Whiskey Golf
Being of Editing & Technical Assistance
- Location
- Chained to my desk
Mandat de l'impératrice des Cieux - Imperial Princess Troubleshooter Space Opera Quest
- Thread starter Whiskey Golf
- Start date
- Original Mature
dragonkid11
A random creator
Also this is infinitely more thought than Infukun put into G41 or the AR team.
I'm not quite sure if any thought was put in her at all seeing as the artist was thinking more with their thingie between their legs than actual imaginative brain there.
Literally, actually, to anyone that didn't get it. The artist was fucking horny when drawing her.
Weapons and Warships Overview
Whiskey Golf
Being of Editing & Technical Assistance
- Location
- Chained to my desk
Merry Christmas, everyone.
Unfortunately I wasn't able to get any work done on the update due to Christmas being the single busiest time of the year for me. So, as a Christmas Present, here's the Weapons and Warships informational overview, from the milspec perspective.
Weapons and Warships overview
Missiles are launched via hull-mounted Vertical Launch Systems, with most manufacturers working off common standards. VLS systems are predominantly cold-launch, using compressed air to kick out missiles from the launch tubes, allowing missiles to coast along in frictionless zero-G before their engines activate. While theoretically missiles can be used for long range attacks, doctrinally they are used for close range alpha strikes, the intention being that a massed salvo of missiles will overwhelm point defenses and confuse the opponent's sensor tracking with a massive volume of contacts. Multiple seeker options exist, ranging from radar, laser beam-riding, heatseeking, infrafred imaging, electro-optical; many of the better milspec missiles will combine multiple seekers.
Torpedoes are essentially bigger, heavier, faster missiles with larger warheads. The stereotypical torpedo is around 5-6 times the mass of a standard missile, with an armored nosecone and hull to absorb point defense fire and to punch into the target's hull. What the torpedo gains in warhead and toughness, it loses in range and burn time. As such, torpedoes are typically employed by lighter combatants as a means to punch above their weight and threaten heavier warships.
Countermissiles, aka Point Defense missiles, are smaller than standard anti ship missiles, and can be launched from common VLS tubes or from dedicated counter missile cluster "blisters", and operate on similar principles as missiles above. They are used for anti missile point defense, as a complementary system to point defense lasers, and are typically dual mode passive RF/IR homing.
Lasers are used for antimissile point defense, and at close range can be used to attempt to mission-kill sensor blisters.
Railguns exist in four classes: quick-firing aka "pom-pom" (FS), light (DD, CL), medium (CA), and heavy (BC, BB). Rate of fire decreases and lethality increases with each tier you go up. Railguns are ubiquitous throughout the Empire, being fairly easy to maintain and operate. All railguns can fire solid slugs, typically steel (civilian grade) or DU (milspec) for armor penetration and aftereffects, though some operators prefer APHE rounds for lighter skinned targets. BB railguns can fire sensor rounds that provide targeting data to missiles or targeting data for their own guns. Doctrinally, railguns are the preferred weapon for long range sniping, but close range gun battles are preferred to maximize accuracy and impact.
Beam Cannons are mounted by CA, BC and BB as alternative weapons to railguns. Beam cannons deliver higher salvo damage when compared to railguns but are range limited. Unlike railguns with their theoretical infinite ballistic range, beams dissipate past their maximum range due to focal distance. The IN intends to eventually move to pure beam cannon armament at some point, but the slow rate of new warship construction and proven nature means railguns remain ubiquitous in the navy; even BBs with beam cannon main battery will mount railgun secondary battery, or vice versa.
As a baseline setup, all warships will carry ECM, railguns, and countermissiles in some configuration or other.
The following is an overview of common warships classes present in the Golden Orchid Empire.
Corvettes (FS): In-system combat craft, being too small to carry an FTL drive. FS carry on the ideals of the Jeune Ecole in the sense of being swarm ships capable of taking down bigger ships by sheer weight of numbers and there being a lot of them to shoot at. The typical FS will generally carry pom-pom railgun. Their small size precludes large missile salvoes, so multiple corvettes must make concerted attacks to maximise missile throw weight. (The Hoou "heavy corvettes" are an exception to the general trend, being essentially DD hulls without the FTL drive.) The IN considers corvettes as area denial warships and as primarily defensive assets, as the lack of FTL drive tethers corvettes to their home systems
Frigates (FF): The smallest FTL-capable combatant. Depending on the class and manufacturer, frigates range in size and weapons fitout from somewhat larger than a corvette to being somewhat smaller than a destroyer. The IN and IRG eschew the use of frigates combat vessels, preferring to instead build destroyers, which are superior in every way except cost (although destroyers are arguably more cost-effective in the long run). The only operators of frigates as combat vessels are the Revenue Service, stingier ducal forces, various PMCs, and pirates. There are frigates in civilian ownership with the appropriate permits filed, but quite frankly, you'd get better bang for your buck with an armed merchantman. (Actually better, given the crazy shit VSS in particular has done.)
Destroyer (DD): The workhorse tin can of the Navy, and the smallest fleet ship used by the IN and IRG. Destroyers are primarily used for scouting, screening and patrol duties. Their smaller size and mass means DDs have the best thrust to mass ratio of a fleet's warships, and their FTL drive recharges faster than heavier ships, allowing them great tactical mobility and the ability to make hit and run harassment attacks. It is not an unusual tactic for DDs to jump after a fleeing force, and transmit back targeting data for the fleet to BVR snipe with railguns.
Light Cruiser (CL): Essentially, a DD writ larger. As a general rule, CLs carry more of the same caliber of weapons as DDS, and use their increased size to also carry more robust datalinking and communication facilities. It's common to see CLs being used as DesRon leaders, or used to replace DDs as screening elements in some fleets; CL FTL drives recharge a little slower than DDs, but still faster than CAs.
Heavy Cruiser (CA): To an extent, a CL writ larger, with a higher tier of weaponry. CAs are considered the IN's baseline for independent operations and ship comparisons: pros or cons of a ship-class are weighed against the CA. They are built to slug it out with lighter combatants, and it is not uncommon to see all-gun CAs in use alongside balanced gun and missile CAs. CAs are maneuverable enough, fast enough, armored enough, and armed enough, making them a jack of all trades capable of taking on most missions.
Battlecruiser (BC): The commerce raider par excellence: it can kill anything that can escape it, and can escape anything that can kill it. BC are somewhat smaller than battleships, and carry BB-tier firepower with CA-tier handling and armor. In fleet actions, BCs support BBs by flanking and fixing enemy forces, allowing the BBs to close in and hammer them. Combined BC/CA groups are a potent force. While less durable than BBs, competently handled BCs have a fighting chance against an equal number of BBs - if the battle does not devolve into a slugging match. The slowdown in naval construction and lack of credible threats means that most battlecruisers in service are on average a century if not older, though all operators have attempted to keep their ships relevant with periodic service life extension programs and extensive system refits.
Battleship (BB): The capship par excellence, BBs are the hardest hitting, toughest ships commonly available in the fleet. They are hoarded zealously by the Great Houses, and even the IN and IRG employ their BBs with an eye to safeguarding them. The slowdown of naval construction and the lack of a peer opponent mean that, as with battlecruisers, most battleships in service are long in the tooth, albeit with periodic refits and SLEP.
Dreadnought (DN): Twice the size of a battleship, hull thick with armor and bristling with weapons, carrying more firepower than an entire BB squadron in a single hull, the dreadnought is the greatest and mightiest warship ever created. The five Takemikazuchi-class dreadnoughts were built for the IRG and IN to utterly dominate any other warship that any of the Great Houses could put to space. Their price tag also utterly dominated any other warship anyone could put to space. DNs are harder, tougher nuts to crack than BBs, but are too valuable to be used without an escort fleet, and require significant logistical support to operate. No dreadnought has ever ventured outside of the Inner Rim.
Unfortunately I wasn't able to get any work done on the update due to Christmas being the single busiest time of the year for me. So, as a Christmas Present, here's the Weapons and Warships informational overview, from the milspec perspective.
