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>>42203439
>Current resource reserves
Nutrients: 12,421,769
Metals: 7,432,679
Credits: ₡2226
Credits in Lyle’s account: ₡1,175,000

>Hive population and upkeep cost
Hive maintenance – 52,325
Queen – 5
Fake Queen (4) – 220
Small Egg layer – 12
Worker (150,000) – 300,000
Aquatic Worker (5,140) – 20,560
Vacuum Worker (5,200) – 31,200
Radiator Worker (5,100) – 20,400
Warrior (75,045) – 375,225
Gilled Warrior (100) – 700
Aquatic Warrior (50) – 400
Thinker (8,000) – 24,000
Quantum Thinker (3,000) – 15,000
Speaker – (3) – 12
Digger (200) – 800*
Refinery (40) – 280*
Sniffer (2) – 8
Small Sniffer (5,000) – 5,000
Aquatic Sniffer (200) – 200
Fly (1,165) – 4,660
Wasp (30,000) – 150,000
Haz-mat Workers (20) – 80
Parasite (110) – 440
Bio-tank (1000) – 25000
Stealth Bio-tank (30) – 900
Excavator (1,000) – 19,000
Colossus (5,000) – 75,000
Hovertank (2,000) – 50,000
Harvester (5,000) – 95,000
Support Fluttercraft (500) – 71,000
Ghost Beetle (1,000) – 27,000
Heavy Warrior (10,000) – 190,000
Chinook (1,000) – 18,000
Air defense drone (500) – 37,000
Bomber (1,000) – 41,000
Strafer drone (2,000) – 30,000
Heavy Interceptor (1,000) – 28,000
Light Interceptor (2,000) – 28,000
Advanced disruptor (50) – 3750
Advanced Relay (70) – 7000

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>>42203439
FOR MOTHER

>>42203439
letsdothis

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>>42203455
>Hive fleet
Space Pod (5000) – 150000
Heavy Fleet Fighter (920) – 61640
Heavy Gunship (252) – 7560
Shuttle (10) – 250
Mining Corvette (336) – 92400
Patrol Corvette (180) – 91260
Scout Corvette (8) – 1800
Lancer Corvette (2) – 450
Missile Corvette (500) – 516000
Fleet Corvette (244) – 54900
Heavy Fleet Corvette (336) – 393792
Light Fleet Frigate (1500) – 667500
Heavy Fleet Frigate (252) – 359604
Stealth Frigate (4) – 1952
Vanguard Frigate (850) – 340000
Light Fleet Cruiser (375) – 249375
Missile Cruiser (50) – 118250
Heavy Cruiser (110) – 133650
Heavy Fleet Cruiser (126) – 315630
Carrier Battlecruiser (5) – 99360
Heavy Fleet Battlecruiser (36) – 292932
Heavy Fleet Battleship (10) – 517750

>Construction underway
[Citadel Hive ship] – 30%

>Formed fleets and orders
Small Heavy Defense Fleet [Patrolling Leeland space]
10 Heavy Battle Fleet [Awaiting orders]
5 Missile Ambush Fleet [Awaiting orders]
25 Light Fleets [Awaiting orders]
20 Light Fleets [Under construction]

>>42203507
Clone upkeep/special projects and expenses
25 Human captives of the USV Hope – 750
[Gemini]
3 Taidaren Hybrids (105)
4 Human flash clone upkeep – 120
18 Human hybrid clone upkeep – 540
Specializations:
>Tech
>Engineer
>Brawler
[Hive space]
100 Human Hybrids – 3,000
Lyle Rogers – 57
Jackob Eisner – 56
Dillon Reager – 30
Clone/project upkeep – 3,908N

Total upkeep
Nutrient costs: 6,294,510

>Income
Metals: 2,838,000
Nutrients: 9,801,250
Net: 3,506,740

Hive Territory
[G-426]
Asteroid mining base: 50,000M per day

This past week has been rather busy, but I'll be able to run for an extended length tonight. Hopefully I'll also be able to get in a few extra threads scattered around the rest of the week to make up for all the lost time, if only to help catch up with attendance to more crunchy hive upkeep related things. Out of curiosity, what days would people prefer?

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>>42203507
>30%
Slow and steady takes the cake

>>42203439
>you feel a twinge of thought; a faint whisper only slightly louder than the passive static of the universe. It nearly goes without you noticing, before slipping back into silence. The Union corvettes retreat from the system.
Oh what now? Is the Union messing about with psionics on board those harrying corvettes?

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>>42203577
*Leeland (capital)
Defensive structures
>Surface to Orbit Missile System (750N)
>Anti-orbital batteries: 35/35 (8750N)
Military structures
>Hangar facilities: Room for 4840 Aero/fighter Drones and 2420 Shuttles (3025N)
>Psionic Shroud (1,000N)
>Prison Outpost
Industrial structures
>Docking Pylon: (1969) (98,450N)
[Empty docks: 2000/2000]
Economic Structures
>Smart Mines active: 100,000M per day
>Algae Farm: +4,800,000per day, 48,000 Workers (1 worker per 100N)
>Film harvester dock: +5,000,000N per day, 10,000 Harvesters active (500N per Harvester)

[M-662]
Raligha
Defensive structures
>Surface to Orbit Missile System (750N)
>Anti-orbital batteries: 35/35 (8750N)
Economic structures
>Bloodroot collectors: A series of pipes and veins running from the roots of several of the nearest Bloodroot trees provide a passive and low maintenance source of nutrient income, +250N per day (5)
>Greenwall pit: 500N
>Temple alter: A place for the Ralighan locals to worship and bring offerings to your hive, built in the likeness of your local fake queen, +500N per day

[M-323]
>Orbital docking pylon: Space for docking and construction of 4 sub capitals or 1 capital ship, (50N)
[Empty docks: 0/4]
>Mining corvette salvage operations +2,688,000M per day (+8000M per corvette)

[Farcast]
Derelict Sensor array

Glassed Hive world
>Hive bunker complex
>Smart mine mantle excavation [Under construction]

Deep space waystation
>100 docking pylons (10,000N)
[Empty docks 400/400]

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>>42203604
New Construction Options
Defensive structures
>Anti-orbital battery – A bunker armed with a massive Particle beam capable of attacking ships in orbit from the ground. It includes the power and sensor systems required to operate it. 250N 1500M
>Surface to Orbit Missile System – This massive bunker complex houses a wide range of warheads and a nigh limitless number of missiles within its protective walls, allowing you to launch missiles against approaching invaders from the safety of your hive. The facility uses the ship missile stats and comes equipped with a single Cruise missile silo that can target any detected object within the system, five Stinger missile silos capable of targeting any craft within high orbit, and ten Swarm missile silos specialized in targeting high altitude aircraft and low orbiting targets. The facility itself is a massive complex spread out over several miles, and includes guidance and launch equipment, as well as the means to construct and maintain a stock of warheads and missiles. (1500N 2500M)
Military Structures
>Hangar Expansion – Construct fortified hangar facilities of +40 aero/fighter drone space and +20 shuttle space. 50N 100M
>Psionic Shroud – A single building built around the shattered remains of a Void Shard, the shroud amplifies the unnatural mental silence of the broken crystal within to mask an entire planet from potential detection, preventing outside forces from easily detecting the thoughts of a hive. (2,000N 5,000M)
Industrial Structures
>Docking Pylon – A large spire or station that contains space for docking and construction of 4 ships, or a single capital ship if placed in orbit. 100N 300M
>Weather Spire – A networked collection of spires spread across a planet capable of studying and altering a planet’s climate and atmosphere. Construction includes the building of all spires needed to function. (8,000N 20,000M)

>>42203577
How many days this week can you run qD?

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>>42203639
Economic Structures
>Orbital solar array – A station placed in orbit of the local star equipped with a membrane of photosynthetic cells several kilometers in diameter capable of producing a steady stream of nutrient income. Provides 1000N per day total (5,000N 5,000M
>Harvester Dock – A large pier built along the shore overlooking the spore-producing ocean film that serves as an unloading area for Harvester drones, and contains pipelines to pump collected raw nutrients to the hive’s awaiting processing facilities, includes a single Harvester which is covered by the cost and upkeep of the dock. Provides 500N per day total (38N 50M)
>Orbital electroponic station – An orbital instillation built near a large source of hydrogen used to fuel a large fusion core, which in turn provides electrical power to a contained algae farm facility. Must be built in orbit of a gas giant. Provides +500N per day and doubles as a gas mining facility, refueling the tritium stores of any ships in the system. (1000M)
>Algae Farm – A carved out space used to utilize Leeland’s natural electrical field to cultivate food. +100N per day, 1 worker to maintain.
>Hydroponic platform – A floating greenhouse platform used to grow farmland through hydroponics that can only be built on or near water with open access to plentiful sunlight. Each greenhouse platform supports roughly one hectare and requires a single worker to tend the crop and maintain the platform. Multiple platforms can be connected together to create fields of floating farmland. +200N per day, 1 worker to maintain.

