Issue #11
The Shadow Cometh
Tiacken was once a nice little system consisting of ten or so active traders from different alliances: FHA, PDI, some neutrals. We had a nice little partnership going with XA and their starbase in Soeeze. Tiacken was never the best sector. We had more than our share of issues. But all in all, we had created a nice little community and were having lots of fun.
And then they arrived.
The Order of the Shining Night.
The Shadow.
Tiacken is officially a warzone. Code Red. Those buildings still standing are shut up tight. Raiders have made several of the buildings home. Traders that haven’t fled are hunted and destroyed on a regular basis. Nathan Forester has claimed himself Emperor of Tiacken and demanded tribute and fealty from all residents. Those that don’t pay are to be executed and their buildings destroyed. For the Shadow.
Sunrise seems to come later on each passing day and dusk seems to come earlier. The citizens are leaving in droves and transporters are making a killing off of planet deserters. The planets will likely be little more than ghost towns in the near future.
The immediate response from the sector itself has been mediocre so far. The residents that were in warships or able to switch to warships tried to retaliate with some success. However, the current power seems to reside with OSN. The OSN has somewhere in the area of six casualties. However, they have inflicted at least 10 casualties, raided nearly every building in the sector, damaged several buildings, and have begun systematically destroying buildings that haven’t tithed.
FHA has sent fighters up into the area for additional support. XA, who has received casualties themselves, and rumored to be sending help up into the area. Nathan’s claims on public forums have intrigued other alliances, but whether action takes place remains to be seen.
Negotiations for a cease-fire by the resident have failed with the OSN due to some rather difficult conditions. And with this failure, the extermination continues.
Why has the OSN been so successful in his attacks? The answer is the nature of the Neutral Zone. With easy access to repair facilities and a place to park safely, the OSN is in an ideal situation to maximize damage on a sector. Take off, shoot at things, land, repair, refuel. Rinse, repeat. The best citizens of Tiacken can do is shoot Nathan out of the sky in ambushes. This drains the OSN of turns, but it a short trip from Usube back to Tiacken. The OSN is clearly giving more than they are taking at the moment. In addition, it is likely that the OSN is receiving funding from somewhere…
How will this turn out has yet to be determined. Will OSN be driven from Tiacken before every building in Tiacken is destroyed? Will alliances give up the potentially useless nature of trying to defend a sector in the NZ and abandon it? Will the OSN flourish in their new home in Tiacken? I’m not sure, but you can bet that as long as the OSN exists in the area, you will be hearing about it.
[Thanks go out to Spiff and PACK for their allowing the Tribune to temporarily house on Bifroest while the situation in Tiacken remains in flux.]
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Finding Your Way – Interview With Cassandra
This week, I interviewed Cassandra Aegwynn. If you don’t know who Cassandra is, you need to. Cassandra is the unofficial ‘official’ cartographer of the Pardusian universe. I met up with her at her favorite coffee place to get some background on one of the best-known people in the universe.
Tribune: What possessed you to put together the map of the universe? I mean we’re not talking about a sector, we’re talking about the UNIVERSE!!
Cass: Well, nothing divine or unholy that’s for sure. Initially, the project started out of curiosity, as I wanted to see what’s out there. And a map seemed like a good way to remember the experience, not to mention it would allow me to find my ways around. Then I heard about people asking for directions, especially new pilots worried about leaving the their familiar homeworld, and I wanted to help. So I figured, why not, it’ll give me a chance to see the galaxy as I wanted, and help others too; seemed like a win-win situation.
Tribune: Seeing as you need to get into every sector of the universe, have you ever had problems with alliances letting you into ‘secure’ areas?
Cass: Not really, the first alliance I encountered that had a blockade was the PACK. Admittedly, I was a bit worried. However, after conversing with Spiff, the leader of PACK at the time, it proved that he was happy to grant me access, and so did the other PACK MO owners. Similar situation arisen with Potwor and later the Scorpion Guard. However, I’m happy to say that they all had been very nice and welcomed me to their territory.
