It is the eighteen hundredth year of the Human Diaspora, and the shadow of war once against...
The Falcon and The Tiger
- Thread starter Thermidor
- Start date
- Original
- Created
- Status
- Ongoing
- Watchers
- 34
- Recent readers
- 0
- Threadmarks
- 7
-
Statistics (4 threadmarks, 5k words)
User Total Thermidor 4 -
Loading…
-
Loading…
I - Faction Selection
It is the eighteen hundredth year of the Human Diaspora, and the shadow of war once against looms over the islands of civilization.
The Second Expansion Sphere is one of the oldest of these islands. Connected directly to the worlds of Old Earth via wormhole and colonized near the dawn of interstellar travel, it is home to trillions of lives spread amongst thousands of stars. It has also known war on a scale rarely seen in human history.
On one side stands a vast Empire, the original polity of the Second Sphere and an immense neo-feudal network of tributary states and nobility. Opposing them is an alliance of disparate states, forced to band together in the face of a greater threat.
For over three hundred years they have warred over the wormhole termini: whoever hold them controls not only all trade into the Second Sphere, but could also slowly strangle their enemy of resources and allies.
And now, thirty years after their last devastating conflict, the stage has been set for a new generation of actors: the Emperor has passed and the Border States have once again become the subjects of proxy wars and disputes. The Empire looks towards its Outer Ring allies, while Earth and the Origin Sphere watch on impassively, occupied with building their utopia at home.
It is into this world that you, a young flag officer, have found yourself come into your first command posting along the frontier between these two nations.
But, who do you serve?
[] Union of the Southern Cross. You hail from one of the many signatory worlds which banned together to defend themselves from Imperial Megacorps. Originally a mutual defense treaty, the Union has slowly grown in the three hundred years since its creation into something which resembles a federated state. With an entire generation bled dry in the last disastrous conflict, the Union watches with trepidation as the newly crowned Empress turns her gaze towards its borders once more.
[] Concordance of Torfan. You serve one of the Hundred Halls of the Great Concordance of Torfan. The largest government of the Ninth Expansion Sphere, the Concordance maintains a fairly sizeable enclave around both termini of the wormhole to their main space. Nominally an ally of the Empire and one of its primary trading partners, your country did not officially participate in the most recent war with the Union. It did however, provide covert support in the form of favorable trade deals and mercenaries.
[] New Titan. You represent a nation of former mining colonies and marginal worlds abandoned by their corporate sponsors once they were stripped of easily accessible resources. New Titan was one of several smaller states created as a buffer between the Union and the Empire when the Treaty of Picard Station was signed thirty years ago, and while it trades with both powers, considers itself more politically and temperamentally aligned with the Union.
Pros: New Titan has a well-motivated and experienced military, with equipment from both major powers. While on the border with the Empire, it is unlikely they would bear the brunt of any major conflict. Piracy, disputes with their neighbors and repeated treaty violations have left New Titan with an experienced, if small, force.
Cons: As a primarily defensive navy, New Titan does not have the fueling network or other support elements necessary for sustained offensive action without support from other states. With a far smaller industrial base, every ship lost is far more keenly felt. Does not have the ability to build or realistically field heavy ships in significant numbers.
The Second Expansion Sphere is one of the oldest of these islands. Connected directly to the worlds of Old Earth via wormhole and colonized near the dawn of interstellar travel, it is home to trillions of lives spread amongst thousands of stars. It has also known war on a scale rarely seen in human history.
On one side stands a vast Empire, the original polity of the Second Sphere and an immense neo-feudal network of tributary states and nobility. Opposing them is an alliance of disparate states, forced to band together in the face of a greater threat.
For over three hundred years they have warred over the wormhole termini: whoever hold them controls not only all trade into the Second Sphere, but could also slowly strangle their enemy of resources and allies.
And now, thirty years after their last devastating conflict, the stage has been set for a new generation of actors: the Emperor has passed and the Border States have once again become the subjects of proxy wars and disputes. The Empire looks towards its Outer Ring allies, while Earth and the Origin Sphere watch on impassively, occupied with building their utopia at home.
It is into this world that you, a young flag officer, have found yourself come into your first command posting along the frontier between these two nations.
But, who do you serve?
