The Caldari Gaming Commission earlier today gave a long-awaited announcement about the prizes to be awarded in this Sunday's COLOSSUS race event finals, in addition to publishing a full set of rules for the contest.
Following in the Mikranian tradition of gaming philosophy so frequently favored by the Caldari over the last century, the Commission has decided to award separate prizes for the team victory and for the individual victory, in order to further stimulate the tension between loyalty to the team and advancement for the individual, a theme much recurrent in Caldari literature and entertainment.
As stated in the Commission's announcement, each member of the winning team will receive a Caldari Navy Issue Raven battleship, fully kitted out with specially augmented Caldari Navy modules. The net worth of such a vessel is estimated to come somewhere within the vicinity of three to four billion ISK.
The individual coming in third place will receive a Caldari Navy Hookbill, the specialized patrol craft of the Caldari Navy, while the second place winner will get a Navy-issue Caracal cruiser. Both vessels will, like the Ravens, be fully fitted with modules tweaked by the Navy's engineers.
What has garnered the greatest attention, however, is the individual first prize award: a capsule-fitted Rattlesnake battleship, famously designed by Korako "The Rabbit" Kosakami and one of only a few such vessels currently known to exist. According to the Gaming Commission, the ship was confiscated by the Caldari Navy after a Navy raid on a Gurista deadspace complex last month killed its owner, high-ranking Gurista terrorist Mourani Tremane. The vessel was subsequently donated to the Commission by the Navy for use as a prize.
Betting for the final race, meanwhile, is breaking records even within the Caldari State. Exact figures vary, but according to estimates something in the vicinity of three hundred billion ISK total is being bet on contestants and teams.
The final is set to go ahead at 22:00 EVT this Sunday.