Tempest in a Sandbox
by Alphaville Herald on 05/06/06 at 3:09 pm
by Fiend Ludwig
Alliance Navy Admiral Jim Herbst
At little less than one year ago, the Alliance Navy was patrolling the sandboxes in Second Life, hitting back at the griefers who were disrupting the areas with scripted weapons, guns and profanity. Today, however, we find a very different organization. According to Alliance Navy Admiral Jim Herbst, the Navy left the sandboxes in October 2005 and moved to permanent headquarters. Is the story that simple, though?
Alliance Navy HQ in Enceladus (courtesy Alliance Navy)
When asked why they stopped their activity in the ‘boxes, Herbst replied, “First, we had a home spot, and protecting that from griefing and other groups became priority one, and second, SL’ers started reporting for EVERYTHING.” Although not explicit, the assumption here is that the Alliance Navy was being reported by sandbox users as a griefing organization itself. Alliance Navy Air Division Leader Leif Ming concurs: “What we used to do was build big capital ships. Sim-size, awesome to see. And protect sandboxes. We used the ships as our base like the July 2005 article says. Anyway, we got a base here in Enceladus. From that point forward, our sandbox presence heavily decreased.”
Air Division Leader Leif Ming
Not all Alliance Navy members were happy with the new situation, as Leif recounts: “We had an Admiral by the name of Shadow Keegan who decided to bring [sandbox enforcement] up again. He decided one day, ‘Hey guys I’m restarting the AN.’ His stated agenda is that he wants to return to the sandboxes and go back to enforcing. Unfortunately he also shoots anything that moves. Eventually they’ll probably move back into the sandboxes with their untrained, undisciplined army of nooblets and start shooting anything.”
“Now obviously, this [by itself] is a problem,” Leif continues. “But it’s a huge problem for [the Alliance Navy] because they’re called the Alliance Navy II. The worry is that it’s going to end up giving us a bad rep. And we don’t do that kind of shit. We’re like the US of the SL Military world. We favor diplomacy.”
When asked if they had tried diplomacy with Shadow, Leif saidm “Of course we have.” Herbst puts it this way: “Shadow Keegan, their leader, had some behavior issues. Keegan believed I went ‘insane’ for not giving him the freedom he wanted. By that I mean he would often go into wild fits and shoot fellow AN personnel.” When asked if he thinks Shadow named his group the Alliance Navy II to get back at him, Herbst says, “No, he did that because he likes the name Alliance Navy and couldn’t think of anything better.”
A navy by any other name . . . (courtesy Alliance Navy)
Does this mean war is headed to sandbox-land? Probably not. The Alliance Navy sees the Alliance Navy II merely as a bunch of inexperienced griefers, nothing more, and Herbst gives them “two months before they either die out, or change their name.”
To find out for myself what the situation was, I took some time to visit the sandboxes that used to be patrolled by the Alliance Navy. Within seconds of teleporting into the Cordova sandbox, I was bounced into the next sim by a scripted weapon wielded a member of the group America’s Army.
Sandbox griefing in action
When I made my way back to the sandbox I confronted the griefer (names have been changed to protect the probably-not-so-innocent): “Hey Jimmy,” I said, “you have been griefing people for the last 10 minutes. Why do you have guns in the sandbox?” No reply, so I tried again: “Hey Jimmy, you have been reported to the Lindens for shooting in a sandbox. Do you have any comment for the SL Herald?” All I got in response this time was, “wat ever [sic] losers, bye.”
Griefing in the sandboxes, it seems, is not dying out at all.
Harlequin Salome
Jun 5th, 2006
I’m in the Alliance Navy, until recently an Admiral, and now just an all around troubleshooter, logistics guy, and commander… and I have to say, this article is poorly written. I don’t mean to be rude, but though I’m all about good propoganda for the AN, this is just a bit of a cheer piece, with no research, and not even interviews with all the leaders of the AN.
And a single visit to a sandbox does *not* constitute checking out the situation. I’m sorry, but this piece should never have passed the editor. It’s poorly written, terribly researched, and just a piece of tripe. Even if it doesn’t make us look as good, I would far prefer a piece that actually involved some modicum of effort, as opposed to just two interviews.
