Quest Deep Periphery Quest (Battletech Sandbox Empire Builder)
- Thread starter LordSunhawk
- Start date
edofthesquid
Well-known member
[X] Start 5 Year Transition
Let's set the precedent of peacefully transitioning power to the next King/Queen.
[X] Plan: Stick to the Plan
Let's set the precedent of peacefully transitioning power to the next King/Queen.
[X] Plan: Stick to the Plan
Ridli Scott
Well-known member
[X] Stay the Course
[X] Voivode-B Command Mech
[X] Nu-Trooper
[X] High Ruthless
[X] Plan: Stick to the Plan
[X] Voivode-B Command Mech
[X] Nu-Trooper
[X] High Ruthless
[X] Plan: Stick to the Plan
Joyousmadman
Well-known member
[X] Stay the Course
[X] Voivode-B Command Mech
[X] Nu-Trooper
[X] High Ruthless
[X] Plan: Stick to the Plan
we like our son too much to make him deal with politics sooner than strictly necessary
[X] Voivode-B Command Mech
[X] Nu-Trooper
[X] High Ruthless
[X] Plan: Stick to the Plan
we like our son too much to make him deal with politics sooner than strictly necessary
*drumroll*
I am very proud to present my newly completed commissioned art piece of the Megaraptor class Escort Carrier, by the absolutely amazing MattPlog:
I am very proud to present my newly completed commissioned art piece of the Megaraptor class Escort Carrier, by the absolutely amazing MattPlog:
So buy more of them!
namar13766
Well-known member
I'll take 20 in Blue with Gold trim.
Knowledgeispower
Ah I love the smell of missile spam in the morning
That will be a bunch of C-Bills. We also take payments in Jumpships
namar13766
Well-known member
Is something wrong with the pic? When I click on it, it opens imgur, but doesn't show the drawing.
Jarow
Well-known member
Huh, weird. I see what you mean. I found that refreshing doesn't help, but hitting enter in the address bar without changing anything does work. No idea why, given there should be no difference at all, but that's the way it seems to be for me.
Knowledgeispower
Ah I love the smell of missile spam in the morning
No clue I didn't pay for it
Bear Ribs
Well-known member
Very nice design. Though I can't say I entirely approve of ball turrets sunk into the wings where most of their traverse is blocked by the leading wing edge.
I'm having the same issue.
Turn 45 - You Load 16 Tons and What do You Get?
Turn 45 - You Load 16 Tons and What do you get?
---
This year has been difficult, there’s no doubt about that, and you’ve been spending long hours in the office rather than spending time with the grandkids like you’d prefer. But you are the Empress, and the crown sits nicely upon you.
Besides, Jeremy would probably keep you from seeing his kids if you forced him to handle all the paperwork.
The number of major financial institutions, both banks and investment houses, that have failed this year is substantial, but by the same token you are seeing lists of new banks and institutions that are replacing them which are both more agile and more cautious when it comes to risk management.
There are some serious shake ups within the upper crust of society as well as a consequence of this, with a number of ‘old money’ individuals going bankrupt due to unwise investments. You find yourself trying very hard to care about this, as even bankrupt these people still have far higher standards of living than the average citizen, and once they’d disposed of some of their assets they are still wealthy by any reasonable standard.
You do need to find a replacement for General Potter, however. The old warhorse is making good on his ‘threat’ to retire, but considering that he’s just seen his hundredth birthday you really can’t blame him. Much.
But you do get a list of replacements from him.
The first candidate is actually the current chief of staff to General Potter. Colonel Karin Stewart already has a distinguished career, although mostly as a staff officer, and has been General Potter’s chief of staff for a decade, turning down multiple promotion opportunities in the process on the grounds that they should go to officers with more field experience than her. Has a solid reputation for integrity and competence.
