01
Nov
News categories list
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31
Oct
…A collector in Spain has listed a Wing Commander Movie flight suit on eBay. A good number of these made it out via the various prop channels in the early 2000s, but you don't see very many for sale these days. This makes it a rare chance to grab one for yourself, but the price is steep at some $2100 USD equivalent. Adjusted for inflation, they used to go for about half that. You can try to make a lower offer, however.
Since most people reading this won't get a chance to see one up close, we can at least share the pics. The seller did a nice job photographing some of the detail. It's probably too late for this year, but this could make a fantastic costume for next Halloween. Let us know if you pick it up!
Original Flight Suit, production used from the movie Wing Commander (1999)
Good condition. Uniform a bit worn and darkened in some areas as requested for the production of the movie.
Size
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31
Oct
I noticed today that no one ever bothered to measure the Wing Commander Armada afterburner speeds… ten short flights later, here they are! (Values in KPS)
Arrow 500 795 2090 Phantom 475 695 1790 Wraith 450 595 1590 Gladius 500 750 1690 Banshee 350 395 995 Dralthi 500 745 1990 Shok'lar 500 695 1890 Jrathek 450 595 1590 Kor-larh 500 695 1590 Goran 350 375 995 Does the Armada Arrow’s 2090 KPS top speed still make it the hottest ride in the Wing Commander universe? No, it dropped to third in 1997 because of the Squid’s travel mode (2400) and the Wasp’s booster mode (3000).
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30
Oct
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AD came across a sketchy but tantalizing Twitter rumor this week. We would normally just skip over it, but a few factors gave us pause, so let's talk about it.Video game podcaster and streamer KMEGA 405 posted an image of original Xbox and 360 titles that were supposedly in the queue for future backwards compatibility support. People were quick to point out that there are some suspect titles on the list, such as games with complex licensing arrangements, but Wing Commander Arena jumps out near the top of the list. That alone is very unusual. Most of the games on the list are fairly popular, so Arena stands out as a relatively unknown. Not to mention: Microsoft stopped adding games to the backwards compatibility catalogue in back in June 2019. And without any further evidence, that's where we would have left it.
If the rumors are true about BC is making a return to Xbox then here is a list of
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29
Oct
…Vox Galactica's culture correspondent Lishan Abara looks at the Colonia region, the largest enclave of humanity outside the core systems:
"Colonia. A place that few ever see, which exists following a computer malfunction. The famed Jaques Station suffered a mis-jump on its scheduled journey to Beagle Point, relocating some 22,000 light years from Sol. The subsequent rescue effort led to the establishment of the first permanent base in what is now considered a new frontier for humanity."
"Over the last five years, courageous explorers have struck out to inhabit several dozen local systems. This, in turn, invited a steady stream of colonists seeking a fresh start. Nearly 13 million souls now count this remote area as their home."
"This is a place beyond the influence of the superpowers and mega-corporations, and most residents prefer it that way. The Colonia Council works hard to maintain order, -
29
Oct
…*Pilots Federation ALERT*
Thirty megaships have been placed between the core systems and the Colonia region to serve as stationary ports.
Twenty-five dockable megaships were sent out from the Alcor system toward Colonia, taking position in systems approximately 400 to 500 light years apart. Five further megaships have been established from the direction of the Colonia system.
Each vessel serves as a permanent way station for travellers and businesses, designed to improve the journey to and from Colonia. A variety of services are provided, including tritium refuelling for Drake-class fleet carriers.
The Colonia Bridge is the product of Brewer Corporation, which ran a highly successful deliveries campaign to collect resources. The megacorp has confirmed that phase two of this project will commence next week.
During the creation of the Colonia Bridge, the crew aboard the stationary megaship -
29
Oct
…Reaperman4711 has posted a video of him playing Wing Commander 3 on "period hardware." To me, that sounds positively ancient and even older than "vintage hardware." With that being said, there's a certain nostalgic joy to watching the game running on a nearly thirty year old beige box. On one hand, it's mind blowing how easy it is in 2021 to do a one-click GOG Galaxy install on your M1 Mac and launch the game with no effort. That frictionless experience is critical for bringing new blood into the Wing Commander community today. But there's a sense of accomplishment that goes along with getting your sound card IRQ settings set and firing up the game from a DOS prompt. And watching someone else who's done that work is the next best thing - enjoy!
Here is Wing Commander 3 gameplay, from an old MSDOS computer. There are some "immersive" ship-wandering cutscene conversations, followed by two early
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28
Oct
…*Pilots Federation ALERT*
Vital materials have been delivered to the EGM 559 system to sustain Senator Zemina Torval's new corporation.
