This is the 3rd of 4 posts today2nd March 1984Asakaze discovers a jump point in Zanzibar, close to the F5-V primary. It is not in the area from which the two ships of the Zanzibar aliens appeared, so she continues her survey while the light cruiser Yura, recently refuelled in Amirante by Kyokuto Maru, moves to the new jump point. Although Yura does not have a jump drive, the jump point is stable, so she transits with the hope that the far side is also stable and she doesn’t require the assistance of Asakaze in returning to Zanzibar.
Yura emerges two billion kilometres from a planetless, orange K3-V star, designated as Svalbard. A warning blares on the bridge as her sensors detect two hostile contacts at point-blank range. Fortunately, they are both commercial-engined ships of the Bloodclaw Dominion: a 36-500-ton Amur Leopard class, seven of which were destroyed by Asakaze’s fighters in Zanzibar, plus a 180,000-ton Lion class, a type not previously seen. Yura launches her Raiden Sentai, albeit severely reduced in strength, against the Amur Leopard and targets the Lion. As soon as her weapons recover from jump shock, the Lion is destroyed by a single salvo. The Kazuma Raiden capture the Leopard, apparently a civilian freighter, without loss. This brief action was conducted at the furthest point from Sol that the Imperial Japanese Navy has reached: sixteen transits and almost sixty-five billion kilometres.
Amur Leopard class Freighter 36,518 tons 105 Crew 395 BP TCS 730 TH 800 EM 0
1095 km/s Armour 1-98 Shields 0-0 HTK 40 Sensors 0/0/0/0 DCR 1-0 PPV 0
MSP 6 Max Repair 50 MSP
Cargo 25,000 Cargo Shuttle Multiplier 3
Kaigun-Shōsa Control Rating 1 BRG
Intended Deployment Time: 3 months
T’plar P160.0 Civilian Drive (5) Power 800 Fuel Use 3.54% Signature 160 Explosion 4%
Fuel Capacity 150,000 Litres Range 20.9 billion km (220 days at full power)
3rd March 1984A Hosho III diplomatic ship that was originally deployed to Mauritius to negotiate with the Bloodclaw Dominion arrives at the Amirante – Zanzibar jump point, where the Edda class ship of the Zanzibar aliens has remained since transiting into the system. Kaigun-Taisa Kimiyama Masago is in command of the Hosho, a linguistics expert that previously commanded the battleship Hyūga in two engagements against the Zuijin before being seconded to the Diplomatic Corps.
In the adjacent Reunion system, the 1st Kurogane Samurai division is dropped on the Bloodclaw colony on the third planet and immediately engages the defenders. Once again the defenders are mostly infantry, perhaps 2500 in total, but with a gravity of 0.6G and cold but tolerable temperatures, the Kaenryu and Gekiryū combat mechs find it far easier to locate and eliminate targets than during the recent comet battle.. Both Kurogane Samurai divisions are now engaged simultaneously, as the low-level combat still continues on Tarawa II with minimal losses on both sides.
6th March 1984The Bloodclaw defenders are annihilated in less than four days of fighting. Due to the orbital bombardment of the shore batteries and subsequent collateral damage from the ground fighting, any original Dominion population has apparently been wiped out, leaving a few installations and sufficient infrastructure to support 900,000 colonists. The installations are an eclectic mix, including one each of construction, fighter and ordnance factories, several mines and maintenance facilities, a financial centre and an ordnance transfer station. There is also a stockpile of twenty-four million litres of fuel, without a way to access it, and six thousand maintenance supplies. Kaigun-Taisa Kido Hoshi, overseeing the invasion from the battlecruiser Kirishima, suspects this was once a Zuijin outpost and the scattered installations were recovered from ruins. An orbital survey could confirm that theory, if anything of the original Zuijin ruin remains.
10th March 1984Two of the original three Dominion colonies in Reunion have now fallen to the Empire of Japan. Kirishima approaches a comet that holds the third to engage the surface defences. Fortunately, some have already been exposed, probably due to a previous engagement, so she opens fire from beyond their maximum range. Once those are eliminated, Kirishima moves closer and encounters a second, shorter-ranged battery that opens fire at 90,000 km and inflicts several strength-4 hits on her armour. She pulls back and destroys them, before advancing once again and coming under fire at 19,000 km. Kirishima’s armour suffers another thirty-nine hits, leading to a seventy-five percent penetration in one location and moderate damage across the whole belt.
