Ad Astra ex Lutum

[Mortenkam]

[X]Plan Rally, Regroup and Reorient

 

[7th Hex]

Having thought it over some more, I'm going to swap back to Lunos from GA for our ssbn missiles in my plan. Mostly because we already have implemented a few laser mitigation procedures in the procurement of the sub already, with giving each sub a ton of individual missiles and triggering them while they're still in the atmosphere.

 

[Blackstar]

Vote Called:

[X]Plan Rally, Regroup and Reorient
-[X]Debrief the Government r
-[X]General Aerospace (100B Or) nr
-[X]Avalon Industrial Trust (40B Or) r
-[X]CASP Safety Systems r
-[X]Expanded Recreation Areas r
-[X]EWAR Bridge r
-[X]Automated Combat Systems r
-[X]Remove FTL Drives (summed 300B Or) r
-[X]Dedicated EVA Suit r
-[X]Orbital Combat Suit r
-[X]Terrestrial Suit r
-[X]Terrestrial Combat Suit (summed 45B Or) r

Drone rolls due to it finishing along with subproject ones are inbound. The main roles will come with the main turn, I just need to use this to roll politic funtimes~

Blackstar threw 11 100-faced dice. Reason: Dice! Total: 586

Blackstar threw 4 100-faced dice. Reason: Cube Tech! DC 40 Total: 92

Blackstar threw 3 100-faced dice. Reason: Cube Tech Total: 173

 

[Vi'Talzin]

-[]Debrief the Government 70
-[]General Aerospace (100B Or)
-[]Avalon Industrial Trust (40B Or) 75+10=85
-[]CASP Safety Systems 70+15=85
-[]Expanded Recreation Areas 32+15=47
-[]EWAR Bridge 67+15=82
-[]Automated Combat Systems 24+15=39
-[]Remove FTL Drives (summed 300B Or) 9+15=24
-[]Dedicated EVA Suit 57+10=67
-[]Orbital Combat Suit 42+10=52
-[]Terrestrial Suit 65+10=75
-[]Terrestrial Combat Suit (summed 45B Or) 75+10=85

Finally we don't roll like shit (though uh, ig removing the FTL created some targetable structural issues lol)

 

[VonVonson]

I'm surprised all the suits rolled decent, I was expecting at least one to flop but nope all 50+

 

[Crazycryodude]

Finally managed to catch up on the last few years, nice to see we finally got some decent rolls across the board. The Cube being leaked is a bit of an oof but at least we probably salvaged it with our 70 on debriefing the government. Procurement decisions have already been locked in so my opinion doesn't really matter, but I don't particularly disagree with anything either so good job. Also very good job building the doom bunker, who cares if it's "a responsible investment", it's a doom bunker full of lasers and gigaton nukes, of course we should have one for our military dictator lair.

One question I have for @Blackstar is where exactly is the force during FTL transition that's fucking up reactor channels etc. coming from? Is the entire ship and its contents experiencing phantom forces in random directions from no apparent origin (implied by crewmen's neurons getting rattled), is it the drive ring that shakes like a motherfucker and transfers that vibration to the rest of the spaceframe, something else?

 

[Blackstar]

One question I have for @Blackstar is where exactly is the force during FTL transition that's fucking up reactor channels etc. coming from? Is the entire ship and its contents experiencing phantom forces in random directions from no apparent origin (implied by crewmen's neurons getting rattled), is it the drive ring that shakes like a motherfucker and transfers that vibration to the rest of the spaceframe, something else?

Click to shrink...

Both! the entire ship is subject to entirely random field forces and there is some belief that it does something weird to spacial folding in the drive allowing for criticality to be achieved easier but well, no one has a new nuclear reactor to shove through the hole. Outside investigator, but after her two shakedown jumps she is going owl-ward.

Edit: Rolling Lirrir since I forgot also in a more general set.

Blackstar threw 7 100-faced dice. Reason: Lirrir(2War/2 Dip/3 Event) Total: 252

 

[Manowl]

Our guys going to make a lot of this specific ftl engine im imagining?

 

[CrabMonarchy]

In light of recent events, I would like to offer a small glimpse into the Seelie Internet. Presenting Minister of Defense Ricky, 42 AE, as depicted by the finest artists on Danann:

 

[Manowl]

In light of recent events, I would like to offer a small glimpse into the Seelie Internet. Presenting Minister of Defense Ricky, 42 AE, as depicted by the finest artists on Danann:

Click to shrink...

Hmmm maybe when he is studying, but doesn't fit his casually scaring the shit out people by being very blunt and realistic about everything.

 

[General_Urist]

Edit: Rolling Lirrir since I forgot also in a more general set.

Click to shrink...

well, the Lirrir have not been lucky.

 

[Blackstar]

Turn 11 (43AE): Extrasolar Diplomacy

Budget: 520B Or
Government Support: 85

Cubic Studies:

Moving the cube underground and landing it was an uneventful affair with the cube brought into the bunker complex where it is expected to be contained for the next decade as scientific study is carried out. The civilian government has been given an explanation that given what happened to the Liririr, adequate defenses needed to be constructed first before any mention of the artifact could leave closed-door channels. This explanation has been entirely accepted with little criticism on the matter as during the debrief on the object theories on its nature and composition were presented along with the materials involved, leading to a prolonged session of questioning on the destruction of said material. From these discussions, several in the parliament became disconcerted when realizing the necessity of nuclear weapons, though, they have significantly warmed to the military in political outlook.

The issues of treason have been given to the government to deal with with a hundred-year sentence handed out to the leaker along with several impeachments and minor imprisonments for those caught with the information. The crisis itself has been mostly resolved at the level of parliament with the current government more than proving a willingness to discipline its own, if more softly than the military would expect. Deferring to the government on the matter has re-assured several of the representatives with several party executives likely thinking that this was some diplomatic master-stroke or veiled intimidation. Still, the civilian government has proven itself capable of handling secret information without leakage even in charged circumstances allowing more information to later be conveyed. (Massive Political Support Gain)

Initial exploration of the cube involved intensive X-ray scans of the object after the procurement of a specialized vacuum-rated system. This has rapidly revealed several irregularities but much of the surface has proven highly resistant to scanning. Maneuvering it inside of the narrow corridors has been a significant challenge, but assessments of the "shelves" produced indeterminate results. First scans showed a suspended dense arrangement of wires on top of a softer form of matter approximating the shape of a skull with a lower disc-shaped object for connection. The more general structure had separated yet complex cable bundles that could be approximated to denser than possible fiber-optic lines. These have been linked into what are currently believed to be focused tachyon generators, providing at current count seventy-four independent lines of communication.

Breaking open the shelves through the application of a large lever that was printed locally after three days of careful engineering consideration has confirmed most of the observations. The shelves themselves contain tightly stacked heads in the remnants of some organic soup, with what seems to be their spinal cords directly attached to a lower interface plate. Further, the skulls themselves have designated entry holes for cybernetic integration using small units that nonetheless have over a thousand microscopic wires with a variable ability to transmit signals. Compared to current-generation cybernetics the largest curiosity is the avoidance of what should be an available optic nerve in favor of direct neural integration.

The heads themselves are both more and less alien than expected with a slightly tougher exterior skin surface and an altered bone structure. The jaw is distended and shorter than a conventional elf jaw with a tooth structure that would indicate it as herbivorous. Further, the remaining elements of the face are, while significantly, decayed, identifiable as something of an extended snout. The dried-out structures from vacuum exposure have limited any retrievable DNA but the largest notable anatomic feature is an arguably malformed skill, as several elements are not fully integrated, indicating either extreme youth or entirely different life processes. Little is left of the neural cortexes due to the dehydrating effect of space but they are still comparatively intact with overall similar if differently localized brain structures.

The materials involved in the cube are blatantly beyond anything that is replicable with our current material sciences. The use of a form of HEA composition incorporating radically different elemental arrangements along what are theorized to be island of stability elements indicates power use beyond any reasonable scope of current science. We can replicate most of the array from the elements but the large binding factors that it seems to depend on are beyond current attempts at particle smashing to such an extreme extent that it can likely be disregarded as possible in this century. The most scientifically viable part of the whole craft is, if anything, the FTL Transmitters as they seem to be extremely modular, easy to remove, and not integrated into the general system in any sense.

Tech Obtained: Compact FTL Tachyon Systems: Alien improvements in antenna and focusing design along with innovations in the generation chamber are replicable without significant issues, allowing communication systems of greater specificity. The bandwidth is reduced to independent pulses of data at a rate of at best ten kb, but that is not a significant degradation compared to larger systems. The technology is miniturizable and current theoretical uses for it primarily rest in sensor networks and dedicated terrestrial communication vehicles, allowing a diplomatic or planetary team to talk back to Dannan in case of emergency. Further improvements are questionable as the techniques or why the specific tachyon generator geometry works so well are still poorly understood. (New 42AE) (Alien Derived)


Lirrir Diplomatic Contact:

The SAS Investigator has embarked with a diplomatic team, redundant parts for her drive and jump drive, and several cultural databases that are believed to be of value to the Lirrir. The handpicked diplomatic team had cast off early in the year to become familiar with her systems while work was still finishing on the jump ring along with the significant printed HEA structural elements made to keep her together from the stresses of jump-shock. Improvements to the drive itself are believed to possibly increase the prevalence of locked-in conditions from the transition point itself but those are considered pharmaceutically manageable. Further, the delay time when spent in transitory space has a curious effect on time, causing on-ship time to pass faster than time outside of jump space.

