Author Topic: Exodus Campaign - Part 5  (Read 5219 times)

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Offline Steve Walmsley (OP)

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Exodus Campaign - Part 5
« on: February 28, 2010, 08:33:37 AM »
20th December 2035
The Union of South American Nations launches its first warships, a pair of 2000 ton Almirante Brown class Missile Corvettes.

1st March 2036
The second trio of Valkyries, Asgard, Odin and Thor, are launched by the Blohm + Voss Shipyard.

29th April 2036
Alamo and Thermopylae, the first two destroyer escorts, are launched from the Atlantis Shipyard.

5th May 2036
A new engine has been developed by Rolls Royce. The F48 Supercharged MPD is much smaller than any previous spacecraft engine and has triple the power to weight ratio of the full size engines used on the Valkyrie and Thermopylae classes. As with the Rocketdyne Boosted MPD engine on the Callisto fast attack craft, only one F48 can be mounted on a hull. This engine will therefore form the basis of a new series of small spacecraft, approximately one quarter the size of the Hyperions and Callistos. The first in the series is the Mamba class strikefighter, which is fast, hard to detect and capable of launching four full size ship-killer missiles. It will operate from planetary bases or, perhaps in the future, from spacecraft equipped with hangar decks.

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Mamba class Strikefighter    225 tons     9 Crew     34.1 BP      TCS 4.5  TH 48  EM 0
10666 km/s     Armour 1-3     Shields 0-0     Sensors 1/1/0/0     Damage Control Rating 0     PPV 2.4
Annual Failure Rate: 45%    IFR: 0.6%    Maint Capacity 0 MSP    Max Repair 10 MSP    Est Time: 0 Years
Magazine 16    

Rolls Royce F48 Supercharged MPD (1)    Power 48    Fuel Use 6000%    Signature 48    Armour 0    Exp 25%
Fuel Capacity 10,000 Litres    Range 1.3 billion km   (34 hours at full power)

Mk4 Box Launcher (4)    Missile Size 4    Hangar Reload 30 minutes    MF Reload 5 hours
CF/APG-15 Fighter Fire Control (1)     Range 26.4m km    Resolution 100
1st July 2036
With sixteen destroyers, two escorts and twenty-two fast attack craft in service, the leadership of the Colonial Alliance decides that defensive requirements have been met and it is time to consider further expansion of the Alpha Centauri chain. The most immediate problem is the hostile aliens which destroyed the survey ship Louis Pasteur in Lacaille 9352, a system adjacent to Epsilon Indi, in April 2030. The reactors on the mines deployed at the Epsilon Indi - Lacaille 9352 jump point are starting to run out so either the mines must be replaced or the threat investigated and eliminated. The leadership orders Rear Admiral Williams to secure the Lacaille 9352 system. Admiral Williams decides to use the older Pegasus class destroyers, as they have better trained crews than the newer Valkyries, plus the two Thermopylae class escorts. All the ships assigned to the operations are recalled from training exercises and assemble at Alpha Centauri II, where they take on the latest models of the available ordnance.

The number of different missile types in service with the Colonial Fleet is expanding rapidly. There are four models of the Javelin anti-ship missile. The RGM-5A was the original missile, used during the battles in the Procyon system. With the introduction of Magneto-plasma technology, a B version was designed to incorporate a new missile engine, increasing speed to 30,000 km/s. This was soon superseded by the C model, which used new fuel efficiency technology to increase the range. Over a thousand RGM-5C were built before recent improvements in warhead technology resulted in the RGM-5D, which is slightly faster and has a larger warhead. All available RGM-5Cs are assigned to the Valkyrie class destroyers and the RGM-5D has only just entered production, which means the ten Pegasus class destroyers must be content with the original A model and the few B models available.

