>Captcha: Please select a steak.
>Images of seafood platters
W-what? Are these the captchas they get over on /ck/ ? I think a vampire stake would be more appropriate for /tg/.

Now its cake. None of them even match up! The closest is a 4 layer wedding cake and the original image is single layer. Do we e-mail moot or the admins about this shit?


With the arrival at the main Kavarian shipyard everything returned to normal. Or as normal as things get when there are ambassadors and diplomats everywhere.

The Rovinar Ambassador has offered a formal apology for the actions of their officers and have stated they intend to let the Alliance try them. They apparently don't want any other factions or governments the to get the idea that agents could be let off from punishment simply by taking them back from the Alliance.
You could have had them transferred to the Rovinar since you were the ranking Alliance officer aboard the ships when the incidents took place but things will probably work out better this way.

According to Alliance command you'll have a few days before your transfer back to the training base. Plenty of time to look into business deals or find ways to help your House and the Dominion.

>>36710727
>How much would one of those Stellar Harvesters cost?
Billions.

>And what do they actually do? Can we use one on our yards?
>I'm guessing it strips the Iron layer from a star or something?
Most records on them were lost when the original and its shipyard were destroyed. Iratar supposedly intends to use theirs as a means to siphon the stars fusion plasma as a fuel and power source.

In theory with enough power it could as you suggest draw other elements like Iron from the star.
However I was not nearly so clever as to think of such an application until after KOTOR came out.

>Rovinar Transport
>Could that design be of use to RSS or the House? Or are more common transports just as good?
Others are just as good.


"What was the result of your investigation regarding the drone?" Asks Mr Kasak once all of the treaty signings and everything else is completed.

"I‘ve had a hunch but couldn’t confirm it." You reply.
"It would be easy to blame it on the Rovinar after all that's happened but considering how confusing things were on the ship at times, it might have been just as well controlled by additional Krath who remained undetected. Or there may have been stealthed operatives from other Factions. I plan on talking to several parties and having some of my experts look into it further."

"Can you account for the whereabouts of all of your crew during the flight?”

It’s effectively all of them, especially the Alliance crew that were brought aboard, you made sure of that.
“I hope your job isn't always this exciting.” You tell Kasak.

“Hardly. My office is usually tasked with reviewing measures the Terrans and Rovinar want to implement within Kavarian territory. Let me know when you've made your decision regarding sublight drives or atmospheric containment fields in payment.
Something I hope you would take under consideration is that it would make my life much simpler if you bought a few of either. Then I could pass the others off as a business deal more easily.”

While sales of SHC scale sublight drives are normally more restricted you're here and have access to the Iratar Catalogue. Did you want to buy some drives or Atmospheric containment fields?
Sale price is about 10 million.

Survey with vote for the reward will be up once (if?) more discussion on the Rovinar situation has been settled.

>>36801091
We need to nail down this holobooth deal ASAP. I would advise getting in touch with corporate R&D about developing a holobooth capable of functioning in Watcher-conditions. I know it's not really as critical or war-impacting as our other R&D projects, but if we can work this out then we can achieve two goals at the same time; making tons of money (which can be reinvested into pursuits that contribute more to the war) and creating economic bonds between our House and the Watchers (this one is more of a stretch, but I can't imagine it would look bad for our prospects of becoming Baron).

We'll also have to decide what branch of our various corporations this enterprise will fall under, I'm not too solid on the various Reynard businesses.

>>36801901
>We need to nail down this holobooth deal ASAP. I would advise getting in touch with corporate R&D about developing a holobooth capable of functioning in Watcher-conditions. I know it's not really as critical or war-impacting as our other R&D projects, but if we can work this out then we can achieve two goals at the same time; making tons of money (which can be reinvested into pursuits that contribute more to the war) and creating economic bonds between our House and the Watchers (this one is more of a stretch, but I can't imagine it would look bad for our prospects of becoming Baron).
>We'll also have to decide what branch of our various corporations this enterprise will fall under.
Under the Holoplex chain? It's not part of RSS. Value of the company has increased to +20 million.

As for having your R&D work on it that is also dependent upon them not being occupied. If you guys want the special Rovinar E-beams for the HAG the ship will need to undergo some redesign which will delay things.

You could contract a company that has experience working with holographic systems to do the R&D since they would better know what they're doing.

>>36801810
whatever our choice, I'd like to ensure that the delivery/contract names the various marines and Sonia as receivers of any SHC drives, while Sonia/RSS might snag a few (if any) atmospheric processors completely.

Make sure our marines get their bonus pay for this!

>>36802160
I'm in favor of keeping everything as in-house as possible to avoid competition for as long as possible. That said, I realize it would be stupid to have military engineers/scientists working on something completely unfamiliar to them. If it becomes necessary, it probably wouldn't be too bad to outsource the R&D (so long as we're strict with the non disclosure stuff).

Probably I'm not certain what you mean by 'contract,' but could we ask the lawyers if it would be feasible to acquire holographic system developers for our own Holoplex R&D?

>>36802836
>Probably I'm not certain what you mean by 'contract,'
A Legal contract stating that the other company would develop the tech for you along with certain restrictions on one or more party (you or them) on who gets what tech out of it upon completion and rights to such tech. If one party breaks the contract the other can sue their asses off.

>but could we ask the lawyers if it would be feasible to acquire holographic system developers for our own Holoplex R&D?
They're in demand due to the war effort so unless you wanted to buy out a company or offer to pay researchers much more than the competition it could take awhile to put a team together.

Should I lock down the survey now and add those options to it?

>>36801810
For House and Dominion aww yiss.
>make my life much simpler if you bought a few of either.

Well we could probably one or two that we can put on the Heavy.

Fleet our Ground support from the Rovinar seems like the best choice to me. Just keep adding up those favors with the best race. Will probably be invaluable when the civil war starts to have Rovinar support.

>>36802777
SURVEY <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<
https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/FNC2GSS

Reloaded and unlocked survey.

Really hope this doesn't turn into another survey week. I fully expect the Rovinar question will need discussion beyond this survey.
>Do the Rovinar have any methods of detecting Krath spies that they can share?
Not that this ambassador knows about.

>>36803003
I had assumed the Holoplex issue to be unrelated to the Rovinar one, so I wouldn't think that's necessary.

>>36800743
FOR HOUSE AND DOMINION

While at the shipyard you’re approached by a Dro’all officer wearing wearing the markings of House Helios.
"Commander, I would suggest you keep that Alliance uniform of yours on for as long as the diplomats are here. I suspect you could be of great value the Dominion today."

Unlike every other day? You don’t say it out loud but instead listen to what they have to say.

“The Terrans are looking for support from other the Factions to aid in development of a new Heavy Cruiser. The Antares class would incorporate all of the advances learned from the Expeditionary Carriers and would be cheaper to produce than their current Punisher class. We believe they’re planning to incorporate mounting points for Republic Heavy Plasma Cannons into it as well, maybe as many as four.
If it is ever mass produced the Terrans will be able to decimate our heavier ships after the war. Super Heavy Cruisers are less mobile, we know how to deal with those, but not an advanced heavy cruiser. The Terrans are trying to sell the Republic and Kavarian shipyards on the design. Can the Dominion count on your support to help sway them away from it?”

>What say?

>>36803810
"You are asking me if I want to help keep the Terrans from getting new shiny toys? You don't even have to ask for that, just point me in the right direction. Anyways I suppose you have a plan in mind for this? "

Yeah, they can not be allowed to get that ship. They have enough toys to be a problem to begin with!

>>36803941
The problem with supporting this is that it would highlight us even more on the Terran watchlist. Potentially risking our hidden research we are currently doing and further worsening our shakey relations with the Terrans.

It also weakens our forces as a whole in the Neeren war especially with Dominion houses pulling back ships. As a sidenote, we may bear the brunt of the opposition while House Helios reaps the benefits.

Since the HC relies on the republic plasma cannons I doubt the Terran's would even be able to field enough of the new HC after the war to fight us.

>>36803810
"That's a rather worrying prospect. I'll do what I can to mitigate their uptake, but if they're as powerful as you say, it may only be a delaying option."

"My armor company is working on anti-plasma defences. If you have any data you're willing to share..."

>>36803810
"You do, though has pushing the design into production by all factions been considered? It could be a way to obtain technical industry advances for the Dominion and improve our own ships, while giving the Faction Alliance every tool available to fight the Neeran."

>>36804351
Well it is questionable if it would weaken the Factions as a whole. Most likely the Terrans would just put the money from that project on something else. Like increased SP and Veckron production. And it's not like the Factions have not gotten a lot of new tech lately. New Corvettes, Heavy Plasma Cannons, Dominion Mobile Fortress are just a few of them.

But yeah it could probably be toned down a bit. As long as we are opposing the Terrans new toy I am content.

"You are asking me if I want to help keep the Terrans from getting new shiny toys?”

“Yes.”

You’re about to say; You don't even have to ask for that, just point me in the right direction!
But hold off as some reservations come to mind.
>it would highlight us even more on the Terran watchlist. Potentially risking our hidden research we are currently doing and further worsening our shakey relations with the Terrans.
The risk is yours.

“I have questions first. I suppose you have a plan in mind for this? "

“Approaching the problem from multiple directions is our plan. You’re one of those directions. I can’t tell you what to say or it might seem scripted.”

"Has pushing the design into production by all factions been considered? It could be a way to obtain technical industry advances for the Dominion and improve our own ships, while giving the Faction Alliance every tool available to fight the Neeran."

“It took considerable pressure for the Terrans to release the automation systems that will be going into newer assault corvettes. It’s unlikely the Terrans will ever give it to us directly.”

>>36804351
"Will this weaken our forces as a whole in the Neeren war? Especially with so many Dominion Houses pulling back ships."
"No just the Terrans, and it helps us in the long run. The materials required for one of these ships could build 5 Medium Cruisers and restricts where the Alliance can deploy their limited numbers of siege weapons.”

"It’s a rather worrying prospect. I'll do what I can to mitigate their uptake, but if they're as powerful as you say, it may only be a delaying option."

"You're right, but we can stop them from entering mass production. Their black project yards only have so much capacity. At least we hope so. The main shipyards should be drawing most resources these days.”

>Cont.

"My armor company is working on anti-plasma defences. If you have any data you're willing to share..." You trail off hoping the officer will get the idea.

“I’m afraid I don’t have any knowledge along those lines. It’s not what my mission hes me here for. You have a history of annoying the Terrans and accompanied those Union ships back here. You seemed like an ideal candidate to disrupt their plans.”

An ideal stooge you wonder?

You'll have to decide whether this is worth risking the ire of the Terran Government again. If it is worth it maybe there is some way to minimise their knowledge of your involvement?

There are numerous Iratar and Union officials present at the yard meeting with various people. Then there is the Republic delegation. Half of them are so nondescript you cant tell the apart, while a few others look like they've dyed their hair to better stand out.

Will you talk to the diplomats, pass on the request or look for another way to sway them without giving yourself away?

>>36805319
We could probably meet with the Union Captain and/or the intel not-Krath Krath and have them talk to the Iratar diplomats about it.

And it probably wouldn't hurt if we could get an introduction to a Republic diplomat or two.

Let the Terrans get pissy at us. They're playing the post-war period before they've beaten the Neeran, and we can't afford to let them build more wasteful super ships on the back of the Faction Alliance.

>>36805319
How about we accept on the condition that we only focus on the Republic delegation.

I say we do as >>36804437 said and push the Republic to make the design public to the Alliance. The Republic would benefit from the continued increased demand for their plasma guns from the wider range of customers. Ensuring their stability even after the Neeren war.

>>36805556
I'll second this.

>>36805319
Let's talk to the Diplomats from the Republic, their Plasma Cannons are the key to this whole deal. Without them the new ships wont nearly as dangerous.

>>36805556
>>36805562
>>36805712
I like these

>>36805562
I like this approach. The Republic would see an obvious benefit in a mass produced design (which the terrans wont't allow).

Maybe slightly insinuate that if the design was not mass produced for all factions, the Dominion would have to voice concerns regarding the growing relationship between the Terrans and the Republic.

>>36806024
The Republic and Terrans seem to be historically close enough that insinuation is pointless, really. Though like with the Iratar relationship the Terrans have, it seems to be more like the Terrans handing out candy (SP torps) to kids.

Maybe this new ship design's production should be pointed more toward SP torp production being given to the FA or something reasonable but ultimately unacceptable to the Terrans, in exchange.

>>36805556
>>36805702
Well I have a piece written up for talking to the Union people for support against the program.

Deciding to put that off you meet up with one of the diplomats from the Hune party, a woman in her 30's by the name of Rinien.

>>36805562
>push the Republic to make the design public to the Alliance. The Republic would benefit from the continued increased demand for their plasma guns from the wider range of customers. Ensuring their stability even after the Neeren war.
"I'm sure we would benefit from sales to the Alliance but do you mean to make the design public to the Alliance or to all of the Factions that make up the Alliance?"

You don't see much of a difference.

"If we convince the Terrans to do as you ask that is all well and good. The Alliance then has a powerful new ship to defend Factions space with while any yards producing them can turn a small profit by providing them. The Alliance may even ask that shipyards closer to the front be established to build them. That may help the Shallans or even the PCCG. I believe there is talk of allowing Iratar to build them too.
Most Dominion territory is slightly farther away from the front lines compared to other Faction."
The other woman smirks. "Are there even shipyards large and advanced enough to build such a new craft in the Dominon?"
>What say?

>>36806620
Hasn't the Dominion been expanding its heavy cruiser yards recently? We certainly have the shipyards large enough, and they should be new enough.

>>36806620

"Arrangements could be made, though I suspect that more would simply prefer to point out the Terran fetish for impractically resource-hungry super ships is just an attempt to have a leg up on the other Factions before we've defeated the Neerans."

Really want to say something more along the lines of "Didn't you destroy your own during your civil war?", but must be diplomatic...

>>36806620
"Perhaps not but you are saying that as if there is no will for it when every other kid on the street is getting the latest toy built in their backyard. This is a time of new inventions and the greatest arms race since the last faction war after all. And who knows, if the Republic share a bit then perhaps the Dominion will share as well."

>>36806784
They've been expanding existing yards and upgrading them to increase production speed but haven't been building new ones for heavy cruisers. Most Houses have been putting money into building or upgrading the much smaller yards to build Assault Corvettes, or to pump out Mk 2 attack corvettes as quickly as possible.

