The United Republic is renowned for its chrome finished airplanes and well trained soldiers. Funded through investments made by major corporations like the Ford Motor Company or business families like the Rockefellers, the arms industry in the United Republic is the wealthiest in the world. But as the stock markets fare well and the fat cat is eating his generous share of the pie, the ghettos of the Chicago, New York, Montreal, Vancouver, and other major cities in North America are filled with former test subjects of ambitious military research projects, such as the jetpacks for the Iron Troops.</p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.isotx.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/Republic_FlyingTroops011.jpg"><img class="aligncenter wp-image-6741" title="Republic_FlyingTroops01" src="http://www.isotx.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/Republic_FlyingTroops011.jpg" alt="" width="599" height="599" /></a></p>
Phoenix has lived in Detroit all of his live. At a mere twelve years of age he got his first job at the car factory down the block that someone named Henry Ford had opened. That was in 1903. They told him he would be contributing to the Republican Dream; the work was dirty and hard. But was there really any other choice to be made by a boy from Highland Park?</p>

He was just Tom back then - he didn’t become Phoenix until much later. Phoenix shifts awkwardly. His back always hurts. In fact he couldn’t move it much at all. The nurses at the hospital started calling him Phoenix. Those nurses, with their impeccable white dresses and cold hands, he smiles. That was the only good this that had come out of the accident, to lay his eyes on those nurses again. The twilight of his life was approaching fast, but he Republican Dream got shattered when he was twenty-seven.</p>

It was a warm summer’s day. Rank smelling garbage lined the streets and the smog around the factories had gotten so thick the sun was barely visible. His supervisor called him and his team to his office and pushed a number of flyers into their hands. The federal government needed him to contribute to the war effort. They needed test subjects at R&amp;D. On the picture in the flyer his president reminded him that he should be proud to live in freedom. He crumpled the glossy piece of paper and threw it in the trash.</p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.isotx.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/republic-moodshot5.jpg"><img class="wp-image-6740 aligncenter" title="republic-moodshot5" src="http://www.isotx.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/republic-moodshot5.jpg" alt="" width="406" height="233" /></a></p>
They were shepherded to the research facilities in the factory. The man in the suit explained that this new technology called a jetpack could make soldiers fly. After going through a series of complicated looking diagrams and schematics, the man emphasized that Republic soldiers would one day be able to own the skies, and that the test last week only had a 30% malfunction rate. They had made great progress. Just three months ago it was still an alarming 70%.</p>

Someone strapped the metal tanks on his back and explained that he should push this button for take-off and pull that handle to steer. Phoenix pushed the button and started to lift off the ground. For a moment he was flying and thought ‘I’ll be damned’. Then a searing pain spread along his back and he heard his bones crack as he smacked into the concrete floor. There were third degree burns on 70% of his body and severe damage to the nerve system in his back.</p>

Years later, the doctors were amazed that he sort of learned to walk again, and in their eyes he was the embodiment of the Republican Dream.

<em>New adventures in Anchorpoint! You might want to read carefully. I have hidden an anagram in the text. Look at the first letter of each sentence. Nine of those letters form two words together. Send me your answer in a PM. Marauders that come up with the correct answer will win the official Iron Grip: Marauders 2012 strategy guide!</em></p>

<em>MechanicalAngel</em></p>

The tension that arose after <a href="http://www.isotx.com/airship-with-t…de-anchorpoint/">the airship crash in Anchorpoint</a> two month ago has reached boiling point. Even though the official investigation turned up that the captain of the airship reported several failures before take-off, the people of Anchorpoint have turned against the marauders. Surprisingly the people are gaining momentum, as most marauders are reluctant to reciprocate the assaults.</p>

Marauder captain The Almighty is appalled by recent outbursts of civilian violence: “In all my life I have not met one dishonorable marauder in Anchorpoint. Yes, we set-up roadside hijackings, but we would never propagate violence against civilians. Resident marauders of Anchorpoint uphold <a href="http://www.isotx.com/how-to-be-a-sky-pirate-101/">their own code of honor</a> and to digress from that means that he will be chased out of Anchorpoint. It’s really a self-regulating system.”</p>