>>42203577
Well I have this week off, so...all of them?

>>42203648
>he tries to run every sunday

>>42203671
>Filter towers – A large underwater pylon built to extract raw nutrients from the microbial life of the surrounding ecosystem. Can only be used on planets with bountiful biospheres and deep oceans capable of supporting large amounts of microbes. Provides between 100 and 500 N per day, depending on the local environment. (500M)
>Capillary Tower – This massive organic space elevator offers a number of logistical and economic advantages, despite its drastic up front cost and fragile nature. Shuttles or space craft are no longer needed to move resources from the surface to orbital structures, freeing shuttles for more important tasks. The counterweight station serves as a center for construction, with 4 docking pylons included on the structure to repair and build ships, while gaining a bonus to capital ship construction time due to the speedy nature with which resources arrive from the surface. The Capillary Tower can also spread hive creep and extract resources at an increased rate, spreading roots deep into the crust to bring up resources directly into orbit, allowing you to consume a planet much more quickly than normal. A Hive ship can construct a Capillary Tower if given the time and resources to do so, deploying one after 3 full days, after which it becomes the counterweight station, and must remain stationary until it detaches and destroys the tower to move. A Hive ship deployed in this way does not have access to its spinal weapons, but can use other features as normal. A planet can hold a max of 4 Capillary Towers along its equator. For each one, planetary mining or over harvest activities are doubled. (50,000N 500,000M)

>>42203648
How many according to my schedule, or how many without suffering cardiac arrest?
Realistically, I am not sure, but I just want to try to make up for all the past and future hiatuses.

>>42203699
You missed-
>This past week has been rather busy, but I'll be able to run for an extended length tonight. Hopefully I'll also be able to get in a few extra threads scattered around the rest of the week to make up for all the lost time, if only to help catch up with attendance to more crunchy hive upkeep related things. Out of curiosity, what days would people prefer?

Alright, sorry to do this early on in the thread but I'm about to collapse here.
1) Should deal with mirage, but reading OP I guess that's going to be the first thing we do. Shame I couldn't bring it up past thread.
2) Fit upgraded shields on hive ship, to save us the time of retrofitting it once it is created.
3) Sorry anon, I promised to bring up the speaker appearance, but I had no internet.
Good night, have a good run friends.

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>>42203600
The Union didn't have the capability to do any such thing. That doesn't make sense.

They still struggled to emit a pitiful amount of tachyons with an incredibly expensive prototype machine that was recently destroyed in the loss of the mad science lab.

The Commonwealth, however, has had 100 years to study the psionic cannon blueprints to see what other applications they could derive from it...

...and they also had the ammunition that the White Queen provided to them. Void shards.

But just because we sensed psionics briefly doesn't mean the source is actually here. We don't know what remote-viewing looks like from the observed's point of view, but it's definitely detectable, since when the Queen used a void shard in thread 13 or so, the entity on the other side looked back.

Someone might have just used a void shard to look in on this situation. Presumably the Commonwealth, they're the only ones that would be interested in this and that might still have access to that kind of thing.

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>>42203671
Finished Research
Oh boy here we go

>Artificial gravity plating
A network of conduits and specialized semi-metallic plates laced with infinitesimal amounts of exotic matter gathered passively through space travel are spread across the internal structure of a ship. When power is sent through the specialized plates they bend gravity locally to attract matter along its plane. The effect is a very light artificial gravity at low cost. The plates are incapable of creating a gravity field strong enough to directly cause harm, but can be altered or turned off at will.

>Photonic microstructures
By utilizing advanced techniques in particle physics to force photons to become temporarily massive particles, not only are you capable of utilizing the resulting massive photon as a weapon, but also in a wide range of other purposes. The primary hurdle you have faced in this field is the ability to interact with the massive photons in a non-destructive manner. Now, you are capable of forcing these photons to interact in ways similar to normal matter, forcing them into connected fields or tiny structures. The next step is the manipulation of these simple structures to create more complex systems. Your thinkers already have a number of ideas.

>>42203753
Smart thinking, while we're talking about it I'll repost what we were talking about last thread after it ended.


-Replace Particle cannons on Bomber Drones with Plasma Assault Cannons
-Replace defensive shields with Multi-layer shields on all Heavy Fleet Fighters, Heavy Gunships, Missile Corvettes, Heavy Fleet Corvettes, Heavy Fleet Frigates, Missile Cruisers, Heavy Cruisers, Heavy Fleet Cruisers, Carrier Battlecruisers, Heavy Fleet Battlecruisers, Heavy Fleet Battleships, and Citadel Hive ship
-Build 1,990 Shuttles
-Build 10 Missile Ambush Fleets
-Build 664 mining corvettes
-Build 2,000 Orbital electroponic stations in the orbit of G-426's gas giant
-Convert all Stealth Frigates into Vanguard Frigates, and scrap the design

IT'S TIME!

IT'S TIME!

IT'S HIVE QUEEN QUEST TIME!

>>42203730
Aww QD you spoil us.
Don't overwork yourself.

IT IS TIME ONCE MORE

FOR GALACTIC CONQUEST AND SUBTERFUGE

>>42203730
The former, though i'm rather partial to Friday and Saturday. But that's under the assumption that you have a light workload this week thus enabling you to do more threads.

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>>42203784

>Auto-harvest pods
By using a mixture of a modified drop pod design and a payload of specialized hive spores, a ship can be equipped with a number of pods designed to survive entry into a planet’s atmosphere and penetrate the ground’s surface, where the pod quickly sprouts roots and begins to spread, feeding on the nutrients and metals of the planet to support itself and gathering excess resources into a central location near the crash site as it spreads and automatically constructs hive creep and infrastructure, eventually forming a hive structure over the pod’s location. Each spore pod counts as a large sized drop pod, and can be launched from large sized drop pod bays at a cost of 100N per pod in addition to normal costs. Each pod functions independently from your hive, but is tuned to your network and will link to you just as your own hive infrastructure does. The pod itself holds a basic psionic relay, but it is capable of relaying to other pods outside of its range by growing together and making physical contact. The pod will construct a basic hive center, including a resource teleporter to begin resource extraction if left alone, but can be ordered to build one of any hive building over its landing site instead, including a capillary tower, if it is in the proper location on the surface, or an advanced relay. The hive creep will act to defend itself and aggressively spread over the target planet, but is not capable of fighting armed and organized resistance. The creep will continue to grow so long as it is within physical contact with a spore pod. Neither the creep nor the pod is capable of decision making, and their independence is through simple, animalistic programming.

>>42203787
I support this

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>>42203854
>Singularity Projector
A tremendously powerful weapon capable of literally annihilating anything within range, devouring it within the event horizon of an artificial black hole. The weapon lacks in range, but is so devastating in its function that it is as much a deterrent as it is an actual weapon, forcing enemy ships to flee from any ship known to have such a device. Can only be equipped to a battleship or Hive ship sized hull, and requires canderon to function properly.

[New Weapon unlocked]

Singularity Projector – A network of gravetic projectors spread across the ship’s weapon ports allow the creation of artificial singularities a short distance from the ship’s hull. Accuracy and range are limited, however even a glancing blow can sheer the hull from a passing ship in an instant, swallow incoming warheads whole, or spaghettify attacking strike craft before there is any chance of evasion. With luck and proper forewarning, but mostly luck, even energy weapons can be negated, or at least redirected as it loops around the event horizon. The range makes this a purely defensive weapon, and its devastation makes it an equally excellent deterrent, as few pilots are willing to knowingly leap into the gaping maw of oblivion itself. A ship can have multiple singularities projected at once; however they are limited in the amount of time each singularity can exist, and at the rate at which they can be created.
Dmg: N/A (damage not quantifiable by known physics)
RoF: Medium
Rng: Very Short
Acc: Medium
Special: Cannot be equipped to ships smaller than the Battleship hull. The projectors replace the weapons according to the slot in which it is placed. The number of weapons replaced as a result increases the number and accuracy of the projected singularities, while the size of the replaced weapon mounts determines the length of time each exists and its potency. A number of anti-kilos of canderon equal to the metal cost of the weapon mount is required.

