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Posted by Mark Nguyen (Member # 469) on :
 
SECTOR GAMMA

Welcome to Sector Gamma, gentlemen. For the newcomers, what we’re engaging in is a thread of semi-directed hypothetical discussion of fleet deployment in the Star Trek universe. As the Rear Admiral assigned to this sector, it’ll be your job to assemble, deploy and manage the Starfleet ships in the area. Prior to participating in this thread, I strongly recommend you read over the threads for Sectors Alpha and Beta, so we can remember what we were doing this spring. New participants should also read them over to familiarize themselves with the concept. Unless you’re Timo, the time frame is no more than five years after the end of the Dominion War. The Alpha Quadrant is still recovering from the war, although some powers are worse off than others.
You’ll find that many of the same setup locations are the same as for sectors Alpha and Beta, which I’ll repeat again:

-the sector is essentially flat, and is approximately 20 ly on a side. At warp nine, a starship will take approximately five days to traverse a side.
-each asterisk represents a main-sequence star with little interesting about it.
-each planet is in a star system, and except where noted is Class-M. Circle sizes are not relevant.
-the space in the adjoining sectors is essentially devoid of anything interesting or valuable unless noted.
-unless noted, all inhabited planets are occupied by humanoid species with a variety of bumpy heads.

Now for the background specific to the sector. Assume that this is the summary of the briefing you as a Rear Admiral have received at your previous posting.

-Sector Gamma is located somewhere “below” Cardassian space – that is, on the traditional maps of the galaxy we’re familiar with, it’s “under” the usual power structure in the area. The sector is still fairly remote, with any ships from known other races or powers being at least two weeks away at high warp.

-Sector Gamma is located on the edge of Cardassian space as it was prior to the war. When the war broke out, this sector was relatively far-removed from the main lines, and only minor skirmishes happened. After the Dominion was pushed back into their space in “Sacrifice of Angels”, this sector was one of several that were virtually abandoned by them, and it remained essentially out of the war until its end.

-Following the Dominion War, a splinter factions of Cardassians who followed the ideals of their old military dictatorship (as opposed to whatever civilian government is in charge now) came to the sector, installed themselves as the leaders of the local Cardassian colonies, and declared themselves an independent nation. Their territory extends into the sector “West” of Sector Gamma, however it doesn’t contain much aside from a couple of low-yield mining colonies on class-M worlds and a pulsar. The Cardassians have been relatively quiet since the war, engaging in trade with the other systems but not encouraging cooperation with the Federation or other major powers. Their borders are fairly open, however.

-Joval is the other major power in the sector, and while they have worked with the Federation in the past (engaging Dominion forces with them) they are not interested in a formal alliance or partnership. The Jovali (pron. joe-VAHL-ee) monarch is benevolent guy, but whose interests lie strongly in his people over those of anyone else.

-Jovalis was Joval’s first and only attempt at interstellar expansion, starting about 200 years ago. Consisting of a over a hundred rotating O’Neil-type cylinders and a dozen slightly more advanced colonies, the Jovalisi (pron. joe-VAHL-iss-eye) made their living by scooping Helium-3 and other gasses from their gas giant and processing them into exportable materials for trade. Following an economic depression fifteen years ago, the Jovalisi declared independence and applied for Federation membership. They have just been accepted as a Federation member. This has likewise been accepted by Joval, but elements of both states still desire to be together.

-Prior to their acceptance, Starfleet had operated Deep Space 12 in orbit of Jovalis, with a mission to ready them for membership. DS12 was built out of one of the smallest and oldest Jovalisi colonies, but has been reconditioned by Starfleet to be an operational starbase. Aside from artificial gravity and a minor weapons upgrade the station is not terribly advanced, however it has served adequately as a resupply and administrative base. There is a population of about two thousand on the station, about 80% of which are Jovalisi.

-The only regular starship assigned to the sector is the USS Rigorous, NCC-2732, an old Constellation-class ship. The Rigorous has a long history in the sector, being the first Federation starship to explore it five decades ago, and has been permanently stationed in the sector for most of the last two. Her captain and crew have worked together for a very long time, and are almost all experts in the sector. During the Dominion War, a task force was assigned here with the Rigorous and her crew as the flagship, and won several engagements. Bolian Captain Nall has commanded the ship since her first arrival in the sector, and she is a Federation legend to the locals.

-Zechs and Lucrezia once were on opposite sides of the border, but were swapped in first Cardassian treaties of the late 2360s. There was significant Maquis activity in the area as a result, and the resistance cells on Zechs were among the last eradicated by the Dominion. Things are much calmer these days, as most of the populations have relocated by now, but there is lingering sentiment from locals and independents on both sides.

-G’Sall is a planet in turmoil, with a relatively large population of primitive feudal states. It is uncontacted, however a joint Federation-Jovalis “duck-blind” mission is in its final stages there.

-The Pink and Purple Nebulae are big, fairly-well studied and a great place to hide stuff. The Class-N planet is basically one big puddle with little that can be mined from the water, and only one small land mass that has occasionally been used sporadically by traders on their way to somewhere else.

QUESTION ONE (Four Parts)

A) Evaluate the sector, and determine what Starfleet’s priorities should be. Note that unlike previous sectors, you’re coming into an area where Starfleet has had a small but significant presence for some time. Now that the Federation has a member world in the sector, how should Starfleet’s priorities change? Summarize your thoughts, note any gaps in the information that you were provided, and where you should focus your intelligence-gathering efforts.

B) Though Jovalis has benefited from Federation trade for several years now, their new membership will allow for a full-scale upping of their society to the latest technologies. One of the greatest tasks is the upgrading of almost one hundred of their old rotating colony cylinders with artifical gravity, upgraded power systems, and so forth, which are antiquated despite their otherwise current technology level. Starfleet can only allocate so many resources to this far-off sector, and much of it is going to this task, which will absorb hundreds of Starfleet personnel for several years. With what’s left, Starfleet will allow either a DS9-style upgrade to the DS12 station, making it into a full starbase within a year’s time; or to begin construction on a larger starbase of Starfleet design, which will take at least three years to build using a combination of components shipped in or built on-site. Given that this will be your headquarters for the foreseeable future, what would be the best option? A Starfleet starbase can be built anywhere in the sector you choose.

C) Starfleet sees this as a relatively stable sector, and while they want an expanded presence in the area they will not commit many ships to the sector. There will be a steady stream of Federation freighters coming into the sector for the Colony Upgrade Project, in addition to the expected influx of Federation trade.

1) Recommend a fleet of no more than SIX starships to be assigned to the sector. This fleet will be evaluated back at Starfleet Command, and if approved will arrive in-system AFTER the events of Question Two. However:

- There cannot be any large (Galaxy, Ambassador, Sovereign, etc.) starships in your fleet.
- There must be at least one non-combat ship in the fleet (science, transport, etc.). Justify its presence and use.

2) Until your fleet arrives, the only ships that will be assigned to the sector are the USS Rigorous and the ship you arrived in from Sector Beta (if you didn’t participate in that scenario, you’re arriving on a generic Excelsior-class starship). At your discretion, the ship you arrived on can be incorporated into your fleet. Where will you deploy your two ships until then? What will the deployment of your fleet be when they get here?

D) The USS Rigorous will not be a part of your fleet, as she is scheduled to be decommissioned after a long and eventful life; Captain Nall herself is retiring from the Fleet. However, her command crew need not be sent away as well. The Rigorous’ command crew is a good team, and includes:

First Officer – Commander Michael Boston (Human, 12 Years of Service) – Excellent Service Record. Experienced Diplomat.

Tactical – Lt. Laura Kardon (Human, 6 Years of Service) – Good Service Record. Native of Zechs. Little Combat experience.

Science – Lt. Commander Shezef (Andorian Male, 15 Years of Service) Excellent Service Record. Expert on the Pink & Purple Nebulae.

Medical – Commander Taris Tani (Bajoran Female, 20 Years of Service) – Fair Service Record. Married to a Jovalisi diplomat on DS12.

Engineering – Lt. Commander Bayl (Betazoid Male, 8 Years of Service) – Good Service Record.

Helm – Lt. (j.g.) Walter Shumar (Human, 40 years of Service) – Excellent Service Record. Legendary pilot. Has convinced all but one of his commanding officers never to promote him.

DS12’s CO is Commander Stalek (Vulcan, 20 Years of Service) – Good service record. Known to the Jovalisi, though not terribly popular.

1) As the new Admiral in the sector, you have the option of assigning this crew to your command. Do you want to keep them around, and what would you do with them? Justify your reply.

2) The Rigorous is to be decommissioned, but a group of Jovalisi citizens wishes to keep her around as a museum ship for their nation. Another group from Lucrezea also wants her, but as the flagship for a new militia they are creating. While the ship will be stripped of any sensitive technology in either case, the selling off of such an old starship to friendly concerns would not be unheard of. Recommend to Starfleet what they should do with the requests, and if any conditions should be specified to either party.

[ October 06, 2002, 08:49: Message edited by: Mark Nguyen ]
 

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Posted by MinutiaeMan (Member # 444) on :
 
Yay!

I'm still in the process of learning how to use Flash animation to illustrate this stuff. In the mean time, I've already had a LCARS-style map made up... http://www.st-minutiae.com/academy/command419/sector_gamma.gif

And of course I'll get right on the reply!
 

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Posted by Identity Crisis (Member # 67) on :
 
Three questions:

1. Joval is 22nd Century equivalent but has Sovereign equivalent ships? Really?

2. "There cannot be any large (Galaxy, Ambassador, Sovereign, etc.) starships in your fleet." I take it that Nebulas and Akiras are on the prohibited list?

3. "the ship you arrived on can be incorporated into your fleet" Does it then count as one of the six or not?
 

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Posted by Wraith (Member # 779) on :
 
I'm going to assume that the Apollo class is the nebulaised Ambassador...

Here it is:

A)
The largest military threat comes from the Cardassians on Bifour IV; they may wish to get back at the Federation for their defeat in the DW. While their existing military force doesn't appear to be overwhelmingly powerful they could be building more- they have heavy industry and resources too do this. Are they hiding anything in the Pink Nebula?

The reunification elements on Joval and Jovalis could also cause problems if the elements decided to try and do something about it. It may be worth approaching the Jovali monarch about the possibility of his world joining the Federation. In a similar vein Zechs and Lucrezia could also be a problem if any independence movements develop.

Starfleet's aims in this sector:
1) Protect Jovalis and Federation installations in the area.

2) Gather intelligence on the Cardassians- particularly their military forces. If possible, investigate the Pink Nebula.

3) Investigate strength of feeling about reunification on Joval and Jovalis. If appropriate, approach monarch of Joval about Federation membership.

4) Investigate Zechs and Lucrezia, with regards to local independence movements- especially endeavour to find out if there is any ex-Maquis military hardware in existence.

5) Keep G'Sall isolated.

6) Encourage the industrial and economic growth of Jovalis

B)
Both proposals have their advantages; a new-build starbase will have the advantage of being placed anywhere in the sector, it will be larger and more easily upgradeable. However, the main issue here is time; the modernisation option will get the base online faster and bearing in mind the success of the DS9 upgrade any loss in size and flexibility of position is probably worth it.

C)
1)
To: Starfleet Command
Fm: DS12//RADM Sharpe, O/C- TG1189.
Re: Starfleet assets in Sector Gamma

Already present: USS Indefagitable NCC-45231 ( Excelsior class)
USS Rigorous NCC-2732 ( Constellation class) [due for decommissioning]

Requested: 1x Apollo class heavy cruiser
2x New Orleans class frigate
1x Centaur class light cruiser
1x Deneva class freighter

The Deneva class freighter will engage in assisting the Jovalisi merchant fleet in opening trade with the Cardassians on Bifour IV. She will travel a route from the Jovalisi system to the trading and supply station on the Class N planet, via the Pink Nebula to the Bifour system. She will then return to Jovalis via Zechs and Lucrezia. At all of these places the Deneva will conduct scans in order to determine what, if anything, is present and gather intelligence.

2)
The Rigorous will stay in the Jovalis system to maintain it's security (and to allow her crew to participate in the many interviews the Jovalisi media will undoubtably wish to subject them to before they leave ). The Indefatigable will patrol the border between Zechs and Lucrezia. Once the remainder of the fleet arrives I will shift my flag to the Apollo class vessel and join the Indefatigable . The Deneva will commence her freight/intelligence run. One of the New Orleans and the Centaur will patrol the northern part of the border. The remaining New Orleans will join the Rigorous in Jovalis/ Joval.

D)
I will keep the Rigorous' command crew; their local knowledge and the high esteem in which they are held in by the locals will help enormously with operations.

The Rigorous' command crew is a good team, and includes:

First Officer; Commander Michael Boston (Human, 12 Years of Service) : Excellent Service Record. Experienced Diplomat.

If Commander Stalek is promoted and reassigned then Cdr Boston will be assigned as CO DS12, if not then as my Chief of Staff.

Tactical – Lt. Laura Kardon (Human, 6 Years of Service) – Good Service Record. Native of Zechs. Little Combat experience.

Assigned to my flagship- as she will then be patrolling the area between Zechs and Lucrezia; Lt. Kardon will be able to provide invaluable local knowledge.

Science – Lt. Commander Shezef (Andorian Male, 15 Years of Service) Excellent Service Record. Expert on the Pink & Purple Nebulae.

Assigned to the Deneva to assist in scans and investigations of the Pink Nebula and other targets.

Medical – Commander Taris Sani (Bajoran Female, 20 Years of Service) – Fair Service Record. Married to a Jovalisi diplomat on DS12.

Assigned CMO, DS12. Being with his wife should soften up at least one Jovalisi diplomat...

Engineering – Lt. Commander Sayl (Betazoid Male, 8 Years of Service) – Good Service Record.

Assigned to DS12 to help supervise the refit.

Helm – Lt. (j.g.) Walter Shumar (Human, 40 years of Service) – Excellent Service Record. Legendary pilot. Has convinced all but one of his commanding officers never to promote him.

Assigned to my flagship, because I’m selfish and want a good pilot on my ship.

DS12’s CO is Commander Stalek (Vulcan, 20 Years of Service) – Good service record. Known to the Jovalisi, though not terribly popular.

Recommend for promotion and reassignment.

2)
I would advise giving her to the Jovalisi museum, rather than the Lucrezean militia; I’m not sure giving a Federation starship to a militia whose members may wish to stir up trouble with the Cardies. They could make it out (and I’m sure the Cardies would see it like this) that the Federation was assisting them. Perhaps we could give the Lucrezeans a discount on locally produced vessels, thereby helping to develop local industry.

[ October 06, 2002, 09:12: Message edited by: Wraith ]
 

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Posted by Mark Nguyen (Member # 469) on :
 
Answering IC's questions:

1) Yup. Technology level is only a rough guide, and exceptions (like this one) are noted.

2) This depends on whether YOU consider these ships to be large or not; remember, this will be an evaluation of your fleet as compared to itself - you probably will not be able to directly compare your fleet to those of the other participants due to differing opinions on ship size, strength, etc. For example, I equivocate an Akira to be roughly like an Excelsior in size and function, though with better shields and weapons; your mileage may vary.

3) The ship you arrived on will count as one of the six.

Also note that I've retroactively changed the names of the Rigorous CMO and Engineer to Taris Tani and Bayl, respectively, since there were too many "S" names in the mix.

Mark
 

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Posted by MinutiaeMan (Member # 444) on :
 
A) Evaluate the sector, and determine what Starfleet's priorities should be. Note that unlike previous sectors, you're coming into an area where Starfleet has had a small but significant presence for some time. Now that the Federation has a member world in the sector, how should Starfleet's priorities change? Summarize your thoughts, note any gaps in the information that you were provided, and where you should focus your intelligence-gathering efforts.

Starfleet's primary priority in the sector should be to maintain the peace that has blessed the region (on the whole) for the last few decades. Given the proximity to Cardassian territory (as indicated on the map that crossed my desk while I was shooting down those Driian bastards in Sector Beta -- yeah, I'm bitter!), I was expecting that Sector Gamma would be a region laid waste by the war. Though relations are still developing with the Jovali and Jovalisi, it is important to build on the foundation that was established by the crew of the Rigorous.

Specific measures to achieve that goal include:

• Development and upgrade of the infrastructure in the Jovalisi colonies. (Already initiated, ongoing.)
• Establishment of further trade relations with Joval, with the goal of a formal Federation-Joval alliance.
• Strengthen relations with Lucrezea through trade and diplomacy.
• Active patrol of the border with the Bifour IV breakaway colony.

• Ensure that the leaders on Bifour are not preparing for any offensive or aggressive action either within or outside their territory, primarily by monitoring the activities of the known warships and military installations under their control.
• Gather information regarding any weapons of mass destruction (conventional, subspace, or biological) which the Bifour IV leaders may posses or be in the process of developing.
• Seek to gain information regarding any resistance movements on Bifour or its colony worlds.

Also, diplomatic updates regarding the situation on Cardassia Prime and the new civilian government's official position on Bifour are essential before any action could be taken.
Note: I just hope that the recently-elected Federation President George Bush does not start blathering about Bifour IV as a member of an "Axis of Evil" and demand that the Federation launch a pre-emptive invasion to "ensure the safety of the Federation and the Galaxy."

Finally, there's the implicit priority to preserve the Prime Directive with respect to the pre-warp civilization on G'Sall. A five-light-year "no-fly zone" will be established around the system -- which is standard Federation policy in many high-traffic regions containing pre-warp cultures. However, Starfleet can't do much more than erect warning buoys and sensor relays at the moment. Once more starships arrive, there will be enough assets in the area to ensure enforcement of the NFZ.

