Imperial Naval Intelligence Report, Encounter with “Archer” Aliens on September 2, 2110
Analysis of Alpha class Archer ship:
Actual tonnage: 7,300, apparent tonnage per active sensors - 730
Observed Speed: 5,639 km/s
Armament: 1xRaigun, ROF 15, max known range 158,000 km
Thermal Signature: 198
Armor: Light, potentially basic armor coverage
The Archer Alpha class does not appear to be a purpose-built warship. It is lightly armed and has only minimal armor, which, given its size, indicates that it has another purpose, perhaps either a scout or survey vessel. Additional analysis will be performed after the wreck is salvaged.
November, 2110: The Guard position on Io has been reinforced to include a full Territorial Division, twenty-seven surface to orbit laser batteries, eighteen STO plasma batteries, and thirty-five point-defense laser batteries.
September, 2111: Work is complete on the new magneto-plasma engines, but refits for the warship classes are delayed while new sensors are developed to improve detecting and targeting the alien ships.
January, 2112: The Empire’s first orbital missile base has been deployed. The Aggressor class is 9,813 tons, has heavy armor, and mounts fifty box launchers equipped with the newly developed Archer Anti-Ship Missile, and ten anti-missile missile launchers for the Shrike AMM. The Archer ASM has a range of 71 mkm’s and a speed of 17,500 km/s.
February 2112: The jump gate network to the V1216 Sagittarii system has been completed. The stabilization ship has moved on to the Lalande system to complete the link there, but the Empire’s plans to establish a fueling and military base in the Sagittarii system can now move forward. Troop ships are dispatched to the innermost moon of the system’s inner super Jovian to drop off STO units to protect the base and the fuel ships that will eventually be sent there.
March, 2112: R&D is complete and the new ship designs are ready. The shipyards will begin updating themselves, and once they are reconfigured, refits will begin. The new interceptor design will increase their speed to 6,153 km/s, and replaces their older laser with a new 15 cm UV laser cannon, with the latest targeting systems as well. The new Aggravator class destroyers get updated as well, increasing their speed to 5,280 km/s. It will take time to reconfigure the yards, and more time to refit the fleet. So far, no further alien ships have appeared.
June, 2112: Freighters arrive over V-Sag, as the troops have taken to calling the new military outpost on the innermost moon of the super jovian planet selected as the empire’s first out-system fueling site. The freighters are dropping off ten tracking stations, a mass driver, and a refueling station. So far, fifteen anti-orbit laser batteries, six plasma batteries, and nineteen PD laser batteries have been deployed to the moon. Soon two brigades of Imperial Guard troops will join them.
August, 2112: Ten harvesters arrive over the super Jovian V-Sag orbits and begin filling their tanks.
October, 2112: The alien wreck is salvaged, recovering various systems, including an aux control, EM sensor, what appears to be a decoy launcher, a fusion generator one generation behind our current tech, and some assorted wreckage with valuable TN resources.
Naval Intelligence Evaluation, Archer Alpha Salvage Report
The recovery of systems from the wreckage revealed no new or startling technologies. The breakdown of systems recovered from the Archer Alpha does show that the Archers are more advanced in terms of ECM and ECCM, however, their other tech appears to be at our current technology level, or even more primitive. The recovery of a decoy launcher does indicate that the Archers are more advanced in their counter-missile technology, something that should be taken into account by the Aggressor Defense Base team.
September, 2113: with the fueling outpost in Sagittarii set up and functioning, it is almost time to move into Lalande and begin exploiting the TN resources there. Planning for the colony on the innermost nearly habitable planet begins, and when the troop transports are released from the refit docks, they will begin transferring Guard units to the planet. For now, freighters will begin transferring infrastructure and tracking stations to the planet.