RGM-5A: Speed 22,500 km/s, Warhead Strength 6, Range 64.3m km, Number in Service: 2357
RGM-5B: Speed 30,000 km/s, Warhead Strength 6, Range 64.3m km, Number in Service: 350
RGM-5C: Speed 30,000 km/s, Warhead Strength 6, Range 75m km, Number in Service: 1131
RGM-5D: Speed 32,000 km/s, Warhead Strength 7, Range 75m km, Number in Service: 7

A similar progression has taken place with anti-missile missiles. The RIM-8A Scutum was in production well before the escort destroyers entered service and almost 2800 are in service. The B model used improved fuel efficiency and a Magneto-Plasma Drive and is therefore comparable in technology terms to the RGM-5C. The RIM-9A Lancea is a redesigned missile dedicating a smaller proportion of the available space to the warhead and fuel, the former because of more advanced warhead technology and the latter due to the limited range of Colonial anti-missile sensors and fire controls.

RIM-8A Scutum: Speed 30,000 km/s, Range 2.6m km, Hit vs 10,000 km/s: 66%, Number in Service: 2357
RIM-8B Scutum: Speed 40,000 km/s, Range 3m km, Hit vs 10,000 km/s: 88%, Number in Service: 1752
RIM-9A Lancea: Speed 44,400 km/s, Range 1.5m km, Hit vs 10,000 km/s: 97%, Number in Service: 136

The latest missile in the Colonial inventory is the AGM-10A Tormentum. This is a fast, short-ranged missile with a powerful warhead and will be carried by the new Mamba class Strikefighter

AGM-10A Tormentum: Speed 32,000 km/s, Warhead Strength 10, Range 30m km, Number in Service: 15

24th July  2036
The Colonial force of ten Pegasus class destroyers, two Thermopylae class escorts and the Scylla class command ship Charybdis enters the jump gate on the Epsilon Indi side of the Lacaille 9352 jump point. Although there is no corresponding gate on the far side, Charybdis can escort the destroyers back into Epsilon Indi. The two escorts will have to wait for the construction of a jump gate. The thirteen ships head in-system toward the wreck of Louis Pasteur. At 08:09 on July 26th, two 7100 ton alien ships are detected at the edge of sensor range, moving at 6200 km/s, and designated as the Patria class. Despite the speed advantage of the aliens, Rear Admiral Clyde Fleisher, commanding the Colonial fleet from his flag bridge on board Charybdis, is confident of his force's ability to defeat two ships so he orders five destroyers to target each alien and waits for them to enter weapon range.

[attachment=5:1yihqkbc]Lacaille1.GIF[/attachment:1yihqkbc]
When the fleet tries to lock on to the alien ships the Colonial tactical officers discover the aliens have powerful ECM that is significantly degrading the effectiveness of their fire control systems. They estimate the fleet will have to close to thirty-five million kilometers to burn through the jamming. Rear Admiral Fleisher gives the order to close the range. When the range falls to forty-eight million kilometers, the two alien ships suddenly reverse course and drop their speed to match that of the Colonial ships. There is no way for the Colonial destroyers to catch the faster aliens and they cannot open fire because their fire controls will not lock on the current range. Rear Admiral Fleisher has little option but to continue the pursuit and hope the aliens begin closing again. In the meantime, the aliens' desire to hold the range open suggests they may be launching missiles so he warns his captains to be vigilant. The Admiral's concerns are borne out when, at 14:06, six size 6 missiles travelling at 37,200 km/s are detected at 960,000 kilometers. Alamo and Thermopylae begin launching RIM-8B Scutum anti-missiles, directing three RIM-8Bs at each incoming missile. Four alien missiles are killed by the first wave of anti-missiles and the other two are destroyed by a follow-up salvo of six more RIM-8Bs.

