I am extremely pleased to announce the premier issue of Le Mercenaire , a periodical devoted exclusively to the mercenary soldier. We'll tell you where the hot spots are, who's hiring, what's new in weapons and equipment. In short, everything you need to know to stay alive and get paid. This "ain't no sissy rag" for arm chair commandos. All of our writers are combat veterans who've been there and done that.

We'll be right up with the grunts getting the story. And if we're lucky, busting a few caps too. See you all "up front".

Negotiations over trade and ownership right between Ling Standard and Naasirka have recently broken down, leaving the two mighty MegaCorps at odds and with little in the way of non-violent recourse. Several incidents of 'shouldering' between Ling and Naasirka ships have been reported.

Naasirka is currently hiring mercenaries, ostensibly to beef up its security against raiders. Le Mercenaire's inside sources indicate that they are gearing up for a proxy war on Palomar or Tulane, two of the contested worlds where both companies hold mining claims.

Palomar is a dusty rock, rich in heavy metals. A thin atmosphere and an ambient temperature of around 30 C make it an uninviting hell, while Tulane, 3 jumps away boasts a balmy summer temperature of -20 C. Pack your long underwear. Pay is reported to be guild plus 10%.

Ling standard has responded with no offers at this time.

It is a pistol that almost every grunt recognizes. The big MilTech M4 12mm autopistols seems to have been around forever, and in fact celebrated 200 years in production on day 205 of this year.

Designed at a time when chemical slugthrowers we seen to be going the way of the zippered vacc suit, The M4 was a deliberate retrograde to older technology. MilTech did a careful research of handgun use in the military and discovered several important facts that led to the M4. First, Handgun usage is rare in the military. When it does occur, it usually very close, very fast and life or death. Second, troops aquire pistols, even if forbidden, whenever possible. Though rarely used, they lend confidence and a sense of security. And when it's pistol time, troopers want big, powerful and reliable.

Carefully developed to these requirements, the M4 appeared in 922 as a seeming throwback to older times. The typical slugthrowers of the day were mostly polymers and ceramics, in smaller, easy to control calibers. While the M4 utilizes a polymer frame, it contains steel inserts, and the slide is all alloy steel with a carbon-fibre/ceramic barrel. The M4 was built around a new caliber specifically designed for the gun, the MilTech 12x20mm caseless. The 12mm propels a 270 gn bullet at over 400m/s. This cartridge has proven to be a potent manstopper, especially given the limits of military ball ammunition.