Sterbelicht - One Sacrifice At A Time Against The Galaxy (40K)
- Thread starter HeroCooky
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- Mature Sci-Fi
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- He/Him
Nah, I'm pretty sure that was for getting to Heavy Cruisers
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- He/Him
Don't forget about Battlecruisers. I thought they were the next step but apparently I was wrong and they come after Grand Cruisers.
Alectai
Speaks Words of Wisdom... On occasion
Battlecruisers are Heavy Cruisers with bigger guns, that's it. If we're actually splitting it though and unlock Battlecruisers at VI 12, Grand Cruisers at 14, and Battleships at 16, that's another story.
Holy shittttt, yah that can backfire badly if Nurgle gets a hold of it but a good way of showing how the Irrita fight back and why they only seeded it on the outgoing ships and not the stations.
Andddd that's canon, oh boy.
I would assume the Alliance is trying that since the breakaway nations are in the Oort Clouds and trying to pin down those pirates.
Haha, something about that made me laugh. both ends of the warp route enforced by each other.
Holy shit, yah. YAH, that is why the Navy there has so many boxes. Three fucking battleships in addition to that. Though I wonder WHY they are here and around? I get the craftworld moving and shit but it still makes me wonder.
Oh right, second hand information, I doubt we'll come to blows but still. Always good to have the info on hand.
and I agree with high command, We really don't have any way of winning that at all until we can make a Battleship of our own to even above double digits chances of winning.
Agreed.
and that is all, makes sense given how the Eldar have been and why it was so short.
alright, not surprised and seems on the lower end for ships but could be higher given they are on the end of another system that's so far away from bordering ours.
seems about right for ships and we don't have any info for the other stuff, so a non-factor for right now.
....OH, now that's different and explains WHY the main thing for them is screaming all the damn time. I think if we researched the Psytech scout equipment we could figure out in more detail but yah if they can do that it would explain why they can still be isolationist. Really hard to go through that and if you turn it off they just attack. It would an effective deterrent.
Oh, I don't really know the difference in fabric thinness and went for the way they use the terms in 40k. I remember it being terms and sounding the same. that does make more sense in describing it though. So fair, I think we'll just have to find out by singing it and using the effect. so another supression based one maybe? We need to grab some protection and combat songs before we hit Voxx but some of these might be worth to get as well, just a matter of which ones and how many AP we can spare to and when we can to grab them.
Deal! the Moth people will Rise and we will make a franchise off them! no take backs, Omake writers do your thing!
Yah, it would be hard to get it rolling and get the moth people to invest and continue down that tech tree. but damn i really like the worldbuilding and society building based on the wing's appearance pointing to what job they work. Love little bits like this and how it can build off itself.
Indeed. but we tend to forget about it or focus on other aspects, like the damn Yeeni Chunni names for the Military.
- Location
- Canada
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- He/Him
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- He/Him
So seeing how our education system is somewhat lacking, I think it would be nice to reach out to the Mashan to get help setting something up when we're able to spare an action. Might help us improve our ability to research, plus significantly less incidents when the populace is sufficiently educated.
Old post but I wanted to respond. I don't know if I agree the Null-Net is that much of a counter to our strikecraft, considering only took out a small fraction of our fleet even when it was a surprise. Depends if they can use it en masse or how frequently, or if it one shots a Leo. Our strike craft deal with Destroyers well but we don't have much of an answer for long-extreme range so counter-sniper is important.
As I've been trying some ship building recently, I thought I'd give my opinion on these ships, mainly the Felis. Hopefully its not rehashing old arguments. There is a caveat that this ship might not be necessary when we have so many fighters (840 per SBG) that tasking 10-20% of them to an anti-missile/torpedo role would be an easy solution.
Basically, I think Acceleration is the weakest hull stat since the the Felis will be staying at the shoulder of the front liners, and can be dropped to 5 Grav, the same as the Scorpio Light Cruiser. This gives +4 DP, either allowing you max out hull size or my preference, taking at least Harsh Crew Training. This is both because QM says crew training/experience makes them better at everything they do and Macro-cannon descriptions mention:
I'd also switch 1 Anti-voidcraft weapon to another L. Rot. Macro-cannon turret, as its leverages the other equipment better and its a big upgrade when taking 3 rotary guns with Auto-loaders giving 13.5 equivalent macro-cannons to 4 guns giving 18 equivalent macro-cannons. This is assuming Light Macro-cannons can target torpedoes and strikecraft so they are multipurpose, and where 2 anti-voidcraft could be excessive leading to 1 weapon slot being effectively unused most of the time. This would probably need to be battle tested in quest to get performance feedback on it and confirm.