=\\//=
[] The Great and Bountiful Empire of Sagittarius. You serve the sprawling feudal polity which first settled the Second Sphere. With two additional wormholes under its control, the Empire has a well-developed network of trading partners and allies in multiple Expansion Spheres. The death of the previous Emperor has left the twin questions of the growing power of the nobility and house militaries and the status of the peace treaty signed with the Union following the most recent major conflict.
Pros: The Empire has the single largest military of all the Second Sphere powers, and definite unit superiority in terms of heavy ships. Imperial officers have extensive genetic and cybernetic enhancements. The Empire's network of tributary states, along with access to two wormhole termini ensures continued material production.
Cons: The politics of the Empire are byzantine and provincial, increasing the difficulty of national level coordination and giving noble officers the ability to countermand their counterparts with ease. A sizeable portion of the Imperial Navy and Army must constantly be deployed to counterbalance various noble fleets and conduct police actions.
Cons: The politics of the Empire are byzantine and provincial, increasing the difficulty of national level coordination and giving noble officers the ability to countermand their counterparts with ease. A sizeable portion of the Imperial Navy and Army must constantly be deployed to counterbalance various noble fleets and conduct police actions.
[] Union of the Southern Cross. You hail from one of the many signatory worlds which banned together to defend themselves from Imperial Megacorps. Originally a mutual defense treaty, the Union has slowly grown in the three hundred years since its creation into something which resembles a federated state. With an entire generation bled dry in the last disastrous conflict, the Union watches with trepidation as the newly crowned Empress turns her gaze towards its borders once more.
Pros: While smaller than its Imperial counterpart, the Union has better strategic astrography and possesses superior light and cruiser weight ships. The Union's crown jewel is the wormhole to Earth and the Origin Sphere, granting additional trade benefits and allowing the purchase of limited amounts of Terran technology. The Union militaries have better coordination and crew training than that of the Empire.
Cons: Their pyrrhic victory in the last war gutted the Union's officer corps at almost all levels, meaning that most of the current crop has minimal combat expertise outside fighting pirates or the Imperial aligned Border States. While a significant benefit, the Terran wormhole is less than two weeks' travel from the Imperial border, and would be a vulnerable target in any renewed conflict. Alliance officers are not augmented to the same degree as their Imperial or Concordance counterparts.
Cons: Their pyrrhic victory in the last war gutted the Union's officer corps at almost all levels, meaning that most of the current crop has minimal combat expertise outside fighting pirates or the Imperial aligned Border States. While a significant benefit, the Terran wormhole is less than two weeks' travel from the Imperial border, and would be a vulnerable target in any renewed conflict. Alliance officers are not augmented to the same degree as their Imperial or Concordance counterparts.
[] Concordance of Torfan. You serve one of the Hundred Halls of the Great Concordance of Torfan. The largest government of the Ninth Expansion Sphere, the Concordance maintains a fairly sizeable enclave around both termini of the wormhole to their main space. Nominally an ally of the Empire and one of its primary trading partners, your country did not officially participate in the most recent war with the Union. It did however, provide covert support in the form of favorable trade deals and mercenaries.
Pros: Designed for the less densely populated space of the Ninth Sphere, Concordance ships are faster and more maneuverable than their Second Sphere counterparts, at the cost of some armor. In addition, the Concordance has more veteran officers, due to allowing seconding to other navies at half-pay. Since its homeland is beyond a wormhole, there are fewer valuable targets for enemies to strike in the Second Sphere.
Cons: With the majority of the Concordance on the other side of a wormhole, there is a fairly severe supply bottleneck facing it. While it has a capable officer corps and domestic ship designs, the Corcordance's military is a peacetime one. Since any war in the Second Sphere would primarily be between the Union and the Empire, the home front will be more casualty sensitive than those two polities.
Cons: With the majority of the Concordance on the other side of a wormhole, there is a fairly severe supply bottleneck facing it. While it has a capable officer corps and domestic ship designs, the Corcordance's military is a peacetime one. Since any war in the Second Sphere would primarily be between the Union and the Empire, the home front will be more casualty sensitive than those two polities.