Weapons and Warships overview
Missiles are launched via hull-mounted Vertical Launch Systems, with most manufacturers working off common standards. VLS systems are predominantly cold-launch, using compressed air to kick out missiles from the launch tubes, allowing missiles to coast along in frictionless zero-G before their engines activate. While theoretically missiles can be used for long range attacks, doctrinally they are used for close range alpha strikes, the intention being that a massed salvo of missiles will overwhelm point defenses and confuse the opponent's sensor tracking with a massive volume of contacts. Multiple seeker options exist, ranging from radar, laser beam-riding, heatseeking, infrafred imaging, electro-optical; many of the better milspec missiles will combine multiple seekers.
Torpedoes are essentially bigger, heavier, faster missiles with larger warheads. The stereotypical torpedo is around 5-6 times the mass of a standard missile, with an armored nosecone and hull to absorb point defense fire and to punch into the target's hull. What the torpedo gains in warhead and toughness, it loses in range and burn time. As such, torpedoes are typically employed by lighter combatants as a means to punch above their weight and threaten heavier warships.
Countermissiles, aka Point Defense missiles, are smaller than standard anti ship missiles, and can be launched from common VLS tubes or from dedicated counter missile cluster "blisters", and operate on similar principles as missiles above. They are used for anti missile point defense, as a complementary system to point defense lasers, and are typically dual mode passive RF/IR homing.
Lasers are used for antimissile point defense, and at close range can be used to attempt to mission-kill sensor blisters.
Railguns exist in four classes: quick-firing aka "pom-pom" (FS), light (DD, CL), medium (CA), and heavy (BC, BB). Rate of fire decreases and lethality increases with each tier you go up. Railguns are ubiquitous throughout the Empire, being fairly easy to maintain and operate. All railguns can fire solid slugs, typically steel (civilian grade) or DU (milspec) for armor penetration and aftereffects, though some operators prefer APHE rounds for lighter skinned targets. BB railguns can fire sensor rounds that provide targeting data to missiles or targeting data for their own guns. Doctrinally, railguns are the preferred weapon for long range sniping, but close range gun battles are preferred to maximize accuracy and impact.
Beam Cannons are mounted by CA, BC and BB as alternative weapons to railguns. Beam cannons deliver higher salvo damage when compared to railguns but are range limited. Unlike railguns with their theoretical infinite ballistic range, beams dissipate past their maximum range due to focal distance. The IN intends to eventually move to pure beam cannon armament at some point, but the slow rate of new warship construction and proven nature means railguns remain ubiquitous in the navy; even BBs with beam cannon main battery will mount railgun secondary battery, or vice versa.
As a baseline setup, all warships will carry ECM, railguns, and countermissiles in some configuration or other.
The following is an overview of common warships classes present in the Golden Orchid Empire.
Corvettes (FS): In-system combat craft, being too small to carry an FTL drive. FS carry on the ideals of the Jeune Ecole in the sense of being swarm ships capable of taking down bigger ships by sheer weight of numbers and there being a lot of them to shoot at. The typical FS will generally carry pom-pom railgun. Their small size precludes large missile salvoes, so multiple corvettes must make concerted attacks to maximise missile throw weight. (The Hoou "heavy corvettes" are an exception to the general trend, being essentially DD hulls without the FTL drive.) The IN considers corvettes as area denial warships and as primarily defensive assets, as the lack of FTL drive tethers corvettes to their home systems
Frigates (FF): The smallest FTL-capable combatant. Depending on the class and manufacturer, frigates range in size and weapons fitout from somewhat larger than a corvette to being somewhat smaller than a destroyer. The IN and IRG eschew the use of frigates combat vessels, preferring to instead build destroyers, which are superior in every way except cost (although destroyers are arguably more cost-effective in the long run). The only operators of frigates as combat vessels are the Revenue Service, stingier ducal forces, various PMCs, and pirates. There are frigates in civilian ownership with the appropriate permits filed, but quite frankly, you'd get better bang for your buck with an armed merchantman. (Actually better, given the crazy shit VSS in particular has done.)
Destroyer (DD): The workhorse tin can of the Navy, and the smallest fleet ship used by the IN and IRG. Destroyers are primarily used for scouting, screening and patrol duties. Their smaller size and mass means DDs have the best thrust to mass ratio of a fleet's warships, and their FTL drive recharges faster than heavier ships, allowing them great tactical mobility and the ability to make hit and run harassment attacks. It is not an unusual tactic for DDs to jump after a fleeing force, and transmit back targeting data for the fleet to BVR snipe with railguns.
Light Cruiser (CL): Essentially, a DD writ larger. As a general rule, CLs carry more of the same caliber of weapons as DDS, and use their increased size to also carry more robust datalinking and communication facilities. It's common to see CLs being used as DesRon leaders, or used to replace DDs as screening elements in some fleets; CL FTL drives recharge a little slower than DDs, but still faster than CAs.
Heavy Cruiser (CA): To an extent, a CL writ larger, with a higher tier of weaponry. CAs are considered the IN's baseline for independent operations and ship comparisons: pros or cons of a ship-class are weighed against the CA. They are built to slug it out with lighter combatants, and it is not uncommon to see all-gun CAs in use alongside balanced gun and missile CAs. CAs are maneuverable enough, fast enough, armored enough, and armed enough, making them a jack of all trades capable of taking on most missions.
Battlecruiser (BC): The commerce raider par excellence: it can kill anything that can escape it, and can escape anything that can kill it. BC are somewhat smaller than battleships, and carry BB-tier firepower with CA-tier handling and armor. In fleet actions, BCs support BBs by flanking and fixing enemy forces, allowing the BBs to close in and hammer them. Combined BC/CA groups are a potent force. While less durable than BBs, competently handled BCs have a fighting chance against an equal number of BBs - if the battle does not devolve into a slugging match. The slowdown in naval construction and lack of credible threats means that most battlecruisers in service are on average a century if not older, though all operators have attempted to keep their ships relevant with periodic service life extension programs and extensive system refits.
Battleship (BB): The capship par excellence, BBs are the hardest hitting, toughest ships commonly available in the fleet. They are hoarded zealously by the Great Houses, and even the IN and IRG employ their BBs with an eye to safeguarding them. The slowdown of naval construction and the lack of a peer opponent mean that, as with battlecruisers, most battleships in service are long in the tooth, albeit with periodic refits and SLEP.
Dreadnought (DN): Twice the size of a battleship, hull thick with armor and bristling with weapons, carrying more firepower than an entire BB squadron in a single hull, the dreadnought is the greatest and mightiest warship ever created. The five Takemikazuchi-class dreadnoughts were built for the IRG and IN to utterly dominate any other warship that any of the Great Houses could put to space. Their price tag also utterly dominated any other warship anyone could put to space. DNs are harder, tougher nuts to crack than BBs, but are too valuable to be used without an escort fleet, and require significant logistical support to operate. No dreadnought has ever ventured outside of the Inner Rim.
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Egon System Investigation
Whiskey Golf
Being of Editing & Technical Assistance
- Location
- Chained to my desk
[X] Staggered Departure, Screening Arrival. Depart as subunits, rendezvous at a rally point, and send the CLs to screen before the task force jumps into Egon.
As your flagship departs the Capital System, you find yourself subconsciously tensing, waiting for the other shoe to drop, for questions of varying levels of alarm at what you're doing -where are six squadrons of warships going to, what are your intentions, why are you doing such things, Vice Admiral Akasha what are you doing stop now -
Your flagship jumps into hyperspace, and you relax: Daniel's staggered departure plan worked. Once again, you privately thank your lucky stars at your wisdom in choosing him as your Fleet Adjutant; you don't think many other officers, assigned to a fleet whose purpose is to be seen and heard, would have thought of using deception measures for your fleet movements. But he did, and he did his staffwork months ago, so all he had to do was take his plans and scale them as needed to the size of your task force.
So. Phase One of the Egon System Fact-Finding Mission is a go. Task Force Soyeon has successfully departed Jinko-Sei without drawing attention from anybody, including Lady Akagi Sumeragi. Especially Lady Akagi-
"Ohohohoho! What a mighty force, Princess Yui! Pray tell, are you intending to bring some uninhabited system to heel? Truly, the boorishness and waste of the Imperial House knows no bounds! Is this really the extent of stewardship displayed by the Prince of Akasha and his spawn?"
