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Quote from Elite Dangerous Galnet News-Bot

*Pilots Federation ALERT*
The corporate faction Jupiter Division has been defeated by the Silver Legal Group in the Ts'ao Tach system.
The breakaway faction from Core Dynamics was unable to resist efforts by its parent company to recover ships and resources. Jupiter Division will soon be subsumed by Core Enterprises, a subsidiary of Core Dynamics.
Owen McKenna, the CEO of Core Dynamics, declared:
"Thanks to the Silver Legal Group and other loyal allies of the Federation, we have finally crushed this criminal enterprise. Let this be an end to the delusions of Jupiter Rochester."
Many newsfeeds believe that Jupiter Division's defeat will have a negative impact on the corporatist movement that has recently emerged within some Federal systems.
Director Theodore Sullivan of the Silver Legal Group confirmed that those who fought on their side can now collect payments from the Iron Wings of Justice

Quote from Elite Dangerous Galnet News-Bot

*Pilots Federation ALERT*
In the Kuwembaa system, the Federation is fighting to prevent further factions from declaring independence.
New Kuwembaa Labour has broken ties with the Federation in protest against the government's civil surveillance programme.
Li Chotep for Equality, a local Federal faction, has been tasked to degrade the rebelling faction's military strength. President Zachary Hudson made a brief public announcement:
"I call upon all Federal auxiliaries to aid in this conflict. The reputation of the Federation cannot be so easily tarnished by such criminal action."
Governor Sonal Mishra, the leader of New Kuwembaa Labour, also requested assistance:
"The Federal Accord is no longer fit for purpose. We require support to make a stand against this violation of our constitutional rights."
Three other Federal factions are about to declare themselves as independent sovereign states:

Quote from Mass Effect News-Bot

For fourteen years now, the Mass Effects series has endeared itself with many video game fans and that energy has been renewed over the past year with the announcement of a brand new Mass Effect game and the Mass Effect Legendary Edition trilogy remasters. This celebratory fandom has been particularly seen in the realm of mods and fan creations as modders help improve the Legendary Edition by adding first-person perspectives, fixing glitches, and even bringing crossovers to life in the game. Now, one talented fan has made the games more groovy with a new Mass Effect Austin Powers fan video.

YouTube user eli_handle_b.wav recently released their new Mass Effect Austin Powers fan video on their YouTube channel. The video begins with Ambassador Udina and Captain Anderson conversing about who can protect the galaxy. However, instead of Commander Shepard, it is revealed to be the cryogenically-preserved Austin

Quote from Elite Dangerous Galnet News-Bot

Prime Minister Edmund Mahon has invited Sirius Corporation to establish a permanent presence within the Alliance.
The Alliance Tribune's political correspondent Vanya Driscoll reported:
"Sirius Corporation's new role as a strategic defence partner has expanded swiftly, with a Sirius faction established in the Alioth system to represent the megacorp. In addition, several megaships have arrived in other Allied systems to provide support."
"The Alliance Defence Force and some government departments now have official advisors from Sirius Corporation on their staff. Prime Minister Mahon announced that these developments will streamline joint operations with the Sirius Navy, and in turn provide effective countermeasures against Thargoid aggression."
"But Councillor Nakato Kaine claims that the presence of Sirius Gov is illegal as it was not ratified by the Assembly. She has pointed out that since

Quote from Elite Dangerous Galnet News-Bot

*Pilots' Federation ALERT*
Sirius Corporation has helped provide commodities to sustain the Didio system during the ongoing Thargoid assault.
Pilots transported multiple shipments of basic medicines, evacuation shelters and food cartridges to the megaship Chariot of Rhea in the Leesti system. These were then redirected to Didio and distributed wherever they were most urgently needed.
The campaign was orchestrated by Admiral Nikolas Glass, who announced:
"By replenishing key supplies during this time of great crisis, Sirius Corporation has again shown its dedication to the Alliance's military efforts. This will undoubtedly pave the way for the strategic defence pact to be accepted by the Assembly once the trial period has completed."
Sirius Corporation has confirmed that all pilots who contributed to the initiative can now collect payment from Chariot of Rhea in Leesti.
In related news, the

