WARNING POSSIBLE SPOILERS WITHIN!!
Tales of the Union.
Consequences
16th September 30. Delta Aquilae. It was with a heavy heart Captain Newman turned the Discovery towards the Jump point to re-enter Avalon. He felt the thrust build as the engines developed their full 4500 k/s. Newman activated the optical link to view the alien home world one last time, it was a predominantly white sphere, as he looked at it a vertical line appeared on it which snapped open to reveal an eye staring at him, an arm stretched out from the planet, the clawed hand grasped the Discovery, The claws penetrated the duranium hull like it was tissue paper. A claw transfixed Newman to his command chair as the hand began to squeeze and crush the starship like a bug. System Director Ben Bruce woke with a start, he was covered in sweat. Another nightmare, of course if Newman had turned his ship for home things may have turned out differently.
6th March 32. Delta Aquilae. It was well over a year since Newman had made his fateful decision. Newman had activated his ansible as the Discovery slid into orbit of the alien home world, shields down to emphasise the Discovery was not a threat. The Council had listened to a replay of the audio transmission from the bridge as Newman began first contact procedures. He was interrupted by his sensor officer who informed him that the alien ships orbiting the planet had activated search sensors. This was rapidly followed by Newman exclaiming “they’ve fired on us, raise shields!” As the collision alarm wailed in the background the transmission cut off abruptly and no more was heard from the Discovery. They had received enough data from the Discovery before her loss the work out the alien language and had enough sigint to know they called themselves the Devaria Imperium. But more than that and the fact the aliens were hostile they knew nothing.
It was nearly time for him to rise and he wouldn’t get back to sleep after the nightmare anyway. The military–industrial complex was up and running, it was a little easier now with parts rolling off the production line. The bottleneck was ship propulsion, development of the new magneto-plasma drives was proving problematic and while savant Kane Austin was brilliant he just couldn’t handle more than fifteen research complexes at a time. Every day was full of anxiety; would the alien fleet come through today? The terraformer fleet at Excalibur was totally unprotected and represented an enormous investment. Gram itself only had two PDCs constructed over a decade earlier. And yesterday the day had come the aliens had found Avalon. On the 5th March 32 a ship of the Devaria Imperium has been detected in Avalon by the deep space tracking stations on Gram. The intelligence service has designated the vessel as the Selket 002. It appeared to be a small 2500 ton survey vessel. They could expect the alien fleet anytime soon. The question was would there be a Union fleet to oppose it?
3rd May 32 Avalon. Director Bruce attended an emergency session of the Clan Council and Planetary Coordinators. The Star Corps could have had a few ships by now but the Council had spent months arguing over the construction of warships, either to go with what tech we had or wait a little while for the improved engine and weapons tech to feed through. Commodore Sykes was the first to call for an immediate start to the building of warships and refit them later, he was not alone. All were concerned that all the Union had to defend itself with were two planetary defence bases on Gram. However there was considerable concern that the economy could not finance the building of a war fleet. But the alternative, subjugation or extermination by the Imperium was even more unpalatable. Thanks to Commodore Sykes’s support for weapons research it would be possible for the Union to build such vessels. Three classes of vessels were laid down, inadequate but the best the Union could do at short notice. All non-military construction was put on hold.
Argon class Escort 7,000 tons 537 Crew 1153 BP TCS 140 TH 600 EM 630
4285 km/s Armour 3-32 Shields 21-300 Sensors 18/1/0/0 Damage Control Rating 4 PPV 34.64
Maint Life 3.81 Years MSP 412 AFR 98% IFR 1.4% 1YR 45 5YR 668 Max Repair 105 MSP
Starr Idustries Ion Engine E8 (10) Power 60 Fuel Use 80% Signature 60 Armour 0 Exp 5%
Fuel Capacity 215,000 Litres Range 69.1 billion km (186 days at full power)
Beta R300/12 Shields (14) Total Fuel Cost 168 Litres per day
