According to the Omni Herald today on AnarchyOnline, there has been some conflict over the city of Sabulum in the Perpetual Wastelands. From what was reported, Omni-Pol had succeeded in taking the city from the terrorists. By the end of the report, however, clans had re-gained in their goal of owning this area. Read here for the full story. And read here for Henry Radiman's response.

Ruba-Ka Headlines Services reports on AnarchyOnline that there were words crossed between Omni-Tek and the Council of Truth...is this fact or fiction? You decide until confirmation is made. ’War of Words’ Between Omni-Tek, Council of Truth Rubi-Ka Headline Services January 21. 29476 – 18:36 RST Despite negotiations being terminated and all official communication being broken off between the Omni-Tek Corporation and the Council of Truth – as a result of last week's revelation that clan-affiliated terrorists were behind the December 19th blast in Omni-1 – sources report that, over the weekend, there has been a "war of words" between Omni-Tek and the Council of Truth representatives. While there is little to no official information to be garnered, said sources emphasise that the amnesty may be terminated soon. Therefore, clan-members are advised to evacuate Omni-Tek held territories, and vice-versa, before the conflict intensifies. Headline Services would like to emphasise that this is only a rumour, and until we receive official confirmation of a possible escalation of the current situation, we will treat it as such.

Get a free month of Anarchy Online for each friend you sign up and they pay for their month. Of course they have to be in good standing on their account for this to occur, as well as your own. But HEY! Free AO! Earn free game time! Recommend Anarchy Online to your friends and you will be rewarded with one month of free game time for each friend you recruit into Anarchy Online. Conditions Recruiter: You must have an active account when your friend pays for the first non-inclusive month to receive the award, hence no banned or frozen accounts will be rewarded. If you have frozen your account when your friend pays for his first non inclusive month, you have the chance to claim your reward by reopening the account. Please note that rewards will not open an account if you have outstanding payments. You, the recruiter, have to use this form to be able to collect the reward. An e-mail is sent to your friend with the recommandation message, a short explanation about what Anarchy Online is, and a link to register. It is important that your friend uses this link when registering, as it is what connects the new subscription to your account. Later you can see how your recommendations are doing by logging in to https://register.funcom.com Recruited: The recruited friend must have been charged for at least one month worth of game time. This does not include any free game time you may receive when you purchase Anarchy Online. Privacy notice. Funcom will not store or use any of the e-mail addresses you use in this form. As this offer is intended for customers of Anarchy Online the Rules of Conduct applies to the use of this form.

According to AnarchyOnline TAG published a story regarding the Philip Ross Statement. War? A TAG Editorial January 18. 29476 "Call for war, and war will heed your call." -Henry Radiman December 19th, 29475: An apartment building in Omni-1's entertainment district is levelled to the ground by an anti-matter explosion. 160 people die; some are above or below insurance age-limits, others simply cannot afford, or have neglected to, insure themselves. Rubi-Ka Headline Services uses the phrase "domestic terrorism" in connection with the incident. Word begins to circulate that the Dust Brigade – a radical clan faction responsible for terrorist acts against civilian and military targets on both sides during the last civil war – has claimed full responsibility. The Omni-Tek Corporation chooses to tread cautiously. They refuse to comment on the terrorist rumours, point the finger at no-one, and launch a large-scale Omni-Pol criminal investigation. Public response is muted; the dead are soon forgotten, and the matter brushed under the proverbial carpet. It appears that no one really wanted to know the truth. A few Omni-Tek employees cried bloody murder, and clamoured for their superiors to launch all-out war against the clans. But this was a vicious minority, a lynch-mob unconcerned with the human tragedy, interested only in a chance to live out their sadistic fantasies with an official sanction. On January 15th, the criminal investigation into the blast is completed, and the facts are laid on the table for all to see. This was an act of domestic terrorism, Omni-Pol concludes in their report, an act conducted by a radical splinter group that has assumed the nomenclature "Dust Brigade", and who claims to fight for the clan cause. Whether or not this is the same Dust Brigade that terrorised our planet five years ago is a moot point; a snake by any other name is still a snake. Negotiations between Omni-Tek and the Council of Truth are broken off, and the situation, once again, escalates. And still everyone focuses on the same old tired rhetoric, turning this into a clans-versus-Omni-Tek situation, refusing once again to face reality; that we are faced with a new and potentially deadly threat to our society. This is about a lot more than politics: it's a matter of life and death. And then Philip Ross decides to use the dreaded W-word in a personal statement to all Rubi-Kans, and suddenly everyone is up in arms. It took one man's opinion to do what callous murderers and terrorists could not; to unite clan-members and OT employees in a common front. It's not hard to see why. It's been less than six years since the last war ended, and there's not a man, woman, or child on this planet who weren't personally affected by that war, physically or emotionally. We don't like to be reminded of the things that cause us pain, especially when those memories demand that we take action. And, let's face it, it's easier to cry foul than to step in and do what's right. It's easier to attack Philip Ross for his choice of words than to take action against the terrorists. It's not often that TAG actively and publicly supports Philip Ross – or Henry Radiman – but in this case we have no choice. When Ross calls the Dust Brigade terrorists, it's not an affront to the clans; it’s a warning to criminals who believe that political goals are attained through violence, chaos, and anarchy, and who think that they can hide behind the clan ticket and remain unsullied under the pretence of supporting a "cause". In his statement, Ross makes it very clear that, "If this is a war, it's not a war on the clans, or the Council of Truth. It's a war against terrorism, against radicals and extremists who treat freedom and justice with contempt." You can not get any more specific than that. And while not everyone will approve of Ross' choice to use the word "War", seeing as how the negative connotations are still strong in people's minds and hearts, it is important for him to show Rubi-Kans that terrorism will not be tolerated, that those who oppose peace will never find peace, and that the Omni-Tek Corporation is willing to use any means necessary to eliminate this appalling threat to our world security – even war. Henry Radiman and the Council of Truth have come out in support of Omni-Tek's hard line against the Dust Brigade. If the Council has done little to assist in the investigations, it would be because of their precarious political position. They are caught between opposing clans – some who clamour for war, others who yearn for peace – and, unlike Omni-Tek, the Council cannot make arbitrary and hasty decisions. The Council answers to its members, to all affiliated clans, and this severely limits its ability to respond as quickly and efficiently as Omni-Tek. Thus the Council may appear to waver and procrastinate, which, to a corporation like Omni-Tek, trying to run a complex investigation, may be interpreted as an unwillingness to cooperate. The peace-question-mark that we wrote about last year now appears to be in mortal danger. So, appropriately but unfortunately, we've changed that peace-question-mark into a war-question-mark. But the greatest fear right now is that this question-mark becomes an exclamation-mark, setting us right back to where we were fifteen years ago, at the outset of another prolonged and bloody conflict. It's important, therefore, to truly listen to what is being said, no matter who says it, and not what we think has been said. It's important to react appropriately and immediately to events that require our attention, even when those events bring forth uncomfortable memories. And it's important to stand together, not apart, when faced with a threat that could very well lead us – God forbid – into a new civil war. -Ramos Kawamoto, Editor-in-Chief