>>42203821
Royal dibs on Dagmar, Aral, and Telarum.

>>42203787
>>42203918
Thirding if the vanguard frigates still have stealth

>>42203787
Right, that.

QD was totally kill.

>>42203949
They do if you look at the pastebin.

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>>42203787
Don't forget the colossus mobile-artillery

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>>42203927
[New ship module unlocked]

Artificial gravity plating - (1M per meter length of the ship)

New Research Unlocked

>Photon blade
Medium
A beam of massive photons arranged in a linear pattern and emitted from a palm sized projector, creating a semi-solid line of photons that quickly return to their normal, non-massive state at an adjustable distance of a meter or less from the projector. The result is a glowing beam capable of being used as a blade. Upon contact with matter, the beam has a similar effect as a blaster, sublimating or melting the material nearly instantly. While it actually has less overall cutting power when compared to the larger and more damaging thermal and vibro blade options, the photon blade is smaller, lighter weight, and cannot be broken by virtue of not actually being made of solid matter to begin with.

>Photonic armor
Medium
While it is not nearly as robust as what your thinkers promise from the miniaturization of shield technology, these small plates of massive photons are solid enough to deflect weapons fire and absorb energy for a brief period of time. Less a portable defensive shield and more of a temporary deployable cover, this technology, in theory, would offer drones or agents a way to quickly protect themselves during a momentary lack of cover before the photons dissipate.

>Holographic haptic feedback
Fast
By altering the nature of the photons emitted from a standard hologram, your thinkers claim to be able to give the projected images a texture. While the image itself still won’t full much of anyone with its subtle glow and slight flicker, the ability to touch the hologram itself does offer a number of advantages with regards to user interfacing.

>>42203787
>Build 1,990 Shuttles
Nice waste of resources.

>>42203787
Ok, done with bathroom. Had some to think while brushing my teeth. Issues with mirage are probably going to be the death of the last survivor since we got around to it so late and the problems with spacedemocracy and commonwealth being there, since we got there too late.
Possibility of cloning and restoring memory.
Also seconding that, but could do with less shuttles.

>>42203784
>Now, you are capable of forcing these photons to interact in ways similar to normal matter, forcing them into connected fields or tiny structures. The next step is the manipulation of these simple structures to create more complex systems. Your thinkers already have a number of ideas.
Oh baby. Time for hardlight.

>>42203927
Guys, we could use this shit to make point defense battleships. They'd significantly reduce our casualties on the field, especially with that they'd fuck up just about any ballistic system (complex calculations for a railgun usually don't factor in sudden black hole appearances, neither do missiles).

>>42203994
>Not knowing we have shuttle bays in our mining corvettes

Come on anon, get with the program

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>>42203984
>>Photon blade
>>Photonic armor
Hnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnng

>>42203984
Remember, the one counter to this tech is the companion cube, so we need to beware of it!

>>42204032
And you're point is? Still a fucking waste.

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>>42203984
Current Research

>Personal shielding
Slow
By further shrinking the emitters, your thinkers believe they may be able to eventually make them small enough to be equipped to the carapace of a drone, or to the surface of an armored suit. At this time it is mostly speculation and an eagerness to please mother beyond all reason, and you cannot be sure what the limitations may be, but the thinkers are sure they can do it.

>Shield dome
Slow
The opposite way of thinking as personal shielding, by scaling the shield emitters up further to a size that would be impossible to hold and power on a ship, your thinkers suspect they should be able to construct a defensive perimeter around a hive center protected by a powerful defensive shield. The thinkers that have proposed the idea seem to be certain in the failure of the other project, as they are of this one, and you have had to separate the quantum thinkers as they attempted to disprove each others’ theories more than develop their own.

>Complex matter reconstruction
Slow
Your thinkers suspect that by utilizing and combining advancements in quantum theory with your teleportation technology it may be possible to increase the threshold of items that can be transmitted from pure substances and elements, to more complex alloys and objects of more complex shape and size, potentially allowing for the transmission of equipment, weapons, or mechanical components.

>>42203968
Yea, I wasn't able to see it until around 2 or 3. I usually just work through lunch and mooch off the pizza we get on Mondays. By then it was archived, so we can vote on that in this thread if there's support for it.

>>42203984
We Forerunners now?

>>42204032
My god, you're right! We should become Blood Miners!

Battle barge best barge!

>>42203998
I figure the union just going to start shooting at the commowealth over the mirage wreck so yeah we get first row seats to the clusterfuck

>>42204077
So we had to tell the thinker groups to go to their rooms and stop fighting

>>42204092
All that proves is that the union was responsible for that blast, which is the best case scenario. Especially if we show the commonwealth what we did, in an attempt to save their diplomat.

We could even give them killinger on a platter.

>>42204077
So far there seems to be a few people wanting it.

>>42203984
Lightsabers?
Lightsabers.
We must make lightsabers for all our human children immediately.

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>>42204077

>Advanced Psionic Reading
Slow
With your new abilities growing, you continue to hone and develop more advanced methods of using your psionic network. Your thinkers believe that with more practice they should be able to delve deeper into the minds of non-hive life, digging past surface thoughts and emotions and into more detailed pieces of information without resorting to invasive neural interfaces.

>Psionic Imprinting
Medium
The next logical step from psionic reading, your thinkers believe that if you can detect the thoughts of others, you may be able to alter them as well. Further study is needed to determine the extent of this potential ability.

>High-altitude spore dispersal
Medium
By spraying modified hive spores from a capillary tower at high altitude, the tower gains the ability to spread hive creep several magnitudes faster than any other method you have, contaminating the surface of an entire hemisphere in a mere day, although the creep itself grows at normal speed. The spores are visible as a greenish fog that permeates the atmosphere, especially around the tower itself, and is toxic to non-hive life, forcing any enemies of the hive to make use of rebreathers or air filters. The spores can be made to carry other chemicals or biological agents.

>Atmospheric static generator
Medium
By utilizing the natural friction of a sufficiently dense atmosphere against the surface of a capillary tower, the tower can be made to generate energy to feed itself and reduce its upkeep cost.

>>42204131
>Especially if we show the commonwealth what we did, in an attempt to save their diplomat.
Well we weren't trying to save their diplomat.

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>>42204148
>Rip Drive
Medium
A powerful, and accurate drive system, it does not move the equipped ship, but allows the ship to rip open a hole in spacetime, creating something akin to an artificial wormhole that bridges the ship's current location with a location of its choosing within its range. This allows not only the ship to move through the rupture, but also allows it to open ruptures for other craft, allowing for the deployment of sub-light craft over vast interstellar distances.

>Deep Core Mining
Slow
Taking planetary mining to the logical extreme, your thinkers believe that your hive infrastructure, if spread across the surface of a world and given enough time, would be able to consume the ferrous metal core of a planet itself.

>Ship grapple
Medium
A simple idea at heart; throw a hook at the target and reel it in. When you take into account the relative speeds and raw kinetic forces involved in such an action, however, it quickly stops being so simple. Complex and highly durable cables and pulleys must be developed, as well as specialized bulkheads to prevent ripping the ship in two. The result, however, should be interesting, if a bit insane.

>Ram
Medium
The concept of ramming in ship to ship combat is simple and straight forward. Doing so without obliterating your own ship, however, is a far more complex skill to master that requires numerous alterations to ship design philosophy and a willful lack of common sense. The Scavengers appear to be insane enough to have thought such a strategy useful in space combat, and are stubborn enough to perfect it. The study and extensive testing of the design of the ram should allow you to develop something similar for your own ships.

>>42204092
The question is if you want to intervene or just watch the continuing fallout of your monkey wrench in the Union plans. Either options are perfectly viable.

>>42204191
There is no way to prove intent, if we say we tried to save their diplomat than they have no fucking way to find out anything to the contrary. Especially since our drones aren't exactly prone to snitching.

Hey, If we get around to it again, think we can start sending Elizabeth out to diplomacy? I really want to see our little Kerrigen in action.

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>>42204213
>Gravity thrusters
Slow
Similar in function to your Skid drive, the Gravity thrusters essentially surf along pre-existing gravity fields, increasing their performance when in close proximity to major sources of gravitational pull, be it a large celestial body, a star, a planet, an exceptionally large structure or group of structures, or the core of a gravity drive. While in deep space it becomes less effective, the law of universal gravitation means it never becomes totally useless, and when in close proximity to a powerful gravity source it should outperform most other thruster designs with ease.