Then you break down laughing as you see the second name. Your beloved son with whom you are well pleased. Who is looking distinctly grumpy when you call him into your office, much to your great amusement. General Potter does note that he is fully qualified for the position notwithstanding his relation to you. Your son, however, gives you the distinct impression that he’d really rather not be in that position.
Lieutenant General Mary Stannard is the current Commandant of the Aerie and has built up a reputation for moulding new officers out of raw recruits as well as making bricks with very little straw considering how rapid your expansion has been. That she’s managed to maintain the quality of the Aerie’s graduates as well as she has is a strong testament to her competence.
Alexander Nichols is the first private citizen on the list and is noted as being the head designer for Majeure Electrique. When you interview him he comes across as rather eccentric in some ways, with a bit of a scattershot approach to things. In many ways he reminds you of a male version of Bridget, which is a somewhat frightening thought.
Colonel Stacy Bowman is currently Harry Owens’ deputy over in your Intelligence shop. From what you hear Harry does not want to lose her, but she does have a solid reputation.amongst her colleagues both in the military and intelligence communities. When you meet with her you get the impression that she is a solid professional, but is not a very creative thinker.
Colonel Elias Sims runs the Military Intelligence shop under General Potter and is a small, very intense man who seems to have boundless energy controlled by an iron discipline. He came up through the Special Forces community and has a solid reputation as an outside the box thinker.
Brigadier General Reagan Collins has extensive experience in military procurement, having spent almost her entire career in the Quartermaster Corps while currently being assigned as the main military liaison to the Interior Ministry. She has extensive experience with the military-industrial complex, having been one of the officers who spearheaded the reforms which so significantly have improved your procurement already.
The oldest of the candidates, Colonel Thomas Sanders (retired) is a fixture on financial news shows when they discuss the defense industry and is currently the President and CEO of his own construction firm. In his copious spare time he raises chickens on a small farm on Pollux.
QM Note - some of these will have hidden benefits/drawbacks that you will discover later.
The final report comes in of the finds around Griffin VI before Enterprise had to flee, combined with some work by Atlantis and Discovery. The report notes that this is just a very general survey, but they’ve found dozens of moons, many of which are very resource rich, small asteroid belts around the supergiant, which are very rich, and they have a laundry list of anomalies that would take further investigation.
They note that they know for certain that they’ve only surveyed a small fraction of what there is to find there, and that future surveys might find other things. For now, it should be possible to build space stations in various orbits, but there would be substantial risks for now. The recommendation is to perform at least two additional surveys before attempting to make use of any orbital resources there.
Geologists get an incredible treat at Griffon II when a mega volcano eruption sends an enormous bolide clear into the orbital altitudes, albeit missing any stations. A fast thinking and incredibly ballsy orbital mining crew manages to snare the bolide before it runs out of vertical momentum and by completely exhausting their fuel reserves (thus requiring rescue) they manage to shift the bolide into an orbital path. Additional mining craft then boost it higher.
They crack the bolide open… and there is enormous excitement. It is nearly pure high grade rare earth ores in enormous crystalline formations. The value of the find is incredible, easily the single most valuable mineral strike in system history by a very wide margin. The mining crews involved become incredibly rich overnight, and the economic outlook for the Griffon II Orbitals improves enormously as well.
Procurement goes exceptionally well, even the two new Rapid Reaction Regiments stood up without a single hitch (you are willing to admit you’d been very nervous about that). 3rd Armored is now at 2 full brigades in strength, all of the Microraptors shifted to Training Command are now at full strength in training birds. All is looking very good in that department indeed.
Considering how long it takes you to attend each and every keel laying ceremony for all of the dropships you are building, the fact that the orbital shipyards have both been expanded, doubling their capacity, is a mixed blessing. You might need to reconsider that policy… wait, you know… you can always assign some of them, the biggest and slowest ships, naturally, to your daughter! Thanh would love it!
The completion of the first orbital germanium processing facility is cause for celebration. A three day celebration with many hangovers. The Roman ambassador is extremely pleased, and the NRI has initiated a proper trade route with you, which is going to start generating some nice income starting next year.
