This turn we should at least do the both Shaking Hands and the Butcher's Bill - Rubble, as well as Tsarina's Terra Trip before continuing on the Secrets of Tsarina.
[ ] Chistka - Purge the Senate: While the Senate sided with you for the most part, a number of high-profile members were part of the original conspiracy. Investigations here will be far more difficult, as Senators (both Lords and Commons) are granted special powers and privileges that mean your agents will have to tread carefully.
Cost: 20,000 dinars
Difficulty: INT difficulty 60
Time: 1 turns
Reward: Increase to Fear, the Senate's loyalty is assured for now, -2 to PR with Dame Egonova
[ ] Chistka - Purge the Senate: While the Senate sided with you for the most part, a number of high-profile members were part of the original conspiracy. Investigations here will be far more difficult, as Senators (both Lords and Commons) are granted special powers and privileges that mean your agents will have to tread carefully.
Cost: 25,000 dinars
Difficulty: INT difficulty 60
Time: 1 turns
Reward: Increase to Fear, the Senate's loyalty is assured for now, -2 to PR with Dame Egonova
This turn we should at least do the both Shaking Hands and the Butcher's Bill - Rubble, as well as Tsarina's Terra Trip before continuing on the Secrets of Tsarina.
[X] Plan: Pens and Shovels
-[X] Shaking Hands - House Al-Mufti
-[X] Modernization - Heavy Cruiser
-[X] The Butcher's Bill - Buzzard
-[X] Chistka - Purge the Guard
-[X] Khrabrost III - Dig Deeper
-[X] Reach Out to the Cult
-[X] Tsarina's Terra Trip
-[X] Major Tatiana Chernova
--[X] Shaking Hands - House Massarde
-[X] Commodore Pyotr Chekhov
--[X] Aid with The Butcher's Bill - Buzzard
-[X] Colonel Daria Varyanova
--[X] Modernization - Frigate
Funds: 51,202
Cost: 48 000
Establishing diplomatic relationships with our neighbors. Since we can only do one diplo action, Tatiana is our best option to make contact with the House known for its spies. Butcher's Bill - Rubble to increase our Love and to start rebuilding Moskva and now that the leadership of our military has been vetted, we should move to the Guard. Continuing to investigate those strange ruins on Khrabrost III and making contact with the Cult, since Panin said that we should do that soon. Also taking the Terra Trip now, we can continue digging into our mom's secrets next turn. Finally, Martial action and our military heroes start working on that modernization, which will hopefully help with getting rid of that insufficient ship upkeep malus we have.
Edit.
Replaced The Butcher's Bill - Rubble with The Butcher's Bill - Buzzard and moved Pyotr's action to aid with that.
I don't think it'd be worth it - the cost of the Traditional Method of repairing manufacture action is equivalent to the cost of building a new shipyard, so seizing one before building another means paying disruption costs + 35k just to be able to build ships 2 turns earlier.
We aren't really in a good financial position to be building up our fleet anyways, so being able to do so earlier isn't worth the inefficiency.
I am still trying to get a grip on the mechanics, but I have a question.
Why "The Butcher's Bill - Rubble"? Right now most of our income comes from Moskva, and a significant part of that are Extraction and Orbital Extraction facilities (net Income of 10k for one). Since our budget is in tatters, doesn't it make more sense to invest in that rather than think of the action in terms of Love increase?
Is there something in particular we want to build in Moskva soon?
I am still trying to get a grip on the mechanics, but I have a question.
Why "The Butcher's Bill - Rubble"? Right now most of our income comes from Moskva, and a significant part of that are Extraction and Orbital Extraction facilities (net Income of 10k for one). Since our budget is in tatters, doesn't it make more sense to invest in that rather than think of the action in terms of Love increase?
Is there something in particular we want to build in Moskva soon?
The extra building slots are just a bonus. We're literally one point away from rising our Love to 2 (the superficial value is at 9, and if we leave it alone for two long it will start to degrade), and I'm hoping that the new STE options it gives us are something that can help us with our economy, with actions that would either increase our income or decrease our upkeep, since building extraction facilities take multiple turns to construct. And at some point we need to get to dealing with the corruption in our government, since that's our end goal.
