>We shall stay here and make sure these stooges don't get into trouble.

A princess should know how to delegate, but not with these people.

>>26332708
>We shall stay here and make sure these stooges don't get into trouble.
We must first have a firm grasp of the paperwork trail before we meet with General Dean.

>>26332708

Stay here, manage stooges.

>>26332894
Come to think of it, has Hafenstad developed talking movies, or are they still silent? Color or black and white?

>>26332799
>>26332807
>>26332894
>We shall stay here and make sure these stooges don't get into trouble.

You decide to stay and make sure the room does not degrade into lowbrow nonsense. Cobham by herself is problematic enough but with the three agents things could get out of hand fast. While normaly you could trust Mr Luxon to keep things in order, he would be outnumbered 4 to 1 without you.

The paperwork proceeds fairly and fortunately Agents XY and Z seem to be keeping it from becoming horribly boring. Eventually a clerk knocks on the door with a document from Tannhauser island, printed on Castle Gates' MVAC terminal and hand delivered to fort Adler. It concerns this turn's launches. You signature is required.

Meteor 3 (11/15)
Wings
>1 Pilot
>2 Payload Specialist
>3 Spacesuit (10/15)
>4 Rations
>5 Rations
>6 RCS (19/20)
Cheribum Upper Stage (15/20)
>4 Empty space
>3 De-Orbit Fuel
>2 Launch Fuel
>1 Launch Fuel
Cherubim (16/18)

Selene 3 Lunar probe (18/19)
>1 Photovoltaic Power Cell (19/20)
>2 TV Module (19/20)
Cheribum Upper Stage (15/20)
>4 Lunar Capture Fuel
>3 Lunar Injection 2 Fuel
>2 Lunar Injection 1 Fuel
>1 Launch Fuel
Cheribum Lift Vehicle (16/18)

>We shall launch the Meteor 3 first.
>We shall launch the Lunar Probe first.
>We shall hold of on launching for this turn.

>>26332984
Color film is considered impractical for moving pictures, but apparently talking cinema has become popular recently, or so you've been told. You've been out of touch spending so much time in the eastern isles.

>>26333023

Lunar Probe.

>>26333023
We shall launch the Lunar Probe first. The sooner we complete the Lunar and Interplanetary milestones, the faster we shall receive bonuses on our budget.

>>26333057
>>26333065
>>We shall launch the Lunar Probe first.

You sign off the second sheet and hand the first to Mister Luxon. The Clerk then salutes and preforms a perfect about face before marching out of the room to take the document all the way back to the castle for transmission back to Tannhauser island. If only you had an MVAC terminal here you could manage things more efficiently. Come to think of it, digitizing these records would also make the current task more efficient as well.

A few more boring hours pass as you wade through an ocean of paper, when Agent Y breaks the silence "Ah ha! I found it!" He shouts, standing up holding a sheet of paper with order invoices. A shipment of lubricant, dated to the construction of the radio telescope, was processed by Hafenstad Army Material Command, led by none other than General Dean...

>>26333297
Check who signed off on the invoice.
See if we have the forms regarding that specific lot of lubricant and who fulfilled the order at Hafenstad.

Then we shall need to speak with General Dean.

>>26333297
Look into getting an MVAC terminal.

>>26333424
That will need till next turn; even then, our space program takes priority.

>>26333409
Somebody named Private Haus apparently. Below this level the paperwork is very vague. It's highly possible that nobody involved knew the lubricant was a counterfeit. The only thing that is clear is that it all happened under the General's watch in Hafenstad.

The three agents look very pleased with themselves and ask if you have any further missions for them.
>We will not be needing your assistance any further and shall travel to Hafenstad to talk to the general. Thank you for your time.
>Come with us to Hafenstad, we might need to do further investigation.

>>26333599
Bring them along. If nothing else, they might at least look intimidating if we need that.

>>26333599
>Come with us to Hafenstad, we might need to do further investigation.
We may require their assistance in tracking down this Private Haus.

....Haus. A Nordlander name?

>>26333667
Tannhauser is also a Nordlander name. It's not that uncommon.

>>26333599
>Come with us to Hafenstad, we might need to do further investigation.

