THE MONTH IN BRIEF
The Fed II billing system was switched on, so that only players who had subscribed could promote to Merchant. Trial accounts could keep on playing as long as they wanted, but they couldn't go any further than Adventurer.
The names of the Trader and Merchant ranks were swapped over, so that Merchants were lower than Trader. The reason for this change was that Bella had decided what player would be doing in the higher of the two ranks - futures contracts - and the name fitted better at that rank. Players were given the first hint of what that would involve.
Captains were given some good news when the requirement for promotion to Adventurer were reduced: they only had to amass 1,500 trader credits instead of the 2,000 previously required.
The promotion requirements for Merchants to promote to Trader were announced: 800 merchant points (gained when a profitable trade was made) plus 400K.
Exchange events were implemented - random happenings on individual planets that could affect the price, stockpiles, production or consumption of a commodity.
Official Events started to run in Fed II: Fedpardy, Feddergories and the like. Fighting Events continued to run in classic Fed. To help with Fed Phrase Game, the wheel which players could spin was added to the studio on The Lattice.
The official tour of Earth offered by Pickwick Bros, which had been accessible from Chez Diesel, moved to Earth and set up its new permanent home.
Elevators across the Solar System were upgraded with the latest modern leading-edge push-button technology, so you could operate them using the command 'PRESS BUTTON'. Affected elevators were in the Galactic Administration HQ on Earth, the elevator linking the 2nd and 3rd levels on the Moon, and the elevator on Castillo.
Speaking of buttons... the help booth in the Meeting Room was set up so that GroundHogs could press the button to get told what to do.
The teleporters that move you in and out of the treasure room hidden deep in the Martian Ruins was turned on again, making that the only way out once you had crawled through the rubble. This meant the only way out was through that awful maze.
A new planet appeared in the Solar System: Pearl, the space station close to the sun.
Sam Galaxy started his investigations, in the new cartoon series which you can read on the web site at http://www.ibgames.net/fed2/samgalaxy/index.html.
GALACTIC ADMINISTRATION ANNOUNCES PLAN FOR ACTION
The Galactic Administration has been criticized in recent weeks for not doing enough to improve the standard of living of the citizens of the Solar System. Political agitators have claimed the GA is a comatose organization that is more concerned with protecting the entrenched position of its officials than in actually taking any positive action.
Stung by these harsh criticisms, the GA has now announced its new action plan, which it claims will show that it is capable of making decisive decisions and, what's more, acting on them in a prompt and timely fashion.
It is going to Do Something next week.
Our newsdroids, who were at the press conference where the action plan was unveiled, pressed for details as to what, exactly, the GA intended to do. After much prevarication, a spokesbeing finally explained the substance of the GA's action plan.
They are going to swap two of the ranks names around. Trader and Merchant will be changing places, so the rank after Adventurer, formerly known as Trader, will now be known as Merchant; and the rank before Journeyperson, which is currently Merchant, will henceforth be known as Trader.
We here at the Fed II Star applaud this move and are sure it will herald a new golden age of prosperity for the citizens of the Solar System.
STARVATION GAINS HAULER A PLACE IN THE RECORD BOOKS
The first embarrassing mishap to be added to the Fed II Hall of Fame (and Shame) happened to Captain Lynienna last week. She was so intent on rushing around the Solar System, hauling hauling hauling, that she didn't notice the rumbling in her tummy warning her of the need to feed. Finally, her failure to stop and fill up with pizza resulted in death by starvation. How humiliating! Her mishap is now enshrined in the record books, as you can see at http://www.ibgames.net/fed2/info/fame.html.
If you have an achievement or a mishap which you think warrants mention in the record books, email the details to feedback@ibgames.com.
SEEING DEAD PEOPLE
If you're one of those people that takes pleasure in the misfortune of others - and let's face it, who hasn't had a good chuckle when someone dies a miserable death in Fed DataSpace - then you'll love the fact that if you sit outside a death location, you will now see what happens to those who walk into it, and be able to savor every moment of their wretched demise.
The obviously place this happens is the temple altar in the Martian ruins. It's always had a holo screen over it, which was built to display details of the sacrifices, but since humans discovered the ruins it never worked. Now, archeologists and technicians working together have figured out how it operates, and turned it back on again. As a result, full-color moving pictures of anybody foolish enough to venture down the steps can be seen by worshippers.
Similarly, if you stand next to either of the pits in the ruins you will see anybody who falls (or jumps) down them come to a sticky end.
On Titan, the lobby of the southern-most dome is the place to wait, and before long you are sure to be entertained by the sight of some twit disregarding the warnings on the doors and walking into one of the radioactive storerooms. What fun!
FROM THE POSTBAG: MING'S MISSING MILLIONS
A while back, when we were still the boring old-fashioned Fed Chronicle, before our transformation to the new, zingy Fed II Star, we received a letter asking us a question we just couldn't answer. So we never bothered to print it. After all, what would be the point of just saying "Dunno" in a news article? It would ruin our reputation for being all-knowing.
But recently some new information has come to light which means we may just be able to answer that outstanding query after all.
The question was:
What happened to the Emperor Ming's treasure after he was deposed?
The Emperor Ming was deposed long ago, much to the relief of the oppressed peoples of the Galaxy, but we know he didn't die in the coup. He was seen lurking around disguised as a Captain for many years before dropping out of sight completely, but nobody knows what happened to him after that.
What we do know is that when he made a run for it, just before an angry mob could cut off his head and stick it on a pike, he hid his fortune where nobody could find it. Over his years as despotic Emperor, Ming had systematically looted and pillaged any source of riches he came across, and amassed a vast quantity of groats, as well as art treasures and all kinds of valuable stuff. And as stated earlier in this article, until recently, when asked what happened to all those riches, we would have just said, "Dunno".
But not any more! We have received a secret email which may just shed some light on the whereabouts of Ming's missing millions. Here's what it said:
Dear Friend,
It is with great pleasure to write you this letter on behalf of my colleagues. I have decided to seek a confidential co-operation with you in execution of a deal hereunder for the benefit of all parties.
Within the Galactic Administration Treasury and Revenue Department where I work as the Chief Assistant to the Assistant Chief we have access to a number of unregistered bank accounts and my duties include tallying the accounts to the persons owning said accounts.
I recently came upon an account containing many billions of groats from untraced sources, and the standard investigations into said funds showed no information about the owner of the account. However I believe the account was set up by the late Emperor Ming and used to deposit money extorted from the people during the course of his reign. Now the Emperor is no more (if not dead, certainly not in any position to claim the money himself) the money is available to any such person who has the codes to claim it.
I myself in my capacity as a treasury employee have such codes as do my colleagues, but our positions make it impossible for us take the money without attracting suspicion, so we are seeking the assistance of a third party who will act as a beneficiary of the unclaimed funds on our behalf. Should you be willing to assist in this transaction, your share as compensation will be 50%.
Kindly contact me with your bank account details so I may arrange the transfer of these funds forthwith.
Regards,
Edwin Spoddle
So there you have it - mystery solved. Ming's missing millions are stashed in a Galactic Administration bank account, and you can have a share of it if you send your financial details to Mr Spoddle. Go on then - riches await!
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