February 2, 2114: The outpost on Lalande 21185 I detects an alien ship amongst the system’s asteroid belt. The alien ship is the same class as the ship destroyed in the solar system. This is a problem, as the outpost’s STO defenders are still embarked on their troops ships, headed in-system from the jump point. Worse, the troop ships will pass relatively near the alien ship on its way to the outpost. The outpost commander, Administrator Lacasse, is known as a dour and harsh boss, but he’s no one’s fool and not a coward. He immediately sends a message to the troop ships informing them of the contact and suggesting they divert around the inner system and approach the outpost from the far side, away from the alien ship. The troop ship commander agrees, and diverts away from the alien ship. Unfortunately, the alien ship appears to be surveying the system’s planets and soon arrives over the innermost planet and the Terran outpost.
Much to everyone’s relief, the alien ship moves on, headed out towards the third planet. Soon the alien ship moves out of the inner system and the troop ships are given the all clear to head directly to the colony.
By the thirteenth, the STO’s have been unloaded from the transports, which immediately head out-system, carrying a contact report that will cause much consternation once it arrives back home. Even as the transports move away, the alien ship is detected once again moving towards the inner system. This time the outpost is prepared, and the defenses are ready. Oddly, the alien ship moves through the inner system, close to the sun, and then stops on the inner planet’s orbit, approximately 38 mkm’s from the outpost. For nearly fifteen hours it sits in space, and then it turns towards the outpost.
The alien ship plunges towards the planet, refusing all communications. At 40,000 kilometers, the outposts 15 cm NUV laser batteries and 20 cm plasma batteries open fire, achieving multiple hits. Five seconds later the outposts point defense laser batteries open fire, scoring more hits, slowing the alien ship to a crawl. Five seconds after that the colony’s heavier lasers fired again, destroying the alien ship before it could reach orbit. The combat report is sent to the retreating transports for relay to HQ.
March 28, 2114: The troop transports enter the solar system and send their reports off to Terra, causing consternation throughout the imperial government at the new evidence of alien encroachment.
May 3, 2114: A new alien ship has been detected in the Solar system, in the asteroid belt 350 mkm’s from Terra. It is quickly identified as another Archer Alpha class ship. Unlike last time, the fleet has ships capable of responding in an effective manner. Two groups are dispatched to intercept the alien, a group of two destroyers and a group of two interceptors. The destroyers are 400 km/s slower than the alien, while the interceptors are 500 km/s faster. The alien ship is moving across the asteroid belt, perhaps surveying the belt.
The interceptors came up behind the alien ship, pushing it into fleeing directly into the destroyer group coming out of the inner system. The destroyers began preparing to fire when the alien ship fired on them, hitting the lead destroyer with three low strength railgun hits. The second destroyer got off shots next, firing its large lasers and plasma cannons at 60,000 kilometers, but missed across the board. The same destroyer fired its 10 cm lasers next, getting three hits, which penetrated the alien ship’s armor. The alien ship fired again, scoring four hits on the lead Imperial destroyer, causing serious armor damage as it was now at close range. In exchange, the second destroyer fired again, scoring a hit with its 15 cm laser battery.
The two Imperial destroyers closed to point blank range and the second destroyer continued pounding the alien ship with its light lasers. The lead destroyer had finally worked out its problems and launched a devastating broadside at point blank range, gutting the alien ship with its plasma cannons. The threat eliminated; the two groups turned back to Terra.
With the number of alien ships entering the solar system seemingly increasing, the Navy decides it needs a picket posted at the jump point to control entry and egress from the system. Therefore, design begins on the Aggressor Long-Duration variant, which will have an endurance and maintenance capability that will allow it to be stationed at remote locations like the jump point for long periods of time.
November 30, 2116: Yet another Archer Alpha class ship is detected in the asteroid belt of the solar system. The third destroyer group and the 1st interceptor group are ordered to pursue and destroy the alien ship. The interceptors leap out ahead of the destroyers, and the three groups of ships race towards each other as the alien ship moves in-system on its enigmatic mission. The interceptors reach nineteen mkm’s from the alien ship before it turns away, and the chase is on.
It took hours, but finally the interceptors were closing in on their laser’s range, but before they could reach range the alien ship opened fire with its railguns, scoring several low-power hits on the lead interceptor. The alien ship would fire four more times before the interceptors reached their range, doing moderate damage to the lead interceptor’s armor, but then the four interceptors opened fire on the alien ship. The human ships missed across the board, but they were closing and their chance to hit would only improve. The alien ship would fire twice more before the interceptors finally got hits.