The second salvo proves more difficult to stop. Two of the six alien missiles evade two waves of RIM-8Bs and slam into Alamo. Strength-9 warheads gouge a pair of large craters in her armour. Admiral Fleisher orders the escorts to change their automated point defence so four anti-missiles will be directed against each incoming missile. This will burn through their magazines more quickly but provide a stronger defence. The change proves effective as all six of the third wave of alien missiles are stopped by a single defensive salvo of twenty-four RIM-8Bs. In all, the Colonial fleet faces nineteen waves of alien missiles. A single missile from the eighth wave strikes Thermopylae and one from the thirteenth hits Minotaur. All the rest are shot down, although on three occasions the last missile was destroyed within thirty thousand kilometers of the fleet. Three Colonial ships have armour damage. There are no casualties. Six hundred RIM-8B Scutums have been expended, leaving thirteen hundred and fifty-five in the magazines of the two escorts

The two alien ships accelerate to their maximum speed and set course toward the planetary system with the Colonial ships in pursuit. They have moved one hundred and fifteen million kilometers ahead of the Colonials when a new alien ship appears on  sensors from a completely different direction. The new 7100 ton ship, designated as Apollo class, is at a distance of two hundred and sixty-four million kilometers on a bearing of 270 degrees, compared to 30 degrees for the first two ships, which seem to be on course for one of the first three planets.

[attachment=4:1yihqkbc]Lacaille2.GIF[/attachment:1yihqkbc]
The new arrival heads straight for the Colonial fleet while the other two ships continue to run. Rear Admiral Fleisher decides to hold his course, determined to run down the first two ships, or at least discover any supply base from which they are operating. Gradually, the third alien ship falls into a stern chase, steadily overhauling the Colonial ships due to its 6200 km/s top speed. By the time the two Patria class reach the edge of sensor range, the Apollo has closed to sixty-one million kilometers. The Colonial ships are unable to open fire as the Apollo as the same ECM as the Patrias.

[attachment=3:1yihqkbc]Lacaille3.GIF[/attachment:1yihqkbc]
Active contact with the Patrias is lost at 19:22 on July 27th, although passive EM sensors on the Charybdis can still detect active sensor emissions from Patria 01. The destination of the Patrias appears to be the second planet. At 22:09, the Apollo closes to thirty-five million kilometers and Rear Admiral Fleisher orders the eight Pegasus Flight IIs to launch a single, combined salvo of sixty-four RGM-5A Javelins. The two Pegasus Flight Is, Pegasus and Minotaur, are loaded with the faster RGM-5B, which would outpace the missiles of the other ships, so they hold fire. Phoenix has a mixture of the two missile types. The missiles reach their target at 22:30. Three are shot down by point defence and forty-two more miss due to the high speed of the alien ship. Nineteen detonate their strength-6 warheads, covering the Apollo in nuclear fire. It sails out of the maelstrom at a reduced speed out 5070 km/s, although surprisingly there is no loss of atmosphere. Concerned about the durability of the alien ship, Rear Admiral Fleisher orders a further salvo. Sixty-four more Javelins streak toward the Apollo. At 22:51, twenty-four strike the target and it vanishes in a ball of flame, leaving only wreckage. There is still no sign of atmosphere, leading the Admiral's staff to venture their opinion that the alien ship was controlled by a computer rather than a crew. They also suggest that the lack of any missile attack from the Apollo points to its main armament being energy-based

Meanwhile the active sensor contact associated with Patria 01 moves past the second planet and leaves the inner system. The only possible destination on its current course is the seventh planet; a gas giant with a system of thirty-three moons. Although Pasteur surveyed the first six planets and all their moons, it was destroyed close to the orbit of the seventh planet and never had chance to conduct a survey.

[attachment=2:1yihqkbc]Lacaille4.GIF[/attachment:1yihqkbc]
After a brief pause at one of the gas giant moons, the active sensor emissions from Patria 01 begin to move back toward the Colonial fleet. The two alien ships re-enter active sensor range at 13:34. Just as before, the Patrias move to forty-eight million kilometers and then reverse course, holding the range open. Alien missiles are detected at 19:45. The Colonial fleet reverses course to give the escorts a little more time to engage. Salvos of anti-missiles streak out toward the threat at 40,000 km/s. One missile from the first wave penetrates the defensive fire. A last second jink from Thermopylae confuses the missile guidance and she escapes unscathed. As in the first attack, the Colonial fleet faces nineteen waves of missiles. Single missiles penetrate from the eleventh, thirteenth and fifteen waves. One misses its target. The other two both hit the Pegasus class destroyer Medusa, causing significant damage to her armour.

