Rolling diplo.
GDI Platoon Commander: A "GDI Edition" side-quest (non-canon)
- Thread starter NickAragua
- Start date
- Sci-Fi Action
- Pronouns
- He
What, he wasn't planning to walk back home over... not really sure if each square is a mile wide or what.
- Location
- New England
It's a little bit abstract, but an infantry squad can move from one square to another given a full eight-hour day of walking. Doesn't necessarily mean that our base in A4-A5-B4-B5 takes a day to walk across, though.
Dmol8
The Undead Unhinged Lunatic of the Web
- Location
- Belgrade,Serbia
- Pronouns
- He/Him/His
So did the whole don't leave explosives behind start with the Double Granger Administration? Or was it standard operating procedure for GDI as a form of Scorched Earth to not leave explosives behind for NOD to be able to get their hands on them?
Also since nobody has done a plan yet I'm willing to try:
[X] Plan Grinding Up:
-[X] Power Plant: +100 Power, -1 Building Slot, -500 Credits
--[X] D4
-[X] Tiberium Refinery: -2000 Credits, -40 Power, 2 Building Slots (no free harvester)
--[X] D4
-[X] Engineering Squad + APC go to B7 where Engineering Squad stay to capture Tiberium Spikes and the APC goes back to base to carry out repairs.
I'm not sure what else to add to the plan as I figure we have at least a turn before we need to get to deal with NOD again.
- Location
- New England
I recall there was some narrative way back in the first plan about disarming unexploded ordnance as part of blue zone reconstruction - I forget the exact plan item or even when it was. I imagine pre-Granger GDI probably didn't care much about leaving landmines in yellow zones (and also uh, didn't really use them as I recall prior to TW3). However, since we're pushing blue zones out into yellow, it means that if we don't clean up after ourselves now, somebody else on our side will likely have to clean up later when civilians start losing legs.
Ah an update.
Let me get the plan up and running:
[x] Tib spikes, Refineries and Mines
-[x] Deploy Minefield: -300 credits, maybe picked once per active APC anywhere along its route
--[x] D2
-[x] Dismantle Tiberium Refinery: +750 Credits, +40 Power, +2 Building Slots
--[x] B4
-[x] Power Plant: +100 Power, -1 Building Slot, -500 Credits
--[x] D4
-[x] Tiberium Refinery: -2000 Credits, -40 Power, 2 Building Slots (no free harvester)
--[x] D4
-[x] Secure/Capture and mine Tib Spike in B7
-[x] Engineering Squad stays with primary strike force, redirect the two APCs from the base in B4 to the north or east to even out the unit count a little.
Alright, the Budget went down to the wire but we are finally setup to start truly exploiting those Tib fields and start a steady income.
Not sure how much the Tib spike will give us in terms of credits, but anything would be nice.
With the Tib Refinery in B4 dismantled we will have enough credits next turn between the Miners and the Tib spike to build the War Factory there.
That just leaves us looking for a space to plop down a couple more barracks so we can get rid of that Hot bunking issue and really begin calling in more men.
It still looks like we will need to build a 4th Power Plant in a couple turns if we want to build more turrets around our perimeter, but that is a future problem.
Another future problem is that if our counterpart 2nd Lieutenant Schmidt keeps up their mediocre efforts, we will need to divert a task force to aid them, or worst case, have to take over their objectives like in the previous mission.
Let me get the plan up and running:
[x] Tib spikes, Refineries and Mines
-[x] Deploy Minefield: -300 credits, maybe picked once per active APC anywhere along its route
--[x] D2
-[x] Dismantle Tiberium Refinery: +750 Credits, +40 Power, +2 Building Slots
--[x] B4
-[x] Power Plant: +100 Power, -1 Building Slot, -500 Credits
--[x] D4
-[x] Tiberium Refinery: -2000 Credits, -40 Power, 2 Building Slots (no free harvester)
--[x] D4
-[x] Secure/Capture and mine Tib Spike in B7
-[x] Engineering Squad stays with primary strike force, redirect the two APCs from the base in B4 to the north or east to even out the unit count a little.
Alright, the Budget went down to the wire but we are finally setup to start truly exploiting those Tib fields and start a steady income.
Not sure how much the Tib spike will give us in terms of credits, but anything would be nice.
With the Tib Refinery in B4 dismantled we will have enough credits next turn between the Miners and the Tib spike to build the War Factory there.
That just leaves us looking for a space to plop down a couple more barracks so we can get rid of that Hot bunking issue and really begin calling in more men.
It still looks like we will need to build a 4th Power Plant in a couple turns if we want to build more turrets around our perimeter, but that is a future problem.
Another future problem is that if our counterpart 2nd Lieutenant Schmidt keeps up their mediocre efforts, we will need to divert a task force to aid them, or worst case, have to take over their objectives like in the previous mission.
- Location
- New England
I was about to say that you'd have to send the engineer back to base first, but, to reduce fiddliness, I'm going to say that infantry/engineering squads can keep "alternate" equipment in their APCs. Swapping vehicle weapons is still a "war factory action", but an infantry squad keeping a spare rocket launcher or three (or some SMGs/hacking equipment/welding torches) in an APC isn't very unreasonable.
KnightDisciple
Love God. Do Right. Fear No Man.
- Location
- Midwest, USA
[x] Tib spikes, Refineries and Mines
Mission 3, Turn 5: October 1, 2058
- Location
- New England
Raw plan/resolution:
October 1, 2058
"Thirty days hath September, April, June and November..." you mutter to yourself as a reminder to stop talking about September in the present tense as you wake up. It's superflous, your G-Pad will tell you anyway, but some part of your brain prefers that you keep track of some of this stuff "manually".
You spend most of the day directing construction crews in sector D4 - the harvesters clear some Tiberium off optimal construction zones and you watch with fascination as the construction guys put up the pre-fabricated structures. Just because the term "pre-fab" is used, doesn't mean it's like putting up an inflatable tent; there's still a significant amount of assembly involved, it's just that it's from pre-fabricated parts. Specifically, the parts that your construction crews saved when dismantling the refinery in B5 a few days ago. First, there's a lot of digging and getting rid of underground Tiberium crystals. Some quick-curing concrete foundation, load-bearing girders embedded in the concrete using extendable cranes. Then the bigger processing equipment and vats go in, the harvester transfer dock is setup, the walls go up and before you know it, you've got a Tiberium refinery up and running.
As an added bonus, your two harvesters have been idling here for a couple of days, so they drop off their loads right away, and soon you've got the familiar sight of Tiberium refining byproduct fumes slowly wafting up into the air.
A similar process occurs for the power plant - GDI construction crews have likely set up tens of thousands of varying models these things over the last several decades. The nuclear fission technology used in these has become so well refined that nobody even bats an eyelash when setting them up and tearing them down. You're even theoretically aware that there are safeguards in place to shut it down safely in case it gets attacked, but you still feel a psychological need to pile some extra defenses up around it.
You've got five groups of APCs moving around. The primary strike force drops back to sector B7, where the engineering squad conducts minor repairs on and re-activates the Tiberium spike. There wasn't anything wrong with it, but it's been sitting out here for a couple of years, so it's full. You get a truck to come out there and haul the stuff to one of your silos.
You also have two APCs coming back to your base to give some infantry a little R&R, while your northern APC group moves to D2 to lay some mines. It's not the thickest of minefields, but it'll serve as a useful indicator if Nod decides to drop in with some forces.
---
Which they do. Unfortunately for them, the entry point that their carryall picked to enter your airspace happens to be directly over your APCs and infantry laying mines in sector D2. The heavily-laden aircraft attempts to turn around, but it doesn't exactly turn on a dime, and by the time they're able to execute any kind of maneuver, a large portion of its hull has been replaced with holes and minigun rounds (and a rocket or two from your infantry). It breaks up before even hitting the ground, although the impact doesn't do it any favors, either. Whatever it was carrying didn't survive, and you're glad for it: there's no way it could have been anything good.
---
The diplomatic corps representative comes to meet you in your command post.
"Thank you for the escort, Lieutenant." he says with a nod, scratching his head with visibile relief. Whether at returning to the outpost or at being able to scratch his head, you're not sure.
"... uh, sure." you say, just barely managing to keep a poker face - the large escort was completely unintentional on your part, you were just trying to bring back some infantry for their R&R rotation and medical treatment. "You're welcome. What's next, representative?"
"The Forgotten outpost in sector C5. I will attempt to negotiate harvesting access to the Tiberium field in D5."
You think it over for a second - that's a pretty tiny field, barely worth whatever you're going to have to give them. But a brief glance at the map reminds you that, without it, any forces moving from the north sector of your operational area to the south will have to pass through your base, adding at least an extra day's worth of travel to any such activity.
"Do you think you could negotiate pass-through rights through C5 as well?" you ask. "It'll greatly simplify our logistics and force movement in the sector."
Karpov nods. "I can try, but they are likely to ask for more help."
"Of course." You respond.
