Knight of Dandriss: Stone and Steel
- Thread starter Academia Nut
- Start date
- Original
Horologer
Incertae sedis
- Location
- a risen sea
[X] Patrol rail lines
[X] Checkpoint garrison
[X] Speed Recruitment of Light Mechs (9 Military)
[X] Train Penal Militia
[X] Intrigue Sweep
[X] Contact Neighbours
[X] Pursue Baron Malcolm Adler as an ally
[X] Pursue Obsession
"Oh my God! Aliens are invading! Cities lie in ruins! Everything is on fire! And worst of all, I'm obsessed with fucking sand!"
[X] Checkpoint garrison
[X] Speed Recruitment of Light Mechs (9 Military)
[X] Train Penal Militia
[X] Intrigue Sweep
[X] Contact Neighbours
[X] Pursue Baron Malcolm Adler as an ally
[X] Pursue Obsession
"Oh my God! Aliens are invading! Cities lie in ruins! Everything is on fire! And worst of all, I'm obsessed with fucking sand!"
[X] Patrol rail lines
[X] Checkpoint garrison
[X] Speed Recruitment of Light Mechs (9 Military)
[X] Train Penal Militia
[X] Intrigue Sweep
[X] Contact Neighbours
[X] Pursue Baron Malcolm Adler as an ally
[X] Pursue Obsession
[X] Checkpoint garrison
[X] Speed Recruitment of Light Mechs (9 Military)
[X] Train Penal Militia
[X] Intrigue Sweep
[X] Contact Neighbours
[X] Pursue Baron Malcolm Adler as an ally
[X] Pursue Obsession
Asmodemus
Subversive Element
Interesting last couple of updates. Heck of a thing the war.
And on the nightmare all I could think at the end of the update was "Ella, welcome to Dubai."
And on the nightmare all I could think at the end of the update was "Ella, welcome to Dubai."
- Location
- National Capital Region, USA
[X] Checkpoint garrison
[X] Speed Recruitment of Light Mechs
[X] Patrol rail lines
[X] Recruitment drive
[X] Intrigue Sweep
[X] Contact Neighbours
[X] Pursue Baron Malcolm Adler as an ally
[X] Pursue Obsession - You have to figure out what to do with the visions in your head, and until you do you don't know if you can stop seeing the imagess[/QUOTE]
[X] Speed Recruitment of Light Mechs
[X] Patrol rail lines
[X] Recruitment drive
[X] Intrigue Sweep
[X] Contact Neighbours
[X] Pursue Baron Malcolm Adler as an ally
[X] Pursue Obsession - You have to figure out what to do with the visions in your head, and until you do you don't know if you can stop seeing the imagess[/QUOTE]
[X] Checkpoint garrison
[X] Speed Recruitment of Light Mechs
[X] Patrol rail lines
[X] Recruitment drive
[X] Intrigue Sweep
[X] Contact Neighbours
[X] Pursue Baron Malcolm Adler as an ally
[X] Pursue Obsession - You have to figure out what to do with the visions in your head, and until you do you don't know if you can stop seeing the imagess
[X] Speed Recruitment of Light Mechs
[X] Patrol rail lines
[X] Recruitment drive
[X] Intrigue Sweep
[X] Contact Neighbours
[X] Pursue Baron Malcolm Adler as an ally
[X] Pursue Obsession - You have to figure out what to do with the visions in your head, and until you do you don't know if you can stop seeing the imagess
@Academia Nut What actions would it take for us to become a refuge city, like the British country side was during WW2? I figure we're far enough from anything important that we're not likely to get attacked.
- Pronouns
- He/Him
This sort of thing will come up naturally during the turn.
Aabcehmu
Confusion as a Natural State of Being
- Location
- Aurora, CO
- Pronouns
- Any/All
[X] Patrol rail lines
[X] Checkpoint garrison
[X] Speed Recruitment of Light Mechs (9 Military)
[X] Train Penal Militia
[X] Intrigue Sweep
[X] Contact Neighbours
[X] Pursue Baron Malcolm Adler as an ally
[X] Pursue Obsession
Hey, we picked Read, not Sensation!