Triple Gauss Cannon R3-50 Turret (2x9) Range 30,000km TS: 30000 km/s Power 0-0 RM 3 ROF 5 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Fire Control S02 20-25000 (2) Max Range: 40,000 km TS: 25000 km/s 75 50 25 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Active Search Sensor MR28-R20 (1) GPS 2100 Range 28.2m km Resolution 20
Active Search Sensor MR6-R1 (1) GPS 56 Range 6.2m km Resolution 1
Thermal Sensor TH3-18 (1) Sensitivity 18 Detect Sig Strength 1000: 18m km
ECCM-1 (2) This design is classed as a Military Vessel for maintenance purposes Granite class Fast Attack Craft 1,000 tons 70 Crew 240.4 BP TCS 20 TH 120 EM 0
6000 km/s Armour 1-8 Shields 0-0 Sensors 1/1/0/0 Damage Control Rating 0 PPV 5.4
Maint Life 2.45 Years MSP 38 AFR 32% IFR 0.4% 1YR 9 5YR 131 Max Repair 105 MSP
Magazine 36
Power Tech GB Ion Engine E80 (1) Power 120 Fuel Use 800% Signature 120 Armour 0 Exp 15%
Fuel Capacity 55,000 Litres Range 12.4 billion km (23 days at full power)
Size 3 Box Launcher (12) Missile Size 3 Hangar Reload 22.5 minutes MF Reload 3.7 hours
Missile Fire Control FC33-R20 (1) Range 33.8m km Resolution 20
Flarestar (12) Speed: 30,000 km/s End: 16.7m Range: 30m km WH: 4 Size: 3 TH: 120 / 72 / 36
Active Search Sensor MR28-R20 (1) GPS 2100 Range 28.2m km Resolution 20
Missile to hit chances are vs targets moving at 3000 km/s, 5000 km/s and 10,000 km/s
This design is classed as a Military Vessel for maintenance purposesPhoenix class Missile Boat 7,000 tons 504 Crew 1225.05 BP TCS 140 TH 660 EM 600
4714 km/s Armour 3-32 Shields 20-300 Sensors 18/1/0/0 Damage Control Rating 4 PPV 19.2
Maint Life 4.44 Years MSP 438 AFR 98% IFR 1.4% 1YR 36 5YR 538 Max Repair 168 MSP
Magazine 128
Starr Industries Ion Engine E8 (11) Power 60 Fuel Use 80% Signature 60 Armour 0 Exp 5%
Fuel Capacity 155,000 Litres Range 49.8 billion km (122 days at full power)
Beta R300/12 Shields (13) Total Fuel Cost 156 Litres per day
CIWS-250 (1x6) Range 1000 km TS: 25000 km/s ROF 5 Base 50% To Hit
Size 4 Box Launcher (32) Missile Size 4 Hangar Reload 30 minutes MF Reload 5 hours
Missile Fire Control FC101-R20 (2) Range 101.4m km Resolution 20
Active Search Sensor MR60-R20 (1) GPS 3360 Range 60.1m km Resolution 20
Thermal Sensor TH3-18 (1) Sensitivity 18 Detect Sig Strength 1000: 18m km
This design is classed as a Military Vessel for maintenance purposes13th September 32. Avalon. The Endurance and Diligence (Discovery class jump ships) emerged from their construction bays in Gram orbit. The question now was what to do with them? They were essential to gain access to the Imperium home system but there were no warships to accompany them.
28th September 32. Avalon. The first seven Granite class FAC pulled out of the construction bays of the Star Glider ‘Yard in Gram orbit and formed No. 1 FAC Squadron.
13th December 32. Avalon. A Devaria Imperium ship of the Amathaunta class was detected entering the Avalon system. It has been designated as the Amathaunta 002. Its cross section indicated it massed some 67,350 tons. There was much consternation when this enormous ship from the Devaria Imperium appeared at the jump point to Delta Aquilae. The only thing the Union had of that size was the Gram class terraformers. Strangely it just stopped at the jump point. As a response Commodore Sykes proposed to send the Endurance to Delta Aquilae to complete the planetary survey and conduct a gravitational survey, but the Council balked at sending an unarmed ship into an enemy held system.
4th April 33. Avalon. Seven more Granite (Granite class) FAC built on Gram - Avalon-A II and assigned to No. 2 FAC Squadron.
24th April 33. Avalon. Argon, Xenon and Neon (Argon Mk I class) escorts built in Gram orbit and constituted the first real warships worthy of the name. These vessels were armed with the two of the latest triple gauss cannon turrets. Krypton, Radon and Helium were laid down. The completed ships were assigned to Task Group 1.
30th June 33. Avalon. Balrog, Basilisk and Centaur (Phoenix class MB) built on Gram - Avalon-A II and assigned to Task Group 1. These ships were armed with 32 ten ton Firestar missiles each armed with five-kiloton warheads. The vessels’ principal drawback was the inability to replenish while underway, requiring the aid of maintenance facilities small craft to reload their missile tubes. Cyclops, Chimera and Cerberus were laid down.
5th August 33. Avalon. A research team on Gram - Avalon-A II led by Savant Kane Austin completed development work on the Starr Industries Magneto-plasma Drive E6.6. All current designs were scheduled to be refitted to the new standard.