The third and final battery suffers the same fate as the first two, although Kirishima is close to weapon failure with only five percent of her maintenance supplies remaining. Kirishima heads for Reunion-A III to resupply from the recently captured maintenance stockpile. Her commander, Kaigun-Taisa Kido Hoshi is awarded the Order of the Rising Sun with Silver Rays for his actions in Reunion.
15th March 1984The troop transport Yasukuni Maru drops the 1st Kurogane Samurai division on the Bloodclaw colony. This will be a far more difficult battle, as the ground force signature is 33,500-tons, six times larger than the forces on the other two colonies in Reunion. In fact, the attacking force is likely out-massed and the defenders are well-fortified but there are no other Imperial Army formations within fifty billion kilometres. The Kaenryu and Gekiryū combat mechs will have to rely on quality, not quantity.
16th March 1984Within twenty-four hours of landing, the 1st Kurogane Samurai division has identified approximately a hundred Dominion tanks of various types and up to ten thousand infantry and other troops. Combat is difficult for both sides due to the minimal gravity and temperatures of minus two hundred degrees. Three days after landing, a decisive engagement takes place, when half the Bloodclaw armour is destroyed by Kaenryu combat mechs within eight hours of fighting, significantly reducing the Dominion’s ability to defeat the Imperial Army mechs.
20th March 1984The survey cruiser Shirayuki finds another dormant jump point in Sapporo. The original survey discovered only two jump points, the entry point from Kagoshima and an outward jump point to a black hole. Since then, a jump point in Santa Isabel, two jumps from Fiji, connected to a dormant jump point in Sapporo, then a resurvey found a second dormant jump point leading to Ascension. After the news that the Sapporo aliens were at war with the Xiamen, the resurvey continued and has now found a third previously dormant jump point.
Shirayuki probes the new jump point and discovers Bermuda, a G5-IV sub-giant star orbited by four terrestrial worlds. Bermuda III, a cold desert world with small seas and a nitrogen-oxygen atmosphere, would be an ideal habitable world, if not for 0.06 atm of carbon dioxide. The survey cruiser launches a reconnaissance drone and finds no sign of life.
8th April 1984The survey cruiser Minekaze completes a geological survey of the four planets and fifteen moons in Ascension and heads for the Saint Helena jump point to survey the Zuijin planet in that system. As she is leaving orbit of Ascension II, she detects the transit of a Pasht class geosurvey ship of the Sapporo aliens through a previously unknown jump point, less than twenty million kilometres away.
Minekaze transits the new jump point and discovers a huge black hole with a hundred and twenty solar masses. Over thirty billion kilometres away on the far side of the system are ten Xiamen wrecks, including eight 160,000-ton commercial-engined Zhangzhou class. This system could be the link between the Sapporo aliens and the territory of the People’s Republic of Xiama. Minekaze lays her last two sensor buoys either side of the new jump point then returns to Ascension, transits into Saint Helena and heads for the Zuijin world.
10th April 1984Full communication is established with the alien race recently encountered in Zanzibar. They are known as the Helgrim Protectorate and are humanoid in general appearance, although their true form is unknown as they wear suits of ornate metal armour, including full helms. While ancient in appearance, the armour is presumably of modern construction and ceremonial in nature. Only two small ships have been encountered so far, so the technology and military strength of the enigmatic Helgrim remains a mystery.
25th April 1984The 1st Kurogane Samurai division completes the conquest of the Bloodclaw comet colony. The only loss was a single Gekiryū Combat Mech, although the division has consumed all its supplies and there are no replacements available. Fifty automated mines are captured.
28th April 1984Full communication is finally established with the mysterious alien race that has been occasionally encountered in the systems around Sapporo for the last fourteen years. The aliens, which are tall, thin humanoids, with grey skin, very large black eyes and triangular-shaped bony heads, refer to themselves as Capellans and their polity as the Capella Imperium. A total of twenty-one Capellan ships have been detected over the years, all of which have military engines and mass less than ten thousand tons. As with the Helgrim Protectorate, the strength of the Capella Imperium and the extent of their territory is unknown.