Tribune: Along those lines, you must be one of the most connected people in the universe. Give us some items you knew about before the general public did.
Cass: Well, I know where the Trading Outposts are before they become Starbases. Whenever I heard about a new Trading Outpost in the News, I would contact the owner with a standard request for the coordinates, with the promise that I will not publish the location until it evolves into a Starbase for security reasons, unless the owner wishes otherwise or such transformation is not possible due to location. This allows me to keep track of existing Trading Outposts, and eventual changes to them, which proved important for updating new Starbases in subsequent map updates.
Tribune: What do you do when you’re not exploring vast new sectors?
Cass: Sometime I am a trader, sometimes I am a fighter. When I fight, I aim for improving my combat skills and experiences. When I am a trader, I tend to stay near my close friends, helping out local economy and those pilots that live there.
Tribune: Exploring the universe must be dangerous sometimes. How about giving us one of your more memorable exploring experiences?
Cass: Well, not a dangerous experience, but certainly one I recall vividly. When the Keldon Cluster opened up, I undertook the journey to map them as usual. Thanks to late Cynthia’s advance scouting report of wormhole connection between sectors, I was able to plan my travel route effectively. In the end, I mapped the entire cluster in 3 days only, and published the data right before Christmas. This was a very thrilling experience, and a fitting Christmas gift for myself and others.
Tribune: Do you find pirates a problem in your line of work?
Cass: Not so much, thankfully. They can be of annoyance in sectors filled with energy sometimes, but otherwise not much of a threat in general, as I can usually retreat before they attack me or outright destroy them with my weapons.
Tribune: I know Pardusians like to be… helpful when it comes to your maps. Where should they go if they come across an error/inconsistency?
Cass: Send me a message, or leave a note in the forum. That’s the best way to reach me.
Tribune: Anything else you’d like to comment on in general?
Cass: I’d like to take this chance to express my gratitude to all the pilots that have contributed information to the map one way or another. Thank you all.
Safe journey and good luck to all the pilots out there.
Another Tribune article in the books. Thanks Cass for the time!
Race to the Base II
Keldon. Two weeks ago, the Keldon moon melted sending the Keldon planet out of orbit a few million km. The resulting shift allowed some space for a starbase in the Keldon sector. The Tribune predicted another “Race to the Base”. We have not been disappointed. However, this time there seems to be a bit more opposition as to the placement of the base. Several TO’s have been erected and destroyed and nobody can quite agree who will get the starbase. It has gotten severe enough that offers have come to individuals in the Federation to come build a starbase in Keldon space.
Scorpion Guard has recently placed a TO to replace the most recently destroyed and have a fair shot of pulling off the full seven day stint. However, seven days is a long, long time (from experience), and additional conflict is sure to be in the works. How it all plays could well determine a new power play in the area. A Scorpion Guard stronghold deep in Keldon space is sure to make several alliances in the area uncomfortable.
Public Service Announcement
The Tiacken Board of Firearms Control would like to remind residents of Tiacken that shooting firearms at flying objects will not kill the pirates that have been ravaging the system. There have been multiple catastrophes this week attributed to citizens believing passenger jets were pirates and firing away killing entire jets of fleeing residents. We would like to remind citizens that planes are not pirates. Any individual caught firing at planes will be slapped with a 2 credit fine and a warning. Second offense will be 5 credits, and the third and final offense will be TWENTY credits!! If you feel the need to use firearms, please use them in a safe and certified firing area.
Thank you.
This has been a public service announcement from the Tiacken Board of Firearms Control.
The Sound of Music
The Tiacken School of Performing Arts (TSPA) had their yearly performance this week. This year’s outdoor performance of “The Sound of Music” was to meet with rave reviews but was cancelled mid way through when the star performer broke her leg because of the oncoming darkness. The Shadow’s arrival into Tiacken has decreased daylight hours and events across the planet are being affected. The performance has been moved to 10:00 am next week. The TSPA apologizes for any inconvenience. Please send all complaints to one Nathan Forester. Tickets for the rescheduled event may be picked up at the TSPA or you can call in for more information.