Available research options

>Psionic Cannon prototype
Very slow/Very dangerous
Detailed accounts of several experiments show the slow progress of Project Godsplitter. The cannon itself is highly volatile, and even the smallest miscalculation often results in the destruction of the ship, as well as any nearby craft. It can only be equipped to a Hive ship's spinal mount, and requires a functional Void Shard as ammunition. At least a dozen testing sizes were atomized in testing the weapon, and in the end it appears The Gardener never quite perfected it.

>Add Photon blade to research list
>Add Photonic armor
>Add Holographic haptic feedback
>Add all

>Add Psionic Cannon
>Other

>>42204256
Most anons are too skittish about it, but I would vote for this IN TIME. Right now, too many people are worried she'd be ID'd, and captured/killed.

>>42204271
>Add Photonic armor

>>42204271
>>Add all

-Replace Particle cannons on Bomber Drones with Plasma Assault Cannons
-Replace defensive shields with Multi-layer shields on all Heavy Fleet Fighters, Heavy Gunships, Missile Corvettes, Heavy Fleet Corvettes, Heavy Fleet Frigates, Missile Cruisers, Heavy Cruisers, Heavy Fleet Cruisers, Carrier Battlecruisers, Heavy Fleet Battlecruisers, Heavy Fleet Battleships, and Citadel Hive ship
-Build 1,990 Shuttles
-Build 10 Missile Ambush Fleets
-Build 664 mining corvettes
-Build 2,000 Orbital electroponic stations in the orbit of G-426's gas giant
-Convert all Stealth Frigates into Vanguard Frigates, and scrap the design

>>42204271
>>Add all
Except for the Cannon

>>42204271
>>Add all
Except the Psionic Cannon

>>42204271
>Add Psionic cannon.

For the glory of satan!

>>42204131
They don't give a fuck about Killinger. You make no sense.

Even if they did, revealing you know all these secrets of the Union that could only be learned through deep infiltration is frankly terrifying, and not in the good way. The notion that an entirely newcomer alien race could somehow have infiltrated an all-human organization will make them paranoid that they too may have been or will soon be infiltrated. And that scrutiny would make our job harder.

Not to mention you'd be admitting to possession of cloaking tech, as well as an inexplicable ability to detect the other cloaked vessel. And half of such tech's value, as we've seen with the Obsidian Queen, is in when the other party doesn't actually know you have it. Strange occurrences in space that would normally be dismissed out of hand will not be dismissed anymore if they know.

>>42204271
>all
no psionic cannon, though

>>42203984
I hope the photon stuff leads to drones with light-based bodies. That shit would be so cool.

Imagine, it's a couple organs and a brain attached to a light projector that forms up the rest of their body.

Shapeshifting solid "hologram" drones.

>>42204271
>Add all

Yayyyyyyyy QD isn't dead. For mother!

>>42204271
>>Add all

>>42204290
Being captured and killed is a little silly, considering we'll have so many guards it's not even funny, and she can take care of herself. Though I suppose being identified is a bit more of a concern.

>>42204308
They'll give a fuck if they hear he directly ordered a fucking cloaked ship to open fire on a peace conference. Thats at least three war crimes in one.

>>42204271
>Add all
no cannon tho

>>42204315
No it won't anon.

>>42204308
That's really the hard part when it comes to stealth based quests. It's hard to really rub it in to antagonists when you have to keep hidden how badly your kicking their asses.

>>42204271
>Add all
no PSI Cannon

>>42204131
We saw nothing, heard nothing, said nothing
The fact we were involved is classified and buried

>>42204271
>Add all

>>42204350
They can declare war and figure out "I bet it was the Union who did this!" just fine on their own when they get the black box.

Which particular sleazy politician among the uppity rebels will hardly matter, the Union might as well be one big despicable monolith to them.

Also just gonna put it out there, I think that psi whisper was OQ.

>>42204416
Cephs.

>>42204405
We don't want them declaring war on the union, we want them sending a death squad after Killinger.

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>>42204271
>Add all the above

and to vote on the proposed alterations

-Replace Particle cannons on Bomber Drones with Plasma Assault Cannons
-Replace defensive shields with Multi-layer shields on all Heavy Fleet Fighters, Heavy Gunships, Missile Corvettes, Heavy Fleet Corvettes, Heavy Fleet Frigates, Missile Cruisers, Heavy Cruisers, Heavy Fleet Cruisers, Carrier Battlecruisers, Heavy Fleet Battlecruisers, Heavy Fleet Battleships, and Citadel Hive ship
-Build 1,990 Shuttles
-Build 10 Missile Ambush Fleets
-Build 664 mining corvettes
-Build 2,000 Orbital electroponic stations in the orbit of G-426's gas giant
-Convert all Stealth Frigates into Vanguard Frigates, and scrap the design

>Y
>N
>Other

>>42204438
>Build 1,990 Shuttles
Fuck no.

>>42204438
>Y
It all works for me

>>42204438
>Y

>>42204438
All yes but the Shuttles, we don't need them.

>>42204416
She always talks louder than that though, because she never told her children to whisper things for mother. I still think it was either the Union or Commonwealth deploying experimental psionic tech for intelligence gathering. They're the only ones who make such a quiet footprint.

>>42204438
>Y

>>42204435
Its not the commonwealth that going to start this

The union will prob invade a take a few systems while the commonwealth are distracted

But we know the full scale of the scavs and if the union hits the commonwealth we all know the commonwealth will fall

>>42204438
yes

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>>42204435
>We don't want them declaring war
One politician dies, another takes his place. They won't see any improvement in the situation. The whole lot of rebellious traitor is responsible. Let them all burn.

>>42204438
>Y

>>42204438
>>Y
We aren't hurting for resources right now so no.

>>42204438
Yes to all BUT shuttles. Unnecessary.

>>42204438
>Y

Lets get onto plot if we can.

>>42204438
How long do ships take to build? Does cost factor into it.
>>42204484
You fucking retard. They don't have this tech only the crystal and us do.

>>42204438
>>Y

>>42204460
>>42204476
Why do you think we won't need them? They're what we rely on to get things between ships and planets where space elevators and teleportation can't reach, and we've established that there are quite a few places they can't reach.

>>42204438
>Y
Everything but the shuttles, almost two thousand is unneeded

>>42204438
Yes to all but shuttles, we don't need that many.

We should also negotiate with the commonwealth for Canderon so we can start building singularity projectors on our battleships.

>>42204533
>They're what we rely on to get things between ships and planets where space elevators and teleportation can't reach, and we've established that there are quite a few places they can't reach.
We don't have any places like that and if it's hostile territory we'd be using the Drop pod.

>>42204533
No, we have enough. Not to mention all the other ships we're building are going to tie up construction quite a bit as well, we don't need to spend time and energy on things we really don't need.

Corvettes fulfill all the roles that shuttles fill and many more besides (are actually useful in battle). Why are we even considering building shuttles?

>>42204557
If you want Canderon at a good price than you'll have to go to the Valen.

>>42204533
I think the problem is that mechanics-wise, QD has stated that they're not really factored in to the calcs for the economy to keep the number crunching simple.
Sure it apparently "frees up warships" for more important duties but thats all just fluff.

I myself don't see anything bad with the choice to build the shuttles but that's only because we're not in a rush to build up our fleets like we were a dozen threads ago.

>>42204438
No shuttles.

>>42204612
So all corvettes can be dedicated to non-logistics roles of defense and offense 24/7 instead.

So hey anons just for clarification on possible commonwealth union war

Are we willing to support the commonwealth against the union? we already are supporting the commonwealth against the scavs

and if we do will we only fight union fleets in commonwealth space or also start taking systems from the union in the expanse? '

Cause i am will to support taking union systems in the expanse but will not support taking core union systems

>>42204655
They can multitask you know.

>>42204438
One last vote for clarification
>Yes including shuttles
>Yes except for shuttles
>Yes, but change the number of shuttles (write in)
>Other

>>42204680
More Lebensraum.
I'll support taking the Expanse Systems since they're not really heavily populated and they might have some artifacts that may be of interest to us.

>>42204562
We have ten. Ten, for a fleet of 1,000 mining corvettes.

>>42204639
Every time a mining corvette has to fly home to unload it's cargo is time that could be spent further mining. Having shuttles unload their cargo holds for them will speed that up.

