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Games

Meet the Vapers of E3

These are the men who vape. Here are their stories.

Image via Flickr user TBEC Review

Every year, gamers descend upon Los Angeles like a pack of pale, strong-wristed spider monkeys for E3, the annual video game industry trade show. IGN estimates that last year nearly 50,000 people entered the hallowed halls of the LA Convention Center, dollops of drool hanging from their jowls in their hunger—nay, biological need—for all things Game.

These people are, obviously, in America's technological One Percent. They deeply give a shit about advancements in the field of electronics, exploring the boundaries of the relationship between man and machine. They care about Virtual Reality. They care about open worlds. They are not above participating in a photo booth that allows you to break a block as if you were in Super Mario.

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If there were ever a large group of people who would collectively be into inhaling electronically produced nicotine-infused vapor, it is these guys.

I took it upon myself to find these noble nicotine warriors and learn more about their vapes. I am no hero, just a simple seeker of truth in this obfuscated smoke cloud we call life.

These are the vapers of E3. These are their stories.

Wilfredo and Calvin

Photo by Jamie Taete.

VICE: What kind of vapes are those?
Wilfredo: This is the Sigeili 150 watt box mod.
Calvin: This is a diesel model by Kelvin.

What level of vape is this?
W: I don't know much about mods, but I was told if I wanted to buy one and stick with it, it's the best one.
C: That's the easiest one to use.

What flavors do you have?
W: I have a mixture of different tropical fruits with a slight hit of menthol.
C: I have my own company actually. Homeboys Select.

Can I try some?
C: Do you have a tip?

No.
C: Try cupping your hand over it.

[Editor's Note: At this point, I tried some of Calvin's vape. The metal tip of the vape became hotter than the fires of Hell, and I immediately dropped it. I now have a burn blister on my pinkie.]

How much would I have owed you if I'd broken your vape?
C: Like $50.

Rusty

All other photos by the author

VICE: What kind of vape is that?
Rusty: It's an iStick for the base, and a Spire for the tank.

How long have you been vaping?
I started back in September of 2014. I smoked for about nine years.

Do you like it?
It's great. I definitely feel better. I still smoke a few cigarettes here and there.

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What flavor is that?
I've got milk and honey right now. It's my personal favorite.

What do you do?
I'm a technical artist. I help make games work.

Unagi and Raymond

VICE: What are you guys doing at E3?
Unagi: Just checking out the electronics.
Raymond: I'm in the media.

What kind of vapes are these?
R: This is a Ranger box mod with a Kanger SUBTANK-MINI.
U: A Hades mech-mod with a Kanger SUBTANK-PLUS.

What does that mean?
U: The SUBTANK uses the MINI's RBA so you don't have to switch out the chimney to make the OCC or whatnot. It holds .07ml. That's a lot of juice.

What flavors do you have?
U: I have kettle corn.
R: I have pineapple upside down cake from Ahlusion.

Anonymous

VICE: What kind of vape is this?
Anon: It's an IP3 with a sub-ohm tank from Kanger.

How long have you been vaping?
A year.

What drew you to it?
I smoked two packs a day of Marlboro Reds. This got me off that and running again.

What flavor juice do you have?
It's called Boost. It's a strawberry thing.

What are you doing at E3?
I'm working with clients. I work with media companies and stuff.

Robert and Alex

VICE: What are you doing at E3?
Robert: I'm an engineer at Western Digital, but mostly I'm a huge fan of gaming.

Tell me about your vape.
This is the XPro M80 Plus by Smok. Nice little box mod. It lets me do the temperature control builds with nickel.

What flavor do you have?
Invader Vapor 8-bit.

What does that taste like?
It's a blend of berries. I prefer the fruity flavors.

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[Alex, Robert's friend approaches, with his own vape.]

Alex: What kind of box is that?
Robert: That's what he's asking me.

Well, what kind of box is that?
Alex: It's a Sigelei 150.

What are you doing at E3?
A: I work at Western Digital. I actually know him.

Who's better at games?
Robert: Depends on the game.

Jason

VICE: What are you doing at E3?
Jason: I'm here to check out all the cool games.

Tell me about your vape.
This is a Sigeili 150 with a print on the outside. I'm rockin' a high-voltage, 0.2ohm tank with a single vertical coil.

What's with the engraving on that?
It came like this. They call it the Oni Mask. It's a split design, if you look at it side-by-side you can see it.

David

VICE: Why did you say you're worried about looking bad online?
David: Because I exist on the internet.

What do you do?
I'm an environment artist. I create backgrounds and environments for video games.

What do you gravitate toward?
I do realistic stuff. I work for a company called Naughty Dog. I helped with Uncharted and The Last of Us.

Tell me about your vape.
I picked up smoking recently and I wasn't a fan of it. I still wanted to have that social aspect of smoking, so I tried out vaping. It's a lot easier on my lungs, which is nice. At least until they tell me I have cancer.

Anthony

VICE: What are you doing at E3?
Anthony: Just trying to check out all the new games, get my hands on some previews.

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What's up with your vape?
I'm just vapin' it, man.

You have a dropper putting the liquid on something. Tell me about that.
This is organic cotton. I take the vape juice and drip it off. When it gets a little dry you re-up the flavor.

Can you use weed with that?
Not with this one. They sell different tops. You can go to any vape shop and they'll sell you one specifically for that.

Is there a code word you have to use for "weed" at a vape shop?
Not specifically. Just tell them you want to use it for wax.

What kind of vape is this?
I don't actually know, it just says "tank crossing."

What are you doing at E3?
I wanna play in the Street Fighter V tournament.

Do you think you're going to win?
Nah, I'll probably lose to him. [Points to his friend.]

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