The first four jumps proceed on a plan with little incidences of discontinuation syndrome thanks to the pre-jump application of strong narcotics to temper the crew and avoid any panics. On the fifth jump something went wrong, likely due to carelessness on the part of the captain that was fraying at the seams, proper coolant channel venting was not adequately verified. This led to a misjump with significant structural stress placed on the ship, with the captain himself experiencing a severe case of discontinuation shock. Catatonic and unable to respond, he was immediately demoted with the XO taking control as acting captain for the immediate damage control efforts. Further jumps had the newly replaced reactor cladding and containment hold up until arrival to the Lirrir system previously coded as GI 362.

After jump shock termination at their jump point, a cursory introduction was sent across previously assumed to be used radio-bands with a prepared first contact package. Transmissions from the Lirir planet have increased and the first direct look at their homeworld has immediately revealed several facts. Nighttime lighting is uneven with a significantly lower population on a hemisphere. Further surveys have shown no significant orbital infrastructure outside of some primitive satellites and what are believed to be primitive defensive systems. Upon entry into the system, significant movements were terrestrially observed within hours of arrival, but there has been little idea of what is going on as outside of the general winnowing of civilian traffic and calls for mobilization no organized response has been presented.

Optical and IR sensors on board have noticed significantly greater inventories of armor along with far larger tracts of rails, indicating that industrialization has proceeded if far short of analysts' expectations. Civilian traffic towards the ship has also been cut through with several private citizen calls for everything ranging from diplomacy, and desperate pleading, and several that have declared the planet unconquerable. The previously believed to be the Council of Nations which was responsible for much of the war has failed to open conversations. Several individual nation-states did offer some tentative transmissions but those have almost certainly been from intelligence agencies more than organized diplomatic responses. The current situation is delicate enough that the ship has been ordered to stay at the jump point until some form of diplomatic contact has been established.

After a week and a half of staying at the jump point initial diplomatic introductions were sent over along with a first contact package that questionably identified the ship as a vessel of the Mouran Republic. This was taken in stride with the diplomatic team introducing themselves and offering to send an ambassador down for a few years posting until further support could be brought up from the homeworld. The Lirrir took this line with some concern, insisting that the ambassadors meet in orbit of their world instead of leaving anyone planetside, almost certainly due to the trauma of the last two invasions the planet experienced. This has so far been accepted with the start of the burn toward their planet announced ahead of time to avoid any excessive response. Their representatives are negotiating for a united national government, indicating that the crisis has at least brought planetary unity.

Cultural and societal information exchange was prioritized on the comparatively short burn away from the jump points as the smaller star significantly shortened the distances available. The last war with the aliens ended with a pullback of the Synod forces, which apparently, was the name of the mercenary company attempting the conquest. Further, much of the damage to the planet was inflicted by an asteroid strike after Synod forces left with it likely decelerated from the belt and allowed it to drop on the planet as an act of spite and malice. SAS investigator's moving away from the belt and likely the obsolescent drives onboard have done more for our diplomatic image than anything else, as the Lirrir Nation diplomats have been far more open with information along with a near total tonal shift.

This continued into a further conversation where the Lirrir diplomats transmitted practically every element of their history in a rapid-fire overview rather than staying to conventional diplomatic norms. Several on the crew have sent back strong suspicions that what the United Nations was a ploy to get the ship closer to orbit so that they can appear to capture it for their nation. The Lirrir for their part have not stopped in the data transmission despite the hesitance on our part, with a breadth of information on the remaining one hundred and sixty states/cultural groups along with their heritages. In what seems to be a targeted database upload along with constant speaking slots, the rotation of one hundred and sixty different speakers has also confused all involved with the suspicious number of different personnel that should be responsible for a unified government.

Approaches to orbit have resulted in the stream of information not stopping with several civilians determined to send a signal through everything ranging from a stream of radio transmissions to literal crop circles. The diplomatic mission itself has gone poorly as the insistence on sending a single leadership figure to talk to has gone poorly with the Lirrir nations as they insist that several representatives need to be talked to. The local crew has still been able to attain orbit and start talks but the United Nation is having issues with sending any one representative. They have offered to take a week to reconvene and reorganize a diplomatic team while the crew reviews and sends back the diplomatic package. After a review of the cultural database, the error was noticed, with an apology sent, as the Unified Lirrir Nation is, in fact, a multi-national confederation.

This has changed the diplomatic picture considerably with the local diplomats changing their line to present to the assembly. In the meantime, the Lirrir assembly has started significant internal debates on who to send to represent the planet due to several differing governmental forms. The extreme Socialist block is insisting that someone from their political affiliation be sent, the republic's want one of their own, and a few of the older monarchies are insistent that a noble needs to be sent to orbit. This has put the entire process on pause, with the ship effectively stuck in a middling orbit waiting for the Lirrir to do something. Domestic debriefs and digestion of the cultural package have updated on-ship briefings with the current debates on their homeworld centered around social organization rather than other matters.

Official contact has been something of an engineering challenge as the Lirrir craft was designed for a radically different docking adaptor. The onboard pressure specifications have been in line with our own, though their expectations for space suit pressure are far lower, requiring the crew to meet suit-to-suit rather than in a mixture of lighter pressure suits. The Lirrir spacecraft launched in a conventional chemical rocket with few issues, bringing a representative, a pilot, and a flight engineer on board with an itinerary confirmed to ensure no excess load on life support systems or capacity. It is believed that this moment is to be filmed on their end, necessitating the utmost discipline on the ship as the SAS Investigator coasts, accepts their ambassador onto the bridge, and has a symbolic conversation alongside a technical overview of the craft.

The ceremonies onboard have been one of gift-giving after both sides managed to haul the goods and the diplomat aboard the far more spacious bridge. In personal appearances, the Lirrir are short squat and adjacent to a puffy bird, with spacesuits to accommodate. Their wings are separated from their otherwise quadrupedal form with a preference for standing bipedally but with some quadrupedal locomotion in the craft. The wings in their suits are assumedly pressed against the back with little ability to move, indicating a lack of confidence when making joints or a simple inadequacy of technology. The most curious element of their design that has severely deviated from domestic early suits is the use of a manipulable rear and front section, which is a design consideration from their ability to fully rotate their heads.

To the Lirrir we have offered sixteen textbooks, four encyclopedias, an FTL communication unit, and complete design specifications for modern bomb-pumped lasers. In exchange, the Lirrir diplomat has provided two alien laser rifles along with a suit of captured power armor in a variation of one of their ceremonies of diplomatic gift-giving. Fitting it all into the bridge for the historic moment involved some maneuvering along with the representative steadily getting his space legs back under him along with several fixing cables to keep him on the surface of the bridge. The actual exchange and meeting proceed amicably from there with a unified radio protocol set up for discussions and the transmission of information. An embassy has been offered, but as the SAS Investigator does not have enough landing capacity to drop one off nor the Lirrir ship space to fit a single Seelie, this was discounted until further ship contacts.

Post-contract negotiations have proceeded along the lines expected for them with further clarification for the Lirrir biological overview preventing several accidents in sending students back home. Much of the information transfer has involved a comprehensive understanding of exactly what a Lirrir can and cannot do with significant limitations from their skeleton and pressure to fly, limiting what they can do. Already the government has proposed the transport of a Seelie technical mission to the Lirrir along with a broader technologies package then initially transported over. Further, the formal establishment of mutual enemies can coordinate mutual defense and provide a viable means for improving the defense of the Lirrir homeworld.

A civilian diplomatic mission is expected to be sent once the Investigator finishes her comprehensive overhaul of the damage of the return trip. Constant issues with coolant feed lines caused no end of problems on the jump back with constant misjumps and severe stresses put onto the ship's frame. She still managed to limp back into Dannan on her power but without functional drives, returning the artifacts to the homeworld and providing a massive treasure trove of recorded societal data for further study. The ship itself is liable to get broken up the second the Type 44 Exploration ships are ready but she will continue to serve in her role to provide more data and allow for diplomatic and military missions to be sent back to Kuriuq.


Lirrir Comparisons and Culture:

Lirrir history has been primarily one of small city-states that communicated with each other through fliers with the limited organization of primary agriculture. This proceeded through the eras but the feudal age represented something of a far longer period of stagnation than a similar timeframe on Dannan. The primary cause of this has been a near complete lack of energy resources with the industrial revolution starting on Kuriuq (The Lirrir Homeworld) based on hydroelectric power and limited use of charcoal. Agricultural mechanization was also never practiced to any significant extent outside of the use of beasts of burden until just thirty years ago when the first electric vehicles began to be used to provide mechanical labor for farms. This lack of energy resources has practically directly led to the current state of industries as the mechanization of agriculture has rapidly freed workers for something closer to a second industrial revolution.

This revolution has been powered by fission and to an extent born from technologies brought to the planet during the invasion. Nuclear power plants were first constructed to power war industries in the traitor states that followed the invaders. These, when captured along with the trained engineers, allowed the construction of the first atomic-thermal piles as they have been called, producing steam to drive significant industrial projects. The basis for these cores has been primarily inefficient graphite-type reactors that are hazardous to operate but are simple to construct at scale even for a population that has little technical base. Their entire current industrial belt is if anything more electrified than any contemporary Seelie one as the lack of any easy sources of carbon has forced harsh compromises.

Historical accounts of the invasion itself have involved a further year and a half of fighting as the Synod attempted to break them using increasing numbers of kinetic impactors along with a more active deployment of air forces. Primary combat troops in terms of powered armor infantry stopped being deployed at the midpoint of the second year with a focus placed on getting the governments to surrender at any cost. This led to an increased number of VTOL bombardments along with leadership hunts but the Council of Nations continued resistance for long enough that the Synod leadership ran out of money. The leadership rapidly decided that as the point to retreat with a few final threats made before changing the orbit of an in-system asteroid to impact their homeworld before leaving.

