By June of 2022, Militech and Arasaka decided that niceties and subtlety were altogether no longer necessary, and the conflict reached the third stage, called the Hot War.

nicety: a detail or small difference that is only obvious after careful thought

subtlety: the quality of being subtle

? THE FOURTH CORPORATE WAR BEGAN AS A RACE between two rival aquatech agencies. In late 2021, two oceanic exploitation corporations, CINO(Corporation Internationale Nauticale et Oceanique) and OTEC(Ocean Technology and Energy Corp) vied for control over the remains of a third corpo, IHA(Internationale Handelsmarine Aktiengesellschaft). The rivalry was bitter, and hostilities escalated rapidly after a brutal fiscal struggle. OTEC gained the upper hand by hiring Militech to protect their security interests. CINO responded in kind and contracted with Arasaka. Thus the Fourth Corporate War began, otherwise known as the Ocean War.

fiscal: (Economics, Government, Tax) relating to government finance and taxes

? As is always the case in early stages of corporate conflict, the first attacks were carried out discreetly — some midlevel corporate officials were assassinated, and some dirty information was stolen and revealed. Mercenary netrunners were hired by both sides, and they made dozens of attacks on data caches and stock holdings, which wrought chaos on the global economy. Those events forced NetWatch to place a temporary communication embargo on Arasaka and Militech, but the security firms were just getting warmed up. By the time Eurobank had successfully mediated a truce between CINO and OTEC, the real conflict had transitioned to Militech and Arasaka. By early 2022 a new struggle between the security giants had begun, known today as the Shadow War. This marked the second stage of the fourth global Corporate War.

cache: (also the cache memory) an area or type of computer memory in which information that is often in use can be stored temporarily and got to especially quickly

embargo: an order to emporarily stop something, especially trading or giving information

truce: a short interruption in a war or argument, or an agreement to stop fighting or arguing for a period of time

transition: a change from one form or type to another, or the process by which this happens

? Conflict during the Shadow War phase was more overt and brutal. Mercs and edgerunners flocked to the banners of both security corporations, executing covert ops and raids on military and research facilities. Despite the visceral nature of the conflict, the deadliest battle actually occurred on the Net when corporate and mercenary netrunners released a new generation of devastating viral programs upon each other. Some of this code continued to operate long after the death of its creators, leaving vast areas of the Net irreparably dark and dangerous.

overt: done or shown publicly or in obvious way and not secret

covert: hidden or secret

visceral: based on deep feeling and emotional reactions rather than on reason or thought

? By June of 2022, Militech and Arasaka deciede that niceties and subtlety were altogether no longer necessary, and the conflict reached the third stage, called the Hot War. Fighting between the two military corporations escalated to full-scale war. Cities like Rio de Janeiro were literally reduced to rubble, their populations killed or made refugees.

? Global trade was paralyzed by military action and market collapse. International trade routes were hit hard, and piracy raged free and unchecked. As the flames of physical conflict burned bright, NetWatch struggled to protect the Net. Weakened by the destruction of global servers and databanks and ravaged by thousands of malicious viruses and demon-class programs, the Net as we knew it slowly died.

piracy: the act of attacking ships in order to steal from them

ravage: to cause great damage to something

? Finally, the countries of the world became weary of corporate conflict. Some governments openly blamed Militech and Arasaka for the situation and withdrew their support for corporations, nationalizing their weakened holdings in those countries. The Freede State of Southern California seized the Los Angeles headquarters of both companies. Texas and some European countries soon followed suit.

? Arasaka Towers in Night City were the last of Araska's American headquarters to fall, wiped out by a tactical nuclear weapon detonated by a group of unidentified mercenaries. Some sources implicated the so-called "Atlantis Group" — including such modern legends as Rogue, Morgan Blackhand, and Johnny Silverhand — but there wasn't enough evidence to confirm the group's involvement. Morgan and Johnny were never seen again after the Arasaka Towers incident, and Rogue has repeatedly denied her participation in the operation.

? Under pressure from the Japanese government, Arasaka finally conceded defeat at the end of 2023. Militech emerged victorious, but was nearly as crippled as their rival.

concede: to admit, often unwillingly, that something is true

crippled: severely damaged and unable to operate effectively