Orerve Cat Saving Initiative in Full Swing
Orerve II, a class R planet on the western side of Fed space, has started an effort to save the cats. Apparently cats have gone into an overpopulation mode in the mining colonies and are dying by the hundreds in the harsh conditions of Orerve’s summer days. An effort has come about by the colony management team to save the cats. How does it work? Well, every ship that arrives is provided with one free TON of cats whether they like it or not. Ships that resist the cats are asked to leave and never return. Here’s hoping that the colony managers can get the cat population under control!
Red Earth Mars Tiacken II
Tiacken II saw its share of action last week. Pirates have scorched earth red across many of Tiacken II’s public parks. Park Rangers have noted that this Red Earth could be devastating to the local landscaping committees. This new Red Earth doesn’t quite match the brown earth found around the rest of the planet and citizens are in an uproar over what to do. Citizens have tossed options out such as painting the Red Earth brown, digging out the Red Earth and incinerating it, or paving over the Red Earth and moving the park to a different part of Tiacken II. Options have gone up to the Tiacken Committee of Landscaping Approval but no decisions have been made yet. It seems that the quorum needed will be impossible because the majority have left the planet in lieu of the attacks. It seems that the Rangers will have to deal with Red Earth a little while longer before a decision is made.
Want Ads
Wanted: A sane ruler for the Tiacken sector. Must have a firm vision as to the direction of the sector as well as not taking orders from light generated deities or visions. Would be helpful to be able to listen to other ideas and not to kill all dissenters. If you have information regarding a sane ruler, please contact the Tribune for details.
Doomstar Recall
Image Details: It seems that the Doomstar that was recently rolled off the line is being recalled. It seems that the gyro stabilizers on the aft drive are faulty and cause radical shifting when passing through wormholes. This has caused some problems with the most recent purchase by Paradis. Having taken out missions with large amounts of explosives, Paradis has destroyed his Doomstar twice. Largestar Inc, the company whom the Federation has given the rights to produce the Doomstar, is currently being sued by Paradis’ insurer for losses in having to replace the massive Doomstar.
About Home (kind of)
Tiacken used to be a great spot to come, kick up your feet, build a few buildings, go run some missions, have some fun kind of place!! Home has changed. If you can handle an Environment where you pay homage to The Emperor, well, then Tiacken is right for you!
April 4th, 2005 at 4:26 pm
Hey Guys!!
Another top draw publication again, even with only candle light and Cat fuel generator you’ve put together a stunning edition. Keep up the good, work, and remember things that go bump in the night tend to be caused by people who don;t beleive in light switches. :)
April 4th, 2005 at 4:31 pm
Another nice article :)
However, on behalf of the Imperial Order of the Blessed Shadow, I would like to request that the Tiacken Tribune cease to refer to the Order of the Shining Night as ‘The Order’.
I suggest calling them ‘The Shining’ if you *have* to call them something other than merciless marauders.
Thank you.
April 5th, 2005 at 3:49 am
A sombre edition indeed…
I protest against the use of Cats as Food or Fuel.
If any kind soul desires to increase their karma,
deliveries of cats to Alpha Centauri will be well
received… Just make sure they end up in the
commodities section, and not .. upkeep!
Let Consumers be stricken with hairballs!
April 5th, 2005 at 4:55 pm
I would like to clarify and remind everyone that the “Red Earth marring the Tiacken II” story has nothing to do with, and is purely coincidentally sharing a name with, Red Earth, a fine Ranger in good standing, and Federation pilot from before the time of the Neutral zone.
April 6th, 2005 at 4:35 pm
Awesome reporting as always.
April 10th, 2005 at 1:22 am
“In addition, it is likely that the OSN is receiving funding from somewhere…”
Nathan has an SB in Olexti.
Great job, I love reading the Tiacken Tribune while waiting for turns to regenerate. But lets get on with the next issue!