Author Topic: Northfort News  (Read 92600 times)

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Offline DaveIronside

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Northfort News
« on: September 01, 2017, 10:42:46 PM »




ADRIANA PILGRIMMAGE COMPLETED

The pilgrimmage carried out by the young Rokkenjiman/Dartfordian Princess Adriana was completed three days ago. The two week long journey was organised as part of the girls education into East Moreland culture following her abduction by Borlanders and in the aftermath being seen cuddling a Borlander outfitted teddy bear. in photographs of the Rokkenjiman royals. The Princess was accompanied by East Moreland's Princess Freya and deviated from the traditional route from Portworth to Ostlake by taking in some visits to significant sites and meeting Morelanders affected by the Borlanders. One such person who spent a day hiking with the two Princesses was 51 year old Anna Gunning, mother of Melissa Gunning the Morelander hero teacher who when Freestone was hit by missiles pulled several of her students out of a collapsing classroom and was killed as the roof caved in trying to save another 11 year old, Melissa's body was found covering Hayley Spencer who sadly was also dead. Mrs. Gunning said, "All I did was show her photos of my daughter, she had lots with her students, many the Princesses age, many now dead because of the Borlanders. It's my hope she sees the innocent victims of those people and the damage they've done. I'm so proud of Melissa but I miss her everyday."

The pilgrimage meant they had to sleep under the stars and they bivouacked out at some of East Moreland's Temples and Shrines. At one they took part in a camp fire evening with local musicians. One, 27 year old Simon Rough said, "I always enjoy an evening out under the stars, some nice roast boer, a fine glasses of cider and music. It was lovely to share it with Princess Freya and I hope Princess Adriana learned a little about our culture and customs. We taught her about the importance of the Parting Glass and its place in our history of ordinary people standing up against tyranny."

The pair carried ingots of steel from the temple of Helus in Portworth to the Temple of Jekar on the Isle of Jekar in Ostlake, there they stayed for four days while Royal Blacksmith Max Norris helped her smith a sword. "We've made a decent sword, not the best I've ever made, but for a young lass she did well enough." the Blacksmith explained, "It's now sealed in a box which will be kept along with other swords of note in our crypt, when Princess Rhiannon determines its time and Adriana is at least 21 she'll be given it as a reminder of her duties to protect the innocent, something I hope she does."

Following completion of the pilgrimage she spent a day with the "Battle Back" programme at Ostlake which helps wounded servicemen and woman recover from life changing injuries. While there she had the chance to meet several soldiers including 19 year old Stephen Hollins who lost a leg in Academica. "I've meet royals a few times, King David is a regular here, he's been through the programme so knows what its like. I know Freya is heavily involved in the project too and she's a soldier so gets what its like here, but I know across Mundus not all royals serve they can't know then the impact their actions can have on those who serve, by coming here I hope this Rokkenjiman appreciates the realities of decisions she'll one day have to make."

The two Princesses then made their way back via helicopter to Northfort, there Adrianna spent two days with the Royal Family including the King's famous Chili Friday, when on the last Friday of the month the family gather for a home cooked chili con carne as a family whenever possible. It is thought this meal was attended by the King, Princess Freya, Princess Rhiannon, Alex Redfern, his ward Evie, and Archduchess Sophie Harrison-Ironside, fresh back from Hrothgar. Traditionally one chair is left empty as it symbolises King David's deceased sister High Priestess Joanna, who was murdered by Borlanders. As he left the Palace, Redfern stated, "It was just a meal with a group of people, hopefully the fact she can see the way Borlanders destroyed the Ironside family will have her see what damage these terrorists can do." The Princess was seen leaving Northfort airport heading presumably for Dartfordia onboard an East Moreland Air Force VIP Transport. As she boarded the aircraft she was seen to be carrying a new teddy bear dressed as a Red Legionnaire.
« Last Edit: April 06, 2018, 01:25:58 AM by DaveIronside »

Offline DaveIronside

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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #1 on: September 02, 2017, 03:29:11 PM »




UNITED HEARTACHE LEADS TO FOOTBALL RETHINK

Following Northfort United's 2nd valiant Champions League run in three years the East Moreland Football Association has announced a major shake up of the league system. Speaking following a meeting with the leading clubs FA Chair Edward Neill explained the changes to the press saying, "We have a great base from which to build football in East Moreland, United have done amazingly well to get to two Champions League finals, despite having semi-professional players. Furthermore to see 70,000 East Moreland fans fill the King Robert Arena for the semi final was a sight to behold for a nation where football is not out leading sport. However if teams are to take the next step and the national side replicate what United have done, then things need to change."

Currently the East Moreland Premier League features 12 teams who play each other four times during the season, beneath that is a structure that according to Neill doesn't promote the game. "We have a structure seeing a Northern League and a Southern League, each with 12 teams in mirroring the four matches a season structure, it sees too many mismatches and the league has to be restructured every year depending on which team wins a playoff between the North and South for promotion." The new structure will see the Premier League extended to 18 teams with a team made up of players doing national service and an invitation being extended to Heyra to enter a club side. The other four clubs will see this seasons Northern and Southern champions and runners up promoted. The second and third tiers of Moreland football will now be made up of 18 teams each as well and teams will play home and away, there will also be the introduction of a new cup competition known as the Royal Cup. This new cup will feature teams drawn just from the top three tiers unlike the continuing East Moreland Cup which allows any and all  clubs in the country to enter. The Royal Cup will also include a rule that at least six of the starting players must be under the age of 25.

Additionally it was confirmed that due to the numbers of people who watched the Cup Final national TV station EMTV is to start a specialist football channel via its streaming services and every league game from the Premier will be available to fans who subscribe. EMTV Chair Melanie Oakes said, "We've looked and seen a massive increase in the demand for football, we hope this gives fans what they want and encourages a few new fans." It is estimated that the TV deal will see each Premier League team net an additional £800,000 in revenue for the first season. 

Northfort United manager Simon Coleman supported the idea. "We've now got a league that brings stability to lower levels and will hopefully see the money being pumped in filter down, it also means clubs like us will be able to give out more full time contracts which means players get fitter. We had to play two hours against Leubin in Dartfordia and by the end the lads could barely move to take their penalties. We can now have them train more often as they don't need day jobs. We've also the chance to attract bigger sponsers."

The move may however come too late for Northfort United to keep hold of their star youngster, 18 year old Henry Marshall. When not playing football he studies Physics at Northfort Science and Technology University and has been approached by IFK Krokom the team that beat Northfort United two years ago. It is thought an offer of a University placement at Krokom Science Institute, from where the Joint Nordic Space Programme operates, has been made by the Aland champions along with a wage of £10,000 a week, which would make him the highest paid East Moreland footballer. There however may be competition from Roberton AFC who, backed by King David, have been rumoured to have offered a similar wage.


Offline DaveIronside

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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #2 on: September 03, 2017, 11:13:31 PM »




KING PAYS RESPECTS TO DEAD HEAD GOTHI

Following an announcement that the Head Gothi Daniel Stenberg had died the King used his weekly statement in Council to pass on his and the nations respects. It appears that the religious and political leader of Nya Aland died in some kind of ceremonial fight and recieved a traditional funeral in private. While the manner of his death may be shocking the Alander media revealed that the man had motor neurone disease, a condition likely to have left him unable to walk or work in his carpentry workshop, something it is believed the Head Gothi enjoyed. The King paid tribute to Stenberg saying, "At times he was a man who could be a thorn in the side of many nations, however we stood with the Alanders many times and I considered the Head Gothi a friend. He faced challenging decisions right until the end and faced them with strength and courage, he was the first leader of his nation and he has set the bar extremely high for whoever has the task of following him. Rest assured the East Moreland commitment to support the Alanders as they continue to help the people of Uppsala is unwavering. Following the fight together in Marseille and now the Uppsala Crisis I know many of our military forces consider each other close friends, we stand ready to uphold that if still required. I am sure Daniel will find a place in his Valhalla."

The King went on to say that unlike The Iwi who have returned troops from Uppsala the East Moreland contingent will remain saying "Uppsala is getting back on its feet but is not there yet. It is right forces on the ground reflect the situation, no one wants to see foreign soldiers patrolling their streets, we have a closer connection with the Alanders so it is probably more appropriate for our forces to remain a little longer. The Maori have been fantastic and my officers can not speak high enough of their work." This means some 5,000 Morelanders will still be posted in Uppsala on a variety of duties ranging from policing to medical care.




LONGEST ALPINE TOBOGGAN RUN OPENS

A brand new tourist toboggan run opened today in the Alpine town of Keepton, the new 5.3km run makes it the longest in East Moreland. These types of rides are very popular amongst tourists and this one is a real record setter betting the previous record of Stoneton's by a full kilometer. The ride lasts almost 10 minutes as the rider drops a total distance of 400 meters around its twist and turns. The ride was opened by Nature Resorts Holiday Ltd, a company that specialises in Alpine holidays and ski resorts. It is expected that around 100,000 people will use the ride in the first six months. The companies directors, who were amongst the first to ride it said, "The ride is designed to add to the already thriving tourist market of East Moreland and the Alps. We have now got more and more tourists coming from across Mundus as various treaties make it easier to come here, we're very excited at being able to put together experiences like this for our clients."

It is expected that the King will complete a new Mhorish and Illumic organisation in the coming days and this could potentially open up East Moreland to even more tourists leading a director to say, "We can't wait for the people across the Mhorish to see the videos of this thing and come over to try it, they'll find a warm welcome and a ride of a lifetime."

A video of the ride can be found here





MATTHEWS JOINS DYNAMO LEUBIN


While it had been expected that 18 year old wonderkid Henry Matthews would leave Champions League runners up Northfort United it was expected that he would go to either Roberton AFC, arguably East Morelands richest team, or former Champions League winners IFK Krokom. Today however he has signed for three year deal with Dynamo Leubin in a deal which sees Northfort United receive EM£ 6,500,000 a record fee received for any Morelander. As part of the deal it is also understood that the Lodjain team will loan United two of their up and coming stars each season for the next three years. Matthews has confirmed that he has signed a EM£30,000 a week contract, also making him the highest paid Moreland footballer ever.