Just eight hundred anti-missiles remain in the magazines of the two escorts; enough to hold off one more attack of a similar size. With the Colonial ships only seventeen million kilometers from the star and one point six billion kilometers from the jump point running is not an option. They must close in on the alien source of supply on one of the moons of Lacaille 9352 VII. After guiding in their missiles, Rear Admiral Fleisher expects the two alien ships to ships reverse course and head back toward the gas giant. To his surprise they increase to full speed and head straight for his force, bringing them within weapons range at 20:24. Rear Admiral Fleisher directs Minotaur, Pegasus and Phoenix to engage Patria 01 with RGM-5Bs while the other seven Pegasus class destroyers ships target Patria 02 with RGM-5As. Four salvos are fired by the former group and two by the latter.

[attachment=1:1yihqkbc]Lacaille5.GIF[/attachment:1yihqkbc]
The RGM-5B Javelins reach their target first. Due to their higher speed they have a considerably higher chance of interception that the RGM-5A. Half the first wave of twenty-four missiles strike Patria 01, although there is no sign they have penetrated its armour. Three of the second wave are hit by point defence and eleven miss. The other ten inflict serious internal damage, based on a small secondary explosion, the termination of active sensor emissions and a reduction in speed to 2816 km/s. Patria 03 engages its own active sensor to replace the sensor coverage previously provided by Patria 01. With Patria 01 moving so slowly, it is a sitting duck for the third wave of RGM-5Bs. A series of detonations engulfs the alien ship and it explodes spectacularly. The last wave of RGM-5Bs has no target and the missiles self-destruct. Patria 03 now faces the slower RGM-5As. Their chance to hit is lower and four of the fifty-six missiles in the first wave are destroyed by point blank point defence fire. Nevertheless, twenty-three Javelins are on target, blasting away the alien armour and causing enough damage to reduce the ship's speed to 5070 km/s. The second wave finishes the job, blowing the wounded enemy ship to pieces.

Why the missile ships decided to charge into Colonial weapon range is unknown, although the Admiral's staff theorizes that they could have exhausted the available missiles in their supply base and decided to close to beam weapon range, suicidal though that seems. It also suggests they had no other place to run to, or possibly that their nearest friendly outpost was in another system and they had no jump capability. Even so, evasion would have seemed a better option, especially with their higher speed. Given their speed and durability and the capabilities of their missiles, the three destroyed alien ships were presumably higher tech than the Colonial designs. Rear Admiral Fleischer recommends in his after action report that some form of salvage ship should be built to investigate the wreckage for any useful information.

In the meantime, he orders the fleet to move to the gas giant and find the source of the alien outpost that reloaded the alien magazines. A tiny thermal signature is detected on the third moon, possibly indicating a deep space tracking station. Rather than destroy it, Rear Admiral Fleischer decides to request support from the Colonial ground forces to capture the alien outpost. There is no way to send a signal through the distant jump point without a jump gate in place so the Admiral orders a withdrawal. The alien threat in Lacaille 9252 appears to have been neutralized.