The megaship Pride of Bitterwood received multiple shipments of geological equipment, microbial furnaces and mineral extractors. These will be transferred to Torval Orbital in the LTT 198 system, supplying the starport acting as the primary base of operations for Torval's new venture.
Operations director Constantia Torval announced the campaign's conclusion:
"All of us here at Torval Mining Ltd are pleased with the contributions. These supplies will ensure that we meet our first year's targets and continue providing high-quality services to our customers in the Empire."
Torval Mining Ltd was originally a subsidiary of Mastopolos Mining, but became autonomous following a rift between Zemina Torval and her cousins in the Mastopolos family. The two corporations -
28
Oct
…*Pilots Federation ALERT*
Several inhabited systems in the Pleiades and Witch Head Nebulas have come under attack by large numbers of Thargoid ships.
An emergency has been declared by the authorities in multiple systems including Asterope, Shenve and Onoros. Thargoid vessels have again targeted starports, with casualties estimated in the many thousands.
Increased Thargoid activity has also been reported in the California and Coalsack Nebulas. Independent pilots and anti-xeno squadrons are moving to defend the invaded systems and evacuate survivors from damaged starports.
Aegis is not currently able to assist, as the operational shutdown enforced by the public inquiry has led to many ships and pilots being withdrawn from service. Admiral Aden Tanner, chief military liaison to Aegis, commented:
"Many of us in Aegis are frustrated that the Baumann Report has tied our hands. I am also convinced -
28
Oct
…Hello everyone,
Thank you to everyone playing the Frontiers Update, especially those taking the time to report any issues they encounter via Zendesk or console crash reporting.
We are listening closely to your feedback, and have identified and resolved a number of issues. These fixes are included in patch 3.71, which will be live on all platforms soon.
Bug fixes
- Fixed a number of rare instances where settlement buildings were not properly constructed.
- Fixed a rare issue where a construction terminal would not be placed on a settlement building site.
- Fixed an issue that could cause grass to spawn within settlement buildings.
- Fixed an issue that could allow players to edit terrain within settlements in rare circumstances.
- Fixed an issue that could cause settlements not to align correctly with the terrain (for example, after the terrain had been edited).
- Fixed a number of base parts that were incorrectly set as able to
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27
Oct
Today we have a very sleek Heretic model built by AdamKop. As you can see from the comparison shots beneath, the design stays close to the in-game model. It's a little bit less weathered than most versions we encounter, which comes across as nice and clean. The motion blur and engine effects are also a nice bonus!
From left to right: the in-game model, the front box cover and a 1995 promo shot.
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27
Oct
Justice has kicked off a live-streaming playthrough of Wing Commander Standoff. Standoff is a spectacular fan mod based on the Secret Ops engine. It takes place during the events of the Fleet Action novel, which were exciting times ripe for further exploration. The game was largely released in the 2004-2009 timeframe across five main chapters. While it was one of the most popular mods at the time, there's probably a lot of people these days that either missed it or just weren't into fan games back then. The two videos below get about halfway through the story, which is pretty good progress. Now's your chance to get a taste of what you might have missed!
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26
Oct
…The Marlinist Colonies have offered to provide help for political refugees who sought sanctuary in Alliance space.
In 3306, the Empire's security forces began arresting followers of Marlinism, suspecting them of being linked to the NMLA. Many pro-republican Imperial citizens fled to the Federation, but some set course for the Alliance instead.
The situation has been highlighted by Prime Consul Kayode Tau of the Marlinist Consulate:
"Having made a desperate journey for survival, over a million Marlinists are now dispersed across Alliance territory. Most are clustered in small groups, lacking basic supplies and facing extreme deprivation. Some Alliance systems have offered citizenship, but others are attempting to expel them as illegal immigrants."
"The Empire wishes to repatriate these people, which means harsh interrogation for some and lifelong persecution for others. I hope to negotiate with -
26
Oct
…This weekend was the big Dune premiere on HBO and in North American theaters, and it's been a hot topic on the Wing Commander Discord. Naturally, LOAF took a moment to run down all of the Dune reference and connections sprinkled throughout Wing Commander. Once you get sand in your Wing Commander, can you ever get it all out?
Someone had to do it and let’s face it, it was always going to be me. Here are some (very minor) nods to Dune in Wing Commander!
Privateer let’s you send ‘joke’ one-liner comms to bases. You can tell New Constantinople that “my name is a killing word”, a quote from the David Lynch Dune film.
