Part 111: Episode X: 2575 - 2600

Episode X: 2575-2600

If memory serves this is only about the third game to last this long. The Human one has the record, ending in 2699. So we're just over a century out from that. Of course things can change quickly at this late-game stage.




A look at the technology comparison indicates that we may not be long from the 'gang up on the Mrrshan' stage that always seems to happen at some point. Right now the Cats are on the sidelines, but overall our tech is almost as good as theirs. I'd like to be ready as we can be to pounce(pun intended) if that occurs.




In the Hunt for Orion, there are only two more possibilities. The purple star in the lower-right(13 parsecs range) and the blue one in the upper-right(18 parsecs range). Blue seems to be a lot more common, so unfortunately it's probably there, just past the heart of Mrrshan territory. Yet another reason to want to be ready if the galaxy gangs up on them -- of course it'll have to tire of fighting itself first, which is probably why it hasn't happened yet. We'll get to the purple one before too much longer, as it's just a single parsec out of range and we're researching fuel cells that will get us there.

** Silicoids -- 25 planets(+1)
** Bulrathi -- 17(+2). The rich get richer. It truly is the way of things.
** Mrrshan -- 10(no change)
** Meklar -- 6(-1)
** Sakkra -- 5(no change)
** Alkari -- 1(no change)

Really all that's changed is that we got Lyae instead of the Meklar, then the Bulrathi took Ukko, and a couple more planets happen to be occupied right now instead of up for grabs.




The Battle Computer is the only notable thing we'll be getting soon. Stinger Missiles as well but those might have had a chance to be relevant a century ago. Possibly. Now it just means we'll scratch the paint job slightly more on any invaders.




Our best fuel cells got us this from our allies. More importantly ...




Finally, faster engines! Cost us the Inertial Stabilizer. That will make the Mrrshan a bit tougher in combat but at the current stage it matters little. And doubling the speed of all our ships would tempt Sauron to sign the contract in the blood of his firstborn if it came to that. The value of this acquisition is difficult to place highly enough.

It got better. Hilariously, they were then willing to offer us Impulse Drives(warp 5) in exchange for Complete Eco Restoration, the only other thing we have that they are interested in. Sweet!!

The Meklar also wanted Complete Eco, and handed over Andrium Armor to get it. Four new trades, and we're looking significantly less pathetic now. Though still pathetic, mind. A fifth saw us gain Hyperspace Communications for Controlled Dead Environs. That's all that was available that we were interested in. But it's a lot. Our next-gen combat ships are much faster and somewhat tougher, but actually a bit lighter armed; 3 torpedo launchers each instead of four.

2576: It looked like a bit of good luck was swinging our way with a bugged Bulrathi fleet incoming to Rigel as we snagged it for the latest time. However that fleet disappeared, apparently scrapped at an inopportune time for us, and the colony was destroyed once more.




2579. Presented mostly for the giggles of it after the Altair Plan failed centuries ago. First time we've gotten through here. The Bulrathi do have a few capital ships in orbit though, so we could have a chance if they stay there. I checked the range to that blue star, and this helps -- but not much. Still 16 parsecs, well past our present limit of 12(9 + 3).

Overall ship activity seems to be decreasing -- perhaps the AIs are in a simultaneous rebuilding phase or somesuch. Instead though, the Bulrathi fleet moved on to Rigel(which we colonized), and Altair was destroyed. The wheel spins once again, with nobody benefiting.




Lyae getting the planetary shield up was of considerable importance; soon a fourth planet would be contributing research and ships. Rayden is still inching along on the industrialization path, being ultra-poor and all.




Nope. If you'd fought the war better in the early stages, we never would have left you. Too late now Granid. They proceed to offer over 21k in funds. That's a nice chunk of change, but it doesn't affect the answer.




In the mid-80s, the Whack-a-Mole Zone expanded to Rana, which is between Rigel and Altair. I'm not sure what to think of this development other than it's real close to Meklon which makes it troublesome. In any case, we'll take any diversions we can manage.




Also, check this out. Same year, 2586. The Bulrathi have been moving back and forth between Altair and Rigel for some time now, with our colonies getting glassed each time when they leave, but I've been keeping colony ships en route to both so that the bears can't claim them before us. That's lasted about a decade. Now, we've had Altair for just a year, but they have no colony ship in this group and they've stayed there. There's a chance to potentially hold it, like we've done in Lyae, if they stick around. I decide it's worth investing and send ships and transports from Rayden. We don't lose much if it fails, and if the Bulrathi stick around for long enough this would be a big addition.

