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Here, in the fringes of the Procession, the light of the Cleric Sun is almost soft. It glimmers as it filters through the shattered remnants of the inner system, reflecting off millions of minor planets and billions of icy asteroids.

Your ship is currently nestled in the shadow of St. Agnes' Retreat. For the past five days, you have been running silent - minimal life support and minimal heat rejection. If you were lucky, the wait would be over in a few minutes. The six metallic contacts your sensor specialist identified yesterday were approaching a critical deceleration boundary. Any further and they would overshoot their intended target.

You watch with anticipation as...

...six separate drive torches light up on your display. If nothing else, you could trust pirates to be economical with fuel. The crew sigh and stretch, slowly shifting into their combat stations.

A junior ensign floats by your shoulder, his breath fogging the cold air. He hands you a tablet containing your ship's final pre-combat status report.

"Here you cap'n." he says with undiminished enthusiasm, before fumbling for something hanging off of his hip.

"Also nabbed some of this." The drink-bulb he passes to you is wonderfully warm. Taking a few sips is enough to stifle the diatribe on heat management you were about to subject him to.

You clamber down into your command cage, bulb still in hand, and take a moment to review your ship's systems.

You are captaining the:

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>"Sunrunner," a Grifter-class cutter fitted with 4 PDCs and two rotary missile launchers. Fast, with reliable combat performance and a generous cargo bay.

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>"Zodiacal Light," a Bulwark-class corvette fitted with 6 PDCs and two rotary missile launchers. Exceptionally well-armored and amenable to additional hardpoint expansions.

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>"Thousand Nights," a Solstice-class hunter fitted with 2 PDCs, a light railgun, and 14 single-use missile cells. Offensively oriented, carries a top-of-the line sensor suite.

>>5365165
I like the look of the Thousand Nights. My vote.

>>5365164
Defense is the best offense.

Good to see you, QM. Return of Gunship Quest when?

>>5365172
Probably the coming Thursday/Friday (・・;)

>>5365174
Awesome!

>>5365163
>>"Sunrunner," a Grifter-class cutter fitted with 4 PDCs and two rotary missile launchers. Fast, with reliable combat performance and a generous cargo bay.

But muh loot

>>5365162
>>5365163
Let's run the Sun, baybeeeee

>>5365163
>>"Sunrunner"

>>5365164
>"Zodiacal Light," a Bulwark-class corvette fitted with 6 PDCs and two rotary missile launchers. Exceptionally well-armored and amenable to additional hardpoint expansions.
Well QM did say PD coverage is king in the /QTG/ so let's go with this, we can get a ship with lots of cargo space later when the quest proper is started.

>>5365162
>>5365165
This.

>>5365165
>Thousand Nights
Gimme that Solstice-class, small ships should always be offense oriented.

>>5365165
>"Thousand Nights," a Solstice-class hunter fitted with 2 PDCs, a light railgun, and 14 single-use missile cells. Offensively oriented, carries a top-of-the line sensor suite.

Lets go hunting

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...Thousand Nights, a Solstice Class Hunter. Her bridge is cramped, her bunks are narrow, but in a one-on-six ambush there are few corvettes you would captain in her place.

[Thousand Nights - Solstice Class Hunter]
Hull: 8
Weapons:
2x PDC
1x Light Railgun
14x VLS Missile Cell

"...Clean track on pirate formation. 4G approximate deceleration burn, 4.5 L-secs out and closing. Missile range in five minutes, plus or minus..," drones the sensor specialist, her eyes glued to her display screen.

Your first officer tilts her head towards you, turning as far as her acceleration webbing allows. "I just finished talking with the foreman. Most of the ice cutters are docked, but there are still a few stragglers trying to retrieve what's left of their haul. With all due respect, I wouldn't waste any hydrogen on their behalf, sir."

"That's because you've never been one haul away from a fresh air filter, missy," spits the vac-born chief engineer. His radiation-scarred features shift into something more neutral once he turns to address you. "She'll be combat ready once we warm up the main reactor core, boss. On your word."

>Warm up the reactor and initiate an high-G intercept burn. You will fight the pirates in the cover of the ice formations, before they have a chance to reach the mining base or intercept the straggling ice-cutters.

>Wait for now. The pirates haven't detected you yet, and you're not certain if they have shown all their cards. Engaging after they commit to a raid will put you in a better tactical position, especially if they decelerate to harry the remaining miners.

>Write In [Write-ins are always encouraged, and they can be as detailed as you would prefer. I will try my best to accommodate these as best I can]

>>5366143
>>Wait for now. The pirates haven't detected you yet, and you're not certain if they have shown all their cards. Engaging after they commit to a raid will put you in a better tactical position, especially if they decelerate to harry the remaining miners.

