January 1, 2352
Four Imperial Guard ships leave Terran orbit for the Luyten system, to drop off a Xenology team to study the ruins on Luyten B-II and to probe the single warp point found in the system.
January 10, 2352
The Guard transits out of the Luyten system, into a single-star system with a M5-V primary and seven planets. One of the planets is a super jovian planet with nineteen moons, four of which are planets in their own right. The system is rapidly identified as Gliese 1061 and the Guard sets out to probe the planets.
January 29, 2352
The Imperial Guard transits from the Barnard’s Star system to a system quickly identified as the Alpha Centauri system. There is some excitement at finding a system so close to home, however, the excitement quickly dies at the realization that there are only three planets in the binary system.
February 27, 2352
The Guard again jumps out of the Barnard’s Star system into a new system. This system is identified as the 61 Cygni system, with a central K5-V star and a secondary K7-V star. The two stars boast fifteen planets and one hundred and fifty moons. Nine of the planets and moons are more or less habitable, depending on your definition of that term, and one has an oxygen-nitrogen atmosphere, although it is very cold by human standards.
The Guard detachment sets out for the planetary system of 61 Cygni A to begin its probe. The probe involves a complicated dance to reach all of the planets, and involves two in-system jumps between the La Grange points of two of the system’s super jovian planets to bridge the gap between the two stars. The entire exercise will take over a month.
May 5, 2352
The gravitic survey of the Proxima Centauri system is complete. Four additional warp points were found.
May 12, 2352
The Imperial Guard probes the innermost warp point of the Lalande system, discovering a binary system identified as Struve 2398. The system’s primary star is orbited by a vast asteroid belt along with five planets that are themselves only slightly larger than the average asteroid in the belt. The secondary star is orbited by six planets and twenty moons, one of which has a nitrogen-carbon dioxide atmosphere and a moderate temperature and gravity.
June 5, 2352
The first three new Lexington class Frigates are launched from the orbital yards, and three additional frigates are laid down in the now empty slipways.
Even as work starts on the three new frigates, construction is begun in a nearby slipway on a ship for the Imperial Guard. The ship is a modified version of the Navy’s new light cruiser/command jumpship. The basic design has been altered to accommodate the advanced ECM system that the Guard obtained in the Luyten system. \\
August 26, 2352
Over the last several months the Imperial Guard has probed three of the four unexplored warp points in the Lalande 21185 system, finding the Struve 2398, Ross 128, Gliese 526, and Wolf 359 systems. All of these are small M class stars, and their planetary systems were somewhat disappointing. The Guard detachment has spent nearly nine months in space, with only short stops in the Solar System for refueling and to take on supplies. Now, in a second, the boredom that has built to the point that it is almost crushing is wiped away in a second as the Guard detachment begins its probe of the Wolf 359 system. Almost immediately after entering the system the Far Eye detects a ship in the system’s asteroid belt. The Far Eye’s exquisite sensors quickly identify the ship as belonging to the same race as those encountered in the Luyten system, although it is twice as large as the ship encountered there. Captain Power orders the detachment to head in-system, towards the alien ship. Shortly after the Imperial ships get underway the alien ship turns towards them and accelerates to 5,554 kps.
Six hours later, while the two groups of ships are still 650 mkm’s (million kilometers) apart, Captain Power orders his two carriers to launch their gunboats. The six gunboats race away at 8,000 kps.
Eleven hours later the gunboats were 40 mkm’s from the alien ship, well within range of their missiles. All attempts to lock fire control systems on to the alien ship fail, though, as it proves to be equipped with the same advanced ECM that the smaller ship in the Luyten system was equipped with.
Sixteen minutes later, the gunboats have closed to 34 mkm’s, which is just within their estimated range based on the alien ship’s ECM. Even as the group prepares to fire, the two old-tech sensor gunboats detected a new active sensor emanating from the alien ship. A few seconds later, four of the six gunboats launched eight missiles each, and then the entire group turned away.