Argon Mk II class Escort 7,000 tons 533 Crew 1472 BP TCS 140 TH 420 EM 720
6000 km/s Armour 3-32 Shields 24-300 Sensors 18/1/0/0 Damage Control Rating 4 PPV 34.64
Maint Life 3.95 Years MSP 526 AFR 98% IFR 1.4% 1YR 54 5YR 806 Max Repair 96 MSP
Starr Industries Magneto-plasma Drive E6.6 (10) Power 84 Fuel Use 66% Signature 42 Armour 0 Exp 7%
Fuel Capacity 230,000 Litres Range 89.6 billion km (172 days at full power)
Beta R300/12 Shields (16) Total Fuel Cost 192 Litres per day
Triple Gauss Cannon R3-50 Turret (2x9) Range 30,000km TS: 30000 km/s Power 0-0 RM 3 ROF 5 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Fire Control S02 20-25000 (2) Max Range: 40,000 km TS: 25000 km/s 75 50 25 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Active Search Sensor MR6-R1 (1) GPS 56 Range 6.2m km Resolution 1
Active Search Sensor MR36-R19 (1) GPS 1463 Range 36.9m km Resolution 19
Thermal Sensor TH3-18 (1) Sensitivity 18 Detect Sig Strength 1000: 18m km
ECCM-1 (2) This design is classed as a Military Vessel for maintenance purposes Phoenix Mk II class Missile Boat 7,000 tons 469 Crew 1408.45 BP TCS 140 TH 420 EM 600
6000 km/s Armour 3-32 Shields 20-300 Sensors 18/1/0/0 Damage Control Rating 3 PPV 27.6
Maint Life 3.8 Years MSP 377 AFR 130% IFR 1.8% 1YR 41 5YR 615 Max Repair 126 MSP
Magazine 184
Starr Industries Magneto-plasma Drive E6.6 (10) Power 84 Fuel Use 66% Signature 42 Armour 0 Exp 7%
Fuel Capacity 210,000 Litres Range 81.8 billion km (157 days at full power)
Beta R300/12 Shields (13) Total Fuel Cost 156 Litres per day
CIWS-250 (1x6) Range 1000 km TS: 25000 km/s ROF 5 Base 50% To Hit
Size 4 Box Launcher (46) Missile Size 4 Hangar Reload 30 minutes MF Reload 5 hours
Missile Fire Control FC64-R19 (2) Range 64.4m km Resolution 19
Active Search Sensor MR60-R19 (1) GPS 2394 Range 60.4m km Resolution 19
Thermal Sensor TH3-18 (1) Sensitivity 18 Detect Sig Strength 1000: 18m km
ECCM-1 (2) ECM 10
This design is classed as a Military Vessel for maintenance purposes Sandstone class Fast Attack Craft 1,000 tons 53 Crew 247.3 BP TCS 20 TH 84 EM 0
8400 km/s Armour 1-8 Shields 0-0 Sensors 1/1/0/0 Damage Control Rating 0 PPV 8.55
Maint Life 3.05 Years MSP 39 AFR 32% IFR 0.4% 1YR 6 5YR 94 Max Repair 77 MSP
Magazine 57
Celesteon GB Magneto-plasma Drive E66 (1) Power 168 Fuel Use 660% Signature 84 Armour 0 Exp 21%
Fuel Capacity 55,000 Litres Range 15.0 billion km (20 days at full power)
Size 3 Box Launcher (19) Missile Size 3 Hangar Reload 22.5 minutes MF Reload 3.7 hours
Missile Fire Control FC36-R19 (1) Range 36.2m km Resolution 19
Flarestar (12) Speed: 30,000 km/s End: 16.7m Range: 30m km WH: 4 Size: 3 TH: 120 / 72 / 36
Active Search Sensor MR36-R19 (1) GPS 1463 Range 36.9m km Resolution 19
Missile to hit chances are vs targets moving at 3000 km/s, 5000 km/s and 10,000 km/s
This design is classed as a Military Vessel for maintenance purposes1st October 33. Avalon. The Union fell into 663 billions of debt it could not service, financial crisis! Industry ground to a halt. An emergency fiscal package to refinance the Union was introduced. There was rising anger in the populous at the war with the Imperium which forced an arms build up which in turn stretched the Unions finances to breaking point and beyond.
29th January 34. Gram. Disaster threatened! A Devarian Imperium fleet had been detected on a direct line of approach to Gram. . The alien fleet consisted of four vessels; three of one class designated Ra Class, Ra 002, Ra 003 and Ra 004, and one Chert Class, Chert 002, all massing 14,400 tons, much larger than the Union warships which were still in the orbital ‘Yard bays, undergoing refit or still under construction. The Imperial warships did not appear to mass enough for troop carriers so the conclusion was the Imperium had decided to exterminate the Union. All the Union had in its defence was its planetary defence centres. If the Union survived the Imperium would pay for this decision.
Planetary Defence Centres of the Union of Avalon. Bastion class Planetary Defence Centre 55,850 tons 2913 Crew 7456.2 BP TCS 1117 TH 0 EM 0
Armour 24-130 Sensors 150/1050 Damage Control Rating 0 PPV 194.64
Troop Capacity: 5 Battalions Magazine 3610
Triple R1.5/C3 Meson Cannon Turret (2x3) Range 15,000km TS: 30000 km/s Power 9-9 RM 1.5 ROF 5 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
CIWS-250 (4x6) Range 1000 km TS: 25000 km/s ROF 5 Base 50% To Hit
PDC Fire Control S01 15-25000 (2) Max Range: 30,000 km TS: 25000 km/s 67 33 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Gas-Cooled Fast Reactor Technology PB-1 (4) Total Power Output 18 Armour 0 Exp 5%
Size 15 Missile Launcher (10) Missile Size 15 Rate of Fire 150
Size 1 Missile Launcher (10) Missile Size 1 Rate of Fire 10
Missile Fire Control FC101-R20 (2) Range 101.4m km Resolution 20
Missile Fire Control FC5-R1 (2) Range 5.3m km Resolution 1
Mace (200) Speed: 22,000 km/s End: 62.5m Range: 82.5m km WH: 16 Size: 15 TH: 73 / 44 / 22
Arrow (610) Speed: 31,800 km/s End: 2.3m Range: 4.5m km WH: 1 Size: 1 TH: 212 / 127 / 63
Active Search Sensor MR630-R100 (1) GPS 105000 Range 630.0m km Resolution 100
Active Search Sensor MR5-R1 (1) GPS 84 Range 5.0m km Resolution 1
Active Search Sensor MR28-R20 (1) GPS 2100 Range 28.2m km Resolution 20
Thermal Sensor TH25-150 (1) Sensitivity 150 Detect Sig Strength 1000: 150m km
