The summer has not been quiet, EVE has been more alive than a bumblebee on honey, and is constantly growing. We have focused on strengthening the EVE infrastructure while developing our next expansion, codenamed Shiva. Here is a brief overview (In no particular order yet).
- The EVE Fanfest 2004
- Shiva Expansion Preparations
- World Events
- Caldari Colossus Race
- Tech Level 2 Additions
- Volunteers wanted
- Cluster Upgrades and Client Optimizations
- New Items in the store
- Billing Authorization Changes
http://www.eve-online.com/community/newsletters/vol002.html
Revolutionaries congregated in protest over legislation while freelance
fighters fought off terrorists and troublemakers, buildings and ships alike
were moved between places and battled over, and a Jovian emissary gave new
meaning to the term “detachment” but was seen to by all the king's horses and
all the king's men. A lot has happened in the world of EVE within the past
months; here are a few highlights.
KHUMAAK
- In February Sebiestor-proposed legislation calling for a ban on the
Khumaak (a ceremonial weapon carrying great symbolic value to the Matari) had
Minmatar society reeling. After weeks of protests, rioting and fierce debate
the motion was passed in altered form, but the whole embroglio catapulted the
Khumaak to new heights of popularity, strengthening its symbolic power
manifold.
MICROCONTROLLERS
- The Ishukone Corporation and the Khanid Kingdom signed a
multi-trillion ISK deal for transcranial microcontrollers, a nanochip allowing
greater control over slaves through virtual projection. Despite great outrage
from more liberal nations CONCORD condoned usage of the chips, but the deal was
later rift due to economic factors stemming from wealthy Gallenteans' novelty
usages of the chip.
QUAFE
ULTRA - The Gallente-owned Quafe Corporation launched the Quafe Ultra
line of soft drink, possibly the most-advertised new brand in soft drink
history. The commercials' crass content, and the spin-off holoreel, did not sit
well with various factions threatened by Gallente cultural influence, and in a
shocking act of discord an extremist splinter faction laid waste to an
off-planet entertainment complex playing host to hundreds of reel stars,
propelling the Federation into a silent war against enemies unseen that rages
to this day.
OF
HEIRS AND CATHEDRALS - After purchasing the Tal-Romon
Cathedral on Eclipticum, Amarrian heir Catiz Tash-Murkon stated her intent to
open it to the public, leading to massive protest from the other heirs. Emperor
Doriam intervened, taking the cathedral from Tash-Murkon in exchange for a sum,
and deciding to have it transported from its home on Eclipticum to Amarr Prime.
Hundreds of pilots loyal to the emperor assisted with the transport
proceedings, while others attempted to sabotage the project on behalf of
Tash-Murkon. In the end the cathedral was transported safely to its new home,
but no one has discounted the possibility of further vengeance on the part of
the rebuked heir.
BIG
ANNIVERSARY GIVEAWAY - One of the largest lotteries in the
world announced as its anniversary prize an Imperial-class Apocalypse
battleship which apparently had been misplaced by a young heir of House
Kor-Azor and had found its way into the lottery's hands through entirely legal,
if unusual, means. The lottery's winners were an Amarrian loyalist corporation
who decided to give the ship back to their Emperor. As the ship was being
handed back, however, it came under attack by droves of Matari suicide fighters
hell-bent on its destruction. The Emperor's subjects were able to fend off
their enemies that day, however, and were rewarded with great prestige.
THE
FALL AND RISE OF MISU BANIYA - Misu Baniya, a Jovian
emissary intending to make diplomatic visits to heads of state the world over
suffered a mishap as his transportation device malfunctioned and he was
scattered to the four corners of the universe. Pilots from the four empires
raced to collect as many of the pieces as possible so that molecular
recombination could take place and in this race, as in many others, the swift
and efficient Caldari came first.
A
NEW LANDSCAPE - After his reconstruction, the Jovian emissary made a
tour through alliance-controlled areas, instituting diplomatic ties with
officials from those areas and marking the first time any of the self-policed
outer-rim alliances had been accepted as sovereign entities. The Caldari
welcomed these new members into the international community, while the other
races have, as of yet, done little but huff and puff.
Last patch saw the addition of Covert Ops frigates, Cloaking and other Tech
Level II versions of modules such as Nosferatus, Neutralizers, some
MicroWarpdrives and Afterburners, Armor Upgrades, Power Upgrades and Support
Modules. Next patches before Shiva will feature more Tech Level 2 Ships such as
Support Cruiser, Gunship Frigate and Turret Modules with corresponding Ammo.
More Elite ships and modules will be released before Shiva.
The 
With the influx of new players over the last months, upgrades to the main
cluster commenced to meet this increased population. The final expansions are
being installed this month, which will allow Tranquility to embrace Shiva.
In
July we made slight changes to the credit card billing process in cooperation
with our billing partners. We now perform more stringent checks for expired and
closed credit cards. If your account has become disabled, it is highly likely
that you have received a new credit card since you originally subscribed to
EVE, but have not updated your subscription information.