>>42204680
I'd rather not get involved, we need allies to fight the space crystals and the ceph, killing humans is counter-productive to that.

>>42204623

The way I see it, we have already made first contact with the Commonwealth. Rather than spreading ourselves too thin and trying to make contact with the Valen as well, we can ask the Commonwealth for Canderon (which they almost certainly have reserves of). It serves two purposes: It will throw the Commonwealth way off when it comes to researching our FTL, and it provides something they'd be pretty willing to trade with us (since they are unlikely to sell military secrets this early in the relationship). We can probably do something like exchange the location of the scav base for Canderon or something that is low cost to us like that.

>>42204739
>Yes including shuttles

>>42204680
I don't think we want to support as much as exploit any possible war. Our fleets should be mostly be free to fight the Queen and any raiders that come in

>>42204739
Yes, except shuddles

>>42204739
>>Yes including shuttles

>>42204680
>Are we willing to support the commonwealth against the union? we already are supporting the commonwealth against the scavs
I'm willing to back them in return for an ally against worst Aunt, but would prefer gunboat diplomacy instead of outright war. A mutual defense treaty announced between the Commonwealth and our allies will likely stop the union in its tracks.

>>42204739
>Yes including shuttles
>Other
Add another 5000 nukepods cause we may be running low and i love letting enemies running into minefield

>>42204739
>>Yes including shuttles
It's not a big deal honestly

>>42204739
>>Yes including shuttles

>>42204752
All. Just. Fluff.

>>42204739
>Yes including shuttles
it's a fucking drop in the bucket guys, we're running an intersteller empire and you guys are jewing out over 2000 fucking shuttles?

>>42204739
>Yes except for shuttles

>>42204739
>Yes including shuttles

>>42204562
You do realize how dirt cheep and efficient they are compared to every other option right? Our space elevators cost half a million metals and just as many nutrients to construct.

>>42204739
>Yes including shuttles
Fuck it, just for non-mechanically-represented reasons

>>42204807
It's one or two guys who got into a slapfight with the guy who wanted shuttles last session and they can't let it go.

>>42204807
I'm jewing out over the fact that it could be better spent on ship that matter.

>>42204739
>>Yes except for shuttles

>>42204739
>Yes including shuttles

>>42204739
>Yes including shuttles

As your pod watches the slowly unfolding border tensions, your ambassador awaits new orders.

>Send your battleship with current drone compliment to Aquila to make contact with the Commonwealth
>Alter drone and ship compliment (write in)
>Other

>>42204906
>>Send your battleship with current drone compliment to Aquila to make contact with the Commonwealth

>>42204906
>>Send your battleship with current drone compliment to Aquila to make contact with the Commonwealth

>>42204906
>>Alter drone and ship compliment (write in)
Important.

Modify Ambassador to have quantum brain.

We don't want to accidentally lose contact with it somehow and have them find out about that weakness of a coma.

>>42204906
>Send your battleship with current drone compliment to Aquila to make contact with the Commonwealth

We should be thinking about how we should set up a embassy. Are we just renting a building, or are we going all out with a miniature hive, or are we not having anything on site?

>>42204906
>Send your battleship with current drone compliment to Aquila to make contact with the Commonwealth

>>42204756
They get their Canderon from the Valen and we're going to be meeting the Valen soon.

>>42204945
We might just be docking with their giant space station and sending a drone onboard, where it gets a room to live in...

>>42204906
>>42204939
Supporting this. Harmless precaution but it might prevent a diplomatic disaster.

>>42204906
>>Send your battleship with current drone compliment to Aquila to make contact with the Commonwealth

>>42204906
>Alter drone and ship compliment (write in)
Add another two ships to match what the commonwealth sent to meet us

And add egg layer and another 1000 warriors, 500 heavy warriors and some shuttles

>>42204906
>>Send your battleship with current drone compliment to Aquila to make contact with the Commonwealth

This battleship is capable of self destructing with a nuke, yes? Perhaps like, five goddamn nukes just to be double extra sure.

>>42204526
Firstly anon, I believe that your harsh language was uncalled for and wholly unnecessary for the purposes of our discussion. Secondly, we know from first hand evidence that the Union has both the materials and knowledge to build basic psionic emitters, even if they are incredibly basic and crude. Yes the one we saw was blown up, but they got the key materials out of there and spirited them away beyond Gilliam's reach, and nothing is stopping them from building another. And this isn't counting on what the Commonwealth are up to, and they managed to build a semi functional psionic cannon.

>>42204945
Just drop a Spore pod and be done with it.

>>42204906
>>Send your battleship with current drone compliment to Aquila to make contact with the Commonwealth
And >>42204939 too

>>42204906
>Alter drone and ship compliment (write in)
Send in the battleship and a few heavy fleet corvettes (less than 10) as an escort. They're relatively primed for point defense and it's stupid to send in a battleship alone in unsecured space even if we aren't expecting trouble. The corvettes can also go into the atmosphere of the planet and land while our battleship cannot.

>>42204906
>Send your battleship with current drone compliment to Aquila to make contact with the Commonwealth
We can always send more ships later.

>>42204906
>>42204939
Give every drone onboard a quantum brain.

>>42204906
>>42205006
Changing my vote to >>42204994
and seconding>>42204939

>>42204945
I want to leave the ambassador and an honour guard on the planet as a means of future diplomacy.

>>42204906
Send more than one ship! Sending in only the battleship presents a single point of failure. If it is lost, however unlikely that may be, we lose control and communications with all our forces present. At least send a few other ships along!

>>42204997
The prototype device was fucking useless and pitiful and had zero utility in spraying tachyons here.

It's taken them 100 years to get this far, they didn't suddenly find an application beyond messing with people's brains overnight.

The Commonwealth is a more likely suspect than the Union.

>>42205006
We should have securely self-sufficient drones from the beginning and not need to rotate them out.

>>42205083
We have a pod in the system.

>>42204945
Lets get a look at this planet before we go making plans, we might luck out and have ready access to the wilderness where we can dig to the centre of the goddamn planet where it will be impossible to uproot us or even fucking noticing us.

>>42204994
Okay, plan.

We can't have the battleship blink out of the system from Aquila, because unlike at the other system, they will have PLENTY of telemetry, sensors, and telescopes to watch it even if it retreats a lightday away.

So we can keep it hanging around at a respectful distance. With an egglayer onboard the ship, but never letting the humans see that. In case we need to breed an army for some reason.

>>42205105
Fair point. I had forgotten about that. In that case, while I would prefer more than one ship because battleships are most effective with support, I don't have a big problem with only sending our forces as is.

Oh yeah once we get planetside the cats coming out of the bag.

>>42205118
Meant to reply to >>42204945

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>>42204906
>Alter Ambassador to add a quantum brain
>Do not

>Add additional ships to support the battleship (add in)
>Do not

>Add an Egg layer to the battleship's drone compliment
>Do not

Your ship adjusts its course accordingly, and your pod in Aquila watches as the small fleet returns to its dock. The system has been brought up to high alert, and the rumor mill spins into high gear between passing freighters and patrolling strike craft. Fighter patrols have increased, and you detect increased activity among a number of deep space satellites, which you spot as they ping their position to other ships in response to new orders. Corvettes and frigates maneuver in complex training exorcises and mock battles, while others move out to patrol the edges of the system in all directions.

They seem to be expecting you.

>Blink your envoy into the system near the star
>Blink to the edge of the system
>Blink within the area of Odin station
>Other

>>42205156
Not if we don't go planetside and only visit Odin High Command, and never expose ourselves to civilians.

The fact that some organic ships exist was already on the rumor mill anyway, so no new information will be released.

>>42205118
You're a) assuming they're inviting us to a planet, b) assuming they'd give you, a foreign power, a huge tract of land to build on without scrutiny, c) forgetting that we know all about these planets already.

>>42204945
Fun fact. There is a good chance the Union spy is in this system.

>>42205201
>>Alter Ambassador to add a quantum brain
>Add additional ships to support the battleship (2)
>Do not

>Blink to the edge of the system

>>42205201
This>>42205228

>>42205201
>>Alter Ambassador to add a quantum brain
>>Add additional ships to support the battleship (add in)
6 Fleet Corvettes for Point Defence
>>Add an Egg layer to the battleship's drone compliment

>Blink to the edge of the system
Maybe we should keep them thinking that we can only blink to the outer edge of a system.

