Ketro sinks back in his chair, sulking, and you move on to the next topic; “Now then. Crew morale. By this point the other scientists have no doubt told the crew what happened to the Empire, and you’ve been informed first-hand; therefore I will be making an official announcement after this meeting, before the jump. I encourage all of you to think of ways to help the crew take their minds off of it, and I’ve noticed a few of you involved in an activity that might be just the thing. Your mock battles in the cargo bays could do much to raise spirits. I’ve also come up with an idea to allow crew men temporary control of drones, racing them through the wynds between debris. Thoughts?”

“‘S a good idea, sir.” Guns says, nodding approvingly, “Damn fun if you ask me, and helps train the men in weapon skills. The drone thing should be good too, ‘specially with how much they’ve been operating them lately. Damn well must be able to operate the things in their sleep by this point.”

Ivanova also leans forward, “I agree. Perhaps we can also offer prizes fro the winners. Increased rations for a week, or light duty. Even if not, though, I think doing so will be more fun than simple games in the rec rooms. Healthier too.”

“Captain, if I might make a request?” Tynes, this time. You nod for him to go ahead, “I have no idea where we’re going to start putting things soon. All our cargo bays are full and acceleration is down to abysmal levels with all this mass. I’d advise dumping most of it, sir. It was a good task to put the crew on to keep them occupied while they worked through their losses, but I don’t see any use for most of it.”

You nod, “I agree. See about linking it all together and attaching a transponder, we’ll dump it in a stable orbit around a planetoid in this system. Keep rare or delicate parts that we can use for repairs and a stock of high-grade unisteel, about one cargo bay’s worth. Anything else?”

Your staff is silent for a bit before Dr. Burr clears his throat, “Captain, I’ve finished the dissection of the quadruped. Selay, the omnibioligost, has analysed it and submitted a report to you by now I believe. The main points are: Herbivorus, extremely resilient and strong, methane breathing. Appear to be descended from a race known as the Vothai with some of the same traits, indigenous to the fourth orbital of the blue star Korodis.”

You nod, “Very well. Our next destination will be an Armada shipyard on the gate line. I’m not certain what will be found there, but ideally something of use. On the way we will be stopping at a small colony off of the gate line. Doctor Dai, what is the state of our ship and ability to get to these places?”

“Poor. Still a week between jumps. Safe now, though. Won’t suddenly explode on charging. Still limited to around five thousand lightyears. Weapons pretty much the same. Dispersal is better but shield integrity is still the same. Systems are as good as they will get without drydock equipment.” he man responds.

“I see. If that’s the way it is then so be it. If there is nothing else then you are all dismissed, begin preparations fro jump.”

A chorus of “Yes, sir.” and “Yes, captain.” results, and soon you are left alone once more... and quickly lay your head down on the cool wooden table and switch to sleep mode.

You were dead for nearly sixty five thousand years, after all. Can’t go overtaxing it, and you need your beauty rest anyway.

#########################

The colony world is overgrown and lush, but sadly so too are both the colony and the base guarding it. Unlike the base on Orrin the army facility was an above ground compound and now lies is complete ruin. No gigantic sealing doors, no hollowed out mountain chambers... simply a small outpost designed to support a token force of a few hundred troopers for policing duties in the nearby colony and nothing more. Disappointing.

On the bright side, however, Dr. Burr discovers a multitude of edible plants and animals. While they taste odd to say the least, you crew’s morale is still bolstered a great deal by having something other than military rations and dehydrated bean paste to consume.

You preserve as much as possible, but know perishable goods will not last for any significant length of time. Still, freezing meat and some of the other more keepable foods extends your supplies quite a bit, completely restoring you to a one-year operational length.

#########################

Reality rips near the system Yale and from the distortion you emerge, ghostly white streamers of energy trailing from your metallic form. Immediately your sensors pick up traffic... a great deal of it, in fact.

“Contact!” Ivanova calls, “Large amounts of EM traffic coming from planetoids and other objects around the star. Sensors are picking up hundreds to thousands of vessels, ranging from under fifty meters to just over eight hundred. Gates seem active, transit ongoing. Several large artificial structures situated in systems, can’t tell the purposes from this distance.”

“Have we been spotted?”

She looks up shaking her head, “No sir, doesn’t look like it yet. We’re at the edge of our sensor range, though. Getting closer might trigger a response.”

“Drones ready.” Tynes intones followed by a short verification of combat status from Lt. Rinn.

>Repair Drones:
Drones: 91% online
Operators: 100% staffed
>Combat Drones:
Interceptors: 6160/8000 (Space-to-Space only)
Fighters: 1662/2000 (Atmo Capable)
Hovertanks: 8/8 (Low efficiency w/o human pilots) (Ground based)
>Reactor:
Integrity: 45%
Output: 25%
>Shields:
Form-Shield Integrity: 55%
Form-Shield Dissipation: 35%
All others offline
>Weapons:
Point Defense Lasers: 55% coverage online
Missile Launchers: 10/10 Batteries -- 1000/1000 Tubes
Heavy Railguns: 7/8
Medium Lances: 11/64 Turrets -- 23/192 guns
Heavy Lances: 3/32 Turrets -- 4/64 guns
>Engines:
Speed: 60%
Efficiency: 50%
>Sensors:
Local: 80%
>ECM:
Online -- Not currently broadcasting

>Atmosphere (I forgot to put it in the OP)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BU4qxGeveY0

==Map Legend==
Green Dotted Arrow: Current Jump
Orange Dotted Arrow: Last Jump
Yellow Dotted Arrow: Last minus 1 Jump
Red Dotted Arrow: Prior jumps.
Green dot: Current position.
Yellow Square: Your awakening position
Teal dotted zone: Hundred Systems Territory (Hundred Worlds Rebellion)

==Command Staff==
Lieutenant Kateryna Ivanova - Executive Officer
>Second Lieutenant Dray Parson - Intelligence Officer (Incapacitated)
Second Lieutenant Robert Tynes - Steward
Chun-Fan Dai - Chief Engineer
Third Lieutenant Mardigan “Guns” Rinn - Weapons Officer
Dr. Christof Burr - Physician

==Junior Officers==
Ensign Fie - Communictions Officer
Ensign DuBois - Staff officer
Ensign Tremko - Staff officer
Ensign Rao - Staff officer

==Persons of Note==
Dr. Eliphim Ketro -- Civilian Scientist

Continue scanning. Analyze EM traffic. Move to bring the artificial structures in sensor range. Plot a course to the nearest gate and state minimum transit time if emergency GTFO maneuver is necessary.

Until we are noticed, I think we should observe only. Once we know more about where we are and whose door we're knocking on, we'll be in a better position to fight, run, or diplomatize as necessary.

rolled 14, 1, 2, 11, 2, 12, 6, 3, 7, 15, 14, 4, 5, 15, 9, 9, 13, 9, 16, 9 = 176

>>15749203
You said we launched nukes in huge salvos of thousands at a time. Could we get a stock count of how many of the various types of kerbangers we've got on board?

>>15749203
Continue passive scanning; take in all communications and see if any are on either Imperial frequencies or use Imperial communication protocols.

Look for the shipyard to see what state it's in.

Have Tynes prep the combat drones for launch.

So we're going to the shipyard? Should we continue our previous strategy of waiting in line and gently bumping the xenos out of the way? How many gates away is the shipyard, anyway?

>>15749282
I doubt we'll need to resort to ramming unless we decide to use the gate(s). Our weapons should be sufficient to clear a path.

>>15749282
We're IN the shipyard system.

>>15749203
1. Collect EM traffic. Compare against anything we have, to see if they're using Imperial-descended protocols.
2. Slowly move forward till the artificial structures are in sensor range. We need to see what state the shipyard is in, and if the xenos are making use of it.
3. Guns to begin analyzing the weapon systems of the alien craft as soon as they come within sensor range.

Crew to maintain battle readiness.

>>15749270
Any specific reason?

Let's say:
40 volleys of standard nuclear warheads, varying yields
10 volleys of very large warheads (antimatter+)
1 volley of singularity warheads

Subject to change if I find a serious miscalculation.

>>15749401

Is this enough firepower to glass a planet if we need to?

>>15749364
Seconding what this guy said.

>>15749421
Son, that's over double the number of nuclear weapons manufactured by all countries to date, combined.

Then you get into the big guns...

So I guess what I am saying is, yes.

>>15749433
Fire a volley of nukes at the structures, then advance into the system.

>>15749451
No.

Let's NOT blow up everything right away this time. Just in case they're useful. And we can always blow them up later, if we decide we want to. In order of priority:

1. Listen to the comm traffic, see if we can understand any of it. Easily done and we might get lucky.

2. Find out the state of the shipyard. If it's been stripped like the last one was, there's nothing here for us to even bother with.

3. Try not to be noticed yet. Surprise is a useful tactical weapon. Whatever we decide to do, it's better if we make the first move.

4. General system scans. What are the sensors like on the interceptor drones? Any chance we could send out a few as low-profile scouts to get a closer look at stuff?

>>15749451

You nutter, we don't even know what it is.

Let's see if we can pick up anything remotely intelligible from the radio traffic.

Be aware, you'll need to use active sensors to get detailed analysis from the system. This is about as subtle as a bullhorn inside a small office.

>>15749580
Use them.

>>15749580

Give us the results of the passive listening of comms traffic first.

>>15749580
I am aware.
Turn sensors to active and scan the system. I want data on the artificial structures, of the shipyard and what state it's in, and on any warships and their weapon systems.

>>15749580

Alright. Let's listen to the comm traffic and look for anything that looks related to any of the languages we know now. If we don't find anything we can make sense of let's proceed on an approach path to the gate. When we think we've been noticed, we'll perform an active scan and send out the standard "This is who we are, if you shoot you'll be sorry" message we used the last few times we did this. We'll need that active scan to decide what we do from there. We might end up just charging through the system again.

If we do find a language we can communicate in, let's use that to send the message and try talking with these guys. We'll perform an active scan as soon as the message to open negotiations is sent, and we'll proceed on a trajectory that will place us in a holding orbit near the gate until they tell us otherwise.

>>15749602

This. No harm doing a passive scan first. Then we can decide how to announce ourselves.

FIRE ALL THE NUKES GOD DAMN IT! THEN RAM IT! RAM IT WITH PARSON!

>>15749677

THEN BUMP IT GENTLY

Is Vedibere writing, or waiting for use to argue uselessly for the next 6 hours?

>>15749842
I'm not in the mood to argue today, with the heatwave over I just want to melt into a puddle. So I hope the former.

>Atmosphere
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=US55o1FAPYI

You sink into the command chair, dipping it back into the level reclined position and closing your eyes. Your conciousness flows, leaving your body active but in a light fugue state, able to communicate but little more. As you mused what feels like ages ago in the central core of a gate, combat between titans leaves little place for the trappings of flesh.

Passive sensors soak up the communications of the system before you, and as your ‘mind’ lumbers to war footing and your processing power expands you subject them to analysis. Unknown language, familiar protocols. Nearly identical to your own records for Ophidian civilian transmissions, in fact. But even more interesting is a sort of pattern. One of your more broad analysis algorithms finds some strange similarities between the language found here and the aliens... and the commonality seems to be your own language, the Standard Imperial Language for Galactic Communication and Interchange, also called Standard or Common.

You quickly run all five different languages you’ve uncovered (two aliens, one unity-alien, current alien, and Standard) through the system and compare... and the results are surprising. A root commonality. You expand on it, extrapolating for nearly sixty-five thousand years of evolution, debasement, and permutation; the results are astounding. Though there are still myriad rough spots and the vast majority of nuance is lost to you, you can decipher basic communications from the system in front of you. Nothing stands out, of course... just myriad standard transmissions, pulses of energy, telemetry data, garbled information broadcasts, and the like.

Still, that’s far from enough. Your mind spirals outward, delicate sensor fingers dancing across the objects floating within the space. Data begins to pour in even as enormous bursts of chatter fill the system. A mass of confusion overtakes the masses of ships and stations in the system as you plumb them with active sweeps, and you feel return signals being sent, at first broadly and gradually closing in. Weak, hardly worth noticing, but growing in strength as more vessels attempt to find out what is happening.

“Ivanova, begin analysis.” you state, running your own algorithms at the same time. She nods and pulls down the overhead display before replying,

“Sir, detecting the beginnings of return probes. Activate ECM to counteract?”

“Considering based on results, standby.”