---
"Right, here's the situation." the Captain tells you. "I know you've run a bunch of Noddies out of the prison complex area. Nearest Nod outpost to there..." he highlights the point on the map. "Is around those SAM sites. At this point, they've all had time to get back there. Now... " he holds up a finger. "They're either going to repair and head back to your sector; or they're going to repair and try to clean their area out."
Schmidt frowns, and you can see him counting on his fingers. "... four, five, six buggies; four, five bikes. I'll be outnumbered three to one - I can't hold against that with what I have, even if we assume I have another two or three days to prepare." You have to give the man credit for realizing he's outmatched.
"I could send some forces your way." you suggest. "Or some credits. Or you could pack it in."
The Captain remains silent, content to let the two of you work it out for now. You suspect he's trying to make this a "teachable moment" of some kind, which is somewhat irritating.
Schmidt rubs the back of his hand across his mouth. "Five full APCs will probably give me a fighting chance, unless Nod has constructed a significantly larger amount of forces." he states. "Two thousand credits will let me set up a factory, get some field repairs done, or put up a command post and some basic fortifications, but I won't have a chance with just that." He pauses. "As for packing it in, that's a call for the Captain. But if we do that, I'm pretty sure all those Nod units are going to be gunning for you next, so if you want to keep the fighting out of your zone... "
Your superior officer tussles his short, dull-red hair and looks in your direction. "What do you think, Lieutenant? Can you help your colleague out over here, or are we going to lose a bunch of credits and the opportunity to get air support flying in the area?"
---
You also consider calling up Captain Amir and asking her if/why she's got your comms tapped, but you just don't have the time or energy to deal with it today. Maybe tomorrow, though? On the other hand, it might piss her off, she seems to have a "quirky" sense of humor.
[] Call up the InOps captain and ask for an explanation of why she's forwarding "random" comms traffic from your troops to you
[] Let it go, you've got other things to worry about
EVA Report Follows
Base Status:
Power: 105/300
Housing: -5/20; Hot bunking; No further requisition possible
Building Slots B4: 2/8
Building Slots B5: 0/8
Building Slots D4: 0/4 (medium Tiberium concentration)
Credits: 2467
Infantry Requisition Capacity: 0 (normally 3)
Infantry/Engineers can change loadout at B4 or B5.
Tiberium Storage Capacity: 3500/5000
Tiberium Income:
D4: +1500/turn (estimated 11 more turns)
B7: +25/turn
Buildings:
- Prison Complex, MG Sentry Tower, Sandbags at A4
- Power Plant, Prison Complex, AA Emplacement (no power use), Sandbags at A5
- Construction Yard, 2x Silo, Power Plant, Barracks, Sandbags at B4
- Construction Yard, 2x Silo, Power Plant, Barracks x2, Command Center, Sandbags, MG Sentry Tower at B5
- Outpost, Power Plant, Tiberium Refinery at D4
- Power Plant at A7
Miscellaneous Options (pick any number, these do not take construction slots)
[] Satellite/Radar Scan: -300 Credits, Reveals contents of 1 grid sector including stealthed units (limit 1)
Request command task a satellite to take a picture of the designated grid sector; have your command post crew analyize the data and coordinate comms. This will let you get a good picture of what's going on in your area of operations without having to send troops in.
[] Deploy Minefield: -300 credits, maybe picked once per active APC anywhere along its route
Have your APCs lay active mines in strategic locations. These may deliver damage to hostile units entering the area, but are vulnerable to stealth detection measures. However, they are a great "tripwire" mechanism, since they send out a signal prior to detonation - they won't let you know what set them off, but they'll let you know that something set them off.
-[] Designate sectors
[] Dismantle Tiberium Silo: +50 Credits, +10 Power, +1 Building Slot
Maybe you don't want to dismantle *all* of them, but taking a couple down would free up a little space to put other buildings without having to expand your base to other grid sectors.
-[] Sector B4 (up to two)
-[] Sector B5 (up to two)
Construction Options (Pick 2, may double up):
[] Power Plant: +100 Power, -1 Building Slot, -500 Credits
You're good for power right now, so you probably don't need one of these at this time.
[] Barracks: +4 Housing, -15 Power, -1 Building Slot, -500 Credits
Even though you've made some progress on base housing, you're not quite there yet.
-[] Write-in sector(s)
[] Surveyor: -1500 Credits; Allows set-up of remote bases in grid sectors without construction yards
You've started Tiberium harvesting, but you also have other things demanding your credits. You may consider setting up an outpost in another area at some point - some good candidates include A6 and C7.
[] Command Post: -1000 Credits; -50 Power, -1 Building Slot, +Commander Bonus, Detection of Non-Cloaked units within 1 grid square; Unlocks one RADAR Scan ability use per command post per turn.
Your comms are about as clear as you can make them, and you can move your elbows without hitting a wall or a construction worker. You don't really need a second one at this time.
[] Tiberium Refinery: -2000 Credits, -40 Power, 2 Building Slots (no free harvester)
You don't really have any good places to set one up at this time.
[] War Factory: -2000 Credits, -40 Power, -2 Building Slots, +2 vehicle requisition capacity, repairs all vehicles in grid square, allows vehicles in grid square to swap loadout
There's a "mechanized" component to "mechanized infantry". Not only do you need to be able to swap out weapons on your APCs to respond to threats, but being able to requisition Pitbulls and Predator tanks won't go amiss. Being able to install ablative plating on your vehicles won't hurt either, in case some of the Nod units come equipped with laser weapons.
-[] Write-in sector(s)
[] Defensive Turret: -600 Credits, -10 Power, Detects Stealth
Now that you've got a command post set up, you can build defensive turrets. As usual, there are three varieties - anti-infantry machine gun, anti-tank railgun and anti-air quad cannon or surface-to-air missile. Your three choices for location are the harvesting operation or your main base sectors.
-[] Machine Gun; +5 vs infantry
-[] Railgun; +10 vs vehicles
-[] AA installation; +10 vs aircraft; -10 vs others
[] Sandbags: -500 Credits, +5 to all defensive infantry rolls in sector
With your new outpost in D4, you could theoretically have infantry there to defend it; in which case, they would benefit from some basic obstacles to absorb bullets and rocket shrapnel.
Graphical Representation of Operational Area:
Current Force Status:
You do some mental math, given the position and repair status of your units - your primary strike force can make it to Schmidt's position within the three days, as can the APCs/infantry in D2, and the APCs/infantry in B4. That comes to a total of 8 APCs, six infantry squads and the engineering squad, which would likely be overkill. And it would leave you with only six APCs, two of the damaged, and three infantry squads. Not enough to cover the area outside your base, so you'd basically be sitting there waiting for Nod guys to show up without having any meaningful ability to be proactive. But if you crush the Nod forces over there decisively, they probably won't have much left to hit you with. It's a risky move from your end, though.
You could cut the force you send over down from fifteen units to ten. This will make it a "close shave" over there, but leave you with a more meaningful force to patrol your local area. Any fewer and you're just throwing people into the grinder for no reason.
Or, you could tell them to pack it in over there - you're familiar with the local terrain and can probably take on whatever Nod sends your way. You hope.
[] Commit everything you can; hope to crush local Nod presence "remotely"
[] Commit a smaller subset of units
[] Advise packing it in
You've also offered to transfer some credits. According to your fellow lieutenant, two thousand should do the trick. Of course, you can also use the two thousand, but you've got a good income stream going for now, so it'll "grow back" pretty quickly. Maybe not the best pun to use given the nature of Tiberium, you think to yourself with a smirk.
[] Transfer 2000 credits
[] I'm already sending everything I can, I need the credits to build up defenses here
[] Advise packing it in
[x] Tib spikes, Refineries and Mines
-[x] Deploy Minefield: -300 credits, maybe picked once per active APC anywhere along its route
--[x] D2
-[x] Dismantle Tiberium Refinery: +750 Credits, +40 Power, +2 Building Slots
--[x] B4
-[x] Power Plant: +100 Power, -1 Building Slot, -500 Credits
--[x] D4
-[x] Tiberium Refinery: -2000 Credits, -40 Power, 2 Building Slots (no free harvester)
--[x] D4
-[x] Secure/Capture and mine Tib Spike in B7
-[x] Engineering Squad stays with primary strike force, redirect the two APCs from the base in B4 to the north or east to even out the unit count a little.