The Dominion Heavy cruiser design is old and there are plenty of ideas on how to upgrade them but only a few of these are compatible with one another. The "best" upgrade includes turreted Republic Medium plasma cannons or a Helios siege cannon in place of the HLV or corvette bays.
While still a good support platform for planetary assault missions they cant compete in the Heavy Carrier role for fleet support. Their internal bays are too small.
There are plenty of new design proposals for alternatives but as usual the current level of disorganization within the larger Dominion is proving to be a major hindrance to focused development of a replacement.


>>36807024
"Arrangements could be made, though I suspect that more would simply prefer to point out the Terran fetish for impractically resource-hungry super ships is just an attempt to have a leg up on the other Factions before we've defeated the Neeran."
"In that regard it seems like they're making the effort to scale back. You're right about their super ships though. The AEC while wonderful enough would have bankrupted them and slowed the Kavarian yards to a crawl every time one was built."
She shakes her head at the thought.
"If the Republic had access to a few of these new ships after the war it would be incredibly handy as a counter to anything the Terrans might pull."

>>36807207
"I suppose if the will is there then with the right motivation the Dominion could provide yards suitable for them.
And we know about your arms race. You and the Terrans each working to replicate our best weapons. Tell me, what exactly could the Dominion share?"

>>36807449
We still haven't given the Republic those Neeran tech goodies that the wizard left for us, correct?

What did we and up voting to do with them by the way TSTG? Are they involved in the Doninion's plasma canon research?

>>36807207
>>36807449
I don't think we have jack shit to share, unless the Republic wants to build mk3 assault corvettes (and we can convince people to let them)

>>36807622
>We still haven't given the Republic those Neeran tech goodies that the wizard left for us, correct?
You haven't given any of them to the Republic no, you've given some of them to the Factions Alliance under the conditions of some very strong legal agreements.
Specifically the:
Focusing system / energy amplifier
Tissue regeneration
Plasma weapon

Still reading through the thread but could we get some exotic Watcher or Union weapons for Myrish Avun? They might as well produce other interesting domestic equipment some people we know might be interested in.

I totally forgot to ask that last thread.

>>36807728
We have the HAG, and the Republic has crappy fast attack ships, so they are probably interested in a new frigate design.

>>36807851
We could still trade them the Cooling laser no? I remember them being interested in it or you telling us they might be interested in it. For the Heavy Plasma Cannon that is.

>>36808196
Cooling laser would be worth more than just getting the heavy plasma cannon. Just by getting the cooling laser it could possibly turn Republic space into a impenetrable fortress if combined with their fortified canon defenses. They have the manufacturing capabilities to do so.

>>36808127
They didn't sell weapons at the gift ship. You may be able to get some once trade normalizes with the region.

>>36807622
Also
>Are they involved in the Doninion's plasma canon research?
No, they’re unrelated at the moment because of the scales involved. The Alliance with a multi-Faction R&D team is at work on the samples. When the project is completed or nearly so some of the tech from it could be of use to Dominion starship weapons research.

>>36808196
>Cooling laser
You still have it, but it could take many years for the Republic to figure anything out from the artifact. (Or they could use their relations with the Neeran isolationists to get it reverse engineered faster, who knows.)
Do you want to attempt this trade?

It seems you have little else you could offer at the moment to convince the Republic to extend production rights to the Dominion for the new ships. You bid the diplomat good evening and head off to see who else you could talk to.

The Union Captain is next on the list. Do you want him to try and convince him that Iratar should not buy into the Heavy Cruiser program, or attempt something similar to your approach with the Republic? Specifically trying to widen production so that the Dominion can produce it as well.

[ ] Ask them not to support it
[ ] Widen production

>>36808311
>[ ] Widen production
The Union have the better shipyards anyway. With an increase in more siege type HC, they would benefit with their mass produced ships.

>>36807449
>heavy cruiser yard
If we were to somehow build one of these, which heavy cruiser designs would be available for licensing?

>They didn't sell weapons at the gift ship.
It doesn't have to be weapons. If I remember correctly, we had a rather long list of people who just collect exotic or old stuff.

For example, maybe the Union has stashed old fighters away in some PDF storage facility?

>Do you want to attempt this trade?
I'd prefer not to.
>[ ] Widen production
I'm sure would love to build these designs in the yards as well to rapidly close the gap between the Factions and themselves.

>>36808311
[x] Ask them not to support it

I regret suggesting that it might be better to widen production.

The Remnants may be able to use this as a slight way to move Iratar a bit out of the Terran-dominated orbit in the short term, bettering the long term chances of Kavarian reunification for Kavarians, rather than either a Terran puppet Iratar or remnants of a government that caused the later Faction Wars.

>>36808311
>[X] Widen production
I agree with >>36808403 that out of all the factions here they would be a gain for them. Something the Terrans are most likely aware of.

I wouldn't be adverse to the cooling laser offer, but maybe we should hint at it and if we have a moment later bring it up in a more private setting? I'm sure the mentioning where we got it from would turn some heads.

If he doesn't take the bait that just means we sit on what could possibly be the cure to their cooling problems.

>>36808534
I would like to support this approach, but we'd have to approach a diplomat (or group of them) with the right mentality, otherwise we're wasting our time.

>If we were to somehow build one of these, which heavy cruiser designs would be available for licensing?
I may have to get back to you on that. There are numerious Houses lacing capacity trying to find someone to build experimental Heavy Cruiser designs they’ve come up with. These would effectively be free on the condition they could get one built themselves.
Ascendancy class would require buying it off the Ruling House or one of the Seven, of which there are multiple upgraded versions.

You could try to get a production license for a heavy carrier design or possibly work with other Houses who own them to develop your own.

Other than the Dominion, Rovinar and the Terrans the other Factions don't really use Heavy Cruisers.

>>36808801
A heavy cruiser yard would be able to build heavy carriers and ships like the anchorage class as well, right?

>>36808865
Yes, though the Anchorage is a horribly out of date design.

At the very least the safest bet seems to be approaching the union people you've met in that hopes that they can convince Iratar. One more layer of isolation that you hope fill protect you from the Terrans scrutiny.

>and/or the intel not-Krath Krath
You run into one of the Krath first, Kerim Jorek, and ask about him or the Captain talking to the Iratar people.
“I'm simply with fleet counterintelligence and would not be an ideal diplomat. You'll have to see the Captain."

Now that the treaty is signed there is less risk of certain types of data being stolen. For the most part they wanted to keep the number and location of colonies secret so that the Factions wouldn't be able to bomb them from orbit if they backed out. With the isolation from the rest of Faction space they might have been able to escape prosecution for violating the Factions treaty and simply glassing entire worlds. Or this was one of the main concerns.

He is able to give you directions to the Captain's current location.

You're able to catch up with Captain Bre Skulek after returning to the ship from the days main relations summit. After talking about the idea for a moment he informs you that the Union has no Heavy Cruiser production capacity, just their Supers and mediums.
"It doesn't make much sense for our few yards to switch over but Iratar may have the luxury to branch out into other fields. They seem well set financially."

>Anything you want to add or ask while you're talking to the Captain?

I'm surprised no one has asked Sonia 'where do you keep pulling these exotic, impossible, and decidedly Neeran blueprints from'

>>36809129
I guess the obligatory 'how are negotiations going?' question should be asked.

Not really coming up with anything since we've gone with the widen production route.

Maybe talk to him about that Kavarian Merc crew that was Iratar security before they stole the ship to see the universe and other colorful characters?

>>36809458
Now that you mention that, has the FA ever searched for our wizard?

>>36809129
What's his opinion on the current state of the Dominion?

We should probably get a range-check on how the Union sees the Dominion diplomatically.

>>36809523
The FA did search but were unable to find anything. The search area was captured in an enemy offensive when the commander of a key support base turned traitor.

>>36809503
>how are negotiations going?
They've gone well enough. The Union remnant is now effectively recognised as a Factions Alliance protectorate and a small number of their bases will be used by the Alliance Explorer Corps.
The Union will eventually refit some of their yards to provide Super Heavy Cruiser hulls that Iratar can then quickly finish into carriers or warships.

Krath living as citizens in Union space will be recognised as such and thus will be offered the same rights as anyone else. As a result the rest of the Krath from Faction space will break off efforts to exterminate them all. Exceptions being those that commit violent crimes.

>>36809686
>What's his opinion on the current state of the Dominion?
Disappointed. He pictured either a divided nation on its last legs on the verge of being absorbed by the other Factions, or the Dominion the way it was closer to it's height.
"From my observations your Dominion is decaying, but not nearly so fast that it cant hurt everyone else around it in the process.
I'll certainly pass on the suggestion about widened production, but why would any of the other Factions give your people a new Heavy Cruiser design?"

"our ruling house is in favor of modern designs. Any technology that we could get our hands on for this cruiser design would help in that respect. If the Dominion falls to civil war, the Neeran will not waste the distraction and possibility of turning the 'rear' area of the Faction Alliance into a new front."

Worse, the front could end up as more than a distraction.

>>36809854
>why would any of the other Factions give your people a new Heavy Cruiser design?

Primarily because us pulling out of the Neeran war would be a terrible thing for everyone else.

>>36809854
"With some of our houses pulling back manpower from the front line they could instead shift their resources into supporting the Alliance in different ways. This new HC is an example of this. With the extra funding contributed by these houses, the HC would have a greater impact on the war than compared to restricting them to just the Terrans."

>>36809854
"As you know, the Ruling House already has trouble keeping parts the Dominion in the fight.

If the FA were to give the Dominion access to this design, the Ruling House would have another favour to hand out to keep larger Houses with a sizeable industrial base in the fight.

It would also help to prevent, or at least delay, the Houses who have stopped supplying forces to the FA from simply amassing their troops and starting a civil war when the Houses supporting the FA and the Ruling House have been weakened enough by prolongued conflict with the Neeran.

So it would be an effective way to keep the Dominion's support of the FA high, and in addition to that it would also prevent short term troubles within the Dominion that could endanger the entire current war effort."

>>36809854
"Not supplying it would be adding fuel to the fire. Many houses don't support the current ruling house and by extension the Neeran front. You said it yourself, the Dominion has decayed, and if a rogue house sees it as a threat, they would possibly attack the other factions preemptively to deny them this capability. "

>>36810002
"So we should supply the more legitimate Houses with modern arms in the hopes that they kill off others more quickly if an internal conflict breaks out? Could not that outside interference also trigger a conflict?
I am genuinely wondering, Dominion politics is entirely theoretical for me after all."

>>36810090
>>36810381
"The Dominion supplies the majority of the corvette forces. The Republic the majority of the light cruisers, Iratar the majority of the Super Heavy Cruisers and Terrans the SP Warheads.
If my people developed a new type of super heavy, would selling them to the Alliance but not supplying the design to the Dominion cause it to fall into civil war or break off?
It may be an exaggeration but it seems like a good example."

>>36810243
"Which you're right can be good if several Factions are building the ships with those funds."

>>36810271
"Large scale bribery and propaganda. Interesting. And I thought it was hard to gain my promotion to captain of a Mega. You people must work very hard to become Barons and such with all of the political considerations."

It seems the captain will put in a few words for expanding production of the heavy Cruisers.

You encounter the House Helios operative the next morning in a quiet area near an upper class dining establishment. He's muttering about shifting opinion polls and unplanned variables.

[ ] Tell him what you did
[ ] Avoid for now
[ ] Activate camouflage/disguise any time he is nearby

>>36811269
>[ ] Avoid for now
We should notify Winfred of this to see if she can get something out of it.

File: Heavy & Medium Concept25%.gif (57 KB, 1016x602)

57 KB GIF

With the Heavy Carrier Your company has been rebuilding nearly finished you're soon going to be left with what is effectively a Level 1 Heavy Cruiser slipway. Hardly efficient but its there. There's no way you could run it on your own and the House isn't nearly so well off that it could start building heavies just yet but with backers from other Houses that could be different.

Ascendancy class (Requires license from Ruling House / Other) Options for modification but its cylindrical.

Senate class Heavy Carrier (Basic knowledge, not enough to build from scratch)

>>36808801
These are a few concept drawings for new Heavy cruiser designs I did up awhile back.

The two on the right (which I did not mirror) were alternate designs for the Heavy you encountered at the end of Wing Commander. It would have tried to block the Veckron Torpedo if you'd failed to stop the other ship. This turned out to be unnecessary.
Had you followed the Republic Civil War story arc you would have been able to steal or capture it. In which case you would have also been trying to stop that same other ship armed with the Veckron Torpedo.

Most of the visible guns on these ships are intended to be light or medium plasma cannons. Alternatively they could be replaced with lower damage Fusion cannons or reverse engineered Neeran plasma weapons.

Top Left is a bit small for a heavy cruiser. Medium to Heavy range.
Bottom Left is apparently equipped with spinal mount heavy plasma cannons. The tech to make those weapons that small isn't available just yet. You could certainly borrow or salvage cannons from those Neeran Mediums and mount them instead.
Middle one. Twin plasma / fusion cannon turrets all over the place. Those could either be big starfighter bays on the sides or perhaps docking points for tankers to refuel the guns.

The other two, lots of smaller spinal mount guns and some turrets. Variations of the same idea when I didn't care for how the upper one came out.

>>36811821
Also not to scale.

Anchorage class which was mentioned by an anon is Heavy cruiser scale.
The old Jupiter transport which is a piece of crap is also in that range, though only barely.
Giant Asteroid tug. House Ceres can build these.
Cygni class transport which is a replacement for the Jupiter class. They use the same sublight drives as the Senate class Carrier.

Alternatively submit your own design or what sort of key features you'd like on a heavy warship or fleet support vehicle in the future. Not everything can be accommodated but I will make the attempt.

See you guys in the morning.

>>36811336
>We should notify Winfred of this to see if she can get something out of it.
Probably not a bad idea.

>>36811821
Which heavy carrier designs could we get?

I haven't been too impressed by the performance of stuff like the Neeran heavies but heavy carries seem to be incredibly useful.

>>36812672
Yeah I agree that we should talk to Winfred and also on the Heavy Carriers.

Bump.

>>36811963
How about Heavy Torpedo batteries? That would give it good antiship firepower.
>>36812672
>I haven't been too impressed by the performance of stuff like the Neeran heavies
That's because the Neeran have a bad habit of leaving them unsupported and vulnerable to being mugged by 200+ elite warships.

>>36811963
Well I think Heavy Cruisers fit better as support rather than attack ships so things added to such a ship should probably be Torpedo Batteries, Repair docks, Fighter bays etc. Basically a mobile fleet base with long range fire support.

But that's probably because the majority of Heavy Cruiser we've seen that has been front line focused have gotten killed by us when we swarm them.