Also I think there are better defensive choices than Armoured Lifepods, with Armoured Bridges and Emergency Maneuver Engines being 2 DP value choices that let more ships survive longer or in total rather than saving lives after the ship is destroyed. I do know its basically traditional for us to take though, its just Lifepods and Ship Shrines are pet peeves of mine that I think are low value.
My version would be something like this, although of course its all debateable without know a lot more of the behind the scenes numbers and values the QM is using.
[] Felis Flak Frigate (Shakey) [20DP]
-[] Length - 1.800 Meters (+2)
-[] Width - 450 Meters (+2)
-[] Acceleration - 5 Gravities (+4)
-[] Armor - Medium Double Hull (-1)
-[] Shields - Two Arrays
-[] Weapons - 1x Anti-Voidcraft Defenses/2x Light Rotary Macro-Cannon Batteries/2x Light Rotary Macro-Cannon Turret (-10)
-[] Equipment - Superior Gravimetric Engine Calculations/Lattice Hulls/Auto-Loaders/Snapshot Pinpoint Targeting Solutions/After-Burner Macro-Shells/Emergency Maneuver Engines/Veteran Crews/Armoured Bridges (-17)
So I think crew training will greatly help with overall accuracy and particularly at medium ranges combined with Snapshot Targeting and Afterburner Macro-shells.
I'd also switch 1 Anti-voidcraft weapon to another L. Rot. Macro-cannon turret, as its leverages the other equipment better and its a big upgrade when taking 3 rotary guns with Auto-loaders giving 13.5 equivalent macro-cannons to 4 guns giving 18 equivalent macro-cannons. This is assuming Light Macro-cannons can target torpedoes and strikecraft so they are multipurpose, and where 2 anti-voidcraft could be excessive leading to 1 weapon slot being effectively unused most of the time. This would probably need to be battle tested in quest to get performance feedback on it and confirm.
Also I think there are better defensive choices than Armoured Lifepods, with Armoured Bridges and Emergency Maneuver Engines being 2 DP value choices that let more ships survive longer or in total rather than saving lives after the ship is destroyed. I do know its basically traditional for us to take though, its just Lifepods and Ship Shrines are pet peeves of mine that I think are low value.
My version would be something like this, although of course its all debateable without know a lot more of the behind the scenes numbers and values the QM is using.
[] Felis Flak Frigate (Shakey) [20DP]
-[] Length - 1.800 Meters (+2)
-[] Width - 450 Meters (+2)
-[] Acceleration - 5 Gravities (+4)
-[] Armor - Medium Double Hull (-1)
-[] Shields - Two Arrays
-[] Weapons - 1x Anti-Voidcraft Defenses/2x Light Rotary Macro-Cannon Batteries/2x Light Rotary Macro-Cannon Turret (-10)
-[] Equipment - Superior Gravimetric Engine Calculations/Lattice Hulls/Auto-Loaders/Snapshot Pinpoint Targeting Solutions/After-Burner Macro-Shells/Emergency Maneuver Engines/Veteran Crews/Armoured Bridges (-17)
Other than switching out Armoured Lifepods/Ship Shrines for better choices, I don't see much to quibble about on your Crux-T and Corona. I made a Heavy Cruiser Lancer (here) similar to your Orion/Corona but I went for minmaxing the Heavy Prow Lances with crew and taking Emergency Transition War Breakers to escape or reposition from close enemies instead of investing as much in close range fighting/survivability. The Refractive Hull might not work as well as hoped to reduce enemy accuracy but I think its worth testing and could easily be switched out with Emergency Maneuver Engines/Armoured Bridges/+1 Shield. I prefer my version (obviously
) but its a much bigger ask to make a Heavy vs Light Cruiser.Aside:
@HeroCooky I realized I'm making an assumption that Veteran Crews is an upgrade from Harsh Crew Training, and that they don't stack with each other. Is that correct?
