What follows is a report on the current distribution of HSWS forces and the planned distribution based on the expected future construction planned for by the Service. Please note that several of these stations are under strength of ill equipped based on current forces available.
Home Fleet - Vice-Admiral Isa Burakgazi
Arguably the most prestigious posting available to the HSWS, the Home Fleet should always consists of:
- One CFA, acting flagship
- Two ICbIII
- Four FFE (various models)
Expeditionary Flotilla - Vice-Admiral Matxalen Gebara
The 'Rapid Response Force' of the HSWS, it is from this force that any reaction ships are initially drawn. It is intended to consist of:
- One CFA, acting flagship
- Two ICbIII
- Four FFE (various models)
- One FFS
Heimdall Station - Vice-Admiral Belinay Celik
The most distant permanent posting currently maintained by the HSWS, it consists of:
- One CFA, acting flagship
- Two ICbIII
Cassalon Station - Vice-Admiral Anisa Mendoza
A safeguard posting, intended to defend Cassalon against aggressors and give Home plenty of warning of trouble brewing on the surface. It consists of:
- One CFA, acting flagship
- Two ICbIII
Scout Flotilla - Vice Admiral Amir Adabayo
The Interstellar Explorers, highly regarded by the rest of the fleet for being the first into danger, the first into new systems. It consists of:
- Two ISbII
- Two DSS
- One FFS
[X] OPLAN: High Ground
-[X] We should conduct research into the deaths and attempt to collate evidence of crimes; "encourage" a general ceasefire until our investigation is complete to avoid additional massacres on either side. Work with both sides to at least establish "no-fire" zones for refugees.
-[X] Request the Technocrats recover the downed shuttle and return it.
-[X] We should come to an agreement and expect our allies to ratify it!
[X] OPLAN Guardian Eye
-[X] We should conduct research into the deaths and attempt to collate evidence of crimes.
-[X] Force an FLF landing to recover casualties and equipment.
-[X] We should come to an agreement and expect our allies to ratify it!
[X] Other - We should hold a conference for those within our sphere of Influence to send delegates to. Of course Home shall send the most delegates but this matter must be something all have worked upon if it is to hold water.
[X] Plan Take No Sides
-[X] We should conduct research into the deaths and attempt to collate evidence of crimes.
-[X] Force an FLF landing to recover casualties and equipment.
-[X] Tri-partite conference regarding Rules of War should be conducted after the war in Xyri is over.
What is the HSWS position on potential Republican crimes? We should conduct research into the deaths and attempt to collate evidence of crimes. What is the HSWS position on the downed Shuttle? Force an FLF landing to recover casualties and equipment. What is the HSWS position on this? We should come to an agreement and expect our allies to ratify it!
12y02m02w - Frigate Ogun arrives in Home, bringing news, information, and requests. Significant debates begin about how to respond to the position we have been put in by various parties involved. The Citizens Council generally considers this to be an ideal opportunity to simply drop rocks and sweep in to dispense a new kind of radical justice: ours. However, when it is pointed out that it would currently take us two months to put a company on the surface of Xyri, they wash their hands of it and leave it in the hands of the HSWS.
It is pointed out that with a war-load of ortillery missiles the HSWS could potentially conduct a series of targeted strikes to ruin or destroy the combatant units of every fighting force bar the Aslan mercenaries with whom we have no argument. A counter-point is made that we can enforce a ceasefire without the need to actually fire a weapon. A further argument is presented that it isn't actually our place to end this war, that the locals have a right to fight their little internecine conflict and that we are already protecting the things we care about.
It is this last point that quiets the others. The HSWS doesn't need to be involved in this war any more than it already is, maintaining a protective boundary and ensuring the war remains conventional at worst. The eventual decision is to send an investigative team to the surface, to look into reports of mass murder and executions, as well as to deploy marines to the surface to recover our shuttle.
Meanwhile, the situation in Xyri does not pause simply because debates are raging in Home. The lines never become static - there are not enough troops involved for that to be the case. There are only a few thousand frontline combatants on either side of the conflict and they both have come to terms with a kind of hit-and-run manoeuvre warfare that leaves the great plains of Xyri littered with the burning hulks of combat vehicles. Mining stations are raided, townships are assaulted, industrial suburbs are shelled. Every time a wing of grav-fighters sweeps across the battlefield the air becomes thick with SAM fires, radars and lidars trying to get hard locks on the oddly cold, strangely manoeuvring craft.
-
12y02m03w - Seven weeks into the conflict - five since the HSWS flotilla was on station - the HSWS force is finally approached by the Xyri space forces. A collection of missile carriers and fast response vehicles, they gather near the closest gas giant and begin a slow, circuitous path to drop into Xyri-propers orbits. Requests to communicate are met with stonewalling until the small force is on their deceleration burn, HSWS frigates already on an intercept course with locks established against the small craft.
They explain that if the HSWS forces are not going to enact a ceasefire, they will, and they begin broadcasting a call for a general pause of the conflict across all channels. Beaming it directly down onto the planet will surely fry some receivers, but enough will hear it to know it's backed up by force of arms. Dictatorship and Republican forces both order the small fleet to join one side or another, and the Xyrian fleet responds by dropping a missile on each sides forward headquarters, just close enough to let them know they mean business. Information is transmitted detailing the presence of nuclear warheads aboard the small fleet and a willingness to use them.
What follows is a recording of a conversation between Colonel Chey (CO HSWS Task Force) and Force Commander Villeneuve (CO Xyrian Combined Fleet): "I recognise your desire for a ceasefire, but our orders are to specifically deny the use of non-conventional weaponry in the battlespace."
"It's too late for that, son. You've seen the same reports we have , they have some kind of nuclear gun down there."
"Yes, the 'Plasma Gun'. It's a conventional weapon-
"Conventional shit, it kicks out a cloud of rads the size of my engine plume. I'm not about to let my planet get irradiated over some idiots dream of conquest."
"So you'll drop nukes? That seems counter-intuitive."
"The dust plume from a ground penetrator is minimal. If I have to put a sinkhole where there used to be a command bunker to end this war, so be it."
"I can't let you do that."
"You gonna order your ships to fire on mine? You have the tonnage, the guns. You could stop me any time. Are you going to, son?"
"I have my ROE, Commander. Don't test me."
-
12y03m00w - A convoy is detected approaching the site of the downed shuttle. Working back along their path of travel indicates it is a technocrat convoy. Attempts to make contact by orbital forces go unanswered. Multiple directives are ignored. Eventually the order is given and the frigate Alaz drops three disarmed missiles in the path of the convoy. Each impacts with the force of about forty kilograms of explosives, a few hundred metres in front of the lead vehicles. The convoy halts, waits for some time, and then turns around and goes back the way it came. Alaz reports no evidence that any elements of the convoy have split off or remained undetected.
HSLS Bá Kim arrives in system, escorted by two Frigates. She carries aboard her sixty-five souls, far more than her design-load of forty. This includes significant numbers of MIC representatives, a second full platoon of FLF rangers and a dedicated diplomatic team to relieve the embassy staff that have been bunkered down on the surface for the past two months. The ship is under crewed, and her biosphere and oxygen generators have been taxed to the maximum in the ten days of travel, but despite uncomfortable conditions those sixty-five souls have made it safe and sound to Xyri.
The HSWS task force on station finally leaps into action, now that they have new orders from Home. A shuttle plunges into the atmosphere, firing off decoys and chaff, screaming down in the best approximation of a hot drop that the pilots can manage. They hit the crash site like a rocket, forty-five FLF infantry spreading out around the site, covering for their medics and recovery personnel. What they find is... grim.
Of the eight personnel who went down on the shuttle three weeks previously, there are two survivors. Only two died in the crash, the other four passed away in the intervening weeks due to injuries sustained during the crash. Medical reports detail how easily they could have been saved had action been taken sooner. Of course, both the Dictatorship and the Republicans protest against this breach of their air space, and suggest that if the local forces would like to get involved, they can do so for one side or another.
The war does at least slow. Probing attacks between forces become the main thrust of the fighting, nobody willing to take action that might draw the ire of the orbiting Xyrian space forces. They have yet to do anything that would force intervention by the HSWS Task Force, but everyone is clinging to the edge of their seats every time a missile is fired or a tank goes on patrol.