The move came about after Dynamo Leubin's coach was impressed by the midfielder during the competition and especially during their final game. It prompted the coach to make a call to the East Moreland ambassador to get the youngsters phone number and persuade him that Lodja was a much better deal that Nya Aland or remaining in East Moreland. Matthews took to his facebook page to thank Northfort United and wish their fans well. "I've been a fan of United since a little boy, to play for them in a final of that size is something that will live in my memory forever. East Moreland football needs to grow, and I want to test myself at a higher level, I hope one day soon the East Moreland Premier League will be as respected as the Lodjain one and I can once again test my skills with United."



Offline DaveIronside

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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #3 on: September 06, 2017, 09:50:01 PM »




TREATY DISREGARDED BY "ALLY"

Following an announcement that Orania are to send a carrier group to the Illumic, on the presumption of safeguarding against Kaitaine aggression the Minister of Defence Harry Samuelson has explained that the treaty in place between the two nations is now in tatters. "Several months ago we signed a treaty with Orania in which there was an agreement to use our embassies to communicate military activity of interest to the other. We have no deployments anywhere near Albion other than our commitment to the Uppsala, something which long pre dates any treaty. Meanwhile Orania have today announced, through their media, a deployment to the Illumic on the supposed grounds of defending against Kaitaine, when Kaitaine is over 5000km away. For any missile attack to even reach the Illumic it would need to fly through our airspace and our defence network would be triggered eliminating threats. Furthermore for Orania to launch any kind of strike from that region is frankly ridiculous. There is clearly something else going on, however this does not gloss over the fact that our alleged ally is aware of the stance on the Illumic and the notion that it is not defended sufficently is a joke and an insult."

In response to the announcement the Orania has been summound to the Palace where he will receive an official letter of protest which will outline the nations concerns and measures to be taken should the fleet enter the Illumic. Royal Press Secretary Malcolm Tucker explained. "Rokkenjima, a nation we have considered allies a number of years knows their ships are regularly shadowed by East Moreland vessels, on the rare occasion they have gone above their quota of ships with notice they are always shadowed. This process will be put in place, our fleet in the Illumic will move to follow the Oranian Navy and air assets will monitor them. The Illumic is a region that our Kingdom has ensured is safe, defended and open for trade, to now have a foreign power sending its navy here for what frankly doesn't make sense is an insult, especially when they expect support joining the CNN. On prior discussions it was likely we wound stand by our treaty with Orania and support their CNN application, however if a nation breaks one treaty why not others? Therefore I believe it highly likely King David will withdraw his support."

It was also announced that the Ekra-Badger will be heading into the Mhorish Sea for "speed trials" over the next few days.

Offline DaveIronside

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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #4 on: September 19, 2017, 09:09:55 PM »




KING SENDS BEST WISHES TO LODJA

Following the surprise announcement that Queen Viktoriya of Lodja had been attacked and lies in critical condition King David has made a statement.

Quote from: Statement

Queen Viktoriya is a young lady who in a short space of time had achieved so much, within a year of assuming the crown she has founded one international organisation, made major redrafts to another and taken her nation into a major alliance alongside ourselves, Ui Cenneslaig and The Iwi. I have been privledged to meet her many times and know that she is a monarch dedicated to her people and keen to ensure she lives up to their expectations. I and the rest of East Moreland send her our best wishes and hopes for a speedy recovery. While I understand the Lodjain officials have the situation under control I would remind them that if required our nation will offer whatever support it is within our power to do so. I then read that the Priory of Sion claim they carried out the attack, frankly it smacks of desperation to claim an attack that isn't yours, a group that look to exaggerate their reach. At this time I hope the media give them the publicity they deserve which is precisely zero. This is the last I'll speak of them in this matter. I will instead focus on sending my prayers for the Queen's speedy recovery.

The identity of the would be assassin has not yet been released nor their motive.




EMAC SHOW CASE "MINI DRAGON"

The East Moreland Aircraft Company today showcased their latest development at a showcase of new aviation products. The MiniDragon is a small drone capable of being carried in an infantryman's backpack and weights just 3kg. The system can be launched by hand and can stay airborne for 30 minutes using an electrical engine. It is capable of recording footage of the battlefield and transmitting this back to operators several kilometers away. The small drone is also equipped with a 0.75kg warhead which can be used effectively against light vehicles and ground forces. Sir Alan Maybury of EMAC said, "The ability to have eyes in the sky relatively quickly is a much needed asset for any ground force, no longer do infantry need to await aircraft to be able to check out areas around them from the air. It will provide them with a great deal of flexibility and all within the confines of a rucksack."

The company also showcased the Mini Dragon's bigger brother, the Tiny Dragon which is almost identical but weighs 7.5kg with some 3.5kg being a warhead. With a 60 minute flight duration this version is likely to be attached to canister carried on military vehicles allowing them to launch the drone as a reconnaissance platform while on the move.

Offline DaveIronside

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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #5 on: September 21, 2017, 10:46:49 PM »




HONEYBADGERS READY FOR FINAL TEST

After a long and gruelling world cup the HoneyBadgers have reached the final. On Sunday they will face the hosts to determine the world champions in what Eddie Johns, the HoneyBagders Head Coach, has described as "The Dream Final" speaking from the teams training camp in The Iwi Johns said, "This world cup sees us hopefully come away as the first team to win two world cups, but we know this will be a major challenge, The Iwi are on home turf, their fans are fanatical and they play good hard rugby, its the dream final, a team that's been at the top of the international game versus a team that live and breath the game. If I wasn't a Morelander I'd be excited, instead I'm nervous."

The team have put in a string of great performances which have seen them score many great tries. One of the star performers has been Jonny Joseph who at centre has been one of the most eye catching performers of the world cup. The Northfort Royal player has scored five tries and has explained the secret of his success lies with, "The way the team have been attacking at pace, it opens up alleyways for me and I just keep hitting them, sooner or later you find one with no one waiting and its been try time, it's like the coach says, speed kills, and we've been playing at speed at getting good ball."

One of the forwards who have been credited with a great deal of praise is Rollo MacAllister, the 21 year old who plays his club rugby for Royal Merriman University, has been a force to be reckoned with in the back row and has himself scored two tries, his last coming in the semi final against Bykrestan when he finished off a superb run by Joseph who was held up by the opposition full back. The naturalised Morelander spoke of his pride of pulling on the red jersey, "When you play any sport you want to be the best and win world titles. I'm looking forward to seeing if we can achieve that and match the team from a few years ago. What we've got to do is just play like we've been doing and I'm sure we'll do it." He was asked with Somerset becoming independent whether he intended to switch allegiances if permitted. "I've been told special dispensation may be given in cases like Somerset, but it won't happen, I may have been born and raised in Seaforth but East Moreland has been my home for five years now and I love the nation and its people. To be permitted to put that red jersey on is something I will not give up on until I'm either no longer needed or able to play the game."

The big screens in People's Park are already being prepared and it is expected that some 80million Morelanders will be watching the game.





JEKARS SHIELD HEADS TO IWI

A missile interception system known as Jekars Shield has today been loaded onto a Ui Cennesliag naval vessel to be delivered to The Iwi. The system was loaned to the Commonwealth, CNN allies of East Moreland, after a press article from Lakhzovia indicated they were giving anti ship missiles to their Saheristani comrades, this was as a result of The Iwi supporting Utmen Independence. The system will ensure that any missile coming within 150km is capable of being intercepted. The system was developed from the Jekars Spear system that was installed in most cities following the Borlander attack on Freestone, as of yet it has only been used once in anger when missiles from a rouge Academican faction fired several at East Moreland.

King David explained the loan saying, "We have an alliance with the Iwi and they are good friends, we stand by our friends and if we can help them protect themselves we will. This is not an announcement that we support their stance on the Utmen question, thats something we are still investigating and considering. This is an announcement that we will help protect our allies whenever we can. I just hope they appreciate this in the rugby on Sunday."

Offline DaveIronside

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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #6 on: September 26, 2017, 09:53:33 PM »




HONEYBADGERS BACK ON TOP

The HoneyBadgers have won the World Cup for the 2nd time, the first time any nation has achieved this fete. The team defeated the host nation 39-33 in what many are calling one of the greatest world cup matches ever. The streets of Northfort were packed full of fans who watched on large screens in People's Park as well as a packed King Robert Arena where fans gathered on the pitch to watch on a giant screen. King David was also in Hunter's Bay to watch the final and meet with the team after the final whistle.

Head coach Eddie John was clearly emotional when he spoke with journalists following the victory which came in the 72nd minute when Rollo MacAllister took a line out throw against the head setting up Elliot Dailee for a try scored in the corner. The conversion was scored by Jon Wilkieson who became one of four players to be a double world champion along with Martin Jonson, Ricky McCore and Rory Overwood. The coach, who joined the team after the failure at the last world cup, said "To get our hands once more on the trophy makes the last year perfect. We've grown as a team in every game and it came together in a perfect final. Both teams played hard running rugby and kicking was kept to a minimum providing great entertainment for neutral fans. For much of the game both teams had the advantage but the Morelanders came out on top mainly by keeping the ball tight amongst the forwards.

Rollo MacAllister was the youngest member of the squad at 21 and has become a household name in world rugby, many nominating him as their forward of the tournament. Speaking with the media he said, "It's been a long tournament, the fans of The Iwi have been superb getting behind everyone whenever their team isn't playing. Its the greatest experience of my life and I can't wait to meet all our fans back home."

It is expected that a Champions Ball will take place at the Palace in the coming days and already a petition has begun to knight Eddie Johns. Former World Cup winner Sir Clyde Winwood, who coached the Lodjain national team in their first world cup, passed on his own congratulations via twitter by saying "Great work Eddie, welcome to the winners circle."

Offline DaveIronside

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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #7 on: September 27, 2017, 11:17:28 PM »




HONEYBADGERS RETURN HOME

An estimated 100,000 people took to the streets of Northfort to welcome home the East Moreland team that clinched the World Championship. The team returned home from The Commonwealth of The Iwi via a private flight scheduled as WC002 run by Moreland Wings, the company explaining that it stood for World Champions Twice. The team exited the aircraft to a fanfare played by members of the nations Army Cadets and were greeted by King David. The team then stopped and signed autographs and posed for photos with fans before making their way onto an open top bus which drove them to the city centre, through the Temple District and then onto Embassy Row where they headed up the hill to Northfort Palace. Outside the Palace the King meet them and spent time with the team while getting his own replica shirt autographed, he was joined by his daughter Princess Rhiannon who presented each player with a souvenior HoneyBadger toy bearing each players name, number and the words World Champion. The King described the day as "The perfect celebration of being both a Morelander and a a rugby fan. Its been a great day today and I'm very proud to be the King of such an outstanding group of individuals. They are a great example to youngsters across the nation."