“Sir.” Your digital logic engines crank away, as do the more mundane analysis of your crew, and soon you have results.

“Twelve planets, seven rocky and five gaseous. All of the rocky planetoids are colonized... no, more than that, swarming with life signs. Picking up lots of ships and stations, too many for me to analyze them all. Focusing on the largest.” Ivanova announces.

The gates are of course present, and the ships number over three thousand. Stations hover around each of the colonized worlds, eleven of them, and you detect no less than six vessels that you believe to be warships; between 700 and 1100 meters long.

The most intriguing thing of all, however, is the gigantic shipyard orbiting the largest of the gas giants. It swarms with ships and life signs, launching the largest of the warships from berth even as you watch.

>>15749889
Is that all?

Greetings, Stargazers!

We're here to use our shipyard, make the arrangements or be blown back to hell!


Hm, I reckon we could probably take them. All of them, but I wonder if maybe we're in Inheritor territory now. As much as I want to purge xenos, maybe we can talk to this lot first. Dunno how we'll work that out with what little we know between our languages, but I'd say trying to piece something rudimentary to one of the warships or stations to the tune of wanting to communicate and then worrying about figuring out how to do so more meaningfully.

But I'm utterly willing to turn this whole area into debris and glass should the majority will it.

>>15749889

Send a hail. Language as simple as possible.

"We are OIS Harbringer. We want to talk. Who is in charge?"

>>15749932
Were you expecting more?

>>15749889
Analyze the shipyard and the warships launching from it. Highest priority.

Heh, broadcast on all frequencies, our glorious anthem!

>>15749975
Sometimes it's hard to tell if you've stopped.

>>15749975
The way you left off, made it seem likely. Just wanted clarification.

>>15749889
1. Activate ECM.
2. Send a transmission to the Gates, and to the shipyard. See if we can handshake with their computer systems and if we can get our authorization recognized.
3. Send out a general hail on all used frequencies:
"This is the OIS Harbinger. Our records show that this shipyard is property of the Ophidian Empire. State the nature of your usage of Imperial property."

>>15749976
If you could have, you would have. You are over a light-day away and your interstellar sensors are down.

>>15750005
>You are over a light-day away

It would have helped to know this first.

Do the warships come to meet us? If so, what is their ETA?

So. They have a shipyard. They have enough legacy Ophidian culture that their language is roughly understandable. They have enough legacy Ophidian technology to make use of the shipyard, though nothing on our own scale.

Let's see if we can avoid a battle for now. General system broadcast in as best we can manage in their language, "This is the OIS Harbinger. We have returned. The system authorities are requested to identify themselves and respond."

No shooting. Yet. They're going to shit themselves and point a bunch of guns at us, but that's fine. We can take them if we have to, and it'll make them feel better while we talk to them.

Hail the ship yard. If anyone in this system knows our language it be the people left in charge of our tech. Even if that just means the lead scientist abaord it took our language in space college for an easy credit.

Meanwhile while we're beaming at it, send our codes to the station itself. See if it stills recognizes us at all. That information will likely assist in determining our next move.

>>15750005
What's the ETA at our current heading?
And what's the modified ETA if we move in closer to the system so that the shipyard gets in range for a more detailed scan?

I am of the opinion that we should move in closer in order to scan the shipyard in detail.

If the aliens here aren't completely panicking, they're going to deploy their ships in a defensive configuration.

If they're panicking, they're going to attempt an intercept against us. This is OK, since if we're going to have to fight them, we want to have the fight far away from anything important.

Either way, we have time to try talking to them, and talking them down from fighting. We want time in that shipyard, and we've got some tradegoods we can use to pay for it. We've also got a shitload of expertise. And finally, we can stop playing nice whenever we want and just take what we want, but seriously it will probably be much easier to just trade so don't hint at that directly. Obliquely, if at all ("Well Harbringer was the top warship of her day. We need some repairs, we're 64 thousand years past our warranty.").

Just for the sake of it being possible and no one else suggesting it.

Quickly see if any of our new arrivals have a knack for languages. Perhaps they could help once we have their attention. Unless it's Ketro.

>>15750087
Seconded.

Contact the Ophidian structures in the system, then send FTL tight beam to the largest warship stating our peaceful intentions and inquiring about their use of a yard that is the property of the OIS.

“Lieutenant, activate ECM.” you state, immediately feeling the waves of disruptive noise wash outward, obscuring everything about your ship. At the same time you compose a message, transferring it to Ensign Fie’s communications terminal; "This is the OIS Harbinger. Our records show that this shipyard and system is property of the Ophidian Empire. We require you to present your leader and state your intent."

At the same time, however, you send coded squirts to both the shipyard and gates in the system. While the reply from the living occupants of the system takes time, the mechanicals do not; All gates respond to your signals, but the shipyard either did not receive your communique or did not respond.

Soon, however, the biologicals respond as well, “We are the Essar’Sha, warriors of Indruss. I am Kulik tas Var, Hiserarch of the warship Obsidian Claw. It is we who require you to state intent, and our clutchmothers do not speak with outsiders. Approach with shields down and do not make any threatening gestures.”

You scan again, this time finding that the majority of the smaller ships have taken up orbits over the worlds or are in the process of docking with stations, whereas the larger ships have arrayed themselves at key points around the system.

>Wat do?

>>15750297
"We will not release our shields simply because you ask it. We do not trespass here. You occupy territory that belongs to us, though it has long been without our protection. You will answer our queries or you will answer our guns. This is your only warning. Respond immediately."

So they speak our language all right.

I suppose there's consensus to tell them that we are the OIS Harbinger. I don't think we should tell these grunts that we want the shipyards, lest they do something to damage them should this come to shooting.

I suppose we should simply claim we wish to take up diplomatic talks. Or simply open fire.

>>15750297
1. Respond
"We are making an accounting of all Ophidian Empire property. You will come to the transmitted coordinates with your shields down and your weapon systems uncharged.
"Your use of our equipment has been noted."

2. Attempt to contact the shipyard computer system again.

3. In the event that our demands are refused.
"Very well, Obsidian Claw. If you want to see us so badly, then you shall. We shall take no responsibility for any panic that may ensue amongst your civilian population.
"We will enter the edge of your system, and our shields will remain up. There is no further negotiation on this matter."

>>15750297

Good, they're not dumb.

Let's state our intent. "We want access to the shipyard, Obsidian Claw. We can trade expertise and material. Ours is the species that built the gates."

>>15750348
>>15750342

You do realize that 60,000 years is enough time for entire space-faring civilizations to rise and fall, and to only know the Empire as legend, right?

Let's be diplomatic here. Saying "THIS WAS ALL OURS AND STILL IS" is very offensive, no matter who you're talking to. We want access to that shipyard, and we want the shipyard in good shape. These guys aren't being completely unreasonable and they aren't just attacking outright.

We don't need to drop our shields until we've established some common ground here, and that involves establishing what each side of this conversation wants. Right now they don't want to get into a fight if they can help it. And we want access to the shipyards.

So we can start from there.

>>15750297

Taking down shields is fine, as long they do the same and approach with one ship

>>15750386
>>15750386

Listen to the voice of reason.

>>15750386
Having thought about it, I suppose that's true. One war monger sated for the timebeing.
>>15750404
I don't like the idea of taking ours down. Our hull is in shit shape, and I don't want some unknown super weapon to be fired at range at us without something to soften the blow. For now, taking down our shields is simply too much to ask.

>>15750366
Trade?! No! Why should we trade for what is rightly ours?

Down voting trade with the force of a thousand suns.

>>15750386

seconding.

We can always kill them after getting information from them willingly, after all!

>>15750386
>>15750404

Another vote for not taking down shields. And any trade should be in the form of, 'don't bother with hostilities. We are here to use our shipyard, and we'll use it whether you stand by and watch or stand by as scrap.'

>>15750467

We've been gone for 60,000 years is why. They've managed to 1) NOT destroy the shipyards. 2) Figure them out and use them properly 3) Keep their own system in good order 4) Remember our language.

These guys are the most responsible government we've found so far.

rolled 55 = 55

I too vote for not blowing everything up straight away like the last time.

We should stand where we are and nnot make any agressive movements, maybe tell them that we are not ready to come any closer. Maybe we could arrange some sort of holomeeting between whoever is in charge and us

>>15750520

They spoke of Hive Mothers. They've got a matriarchy of some sort, with their supreme leaders either being cloistered or politically impotent (think of Japan's emperor during the Tokugawa shogunate).

Let's at least try to be respectful and figure out who is the local leader with the political power required to allow us access to the shipyard.

Only planning for ten seconds into the future really makes it hard to write updates. What do you do if they say "Sure! Come on in!"? What do you do if they tell you to piss off? What do you do if they continue to demand you lower shields and enter the system? Ect. ect.

Give me a course of action. I can't write a real update with 'Message back to them "no u" with a picture of Parson's bum and then giggle.'

>>15750543

We should Message back to them "no u" with a picture of Parson's bum and then giggle.

Okay, seriously, we respond with a refusal to drop shields, and...

and...

Okay, I'm stuck.

>>15750543
As funny as an image as that is, there's little else we can do. We simply don't know anything about them, how they will respond or anything beyond what they've already done. Trying to plan beyond that much would result in the usual six hour arguments over things we're not sure of yet building courses of action that may not even be applicable.

We just need a touch more to go off of before we can figure out what to do in the long term.

>>15750297

"We are Harbinger, warship of Ophidia. The Gate was of our making, as were the other stations of this system. Our intent was to make use of them once more. Given the length of our absence it is natural they have not been left idle, so we will be understanding. We would prefer to see our goals met peaceably. You will have someone of the authority to negotiate on behalf of your people contact us." Do not power down shields, but keep the weapons cool unless they start making hostile moves.

>>15750543

Alright. We're going to tell them, straight up, that we're the race that built the gates. We'll tell them we have experts in many fields available whom they can consult with. And that we want access to the shipyard and that if such they can promise that such a thing can be arranged in the near future, we'll gladly cooperate with their reasonable request to drop our shields.

If they make an aggressive move, we send another message saying it's too bad they decided that they didn't want to negotiate, and then we'll fight them.

>>15750543
Then don't write a real update, write a 2 sentence one.

Tell them that we will NOT drop shields, but that we do not mean them harm.

Seeing as starting a battle here seems less than advantagous, we should probably start some form of negotioations, perhaps fly a shuttle with our body in it half way and demand that their high comand meet you on it?

>Sure! Come on in!
Send a Cordial Message thanking them, and warning them on the size of our vessel.

>piss off or continue Demands?
Power Up weapons, Raise Shields, and Move in Regardless. That Shipyard is Imperial Property, If they get hostile, a WARNING shot is in order, before we commence desolation.

Continue to refuse to drops shields. If they charge weapons, we charge weapons. We are using that shipyard, and if they want to try to stop us we will respond to force with force.

We can talk and try to find information about the state of the galaxy and more about them, but by no means should we trade valuable materials or information or act all friendly.

rolled 22 = 22

>>15750619
>>15750628

no shield dropping, but combination of these. DO tell them that we are warship from ancient past and thats why dropping the shields would be rather.. uncomfortable.

>>15750657

They're the most civil group we've met so far, shooting them won't keep things that way.

is the large shipyard even big enough for the Harbinger?

>>15750543

Okay, general course of action. We're the Gatebuilders, we're here for our stuff. Since we've been gone so long we'll recognize a certain level of squatter's rights to them. If they play nice we won't smash anything up, and if they're helpful we'll see about doing them a favor or two. They can escort us if they please and our weapons will remain locked, but the shields stay up till they've proven their own good intentions.

>>15750676
Shooting them, and Shooting at them with a warning shot isnt the same thing.

There is a distinct lack of Destroyed ships with warning shots.

If they choose to escalate the conflict after that, then thats their business.

>>15750543
We will not lower our shields until we see the xenos do the same.
We tell them that we built the Gate, and the shipyard, and that we're here to make use of our property.
We move the Harbinger in closer to the shipyard and do an active scan of its status as soon as we're in range.

If the aliens submit to our demands, that's fine, and we enter the system proper without any problems.
If they don't cooperate, we simply ignore them and move in towards the shipyard.

If they fire on us, we respond in kind with point-defense lasers and railguns.

>>15750619

add "We have no hostile toward your people. Harbringer has been lost to the galaxy for ages and seeks answers."
and i'm good with that.