EM Detection Sensor EM25-150 (1) Sensitivity 150 Detect Sig Strength 1000: 150m km
Missile to hit chances are vs targets moving at 3000 km/s, 5000 km/s and 10,000 km/s
This design is classed as a Planetary Defence Centre and can be pre-fabricated in 23 sectionsFort Mk I class Planetary Defence Centre 19,700 tons 1110 Crew 2743.7 BP TCS 394 TH 0 EM 0
Armour 19-64 Sensors 18/126 Damage Control Rating 0 PPV 94.64
Troop Capacity: 1 Battalion Magazine 1560
Triple R1.5/C3 Meson Cannon Turret (2x3) Range 15,000km TS: 30000 km/s Power 9-9 RM 1.5 ROF 5 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
CIWS-250 (2x6) Range 1000 km TS: 25000 km/s ROF 5 Base 50% To Hit
PDC Fire Control S01 15-25000 (2) Max Range: 30,000 km TS: 25000 km/s 67 33 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Gas-Cooled Fast Reactor Technology PB-1 (4) Total Power Output 18 Armour 0 Exp 5%
Size 1 Missile Launcher (10) Missile Size 1 Rate of Fire 10
Size 5 Missile Launcher (10) Missile Size 5 Rate of Fire 50
Missile Fire Control FC5-R1 (2) Range 5.3m km Resolution 1
Missile Fire Control FC33-R20 (2) Range 33.8m km Resolution 20
Arrow (560) Speed: 31,800 km/s End: 2.3m Range: 4.5m km WH: 1 Size: 1 TH: 212 / 127 / 63
Novastar (200) Speed: 29,400 km/s End: 30.6m Range: 54m km WH: 5 Size: 5 TH: 107 / 64 / 32
Active Search Sensor MR33-R20 (1) GPS 2520 Range 33.8m km Resolution 20
Active Search Sensor MR5-R1 (1) GPS 84 Range 5.0m km Resolution 1
Thermal Sensor TH3-18 (1) Sensitivity 18 Detect Sig Strength 1000: 18m km
Missile to hit chances are vs targets moving at 3000 km/s, 5000 km/s and 10,000 km/s
This design is classed as a Planetary Defence Centre and can be pre-fabricated in 8 sections30th January 34. Gram. To give the terraformer fleet some protection No. 1 FAC Squadron consisting of seven Granite class FAC moved to Excalibur. The loss of the terraformers would represent the loss of years of effort and would severely dent the morale of the population.
1st February 34. Gram. It was a clear evening as System Director Bruce stared skyward watching as the contrails of the Mace anti-ship missiles streamed spaceward from the Bastion PDC, The Devarian’s were within 82 million klicks from Gram, still on a direct approach having totally ignored the terraformer fleet. This had enabled the First FAC Squadron to be recalled to Gram so there was some defence in depth for the home planet.
Each enemy vessel had ten Mace targeted at it, launched in salvos of five. But the targets had to be engaged sequentially, as the Bastion PDC had only ten launchers, if the Devarian’s had any AMM defences worthy of the name then things looked bleak, the Bastion PDC’s rate-of-fire was every two-and-a-half minutes. An hour later sixteen kiloton warheads detonated around Ra 002. The orbital telescopes were focused on the approaching alien menace. One missile was observed to come apart and fragment, but the remaining four of the first salvo bore in. Actinic pinpoints of fusion fire blotted out Ra 002 which suddenly flared brighter still, when all cleared only a shattered wreck remained, the second salvo was not needed and without onboard sensors self destructed. Later analysis showed that a lucky hit had touched off the enemy cruisers magazine which had undergone a sympathetic detonation.
Two-and-a-half minutes later it was Ra 003’s turn, it took all ten missiles but it fared no better than Ra 002, torn apart by nuclear fire its wreckage strewn across the heavens. Another two-and-a-half minutes and Ra 004 joined its sisters, rent by exploding warheads and reduced to so much scrap. Only Chert 002 survived the initial missile salvos managing to claw an entire five missile salvo out of space, but it was still severely damaged, gouts of atmosphere were observed erupting from the damaged ship. Two more salvos were launched at the stricken ship, another ten missiles inbound. An hour later they rushed upon their target. Four were shattered by AMM fire, but that still left six and Devarian ships did not appear to be strongly built. A rash of explosions covered the enemy hull, large chunks of which detached themselves, until a secondary explosion rent the hull in two. So ended the first Imperial expedition against the Union. The Union had come through with flying colours. The gratitude of rescued Devarian survivors showed itself as one technician provided technical details of Max Jump Squadron Size – 4.
27th April 34. Avalon. Savant Connor Power, Chief astronomer for the Union and an expert in sensor systems was killed in an alleged accident. The popular press ran scurrilous stories alleging an Imperial agent was implicated in the death. In fact a more prosaic cause of death could have been a simple malfunction in the power supply to the new sensor suite under development. The incident built on the continued public unease at the war with the Imperium, a war the Union seemed totally unprepared for.
13th September 34. Avalon. The escorts Argon Krypton Helium completed their refitted in Gram -orbit to the Argon Mk II configuration. The first warships considered fit to face the Imperial foe.
2nd May 34. Avalon. The Union’s fiscal package finally kicked in and the Union pulled slowly out of debt. Industrial output soared on the back of orders for ships, ship components and other military hardware.