-
The investigation into mass deaths is ongoing. Our forces remain in orbit, with regular resupply and rotations for every ship except the MMV being established. The Xyrian forces have become a normal part of the sensor ops day, seeing them separate but nonetheless station keeping with the HSWS forces. The question for the HSWS at home regards the rules of war previously discussed. Several questions must be asked:
The rules of war must include provisions regards (select as many as you would like):
[ ] The usage of nuclear weapons - when it is allowed and when it is not
[ ] The usage of chemical weapons - when it is allowed and when it is not
[ ] The usage of orbit to surface weapons - what is considered a valid use and what is not
[ ] The usage of weapons against domed cities where is cannot be expected that civilians would be able to survive
[ ] Rules on the treatment of the sick and wounded in ground combat
[ ] Rules on the treatment of the sick, wounded, or shipless in space combat
[ ] Rules on the treatment of prisoners of war
[ ] Rules on the treatment of civilians in war time and what constitutes a civilian
[ ] The establishment of a right to safe passage for medical personnel clearly identified
[ ] The establishment of a series of guidelines on how to treat neutral parties, especially merchants and diplomats, in times of war
[ ] The establishment of a protocol on the treatment of merchant and civilian vessels in war time, especially enemy merchants in disputed territory at the time of wars declaration.
[ ] The establishment of certain rules and limitations on the deployment and usage of specific kinds of weapons in war time, and their research in times of peace.
[ ] Other - write in
Sorry about the late nature of the vote, I really wanted to get this out today. Please present any votes as a plan. Voting opens at
[X] Restrained Rules
-[X] The usage of nuclear weapons - when it is allowed and when it is not
-[X] The usage of orbit to surface weapons - what is considered a valid use and what is not
-[X] The usage of weapons against domed cities where is cannot be expected that civilians would be able to survive
-[X] Rules on the treatment of the sick and wounded in ground combat
-[X] Rules on the treatment of the sick, wounded, or shipless in space combat
-[X] Rules on the treatment of prisoners of war
-[X] Rules on the treatment of civilians in war time and what constitutes a civilian
-[X] Other - Rule addressing "weapons that can proliferate independently" whether diseases, grey goo, AI, etc.
[X] Plan "Around the Shitlibs, Never Go Edgy"
-[X] The usage of nuclear weapons - when it is allowed and when it is not
-[X] The usage of orbit to surface weapons - what is considered a valid use and what is not
-[X] The usage of weapons against domed cities where is cannot be expected that civilians would be able to survive
-[X] Rules on the treatment of the sick and wounded in ground combat
-[X] Rules on the treatment of the sick, wounded and shipless in space combat
-[X] Rules on the treatment of prisoners of war
-[X] Rules on the treatment of civilians in war time and what constitutes a civilian
-[X] The establishment of a right to safe passage for medical personnel clearly identified
-[X] The establishment of a series of guidelines on how to treat neutral parties, especially merchants and diplomats, in times of war
-[X] The establishment of a protocol on the treatment of merchant and civilian vessels in war time, especially enemy merchants in disputed territory at the time of wars declaration.
-[X] Write-in: The establishment of bans and limitations on the deployment and usage of weapons that can threaten planet's habitability, mass-kill populations, threaten entire space systems - chemical, biological, radiological, (bio)nanotechnological, other sorts of self-replicating weapons, deliberately causing "natural" disasters.
-[X] Write-in: Totally unrelated exercise - "we have a two-IC taskforce in system X; one got wrecked by a derelict space-mine, but crew escaped in life pods and in shuttle which crash-landed on a nearby uninhabitable planet. Can the other IC resque the lifepods and the shuttle? How long can crewmen survive in them? Are there any emergency supplies - food, water, air (like, spare ballons for spacesuits), medications?"
[X] OPLAN: Binding Wall
-[X] The usage of nuclear weapons - when it is allowed and when it is not
-[X] The usage of chemical weapons - when it is allowed and when it is not
-[X] The usage of orbit to surface weapons - what is considered a valid use and what is not
-[X] The usage of weapons against domed cities where is cannot be expected that civilians would be able to survive
-[X] Rules on the treatment of the sick and wounded in ground combat
-[X] Rules on the treatment of the sick, wounded, or shipless in space combat
-[X] Rules on the treatment of prisoners of war
-[X] Rules on the treatment of civilians in war time and what constitutes a civilian
-[X] The establishment of a right to safe passage for medical personnel clearly identified
-[X] The establishment of a series of guidelines on how to treat neutral parties, especially merchants and diplomats, in times of war
-[X] The establishment of a protocol on the treatment of merchant and civilian vessels in war time, especially enemy merchants in disputed territory at the time of wars declaration.
-[X] The establishment of certain rules and limitations on the deployment and usage of specific kinds of weapons in war time, and their research in times of peace.
-[X] Write-in: The establishment of rules on the extraction of information, both in combat and as part of wartime bodies such as intelligence agencies, including the prohibition of torture.
-[X] Write-in: the establishment of rules on "life-collapsing" weapons capable of scouring a planet's livable capabilities, including all CBRN threats and exotic materials such as nanotechnology.
-[X] Write-in: the establishment of rules and bodies designed to investigate war crimes and crimes against humanity, as well as standards of military and humanitarian intervention to prevent said crimes, and their prosecution under international law.
-[X] Write-in: a crash deployment of all available FLF drop squadrons to the known high command bases of all active belligerents, as well as hardening the war crimes sites FLF troops already occupy for investigations purposes. FLF forces must also transpose themselves between active belligerents to formulate a de-militarized zone. Simultaneously, current SWS orbital forces must order Xyrian space forces to stand down or be fired upon. FLF Ranger forces are to be detailed to a kill/capture mission against new plasma technology as well as all known WMD sites. Should Ranger complements fail in their mission, WMD sites are to be subject to conventional ortillery targeting.
The rules of war must include provisions regarding:
-The usage of nuclear weapons - when it is allowed and when it is not
-The usage of chemical weapons - when it is allowed and when it is not
-The usage of orbit to surface weapons - what is considered a valid use and what is not
-The usage of weapons against domed cities where is cannot be expected that civilians would be able to survive
-Rules on the treatment of the sick and wounded in ground combat
-Rules on the treatment of the sick, wounded, or shipless in space combat
-Rules on the treatment of prisoners of war
-Rules on the treatment of civilians in war time and what constitutes a civilian
-The establishment of a right to safe passage for medical personnel clearly identified
-The establishment of a series of guidelines on how to treat neutral parties, especially merchants and diplomats, in times of war
-The establishment of a protocol on the treatment of merchant and civilian vessels in war time, especially enemy merchants in disputed territory at the time of wars declaration.
-The establishment of certain rules and limitations on the deployment and usage of specific kinds of weapons in war time, and their research in times of peace.
-The establishment of rules on the extraction of information, both in combat and as part of wartime bodies such as intelligence agencies, including the prohibition of torture.
- the establishment of rules on "life-collapsing" weapons capable of scouring a planet's livable capabilities, including all CBRN threats and exotic materials such as nanotechnology.
-the establishment of rules and bodies designed to investigate war crimes and crimes against humanity, as well as standards of military and humanitarian intervention to prevent said crimes, and their prosecution under international law.
Xyri
The strange status quo continues for a solid month. The Xyrian space forces hang over the planet like the Sword of Damocles, held in place only by the threat of total destruction and the strangely muted conflict occurring below. On the ground, the Dictatorships and the Republicans both hold their forces back, biding their time and saving their strength until they see exactly what is going to happen should the other side be the first to take a nuke to a forward position. One of the Aslan mercenary companies - the Abulali Benkosi - delivers a good natured letter of protest to Colonel Chey, informing him that their combat suits are sealed against radiological threats and they see no reason not to let their men seek glory. This letter is clearly the musing of a bored infantry commander, and is not intended to be taken seriously.
Everything changes a month after the arrival of the Xyrian force in orbit.