Kpatrol88
Cloud Hopper
Hey, thanks for the feedback on my ships. Now for the Felis, I took your suggestions into consideration and dropped one of the AVD's and swapped it for Harsh Crew Training to improve the ships' overall stats. As for speed, I'm not gonna budge on that as I wanted the Felis to also double as an 'interceptor' against destroyers. Now, 7 Gs is not going to catch a max speed destroyer, but it does give it a better chance of interdicting them before they can slip by our battle lines and give them a longer engagement envelope if it turns into a stern chase. In light of that I also swapped one of the light r-macro batteries for another turret, so it'll have better uptime in most situations.Old post but I wanted to respond. I don't know if I agree the Null-Net is that much of a counter to our strikecraft, considering only took out a small fraction of our fleet even when it was a surprise. Depends if they can use it en masse or how frequently, or if it one shots a Leo. Our strike craft deal with Destroyers well but we don't have much of an answer for long-extreme range so counter-sniper is important.
As I've been trying some ship building recently, I thought I'd give my opinion on these ships, mainly the Felis. Hopefully its not rehashing old arguments. There is a caveat that this ship might not be necessary when we have so many fighters (840 per SBG) that tasking 10-20% of them to an anti-missile/torpedo role would be an easy solution.
Basically, I think Acceleration is the weakest hull stat since the the Felis will be staying at the shoulder of the front liners, and can be dropped to 5 Grav, the same as the Scorpio Light Cruiser. This gives +4 DP, either allowing you max out hull size or my preference, taking at least Harsh Crew Training. This is both because QM says crew training/experience makes them better at everything they do and Macro-cannon descriptions mention:
So I think crew training will greatly help with overall accuracy and particularly at medium ranges combined with Snapshot Targeting and Afterburner Macro-shells.
I'd also switch 1 Anti-voidcraft weapon to another L. Rot. Macro-cannon turret, as its leverages the other equipment better and its a big upgrade when taking 3 rotary guns with Auto-loaders giving 13.5 equivalent macro-cannons to 4 guns giving 18 equivalent macro-cannons. This is assuming Light Macro-cannons can target torpedoes and strikecraft so they are multipurpose, and where 2 anti-voidcraft could be excessive leading to 1 weapon slot being effectively unused most of the time. This would probably need to be battle tested in quest to get performance feedback on it and confirm.
Also I think there are better defensive choices than Armoured Lifepods, with Armoured Bridges and Emergency Maneuver Engines being 2 DP value choices that let more ships survive longer or in total rather than saving lives after the ship is destroyed. I do know its basically traditional for us to take though, its just Lifepods and Ship Shrines are pet peeves of mine that I think are low value.
My version would be something like this, although of course its all debateable without know a lot more of the behind the scenes numbers and values the QM is using.
[] Felis Flak Frigate (Shakey) [20DP]
-[] Length - 1.800 Meters (+2)
-[] Width - 450 Meters (+2)
-[] Acceleration - 5 Gravities (+4)
-[] Armor - Medium Double Hull (-1)
-[] Shields - Two Arrays
-[] Weapons - 1x Anti-Voidcraft Defenses/2x Light Rotary Macro-Cannon Batteries/2x Light Rotary Macro-Cannon Turret (-10)
-[] Equipment - Superior Gravimetric Engine Calculations/Lattice Hulls/Auto-Loaders/Snapshot Pinpoint Targeting Solutions/After-Burner Macro-Shells/Emergency Maneuver Engines/Veteran Crews/Armoured Bridges (-17)
Other than switching out Armoured Lifepods/Ship Shrines for better choices, I don't see much to quibble about on your Crux-T and Corona. I made a Heavy Cruiser Lancer (here) similar to your Orion/Corona but I went for minmaxing the Heavy Prow Lances with crew and taking Emergency Transition War Breakers to escape or reposition from close enemies instead of investing as much in close range fighting/survivability. The Refractive Hull might not work as well as hoped to reduce enemy accuracy but I think its worth testing and could easily be switched out with Emergency Maneuver Engines/Armoured Bridges/+1 Shield. I prefer my version (obviously
Aside:
@HeroCooky I realized I'm making an assumption that Veteran Crews is an upgrade from Harsh Crew Training, and that they don't stack with each other. Is that correct?