>>26333667
I doubt the private knew what was going on. This is the work of a possible third party trying to drive a wedge between the military and the royalty

>Come with us to Hafenstad, we might need to do further investigation.
The agents look all excited to be doing such important work, Cobham however appears to be exhausted and just wants everything to be over.

>We shall send Cobham back to Tannhauser island.
>Dame Cobham will accompany us to Hafenstad.
>Dame Cobham will accompany us to hafenstad, but she may take the day off as we meet with the General.

>>26333995
>Accompany us, but take the day off. We might need her.

>>26333995
We shall send Cobham back to Tannhauser Island.
Have some computers sent in her stead.

>>26333995
>Dame Cobham will accompany us to hafenstad, but she may take the day off as we meet with the General.

Honestly what a pitiable knight to cry into princess's shoulder and hold on to her tie...

>>26333995

>Give Dame Cobham the day off in Haftenstad

We presume Haftenstad is a city, not just a military base, God Mother? Dame Cobham may well appreciate the chance to go to a restaurant, go shopping, and generally enjoy the various comforts of society which aren't really to be found on Tannhauser Island.

>>26333995
>>We shall send Cobham back to Tannhauser island.

She has things to do she's better at.

>Dame Cobham will accompany us to Hafenstad, but she may take the day off as we meet with the General.
You decide to play a trick with Cobham and order her to accompany you to Hafenstad, planning to release her once you arrive. You and cobham take one motorcar driven by Luxon and the three agents pile into a comically small car to drive escort all the way to Hafenstad. Cobham is relived and gives you a hug before running off to watch one of those new Talking pictures everyone is talking about, leaving you and your escorts standing in front of the brick edifice of Army Material Command.

>We shall burst in angrily demanding answers!
>We are sure things are not as bad as they seem, we shall politely call upon the general and ask for her side of the story.

>>26334068
In her defense it was a lot of paperwork.

>>26334128
Hafenstad is the largest city in the world. It also has a good sized military garrison commanded by Major General Dean.

>>26334676
>We are sure things are not as bad as they seem, we shall politely call upon the general and ask for her side of the story.
We shall remain calm and cordial, but firm, in our request to find answers to this act of sabotage.

>>26334676
>>We shall burst in angrily demanding answers!

Shit's going down, when the crown is pissed.

>>26334676
>We are sure things are not as bad as they seem, we shall politely call upon the general and ask for her side of the story.

I know it was a lot of paper work. It was also a cute reaction that has me doubting her stupidity even more...

>>26334676
>We are sure things are not as bad as they seem

We should make sure its an idiot and not incompetence, we do know the expression.

>>26334758
We are not sure that General Dean is the culprit.
More than that, she was our political ally during Clay's attempt to have the RRC's budget cut in half.
We should not alienate such a valuable political tool without more evidence.

>>26334676
>We are sure things are not as bad as they seem, we shall politely call upon the general and ask for her side of the story.

General Dean does need to explain what's going on here, but it does not suit a Princess to behave without decorum and dignity in such matters.

>>26334676
>>We are sure things are not as bad as they seem, we shall politely call upon the general and ask for her side of the story.

You are saluted into the building and work your way to MajGen Dean's offices. "Good afternoon your highness, would you like some coffee?" The general says after she bows to you. You appear to have caught her preparing for an all nigher with another stack of documents on her desk. It was a good idea to let Cobham go, you imagine she would faint if she saw more paperwork.

>We would like to know why your offices signed off on a shipment of counterfeit lubricant which led to the loss of one of our space probes.
>We would love some coffee general (Don't confront her just yet)

Also are you leaving the agents outside, or bringing them in with you?

>>26335388
>We would love some coffee general (Don't confront her just yet)

Leave the Agents outside. We will be fine on our own.

>>26335388
Coffee, have 1 agent at side, other 2 outside, this is what we think.

>>26335443
Which one? X Y or Z?

>>26335388
Bring em all in, get coffee.

>>26335388
Have some coffee, but don't hold off on confronting her for too long, this matter is after all of great importance. And leave all the agents outside until we need them.

>>26335388
>We would love some coffee general (Don't confront her just yet)
We shall leave the agents outside for now, and have only Mr. Luxon by our side.

>>26335458
Y after all, Y is useful enough.