Since the marauders have settled in Anchorpoint there has been much talk of their alleged honor, yet the city has gone downhill. They drink and gamble, flirt with our daughters. “Pirates are allowed some fun. We hang out at Jasmine’s and I assure you I have never taken a girl there without her consent. Keeping out the Barons is what we do, does it matter that we are also thugs and scoundrels?” The Almighty grins as he takes a sip of his beer.</p>

<a href="http://www.isotx.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/airship.jpg"><img class="alignright size-full wp-image-6606" title="airship" src="http://www.isotx.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/airship.jpg" alt="" width="561" height="286" /></a></p>

Cities that fall under Baron rule have reported sky high taxes, but at least their streets remain safe. The Almighty bursts into laughter: “Sure, but everyone is poor as shit. Who wants that? And just to be clear, it is not the marauders who are harassing people on the streets of Anchorpoint right now.”
</p>
<em>The article has been published in The Marauder Herald.</em>

Among the exotic armies of the Emperor, few are feared quite as much as the Immortals. Clad in their ornate steel armor and wielding powerful autocannons, the immortals are terrifying foes and their devotion to the Emperor is unyielding. They answer only to him and to their spiritual leader – the Shisai. Upon the battlefield, their towering presence inspires terror in the hearts of their enemies. They are the physical manifestation of the Emperor’s will and they shall see it fulfilled.

<p style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.isotx.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/Empire_ImmortalConceptArt01_medium.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-6529" title="Empire_ImmortalConceptArt01_medium" src="http://www.isotx.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/Empire_ImmortalConceptArt01_medium.jpg" alt="" width="450" height="600" /></a></p>

Potential Immortals are recruited from the offspring of noble families that are in favor with the Emperor. Taken away from their mothers at birth, these children are brought to the fortress monastery deep in the Mountains of Hokkaido, where they are taught to venerate the emperor as the living descendant of the gods and to worship Izanami, the goddess of Death. With no family ties to distract them, the children are taught the warrior skills required to be the Emperor’s elite. As soon as they are able, the initiates are pitted against one another in series of tests of the body and mind that often end with the death of one of the contestants. This brutal selection ensures that only the strongest, most cunning and fanatical survive to serve to serve the Emperor.

When the aspirants come of age, they are brought before the Emperor and kneel at his feet to swear their undying devotion. After this, the Emperor issues them an extremely dangerous mission, so that they may prove themselves worthy of becoming his household guards and enforcers. The completion of the latest set of these proving missions saw the European Alliance losing all of their colonies in Asia.

With the fires of war engulfing the world, the Immortals march with the armies of the Emperor and bring swift destruction upon all those who would oppose him.

March of War is a game that is being written by you. Developments in the world, such as which faction conquers which region or who is the leader of a faction, are completely dependent on your actions. We provide a basic world with a backstory – a world that is in an everlasting state of war. We don’t know what that world is going to look like a year after the release.</p>

However, playing the game isn’t the only way to contribute to March of War. You will also be able to vote on which content will appear in the game and of course you can contribute to the official library. So eventually the game is as much a product of you, the players, and us, ISOTX.</p>

<p style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.isotx.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/Storm-Trooper_big.jpg"><img class="aligncenter wp-image-6381" title="Storm-Trooper_big" src="http://www.isotx.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/Storm-Trooper_big.jpg" alt="" width="581" height="581" /></a></p>

During the closed beta we have invited a few loyal players to act as war correspondents and to provide us with material for the wiki. One of our devoted contributors is coastwardchippy – he also wrote a lot of fan fiction for Iron Grip: Marauders and is now one of the first war correspondents. So far he has submitted two articles for the wiki – about Alliance <a href="http://marchofwar.wikia.com/wiki/Storm_Troopers">Storm Troopers</a> and <a href="http://marchofwar.wikia.com/wiki/Spy">Spies</a>.<br>
If you are interested in writing for us you can send an email to community@isotx.com.</p>

The following piece of fiction is inspired by coastwardchippy’s description of the Storm Troopers:</p>

