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The Lane Hackers | Manual - Printable Version

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The Lane Hackers | Manual - The Lane Hackers - 08-21-2012

...hack.initiated...connecting.to.Spyglass.Network...decryption.in.progress...
...Mactan.Network.recognized...encoding.transmission...
...uploading.data...


[Image: 5.png]
The Lane Hackers
"Making the corporate weenies cry, so our kids can live in a free and just galaxy."

"The Lane Hackers are a criminal group with the technical expertise to monitor and disrupt Trade Lanes for the purpose of seizing valuable cargo. The powerful alliance between Lane Hackers, Liberty Rogues and Outcasts serves as the dominant unlawful force in Liberty space and most Independent Worlds."




Technical Manual


The Lane Hacker Manual is composed of the Technical Manual and the Lore Manual.

The Technical Manual focuses on the technical aspect of the faction and explains how to speak as a Lane Hacker or get the proper IFF or use the appropriate opening and closing text for a communications post.

This manual also provides information about our established smuggling routes. It also offers a small tutorial on how to configure your keyboard or weapon groups. It explains a number of special tactical maneuvers which are required to demonstrate in order to be promoted. Finally, the Technical Manual also describes how to effectively hunt down your targets, update your transponder and provide pilots for Interrogation.



Transponder Protocols



All Lane Hackers utilize three types of transponders:
  • Logged Transponders (eg.: LH~Nicole.Hunter, LH~Infiltrator)
  • Stealth Transponders (eg.: Nicole.Hunter, Vladimir.Scorpius)
  • Coded Transponders (eg. Midnight!, Starlight)

The Lane Hackers utilize two transponder protocols:
  • Logged Flights Protocol: During beginning of each quarter of the year The Lane Hackers employ Logged Flights Protocol. Only Logged Transponders are allowed during this period and it applies to all ranks equally with the only exception being special operations that require use of Coded Transponders by their mission parameters.
  • Stealth Operations Protocol: Once over 72 hours of logged flights are recorded a Stealth Operations Protocol is introduced for the rest of the quarter. During this period all Lane Hackers are allowed and encouraged to use Stealth Transponders on their personal ships. Infiltrators and higher ranked members can also freely employ Coded Transponders. All Hackers are required to keep their profile updated for all stealth and coded ships. It is encouraged to keep these entries even during logged period.


Smuggling Operations



Smuggling activities are critical for the welfare and functionality of the Lane Hackers. Over-reliance on outside contractors is both dangerous and insecure. Due to constant limitations and financial needs which are thoroughly explained in the Lane Hacker Information Network, all Lane Hacker smuggling vessels are expected to ferry cargo over long distances by conducting the export and import routes shown in the imagegraphs. Only Lane Hackers who attained Fixer mastery are excepted from these restrictions.

The following tables explain in greater detail the purchase location and the selling locations of the exported commodity. The proposed route maximizes your efficiency and simultaneously increases safety in acceptable levels.

Export Routes

Purchase Location
Sale Locations
Black Market Pharmaceuticals
• Rochester Base, New York• Vogtland Base, Dresden
• Arranmore Base, Dublin
• Hikone Base, Honshu
• Planet Malta, Omicron Alpha
Counterfeit Computerware
• Cochrane Depot, Ontario• Vogtland Base, Dresden
• Arranmore Base, Dublin
• Hikone Base, Honshu
• Planet Malta, Omicron Alpha


Import Routes

Purchase Location
Sale Locations
Black Market Augments
• Hikone Base, Honshu• Mactan Base, Magellan
Black Market Munitions
• Vogtland Base, Dresden• Leiden Base, Galileo
• Mactan Base, Magellan
• Cochrane Depot, Ontario
Cardamine
Cardamine Cartridges
• Planet Malta, Omicron Alpha• Cochrane Depot, Ontario
Hessian Tears
• Vogtland Base, Dresden• Rochester Base, New York
Gold
• Arranmore Base, Dublin• Rochester Base, New York
• Thunder Bay Depot, Ontario


Intra-Liberty Routes

This is the internal cardamine distribution network. Lane Hackers constantly require large amounts of cardamine in order to survive. While the profits are not on par with the export or import routes, the internal routes are much shorter, making their overall efficiency much higher. The following table explains in greater detail the purchase location and the selling location of the intra-Liberty routes.

Purchase Locations
Sale Locations
Black Market Pharmaceuticals
• Rochester Base, New York• Leiden Base, Galileo
• Mactan Base, Magellan
• Cochrane Depot, Ontario
Cardamine Cartridges
• Leiden Base, Galileo
• Mactan Base, Magellan
• Rochester Base, New York
• Cochrane Depot, Ontario
Counterfeit Computerware
• Cochrane Depot, Ontario• Leiden Base, Galileo
• Mactan Base, Magellan
• Rochester Base, New York
Liberty Ale
• Thunder Bay Depot, Ontario• Cochrane Depot, Ontario



Special Tactical Maneuvers



WHACK - Worm Hole Assisted Cruise Kick [DEMONSTRATION]

The Lane Hackers have discovered how to charge cruise engines during wormhole travel. You need an operational jump gate and a helper. The helper is another ship you can form on which will normally perform jumping procedure (grouped non-hostile player or non-hostile NPC).
  • Get your ship inside the jump gate while facing the helper.
  • Engage cruise the moment the helper begins final phase of the docking maneuver. It is signified by the red blinking docking lights.
  • Form on the helper.
In short, target the helper, fly in, wait for him to dock, hit Shift+W and then quickly hit F4. That will result in your ship jumping instantly while charging cruise on the way through. When you exit the gate, your cruise engines will be active and you'll immediately accelerate to cruise speed. This technique is not easy to master, but it can be used to surprise enemy ships waiting on the other side of the gate or get away from pursuing police forces when flying a smuggling ship.


SNACK - SuperNova Antimatter Cannon Kill

SNACK is a maneuver that skilled bomber pilots use to instantly vaporize small unshielded ships such as fighters, freighters, bombers and unarmored gunships. Inexperienced pilots are especially susceptible to this maneuver. There are two common techniques of performing SNACK. Both of them require from you to put your opponent off his guard by pretending that you're not a real threat. The first technique requires from you to joust your opponent like in a normal duel. Using your EMP cannons strip shield of your opponent to minimum but do not take it down completely, as he will just break away to recharge his shields. On the next pass joust your opponent with a maximum speed and fire the antimatter cannon just after you take down its shield with one EMP salvo. The second technique requires from you to use engine kill and fly in a straight line and then quickly turn your ship around to face your pursuer. Opponent that is following you is an easy target for both EMP and antimatter cannons. Keep in mind, that there is nothing more humiliating for a fighter pilot than to be vaporized by a bomber. Knowledge of these techniques is the first step to counter them. Remember, never joust antimatter bombers but instead use sliding against them.


Maneuver Lock

You can use the chat box to lock many maneuvers like thrust, barrel roll, pitch or strafe. Simply press button bind to that maneuver and, while keeping it pressed, open the chat box by hitting Enter. Now release the button and hit ESC to return to normal flight.


Corkscrew Evasion [DEMONSTRATION]

Flat shaped smaller ships such as Vindicator can benefit from an easy technique of evasion based on corkscrew. Go to a cockpit mode and perform a maneuver lock on a barrel roll. Set a waypoint to your escape point and while staying in the cockpit mode thrust at full speed to your destination while using side thrusters and slightly circling around your main vector. This technique is most efficient at 400m and higher distance to your pursuers. It also allows you to run in a specific direction while loosing as little distance as possible.


Cruise Jumpstart [DEMONSTRATION]

Start your cruise engines, press and hold a strafe key and then the engine kill key. You are now charging your cruise engines while remaining more or less still. Open the chat box and hit Esc. That will lock the drift in place up until you touch strafe or Engine Kill again. Clear your target selection, by default Ctrl + T. You may now press F2 at any time, which will rapidly accelerate you to cruise speed, as your engines are charged already.


Minescape - Trade Lane Assisted Escape [DEMONSTRATION]

The most basic escape maneuver requires from you to simply drop a mine while taking a trade lane. The mine will hit the lane shortly after you have taken it preventing your pursuers from following you. If you cannot drop mines you need to take the lane and then jump out of it just before the last ring and then quickly shut it down. If timed correctly, your pursuers will drop out of the sequence in the middle of the lane, giving you safe distance to engage cruise. Lane assisted escape is possible only when you're outside of the firing range of your pursuers.


Gatescape - Jump Gate Assisted Escape

Gatescape is a variation of maneuvers that allows you to escape by using a nearby Jump Gate.

If you are intercepting commercial traffic next to a gate, position your ship near the closest trade lane ring but make sure the ring does not temporarily deactivate from damage. That way when law enforcement shows up in your scanners quickly coming up via the trade lanes, you have but a few seconds to deactivate the nearby ring which will buy you enough time to run to the gate and jump with a significant head start.

If you're seriously outnumbered and under heavy fire while being near a Jump Gate, simply dock to the gate and then on the other side quickly perform a lane assisted escape. The key element of this maneuver is to dock to a gate when your pursers are least expecting it. Feign an attack or use the gate as a cover in order to achieve this. You will gain few seconds advantage that could allow you to get out of firing range on the other side of the gate and take a trade lane undisrupted.


Feignscape - Wormhole Assisted Escape [DEMONSTRATION]

Feignscape is a risky maneuver of last resort that works very well against inexperienced pursuers. It requires from you to feign a docking sequence to a wormhole. It has the highest chance of success while performed on a jump hole, but is also possible on a jump gate. Lower distance to your pursuers and simply fly straight into a wormhole. To increase the chance of fooling your opponents, stop dodging and turn on the docking lights by using the /lights command, just before the entry point. Inexperienced pursuers will make the jump and as a result be unable to come back due to their jumpdrives recharging, giving you enough time to escape.


Shieldcruise

Shieldcruise is a risky maneuver of last resort that might be used in order to escape when other maneuvers failed or are not possible. The key element of this maneuver is to initiate cruise sequence when your pursers are least expecting it and having a jump gate or station to shield you from initial cruise disruptors. Feint an attack or dodge and then use a gate or station as a cover. Make sure your first attempt is successful, as it's unlikely you will catch your opponents off guard next time. This maneuver is also possible while hiding within a jump hole.