The extra building slots are just a bonus. We're literally one point away from rising our Love to 2 (the superficial value is at 9, and if we leave it alone for two long it will start to degrade), and I'm hoping that the new STE options it gives us are something that can help us with our economy, with actions that would either increase our income or decrease our upkeep, since building extraction facilities take multiple turns to construct. And at some point we need to get to dealing with the corruption in our government, since that's our end goal.
perhaps have them design a heavy cruiser because that is what we will likely be able to afford first anyway? Task one of the mil hero's to help out on it to ensure a good result. To echo @Neville I think we should switch our stewardship option to the orbital restoration and use our other mil hero to buff it.
perhaps have them design a heavy cruiser because that is what we will likely be able to afford first anyway? Task one of the mil hero's to help out on it to ensure a good result. To echo @Neville I think we should switch our stewardship option to the orbital restoration and use our other mil hero to buff it.
Heavy Cruiser is already in development, but I did move it to our Martial action, since it has the bigger bonus (+24 from our advisor, Kiril, and +6 from our stat). I also changed the STE action to building another extraction facility, but there is no need to put a hero into it as well, Fund Construction has DC 20 and the bonus from our STE advisor, Svetlana, is already +23.
Heavy Cruiser is already in development, but I did move it to our Martial action, since it has the bigger bonus (+24 from our advisor, Kiril, and +6 from our stat). I also changed the STE action to building another extraction facility, but there is no need to put a hero into it as well, Fund Construction has DC 20 and the bonus from our STE advisor, Svetlana, is already +23.
I was referencing swapping it for The Butcher's Bill - Buzzards. This would give us two extraction facilities and has a DC of 40. Cutting two of the dev actions would make up the cost difference.
I was referencing swapping it for The Butcher's Bill - Buzzards. This would give us two extraction facilities and has a DC of 40. Cutting two of the dev actions would make up the cost difference.
Oh right, it gives us two facilities, not two slots for those facilities, I had those mixed. Changing that, and changing Pyotr's action to aiding with that, hopefully if we get it high enough we won't lose any Love and maybe even get some extra resources from it.
Adhoc vote count started by Miner249er on Feb 7, 2020 at 9:37 PM, finished with 24 posts and 8 votes.
[X] Plan: Pens and Shovels
-[X] Shaking Hands - House Al-Mufti
-[X] Modernization - Heavy Cruiser
-[X] The Butcher's Bill - Buzzard
-[X] Chistka - Purge the Guard
-[X] Khrabrost III - Dig Deeper
-[X] Reach Out to the Cult
-[X] Tsarina's Terra Trip
-[X] Major Tatiana Chernova
--[X] Shaking Hands - House Massarde
-[X] Commodore Pyotr Chekhov
--[X] Aid with The Butcher's Bill - Buzzard
-[X] Colonel Daria Varyanova
--[X] Modernization - Frigate
[X] Plan: Pens and Shovels
-[X] Shaking Hands - House Al-Mufti
-[X] Modernization - Heavy Cruiser
-[X] The Butcher's Bill - Buzzard
-[X] Chistka - Purge the Guard
-[X] Khrabrost III - Dig Deeper
-[X] Reach Out to the Cult
-[X] Tsarina's Terra Trip
-[X] Major Tatiana Chernova
--[X] Shaking Hands - House Massarde
-[X] Commodore Pyotr Chekhov
--[X] Aid with The Butcher's Bill - Buzzard
-[X] Colonel Daria Varyanova
--[X] Modernization - Frigate
From the Ministry of State (DIP)
[X] Shaking Hands - House Al-Mufti: One of the two traditional rivals of your family, the Al-Mufti clan are unequaled administrators. They are geniuses with the financial and bureaucratic aspects of statecraft, and many who have tried to fight them on their own turf have learned this the hard way. Reestablishing diplomatic relations with them, and introducing yourself, would be a prudent option.
Cost: None
Difficulty: DIP difficulty 15
Time: 1 turns
Reward: Diplomatic relations opened with the Al-Mufti, potential Fame increase
Costs: None Roll: 77 (61+6+10) - Crit Success! Result: Sultan Mehmed, to your surprise, is a far more ascetic man when on his own homeworld - or at least that's the front he puts up. You've just set out on your trip to Terra, and your uncle greets you warmly if simply with a meal of rice, beans, and a simple salad - but your own portions are noticeably larger than his own, a fact that he plays up for the news drones that record every (legal) angle of your meal together. "For the benefit of our mutual friendship," he tells you. In the end, Lord Yusupov insists that the odd experience was an important victory. +1 to Fame, +2 to PR with Sultan Mehmed
From the Ministry of War (MAR)
[X] Modernization - Heavy Cruiser: It might be possible to use this disastrous loss of ships as an opportunity to modernize. The Ministry of War can draft a few options. Specify the class of ship you'd like to plan out. (Dreadnought, Battleship, Battlecruiser, Heavy Cruiser, Light Cruiser, Torpedo Destroyer, Frigate, Cutter)
Cost: 5,000 dinars
Difficulty: MAR difficulty 40
Time: 1 turn
Reward: A list of potential designs for your perusal
Costs: 5,000 dinars Roll: 61 (43+6+12) - Success Result: Heavy cruisers are, in many ways, the loyal workhorses of a modern fleet, especially as military power is increasingly concentrated in the hands of the Empire's lords. The Rurikovich fleet's Rytsar-class has been in service in one form or another for nearly forty years, and many of them suffered heavy damage during the Battle of Moskva. As such, your Ministry of War has presented for your consideration three designs for a new generation of heavy cruisers.
