Recent increases in driving accidents have startled mothers into not letting their young ones borrow the hovercraft! Apparently the corner in sector 3485 has become one of the most treacherous curves in known history with a staggering 66 kills in the last month! Almost half of these pods have been blamed on bad driving by local drunk Durnk Dryver (23). But reports from an anonymous source tell us that the recent skyrocket in bad driving by merchant Durnk Dryver (23) may not be due to excessive intoxication, but instead to him being paid off to do cheap undercover mine clearing by high ranking Death Control officials.
Death Control officially denies these claims. Leader and alliance pod man Sterling declined to be interviewed on the subject directly. But Death Control does seem to have changed it's tactics. Recent reports have Death Control breaking their long time stance of no NAP's or pacts with anyone, when a member of the Crusaders spilled the beans one night when he had too much to drink at the Stellar Dance Club, and revealed a Planetary NAP between Crusaders and Death Control. So what is going on?
While Death Control remains silent on the topic, Dogs of War leader Lotu$ is more than willing to talk on the subject. When questioned on the front lawn of his alliance headquarters, he was critical of Death Control. "First they pNAP...and now these shocking reports of hiring merchants to suicide their ships on their enemies' minefields, this is a classic example of power corrupting the honorable soul of an alliance and turning it into just another rotten apple. What happened to the old Honorable Death Control whose leader valued things like honor and playing fair?" When asked to explain what was dishonorable about a pNAP or the legitimate commerce of hiring pilots to do a job, Lotu$ said nothing and tramped inside the building.
Death Control's motives are never so apparent, but the motive of Durnk Dryver himself have been made clear in a separate article in this issue of the Galactic Post. Read on, and don't forget to renew your subscription. At the current rate, you get twice as many issues for half the price.
Durnk Dryver's Defense
Accusations against the now infamous Durnk Dryver have been popping up everywhere. Some have been saying its just reckless driving caused by alcohol and boredom while others say that he is a pawn of the Death Control alliance. Are these true? Whats the real story? The Galactic Post found him post-pod getting a nightcap at I. Rosen's bar and grill. What follows is the interview Durnk Dryver granted.
GP - "Mr. Durnk, what do you have to say about the allegations against you?"
DD - "Well I'd have to say its propaganda coming from the Dumb ole Whiners or DoW as you call em. They don't like being cleared, but who does?"
GP - "We've heard rumors that you are being paid to do this, is this correct?"
DD - "I do not deny that at all, its true and I've admitted it."
GP - "Who is behind these payments?"
DD - "My employer shall remain anonymous, he or she doesn't want to be named at this time."
GP - "Well can you at least tell us WHY they want this done?"
DD - finishes beer, "I sure can and would like to take this opportunity to do such."
At this point he slid a letter onto the bar and walked off with a bottle of wine in hand. Here are the contents of the letter, printed in full so that Galactic Post readers may form their own opinion.
"As I'm sure you are aware during the last great galaxy battle DoW was around. With this one alliance came a strategy which many found dishonorable and disrespectful. After many a PB had been finished by other alliances DoW would normally move in within one to two days of the original PB and perform one of their own. They did this to countless alliance countless times and because of this ruined the chances of many alliances because of the financial costs they then had to face. Well my employer was a member of one of these alliances and wanted to beat DoW down with a vengeance. Not wanting to face the same degradation by DoW as they did in the last war they wanted a way to remain anonymous. Finding me in a bar while I was scouting the nether regions they asked if I would do them such a thing for a price of 125 million credits. Feeling that the DoW tactic was gutless I accepted for a cost of 85 million credits... minus 40 because those are just fun to drink. Anyways, I took on the task and am now fulfilling my end of the bargain. For how long or how much damage I must do I will not say, that is confidential. Just know that I can NOT be bought out like DoW has offered to and I WILL fulfill my end of the contract... I am loyal to my word unlike some scum of the universe I bid you farewell and good luck in you journeys of life and leave you with this - In heaven there is no beer, thats why we drink it here, and when we're gone from here, all our friends will be drinking all our beer!"
Alpha Factor is not a Factor
It appears that long existing alliance Alpha Factor is failing to make an impact this game. Last game they made tiny ripples in the pond, and even made headlines in the Galactic Post for their acts of treachery, but not much so far this game.
When examining their roster this game, one may discover at least one explanation for this. Many of their players from previous games have departed, either the game in general, or have found berths in other alliances. Low activity has also been observed and could probably be another cause for their ranking.
Other changes the alliance has seen is change of "War Commander" lead. Shadowstorm became the alliance's WC sometime during last game with some success, but failing to restore AF to its former rankings. DragonGrl, one of their previous WC's is now back, but seems to be fairly inactive. DragonGrl, some have claimed, was the WC a couple of games ago who took AF to a far greater success than it has seen since. Another change was AF saying goodbye to a co-leader, RandyOrsolo, who left his long time team mates behind and started fresh with Crusaders.
This game AF hovers at around 11th place in all 3 catagories, though the exp ranking would drop sharply if the roster were culled to remove inactives. Although this alliance usually starts out with wide eyes and big hopes, many are watching and waiting for something to happen, and some wonder at the future for Alpha Factor.
The Order in Chaos?
Recently reports of dissatisfaction among the members of The Order has led to rumors that the alliance is falling apart slowly. It seems that unhappy members are trickling out, searching for new homes.