With our improved drives, transports will take just two years to get here. That makes this kind of thing a lot more viable than it was previously. The other side of this though is that Rigel is no longer protected. It looks like Silicoid and Meklar are mostly going to fight over it with the Mrrshan also involved. When it comes to that though, I really don't care who gets it. Another homeworld system added to the empire would help us a lot more than Rigel would help any of them. And at the moment there's nothing inbound to Rana either. This is looking like it could be a critical moment where things change a bit, and quite possibly in our favor.




Two years later, 2588, was a year of huge importance. It started with Battle Computer Mk. VI coming in. That was significant. Because of the tech deals I've made, there are two levels of Robotics(among other things) available. I'm going with V before VI, because it's just over half the cost and then we can leverage the increased industrial base to get the more advanced version. But this means a big economic expansion is coming, and it is most welcome.




And then there's this. Note that the Bulrathi now have fleets above Altair and Rigel. With us in possession of both. This is the opportunity I've been waiting for but not really expecting. I could kiss Smurch right now. I seriously could. In fact, screw it: this is to be known as the Smurch Triangle(a name coming out just slightly ahead of the Triangle of Determination, in honor of our centuries-long effort of sacrificing colony ship after colony ship to the effort of keeping anyone else from getting these).

Of course you can see other fleets coming in to Rigel, but we only have it right now because the Bulrathi chased the others off. With no other open planets in the vicinity, their ships are more likely to stay. And if they do, it's possible we could hold all three(nobody's come after Rana). I'm investing maximum transfers from the imperial treasury in the effort to boost these systems as fast as possible based on that possibility. It's a real chance.

IF this holds, we would be able to maintain what is now a high for this game of eight systems. That's still not a lot. But it beats the crap out of five, and the Rigel/Altair pairing will be among our best. Furthermore, after building them up we will have enough income to re-up trade agreements, further increasing our income along with the incoming robotics gains. A great many things need to go our way still, chief among them the Bulrathi maintaining a presence here. The war will undoubtedly continue to be fought somewhere, and I don't know what everyone will do. Best-case scenario, they continue to throw their ships at the Bulrathi in futility while they guard these expansions. This could well fall apart, but if it doesn't we will have taken a major, major step forward.

Also, we have enough colony ships in reserve(with impulse drives) to stop building them for now and Lyae is now fully contributing. That will let us pump cruisers out at a much faster rate. They haven't really been combat-tested yet, but obviously the more I can put out there the better.




The very next year. A Silicoid fleet is en route to Rayden, and we have nobody close enough to stop them. If I'm going to lose a planet, I'll handle losing the Ultra-Poor one. Maybe we can all fight over Rayden for a while, I'm fine with that. Meanwhile the Mrrshan are coming to Rana. I don't really think I've got enough ships to stop them, but I have enough that I at least want to try and see what happens. Gotta get these things into combat eventually and see how they hold up against enemy designs. Thanks to having trading for Hyperspace Communications, I'm able to re-route a few extra cruisers there.

I pull the usual 'abandon the colony' maneuvers at Rayden, transferring out half the population and putting the rest on research duty. I don't think I've ever gone this long before in a game between space battles of significance. The last one ... well it at Rigel nearby, nearly two centuries ago.

What followed at Rana(but didn't properly get recorded) was n interesting battle of attrition that showed our ships can hang with cats. We lost, but took most of them with us. The small Wolverines(they had about 116 of them) will lose a lot of bite once we get the repulsor beam as well, as they are armed with only short-ranged beam weapons. The Stinger Missile also arrived, and we'll snag the Phasor, the only thing moving the tree forward.




I'd rather this than they invade and steal our tech, but that's really not a Silicoid move. Mrrshan did the same to Rana -- there wasn't much there to begin with. Still, I'm about as optimistic as you can be when you've just lost two systems and have 54 million transports headed to die on the surface of one of them if they don't get blown up en route. The old Hydras(the last two groups to get destroyed, the slower ones) were used up in service of something at least, instead of just getting scrapped.