Wing Commander IV has a scene where Maniac compares the sensor blackout at Peleus to “groping around like some pathetic sandworm on Isis VII!”
Wing Commander Arena’s Star*Soldier manual has a casual mention that the Rigel system has “massive sandworms and powerful dust storms.”
One of the three
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25
Oct
…The recent NMLA attack in the Paresa system has encouraged the Imperial Senate to reach out to Imperator Hadrian Duval.
An official pronouncement was made by Senator Caspian Leopold:
"A majority of us believe that preserving the Duval bloodline is paramount for the future of the Empire. Hadrian Duval is not officially a member of the Imperial Family but he is the grandson of Emperor Hengist, meaning his as-yet unborn child is also of royal lineage."
"The NMLA has already murdered many Duvals, including Prince Harold. Indeed, Hadrian himself barely survived an assassination attempt last year. It's clear that the Empire can provide greater security than he currently has, and it is our duty to do so."
"Therefore, we propose making both Hadrian and Lady Astrid wards of the Senate. They will be placed under the highest level of protection, at least until this grave threat has abated."
Imperator -
25
Oct
We recently came across a remastered take on Prince Thrakhath's Theme by TiMidity and posted by davvigtu. This is one of the most epic tracks in the whole franchise, so we're excited to share each new take on it. There are certain tones in this remaster that come across a bit more clearly and it has a nice solid timbre throughout. If you'd like to compare how this sounds versus the original, you can find a nice rip of the Origin Audio Volume I version here (second from the bottom).
And not at all meaning to detract from the version above, but this is also gives me an opportunity to once again share Jason Walton-Young's masterful version:
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24
Oct
…The TCS Tiger's Claw! To ask a leading question: how many engines does she have? Let's find out!
Here's the line art from Claw Marks which was also what was provided to the outsource company that built the original game's ships. And it seems like that's our answer: like five enormous thruster cones, five engines.
But wait! Here's the resulting sprite sheet that appears in the original Wing Commander. It has not five but SIX thruster cones. Six engines? Seems reasonable, maybe the Tiger's Claw, which is slightly larger, has an additional engine from other Bengal-class ships.
But wait, again! Here's the more detailed sprite used in both the winning and losing cutscenes where the 'Claw either bombards an enemy planet or retreats from the Vega Sector (pictured). Now we've got SEVEN engines!
So that's three conflicting configurations in one game. In 1994, the Bengal was re-imagined for Super Wing Commander. -
23
Oct
Last week we got a great look at Mac's WC1/2 Rapiers and Excalibur, but that wasn't the end of the line for those beautiful ships. All three have now gotten new tech draft spec sheets. Mac's testing out how they look printed, and my guess is that the results will be fantastic! As an extra bonus, he's also provided the manufacturer logos as additional images.
I finally got around to finishing the other 2 Tech Drafts I wanted to do; The Rapier-G and the Excalibur. Their sized for 11x17/12x18 but I'm going to see how they look as 8x10 prints before I go big.
Models & their textures, as always, by Hangar_B
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22
Oct
…The spacefaring tribe that lives aboard an ancient dredger has refused to allow Orion University to take possession of the vessel.
Vox Galactica published an eye-witness account by freelance reporter Casey Kilpatrick from the Oochost PC-C c29-0 system:
"Once the Scriveners Clan was found, it wasn't long before Orion University arrived. Their megaship, Scientia Aeterna, remotely disabled the dredger's hyperdrive using a series of override codes. These had been unearthed from the university's archives, along with evidence that the ship – commissioned in 3088 as Dredger J-403 – legally belongs to them."
"Despite being unable to escape, the Scriveners have made a stand. All requests to communicate were roundly ignored. I've watched several craft try to dock with the dredger, only to be met with sealed airlocks and an electrified hull."
"It's clear that these people are unwilling to give up their -
22
Oct
NightBall06 is back with a final final drawing of his advanced Hellcat V concept. Unlike the majority of ships that we showcase, this one is a digital sketch (from multiple angles) as opposed to a rotatable 3D rendering. This time he's got a friend lined up to make a full fledged model, so we'll look forward to seeing that next. After that, who knows?
So - that's it... I'm done. It's funny - I only wanted to add a bottom view but ended up reworking almost the whole frame because I felt the overall height to be too high and the wing/main body proportions to be somewhat off. But now it's finished, and quite honestly I'm pretty satisfied with it. It looks sharp and fast (at least to me). What do you think?
And yes - this is finally the end of my drawing time!I already made contact with a friend who's a 3D artist from Volkswagen... He'll help me visualize this baby.
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