The impact destroyed most of the states in the southern hemisphere from the earthquakes and ejections of matter with severe losses taken in the following ash winter. The Council of Nations was not able to hold society together with a large number of nations reforming in the crisis to manage the famines and disruption caused by the event. The disintegration of central authority proceeded with technologies from the invasion reverse-engineered and brought back into circulation. Losses of heating fuel caused effective crash programs for new atomic piles to keep heating going, with little agriculture left viable for a few years. From that emerged significantly more unified nations, linked through electrically driven locomotives and powered by fission.

Technical third contact for the Lirrir was achieved through the detection of what they believed to be an observation ship appearing at a jump point before continuing observation for approximately four months at the jump point. The ship failed to respond to hails to any significant extent, staying on station for months despite any insistence from the local governments. After the observation period, the ship jumped out leaving the Lirrir on their own, partially abandoning them to the slow climb back to industrial civilization. From there, no new space contacts were noticed until the SAS Intrepid with several Lirrir believing that there were still alien observational systems somewhere in their system, lying undetected.

To escape from the historical overview the cultural database itself contains a wealth of information on their social structures. Initial assumptions that the Lirrir are far more communal than comparative Seelie have been more than born out with even the raising of youths trusted to the village level through much of their history. A single Lirrir pair can lay up to twenty eggs that then develop externally for the equivalent of six years before assuming a state that could be compared to maturity, even if the current Lirrir generally stays in education until eight. Before the current conditions, this was managed with limited reproduction, as having children was almost a communal decision rather than an individual one. Current standards have significantly shifted with clutches generally culled to a few eggs outside certain religious movements.

Biologically the Lirrir are exceptionally adapted for flight with severe compromises in the body plan taken for the ability to fly. Lifespan limitations have come as a part of genetic changes that ensure a steady degradation of lifespan over twenty-five to thirty years. This is combined with lighter bones and musculature without any of the strength expected from comparative Seelie structures. The average Lirrir is between thirty and thirty-five kilograms with a significant fraction of that coming from plumage and basic structures. Their biology is also deeply vulnerable to wounds as many of the clotting and stem-cell factors are unavailable, likely due to historical food pressures.

Theories for Lirrir biogenesis have been far more significant as the lack of any life record on the world along with the presence of several artifacts that have been considered a historical curiosity have been found over the last century. Their current theories indicate that they were brought to the planet as a colonization package at some point thirteen thousand years ago, not that distant from the Dannan biological point. This discovery has overturned our understanding of our origins as the previously believed cave theory has faced a strong attack from those who believe that we were also the result of an abandoned colonization project. This however leaves a massive and dire question, of why colony worlds were left abandoned and left to fend for themselves with civilization having to re-establish itself. There are no comforting answers with the happiest theory being one of self-contained social experimentation.

Intelligence Service:

Briefing: Previous failures have caused a significant slowdown in planned operations as the department has had to learn hard lessons on electronic capability. The talent available to internal agencies before the exchange is simply not available and many of the techniques used there were built up after decades of dedicated work. The department is still rapidly learning as new assets have still been recruited and pushed through training to create adequate field agents. Operations are still projected to continue on a similar theme as little has changed internally in the government or military. (Choose Two)

[]Operation Illustrious Flag: Recruitment of agents within academies and military staff represents something of a softer target for intelligence infiltration. It doesn't matter if only the janitor can be brought on the side or sufficiently electronically compromised if he reports on any known meeting locations. The operation would work at the edges of military organizations and provide several informants capable of reporting on significant movements or meetings. If the situation gets far worse it'll provide a fine-grained targeting for kinetic operations but it should not come to that.

[]Operation Quiet Walk: The far right has never been capable of excessive communication discipline and that can be taken advantage of. Formalizing backdoors into most recreational communications as used by the military can create a scandal but is unlikely to be noticed or cared about outside the civilian government. This will give an accurate view of groups through the lowest common denominator of those who are determined to post their entire lives on social media. These are deeply unlikely to find anything major but will be key for limiting the promotion of radicalized officers. (Possible Political Support Loss)

[]Operation Ethereal Summer: Specialized units can be raised with deniable organizational structures along with a capacity for rapid redeployment. These are going to be direct recruits from special forces that have remained comparatively normal and loyal to the democratic republic instead of the typical tendency of special forces. These teams will report directly to an explicit dual command of the Minister of Defense and Directorate head, as their likely uses will be deeply questionable. Organizing the force itself will not be controversial but using the proverbial dagger in the dark will be disruptive.

[]Operation Moldy Vase: The infiltration of the army is happening at some scale from several political and social organizations. Some are comparatively innocent but a large portion represents direct damage to the command and the state's democratic institutions. The key point of entry remains officer school candidates as the enlisted are unlikely to ferment any large movement, leaving the officers the most questionable. Monitoring for officer school posts and social clubs will be essential to filter out the worst candidates and several that are caught can be used as agents for later operations, especially if they are vacillating.

[]Operation Miniature Spark: Digital infiltration of the PSC is going to be the first step in uncovering party-military connections. There are several suspicions that the party leadership is working with several military officers but little has been definitively confirmed. Ensuring that several drives are left for staffers to insert malware along with more conventional attack vectors by unaligned groups will provide a comprehensive infiltration. The party almost certainly has several servers and databases protected by only the thinnest security that can be paid off, diverted, or even transferred to other sites to ensure operational security. (Very Unlikely Massive Political Support Loss)

New Programs

(Currently, 4 Running, can select up to five concurrent programs)

[]Second Generation Infantry Equipment: The Alien Enemy has some form of viable laser weapons that no current system can compete with along with armor that is at a minimum resistant to GPMG-type munitions without significant degradation. The Lirrir were more primitive when fighting and suffered for it, but the general lessons from their engagements can still be applied to more modern systems. A new heavy rifle will be necessary in the mode of the battle rifles of old along with further improvements to mobility equipment and the issuance of a true heavy machine gun. (20B Or Expected)

[]Heavy Infantry Prototypes: We cannot remotely match the enemy in an infantry-sized platform but nothing inherently requires an infantry-scale platform. Going for a heavier integrated powered system incorporating the latest batteries and a direct neural interface can allow troops that can be partially defended against glancing beam exposures while providing the capacity for our laser weapons. They are almost certain to be restricted to a far lower rate of fire and total magazine capacity but weight can compensate for improved technology if only because of thermal limits. (???B Or Expected)

[]Space Capable Buggies: Making a buggy capable of carrying a fireteam and traversing a low-gravity lunar environment represents several massive technical challenges. Current examples have derived more from rovers but the technical work involved has left them deeply insufficient for most duties. The actual system would be a simple electric wide chassis focused on stability and the capacity for avoiding injury in case of a low gravity accident from lack of ground pressure. Weapon mountings on the system are going to be secondary with the vehicle serving more as a transport and towing platform. (80B Or Expected)

[]Hypersonic Missile Systems: The old inventory of plasma stealth high capacity independently guided munitions has been degraded by time and constant use. Some excess production capacity has been left over for the smattering of pre-war systems but there is little left and slower munitions are expected to have negligible effect. Unifying platform use will allow for a consolidation of several ordinance types especially as a swapable warhead can provide a far more generalized capability of each missile bus. Development costs for the advanced aerodynamic surfaces necessary for the missile will take time but the funding is currently available. (500B Or Expected)

[]Airmobile Armored Support: Building a dual-purpose armored vehicle that can be air transported represents several severe limitations. Cargo capacity limitations of Type 39 limit the design to forty tons or preferably twenty tons for dual-purpose capability. Armor protection would then need to be reduced considerably compared to more conventional IFV and armament will further likely be reduced. Capacity to operate during a direct drop would be preferable but not required, making the program likely to produce an intermediate between the current light vehicle and more conventional systems. (200B Or Expected)

[]SPG/SPAA Systems: The Type 36 lacks the capacity for mounting heavy laser armament due to its propulsion system and further presents several limitations for expanded turrets. Instead of using old methods of developing a system based on a tank, work can be done for a dedicated modular system. Artillery ammunition storage can be swapped between it and battery-capacitor storage systems, providing significant lasing capacity. Saturation issues will likely remain due to the limits of battery technology and a lowered continuous power but such continued heavy use is more likely to have thermal concerns long before battery depletion. (250B Or Expected)

[]New MBT: With the confirmation of enemy heavy vehicles and shuttles, new and radical gun systems are going to be necessary to threaten, much less bring down theoretical enemy armor across primary threat aspects. Current thinking is tending towards a sixty to seventy-ton platform with an integrated DNI crew allowing the commander to have a constant all-round perspective that is further enhanced by several linked AI copilots. There are trends towards lighter systems that give up on sufficient anti-laser protection in favor of improved battlefield information and mobility but a comprehensive program must be started to test them. (400B Or Expected)

[]Loitering Munitions: Autonomous systems with high loiter times built based on disposable munitions have a limited effect on protected vehicles but are perfectly adequate in an anti-personnel role. Effective simplified systems with total autonomous control can be easily developed and produced in the thousands as a field expedient source of fires and suppression for concentrations of manpower. Some proposals have been made for mounting proper kinetic ordinance for APS penetration but those are primarily going towards heavier systems. Core aspects of the program are almost certain to focus on a heavier degree of automation and eliminating communications and jamming vulnerabilities. (100B Or Expected)

[]Next Generation Fleet Combatant: Long-duration patrol missions with a new generation of nuclear vessels with a high-efficiency gas core-mhd system can be designed to significantly improve capability. Massive onboard power systems can go towards the driving of electrical propulsion and laser anti-missile weaponry. Extending the old system of VLS cells and reducing the overall radar and physical profile of the ships will allow a massive improvement in strike and anti-aircraft capacity. The class itself is expected to mostly replace most surface ships on the planet with a follow-on class of LCS expected to allow for marine capacity. (750B Or Expected across several funding phases)