>We would love some coffee general (Don't confront her just yet)

You and luxon sit down and take some coffee. "I'm sorry I take my coffee black so I don't have any cream or sugar, I can send for some if you like." General Dean says. "But I imagine you aren't here for a social visit, as much as I'd appreciate the company of our most beloved princess." She takes one sip before placing the mug to the side and sitting up straight. After dealing with Cobham and the Agents it's refreshing to deal with somebody so professional.

>Our radio telescope was damaged by a faulty lubricant. Investigation has traced the shipment to one of your supply depots.
>Mr Luxon, please fetch us some cream and sugar. (Don't confront her just yet)
>Black coffee is fine thanks. (Don't confront her just yet)

>>26336210
General Dean is being professional and forthright, let us be professional ourselves.

>Our radio telescope was damaged by a faulty lubricant. Investigation has traced the shipment to one of your supply depots.

>>26336210
>Our radio telescope was damaged by a faulty lubricant. Investigation has traced the shipment to one of your supply depots.
Well, she has seen through our ruse and wishes to get to business.
No point in delaying it; to do so would be rude.

>>26336210
Confront her immediately.

>Our radio telescope was damaged by a faulty lubricant. Investigation has traced the shipment to one of your supply depots.

The general pauses for a while and seems to purse her lips before going for another sip of her coffee. "This is disturbing news your highness. Are you here to implicate sabotage, or have my men simply made an error?" She says after placing her mug back down on it's coaster.

>We want answers now general.
>It was probably just an honest mistake.
>We believe somebody is trying to drive a wedge between the Army and the RRC.

>Black coffee is fine thanks. (Don't confront her just yet)

Feel the pressure, general.

>>26336630

We smile sweetly and tell her that's what we're here to find out.

>>26336630
>We want answers now general, It was probably just an "honest mistake", but we believe somebody is trying to drive a wedge between the Army and the RRC.

...ok, no, not really.

>We want answers, general. We have no reasons to believe it was an honest mistake, and the possibility of it being sabotage is too worrying to not consider it.

>>26336630
>We believe somebody is trying to drive a wedge between the Army and the RRC.
"We know the faulty oil to have been in a counterfeited oil can, placing a simple mistake beyond the realm of possibility."

"And why do you think I would sabotage your radio telescope after the assistance I provided during the parliamentary hearing?" General dean narrows her eyes as she says this. Pausing once more to take another sip of her coffee. " I do not personally inspect every can that passes through my warehouses. If it was sabotage It embarrasses me to say it happened beneath my notice and I apologize for the indiscretion. Is there any way I could rectify this situation your highness?"

>We believe the man who preformed the inspection was named Private Haus, is there anybody by that name working here?
>We don't think that will be nessary, it is fairly clear the truth is being manipulated by an outside party to implicate you and sour our relationship.

>We don't think that will be necessary, it is fairly clear the truth is being manipulated by an outside party to implicate you and sour our relationship. However, we must pursue every angle possible. We believe the man who preformed the inspection was named Private Haus, is there anybody by that name working here?
>why not both

>>26337338
>We don't think that will be nessary, it is fairly clear the truth is being manipulated by an outside party to implicate you and sour our relationship.

However if you would wish to see our evidence I'll freely offer it up to you.

>>26337412
>>26337503
"Interesting, I'll have to talk to the private. Thank you for bringing this to my attention." Dean says after paging through the document you had handed you. "Is there anything else I can help you with?" She adds after finishing off her coffee. "It's getting rather late."

>We have another question.
>No thank you, we should be going now.

>>26338070
>No thank you, we should be going now.
Hopefully we'll get to the bottom of this.

>>26338070
>No, thank you, we should go. And please, give me a transcript of your conversation with Private Haus.

>No thank you, we should be going now.

Business is over.

You dismiss the agents and make your rendezvous with Cobham outside of the theater showing the talking picture Empress Ishtar, staring Ms Langdon. She seems very happy to have some time off in civilization. "Oh your highness you must see this film, the spacecraft the star navy uses are so roomy, I wish ours were that comfortable." She tells you with a minor slur in her speech, you suspect she has also visited the local military ale hall.

>The film sounds exciting, we should catch the next showing. We've done enough work for today.
>We should head back to castle gates and check the status of the probe, it should be in orbit by now.