Driftscape [DEMONSTRATION]

Driftscape is a risky maneuver and should be used when both you and your pursuer are in cruise. This intricate maneuver is performed while cruising towards a Jump Gate, Trade Lane or Jump Hole, initiating engine kill to keep momentum at around 1k left to your escape route, then by swiftly turning your ship so that you can launch a cruise disruptor at your pursuer after which you turn back towards your escape route and ready to dock with it. This leaves your pursuer out of cruise and out of range to disrupt the lane or block your escape route and provides you with a vital head start. It is strongly recommended to have countermeasures activated before you perform this maneuver.


Radar Tricks

Radar Filter: Scroll through Radar modes to only have selection of piloted ships and prevent hostile solar objects or drones to obstruct your target selection. [DEMONSTRATION]

Radar Glimpse: While unreliable, it is the only known way to catch a glimpse of a target's location when it is further than 10k away. [DEMONSTRATION]



Tactical Principles of Transport Interdiction



Blockade

Stationary blockade is the most common form of piracy as it can be performed equally well both by an individual as well as by a group. It is discouraged to conduct such operations with a group bigger than two ships, as it attracts too much attention. We are not the Liberty Rogues to set camps on the Mojave lane and wait for the Liberty Navy to send their whole fleet there. Besides that it is just a waste of Lane Hackers' talents that can be utilized in more sophisticated ways. It is much better to use spare fighters to lodge the prey into a blockade. Following are general guidelines for a stationary blockade.

Check Spyglass Network Scanner for the density of the commercial traffic. Find a good spot for a blockade. The middle of a long trade lane which is the main transit route between systems or a busy jumpgate with no stations on each side are the best choices. Stop all commercial traffic going right into your blockade by disrupting a trade lane ring and firing cruise disruptors. Scan your victims for cargo and identification and then state your demands. Strip them of their shields if they run, open fire, refuse or remain silent for too long. Give a final warning before destroying the transport. In the event of being spotted by the lawful forces retreat on the assumption that they will soon receive reinforcements. Optionally, you can lure them into an ambush outside of the main patrolling zone and there assassinate them.


Hunting

Hunting Ageira Technologies flunkies, Deep Space Engineering milksops, Interspace Commerce lapdogs and Independent Neuralnet Division hoodlums is the staff of life for the Lane Hackers. The key to a successful hunt are correct prediction of target's destination, maintaining a low profile and finally outwitting your opponent. If you're hunting with a wingman use private channel instead of a group communication for coordination. Following are general guidelines for hunting. Check the long range scanners or hack USI for potential high profile targets. Consult Spyglass Network Scanner for the target's route and possible destinations. Choose an interception point, or points if you are not working alone, taking into consideration target's speed and destination. If you're preparing an ambush at a jumphole or jumpgate, choose the system that is crowded.


Honeytrap [EXAMPLE]

Honeytrap is one of the most difficult types of transport interdiction, and it is advisable to be used only in situations when your target travels outside your operational zone or is ahead of you and cannot be reached in time. This method requires two Lane Hackers or use of a unknown stealth or coded transponder. In order to perform this tactic, one Lane Hacker should switch to an untagged ship equipped with an official Lane Hacker ID and IFF and contact the target. This is where the Hacker's cunning, quick thinking and superior intelligence comes in. The Lane Hacker should successfully pretend to be someone else and convince the target do something for them or redirect its set course or simply stop. If successful, the other operatives will certainly hit the target and with little danger involved. However as this tactic depends on high persuasion skills and a number of uncontrolled factors, it has the lowest chances of success so it is advisable to be used only when all the other types of transport interdiction are not applicable.


Lockdown

Lockdowns are the trademark of the Lane Hackers. They require significant organization, discipline and tactics. You need from two up to four ships in order to prepare a complete lockdown of an entire region. Analyse your region of choice, especially its main trade routes as well as jumphole and jumpgate network. Divide your hunting party into groups and assign them to all bottlenecks in the desired area. Make all groups be able to work alone or stay close enough to be able to reinforce each other if necessary. Make sure everyone has a backup escape plan so that you can retreat at a moment's notice. If it is possible, avoid using group communication and set your ambushes in the systems that are crowded. The best lockdown is the one of which nobody is aware of.

A lockdown is considered as successful when at least two commercial vessels is caught and extorted or destroyed and the LH team does not suffer any casualties until that point.



Operational protocols



Linguistic protocol

The Lane Hackers are the intellectual elite of the criminal world and as such they find amusement in using rare and sophisticated invectives. The following and similar elaborate insults allow Hackers to culturally slap in the face representatives of corrupt and devious corporations as well as vile and nefarious authorities: cad, cockalorum, flunky, hobbledehoy, hoodlum, hypocrite, knave, lackey, lapdog, lickspittle, milksop, mooncalf, mumpsimus, ninnyhammer, patsy, pet, pettifogger, rapscallion, reprobate, ruffian, scalawag, scamp, scapegrace, shill, smellfungus, snollygoster, weasel, wretch. For instance: "You are just a corrupt lackey for the commercial oligarchy!"

The Lane Hackers are made up of the elite of the technical world, so the use of technical terms is preferred. All of these terms and similar can be mixed and matched: atomic disgronification, molecular dissolution, cellular separation, financial ruination, rapid decompression, hull discombobulation. For instance, "Provide two million credits to The Lane Hackers or be atomically disgronified!" Remember at all times that you are a Lane Hacker, and speak and act like a Lane Hacker. The Methods available in our official documents are very important guidelines for your behavior.


Mania-Interrogation Protocol
[Image: 20.png]

Mania-interrogation is the legendary method of interrogation used by the Lane Hackers. Mainly employed on high-profile victims, this interrogation is usually performed on captured or surrendered targets in order to ensure maximum compliance. The victim can be any person considered to be an enemy of the Lane Hackers. During the mania-interrogation the victim is humiliated, disgraced, embarassed, blackmailed, threatened, tortured, bullied and abused until they confess what the Lane Hackers seek to obtain. The most violent and perfect interrogations usually leave an empty husk of a body in the end, which is further exploited by being moved to Malta for manual labor until the end of its days.

A mania-interrogation is considered successful after the victim does one of the following:
Due to immense humiliation and disgrace, the victim freely admits of his interrogator's vast superiority in every level and field compared to their meaningless existence.
Due to immense torture and abuse, the victim freely admits despicable actions done by themselves, or by their organization, or by their allies.
Due to immense bullying and blackmailing, the victim freely admits that the Lane Hacker cause is just and great in a system-wide public channel, in a populated system.

Extraordinary mania interrogations outside of the above mentioned scenarios will be considered on a case by case basis.


Hacking Protocol

The Lane Hacker securely encrypted comm channels are constructed to be impenetrable to the dull-witted flunkies of Ageira, Interspace and their silly cohorts in the LPI and LSF. All Lane Hackers must use correct hacking protocols at all times. All comm channel hacks should follow following encoding procedure found in the Lane Hacker Internal Comms.


Electronic Warfare Protocol

The Lane Hacker Assassins are known for proficiency in electronic warfare. During combat they often upload viruses or packets of random data to attack navigational or weapon systems of the target to reduce its combat potential. Assassins also tend to hack and overload power-cores of heavily damaged ships or even perform full hostile takeover of their navigation and lead them into gas packets or mines. Following is an example of an electronic warfare attack sequence:

*enabling.electronic.warfare.module*
*opening.target.socket.via.Trade.Lane.star.charts.update.protocol*
*uploading.virus.Watergun.Mk.III...upload.successful*
*reducing.weapons.accuracy.by.20.percent*
*sending.random.bit.data.streams...reduced.maneuverability.detected*
*firewall.breach.detected...initiating.hostile.takeover*
*hostile.takeover.completed...initiating.powercore.overload.sequence*



Knowledge Base



Anonymous Initiate log

16:45 ...sold all ammunition, bought WASP, Heavy Thruster and started to look for appropriate missions...
16:48 ...successfully completed capture mission for Outcasts worth 670 000 SC...
16:57 ...successfully completed assassination for Lane Hackers worth 500 000 SC...
17:03 ...successfully completed assassination for Outcasts worth 490 000 SC...
17:13 ...successfully completed cargo retrieval for Lane Hackers worth 445 000 SC...
17:17 ...successfully completed base destruction for Lane Hackers worth 355 000 SC...
17:20 ...reached Montezuma and bought Bactrian...
17:25 ...returned to Mactan and armed my ship...
17:32 ...successfully completed cargo retrieval for Lane Hackers worth 485 000 SC...
17:32 ...armed my ship with additional weapons and equipment...
17:35 ...successfully performed transponder hack and switched to Lane Hacker Guard IFF...
17:44 ...successfully completed assassination for Outcasts worth 1 600 000 SC...
17:53 ...successfully completed cargo retrieval for Lane Hackers worth 1 050 000 SC...
17:56 ...upgraded ship equipment...
17:57 ...counted 30 captured bounty hunters in my cargo hold...
17:59 ...successfully completed base destruction for Lane Hackers worth 600 000 SC...
18:01 ...reached Montezuma again to look for appropriate missions...
18:03 ...aborted assassination mission for Liberty Rogues worth 1 800 000 SC due to gunship presence...
18:13 ...successfully completed assassination for Liberty Rogues worth 1 000 000 SC...
18:17 ...aborted capture mission for Liberty Rogues worth 1 600 000 SC due to gunship presence...
18:23 ...successfully completed base destruction for Liberty Rogues worth 465 000 SC...
18:29 ...successfully completed base destruction for Liberty Rogues worth 800 000 SC...
18:30 ...successfully performed transponder hack and gained Liberty Rogue friendly reputation...
18:32 ...counted 50 captured bounty hunters and over 3 000 0000 SC on my account...


Classic flight interface

This is one of the most common and intuitive configuration setups ideal for fast paced combat, where stress is put on intuitive movement and quick access to special weapons. As it uses weapon groups instead of particular weapon type bindings, it is also equally applicable to most ship classes. Example weapon group configurations can be found below.

[Image: 29.png]


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Lore Manual #1 - The Lane Hackers - 11-22-2015

...hack.initiated...connecting.to.Spyglass.Network...decryption.in.progress...
...Cochrane.Network.recognized...transmission.encrypted...
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Lore Manual



The Lane Hacker Manual is composed of the Technical Manual and the Lore Manual.

The Lore Manual focuses on the saga of the Lane Hackers; essentially, it serves as a presentation and repository of all Lane Hacker-related news reports, infocards and rumors of the organization. It also includes information about the activities of organizations which indirectly affect the Lane Hackers and provides further analysis on some historical events that happened in Liberty.

Hopefully, this encyclopedia will provide players with a better understanding of the history, relations and operations of the Lane Hackers without adding the development that the LH~ player faction has contributed since 2007. Even for the most proficient in Lane Hacker lore, there is always something new to learn.