As for what to do after...

if they are willing to share information:
"What do you know of the Ophidian Empire?"
"Do you know of humanity? (if yes: Where might we find them?)"
"How did your people come to possess this system?"
"Do you know of [civ bird guy came from]? Are they your friend or foe?"
"What other peoples might we find nearby?"

if they attack:
Destroy their warships, destroy their defense stations.

demand surrender of their shipyard or we'll glass their planets.

>>15750713
No.
This shipyard was rated for frigates. We came here in the hopes of being able to do some more in-depth repairs and possibly picking up sensor array parts.

>>15750766
These people represent an intelligence gathering opportunity if we can end these negotiations on good terms.

They may know where an intact full shipyard is.

Where was our ship built? Wasnt it at earth?

>>15750819

Yeah but it's a long ways away.

>>15750819
Yes it was.

"We intend to use the Ophidian capital shipyard you just launched from to effect repairs to our vessel. We demand to speak with someone with the authority to ensure the peaceful behavior of the warships in this system, until we have assurance of safe passage we will not enter the system and you will not approach the Harbinger."

Try and negotiate for safe usage of the shipyards, we need to speak to someone who can make that happen. We will inform the highest authority we can speak to that your empire built the gates and the shipyards, and we feel that as such we have a right to their use.

So objectives:
1 Speak with someone in authority.
2 Negotiate safe passage. Make sure that they are aware of the consequences of breaking this agreement.
3 Negotiate use of shipyards, offer something in recompense.
4. Attempt to determine the state of the imperial infrastructure in the system.
5. If they let us use the shipyard see what we can do to restore functionality if they haven't got it in good enough shape to have it make repairs on us. Repair priority to the hull breaches and the reactor, after that the shields and drives.
5. Try and extract information about the state of the galaxy.
6. See if we can have Ketro make a program that will shut down the gates remotely (hopefully by locking out anyone expect OIS military personel), he would presumably know their code so hopefully there is a way to do this. Locking down gates in a system would be a good way of establishing ourselves as the ones who built them.

“Your terms are unacceptable. We are an Ophidian Navy warship, the same race that built the gates and shipyard at you are using even now. We will not lower our shields, and we require access to the shipyard.” you respond.

Their reply is, of course, predictable, “The shipyards of the Essar’Sha are not for the likes of those who refuse to show themselves. If you wish to remain shielded so be it, but show your claws and you will be destroyed.”

Well, it’s a start.

“Engines firing, we’re going in.” you state.

At your comment, however, Lt. Rinn looks over with a frown. “We’re not actually gonna let these scum tell us what to do, are we cap’n?”

“No matter our course of action, Lieutenant, we need to get closer. Even if only to close to weapons range. I want an analysis of their tech as soon as able.”

“Aye, sir.” the man says, turning back to his console even as you fire engines. The transition takes several hours, but eventually you move into the solar system proper. As soon as you transition in you note a half dozen warships closing on your position. The largest transmits a message, “This is the Obsidian Claw. Unknown vessel, hold position and disengage jamming. Weapons fire of any sort will be regarded as acts of hostility.”

>>15750932
Are their weapons capable of breaching our shields in a short amount of time?

>>15750932

Is that it? If so, I recommend we disengage jamming, and then attempt active scans of them. Then do what >>15750918 says

>>15750932

Disengage jamming?

So Parson is playing some funky rhymes to them in his drug induced madness? FIND HIM

>>15750619

Seconding this because it makes sense. We want to talk, gain info, and negotiate. We need someone with the authority to do so on their side.

>>15750932
If possible, lower the power output of the ECM so that it still prevents their scans but is less obvious as an area-effect. If it cannot be done, disengage jamming, for now.
Immediately begin scanning the Obsidian Claw and its escorts, feeding the data to Rinn for analysis.
Also feed any data concerning propulsion and power source to Dai for analysis.

Transmit:
"Obsidian Claw, we have been more than patient with you thus far. Have you procured a representative with the authority to treat with us?"

If so, or the captain of the Claw says he will, then begin laying out our terms: access and cooperation with the shipyard as we effect our repairs. They will stay away and not attempt to take any of our technology.

>Unknown vessel, hold position and disengage jamming

Fuck that. Relay a This is who we are, and what we are doing. The terms are non negotiable Speech. Then Move in. Power up weapons to get the point across if need be.

>>15750932

Can we also get confirmation on scans that this is indeed the original human shipyard? Is it possible that the original was destroyed and that this race built one on their own? We know they're using our gates, but the shipyard not responding has me worried a bit.

okay, I'm not suggesting it but heres the hardball option.

Send them a picture of the little present we have in our control room. Tell them what it is and what it does. Tell them that we can outjump the blast (a lie) and the gates cannot (truth).

Then tell them again that we want to treat with someone immediatly.

>>15750918

I'm generally on board with this. We can humor these aliens to a certain degree, holding for a little while and dropping the ECM. We're guests, so we should be polite as long as we don't let them actually push us around.

Our goals are use of a shipyard and information. Negotiations are the preferable way of gaining them, but a show of power like remotely deactivating the Gate would be a nice bargaining tool.

Ha ha yeah let's turn the gate off and say, "Look, we're seriously the race that made the gates."

>>15751136
>remotely deactivating the Gate would be a nice bargaining tool.
Well, we have military authorization codes so we can override their commands, but actual deactivation requires physical disconnection.

That might be a project for Dr. Ketro: find a means of remote shutdown of Gates. It doesn't have to be permanent, just a few thousand years or so.

Oh Ved!
So much better than the last 3 threads!
Actual updates, you NOT waiting for trillions of neckbeards to argue out every detail

Good going boy, keep em coming, I really do enjoy your writefaggotry (albeit participating in all the discussion is not to my liking)


Good Job :)

>>15751178

So what if they can turn it back on if they have a man at the controls? We'll have demonstrated our point.

>>15751186
Seconding these sentiments. Just becuase showing gratitude from time to time is important.

>>15751178
>>15751160
So much this.
Show em who we are - in a non violent way!
(For now, if they do not coordinate: Engage all enemy vessels, make a point out of glassing the planet simply to show that we can)

>>15751178
Fucking Ketro, this is the perfect project for that ass, figure out a way to cripple his greatest creations.

or we could have him figure out a way to weaponise them.... if they're accelerating things could they be used as ultra massive cannons, or are they point to point teleportation? I assume the latter, but the possibilities for the former are too enticing to ignore

>Hey, I have an idea! Let's turn off the gates remotely!

I don't even know what to say anymore.

>>15751202
Then they will be aware of the exploit, and take steps to prevent its use again.

They may attempt to duplicate it and weaponize it against other local civs.

Best save that ace up our sleeve until we need it.

>>15751229
There's several planets, right?
If peaceful demonstration of power does not work: Glass one world only, subjugate the others - Ophidian style!

>>15751234
Look at the bright side, we're slowly improving!

>>15751234
Look, I know you said that Gate deactivation requires a crew to be on-site in order sever certain physical connections.
But that's not the only way to disable a Gate; just the most straightforward and 'correct' way.

We can make the Gate unusable to the xenos by forcing a military override and having it connect to some random other Gate in its subnet.
Every time the operators try to enter a Gate sequence, the override kicks in and either engages an emergency cycle-down of the Gate, or forces it to choose randomly.

>>15751234

well goddamn Dai working on some sort program/virus that deletes any other acces codes but our personal, so the gates would be online just not activating for these xenos

>>15751234

hey, we could try nudging them :P

i'd say blow the everliving crap out of everything. leave nothing behind, etc. they got working shipyards and we sure as hell aren't gonna let them use them without our permission.

>>15751234
The gates did respond.
We have their creator aboard.
Consult him for options of remote manipulation of the gates to prove who we are.

I second the
>Ophidian style
If they will not cooperate we nuke em to hell and back

>>15751273
>Suggest something that vedi has said no to before
>Vedi says no again
>Tell vedi he is wrong and we can
oh /tg/

>>15751234
hey, we havent suggesting ramming our way into the dock and doing repairs while fighting off everyone else in the system yet, but give us time and the tiniest hint and damn well we'll try it!

>>15751086
I second this.

>>15751327
The shipyard is meant for frigates. Unless they've expanded it significantly, we won't fit. Which means that forcing our way in will only ensure that nobody will ever want it again, so loose it will be.

>>15751234
So the gates have no programing at all? I am proposing that the guy who made the damn things could probably figure out a way to make it so that a new protocol was required to use them, with that protocol being tied to OIA codes. It doesn't have to be unbreakable or make them unusable from the other side, it just has to be a quick intrusion to establish our bonafides.

These gates must have gravity control at unbelievable levels.

A level of control that would allow one to focus background radiation with a simple gravity lens, then condense and direct it at will. Bada bing bada boom you have the mother of all MASERS.

TL:DR - Every system with a gate is a system with a planet killing Coherent Microwave Cannon waiting for us to pull the trigger.

We should get the good doctor on this. If he has not already, as a black ops option for the military.

>>15751318
We were able to override the Gate controls back in the Federation when we were busting our way through to Larant.
Are you saying that we can't do that here, for some reason?

>>15751389
This isn't Schlock Mercenary!

>>15751396
We sent Dai and a team of engineers aboard it to shut it down, you retard.

>>15751418
What the fuck are you talking about?
We shut down the Gate IN the Larant system, but we took remote control of EVERY GATE WE USED TO GET THERE.

>>15751442
Of course you can use the gate remotley. but to SHUT IT DOWN you have to have a TEAM do it.

>>15751442
So what? We took remote control to use the gate like it was supposed to be used going from one place to another that doesn't mean we can magically do completely different things.

Vedi already said no anyway so why are you even arguing?

>>15751457
And I offered alternatives to shutting it down, alternatives which make the Gate unusable to the locals without actually disabling the Gate's systems.

Why would a physical team be required to transmit a queue of randomly selected Gates from this subnet, that this system's Gate is to contact, without allowing the locals to enter in their own set of coordinates?

>>15751347
this
most likely there will be no need for us to go messing with the gate just to squash some slithering xeno scum, these bastards are claiming Ophidian property as their own and need to be put in their place

although on the off chance that the scans show they are well equipped be reasonably cooperative although do not allow the ship to be put in a subjective position to the aliens, then work with this mess with the gate scheme.

"Captain...? You have not said anything for several minutes. Is something wrong?"

"I AM DEBATING."

Better idea:

we absolutely NEED to use this dry dock. Instead of offering threats and hostilities, let's do something intelligent and offer trade.

We still haven't offloaded all that crap in the cargo bays right? We were just gonna space it anyway. Why not use it for the use of the dock? We've already established we're the big scary guys, and sufficiently intimidated them.

Unless we intend to kill everything in the system excluding the shipyard, or we intend to run like a big ophidian pussy, the smart thing to do - the HUMAN thing to do - is TRADE.

>>15751512
I don't like what you are implying there.

The thing hum,ans would do here is purge everything, and take back what is ours. We're only toying with the idea of dealing with them because we lack the facilities otherwise required to repair ourselves.

>>15751347

This, Instead of Fuck-Stupid ideas to try and remotely shut a gate down that cant be shut down remotely.

>>15751512
even better idea:

kill everything. we get undisputed access, and don't have to worry about some damn xenos messing things up in the future because we helped them.

>>15751525
Then purge everything.

But think about it - this is going to be a very large scale conflict. What are the odds that dry dock is going to survive it? What are the odds they'll call in reinforcements from the gate?

It's the most practical thing to do here.

Heh, we haven't given you too much to work with. Sorry about that, but are you writing or still waiting for us, Vedibere?

Writing, fear not. This might be a long one.

>>15751626
'Kay, warmly waiting.

>Hey, Vedibere-kun, Vedibere-kun!
>Hmm?
>Can we just lightly bump them?
>No.
>Ophidiuuuun~

Thank you for putting up with us Vedibere.

>>15751644
I loled

>>15751644
Oh god, I lol'd.

Well played, sir.

>>15751651
No problem, I do wish people would read the previous threads though.

>>15751702
>No problem, I do wish people would read the previous threads though.
Hey, I did read through the previous threads and no one, especially you, said that the Gates were immune to DOS attacks, especially ones that use a valid and recognized military ID.

>>15751728
The first gate, and the one where we killed the looters. Both times we had to send people on board the thing.

>>15751728
>trys to justify himself after DM says NO

>>15751733
I was under the impression that the first gate we needed a team because it had been thoroughly disabled by the OIA when they left the system.