[X] Checkpoint garrison
[X] Speed Recruitment of Light Mechs (9 Military)
[X] Train Penal Militia
[X] Intrigue Sweep
[X] Contact Neighbours
[X] Pursue Baron Malcolm Adler as an ally
[X] Pursue Obsession
Hey, we picked Read, not Sensation!
That's something we can definitely offer. Especially because Cultural Diversity is becoming a major thing for us. Getting some Belter flavor in there (And maybe some highly educated technical experts in the process) sounds like a good deal to me.
- Location
- Florida
On rereading the update and author posts, I REALLY hate both the Fraking Mantises and the Belters!
Alectai
Speaks Words of Wisdom... On occasion
Yeah, Mantises are basically the worst possible sort of alien. Bloodlusting monsters that hate you for existing and will go to exceptional lengths to destroy you even to their own detriment.
And now they have the high ground, and will spend all of their time and effort gearing up industry until they can bombard Dandriss until literally nothing is left alive. They won't succeed because Dandriss is scarier than they are, but it's going to be a long way until we can even deny parts of the orbitals to them.
On the plus side, in the original version, Anna was busy working on ground-to-space batteries to break Belter monopolies--I don't see that changing, and we have more industry simply because all of the resources we want can be found by cutting a few trees down or killing dragons or something--while the Mantises coming down here get eaten by the locals.
Them wrecking the database is also a blessing in disguise for us--because guess what? That means they can't salvage it either. They won't get any new technology that they don't already have, and they're barely spacefaring (In the sense they can pull it off only because they're suicidally devoted to expansion at all costs and are willing to gladly throw ships into the void on slowboat trips on the off chance they find a habitable world or other species to exterminate.)
And now they have the high ground, and will spend all of their time and effort gearing up industry until they can bombard Dandriss until literally nothing is left alive. They won't succeed because Dandriss is scarier than they are, but it's going to be a long way until we can even deny parts of the orbitals to them.
On the plus side, in the original version, Anna was busy working on ground-to-space batteries to break Belter monopolies--I don't see that changing, and we have more industry simply because all of the resources we want can be found by cutting a few trees down or killing dragons or something--while the Mantises coming down here get eaten by the locals.
Them wrecking the database is also a blessing in disguise for us--because guess what? That means they can't salvage it either. They won't get any new technology that they don't already have, and they're barely spacefaring (In the sense they can pull it off only because they're suicidally devoted to expansion at all costs and are willing to gladly throw ships into the void on slowboat trips on the off chance they find a habitable world or other species to exterminate.)
Last edited:
Alectai
Speaks Words of Wisdom... On occasion
What I'm trying to say is "Don't panic", the Mantis were always going to win when their main force comes along, and the Belters were always going to die taking the database down with them. Them dying so 'Early' in a way that leaves nothing to salvage means that the advance Mantis force won't get significantly stronger technologically, while we are now in a position where we have to git gud or die, without Belters to fuck us over the moment we start becoming threatening to their monopoly.
Just Xenos.
And we all know what to do with Xenos.
Just Xenos.
And we all know what to do with Xenos.
Powerofmind
In Madness Fallen
- Location
- United States
Yeah, we elect Trump and make them pay for our wall.
- Location
- Florida
Alright, you have a good point. I'm still just bitter that we lost the STC!Expy since us aqcuiring it was one of my primary motivations for joining this quest and Age of Strife. I was so excited to get access to Human made ubertech, but now...I'm sad.
Once we beat the Mantis invasion, if we ever get the chance, can we genocide their species, burn their homeworld to the bedrock and loot their tech?
- Location
- USA
- Pronouns
- He/Him
looting their tech and burning their homeworld to the bedrock might conflict some. I propose we focus on vengeance over progress, personally.
- Location
- USA
- Pronouns
- He/Him
We'll have to see what buildings we're given in our second settlement to see whether that's a viable course for us. The buildup before it's reasonable to start contributing to duchy-level research rather than building up our facilities will put us past the techs you mentioned through Anna's efforts, though, fyi.
Unlocking Chemistry & Materials II so we can (hopefully) make structures capable of handling Great Firestorms and kinetic bombardment may be viable, but... honestly, with the war, I think it's wisest to contribute to a greater project like Vehicle Design IV or Energy Production III, probably after some refinements to aid against a Mantis ground war.
