[X]
Usurpation - Command the spirit of the ship and take away that which the Admiral believes is his by right. When he humbles himself before you and acknowledges his own transgression, you will consider the possibility of forgiveness.
@Candesce raises a super salient point and I'm a huge fan of the mirrored approach, of the sort of symmetry.
The update talks a lot about the pride of the Navy and a huge part of that pride is invested in their ships, in their ability to travel freely when so many in the Imperium are lashed metaphorically-if-not-literally in place. In their effectively unquestioned rule of the Void (save for the Mechanicus armadas iirc but the AdMech is effectively an empire-within-an-empire and by and large the other other main competitor, the Rogue Trader fleets, don't directly compete with the Navy proper). And it's this pride that got the deck officer killed and it's this pride that had the Admiral effectively shrug his shoulders and decide that what the ground-bound thought didn't really
matter. And it's this pride that meant that the naval station on Solus didn't even really try to stop him because Navy Above All Else.
More than any other option Usurpation attacks that
pride. It's not a breaking exactly, it's a very public, visceral humbling that directly focuses on a fundamental pillar of what it means to be a part of the Navy. And it makes a pretty powerful statement all on its own: "You have invested everything you are into this ship and it still recognizes me over you". And considering the deep affinity if not outright affection many naval personnel probably have for their craft, especially a flagship like this? That's going to resonate in a way that a straightforward beatdown might not.
Plus it's pretty in line with how we've been handling other shit I think. We tend to give people A Chance when we can, for calculating and compassionate reasons. It's how we handled the Arch-deacon after all.
I mean, Retribution literally outlines how we'll take this man, break him, and make him a loyal servant or kill him. If that's not "accepting" idk what is.
Honestly I'm kinda cool on the Retribution option in general I think. On the one hand the guy's a more-than-deserving target who rules his ship with a heavy hand but it's got a pretty high potential for collateral and doesn't really address the systemic issue presented by the Navy. That "fuck you I do what I want". Being killed in the line of duty isn't a new thing for them and just because it comes from a glowy golden brawler instead of a shell the size of a house punching through the bridge doesn't, like, make a significant difference in how they approach things imo.