Karen Fielding
Jun 5th, 2006
A bit harsh, Harley! I’ll say it sums up quite a lot of what’s happened… but I’ll agree on the not enough research bit. I haven’t seen any real sandbox griefing myself in a loooong time, so it’s likely you ran into a one-off incident, Fiend!
-Karen Fielding, Ex AN member. (I still love you guys
)
Cirius Montale
Jun 5th, 2006
I feel the title of this article is somewhat misleading. The Alliance Navy is no longer a ‘sandbox’ group, and does not wish to be known as one. Over a year ago certainly, the Alliance meddled in sandbox affairs, but the Alliance Navy of today is a far different beast, seldom encountered in the deserts of Goguen.
The withdrawl of the AN from the sandboxes was due only in part to the establishment of a permanent home in Enceladus. The simple fact of the matter is, the sandboxes are by their very nature an anarchistic location, and policing them is neither the duty nor the privilege of ANY SL group. The AN realised this swiftly, and the decision was made to withdraw from the sandboxes and remain a military group purely in the RP sense.
It is important that people draw a distinction between the AN and AN-2. Whilst the AN have acknowledged that their military domain lies strictly within the boundaries of their own territories, the AN-2 seems to believe they have the right to police the world. The guns of the AN are firmly fixed on defending their home, but AN-2 is another matter entirely.
AN-2 have already publicly declared their intention to ‘save Second Life’, a move which personally fills me with confusion. I neither require nor desire ‘saving’ from anyone, and wonder what form this salvation will take.
Let no-one tell you how to lead your second life. The abuse reports are there for a reason, as is safe land. If you are ‘policed’ by AN-2, you have as much right to report them as you do anyone else.
TrannyPet Barmy
Jun 5th, 2006
“and second, SL’ers started reporting for EVERYTHING”
Good to at least see that LindenLab treats reports against this bunch of self elected ‘enforcers’ come ‘griefers with cause’ the same as any other !
Get over it guys, the only reason your group existed and grew any, was the feeling of power, thinking you were above the law, and thinking you could go under a cover of doing the SL world a favour.
End of the day, weather you grief the innocent, or grief the ‘griefer’, you’re still a ‘griefer’. In the eyes of LindenLabs “retaliation is no recourse” – good to see they’re sticking to it, even towards you bunch of vigilantes/griefers.
Do the SL World a favour, and stay in that sim of yours.
TrannyPet Barmy
The REAL ONE
[Future Editor of SL Herald]
Aryte Vesperia
Jun 6th, 2006
The Alliance Navy fails to mention some very key points in their delightful spiel here.
A) The Alliance Navy II has a working and efficient diplomacy regulator, and is open to all sorts of talks and working of differences on a peaceful level.
B) The Alliance Navy II chose its name originally to embody its ideals as the “second birth” of the Alliance. It has already made its intentions clear to later change the name and continue on its way under a second alias now that it has drawn support from defectors in the Alliance Ranks.
C) The Alliance Navy II has shown no animosity toward the Alliance. The only tribulations have been from the Alliance itself, through harassing training sessions and spreading callous rumors about our leadership cadre.
The Lulu
Jun 6th, 2006
u know what maybe he got sick of listening to the shit you AN talk about, the furry combat bullshit do i need to go on ? no you get the point, keep a eye out i will be bombing ur base soon !
MechWarrior
Jun 12th, 2006
I’m amazed.
This article is full of more lies… I was in the Alliance Navy for a long time. Shadow, and the rest of the AN II defectors were good people. The Alliance Navy is poorly run, and it IS a griefer organization. Now, I don’t know much about this spliter organization, the AN II, but I know it is run by good people. I quit the AN because of poor leadership and unfavorable conditions. Shooting innocents… just not for me. I’d advise anyone who has had thoughts of joining the AN… don’t. There are MUCH better groups in Second Life to become a part of. Don’t get caught up with these griefers.
All you people did was interview the heirarchy of the Alliance Navy. Get some other views, next time you want to write an article about somthing such as this, please.
Alliance Navy, stay the hell in Enceladus.
Santous
Jun 23rd, 2006
This article is very misleading. The Alliance Navy, atleast in mid October 2005, was a griefing group. They harrassed and shot innocent people, and I would know, as I was shot a few times myself. The Alliance Navy II has a much better set of leaders, and has yet to (from my experiance in it) kill of innocent people in sandboxes. The AN II hasn’t made a threat of war, or anything of the sort, yet yesterday (June 22nd) the Alliance Navy tried to start a war with us, and we simply told them to leave.