You can't help but shudder in horrified distaste at that mental image, especially when you can see her standing on her bridge wearing a fetching dress that displays her cleavage, flatters her charms, and lets her spread all her fluffy tails-
-while you're following Navy Regulations, and so you're wearing your skinsuit and your tails are vacuum sealed and can't be spread. The ignominy of it all.
You let out a breath, shake your head, and remind yourself that such a terrible scene did not come to pass, thanks to your adjutant. Truly, he's worth his weight in gold.
The four days you spend in transit to Egon go by in a flash, simply because of how busy you are. Your time is consumed with a detailed review of Daniel's intelligence brief and planning for the approach into the Egon system, along with your actions once you arrive in system and a response to the results of the fact finding. It's with some effort that you manage to squeeze in a working dinner with TF Soyeon's second-in-command.
"Yui, you're cutting things real close, y'know." Rear Admiral Constance Vickers rolls her eyes at you. This level of familiarity would be scandalously improper in public, but some things can be relaxed amongst old friends sharing a private working dinner.
"I've a lot on my plate, Konnie," you say, as you refill her glass. You both take another appreciative sip of the wine she brought; an excellent vintage indeed. "And the Regency Council meeting puts a hard limit on how long I have to spend in Egon."
"Sure, but two days in-system isn't really enough time to get anything done," Konnie points out. "Chances are that you'll head back to the Capital without having achieved much by default. Really not the kind of commitment you needed a heavy task force for."
"Oh?" you ask mildly. "Alright, let's play a bit of Devil's Advocate. Like old times. What would you have gone with?"
"Cruiser task group," says Konnie unhesitatingly. "One heavy cruiser squadron, two light cruiser squadrons, a dozen ships max. Small enough for me to escape notice, but with enough juice to take on pirates and win. Even if they have actual warships, I'd put any one of our cruisers against two of theirs at least, and it's not as if we have dozens of pirate vessels just hanging around looking to pick a fight. We're an IRG RAGTF sans troop transports, they wouldn't fight us for all the gold on Salazar Secundus." She picks up Daniel's intel dossier, waving it at you. "And this? This looks hinky. There's no way any pirate org is this well-equipped. They're cheap bastards. In it for the booty, which they'll take in loot and slaves. Snatch and grab and run, and they build around that."
"Unless they're being sponsored by a third party, or are actually mercs hired for a false flag op," you counter.
"More likely that VSS is slowboating and letting the pirates get away so that they can justify their contract. Say you're the Earl of Egon and you hired me to protect you against pirates. Say I'm crazy motivated, I'm on fire, and I clear all the pirates outta your system in a week tops. Then a week goes by, then another, and another. No pirates in your house for months. You start thinking maybe you don't really need to keep your glorified security guards on retainer to protect you against a threat they've already taken care of…"
"It's a compelling argument," you allow. "If not for Rafidah Aziz-Sumeragi's presence. It does lend credence to the idea of a certain Great House advancing their interests in the region."
"Yes, and what would those be?" asks Konnie. She raises a hand, ticking off points on her fingers. "There's two reasons to perform a land grab for a system equidistant between Sumeragi and Fenghuang space: you either want to use it as a forward staging point for an invasion, or you want to use it as a tripwire against enemy invasion. Militarily, both reasons are irrelevant. Sumeragi can afford tenders if they want to support their fleets, and anyone who would dare fight a Great House has the same capacity. Besides, they've been allied with Fenghuang for the last five centuries - unless something changed while I wasn't looking; like, say, in the last few days or so?"
"If they've broken their alliance, they haven't seen fit to inform me - yet," you affirm with a chuckle. "You're right about Fenghuang, in any case. They've never cared for the throne, though I doubt the Founder - bless Her spirit - quite forgave them their declaring for Sumeragi early in the War."
"And thus did She in all Her divine might smite them both and bring them to heel before Her golden boots and snow-white thigh-highs."
"That too," you say, "and I'll be damned before I think either of them has forgotten." Or forgiven. Far be it from Sumeragi to ever forgive. "Still, the last few Fenghuang Grand Dukes have been distancing themselves from more overt manifestations of Sumeragi's desire from the throne, choosing to focus on enriching themselves instead. I'm reminded of something the current Grand Duke's great-grandfather said: 'It is for the best that we devote our house to the pursuit of wealth, such that we may enjoy pleasurable company, rather than expend our efforts in the vain hope of acquiring an empty prize .' Or something to that effect."
"'Something to that effect?' Forgive me, Your Highness, but please, say that again for these plebeian ears," drawls Konnie airily.
"Fuck bitches, get riches."
Konnie snorts and refills your glasses. "How crude. I like it already."
"Well, there's a reason the newest motto for Shangri-La's sector-wide chain of pleasure palaces is "Heaven is a place on Shangri-La". But with the money they've been rolling in...now, Sumeragi and Hoou are our obvious leaders. Sure. Still, it does seem a bit convenient that a bit of political posturing should totally rule small, hitherto uninvolved Fenghuang out."
"You're saying Sumeragi wants a secure corridor between them, just in case their erstwhile partner isn't telling all in the bedroom."
"Do you think they trust anyone, Konnie?"
"No. But it still seems like a lot of effort for little gain. Not to mention that any conspicuous flare-up between them would attract undue attention to their Great Project." Konnie scrutinises her wine glass. "And we both know what that is."
"Hoou," you reply, taking a sip. "And Hoou's traditionally had little stake outside their own territory, neighbouring systems, and maybe the Salsu Frontier."
"'Maybe'?"
"That's what they told my father."
"Sure. And Eisenwald will stop being the rusty shithole of the galaxy."
"You're from Eisenwald."
"Exactly," says Konnie, rolling her eyes. "So, yeah. Odds of major Sumeragi action? You'd sooner show up at a ball in something that isn't your dress whites. No point land-grabbing out here when there are perfectly good systems in Hoou territory I can use to support a push into their space."
"I thought someone said that you don't need staging systems when you have a fleet of tenders?" you ask dryly, elegantly raising an eyebrow.
"Eh. No such thing as too much logistics," Konnie retorts cheekily.
You snort.
"Point taken." Reaching out, you pat Konnie on the shoulder. "It's always good to pick your brain, you know."
She gives you a dirty look in response.
"Are you kidding? Without me, you'd still be ramming your poor battlecruisers face first into enemy formations."
"And you would have drowned in paperwork long before you made RA."
"Ah, patronage." Your second downs the rest of her glass in one go. "We'll get you for that someday, Yui. The people, too, will rise!"
It must be the alcohol, you think, that you even give Konnie's last statement a second thought. Or maybe it's the job you've been given, its enormous import -to say nothing of the consequences of failure- looming over your every move. You and your little -so it feels to you, certainly- fleet could make or break the future of the Empire. And it all begins here.
But still, what of it?
The Empire did not rise in a morning, nor will one sun's nadir spell its end. If the people must rise, you and those like you must first have failed so utterly as to lose the mandate to lead. If it comes to that, you think traitorously, well - then let fall the Empire!
So decided, you reach one closed fist out.
Konnie doesn't even miss a beat.
You know what people say about 13th Fleet, how it's just a glorified parade formation, how all your fleet ever does is fly through the Core and posture at the Great Houses. If only they could see your task force now. The 13th Fleet is not just for show.
Given the interstellar distance, staggered departure, and the oblique routes taken to disguise their destination, you'd been prepared to wait a while at the rally point for your task force's components to assemble. Instead, when you arrive, your task force is already assembled and waiting for you, spread out in combat formation, alert and and on guard, smoothly and quickly falling into formation around your flagship. Since you're several hours ahead of schedule, you make a last minute adjustment to your plans, and execute early.
Your three light cruiser squadrons jump into Egon in screening formation, on the very edges of the system, ECM in deception mode, sensors passive, scanning for potential threat. They then do a tactical jump further into the system, within range of Egon's listening posts: first they signal the all clear to your taskforce, and then they drop their ECM and make their presence known. Egon System Traffic Control immediately hails and challenges them, but the Hang Tuah's captain is already playing his role, loudly and publicly proclaiming he's leading an Imperial Navy task group on a Freedom of Navigation exercise, that they don't take their marching orders from Egon STC, that they are on Her Majesty's service and are not to be hindered (and oh, by the way, might they be pointed towards docking berths for a spot of shore leave) -
-and while they're doing all that, the other half of your task force slips into Egon and makes way for your objective.
