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[Jilladilla]

Right, we have 3 units and an ITC on A, they have 1 unit. Their armor helps, but I don't think it's enough to overturn a 2-to-1 odds scenario (Like our Hrungnir was)

So, we move one of those units off of A and to D, and we ship in a new battalion of Stealth Hrungnir's with Ullr's for them. That way, we have 2 units with Tanks (one stealthy + CIWS capable) vs their 2 units with at least one nuke launcher truck. This should be a much better matchup, especially as despite them having twice the men and nuke launchers, they only managed to push us back 1 territory.
We'd keep stalemating on F, but we can hold there for a little bit.

We have enough spare SPP to Mirage Plate all of our Odins, without compromising fleet strength, and buy another Loki (1 Loki, for 0.5 SPP)

[Strongpoint]

and buy another Loki (1 Loki, for 0.5 SPP)

Lokis need transport, we have only one at Quillus, 3TC will be used for tanks. We can transport only 2 Lokis.

To use all SSP we need to go for 2 upgraded Odins (7SPP), 4 transports, (8SPP) dove (1SPP), and 8 Lokis (4SPP)

My preferred way is to use 2 upgraded Odins(7SPP), 2 unupgraded Odins(6SPP), 3 transports (6SPP), Dove (1 SPP) and ditch Lokis completely because building a transport just for Lokis seems ineffective

Another choice is 3 upgraded Odins(10.5SPP), 3 transports (6SPP), Dove(1SPP) 2 Lokis (1SPP), and 1.5SPP unused

One of reasons I wanted to upgrade Lokis is to change the situation above to either justify building transports only for Lokis or make them noticeably more expensive and have less unspent SSP on the last option.

[Madman198237]

I don't believe we have the transport capacity to bring more than 2 Lokis, and we do already have 2 at Quillus, right? Well, technically we have four, but two of those were just reconstructed and we can instantly deconstruct them and reuse the SPP.

Recycle at Quillus:
2 Lokis

Group 1, moving from Quillus to Planet D:
3 Odin-class (9 SPP)
---Mirage Plating (1.5 SPP)
---Ullr MAMG
1 ITC (2 SPP)
---Ullr MAMG
---Doves (1 SPP)
---2 Lokis (1 TP, 1 SPP)
   +++Mirage Plating
---1 set of Hrungnir MBTs (4 GPP)
   +++Mirage Plating (1 GPP)
   +++Ullr MAMG
Total: 14.5 SPP, 5 GPP

Group 2, moving from Planet A to Planet D:
1 ITC (2 SPP)
---1 Unit from A
Total: 2 SPP

Group 3, moving from Planet F to Quillus:
1 ITC (2 SPP)
Total: 2 SPP

Grand Totals: 18.5 SPP, 9 GPP (1 Hrungnir deployed in the field and not being moved)

I don't think there's any serious issues with this plan as it stands. We have two transports out in the field (One over F, one over A) and so we cannot recycle any transports. We *could* recycle all our Lokis, but we'd still have SPP unused, which would suck. Instead, what we can do is bring the Lokis out into the field. If they survive the battle (Or, you know, if there is no battle) they can play transport-interdiction for the next turn or so. Also, they're 90% invisible and armed with coilguns, which probably makes them 90% indestructible for any Ertexite fleet, just because they can get close enough that "point and shoot" is a viable coilgun tactic, instead of doing tedious math.

[Thanatos Russ]

I am voting for Plan Counter by war crimes.

[Maximum Spin]

Absolutely concur.

Plan WarCrimes, the Only Plan You'll Need: (2) Thanatos Russ, Maximum Spin

[evilcherry]

Concur besides I would argue for the installation of Ullr on every ship. Because, you know, CIWS is serious business.

[Strongpoint]

Group 1, moving from Quillus to Planet D:
2 Odin Class (6 SPP)
2 Odin-class (6 SPP)
---Mirage Plating (1 SPP)
1 ITC (2 SPP)
---Doves (1 SPP)
---1 set of Hrungnir MBTs (4 GPP)
   +++Mirage Plating (1 GPP)
   +++Ullr MAMG
Total: 14.5 SPP, 5 GPP

Group 2, moving from Planet A to Planet D:
1 ITC (2 SPP)
---1 Unit from A
Total: 2 SPP

Group 3, moving from Planet F to Quillus:
1 ITC (2 SPP)
Total: 2 SPP

Wasting SSP is too inefficient

[Madman198237]

Concur besides I would argue for the installation of Ullr on every ship. Because, you know, CIWS is serious business.

