New Jessie
Combat regions in Second Life
New Jessie is one of many examples of a combat region in Second Life. You can check it out anytime by visiting New Jessie [1]. It's different from most other combat regions in that New Jessie is neutral and open to everyone. Anyone is welcome to visit and to engage in combat there, using Second Life's built-in damage system, also known as the Linden Lab Combat System (or LLCS, for short). For combatants looking for active combat or a permanent home, New Jessie provides a free, safe homepoint to all visitors as well.
New Jessie is about the closest Second Life can get to a first-person shooting game. Anyone there can use a reasonable weapon to fight anyone they want on the battlefield at any time. Visitors create their own goals and objectives, although a capturable flag system is in place to supplement this idea. Individual free-for-all, player-versus-player combat is most popular, but military groups and other teams are always welcome too. You can see some of what combat in New Jessie looks like in this video [2].
New Jessie in 2015, shown from the welcome area and armory.
Fighting in New Jessie
Any group holding sway over the region may request that a notice be sent out across Second Life on their behalf, calling new combatants to join the fight. This is made possible by the group that most visitors join upon coming to New Jessie, called "Republic of New Jessie - Friends." At roughly 7,000 members, it is the largest combat group in Second Life, and it provides news and updates about New Jessie and other combat regions. It also gives access to the region's free weapons and visitor homepoint.
Weaponry on the battlefield
Combatants are welcome to bring their own weapons, purchase weapons at New Jessie's gun shop, or use the the free weapons provided to visitors. Most weapons are typically allowed in New Jessie, with some restrictions on autonomous weapons systems and armor limits, but good combatants often scale down their weapons as a personal challenge on the battlefield. Combat in New Jessie is mostly conventional - you'll see armored tanks rolling down streets, fighter jets whizzing through the skies, and plenty of infantry throughout.
Most infantry use ordinary firearms and light explosives in New Jessie - though occasionally you will see someone pull a knife or throw a stiff punch. Even swords and crossbows will occasionally show up, though they rarely stand up against conventional firearms. Most combatants fight on foot, but personal jetpacks are an increasingly common sight as well.
Meeting new people in New Jessie
New Jessie also enjoys an eclectic mix of visitors from across the grid and around the world, and all sorts of non-combatants routinely present their viewpoints in its public forum. In tune with the broadly libertarian spirit of the combat region, free expression is a priority in New Jessie, although its administrative staff speaks to people who are intentionally disrupting combat or otherwise intentionally driving visitors out of the region.
Administration and operation
The region's current theme is a parody of America's small-town southwest. There is no cost to participate in any of the activities that go on in New Jessie, and the region's administrative staff makes no money off of the region. All money collected from visitors' donations and from the sale of third-party weapons and regional advertisements goes directly toward paying for the cost of New Jessie's maintenance.
New Jessie is operated by a team of three co-equal Presidents - Caine Constantine, Fellon Miles, and Liana Pera - and seven administrative Directors. It was founded on July 26th, 2008. After operating for four years, New Jessie closed on October 5, 2012, but was re-founded on October 5, 2014 and celebrated its seventh anniversary in 2015. If you'd like to know more, check it out anytime by visiting New Jessie [3].