Twenty two minutes later the group of twenty-four missiles reached its target. Fifteen missiles hit the enemy ship, with no sign of damage. The four missile armed gunboats, which had been pacing the enemy ship, now turned and headed back to their carriers for rearming. The two old-tech sensor gunboats remained on station, to watch for any missiles launched by the alien ship. Freed of the need to pace their slower new-tech companions, the sensor gunboats raced away at 30,000 kps.
Nearly four hours later it was the Victory’s turn. The old ship’s superb detection and ECCM systems would have made it capable of engaging the alien ship at a much longer range, but unfortunately it depended on modern-tech missiles. Current Imperial capital missiles had a maximum range of just over 50 mkm’s, approximately ten percent of what the ship’s targeting systems could achieve. Still, the ship’s ECCM meant that it could brush aside the alien ship’s ECM and target them at the capital missile’s maximum range. Captain Power ordered his ship to begin launching missiles at its maximum rate. Every twenty seconds four additional capital missiles were thrown into space, headed for the alien ship. After eight salvoes were in space, Captain Power ordered his launchers to cease fire. Just in case, he ordered his rearmed gunboats to move into position to launch a third strike, if necessary.
Thirty minutes later the missiles began arriving. Captain Power was forced to watch as one by one his missiles were destroyed by last second defensive fire. In frustration he ordered his ship to launch its remaining missiles, and for the gunboat group to launch its missiles as well. By the time the last missile in the second strike was destroyed by the alien ship, all of the remaining capital missiles on the victory were in space, as were thirty-two more standard missiles from the gunboats.
The standard missiles from the gunboats attacked first. The first group of eight standard missiles, launched slightly ahead of the others, was destroyed by the alien ship before they could detonate. Eight from the second group of missiles were destroyed as well, but then the last sixteen raced in before the alien’s defensive weapons could recharge. After nine hits the alien ship was streaming atmosphere, and after the thirteenth hit the Imperial sensors detected a secondary explosion. Captain Power breathed a huge sigh of relief when, after the secondary explosion, the alien ship’s speed dropped to 4,444 kps.
Unfortunately, whatever damage the second gunboat strike had caused to the enemy ship, it hadn’t disabled its missile defenses as each group of capital missiles from the second strike from the Victory was destroyed short of its target. Fifty two minutes later the gunboats landed on their carriers and rearmed, and were back in space as quickly as their crews could manage.
Thirty minutes after launching the gunboats were on-station, however, their missile launchers still needed time to recharge. Finally, nearly two hours after launching, the gunboats were ready. Over fifteen seconds the gunboats launched thirty-two standard missiles. Nineteen and a half minutes later the missiles reached attack range. Nine out of the first sixteen were stopped by point defense, and five of the remaining missiles hit the enemy ship, causing it to belch even more hull plating and internal systems into space. In the aftermath of the detonation of the first wave, the alien ship’s point defense fire faltered. Only four missiles from the second group were intercepted short of the target, leaving the remaining twelve to streak in on the damaged ship. Five missiles hit one after another, the last one causing a massive secondary explosion as a magazine went up, destroying the ship. To avoid a repeat of the loss of the wrecks in the Luyten system, Captain Power immediately dispatched a marker to broadcast the position of the alien wreck and recalled the gunboats.
With his magazines depleted and low on fuel, Captain Power orders his group to return to Terra to report the engagement. They would return later to probe the system bodies to determine if any alien populations were present.
September 5, 2352
The Imperial Guard detachment under Captain Power returns to the home system with the news of their encounter with a new alien ship in the Wolf 359 system. This news sets off several reactions. The public is alarmed at fresh evidence of the hostility of the galaxy beyond the solar system, while Admiral Tannenbaum and the Navy leadership is galvanized yet again to obtain interstellar capability for their ships as soon as possible. Admiral Tannenbaum meets with the Senate and his sister on Venus, and convinces both to reorder research priorities to complete research on a jump drive capable of conveying the Navy’s new battleship design through warp points. His argument is bolstered by the fact that the jump drive required by the battleships would also be large enough to convey the Guard’s troop ships through warp points as well.