And when we destroyed the looters we wanted to stop incoming transit too, I thought that maybe it would be possible to make the gates require a password for outgoing transit.

But hey, if it is impossible it is impossible, I just wish we could come up with some way to demonstrate the legitimacy of our claim and our destructive capabilities without actually destroying something or wasting a lot of resources.

hey, i was just wondering, but why does our millitary id work still? they thought we were gone, probably blown to all hell or (more likely) abandoned the empire, and therefore were a threat. why would they still let us have working codes?

if anything, every time we use our codes shit should blow up in our faces...

>>15751759
We can institute a password system, but I would imagine we'd need to install some hardware for that, and odds are they'll either crack it or remove it eventually anyway.

>>15751733

And now we have the Gate's designer on our team. I suspect some of us thought this might give us remote overrides instead of having to get inside and unplug the damned thing. If we were wrong, no big, plenty of other things to try.

>>15751782
He'd require further ship access to do anything of importance.
We aren't willing to give it to him.

>>15751760
You have no idea, but it's a very good question. Why /would/ they do that? It doesn't make any sense at all, especially from a security standpoint. Not only that, but why are your codes stored in things constructed AFTER you vanished like the gates?

Hmmm.....

(Kudos points for finally getting that, by the way.)

Voidquest.

Serving Size - 5 updates
Servings per Thread - 1.75

Content - 100+posts
Content from OP - 5 posts.

Ingredients by volume.
Bickering 30%, Waiting for OP 20%, Urges to love xenos 10%, Urges to purge xenos 10%, Coherent suggestions 8%, Incoherent statements 7%, Bump them Gently out of the way with a warship 6%, Blame Parson 5%, Shut down the Gates by Remote 3%, Image Macros >.9%, Storyline progression Posts <.1%

>>15751760
This is good detective work here. We should look into this.

>>15751795
Man, I thought of that awhile back and just assumed it was a plot hole.

>>15751807

>>15751807
That's a good assessment, I think. *shrugs*

Oh, there's all sorts of questions about our codes. In a civil war the first thing you do is change all your command codes. So if we're using general Ophidian codes why would they still work? If they are Harbinger's personal codes, then perhaps they weren't purged from the system in the hope that we'd return someday. The Asura did talk about waiting for us.

But it also said we killed it. So it's hard to know how much of what it said to take literally, and how much was coming through a lens of madness and age. Ketro and his team haven't seemed to ascribe any huge significance to use being the Harbinger, besides what we already expected. There's lots of questions, and not really enough to even speculate substantially.

>>15751795

the anti-Parsons must have something to do with it...

Maybe our codes only work in the areas that considered us an ally. Perhaps they will not in areas that did not (Sol).

>launching the largest of the warships from berth even as you watch

Oh boy, they launched a new flagship just in time for us to blow it up!

>>15751967

From the sound of it,
>What battle?
they might have been put in cryo before shit seriously went down.

>>15752049
I've been considering that myself. And, if so, why were they on the Asura? Surely a prime warship wouldn't be tasked with simple transport duty, even if they were high-tech cutting-edge research people. Something else must have happened, but what?

>>15752068
The inventor and chief designer of the gate system is a little bit more than a high-tech cutting-edge research person. The information in his brain would be of incredible value to any of the factions involved in the war.

An even better question is, what wiped out three Ophidian warships and didn't leave any wreckage behind?

>>15752068
perhaps they were concerned about their capture, and used the Asura as a safety measure. they were frozen when they left, to be unthawed after they arrived at the station.

or they were a danger to the Armada (or whatever faction) but they thought they would be useful later on after the war.

>>15752086
That is true, but something about it is just nagging at me at the back of my brain. It just seems off, for some reason.

Here's something I just thought of: what are the odds that of all the trillions, if not further amounts of humans in the galaxy, we find eleven high-tech specialists specially preserved in cryo in the vault of the ship that we ourselves served on? And not only that, but that one of them just happens to be the designer of the gate system? Seriously, it's almost too perfect. Scratch that, it IS too perfect.

They've mentioned that they were in route somewhere to be woken up before they arrived at (wherever).

Personally, I find it strange that the captain saved them over his crew. Is that within character for what we knew of him?

Also, Ophidian ships could've have been what attacked and we wouldn't be able to tell which side they were on without going through their logs.

>>15752149
Follow the white rabbit.

>>15752105

AN ELDER EVIL FROM BEYOND THE GATES

...or so I thought until we went through one and everything was fine and apparently aliens have been using them quite normally for tens of thousands of years.

>>15752163
We really must see how deep this rabbit hole goes.

“Lieutenant Rinn, analysis of their weapon systems?” your body says, even as you flick your sensors over the enemy ships. Static meets them, obvious jamming, but your sensors cut through the interference and get respectable readings.

“Form shields,” the white-haired man calls out, “three, four times more powerful than the ones on the last alien craft we encountered. No idea how they compare to ours without seeing a weapon impact.”

“The weapon systems?”

The big man scowls, “Hot, sir. I’m seeing point defense, rail cannons, missiles, and some other stuff I’m not sure about. Also that biggest one, the Obsidian Claw, looks like it might have something we can’t see. Doors on the front are closed.”

“Situation analysis?” you state, wishing to hear the experienced veteran’s opinon.

“Hmmm. Tactically speaking we’re in an unknown situation. Their weapons are armed and they might just be waiting for us to flinch to fire. If we lower our ECM then they’ll get scans on us and see exactly how bad off we are, and that might be the flinch they are looking for.”

“Course of action?”

He shakes his head, “Don’t know, sir, but lowering our defenses is suicide. We can’t trust them, they don’t know us and we don’t know them. Plus, they’re aliens.”

Your optics flick over to your second, still at the sensor station pouring over the logs, “Ivanova, your assessment?”

She looks up and over at your body, hooking her black hair back over her ear, “An impasse, sir. Unless we submit to their demands then they will just refuse us access at best. But if we do so then we are helpless. Without something to gauge us by then they have no reason to act in our favor and every reason to refuse.”

“Noted.” you give a mental frown and withdraw back into your system, becoming the ship itself. Even now high intensity beams of energy course over your hull, trying to pry secrets from you that you stubbornly refuse to yield. All around the glittering sparkle of stars and, now close at hand, the largest of the inhabited planets. The large ship, Obsidian Claw, has taken up position between you and the glittering blue-green sphere, arraying the other five ships on the cardinal axes around you.

Off in the distance you ‘see’ the gate, and the glittering shipyard... heavily modified from any Ophidian design, you see now. Almost entirely reconstructed, and what parts of the original remain appear to have been heavily repaired with xenos work. Even now smaller vessels dart around it and communication flicks between it and the various planetoids. Signs of life and function, no matter the creator.

You are drawn from your informational reverie by Ensign Fie; “Captain, message from the command ship. They, uh, don’t sound happy.”

You analyze it and, despite the lack of significant emotional cues or subtle inflections are forced to agree.

“Unknown ship Harbinger. We restate; cease your ECM and lower your shields. Comply and your [persons] well be treated respectfully. Do not and we shall bring our [claws] to bear. This is the final call.”

Enough. You prepare a message and transmit to Ensign Fie’s console, then to the enemy vessels; “This is the OIS Harbinger, warship of the Ophidian Armada. We will not lower our shields and our ECM will remain until we are satisfied with the situation. You have been making use of Imperial property and we currently require it. Acknowledge.”

“They’re not going ot like that, sir.” Tynes says offhandedly, and you give a mental shrug.

“Well too bad for them.” you reply smugly, waiting for the response.

It is not long in coming.

“Enemy launching fighter craft.” Ivanova calls, followed by Tynes’ confirmation.

“Enemy weapons firing.” Rinn this time, and you feel the impacts. Lasers dance across your shielded skin, searching for a weakness even as rail-slugs hurtle toward you. Missiles blossom in the void, each ship loosing a salvo a hundred large and filling the pure nothingness with icy white exhaust crystals aplenty.

>OH SHIT BATTLE WAT DO?

>>15752200
What the hell do you think? Return fire. Mark capital ships as priority targets. Obsidian Claw maximum priority.

Well, we don't know what they have in store for us, but they probably expect us to concentrate on their larger ship, the claw.

I say pick off the smaller ones. Hit the ones in between the claw and the farthest ones, then pick of the farthest save the claw for last where we can go toe to toe unimpeded.

Hopefully all the debris will cause hell on their sensors.

>>15752200
Blow the Obsidian Claw out of the sky.

>>15752243

Pop one of the little singularity bombs on their biggest ship. Saturate their point defenses, make sure it's got good cover. We want to kill their flagship and then ask if they're willing to talk /now/.

>>15752200
Crank ECM up to 11, Deploy drones in interceptor patrols to tackle their fighters, hit their flag ship with everything we have.

Gut the fucker with our own claws.

Oh, and after gutting them. Transmit on all channels "Next?"

Return fire, blow our load onto the Obsidian Claw before it gets a chance to use whatever it's planning to use. It'll lower their morale considerably if we destroy it within the first seconds of battle too.

We can follow up with a bluff that destroying the Obsidian Claw was only a fraction of our power.

>>15752263
It's not a bluff as long as we don't use the clustereater.

>>15752200
Point defense lasers attempt to take out railgun slugs and missiles alike, prioritize on proximity and threat level. Also, scan those missiles to see what kind they're deploying.

Launch our own fighters to intercept, fire some lower-class missiles in conjunction to take out some of the enemy fighters ahead of ours.

Since we know we can get into their computer systems now, begin cyber warfare, attempt to hack into their ships, beginning with the Obsidian Claw.

Hit the Claw first.

Unknown weapons make me paranoid. We should find out what kind of gun it is during the post battle salvage, not during mid battle damage control.

Take it out. Take it out hard. Take it out fast.

>>15752200

nukes. nukes everywhere.

manuever to avoid the slugs from the railguns that we can. good thing we ditched all that extra mass...

take down that damned Obsidian claw, ASAP. use an antimatter volley if we have to, but try with the nukes first. those are easy to make, and when we mop the floor with these fellows we can get the locals to make us more.

>>15752270

No, we have one cluster-eater. We've got smaller singularity bombs, ones that put out an obscene amount of energy and then boil away because they're too small to sustain themselves.

Fire Everything we can at their Capital Ship, Have the drones intercept the fighters. Well let the point Defense lasers Take out as many of the missiles as we can. I would recommend Evasive maneuvers, but then i remembered we are 2km long.

Lets try and sneak a singularity warhead through the crossfire, if it conects the pay off is probably going to be molten slag where their ship used to be.

It is not long in coming.

“Enemy launching fighter craft.” Ivanova calls, followed by Tynes’ confirmation.

I like that kind of talk! Let's blow their flagship out of the fucking sky! I wonder if we could do it in such a way that would make salvage a possibility. (only to study the unknown weapon not to put it on our ship)

Also, is the claw the ship we saw leaving docks just now?

OH SHIT OH SHIT

Launch drones, charge weapons. Our objective is to crush the flagship immediately and swat the chaff from the air.

Then we ask if the other ships will be more cooperative.

Return fire. Rail batteries to target whatever looks best, missiles and lasers to focus on the "obsidian claw." Attempt to position the ship in such a way that we avoid the enemy unknown weapons.

Use our drones to kill enemy drones, protect ourselves from missiles, and hit in a) targets of opportunity, b) strike in conjunction with our other weapons.

Also, can we mix in small numbers of singularity warheads (like 2-10 of them) with a nuclear barrage and control the missiles so that the less valuable and more numerous missiles shield for the singularity payload against hypothetical enemy point defense? I assume that an EI can optimise weapons on that scale.

>>15752327
I just have to say, kudos on the image. I love that episode, it makes me want a spaceship control room simulator. Seriously, how many of us would pay for something like that?

Well, they made their choice. Show of force time. We've got six ships surrounding us. Let's do our best to destroy them all in as quick and brutal a display of power as possible, starting with the Claw. Nothing from the irreplaceable stocks in the first salvo, we're still really not sure how squishy they are and it'd be a shame to waste it.

Let's open up with lances, railguns, and a full missile salvo. Point defense on the fighter craft, with drone interceptors launched as a second wave. Target the Claw first, and if it dies quickly follow up on the other five ships.

If they die quickly, pull our drones back in and retransmit our original message like nothing worth mentioning happened. If they're tough enough to put up a fight, focus fire on the Claw then punch through to the homeworld to take it hostage.

>>15752200
>be a 2km warship
>DO A BARREL ROLL!