>>36811269
>"So we should supply the more legitimate Houses with modern arms in the hopes that they kill off others more quickly if an internal conflict breaks out? Could not that outside interference also trigger a conflict?
>I am genuinely wondering, Dominion politics is entirely theoretical for me after all."
Honestly, it might, but conflict is inevitable post war. Some weaker houses, mine incluided, have enormously increased their power, while others have weakened themselves through incompetence or terrible luck. Post war, those houses that find themselves much stronger than their traditional rivals will likely try to "discuss" old grievances.

>>36811269
>"I am genuinely wondering, Dominion politics is entirely theoretical for me after all."

It is entirely as stupid as he sees it, and it is only encouraging my desire to get RSS into mini-MegaCorp status.

That said, anything the Ruling House can get their hands on by 'political concession' (namely some of the tech that goes into this new ship class) is a political win for the Ruling House. They'll prove that the Faction Alliance is good for the Dominion and that they can deal an annoying blow to the traditional foe of the Dominion. In theory.

That, or this demand could be hijacked by the 'stop the design' crowd and turned into an all or nothing, using something objectively reasonable (expand the new design's production in the interests of avoiding one Faction exploiting the FA for super ships and providing a better technological base for the majority of FA contributors) with something the Terrans will never accept (giving the Dominion tech).

It is almost a catch 22 for the Terrans

>>36811269
You've decided to avoid the Helios officer for now. If he really wants to find you there’s little you could do to stop it.


>>36812672
>Which heavy carrier designs could we get?
There are a few other houses that make use of Senate class ships they might be able to help reverse engineer the designs for it.
Ascendancy with additional carrier mods are certainly an option.
Looking for a new design might also be possible.

>I haven't been too impressed by the performance of stuff like the Neeran heavies
>>36815355
>That's because the Neeran have a bad habit of leaving them unsupported and vulnerable to being mugged by 200+ elite warships.
This. One of your carriers would likely die as quickly if that many ships broke through your lines and focused on them. Or threw SP's.

>How about Heavy Torpedo batteries? That would give it good antiship firepower.
Torpedo batteries are becoming increasingly common. The House has replaced a couple of the plasma cannons on the rebuilt Neeran heavy with torpedo batteries.

>>36815538
>I think Heavy Cruisers fit better as support.
>Basically a mobile fleet base with long range fire support.
Then the Carrier would be the better choice generally. Some of the Ascendancy modifications might be able to combine the two. Senate class carrier are not as suited to fitting more guns.

What is the rough production time on a Heavy Cruiser in a basic slip?

We might be better off relocating and selling the slip to a House that needs repair capacity for their Heavy Cruisers or moving it to the Pandora Cluster as a repair/docking slip.

Then putting any funds from that toward a joint project involving others to set up a lvl 2 slip in the Ruling House (or 7's) space.

RSS likely doesn't have the funds to build Heavy Cruisers (we did lock up a good bit of funds during the Posat grab) without taking loans or giving up some shares.

>>36816768
Also the Estuary class heavy cruiser.
Incidentally, have we gotten a letter from mom yet about the movie?
>>36817032
Eh, not really in favor of that.

>>36811269
“The political situation is entirely as stupid as you probably see it, and is only encouraging my desire to get my company recognised as a mini-MegaCorp.”
You point out to the Union captain before going your separate ways.

>>36817032
>What is the rough production time on a Heavy Cruiser in a basic slip?
More than 2 years.

>RSS likely doesn't have the funds to build Heavy Cruisers
It does not, as previously stated here:
>>36811821
>There's no way you could run it on your own and the House isn't nearly so well off that it could start building heavies just yet but with backers from other Houses that could be different.

>>36817040
>Also the Estuary class heavy Carrier.
I'm willing to say that class would be very cheap to get rights for since it's an older inferior design. Most have been relegated to hauling the new heavy plasma cannons.

Survey results. Very low number of votes.

Highest number of votes were for Neeran E-beam reverse engineering project with the Rovinar in return for keeping quiet about the drone.

Rovinar / Other
>Something related to detecting spies (especially Krath) Or an especially high quality stealthy Power Armor, if what Sonia has is not the best available yet.
You can buy security scanners which can be installed in stations or aboard ships like you saw in the House Posat capital and on a navigator station.
You may be able to get drones equipped with specialised scanners using some of your favour with the Rovinar.
As for more stealth your Recon suit is about as good as it gets at present.

>I voted for Rovinar fleet or ground support in a time of need but I would really like to get 1 or 2 modern Silent Hunters for our company.
You would be the only one voting for either of those options it seems. Still nothing stopping you from using up part of your remaining favour for ships for RSS.

Sonia will be taking possession of the Sublight drives and Atmospheric containment fields and will be paying the marines herself.
10 Drives / 4 Fields

>I am also fine with "Sonia gets the gear, pay Marines ourselves"
As opposed to which of the many other options that got votes?

>Make sure to pay the rest of the crew on our ship during the mission a bonus as well. You never know when leaving a good impression on one of these might come in handy.
Unless there are objections this will be happening.

While here you’ve also picked up 2 more Sublight Drives and 4 ACF.

Most people support buying out a holographics firm. Acquisitions will get to work on this.

>>36811336
>We should notify Winfred of this to see if she can get something out of it.
>>36812672
>Probably not a bad idea.
>>36813332
>Yeah I agree that we should talk to Winfred

You use the opportunity to contact Baron Winifred and tell her about developments and let her know about the engines and containment fields.

She congratulates you on the latter two. “We can finally deploy a Heavy Cruiser with these engines. I suspect the House would like to move the vessel home immediately were it not for the increased threat of the Warlords possibly splintering.
The Colony on Rioja, or elsewhere for that matter will certainly benefit by the addition of those 8 sections of habitable surface. I would suggest setting a few aside for agriculture, though that’s hardly necessary right away.”

When you tell her about the Helios offer she becomes more concerned.
“A representative of another House asked for your help, you agreed and then you did the exact opposite? You could have simply declined.” She points out.
“While I understand you likely had good intentions for doing this, you’ll have almost certainly harmed your relations with House Helios, and possibly Jerik-Dremine’s as well.”

If your plan works out it could gain you some considerable support from the Ruling House and strengthen the Dominion as a whole.

Winifred sighs. "Yes that's possible, but you could have taken steps to minimise political fallout."

>>36817791
Reynard.jpg

>>36817791
We can salvage this situation with Helios.

They have massive shipyards and industrial capability. When these new heavy cruisers come out, I have no doubt people will be clamoring for them. Who will they turn to? Helios of course.

>>36817951
Their signature ship design is a weight class lower than the new design, iirc.

The guy was asking us to kill the heavy design in favor of producing 5 more ships in the Helios weight class rather than 1 in the new ship's, if I understood it correctly.

They're also direct competition to the Helios, as they'll be mounting comparable or superior siege weaponry.

there is some humor to be found in inadvertently suggesting something that the Helios guy shot down (widening production to Dominion) and others going for it and potentially damaging relations with Helios when I favor Ber'hulem. I bet the Ber'hulem leader will be as amused as I am about this.

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>>36818046
>I bet the Ber'hulem leader will be as amused as I am about this.
Probably.


“While you’re there you may wish to look into Attack Cruiser hulls for our shipyards and possible Kavarian support for the Dominion plasma weapons program.” The Baron suggests.

“Why would the Kavarians want to support a Dominion weapons program?” you ask.

“Because the Republic and the Terrans will never give them their best technology. Iratar seems fine with this for the moment. Ships being sold to the Alliance are sent to the Pandora cluster or Hune territory where they’re then fitted with better weapons.”

Next you ask about the attack cruiser hulls. “Don’t our shipyards in the Run produce them?”

“Yards in the Run utilise scrap which is either increasingly difficult to find or of lower quality. There are few whole attack cruisers left unexploited. They also can’t withstand the stresses of new high maneuver drives as well. The AC-K are an important part of our fleet now with their high mobility and electronic warfare systems.
If necessary we can switch to building more Vengeance types outfitted in a similar manner but as you know they have a much larger profile and are easier to hit.”

How do you plan to approach the Iratar people? Will you want to trade for production licenses or merchandise?
>What say?

>>36818135
>The AC-K are an important part of our fleet now with their high mobility and electronic warfare systems.

The EX-K refit or are we fielding a lot of K-type ACs?

There is likely a big difference between getting production licenses for the types used for EX-K conversion and the K-type model.

>>36811963
>Submit own design
Is this a thing that our R&D department could actually manage? I have a few drawings sitting around that I could 'big up' for a Heavy Cruiser, but is it worth it? I feel like if we had our company make a custom design, it'd be of sub-standard quality. Not disrespecting our Nai engineers, but construction on that scale seems like a big thing.

>>36818135
>Iratar approach
Exploit the fact we've been a long standing customer of theirs, primarily

Let's see what production licenses they're willing to offer.

>>36817791
>you’ll have almost certainly harmed your relations with House Helios, and possibly Jerik-Dremine’s as well

We have a company with PR people. Have them try to find some kind of reasoning to minimise fallout from this.
Tell the guy in person, though. It's the least we can do, even if he was unfortunate enough to have an encounter with derp Sonia.

>>36818417
unfortunately there are few ways to put a positive spin on giving someone your word that you'll help them and then actively sabotaging the very same person's goal.

>>36818219
>The EX-K refit or are we fielding a lot of K-type ACs?
The EX-K refit. That was supposed to be EC-K, sorry about that.

>There is likely a big difference between getting production licenses for the types used for EX-K conversion and the K-type model.
Indeed. The newer Type K models are more expensive than the older hull designs, though either could be upgraded.

>>36818377
>Is this a thing that our R&D department could actually manage?
No it would be more of a meta thing. There are plenty of new designs coming out soon and player suggested ones could easily be added. Within reason. Odds are I'll have to make minor adjustments to better fit the setting.

>>36818417
>We have a company with PR people. Have them try to find some kind of reasoning to minimise fallout from this.
Once he figures out you were involved, and he will eventually, you'll lose some standing with Helios. There is nothing your PR can do to stop that.
Just because your actions can be explained away as for the Dominion they are most definitely against the interests of House Helios.

>Tell the guy in person, though. It's the least we can do, even if he was unfortunate enough to have an encounter with derp Sonia.

Tell him that you were accidentally or intentionally screwing him over?
What did you intend to tell him?

>>36818637
>Tell him that you were accidentally or intentionally screwing him over?

I think it was accidental, nobody intended to fuck him over. People just got carried away, it seems.

>What did you intend to tell him?
The truth. I have no idea why people went with that, and I don't particularly feel like writing stuff for them.

"My brain suddenly stopped working."

>>36818637
>No it would be more of a meta thing.
Crayon drawings go go.

>What tell him
Accidentally screwing him over.
Tell him that we tried to stop the production, but they seemed so dead-set on it that we tried to apply damage control and widen the production.

Really, we did the best we could. I'm not sure what they were hoping a single knight-commander could, we're not even a Baron yet.

>>36818637
>Once he figures out you were involved, and he will eventually
Yeah, we should probably go talk to him face to face rather than have him hunt us town. Might make it a less bad. Maybe...

>What did you intend to tell him?
We're really sorry? Maybe we could play so that we tried to influence them into becoming more independent from the Terrans and the Republic by ramping out their own warmachine?

>>36818135
>How do you plan to approach the Iratar people?
Way I see it we can approach them from the direction that the Terrans and the Republic will never willingly share their tech with the rest of us even in face of this conflict. So to combat that we will just have to make our own tech.

Or we could approach them from the direction that maybe it's time that the Terrans and Republic stopped telling them what do. That war was a long time ago and they should not be held responsible for the actions of their previous generations.

> look into Attack Cruiser hulls
Well could the House nor just buy the license for the K-Type or an appropriately older model and then retrofit the scrap yards into yards that do not rely on scrap?

>>36818637
>EX-K refit
Is there any 'ideal' Kavarian-type AC hull/design to use as a starting point for the EX-K refit? I recall that several of the later 'jumbo' versions are no good, but DHI likely has one or two preferred hull/loadouts as starting points, and that could be important to the success of this negotiation.

>accidentally or intentionally screwing him over?

So its a choice between obvious lie and just plain 'screw your plan' (with implied 'from J-D, which we represent')?
[spoilers]I'm going to enjoy this too much. [/spoiler]

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>>36818637
>No it would be more of a meta thing.
Finally found an old sketch.

A hilariously incomplete drawing, but it would be cool(tm) if we built it.

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>>36819141
I'm picturing the bow being fitted with numerous smaller spinal mount cannons like Bittenfeld's Königs Tiger.

>>36818843
>Is there any 'ideal' Kavarian-type AC hull/design to use as a starting point for the EX-K refit? I recall that several of the later 'jumbo' versions are no good, but DHI likely has one or two preferred hull/loadouts as starting points, and that could be important to the success of this negotiation.
The base hull of the A through E models are effectively the same ship. They're what DHI has based the EX-K on.

>>36818789
>Well could the House nor just buy the license for the K-Type or an appropriately older model and then retrofit the scrap yards into yards that do not rely on scrap?
Yes. Your yards have been working without a license piecing them together from old wrecks. It would be ideal to get a proper license for the base hull.

The A through E would be the cheapest to acquire and easiest to implement. Spare hulls produced could also be sold to the Alliance or mercenaries since they're fairly popular.
The K-Type would be more expensive and would need design modification to fit DHI drives but its performance would be much higher.
The XK1 was a systems testbed prototype used to develop the K-type. It's hull design would be easier to convert and less expensive than the K-type but still more than the older ones.

>>36819308
>I'm picturing the bow being fitted with numerous smaller spinal mount cannons like Bittenfeld's Königs Tiger.

Exactly. Lots of missile tubes too, because missile spam is always fun.

No spinal mount on it though so when drawing it I thought of it more like a battle-carrier than a main offense unit.

>>36819308
Does the XK1 have the same problem as the K-Type in that modifications are needed for the DHI drive to fit? If not we should get that one. If it does have the same problem we should just fork out the extra cash for the best model and go with it.

>>36819308

I believe that we should go into the negotiations looking at all three, with J-D being interested in 1 design and RSS potentially being interested in acquiring a license as well.

We get J-D the best deal possible, using the RSS deal as a sort of "if you give J-D a good deal, my company may be interested in expanding the deal on slightly more favorable terms for you." situation.

Something similar to the buy-x-get-y strategy. By giving J-D a favorable one, they'll attract additional business from RSS.

