Idea for a SPOILER race for Aurora 4X.
This race is heavily inspired by the Achuultani from the Empire from the Ashes novel of David Weber, the Gbaba from the Safehold novel series also from David Weber, the Imperium of Man from Warhammer 40 000 license of Games Workshop, as well as the Fallen and Awakened Empires of the video game Stellaris from Paradox Interactive.
I’ll refer to the race as the Achuultani throughout the proposal to keep thing streamlined, as well as a form of hommage, it should be noted however that they have few things in common with the ones from the Empire from the Ashes besides periodic galactic genocide.
There is also a small TL;DR at the end, for those of you who don't want to wade through this wall of text ^^.
Fluff (background and information) :
The Achuultani is an interstellar, some would say galaxy spanning, Empire that has existed for so long that it’s origins vanish in the mist of galactic history. Their civilization came to galactic domination through the extermination of all other sentient forms of life in the galaxy. What triggered such a behavior is shrouded in mystery, and it is highly unlikely that the Achuultani themselves even remember it. One important fact however is that through xenocide their Empire was founded, and through xenocide it is sustained. The reason for such a long reign of galactic domination is simple : the Achuultani purely and simply wipe out any and all possible competitors to their hegemony, and every sentient specie they encounter is considered a potential competitor.
The Achuultani Empire is tied together by a massive network of so called Hyperspace Gates, massive constructs that can go from the size of a large space station to larger than an entire planet. Those Gates allow near-instantaneous travel throughout their Empire, allowing ships to traverse their massive galactic hegemony in a matter of days. Every colony in the Achuultani Empire has at least an Hyperspace Gate, which ties the solar system with the rest of the Empire. The gate varies in size depending on the colony of course, with small outposts having a gate barely capable of letting FACs and systems defence boats through, while massive industrialized worlds would have access to a gate capable of transiting capital ships in the hundreds of thousands of tons.
Fortunately, the Achuultani Empire has decayed into decadence, bureaucratic incompetence, and technology has become a much coveted commodity, technological knowledge being hoarded by the Core Worlds, keeping it away from the outer colonies, and only using it sparingly. This in turn has severely weakened it’s response to an emerging threat, such as an interstellar Empire.
When the first reports from outposts and colonies come in of contact with space-faring aliens, it can take months, years, in some cases even decades for the report to make it’s way in the incomprehensible labyrinth that is the Achuultani bureaucracy. Most of the time those reports are read and acted upon long after the outpost in question has been reduced to radioactive ash by saturation orbital bombardment. Initially the only response will be a few scout ships, with orders to attack all vessels that they encounter, and assess the threat. Most of the time the grand majority of these scouting expeditions do not come back, but usually a few do, giving coordinates of alien worlds and centers of population, setting the gears of the Achuultani war machine in motion.
After confirmed sightings of alien population centers (or too many lost scout ships) the Achuultani Bureau of Extermination will set in motion, and light patrols as well as expeditionary formations are sent out to dispatch the threat. Systems close to the aliens are slowly, but surely, reinforced, and basic defense stations and ground units are shipped out along the patrol detachements. Regular patrols are set up in the systems adjacent to Achuultani worlds. Meanwhile the expeditionary formations, usually composed of frigates and destroyers of a few thousand tons each at best, start aggressive reconnaissance efforts in systems where scout ships disappeared or found signs of alien life. Once there they will search the entire system from top to bottom, checking every single asteroid for life signs, and bombarding into oblivion any and all signs of active sentient life in the system with near automata single-mindedness, even unmanned installations being bombarded from high orbit without a second thought.
If the specie that encountered them is unlucky enough to not have a standing navy when encountering those first expeditions, they are at a very real risk of being wiped out. But most civilizations quickly dispatch those small expeditions, who will single mindedly attack even super-battleships head on, leading some civilizations to speculate that the first waves are little more than brain washed lunatics, although upon inspection of personnel further up the chain of command, it becomes obvious that it is simply that not exterminating all other sentient life is completely alien to the Achuultani, that fact having become so ingrained into their society that it is practically coded into their genome (and might actually be, in fact).