This is in today from the Omni Herald on AnarchyOnline. Philip Ross Releases Statement, Promises War on Terrorism The Omni Herald January 17. 29476 – 16:08 RST A few minutes ago, the Herald received a recorded statement from OT-RK CEO Philip Ross. Here is the statement in its entirety: "On Monday, I was personally informed by Omni-Pol of conclusive evidence in the investigations into the explosion on December 19th, pointing to clan-affiliated terrorists as the culprits. This evidence has been substantiated by said terrorists, who have claimed responsibility for the blast. "Unfortunately, the threat persists: Just this morning, the Omni Herald Grid-feed was interrupted by hostile broadcasts of unknown origin, and Omni-Pol has been informed of possible threats to Omni-Tek interests in the immediate future. "This state of affairs cannot and will not continue. The Omni-Tek Corporation will not stand idly by while the lives of employees and fellow citizens remain at risk. The terrorist scourge must be eliminated. Omni-Pol has already rooted out key criminal elements in their ongoing investigation, and our Armed Forces stand ready to be called into action if and when military action against terrorist targets is required. "If this is a war, it's not a war on the clans, or the Council of Truth. It's a war against terrorism, against radicals and extremists who treat freedom and justice with contempt. The Council has been blamed for inaction, and while I cannot personally comment on that, I will say that Henry Radiman has had a positive influence on me in the past two months, and that I continue to hold him in the greatest of esteem. I am certain that the Council will cooperate in our hunt for the murderers who hide behind false claims of fighting for the clan cause, and Omni-Tek pledges to carry on the constructive talks with the Council once this matter is behind us. "Until then, I ask everyone to remain calm, and not to incite to more violence. If any gun should be raised, it should be against the terrorists and those who support their cause, no matter what side they claim to be on: clan, neutral, or Omni-Tek."

Haven't gotten to play AO yet? Now you can get the CD as well as download the game. Time to play Doctor...ah get your mind out of the gutter, geez. You no longer have to download the game to take advantage of our seven-day free trial offer! (Update Jan. 17th, 2002: By mistake, it was noted yesterday in this article that this service is payable by PayByCash. Unfortunately this is not correct, and we apologize for the incorrect details given.) With interest for Anarchy Online growing, Funcom has decided to expand the popular seven-day free trial offer to also include a mailing option. By choosing the mailing option and filling out your name and address details, the game client will be mailed to you. Your only expense is a standard shipment cost of $4.99,-. Please allow 7-21 days delivery time. This new mailing option is a good alternative for people who are not able to download large files over the Internet, or are reluctant to do so. The game CD includes recent game patches, and does not require a lot of extra patching to get started. PAYMENT DETAILS Shipment costs for this service: USD 4.95 (credit Card only) For more information about this please go here.

