all expecting anyway.

I'm quite enjoying this so far.

The opening offer is of 2006 US Banker generosity, unsurprisingly. They need to subtlely instill that it's stupid to take the first two offers after the show not being on the air for such a long time, after all.

“Nineteen thousand has gone, and now we must open five boxes. Find the low amounts and his offers are going to go upwards.”
“Box 11 please!”
“Evening Lache! I love how you’ve turned up in your lab coat!” Says Ruhina, followed by some laughter. “I live in it,” shouts Lache, “it’s a part of me now!”
“Hopefully you can use the laws of physics to produce a low number for us,” jokes Ruhina. “I’m not sure what I can do on that front,” says Lache with just a hint of condescension, “I think I’ve got 30,000z in here. Good luck, Nika.”

Box 11 – Lache – 10z

Applause. “Excellent! More like that, Nika!”
“Alright let’s do it!” Nika starts tapping on the table as his excitement starts to become physical. “Box 7 please, D.T.!”
“For two and a half grand for charity D.T., what’s in the box?”
“Best of luck Nika, I think I can do one better than Lache and I’m going to guess one zeela!”

Box 7 – D.T. – 10,000z

“That’s okay, that’s not too bad!” It was Nika saying that for once and not Ruhina. “Right you are Nika, three more please!”
“My kids absolutely love your music, so I’ve got to go with you Daniel Nyssam, Box 24!”
“Glad to hear it Nika! I hope I’ve got 75z in here for you.”

Box 24 – Daniel – 50,000z

Nika grimaces slightly, and the audience don’t like that either. “We wanted to stay away from that! Pick some more blues Nika and we’ll be okay.”
“Yep. Box 20 please, Aleos.” “Let’s have something microscopic from Box 20 please Aleos.”
“I hope it is, I’m guessing twenty zeela!”

Box 20 – Aleos – 100,000z

“Oh my word!” Nika’s laughing at himself again, though Artine is looking noticeably less comfortable on the Supporters Bench. “There are only three life-changing sums of money left out here,” says Ruhina, “and if you want good offers from the Banker, you’re going to have to avoid them at all costs.”
“I know, I know… Right can I have Box 13, Iota please?”
“Iota, we’re desperate for a blue amount here after attacking those big numbers. We hear from the Banker after this box so it’s crucial!”
“It’s feeling cold to me Nika, I’m going to say it’s a thousand.”

Box 13 – Iota – 20z

“Good!” Nika is still looking happy despite the sparsity of reds on that board. “What will he do now?” proposes Ruhina. “He’s going to call with an offer for Box 9… After the break!”

“Welcome back to the third part of Alpie’s Big Deal! We have Nika who is still on for a huge sum of money tonight. There’s a 1 in 5 chance that the box in front of him contains at least three hundred thousand zeela!” Nika’s delighted by that fact, and there’s a rupture of applause from the audience as the phone starts ringing.

“Hello Banker… I agree, there’s still a lot of money in that board… They certainly do… Okay thanks.” Ruhina hangs up. “He says anything could happen in this game still, and that everyone in this building has reason to be scared. He’s obviously got his eye on those big three numbers, he’s offering you 33,000z!”



Nika visibly happy to receive an offer like that, and the reaction from the audience is positive too. Ruhina warns him that his top prize after the next round of four boxes could be just 5,000z. “There’s still a long way to go dad,” points out Doneri, “keep going!”
“I think I’m with Doneri on this one, it’s still very early days and there’s some mega amounts left so I’m going for NO DEAL!” The audience applaud the decision, and there are one or two audible cries of encouragement.

Quite a precarious board already.

I doubt this next offer will invite a Deal, though. This could easily go down the same route as the first prime-time Australian episode and end in a 3rd offer Deal, though.

EDIT: Yep, the second offer was round about what I suspected it to be. Will the Banker go up in the next round if more damage is done to the big money block, though?

“So far, Nika, we haven’t got anything in the charity pot for you, and that needs to change! Why don’t you tell us a little bit about the charity you have chosen tonight?”

“Okay well, while I’ve been working on the Vestara underground I’ve done my fair share of night shifts, and one of the most upsetting sights to see are people sleeping in the corners of stations with nowhere to go, especially in the peak of summer when the heat down there is practically unbearable. The charity I’ve chosen tonight have done some amazing work over the last ten years and they have helped to house and take care of homeless people from in and around Vestara, and they help these people get back on their feet and prepare them for job interviews and everything, so I would love to donate the charity pot tonight to the Vestara Homeless Shelter.” There’s a huge roar of applause from the audience.
“Hopefully our celebrities can help you raise some money for such a great cause! Keep in mind as well, that as the boxes dwindle away it’s going to become easier for the Box Club to guess the contents of their box, so hopefully we can help you make a very nice donation!"