These insults are just a way to try and corrupt you and join the Alliance Navy, when really their end goals will be to control the sandboxes.
Reganite
Jul 8th, 2006
This is absolutely hilarious, first cyberprostitution, then mobsters, then the war between the WWIIolers and the Sun King over the construction of a mall(which came first, this or RL eminent domain cases), and now schisms between Virt paramilitary groups. I just might by Second Life, how much does it cost and is there a monthly fee, if so, how much, and are there more secure servers where a person won’t get extorted, hacked, or shot at?
Ares Overlord
Jul 20th, 2006
the alliance navy will, within a years time, be in a war with the most powerful military group on SL: Sparta. with our armada of ships and highly-advanced scripted war technology, we will stop the alliance navy from attempting to police those who do not want to be policed. once the alliance navy is defeated, we will continue to other groups who continue to bother others, such as the W-Hats. there be no mercy shown to those who grief others. banning us from our accounts will do Linden Labs no good, as we have other people to take their places, and our membership grows every day. already our members number over 100, and we even have people in the W-hats and the alliance navy.
Ares Overlord, Supreme Admiral of the Spartan High Guard Fleet
May Sparta destroy her enemies!
General Evgeniy Poldolsky
Oct 25th, 2006
To: Residents
Alliance Navy proliferation has begun.
Ret Ratner
Oct 28th, 2006
Well, as a member/ex-member/member/ex-member (?) of the Alliance Navy, and not having played during their sandbox phase, I must say the Alliance Navy has it’s shit together, they really do and if you call them griefers, you’re probably either a griefer that can’t handle getting what he had coming, or someone that was shooting guns at them (pushguns, harmless?) for the purpose of finding out if they’d retaliate. The leaders may be somewhat uptight, I’ve been in a clinch with some of them myself (hence the ex-member bits.) But in the end they are doing a good job, and in my opinion this is the most realistic a SecondLife army you will find these days.
Ares Overlord
Nov 2nd, 2006
The Alliance Navy is not as powerful as they appear to be. They have grown soft in their old age and will be eventually destroyed by Sparta, who seeks to only destroy the Alliance Navy.
The Alliance Navy has had a nasty habit of targetting those groups who do not agree to fight by the Alliance Navy’s rules of war. Even the SLSALT treaty is a joke, as the groups in that treaty receceved thinly veiled threats of attacks by the Alliance Navy if they did not enter the treaty! Groups like the Merczateers and the Novus Ordo Imperialis have become slaves, pawns tot he Alliance Navy. This same AN has griefed countless civilians because they cannot stand the fact that now that they no longer can control the sandboxes, the do not have any power. The AN does not “have their shit together,” they are merely bullies, nothing more. If the Lindens will not take down the AN, then Sparta will.
Ares Overlord
Supreme Admiral of the Spartan High Guard Fleet
Urizenus
Nov 2nd, 2006
Oh oh, sounds like a war brewing. And just in time too! The Herald needs a new yacht and I need a panda for my zoo at the Zanadu mansion. Thank gopod for wars and Google Adsense. –Uri
Ares Overlord
Nov 4th, 2006
Perhaps, Urizenus……maybe it would be prudent to interview the AN and all of their “allies” and find out how many groups the AN is now controlling. This will prove to the world that the AN is not as benign as they appear. Remember, every military group that refused to follow the AN’s rules and never even attacked the AN was attacked by the AN. Such an occurence happened with the American Task Force, or ATF. The AN agreed to train the group, but when the ATF refused to play by the AN’s rules of war, even when the fight was not against the AN, the AN decided to attack the ATF and even set up an outpost next to the ATF base! Urizenus, I would recommend that you speak with the Grand Admiral of Sparta, Ares Artizar, my superior. He has a note that he passed among the ATF and the AN recruitment group to spread the word of the deviousness of the AN. I would recommend that you ask him for this, as it is very informative, and I am sure that Ares Artizar would be glad to let you take quotes from it.