That is impossible. Also useless. The enemy uses *lasers* (though missiles can't be far behind) and we didn't make the Ullr MAMG to be fitted to the Odins. It'll be a Trivial revision, I suspect, but it's still going to take another action. Speaking of which, we need something else to shove in such a revision, so we don't have to burn an entire revision to fit point-defense onto an Odin.

Plan Counter-:WarCrimes:: (3) Thanatos Russ, Maximum Spin, Madman
Plan USE SPP: (1) strongpoint

Strongpoint, I assumed you'd be voting for your own plan.

Also, Spin, get the name right! We're not committing war crimes, THEY are, therefore we are COUNTERING those :WarCrimes: with some counter-:warcrimes:.

[SamSpeeds]

That is impossible. Also useless. The enemy uses *lasers* (though missiles can't be far behind) and we didn't make the Ullr MAMG to be fitted to the Odins. It'll be a Trivial revision, I suspect, but it's still going to take another action. Speaking of which, we need something else to shove in such a revision, so we don't have to burn an entire revision to fit point-defense onto an Odin.

The revision write up said that it could be fixed to the Hrungnir or "any other vehicle" does that not include spaceborn vessels?

Plan Counter-:WarCrimes:: (4) Thanatos Russ, Maximum Spin, Madman, SamSpeeds
Plan USE SPP: (1) strongpoint,

I was in favor of Strongpoint's plan for a bit in my head, but Madman's involves a fully OM3 clad force, which could be a Big Huge Win! Plus I wanna see how the Loki's fare. Maybe they'll be able to not get obliterated almost instantly this time.

[Madman198237]

I don't recall specifically mentioning it being fit to any other vehicles at all....it's a bit early in the morning, I guess. Ah, I see. I had missed that line in the revision rolls post.

OK, confirmed it with NUKE: They can be added to anything and cost nothing. Going to go add them to the plan. Strongpoint, you probably should do the same with your plan (More railguns makes everything better, after all).

[SamSpeeds]

We could mount them on ITC's? If not we should consider spending a design to make ITC's weapon compatible so we avoid that "ITC vs ITC encounter where no one does anything" thing again.

[Madman198237]

We can mount them on ITCs, and the revised plan already does.

Of course, I doubt they'll be very USEFUL as an anti-ship weapon (I mean, an unarmored/very-lightly-armored fighter would probably feel the hurt from the things if it got close), but they should stop the inevitable nukes-in-space from hurting us too much, though ITCs might not have the radar to use them, it's not mentioned.

[NUKE9.13]

It is the start of SY105
Link to Battle Report for SY104


The Lesser Incompetent Quillian Mudfish, a species so ineffectual that its survival thusfar is a true miracle, has gone extinct. The head of the LIQM Protection Agency has been arrested, and faces seven consecutive life imprisonments.

It is now the Design Phase of SY105

Spoiler: Tech List (click to show/hide)

Ships
ITC (Interplanetary Transport Craft): The ships that carried colonists to your homeworld, now repurposed as military transports. They use rocket shuttles to ferry things to and from the surface. These shuttles have a limited capacity, meaning that with the exception of troops, the ITC cannot carry any equipment of a size greater than 1TC. It has 4TC. It uses chemical engines for propulsion. It has no armour or armaments. It is Very Slow, and quite large.
Cost: 2SPP
  QS-RAS-00 'Dove': A heavier shuttle for the ITC, powered by a Loki-class Stardust reactor and fitted with Apollo thrusters. It has light armour and two 30mm Hayks. Can carry 3TC. Adds 1SPP to the cost of an ITC.

QS-CA-99 'Odin': A heavily armoured medium-sized spaceship. Her hull is all slope, the front being a point, from which slopes lead up to the widest point, then slopes lead down at the same angle, before being cut off, leaving a large flat area in the back, where the main thrusters are. Aforementioned main thrusters are three Apollos. She has five smaller thrusters mounted pointing in other directions, providing excellent manoeuvrability. Her powerplant is a Stardust reactor. She is armed with four Mjolnir turrets providing excellent coverage, and a single spinal-mount extra-long Mjolnir. Her weapons are aimed by the Huginn System, which automatically collects data from her improved radar. Her armour consists of a layer of Heavy titanium with faraday insulation, with a layer of Light ceramics mounted a full three meters away from the main hull. Despite her bulk, she moves at a Moderate pace.
Can be given Mirage Plating for an extra 0.5SPP
Cost: 3SPP

QS-SF-00 'Loki': A small-ish fighter, capable of independent operation for a few days before needing to resupply. A substantially downsized Stardust reactor provides power to the Apollo thrusters, as well as the singular Mjolnir coilgun. Has light armour, and a radio capable of same-orbit communication. Requires a transport to act as 'mothership'- two Lokis take up 1TC. They are now equipped with Mirage Plating.
Cost: 1SPP for two.