T+0
Refinery B4 dismantled (+750 credits)
Power Plant D4 (-500 credits)
Refinery D4 (-2000 credits)
APC #10 (diplomat) A7 -> B7
APC #12, Infantry #10 B7 -> B6
Primary Strike Force C7 -> B7
APC #11, #14, Infantry #8, #9 C7 -> B7
APC #9, Infantry #4 B3 -> B4
APC #5, 13, Infantry #7 C2 -> D2
Nod carryall enters D2
Carryall init: 42
APC init: 119, 156; infantry 96; mods don't matter
"Combat":
APC #13 vs Carryall
1d100 + 10 (commander) vs 1d100
34->44->91->115 vs 79; carryall takes 36% damage; stunned
APC #5 supports APC #13
1d100 + 10 (commander) / 2 (support)
83->93->47
Infantry supports APC #13
1d100 + 10 (commander) / 4 (support)
86->96->24
T+1
APC #10 (diplomat) B7 -> B6
APC #12, Infantry #10 B6 -> B5
APC #11, #14, Infantry #8, #9 B7 -> B6
Harvester x2 returns Tiberium to refinery (+1500)
Engineer Squad re-activates Tiberium Spike B7 (+750, +25 credits/turn)
Infantry #4 repaired (-72)
Carryall init: 142, including a 1 (full support damage)
APCs: 160 (including 100, full support damage), 258
APC #13 vs Carryall
1d100 + 10 (commander) vs 1d100
46->56 vs 79
APC #5 supports APC #13
1d100 + 10 (commander) * 2 (support with init modifiers)
92->102->204
Carryall evaporated
T+2
APC #11, #14, Infantry #8, #9 B6 -> B5
APC #10 (diplomat) B6 -> B5
Infantry #10 repaired (-21, 2467 total)
Minefield deployed D2 (-300)
T+3
APC #11, #14, Infantry #8, #9 B5 -> B4
-[x] Deploy Minefield: -300 credits, maybe picked once per active APC anywhere along its route
--[x] D2
-[x] Dismantle Tiberium Refinery: +750 Credits, +40 Power, +2 Building Slots
--[x] B4
-[x] Power Plant: +100 Power, -1 Building Slot, -500 Credits
--[x] D4
-[x] Tiberium Refinery: -2000 Credits, -40 Power, 2 Building Slots (no free harvester)
--[x] D4
-[x] Secure/Capture and mine Tib Spike in B7
-[x] Engineering Squad stays with primary strike force, redirect the two APCs from the base in B4 to the north or east to even out the unit count a little.
T+0
Refinery B4 dismantled (+750 credits)
Power Plant D4 (-500 credits)
Refinery D4 (-2000 credits)
APC #10 (diplomat) A7 -> B7
APC #12, Infantry #10 B7 -> B6
Primary Strike Force C7 -> B7
APC #11, #14, Infantry #8, #9 C7 -> B7
APC #9, Infantry #4 B3 -> B4
APC #5, 13, Infantry #7 C2 -> D2
Nod carryall enters D2
Carryall init: 42
APC init: 119, 156; infantry 96; mods don't matter
"Combat":
APC #13 vs Carryall
1d100 + 10 (commander) vs 1d100
34->44->91->115 vs 79; carryall takes 36% damage; stunned
APC #5 supports APC #13
1d100 + 10 (commander) / 2 (support)
83->93->47
Infantry supports APC #13
1d100 + 10 (commander) / 4 (support)
86->96->24
T+1
APC #10 (diplomat) B7 -> B6
APC #12, Infantry #10 B6 -> B5
APC #11, #14, Infantry #8, #9 B7 -> B6
Harvester x2 returns Tiberium to refinery (+1500)
Engineer Squad re-activates Tiberium Spike B7 (+750, +25 credits/turn)
Infantry #4 repaired (-72)
Carryall init: 142, including a 1 (full support damage)
APCs: 160 (including 100, full support damage), 258
APC #13 vs Carryall
1d100 + 10 (commander) vs 1d100
46->56 vs 79
APC #5 supports APC #13
1d100 + 10 (commander) * 2 (support with init modifiers)
92->102->204
Carryall evaporated
T+2
APC #11, #14, Infantry #8, #9 B6 -> B5
APC #10 (diplomat) B6 -> B5
Infantry #10 repaired (-21, 2467 total)
Minefield deployed D2 (-300)
T+3
APC #11, #14, Infantry #8, #9 B5 -> B4
October 1, 2058
"Thirty days hath September, April, June and November..." you mutter to yourself as a reminder to stop talking about September in the present tense as you wake up. It's superflous, your G-Pad will tell you anyway, but some part of your brain prefers that you keep track of some of this stuff "manually".
You spend most of the day directing construction crews in sector D4 - the harvesters clear some Tiberium off optimal construction zones and you watch with fascination as the construction guys put up the pre-fabricated structures. Just because the term "pre-fab" is used, doesn't mean it's like putting up an inflatable tent; there's still a significant amount of assembly involved, it's just that it's from pre-fabricated parts. Specifically, the parts that your construction crews saved when dismantling the refinery in B5 a few days ago. First, there's a lot of digging and getting rid of underground Tiberium crystals. Some quick-curing concrete foundation, load-bearing girders embedded in the concrete using extendable cranes. Then the bigger processing equipment and vats go in, the harvester transfer dock is setup, the walls go up and before you know it, you've got a Tiberium refinery up and running.
As an added bonus, your two harvesters have been idling here for a couple of days, so they drop off their loads right away, and soon you've got the familiar sight of Tiberium refining byproduct fumes slowly wafting up into the air.
A similar process occurs for the power plant - GDI construction crews have likely set up tens of thousands of varying models these things over the last several decades. The nuclear fission technology used in these has become so well refined that nobody even bats an eyelash when setting them up and tearing them down. You're even theoretically aware that there are safeguards in place to shut it down safely in case it gets attacked, but you still feel a psychological need to pile some extra defenses up around it.
You've got five groups of APCs moving around. The primary strike force drops back to sector B7, where the engineering squad conducts minor repairs on and re-activates the Tiberium spike. There wasn't anything wrong with it, but it's been sitting out here for a couple of years, so it's full. You get a truck to come out there and haul the stuff to one of your silos.
You also have two APCs coming back to your base to give some infantry a little R&R, while your northern APC group moves to D2 to lay some mines. It's not the thickest of minefields, but it'll serve as a useful indicator if Nod decides to drop in with some forces.
---
Which they do. Unfortunately for them, the entry point that their carryall picked to enter your airspace happens to be directly over your APCs and infantry laying mines in sector D2. The heavily-laden aircraft attempts to turn around, but it doesn't exactly turn on a dime, and by the time they're able to execute any kind of maneuver, a large portion of its hull has been replaced with holes and minigun rounds (and a rocket or two from your infantry). It breaks up before even hitting the ground, although the impact doesn't do it any favors, either. Whatever it was carrying didn't survive, and you're glad for it: there's no way it could have been anything good.
---
The diplomatic corps representative comes to meet you in your command post.
"Thank you for the escort, Lieutenant." he says with a nod, scratching his head with visibile relief. Whether at returning to the outpost or at being able to scratch his head, you're not sure.
"... uh, sure." you say, just barely managing to keep a poker face - the large escort was completely unintentional on your part, you were just trying to bring back some infantry for their R&R rotation and medical treatment. "You're welcome. What's next, representative?"
"The Forgotten outpost in sector C5. I will attempt to negotiate harvesting access to the Tiberium field in D5."
You think it over for a second - that's a pretty tiny field, barely worth whatever you're going to have to give them. But a brief glance at the map reminds you that, without it, any forces moving from the north sector of your operational area to the south will have to pass through your base, adding at least an extra day's worth of travel to any such activity.
"Do you think you could negotiate pass-through rights through C5 as well?" you ask. "It'll greatly simplify our logistics and force movement in the sector."
Karpov nods. "I can try, but they are likely to ask for more help."
"Of course." You respond.
---
"Right, here's the situation." the Captain tells you. "I know you've run a bunch of Noddies out of the prison complex area. Nearest Nod outpost to there..." he highlights the point on the map. "Is around those SAM sites. At this point, they've all had time to get back there. Now... " he holds up a finger. "They're either going to repair and head back to your sector; or they're going to repair and try to clean their area out."
Schmidt frowns, and you can see him counting on his fingers. "... four, five, six buggies; four, five bikes. I'll be outnumbered three to one - I can't hold against that with what I have, even if we assume I have another two or three days to prepare." You have to give the man credit for realizing he's outmatched.
"I could send some forces your way." you suggest. "Or some credits. Or you could pack it in."
The Captain remains silent, content to let the two of you work it out for now. You suspect he's trying to make this a "teachable moment" of some kind, which is somewhat irritating.
Schmidt rubs the back of his hand across his mouth. "Five full APCs will probably give me a fighting chance, unless Nod has constructed a significantly larger amount of forces." he states. "Two thousand credits will let me set up a factory, get some field repairs done, or put up a command post and some basic fortifications, but I won't have a chance with just that." He pauses. "As for packing it in, that's a call for the Captain. But if we do that, I'm pretty sure all those Nod units are going to be gunning for you next, so if you want to keep the fighting out of your zone... "
Your superior officer tussles his short, dull-red hair and looks in your direction. "What do you think, Lieutenant? Can you help your colleague out over here, or are we going to lose a bunch of credits and the opportunity to get air support flying in the area?"
---
You also consider calling up Captain Amir and asking her if/why she's got your comms tapped, but you just don't have the time or energy to deal with it today. Maybe tomorrow, though? On the other hand, it might piss her off, she seems to have a "quirky" sense of humor.
[] Call up the InOps captain and ask for an explanation of why she's forwarding "random" comms traffic from your troops to you
[] Let it go, you've got other things to worry about
EVA Report Follows
Base Status:
Power: 105/300
Housing: -5/20; Hot bunking; No further requisition possible
Building Slots B4: 2/8
Building Slots B5: 0/8
Building Slots D4: 0/4 (medium Tiberium concentration)
Credits: 2467
Infantry Requisition Capacity: 0 (normally 3)
Infantry/Engineers can change loadout at B4 or B5.