A large number of new orbital factories dedicated to forging Endosteel have come online this year, significantly increasing the capacity for mech construction using the advanced material.
The benefit concert is a bit unusual, by your experience. In the past, such concerts have been the province of the ultra-rich and connected, who would repay the opportunity to be seen at THE social event of the year with generous donations to whatever cause it was supporting. This year there are almost none of the ultra-wealthy in attendance, but income from the event is higher than ever as overflowing crowds of poor and middle class citizens pack the arenas and overflow areas to the seams, and it seems that in aggregate the poorer segments of society are even more generous with their funds than the ultra-wealthy, especially in proportion to their income.
Mary’s personal supervision of the research facilities this year has yielded results.
The Department of Mega Engineering is very enthusiastically talking your ear off about all of the wonderful projects they can now do with the improvements to Terraforming technology. From massive arcology complexes that dwarf the ones on Nowy Gdansk to enormous megafactories, to building massive cities underneath the seas to custom crafting exotic and gorgeous landscapes. The first fruits of this technology are already hard at work on Griffon IV, which has resulted in a small economic boom in the orbital colonies.
Work on genetic engineering has been completed, allowing for in-utero correction of many genetic conditions, as well as work to remove harmful recessives from the genome. One of the first projects is a true cure to sickle-cell anemia, while retaining that alleles benefits against mosquito-borne diseases like dengue fever and malaria.
The full-head ejection system is finally perfected. Pilots are of mixed opinions about it, the actual ejection is somewhat rougher, increasing the odds of minor injuries, but in even the harshest environments projected survival rates are far higher.
VTOL Jet Boosters have received final clearance and are now available to VTOL designers. Some wag has already found an ancient television show called ‘Airwolf’ and has somehow snuck a sound clip from the theme song into the activation software for the system, such that if installed without being patched anytime the boosters are engaged the Airwolf Theme plays.
Thanks to the hard work of your researchers you are now able to design and, once the facilities are ready, build jumpships up to 50,000 tons in mass. According to your researchers, more work will need to be done to design and build larger jumpships, but the actual facilities you are building would be able to handle even the largest possible designs.
Separate Signals and Human intelligence departments have now been established within the Intelligence Ministry, giving expanded capabilities. They are still in the process of being staffed and will have proposals for you next year.
Janet comes to you with the results of her in depth investigation into possible corruption in the military-industrial complex. There is next to nothing there, although there are a few minor cases here and there which completely fail to establish any pattern. Most of those had already been caught and had been in the process of investigation and adjudication when Janet’s review caught them as well.
There was one rather amusing bit. The complaints about the rations contract? Well, Janet actually found that the company that had been most vociferously complaining about losing that contract with their sub-par (well, absolutely horrible) offerings had, in fact, been engaging in illegal industrial espionage and attempting to bribe the procurement board. The officers on the board had appropriately reported the attempts to the appropriate military authorities in a timely manner, with none of them actually accepting any of them under the direct supervision of the investigators who were building criminal cases against that company. In the end there are several dozen convictions and most of the board of the company are currently serving custodial sentences at Your Majesty's pleasure in the maximum security facility in Phoenix. You are strongly tempted to order that they be required to eat the rations they’d tried to foist on the military, but Janet dryly points out that that might be a crime against humanity.
