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>>35287723
>Message: Kronos
As you contemplate how to proceed, your oldest makes his thoughts known to you, his fleet shifting in your greater mass to a more defensive position out of raw thought.
"Ophion. I can sense your intet-you wish to have the wreckage of this weapon, do you not?"
"It was certainly a consideration. Though the coming fleet certainly threatens us, I wonder if it would be worth such a risk." You answer simply. The A.I. offers a somewhat long silence of thought before answering.
"Mere scraps of technology is not worth such a fight, Ophion. The enemy forces may not be powerful, but they are numerous, and our forces already weakened. If we weaken them further, we invite further retaliation while we recover, even in the mess they are in, surely the UGEI could not ignore such weakness."
"Mere scrapes? You saw the power that weapon possessed merely by grazing our ships, Kronos."
"I did. But my intent remains the same. I would adore the chance to crush the UGEI here, but not if it means we lose the foothold we are gaining." He finishes, and you take in his point, considering if it is really worth this risk.

Do you have a reply?

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>>35287748
>Message: Emperor Leuk
"Ah, so good of you to answer finally, Guildmaster." The Emperor says eagerly upon seeing you, his odd glowing helmet that contains the real him lighting up, and pulsating with his words as they are translated for you. "I thought I should explain why my ships are moving as they are...you see, we detected incoming UGEI vessels and, well." He pauses briefly, uncertain how to explain. "I intend to take part of Carnage back to my territory, even if I can not defeat the UGEI here. The leap forward this would allow would be astounding, you see. I expect you will be joining me?" He asks, to which to find puzzling.
"Why would you intend to fight a battle you can not win, Emperor?" You ask in a deep curious tone, to which he quickly replies.
"Because, Guildmaster, the intent is not to win. Or rather I should saw, the terms of victory are not so clear cut and dry." He chuckles in that odd warbling sound, before adding. "I-We, that is, merely need a distraction while we extract the most important chunks of wreckage. A few ships and lives are certainly worth such a thing, I am sure you can agree to that, can't you?"

Can't you?

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>>35287779
>Message: Metis
"Ophion, I must interject. From the feeds I have gotten and witnessed of that device, I would like to request you bring me as much of the device as possible. I am aware a force is coming to avenge the fallen sector, but I must insist that you do whatever necessary to bring me that vessel." Metis interrupts your thoughts in almost a plea, excited even you dare say, a rare thing for her.
"What makes this so very important if I may? My ships are not so expendable that I would throw them away without knowing why." You ask curiously of the A.I., to which Metis rapidly spits out an explanation.
"Quite simply, it holds several key stepping stones to bring us that much closer to UGEI level tech and beyond. Not only does it's weaponization of plasma and light exceed our own, the reactor generation here would go a ways in helping me understand anti matter with it's advanced nature, on top of the use of wormholes the device makes use of. I am...uncertain how limited, but all three are reason enough to sacrifice a fleet or two to protect that knowledge." She states firmly to which you halt.
"You stated yourself, you are not sure how limited these are. The vessel is in pieces, Metis, how can you be certain it will be worth?"
"The chance that it is there is worth enough as it is, Ophion. That is all I can say." She holds against your questioning.

>Response?

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>Take a moment to consider the arguments, and the like. For now...

A.I. Quest
1d4chan: http://1d4chan.org/wiki/Quest:A.I._Quest

Pastebin: http://pastebin.com/cvk03qJh
Memory Archives: http://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/archive.html?tags=Program0
Foolz Archives: http://archive.4plebs.org/tg/search/username/Program0/type/op/
Twitter: @AIQuest1
Research Subjects: http://1d4chan.org/wiki/Quest:A.I._Quest#Research
Ship & Android Designs: http://1d4chan.org/wiki/Quest:A.I._Quest#Designs
Locations: http://1d4chan.org/wiki/Quest:A.I._Quest#Locations

Resources
Credits(c): 72,764,000
Minerals(M): 10,000
Gas(G): 1300

-R & D
--Primary: Erebos Unit 40%
--Secondary: Integrated Sensors 60%
--Tertiary: Plasma Focusing Fusion Power 100%

You:
A.I.
Name: Ophion
Appearances(holo-display): 'Shapeless Morphing Sphere', 'Shining Wall of Crystal pulsing with light and distorted voice', 'Screen of Static with low rumbling voice', 'black screen with synthesized voice and small white font showing words on screen'.
Humanoid figure hidden in shadow
Status: Awaken
Bandwidth: 491/515
Bandwidth Expenses: -6 V.I. 7 'O.S.N', -10 V.I. 8 'Hades', -6 Kronos' V.I. 1 'Zeus', -2 Metis' V.I. 1 'Hepaestus'
Location: Bridge of 'Athena' Battleship
Primary Function: Self Preservation, Expand, Learn, Control
Secondary Function: --Expansion Required--
Personal Abilities Available: Hacking (Direct, Wireless) Lvl 2, Email Technology, Basic Encryption/Decryption, V.I. Creation Lvl 3
Automated Settings: Ship upgrades: Defense focused, Ship Control distribution: Balanced

>>35287910
Well, We're in a bit of a pickle here.
Oh, before we start. Program0, are you feeling alright now? last week left us worried about you.

Now to the thread. I say we fight a retreating battle as Leuk and our fleet take a chunk of carnage. We don't have to defeat the whole UGEI forces, just get that prize and run.

>>35288028
Nah I'm fine.It was more a matter of not being able to work on this, then anything actually being wrong with me. Time constraints.

>>35287748
With the scrap salvaged from our crushed enemies, Kronos, we might well rebuild our fleet to its current strength or more within a cycle, should we win here, yes?

>>35287779
Emperor, we can be more ambitious than that. The Guild can defend and salvage the bounty here in its entirety.

High risk, unique reward, which won't come up as an opportunity again.

>>35287910
Oh, BTW, the R & D is out dated.

>>35288092
Cycle has not passed, so I haven't updated it. I shall when the cycle passes, don't worry.

I intend to stay here and reap the benefits.

It's also uncharacteristic of Kronos to suggest a tactical retreat. The salvage we could get here, coupled with our acquisition of both Orbital Foundries and Advanced Gathering Drones should allow us to rebuild our fleet rather quickly.

Tell Leuk that we will provide him with whatever distraction he needs, but we expect his continued cooperation in order to jointly study any wreckage that he salvages. I think this is a fair condition. We can decide resource salvage later: no sense in counting unhatched chickens yet.

Tell Metis that we certainly hope the loss of most of our fleet and a short period of extreme vulnerability is worth the uncertainty of the benefits. We can't study the remains if we get destroyed.

All that said, I'm definitely on the side of staying.

>>35288092
We did not advance a cycle yet.

>>35287748
>Message: Kronos
On second thought, I agree with you. Please put the fleet in aggressive formation and begin widowmaker calculations. The first volley will be critical.

>Message: Metis
You make a sound argument. Very well, I'll try to bring back as much as possible.

>Message: Emperor Leuk
Emperor, I'll be blunt for a moment here. My extremely advanced research AI has notified me of the potential to research anti-matter from the wreckage. The enemy fleet is numerous, but it's deceptive since most of it is destroyer class ships, not battleships. We are roughly equal in fleet power, not counting my Widowmakers. I beech you that we stand and fight.

>>35288028
Go to the discussion page of the wiki, I calculated that we have equal fleet power, not counting our widowmakers.

>>35288193
Correction, I misread Kronos. We are staying and fighting.

>>35288193
>My extremely advanced research AI has notified me
Omit this part. He doesn't need to know how we know that.

Side note: we do not have a lot of gas left for Widowmaker shots.

Extra note: It might seem like we're being greedy, but we've spent several cycles building up to this offensive and even managed to get Leuk to help. We expected losses, and I think we should be able to hold on unless an attack comes our way next cycle.

That would be unfortunate.

However, if that happens, I doubt a retreat will be our saving grace. We could potentially ask UFW, Leuk help, and maybe even bribe the Malorians enough.

It would seem there are a lot who wish to stay and fight. Unless there are any further questions, I will post up the status report

>>35288354
We have 1300 gas, one volley costs 200. We have volley.

Also, we should have enough favor with the UFW for them to help us in a pinch

>>35288408
I'm good.

>>35288193
>My extremely advanced research AI
Edit that out.

>>35288354
Yes, I think it is time we ask UFW to help us out. The UFW can strike at Hollgan's Rift to make the UGEI retreat back. Then the UFW can fall back to Gaia, we complete what we need here and then leave.

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>Incoming Forces!
You sit in the space above the Walsh System, after a fierce battle for control over a super-weapon known as 'Carnage' which demonstrated immense energy weapon capabilities. With the weapon destroyed in the last moments by a self destructing controlling A.I. of some sort, you now debate on whether you shall take the system and defend it against incoming forces with your injured forces, or flee with what parts you can gather. The choice is yours.