If the K-type deal is too much for the House, we might acquire a smaller/limited license for RSS to make K-types, potentially giving DHI the ability to make 'limited run' EX-K^2 ACs at a premium for either the House or Alliance.

RSS will have to invest in or partner with someone to use an AC production license, but we could always pick up a different production license as incentive for the Kavarians, as well. The idea behind this plan should still work, which is 'move more product for reduced cost to keep product moving and profit' [can't look up the proper term, if there is one, atm]

It takes some time but you eventually track down the Helios officer who tried to recruit your assistance.
“Good, you’re the only one I haven't been able to track down. I need to verify my information, what happened?”
You start by apologising. When talking to a diplomat from the Republic it started to seem as though it would be possible to get production expanded to other Factions, which might then include the Dominion. The Republic does still sell equipment to Houses, these ships and possibly even production could have been part of them if the Republic ramped up their warmachine.

The officer listens, waiting until you're finished, then states that you and your House would be contacted by his regarding this matter.

J-D is now unable to buy siege cannons or related equipment from Helios for 1 year. Your shares in their shipyard (while minimal) have not been revoked.

>>36818743
>Crayon drawings go go.
I'm fine with whatever.

>>36819484
>Does the XK1 have the same problem as the K-Type in that modifications are needed for the DHI drive to fit?
Yes but it's hull design would be easier to convert than the K-Type.

>>36819850
>If the K-type deal is too much for the House
As a shareholder you and others will be losing profits from the shipyard to make up the difference in prices.

So far the ships have been built very cheaply. With everything factored in you'll take the following hits to the Yard's profit margins depending on the hull you go with. The more advanced ones have advantages in terms of strength and number of sublight drives they can mount.

-10% A-E Basic
-28% XK1 testbed
-35% K type

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>>36820098
>I'm fine with whatever.
cool

>>36820098

K-type

While they figure out how to modify the hull for EX-K production, we'll still pump out one of the more powerful AC designs around.

For our EWAR birds, the extra performance will help keep them alive and doing their job.

>>36820098
>-35% K type
Lose in profits is acceptable if it means higher quality ships for the military.

Some votes for the K-type. It could be added to our next survey.

>>36818789
>Way I see it we can approach them from the direction that the Terrans and the Republic will never willingly share their tech with the rest of us even in face of this conflict. So to combat that we will just have to make our own tech.

>Or we could approach them from the direction that maybe it's time that the Terrans and Republic stopped telling them what do. That war was a long time ago and they should not be held responsible for the actions of their previous generations.
Anything else to add on the plasma cannon R&D or leave that more to the diplomats?

Looking out the station windows from one of the lounges you see ships being moved into different berths. You're contacted by the ship, they're being transferred to a different dock as well since the engineers have work to do on the Mega.

A few thousand kilometers ahead in orbit you can see Enterprise pulling in to dock with a support platform. They must have finished the exercises they've been deployed on the past few days.

Valeri is guarding the ship at the moment but you're half tempted to send him to retrieve a piece of the outer hull from the super carrier. His camo and low mass signature should protect against detection.

Was there anything else you wanted to take care of before departing the shipyard?

>>36821050
>Anything else to add on the plasma cannon R&D or leave that more to the diplomats?
Maybe leaving diplomacy stuff for the diplomats would be a good idea for now.

>Was there anything else you wanted to take care of before departing the shipyard?
I think we're good for now.

>>36821330
>Maybe leaving diplomacy stuff for the diplomats would be a good idea for now.
Well more like not saying one thing and doing the opposite the next time will suffice. I should probably have opposed the choice we made but I was kinda tired at the time.

>Was there anything else you wanted to take care of before departing the shipyard?
Say goodbye to our new Krath friends?

>>36821524
>Say goodbye to our new Krath friends?
That's probably a good one. See if our friend's legs healed up.

>>36821050

Can we inquire as to the status of the non-clone Kavarian we recovered from the Faction Wars wreckage?

Otherwise, I think we're done here.

So far you think you’ve been able to avoid your mother and her inevitable reaction to the movie which is still in theaters.

Looking up the reviews they’re tending to average in the 65 to 90% range, though some go as low as 30% calling it “The worst depiction of a fake military operation ever.”
"An uneven movie with yawns aplenty."
"It's almost like the director is trying as hard as he can to make the worst movie of all time.

A number of critics and conspiracy theorists have made public statements that such a boarding action could never have really taken place in subspace and that the entire film is a coverup for whatever did happen. Others continue to say that the Vieona was never real, it was all part of a propaganda ploy in the Faction Wars and several ships actually carried out its attacks.

Despite all of this the movie has performed well in Jerik-Dremine space, as well as Terran, Kavarian and the PCCG territories. It leaked in Rovinar space where a hacker proclaimed that “historical archives should be free” and uploaded it to public networks. Only a few locations in Rovinar space bothered to pick it up and sales were so low that they don’t officially register.

Reaction in other parts of the Dominion is mixed with low sales.

Over all its projected you'll make 231 million off of Vieona.

Bekka has sent you a message that she thought it was pretty cool.

Arriving home on a few days leave you head over to the apartment.

"I was wondering when you would get back." Says mom when you enter. Neither of your siblings are present.

"So uh, did you see the movie?"

"No, I saw a commercial for it." If eyes were lasers hers might have gone through you and taken out the apartment block behind you.
"But Bekka wouldn't shut up for a week about it. Remember we went so see that awful Heroes of Gesuar movie where you said most of it was made up? How much of this film is what really happened?"

>What say?

>>36821917
"Well, if I tell you, 'I'm not allowed to answer any questions on that topic', does that answer your question?"

>>36821917
>Over all its projected you'll make 231 million off of Vieona.
Wat

Screw yards and all that. We should just make movies instead!

>>What say?
"Uh... Umm... Eh... You know... Eh... Yes."

"In my defense I've been through worse. But umm.. Yeah, It's just about how it went. Except that the Terrans billed me for breaking some of their stuff. Cheeky bastards."

>>36821917
"I won't regret or apologize for doing what I felt was right and required of me. Or putting myself at risk to bring as many men and women fighting with me out alive."

I'm tired of fearing mom. We're a damned Knight Commander and we have nothing to apologize or fear from her. Let dad and those serving with us judge our actions.

>>36822229
>I'm tired of fearing mom. We're a damned Knight Commander and we have nothing to apologize or fear from her. Let dad and those serving with us judge our actions.
Going to need confirmation on this from others.
Anyone?

>>36822229
I agree, maybe add that the operation is quite long ago by now and that the very nature of our job requires us taking risks, though those grow less visible the further up we move the hierarchy.

>>36822352
Hmm... While I do so enjoy the whole fear of mom thing we got going I feel inclined to agree. Suppose it's time for Sonia to grow a bit.

>>36822352
It's a little rough, but I agree with the sentiment.

>>36822531
I'll admit that I made it a bit coarse on purpose. Hard to imagine Sonia saying right off the bat, but as more of a sudden outburst it seems about right. A little PTSD, a little resentment at mom not understanding what we've been through (in Sonia's opinion), and just plain a little anger over some of the things mom has no idea about (Svidur, those we've lost along the way, etc).

We'll probably feel bad about it, but Sonia isn't a little girl anymore and at some point the relationship does have to be reforged with a fight because we don't spend enough time together for it to develop naturally over time.

>>36822229
>>36822352
>>36822615
whoops, just noticed something.

I put 'Knight Commander' instead of 'Knight Captain'

>inb4 mom spreads that mistake as fact

"Well, if I tell you, 'I'm not allowed to answer any questions on that topic', does that answer your question?"

“Sonia...”

"It's just about how it went. Except that the Terrans billed me for breaking some of their stuff. Cheeky bastards. In my defense I've been through worse."

Mom is more than somewhat distraught at this and her reaction is enough that it finally gets to you.

Taking a deep breath you let it out.
“You know what? I’m done. I’m done being afraid of you mom. I won't regret or apologize for doing what I felt was right and required of me. Or putting myself at risk to bring as many men and women fighting with me out alive.

I don’t know if you understand what I’ve been through. Part of me hopes you don’t. That mission was long ago, years, and the very nature of my job requires me to take risks, though those grow less visible the further up hierarchy I’m promoted. Because of risks I took back then I’m in much less danger now.”

You pause to catch your breath then add. “Though running around with a sword and armor might still be sort of fun.”

“Are you done?” Mom asks at which you nodd.

She gives you a hug then lets you go. “So it looks like you’re finally grown up. Maybe there’s hope Bekka will be too before she hits 50.”
You’re not sure that will ever happen but who knows?

“Now go talk your sister out of this fool idea of enlisting early.”

What.

>>36823248
>“Now go talk your sister out of this fool idea of enlisting early.”
Oh dear.

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>>36823248
but shouldn't there be...

Bekka is what?

Bekka as an attendee of a high class school will be able to apply to one of the academies once she turns 17 and could go there for 2 years or more. Its not unheard of for some officer candidates to spend 4 years in school.
Humans can’t join the House military until they’ve turned 18 but there are some organisations that will take younger enlistees.
You’re positive a few of the pilot candidates in your Alliance training wings were only 17. Recruiters are the ones responsible for sending them there and its not your job to set those policies.
Merc outfits in House space generally only recruit those over 16.

Bekka has just turned 16 this year, who the hell would she be planning to enlist with?

“Oh great, Mom told you.”

That's a great start. “Told me what?”

“Stuff that isn't true probably. I’m not planning to sign on with a Mercenary band! You told me I’d be disowned if that happened.”

Which is true and one of the few things you can hold over her.

"You'll have to explain what you're really doing if you want my help with Mom."
"Sis, that's blackmail." Bekka complains.

>What say?

>>36823563
>"Sis, that's blackmail."
"Yeah, it is."

>>36823563
"Blackmail is forcing you to do things because I have dirt on you. I'm simply offering conditional backing."

>>36823642
Simple, yet effective.

>>36823563
"No, it isn't. This is care and concern for my family."

"No, it isn't. This is care and concern for my family. Blackmail is forcing you to do things because I have dirt on you. I'm simply offering conditional backing."

Bekka grumbles at this.

“So what is your master plan?”

“The PCCG is sending people to sign on with the Alliance and get experience in order to build up the privateer contingent of their militia.”

“That sounds like you’re signing on with mercenaries.”
“No, I’d be signing on with the Factions Alliance. I’d have job offers and options to sign on with PCCG mercenary bands after four years with the Alliance but that doesnt mean I need to take any of them.”

From the sounds of things she'd also be able to join at a younger age.

"I've learned a lot at school but I think it's enough. I'm probably as good a pilot as you now."

"Oh really?"

[ ] "Challenge accepted."
[ ] "That still counts as joining a Mercenary group."
[ ] Other

>>36824232
>[ ] "That still counts as joining a Mercenary group."
They die fast enough to count as mercs.

>>36824232
>[x] "That still counts as joining a Mercenary group."
"You haven't seen it like I have. The PCCG, whilst a respectable faction, toss ships into the war like a meatgrinder. There's no chance I could even help you if you're not in the house."

>>36824232

"I've sent good pilots to their deaths, Bekka. And I've trained more to meet their deaths."

>>36824232
I'd still like to challenge her whatever the outcome of this vote.

>>36824232
"Oh really? Is that so? Capability's aside you are aware of that if you signed up for the Alliance for four years you are very likely to be throw up against the Neeran with the rest of the cannon fodder? Honestly this idea is not one of your best. More so when in just one years time you could join one of the academies where you could get properly trained and not the rushed training programs of the Alliance. Not to mention that if you top the classes there you get fast tracked to the elite wings. Which I don't have to tell you is the fastest way to earn your knighthood. You can be either well prepared for the front or you go in early and die, it is that simple."

"However if you feel up to it... Challenge accepted."

>>36824298
>>36824457
>>36824479

"I've been training and learning in school for years now. With three months at an Alliance training base I'd probably be untouchable. It took you 8 months to get good. Haven't I had time by now?"

>>36824597
You point this out.

"At the end of it, even if you manage not to get yourself killed it still counts as joining a Mercenary group.

However if you feel up to it... Challenge accepted."

Choose your Vessel! Both players will use the same ship.

Starfighters (Various)
Standard CRV
Attack CRV
DHI Assault Corvette Mk 3 (The new Mk 4 has not been added to public holobooths yet.)
Firestorm FRG
Archerfish FRG
EX-K (Classic)
EC-K
Vengeance (A,B,C,C2)
Knight Class Light Cruiser
Royal Guard Cruiser
Gungnir type BC
Excalibur
The Great Devourer

Then select a battlefield type (Fleet Battle, open space, asteroids, orbital platforms, others)

>>36824232
>[X] "That still counts as joining a Mercenary group."
>[X] "Challenge accepted."

>>36824910
>EC-K

Battlefield type: Heavy asteroid field.

I was tempted to say something like what we experienced in the Lat'tham coup, with ships shooting each other willy nilly for a battlefield.

>>36824910
>EX-K (Classic)
I would choose the Mk 3 but we arent very familiar with that ship as opposed to the EX-K.

Asteroids field
Good for us to see just how much skill Bekka has. Having to avoid us and asteroids at the same time while trying to take advantage of the moving environment.

>>36824910
>I've been training and learning in school for years now
Why is she joining early? What does she want out of it? If it's just the idea of piloting she enjoys, can't we get her a small ship?

>>36824910
>EX-K (Classic)
Heavy asteroid field

>>36825086
I second this.

And what about her little 'squad'?

Are they all joining up? Are they all 100% behind this?

>>36825086
Yeah exactly...I'd much rather her attend an academy and join the military as an officer instead of some grunt.

We worked up our way up the ladder so she doesn't have to.

>>36825086
>Why is she joining early? What does she want out of it? If it's just the idea of piloting she enjoys, can't we get her a small ship?
"I want to get out there and do something. It's been years since all of this started, most of my life it seems like. I just feels like every day spent here could be one out there changing things. There's always news of you having done something important and I'm stuck waiting when I know I'm ready.
Way more ready than you were when you joined the fleet."

That's for sure but its not something to say out loud in this situation.

"What about your little squad? Are they all joining up? Are they all 100% behind this?"
"Not everyone is, only two of us. But Mar and some people from another school were also planning on it."

Great. Maybe you should make some calls?

You load up the EX-K in its more classic form, without the Electronic warfare systems getting in the way and set things up in a dense asteroid belt. Or perhaps a planetary ring would be better?
"No SP Torpedoes, conventional munitions only. 60 Torps per magazine and 16 Nukes on the external racks."

"Wait, these don't have high maneuver drives."