Meta Event Roll - final 93 - Recession! -30 GDP growth all planets
Dynasty Luck Roll - final 63 - no event
Imperial Approval - 4
Approval Change - 6
Politics - 2
Economy Rating - 3
Economy Event - -2
Research Event - 4
Griffin’s Roost Econ - 8
Griffin’s Roost Health - 3.5
Griffin’s Roost Rating Change - 8
Nowy Gdansk Econ - 7
Nowy Gdansk Health - 6
Nowy Gdansk Rating Change - 8
GIAB Econ - 6
GIAB Rating Change - 5
G2O Econ - 0
G2O Rating Change - -1
Griffon IV Econ - 3
Griffon IV Rating Change - 5
Dynasty Luck Roll - final 63 - no event
Imperial Approval - 4
Approval Change - 6
Politics - 2
Economy Rating - 3
Economy Event - -2
Research Event - 4
Griffin’s Roost Econ - 8
Griffin’s Roost Health - 3.5
Griffin’s Roost Rating Change - 8
Nowy Gdansk Econ - 7
Nowy Gdansk Health - 6
Nowy Gdansk Rating Change - 8
GIAB Econ - 6
GIAB Rating Change - 5
G2O Econ - 0
G2O Rating Change - -1
Griffon IV Econ - 3
Griffon IV Rating Change - 5
Expand Orbital Shipyard 49 [95]
Target - 95
Roll - 14
Result - SUCCESS
Expand Orbital Shipyard 50 [95]
Target - 95
Roll - 34
Result - SUCCESS
Lay Down Major Unit [Construction - 1117189.96]
-Devastation [75]
Target - 75
Roll - 73
Result - SUCCESS
-Devastation [75]
Target - 75
Roll - 31
Result - SUCCESS
-Defiant [75]
Target - 75
Roll - 72
Result - SUCCESS
-Defiant [75]
Target - 75
Roll - 12
Result - SUCCESS
-Troodon [75]
Target - 75
Roll - 70
Result - SUCCESS
-Troodon [75]
Target - 75
Roll - 27
Result - SUCCESS
-Troodon [75]
Target - 75
Roll - 75
Result - SUCCESS
-Troodon [75]
Target - 75
Roll - 31
Result - SUCCESS
-Langley [75]
Target - 75
Roll - 57
Result - SUCCESS
-Lightning [75]
Target - 75
Roll - 47
Result - SUCCESS
-Lightning [75]
Target - 75
Roll - 8
Result - SUCCESS
-Lightning [75]
Target - 75
Roll - 6
Result - SUCCESS
-Lightning [75]
Target - 75
Roll - 70
Result - SUCCESS
-Megaraptor [75]
Target - 75
Roll - 1
Result - Critical SUCCESS
-Megaraptor [75]
Target - 75
Roll - 60
Result - SUCCESS
-Tyrannosaurus [75]
Target - 75
Roll - 63
Result - SUCCESS
-Tyrannosaurus [75]
Target - 75
Roll - 15
Result - SUCCESS
Purchase New Units [$ 267528.74 ]
-2 Flights of Griffons [70]
-1 Training Wing [70]
Target - 70
Roll - 69
Result - SUCCESS
-2 Patrol Wings [70]
Target - 70
Roll - 15
Result - SUCCESS
-1 Armored Cavalry Regiment [70]
Target - 70
Roll - 62
Result - SUCCESS
-1 Standard Mech Regiment [70]
Target - 70
Roll - 40
Result - SUCCESS
-2 Rapid Reaction Regiments [70]
Target - 70
Roll - 58
Result - SUCCESS
Construct Orbital Germanium Processing Facility* [85]
Target - 85
Roll - 67
Result - SUCCESS
Focus Development on Griffin II Orbitals [65]
Target - 65
Roll - 1
Result - Critical SUCCESS
Build Orbital Factory Endosteel GIAB [100]
Target - 100
Roll - 4
Result - SUCCESS
Build Orbital Factory Endosteel GIAB [100]
Target - 100
Roll - 25
Result - SUCCESS
Build Orbital Factory Endosteel GIAB [100]
Target - 100
Roll - 43
Result - SUCCESS
Build Orbital Factory Endosteel Griffon IV [100]
Target - 100
Roll - 37
Result - SUCCESS
Build Orbital Factory Endosteel Griffon IV [100]
Target - 100
Roll - 5
Result - SUCCESS
Build Orbital Factory Endosteel Griffon IV [100]
Target - 100
Roll - 77
Result - SUCCESS
Have Exploration Fleet Survey Griffin VI* [75]
Target - 75
Roll - 52
Result - SUCCESS
Luck roll - 82
CULTURE - Benefit Concert [75]
Target - 75
Roll - 20
Result - SUCCESS
