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Tanker's speedy Arctic crossing is bad news for the planet
Normally, smashing a transportation record is something to celebrate. This time, however, it's not necessarily worth cheering. Sovcomflot's liquefied natural gas (LNG) tanker Christophe de Margerie has become the first merchant ship to cross the Northern Sea Route without an icebreaker clearing its path. The vessel, which can plow through ice up to 6.9 feet thick all by itself, completed the icy part of a trip from Norway to South Korea in a record-setting 6.5 days by keeping up speeds (an average of 14 knots) that would have been impractical with the usual escort. That's despite ice as thick as 3.9 feet. So what's so bad? Unfortunately, it's as much an indication of the effect of global warming as it is technological progress.
Roberts: Star Citizen is 'deeper than just a combat game'
Hopefully by the time you get to the bottom of the page, Star Citizen will not have crossed the $32 million barrier and rendered this news post hopelessly out of date. It's happened before, of course, given that the space sim sandbox passed $31 million a short while ago (i.e., while we were reporting on the $30 million milestone). Cloud Imperium CEO Chris Roberts has to be tiring of all these letters from the chairman at this point, but he's published another one that outlines the new RSI Orion ship and the Anvil Carrack explorer. Roberts also takes a moment to acknowledge backers and their recent purchases of Star Citizen's new tanker ship that propelled the game past the $31 million mark. "It's exciting to see sales of the Starfarer tanker push us past another stretch goal," he wrote. "To me, that says that backers understand that Star Citizen is going to be deeper than just a combat game... that we're going to make unique experiences for all kinds of players, from pirates to refuelers."
Warhammer Online's High Elf Swordmaster Class
Hey everyone, remember Warhammer Online? That one MMO that's supposed to come out later this year? Okay, step away from the Conan beta and listen up, because we have some news on the Warhammer front concerning the Swordmaster. According to a recent MMORPG.com interview with EA Mythic's Adam Gershowitz, the Swordmaster of Hoeth is the High Elf's entry into the tanking profession. It uses a flurry of swordplay to deflect the blows of its enemies as opposed to simply using heavy armor, like most tanks. As with the other classes in WAR, the Swordmaster has three mastery paths that are variations of differing playstyles: Path of Vaul - Includes combos that draw aggro while still increasing your defense. This path caters to situations with multiple foes. Path of Khaine - This path is for your area attack combos, introducing more of an offensive twist for the more aggressive tanks. Path of Hoeth - This is the tank path that utilizes magical abilities to aid in both defense and offense.