Its internal chaos may be a suprise to many, but some had predicted trouble after former leader Vtreka left the alliance. A couple members have already left, and it appears that more are thinking about leaving, hanging on just a bit longer before bailing out, hoping that the sinking ship can right itself.
One merchant enjoying some time off in the local Starlight Saloon was heard commenting that the reason for the chaos is that the egos of some players got in the way of a team spirit and interfered with the alliance having a unified front. Another was heard to imply that some players were unreliable and even dangerous during thier ops. TO does however have a strong roster with many experienced players, and they may be able to patch things up in short order. That's up for TO and destiny to decide.
The State of Your Kitchen
Aside from the ever present and disreputable bars, that there are few, if *any* good places to chow down in the SMR universe. The effects of getting all your nutrients from local bars has already been seen across the galaxy. Durnk Dryver’s and Saladino’s inebriated antics having caused countless misery to many alliance’s forces. It is my opinion that it’s high time that traders, hunters and the rest of the galaxies' pilots were given the chance to eat somewhere that doesn’t consider alcohol and water as the *only* foodstuff.
To this end, this column details popular delicacies that even the lowliest ensign can cook.
First up from Rojak’s personal cookbook is Chinese Noodles and Chicken, kind of like pot noodles with a jump drive attached…
You’ll need:
1 lb. skinless, boneless chicken breasts cut crosswise into small strips
2 T. dry sherry
3 T. soy sauce
2 T. oriental sesame oil
3 T. tahini
3 garlic cloves minced
2 T. minced ginger
1 T. sugar
1 T. seasoned rice vinegar
1 1/2 t. chili garlic sauce
4 C. napa cabbage chopped
6 green onions thinly sliced
8 C. chicken broth
1 14 oz. package fresh Chinese noodles
1/2 C. fresh cilantro chopped
Marinate chicken strips in the soy, sherry and 1 T. sesame oil. Let stand in bowl for 20 minutes or in the refrigerator for 2 hours. In a small bowl, combine the garlic, tahini, ginger, sugar, chili sauce and vinegar. Blend well. Heat the remaining 1 T. of sesame oil in a large pot. Add cabbage and green onions. Stir fry for about 5 minutes, until cabbage gets tender. Add the chicken broth to the pot. Bring to a boil and add the chicken. Reduce the heat to low and simmer while you cook the noodles. Cook noodles in a large pot of boiling water, for about 5 minutes or until tender. Drain well and add to soup pot. Stir in half of the cilantro. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Sprinkle remaining cilantro on soup when served.
There you have it, a meal fit for anyone--anyone interested in staying alive that is. In other relevant news, to fund such ingredients you might want to check out the trade route between sector 995 and 1011 if you’re a new pilot.
Sayonara! -Yukie
Opinion: SMC Hunting, To Be or Not to be
Ok let's talk business. During this game, I've heard different opinions about whether smc hunting should or shouldn't be allowed, and 99% of those opinions were all for smc hunting, and most of the guys I talked to were traders. Personally as a trader myself I find this game 100% boring. No disrespect to the game controllers, its just too easy to trade. There's No Rush of Blood when u see (or dont see) "You are Under Attack", there's no "quick wheres Fed? DW's online".
I suppose there is a good side to every change. More people seem to have made characters and attempted to trade this round, but there all faces u dont see on anymore, lots of New Noobs with 5,000 exp, but thats it. Maybe they have got bored and left???.
The Next Question: Is there a happy medium that suits both hunter and trader?. We all saw at the start of the game, kills were often and hunting ships were promoted as ship of choice, but once the experience bug was taken away, kills were few and action was less, leaving the only thing for most hunters to do is float around and take a shot at small planets in hopes of killing a stray builder or 2. Even now there are days where in 24 hours there's less than 10 kills. To me that's just no Fun. Let's have some opinions heard on the topic and maybe save the next round before it goes down the same track.
~Your Friendly Hooligan Red Rocket
Death Control Going to the Dogs?
The Death Control fleets found new targets recently, as they sent an attack fleet through Qirekin and Leo and deep into the Dogs of War galaxy, Lacerta. The DC fleet attack came to Lacerta when a significant number of DoW warships were raiding ports in the Alskant galaxy, leaving Lacerta largely undefended.
The initial DoW minefields and 2 planets fell quickly and with little resistance, but the push deeper into the galaxy in an attempt to reach the secluded planet in sector 3491 did not go as smoothly. The planet, along with 5 DoW ships, fell to the attackers, but the operation was marked by uncharacteristic DC losses to mines and relatively weak enemy planets.
For many alliances, a raid such as this would be viewed as a successful operation, but it is rumored that the DC leadership is unhappy with the recent performance of their pilots. The mood on DC operational bases is said to be tense, with many pilots feeling they now need to regain the Death Control reputation for running efficient and deadly operations.
Only time will tell what these events herald, but our GP analysts predict that skilled DC pilots with something to prove will be bad news for their next targets.
Now on DVD -- Faces of Death in Space
Banned in 5 galaxies, this controversial disc shows in upclose vivid full color detail the extreme dangers of living, working, and fighting in space. Includes military footage not seen anywhere else.
Intense battle scenes.
View entire ship crews thrown into the vacuum of space.
Watch as Creonti prison barge officials jettison prisoners in airlock executions.
Shocking spacewalker mishaps caught on video.
Orbital collisions and more...
Only 1000 federal credits plus 10 credits for shipping & handling. Buy it now before it disappears forever!