The Guard detachment refuels and re-supplies on Mars, then sets out again for the Wolf 359 system to complete the probe and clear the system of any additional automated defenses. While on Mars Captain Power informs Crown Prince Edward of the close-run nature of the recent battle, and emphasizes their need for additional firepower. In addition, the Guard’s salvage ship sets out yet again to salvage an alien ship in the hopes of discovering additional information about its builders or new technology.
September 8, 2352
The Roughneck completes construction of the jump gate pair at the warp point to the Luyten system, and transits back into the solar system, where it sets its course for the warp point to the Lalande system.
The completion of the jump gates on the warp link to the Luyten system signals the beginning of the Empire’s first extra-systemic colonization effort in over a century. The planned exploitation of the Luyten system includes unmanned mining stations on moons of the gas giants orbiting the A and B components and on the innermost planet of the B component. To coordinate the mining activities on the moons, and to act as a central repository for the minerals mined on the moons, a manned colony will be established on Luyten A-II, a colony cost 1.8 world.
September 18, 2352
The Guard detachment under Captain Power jumped into the Wolf 359 system at 0705 hours and immediately detected three strength 800 thermal contacts not far from the marker buoy for the alien wreck. After reading the analysis from his intelligence officers, Captain Power decided that the contacts were consistent with the medium sized ship first encountered in the Luyten system. After consulting with his senior officers Captain Power decided move into the system and destroy the alien ships. Seconds later the detachment’s gunboats were launched and set out for the alien ships while the main group stayed on the warp point. As before, the alien ships proved to have excellent sensors, as they began racing towards the Imperial ships shortly after the gunboats departed towards them.
Six hours and forty three minutes later the gunboats were in firing positions, thirty mkm’s from the three alien ships. Seconds later the four gunboats launched their standard missiles at two of the alien ships. Over the next ten seconds the gunboats launch thirty-two missiles and then turn to maintain the range to the enemy ships.
Just over nineteen minutes later the missiles began reaching attack range. The attack was staggered into two waves because of the ragged launch, but fortunately the gunboats each managed to launch coordinated attacks on the same targets. The first group of sixteen missiles lost two missiles to point defenses, but then ten missiles hit their target without apparent effect. The attack on the second ship five seconds later was a near exact replay of the first attack, with two missiles shot down short of the ship and the ten missiles that hit being absorbed by the ship’s thick armor.
Seeing the results of the gunboat’s missile attack and deciding to bring his main group in range for its own attack, Captain Power orders the detachment to close on the oncoming alien ships.
Five hours and seventeen minutes later the gunboats were back aboard their carriers and being rearmed. By that time the main force has closed to eighty eight mkm’s. In a matter of minutes the gunboats are rearmed and launched for their second strike.
One hour later the main group is within range of its missiles and Captain Power orders his ship to begin launching on the as yet undamaged alien ship. After launching twenty four missiles at the alien ship the Victory’s launchers fall silent.
The leading edge of the Victory’s capital missile waves arrived first. Two of the capital missiles were intercepted by alien point defense fire, but the other two slammed into the ship’s armor belt. The second wave of capital missiles lost two to point defense fire, and only one of the remaining two hit the alien ship. The third wave lost one to defensive fire and one hit the alien ship. The fourth wave of capital missiles arrived at the same time as the thirty two standard missiles from the gunboats. As before the alien’s point defense did its best but only managed to attrit the incoming missile waves, not stop them. The alien ship targeted by the capital missiles was hit by three standard missiles and a single capital missile, while the other two ships which had been hit by the first gunboat missile wave were hit by twelve and four standard missiles, respectively. Both of the alien ships hit by the first gunboat missile wave were now streaming plating and other components blasted loose by the missile attacks, and both had slowed.
Yet again the gunboats turned towards their carriers to rearm. The last two groups of capital missiles were destroyed short of their targets by alien point defense fire.
Eighty minutes later the gunboats were reloaded and on station, thirty million kilometers from the alien ships, but it would be another 100 minutes before their launchers recharged. By this time the lead alien ship, which had pulled ahead of its squadron mates, was just 40 mkm’s from the main group. Captain Power decided to hold the fire of his destroyer, as it had proved to be insufficient to penetrate the alien ship’s point defense. Instead they would just have to wait for the four gunboat’s launchers to recharge.