[] Felis Flak Frigate (v1.3) [20DP]
-[] Length - 1.800 Meters (+2)
-[] Width - 450 Meters (+2)
-[] Acceleration - 7 Gravities
-[] Armor - Medium Double Hull (-1)
-[] Shields - Two Arrays
-[] Weapons - 1x Anti-Voidcraft Defenses/1x Light Rotary Macro-Cannon Batteries/2x Light Rotary Macro-Cannon Turrets (-8)
-[] Equipment - Armored Lifepods/Harsh Crew Training/Superior Gravimetric Engine Calculations/Lattice Hulls/Auto-Loaders/Snapshot Pinpoint Targeting Solutions/After-Burner Macro-Shells (-15)
As for the Corona, yeah I made it a light cruiser since it I envisioned there being at least 2 of them in each battlegroup so that they can easily apply their debuffs to priority targets, then assist the Sagi's in picking off targets of opportunity. Honestly, the damage is a bonus to the shield debuffs it'll provide. Also, I think that the relatively smaller lances will have a slightly faster refire rate than going full big-boy max-sized lances. You only really need those if you're trying to crack orbital defenses.
As an aside I've updated my post that has all of my designs again to reflect the current revisions.
I see our strikecraft as already having that anti-destroyer role, I think QM said somewhere that 1 bomber flight can take out a destroyer in one attack run but that might be outdated. In my opinion the flak ship would be a specialist so I want to double down on the dakka and sitting around next to the front line but I can see where you're coming from.
For long distance snipers I think using the Heavy Lance also solves the fleet issue of lacking a big alpha strike or at least a big instant/guaranteed alpha strike, while the Sagi-S's provide massed lance fire. Being able to have twice as many Rad-Lances on the field with Light Cruiser production rates is definitely a point in its favour though.
Que the Imperium confused over how this hasn't resulted in armed rebellions and such and how can decentralized built up worlds can work... okay maybe that's too harsh on the Imperium but still they way they go about things can be dumb at times.
I think we might be able to do something with this, include another program to train certain marksmen or the like. Could be other areas as well... Hey questers, you know the joke of 'if you need a problem solved, just it to the marines or rednecks and they'll figure it out in a cheap, dumb, fun, and/or efficient way?' wait not hold a contest for something to boost our forces or get some new designs. I'm sure the frontliners would have so thoughts on what should have been included in the designs or something.
Point is to use our way of things to outsource or ask the people to help or improve upon things.
I do agree with upping the education options and systems. I think our current one is resulting in highschool level? I'd like to have some other programs for doctorates and the like. I do think it would result in more research things or it helps if we can outsource it to a society that is educated to that degree.
But yah, I do think we should be thinking outside the box on things and doing write in's more. So, far upgrading and rehauling the education system and building the infrastructure for it, maybe making a sniper's school or something that included Knights and Artillery if they can make the accurate hit, or some other special school meant to train a specialist or the like.
Hey its us!
huh so this is what it looks like from the outside and yah we do just rely on the ISC's if the need arises but weird since all the other Dssoiers show the state owned merchant fleet... except the Black Ash Clan. I think it was. and Nice the three ISC's got a shout out and how it just looks like these look from the outside. I bet the Federation post would have throw people for a loop and something like 'the Postal Service always survives'. or is always around.
Oh right that was how our ships looked. honestly forgot about it a while back since I think I was catching up on how they all looked. always interesting described like this and an outside view looking in here. so the half-sphere are the cargo pods.
Nice, lovely little quirk of the wings and how they are locatedd on there. And the note of coloration on them. As well as the grouping our of military vessels.
Yah, it really does depend on how the vote goes and how the update on it is since it varies wildly on how many ships we can do but fun how it is viewed in-quest and how the automation production that... really makes me die on the inside with how the 3 scouts made every 10 years and how bad that sounds. It helps that when fully behind it we can make nearly an entire SBG in a decade. the Heavy Cruisers, Carriers, and Light cruisers all done in a decade is great and looks impressive.
Given the other sizes of the ships I'd say we're around the same sizes for others on how big the classes tend to get. And the Grand Cruisers based on the Lamenter's one. Love to see it. just need around 20 turns for things to settle down and us to get to Void 15.... I mean we can if we build the Stations and I hope that remains as an option Post-Voxx resettlement.
Yahhhhh, that is a big thing and I do get it being our doctrine and sticking to it. I do think we should include some more Macro Cannons or Lances into our ships instead of mono-focusing. Please Note I don't do the ship designs and this is more just a look from the bench looking at the spread sheet a while back on damage types of our ships and looking at this dossier, I do think we should try to include so Macro Cannons or lances. Just to have options and rely on more then just missile spam.