The asteroid isn't large enough to have a name, only a designation: FC2-PPV-880652. Your ships proceed in combat formation, bearing down on the asteroid while jamming their comms. You're a fox on a mission and you won't be gainsaid. In another deception measure, Konnie's flagship, battlecruiser Kongou, sits at the center of a diamond formation, with her squadron mates flanking her. Battleship Yamato brings up the rear, looking like yet another battlecruiser from a distant first glance.
Unlike some other admirals, or other scions of Great Houses you could name, you have absolutely no problem with sitting back and letting your subordinates take credit and attention, especially when that subordinate is your girl Konnie, your 2IC, your trusted comrade, and also because if the commo transcript leaks, Rear Admiral Constance Vickers is a name that'll draw significantly less attention than Vice Admiral Yui Akasha.
The arms depot's administrator tries to stall her, of course, but Konnie simply verbally plows through her protestations like a battering ram, and pointedly reminds her that she's an Imperial Navy admiral who has a baker's dozen warships watching this asteroid. In short order, shuttles land on FC2-PPV-880652, disgorging boarding teams who fan out to inspect the installation.
Daniel lands with his people and half the IRG intel team in the second wave. Other admirals would have been tempted to follow him and micromanage, but that's not your style. You trust your people to carry out your orders and use their judgement - plus, if you were going to backseat drive his every move, there'd be no point to taking Daniel on as your Equerry. Your instructions to him were simple: "Turn the asteroid upside down, ferret out the truth, and if you need me, call me, but otherwise I trust in your ability to execute my intent."
You're six hours into your neverending mound of electronic paperwork when the bridge notifies you of a secure call, and patches it to your office with your permission. Daniel's face fills the screen, transmitted by a helmet camera. "Admiral."
"Captain. You've found something?"
"Yes ma'am." Daniel backs out of camera view, and gestures, and the cameraman takes a panning look across the warehouse. There's a lot of military grade weaponry there; the arms depot wouldn't look out of place in a Navy garrison. "As we suspected, VSS has been stockpiling weapons. We're still going through the shipping manifests for the full details, but it looks like about 4 months ago they started offloading their civ-grade gear on the locals and brought in a lot of milspec hardware. Anti-ship missiles, countermissiles, DU rounds, the works. They have top-tier milspec ECM suites, Baseline 16."
"We're running Baseline 18, they're only 2 versions behind us," you muse thoughtfully. "And the Fleet standard is Baseline 17…"
"Yes ma'am," says Daniel, stepping back into the camera's view. "They didn't ship in any sensor packages, so either they couldn't get those and are running civvie sensors, or their ships are already equipped with milspec sensors. According to the sign out sheets, they've been drawing ammo like they're on a wartime footing, and it looks like the bulk of their forces are out patrolling aggressively, but the depot administrator refuses to let me see their mission logs to verify weapons usage. She insists that we're not authorised to view their logs, and the only person who can release them to us is her boss."
"Sounds like someone with something to hide."
"I thought so too, ma'am, and that made me wonder if they had permission to bring in all this hardware. So I confronted the depot administrator. She claims that 4th Fleet HQ signed off on that. Well, we've got the digital permits in the computer systems. But the hard copy permits are missing."
"That sounds very convenient for them," you say, frowning. "Computers can be hacked. That's why these sorts of permissions must always be supported with hard copy documentation."
"I made the same point to them. The administrator swears that they have all their paperwork in order, that her clerical staff have just misfiled the paperwork, and things'll be sorted out if we'd just wait and if she can call in the VSS garrison commander to sort things out with us."
"Do you believe her?"
"Given their level of professionalism and record keeping I've seen… I don't think so. They don't look like the sort of fly by night outfit that would lose their paperwork. Is it possible, yes, but is it likely? In my opinion, no, Ma'am. The administrator's ex-Navy, and she runs a tight ship."
"You're sure of that?" you ask, keeping in mind the possibility that Daniel's bias might play a part in his assessment. He's a solid, competent officer, but you're well aware of how he defaults to distrust whenever PMCs enter the picture. The PMC administrator being ex-Navy… well, it's not that surprising: not everybody joins the Navy intending to be a lifer like you or Daddy.
"I'll confirm that once I get back, but yes, I'm sure of it. Her name's Ayako Tomioka."
"Understood. Carry on, Daniel. And good work."
"Thank you, ma'am."
You kill the connection and lean back thoughtfully. Bringing in and using milspec hardware without the appropriate permits… well, they claim they have the appropriate permits, which are now misfiled somewhere. You're well within your rights to seize the contents of that arms depot, but the question is, should you? At first glance, it seems a rather convenient excuse. On the other hand, you've seen just as stupid things happen before, and Daniel admits that the possibility does exist. He obviously doesn't believe them, but his bias could be affecting his judgement. And if it turns out that Tomioka's telling the truth, then you'll have illegally seized VSS's property, and you know that'll get out, and Sumeragi will pounce on that gaffe.
What will you do about VSS's milspec hardware?
[ ] Confiscate VSS's arms. You're not buying their convenient excuse.
[ ] Trust but verify. VSS has 2 days to produce the paperwork, failing which their arms will be seized.
[ ] Leave VSS's arms alone. You've seen stupid things like this happen before.
Even with your head start, it's still not enough time. You've been in-system for barely more than a day and a half, and you already need to start preparing to head back to Jinko-sei. Still, while your stay has been short, you've learned that:
Daniel has confirmed that VSS has been shippingmilspec weapons in. Until he gets access to VSS's mission logs and can do a complete audit, he can't say for sure where their weapons are going, whether they're being used on actual combat operations, or being sold on the black market. What he can say is that VSS has shipped in more weapons than the arms depot can hold: that's a lot of arms that need to be accounted for.
Ayaka Tomioka was an Imperial Navy logistics officer, who mustered out as a Lieutenant Commander after a 15-year career. No black marks or red flags were found in her Navy file. She is still stonewalling and refuses to release VSS's mission logs to Daniel's intel team without authorisation from her boss, and continues to protest VSS's innocence in this affair.
Despite repeated attempts at contact from FC2-PPV-880652, the local VSS garrison commander, Lee Bashkan, remains incommunicado. Tomioka insists this is unusual and Lee hasn't fled, but the silence is concerning.
While half the IRG intel team is assisting Daniel in auditing the arms depot, the other half have already infiltrated Jesselton City, the Egon system's capital, and are already running intelligence-gathering operations. So far, they've only been able to ascertain the following:
Come what come may, time and the hour runs through the roughest day. You can't delay your return trip any longer. Before you depart, you have decisions to make.
The obvious option is to return now with all the evidence you've gathered; even if you don't confront Sumeragi right away, you can still lay the groundwork for political maneuvering. On the other hand, context is key, and you don't have enough of it. You could leave Daniel and the intel team behind to continue investigating: a smoking gun would be exponentially more compelling than the circumstantial evidence you have right now. Of course, the downside is you're not sure how long he'd be away from you, and you might have need of him.
What is your intent for Daniel and the IRG intel team?
[ ] Conclude the investigation and return with you.
[ ] Continue the investigation and stay in Egon.
There's also the question of pirate activity in and around Egon. The last 36-odd hours have been quiet, but the girl in the street seems convinced that Egon is under threat. Perhaps it would be a good idea to split Task Force Soyeon, and leave Konnie with a task group in the Egon system for a while to keep an eye on things?
What are your orders for Task Force Soyeon?
[ ] Full pullout. All ships will return to Jinko-sei at once.
[ ] Stay behind force. Konnie's task group will stay and monitor Egon for a few weeks.
- Mandat de l'impératrice des Cieux -
As your flagship departs the Capital System, you find yourself subconsciously tensing, waiting for the other shoe to drop, for questions of varying levels of alarm at what you're doing -where are six squadrons of warships going to, what are your intentions, why are you doing such things, Vice Admiral Akasha what are you doing stop now -
Your flagship jumps into hyperspace, and you relax: Daniel's staggered departure plan worked. Once again, you privately thank your lucky stars at your wisdom in choosing him as your Fleet Adjutant; you don't think many other officers, assigned to a fleet whose purpose is to be seen and heard, would have thought of using deception measures for your fleet movements. But he did, and he did his staffwork months ago, so all he had to do was take his plans and scale them as needed to the size of your task force.