4th August 2036
Charybdis transits into Epsilon Indi, leaving the rest of the fleet in Lacaille 9352. Rear Admiral Fleischer orders the construction ship Sydney Harbour to transit through the jump gate on the Epsilon Indi side and build a matching gate in Lacaille 9352. The gravitational survey ships Galileo Galilei, Johannes Kepler, Johann Franz Encke, Nicolaus Copernicus and Tycho Brahe, and the geological survey ships Marie Curie and Werner von Heisenberg, have lain idle in orbit of Epsilon Indi I for several years. They are seriously outdated and powered by nuclear pulse engines. Even so, they are the only survey ships in the Colonial inventory so Rear Admiral Fleischer orders them into Lacaille 9352 to carry out a jump point survey and to complete the interrupted geological survey. He also requests combat troops from Earth. The troop transport Endymion loads a brigade of assault infantry and departs for Lacaille 9352. Finally, he asks for missile resupply and the two Aeolus class minelayer/colliers leave Alpha Centauri with a total of 188 RGM-5A Javelins and 750 RIM-8A Scutums. The stocks of older missiles will have to suffice until significant quantities of the latest types are available.

16th August 2036
India builds two more Rajput class missile frigates, taking the total for the class to four. The People's Republic of China builds five Yinchuan II class frigates, taking the total for that class to fifteen. Strangely, the other ten Yinchuan IIs and three of the six Houjian III class destroyers departed for Procyon almost a year ago and haven't been seen since. The five new Yinchuan IIs head for the Sol - Procyon jump point as well. A polite enquiry by the Colonial ambassador to China gains no new information with the Chinese insisting everything is fine in Procyon. So far the Chinese have been only too happy to shout for help so the situation is puzzling.

24th August 2036
Endymion arrives in Lacaille 9352. Rear Admiral Fleischer detaches Thermopylae, Centaur and Gryphon to escort her to the third moon of the seventh planet.

5th September 2036
The 1st Light Assault Brigade lands on Lacaille 9352 VII-M3 and quickly secures the alien outpost. As suspected, the only installation is a single deep space tracking station. The brigade is loaded back on to Endymion and taken to Epsilon Indi I to act as a forward-based fast reaction force.

6th September 2036
The size of the Colonial officer core has been steadily growing since its inception. Until this point, its two senior officers, Jordon Williams and Clyde Fleischer have both had the rank of Rear Admiral (Lower Half), a holdover from the United States Navy which is equal to the rank of Commodore in many other navies. Due to the growing number of Captains, a third officer, Madison Warren, is promoted to Rear Admiral (Lower Half). This leads the Colonial leadership to two decisions. Firstly that one of the three Rear Admirals (Lower Half) should be promoted to Rear Admiral (Upper Half) and secondly that the two ranks should be renamed to avoid confusion. As Commodore is generally not regarded as a flag rank, Rear Admiral (Lower Half) therefore becomes Flotilla Admiral, a rank used by several European navies, and Rear Admiral (Upper Half) becomes simply Rear Admiral. Although Flotilla Admiral Jordon Williams has been the Colonial Fleet's senior officer for many years, the recent victories of Flotilla Admiral Clyde Fleischer in Procyon and Lacaille 9352 have made him far more recognizable by the public and popular with politicians. Therefore he is selected for promotion to Rear Admiral and becomes head of the Colonial Fleet

11th October 2036
The ongoing survey of Lacaille 9352 reveals a new jump point. Rear Admiral Fleischer is still in the system on board Charybdis so he decides to take his fleet and investigate.

16th October 2036
The Republic of India launches a 22,300 ton troop transport. Its first task is to transport a brigade of garrison troops to Mars.

17th October 2036
Charybdis, Centaur and Gryphon jump as a squadron into the system of Herschel 5173, arriving 25,000 km from the jump point. Although the orange K3-V primary has no planets, an M4-V red dwarf star at 45 AU, or about 6.75 billion kilometers, has nine planets, including a small terrestrial world with a surface temperature of 18C and an atmosphere of carbon dioxide and nitrogen with a pressure of 0.21 atm. A definite candidate for future terraforming, although because of the distance involved its priority will depend on any local mineral deposits. Rear Admiral Fleischer orders the geosurvey ship Heisenberg to move to Herschel 5173 as soon as possible to begin a survey. In the meantime he takes his three ship squadron toward the B component to ensure the survey can proceed safely. The Thermopylae class escorts cannot accompany the squadron as they are too large to be escorted by Charybdis

13th November 2036
Charybdis, Centaur and Gryphon check out the planets of the companion star and find no signs of life.