After that though, HAH I love tht note of the the Thules and mentions of their skill being that of the median Space Marine Pilots. How would 40k fans react to that in the Lore? and how other Imperium remeant factions view that? both of the average skill and that its from cloning.
Oh nice to see the constant 'requirements' of the ship shrines, armored life pods, and such being explained as the reason for higher than median crew skill level and morale in the ship and does show a more focus on towing away as hulks, rescuing crew, and regrouping for another fighter later on. How common or rare is that in 40k?
Huh, right it is like that. QoL being close to that of a Pleasure World that is reflected in stuff like low housing costs and investments into public support programs and Structure.
Yahhhh, given how it needs true belief in the religion to work, we basically are a Theocracy. And a good level of structure of governement from local to sector councils with a chosen by peers. And love the little bit of the Iconoclasts as the yet-unborn deity.
Oh right, we did do legalized drugs. well to keep a level on things and to regulate them. Hmmm, it is fine to just do it through the church and faith orders for the social programs? like it provides a rapport to the community and gets them engaged?
HAH mandatory gun ownership, love that and it does help with everyone getting a idea of how it handles and some familiarity. it does help ease people into it and gives them some experience and floor level to build off of. I want to know which system allows for ownership of a personal tank or APC, or just las-cannons and the like.
I do like the 'its okay not to believe in the Star child... just don't believe in any gods then. Wonder how this would look to the fans and other factions in the 40k-verse. Also do we have to worry about any system going too far in some of those laws and need a write-in action just to audit the federation and review and second look any laws and such?
Gotta love the naming scheme, you know any who learn about the faction for the first time is expecting a very evil organization or some shit. Also dropped some lore of past updates with the Order of the Nurenor Roses or the Aetherical Cog.
yahhhhh, we are the exception in that we live with and don't kill on sight, any Xenos we come across. I do love how the system of categories we have are explained here. Wonder how this would be viewed in the community and how they would view the Kil' drabi and Yeeni. And how the Tau players would seethe/be made of for having more Xenos mini's then them.
How long do they live for again? and right those names/titles. Forgot how that went.
I do like how its noted that aspect of their culture centered on the battlecolonies due to the integration. and the older generation gripping about it changing from them being the symbols of their people to a symbols of the nation. I mean, when its needed we'll build it but for now frigates are more useful... How many of them live in a Battlecolony again?
Right those are the names for the Yeeni but then have the most Chunni ass names with the Military. Yah the Yeeni are the energetic bright eyed newbie joining us. Have they asked or thought more about colonies for them? or are they mostly content with how things are right now? LOL the Ogryns being good boys and loving the little fuzz balls. And is the extra 7 percent from human women coming from the Thrules or just women in general? and its the fur, the fuzz is comfortable.
Also I want to ask how did the Thrules come into existence again? like how did we end up with them?
Eyyyyyy, nice to see them get mentioned here. This is going to be akward if news ever somehow makes it back to Terra and the Actual Lamenters Space Marine Chapter. And honestly great lore right and a book in of itself how how Chyron managed to pull this off. and yah, with nearly One Thousand years of supporting them, some being all they know, and the state of the rest of the Imperial Remnants... It shouldn't be surprising but it still is how the Lamenters would refuse orders from the Imperium to turn on us. Its touching and warmhearting.
Also looking at the rooster. Still missing Librarians and dreadnughts still, just a reminder. and its full roster..... something bad is going to happen, I just know it. How are the Lamenters feeling about it? or is it just Chyron worrying about when the shoe will drop?
hmmm, combated based on urgency of Federation members? does that mean based on if there action guys up or based on how the various members of the Federations view corruption as a problem to fix?
and yah that sums up things. Main focus to destroy chaos wherever it pops up, increasing Societal Cohesion to make sure this whole thing stays together, and everyone gets along, and recently the Anti-Dutchy propaganda in preparation for the war.
Actually thinking about this isn't this a waste of actions for us since we can produce our scout sloops for half the price of any other destroyer? So if we had a full complement of scouts we'd get auto produced destroyers instead of sloops meaning twice the Fleet Point value.
Enerael
We Shall Wake to Sanity
We should refit the Battlecolonies and Word of the Writ frigates now that they surrendered all their shipbuilding to us.
The frigates should be plasma macrobattery boats for versatile anti-escort work, we need that niche especialy against the Duchy.