So. Phase One of the Egon System Fact-Finding Mission is a go. Task Force Soyeon has successfully departed Jinko-Sei without drawing attention from anybody, including Lady Akagi Sumeragi. Especially Lady Akagi-
"Ohohohoho! What a mighty force, Princess Yui! Pray tell, are you intending to bring some uninhabited system to heel? Truly, the boorishness and waste of the Imperial House knows no bounds! Is this really the extent of stewardship displayed by the Prince of Akasha and his spawn?"
You can't help but shudder in horrified distaste at that mental image, especially when you can see her standing on her bridge wearing a fetching dress that displays her cleavage, flatters her charms, and lets her spread all her fluffy tails-
-while you're following Navy Regulations, and so you're wearing your skinsuit and your tails are vacuum sealed and can't be spread. The ignominy of it all.
You let out a breath, shake your head, and remind yourself that such a terrible scene did not come to pass, thanks to your adjutant. Truly, he's worth his weight in gold.
- 女王之天命 -
The four days you spend in transit to Egon go by in a flash, simply because of how busy you are. Your time is consumed with a detailed review of Daniel's intelligence brief and planning for the approach into the Egon system, along with your actions once you arrive in system and a response to the results of the fact finding. It's with some effort that you manage to squeeze in a working dinner with TF Soyeon's second-in-command.
"Yui, you're cutting things real close, y'know." Rear Admiral Constance Vickers rolls her eyes at you. This level of familiarity would be scandalously improper in public, but some things can be relaxed amongst old friends sharing a private working dinner.
"I've a lot on my plate, Konnie," you say, as you refill her glass. You both take another appreciative sip of the wine she brought; an excellent vintage indeed. "And the Regency Council meeting puts a hard limit on how long I have to spend in Egon."
"Sure, but two days in-system isn't really enough time to get anything done," Konnie points out. "Chances are that you'll head back to the Capital without having achieved much by default. Really not the kind of commitment you needed a heavy task force for."
"Oh?" you ask mildly. "Alright, let's play a bit of Devil's Advocate. Like old times. What would you have gone with?"
"Cruiser task group," says Konnie unhesitatingly. "One heavy cruiser squadron, two light cruiser squadrons, a dozen ships max. Small enough for me to escape notice, but with enough juice to take on pirates and win. Even if they have actual warships, I'd put any one of our cruisers against two of theirs at least, and it's not as if we have dozens of pirate vessels just hanging around looking to pick a fight. We're an IRG RAGTF sans troop transports, they wouldn't fight us for all the gold on Salazar Secundus." She picks up Daniel's intel dossier, waving it at you. "And this? This looks hinky. There's no way any pirate org is this well-equipped. They're cheap bastards. In it for the booty, which they'll take in loot and slaves. Snatch and grab and run, and they build around that."
"Unless they're being sponsored by a third party, or are actually mercs hired for a false flag op," you counter.
"More likely that VSS is slowboating and letting the pirates get away so that they can justify their contract. Say you're the Earl of Egon and you hired me to protect you against pirates. Say I'm crazy motivated, I'm on fire, and I clear all the pirates outta your system in a week tops. Then a week goes by, then another, and another. No pirates in your house for months. You start thinking maybe you don't really need to keep your glorified security guards on retainer to protect you against a threat they've already taken care of…"
"It's a compelling argument," you allow. "If not for Rafidah Aziz-Sumeragi's presence. It does lend credence to the idea of a certain Great House advancing their interests in the region."
"Yes, and what would those be?" asks Konnie. She raises a hand, ticking off points on her fingers. "There's two reasons to perform a land grab for a system equidistant between Sumeragi and Fenghuang space: you either want to use it as a forward staging point for an invasion, or you want to use it as a tripwire against enemy invasion. Militarily, both reasons are irrelevant. Sumeragi can afford tenders if they want to support their fleets, and anyone who would dare fight a Great House has the same capacity. Besides, they've been allied with Fenghuang for the last five centuries - unless something changed while I wasn't looking; like, say, in the last few days or so?"
"If they've broken their alliance, they haven't seen fit to inform me - yet," you affirm with a chuckle. "You're right about Fenghuang, in any case. They've never cared for the throne, though I doubt the Founder - bless Her spirit - quite forgave them their declaring for Sumeragi early in the War."
"And thus did She in all Her divine might smite them both and bring them to heel before Her golden boots and snow-white thigh-highs."
"That too," you say, "and I'll be damned before I think either of them has forgotten." Or forgiven. Far be it from Sumeragi to ever forgive. "Still, the last few Fenghuang Grand Dukes have been distancing themselves from more overt manifestations of Sumeragi's desire from the throne, choosing to focus on enriching themselves instead. I'm reminded of something the current Grand Duke's great-grandfather said: 'It is for the best that we devote our house to the pursuit of wealth, such that we may enjoy pleasurable company, rather than expend our efforts in the vain hope of acquiring an empty prize .' Or something to that effect."
"'Something to that effect?' Forgive me, Your Highness, but please, say that again for these plebeian ears," drawls Konnie airily.
"Fuck bitches, get riches."
Konnie snorts and refills your glasses. "How crude. I like it already."
"Well, there's a reason the newest motto for Shangri-La's sector-wide chain of pleasure palaces is "Heaven is a place on Shangri-La". But with the money they've been rolling in...now, Sumeragi and Hoou are our obvious leaders. Sure. Still, it does seem a bit convenient that a bit of political posturing should totally rule small, hitherto uninvolved Fenghuang out."
"You're saying Sumeragi wants a secure corridor between them, just in case their erstwhile partner isn't telling all in the bedroom."
"Do you think they trust anyone, Konnie?"
"No. But it still seems like a lot of effort for little gain. Not to mention that any conspicuous flare-up between them would attract undue attention to their Great Project." Konnie scrutinises her wine glass. "And we both know what that is."
"Hoou," you reply, taking a sip. "And Hoou's traditionally had little stake outside their own territory, neighbouring systems, and maybe the Salsu Frontier."
"'Maybe'?"
"That's what they told my father."
"Sure. And Eisenwald will stop being the rusty shithole of the galaxy."
"You're from Eisenwald."
"Exactly," says Konnie, rolling her eyes. "So, yeah. Odds of major Sumeragi action? You'd sooner show up at a ball in something that isn't your dress whites. No point land-grabbing out here when there are perfectly good systems in Hoou territory I can use to support a push into their space."
"I thought someone said that you don't need staging systems when you have a fleet of tenders?" you ask dryly, elegantly raising an eyebrow.
"Eh. No such thing as too much logistics," Konnie retorts cheekily.
You snort.
"Point taken." Reaching out, you pat Konnie on the shoulder. "It's always good to pick your brain, you know."
She gives you a dirty look in response.
"Are you kidding? Without me, you'd still be ramming your poor battlecruisers face first into enemy formations."
"And you would have drowned in paperwork long before you made RA."
"Ah, patronage." Your second downs the rest of her glass in one go. "We'll get you for that someday, Yui. The people, too, will rise!"
It must be the alcohol, you think, that you even give Konnie's last statement a second thought. Or maybe it's the job you've been given, its enormous import -to say nothing of the consequences of failure- looming over your every move. You and your little -so it feels to you, certainly- fleet could make or break the future of the Empire. And it all begins here.
But still, what of it?
The Empire did not rise in a morning, nor will one sun's nadir spell its end. If the people must rise, you and those like you must first have failed so utterly as to lose the mandate to lead. If it comes to that, you think traitorously, well - then let fall the Empire!
So decided, you reach one closed fist out.
Konnie doesn't even miss a beat.
- 女王之天命 -
You know what people say about 13th Fleet, how it's just a glorified parade formation, how all your fleet ever does is fly through the Core and posture at the Great Houses. If only they could see your task force now. The 13th Fleet is not just for show.