Actively campaign on behalf of candidates for the Chamber of Delegates [65]
Target - 65
Roll - 61
Result - SUCCESS
LOSTECH - Terraforming Equipment Lvl 4* [80]
Target - 80
Roll - 4
Result - SUCCESS
Genetic Engineering Lvl 1* [60]
Target - 60
Roll - 94, ShadowArxxy reroll - 96, Jarow reroll - 24
Result - SUCCESS
Full-Head Ejection System* [80]
Target - 80
Roll - 97, Decim reroll - 36
Result - SUCCESS
VTOL Jet Booster* [auto]
Standard Core Construction* [auto]
Standard Core Theory* [85]
Target - 85
Roll - 62
Result - SUCCESS
Standard Core Design* [85]
Target - 85
Roll - 16
Result - SUCCESS
Establish separate Signals Intelligence Section* [75]
Target - 75
Roll - 51
Result - SUCCESS
Establish separate Human Intelligence Section [75]
Target - 75
Roll - 51
Result - SUCCESS
Investigate Military Industrial Complex for corruption* [45]
Target - 45
Roll - 10
Result - SUCCESS
Target - 95
Roll - 14
Result - SUCCESS
Expand Orbital Shipyard 50 [95]
Target - 95
Roll - 34
Result - SUCCESS
Lay Down Major Unit [Construction - 1117189.96]
-Devastation [75]
Target - 75
Roll - 73
Result - SUCCESS
-Devastation [75]
Target - 75
Roll - 31
Result - SUCCESS
-Defiant [75]
Target - 75
Roll - 72
Result - SUCCESS
-Defiant [75]
Target - 75
Roll - 12
Result - SUCCESS
-Troodon [75]
Target - 75
Roll - 70
Result - SUCCESS
-Troodon [75]
Target - 75
Roll - 27
Result - SUCCESS
-Troodon [75]
Target - 75
Roll - 75
Result - SUCCESS
-Troodon [75]
Target - 75
Roll - 31
Result - SUCCESS
-Langley [75]
Target - 75
Roll - 57
Result - SUCCESS
-Lightning [75]
Target - 75
Roll - 47
Result - SUCCESS
-Lightning [75]
Target - 75
Roll - 8
Result - SUCCESS
-Lightning [75]
Target - 75
Roll - 6
Result - SUCCESS
-Lightning [75]
Target - 75
Roll - 70
Result - SUCCESS
-Megaraptor [75]
Target - 75
Roll - 1
Result - Critical SUCCESS
-Megaraptor [75]
Target - 75
Roll - 60
Result - SUCCESS
-Tyrannosaurus [75]
Target - 75
Roll - 63
Result - SUCCESS
-Tyrannosaurus [75]
Target - 75
Roll - 15
Result - SUCCESS
Purchase New Units [$ 267528.74 ]
-2 Flights of Griffons [70]
-1 Training Wing [70]
Target - 70
Roll - 69
Result - SUCCESS
-2 Patrol Wings [70]
Target - 70
Roll - 15
Result - SUCCESS
-1 Armored Cavalry Regiment [70]
Target - 70
Roll - 62
Result - SUCCESS
-1 Standard Mech Regiment [70]
Target - 70
Roll - 40
Result - SUCCESS
-2 Rapid Reaction Regiments [70]
Target - 70
Roll - 58
Result - SUCCESS
Construct Orbital Germanium Processing Facility* [85]
Target - 85
Roll - 67
Result - SUCCESS
Focus Development on Griffin II Orbitals [65]
Target - 65
Roll - 1
Result - Critical SUCCESS
Build Orbital Factory Endosteel GIAB [100]
Target - 100
Roll - 4
Result - SUCCESS
Build Orbital Factory Endosteel GIAB [100]
Target - 100
Roll - 25
Result - SUCCESS
Build Orbital Factory Endosteel GIAB [100]
Target - 100
Roll - 43
Result - SUCCESS
Build Orbital Factory Endosteel Griffon IV [100]
Target - 100
Roll - 37
Result - SUCCESS
Build Orbital Factory Endosteel Griffon IV [100]
Target - 100
Roll - 5
Result - SUCCESS
Build Orbital Factory Endosteel Griffon IV [100]
Target - 100
Roll - 77
Result - SUCCESS
Have Exploration Fleet Survey Griffin VI* [75]
Target - 75
Roll - 52
Result - SUCCESS
Luck roll - 82
CULTURE - Benefit Concert [75]
Target - 75
Roll - 20
Result - SUCCESS
Actively campaign on behalf of candidates for the Chamber of Delegates [65]
Target - 65
Roll - 61
