History

The Birth of KGB
Tanarus
Ultima Online
Shadowbane
World of Warcraft
Age of Conan
Darkfall
Guild Wars 2
Archeage
Albion Online

The Birth of KGB

JetStar was born in late 1996 in the game of SubSpace. Subspace was one of the first internet multiplayer games. This was before 3D running on the first Pentiums with 14.4k, 28.8k, and finally 56k Modems. I was 29 years old at the time. I was fascinated with PvP and was spending a lot of my free time flying around subspace. The themes behind KGB were in their infancy as I began to combat players that were out to ruin the experience for others (known as lamers) for which there was no shortage. I used the name KGB in my name (KGB-JetStar) and others I would play with would do the same.

Tanarus

It all began back in June of 1997 in the game of Tanarus. The game is set in the post-apocalyptic era where you thunder across cities and industrial wastelands at the helm of you own tank and blast enemies that dare get in you way. There were 30 different weapons and 5 tanks to choose from. Tanarus was the first online game to use 3D graphics and was far ahead of its time. Tanarus was the predecessor to Planetside and the game is still part of the Sony Station offering. Some people say that the code developed in Tanarus helped make EQ the success it was.

Teams were forming and the best players were beginning to join up. I was a proficient player, and friend (SoulScream) convinced me to form the KGB Tanarus Team. We soon acquired some of the best players in the game. In addition to just playing, we targeted idiots and those that exploited or tried to ruin the experienced for others. Our team grew and we were always in the top 5 teams for points. One of our star players, Drek, was frequently in the top 3.

The thing that set KGB apart was the rank and awards system. Members competed for the top spots and frequently visited the KGB website, which did not yet have its domain and was hosted by Netcom.com.

Ultima Online

It was August of 1997 and a few KGBers were involved in the Beta test of Ultima Online. The game looked amazing and offered the kind of open PvP you dreamed of. This was the perfect place for KGB. Drek of KGB began playing UO on its release, soon to be followed by JetStar. We identified ourselves with our names, and late with the guild system that was in its infancy. KGB rose to power on the Pacific server pioneering the role of "Anti". Anti or Anti-PK was the term used for organizations that targeted random murderers, or those that tried to ruin the gaming experience for others. KGB's Guild Secret Service was the first online intelligence organization of its kind and pioneered ghost surveliance and enemy infiltration. KGB was becoming one of the great powers of Pacific.

Meanwhile, interest in Tanarus wained. Several officers attempted to keep it alive, but all the focus was on the MMORPG. High King JetStar (Known as GuildMaster JetStar at the time) decided to close KGB Tanarus in February of 1998.