Tiberium Storage Capacity: 3500/5000
Tiberium Income:
D4: +1500/turn (estimated 11 more turns)
B7: +25/turn
Buildings:
- Prison Complex, MG Sentry Tower, Sandbags at A4
- Power Plant, Prison Complex, AA Emplacement (no power use), Sandbags at A5
- Construction Yard, 2x Silo, Power Plant, Barracks, Sandbags at B4
- Construction Yard, 2x Silo, Power Plant, Barracks x2, Command Center, Sandbags, MG Sentry Tower at B5
- Outpost, Power Plant, Tiberium Refinery at D4
- Power Plant at A7
Miscellaneous Options (pick any number, these do not take construction slots)
[] Satellite/Radar Scan: -300 Credits, Reveals contents of 1 grid sector including stealthed units (limit 1)
Request command task a satellite to take a picture of the designated grid sector; have your command post crew analyize the data and coordinate comms. This will let you get a good picture of what's going on in your area of operations without having to send troops in.
[] Deploy Minefield: -300 credits, maybe picked once per active APC anywhere along its route
Have your APCs lay active mines in strategic locations. These may deliver damage to hostile units entering the area, but are vulnerable to stealth detection measures. However, they are a great "tripwire" mechanism, since they send out a signal prior to detonation - they won't let you know what set them off, but they'll let you know that something set them off.
-[] Designate sectors
[] Dismantle Tiberium Silo: +50 Credits, +10 Power, +1 Building Slot
Maybe you don't want to dismantle *all* of them, but taking a couple down would free up a little space to put other buildings without having to expand your base to other grid sectors.
-[] Sector B4 (up to two)
-[] Sector B5 (up to two)
Construction Options (Pick 2, may double up):
[] Power Plant: +100 Power, -1 Building Slot, -500 Credits
You're good for power right now, so you probably don't need one of these at this time.
[] Barracks: +4 Housing, -15 Power, -1 Building Slot, -500 Credits
Even though you've made some progress on base housing, you're not quite there yet.
-[] Write-in sector(s)
[] Surveyor: -1500 Credits; Allows set-up of remote bases in grid sectors without construction yards
You've started Tiberium harvesting, but you also have other things demanding your credits. You may consider setting up an outpost in another area at some point - some good candidates include A6 and C7.
[] Command Post: -1000 Credits; -50 Power, -1 Building Slot, +Commander Bonus, Detection of Non-Cloaked units within 1 grid square; Unlocks one RADAR Scan ability use per command post per turn.
Your comms are about as clear as you can make them, and you can move your elbows without hitting a wall or a construction worker. You don't really need a second one at this time.
[] Tiberium Refinery: -2000 Credits, -40 Power, 2 Building Slots (no free harvester)
You don't really have any good places to set one up at this time.
[] War Factory: -2000 Credits, -40 Power, -2 Building Slots, +2 vehicle requisition capacity, repairs all vehicles in grid square, allows vehicles in grid square to swap loadout
There's a "mechanized" component to "mechanized infantry". Not only do you need to be able to swap out weapons on your APCs to respond to threats, but being able to requisition Pitbulls and Predator tanks won't go amiss. Being able to install ablative plating on your vehicles won't hurt either, in case some of the Nod units come equipped with laser weapons.
-[] Write-in sector(s)
[] Defensive Turret: -600 Credits, -10 Power, Detects Stealth
Now that you've got a command post set up, you can build defensive turrets. As usual, there are three varieties - anti-infantry machine gun, anti-tank railgun and anti-air quad cannon or surface-to-air missile. Your three choices for location are the harvesting operation or your main base sectors.
-[] Machine Gun; +5 vs infantry
-[] Railgun; +10 vs vehicles
-[] AA installation; +10 vs aircraft; -10 vs others
[] Sandbags: -500 Credits, +5 to all defensive infantry rolls in sector
With your new outpost in D4, you could theoretically have infantry there to defend it; in which case, they would benefit from some basic obstacles to absorb bullets and rocket shrapnel.
Graphical Representation of Operational Area:
| A1: Flat, Lake Tiberium Field (13x) | B1: Flat | C1: Flat, Lake | D1: Flat |
| A2: Rocky/Urban Forgotten Outpost (5x Building) --------| |-------- | B2: Flat, Tiberium Spike (4x) | C2: Rocky | D2: Flat Minefield 2x Guardian APC (mg) 1x Infantry Squad |
--------| |-------- A3: Tiberium Field (13x)-------------------- | B3: Flat | C3: Flat ---------------------------- | D3: Flat Tiberium Field (12x) ------------| |------------ |
--------------------- |A4: Flat|Prison Complex; |Sandbags, Sentry Tower (mg) | | | B4: Flat Construction Yard, 2x Silo, Power Plant, Barracks, Refinery, Sandbags; 2x Guardian APC (mg) 2x Infantry Squad 1x Guardian APC (67% dmg) 1x Guardian APC (33% dmg) | |---------------------------- | - C4: Flat - | | | | ------------| |------------ D4: Flat Outpost, Refinery Power Plant Tiberium Field (22x) 2x Harvester |
| |A5: Flat |Prison Complex; |Sandbags, AA Turret |Power Plant | --------------------- | B5: Flat Construction Yard, 2x Silo, Power Plant, Barracks x2, Command Center, Sandbags, Sentry Tower (mg) 4x Guardian APC (mg) 3x Infantry Squad | | C5: Rocky/Urban | Forgotten Outpost | (6x Building) | | | D5: Flat Tiberium Field (6x) |
| A6: Flat Tiberium Field (13x) | B6: Flat | C6: Flat | |D6: Flat |Tiberium Field (11x) |-------------------------- |
| A7: Rocky/Urban Forgotten Outpost (7x Building) Power Plant | B7: Rocky Tiberium Spike Tiberium Spike 4x Guardian APC (mg) 3x Infantry Squad 1x Engineering Squad | C7: Flat Tiberium Field (11x) | D7: Flat |
| A8: Lake, Steep Shore No Ground Unit Access | B8: Flat | C8: Flat Tiberium Field (5x) | D8: Flat |
Current Force Status:
APC #1: Elite, Minigun - B7
APC #2: Elite, Guided Rocket - B7
APC #3: Elite, Guided Rocket - B7
APC #4: Elite driver/Veteran gunner, Minigun - B7
Infantry Squad #1: Veteran, dug-in - B7
Infantry Squad #2: Veteran, dug-in - B7
Infantry Squad #3: Veteran, dug-in - B7
Engineering Squad #1: Repair, Tune-up, Veteran - B7
Garrison:
APC #5: Minigun - C2
APC #6: Minigun, Veteran (driver), 67% damage - B4
APC #7: Minigun - B4
APC #8: Minigun - B4
APC #9: Minigun, 33% damage - B4
APC #10: Minigun - B5
APC #11: Minigun, (tuneup) - B4
APC #12: Minigun - B5
APC #13: Minigun - C2
APC #14: Minigun, (tuneup) - B4
Infantry #4: - B4
Infantry #6: - B4 (dug in)
Infantry #7: - C2 (dug in)
Infantry #8: - B4 (dug in)
Infantry #9: Grenade Launchers - B4 (dug in)
Infantry #10: - B5
APC #2: Elite, Guided Rocket - B7
APC #3: Elite, Guided Rocket - B7
APC #4: Elite driver/Veteran gunner, Minigun - B7
Infantry Squad #1: Veteran, dug-in - B7
Infantry Squad #2: Veteran, dug-in - B7
Infantry Squad #3: Veteran, dug-in - B7
Engineering Squad #1: Repair, Tune-up, Veteran - B7
Garrison:
APC #5: Minigun - C2
APC #6: Minigun, Veteran (driver), 67% damage - B4
APC #7: Minigun - B4
APC #8: Minigun - B4
APC #9: Minigun, 33% damage - B4
APC #10: Minigun - B5
APC #11: Minigun, (tuneup) - B4
APC #12: Minigun - B5
APC #13: Minigun - C2
APC #14: Minigun, (tuneup) - B4
Infantry #4: - B4
Infantry #6: - B4 (dug in)
Infantry #7: - C2 (dug in)
Infantry #8: - B4 (dug in)
Infantry #9: Grenade Launchers - B4 (dug in)
Infantry #10: - B5
You do some mental math, given the position and repair status of your units - your primary strike force can make it to Schmidt's position within the three days, as can the APCs/infantry in D2, and the APCs/infantry in B4. That comes to a total of 8 APCs, six infantry squads and the engineering squad, which would likely be overkill. And it would leave you with only six APCs, two of the damaged, and three infantry squads. Not enough to cover the area outside your base, so you'd basically be sitting there waiting for Nod guys to show up without having any meaningful ability to be proactive. But if you crush the Nod forces over there decisively, they probably won't have much left to hit you with. It's a risky move from your end, though.
