**>> SPYNET BULLETIN **>> EARTHDATE 91.05.12 **>> AN H-by-A SERVICE **>> THE FINAL COUNTDOWN It's so exciting! We can now count the days until the first player-written planet is made available on the fingers of one hand (that's a Rigellian hand, of course, which has a variable number of fingers - anywhere between 5 and 37, depending on the weather). Bella has been putting the finishing touches to the code which will allow planets to be linked into the game, and once it has been approved by the stringent Quality Control Testers, and the final bugs ironed out, you will be able to travel through the Interstellar Link to other systems. At today's Explorer's Masterclass, it will be decided whose planet will be the first to be opened to public exploration. **>> PLANET INFORMATION It has now been definitely decided that players will be able to withdraw their planets from the game for refurbishment. Good thing too, as it's extremely unlikely that anyone will be able to produce a completely error-free world... Should a player log off while on an Explorer's planet, and log back on to find that the planet has been withdrawn, they will find themselves on Earth in the Transfer Centre. If you cast your minds back to your first faltering steps in Fed Data Space, you will recall that the Transfer Centre is the start location which you can't get back into by normal means. We should also point out the the Galactic Administration Customs Rules are very strict, and you will be prevented from moving goods between systems if the duty has not been paid. This means that objects you find lying around on a planet will have to be used on that planet. Attempting to transport them out through the Interstellar Link will result in their confiscation, and could incur fines! Goods bought through Trading Exchanges, commodities purchased from another player, or goods carried as part of a job are assumed to have had the duty paid on them, so will not be subject to confiscation. Duty will be paid on all monetary transactions, at the level set by the owner of the planet. In the Solar System, the level will be a flat 10% tax. **>> OOOOPS!! Just to show that everything doesn't work as planned the first time... Our Illustrious Leader has been using Haven, the planet written by Explorer Russ, to test the new code associated with planets. Everything went smoothly until she tried to get Haven's Trading Exchange working. She succeeded - it worked just as it should - but all the exchanges in the Solar System broke! We should point out that this was in the test version of the game... you won't find anything wrong with the real exchanges. Don't panic! **>> CHANGES TO TRADING At the moment, when you buy any goods from an exchange they are stamped with the planet of origin, and this is shown when you display your cargo or warehouse. You are not allowed to resell the goods on the planet from which you purchased them. The technical term for this is "bonding" - the goods are bonded to that particular planet. In future, the planet of origin will disappear from the display, to be replaced by an asterisk if the goods are bonded. To unbond the goods, you simply have to take them off-planet. If you bring the back to the same planet, you will be able to sell them. Much simpler, yes? **>> RESET TIMES Federation II is reset every day, to allow game house-keeping to be done - the conclave and levels list are calculated, dead personae are cleared out, objects and mobiles are put back to start positions, trading exchanges get restocked, and all the mud you lot track through the various locations is hoovered up. From now on, the usual reset time will be around 5.30 pm Eastern time. Resets normally take between 5 and 10 minutes. If you are on the game when it resets, you will be logged out. You'll lose any objects you were carrying, but other than that your persona will be saved nice and tidily. However, those of you who have worked out complicated strategies to maximise factory production will have to change your plans to take account of the new reset time. **>> PROMOTIONS NEWS Rezrov has made JP. Next stop - GM! Freya has become a Trader. Well done. Hollywood has been promoted to Adventurer. Gonzul has returned - he was one of the earliest Fed players, and also one of the earliest to die dead-dead! He's now been sighted again in Fed Data space. Welcome back. Don't forget to let us know if you would like your promotion mentioned in the news. We're not omnipotent, we don't know these things if you don't tell us! **>> A STATEMENT Following Freyer's promotion, we received the following statement from her PR person: Freya is pleased to announce that she has attained the rank of Trader, and thanks all her friends who helped her along the way. However she was shocked to learn that rumor has it she is, shall we say promiscuous . To protect her reputation she returned home and collected her companion and protector Melmac, a huge Norweigan Forest Cat who will now accompany her on her adventures. Freya wonders at the desperation of Spacers who think a hug and a tickle at Chez Diesel equals a trip to the backroom with the immortal Diesel herself? So take note, chaps: Freya is not promiscious! You read it here, so it must be true! **>> IN FLAGRANTE DELICTO Freya may not be promiscius, but Catrina certainly is! We've reported before that her name has been linked to just about anything and everything of the male gender in Fed Data Space... well this time, one of our reporters actually caught her and Oxcart in a very revealing situation! Unfortunately, he didn't have any film in his camera so we can't show you exactly what they were doing. Probably just as well, given that this is supposed to be a family bulletin! **>> DIEING TO MEET YOU We have been asked to inform all members of the DIE club that their presence is requested - nay, required - at a meeting next Wednesday night between 7pm and midnight Eastern time, in Chez Diesel. Be there, or be dead! **>> PRICES FOR SALE! Private enterprise is booming in Fed Data Space. Oxcart is the latest to notice a gap in the market, and provide a service that many are willing to pay a fortune for. That's his hope, anyway! Oxcart's Market Index is now available whenever the man himself is on-line, on channel 2. Every few minutes he will broadcast a run down of the trading exchanges, telling you how far above or below average they are. His price for Merchants, who are too lazy to work the prices out for themselves, is a mere 5K per hour - but for Traders, to whom this service will be really useful, the charge is a whopping 40K per hour! We're not quite sure how he will go about collecting the fee from those who do not wish to pay. Maybe that large particle cannon tucked under his arm has something to do with it? **>> AND FINALLY... To finish, we would like to say thank you to Clem who kindly unchained Hazed from her desk last week and allowed her to have a day off. We would also like to know why Neuromancer has been carrying a theodolite around Fed Data Space. Any guesses? **>>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, Cryptosporidium, 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