If the expeditionary forces fail to terminate the menace, the alert level is raised, and the Empire stirs as the Bureau of Extermination begins dispatching light cruiser aggressive reconnaissance formations and new expeditionary task forces sporting heavy cruisers ranging in the tens of thousands of tons with substantial amounts of lighter escorts. Those forces, while quite heavy in tonnage, are relatively low tech, sporting ion drives and equivalent technology, and are built more for extended deployment than combat. The fortification efforts at the frontier systems are accelerated, more stations (although still of the same pathetically technologically backward type as the previous wave) and troops are brought in, and expeditionary fleets are stationed in high orbit over every Achuultani population center while the number of patrols in the nearby systems is augmented (although only the frequency of the patrols increases, the ships remaining the same).
Should this fail as well the Bureau of Extermination will activate it’s own combat protocols, and deem the situation to start getting problematic. Battlecruisers and even more heavy cruisers are called up, as new waves of scout ships are sent, the expeditionary fleets become substantially deadlier and magneto-plasma drive level of technology starts appearing in the heavier starships and picket forces are placed at each jump point leading to an Achuultani systems, and minor fortifications are set up at the jump points. Overall the rate of patrols and aggressive reconnaissance raids increases as the expeditionary task forces remain on the same schedule, albeit significantly reinforced.
If the task forces remain unsuccessful, the matter is deemed critical, and the Bureau of Extermination steps down. For a few months, the raids slow down, then stops entirely as all Bureau forces withdraw, leaving only the fortifications, picket ships and orbital defence fleets untouched. And at long last, the Achuultani Fleet steps in.
Fortifications are quickly supplemented with much more capable stations, the grunts on the ground, that were until now holding their grounds with nothing more than simple body armor, assault riffles, a few autocanons and the odd STO, being joined by fleet marines, equipped with heavy armor, light to medium tanks, AA defences, a full complement of STOs and substantial artillery. The pickets are backed up with combat ready detachments and entire fleet task forces take up guard position in high orbit over Achuultani worlds.
Task Forces led by battlecruisers, supplemented with escort carriers carrying FACs and fighters, heavy cruisers and destroyers serving as escorts. Naval bases are established to resupply ships whose operational time and fuel reserves are significantly smaller than the one of their Bureau counterparts. Their technology is uniformly magneto-plasma drive level. Fleet Task Forces are significantly deadlier, boasting carrier capabilities, decent point defence with massed railguns and lasers, as well as much thicker armor and better shield generators.
Should those forces fail, the Achuultani Empire will stir once more, and rumble as the sleeping giant starts to wake up. Battleships ranging in the hundreds of thousands of tons are called up, lumbering behemots of incredible destructive power, joined by fleet carriers of equivalent tonnage, vast warfleets of ships being called up to support them. Massive fortresses are deployed to secure Achuultani worlds, and the Achuultani starts expanding, securing supply lines and establishing fleet bases and maintenance stations in key systems, with accompanying fleet marines detachment. Detachments and small picket forces are also stationed above each significant purified population center.
Were those massive fleets to falter, and be unable to finish their assignments, the Achuultani Empire will finally notice the tiny speck of dust calling itself an Empire defying it (or at least so they see it). The Fleet is reinforced by elements of the Achuultani Armada, vast super-battleships and siege carriers, as well as mobile motherships joining the attack fleets, technology improving substantially as patrols counting battlecruisers in their ranks starts deploying everywhere, waves of them attempting more reconnaissance and strikes on civilian shipping. Jump points are systematically fortified as space stations large enough to pass for large asteroids are towed in the orbit of Achuultani worlds, and new gates are assembled in controlled systems to increase the flow of ships and troops to the front lines. Imperial Marines, equipped with heavy tanks, extremely powerful STOs and scores of support systems are sent by the thousands to garrison systems. A vast invasion fleet is gathered, whose tonnage dwarves even moons, with millions of soldiers and dozens of capital ships accompanied with hundreds of escorts. And then, finally, the attack is launched.
Finally, it’s most capable warships shattered and it’s mightiest fleets now debris fields, the Achuultani Empire recoils. Horror dawns on them, and the giant wakes. Ancient data caches are unearthed, shielded worlds and massive fleet mothballs are opened. Cryogenic pods containing heroes of the Empire are thawed out, and warforges that have laid dormant for millions of years sputter back to life.
The Achuultani Empire is Awakened once more, and a new Great Crusade is declared.