5th January 35. Avalon. Seven Sandstone Class FAC finished building in Gram orbit and were assigned to No. 3 Squadron. All Granite class FAC are to be refitted to this standard. The first seven were taken in hand immediately the new craft left the bays.
8th March 35. Avalon. Balrog, Basilisk and Centaur completed their refit in Gram orbit to the new Phoenix Mk II configuration. Cerberus, Chimera and Cyclops entered the ‘Yards for their refit to the new standard.
28th March 35. Avalon. Nitrogen, Oxygen and Chlorine completed on Gram - Avalon-A II to the new Argon Mk II class and assigned to Task Group 1 along with the newly refitted missile boats. Neon, Radon and Xenon entered the ‘Yards for refit.
28th April 35. Avalon. Retooling for Spire class advanced missile frigate design completed at the Storm Industries ’Yard in Gram orbit. Construction of the first three missile frigates started. Seven new Sandstone class FAC joined the fleet as No. 4 FAC Squadron.
4th May 35. Avalon. A new ship of the Selket class from the Devaria Imperium was detected in Avalon. Union intelligence service designated the new ship as the Selket 003.
9th June 35. Avalon. The ice sheet on Excalibur melted. The great enterprise continued even in these strained times. But there was little rejoicing, the war overshadowed everything.
4th June 35. Avalon. Xenon, Radon and Neon completed their refit in Gram orbit to Argon Mk II class standard.
19th July 35. Gliese 818. While waiting for the war fleet to be constructed the exploration ships Endeavour and Diligence continued to explore systems close to Avalon. Exploration of a jump point in the Beta Aquilae system revealed the new system of Gliese 818, a K5-v star with three planets and two moons, but nothing of overriding interest.
Avalon Cerberus, Chimera and Cyclops refitted in Gram orbit to the Phoenix Mk II class.
11th August 35. Wolf 906. Exploration of a second jump point in the Beta Aquilae system by Endurance revealed the new system of Wolf 906, an unprepossessing system, three planets, a handful of asteroids, a few comets and nothing of value.
25th August 35. Beta Aquilae. The jump ship Diligence was exploring a jump point out of Beta Aquilae when it discovered the system of Kuiper 99, a binary system of a K4-v and a K8-v, the K8 B component had an HI 0 planet while the A component had a planet orbiting it with an HI of 1.9. With no further Imperial incursions Star Corps HQ decided to use a trip to Kuiper 99 as a shakedown cruise for the Task Group as well as establishing whether the HI 0 planet in the B component was already occupied, and if so by whom? If not it might provide a bolt hole if one was required.
18th October 35. Avalon. Seven more Sandstone class FAC built in Gram orbit and assigned to No. 5 FAC Squadron.
12th November 35. Kuiper 99. Task Group 1 consisting of the jump ships Diligence and Endurance, fleet scout Searcher, missile boats Balrog, Basilisk, Centaur, Cerberus, Chimera and Cyclops with the escorts Argon, Helium, Krypton, Neon, Radon, Nitrogen, Oxygen, Chlorine and Xenon arrived in the Kuiper 99 system and used an intrasystem jump to reach Kuiper 99-B via a LaGrange point. Just after the Task Group arrived at the B component the Searcher’s threat board lit up with two large alien contacts, 13,400 tons each, 330 million klicks distant, given the reporting name Tranmotana. Group Commander Ewan Lees in the Centaur decided that they had enough time to check out the planet before the new aliens arrived.
16th November 35. Kuiper 99. Kuiper 99-B II was empty, the aliens never arrived and disappeared off Searcher’s sensors. Another alien race to deal with! This time apparently, a shy one. The Diligence returned to Avalon with the news. There was a dearth of sigint to work with for the new race.
22nd December 35. Avalon. The Argon Mk II escorts Hydrogen Sodium and Fluorine completed in Gram orbit. They will be assigned to Task Group 1.
27th December 35. Avalon. Spire, Arête and Buttress (Spire class FG) finished building in Gram orbit and were assigned to Task Group 1. These vessels could be replenished while on operations and carried more than double the number of missiles of the Phoenix class MBs. However their individual salvos were only approximately a fifth of that of the Phoenix class alpha strike. A further complication was the Union had no fleet auxiliaries with which to resupply the Spire class FGs. There was also the small problem that they massed a thousand tons greater than the Jump ships, an oversight that was hard to explain! It would render them useless for a foray into Delta Aquilae! It was determined that the late addition of the electronic warfare systems were in the most part responsible for the increase in mass. However the consequences could be dire.
Spire class Missile Frigate 11,000 tons 1120 Crew 2171.85 BP TCS 220 TH 672 EM 630
6109 km/s Armour 3-44 Shields 21-300 Sensors 18/1/0/0 Damage Control Rating 15 PPV 40
Maint Life 3.35 Years MSP 617 AFR 193% IFR 2.7% 1YR 83 5YR 1250 Max Repair 126 MSP
Magazine 415
Starr Industries Magneto-plasma Drive E6.6 (16) Power 84 Fuel Use 66% Signature 42 Armour 0 Exp 7%
Fuel Capacity 240,000 Litres Range 59.5 billion km (112 days at full power)
Beta R300/12 Shields (14) Total Fuel Cost 168 Litres per day
CIWS-250 (1x6) Range 1000 km TS: 25000 km/s ROF 5 Base 50% To Hit
Size 4 Missile Launcher (10) Missile Size 4 Rate of Fire 30
Missile Fire Control FC64-R19 (2) Range 64.4m km Resolution 19
Firestar (104) Speed: 25,500 km/s End: 34.9m Range: 53.4m km WH: 5 Size: 4 TH: 93 / 56 / 28
Active Search Sensor MR60-R19 (1) GPS 2394 Range 60.4m km Resolution 19
Thermal Sensor TH3-18 (1) Sensitivity 18 Detect Sig Strength 1000: 18m km
ECCM-1 (2) ECM 10
Missile to hit chances are vs targets moving at 3000 km/s, 5000 km/s and 10,000 km/s
This design is classed as a Military Vessel for maintenance purposes22nd January 36. Avalon. The missile boats Djinn, Daemon and Devil (Phoenix Mk II class) completed in Gram orbit. They joined Task Group 1.