4th May 1984Ground combat between the 2nd Kurogane Samurai division and the Zuijin defenders hidden in the jungle-covered mountains of Tarawa II has been underway for over four months. Five Kaenryu combat mechs have been lost and less than ten percent of the Zuijin force has been eliminated. Approximately eleven hundred Zuijin bots and over a hundred larger mechs are estimated to remain somewhere in the dense foliage. The reconstituted 2nd Division of the Imperial Army, comprising ten thousand infantry and one hundred and twenty Ju-Ro heavy tanks, is unloaded on the planet to provide assistance. While the infantry is nowhere near as powerful as the huge Kaenryu and Gekiryū combat mechs, it significantly increases the number of units and weapons available to hunt down the Zuijin.
9th May 1984Ten transits from Tarawa, the 3rd and 4th Divisions of the Imperial Army are dropped on Saint Helena II, another Zuijin planet. This planet also has mountains, but they are not covered in jungle. In orbit are the battleships Hyūga and Ise, left behind to protect the planet after the rest of the Kido Butai departed, the survey cruiser Minekaze, conducting a geological survey of the planet and searching for ruins, and a Pasht class geosurvey ship of the Capella Imperium. The presence of the Capellan ship could soon lead to a rival ground force competing for whatever ruins are located on Saint Helena II.
16th May 1984The Zuijin defenders of Saint Helena II are eliminated after a week of intense combat. Imperial Army losses are relatively light, with approximately seven hundred infantry killed and six tanks destroyed. Unfortunately, due to the extreme shortage of troop transport capacity, it will be almost three months before a pair of Xenoarchaeological regiments arrive to study whatever ruins are found by the orbital survey. As the two divisions that secured the planet are fully combat effective, they will be transported to Tarawa II to join the epic struggle on that world.
28th May 1984Minekaze finds a ruined colony on Saint Helena II. There are no mineral deposits worthy of note.
3rd June 1984A buoy emplaced in the recently discovered black hole system adjacent to Ascension detects weapons fire near the ten Xiamen wrecks in the system. There is no sign of further wrecks or life pods.
28th June 1984The 1st Division of the Imperial Army is unloaded on Tarawa II, joining the 2nd Division and the 2nd Kurogane Samurai. The conflict has lasted six months and a little more than half of the original Zuijin force remains. The addition of the 2nd Division in early May helped considerably, with the infantry able to operate more effectively than the huge combat mechs in the steep jungle terrain. The arrival of the 1st Division will double the infantry force. The two divisions from the recent battle in Saint Helena are en route but several months away.
12th July 1984Three 966-ton Bloodclaw Dominion ships of a new type, designated as Bobcat class, transit into Reunion from Mauritius. All three are instantly destroyed by the Zharovian picket squadron on the jump point, which comprises three ships totalling 85,000 tons. Two Magadan class ships of 21,300 tons are detected firing 20cm lasers and a single 25cm laser. The same Zharovian squadron occasionally issues requests to leave the system when any Imperial Navy ship is nearby.
The salvage operations in Zanzibar are complete and Kimikawa Maru has returned to Mauritius Base, as have Kirishima, the troop transport Yasukuni Maru and the 1st Kurogane Samurai division. The captured fuel harvesters have recently transited from Amirante into Reunion and are making their way very slowly across the latter system. There is still no ultimate destination, as a suitable gas giant has not been found, but they will eventually arrive at Mauritius base where they will be easier to protect. One of the three light cruisers remains in Zanzibar, in contact with an Edda class ship of the Helgrim, a second is at the captured Bloodclaw colony in Reunion and the third is being overhauled at Mauritius Base. The survey cruisers Harukaze and Asakaze are conducting surveys of Reunion and Zanzibar respectively. All of this activity is a long way from the nearest naval base in the Fiji system and with the ban on transiting the Zharov system, there is no further help for Mauritius Base or its assigned forces for the foreseeable future.
16th July 1984Emissions from two more of the new Bobcat class are detected a hundred and forty million kilometres from Mauritius Base, moving at almost 13,000 km/s. The old Kongo II class battlecruiser Kirishima and the Nagara III-Ni light cruiser Yura are at the base, but even the latter has less than half the speed of the Bloodclaw ships. Given their size and speed, they could be some form of missile platform, or maybe even a large attack craft similar to those of the Mizuchi. Fortunately, they appear to be on a course for the Zharov jump point, rather than moving to attack the Japanese base. Upon hearing the news regarding the activity of the Bloodclaw, Daigensui-Kaigun-Taishō Takagi considers that a new run through Zharov might be required to reinforce the most distant outpost of the Empire.