"Ha! You think the Alliance will be handing out new ships to any mercenaries that happen along?"

What is your plan of attack?

>>36825670
>What is your plan of attack?
Same as always. Hide, blitz, hide, repeat. Best would be to ambush her when she is in a more open area of the field while we are sitting covered by our own asteroids. Backup plan would be to brawl it out in the thickest part of the field so we can hopefully outmaneuver her with all obstructions around. No holding back since we don't actually know how good she is.

Rolled 7, 9, 12, 14 = 42 (4d20)

>>36825798
Roll 2d20

Rolled 11, 5 = 16 (2d20)

>>36825972
If we lose I will cry.

Rolled 18, 8 = 26 (2d20)

>>36825972
Rollin'

Rolled 2, 12 = 14 (2d20)

>>36825972

If we haven't done so, we should also point out the lack of emergency teleporters on ships usually give to new members of a mercenary outfit.

Like those guys who fled our training unit learned.

In the opening phase of the battle you sprint for cover using the EX-K’s superior engine output. Bekka meanwhile hits her emergency thrusters to evade then opens fire with all weapons trying to land a hit.

You check video of her evasive maneuvers once you’re into cover. It seems that its taking her a bit to adjust to the flight profile of the ship. You might have been better served with a head to head to start out with since you certainly could have hit her after all that practice shooting Neeran Corvettes.

Before Bekka can get her footing you quickly put more distance between the two of you, using the current asteroid for cover until you can reach another. Point defense shoots down the volley of torpedoes she sent after you.

By the time you get into position Bekka has begun hopping from cover to cover as well and closes in on your general area. She doesn’t quite figure out where you’ve hidden until you pop out of cover, landing four cannon volleys and a torpedo barrage.

Retreating, Bekka guns her engines and launches torpedoes, cold launching some, and hitting nearby asteroids to provide cover with others.
While in pursuit she makes things much harder for you. While she’s wasting torpedoes shooting asteroids it’s making your own targeting difficult thanks to being hit by flying rocks. Especially when she uses a nuke to light up the whole affair, blinding your sensors in the process.

Her point defense can also hit your Torps while you cant hit the ones she launchers towards the asteroids. With Afterburners on there is little spare power left for the cannons.

Realising this is getting you nowhere you pull back after getting blinded again and completely losing track of her flight path.

Target warnings go off showing Bekka coming in from below firing all weapons once again, landing the first hit and giving her the advantage for once. You’re both out in the open and her time running has let her forward shields recharge.

Bekka’s temporary advantage in shields seems to be enough to break even with your superior skill and experience.
Things are looking to stalemate unless you can do something decisive.

[ ] Ramming attack / Boarding
[ ] Fire torpedoes wide to hit her weak aft shield
[ ] Blind and evade, play for time in the belt
[ ] Other

>>36826861
I feel we need to beat her as a pilot, so the first option is out.

Unless somebody has a suggestion how to handle this, I'm going with:
[X] Fire torpedoes wide to hit her weak aft shield

>>36826861
[x] Ramming attack

Ideally, we ram her with one of the forward 'wing' areas. The goal isn't to destroy her with the attack, but to bring us about quickly and behind her for a spinal mount strike into her engines for the kill.

>>36826861
>[x] Fire torpedoes wide to hit her weak aft shield

>>36826930
>>36826987
Roll 1d20

Rolled 17 (1d20)

>>36827073
Fire everything?

Rolled 5 (1d20)

>>36827073

Rolled 16 (1d20)

>>36827073

Not one to be caught n a stalemate you’re tempted to ram Bekka’s ship in order to get a clear shot at the more exposed aft sections but that last thing you want is her learning that. If it didn't kill her later in the field the engineers and logistics people would toss her out the airlock.

Instead you set your torpedoes to launch at a lower speed then track towards her aft sections.

You’re a little worried it won’t work because of the point defense. Some of the Warheads are shot down but enough make it through to collapse the aft defenses. The third torpedo to strike hull causes Bekka to panic. Or you assume that’s what happened. Either way she veered off and attempted to reestablish full shields.

At which point another Torp struck an engine making outrunning you no longer an option. It takes another minute to pick apart her failing defenses while she attempts a fighting retreat and escape to FTL. She nearly makes it too but engine damage eventually cripples her.

The match ends when the system registers Bekka activating emergency teleporters.

>>36826760
After leaving the holoplex you point out that new members of mercenary outfits generally lack emergency teleporters on their ships due to the cost.
"We had some trainees this one time who deserted and tried to get into a mercenary company. Most of them died in their first deployment because they hadn't counted on not being supplied with them. After all, our Houses does.
They didn't seem to realise what length Baron Winifred and myself went to in order to ensure all of our elite units had access to them. RSS teleport system salvage is prioritized for sale to the House."

"Your company doesn't build them yet?"
"No." You admit, though that's a good idea. Someone must.

Doing some checking it seems that at least one of your associates have bought into the industry. Daska, big surprise. Probably how she managed to pay for those Scorpion class ships.

>>36827662
Gotta sleep but I wanted to say earlier:

"When you were kidnapped, I had to call in a lot of very sizeable favors. Please don't let them be wasted by joining a shoddy merc unit and getting yourself killed."

>>36827662
> Teleporters
I could swear we asked about this recently and the conclusion was that the situation was similar to the shallan fusion guns - not impossible but we don't yet have the tech and experts necessary to construct them.

>>36821917
>“The worst depiction of a fake military operation ever.”
Can we release some censored cam footag from our power armour for with the home release of the movie?

> It leaked in Rovinar space where a hacker proclaimed that “historical archives should be free” and uploaded it to public networks.
Interesting. Can we find that guy and hire him?

Also, that guard who noticed we had swatched the memory unit on that theft mission we received from the phone booth a few years ago -
he's obviously very good at his job (or at least has an eye for detail), can we hire him for RSS?

>>36827662
"I understand your frustration Bek, I really do. If our situations were reversed, id be chomping at the bit to get into the action, just like you are.

But things are different to when I started. I fought some pirates, the disorganised warlords and against a few Houses; they're nothing compared to the Neeran.

You're good, ill give you that. But being a good soldier or pilot takes more than just skill, it requires a depth of knowledge and maturity that only education and learning can give you. Finish school, try the academy, and if you don't feel it, then join the House military, not some two-bit merc outfit, okay?"

>>36827662

I think we need to round up Bekka's new little group and potentially their parents.

Look into what ships they'd potentially be assigned and get some casualty statistics, along with their obligations. Also the fact that the PCCG is currently being a bit xenophobic about Dominion groups.

Maybe find out about it via Firth?

“So did you learn your lesson that you may not be ready yet?”

“Not really, just that you’re as determined to make me wait as Mom and Dad. So I will, okay? Are you satisfied?”

Well, it’s the right answer for the wrong reasons, but its still the right answer. Good enough?

"When you were kidnapped, I had to call in a lot of very sizable favors. Please don't let them be wasted by joining a shoddy merc unit and getting yourself killed."

“I get the idea Sonia.”

“So how was the movie?”
“It was awesome! I even stayed and watched the credits. You were the only one in stunts listed as Sonia Reynard as herself.”

“I hope that wasn't the only place my name was in the credits.”
“I think 5 other places.”

>>36827772
I do not recall this but it's entirely possible I said it at some point.

Daska would have invested heavily in an existing company that produces them rather than start her own.

>>36827817
>Can we release some censored cam footag from our power armour for with the home release of the movie?
Yes, the Terran intel people signed on for the project had to determine which parts of the recordings could be used as examples for the filming to begin with.

>Can we find that guy and hire him?
It would be difficult, though not impossible.

>Security guy
It's probably been long enough that it would be fine to offer him a job.

On that front was there any additional interest in checking the phone booth in the near future?

>>36828005
> phone booth
Let's do it.

>>36828005

"Danger, Sonia Reynard! Danger! I've detected a critical lack of hugs!"

>On that front was there any additional interest in checking the phone booth in the near future?

Not really, getting caught would just cause too many problems for Sonia at this stage.

>in b4 taking a heist or murder, getting caught, and suddenly people are upset we won't be able to become a baron for another few decades

>>36828005
>Phone Booth

I think it's time for "extra fun time"

Speaking of extra fun time did we ever introduce that to the Triads?

>>36828005
>On that front was there any additional interest in checking the phone booth in the near future?

No, not worth it.

>>36828093
After dropping Bekka off at the apartment you make sure to give her a crushing hug which she struggles against fiercely.This is much harder to do now that she's the same size as you!

"Sonia let go or, gah! I swear I'm going to run off anyways."

“Okay, okay.”

>>36827941
>Look into what ships they'd potentially be assigned and get some casualty statistics, along with their obligations. Also the fact that the PCCG is currently being a bit xenophobic about Dominion groups.
>Maybe find out about it via Firth?
You send off a message asking what this is all about. Apparently the pilot and crew candidates are screened for skills then given some basic training to see if they would make it in more advanced areas. At which point they're shipped to an Alliance training base like the one you've been commanding and lets the FA trainers look after them.
If they pass training and are good enough they’ll be assigned to the Strike Wings and assault corvette squadrons. Those not good enough will be sent elsewhere.

>yesnoyesno
I’m just going to get this out of the way.

An automated voice message begins to play.
“We’re sorry, but this number is no longer in service. If this is an emergency please press zero. An emergency beacon will be activated. If you are looking for information about this number please press 1 now.”

You press 1 for the hell of it and soon you hear the man’s voice that would previously give out missions.
“If you’re hearing this it means the maintenance bill for this hardline was discontinued and by extension this location is out of business. It was a good run but it’s dangerous to use one site for too long. If you’re still in the game just keep your options open for the right people and we’ll find you.
Should you attempt to use this number after a particular date [23 days remaining] then you will receive a short self destruct warning. I would advise against doing so for you own safety. Good luck in your future endeavours.”

>>36828389
Had you completed more missions you would have unlocked the location of another source. It’s still possible to find another it will just be more difficult.

As assassin was killed in an attempt on Baron Winifred’s life while you were out in Watcher Space. It’s currently unknown who was behind it though there are plenty of rumor circulating.

Mike has contacted you. Apparently he’s been keeping a close eye on a number of companies and invested in one that was able to convert captured Neeran equipment into a more practical form. More importantly they can build substitute fuel cells and other parts letting them begun mass production.
In terms of looks it could be mistaken for blocky shotgun that fires plasma. More controlled and with far less collateral than the Shallan fusion gun but still with much less penetration capability than your Republic plasma pistol.
Mike and the company have taken to calling it a Plasma Blaster and he’s doing what he can to promote it. Mercs and Shallan troops seem to love it and your former wingman has made a small fortune off them.

Did you want some added to your inventory?

Please post.

>>36829222
sure

>>36829222
Yes, buy a few for us and the Men at Arms. Maybe see if we can see about investing in the company as well. Might also be worth seeing if they want to get a license for our gun line.

>>36829222
Buy 10. Ask our marines to test out the weapons and their opinion on them first before investing.

Get RSS to invest in those conversion companies. Probably about 5-10% for now?

Winifred has access to portable stasis kits right?

>>36829222
>Did you want some added to your inventory?
Definitely. Can we have of veteran sergeants test them to see how many we'll need?

Sorry TSTG, Christmas is already managing to eat up most of my time..

>>36829222

Most certainly get some of those things at least for our battlecruisers' contingents. Possibly some for any elite/critical deployment RSS teams if Mike can get us a bit of a discount. Possibly invest into the company as well?

Some other questions I'd like to just get out before the night ends:

What were the results of the RSS search for those old Kavarian long range sensor outposts from the Faction Wars?

Any rumors about people being angry over our little gaff with Helios? I don't recall any plans to buy Helios ships and our one Helios class is probably more than covered by the Faction Alliance, who want it on the front...

How did/are our RSS pilots/instructors from the FA training base doing?

Any news on advances/setbacks from the front?

That spoiler was not directed at you guys. I must have screwed up the captcha before because the previous post wouldn't go up at first.

>>36829351
>Might also be worth seeing if they want to get a license for our gun line.
They’ll pass. The company is one of several focusing exclusively on converting enemy weapon systems for use by the Factions.

Starflare Small Arms which produces the weapon is one of the few private companies to have much in the way of success at the moment.
Most other major arms companies are focusing on existing technologies much like your own does.

>Get RSS to invest in those conversion companies. Probably about 5-10% for now?
Objections?

>>36829351
>>36829359
>>36829430
You'll buy a shipment for testing but your people. If your veterans approve of them more could be bought for the battlecruisers.

>>36829608
>Objections?
Generally not but that really depends on how much 5-10% are going to cost us.

>She will never be rid of us!
Oh, I now how that will turn out for her.

>Go to sleep one night during training
>Wake up 5 weeks later on the other side of the known universe
>"Ah, you must be the new attaché for the FA delegates here in Watcher space"

>>36829608
No objections here and if it works out it means we will have another plasma weapon in our arsenal. One thing our marines can't never complain about is us finding new toys for them to test out.

>>36829222
>As assassin was killed in an attempt on Baron Winifred’s life
While I'm sure that this isn't the first a attempt, we should probably find a bit more about it.

We should also increase our own security temporarily. If they can't get at the Baron, they may look to strike down her more vulnerable support network, i.e. Us.

Speaking of Winifred's faction, how dies it stand currently. Where did all of those new knights end up gravitating to?

>What were the results of the RSS search for those old Kavarian long range sensor outposts from the Faction Wars?
Several scanner outposts were found to be salvageable, many more were deemed too hazardous for one reason or another and their locations have been given to the Navigators for future investigation after the war.

4 can be easily rebuilt. They’re (mostly) made up of 5 interlocking sections, each of which could be carried by Y-type transports. In their finished state the outpost is roughly analogous to a Station core but lacking the amenities of one. There are connection points for old style long range sensor arrays that could be repurposed into connection points for modular station sections.

Most of the specialised gear is so badly out of date that it’s only of use for civilian applications. Logistics wants to sell the old sensors to Tourta for added system monitoring.

The station outposts are not recommended for use by the company in any sort of capacity were they’ll see a lot of traffic. Use as cargo transfer stations around Surakeh are out of the question.

What did you want done with them?

>Any rumors about people being angry over our little gaff with Helios?
Not yet though that may take awhile for ti to flow downwards.
>and our one Helios class is probably more than covered by the Faction Alliance, who want it on the front...
As long as it stays there yes.

>How did/are our RSS pilots/instructors from the FA training base doing?
Most of the crews are doing quite well. Two training wing CO’s were transferred in while you were away as was one of the younger pilots that had been in your attack wings at the front. Things are going smoothly and none of the new officers have any complaints about your methods. Nor your decision to prevent Whitaker from stun grenading all of the trainees without warning.
>Cont.