>>42205201
>Alter Ambassador to add a quantum brain
>Add additional ships to support the battleship (add in)
Two Cruisers
>Add an Egg layer to the battleship's drone compliment
>Blink your envoy into the system near the star

>>42205201
>Egg layer

If we get one of these it must not leave the ship, the purpose of an egglayer will be immediately obvious to anyone that sees it. If we need an egg layer at any point planetside then it is a much safer option to pupate a different drone into one in a prepared secret location.

>>42205210
>the
>singular

>>42205201
>Alter Ambassador to add a quantum brain

>Add additional ships to support the battleship
Two Light Fleet Frigates.

And, technically, we can mutate any warrior or wasp into an egglayer at any time anyway...

Also, the battleship has a capacity for 2000 medium drones. We could probably multiply the current number by 10.

>>42205201
>>Blink your envoy into the system near the star
This will fuck with expectations, and depending on the current position of the planets, might even be hidden from most observers.

>>42205201
>Do not add quantum brain
>Add additional ships to support the battleship
2 more battle ships
>Add an Egg layer to the battleship's drone compliment
>Blink to the edge of the system

>>42205201

>Alter Ambassador to add a quantum brain
>Add additional ships to support the battleship (4)
>Add an Egg layer to the battleship's drone compliment

>Blink your envoy into the system near the star (we blinked in near the star at the other battle so they already know about that. They may think we can only blink in close to a gravity well and blink out outside a gravity well).

>>42205294
>might even be hidden from most observers.
It won't be.

>>42205201
>Alter Ambassador

>Add additional ships (6 Fleet Corvettes, 2 Cruisers)

>Blink to the edge of the system

>>42205201
>>Blink to the edge of the system
>Alter Ambassador to add a quantum brain
>Do not
>Add an Egg layer to the battleship's drone compliment
>Blink to the edge of the system

>>42205316
>we blinked in near the star at the other battle so they already know about that
They don't.

>>42205201
>>Alter Ambassador to add a quantum brain
>Add additional ships to support the battleship
Six fleet corvettes
>Add an Egg layer to the battleship's drone compliment

>Blink your envoy into the system near the star
Of course our ships are dependent on gravity wells for FTL navigation, what ever led you to assume otherwise?

>>42205203
I'm only assuming they're inviting us to the planet, which was implied last time anyway. I don't think they're giving us a huge tract of land, the implication was that if we could somehow secretly get a medium sized drone off the grid and into the wilderness then we can dig deep and establish a small hive capable of quickly expanding if needed.

Not saying we need to do this btw but if the opportunity presents itself we should consider it.

>>42205316
We blinked in on the far side of the star. They literally saw nothing, we "probably" came from deep space on the far end.


Of course a possible problem with blinking in in deep space is someone might put that together with the rise in local supernovae.

>>42205373
>which was implied
They didn't imply any such thing.

Odin High Command station is far more likely and secure.

Also, I really kinda want to delay going to Aquila AT ALL until we unlock and build a Rip Drive.

>>42205352
Probably the fact that our battleship met their envoy in the middle of deep space (not near a gravity well)...

>>42205405
That would be a good idea.

>>42205405
I don't.

>>42205201
>>Alter Ambassador to add a quantum brain

>>Add additional ships to support the battleship (add in)
Two frigates. We need at least one subcapital at least.

Uh, >Blink to the edge I guess?

>>42205508

Sounds good to me.

>>42205508
Go for it.

>>42205405
Well, I already agreed with you that I'm making that assumption but it was actually implied, the suggestion was a more permanent location, human space was suggested and agreed to. Planets are more permanent than space ships, thus the implication is that we're going to discuss diplomacy on a planet in human space.

There's a possibility that we'll be meeting on a space station in which case we can forget the whole idea.

Just came in after not only finding out that not only is there a thread today, but once again you lot decided we should not use our kerrigan in diplomacy, despite it being an incredibly fun idea that QD clearly wants to write and has very low risk.

What the hell tg?

>>42205565
tg is paranoid as hell. I'd be down for it.

>>42205565
Yeah, I wanted to do it too, but there'll be other opportunities anon.

>>42205565
The early evening crowd is always way too paranoid compared to the late night/early morning types

>>42205563
Odin High Command isn't a ship.

>>42205626
The ship to which I am referring was our battleship in which the conversation fucking took place. You're baiting me, you gotta be.

>>42205565
That does sound fun.

>>42205565
I vote we just send Elizabeth already, for the meeting with them

>>42205731
Too late

>>42205715
Indeed.

>>42205731
S'too late for this one, although we can send her if we want to later on. We in-character said 'no, you're too valuable', so we'd need a way to walk that back.

>>42205731
Nope.


Unrelatedly. I notice that Warriors, Wasps, and Heavy Warriors all lack acid glands self-destruction and quantum brains.

So they should definitely stay on the ship.

>>42205758
>We in-character said 'no, you're too valuable', so we'd need a way to walk that back.
We can just say that the risk has been judged to be smaller then we previously thought.

...Next time anyway...

>>42205731

Nah, sending in our Kerrigan at this point does things we don't want to do. Elizabeth is a well known Union Scientist and we don't want knowledge we have her to go out just yet. Moreover, the idea that we can construct or biologically influence humans is gives away our capabilities and lets them know we have been observing humans since long before the scavenger battle.

We can definitely send Elizabeth in eventually, but right now it just doesn't make sense. Better to save it for a time the epic reveal will have the largest impact.

>>42205818
good
goooood
let us be mysterious
let them fear us

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>>42203984
>Photon blade
>The result is a glowing beam capable of being used as a blade

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>>42205201
>Alter Ambassador to add a quantum brain
>Add 6 fleet corvettes, two fleet frigates
>Add egg layer

Seems to be the general consensus.

>Blink to the edge of the system

Your small formation closes together, and they charge their drives. An instant later alarms sound across Aquila space as your capital ship and its support erupts into material space like a miniature big bang, blasting the sensors of nearby ships with hard radiation like the corona of a star. A formation of grav-fighters on deep space patrol send themselves in controlled tumbles as they rapidly move away. You hear cursing over the radio.

"Jesus, what was that?"

"My sensors are jammed, and the canopy blacked out from the safety switch. Anyone have eyes?"

The fighters loop around and return to a formation as they accelerate together.

"It's a fleet. Signature matches the sample. Autumn, are you getting this? Get this on the relay to Odin. Tell them the VIPs are on the red carpet. Fives, I win. You owe me half rations for the next week."

"Yea yea." Another fighter pilot responds.

"Alright, spider formation, let's go say hello."

The grav-fighters tuck together into a sphere formation measuring less than seventy meters across as laser comms link between them. Their drives begin working in tandem, accelerating the formation like a single mass towards your ship. The group performs a distant fly-by of your fleet before decelerating relative your ships, and they slowly split off to take up positions flanking your fleet like a large funnel. The lead strike craft broadcasts a recorded greeting.

"Greetings alien guests. We will escort you in, please follow the guiding ships to the designated location."

As it broadcasts the lead fighter takes a position ahead of your fleet, and some light seconds away, the patrolling cruiser the Autumn nudges itself closer to your ships, and a you detect the hint of a laser comm link between it and the lead fighter.

Cont.

>>42205947
except give the alien the saber

one for each hand

>>42205947
Contact Lyle via parasite

>Look what we're making
>Buy us strange animals and you can have one when we finish it

>>42206015
Have him hallucinate mother twirling a lightsabre tauntingly

>>42206015
DO THIS NOW

>>42206015
lol. Let's do it!

...

But not now. It's diplomacy time.

>>42206072
>>42206093
We have to it's too great

>>42206015
>>42206072

We NEED to do this. Not immediately, but sometime this thread. It's AMAZING.

>>42206015

>For fuck's sake, Mum, I already told you that the Angel isn't-
>*lightsaber noise*
>...dammit, where's the nearest pet shop...

>>42206133
I don't think he'll actually want a blade that's inferior to the blade he already has.

>>42206155
>For fuck's sake, Mum, I already told you that the Angel isn't-
>*lightsaber noise*
>Why the hell do I not have one of those yet?

FTFY

>>42206168
Inferior how?

>>42206015
>>42206072
THIS

>>42206182
In cutting power. You know. The one thing blades actually do. Try reading the thread.

>>42206259
Oh, huh. So it does. Interesting.

>>42206294
>>42206259

It's probably going to get a lot more powerful as we fill out research in that field.

>>42206259
It makes a great switchblade though.