Equipment
Printed Pistol: Issued to security guards before the war, the only real weapon both colonies started with. They are 3D-printed out of plastic, a process which is not entirely reliable, meaning the gun has a tendency to break after prolonged use... or any use, really.
Cost: Cheap

X100 Space Suit: A civilian space suit, totally unarmoured and cumbersome to walk in. At least it works well enough, and has a self-sealing lining meaning a single shot isn't an immediate death sentence... most of the time. Necessary for deployment to worlds without breathable atmospheres.
Cost: Cheap

Interplanetary Radio: Essentially just a very big radio set, capable of reliable communication between planets. Too big to fit on an ITC. Currently only useful for taunting Ertex.
Cost: 2GPP
Weight: 2TC

QS-IRW-99 'Hayk': The Hayk is a micromissile-firing rifle. It is magazine fed, has a reasonable rate of fire, and is accurate at a surprising distance- theoretically out to Long range, although few are capable of such superhuman feats. There is an ammo variant which explodes on contact, though it is less accurate and in shorter supply.
Cost: Cheap

QS-GL-02 'Fog Machine': The Fog Machine is a simple grenade launcher, basically nothing more than an oversized Hayk with a shortened barrel. It fires either smoke/chaff or explosives. Range/accuracy is a bit of an issue.
Cost: Cheap


Vehicles
QS-MBT-02 'Hrungnir': The Hrungnir is a big tank, with fairly heavy armour in the form of a layer of ceramics atop a layer of titanium (all sloped). It is powered by a Stardust reactor, basically the same one used by the Loki. The energy is used to drive electric motors which in turn drive the treads upon which the Hrungnir sits. It is equipped with a 50mm stabilized auto-loading Mjolnir coilgun, the barrel of which can also be used to fire upsized explosive Hayk rockets. It has an electronics package that handles fire control and sensors. It also has smoke/chaff dispensers, which automatically cloud the vehicle in smoke/chaff (for atmosphereless planets) when sensors detect unusual heating.
It has an Ullr system mounted on the roof, and can be made mostly invisible with Mirage Plating for an additional 1GPP.
Cost: 4GPP
Weight: 3TC


Infrastructure

Colony Defence Grid: The reason you can't instantly invade the enemy homeworld. A series of surface-to-orbit missile launchers, the only real concession to self defence the planners of the colony made. How they work is a mystery, and no one wants to risk taking them apart to find out.

QS-CPP-96 'Stardust': A fusion reactor, copies of which can be found across Quillus, powering industry. Utilises powerful niobium-tin superconductors, cooled by liquid helium, to contain plasma in a Tokamak-style. The "Brokkr's Forge" improvements have made it slightly more effective, to the point where it reaches ignition. Grants 2GPP and 2SPP. A smaller version designed for use in spaceships also exists.


Loose Parts
QS-MAC-97 'Mjolnir': A coilgun (and definitely not a railgun) capable of firing 150mm slugs at considerable speeds. Requires a substantial power supply. Ground installations cost 1GPP for four. Ship mountings cost 1SPP for eight.

QS-MHD-98 'Apollo': A magneto-plasma-dynamic thruster of exceptional efficiency. Uses hydrogen plasma by default; heavier elements can be injected into the mix for a boost in thrust.

QS-MAMG-04 'Ullr': A highly effective CIWS system, using a miniaturised coilgun firing 6mm slugs, using Huginn-based aiming assistance. Excellent at shooting down missiles and enemy infantry alike.


Misc Tech

QS-PMP-96 'Auto-Forge': A 3D-printer that prints using metal. Not astonishingly accurate, but QC weeds out any pieces that aren't of acceptable standards.

Optical Metamaterial 3 'Mirage Plating': A miracle substance that defies what were once considered laws of physics. OM3 consists of complicated (yet not impractically so for production purposes) layers of materials that together can redirect light in essentially arbitrary ways. It is not perfect, and can only affect 90% of light, and requires a small amount of power to function. OM3 must be created to affect a specific wavelength of light, and only works on light in a band around that wavelength. Only wavelengths from near-X-Ray to the lower end of microwave can be affected.
Shrouds of OM3 can be constructed for your vehicle of choice, offering either a degree of invisibility, or pretty good protection from lasers, or both.