12y04m00w - Converted troop ships HSBS Aspic Conveyor and HSBS Frantic Conveyor arrive in system, accompanied by elements of the Home Fleet. Each of these interstellar conveyors has been converted to carry two companies of FLF infantry in less than ideal conditions. They do not carry shuttles for the troops and will have to rely on slow and steady deployments via airlock seals. Nonetheless, the arrival of these two ships - and the promise of more and more troops as time going on - allows the Task Force to begin Operation Binding Wall.
-
12y04m01w - With zero encryption, the Task Force transmits the intention for the establishment of three FOB's on the surface of Xyri, spread along a 'line of demarcation' between Dictatorship and Republican forces. Each will be based in a half ruined township or mining facility, each will be occupied by a full company of FLF infantry (deployed one platoon at a time by available shuttles), and their primary mission will be to cut off the main routes of advance for both forces.
The first drops plunge down towards the planet under fire. SAM and triple-A sites open up, scaring pilots and forcing them to dump countermeasures all the way down. Before they begin their ascent, a conventional strike operation is conducted by the frigates of the Task Force on station, pounding identified sites with conventional warhead missiles until there is nothing moving. It is thought that at least one of these sites may have contained a headquarters facility for Republican forces.
Simultaneously to this, the Interstellar Cruisers assigned to the Task Force move into close station keeping orbits with the Xyrian fleet and - with weapons hot - order them to stand down and relinquish all stocks of nuclear weapons to the Task Force. Seeing the deployment of infantry to the surface and the broadcasts of intent, the Xyrian forces comply. Commander Villeneuve is invited aboard the HSWSPerkūnas as a guest of Colonel Chey.
-
12y04m02w - The two HSBS ships return to Home with the intention of bringing additional ground forces to the combat zone. There are now ten platoons or two and a half companies of FLF infantry including two platoons of rangers operating on the surface of Xyri. The rangers begin a series of rapid raid-capture missions against facilities that are rumoured to hold armouries of the man portable plasma weapon (hereon: Plasma Weapon, Infantry Support) and are succesful in capturing several examples with minimal casualties. However, at least one raid is stumped when they are met by a force of Aslan infantry in full combat gear, maintaining an armoury that is considered theirs. A tense stand off is only defused with orders from above for the rangers to pull out.
The Aslan are a complicating factor. How does the HSWS treat them?
[ ] If the war is contained, so are the Aslan. They can keep their weapons.
[ ] They are still active combatants. Treat them as such.
[ ] Other - write in.
Developing the Rules of War
The usage of nuclear and non-nuclear radiological weapons - A complex topic that revolves around what constitutes a weapon of mass destruction, what constitutes a nuclear weapon and what is allowed to be deployed where. What follows are a series of questions posed to the committee in order to help establish these questions and define their usage. What types of weapon are prohibited in their use by this article?
[ ] Weapons that rely on nuclear fission or fusion for their effect.
[ ] Weapons that create or rely on radioactive particulates in the course of their use.
[ ] Weapons that have a high likelihood of causing radioactive fallout or other after effects.
[ ] Other - write in. What is a legitimate use case for this kind of weapon?
[ ] Against any target
[ ] Against identified military targets that are not in built up or occupied areas
[ ] Against any target that is not on a planets surface
[ ] Against any defined military target that is not orbiting an inhabited planet
[ ] Other - write in. Any other comments?
[ ] Write in.
The use of weapons launched from orbit against surface targets - a question that is becoming more pressing with every passing engagement, there are currently no limited on the use or 'Ortillery' or orbit-to-surface weapons other than those understood as part of the ROE of a given engagement. The committee wonders whether there should be limits on these weapons outside of other articles: What weapons are considered legitimate in this role?
[ ] All weaponry
[ ] Only weapons that meet a certain standard of precision.
[ ] Only unpowered kinetic strike weapons with limited secondary effects.
[ ] Other - write in. What is a legitimate use case for this kind of weapon?
[ ] Against any target
[ ] Against identified military targets that are not in built up or occupied areas
[ ] Against identified military and industrial targets that limit the chance of civilian casualties.
[ ] Other - write in.
Please present any votes as a plan. Voting opens at
Adhoc vote count started by 4WheelSword on Sep 6, 2024 at 4:44 AM, finished with 32 posts and 10 votes.
[X] Plan Primary Focus
- [X] If the war is contained, so are the Aslan. They can keep their weapons.
-[X] Weapons that have a high likelihood of causing radioactive fallout or other after effects.
-[X] Against any target that is not on a planets surface
-[X] Other - Only weapons with limited secondary effects.
-[X] Against identified military targets that are not in built up or occupied areas
[X] Plan Geneva
-[X] Weapons that have a high likelihood of causing radioactive fallout or other after effects.
-[X] Against any target that is not on a planets surface
-[X] All weaponry
-[X] Against identified military targets that are not in built up or occupied areas
[X] OPLAN: Hard Target
- [X] If the war is contained, so are the Aslan. They can keep their weapons.
-[X] Write-in: if the Aslan break containment and the ceasefire terms, they will be considered active combatants.
-[X] Weapons that rely on nuclear fission or fusion for their effect.
-[X] Weapons that have a high likelihood of causing radioactive fallout or other after effects.
-[X] Against any target that is not on a planets surface
-[X] Write-in: particulate weapons (plasma and particle weapons) must be subject to engineering designed to avoid serious radiological pollution of the combat environment-particularly inhabited areas in planetary and artificial stations, colonies, states, and habitats. Spaceborne use, where these issues are minimal, is authorized.
-[X] Only weapons that meet a certain standard of precision.
-[X] Write-in: precision orbital weapons must be designed, whether kinetic, energy, or explosive, to minimize civilian casualties and collateral damage.
-[X] Against identified military and industrial targets that limit the chance of civilian casualties.
[X] OPLAN: Covering Bases
- [X] If the war is contained, so are the Aslan. They can keep their weapons.
-[X] Write-in: if the Aslan break containment and the ceasefire terms, they will be considered active combatants.
-[X] Weapons that have a high likelihood of causing radioactive fallout or other after effects.
-[X] Other - write in: Weapons or combinations of weapons of sufficient explosive yield or equivalent to produce significant damage far beyond the intended target area or significantly impact a planet's climate through atmospheric dust or similar.
-[X] Against any target that is not on a planets surface
-[X] Only weapons that meet a certain standard of precision.
-[X] Against identified military and industrial targets that limit the chance of civilian casualties.
The Aslan are a complicating factor. How does the HSWS treat them? If the war is contained, so are the Aslan. They can keep their weapons. What types of weapon are prohibited in their use by this article? Weapons that have a high likelihood of causing radioactive fallout or other after effects. What is a legitimate use case for this kind of weapon? Against any target that is not on a planets surface What weapons are considered legitimate in this role? Other - Only weapons with limited secondary effects. What is a legitimate use case for this kind of weapon? Against identified military targets that are not in built up or occupied areas
Developing the Rules of War
Thus far the articles are as follows: Article I - Convention on the Use of Nuclear and Radiological Weapons: This article covers specifically any weapon that has a high likelihood of causing fallout or other significant after effects against any planetary target, but does not limit their usage in space or against inhabited space-side infrastructure. This would not inhibit the use of particle, plasma or nuclear weapons against space targets. Article II - Convention on the Use of Orbit-to-Surface Weapons: This article covers the particular strategy of orbital bombardment by space craft, but does also limit the particular weaponry that can be used in the role as well. As such, parties will be inhibited from utilising weapons that have significant secondary effects including chemical or radiological as well as the targets that can be considered legitimate under these rules as well.
Further questions regarding the use of weapons includes pondering the utility of chemical weaponry in the modern combat environment. There are circumstances where a chemical weapon may be considered a viable alternative to, say, an infantry attack, with such chemicals being delivered by shell or by other means. However, such uses have been frowned upon for military use for centuries, not least because it is considered likely that a properly prepared military would have countermeasures against chemical weapons and poisons in place. This article will bar the use of:
[ ] Inhalants during conventional war.
[ ] Inhalants and contact weapons during conventional war.
[ ] Inhalants, contact and injected chemicals and poisons during conventional war.