B) Though Jovalis has benefited from Federation trade for several years now, their new membership will allow for a full-scale upping of their society to the latest technologies. One of the greatest tasks is the upgrading of almost one hundred of their old rotating colony cylinders with artifical gravity, upgraded power systems, and so forth, which are antiquated despite their otherwise current technology level. Starfleet can only allocate so many resources to this far-off sector, and much of it is going to this task, which will absorb hundreds of Starfleet personnel for several years. With what's left, Starfleet will allow either a DS9-style upgrade to the DS12 station, making it into a full starbase within a year's time; or to begin construction on a larger starbase of Starfleet design, which will take at least three years to build using a combination of components shipped in or built on-site. Given that this will be your headquarters for the foreseeable future, what would be the best option? A Starfleet starbase can be built anywhere in the sector you choose.

My first instinct is to upgrade Deep Space Twelve. First, the Jovali and Jovalisi strike me as a people who hold great import on precedent and tradition. As such, their former colony station, operated as a Federation Starbase, serves great use as a symbol of Federation presence and cooperation with the local inhabitants. Also, a systems upgrade on DS12 would be much more expedient than building an entirely new starbase. Finally, in my experience it is a better idea to have your seat of administration in the same area as the people you're trying to administrate.

However, if the Federation is to expand operations further into the sector, it may be a better option to construct a second base of operations that's centrally located in the sector. On the other hand, the construction zone for a new station is likely to be vulnerable to attack for a while. The primary reason for having a second base would be for operations against Bifour IV, but the situation is more than likely to be resolved before construction is completed. Furthermore, if hostilities break out before construction of the station is completed, then I'll only have one extra location to defend with my limited resources.

I shall order the upgrade to Deep Space Twelve. Which, as an O'Neill-tyle space station, probably looks something like this.

C) Starfleet sees this as a relatively stable sector, and while they want an expanded presence in the area they will not commit many ships to the sector. There will be a steady stream of Federation freighters coming into the sector for the Colony Upgrade Project, in addition to the expected influx of Federation trade.

1) Recommend a fleet of no more than SIX starships to be assigned to the sector. This fleet will be evaluated back at Starfleet Command, and if approved will arrive in-system AFTER the events of Question Two. However:

• There cannot be any large (Galaxy, Ambassador, Sovereign, etc.) starships in your fleet.
• There must be at least one non-combat ship in the fleet (science, transport, etc.). Justify its presence and use.

quote:

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To: Fleet Admiral Mark Nguyen
From: Rear Admiral Dan Carlson, Sector Gamma
Re: Fleet Assets in Sector Gamma

Today is Stardate 56076.7 (January 28, 2379)

After reviewing the current political and historical background of Sector Gamma, and considering the current environment of the region, I hereby request that the following ships be assigned to my command:

• 1 Andromeda-class light explorer
• 2 Sequoia-class light cruisers
• 2 Defiant-class or Saber-class destroyers

Sector Gamma is currently assigned the USS Rigorous (Constellation-class, NCC-2732) and USS Cerberus (Akira-class, NCC-63709). USS Rigorous is scheduled to be decommissioned within three months.
The Andromeda-class light explorer will be deployed to conduct scientific surveys of the Pink and Purple Nebulae, and sensor-intelligence sweeps of the border in the region near Bifour IV and Zechs.

The two Sequoia-class light cruisers will be deployed as general patrol vessels in Sector Gamma, and as will provide defensive support in the Joval/Jovalis System should hostilities break out.

he two Defiant-class or Saber-class destroyers will be assigned to combat patrol missions near Bifour IV and Zechs, and will form the primary tactical wing along with USS Cerberus should hostilities break out.

Signed,
Dan Carlson, RAdm02, SFCmd

Attachments:

• Specifications:Andromeda-class light explorer
• Specifications:Sequoia-class light cruiser
• Document: Instruments of Surrender, Cardassian Union, 2375

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• First Officer -- Commander Michael Boston (Human, 12 Years of Service) -- Excellent Service Record. Experienced Diplomat.
• Tactical -- Lt. Laura Kardon (Human, 6 Years of Service) -- Good Service Record. Native of Zechs. Little Combat experience.
• Science -- Lt. Commander Shezef (Andorian Male, 15 Years of Service) Excellent Service Record. Expert on the Pink and Purple Nebulae.
• Medical -- Commander Taris Tani (Bajoran Female, 20 Years of Service) -- Fair Service Record. Married to a Jovalisi diplomat on DS12.
• Engineering -- Lt. Commander Bayl (Betazoid Male, 8 Years of Service) -- Good Service Record.
• Helm -- Lt. (j.g.) Walter Shumar (Human, 40 years of Service) -- Excellent Service Record. Legendary pilot. Has convinced all but one of his commanding officers never to promote him.
• DS12's CO -- Commander Stalek (Vulcan, 20 Years of Service) -- Good service record. Known to the Jovalisi, though not terribly popular.

Hmm, this is an interesting question. The crew of the USS Cerberus has served admirably during the recent conflict with the Driians in Sector Beta. Given that they'll be on the front line of any potential conflict with the Cardassians on Bifour, I'll keep them where they are. Also, I expect that I may take a more administrative/diplomatic role in this sector, instead of charging around on the front lines like the last time. I'm no coward, and certainly intend to do my duty... but it'd be nice to be able to delegate for a while.

First, I'd like to consult with Captain Nall regarding the reassignment of some of her crew members. (Of course, as the writer of this reaction I can't "really" consult her, but that's what I'd do if I really were the new Rear Admiral.

I have nothing against Vulcans or Commander Stalek, but if he's not too popular, I'd put him in for reassignment to another sector. Commander Boston seems to be the perfect candidate for the command of DS12 -- he's got the benefit of experience in dealing with the Jovalisi, and obviously had some experience in a command position. His diplomatic skills would be extremely useful in dealing with all of the local inhabitants, so I would anticipate that he would be my assistant/adjutant during any major diplomatic interactions in the future.

Lieutenant Kardon seems inexperienced and I'm wary of her sentiments based on her background as a native of Zechs, which is now a Cardassian-occupied planet. Did she have any background with or sympathy for the Maquis? I notice that she joined the fleet in 2373 -- just as the Dominion and the Cardassians were finishing their massacres. Nevertheless, I can use the benefit of experience here, and I'll give her the Chief Tactical Officer position on any of the new ships (not the Cerberus).

Lt. Commander Shezef's science background would make him the perfect candidate for Science Officer of the Andromeda-class starship that I've requested. His area of expertise would be useful for the ship's surveys of the two nebulae, as well as the intelligence-gathering sensor sweeps of the Bifour-occupied planets which I ordered in part A.

Doctor Taris probably would appreciate a post on DS12, so she'll get it. (Though in my experience, marrying a Bajoran isn't necessarily the smartest idea. ) Starfleet's policy on its officers serving in proximity to family members has been well-established by now, and I have nothing against that -- although I'm a little concerned by her "fair" service record.

Lt. Commander Bayl gets his choice of ship (again, aside from the Cerberus).

Lieutenant Shumar also gets his choice of ship, but I would encourage him to choose one of the Defiant- or Saber-class starships that's been requisitioned -- I anticipate that that's where his "legendary" piloting skills would be most useful. And I may put him in for a promotion.

2) The Rigorous is to be decommissioned, but a group of Jovalisi citizens wishes to keep her around as a museum ship for their nation. Another group from Lucrezea also wants her, but as the flagship for a new militia they are creating. While the ship will be stripped of any sensitive technology in either case, the selling off of such an old starship to friendly concerns would not be unheard of. Recommend to Starfleet what they should do with the requests, and if any conditions should be specified to either party.

In the interest of futhering relations with the Jovalisi, they get first dibs on the hull of the Rigorous. (I'm also partial to historical interests -- I myself am listed as an official Friend of the Starfleet Museum.) However, I will put in a recommendation to Starfleet Command that they provide Lucrezea with another decommissioned starship should one become available -- there are plenty of them around after the Dominion War, and I'm sure the Federation can spare one old Miranda...

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I'm glad you've brought this little game back, Mark! Very glad!
 

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Posted by Identity Crisis (Member # 67) on :
 
NB when I say Maquis below I refer to any organistion with similar aims, even if they are not directly linked to the now extinct Maquis.

A)
Starfleet has already explored this sector fairly well so defence and diplomacy will be our main priorities. Top of the list has to come the defence of Jovalis and Lucrezea along with any shipping to and from those planets.
Second priority is the monitoring of the Cardassians and the containment of any hostile activity from that front.
Thirdly, we should comply with any reasonable requests from the Joval government. On the diplomatic front we should seek to encourage Joval to improve relationships with Jovalis and to consider Federation membership.
Fourthly, we must protect the prime directive and ensure that the population of G'Sall remain unmolested.
Fifth, we should seek to identify and neutralise any undesirable groups operting in the sector (smugglers, pirates, resurgent Maquis and the like).
Sixth, we should carry out scientific research to further improve our knowledge of the sector and its planets and nebulae.

B)
Jovalis is the only logical site for a starbase in the sector. Joval is a non-member and has only light industry. Lucrezea is too lightly populated, too close to the border and is not industralised. Therefore I'd recommend starting construction on full starbase at Jovalis.

C)
USS Rigorous - to continue routine patrols.
USS Ataturk, NCC-42861, Excelsior class - my flagship. Will carry out a circuit of the system's planets making contact with all the key players.

Remaining fleet -
USS Indefatigable, NCC-63228, New Orleans class - a bit of muscle, will be assigned to patrol the 'southern' end of the sector.
USS Hotspur, NCC-74713, Intrepid class - will be assigned a patrol routine based on the Purple Nebula. Will use her speed and sensors to counter any ships using the two nebulae as cover.
USS Assegai, NCC-62369 and USS Naginta, NCC-62408, Sabre class. Assigned to patrol shipping lanes and render aid to vessels in trouble.
USS Ushos, NCC-44177, medium transport. To aid in shipping materiel and to act as a supplementary surveyor when transport duties permit. Can be quickly refitted as a hospital ship if needed.

I would also like to request the services of a Starfleet Intelligence team to be based on Lucrezea and to investigate and infiltrate any maquis-like activity, and to counter any Cardassian activities in the area. If I need to trade in one of my Sabre class vessels to gain this asset then I will do so.

D)
Commander Michael Boston - Promoted to Captain and assigned the command of the Hotspur. Local knowledge and combat experience will be invaluable for that command.

Lt. Laura Kardon - Assigned to USS Ataturk. An experienced combat officer is always useful to have around. (Personal Log: Being a native of Zechs she may have pro-maquis sentiment and whilst I can't make allegations without proof I'd like to keep her closeby.)

Lt. Commander Shezef - Assigned to Hotspur. Knowledge of the nebulae will aid in tracking any ships using them as cover.

Commander Taris Tani - Assigned to DS12. Let's be generous and assign her to be near her husband. As DS12 will be the base for any emergency/humanitarian operations she will be ideally placed to oversee those. Also she may offset Stalek's unpopularity.

Lt. Commander Bayl - Assigned to USS Indefatigable.

Lt. (j.g.) Walter Shumar - Assigned to USS Ataturk. Maybe serving on my flag ship will reawaken his ambition, if not I gain a good helmsman.

Commander Stalek - Leave in place. With all the changes some consitancy is needed. Will also be given authority over the starbase upgrade program - something a Vulcan should excel at.

2)
Museum around Jovalisi. But request that she be kept in a state where we can re-activate her in an emergency. Lucrezea is too small a community to have her own militia and the Indefatigable will be close by and will provide better support in any case.
 

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Posted by akb1979 (Member # 557) on :
 
Mmm, Sector Gamma Mk II eh? Ah well, I don't mind havin' another go at it . . . I was looking forward to Sector Delta though . . .

My answers will be posted shortly.


 

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Posted by MinutiaeMan (Member # 444) on :
 
akb, we never did a Sector Gamma... the last one was about the Driians, that finished last March, remember?

I'm still in the process of learning Flash animation, but I'll provide a little preview of the "playing field" for this round. (I hope Mark doesn't mind that I smoothed out the borders a little bit -- I think it makes the image look a little better.)

http://www.st-minutiae.com/academy/command419/sector_gamma.gif
 

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Posted by Mark Nguyen (Member # 469) on :
 
Don't mind at all. Your LCARS image has the added benefit of overlaying an 10x10 square grid on the map, which has facilitated stuff before back in Sector Beta. Say Dan, could you make a simplified version of your map in black & white, which we can use instead? Some of the participants liked making maps of their starship deployments, and it'd look way better on something more Trekkish-like. Also, your DS12 pic doesn't seem to work.

Y'know, Sector Gamma was originally supposed to be the last one in the series, but I got inspired today by a program on the History channel for some truer space exploration stuff.. Looks like there may be a Sector Delta in the works.

Mark

[ October 06, 2002, 16:09: Message edited by: Mark Nguyen ]
 

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Posted by MinutiaeMan (Member # 444) on :
 
I don't have time to make a real black-and-white map at the moment (I've got college work to do! ), but I did cut out the LCARS border so it's just the map grid. Will that suffice?

http://lobotomy.pleh.net/~flareupload/uploads/444/sector_gamma_simple.gif

Oh, and the DS12 image should be working now... I typed up the link this morning with the intention of uploading files to my website right away, but didn't get around to it.

Deep Space 12
 

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Posted by Mark Nguyen (Member # 469) on :
 
Actually, I was thinking of a more traditional cylinder, just scaled down accordingly. However, upon reflection a Bernal sphere may be a more appropriate design for DS12. Meh, use your own discretion.

Mark
 

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Posted by akb1979 (Member # 557) on :
 
Well . . . I've got all the pictures and files on my HDD . . . maybe it was started and never finished due to real-life stuff, very confusing - Hell! I don't care - my answers will be up in the next few days.


 

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Posted by Mark Nguyen (Member # 469) on :
 
I posted the Gamma picture on Flare back in Feb-March, before the stoopid thesis got in the way. That must be where the confusion is coming from.

Q2 is scheduled for this weekend, and it's alreaday half done. Not gonna let myself get behind if I can help it.

Mark
 

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Posted by Topher (Member # 71) on :
 
I'm wondering about this exception for Timo bit. Is it something to do with him playing from a Pre-TNG period or something? If so, would it be possible to play Sector Delta from the TOS Movie-era? A scenario dealing with Cardassians really isn't appropriate fro a TOS Movie-era setting, after all.
 

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Posted by Mark Nguyen (Member # 469) on :
 
Yes, Timo's exception is because he's taking a just-past Cardassian Wars look at things. As for the TOS movie era thing, it's an intriguing possibility, but probably for a seperate series after Sector Delta. I've got some uniquely TNG-era stuff in the works for that.

Would people like to do a different-era kind of "You're the Admiral!" scenario? Admittedly, that era is not my forte, mostly due to the lack of canon material - we may have to use some fandom/online stuff to fill in the gaps. Still, to play around in a time where an Excelsior-class starship would be the baddest kid on the block... I like.

Mark
 

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Posted by MinutiaeMan (Member # 444) on :
 
A different era would be interesting... but I don't think it would have much long-term appeal because there's not as much canon variety in starships -- or for that matter, the facts about interstellar relations are a lot spotter.

Although I do admit that I would like to try one of these scenarios using Masao's ships from the Starfleet Museum. The only problem with that is that starship speeds would be a LOT lower -- making the whole thing a bit more challenging. The same would probably still apply to the TMP era.

At any rate, that's for later. It occurred to me that while I made up that snazzy map, I didn't fill it up with my own icons!

First is my current starship deployment plan: Tactical Update 1.0

Next is my anticipated deployment when the rest of the task force arrives: Tactical Update 1.1
 

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Posted by Topher (Member # 71) on :
 
I was thinking of using a lot of fandom material for a TMP era scenario. You know, using Ascension dreadnoughts or Adamant dreadnought/frigates for commandships, Dupliex border patrollers, Phantom intelligence ships, Schmidt tugs, Belknap workhorses....*drool*
 

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Posted by MinutiaeMan (Member # 444) on :
 
Well, me, I hate the vast majority of the fandom TMP-era kitbashes. I think they have a complete lack of imagination and variety, and are often impractical when you consider internal equipment.

But to each his own, right?

Actually, I *did* try a slightly different era. I joined the Sector Beta game first, and used all modern (post-TNG) ships -- Sovereign, Akira, Defiant, etc. When I went back to do Sector Alpha, I deliberately chose TNG-era designs -- Excelsior, Cheyenne, New Orleans, Galaxy and Nebula (which got eliminated in Mark's budget cuts ). And here in Sector Gamma, I decided to include some of the unfamiliar designs -- ASDB ships that haven't been really established in the show. It makes things interesting.
 

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Posted by Timo (Member # 245) on :
 
Assume that this is the summary of the briefing you as a Rear Admiral have received at your previous posting.

Uhh... This is going to be darn difficult to chrono-shift. I could pretend this takes place during or just after the original Cardassian aggressions, but then I wouldn't have the Maquis. It would be more trouble than worth, really. So my trusty Clemenceau will hit a time warp instead. "I missed WHAT?"

Good for me that Starfleet is short of ships and commanders. And good for me that Sector Gamma bears more of a resemblance to the situation half a century ago than the rest of the galaxy does. My head is still spinning way too fast.

-The only regular starship assigned to the sector is the USS Rigorous, NCC-2732, an old Constellation-class ship. The Rigorous has a long history in the sector, being the first Federation starship to explore it five decades ago, and has been permanently stationed in the sector for most of the last two. Her captain and crew have worked together for a very long time, and are almost all experts in the sector. During the Dominion War, a task force was assigned here with the Rigorous and her crew as the flagship, and won several engagements. Bolian Captain Nall has commanded the ship since her first arrival in the sector, and she is a Federation legend to the locals.

Dalan "Napster" Nall is a Starfleet legend now? I remember her snoring straight through "Starfleet Legends 201" and "Psych B: Keeping Delusions of Grandeur at Bay". She always struck me as a slacker who wouldn't ever make it past Captain. Am I happy to be proven right? At least I'm not the only one whose career has been in a limbo for fifty years...

A legend?

Sheesh.

I remember the launch of the Rigorous. No, I don't, really. It just feels as if I should. Does a time warp always feel this depressing?