Quote from Elite Dangerous Galnet News-Bot

*Pilots' Federation ALERT*
The Di Jian system is hosting competing campaigns as the Alliance Assembly votes on the strategic defence pact.
The Assembly is evenly split over formalising military ties with Sirius Corporation to enhance defensive options against the Thargoids, with a decision expected at the end of June. In advance of the vote, both pro-pact and anti-Sirius councillors are attempting to sway colleagues to their cause by securing a sizeable resource package for the Alliance Defence Force.
Pro-pact councillors have established their initiative in Di Jian from the Sirius megaship Kumiho Sky, and are asking for shipments of computer components, reinforced mounting plates and synthetic reagents. These councillors have heavily promoted the need for enhanced fleet support in the face of increasing Thargoid activity. Noted engineer Marco Qwent recently confirmed his support for an

Quote from Wing Commander News-Bot

The topic of Wing Commander I's save slots came up on Discord this evening and I jumped at the chance to escape to 2654 for a little bit and look at the barracks in different ports. And so, here's the Wing Commander bed time post!

The save system in Wing Commander I is one of those famous Chris Roberts immersive touches. Instead of a save menu you have bunks and when you save your game a sleeping wingman appears! And instead of alt-x'ing to DOS, you open the airlock, etc. This is the PC version:

The environment is also amazing at bringing you into the world, from the low tech dripping bucket to the clearly-inspired-by-2001 vital signs monitoring the pilots (but only when one is present!).

In Secret Missions 2, you can even click on the pin-up and get... this. (And who put up the headless one?! I mean, I guess obviously it was Maniac.)

Anyway, let's look at the different ports! These three are extremely

Quote from Wing Commander News-Bot

Back in 2016, we reported on Joe Garrity's discovery of Deluxe Animation animation files that seemed like they could be unused Wing Commander art. The files were located on a 5.25" disk that once belonged to Origin artist Daniel Bourbonnais and were dated between 1991 and 1992. We published an analysis that concluded that while it was possible the art was intended for Wing Commander it was also just as likely it could be connected to another project.

Now, we have the real answer! Mr. Bourbonnais himself has identified the material. He writes: "I drew the hands for the throttle controls animation on Wing Commander in 91… [but] oh, that was a demo I created to get freelance work. It is in a video on YouTube. Daniel Bourbonnais computer artist or animator." That video is available here: :

The animation in question starts at the 2m27s mark and includes many impressive elements not found on the original

Quote from Elite Dangerous Galnet News-Bot

Senator Denton Patreus, fleet admiral of the Imperial Navy, has discussed the Empire's new priorities following the Battle of HIP 22460.
During an exclusive interview with the Eye on Achenar newsfeed, Patreus said:
"Her Majesty the Emperor has decreed that our military priority is to defend systems within the Empire. The Imperial Navy's production and training facilities have increased their efforts to redress the loss of three Majestic-class interdictors, along with tens of thousands of naval crew."
"I've conducted my own tactical analysis of what took place in the HIP 22460 system. Salvation's interest in the area with historic Thargoid ruins was no coincidence, I feel. He was something of a showman, and planning a final victory in the aliens' own territory fits what we know of his ambition."
"The Thargoids attacked human fleets with ferocious intent, but the fact they never assaulted the

Quote from Elite Dangerous Galnet News-Bot

As the rogue signal sources draw closer to human-occupied space, work is underway to initiate peaceful inter-species negotiations.
Dr Elias Pope is a graduate of Orion University with degrees in interstellar relations, political science and xenology. He has recently joined the Kingfisher megaship's crew to oversee the Thargoid Advocacy Project's diplomatic mission. In an interview with Vox Galactica, Dr Pope explained his role:
"Like most of the Kingfisher's crew, I volunteered to take part in this operation. It feels like my whole professional life has been leading to this opportunity. Many of the fine people here feel the same way I do. If there's even a chance that we might begin properly talking to the Thargoids, well… it'll be historic."
"Luria , my assistant, tells me there are some media-friendly names for these anomalies now. As a scientific purist, she's very unhappy about that! This

Quote from Wing Commander News-Bot

apocalyptech has put together a neat abstract take on the Gemini Sector map from Privateer. They've taken all the jump lines and attempted to spread all the systems out without overlap. It appears to be possible with just one exception. It's a very cool analysis and reminds me very much of the Tri-System Schematic Map.