Result - SUCCESS
LOSTECH - Terraforming Equipment Lvl 4* [80]
Target - 80
Roll - 4
Result - SUCCESS
Genetic Engineering Lvl 1* [60]
Target - 60
Roll - 94, ShadowArxxy reroll - 96, Jarow reroll - 24
Result - SUCCESS
Full-Head Ejection System* [80]
Target - 80
Roll - 97, Decim reroll - 36
Result - SUCCESS
VTOL Jet Booster* [auto]
Standard Core Construction* [auto]
Standard Core Theory* [85]
Target - 85
Roll - 62
Result - SUCCESS
Standard Core Design* [85]
Target - 85
Roll - 16
Result - SUCCESS
Establish separate Signals Intelligence Section* [75]
Target - 75
Roll - 51
Result - SUCCESS
Establish separate Human Intelligence Section [75]
Target - 75
Roll - 51
Result - SUCCESS
Investigate Military Industrial Complex for corruption* [45]
Target - 45
Roll - 10
Result - SUCCESS
---
This year has been difficult, there’s no doubt about that, and you’ve been spending long hours in the office rather than spending time with the grandkids like you’d prefer. But you are the Empress, and the crown sits nicely upon you.
Besides, Jeremy would probably keep you from seeing his kids if you forced him to handle all the paperwork.
The number of major financial institutions, both banks and investment houses, that have failed this year is substantial, but by the same token you are seeing lists of new banks and institutions that are replacing them which are both more agile and more cautious when it comes to risk management.
There are some serious shake ups within the upper crust of society as well as a consequence of this, with a number of ‘old money’ individuals going bankrupt due to unwise investments. You find yourself trying very hard to care about this, as even bankrupt these people still have far higher standards of living than the average citizen, and once they’d disposed of some of their assets they are still wealthy by any reasonable standard.
You do need to find a replacement for General Potter, however. The old warhorse is making good on his ‘threat’ to retire, but considering that he’s just seen his hundredth birthday you really can’t blame him. Much.
But you do get a list of replacements from him.
The first candidate is actually the current chief of staff to General Potter. Colonel Karin Stewart already has a distinguished career, although mostly as a staff officer, and has been General Potter’s chief of staff for a decade, turning down multiple promotion opportunities in the process on the grounds that they should go to officers with more field experience than her. Has a solid reputation for integrity and competence.
Then you break down laughing as you see the second name. Your beloved son with whom you are well pleased. Who is looking distinctly grumpy when you call him into your office, much to your great amusement. General Potter does note that he is fully qualified for the position notwithstanding his relation to you. Your son, however, gives you the distinct impression that he’d really rather not be in that position.
Lieutenant General Mary Stannard is the current Commandant of the Aerie and has built up a reputation for moulding new officers out of raw recruits as well as making bricks with very little straw considering how rapid your expansion has been. That she’s managed to maintain the quality of the Aerie’s graduates as well as she has is a strong testament to her competence.