Atlas-class - Designed to act more in a command role than as a frontline combatant, the Atlas Class would be purpose-built to lead squadrons of its own. A state of the art comms suite helps make up for the relative weakness of its weapons systems. If chosen, this design would not outright replace the older Avrora-class. It is roughly similar in terms of design to the older variant, with the main differences being the command suite and the relative downsizing of the weapons suite.
Murmansk-class - According to the designer of the proposed Murmansk, one Mr. Ivan Rybolov of Tupolev Shipping this design is based around the simple adage that, in a space battle, "Speed is Armor." Smaller and lighter than the previous Aurora class, the Mumansk-class has most of its weapons and armor concentrated in the bow, making it an excellent (in theory) chaser, ambusher, and firing platform.
Orel-class - In direct opposition to Rybolov's small, speedy design, Svetlana Vatunina of Vatunin Orbitals is promoting a design that would put the "heavy" in "heavy cruiser." Though nowhere near battleship weight, the proposed Orel-class would be best served in a battle line, though is much too slow and power-intensive to be used as a commerce raider or a patrol leader.
From the Ministry of the Exchequer (STE)
[X] The Butcher's Bill - Buzzards: The economic devastation of the Moskva system has led to an epidemic of wildcat miners, scavvers, and smugglers plying the trade routes and outer-system bodies. Normally this would be tolerated, but many of these operations have become big enough to seriously threaten your family's favored extraction companies - not to mention that their operations are very much illegal. Have Egonova task a small fleet of Customs cutters to interdict these operations, and/or place them under your own control.
Cost: 20,000 dinars
Difficulty: STE difficulty 40
Time: 2 turns
Reward: Small increase to Fear; penalty to Love; +2 Orbital Extraction districts in Moskva
Costs: 20,000 dinars Roll: 106! (87+8+11) - Crit Success! Result: While not exactly popular with those who make their living exclusively offworld, Commodore Chekhov's crackdown on wildcat miners and illegal scavengers proves to be a sound financial decision. With the cooperation of a number of prominent mining and salvage firms, a fleet of commerce cutters has been scouring problem areas and dealing with any opposition quickly and efficiently. Though it has created a group of small-time spacers and miners who are now openly hostile to your regime, frankly, no one else seems to care about the dispossession of some random grimy spacer squatting on an illegally-mined asteroid. Your favored firms have moved back in, as well as those owned directly by the Rurikovich dynasty, giving the worlds of Rurik a well-needed economic shot in the arm. +2 to Fear, -3 to Love, +2 Orbital Extraction Districts. Commodore Chekhov gains the trait "Commerce Raider," giving +1 to MAR and +5 to all naval actions against civilian or criminal targets.
From the Okhrana (INT)
[X] Chistka - Purge the Guard: It is difficult to tell just how widespread Ivan's network of allies was. With him dead, his biggest allies - the Preobrazhensky Guard - likely still have large numbers of his supporters among them. Lisitsyn will organize an investigation into who these traitors might be, and… deal with them as need be.
Cost: 10,000 Dinars
Difficulty: INT difficulty 45
Time: 1 turns
Reward: Increase to Fear, the remaining Guard's loyalties are assured for now
[X] Khrabrost III - Dig Deeper: Discovering the secrets of this enigmatic Vault is of paramount importance. Lord Nasarov is practically beside himself, and has taken this discovery to be a confirmation of his long-held beliefs: that humanity is not the only, or even the oldest, interstellar intelligent race. Whether he is right or not, the Vault is certainly interesting.
Cost: 5,000 dinars
Difficulty: LEA difficulty 55
Time: 2 turns
Reward: ?
Costs: 5,000 dinars Roll: 37 (19+5+13) - Failure Result: A plague of radiation storms and electrical weather events has disrupted or even outright destroyed quite a bit of the research team's equipment. While only two fatalities - both caused by the infamous "Fire Cliffs" that tempt scientists and soldiers to their deaths - have been recorded, little new information has been recovered, and morale at the dig site is low. Little progress is made on researching/expanding on the Khrabrost discoveries.
