Mandemon
Gentlemen, I love brawl.
- Location
- Cookie Jar
Yeah, that is what I am thinking. If we try to push it through anyway and fail, we will have even more trouble getting them moved.
Stand Still, Stay Silent
- Thread starter Baughn
- Start date
Yeah, that is what I am thinking. If we try to push it through anyway and fail, we will have even more trouble getting them moved.
Mandemon
Gentlemen, I love brawl.
- Location
- Cookie Jar
Tampere looks pretty big... also it doesn't look like its on anything like an Island... or something that can easily be changed in to an island. So...
Any plans on how to 'evacuate' and level the place then?
On a side note, it's also near the water route to the Finnish lakes via Pori... another city that we'll probably have to figure out how to 'deal' with.
Tampere is one of the biggest cities in Finland. Which is why it's a massive headache. It has industry, routes, population... basically everything. We need to decide now whenever we hold it, or let it go and prepare accordingly. There is no really doing half of it. It's not island nor does it have easily defended locations. Only place that might hold is Hervanta, which is full of DDR bunkers (Okay, they aren't real DDR bunkers but we call them such because the buildings look like they were designed in DDR)
If we decide to abandon Tampere, when we leave, tear up the railroads. They will be lost to nature anyway without anyone maintaining them, but we can use the beams to reroute the system.
Pori is relatively easier. It can be divided into two parts and, despite being one of the major cities, is still relatively small. Pori is in that funny situation where we don't actually need it, but we want to hold it anyway. It has highway running through it and has an airport and has a port.
Also, I suggest we get Lapland Jaeger Regiment assigned to border control. They are arctic and forest warfare specialist and most of the border is wilderness. If we need bigger stuff at the border crossings, get Armored Brigade moving. Those tanks won't be much use against the trolls anyway, but can help hold the border. However, make sure that supply vehicles are moved away.
You'd probably want to focus border patrols on the South of Finland mostly land and sea, can't really see you stopping anyone dedicated enough to go through the North... And besides, that will probably add a week of travel time to them, thus increasing chances of them dying along the way if they are sick, and thus not being your problem any more. And alternately... well a week or so is still a week extra.
Mandemon
Gentlemen, I love brawl.
- Location
- Cookie Jar
And we are already planning on abandoning north, so yeah. Though we can't officially say that Northern Finland is a sacrifice we are going to make. Only things we will want from North are army units and their equipment.
Focus on south, most of the land routes are there anyway. In north, we can just make sure that official border crossings are closed.
Focus on south, most of the land routes are there anyway. In north, we can just make sure that official border crossings are closed.
[X] Recommend self-quarantine (Easy/Easy)
[X] Close the borders (Easy/Hard)
[X] Call up reserves (Hard/Medium)
[X] Surveil the strategic stockpiles (Easy/Easy)
[X] Learning
[X] Power-building
- [X] Ministry of Defence.
[X] Close the borders (Easy/Hard)
[X] Call up reserves (Hard/Medium)
[X] Surveil the strategic stockpiles (Easy/Easy)
[X] Learning
[X] Power-building
- [X] Ministry of Defence.
[X] Recommend self-quarantine (Easy/Easy)
[X] Close the borders (Easy/Hard)
[X] Step up border patrols (Medium/Easy)
[X] Surveil the strategic stockpiles (Easy/Easy)
[X] Power-building
- [X] Ministry of Defence.
[X] Learning
[X] Close the borders (Easy/Hard)
[X] Step up border patrols (Medium/Easy)
[X] Surveil the strategic stockpiles (Easy/Easy)
[X] Power-building
- [X] Ministry of Defence.
[X] Learning
- Location
- BaWü
[X] Recommend self-quarantine (Easy/Easy)
[X] Close the borders (Easy/Hard)
[X] Step up border patrols (Medium/Easy)
[X] Surveil the strategic stockpiles (Easy/Easy)
[X] Quality time
[X] Learning
We should also start to archive the internet, as the feeling I got from the comic is that much knowledge was lost.