There has already been speculation about the future of Eddie Johns, the teams coach whose contract runs out in two weeks time. He had refused to be drawn on contract renewal talks before the tournaments stating, "the team need to be focused on the games, not who will be their boss in a few months time." As he was interviewed he refused to say whether he would remain simply saying, "Preparing for a tournament is demanding, we'll see what the wife says and then I'll work out what is best for me, the Honeybadgers and the RFU." A poll of fans shows he has strong support with 92% of fans wanting him to sign a new contract.

The team are to return to their clubs in a weeks time at which point the players will take it in turns to showcase the trophy to local areas. There will also be an official tour of the nation in four weeks time where the players will visit various schools. One exception however is likely to be Rollo MacAllister who has confirmed that he will be returning to Somerset for a short period for "family reasons" he refused to be drawn on the matter saying only, "my heart is split between East Moreland and Somerset, two nations that share so much. I've a few loose ends to tie up in the old home before returning ready to fight to make the HoneyBadgers even better."





MATILDA OSMAN OFFERS SOLONIA GCI SUPPORT


Former Queen of East Moreland, Matilda Osman, today responded to the call reports that the nation of Solonia is running short of midwives. The former Queen is the patron of the Global Childbirth Initiative, which takes much of its funding from OsmanTech's charitable trusts. In a statement she said. "I have first hand experienced the need for skilled and dedicated midwives, as such today we will be paying for fifty midwives to travel to Solonia to work there for a period of 12 months, additionally they will work alongside locals to ensure the level of training and skills necessary are passed on. We will also fund 50 Solonian students to come to East Moreland and train in our teaching hospitals. OsmanTech has donated various drugs and pieces of equipment necessary to initially equip two new wards and two mobile maternity wards."

Matilda Osman has also promised EM£200,000 of her own money to provide scholarships for Solonian's willing to train as midwives. She explained, "It is our hope that this money can be offered as bursaries to encourage people to enter what is a challenging profession."

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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #8 on: October 01, 2017, 10:38:32 PM »




KING BREAKS HAND IN CHARITY SPORTING EVENT

As part of the Legionnaire Legacy games King David has broke his hand during a wheelchair rugby game.  The Legionnaire Legacy Games (LLG) were established by the veterans welfare charity from which it takes its name after the first Safraen conflict. The games see injured veterans take part in a wide range of events on a similar format to the Ostlake Games which pitches the various Army Legions against the Air Force and Navy. This year a charity wheelchair rugby game was scheduled between the semi-finals and final of that event, the King was playing for the Moreland All Stars against a team made up of players from the recent rugby world cup winning HoneyBadgers. The King broke his hand during a collision between himself and HoneyBadgers scrum half Matt Doorson. The King's wheelchair was knocked over and it appeared the King injured himself putting a hand down to break the fall. He was treated at the OsmanTech Arena in Ostlake before later going to hospital. The King returned just in time to present the medals to the winners of the final. The All Star team won the charity match 6-3, the King had scored one try before being injured, however the star of the match was former Youth Minister and current CTO Refugee Agency chair, Melissa Lusk who scored a hat-trick.

The King, who by now was wearing a red and white cast, spoke to the media following presenting the Air Force with their medals. "Today has been a good bit of fun, right up until breaking my hand. We've raised a lot of money for projects to support the veterans and they've been very inspiring with the way they've competed at a high level. I'm clearly a little banged up but its not the first time, and there are many here today that have received far worse and kept doing what needed to be done. What I'm most proud of is that I can say I've beaten the world champions in a rugby match."

Melissa Lusk was also interviewed following the match and said, "Its nice to be back home, I try and get back every now and again and when asked to play in this I was honoured. It was a lot of fun. Tomorrow I'm back to CTO business, while the Nya Aland situation is now under control in the short term we still need to look at getting some people back home after East Moreland and Achkaerin took many in. Sadly it now will be a little quieter in the office with the Achkaerin contingent heading home, unless I see big change in the CTO I wouldn't be surprised if we weren't far behind. There is a growing mumbling of displeasure at certain ways the CTO is going and the ways in which certain nations are using the organisation."


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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #9 on: October 05, 2017, 10:40:13 PM »




MINI DRAGON TO BE SENT TO ALPS

The first 30 of EMAC's new Mini Dragon "loitering munition" will be undertaking live trials in the Alps. EMAC have made a production run of 40 of the drones which are capable of being operated by one soldier with a backpack of kit, thirty of these will be issued to members of Duke Legion who will be patrolling the Alps, the other ten will be used for trials by EMAC themselves. The new weapon is essentially a kamikaze drone capable of being airborne for 30 minutes and carrying an explosive warhead of 0.75kg, should the operator spot a target they can use it as a missile, with no target visible the drone can be landed, recovered, recharged and used again.

Minister of Defence Harry Samuelson said, "To be able to provide your own close air support is a great step forward for our infantry units, they'll now have added capabilities and we shall soon see how useful these new tools can be. I envisage a day soon where these are used for most scouting operations within our Legions and hopefully it will mean not putting as many men and women into harms way." It is expected that each of the drones will soon be capable of carrying a variety of different warheads ranging from armour piercing to cluster weapons.

There has been no confirmation as to whether there will be an export model but it is likely several other nations will be interested in the product.




HALLIDAY HAS DEMANDED DNA TEST

A source close to Formula Mundus driver, Sam Halliday, has suggested that the driver has asked for a DNA test on the child he has supposedly fathered with Matilda Osman, the former Queen. The couple became an item following Matilda's split from the King following differences of opinion surrounding children. The pair have a three month old son, Oliver, who was diagnosed with Hunter's Syndrome , a condition that Matilda's deceased son with the King, Prince Caspian, also had which resulted in a significant shortened life.

It was reported that Halliday has suggested that because Oliver has the same condition the Rytol-EMAC driver has suggested the child may not be his and instead be King David's. Royal Press Secretary, Malcolm Tucker, suggested that this is "nonsense, the King has tried to stay on the best of terms with Miss Osman, however that is for the benefit of Princess Rhiannon. The two have meet once, maybe twice since their divorce and then only at events like parents evenings. It is important Mr.Halliday comes to his senses and realises that he has a responsibility towards his son. He should be focusing on that rather than making baseless allegations against His Majesty and accusing the mother of his child." Since his divorce the King has been seen in the company of several women including Mundus Games Legend Daisy Greechan and History Professor Maddie Howard.




DENMAN "DEMANDS" KING MARRY DUCHESS OF SILVERHILLS

Controversial Priestess Jinny Denman has today used a press conference to launch her book "The Cult in a New Dawn" to once more speak out about the Kings love life. The 44 year old Priestess was once a member of the Cult's Priestesses having a role at the Temple of Jekar in Portworth for five years before determining that the Cult was actually inaccurate. Since leaving the Cult's official hierachy she was formed the "Sisterhood of Helus" which is a growing off-shoot of the Cult of Helus which believes that Helus is in fact female and that the Ironside bloodline should be protected from "pollution".

Denman spoke out many times about the King's marriage to Matilda Osman calling it a marriage "unbefitting of a fine noble man and descendent of the Gods." She welcomed the King's divorce and then attempted to get two of her followers who hold positions as Representative Councillors to introduce a law making the royal families choice of partner a matter for the Council, while this was defeated it did get a small amount of support amongst the general public.

Now Denman has suggested that the King should "marry soon for the good of the nation", something she explained at her Press Conference saying, "The King needs to ensure the Unasson and Ironside bloodline is continued, for that we now need a male heir, and in my view that son should replace Rhiannon as heir to the throne. It is now vital the King marry the most eligible noblewoman possible and therefore I firmly think it is in the King's interest and East Morelands for him to marry the Duchess of Silverhills, Rebecca Henshaw, a uniting of two of the most noble families is now a neccessity. The King must do this thing and I know Duchess Rebecca would make a wonderful Queen and Mother of a future King."

Book makers have made Duchess Rebecca a 75/1 chance of becoming the next Queen of East Moreland, which is still a better chance than the 200,000/1 odds King Leonard of Vaguzia remains at. 

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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #10 on: November 12, 2017, 06:25:31 PM »




THIRD NOBLE CLASS NEARS COMPLETION

The nations third new destroyer of the Noble class is due to be completed in a months time, the new vessel is yet to be given a name but will join sister ships Royaleth and Naqjej in service. The ship is the most advanced in the East Moreland Navy and is the final of the class to be completed for the next few years according to the Ministry of Defence. As journalists were given a tour of the dockyards in Portworth where it is being completed they were told. "The Navy originally wanted five of these vessels, however with the budget the way it is and competing needs from the Army and Air Force it is unlikely that they will get their wish anytime in the future. The three new destroyers will be a formidable addition to our Navy that is already capable of punching well above its weight."

Meanwhile however a Navy spokesman has said that the Naval commanders believe that a more "destroyer orientated" navy is needed to "ensure that the East Moreland military remains at the cutting edge of technological advancements and can deploy anywhere on Mundus effectively." There have also been talks that some of the nations ageing Duke class Frigates could be retired to make way for extra destroyers, this was however downplayed by the spokesman who said, "The Duke Class is a stalwart of the Navy and has many good years service ahead of itself before having a worthy retirement."

The Naqjej is due to leave East Moreland waters in the coming days and head to Nya Aland where it will join up with members of Red Legion as part of a training exercise that will feature members of the local armed forces as part of a long standing agreement between the two nations. The exercise will take place at Red Training Area (RTA) a military establishment set up three years ago in a now deserted fishing village that is used to train Red Legionnaires in cold weather combat and amphibious operations. The exercise will be the first of its kind since the disaster that unified the UNP and Nya Aland into one nation again under Alander control. The commander of the Naqjej said, "Its always tough being the new boys, but this is a chance for us to work with the greatest special forces on Mundus and show them what our crew can do, if we can impress them then I know we're the finished article."



 

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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #11 on: November 17, 2017, 08:12:24 PM »




DUKE LEGION BEGIN HUMANITARIAN OPERATION

Minister of Defence Sir Harry Samuelson today announced that East Moreland's Duke Legion is preparing for a potential humanitarian operation. The announcement came following a news report of a large area of Lakhozvia being cut off from power supplies following conflict between the nations government and the ethnic Utmen of the nation. Members of the Legion were seen loading containers with medical supplies, food, bottles of water and various other pieces of equipment all in preparation should a deployment be neccessary. A CTO resolution has recently passed with the aim of de-esculating the conflict however the most recent move of cutting power supplies is likely to make any negotiations even harder. The Minister of Defence said, "We have always responded to crisis when required, the situation in Lakhzovia is potentially a powder keg. At the moment we've seen skirmishes that look likely to become a full scale civil war, should that happen a CTO peacekeeping force is likely, but prior to that we're likely to a JET deployment. These supplies will be handed over to JET if they deploy before us and used to help support the crisis zone."