Each chapter provides an accumulation of all the information about a subject while the original sources can be found inside the spoilers. The blurred spoilers work as references to the exact sources of each passage. For more information about the history of Liberty you can also download this document.



The Lane Hackers



The majority of the Lane Hackers are former Ageira Technologies employees. The organization was founded when Los Angeles Ageira employees who created the extremely complex scanning and database system known as USI (Universal Ship Identification) left the company rather acrimoniously in 750 A.S. and built Mactan Base in Magellan system. The last straw was that they did not receive anything for creating USI, a software which revolutionized Sirius' commerce overnight. Some decades later, a major scandal erupted within the company because of the Galileo Bypass Project which resulted in the unnecessary construction of a hugely expensive set of jump gates and trade lanes in Galileo system and the company "redeemed" itself by ousting several executives and the USI scanner hardware R&D division of Planet Denver. This would become the second part of the core of the Lane Hackers which was established in Galileo after building Leiden Base. The investigation continues to this day, but, so far, authorities have been unsuccessful in locating the Lane Hacker bases. [News reports §5.1, 16.1, 22.3 Infocards §13.1, 16.2, Rumors §1.3, 1.8, 1.12, 1.13, 1.16, 5.7, 5.8, 5.9, 5.17, 5.18, 6.6, 6.7, 6.8, 6.9, 19.15, 22.43, 22.44, 22.45, 22.46]

The Hackers' ability to access the USI allows them to accurately project the position of any vessel and the cargo that it is carrying at all times, a powerful tool as long as the vessel keeps using the trade lanes. Additional security measures have been added to the network, but the Hackers have remained one step ahead, leading Ageira security experts to believe that there are many sympathetic programmers and executives still within the company.[News reports §3.2, 5.2, 19.2, 20.1, Infocards §12.2, 13.1, 16.2, 19.3, Rumors §1.3, 1.4, 1.5, 1.6, 1.7, 1.8, 1.9, 3.4, 3.5, 3.6, 4.1, 4.2, 4.3, 5.7, 6.4, 6.5, 6.6, 6.7, 6.8, 6.9, 12.11, 12.26, 12.27, 12.28, 12.29, 12.35, 15.8, 15.9, 19.13, 20.8, 20.9, 20.19] It should be noted that the Gallic trade lane network operates in a different manner than Ageira's and the two networks are not connected, which means that the Lane Hackers do not have access in Gallia.

Although minions and accomplices with no meaningful information are being occassionally arrested, no Lane Hacker has ever been captured despite having very large bounties on their heads. The Hackers prefer to die rather than be captured. Furthermore, they prefer to sell their information to others rather than do the dirty work themselves, although they occasionally intercept a convoy and tractor in the cargo if it is particularly desirable. [News reports §10.1, 14.2, 20.1, Rumors §1.9, 1.10, 1.11, 1.12, 6.9, 6.10, 10.7, 10.12, 10.13, 12.19, 12.20, 12.21, 20.19, 20.20, 21.10]

The Lane Hackers believe that Ageira is lying and oppressing to its employees. On top of that, they believe that they did not receive the recognition and money they deserved; while, within the Lane Hackers, their work is acknowledged and rewarded. Most Hackers are rich, living luxurious lives and thus can afford to have as much cardamine as they want and possess the best artifacts. They are very intelligent and speak in a sophisticated manner. Some of them them do not enjoy permanently living in their asteroid bases, and miss the planetary life. As heavy cardamine consumers, the Lane Hackers find Maltese food more palatable than synth paste. On the other hand, their cardamine dependency frequently allows the Outcasts to have the upper hand in negotiations. The Lane Hackers ignore politics and live for pleasure and for every moment. Female slaves can occassionally be found working in Lane Hacker bars which reveals that Hackers have little to no morality. They are also known to avoid direct confrontation when possible, unless it is the henchmen of the despised Ageira and Interspace Commerce. [News report §1.2, 3.1, 22.2, 22.3, Infocards §13.1, 17.1, Rumors §1.6, 1.9, 1.12, 1.13, 1.14, 1.15, 1.16, 1.17, 1.18, 1.19, 3.4, 3.5, 3.6, 4.9, 4.10, 5.9, 6.9, 10.14, 10.15, 12.14, 12.32, 13.7, 14.5, 14.6, 16.5, 17.3, 17.4, 17.16, 19.15, 20.21]

Lane Hacker operatives reportedly use Tachyon weapons and Graviton shields. Some of their secondary enemies include Deep Space Engineering because of its close association with Ageira, and Cryer Pharmaceuticals due to its research into a cardamine alternative. Captured corporate employees are usually interrogated by Lane Hackers specially trained for the purpose of extracting any valuable information they might have. [Infocard §1.2, Rumors §1.19, 1.20, 1.21, 1.22]




The Tripartite Alliance



It is widely known that the alliance between the Outcasts, the Lane Hackers and the Liberty Rogues serves as the dominant unlawful force in Liberty space and most Independent Worlds. In this alliance, the Outcasts provide cardamine and extremely skilled pilots, the Lane Hackers provide valuable information and the Rogues have the numbers. [News reports §2.1, 2.2, Infocard §19.3, Rumor §4.4]

So, it comes as no surprise that, when Interspace Commerce announces the number of shipping losses, the Lane Hackers are responsible for the greatest loss in profits of stolen goods, the Liberty Rogues for most strikes undertaken and the Outcasts having scored, by far, the most kills. [News report §2.3]



Outcasts


The Lane Hackers maintain strong ties of cooperation and respect with the Maltese, more commonly known as the Outcasts. The Hackers receive cardamine, and, in return, they sell information to the Outcasts about upcoming convoys. As the Lane Hackers are dependent on cardamine, the Maltese exploit it during negotiations. They particularly want to learn to hack into the trade lane network, something which only the Lane Hackers are capable of. The common zones of operations between the two organizations include the western Independent Worlds, California and Manchester systems.[News reports §2.1, 3.1, 3,2, 22,2, Infocards §12.2, 13.1, 13.2, 19.8, 22.5, Rumors §1.10, 1.15, 1.19, 3.4, 3.5, 3.6, 3.7, 3.18, 10.11, 10.12, 10.15, 12.12, 12.19, 12.20, 12.24, 12.25, 12.32, 13.7, 13.8, 14.9, 14.10, 19.20, 19.21, 19.22, 19.23, 19.24, 20.7, 20.11, 20.12]

The biggest cardamine smuggling route begins from the Taus, moving through Baffin and Coronado to reach the Montezuma and Mactan bases. It is then shipped deeper into House Liberty, currently the biggest cardamine consumer in Sirius. When the Outcasts are away from Planet Malta, they use inhaler masks which allow them to constantly inhale trace amounts of cardamine. The Outcasts are considered as odd by the Lane Hackers and during the heat of combat they can give themselves a cardamine boost with a flick of the wrist, giving them the edge over their enemy. This cooperation also extends in providing military assistance whenever possible. It is quite common for Hackers to rescue Outcasts or the reverse. [News report §3.3, Infocard §13.2, Rumors §3.7, 3.8, 3.9, 3.10, 3.11, 3.12, 12.15, 12.32, 13.7, 13.8]

Freelancers who want to be on good terms with the Outcasts, are first expected to work their reputation with the Rogues, then to smuggle cardamine for the Hackers. At this point, these individuals cannot easily turn back since they are cardamine addicts. [Rumors §3.13, 3.14, 3.15, 13.8]

The Outcasts treat the Rogues as expendables by assigning them the most dangerous smuggling operations, and, in more rare cases, even killing a low-ranked Rogue for endangering them during an operation. [Rumors §12.17, 12.18, 13.10]



Liberty Rogues


The Liberty Rogues are the main allies of the Lane Hackers. The two organizations have numerous dealings, the biggest of which is the exchange of information about upcoming shipments. [News report §19.2, Infocards §12.2, 13.1, 19.3, Rumors §1.10, 4.1, 4.2, 4.3, 12.26, 15.11, 19.13, 19.30] The Lane Hackers move cardamine from Mactan to Montezuma Base and supplies from the black markets of Alcatraz Depot. The Lane Hackers also maintain a permanent presence in Padua Base and Fort McMurray. [Infocards §12.2, 15.3, 19.3]

Another major business between the two organizations is the exchange of goods. Mactan and Leiden provide most of the basic supplies for Montezuma and Padua bases respectively. Considered a dangerous task, the Rogues are usually hired to move stolen or illegal cargo from the Independent Worlds deeper inside Liberty where the Junkers smuggle it into the legal markets. Unlike most commodities however, the Lane Hackers are heavily involved in cardamine smuggling. The Rogues still retain the majority of this business, however, and are not expected to easily let it go. [News report §19.2, Infocard §15.3, Rumors §4.4, 4.5, 4.6, 4.7, 12.29, 13.4, 13.8, 13.9, 13.10, 15.12, 15.13, 15.14, 15.15, 16.5, 16.6, 16.7, 16,8, 16.9]

The Rogues consider the Hackers as posh and rich corporate types, and it is true that few things a Rogue has in common with a Hacker. While the Rogues are the product of Liberty's penal system, the Hackers are usually former Ageira employees and thus many of them have a smug attidute towards their allies. Despite their differences, however, the Rogues consider the Lane Hackers as valuable assets, so they prefer to kill one of their own rather than let him cross their allies. As it is well-known that Lane Hackers are usually wealthy, Liberty Rogues who have been captured sometimes claim that they are Lane Hackers in order to bribe their captors to set them free, supposedly in exchange of large amounts of money. [Rumors §4.8, 4.9, 4.10, 4.11, 4.12, 15.10, 17.17, 17.18, 21.15]




The Archenemies



Ageira Technologies


Part of the "Big Three", Ageira Technologies is a corporate giant with a long history of both major innovations and achievements. Known as Valhalla Research in the first centuries after settlement, its founders were among Liberty's initial population. The company is also infamous for its failures and scandals, the biggest of which are the Texas Incident and the Galileo Bypass Project. [Infocards §14.3, 24.1, 24.3, Rumor §5.6]