[] New Titan. You represent a nation of former mining colonies and marginal worlds abandoned by their corporate sponsors once they were stripped of easily accessible resources. New Titan was one of several smaller states created as a buffer between the Union and the Empire when the Treaty of Picard Station was signed thirty years ago, and while it trades with both powers, considers itself more politically and temperamentally aligned with the Union.
Pros: New Titan has a well-motivated and experienced military, with equipment from both major powers. While on the border with the Empire, it is unlikely they would bear the brunt of any major conflict. Piracy, disputes with their neighbors and repeated treaty violations have left New Titan with an experienced, if small, force.
Cons: As a primarily defensive navy, New Titan does not have the fueling network or other support elements necessary for sustained offensive action without support from other states. With a far smaller industrial base, every ship lost is far more keenly felt. Does not have the ability to build or realistically field heavy ships in significant numbers.
=\\//=
So, I made another quest (which is totally not inspired by LOGH, I promise 
).
Basic stats can be found below, with setting details to be updated.
As usual, please ask any questions you may have. Comments and critiques are also encouraged.
).Basic stats can be found below, with setting details to be updated.
As usual, please ask any questions you may have. Comments and critiques are also encouraged.
i - Setting Details and Documentation
Statistics and Status Info
Game Overview:
Character Stats:
Each admiral has six stats which govern their performance in the campaign. For the player, their stats are governed by their background, which will be chosen in the second part of character creation. These range from 0 to 20.
Tactics: Governs results in individual battles, and can influence the success of more complex strategies.
Strategy: This stat covers strategic movement and logistical planning, such as consolidating fleets and moving supplies.
Charisma: Charisma affects how quickly fleets gain or lose morale. In addition, officers with high Charisma provide small bonuses to the actions of the fleet which they are present in.
Intrigue: Intrigue governs intelligence and subterfuge, both finding and analyzing intelligence and coordinating or defending against espionage.
Politics: Governs the ability of the officer to navigate political circles both within and outside the navy. High Politics can increase the amount of Political Capital gained from occupying important systems, in addition to improving the chances of acquiring reinforcements using said points.
Martial: The martial stat governs the admirals' performance in more personal forms of combat, such as marksmanship and hand to hand combat. Should your ship be boarded, or should you choose to lead boarding troops from the front, this skill will be used during the turn instead of the Tactics skill.
Fleet Stats:
Each fleet has two stats which represent their current ability to fight. When a fleet reaches 0 Strength, that fleet is destroyed and removed from play for the remainder of the campaign. When a fleet reaches 0% Morale, it will retreat to the nearest friendly shipyard or fortress and become unusable until its morale rises above 25%.
Strength: Numerical strength of the fleet, relative indicator of overall health. This stat is displayed as the total number of ships in the fleet (excluding fighters). Strength can be improved either through returning a fleet to a friendly shipyard, or by consolidating fleets in the field. Note that the latter option generates a temporary penalty to fleet effectiveness as the two chains of command are properly integrated.
Morale: Other indicator of overall health. A fleet with low morale is more likely to retreat, and low morale can also result in penalties rolls which involve it. This stat is displayed as a percentage. Morale can be improved either through success in battle, or by resting a fleet in a star system controlled by allied forces.
Speed: Indicates the speed of a given fleet, both at FTL and in real space.
Firepower: Indicator of overall firepower and damage output of a given fleet.
Crew: An indicator of the relative skill and experience of a given fleet. More experienced crews loose morale less quickly than their peers, and can gain bonuses on their rolls.
Resources:
Political Capital: Political Capital measures your relative political position within your nation. It can be lost or gained for helping powerful figures (or looking the other way for them). This resource can then be expended on favors or requests, such as additional ships or reassigning officers outside of the normal course of duty. Your amount of political capital can also passively affect priority of supplies and other items.
Intel Points: Representing their combined intelligence assets, you will receive an allotment of Intel Points at the beginning of each strategic turn. These may be expended to receive expanded dossiers on individual enemy units and systems, including unit strength, commander information, and comparisons with your own units. Note that unlike Political Capital, Intel is time sensitive, meaning that points do not roll over between strategic turns.
Unique Resource: Each of the playable nations also has a unique resource. This will be expounded upon after initial faction voting is completed.