Come on Nika.. Win lots of Zeela!

Ruhina returns everyone's attention back to the game. “Let’s play on, four boxes please.”
“Alright let’s go with Box 3!”
“Florence, we’d really like to get something in that charity pot if you possibly can, please!”
“I know what’s in here Nika, don’t worry,” announces Florence, exuding with confidence. “It’s thirty zeela.”
“Let’s see it then!” cries Ruhina.

Box 3 – Florence – 30z
** CORRECT GUESS - 2,500z **

Huge cheers, and Nika looks relieved! “That’s a great box on two fronts,” says Ruhina, “on one hand it’s blue and exactly what we need, and now you have 2,500z for the Vestara Homeless Shelter! Let’s do it again now!” Ruhina is very excitable all of a sudden.
“Yes definitely Ru, let’s try Box 18 please.”
“Good evening Risath! Are you enjoying your Box Club membership so far?”
“Absolutely Ru,” says Risath with an almost false sense of enthusiasm, “we’re a great group of people and I’m sat next to a wonderful lady, so I couldn’t be happier!”
“Wonderful stuff Risath, what’s in the box?”
“Let’s hope we can add some more money to the charity pot Nika, best of luck, I’m going for 1,000z!”

Box 18 – Risath – 1z

“Perfect box!” The audience are certainly getting more excited now. “Let’s keep this run going Nika, two more to open.”
“Box 16, Dorinda please!”
“Good luck Nika, I hope I’ve got 200z for you.”

Box 16 – Dorinda – 200z
** CORRECT GUESS - 2,500z **

More huge cheers from the audience, and a loud “YES!” from Nika. “This is amazing Nika, five grand in the charity pot and that board is looking great… But can we miss those big three in the final box? Get there, Nika.”
“Nineteen please, Mr. Carson Inglewood!”
“Welcome back to the small screen, Carson!” The well-known actor receives a hefty round of applause from the audience. “We’re on for a big offer from the Banker next, but you must have a low box…”
Carson grimaces. “Sorry Nika, I’ve had a bad feeling about this box from the beginning, I’m going to say it’s 300,000z…”
“Kneesy does it, Carson!” That pun was received even more badly than Nika’s pun about Donita earlier. Nika’s still going there, though.

Box 19 – Carson – 5,000z

“Thank goodness for that!” The family are looking incredibly happy, but certainly not as much as Nika. The lights turn red, and the banker calls.

“Hello… It did, and thankfully it went our way… I’m sure you do! Hmm, okay…” Ruhina hangs up. “Because those big three are still there, he’s very concerned, and he hopes the game will swing back in his favour if you decide to play on! To buy Box 9 from you, he will give you seventy-four thousand zeela!”



"That is REALLY good, Nika..." Artine looks a little uncomfortable, and is giving Nika somewhat of a devil's stare at that rather hefty offer. Ruhina points out he has three to open should he play on. Kel tries talking him into the gamble - "you'd have to be extremely unlucky to remove those three big boxes Nika, I say play on!"

Nika asks his daughter who says "I think I would try one more round? It will be scary though!" The audience are encouraging him to go on... And with a slight look of anguish on his face, "Sorry Artine, I've got a really good feeling about this. NO DEAL!" There is a huge roar of applause, as things suddenly get very interesting

No question that the Banker will go up now.

74,000 zeela is right about where the offer should be considering this is the first show. The only really disasterous scenario is the 1 in 84 disaster round, though it will be interesting to see how this Banker plays a one box game.

I did not expect to be facing a game like this as Banker after the first few boxes.

"Nine boxes remain," exclaims Ruhina, "and now you have to remove three more of them. Best of luck..."
“Thanks, Ru! Box 6 and Haley, please.”
“We can only imagine what the offer will be in three boxes time if we still have the 300, 750 and the million in play Haley.”
“You’re doing great Nika, I hope I can keep it up for you, I’m going for 30,000z.”
"And that would be fine right now!"