The Texas Incident, also known as the Dallas Incident, happened in 500 A.S. During tests which would revolutionize jumping technology, an unforeseen concentration of dark matter along the jump route created a feedback wave that not only destroyed Dallas Research Station but expelled huge masses of dark matter and radiation into the entire system while the jump gate collapsed in itself creating a black hole which still lies on the edges of the system. According to some, Texas used to contain a number of planets, while others attribute the creation of jump holes to this failed experiment. Valhalla Research did not pay reparations to the citizens of the now-irradiated Planet Houston, probably because it would bankrupt. Shortly afterwards the government also pulled their funding from the system and ever since Texas has been plagued from high criminal rate while the prisoner labor is the only business that thrives. Naturally, the citizens of Texas still have bitter feelings about the government and Ageira Technologies. Even after three centuries have passed, the extensive debris fields scattered all over the system have not been salvaged because of the high levels of radiation except the East Dallas Debris Field in which salvage operations by ALG and LPI Sugarland's inmates have been initiated the last few decades. [News report §22.1, Infocards §22.4, 22.7, 22.8, 22.9, 22.10, 22.11, 22.12, Rumors §22.27, 22.28, 22.29, 22.30, 22.21, 22.22, 22.33, 22.34, 22.35, 22.36, 22.37, 22.38, 22.39] The Galileo Bypass Project was the construction of the auxiliary trade lane routes and jump gates in Galileo system after Ageira advised Liberty's government that a dark matter storm would pass through Kepler system in 780 A.S. The storm did not arrive when it was predicted which evolved into a major scandal for the corporate giant and ultimately led to the creation of the second core of the Lane Hackers. [News report §16.1, Infocards §16.2, 22.6, 22.13, 22.14, 22.15, Rumors §15.9, 22.39, 22.40, 22.41, 22.42, 22.43, 22.44, 22.45, 22.46]

It is commonly known that Ageira's intellectual properties have been stolen by their former employees, the Lane Hackers. They frequently use them during their operations, the most important of which is their ability to hack into the USI and monitor the trade lane and jump gate network. Subsequently, the mega-corporation would go to extreme lengths to monitor and spy on its employees in case some of them seek to join their nemesis. In return, the Lane Hackers frequently attack Pueblo Station in order to disrupt its daily operations and their top priority is the interception of transports carrying new versions of trade lane and jump gate components. [News reports §3.2, 5.1, 16.1, 19.1, 19.2, 20.1, 22.3, Infocards §5.4, 5.5, 12.2, 13.1, 16.2, 19.2, Rumors §1.3, 1.4, 1.5, 1.6, 1.7, 1.8, 1.12, 1.13, 1.16, 3.4, 3.5, 3.6, 4.1, 4.2, 4.3, 5.7, 5.8, 5.9, 6.4, 6.5, 6.6, 6.7, 6.8, 6.9, 12.11, 12.26, 12.27, 12.28, 12.29, 12.35, 15.8, 15.11, 19.12, 19.14, 20.8, 20.9, 20.19, 22.43, 22.44, 22.45, 22.46] Every year, the very best students from Liberty's universities are handpicked by Ageira recruiters, a fact which reveals why it produces the most sophisticated technology in Sirius. Despite Ageira's constant upgrades in its security systems, the Lane Hackers remain one step ahead, no doubt because they have sympathizers and operatives who are still working inside the company. It is also well known that Ageira offers massive bounties for captured or dead Lane Hackers. [News reports §5.2, 22.2, Infocard §13.1, Rumors §1.7, 1.8, 1.9, 1.10, 1.11, 1.12, 5.9, 5.10, 10.12, 10.13, 20.20]

For centuries now, the corporate giant's headquarters have been moved from Planet Manhattan to Planet Los Angeles. Since 215 A.S. Ageira mass-produces its two most valuable products; jump gate and trade lane components with the highly-secure Pueblo Station being the main manufacturing plant for many centuries. Considering that they have maintained this monopoly ever since these technologies were invented, the company goes to extreme lengths in order to ensure that it does not fall to unauthorized hands. In addition to the multiple security layers of the containers, they closely monitor the transporation as well, trusting only Ageira, Deep Space Engineering and Universal Shipping transports. Before they reach the construction site, the containers are temporarily stored in Interspace Commerce stations. Over the years, Ageira's competitors managed to retrieve some containers; however, their efforts to reverse engineer the technology have proven futile. It is also known that Ageira Technologies has the ability to remotely deactivate trade lanes and jump gates. [Infocard §24.1, Rumors §5.11, 5.12, 5.13, 5.14, 5.15, 5.16, 5.17, 5.18, 5.19, 24.8]

Other Ageira products are the military-grade superconductors manufactured by their industries at Planet Denver; they are much more advanced than the ones produced in other Houses and, it thus comes as no surprise that the militaries of most Houses are major clients of this product. Detroit Munitions is where the famous light arms are being produced and shipped to all corners of Sirius. Ageira's manufacturing plants in Los Angeles also produce competitive optical chips which dominate Liberty's market. Hamilton Station in Ontario system serves as a storage depot and a mining machinery manufacturing plant which mainly supports the mining operations of the nearby Planet Huron. Leduc Station in Alberta produces bio-neural processors; however, there are rumors and oddities which imply that there is something more sinister at work there. Finally, after the Liberty Navy's failure to effectively produce military vehicles on its own, the government in 819 A.S. handed the lucrative contract to Ageira Technologies along with a large portion of Liberty Navy's military production. This led to a dramatic increase of Ageira's influence to Liberty's government and it is obvious that it is to the company's advantage for Liberty to remain at war for as many years as possible. [News report §5.3, Infocards §17.2, 18.1, 18.2, Rumors §5.20, 5.21, 5.22, 5.23, 5.24, 5.25, 5.26, 5.27, 5.28, 17.19, 17.20, 17.21, 17.22, 17.23, 17.24, 17.25, 17.26, 17.27, 17.28, 17.29, 17.30, 17.31, 17.32, 17.33, 17.34, 17.35, 17.36, 17.37, 17.38, 18.8]



Interspace Commerce


Part of the "Big Three", Ageira Technologies and Deep Space Engineering created Interspace Commerce in 204 A.S. initially named as Interspace Corporate. This economic giant dominates the market through its control over the USI (Universal Ship Identification) which allows it to accurately insure ships and cargo. Before the Rheinland-Kusari Embargo of 521 A.S., Interspace Commerce's main activity was to provide loans for the construction of trade lanes and jump gates; after the fiascos, they reoriented on insuring all of these constructions. Kusari and Rheinland have banished IC from residence in their major planets and they are not allowed to build bases in their minor systems. The USI was created by Los Angeles Ageira employees who eventually left the company and founded the Magellan Lane Hackers. Ever since, the Lane Hackers use the USI to their own advantage which has incurred massive financial losses for the IC since almost every commercial transport is insured. One of the latest great ventures of Interspace Commerce is the funding and insurance for the development of the Okinawa system; in spite of the Hogosha's efforts, it was completed; ever since, IC receives 5% of the H-fuel profits made by Okinawa's gas mining production.[News reports §2.3, 3.2, 19.2, 15.1, 20.1, Infocards §12.2, 13.1, 16.2, 19.3, 24.1, 24.2, 24.3, 24.4, 24.5, 24.6, 24.7, Rumors §1.3, 1.4, 1.5, 1.6, 1.7, 3.4, 3.5, 3.6, 4.1, 4.2, 4.3, 5.7, 5.18, 6.1, 6.2, 6.3, 6.4, 6.5, 6.6, 6.7, 6.8, 6.9, 6.11, 12.11, 12.26, 12.27, 12.28, 12.29, 12.35, 15.8, 15.11, 19.13, 20.8, 20.9, 20.19, 24.8, 24.9, 24.10, 24.11, 24.12, 24.13, 24.14, 24.15]

One of the main goals of this mega-corporation is to limit trade lane piracy, but not fully, since no one would then insure their cargo. Subsequently, the Bounty Hunters Guild is one of main partners of Interspace since the corporation offers the largest number of bounties of any entity in Sirius, and its guild members maintain a permanent presence in IC installations. Interestingly enough, the largest bounties placed by Interspace and Ageira are for the live capture or assassination of any Lane Hacker. IC also uses its own agents in order to track down the Hackers. As expected, of course, the Lane Hackers also share a similar animosity towards Interspace Commerce. [News reports §10.1, 14.2, 20.1, 22.2, Infocard §24.4, Rumors §1.9, 1.11, 6.7, 6.8, 6.9, 6.10, 6.11, 6.12, 6.13, 10.7, 10.8, 10.9, 10.10, 10.12, 10.13, 10.14]




...part.one.concluded...accessing.part.two...


Lore Manual #2 - The Lane Hackers - 11-22-2015


Business Partners



The Lane Hackers have a number of business partners. For example, Leiden Base is supplied by Ames Research Station and Airdrie Hideout was supplied by Freeport 14. Some Zoners are also responsible for distributing the Lane Hacker-produced counterfeit software. Cochrane Depot purchases most of its basic supplies from the local Junker base. In addition, Junkers are critical black market contacts and on a much smaller scale, the Zoners. Finally, IMG's Freeport 4 is providing basic supplies for Mactan Base. [News reports §2.2, 19.2, Infocards §12.2, 13.1, 19.3, Rumors §1.19, 4.5, 4.6, 9.1, 9.2, 12.32, 12.33, 13.3, 13.4, 13.5, 15.19, 16.4, 16.5, 17.6, 17.7, 18.12, 18.13, 18.17, 18.18]

Golden Chrysanthemums


The Leiden Lane Hackers maintain a strong partnership with the Golden Chrysanthemums. The Sisters bring much needed cardamine and H-fuel, and, in return, they receive consumer goods, side arms and software for their main base in Hokkaido as well as information on ship movements along the trade lanes in Kusari. In fact, most of the basic supplies that the GC receive come from Leiden Base, some of them are further moved to Kyoto Base. [News report §2.1, Infocard §16.2, Rumors §7.1, 7.2 7.3, 7.4, 16.10]

This partnership has been further established in late 815 A.S. with the construction of a small depot named Morioka Base inside Keiun nebula in the southern part of the Shikoku system and is occassionally visited by the Leiden Hackers. The Golden Chrysanthemums dislike the Liberty Rogues for their lack of manners, finding the Hackers more to their taste. In fact, the Hackers offer protection to all Sisters who travel to Leiden and strive to provide those living in Leiden a lifestyle similar to what they are accustomed to. [Infocard §21.1, Rumors §7.3, 7.4, 19.26, 21.5, 21.6]



Hogosha


The Lane Hackers also have a stake in the artifact business via their Hogosha contacts. The Kusarians ship the artifacts from the Sigmas through Kusari and drop a significant portion of them to Leiden Base. There, they exchange hands and the Rogues are hired to smuggle them further into the House as they are in high demand among Liberty's elite. [News report §1.1, Infocard §16.2, Rumors §8.1, 8.2, 8.3, 8.4, 15.12, 15.13, 15.14, 15.15, 16.11, 19.26, 21.5]