Arron has some good reviews on the depth of his sensor and electronic warfare training.

A few of the RSS people have been given offers for continued training or even mercenary contracts if they want them. A group of 5 reliable experienced mercs that work for you were asked to “consult someplace else and never return” as they were bad role models. They still fly aggressor craft occasionally.

>news on advances/setbacks from the front?
While in a stalemate the fighting hasn’t stopped. There are dozens of ground campaigns going on at any given time attempting to retake Shallan worlds. Your HAG design isn’t always the best weapons platform for these situations, especially when urban warfare is involved.
Orbital space over contested worlds is generally very active as Neeran fleets attempt to stop the Alliance from retaking them.
There have been some smaller attacks on friendly worlds. 3 were taken in surprise attacks while fleets were assisting invasions elsewhere. For the most part you’re driving them back but it’s such as low process that it’s barely noticeable in the big picture.

There are signs that an enemy offensive will be kicking off in some capacity within the next few months though the levels are not nearly as high as the last time. A few Houses that had previously pulled some or all of their fleets have promised they will commit forces again if things become "dire."

>>36829675
Like this but with a stasis vault?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-LfNsA_5pDs

File: Smileyexploitable.png (27 KB, 674x674)

27 KB PNG

>>36830171
>Arron has some good reviews on the depth of his sensor and electronic warfare training.
Neat.

>A group of 5 reliable experienced mercs that work for you were asked to “consult someplace else and never return” as they were bad role models.
Dohoho

>Like this but with a stasis vault?
Without the mockery, more or less.

On your last day on the homeworlds for leave you’re contacted by your financial consultants and informed that a stock broker would like to buy some or all of your shares in DHI. The buyer is offering a 30% markup but there may be room for negotiation.
Despite the reliance of RSS on DHI’s production licenses the broker asked that the offer be passed along to you regardless.

As if that wasn’t enough you swing past your parents place once more and notice a young man at ground level on the side of the building the apartment is on. The building exterior is armored and security generally keeps non-residents out, it’s also getting dark out.
The kid is holding a device near his face pointed towards the middle levels. That can’t be good. Moving to investigate you activate your camo once out of sight and get closer. Sure enough he’s pointing the device at one of the windows of your parent’s place.

That’s all you need to know to draw your pistol and keep him in your sights.

You’re only a few meters away when you realise that he’s whispering into the device and a voice is talking back to him.
Wait, is he quoting Romeo and Juliet? That’s Bekka’s window he's aiming it at! It must be a line of sight com system of some sort.

>What do?

See you in the morning!

>>36830705
>What do?
Stealthily walk up to him and while he's transmitting put an arm around his shoulder and say, "You know, I'm not aware of and Montague to our Capulet, so meeting openly is not out of the question. That being said, would you like to come in and explain?"

>>36830705
Stun him and bring him in for questioning. No romance for Bekka.

>>36830705
>Despite the reliance of RSS on DHI’s production licenses the broker asked that the offer be passed along to you regardless.

That's strange. Can we ask Mr London what he thinks might be behind this?

>What do?

Try to prevent our sides from achieving orbit. Fail miserably.

Start laughing, deactivate camo, come into existence next to the boy as the laughing madwoman Sonia is. Preferably doubled over.

Scar the poor boy for life by doing that.

>>36830705
As for the DHI share buyer, I am guessing he wants to contact us in a roundabout way rather than actually buying the shares. Set up a secure meeting and try to investigate both the broker.

As for the boy. We gotta do the full package. Sound the alarms, initiate com jamming and have our defenses target him but not fire. Take out our plasma pistol (safety on) and arrest him.

>>36830705
Just wait for him to be done and when he turns to leave uncloak right in front of him asking him to explain why we find him below our sister's window.

>>36830705
"What the hell is this? Subliminal messaging mind control? Are you the one making her want to run off and join the mercs?"

>>36830912
This sounds good, but do it without decloaking.

>>36830705
"You know, skulking about my family's property is concerning, but I'm honestly more concerned that you are using a story where two lovers commit suicide as the basis for interacting with my sister.

>plasma shotgun is a thing

We should really get working on a plasma rifle. Maybe scans of our pistol will help with focusing and containment if we go down this route.

>>36830063
>Sensor outposts

Well, they were left in a low power/hibernation mode, correct?
First thing to do is acquire every scrap of sensor data they contained. I doubt they'll give us much more than the Rovinar and logs we've recovered previously, but when the puzzle is incomplete you should always look to fill in the missing spots.

Oddly, I'm a bit more curious if any of them were still periodically active using solar power or something. Information on the region when the Warlords first took over or were driven out could lead to potentially interesting results. Or systems people have forgotten about/assume lost.

As for the stations themselves, I don't see much use for them with RSS if they can't handle cargo. Could J-D or allied Houses refit the stations as small defense deals or with modern sensors to monitor the area around forward bases, trade lanes or the like? Or the PCCG? I'd imagine this kind of station would be a bit easier for them to move around.

>>36834048
Veritas might be interested in them, but that's more because they have trouble getting big ticket industrial items.

>>36834349
Better to scrap them than risk drawing more ire over all the things we're doing for Veritas. They're not worth any more potential damage to J-D's standing by giving them anything vaguely military.

I had the most messed up dream. I was offering you guys free starship prototypes and one anon kept saying sorry you wanted real production models not toys.

“This one shipyard is being harassed by mercenaries from another House. You can get ships from them if you provide protection.”
“Nope, too much work. We should see what the Alliance is up to.”

>>36832929
His client is unable to find time to meet with anyone in the immediate future, hence why a broker is looking after it.

>>36831525
>That's strange. Can we ask Mr London what he thinks might be behind this?
"Sounds like someone trying to build up a controlling share of the company. Or at lease enough to change policy."

>>36833900
>This sounds good, but do it without decloaking.
If you put your arm around him with the camo on he'll be inside your camo field.

It look like we have a diverse set of options, many though not all of which seem mutually exclusive.

[ ] offer to bring inside (x2)
[ ] wait until he’s done / surprise him
[ ] deactivate camo, interrupt / laugh
[ ] deactivate camo / confront about mercs
[ ] deactivate camo / confront about tragic romance
[ ] stun for questioning
[ ] sound alarms, arrest at gunpoint

>>36835092
>[x] stun for questioning

>>36835092
>It look like we have a diverse set of options, many though not all of which seem mutually exclusive.
Come on TSTG, we definitely need a survey for that.

>>36835092
[X] wait until he’s done / surprise him
I wonder if he is just being creepy or if there is actually some kind of mini-sonia romance going on here?

No selling of DHI shares. I like our investment there and if anything I'd like to increase it.

>>36835092
[X] deactivate camo, interrupt / laugh
[X] 'offer' to bring inside (don't ask, tell)
[X] Other: leave him helpless before Mom's assault

>>36835138
I noticing no one is bothering to discuss the merits of the different suggestions. As opposed to wanting to sit here with a survey up and no progress being made.

>>36835200
Well the last two are morally and perhaps legally irresponsible.

The others seem more or less like slightly different approaches to the same result, with the first one meaning the poor bastard is as Mom's mercy.

>>36835200
I wasn't serious about that, anyway...

>[X] deactivate camo, interrupt / laugh
>[X] offer to bring inside

If Bekka likes him, we'll get to see her blushing. If she doesn't, we'll likely get to see her beat him up.

>>36835092
Do you think he would noticed he was cloaked immediately?

>>36835092
>If you put your arm around him with the camo on he'll be inside your camo field.
Gotta go with
[ ] deactivate camo / confront about tragic romance
then

Also, I'm against selling any DHI shares, I think we should try to find out who this broker's client is, maybe there is some kind of plot in the making we should know about/work against.

>>36835559
I agree on the shares. At the very least, we should have this broker inform his client that we're willing to talk if they could use some shareholder support.

>>36835296
There would be a momentary visual distortion so yes unless he really wasn't paying attention.


You’re not 100% sure of what all this is about but from the looks of things you have a general idea. Now fairly close by you deactivate your camo, laughing loud enough to startle him. Not expecting anyone to be nearby the young man must have jumped more than a foot in the air at the sound.

After hurridly attempting to conceal the device he turns to look at you, eventually finding his voice. “Uh, I didn’t see you there. Excuse me, I was just trying to call for a taxi.” He explains, trying to slowly move away without making it obvious.

“You’re a friend of Bekka’s right? You might as well come inside and say hello to her while I call a cab for you. It’s better than being seen sneaking around back alleyways where you might be misten for a criminal.”
“R-right. Thank you that’s very generous.”

You escort him inside past security while introducing yourself, despite half-hearted protests that he shouldn’t be imposing on your time. Before long you’re barging into the apartment much to mom’s surprise.

“Who is this?”
“A friend of Bekka’s.”
“Oh, really? Hello I don’t think we’ve met before. What’s your name?”

“M-marinus Sedgwick ma'am!”

“Wait a minute, you’re Mar?” Mom frowns with extreme disaproval. “As in “That” Mar?”

Bekka enters the main room from the hallway. “Mom, is someone her- oh. Uh, hi. What are you doing here?”
She’s not blushing, instead she has something of an “oh shit” expression, or that of someone caught breaking into a vault.

“Your sister invited me inside.” he explains, at which point Bekka glares daggers at you.

Mom explains. “If I’ve heard from other parents correctly Mister Sedgwick here is the one who figured out it might be possible for younger students to hop a transport to the PCCG and join the Alliance.”

>What say?

>>36836004
>>What say?

"Would anybody important start asking questions if he were to suddenly disappear?"

>>36836004
>What say?
"While I applude you ability to find your way around a very complicated system and your ability to handle my sister, I would like to note you have to outpilot me before you can marry her.

>>36836004
"So you're the idiot that is eager to run off and watch his friends get ordered to their deaths by the Alliance?"

>>36836004
"Well, do your parents know about that idea?"

>>36836004
>Merc outfits in House space generally only recruit those over 16.

Wouldn't this be problematic for a House the size of J-D in the mid to long term if the conflict with the Neeran continues?

We can hardly afford to lose bright, young, and capable people to mercenaries while we actually need them for the House's military.

To be honest, I'd be in favour of mentioning this to people who could actually do something about it.

>>36836004
"That's the dumbest idea I've ever heard, and you're dumb for thinking it up."

"Would anybody important start asking questions if he were to suddenly disappear?"
Mom sighs. “Sonia please don’t even joke about that sort of thing. Especially after the kidnapping.”

You look towards Mr Sedgwick. "So you're the idiot that is eager to run off and watch his friends get ordered to their deaths by the Alliance?"

“The Alliance is a respectable organisation, the best people are put in elite units and given the best gear. I only talked to students graded high enough to make it through the attack wing raider sims.”

Considerate he at least went that far. That still doesn’t make his plan to possibly get a bunch of kids killed the right one.

"While I applaud your ability to find your way around a very complicated system and your ability to handle my sister, I would like to note you have to outpilot me before you can marry her.”

Mom rolls her eyes. “Sonia don’t encourage them, and what do you mean by handle?”

“He was outside quoting Romeo and Juliet a few minutes ago.”

“Sonia!” Now Bekka is blushing, as is the now terribly embarrassed looking young man.

"Bekka go to your room!" orders Mom and a moment later a door slams shut.

"Well, do your parents know about the idea to enlist?" you ask.

"They do." answers Mom before he gets the chance. "He's leaving in another month."
"10 days." Mar points out.

It's clear his parents don't care if he goes but the other parents might not be aware of everything involved. Did you want to talk to them in an attempt to dissuade as many as possible?

Anything else you'd like to say or do involving Bekka or her Romeo?

>>36836004
"I'm curious, why would you even get the idea to do that? It's not like there's insane riches to be found like in the campaign against the Warlords, and the enemies you'll face are much tougher as well..."

>>36836449
>Anything else you'd like to say or do involving Bekka or her Romeo?

Ask mom how long it will take Bekka to speak to us again.

Also, laugh internally while imagining the moment when a 16 year old boy realises what that chip he gets as a recruit does.

>Did you want to talk to them in an attempt to dissuade as many as possible?

I would suggest we simply provide them with accurate and unbiased information about this. If they have any questions about they want answered by somebody who's not trying to fill a quota, they can ask Sonia.

>>36836449
"Well you will stop trying to get my sister killed as I am rather fond of her and would rather she remain alive until next year when I can put her in am academy. Also you two are using protection right? Mom did you have the talk with Bekka yet?"

>>36836449
We probably should talk all the others out of it.

"This really isn't the way to go about it. You will pretty much die."

>>36836410
A number of nobles families own shares in some of the older mercenary companies in J-D space.
These can be used as convenient places to hide family members so they cant be drafted. Or for proxy wars against other Houses.
It can also be a valuable source of income if the child of an important noble signs on and the parent is forced to buy out their contract to get the child kicked out.

The companies end up hiring plenty of people that haven't gone through expensive schools yet or are less patriotic. Thus they’re people the House doesn’t care about quite as much.

You are right that it could be bad in the long term.
>I'd be in favour of mentioning this to people who could actually do something about it.
Would you suggest this only be changed for the duration of the war?

>>36836700
"Sonia?"
"What?"
"Call a cab for him will you?"
"Right."

While waiting you do bug him a bit more about trying to get your sister killed.

>>36836547
>Ask mom how long it will take Bekka to speak to us again.
"Just tell her you were joking around more than anything and she'll be fine in a few weeks. I'm the one she'll be angry at."

>I would suggest we simply provide them with accurate and unbiased information about this. If they have any questions about they want answered by somebody who's not trying to fill a quota, they can ask Sonia.
>We probably should talk all the others out of it.
It looks like you'll be contacting the various parents or legal guardians about it. Or did you want to hold a meeting?

>>36836954
>Would you suggest this only be changed for the duration of the war?

Definitely.
Maybe a temporary right for the House military to veto any applicant. That way nobles could still have their children join by making the House forgo its veto by using their influence, while we'd give the House first pick of middle and lower class talent.

Once we're not in a state of total war any more, things revert to the way they were before.

> Or did you want to hold a meeting?
Ask mom what would be better. She knows more about parent stuff from that side than we do.

>>36836954
>While waiting you do bug him a bit more about trying to get your sister killed.

no but I would like to tell him, "Well, it's nice to see my sister having some romance at least, she's doing better than me on that front. You two should enjoy what you have while you can, because when you get out there into the military in the bigger universe, it's hard to find things like that even when you have everything. I mean, look at me. House Knight-Captain, Wing Commander, Faction Alliance General, a rich company head and owner, somewhat famous and infamous, and I just had a movie released about one of my exploits, and I'm nowhere near in a relationship with anybody."

