20
Aug
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Aug
…Display MoreToday we've got a spot-on Lego Minifig by JR. There guys are so much more detailed and varied than I remember from the '80s and '90s, so you can really get some accurate depictions of well known characters going. He's even got the oversized Confed C-244 handgun. It's a pretty great approximation given the options available!
I've seen some older posts on how to put together a Lego Rapier or other fighters from the Wing Commander series. But I don't think you've seen this before. It's simply a Lego pilot I made to resemble the pilots from the film. Body is from one of the two versions of the Lego Star Wars Skyhopper Pilot, and helmet is from the Lego Star Wars female Sandspeeder Pilot.It's not an exact match but it's the closest outfit I could find from legit Lego products.
Jeff
This one's certainly up there with some of the best minifigs we've seen over the years!
Aug
…*Pilots Federation ALERT*
Torval-Mastopolos Mining and Wreaken Construction have requested deliveries of mined resources to the LTT 198 system.
LTT 198 State Ltd, its controlling faction, will only allow one of the rival corporations to remain permanently. The company with the most successful campaign will establish a new starport in the permit-controlled system.
Senator Zemina Torval, who has sole control of the Mastopolos Mining subsidiary, announced:
"My company is working on an experimental mining laser with increased range. To achieve this, shipments of mined resources must be delivered in sufficient numbers to the Pride of Bitterwood megaship in LTT 198."
Emmerich Koenig, CEO of Wreaken Construction, outlined a counter-initiative:
"We will pay handsomely for deliveries of mined resources to the megaship Tobias's Gift in the LTT 198 system."
Both factions have requested units of coltan,
Aug
…*Pilots Federation ALERT*
The conflict in the Hyades Sector RO-P b6-2 system has been won by the Exiled Marlinist Assembly of Baltah'Sine.
Support from independent pilots played a key role in defeating the Marlinism Reformation Party. The faction's entire leadership has been arrested, with their replacements vowing to reshape it along politically moderate lines.
Minister Octavia Volkov made a declaration of victory to the Marlinist Parliament:
"The Neo-Marlinists have been crushed and Aaron Whyte is dead – a casualty of the war his terrorist paymasters began. I deeply regret that our society has suffered this, but have no regrets at destroying the NMLA's political wing once and for all."
Prime Consul Kayode Tau sent assurances to the Alliance, Empire and Federation that they should view this as "confirmation that the Marlinist Colonies are your steadfast allies in the fight against the NMLA".
Aug
I heard something about boosters being needed soon. We've got your boosters right here! #CombatInformationCenterforDiseaseControl
Aug
…The Taliban have unfortunately been all over the news this past week, and it's our duty to bring you the Wing Commander angle on all topics. Today's connection links to the G'wriss System in Wing Commander Prophecy. As the crew of the TCS Midway escapes from their initial encounters with the Nephilim in the H'rekkah System, they escape to G'wriss and find themselves low on supplies. The solution is to rendezvous with a Confed convoy en route to "the Taliban colony." Of course, the line carried no significance when it was first written back in '96/'97, but it seemed increasingly anachronistic when they were overthrown in the early 2000s. And now? Maybe not so much.
That's not where the story ends, though! When Prophecy was ported to the Gameboy Advance by Daylight back in 2003, the line really stood out! "Taliban" was replaced by "Eielitian" at the time.
LOAF: There’s a throwaway line in Wing
Aug
…The Aegis board of inquiry's initial findings have been leaked to journalists, with several problems within the anti-xeno organisation detailed in the files.
Vox Galactica journalist Alexei Keel reported on its contents:
"The independent inquiry into Aegis is in its early stages, making this disclosure of delicate information all the more embarrassing. Although only a summary, it highlights shortcomings that were immediately apparent to the investigators."
"The leaked files outline a pattern of poor internal organisation and negligence. One claim is that Aegis accepted its heavy reliance on independent pilots entering combat situations against the Thargoids."
"A lack of technological breakthroughs since the first generation of AX weaponry is also criticised. Professor Tesreau, who has since resigned, is singled out for prioritising communication with the Thargoids rather than developing
Aug
LOAF stumbled across an interesting album cover here. It's the 1978 Voyage (A Journey Into Discoid Funk) by Brian Bennett and it features a pretty stellar - and familiar - space ship. Something about the six nacelles, narrow central neck and orange/red/silver color scheme makes me think Prince Thrakhath would have found this to be a perfectly adequate flagship in the 2660s.