Ares Overlord
Supreme Admiral of the Spartan High Guard Fleet
Thomaz Wright (AN member)
Dec 12th, 2006
hi,
I really dont see what all the fuss is about. The AN is the best millitary group on sl. Your propably thinkin “oh, this guys an AN member, hes obviously bias” IM NOT!
Its so obvious weyre best! Just think about it for a moment. We got some of the best scripters, best creators and best military pilots on sl!
AN 2 in no good. Its just a copy. AN 1 has dicipline. soldiers do what theyre asked, theyre well organized and very good in their field of expertise.
AN is is good.
Ithink they should return to the sandbox’s though
bye,
Tom.
Ares Overlord
Dec 14th, 2006
My, that was an awfully brief statement. How do we know, though, that the AN has the “best” scriptors, fighters, etc in SL? Perhaps the best scriptors are not in SL, and dont even take part in military groups. Think again before boasting bout the superiority of the AN, you might piss off some very talented non-military people.
As for returning to the sandboxes, I fear greatly the day THAT happens. The day that the AN annouces its intentions to once again return to control the sandboxes is the day I leave SL for good.
Ares Overlord
Supreme Admiral of the Spartan High Guard Fleet
Lavitz Nori
Dec 15th, 2006
spelling sucks… no named used but one in recent post
Ok recently i got into the AN i became a cadet the same time thomaz did 12/13/06(he posted 2 up). for me i think its a bit to soon for him to say that i finished my training on the 14th… and became a marine… from what ive seen we are a disiplined group at that with the marine division at least from what ive seen… ANII i have not seen yet but i dont degrade people if i dont know them. If you look back at history americans came from europe, europe tried to controll americans but ended up in war and lost giving americans independince… if this is the same case with the ANII then let it be… although i belive we should learn from history or we are doomed to repeat it.. looks like they are repeating it. Ive seen one fight when i became a marine i went to go talk to the 2nd in command of the AN’s marine division and it was lagging like crazy.. why .. because we were attacked he got me into the marines even while he was watching for the attackers to come back…. i got my armor and joined an admiral on another sim… we did not do anything but observe from a safe distance… it was far to laggy to engage in combat (if we were going to.. i do not know if we were it happend so suddnley for me) i know not of who attacked, what i remember a mercenary group there but still do not know who the enemy is. as far as ive seen we only take action when action is takin upon us… although i am new i dont know if stuff will happen in the future… the marine division seems fine to me Thomaz joined the air division i dont know if the divisions say differnt things about others for im only in the marines. as far as i know now the marines are a good division in the AN and treat every member with respect as long as they give respect… a very disiplined group might i say. what i know of now the AN is not a bad group.. for the time ive been in it atleast they may have been before i dont know but now they seem fine.
i have nothing against any other orginization for i dont know the past that made them or what they may have recently done.
Alliance Navy Marine,
Lavitz Nori
Thomaz Wright (AN member)
Dec 16th, 2006
yeah,
i see what you two mean. Im not saying the AN ARE the best im saying theyre one of the best. Maybe i was a bit rash in my previous post but i do fully think the AN have got enormous potential.
Recently, one of our greatest soldiers past away in real life. It affected us all. But it also brought us together. It showed just how caring the AN are. It brought us together (as we are described sometimes) as a family. We appreciated how lucky we were. We are making somesort of memorial for her to remember her by.
So, we may fight, we may kill on sl, but, we are human, we dont do it mindlessly…we care.
Ares Overlord
Dec 20th, 2006
you care?! Thats a laugh, I highly doubt that. By the way, ask your superior officers in the AN why they complain about being shot at every day, despite the facts that they are a MILITARY group, and are in a COMBAT sim? Why would you join a military group except to fight others? It makes no sense, to say that the AN are caring people. Open your mind, and use it, and perhaps you will find the other flaws in the AN.
Rob Arten
Jan 9th, 2007
Ok, I would like to first clear up any confusion over the existence of the AN II. You’d do well to read the article on the Novus Ordo Imperialis, as that contains the history of what was once the AN II.
So, this all powerful, all conquering Spartan Army. After reviewing their deadline (somewhere around February – “You have only one year before you are wiped from the grid!”) I must say that things aren’t looking so active on their front. A nice little visit from their leader, Mr Bruno Ziskey, did indeed detail the fact that he is (or may be) fed up with this useless effoprt, which has yet to see any major Spartan attack. Ever.