One hundred minutes later the gunboat’s launchers had recharged, but during that time the lead alien ship had closed to thirty seven million kilometers from the main group, which had almost overrun the warp point during its retreat. Worse, one of the two damaged ships had restored its damaged engines and accelerated to 5,555 kps during the chase. Still, Captain Power anticipated this being the decisive attack of the battle, as all three alien ships were battered. All four gunboats once again launched, two against the least damaged lead ship, and one each against the other two.
Eighteen and a half minutes later the leading edge of the missile wave slammed into the lead ship. Two were intercepted by the ship’s point defense, and the remaining six tracked straight into the ship, ignoring all spoofing and jamming, causing the now damaged ship to leave a trail of hull plating and vaporized components. Seconds later the second group of missiles targeted on the lead ship raced in, and this time there was no defensive fire. Six of the eight slammed into the alien ship, presumably causing serious damage. In the wake of the missile attack the alien ship was reduced to 3,887 kps.
Three and a half minutes later the missile wave had reached the next ship. Once again there was no point defense fire, and six missiles slammed into the alien ship, causing it to stream broken plating and vaporized materials behind it. Twenty five seconds later the last of the missile wave slammed into the last ship. Three missiles were destroyed by point defense fire, and all five of the remaining missiles hit the ship, causing at least some internal damage.
Captain Power was somewhat taken aback by the toughness of the alien ships, but after the last attack all had been reduced to a speed below that of his task force, meaning that they could choose their range. Even better, at least two of the ships had lost their point defense capabilities, meaning they were now open to bombardment from the Victory. Power ordered the gunboats to return and for his ship to open fire. The Victory launched two salvoes at the lead alien ship, then ceased fire.
Twenty five minutes later all eight missiles hit the beleaguered ship and it exploded, stopped cold by the relentless Terran missile fire. Next, the Victory shifted its targeting to the next closest alien ship, and once again eight capital missiles raced away. Twenty nine minutes later seven of the eight missiles hit their target, eliminating the second alien ship. Once again the Victory shifted its targeting, and in under a minute eight capital missiles were racing towards the last alien ship. Unfortunately, this alien ship still retained its point defense capabilities, and five of the eight missiles were stopped short of the ship. Two of the remaining missiles missed, leaving one to hit the ship. The Victory immediately launched twelve more missiles, exhausting its magazines.
Once again the Guardsmen were forced to watch as their missiles crawled towards the alien ship. Finally, twenty five minutes after launch, the three groups of missiles approached attack range. One by one they went in and the stubborn alien point defense met them as they came in. Seven out of twelve missiles were stopped cold, but the other five hit the alien ship. Still, in spite of the punishment, the alien ship doggedly continued attempting to close, albeit at a much reduced speed.
Once again Captain Power ordered the gunboats launched. This time they didn’t need to leave the main group as the entire group was close enough for them to engage the enemy. Forty five minutes later the gunboats were ready to fire, and, not wanting to waste missiles, Captain Power ordered a single gunboat to launch. Soon thereafter eight standard missiles were racing towards the enemy. Twenty six minutes later it was over. The last wave of capital missiles had indeed knocked out the alien ship’s point defense and it was completely undefended as the standard missiles raced towards it. Hits from four of the missiles were enough to completely destroy it.
With the gunboats recalled and markers placed on the alien ships, Captain Power took stock of the situation. All three enemy ships were destroyed, but he had drained his destroyer’s magazines to do it. His carrier’s magazines were down 49% and 42%, but none of his ships had suffered damage during the battle. The salvage ship was due shortly, and he had no wish to return home, rearm, and then return yet again to this system. He was loathe to continue on with his magazines in the state they were in, though.
After some consideration, though, he orders his ships to return to the Solar System for rearming. The salvage ship will have to wait until they return. For a short time he had considered detaching the Far Eye to probe the system while the remainder of his detachment waited at the warp point. The Far Eye was as fast as any of the alien ships that they had detected to date, even the alien gunboats, and its excellent sensors would allow it to see any alien ships long before they could close to weapons range. However, as tempting as the thought was, Captain Power decided against that course of action. The Far Eye was literally irreplaceable. The Crown Prince would have his head if he sent it in alone, even if it returned safely.