The Bobcats reappear a few hours later on approach to the Reunion jump point, after presumably changing course somewhere beyond the detection range of the tracking station at Mauritius Base, but now detected by a sensor buoy on the jump point. There are three Bobcats in total, which ignore the buoy and transit into Reunion where they are obliterated by the Zharovian ships. Kimikawa Maru transits into Reunion and salvages the wreckage, finding several fixed missile launchers and a missile fire control.
25th July 1984Asakaze probes a newly discovered jump point in Zanzibar, located in the general direction from which the only two known ships of the Helgrim Protectorate approached the Zanzibar – Amirante jump point. She discovers a white dwarf system with an unmarkable dwarf planet, orbited by a tiny moon. The system is named Havelock, following the theme of Indian Ocean islands for systems beyond the Zharovian home world, the first of which is Mauritius, home system of the Bloodclaw Dominion.
27th July 1984A Viper class geological survey ship of the Mizuchi-Ha enters Sigma Tucanae from Ryūgasaki, detected by a sensor buoy emplaced on the jump point. The Kawanishi H3K 'Shoki' that was previously picketing the jump point was withdrawn to Fomalhaut due to the arrival of a large force of Mizuchi-Ha attack craft on the Ryūgasaki side. A second H3K is dispatched from Fomalhaut Naval Base, with orders to locate the Viper during its survey mission and eliminate it.
Ninety minutes later that order is rescinded when a force of seven Mizuchi warships, totalling over 150,000 tons and including the 68,000 ton Anaconda class, follows the Viper into Sigma Tucanae, placing them a single transit from Fomalhaut. They destroy the sensor buoy before heading in-system. Based on the buoy readings just before its destruction, the two 22,660-ton Mamba class ships in the Mizuchi-Ha force are each armed with fifteen 35cm acid-lasers and a single 52cm acid-laser, giving them formidable firepower. The Anaconda also has a 52cm acid-laser, plus almost fifty twin turrets, while the four 11,293-ton Kraits each have ten twin turrets.
The forces on station at the Fomalhaut Naval Base include the light cruiser Tenryu, sixty A3M2 ‘Hayabusa’ fighters, forty A2M3 ‘Shinden’ fighters, three experimental Nakajima J1N 'Toryu’ (
Dragonslayer) interceptors, which are the only craft of their type in existence, and three Kawanishi H3K 'Shoki' patrol craft. Three further H3Ks are deployed at nearby jump points. Two shore batteries are present on the surface, comprising a dozen 30cm lasers and an equal number of 20cm lasers.
Nakajima J1N 'Toryu' class Interceptor 2,000 tons 27 Crew 615.4 BP TCS 40 TH 499 EM 0
12480 km/s Armour 1-14 Shields 0-0 HTK 14 Sensors 0/0/0/0 DCR 0-0 PPV 15
Maint Life 1.98 Years MSP 598 AFR 128% IFR 1.8% 1YR 202 5YR 3,037 Max Repair 249.6 MSP
Kaigun-Chūsa Control Rating 1 BRG
Intended Deployment Time: 2.1 days Morale Check Required
Koga-Murakama KM-500-DB Magneto-Plasma Drive (1) Power 499.2 Fuel Use 252% Signature 499 Exp 19%
Fuel Capacity 53,700 Litres Range 1.92 billion km (42 hours at full power)
Kentaro-Sakura KS-45A Spinal Laser (1) Range 320,000km TS: 12,480 km/s Power 53-5 ROF 55
Type 34 Go-34E Laser Fire Control (1) Max Range: 320,000 km TS: 12,500 km/s ECCM-2
R-5B Stellarator Fusion Reactor (1) Total Power Output 5.1 Exp 10%
Type 33 Go-74B Fighter Detection (1) GPS 16 Range 4.3m km Resolution 10
With the deadly, high-tech Mizuchi-Ha encroaching on the territory of the Empire of Japan, the Fomalhaut naval base requires urgent reinforcement. The light cruiser Kuma, recently upgraded to the new Nagara IV class with fusion drives, longer-ranged railguns and improved sensors, is dispatched from the nearby Hadano system, on the border of Xiamen space, leaving behind the old light cruiser Kasagi to provide a tripwire defence should the Xiamen suddenly turn hostile. The battleships Nagato and Mutsu, not yet scheduled for an upgrade to the latest technology, are dispatched from Sol. Together, these ships comprise the maximum size of force that the base can support until its maintenance capacity is improved.