QUESTION ONE (Four Parts)

A) Evaluate the sector, and determine what Starfleet�s priorities should be. Note that unlike previous sectors, you�re coming into an area where Starfleet has had a small but significant presence for some time. Now that the Federation has a member world in the sector, how should Starfleet�s priorities change? Summarize your thoughts, note any gaps in the information that you were provided, and where you should focus your intelligence-gathering efforts.

Now this is something I'm familiar with.

A member world brings along a set of obligations. Credible defense, free commerce and adminstrative-legislative representation in the Council all require one thing - safe and secure space lanes to the rest of the UFP. Providing a planetary defense, a safe zone around the J worlds, and a law enforcement and SAR patrol will be my priority, even if much of this will be done using local equipment and manpower.

It seems Starfleet has tasked me with three other missions: guarding the border; keeping the Zechs/Lucrezia thing from blowing up on our faces; and safeguarding the anthropological survey of G'Sall. This will be my descending order of priority for the missions, too.

My intelligence is lacking on this whole Maquis thing, so I'll have to get an ear or two on Z/L. A Starfleet liaison office needs to be established on Zechs ASAP. And I feel Dalan has a rapport with the locals already. She always was the friend-making type. If not a friend-keeping one. Sigh.

I'll also have to scout out the nebulae, to establish what I can and, more importantly, what I cannot see in there. And I will contact Bifour soon enough.

Now, the border will have to remain more or less open - I don't have the ships for repelling an invasion, and it seems there isn't a proper sensor net in place. If it comes to violence, I'll fall back on defending the J worlds. That's what we were taught in the Academy, back when we had good honest men like Jameison and Dougherty and the whachamacallem young hotshots Kennelly and.. Leyton? Yeah.

B) Starfleet will allow either a DS9-style upgrade to the DS12 station, making it into a full starbase within a year�s time; or to begin construction on a larger starbase of Starfleet design, which will take at least three years to build using a combination of components shipped in or built on-site. Given that this will be your headquarters for the foreseeable future, what would be the best option?

I expect the waste recyclers will be cross-connected with the ventilation systems soon enough, as has happened on the previous assignments as well. So I'll choose the rapid DS12 upgrade. My operations will be centered around Jovalis anyway, and my meager fleet won't require a major base for support. Unlike at Sector Alpha, I'm not serving as a sector shepherd and border guard generally - I have a very specific duty to Jovalis, and a detached base of ops won't help me any with that duty.

C) Starfleet sees this as a relatively stable sector, and while they want an expanded presence in the area they will not commit many ships to the sector.

1) Recommend a fleet of no more than SIX starships to be assigned to the sector.

My, my. Starfleet is feeling generous nowadays. I first looked into the roster trying to find familiar names. It was just too damn depressing - the one hit I had with Captain Benteen turned out to be his grand-niece. So I went for the technical specs. The ASDB has been busy indeed...

Here's what I tentatively bookmarked from the roster. I expect to receive ships of these classes and capabilities even if I'm denied these exact specimen. These are mostly older vessels, after all. I'm a sentimental old fool. But not a senile one - I'll ditch the Clemenceau as soon as I can get an Akira to replace the old scold.

Requested ships:

USS Shaaja, Akira class heavy cruiser
USS Canaris, Challenger class reconaissance cruiser
USS Naiad, Springfield class frigate
USS Sushima, Springfield class frigate
USS Icy Falls, Springfield class frigate
USS Venice, Nova class surveyor

I hope I can get the Shaaja sooner than the rest of the fleet, since the Clemenceau isn't really up to specs any more. The Canaris will become my primary reconaissance asset. She's less of a combatant, lacking proper torpedo launchers. One of the Springfields (probably the Icy Falls) will be equipped with a ventral long-range sensor pod. And the Venice is ideal for my survey needs, as she is economical to operate, can make planetfall, carries an aquashuttle instead of the usual waverider, and features a holographic blind. I just love the gadgets these people have come up with!

2) Until your fleet arrives, the only ships that will be assigned to the sector are the USS Rigorous and the ship you arrived in from Sector Beta (if you didn�t participate in that scenario, you�re arriving on a generic Excelsior-class starship). At your discretion, the ship you arrived on can be incorporated into your fleet. Where will you deploy your two ships until then? What will the deployment of your fleet be when they get here?

Initially, the Clemenceau will stand guard at Jovalis, ready for the usual errands. I'll trust Captain Fargo to handle that end of the affairs for the first few weeks - during which I'll take the Rigorous to one last grand tour of the neighborhood. Dalan can take me to places and teach the ropes. She always loved to lecture... Ever try to shut up a Bolian?

I'm more than a bit nervous about meeting her. I know Bolians age well. It's just that I'm not sure I can act mature enough.

Sigh. When the fleet arrives, the Canaris will do a run along the border, visit the two border worlds and chart the nebulae, giving baselines for calibrating the podded sensors of the Icy Falls. The frigates will assume a rotation for center-field patrols, giving rapid reaction times to any contingency. The Clemenceau / the Shaaja will remain at Jovalis, and the Venice will be deployed to support the anthro mission at S'Gall.

D) The USS Rigorous will not be a part of your fleet, as she is scheduled to be decommissioned after a long and eventful life; Captain Nall herself is retiring from the Fleet. However, her command crew need not be sent away as well. The Rigorous� command crew is a good team.

I intend to keep as many of these people as I can. However, many of them are trained on operating a vessel that no longer will exist. Their expertise might best be channeled if I place them on temporary hold at DS12.

Commander Michael Boston: Transferred to CO of the Canaris. Promotion pending.

Lt. Laura Kardon: Transferred to the Canaris, but initially as a relief TO. If she's cross-trained in Security, I expect to make her the CSecO mainly in planetary forays at first, until a Challenger-trained department head can break her in on the fancy twin phasers of the ship.

Lt. Commander Shezef: Transferred to the CSciO of the Canaris. Naturally. (Uhh... Does he know something about slingshot maneuvers, by any chance?)

Commander Taris Tani: Transferred initially to DS12, probably to CMO position unless she opts for a planetary role.

Lt. Commander Bayl: Transferred to the Colony Upgrade Project for the time being.

Lt. (j.g.) Walter Shumar: Transferred to CFC of the Canaris. If he can't fly the odd-nacelled monstrosity, nobody can. And I've requested a fast modern scoutcraft to be carried aboard the ship, just in case.

Commander Stalek: Retained as DS12 commander. I intend to largely separate the base commander and planetary liaison roles, now that the base will be geared to serve the fleet. Perhaps I could sweet-talk Dalan to handling the "being liked" part of the latter job?

The Rigorous is to be decommissioned, but a group of Jovalisi citizens wishes to keep her around as a museum ship for their nation. Another group from Lucrezea also wants her, but as the flagship for a new militia they are creating. Recommend to Starfleet what they should do with the requests, and if any conditions should be specified to either party.

I support the Jovalisi bid, although I suggest a complete deactivation and immobilization of the vessel. Like I said, I'm a sentimental old fool. After consulting my local experts, I decide on the level of vagueness in my promises to provide a ship to the Lucrezeans at the earliest convenience. I also offer a standard package of Starfleet training for the militia, concentrating more on the ethics of warfare than on actual bloodletting techniques. You know the drill. And the Lucrezeans could get modern C3I gear and sensors, for possible future cooperation. I'll make a similar offer to the Zechs side.

Timo Saloniemi
 

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Posted by Identity Crisis (Member # 67) on :
 

quote:

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Originally posted by Mark Nguyen:
Would people like to do a different-era kind of "You're the Admiral!" scenario?

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Funnily enough, I've got some notes floating around for a TOS (c.2265) scenario. "You're the Commodore!". I'd be happy to run it in a gap between your scenarios. I have a long list of fandom, fasa, lug and sfb ships that could be used, and of course the opponents would be the Klingons, which should make things fun...

So some day. Maybe.
 

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Posted by MinutiaeMan (Member # 444) on :
 
I'd like a "You're the Commodore!" scenario... the only problem would be that since participants are going to have to rely much more on non-canon starships, they'd have to take care to use "reasonable" class specifications (ie: not uber-ships). It'd be helpful to post links to references for those ship stats, as well.

Me, I'd be using lots of designs from the Starfleet Museum in one of those situations...
 

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Posted by Topher (Member # 71) on :
 
What is your definition of an uber ship, hmm Dan?
 

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Posted by Topher (Member # 71) on :
 
Hey hey! Look! It's me, the threadkiller!
 

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Posted by Mark Nguyen (Member # 469) on :
 
Well, we ARE essentially just waiting for the last answer or two...

As for a "You're the Commodore" scenario, I'm all for it. I'd be grateful if we could wait until the current one is over though... And if anything, it'll be an incentive to keep up with my updates.

[edit]But while we're waiting...


Mark

[ October 10, 2002, 23:04: Message edited by: Mark Nguyen ]
 

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Posted by Mark Nguyen (Member # 469) on :
 
Okay, so who ARE we waiting for here? I want to give everyone a fair chance before proceeding onwards.

Mark
 

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Posted by MinutiaeMan (Member # 444) on :
 
AFIK, the only one we're waiting for is akb.

Expect a LCARS-ized (and possibly animated!) version of that map in a little while...
 

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Posted by MinutiaeMan (Member # 444) on :
 
"I havn't quite figgerd that pawt out yet..."

Of well, no animation. But it's still decent looking...

http://lobotomy.pleh.net/~flareupload/uploads/444/sector_gamma_jovalis.gif

(Mark, if you object, I'll change DS12 to something OTHER than Babylon 5... )
 

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Posted by Mark Nguyen (Member # 469) on :
 
Yeah, I kinda want it to be something else. Maintaining the trekkish (or at least non-B5-ish)atmosphere of it all. Not that it don't look great, of course!

Mark

[ October 11, 2002, 13:58: Message edited by: Mark Nguyen ]
 

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Posted by akb1979 (Member # 557) on :
 
OK, OK! My answer is here – sorry for the delay, I got bogged down with L-O-A-D-S of work from uni

A
(In no particular order).
 Maintain the existing peace.
 Keep an eye on the Cardassians – after the recent war, they will no doubt be interested in expanding their sphere of power.
 Check out the purple nebula ASAP.
 Perform long-range scans on pink nebula – Cardassians might be hiding ships there.
 G’Sall is a pre-warp and un-contacted civilisation – they need to be protected and kept out of sector events.
 Zechs and Lucrezia – keep an eye on their residents and be ready to send a diplomatic team(s) in to deal with any misgivings.
 Diplomatic efforts to persuade Joval to follow Jovalis’ example.
 Bifour IV: Cardassians can’t be trusted. Take nothing they say for granted and watch them constantly. Maybe deploy some sensor drones along the boarder to keep and eye on them and extend sensor range. They have a small taskforce that can cause damage if applied within the sector – find out whether they are building more.
 Encourage industrial and economical growth of Jovalis
 Assist in the development of Jovalis’ defences
 The colony on Lucrezea is in an ideal position to become a staging area/launch site for any future operations in the area near Bifour IV. With this in mind it should be a priority to increase Starfleet's diplomatic presence on the colony. However, this said, the colony is not a full Federation member so this increase should be done gradually and not appear pushy.
 Zechs appears to be “occupied”. This might mean that the population is unhappy with the Cardassians ruling them. Perhaps a covert intelligence-gathering mission will uncover the true state of the population’s feelings.
 Other intelligence goals should be to determine a) whether Bifour IV has any weapons of mass destruction of any sort, b) monitoring their fleet movements, c) as with Zechs, investigate the contentment level of the population.
 Deal with any unsavoury groups – pirates, smugglers, anti-Cardassian groups (who might put their foot in it and start trouble).

B
Either option is doable – time is obviously a major factor here. The DS9-style upgrade sounds good, should things go pear-shaped in the sector in the near future. It could also be a good diplomatic move to make the new members feel that we appreciate their previous efforts and want to make use of their station (just think of all those squadrons of Starfury’s!). I’d also go for this option as Starfleet is low on resources and I’d rather have something now rather than too late.

C
USS Courageous, NCC-62579 – my command ship, an Excelsior-II (Refit such as the Lokota)
Firstly I’d go to Jovalis and Joval to say “hello” and to show the flag. I’d also spend some time talking with Captain Nall before her departure and her crew to gain any insider knowledge and tips. I’d then take the Courageous to the boarder taking a detour past the Purple Nebula (PN) and then past Zechs and finally Lucrezea before turning around for another pass. While in range, I’d do passive scans of Bifour IV and take a peek at what the Cardi’s are up to.

Addition ships (after Question 2)
 USS Jupiter, Akira-class, NCC-71267
 USS Rabin, Akira-class, NCC-63293
 USS Bristol, Nebula-class, NCC-68207
 USS Sutherland, Nebula-class, NCC-72015
 USS Bellerephon, Intrepid-class, NCC-74762 – science ship that is fast and easily able to fend off aggressors until help arrives use to keep an eye on Cardassians.

The Rigorous will remain in the area around Jovalis & Joval – they obviously have friends there and may very well wish to sat “goodbye” before the ship is decommissioned.

D1
I’d keep them all if they wish to stay in the sector.
Commander Michael Boston (Human, 12 Years of Service) – Excellent Service Record. Experienced Diplomat.
I’d have this officer become the new CO of DS12, as his diplomatic experience will be invaluable. I might have him promoted to captain to give him a little more “umph”. His command experience will make him a good commander for fleet operations as well as the additional planetary liaison duties that I’m gonna dump on him.

Tactical: Lt. Laura Kardon (Human, 6 Years of Service) – Good Service Record. A native of Zechs but suffers from little combat experience.
I’d ask the lieutenant about Zech and the current mood of the population (assuming her knowledge is current). This will give me a better picture of the situation there. I’d probably assign her to my command ship for now as I’ll be going past her homeworld and she may be useful (I’ll also provide her with an opportunity to go home and stay if she wishes). I’d consider the lieutenant for assignment to DS12 or one of the additional ships where her expertise could be put to good use.

Science: Lt. Commander Shezef (Andorian Male, 15 Years of Service) – Excellent Service Record. Expert on the Pink & Purple Nebulae.
I’d ask him about the nebulas and whether there is anything we can do to make them “safer”. By safer I mean, more able to defend against possible forces hiding in them or using them to our advantage. I’ll probably assign him to the Intrepid-class vessel once it arrives or DS12 with the possibility of using runabouts for science surveys.

Medical: Commander Taris Tani (Bajoran Female, 20 Years of Service) – Fair Service Record. Married to a Jovalisi diplomat on DS12.
I’ll keep this officer and assign her to DS12 as CMO of the station’s medical facilities and to keep her husband and the Jovalisi sweet. Her knowledge of the area and the native species will be of tremendous benefit.

Engineering: Lt. Commander Bayl (Betazoid Male, 8 Years of Service) – Good Service Record.
I’ll keep this officer and assign him to DS12 to assist with the upgrade and also to assist with any future repair efforts to starships.

Helm: Lt. (j.g.) Walter Shumar (Human, 40 years of Service) – Excellent Service Record. A legendary pilot, who has convinced all but one of his commanding officers never to promote him.
Oh I definitely have to keep him as his skills may very well be in high demand later on. I’d push for a promotion to a full lieutenant and have him assigned to one of the additional ships.

DS12’s CO is Commander Stalek (Vulcan, 20 Years of Service) – Good service record. Known to the Jovalisi, though not terribly popular.
Well this officer has experience of the sector so I’d be reluctant to opt for an out-of-sector transfer. I’d probably have the commander help Commander Michael Boston in his integration as DS12’s new CO. Once Boston is in place and the additional ships have arrived, I’d promote Stalek to captain and give him one of the ships, possibly one of the Nebula’s or the Intrepid.

D2
I’d go with the donation to the museum in the interests of friendship. The ship has done so much for the sector that it’d be a shame for some young militia group to lose it in some stupid raid. However, like MinutiaeMan, I will put in a recommendation to Starfleet Command that they provide Lucrezea with another decommissioned starship should one become available – a Miranda or similar such starship should suffice. I’d also go along similar lines to Timo – providing the militia group (and Zechs) with training and basic equipment. This might, however, become a problem as it might be considered interference in local politics.

How's that?

 

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Posted by Ace (Member # 389) on :
 
QUESTION ONE (Four Parts)

A) Evaluate the sector, and determine what Starfleet’s priorities should be. Note that unlike previous sectors, you’re coming into an area where Starfleet has had a small but significant presence for some time. Now that the Federation has a member world in the sector, how should Starfleet’s priorities change? Summarize your thoughts, note any gaps in the information that you were provided, and where you should focus your intelligence-gathering efforts.

With a new member world in this area, it's time to show the flag and establish a larger presence.

Starfleets priorites include:

-providing a smooth transition for Jovalis into the Federation
-protecting Jovalis and strengthening Federation forces in the area
-maintaining the relative peacefulness of the sector

Additional reports are needed about the possible threat of the Cardassians and just how "calm" the locals are now with the Zechs situation.

B) Starfleet will allow either a DS9-style upgrade to the DS12 station, making it into a full starbase within a year’s time; or to begin construction on a larger starbase of Starfleet design, which will take at least three years to build using a combination of components shipped in or built on-site. Given that this will be your headquarters for the foreseeable future, what would be the best option?

Since everyone seems to be going with the upgrading option, I'll try to see if Starfleet will let me slide one past them: I'll upgrade DS12 but ask that a small outpost be built, probably around Lucrezea to monitor the border.

C) Starfleet sees this as a relatively stable sector, and while they want an expanded presence in the area they will not commit many ships to the sector.

1) Recommend a fleet of no more than SIX starships to be assigned to the sector.

Ah, let's see what's in the area...

1 Akira class heavy cruiser
1 Steamrunner class heavy cruiser
1 Excelsior class explorer
2 Intrepid class cruiser
1 Nova class scout

2) Until your fleet arrives, the only ships that will be assigned to the sector are the USS Rigorous and the ship you arrived in from Sector Beta (if you didn’t participate in that scenario, you’re arriving on a generic Excelsior-class starship). At your discretion, the ship you arrived on can be incorporated into your fleet. Where will you deploy your two ships until then? What will the deployment of your fleet be when they get here?