During the next salvo, the human interceptors got another hit, but the alien ship finally penetrated the lead interceptors’ armor, destroying the small ship’s search sensor. The CO of the 1st Interceptor Group, Commander Erin Cauthon, ordered Interceptor 003 to drop out of the pursuit and retreat to avoid suffering further damage. The alien ship shifted its fire to Interceptor 004, and the pursuit continued. Ten seconds later, one of the Imperial interceptors scored a critical hit, taking out the one of the alien ship’s engines, slowing it by 50%. Ten seconds later the next salvo cut deeply into the alien ship, knocking out its engines. Even as the interceptor’s crews cheered, a group of two Archer Alpha class ships appeared on the ship’s sensors, six hundred and fifty million kilometers out-system of their location. The DD group, coming up behind the interceptors, changed course to intercept the two alien ships.
The new contact faded from the sensors even as the interceptors destroyed the crippled alien ship in front of them. Ten seconds later the alien ships reappeared. Commander Cauthon detached her ship, which had suffered damage during the battle, and ordered the last two interceptors of the 1st Group to join the destroyers instead of approaching the two alien ships alone.
December 1, 2116: The 3rd Destroyer Group, bolstered by the two remaining interceptors, picks up the alien intruders on their active sensors 48 mkm’s from the Imperial force. The active sensors pick up a new and unknown class of ship with the two Archer Alpha class ships. The new class is designated the Archer Bravo class. The active sensor signature is 732 tons, a tenth of the known mass of the Alpha class, possibly due to jamming or cloaking of some sort. The three alien ships are headed in-system, directly towards the Imperial squadron.
Twelve minutes later the alien ships turn away and begin moving out-system with the Terran squadron in pursuit. Unfortunately, the destroyers are four hundred km/s too slow to catch them and begin falling behind. Commander Asher, the CO of DD Group 3, considers detaching the interceptors to pursue the alien ships, but decides against it given there are only two with his squadron. He does send a message back to Terra requesting additional interceptors, though. Unfortunately, the bulk of the remaining interceptors are either in training or being overhauled.
Seven hours later the alien ships pass beyond the 3rd DD Group’s sensor range and fade from view. The Imperial ships are still 260 mkm’s from the point where the alien ships were first observed, and Commander Asher considers continuing on to that point, but in the end, worried about the alien ships slipping around him, he decides to come to a halt and hold position to watch for the alien ships attempting to return to the inner system. Two days later HQ orders Commander Asher’s group to return to base.
As a result of this encounter, the Navy requests that its scout ship project be moved up in priority, and that the planetary detection networks on Terra, Io, and the two out-system outposts be enlarged. R&D efforts are diverted from economic projects to improve sensor capabilities before specific development of scout systems begins.
December 8, 2116: The same three alien ships are detected entering the asteroid belt on the same vector as before. The 3rd DD Group, along with the 1st and 3rd Interceptor Groups, are dispatched to intercept. Four hours later the alien ships fade from sensors, and the intercepting groups are ordered to move to their last known location. Two hours later a fourth alien ship appears on Terra’s sensors. This one is 780 mkm’s farther out than the closer group, has commercial engines, and is moving at 1,830 km/s. This new contact is designate as an Archer Charlie class ship. Shortly after this, the interceptors of Interceptor Group 2 complete their overhauls and are dispatched to follow the other groups moving out towards the aliens.
Nineteen hours later, the 1st and 3rd Interceptor Groups approach the last known location of the alien ships. Their active sensors don’t pick up the alien ships, so the interceptors continue outwards, towards the Archer Charlie contact that is still moving in-system.
December 10, 2116, 9:57 pm: The 1st and 3rd Interceptor Groups are close enough to pick up the Archer Charlie contact on active sensors. The active sensors show that the Archer Charlie is 119,531 tons, and is escorted by an Archer Alpha and two Archer Bravo’s, none of which have been seen before, meaning that the prior contact of two Archer Alphas and an Archer Bravo is still out there somewhere. The two Imperial interceptor groups tighten their formation and then charge forward. By this time, the alien ships have turned away, but they are tied to the slow Archer Charlie and the interceptors are much faster.