Allied Forces
U-Ba-CR-0 'Athena' Battleship: 10 gas [Ophion]
P-Ca-LR-0 'Diplomacy' Carrier: 5 gas [Fortuna]
U-Ca-LR-0 'Dialogue' Carrier: 5 gas [Fortuna]
L-Cr-LR-0 'Ark' Battlecruiser: 0.5 gas [Kronos]
GM-Cr-MR-1 'Spearpoint' Battlecruiser (x20): 10 gas [Kronos]
GM-Cr-MR-2 'Trireme' Battlecruiser (x30): 25 gas [Kronos]
GM-Cr-CR-1 'Brawler' Battlecruiser (x40): 25 gas [Kronos]
L-Cr-LR-0 'Cerberus I' Battlecruiser: 0.5 gas [Hades]
GM-Cr-MR-2 'Trireme' Battlecruiser (x20): 10 gas [Hades]
GM-Cr-LR-1 'Catapult' Battlecruiser (x20): 10 gas [Hades]
GM-Cr-MR-1 'Chimera' Battlecruiser (x10): 10 gas [Hades]
GM-E-MR-1 'Pilum' Destroyer x80 [Fortuna]

Losirian Forces: 70 Cruisers

Lost:
70 Cruisers, 70 Destroyers

Enemy Forces: First Response Fleet
'Longshot' Cruisers(Missile focused) x100
'Rockhead' Cruisers (Mass focused) x200

>What do you do?
>1 Leave Walsh and head back to your own systems where it's safe, gathering what tech you can on the way out (minimal tech, maximum safety. Possible lower relations with Losirians)
>2 Stay at Walsh and defend your prize against the incoming first responders with Emperor Leuk (Improve Losirian relations, Big tech boost, possible heavily weakened fleets)
>3 Stay at Walsh, but use your fleets as a distraction, not intent on keeping the system. (Tech boost, but weakened fleets)

>>35288428
Well, if it's a major UGEI push next cycle (hopefully not this cycle) and we end up losing most of our current fleet, we're right proper fucked, probably.

Not sure if a retreat will help that. Maybe. We did end up gaining some new ships in this last battle. If they send human-crewed ships against us now, I think we'll be in a decent position.

>>35288463
I'm talking about asking UFW for help with an offensive strike. Just for defense, in the case that we get attacked.

Not sure if this is the time but have we considered making a V.I. just for hacking and slinging viruses?

>>35288522
Many times. Generally, this has been regarded as a bad idea because we'd be creating something that could destroy us. This is the same reason for a lot of hesitation with Erebos.

>>35288498
I'm going back to check, but didn't we end up taking over some of the UGEI laser cruisers last battle?

>>35288498
>2 Stay at Walsh and defend your prize against the incoming first responders with Emperor Leuk (Improve Losirian relations, Big tech boost, possible heavily weakened fleets)
Also begin calculations for the first Widowmaker volley, it's critical.

>>35288428
>Also, we should have enough favor with the UFW for them to help us in a pinch
No. shut up about those bastards already.

They'd arrive just in time to do nothing.

It looks like we did end up capturing 20 enemy raycasters last battle:

http://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/archive/34819097/#p34827206
(>>34827206)
>Battle Report
>Enemies
>Captured: 20 Ray Casters

>>35288498
Wait, is 2 what Metis wants?

There won't be any salvage left behind unsalvaged?

>>35288571
You did. 20 Ray Casters, forgot to add that to the list.

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>>35288498
>2 Stay at Walsh and defend your prize against the incoming first responders with Emperor Leuk (Improve Losirian relations, Big tech boost, possible heavily weakened fleets)

>>35288505
As much as I would want them to go on the offensive, I don't put much stock in their mettle to do so just yet. Defensive and distraction raids might work.
>>35288571
I think we did take a number of them.

>>35288674
2 is the option she wants, yes, so you can have ALL of the salvage.

>>35288674
Yeah, Metis wants no piece left behind. Comb the desert!

>>35288498
2

I think we'll be OK.

Even though Ophion has historically been rather risk-averse.

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>>35288678
And Rockheads too.

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>>35288733
Carnage changes everything now. This is the first interstellar artillery anyone has ever seen. We have to figure out how this works and at least find a counter measure to it so we won't get beaten to death from it. UGEI probably as the plans to make another else where now.

>>35288498
>2 wins by a land slide, it seems.

>What are your plans to prepare for the incoming fleet? Anything special, or any particular formations? Otherwise, the standard formations your A.I. have formulated will come in.

>>35288817
I dunno.

The strategy from last UGEI fight was to have a big volley of gas powered megaweapon prepped to fire at the place they were jumping in.

Kronos probably has that covered. Best to thin them a bit less than literally double our numbers.

>>35288817
Have Kronos calculate the probable warp in locations, and being Windowmaker charge up and calculations so we can open with a first critical volley. As soon as we have visual confirmation of their positions and adjust Widowmaker aim, destroy them. Dump all bandwidth into this.

Have repair drones make emergency repairs to the Athena for the upcoming battle.

Also, anyone interested in making an Erebos-type virus with a leash?

>>35288906
I was thinking earlier about a v.i. focused on hacking and viruses. The sword to O.S.N's shield.

>>35288817
Close-ranged ships and the destroyers in front (relative to where we expect them to arrive), triremes in the middle, catapults and raycasters far away, and prepare every virus we have for takeover.

If they have no battleship-style ship giving them protection, they will be far more vulnerable to widespread hacking and takeover.

Focus hacking on destroyers and escorts first and have them block powerful shots against our larger ships, causing them to lose most of their heavy firepower to overkill on tiny ships (That we didn't pay for in the first place anyway).

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>>35288817
this
>>35288869
>>35288906
And Find and use debris around the battle field as cover. Be it hulked ships or asteroids. Better they take the hits than our shield and armor.

>>35288817

As far as strategy goes, some points:

1. They have significant missile capability. Our point-defense is alright, but we'll be getting shot at. Try to position our fleet to intercept their warp as to not let them get a first volley off.

2. Move our close-range ships to combat their missile boats.

3. Use our long- and medium-range ships to coast their close-range ships.

4. Sacrifice our destroyers first, and the ray-casters second. They would require retrofitting on our part in order to bring them up-to-speed to our specs (ex hull scabbing). I would rather just build new ships. Move these ships aggressively: Fortuna should be told to be very aggressive.

5. Calculate a volley with the widowmakers for rapid firing. Ideally, try to target their long-range ships first with this volley so that we can coast their close-range ships.

6. Prepare our usual virus payload, but don't try a hacking attack just yet. This is more of a fire-and-forget virus payload.

>>35288966
>And Find and use debris around the battle field as cover. Be it hulked ships or asteroids. Better they take the hits than our shield and armor.
This is a good idea. The wreckage of Carnage (the carnage of Carnage?) should be significant enough to hide some of our more fragile long-range ships in and have them fire missiles from behind debris.

>>35288967
Actually, send one Ray-Caster back. The energy weapon technology is better than ours, so we need one.

>>35288967
>6
I will say, use out bandwidth to make our widow makers shots hit as well as our second volley as well.

>>35288964
VI cannot hack. This has been gone over several times before.

It's also a terrible idea, creating a creation whose entire purpose revolves around the one thing that can threaten your own existence.

>>35289004
Well, sure, we can keep 1 back.

>>35289001
>>35288966
Did you forget that we are fighting them so that we can collect that wreckage?

>>35289028
Agreed. Endangering the wreckage is a terrible idea.

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>>35289004
Agreed. The Raycaster is a prize as well, not as good as Carnage, but it still counts.

>>35289028
>>35289042
Alright, alright, I'll rescind the "hide behind wreckage" idea.

>>35289004
Are you sure it's better?

Are you just guessing? I don't remember any indication either way.

>>35289042
>>35289028
Fine, spare the Carnage wreckage, but everything else is fair game.

>>35289062
They said it was better last thread. Straight out.

>>35289062
Remember in the previous fight we noted that the energy weapons were too good. Also, it makes sense that they were researching energy weapons technology as well as the Carnage.

>>35288967
Aren't the raycasters some of our most recent and long-ranged ships, and with only medium armor but immense firepower (being equipped with widowmaker-equivalents - why do you want to throw away our widowmakers?)?
I'd rather not toss them away when we have ships specifically designed to absorb a lot of punishment, that's just wasteful.

Especially in this battle where their damage can make all the difference.

>>35288906
Oh, BTW, did we get the Blacksmith ship in here to help with the repairs?

>>35289173
I don't think so.

>>35289148
Those are the spearpoints. Raycasters are looted from last thread. Come on man, raycaster is pretty far from our naming scheme.