September 28, 2352
Two new Essex class light cruisers are launched, making way in the yards for the start of work on the Navy’s new command light cruiser design, which is equipped with a jump drive.
October 9, 2352
The Imperial Guard returns to the Wolf 359 system. This time when they transit into the system they find no new contacts. Nine hours later the salvage ship Hard Scrabble arrives at the warp point and transits into the system. Captain Power decides to remain on station nearby while the ship commences recovery operations.
October 21, 2352
The Hard Scrabble completes salvage of the first wreck, recovering a thermal sensor, a torpedo weapons system, and some sort of fusion reactor. Although the torpedo system seems to be fairly advanced, none of these systems are particularly interesting to the Guard.
October 26, 2352
Victoria Tannenbaum’s research team completes development work on the Navy’s jump drive, and returns to its work on the advanced engine concepts. The Navy Design Bureau immediately incorporates this new drive into a modified version of its battleship.
November 3, 2352
The Hard Scrabble completes salvage work on the second wreck, recovering three fusion reactors and an ECCM-5 unit. Captain Power is thrilled at the recovery of yet another advanced electronic warfare unit.
November 14, 2352
The Hard Scrabble completes salvage work on the third wreck, recovering four magneto-plasma drives, a thermal sensor, a torpedo weapon, and three fusion reactors. As the Hard Scrabble’s holds are full it will have to return to the Solar system and unload before undertaking salvage work on the largest of the four wrecks. Captain Power decides to complete his probe of the system while the Hard Scrabble makes its round trip.
December 18, 2352
Expansion and modifications to the battleship yard over Terra is complete, and the Imperial Navy’s first Battleship, launched less than a month earlier, returns to the yard to be altered to include the new jump drive. This will give the Navy jump capability in just three short months.
January 27, 2353
The Hard Scrabble completes salvage of the large wreck in the Wolf 359 system, recovering 6 magneto-plasma drives, a thermal sensor, a missile fire control system, a search sensor, nine missile launchers, a magazine, and most importantly, an ECM-5 and an ECCM-5. While the other systems are either at or below the current level of the Empire, the electronic warfare systems are the equal of the old Empire’s and will be very valuable.
With salvage work completed in the Wolf 359 system, and his probe completed, Captain Power orders his group to the adjacent Lalande system to probe its last unexplored warp point.
February 9, 2353
The Imperial Guard jumps through the last unexplored warp point in the Lalande system to discover the DX Cancri system, yet another M6-V star with seven rocky planets, one gas giant, nineteen moons and a very large asteroid belt. One of the inner planets is somewhat habitable with a colony cost of 1.80 on the standard scale, although it has a methane-nitrogen atmosphere with no oxygen at all.
February 26, 2353
The refitted North Carolina, the Imperial Navy’s first fully capable jumpship, is launched from the orbital yards to much fanfare. A second unit of that class is laid down almost immediately. Meanwhile, work is begun converting one of the civilian shipyards to build the Gaia class terraformer.
April 8, 2353
The Imperial Guard detachment under Captain Power returns to Earth to a hero’s welcome. After a short layover to refuel and re-supply, the detachment sets out for the Proxima Centauri system, to probe the four warp points located there.
April 25, 2353
The Imperial Guard probes the first unexplored warp point in the Proxima Centauri system, discovering an M4-V star soon identified as Ross 154. The system boasts six rocky planets, four gas giants, and eighty four moons. Two of the innermost planets are somewhat habitable, with colony costs that range from 1.80 to 3.25.
May 15, 2353
The Imperial Guard, having completed their probe of the Ross 154 system, jumps through the second new warp point in Proxima Centauri. Expecting yet another M class star, the officers and crews are stunned when they find nearly the polar opposite of a tiny, dim M class star. Instead they find a massive white A7 sub-giant star with three inner planets, two of which have oxygen-nitrogen atmospheres and colony costs ranging from 1.80 to 2.82. The third planet out is also habitable, with a 1.80 colony cost, but has a noxious atmosphere composed of methane and ammonia. The planetary system is expansive, with the innermost habitable planet orbiting the massive star at just over a billion kilometers, while the outermost icy chunk orbits a cool 78 billion kilometers out.