It should be done soon as we need infrastructure of other countries for it.
[X] Close the borders (Easy/Hard)
[X] Step up border patrols (Medium/Easy)
[X] Surveil the strategic stockpiles (Easy/Easy)
[X] Quality time
[X] Learning
We should also start to archive the internet, as the feeling I got from the comic is that much knowledge was lost.
It should be done soon as we need infrastructure of other countries for it.
Mandemon
Gentlemen, I love brawl.
- Location
- Cookie Jar
90% of internet is lost and we are unlikely to be able to maintain level that allows computers on large scale. Rather, we should start moving libraries to somewhere safe.
Plus, we are Finland. Back uping the internet is not really within our capacity.
- Location
- BaWü
I meant mostly the information. And doesn't Finland own some datacenters? If the information is backed up, the cost to maintain it is low, as you don't need energy for it.
Night_stalker
Slava Ukraini!
- Pronouns
- He/Him
We don't need 90% of the Internet.
Secure Wikipedia, Encylopedia Brittanica, few other databases, that should suffice. We can leave the porn.
Mandemon
Gentlemen, I love brawl.
- Location
- Cookie Jar
Yes, but those datacenters tend to be kinda off-grid.
BURN THE HERETIC!
Though seriously, we get easier by clearing out the libraries. They have big sections for science and stuff and they are in Finnish, which is a lot easier to teach to people than trying to teach English. Yeah, that's another thing, Finns speak Finnish, not English and we are unlikely to be able to maintain English language skills in long term. And Wikipedia is very much unreliable and Finnish side of it is sorely lacking.
Books don't need electricity to work and we are very likely to have periods where electricity is premium.
Night_stalker
Slava Ukraini!
- Pronouns
- He/Him
I'm not saying don't strip the libraries, maybe mention in evacuation notices to bring some reference books from your home, get you some extra rations or something, just saying don't rely on books.
- Location
- BaWü
As I learned Latin, and there aren't really Latin speakers in the world, it should not be to hard to learn English even if it is dead. And we won't be alone.
Shouldn't there also be something like the Germans have? In a mine in the Blackforest there is pretty much all information you would need in micro film for situations such as this.
Mandemon
Gentlemen, I love brawl.
- Location
- Cookie Jar
I am going to present a question.
Which one is easier:
1) We copy English manuals for stuff, then spend time teaching people to learn English and teach from them, hopingwe can maintain proper English language levels because not everyone is going to learn.
OR
2) We copy Finnish manuals for stuff and teach from them
Sorry, but there is no point in trying to copy the internet. There is nothing critical there. Only reason why we would need it, is for communications. Trying to "save the internet" is going to big challenge politics wise, because we will be seen as paranoid doomsayers. Not to mention, there is nothing on Internet that is critical to save. We are playing as Finland: not as US or any other English speaking nation. English is secondary language and as such, we should focus on saving stuff on primary language, AKA Finnish.
You can't avoid large parts of the science and engineering literature being in English, it's been kind of the standard there for a lot of important things for quite some time now. You can probably print out a lot of them I suppose and stuff in to some kind of warehouses... ones that can stay properly dry if at all possible.
In any case, manuals etc are only a tiny fraction of the useful unique information online and I suspect quite a lot of the information isn't in Finnish. Now I suppose you could just ignore that stuff and thus in the future be forced to redevelop a lot of it, but I don't know... Some kind of balance probably should be struck.
-----
Thinking about it some more, in the future you'd probably want things like high detail maps of all the places in the world... and census information perhaps... just so you know which areas are scariest, among other things. Resource information, where is the oil, iron, copper, etc etc...
When you think about it there's a lot of useful information in foreign countries that could matter a lot in the mid to long term. And having to discover it personally would certainly slow one down.
Obviously you don't need your entire population being able to read English for that though, it suffices if historians, academics and other relevant people can.