7.2
- Pronouns
- He/Him
[X] Patrol rail lines
[X] Checkpoint garrison
[X] Speed Recruitment of Light Mechs (9 Military) AN: Technically you would decide the amount later under other circumstances, but I know that people are going to want to drop everything they've got into this, so we'll simplify it
[X] Train Penal Militia
[X] Intrigue Sweep
[X] Contact Neighbours
[X] Pursue Baron Malcolm Adler as an ally
[X] Pursue Obsession
While the year started with a bombardment, it rapidly slacked off as the remaining Belter fleets consolidated in orbit around Dandriss and mounted a savage defence of their civilian ships and the only place for their remaining population to retreat to. For their part, the aliens - called the Mantis due to a somewhat superficial resemblance of the species to an order of insects from Earth, albeit the ones attacking were significantly larger - had had fallen back in large part due to running out of ammunition. By all accounts the creatures were less technologically sophisticated than humanity, but in a peculiar twist they had local superiority to the people of Dandriss in a few places. They had a number of refinements to certain technologies - notably energy storage - that humanity had long since left behind due to advances elsewhere - continuing the point, energy production - and the people of Dandriss had subsequently lost due to Starfall. The Mantis primarily used mass drivers, lasers, and missiles tipped with thermonuclear warheads as their weapons of choice, but against the Belters that primarily meant area saturation and accepting a grossly unequal exchange in ships due to the Belters having superior everything in comparison.
The ramming of their home with the original colony ship the Mantis had come into the system with, emptied of anything important except the engines and filled up with fuel and inert matter, had caught them in complacency. A hit anywhere to their asteroid base by that suicide ramming would have been fatal to the continued survival of the facilities, but it had been pure bad luck that the primary habitation complex had been facing the vector the ship came in on during impact. As part of the military briefing there were already suspected analyses of past battles that the Belters hadn't told anyone about that the Mantis had likely picked fights at certain times and places to hide the engine flare of their ram ship as it was sent off to pick up speed by getting the Belters to focus their attention elsewhere. A concerted thermal imaging of deep space would have picked up something, but the aliens were clever enough to keep their foes distracted enough that the incredible effort of doing so had never been considered worthwhile.
For Ella's part she was in Owl's Nest for a massive meeting of everyone important in Green Owl, while Anna and the other bigwigs were off in Blackthorn for a general meeting of the other powers on Dandriss. All the Great Powers would be there, and anyone who could make the trip - either on their own power or convincing someone else to bring them along - would at least get something of a say. Had they still been intact Diamond Dome probably would have received an invite to either Owl's Nest or even Blackthorn. While no one was forgetting their grudges with each other, every leader of the Great Powers had already made statements to the effect that they were all going to be setting aside their grievances for the time being.
If there hadn't already been some forms of petty squabbling and jockeying for position, Ella would eat her helmet. Just because everyone was pointing their guns at the aliens instead of each other didn't mean that people weren't considering how to get advantages for later.
Her biggest meeting before Anna got back was going to be with Baron Adler. She needed his expertise in training and he was also a convenient source of recruits for her light mech squadron. The Knight-Captain was going to the barony and academy directly to make his shortlist selections while Ella bargained with the baron and the duchess over who she actually got assigned.
As for her meeting with the baron, while it had been a few years, he certainly remembered their last encounter, and more than that, he was certainly appreciative of her presence now.
"I only wish you had come to speak with me sooner," Malcolm stated to Ella as they sat in the bar of the hotel lobby, surrounded by other nobles and officers each having their own little discussions.
"Well that's certainly helpful," Ella noted dryly.
Malcolm shrugged and said, "It's true, insomuch that an earlier association between us would have been significantly better for all parties. Not saying I can't or won't help, just that the good that could have been done is significantly dampened by the delay."
Frowning, Ella asked, "So what do you need from me and what can I get in return?"