Alexander Nichols is the first private citizen on the list and is noted as being the head designer for Majeure Electrique. When you interview him he comes across as rather eccentric in some ways, with a bit of a scattershot approach to things. In many ways he reminds you of a male version of Bridget, which is a somewhat frightening thought.
Colonel Stacy Bowman is currently Harry Owens’ deputy over in your Intelligence shop. From what you hear Harry does not want to lose her, but she does have a solid reputation.amongst her colleagues both in the military and intelligence communities. When you meet with her you get the impression that she is a solid professional, but is not a very creative thinker.
Colonel Elias Sims runs the Military Intelligence shop under General Potter and is a small, very intense man who seems to have boundless energy controlled by an iron discipline. He came up through the Special Forces community and has a solid reputation as an outside the box thinker.
Brigadier General Reagan Collins has extensive experience in military procurement, having spent almost her entire career in the Quartermaster Corps while currently being assigned as the main military liaison to the Interior Ministry. She has extensive experience with the military-industrial complex, having been one of the officers who spearheaded the reforms which so significantly have improved your procurement already.
The oldest of the candidates, Colonel Thomas Sanders (retired) is a fixture on financial news shows when they discuss the defense industry and is currently the President and CEO of his own construction firm. In his copious spare time he raises chickens on a small farm on Pollux.
| [] | Name | Military Actions | Bonus Actions | Other |
| [] | Karin Stewart | 7+1 | None | General Potters current chief of staff |
| [] | Jeremy Griffith | 7+1 | None | Your son will probably strangle you |
| [] | Mary Stannard | 6+1 | +1 Research | Currently head of the Aerie |
| [] | Alexander Nichols | 6+1 | +1 Research | Chief Dropship designer for Majeure Electrique |
| [] | Stacy Bowman | 6+1 | +1 Intelligence | Harry Owens’ deputy |
| [] | Elias Sims | 6+1 | +1 Intelligence | Chief of Military Intelligence under General Potter |
| [] | Reagan Collins | 6+1 | +1 Interior | Bridget’s military liaison |
| [] | Thomas Sanders | 6+1 | +1 Interior | Retired colonel who currently runs a major construction firm |
The final report comes in of the finds around Griffin VI before Enterprise had to flee, combined with some work by Atlantis and Discovery. The report notes that this is just a very general survey, but they’ve found dozens of moons, many of which are very resource rich, small asteroid belts around the supergiant, which are very rich, and they have a laundry list of anomalies that would take further investigation.
They note that they know for certain that they’ve only surveyed a small fraction of what there is to find there, and that future surveys might find other things. For now, it should be possible to build space stations in various orbits, but there would be substantial risks for now. The recommendation is to perform at least two additional surveys before attempting to make use of any orbital resources there.
Geologists get an incredible treat at Griffon II when a mega volcano eruption sends an enormous bolide clear into the orbital altitudes, albeit missing any stations. A fast thinking and incredibly ballsy orbital mining crew manages to snare the bolide before it runs out of vertical momentum and by completely exhausting their fuel reserves (thus requiring rescue) they manage to shift the bolide into an orbital path. Additional mining craft then boost it higher.
They crack the bolide open… and there is enormous excitement. It is nearly pure high grade rare earth ores in enormous crystalline formations. The value of the find is incredible, easily the single most valuable mineral strike in system history by a very wide margin. The mining crews involved become incredibly rich overnight, and the economic outlook for the Griffon II Orbitals improves enormously as well.
Procurement goes exceptionally well, even the two new Rapid Reaction Regiments stood up without a single hitch (you are willing to admit you’d been very nervous about that). 3rd Armored is now at 2 full brigades in strength, all of the Microraptors shifted to Training Command are now at full strength in training birds. All is looking very good in that department indeed.