About the ‘Complaining about being shot’. Do you honestly think that, being a military group, we do not expect to get shot? Getting shot is, in short, one of my daily highlights, mainly because it gives me a break from the incessant complaints from people who honestly don’t know what they are talking about. Bring it on. I love it.
A nice (note sarcasm) little comment from one of the many profession sh*t-stirrers we get concerning the death of Ms Jordan Witherspoon:
“You know what, I bet you AN guys faked her death I bet she’s alive right now, and you’re not fooling anyone you know why don’t you just shut up and bring her back” – Griffin Yeats
I do believe that this is quite out-of-order, and is the kind of thing we get daily. So really, cut the crap and, if you really do believe you are superior Mr Overlord, come get us. I’m looking forward to it.
Rob Arten
Jan 10th, 2007
Ok, I know this is a double post but there seems to be some conflicting views from various people here, so I will clean up as much as I can.
First, Thomaz’s comment:
“Im not saying the AN ARE the best im saying theyre one of the best”
Hum…a little error in here. In all honesty, we are the best. If we were not, some other group would be higher than us (while still being able to back it up). No-one is, so I guess that makes us the best.
Second, the ATF:
Yes, we did help the ATF for a little while. And yes, we did attack them not long afterwards. The reason? They refused to play by our rules. Our rules being the ones that followed the LL ToS. The ATF thought that they should be able to orbit people all they liked, something they demonstrated on us on a number of occasions. This is why we attacked them. Fair game.
Third, our ‘allies’:
As I am sure they will tell you, the only official allies of the Alliance Navy are the Merczateers. As for controlling them, not a chance. If we really had been controlling them, maybe they would have given us a hand on a few occasions. Many rumours persist of other allied groups, but I can assure you that this is not true. Inside one Apone Moller’s head there exists an alliance between the ZI and the AN, but this is not manifested in any way in the real world.
Fourth, a few quotes made my Mr Overlord:
“the alliance navy will, within a years time, be in a war with the most powerful military group on SL: Sparta.”
“The Alliance Navy is not as powerful as they appear to be. They have grown soft in their old age and will be eventually destroyed by Sparta”
I would like to disprove these claims on the grounds that…
A: We are as powerful as we appear to be. And More.
B: We are the most powerful military group on SL. Period.
C: ‘Old Age’ hardly consents to a year, which will technically be the age that SPARTA reaches when it’s ‘war’ reaches us.
Fifth (I could go on for ages…), TrannyPet’s claim that we ‘thought we were above the law’:
Surely, the law in SL equates to the Linden ToS. Ergo, those who follow this (and subsequently the SLSALT – a treaty that further placed restrictions on the use of weapons/shields in SL) are abiding by the law in the most rigourous sense. Now, the reputation of the AN as a ‘greifing group’ was founded upon the claims of those who were…removed from the sandboxes due to their misbehaviour. They themselves orbitted innocent workers, and yet they have the audacity to condemn us? There have been precious few occasions of innocents being harmed, all of which have been fully apologised for and regretted.
Sixth, Santonus’ calims of the AN being a greifing during mid-October:
The Alliance Navy moved out of the sandboxes in early October. For a period of many months, not a single AN soldier was to arrive in the Sandboxes with hostile intent, barring the AN II. The ‘greifing’ that you accuse us of either never existed, or is represented in an overblown way. Get your facts right.
Yes, it’s a bit long. Yes, I enjoy a good rant. However, a few things do need to be cleaned up, lest our group garner an unfair reputation spread by these over-pompous militaries that don’t back up their claims. All in all: GG.
M-Schell
Jan 28th, 2007
Hey, Lemme tell you about my day with the AN
I tried to enter their base in Tethys in a helocopter.
I was shot
I tried on foot
Shot
Again
Shot
Without elaborate details, I was shot about 6 times without firing back, or drawing my weapons. Even griefers dont do that!!!!
Apone Moller
Jan 29th, 2007
All in All, A.N. has good scripters, good builders, and a few good people, however, few of them can shoot worth crap, And most of them Are Wet blankets, and pricks. The only thing the A.N. has over other groups, is this. They are somewhat organised, and(as far as I have seen) They have the best armour, weapons, veicles, and base in all of Sl. But those dont make a group, the people do. Thats why I quite A.N. They Lack respect for their people, And with the Witherspoon insident, Whoever said that about Witherspoon fakeing it, Buck up and show some respect for the deceased!