My generic Excelsior, the USS Fredrickson, NCC-42111, stays at DS12. The Rigorous will take out to Lucrezea to visit the locals and then begin touring the neighborhood until the fleet arrives.

Once the fleet arrives, the Intrepids will begin scouting the area while the rest of the fleet begin patrol around Jovalis and Lucrezea. The Nova will be spending some quality time with the nebulae in the area.

D) The USS Rigorous will not be a part of your fleet, as she is scheduled to be decommissioned after a long and eventful life; Captain Nall herself is retiring from the Fleet. However, her command crew need not be sent away as well. The Rigorous’ command crew is a good team.

To keep it simple, they're on leave and will be reassigned once the fleet gets here.

The Rigorous is to be decommissioned, but a group of Jovalisi citizens wishes to keep her around as a museum ship for their nation. Another group from Lucrezea also wants her, but as the flagship for a new militia they are creating. Recommend to Starfleet what they should do with the requests, and if any conditions should be specified to either party.

The Rigorous should definitely be a museum. No need to make the Cardassians and other locals too paranoid. I recommend she be sent to a larger yard to have her core components removed before we hand her over, however. In fact, she'll be "loaned" to Jovalis, but if we ever want her back...

[ October 12, 2002, 12:17: Message edited by: Ace ]
 

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Posted by Harry (Member # 265) on :
 
QUESTION ONE (Four Parts)

A) Evaluate the sector, and determine what Starfleet�s priorities should be. Note that unlike previous sectors, you�re coming into an area where Starfleet has had a small but significant presence for some time. Now that the Federation has a member world in the sector, how should Starfleet�s priorities change? Summarize your thoughts, note any gaps in the information that you were provided, and where you should focus your intelligence-gathering efforts.

The major threat in this sector is of course the Cardassian regime on Bifour IV. The arrival of Starfleet in this Sector could cause some unrest on our former colony Zechs, so I would be careful not to upset the balance too much, especially considering Lucrezea's proximity to Bifour.
Starfleet's priorities, in rough order of importance:
* Protect the Federation assets on Jovalis.
* Improve relations with Joval, through trade with Jovalis.
* Keep G'Sell isolated from outside influences.
* Keep a close eye on the Purple nebula
* Gathering intelligence on Bifour and Zechs. Are they up to anything? What kind of hardware does Zechs have?
* If possible, surveying the Pink nebula and the Class-N world

B) Though Jovalis has benefited from Federation trade for several years now, their new membership will allow for a full-scale upping of their society to the latest technologies. One of the greatest tasks is the upgrading of almost one hundred of their old rotating colony cylinders with artifical gravity, upgraded power systems, and so forth, which are antiquated despite their otherwise current technology level. Starfleet can only allocate so many resources to this far-off sector, and much of it is going to this task, which will absorb hundreds of Starfleet personnel for several years. With what�s left, Starfleet will allow either a DS9-style upgrade to the DS12 station, making it into a full starbase within a year�s time; or to begin construction on a larger starbase of Starfleet design, which will take at least three years to build using a combination of components shipped in or built on-site. Given that this will be your headquarters for the foreseeable future, what would be the best option? A Starfleet starbase can be built anywhere in the sector you choose.

I think a major upgrade to the existing DS12 is the best way to go. Resources are badly needed throughout the Federation to support the various post-war rebuilding programs.
Furthermore, keeping the Jovalisi station will maintain the local people's sense of identity. The colonies have an historic importance. A new Starbase could give the people the feeling they are being 'assimilated' by the Federation, and this could in turn be a bad influence on Joval.

C) Starfleet sees this as a relatively stable sector, and while they want an expanded presence in the area they will not commit many ships to the sector. There will be a steady stream of Federation freighters coming into the sector for the Colony Upgrade Project, in addition to the expected influx of Federation trade.

1) Recommend a fleet of no more than SIX starships to be assigned to the sector. This fleet will be evaluated back at Starfleet Command, and if approved will arrive in-system AFTER the events of Question Two. However:

- There cannot be any large (Galaxy, Ambassador, Sovereign, etc.) starships in your fleet.
- There must be at least one non-combat ship in the fleet (science, transport, etc.). Justify its presence and use.

My task force:
- U.S.S. Adamant NCC-45930 (Excelsior class). My ship.
- U.S.S. Ascendant NCC-71052 (Andromeda class, Rosankya subclass). Comparable to the Intrepid class, this ship is a fast explorer.
- U.S.S. Quaoar NCC-60815 (Springfield class with ventral sensor pod). Main recon ship for my fleet.
- U.S.S. Thermopolis NCC-73002 (Sequoia class). A general-purpose fast medium cruiser.
- U.S.S. Cody NCC-74109 (Sequoia Class). Another general-purpose fast medium cruiser.
- U.S.S. Carter NCC-72106 (Nova Class). A fully equipped science workhorse. It can support the science teams on G'Sell, and do limited recon on the Purple Nebula.

2) Until your fleet arrives, the only ships that will be assigned to the sector are the USS Rigorous and the ship you arrived in from Sector Beta (if you didn�t participate in that scenario, you�re arriving on a generic Excelsior-class starship). At your discretion, the ship you arrived on can be incorporated into your fleet. Where will you deploy your two ships until then? What will the deployment of your fleet be when they get here?

The Rigorous will stay near Jovalis. This will be good for 'introducing' the new Starfleet forces in the region. Besides, the aged Constellation is not up to specs anymore.
I will leave my ship to my XO and introduce myself to the Jovalisi on DS12. The Adamant will then patrol between the Purple Nebula and the border halfway between the Pink Nebula and Zechs.

As the rest of the fleet arrives, The Carter will participate in the G'Sell research, and will keep a close eye on keeping the planet isolated.
The Ascendant will patrol around Lucrezea. The Thermopolis will assist the Adamant, and patrol in the vicinity of Zechs. The Quaoar will be assigned to the northwestern region of the sector, near the Class N planet and the nebula. The Cody will stay near the Joval system.

D) The USS Rigorous will not be a part of your fleet, as she is scheduled to be decommissioned after a long and eventful life; Captain Nall herself is retiring from the Fleet. However, her command crew need not be sent away as well. The Rigorous� command crew is a good team, and includes:

First Officer � Commander Michael Boston (Human, 12 Years of Service) � Excellent Service Record. Experienced Diplomat.

Tactical � Lt. Laura Kardon (Human, 6 Years of Service) � Good Service Record. Native of Zechs. Little Combat experience.

Science � Lt. Commander Shezef (Andorian Male, 15 Years of Service) Excellent Service Record. Expert on the Pink & Purple Nebulae.

Medical � Commander Taris Tani (Bajoran Female, 20 Years of Service) � Fair Service Record. Married to a Jovalisi diplomat on DS12.

Engineering � Lt. Commander Bayl (Betazoid Male, 8 Years of Service) � Good Service Record.

Helm � Lt. (j.g.) Walter Shumar (Human, 40 years of Service) � Excellent Service Record. Legendary pilot. Has convinced all but one of his commanding officers never to promote him.

DS12�s CO is Commander Stalek (Vulcan, 20 Years of Service) � Good service record. Known to the Jovalisi, though not terribly popular.

1) As the new Admiral in the sector, you have the option of assigning this crew to your command. Do you want to keep them around, and what would you do with them? Justify your reply.

Cmdr. Boston will go to DS12 and replace Stalek as CO. As a diplomat, he may be useful in relationship-building with Joval, and if needed, talking to Bifour.

Lt. Kardon will be assigned to the Ascendant as Chief Tactical. Her experience with Zechs might be of use there.

Lt. Cmdr. Shezef will go to the Quaoar as Chief Science Officer. Since the Quaoar will be doing recon in both Nebulas, he's the man for the job.

Cmdr. Tani will become CMO on DS12.

Lt. Cmdr. Bayl. As an experienced engineer, he will be the CEO of DS12.

Keeping some familiar faces in the sector will improve the relations with Jovalis.

Lt. Shumar will be transferred to the Thermopolis. If we ever need to get into the Nebula, we'd better have good pilot.

I have no need for Stalek. Thankfully, Vulcans don't have emotions, so he can't be upset when I tell him to leave my sector

2) The Rigorous is to be decommissioned, but a group of Jovalisi citizens wishes to keep her around as a museum ship for their nation. Another group from Lucrezea also wants her, but as the flagship for a new militia they are creating. While the ship will be stripped of any sensitive technology in either case, the selling off of such an old starship to friendly concerns would not be unheard of. Recommend to Starfleet what they should do with the requests, and if any conditions should be specified to either party.

I do not approve of a new Lucrezea militia (although it's probably wise not to say that in their faces, not now anyway). Therefore, I will advise Starfleet to donate the Rigorous to the Museum, under the conditions that it will be demobilized. I don't want the Lucrezeans to steal it.

Phew... took quite some time.. but I think this is it.
 

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Posted by Mark Nguyen (Member # 469) on :
 
QUESTION TWO (FOUR PARTS)

Additional background: For those wondering about the Jovali ships and why they’re advanced compared to their apparent level of technology, assume that they are older-tech (but not old) ships that were retrofitted during the Dominion War with modern weapons and shields. That technology was purchased or traded for, mostly from non-Federation sources (including the Ferengi). While they have the firepower of their mentioned counterparts, they do not have the speed or range. However, they are really big, and require crews in the thousands.

Also, Starfleet has accepted your recomendations for fleet composition and deployment. The fleet's on its way and will get here in time for the next question. Unfortunately, any manned station outside of the Jovalis zone if you'd ordered the upgrading of DS12 cannot be done. BTW, while Deep Space 12 should technically be relabelled Starbase 592, everyone continues to call it DS12 for sentimental reasons.

A) Captain Nall has spent longer as a starship captain than you likely have in your whole career. Over a mug of Raktajino, the two of you amicably debate the differences between the responsibilities of a Captain and an Admiral in Starfleet. One of the key differences is of course the emphasis in tactical or strategic planning, as the case may be. Nall challenges you to flex your smaller-picture mind by asking how you would defend DS12 and an attack on Jovalis. Typically this sort of plan would be for the DS12 CO, but she’d like to see what your thoughts are.

Presented thus is a map of the Jovalis Orbital Zone, with all major real estate marked accordingly. The Deyal and Piranti colony groups, and the Piranti construction area are all in LaGrange points around the first major Jovalisi moon (there are eleven more such moons of varying sizes and types, orbiting further out). The Cluster is a group of colonies that was established around a small, resource-rich moon, which has since been broken up and used to create those colonies. Given the resources at hand, determine your response to:

1. up to half of the Cardassian threat forces in the sector,
2. up to twenty smaller vessels as though from a Maquis attack, or
3. just for fun, a Borg sphere entering the system.

Assume that beyond your starship resources already there (your fleet has not yet arrived, and DS12 has not been upgraded), you have a number of shuttles and no more than a half-dozen runabout-sized craft, and a dozen or so lightly-armed Jovalisi freighters. Be sure to note what the objectives of the attacking force would nominally be, and thus how to best respond to that situation.

B) The following are several situations that occur on your watch. For each scenario, describe what the nearest (or most relevant) starship to that event should be, what that ship should do in response, and how your fleet status could or should change as a result. Describe also any diplomatic efforts your staff should be making. NOTE: Assume that events from one scenario will not directly affect the others.

1. The first Federation delegation arrives in the sector to welcome its new member world. Several of the delegation wish to tour the sector to meet key parties on all the worlds, including a diplomatic mission to Bifour IV at the invitation of their government. Recommend how the delegates should go about their plan, which of your assets should be used, and how the rest of them should be deployed. The delegates arrive aboard the USS Ki, an Intrepid-class starship, and will return to the core systems on another ship. The Ki is on her way through Bifour space (with their permission) to explore the sectors beyond.
2. Miscalculating a warp equation, one of the Jovali cruisers creates a wormhole and drops itself right in the middle of the Pink Nebula, where it is disabled. The Jovali ask for help; however, Cardassian ships are closer and offer to respond. The Jovali aren’t terribly fond of the Cardassians.
3. The “duck blind” ground station is raided by pirates. They steal the station’s cloaking device, cloak suits (“Insurrection”), and bioneural computer system. The pirate ship escapes, integrating the cloak into their shields. The mission crew cleverly bumps their heads in the right places and are hiding among the population, but need help before they are found out.

C) Create another scenario like the ones presented in part (B). Any reasonable military, political or scientific scenario is acceptable. However, DO NOT ANSWER the scenario yourself. Rather, it will be answered by the others as part of Question Three.

Additional: Assume that your fleet has yet to arrive.

D) The USS Ki fails to check in on the far side of Bifour space. She sent a regular report through the DS12 comm network on schedule when she was more than halfway through their space, but they are more than a week late with their scheduled report. All the Bifour Cadassian ships are accounted for, and they report their last contact with the Ki a couple days after their last check-in. The Cardassians realize that you will want to send someone in to search for them and will let you do so; however whatever you send in will be escorted by one of their Hidekis who will aid in the search. Detail your plans, deployments, and search priorities.

[ October 15, 2002, 16:24: Message edited by: Mark Nguyen ]
 

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Posted by Mark Nguyen (Member # 469) on :
 
A side note that answers really shouldn't take more than an hour or two to think up, not including time to work up any graphics you may want to do. I realize that this one may exceed that limit somewhat, but in the future I'll try to keep them more succint. Of course, this does not mean that there are any right or wrong answers to these scenarios!

Mark

[ October 15, 2002, 14:46: Message edited by: Mark Nguyen ]
 

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Posted by akb1979 (Member # 557) on :
 
Question 2

A1
Assumptions:
 The Rigorous is in its museum position, but its key systems have yet to be removed in favour of additional defence of the system.
 The weapon platforms are similar to those in B5
 The aim of the Cardassians will be to achieve superiority and capture of DS12 or weaken/test our defences before a future operation.

I’d have the Rigorous stay with the 50 weapon platforms – should be a good enough defence against the Cardi’s. I’d position the Courageous in orbit of the gas giant along with the lightly-armed freighters. I’d have the shuttles move to defend The Cluster and the runabout-type ships stationed around DS12. The Courageous and the freighters will thus be in a central position to assist any of the three key locations. I’d stay clear of the debris field as it may cause sensor problems.

A2
Same configuration as before except that the freighters will be close to DS12 as the raiding force may very well want any cargo aboard them. I might consider moving the runabouts to the debris field to prevent them from taking any leftovers but my priority will be defending the other assets.

A3
A Borg Sphere? Rigorous & Courageous attack in full force while the smaller ships hang back. I might have one or more freighters/shuttles rigged as a warp torpedo. I’d use the freighter/shuttle by having it perform a warp suicide run at the sphere – thus destroying it.

B1
USS Courageous will escort the delegation to Bifour IV (I was planning to go near there anyway) and this trip will allow me to take a much closer look at their forces. I’d have the Rigorous move closer to the boarder, possibly taking up a position close to the purple nebula and have the runabouts remain in Joval/Javalis system.

B2
I’d accept the Cardassian’s offer but have the Rigorous move to assist also (thus allowing a friendly face to ease matters).

B3
A runabout from the Joval/Jovalis system should take about 2.5 days to get to G’Sall (assuming warp 9-capable). I’d have two of them move there to assist in the recovery of the team and any remaining equipment.

C
Zechs hails you stating that they wish to join. The Cardassians are pissed and move a Galor and two Hideki’s to the planet, but the request still stands. The Cardassian forces begin landing ground troops into the capital on Zechs in an attempt to capture or kill the leading group. Zechs requests your assistance in defending their planet. What will you do? Which assets will you use? How will you deal with the Cardassians?

D
The Courageous would obviously be in orbit around Bifour IV so I’d chose that ship to investigate the Ki-situation. I’d have the Rigorous and the rescued Jovali ship move to my side of the boarder and closer to the purple nebula. I’d have two runabouts move to Lucrezea to provide early warning of any attack on that planet. The ships on the boarder would keep an eye out for Cardassian or other aggression, and the Courageous would obviously be looking of the Ki and potential hostile forces or its crew in need of emergency assistance.

Mark – yep, about an hour or two to come up with. Not the best set of answers, but I enjoyed working on it!
 

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Posted by MinutiaeMan (Member # 444) on :
 
I was just about to leave for class when I found out the new question had been posted, so I printed it out and took it with me to work on! Fortunately, in my Logic class the professor spent the entire period going over the exam (the one that I got an 89% on), so I devoted my newfound logic skills towards the events in Sector Gamma.

QUESTION TWO (FOUR PARTS)

Additional background: For those wondering about the Jovali ships and why they�re advanced compared to their apparent level of technology, assume that they are older-tech (but not old) ships that were retrofitted during the Dominion War with modern weapons and shields. That technology was purchased or traded for, mostly from non-Federation sources (including the Ferengi). While they have the firepower of their mentioned counterparts, they do not have the speed or range. However, they are really big, and require crews in the thousands.

Also, Starfleet has accepted your recomendations for fleet composition and deployment. The fleet's on its way and will get here in time for the next question. Unfortunately, any manned station outside of the Jovalis zone if you'd ordered the upgrading of DS12 cannot be done. BTW, while Deep Space 12 should technically be relabelled Starbase 592, everyone continues to call it DS12 for sentimental reasons.

Excellent! I'm glad Mark's not short-changing us like he did in Sector Alpha. Heh, that made things interesting, though...

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Incoming Starships

• USS Tahoe (Sequoia-class, NCC-70092)
• USS Glacier (Sequoia-class, NCC-70185)
• USS Eclipse (Andromeda-class, NCC-71407)
• USS Tiamat (Saber-class, NCC-61926)
• USS Beowulf (Defiant-class, NCC-76910

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• USS Cerberus (Akira-class, NCC-63709) and USS Rigorous (Constellation-class, NCC-2732)
• 6 Danube-class runabouts and 15 Type-9 shuttlecraft
• 11 assorted Jovalisi freighter craft, none with firepower exceeding Type-VII phaser emitters
  Jovali Forces:
• 2 Anaitsirhc-class patrol cruisers
• 4 Srewot-class patrol frigates

(Side note: I do not subscribe to the theory that the Akira-class is an absurdly overgunned cruiser with 15 torpedo tubes. I view it as a normal cruiser equivalent in mission profile to a Nebula-class with firepower approximately equivalent to a Galaxy-class.)