Folding his hands in his lap and leaning back in his chair, Malcolm said, "I'll send a drill instructors your way for training your 'recruits' - I'm going to be expanding their anyway in the expectation of a massive recruitment push so to a degree I'm counting that as a favour for me since it will open up room for practice - but the chance at using your family connections to further my career has been mostly overshadowed by the opportunities for advancement this war presents. There is, ironically, an opportunity in the near future for the academy that I want to be able to capitalize on."
"Oh? Do tell," Ella asked, intrigued.
Picking up his drink by the rim and lightly swirling the contents, Malcolm stated, "It's not a secret in any way that the duchess is going to be pursuing the recovery of orbital flight so that we can contest the Mantis invasion. It's obviously the next step, and if she were working on anything other than a major aerospace program already she would probably be dropping whatever it was she was doing to do that as quickly as possible. As it is, we're likely still looking at half a decade before we can effectively field significant numbers of assets to be able to contest the orbitals. Some of my researchers have already given me some stopgap proposals like using some of the new microfusion reactor designs to power plasma rockets for anti-satellite missiles, to be fired from the Ukkos, which can already make sub-orbital hops. It's not much, but from the initial bombardment the Mantis apparently have trouble with accurately targeting our cities at long range."
Ella nodded at that and said, "Yeah, I read that report. They suspect that their radar targeting is completely fouled by the local vegetation and they thus have to use optical targeting or laser guidance to do any sort of accurate shots. Need me to pass the idea along?"
Shaking his head, Malcolm replied, "No, no, it's already going to her office, and I'm certain others have already suggested it. No, I'm saying this as a lead in. I'm already using my pull to get the academy expanded to include a flight academy program, making it the second one after Shattersaw, although I suspect the duchess is going to have a third one built in Owl's Nest now that she's no longer making political compromises over in the Shattersaw region. No, what I really need help in is making sure that when your grandmother starts building a space flight academy, I'm the one who gets picked."
"Ambitious," Ella said. "How do I help with that? I mean, I can obviously make it known but..." Ella began.
Malcolm smirked slightly and said, "Well, I can see that you have managed to hold yourself above some of the scrum of noble politics under your grandmother. Has she asked about great-grandkids recently?"
Ella rolled her eyes and said, "Yeah, but I've been rather busy..."
Nodding, Malcolm said, "Yeah, no, what she's actually asking about is 'have you met anyone you trust to tie into the dynasty?' I can see how it would be more invisible to someone who has grown up only really exposed to her brand of doing things, but she uses her adult children as a way of probing for significant individuals. To an extent she actually pays more attention to her male children that way, event though they aren't members of the dynasty. She considers them intrinsically hungrier for allies."
Ella frowned at that and said, "So... you're saying that if I have a kid with you..."
"...that will be considered an implicit sign of trust and respect by Anna and she will consider my proposals much more strongly," Malcolm finished.
Ella frowned. On some level she had known this, she just sort of wanted to cling to other ideals of relationships and having kids, ones that were less clinical and more passionate. It also added to the ugly idea that her own father had somehow been spirited because Anna considered him fundamentally unacceptable and did not want to send a message that he actually was. After a moment of dark brooding she said with a trace of bitter sarcasm, "So if there is anyone whose career I want to advance, I should marry them?"
"Yup," the good baron said with dark cheer.
Considering it, Ella asked, "So if we had a kid together, you would be the one benefiting the most from the deal. So what are you offering in exchange for all of this?"
Leaning back in his chair, Malcolm thought for a moment before he said, "Wellllll... honestly it's stupid, but my wife's side of the family are traditionalists about nobility so that depends on the methods of conception and gestation. She's obviously not a fan of me sleeping around, but if this is done in a way that pleases them I'll have more strings to pull on after. The degree of trust you demonstrate will also help out in convincing your grandmother"
Ella wrinkled her nose somewhat at that. While she certainly wasn't opposed to have sex with the well built, handsome, mature officer - she had already done so!-, the traditions of the nobility held that natural conception and gestation was the best way to carry on a bloodline, with in vitro conception and natural gestation lesser and the use of iron wombs lesser still, with exceptions only really made for medical necessity. Carrying a pregnancy did not particularly appeal to Ella, but she could taste that there was a major opportunity at play here.