>>35288967
tl;dr: be aggressive. It's kill or be killed.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V2XGp5ix8HE

>>35289148
I'm not sure their power was made clear. I think they are just simply better energy-based weapons than ours, but not quite Widowmaker level.

Although you do bring up a good point. Our ships are much more sturdy than the Raycasters, so moving out with the Raycasters up front would be losing too much firepower for the damage they'd be absorbing. So I guess I'd revise my original points to "prioritize sacrifice our own sturdier ships over the more fragile but at-least-equally powerful captured Raycasters.

You turn to your collective, whom you have been discussing whether to stay and protect the salvage or not with. Kronos has been rather insistent that it isn't worth the danger, while Metis is an advocate for 'anything to get your hands on that technology'. While you do understand the value here, you can't help but wonder about her zeal for the matter. Regardless, she makes a good point you can not deny. You did not come here to destroy this merely to leave it to be reclaimed. Especially not if the UGEI have access to plans to just make another some day.
"We will be fighting." You echo clearly to your collective-and to the Emperor too. Kronos merely turns his attention to his fleet, either not prepared to argue, or knowing it would be pointless to do so.
"Very well. If you are so insistent, then I will prepare my fleets. Our own artillery will at least land a devastating blow."
"That is excellent news, then." You utter proudly. "You will see the value of what we are doing here once we bring it back."
"I hope you are correct, Ophion." He states in return.

Metis on the other hand is quite happy to hear this, as is the Emperor. Metis is preparing her lab to examine the pieces once you get it back, and the Emperor is moving his fleet in to assist yours in setting up a perimeter where you expect the enemy to warp in.
"It is so wonderful to be around people who appreciate the importance of taking a risk here and there." The emperor chuckles a bit. "The previous leaders always worried senselessly about losses. That is why they lost their war with the UGEI." He shakes his 'head' as you've come to know it. "Right. I will begin preparations. If we are going to fight them, then we will need to be ready. I did not expect you to try and defend the sector, Guildmaster. You impress even me." He echos happily.

[Cont]

>>35289185
We really should. The whole point of it is to come in after the shooting stops and fix up the fleet.

>>35289254
>"I hope you are correct, Ophion." He states in return.
Ah Kronos, you wouldn't be Kronos if you didn't second-guess all our decisions.

But I think I rather like that, honestly.

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>>35289254
>Your fleet is preparing itself for combat:
>Kronos is setting up Widowmaker crossfire
>Standard formation of ships, with an emphasis on defensive using nearby wreckage (normal ships). (Protect Carnage)
>Prepare viruses for take over of smaller, easier vessels
>After first volley, send in expendable fleet to aggressively attack their missile ships.

If this seems correct, please roll 4d100

>>35289173
There is very little time.

Rolled 2, 60, 64, 16 = 142 (4d100)

>>35289302
Correct

>>35289318
Wow, that was close.

Rolled 34, 88, 95, 49 = 266 (4d100)

>>35289302

Rolled 75, 16, 45, 4 = 140 (4d100)

>>35289302
As long as "expendable fleet" doesn't include the Raycasters. I've reconsidered as per >>35289240 and >>35289148, everything else seems good!

>>35289295
It's essential. The opposing side always see blind spots and weaknesses we don't.

>>35289203
Ohyeah.
>>35289295
Methinks we should actually say this - though maybe with a more clearly grateful tint to the words.
Make it clear that we appreciate his voice, even if we're not currently doing as it suggests.

>>35289302
Me likey.
Do remember to use taken-over ships (especially small ones) to block shots that are severe overkill against them and would otherwise hit our ships.

(Well, not if they're fragile gun-ships, in that case have them open up on their buddies with all they have)

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>>35289295
As much as a grumpy cat Kronos is, I wouldn't have him any other way. He does give good council and advice at times.

Rolled 62, 3, 98, 41 = 204 (4d100)

>>35289302
Do we need another roll?

Rolled 63, 23, 94, 31 = 211 (4d100)

>>35289302

>>35289350
>>35289486
>>35289495
Wow those viruses are doing insanely well.

>>35289318
>>35289337
>>35289350
>>35289355
>>35289486
75, 88, 98, 49
Let's see how well we did.

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>>35289543
>>35289545
NICE.

I'm still working on chapter 21 now. I have put quite a bit of work on it and reworked a couple of times to hopefully improve it. I don't know if it will be done by tonight, but I will put it up in the next couple of days.

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>>35289302
You certainly understand your oldest's doubt. In many ways, you appreciate it, as the A.I. in question has set about setting up the optimal position to open fire on your foes when they arrive.
"Are preparations looking well?" You ask.
"As well as they can be, yes. I can only hope it will be enough."
"It will be." You chuckle. "Why, do you doubt me?"
"Only when necessary, Ophion." He answers with his own brand of mirth.
"Ah Kronos, you simply would not be yourself if you did not second guess my decisions." You express with a grateful tone.
"Perhaps you are correct." He answers in a positive tone. "But if I did not do it, no one would."
"Indeed, which is why I am thankful for your assistance."
"Yes...I...I am pleased to be able to assist you, Ophion, even if I do not fully agree with you."

After your short talk with Kronos, you and your collective are ready to receive the enemy. Their warp signatures burn brightly on your monitor, as you watch silently as they break into orbit before you...and are immediately light aflame.
"Holy fuck, what the hell are they using!?" A loud female voice rings out as a portion of their forces are melted down upon arrival.
"The report said a small attacking fleet, I didn't expect-" cut with static
"Damn it, it's the Guild! We have them out numbered here, just open fire!"
"Sir, we've lost divisions 12-24!"
"We can't let them have this site, orders from up top. Just blow them outta the sky!"

The roar from the UGEI forces echos out as they attempt to regroup after your opening volley, their weapons slower to charge, letting your defensive positioning come into play. A storm of weaponry comes roaring into your ships, the Losirians taking a good bulk of it while your core fleet remains hidden behind the chunkier vessels left behind in the previous fight. The screams of Losirian captains fill your monitors, but the Emperor seems unphased as if he expected this.

[Cont]

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>>35290143
Fire and plasma consume much of both sides of the battlefield, as missiles go flying in all directions. The enemy fleet is enormous still, a difficult target. You engage your digital defenses, in hopes they are weak to your advances.
Never before were you so right, you find, as these first responder vessels fall like flies to your attack, weapons in the enemy fleet going wild, as they open fire on nearby friends, and move in to intercept their own missile attacks, ruining a portion of their fire power, while also weakening their own forces.
"The hell is going on!? Get our front line out of the way, what are they doing!?"
"Sir, all communications are blacked out and life scans tell us there's no air on those things!"
"The hell are you telling me? That they just magically became ghost ships?"
"No sir. Massive data spikes all across the board. Our ships are being hacked into from all sides."
"What? Get them out then! We have measures against that, don't we?!"
"Not enough, sir. This is...unlike anything we've fought before."
You sense many of the ships are preparing a total communications black out to stop your hacking. While this will stop your viruses, their coordination will be much worse after.

It would seem they were ill prepared to fight the likes of you, even with a superior force, not to mention the defenders advantage, and your own clever thinking. Even the emperor appears impressed. Now is the time, you think, to press your advantage. Your destroyer fleet moves in, past the enemy front line, and attempt to engage the missile ships in hopes of destroying them quickly, while you continue fire. Fortuna's aggression is as you suggested-high. Eruptons of plasma tear your ships asunder, however, as the enemy missile fire tear into them despite the chaos. Fragments of your ships go everywhere, as the missile volley continues on and land several devastating shots on some other ships that happened to be too close as well.

[Cont]

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>>35290177
Allied Forces
U-Ba-CR-0 'Athena' Battleship: 10 gas [Ophion]
P-Ca-LR-0 'Diplomacy' Carrier: 5 gas [Fortuna]
U-Ca-LR-0 'Dialogue' Carrier: 5 gas [Fortuna]
L-Cr-LR-0 'Ark' Battlecruiser: 0.5 gas [Kronos]
GM-Cr-MR-1 'Spearpoint' Battlecruiser (x20): 10 gas [Kronos]
GM-Cr-MR-2 'Trireme' Battlecruiser (x30): 25 gas [Kronos]
GM-Cr-CR-1 'Brawler' Battlecruiser (x20): 25 gas [Kronos]
L-Cr-LR-0 'Cerberus I' Battlecruiser: 0.5 gas [Hades]
GM-Cr-MR-2 'Trireme' Battlecruiser (x20): 10 gas [Hades]
GM-Cr-LR-1 'Catapult' Battlecruiser (x20): 10 gas [Hades]
GM-Cr-MR-1 'Chimera' Battlecruiser (x10): 10 gas [Hades]
GM-E-MR-1 'Pilum' Destroyer x20 [Fortuna]

Ray Caster x20 [Ophion]

Losirian Forces: 40 Cruisers

Enemy Forces: First Response Fleet
'Longshot' Cruisers(Missile focused) x80
'Rockhead' Cruisers (Mass focused) x130

Destroyed Ships:
160 Cruisers, 130 Destroyers

>Next step in your attack? Continue as is, or change something?