You could cut the force you send over down from fifteen units to ten. This will make it a "close shave" over there, but leave you with a more meaningful force to patrol your local area. Any fewer and you're just throwing people into the grinder for no reason.
Or, you could tell them to pack it in over there - you're familiar with the local terrain and can probably take on whatever Nod sends your way. You hope.
[] Commit everything you can; hope to crush local Nod presence "remotely"
[] Commit a smaller subset of units
[] Advise packing it in
You've also offered to transfer some credits. According to your fellow lieutenant, two thousand should do the trick. Of course, you can also use the two thousand, but you've got a good income stream going for now, so it'll "grow back" pretty quickly. Maybe not the best pun to use given the nature of Tiberium, you think to yourself with a smirk.
[] Transfer 2000 credits
[] I'm already sending everything I can, I need the credits to build up defenses here
[] Advise packing it in
Dmol8
The Undead Unhinged Lunatic of the Web
- Location
- Belgrade,Serbia
- Pronouns
- He/Him/His
[X] Plan Best Defense is a good Offense
-[X] Call up the InOps captain and ask for an explanation of why she's forwarding "random" comms traffic from your troops to you
-[X] Dismantle Tiberium Silo: +50 Credits, +10 Power, +1 Building Slot
--[X] B4
-[X] War Factory: -2000 Credits, -40 Power, -2 Building Slots, +2 vehicle requisition capacity, repairs all vehicles in grid square, allows vehicles in grid square to swap loadout
--[X] B4
-[X] Commit everything you can; hope to crush local Nod presence "remotely"
-[X] Transfer 2000 credits
Edit: Sold a silo to have the funds for the factory. May have to rebuild it down the line. @Ace of Scarabs you OK with that?
-[X] Call up the InOps captain and ask for an explanation of why she's forwarding "random" comms traffic from your troops to you
-[X] Dismantle Tiberium Silo: +50 Credits, +10 Power, +1 Building Slot
--[X] B4
-[X] War Factory: -2000 Credits, -40 Power, -2 Building Slots, +2 vehicle requisition capacity, repairs all vehicles in grid square, allows vehicles in grid square to swap loadout
--[X] B4
-[X] Commit everything you can; hope to crush local Nod presence "remotely"
-[X] Transfer 2000 credits
Edit: Sold a silo to have the funds for the factory. May have to rebuild it down the line. @Ace of Scarabs you OK with that?
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Ace of Scarabs
Mechanoid Pilot
- Location
- Singapore
[X] Plan Best Defense is a good Offense
Hey man, we don't have the cash to build the War Factory and transfer 2000 credits. Even if you go to use all our expected income and leave us with no budget next turn.
Current Credits: 2467
Expected income: 1525
Total: 3992
^Plan expenses: 4000
[x] Plan Forseen Consequences
-[X] Call up the InOps captain and ask for an explanation of why she's forwarding "random" comms traffic from your troops to you
-[X] War Factory: -2000 Credits, -40 Power, -2 Building Slots, +2 vehicle requisition capacity, repairs all vehicles in grid square, allows vehicles in grid square to swap loadout
--[X] B4
-[x] Deploy Minefield: -300 credits, maybe picked once per active APC anywhere along its route
--[x] D7
-[X] Commit everything you can; hope to crush local Nod presence "remotely"
-[X] I'm already sending everything I can, I need the credits to build up defenses here
So this plan is actually financially possible and secures our base a little more while most of our forces are away.
Besides, if we crush the Nod forces out there, the other guy will not need those 2000 extra credits.
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Dmol8
The Undead Unhinged Lunatic of the Web
- Location
- Belgrade,Serbia
- Pronouns
- He/Him/His
👇🤔 I'm going to need an explanation as to how spending 4000 credits when we are set to have 5000 credit next turn means that we don't have the cash. Cause I don't see the lack of cash. All I see is 1000 credits in reserve we have after my plan is done.
- Location
- New England
Current cash (credits) is 2467. 1525 income gets you to 3992, so @Dmol8 your plan is 8 credits short.
The storage capacity limits the amount of tb you can store at a time - the way to read it is you can stock up another 3500 before you can't harvest any more tib without spending it.
The good news is your plan can be fixed by selling a silo. Alternately, you can leave it as is and the factory will finish after next turn.
The storage capacity limits the amount of tb you can store at a time - the way to read it is you can stock up another 3500 before you can't harvest any more tib without spending it.
The good news is your plan can be fixed by selling a silo. Alternately, you can leave it as is and the factory will finish after next turn.
- Location
- New England
Don't forget to get your votes in, I'll leave the vote open until tonight.
Mission 3, Turn 6: October 2, 2058
- Location
- New England
Raw Plan/Resolution:
"So, are you tapping all military comms? Or just us?" you ask over the video conference.
Captain Amir gets a slight smirk on her face. "Both. And not just military."
You spread your hands, palms up, tilt your head to the side and move your right hand in a circular motion, gesturing for her to continue, the answer not being entirely satisfying to you and the pause having stretched out a little too long.
"I wouldn't worry about it, though, it's only a very small percentage that gets flagged for review by an actual person." the captain continues. "Statistically speaking, none of your comms traffic or other activity will ever get reviewed by a person, unless you, for example, try to smuggle Tiberium crystals into a blue zone so you can set up a small shrine to Kane in your closet."
You raise an eyebrow, thinking that that's an oddly specific thing to bring up.
"You don't have a shrine to Kane in your closet, do you?" she continues. "Because that's a great way to get flagged for an 'everything' review. You really shouldn't be keeping shrines to Kane in your closet." she adds, the slight smirk coming back. "Tiberium is bad for your health."
Your eyebrow remains raised. "So what you're saying is that we actually live in a creepy surveillance state where our every move and conversation is watched by monitoring software." You let out a breath. "Moral concerns aside, isn't this mass comms-tapping kind of a security risk? If you've got the comms taps, so could Nod, right?"
"Trust me, it's not that creepy. You want creepy, you should get my level of security clearance and read some of the reports I read." the captain cracks a small smile.
"As for security risks, if Nod really wanted to listen in on this encrypted transmission... " the captain emphasizes the last two words. "they could, just like that." she snaps her fingers. "They could probably even, in real time, highlight the assassin behind you and digitally remove their mask to get a look at their face."
Intellectually, you know she's yanking your chain, but your hand still goes to your sidearm and you glance towards the door. Captain Amir bursts out laughing. "Got you!"
You frown. InOps humor.
"Anyway." she continues. "My point is that, as far as I'm aware, InOps isn't filled with people whose goal is to retain power for its own sake. Sure, we occasionally get somebody trying to check up on a former lover or get dirt on someone, but we try to curb that as soon as we see it. And we've constantly got auditors from Treasury and other places crawling up our asses... 'did you properly archive these comms logs', 'why was this person flagged for review', 'why are you spending a bunch of credits on hiring artificial intelligence experts'..." she trails off. "But, last time I checked, our false positive rate was pretty damn low. Like I said, just do your job and don't worry about it." the captain shrugs and re-adjusts her ponytail. "Think of it as a robot pal that follows you around and tells your big brother if you're in trouble."
"That analogy... completely fails to reassure me." you respond.
Captain Amir smiles. "Fair enough, but you'll just have to suck it up and deal with it - GDI is kind of a package deal that nobody gets a choice about." she gets a mildly thoughtful expression on her face as she continues. "... unless you want to worship a green, self-replicating space rock or live out in the yellow zones like some of the shiners around here."
"I suppose so." you sigh.
---
As your forces move out through the desert to reinforce Schmidt's position, the APC carrying Karpov arrives in sector C5. Near the end of the day, you get a transmission from him.
"Lieutenant, I've got an ... unusual request for you." he begins.
"I'm listening." you respond, mentally adding a 'so is InOps'.
"These individuals are willing to grant us Tiberium harvesting access to D5 in exchange for constructing a power plant for them so they can power their buildings and water filtration equipment and such; pretty standard stuff." He pauses to take a breath. "But they have also requested that the 'local force commander' make a personal visit."
You raise an eyebrow.
"It seems that, in order to allow access through their outpost, they want to, and I quote, 'get the measure of the man asking for this'."
You roll your eyes. "They're going to be disappointed when I show up instead."
Karpov chuckles. "That is what I said. Their militia commander laughed. Perhaps he thinks he is a comedian."
"Any idea what they want aside from a personal visit?" You ask.
Karpov shakes his head. "They are being somewhat cagey with that particular information."
"I'll think about it", you respond.
---
"Three Five Eight actual to Three Five Nine. Your reinforcements are on the way." You inform Schmidt. "We can't spare any credits at this time, but we've sent a lot more than what you asked for - hopefully that's enough to crush the Nod forces there. I'm attaching the details. ETA approximately thirty hours."
"Try not to get them all killed." you add after a second.
"Acknowledged, Three Five Eight." comes the response. "Hope they get there in time, otherwise there won't be much left for them to rescue. Three Five Nine, out."