10th December 2036
The gravitational survey of Lacaille 9352 is completed. No jump points are found beyond those to Epsilon Indi and Herschel 5173. Given there is no sign of any alien presence in the latter system, the three alien ships encountered in Lacaille 9352 seem have been operating alone. Their origin remains unknown, although their lack of atmosphere, instant belligerence, suicidal tactics and lack of any apparent support infrastructure is leading many Colonial experts to theorize they are some type of robotic guard ships. The major hole in the theory is that they didn't appear to be guarding anything.

28th December 2036
The jump gate is completed at the Lacaille 9352 - Epsilon Indi jump point, which means the Thermopylae class escorts can leave the system. As the escorts are too large to be used in the exploration of new systems, Rear Admiral Fleischer decides to reduce the size of his fleet and send the other ships back to Alpha Centauri. Charybdis, Centaur, Gryphon, Medusa and Phoenix move into Herschel 5173 to begin exploration of three jump points found by the ongoing survey while the other eight ships enter the new jump gate and head for home. The command ship Kraken is summoned from Alpha Centauri to join the exploration fleet so that two three-ship jump squadrons can be formed.

1st February 2037
Charybdis, Centaur and Gryphon explore a jump point in Herschel 5173 and find the unremarkable system of Gliese 784, which has seven planets and two sparse asteroid belts. The three ships conduct a thorough investigation of the inner system and find no sign of life.

2nd February 2037
Cameron, the third Thermopylae class escort, is launched from the Atlantis shipyard

19th February 2037
Two new shipyards have recently been built in Earth orbit. The smaller of the two, the Armstrong - Whitworth Shipyard, has a single slipway with a capacity of 5000 tons. This slipway will be used to construct the Alliance's first beam-armed warship, the Tribal class Frigate Apache. The Tribal class is very similar to the Chinese Houjian III and is intended as a smaller, cheaper alternative to the Valkyrie class destroyer. It will also provide a capable close-quarters combatant with the potential to inflict huge damage when operating in a jump point defence role. As this ship is intended for picket duty, it has a more capable engineering department than might be expected for a ship of its size and, unlike its missile-armed cousins, the Tribal does not rely on a long logistical tail to maintain combat readiness

Code: [Select]
Tribal class Frigate    5000 tons     556 Crew     924 BP      TCS 100  TH 560  EM 0
5600 km/s     Armour 6-26     Shields 0-0     Sensors 1/1/0/0     Damage Control Rating 4     PPV 24
Annual Failure Rate: 50%    IFR: 0.7%    Maint Capacity 462 MSP    Max Repair 96 MSP    Est Time: 3.91 Years

NPO Energomash Type II MPD (7)    Power 80    Fuel Use 60%    Signature 80    Armour 0    Exp 5%
Fuel Capacity 150,000 Litres    Range 90.0 billion km   (186 days at full power)

15cm C3 Near Ultraviolet Laser (6)    Range 180,000km     TS: 5600 km/s     Power 6-3     RM 3    ROF 10        6 6 6 4 3 3 2 2 2 1
CF/SPG-19 Laser Fire Control (1)    Max Range: 192,000 km   TS: 6000 km/s     95 90 84 79 74 69 64 58 53 48
Stellarator Fusion Reactor (3)     Total Power Output 18    Armour 0    Exp 5%

CF/SPS-4 Active Search Sensor (1)     GPS 7200     Range 72.0m km    Resolution 75
22nd February 2037
Charybdis, Centaur and Gryphon jump from Herschel 5173 into Gliese 752, a binary system with two red dwarfs orbiting each other at seventy billion kilometers. Fourteen planets are split equally between the two stars and the primary has two large asteroid belts containing more than four hundred asteroids. The second of the primary's seven planets has an almost breathable atmosphere, although the surface temperature of -97C makes this an unlikely prospect for terraforming and colonization. Even though the two solar systems are connected by Lagrange points, a geological survey of this system is going to take considerable time. The three ships begin checking for signs of life.