=\\//=
Character Stats:
Each admiral has six stats which govern their performance in the campaign. For the player, their stats are governed by their background, which will be chosen in the second part of character creation. These range from 0 to 20.
Tactics: Governs results in individual battles, and can influence the success of more complex strategies.
Strategy: This stat covers strategic movement and logistical planning, such as consolidating fleets and moving supplies.
Charisma: Charisma affects how quickly fleets gain or lose morale. In addition, officers with high Charisma provide small bonuses to the actions of the fleet which they are present in.
Intrigue: Intrigue governs intelligence and subterfuge, both finding and analyzing intelligence and coordinating or defending against espionage.
Politics: Governs the ability of the officer to navigate political circles both within and outside the navy. High Politics can increase the amount of Political Capital gained from occupying important systems, in addition to improving the chances of acquiring reinforcements using said points.
Martial: The martial stat governs the admirals' performance in more personal forms of combat, such as marksmanship and hand to hand combat. Should your ship be boarded, or should you choose to lead boarding troops from the front, this skill will be used during the turn instead of the Tactics skill.
=\\//=
Fleet Stats:
Each fleet has two stats which represent their current ability to fight. When a fleet reaches 0 Strength, that fleet is destroyed and removed from play for the remainder of the campaign. When a fleet reaches 0% Morale, it will retreat to the nearest friendly shipyard or fortress and become unusable until its morale rises above 25%.
Strength: Numerical strength of the fleet, relative indicator of overall health. This stat is displayed as the total number of ships in the fleet (excluding fighters). Strength can be improved either through returning a fleet to a friendly shipyard, or by consolidating fleets in the field. Note that the latter option generates a temporary penalty to fleet effectiveness as the two chains of command are properly integrated.
Morale: Other indicator of overall health. A fleet with low morale is more likely to retreat, and low morale can also result in penalties rolls which involve it. This stat is displayed as a percentage. Morale can be improved either through success in battle, or by resting a fleet in a star system controlled by allied forces.
Speed: Indicates the speed of a given fleet, both at FTL and in real space.
Firepower: Indicator of overall firepower and damage output of a given fleet.
Crew: An indicator of the relative skill and experience of a given fleet. More experienced crews loose morale less quickly than their peers, and can gain bonuses on their rolls.
=\\//=
Resources:
Political Capital: Political Capital measures your relative political position within your nation. It can be lost or gained for helping powerful figures (or looking the other way for them). This resource can then be expended on favors or requests, such as additional ships or reassigning officers outside of the normal course of duty. Your amount of political capital can also passively affect priority of supplies and other items.
Intel Points: Representing their combined intelligence assets, you will receive an allotment of Intel Points at the beginning of each strategic turn. These may be expended to receive expanded dossiers on individual enemy units and systems, including unit strength, commander information, and comparisons with your own units. Note that unlike Political Capital, Intel is time sensitive, meaning that points do not roll over between strategic turns.
Unique Resource: Each of the playable nations also has a unique resource. This will be expounded upon after initial faction voting is completed.
Last edited:
- Location
- St. Petersburg
[x] Concordance of Torfan
How familiar are you with You Are: A sector admiral of a strained imperium?
Last edited:
- Location
- Sydney
[X] The Great and Bountiful Empire of Sagittarius.
[X] New Titan
[X] Union of the Southern Cross
Terran Imperium
[French]
- Location
- Southern France
[X] The Great and Bountiful Empire of Sagittarius
For the Empire!
For the Empire!
- Location
- nz
[X] Union of the Southern Cross.
- Location
- yorkshire
[X] New Titan
[X] The Great and Bountiful Empire of Sagittarius
- Location
- Philippines
[X] Concordance of Torfan. You serve one of the Hundred Halls of the Great Concordance of Torfan. The largest government of the Ninth Expansion Sphere, the Concordance maintains a fairly sizeable enclave around both termini of the wormhole to their main space. Nominally an ally of the Empire and one of its primary trading partners, your country did not officially participate in the most recent war with the Union. It did however, provide covert support in the form of favorable trade deals and mercenaries.
This guys seems to me to be the US while the Empire and the Union are the Axis and Allies while new Titan are those minor nations caught in between those two military behemoths. What is the government of Torfan is it a republic or a federation.