In any case, manuals etc are only a tiny fraction of the useful unique information online and I suspect quite a lot of the information isn't in Finnish. Now I suppose you could just ignore that stuff and thus in the future be forced to redevelop a lot of it, but I don't know... Some kind of balance probably should be struck.
-----
Thinking about it some more, in the future you'd probably want things like high detail maps of all the places in the world... and census information perhaps... just so you know which areas are scariest, among other things. Resource information, where is the oil, iron, copper, etc etc...
When you think about it there's a lot of useful information in foreign countries that could matter a lot in the mid to long term. And having to discover it personally would certainly slow one down.
Obviously you don't need your entire population being able to read English for that though, it suffices if historians, academics and other relevant people can.
Last edited:
- Location
- BaWü
It worked with Latin and most manuals only exist in English.
We should try to get access to satellites, they would be really good in the mid term. Some Telescopes would allow us to keep an Eye on the rest of the world.
Mandemon
Gentlemen, I love brawl.
- Location
- Cookie Jar
I think you people are thinking too big. We are not saving the world. We are lucky if we can get the Nordic countries reclaimed in anywhere within next century. Rather than plan for World Conquest Part, focus on getting us through next two decades.
In my case I'm not thinking of world conquest, but useful things are spread out all over the world in various locations, some highly populated... others pretty much desolate wastelands. But if you don't know where to find it, they'd all be as good as non-existent to you.
For instance, it might be useful in the short term future to know where all the oil terminals, oil rigs, etc are. Having more oil to supply one with could be pretty useful after all.
In a similar vein, want to know where Sulfur might be stored away? Useful in fertilizers and weapons and all that. This certainly seems like a pretty near term concern to me atleast.
Want to 'acquire' some large ships for ones own internal use? Rather then say having to build new ones.
Want to know how to fix a motherboard with out having an entire electronics industry?
Want to be able to predict the weather you'll have beforehand, so your shipping isn't hit by storms? So your farmers know what weather and temperatures are coming on time? Keeping contact with the weather sats as long as possible could be useful for that.
Want to know where there might be unpopulated or as good as unpopulated islands for easy expansion to?
Want to know if any other place of the world might have survivors who might trade with you?
etc etc etc.
----
To put it another way, stripping and using the remains of the old world for maximum benefit seems like a good idea. And to do that, one needs to know where the things are in it that are worth the investment of time and resources; while still having manageable enough risks.
Just like if one wants to in the mid-term recover certain technologies more quickly, you'll need various bits of information from the old world, who had already invented it before.
Mandemon
Gentlemen, I love brawl.
- Location
- Cookie Jar
Closest are in Norway and Russia. Neither which are really accessible to us.
This I can agree with, but we don't need to store Encyclopedia Britannica for it. We need goverment records. Which, incidentally, is the one thing we are doing, checking our emergency supply status.
Only ones we can really acquire are the cruise liners. Others are way too far to be !acquired" without launching a major expedition, at which point you need to ask that if we are really that desperate to get it...
Even my hometowns library had books about this and it was small library.
Rest of the stuff, I think other places might have different library standards but you can get pretty much all that you listed. Especially if you raid University Libraries.
As for knowing where survivors are: that is not something you can just look up. We need to see how many survive before we even can start to consider where survivors are. I expect breakdown in global communications very soon after the worst outbreak hits the world.
At the moment, but I'm not interested so much in the terminals themselves and rather their storage. After the fall they'll be unattended, and in mid winter they might not be to dangerous to approach.
How would you know which knowledge would be useful in 20 years time till you get there? Sure would suck if it turned out a simple encyclopaedia could have answered it, no?
Depends on how what you consider far I guess... a modern ship will travel really far. So with a cruise liner you could go to some ship grave areas to pick up abandoned ships.
As for why you'd know where some of those are? Well some of them can communicate via sat com, so you can learn where they gave up... assuming they didn't manage to reach one of the surviving enclaves that is.
It's just an example of something, there are many many many more one could think of. And it's highly likely the local library does not have answers to all of them.