27th February 2037
The People's Republic of China builds three 5000 ton ships of a new class. Together with the three Houjian III class destroyers in Earth orbit, they head for the Procyon jump point. Colonial Intelligence believes the Chinese now have six Houjian IIIs, the last pair of Houjian IIs, fifteen Yinchuan II class frigates, the sole Yinchuan I, all five of their Jianghu class survey ships and the three new ships either in or heading for Procyon. Effectively, their entire combat fleet. Still the Chinese maintain that there is no trouble in the system and they are just conducting fleet exercises.

1st March 2037
The command ship Kraken arrives in Herschel 5173 and joins the two Pegasus class destroyers Medusa and Phoenix to form a second jump squadron. Their first mission is the exploration of the remaining unexplored jump point in the system. They enter Gliese 667, a compact trinary system with an orange K4-V primary, a K5-V secondary component and a dim M3 red dwarf, all within a system radius of two billion kilometers. Remarkably, both the primary and tertiary stars have bodies with breathable atmospheres, a gas giant moon in the former case and the innermost planet in the latter. They have temperatures of -36C and -25C respectively, making them excellent terraforming candidates. In total, there are eight planets and thirty-nine moons in the system.

14th March 2037
Rourke's Drift, the fourth Thermopylae class escort, is launched from the Atlantis shipyard

4th April 2037
Kraken, Medusa and Phoenix investigate a newly found fifth jump point in Herschel 5173 and discover Gliese 832, an unremarkable system with a red dwarf primary, four inhospitable planets and a scattering of asteroids.

18th April 2037
China launches three 2500 ton ships of a new class. As with all the other recent Chinese construction, they set course for the Sol - Procyon jump point

24th May 2037
Charybdis, Centaur and Gryphon investigate the two unexplored jump points in Ross 154, a system with a Colonial population of fifteen million. The first leads to 36 Ophuichi, a trinary system with three K-class stars and just four planets, none of which are habitable. The second connects to Kuiper 75, a very different trinary. The system is a nightmare of overlapping orbits with three red dwarf stars, nine planets, eighty-four moons and almost three hundred asteroids within a sphere less than a billion kilometers in diameter. As the three ships move within sensor range of the innermost planet of the primary, Charybdis detects five ships in orbit, all of different classes and ranging from 7100 tons to 14,200 tons but unmistakably the same race that was encountered in Lacaille 9352. The planet itself is a small terrestrial world with a nitrogen atmosphere and surface temperature of 82 degrees. Given the capabilities of the alien ships in Lacaille 9352, Rear Admiral Fleischer has no intention of taking on five enemy ships with his unarmed command ship and two Pegasus class destroyers. He orders an immediate retreat to the jump point. Fortunately there is no sign that his squadron has been detected as the alien vessels make no attempt to pursue.

28th May 2037
As soon as Rear Admiral Fleischer arrives safely in Ross 154 he sends several commands out across the jump gate network. Kraken, Medusa and Phoenix, which are en route to FL Virginis to investigate its five unexplored jump points, are instructed to abandon that mission and rendezvous with Charybdis' squadron at the Ross 154 - Kuiper 75 jump point. Although four Pegasus class destroyers are in overhaul, Pegasus and Minotaur are available at Alpha Centauri. They are combined with the command ship Scylla to form a third jump squadron and dispatched to Ross 154, along with all four Thermopylae class destroyer escorts. The Colonial population on the second planet of Ross 154 is protected by four Hyperion class fast attack craft and has fourteen Genesis class terraformers in orbit. As well as the fifteen million civilians, the colony has  two hundred and forty manned mining complexes. The loss of this planet and its mines would be a huge blow to the Colonial Alliance so eliminating the alien threat in Kuiper 75, or at the very least protecting the colony until an expedition can be mounted, is a very high priority. The moratorium on exploration that was recently lifted is re-imposed until the current crisis is over.

