7-3: Mercenary Business
4WheelSword
The original N-body Problem
- Pronouns
- It/She/They
Based on this intelligence report, how should we proceed with diplomacy with the Aslan: Continue to negotiate trade agreements and work to establish safe ports in Xyri and Keoiri.
Where should the MIC focus their efforts next? Assess the people of Xyri, their governments and whether there should be concern over how quiet they have been.
In these deep data banks, these treasure troves, we find enough information to advance our knowledge of (choose two): Enhanced Starship-grade Weapons, Improved Plant Efficiencies
Diplomatic Consequences
While there is a tremor of frustration that runs through the HSWS at the news that relations with the Aslan will continue to be normalised - and solely on human concepts of normality - it is a tremor that is isolated to some of the more marginal influences on the central power structures. A fascination with Aslan duelling practices is commonplace as knowledge of them becomes more widespread, the information that these duels can range from fights to the death between individuals to system-spanning duels between warships has sparked the imaginations of magazine and novel writers and we are already seeing a churn of schlock regarding this 'noble warrior race'. Nonetheless, the longer ranged Aslan trade ships will fly between Keoiri and Xyri with ease, bringing remarkable goods and advanced technologies for sale and our own merchants will join them in time, with holds half full of vital fuels.
It is expected that this trade will bring our people closer together, and we can expected some level of migration between our two polities. We can expect some unmarried Aslan to come to Home seeking a way to develop their own reputations and houses. The government has also received applications from two mercenary companies to rebase themselves into Home due to the looser restrictions on what weaponry and equipment they can acquire - this despite the lower technology level. Each has their own ship and accounts for several hundred Aslan, primarily Male but also many Female.
The Citizens Council seeks advice from the HSWS, from the Community Wardens and from the Citizens Militia on whether or not to grant these mercenaries basing rights in the system. On the one hand, it would be considered useful to have an additional fighting force to rely on - indeed it may end with Home having a force of Aslan shock troops on retainer - but equally, having a non-aligned military force in the system may be far too dangerous to accept.
What does the HSWS make of this request?
[ ] It would be good to have such a force multiplier close at hand.
[ ] We cannot trust the Aslan mercenaries not to be casing our system.
[ ] What if we extracted promises in return for basing rights, rather than simple taxes.
[ ] Other - write in.
On Xyri
For the last ten years, Xyri has been nothing but a near silent partner to Home. We have propped up the dictatorship that maintains control over orbital trade and shipping through various beneficial compromises and deals, deals that have allowed us to routinely use their system as a staging point and fuelling depot. There is one problem, however - the flagging dictatorship has been strengthened by our support and now looks hungrily across the small planet at the rest of the population. We have seen this play out before in Cassalon, or at least something similar to it - one wonders whether the mistakes of the past will be repeated or if we will be the spark that ignites another war.
The other polities are quiet, content to absorb the benefits of trade and enjoy the protection of a war fleet without having to pay for any of it. The republicans parley for access to space and trade with the dictatorship, the technocrats launch their own grav-shuttles and rocket explorers, testing and retesting the technology and searching for... something. If they see the moves being made by the dictatorship, they aren't being public in their recriminations. Perhaps they hope old scars have long since healed. Perhaps they have plans of their own.
The people of Xyri seem content with or without us and currently we have no reason to hunger for anything more from them. However, they also are still more advanced than us, technologically, in several areas and it's possible we could offer support in return for technological advances.
In regards to Xyri we should:
[ ] Work with a power bloc on Xyri in order to acquire technology. Which bloc?
[ ] Continue a more neutral position, allowing things to happen as they do.
[ ] Other - write in
Cruiser, Fast Attack
With advanced technologies filtering into the military and changing the way we consider the future of war, we must look again at our main line combatants and what we hope to achieve with them. Until now the Interstellar Cruiser has proved effective enough, but it is small and the MMV has demonstrated the effectiveness of mixed armament warships. With availability of trained crews limiting the number of hulls we can operate, it seems like the per-hull volume necessarily must grow.
Thus, the FAC. The Cruiser, Fast Attack, takes the lessons learned from our recent war games and applies them to a class of ship that will replace the IC on a 1-to-1 basis. There are two versions under consideration:
- The misileer variant fits 3 large missile bays, each capable of launching 24 missiles per salvo. It mounts a denser point defence grid than the MMV had, an advanced power plant that reduces the size while supplying the same power and an advanced bridge design which has holographic control boards that are reconfigurable depending on need. A powerful distributed computer system allows the operation of a high-capability virtual gunner system that can replace every gunner aboard if necessary - though at reduced capability, of course.
What does the HSWS make of this design?
[ ] We prefer the misileer!
[ ] We prefer the torpedo boat!
[ ] It's not perfect - what about the following modifications: write-in
Current Tech:
Advanced Drive Layouts - TL 9
Improved Plant Efficiencies - TL 9
Quality Hull Construction - TL 8
High-Density Metals - TL 8
Electronics and Sensors - TL 9
Command and Control systems - TL 9
Enhanced Starship-grade Weapons - TL 9
Please present any votes as a plan. Voting opens at
why not torpedo AND missile variants?