>>26338828

Perhaps we can buy a reel and take it with us to improve moral on our island?

>>26338828
>We should head back to castle gates and check the status of the probe, it should be in orbit by now.
Work first, entertainment later.

>>26338912

This.

If we can't, then I vote for:
>The film sounds exciting, we should catch the next showing. We've done enough work for today.

>>26338912
This is the best plan. Our poor subordinates seemed rather overworked at the Solstice party, we should give them a break. If that's not possible, though, we need to head back to Castle Gates. A princess's work is never done.

The film is a planetary romance about two brave star navy officers and the empress of the Planet Ishtar. The villainous empress desired to make the capitan her king, but he spurned her advances and thus brought her wrath upon the star navy. The plot is kind of cheesy once the novelty of a talking moving picture wears off, but Ms Landgon's performance as the Empress is top notch. She was an opera singer before she transitioned to the moving pictures and her voice is absolutely frightening. This does however do little to quell any suspicions you had that she is a member of the society.

You get back to the castle the next day and are greeted with bad news however. The lunar probe's engines are malfunctioning and it's having trouble staying on course!
>Rolled a 16 on Lunar Injection 2: Fail, fuel is expended but the burn does not happen as planned, The probe will be stuck in an elliptical orbit around the earth without enough fuel to reach the moon. Spend luck point to re-roll Y/N?

File: 1375238896562.jpg-(29 KB, 438x586, ken tries to reach space.jpg)

29 KB JPG

>>26340100

How many luck points do we have at the moment? Also, someone above mentioned that the success of this lunar expedition can mean dramatically increased funding, is that right?

ha ha time for bumping

>>26340893
Two. And if this mission is a success you will get two more points of funding per turn. The probe also cost you 20 points to build, that's 38% of your budget.

However you might chose to save luck points for manned missions when peoples lives are on the line. This wouldn't be the first time you lost a probe.

>>26341037

Hm. Forgive my ignorance, but how difficult is it to acquire more luck points?

>>26341037

let's use up our luck points to make sure this thing works. i see nothing that can go wrong

>>26340100
Dammit... we are getting the -2 on these, right God Mother? I guess it's probably worth spending the point to re-roll at this point.

>>26341180

Well, our luck points are generated through masturbation. As a princess, such a thing is.. beneath us. Unseemly. It creates much guilt whenever we try to get a luck point.

Rolled 4, 2 - 2 = 4

>>26341180
I give them when I feel like the players have earned them... It can be pretty rare sometimes.

>>26341225
Yes, the orbital insertion burn however will not have the -2.

Re rolling, you have 1 luck point remaining.

>>26341359

Its a lot better that way. Space cores rules seemed like they were free candy on Halloween. Given to players if they came up with something exciting during their launches or inventions.

>>26341359
Success, the probe manages to correct it's attitude and complete the burn with enough fuel left over to preform a capture into lunar orbit.

It is now turn 5, you have 52 points to spend, and 1 luck point.

To get to the moon you will need the following,
>2 mass 18 Mk6 Seraphim launch vehicles. Invented, not built or tested. (5/10) 18 points to build or improve.
>2 mass 10 upper stages. To be invented, 30 points to invent.
>1 Mass 8 Trailblazer capsule. To be invented 24 points to invent.
>1 Mass 8 lander. To be invented 24 points to invent.

The Meteor 3 is also still waiting on the launch pad, as it shares it's upper stage with the probe, you might want to improve that part just in case.

Meteor 3 (11/15) <Can be improved, 8 points per level
Wings
>1 Pilot
>2 Payload Specialist
>3 Spacesuit (10/15)
>4 Rations
>5 Rations
>6 RCS (19/20)
Cheribum Upper Stage (15/20) <This is the part that had the issue last time, can be improved, 5 points per level
>4 Empty space
>3 De-Orbit Fuel
>2 Launch Fuel
>1 Launch Fuel
Cherubim (16/18) <Can be improved, 12 points per level.

>>26341916

We write favourable reports to our Father, and try to gain additional favours, possibly even more resources next turn.

>>26341916
>52 points to spend
Shouldn't it be 54? That's what our budget has been previously.