11th February 36. Avalon. Another Imperial vessel of the Selket class was detected surveying Avalon System. Marshal Sykes was loath to reveal the Unions capabilities prior to a fleet engagement and let it go on about its business.
16th February 36, Avalon. Seven more Sandstone class FAC built in Gram orbit and assigned to No. 6 FAC Squadron.
12th March 36. Avalon. For the second time a large Imperial fleet was detected entering Avalon system. It consisted of Ra 005, 006, 007 of 14,400 tons, Athor 002 and 003 of 14.400 tons, Chert 003 of 14,400 tons, Ankt 002 of 14,400 tons, TheNeb-Ti 002 of 14,350 tons, Isis 002 of 7,200 tons and Tefrut 002 of 7,150 tons. The Clan Council demanded that the alien menace be dealt with once and for all, now the Star Corps had its warships, starting with this current incursion. Planetary Coordinator Connor pointed out that the Star Corps largest warship was only 11,000 tons and they had but three of them. But the Clan Chiefs were adamant, the Star Corps had an additional dozen Argon Mk II class escorts and nine Phoenix class missile boats all of seven thousand tons each plus forty-two FACs. This meant the Corps comfortably out massed the Devarian Imperium fleet, 222,000 tons to 129,500 tons; it was time to teach them a lesson not to trifle with the Union. The populous had started becoming nervous with the talk of an Imperial invasion and the discovery of yet another alien race and was demanding action. Should Excalibur be lost, an ideal planet for the Imperials, then revolution was inevitable, so much treasure and political capital had been poured into the project. Finally System Director Bruce had no option but to inform Marshal Sykes of the decision and order the Star Corps to commence open hostilities against the Devarian Imperium.
Task Group 1, consisting of the jump ships Endurance and Diligence, fleet scout Searcher, missile frigates Spire, Arête and Buttress, missile boats Balrog, Basilisk, Centaur, Cerberus, Chimera, Cyclops, Djinn, Daemon and Devil with the escorts Argon Helium Krypton Neon Radon, Nitrogen, Oxygen, Chlorine, Xenon, Hydrogen, Sodium and Fluorine left Gram orbit and headed out towards its fate with Group Commander Ewan Lees in command.
29th March 36. Avalon. Thus it was that the Union Star Corps met the Imperial Devarian fleet 1040 million klicks from Gram. Group Commander Lees had every spaceworthy vessel in the Union inventory under his command. Every vessel in the alien fleet was targeted and the order to open fire was given, entire squadrons of FAC targeted each of the enemy 14,400 ton cruisers, others had two Phoenix class MBs target them. The unsuspecting Imperials had been allowed to close to seven million klicks before the Star Corps warships opened fire, they didn’t appear to even be aware of the presence of the Union fleet. Five minutes later the dark of space was speckled with brief new stars as missiles immolated themselves around their targets. Ships broke apart spilling their contents into the void. No point defence fire was noted. In all 1426 missiles were expended, however, only 370 were required to utterly obliterate the Devaria Imperium ships. The rescue of life pods again proved its worth as grateful alien survivors provided some astronomical data and more importantly the schematics of the Colossus class cruiser as well as astrogation data on Omicron Aquilae. It was obvious that the Union offensive had caught the Imperials completely by surprise.
Colossus class Strike Cruiser 21,600 tons 1985 Crew 2320.6 BP TCS 432 TH 960 EM 0
2222 km/s Armour 5-69 Shields 0-0 Sensors 18/6/0/0 Damage Control Rating 12 PPV 98
Maint Life 3.79 Years MSP 806 AFR 311% IFR 4.3% 1YR 88 5YR 1319 Max Repair 96 MSP
Magazine 1313
Nuclear Pulse Engine E9 (24) Power 40 Fuel Use 90% Signature 40 Armour 0 Exp 5%
Fuel Capacity 300,000 Litres Range 27.8 billion km (144 days at full power)
CIWS-120 (4x4) Range 1000 km TS: 12000 km/s ROF 5 Base 50% To Hit
Size 7 Missile Launcher (14) Missile Size 7 Rate of Fire 105
Missile Fire Control FC45-R62 (2) Range 45.3m km Resolution 62
Active Search Sensor MR45-R62 (1) GPS 5952 Range 45.4m km Resolution 62
Thermal Sensor TH3-18 (1) Sensitivity 18 Detect Sig Strength 1000: 18m km
EM Detection Sensor EM1-6 (1) Sensitivity 6 Detect Sig Strength 1000: 6m km
This design is classed as a Military Vessel for maintenance purposes3rd April 36. Delta Aquilae. The Star Corps vessels returned to Gram, reloaded their launchers and set out for Delta Aquilae. Two FAC squadrons stayed in the inner system, No. 5 Squadron set about chasing down the Devarian survey vessel. While No. 4 and 6 Squadron protected Gram, No. 1, 2 and 3 squadrons picketed the Avalon end of the jump point. Much to Group Commander Lees surprise the jump point to Delta Aquilae was already open without the presence of a jump ship. The implication of this was he did not have to leave his frigates behind, even if they could not return to Avalon. There was fresh speculation on the purpose of the large Imperial Amathaunta class ship which loitered for so long at the jump point before disappearing off sensor screens. The Task Group entered the Delta Aquilae system and it was with some relief that they found the other end of the wormhole was also open and remained so without a jump ship present. This simplified Group Commander Lee’s task immensely, he no longer had to station a jump ship and escort at the jump point to enable him to resupply his missile boats. He detached the jump ship Diligence back to Gram with the intelligence.