Scenario One: Cardassian Assault on Joval System
Threat Force: 2 Galor-class attack cruisers and 3 Hideki-class escort fighters

The Cerberus is currently patrolling out near Lucrezea and would be in position to intercept or even outrun any attack force en route from Bifour. The Cerberus is instructed to make harrying runs against the threat force in passing but not engage directly. They will then proceed to Jovalis and rendezvous with the remainder of the fleet there.

For this engagement, I will assume cooperation with the United Jovali Stellar Navy, as Starfleet has fought alongside them against the Cardassians in the past and the Bifour faction's threat towards the system is not defined exclusively towards Jovalis.

The Cerberus will assume point of the Starfleet task force with the Rigorous falling back as an escort for the Jovalisi freighters. Cerberus will engage the 2 Galor-class cruisers first and attempt to eliminate them or divert them in a limited frontal assault. Simultaneously, the Jovali heavy cruisers will strike the Cardassians' flank with their strong firepower and provide a diversion, and the Jovalisi freighters and light craft will engage the Hideki-class escorts.

Assuming that Cerberus does not eliminate both Galors by itself, the Jovali cruisers will then punch through and join the attack on the Cardassians' center. The Jovali frigates will either provide fire support for the cruisers or assist in the dispatch of the remaining Hidekis.

I am slightly concerned about the Jovali forces given their relatively limited technology, because their ships are slow and probably have some weak spots. But two cruisers with the equivalent of Type-XII phasers is nothing to sneer at.

Scenario Two: Raider Attack on Jovalis Settlements
Threat Force: 20 light assault craft, all approximately equivalent to Federation Mercury-class couriers refitted to Maquis specifications (c.f. Starfleet Intelligence files, 2370-2373) [Note: These are ships like Chakotay's raider.]

I will not involve the Jovali forces in this engagement, because the assault is on Jovalis directly, and not the entire system like the previous scenario.

I'm quite certain that the Cerberus could take care of this "rag-tag fleet" on its own, but the raiders have the opportunity to disperse and conduct individual attacks. On the initial approach, therefore, the Cerberus and the Rigorous will advance at warp speed and deliver a concentrated assault before the enemy has time to disperse. Two Starfleet ships of the line (even if one is nearing 90 years old and is about to be decommissioned) are more than a match for a handful of pirates. However, the lighter Jovalisi freighters and our runabouts and shuttles will disperse to the three major settlements to provide local fire support should the pirates make it that far.

However, I anticipate that the raiders would have some specific objective in attacking Jovalis so openly, and therefore a dispersed chaos-creating attack is not likely their goal. In any event, the raiders pose very little real threat assuming that they can be kept away from a direct assault on any of the orbital habitats.

Scenario Three: Borg Sphere
Threat Force: 1 Borg Sphere, approximately 400 meters diameter, probable scout vessel

I will again involve the Jovali defense forces in this engagement, because I'm quite sure that they have no interest in being assimilated.

Now, the year is currently 2379. Captain Kathryn Janeway and the USS Voyager returned from the Delta Quadrant about one year ago, bringing with them some astounding technology that will probably put Federation tactical capabilities three decades ahead of everyone else in the region. Preliminary scout missions into regions previously known to be controlled by the Borg have shown no indication of Borg activity; however, that does not prove that the destruction of Unimatrix One has eliminated the entire Collective.

Starfleet just recently approved standard specifications for both the transphasic torpedo and the regenerative hull armor systems for deployment on all starships. Unfortunately, the freighter that was carrying the ordinance and equipment for installation on the ships assigned to Sector Gamma, USS Grand Canyon, was attacked en route by a starship of apparent Federation origin which emerged from a temporal vortex. The starship beamed the torpedoes and armor generators away from the freighter. Before disappearing back into the vortex, the starship transmitted a brief and perplexing message: "Well, if A leads to B, and B leads to C..." Starfleet Intelligence is currently investigating the matter and attempting to determine any potential threats to Federation security.

Unfortunately, this strange incident means that I'm stuck with one reasonably modern starship, one out of date cruiser, six lumbering, ancient bricks with a few advanced weapons strapped on, and an assortment of useless shuttles and freighters.

I may have to resort to kamikaze attacks to destroy the sphere. (The probability that the Borg will break off from whatever objective they have set is nil.) If we have enough time, I'd commandeer some of the Jovalisi freighters, get their crews offloaded, and use them as flying bombs. Cerberus, Rigorous would engage in close-range support to cover the freighters' approach, while the Jovali ships will provide long-range fire support and only approach if their fire proves completely ineffective.

The previous scenario assumes that the sphere is on a low-priority scout mission and is not anticipating any encounter with hostile forces. If they're coming in with the intent to attack (i.e. a high-speed approach), then we're in deep doo-doo. If that's the case, then any mobile asset, including and especially Cerberus, is considered expendable in order to eliminate the threat.

B) The following are several situations that occur on your watch. For each scenario, describe what the nearest (or most relevant) starship to that event should be, what that ship should do in response, and how your fleet status could or should change as a result. Describe also any diplomatic efforts your staff should be making. NOTE: Assume that events from one scenario will not directly affect the others.

1. The first Federation delegation arrives in the sector to welcome its new member world. Several of the delegation wish to tour the sector to meet key parties on all the worlds, including a diplomatic mission to Bifour IV at the invitation of their government. Recommend how the delegates should go about their plan, which of your assets should be used, and how the rest of them should be deployed. The delegates arrive aboard the USS Ki, an Intrepid-class starship, and will return to the core systems on another ship. The Ki is on her way through Bifour space (with their permission) to explore the sectors beyond.

It appears that the Cardassians on Bifour aren't completely stupid, or as isolationist as I'd thought.

Provided Captain Nall agrees, I would assign Rigorous to take the delegates on their tour. I've managed to get some helpful advice and introduction from the good Captain since I arrived -- one last grand tour of the sector, and especially a goodwill visit to Bifour IV, will be a great way for a fine starship and her crew to go out in style. Nall is also the most well-known Federation figure in the sector, and so her presence would lend greater importance to the tour.

2. Miscalculating a warp equation, one of the Jovali cruisers creates a wormhole and drops itself right in the middle of the Pink Nebula, where it is disabled. The Jovali ask for help; however, Cardassian ships are closer and offer to respond. The Jovali aren�t terribly fond of the Cardassians.

I can't blame the Jovali for their concern. Given recent (and not-so-recent) history, the Jovali have probably been worrying about Cardassian invasion for the past 20 to 30 years -- or more.

The ship that can get there the fastest is Cerberus, and also has more powerful engines and up-to-date equipment that can either tow the Jovali cruiser out of the nebula and/or provide the necessary engineering support.

However, the Jovali ship is one of their huge Anaitsirhc-class patrol cruisers and grosses more than 5,000,000 metric tons. The Cerberus wouldn't be able to pull the cruiser out on its own. Furthermore, since the Pink Nebula is inside Cardassian territory, they have a right to be in on the operation. I'll try to set this up diplomatically and have the Cerberus coordinate the whole thing -- try to keep the Jovali and the Cardassians from getting on each other's nerves.

My only concern is that having Cerberus go into the Pink Nebula means that it abandons its patrol route between Bifour IV and Jovalis. However, this will give me a chance to get a good look inside the Pink Nebula and see if the Cardassians are hiding anything in there.

3. The �duck blind� ground station is raided by pirates. They steal the station�s cloaking device, cloak suits (�Insurrection�), and bioneural computer system. The pirate ship escapes, integrating the cloak into their shields. The mission crew cleverly bumps their heads in the right places and are hiding among the population, but need help before they are found out.

Again, I send Cerberus rushing to the rescue. First, evacuating the surveillance crew from the surface and camouflaging the outpost are the top priority -- but I may just have an engineering team beam down to do the work at the outpost and have Cerberus immediately start hunting for the raiders. Because pirates with a cloaked ship and invisibility suits is NOT something that I want to have to deal with in the long term...

C) Create another scenario like the ones presented in part (B). Any reasonable military, political or scientific scenario is acceptable. However, DO NOT ANSWER the scenario yourself. Rather, it will be answered by the others as part of Question Three.

Note: Mark, you should make it clear that we're going to have to deal with this scenario before our fleet arrives. Last time, I wrote a scenario that assumed that everyone had all their ships. Thus, it was kinda anticlimactic when they did nothing since they had no ship in the area!

Scenario: A Cardassian Hideki-class warship emerges from the Purple Nebula, heading on a "southeast" vector. However, once it's clear of the nebula, it changes course towards Zechs... at Warp 2.3. Long-range scans indicate that the ship may be damaged, but the Hideki is transmitting no distress call, or any other messages for that matter.

D) The USS Ki fails to check in on the far side of Bifour space. She sent a regular report through the DS12 comm network on schedule when she was more than halfway through their space, but they are more than a week late with their scheduled report. All the Bifour Cadassian ships are accounted for, and they report their last contact with the Ki a couple days after their last check-in. The Cardassians realize that you will want to send someone in to search for them and will let you do so; however whatever you send in will be escorted by one of their Hidekis who will aid in the search. Detail your plans, deployments, and search priorities.

If all of the Bifour Cardassian ships are accounted for... then we may have a serious problem. Based on the preliminary intelligence, none of the "low yield" colonies in the neighboring sector generate sufficient resources to maintain a shipyard and the construction of new warships.

However, it seems so far that the Cardassians are willing to cooperate; the fact that they support the old authoritarian form of government does not in itself prove that they're hostile to the Federation. At the very least, the thrashing that they received a few years ago probably convinced them not to stand in our way.

In any event, I'm not going to risk Cerberus for this matter. If it was any hostile reason for Ki's disappearance or delay -- Cardassians or otherwise -- then I want to ensure the safety of Jovalis. It looks like Captain Nall will have to ride to the rescue one more time...
 

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Posted by Mark Nguyen (Member # 469) on :
 

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Note: Mark, you should make it clear that we're going to have to deal with this scenario before our fleet arrives. Last time, I wrote a scenario that assumed that everyone had all their ships. Thus, it was kinda anticlimactic when they did nothing since they had no ship in the area!

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QUESTION TWO
A1. up to half of the Cardassian threat forces in the sector,

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Half of 3 and half of 7? Okay. Let's say 2 Galor and 3 Hideki. My first thought would be 'where are the other ships?' Are the at home defending against my potential counter-attack. Are they making a large loop to outflank me? Is the raid unauthorised, being carried out by a rebel faction? Anyway the problem at hand is how to deal with the force attacking Jovalis.

Their aim must fall into one of two braod categories: (a) invasion - in which case they must attack DS12 to succeed or (b) hit and run raid - in which case they'll probably go for softer targets. There's also the possibility that bthey may split their attacking force.

As the Ataturk is doing a tour of the sector and the Rigorous is on patrol I'll assume that one of them is close enough to reach Jovalis in time. From here on I'll refer to that as my starship.

I'd start by requesting assistance from the Jovali - their ships would make it very one sided. An appeal to common heritage from the Jovilisi and some general 'bash the Cardies' comments may get them to send me some ships. If they do then the Cardies will be outnumbered and outgunned. If not...

The Hideki aren't important. The OWPs at Deyal and Piranti and DS12 should be able to take them down. So I'll assign a fair portion of the armed freighters and light craft to the Cluster.

The rest of the ships will form up around my starship and will initially be at DS12.

If the Cardies come towards DS12 then I'll meet them there. 1 starship, DS12, 70 OWP, 6 armed freighters and several small craft should suffice.

If they head towards anywhere else, either en masse or in smaller units, then I'll take my starship and it's escorting vessels and rush to intercept the Galors. If the Galors split up then I'll target the one heading towards the weakest position and hope that the stronger position can hold out against the other for long enough.

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A2. up to twenty smaller vessels as though from a Maquis attack, or

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A3. just for fun, a Borg sphere entering the system.

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B1. The first Federation delegation arrives in the sector to welcome its new member world...

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2. Miscalculating a warp equation, one of the Jovali cruisers creates a wormhole...

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C) Create another scenario like the ones presented in part (B).

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D) The USS Ki fails to check in on the far side of Bifour space.

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I'd dispatch the Ataturk as the Rigorous is too old, slow and poorly armed to face whatever may be out there. But as I don't want to leave the sector myself I'll transfer my flag to DS12 for the duration. To speed up any search pattern that needs to be carried out I'll send two Runabouts along with the Ataturk (can Runabouts fit in an Excesior shuttle bay? Doesn't really matter). I'll happily accept Cardassian help. But I'll also subtly reassign the Rigorous and any Jovalisi ships I can to cover my side of the border and sweep Cardassian space with long range sensors.
 

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Posted by Wraith (Member # 779) on :
 
1. up to half of the Cardassian threat forces in the sector

Well, that's either 2 Galors and 3 Hidekis or 1 Galor and 4 Hidekis. Either way it isn't much of a force so i wouldn't imagine they're going to be trying anything too agressive; probably hit and run attacks on the colony groups. As the Cluster is partcicularly vulnerable, I'd move the Indefagitable there and use the Rigorous as a mobile reserve.

2. up to twenty smaller vessels as though from a Maquis attack

In this case the enemy would be even more limited in his attack options; the weapons platforms ought to be able to take care of any small craft attacking them. As a result I believe that the greatest threat is to intersystem traffic and so i would use my starships to escort convoys.

3. just for fun, a Borg sphere entering the system

er... pray? Only joking. Basically I would equip my runabout equivilents with as many photon torpedoes as they can handle, hide them behind the Indy and Rigorous until in range, then order them to pop up and start firing as the two capital ships open fire as well. That should be enough to destroy a sphere. Hopefully.

1. The first Federation delegation arrives in the sector to welcome its new member world. Several of the delegation wish to tour the sector to meet key parties on all the worlds, including a diplomatic mission to Bifour IV at the invitation of their government. Recommend how the delegates should go about their plan, which of your assets should be used, and how the rest of them should be deployed. The delegates arrive aboard the USS Ki, an Intrepid-class starship, and will return to the core systems on another ship. The Ki is on her way through Bifour space (with their permission) to explore the sectors beyond.

I'll send them on the Ki with the Rigorous as escort/ return vessel. The delegates will travel straight to Bifour and then transfer to Rigorous for the journey back via Lucrezea, Zechs and Joval.

2. Miscalculating a warp equation, one of the Jovali cruisers creates a wormhole and drops itself right in the middle of the Pink Nebula, where it is disabled. The Jovali ask for help; however, Cardassian ships are closer and offer to respond. The Jovali aren’t terribly fond of the Cardassians.

First i'd head out there with the Indy. I'd allow the cardassians to assist but not to remove the cruiser and also request that they temporarily put themselves under the command of the Jovali captain. I would ask both commanders to try and minimise friction between their crews. When i get there i'd help to tow out the cruiser and also have a sniff around the nebula.

3. The “duck blind” ground station is raided by pirates. They steal the station’s cloaking device, cloak suits (“Insurrection”), and bioneural computer system. The pirate ship escapes, integrating the cloak into their shields. The mission crew cleverly bumps their heads in the right places and are hiding among the population, but need help before they are found out.

Well, i'd really have to send the Indefagitable to rescue the personnel and remove the ground facilities before beginning to search for the pirates.

C) Create another scenario like the ones presented in part (B).

A cardassian freighter preparing to leave Zechs is hijacked by a group of local revolutionaries. they demand that Zecks be given it's independance or else they will crash the freighter into the planet's main population centre. The Cardassians have no ships nearby and request your help.

D) The USS Ki fails to check in on the far side of Bifour space.

Well, seeing as how the Cardassians are being so reasonable I'd send the Indefagitable out to look for the Ki. She has better and more powerful sensors than the Rigorous and is also quite capeable of holding her own against the Hideki if necessary. Seeing as how the rest of my fleet is about to arrive I'll transfer to DS12 temporarily rather than accompany the Indy.
 

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Posted by Mark Nguyen (Member # 469) on :
 
I'll wait until Mondy night to post Q3 - I'm doing some extra work tonight and won't be able to finish it all tonight. So those who've yet to reply get a 24-hour reprive.

Mark
 

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Posted by Mark Nguyen (Member # 469) on :
 
Light one this week folks, as we're warming up to next week's guest lecture! Here we go:

QUESTION THREE (Four Parts)

Additional Background: At your discretion, use Admiral Dan’s specs for the Jovali (royal?) fleet ships. They’re cool.

A) OBJECTIVELY CRITIQUE one of the answers to the hypothetical attacks in Question 2A.

B) Answer one or more of the questions posed by the other participants in Question 2C. Remember, at this point your fleet has not yet arrived.

C) The fleet you requisitioned in Q1 arrives in full, with an additional present: the USS Aristophanes (Miranda-class, Saratoga-refit, NCC-31923). The Aristophanes is a Starfleet Academy training ship, and carries about a hundred cadets and a regular crew of twenty on a second year field cruise. They’ll be spending a few months in Sector Gamma, helping out with routine assignments while having cadets spend a couple weeks at a time on your ships. So, adding the Aristophanes into the mix, maneuver your fleet according to the following scenarios. Make note of any political reactions from involved parties that may occur. The Rigorous has now gone to whatever fate you’ve recommended in Q1.