Nagara IV class Light Cruiser 18,000 tons 618 Crew 4,669.8 BP TCS 360 TH 2,880 EM 0
8000 km/s Armour 6-61 Shields 0-0 HTK 122 Sensors 16/28/0/0 DCR 10-5 PPV 108
Maint Life 1.91 Years MSP 2,121 AFR 259% IFR 3.6% 1YR 754 5YR 11,303 Max Repair 720 MSP
Troop Capacity 500 tons Boarding Capable
Kaigun-Taisa Control Rating 3 BRG AUX CIC
Intended Deployment Time: 15 months Morale Check Required
Koga-Murakama KM-1440-B Fusion Drive (2) Power 2880 Fuel Use 32.20% Signature 1440 Explosion 12%
Fuel Capacity 695,400 Litres Range 21.6 billion km (31 days at full power)
Kentaro-Sakura KS-20B Far Ultraviolet Laser (12) Range 384,000km TS: 8,000 km/s Power 10-5 ROF 10
Takashi Kinetics TK-10C Railgun (12x4) Range 50,000km TS: 8,000 km/s Power 3-3 ROF 5
Type 41 Go-31F Laser Fire Control (2) Max Range: 384,000 km TS: 8,125 km/s ECCM-3
R-50 Tokamak Fusion Reactor (2) Total Power Output 100.3 Exp 5%
Type 42 Go-21E Missile Detection (1) GPS 14 Range 7.9m km MCR 710.9k km Resolution 1
Type 42 Go-11E Search Sensor (1) GPS 15120 Range 116.9m km Resolution 120
Type 42 Go-61D Passive Sensor (1) Sensitivity 28 Detect Sig Strength 1000: 41.8m km
Type 33 Go-51C Passive Sensor (1) Sensitivity 16 Detect Sig Strength 1000: 31.6m km
Electronic Warfare Jammers: Sensor 2 Fire Control 3 Missile 4
Ground Forces
1x Naval Landing Force
15th August 1984The Zuijin forces on Tarawa II are finally defeated after nine months of combat across the planet’s jungle-covered mountains. Three full divisions, including the combat mechs of the 2nd Kurogane Samurai, were required to hunt down the Zuijin bots and mechs in an extremely difficult environment. With the planet now clear of hostile forces, two Xenoarchaeological regiments are landed to begin a survey of the ruined colony. While the combat was underway, a gravitational survey of the system was completed without revealing any outward jump points.
18th August 1984The tracking station at Mauritius Base detects a new class of Bloodclaw ship, designated as Javan Leopard class, moving away from the Dominion home world. As the ship has commercial engines and a speed of 1400 km/s, the light cruiser Yura moves to intercept. She uses a single railgun to attack the ship until it slows by fifty percent, then sends her Raiden Sentai to board it. Despite being understrength, the Sentai quickly captures the ship, a small civilian freighter, without any losses.
19th August 1984Sapporo has an F7-V primary, with higher mass than Sol, which makes a full re-survey a substantial task. Nevertheless, given that three dormant jump point have been found since the original survey, completing the resurvey is still a priority task, despite the belief of many Imperial Navy officers that the entry point of the Capella Imperium into Sapporo has already been located and the focus should be on surveying the surrounding systems. Those doubters are proven incorrect when Shirayuki, one of three 10,000-ton Asagiri II class survey cruisers in Sapporo, discovers a fourth dormant jump point. Why this particular system seems to attract so many dormant jump point is a mystery, but it only reinforces the need to complete the resurvey. Shirayuki moves to the new jump point while her sister ships Sagiri and Murakumo continue the task in Sapporo.