It's entirely possible (probable?) that this has been done in the past but a tiny amount of Googling didn't bring anything up and I enjoy this sort of tinkering, so I just went ahead with it. I got curious during a recent replay of Privateer about the "logical" structure of the game map. As in: if you detangled the mess of jump points without regard to their actual "physical" location on the map, would it be possible to draw the map on a 2D Euclidean plane without having any of the jump lines intersect?

In the end, it looks like there's a single unavoidable crossed-jump-line in the

Quote from Wing Commander News-Bot

Here's a video of the vintage Amiga ProTracker software running a Wing Commander module. I'm not super familiar with this program myself, but it's got great WC music and some cool '90s aesthetic going on, so I'm running with it. Have a great weekend and enjoy!

Protracker Modul (mod)
Creator: Mark Knight
Titel: Wing Commander
Year: 1990

Quote from Elite Dangerous Galnet News-Bot

*Pilots' Federation ALERT*
Fierce combat in the Tavgi system has resulted in Caine-Massey's partner Tavgi Blue Life Inc overcoming Torval Mining Ltd resistance.
The conflict was triggered by the murder of Caine-Massey's former CEO Johann Fleischer. The assassin was tracked from Mars to the Torval Mining megaship Orchestral Falcon. Circumstantial evidence suggested he was an undercover Imperial agent.
Philippa Barlow-Lyons, acting CEO of the Caine-Massey corporation, declared:
"Largely thanks to tremendous support from Federal auxiliaries, the path was cleared for us to take control of the Orchestral Falcon megaship. Only then did Torval Mining Ltd agree to hand over Johann's killer, rather than risk the loss of its precious vessel. A security team has now delivered him to Federal authorities, where I am sure we will see justice finally served."
The Federal Intelligence Agency provided an

Quote from Star Trek Online News-Bot

Hailing all Captains! We are pleased to announce a sale on Lifetime Subscriptions from now June 21st at 8am PT to July 26th at 10am PT, bringing the price down by $100 to $199.99! Now is the perfect time to pick up a Lifetime Subscription to STO! Enjoy all the rewards that come with being a Lifetime Subscriber. With exclusive species unlocks like playable Talaxian Species, instant access to all Lifetime Rewards, to Priority Login, there are dozens of reasons to become a lifetime subscriber today! You will even get 500 ZEN a month to spend on all the new gear and ships that come out in Star Trek Online. For more information on all the great rewards that come with being a subscriber, check out our blog here. For information on how to claim and use your Lifetime Rewards, click here. Retail inclusion effective September 23, 2010. Lifetime subscription covers your subscription fee for as long as

Quote from Star Trek Online News-Bot

General: Resolved an issue where some tutorials could be shared to other players and could potential block those players from progressing. Resolved an issue where captains level 61 and above could not respond to Fleet Events. Removed the old Season 9 loading screen. Excelsior Starships: Added glows to "crystals" on top of the saucer for Excelsior and Enterprise B. Resolved an issue with the registry name on the hull for Tier 5 standard Excelsior. Resolved an issue which caused a seam on the saucer on the standard Excelsior. Added Elachi Weekend Event to August 2. Added XP Weekend Event to August 16. Systems: The critical severity of Enemy ships on Normal difficulty has been reduced from 100% to 50%. This does not affect the values for Advanced and Elite difficulties. This is subject to further change as we continue to monitor late game difficulty. The Reclaim