Box 6 – Haley – 75z

The cheers are getting louder now as we reach the latter stages. “Do that again, Nika…” Ruhina looks as if she’s bracing herself for a big box to be found at any moment.
“Oh wow… Erm… Box 12.”
“Ralphie, welcome! This is rather spectacular, please keep it going…”
“This is fantastic Nika, fingers crossed! I’m going to guess 750z for you…”
"You could be incredibly rich if these two boxes go your way, Nika..."

Box 12 – Ralphie – 50z

Nika starts laughing – this time out of awe of the situation. There are shouts of “come on!” and whistles heard from the audience. “Come on dad!” shouts Doneri. “One more box, then we get the next offer… Take a deep breath, focus, and pick your final box of the round.” Ruhina looks astonished by what is happening here.
“This is incredible… Let’s go for Box 15 please.”
“Calla, it’s all down to you now. There is a hell of a lot of money riding on this one.”
“There sure is Ru, but I’m confident for you Nika. I’m going to guess 500z.”
Ruhina raises her eyebrows at that guess. “If it is the five hundred, you will have just removed the three lowest boxes in a single round… That would be an incredible achievement… Open the box.”

Box 15 – Calla – 500z
** CORRECT GUESS - 2,500z **

Nika is in total disbelief, Artine and Doneri are jumping all over the place and Kel is punching the air. The audience are ecstatic – were they expecting an amazing pilot episode like this? “I think you’ve got to brace yourself for a very difficult decision now, Nika. The banker knows that there’s a 50-50 chance of there being at least three hundred thousand zeela in Box 9 in front of you!” Huge cheers. “This offer, is truly going to be massive.” The phone rings.

“How about that Banker! Oh wow… Alright…” Ruhina hangs up. “Well that was brief… Ha, um, you would have expected at this point to have a massive offer, possibly in the six-figures… I’m just going to let you wait a while before I tell you the offer – it’s time for a break! See you in a couple of minutes!” Nika groans, but not as much as Artine and Doneri as the camera flies away from the centre of the set.

What a board to be facing on the first show.

The key thing here is that the game can't be completely destroyed in a single round now, but again this will be tricky to play with no precident of generosity on a one box game.

I wonder how much the very early contestants (on any version of the show) got briefed on offer patterns in test games, runthroughs, auditions, etc.?

“Welcome back to the final part of the first episode of Alpie’s Big Deal, and what a show we’re having… Nika Donraydra from Sheskel is here with his wife, daughter and best friend. When we started, it wasn’t going all that well, but now he has a 50% chance of taking home a minimum of 300,000z if he goes all the way to open his box. Before the break, I had just come off the phone with the Banker.
“I quote, Nika, ‘I never in my worst nightmares thought I’d see this…’
“The offer… is one hundred and sixty-five thousand zeela!!”





There's a huge roar of applause and Artine is visibly and audibly excited! "That's EXACTLY what you came for Nika, don't push it, it's time to go home!"
"Look at that board though!" shouts Kel, still feeling like the gamble is an advisory thing to do. Carson points out that he can't hit all three numbers, but D.T. says it's a lot of money to lose, with Haley and Merla either side of him agreeing that he should take the money.
"Well, Ruhina, I never thought I would be as lucky as this... and I really don't want to push it too far. So thank you very much, it's a DEAL!"







Everyone from the bench comes out to congratulate him, and he also gets a big hug from Ruhina. She begins to explain how the game flips around now and we play on to see what would have happened had he played on.

“Alright, let’s open Box 1, Oli.”
“Oli, let’s prove he made a brilliant decision, and let’s steer this game right off course!”
“I hope so Nika, well done, I’m going for 300,000z.”

Box 1 – Oli – 300,000z
** CORRECT GUESS - 2,500z **

More cheers. “This is excellent, Nika! There’s now ten grand inside that charity pot for the Vestara Homeless Shelter, they’re going to be so pleased with that… But we could add a lot more to it still!”
“Let’s hope so! Box 17.”
“Hey Ja, we want another correct guess if we can please, and ideally, one of the big two!”
“I’ll go for the million Nika, well done!”

Box 17 – Ja – 1,000z

There are “ooh”s from the audience. “Wow, what a position we’d have been in now! Two boxes ago, we were talking about a 50/50 chance of you leaving with 300,000z… Now you’d have had a 50/50 shot at at least three quarters of a million zeela…” The phone rings.

“Hello… It’s astonishing I agree… My word.” Ruhina hangs up the phone. “He can’t believe the luck would have continued like this, and he says maybe you should have pushed your luck… You’d have been offered a quarter of a million zeela at this point!”