The Hogosha maintain a permanent presence on Leiden Base which is not entirely safe for them considering the presence of Golden Chrysanthemums as well. The Hogosha and Liberty Rogues share a mutual disdain for each other while the former have ambiguous opinions about the Lane Hackers; some Hogosha consider them okay, while others consider them as "drug addicts". [Rumors §8.2, 8.3, 8.4, 15.12]



Mollys


Despite the lack of continuous direct contact, the Lane Hackers maintain good relations with the Mollys through their Liberty Rogue and Outcast contacts. In 812 A.S. the Mollys had even signed an alliance with the Outcasts which allowed them to enter the cardamine smuggling business. Futhermore, both the Lane Hackers and Mollys have a common area of operations in the eastern part of Manchester. [News report §2.2, Infocard §22.5, Rumors §20.11, 20.12]

The Lane Hackers are also one of the main clients of Molly gold which is smuggled to them with the help of Junkers. [Rumors §9.1, 9.2]




Secondary Hostiles



Bounty Hunters Guild


As the name implies, the Bounty Hunters Guild is an organization that fulfills bounty contracts for the capture, but most usually assassination, of people deemed unlawful by the Houses or other legal institutions. Despite of the Guild's unquestionable efficiency, the public does not consider it a reputable organization. One of the main reasons is that a large portion of the Guildmembers are former convicts who have now turned against their former comrades. Interspace Commerce is BHG's biggest contractor since the mega-corporation offers the most bounty contracts in Sirius and subsequently members of the Guild can be found in IC installations all around Sirius. [News report §10.1, Infocards §12.5, 24.4, Rumors §6.10, 6.11, 6.12, 10.2, 10.3, 10.4, 10.5, 10.6, 10.7, 10.8, 10.9, 10.10, 10.11, 10.16, 14.8, 14.9, 15.15, 19.17, 19.21, 20.18, 21.10]

Lane Hacker bounties in particular are highly sought after because of the extravagant prices that Ageira Technologies and Interspace Commerce are offering. Their most effective tactic in order to intercept Hackers is to lay a trap in high value shipments which are much more likely to be intercepted by the Hackers themselves than any other organization. As expected, the Lane Hackers consider the Guildmembers as scumbags and even go as far as to spend resources setting up ambushes and traps.[News report §10.1, 20.1, 22.2, Infocards §12.5, 19.10, Rumors §1.9, 1.11, 6.9, 6.10, 10.11, 10.12, 10.13, 10.14, 10.15, 12.11, 12.34, 15.18, 20.9, 20.19, 20.20]

Compared to regular law enforcement, their main advantages are that they are more daring and since many of them are former criminals, they also have very good knowledge of the unlawfuls' tactics and of the jump hole network. This knowledge is a well-guarded among the guild ranks and harsh punishments await those who share intel. The Bounty Hunters Guild administers two bases within the Lane Hackers operational zones. Deshima Station in Shikoku and Sheffield Station in Manchester. Another difference from regular law enforcement is that bounty hunters also operate out of civilian bases or freeports. They do not initiate fights inside the no-fire zones of freeports, however; they carefully wait for their target to exit the zone before they ambush them. [Infocards §15.3, 20.2, Rumors §7.1, 10.16, 10.17, 10.18, 12.32, 12.33, 13.5, 13.9, 14.5, 14.6, 14.8, 14.9, 14.10, 15.21, 15.22, 17.37, 17.38, 19.28, 20.10, 20.11, 21.10, 21.11, 21.12, 21.13]



Xenos


The Xenos are a terrorist organization in Liberty that follow a nationalist agenda and are mostly composed of unemployed workers and former prisoners. They are at odds with the Lane Hackers, and blame them for not knowing what real work is while the Hackers profit by using Rogues to do their dirty work for them. It is well known that Xenos receive many new recruits from former convicts and their numbers grow every year. [News report §11.1, Rumors §11.3, 11.4, 19.18]

Xenos operate a lot in Colorado and Kepler systems but not in California and are hostile towards the Lane Hackers; however, their main focus is to hit Kusarian shipping. Before the northern trade lane in Ontario was constructed, the Xenos mostly attacked shipments travelling between Toronto Station and Fort Severn because, according to them, the trade lane between Toronto and Hamilton was well-defended. Kusari is lobbying the government of Liberty to step up its operations against the Xenos with limited success; primarily because most of the Xenos' activities indirectly benefit Liberty's corporations by focusing on their foreign competitors. [Rumors §11.5, 11.6, 11.7, 11.8, 11.9, 15.15, 15.18, 15.19, 15.20, 15.22, 15.23, 18.15, 19.18, 19.26, 19.27, 19.28, 19.29, 21.9]

The Lane Hackers consider the Xenos as misguided and both organizations will probably stop fighting each other if a greater common enemy arrives on the scene, such as the Liberty Navy. [News report §11.2, Rumor §15.18]




...part.two.concluded...accessing.part.three...


Lore Manual #3 - The Lane Hackers - 11-22-2015


Independent Worlds



Western Operations


The Lane Hackers mainly operate in the Independent Worlds. It is much safer than the core systems of a House, since law enforcement is less present in these areas. No doubt this is why the first two, and biggest, Lane Hacker bases are located in the Independent Worlds. Subsequently, the Lane Hackers can frequently be encountered in the systems of Magellan and Cortez. Both of these systems are patrolled by the militaries of the two Houses and host a large contingent of Bounty Hunters. As of late, mainly the Liberty Navy is patrolling the Independent Worlds since BAF is occupied with the war against Gallia, but some believe that the Liberty Navy does not have enough men in order to be efficient. These patrols are usually based out of Battleship Yukon and are considered very dangerous and risky, some Naval officers even state that the LPI would never be able to respond sufficiently. Orbital Spa & Cruise security is also known to conduct patrols inside the Paloma Ice Field. Furthermore, the ice clouds provide excellent cover for Lane Hacker attacks inside the Barrier, Roatan and Corcovado. Being too close to California's jump gate for comfort, Hackers leave operations inside Wendell Ice Field to the Rogues. Accessing Cortez from Magellan system is quite safe and quick as the jump hole lies just to the north of Mactan Base while the jump hole to access Manchester lies west. Inside Cortez, the Lane Hackers use Montezuma as a forward tactical base to stage their attacks as well as a place to sell information and cardamine. [News reports §3.3, 12.1, Infocards §5.5, 12.3, 12.4, 12.5, 19.4, Rumors §10.11, 10.17, 12.6, 12.7, 12.8, 12.9, 12.10, 12.11, 12.12, 12.13, 12.14, 12.15, 12.16, 12.17, 12.18, 12.19, 14.8, 14.9, 14.10, 20.8, 20.13, 20.14, 20.15, 20.16, 20.17, 20.18, 20.19, 22.25]

Despite all those advantages, Hackers attack only high-value shipments and prefer to sell information about less important convoys to the Outcasts and Rogues. High-value shipments include gold coming from Dublin, luxury goods from Manhattan, robotics from Aland Shipyard, H-fuel and optical chips bound to Bretonia, MOX from Bretonia and Boron from Pittsburgh. They do not smuggle the stolen goods themselves, preferring to sell most of them to the Rogues in order to keep them pleased and instead they elect to smuggle cardamine into Liberty. [Infocard §13.1, Rumors §4.5, 4.6, 12.19, 12.20, 12.21, 12.22, 12.23, 12.24, 12.25, 12.26, 12.27, 12.28, 12.29, 12.30, 12.31, 13.9]

The Mactan Lane Hackers regularly visit Freeport 4 for supplies and because their asteroid base gets claustophobic at times. Bounty Hunters surround the freeport too, but the no-assault policy does not allow them to engage their targets. In the long past, Wendell Ice Field was used as a test field for jump gate technology by the government of Liberty. Eventually, the Lane Hackers were founded and salvaged whatever was left behind. Now, it is only used by the IMG for the production of water and oxygen. [Rumors §1.19, 12.32, 12.33, 12.34, 12.35, 12.36]



Mactan Base


The first, and most populous, Lane Hacker base, Mactan was built in 753 A.S. and was the home of former Los Angeles Ageira employees who created the software known as USI (Universal Ship Identification). The authorities have so far failed to locate Mactan which serves as the Hacker base of operations in Magellan and the surrounding systems such as Manchester, Kansas and Leeds. Rogues and Outcasts also maintain a permanent presence there. [Infocard §13.1, Rumors §1.9, 12.15, 20.7, 20.8, 20.18, 20.19]

Mactan Hackers purchase most of their supplies, such as water, oxygen, food, H-fuel and various consumer goods, from the nearby Freeport 4 and thus maintain cordial relations with the IMG. Some of those supplies are then taken further north by the Rogues in order to supply Montezuma. Gateway Shipping is the main supplier of Freeport 4. Since Bounty Hunters lurk around the freeport, the Lane Hackers prefer to utilize freelancers to move those supplies as that would generate less attention. [Rumors §12.32, 12.33, 13.3, 13.4, 13.5, 13.6]

Mactan is also a major cardamine smuggling center. Cardamine from Cali Base or Cape Wrath reaches Mactan before it is taken further into Liberty by the Rogues, Hackers or Outcasts. After Gallia invaded Magellan system and it became a warzone several crucial assets of the Lane Hackers were moved to Airdrie Hideout however Mactan still remains a significant producer of unregistered Detroit firearms known as Black Market Light Arms. [Infocards §13.2, 17.1, 22.20, Rumors §3.12, 3.13, 3.14, 13.7, 13.8, 13.9, 13.10]



Planet Curacao


Curacao is a planet in the Cortez system exploited by Orbital Space & Cruise as a luxury holiday resort for the wealthy and the elite. According to the Boorman Treaty, Curacao operates outside of House Law and thus its patrons can enjoy a wide variety of exotic comforts and even contraband such as cardamine if they can pay the price. The planet is also known to contain high levels of oxygen which creates a rejuvenating effect. Anyone who can afford the costs is welcome and thus many Lane Hackers wish to spend their free time there. [Infocard §14.3, Rumors §1.16, 14.4, 14.5]

However, Lane Hacker attacks on supplying vessels for Curacao, Interspace Commerce's threats that they will stop insuring cargo bound for Cortez system and the negative publicity that they may receive are the three main reasons why Orbital does not allow Lane Hackers to visit the famous resort. OS&C security is also known to conduct patrols in Cortez for the purpose of keeping the unlawful population in check. [News report §14.1, Rumors §1.16, 14.5, 14.6, 14.7, 14.8]