Battlecolonies we have little need to build more of I feel, outside of maintaining one per SBG. We dont send out long range missions despite our doctrine.
The frigates should be plasma macrobattery boats for versatile anti-escort work, we need that niche especialy against the Duchy.
Battlecolonies we have little need to build more of I feel, outside of maintaining one per SBG. We dont send out long range missions despite our doctrine.
HeroCooky
Unverified Monstergirl
Yep, forgot that.
No. They can't.
They are different tracks of the same effects. Make Crew Gooder.ShakeyDog said:
"Cringe/Based/Stupid."
Basically non-existent.Weaving_Dreamer said:
Kriegar does.Weaving_Dreamer said:
"Cringe/Based/Stupid/We Should Have That IRL/There's The Grim Dark!/Etc."Weaving_Dreamer said:
Depends on what you view as "too far."Weaving_Dreamer said:
Cringe Furries/Utterly Based/Stupid And Wouldn't Work In Lore/Finally!/Etc."Weaving_Dreamer said:
And they'd cope and seethe.
Species tab.Weaving_Dreamer said:
Between 1 and 1 mil.Weaving_Dreamer said:
No, they are perfectly happy with their planets and, thanks to being Kin, can settle on other worlds.Weaving_Dreamer said:
In general.Weaving_Dreamer said:
You were a majority clone population in the beginning, did strike craft, realized that the Thule gene line was very effective at being pilots, invested an Action, and then continued along that path.Weaving_Dreamer said:
The latter.Weaving_Dreamer said:
I mean, you already can for the Words of the Writ?
Also, they are plasma based.
Ohhhh thats interesting. Follow up question - I noticed our SAGs in combat are gaining x/5 veterancy, do our ships also do the same thing and can develop Veteran/Elite Crews naturally?
HeroCooky
Unverified Monstergirl
No, SAGs have a Veterancy system to allow them to become far more useful in planetary battles. A Veteran SAG is five times as effective as a on-Veteran one. The downside is that a SAG needs to survive five battles/War Turns to become one.
HeroCooky
Unverified Monstergirl
Yes. If a Yeeni wants to explore the cosmos, they join New Daw.
Age Of Heroes - The Siege of Andong - [Canon]
- Pronouns
- They/Them
The Siege of Andong
Dust fell onto the assembled warriors, in tune with the pounding on the gate, coating their simple bronze armor under a thin layer of the stuff . Outside the gate, the enemy must surely be celebrating their coming victory. They had held out against the Hwan Empire for five weeks, far longer than anyone else had dared hoped for given the staggering odds. And the only reason they had held so long was because of her.
Nanaia. The Lightning Karakurou.* Vessel of the Divine* for the creation of the Naginata.
When all had seemed lost on that first day, when their messengers to the other members of the League of Seirei had not returned, it was Nanaia who had stood upon the city's walls. Spitting defiance towards the Hwan warriors, she had stood strong amongst the hail of their arrows, all missing her form by the intervention of the Divine. She had shown the strength and vigor of a Mothome half her age, filling Jun'ichi and the rest of the Andong defenders with the courage needed to fight on for their freedom.
Armed with Nanaia's Naginatas, they held on to the city's walls for three-and-a-half weeks. Pushing back wave after wave of Hwan warriors, until he stepped forward.
Dae-Jung. The Black Baetabaem.* Vessel of the Divine for the creation of the Chalgap armor.
For three days did Nanaia and Dae-Jung fight, while the battle for the walls raged all around them. Nanaia's Naginata gave her superior reach, but Dae-Jung's Chalgap gave him superior protection. It was a seemingly even match but, eventually, the scales of fate always tip to one side's favor. For Nanaia relied on speed and agility to get the most out of her Naginata. And though Divine-inspired she was, the tempo of her fighting style could not last forever. At dusk on the third day, Dae-Jung finally slipped past the distance Nanaia had kept him. With a swift but mighty stroke, he landed a blow upon her upper left wing, drawing first blood from their three-day duel.
And by the ancient commands laid down by Vanna Botum,* their duel ended and the city's walls given over to the Hwan. A somber mood fell over the defenders of Andong, as they retreated in orderly columns to the Sanctuary at Mount Baekdu on the shores of the river the city was named for. By the same commands recited by ancient Vanna Botum, the victorious attackers guaranteed a week's respite for the defenders, a week that Namaia spent in solitary meditation.
"The Divine have surely abandoned Andong."