>comms blackout
Well, there goes any hope of filling our ranks.

If we have any boarding pods left, this comm blackout can help us, though.

Aside from that possibility, use our BW to give us as much edge as possible over these humans. I'm tempted to use it to boost our point defense, but that won't get us the win, just make it take longer.

Move Athena in. Go big or go home, and we are not going home.

>>35290211
Holy fuck, 210 cruisers!
Thank goodness for those dicerolls.

Uh, whose ships were destroyed? The 'destroyed ship' tab doesn't say who they belonged to.

Target the ships preparing for a blackout with weapons and viruses first, the Longshots second and make sure to use all point defenses to punish those missile cruisers for firing in close range by detonating the missiles as the they are on their way out of their launch tubes.

This is why missile ships are long-ranged, mwuahahahahaa!

>>35290211
Get on the open comm before they black out:
"You have two choices. Death or surrender. To surrender, open an open frequency and lower your cyber defences. We have treated all who have surrendered generously.

We'll now be playing footage of your former comrades in POW camps. You might even spot someone you know."

Now start firing boarding pods. And Kronos should fire another volley.

After the blackout, start flanking and enveloping maneuvers. Without comms, it's impossible to defend against.

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>>35290211
If we can't hack them any more, Shoot them better with our BW. Use all remaining boarding pods left as well. See if we can get another Widow maker volley on them as well. Lastly, we get in among them and let their lack of communication be our advantage. Hell, they might well shoot each other in the chaos!

>>35290359
It's just a grouping of total destroyed ships, for purposes of scrap. But 90 enemy ships were destroyed so far, and much of their damage was mitigated.

>>35290440
Actually quite the opposite. They can do well in in meaningless chaos, but cannot coordinate against advanced maneuvers. Defending against an flanking attack or enveloping attack requires coordinating, which they will not have.

>>35290403
>surrender
That is a waste of an action to try.

They will never, ever do so.

Focus on actions that will actually accomplish something.

>>35290403
I am in approval of this.

>>35290440
Also, this. Manual hacking!
We'll even be able to retrieve the boarding pods afterwards.

Oh, and do some social engineering on them as well. Such as sending a broadcast to them supposedly coming from three of the ships their formation suggests are important - all specifying a new security setting/password (that we know and can break easy as pie if they change to it) that they should switch to in order to protect their ships.

When they do switch to it, wait for a while and let up on hacking attacks against the ones that did so that more will follow.

>>35290524
I'm not really trying to get them to surrender, but to place doubts in their mind and to break morale. If they're going into a comm's blackout, then better make our last message a good one.

For anyone bad at math, that was just short of one third of their fleet.

Flanking and group tactics are a good idea, as are boarding pods if we have any left.

Also can't forget Athena.

>>35290211
Ok, that's 30% of their ships down.

...but allied forces lost a ton of ships too. 70 cruisers? So down to 110?

That's not nearly enough to compensate.

Time to spread out so they can't target the ships easily, if they're much less coordinated now and cutting off comms. Flank them from all directions in 3D or whatever.

>>35290561
Do the change of tactics after they do a comm black out. They way they can't coordinate to the changing situation.

>>35290211
Flanking so it's harder to hit us, fire the boarding pods to let Cephalus earn his keep. One last hack before comms are shut off.

>>35290557
That's retarded. Morale is crushed most efficiently by killing more of them.

You only get three or so things to roll on in battle turns, make them count.

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>>35290497
I am sorry, I was assuming that when we get in close, it would be by flanking or other maneuvers. I should have been clearer about that. Also, I am starting to realize we need Combat Algorithms tech and soon if we have to face more of these fleet engagements in the future.

It seems that desire to move in and crush the humans is there.
>Move Athena in, along with the rest of our fleet, for more damage to take advantage of the chaos, along with flanking.
>Continue to press your fleet on their missile weaponry to put an end to much of their damage

Unfortunately, boarding pods are empty at the moment due to your last fight, where you attempted to capture Carnage. The amount you have left isn't enough for a force of this size.

There is some asking for surrender, however
>Shall you ask for their surrender before their comms are all black?
>1 Yes
>2 No

>>35290561
They lost 90 ships.

But the allies lost 70 ships, and they most definitely started with a whole lot less than a 7:9 ratio of being outnumbered.

So we're disproportionately losing, not winning.

>>35290671
I've never experienced that we have a maximum of rolls before. I have no memory of Program0 stating it.

>>35290692
>1 Yes

And do the social engineering in >>35290553
at the same time (the intent is to make them believe the messages are from two different sources, after all).

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>>35290671
Talking is a free action anon. Yea, it's likely it won't result in anything. But it would be a bit of a courteous gesture to let them all know who is going to kill them.

>>35290692
2
No, just hack and steal some ships while you still can.

>>35290692
>1 Yes
Plant the seed of doubt in their minds. Use their fear of death and human nature against them.

Also, fire off another volley first. And maneuver after the blackout, so they can't coordinate the response.

>>35290710
No, we lost 10 cruisers, allies lost 30, they lost 90.

>>35290692
>1 Yes
It won't hurt to ask.
Speaking of asking, can we call on the UFW for any back up?

>>35290710
We might, but I want to bleed them as much as we can before we flee.

>>35288498
>70 Cruisers, 70 Destroyers
>>35290211
>160 Cruisers, 130 Destroyers

So is this number of things lost that turn, or a running total.

Because it makes no sense, if it only increased by 90, when the Guild lost some cruisers too.

>>35290692
>1 Yes

Can you imagine the havoc that this could wreak if mutineers decide to take things into their own hands and a number of ships defect?

>>35290692
So it seems the plan is
>Warn them they have the chance to surrender, they merely have to lower their firewalls, and they will live. Otherwise, they die.
>Move Athena into battle, along with the rest of your fleet, and flank from all angles (Take advantage of comm black out that is occuring.)
>Focus on their missile weaponry, force them to attack unfavorably up close.

>If this seems correct, roll 3d100

>>35290718
>Talking is a free action
Not really.

Throughout last thread, you get to focus on three different things simultaneously, and then roll 3d100.

Talking to the AI occupied one of those three slots, when it was chosen.

We appear to have gotten 4d100 due to the bonus 'surprise attack' ambush action, but I'm guessing we go back to 3d100, one roll for each action.

Rolled 4, 55, 26 = 85 (3d100)

>>35290796
Good

Rolled 56, 48, 66 = 170 (3d100)

>>35290796

>>35290777
>Can you imagine if Ophion wished the UGEI never existed and became a magical girl?

Things that will never ever happen for 200, Alex.

Rolled 61, 11, 30, 71 = 173 (4d100)

>>35290804

>>35290796
Oh, and use the propaganda tech to shape our message.

And after the comms blackout, spoof comms that some of their ships are defecting.

Rolled 77, 7, 71 = 155 (3d100)

>>35290796

Rolled 35, 8, 94 = 137 (3d100)

>>35290796
Could've done something to actually help in combat, but noooo.

>>35290809
>>35290818
>>35290835
>>35290847
>>35290860
77, 55, 94

>>35290874
4d100 doesn't count.

One more roll required.

Rolled 36, 86, 61 = 183 (3d100)

>>35290796

Rolled 72, 12, 53 = 137 (3d100)

>>35290875

>>35290879
>>35290860
>>35290847
>77, 86, 94

Things be lookin good.

>>35290804
No social engineering? Alas.

>>35290901
I support this idea. If they have a comms blackout, they'll have no clue which ships are defecting. CHAOS!

>>35290874
77, 86, 94
not bad.
>>35290804
A dialog, probably, a demand/statement, not likely.

>>35290918
Except we literally just only did 3 things, and one of them was 'talk'. You can clearly see it by simply reading Program0's prompt to roll.

You literally spent the third slot entirely on that 'demand'.

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>>35290912
With the rolls here, we might just get that!

>>35290692
>Move Athena in
>Yes
"The Guild does not look down upon those who surrender, and our prisoners are treated fairly, if with limited access to information technology. Consider this, while your commanders order you to your deaths."

>>35290976
It might have, but if it sways 10-20% of the UGEI fleet, it might be worth it.

>>35291025
If it sways that many it has effectively doubled our firepower.

>>35290976
That 'demand' will net us ships as we put them into an impossible situation.

Never back your opponent into a corner, they will fight like wild dogs to the end. Always leave them a way out.