A massive onslaught of warships is sent upon those who have defied the Achuultani, antimatter powered starships being sent to the frontlines by the dozens, sometimes the hundreds, and a long lost warship, a Nova class Super-Dreadnought, is reactivated. Crusaders detachments, genetically engineered super-soldiers clad in power armour, wielding weapons capable of vaporizing buildings, piloting super-heavy vehicles the size of skyscrappers and manning STOs capable of shredding even capital ships. A massive Invasion gate the size of a super-jovian is once more connected to the network, where the planet sized super-dreadnought stands watch over it like an immortal guardian. Nothing short of it’s annihilation capable of stemming the tide of death.
That is, until the Achuultani inevitably succomb to their greatest weakness.....themselves.
Crunch (The vague ideas in term of gameplay) :
Adds the Achuultani race.
An Achuultani colony can appear on an any planet with large quantities of oxygen, and will usually sport medium to low accessibility of very high quantities of multiple TN elements. Colonies can come in several sizes, which will determine the presence of the Achuultani in the system as well :
-Outpost : Only a Small Gate orbitting the planet and a couple of FACs, the population will be around 100 000, no industry.
-Colony : A Small Gate orbits the planet, with a squadron of FACs. Large amounts of mines and few CF. Population in the few millions.
-Rim World : A Small Gate orbits the planet, with several squadrons of FACs and a small amount of frigates and destroyers, large amounts of mines and a decent amount of CF, as well as 3 Civilian Mining colonies in the system. Population in the tens of millions.
-Civilized World : A Medium Gate orbits the planet, with several squadrons of frigates and destroyers, accompanied by a few cruisers. Fortresses already guard the planet’s orbit, albeit very low tech. Large amount of mines, a decent amount of CF, several financial centers, 3 to 10 Civilian Mining colonies in the system. Population in the hundred of million.
-Industrialized World : A Medium Gate orbits the planet, with squadrons of cruisers guarding the world. Fortresses supplemented by substantial ground forces are also in place, with small garrison in every extra-planetary settlements. Large mount of CF, decent amount of mines, lots of financial centers. Several satellite colonies of a few hundred thousands in population throughout the system. Population in the hundreds of millions.
-Member World : A Large Gate orbits the planet, with squadrons of battlecruisers, and perhaps a few capital ships, deployed in the system, backed up by large amounts of escorts. Fortresses are numerous and relatively advanced, and bolstered by a very large garrison, with detachments and additional stations scattered throughout the system. Incredible amount of CF, no mines, lots of financial centers, a few shipyards. Dozens of habitats and satellite colonies whose population totals in the tens of millions throughout the system. Population of the entire system around a billion.
Reinforcement Points :
The Achuultani do not build ships, instead, they get reinforcements through their gates, who are allocated based on the resources the system has. The more of CFs, mines, population and financial centers it has, the more Reinforcement Points (RP) it gets. Note that shipyards count for a lot in RP generation. This is for their systems however, has the waves function slightly differently.
Each RP is equivalent to a thousand tons of ship.
The waves essentially buy pre-made fleets and task forces, and direct them around. If a fleet or task force take losses, and manages to withdraw to a large enough gate, the AI then basically buys the ships it needs to refill the taskforce to it’s original strength, or close to it. All damaged ships are repaired at the gates, with a 1 month timer (to simulate ships being sent back to the shipyards while another is sent from the depths of the Empire, and all the bureaucratic shenanigans), and the AI can “recycle” fleets, refunding their RP cost by sending them through the portal, effectively deleting them, allowing for a recall of various task forces that are not doing the job, and trying a new strategy.
Similarly the defence budget is spent on fleets/task forces that are assigned at one of three posts : Picket, at which point it will either pick a jump point in the system without picket, preferably the one which leads to an NPR or player race, or reinforce the most lightly defended of the jump points.
Guard, where it will stand guard over the planet and (more importantly for the Empire) the gate.
Patrol, essentially meaning that they will randomly check either the adjacent systems, or even systems further down the jump chain periodically, essentially going to all the habitable bodies, the mineral rich ones(including sorium rich gas giants), and finally the jump points, in that order, before retreating back to base.
Or on stations, which can be either assigned to Jump point protection or the protection of the the Gate and the planet.
The Gates :
There are different types of gates, with different properties, as follow :
-Small Gate :
Maximum tonnage per ship able to transit : 3 000 tons.
Maximum total tonnage in a year : 90 000 tons.