This is hot of the presses of the Rubi-Ka Headline Services at AnarchyOnline. Rubi-Ka Headline Services January 15. 29476 – 16:47 RST As of this afternoon, sources claim, negotiations between the Omni-Tek Corporation of Rubi-Ka and the Council of Truth – regarding the political and territorial future of Rubi-Ka – have ceased, and the parties involved have closed all channels of communication. Rumours of the break began this morning, when Omni-Tek held a closed press-conference for invited media only [*Ed: R-K Headline Services was not invited to the press-conference, and we are relying on OT media reports from the event*] where a spokesperson confirmed that the month-long investigation into the blast (which killed almost 160 OT employees in Omni-1) has revealed the explosion to be a terrorist act committed by the radical clan known as the "Dust Brigade". The spokesperson also criticised the Council of Truth harshly for what OT perceives as a lack of cooperation in the investigation. A few hours later, sources say, OT-RK CEO Philip Ross terminated his direct line of communication with Council of Truth leader Henry Radiman, effectively ceasing the ongoing talks between the two parties. Both Omni-Tek and the Council were contacted for a statement, but both parties refused to comment on the rumours, neither confirming nor denying the above claims. We will continue to follow this case closely, and any and all updates will appear on this channel.

This was sent to us from Funcom. This is great new stuff, go and get yourself your own channel! 1. **New IRC server** Most of you have hopefully noticed already that we have launched an IRC server of our own. Here we have channels for e.g. all professions, tech help (coming soon), organisations, and general chit-chat. Server: irc.funcom.com Port: 6667 Main channel: #anarchyonline If you'll register a nick, and let us know who you are, we'll give you 'voice' in the main channel, and if you want an own channel for your site, we'll fix that too. :) 2. **Community Link forum** We have a forum on our bulletin board with access only for those connected to main Anarchy Online sites (and Funcom people of course). Here we will keep you up to date on what we're up to, and let you know when we send out screenshots and such, so you know who gets what. And feedback, questions and suggestions are of course very welcome. :) To get access to the forum, register an alias on the site. Then let me know what it is, and which site you are connected to, and I'll give you a title and access to the forum. We might also add special avatars for the different sites later. 3. **Community team tasks** We're currently working with a lot of different stuff in the Community team. Some are really not that visible, while others you already see results from, and will see more of in the future. In addition to the IRC server, the bulletin board and e-mails, here's a bit of what we're actually doing: - Working on getting the In Production pages more up to date. - Getting some leaks from new content to come (e.g. screenshots). - Considering how to best distribute all the 'stuff' (t-shirts, key rings, mouse pads, etc) we're hiding in our treasure vault. ;) - Updating the online game manual. - Being more active in-game (yes, we're in game quite a bit). Ok, that's more or less it this time around. I probably missed a few things, but no worry. If there's anything you have questions about, just let us know. :) E-mail to all of us: community@anarchy-online.com Bulletin board: http://forums.anarchy-online.com/ Looking forward to seeing you in IRC and on the bulletin board. :) Best regards, Thomas 'Cz' Johnsen Funcom Community Team

According to the latest news on AnarchyOnline there is a party going to happen! And what is a party without dancing and females? See the contests they are going to hold, and the winners get 1 million credits each! The Russian community of Rubi-Ka wishes to invite players from all over the world to an in-game celebration of "Old New Year." Greetings citizens of Rubi-Ka. For thousands of years Russian people from all over the galaxy kept their traditions. One of our traditions is to celebrate New Year, but Russian people also celebrate something that we call "Old New Year". Both New Year and Old New Year are celebrated with great festivities. That's why colonists from "Domovoj Prime" invite all citizens of Rubi-Ka to join the celebration. A huge party organised by Republic "Heirs of Russians" and Omni-Tek department KGB, will be hosted in Reet Retrat on Sunday January 13th from 21:00 GMT until all drinks will be drunk and all dances danced. What's a party without a competition? And we will have two contests: 1 million credits goes to the best dancer. The best-fashioned female will be nominated as "snegurochka" and will receive 1 million credits. Happy New Year everyone and see you at the party!

Spotted this one AOBahser. Dai-Galean was pleased to announce to us that the Official Anarchy Online IRC Server opened its doors to the citizens of Rubi-Ka. The main channel, #AnarchyOnline, is supplimented with many others that will house many groups of people, whether you live in a certain city, belong to a specific profession or are a member of an organisation. Mouse has also been quick to start an AO-Basher channel there so by following the details underneath, you can visit us twice! AO IRC Server : irc.funcom.com AO General Channel : #AnarchyOnline AO-Basher Channel : #AO-Basher