From the Grand Bishopric of Moskva
[X] Reach Out to the Cult: The Imperial Cult is by far the most powerful single entity in the Empire, with their de facto control of the Imperial Demesne and their huge fleet and army. Bishop Panin has made it clear that they pose a threat to even the Great Lords of the Empire, and he recommends that establishing a relationship with them early is important.
Cost 2,000 dinars
Difficulty: PIE difficulty 40
Time: 1 turn
Reward: Increase to PR with the Cult; potential increase to PR with Bishop Panin; other options.
Costs: 2,000 dinars Roll: 75 (58+4+13) - Success Result: As part of your embassy to the Sol system (see below), you also pay homage to those great people of the cloth who oversee the souls of trillions (and the temporal lives of several hundred billion to boot). It strikes you just how frail and… mortal they all look - wizened old men and women, the youngest of whom is eighty, sitting stoop-shouldered and atrophied in their enormous grav-chairs. Bishop Panin's own introduction in hand, you make the traditional gestures of obeisance that all lords of the Empire must afford to these voices of the Primus.
Grand Augur Yun-Wei Liang
Augur Miram Serhane
Augur Jonnel Ac-Tayu
Augur Pieter Koltsing
Augur Ramira Gonzalz
There is no particular success or opportunity that comes from this meeting - frankly, for the youngest Augur, you are only the third Rurikovich ruler to some before them - Augur Serhane still remembers the coronation of your grandfather, the old Tsar. To these fossils, you are simply more of the same - and though they are polite, you get the sense that Bishop Panin's words about your mother's perceived impiety may have reached their years before you reached them. +2 to PR with the Cult. +3 to PR with Panin. New options have been added to PIE.
Personal Actions
[X] Tsarina's Terra Trip: It is customary for a new lord of a Great House to make a pilgrimage to humanity's ancient homeworld to bend the knee to the Emperor. It is both a religious ceremony and a political one, and will essentially introduce you to the Empire as a whole.
Difficulty: DIP difficulty 30
Cost: 1,000 Dinars
Time: 1 turn
Reward: Fame reward, potential increase to Piety, the Emperor has a face to put to the name
Costs: 1,000 dinars Roll: 43 (31+12) - Success Result: In a similar vein, your trip to the Imperial palace in Baghdad is a mild success. Ardeshir Primus IV, Galactic Emperor, is hidden even to you behind a curtain of opulence and tradition, a calculated political show that divides the "divine" from the mortal. And yet, when you finally meet him, this avatar of the Primus in the world of mankind is… just another aging man beset by a million things at once. Your ceremonial supplication - pressing your forehead to the carpet before the Emperor's throne and kissing the hem of his robe - is treated as almost an afterthought, His Divine Majesty clearly more interested in the deadly game of Terran court politics than some lordling from the Rurikovich backwater coming to beg his approval. He makes no objection to your actions or your situation, but neither does he go out of his way to signal favor. To him, you are nothing more than a fait accompli. +2 Fame, the Emperor is now a person of interest.
Hero Actions
[X] Shaking Hands - House Massarde: The artisans of Seine, despite their proclivity towards painting, architecture, and pretty things, are not to be underestimated. Your best friend is a shining example of the efficacy of their intelligence programs, and they possess a level of centralization in their territory unrivaled across the Empire. Reestablishing diplomatic relations with them, and introducing yourself, would be a prudent option.
Cost: None
Difficulty: DIP difficulty 15
Time: 1 turns
Reward: Diplomatic relations opened with the Massarde, potential Fame increase
Costs: None Roll: 56 (45+11) - Crit Success! Result: Sending Tatiana as an official representative of your government proves to be the right choice. As a former student of Seine's art schools, parlors, and assassin squads, she has a great number of local contacts and admirers of both sexes who have been able pull strings in her name. In the perfumed, cutthroat environment of the Massarde court, having these sorts of assets is essential when interacting with the Prince. Armed with her natural charisma and allure, Tatiana's mission to the White-Gold Palace has been largely a resounding success, and she has opened a number of potential trade or business opportunities with the denizens of Louis III's court. Oddly enough, Tatiana reported that the Prince had almost seemed "politely disappointed" upon first meeting her - and expressed an interest in meeting you directly. He did not say why. +1 Fame, +2 PR with Louis III Massarde
[X] Modernization - Frigate: It might be possible to use this disastrous loss of ships as an opportunity to modernize. The Ministry of War can draft a few options. Specify the class of ship you'd like to plan out. (Dreadnought, Battleship, Battlecruiser, Heavy Cruiser, Light Cruiser, Torpedo Destroyer, Frigate, Cutter)
Cost: 5,000 dinars
Difficulty: MAR difficulty 40
Time: 1 turn
Reward: A list of potential designs for your perusal
Costs: 5,000 Roll: 99 (88+11) - Crit Success! Result: You're as surprised as any to find that young Colonel Daria Varyanova is something of a prodigy when it comes to ship design... or at least with playing taskmaster to the actual designers. With the assistance and prodding of Colonel Varyanova, the Ministry of War's shipbuilding bureau has narrowed a wide field of designs down to three options. For her efforts, Varyanova gains the trait "Shipwright," giving +2 STE and +5 to all shipbuilding initiatives.