Sure, but quite a bit will probably be in English. But universities tend to have quite a bit, that is their goal in life after all. But they don't have everything and certain resources aren't much good for anything but creating more informational records. So as such... I'm not sure why you're against storing what you can.
What do you lose from doing so?
Especially as I'm clearly not advocating just storing whatever everything. Clearly there is a priority list. But why not work down that list for how ever far you can manage? What else are you going to use archivists at universities and libraries for otherwise anyway? Do you think they'll have other uses in the near future then storing more information?
Well except you can look it up to an extent. Iridium network still up due to them handing control off to you? You can keep calling anyone alive and with a sat phone for years to come.
Managed to convince the USA or Russia to give you partial control of a spy sat, because you know... they're dead anyway. Now you can even spy on possible locations.
Or how about getting your hands on a nuclear powered ship? They're a number out there on the open ocean, there always are after all. And clearly they won't be docking up now... wonder where they'll go. Who do you think can make the best offer? (Well Iceland probably, but hey, why give up right from the start?)
------
We're basically at the moment at a point where there are many many options. Some are hard to achieve, others not so... But many of them require one to atleast 'try' to grab the opportunity while it still exists. I see no reason to surrender more built up resources from the soon to be greatest golden age of humanity then need be. Or atleast to know where to get those resources when we need it in our restarting industry.
Still, I hope it's clear I'm not as such suggesting doing things with out limit. I'm just saying... lets see how much we can get.
Prologue: Turn 1 resolution
Baughn
Healing-type writer
- Location
- Dublin
//Anne Toivakka
//Year 0, Late Fall
//Weather forecast: Balmy, with occasional showers
//Capitol Status: Nominal
//Population: 5,819,000 (est.)
//Mood meter: Tense
//Resources: 22,100
//Base income: +1,200 Resources/Year
//Food situation: Plentiful
//Civic situation: Crime minimal, Unrest minimal
//Political power: 35 shares
//Rash meter: No known infections
//Turn 1
// "Mom, if you aren't worried, then why am I still at home?" -Anu
It's been a week since the emergency committee was officially formed, with you at the head. You've thrown most of that time into learning.
Just a week. But a week ago, you thought the Rash was a step-stone for your political career. It still is, of course, but if you aren't very careful then it might also be the end of it, along with your life. The end of Finland. The end of your children. That's in decreasing order of acceptability.
It's probably too late for western civilisation already, but hope springs eternal. If the scientists can figure out a cure sometime in the next couple of months, then there's still a chance that the world will recover. If they can't… well, a disease like this will burn out rapidly, and whichever country is the least damaged will be set to take over the ashes. You never had any dreams of world conquest, but if anyone is going to do so it'll be Finland, and not your neighbour.
Or the Rash—you've started to capitalise it—might not be as deadly as everyone thinks. Sure, a lot of people have died, but it's not even a tithe of everyone who's infected yet.
You had nightmares about what it did to one of the Danish patients for days. First, for the poor woman herself. Then, imagining the same happening to Anu and Elias.
Two hours into the meeting, you examine the researcher's photograph carefully.
"It looks almost robotic," is your diagnosis, but he shakes his head.
"It's not. Trust me, we thought of that. Some sort of grey goo, or… green goo, I'm told the term is. It's one of the nightmare scenarios, and it was the first thought of a lot of people when we finally managed to isolate the pathogen. This is different. We're not sure what it is, and it tends to break our instruments."
"Your instruments?" You raise an eyebrow, trying not to show how shaken his explanations so far have left you. "I thought it only attacked humans. And mammals."
"Strictly speaking, that's all it does. But, well…"
Another picture.
"That's the tip of an electron microscope, after we used it to examine a high concentration of the pathogen. You'll note that it looks like it was dipped in acid.