The members of the Legion last deployed during the Mavrosia Refugee Crisis where along with elements of Pegasus Legion they successfully built a temporary airfield between conflicting forces, this was used to remove some 100,000 refugees to various nations across Mundus while bringing in a major amount of humanitarian supplies. Such a move has not been ruled out for Lakhzovia in order to avoid having to depend on local forces securing airfields. One of the soldiers who helped construct that airfield was King David who has explained, "This type of airfield utilises specialist matting creating a more stable surface essentially allowing grass fields to be used. Its hard physical manual labour but given a flat enough area and a couple of days you can get most aircraft in. We've been preparing containers of the matting should the CTO need an airfield creating and I know our forces are more than capable of putting together such an airfield in short order."

There has been no official request from the CTO for forces yet however it is likely if no request comes the Legion will simply provide logistic manpower for JET to deploy from East Moreland.




"BANDIT IRONSIDE" INTRODUCED TO THE PUBLIC

Having completed ten weeks of basic training as an Air Force Protection Dog Handler, Archduchess Sophie Harrison-Ironside has been issued with her K9. A 9 month old husky by the name of Bandit, has been undergoing his own intensive training session in order to act as a protection dog. The role involves the handler and dog working together to find explosives and injured soldiers as well as acting as a deterent and watchdog for forces on the ground. The 21 year old Archduchess, who is the daughter of the deceased High Priestess Joanna Ironside, and the neice of the King, has so far set several records for PT during basic training and is described by her instructors as a competent and dedicated soldier.

Bandit and the Archduchess posed for photos as part of an agreement between the REMAF Ostlake Training Camp and the media to stop them following training runs. The Archduchess and a playful Bandit stood for photographs before going on a five mile run with the other recruits. During the photo oppurtunity the Archduchess said, "Me and Bandit have been working together for a week now. He's a really obedient dog and loves the training, he's a bundle of energy. We've both got a lot to learn about each other before we finish training and are considered a good team but I know things will come."

The Archduchess has a further 11 weeks of training ahead before being sent to a specialist training school for her further development, should the pair pass all training hurdles they would be able to be deployed from late 2018. The Air Force use huskies as protection dogs as often they can operate in the Alps and the dogs are thought to be perfectly suited as well as having a great temperament for patrol work.

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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #12 on: November 20, 2017, 09:33:11 PM »




BORLANDERS TARGET DEFENCE SYSTEMS NATIONWIDE. 19 DEAD IN ATTACKS

There have been a series of armed attacks aimed at the nations Jekar's Spear air defence system that protects major cities from various types of attack ranging from short-range rockets and artillery shells. The system was installed in almost every major city following the horrendous missile attack on Freestone that saw black market acquired Achkaerin made short range missiles used to attack the city, leaving some 200 dead including students in a High School. It was during that attack that teacher Melissa Gunning heroically evacuated 22 of her class before being crushed trying to protect a 23rd. Since the installation of the system some 38 different attacks have been foiled as the system has intercepted weapons ranging from improvised mortar rounds to homemade rockets.

The first attack of the day came at a defence position just outside Keepton when a group of gunmen opened fire with RPG's and small arms at the station. Members of the Air Force manning the position returned fire and a fire fight lasted several minutes before air-support arrived and the attack was aggressively stopped. In the aftermath several Borlander bodies were discovered, the station received minor damage but according to a military spokesman "never went offline and continued giving excellent protection." Similar attacks followed in Rockhampton, Roberton, Silverhills and Ostlake. None of the attacks were successful and a total of 21 Borlanders were confirmed as being killed, meanwhile 19 members of the Air Force were killed, the majority at Silverhills were a RPG hit an approaching vehicle carrying reinforcements. Minister of Defence Harry Samuelson made the announcement saying, "The families of our fallen have been informed, 19 of our brave servicemen and woman have today held back a terrorist attack and in the process defended their home towns ensuring no one has to go through what the people of Freestone have. We shall mourn them but make sure that their sacrifice is not for nothing, the Borlanders will see that once they attack us we shall unleash vengeance upon them."

The attack is the first by the Borlanders in over three months, however there appears to be a connection between the group of so called "Seperatists" and the recent school attack in Vaguzia, however this is being investigated as new evidence suggests the Borlander connection may be some kind of cover up for the real culprits. Following shortly after Sir Harry Samuelson's statement a statement from the self professed "King of Borland and the Borland Folk, Prince of Northern Borland, Earl Grey and Baron Simcoe Kyle Barren" gave a statement of his own stating "Today we have shown we can hit anywhere, anytime and inflict damage. We lost good men today and we shall ensure their deaths lead to our nations glorious birth. Today was nothing other than a probing attack and the Morelanders have been found wanting. The next attack shall be en masse, a great Borlander tide that shall forever break the dams of the scumbag Ironsides."

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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #13 on: November 26, 2017, 05:48:41 PM »




ROYAL MERRIMAN UNIVERSITY MAKE DISCOVERY

The Merriman family have earned a reputation for helping discover ancient monuments in East Moreland. Professor Marcus Merriman, the 82 year old Professor of History, who was supported by King David to open his own university, was responsible for much of the research the nation has on Paul The Explorer, this lead to various discoveries including what is believed to be the tomb of the almost mythical King. His grand-daughter, and current Youth Minister, Amelia Merriman, was also responsible for an archaelogical discovery two years ago when accidently discovering another tomb while on a Geological field trip. It is therefore no surprise that the Merriman name is once more being associated with a potential great discovery after students studying their PhD in Archaeology believe they have found a series of formal tombs close to the sight of the Battle of Greenflowers.

The Battle of Greenflowers was fought in 642AD between King Robert Ironside and the tyranical Niall Barren, the battle is supposed to have hung on a knife edge before a large contingent of peasants lead by a handful of nobles arrived and swung the balance in favour of King Robert. Legend says the peasants were still wearing their traditional white shirts when they reached the battle having marched through the night, by the end of the day the shirts were red and the force became known as the Legion of the Red, from where the East Moreland elite Red Legion takes its name. Several well known nobles of East Moreland died during the battle and it is thought that these tombs could belong to these fallen soldiers.

The tombs were spotted using a combination of drone footage and geophysics as students surveyed the site looking originally at creating a 3D model of the battlefield for a different project. One of the students who made the discovery is 23 year old Kean James who said, "We had planned to map the battlefield from the air and take readings of the geology from these it was hoped we could almost guess what the place would have looked like at the birth of East Moreland some 1,400 years ago. What we saw where some unusal straight lines that had no real explanation and so we sent the ground radar teams in and they found six or seven rectangular structures buried on the edge of the battlefield." Professor Merriman is now petitioning the King to allow a dig to take place as the site is a Protected National Monument and as such no construction or destructive work can take place there without royal permission.

Professor Merriman spoke briefly to journalists saying, "This discovery is not mine, however I will be speaking with the King to emphasis the importance of this discovery for the good of our nations heritage. My students have been superb and as such this is their moment. I am exceptionally proud to have my University associated with this and thank them for allowing me to observe their work." It is expected that the King will visit the University tomorrow to speak with the students and Professor Merriman before making a decision, however as a historian himself it is unlikely he will deny the request.

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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #14 on: November 27, 2017, 10:00:23 PM »




PROFESSOR HOWARD GIVEN PERMISSION FOR GREENFLOWERS DIG

The King has today given permission for Professor Maddie Howard, a woman whom he has been romantically linked, to undertake an archaeological dig at the protected Battle of Greenflowers site. In recent days students at the Royal Merriman University, where Professor Howard lectures in History and Archaeology, have discovered what many believe to be a series of tombs located on the site, as such they have requested permission to carry out an excavation. The last archaeological dig at the site came in 1979 when a series of mass graves were found which turned out to be members of the forces of King Robert Ironside, since then the site has been made a Protected National Monument.

The King explained why he had made the decision stating, "We are a nation who embraces our past, these tombs could shed a great deal of light upon the birth of our nation and as such I had no hesitation in allowing Dr.Howard permission to uncover them. Having attended her lectures myself I know first hand the reverence she has for the sites she uncovers and this one will be no different. I am excited to see what they will find and will first hand ensure that any remains are treated with the respect they deserve. Imagine that these could be the resting place of the very first Red Legionnaires, a piece of our history and heritage."

There have been some who believe that Dr.Howard was only selected for the dig because of her alleged romantic involvement with the King. The pair have been seen out together around Northfort several times around two months ago, however Dr.Howard at the time explained that she could not have a relationship with the King because at the time he was a student of hers as he completed his MA in History. Dr.Merriman has pointed out that, "Professor Howard is one of our nations top scholars, a gifted archaeologist and a first rate historian, I can imagine no one better to carry out this task."





KING TO OFFER REDFERN TO LAKHZOVIA

Following an announcement that President Kadassa is to call fresh elections in Lakhzovia the King has spoken about the situation. The King, who has recently permitted drone carrier REMNS Dalek to be used for talks between the Lakhzovian and Utmen representatives, explained his offer of support. "We have seen progress by Kadassa to seemingly move away from a civil war, we support fully nations who are willing to listen to the will of their people and we see these new elections as a chance to avert a greater loss of life. It is important however that these elections are seen to be open, fair and run in the manner one would expect, that is important for Mundus not just Lakhzovia. As such I would like to offer President Kadassa the chance of having representatives from East Moreland act as observers of the process, this team would be lead by my brother-in-law, Alex Redfern, a man who has been part of East Moreland electoral observations in the past in several nations. His role would be to reassure everyone that these elections are ones everyone can trust."

It is expected that around 50 members of the East Moreland Civil Service would accompany Major Alex Redfern in order to carry out the observation.  The King's brother-in-law has just returned to active service with the nations elite Red Legion, however he has several times in the past been stood down from active duty on the orders of the King to act as an emissary.

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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #15 on: December 08, 2017, 06:59:51 PM »




KING RULES HIMSELF OUT OF WORLD CUP.