25th August 1984Shirayuki transits the new jump point and finds herself in the same black hole system that was discovered four months earlier from Ascension, which itself is adjacent to Sapporo. This new connection supports the idea that the colossal black hole system, which has an outer survey ring sixty billion kilometres in diameter, may be the direction from which the Sapporo aliens first appeared. The new jump point is only eighteen billion kilometres from the Xiamen wrecks, compared to thirty-two billion kilometres from the Ascension jump point. Given the recent combat activity at the wreck location, it is likely a jump point to Xiamen space, so Shirayuki begins a survey of the area near the wrecks, trying to locate the jump point. Due to the number of jumps points, presence of the Capella Imperium and the proximity of the Aether Rift in the Vanikoro system three transits away, Sapporo I will be developed into a new naval base.
23rd September 1984The survey of the ruined colony on Tarawa II is complete. Fifty-one sites of interest have been identified.
10rd October 1984The survey of the ruined colony on Saint Helena II is complete. Sixty-two sites of interest have been identified.
18th November 1984Asakaze discovers two new jump points close to the star in the Zanzibar system, three jumps out from Mauritius. The first leads to Nicobar, a red dwarf system with three terrestrial planets, the second of which is Mars-sized and has liquid water and a thin nitrogen – oxygen atmosphere, although no mineral deposits. The other jump point connects to Madagascar, a far more substantial system, with an orange K2-V primary, six planets, forty-eight moons and almost two hundred asteroids. A moon of the third planet has similar characteristics to Nicobar II, albeit without a geological survey at this point.
There are twenty-nine wrecks in Madagascar, ranging from 7000 tons to 180,000 tons, all of which are unknown types. While most are scattered between the orbits of the first and second planets, a hot barren rock and a Venusian world respectively, there are nine wrecks further out, in the same general area beyond the sixth planet, a gas giant with sixteen moons. It is possible the wrecks are from ships of the Helgrim Protectorate, as only two of their ships have been encountered, or it could be an entirely new race.
Asakaze is out of both buoys and drone and lacks a scout, so she moves in-system to a point where she can launch her B1N ‘Ryusei’ strike craft, so it can scout the inner system using its small strike sensor. The B1N detects a new 7,482-ton ship type of the Helgrim Protectorate, designated as Gefjon class, in orbit of a moon of Madagascar III, but no other sign of life in the inner system. Asakaze moves in behind the strike craft to have a closer look.
3rd December 1984A ground force of the Capella Imperium is detected on Saint Helena IV, a frozen world slightly larger than Earth, with a helium-hydrogen atmosphere, ice sheets covering half the surface and a surface temperature of -96C. A geological survey finds large deposits of several minerals but only at minimal accessibility. What the Capellans could find interesting about this desolate wasteland is unknown. Imperial Army recovery operations are still in progress at the Zuijin ruins on Saint Helena II.
5th December 1984The delivery of maintenance facilities and two Yokosuka class orbital maintenance stations to Fomalhaut Naval Base has increased its maintenance capacity to almost half a million tons. This allows the deployment of two Takao III class heavy cruisers, Ashigara and Myōkō, to bolster the forces stationed at Fomalhaut to counter the growing threat from the Mizuchi-Ha. Seventy-one Nakajima B1N ‘Ryusei’ strike craft, delivered by the carriers Taihō and Junyō, are added to the Fomalhaut Kōkūtai. The B1N was superseded in carrier kōkūtai from 1979 onwards by the Nakajima B2N2 'Tenzan’, but can still provide the base with a useful strike capability. The carriers also delivered sufficient Rakurai II anti-ship missiles for a full reload before heading back to Earth. Further forces will be allocated to Fomalhaut as they become available.