[attachment=0:1yihqkbc]Galaxy4.GIF[/attachment:1yihqkbc]
to be continued...
 

Offline sloanjh

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Re: Exodus Campaign - Part 5
« Reply #1 on: February 28, 2010, 12:14:50 PM »
Quote from: "Steve Walmsley"
The first in the series is the Mamba class strikefighter

Will the next one be the Krait class? :-)

Is it my imagination, or do things seem less gloomy for humanity than a few years back?  Unless, of course, the Chinese are getting their "engines" kicked in Procyon....

John
 

Offline boggo2300

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Re: Exodus Campaign - Part 5
« Reply #2 on: February 28, 2010, 10:27:05 PM »
Well that IS traditional in Steve's campaigns....

Matt
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Offline welchbloke

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Re: Exodus Campaign - Part 5
« Reply #3 on: March 03, 2010, 06:17:05 AM »
Quote from: "sloanjh"
Quote from: "Steve Walmsley"
The first in the series is the Mamba class strikefighter

Will the next one be the Krait class? :D
Welchbloke
 

Offline Steve Walmsley (OP)

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Re: Exodus Campaign - Part 5
« Reply #4 on: March 03, 2010, 07:39:03 AM »
Quote from: "welchbloke"
Quote from: "sloanjh"
Quote from: "Steve Walmsley"
The first in the series is the Mamba class strikefighter

Will the next one be the Krait class? :D
Well, this is the Colonial Fleet so I was leading up to Vipers :(.

It's really Kurt's fault :).

Steve
 

Offline welchbloke

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Re: Exodus Campaign - Part 5
« Reply #5 on: March 03, 2010, 07:53:25 AM »
Quote from: "Steve Walmsley"
Well, this is the Colonial Fleet so I was leading up to Vipers :(.

It's really Kurt's fault :).

Steve
Cool, I'm looking forward to it already  :D
Welchbloke
 

Offline Kurt

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Re: Exodus Campaign - Part 5
« Reply #6 on: March 03, 2010, 05:09:07 PM »
Quote from: "Steve Walmsley"
Well, this is the Colonial Fleet so I was leading up to Vipers :(.

It's really Kurt's fault :).

Steve

Fine, blame it all on me <G>.  Too bad, I was enjoying this one, although I didn't see how your humans were going to deal with all of their problems.  Part of the fun, I guess.  

Looking forward to your new one, though.   I'm enjoying my campaign immensely, and I guess it shows, as you noted above.  It is taking me longer to complete each write-up than I originally anticipated, though.  That is at least in part because I am documenting things going on elsewhere in the universe, which will one day come to light as the Terrans expand out into the galaxy.  

At any rate, I'm off to read the first installment of your Roman campaign.  

Kurt
 

Offline Spartanius

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Re: Exodus Campaign - Part 5
« Reply #7 on: July 11, 2010, 10:52:44 PM »
Hey, I know this is older now and your on to bigger things, but could you at least tell us what was going on with the chinese? Were they having trouble or were they just moving their fleet to procyon?
 

Offline Steve Walmsley (OP)

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Re: Exodus Campaign - Part 5
« Reply #8 on: July 16, 2010, 12:54:46 AM »
Quote from: "Spartanius"
Hey, I know this is older now and your on to bigger things, but could you at least tell us what was going on with the chinese? Were they having trouble or were they just moving their fleet to procyon?
They were involved in major combat with an alien race. They had already launched one attack, got seriously mauled and had to retreat. They were getting ready for a second attack. For some reason, the Chinese always get in trouble in my campaigns. It's not deliberate but it seems to have become de rigeur :)

Steve