Originally posted by Arsulon:
"Oddly, I think the only thing that might keep my interest in an RC campaign is the continuation of the Hellenic analogy. If the RC did sucessfully blunt the Soleean advance that would signal an increase in the abuses associated with the Delian League. By the end of the conflict, Aubaine (Athens) would be able to brag that only through the inspired leadership of Maggart (Pericles) were the RC worlds able to pull together. If we've had a Thermopylae then Oriflamme has lost much of its military might through attrition (probably having sacrificed its Marine Brigade) and possibly much of its Centrist ruling class."
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IMTU, Iused the WW2 analogy. The RC is arming itself for the conflict, but Solee gets in the first blow in Shenk, and later into Oriflamme. IMTU, Its Baldur that gets hammered, then Oriflamme. Yes Oriflamme repels the Soleean TF sent there (with heavy losses, as I played it out in BR with two other gamers), but the planet gets spared the worst ravages. So IMTU outlook, I saw no loss of the Centrist party of Oriflamme.
The damage done to Baldur (destruction of the orbital C-classport, eg. and the environemntal cities below on the mainworld rallies the last of the "peacniks" to the hawk side for war.
The Hiver Federation, with its non intevention policy between states, hems a fine line and continues its convoys to the RC, in staid neutrality. It sheds light that this is between two human polities, two differing political wills of thought, not picking one side over the next for the Hiver-lovers-a bit of epiphany. Rallying to save the now doomed world of Baldur becomes the Dunkirk of the RC-Solee war. A finest hour of humanity. Again, the Hivers DO NOT intervene (shocking many Centrists, and Federalists--realpolitik).
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"This paves the way for the Federalist victory after Federalist victory in the Assembly: Aubani influence and cultural imperialism swells without a comensurate inrease in their responsibility to the constituent worlds (largely because the Centrist initiative for a constitution is defeated again and again.) Oriflamme turns inward as it attempts to recover but continues to push, with Baldur, for colonizing the "backside" despite protests by Aubaine that it is building its own "Centrist emprie." As diplomatic contact with other stellar polities (e.g. Solee, etc.) increases individual worlds take it on themselves to negotiate directly for trade and information: Aubaine jealously attempts to thwart this "end-run" around THEIR Assembly and increasingly comes down hard on malcontents using sanctions and other economic means. Discontented worlds begin to align with Oriflamme which, by this point, has considerable resources to draw on. The flashpoint will be one discontented world refusing to pay its Assembly dues. Aubaine, afraid of losing face, resorts to force which quickly turns ugly due to their inexperience in policing worlds. Centrist worlds are increasingly calling for Oriflamme to take action and when they finally do, it's civil war. Just as Athens and its allies duked it out with Sparta and their allies, only to mutually exhaust each other and leave a power vacuum, so too will the RC worlds. Sparta technically won the war but had no experience or desire to run an Hellenic empire: so too will Oriflamme turn inward again, pursuing their own agendas after a ham-fisted attempt at running the Assembly. This leaves the way free and clear for a Thebes to arise out of the ashes (Baldur?) introducing new tactics and technology to the field, defeating what remains of the might of Aubaine and Oriflamme, leaving the former RC worlds ripe for the plucking of some Philip or Alexander of Macedon/Massilia."
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By the time I open the war with Solee IMTU, (December 1203/ Jan 1204 in RC due to jump space time hacks and speedy word at J-2 (a six week delay) the followiung things have happened in the RC sphere:
A) planets rimwards in A, B, C subsectors of Alpha Crucis/Leonis Sector have "joined the RC" (some sixty odd worlds now are part of the Coalition, though many of the rim members are associates and will be full members by end of 1204, over a third of them however are non-voting salvage/"resource worlds"-former dead Cemetery worlds.), several have B-clas yards, three of these rimwards worlds (one in each subsector has a B-class starport, and TL-11 remnant tech level extant in 1201.All of these worlds have no gas giants btw!). These three shipyards petition for upgrades to A-class, and get approval.
B) The SHipyard Bill (which upgrades the starport building facilities of the original 22 worlds has been passed. (Winter of 1202/spring of 1203) while Promise herself is being sacked/ and Vampire Hwy severed. This means Aurora and Aubaine aren't the only A-class yards in the RC. All the B-class get upgraded to A's (Kruyters, Trybec in AUbaine; Oriflamme/Oriflamme too. with this comes a rise in tech level imtu of +1 (thanks to salvaged relic technology 1202-1204 and onwards from the "resource worlds").
Meaning Oriflamme has an A-class yard in orbit and dirtside and has returned to TL-10. Sveral with C-class yards go upgrade to B-class (TL-7+), Shenandoah is not one of them (TL-6).
C) All of the ships in PoT have been built by June of 1203, and new ones are underway. Realizing the booming economy needs help, and the "RCN fleet" is now picket watching over Promise &the Khulam-Main, the RC leases sevral Bulk freighters from the Hiver client state of RENJ (A TL-11 former TL-15 Solomani Confederation Pan Sophontist stronghold of previous era & a Nexus economic giant in Sitah Subsector P/OE), six of which are converted into warships (15ktns).
D) 1203 is a banner year for the small A-class yards dirtside, as civilian merchant vessels of various designs hit the market, and speculative trade with the Back Face worlds continues (much pouring through Baldur & Oriflamme's coffers). Trade into the new Rim territories of lazzerton, Mackenzie, and Dagir subsectors needs starships to carry the salvaged goods back into the RC.
E) It is also a banner year for colonizing cm worlds, using the SNAKE AVV weapon, wiping out virii eggs from recovered relic equipement, some colonies paying for themselves (initial set up costs) in a matter of months!)
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"Are the Macedonians the restructured Soleean Star Emprie? The Fourth Imperium? Something else? Who knows? I imagine in this scenario that the Hivers do what they, and the Olympians, do best: they watch. To them, the RC ripping itself apart would be a fascinating lab experiment; after all, they never got a chance to do a controlled study of the Imperium turning on itself. Somehow I find the idea of the Aubanis screaming to the starfish for help as Oriflammnan fire arcs down from the heavens, only to get the message back "The Federation does not intervene in the internal matters of other states (plus, violence scares us.)" immensely satisfying."