[]Militarized Orbital Destroyer: The capacity to fit a particle beam into a ship is an entirely open question and one that is going to have to be answered. There is so far no concrete role for a heavy orbital competent capable of returning fire in an anti-shipping role. Designs for it range from a heavy missile carrier with liquid nuclear core missile busses to allow for closer range engagements to a heavy slow combatant with armor designed around firing heavy particle beams. Technical development will be the core aspect of the program with few examples of the class expected to be constructed before a refined follow-on is made. (500B Or Expected across several funding phases)

Politics:

(Select 3 Actions, Can Select 4 at -5 Procurement Penalty, 5 at a -20 Procurement Penalty)

[]Increase Staffwork Intensity: Terrestrial commands need far more intensive staff work training and the conducting of several large-scale exercises to improve force discipline and allow for a minimal training standard. The officers and enlisted will not enjoy getting dragged around for days of large-scale maneuvers but it will be essential to get the army in any shape prepared for an alien invasion. Current budgetary allotments will be sufficient to cover the period, but the backpay and wear-on equipment will have to be paid for out of the next budgetary cycle. (+0.15 Operational Costs Modifier)

[]Naval Exercise Formalization: Naval training has been ignored in favor of engineering and basic crew skills under peacetime conditions. This has caused the orbital fleet to be incapable of tracking simple targets much less managing to competently engage anything approaching an alien threat. Current technical work on improving the standards for the navy will take time but it is nothing that herbal drinks and the lash cannot eventually solve. The Crews may be worn ragged as they break away from a more peaceful era and develop into a capable naval force. (+0.10 Operational Costs Modifier)

[]Modify Officer Academy Standards: Officer academies are letting in too many people and this has posed something of a problem to current admissions. Ensuring that those who are promoted are at least capable of most actions and achieve adequate leadership performance in primary education drills will be prioritized. The militarization of the education system is something of a perfect compromise to instill discipline and those most capable of the simplest infantry work as children will make the best officer candidates. This will increase personnel and training costs but they need to be increased to improve the quality of the force. (+100k Personal Costs per Seelie)

[]Military-Diplomatic Mission to the Lirrir: With Investigator set to set back out towards Kuriuq sometime next year a formal military mission needs to be organized. Several capable officers can be sent to liaise with local military forces to determine what exactly is needed and report on any direct combat perspectives with alien forces. The main goal of the mission will be to communicate doctrinal and operational concepts and improve Lirrir's hardiness in the case of larger-scale nuclear war along with offering a diplomatically neutral military instruction core for their organizing confederation's armed forces. (50B Or Cost)

[]Unification of Orbital Datalinks: Problems in the orbital fleet have come from the sheer number of incompatible technologies and systems present. Some of the ancient pre-war systems are running on the equivalent of a graphics card pulled from a civilian machine and sometimes literally so. Ensuring that the fleet is overhauled so that at least onboard sensor systems are unified will be a major step in improving response times and attack coordination. The program of complete refits will not be cheap but it will be essential to get some of the oldest fleet elements and stations their one and last shot at national defense. (200B Or Cost)

[]Moon Defense Batteries: Digging in significant infrastructure into the lunar surface will offer a significant advantage in hardening and allow for even less efficient lasers to have a strong advantage to those of an alien attacker. The massive thermal capacity of the moon is a radiator like no other, enabling consistent shooting with few concerns over cooling. These batteries are going to be installed in standard triplicates with their power reactor, ensuring that the lunar orbit is not safe for any enemy. (150B Or Cost)

[]Remove Underperforming Commanders: The absolute worst of the commands have been made apparent in exercises and by replacing them with far more capable men the army can be significantly improved. Those that are fired will be of a mixture of political persuasions and views but those that are recruited can be moderately filtered for high command posts, especially if a show of it is made to appease the parliament. This will ensure that those coming in will, if nothing else, be capable and not direct supporters of the PSC, improving the officer corps without significant political issues. (Mild Political Cost) (Mild Army Unity Increase)

[]Strike Underperforming Politically Incapable Commanders: PSC loyal commands are all over the place and by mostly targeting retirements on them a significant number of otherwise disloyal elements can be directly removed. These will have second and further removals to provide some cover but the fundamental truth is that it has been mostly younger commanders that have failed. Any change in the organizational structure will come with political pushback and costs but there is no better time than now to justifiably remove fascists from army structures. (Mild Political Gain) (Mild Army Unity Decrease) (Can Get Caught)

[]Harden Force Discipline: Every soldier with any remote technical knowledge knows they are outmatched in the extreme and are broadly being sent to die for any hope of species survival. Ensuring that the enlisted are exposed to only media that focuses on the ability to survive and the necessities of such fighting will improve morale especially once the conflict starts. Targeted algorithms will provide the correct context for the future and will be developed to ensure that any crew on stations and military bases can maintain combat conditions even if entirely overmatched. (20B Or Cost)

[]Minimize Orbital Fatalism: The orbital crews have always had several traditions as have any sailors throughout history, but theirs are religiously insensitive and not great for force morale. The fleet has taken to a tradition of holding a funeral for their terrestrial selves when going out to a deployment and it has been raised as a source of discomfort by both station operators and several soldiers serving with them. The tradition itself is harmless and nowhere near the strangest thing a naval crew has done before deployment but something needs to be done to stop it being a political incident in waiting. (10B Or Cost) (Mild Political Gain)

[]Reorganize Department Four: The current string of failures from Department Four is a clear sign that something is wrong. Additional personnel have been allocated but operational success still has not been achieved to any large extent. Re-organizing the force with fresh young faces who are more capable of navigating the modern electronic environment will be essential. The leadership involved has proven trustworthy if challenged by the role of modern security policy. These improvements may reduce its capability but will at least ensure the department can look to the future. (50B Or Cost)

[]Universal University Standards: There are too many viable recruits who want to join the army and reducing standards degrades the quality of volunteers more than anything. There are more than enough viable candidates with the equivalent of university degrees applying to roles outside of basic infantry units, allowing all ranks to theoretically be filled only by those with adequate educations. This will not be popular as for many without a degree the military is one of the last employment options but force readiness cannot be compromised to chase social policy goals. (High Political Cost)

[]Ask for Additional Budget: The army needs additional funding to be made available across several industries as conventional civilian industrial growth has, if anything, outgrown the economy. Mobilization capacity is steadily more limited by funding for aspects of military life outside of direct production and by increasing allocations far more technical programs can be funded with better expertise. Getting more money to do something with the thirty percent unemployment and rising will involve an expansion of the armed forces but with the current threats on the horizon, more crews and soldiers are going to be needed anyway. (High Political Cost) (Immediate 500B Or)

[]Money-Free Orbital Zones: Evaluating the concept of eliminating money on the orbital stations and colonies will improve morale and allow troops to keep on station longer. Shifting the allocations to troops to ones based on their needs and delegating recreational activity on a voucher system will improve morale and allow a more responsive system. This would ostensibly improve the morale of the forces in orbit allowing them to trade recreational time and receive it for the performance of harder tasks as a bonus. (Possible Political Support Cost)

[]Mobilization of Equipment Reserves: Type 12 and 23 Tanks and Type 18 IFVs are obsolete in the extreme and mostly consist of rusted hulks, but their armor is still theoretically sound. Equipping them with laser-resistant foam on the front aspect along with mass production civilian quality systems will narrow some of the gaps, and assuming the guns function adequately they can be further brought into service. Programs to fully refurbish the old hulls will take a considerable amount of funding but the armored strength of the army can be returned. Further, old nuclear ships that have been partially retired can receive new cores, bringing the fleet to fighting strength, if with entirely obsolete vessels. (Political Support Gain) (400B Or Cost)

[]Study Wartime Issues(Select Specific Program): Committing some time to do a full literature report on a critical wartime piece of equipment and how it exactly failed is going to be a massive crawl through the archives but someone needs to do it. Working for a few continuous days on pulling the papers will take some extra leisure time but it's expected if one is to understand anything of what they are doing. (-5 to +15 depending on roll) (Wartime Equipment Only)

[]Study Theoretical Proposals(Select Specific Program): Taking the time to directly analyze theoretical designs and technical aspects of procurement can improve the performance of several systems. Without a wide basis of understanding little can be done and attempting to interpret theoretical concepts remains an open question. Pouring over a few hundred papers to get a surface-level understanding is still a good use of time especially for matters as important as procurement but there are limitations without large-scale experience. (-5 to +5 depending on roll) (All Equipment)

[]Enforce Democracy: The current government has broken from the democratic principle through the alienation of the average worker and persistent failure to meet their needs. Instead of the army allowing the government to exist movements can be made to change over the green government and hold new elections to enable a transition to democratic methods. This is currently untested and it's questionable if elections would change anything but it remains a constitutional capability.

Spoiler: Equipment

Infantry-Equipment Set:

Type 23 Combined Equipment: Working with wartime lessons learned and an anemic budget allocation that was expected to go towards all troops, a rationalized system of infantry equipment was developed. Any concept of semi-powered systems or technical sophistication was abandoned in favor of a more conventional system of a plate carrier and uniform combination with a degree of weather resistance. Chemical and biological protection has been limited to a simple respirator rather than the enclosed wartime suits, providing some resistance in the unlikely event of a chemical attack. The old electronically integrated rifles have been brought under a unified 6.5x52mm round along the lines of an R-45 system with effective mountings for optics. Anti-tank firepower has also been consolidated into a series of high-velocity kinetic systems favoring light systems capable of being fired at volume to overwhelm currently non-existent protection systems.