Despite that, Hackers still visit the planet without Orbital's permission; a dangerous undertaking considering that the Bounty Hunters Guild maintains a large contingent on the planet and even agents of Liberty Security Force and Interspace Commerce sometimes operate there. [News report §14.1, 14.2, Rumors §10.17, 14.8, 14.9, 14.10]



Northern Operations


The northern Lane Hackers are based out of Leiden Base in Komatsu Cloud, and, because of the frequency of their attacks, the authorities of both Houses suspect that they have a base hidden somewhere inside. The dark matter clouds provide excellent cover but they are also lethal to unshielded ships. The Libery Navy's patrols on Galileo and Kepler systems begin from Battleship Rio Grande in Colorado system, and, because of the dangers involved, only experienced Navy pilots are assigned missions in those systems while the rest patrol the trade lanes in Colorado. Furthermore, the navies of both Houses have split the two systems in half. The Liberty Navy patrols the southern trade lanes while Kusari Naval Forces, which operate from Battleship Myoko, patrol the northern part; because of this agreement, Kusari does not allow the Liberty Navy to search in their sector for the Lane Hacker base. In addition, according to Interspace Commerce, Kusari Naval Forces contribute very little in the protection of their section which prompted the economic giant to increase its premium insurance on cargoes travelling through those two systems. [News reports §15.1, 15.2, Infocards §15.3, 15.4, 15.5, 21.2, Rumors §15.6, 15.7, 15.8, 15.9, 15.10, 21.14, 22.46]

Leiden Hackers share the system with the Rogues of Padua Base and thus, they maintain an unofficial arrangement; the northern part of the system is operated by the Lane Hackers and the southern part by the Liberty Rogues. As expected, the Hackers sell the majority of their tracked information to the Rogues, but they keep the most lucrative intel for themselves. The Lane Hackers have also involved the Rogues in the artifact trade by having them purchase artifacts from Leiden and move them to the Junker base in the New York system, a run considered quite dangerous. The return trip to Galileo usually involves light arms smuggling. [News report §1.1, Infocard §15.3, Rumors §8.1, 15.9, 15.10, 15.11, 15.12, 15.13, 15.14, 15.15, 19.30]

As strategically important as the jump hole connecting Liberty with Galileo is, the jump hole leading to Kepler is equally important to the Lane Hackers as it enables them to purchase all the basic supplies from Ames Research Station but also to hit convoys travelling in the system, such as niobium shipments. However, unlike Galileo system, the presence of the Bounty Hunters Guild and Xenos in Kepler is much more intense, adding an additional danger to Lane Hacker operatives. Kusarians blame Liberty for not cleaning up the Independent Worlds from criminal activity since the criminals originate from their House and find the Independent Worlds much more dangerous than Kusari space. The Xenos of Nome Base are buying their supplies from Ames and their main concern is to attack Kusari shipping. Deshima Station is the main supplier of Ames and Universal Shipping is usually hired to conduct those trade runs. [News reports §15.1, 15.2, Rumors §10.6, 11.5, 11.6, 15.16, 15.17, 15.18, 15.19, 15.20, 15.21, 15.22, 15.23, 16.3, 16.4, 21.9, 22.25]

When the Houses of Liberty and Kusari sought a jump gate connection, they couldn't bypass Kepler and Galileo systems because of the existence of dark matter in those systems. As it was painfully learned from the Texas Incident, the concentration of dark matter along the jump route would possibly create a disaster. Subsequently, Ageira Technologies constructed in 550 A.S. Langley Research Station in Kepler to study the Kuryo Anomaly in preparation for the construction of trade lanes in the eastern part of the system which would bypass the dark clouds before reaching the jump gate to Shikoku. Many years later, it was discovered that a dark matter storm would pass through Kepler and possibly destroy the trade lane network. In 677 A.S., Deep Space Engineering established Ames Research Station in order to investigate the strange dark matter clouds and also to study the dark matter storm that was scheduled to pass through the system in 780 A.S. On the advice of Ageira Technologies, the Liberty government funded the construction of the auxiliary trade lane routes and jump gates through Galileo since they couldn't allow trade with Kusari to stop. This became known as the Galileo Bypass Project and it was fully funded by Liberty since Kusari did not wish to pay for it. The storm did not arrive when it was expected but four years later in 784 A.S. and it destroyed Langley Research Station as well as the trade lane network of Kepler, the remnants of which can still be found within the eastern dark matter fields. Deep Space Engineering subsequently faced heavy financial losses by constructing new trade lanes and was eventually forced to abandon Ames. Around 790 A.S., a group of Zoners moved onboard the station and eventually DSE agreed to transfer the full ownership of the station to them. Since then, the research station operates as a freeport. [News report §16.1, Infocards §22.6, 22.13, 22.14, 22.15, Rumors §15.9, 15.23, 22.39, 22.40, 22.41, 22.42, 22.43]



Leiden Base


A major scandal occurred when the Dark Matter Storm did not arrive in Kepler system when it was expected; Ageira Technologies, who was responsible for advising Liberty's government to construct the extremely expensive set of of trade lane routes and jump gates in Galileo system was blamed. Thus, the company tried to redeem itself by forcing out several executives and the USI scanner hardware R&D division. These employees would eventually re-emerge as the second core of Lane Hackers, constructing Leiden Base in 782 A.S. in Galileo system and establishing operations in northern Liberty. The base, which has not yet been discovered by the authorities, is strategically positioned next to the jump holes leading to Kepler and Shikoku allowing them to easily operate in both of those systems. Ironically, the storm arrived four years after its original prediction in 784 A.S. vindicating those who had supported this theory but the damage to Ageira has already been done. [News report §16.1, Infocards §16.2, 21.1, 21.4, 22.6, 22.13, 22.14, 22.15, Rumors §11.5, 15.8, 15.9, 15.11, 15.16, 15.17, 15.18, 15.19, 15.22, 15.23, 16.3, 21.10, 21.11, 21.12, 22.39, 22.40, 22.41, 22.42, 22.43, 22.44, 22.45, 22.46]

The Leiden Hackers have several important trade agreements. They purchase most of their basic and consumer goods from Ames Research Station, and, in return, they provide the Zoners with counterfeit software to distribute. The Golden Chrysanthemums maintain a permanent presence on Leiden as they purchase all their basic supplies and software for Ainu Depot and bring cardamine and H-fuel from Kusari. The Hogosha occassionally visit the station as well in order to sell alien artifacts. The Liberty Rogues of Padua bring side arms and pharmaceuticals; in return, they purchase most of the basic supplies that their base requires as well as software and artifacts. [Rumors §7.1, 7.2, 7.3, 7.4, 8.1, 8.2, 8.3, 8.4, 15.15, 16.4, 16.5, 16.6, 16.7, 16.8, 16.9, 16.10, 16.11, 19.30]




...part.three.concluded...accessing.part.four...


Lore Manual #4 - The Lane Hackers - 11-22-2015


Liberty



Inside the core systems of Liberty, the Lane Hacker operations and numbers are much smaller than in the Independent Worlds. This is primarily because of the large number of law enforcement agencies and bounty hunters. Inside Liberty, they operate from strategically important areas where they can easily strike civilian shipping and slip away, monitor Ageira Technologies' activities, or smuggle cardamine.


Alberta


Airdrie Hideout was built to spy on Ageira Technologies. Located deep inside Cold Lake Nebula, the base was a home to a rather small but influential group of Lane Hackers, and because of the secrecy involved, all of them had standing orders not to return to Airdrie if pursued. The entire spectrum of activities onboard Airdrie was not known even among normal Hackers, however the best, latest and most secret Lane Hacker technologies were found on this base. Equipment and other items stolen during Lane Hacker operations were sent to Airdrie for reverse-engineering. Only trusted Lane Hackers know about Airdrie and it was known to consume more cardamine than all the other Lane Hacker bases combined. In some cases, Airdrie served as a retirement post for Lane Hackers. For unknown reasons, the initially discomforting nebula surrounding the base was viewed by some as a "warm blanket" after long stays. Lane Hackers purchased all of their basic supplies from the local Zoners of Freeport 14, and, in return, the Zoners received counterfeit software to distribute. The Lane Hackers paid the Zoners greatly in order to keep their activities and interactions secret, even if pursued. As a result of the Gallic invasion of Magellan system, several crucial assets of Mactan Base were moved to Airdrie which was severely expanded with new modules and a dry dock. In 827 A.S., the encroaching dark matter storm forced the decommissioning and relocation of the station's resources to a new outpost in Texas, but not without first interfering with the escape of Ageira from the system. [Infocard §17.1, 462614, News report §2160533, Rumors §12.30, 17.3, 17.4, 17.5, 17.6, 17.7]

Fort McMurray is a desolate Rogue outpost on the far side of Alberta inside Athabasca Asteroid Field. The Rogues of McMurray are supposedly responsible for destroying the Liberty Police outpost that operated inside the system, however there is a number of statements which question the official story. The Liberty Rogue operations in Alberta are also significantly limited and few. Dark matter from the storm that passed through the system in the past years can still be found in the western part of Athabasca and it is considered dangerous to travel there because of the very high radiation levels. The Lane Hackers maintain a permanent presence on McMurray, where they service the sensors of the Fort or install early warning systems. [Rumors §17.8, 17.9, 17.10, 17.11, 17.12, 17.13, 17.14, 17.15, 17.16, 17.17, 17.18]

Leduc Station is a highly secure and extremely advanced Ageira production plant inside the Cold Lake Nebula, and, officially, is the site where bio-neural processors are being manufactured. However, there are many inconsistencies which suggest that there is more at work there and this is also the reason that brought the Lane Hackers to Alberta; they have strict orders not to approach the station. Camrose Supply Depot was constructed in order to store the abnormally massive numbers of resources that Leduc constantly requires and reportedly can even offset the loss of the Rheinland market which happened because of the war. Resources are being transported to the Ageira station by Deep Space transports but strangely and inexplicably Leduc was constructed in a desolate system, very far away from the main trade paths. Some of these resources are extremely rare. According to statements, the nearby Planets Edmonton and Calgary seem to be special to scientists. Furthermore, there are no recreation rooms in Leduc and according to some, the Ageira employees who formerly worked in Leduc have developed erratic behavior. Radiological warnings can be found on the station even if Ageira does not officially do anything involving radioactivity. Furthermore, strange energy readings can also be detected near the station and unknown, non-standard vessels have been occassionally sighted entering the nebula with Ageira's knowledge and permission. Finally, despite the extremely advanced technologies being used on the station, Ageira allows scientists from all over Sirius to visit Leduc and study its advanced manufacturing process and quality control. [Infocard §17.2, Rumors §17.19, 17.20, 17.21, 17.22, 17.23, 17.24, 17.25, 17.26, 17.27, 17.28, 17.29, 17.30, 17.31, 17.32, 17.33, 17.34, 17.35, 17.36, 17.37, 17.38]