Regarding other, non-specific weapons, there are questions around the development and creation of other non-specific threats that could be considered inhumane, overly damaging to the environment or otherwise unacceptable for military use in war time. The committee believes that these prohibited threats should include: Select as many of the following as you believe necessary:
[ ] Melee weaponry that functions via the delivery of a detachable or internally delivered explosive.
[ ] Melee weaponry that functions via the usage of a 'chain' or motorised cutting teeth.
[ ] Projectile weaponry that causes significant surface and internal injury such as flechette rounds.
[ ] Projectile weaponry that relies on small calibre explosives such as specific ammunition for personal rifles and sidearms.
[ ] Weaponry intended to or in addition to their primary function may cause blindness or deafness (temporary or permanent).
[ ] Weaponry that is intended to or in addition to their primary function may cause harm through heating, cooling or flame.
[ ] Weaponry that is intended to or in addition to their primary function may cause harm through radiological or nuclear effects.
[ ] Weaponry that is likely to cause ongoing harm or collateral damage through unexploded ordnance including bomblets and mine dispensers.
[ ] Weaponry that is designed to reduce or eliminate the presence of a breathable atmosphere on or around a target.
[ ] Other - write in.
There have also been questions raised about the potential for significant enough weapons to cause the collapse of a planets ecosystem, biosphere or to otherwise render it unliveable for the local population. This is not considered a significant concern at this time due to most inhabited planets relying on atmosphere-containing domes in order to maintain a population, however there are some threats that may nonetheless be considered to fall under this article. The major deployment of 'doomsday devices' would be prohibited under this article of the conventions and would cover Chemical, Biological, Radiological, Nuclear and other non-standard considerations including nanotechnology, world-killers (such as super lasers, tectonic bombs and geo-engineering weapons) and sun-killers. This article must proscribe:
[ ] The use of such weapons in sufficient quantities to cause planetcide.
[ ] The development of such weapons for military use.
[ ] The theoretical research into such weapons or technologies that may contribute to such weapons.
[ ] Other - write in.
Please present any votes as a plan. Voting opens at
I hope you' re all having fun, because I think developing the in universe geneva conventions is a really good time actually.
[X] Plan Core Focus
-[X] Inhalants, contact and injected chemicals and poisons during conventional war.
-[X] Weaponry that is likely to cause ongoing harm or collateral damage through unexploded ordnance including bomblets and mine dispensers.
-[X] The use of such weapons in sufficient quantities to cause planetcide.
[X] Plan Geneva Part 2
-[X] Inhalants, contact and injected chemicals and poisons during conventional war.
-[X] Weaponry that is intended to or in addition to their primary function may cause harm through radiological or nuclear effects.
-[X] Weaponry that is likely to cause ongoing harm or collateral damage through unexploded ordnance including bomblets and mine dispensers.
-[X] Weaponry that is designed to reduce or eliminate the presence of a breathable atmosphere on or around a target.
-[X] The use of such weapons in sufficient quantities to cause planetcide.
[X] OPLAN: The Last Line To Ever Hold
-[X] Inhalants, contact and injected chemicals and poisons during conventional war.
-[X] Melee weaponry that functions via the delivery of a detachable or internally delivered explosive.
-[X] Melee weaponry that functions via the usage of a 'chain' or motorised cutting teeth.
-[X] Projectile weaponry that relies on small calibre explosives such as specific ammunition for personal rifles and sidearms.
-[X] Weaponry that is intended to or in addition to their primary function may cause harm through heating, cooling or flame.
-[X] Weaponry that is intended to or in addition to their primary function may cause harm through radiological or nuclear effects.
-[X] Weaponry that is designed to reduce or eliminate the presence of a breathable atmosphere on or around a target.
-[X] Write-in: weapons that are designed to intentionally induce permanent sensory disability of any kind are strictly prohibited, as are any bomblet, cluster munition, mine, or other scatterable area denial or multi-target munition designed or found to be inimical to explosive disposal, designed or found to be able to explicitly target civilian or military emergency response, or designed or found to be inimical to normal civilian life, such as disguised or delayed explosives meant to be retrieved by civilians only to then detonate as a "terror" weapon.
-[X] Write-in: the use of explosive and incendiary ammunition against non-organic, non-sapient targets such as vehicles, materiel, and other durable targets is permitted-but these weapons must be designed and exported in a manner that prevents to best ability any unlawful use.
[X] Write-in: the deployment of conventional or CBRN weapons in such quantities and capabilities to enable terracide, ecocide, or solarcide shall be prohibited. Furthermore, the research and deployment of excessive and indiscriminate weapons technologies such as relativistic kill vehicles, geoengineering weapons, "sun-killer" systems of any type or classification, or any other weapon explicitly designed or capable of terracide, ecocide, or solarcide shall be strictly prohibited for military or para-military use by any state or non-state actor.
Developing the Rules of War
Thus far the articles are as follows: Article I - Convention on the Use of Nuclear and Radiological Weapons: This article covers specifically any weapon that has a high likelihood of causing fallout or other significant after effects against any planetary target, but does not limit their usage in space or against inhabited space-side infrastructure. This would not inhibit the use of particle, plasma or nuclear weapons against space targets. Article II - Convention on the Use of Orbit-to-Surface Weapons: This article covers the particular strategy of orbital bombardment by space craft, but does also limit the particular weaponry that can be used in the role as well. As such, parties will be inhibited from utilising weapons that have significant secondary effects including chemical or radiological as well as the targets that can be considered legitimate under these rules as well. Article III - Convention on the Use of Chemical Weaponry: This article covers the use of gases, liquids, powders and other formulations for chemicals that are intended to be utilised as weapons via causing sensory irritation, incapacitation and death and are delivered by shell, canister, missile or other weapon system. This article does not, however, bar the development of such weapons; just the deployment. Article IV - Convention on the Prohibition of Weapons that cause particular or unusual Harm: This article prohibits the use of specific weapons, including:
- Weaponry that is intended to place an explosive inside the body via close combat and direct mechanical application.
- Projectile weapons below a certain size that contain an explosive charge, including personal rifles and other small arms.
- Weaponry that relies on a motorised cutting blade, that 'chews' or 'rends' material as part of its operation.
- Weaponry that inflicts injury on an individual principally through heating, cooling or flame, including petrochemical projectors, 'flame throwers' and other incendiary devices when utilised against military personnel or civilians directly.
- Weaponry that exposes the target, operator or those in the vicinity to particularly strong radiological or nuclear effects, including 'plasma' throwers without blast containment and particle beams that, in addition to kinetic impacts cause a particular exposure of radiation onto individuals.
- Weaponry that is intended to reduce or eliminate a breathable atmosphere through direct action of the weapons systems, such as thermobaric or oxygen-destroying weapons.
- Weaponry that is intended to produce permanent (but not temporary) sensory disability, including blinding lasers and concussive devices capable of rupturing the ear drum but not including those systems that have this as a secondary effect, such as artillery.
- Weaponry that scatters explosive charges or is, in its use, a scattered series of explosive charges that are inimical to explosive disposal, that are designed to explicitly target emergency response and/or are designed or found to be inimical to normal civilian life, such as delayed or under-fused mines or cluster munitions. Article V - Convention on the Development and Deployment of weapons capable of Ecocide, Planetcide or Solarcide: This article covers the deployment of sufficient CBRN weapons in order to achieve the above aims, as well as the research, development and deployment of indiscriminate weapons technology such as RKV's, geo-engineering systems and sun-killers. While most of these weapons are the domain of science fiction, the convening committee still considers them vital enough a threat to consider.
The committee next comes to the treatment of the sick and wounded in war time, especially those from opposing forces, and those space forces that are left shipless or in disabled vessels. It is considered right and proper to offer aid and succour to the enemy when they are in such a situation, but the question is to what extent these expectations apply beyond the basic affording of non-aggression. The wounded, sick and captured must be afforded:
[ ] The right to not be attacked or assaulted by active forces.
[ ] Medical supplies and provisions to allow for the survival of those wounded, sick and captured.
[ ] A full suite of rights and provisions within the law that ensures good treatment and decency in regards to them.
[ ] Other - write in. Specifically in regards to Space Combat, the signing states must:
[ ] Not fire on escape craft or craft exiting the combat zone.
[ ] Provide aid and succour to crews that abandon ship or whose ship is otherwise disabled.