ATGM:

Type 35 Anti-Tank System: On the infantry end the Type-35 rocket system is an effective automated fire and forget that can fire on thermal or electro-optical signature acquisition from a polymer tube, coming in at a portable twenty-three-kilogram system loaded. Long-range and vehicle-based variations have been effectively constructed with the seventeen-kilogram terminal phase paired with a either thirteen or twenty-kilogram booster, providing long-range capability with an incorporated autonomous mode. Errant signature targeting remains a problem for the complex but all three are entering large-scale production to distribute anti-tank firepower. The forty-three-kilogram vehicle mount is to be standardized across the IFV force, providing a massive increase in long-range firepower. (Lunos Industries)


Wheeled Vehicles:

Type 38 8x8: Developed as an all-field improvement over the original Type 14 truck the Type 38 mostly delivers on several improvements. Moving to a reinforced frame made of more advanced materials along with improvements in development has allowed the new truck to carry eight tons offroad and seventeen tons on the road. Hill traversal capacity is limited and the engine is notably underpowered but the truck does incorporate several lessons learned for safety design compared to all that came before it. Variations capable of carrying artillery pieces and operating as a basic bed for the mounting of anti-aircraft systems have already been proposed. The entire truck only has armor along the cabin against small arms, but that has been judged as sufficient. (Milta Automotive Works)

Type 41 Light Truck: A compromise design that while failing to meet the ambitious specifications promised still meets most of them. Taking advantage of a mixed HEA frame for lightning it is resistant to gunfire from several approaches while avoiding an increase in weight outside of operational requirements. The use of an accompanying stacking system allows the tight packing of vehicles into a Type 39, letting the plane carry twelve cars. Weapon system options range from an externally loaded belt fed 24mm autocannon, an internally belt fed 15mm HMG, or several anti-tank systems. Learning from the group's mistakes with truck design the engine itself is far more capable, giving the truck performance arguably more appropriate from a sports car as the 400 kW turbocharged diesel has easily exceeded all expectations. Protection is of course negligible against alien weaponry but the ability for automatic response fire will give it a chance. (Sygner Automotive Group)


IFV/APC:

Type-36 IFV: A standardized 8x8 IFV built on a series of reliable technical concepts with novel engineering focused primarily on armor and protective systems. Improved HEA plating has been interspersed with ultrahard ceramics in a quasi-NERA array containing far more detailed ultra-hard elements with features. The shift towards materials lighter and stronger than conventional steels alone has ensured that protection is sufficient across the vehicle to resist conventional fire while the ceramics serve to break up threats from cumulative munitions. APS protection has also been extended with eight heavy charges and twenty-four light charges mounted across the turret. The armament is a combination of eight types 35 ATGM and an automated 24mm cannon effectively offering a direct continuation from older APCs. Amphibious capability on the vehicle has been maintained with space for eight dismounts creating several questions on optimal squad sizes. Mortar-carrying and artillery-carrying variants are already being considered though the lack of a power train precludes its use as a SPLAA. (UNISA)


Tank:

Type 38(Pre War) Tank: The other component of the heavy armored system built around a 1500kW diesel engine combined with an electric drive. The tank is practically built around its central 152mm cannon and autoloader, feeding shells into the system at an acceptable rate with long rod penetrators of up to 1.6 meters capable of being loaded in two parts from hull-based cassettes. APS systems have been pioneered onto the tank with sixteen heavy charges and twelve light charges focused around the frontal aspect to degrade ordinance. Armor protection is not technically sufficient to resist an integrated penetrator from its gun, but that has been judged as sufficient. Automatic gun systems based on the Type 36 APC have been integrated with smart return fire capacity built-in with the 24mm Canon. Despite nearly a hundred operational vehicles the chassis has been used for everything from mobile laser anti-aircraft systems to IFVs in greater numbers.


Fixed Wing Aircraft:

Type 39 Aircraft: The General Aerospace entrant that has been delivered to specification, if universally derided by pilots as the equivalent of operating a garbage truck. The plane is powered by two high-power 240kN turbofans with a capacity for climb-outs in most cargo regimes with only a single engine if necessary. Automatic landing has been incorporated into the plane and a significant degree of redundancy has been incorporated as hundreds of the lessons learned in the old passenger industry are relearned. Over a thousand units are expected to be purchased for the army with variations designed for transportation, low-intensity missile transportation, and several further roles as general-purpose airframes. Even the civilian sector has started work on adapting a copy for the rapid transportation of mail, allowing GA to recoup its costs. Poor surface takeoffs limit the ability of the airframe to operate in a safe mode with increased cargo allocation but even that has been judged as sufficient. (General Aerospace)


Medium Drones:

Type 43 Surveillance Drone: The AIT drone system is a simple straight wing airframe powered by a conventional propeller engine, giving it adequate range for fast response to a number of conflicts and something of a technical base. The drone is neither stealthy, fast, or durable but it is incredibly cheap to manufacture and operate. Initial production lots of thousands have rapidly increased in scale with even lower manufacturing costs expected as production continues to increase. Onboard AI hardware is enough for independent missions in low saturation areas with no communication needed from ground bases. Narrow band transmission of images along with astral guidance packages allow for limited functionality in a hostile orbital environment, providing adequate intelligence and support to troops in the field. (Avalon Industrial Trust)


Light Drones:

Improvised Surveillance Drones: A massive number of diverse quadcopters and basic fixed-wing drones have been produced at a massive number of workshops as systems for surveillance. These have mostly been built with simple radio systems and radio control systems built around applications on civilians and some specialized tablets. Some variants have been modified with basic tandem charge warheads for suicide attacks. The lack of standardization has limited their use of improvised munitions making the commissioning of new systems a high priority.


Naval Combat Ships:

19xType 37 LCS(Pre War): The older generation of lighter littoral combat ships utilizing gas turbines instead of more complex nuclear power plants. Most were built primarily for patrol and anti-piracy duties rather than complex operational requirements in wartime leaving most of them intact in the aftermath. The hulls themselves are equipped with a universal VLS system containing one hundred and twenty tubes rated for anti-shipping missiles along with a series of radar systems and a dual electrochemical canon setup for closer range support duties. Radar integration is considered acceptable even if anti-stealth tracking leaves much to be desired as a platform. Carrying capacities of marines and personnel are the primary purpose of the ship, with the current remaining stocks of the class effectively serving as oversized police cutters.

35xType 33 Frigate(Pre War): The lightest of the classes of ship in service in the thirties modernization program and one destined to act as a low profile low in the water universal combatant specialized in anti-aircraft work. A combined battery of sixty-four cells along with a light electrochemical gun makes up their primary armament. The main purpose of the vessels was the tracking and interception of anti-fleet missile systems while on a cheaper-to-build non-nuclear hull. More complex radar systems were pioneered on the class that would later go on every 30's era ship, allowing an unparalleled simultaneous over-the-horizon intercept capacity against sixteen targets in coordination with further data-linking radars along with data-link enabled lobs followed by terminal boost phase.


Submarines:

None-Operational


Orbital Frigates:

16xRiver-Class(Pre-War Type-35): Closer to a modified police ship than a true naval warship, the River class was originally designed as a vehicle to transport a platoon-sized element of marines between habitats. This was complemented by a limited degree of self-defense capability to police the orbitals along with enabling further orbital work. Drives were built around open cycle gas core reactors supplemented with MPDs for long-range maneuvers, giving each ship a healthy 50 km/s of delta V. With tensions increasing and ever-increasing conflicts with the northern colonial administration the 39 refit radically changed the role of the ships. A series of octagonal twelve-tube missile launches were incorporated into the frame by lengthening the ship along with an 8 MW pulsed laser system with a staggered series of lenses capable of engaging with three at any proper targeting angle. None of those helped in the retreat from lower orbit as guns ravaged the ships, but the few remaining examples have served as venerable shuttles after a total overhaul in 9AE. Reactor cores were replaced with new power ones and the crew section was further compressed to extend their capacities as troop ships, more than capable of supporting the transfer of three hundred men in an LDO-Lunar flight profile.


Orbital Destroyers:

6xDaring Class(Pre-War Type-32): More designed as a pleasure liner for important personnel in orbit along with a defended shuttle for crew transfers outward each Daring is practically the hallmark of a long gone age. Pioneering gas core systems in orbit along with massive travel drives the ships were meant to reach further than ever before in a state of unmatched luxury as tuned MPDs and massive power cores provided them with a usable delta-v of almost 180 km/s. In the 38 refit program, the previously peaceful ships were given a similar missile section to the Type-35 incorporating defensive systems and using the massive power system to mount massive high-temperature 12 MW lasers in a triplex configuration. Each ship can defend itself from anything short of a heavy missile attack, allowing unparalleled operational capacity while maintaining some luxuries. The 12AE refits only compounded on the class with the rationalization of quarters into a hot bunking system incorporating sectioned belonging storage and external mounts for additional crew or cargo. This has enabled a massive five hundred-man capacity along with tons of cargo, though life support resources are strained on such voyages.


Spaceborne Auxiliary Ships:

Debris Skiffs: The massive series of different classes of light skiffs that patrolled the orbits looking for debris and salvage have no unified class or performance envelope. The most universal factor for them has been the lack of a nuclear drive and a simple long-burning hydrogen engine for propulsion. Most were effectively a printed airlock, a radar, and a series of propellant tanks, capable of assessing larger debris and preparing them for deorbiting work. Lacking any defensive weaponry or nuclear systems a number of these have even been operated by practically civilian concerns from stations, offering tours and overviews. Standardization of small skiffs for moving around the orbital system is still deeply in demand but it remains a niche application now that debris has mostly stopped being a major threat.