"I'm pulling on a lot of strings already, but if you can convince my in-laws that this is a significant thing then I can definitely be able to rebuild some of the bridges that you burned getting that mech squadron of yours in the first place while making sure it gets fully up to strength this year. The less I can convince them of this though, the less I can pull things in your favour," Malcolm stated.
Ella considered this and said, "I will think about it and get back to you relatively soon."
The baron nodded and said, "I would be a bit put off if you rushed into the decision anyway." He then paused as he took a sip of his drink and asked, "I must know, what is this?"
"It's something the ex-nomads who joined Razorleaf make. Not quite as good as some of the more exotic fair you can only get in Indigo Hammer or by plane transport, but certainly something different from the norm. There have been some suggesting I push for greater involvement by the Indigo Hammer people in working with the South Woods traders to make contacts with their relatives and bring in more rare materials," Ella stated.
For the baron's suggestion...
[] Natural conception and gestation (Mech squadron topped off to full, Military influence expended refunded, increased chance of fulfilling baron's ambitions later, chance of annoying the baron's wife, chance of failing to conceive this year, chance of complications)
[] In vitro conception, natural gestation (Mech squadron topped off to full, guaranteed conception, small chance of complications)
[] Iron womb conception and gestation (4 Military Influence spent on replenishing mechs refunded, guaranteed conception, no complications, decreased chance of fulfilling the baron's ambitions later)
[] Decline the offer of a reproduction contract, seek other means of influence building (0.5x)
Back in Razorleaf
[] Have the ex-nomads focus on working with the trading post to bring in more exotic goods (+1 Science Influence, retroactive)
[] Wait for another opportunity
AN: IH Enclave gives the following support bonuses currently
Trading Post: +1 Science
Factory: +1 Military
Entertainment Complex: +2 Culture
[X] Checkpoint garrison
[X] Speed Recruitment of Light Mechs (9 Military) AN: Technically you would decide the amount later under other circumstances, but I know that people are going to want to drop everything they've got into this, so we'll simplify it
[X] Train Penal Militia
[X] Intrigue Sweep
[X] Contact Neighbours
[X] Pursue Baron Malcolm Adler as an ally
[X] Pursue Obsession
Mantis 28 + 30 = 58
Belter Remnant (100/100) 31 + 60 = 91
Minimal damage to Dandriss, Mantis -10 next year
Attrition 18 -> Belters (82/100)
AN: Because of the destruction of their facilities, the Belters are now suffering attrition that will cap their rolls. Every turn, win or lose, they suffer an exploding d10 that saps their strength. If they roll higher than their current strength, they default to that value (i.e. if next year they rolled a 96 they would default to 82). If they suffer a penalty then the year after the loss the penalty is converted to attrition (so if next year they tie with the Mantis they would have a -5 in the year after that, and the year after that round the -5 would be subtracted from their current strength). If the Belters roll a 100 the value is still defaulted (so the 100 counts as their strength), but it also still explodes, and they also do not suffer the regular d10 attrition that year. If they roll a 1 with strength above 50 then they lose their commodore and have their command rating downgraded to +40 instead of +60, take 2d10 attrition, and likely suffer a massive number of penalties that will likely render them defunct within the next two years after the disaster. If they suffer a roll of a 1 with their strength below 50, their fleet is annihilated. Once the Belters are at 0 strength the mantis are free to conduct orbital bombardment without being contested by them.
For every Great Power that gains the ability to do meaningful orbital insertions, the die for attrition is reduced one step (d10->d8->d6->d4->d2), and it also puts a floor on how low the Belters can go from standard attrition equal to 10X#of other Great Powers in space. Conversion of penalties to attrition still eats away at their strength. Attrition is also reduced by half if the mantis fleet is unable to operate for a year.
The mantis currently regenerate damage at -5 a year (next year they fight at -10, the year after at -5+any penalties they might have taken from the previous year, and so on and so forth). This rate will go up with time as the mantis construct further industry throughout the star system. If the penalty exceeds their commander bonus (currently +30) the fleet is inoperable until it rises above that value.