The professor who did that examination was a friend of mine. Now, he has a grave marker. We have to be extremely careful when working with the stuff, because it's eaten through every material we've tried. We think that might also be the way it kills its victims, but we're not sure. For most of them there's no obvious cause of death—you'd have thought there would be haemorrhaging, but—no." He smiles tightly.
You pinch your nose, thinking.
"Anything we can do to help?"
"Thanks for the offer, but no. Everyone who has the ability, is already working. Unless you'd be willing to send some of your own people to the ECDC, so we can work more closely together?"
To Sweden, now?
You shake your head. That would be… "Politically infeasible" doesn't begin to describe it, when any explanation of why would need to start by explaining the real situation.
"Thought not. Give my regards to Tuula, will you?"
You promise to do so, before closing the connection. You have a lot to think about.
First, though, you go upstairs to give Anu and Elias a quick hug.
"Mom, the soldering iron is hot. Mom!"
You end up with a burnt spot on the carpet, but that's okay. You're sure Anu will just cover it up with some clothes.
"All right, so…" Lauri looks around uneasily. You nod at him to go ahead, because as useful as it sometimes is to have nervous subordinates, lately you've been starting to think that you'd much rather have capable ones. Present company included.
"The good news is, pretty much everything is right where it's supposed to be."
"In fact, one of my people came across references to an old series of bunkers, which were built in case of nuclear warfare. They were stocked with a large amount of food, machine tools and weapons… everything you'd want in case of apocalypse. A lot of it has broken down or rusted, but a lot of it still works."
Many of the emergency committee members seem uncertain of why he'd care, Tuula being a marked exception. Lauri draws a breath.
"I found it interesting, that's all. In terms of stockpiles, we have enough minerals for a couple of years, and the strategic oil reserve is full. There's all sorts of other things—you can look at my list if you want. Enough firearms for a million people or so, beyond what the military has already hoarded."
You take that revelation in stride. The military plan of Finland is, as it has been for decades, "Total defence." No cost is to be spared, no preparation is too excessive. That was the cost of living next to the Russian bear.
"Full for the moment, you mean."
"Right." Lauri nods. "I had it confirmed through my own channels. We have stockpiles enough for a year, so there's no reason to be alarmist, but the baltic pipeline system is shutting down in two days. Transneft is pulling its people out, and… I suppose the environmentalists will be thankful that they aren't leaving it on, until they hear why. The Russians are filling Lake Ilmen with oil."
You and Gustav share a moment of baffled incomprehension. You'll give him that, he's at least willing to show you when he finds something strange.
"Did you say they're filling Lake Ilmen?"
"That's what the rumours say. And Landsat does show significant earthworks in the area."
Well, that'll be a bitch to clean up, but it isn't your bitch.
On the one hand, you've gained a great deal of sympathy for what Tuula was trying to do, and you let her know that the first time you have a chance. On the other, you still aren't sure you'd be able to push through anything more extreme, and a failed attempt at quarantine would make everything harder. The difficulty you have in even pushing through gentle, optional measures make you think you should spend some time and educate everyone on what exactly you are facing.
On the still theoretical third hand, Tuula really outdoes herself. You suspect she's been taking amphetamines, but if there's a right time to do so then this is probably it.
So, um, it turns out that there were a lot of pre-made in-case-of-plague materials. And they're from the school of "duck and cover", which is to say that they're a little over the top, with graphic illustrations of what can happen if you fail to follow instructions. It works; it works well, since everyone was already a little on edge, but you'll have to work harder to keep morale up from now on.
Assuming that you want to. You think there may be distinct advantages to people being at least scared of something that, honestly, they should be absolutely terrified of.
In light of the fact that, er, Russia already closed their borders with you earlier this week, Sweden did so last week, and Norway—well, that's not so much a "border" as a "bog", but it's closed—there's no problem whatsoever with officially closing them from your end. It's not like very much was supposed to change; only, now you aren't letting ships dock anymore.
Yeah. That was the idea.