14th April 36. Delta Aquilae. 14.8 million klicks from the jump point the Devarian ship Anhur 002, 7200 tons, was detected on an intercept course. Djinn emptied her missile tubes at her and just over 6 minutes later Anhur 002 was overwhelmed and joined the rest of the Devarian fleet in oblivion. The Djinn returned to Gram to reload her missile tubes while the rest of the fleet moved towards Delta Aquilae-A IV, the planet all suspected was the Imperial home world.
19th April 36. Delta Aquilae. 08:53. The Devarian vessel Ahemait 002, 21,600 tons was detected approaching the Task Group. The dice were already loaded against it as the Union knew the full capabilities of the ship; it was a Colossus class cruiser. Union missiles comfortably outranged Ahemait 002’s own fire control system.
13:13 The MBs Daemon and Devil targeted the enemy cruiser. Devil fired first, but its missiles alone were insufficient to destroy Ahemait 002, it required Daemon to add her missiles to the attack to destroy the Devarian ship. Only 7 missiles of the first salvo were taken out by Ahemait 002’s defences. It was rent by nuclear detonations, atmosphere streamed from gaping wounds in the hull. The second salvo charged in thirty seconds later, with no defences left the battered ship was overwhelmed and broke up under the shock of over forty, five-kiloton warheads exploding close in against the hull.
Rescued crew provided details of a the Imperials Tobryn Anti-ship Missile: Size 5, Speed 24800 km/s, Warhead 5, Range 8.7792m km. Devil and Daemon were detached to return to Gram and reload, their empty tubes.
22nd April 36. Avalon. No. 5 FAC squadron finally tracked down Selket 003 at Arges, Avalon-A VII, Sandstone 020 launched 19 Flarestar missiles at it and the little ship disappeared in a nuclear storm. A few life pods were recovered.
23rd April 36. Delta Aquilae. 2710 million klicks from the jump point the Task Group detected 25 Khnum class, 950 ton, fast attack craft closing on their position. Group Commander Ewan Lees had the Spire class target one with each launch of their ten launchers, while the six remaining Phoenix class FGs targeted one enemy FAC with eight tubes each. Within three firing cycles all the enemy FAC had been targeted and had incoming. 25 minutes after the missile launches the star field erupted with pinpoints of actinic light as nuclear warheads detonated and the Devarian FAC began to explode. In the space of three and a half minutes the entire Devarian force was eliminated without firing a shot.
Rescued Devarian crew provided details of the Marcus class destroyer. Anhur 002 intercepted near the entry jump point was probably of this class. It was becoming evident that the Imperials were not as technologically advanced as the Union.
Marcus class Destroyer Escort 7,200 tons 484 Crew 850.6 BP TCS 144 TH 320 EM 0
2222 km/s Armour 3-33 Shields 0-0 Sensors 6/1/0/0 Damage Control Rating 4 PPV 56.52
Maint Life 2.93 Years MSP 295 AFR 103% IFR 1.4% 1YR 51 5YR 763 Max Repair 96 MSP
Nuclear Pulse Engine E9 (8) Power 40 Fuel Use 90% Signature 40 Armour 0 Exp 5%
Fuel Capacity 600,000 Litres Range 166.7 billion km (868 days at full power)
Twin Gauss Cannon R2-100 Turret (3x4) Range 20,000km TS: 12000 km/s Power 0-0 RM 2 ROF 5 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Fire Control S04 24-12000 (1) Max Range: 48,000 km TS: 12000 km/s 79 58 38 17 0 0 0 0 0 0
Active Search Sensor MR5-R1 (1) GPS 96 Range 5.8m km Resolution 1
Thermal Sensor TH1-6 (1) Sensitivity 6 Detect Sig Strength 1000: 6m km
This design is classed as a Military Vessel for maintenance purposes The Task Group picked up thermal emission of the Devarian home world, 3222 million klicks away. Group Commander Lees was becoming concerned at the expenditure of ordnance. Having to detach his missile boats to rearm was becoming a worry. After the last action the remaining six Phoenix class MBs had only 132 Firestar missiles left after the Task Group started with nine MBs and 414 missiles.
30th April 36. Delta Aquilae. Two ships of the Anuket class, 33,750 tons, possibly freighters, were detected, followed shortly by the detection of five Anqet class bases, 14,200 tons, and two Bakha class bases, 13,950 tons, in orbit of Devaria. A few hours later nine GebandNut class, 21,050 tons, probably colony transports, were detected on approach to the planet.