With the Odinist Republic of Hygelac qualifying for their second World Cup King David has officially ruled himself out of the micronations squad. The 37 year old King represented the nation of which he became a citizen during the crisis to protect the wilderness in the last world cup, earning three international caps and even facing East Moreland. This year though the King has stated that "while I'd love to play in such a prestigious sporting event once more I just can't do it anymore, my back isn't what it used to be and the level of competition this year is much higher. I obviously want the East Moreland team to do fantastically well, however I will have one eye on the results of my former team-mates and will be wishing them well." The King will however be heading to Himeyama in order to cheer on the East Moreland team.

The King is known to be taking a growing interest in football, just like many Morelanders, and 18 months ago became the owner of AFC Roberton, who at the time where a second tier club, but this season are competing in the top half of the Premier League. AFC Roberton manager Jim Smith said, "The King is well documented as being a rugby fanatic, however that enthusiasm is visible with football now. He regularly comes here and watches training and gets to as many of the games as he can, he's not afraid to fund new ideas we have and thanks to him we now have a world class youth set up and I know he wants us to look at bringing through the next generation of Moreland players." With the national squad due to be announced in the coming days it is expected that around 10 AFC Roberton players will feature in the squad.

The King has suffered health issues with his back since being shot two years ago and the bullet passing through his lower back. He has been part of the Legionnaire Fight Back programme which usually takes members of the Armed Forces who have been injured on active duty and uses sport to help them recover. The King has represented his old Pegasus Legion at the Ostlake Games for Wounder Veterans in rowing and seated volleyball, winning two silvers and a bronze.




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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #16 on: December 10, 2017, 09:32:37 PM »




KING ANNOUNCES NEW INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECT



Today King David has announced a brand new infrastructure project designed to help boost the economy, create jobs and solve the current housing crisis. The King introduced the "City 2027" project which will build between 10,000-12,000 new homes in the area close to the former Refugee Support Centre at Hunter's Vale. The area has already been heavily invested in as part of the project that saw first Mavrosian and then Alander refugees brought to the converted former military base. The new project will see a new "Garden Town" called "Rigmaden" built over the next ten years, it will feature brand new schools, shopping centres and all amenities that a town will need. The project will also see the new settlement become home to a Free Trade Area, this will allow foreign investment. The FTA will grant land to companies able to create more than 500 jobs so long as they build the facilities themselves and sign a ten year lease. The FTA will also not charge companies import duties or taxes for ten years if the products that they make use 85% of parts made in East Moreland. The hope is that this will attract new business to the area and thus create jobs for the new settlement. To help support this growing industry the government will also be investing in a new high speed rail line to the new town which will also stop at several other cities including Silverhills, which is some 150km north of the new settlement.

There was good news too for Silverhills which will be getting a new international airport, the current one only serves continental flights within Alba Karinya. The expansion will be funded jointly by the city of Silverhills and EMAC who are said to be diversifying their operations. The mayor of Silverhills said, "Our city is one that gets lots of tourists from within Alba Karinya and East Moreland, we get many tourists also coming and spending time here using internal flights or the train service, to now have people able to use air travel to get here will mean they can centre themselves here for their stay in East Moreland. It's an exciting time for this city and it can only help us grow."

It is hoped the projects, which will allow construction companies to buy parcels of land for building houses to sell on condition that they are sold for no more than four times the average Morelander wage, one construction company director said, "It's a good deal all round, we can build some quality housing for first time buyers and they have a chance to get a foot on the housing ladder. We have to now ensure that 40% of all the houses we build are classed as affordable but that still means we get a chance to make a tidy profit."

The ground breaking is due to take place in the New Year and is likely to take around 10 years before the project is complete.





EMAC SECURE LODJAIN CONTRACT

It was today announced that EMAC will be selling 24 F-3 Dragonheart multi-role fighters to Lodja. The deal comes following several months of talks between the company and East Moreland's CNN allies. The purchase is likely to see EMAC pocket some $1.8billion once the aircraft are delivered and then several more millions in terms of supplying parts and upgrades. EMAC's CEO Sir Alan Maybury said, "We're delighted to be trusted with the provision of supplying Lodja with our aircraft. We're always happy to provide our allies with top quality equipment and are confident that the Dragonheart will be a capable and advanced aircraft with many years of long service to come."

The sale is part of what is expected to be an ongoing process of Lodja upgrading their military assets, something several East Moreland companies are in contention for.





NORTHFORT UNITED WONDERKID MAKES WORLD CUP SQUAD

The East Moreland World Cup squad was today announced and among the squad is 17 year old Northfort United Wonderkid Zak Boone. The midfield playmaker has been turning heads in the Premier League this season where he has scored 10 goals while assisting with 15 others. While still in secondary school he made his international debut just six weeks ago in a 1-0 friendly loss to Nya Aland, a game in which he was highly rated. Boone will be the youngest member of the East Moreland squad who have already spoken out about the inclusion of Borland, Team Coach Jim Smith saying, "The MFA is living in some fantasy world where they see terrorists as a nation, someone at the MFA should be looking for a new job."

The East Moreland squad departs tommorrow for their training camp and only two of the 23 man squad are professional, right winger Steve Aylmer and striker James Edwards who plays for FK Krokom in Nya Aland.

GK - Ron Abrahams, Oliver Siddall, Zak Rush

DF - Dylan Spears, Harrison Darrell, Glen Hayley, Ray Davidson, Al Millhouse, Trey Hodges, Kurt Whiney, Tyler Barnett

MF - Scott Huddleson, Jacob Oakley, Daryl Soloman, Steve Aylmer, Rick Trueman, Zak Boone, Henry Gladwin, Jimmy Paris

ST - James Edwards, Brenden Eason, Allen Wray, Mike Westwall

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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #17 on: December 13, 2017, 10:01:31 PM »




"UNIQUE" FIND AT GREENFLOWERS SITE

A team of archaelogists working on the site of the Battle of Greenflowers yesterday unearthed a series of five structures that lead Professor, Maddie Howard, has described as "unique" having dug down a significant distance guided by ground penetrating radar images the team have discovered several small pyramids no larger than two meters in height. It was originally hypothesised that the structures would be part of a series of small tombs built to honour some of the nobles who died during the battle, however no such structures have ever been found in East Moreland before. Professor Howard, who has been romantically linked to the King in the past, explained the significance to the press saying. "We are certain that these structures are from the same time period as the Battle of Greenflowers, the birth of our nation. What we don't know is what they are, we've never seen anything like this recorded in our nation, we are truly delving into exciting history, further study may well reveal something completely new about the battle and maybe even King Robert."

The team have said they expect to spend the next week mapping the mini pyramids before beginning looking at ways of dismantling them while still perserving them. Professor Howard explained, "There are many things we can do in an attempt to see what is inside these things, we've already ascertained that the structures are largely hollow and so it may be as simple as drilling a small bore hole and passing fibre optics in before considering more extreme methods. The team have already begun taking bets on what we will find inside and are keen to begin. We will not however risk damaging the site or any artefacts and remains that exist. Anything found will naturally be treated with the utmost respect and dignity."

It is expected that King David will visit the site when work begins to discover the secrets of the pyramids.

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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #18 on: December 18, 2017, 11:19:40 PM »




RED LEGION RECOVER "ALIEN" BODIES FROM GREENFLOWERS

Following the careful deconstruction of the first of two mini pyramid structures at the historic site of the Battle of Greenflowers six sets of human remains have been discovered. A ceremonial guard made up of non-active Red Legionnaires were on hand to remove the bodies with full military honours, each of the six bodies were painstakingly recovered and placed into a coffin identical as those used to repatriate fallen Morelander Legionnaires. The Red Legionnaires then placed the bodies onto gun carriages and escorted them from the battle site to a nearby military barracks used by the ceremonial guards at the sites memorial. Once within the gates of the memorial, His Majesty King David and Princess Freya, both in military uniform, presented their own salute as each body was carried inside the barracks temple. It was here that two days later Professor Maddie Howard made an announcement to the press which may significantly change the understanding of King Roberts campaigns.

Quote from: Professor Howards statement

It is safe to now assume that the bodies of those recovered from the tomb at Greenflowers were not of Morelanders. While we still wait for irrefutable DNA evidence to be carried out there are many markers that lead our team to believe that those bodies present in the tomb infact came from Ahkabnil. We have so far recovered several "Death whistles" from around the necks of the dead, suspended on leather laces. These items are heavily connected with the people and history of Ahkabnil and other places among the Horn of Ardia. Additionally several weapons buried with the deceased are of non-native design. In particular one sword recovered bears a remarkable resembelance to the type used in Ankabnil during this time period. It was only when we saw these objects that the shape of the tomb made sense, the pyramid is a significant image within that nations culture, even the style of the armour worn is more in keeping with other soldiers found buried there than with Morelanders.

I am highly aware of the significance this can have on our nations history, for the entirety of our nations history we have believed that the conflict was one between two armies from within the same territory, now we see a wider Mhorish significance, it leads to many exciting avenues, what other involvement did these soldiers have, were they here with blessings from home or as mercenaries. These are questions we may never get full answers to but we will do what we can to try and get some answers. Over the next few days we will do all we can to learn from these bodies and the site. We also have a second structure to dismantle but it is likely that will not be done until we get information back from this group first.

The King, who holds a Masters degree in History, visited the site of the battle and dig following receiving the bodies and inspected the still intact second tomb. Traditional history states that King Robert Ironside, often known as The Unifier, fought the battle with a group of fellow nobles intent on ending the tyranny of the King Niall Barren of Borland, Robert's elder brother. This battle hung in the balance until a peasant force arrived at the battlefield and turned the tide according to contempary accounts, the peasants wearing traditional white tunics left the field with them dyed red with the blood of the Borlanders, leading to the foundation of Red Legion in their honour. No primary sources however mention foreign troops being present, however Professor Howard did explain how already this discovery may shed new light on some evidence. "Lord Sheridan fought at Greenflowers, his eldest son entombed in the nobles tomb complex, he wrote after the battle about the event to his wife, the letter survived and part said, "as the shield wall advanced a fient whistle swept over the battlefield solemnly marking our advance." perhaps this whistle wasn't just a collection of sound, perhaps it was an  Ahkabnil death whistle."