[ ] Ensure that surrendered forces are not allowed to accidentally perform an accidental re-entry and must be kept safe and transported to a safe vessel or station at best speed.
[ ] Other - write in.
Xyri
With the enforcement of a ceasefire, the presence of a battalion of FLF and a battalion of Citizens Militia, and the functional end to hostilities, there are numerous calls to functionally end the war through treaty, from the Dictatorship and the Republicans but also from the Technocrats. It is expected, of course, that the HSWS and via them, Home, will assist in the negotiation of a true ceasefire and a lasting peace. What follows are a list of demands from all parties, and from the Citizens Council: Dictatorship:
- We would like a recognition of captured territory which was brought into Dictatorship possession during the war.
- We would like reparations for lost personnel during the war as well as lost materiel.
- We would like recognition of the dictatorship as the legitimate government of Xyri from all parties involved. Republicans:
- We would like a white peace that returns territory lost to the illegitimate surprise attacks made by the dictatorship.
- We would like reparations for lost personnel during the war as well as lost materiel.
- We would like the formal recognition of the republican controlled territory as an independent state on Xyri and the right to access space without the permission of the dictatorship. Technocrats:
- We would like a technology sharing agreement with Home and the other governments of Xyri in order to enable the development of a space program.
- We would like the right to access space without the permission of any other party. Civilian Council:
- We would like reparations and compensation for the deployment of peacekeeping forces on Xyri.
- We would like either mining rights or principal access to the products of that mining from some significant resources on Xyri.
- We would like control over Xyri's trade lanes and fuel production in order to ensure that at no time does this reignite and threaten them again.
- Ideally we would like a treaty that absorbs the militaries of Xyri into those of Home and relies on the HSWS for space defence. Aslan Mercenaries:
- Both companies involved in the conflict have asked for extra-contractual land awards in Dictatorship or Republican territory for senior Males in their companies.
What does the HSWS want out of this diplomacy?
[ ] Basing rights in Xyri.
[ ] Control over Xyri's (small) ship yards.
[ ] The absorption of the Xyrian space force into the HSWS and the responsibility for space defence.
[ ] Other - write in.
Please present any votes as a plan. Voting opens at
[X] OPLAN: Strong Medicine
- [X] The right to not be attacked or assaulted by active forces.
- [X] Medical supplies and provisions to allow for the survival of those wounded, sick and captured.
- [X] A full suite of rights and provisions within the law that ensures good treatment and decency in regards to them.
-[X] Not fire on escape craft or craft exiting the combat zone.
-[X] Provide aid and succour to crews that abandon ship or whose ship is otherwise disabled.
-[X] Ensure that surrendered forces are not allowed to accidentally perform an accidental re-entry and must be kept safe and transported to a safe vessel or station at best speed.
-[X] Write-in: there is to be no intentional abandonment of any survivors of space combat, nor the use of vacuum or the threat of vacuum as a method of coercion, interrogation, or intimidation. When in a situation where physical rescue is impossible due to size, supplies, or situation, all craft must undertake all possible measure to make postions of survivors known to rescue personnel of the nearest inhabited volume, and supply survivors with any possible material aid before departure from the combat zone.
-[X] Basing Rights in Xyri
Developing the Rules of War
Thus far the articles are as follows:
Article I - Convention on the Use of Nuclear and Radiological Weapons: This article covers specifically any weapon that has a high likelihood of causing fallout or other significant after effects against any planetary target, but does not limit their usage in space or against inhabited space-side infrastructure. This would not inhibit the use of particle, plasma or nuclear weapons against space targets.
Article II - Convention on the Use of Orbit-to-Surface Weapons: This article covers the particular strategy of orbital bombardment by space craft, but does also limit the particular weaponry that can be used in the role as well. As such, parties will be inhibited from utilising weapons that have significant secondary effects including chemical or radiological as well as the targets that can be considered legitimate under these rules as well.
Article III - Convention on the Use of Chemical Weaponry: This article covers the use of gases, liquids, powders and other formulations for chemicals that are intended to be utilised as weapons via causing sensory irritation, incapacitation and death and are delivered by shell, canister, missile or other weapon system. This article does not, however, bar the development of such weapons; just the deployment.
Article IV - Convention on the Prohibition of Weapons that cause particular or unusual Harm: This article prohibits the use of specific weapons, including:
- Weaponry that is intended to place an explosive inside the body via close combat and direct mechanical application.
- Projectile weapons below a certain size that contain an explosive charge, including personal rifles and other small arms.
- Weaponry that relies on a motorised cutting blade, that 'chews' or 'rends' material as part of its operation.
- Weaponry that inflicts injury on an individual principally through heating, cooling or flame, including petrochemical projectors, 'flame throwers' and other incendiary devices when utilised against military personnel or civilians directly.
- Weaponry that exposes the target, operator or those in the vicinity to particularly strong radiological or nuclear effects, including 'plasma' throwers without blast containment and particle beams that, in addition to kinetic impacts cause a particular exposure of radiation onto individuals.
- Weaponry that is intended to reduce or eliminate a breathable atmosphere through direct action of the weapons systems, such as thermobaric or oxygen-destroying weapons.
- Weaponry that is intended to produce permanent (but not temporary) sensory disability, including blinding lasers and concussive devices capable of rupturing the ear drum but not including those systems that have this as a secondary effect, such as artillery.
- Weaponry that scatters explosive charges or is, in its use, a scattered series of explosive charges that are inimical to explosive disposal, that are designed to explicitly target emergency response and/or are designed or found to be inimical to normal civilian life, such as delayed or under-fused mines or cluster munitions.
Article V - Convention on the Development and Deployment of weapons capable of Ecocide, Planetcide or Solarcide: This article covers the deployment of sufficient CBRN weapons in order to achieve the above aims, as well as the research, development and deployment of indiscriminate weapons technology such as RKV's, geo-engineering systems and sun-killers. While most of these weapons are the domain of science fiction, the convening committee still considers them vital enough a threat to consider.
Article VI - Convention on the Treatment of Surrendering Forces, Prisoners of War and Disabled Ships: This article covers the rights of military personnel who have or are in the process of surrendering to enemy forces, those whose ships are no longer capable of combat and those that are otherwise signalling their intent to cease hostilities. It includes the individual right to medical supplies and provisions when taken into the custody of enemy forces, the general right to good treatment and decency, and delegitimises the act of firing on surrendering forces or those forces that are otherwise incapable of fighting. This also covers under what conditions a star ship may be considered disabled or otherwise out of action, and the point at which an enemy must switch from combat to providing succour. It is a complex series of sub-articles and amendments that ensure that an enemy cannot simply retreat from a combat zone to affect repairs, but which does its best to otherwise ensure the sanctity of life once a person is no longer considered a combatant. Article VIII - Convention on Interrogation, Coercion and Torture in War Time: This article covers the extent to which information can be extracted from prisoners of war, the sick and the wounded; most of that extent is 'no, absolutely not, not even once'. It is broadly understood that torture is useless for acquiring useful information and thus it is better to bar its use entirely than risk an overzealous junior officer deciding they know better. Article IX - Convention on the Treatment of Civilians and Settlements: This article covers what is and what is not a legitimate use of force in the vicinity of civilian populations, defines the treatment of civilian populations in combat conditions and once the territory containing those populations is captured, and the limitations on weaponry that can be used in or around domed settlements to ensure that incidental fires do not lead to megadeaths amongst those who are simply unfortunate enough to be in the vicinity. Article X - Convention on the Treatment of Medical Personnel and Vehicles: This article covers the establishment of a symbol that can be displayed on medical vehicles and Personnel that, as long as those things are unarmed and not taking part in hostilities, must be left undisturbed in the course of their duties. This will protect those attempting to save lives and hopefully ensure that many more will survive the horrors of war than will be lost to it.
Of course, these ten articles are barely the start of what experts consider will one day be a whole raft of agreements, amendments and articles. However, these are a significant step towards a kinder future. Signatories to these articles will hopefully never again threaten to crack open an inhabited dome, will never threaten the surface of a planet with nuclear weapons again. It should limit the requirements for the HSWS to act as an ad-hoc peacekeeping force as well, though there is only so much that such articles can do to halt the seemingly human desire for internecine warfare. Nonetheless, there is one last question to be asked: whose job is it to enforce these rules?