June 19, 2353
The jump gate pair to the Lalande 21185 system is complete. There are several good mining sites in the system, however, exploitation will have to wait until the sites in the Luyten system are expanded.
Colonization of Luyten A-II begins this month, as the newly established Imperial Colonial Ministry has determined that enough infrastructure has been transported to allow establishment of the new colony.
July 7, 2353
Princess Victoria Tannenbaum’s team completes R&D on a new, advanced form of drive, the internal confinement fusion drive. This drive system offers a 25% power boost over the older magneto-plasma drives. The Tannenbaum team immediately begins developing new drives for both the Navy and the civilian sector. In addition, the team is tasked to develop a new drive for the Guard’s gunboats, and at the direction of the Senate, two entirely new drives. One will be installed in all Survey Command units, and is a low-profile engine with approximately half of the thermal output of a standard drive, while the second is a drive for a new type of small spacecraft being experimented with by the Navy. Finally, the Princess’ team will be tasked with developing a new missile drive based on the new technology.
In the meantime, the team working on the ruins found in the Luyten system finally make a breakthrough in their studies, identifying the race that built the ruins as the Federated States of Bhind. While it is not clear what exactly happened to the Bhind, it is clear from materials found at the site that they were engaged in massive war with an alien race that gave no quarter. The automated ships encountered in the Luyten and Wolf 359 system appear to be Bhind artifacts employed to slow down this alien race during the war, which appears to have taken place before the warp point collapse. The xenology team has identified 14 abandoned installations in the outpost, and has suggested that engineering teams be dispatched to recover the artifacts. Word of the discovery is brought back to the Solar System aboard one of the transport groups expanding the mining outposts, and the Imperial Navy immediately begins preparations for transporting several Engineering Regiments to Luyten B-II to begin recovery work.
July 26, 2353
The Guard, having completed its probe of the Altair system, moves on to the next warp point in the Proxima Centauri system. The warp point leads to a binary system with a central M5-V star, orbited by a smaller M6-V star. The two small stars are orbited by three rocky planets, four gas giants, and thirty two moons. None of the planets are particularly habitable.
August 16, 2353
The Imperial Guard, while probing the last unexplored warp point in the Proxima Centauri star system, discovers that the warp point leads to the Luyten 726-8 system. The completion of this probe means that all of the systems connected to the systems adjacent to the home system have now been probed. The Guard detachment sets out for home and a needed rest and overhaul.
November 3, 2352
An Imperial Survey Command survey ship, conducting a geological survey of the asteroids orbiting Wolf 359, discovers a operating ground installation on one of the asteroids. Given the prior contacts with the hostile automated ships, the survey ship marks the location and immediately sets out for the solar system with the news.
November 7, 2353
The Survey Command ship bearing the news of the discovery in the Wolf 359 system arrives in the Solar System. The Imperial Guard tries to exert jurisdiction in the matter, however, their primary warships are currently in overhaul status after a very long time spent clearing the surrounding systems. The Navy is very vocal in their attempts to establish their precedence as well. Ultimately, the Regent decides to dispatch a mixed force of Navy warships escorting Guard troopships. Combined force will land troops on the asteroid and capture the facility for further study. The troops assigned to the assault force will come from both the Guard and the Imperial Fleet Marine force.
The Navy decides to send its best. The brand new battleship North Carolina will be the task group leader, under the command of Rear Admiral Isaac Gibbons. The North Carolina will be escorted by two Essex class light cruisers and three Lexington class frigates. The Guard detachment will consist of a single Inchon class troop transport, along with its five Type 1 Drop Ships.
November 30, 2353
The combined task group arrives just short of its target in the Wolf 359 system. The task group has to close to within 350,000 kilometers before it can detect the alien listening post, if that is indeed what it is, so Admiral Gibbons orders the group to a halt at 300,000 kilometers and for the troops to be transferred to the landers. During the wait the group’s sensors scan the alien installation, attempting to gain whatever information they can.