"Let me go over this again." You pace back and forth, trying to wrap your brain around what just happened. You have Gustav on the line, and for once he isn't his usual, supercilious self. His face is pale. Yours would be too, but you're the one who has to deal with this… this catastrophe. "Who gave the order to shoot?"
"That would be Lt. Lindberg. He's a fresh graduate, and apparently he mistook a firecracker for a gunshot."
You shake your head in bewilderment. "And so he opened fire on a passenger ship with three hundred people on board. That's… I don't have words. I trust he's awaiting court martial."
"Quarantined, actually."
"Ah. Right, and the passengers swam to land. Please tell me you've at least rounded up all of them."
"There are still… five unaccounted for. Of the remainder, twelve were already showing signs of the rash."
You pinch your nose. Hard.
There isn't time for lobbying, or meetings. You can order an immediate quarantine of the city—and Tuula will back you up—but it's going to cost you. It's going to cost you a lot.
[ ] Quarantine Rauma. (-5 political power)
[ ] Get at least a few more people on line. (Extra infection roll)
"And the reserves?" You bark the word at him. You'd like to think they aren't as horrible, but if this is the quality you've got to expect…
No. Deep breaths, Anne. Calm down. You'll get past this, you always have in the past.
Gustav is happy to change the subject.
"We sent out the first batch of letters three days ago, and they've started trickling in. It will take time to assimilate personnel into existing and new units but—call it perhaps another week until they're ready for duty." He looks straight into the camera, still visibly shaken, but recovering. "I had some doubts at first, but after what just happened… yes. We're probably going to need them."
Interlude (Quality Time - Anu & Elias) To Follow
//Year 0, Late Fall
//Weather forecast: Balmy, with occasional showers
//Capitol Status: Nominal
//Population: 5,819,000 (est.)
//Mood meter: Tense
//Resources: 22,100
//Base income: +1,200 Resources/Year
//Food situation: Plentiful
//Civic situation: Crime minimal, Unrest minimal
//Political power: 35 shares
//Rash meter: No known infections
//Turn 1
// "Mom, if you aren't worried, then why am I still at home?" -Anu
It's been a week since the emergency committee was officially formed, with you at the head. You've thrown most of that time into learning.
Rolled 70. Info is largely accurate.
Just a week. But a week ago, you thought the Rash was a step-stone for your political career. It still is, of course, but if you aren't very careful then it might also be the end of it, along with your life. The end of Finland. The end of your children. That's in decreasing order of acceptability.
It's probably too late for western civilisation already, but hope springs eternal. If the scientists can figure out a cure sometime in the next couple of months, then there's still a chance that the world will recover. If they can't… well, a disease like this will burn out rapidly, and whichever country is the least damaged will be set to take over the ashes. You never had any dreams of world conquest, but if anyone is going to do so it'll be Finland, and not your neighbour.
Or the Rash—you've started to capitalise it—might not be as deadly as everyone thinks. Sure, a lot of people have died, but it's not even a tithe of everyone who's infected yet.
You had nightmares about what it did to one of the Danish patients for days. First, for the poor woman herself. Then, imagining the same happening to Anu and Elias.
———
Two hours into the meeting, you examine the researcher's photograph carefully.
"It looks almost robotic," is your diagnosis, but he shakes his head.
"It's not. Trust me, we thought of that. Some sort of grey goo, or… green goo, I'm told the term is. It's one of the nightmare scenarios, and it was the first thought of a lot of people when we finally managed to isolate the pathogen. This is different. We're not sure what it is, and it tends to break our instruments."
"Your instruments?" You raise an eyebrow, trying not to show how shaken his explanations so far have left you. "I thought it only attacked humans. And mammals."
"Strictly speaking, that's all it does. But, well…"
Another picture.
"That's the tip of an electron microscope, after we used it to examine a high concentration of the pathogen. You'll note that it looks like it was dipped in acid.
The professor who did that examination was a friend of mine. Now, he has a grave marker. We have to be extremely careful when working with the stuff, because it's eaten through every material we've tried. We think that might also be the way it kills its victims, but we're not sure. For most of them there's no obvious cause of death—you'd have thought there would be haemorrhaging, but—no." He smiles tightly.