I can’t speak to the music but this is an EXTREMELY handsome spaceship.Here's a handful of other Rigakh sightings to compare: from WC2, Last Line of Defense, Klavs' Models and Standoff.
Oh, and what did A Discoid Funk sound like? Here's a sample! I could totally imagine this playing in the Concordia rec room.
Aug
…Torval-Mastopolos Mining and Wreaken Construction have both established a presence in the LTT 198 system.
Marlon Royce, business analyst for Vox Galactica, reviewed the situation:
"It is highly unusual for two megacorps to set up new headquarters in the same place. But Mastopolos Mining and Wreaken Construction have always competed aggressively for mining and transportation contracts, so it seems a new chapter in their rivalry has begun."
"This permit-locked system is controlled by the independent faction LTT 198 State Ltd. Insiders claim that it demanded a fortune from both corporations in return for granting passage to its ships and allowing construction of industrial complexes on the planet Dini."
"This is the first significant move from Senator Zemina Torval's new company, an autonomous offshoot of Mastopolos Mining. It may be that Wreaken Construction's presence is an effort to crush
Aug
We didn't give folks a lot of lead time this year, so this is another reminder that the 23rd CIC Birthday Party will be held next weekend! Plans are starting to come together, and I'm really looking forward to our big annual gathering. We'll have a few cool Wing Commander things to share, and it'll be wonderful to catch up with everyone after yet another challenging year in the world. Discord #Wingnut is the place. Formal festivities kick off Saturday evening at 7:00 pm EDT (4:00 pm PDT and 11:00 pm GMT), but we expect things will be happening all day. The channel is a bustling place - stop by any time and join the fun!
Aug
The Gemini Sector RPG has had a fun summer adventuring through the Nitir Sector. We've previously highlighted their exciting space battles and ground combat. Rear Admiral Tarsus has done an excellent job spicing things up with things like ship animations and mission briefings to add a visual component to the RPG action. Check a few of them out below! You can find out more and join the fun at their website or Discord too.
Aug
Here's a fun drawing that includes a little Wing Commander treat. A Brazilian magazine published this collage of characters from a wide range of famous '90s-'00s video game series. Admiral Tolwyn is poking through in the bottom right. It comes from the Brazilian comic Monica's Gang by cartoonist Mauricio de Sousa. LOAF did some digging and zeroed in on its exact origin dating to a July 2012 "Cinema Classics" spinoff issue. That's a pretty fantastic reference, because even at that point WC4 was a 16 year old game. Thanks to Romy for highlighting this!
Aug
…The introduction of onionhead gamma strain by the Kumo Crew has reignited long-running arguments around the popular psychedelic drug.
An interview with Zander Lachance, spokesperson for the Coalition for Legalisation, was published by Vox Galactica:
"I have yet to see evidence that onionhead is more harmful than common recreational substances. Open-minded people in independent systems are now discovering this for themselves."
In response, other newsfeeds featured a range of opinions.
Eye on Achenar: "Foppish rogues of the Federation such as Zachary Rackham and Sir Randolph Plaskett may feel comfortable wooing trade tycoons with the outlawed weed, but legalising low-cost onionhead would risk the whole Empire collapsing into a stupor!"
The Pegasi Sentinel: "The popularity of 'helix' is steadily growing, and the revenue it generates will undoubtedly benefit those fortunate to live within Archon
Aug
…Coffeehound RetroSharka has a new mag scan today that highlights an interesting piece of Amiga history. Rather than just a review of Wing Commander, the magazine Amiga Power reviewed a compilation called 'Space Legends' in August 1993. This includes Wing Commander, Megatraveller 1 and Elite Plus. It's a pretty hilarious review because the author is just not a fan of any of these games and never was. Maybe he wasn't the best choice to put on this assignment - even his editor appeared incredulous. Despite high marks for each when they were reviewed individually, these three legends of space eeked out a 79% combined. At least it makes for some amusing reading today!
The AmigaMini has been announced, so that feels like a fine time to sneak in some more Amiga themed #GameMagNibbles.Wot, only 79% for one of the best compilations on Amiga? A scandal! This compi was my gateway to classic Elite, Wing
Aug
…Today we're sharing a fairly rare budget release of Wing Commander. LOAF picked this one up a while back and we're finally getting around to sharing it with you! Most of the WC series was repackaged into numerous rereleases, compilations and bundles, but it's not that often that we come across new and unknown variants - especially in English-speaking regions. This one appears to be from a small 1993 run in the US cross-published by GT Interactive. It comes in a smaller box with a different form factor than most. While it's outwardly quite similar to the original WC1 design, the back features several differences such as more round corners on the screenshots and the removal of several lower images. Speaking as someone who owns at least 15 or so variations of WC1, you can never have too many!