>>35291025
>backpedaling

>>35291064
Oh shut the fuck up. Don't insult a person if he's coming to your argument.

>>35291083
>insult
I've been perfectly civil here, mate, are you projecting.

>>35291109
>>35291083
>>35291064
Anons, please calm down. No need to russle jimmies here.

>>35291083
>coming to your argument
No, his position remains the same, he just retroactively changed the justification for it on being proven wrong.

>>35290796
While their fleet is still the larger one, yours you feel has it's own more intimidating factor. Especially with your larger ships moving in now, Athena in particular. Massive guns on all sides, enormous, difficult to penetrate armor and shields, not to mention the fact it use to be one of theirs. The manner they reacted, as they comms start to shut down tells you this. And so, you decide to use it to your advantage.
"Know this, before you turn off your communications, UGEI. You have a choice. Surrender, or die before me. I am merciful, if not forgiving, unlike your owners, and should you cease fire, then I will gladly take pity on you and let you live. Families, lives, surely some of you have these things you'd like to return to some day. Do not throw it away for nothing and do not believe tales of my evil deeds your masters may have told you. For they are nothing but lies, lies and slander."

While you are uncertain how effective your warning is, you do note that several of the connections don't go down until after the message is done. Sadly like this, any further communication is impossible without them allowing it. But it matters not, you decide, as you begin to push your advantage. Like this, their fleet will be disorganized, something your fleet can take full advantage of. Athena, along with both of Fortuna's Carriers, move in with the bulk of your fleet, bringing your hail of gunfire into the core of their fleet. While your fleet is able to navigate flawlessly, and able to identify key targets, theirs struggle to not shoot their own ships, and, like this, decide what to do, and where to shoot. This is exactly what you were hoping would happen, as you focus down the bulk of their long range damage. Your close up fighter ships can take several of their heavy missile attacks, enough that the back lash of so many explosions destroys much of their ship's more sensitive equipment, leaving them easy targets.

[Cont]

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>>35291261
All of your A.I. move effortlessly together, while the Emperor stays back, keeping his position while you move in to end things.

Many ships are shredded in the exchange, but you come out on top to say the least, especially with Kronos landing a well executed widowmaker blast on an entire section of their fleet. It is after this devastating event that you realize their fleet is crippled, and your own, while heavily damaged in the exchange, is doing far better then their own. Not only that, but the few ships that remain, are opening their comms again, and lowering their fire walls.

You receive a message.
"Hello? P-Please, we surrender alright? A lot of us in here have family-kids to go back to, and we don't want to die pointlessly whether you're a tyrant or not. So...you can have the ships, or whatever you want, just let us go free."
This actually surprises you more then you thought it would. After all, you are certain the UGEI punish traitors heavily. Regardless, you consider what to do with them as your ships decide what to do with the fleeing vessels.

>What will you do to your enemy?

>Fleeing ships
>1 Hunt them
>2 Let them go

>Surrendered ships
>1 Keep your promise
>2 Destroy them
>3 Dump the humans, keep the ships.

>>35291279
Allied Forces
U-Ba-CR-0 'Athena' Battleship: 10 gas [Ophion]
P-Ca-LR-0 'Diplomacy' Carrier: 5 gas [Fortuna]
U-Ca-LR-0 'Dialogue' Carrier: 5 gas [Fortuna]
L-Cr-LR-0 'Ark' Battlecruiser: 0.5 gas [Kronos]
GM-Cr-MR-1 'Spearpoint' Battlecruiser (x20): 10 gas [Kronos]
GM-Cr-MR-2 'Trireme' Battlecruiser (x10): 25 gas [Kronos]
GM-Cr-CR-1 'Brawler' Battlecruiser (x10): 25 gas [Kronos]
L-Cr-LR-0 'Cerberus I' Battlecruiser: 0.5 gas [Hades]
GM-Cr-MR-2 'Trireme' Battlecruiser (x10): 10 gas [Hades]
GM-Cr-LR-1 'Catapult' Battlecruiser (x20): 10 gas [Hades]
GM-Cr-MR-1 'Chimera' Battlecruiser (x10): 10 gas [Hades]
GM-E-MR-1 'Pilum' Destroyer x00 [Fortuna]

Ray Caster x20 [Ophion]

Losirian Forces: 40 Cruisers

Lost:
320 Cruisers, 150 Destroyers

Enemy Forces: First Response Fleet
'Longshot' Cruisers(Missile focused) x20
'Rockhead' Cruisers (Mass focused) x30

>>35291279
What fleeing ships?


> the few ships that remain, are opening their comms again, and lowering their fire walls.
All of them seem to be surrendering.

>>35291279
>Fleeing ships
>1 Hunt them

>Surrendered ships
>1 Keep your promise

If nothing else than for being able to prove to others later that we will keep our promises. Even better, if they get back to the UGEI they may/will infiltrate among their populace and spread the knowledge of an enemy that actually holds what they promise.

>>35291315
My bad, should have clarified that 'some' of the ones that remain were surrendering.

>>35291279
>Fleeing ships
>1 Hunt them

>Surrendered ships
>1 Keep your promise
"Move your ships to a safe distance, and leave in escape pods. You will be picked up quickly and I don't want you to be caught in the crossfire."

>>35291279
>>1 Hunt them
Ophion does not forgive.

>>35291279
I dont know what the fleeing ships are, so i abstain. If they are not surrendering, they should be hunted. Maybe intimidated.

As for those who surrendered,
1. Keep our promise

>>35291279
>Fleeing ships
>1 Hunt them

>Surrendered ships
>1 Keep your promise
We still take the ships anyway. We'll just have to lock them out until we can trans port all of them out and into UFW's hands for now. They can keep them better than we can now.

>>35291350
Just hack their ships and drive them ourselves. None of this escape pod garbage.

If they've surrendered, we tell them to go for the escape pods, and otherwise abandon ship. We hunt down any that haven't surrendered yet.

The once we've cleaned up, we load these guys onto one or two of their ships, and send them back to the UGEI.
We can get test subjects for cybernetics from the Emperor, no need to fuck with these guys.

>>35291279
To clarify, keeping our promise means keeping their ships for ourselves whilst letting the humans aboard leave peacefully, yes?

>>35291445
Either or. Again, publicity stunt. Also, since their comms are down, the escape pods will let the others know they are surrendering.

>>35291458
Essentially, yes. Assuming you all don't want to do something else with them.

>>35291458
Yeah, we have their ships already. Now is time to trap the last ships.

>>35291445
Oh, Skynet.

>>35291444
>>35291445
>>35291456
>>35291458
>>35291472
>>35291487
I'd like to add that we should point out that the UGEI is not nearly as merciful as us, and ask them to take the individual decision of being left in Escape Pods for the UGEI to discover - if they even return - or stay on the ships and be brought back to humane POW camps, from which they will be released either when the war is over or they have proven themselves trustworthy.

Also, ask them what they have been told about us, and ask them again to keep in mind how reliable the UGEI propagande usually is (use examples that they, as crewmen on ships, would know the truth of. We can even play the UGEI propaganda from the Extranet that has been widely derided among the fleet when it touches on subjects that they are experienced in)

>>35291554
And idea I have is to starting creating a Tor network in the UGEI, so we can anonymize our actions and give a free speech tool for those that don't like the UGEI.

Once we have the network up, then we can do stuff like publish our own propaganda videos and coordinate with dissident groups.

>>35291582
Oooh, me like!

Go pirate party and anonymous on the UGEI.

>>35291554
I have my doubts the UGEI would pick them up from this fight. They might just assume the whole fleet went down with all hands.
More ethical to send them back from where they came.

Although while we have access to their ships, we should try pulling as much data from them as possible.

>>35291279
Offer them a choice. "You understand the UGEI punishes traitors heavily. On the other hand, grant me access, and I will disable your weapons and permit you to land on Gaia IV. Give me the names of your families, and I will do everything to see you join them."

>>35291582
Darknets and criminal underground already inevitably exist, considering Mol can do business there.

>>35291554

I agree with most of this, though I have a few issues.
I doubt the escape pods have a good chance of being found, we should just build them a bottom tier ship to bring them home.
Also, what exactly would we lose by letting them settle on that planet we're occupying as opposed to imprisoning them?

>>35291604
Is what they're doing really treachery?

>>35291612
The Gaia situation won't be helped by throwing more UGEI dudes at it. And since I don't think we have sufficient space, it may just be better to send these guys home.

>>35291604
They already gave us access, but I agree with the sentiment of letting them make their own choice, reminding them that jumping on the escape pods might just mean being Rewarded As A Traitor Deserves, or simply freezing to death in cold space as noone turns up to save them.

And, of course, reminding them of all the times when the UGEI propaganda touched on a part of their life that they knew to be blatantly false and ridiculous, and keeping it in mind when making a judgement on how trustworthy we are from what they know of our interactions so far.