You nod and sigh. You've done what you can for the 359th - you've also laid some additional land mines in sector D7, more for intrusion detection than anything else, but the most important thing you've got done so far is to finally put up a war factory. The imposing structure is ready to produce parts and ammo for your combat vehicles, and the repair assistant drones continually float around, helping your crews weld their APCs back together. Now you just have to get some more barracks up so you can have some place to put all the crews for the vehicles and infantry you want to requisition - with more than half your force out in the desert, you no longer have the ability to patrol your area of operations. And, you remind yourself, it's possible that there are Nod units that have been waiting for an opportunity like this to try to sneak in and do some damage.
You spend a little time updating current unit positions and thinking about whether you should bother taking care of either of the Forgotten requests at this time, or take care of your own business instead.
EVA Report Follows:
Current Objectives:
Prevent unauthorized ground access to grid sectors A4, A5 (primary command directive)
Protect Power Plant, Prison Complex in sector A5 (primary command directive)
Protect Prison Complex in sector A4 (primary command directive)
Provide any reasonable assistance to InOps (secondary command directive)
Provide any reasonable assistance to Diplomatic Corps (secondary command directive)
- Transport Diplomatic Corps Representative to Sector C5 (completed)
- Establish Power Plant in sector C5
- Personally visit sector C5
Provide assistance to 359th Mechanized Infantry Platoon (in progress)
Re-establish requisition capability (self-entered)
Base Status:
Power: 65/300
Housing: -5/20; Hot bunking; No further requisition possible
Building Slots B4: 0/8
Building Slots B5: 0/8
Building Slots D4: 0/4 (medium Tiberium concentration)
Credits: 1592
Infantry Requisition Capacity: 0 (normally 3)
Vehicle Requisition Capacity: 0 (normally 1)
Infantry/Engineers can change loadout at B4 or B5.
Vehicles can change loadaout at B4.
Tiberium Storage Capacity: 3500/5000
Tiberium Income:
D4: +1500/turn (estimated 10 more turns)
B7: +25/turn
Buildings:
- Prison Complex, MG Sentry Tower, Sandbags at A4
- Power Plant, Prison Complex, AA Emplacement (no power use), Sandbags at A5
- Construction Yard, 2x Silo, Power Plant, Barracks, War Factory, Sandbags at B4
- Construction Yard, 2x Silo, Power Plant, Barracks x2, Command Center, Sandbags, MG Sentry Tower at B5
- Outpost, Power Plant, Tiberium Refinery at D4
- Power Plant at A7
Miscellaneous Options (pick any number, these do not take construction slots)
[] Satellite/Radar Scan: -300 Credits, Reveals contents of 1 grid sector including stealthed units (limit 1)
Request command task a satellite to take a picture of the designated grid sector; have your command post crew analyize the data and coordinate comms. This will let you get a good picture of what's going on in your area of operations without having to send troops in.
[] Deploy Minefield: -300 credits, maybe picked once per active APC anywhere along its route
Have your APCs lay active mines in strategic locations. These may deliver damage to hostile units entering the area, but are vulnerable to stealth detection measures. However, they are a great "tripwire" mechanism, since they send out a signal prior to detonation - they won't let you know what set them off, but they'll let you know that something set them off.
-[] Designate sectors
[] Dismantle Tiberium Silo: +50 Credits, +10 Power, +1 Building Slot
Maybe you don't want to dismantle *all* of them, but taking a couple down would free up a little space to put other buildings without having to expand your base to other grid sectors.
-[] Sector B4 (up to two)
-[] Sector B5 (up to two)
Construction Options (Pick 2, may double up):
[] Power Plant: +100 Power, -1 Building Slot, -500 Credits
You're good for power right now, so you probably don't need one of these at this time. The Forgotten outpost at C5 has requested that a power plant be set up for them in exchange for Tiberium field access, however.
[] Barracks: +4 Housing, -15 Power, -1 Building Slot, -500 Credits
Even though you've made some progress on base housing, you're not quite there yet.
-[] Write-in sector(s)
[] Surveyor: -1500 Credits; Allows set-up of remote bases in grid sectors without construction yards
You've started Tiberium harvesting, but you also have other things demanding your credits. You may consider setting up an outpost in another area at some point - some good candidates include A6 and C7. Additionally, this is one of the options for getting more space to put barracks.
[] Command Post: -1000 Credits; -50 Power, -1 Building Slot, +Commander Bonus, Detection of Non-Cloaked units within 1 grid square; Unlocks one RADAR Scan ability use per command post per turn.
Your comms are about as clear as you can make them, and you can move your elbows without hitting a wall or a construction worker. You don't really need a second one at this time.
[] Tiberium Refinery: -2000 Credits, -40 Power, 2 Building Slots (no free harvester)
You don't really have any good places to set one up at this time.
[] War Factory: -2000 Credits, -40 Power, -2 Building Slots, +2 vehicle requisition capacity, repairs all vehicles in grid square, allows vehicles in grid square to swap loadout
You don't really feel a need to build a second one of these at this time.
-[] Write-in sector(s)
[] Defensive Turret: -600 Credits, -10 Power, Detects Stealth
Now that you've got a command post set up, you can build defensive turrets. As usual, there are three varieties - anti-infantry machine gun, anti-tank railgun and anti-air quad cannon or surface-to-air missile. Your three choices for location are the harvesting operation or your main base sectors.
-[] Machine Gun; +5 vs infantry
-[] Railgun; +10 vs vehicles
-[] AA installation; +10 vs aircraft; -10 vs others
[] Sandbags: -500 Credits, +5 to all defensive infantry rolls in sector
With your new outpost in D4, you could theoretically have infantry there to defend it; in which case, they would benefit from some basic obstacles to absorb bullets and rocket shrapnel.
Graphical Representation of Operational Area:
Current Force Status:
A couple of choices to make here. You've been asked to visit the Forgotten village in C5 in person; their militia leader apparently wants to talk to you. According to the diplomatic corps representative, you're allowed to ride there in an APC, and they're willing to put up with an infantry squad being present as well. This will take you away from your command center, which, in some ways, actually makes you look forward to it, but you'll be objectively less able to coordinate activities where you're not present. Or, you could put them off for now. Since you've effectively handed command over your remote strike force to the 359th, this won't impact their effectiveness.
[] Carry out Forgotten outpost visit
[] Delay it
Also, now that you've got a War Factory going, you can change the weapons loadouts on your APCs. The incursions made into your operational area have been made mostly by light vehicles, so some guided rockets would definitely come in handy. Still, you consider that some infantry may attempt to infiltrate your area of operations as well, so you may want to retain a few miniguns.
[] All rockets, all day
[] Half and half rockets and miniguns
[] 2:1 rockets to miniguns
[] 1:2 rockets to miniguns
[] What's a rocket?
[] Some other ratio
[x] Plan Forseen Consequences
-[X] Call up the InOps captain and ask for an explanation of why she's forwarding "random" comms traffic from your troops to you
-[X] War Factory: -2000 Credits, -40 Power, -2 Building Slots, +2 vehicle requisition capacity, repairs all vehicles in grid square, allows vehicles in grid square to swap loadout
--[X] B4
-[x] Deploy Minefield: -300 credits, maybe picked once per active APC anywhere along its route
--[x] D7
-[X] Commit everything you can; hope to crush local Nod presence "remotely"
-[X] I'm already sending everything I can, I need the credits to build up defenses here
T+0
War Factory constructed in B4
Primary Strike Force B7 -> C7
APC #10 (diplomat) B5 -> B4
APC #11, #14, Infantry #6, #8 B4 -> C4
APC #5, APC #13, Infantry #7 D2 -> Out
Harvesters harvest + return x2 (+1500, 20x load left)
Spike income (+25)
T+1
Primary Strike Force C7 -> D7
Minefield laid in D7 (-300)
APC #11, #14, Infantry #6, #8 C4 -> D4
APC #10 (diplomat) B4 -> C4
APC #6 repaired (-67)
APC #9 repaired (-33, 1592 total)
T+2
Primary Strike Force D7 -> Out
APC #11, #14, Infantry #6, #8 D4 -> Out
APC #10 (diplomat) C4 -> C5
-[X] Call up the InOps captain and ask for an explanation of why she's forwarding "random" comms traffic from your troops to you
-[X] War Factory: -2000 Credits, -40 Power, -2 Building Slots, +2 vehicle requisition capacity, repairs all vehicles in grid square, allows vehicles in grid square to swap loadout
--[X] B4
-[x] Deploy Minefield: -300 credits, maybe picked once per active APC anywhere along its route
--[x] D7
-[X] Commit everything you can; hope to crush local Nod presence "remotely"
-[X] I'm already sending everything I can, I need the credits to build up defenses here
T+0
War Factory constructed in B4
Primary Strike Force B7 -> C7
APC #10 (diplomat) B5 -> B4
APC #11, #14, Infantry #6, #8 B4 -> C4
APC #5, APC #13, Infantry #7 D2 -> Out
Harvesters harvest + return x2 (+1500, 20x load left)
Spike income (+25)
T+1
Primary Strike Force C7 -> D7
Minefield laid in D7 (-300)
APC #11, #14, Infantry #6, #8 C4 -> D4
APC #10 (diplomat) B4 -> C4
APC #6 repaired (-67)
APC #9 repaired (-33, 1592 total)
T+2
Primary Strike Force D7 -> Out
APC #11, #14, Infantry #6, #8 D4 -> Out
APC #10 (diplomat) C4 -> C5
"So, are you tapping all military comms? Or just us?" you ask over the video conference.
