Part 47: Between the Rocks and a Hard Place

Between the Rocks and a Hard Place

I considered waiting to grab new shields which I'd very much like to have before going forward with the next design, but even putting everyone I reasonably could into the effort it would still take 30+ turns to get there. That's too long. So we'll have to stick with what we have. The tech disadvantage is only to grow with time and it will cause problems for our defenses eventually. The only way around that is to keep expanding.




Getting rid of two of the previous seven heavy mount Fusion Beams allows me to put on five standard ones. I thought about getting rid of the ECM Jammer and may do so in the future, but I want to see how well this works in terminating incoming missiles first.




A new destroyer, the DeSjoH, was commissioned for attacking planetary defenses better. We'll build a single one at first, more later if necessary. We need bombs to effectively penetrate shielding and atmosphere. This comes with a price though; it means that for now we can only afford to field two cruisers.

SD 3503.9 - Darloks and Trilarians sign a peace treaty. The next turn, the shapeshifters go to war with the Sakkra.




Cute. I find this amusing inasmuch as they can't even reach our territory in order to take it yet. Meanwhile a Silicoid battleship is en route to Kronos. Time to kill us some rocks.

Kronos Defense! (2:18)


Well, more than one of those would be scary but we handled it just fine even with one cruiser refitting. I don't think it'll be long until we rue the lack of a battlestation and/or shielding and/or any kind of planetary defense installation though.

Undeterred, the Silicoids sent another battleship our way the next turn. It got the same treatment. And with their fleet thus reduced and Cryslon lacking any ships at the moment, I decided it was a good time to test their defenses once more.




I find this deal acceptable. We have very limited cash and are actually losing money as it is, but given how research-challenged we are this is a significant boost. We're set to run out of money now though in 58 turns, and that may well get worse before it gets better.

Battle of Cryslon III. Again. (6:30)


Back to Cryslon. They had a frigate there the previous turn but I didn't think that should deter us, and then it was gone the next time. An amusing battle with the bomber playing ring around the rosy with their interceptors while the Qa'Cheng frigate throws a few BBs at the planet. I hold off on the attack due to waiting for the second transport.

Getting that Marine Barracks up is also worth noting. It's actually a net positive financially due to the morale reduction, and with population growth elsewhere we're back in the black ... barely.




The Silicoids rebuilt their Starbase, but with our fleet able to focus-fire on just that it went down easily. Then, while the invasion force lost 75% of their numbers in honorable combat, we defeated the defenders and captured another planet. This one, fully intact.

Many songs will be sung of this day. Break out the blood wine!




First time I've seen this. What the actual ... is that get-up? Seriously, who is your tailor?? I can't even ...

Oh, and the missile is a nice thing too. Our Starbases will be more hazardous to the enemy in any prolonged engagement.




It'll take a long time to assimilate all of these workers, but eventually the most productive laborers in the galaxy will bow to the will of Kahless the Unforgettable. Both factory buildings survive the attack, as well as a Biosphere and Space Academy.

Kahless immediately ordered replacement Transports sent out from Kronos, which had stockpiled sufficient resources to build them immediately. Cryslon I had identical defenses, and suffered an identical fate as a result. We did lose a frigate this time, but that was of little consequence - all the larger ships survived.

SD 3504.7 - The last official act of the Silicoid Empire was to sign a peace agreement with the Alkari. Or at least it should have been. The next turn ...




We are not amused. This time the battle on the ground did not go so well, after having crushed a frigate in orbit. More Warriors!




SD 3505.0 - A nice round number for our final conquest of Cryslon I, in which another couple of battalions fell but an easy victory was achieved overall. And this will prove most useful.




This as well!




Here's the official confirmation notice.




There are five races left. We're no longer actually at war with anybody now that the rocks are all enslaved. Additional frigates have been sent to Altair and, just now, Sssla. The extreme left of the galaxy is out of our range still ... for the moment. I see no reason not to bring glorious battle to the Space Amoeba in Bier, and claim the riches of that system for the Klingon Empire.

It will wait a bit however. Alien Control Centers are going up in multiple systems, and wherever a Biosphere is needed, those as well. We also should expand the fleet first, now that we have enough territory to do so.




Hey look ... we're nominated! That pretty much puts us on a collision course with Ragazor's Sakkra. Everybody else abstains, allowing us to vote for them and not put them over the top. We have six votes, nearly enough for a veto bloc. They have four, the others in the two to three range. We're the clear leader in the galaxy now.

Kronos II begins spamming out freighter fleets. We're going to be needing a lot more of them to switch our new 'employees' out to optimal locations as assimilation happens. Soon, with Humans farming and Silicoids building, Klingons will be reduced most to the role of ... scientists. For those who aren't among the few selected to be warriors, anyway. That's weird, to put it mildly.

To aid with the financial situation, the Hydroponic Farm is demolished. We have plenty of labor now to handle the agricultural responsibilities.




Grrr. Rich is nice, but it would have been the clear primary ship-building planet at Ultra Rich.




'Also in the news today' ... you're a bit late there fellas.

Tangling With The Amoeba (1:42)


We lost half our cruisers, and it's a good thing I maxed out the fleet; even three would not have been enough. The Amoeba has been defeated though, and we grab our second colony in Sol.




For the third run in a row, she will play a prominent role. And once we settle Bier, there will be little in the galaxy that remains beyond our reach.

The Klingon Empire, though technologically still backwards, continues to grow in power and size. Can anyone stop them?