Nagumo Inari-class - The Nagumo-class, as promoted by , is destined for a scouting role more than anything else. Backed by fleet commanders and those who favor decisive battles and "fleet in being" doctrine, this design focuses on the traditional role of the frigate as the eyes and ears of a fleet. Eschewing the concept of the "heavy" frigate that has become the vogue with certain Core navies, the Nagumo-class is lightly armored, lightly armed, and small, but makes up for it with blinding speed, a formidable sensor and E-war suite, and an inordinately large warp drive, half again the size of the previous Nikolai Semyonov-class. To curry favor, it was named for Inari Nagumo, your uncle and War Minister Kiril's former subordinate, friend, and very likely lover, a former mercenary from Yamato who had risen to the highest military rank subordinate to House Aristarkhov.
Nikolai Amelko-class - Commerce raiding is a major dimension of interstellar warfare in the modern age, especially given that not all planets - especially the more heavily populated ones - are self-sufficient. Convoys of food supplies can help a planet withstand a siege for just a bit longer, and vice versa - just one or two missed food shipments can plunge a planet into chaos. The proposed Amelko-class would be designed to pursue and destroy these ships before slipping away when more dangerous enemies make an appearance. Named for Admiral Nikolai Amelko, who'd been one of your grandfather the old Tsar's most trusted confidants and a successful commander against the Al-Mufti.
Vladimir Istomin-class - The concept of the "heavy" or "protected frigate" is a relatively old idea, dating back to the era of the Empire's foundation - a time of massive fleet engagements lasting for days, if not weeks. As such, survivability became the watchword, and the protected frigate was born - its weapons systems and sensor suites replaced by thicker shields and heavier armor. Though less effective in scouting and interdiction roles, they make for useful weapons in a pitched fleet battle, and in enough numbers, they are incredibly effective against lighter, less protected frigates. The Istomin-class, named for a Preobrazhensky Commandant-General from the days of Tsar Valentin II, is a modern attempt to recreate this concept. Though fleet battles of major scale are largely a thing of the past, as the days of Imperial governors with massive fleets have long since gone, the increasing militarization of the Great Houses could lead to more overt conflict, and thus make the Istomin-class useful once more.
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Random Events:
(Every turn I will roll for a Boon, an Event, and a Disaster. If the Boon roll is above an 80, a positive event will occur. If the Event roll is between 40 and 60, a "neutral" event happens. If the Disaster roll is below 20, a serious new problem arises.) Boon: 73 Event: 80 Disaster: 90
Nothing of note occurs.
__
Enjoy this... yearly update. Not sure if there'll be more interest in continuing this, but now that things are starting to get slightly better IRL, I now have some time to return to old projects... and this was always one of my favorites.
One thing you hadn't expected at the start of your reign was just how boring being a High Lord would be. Within your demesne, the buck ultimately stops with you - and so from every social, economic, and political corner, you are beset by people demanding your attention and your approval for whatever harebrained scheme can be found. Worse is when two prominent courtiers, petty rivalries in full force, take up your attention.
Lord Leonov slams a fist down, making the three cups of lukewarm coffee bounce and rattle across the wooden table. "You're being obstinate, Novgorodov," he grouses, glaring daggers at the man across from him. "You say we can't afford to do this? We can't get the funds?" He points into the evening sky, shining through the window over the Emerald Palace's estates. "Up there, we can find more funds. The wealth of the system is being squatted on by vagabonds..." As he rants on, you follow his waving hand, still pointing into the sky. On the estate grounds below, a smattering of Norilsk marines and Preobrazhensky Guardsmen - including a pair of tanks idling in empty squares - are outside guarding the palace. It looks hot out there - but it'd probably be better than languishing in here with two loudmouthed advisors.