One and a half hours later the interceptors are approaching weapons range and they are hit by a massive volley of railgun projectiles, all aimed at two of the interceptors in the 1st Interceptor Group. One of the interceptors merely loses a little armor, but the other is seriously damaged. The damaged interceptor is detached to head back to Earth, while the remaining seven open fire. All seven interceptors target the same ship, one of the Archer Bravo’s, as they are more heavily armed than the Archer Alpha.
The interceptors are hit by another massive salvo of railgun projectiles, all targeted on the interceptor damaged in the earlier attack, causing serious damage. The Archer Bravo is hit by six 15cm lasers from the interceptors, penetrating its armor with all six hits. The alien ship continues with its squadron mates, while the damaged interceptor turns back, leaving six to pursue the alien ships. The interceptors shift targeting to the second Archer Bravo while their lasers recharge, all except one interceptor that continues to target the first Archer Bravo.
The interceptors are hit by another salvo of railgun projectiles five seconds later, targeting one of the remaining interceptors, which suffered internal damage. The damaged interceptor is ordered to turn back, but its CO, Commander Rayford Harjo, hesitates. His weapons are almost recharged, and the temptation to remain is nearly overwhelming. After a second’s hesitation he relents and orders his ship to turn away. Their armor is shredded, and while their internal damage is light, another salvo from the alien’s railguns would destroy his small ship. The Imperial interceptor force is reduced to five ships now.
Unfortunately, the aliens target the retreating interceptors, including Commander Harjo’s ship. Harjo’s interceptor is hit by twenty-eight railgun slugs, half of which are absorbed by the already damaged armor. The remaining slugs rip through the small ship, damaging more systems but leaving them motive power. The other damaged interceptor is less lucky, loosing both its fuel tanks and its engine. In exchange, the five intact interceptors get three hits in the next exchange of fire, two on the second Archer Bravo and one on the first. All three hits penetrate, and both alien ships lose power and begin drifting. The Imperial ships target the Archer Alpha and both damaged Bravos, while the damaged Imperials target one of the Archer Bravos.
Rayford Harjo’s ship was targeted again by the damaged Archer Bravo’s, and suffered a catastrophic explosion, killing most of the crew and Commander Harjo. Harjo’s ship got off one last shot, hitting the Bravo targeting his ship, but the laser didn’t do any apparent damage.
The two remaining damaged interceptors are now beyond the Bravo’s range, so they shift fire to the intact interceptors, doing moderate armor damage to one and causing light internal damage. In exchange, the Imperial ships get two hits on the Archer Alpha and one each on the damaged Bravo’s, which are falling behind the other ships. The damaged interceptor, the last remaining ship from the 1st Interceptor Group, detaches and moves away from the battle, but instead of heading back to Terra, which would take it back towards the damaged Archer Bravos, it races ahead of the Archer Alpha and Archer Charlie, away from the damaged Bravos. The four remaining interceptors remain with the Archer Charlie.
The damaged interceptor is hit again by railguns from the Archer Alpha, while the lasers on the imperial ships recharge. Five seconds later the interceptors pound the Archer Alpha with their 15 cm lasers, causing multiple penetrating hits, while the Alpha returns fire with railguns damaging one of the interceptors armor. Ten seconds later the ships exchanged fire again, and this time the Archer Alpha lost its engines, falling behind the Archer Charlie. Unfortunately, the Alpha targeted the retreating Interceptor that had moved ahead of the fleet, and one of its hits destroyed the fleeing interceptor’s engine. Not willing to allow the Alpha to continue to fire on the crippled interceptor, Commander Taffe, the CO of Interceptor Group 3, ordered her ships to remain with the Alpha and destroy it.
Fifteen seconds later, as the Archer Charlie continued to flee, the interceptors destroyed the crippled Alpha, which did not return fire. They then turned to pursue the futilely fleeing Archer Charlie. It took fifty-five seconds of continuous fire but finally the commercial ship was destroyed.