Belter Remnant (100/100) 31 + 60 = 91
Minimal damage to Dandriss, Mantis -10 next year
Attrition 18 -> Belters (82/100)
AN: Because of the destruction of their facilities, the Belters are now suffering attrition that will cap their rolls. Every turn, win or lose, they suffer an exploding d10 that saps their strength. If they roll higher than their current strength, they default to that value (i.e. if next year they rolled a 96 they would default to 82). If they suffer a penalty then the year after the loss the penalty is converted to attrition (so if next year they tie with the Mantis they would have a -5 in the year after that, and the year after that round the -5 would be subtracted from their current strength). If the Belters roll a 100 the value is still defaulted (so the 100 counts as their strength), but it also still explodes, and they also do not suffer the regular d10 attrition that year. If they roll a 1 with strength above 50 then they lose their commodore and have their command rating downgraded to +40 instead of +60, take 2d10 attrition, and likely suffer a massive number of penalties that will likely render them defunct within the next two years after the disaster. If they suffer a roll of a 1 with their strength below 50, their fleet is annihilated. Once the Belters are at 0 strength the mantis are free to conduct orbital bombardment without being contested by them.
For every Great Power that gains the ability to do meaningful orbital insertions, the die for attrition is reduced one step (d10->d8->d6->d4->d2), and it also puts a floor on how low the Belters can go from standard attrition equal to 10X#of other Great Powers in space. Conversion of penalties to attrition still eats away at their strength. Attrition is also reduced by half if the mantis fleet is unable to operate for a year.
The mantis currently regenerate damage at -5 a year (next year they fight at -10, the year after at -5+any penalties they might have taken from the previous year, and so on and so forth). This rate will go up with time as the mantis construct further industry throughout the star system. If the penalty exceeds their commander bonus (currently +30) the fleet is inoperable until it rises above that value.
While the year started with a bombardment, it rapidly slacked off as the remaining Belter fleets consolidated in orbit around Dandriss and mounted a savage defence of their civilian ships and the only place for their remaining population to retreat to. For their part, the aliens - called the Mantis due to a somewhat superficial resemblance of the species to an order of insects from Earth, albeit the ones attacking were significantly larger - had had fallen back in large part due to running out of ammunition. By all accounts the creatures were less technologically sophisticated than humanity, but in a peculiar twist they had local superiority to the people of Dandriss in a few places. They had a number of refinements to certain technologies - notably energy storage - that humanity had long since left behind due to advances elsewhere - continuing the point, energy production - and the people of Dandriss had subsequently lost due to Starfall. The Mantis primarily used mass drivers, lasers, and missiles tipped with thermonuclear warheads as their weapons of choice, but against the Belters that primarily meant area saturation and accepting a grossly unequal exchange in ships due to the Belters having superior everything in comparison.
The ramming of their home with the original colony ship the Mantis had come into the system with, emptied of anything important except the engines and filled up with fuel and inert matter, had caught them in complacency. A hit anywhere to their asteroid base by that suicide ramming would have been fatal to the continued survival of the facilities, but it had been pure bad luck that the primary habitation complex had been facing the vector the ship came in on during impact. As part of the military briefing there were already suspected analyses of past battles that the Belters hadn't told anyone about that the Mantis had likely picked fights at certain times and places to hide the engine flare of their ram ship as it was sent off to pick up speed by getting the Belters to focus their attention elsewhere. A concerted thermal imaging of deep space would have picked up something, but the aliens were clever enough to keep their foes distracted enough that the incredible effort of doing so had never been considered worthwhile.
For Ella's part she was in Owl's Nest for a massive meeting of everyone important in Green Owl, while Anna and the other bigwigs were off in Blackthorn for a general meeting of the other powers on Dandriss. All the Great Powers would be there, and anyone who could make the trip - either on their own power or convincing someone else to bring them along - would at least get something of a say. Had they still been intact Diamond Dome probably would have received an invite to either Owl's Nest or even Blackthorn. While no one was forgetting their grudges with each other, every leader of the Great Powers had already made statements to the effect that they were all going to be setting aside their grievances for the time being.
If there hadn't already been some forms of petty squabbling and jockeying for position, Ella would eat her helmet. Just because everyone was pointing their guns at the aliens instead of each other didn't mean that people weren't considering how to get advantages for later.