Given the interstellar distance, staggered departure, and the oblique routes taken to disguise their destination, you'd been prepared to wait a while at the rally point for your task force's components to assemble. Instead, when you arrive, your task force is already assembled and waiting for you, spread out in combat formation, alert and and on guard, smoothly and quickly falling into formation around your flagship. Since you're several hours ahead of schedule, you make a last minute adjustment to your plans, and execute early.
Your three light cruiser squadrons jump into Egon in screening formation, on the very edges of the system, ECM in deception mode, sensors passive, scanning for potential threat. They then do a tactical jump further into the system, within range of Egon's listening posts: first they signal the all clear to your taskforce, and then they drop their ECM and make their presence known. Egon System Traffic Control immediately hails and challenges them, but the Hang Tuah's captain is already playing his role, loudly and publicly proclaiming he's leading an Imperial Navy task group on a Freedom of Navigation exercise, that they don't take their marching orders from Egon STC, that they are on Her Majesty's service and are not to be hindered (and oh, by the way, might they be pointed towards docking berths for a spot of shore leave) -
-and while they're doing all that, the other half of your task force slips into Egon and makes way for your objective.
The asteroid isn't large enough to have a name, only a designation: FC2-PPV-880652. Your ships proceed in combat formation, bearing down on the asteroid while jamming their comms. You're a fox on a mission and you won't be gainsaid. In another deception measure, Konnie's flagship, battlecruiser Kongou, sits at the center of a diamond formation, with her squadron mates flanking her. Battleship Yamato brings up the rear, looking like yet another battlecruiser from a distant first glance.
Unlike some other admirals, or other scions of Great Houses you could name, you have absolutely no problem with sitting back and letting your subordinates take credit and attention, especially when that subordinate is your girl Konnie, your 2IC, your trusted comrade, and also because if the commo transcript leaks, Rear Admiral Constance Vickers is a name that'll draw significantly less attention than Vice Admiral Yui Akasha.
The arms depot's administrator tries to stall her, of course, but Konnie simply verbally plows through her protestations like a battering ram, and pointedly reminds her that she's an Imperial Navy admiral who has a baker's dozen warships watching this asteroid. In short order, shuttles land on FC2-PPV-880652, disgorging boarding teams who fan out to inspect the installation.
Daniel lands with his people and half the IRG intel team in the second wave. Other admirals would have been tempted to follow him and micromanage, but that's not your style. You trust your people to carry out your orders and use their judgement - plus, if you were going to backseat drive his every move, there'd be no point to taking Daniel on as your Equerry. Your instructions to him were simple: "Turn the asteroid upside down, ferret out the truth, and if you need me, call me, but otherwise I trust in your ability to execute my intent."
You're six hours into your neverending mound of electronic paperwork when the bridge notifies you of a secure call, and patches it to your office with your permission. Daniel's face fills the screen, transmitted by a helmet camera. "Admiral."
"Captain. You've found something?"
"Yes ma'am." Daniel backs out of camera view, and gestures, and the cameraman takes a panning look across the warehouse. There's a lot of military grade weaponry there; the arms depot wouldn't look out of place in a Navy garrison. "As we suspected, VSS has been stockpiling weapons. We're still going through the shipping manifests for the full details, but it looks like about 4 months ago they started offloading their civ-grade gear on the locals and brought in a lot of milspec hardware. Anti-ship missiles, countermissiles, DU rounds, the works. They have top-tier milspec ECM suites, Baseline 16."
"We're running Baseline 18, they're only 2 versions behind us," you muse thoughtfully. "And the Fleet standard is Baseline 17…"
"Yes ma'am," says Daniel, stepping back into the camera's view. "They didn't ship in any sensor packages, so either they couldn't get those and are running civvie sensors, or their ships are already equipped with milspec sensors. According to the sign out sheets, they've been drawing ammo like they're on a wartime footing, and it looks like the bulk of their forces are out patrolling aggressively, but the depot administrator refuses to let me see their mission logs to verify weapons usage. She insists that we're not authorised to view their logs, and the only person who can release them to us is her boss."
"Sounds like someone with something to hide."
"I thought so too, ma'am, and that made me wonder if they had permission to bring in all this hardware. So I confronted the depot administrator. She claims that 4th Fleet HQ signed off on that. Well, we've got the digital permits in the computer systems. But the hard copy permits are missing."
"That sounds very convenient for them," you say, frowning. "Computers can be hacked. That's why these sorts of permissions must always be supported with hard copy documentation."
"I made the same point to them. The administrator swears that they have all their paperwork in order, that her clerical staff have just misfiled the paperwork, and things'll be sorted out if we'd just wait and if she can call in the VSS garrison commander to sort things out with us."
"Do you believe her?"
"Given their level of professionalism and record keeping I've seen… I don't think so. They don't look like the sort of fly by night outfit that would lose their paperwork. Is it possible, yes, but is it likely? In my opinion, no, Ma'am. The administrator's ex-Navy, and she runs a tight ship."
"You're sure of that?" you ask, keeping in mind the possibility that Daniel's bias might play a part in his assessment. He's a solid, competent officer, but you're well aware of how he defaults to distrust whenever PMCs enter the picture. The PMC administrator being ex-Navy… well, it's not that surprising: not everybody joins the Navy intending to be a lifer like you or Daddy.
"I'll confirm that once I get back, but yes, I'm sure of it. Her name's Ayako Tomioka."
"Understood. Carry on, Daniel. And good work."
"Thank you, ma'am."
You kill the connection and lean back thoughtfully. Bringing in and using milspec hardware without the appropriate permits… well, they claim they have the appropriate permits, which are now misfiled somewhere. You're well within your rights to seize the contents of that arms depot, but the question is, should you? At first glance, it seems a rather convenient excuse. On the other hand, you've seen just as stupid things happen before, and Daniel admits that the possibility does exist. He obviously doesn't believe them, but his bias could be affecting his judgement. And if it turns out that Tomioka's telling the truth, then you'll have illegally seized VSS's property, and you know that'll get out, and Sumeragi will pounce on that gaffe.
What will you do about VSS's milspec hardware?
[ ] Confiscate VSS's arms. You're not buying their convenient excuse.
[ ] Trust but verify. VSS has 2 days to produce the paperwork, failing which their arms will be seized.
[ ] Leave VSS's arms alone. You've seen stupid things like this happen before.
- 女王之天命 -
Even with your head start, it's still not enough time. You've been in-system for barely more than a day and a half, and you already need to start preparing to head back to Jinko-sei. Still, while your stay has been short, you've learned that:
Daniel has confirmed that VSS has been shippingmilspec weapons in. Until he gets access to VSS's mission logs and can do a complete audit, he can't say for sure where their weapons are going, whether they're being used on actual combat operations, or being sold on the black market. What he can say is that VSS has shipped in more weapons than the arms depot can hold: that's a lot of arms that need to be accounted for.
Ayaka Tomioka was an Imperial Navy logistics officer, who mustered out as a Lieutenant Commander after a 15-year career. No black marks or red flags were found in her Navy file. She is still stonewalling and refuses to release VSS's mission logs to Daniel's intel team without authorisation from her boss, and continues to protest VSS's innocence in this affair.
Despite repeated attempts at contact from FC2-PPV-880652, the local VSS garrison commander, Lee Bashkan, remains incommunicado. Tomioka insists this is unusual and Lee hasn't fled, but the silence is concerning.
While half the IRG intel team is assisting Daniel in auditing the arms depot, the other half have already infiltrated Jesselton City, the Egon system's capital, and are already running intelligence-gathering operations. So far, they've only been able to ascertain the following:
- Rafidah Aziz-Sumeragi, Junior Vice-President of Siam Astra Frontier Heavy Industries, and senior cadet branch member of Great House Sumeragi, has spent the last ten weeks in Jesselton, longer than initially thought. She and her staff are operating out of an entire floor of the Renaissance Jesselton Hotel, one of the premier establishments in the city. She has been holding regular meetings with the Earl of Egon and his government at all hours of the day, even into the weekend.
- Local RUMINT suggests the Earl of Egon is heavily subsidizing Rafidah Aziz-Sumeragi's stay and rolling out the red carpet for her.
- Egon's Minister of Security has been making regular off-book meetings at Ashton's Steakhouse, with Lee Bashkan, VSS garrison commander.