The King also made a statement on the find and what he expects to happen next

Quote from: King David[/quote

History is a fluid subject, Dr.Merriman once described it as a best guess at the past and that should new evidence present itself then new thoughts are required. Today we in East Moreland stand ready to consider these new thoughts, but no matter what we change it to we know that it was here at Greenflowers, thanks to the sacrifices and bravery of so many that our nation came to be. We give thanks to King Robert and the people he commanded, regardless of their place of birth, for giving us the nation we live in today. Arrangements will be made to treat these bodies, and any others found, with full military honours as you've seen today. What happens next is to then be determined. One of my first acts as King was to create the Cultural Exchange Treaty Organisation, which commits us to returning human remains to their nation of origin is requested, naturally we shall comply with that, should Ankabnil be confirmed as their nation of origin I shall, if asked, have the bodies escorted home with an honour guard and our thanks. Should Ankabnil not wish to exercise that right arrangements will be made to intern these men, in accordance with whatever faith we believe they followed, with the other known individual graves here. I would love us to find their names and add them to the scroll of honour kept here of those we know fought and died here at Greenflowers. Some may see this as diminishing our nations history, personally I see it as an exciting addition, that even back in the darkness of history Morelanders stood shoulder to shoulder with friends to oppose tyranny, and who knows it may show a whole change to the Alba Karinya-Horn of Ardia historical interpretation.

The bodies will remain at the barracks until a decision is made, however Chief of Royal Household Quinn Germaine was seen entering the Ankabnil embassy in Northfort with a telegram used to inform foreign nations of the death of service personnel serving alongside Morelanders. Upon exit the Chief of Royal Household said, "We have informed the Ankabnil government of the discovery and passed on our thanks for their soldiers service. This may be a move that has come over 1,000 years late but here in East Moreland we respect our fallen soldiers, these men may have been of Ankabnil blood but they spilt it on Moreland territory and that makes them as much a Morelander as an Ankabnilian."


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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #19 on: December 28, 2017, 08:38:04 PM »




BIFFY CLYRO TO HEADLINE FREESTONE FESTIVAL

It was announced today that Biffy Clyro will headline the annual Freestone New Year Music Festival. The band follow in the footsteps of 2Cellos, The Who and the Rend Collective who have headlined the three day free festival in recent years. The city of Freestone has hosted the street festival to mark the end of the new year since 1971 and traditionally a member of the Royal family has announced some of the acts on stage, last year Princess Rhiannon announced The Who alongside her aunt Princess Freya. In total around  350,000 visitors come to the city where the main street, parks and a woodland amphitheatre host music events ranging from classical to heavy metal.

The festival will this year also feature a new stage where the line up has been selected by Archduchess Sophie Harrison-Ironside, who is currently half way through her initial officer training. The Sophie Stage will feature bands who have yet to sign record deals and will be headlined by Lucky Chopz, a band who were formed by student of Royal Merriman University and lived next door to the Archduchess and her boyfriend, rugby player Rollo MacAllister. Organisers said, "During the Pride 2.0 festival that Northfort hosted lots of unsigned bands stepped into the breach to put on a great show for a good cause with zero notice, this new stage gives them an oppurtunity to perform on a huge stage and hopefully get the attention they deserve."

The festival starts on Friday and finishes at around midday on January 1st.





YOUNG POLITICIANS HONOURED IN NEW YEARS HONOURS

With the annual New Years Honours list due to be released in the next few days the first glimpses have been announced. Among those to be honoured include young politicians Melissa Lusk, current head of the CTO Refugee Council, and Amelia Merriman, current Youth Minister. The pair will both be awarded The Moreland Cross, an honour given for people who have carried out "acts regarded as inspirational to East Morelanders."

Melissa Lusk, the 24 year old former Youth Minister, is currently the head of the CTO's Refugee Council, she has spent much of the last twelve months in Uppsala where her military reservist training has been put to use as a voulenteer at a medical aid station. Additionally she also helped establish the Refugee University which has supported youngsters stuck in refugee camps to access education thanks to support of institutions across Mundus. The move was set up to ensure those in Uppsala didn't miss out on their future and it has already seen 42 graduates complete their studies in three countries. The King commented on the award saying, "Melissa did a fine job as Youth Minister and has continued to show that whatever your age you can make a huge difference. The work she has put into operations within Uppsala is fantastic and any young person looking for the epitome of the Code of Canley couldn't go far wrong looking at Melissa. I have no doubt that if one day she chooses to do so she will hold extremely high office in the country."

Amelia Merriman is the 22 year old grand-daughter of Professor Marcus Merriman and current Youth Minister having graduated from Royal Northfort University with a degree in Geology. Over the last year she was instumental in organising Pride 2.0, a response to anti-LGBT policies from Kerajaan Agung. The hastily organised weekend music festival saw artists from across Mundus fly in at short notice and raised hundreds of thousands of pounds to support LGBT support charities across Mundus. She has also taken part in several diplomatic trips with the King and Foreign Minister as part of the Kings policy of exposing young politicians to matters of government. The youngster was also extremely influential during the vote on joining the CNN taking the lead for the "Yes" campaign. The King spoke of her award saying, "Amelia had huge shoes to fill taking over from our nations first Youth Minister Melissa Lusk, Amelia has risen to that challenge and made the role one of great influence within the cabinet. She is never shy telling you what she thinks and has been a superb advocate for young people. I am certain her next two years in the post will see her continue to inspire young people to take an interest in politics."

Melissa Lusk has yet to comment on her award as she is currently in Rokkenjima working at the CTO HQ, meanwhile Amelia Merriman said she is "humbled to think my name will stand against greats of our nations military, sports, engineering and science. I just hope I can live up to what these others have achieved."

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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #20 on: December 30, 2017, 10:06:25 PM »




NEW YEAR HONOURS LIST RECOGNISES LODJAIN QUEEN

The full list of the New Year Honours were released today and a total of 103 people have been awarded for their achievements and dedication to a wide range of courses. The majority of those receiving awards do so for service connected to the situation in Uppsala, with the King granting the whole of one medical unit the Conspicuous Gallantry Medal , a first for any unit. The awards also see a small handful of foreign recipients for the first time, most notable among them being Queen Viktoriya of Lodja who receives membership of the Order of King Robert, a symbolic posthumous list of names of people who have either dedicated their lives to protecting others or made an outstanding sacrifice in their lives. The King announced the decision to include the deceased Queen saying, "She may have only been a Queen for a short period but she was a good friend to East Moreland. She began a movement in her homeland to improve the lives of the average citizen, making their nation more secure and granting them more rights and opportunities in twelve months than any monarch had in 1000 years there. Furthermore thanks to her the use of rape as a weapon of war has now been outlawed, a massive oversight in our first attempts of the Uppsala Convention, and something I must apologise for omitting. I will be inviting the Queen's parents and sister to accept the award on behalf of Viktoriya."

A summary of some of the other major winners is found below.

RecipientShort Citation
THE MORELAND CROSS - Archduchess Sophie Harrison-Ironside

Awarded for inspirational acts of physical achievement over the course of a twelve month period, namely in rowing the Mhorish as part of a tandem team and then crossing Hrothgar solo.
THE ORDER OF ROYAL SQUIRES - Robert Kennedy
(Former Foreign Minister]

Inducted into the Order for giving over a decade of loyal service to both the Kingdom and its people. Furthermore be it noted that since being diagnosed with motor neurone disease he has raised large sums to support those with the illness and help research treatments.
DISTINGUISHED SERVICE CROSS - (Then) Corporal Rebecca Jarrett

Awarded for bravery far above and beyond that expected of a Legionnaire in the face of the enemy. Namely that during operations in Academica the Corporal braved enemy fire to locate missing comrades and discovering them injured lead them to safety, at one point facing an enemy force alone and at one point fighting with the use of sword.
THE MORELAND CROSS - Sir Alan Maybury

Awarded for continuous promotion of scientific and engineering endeavours that have helped the nation earn a reputation of high standing among the international community for excellence in these fields.
KNIGHTED - Eddie Johns

Awarded for leading the East Moreland National team to their 2nd Rugby World Cup Victory and establishing a foundation for future rugby development. Furthermore for encouraging participation at all levels and ages of the sport of rugby.
THE MORELAND CROSS - Dame Rachael Dixon

Awarded for continued dedication to the East Moreland space programme, both as Lead Astronaut and as an Ambassador for the Royal Aeronautical Societies outreach programme which encourages school children to take an interest in science and aviation.
THE MORELAND CROSS - Daisy Greechan

Awarded for inspirational physical achievements in becoming East Moreland's most successful athlete in terms of Mundus Games medals, as well as being part of a tandem team to row across the Mhorish.
CONSPICIOUS GALLANTRY MEDAL - 42 members of the Royal Medical Corps

Awarded to the 72nd Field Hospital for bravery above and beyond that expected of a Legionnaire on active duty. Namely that during the Krokom Posionous Gas Leak the unit worked, without support, for 48 hours in the danger zone stabilising and decontaminating the injured despite themselves being exposed to the gas cloud.

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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #21 on: January 05, 2018, 09:56:05 PM »




DENMAN STARTS MARRIAGE LAW PETITION

Following the failure of last years attempts by the Traditionalist Party to pass laws insisting that future royal marriages are approved by the Representative Council rouge Priestes Jinny Denman has launched an online petition in order to try and bring about a similar law. The new proposal is that the King be presented with a pre-approved list of potential wives and any marriage must come from that list. The move comes after several months of vocal criticism of both King David and Princess Freya for their relationships with what Denman has called "unfitting bloodlines", she was critical of the wedding between Princess Freya and Alex Redfern and also the Kings apparent relationships with Daisy Greechan and then Professor Maddie Howard. Denman explained her proposal at one of her controversial talks where she explained, "On reflection leaving the King, or any other Royal, to have free reign in their romantic life, only to then have the Council turn down any marriage once they've fallen in love is cruel. This new system is much more emotionally fair, the King would see which people the Council are happy to approve and could therefore not build a relationship that would ultimately end in disappointment. The Ironside bloodline is a special one that should be kept as noble as possible, that means King David should in my view be marrying a young noble woman and then produce children capable of taking the throne in favour of Princess Rhiannon who only has half pure blood."

The King rejected the last idea which failed to even get out of the Council chamber, being defeated by just three votes, mainly because of it being called on a Feast day at short notice meaning many opponents to the proposal where in their home provinces. Jinny Denman has rose to prominence because of her belief that several key areas of the Cult of Helus are misinterpreted, the main one being that Helus is in fact female, this has lead to her own followers forming their own breakaway branch of the Cult known as the Sisterhood of Helus. It is estimated that the Sisterhood has around 80,000 members, just over half the number needed to get the petition debated and voted on in the Council. Denman has also suggested the King should marry  Rebecca Henshaw, the Duchess of Silverhills, who is a member of the Sisterhood of Helus.