"...nothing but pure speculation," you hear Baron Novgorodov rumble. A large man born to Posadka, his serious composition and growth of neat beard gives him an austere appearance. "Our economic situation is precarious as it is. Expending resources to go chase down some crusty opportunist miners-"
"Their little cartels are far more united and complex than that!" Leonov interrupts, pointing a thin finger across the table. "We are talking millions, billions of dinars! And you'd be content to let the-"
"THIS is all very well, gentlemen," you interrupt, eyes squeezed shut and thumb massaging at the growing throb of a headache. "But as I am hearing no compromise, we will revisit this issue tomorrow morning after heads have had time to cool." When they're silent, you sigh, stand up, and say, "That means you're dismissed, my Lords."
The two scurry out of the room with twin expressions of dissatisfaction on their faces. That's something you'll need to deal with, you're sure - as much as they hate each other, Leonov and Novgorodov are both powerful movers and shakers in the Senate and in your court, and outright ignoring their advice could be cause for further migraines down the line.
With a sigh, you take a quick breather, leaning back in your office seat and running a hand through your hair. It'd been just one more day of petitioners, adjudications, and paperwork - the inevitable burdens of empire. But before you can sigh in relief and turn in for a much more comfortable evening, duty calls once more.
"Your Grace?" The Norilsk marine manning your door knocks three times. "The… Commandant-General is here to see you."
That gets your attention. Commandant-General Natalia Izhmorskaya was placed in command of the guard following your brother's coup, replacing the treasonous Orlov. As a member of the Guard who'd remained loyal to you during the putsch, she was recommended by your uncle as a replacement and vetted rigorously by Lisitsyn's spooks. Whatever she has at this hour... it must be important. You nod once. "Let her through."
The Commandant-General enters, bowing deeply as she does. As with most members of the Guard, she's physically imposing, wide-shouldered and tall with a short, severe military cut dusting her scalp. She's dressed in her full ceremonial uniform, you note - medals and decorations spilling off a broad chest like a shiny waterfall. This tapestry of accomplishment jangles as she straightens back up,. clutching a large leather briefcase in one hand. "Your Grace," she greets, reverence in her tone - though whether it's sincere or not is still an open question. "Thank you for honoring me and the Guard with your presence and attention."
You raise an eyebrow at the veiled complaint - it is true that you've had little interaction with the Guard outside of the trials and Lisitsyn's… activities, but this borders on insubordination. She's already speaking for the Guard alone then, too? Not a good sign. "Commandant-General," you say evenly, but firmly. "Take a seat. To what do I owe this unexpected pleasure?"
If Izhmorskaya notices the annoyed venom in your words, she doesn't acknowledge it. "Your Grace is too kind," she says, leaning her briefcase against the desk as she sits down. "I am here to bring before you a… humble request."
You worry your lip a moment, but elect to say nothing, merely gesturing for the Commandant to make her case. She shifts uncomfortably at your unblinking gaze, before leaning forward to begin to explain. "Your Grace," she begins, in a tone that seems to imply you won't like her next words, "The Guard feels that the recent… investigations against its members - and officers," she adds pointedly and ominously, "are unfounded, as the dishonorable brothers and sisters of the Guard who masterminded that are all dead or imprisoned. On behalf of my troops..." She reaches into the pouch and withdraws a dataslate. "A petition, from the officers and ranks of the First, Second, and Third Legions of the Preobrazhensky Guard. To end the latest inquiry."
You're silent for a moment, and then you steeple your fingers, staring into the older woman's searching eyes. "Commandant-General," you begin, voice dangerously calm. "The last time I had cause to deal with the guard, it was when the Guard attempted to usurp my throne and killed my mother." You lean forward, punctuating each clipped word with a tap on the table. "The Guard has nothing to fear - if there is nothing to fear in the Guard." You lean back, your word final. "Dismissed, Commandant-General."
Izhmorskaya glares for a moment, before coming to her feet and snapping off a crisp salute. "For the Empire," she recites, turning and leaving with her back and her expression as stiff as boards. With a sigh, you realize that in her haste, she'd left her briefcase.
You freeze, eyes traveling slowly to the innocuous pouch. It could hold papers... or a bomb. Your first instinct is to quash the paranoia, but you realize that there are many, very real and very dangerous explanations... In the end, you decide 'better safe than sorry,' and you press a button on your desk ordering the Norilsk marines to rally on you. The one for the Guard remains untouched. Then you immediately exit the room, walking over to address the Marine outside your door. Taking him aside, you lean in, preparing to share your terrified fantasies-
And then your paranoia is vindicated - violently. A sudden WHOOMPH-BOOM batters your eardrums, and a sudden wave of heat and pure force send you flying into the opposite wall. For a moment, all you can see is dust, smoke, and flame, and all you can feel is a sharp pain up and down your back; but as your head and the room both gradually clear, you look on in horror at the ruin that was once your office. Daylight filters in through a ragged hole, blown out of the side of the building by great explosive force. And through the hole, you see...