8xType-22 Barge: Effectively an oversized gas core reactor attached to tanks of water and a system for mass on-site refining from carbonate asteroids the Type-22 miner is more of a tug than a true mining ship. Operations are conducted through the processing of several rocks until a reserve of water is built up, afterward the ship approaches a metalloid rock or chunk, and its crew drills into it. Using highly efficient MPDs that are downgraded the ship steadily pushes the rock and itself into a slow intercept maneuver of Dannan, allowing the rock to be then mined in lower orbit. The two-year missions each Type-22 conducts are long and with a poor crew retention rate as the conditions on board are considered poor even compared to more rationalized ships, if only due to the length of missions. Iterations on the miners are already planned, even if they have not yet been implemented.

40xType-41 Barge: Standardized mining barges built around the CASP standard of warships and designed around a gas core-MHD electric drive system have entered mass production. These are effectively unarmed mining ships with several built-in redundancies and a massive capacity for belt operations for ore extraction. Current programs have used them to crack asteroids followed by melting out the rubble and shipping refined metals to central launcher stations. These then further refine the material available before shooting it to Dannan, providing efficient transportation of material. Overall the Type-41 barge is an uncomfortable ship to serve on with much of the experience either heavy hot labor brought on by the mining equipment or cramped living at the edges of explored space. The class has something of a reputation as one of the worst commands to be assigned to as unlike Type-22 barges they are expected to stay in mining sites for months.

1xType-42 Explorer: The other component of the CASP program and also based on gas core-MHD electric drive systems but with a significantly greater number of features. An advanced sensor package of a long-range IRST system along with several high-power radars are onboard to allow for the detection of distant civilizations. Further, the quarters are comfortable for the reduced crew due to the inherent hull space offered by the FTL ring system. The acceleration of the explorers is negligible but is still more than sufficient for travel across star systems. Drive jump experiences have been regarded as poor, capable of causing significant psychological events, and unpleasant in the extreme. FTL communications are dysfunctional in the class, limiting them to narrow band single bit transmissions with current sets with a mid-life refit already planned to fix the issues involved.

Spoiler: Technologies

Automation:

Improved AI Market Models: Beating out a capable Seelie at modeling in the stock market has already been done but current ML models can take behaviors a step further. By optimizing direct data streams and using a model of learned behavior and information analysis, correct market decisions can be made well in advance by the general public and most investment agents. The actual deployment of the technology has been limited to financial firms focused on optimizing the market with significant gains expected for the early adopters. At this point, people have mostly been removed from market activity with high data algorithms trained off interpreting behavior taking precedence.

Enhanced Population-Facing Algorithms: Advancing population-facing machine learning models has only intensified with the state operation of social media interactions. It is still impossible to make a model that cannot be distinguished from a Seelie in all circumstances, but that is almost within reach. Basic chatbots have been refined so that one can be used with a focused set of goals and a solid general comprehension of information. Further advances in ensuring that models that fail can indicate a low-confidence answer, allowing for an improved user perspective. (30 AE)

Total Line Automation: Previous efforts at predictive logistics and advanced ordering programs have only developed further with improvements made to the autonomous operation of entire facilities. Current algorithms are insufficient to replace all staff but something as simple as balancing and troubleshooting basic parameter deviation has already been demonstrated with further gains expected on the direct testing level. There is little need for first-line employees when logistics can be conducted in an automated manner with a further simplification of most industries that require sterile standards. Continuous improvements are only expected to continue as more advanced algorithms can further reduce necessary labor. (35AE)

Technical Generative AI: Continued improvement in machine learning along with engineering-specific developments have continued to enhance the automation of industries. Previous generations of generative AI have been limited to non-technical low-risk applications but it has steadily gone towards a capability to act as an immediate reference and design optimization tool. Training datasets are still limited and the machines are nowhere near perfect but as a first-line tool for rapid prototyping and a second-line tool for assessing projects it is invaluable. Automation can now replace most positions that produce novel intellectual labor for conventional design work, with just a few needed to check the AI and ensure consistency in training datasets. (35AE)

Ballistics


Economics


Social Sciences


Computing

X-Ray Lithography Techniques: Next-generation lithography was judged as necessary to make the jump to 3nm gate widths, but even that has proven insufficient. New machines with X-ray light have been demonstrated on a laboratory scale, capable of making feature sizes smaller than previously considered possible with a lower number of errors from simplifications in the beam source. Effectively new machinery is now capable of making circuits on a previously thought-to-be impossible scale, eliminating lithographic challenges. The limitations of electron probability distributions are still notable, but they too can eventually be overcome.

3D Electronics: Layering on a single integrated die was already practiced to a limited extent but with the latest lithographic techniques density of packaging can be further improved to allow for three-dimensional features. Thermal transfer limits still are the same as any other advanced silicon computer along with the inherent issues of electron tunneling but effective 1.2nm gates can be printed in a three-dimensional matrix. These are then underclocked to improve thermal stability, providing on-die performance gains without needing new technologies or a jump toward new types of computational hardware. (New 40 AE)

Immature Carbon Electronics: Following a parallel solution of maintaining conventional electronics despite significant issues in electron tunneling the use of carbon rather than silicon has been considered at points. A carbon circuit has inherently far fewer issues than silicon ones and can be developed to an even smaller feature size with far less leakage. Current techniques allow for the manufacturing of gates down to a 45nm feature size, significantly improving the performance of non-silicon computers even if the tech is still a curiosity. (New 40 AE)

Basic Quantum Computing: Further achievements in computing have not come from shortening gate lengths or improving the density of conventional circuits but through the creation of dedicated quantum computing units. These processors can hold almost ten thousand qbits with some capacity for calculation, even if they are not relevant for most tasks that are better suited for conventional computing. Most of the units are useless outside of discrete applications in small data problems and low-level particle modeling. Still, the application alone is sufficient to drive investment in the field and push for improved models.


Cybernetics/DNI

Dual-Band NI: Downband neural interfacing has always been considered a massive challenge for control systems and is not practical as a system. Basic sensation feedback can now be delivered with a neural splice avoiding any invasive procedures, and even with a significant learning period basic interfaces can be developed. Further, the technology offers the chance to directly train a single nerve to operate a multi-faceted machine through learning simulations comparable to physical therapy. Some sterile implant programs have started for first adopters with an exclusive up-band-only mounting but the technology once matured can apply to any number of military applications. (30 AE)

Basic Cybernetics: Continued advancements in both genetics and neural interfacing have brought forward a practical new era of implantation and dual-way linkages between neurons and computers. Using basic genetic modification to designate several metals as non-invasive to prevent an immune response along with advanced coatings, safe implants can be produced with few issues of rejection and minimal follow-on treatment. Direct neural control along with the direct splicing of nerves represents a further improvement in old techniques allowing theoretical direct control of larger machinery from a direct linkage. (35AE)


Transmission

Terahertz Networking: Taking advantage of previously untapped bands of electromagnetic propagation has defined the last generations of networking but it can be taken a step even further. Consolidating work and increasing transmitter power can only go so far in improving penetration, but for most environments, a simple receiver can be used. Propagation of signals in the range can allow for the transmission of data in gigabytes per second over the air, simplifying significant areas of infrastructure. Signal doublers and lesser bands are still needed for the penetration of obstacles, but the improvements from moving into higher ranges hold immense promise.

CNT Filament Radiators: The use of carbon nanotubes as radiator surfaces has been proposed several times but issues exist in inner-tube connections along with the intensive thermal environment. If long chain tubes can be synthesized and placed on large rollers, centrifugal forces can keep the radiator array extended without much issue all while radiating a massive amount of heat. Even in an optimized configuration, new systems are expected to be heavier than contemporary liquid metal droplet radiators but they can be operated at theoretically hotter temperatures while being far more resistant to damage. (New 40 AE)

Currie Point Radiators: Taking an alternative track and basing the design of several proposals made for lower temperature circuits, something of a novel concept radiator has been proposed. Rather than using large emissive structures of liquid metal the curie point of several materials can be taken advantage of. This way iron or cobalt can be ejected and then re-magnetized and returned as it cools to under 1000K, providing a significant radiative effect. Such a technique will not work for systems made to operate far outside 1300K but for civilian power systems, this is more than sufficient. (New 40 AE)


Energy Storage

MgLiS Batteries: A new revolution in the development of battery power has come from fundamental work on the development of next-generation battery chemistry. Combining the density of single-use aluminum-air cells with the rechargeability of lithium batteries, new magnesium-sulfur batteries with some lithium additives have been brought to commercial production. Voltage limitations and the need for finer electronics to take advantage of the lower voltage plateau have limited most implementations outside storage use to only 1000Wh/kg, but even that represents a massive improvement over previous chemistries. Current production costs are slightly greater than equivalent lithium ions, but as mass production takes off a cheap rechargeable battery capable of a massive number of cycles can be brought to every electronic device.

Thermal Storage: Paired high-temperature molten storage with a high-efficiency high differential thermocouple offers a novel if mostly redundant cheap storage method. The effective price of the system is only dependent on its throughput in the thermocouple with the salts themselves forming a very cheap factor. Efficiency is poor and the actual capacity is mostly superseded by MgS battery compositions, but for several low-cost applications, it can be used. Some new batteries have been designed as a speaker system as massive volumes of salts are heated up to provide energy outside of the productive bands of renewable energy plants as entire lakes of salt are far cheaper than even the cheapest batteries. (30 AE)

Ultracapacitors: The limitations of conventional capacitance are still notable but have been overcome through a new generation of designs. Even though the specific power of newer systems is only a fifth of electrolytic capacitors, new ultracapacitors have over one hundred times greater specific energy. The cells are hybrid capacitors based on a nitrogen-doped graphene nanocomposite with ZnCo2O4 that can be produced at some cost. The system itself is unlikely to replace batteries to any extent but the performance on offer has opened the way to several highly energetic systems. (New 40 AE)


Fission

Gas Core Reactors: In terrestrial applications, the maximum efficiency for a nuclear core operating in a conventional cycle has always been constrained by the Carnot equation. Working instead with a gaseous core and a partial system of harvesting using an MHD both thermodynamic efficiency and energy conversion efficiency can be nearly doubled. Electrical conversion efficiencies of nearly seventy percent have been achieved in theoretical test cases bringing orbital reactor core performance to larger-scale ground-side cores.