- On at least two occasions, the Earl of Egon, Rafidah Aziz-Sumeragi, and Lee Bashkan were all present at the same time in the Istana Negri, the Earl's official residence.
- Public opinion believes VSS is defending Egon, which is under siege by pirate hordes. VSS is popular with the locals, and apparently enjoys a cordial working relationship with the miniscule Egon System Defense Force (which consists of several dozen lightly armed customs enforcement cutters and a dozen or so corvettes).
- Egon SDF assets are apparently under VSS operational control, which is an unusual situation: the Earl of Egon is VSS' client, but the Earl's forces are effectively acting as VSS's auxiliaries.
Come what come may, time and the hour runs through the roughest day. You can't delay your return trip any longer. Before you depart, you have decisions to make.
The obvious option is to return now with all the evidence you've gathered; even if you don't confront Sumeragi right away, you can still lay the groundwork for political maneuvering. On the other hand, context is key, and you don't have enough of it. You could leave Daniel and the intel team behind to continue investigating: a smoking gun would be exponentially more compelling than the circumstantial evidence you have right now. Of course, the downside is you're not sure how long he'd be away from you, and you might have need of him.
What is your intent for Daniel and the IRG intel team?
[ ] Conclude the investigation and return with you.
[ ] Continue the investigation and stay in Egon.
There's also the question of pirate activity in and around Egon. The last 36-odd hours have been quiet, but the girl in the street seems convinced that Egon is under threat. Perhaps it would be a good idea to split Task Force Soyeon, and leave Konnie with a task group in the Egon system for a while to keep an eye on things?
What are your orders for Task Force Soyeon?
[ ] Full pullout. All ships will return to Jinko-sei at once.
[ ] Stay behind force. Konnie's task group will stay and monitor Egon for a few weeks.
- 女王之天命 -
Last edited:
Whiskey Golf
Being of Editing & Technical Assistance
- Location
- Chained to my desk
Hi everyone. Sorry this took so long - there was Christmas being the busiest time of year for me, and then I've spent the last 6 weeks being sick and trying to shake off the return of my asthma, and other unfun things.
Voting moratarium for 24 hours is now in effect, vote will open at 0200 GMT. Use the time well to read and discuss!
Thanks again to @Slayers148 who created the flag of the Imperial Navy that's the header for this update.
Voting moratarium for 24 hours is now in effect, vote will open at 0200 GMT. Use the time well to read and discuss!
Thanks again to @Slayers148 who created the flag of the Imperial Navy that's the header for this update.
Oh hey its alive. Thought its dead. Just in time for me to be in high mood for some space battles.
Now to actually read the thing.
Now to actually read the thing.
Whiskey Golf
Being of Editing & Technical Assistance
- Location
- Chained to my desk
NGL, i was feeling at few points like i was going to die. I srsly need new lungs.
This update also brought to you by the power of Keiki Kobayashi's amazing soundtrack for Ace Combat 7
CV12Hornet
Riter.
- Location
- Tacoma, Washington
You named the rear admiral Constance Vickers I can't even-
Anyway, while I'm definitely liking the [ ] Trust but verify. VSS has 2 days to produce the paperwork, failing which their arms will be seized. option, I'm unsure about the other two options.
Anyway, while I'm definitely liking the [ ] Trust but verify. VSS has 2 days to produce the paperwork, failing which their arms will be seized. option, I'm unsure about the other two options.
Thebigpieman
I've got this, I think.
- Location
- United States
It's good shit, Whiskey.
- Location
- PA
Hrum.
We definitely got SOMETHING, so Akagi's not gonna be spreading her semi-fluffy tails out in front of us anytime soon unless the Empress does another stupid.
But uuhh...We forgot about the whole 'Empire is stretched thin bit'. And how we're still kinda...'Hammer of the Empire'...
And our supa fleet could end up all tied up.
Or we let Sumeragi go and cause more trouble...
...I like the win more. If we let Sumer go it's gonna make us look weak AND they'll be positioned to punch us. If we clamp down it'll give the others a very small window to go for the Rebellion before we get swole off the loot...
[X] Trust but verify. VSS has 2 days to produce the paperwork, failing which their arms will be seized.
Action-wise I think SOMETHING shady is going on here-that's too much military weaponry to even fit in the depot!
[X] Continue the investigation and stay in Egon.
We want our Intrigue guy doing intrigue, and there's definite shade for him to be looking into. Post him and get this silly sorted out!
[X] Stay behind force. Konnie's task group will stay and monitor Egon for a few weeks.
Less keen on this but it might ah 'grease the wheels' so to speak.
Okay, so the way I see it, one Hamma, multiple moles to whack. SO! If we take a swing, don't pull out to aim elsewhere- for the enemy to get us they've gotta be where we're not, as I see it. And sorting this mess out MIGHT give us some room for negotiations/politicking that might secure us a House in our pocket, and if we can get...2 Houses, and we're technically a House ourselves, WE WIN! Or at least the Greater portion of the Empire will be our blob versus their blob.
We definitely got SOMETHING, so Akagi's not gonna be spreading her semi-fluffy tails out in front of us anytime soon unless the Empress does another stupid.
But uuhh...We forgot about the whole 'Empire is stretched thin bit'. And how we're still kinda...'Hammer of the Empire'...
And our supa fleet could end up all tied up.
Or we let Sumeragi go and cause more trouble...
...I like the win more. If we let Sumer go it's gonna make us look weak AND they'll be positioned to punch us. If we clamp down it'll give the others a very small window to go for the Rebellion before we get swole off the loot...
[X] Trust but verify. VSS has 2 days to produce the paperwork, failing which their arms will be seized.
Action-wise I think SOMETHING shady is going on here-that's too much military weaponry to even fit in the depot!
[X] Continue the investigation and stay in Egon.
We want our Intrigue guy doing intrigue, and there's definite shade for him to be looking into. Post him and get this silly sorted out!
[X] Stay behind force. Konnie's task group will stay and monitor Egon for a few weeks.
Less keen on this but it might ah 'grease the wheels' so to speak.
Okay, so the way I see it, one Hamma, multiple moles to whack. SO! If we take a swing, don't pull out to aim elsewhere- for the enemy to get us they've gotta be where we're not, as I see it. And sorting this mess out MIGHT give us some room for negotiations/politicking that might secure us a House in our pocket, and if we can get...2 Houses, and we're technically a House ourselves, WE WIN! Or at least the Greater portion of the Empire will be our blob versus their blob.
Whiskey Golf
Being of Editing & Technical Assistance
- Location
- Chained to my desk
Just to remind everyone of the numbers, TF Soyeon at present consists of 25 ships: 1 BB, 4 BC, 8 CA, 12 CL.
13th Fleet as a whole is 124 warships, so even if the entirety of TF Soyeon stayed behind in Egon, that's "only" 20% of 13th Fleet's strength being used on monitoring/piracy suppression.
Whiskey Golf
Being of Editing & Technical Assistance
- Location
- Chained to my desk
Argh, English, how does it even. I couldn't find the right words to word it better
- The arms depot is heavily stocked, say about 85% capacity
- total incoming shipments of milspec arms exceed the maximum storage cap of the depot by a good amount
- nani the fuck, where the fuck have all those extra weapons gone???
Whiskey Golf
Being of Editing & Technical Assistance
- Location
- Chained to my desk
reminder that Voting Moratarium remains in place until 0200 GMT tomorrow ya, so any votes posted now will not be counted.
- Location
- Netherlands
So let's start from the beginning
The first one is too gung-ho, and even a Rear Admiral from the Empress's pay checks would still have problems convincing the local authorities to bend. This would lead to ouradmiral waifu protag to show herself, which defeats the whole procedure of keeping quiet.
The third one is too incompetent. Note the previous part, if the empire leadership is too shitty, Yui has no problem watching it tumbling down. Sure, it is due to the alcohol, but all drunken speaks the truth.
This means the second one is the only viable option left. Besides, it fits with the operational method of any competentspook intelligence aide.
We haven't gotten any solid conclusion left. All of those actions can be simply explained as the local authorities showing their gratitude to the private security company. Sure, VSS might have a lot of mil-spec stuff, but then they might be preparing for the worst... or they are planning to sell it to the local House.