Should the petition get 150,000 signatures the motion will be debated and voted on by the Council, just two hours after the petition opened it had already received 25,000 signatures, many believed to be from the Sisterhood.

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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #22 on: January 14, 2018, 10:27:25 PM »




PETITION REACHES 80,000 SIGNATURES

The petition calling for the creation of a list of pre-approved future brides for the King has reached 80,000 signatures in just 48 hours. The petition brought forward by religious rebel the self titled Priestess Jinny Denman comes after the previous attempt at some kind of marriage law failed to get through the Representative Council and was therefore defeated. Should the petition gain 150,000 signatures the Council are bound to debate and vote on the matter. Denman explained, "We're slowly moving towards resolving the great matter of ensuring the Ironside blood line, the general public are warming more and more to the need for the King to remarry, and to a noblewoman to ensure our next monarch is as pure blooded in the eyes of Helus as possible."

The religious outcasts group, "The Sisterhood of Helus" was out in Keepton yesterday collecting signatures and trying to persuade people to back their cause. One of their followers was Hannah Mitchell, a 21 year old History student who said, "Its not right that a descendent of Unasson fathered a child with a whore like that Matilda, the blood of the most perfect human deserves to be gifted only to a woman equally favoured by our Lady Helus." This was a view shared by several others who believed that should the King father another child it should take presidence over Princess Rhiannon in the line of succession. Miss Mitchell explained, "The Princess is a lovely girl from what we've seen, thats more a testimony to the King's fathering skills than anything else. The child doesn't have the correct bloodline to be a royal sadly."

It is believed that Denman has even gone so far as to begin drawing up a suitable list of future wives, including one of her followers,  Duchess Rebecca of Silverhills.

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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #23 on: January 21, 2018, 08:31:24 PM »




PALACE "INCIDENT" UNDER INVESTIGATION BY POLICE

Police are currently investigating an incident which took place at the Royal Palace in Northfort last night. Witnesses talk about how during a function held at the Palace on behalf of a children's cancer charity hosted by the Representative Council a "scuffle" broke out which saw one person hospitalised and another arrested by the military police before being handed over to the regular police. It was later confirmed by Chief Constable for Northfort, William Moorewood, that the woman arrested was religious outcast Jinny Denman, while Councillor Samantha Hooper was taken to hospital with a suspected broken nose.

One of the guests at the party, who wished to remain nameless, explained what happened. "The party was going marvellously, however it became very awkward when one of the Councillors brought Denman as their guest, a small group of what I assume are Denman's acolytes within the Council began gathering in a corner talking. Before long they had gathered the Duchess of Silverhills into their midst and shortly after they'd corralled the King, who I must say remained polite through it all. It was only when Councillor Hooper tried to rescue the King that a heated argument started, the King's Chief of Household, Quinn Germaine, removed the King from the scene and then a scuffle broke out. I saw Denman throw a massive right hook and then Hooper went down."

Denman has been leading a campaign for the King to remarry and to date the Duchess of Silverhills, Rebecca Henshaw is her preferred wife for the King. A petition to give the Council the right to give the King a pre approved list for future marriage has so far earned around 90,000 signatures. It is not know what charges if any Denman will face.



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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #24 on: January 29, 2018, 09:12:22 PM »




MILITARY BAN FITNESS TRACKERS

Following the release of "Heat Maps" by a popular brand of fitness trackers the military have issued a new standing order banning the use of the devices while on active duty. The announcement was made by Minister of Defence, Sir Harry Samuelson, who said. "We have noted that these heat maps have tracked the routes taken by people while running, as such it is possible for anyone really taking note to see the roads and various other pieces of infrastructure on bases such as Ostlake East. In this instance the information doesn't reveal anything sensitive. Ostlake is home to our nations military games and opens its doors several times a year to the public. You therefore don't need a heat map to be able to trace the roads. What is more of a concern is the various other pieces of information, such as transport routes, that could be worked out. We will be asking therefore for each of our Legionnaires to not wear the devices." The watch like devices are worn by a large number of the Armed Forces as they are seen as a popular way of tracking performances on runs and various other fitness training sessions. The data created however has now been used to show the extent of people's training habits and has inadvertently revealed much about the habits of the military.

Minister for Science and Technology Olivia Cole has criticised the company responsible saying, "This is a huge data breach in my views, it is possible to determine people's habits with relative ease if you have the time and inclination. As such I was able to determine my own usual morning run based on one of the maps freely available, as such this presents a relative safety risk for certain people from stalkers and the like. This data should never have been shared in this format and I am sorry to say many people will now probably reconsider their fitness tracking habits."

The company responsible have yet to make any comment. The maps however have been called "Highly useful" by some researchers who have noted things such as how the maps show how interconnected communities are, or routes taken by people through remote areas which allow footfall to be calculated. One route remained unique however as the one taken by Archduchess Sophie Harrison-Ironside across Hrothgar shows only a single person walking that route.

 

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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #25 on: February 12, 2018, 10:24:18 PM »




BENE GESSERIT DENIED "RECOGNISED STATUS"

Following today's meeting of the Representative Council it was deemed that the Bene Gesserit, so far recognised by the Eccleastical State, Achkaerin and Ui Cenneslaig will not be recognised as an official religion by East Moreland. The status of a recognised religion grants those members of the faith the right to construct places of worship, be recognised as a charity, establish youth organisations and carry out legally recognised marriage ceremonies, among other rights. The Council discussed the matter for several hours before voting, 428 Councillors voted to deny the status to the Bene Gesserit with only 18 supporting the recognition. Thomas More, the Chief Councillor and leader of the National Traditionalist Party had lead the group against the recognition of the group saying, "To date the Bene Gesserit have shown they do not have anything compatible with the Code of Canley, they hide in shadows and seek weapons of mass destruction. We can not support that kind of people." He went on to say, "The fact that several nations have chosen to recognise them means we must do some serious thinking about our stances with those nations, we have travel agreements with Ui Cenneslaig for example and we do not wish to see the Bene Gesserit take advantage of this."

The Truthsayers, a group associated with the Bene Gesserit, carried out an attempted theft of nuclear waste from East Moreland and where halted by members of Red Legion, several arrests were made in the aftermath and three people are awaiting extradition hearings brought forward by the government for Kaitaine. Darren Bone the Justice Minister explained, "These people were found with files relating to activities in Kaitaine carried out by this group. We have handed this over to the Kaitaine government whom gave us information regarding these terrorists. We now await lawyers to prepare a case on extradition, those accused will get to have their say."

It is likely in the next few days that Foreign Minister Edward Tamana will meet with representatives from CNN partners Ui Cenneslaig who were first to recognise the faith and have recently named a member of the faith to their Council. This is likely to be the first real test of the CNN alliance which is soon to celebrate its first birthday.


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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #26 on: February 17, 2018, 03:27:44 PM »




"SPACE BADGER" TO GO NEXT WEEK

EMAC's latest speed record, an attempt to go faster than 11.2mph on Luna, will launch probably on Wednesday next week. The current record is held by a manned lunar vehicle which was used in the early days of space exploration, however the Space Badger will be unmanned and according to the engineering team will hit at least 13mph. The attempt is just the latest in a long line of EMAC speed record projects which have seen them claim the land, water, rail and motorbike speed records. The latest attempt will not just seek to break the long standing record but will also seek to be a "rescue mission". The Space Badger project has been worked on with the Royal Aeronautical Soceity (RAS) who have overseen all Morelander space flight and programme directors intend to use the project, for which they are providing the lander, as a way of retrieving the last three Swarmbots left from a previous experiment. The three bots, named by fans as Blinky, Solo and Bob, have now been on Lunar for close to two years and have been sending messages home every two weeks, they should have been retreived with the other 97 bots however were not at the rendevous point. The three have gained quiet a following on social media where Bob, a camera bot has been posting fortnightly images. Many of these have been commented on by fans with things such as #SaveTheLunar3 and #BringThemHome.

Sir Alan Maybury of EMAC stated, "The space badger is not a vanity project, the rover will break the record and then spend several weeks wandering around the surface mapping various formations of rock and taking samples. We've created the mechanics and engines, RAS have created the scientific equipment and I'm very happy with the results. We've hit 25mph on the flat here on Mundus but its going to be very different to the other projects. Unlike the other record attempts we've no way of really changing things once we start, not like we can change the set up of something on a moon, but we're confident." The launch is expected to take place on Wednesday at 1pm but is weather dependent.




REMAF CARRY OUT STRIKES ON UTMEN

The Royal East Moreland Air Force have carried out attacks on targets within Lakhzovia connected to various Utmen milita's. The attack came as a consequence of the Khalinz Brigade using Sarin gas on civilians, murdering a Ui Cenneslaig POW in the process. The REMAF aircraft were joined on the sortie by members of the Ui Cenneslaig Air Force in what is thought to be the first joint operation between CNN nations. It is understood that the targets selected were a fuel depot and command centre, however no information has been released on the success of the operation."

Minister of Defence Sir Harry Samuelson explained the attack to the media saying. "We must make it very clear to the world that under no circumstances will we allow chemical weapons to be used on civilians, nor anyone else by that account. These strikes were intended as a start of showing the Khalinz Brigade that such attacks will not help their cause or standing in the international community. We have purposely carried out attacks in a very low risk way and these shall be the first of many sorties until we see the Khalinz willing to stand by international agreements, including those brokered by the Achkaerinese and guaranteeing a peacekeeping force."

The Minister went on to explain that, "We have a high tech airforce and a route in allowing us to carry much more ordenance than most nations involved in the no-fly zone, we intend to turn this to devestating the various brigades until they no longer present a threat to civilian life."