"Oh Primus preserve-"
You dive for cover as one of the Preobrazhensky tanks fires a coilgun round into the room for good measure, the second explosion in as many seconds knocking you to the floor. Back and knees aching, you struggle to your feet, half-stumbling and half-crawling to the bisected Norilsk marine you were just talking to. With a grimace, you pry the carbine out of his dead hands, saying a quick prayer to the Wheel before scrambling towards the stairs. The pops and bangs of close combat are already echoing throughout the halls - the rest of the Guard's forces carrying out their half-baked coup attempt? In any case, you keep your head low as you scour the palace for friendlies.
UUpon rounding a corner into the mess hall, you silently curse your decision to send Tatiana to Seine as a spray of coilgun rounds whizzes by just overhead, digging chunks of plaster and stone out of the wall behind you. You can hear the shouting voices of the traitor Guardsmen, modulated through their black helmets, as they slowly claw and drag themselves up the stairs. You pop out from behind cover, shooting one dead in his black armor, while the rest of the traitors drive you back into hiding with a return spray of slugs. Breathing heavily, and convinced you're about to die, you don't notice the grenade bouncing down the steps until it detonates in the midst of the Guardsmen, sending them flying - and not all of them intact.
Looking up in shock, you feel relief as half a dozen Norilsk Marines in full armor take cover beside you, keeping up a steady stream of fire into the chaotic mess that was once a Guard assault team. A bearded man, hair graying at the temples and lines crisscrossing his hairy face, kneels down before you. "Our deepest apologies, Your Grace," says Captain Popov. "We did not reach you in time, and our-"
Too hopped up on relief and battle-fury to listen to Popov's self flagellation, you slap him on the side of the helmet. "Earn your forgiveness!" you shout. "Defend the Palace! Less talk, more shoot!"
That's more than enough to get him excited again. With a grin, he nods once, coaxing a metallic noise from his own carbine. "As you command, Your Grace." He peeks the carbine over the railing, shooting two more Guardsmen dead as they blunder in through the main entrance.
You hold the palace foyer for nearly an hour, until ammunition runs low and you have to start recovering weapons from the dead. Blood and armored corpses litter the steps, and the stink of it mixes with the ozone smell of hot coilguns and the stink of terrified sweat. When the Guard get frustrated and simply bust a tank into the entrance, you realize all might be lost. Down to the last magazine in your stolen carbine, your dreams of holding out until the last minute will remain just dreams... for the short and violent remainder of your life.
You let out a breath as you watch the black snout of the tank's railgun slowly, so slowly, tracks to your hiding spot. You close your eyes, waiting for the flash and the detonation - but when the explosion comes, it doesn't kill you. You open your eyes - the tank is burning, its turret having been torn off and hurled a dozen meters as if by a giant's hand. At last - salvation. A low rumble heralds the arrival of a column of Army tanks, opting to bash down the outer palace gates and drive headlong into battle. With the Guard force now outnumbered and outgunned, the battle in Posadka is now a short mop-up.
Standing shakily to your feet, you watch the Guard units being broken up by the arriving Army and slowly whittled down to nothing by overwhelming fire superiority. It's not an easy task - the men and women of the Guard fight to the death, knowing probably that their lives are now forfeit.
You shake your head, too exhausted and shell-shocked to really feel more than impending dread at this unwelcome revelation. As reports come in that the Guard has regrouped north of the city and is now rampaging and looting its way through the surrounding countryside, you can perhaps be forgiven for giving the news an exhausted, "Yes, that might as well happen too."
___
Effects: The Preobrazhensky Guard have launched another, smaller insurrection, not even picking a successor in favor of just besieging the palace and demanding concessions from you directly. Though your survival has been assured, and the capital has been saved by the timely intervention of the Norilsk Marines and the Army, yet again the unit charged with your safety has tried to kill you - and now they're rampaging around the Samaran heartland. This has gone too damn far. -1 Infantry legion, -2 Elite Infantry Legions, -1 Elite Armored Legion. -3 to Fear. The Guard must be dealt with. Gain the trait Paranoid.