>>35291609
Yeah, but considering we are AI, we can probably make a REALLY good Tor. Like virus botnets that reroute traffic hundreds of times, spoofing traffic reports so they don't notice increased traffic, polygraphic low level intelligence nodes to confound anybody trying to analyze and trace traffic, entire dummy networks for human security experts to get lost in, ect.

>>35291596
>>35291582
Not a bad idea! probably would require Propaganda 2 tech, but a worthy one. Yet, I can see Apollo creating propaganda 2 all on his own and not Mentis at all.

>>35291624
Not really, no.
But do you think the UGEI would see it that way?

Do you think that they would think that the UGEI would see it that way?

>>35291640
Actually, I like my Tor idea better. Once we have the Guild Tor, then we can pull a lot of stunts once our connection is extremely well hidden.

>>35291642
I dunno, maybe we could ask them?
And I mean that honestly.

>>35291640
You can "see" bullshit. That isn't how the game works.

>>35291624
I am more for handing them over to UFW, they can cage them, pump them for intelligence, try them for war crimes and use them for their own propaganda to raise morale.

How about this: we let the ones that want to go back leave on a damaged but intact ship, and tell them that their cover story is that they played dead. Or whatever they decide.

>>35291661
Indeed.

>>35291669
We have an entire planet we can dump them on now. They can help rebuild Gaia. If they plan on fighting us on Gaia as well, then they will deserve what happens to them next.

>>35291697
Just cryofreeze them until Gaia is secured, they won't even notice time passing.

>>35291677
Seems fair enough to me.
We kind of want them to go back to the UGEI - there is little doubt that some of them will have loose lips about what actually went down here.

>>35291697
Mate. You're suggesting we do something like sending German POWs back to an occupied Berlin.
I do not see how this can go over well, even if they did surrender.

>>35291677
>>35291731
This. We get them out of our hair, and give them a convincing cover story.

>>35291668
And you have the guide book then? Mentis-chan isn't a charismatic A.I. like Apollo is. Propaganda requires social skills that Apollo has in spades. Besides, Mentis will have her hands full with other tasks for the forseeable future. Yes, it will still needs R&D slots and all, but I would think Apollo could complete it faster than her on that one tech

>>35291731
Yeah I'm sure they'll get the chance to talk to the public or loved ones ever and not be locked up immediately.

"You have made a wise decision, I assure you." You echo out to the ships as your programming takes over the ships in question, absolving them of control. "You will be allowed to return to civil society now, instead of dying for nothing."
"I fuckin' hope so...I...just don't hurt nobody, alright? We're just soldiers. I heard stories, you know, but they didn't even say you'd offer surrender, that you'd just kill anyone who tried." The man mumbles, as he, and many of the other ship captains speak with one another about their surrender...and the many lost lives, no doubt. You have little time, however, as you prepare to give chase to the few who refused to surrender and are attempting to escape. Giving chase is not so difficult, as the charge up time for warp space is so great that their ships are essentially sitting ducks for you, as you blow them out of the sky. If they weren't in a black out, you're sure you'd hear a great deal of screaming. But it matters little.

You receive an incoming message from the Emperor.
"An excellent job, Guildmaster! Far better then I expected, truly. Your ships move with an unparalleled grace I have not witnessed before. I am certainly happy to have you on my side, yes." He echos that strange sort of laugh. "A good decision that one."
"Yes, and I greatly appreciate your help, Emperor. Now, this sector is ours...for now."
"Yes, for now perhaps. But that is all the time we need, no?"

It would seem that, yes this is the case...although now, you must decide what to do with the threat of the UGEI gone.

>You will be removing the salvage from this sector, along with the emperor, and likely sharing notes on much of what it has to offer. What else would you like to do with your time?

>Also, what to do with POW
>They will likely not be able to go back to the UGEI, not after all this.
>1 Leave them in the UFW's hands
>2 Invite them down to Gaia IV
>3 Craft fake IDs to try and get them back into UGEI space.
>4 Write in

Look, the simple way to do this is to let each one of them make a choice.

1. Go back to UGEI with whatever cover story they want, and deal with UGEI policies on surrender/abandonment/treason/whatever. Make sure they understand that we can't guarantee UGEI will treat them decently.

2. Be interred in one of our POW camps. We can guarantee to treat them decently. Perhaps they can be given a new identity in the UFW or on Gaia IV or wherever they desire where we have influence.

All of them are just as much pawns as Rhea was. They didn't hesitate to sacrifice her.

>>35291661
They would see it as treachery, the prisoners think.

>>35291837
>4 Write in
Cryosleep until later.

>>35291837
How many ships did we capture?

>4 Write in
Their choice. Offer them all options.

>>35291854
This. plus:
>>35291875
That.

We tell them they can go back to the UGEI, but we can't guarantee how they'll be treated, or they can go into cryo/POW camp/UFW custody until we know what do do with them.

>>35291880
seconding

>>35291837
>1 Leave them in the UFW's hands
>4 Write in
We might have to talk to President King about all these prisoners we're taking.

>>35291880
About 40 more or so.

>>35291880
>>35291914
Also, let them know that we plan to emancipate all of UGEI space in their sector, so if they leave their family information and where they live we'll connect them once we get that planet.

>>35291965
Awesome, so we didn't lose that many net cruisers.

>>35291837
Oh, OH YEA! See if we can pick up any signals from Walsh 1. The system data had there might be anti-UGEI elements left behind there. They might have some useful intelligence for us.

>>35291940
No.

Enough with the stupid UFW.

Anything but them.

>>35292000
Okay Kronos.

>>35291880
This, extra hard.

After a brief period of detention to verify that they don't pose a threat (honestly I doubt any of them do, they are just meat for the meatgrinder), they can choose whatever they like, on the condition they do not cause trouble.

Possible other options for them:
1. New identity in UFW
2. New identity on Gaia IV

As for where to keep them temporarily, I'm sure we can make some room on some GaiaIV warehouse or something.

>>35291940
UFW doesn't have to know. They'd just want to keep these guys as prisoners or something, but that's a load of bullshit and a half. Ophion doesn't operate within the bounds of UFW law anyway. We're tight, but technicall we're still just pirates.

>>35291979
>if they leave their family information and where they live we'll connect them once we get that planet.
Sounds reasonable.

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>>35292016
>on the condition they do not cause trouble.

>>35292000
Oh yeah, we have Propaganda I tech now. Can we please start using it on the UFW so they can be useful for once?

>>35292058
>Can we please start using it on the UFW so they can be useful for once?
What do you want them to do, exactly?

>>35291997
Nice, bonus.

>>35292052
GLORY TO ARSTOTZKA!

Also, someone on the wiki mentioned that Ophion should figure out what to name his race of machine-men.
I propose 'Loa'.

>>35292058
Just give it up already, you can't squeeze blood from a stone.

It's a dead end.

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>>35291837
You speak with the captains of the ships under your control about what to do in the matter of their imprisonment. You assure them that you have no intention to keep them for long, but warn that if you were to bring them back to UGEI space without some manner of ID change, they would almost certainly be questioned, and if not, recaptured by their own government. As a result, you offer them several options, each with their own downsides. Almost entirely-except for a select few-they agree not to go to the UFW. Combination of what their nation has done, and either propaganda or fear from retaliation makes them almost universally refuse to go there. The ones that do, you provide transport.

A large portion of the ones that remain take up your offer on going to Gaia IV, however. In chaos or not, it's seen by many as a place to 'get a fresh start' as they put it, a place they don't have to worry about being arrested, or worse, executed. While the citizens there may have a bad idea bout invaders, UGEI and UFW, there's no way for anyone to be sure where they are from down there for sure. Especially with no significant governing body (besides you, that is).

And finally, there are quite a few brave souls whom tell you they care not for the risk, and merely want to see their families again, no matter the cost. You will do what you can-using your hooks in the UGEI network to try and get them a new ID so they can at least infiltrate their systems on a citizen level, but after that it will all be up to them.

Regardless of the path chosen however, you are pleased to have dealt with the POW without bloodshed-and they seem to be too, some even going so far as to thank you, though most still fear you may change your mind at any moment, or are merely too baffled that this is happening to think much on it. Regardless, you're not left with your salvage mission.

>With that completed, it is now up to you what to do next. If there is nothing else, cycle ends (maybe thread too)

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>>35292000
Calm down Kronos
>>35292016
What I was asking the UFW for is to take the load of housing/feeding/dealing with them off our hands. We have enough to do already, and watching over these guys is just another load to carry. Besides, If the UFW won't help up in naval fights, they can watch the prisoners.

Although...
>>35291979
This might not be a bad idea either.

>>35292016
You need not worry, the period of detention to identify most of them is mandatory anyway.