Eitr Rechargeable Superconducting Battery: A battery with 5x the capacity of conventional batteries. Unfortunately, it is expensive, and has a tendency to explode- or worse- when jostled even a little bit.

Spoiler: Observed enemy tech (click to show/hide)

Ships
ITC (Interplanetary Transport Craft): No differences noticed.

ESC-FS 1 'Cuttlefish' laser corvette: A medium-sized spaceship. The Cuttlefish's hull vaguely resembles its namesake. The 'beak' is a "Hermes" variable-water-injected fusion thruster, which draws plasma from the Helios-S reactor. It has very light armour, and has three AX4-Spear turrets, which are automatically aimed by the Athena RL System, which also handles evasive manoeuvres. The more ships in the fleet, the better Athena performs, due to her distributed computing. Its speed is Moderate, though it can inject extra water into the thruster for a temporary speed boost.
Cost: 2SPP
  Insalloy Armour: A few plates of Insalloy, formed into a basic armour covering for the Cuttlefish. Despite being thin, they increase survivability by as much as 100%.
  Cost: Negligible increase.


Equipment
Printed Pistol: No differences noticed.

X100 Space Suit: No differences noticed.

EAF-X1 "Ranger" Laser Rifle: A big, bulky firearm, weighing in at 15kg- just barely wieldable whilst standing. Works best against stationary targets. Can fire 30 shots in pulse mode before reloading, or 15 seconds in beam mode. Beam mode has pretty good armour penetration against conventional armour. Comes with basic scope and bipod. With the scope it is accurate at Long range.
Cost: Cheap
  EAF-PX3 Raider: A variant of the Ranger, using the new Picasso Pattern. Weighs a 'mere' 7.5kg. Fires shorter pulses, and deals more damage against moving targets. Does not have a beam mode.

Interplanetary Radio: No differences noticed.


Vehicles
EAC-TML1 Sarissa Missile Launcher: A nuclear-missile launcher consisting of three shuttle-loads worth of stuff: a small electric truck, a launch trailer, and the missiles themselves. The launch trailer loads 8 missiles, tipped with extremely small nuclear warheads for maximum 'tactical' performance. The missiles are controlled by Athena, who is now capable of flying missiles and identifying ground targets. Their range isn't great, and the launcher misfires (harmlessly) about 25% of the time, the guidance system is a bit wonky even under Athena's capable control, and the truck+trailer is slow and unwieldy, but still, nuclear-missile launcher!
Cost: 2GPP
Weight 2TC/1TC in shuttle.

EAF-ACD1 "Aegis": an Athena-controlled drone with an Insalloy frame. It has some trouble walking, shooting straight, and possesses sensors that aren't great, but it is not totally incompetent. Due to a lack of on-board processing power, they require a nearby Aegis Commander- just a big Athena node with an antenna, carried by two Aegis drones- to do anything useful. Do not say "Roger roger" repeatedly.
Cost: 1.5GPP
Weight: 0.2TC for a 100 drone complement. (Units may equip an unlimited number of drones)


Infrastructure
Colony Defence Grid: No differences noticed.

"Helios" Fusion Reactor: A large, Tokamak style reactor. Performs He3-He3 fusion, though it does not take full advantage of this. Provides 2SPP and 2GPP.
  Helios-S: A variety specifically designed for use in spaceships. A 'twisted' plasma flow allows for plasma to be siphoned off without disrupting the reaction.


Misc Tech
NQ Cells: About 15 times better than chemical batteries. Palm-sized, weigh about a kilo each. Despite their apparent complexity, manufacture and usage is simple.

Libum-265K: A near-room temperature superconductor. Manufacture is complicated.

Hephaestus Synthesis: A complicated process that produces small amounts of Insulanium- an isotope of a certain element that resides in the "Island of Stability"; it is very heavy, yet relatively stable. Produced in too small amounts to make anything practical out of it, it is instead alloyed with more common metals, which substantially increases their strength even with only 0.25% Insulanium added.
  Hephaestus Mark 2: A new method of Insulanium production. Substantially lowers the cost of Insulanium-using designs.