Brave and noble Sakkra, every last one of them. Their sacrifice will not go unnoticed. However ...




It does look like they'll get Rana for now. We're not ready to deal with nearly that many Wolverines. Once we get Repulsors however, I'm seriously considering going to war with them. They're the one race I think we can take on, and they have no friends. It's a risk, but I think we'll have a significant advantadge over their ships once their small ones can't hit us. And if we could take a significant chunk of their territory, that could be just the break we need.




Something's wrong with this save. I haven't been subjected to a negative event in far too long. Must be a bug. With the Meklar not being that large in terms of planets, this could be a significant hardship for them.

When the Mrrshans arrived at Rana, I lost a couple cruisers taking out their colony ship, then retreated. Legitimately one of the favorite tricks IMO. Have fun circling the planet with your thousands of ships now. Fat lot of good they'll do ya, now that your colonists are all so much space debris. Well worth the loss.

However, despite my best efforts the Bulrathi did secure Rayden. Basically because the Silicoids fought us first, then we retreated, then the Bulrathi claimed it same turn. Not sure how the mechanics of that all work out, but it's hard to complain after all the filching off their ships we are doing.

The Silicoids arrived at Rana the next year -- but with no colony ship. Have at it, boys. Looks like this may be the new ground zero, which basically means we'll have traded Rayden for Altair/Rigel. Not as much as I would have hoped but that would still be a considerable gain. And also ...




Time to start building up for a potential Mrrshan war. Class VII deflectors(we're at V now) are next on the agenda.




Here's the latest design, the Catastrophe. Get it? 'Cat'-astrophe. It's a play on ... yeah I know it's obvious. Anyway, 3 torpedo launchers, best armor and engines, repulsor beam means limited shields but it's well worth the tradeoff. Now we're only really at the point of defending against the Mrrshan with this. They have, among other things, Class XV Planetary Shields which means their planets are going to be easily impervious to our torpedoes. I'll need a second ship to press any attack, a bomber. With bombs we haven't invented yet. So this is only stage one. But being able to take out their ships, which this should be able to do, is a nice first step. And we don't want to dilly-dally around -- there may not be enough time, as they have invented High-Energy Focus. Which would render our Repulsor Beam obsolete. The chances of them throwing the HEF on their hordes of fighter-class ships though seems pretty remote though. We'll see. A lot of things are up in the air right now.




This is more like what I was hoping for. Meklar bombed out Rayden, then we and the Bulrathi arrive the same year, Meklar get chased off and we claim the planet. We may end up thanking the Silicoids for getting the Bulrathi to reinforce the system in the long run. Or we may just lose it again.




2597 here. The Bulrathi protectors are gone(though they remain in other systems) and while there are some Silicoid fleets we might try fighting, this one had 11 capital ships and a lot of cruisers. There was never any thought to standing up to them. A brutal reminder that we remain vulnerable to the whims of others. The situation is always changing, but right now the Silicoids are the aggressors on multiple fronts. A once-stable situation is flexing about with different systems in various sectors starting to look more vulnerable.

Sauron intends to continue to profit from this is any way he can, large or small.




The flux continues right up into the latest Council vote to end the century, with no sign of abating. The galaxy is +3 votes on the whole with Granid down 1 here, but he's still immune.




Smurch just needs one vote for not-Granid to stay in it. He'll get that from us. The others:

** Alkari(1) -- Granid. Still that one stupid planet ignored in the lower-right. I forget they are even in the game when they aren't casting this predictable and usually irrelevant vote.
** Mrrshan(15) -- Granid.
** Meklar(7) -- Smurch

And we are up to a new record of 8. Not super-exciting, but it does mean that we are now fourth in the galaxy. The Meklar and Mrrshan are definitely in our sights, in more ways than one. However with the current chaos our efforts will probably be occupied so much with colonizing planets of opportunity and continuing to work toward being able to defend that which the Bulrathi don't feel like guarding that any real offensive doesn't seem probable in the near future. We'll see though. And the long-term gaze is still fixed on the secrets of Orion, which remain out of reach(literally). And lest we forget its existence, the Guava Plan may well rear its head as well. This game could last long enough to implement it.

As for the vote; 52-48, Granid with the slight lead over Smurch. No abstentions, and no movement in the dominance of the two great powers. We'll soon see if a 4th century has something different in mind than the first three.