Give me some rolls.

Let's say...

2d100, 3d10, and a d3

rolled 70, 12 = 82

>>15752391
2d100

rolled 96, 61 = 157

ROLLAN OUT

rolled 1, 5, 4 = 10

>>15752391
3d10

rolled 2 = 2

>>15752391
1d3

rolled 9, 44 = 53

FOR THE EMPIRE

WHELP we're dead. Good show gentlemen.

>>15752368
perhaps if we threaten to nudge the planet...

>>15752422
Gently, of course.

>>15752419
I, for one, blame Parson.

>>15752391
ready the repair drones and scatter them throughout the ship the largest concentrations being within the already damaged parts of the ship, although i would like to think this was already a given

also be generous with the plasma/energy beams, nothing like faster than light rods of lazor-like awesome to put some fear into the backbone of your foe

rolled 2 = 2

>>15752419
indeed. and if i may say, it has been an honour serving with you all.

>>15752440
>fear into their backbones
if xenos even have backbones.

Hm, we need someone to stand on our prow and shake a sword at them. Preferably while yelling.

>>15752391
Let's hope the dice gods are favorable this day...

>>15752458
lol

>>15752458
apparently not...

rolled 29, 95 + 3 = 127

>>15752458
Er...sorry, let's try again...

>>15752480
lol

>>15752480
Gods damnit...Vedibere, I hope you can just use those three numbers, because I can't fucking use tg-dice....

>>15752514
don't worry, we already rolled. mediocre except (possibly) the d100's.

either we got 81 or 157

but Vedibere said he uses them primarily if he's stuck between two ideas.

>>15752532
i need to stop jumping the gun there...

anyways, i wouldn't worry TOO much about the rolls for that reason. there might be negative consequences but not assuredly.

rolled 66, 94 = 160

For the hell of it I'll roll too.

>>15752452

Do you imagine they can still feel fear? These xeno heathens?

Do you think buried deep within their godless bones, they are able to feel the shrill shriek of terror? Agony? Anguish?

If not before, then they should after this day! What passes for blood would run chill in their heretic veins!

>>15752532
Indeed, they don't effect your combat abilities or anything. They just help me decide which of the scenarios I am thinking of that I actually use.

You guys got an interesting one this time. Done soon(ish).

>>15752689
>interesting

IT'S THE END OF THE WORLD

FUCKFUCKFUCKFUCKFUCKFUCK

>>15752734
EXECUTE KETRO AND PARSONS

>>15752689
>interesting one

>>15752747
TIE THEM TO THE CLUSTEREATER

THROW IT AT THE XENOS

PRAY LIKE FUCK

If they use our language and our technology, wouldn't it be a hoot if they used our self-destruct protocols?

Try it out. Just for kicks.

>>15752773
You, sir.
You are awesome. Have my internets. All of them.

>>15752734
>>15752747
>>15752759
>>15752765

SELF DESTRUCT SEQUENCE INITIATED!

>>15752773
Even in the slim chance that is the case, I doubt self-destruct can be activated remotely.

>>15752689
I no longer feel like a terrible person, thank you. Also: interesting could simply mean interesting, guys. In the words of a very wise book editor: Don't Panic.

I vote we blow up the gates if we start to lose this fight.

In fact. We should blow up the gates of any system we jump into that has a xeno civilization present that is using them.

Most likely they do not have jump engines, we do. We dont need the gates. They do.

Divide and conquer. Isolate and Eradicate.

>>15752773
They speak our language in the same way that English is Proto-Indo-European.

>>15752802
Yeah, but the gates are way more convenient to use than the jump drives.

Sure, they'll be crippled temporarily. But then they'd develop their own jump drives in a few decades. Can't have that.

>>15752802
>>15752813
Yes, better to save shutting down the gates as a trump card.

>>15752734

Damn, we keep getting cockblocked by all these xenos. Once we get repairs effected, we're coming back and acting like a goddamn top-tier warship again.

>>15752847
Let's just hope they don't blow up anymore suns at us, or we'll have to do it all again.

>>15752847
>we will never be 100% to specification again.

>Atmosphere:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WY8bZ2Lpg0I

“Countermeasures, launch drones, all hands /battlestations/!” you announce, sounding the battle alert throughout the ship.

Thousands of drone interceptors pour from your hangers even as the various men and women run to their posts. Your bridge crew is cool as ice, fulfilling their duties with clarity and efficacy. Already Tynes is maneuvering in supplies to re-equip your drone fleet and Rinn is marking likely weak points in enemy shields. Fie monitors the enemy communications, attempting to crack them, and Ivanova calmly and effectively manages her dual postings as both sensors and XO with true mastery. You also note in passing that while your crew is calm and collected many of the scientists are making simple mistakes in haste or panic.

You have other things to occupy your attention, however, and they quickly do. You fire engines and rotate the ship, bringing your largest contingent of point defense lasers to bear on the densest cluster of missiles. The small, bright points of death dance about, dodging around your myriad tiny defense beams... yet fall short, the entire salvo detonating as you whisk your superheated blades of light across them. Your own missiles fire now as well, whisking away in a thousandfold salvo from your launch ports and coating your hull in a fine cloud of white ice-like crystals.

>>15752864
We could always blow up their suns on our way out.

Enemy point defenses home in on them, but the tiny combat jump-drives flick the deadly payloads in and out of existence, leaving reality and appearing ever closer to their targets any time a beam threatens to touch home. Then detonation, enormous radiant points of light and EM energy from the nuclear explosions... engulfing the enemy drones and clearing the path for your own. Enormous holes in the flights of enemy drones -- no, not drones you note. They are all manned -- are quickly filled with your own interceptors. Thousands of them swarm into combat with the enemy, their light lances flaying the foe.

You fire your engines once more, burning forward and emerging from the streaming cloud once again. Trails of mist stream from your jet-black form, showing you for what you are; a ghost ship, emerging from the mists of time to impose your will on the universe once more. And impose it you shall.

Railgun slugs begin impacting your shields and you frown. Medium railguns, and though they begin working your dissipators there is no damage to the integrity of your shields. Lasers follow, and you note the warships firing globs of superheated plasma as well. You pay them no heed, though. Instead you turn to your main target, the focus of your ire. The enemy flagship, the Obsidian Claw.

The kilometer-long ship has begun retracting the doors on its prow and is firing salvo after salvo of rails at you, impacting heavily. The largest of them, an axial-mounted cannon, thuds into you and actually manages to briefly overwhelm your dissipation abilities, dropping shield integrity a percentage point for an instant.

This will not stand.

>>15752866
This sucks.

But maybe we can hijack a less-important shipyard and retool it for ourselves?

Or at least make our own little fleet of lesser ships so that we're not always risking ourselves.

REAL SUGGESTION: Deploy drones as screens against missile attacks.

“Heavy lances, preparing to fire.” you state flatly, “Lieutenant Rinn, I’ll be firing these in sequence to help gauge enemy strength. Prepare for analysis.”

“Aye, sir.” The man grunts, a feral smile coming to his lips, “Kill ‘em dead.”

“Power diverting, charged, ready to fire at your will, Captain.” Ivanova says.

You turn, spinning in place and bringing your ship in line with the enemy. Maximum weapon focus, maximum firepower. Three working heavy mounts supporting a total of four heavy energy cannons. The pride of the Empire.

“Fire one.”

And one is enough.

The lance of brilliant light blasts forth, a deadly touch brighter than a hundred stars. The shields of the Claw buckle instantly, the lance ripping through the entirety of the ship’s axis and exiting through the aft... continuing on, striking the glittering alien homeworld far below. You watch as light blossoms at the lance’s needlepoint, a ten-thousand square kilometer area vaporized in an instant -- the resulting mushrooming cloud of dust from the impact visible even from space.

Your target is even worse off, enormous explosions ripping across and throughout the ship’s hull. Even as you gaze upon it the vessel twists and buckles, beginning to twist and shred in the middle and split into halves. Whatever the secret weapon it was hiding behind the doors was, at the very least you don’t need to worry about that now.

You turn your attention back to the remaining five vessels and swarm of fighters swirling across the intervening distance. Surprisingly, none of them have ceased their attack. Indeed, you think they are perhaps closing the distance and fighting harder. The same can be said for the enemy fighters, absolutely shredded from the one-two punch of missiles and drones but showing no signs of breaking or retreat at all.

MY HEART IS BURNING WITH PRIDE

“Sir, a moment.” Ivanova says, and you return your focus to the bridge. “I’m detecting an energy blossom on the planet below. It’s almost all a megacity but there’s an area that is clear of advanced habitation. They’re doing something.”

“Thank you, Lieutenant.” you say, tracing the coordinates she gave. Indeed, her assessment was dead on... while there are a few very tall metallic spires you note that, unlike the rest of the planet, this area is not covered by the multi-mile high skyscrapers that dominate the majority.

>Wat do now?

>>15752888
...

I feel like a badass again.

>>15752891
Not gonna matter, our drones and missiles just proved their superiority.

>>15752898
OUR HEART IS A BLACK HOLE THAT CREATES ENOUGH ENERGY TO POWER THE MOST POWERFUL WARSHIP THE GALAXY HAS EVER SEEN FOREVER

AND IT HOLDS NOTHING BUT
>Pride

>>15752902

destroy the remaining warships and then clear space around our objective : the shipyard

>>15752902
ground-to-space missile defense?

Could be a problem.

Does our ECM capability extend to mucking up enemy systems? If so, making the missiles detonate prematurely, or just closing the silo doors, would be best.

If not, point defense and drone shield, like I suggested earlier. The drones should array themselves to intercept missiles likely to bypass our point defense. (I have no idea of our laser coverage).

In the meantime, use our wonderful, wonderful heavy lances to strafe the active area.

Time to blow shit up.

>>15752893
Well, now that they cant really hurt us anymore....
...and since we're lined up with the planet ANYWAY...
....target their population centers, and fire 2, 3, and 4.

i think we should target the energy blossom with a heavy lance. it may be their "SECRET WEAPON". we should also broadcast a general "surrender or die, we can do this as much as we want" message to the aliens.

>>15752948
...target that patch of not-city first.

We should send a message out on all channels.

"YOUR GREATEST [CLAW] HAS BEEN EASILY DESTROYED.
CEASE ALL HOSTILITIES NOW AND THE REST SHALL BE SPARED."

I want to save our bullets for more worthy targets.

Fire another lance at whatever that is planetside. We need whatever that is taken care of, and fast.

After that work on these ships before they gain farther ground. Then the stations. Then the planets. Everything here is going to die. Every. Last. One. Of. Them. We'll try talk again next time.

Then go about securing the shipyard. Likely going to need a boarding team for that. Supplement them with a tank or two.


They did it to themselves.

>>15752902
i think a heavy lance bean should fix that quite quickly.

or a nuke if we feel generous. either way, mop up the remaining ships and make for the shipyard. tell them we're using it, and screw them if they want to stop us.

also send a team to shut down the gate. can't have reinforcements trying to mess us up if we can fix ourselves here. probably not. if the shipyard can't do anything (or we're done) destroy it. they shall learn not to resist the Harbinger of their doom...

>>15752902
First, virtual fist pump.

Alright, sounds like ground to orbit defense weapons. Solution: Fire heavy beams at that area until it is nothing but a sea of molten rock.

Then begin hailing the xenos, demanding unconditional surrender. If they say no, destroy there military. All of it.

>>15752948
>population centers.

Exterminatus or not... That is the question.

At the very least, we have to reclaim the shipyard. I vote to destroy anything and everything threatening that. If the planet starts firing on us, glass the offending areas.

That went... well, honestly pretty much exactly as expected. Harbinger is the most powerful thing the Empire every put into space, and these aliens are not even close to Empire level.

So. Non-urban area. Bet you that's where these clutchmothers are. Trying to escape, maybe? Do we blast it just to be sure, or blast these other five ships and transmit a demand for surrender?

Shoot the patch of not-city. It's either a wildlife preserve or something like a Stellar Converter from MoO2.
If it's the latter it might hurt us. If it's the former, well xeno animals are still xenos.

>>15752989
>there

their.

Don't bother glassing the planet. Seriously, it's a complete waste of time and energy for a small-time race that barely registers as a threat.
Just keep absolutely wrecking anything they throw at us.