Captain Amir gets a slight smirk on her face. "Both. And not just military."
You spread your hands, palms up, tilt your head to the side and move your right hand in a circular motion, gesturing for her to continue, the answer not being entirely satisfying to you and the pause having stretched out a little too long.
"I wouldn't worry about it, though, it's only a very small percentage that gets flagged for review by an actual person." the captain continues. "Statistically speaking, none of your comms traffic or other activity will ever get reviewed by a person, unless you, for example, try to smuggle Tiberium crystals into a blue zone so you can set up a small shrine to Kane in your closet."
You raise an eyebrow, thinking that that's an oddly specific thing to bring up.
"You don't have a shrine to Kane in your closet, do you?" she continues. "Because that's a great way to get flagged for an 'everything' review. You really shouldn't be keeping shrines to Kane in your closet." she adds, the slight smirk coming back. "Tiberium is bad for your health."
Your eyebrow remains raised. "So what you're saying is that we actually live in a creepy surveillance state where our every move and conversation is watched by monitoring software." You let out a breath. "Moral concerns aside, isn't this mass comms-tapping kind of a security risk? If you've got the comms taps, so could Nod, right?"
"Trust me, it's not that creepy. You want creepy, you should get my level of security clearance and read some of the reports I read." the captain cracks a small smile.
"As for security risks, if Nod really wanted to listen in on this encrypted transmission... " the captain emphasizes the last two words. "they could, just like that." she snaps her fingers. "They could probably even, in real time, highlight the assassin behind you and digitally remove their mask to get a look at their face."
Intellectually, you know she's yanking your chain, but your hand still goes to your sidearm and you glance towards the door. Captain Amir bursts out laughing. "Got you!"
You frown. InOps humor.
"Anyway." she continues. "My point is that, as far as I'm aware, InOps isn't filled with people whose goal is to retain power for its own sake. Sure, we occasionally get somebody trying to check up on a former lover or get dirt on someone, but we try to curb that as soon as we see it. And we've constantly got auditors from Treasury and other places crawling up our asses... 'did you properly archive these comms logs', 'why was this person flagged for review', 'why are you spending a bunch of credits on hiring artificial intelligence experts'..." she trails off. "But, last time I checked, our false positive rate was pretty damn low. Like I said, just do your job and don't worry about it." the captain shrugs and re-adjusts her ponytail. "Think of it as a robot pal that follows you around and tells your big brother if you're in trouble."
"That analogy... completely fails to reassure me." you respond.
Captain Amir smiles. "Fair enough, but you'll just have to suck it up and deal with it - GDI is kind of a package deal that nobody gets a choice about." she gets a mildly thoughtful expression on her face as she continues. "... unless you want to worship a green, self-replicating space rock or live out in the yellow zones like some of the shiners around here."
"I suppose so." you sigh.
---
As your forces move out through the desert to reinforce Schmidt's position, the APC carrying Karpov arrives in sector C5. Near the end of the day, you get a transmission from him.
"Lieutenant, I've got an ... unusual request for you." he begins.
"I'm listening." you respond, mentally adding a 'so is InOps'.
"These individuals are willing to grant us Tiberium harvesting access to D5 in exchange for constructing a power plant for them so they can power their buildings and water filtration equipment and such; pretty standard stuff." He pauses to take a breath. "But they have also requested that the 'local force commander' make a personal visit."
You raise an eyebrow.
"It seems that, in order to allow access through their outpost, they want to, and I quote, 'get the measure of the man asking for this'."
You roll your eyes. "They're going to be disappointed when I show up instead."
Karpov chuckles. "That is what I said. Their militia commander laughed. Perhaps he thinks he is a comedian."
"Any idea what they want aside from a personal visit?" You ask.
Karpov shakes his head. "They are being somewhat cagey with that particular information."
"I'll think about it", you respond.
---
"Three Five Eight actual to Three Five Nine. Your reinforcements are on the way." You inform Schmidt. "We can't spare any credits at this time, but we've sent a lot more than what you asked for - hopefully that's enough to crush the Nod forces there. I'm attaching the details. ETA approximately thirty hours."
"Try not to get them all killed." you add after a second.
"Acknowledged, Three Five Eight." comes the response. "Hope they get there in time, otherwise there won't be much left for them to rescue. Three Five Nine, out."
You nod and sigh. You've done what you can for the 359th - you've also laid some additional land mines in sector D7, more for intrusion detection than anything else, but the most important thing you've got done so far is to finally put up a war factory. The imposing structure is ready to produce parts and ammo for your combat vehicles, and the repair assistant drones continually float around, helping your crews weld their APCs back together. Now you just have to get some more barracks up so you can have some place to put all the crews for the vehicles and infantry you want to requisition - with more than half your force out in the desert, you no longer have the ability to patrol your area of operations. And, you remind yourself, it's possible that there are Nod units that have been waiting for an opportunity like this to try to sneak in and do some damage.
You spend a little time updating current unit positions and thinking about whether you should bother taking care of either of the Forgotten requests at this time, or take care of your own business instead.
EVA Report Follows:
Current Objectives:
Prevent unauthorized ground access to grid sectors A4, A5 (primary command directive)
Protect Power Plant, Prison Complex in sector A5 (primary command directive)
Protect Prison Complex in sector A4 (primary command directive)
Provide any reasonable assistance to InOps (secondary command directive)
Provide any reasonable assistance to Diplomatic Corps (secondary command directive)
- Transport Diplomatic Corps Representative to Sector C5 (completed)
- Establish Power Plant in sector C5
- Personally visit sector C5
Provide assistance to 359th Mechanized Infantry Platoon (in progress)
Re-establish requisition capability (self-entered)
Base Status:
Power: 65/300
Housing: -5/20; Hot bunking; No further requisition possible
Building Slots B4: 0/8
Building Slots B5: 0/8
Building Slots D4: 0/4 (medium Tiberium concentration)
Credits: 1592
Infantry Requisition Capacity: 0 (normally 3)
Vehicle Requisition Capacity: 0 (normally 1)
Infantry/Engineers can change loadout at B4 or B5.
Vehicles can change loadaout at B4.
Tiberium Storage Capacity: 3500/5000
Tiberium Income:
D4: +1500/turn (estimated 10 more turns)
B7: +25/turn
Buildings:
- Prison Complex, MG Sentry Tower, Sandbags at A4
- Power Plant, Prison Complex, AA Emplacement (no power use), Sandbags at A5
- Construction Yard, 2x Silo, Power Plant, Barracks, War Factory, Sandbags at B4
- Construction Yard, 2x Silo, Power Plant, Barracks x2, Command Center, Sandbags, MG Sentry Tower at B5
- Outpost, Power Plant, Tiberium Refinery at D4
- Power Plant at A7
Miscellaneous Options (pick any number, these do not take construction slots)
[] Satellite/Radar Scan: -300 Credits, Reveals contents of 1 grid sector including stealthed units (limit 1)
Request command task a satellite to take a picture of the designated grid sector; have your command post crew analyize the data and coordinate comms. This will let you get a good picture of what's going on in your area of operations without having to send troops in.
[] Deploy Minefield: -300 credits, maybe picked once per active APC anywhere along its route
Have your APCs lay active mines in strategic locations. These may deliver damage to hostile units entering the area, but are vulnerable to stealth detection measures. However, they are a great "tripwire" mechanism, since they send out a signal prior to detonation - they won't let you know what set them off, but they'll let you know that something set them off.
-[] Designate sectors
[] Dismantle Tiberium Silo: +50 Credits, +10 Power, +1 Building Slot
Maybe you don't want to dismantle *all* of them, but taking a couple down would free up a little space to put other buildings without having to expand your base to other grid sectors.
-[] Sector B4 (up to two)
-[] Sector B5 (up to two)
Construction Options (Pick 2, may double up):
[] Power Plant: +100 Power, -1 Building Slot, -500 Credits
You're good for power right now, so you probably don't need one of these at this time. The Forgotten outpost at C5 has requested that a power plant be set up for them in exchange for Tiberium field access, however.
[] Barracks: +4 Housing, -15 Power, -1 Building Slot, -500 Credits
Even though you've made some progress on base housing, you're not quite there yet.
-[] Write-in sector(s)
[] Surveyor: -1500 Credits; Allows set-up of remote bases in grid sectors without construction yards
You've started Tiberium harvesting, but you also have other things demanding your credits. You may consider setting up an outpost in another area at some point - some good candidates include A6 and C7. Additionally, this is one of the options for getting more space to put barracks.
[] Command Post: -1000 Credits; -50 Power, -1 Building Slot, +Commander Bonus, Detection of Non-Cloaked units within 1 grid square; Unlocks one RADAR Scan ability use per command post per turn.
Your comms are about as clear as you can make them, and you can move your elbows without hitting a wall or a construction worker. You don't really need a second one at this time.