-Medium Gate :
Maximum tonnage per ship able to transit : 90 000 tons.
Maximum total tonnage in a year : 700 000 tons.
-Large Gate :
Maximum tonnage per ship able to transit : 300 000 tons.
Maximum total tonnage in a year : 3 000 000 tons.
-Gargantuan Gate :
Note : Does not spawn, built by the Achuultani Fleet.
Maximum tonnage per ship able to transit : 600 000 tons.
Maximum total tonnage in a year : 9 000 000 tons.
-Invasion Gate :
Note : Has a 0.1% of spawning in any given system, replaces a super-jovian and has a Lagrange point. Only one per galaxy. If none have been discovered and the Great Crusade start, a system with one will be generated via a dormant jump point.
Maximum tonnage per ship able to transit : Infinite.
Maximum total tonnage in a year : Infinite.
All gates act as stations, that, if destroyed cease to function. The only exception is the Invasion Gate, who cannot be destroyed as it is a celestial body, destroying the orbiting Super-Dreadnought will shut it down though.
The waves :
Defence budget includes patrol and “home fleets” as well as static fortifications, it does not, however, include the innate defenses and resources of the system, who can reinforce their own militia according to their own capabilities.
There are several stages in the waves attack sent by the Achuultani, as follow :
-Unaware :
Attack waves annual budget : 0 RP
Defence annual budget : 0 RP
Tech level : Low.
Scouting Procedure :
Attack waves annual budget : 10 RP
Defence annual budget : 0 RP
Tech level : Low.
Expeditionary Units :
Attack waves annual budget : 30 RP
Defence annual budget : 10 RP
Tech level : Low.
Expeditonnary Task Forces :
Attack waves annual budget : 100 RP
Defence annual budget : 30 RP
Tech level : Low.
Expeditionnary Fleets :
Attack waves annual budget : 300 RP
Defence annual budget : 45 RP
Tech level : Low to Midline (larger ships are midline, the rest is low).
Achuultani Fleet Incursion :
Attack waves annual budget : 1 000 RP
Defence annual budget : 250 RP
Tech level : Midline
Achuultani Fleet Invasion :
Attack waves annual budget : 3 000 RP
Defence annual budget : 350 RP
Tech level : Midline to Midline+ (Battleships and Fleet Carriers being Magnetic Confinement Fusion Drive level, and the rest of the ships a more cospolitan mix of less advanced tech).
Achuultani Armada Intervention :
Attack waves annual budget : 10 000 RP
Defence annual budget : 3 000 RP
Tech level : High (first tier of antimatter).
Great Crusade :
Attack waves annual budget : 100 000 RP
Defence annual budget : 10 000 RP
Tech level : High.
Civil War :
Attack waves annual budget : 250 to 1 000 RP
Defence annual budget : 0 RP
Tech level : Low to Midline.
Note that the Great Crusade stops a few years after it’s inception, as the Achuultani Empire fall once more into civil war. The back of it’s war machine broken, they will withdraw all of their fleets and only send (or exile) warfleets of middling power compared to their once incomparable armadas. This is heavily inspired by the Great Khan mid-game crisis from Stellaris, where weathering the onslaught and holding on is an option as is going for the head of the problem (although you can surrender yourself to the Khan in Stellaris).
Now, all of those numbers are very much experimental, I do not have a big playing experience with Aurora, let alone the C# version (obviously), and I have no clue if this could even be implemented, it’s more of a proof of concept than anything :
TL;DR :
The Achuultani rely on a large number of low tech warships, and their main strength comes from sheer attrition, as they will keep sending waves after waves of starships until your empire is no more. Their technology might be easily reproducible (and complete rubbish at some points) but the point being that they should always be able to outproduce the player. They don’t have any form of tactics, except in the later waves, they just rush headlong into the enemy (they do have strategic planning though, and should try to alter fleet composition to counter the player’s according to their intelligence). They’re a mix between the AI in AI Wars from Arcen game and the Arachnid Omnivoracity, completely uncarring about their losses and having a virtually unlimited production capability, the only thing limiting them being the bureaucratic inertia and the decay and decadence of their own Empire.
Woo, okay, I’m done. Please be gentle with this, it’s just been one big brainstorm and I haven’t exactly been able to much refine it yet, but I felt like posting it to see what far more experience players are thinking would be a good idea. So, what are your thoughts ?