Part 147: Episode XIII: 2500
Episode XIII: 2500 -
As soon as we start getting Panthers in position, I'll recall our older designs from the outlying systems, most of them being at Moro on the far left. When they get back, it'll be time to begin the Alkari conquest. That'll take several years, during which our fleet should be able to equal if not surpass theirs. The Mrrshan Empire is now competitive if not superior in every comparison.
Sakkra are the only ones still comfortable tolerating us, and even that is temporary.
The old destroyers(Warcat/Lynx) should still be of some use against the Alkari. The goal is to use them up there while building more Panthers & Bobcats, then upgrade to the next generation of ships which we'll likely have the tech for by then. We're at 10.1% ships, 10.6% bases maintenance right now so there's still room for this to grow.
About to finish up researching factory costs that are worse than what we already have. That's not exciting, but Impulse Drives will be a major step forward, and new missiles & ECM will also prove useful. Research is still proceeding at a decent pace but is slowing down for all races; another reason why it's time to get this show on the road.
2501. Others are coming to the same conclusion. I think we'll be ready to attack in six years.
Meanwhile this is happening. They may well get through our defenses on Ryoun, a large poor terran system. I'm guessing they chose it because of it being an easier target(13 bases). I'd need our fleet to be concentrated in order to credibly oppose such a force, and that's not going to happen in time so we'll see how our improved bases hold up. The new missiles just went into prototyping so if we get that finished in time, which could go either way, it'll help.
https://youtu.be/mTWe8pSIvgs
The Pelican-class fighters with nuclear bombs were of virtually no threat(max. out at 12 damage, we have 10 in shields). That left the Condor cruisers which were easily eliminated. However, the larger fleet was still coming.
Another example of 'attack the weak point'. Regulus is our smallest system. Still, it looks the galaxy is going to make a real effort to stop us here.
https://youtu.be/WingJBmu13U
Looks like they've got enough firepower to make it through after all.
Irrelevant basically, but this looks to be the work of the Darloks.
The next year. Doesn't totally change the dynamic but it will definitely help. Nobody else has missiles this good yet. The only next-tier option is the Disruptor, which I have yet to field in this LP. However, it has the range we need and does considerably more damage than the Heavy Fusion Beam(10-40 compared to 4-30). This also means that we missed out on the top bombs(Neutronium) and a second torpedo option(Hellfire).
Meanwhile Moro, the big-for-being-rich Tundra planet on the left edge, has it's Planetary Shield up and running. Two years now until the fleet is gathered at Cygni and I decide what to do with it.
https://youtu.be/k6EFYK4TRyg
We barely hold off the Darloks at Regulus ... looked to me like it was just going to go on and on, I wasn't sure why I started doing more damage after going to auto - until I realized I'd been using the wrong missile type. Oops. In any case, we got a total of three techs in at the same time: ECM, Impulse Drives, Industrial Tech 6. Only the second one really matters. Next picks are ECM VI(only choice), Andrium Armor, and Ion Drives. All are modest steps up from current capabilities. Then the Bulrathi asked for peace and got it. It was a busy year.
The Alkari have expanded their fleet enough that it could be dicey to go on the attack. They also have this force headed to Denubius, which we could probably fight off with the existing base defenses but I'm not certain of it. I decide to support that defense with our ships for now.
In 2510, a big Darlok fleet takes Maalor; we had no chance to stop them with the few ships that were there. The blockade is breaking, having perhaps outlived it's usefulness. The next year, the Alkari hit both Denubius and Cygni.
https://youtu.be/lGtnwMwGPyo
I lost more of the older ships than I needed to, mostly because I didn't care what happened to them. Main takeaway is they are fielding a lot of Tachyon Beams, which our Repulsor Beams can completely neutralize. Our most recent Panther cruisers are highly effective against current Alkari designs. The few remaining Warcat and Lynx ships(old destroyers with just standard Fusion Beams) are scrapped as basically useless. I think it's time now to hit back. The next thing to learn is how effective our bombers will be against their planets.
https://youtu.be/Pl_RmSuveOo
That would seem to be quite an effective demonstration. In terms of invasion, I expect the Alkari to have a significant tech edge at first. We need about a 3:1 troop advantage, so it'll be one planet at a time until we steal some of their stuff. Meanwhile there's a big Darlok fleet headed for Denubius that looks like it'll be tough to handle. This really feels like the key point in the struggle.
The first wave does worse than expected. 25M lost, 6M Alkari. We're going to have to really flood the zone and go nuts here. Second wave(83M vs. 36M) had better luck and nearly finished it off.
Grr. The Alkari sent in troop transports and most of them made it through ... because most of my ships are needed for Denubius. Or at least I think they are. I'll revisit the situation once the Darloks arrive. For the moment at least this is really quite an interesting war -- neither side clearly able to overcome the other.
In 2519, the second and larger Darlok force hit Denubius, which only had a few cruisers left to aid in the defence. The main functions the Panthers serve are to basically soak up missile fire(which they suck at, so I lose a fair amount, but it still isn't hitting the planet that way) and to play centerfield and keep opposing ships away with the repulsors. With Denubius safe for the moment, we got after Thrax again ... which gets down to just 3M Alkari for a second time before they once again get new transports in. I need to get off this merry-go-round eventually.
And now I get to divert resources to a major economic project in the middle of all this. Good problem to have of course. Unfortunately the only thing from the next tier we get is Doom Virus, which means no soil enrichment unless we get it from somebody else. I've seen enough though that I'm convinced our missile bases can hold back almost any attack without the support of the fleet -- so what cruisers we do get will go to blockading Thrax against any more incoming transports. I'm confident this is going to turn my way, it's just being real grindy at the start here.
Well now they'll be even less of a factor -- because there are no other systems they can leverage in terms of investing in a cure.
https://youtu.be/AhM8LJ5nEq4
On the eve of the vote. That's a lot of Pelican fighter-bombers. I'm glad they waited a bit, or I might not have been able to take them all out in time. Once that was done, the other ships could do only limited damage.
** Alkari(4) - Sauron
** Humans(3) - Nermal
** Sakkra(8)
** Darlok(7) - Sauron.
** Bulrathi(1) - Nermal
This makes the count Sauron 19, Nermal 4, out of 34 votes. 11 for us -- we'd have more if it wasn't for the constant population drain heading to Thrax. So we abstain again, and things continue on as they have been.