>>5366143
>Wait for now. The pirates haven't detected you yet, and you're not certain if they have shown all their cards. Engaging after they commit to a raid will put you in a better tactical position, especially if they decelerate to harry the remaining miners.

Whats the blast radius of the missiles? Could it launch ice shrapnels if they were detonated near the ice?

>>5366150
Maybe if you had nukes, but the conventional warheads your missiles are currently equipped with are not powerful enough to pull this off.

>>5366143
>Wait for now. The pirates haven't detected you yet, and you're not certain if they have shown all their cards. Engaging after they commit to a raid will put you in a better tactical position, especially if they decelerate to harry the remaining miners.

>>5365163
Sunrunner

>>5366143
>>Wait for now. The pirates haven't detected you yet, and you're not certain if they have shown all their cards. Engaging after they commit to a raid will put you in a better tactical position, especially if they decelerate to harry the remaining miners.

We need them in close for the railgun to be effective. An alpha strike at close range with missile and gun is our best bet.

Love the visuals btw, how long does it take to make the models and render the scenes?

>>5366143
>Warm up the reactor and initiate an high-G intercept burn. You will fight the pirates in the cover of the ice formations, before they have a chance to reach the mining base or intercept the straggling ice-cutters.

>>5366143
>Wait for now.
a hunters greatest weapon is patience after all

>>5366293
Maybe 4-5 hours for the system and the three ships (one of the models is old though). But its much less work after that point, since I can just reuse assets and render in the background. Things will probably run smoother once I get off my ass and buy a laptop with a real GPU.

>>5366983
Gives me homeworld vibes... I'm guessing space combat here is going to somewhat similar to how it's portrayed in 'The Expanse' based on the weapons available?

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You tell your head engineer to hold. His face furrows slightly, either in disappointment or with nerves. It is difficult to tell in the dim light.

As minutes tick by, the six drive torches become visible even without the aid of digital magnification. Their output begins to vary slightly, flickering out a repeating message in archaic morse:

READY TITHE | DO NOT RESIST | READY TITHE | DO...

It is the void-born equivalent of raising a black flag. Any remaining doubts you have about their identity are thoroughly quashed. But this only makes their next course of action more confusing. Instead of intercepting the helpless stragglers lingering at the edge of the ice formation, the pirates narrow their formation and burn straight for St. Agne's retreat, seemingly preparing for an orbital insertion maneuver.

Your sensor specialist - diligent as she is - also finds this decision odd. With your permission and the enthusiastic help of your steersman, she uses cold-gas thrust to swing the massive bow-mounted sensor array back towards the asteroid field.

"Sir, I'm seeing some unusual readings...."

>Roll 1d20+3, DC10 [Best of 3]

Rolled 18 + 3 (1d20 + 3)

>>5368347

>>5368347

Rolled 2 (1d20)

>>5368428
How do I add a +3?

I tried “dice+1d20+3 and it didnt work

>>5368347
testing dice+(1d20+3)

Rolled 17 + 3 (1d20 + 3)

>>5368347

>>5368599
this was just
dice+1d20+3

Rolled 19 + 3 (1d20 + 3)

>>5368347
>>5368429
in case this one didnt count

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Drive spectra and thermal curves scroll across the main terminal, almost too fast for you to follow. Your sensor specialist has no such trouble.

"...characteristic of a mid-expansion era hybrid reactor. Based on my displacement estimates, I suspect we are tracking a hostile assault destroyer attempting - albeit poorly - to mask its thermal signature in the ice fields..."

Your first officer cuts her off. "How do you know its hostile?"

"It isn't broadcasting a standard IFF," you point out. "And there aren't many reasons to bring an assault destroyer into the fringes unless you're planning to breach and seize a colony. They're not designed to hunt ships."

In fact, you consider this to be the only upside to the news. Assault destroyers dedicate the bulk of their tonnage to boarding pods and breaching gear. If you were lucky, it wouldn't be able to sling enough missiles to tip the scales against you and your crew.

It was still a gamble though. You watch the tactical screen as the pirate vanguard and the assault destroyer move further into you engagement envelope. Each contact is tagged with a real time hit probability-estimate that climbs upwards as your separation narrows. It was time to make a call:

>Keep waiting. A few more minutes, and the separation distance will be so small it'll be practically impossible for the vanguard to respond to a surprise missile or railgun attack. However, you also risk blowing the ambush if they detect you early.

>Launch the ambush now. You can fire one shot from your railgun and up to 7 [of your 14] missiles. You will still catch the enemy by surprise, but they will probably be able to muster some kind of defensive response.

I'm waiting for Gunship Quest to come back, but this seems like a good side event. As always, great 3D artwork.