Turn 5 Budget
24RP Meteor-3 14/15
18RP Construct Seraphim
10RP Cheribum Upper Stage 17/20
1RP Grenefeld Improve Stamina
1RP Orion Improve Engineering

>>26342160
Derp yes, 54.

>>26341950
Once the new lunar pictures arrive, father will surely increase your royal allowance.

>>26341916
52 points? Wasn't our budget 54 before?

Also, we need to start improving the Seraphim, it's the most expensive piece to develop so we need to sort it out ASAP.

>>26342160
Support this. Although it might be best to give the training to whoever we're planning to send up in the Meteor. Is that going to be Harker and Palmer again, or maybe Cobham and Palmer?

>>26342261
Pilots can't Train and Launch in the same Turn.
It WAS going to be Harker and Palmer in the Meteor-3 again, but it might be better to have Cobham and Palmer in the Meteor-3 so that Cobham gets experience with a hypersonic spaceplane.

>>26342261
You can't train somebody and launch them on the same turn, and Cobham is still in Midland with you, So using that budget it would either be Harker and Palmer, Harker and Orion, or Palmer and Orion. Somebody who has not yet flown the Meteor will suffer a -2 if they are piloting it. Right now only Cobham and Harker can fly it without penalty, but others can be trained.

>>26342331
We shall have Harker and Palmer launch in the Meteor-3, and they shall also take part in the experiment for lengthy orbital stay.
We should get Cobham, Orion, and Grenefeld checked out on the Meteor-2 as when Harker returns.

>>26342322
>>26342331
Aaargh, I am a sleep-deprived idiot, ignore me. If it's not possible to get Cobham back to Tannhauser Island in time for the launch, then Harker and Palmer go up again. We need to get Orion trained on the Meteor-2 at some point soon, he's got the Piloting skill to handle it now.

>>26342426
Cobham is checked out, she could train people while harker is away, the problem is the M2 is in fort Adler so you'd have to send the others here.

Also an archangel costs 6 points, you will need that for the sub-orbital flight to train.

>>26342160
>24RP Meteor-3 14/15
>18RP Construct Seraphim
>10RP Cheribum Upper Stage 17/20
>1RP Grenefeld Improve Stamina
>1RP Orion Improve Engineering

Budget confirmed, updating wiki.

Meteor 3 (14/15)
Wings
>1 Pilot
>2 Payload Specialist
>3 Spacesuit (10/15)
>4 Rations
>5 Rations
>6 RCS (19/20)
Cheribum Upper Stage (17/20)
>4 Empty space
>3 De-Orbit Fuel
>2 Launch Fuel
>1 Launch Fuel
Cherubim (16/18) <Can be improved, 12 points per level.

The Meteor 3 is also ready to launch on your command, Launch Y/N?

>>26343164

Launch confirmed.

>>26343164

Launch it.

Rolled 1, 10 - 2 = 9

>>26343462
>>26343413
From the MVAC terminal in castle gates, you can oversee the Launch even though you are thousands of miles away, abet with a barely noticeable lag as the radio signal is bounced off of two satellites, you even get a television feed from the launch pad, watching the clouds of vapor drift off of the rocket's fuel tanks in there monochrome glory. The rocket is hoisted into position and everything is ready to go...

Rolled 9, 9 - 2 = 16

>>26343863
And we have liftoff! The Cherubim soars into the sky, despite it's size and complicated history, it is actually the safest rocket in the world currently with no failures Thus far. The rocket soars up into the sky and you can hear Harker's voice over the radio. "Meteor to Gates we have separated form the first stage and are coasting to apogee burn. All systems normal. Over and out."

>>26343978
The Cherubim finishes the burn and is is now in a stable orbit. "I can begin the first spacewalk whenever you are ready your highness." Palmer says over the satellite link.

Meteor 3 (14/15)
Wings
> Harker
> Palmer
> Spacesuit (10/15)
> Rations
> Rations
> RCS (19/20)
Cheribum Upper Stage (17/20)
>De-Orbit Fuel



(wow good thing you just upgraded that part)

Guess everyone went to sleep.

Good news however Is I should be able to run on Fridays after work. See you next Friday.

>>26345874

sorry i missed it, i had to break up a fight the other day and it took a bit more out of me than what it should have....