Fomalhaut SquadronNagato II class Battleship:
Mutsu, NagatoTakao III class Heavy Cruiser:
Ashigara, MyōkōNagara IV class Light Cruiser:
Kashima, KumaFomalhaut Kōkūtai3x Nakajima J1N 'Toryu' Interceptor
3x Kawanishi H3K 'Shoki' Long Range Patrol
71x Nakajima B1N 'Ryūsei' Carrier Strike
60x Mitsubishi A3M2 'Hayabusa' Fighter
40x Mitsubishi A2M3 'Shinden' Fighter
2x Aichi E2A class Scout:
Takao III class Heavy Cruiser 27,000 tons 865 Crew 6,640.7 BP TCS 540 TH 4,320 EM 4,260
8000 km/s JR 3-50 Armour 5-80 Shields 142-532 HTK 169 Sensors 16/28/0/0 DCR 14-5 PPV 145.28
Maint Life 1.91 Years MSP 3,652 AFR 417% IFR 5.8% 1YR 1,293 5YR 19,391 Max Repair 720 MSP
Kaigun-Taisa Control Rating 4 BRG AUX ENG CIC
Intended Deployment Time: 10 months Morale Check Required
Komatsu KMJ-270-B Jump Drive Max Ship Size 27000 tons Distance 50k km Squadron Size 3
Koga-Murakama KM-1440-B Fusion Drive (3) Power 4320 Fuel Use 32.20% Signature 1440 Explosion 12%
Fuel Capacity 1,016,000 Litres Range 21 billion km (30 days at full power)
Shīrudo-71A Shield Generator (2) Recharge Time 532 seconds (0.3 per second)
Kentaro-Sakura KS-25A Far Ultraviolet Laser (10) Range 384,000km TS: 8,000 km/s Power 16-4 ROF 20
Twin Kentaro-Sakura KS-12C Laser Turret (6x2) Range 240,000km TS: 25000 km/s Power 8-8 ROF 5
Type 41 Go-31F Laser Fire Control (2) Max Range: 384,000 km TS: 8,125 km/s ECCM-3
Type 41 Go-31F Turret Fire Control (2) Max Range: 96,000 km TS: 25,000 km/s ECCM-3
R-50 Tokamak Fusion Reactor (2) Total Power Output 100.3 Exp 5%
Type 42 Go-21E Missile Detection (1) GPS 14 Range 7.9m km MCR 710.9k km Resolution 1
Type 42 Go-71E Fighter Detection (1) GPS 280 Range 24.1m km Resolution 10
Type 42 Go-11E Search Sensor (1) GPS 15120 Range 116.9m km Resolution 120
Type 33 Go-51C Passive Sensor (1) Sensitivity 16 Detect Sig Strength 1000: 31.6m km
Type 42 Go-61D Passive Sensor (1) Sensitivity 28 Detect Sig Strength 1000: 41.8m km
Electronic Warfare Jammers: Sensor 2 Fire Control 3 Missile 4
16th December 1984Intelligence gathered via ELINT data from the home world of the Xiamen, confirms that the People’s Republic of Xiama is still at war with the Capella Imperium, formerly known as the Sapporo aliens. This conflict was first reported in February and the presence of Xiamen wrecks in the larger of the two black hole systems connected to Sapporo suggests the war is ongoing in that system, but, apart from energy impacts and explosions, no actual combat has been observed by the Imperial Japanese Navy. Based on the evidence gathered so far, the People’s Republic presents a formidable opponent with a substantial population, high levels of technology and a presence in numerous systems. Relations between the Empire of Japan and the People’s Republic are cordial, with a trade treaty in place. With so many threats to the Empire, this is an acceptable state of affairs, at least for the moment. The Capella Imperium remains a mystery, with only small, military-engined ships encountered so far, in the systems around Sapporo, plus the ground force signature on Saint Helena IV.
26th December 1984ELINT data from the Bloodclaw home world reveals extremely disconcerting information, in the form of a Bloodclaw heavy cruiser design. Until now, given that the Dominion is plainly losing its war against the Followers of Zharov, and taking losses from the small Japanese force at Mauritius Base, plus its relatively smaller home world population and the low technology of captured ships, Imperial Naval Intelligence had assumed the Bloodclaw Dominion had a lower level of technology than the Empire of Japan.
The ‘heavy cruiser’ design crushes that assumption. The Simone Schiaffino V class is fifty percent larger than the eight Imperial Navy heavy cruisers and has an Inertial Fusion drive, which is a generation ahead of the Imperial Navy’s Magnetic Fusion drive, which has only recently been developed. The Imperial Navy is in the early stages of a refit program, with only four of thirteen carriers having received the new drives and none of the eight battleships, although the majority of light and heavy cruisers have been refitted. Furthermore, the Bloodclaw class mounts the same deadly particle lances as the Zuijin and has the necessary speed to get within range. Only in fire controls and electronic warfare does the Imperial Navy have an advantage, and that is mainly due to the large research colony on Osaka-B I, home to an ancient construct that adds eighty percent to sensor research.