>>5369436
>Keep waiting. A few more minutes, and the separation distance will be so small it'll be practically impossible for the vanguard to respond to a surprise missile or railgun attack. However, you also risk blowing the ambush if they detect you early.

>>5369436
>Launch the ambush now. You can fire one shot from your railgun and up to 7 [of your 14] missiles. You will still catch the enemy by surprise, but they will probably be able to muster some kind of defensive response.

>>5369436
>>Launch the ambush now. You can fire one shot from your railgun and up to 7 [of your 14] missiles. You will still catch the enemy by surprise, but they will probably be able to muster some kind of defensive response.

>>5369436
>Keep waiting.
maximum patience, maximum mayham.
as i see it we simply cant brawl with these pirates so we gotta hedge it on the alpha-strike.

except DM tells me we can actually launch our missiles and dive away

Next vote will break tie.

>>5369436
>Keep waiting. A few more minutes, and the separation distance will be so small it'll be practically impossible for the vanguard to respond to a surprise missile or railgun attack. However, you also risk blowing the ambush if they detect you early.

>>5370378
>>5369986
>>5369562
>Roll 1d20, D10 [Best of 3]

Rolled 20 (1d20)

>>5370401

Rolled 15 (1d20)

>>5370401
might as well see if we can get a double crit.

Rolled 12 (1d20)

>>5370401

>>5369692
>>5365164
>>5365161
>Literally of copypasta from Reynold's Rendemption Ark
gg

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>>5371446
Yep! He has the coolest names.The setting is actually ripped from Revenger, not RS, though hopefully with less YA autism.

>>5370403
Closer still....

The atmosphere is tense as the pirate formation begins pinging the area with focused radar. Your steersman is the only member of the bridge crew who seems unconcerned. Whistling a jaunty tune, he slowly - carefully - pulses cold-thrust to keep your ship hidden behind the asteroid.

The hit estimates have now converged, and a proximity warming begin to beep.

"Launch tubes oh-one through oh-seven ready, sir," reports your weapons officer with the crisp, sing-song cadence of a naval veteran.

>Choose weapon allocation. How many missiles [Up to 7] and railgun shots [Up to 1] are you firing, and how many are you sending to each target/formation?

>>5371865
>Railgun at the destroyer
>One missile towards each out of 7 targets
Let's maximize damage from our sneak attack with an alpha strike. Cripple or destroy everything now that they can't respond.

>>5371869
I second this. We'll still have seven missiles left if any of the enemies are still in play after the initial attack.

>>5371865
>>5371869
Support.

>>5371869
+1

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The face on the monitor is familiar to you. You recognize the widow's peak. The straw-blond hair. The way his features twist into a slight smirk as he begins transmitting audio.

"Fine citizens of St. Agne's Retreat, I must express my sincere regret for imposing on you once again during this orbital period. However, I have discovered an opportunity that we simply cannot overlook. One of the veil-worlds in our orbit is about to crack - in mere days! Unimaginable treasures await within, yet my crew is too small to retrieve them..."

This particular spiel was familiar to you and your crew. Your prim first officer scowls, while the vac-born engineer spits gratuitously into a nearby suction-receptacle.

"...to share this bounty all we ask for is a modest tithe of workers...around 150 will suffice. We will be docking with your station shortly. For your own sakes..."

He pans the camera downward, showing a wooden case packed with orphaned arrestor-hooks, many still trailing bundles of severed tether-line. "Please be civil. I am an charitable man, but I do not enjoy having my goodwill tested..."

Your engineer is gritting his teeth, staring at you.

"Mark," you command.

Ultracapacitors whine as the stellerator begins its start-up sequence, forcing hydrogen isotopes to fuse in the furnace-heart of your ship. Power returns to the bridge.

The steersman whoops. He dumps reaction mass into the drive core to give your missiles a pre-launch velocity boost. Eight Gs of acceleration compress your body into the acceleration couch - almost enough to drown out the launch of half your ship's missile complement

"...tubes one through seven are away!" sounds the weapons officer. "Railgun is at sixty percent charge"

"Active sensor lock on all targets, seven seconds until impact...destroyer is cutting burn and flipping".

>Roll 7d20 for missile attack, best of three.

Rolled 10, 3, 11, 4, 10, 15, 13 = 66 (7d20)

>>5376632

Rolled 15, 10, 14, 16, 15, 5, 13 = 88 (7d20)

>>5376632

Rolled 15, 9, 5, 2, 4, 8, 15 = 58 (7d20)

>>5376632

Rolled 9, 20, 14, 11, 4, 9, 3 = 70 (7d20)

>>5376632

>>5376943
not quite on time there
15, 10, 14, 16, 15, 15, 15
> 4 x 15
what did the dice mean by this?

i suppouse the animations are taking their due time?

>>5379389
He is also running another quest so updates will take a while.