>>36836954
>Would you suggest this only be changed for the duration of the war?
I don't think we should be fiddling with things that would make us a lot of enemies in the nobility ranks.

>Or did you want to hold a meeting?
No, let's just contact all of their parents about it.

>>36837338
Oh god, really cheesy

>>36837052
>>36837498
“I know some of the parents might appreciate knowing their not alone with this problem but on the other hand talking to each one personally will give you a better idea of where each one is coming from.”

You guys want to basically give a modified form of what you told Bekka?


You escort Mar down through the lobby and make sure he gets to a cab.

>>36837338
>>36837504
Not sure where to go with this one. Wish him luck in his exploits as he's really going to need it?

>>36837594
Holding a meeting seems so much simpler than going to each one individually. Or we could just mail everyone instead.

>>36837594
Yeah, wish him luck and all the good stuff of staying alive and give him our contact info in case he every needs some help.

Before he gets into the taxi you give him a card.
“If you get out there and it turns out you need some help, contact me. I can’t promise I’ll be nearby but you never know.”

You spend part of that night and the next morning before your flight contacting each of the parents. There isn't really enough time to schedule a meeting and find a place to hold it before you head out.

The conversations manage to convince a majority to help keep their kids from harm. It should help out the House quite a bit and keep them alive.

Counting Sedgwick 5 of them will be going anyways. It was a good sized group before their numbers were whittled down, though from the conversations you had with the parents you’d be surprised if even half had carried through.

You're back at the training base helping to finish everyone finish out the class and doing your part to kick some asses into gear. The other officers are glad to have you back. Not that there was anything wrong with your replacements but with you there now it means extra staff is present. A few of the remedial pilots now have extra time to be worked with to get their grades up to more acceptable levels.

It's into the new year and you're just rotating back to House space once more when the Neeran launch another offensive. They still haven't rebuilt their gate so reinforcements are flying in the same way their original invasion force did. It's supposed to be a jump on part with the one to watcher space. You know their bigger ships can handle it but the smaller vessels mostly have lower sustained FTL speeds.
Super Carriers have to fly in supplies and equipment then make a return trip. Everything else is being built in Shallan space.

>Cont.

Houses and Factions are moving up reserves in preparation to defend the Pandora cluster again, the surrounding clusters or for a push into Shallan space. The Alliance has several hard points in Shallan space and the Terran Nav Relay nearby equipped with heavy plasma cannons. They should be adequate fall back positions if things get bad.

Intel has found evidence of new enemy R&D projects. They apparently took notice of the Helios siege guns used by the mobile asteroid forts in the Pandora cluster. Once the fort was considered lost and the shields were gone each Medium cruiser detached their support lines then began fighting on their own. It allowed many of them to survive.
The Neeran are planning to modify the plasma cannon turrets on their warships replacing them with corvettes that can detach when the ship is crippled or killed. It would allow them to more easily upgrade Battleships and Heavy Cruisers with newer phased plasma cannons or use older corvettes if unavailable.
It’s suggested that all training bases add scenarios based on this tech before it enters use.

The House military wants you and your ships ready for deployment just in case. Despite being on leave from the Alliance the House still has a number of possible assignments for you. It will be a few days before they inform you of their decision.

The larger Mega Corps have announced new equipment available.
Iratar has unvieled a new Attack Frigate based off the older Firestorm but it’s smaller and more compact. The single quad linked phase cannon has been replaced with 2 twin linked models which they're hoping will allow it to sell better to Houses looking to upgrade their military on a budget. You get a message from Mike lamenting the ability of these new ships to mount afterburners at this time.

>Cont.

GE and Newport Fleet Systems have finally finished development of a ship Captain "Mad Eye" Jones was working on. It’s an attack cruiser that uses parts from the Gamma Class Assault Corvette but this one can mount a Plasma cannon in addition to 2 torpedo launchers and 4 heavy pusle cannons. There are options to fit other weapons but thanks to its parts compatibility with Faction Assault corvettes you expect it to sell well. Until you see the sale price of them that is.
Because of the advanced systems it costs nearly 20 million to build!


Aries is now offering licenses for their own new assault corvette design, modular Battleships, and upgraded attack cruisers.
There is also talk of a Heavy Cruiser design they’re working on that they hope a good portion of the Dominion will buy into, the Zeus Class. It’s supposed to feature a siege weapon on par with those of the Rovinar and House Helios. In theory it could probably be swapped out for Republic heavy plasma cannons. It also has Torpedo batteries apparently.

Several Houses previously relying upon production licenses from other Houses due to lack of native manufacturers are rumored to have signed contracts with Aries for their Assault corvettes. Houses that were unable to gain access to the DHI design for one reason or another are also looking at this option. You note that more than one includes Houses that have pulled support for the War.

Production licenses for the Mad Eye and Zeus classes are only available from their respective companies with an exclusivity contract.

>>36838968
>can mount a Plasma cannon in addition to 2 torpedo launchers and 4 heavy pusle cannons

Sounds very similar to what i suggested we try to build when we had that urge to build our own Cruiser.

>You note that more than one includes Houses that have pulled support for the War.
Are we selling Attack Corvettes to any House that has pulled out of the war effort?

>>36838968
How much are they selling the production licenses for?

>>36839170
>Sounds very similar to what i suggested we try to build when we had that urge to build our own Cruiser.
Captain Madeline "Mad Eye" Jones Terran Alliance.
Was with you at the Decoy operation. She used a group of heavily modified Transcendent class ships with enough engine power to be counted as attack cruisers. They had severe structural problems and had to be retired after the battle.
>The Captain's unit was cut down to just two ships
>they made it through alive resulting in their own special projects carrying more weight. The Alliance is considering commissioning a design study on a specialist cruiser class capable of carrying a plasma cannon while also maintaining the mobility of a lighter weight attack cruiser.
The resultant R&D program was mentioned several times and you were given the option to participate in it. Jones' previous ships were too structurally unsound to use high maneuver drives and would have flown apart.
This one is effectively a gamma class with 6 engines. Original concept drawings for it had 2 plasma cannons but it was decided during the Wing Commander Arc that would be OP as fuck.

Yours was to use a Kavarian attack cruiser hull right? Most of the tail would need to be moved in order for the fuel cell to reload more easily. I suppose it might work better on an I or J type with their wider hull. Would need more engine power though. Maybe borrowing bits from the K-type?

>Are we selling Attack Corvettes to any House that has pulled out of the war effort?
No. Most are being sold to the PCCG, allied Houses or the Alliance.

Okay now that I've burned a ton of time being completely distracted, back on topic.
>>36839612
>How much are they selling the production licenses for?

GE
"Mad Eye" Attack Cruiser 70 m

Aries
Assault Corvette 40 m
Attack Cruiser 60 m
Modular BS 80 m
Zeus class Heavy (Negotiable)

>>36840019
>"Mad Eye" Attack Cruiser 70 m
I'd be up for buying this if everyone else is.

>Zeus
Let's find out how much they want for it.

>>36840142
>>36840019
Actually expanding on the Zeus, can we get in contact with Aries and see if we can work out a deal where they use our Heavy Cruiser slipway? For now it's going unused, and that means potential profits lost.

We help build, they use our yard, money is split between us, maybe after multiple years of this arrangement we get the production license.

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>>36838968
>20 million a pop to build a Mad Eye ACRS

woah. Wait. Isn't the Mad Eye technically a FA project? Could RSS/DHI (with Sonia support/lobbying) attempt to acquire production licenses for some tech that goes into the vessel? ideally some that might be helpful for J-D or the Dominion at large to have in domestic production for upgrade reasons to infrastructure or to equip elite units with upgrades?

>Zeus Class
That is one hell of a name to live up to, Aries. Better not be a Heavy Cruiser version of your ACRS.


Anyway, we made 200+ million off the Vieona movie (before/after the % we donate?). We should probably have people looking into ways that we could invest that into helping J-D and Allied Houses improve their tech base (production rights for industrial tech that enables more advanced tech?)

>>36840019
>Yours was to use a Kavarian attack cruiser hull right?
Yah, I just really REALLY like the design of those Cruisers. Giant flying T.

>Would need more engine power though
Well the XK1 seems to have four engines, instead of two, that appears to leave room for a spinal mount on it. Could you not simply take the engine design of that and slap it on the J-Type?

Moving on from my dreams.

>>36840142
>I'd be up for buying this if everyone else is.
While I have been wanting us to add a level 3 Cruiser yard or two for a while I am hesitant to buy licenses for a brand new model. A model that is not tested in battle yet and that uses Gamma Corvette parts. When it has proven itself to be efficient in combat will I agree on getting a license.

After a few days you’re called in to see about your new orders.

The situation up on the front lines is stable for the moment. Additional reinforcemnts will be dispatched to one of the Barons currently in the area in another week but they’ll be a minor force. Instead the House is looking at stationing more assets in South Reach. The Warlords are an unstable element at present due to their lack of a clear leadership figure. They can also still produce older model Mega class supers, and have the option to mount scrap cannons.

To the Houses who have territory in South Reach they’re currently one of the biggest threats. Due to your experience the military would like you to transfer there to take command of local training Wings and support Baron Winifred if needed.

House Intel would also like your help in that region and have a couple of missions you could look into instead.

You can still request a transfer elsewhere.

>1) Training Days
This is effectively a continued time skip, though you could look into other things in South Reach while stationed there.

>2) Scattering Warlords
Intel would like people with connections to some of the Warlords to work on trying to bring as many of them into the Dominion as possible. Their fleets and territory would strengthen the Dominion as a whole and the Houses could provide slightly more financial stability. One proposal has simply been to make each Warlord the head of their own House, others would like each to ally with an existing House. The Ruling House doesn't care which method is used as long as the Warlords don't ally with the Houses currently against them.

>3) Unclaimed territory
The Warlords themselves are well aware of their weakening position. Their operatives are looking for navigator records of various hazard regions and dead zones in the hopes of finding a new home land.
Track them down or infiltrate their ships to find these new potential worlds to seize for the House, Dominion or yourself.

>>36840381
Oh boy, oh boy, oh boy. You are making me happy now TSTG.

What to choose... What to choose...

I am going to have to go with.
>2) Scattering Warlords
It the option that seems like it will strengthen the Dominion and the House the most. Even if it will only be strengthening the House indirectly by getting us allies. It is also the one option that would help strengthen us politically by giving us more political achievements. And who know, we might just get to subjugate them by force.

>>36840381
3 sounds fun but 2 is also good. I figure 2 would have the highest chance of fleet combat though

>>36840381
>3 Unclaimed Territory
Oh hey, shouldn't those stations we salvaged have info or detection abilities to assist with that?

And I imagine we can approach the one warlord we've met before about joining the Dominion. Hell, things for him really won't be that big of a change. When the Neeran are dealt with, his people will be able to merc/privateer out or declare war on other Houses.

>>36840142
I'm not keen on buying a 70m license for a ship that costs 20m a pop and we'd need to acquire an entirely new production line for.

>>36840381
>2) Scattering Warlords
man this one is important, if we could grab a warlord for our house it would change things in a big way

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>>36840209
>Zeus
>We help build, they use our yard, money is split between us, maybe after multiple years of this arrangement we get the production license.
Their intention was to sell production rights to the governments of Houses. Specifically they seem dead set that a production license for the Zeus will require extreme brand loyalty.

For groups who are currently invested in rival companies they are willing to trade options of equal value. For instance your DHI Assault Corvette license and Royal Drive Yard Battlecruiser license for equivalents of theirs.

One thing that seems to have always bothered you is that Aries reactors and sublight drives don't necessarily have the same reliability as DHI built ones. That may have changed but odds are that tougher equipment from them will be more expensive than rival corporations.
Or at least that's the case for most people. Apparently people on their preferred clients listing get serious price cuts. This is not a thing you were previously aware of.

>>36840261
>Isn't the Mad Eye technically a FA project?
Yep. Major Faction R&D contribution to the project, though NPFS provided the yards and GE 40% of the funding.
Sonia could lobby to buy the production license under an Alliance contract where you'd be selling nearly all of them to the Factions Alliance fleet.

GE can sell wider ranging contracts with less restrictions on who the yards sell to much to the annoyance of the Terrans. Again, they're asking for exclusivity contracts.

>some tech that goes into the vessel?
Nearly all of the tech with the exception of the plasma cannon (bought from the Republic) will be in the Mk 5 Assault corvettes. You'll be getting those through DHI soon.

>Zeus
>That is one hell of a name to live up to, Aries.
Exact specifications beyond the siege cannon and "Lots of torpedoes" are a bit unclear.
"Do you mean launchers or batteries?"
"Yes."

>Vieona movie (before/after the % we donate?
Before but yes its still a lot.

>>36841470
>Sonia could lobby to buy the production license under an Alliance contract where you'd be selling nearly all of them to the Factions Alliance fleet.
Would this deal guarantee that the Alliance would buy these ships or is it just a probability? Cause if we are guaranteed the sale of the majority of the Cruisers than this is a pretty good deal. If such is the case then I am for getting the license and at lest one level 3 Cruisers yard. I mean with the license it is 270 millions, almost as much as we made from the movie alone and we got to have some more saved so we can probably get two yards for 470 millions.

>>36841827
Dear god please don't drop 470 million into that design before you even consider the fact that each one is going to be somewhere near 20 million to produce.

Hell, please don't drop 270 million into it. ACRS that cost 20 million a pop are just going to end up like AEC ships. "They're nice, but I'd rather have a wing instead of a squadron"

>>36841970
They sounds like really high-performance ships, though. It is entirely possible that Mad Eyes are more cost-effective than other designs, especially for J-D with it's semi-permanent manpower shortages.

>>36841970
My reasoning behind it being that if we are guaranteed sales of the majority of them, like 90%, then there really is no reason not to invest in new yards except that need to hoard cash.

At worst we just need to sell enough to make up the 70 million license cost and then we can just switch production to something else entirely. Heck, with the House getting that K-Type license we could switch to that. I'm fairly sure it would sell.

>>36842080
I haven't gotten the feeling that our manpower is that bad anymore. I mean we did have like 240 ships at the yard in Pandora and that was just raw recruits. Compare that to the like four or five wings that the House had in total at the start of the quest.