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We need some Ralighan Chimera or Hybrids to use the Photonic Blades for that Spiral Warrior thing

>>42206381
oh god, that sounds awesome. Ral's are already melee and range experts

>>42206381
>>42206392
>Spinning Lightshow Ball of Death

>>42204009
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sbut8Sp7jY4

>>42206168
>>42206259
Just because the swords in his arm are better at cutting doesn't mean he won't want a fucking lightsabre in addition to all the cool shit he already has.

>>42206423
noice

>>42206392
While that does indeed sound awesome, we should probably work on improving our conventional ground forces as well. We have less than 100,000 warrior troops. While it sounds like a lot, we will need far more troops than that for any ground offensive. Compared to our number of ships (relatively) our ground forces need considerable work.

>>42206381
>>42206392
>>42206423
It's like a rave, but the only music is drums and everything dies.

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>>42203984
>Photonic armor

Either Tech Armor from ME or those deployable shields they use in Halo

>>42206472
Oh god, that reminds me of this:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iBYjN-Ur4lQ
(Rave starts about 1 min in)

>>42206470

Your concern is understandable, but look at it this way: those 100,000 warriors aren't for a ground offensive.

They're for guarding the egglayers that CREATE the ground offensive.

>>42206554
>>42206514

I hope we get the Rals to that eventually, help them with some science and let them develop their own unique FTL and stuff

>>42206563
Good point. How easy is it to get resources to our egg layers? Do we need a supply chain? I forget.

>>42206577
I don't think Questdrone will live that long.

>>42206636
I know, but the idea of photon armored spinning ball of arms men fills my heart with joy

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>>42206008
The grav fighters are rather large looking craft, like flying potatoes with their drive rings hidden in the bulk of the rest of the ship, which is covered in weapons folded under the fuselage. As your ships continue inwards, you spot other, even older looking fighters on patrol. The fighters themselves are each rather large and bulky in appearance, a far cry from the slender profiles of Union strike craft. Each one has four pylons holding thruster mounts, which fire periodically to help orient the craft. They stay close to their deploying carriers and stations, but they adjust their courses as you pass and you feel active sensors directed towards you intermittently as they steal curious looks between patrol updates.

Ahead of you, growing in your view, is Odin High Command. Smaller stations hold position around it in a massive sphere, with each one dedicated to a single set of weapon systems. Further outward is another sphere of small orbs covered in sensors and thrusters. They sit idle until the Autumn sends a signal to station. It quickly replies.

"Roger on your approach Autumn. The mines are inactive; you and your guests are free for final approach to the inner ring."

The mines hum slightly, sending tiny pings of laser signals to one another as they constantly realign their positions. There must be thousands of them.

cont.

>>42206259
>>42206294
Less raw power, but it's lighter, can be swung faster, and is compact, taking the same amount of space as a tv remote. The photon blade also can't be cut itself, since it's literally made of light.

>>42206725
So literally a lightsaber.
Is it possible through research to make the projector even smaller?

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>>42206796
Why on Leeland would want a projector even smaller than a tv remote?

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>>42206843
For the Glory Of MOTHER OF COURSE!

>>42206843

So that we can fit them on our flies, of course.

>>42206941
Yes.

Yes.

>>42206941
>So that we can fit them on our flies, of course.

>>Fly Jedi/Sith

You're doing Mother's work you blessedly beautiful drone.

>>42206941
That is a wonderful idea anon, thank you.

>>42206941
>millions of flies with literal lightsabers flying around

someone give this man a medal

>>42206015
oh man the shenanigans he will get into with that...we have to show his friends too, I am sure the agent friend of his will love it.

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I really hope the Singularity projector leads us to pic related

We shall become Biotic Gods

I guess we can add jedi flies to the list of ideas that includes the flesh star thing, whatever it was called, and giant space couches.

>>42207095
>Naw guys I don't think it's a good idea to take all this magical cool fucking shit everyones favourite space bugs are magnanimously bestowing upon us. No fun on my watch.

>>42207169
And he still isn't as paranoid as some anons in this quest.

>>42207155
I can only hope that we one day get Manguard drones

>>42206941
so photon bees?
>>42206725
so something that our infiltrator chimera and diplomat clones would use? If anything we could sell it to others too. What kind of burning power does it have?

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>>42206725
Your fleet drifts further in, decelerating with the escorting ship as the grav fighters peel off and hold their position outside the mine field as your ships pass the small defensive stations. Each one, more an extension of Odin station then anything else, connected by long power tethers, holds a railgun comparable to that of a battleship spinal mount, with several closer in holding batteries of turrets and auxiliary mounts.

The station itself is a large multi-layered superstructure, with an outer hull that remains stationary and connects to a number of utility systems and tethers that link to the outer defense platforms. Laser antennae and radio dishes cover much of the surface, surrounding fields of missile and fighter launch tubes, as well as hangar bays and outstretched docking pylons. The hull itself is somewhat circular, with the many platforms and pylons reaching out like mismatched additions built on over the years, each with a slightly different layout and architecture. Within the circular hull, however, is a spinning superstructure built in layers of rotating plates, with each one closer to the center rotating slightly faster. In the center is a large glass sphere. You can see small human figures floating within, watching in pressure suits with their helmets pressed against the window as your battleship engulfs them in shadow.

Your ship is allowed to float in free space, disconnected from the station. A small shuttle launches from the inner rings, and makes its way to your battleship, passing through a pulse of shielding as it does, and it docks with your battleship.

>Send your ambassador alone
>Send your ambassador and a combat drone escort (how many)
>Other

>>42207235
>Send your ambassador and a combat drone escort
2 warriors

>>42207235
>>Send your ambassador and a combat drone escort (how many)
Two heavies if they can fit, we need an honorguard

>>42207235
>Send your ambassador and a combat drone escort (how many)
2

>>42207235
>>Send your ambassador and a combat drone escort (how many)
How ever many heavies will fit

>>42207193
With all this gear and us starting to encounter the Commonwealth those Honor Guard ideas are starting to sound better.

Medium Exoarmor like Jakobs, photonic blades and armor, augmentations out the wazoo, Kata and predictive algorithms

>>42207235
>Send your ambassador and a combat drone escort (how many)
Two Warriors

>>42207235

>>Send your ambassador and a combat drone escort

About 2 should do it, just enough to show that we 'trust' them while also giving us more options should things go pear shaped.

>>42207235
>>Send your ambassador and a combat drone escort (how many)
2.

>>42207235
2 Heavys

>>42207235
3, one on each side and one behind.

>>42207235
>Send your ambassador and a combat drone escort
2 Heavies

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>>42207235
2 Heavies with the Ambassador

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We should revolutionize the toast market and make mad dosh.

>>42207339
>>42207345
"Am told to guard fluffy speaker, is good job."
"Mother tells me no kill human."
"Shit just got complicated."

>>42207299
Our heavies might just be able to take the station themselves.

>>42207163

No, no, jedi flies would actually be useful.

Need a space station taken out? One fly slips in the central wiring and cuts up everything.

Need someone assassinated? Fly lands on their back and puts a photon stinger through their spine.

Etc etc.

>>42207391
I'm right behind you on the jedi flies idea but you know our flies can already do those things with the shit they have right? They chewed through the wiring when our drones were in the Union labs and their syringe blades are better for assassination than lightsabres.

>>42207436

But can they coordinate in a swarm to make a drill of light and Pierce The Heavens?

We must think of the future dear Anon and make the universe a better place.

Filled with flies with lightsabers.

For Mother.

I can't wait to be able to make variable form hardlight prosthetics and other cybernetic implants that project and control hardlight.

>>42207391
Look man, in addition to being kinda rediculous (where the hell are you supposed to fit the power source for it on drone designed to be as compact as possible) most of what you've described is not only within our flies capabilities, but they've actually done exactly that at various points in the quest. We've already had them fuck with power cables and suspension cables alike, and they are purpose built assassin drones already. I mean, sure it's an entertaining concept, but there isn't much practical point to it.

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>>42207508
Soon

The Hive shall fill the Void with their Light

>>42207522
sperglords gonna sperg

>>42207508
Just wait until we get to the point that we can create a projector out of light so that it's a self-sustaining light construct.

>>42207500
Actually that's good enough for me

>>42207235
>>Send your ambassador and a combat drone escort (how many)
2 standard warriors

>>42207558
How fast would it take to replicate enough projectors to fill all of the space in the universe?

Only one way to find out.

>>42207558
anon no, i can only get so erect

I wonder what happens if we take this photon stuff and mix it with psionic crystals.