Her biggest meeting before Anna got back was going to be with Baron Adler. She needed his expertise in training and he was also a convenient source of recruits for her light mech squadron. The Knight-Captain was going to the barony and academy directly to make his shortlist selections while Ella bargained with the baron and the duchess over who she actually got assigned.
As for her meeting with the baron, while it had been a few years, he certainly remembered their last encounter, and more than that, he was certainly appreciative of her presence now.
"I only wish you had come to speak with me sooner," Malcolm stated to Ella as they sat in the bar of the hotel lobby, surrounded by other nobles and officers each having their own little discussions.
"Well that's certainly helpful," Ella noted dryly.
Malcolm shrugged and said, "It's true, insomuch that an earlier association between us would have been significantly better for all parties. Not saying I can't or won't help, just that the good that could have been done is significantly dampened by the delay."
Frowning, Ella asked, "So what do you need from me and what can I get in return?"
Folding his hands in his lap and leaning back in his chair, Malcolm said, "I'll send a drill instructors your way for training your 'recruits' - I'm going to be expanding their anyway in the expectation of a massive recruitment push so to a degree I'm counting that as a favour for me since it will open up room for practice - but the chance at using your family connections to further my career has been mostly overshadowed by the opportunities for advancement this war presents. There is, ironically, an opportunity in the near future for the academy that I want to be able to capitalize on."
"Oh? Do tell," Ella asked, intrigued.
Picking up his drink by the rim and lightly swirling the contents, Malcolm stated, "It's not a secret in any way that the duchess is going to be pursuing the recovery of orbital flight so that we can contest the Mantis invasion. It's obviously the next step, and if she were working on anything other than a major aerospace program already she would probably be dropping whatever it was she was doing to do that as quickly as possible. As it is, we're likely still looking at half a decade before we can effectively field significant numbers of assets to be able to contest the orbitals. Some of my researchers have already given me some stopgap proposals like using some of the new microfusion reactor designs to power plasma rockets for anti-satellite missiles, to be fired from the Ukkos, which can already make sub-orbital hops. It's not much, but from the initial bombardment the Mantis apparently have trouble with accurately targeting our cities at long range."
Ella nodded at that and said, "Yeah, I read that report. They suspect that their radar targeting is completely fouled by the local vegetation and they thus have to use optical targeting or laser guidance to do any sort of accurate shots. Need me to pass the idea along?"
Shaking his head, Malcolm replied, "No, no, it's already going to her office, and I'm certain others have already suggested it. No, I'm saying this as a lead in. I'm already using my pull to get the academy expanded to include a flight academy program, making it the second one after Shattersaw, although I suspect the duchess is going to have a third one built in Owl's Nest now that she's no longer making political compromises over in the Shattersaw region. No, what I really need help in is making sure that when your grandmother starts building a space flight academy, I'm the one who gets picked."
"Ambitious," Ella said. "How do I help with that? I mean, I can obviously make it known but..." Ella began.
Malcolm smirked slightly and said, "Well, I can see that you have managed to hold yourself above some of the scrum of noble politics under your grandmother. Has she asked about great-grandkids recently?"
Ella rolled her eyes and said, "Yeah, but I've been rather busy..."
Nodding, Malcolm said, "Yeah, no, what she's actually asking about is 'have you met anyone you trust to tie into the dynasty?' I can see how it would be more invisible to someone who has grown up only really exposed to her brand of doing things, but she uses her adult children as a way of probing for significant individuals. To an extent she actually pays more attention to her male children that way, event though they aren't members of the dynasty. She considers them intrinsically hungrier for allies."
Ella frowned at that and said, "So... you're saying that if I have a kid with you..."
"...that will be considered an implicit sign of trust and respect by Anna and she will consider my proposals much more strongly," Malcolm finished.
Ella frowned. On some level she had known this, she just sort of wanted to cling to other ideals of relationships and having kids, ones that were less clinical and more passionate. It also added to the ugly idea that her own father had somehow been spirited because Anna considered him fundamentally unacceptable and did not want to send a message that he actually was. After a moment of dark brooding she said with a trace of bitter sarcasm, "So if there is anyone whose career I want to advance, I should marry them?"
"Yup," the good baron said with dark cheer.