<a href="http://www.isotx.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/Military-Parade_blog.jpg"><img class="alignright size-full wp-image-6384" title="Military-Parade_blog" src="http://www.isotx.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/Military-Parade_blog.jpg" alt="" width="280" height="280" /></a>

<em>“That’s my dad!” Erich nudged his friend Hans and pointed to one of the Storm Troopers marching by: “When I grow up I’m going to be a Storm Trooper as well!”</em></p>

<em>“No, you won’t – only the really strong soldiers can be a Storm Trooper and I’m way stronger than you are so you’ll never make it. You have to do like a million exams before they let you in.” Hans looked indignantly at Erich, who was a good head shorter than he was. Every boy in their class wanted to be a Storm Trooper. Except Klaus – he wanted to be an <a href="http://marchofwar.wikia.com/wiki/Engineer">Engineer</a>. Like that was any fun. The Storm Troopers got all the glory. They were the pride of the European Army, or so Erich’s dad said. Hans envied Erich, because his dad was a Storm Trooper, marching proudly in the victory parade on Unter Den Linde towards the Brandenburger Tor. Hans and Erich always watched together and even if Erich would never make it, they had an unspoken agreement to join the army when they were eighteen and become Storm Troopers.</em></p>

<em>Erich’s dad told him that he was part of the first regiment to be equipped solely with the MG 42s - the guns the Troopers are famous for. When the Soviets invaded Europe, Erich’s dad and his regiment, were accidently assigned nothing but the LMGs by mistake - despite a lack of widespread training with the weapons, they used them to devastating effect. Soon the MG 42 became a standard weapon, one of the symbols to show the Union that Europe is much stronger and that they would never be able to invade the old world with their backwards ideas. At least that’s what Erich’s dad said. Hans wasn’t so sure about that. He once saw in the newspaper that the Red Army has giant machines that kind of look like the robots in R.U.R., but much bigger and with huge cannons. It would be scary if he had to face that in battle, even with an MG 42.</em>

When all the riches have been plucked from your land, you have to be inventive. The African Warlords surprised the world when they united to fight for a single cause; to reclaim their lands. But the tribes are poor and the continent, though rich in natural resources, has been depleted by European colonists. But Africa has junk. From the remains of the Alliance armies the Warlords constructed theirs own weapons, zeppelins and bombs. One of these is the Demo Truck. Pieced together from old tanks and cars, this truck is filled with dynamite.

<a href="http://www.isotx.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/Demotruck01.jpg"><img class=" wp-image-6348 alignright" title="Demotruck01" src="http://www.isotx.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/Demotruck01.jpg" alt="" width="240" height="240" /></a>

<em>A cold wind cut through the bunker. Commander Joseph Herzberg surveyed the beach through his binoculars. The beach grass bent from the relentless push of the ocean breeze, the sand gushing over the beach covered everything in hazy white gauze. The sea beat endlessly on the shore. And all was calm on this winter day in Normandy.

Satisfied with his observation Joseph returned to his desk. He turned his attention to a report about the defeat in the Alps; the Alliance was losing ground in Europe. Fearsome war elephants were thundering down the mountains and scrap-metal zeppelins were seen crashing into European troops. The Warlords they called themselves, or so the report said. A bunch of savages more like it. Wild, dark and utterly insane.

His grandfather had told him about the colonies in Africa. About the gold and the diamonds mine he had owned and how that had made the family rich. About how his grandmother tried to educate the savages in the ways of the Lord. But their dark eyes had rejected them fiercely, the white in stark contrast with the ebony skin.

A siren rudely disturbed his reminiscence. Perturbed he peeked out of the slit in the bunker. His eyes widened as a saw a shabby looking truck rush towards him, bits and pieces of metal falling of it in the sand. The truck gathered speed as it approached the bunker. What are they trying to do, Joseph thought. Before he could blink the truck rammed the bunker.