Third Generation MHD Generators: Through combined improvements in harvesting methodologies for power and better systemic thermal isolation significant gains have been made in thermodynamic efficiencies of power production. These mostly involve a more refined MHD cycle with some secondary thermal harvesting, bringing waste heat output down to a far more manageable twenty percent of the generative process. This in no way gets rid of radiators and further efficiency improvements will be a massive technical challenge but they can still be undertaken. The far greater scale of new unit generation systems will make refits challenging but new vessels can be built to far improved margins of thermal control. (35AE)

Non-Propulsive Dusty Plasma Reactor: Continued drives towards gaining efficiency and the modification of thrust systems have demonstrated significant further improvements to efficiency. By taking an ultra-light fissioning uranium plasma and confining it in a pinch between a dual-end MHD harvester an efficient method of power generation can be designed with few downsides. The power system will explicitly not be suitable for off-drive harvesting like previous generation gas-core MHD couplings but the gains from the new method will be massive. Thermal efficiencies in the order of eighty-five percent can be achieved with a hotter operating cycle, only limited by internal chamber materials, leading to more efficient radiative hot loops. (35AE)


FTL

FTL Tachyons: Combining a specialized method of particle physics, the interaction of W bosons in a strong magnetic and electrostatic field has managed to reliably produce several tachyons. These particles have managed to do a previously impossible interaction in conventional models of physics and effectively send a signal out instantaneously. Receiver infrastructure has only been built in another lab, but a basic signal was transmitted along with a narrow band data stream through a Morse-like system. Theoretically, larger and more capable systems have already been commissioned, but they are not expected to be smaller than dedicated buildings and will almost certainly be limited in data transmission. (An unscientific carve-out of relativity in the sense of a privileged special frame that is nonetheless for writing what I want to instead of the more speculative science approach I am taking with everything else.)

Tech Obtained: Compact FTL Tachyon Systems: Alien improvements in antenna and focusing design along with innovations in the generation chamber are replicable without significant issues, allowing communication systems of greater specificity. The bandwidth is reduced to independent pulses of data at a rate of at best ten kb, but that is not a significant degradation compared to larger systems. The technology is miniturizable and current theoretical uses for it primarily rest in sensor networks and dedicated terrestrial communication vehicles, allowing a diplomatic or planetary team to talk back to Dannan in case of emergency. Further improvements are questionable as the techniques or why the specific tachyon generator geometry works so well are still poorly understood. (New 42AE) (Alien Derived)

FTL-Jump Drive(Theoretical): Through the prompt generation of exotic materials something of a temporary cross-dimensional linkage can be generated. Previous experiments with tachyons have significantly expanded the understanding of particle physics allowing for some glimpses into a possible even space where far larger objects can be sent in a theoretically faster-than-light trajectory. Current ideas of particle generation arrays are unstable at best and experience intense interference from gravitons effectively limiting techniques to areas of the system under less than 1e-4 m/s^2 of acceleration with even less preferred. Actual points where a transition can be induced are even fewer with four calculated to exist in the Dannan system but outside of testing with small objects, it is impossible to know if the model is applicable. Targeting is also assumed to be a major challenge with few known solutions outside of directing the field at the point of initiation, necessitating a massive amount of further testing. (30 AE) (More unscientific carve outs from relativity)

FTL Jump Point Theory: The discrete detection of pockets of so-called jump-optimal space has proceeded logically from previous theories with the refit of a daring class destroyer to assessing pods. Initial guesses that the points would exist outside the orbit of the fifth planet and limitations of gravity have been confirmed though there is a curious phenomenon involved with most jump points in that some are significantly "deeper" dimensionally than others. It is believed that a jump conducted from a deeper point would both be easier and less intensive, leaving other areas of the system as more secondary. Confirmation of further points in the outer system will take time, but current mathematical understandings of jump space do indicate that there should be a few around the gas giant. (35AE)


Fusion

Optimal Band DT: Further improvements on the conventional fusion fuel cycle and a sustained temperature of 8 KeV can now be attained and maintained without a significant technical burden for reactors of the old scale. This effectively optimizes interaction cross-sections of the fuel, raising the reaction rate while maintaining a similar degree of plasma density. Improvements in the magnets involved have trickled down to smaller-scale reactors with the expectation that a positive 1 GWe reactor could be constructed. The largest improvements however come in the larger cores as once the optimal plasma temperatures are reached the reaction rate increases by almost five-fold making the largest cores economical for truly mass power-production applications. (35AE)

Toroidal DT Drives: The development of fusion drives has come as a logical progression from terrestrial fusion reactors, lightening the entire assembly and introducing several thermal and neutron management concepts through the use of lighter plasma blankets. The gain factor of the system is expected to be just short of a hundred, allowing large-scale fusion drives to be designed. The inherent limitations of the DT reaction limit what can be done sustainably and without irradiating the crew but for everything but maximum thrust it effectively obsoletes fissile propulsion. Current drives are at the smallest 10GW of effective fusion power, but efficiency gains are expected as systems grow in size even if cooling plasma jackets will become more complex. (New 40AE)


Biosciences

Genome Engineering: Taking a second look at the genome outside of the initial clumsy attempts by the old regime has yielded massive and rapid gains as transgenic applications have only grown in extent. Work towards tailoring physiological processes along with the specific location of genes responsible for appearance has effectively allowed an unlimited degree of modification. The forefront of the current breakthrough is a co-opting of internal systems of self-correction, allowing a specialized viral payload to infect large parts of the body along with the systems themselves with any remaining cells fixed to the new genetic package. Modifications ranging from more than tripling muscle mass set points to effective morphological control can be conducted, but most depend significantly on the degree of laws passed around them.

Self Healing Concrete: Targeted genetic engineering work on previous programs has come to the fore with the integration of organisms in conventional concrete pours. These engineered organisms are built to produce calcite to fill any hole left in the concrete from micro-fractures or thermal stress. While the material itself will still steadily get weaker due to the limitations of biological systems, the ability to fix most micro-fractures will massively extend all lifespans. Further, as the integration of organisms is practically a cheap step of end-state processing, it can be done for almost nothing, allowing all modern grades of concrete to have limited self-repair for no real loss in initial durability.

Hibernation Systems: Induction of a hibernation adjacent sleep-like state for long-duration orbital journeys has always been desirable but limitations in life support equipment have rendered it problematic. Rather than a total freezing of biological processes a sorta long duration low-calorie use sleep can be induced on a crew for long journeys performed by automated systems. Some degradation and risk are still expected from the process as it is refined but such sleepers can be kept at a minimal life support burden. Retrofits of the system onto ships have been delayed by the lack of automated systems capable of managing complex reactor parameters but several proposals have already been made for dual-setup craft. (30 AE)


Materials Science

High Entropy Alloys(Early): Developmental work on computational models of more complex crystalline structures has produced results practically as soon as sufficient computing power is applied. Breaking away from conventional understandings of bi-component alloys or base metals with mix-ins, the use of a massive number of mixed metals has allowed conventional material science to be revolutionized. Significant gains in basic structural alloys can be conducted in specialized smelting environments at a reasonable cost, even if many of the highest-performance materials capable of entering the realm of super-hard ceramics are limited by supplies of scandium and tantalum. Corresponding breakthroughs in additive manufacturing techniques have only improved performance, producing parts cheaply and with qualities well above conventional material science.

Engineering Plastics: Work in the biological sciences on easy-to-produce materials has rapidly enabled the creation of biological systems capable of making short-chain polymers. Limitations in internal chemistries and the needs of organisms to process feedstock from the atmosphere have made the process inefficient compared to the energy committed, but for low-quality biologically derived plastics, this is a revolution. Incredible cheap plastic can be brought into bulk construction roles as fillers, improving structural design and further lowering costs for low-quality biodegradable material.

Synthetic Diamondoids(low yield): Nothing prevents the production and shaping of a large block of diamondoid materials through innovative semi-conventional production methods along with improvements in deposition techniques. The only remaining question is if the expense of a diamondoid is useful in any good or product as the ultra-hardness can be almost replicated by more conventional and cheaper ultra-hard ceramics. Theoretical requirements involving only carbon are a positive factor but even those do not make the technology viable. (30 AE)

CNT Mass Production: Improvements have been made in non-biological processes for producing long-chain carbon nano-tubes effectively making biological methods obsolete. Large-scale macro-catalytics have developed significantly on older techniques with scalable production of new materials. The changeover has forced the rapid adoption of new methods along with the increase of the chemical industry as simpler methods are steadily pushed aside. After some reconfiguration, it is expected that CNT incorporation can become a common factor for several industrial applications. (35AE)


Doctrine

Autonomous Drone Warfare: New theories of automation have not failed to reach the battlefield with concepts around a general increase in semi-automatic and automatic combat platforms favored. ECCM has only improved over time with many asking why it is necessary to risk Seelie life in warfare when a single soldier can manage a dozen autonomous platforms. Development of doctrinal and technical concepts will involve committed testing of new platforms and new procurement goals limiting what can be done, but several visionary manuals have been written on the topic. (30 AE)


Missiles/Small Craft

Fission Drive Miniaturization: Technical work towards miniaturizing a liquid core fission drive has been possible if consistently problematic. Ensuring that effectively spinning fission fuel can have enough room for operation and adequate separation from the propellant is still a major technical challenge. Theoretical work towards slightly lowering temperatures and increasing mass flow while accepting emissions has been pushed forward but even that is theoretical. Effective launch profiles for rockets less than fifty tons can be made even if current costs make it prohibitive for anything disposable.


