Part 82: Turn 360

TURN 360


It's time to mop up the rest of the Ferengi empire to prevent them from cheating their way back to ownership of a fleet. Luckily the rest of these systems tend to be small, so we can sometimes use just Scouts and Transports to take them.


TURN 361. We didn't use any Birds of Prey to bomb, but T'lli Beta will trouble us no more.


It's unclear how serious the Romulans are about attacking us. Thus far they have merely raided us with some cloaked Destroyer groups.


We no longer need Scouts to spy on the Ferengi south, since it's no longer Ferengi. The extra Scouts instead spy on the Cardassians, who have a fair number of the formidable Battleship IIs.


TURN 362. An unusual development brews on our Starbase at Orellius, the southern border of our eastern empire. Both Federation and Romulan ships are attacking us. However the Romulans and Feds are at war with each other, so this is a true three-way battle.


We have a Scout and a Starbase, the Federation has 3 Destroyers, and the Romulans have 3 Battle Cruisers. Since the Romulans are the only group that is totally cloaked, they get a free cloak turn but cannot attack our cloaked Scout.


The Romulan vessels ignore the Fed Destroyers, decloak, and open fire on our Starbase. But its shields are much stronger than the Romulans anticipated.


Our Scout and Starbase target the Romulan Battle Cruiser in the center of the formation. The Federation Destroyers realize everyone else is distracted and make a quick exit.


The Battle Cruisers have bitten off more than they can chew. If they had more numbers, things might be different. As they retreat, our Starbase's torpedoes kill one of the Battle Cruisers. But the captain of the Scout ship insists that it was he who dealt the finishing blow. Everyone else is skeptical. Scouts are just Orbital Battery fodder.


The Romulan Destroyers wisely avoided Starbases and stuck to credit theft.


Senator Vreenak has received intel that suggests the Ferengi, Cardassians and Federation all secretly plan to invade Romulus. Only the Klingons had honor all along. The Romulans, despite being at war with us, become worshipful. We accept their peace offer since we aren't keen on finding out what happens when the Romulans send in their Warbirds.


TURN 363. Another Ferengi system falls.


Polaris was the Ferengi colony that illegally produced ships earlier on. We don't see a dilithium refinery, but perhaps we destroyed it in the bombardment. In any case, they can't build anything here now.


Our acquisition of the enslaved Cardassian system of Galdonterre also creates an empty disputed sector. The Cardassians demand it, and since it's worthless, there's no reason not to acquiesce.


The tiny system of Kholfa is next on the chopping block. Our non-aggression treaty with the Romulans leaves us unable to enter their territory, hence all the new borders around their territory.


TURN 364. The Ferengi desperately buy more treaties. But nothing can save them from us.


The Ferengi infrastructure on the smaller systems is weak, especially after we explode it. We don't want starving slaves, so we have to buy some food sources for them.


As the sea of yellow territories turns red, we notice one strong system next door to Deinonychus and Shelia: The Ophicus system is a decent one. However, we held off on conquering it because it had a small population. It is still recovering from the deadly Borg attack so long ago. Ophicus was saved at the last moment by the Ferengi 100-ship fleet. But Ophicus will meet its end as a free land today.


TURN 365. Simultaneously, the Ferengi colony of Solarion falls.


TURN 366. The Ferengi have but two systems left: Harod and Tessen. The Ferengi dishonorably cheat the game and buy one last ship, a Marauder, to protect Harod.


TURN 367. Despite the Ferengi empire's history of cowardice, the Marauder wants to die on its own terms, on the offense. It attacks Harrakis just as a dozen Birds of Prey arrive.


The Marauder is a beautiful ship, and it dies like a warrior. It's too bad for the Ferengi that they did not display such spirit when it still could have made a difference.


The Ferengi manage to buy yet another affiliation treaty by kissing up to Gul Dukat and giving him money.


The last Ferengi ship is gone. They are no longer a spacefaring people.


TURN 368. Harod is taken. Somehow we managed to blow up all of the farms. Who targets open fields? Now we have to buy some more.


Invasion is ordered for Tessen, the final system of an empire once thought to be invincible.


TURN 369. All the money in the galaxy could not save the Ferengi. From now on they are a race of Klingon slaves, no better than the Caldonians or the Yridians.