"You saw how he stood against the Lightning Karakurou, the Black Baetabaem will slaughter us all."
"We showed our strength for the Honored Ancestors during the battle for the walls, there is no shame in surrendering with our heads held high."
"Surely life under the Hwan can't be as bad as the stories say."
These and more were the rumors that circled amongst the warriors of Andong as they waited with bated breath this last week. As the final day of the mandated ceasefire came to a close, did the pounding of the Sanctuary's gate begin. For two days and nights did Hwan pound at the gate, each hour bringing a new subtle, but noticeable, crack amongst the ancient wood. It was as the mood of the defenders reached its lowest point, did Namaia finally descend from the summit of Mount Baekdu.
"Free People of Andong!" Namaia shouted above the dim of the crowd as she moved through the ranks, all assembled immediately quieting as they learned who was speaking. "Why do you allow yourselves to fall into such melancholy, my Free People." The boom of another pound against the gate reverberated through the air. "Are you not proud of who you are and what you have achieved, my Free People." Clouds of dust fell amongst the crowd from another pound against the gate. "Would not the Honored Ancestors wish you to claim victory from tyranny, my Free People." A creak split the air as a new crack broke upon the door, deeper than those before, from another pound against the gate. "Would they not want you to fight to the end with sword, shield, Naginata, and claw against those who would enslave you, my Free People." A cheer erupted from outside as the gate buckled inward ever so slightly from another pound against the gate. "Is death as a Free Mothome not better than life as a slave."
The gathered warriors paid no heed to the happenings around them, their gazes transfixed and minds enthralled by Namaia and her words. It was only once she had reached the gate itself, did all those assembled realized what Namaia had done.
The Lightning Karakurou had completely removed the wing bloodied by the Black Baetabaem. The Pithi Boran,* the sacred sign of Hang Phuong* and the Order of the Anapyabal.* All those assembled knew what this meant, and viewed Namaia with even more reverence and respect than they had before (if such a thing were possible for a Vessel of the Divine). She stood tall, unbent from the pressures piled upon herself or by those looking to her for salvation.
"Stand with me, my Free People," she said after a moment's pause to let the defenders see her for who she is. "Stand and fight for your freedom against the tyranny and slavery of the despot Hwan Jun Moon. Defend this sacred ground with me against all those who would seek to bring the world under their heel."
As she spoke these last sentences, ringing began to echo through the hall as slowly, one after another, the assembled defenders began to beat their wings against their bronze armor. Their faces set with determination to face whatever may come through the gate before them. With Namaia at the front to slow the tide, Naginata in hand, the defenders of Andong waited for the final blows to come against the gate doors.
The scale of fate, it would seem, would have other plans for Andong. For suddenly the pounding against the gate, that rhythmic constant over the last few days, had stopped. The gate remained intact, albeit crisscrossed with cracks and buckled inward at the point of impact from the pounding outside. With bated breath did the defenders wait for any sound or movement from the outside, wary of any possible tricks from the enemy.
After what felt like hours for the defenders, but mere minutes for Namaia, a new pounding came upon the gate, though different from the first. Where the first was slow and rhythmic and had a certain 'oomph' to it, this new one was short, fast, and with the dull thud you would expect from one simply 'knocking' to get your attention.
And while the front ranks of the defenders stood their ground, unwilling to move even an inch, Namaia strode forward with the confidence of someone performing almost a mundane task. Throwing open the gate without any sort of flair or hesitation, she was greeted by a single, smiling Mothome.
"Hellooooo there Andonngggg," the Mothome yelled through the open gate, "your salvation is at hand!"
"Linh Tran,*" Namaia stated deadpan, "you're late."
"Gasp," Linh exclaimed without an actual gasp. "You can't expect us to head out as soon as your messengers arrived! The beasties here only move so fast!" At this she gestured wildly to the side, where a large, shaggy Lon Con Luoi* peaked its head into view before bellowing a deep rumble halfway between a growl and a burp.
"Don't pass the blame onto the honored Lon Con Luoi. They move twice as fast as a Mothome moving by feet, and nearly three times as fast as you Linh Tran. You've grown too lazy since you brought them to us."
"Why must you use words to hurt me so Namii," Linh mimicked a cry before swiftly returning to her original flamboyance. "But enough of this! The League's forces have pushed the bastard Hwan's slaves out of the city, but there is still more fighting to do!"