1) The Lucrezeans get their act together and purchase some ships to head up their militia. Their patchwork fleet includes a smattering of customized shuttles, two surplus Klingon Birds of Prey (D-12 class) from the Ferengi, and a Yridian destroyer. In response, the Bifour fleet moves a Galor and two Hidekis around Zechs, despite repeated statements that the Lucrezean government has no interest in expansion/retaking the former Federation colony.
2) Whatever search party you sent out to find the USS Ki finds a gaggle of escape pods close to the pulsar in the adjoining sector, containing about a third of her crew. Your people eventually reconstruct that the Ki struck a gravitic mine left over from the Cardassian conflicts of the 2340s. The mine stuck the bridge, wiping out the command crew along with most of the saucer. Some wreckage of the ship is located where it should be, and the energy signatures match that of a larger-than-usual, but not unheard-of, Cardassian mine.
3) The separatist elements in Jovalis space are mostly concentrated in the Cluster, though no more than a third of any colony cylinder there is interested in separation. However, a bombshell is dropped when a cylinder holds a referendum not to separate, but to move – separatists in a Deyal group cylinder want to move their home the Cluster. The vote succeeds, and the municipal government requests that Starfleet tractor their colony to its new home. Such an action will tie up your largest ship, or two of your smaller ships, for a couple months. However, the Jovalis government sees this as a legal action, so…

D) Create another scenario like those in part C, except this time it involves your whole fleet. Feel free to follow up on the scenario you created in Q2.
 

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Posted by Harry (Member # 265) on :
 
Like last time, suddenly real life kicks in and I don't have the time to do the other questions.
 

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Posted by MinutiaeMan (Member # 444) on :
 
QUESTION THREE (Four Parts)

Additional Background: At your discretion, use Admiral Dan's specs for the Jovali (royal?) fleet ships. They're cool.

Thanks for the compliment, Mark! Yeah, that's the Royal Navy, I guess you could say.

A) OBJECTIVELY CRITIQUE one of the answers to the hypothetical attacks in Question 2A.

I'm just going to compliment everyone else for remembering the orbital weapons platforms for the raider attack scenario. I didn't.

B) Answer one or more of the questions posed by the other participants in Question 2C. Remember, at this point your fleet has not yet arrived.

I'll go for Timo's scenario. (Why take the easy road?)

quote:

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A battered Kressari transport arrives at Lucrezea, claiming to have been attacked by a Dominion cruiser near Zechs. This is only the latest in a series of wild rumors about a Jem�Hadar vessel that has refused to believe in the stand-down orders and bitterly continues the war � and the rumors have never specified a ship as big as a cruiser before.

But the Kressari do have phased-polaron beam wounds on their ship to show. And so the flames are fanned and fueled. The Kressari are allied with the domesticated variant of Cardassians, and ship various produce from Lucrezea to the starving Union; the Lucrezeans insist that this is state-sponsored piracy, that the Bifourians are maintaining or even operating the Jem�Hadar vessel to hurt both the Lucrezeans and the tamer Cardassians.

The otherwise cooperative Bifourians balk at the insults. They suspend Kressari and other cargo runs across this part of the border �until the ghost ship is found and dealt with�. It doesn�t look like they are doing any �finding� or �dealing with� of their own, though.

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quote:

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Available Starships

• USS Cerberus (Akira-class, NCC-63709
• USS Tahoe (Sequoia-class, NCC-70092)
• USS Glacier (Sequoia-class, NCC-70185)
• USS Eclipse (Andromeda-class, NCC-71407)
• USS Tiamat (Saber-class, NCC-61926)
• USS Beowulf (Defiant-class, NCC-76910
• USS Aristophanes (Miranda-class, NCC-31923)

Tactical Deployment Update 3.0

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Oh, joy. I get to babysit a boatload of children. Assuming the Cardassians don't turn out to have three times as many ships and go on a major offensive (see Sector Beta), I'm going to make damn sure that none of these cadets gets promoted before they graduate. And I also don't want them running any suicidal attacks against enemy cruisers just to prove that they can do anything. Got that?
The Aristophanes is free to roam the sector as the commanders/professors see fit. But the second any open hostilities break out, they're going to head back to Jovalis and take cover. Assuming they're not the only ship in the quadrant and are needed on a vital mission...
QUESTION: What has happened with Captain Nall and her retirement? Has she left the sector, or is she still hanging around?

1) The Lucrezeans get their act together and purchase some ships to head up their militia. Their patchwork fleet includes a smattering of customized shuttles, two surplus Klingon Birds of Prey (D-12 class) from the Ferengi, and a Yridian destroyer. In response, the Bifour fleet moves a Galor and two Hidekis around Zechs, despite repeated statements that the Lucrezean government has no interest in expansion/retaking the former Federation colony.

Good for the Lucrezeans. I didn't expect them to purchase so many for such a small colony, though -- so I'll quietly tell Starfleet Command to nix that recommendation for selling them a surplus ship that I made in Question One.

Given that the two Birds of Prey are surplus, I'm going to assume that they do not have a cloaking device. The Klingons wouldn't give that stuff away anyway, and the Ferengi would've stripped something that valuable before selling the ship on to some colonial kicks.

As for fleet deployment, I won't make any changes. I've already got the Cerberus and the Tiamat in the general area (intended to patrol the Bifour IV border), and the shift of the Cardassian forces doesn't worry me that much.

Although I can understand the Cardassians' paranoia. Given that Zechs is a mining colony it's probably one of their most productive sources of raw materials -- they can't afford to lose that. I believe I should do a little intelligence gathering on Lucrezea to determine the nature of popular sentiment -- is the local government planning some expansion? Or are they just trying to pull together a defensive force sufficient to stand up to three Galors?

2) Whatever search party you sent out to find the USS Ki finds a gaggle of escape pods close to the pulsar in the adjoining sector, containing about a third of her crew. Your people eventually reconstruct that the Ki struck a gravitic mine left over from the Cardassian conflicts of the 2340s. The mine stuck the bridge, wiping out the command crew along with most of the saucer. Some wreckage of the ship is located where it should be, and the energy signatures match that of a larger-than-usual, but not unheard-of, Cardassian mine.

Crud. That's not good news at all. Yeah, the mine COULD have been left over from the previous conflicts... or it could have been planted by the Cardassians on Bifour. I won't make any accusations without proof (which we probably won't ever get), but it's extremely lucky that this random accident just happened to hit the Bridge and wipe out most of the saucer. This doesn't make me too inclined to deal kindly with these guys if hostilities come.

3) The separatist elements in Jovalis space are mostly concentrated in the Cluster, though no more than a third of any colony cylinder there is interested in separation. However, a bombshell is dropped when a cylinder holds a referendum not to separate, but to move -- separatists in a Deyal group cylinder want to move their home the Cluster. The vote succeeds, and the municipal government requests that Starfleet tractor their colony to its new home. Such an action will tie up your largest ship, or two of your smaller ships, for a couple months. However, the Jovalis government sees this as a legal action, so...

...So, if it's a legal action, then that means it's an internal matter. As in, the responsibility of the local government to handle their own affairs. If the colonists have no way to move their own station, they should have thought of that before holding the referendum!

I will sidestep the issue by telling them that there is no way for Starfleet to divert any starships for such a job. Which is completely true -- I can't afford to lose either Cerberus or my two Sequoias for a few months. If the colonists want to be moved, maybe they should contract out the Cardassians... (I won't say that to their face, though.)

D) Create another scenario like those in part C, except this time it involves your whole fleet. Feel free to follow up on the scenario you created in Q2.

Over the past four weeks, a large number of freighters from Bifour have been heading into and out of the Pink Nebula. The Cardassians say that they have discovered a brown dwarf star system within the nebula which contains a resource-rich asteroid belt, which includes dilithium. Soon, the Cardassians shift one Galor and two Hidekis to patrol the border near the nebula.
 

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Posted by Timo (Member # 245) on :
 
QUESTION THREE (Four Parts)

A) OBJECTIVELY CRITIQUE one of the answers to the hypothetical attacks in Question 2A.

Well, first I’ll critique mine. Forgetting about the Jovalisi orbital defenses was a childish mistake. I set my sidearm to “spank” and self-apply. AND I make sure the defenses are programmed with entrapment-style firing patterns that belie the true abilities of the network until the enemy has maneuvered himself to a hopeless position.

It’s damn difficult to critique anything else. Several defensive strategies and tactics could work against these threats. Escorting the traffic is just as good a role for a starship in the anti-Maquis battle as sitting and protecting DS12 or the Cluster. If the battle actually ensues, the starships can in all cases rapidly switch tactics and location.

B) Answer one or more of the questions posed by the other participants in Question 2C. Remember, at this point your fleet has not yet arrived.

I’ll try the one by Identity Crisis. As I sent the Rigorous out on one final diplomatic sortie to the border planets, she will be in a position to respond. The Marauder is a pretty fast starship type, but the Galors might not outrun a Constellation. Spanking the poor bairns to speed, the Rigorous overtakes the Galors. Now, this sector isn’t just UFP space but Jovali as well, and probably mostly “international waters” anyway. So I can’t just summarily board and search the Ferengi vessel. But I can and will insist on escorting her all the way to Zechs, and if necessary, keep her out of transporter range of the planet until the the Cardassian inspection party boards the vessel. It’s in their full right to do that – I’m just there to moderate any ship-to-ship nastiness as long as the ship is on the UFP/Jovali side of the border.

If, OTOH, the space lane used by the Ferengi is in actual UFP space, I will board the Marauder. If it’s in Jovali space, I’ll ask them to send a ship to board the Ferengi. In fact, I’ll ask them to come anyway. In case the Ferengi try to flee, I want to have the Jovali there for credible back-up, so that I can more plausibly reject the inevitable Cardassian offer for help.

C) The fleet you requisitioned in Q1 arrives in full, with an additional present: the USS Aristophanes (Miranda-class, Saratoga-refit, NCC-31923). The Aristophanes is a Starfleet Academy training ship, and carries about a hundred cadets and a regular crew of twenty on a second year field cruise. They'll be spending a few months in Sector Gamma, helping out with routine assignments while having cadets spend a couple weeks at a time on your ships. So, adding the Aristophanes into the mix, maneuver your fleet according to the following scenarios. Make note of any political reactions from involved parties that may occur. The Rigorous has now gone to whatever fate you've recommended in Q1.

All right, now we’re talking business. Up till now, the sector has in fact been unguarded, what with my Clemenceau searching for the missing Ki weeks away from where I need her. As the fleet arrives, two of my three frigates assume patrol in the triangle between Joval/-is, Zechs and Lucrezea. In case the cloak-thieves of the previous question haven’t been caught yet, the modern sensors of my frigates will now alter that state of affairs. The third frigate (say, the Icy Falls)replenishes and prepares to take over later on, so that I can keep constant vigil.

The Canaris begins her reconnaissance mission, with elements of the former Rigorous crew aboard. In case the conference I arranged at Bifour orbit has led to increased cooperation, I’m willing to take observers from any party aboard the Canaris as she scouts out the border spaces. She will also begin laying extra sensor buoys along the border, just to be sure.

The Shaaja (assuming she even arrived, since she’s supposed to replace my former flagship, yet that flagship isn’t around to be replaced yet!) stands by to strike at the pirates if need be, remaining at full alert at Jovalis. I in turn stand by to move my flag from DS12 to the Shaaja if the need arises. The Venice sails to G’Sall and takes over the responsibility for the xeno-anthro mission, with some cadets aboard.

And the Aristophanes… Well, with a regular crew of only twenty, she won’t run very efficiently when the cadets are dispersed among my other vessels. I’ll leave her to go through defensive or other benign exercises at or near Jovalis initially. Later on, she will rendezvous with and escort the Venice on a mission to survey the class N planet a little more carefully, after that latter ship is freed from her obligations at G’Sall. I’m expecting the unexpected at the waterworld, but it’s not a high priority.

1) The Lucrezeans get their act together and purchase some ships to head up their militia. Their patchwork fleet includes a smattering of customized shuttles, two surplus Klingon Birds of Prey (D-12 class) from the Ferengi, and a Yridian destroyer. In response, the Bifour fleet moves a Galor and two Hidekis around Zechs, despite repeated statements that the Lucrezean government has no interest in expansion/retaking the former Federation colony.

The Canaris makes sure I have correct and up-to-date intelligence on the Lucrezean fleet. I’ve already made overtures to help with setting up the local militia, and I again offer to send my experts to familiarize the Lucrezeans with these ship designs. Heck, I myself am probably well versed in their technical details, seeing how they were brand new hot stuff back when I last met them…

The said advisors naturally travel to the planet aboard a starship. Namely, the Icy Falls, a potent combatant herself. She won’t make aggressive moves towards the Bifourians, and she will make sure the Lucrezeans don’t, either. The other two frigates prepare for a fallback defense in case the Bifourians for some mysterious reason make a run for Joval/-is, but they are also in range to rush to help Lucrezea if need be.

2) Whatever search party you sent out to find the USS Ki finds a gaggle of escape pods close to the pulsar in the adjoining sector, containing about a third of her crew. Your people eventually reconstruct that the Ki struck a gravitic mine left over from the Cardassian conflicts of the 2340s. The mine stuck the bridge, wiping out the command crew along with most of the saucer. Some wreckage of the ship is located where it should be, and the energy signatures match that of a larger-than-usual, but not unheard-of, Cardassian mine.

The Clemenceau is well equipped to rescue the survivors. Not so well equipped to find out whether this mine really was what it looks like, or something else. I will complete the rescue operations, yet I’d also like to collect a sample. Can the Bifourians give me maps or transponder codes of the old minefields? Could the domesticated Cardassians? I’ll deploy my runabouts and shuttles to locate and hopefully sweep further mines in the region. The Clemenceau is in no hurry to return to sector Gamma yet. And in case this is an overture to Bifourian nastiness, it’s nice to have a starship standing by behind their lines…

Plus, as long as the ship stays there, the presence of the Shaaja at the primary playing field won’t violate the rules of the game. Much.

3) The separatist elements in Jovalis space are mostly concentrated in the Cluster, though no more than a third of any colony cylinder there is interested in separation. However, a bombshell is dropped when a cylinder holds a referendum not to separate, but to move -- separatists in a Deyal group cylinder want to move their home the Cluster. The vote succeeds, and the municipal government requests that Starfleet tractor their colony to its new home. Such an action will tie up your largest ship, or two of your smaller ships, for a couple months. However, the Jovalis government sees this as a legal action, so...

…they are legally entitled to go out and push. I won’t push back. Heck, I even assign the former Rigorous chief engineer to assist in installing the required propulsion (and/or subspace field mass-reduction) hardware on the habitat. The timetable of the move will have to be stretched a bit without starships, of course. The Shaaja will provide assistance when available – perhaps an initial acceleration, after which the station is on its own, and then a series of gradual decelerations, so that if the Shaaja is unavailable for one of them, this won’t mean disaster yet.

If the situation becomes a major political hurdle, I could ask Starfleet for a tugship. And while waiting for her arrival, would assign the Aristophanes to full-time towing, with the Shaaja assisting every now and then.

D) Create another scenario like those in part C, except this time it involves your whole fleet. Feel free to follow up on the scenario you created in Q2.

It seems a Jem’Hadar ship is indeed loose on the sector. Your forces confront and corner it; the tiny attack ship tries to ram your ship, fails and self-destructs. Nobody is satisfied with the outcome. “This was not the horrible cruiser”, some insist; “You deliberately erased all proof of the ship’s origin”, others cry. “They are still lurking out there!”; “My aunt is a Changeling infiltrator!”; “Watch the skis!”; “The skiEs!”; “Sorry. Watch the skies!” “It’s a cookbook!”

As soon as you whack off one head of the rumor monster, another sprouts out. And then you run into the deadliest of them all: apparently, the surviving Jem’Hadar are about to unleash their horrid Quickening bioweapon on Lucrezea. Or Jovalis. Or Joval. It will arrive on an alien ship, perhaps a human one. Or Yridian. Or Kressari.

And then you capture a Bifourian extremist who says the whole thing was orchestrated by his movement, and that they will win no matter what. The bioweapon does exist, in the form of an infected person who has nothing to lose, and will arrive when and where Starfleet least expects him or her. And even capturing the carrier will only provide proof that the threat is real, leading to the desired panic.

Describe the logistics it will take to find this carrier and to control the possible planetary panic. Factor in the considerable number of weekly shipments these planets need to survive. Your starships will be stretched thin. What other assets do you have available?

Timo Saloniemi
 

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Posted by MinutiaeMan (Member # 444) on :
 
Hey Mark, check your PM's. (Note the apostrophe there. )
 

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Posted by Mark Nguyen (Member # 469) on :
 
Sorry there, Dan; I got your e-mail too, but haven't had a chance to answer anything yet. I'll answer it tonight/tomorrow. Don't worry; we've got plenty of time.

As for Captain Nall, she's not in the sector, and is busy taking time off on Bolius. But she intends to do some civvie adventuring in her retirement, and if she ever passes by the sector again, she'll be sure to pop by Jovalis to say hello.

Mark
 

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Posted by MinutiaeMan (Member # 444) on :
 
Gotcha, Mark.

In the mean time, I've cobbled together my own personal ship comparison chart for Sector Gamma ships. Like my articles on the Jovali ships, this is my own perspective, but I figured I'd share it with the rest of you in case you'd like to use it.

And yes, I do know that the Jovali ships look pretty familiar. Just a coincidence.

http://www.st-minutiae.com/academy/command419/sector_gamma_ships.gif
 

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Posted by Identity Crisis (Member # 67) on :
 

quote:

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Originally posted by Mark Nguyen:
QUESTION THREE (Four Parts)
A) OBJECTIVELY CRITIQUE one of the answers to the hypothetical attacks in Question 2A.

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Hmm, well Timo and MinutiaeMan are clearly trying to start a trend of general niceness, and whilst I'd hate to see that continue I really can't see much to critique in any of the battle plans posted.

quote:

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B) Answer one or more of the questions posed by the other participants in Question 2C. Remember, at this point your fleet has not yet arrived.

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quote:

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C) The fleet you requisitioned in Q1 arrives in full, with an additional present: the USS Aristophanes (Miranda-class, Saratoga-refit, NCC-31923).

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quote:

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1) The Lucrezeans get their act together and purchase some ships to head up their militia.