<a href="http://www.isotx.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/featureImagedemoTruck.jpg"><img src="http://www.isotx.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/featureImagedemoTruck.jpg" alt="" title="featureImagedemoTruck" width="603" height="188" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-6353" /></a>

The walls shook, but the bunker was still standing. The moment before an explosion the world is completely quiet. For a split second he stared into those wild, dark and utterly insane eyes. Then thunder filled the world and darkness rolled over the dunes of Normandy.</em>

Scrapyard metal and war animals, the African Warlords are the final faction of March of War. Have you been able to decide which faction you want to play? You can vote here on the blog.<p>

<em>“No-one saw us coming that day in the Sahara. The United Republic launched an attack to secure their holdings at the Suez Canal. I saw the white men tremble in their boots as we gathered to reclaim the lands that are ours.” - Hanifa</em><p>

<a href="https://w.soundcloud.com/player/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fapi.soundcloud.com%2Ftracks%2F90590471" >Listen to the music here</a><p>

The tribes of Africa united for the first time in history, to defeat an attack by Republican armies in 1935. The Suez Canal had been dug not fifty years before to enable easier trade between Europe and Asia. As the European Alliance had to withdraw most of their military forces from Africa, and following pirate activities in the now lawless area, the United Republic stepped in to claim the Canal. They didn’t count on the anger of tribal Africa, who saw the chance to rule their own lands without colonial interference.<p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.isotx.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/MarchOfWar_WarElephant.jpg"><img class=" wp-image-6332 aligncenter" title="MarchOfWar_WarElephant" src="http://www.isotx.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/MarchOfWar_WarElephant.jpg" alt="" width="560" height="560" /></a></p>
The Republic were defeated utterly, but the truly wondrous thing happened after this bloody battle: the tribes stayed united under the flag of the African Warlords. Led by Hanifa, the diamond of the savannah, the Warlords started salvaging what was left on the battlefield. From the scrap metal of blown up tanks, howitzers and motor cycles, they started to fortify their war elephants and repair and improve their own vehicles. Hanifa had done the impossible; capturing the fury of Africa and giving it direction.<p>

<em>“Warlord, are you ready to mount your elephant and reclaim our lands?”</em>
<p>
<a href="http://www.youtube.com/embed/UsyA97xcY1A">Watch the YouTube video here </a>

At ISOTX we’re proud of our roots! As some of you know we started in a basement making mods. This year we’re releasing our third commercial game and our staff has grown to over fifty people. Iron Grip: Warlord was our first successful game, that despite its venerable age (2008) is still a very popular indie FPS that surprises players with the tower defense strategy elements. An FPS for people with brains.

<p style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.isotx.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/warlord-banner.jpg"><img class="aligncenter wp-image-6320" title="warlord banner" src="http://www.isotx.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/warlord-banner.jpg" alt="" width="575" height="215" /></a></p>

Enough self-praise. So the real reason for this post is to announce to you all that next week on Friday we’re going to play Iron Grip: Warlord live. <a href="http://www.twitch.tv/isotx/videos">You can tune in on Twitch.tv!</a>

Want to try the game for yourself? <a href="http://www.bundlestars.com/">You can get Iron Grip: Warlord and nine other games (which aren't as good) on BundleStars.com for only €4,68.</a>

Marauders! The two branches of the Champion’s league tournament have concluded and we have our two contestants for the grand finale! Representing Infernal Marauders, a PVP master in his own right and winner of Branch B – Bad! Defending the honor of House of Albion, a tournament veteran and winner of Branch A – GhostZombie!

The two contestants will face off in a PVP battle with a pool of units. The battle will follow standard tournament rules and is going to be arranged in the coming days! The winner of this epic showdown will win the grand prize of 800,000 gold!

<a href="http://www.isotx.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/championsLeagueWinners.jpg"><img class="aligncenter wp-image-6160" title="Champions" src="http://www.isotx.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/championsLeagueWinners.jpg" alt="The Champions League Finalists! " width="491" height= /></a>

The finalists might have overcome every obstacle on their path to victory, but the tournament was full of moments of glory! The streets of Anchorpoint will remember these battles for a long time. They will remember how the representatives of the TeutonicTerrorTribe fought valiantly, but were ultimately defeated, and how the solitary representatives from the 13th Legion and Renegades showed everyone that even a lone marauder can bring a great battle!

There will be many tournaments in the future and you will have a chance to redeem yourselves! Kolo’s rocket artillery is just coming into mass production and will be available to you before too long. The latest in GRAV technology has also been developed and can soon be present on your airship, if you know the right people!