Once the landers are ready they detach from their mothership and race away towards the asteroid. The landers, built with old Imperial tech, move at the mind-boggling rate of 30,000 kps, and will arrive at their target in less than 12 seconds. The 2nd Imperial Guard Shock Battalion was the first to land, followed quickly by the 9th Mobile Infantry Battalion, and then three battalions of Imperial Marines.
The installation fell quickly to Imperial forces, but it took several days for the on-scene commanders to determine that there were no other installations or defenders present. The Empire was now the proud owner of an intact, functioning deep space tracking station. After some study, it was apparent that it was manufactured by the same race that had created the automated warships.
December 25, 2353
The combined task group returns to Terra and a hero’s welcome.
Update, December 2353
The citizens of the Empire are now much more hopeful about the future. The Empire has successfully established a colony in another system, something the general public sees as evidence that the second interstellar age is dawning, and the economy on Terra and Mars has been stabilized and is recovering. The public’s trust in the Regent and the Senate is growing, as both have been seen to be on the forefront not only of recovery efforts on Terra and Mars, as well as on interstellar expansion.
The only blot in the public’s optimism is the discovery of automated alien warships in several systems as the Empire has expanded. So far the public’s concern has been limited as the Imperial Guard has managed to keep the conflict far from the Solar System, and because, at least to date, the Guard has managed to conclude all contacts without substantial damage. The Guard’s image on Terra has soared amongst the average citizens, and it is currently seen as the primary guardian of humanity.
Imperial Navy
The Navy’s capabilities have greatly expanded over the last year. The Navy’s new battleship has given naval task groups interstellar capability for the first time, and the Navy is moving to take their place at the forefront of human expansion. In addition, a new naval shipyard has been built on Mars and conveyed to Terra, where efforts have begun to increase its capacity. Currently, the Navy plans to use the yard to produce a support ship capable of transporting missiles, supplies, and fuel to support the forward deployment of Naval units to distant systems.
The Imperial Navy is currently undergoing a major reorganization. In exchange for an increased role in the expansion of the Empire the Navy has been forced to accept several compromises, including the establishment of a two new separate commands, the Imperial Survey Service and the Imperial Planetary Defense Command. The Survey Service will comprise all survey units, and will work in conjunction with both the Navy and the Imperial Guard in opening new systems for Imperial exploitation. The Planetary Defense Command will be responsible for the defense of Imperial planetary populations and outposts, and will be equipped with gunboat squadrons to carry out its duties.
The final compromise the Navy was forced to accept related to the Guard, and will be detailed below in the section focusing on the Guard.
Imperial Economy
Martian industrial capacity has been devoted to increasing the Empire’s automated mining capacity, to take advantage of new resource sites being found in other systems. So far, the exploitation of extra-solar resources has been limited by transport capacity, not the availability of mining equipment, though.
The Luyten 726-8 system is the site of the Empire’s first out-system colony since the first interstellar era. Currently, the Luyten system boasts three mining outposts with a total of 110 automated mines, and a colony on Luyten 726-8 A II with two million colonists.
The Imperial Guard
The Imperial Guard fought bitterly against giving up any of its role in pioneering new systems after their discovery by the Survey Service. Unfortunately, in spite of the support of the Regent, the Guard lost much of its role in that area due to fears in the Senate about the visibility and popularity of the Guard. See the handwriting on the walls, the Guard leadership acquiesced to a compromise. In exchange for retaining some of their role in the expansion of the Empire, and an expansion of their combat strength, the Guard would accept more oversight from the Senate. This deal entailed the establishment of a separate command structure for the Guard, which to date had a much more informal command structure reporting directly to the Regent. Rear Admiral Francesca Sharpe has been appointed the first Commander of the Guard, an event which caused Admiral Tannenbaum to be heard to say, in private, “good riddance!”. Admiral Sharpe has been a long-time political foe of Admiral Tannenbaum, and while very competent, Admiral Sharpe is reputed to be very difficult to work for.
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