A body must be established to investigate potential breaches of the articles and to enforce punishments for those who attempt or otherwise do breach the articles. How would the HSWS prefer this body to be established?
[ ] It should be a sub-branch of the HSWS, a junior body that the HSWS nonetheless answers too.
[ ] It should be an independent body, funded by Home but not answering to anyone but the Citizens Council.
[ ] It should be a fourth branch of the military council, along with the City Militia's, the Community Wardens and the HSWS.
[ ] Other - write in.
Xyri
A month into negotiations, the current agreement has thus far been hashed out. Many arguments, late night cram sessions and physical fights in the committee chambers have only managed to get this far:
- Territory lost in combat will be returned to the original parties that controlled them.
- The Republicans will pay reparations to the Dictatorship as part of this deal.
- Home will formally recognise all involved parties as independent states on Xyri and will not bar any of them from accessing space or the orbitals.
- Home will also receive right of first-refusal over any new resource veins uncovered on Xyri as well as beneficial trade agreements for other mineral resources extracted from the ground.
- Both Aslan companies will receive small parcels of relatively low-value land to do with as they wish.
- The HSWS will continue to receive fuelling and basing rights in Xyri as was the case prior to the war.
The Problem of Particle Beams
It is broadly understood, in the wake of the trials and tribulations of collating the rules of war, that particle beams are no longer an acceptable weapon for warfare due to the impacts of radiation on the crew of targeted warships. Unfortunately, the HSWS currently uses a large number of particle beams with their use seen on the vast majority of major warships including HSWS Perkunas, HSWS Caturix and every Interstellar Cruiser available to the fleet.
The HSWS must establish a plan by which they can cease deploying ships with these weapons. Over what time period will the HSWS commit to ceasing the use of such weapons?
[ ] A year
[ ] Five years
[ ] Ten years
[ ] Other - write in. How will the HSWS cease the use of such weapons:
[ ] By decommissioning older ships and replacing them with newer platforms that do not utilise such weapons.
[ ] By refitting older ships to maintain those hulls utility.
[ ] Other - write in. Any additional notes for this process:
[ ] Other - write in.
Please present any votes as a plan. Voting opens at
Adhoc vote count started by 4WheelSword on Sep 9, 2024 at 5:14 AM, finished with 55 posts and 14 votes.
[X] Plan: Contingency
-[X] It should be a sub-branch of the HSWS, a junior body that the HSWS nonetheless answers too.
-[X] Ten years
-[X] Other - write in: Retain the particle beam weapons on our existing ships in an inoperative state by removing key components until an equally effective replacement weapons system is developed, as a contingency against an existential war started by a non-signatory such as Hermosa. All radiological or otherwise banned weapons are to be fitted with prescribed action links that prevent their use without a decision by the HSWS's central command, and ideally, should be kept in a state where additional components not carried on the spacecraft are necessary to regain functionality.
-[X] Other - write in: begin searching for treaty-compliant weapons of equal effectiveness to particle beams.
[X] Plan: Right of Refusal
-[X] It should be a sub-branch of the HSWS, a junior body that the HSWS nonetheless answers too.
-[X] Other - The HSWS will not turn over their particle weapons.
-[X] Other- The HSWS has no intention of decommissioning the combat force they have spent a decade building for the defense of the commons and the common prosperity of Home, it's neighbors and all friends to Home and it's Citizens. The HSWS argues strongly against the interpretation of the treaty that it should do so.
-[X] Additional Notes: This point being argued by members of the HSWS who are against the neutering of their combat capabilities by the Citizen's Council in a short sighted treaty and by those in the HSWS and those outside of it who see this as an effort to destroy the economic viability of Steenbeck as the main provider of weapons to the HSWS who has served us faithfully for years as the cost of economic income to the other weapons manufacturers.
[X] Plan: Council Bonks the Idealist
-[X] It should be an independent body, funded by Home but not answering to anyone but the Citizens Council.
-[X] Ten years
-[X] Other - write in. After a sanity check, the following clause of Article IV is withdrawn from the draft treaty: 'Weaponry that exposes the target, operator or those in the vicinity to particularly strong radiological or nuclear effects, including 'plasma' throwers without blast containment and particle beams that, in addition to kinetic impacts cause a particular exposure of radiation onto individuals.'
[X] Plan Refits
-[X] It should be an independent body, funded by Home but not answering to anyone but the Citizens Council.
-[X] Ten years
-[X] By refitting older ships to maintain those hulls utility.
How would the HSWS prefer this body to be established? It should be a sub-branch of the HSWS, a junior body that the HSWS nonetheless answers too. Over what time period will the HSWS commit to ceasing the use of such weapons? Ten years How will the HSWS cease the use of such weapons: Retain the particle beam weapons on our existing ships in an inoperative state by removing key components until an equally effective replacement weapons system is developed, as a contingency against an existential war started by a non-signatory such as Hermosa. All radiological or otherwise banned weapons are to be fitted with prescribed action links that prevent their use without a decision by the HSWS's central command, and ideally, should be kept in a state where additional components not carried on the spacecraft are necessary to regain functionality.
The Rules of War
The Articles of Humanitarian War, or 'Articles on the conduct and methods of conflict intended to reduce suffering to a minimum possible within the remit of the signatories' are collated as ten articles that cover a whole wealth of potential issues and scenarios that have or may come up during war time. They are widely regarded as idealistic and in some cases entirely wrong-headed, but they are nonetheless offered to the Citizens Council on the recommendations of the Chief of the Navy. After all, even a modified or reduced version of these articles would change the face of war as we know it, for the better.
These articles are thus delivered to five parties for commentary and consideration; technically, it's seven parties but Xyri is considered a single party for the purposes of this phase. These parties are the Citizens Council, the democratic government of Cassalon (and the military that has not quite given up the last strands of power), the multitude governments of Home and both Aslan mercenary companies currently based out of Home. It is expected that comments will be recieved in the next six to twelve months.
Meanwhile, engineers rush to find vital parts of the particle weapons that can be removed from ships currently under construction that will disable the cannons without permanently destroying them. The primary method is simply to remove the electromagnetic lens that is used to focus and aim the weapon with the accuracy in deflection required to fire across thousands of kilometres. Between this and a master-key lock out placed in the hands of the commander and executive officers of any ship built after the development of the articles, the fleet should be safe from any accusations of utilising banned weapons unless and until an enemy demonstrates an equivalent disregard (or ignorance) of them.
Scouting Reports
Operation Nor-Wester - A four month mission to chart unknown planets two to three parsecs distant from Cassalon, the following has been discovered and reported Home: - Sector -04,00 - Plenty
Survey Index: 10 System Code: B658663-8 Star(s): Trinary System - Type K star with Brown Dwarf close companion and distant Type M Orbitals: -0400-1 (Planetoid Cluster), -0400-2 (Rocky Planet), -0400-3 (Small Gas Giant), -0400-4 (Large Gas Giant), -0400-5 (Brown Dwarf) Comments: -0400-2 (called Plenty by its inhabitants) is a highly developed agricultural exporter with ties to a polity that extends into space beyond this system. It is a colony of that further polity, and our scouts are met with reserved politeness. Scans and other evidence indicate a level of development slightly behind our own, similar to Home a decade ago. We are invited to send a further diplomatic mission at a later date.
- Sector -04,-01
Survey Index: 8 System Code: ?310???-? Star(s): Brown Dwarf solo star Orbitals: -04-01-1 (Rocky Planet) Comments: Automated orbital beacons warn scouts to leave just as soon as they come within transmission range of the single tidally locked planet that orbits this brown dwarf. Several threats are levelled, including the potential for nuclear attack. Our scouts decide it is better to leave when warned rather than risk it all for a 'backwater shithole' (excerpt from reports).