With the last mobile ship destroyed, Commander Taffe ordered her ships turn back and approach to just within laser range of the damaged Archer Bravos. Seven salvoes later, with no return fire from the Bravos, Commander Taffe ordered the squadron to close to 50,000 kilometers to improve their hit chance and damage. This proved effective and the next salvo destroyed the Archer Bravo. They then shifted fire to the last remaining Bravo and pounded it into scrap.
In the aftermath of the battle the area was littered with wrecks, and two of the interceptors were still without power. The 1st Interceptor Group moved in to pick up the survivors of the destroyed interceptor, and then remained on station while a tug and salvage ships were dispatched from the inner system. The 3rd Destroyer Group was seven and a half hours away and racing to their location to reinforce the interceptors in case the other alien ships suspected to be in the system appeared. Interceptor Group 2 was even closer, and would arrive on station in just over three hours.
December 11, 2116, 2112 hours: The three alien ships that had been lost reappear on the destroyer group’s sensors. Immediately the two interceptor groups race away, towards the aliens, followed by the slower destroyers. The aliens immediately turn away and the chase is on. The interceptors must bring the alien ships into their own sensor range before the aliens manage to move out of the destroyer’s sensor range, or they will be lost once again. Two and a half hours later the interceptors are within range of their own sensors, long before the aliens manage to get out of the destroyer’s sensor range.
At 0915 hours on December 12th, the contacts, which were at that point fifteen mkm’s in front of the pursuing interceptors, suddenly disappeared off of the sensors of the pursuing ships. By everything the Terrans knew, there was no way for the ships to suddenly disappear while so far within their detection envelope. The terran ships pushed on, closing on the area where the alien ships disappeared. Forty-two minutes later the interceptors arrive and found nothing but empty space. The aliens were gone.
This development threw caused much consternation throughout the Navy. There was no jump point detectable at the location where the alien ships disappeared. The survey of the solar system had been exhaustive and hadn’t revealed any even potential jump points aside from the one to Wolf 359. If the aliens had some other way of moving between stars, then the implications for the Empire were dire.
December 25, 2116: The two interceptor groups are dispatched back to Terra, as they are not intended for long duration deployments. The 1st DD Group will remain on station for now.
January, 2117: The salvage of the wrecked Archer Charlie resulted in the recovery of several systems, including a cargo shuttle bay.
March, 2117: The salvage ship and its attendant freighters returns to Terra and begins unloading their haul. Subsequent examination of the recovered systems reveals little in the way of new technology, except the two active sensors recovered from the Archer Bravo wrecks. These yield useful information on ECCM tech. The rest is scrapped.
Imperial Naval Intelligence Report on Archer Alien Incursion of 2116
The Archer Incursion in November-December 2116 consisted of three groups of ships:
Group 1: 1xArcher Alpha – destroyed
Group 2: 1xArcher Alpha, 2xArcher Bravo – lost contact
Group 3: 1xArcher Charlie, 1xArcher Alpha, 2xArcher Bravo – destroyed
Archer Bravo Class
Actual tonnage: 7,300, apparent tonnage per active sensors - 730
Observed Speed: 5,639 km/s
Armament: 5xRaigun, ROF 5, max known range 39,902 km
Thermal Signature: 198
Armor: Light, potentially basic armor coverage
The Bravo class appears to be a variant of the Alpha class. Like the Alpha Class, it has light armor, but carries a much heavier armament of faster firing railguns, making it a formidable opponent.
Archer Charlie Class:
Actual tonnage: 119,500
Observed Speed: 1,830 km/s
Armament: none
Thermal Signature: 4,375
Armor: None/light
The purpose of this class is currently unknown. Analysis of the wreckage shows that it has a cargo shuttle bay, but no other systems that might reveal its purpose were recovered.
Intelligence recommends that the Marine Boarding program be accelerated so that the next incursion can be countered by boarding any commercial craft encountered so that their capabilities and intentions can be determined.