Cochrane Depot


Cochrane Depot is a Lane Hacker installation constructed in Ontario soon after Ageira Technologies and Deep Space Engineering moved into the system, mainly for the purpose of monitoring their activities. The base, which has not yet been discovered by the authorities, is located inside St. Lawrence Ice Field, where it provides quick access to nearby jump holes, allowing the Lane Hackers to not only operate easily in that system but also in California, Colorado and New York systems. [Infocards §18.1, 18.4, 18.5, Rumors §18.6, 18.7, 18.8, 18.9]

The Lane Hacker operations in Ontario are mainly targetting Hamilton Station, which, for unknown reasons, produced high emissions of radiation even though this Ageira installation simply serves as a storage depot and mining machinery manufacturing plant. Cochrane also monitors the transmissions sent from Hamilton. Platinum shipments leaving the safety of Toronto, and Ageira's robotic shipments for the mining operation, are regularly raided by the Lane Hackers on the trade lanes. Liberty Navy shipments from Fort Severn carrying military vehicles, firearms and munitions, are also targetted for their high value. In addition, Ageira convoys from Alberta loaded with bio-neural processors are being particularly targetted for their valuable cargo which the Lane Hackers use in ship construction. In fact, the demand is so high that this source for procuring processors is not enough and they hire Zoners from Freeport 14 to regularly ship them to Cochrane. [Infocard §18.2, Rumors §18.8, 18.9, 18.10, 18.11, 18.12, 18.13, 18.14]

Because of the large number of attacks from Liberty Rogues, Lane Hackers and the neighbouring Xenos of Dryden Base, the Liberty Navy was forced to reassign Battleship Ottawa in permanent orbit around Planet Huron, from California to Ontario. Patrols from Battleship Yukon also used to enter Ontario. This has impacted Xeno activity in the system, but the Lane Hackers frequently find ways to outsmart the Navy. Stolen cargo, such as platinum, is usually sold to the local Junkers of Thunder Bay, but high tech equipment is sent to Airdrie for reverse engineering. Outcasts maintain a permanent presence in the depot since they bring cardamine. Cochrane Hackers frequently visit Thunder Bay Depot to purchase all the basic supplies that their base requires and to obtain information from the underworld or simply to entertain themselves. Due to the Gallic threat, Battleship Ottawa was moved closer to California Jump Gate further weakening the overall security of the system. [Infocards §18.3, 18.4, 19.6, Rumors §1.14, 1.18, 11.8, 11.9, 18.13, 18.14, 18.15, 18.16, 18.17, 18.18]



Amarillo Base


Amarillo Base was constructed during the dark matter storm in Alberta from the technologies and minds of Airdrie Hideout. The Lane Hackers had sought to expand operations West, and the necessary replacement of Airdrie presented an opportunity. The strong presence of Junkers and Liberty Rogues in Texas had precluded the necessity of an outpost, and the proximity of the Hellfire Legion presented a disincentive. With the absorption of the Legion into the Liberty Insurgency under Battlegroup Harmony, and rebuilt relationships with the Büro Der Marineintelligenz and the Die Weiße Rose of the Bundschuh, the establishment of a garrison became practical.

From Amarillo Base, agents of the Hackers are now able to conduct operations into Bering, Hudson, Puerto Rico, and Rheinland at large. The base still operates on the strict protocols of secrecy practiced at Airdrie Hideout, in no small part because many of them are the same staff. Indeed, the placement of the base in the Grande Negra in Texas has meant that extremely little is known about the base, even within the Lane Hackers.

While construction was stymied by environmental difficulties and operational security requirements, ongoing persistent work by the Inner Circle has reduced the radiation surrounding the base to more practical, and far less immediately deadly levels. What radiation persists, alongside warning markers for the same, provide a plentiful discouragement for any curious or explorative eyes. Little traffic around the station, and a more covert, intelligence-focused operation also lend to the base going unnoticed. Future works by the Inner Circle will seek to restore the base to a comparably comfortable size as Airdrie Hideout, and render the base accessible to vessels larger than snubcraft, which to now has presented an extreme logistical challenge for supplies and large technologies.[Infocard §462614]



Other Operations


Lane Hacker operations extend to other systems in Liberty, but California and Colorado seem to gather the highest activity among those. In sharp contrast, based on the lack of any sources about Lane Hacker activity in southern Liberty systems such as Texas, Bering and Hudson, we can safely assume that Lane Hacker operations there are very infrequent. [Rumors §19.13, 19.14]

Located for decades in orbit of Planet Los Angeles, the Liberty Navy in California operated out of Battleship Yukon. Despite being scheduled for decomissioning, the dreadnought had remained in service in an effort to decrease the criminal activity in the system; however, it has had little success. Due to the Gallic threat it was recently moved to the neighboring Cortez system and Battleship Alma was reassigned in California. Liberty Rogues, Lane Hackers and Outcasts mainly operate in California, while the Xeno activity is rather weak. Lane Hackers also maintain a permanent presence in Alcatraz Depot where they trade valuable information for goods, and smuggle cardamine. San Diego Border Station, the Liberty Police's base of operations in western California, protected the jump gate leading to Magellan. Tahoe Ice Cloud seems to gather the highest criminal activity in the system. The western side of the trade lane between Los Angeles and San Diego are under Liberty Navy's responsibility and the eastern part under Liberty Police's responsibility. It is also reported that the attrition rate of the law enforcement is significantly high. [News report §3.2, Infocards §18.3, 19.3, 19.4, 19.5, 19.6, 19.7, 19.8, Rumors §10.12, 10.15, 13.9, 18.6, 18.7, 19.15, 19.16, 19.17, 19.18, 19.19, 19.20, 19.21, 19.22, 19.23, 19.24, 19.25]

Operations in Colorado are mostly based out of Alamosa Asteroid Field as this is where the jump hole to Galileo is located. The jump gate to Galileo is close and sometimes they operate against targets approaching the gate. Cochrane Hackers also frequently enter and operate in the system by using the jump hole from Ontario. A favourite target in Colorado is Pueblo Station which is regularly attacked in an effort to disrupt its normal activities. In addition, they send enigmatic transmissions on the system-wide frequency. Operations in New York system are much less frequent, and are mostly based out of Cochrane Depot. Rogues are known to move light arms from Rochester to Leiden and return back with artifacts. In 814 A.S., the Lane Hackers conducted an audacious raid against Norfolk Shipyard, however further details are not known. In addition, there are reports about Lane Hacker operations in Pennsylvania and Kansas systems. [News reports §10.1, 11.2, 19.1, 19.2 Infocards §5.4, 19.7, 19.9, 19.10, 19.11, 19.12, Rumors §10.6, 10.16, 10.17, 18.6, 18.7, 19.26, 19.27, 19.28, 19.29, 19.30]




Foreign Houses



Bretonia


By using the jump hole to the west of Mactan Base, the Lane Hackers can access and operate in Manchester system though they usually stay inside the protection of North Sheffield Ice Field. Mostly, they target shipments carrying valuable cargo, such as gold. [News report §20.1, Infocards §20.3, 20.4, 20.5, Rumors §20.6, 20.7, 20.8, 20.9, 20.10, 20.11, 20.12, 20.18]

The Bretonia Police patrols the trade lanes and the perimeters of the ice field by using the two border stations as their bases of operations. The Armed Forces are assigned patrols in the much less safe Independent Worlds. The Bounty Hunters Guild is also a frequent sight in the system as it administers Sheffield Station. The Lane Hackers active operations in Bretonian space also extend into the Leeds system which is accessed from the jump hole in Magellan. [Infocards §20.2, 20.3, 20.4, Rumors §20.10, 20.11, 20.12, 20.13, 20.14, 20.15, 20.16, 20.17, 20.18, 20.19, 20.20, 20.21, 22.25]



Kusari


Shikoku system in Kusari is an active area of operations for the Lane Hackers of Leiden Base. By using the nearby jump hole, they can enter Shikoku and usually attack the traffic that passes through the Keiun Cloud. However, convoys consider Kusari space much safer than the Independent Worlds. Lane Hackers are frequent visitors to Morioka Base belonging to the Golden Chrysanthemums which supports the cardamine smuggling operations. They also provide protection to all Sisters who travel to Leiden Base. [Infocards §21.1, 21.4, Rumors §7.1, 7.2, 19.26, 21.5, 21.6, 21.7, 21.8, 21.9, 21.10, 21.11, 21.12]

Even though Kusari is still much safer than the Independent Worlds, Kusarians are discontent that Liberty's criminals have spread into their core systems and are trying to contain it by posting large bounties for Lane Hackers and Liberty Rogues. The Bounty Hunters Guild is particularly active in this system and their Hunters are quite effective against criminals since they know Shikoku's jump hole network. Deshima Station serves as their headquarters in Kusari. Battleship Myoko is also assigned to the area by the Kusari Naval Forces in order to reduce the criminal activity in the system and also serves as the base of operations for the patrols heading to the Independent Worlds. All captured foreign criminals are being transferred to the nearby Fuchu Prison, where they spend their sentence mining hydrocarbons or working in Planet Junyo's fishing platforms. The prison is administrated by the Kusari State Police and some of them are discontent with the efficiency of the Naval Forces. [Infocards §21.2, 21.3, Rumors §7.1, 21.7, 21.8, 21.9, 21.10, 21.11, 21.12, 21.13, 21.14, 21.15, 22.25]




...part.four.concluded...accessing.part.five...