[] Tiberium Refinery: -2000 Credits, -40 Power, 2 Building Slots (no free harvester)
You don't really have any good places to set one up at this time.
[] War Factory: -2000 Credits, -40 Power, -2 Building Slots, +2 vehicle requisition capacity, repairs all vehicles in grid square, allows vehicles in grid square to swap loadout
You don't really feel a need to build a second one of these at this time.
-[] Write-in sector(s)
[] Defensive Turret: -600 Credits, -10 Power, Detects Stealth
Now that you've got a command post set up, you can build defensive turrets. As usual, there are three varieties - anti-infantry machine gun, anti-tank railgun and anti-air quad cannon or surface-to-air missile. Your three choices for location are the harvesting operation or your main base sectors.
-[] Machine Gun; +5 vs infantry
-[] Railgun; +10 vs vehicles
-[] AA installation; +10 vs aircraft; -10 vs others
[] Sandbags: -500 Credits, +5 to all defensive infantry rolls in sector
With your new outpost in D4, you could theoretically have infantry there to defend it; in which case, they would benefit from some basic obstacles to absorb bullets and rocket shrapnel.
Graphical Representation of Operational Area:
| A1: Flat, Lake Tiberium Field (13x) | B1: Flat | C1: Flat, Lake | D1: Flat |
| A2: Rocky/Urban Forgotten Outpost (5x Building) --------| |-------- | B2: Flat, Tiberium Spike (4x) | C2: Rocky | D2: Flat Minefield |
--------| |-------- A3: Tiberium Field (13x)-------------------- | B3: Flat | C3: Flat ---------------------------- | D3: Flat Tiberium Field (12x) ------------| |------------ |
--------------------- |A4: Flat|Prison Complex; |Sandbags, Sentry Tower (mg) | | | B4: Flat Construction Yard, 2x Silo, Power Plant, Barracks, War Factory, Sandbags; 1x Infantry Squad 2x Guardian APC | |---------------------------- | - C4: Flat - | | | | ------------| |------------ D4: Flat Outpost, Refinery Power Plant Tiberium Field (20x) 2x Harvester |
| |A5: Flat |Prison Complex; |Sandbags, AA Turret |Power Plant | --------------------- | B5: Flat Construction Yard, 2x Silo, Power Plant, Barracks x2, Command Center, Sandbags, Sentry Tower (mg) 3x Guardian APC (mg) 3x Infantry Squad | | C5: Rocky/Urban | Forgotten Outpost | (6x Building) | 1x Guardian APC | | D5: Flat Tiberium Field (6x) |
| A6: Flat Tiberium Field (13x) | B6: Flat | C6: Flat | |D6: Flat |Tiberium Field (11x) |-------------------------- |
| A7: Rocky/Urban Forgotten Outpost (7x Building) Power Plant | B7: Rocky Tiberium Spike Tiberium Spike | C7: Flat Tiberium Field (11x) | D7: Flat Minefield |
| A8: Lake, Steep Shore No Ground Unit Access | B8: Flat | C8: Flat Tiberium Field (5x) | D8: Flat |
Current Force Status:
APC #1: Elite, Minigun - In Transit to SAM Site Zone (2 turns)
APC #2: Elite, Guided Rocket - In Transit to SAM Site Zone (2 turns)
APC #3: Elite, Guided Rocket - In Transit to SAM Site Zone (2 turns)
APC #4: Elite driver/Veteran gunner, Minigun - In Transit to SAM Site Zone (2 turns)
Infantry Squad #1: Veteran, dug-in - In Transit to SAM Site Zone (2 turns)
Infantry Squad #2: Veteran, dug-in - In Transit to SAM Site Zone (2 turns)
Infantry Squad #3: Veteran, dug-in - In Transit to SAM Site Zone (2 turns)
Engineering Squad #1: Repair, Tune-up, Veteran - In Transit to SAM Site Zone (2 turns)\
APC #5: Minigun - In Transit to SAM Site Zone (2 turns)
APC #11: Minigun, (tuneup) - In Transit to SAM Site Zone (2 turns)
APC #13: Minigun - In Transit to SAM Site Zone (2 turns)
APC #14: Minigun, (tuneup) - In Transit to SAM Site Zone (2 turns)
Infantry #6: - In Transit to SAM Site Zone (2 turns)
Infantry #7: - In Transit to SAM Site Zone (2 turns)
Garrison:
APC #6: Minigun, Veteran (driver) - B4
APC #7: Minigun - B5
APC #8: Minigun - B5
APC #9: Minigun - B4
APC #10: Minigun - B5
APC #12: Minigun - B5
Infantry #4: - B4 (dug in)
Infantry #8: - B5 (dug in)
Infantry #9: Grenade Launchers - B5 (dug in)
Infantry #10: - B5 (dug in)
APC #2: Elite, Guided Rocket - In Transit to SAM Site Zone (2 turns)
APC #3: Elite, Guided Rocket - In Transit to SAM Site Zone (2 turns)
APC #4: Elite driver/Veteran gunner, Minigun - In Transit to SAM Site Zone (2 turns)
Infantry Squad #1: Veteran, dug-in - In Transit to SAM Site Zone (2 turns)
Infantry Squad #2: Veteran, dug-in - In Transit to SAM Site Zone (2 turns)
Infantry Squad #3: Veteran, dug-in - In Transit to SAM Site Zone (2 turns)
Engineering Squad #1: Repair, Tune-up, Veteran - In Transit to SAM Site Zone (2 turns)\
APC #5: Minigun - In Transit to SAM Site Zone (2 turns)
APC #11: Minigun, (tuneup) - In Transit to SAM Site Zone (2 turns)
APC #13: Minigun - In Transit to SAM Site Zone (2 turns)
APC #14: Minigun, (tuneup) - In Transit to SAM Site Zone (2 turns)
Infantry #6: - In Transit to SAM Site Zone (2 turns)
Infantry #7: - In Transit to SAM Site Zone (2 turns)
Garrison:
APC #6: Minigun, Veteran (driver) - B4
APC #7: Minigun - B5
APC #8: Minigun - B5
APC #9: Minigun - B4
APC #10: Minigun - B5
APC #12: Minigun - B5
Infantry #4: - B4 (dug in)
Infantry #8: - B5 (dug in)
Infantry #9: Grenade Launchers - B5 (dug in)
Infantry #10: - B5 (dug in)
A couple of choices to make here. You've been asked to visit the Forgotten village in C5 in person; their militia leader apparently wants to talk to you. According to the diplomatic corps representative, you're allowed to ride there in an APC, and they're willing to put up with an infantry squad being present as well. This will take you away from your command center, which, in some ways, actually makes you look forward to it, but you'll be objectively less able to coordinate activities where you're not present. Or, you could put them off for now. Since you've effectively handed command over your remote strike force to the 359th, this won't impact their effectiveness.
[] Carry out Forgotten outpost visit
[] Delay it
Also, now that you've got a War Factory going, you can change the weapons loadouts on your APCs. The incursions made into your operational area have been made mostly by light vehicles, so some guided rockets would definitely come in handy. Still, you consider that some infantry may attempt to infiltrate your area of operations as well, so you may want to retain a few miniguns.
[] All rockets, all day
[] Half and half rockets and miniguns
[] 2:1 rockets to miniguns
[] 1:2 rockets to miniguns
[] What's a rocket?
[] Some other ratio
Godspeed to our outbound forces.
[X] Plan Personal meetings
-[x] Dismantle Tiberium Silo: +50 Credits, +10 Power, +1 Building Slot x2
--[x] B4
-[x] Barracks: +4 Housing, -15 Power, -1 Building Slot, -500 Credits x2
--[x] B4
-[x] Carry out Forgotten outpost visit
-[x] 2:1 rockets to miniguns
Alright, so this will up our remaining garrisons anti vehicle firepower to a useful level and with the barracks built we will finally have the ability to requisition vehicles.
My budget next turn is to build the Forgotten Powerplant and to buy a Pitbull to strengthen our weakened recon capabilities while half the garrison is gone.
[X] Plan Personal meetings
-[x] Dismantle Tiberium Silo: +50 Credits, +10 Power, +1 Building Slot x2
--[x] B4
-[x] Barracks: +4 Housing, -15 Power, -1 Building Slot, -500 Credits x2
--[x] B4
-[x] Carry out Forgotten outpost visit
-[x] 2:1 rockets to miniguns
Alright, so this will up our remaining garrisons anti vehicle firepower to a useful level and with the barracks built we will finally have the ability to requisition vehicles.
My budget next turn is to build the Forgotten Powerplant and to buy a Pitbull to strengthen our weakened recon capabilities while half the garrison is gone.
- Pronouns
- He
[X] Plan Personal meetings
- Location
- New England
Just FYI, you're at -5 housing, so you'd need to build 2x barracks to get up above 0 (each one provides +4).
That is in the plan, I put an x2 after the barracks description. Should it be there or somewhere else?
- Location
- New England
Glad you're reading your plan more attentively than I am, lol
KnightDisciple
Love God. Do Right. Fear No Man.
- Location
- Midwest, USA
[X] Plan Personal meetings
- Location
- New England