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quote:

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2) Whatever search party you sent out to find the USS Ki finds a gaggle of escape pods close to the pulsar in the adjoining sector, containing about a third of her crew.

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quote:

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3)However, a bombshell is dropped when a cylinder holds a referendum not to separate, but to move – separatists in a Deyal group cylinder want to move their home the Cluster.

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quote:

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D) Create another scenario like those in part C, except this time it involves your whole fleet. Feel free to follow up on the scenario you created in Q2.

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Okay, following on from before...
Whatever action you take the Ferengi and Cardassians start shooting at each other. After inflicting some damage they both turn tail and run in opposite directions. If your ship(s) was in the middle then it may have sustained some light damage as well.

All is quiet for a while until the Ferengi Marauder returns, but this time she has company - another Marauder, two smaller Ferengi ships and five Nausican corvettes. They head straight for Zechs. The DaiMon contacts you and says that he is a legitamate trader and will deliver his valuable cargo whatever it takes. He refuses to discuss what his cargo is, who on Zechs is the buyer, or why it is so profitable that he's hired mercenaries to get it there. He asks you to either stay out of his way or to provide an escort.

The Bifour Cardassians, who now have a Galor and two Hidekis around Zechs remember, say that they will not allow any cargo to be beamed down. They send a second Galor and another Hideki to Zechs, but these ships will arrive after the convoy, unless you do anything to slow it down - which is exactly what the Cardassians ask you to do.

Oddly enough, up to now intelligence hasn't suggested that anyone on Zechs has large amounts of money...

Over to you.
 

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Posted by Wraith (Member # 779) on :
 
A) OBJECTIVELY CRITIQUE one of the answers to the hypothetical attacks in Question 2A.

I'm afaid i'll have to continue the 'general niceness'...

B) Answer one or more of the questions posed by the other participants in Question 2C. Remember, at this point your fleet has not yet arrived.

I'll try Identity Crisis'...

I'd send the Rigorous to intercept, with a couple of the runabout equivilents; they should be able to force the Marauder to stand down or, if not, then they could neutralise her weapons. I would then have my ships escort her to Zechs where I would allow a joint Cardassian/Federation team to inspect her.

C) The fleet you requisitioned in Q1 arrives in full, with an additional present: the USS Aristophanes (Miranda-class, Saratoga-refit, NCC-31923). The Aristophanes is a Starfleet Academy training ship, and carries about a hundred cadets and a regular crew of twenty on a second year field cruise. They'll be spending a few months in Sector Gamma, helping out with routine assignments while having cadets spend a couple weeks at a time on your ships. So, adding the Aristophanes into the mix, maneuver your fleet according to the following scenarios. Make note of any political reactions from involved parties that may occur. The Rigorous has now gone to whatever fate you've recommended in Q1.

My fleet:

USS Thermistocles NCC-17212 Apollo class
USS Indefagitable NCC-46381 Excelsior class
USS Hyperion NCC-66047 New Orleans class
USS Triumph NCC-65492 New Orleans class
USS Manticore NCC-48062 Centaur class
USS Indiaman NCC-7901 Deneva class

Plus the Aristophanes , which I’ll try and keep around the Joval system to try and ensure she doesn’t get into too much trouble- also this should free up the Triumph which would overwise be on station in this area. The remainder will take up their positions as recommended previously and the Indiaman will commence her recon/freight run around the sector, with added caution given the disappearance of the Ki .

1)The Lucrezeans get their act together and purchase some ships to head up their militia. Their patchwork fleet includes a smattering of customized shuttles, two surplus Klingon Birds of Prey (D-12 class) from the Ferengi, and a Yridian destroyer. In response, the Bifour fleet moves a Galor and two Hidekis around Zechs, despite repeated statements that the Lucrezean government has no interest in expansion/retaking the former Federation colony.

Well, the Thermistocles is , conveniently, assigned to patrol this sector so I’ll go up there and talk to the Cardassian commander and point out that the presence of such a (comparatively) powerful fleet at Zechs could be seen as threatening by the Lucrezeans (I would also imply that the Federation might not be over the moon about it). Also I would point out that Lucrezea doesn’t really have a large enough population to support a war against Bifour. Hopefully the Cardassians will see the sense in that and reduce their presence (after all, they do have the right to defend their territory). I would then warp down to Zechs and leave a few advisors to help them train on their new ships and act as moderators on their behaviour.

2) Whatever search party you sent out to find the USS Ki finds a gaggle of escape pods close to the pulsar in the adjoining sector, containing about a third of her crew. Your people eventually reconstruct that the Ki struck a gravitic mine left over from the Cardassian conflicts of the 2340s. The mine stuck the bridge, wiping out the command crew along with most of the saucer. Some wreckage of the ship is located where it should be, and the energy signatures match that of a larger-than-usual, but not unheard-of, Cardassian mine

Hmmm… Maybe I’m being a bit suspicious but it strikes me as being more than a bit convenient that the mine hit the bridge. Seeing as how mines are usually deployed in fields I’d scan for any other mines in the area. Also I’d request information on minefields in the area from the Bifourans and the Cardassians just to make sure. I’d certainly want access to any other records of Cardassian mines; presumeably the Indefagitable 's database will contain this information.

3) The separatist elements in Jovalis space are mostly concentrated in the Cluster, though no more than a third of any colony cylinder there is interested in separation. However, a bombshell is dropped when a cylinder holds a referendum not to separate, but to move - separatists in a Deyal group cylinder want to move their home the Cluster. The vote succeeds, and the municipal government requests that Starfleet tractor their colony to its new home. Such an action will tie up your largest ship, or two of your smaller ships, for a couple months. However, the Jovalis government sees this as a legal action, so…

… it’s not really my problem? Well, I’ll help anyway- I’ll send engineers from DS12 to assist them in fitting a drive system to the cylinde so they can move themselves � la DS9. I’d also assign the Aristophanes to assist (give the regulars plenty of time for very nasty drills to keep the cadets entertained )

D) Create another scenario like those in part C, except this time it involves your whole fleet. Feel free to follow up on the scenario you created in Q2.

The rebels crash the freighter into Zechs; the force of the impact and some antimatter explosives that had been carried on board cause huge amounts of damage and most of the population is killed. The Cardassians claim that the explosives used had Federation signatures and gather their fleet (plus an extra Galor and two more Hidekis whose origin is not known) to advance on Lucrezea. The Lucreazeans issue a desperate plea for help: they know they cannot stand…
 

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Posted by MinutiaeMan (Member # 444) on :
 
Hey guys, it's been about a week since Mark posted Question Three. Therefore, it's almost time for Question Four -- which Mark asked me to do a guest lecture for a few weeks ago. I'm putting the finishing touches on the scenario and will send it to Mark for approval before posting it here sometime either tonight or tomorrow.

And don't worry, this guest lecture won't be nearly as intensive as Timo's marathon campaign in Sector Beta.

As a preview and for use in Question Four, I've created a map of the Joval Star System:


 

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Posted by akb1979 (Member # 557) on :
 
U> QUESTION THREE
U>A
You want me to critique the answers to Question 2A? Sorry, can’t do that – they’re all just too damned good, everyone appears to have covered all the bases quite nicely.

U>B
I’ll answer all of them! Although my answers are not as detailed as the rest.
A Cardassian Hideki-class warship emerges from the Purple Nebula, heading on a "southeast" vector. However, once it's clear of the nebula, it changes course towards Zechs... at Warp 2.3. Long-range scans indicate that the ship may be damaged, but the Hideki is transmitting no distress call, or any other messages for that matter.
 Bugger this for a laugh – I’ll move the Courageous to intercept and detain the vessel – I HATE spies! Oh, and to hell with what the Cardassians might say about the ship’s reason for being there – I’m gonna board the ship regardless of the consequences.

A battered Kressari transport arrives at Lucrezea, claiming to have been attacked by a Dominion cruiser near Zechs. This is only the latest in a series of wild rumors about a Jem’Hadar vessel that has refused to believe in the stand-down orders and bitterly continues the war – and the rumors have never specified a ship as big as a cruiser before.

But the Kressari do have phased-polaron beam wounds on their ship to show. And so the flames are fanned and fueled. The Kressari are allied with the domesticated variant of Cardassians, and ship various produce from Lucrezea to the starving Union; the Lucrezeans insist that this is state-sponsored piracy, that the Bifourians are maintaining or even operating the Jem’Hadar vessel to hurt both the Lucrezeans and the tamer Cardassians.

The otherwise cooperative Bifourians balk at the insults. They suspend Kressari and other cargo runs across this part of the border “until the ghost ship is found and dealt with”. It doesn’t look like they are doing any “finding” or “dealing with” of their own, though.
 I’d have the Courageous move to investigate the possibility of the Dominion cruiser while also move the combat-capable shuttles and runabout-type craft to positions along the boarder to assist. Don’t know what I’d do if I found the ghost ship – I lack the firepower. Maybe I’ll deploy some cloaked mines! I’m curious – if there is a Dominion warship in the area, where are they getting their supplies from? I think something is afoot here and so I’ll instruct my people to keep their eyes and ears open and also double-check the intelligence reports since the war.

A Ferengi Marauder class enters the sector and stops at Joval. The DaiMon makes no secret of the fact that Zechs is his next destination. The Cardassians send you a priority transmission claiming that this DaiMon is supplying arms to terrorist factions on Zechs. The Ferengi protests his innocence. The Cardassians say that they will not allow the Marauder to enter their space - but as Zechs is so close to the border this would almost certainly mean that any battle would take place in Federation space. And you do indeed hear that two Galors have crossed the border and will intercept the Marauder close to the Purple Nebula. How will you respond?
 I’ll move the Courageous to intercept the Cardassians and the Ferengi vessel and try to get the Ferengi to allow an inspection of his cargo. I’d try to avoid a confrontation with the Cardassians, but I’ll be ready for a fight. I’ll be looking for a non-violent solution, possibly agreeing to a similar approach to that of Timo as it appears to be the easiest. Knowing the Cardassians and the Ferengi the way I do – I’ll expect the worst.

A cardassian freighter preparing to leave Zechs is hijacked by a group of local revolutionaries. they demand that Zecks be given it's independance or else they will crash the freighter into the planet's main population centre. The Cardassians have no ships nearby and request your help.
 Well the Courageous is in orbit of Bifour so I’ll divert her there and disable the freighter and send a boarding party to detain the revolutionaries. While there I’d talk with the population to better my relationship with them.

C1
I’d shift my ships slightly closer to the boarder, but discretely and slowly so as not to alarm the Cardassians. I’d obviously want to observe the situation, but avoid a confrontation if at all possible.

C2
I’d have my search vessel (the Courageous) conduct intense scans of the area before heading back (scanning continuously en-route). I want to know if there are any other mines in the area that could pose a problem to my fleet operations. I’d also have the USS Bellerephon move in to assist my efforts as she’d have advanced scanners.

3) The separatist elements in Jovalis space are mostly concentrated in the Cluster, though no more than a third of any colony cylinder there is interested in separation. However, a bombshell is dropped when a cylinder holds a referendum not to separate, but to move – separatists in a Deyal group cylinder want to move their home the Cluster. The vote succeeds, and the municipal government requests that Starfleet tractor their colony to its new home. Such an action will tie up your largest ship, or two of your smaller ships, for a couple months. However, the Jovalis government sees this as a legal action, so…

C3
I don’t have a small ship (unless you count the USS Bellerephon and the USS Aristophanes,). I agree with everyone else – start the cylinder moving (with my two <Nebula’s) and then come back to slow it down when it reaches its target. Failing that – they can move it themselves, I’ve got bigger fish to fry.


D
From Question 2: “Zechs hails you stating that they wish to join. The Cardassians are pissed and move a Galor and two Hideki’s to the planet, but the request still stands. The Cardassian forces begin landing ground troops into the capital on Zechs in an attempt to capture or kill the leading group. Zechs requests your assistance in defending their planet. What will you do? Which assets will you use? How will you deal with the Cardassians?”

OK – to top it all off (what with the troop landings and all), the Cardassians have now moved two more Galors and four more Hideki’s to Zechs. This clearly is a larger fleet than they were first thought to of had. Three Galors and six Hideki’s are bit of a problem, one that you need to deal with before you turn your attention to the troops. The problem is, your long-range sensors have detected at least four more Galors and six Hideki’s around the Bifour system. The forces around Zechs make up one third of the obvious Cardassian forces (oh and they have orbital weapons platforms too – about four dozen), and need to be dealt with.

How will you achieve space superiority around Zechs? (Be as detailed as you can please).

Tactical Note: Sensors indicate the presence of neutrino particles associated with cloaking devices. Assume more Cardassian vessels are in the area and cloaked (using stolen technology obviously) when planning your attack.

Have fun!

 

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Posted by Topher (Member # 71) on :
 
Just read MinutiaeMan's background on the Jovali ships, and I Have to ask: who's Christiana Towers?
 

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Posted by MinutiaeMan (Member # 444) on :
 
LMAO!

No, I live in the Christiana Towers at the University of Delaware.

Actually, ALL of the alien names I've used in the "You're the Admiral!" scenarios have been reverse-spelled words.

Noynac => Canyon
Truoc => Court

And so on. Not the most imaginative method, but it works, right?
 

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Posted by Topher (Member # 71) on :
 
Ohtwa => Awtho?
Prahs => Sharp
Ypaha Hrrays => Syarrh Ahapy?
Ladev => Vedal?


 

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Posted by MinutiaeMan (Member # 444) on :
 
All-righty then! Mark's given the go-ahead...

Question Four
Guest Lecture by MinutiaeMan

A) Respond to one or more of the scenarios created by the other participants in Part (D) of Question Three. This time, you have your entire fleet at your disposal. (The events in the scenario for your response here do not have to affect the deployment of your fleet for the following questions -- unless you want them to.)

B) A civil war breaks out on Joval. In the past few years a pro-democracy movement has gained strength on the homeworld, particularly on the western continent which is the most industrialized region of the mostly-agricultural planet, and maintains the strongest off-world ties. Numerous local leaders call for the establishment of a planetary parliament and a full constitution. Monarch Ypaha Hrrays (supported by many of the more traditional politicians in his court) accuses the reformists that they are betraying the Jovali way of life, and refuses to allow the formation of a parliament. The provinces on the western continent respond by declaring independence. The monarch in turn accuses the rogue provinces of jeopardizing the security of the whole planet by instigating such division. However, when the provinces refuse to back down, Monarch Hrrays sends in ground troops to pacify the continent.

1) Provided is a map of the Joval Star System. How will you redeploy your task force once you hear of the fighting? As far as is known, all ships of the Jovali Royal Stellar Navy are in orbit of Joval -- for now.


Stellar Cartography: Joval Star System

2) The Jovalisi government urges the Monarch to accept reforms, but he refuses. Although he's not violently xenophobic, he's clearly wary of outside influences. However, Monarch Hrrays does agree to a brief private conference with you as the local representative of the Federation, to discuss the situation. What will you tell him, or ask him, at this meeting?

C) Despite declaring independence from Joval and joining the Federation, the Jovalisi have always maintained strong cultural and economic ties with the homeworld. The civil war on Joval threatens to spread to the various Jovalisi habitats -- it's obvious that many Jovalisi citizens will to get involved somehow. The majority of Jovalisi favor the rebels because of their common democratic beliefs, but there is a vocal minority of pro-monarchy activists, as well.

The local Jovalisi government's official position is in line with Federation policy -- the civil war is an internal matter, and they'll remain neutral. Of course, in practice that policy isn't worth much at all. Since the Federation does not have any high-ranking civilian officials in the region, it falls to you to set the Federation's policy and make sure that Starfleet is not dragged into any local conflict.

1) Both sides of the conflict on Joval are receiving support from various "interest groups" on Jovalis. They're sending medical supplies, foodstuffs, power cells, ships, weapons... even some troops (completely unofficially). However, not all of the materiel that's being sent is home-grown Jovalisi equipment: you start receiving reports of Federation-built phasers used in battles, and even a few small Federation ships used in limited space combat. There's also a vague reference to a rogue group called the Jovalisi Freedom Brigade which is using a group of Federation-built small craft (think Maquis-type ships here) to aid the rebel cause. What will you do in response to this intelligence?

2) In order to stop the flow of materiel to the rebels, the Jovali monarch orders a planetary blockade -- all incoming ships are stopped and searched. No vessels are allowed to land on the western continent where most of the rebels are based. The Jovalisi local government protests this blockade and demands it be lifted immediately. The western continent is the source of most of the trade between Jovali and Jovalis, and could seriously hurt Jovalis's economy if contact is cut off. A few Jovalisi ships try to run the blockade, but unsuccessfully. The Jovalisi Merchants' Guild requests Starfleet protection of their ships near Jovalis and the immediate lifting of the blockade over the western continent for neutral vessels.

3) In a surprise operation, a squad of rebel commandos manages to commandeer the Jovali heavy cruiser Dralliw -- apparently with the assistance of a number of mutineers on board. They escape from Jovali orbit, destroying one of the royal fleet's smaller frigates on the way out. The ship disappears into the asteroid belt, and Jovali forces do not pursue at the moment -- short of sending every remaining vessel in their fleet (one cruiser and three frigates), the Jovali are not likely to recapture their cruiser through conventional means. The rebels waste no time in proclaiming their victory and announce that the commandeered cruiser will be launching reprisals against the royal forces and any of their supporters.

4) Hostility is brewing between some of the more vocal pro-rebel and pro-monarch factions in some of the Jovalisi habitats. Several riots have erupted in colonies, especially in the Deyal Group, and there have been reports of roving gangs attacking supporters of the opposite faction. Leaders from several of the habitats ask you to provide assistance in order to maintain security.