Here’s a eBay mystery! This copy of Wing Commander I came in a smaller, single piece box... a budget edition
Aug
…*Pilots Federation ALERT*
New Kuwembaa Labour has successfully seceded from the Federation and inspired other systems to declare independence.
The conflict in the Kuwembaa system ended with Federal loyalists Li Chotep for Equality being defeated. As a result, all systems controlled by New Kuwembaa Labour will remain independent.
This has inspired Selkana Labour, United HIP 108095 Values Party and Mutumu Future to also sever ties with the Federation, spreading the rebellion across a further 28 systems.
The victory was announced by Governor Sonal Mishra, the leader of New Kuwembaa Labour:
"We owe a huge debt to all pilots who helped us secure our freedom. It is regrettable that we were forced to secede, but this should be a warning to President Hudson that he is taking the Federation down a dangerous path."
The rebelling systems have now shut down links with the Proactive Detection Bureau, which
Aug
…*Pilots Federation ALERT*
Conflict has erupted in the Hyades Sector RO-P b6-2 system between two factions of the Marlinist Colonies.
The Exiled Marlinist Assembly of Baltah'Sine has declared war against the Marlinism Reformation Party, which acts as the political wing of the NMLA.
Political relations degenerated into open combat following the NMLA's recent attacks, with Acting First Minister Amrita Ross's efforts to negotiate a peaceful resolution proving unsuccessful.
A new megaship, Freedom's Voice, has entered service. It is acting as the operational base for the forces of the Exiled Marlinist Assembly of Baltah'Sine.
Supporters of the Marlinism Reformation Party are gathering at the Steel Majesty megaship. This was formerly used by the Neo-Marlinist Order of Mudhrid to flee from their home system.
Minister Octavia Volkov announced in parliament:
"Aaron Whyte and his collaborators are
Aug
…An investigation into the tri-superpower organisation Aegis is seeking to establish the reasons for its failures.
Dr Paul Baumann, chair of the independent board of inquiry, outlined its scope:
"The initial phase is to fully understand the work of Aegis, before examining strategic and operational decisions. Interviews with senior staff have been scheduled, with Admiral Aden Tanner providing details on military activity."
"One specific area of attention is the lost megaship Alexandria. We are performing a thorough analysis, including background checks on its crew. Hyperspace physicists are theorising probable causes for its failure to arrive at HIP 30944."
"We will be raising issues of culpability, specifically whether the concentration of Guardian artefacts aboard the Alexandria directly led to systems coming under Thargoid attack. Other incidents will be reviewed to identify possible grounds
Aug
…Andrea Contato has another exciting update for backers who have a copy of Through the Moongate, from Wing Commander and Ultima VII to Portalarium coming to them. All of the various rewards - not to mention the books themselves - have steadily arrived over the past few months and Andrea is now in the process of boxing up packages to fans. There's a lot of nifty stuff in there for Origin fans! On top of a trove of Ultima-themed goodies, the cloth artwork includes Wing Commander themes and there is a collectible bookmark designed by WC1/2 chief artist Denis Loubet. Hopefully this means the wait will be coming to an end soon! You can find more pictures here.
I'm working on shipping the rewards with HC books. Since I'm alone and I have to package 230+ books, it will take all this week and probably a fair amount of next week to complete the process. I'll post an update as soon as shipping will be
Aug
…On this day in 1998, we flipped the switch on WCNews.com and the Wing Commander CIC was born! It's been quite a ride full of fun, friends and fandom. Our first mission was to support the ongoing launch of Wing Commander Secret Ops, and then that transitioned over to lots of activity for the Wing Commander Movie. Although new products got more sparse in the 2000s, the community has filled the gap with all of their own incredible undertakings. The results have made the franchise better than ever. On our new platforms today (such as Discord) we're seeing record levels of activity and new Wingnuts are appearing all the time.
LOAF: Another birthday already?! That’s right, 23 years ago today ChrisReid and I started a fan site for our favorite game and it’s still running strong today thanks to an incredible team who are also my dearest friends. Hurray!Next week we'll be officially celebrating our 23rd