**>> SPYNET BULLETIN **>> EARTHDATE 91.07.28 **>> AN H-by-A SERVICE **>> YOU JUST CAN'T GET THE STAFF... They don't make newsdroids like they used to. We've had to dismantle another one after it erroneously referred to Krell as "He" in last week's news. Krell is, in fact, female - as her many lovers were only too happy to testify (some of them rather violently). Many apologies for the mistake, and we hope it didn't cause any confusion. We also hope that our new newsdroid (the fourth this year!) will prove just a little more dependable! **>> TROUBLE IN THE CONCLAVE Fed Data Space has been rocked by the recent falling out between three of Fed's most influential characters. Explorer Occy has managed to offend Squires Russ and Oddball - and they are demanding her death! All three are members of the Conclave, the group that consists of the six richest players. The Conclave has always been a cosy little group, with the members co-operating with each other to advance, rather than competing for position. But now their alliance has fallen apart in bitter acrimony, with Russ and Oddball combining to offer a 100 meg reward to anyone who can kill Occy dead-dead! It is ironic that in the recent discussions about the possibilities of combat between player's planets, both Russ and Oddball have been putting the pacifist position. They have been extremely vocal in defence of the "peaceful co- operation" that has existed for some time amongst high ranking players, and both have stated that they have no wish to attack their friends - the other players. Presumably Occy doesn't count! Or perhaps it is easy to be a pacifist when nobody threatens your economic interests. For like most disputes, large or small, it is money that lies behind this falling out amongst the rich and powerful. Occy has built some factories making artifacts and monopoles, both of which are extremely labour-intensive, and whenever she logs on and her factories start up, there aren't enough workthings to service all the manufacturing needs. Sensibly enough, they go and work for the factory that pays the highest wages - which sparks off a bidding war. Wages soar up and up as the CEOs try to outbid each other, and profit margins shrink. That's what competition is all about! Occy refused to sell her factories and make something a little less labour-intensive. The rift deepened until Russ and Oddball decided to put the record-breaking price on her head. Russ and Oddball are keeping quiet about their actions. They take a "more in sorrow than in anger" position but will not discuss the matter, other than posting the notices which call for Occy's death. Occy has been spending all her time in Chez Diesel, experimenting with the roulette wheel - presumably in the hope that gambling can replace trading as a source of income. We await further developments with interest, but since it is extremely difficult to kill another player unless they are careless, we feel it is extremely unlikely that anyone will be claiming the reward. **>> BETTER TO TRAVEL SAFELY One option that Occy could try is the new command. This lets people whizz from planet to planet by taxi, keeping them safe from missiles and all the other hazards of space. The drawbacks are that it costs 10,000 groats a trip, and it is only available to those who do not have ships. The purpose of the new command is to allow people who have sold their ships to travel to a planet which has a shipyard. Previously, selling your ship off Earth automatically gave you the taxi ride (you were charged, of course) but now you remain on the planet where you made the sale. This allows you to buy your ship from somewhere other than the Jarrow Shipyard on Earth. The command provides those who foolishly sell their ships on a planet without a shipyard to ride home in comfort! The syntax of the command is where, as I sure most of you could work out, planet-name is the name of the planet to which you wish to travel. Eventually, planet owners will be able to offer discounts on the prices of new ships, thus enticing buyers to their planets. At the moment, ships cost the same on all planets. But Krell decided to make history by being the first person to purchase a ship off Earth. The lucky planet was Inversity, owned by Squire Oddball. The next step will be to fully activate hospitals on the players' planets. If you die on a planet that has a hospital, that's where you will end up - no more free rides back to Earth to get cloned! This will be going in some time this week. **>> SQUIRE STUFF Following the disastrous beginnings to planetary economies, when treasuries plumetted into the red, the pendulum swung a little too far the other way, and planets have been making a bit too much money. Bella has tampered a little and for the time being, Squires are restricted to setting their markups to no more than 20%. This restriction will be lifted once it becomes important to make up stock deficits. In addition, native production is now charged at market rate less 10% (previously market rate less 20%). **>> COMPANY NEWS The last few remaining holes in the company and factory code will be tied up very soon. Firstly, buying companies will be restricted to Merchants and over. If any Traders already have companies, they will still be able to buy more factories - but without remote price checking, running a company is extremely hard work, so there aren't many CEO Traders anyway! That'll go in sometime next week. **>> PROMOTIONS NEWS This week, we have two new Adventurers: Markus and Chris. Well done. Treato also made Adventurer, but then within a few days was promoted to Trader. Baysidian also became a Trader, and Spiff became a Merchant. Three new Explorers embarked on a life of planetary construction this week. Congratulations to Elex, Gonzul and Rezrov! **>> PUBLIC ENEMY NUMBER ONE Remember Logan? Everyone hated Logan. Well, he's back. The following press release arrived in the H-by-A offices this week: ------------------------------------------------------------------- | | | Tired of the present peaceful state of the galaxy, logan has | | decided to bring back a bit of yesteryear! | | | | Nostalgic of all the battles that used to be fought when fedders | | were NOT a peaceful lot...logan has gone renegade once again. | | Last sighting was the dark ship sulaco holding venus hostage! | | and firing on any ships leaving the planet! | | | ------------------------------------------------------------------- We make no comment. **>> LURV REARS UP ITS UGLY HEAD AGAIN We haven't had any gossip for ages and ages! And this week we have THREE juicy sex scandals. Scandal No. 1: we've been hearing rumours that Oxcart has taken up animal husbandry. Yes, he's going to marry a cow! The lucky bovine is called Bessy. Good taste and decency stops us from pursuing this story any further. Scandal No. 2: What's this we hear about Krell being in love with two gentlemen at the same time? Apparently she is torn between two lovers, Rezrov and Oxcart, and cannot make up her mind which one to pursue. But since Rezrov recently wed the lovely Catrina, and Oxcart is soon to wed the lovely (!) Bessy, we think she would be better finding someone else to fall in lurv with. Scandal No. 3: This is a good one! Two un-named young lovers were looking for a little privacy during their dalliances, and wandered into the Martian Ruins. Not the most inviting love-nest we have come across... they ended up in the temple, deep in the heart of the ruins, and were proceeding in an orderly fashion with their fore-play. But a mistype meant that the game misinterpreted the phrase ACT GOES DOWN and actually took the startled lover down, under the altar, where he was sacrificed rather bloodily. Just goes to show that sex really can be bad for your health! **>>CONTACTS The following information will appear at the end of every News Bulletin, so you don't have to read it if you already know it. In the event of a problem or question, you can: * talk to Hazed, Bella or Clem in the game * leave a message in the game log * send mail with the Federation Feedback option from the main menu You can order a copy of the unexpurgated printed Idiot's Guide to Federation II by typing ORDER at any GEnie menu. Cost - a mere $12.95. Federation II has a category in the new MPGames RT. To get there, type M1045,1 from any menu prompt and SET category 14. The Federation II Leader in the bulletin board is Occy (Mail ID: OCPAC). Topic 1 of the Fed category contains the Federation II policy statement. The MPGames RT also has a Federation II library in the files area, Library 5. **>> BULLETIN ENDS