Glass the fuckers. But first take down that energy signature, Problem a FTL comm or a weapon of some sort. Next take out the ships before they can get any closer, who knows maybe they'll kamakaze or self destruct? That would ruin our fucking day. Then take out all other heavy defenses. Take out any mobile attack ships, send out a team to close the gates, and get to glassing. We'll handle the shipyard when everything else is dead.

Time to show them our strength. For the first time in 64K the Empire will once again turn an alien homeworld into nothing but a lifeless ball of molten rock and fused sand.

This will be our message to all who stand against us.

>>15753002

That's an interesting hypothesis. Maybe glass half of that area first, while clearly showing the other cannons are still powered? If we destroy all of it, and it turns out to be their only reproduction center in this sector, there will be no chance of negotiation.

>destroy all xeno
Anon, I am Proud.

>>15752902
Excellent success so far, but the battle isn't over yet. I'm going to agree with the others, that installation is obviously not good news if we can detect a serious energy build-up at its location. Scan it, see what the hell it is, and make sure that our shields are prepared to handle whatever they could throw at us.

Also, let's take care of these other ships, pronto. The lances seem a bit too much to handle them, maybe go with our lesser cannons.

>>15753097
>overkill

No such thing. We should try to line up two or more ships for shits and giggles.

Priority however is to take out the area of energy buildup. It has to go. Glass first, live to ask questions later.

>>15753005

That patch of preserve is probably their Hive Mother's palace. If we glass that they will never want to negotiate.

We can, and should, order them to stand down. We've killed all their fighting ships. Order them to shut down the shields they're trying to put over the palace, and wait for instructions, or expect to be fired on.

>>15753097

It's a shield over their Hive Mother's palace, don't kill it, just order them to shut it off "or else."

>drone racing

You were under absolutely no obligation to use that, but thank you anyways.

>>15752888

My god, they dropped it a percentage point.

FIRE THE CLUSTER EATER!

>>15753142
>FUCKHUGE energy signature

>Oh, don't mind that, their leaders probably live there.

Fuck that! Glass that first, whatever it is it's probably either something that can kill us or something that can call something that can kill us.

I have to go afk for 30 minutes, will start writing when I get back though.

For the record, those enemy vessels ARE closing. Rinn thinks they might be trying to accelerate to ram.

>>15753165
>trying to ram

i suppose what we should do:

1 finish the ships that we're engaging
2 send the following message: "Surrender or die. There are no other options: the Precursors have returned, and we find you wanting."

they agree: great, we take the station and don;t ruin their shit. they don't: bombard the planet with KE weapons. no need to waste other things on this filth.

>>15753150
I don't think the term 'hive' was ever mentioned by Vedibere. Second, let's wait for him to write up what the hell it actually is.

>>15753156
I try to keep you guys happy, since it's your quest too. And it was a neat idea.

That said, fair warning. I will kill the shit out of you if you insist on doing suicidal things.

>>15753073
Perhaps we shouldn't, we are obviously vastly beyond these aliens in terms of technology and fighting capabilities, killing them all wouldn't do any good and would be like stepping on an ant.

It might be cool if we stayed our hand from their complete annihilation because we have seen so many glassed human worlds recently, and we don't have the orders on the need to destroy all their people.

But I definitely think that we should wipe out this patch of ground with the suspicious energy signature. Use nukes if it will do it quickly, a medium lance if they won't, and a heavy lance only if we judge the medium lance insufficient.

Wipe out the other five spaceships with our beams, then transmit a demand for their complete surrender. Tell them that we will wreck their population centers and destroy the gates, then leave them to rot if they do not.

If they refuse, continue wrecking their shit based on threat level.

If they accept, then inform them that we will be using the shipyard for as long as we please, shutting down the gate network for as long as we are in system, and destroying any vessel larger than 100 meters. Give them 6 hours to abandon their larger ships and all their space centers then scan for anything useful, loot it if we like, destroy it once we are done. Use drones to enforce a no fly zone throughout the system. We will then reactivate a gate of their choosing, and destroy the shipyard as we leave.

>>15753165
Oookay, that's not good. Forget what I said, lances are fine, just make sure we don't hit anything important if the beam goes straight through again.

>>15753165
>ram

First we need to know if they can "walk" through our shields like Void Shields from 40k.

If so, vaporize them with concentrated point defense fire.

If we can't, can we make an in-system mini-jump? Appear on the other side of the planet?

>>15753165

Let's tell them to stand down. "Shut down your engines, drop your shields, and prepare to evacuate your vessels. We won't kill the crews if you surrender now. We won't harm your world further if you surrender now. Further fighting is pointless, we have proven to have utter fire superiority. Stand down or be destroyed. Shut down that shield generator over the Hive Mother's palace, or we will lance it and destroy it. We will not fire on it if you shut the shield off."

>>15753217
We had them on 11. a 6 or 7 setting would probably be more than enough.

>>15752893
>“Fire one.”

>And one is enough.

>The lance of brilliant light blasts forth, a deadly touch brighter than a hundred stars. The shields of the Claw buckle instantly, the lance ripping through the entirety of the ship’s axis and exiting through the aft... continuing on, striking the glittering alien homeworld far below. You watch as light blossoms at the lance’s needlepoint, a ten-thousand square kilometer area vaporized in an instant -- the resulting mushrooming cloud of dust from the impact visible even from space.

Holy.

Fucking.

Shit.

Oh, quit being such bleeding hearts. They've just xenos, and not real important ones at that!

Kill them all, effect what repairs we can, and move on. It's not very difficult.

>>15753165

I vote that we take out these incoming warships before before we take out that patch. We just don't know what that is, it could be non-combatants. Let's wait until we know more about this energy surge.

>>15753244

If we kill them all, we'll lose much of the potential intelligence they can provide.

>>15753248
>we're being shot at

>Let's just wait to see what it looks like.

I'd love to know what goes through your heads sometimes.

>>15753196
>That said, fair warning. I will kill the shit out of you if you insist on doing suicidal things.

Without the risk of consequences, the RAM THE SUN WITH PARSONS folks would just be silly, not gloriously entertaining!

>>15753257
They won't tell us anything important anyway. Let's just loot survivors and do the whole interrogation things again. It'll be quicker.

FIRE ON PLANETARY ENERGY SIGNATURE WITH ONE HEAVY LANCE.

OPEN UP WITH MEDIUM LANCES AND RAILGUNS ON CLOSING WARSHIPS; CAN'T RISK THEM RAMMING.

OBVIOUSLY THEY'RE PROUD WARRIOR RACE GUYS AND INCREDIBLY FANATICAL IF THEY'RE STILL FIGHTING. BETTER PUT A STOP TO THAT SHIT RIGHT NOW.

>>15753244
This is not Warhammer 40k, we are not on a xenocidal crusade.. The Ophidian Empire did not kill xenos simply because they were xenos, and why should we? It's a waste of our time and we could simply enforce the idea stated here: >>15753210

>“Fire one.”

>And one is enough.

>The lance of brilliant light blasts forth, a deadly touch brighter than a hundred stars. The shields of the Claw buckle instantly, the lance ripping through the entirety of the ship’s axis and exiting through the aft... continuing on, striking the glittering alien homeworld far below. You watch as light blossoms at the lance’s needlepoint, a ten-thousand square kilometer area vaporized in an instant -- the resulting mushrooming cloud of dust from the impact visible even from space.


What wouldn't I give to see the point of view of the aliens during this battle...

>>15753238
ten thousand kilometers.

The little-boy hiroshima bomb destroyed an area of 3.2 kilometers. It's energy output was 63 terajoules (63 trillion joules).

10,000/3.2 = 3125

63x3125 = 196875

Our heavy lances deliver one hundred, ninety-six thousand, eight hundred and seventy-five TRILLION joules of energy.

Each.

Holy fuck.

>>15753300
We're still an anti xeno Empire and encouraged to do so.
It would be both out of character and a waste of time to do otherwise.

>>15753248

We have multiple turreted guns and a reactor meant to power approx. ten times the number we've got functional. We can probably fire them all simultaneously.

If not, then we should nail the planetary energy signature first. SPACE-TO-ORBIT SUPERCANNONS, MOTHERFUCKER, CAN YOU SPEAK IT? The railguns most likely don't need a fraction of the power the energy lances require; and with our technological edge they should do just fine against the lighter warships closing on us.

>>15753244
Look, whatever we do here just to make ourselves SAFE will be enough damage to marginalize these guys as a local power. If we blow up the shipyards as we leave, and destroy their warships while blowing up their large vessels and spaceborn industry we will wreck this system's importance for the next hundred years. No matter what we do they will remember this as a day of pain and sorrow. We don't have to burn their worlds and sow their ground with salt just to be pricks about the whole thing. Besides, if we don't leave some alive, how will we use this to instill fear in the hearts of future xenos? I think that the potential to break the moral of future races so they agree to our demands because we will not wipe them out if they do could be useful.

>>15753238
my thoughts exactly

as for the current situation fuck them all, depending on the rate of acceleration from the remaining ships blast the energy patch before the ships if there is time, after that wipe out any and all space-bound transportation as well as anything that even has a pointing laser. If there is any more resistance in any form from the planets don't hesitate to glass the fuckers. also we should make haste for either Sol or another ancient capitol of humanity somewhere closer that could have intact records and naval facilities appropriate to our girth.

>>15753271

I agree with this man here, we need to gather information, specifically who these xenos' enemies are so we can go up to them and say " We fucked up one of their planets in no time, imagine what we could do to you" then proceed to forge the New Ophidian Empire with our new alien slave/vassals

Right, from what Vedibere has told us, the Ophidian Empire only glassed xenos to maintain their complete and utter dominance over the galaxy.
We don't really need dominance over the entire galaxy, and thus we don't need to completely and utterly destroy an entire race of several billion people after we've already completely crippled any meaningful threat they've thrown at us.

Killing xenos past the point they're a threat is pointlessly time consuming.

>>15753328
The civis won't know anything anyway.

The rest will know what happened when they find a silent system full of nothing but debris and glass. The people who matter who we are out there and will know it was us who did this. Fear enough.

>>15753333
Agree with this.

transmit a message for surrender

"We have a weapon on ship that can and WILL destroy this entire solar system and few neighboring ones. Cease your hostilities and we will spare you."

heh
"This is Ophilian Imperial Spaceship Harpbringer. You are in violation of Imperial space, planets and Space stations."

>>15753333
Doesn't sound to me like it would take long at all. And our lances don't use ammo. We are not wasting anything by being thorough here.

Glass them as is our duty. We already gave them a chance, and they blew it. We'll try again elsewhere.

>>15753244
>>15753258

We need their cooperation to get access to the shipyard, yeah? I mean we can blow up the shipyard and whatever the fuck they're powering up easy enough. But we need to actually use the shipyard, that means negotiation.

>>15753362
Agree with this.

>>15753344
The important part is when they say, "and all our suffering could have been avoided if only we had stood down and let them do what they wanted."

A system full of fused obsidian won't do that. And it also won't tell future threats WHO did it.

And it takes more time to systematically wipe them out than I want to spend on anything this pathetic.

>>15753357
No.

We don't want to reveal our superweapon at all. Ever.

We've only got one, and that mean's it's no good as a deterrent. It's a Fuck You and Goodbye device.

Furthermore, our conventional weapons are more than enough to cow them.

>>15753367
Uhm, no we don't?

We can just take it.

>>15753374
I'm sure they can figure out who did it.

And it won't take all that long.

>>15753328
>>15753333
Thank you guys for agreeing with me and helping to fleshing out the argument. And how long would it actually take us to glass this world, huh? Days? Weeks, even? Seriously, it's not worth our effort.

If we push them too hard they might self-destruct the shipyard .... which would be bad and defeat the whole purpose of coming here.

Give them a chance to surrender or better ... a truce. Transmit message on ALL frequencies, to ALL vessels, planets and stations.

Tell them that if they cease hostilities, we will too and that we only need the use of their shipyard for undetermined time.

What's with all the xenos love in this thread today?

>HURR GLASSS THHERM

You guys have small dicks or something? Everybody knows it's far more fun to totally rape their mightiest fleets, then gloat like a motherfucker whilst you charge them eleventy billion dollars, a billion slaves to operate their (now YOUR) shipyard and free ice-cream for life, in exchange for not igniting the atmosphere of their planets and flying drones with marshmellows stuck on their antennas through low orbit.

THEN you can glass them. If they're still being mouthy.