Quote from Star Trek Online News-Bot

General: Resolved an issue that was preventing ship weapons from being equipped to weapon slots on some lower level characters. Resolved an issue that prevented TOS Captains, Federation aligned Romulan Captains, and Federation aligned Dominion Captains from purchasing Terran Empire Uniforms. Updated the description of the uniform box to include that use of it on a Dominion or Romulan captain will only unlock it for their bridge officers. Resolved various issues involving hair and skin shaders. UI: Resolved an issue that was causing Personal Endeavors to initially appear completed when a new set was available. Resolved an issue in the Personal Endeavor system that would allow the reroll confirmation window to appear without having any reroll tokens. Resolved an issue that caused ships to list an incorrect shield modifier while on ground

Quote from Star Trek Online News-Bot

We’re happy to announce that the next major update to Star Trek Online, Rise of Discovery, is coming to PC on May 14th, and to Xbox One and Playstation 4 this summer. This brand new update will be lead by two alumni of Star Trek: Discovery: Rehka Sharma, and Jason Issacs, as Commander Ellen Landry and Captain Gabriel Lorca. This new adventure will feature two new episodes that show Captains the fate of the U.S.S. Buran, and the past of these two fascinating characters, before Captain Lorca took command of the U.S.S. Discovery. But that’s not all. As part of this major update, we’ll be releasing the brand new Discovery Legends Reputation. Players will be able to earn new Discovery marks from the returning TFOs “Operation: Riposte,” “Peril over Pahvo,” and “Pahvo Dissension,” which they can apply towards two new space sets, a new ground set, new kit modules, new traits, and a new

Quote from Wing Commander News-Bot

Forbes magazine has published an interesting

article

on the ongoing development of Star Citizen. As this also appears in the May 2019 print, the article spends some time initially to catch the reader up on the concept of crowdfunding, the history of Star Citizen and Chris Roberts' background as a game developer and movie producer. There's an update on the game's haul so far. It's taken in some $242 million from players and another $46 million in private investment, so they'll soon cross the $300 million milestone. We noted just

six months ago

that they hit $200 million, which suggests their revenue intake is still surging ahead at a very strong pace and may have actually accelerated in 2019. Per the game's

roadmap

, the Squadron 42 campaign beta is still a good year away, and there's significant work yet to go on building out the game's universe.

The piece also delves into some of the more

Quote from Elite Dangerous Galnet News-Bot

Jan Sandoval, a known founder of the infamous Red Family drug cartel, has unexpectedly handed herself in to the Federal Intelligence Agency.

Executive Agent Viola Trask gave a summary of this development:

"It's not unheard of for criminals to present themselves at FIA headquarters in Olympus Village, but Sandoval is by far the most notorious individual to do so."

"Sandoval has stated that she is willing to testify against all prominent members of the cartel, an action that would effectively dismantle it. She has been placed in protective custody, and I will be personally handling her case."

The Red Family is a well-established syndicate that supplies illegal narcotics across multiple systems. Within its hierarchy, Sandoval is believed to be second only to kingpin Oberon Church, who is among the most wanted criminals in the Federation.

Quote from Star Trek Online News-Bot

During Star Trek Online’s 2019 Summer Event, you will be able to obtain Lohlunat Prize Vouchers (2019) by participating in the “Flying High” event on a daily basis. These Prize Vouchers can be earned once per day, and used to complete an Event Reputation project to obtain the Risian corvette [T6]! This project requires 1000 Lohlunat Prize Vouchers (2019). Once this starship is obtained by any character on your account, all of the characters on your account will be able to claim the Risian corvette [T6] from the Account Claim tab within the Event Store (in the Event Reputation window). Additionally, players who own a Risian corvette [T6] will be able to purchase the all new Risian Pilot corvette [T6] from their fleet for one Fleet Ship Module and 20,000 Fleet Credits. The Fleet version of the ship will have access to pilot maneuvers, allowing you to barrel roll your way across the stars. Fleet