While they are a nominal ally of the empire and having a peacetime economy how strong can they be if they mobilized for war.
This guys seems to me to be the US while the Empire and the Union are the Axis and Allies while new Titan are those minor nations caught in between those two military behemoths. What is the government of Torfan is it a republic or a federation.
While they are a nominal ally of the empire and having a peacetime economy how strong can they be if they mobilized for war.
Fezzes
Knight of King Stannis Baratheon
- Location
- Sydney, Australia
[X] New Titan.
Ah yes, the small but experienced force of people abandoned by their wealthy overlords. Bonus points if we call ourselves Malcolm Reynolds.
Ah yes, the small but experienced force of people abandoned by their wealthy overlords. Bonus points if we call ourselves Malcolm Reynolds.
Maybe, except here the "United States" supports the "Axis".
- Location
- Philippines
Yeah, hope they don't intervene in the end.
ThatGuyWithIdeas
Treize died for our sins
- Location
- Romania
[X] New Titan.
- Location
- Sydney
You may be correct, but I don't see any reason for your comparison.
"This guys seems to me to be the US" What makes you think they are like the United States of America?
"the Empire and the Union are the Axis and Allies" Why do you think the Empire = Axis and Union = Allies? It could just as easily be Empire = USA and Union = USSR.
"What is the government of Torfan is it a republic or a federation." I'm curious about what kind of government it is as well. I have only ever seen (in fiction) the word Concordance (government) as a theocratic or clan based government. It would be interesting to have Torfan be a religious government (like Vatican city), but the phrase "You serve one of the Hundred Halls" suggests it is more likely to be a collection of clans, with the character as the Admiral of one of those clan's fleet. That would also explain why they did not get involved in the last war (most of the clan chiefs voted against involvement) and why they support the Empire over the Union (the Empire's feudal government is similar to theirs).
"having a peacetime economy how strong can they be if they mobilized for war." They might become weaker if they mobilized for war. Australia has a peacetime economy and is "less densely populated" like Torfan, but Australia cannot really challenge any other country even mobilized for war.
- Location
- Philippines
I was basing it on the fact that they seem to be outsiders who have a wildcard like potential that can tip the balance in case of conflict. They are also relatively safe from any repercussions and are worrying only of casualties and not territorial losses.
Based on the the fact that the Union are a mutual defense treaty which the allies are kinda are and the Empire being highly aggressive expansionist seeking to expand their territory like the axis.
True but the fact that they are the largest government in the Ninth Sphere means they at least control a significant amount of that sphere meaning they have access to the majority of resources in that sphere unless they are really incompetent they could theoretically could mobilize a large force that can assist the Empire if they decided to commit forces. However that is only guessing unless we get more solid info then I would not dismiss them yet.
- Location
- Sydney
"outsiders who have a wildcard like potential that can tip the balance in case of conflict" How can they 'tip the balance' any more than the other nations? It is Empire and mini-ally (Torfan) versus Union and mini-ally(New Titan). Sure they could defect to supporting the Union, but New Titan could defect to support the Empire.
"They are also relatively safe from any repercussions and are worrying only of casualties and not territorial losses." Not quite. They control both ends of the only wormhole connecting the Second and Ninth Expansion Spheres. They can blockade the end in the Ninth Sphere, and easily protect their home territory. But their enclave in the Second Sphere is vulnerable, and that is a territorial loss they cannot afford.
"the Union are a mutual defense treaty which the allies are kinda are" A mutual defence treaty that now resembles a federal state (the allies did not federate at all). And a mutual defence treaty against Imperial Megacorps, which is more similar to the Axis powers motivation than the Allies.
"the Empire being highly aggressive expansionist seeking to expand their territory like the axis" The Empire is not a highly aggressive expansionist nation, it is the "sprawling feudal polity which first settled the Second Sphere". The Empire is seeking to reclaim it's worlds, not to expand. The Empire "has a well-developed network of trading partners and allies in multiple Expansion Spheres". The Empire is a diplomatic and trade based nation, with corrupt mega-corporations and nobles.
"they could theoretically could mobilize a large force that can assist the Empire if they decided to commit forces" That strongly depends on how much resources they have, all we know is "less densely populated space of the Ninth Sphere" which means they probably lack the manpower to create that large force.