>>15753412
Thisthisthisthisthisthisthisthisthisthisthisthisthisthisthisthisthisthisthisthisthisthisthisthisthis
thisthisthisthisthisthisthisthisthisthisthisthisthisthisthisthis

>>15753402
Just common sense. If aliens were about to take our space factories or our ship, I'm sure we'd rather blow it up than let them take it. If we go crazy and start killing everyone, there's at least a decent chance they'll destroy the facilities to stop us from using them.

>>15753377

How? Boarding actions? How the hell are you planning on taking a fully crewed shipyard? We don't have remote control of it. Shipping our to it via shuttles just exposes them to danger. You planning on just using drones? Even if that succeeded, they'd just hit self destruct.

>>15753423
Already explained how before this little shitstorm.

>>15753402
Thisthisthisthisthisthisthisthisthisthisthisthisthisthisthisthisthisthisthisthisthisthisthisthisthis
thisthisthisthisthisthisthisthisthisthisthisthisthisthisthisthis

>>15753423
>shipping our crewmembers to it

>>15753412
Fucking amen. We take away their ability to make war, anything more is simply perversion.

>>15753333
Agreeing with this as well.

Destroy any ships that attack us and that ground based energy build up. Probably a heavy lance using the entire planet's power supply to charge it.

Yes, diplomacy has worked so well with these guys so far.

I look forward to seeing how it fucks us over. I mean what could possibly go wrong?

>>15753434
Goddamn man, at least link it. I'm not re-reading the entire thread again. I don't remember anybody getting around shipyard self-destruct outside of negotiation.

Their ships are willing to ram us rather than surrender. They're going to hit self destruct rather than surrendering it.

WEYOUN: Then our first step is to eradicate [Earth's] population. It's the only way.
DUKAT: You can't do that!
WEYOUN: Why not?
DUKAT: Because! A true victory is to make your enemies see that they were wrong to oppose you in the first place! To force them to acknowledge your greatness!
WEYOUN: Then you kill them?
DUKAT (offhand): Only if it's necessary.
WEYOUN: I had no idea.

It's like nobody in this thread has ever played Galactic Civilizations.

Oh yes, that was fun. Built up a mighty economy with a few "forge worlds," watch aliens try to extort cash from the apparent weakling, then finally declare War.

And that is when you flip up the mahogany cover on your desk, and push the big, red "ON" button.

Ten turns later: "It appears this war was a miscalculation on our part."

>>15753482

>>15753486
Brb, reinstalling.

>>15753503
Planet first. Too big of an unknown.

>>15753503

ships first

>>15753503
planet first, unknown shit like that is always a bad omen...

>missing post
>hmm, now what could that have bee-

PLANET FIRST PLANET FIRST GODDAMN PLANET FIRST

I vote ships first, I'm not convinced that the planetside signature is a weapon. Could be shields being powered.

>>15753503
2

>>15753575
the missing post is obviously Xeno subterfuge, SCAN THE PLANET IMMEDIATELY!

>>15753503
The planet is far enough away that we might be able to see something coming and do something about it before it hits. Assuming it's even a weapon, which although likely, is not assured.

The ships are definitely weapons, are definitely trying to "gently bump" our ship, and are definitely a more immediate threat.

tl;dr: Option 2

Dunno if the tally if called off or not. But planet first. We seem to be able to handle the ships easy enough. And could probably risk firing multiple lances if pressed.

Without seeing Veddy's post I can't be sure what's up, but... our best weapon for immediate use against the planet is one of the Heavy Lance turrets.

Against the ships, however, we've got interceptors, fighters, missiles, and even seven railguns, which ought to make life interesting for them, if nothing else. And that's assuming we can't fire our medium energy lances at 'em.

I decided the tally is irrelevant because, I mean, christ... you're a super AI on a warship with more than one gun. You can just shoot both at once. Don't even know what I was thinking.

>>15753639
I lol'd.

Most quest-authors would punish us, but you're too cool for that Vedi.

Point defense and 2 lances on the ships, two lances on the planet.

>325 posts
>Not archived

Better get on that chaps. I'd hate to lose all of this.

>>15753639
>Intelligence
>Quest thread author

I love you

forever

and ever

and ever

>>15753665
Looks like it's already done.
http://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/archive.html?tags=Vedibere

>>15753665
Archived.

Hey Vedibere, can we get a new thread going if this one goes into full autosage? The night is still young.

It's only 11:30 over here.

>>15753743
heh, its 1:30 am here

>>15753768
It's 2:30 here, but who's kidding who? We've got nothing of importance to be awake for tomorrow.

>>15753743
2:30 AM here, don't think I'll be up for more than two or three more updates.

Don't forget to upvote the thread in the archive guys.

>>15753782

Woah that's like, six hours

>>15753781
And I have to be up at the crack of 2:00 PM tomorrow to start plotting out tomorrow's thread, thank you very much.

>>15753791
I can only speak for us quest goers, not our glorious writefags!

But awesome, quest tomorrow!

>>15753781
Unfortunatley, i work on saturdays.

>>15753791
>And I have to be up at the crack of 2:00 PM tomorrow to start plotting out tomorrow's thread

... I wake up at 1PM these days.

DAMMIT VEDDY, YOUR QUEST HAS DETERMINED MY SLEEP CYCLE

>three voidquest threads this week
>tomorrow's thread
Holy crap, thanks for all the effort on this Vedibere.

“Estimated time before impact on the ships?” your prone body queries and the answer is swift, your XO calling out the various ranges. More than enough time.

You adjust your spin and turn, falling into an elegant pirouette -- at least as much as a nearly three kilometer long warship can -- and affixing a plethora of targeting indicators to your foes both ground and space based.

The heavy lances and medium lances fire simultaneously, the massive bolts of the heavies striking the building energy source on the surface even as the two dozen smaller lances slam into the enemy ships. The shields of your foes prove a sad (or rather nearly nonexistent) protection against the lance beams, the scintillating shards of light punching through their defensive fields and tearing holes straight through their hulls and discharging the majority of their energy in massive explosions within their center. Your recalibrations for a higher yield and lower kinetic force were right on the money. Now instead of five large starships plunging toward you there are five burnt-out hulks breaking apart due to massive internal explosions, enormous pieces flying off at fractions of c.

But that’s of far less concern to you than the results of your shots impacting the planet. As soon as your lances struck there was a tremendous energy bloom followed by a rippling shockwave coursing across the plains around the site. Soon enough the reason became obvious: A tremendous explosion, lifting slowly like some lumbering giant rising to its feet after a great sleep.

Within the haze a deep red light flickers, the clouds tumbling and churning around the site in a great warp. You watch in amazement as everything nearby begins to be pulled inward, the red glow expanding to a nearly continental scale and the clouds coalescing in a spiraling wake around the site. Every so often you watch a shockwave ripple across the continent the site was on, the forces at work nearly unimaginable... eventually, though, the turgor calms The spiraling atmosphere breaks apart, enormous cloud banks of what must be multi-hundred kph winds whipping across the enormous hab-spires as they disperse.

“Analysis of what that was?” you ask your staff. Tynes, Fie, and Ivanova all shake their heads, but Rinn sighs.

“At a guess, cap’n? We just saw a small to medium singularity reactor blow. Seen it before once, a battle out in the dark near Tannhauser station. A critical core breach, a far-patrol corvette consumed by its own singularity. Powerful. Terrible.” The old man nods solemnly.

At that you return your attention to outside the ship. Only a few fighter craft remain, still stubbornly trying to fight against you and inexorably being hunted down. You decide it’s time to see exactly how intelligent these aliens are.

“This is the OIS Harbinger,” you transmit, “you will cease hostilities immediately and accede to our demands. The ancients have returned, and we have found you wanting.”

For an interminable amount of time you are left to muse, reply-less, on the obliteration of their civilization. You check with Dai on the viability of such an action but at the mention the man scowls horrifically. “Madness. Battle status with all guns firing already has reactor at safe capacity. Keeping it there for weeks risks damage, loss of output and integrity.”

You acknowledge the man’s fears and transfer your focus back to the bridge once more -- just in time, as it happens. You read the reply as it is received, before even Fie has a chance to see it.

“We accept your terms. What do you wish of us?”

>>15754025

all your stations are belong to us

also we need a couple of your history books so we can figure out just what the fuck has been going on the last couple dozen millenia

I'm worried that their participation in our repairs could give them an idea of how to recreate our tech. Or at least give them a better idea on how to destroy us.

They could learn a lot while our defenses are down.

First and forthmost, the shipyard. We need it no matter what.

I'd also like to discus them swearing fealty to the Empire. We could use them in a fight, maybe.
The thought of using xenos at all does not sit with me well, but they seem suitable advanced to be of some use, but weak enough that they may still consider following us.

Also, tell them the gate will be shut down for now. Maybe a tithe too. Though I wonder what they could have of value, best we talk to their leadership. Whatever's left of it.

>>15754025
Firstly, you will turn over control of the shipyards to us.
Second, you will reveal all military hardware remaining in this system and proceed to vacate it as soon as physically possible.
Thirdly, you will open up your planetary databanks to us.
And finally, we wish an immediate discourse with your highest authority.

This seem good, fellow Void Questers?

Heh, and all those people said that was the royal palace and no threat to us whatsoever. I hope you feel silly now.


>>15754069
Sounds good enough to me. At least these xenos speak a language we can understand. But let's not set a precedent of enslavement over slaughter. Afterall, after this hopefully we'll be in good enough condition to not need to worry about our planet glassing capabilities.

>>15754132
Looks good to me.

They surrender the shipyard and all technology and artifacts harvested from it.

They give us a detailed (as much as they can) account of their discovery and research on the shipyard, as well as every ship produced from it.

Complete information about them and all species they are aware of.

Information on any nearby installations of Ophidian technology.

And a laundry list of resources and things. Might as well loot what we need.

>>15754060

Seconded. Use of the station and the manpower to run it. A copy of their historical and galactic data files, what they have of them. (We should let Ketro and his former team have a run at the files we get. Something to keep them happy and busy.)

I don't think we have to fuck around with the Gate. Really, what's going to come through that's a threat to us? We should also see what we can do about containing any further planetary damage if we can. It's the least we can do for our subjects.

We should find out who they were building warships to fight against, and what they were doing with that singularity generator.

Shipyard is a must.
Histories and political maps are also important.
Fealty to the empire.
And a danish.

>offinfer CORPS

>>15754132
Add in that they are to keep X light minutes away from the gates while we disable them. And that they will tell us about the location of any singularity generators remaining in the system.

If there are any singularity generators that we can shut down and loot in order to repair ours that would be just peachy.

>>15754025
>what do you wish of us?

OH DRY~DOCK, OPEN WIIIIIDE~

>history books

Yes, that'd be useful. Add to that all known system maps, intel on nearby races, and especially anything they know of remaining Progenitor (I.E. Ophidian) facilities.

>singularity reactor

Hmm, these guys have been busy, haven't they? Apparently their mastery is limited, if their singularity reactors haven't been miniaturized enough to be crammed on ships.

>>15754171

When we're in the drydock we will be far more vulnerable. We'll have our shield down for at least some of the repair work.

Shut that gate down, find out where the rest of their space-capable weapons are, and make sure we own everything before we use the dock.

>>15754183

That might have been an old Empire facility they figured out how to use.

Just sayin' if they can make singularities, we can use a few to restock our warheads. Presumably Dai can find a way to make it work after some tinkering.

Also, don't send Ketros and his people anywhere that we don't have a loyal crewmen present. For now, anyhow.

>>15754179
This also seems good, we don't want any of their reinforcements/allies coming through the gates right now, and we really could use the parts from the singularity reactors. However, let's also make sure that they identify whether they have any interstellar communications systems: we don't want them sending out an SOS while we're settling in.

>>15754196
Even if we did trust him, it'd be stupid to send him without a security escort.

Even if the government cooperates with us, you never know when a fanatical janitor (or cook) might try and take us down.

Oh, and tell them that if anything harms us, or our personnel, while we repair ourselves that we will make that singularity that just killed billions look like a children's popgun. We should also demand hostages, just load some important people in a space habitat and attach limpet mines to it or something similar.

Vedibere, what do these aliens look like?

>>15754194
Damnit, that IS a possibility. I guess we'll have to do some research on it. Hopefully we didn't just blow up some converted base or something.

>>15754232
You haven't a clue.

>>15754242
NOOOOO, NOT THE PUPPULONS

THEY ARE TOO ADORABLE TO GENOCIDE

>>15754186
>When we're in the drydock we will be far more vulnerable. We'll have our shield down for at least some of the repair work.