Considering it, Ella asked, "So if we had a kid together, you would be the one benefiting the most from the deal. So what are you offering in exchange for all of this?"
Leaning back in his chair, Malcolm thought for a moment before he said, "Wellllll... honestly it's stupid, but my wife's side of the family are traditionalists about nobility so that depends on the methods of conception and gestation. She's obviously not a fan of me sleeping around, but if this is done in a way that pleases them I'll have more strings to pull on after. The degree of trust you demonstrate will also help out in convincing your grandmother"
Ella wrinkled her nose somewhat at that. While she certainly wasn't opposed to have sex with the well built, handsome, mature officer - she had already done so!-, the traditions of the nobility held that natural conception and gestation was the best way to carry on a bloodline, with in vitro conception and natural gestation lesser and the use of iron wombs lesser still, with exceptions only really made for medical necessity. Carrying a pregnancy did not particularly appeal to Ella, but she could taste that there was a major opportunity at play here.
"I'm pulling on a lot of strings already, but if you can convince my in-laws that this is a significant thing then I can definitely be able to rebuild some of the bridges that you burned getting that mech squadron of yours in the first place while making sure it gets fully up to strength this year. The less I can convince them of this though, the less I can pull things in your favour," Malcolm stated.
Ella considered this and said, "I will think about it and get back to you relatively soon."
The baron nodded and said, "I would be a bit put off if you rushed into the decision anyway." He then paused as he took a sip of his drink and asked, "I must know, what is this?"
"It's something the ex-nomads who joined Razorleaf make. Not quite as good as some of the more exotic fair you can only get in Indigo Hammer or by plane transport, but certainly something different from the norm. There have been some suggesting I push for greater involvement by the Indigo Hammer people in working with the South Woods traders to make contacts with their relatives and bring in more rare materials," Ella stated.
For the baron's suggestion...
[] Natural conception and gestation (Mech squadron topped off to full, Military influence expended refunded, increased chance of fulfilling baron's ambitions later, chance of annoying the baron's wife, chance of failing to conceive this year, chance of complications)
[] In vitro conception, natural gestation (Mech squadron topped off to full, guaranteed conception, small chance of complications)
[] Iron womb conception and gestation (4 Military Influence spent on replenishing mechs refunded, guaranteed conception, no complications, decreased chance of fulfilling the baron's ambitions later)
[] Decline the offer of a reproduction contract, seek other means of influence building (0.5x)
Back in Razorleaf
[] Have the ex-nomads focus on working with the trading post to bring in more exotic goods (+1 Science Influence, retroactive)
[] Wait for another opportunity
AN: IH Enclave gives the following support bonuses currently
Trading Post: +1 Science
Factory: +1 Military
Entertainment Complex: +2 Culture
- Pronouns
- He/Him
You got a Hab and 19 more open spots to build in.
The war will effectively be over before you can research Chemistry & Materials II ahead of Anna. I am including the fact that she will be pursuing vehicle techs well before that. You currently produce 5 Science a turn and its 1000 Science project, and you can't convert culture or economy to science currently.
[x] Have the ex-nomads focus on working with the trading post to bring in more exotic goods (+1 Science Influence, retroactive)
This. So very much this.
Edit: Adding in
[x] Natural conception and gestation (Mech squadron topped off to full, Military influence expended refunded, increased chance of fulfilling baron's ambitions later, chance of annoying the baron's wife, chance of failing to conceive this year, chance of complications)
This. So very much this.
Edit: Adding in
[x] Natural conception and gestation (Mech squadron topped off to full, Military influence expended refunded, increased chance of fulfilling baron's ambitions later, chance of annoying the baron's wife, chance of failing to conceive this year, chance of complications)
Last edited:
notanautomaton
I've got 99 quests, I've finished one
[x] Natural conception and gestation (Mech squadron topped off to full, Military influence expended refunded, increased chance of fulfilling baron's ambitions later, chance of annoying the baron's wife, chance of failing to conceive this year, chance of complications)
[x] Have the ex-nomads focus on working with the trading post to bring in more exotic goods (+1 Science Influence, retroactive)
[x] Have the ex-nomads focus on working with the trading post to bring in more exotic goods (+1 Science Influence, retroactive)