At first, I'm tempted to stay behind. But then... is it better to fake our retreat? As in we jump out, but then raise our ECM and stay near the system. Just a sneeze from someone and we would jump in and deal with the shit.
The first one is too gung-ho, and even a Rear Admiral from the Empress's pay checks would still have problems convincing the local authorities to bend. This would lead to our
The third one is too incompetent. Note the previous part, if the empire leadership is too shitty, Yui has no problem watching it tumbling down. Sure, it is due to the alcohol, but all drunken speaks the truth.
This means the second one is the only viable option left. Besides, it fits with the operational method of any competent
We haven't gotten any solid conclusion left. All of those actions can be simply explained as the local authorities showing their gratitude to the private security company. Sure, VSS might have a lot of mil-spec stuff, but then they might be preparing for the worst... or they are planning to sell it to the local House.
At first, I'm tempted to stay behind. But then... is it better to fake our retreat? As in we jump out, but then raise our ECM and stay near the system. Just a sneeze from someone and we would jump in and deal with the shit.
Glad to see this returning.
I don't recall what's been said about communications tech in this setting, but is it possible to contact 4th Fleet in the time we have to make decisions? Presumably if the permits are legit the 4th Fleet would have a record of it. (And if it is legit, is it suspicious for 4th Fleet to be signing off on this quantity/quality of hardware?)
My initial inclination is:
[ ] Trust but verify. VSS has 2 days to produce the paperwork, failing which their arms will be seized.
-[] Write-in: Double-check with 4th Fleet HQ if possible.
[ ] Continue the investigation and stay in Egon.
And on the third... my opinion actually kind of depends on what happens to the military hardware. If we seize the military hardware we need to leave some force behind to stop pirates (or "pirates") from taking advantage and handing a propaganda victory to our enemies (since we denied them "the equipment they need to defend themselves"). If we don't, we're better off taking the ships with us, since if something shady is going on, we want to make them think they are safe so our intel team can catch them in the act.
I don't recall what's been said about communications tech in this setting, but is it possible to contact 4th Fleet in the time we have to make decisions? Presumably if the permits are legit the 4th Fleet would have a record of it. (And if it is legit, is it suspicious for 4th Fleet to be signing off on this quantity/quality of hardware?)
My initial inclination is:
[ ] Trust but verify. VSS has 2 days to produce the paperwork, failing which their arms will be seized.
-[] Write-in: Double-check with 4th Fleet HQ if possible.
[ ] Continue the investigation and stay in Egon.
And on the third... my opinion actually kind of depends on what happens to the military hardware. If we seize the military hardware we need to leave some force behind to stop pirates (or "pirates") from taking advantage and handing a propaganda victory to our enemies (since we denied them "the equipment they need to defend themselves"). If we don't, we're better off taking the ships with us, since if something shady is going on, we want to make them think they are safe so our intel team can catch them in the act.
- Location
- Illinois
I'm leaning towards [] Prepare a small trap...
HARDWARE
[ ] Trust but verify. VSS has 2 days to produce the paperwork, failing which their arms will be seized.
INTEL
[ ] Continue the investigation and stay in Egon.
SOYEON
[ ] Write-in: A Small Trap: Leave 2BC 4CA 7CL under Konnie a nice distance out of system where they won't be noticed for a couple weeks while INTEL continues investigations. Anything remotely capable of challenging such a formation would be an act of war, not piracy -- and if the confiscation and investigation should happen to stir up some pirates, well...
HARDWARE
[ ] Trust but verify. VSS has 2 days to produce the paperwork, failing which their arms will be seized.
INTEL
[ ] Continue the investigation and stay in Egon.
SOYEON
[ ] Write-in: A Small Trap: Leave 2BC 4CA 7CL under Konnie a nice distance out of system where they won't be noticed for a couple weeks while INTEL continues investigations. Anything remotely capable of challenging such a formation would be an act of war, not piracy -- and if the confiscation and investigation should happen to stir up some pirates, well...
Whiskey Golf
Being of Editing & Technical Assistance
- Location
- Chained to my desk
4th Fleet HQ is on the Sumeragi-Hoou border, and while an FTL message could be sent,it would not arrive in time because we have to go back now. As a reminder, 4th Fleet's commander is Kanda Shiki, who was also one of Fleet Admiral Yonatan's students (and also Yui's friendzone Navy buddy). (Kanda is very salt, he has to keep Hoou and Sumeragi from fighting while also patrolling alarge AO without enough ships.)
if you leave Konnie behind you don't need to micromanage her tactical deployment; Konnie is more than competent. She's got better tactical and strategic sense than Yui (bit Yui is better with staffwork). If you leave Konnie behind to keep an eye on Egon, she'll take care of that with greater subtlety than one might expect.
Whiskey Golf
Being of Editing & Technical Assistance
- Location
- Chained to my desk
splitting up squadrons into individual elements is not the navy way unless absolutely necessary. even kanda , alastor and Prince Masatada tries to have the ships patrollingnin pairs.
also there are no write in options for the task group size, Konnie will decide what she wants for her taskforce
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- Location
- Illinois
... Ok, so do that with Konnie taskforce.
ckk185
Crazy Bunny Girl Scientist
- Location
- Port city
Yea, that ain't gonna be a option.
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The Sandman
So Zetta Slowpoke
- Location
- Wherever I am, which isn't where I'm not
I feel like what's going on here is live-fire training. Sumeragi is blooding their officers and sailors so that they'll have an experience edge when the war kicks off.
Also I feel like the option works better as "Distrust but verify," in that we know they're playing silly buggers and they know we know they're playing silly buggers, but we're waiting for their excuse to finish falling apart before doing anything overt. Of course it also means we're ready to go at a moment's notice if they skip straight to the "destroying evidence" stage.
Also I feel like the option works better as "Distrust but verify," in that we know they're playing silly buggers and they know we know they're playing silly buggers, but we're waiting for their excuse to finish falling apart before doing anything overt. Of course it also means we're ready to go at a moment's notice if they skip straight to the "destroying evidence" stage.
- Location
- Central Standard Time
Aaaaaa.
Bad.
Where's Yvonne when you need her?
Oh, Whiskey.
(I approve.)
Serious analysis:
I think there's a 50% chance that we don't want the middle option. Idunno, I'm not seeing the downside. That scares me. I'm leaning for "grab first, worry later". They might be playing at a different level and be trying to bait this though.
Otoh, I don't see a significant downside to Konnie staying. As much as she's nice, she's not part of our retinue like Daniel. Thus, we can afford to leave her here with a force.
Okay, but what about the suppression force? 20% of a fleet is still significant. We have the heavies. Alastor et al need reliable heavies.
OTOH, the need isn't urgent yet, unless war breaks out and the transit time to their new destination is too long. That's a risk we need to take, I think.
Whiskey Golf
Being of Editing & Technical Assistance
- Location
- Chained to my desk
You misunderstand me. If you choose to leave Konnie behind with a task group in Egon, Yui is going to be hands off and is not going to micromanage what forces Konnie keeps there: Konnie will tell her what she's going to keep with her and Yui is going to say "okay Konnie, I trust your judgement".
As the narration notes, Yui's management style leans away from micromanaging, which is why there is no write in option to micromanage Konnie's task group composition.
I will say that I have already given a hint as to what Konnie's task group composition is going to look like, more or less agak-agak.
There's some nuance here that you're underselling: Konnie is Yui's right hand woman and one of her Navy buddies, and she's the combat admiral to your staffwork admiral, and is close enough to Yui that she considers her one of your few personal friends. She might not be in your retinue, but you are her patron and she is unshakably loyal to you, and she will get shit done. (However, "unshakably loyal" =/= "will not sass you".
)If you refer back to 13th Fleet's force comp, it consists of (brackets show detached to TF Soyeon):
BB: 4 sqn
BC: 6 sqn (1 sqn)
CA: 9 sqn (2 sqn)
CL: 12 sqn (3 sqn)
Now, minus the squadrons that made up the ad-hoc TF Soyeon, there are still 9 squadrons of capital ships (BB/BC), 7 squadrons of CAs and 9 squadrons of CLs in 13th Fleet that can still be used to do things. Note that a squadron is 4 ships.
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