However we still have our sizable number of drones. We can keep enemy warships at safe distance, at any rate.

Sabotage from the repaired space-yard crew is more likely, however, we did just wipe out an entire continent on their homeworld.

>>15754236
We probably did. I think the choice was "let whatever it is potentially take a swing at you and possibly take advantage of it" vs "security, but you don't get to loot cool waldos." I just don't think we want to send people down onto a planet with billions of potentially hostile aliens even if there was cool shit there.

>>15754242
I don't why I think whenever we talk to someone we can see them, I don't even like star trek.

Can we scan someone then, please~?

>>15754265

spoken like a man who's never had to download new video codecs.

>>15754025
"full and total cooperation"

Having said that, we need the shipyar first and foremost. Tell them to evacuate it (don't want to deal with xenos in person), if we need extra hands then we will ask for them.

We also need to shut down the Gates.

Perhaps we could build another ship or refit some of the existing ones? Nothing even close to harbringer of course, but having a fleet is better than one ship .... though I do not want to put any of our crew there so we should develop an AI or make an EI out of someone.

>>15754265
You scan one of the corpses and find out they are HUMANS. ZOMG NOOOOO!

Just kidding, they're seven feet tall and appear reptilian.

>>15754186
We destroyed their defense fleet, capital ships and all, and destroyed their (presumably) orbital defense battery on-world.

They're not going to try shit.

>>15754279
Can't make an EI to do all the work and don't have the people to man a second ship, let alone a fleet.

>>15754285
I think a good few of us would shit ourselves.

Eh, if they agree to follow our banner I guess an army of lizard people is better than one of birds an assbreathers.

>>15754265

SPACE ONE OF YOUR CREW SO THAT WE MAY SCAN THEM AT RANGE OR WE GLASS YOUR HOME

>>15754285
"Our scans reveal you are reptilian. We demand one lusty maid."

Oh, I know!

Ask them what it was that we blew up on their Homeworld. Want to know if it was their superweapon or something else (like planetary shields. "Ooops! Sorry about that")

>>15754286
Yeah, like a single fanatical suicide bomber has never done any damage to anyone. Losing even a single crew member would be devastating loss for us right now. Lets not take any chances.

>>15754298
No xenos allowed in the clubhouse.

ARE YOU...

THE INHERITORS?

>>15754297

More to the point, it takes years to build a ship, we just blew up the best ones, and we haven't found any xenos yet with apperent jumpdrive technology.

Think about how significant that is. The entire galaxy is dependent on jumpgates left by an ancient civilization; devices they cannot control, repair, or much with very effectively. That "Federation" civ we left behind, near the Hundred Worlds territory? Their secondary node wasn't online and linked to the Primaries, which is the only reason a civilization like these lizards, who've salvaged a good deal of Ophidian tech, didn't trot over there and mop the floor with their asses several thousand years ago.

The universe, effectively, is only a little bigger then the contiguous network of active gates, for each civilization.

AND WE CAN TURN THEM OFF, OR ON, AT WILL.

CONTEMPLATE THIS.

>>15754285

Oh you card.

Anyway, we're not seriously putting in here, are we? We just blew up a ton of shit, and given their low tech each of those warships had to have tons of aliens in it, nevermind all the ones we probably killed in the singularity collapse and the ones that will die if that thing was powering a significant part of the planet. And you guys are thinking of drydocking?

Look, I know you all want to get back to 100% capacity, but if shit like we just blew up is all that the aliens have to throw at us after sixty-four thousand fucking years to develop in, we can rest assured that we are already the deadliest motherfucker in all the land and will be for a considerable period of time, potentially forever. What do we need to risk ourselves for?

>>15754309

>>15754349
How about we say this explicitly. We will take control of the shipyards but not attempt any repairs until we are sure sufficient repairs can be made for the risk we are taking.

>>15754349
>And you guys are thinking of drydocking

PFFFFT, as if. I don't even think this dock could ACCEPT us; we're too damn big - and that's when it was brand-spanking-new, and not band-aided together by inferior xeno crap.

However, it IS still a massive capital-scale facility, and it could greatly expedite many repairs. We've still got some massive hull breaches that are only patched, not actually fixed. That's pretty Bad. And NOT being able to shut down for the full drydock treatment is just as well, since we don't want to drop our metaphorical trousers right over obviously fanatical xenos who probably hate our fucking guts right now DESPITE having loaded every pair of pants in the entire star system.

>>15754349
Because destroying that little fleet put our reactor to max capacity.

We need to get to 100% because we might run into someone who's built a whole assload of ships.

These guys are thoroughly whipped. They will not attack us while drydocked.

I don't like the idea of taking them in, but I DO like the idea of extorting a now defense civilization. After we talk with them/maybe do an audit we can figure out if they can produce anything we need. And if they can we can stick around in the near area (less than a jump away) and play protection until they put out. After we've got what we need we can tell them the deal's still on and just sort of leg it somewhere else.

>>15754345
If "civilization" is soo utterly dependent upon our gates it is our DUTY TO HUMANITY to turn all of them off. We must teach these worthless maggots what is means to defy GLORIOUS MANKIND!

>>15754349
We are stuck here for at least a week anyway, so how about fixing those gigantic holes in our hull we spackled over? Or the reactor that can't work at full efficiency? Or the long range sensors that literally don't exist anymore? Or the three shield arrays that don't work at all? We don't need guns, we just proved that. But getting a bit more capable of traveling better and easier would be all kinds of good.

You list your demands with not a small amount of satisfaction. The shipyard, of course. And a complete listing and relocation of their combat assets to a point far across the system. Access to the gates in system, access to their databanks and any information you require, and an immediate meeting with their highest leaders.

“You... ask much. We will consult the clutchmothers.”

Another wait, but this time the reply is even better, “We accept.”

A list of craft in system follows, as well as several cryptographic keys to what you assume are the various datanets within the system. You watch as the remaining six capital ships and a large assortment of smaller military vessels depart for the other side of the system and then turn your attention to the final message: “The clutchmothers await your presence.”

>That’s it for me tonight
>Next thread tomorrow at 18:00
>Technically I think it’s today at 18:00 but whatever
>Hope you enjoyed the thread and it was better than the clusterfuck last time
>No lusty reptile maids, I’m afraid. They’re in such high demand. Especially ones taught by the legendary Lifts-her-Tail

>>15754356
Wrong lust xenofucker.

>>15754407

More to the point, reactor integrity is vital to use the few guns we DO have.

I still wanna take those railguns for a joyride. Yee-haw.

>>15754427
Excellent ending, we'll see you later.

>>15754427
>everything but the maids

I'm sorry but that's a dealbreaker.
Rinn, heat yp the heavies, prepare for orbital bombardment. Sorry, Dai.
Seriously though, great quest. Good place to pick up, and looking forward to the next.

I'd just like to reassert here that we can be the real HFY guys by now giving this race the chance to uplift itself - beyond what it was when we met.

Give them the recipe for high-grade unisteel, and ask them to start making it. We take enough to keep ourselves patched and secure, and in exchange they get goddamn unisteel. We could also offer to be obligated to protect their system to the best of our ability until such a time that they are returned to the strength they were when we first entered the system.

For the record, I would like to have something to write about in the OP so you should probably state a course of action now.

Also for the record, combat status is not just firing the guns. It was powering you at your full-all-out-calculating-everything mode, recharging all the drones, shooting the guns, powering the shields, broadcasting ECM, dumping heat, firing engines for combat maneuvers, and more. Your reactor was only operating at 25% output but it wasn't /straining/ or anything. It was still within safe parameters, it's just operating at that level for weeks on end could possibly do damage considering the field repairs it has undergone at this point.

>>15754464
No, better to detonate the cluster-eater. While it is still in our storage. No lusty maids, no sense in living anymore.

>>15754427
Do we need to post suggestions for the next OP?

>Hope you enjoyed the thread and it was better than the clusterfuck last time
Yes. Much better than the last few threads. You should really enforce some kind of deadline or something. Skipping through HOURS of arguing when reading the archived thread is DEPRESSING as fuck. I mean, you look at the scroll bar at the right and think "Hell yeah, this is a huge thread meaning that a lot of shit got done, can't wait to read all of this" Then it turns out there are only 4 updates and the rest are fatguys bickering over something.

>>15754506
I don't think we should be galaxy building at all.

It's been stated that the point of the game isn't a HFY galaxy builder quest, it's a mystery game.

I know EXACTLY what you mean. I usually put Ved's trip in my search, saves some scrolling. Though it's a short as fuck read as compared to what you think you have.


Also, great job on this one. Much more organized!

>>15754506
>So I put it to you; how do we remake the galaxy in our image?

We could've done that back in Federation Space, if we'd wanted, much less here. We could start right now, never leave these systems. Spend our lifetime doing that.

But remember... as we have just learned, the Ophidian Empire did not die with us. Our codes still work in the gates, even though we were thought dead. And remember what Asus said..

"Maestro, Hydra, Centauri, and Dreadnought wait still, maaaaybe..."

We must find these ships... and uncover what ancient secrets have waited 64 millenia for us to retrieve.

ACTION: Ask around, consult databanks: WHO WERE THOSE SHIPS, and where might they be?

>>15754522
It's sandbox, you can do what you want. The point of all that mess was basically to say it's not a CRPG where if there's an area then that means there must be SOMETHING IMPORTANT there, or if you meet a character then OH MY GOD PLOT RELEVANCE or something. Nor are the crew magical plot devices that will point you in the next direction to go or tap my metagame knowledge.

There's also the fact you have no real way to rule an empire. You only have 35 people total.

>>15754551
>You have no real way to rule an empire

Unless, of course Parson breaks out steals all the toilet paper, builds a fort of of it, and declares it sovereign. Then all we'd need to do is steal his.

>>15754562

okay, I LOL'ed.

>>15754509

When I get here late I just filter Anonymous and read Ved's posts.

>>15754544
And we should try to find any human survivors ... at least go and see who those Inheritors are.


Hmm, for next OP get as much of information possible on Federation and all of the "known" space and aliens, their combat capabilities and such. Information on current level of technology, on the most "advanced" races....
Hmm, you know there might be Ophidian, or how they call it, Precursor artifacts around the Federation claimed by aliens, governments, "powerful" individuals and families. We should get information on that and take back what rightfully is ours.

>>15754504
1st) Secure the shipyards, see if they can do us any good, and lock down the Gates.

2nd) Go over their remaining military hardware, make sure they're not trying to pull a fast one on us.

3rd) Look through their databases, examine:
A) Technology, so we know what they can do.

B) Knowledge of Galactic History, to see if we can find anything on the Empire.

C) Knowledge of Other Species, so we know what's out there.

D) Culture, so we know what we're dealing with when we talk to these clutchmothers.

4th) Set up or begin meeting with the clutchmothers.

This seem okay, everybody?

Pretty much next thread open up with a long exchange listing what they knew and what they can do for us.

It seems no matter what, we'll be here a while. With repairs alone we're in system for long enough to thoroughly go over the minutia of whatever ever it is their leaders have to say, and there we can decide what we will do with them.

Progress towards Sol should be our next objective after we finally get some repairs done IF we get repairs done.

Vedibere,

I would just like to say that I've been lurking on suptg reading this quest for weeks, I've never found an active thread and I douobt you'll read this but.

This. Fucking. Rules.

Hands down best quest i've read in years.

Get on amiable terms with them.

We ARE the ancients,
We have returned,
WE have found THEM wanting.

But WE will use THEM. We will uplift them to a technological point where they are still a manageable threat to us. Then we conquer, kill maim and burn everyone who will not subject himself to OUR rule.

They will be our workhorse, humanities frontline troops eschewing a new era of dominance, they will fight and die for us - for WE are generous gods.
They will receive control over what WE conquer, they will be the princes of the universe.
THEY will answer to US only, and WE will use that.


Remember: You buy a poor mans everlasting loyalty not by kicking him while he's down!
His life is yours if you provide him with small tokens of wealth - if you give them something to live for, they will be yours.


This should be our goal.


Timeskips of several years even should be considered a...
After 64k years it's not like time is pressing for us, it's not like we are in a hurry.


We are what is left of humanity,
We are the omes guarding ancien technological secrets beyound anything a lesser Xeno could imagine,
We are destined to dominate
We are destined to innovate

We are Ophidias Children,
We are without mother,
We will still prevail, so far removed in time from home.