- Sector -03,-01
Survey Index: 10 System Code: E564112-8 Star(s): Type K with a distant Binary companion Orbitals: -03-01-1 (Large Gas Giant), -03-01-2 (Large Gas Giant), -03-01-3 (Rocky Planet), -03-01-4 (Large Gas Giant), -03-01-5 (Large Gas Giant). -03-01-6 (Rocky Planet) -03-01-7 (Large Gas Giant) Comments: Our scouts meet another group of scouts - these ones assessing a planet for colonisation and settlement by the same unidentified polity that is currently occupying Plenty. They are clear that they have finders claim to the system, and recommend visiting Plenty if we would like to know more, and could they please get back to their mission?
Operation North - This mission instead departs from Deep Hope, attempting to assess the planets closer to Home. With a string of four identified systems and only one of them assessed (the prison world that has since then been studiously ignored), this scouting mission will hopefully give us a better look at what is to the North. - Sector -01,-03 - Menorb
Survey Index: 10 System Code: C652998-7 Star(s): Twin Type M stars in close companionship Orbitals: -01-03-1 (Large Gas Giant), -01-03-2 (Rocky Planet), -01-03-3 (Rocky Planet), -01-03-4 (Rocky Planet), -01-03-5 (Rocky Planet), -01-03-6 (Small Gas Giant), -01-03-7 (High Density Planet) Comments: An uncompromisingly normal settled world, seven billion people call Menorb their home. They do not have the technology to build advanced space craft but they do operate a space port which shows some evidence of heavy use. Our scouts are invited to stay, but choose to instead push on with their mission. The local representatives seem displeased with this but are otherwise happy to see our scouts go.
- Sector 00,-03 - Inthe
Survey Index: 10 System Code: B575776-9 Star(s): Type M star with Type K close companion Orbitals: -01-03-1 (Planetoid Belt), -01-03-2 (Rocky Planet), -01-03-3 (Rocky Planet), -01-03-4 (Small Gas Giant), -01-03-5 (Small Gas Giant) Comments: Despite the multiple states that dot the surface of Inthe, the planet is remarkably harmonious and welcoming at first glance. Humans - or, at least, members of humaniti - welcome our scouts with gifts and local fruits and invitations to stay and really experience a variety of local cultures. They cannot, of course - they have a mission to complete - but their reports are glowing and positive.
- Sector 01,-03 - Natoko
Survey Index: 10 System Code: C8879AB-9 Star(s): Type K Star with a distant companion Orbitals: 01-03-1 (Planetoid Belt), 01-03-2 (Small Gas Giant), 01-03-3 (Low Density Terrestrial), 01-03-4 (Small Gas Giant), 01-03-5 (Rocky Planet), 01-03-6 (Rocky Planet), 01-03-7 (Rocky Planet), 01-03-8 (Rocky Planet), 01-03-9 (Planetoid Belt) Comments: Another unusually welcoming planet, 01-03 or 'Natoko' is a heavily populated, technologically advanced system that welcomes our Scouts and invites them to stay for longer than is long enough to assess the various planets. Our scouts do accept a full tank of fuel as a gift, as well as photographs with various senior figures and at least one state dinner with the planets dictator.
The Current Extent of Homes Starmaps
With the HSBS working to cover two different systems in need of extensive support and the HSWS maintaining overwatch on Xyri and defending various positions based on the suspicions of the senior command staff, the forces available are stretched to their limits.
What if the focus of the HSWS for the next year?
[ ] Maintaining trade links and supporting the rebuilding of war-torn systems
[ ] Extending trade to other systems beyond the borders already drawn.
[ ] Ensuring the borders are safe with heavy patrols and anti-raider exervises.
[ ] Ensuring the core systems are heavily patrolled.
[ ] Other - write in. What should the MIX focus and report on?
[ ] The modern extent of the Daughters of the People and their reach beyond Home.
[ ] The integration of Aslan Mercenaries into Home's culture.
[ ] The recovery of Cassalon in the wake of nuclear war.
[ ] The Recovery of Hexos and continues operations
[ ] Other - write in.
Please present any votes as a plan. Voting opens at
What if the focus of the HSWS for the next year?Maintaining trade links and supporting the rebuilding of war-torn systems What should the MIC focus and report on? The modern extent of the Daughters of the People and their reach beyond Home.
The Daughters of the People Report submitted by the Military Intelligence Corps, 13y00m00w
A religious, messianic group that follows 'The Daughter' has existed publicly on Home since shortly after the end of the last Plague, and it is suspected that it existed prior to that as a small, private cult or mystery group. Since they became a more public group, they have referred to themselves solely as 'The Daughters of the People' with individual member referring to themselves as 'a Daughter', one of hundreds or even thousands when pressed. They are predominantly good natured, evasive when challenged and unclear about requirements for joining their cult or attending services with 'The Daughter'. It seems clear to us that they have been briefed on how to respond to the most blatant of approaches by wardens or intelligence gathering operations.
The identity of 'The Daughter' has never been made clear, and it is presumed that over the last century or so there has been more than one person posing as this messianic figure. Their gender, identity and direct relationship to the ideology of the Daughters is also unclear, and we are uncertain as to whether or not they actually exist in any real way. Nonetheless, in the last decade, 'The Daughter' has apparently made appearances on Cassalon in the wake of the crisis there and, more recently, on Xyri in the aftermath of their recent war. Less specific rumours place 'The Daughter' on Hexos and Nova Refugio as well, though these are easier to dismiss, even though no transport records exist for any of these trips.
It is clear that there is significant... I hesitate to call it infiltration in this report, as thus far those followers of 'The Daughters' who have been identified in the HSWS, the City Milita and the Community Wardens have shown no outward sign of rejecting the efforts of the Council. Aside from one truly significant incident (negotiations of a ceasefire in Cassalon, then S'Taxu) which we have not been able to link the the actions of any senior figures, the Daughters and those associated with them do truly seem to have purely humanitarian goals. However, we continue to have significant concerns about the ongoing spread of the influence of just such a... religious group or cult.
It is the recommendation of this report that the MIC should continue to observe and maintain contacts within the Daughters of the People, although we have only had limited success with the latter. At this time there does not seem to be any serious threat, however.
13y06m00w
Time passes. Merchants run vital cargoes to their destinations, half the cargo fleet pressed into action to deliver vital supplies to Cassalon, Xyri and Hexos. The offices of the HSWB has never been more active, with a hundred civil servants pressed into action coordinating the hungers and fears of three different settlements of Humaniti. It is not easy, delivering vital machinery, foodstuffs and shelters to those that needs them, especially with the need to maintain the fuelling stations at Staging Point via Cassalon and Heimdall.
Nonetheless, by the middle of the 13th year, the HSWS has experienced something approaching quiet times. A few months without a crisis or other pressing action, as weaponry is disabled and cruisers are reconfigured for a patrol style that relies on their PD turrets as offensive weapons. An, as the middle of the year arrives, the Military Assault Transport heaves itself out of the docks and makes its way to Xyri to recover the battalions of infantry now stationed there.
Note the bulbous covers on the underside where ortillery drivers project.
With that one fell swoop, eight-thousand tons of yard space are suddenly available and the HSWS is able to breath. They have built the largest ship currently extant, and it is massive with some two-hundred metres of length. It dwarfs any equivalent craft, especially those in close escort around it. It represents a remarkable development in capability but more than that it allows the HSWS to start spending again.
The HSWS has 8,250 tons of yard space available to it. What will it be spent on (select as up to 8k tons):
[ ] Lay down a Cruiser, Fast Attack (3,000 tons).
[ ] Lay down a Modern Defence Station - It's principally armed with Particle Beams. How should this be changed? (2,500 tons).
[ ] Lay down a Frigate, Fleet Escort (500 tons).
[ ] Other - write in.
I figure this is an opportunity to redefine your fleet going forwards given the... expected changes.
Please present any votes as a plan. Voting opens at
[X] OPLAN: Virtue
-[X] Provide design variants of the CFA (a) and (b) with the particle barbettes replaced by laser barbettes and additional PD weaponry and with revisions to powerplant to save tonnage; additionally provide a (c) variant for review with the missile / torpedo bays replaced by LMD bays and with particle barbettes replaced by missile barbettes.
-[X] Provide unified design variant of CFA that utilizes four or five missile or torpedo bays in conjunction with two LMD bays and point-defense as a potential all-rounder; see what will have to be cut or added to utilize this variant effectively. Revise powerplant for tonnage as with revised (a) and (b) variants.