2nd May 36. Delta Aquilae. Group Commander Lees decided to expend the remainder of the Phoenix class MBs ordnance in a trial attack of the presumed orbital assets of Delta Aquilae-A IV.
The first test of the Imperial defences commenced. Missiles targeted at Anqet 002 and 003 and Bakha 002 left their launchers on the six Phoenix class MBs, which then headed for Gram to rearm. The three Spire class targeted a further Anget class base. After a couple of minutes firing the Spire class FGs magazines ran dry. They in their turn were detached to return to Gram and rearm leaving a dozen Argon class escorts in Delta Aquilae. The attack had succeeded in destroying three Anget and one Bakha orbital base. But now Group Commander Lees was left to watch the Imperial transports ply their trade with no way of effectively interfering without running the hazard of the remaining bases.
12th May 36. Delta Aquilae. The MB Djinn returned to the fleet, providing the only long-range fire power the Task Group possessed.
16th May 36. Avalon. The carrier Emperor left the Union Shipworks ‘Yard and joined the fleet. It embarked No. 1 FAC Squadron (now consisting of nine FAC) and proceeded to Delta Aquilae and the Task Group.
Ruler class Carrier 25,000 tons 1383 Crew 4142.05 BP TCS 500 TH 1260 EM 90
5040 km/s Armour 3-76 Shields 3-300 Sensors 18/1/0/0 Damage Control Rating 14 PPV 0
Maint Life 3.55 Years MSP 1450 AFR 357% IFR 5% 1YR 177 5YR 2651 Max Repair 126 MSP
Hangar Deck Capacity 10000 tons Magazine 375
Starr Industries Magneto-plasma Drive E6.6 (30) Power 84 Fuel Use 66% Signature 42 Armour 0 Exp 7%
Fuel Capacity 1,625,000 Litres Range 177.3 billion km (407 days at full power)
Beta R300/12 Shields (2) Total Fuel Cost 24 Litres per day
CIWS-250 (3x6) Range 1000 km TS: 25000 km/s ROF 5 Base 50% To Hit
Active Search Sensor MR60-R19 (1) GPS 2394 Range 60.4m km Resolution 19
Thermal Sensor TH3-18 (1) Sensitivity 18 Detect Sig Strength 1000: 18m km
This design is classed as a Military Vessel for maintenance purposes9th June 36. Delta Aquilae. The fleet had finally regained some fire power as Devil and Daemon rejoined the Task Group and the C V Emperor had added the weight of its FAC squadron to the mix. There were only three bases left. The Sandstone class FAC, Granite 01-09, targeted the three remaining bases and opened fire. Space dissolved around the unfortunate bases as 171 four-kiloton warheads went off amongst them, Hull plates simply evaporated, spears of plasma gutted the interiors, melted machinery and bodies alike and vomited the debris into space. Within a few seconds all that was left was wreckage.
19th June 36. Delta Aquilae. The CV Emperor and its FAC squadron moved to Delta Aquilae-A III to provide top cover while ground forces freed from any orbital interference invaded the Imperial colony on the planet. Union forces were present in overwhelming force but the defence of the colony by the Imperial units dug in around the colony outworks was dogged. There was only desultory skirmishing in the first few days, although an Imperial Garrison battalion took ten per cent casualties. Then towards the end of the week the fighting became more serious and a second Imperial Garrison battalion received 30% + casualties.
25th June 36. Delta Aquilae-A III. The Union forces tightened the noose around the Imperial colony, a determined push by Union armour caught two Imperial Garrison battalions and both took in excess of 40% losses.
1st July 36. Delta Aquilae-A III. One after another three Imperial battalions crumbled and disintegrated, two Garrison battalions and an Engineering brigade were utterly destroyed in the harsh conditions on the planet, the extreme temperatures taking their toll of the Imperials, for them it was the equivalent of fighting in a steaming jungle, even though the temperature was a chilly 248
oK. Now there was only one Imperial unit left holed up in a redoubt in what was once the centre of the former colony.
7th July 36. Delta Aquilae-A III. The final Imperial battalion on Delta Aquilae-A III capitulated and all effective resistance finished. All that was left now was to clear out the last few hold-outs who refused to surrender. The Union now had a base of operations within Delta Aquilae.
In the orbit of Delta Aquilae-AIV there was a stir as a Khnum class FAC emerged from the Imperial shipyards and targeted the besieging Union fleet. It was quickly targeted by the Argon class escorts, but not quickly enough. Within seconds of the Khnum’s emergence it loosed three missiles at the CV Emperor, but its CIWS took them all out effortlessly. The nine Argon class escorts woke up and opened a withering fire with their gauss cannon, literally shredding the small 950 ton vessel, pieces flew off the vessel and seconds later only a shattered wreck remained of the brave craft.
13th July 36. Delta Aquilae-A III. Major General Ford, CIC Union Expeditionary Force, took the formal surrender of the small Imperial enclave on Delta Aquilae-A III. All the while Union transports had been landing brigades on Devaria itself preparatory to a ground war.
5th August 36. Delta Aquilae-A IV. Major General Ford, reckoned having established a bridgehead on Delta Aquilae-A IV he now had enough troops on the ground to start the campaign against the Imperial home world.
End of Part Two.