Simone Schiaffino V class Heavy Cruiser 42,594 tons 1,497 Crew 16,485.8 BP TCS 852 TH 6,900 EM 0
8099 km/s Armour 7-108 Shields 0-0 HTK 307 Sensors 11/11/0/0 DCR 10-2 PPV 348
Maint Life 0.36 Years MSP 2,419 AFR 1451% IFR 20.2% 1YR 6,649 5YR 99,737 Max Repair 862.5 MSP
Magazine 0 / 104
Line Captain Control Rating 3 BRG AUX CIC
Intended Deployment Time: 12 months Morale Check Required
Inertial Fusion Drive EP1725 (4) Power 6900 Fuel Use 11.42% Signature 1725 Explosion 10%
Fuel Capacity 1,150,000 Litres Range 42.5 billion km (60 days at full power)
Particle Lance-18 (29) Range 240,000km TS: 8,099 km/s Power 55-5 ROF 55
Beam Fire Control R320-TS8500 (3) Max Range: 320,000 km TS: 8,500 km/s ECCM-3
Inertial Confinement Fusion Reactor R6 (29) Total Power Output 169.9 Exp 5%
Size 26 Decoy Launcher (4) Decoy Size: 26 Hangar Reload 255 minutes MF Reload 42 hours
Justicar Ship Decoy (4) Signature: 5200 tons ECM-3 Size: 26
Active Search Sensor AS103-R120 (1) GPS 15120 Range 103.6m km Resolution 120
Thermal Sensor TH1-11 (1) Sensitivity 11 Detect Sig Strength 1000: 26.2m km
EM Sensor EM1-11 (1) Sensitivity 11 Detect Sig Strength 1000: 26.2m km
Electronic Warfare Jammers: Sensor 3 Fire Control 3 Missile 3
This new information has both positive and negative implications. The obvious negative is that if the Dominion manages to build one or more of these ships, they will pose a significant threat to Mauritius Base. The three light cruisers based at the colony are powered by magneto-plasma drives, while the old battlecruiser Kirishima still has ion engines. The rest of their technology is in line with their engines, apart from sensors and fire controls, so they are unlikely to prevail in such a conflict.
The positive implication is due to the fact the Dominion has apparently suffered heavily against the Followers of Zharov and appears to be mainly confirmed to their home world, building only occasional commercial-engined ships that are destroyed if they try to leave the system. The Zharovians have made several attempts to attack the Dominion home world, but have been defeated by the orbital defences. If the Dominion really is weak and its home world has suffered damage, it might be possible to launch an attack to capture it and gain access to the latest Bloodclaw technology. While the Imperial Navy has the advantage of an existing base in the system, it is still relatively small and over fifty billion kilometres from Earth. Two thirds of that distance is via the territory of the Followers of Zharov.
A repair vessel is already en route to Mauritius, to enable a more sustainable presence in the system, plus a tug is towing a second Yokosuka class maintenance base, although the decision about when to make the run through the Zharov system, with the attendant risks of war with the Zharovians, is yet to be made. In the meantime, Daigensui-Kaigun-Taishō Takagi sets a new objective for the Imperial Navy; build up the forces in Mauritius, to the point where an assault on the Bloodclaw home world is possible, without causing a war with the Followers of Zharov, or weakening the Empire’s ability to deal with the Mizuchi-Ha.
As a first step, the light cruiser Naka moves within sensor range of the Bloodclaw home world to check its current status. She detects twelve ships of three different types, ranging from 20,787 tons to 26,151 tons, which are possibly orbital bases. At least one type is armed with light missiles, given the barrage suffered by Zharovian ships attacking the planet. There is also a large shipyard complex, which the Zharovians have plainly failed to destroy. Capturing that intact would be extremely useful, especially so far from Earth.
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Project Excalibur is a top secret design project ordered in 2355 by the UNSC, its purpose to design a viable long range strike fighter craft capable of engaging targets up to 150mkm with enough firepower to destroy frigate sized vessels of the day when deployed in squadrons. The fighter was slated for the planned CVX carrier design that would replace the existing Trafalgar class carrier in the 2370s, the result of Excalibur would be the F-62 Gladius Strike-Fighter, the largest ever vessel with such a designation planned for deployment in squadrons of six for both offensive and defensive roles thanks to missile and coilgun armament.