Orbital Industry

Early Spaceship ISRU: Procedures for the in-space refinement of metals have rapidly been developed to further exportation and increase yields. Next-generation mining techniques in the form of total asteroid capture followed by pulverization and liquefaction under mild centrifugal forces have yielded significant gains in refinement and on-site processing. The next generation of mining ships is expected to entirely incorporate new methods, effectively breaking off chunks of asteroids before capturing them and refining them internally. Water off-gas can be directly utilized for propulsion and life support while more solid elements are left for further refinement, allowing lighter nuclear drives to easily provide sufficient transit reserve.


Particle Sciences

MPD Improvements: With the start of construction for new ships, previously experimental techniques in the construction of magnetoplasmadynamic thrusters have effectively gone mainstream. Increasing the charge of the surface and allowing for a tentative protective coat in the flow has massively improved thruster durability for longer burns all while supplying more power. The already fairly efficient drives have been further thermally improved with the integration of superconducting materials on all non-contact components, reducing heat burdens and further power to weight.

Bomb Pumped X-ray Lasers: Utilizing the fission fragments of a warhead to pump a laser has historically been attempted to consistent yet mediocre results, but with the integration of better lensing material and a slightly more coherent media far better results have been produced. The lasers are still hard to focus and carry forward a minuscule amount of power even compared to a shaped nuclear charge, but they have a far longer range and exist outside of conventional atmospheric limitations. Fissile material use for each laser-specialized warhead is expected to be heavy due to the negligible impact a second stage has on device design, limiting any approach to use a dirty single stage.

Particle Beam Theories: Nothing prevents the mass scaling of the particle accelerator into a viable orbital weapon system capable of breaking the previous expectations of warship design. Massive linear accelerator designs can be made to accelerate a mass of particles to near relativistic speeds allowing for a massive impulse of radiation to be delivered to any target regardless of previous armoring attempts. The scattering will effectively limit the ranges and the massive capacitor banks required for the generation of the beam have made the system at its lightest a thousand-ton intensely magnetic tube, but it can be developed to a sufficient point to cram into a warship. (35 AE)


Production Methods

Advanced Additive Manufacturing: The largest gains in additive manufacturing techniques have not come from the methodologies themselves but from the materials fed into them and their integration into general industries. The manufacturing of specific specialty parts and the ability to rapidly prototype has remained from previous generations of manufacturing, what has changed however has been improvements in feedstock and deposition methods. Utilization of mixed powders has been a near-universal factor with finer grinding and materials that maintain hardness with a minimum degree of hardening prioritized. Using mixed powder high entropy alloy parts can be made to a higher standard than possible with other methods, integrating techniques as mainstream manufacturing methods on a previously unheard-of scale.

Biological-Epoxies: Complete production chains for biosynthetic epoxies and resins have been developed with only some requirements remaining for molding. The material is not as cheap as conventional regenerative cement construction but it is better insulating and far more portable for logistically challenging areas. Molding is still necessary making the process not truly automated but some proponents of prefabricated resin paneling made in a factory as a light alternative to prefabricated panels especially for external insulation applications. (35 AE)

Macro-Structural Polymers: Biological mechanisms for twisting the exact localization of structures along with the pre-production of dead tissue have long been coded for. Taking advantage of the more primitive systems left to us by nature most trees can be brought to productive ends. The production of ultrahard wooden items competitive with some lighter plastics can be made without too much issue. Better yet ultrahard microstructures can be built into them allowing materials to be grown that significantly outperform their contemporaries on a similar weight allotment. The use cases for such ultralight materials are limited by their flammability and the limits of biological systems but they still offer a useful capability. (New 40 AE)

12-Hour Moratorium Vote by Plan

 

[The Phoenixian]

Posting courtesy of @FantasticMsFox, who made the meme, but asked someone to post it in her stead.

 

[WestOrEast]

So, the question. Do we want to stop the fascists or do we want to try to get the army and navy to something approaching competence?

 

[Rockeye]

I made an awful, low quality low effort meme

Spoiler

 

[Rockeye]

I think we really need to unfuck both orbital and terrestrial command, and preferably ASAP. Not much else will matter if we go the way of the owls, and we just lit the beacon.

 

[7th Hex]

I think we really need to unfuck both orbital and terrestrial command, and preferably ASAP. Not much else will matter if we go the way of the owls, and we just lit the beacon.

Click to shrink...

I think we can do both if we accept the -5 penalty. Staffwork Intensity, Naval Exercises, Diplomatic Mission, and Politically Incapable is 4 actions total.

I'm personally thinking of 2nd Gen Infantry for our next procurement. Keep it cheap with the expensive stuff we already have going.

 

[Manowl]

When we have money again we need to help the Lirrir!

 

[chaotic-logic]

[]Operation Moldy Vase:

Click to shrink...

something that i think we should start on soon so we can prevent the military from splintering in times of unrest.

 

[Crazycryodude]

Wow the owls are hardcore, none of the elves' biological advantages and still brute forcing industrial society with bio-solar and fission energy sources. Hell, they defeated an alien invasion off hydro power and biodiesel grown by peasants. We should give them all the help possible, I love our tiny fucked up fragile bird friends, we can all trauma bond over the apocalyptic wars and stockpile ludicrously deep nuclear arsenals together.

 

[7th Hex]

Oh, we also got the new blurbs for our Light Vehicle and Drone in the equipment list this update.

Type 41 Light Truck: A compromise design that while failing to meet the ambitious specifications promised still meets most of them. Taking advantage of a mixed HEA frame for lightning it is resistant to gunfire from several approaches while avoiding an increase in weight outside of operational requirements. The use of an accompanying stacking system allows the tight packing of vehicles into a Type 39, letting the plane carry twelve cars. Weapon system options range from an externally loaded belt fed 24mm autocannon, an internally belt fed 15mm HMG, or several anti-tank systems. Learning from the group's mistakes with truck design the engine itself is far more capable, giving the truck performance arguably more appropriate from a sports car as the 400 kW turbocharged diesel has easily exceeded all expectations. Protection is of course negligible against alien weaponry but the ability for automatic response fire will give it a chance. (Sygner Automotive Group)

Click to shrink...

Type 43 Surveillance Drone: The AIT drone system is a simple straight wing airframe powered by a conventional propeller engine, giving it adequate range for fast response to a number of conflicts and something of a technical base. The drone is neither stealthy, fast, or durable but it is incredibly cheap to manufacture and operate. Initial production lots of thousands have rapidly increased in scale with even lower manufacturing costs expected as production continues to increase. Onboard AI hardware is enough for independent missions in low saturation areas with no communication needed from ground bases. Narrow band transmission of images along with astral guidance packages allow for limited functionality in a hostile orbital environment, providing adequate intelligence and support to troops in the field. (Avalon Industrial Trust)

Click to shrink...

 

[Manowl]

Wow the owls are hardcore, none of the elves' biological advantages and still brute forcing industrial society with bio-solar and fission energy sources. Hell, they defeated an alien invasion off hydro power and biodiesel grown by peasants. We should give them all the help possible, I love our tiny fucked up fragile bird friends, we can all trauma bond over the apocalyptic wars and stockpile ludicrously deep nuclear arsenals together.

Click to shrink...

Yes need to protect and traum Bond them and to help them with there genetics as well 30 years is a short life span especially to our elfs, like it will be more easy for our guys to become friends with specific families or organizations then individuals?

 

[Fireiy]

Two initial plans for consideration. Second Generation Infantry Equipment should be a quick project and we now have samples of the alien laser rifles and power armor to compare against. Two intel operations aimed at the officer academies with a politics action to get rid of the ones that have been found incompetent as an excuse. Start doing regular large scale military exercises and actually training the orbital fleet on how to use the weapons that they have. And of course, send the owls whatever we can to help.

One thought I had was on possibly delaying the naval exercises for a turn to instead also take Remove Underperforming Commanders alongside the one more directly targeting the fascist commanders, but I'm not sure how that would go. It would also allow us to do the Unification of Orbital Datalinks alongside the start of naval exercises, which should make training go a lot better with at least the sensor systems getting unified.

[] Plan Overcoming Incompetence
-[]Operation Illustrious Flag
-[]Operation Moldy Vase
-[]Second Generation Infantry Equipment
-[]Increase Staffwork Intensity
-[]Naval Exercise Formalization
-[]Military-Diplomatic Mission to the Lirrir
-[]Strike Underperforming Politically Incapable Commanders

[] Plan Uprooting Incompetence
-[]Operation Illustrious Flag
-[]Operation Moldy Vase
-[]Second Generation Infantry Equipment
-[]Increase Staffwork Intensity
-[]Military-Diplomatic Mission to the Lirrir
-[]Remove Underperforming Commanders
-[]Strike Underperforming Politically Incapable Commanders

 

[WestOrEast]

The use of an accompanying stacking system allows the tight packing of vehicles into a Type 39, letting the plane carry twelve cars.

Click to shrink...

Just how big are these planes if a whole dozen trucks, however well-packed, can fit inside of one?

 

[Rockeye]

IIUC the vehicles are basically Jeeps

I also think 12 sounds like a lot. I thought our cargo plane was, well... like a Learjet in size? We went for rough field capability and all.

Let's see... we have two 240kn engines. So about 600 horsepower total?
....that sounds extremely wrong to me and I'm tired. Bleh. Nevermind.