>>36840381
>2) Scattering Warlords

While arriving in South Reach we can check in on that triad problem we had. What would you know! It just so happens that we are currently under the "protection" of a warlord. I'm sure we won't be using this opportunity to learn more about the situation.

>>36842177
Could be an interesting idea to hire it's designers to adapt their work to Iratar designs, using less advanced parts as alternative for more cost-conscious buyers?

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Sorry trying to not die as a result of my cooking.

>>36840270
>While I have been wanting us to add a level 3 Cruiser yard or two for a while I am hesitant to buy licenses for a brand new model. A model that is not tested in battle yet and that uses Gamma Corvette parts. When it has proven itself to be efficient in combat will I agree on getting a license.
I'm going to add this to the list of things going into the next survey. Some people may want an attack cruiser yard now even without the Mad Eye.

>>36841827
>Would this deal guarantee that the Alliance would buy these ships or is it just a probability?
At this time? It's more of a probability. They're a specialist design and have not seen any wide scale deployment yet. For the moment the Alliance hopes to use assault corvettes to make up most of their fighting force due to their advantages and because multiple Factions can produce them quickly.
If they do enter larger scale production it's possible the Republic will provide cannons and funding to the Alliance to outfit more fleets with them and replace older Centurions.

>>36842080
>It is entirely possible that Mad Eyes are more cost-effective than other designs
This is currently not known as they're too new for such data to have been collected.

>>36842177
>I haven't gotten the feeling that our manpower is that bad anymore.
Because your people haven't been getting killed off left and right or that would be a serious problem.

>>36842279
The Alliance would probably be more interested in this than GE or NPFS. Would anyone want to throw money in Iratar's direction?


>2) Scattering Warlords
It looks like people would like to head to South Reach and see if you can lasso a Warlord. Keep in mind that it doesn't need to be your House that any of them join or ally with, just as long as it's someone allied to the Ruling House.
J-D is financially stable. That may not be enough to support a contingent of former pirates and any worlds they might have.

>>36842177
>House getting that K-type license
iirc, we were negotiating as a shareholder of that yard in the run, not for the entire House. And RSS is a different entity from the House, so we don't get production rights to anything the House can build. (they likely have other companies build everything, anyway)

>guaranteed sales of the majority of them
There is no such thing, especially with a budget-eating design in war.

>need to hoard cash
I'm simply skeptical of the idea behind producing large numbers of a ship costing 20 million a pop. If sales aren't faster than our production due to the cost of buying and maintaining the ships, we end up with a lot of money tied up in the completed and multiple incomplete ships. Which would not be a good thing.

A single lvl 2 line for the Mad Eye Wallet Buster would be more than enough investment into that monster of a design.

I'm still against producing the design until we get some damned good proof that it is combat and cost effective.

>>36842606
>I'm still against producing the design until we get some damned good proof that it is combat and cost effective.
I agree. If there's combat logs they can send to us to prove it's abilities, then it might be worth a closer look.

>>36842579
>The Alliance would probably be more interested in this than GE or NPFS. Would anyone want to throw money in Iratar's direction?

I am. Poke Alliance for funding, then get DHI and Iratar guys together to put cheaper alternative - plasma cannons are one of the few alternatives to SP weaponry, after all. If possible, make sure that they can instal Neeran weaponry as well. Make several variants with both Kavarian and Dominion propulsion systems.

If necessary, we can bring out some of the goodies Wizard left us to insure it's success;

Actually Republic will be probably interested in the design too, as a replacement for their aging cruiser fleet, if it is cheap enough.

>>36840381
>2) Scattering Warlords
While this sounds like the most promising option, it seems also like the most risky as we could seriously damage our relations with the warlords especially with sperg-Sonia at the helm
Personally I'd be interested to see if there is a warlord we could bring into the J-D fold through marriage to us, but sadly I doubt we are important enough atm to be an interesting prospect, except maybe some of the weaker ones.

You make sure Arron is aboard then take your battlecruisers and head for South Reach.

It’s good to be aboard the Devourer again and the crew are happy to be on the move once again. While they had their share of extended vacation time everyone has maintained fitness and drills. Mostly. A few people are still obviously getting into the swing of things. The longer flight is an opportunity to check in on all of the departments make sure they still know who they’re working for and ensure morale is high enough that there’s no chance of mutiny.

The odds of that are incredibly low.

The Marines have been conducting evaluations and reports on their new Plasma blasters. You’ve had basic familiarisation with the “Pistols” Neeran use, operating on a similar principle to the Shallan Fusion Gun. The difference is that with Neeran weapons and these you can change how much of the fuel cell you’re dumping in a single shot.
Shallan weapons use half the fuel cell per shot, which is fine but the Neeran one is 6 times larger physically and has even greater capacity. It also has a more coherent beam.

General opinion from the marines is that it would be a good replacement for the Shallan Fusion gun as it can be used in more environments with less fear of setting everything nearby on fire.
The downside is that spare ammo is a pain to carry around, but so were those grenade sized shells for the Shallan one.

Do you want to replace the Shallan Fusion guns aboard your battlecruisers? If so what do you want done with the older weapons?

>>36843487
Replace 3/4 of the Shallan Fusion guns with the Plasma blasters. The fusion guns still have a higher penetration ability and may be more useful if we expect large amounts of power armor.

>>36843487
Let's not replace them, but get half the number of fusion guns in Plasma Blasters as an alternative to them.

RSS Plasma Rifle when

>>36843487
I'd say replace the vast majority of them.

Are the fusion guns our personal property or the House's?

If personal property, transfer them to RTS for use or resale?

If House property, new PDF toys?

>>36843487
Replace them, even if it makes me sad because those Fusion guns where awesome.

IDEA! How about we ensure those guns are "lost" so they can be sold on the black market. We do need untraceable cash after all.

Plasma Pistol has best penetration.
Plasma Blaster, most versatile.
Fusion Gun is best at engulfing a wide area in plasma and setting the air and everything on fire. Weak melta gun with Heavy Flamer blast template.

>We do need untraceable cash after all.
That's being taken care of.

When your ships drop out of FTL 30 AU from Surakeh and request clearance for a micro jump into orbit you’re told to stand by.

After a longer than usual delay you begin to wonder what’s going on.

Eventually you’re contacted by the military.
“Captain Reynard, we’ve been suffering attacks by raiders. Some of the com and sensor relays through the region have been jammed twice this past week. South Reach League representatives have been putting up bounties on whoever is responsible but our inteligence on them is limited. Please take your ships and proceed to Tourta at best possible speed. Most of our spare ships in that area were called to assist the refugee sites on Plateau and won’t be available for some time.”

"Are you expecting trouble?" you ask.
"Possibly. They've been suffering the same communications problems but lack our fleet reserves. A squadron of corvettes are finishing a maintenance cycle and will be there within the hour."

On arrival in the system you're contacted by the PDF. They've just been raided. Someone was jamming coms before they could get a message off.

"How the hell did they get through the planetary shields? You have full coverage!"
"A hacker uploaded a Viscount program to one of the generators. It overloaded the entire shield network for fifteen minutes. It was enough for them to get out of the atmosphere with the transport and cargo they stole."

You demand their jump heading and get sensors and navigation looking for them on long range sensors. There are a couple potential targets that may be possible to intercept if they're the right ones. The only way to be sure is to split up your ships but this would leave Tourta defenseless for an hour.

>>36844187
>The only way to be sure is to split up your ships but this would leave Tourta defenseless for an hour.
They just got raided, and I assume that they've patched this network hole in the shield defense grid now that it has been exposed.

Take the ships. Also contact RSS/RTS and see if we can get some backup.

>>36844524
It could be a trap, to lure our forces into ambush...

[paranoia intensifies]

>>36844524
>>36844187

Do we just have our 3 battlecruisers? If so, I think we should leave the slowest (Gungir type?) to look menacing over Tourta.

The faster of the two try to intercept. What are we looking for and what was stolen?

File: SR-North-DG2-XL2.gif (10 KB, 900x352)

10 KB GIF

>>36844524
With the jamming in the area gone you're able to call up RTS and get an emergency scramble order for a small number of warships. A trio of light cruisers will arrive as soon as possible.

>>36844713
>Do we just have our 3 battlecruisers?
At the moment yes.

All 3 ships have the same sublight speed thanks to upgrades. I guess Devourers FTL is newer so it might be faster than the Gungnir type.

>What are we looking for and what was stolen?
An assault transport was stolen from one of the spaceports after a group stormed the ship with ground vehicles and a guncopter. The cargo was a mix of supplies headed to a small outpost colony at the edge of House territory. There may have been weapons that the crew was smuggling.
Most of the crew was tossed off the ship before it lifted off. One of the helmsmen and a few engineers are missing.

A ship with jamming capability that wasn't fully detected had to have been operating in the area. No way of telling what type of ship it was.
There are 3 pairs of ships headed away from Tourta in the general direction the raiders left. There are several popular destinations in that direction all of them outside the territory of your House.

A Free trader outpost
A shipyard belonging to a minor House on neutral terms with you
Eventually there is an FTL realignment point that connects to 2 other lanes

>>36845314

Can we contact the minor House and ask them to be on the lookout for the stolen ship and any ships that may have jamming equipment?

Sounds like we're going to need to contact all of the local Houses and hammer out some kind of anti-pirate cooperation plan. With the way the holdings of just about every House are, it should be in the best interests of everyone to crush any and all pirates before they can become a threat to everyone in this galaxy.

If possible, we should intercept 2 of the groups ourselves. If we can contact an RSS/merc group to get on station at Tourta quickly, then I'd be fine with going after all 3 pairs.

If we can't shift someone else in, we'll need to call up Aeon or the neutral House and request that they attempt to intercept the 3rd group.

>>36845581
I'll support this.

>>36845581
It’s far from a perfect connection but you do get a signal through informing them about the raiders and stolen ship. They promise to keep an eye out but that it likely wont be possible for them to stop anyone passing through if they stay far enough out of the system. Also fake IFF could cause problems, but they’ll look for the type of ship.

>If possible, we should intercept 2 of the groups ourselves. If we can contact an RSS/merc group to get on station at Tourta quickly, then I'd be fine with going after all 3 pairs.
RTS contacts you once the trio of light cruisers have left the station. They'll arrive in 10-20 minutes.

House Corvettes will arrive in 45-55 minutes.

>If we can't shift someone else in, we'll need to call up Aeon or the neutral House and request that they attempt to intercept the 3rd group.
The shipyard cant spare anything from their defense forces at the moment. There are rumors there might be raiders in the area! Their House should be able to spare some ship later in the day.

The closest ship House Aeon has available to send is an Escort Carrier. It has reserve pilots aboard but no fighters as they're busy dealing with an "Internal incident."
Your Excalibur usually has a few spare light fighters in storage and the Devourer has your Z5L aboard. Did you want to loan them the fighters if they send the ship?

>>36846022
Let's not bother. Thank them for their time though.

>>36846022
I don't think an escort carrier with a handful of fighters is going to be of much use. Thank Aeon for their time and suggest to the Information Broker/Governor that someone with fighters for sale/trade might be able to get the attention of House Aeon for temporary support. I recall that they had a few major traders in fighter craft.

If RTS has light cruisers on the way, our battlecruisers should move for the intercepts ASAP.

>>36846217
>our battlecruisers should move for the intercepts ASAP.
Split up, 1 for each target?

If yes roll 3d100.

Rolled 65, 62, 49 = 176 (3d100)

>>36846280
for house and dice.

Rolled 76 (1d100)

>>36846280
>If yes roll 3d100.
Yay, dice!

1

Rolled 5, 60, 95 = 160 (3d100)

>>36846280
split up, 1 for each target

and the RTS light cruisers are to depart and link up with us once House forces are on the final leg to Tourta, unless we contact them with orders otherwise. A sort of "if jammed, may need assistance" deal.

Rolled 21, 78, 24 = 123 (3d100)

>>36846280

Rolled 12 (1d100)

>>36846453
2

Rolled 95 (1d100)

>>36846478
3

Your Excalibur heads to the free trader post, you set course for the shipyard and the Gungnir is sent for the FTL realignment point. Maybe the Excalibur would have been better for that one but if they’ve reached that area already there isnt much to be done witht he level of traffic that might be present.

The Shipyard has not reported any signs of the ships having passed through but some of their long range systems are glitching out. They never really got around to upgrading all of the systems after they captured the yard and you’re sure they screwed something up, this delays your personal progress considerably.

The Gungnir type has checked the local beacons at the alighment point. They didnt pass through here, but they do find a suspicious ship that may have a bounty on it. The captain is requesting permission to pursue and possibly board if they can confirm the ID.

The Excalibur is apparently being jammed or is otherwise unable to establish long range coms.

>Your orders?

>>36846942

Head to the Excalibur's last known position with the Gungir in tow.

Can we tag the suspicious ship in any way?

>>36846942
Gungnir is good to pursue and attempt ID. Try to call in elements of a local House to do the boarding if we have to. Getting pirates locked up is the #1 priority.

Devourer heads to locate and link up with Excal. Inform the RTS forces of our course/intent

>>36846942
Can we send a specialist over to see if we can fix the shipyard's problem? It will probably take them a while to fix that, so that head to the Excalibur's location while they're working.

Let the other captain do as he pleases.

>>36847231
>Can we tag the suspicious ship in any way?
Not really, and you'd need to chase it to get a proper ID.
Future munition R&D: SP Tracking beacon.

>>36847266
>Can we send a specialist over to see if we can fix the shipyard's problem?
Sure.

Looks like 2 votes for the Gungnir to track down the other ship.

The RTS ships will be informed about your relocation. Did you want them to send help if you don't report in within a certain period of time?

>Head to the Excalibur's last known position[..]
Jump in guns blazing?
Point blank for maximum surprise?
Or at the edges of the system to take a look first?

>>36847372

Edge of system to take a look and possibly make contact.

>>36847372
>Did you want them to send help if you don't report in within a certain period of time?
Yeah, as soon as the House reinforcements arrive at Tourta.

>Or at the edges of the system to take a look first?
This please.

Jumping to the edge of the system you take some scans. Your other ship is there near the station in a parking orbit. Sensors thinks that the transport you’re after is currently in dock but can’t get an IFF reading between the distance and the jamming.

No one is shooting at each other and there are no signs of damage on your other ship. Sending an encoded tight beam transmission you try to make contact.

Finally you get a reply. The transport is here but the station manager claims that it just changed ownership when your people showed up. It must have been sold to another party. They don't know anything about a second ship so its likely the crew are still aboard the station.

How do you want to handle the situation? It's an open port similar to Tourta. People can come and go as they please.