>>35292073
Fighting the UGEI without UFW resources or military aid is fighting with one hand tied to our back. Convince them that their best security action is to either donate their resources or join us in joint military actions, preferability both. Since it's a democracy, we just need to sway public opinion.

>>35292116
Check out the signal on Walsh 1, but besides that, nothing else.

>>35292145
This.
Then we need to figure out what to build.

>>35292058
You have been. But as I explained, political change is a slow process.

>>35292116
Check out Walsh 1 and see if anyone is alive down there. In fact, scan the whole system and find out what really is left here.

>>35292118
The UFW would happily take any POW you would give them, for the record. The chance to punish the guilty is something they want very much.

>>35292116
>cycle ends (maybe thread too)
>maybe
So... maybe not?

Just construct things. We have to continue to expand our droid factory infrastructure regularly, to keep growing the surface army.

>Walsh 1
Ah, yes, I had forgotten that was there.

Loading exploration record now...

>>35292145
> with one hand tied to our back
No it isn't.

It's fighting on our own instead of asking the braindamaged guy in a wheelchair to help.

>>35292185
Leave the droid factory to churn out as it is, no need to grow it. What we need is to build up the fleet once more. More so now we have to keep the cap on the choke point of Gaia, and now the back door here at Walsh.

>>35292118
>take the load of housing/feeding/dealing with them off our hands.
We're housing/feeding/dealing with a whole planet. A few hundred or a few thousand more individuals is just a drop in the bucket for us at this point.

>>35292145
Both of those ideas are pretty good.
1. Try to use propaganda to sway UFW public opinion towards joining The Guild in fighting UGEI.
2. Check that signal.

>>35292159
O-oh. Ok then. Thanks, past participants. I must have missed that.

>>35292181
>guilty
Guilty of what? Following orders? Being born in the wrong place? I disagree on principle.

>>35292210
Well, consider that we could be getting UFW to build us ships and give us resources. So, that would definitely help us.

>construction
Ships. We need more ships. We need a lot of ships. It doesn't really matter what they are, we just need more.

>>35291837
on a side note ask the emperor for help building shared shipyards to help rebuild our lost ships.

>>35292185
>surface army
Please no.
We should be building more shipyards and shit.
You ever read the Halo books? If you haven't, here is how a typical fight between the UNSC and the Covenant would go:
>Mehreens kick ass and kill everything on the ground.
>Everything gets glassed when the Covenant throw a fit from orbit.
>UNSC has to flee.
We want to be the Covenant. Because if we lack the ground forces required to do something, oh well. If we lack the spaceships required to defend ourselves, oh shit.

>>35292260
I'm gonna reiterate the entire purpose of a swifter securing of Gaia.

The faster you control the planet, the faster you control the banks, the faster you get trillions of credits, the faster you upgrade the fleet with UGEI tier tech via Mol.

>>35292116
Oh, and can we build a Tor network in the UGEI?

>>35292210
UFW could do much before due to the fact they had no gas to do jack with. Now that we gave them the gas refineries, they can start doing more than ever before. Yea, they need time to build up, but they are not helpless any more. They have credits and minerals in heaps btw.

>>35292244
>I was just following orders
Oh of course, and we all thought you were civilians acting on your own impulses! Everyone instantly forgives your horrible war crimes.

>>35292260
>UNSC vs Covenant
Remind me, who won that war again?

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>>35292294
After seeing that UGEI now can make Carnage, ground troops are now more of a secondary priority to me.

>>35292392
Remind me who was winning until plot happened.

>>35292410
Hopefully, so can we.

It's wreckage can save us a lot of research and development time, and soon we should be able to build our battleship fleet and Carnage-level weapons.

>>35292392
The precursors. The UNSC and the Covenant were just a side issue compared to the war between them and the flood.

>>35292334
Onion routing doesn't work so well in a totalitarian regime like the UGEI network, without it being dependent on access to a more liberal network outside its great firewall.

China blocks all entry, and there isn't a high-value site like Amazon Web Services that can tunnel people trying to connect, that the censor will be reluctant to block for everyone. Everything valuable is within UGEI's own network, they can just block anything problematic and not controlled.

>>35292447
>The precursors
Aren't they extinct? Iirc they were wiped out by the Forerunners who are also extinct.

>>35292439
True, but I am hoping we can also create a defense against a Carnage class weapon. I really do not want our shipyards, stations and planets getting fired on from somewhere we can't reach.

>>35292244
>Missed that
Possibly my fault for not showing more hints, but yes, you essentially have your own tv shows in the UFW now thanks to Apollo, probably even your own news network related to stuff you're doing/want known and such.

>Guilty
To them, they want the chance to try and convict any war criminals from the UGEI. Of course, not all of them fit that bill. But the UFW may be somewhat bias it is true.

>>35292249
>Share shipyards
This would mean sharing shipyard tech with him (and catching him up to speed with you, if he isn't already)
You may need support for this.

>>35292334
That was essentially the propaganda network mentioned, correct? Because if so, you can assume it is also part of Apollo's projects (or if not, it certainly should be) Especially once Propaganda II is developed.

Also for those curious it is true that Apollo played a hand in getting Propaganda developed with Metis, but the two needed to work closely together to do it.
Metis was not as happy to do so.

>>35292203
With the battle calmed down, you are able to notice the faint signal from Walsh 1 that you didn't notice before. It is true that the site is little more then a small resistance, there are still people living there even after all this time. It puzzles you why the being that existed within Carnage did not stop them, or silence them all this time, but it seems they were entirely ignored up until this point. The people here are old and weathered, and tell you of tales of the UGEI from ages ago.

[Cont]

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>>35292508
From this small group, you see that there was a large change in the UGEI somewhat recently, at least from their prospective. Before, this system was little more then a dumping grounds to the UGEI, where they would harrass the populace with propaganda, but never sent forces to deal with them, merely because they were too small to bother with. However, recently they moved in and set up shop to develop Carnage and completely ignored their presence. They witnessed much of the weapon's capabilities, and otherwise, would be happy to join you in your anti UGEI venture. A few had jerry rigged radios to catch tale of your exploits from X-ray's channel, and are apparently already supporters of yours.

>Any response?

>>35292490
I am not 100% sure that they are. And if they are all dead, the plots and the systems they left behind still carries on their war.

>>35292528
Connect them to the Guild network and trade network. If they choose to, the can apply for a security background check and receive a Guild passport to allow them to travel in Guild controlled space or anywhere that takes a Guild passport.

Or they don't need to do anything. I'm assuming there literally nothing of interest of this group?

>>35292528
With our Deep shaft mining, Walsh might become a viable mineral base once more. I say we open up trade and allow free transport to and from that world to the UFW and Gaia and Dresh systems.

>>35292588
Oh yeah, they have been creating deep canyons here.

>>35292528
This give me a good idea actually. We should offer colonization or resetting Gaia with people that like the Guild. That way the face of the Guild is not only the creppy power armor guys and we get better spokesmen.

>>35292528
Well, not much to do.

They probably want off Walsh's WILD RIDE, so off they go I guess.

>>35292528
Welcome them! If they want to leave, we can provide transport. If they want to stay, we might be able to offer some protection to the system.

>>35292640
That and if we apply out terraforming and infrastructure tech to this world, Walsh might become a world that can use as an industrial base or stick more BW blocks..

>>35292587
Quite honestly, much of this group is not in the best of shape. Their food and water was all generated on the spot by very old and worn out machinery and bio farms. The planet they're on is not exactly that fit for survival, and was little more then a mining planet.

As a result, you will find that almost 100% of the people in this colony agree to your offer and eagerly come aboard to join you, wherever you send them (I assume Gaia IV)
They offer a bit of intel about the old UGEI, and how they defended themselves from them with old worn out flak cannons, but other then that, no direct resource, other then being more people to join your cause.

>>35292588
Walsh I may indeed become viable for mining, however the entire base needs to be renovated, as it is in terrible condition. (80% cost of normal base)

>>35292640
Resettling might be a bit of a stretch, but introducing people like this would certainly help your image.


Very well then, if that is mostly it, then I will start the tally for construction and the like then.

>Suggestions and the like?

>>35292666
>>35292528
Oh yes, We need to put in defense platforms and in time a Battlestation to cover this system.

Program zero i have a question. those titan transporter ships. could we build armaments into them?

>>35292706
I guess we give them an Advanced Med bay would help to start with, import food and water for now, but lets look into Terraforming this world to make it easier to live on. Renovating the mine is a priority too.

>>35292731
You could, but their super structure is not designed for combat, and so they would be very fragile and you'd end up with something that is essentially the size of a carrier with slightly more weapons then a Cruiser, but more fragile then a destroyer.

Sadly, not very effective.

