Anniversary Special: Year One Top Ten Blog Moments

 There have been numerous events and happenings that took place on the blog between our first ever post and today, but as part of our Anniversary Special, we've decided to list the ten most polarizing instances as we remember them. ENJOY.



10. Vanguardians Statement - In a response to a source within their ranks giving our publication an expose' regarding the turmoil within their supergroup. BlackBird of the Vanguardians did an Op-Ed in our paper refuting the allegations that the team was falling apart. He went into detail regarding things the group had been doing in a heroic capacity and also threw a warning to our source. "And to the source who threw us under the bus, know this: I know who you are! Batman isn't the only good detective that Earth has." Who knew that being in a supergroup had so many dynamics?

9. Black Falcon goes Rogue - The significance of this event may escape some, but keep in mind Black Falcon was a highly-paid Wayne Enterprises spokesperson when she decided that Lex Luthor, The MFC and the VRA had gone far enough. She could have sat idly by, done nothing and continued to collect a six-figure salary. She acted instead, damaging an MFC patrol van and was fired by Wayne Enterprises a day later. She has allegedly operated as an underground vigilante ever since.

8. First Event - While few will remember Part 2 of "The Hero Sacrifice" for its significance, it will go down as our very first Event. For the first time actual gameplay determined the outcome of one of our stories. Previously people had sent in emails of their exploits, but this time was different; this time actual combat in-game on the streets of Metropolis would determine what took place. A notable villain was going on trial and there was only one hero there to safeguard the proceeding, Animus. Just as the trial was about to start, Legion of Sin member Dr. Manhattan materialized out of thin air and a super-battle ensued. When the smoke cleared--only the villain stood. Animus was left badly beaten, there was a huge crater where the courthouse steps once stood and Dr. Manhattan teleported the villain, Deviant safely away. Evil had won that day.

7. Hostage Crisis at the Mayor's Office - One of the seminal events that brought heroes of all creeds and backgrounds together was The Hostage Crisis at the Mayor's Office. A supervillain group (later identified as being masterminded by the infamous Vicious) stormed the offices and took Mayor Fleming and her entire staff hostage. A few wayward heroes tried solo attempts at rescue but were repelled by an energy force field of unknown origin that surrounded the building.While a rift between some of the authorities and heroes on the scene hampered a series of rescue attempts, on Day Ten a striketeam led by Black Hornet of the MFC Cape Killer Unit stormed the building and rescued all of the hostages. The one casualty was Vicious, the mastermind behind the crisis. Weeks later an independent investigation into whether deadly force was necessary was launched, that investigation is still ongoing.

6. The PSN Outage - The notorious PSN Outage was so devastating to our blog that we had trouble even devising a storyline to explain it. Not only did it seriously damage DCUO's momentum but it neutralized our blog's as well. User-submitted content slowed to a crawl as no one was able to login to the game world. While we're well on our way to working our way back, no one will ever forget the impact the hacker group Anonymous (a notorious villain in their own right, apparently) had on the gaming world.

5. Federal Building Explosion - For his role in the killing of over 400 innocent people, Dr. Manhattan will forever live in infamy on our blog. On the morning of Feb. 28th The building that had sat in downtown Metropolis for over 30 years mysteriously exploded. Emergency Services, Superhero Groups and Government Entities swarmed to the area to aid the wounded and the dying. A cryptic message was left burnt into the pavement by the perpetrator "From the ashes of our enemies we are born again. This event marks the rise of true villains on a scope that Gotham and Metropolis have never yet seen." Two days later the person responsible for the single-largest loss of life in an act of super-powered terrorism was revealed as former member of the Legion Of Sin, Dr. Manhattan. S.T.A.R. Labs, authorities and members of the JL confirmed the evidence through testing. "There is no mistaking the energy signature, it's been logged several times in the past and our tests confirmed it yesterday." Manhattan has never been brought to justice for his actions.


4.The PeaceKeepers - Rarely has a group of heroes so universally praised, widely anticipated and lauded failed to make their mark so miserably. While they certainly looked the part of heroes of the first order, their arrival in Metropolis was possibly the most overrated event in early DCUO. While we saw awards for their artwork, guild and presentation, their impact inside DCUO barely registered and they seemed more concerned with licensing their characters than actual heroic acts.The one PKer we saw on a regular basis, Lunar Ray, left the team before the schism that ultimately left the team in shambles. The lesson we learned here on the blog? "Deeds not Words". Heroism isn't given, it's earned. They sure looked good, though.

3. Apocalypto - Evil needed a face when DCUO started and The Legion of Sin's leader eagerly assumed the role. Well-known for their "ganking" tactics during the beta, there were few who weren't aware of the vile nature of the group who decided to make the No Man's Land server their home. As our blog progressed there was no question who the most vile evil-doers were in the world of DCUO, and there leader was just an extension of them. He had several high-profile conflicts with The Dream Team, The Coalition and Meta Justice before an apparent coup within his own group saw a schism where several core members left and formed The Destruction Kings. He was not a member of the contingent that was pardoned and now works for the MFC, his current whereabouts are unknown.

2. The VRA - The Vigilante Registration Act forever changed the way that heroes were viewed in DCUO, and while it remains law it will continue to do so. In a response to several high-profile instances where innocents were either wounded or killed near super-powered conflicts, a law was passed that required heroes to register (thus revealing their true identities to government agencies) or be considered outlaws. Many vigilantes resisted and were virtually branded as criminals in the eyes of the law. The hero community was essentially split in half as the more traditional heroes registered while those who valued their privacy refused. In a twist of fate that no one will ever forget, former villains The Legion Of Sin turned themselves in, were pardoned for their crimes and then were sanctioned by MFC Director Luthor as members of his Cape Killer Unit, the group responsible for the apprehension of super-powered non-registrants.

1. The Elemental Saga - It all began with a newspaper article that revealed the secret identity of a member of The Elementals, the super-heroine, Destra. Soon afterwards her teammate The PeaceKeeper had his true identity released as well. No one could have predicted what happened next as both were both slain by a ruthless assassin--apparently the group had enemies in high places. What followed was the systematic killing of four more members of the team ending with their strongman, Brute. Hero groups and their advocates were outraged at the killings, but also at the Washington Post for being callous enough to release the heroes identities. It wasn't until recently that the killer was revealed as the hitman known as Catacomb.While still at large, Wayne Enterprises was one of the main contributors to the now-record reward for his capture that is in excess of 50M dollars.