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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #27 on: February 21, 2018, 03:37:38 PM »




LONGER CUES EXPECTED AT PASSPORT CONTROL

Following an announcement today by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs travellers are being warned to expect longer cues at Passport Control. Those entering East Moreland, including those from nations with visa waivers, will face extra scrutiny over the coming weeks. Foreign Minister Edward Tamana explained, "Over the last few weeks we have seen more and more nations recognise the Bene Gesserit as a religion. We here in East Moreland understand it's followers may be religious however we still will not recognise it as an actual religion. Studying it's scripture shows they have no understanding of a diety, in fact they use the term God/Gods when speaking of supreme beings, we recognise some faiths such as ours worship many Gods, while others like the faith of the Christians worship one. Surely a fundemental point of a religion is to have some higher power that guides your actions, the Bene Gesserit do not have this and the very language they us by not saying God or Gods, but instead both shows they are not a true faith. Add to that the fact that this organisation is so closely tied to acts of terrorism unlike any Mundus has ever seen we see them as a very real risk. We have been a target of them once, having had them attempt to steal nuclear waste from our Kilotonnes to Kilowatts programme, we will now do all we can to keep ourselves safe from them. As a result there will be extra security checks at ports of entry from all nations agreeing to recognise them as a faith."

The move now means that nations such as Ui Cenneslaig and Achkaerin with whom the nation has treaties giving visa free travel will now have stricter passport controls put upon them but will still not require a visa. Others however where no such treaty exists can expect longer waits for visa's to be issued.





OSTLAKE FILM FESTIVAL ROUND UP

The annual Ostlake Film Festival, often called the "Ozzies" have been announced for the year. The awards which opened up to international films four years ago have become a highlight of the year for film fans and reward cinematic excellence in a range of fields. This year marks the first since the Ozzies have gone global that a member of the royal family was not present or presented an award, however many of the cinema worlds greats were present.

The first international award was  the Best International Film. This award was presented by Jocelin Hopkins, current Royal Artist in Residence and a keen supporter of the arts in East Moreland. The award went to Au Revoir from Némérie which narrowly beat Trust from Achkaerin by a single vote. The film telling the story of the relationship between Princess Serenity and the then Empress Beatrice did however win an award for Best International Song. The award which was presented by Alander Actress Krista Rosendahl-Sunbrek, went to Renee Sandiego for the song "Don't cry for me Rokkenjima", which again narrowly pipped its closest rival, Cometh The Hour from  Vagabonds 2, by a single vote. It was left to East Moreland musicians 2Cellos to present the award for Best International Short Film which went to In a Heartbeat from Neu Uburzis. The final international film award was for Best International Documentary which was presented by EMAC journalist Shelly Coe and went to "109-Year-Old Veteran and His Secrets to Life Will Make You Smile" from The Ecclesiastical State.

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Re: Northfort News
« Reply #28 on: February 23, 2018, 12:14:44 AM »




NATION CELEBRATES FEAST OF HELUS. KING ADDRESSES NATION

Today the nation of East Moreland, and Cultists around the world celebrated the Feast of Helus. The day honours the father of the Gods and the protector of mankind and is traditionally see's families visit Temple, dine with extended family and take part in evening bonfires and hog roasts. The King, as is tradition for the monarch attended the Temple of Helus in Northfort at sunrise, this year accompanied for the first time by Princess Rhiannon. The pair were joined in prayers by around 300 or so others as High Priestess Skye Maddix lead the faiths celebrations. Meanwhile Princess Freya and Husband Major Alex Redfern attended prayers at Ostlake along with members of the armed forces. Following prayers the King returned to the Palace where he dined with all the members of the extended Ironside family, including Princess Freya who had flown in from Ostlake. At 1pm the King took to the nations airways to speak to the nation, addressing some key issues.

Quote from: King's Speech

Today marks the day that we believe our Lord Helus came to Mundus during that great final stand against evil and blessed Raimond Unasson with victory. It is a day to give thanks for our lives and for the safety we enjoy. Today is also about remembering that great days in peace lie ahead if we are true to the Code of Canley, the laws given to us by Helus himself and personified by Unasson, yet at the same time we do not forget the evils of the past. It is quiet fitting that on this day our friends in Rokkenjima announce that Empress Evanthe is to be replaced, I will be sorry to see her go, I consider her a friend, a great colleague and with her being a Rhodes practically kin. I wish her luck in her endeavours to rebuild Somerset and she knows that East Moreland stand ready to support them any way we can. We also wish the Rokkenjiman people the best of luck under their new regime, I have always enjoyed my visits to that nation, as to did my daughter, the people of that nation we consider friends and I wish them the best.

The year ahead is one that will present its own challenges, it always does, this year as we feast though we have four extra chairs at our family table, that of Lodja, The Unified Iwi, Ui Cenneslaig and now the Ecclesiastical State, our CNN family. I look forward to the great works we will accomplish over the next 12 months and exceeding the success of the previous ones. I know that because of our close ties there will be Cultists celebrating in these nations and I send my greetings and best wishes to them. We also have new family members in the AKO, with Heyra, Vafelon and Balticam all joining us, we stand ever closer to becoming a continenent united in friendship. Together I know we can make our island homeland an amazing place for people to live regardless of their nationality.

The Feast of Helus always fills me with hope, and I pray that the God will bless us once more as we rededicate ourselves to his noble laws, honour your promises, put others before yourself and most importantly protect those who can not protect themselves. May The Gods Watch Over You and Your Family be Blessed.


Following the speech the King was seen handing Princess Rhiannon over to her mother, the former Queen Matilda, before he returned to the Palace. Royal Press Secretary Malcolm Tucker said, "The King enjoyed his morning with his daughter and hopes she had a great day with her mother. The pair have always tried to do what is best for the Princess and its important she share these days with her family, including her half brother Oliver. The King would never stop that." It was rumoured that the King spent the rest of the day socialising with family before hosting a party for the Palace staff which concluded at around 2am with a giant bonfire in the Palace grounds.





TAXI FOR THREE AND A SPEED RECORD THATS OUT OF THIS WORLD

From the East Moreland Royal Aeronautical Society HQ in Technology City a rocket has been launched carrying the EMAC lunar rover. The Valkryie Rocket, built using a Nya Aland design carried on board the EMAC Rover designed to test out rover design as well as break the record for the fastest object on the moon of Mundus. Known as Space Badger the vehicle is unmanned and is likely to hit 13mph, beating the previous record of 11.2mph. The rover will be dropped onto the surface by a remote version of the Golden Spike lander used by astronaut Rachael Dixon, the first Morelander on Luna, however this one will be half the size as the one that carried her. Once on the surface it will deploy the rover which will conduct several tests before attempting to reach the 13mph mark. Once its cargo is delivered the mini Golden Spike will pick up more cargo before returning to orbit.

Almost two years ago SmartWar's 100 Swarmbots should have come home on another Golden Spike mission, however three failed to make the rendezvous in time and were presumed destroyed, however three months later they appeared at the co-ordinates and began transmitting data. The three have become social media stars and given the names Blinky, Bob and Solo, they have even inspired hashtags on social media of #SaveTheLunar3 and #BringThemHome. Social media managers at the RAS have even taken to creating accounts from them publishing the data they send back as well as comical messages as though written by the three. RAS engineer Kimberly Haslam said, "I'm amazed at the followers they gathered, people are genuinely interested in these things and its helped us educate people about our work and space. There have been talks about them having a royal audience or even a ticker tape parade when they return. I don't think many people appreciate the engineering achievement that has been accomplished, to spend nearly two years alone on lunar, to have trekked across its surface when you expected to be part of a team of 100, but to make it with three of you is incredible. SmartWar can be very proud."

The Swarmbot project seeks to make semi autonomous robots, each of those on lunar are about half the size of a soda can, which are capable of a variety of tasks and can work independently or as a team. "Bob" is a Swarmbot with a small solar panel and various ports allowing it to act as a generator for the others, meanwhile "Solo" is a transmitter which relays information back to Mundus, while the final bot "Blinky" is a camera. The three can transmit information between each other through versions of USB ports, they can also link together to pull things and climb difficult terrain. Should the mission go according to plan the three bots will be back on Mundus late Monday evening.

Offline DaveIronside

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Re: Northfort News
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JUNIOR FINANCE MINISTER TARGET OF "INCOMPETENT" SILVERHILLS BOMB.

Junior Finance Minister Sarah Aubrery was yesterday the target of what is believed to be a Borlander bomb plot. The 41 year old former economics professor was at home when a large explosion rocked her rented government home in the city of Silverhills. Aubrery had moved in just a week earlier and was provided the three story mid townhouse while working with financial institutes within the city. At around 9pm the explosion rocked the street and was heard for several around however it appears the terrorists, thought to be Borlanders, had targetted the wrong house and instead the bomb had been placed next door sadly killing the houses occupier, a yet to be identified individual. The Junior Minister spoke to the press from Silverhills Air Force Base where she was taken as a precaution in the aftermath saying, "Its a tragic day that an innocent person has been killed, their families have my condolensces and I am very sorry for what has happened." The local Police cordoned off several streets while searchers were carried out using explosive sniffer dogs to ensure no other devices were in the area. 

No group have yet claimed the operation however Minister of Defence Sir Harry Samuelson said, "I suspect this will have been an attempt by the Borlanders to try and destabilise our government, no doubt they believed attacking a target outside of Northfort was simpler but our security agents are superb at their job and I suspect had they tried the correct house, and sadly not dragged this poor unfortunate into their sordid campaign, it would have been discovered with no loss of life. The Borlanders will no doubt say this had nothing to do with them, but we know their failures are lengthy." All Ministers have been issued with revised advice following the attack and the threat level against them has been raised from "High" to "Likely"





SPACE BADGER SAFELY ARRIVES

EMAC and the Royal Aeronautical Society revealed this morning that the Space Badger has safely deployed onto the surface of Lunar and will make its "speed run" at around 4pm tomorrow. The newly designed rover is a test bed for a bigger version which is likely to form a platform for landings on other planets, however the scale fully functioning model is to be used to try and break the "Lunar Speed Record" which currently stands at 11.2 mph. The joint EMAC and RAS team will spend the time between landing and the speed run making preparations and using the rover to collect data from the moon's surface. Sir Alan Maybury spoke at the announcement saying, "RAS have done brilliantly getting us exactly where we needed to be, we've a window for best results at 4pm tomorrow all being well, once that comes and goes we'll hopefully be record holders. After that the Space Badger is all RAS' and will start exploring the Lunar surface doing whatever they need. I just pray to Helus we don't stuff up for them and steer it into a ditch or something as if we do there is no way of getting it out."

At around 5pm tomorrow the lander which delivered the Space Badger will return to orbit carrying the three Swarmbots known as Bob, Blinky and Solo, collectively known as the Lunar3 . The lander will then join with its launch vehicle and return to Mundus, having carried out a test of the new systems onboard the Golden Spike Project. If this is successful it is likely further, possibly manned, missions to Lunar will be pencilled in.