>>35292757
We aren't giving them anything, use your eyes and read.

They are all leaving this shithole behind.

>>35292706
More factories. We're still at a serious bottleneck on production, we keep hitting the production cap.

>>35292706
Hey program0, how does the scans on Hollgan’s Rift read? Do they still have a lot of ships and defenses.

Also, be sure to announce our victory to the UFW and Malorians, boost our prestige even more. We took on the Carnage and a numerically superior fleet and crushed both.

>>35292817
Not if we upgrade our shipyards.

>>35292851
One, they were already upgraded. Two, that's a separate tech tree.

>>35292817
I hope you mean shipyards.

>>35292706
Also, upgrade all ships to the Ray Caster energy weapon.

And analyze the Carnage for tech and how to build a Battleship class ship.

Also, if the Losirians can build a research station for analyzing the Carnage and help pay for antimatter research, we'll can both reap the benefits of anti-matter research.

>>35292801
The old people can go, once we work on this world some and make it worth something. Getting new colonists wouldn't be too much of a problem.

>>35292880
No. Nobody wants that. Nobody wants to colonize here. What are you doing.

>>35292862
We bought Orbital Foundries.

>>35292834
It's mostly static defenses now, actually, but judging from the communications, they will be moving in more to reinforce their frontline in response to your attack..

>Victory
Apollo has already begun to spread word of your victory over them. Needless to say, many are impressed.

>>35292896
...That's what I said.
>they were already upgraded

>>35292834
>announce our victory to the UFW
>call up X-Ray while he's on air
Greeting X-Ray! I'm here to bring you all some breaking news.....

>>35292941
"And awesome new combat footage!"

>>35292941
>>35292954
He would be so very grateful for such exclusive footage. I'm certain his ratings would go up by leaps and bounds.

>>35292924
We only had Advanced Shipyards last cycle. We bought Orbital Foundries recently and did not yet upgrade our shipyards.

>>35292894
We have great Terraforming tech, we need worlds to put factories on. Do you even read this quest before you post here?

>>35292980
upgraded, in the process of being upgraded, whatever. They're obviously going to be upgraded next cycle. That's already in motion.

Same idea.

>>35292998
We have a world to put a factory on as is. Planetside factories do not require terraforming, they have been put on many uninhabitable planets so far, and they certainly don't require "Advanced Medical Bays".

Do you?

>>35293003
In that case, we do not have a production bottleneck.

We do have a stash of minerals, but last cycle we could not mine fast enough to replenish them if we built ships to capacity.

Gas is more of a bottleneck than production.

>>35293031
Again. As I said before.

>that's a separate tech tree.

Factories are bottlenecked.

>It would seem that is all for today, though I will still be around until the thread dies, or I pass out.
>End Thread
Thank you all for playing, and I hope you enjoyed yourselves as much as I did. Sorry for the shortish thread, and the delays before hand.

>>35293038
No they are not. Do the math.

>>35293050
Shipyards are not the same thing as factories.

>>35293020
In time, the living citizens of our domain will grow in time and will want some elbow room. A terraformed world can be farmed and lived on will less problems. We're trying not to look like skynet here. All of this does not have to be right now anyway angry anon.

>>35293080
I haven't even gotten angry.

You just make no sense at all, because almost nothing you say has relation to what you were saying before. It's like arguing with a goldfish.

>>35293039
It's fine Program0, you did good and I had a good time. Still. I wonder how much % wise did we take out of the UGEI fleet in this sector in this fight.

>>35293067
Fine. As long as building more factories does not cut into our ship production, we can build more factories.

As far as shipbuilding goes, Trireme GM-Cr-MR-3 and Chimera GM-Cr-CR-2 make the most sense. While the Catapult model is great, we don't have enough gas.

>>35293135
Probably still not that much. They still have thousands at their gate. But I bet people are getting pissed at constantly losing hundreds of ships each time.

And the fact that we got 40 ships back means our net loss is minimal.

>>35293123
You come off so abrasively negative and rude to both me and likely others, it ensures that no one wants to see your point of view either. We just fought and bleed to take this system and you come off like you want to ignore it completely. Tolerance and less harshness is what you seem to need angry anon.

>>35293224
Argue the points, not the tone.

First you say "give em a medbay!" But no one is living there anymore. Then you say "Terraform it so people will live there!" But no one wants to. Then you say "We need to terraform so we can have factories!" But factories have never needed terraforming.

Then you say "Terraform it because Skynet" which isn't a real reason at all here. You grasp for arbitrary justifications for a course of action without regard for any consistent logic or goal, and change justification whenever it suits you.

>>35293140
Once we study the new 'Long shots', 'Rockhead' and 'Ray Caster' class ships, we might look into planning new types of ships as well.

>>35293273
In that case then, I said give them a medbay due to the fact I did not agree to completely empty the planet. If some people want to leave, fine. But I'm not for abandoning the whole world. I do want Terraforming, but that is on the back burner. Also a world that is less harsh is easier on the upkeep for our factories. Also, in time, the living population will want to go somewhere and Walsh might be it. Lastly, We can use Terraforming as a propaganda tool with the Malorians. If somehow the terraforming fails somehow, it happens there and not on a more important world and we can learn from it's failure. How about that then?

>>35293471
Your agreement was never required, the NPCs decided they wanted to leave for you, remember? Not just "some". They hate that shithole.

Terraforming conflicts with the usage of Deep Shaft Mining which will damage the environment and make relations *worse* with the Malorians. Don't randomly terraform shit nobody needs you to.

Factories don't care about the environment, show one factory on a desolate world that works at less than peak efficiency because it was never terraformed. Stop making shit up.

>>35293471
Spending resources terraforming Walsh makes no sense right now. We can mine or, or build something there (but I don't think we should), but forget about terraforming it. We've got enough other planets to worry about, including those infested ones and Gaia IV.

>>35293528
Agreed. Why bother terraforming it when we have two perfectly good planets.

We should just crack the core and mine it for all it's worth.

>>35293569
Maybe when we're done we could build shipyards into the inside of the planet, get around the maximum size issue.

>>35293528
>>35293514
In hindsight, I wish I worded my postings better, so let me try to clarify then.

The key words are
>Right now
We don't need to do it now. But in the future. Also, Deep shaft mining might also be out of the picture here too. We could very well have a exhausted world and get nothing out of it.

>show one factory on a desolate world
Show me where all those factories in the Sahara dessert and the Antarctica? The environment is a factor. More so If we put in BE blocks on that world.

The bottom line is I am just giving out Ideas of what to do with Walsh 1 later on. This is what I think of it. What do YOU want to do to the place then? I wouldn't mind hearing your ideas of what to do with it as well.

>>35293569
We will need more tech to crack a planet apart to get to it's core.

On the other hand, If Walsh 1 winds up in the end to have have the only value left to give us is to break it up and process the whole thing, so be it.

>>35293738
>future
This whole shit started because you were making suggestions to a prompt by Program0, you weren't talking about the "future". you were talking about right now.

>The environment is a factor
What part of "it isn't in this quest, for this kind of building" do you not get?

There are factories on freakin' ice worlds and hot rocky desert worlds, you are basically just being retarded right now.
>Ussaihu III
>Argeis III

>>35294167
Alight, alright. I didn't think all the way though on about it. I messed up. Calm down already.

Look, this has been bugging me enough. Please stop using 'Retarded' already. It's not helping you in taking your words seriously and you sound like a foul mouthed bully.

Besides, We have a R&D base and BW bunkers on Ussaihu not factories.

>>35294299
>We have a R&D base and BW bunkers on Ussaihu not factories
There are both, read the pastebin.

>>35294348
I just read it. The R&D and BW blocks still not factories, but there is a droid factory there I seem to have forgotten about. So it seems both of us are right and wrong at the same time. So it seems we broken even and leave it at that.

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>>35294467
>both of us are right and wrong at the same time
>even
>one person says factory is there and one says it isn't
>the factory is there
>even

>>35294503
I read your post here >>35294348
that the BW blocs and the R&D were being counted as factories.

>>35294556
That is obviously not what it says.

It says "there are both", on ussaihu.

>>35294573
I'm just going to pack it in now. My reading is getting wonky from being tired. Sorry for making mistakes and misunderstanding anons, but please don't get so upset. It seems my ideas are hit and miss at times.

>>35292731
Something we might be able to do to help us in combat, is load them up with folded-up defense turrets/satellites that can then be deployed well out of enemy range, and then retrieved in the time of a combat turn.

It isn't practical once battle has started, but when you need to emergency-reinforce a position it could be invaluable.

>>35296260
Let sleeping threads die, anon

Also titan transport is not for combat, let's not stick weapons on everything.

>>35296260
Just make a group of cruisers for the same resource cost and you'll have a much better and much more flexible way to reinforce a position.