-[X] Begin crash funding mass drivers and other kinetic naval rifle programs, as well as more advanced/heavier beam lasers.
-[X] Start looking into alternative uses for the Interstellar Cruiser hull as refit designs and completely new designs based on their hull form in light of their principles design being filled by more modern hulls, a particular request for a heavy point defense design to allow greater firepower to be concentrated in a single ship to completely overwhelm enemy fighter and missile swarms and giving more tactical freedom to use frigates in their second role as a missile boat.
-[X] Revise defense station plans in light of particle beams being withdrawn from service.
The HSWS has 8,250 tons of yard space available to it. What will it be spent on (select as up to 8k tons): OPLAN Virtue
Cruiser, Fast Attack
When first envisioned, the CFA was an obvious outgrowth of the technology that went into the prototype vessel, the MMV. Armed with heavy torpedo or missile batteries backed up by a secondary armament of particle beams, the intent was to have a capable secondary armament that could ward off close assault by enemy vessels, allowing the warships to engage predominantly with extremely long range ordnance barrages.
Of course, with the pending ratification of the Articles of War, those particle weapons are no longer viable as part of the equipment of the HSWS. While other ships are having their primary weapons disabled as part of the basic maintenance, the first CFA is still under construction and could have its weapons refit as part of that process. Thus, the architects of the HSWS have drawn up four new variants on the base concept of the CFA that utilise less-than-ideal armament sets to produce similar capabilities.
CFA-A
The A variant, previously envisioned as a missile boat, will retain that role while exchanging its particle barbettes for seven larger prototype beam laser barbettes, shuffling around some cargo space to ensure there is room for the larger capacitors required by this variant weapon type. CFA-B
The B variant of the CFA design is a torpedo carrier, capable of delivering 18 weapons per launch. It would carry out the same exchange as the CFA-A, switching to beam lasers and ensuring the magazine feeds for the massive torpedo tubes aren't impacted by the changes made. CFA-C
The newly envisioned CFA-C trades the missiles and torpedoes for three kinetic weapons with the firepower to kill ships. The Light Mass Driver Cannon has the range to counter a particle beam, though the mounting on a small ship will create some problems with targeting as unlike a missile (post-launch manoeuvre) or a beam laser (targeting via lensing) the kinetic weapon is a fixed rail. This variant would, however, have a secondary launch capability of 28 missiles. CFA-D
The CFA-D is a complete departure from the previous design of the CFA and cannot be selected for the rebuild of the CFA currently under construction due to major divergences in design. However, this is a design that would give the cruiser a pair of kinetic weapons as well as 48 missile tubes (or twelve torpedoes) by solely utilising bays and dismissing the barbette mounts entirely.
Which of the above designs should the CFA currently in the yards be converted to?
[ ] CFA-A
[ ] CFA-B
[ ] CFA-C
Modern Defence Station
The MDS, a 2,500-ton platform designed to rely on the new modular cargo ship for deployment to zones that require additional control, is also affected by the oncoming Articles. It has a secondary capability to launch thirty torpedoes but the 'main' guns are now no longer operable in modern designs. The HSWS must make a decision regarding them: What should the Particle Beams be replaced with:
[ ] Additional Torpedo Bays
[ ] Missile Bays
[ ] Railguns
[ ] LMDC mounts
[ ] Something else - write in
The HSWS has 8,250 tons of yard space available to it. What will it be spent on (select as up to 8k tons):
[ ] Lay down a Cruiser, Fast Attack (3,000 tons). Which variant?
[ ] Lay down a Modern Defence Station after the above alterations (2,500 tons).
[ ] Lay down a Frigate, Fleet Escort (500 tons).
[ ] Retain space for Interstellar Cruiser refits (1,000 tons)
[ ] Other - write in.
Please present any votes as a plan. Voting opens at
Adhoc vote count started by 4WheelSword on Sep 12, 2024 at 4:46 AM, finished with 40 posts and 17 votes.
[X] Plan K for Kinetics
-[X] CFA-C
-[X] Additional torpedo bays & upgrade double turrets to triple turrets
-[X] Lay down 2 CFA-Cs
-[X] Lay down 2 Frigates
-[X] Retain 1K tonnes for Cruiser refits.
[X] OPLAN: Vitality
-[X] CFA-B (upgrade sandcaster and PD to triple mounts)
-[X]Additional Torpedo Bays and upgrade turrets to triple mounts
-[X] Upgrade sandcasters on all CFA variants to triple mounts; additionally upgrade beam lasers to triple mounts on C and D variants. Add additional sandcaster to triple turret mounts on A/B variants instead of additional beam lasers.
-[X] Lay down a CFA-A and CFA-D (torpedo variant).
-[X] Lay down 2 Frigates
-[X] Retain 1,000 tons for Cruiser refits.
Which of the above designs should the CFA currently in the yards be converted to? CFA-B What should the Particle Beams be replaced with: Additional Torpedo Bays and upgrade turrets to triple mounts The HSWS has 8,250 tons of yard space available to it. What will it be spent on (select as up to 8k tons): Lay down a CFA-A and CFA-D (torpedo variant). Lay down 2 Frigates. Retain 1,000 tons for Cruiser refits.
Construction
On 13y06m00w the HSWS not only reconfigures a currently under construction design, but also lays down the next generation of warships to replace those that came before. The CFA currently in the yards will be converted to a heavy torpedo cruiser, with a per-shoot barrage of eighteen weapons. Meanwhile, the Navy will also lay down two additional ships - a CFA-A and a CFA-D which also fits torpedoes in place of its missile bays. While the first of these ships will be ready in a year - weapon installation hasn't even begun yet - the second pair will leave the yards only six months later, circa 15y00m00w. These three will form the basis of the fleet to come, the core of the future, and the first brick in a whole new HSWS.
The post-treaty CFA-D with torpedo bays.
The Modern Defence Station also receives a major in-yard conversion, replacing her large particle cannons with an additional 30 torpedo tubes and a large magazine to go with it. With a throw weight of sixty torpedoes, a single MDS is considered capable of threatening a significant chunk of the HSWS and is the ideal defensive station from which to conduct operations against an aggressor. It also has an upgraded defensive suite, with the more advanced triple turrets replacing the doubles on a one to one basis.
A throw weight of 60 torps is likely to ruin anyone's day.
The new flurry of construction does not end there. Two additional frigates, the ninth and tenth of the class, will also be laid down, and enough space will be left open for the refit of an Interstellar Cruiser. Exactly how the latter will be refit is still up for debate. In addition, this recent construction pushes our capacity of pilots to the maximum, and ships will have to be pulled off the line in order to allow for the new builds.
How should the Interstellar Cruiser be reift?
[ ] Replace the particle beams with torpedoes, upgrade the ships manoeuvre drive and otherwise modernise.
[ ] Replace the particle beams with missiles, upgrade the ships manoeuvre drive and otherwise modernise.
[ ] Replace the offensive armament with a dense PD network, upgrade the ships manoeuvre drive and otherwise modernise.
[ ] Other - write in. What ships should be sent to reserve in order to free up pilots? (At least 4 pilots required)
[ ] HSWS Caturix, Monitor, 2 Pilots
[ ] A number of Interstellar Cruisers - How many?
[ ] Both System Defence Destroyers, 4 pilots
[ ] Other - write in
Lights in the Dark
The Headquarters of the HSWS has received a number of concerning reports from forces in Heimdall, including but not limited to the commander of Heimdall Station, the captain of Anchorage Station and from merchant captains making their runs through the system. They report twinkling, far-off lights, temporary stars at extremely long range. They are jump flashes, obviously, but there is no sign of anyone remaining in the system and no contact with whoever it is after they jump out again.
We do not know where they are coming from or where they are going, but someone is transiting through our system without permission and that requires at least some kind of response.
What should the HSWS do?
[ ] Scramble the Expeditionary Force to Heimdall and string out a sensor net.
[ ] Reinforce the Heimdall Station with reserve forces.
[ ] Create a tripwire force between Heimdall and Cassalon to find out where they go.
[ ] Other - write in.
Please present any votes as a plan. Voting opens at