Considering how long it takes you to attend each and every keel laying ceremony for all of the dropships you are building, the fact that the orbital shipyards have both been expanded, doubling their capacity, is a mixed blessing. You might need to reconsider that policy… wait, you know… you can always assign some of them, the biggest and slowest ships, naturally, to your daughter! Thanh would love it!
The completion of the first orbital germanium processing facility is cause for celebration. A three day celebration with many hangovers. The Roman ambassador is extremely pleased, and the NRI has initiated a proper trade route with you, which is going to start generating some nice income starting next year.
A large number of new orbital factories dedicated to forging Endosteel have come online this year, significantly increasing the capacity for mech construction using the advanced material.
The benefit concert is a bit unusual, by your experience. In the past, such concerts have been the province of the ultra-rich and connected, who would repay the opportunity to be seen at THE social event of the year with generous donations to whatever cause it was supporting. This year there are almost none of the ultra-wealthy in attendance, but income from the event is higher than ever as overflowing crowds of poor and middle class citizens pack the arenas and overflow areas to the seams, and it seems that in aggregate the poorer segments of society are even more generous with their funds than the ultra-wealthy, especially in proportion to their income.
Mary’s personal supervision of the research facilities this year has yielded results.
The Department of Mega Engineering is very enthusiastically talking your ear off about all of the wonderful projects they can now do with the improvements to Terraforming technology. From massive arcology complexes that dwarf the ones on Nowy Gdansk to enormous megafactories, to building massive cities underneath the seas to custom crafting exotic and gorgeous landscapes. The first fruits of this technology are already hard at work on Griffon IV, which has resulted in a small economic boom in the orbital colonies.
Work on genetic engineering has been completed, allowing for in-utero correction of many genetic conditions, as well as work to remove harmful recessives from the genome. One of the first projects is a true cure to sickle-cell anemia, while retaining that alleles benefits against mosquito-borne diseases like dengue fever and malaria.
The full-head ejection system is finally perfected. Pilots are of mixed opinions about it, the actual ejection is somewhat rougher, increasing the odds of minor injuries, but in even the harshest environments projected survival rates are far higher.
VTOL Jet Boosters have received final clearance and are now available to VTOL designers. Some wag has already found an ancient television show called ‘Airwolf’ and has somehow snuck a sound clip from the theme song into the activation software for the system, such that if installed without being patched anytime the boosters are engaged the Airwolf Theme plays.
Thanks to the hard work of your researchers you are now able to design and, once the facilities are ready, build jumpships up to 50,000 tons in mass. According to your researchers, more work will need to be done to design and build larger jumpships, but the actual facilities you are building would be able to handle even the largest possible designs.
Separate Signals and Human intelligence departments have now been established within the Intelligence Ministry, giving expanded capabilities. They are still in the process of being staffed and will have proposals for you next year.
Janet comes to you with the results of her in depth investigation into possible corruption in the military-industrial complex. There is next to nothing there, although there are a few minor cases here and there which completely fail to establish any pattern. Most of those had already been caught and had been in the process of investigation and adjudication when Janet’s review caught them as well.
There was one rather amusing bit. The complaints about the rations contract? Well, Janet actually found that the company that had been most vociferously complaining about losing that contract with their sub-par (well, absolutely horrible) offerings had, in fact, been engaging in illegal industrial espionage and attempting to bribe the procurement board. The officers on the board had appropriately reported the attempts to the appropriate military authorities in a timely manner, with none of them actually accepting any of them under the direct supervision of the investigators who were building criminal cases against that company. In the end there are several dozen convictions and most of the board of the company are currently serving custodial sentences at Your Majesty's pleasure in the maximum security facility in Phoenix. You are strongly tempted to order that they be required to eat the rations they’d tried to foist on the military, but Janet dryly points out that that might be a crime against humanity.
Thors_Alumni
Well-known member
[X] Karin Stewart