Stick around for the battle report of the grand finale!

I hope you enjoyed the first issue of <a href="http://www.isotx.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/MarchOfWar_WorldNews_Issue01.pdf">World News, the March of War newspaper</a>. Those of you who read the paper carefully know what the last two factions are. This week we travel to South and Central America, where the Latin Junta are masters of the jungle.

Secret labs where the <em>Brigades Revolucionarias</em> develop new weapons are scattered throughout the Amazon rainforest. In one of these, genetic engineer Santiago Cruz is working on his latest invention.

<p style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://www.isotx.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/JuntaConceptArt_ROC.jpg"><img class="aligncenter wp-image-6160" title="Latin Junta ROC" src="http://www.isotx.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/JuntaConceptArt_ROC.jpg" alt="Latin Junta the fifth faction to be announced for March of War " width="491" height="369" /></a>

<em>“The enemy will run for the hills when they see this swarm emerge from the jungle,” Santiago Cruz looked confidently at his <em>comandante</em>. He smiled at his tiny, yet perfect creations. Behind the glass the insects scurried through the vines, each bug more poisonous than the next.

Santiago is a quiet man, a man of science and a man who has grown up amidst the tangles and coils of the vines and snakes of the jungle. He might never fight on the front line as his comandante leads the chicos to war. The bugs are genetically engineered to spread malaria, or at least a hyper speed version thereof. His children will kill more enemies for the revolucion than any rifle or tank ever could.</em>

<a href="https://w.soundcloud.com/player/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fapi.soundcloud.com%2Ftracks%2F81349997">You can listen to music from the Latin Junta here</a>

The <em>Brigadas Revolucionarias</em> harness the insects that crawl over the jungle floor, the venom that drips from the viper’s fangs and the poisonous fumes of the fungi growing on the trees. Turning the creatures and plants of the jungle into potent weapons, revolutionary guerrilla forces fight off the Red Army and the forces of the United Republic. Stories of the potency of their biochemical weapon even reached the divine ears of the Emperor. <em>Hasta la victoria siempre</em>, we battle until we are victorious! <em>Comandante, viva la revolución!</em>

<a href="http://www.youtube.com/embed/MsxkBaC3aT8">Watch the video here</a>

Farlix crowned himself king of the marauders. At first he wanted an annual holiday to commemorate the event – like the king of the Netherlands (aka dress in orange, drink beer and party hard) – but thought better of it. True marauders only party in battle. In the King’s Tournament, marauders from all over Kathos can prove their worth to the new king. Cinnamon obviously demanded to be the lady of honor at this most esteemed event.

<a href="http://www.isotx.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/iron_grip_marauders_isotx_winner_meme_competition.png"><img class="alignright wp-image-6152" title="iron_grip_marauders_isotx_winner_meme_competition" src="http://www.isotx.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/iron_grip_marauders_isotx_winner_meme_competition-216x300.png" alt="iron grip: marauders isotx winner meme competition" width="130" height="180" /></a>

Typically, Farlix’s first decision as king was picking a funny internet meme. He declared this meme the winner of the competition that started last week. Poems for Lady Heresh are still welcome, and check out the black market this Friday if you want Lady to join you in your avatar screen.

<a href="http://www.isotx.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/KingsTournament01.jpg"><img class="alignright size-full wp-image-6150" title="King's Tournament" src="http://www.isotx.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/KingsTournament01.jpg" alt="Iron Grip: Marauders King's Tournament" width="520" height="282" /></a>

<span style="color: #cccccc;"><strong>Now on to the tournament:</strong></span>
- It starts on April 29
- All player of level 6 and higher can enter
- Players select their army from Baron and Atelian units
- Round time is 5 minutes
- Entrance fee is 3 Gems

<span style="color: #cccccc;"><strong>Prizes</strong></span>
1st – King’s Box (1x Atelian Warlord, 1x Atelian Borthos, 1x Baron Artillery Walker, 1x Baron MBT)
2nd – Tournament Triplex (3x random unit)
3rd – Tournament Crate (1x random unit)