Spoiler: Production (click to show/hide)

Ship Production Points: 16+2+2(C)
  6 points: 3xITC
  10.5 points: 2xOdin, 1xOdin (Heavily Damaged)
  1 points: 2xLoki
  1 point: 1xDove
  1.5 points: -

Ground Production Points: 16+2+4(C)
  4 points: 1xHrungnir (102 Model)
  5 Points: 1xHrungnir
  13 points: -
 
Units: 5
  2 Units on planet A (No extra equipment)
  2 Unit on planet D (1xHrungnir MBT (102 Model), 1xHrungnir MBT, Fog Machines)
  1 Unit on planet F (Fog Machines)

Spoiler: The Map (click to show/hide)

Don't even worry about this looking nothing like a solar system. Its, uh, optimal transfers or something. Look, it's dumb, but what do you want from me?

Key:
A: A volcanic world. Constant eruptions and earthquakes result in a thoroughly unpleasant environment. 4SPP, 2GPP
  E:1/6, Q:4/6
B: Rocky world. (Almost) no atmosphere, no major tectonic activity, this planets is... boring. The most notable terrain features are the craters that litter the surface. 2SPP, 2GPP
C: An ocean world. Covered in 94% water, with a breathable atmosphere, and a few inhabitable islands. Prepare for lots of island-hopping. 2SPP, 4GPP
  Q:6/6
D: An earthlike world. Covered in 69% water, with a breathable atmosphere, most of the surface being inhabitable. Terrain varies wildly, from open plains to thick jungles- and of course vast seas. 5SPP, 5GPP
  E:5/6, Q:1/6
E: A frozen world. Almost entirely covered in ice, with an atmosphere too thin to breathe. Ice sheets make for treacherous terrain, with snow-covered mountains being not much better. 2SPP, 4GPP
  E:6/6
F: Rocky world. (Almost) no atmosphere, no major tectonic activity, this planets is... boring. The most notable terrain features are the craters that litter the surface. 2SPP, 2GPP
  Q:4/6, E:0/6
G: A desert world. With a few salty 'seas' covering a mere 12% of the surface, the majority of this planet is dry as a bone. Vast sandscapes dominate, punctured by low, rocky hills, and the ocassional oasis. The atmosphere is breathable. 2SPP, 4GPP.
Ertex&Quillus: Earthlike worlds. Capturing the enemy homeworld results in victory. Yield no Production Points. I mean, they do, but those are already accounted for in your basic industry.

[Strongpoint]

Wow. That clash over D. I was way, way, way too pessimistic

I won't be me if I'll not offer yet another version of fighter, right?

Vedrfolnir FF QS-05
Vedfrolnir is a fighter about of size Loki inheriting most of its internal systems. It is armed with slightly smaller 120mm Mjolnir and ventral turret with 50mm Mjolnir and several Ulirs. Also, it has 4 mounts on wings, currently the only options are 30mm hayks, dumb fire space torpedoes and plain free falling bombs.. Yes, Vedfrolnir has wings and an aerodynamic shape and wings. Instead of one Apollo thruster like on Loki, it has two smaller Apollo thrusters giving it more control over direction of thrust. Vedfronir can operate both from planets (its engines can reach escape velocity, the only problem is slight degradation of metamaterials armor after each reentry) and from ITCs. Vedfronir is navy's ship and operated and supplied by navy pilots even when supporting ground forces.

I want this to replace Loki and act as a garrison space crafts against attempts to sneak a single ITC here and there. I expect them to go panic mode for new spacecraft, we should answer with the same. And, yep, I tried to eliminate stuff people disliked in my past designs. But this is probably not material for this turn because we need a ground design.

[Madman198237]

I need to actually get around to writing an entire culture for us, otherwise "don't pollute the environment at large" is going to remain "AAAAAHHHHHHH PROTECT THE ENVIRONMENT"....

Anyways, for a design, how about some power armor?

QS-PIA-05 'Heimdallr'
Named for the Norse god of vigilance and the night guard of Asgard, Heimdallr is our first foray into Powered Infantry Armor. The armor itself is Mirage Plated ceramic with a titanium under-layer with Faraday shielding, constructed so that, like Gothic plate armor, it supports its own weight when at rest. Under the armor is an insulated, temperature-controlled pressure suit. A web of pressure sensors in strategic parts of the pressure suit allows the user to actuate electric motors that power the joints. The hands are not motorized. The motors themselves are powered through the use of a battery-backpack, using a much improved Eitr battery that now does not explode. Also in the backpack is the computer system for the HUD. The armor plate covering the eyes can be slid up, revealing a (heavily tinted to reduce laser damage as much as possible) ballistics-glass visor, should the HUD system (visual data provided by two cameras on either side of the helmet, one in visible light and one in IR) fail. The armor's battery and computer systems are more powerful than necessary, to accommodate later improvements. A small radio built into the helmet and connected to the computer package and an IFF transponder complete the set.