You've just set out on your trip to Terra, and your uncle greets you warmly if simply with a meal of rice, beans, and a simple salad - but your own portions are noticeably larger than his own, a fact that he plays up for the news drones that record every (legal) angle of your meal together. "For the benefit of our mutual friendship," he tells you. In the end, Lord Yusupov insists that the odd experience was an important victory. +1 to Fame, +2 to PR with Sultan Mehmed
[X] Chistka - Purge the Guard: It is difficult to tell just how widespread Ivan's network of allies was. With him dead, his biggest allies - the Preobrazhensky Guard - likely still have large numbers of his supporters among them. Lisitsyn will organize an investigation into who these traitors might be, and… deal with them as need be.
Cost: 10,000 Dinars
Difficulty: INT difficulty 45
Time: 1 turns
Reward: Increase to Fear, the remaining Guard's loyalties are assured for now
Result: In a similar vein, your trip to the Imperial palace in Baghdad is a mild success. Ardeshir Primus IV, Galactic Emperor, is hidden even to you behind a curtain of opulence and tradition, a calculated political show that divides the "divine" from the mortal. And yet, when you finally meet him, this avatar of the Primus in the world of mankind is… just another aging man beset by a million things at once. Your ceremonial supplication - pressing your forehead to the carpet before the Emperor's throne and kissing the hem of his robe - is treated as almost an afterthought, His Divine Majesty clearly more interested in the deadly game of Terran court politics than some lordling from the Rurikovich backwater coming to beg his approval. He makes no objection to your actions or your situation, but neither does he go out of his way to signal favor. To him, you are nothing more than a fait accompli. +2 Fame, the Emperor is now a person of interest.
Armed with her natural charisma and allure, Tatiana's mission to the White-Gold Palace has been largely a resounding success, and she has opened a number of potential trade or business opportunities with the denizens of Louis III's court. Oddly enough, Tatiana reported that the Prince had almost seemed "politely disappointed" upon first meeting her - and expressed an interest in meeting you directly. He did not say why. +1 Fame, +2 PR with Louis III Massarde
Result: You're as surprised as any to find that young Colonel Daria Varyanova is something of a prodigy when it comes to ship design... or at least with playing taskmaster to the actual designers. With the assistance and prodding of Colonel Varyanova, the Ministry of War's shipbuilding bureau has narrowed a wide field of designs down to three options. For her efforts, Varyanova gains the trait "Shipwright," giving +2 STE and +5 to all shipbuilding initiatives.
"Your Grace," she begins, in a tone that seems to imply you won't like her next words, "The Guard feels that the recent… investigations against its members - and officers," she adds pointedly and ominously, "are unfounded, as the dishonorable brothers and sisters of the Guard who masterminded that are all dead or imprisoned. On behalf of my troops..." She reaches into the pouch and withdraws a dataslate. "A petition, from the officers and ranks of the First, Second, and Third Legions of the Preobrazhensky Guard. To end the latest inquiry."
Too hopped up on relief and battle-fury to listen to Popov's self flagellation, you slap him on the side of the helmet. "Earn your forgiveness!" you shout. "Defend the Palace! Less talk, more shoot!"
Effects: The Preobrazhensky Guard have launched another, smaller insurrection, not even picking a successor in favor of just besieging the palace and demanding concessions from you directly. Though your survival has been assured, and the capital has been saved by the timely intervention of the Norilsk Marines and the Army, yet again the unit charged with your safety has tried to kill you - and now they're rampaging around the Samaran heartland. This has gone too damn far. -1 Infantry legion, -2 Elite Infantry Legions, -1 Elite Armored Legion. -3 to Fear. The Guard must be dealt with. Gain the trait Paranoid.
Very happy to see this return and... Oh goddamnit the Royal Guard are rebelling again.
Yeah, they may have felt persecuted because we did a loyalty check to make sure they were loyal enough to us. But considering this was their response? Obviously not 'loyal' for the reasons you want in a Royal or Palace Guard. Especially as we had justified reasons to be worried that not all of them would be happy serving us.
Thus it looks like we're going to have to (forcefully) dissolve the Guard and probably figure out some less permanent assignment system for personal protection of the Tsar/Tsarina. Because it's clear that they both feel too justified doing whatever they want, and happy to be Kingmaker to be trusted as the Tsar's personal guard.
Which is going to screw with things for a while considering they were our elites. But better than leaving it for someone else to deal with, because we can't safely do that and if we did, then they would deal with us!
Let us just hope the Okhrana don't turn on us at some point, because the Secret Police have a tendency to do that if things aren't going how they want them. And it would be just perfect if they did.