You pinch your nose, thinking.
"Anything we can do to help?"
"Thanks for the offer, but no. Everyone who has the ability, is already working. Unless you'd be willing to send some of your own people to the ECDC, so we can work more closely together?"
To Sweden, now?
You shake your head. That would be… "Politically infeasible" doesn't begin to describe it, when any explanation of why would need to start by explaining the real situation.
"Thought not. Give my regards to Tuula, will you?"
You promise to do so, before closing the connection. You have a lot to think about.
First, though, you go upstairs to give Anu and Elias a quick hug.
"Mom, the soldering iron is hot. Mom!"
You end up with a burnt spot on the carpet, but that's okay. You're sure Anu will just cover it up with some clothes.
— — —
"All right, so…" Lauri looks around uneasily. You nod at him to go ahead, because as useful as it sometimes is to have nervous subordinates, lately you've been starting to think that you'd much rather have capable ones. Present company included.
"The good news is, pretty much everything is right where it's supposed to be."
Rolled 18 + 35 = 53. Some confusion, but nobody really objects.
Rolled 93 + 30 (advanced first-world nation; low unrest) = 123. Extra resources found.
+500 resources in dispersed, apocalypse-proof bunkers.
Rolled 93 + 30 (advanced first-world nation; low unrest) = 123. Extra resources found.
+500 resources in dispersed, apocalypse-proof bunkers.
"In fact, one of my people came across references to an old series of bunkers, which were built in case of nuclear warfare. They were stocked with a large amount of food, machine tools and weapons… everything you'd want in case of apocalypse. A lot of it has broken down or rusted, but a lot of it still works."
Many of the emergency committee members seem uncertain of why he'd care, Tuula being a marked exception. Lauri draws a breath.
"I found it interesting, that's all. In terms of stockpiles, we have enough minerals for a couple of years, and the strategic oil reserve is full. There's all sorts of other things—you can look at my list if you want. Enough firearms for a million people or so, beyond what the military has already hoarded."
You take that revelation in stride. The military plan of Finland is, as it has been for decades, "Total defence." No cost is to be spared, no preparation is too excessive. That was the cost of living next to the Russian bear.
"Full for the moment, you mean."
"Right." Lauri nods. "I had it confirmed through my own channels. We have stockpiles enough for a year, so there's no reason to be alarmist, but the baltic pipeline system is shutting down in two days. Transneft is pulling its people out, and… I suppose the environmentalists will be thankful that they aren't leaving it on, until they hear why. The Russians are filling Lake Ilmen with oil."
You and Gustav share a moment of baffled incomprehension. You'll give him that, he's at least willing to show you when he finds something strange.
"Did you say they're filling Lake Ilmen?"
"That's what the rumours say. And Landsat does show significant earthworks in the area."
Well, that'll be a bitch to clean up, but it isn't your bitch.
— — —
On the one hand, you've gained a great deal of sympathy for what Tuula was trying to do, and you let her know that the first time you have a chance. On the other, you still aren't sure you'd be able to push through anything more extreme, and a failed attempt at quarantine would make everything harder. The difficulty you have in even pushing through gentle, optional measures make you think you should spend some time and educate everyone on what exactly you are facing.
On the still theoretical third hand, Tuula really outdoes herself. You suspect she's been taking amphetamines, but if there's a right time to do so then this is probably it.
Rolled 8 75 + 35 = 110.
Nobody likes the idea, at first, but Tuula shows off some pictures and you add a few choice expletives. In the end, the vote goes through by a landslide.
Rolled 60 + 30 (advanced first-world nation; low unrest) = 90.
The Finns, bless their souls, take you very seriously indeed. People still meet, but when you look through your window you see the streets nearly empty, and those who are still out are wearing protective masks.
Quarantine rolls now have a +20 bonus.