And with that she quickly somersaulted onto the back of her Lon Con Luoi, drawing a Naginata from a scabbard on the beast's saddle. "Come Namii! Come brave defenders! Let us drive the Hwan back to where they came!" Without looking back at the unimpressed face of Namaia or the awestruck faces of the city's defender, Lihn pushed her steed into a gallop towards the sound of battle.
"Well my Free People," Namaia called, breaking the defenders from their stupor. "It looks like fate has smiled upon Andong once again. Let us seize the day and show the rest of the League of Seirei the strength of wings!"
And with a yell did the city's defenders follow their Lightning Karakurou back out to battle once more.
~~~~~
*Karakurou - an ancient predator of the Mothomes that terrorized and hunted them at night when the Mothomes still had the gift of flight, as told by their oral histories. Combined the Japanese words for owl and crow. Mostly resembles an owl, but has the head, coloration, and 'caw' of a crow.
*Vessel of the Divine - living legends amongst the Mothomes, who have received "divine inspiration" from their deities to push forward the advancement of their cultures, cities, societies, and now Leagues, Empires, and Kingdoms. This advancement can take the form of various inventions/creations, or great achievements of significant value to society. Not only blessed with the knowledge to push forward Mothome civilization, Vessels are extremely long-lived (when compared with the "short" lifespans of the average Mothone).
*Baetabaem - another ancient predator of the Mothomes, this is one that would slip into nests to devour Mothome egg clusters during the day, as told by their oral histories. Combined the Korean words for bat and lizard, the perfect blend of both into a silent hunter.
*Vanna Botum - revered as the first Vessel of the Divine, though several "heresies" exist that either dispute her existence or believe that there were others before her. She is attributed with cementing Ancestor Worship amongst all the Mothomes, creating their written language, establishing several holy sites, and a host of other achievements in her time.
*Pithi Boran - the act of willingly removing a part or all of one's wing(s), symbolically tying that Mothome to a life on the ground forever (even though it has been millennia since any Mothome was last able to fly). Individuals that perform the Pithi Boran are viewed as dedicating their lives to protecting their cities and their future. When a Vessel of the Divine does so, they are viewed as dedicating the totality of their lives to the betterment of all Mothomes, not just those of their locality.
*Hang Phuong - another Vessel of the Divine, seen as either of the same generation as Vanna Botum or one slightly after her. Attributed with several achievements, but chief amongst them is founding the Order of the Anapyabal.
*Order of the Anapyabal - quasi-religious order dedicated to protecting the nurseries of a city, watching over the eggs and larvae as they grow and develop into adult Mothome.
*Lihn Tran - Vessel of the Divine for the taming of the Lon Con Luoi and designing of their saddles and war gear.
*Lon Con Luoi - formerly wild beasts of the plains and forests that were tamed enmass by Lihn Tran as both beasts of burden and war steeds. Vietnamese words for what I hope literally translate as 'large sloth.' They are giant sloths, no different from prehistoric giant sloths on earth. Though the 'giant' is relative to the Mothomes size.
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Phew. Okay! I've had this idea for a while now, but the recent discussion in the thread regarding the Mothomes finally pushed me into the action to start writing. Thankfully work was pretty chill for me, so I spent most of my shift actually writing this. This is the first omake I've ever written for a quest, and I hope you all enjoy! Not as long as I was originally hoping for, but I had a lot of fun writing it.
Obviously I took a lot of inspiration from IRL East Asian cultures, specifically Japanese, Korean, Khmer, and Vietnamese. I hope I didn't butcher any of the translations too terribly from what I wanted. In my mind, the "Vessels of the Divine" are semi-latent psykers that are being shielded by their gods in the warp (non-chaos) and given insight into useful tools and ideas for the Mothomes. But I defer to Cooky for what they envision for our smol Moth peeps.
As an aside, I threw in the Mothomes domesticating giant sloths both because I love the mental image, but also because their are some moth species IRL that have a symbiotic relationship with sloths.
Anyways it is time that I sleep, I stayed up a bit to get this finished, and I have another work shift tonight that I'm sure won't be nearly as chill. Night ya'll!
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- Pronouns
- Zack
Out of curiosity, what are the biomes that the planet has?Love it, canon!
Oh, and @Neablis, you can still write yours. The planet is big enough for two cultures and Omake Writers to exist.
HeroCooky
Unverified Monstergirl
Something Something Humid Continental Something Something.
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