Lore Manual #5 - The Lane Hackers - 08-26-2017


Miscellaneous



The spoilers of this section contain some miscellaneous information about the Lane Hackers as well as some uncategorized Lane Hacker operations. [Rumors §22.21, 22.22, 22.23, 22.24, 22.25, 22.26]

The most important miscellaneous information is the following:
  • The Lane Hackers maintain a substantial number of operatives onboard Barrier Gate Station. Furthermore since the main cardamine smuggling route passes through Coronado, this base is one of the primary places where cardamine exchanges hands before it is moved deeper into Liberty. [Infocard §22.5, Rumor §3.13]
  • Lane Hacker profits made by their operations continue to increase. [News report §22.2]
  • In important occassions Lane Hackers use fake identities in order to enter lawful bases or planets. [News report §22.3]
  • Lane Hacker technicians were involved in the development of Bayonet. [Infocard §22.16]
  • The Independent Miners' Guild manufactured and sold Warans to the Lane Hackers. [Infocard §22.17]
  • Lane Hacker technologies were involved in the development of Prosecutor and Unioner Battleship Secondary Turret. [Infocards §22.18, 22.19]

Sources concerning the Texas Incident are listed here. [News report §22.1, Infocards §22.4, 22.7, 22.8, 22.9, 22.10, 22.11, 22.12, Rumors §22.27, 22.28, 22.29, 22.30, 22.31, 22.32, 22.33, 22.34, 22.35, 22.36, 22.37, 22.38, 22.39]
Sources concerning the Dark Matter Storm of 784 A.S. are also listed here. [Infocards §22.6, 22.13, 22.14, 22.15, Rumors §22.39, 22.40, 22.41, 22.42, 22.43, 22.44, 22.45, 22.46]



Counterfeit Software


The people of Sirius connect and communicate in the neuralnet via the wireless channels built into trade lanes and jump gates. Most software used in Sirius is also transferred through those channels. Subsequently, the channels are extensively firewalled against intrusions, and no unlawful factions, except for the Lane Hackers, can gain access to them. This makes the Lane Hackers the main producers of counterfeit software in Sirius, which they distribute it through the Zoners of Ames Research Station and Freeport 14 and it is much sought after by every illegal organisation. [Infocard §23.1, Rumors §16.5, 16.6, 17.7]

In Gallia, where the Lane Hackers do not have access in the House's network, the Council is the primary producer of counterfeit software which is in high demand from the Gallic Brigands. However, the Brigands still visit Ames Research Station in order to purchase Sirian software. [Rumors §23.2, 23.3]



Rheinland-Kusari Embargo


During the first centuries after the trade lane and jump gate technology was invented, all the Houses in Sirius spent massive amounts of money investing in those two tools since they revolutionized commerce, transportation and communication. Eventually, they were forced to take large loans from Interspace Commerce, which was named as Interspace Corporate back then, in order to continue funding those projects. In addition, they heavily disapproved that Liberty owned such vital constructions. Rheinland and Kusari couldn't meet their obligations to Interspace Corporate and responded by nationalizing their trade lanes which instantly wiped out massive amounts of debt. This action was considered unacceptable by the largest finance institute in Sirius, which used the government of Liberty to threaten the two Houses with dire consequences. In return, both Houses responded by embargoing Liberty in 521 A.S. in what came to be known as the Rheinland-Kusari Embargo. [Infocards §24.1, 24.2, 24.4, Rumors §5.18, 6.1, 24.8, 24.9, 24.10, 24.11]

Liberty, which was working for Interspace Corporate's interests, was exploring a military solution because of its far superior military; however, that was considered unfeasible due to the shortage of fuel caused by the embargo. Another option was to remotely deactivate the trade lanes and jump gates in both Rheinland and Kusari, an action which some believe would have lead to war, while others think that it would have forced the two Houses to back down and renegotiate with Interspace and Liberty. Eventually, Liberty and Interspace Corporate backed down and a compromise was reached in 523 A.S. called Sirius Commerce Pact. Interspace agreed to forgive Rheinland's and Kusari's debts and allow them to nationalize their trade lane and jump gate network except critical components of the jump gates and trade lanes which remained under Ageira's property in exchange of 200 years of tolls. [Infocards §14.3, 24.2, 24.3, 24.5, 24.6, Rumors §24.8, 24.9, 24.10, 24.11, 24.12]

Shortly after the dispute was settled, Liberty's corporations returned to Kusari after their brief eviction, but not in Rheinland, which allowed it only after the Eighty-Years War. In addition Interspace was forbidden to build a base in any minor system of Rheinland and Kusari as well as reside on any major planet of those two Houses. This incident forced Interspace Corporate to shift its main business into the insurance sector and change its name into Interspace Commerce. However they never forgave what the two Houses did, which among other things, damaged their public reputation and since then they have been secretly funding, supplying or even sharing cargo shipment information to dissenting and terrorist groups in those two Houses.[Infocards §24.4, 24.5, 24.6, 24.7, Rumors §6.1, 6.2, 24.9, 24.10, 24.11, 24.12, 24.13, 24.14, 24.15]




...encryption.in.progress...disconnecting.from.network...hack.terminated...


Spyglass Lore - The Lane Hackers - 06-27-2019


The Spyglass Lore


The Hellfire Legion

Hellfire Legion started in 800 AS as a Liberty renegade fleet led by Drake Thastus. Shortly after its escape, the Hellfire Legion fleet was ambushed by the Liberty Navy in Magellan. The Lane Hackers, perceiving The Legion as a potential ally in their fight against the Liberty, sent their fighter wings to help the Legionaries to break through the ambush and gave them shelter in a nearby Vespucci system. While The Lane Hackers were helping the Legion to build their infrastructure in the Vespucci system and joined their Spyglass program, Professor Moriarty signed a mutual protection pact with Lord Commander Denelo Mori. However, shortly after Mori's death, the Hellfire Legion radically changed the direction it was heading, severing any relations with the Outcasts and Liberty Rogues, while forming an alliance with the Xenos. The relations between the Legion and The Lane Hackers started to slowly deteriorate with numerous incidents which finally led to Legionaries betraying Hackers and expelling them from Vespucci system. Even though The Lane Hackers tried to maintain neutrality afterwards, occasionally even selling information to the High Command, the Legion's more and more aggressive stance finally led to the outright hostility followed by numerous skirmishes. Ever since the two factions treat each others' vessels as hostile targets of opportunity.


The Vagrant Raiders

The Vagrant Raiders were a paramilitary group founded shortly after the Nomad War by a smuggler John Petrucci. Originally recruiting mostly from Liberty pirates and closely affiliated with the Lane Hackers, the Raiders were smuggling cardamine from Omicrons to Liberty, while pirating traders along the way. Despite close ties and fully convergent agendas, The Vagrant Raiders were showing a strong aversion and general animosity towards The Lane Hackers. Numerous arguments between Overlord Petrucci and Professor Moriarty, as well as Taskmaster Escher and Professor Phate finally led to severing any ties between the Lane Hackers and Vagrant Raiders. Only after changing leadership and loosing their flagship Metropolis The Vagrant Raiders decided to reestablish Cardamine operations in Liberty and increase cooperation with The Lane Hackers. Once Blain Spike, formerly independent business partner of the Lane Hackers, took over the remnants of the Vagrant Raiders a pact of friendship was signed by Ms Elektra King on behalf of the professorship. However, after over a year of successful operations the Vagrant Raiders once again lost their strength and numbers. When former Overlord Harlod Kane and Taskmaster Escher reappeared and took control over the weakened Raiders, Professor Nicole Hunter decided to cautiously monitor their doings before making any commitments. It turned out to be a wise choice, as the new Vagrant Raiders were slowly transforming into a semi-lawful para-military organization with ties to the Liberty government. This turn of events seriously cooled down relations between the Lane Hackers and the Vagrant Raiders. After destruction of Interspace operated Ithasca Station in Kansas and gathering strong evidence of Vagrant Raiders cooperating with Interspace Commerce and Ageira Technologies a declaration of open hostility was only a matter of time if it wasn't preceded by the group's dissolution.


The Spyglass Battleship

During his escape to Magellan, Drake Thastus was commanding Ragnarok, a prototype battleship of Spyglass class designed originally by the Liberty Navy. Once The Hellfire Legion arrived safely to Vespucci, Ragnarok was disassembled and reverse-engineered in cooperation with The Lane Hackers. What was unique in this prototype were not its quite powerful armaments, but incredibly sophisticated array of scanners and devices to conduct advanced electronic warfare. Hellfire Legion engineers managed to reproduce the ship skeleton, plating, engines and avionics, while Lane Hackers technicians focused on what was most interesting for them - electronics and software. Once the original prototype has been completely disassembled, the Hellfire Legion managed to reproduce several copies. Only two of them were in service outside of Hellfire Legion fleet. Fu Manchu was Lane Hacker mobile base of operations, while Metropolis served as home for the Vagrant Raiders. Both these battleships were lost or destroyed. Over the years, Hellfire Legion decided to even further cut the costs on expensive electronics while boosting pure combat potential of their vessels. This is how Arbiter class of battleships had been developed. The Legion slowly replaced all of their Spyglasses with Arbiters. Spyglass battleships no longer exist, although at some point Vagrant Raiders re-pressurized wreck of Metropolis and for some time used it as their stationary base of operations. The aura of uniqueness and specialty which surrounds this class of battleships is still fooling many people, who forget that it was developed over two decades ago and by today standards it is already outdated.


The Spyglass Scanner

Since both Hellfire Legion and Vagrant Raiders were more interested in sheer fire-power of their vessels, only Lane Hacker Fu Manchu Spyglass battleship had complete set of scanners and electronic warfare armaments of the original prototype. Before their flagship was lost, The Lane Hackers even further refined original battleship's sensor array developing their own upgraded version of Spyglass Scanner, a very sophisticated and thus expensive piece of equipment allowing detection of threats and possible targets from a significant distance, as well as data injections into the trade lane network, basic transponder spoofing or limited electronic warfare. A limited number of these scanners remained in the hands of Hellfire Legion after the schism, though huge energy consumption made the scanner mountable only on large or specialized ships. After loss of their flagship The Lane Hackers discontinued the original scanner and focused their efforts on researching scanner miniaturization. This resulted in development of a superior Spyglass Network Scanner.


The Spyglass Network Scanner

Because Spyglass Scanner requires a powerful data processing unit to perform massive iterative recalculations of the raw signal data installing it on small vessels is impossible without reducing its efficiency. In order to overcome this limitation Lane Hackers have built an extensive network of interconnected data processing hubs called The Spyglass Network. Each Lane Hacker base houses an enormous number of data storage units and processors connected into whole network through extremely powerful communication arrays.

[Image: 34.png]

The Spyglass Network Scanner is a lightweight version of the Spyglass Scanner. It relies on Lane Hackers' distributed network of data processing hubs instead of a ship's own capabilities to perform extensive computations of the raw signal. It allows Lane Hackers to use the scanner to its full potential on small ships that are unable to support a more powerful processing unit. It is also the most guarded technology of The Lane Hackers, which they refuse to share with even their closest allies.


The Minified Spyglass Scanner

With Spyglass Network Scanner operational The Lane Hackers became more liberal with selling their technology to their allies and business partners. A miniaturized version of original Spyglass Scanner with reduced power consumption at the cost of lower scanning range was deemed fit to be openly sold and is now available to be purchased on the Black Market.