Apone Moller
Jan 29th, 2007
And….one last thing….I do not remember Receiving any reqeust If I could be posted about in an Article? ” an Alliance between A.N and Z.I. still exists in one Apone Mollers head” That just makes me mad, This isident is far gone and done with. What hapened was that I was elvieing A.N. i ask Jim Herbst what groups were allied, He said merc and Z.I. he said this bout a month and a half ago.
Proteus Hand
Mar 5th, 2007
Oh my, how time does fly!
”
I’m in the Alliance Navy, until recently an Admiral, and now just an all around troubleshooter, logistics guy, and commander… and I have to say, this article is poorly written. I don’t mean to be rude, but though I’m all about good propoganda for the AN, this is just a bit of a cheer piece, with no research, and not even interviews with all the leaders of the AN.
And a single visit to a sandbox does *not* constitute checking out the situation. I’m sorry, but this piece should never have passed the editor. It’s poorly written, terribly researched, and just a piece of tripe. Even if it doesn’t make us look as good, I would far prefer a piece that actually involved some modicum of effort, as opposed to just two interviews.”
That’s Harlequin Salome, at the beginning of the article, notice that teency-weency bit of arrogance in his speaking? *chuckles* And look at him now, he’s all gwown up! Insulting like a true champion!
That’s not all, folks, lookie here :
”
the alliance navy will, within a years time, be in a war with the most powerful military group on SL: Sparta. with our armada of ships and highly-advanced scripted war technology, we will stop the alliance navy from attempting to police those who do not want to be policed. once the alliance navy is defeated, we will continue to other groups who continue to bother others, such as the W-Hats. there be no mercy shown to those who grief others. banning us from our accounts will do Linden Labs no good, as we have other people to take their places, and our membership grows every day. already our members number over 100, and we even have people in the W-hats and the alliance navy.
Ares Overlord, Supreme Admiral of the Spartan High Guard Fleet
May Sparta destroy her enemies!”
First, notice the first grade grammatical errors, take a long shower, and then take note that Sparta is now the Alliance Navy’s biggest fan. Compliments of Mikael Khalmov for confirming my suspicions, but then again, it was pretty obvious.
Sparta, I constantly stood up for you, and your blatant lies about being the most powerful military in SL, but after you fire on me for my training regiment being “too harsh”, and then banned me from your 512 “Air Bace” after considering me your largest threat, you became a new specimen of fail.
Bruno Ziskey
Mar 5th, 2007
*chuckles* Proteus, when will you realize that I don’t give a damn about what you think? Honestly, do I really need to repeat myself? It’s only a game, no need to be all paranoid and hating everyone who doesn’t think your way-let’s leave that to Profoky, shall we?
Proteus Hand
Mar 8th, 2007
I do not “hate” anything, Bruno. I just like to point out the silly little ironies that occur as time and it’s circumstances erode the backbone of so many idealists such as yourself.
Grave Chemistry- Alliance Navy III Admiral, Formerley Shadow Keegan.
Aug 27th, 2007
Ah, but there is something ‘Dear’ Bruno has not mentioned..
Bruno Zisiskey Isnt Bruno Zisiskey, well.. that was a confusing explination, let me go into detail.
Ares Arzitar was Sparta’s Father so to speak, he found the original members, made the original technology, and was actually a very moral and good guy. Ares made the Zisiskey acount and formed Sparta, however..
(Drum Roll)
Ares’s RL Cousin was jealous about Sparta’s Success, using some hacking software, he stole The Bruno acount’s password and changed it in his words ‘turning Sparta into a real SL Military’
here is my message to Bruno:
Go make your own acount, group, and ideas, you are currentley nothing but a thief.
Cigarette!
Sorry, I meant Xigarete!
Grave Chemistry-Alliance Navy III Admiral.
Bruno Ziskey
Sep 4th, 2007
Grave Chemistry….why hello Fox Mainline.
Fox Mainline
Sep 29th, 2007
???? What Bruno? Are you implying that I am Shadow? sureley not..