Mood meter drops to "Worried".
Nobody likes the idea, at first, but Tuula shows off some pictures and you add a few choice expletives. In the end, the vote goes through by a landslide.
Rolled 60 + 30 (advanced first-world nation; low unrest) = 90.
The Finns, bless their souls, take you very seriously indeed. People still meet, but when you look through your window you see the streets nearly empty, and those who are still out are wearing protective masks.
Quarantine rolls now have a +20 bonus.
Mood meter drops to "Worried".
So, um, it turns out that there were a lot of pre-made in-case-of-plague materials. And they're from the school of "duck and cover", which is to say that they're a little over the top, with graphic illustrations of what can happen if you fail to follow instructions. It works; it works well, since everyone was already a little on edge, but you'll have to work harder to keep morale up from now on.
Assuming that you want to. You think there may be distinct advantages to people being at least scared of something that, honestly, they should be absolutely terrified of.
— — —
In light of the fact that, er, Russia already closed their borders with you earlier this week, Sweden did so last week, and Norway—well, that's not so much a "border" as a "bog", but it's closed—there's no problem whatsoever with officially closing them from your end. It's not like very much was supposed to change; only, now you aren't letting ships dock anymore.
Yeah. That was the idea.
Rolled 95 + 35 = 130.
Borders closed. They even agreed to quarantine Finnish ships and nationals who are re-entering.
Rolled 10 + 30 (advanced first-world nation; low unrest) = 40.
A disaster occurs.
Borders closed. They even agreed to quarantine Finnish ships and nationals who are re-entering.
Rolled 10 + 30 (advanced first-world nation; low unrest) = 40.
A disaster occurs.
"Let me go over this again." You pace back and forth, trying to wrap your brain around what just happened. You have Gustav on the line, and for once he isn't his usual, supercilious self. His face is pale. Yours would be too, but you're the one who has to deal with this… this catastrophe. "Who gave the order to shoot?"
"That would be Lt. Lindberg. He's a fresh graduate, and apparently he mistook a firecracker for a gunshot."
You shake your head in bewilderment. "And so he opened fire on a passenger ship with three hundred people on board. That's… I don't have words. I trust he's awaiting court martial."
"Quarantined, actually."
"Ah. Right, and the passengers swam to land. Please tell me you've at least rounded up all of them."
Rolled 2 + 20 (self-quarantine) + 30 (advanced first-world nation; low unrest) = 52.
Failed.
Rauma is now infected.
Failed.
Rauma is now infected.
"There are still… five unaccounted for. Of the remainder, twelve were already showing signs of the rash."
You pinch your nose. Hard.
There isn't time for lobbying, or meetings. You can order an immediate quarantine of the city—and Tuula will back you up—but it's going to cost you. It's going to cost you a lot.
[ ] Quarantine Rauma. (-5 political power)
[ ] Get at least a few more people on line. (Extra infection roll)
"And the reserves?" You bark the word at him. You'd like to think they aren't as horrible, but if this is the quality you've got to expect…
No. Deep breaths, Anne. Calm down. You'll get past this, you always have in the past.
Gustav is happy to change the subject.
Rolled 74 + 35 = 109. "Sounds like a good idea."
Rolled 57 + 30 (advanced first-world nation; low unrest) = 87
370,000 reserves called up.
Rolled 57 + 30 (advanced first-world nation; low unrest) = 87
370,000 reserves called up.
"We sent out the first batch of letters three days ago, and they've started trickling in. It will take time to assimilate personnel into existing and new units but—call it perhaps another week until they're ready for duty." He looks straight into the camera, still visibly shaken, but recovering. "I had some doubts at first, but after what just happened… yes. We're probably going to need them."
Interlude (Quality Time - Anu & Elias) To Follow
Last edited:
well that could be a problem.
[X] Quarantine Rauma. (-5 political power)
and all of the picture go to about:blank
[X] Quarantine Rauma. (-5 political power)
and all of the picture go to about:blank