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>>42207625

>>42207558
And then the projectors apply force, pushing the universe of projectors apart at an accelerating rate.

>>42207640
S-source?

>>42207625
Just stop before I explode, hard light alone is giving me a massive boner.

>>42207436
>>42207522

The photon blades would probably be faster than their teeth for getting through wires, though. In regards to the assassination, I'll concede that the flies already kick ass, but the photon stinger would add more flexibility (such as for cases where the target is wearing armour the syringe blade can't penetrate, or in a secured room, where a jedi fly can cut itself a little hole and slip in).

We'd also arguably have more plausible deniability; a burnt-apart wire or burn-hole in a neck would be difficult to absolutely trace to us.

As for power requirements... Eh. Where would the power come from for the full sized one? Just shrink that down in the same way the projector has been.

>>42207625
exploding heads

Oy QD, now that AI Quest is over, will you do crossover stuff with Program0?

>>42207726
Oh dang, that ended? Was it a badend or did Program just drop it or did it actually get to a proper conclusion point?

>>42207726
DC/Marvel crossovers are stupid. They're completely incompatible universes in how they work.

>>42207746
Literal actual spoilers do not read: You got two out of three.

>>42207746
It ended shortly after defeating an enemy commander
Spoiler Apotheosis end

>>42207746
Spoilers. Definite spoilers.
It was a bittersweet ending. We actually ended up merging with Mother and joining her in a massive collective consciousness, on the condition she leave the sector and all it's people alone. Including our A.I. brothers and sisters.
Mother turned out to actually be a pretty understanding AI, and I think us merging affected her, making her more loving and understanding maybe?

>>42207640
Sauce?

>>42207804
>>42207677

Artist is incognitymous. Shit is on the rule34booru.

>>42207235
Send 4 heavies as an escort.

GOD DAMN HOW DO YOU GUYS STAND THE WAITING? THIS IS TORTURE WAITING FOR HIM TO WRITE THINGS this must be how game of thrones fan's feel

>>42207931
You don't follow quests much, do you? QD writes at a pretty normal pace, which is impressive considering how good his writing is. Ain't nothing to do but be patient and occupy yourself with the sperging and speculation.

>>42207931
BITCH WE BEEN WAITING WEEKS FOR THIS
SUCK IT UP BUTTERCUP

Here's an idea.

Customize a hybrid's genetics to make him a fat, jolly santa type.

Only it's not fat. He's full of parasites. How many do you think we can fit?

>>42207931
I usually fuck off and do other things until the whole thread's done. Sometimes I'll stick around if I see something cool enough at the beginning of the thread.

>>42207931
You should see how long it takes Ghoul Quest to post

>>42207235
>2 Heavy Warriors

The airlock opens, and you see a single human standing firm on the magnetized floor. You recognize him as Steven Wise, although his helmet and vacuum suit have been replaced with a form fitting dress uniform and an emergency "bag hat", a simple device taking the appearance of an officer's visor which, according to Lyle's memories, is capable of inflating into an air-tight helmet containing several minutes of oxygen, which triggers in the event of decompression.

His uniform is rather typical in appearance. A pure white with gold rope trim, and a pair of epaulettes sewn to the shoulders to keep them straight in zero gravity. A small pendant of earth with a crest of laurel leaves sits on the right side of the chest, just above the front pocket, and a tiny silver eagle placed in the center of the visor, and just above his left pocket, where a rank insignia and various medals are attached, including insignias of doctoral merit. His boots slide back along the metallic surface as your drones move forward, and he forces a quick salute.

"Commander Steven Wise." He says quickly with a short glance to your heavy warriors. "I'll be your escort within the station. Please... follow me." He says with a hint of hesitation. Steam ruptures from your warriors' backs and they stammer forward, their claws scraping harshly against the smooth gangplank of the shuttle's umbilical.
Cont.

>>42207625
What indeed.

>>42207726
I never managed to catch up to the live thread since I started up, so I need to binge the archives a bit more. Was glad to see it get a proper ending though. I hope he has luck with whatever he does in the future.

>>42207931
Sorry, there was a small emergency in the other room that needed attending. All good now.
Sorry.

>>42207985
The round humans are the leaders, not the egglayers.
What if we just repurposed a female hybrid's uterus to carry parasite eggs through security checkpoints? I mean, that's pretty much what that organ is designed for. I wonder if that would count as an egglayer for a chimera?

>>42208052
>Sorry, there was a small emergency in the other room that needed attending. All good now.
Sorry.
What it a fire? Was did grandma fall and couldn't get up?
Are you Canadian?

>>42207931
I take it you don't follow Valen Quest then.
Here's to those who died on their seats.

>>42208052
>"Commander Steven Wise." He says quickly with a short glance to your heavy warriors. "I'll be your escort within the station. Please... follow me." He says with a hint of hesitation. Steam ruptures from your warriors' backs and they stammer forward, their claws scraping harshly against the smooth gangplank of the shuttle's umbilical.
Oh yes, this should be so fucking good.

>>42207931
FOR MOTHER!!
For Mother!!
FOR MOTHER!!
For Mother!!

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>>42208228

Remind me, what does our ambassador look like? Fluffly moth thing ala speakers or more humanoid?

>>42208270
SPEAKER ABSOLUTELY ADORABLE

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>>42208257

>>42208270
SO FUCKING FLUFFY

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>>42208270

>when the human speaker fucks up

>>42208270
I think similar to how Lyle sees Mom when she appears as a hallucination. More humanoid than the Speaker I think

>>42208329
No, still more speaker than anything. Bipedal but fluffy.

Okay, while we have a moment, what exactly are we going to aim for in these negotiations? We ought to sort out what we're going to ask for as well as what we're willing to trade for it. We can ask for a list of what research they'd be willing to pawn off to us, but I think this would be a fine time to offer to sell manufactured products to them for cheep. This is after all, the greatest asset of the hive in comparison to other civilizations-it only costs us the materials needed to build something, we have no production costs. I think they would be might interested in our carapace armors, QD outright stated no one has ever produced an equivalent to our medium carapace because it just cost them to much to do so. And of course there are the augs, I'm sure they could see the value in those.

Just in case they want research in exchange for research, I'll repost the catalog of past research if anyone wants a recap.

http://pastebin.com/Ed8aTShA

>>42208391
This could even lead to us being able to use human appearing hybrids in our talks.

We could take in refugees and the like to give them better medical care and prosthetics and immortality juice

>>42208391
Too much trouble, lets just declare a space war.

>>42208391
I think we are just going to sell them info on the scavs home fleet and scav tech right now

None of our tech going on the table and maybe an mutual defense pact is the most we are willing to offer

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>>42208052
Your drones claw their way forward behind Commander Wise, leaving half-inch gashes in the smooth metal where their claws had sunk in like a thermal blade through butter to keep their balance.

"There is nothing to hold. Is this what it is like when the human tries to sit?" Your speaker chirps as it shuffles its claws in frustration.

"I apologize, the station will have handhol- uh, claw... There will be things to hold in the walls in the station."

"This is sufficient." Your speaker replies.

The interior of the shuttle is rather spacious, which would be intended as a luxury to humans, but leaves your drones running in place in the air as it clambers over the seats. Your warriors impale a chair with each leg and squat into a nesting position, annihilating what you quickly recognize as rather expensive looking leather upholstery, while your ambassador struggles with the strange seat belt contraption within the seats themselves in an attempt to hold itself down. They are much easier to use from the perspective of a human, you admit, and your drone simply grips the seat with its claws, puncturing the seat like a dead rabbit in the grip of a bird of prey.

"Um, would you like some he-"

"These seats are not sufficient." Your speaker says. Steven nods curtly and apologizes as he quickly fastens himself in."

>Speak with the representative (write in)
>Ask a question (write in)
>Maintain passive aggressive silence until you arrive at the station
>Other

>>42208071
No, someone had a back injury. I had to pop something back in is all. It's a chronic thing, so I'm needed now and then late at night.

>>42208073
How is that one? The title caught my eye for obvious reasons, but I never got around to reading it.

>>42208270
Speaker with bipedal legs, which can fold into an upright position to stand on the hind legs, where it is a rather elegant and imposing figure, or unfold them into a normal four legged posture. It is indeed quite fluffy.

>>42208456
>Maintain passive aggressive silence until you arrive at the station

>>42208456

>Speak with the representative (write in)

Mention that the Scavengers also failed to provide proper seats in our first meeting.

Let him chew on that a bit.