D) Things start going south. Jovali royal ground forces are advancing across the planet, and refugees are streaming into the Jovalis colonies by the hundreds, then thousands. The various orbital habitats can handle the newcomers for the time being, but the longer the situation goes on, the more difficult sustaining them will be. Although the habitats are already close to their maximum, the flow of refugees shows no sign of decreasing as the fighting continues. The general estimate for the habitats as a whole is 3 weeks before a supply shortage develops. This estimate includes life support capacity, food supplies, and overcrowding, and assumes that the situation is not resolved and the flow of refugees does not diminish.

1) The vast majority of incoming ships carrying refugees are loaded past capacity and were built by Jovali, meaning that sending the refugees out of the system on the ships they cam in is not an option -- they simply aren't fast enough for a true interstellar journey, especially considering the overcrowding on board. What will you do with them?

2) A Jovali passenger ship enters Jovalis space, pursued by one of the surviviing Jovali frigates, the Llenrup. The large passenger ship has taken heavy damage; there are several hull breaches, their warp drive is offline, their shields destroyed. The captain of the Jovali frigate claims that the passenger ship is smuggling a cell of known rebels away from Joval; the passenger ship captain says that the Jovali navy is trying to keep refugees from leaving Joval.

3) A group of raiders have taken advantage of the confusion in the past weeks, and have started raiding Federation freighters carrying agricultural products to Jovalis, and on to the rest of the Federation. It's possible that the raiders are operating out of the asteroid field... and may even be using the cloaking technology that was stolen from G'Sall a few months back.

4) There are a series of bomb attacks in various Jovalisi orbital habitats. Although none has resulted in a major loss of life, the docking facilities of one station have been severely damaged. The attacks have been confined to the Cluster -- so far. How do you ensure the security of your home base, Deep Space Twelve? (Keep in mind the ongoing refugee situation, and the fact that many of the refugees may need medical attention at a Starfleet facility.)

E) After weeks of fighting, the royal faction's ground forces prevail. All of the major cities in the rebel provinces are occupied and placed under martial law. Monarch Hrrays begins issuing strict new edicts to ensure the "pacification" of the provinces. News from the provinces is scarce as the royal forces almost completely cut off the region from any offworld contact -- even after the war is declared to be over and the provincial governments surrender. The Jovalisi local government isn't happy with the developments and cuts off diplomatic relations with the homeworld, although they take no other action.

However, it seems that a guerilla war is still going on in some out-of-the-way areas, and the monarch is using this as an excuse to crack down. The Jovali royal navy has also failed to track down and capture the cruiser that was captured in Part (C). They seem to be laying low for now.
 

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Posted by Mark Nguyen (Member # 469) on :
 
Yay! Thanks, Dan. As a consideration to the other Admirals, please retain your answer (assuming you're making one of your own) until at least Sunday night.

And for Chris - many of the names are anagrams. Happy, happy, happy...

Mark
 

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Posted by MinutiaeMan (Member # 444) on :
 
*bump*

Isn't anyone going to answer my scenario?
 

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Posted by Identity Crisis (Member # 67) on :
 
Don't worry, I will. But it's the middle of the night now so I'll wait until tomorrow if you don't mind. Personally I think the best solution would be for Section 31 to knock off the monarch and install a puppet regime that will do what we tell them. Maybe I should defect to the Cardassians, they'd probably appreciate my way of thinking more than these wussy Feds...
 

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Posted by Wraith (Member # 779) on :
 
Mine'll probably be up either later today or tomorrow: I've had an attack of real life this week
 

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Posted by Identity Crisis (Member # 67) on :
 

quote:

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Question Four
Guest Lecture by MinutiaeMan
A) Respond to one or more of the scenarios created by the other participants in Part (D) of Question Three.

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1) How will you redeploy your task force once you hear of the fighting?[/q]

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[qb]2) Monarch Hrrays does agree to a brief private conference with you as the local representative of the Federation, to discuss the situation.

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C) Since the Federation does not have any high-ranking civilian officials in the region, it falls to you to set the Federation's policy and make sure that Starfleet is not dragged into any local conflict.

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1) There's also a vague reference to a rogue group called the Jovalisi Freedom Brigade which is using a group of Federation-built small craft (think Maquis-type ships here) to aid the rebel cause. What will you do in response to this intelligence?

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2) The Jovalisi Merchants' Guild requests Starfleet protection of their ships near Jovalis and the immediate lifting of the blockade over the western continent for neutral vessels.

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3) In a surprise operation, a squad of rebel commandos manages to commandeer the Jovali heavy cruiser Dralliw. The ship disappears into the asteroid belt.

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4) Leaders from several of the habitats ask you to provide assistance in order to maintain security.

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D) The general estimate for the habitats as a whole is 3 weeks before a supply shortage develops.

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1) They simply aren't fast enough for a true interstellar journey, especially considering the overcrowding on board. What will you do with them?

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2) A Jovali passenger ship enters Jovalis space, pursued by one of the surviviing Jovali frigates

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3) A group of raiders have taken advantage of the confusion in the past weeks. It's possible that the raiders are operating out of the asteroid field... and may even be using the cloaking technology that was stolen from G'Sall a few months back.

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4) There are a series of bomb attacks in various Jovalisi orbital habitats. How do you ensure the security of your home base, Deep Space Twelve?

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E) After weeks of fighting, the royal faction's ground forces prevail.

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Originally posted by Timo:
Would you believe dipping my big toe in the bay, having wild sex with everyone on the beach, and winning silver in a solo singing contest?

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I'm tempted to make a "man train" joke here, but I won't.
 

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Posted by Timo (Member # 245) on :
 
The Biscay frutti di mare I devoured finally got their revenge - for the past few days I've been bedridden with a horrid bioweapon (no, *not* the alto I mentioned earlier - alas!), and it will be a while until I can form a coherent thought. I'll save my first one for Dan's scenario. Until then, bear with my feverish ramblings...

Timo Saloniemi
 

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Posted by Mark Nguyen (Member # 469) on :
 
Tick, tock, tick, tock...

Mark
 

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Posted by Timo (Member # 245) on :
 
All right, the fever is down, and it's time for...

Question Four
Guest Lecture by MinutiaeMan

A) Respond to one or more of the scenarios created by the other participants in Part (D) of Question Three. This time, you have your entire fleet at your disposal. (The events in the scenario for your response here do not have to affect the deployment of your fleet for the following questions -- unless you want them to.)

I'll take something simple this time - say, Wraith's. Simple, if not easy.

I have already made overtures for assisting the Lucrezean militia. My frigate, the Icy Falls, resides at the planet, with my military advisors. They are in a good position to find out if the said militia is in any way responsible for the attack.

My recce ship, the Canaris, turns around and heads for Lucrezea as well. Via Zechs, where it can provide a little humanitarian aid and find out a few more facts. A second frigate similar to the Icy Falls is also available nearby, and will move to Lucrezea - these ships are enough to protect the planet from Bifourian aggression. Finally, relief ships will be diverted from the Jovalis/UFP run to Zechs, to be joined by the returning Canaris as soon as the situation at Lucrezea calms down.

B) A civil war breaks out on Joval. Numerous local leaders call for the establishment of a planetary parliament and a full constitution. Monarch Ypaha Hrrays refuses to allow the formation of a parliament. The provinces on the western continent respond by declaring independence. When the provinces refuse to back down, Monarch Hrrays sends in ground troops to pacify the continent.

1) Provided is a map of the Joval Star System. How will you redeploy your task force once you hear of the fighting? As far as is known, all ships of the Jovali Royal Stellar Navy are in orbit of Joval -- for now.

I already have my strongest combatant stationed at Jovalis, and I do not intend to make any major military interventions yet. But if Joval gets a big antirevolutionary backlash that culminates in a “Jovalis belongs to Joval” policy, I need a deterrent against the big ships of the Monarch. I recall one of my patrolling Springfields, still leaving the second one at Lucrezea but ushering the third to the general vicinity of Jovalis/Joval. There’s no point in bothering my more distant recce vessels yet.

2) The Jovalisi government urges the Monarch to accept reforms, but he refuses. Although he's not violently xenophobic, he's clearly wary of outside influences. However, Monarch Hrrays does agree to a brief private conference with you as the local representative of the Federation, to discuss the situation. What will you tell him, or ask him, at this meeting?

In addition to the standard UFP speeches on the benefits of freedom and downsides of oppression, just one thing: the Monarch has got neighbors. UFP exterior policy of neutrality does not matter, since the UFP-ruled Jovalis is an internal matter for Joval first and foremost. It intimately affects the Monarch’s current and future economy, and cannot be discounted. If hostilities intensify, I suggest to the Monarch a joint declaration of a state of emergency, involving a joint traffic control and resource distribution scheme to keep the Joval/Jovalis relations as “normal” as possible.

C) The majority of Jovalisi favor the rebels because of their common democratic beliefs, but there is a vocal minority of pro-monarchy activists, as well.

1) Both sides of the conflict on Joval are receiving support from various "interest groups" on Jovalis. They're sending medical supplies, foodstuffs, power cells, ships, weapons... even some troops (completely unofficially). However, not all of the materiel that's being sent is home-grown Jovalisi equipment: you start receiving reports of Federation-built phasers used in battles, and even a few small Federation ships used in limited space combat. There's also a vague reference to a rogue group called the Jovalisi Freedom Brigade which is using a group of Federation-built small craft (think Maquis-type ships here) to aid the rebel cause. What will you do in response to this intelligence?

I remind the Jovalisi police of their UFP obligations, and jointly with them impose strict flight limitations between Joval and Jovalis. These help us screen the remaining traffic for contraband. Another UFP obligation for Jovalis is to organize the relief efforts, so we can nicely tell the private enterprises to dedicate all their resources to the common effort. Small craft will be confiscated for relief use. Especially those that might be operating for the JFB… The Jovalisi police, supervised and assisted by Starfleet operatives, starts hunting down the JFB, which is declared illegal under UFP law. JFB members are urged to join the Jovalisi defense forces instead. These forces will be involved in the joint emergency action I have advocated, and will do a lot more good to the Jovali freedom movement than any independent paramilitary action will.

2) In order to stop the flow of materiel to the rebels, the Jovali monarch orders a planetary blockade -- all incoming ships are stopped and searched. No vessels are allowed to land on the western continent where most of the rebels are based. The Jovalisi local government protests this blockade and demands it be lifted immediately. The western continent is the source of most of the trade between Jovali and Jovalis, and could seriously hurt Jovalis's economy if contact is cut off. A few Jovalisi ships try to run the blockade, but unsuccessfully. The Jovalisi Merchants' Guild requests Starfleet protection of their ships near Jovalis and the immediate lifting of the blockade over the western continent for neutral vessels.

I talk sense to the Jovalisi. They don’t need open skies – they can manage quite well with a strictly regulated traffic flow. The way to restore contact is to abide with a blockade that ends the Jovalisi vigilantism. The Monarch has already been offered a joint traffic control plan. It’s in his interests to agree to it now, with my masses of small craft being a great asset for traffic control.

Neutral traffic will be warned away from the combat zone, as per general UFP guidelines. Those willing to run the gauntlet will be escorted by a Starfleet frigate, one of the two I currently have in the region. The third will be recalled from Lucrezea now. Escort will be provided to Jovalis only, not Joval. However, the Monarch willing, I can escort neutral shipments to Joval within the parameters of our joint blockade. It won’t be a problem for my modern frigates to blow small craft out of the sky if they make moves against shipments, no matter whose small craft they happen to be.

Now would be a good time to get Captain Nall back to facilitate the talks with the Jovalisi…

3) In a surprise operation, a squad of rebel commandos manages to commandeer the Jovali heavy cruiser Dralliw -- apparently with the assistance of a number of mutineers on board. They escape from Jovali orbit, destroying one of the royal fleet's smaller frigates on the way out. The ship disappears into the asteroid belt, and Jovali forces do not pursue at the moment -- short of sending every remaining vessel in their fleet (one cruiser and three frigates), the Jovali are not likely to recapture their cruiser through conventional means. The rebels waste no time in proclaiming their victory and announce that the commandeered cruiser will be launching reprisals against the royal forces and any of their supporters.

This ship is a menace against which UFP policy will empower me to act, at least within UFP space. And I swear I’ll find the legal loophole that makes the asteroid belt UFP space. Jovalis orbits nearer to it than Joval anyway! The Shaaja sails out to hunt down this vessel. It is not a matter of leaving Jovalis unprotected, not at these minimal ranges.

I ask for Jovali assistance in the hunt, since the Shaaja alone won’t guarantee me victory. Their ships can stay back at Joval, ready to leap out if I yell for help, but they need not vacate any of Joval’s defenses for this. Covertly, my small craft also enter the belt, seeking for the stolen cruiser. Rules of engagement call for disabling the ship, but do not prohibit destruct, nor is the Shaaja prohibited from firing the first shot.

4) Hostility is brewing between some of the more vocal pro-rebel and pro-monarch factions in some of the Jovalisi habitats. Several riots have erupted in colonies, especially in the Deyal Group, and there have been reports of roving gangs attacking supporters of the opposite faction. Leaders from several of the habitats ask you to provide assistance in order to maintain security.
Provided I nailed the rogue cruiser, I can send out forces from my flagship as well as from aboard my two resident frigates. I can probably work out the most efficiently if I again strike at space traffic, this time between the habitats. I intercept both physical movement and messages within the limitations of UFP law.

D) Things start going south. Jovali royal ground forces are advancing across the planet, and refugees are streaming into the Jovalis colonies by the hundreds, then thousands.

1) The vast majority of incoming ships carrying refugees are loaded past capacity and were built by Jovali, meaning that sending the refugees out of the system on the ships they cam in is not an option -- they simply aren't fast enough for a true interstellar journey, especially considering the overcrowding on board. What will you do with them?

I must ask for logistical support from Starfleet. Three weeks is not enough to get anything but “high-speed” ships to the area, as per the rules, but I must prepare for the future. So I ask for shipments of supplies, to be sent aboard ships than can then move out refugees.

As an interim measure, I start manufacturing extra habitat space in the form of ugly limpets clinging to DS12. It’s just bulkheads and life support anyway – and the latter could be partially provided by our cadet ship, which has nothing better to do and could be bolted onto DS12 for the time being.

2) A Jovali passenger ship enters Jovalis space, pursued by one of the surviviing Jovali frigates, the Llenrup. The large passenger ship has taken heavy damage; there are several hull breaches, their warp drive is offline, their shields destroyed. The captain of the Jovali frigate claims that the passenger ship is smuggling a cell of known rebels away from Joval; the passenger ship captain says that the Jovali navy is trying to keep refugees from leaving Joval.

Whatever the truth, I can easily handle the passenger ship, so the frigate can sod off. I board and detain the vessel as I’ve done with all suspect shipments in the past few days. And whatever the background of the people aboard, they are off the backs of the Jovali now. I promise to keep track of their whereabouts in case the Jovali want to prosecute in the distant future. For now, it simply isn’t something they can deal with.

3) A group of raiders have taken advantage of the confusion in the past weeks, and have started raiding Federation freighters carrying agricultural products to Jovalis, and on to the rest of the Federation. It's possible that the raiders are operating out of the asteroid field... and may even be using the cloaking technology that was stolen from G'Sall a few months back.

The asteroids aren’t that much of a protection for the raiders, unless they only strike in the vicinity of Jovalis itself. And they can’t, since there are plenty of my forces present, just hours away at small-craft impulse, or mere minutes at warp-hop by the Shaaja. To confront any farther-out raiders, I load some small craft aboard my escort frigates and sow them on the trade route to create an ambush.

4) There are a series of bomb attacks in various Jovalisi orbital habitats. Although none has resulted in a major loss of life, the docking facilities of one station have been severely damaged. The attacks have been confined to the Cluster -- so far. How do you ensure the security of your home base, Deep Space Twelve? (Keep in mind the ongoing refugee situation, and the fact that many of the refugees may need medical attention at a Starfleet facility.)

DS12 is quite vulnerable now, with the limpet modules and the Aristophanes welded to it. I still have to process refugees at the starbase, so all I can do is dedicate extra security forces to screening. AND make sure that all traffic to DS12 is by authorized government vessels, to which people are transferred at staging areas where their original vessels are cordoned off and inspected. This has to be done to enforce the blockade anyway.


E) After weeks of fighting, the royal faction's ground forces prevail. All of the major cities in the rebel provinces are occupied and placed under martial law. Monarch Hrrays begins issuing strict new edicts to ensure the "pacification" of the provinces. News from the provinces is scarce as the royal forces almost completely cut off the region from any offworld contact -- even after the war is declared to be over and the provincial governments surrender. The Jovalisi local government isn't happy with the developments and cuts off diplomatic relations with the homeworld, although they take no other action.

This doesn’t prevent the UFP (me, that is) from continuing a dialogue, which will involve demands for observers.

However, it seems that a guerilla war is still going on in some out-of-the-way areas, and the monarch is using this as an excuse to crack down. The Jovali royal navy has also failed to track down and capture the cruiser that was captured in Part (C). They seem to be laying low for now.

Just to remind the Monarch that I’m the one party that can hunt down the cruiser now, I pop up on a naval visit to low Jovali orbit. I ask for negotiations on ending the blockade, reminding the Monarch that if I do that unilaterally, the JFB might get a better position down at Joval. Some sort of continued cooperation is in the Monarch’s interests. Now what about those observers? AND the humanitarian aid that’s beginning to arrive also needs distributing. Does Joval want to have some?

As soon as the Monarch starts speaking of returning suspected rebels, I start speaking resettling the refugees. This can keep us two entertained for days at an end. Which reminds me, my “local expert” ship Canaris will probably be back by now. I assign the crew to special missions to find out more about the realities of the aftermath.

Timo Saloniemi

[ November 12, 2002, 01:34: Message edited by: Timo ]
 

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Posted by Wraith (Member # 779) on :
 
I absolutely promise I'll have it up tomorrow. I mean it this time. Honest.

And Timo; simple?!?!
 

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Posted by Wraith (Member # 779) on :
 
A) Respond to one or more of the scenarios created by the other participants in Part (D) of Question Three.
I think I’ll continue with Identity Crises’…

Sooo; they now have 2 Marauders, 2 small Ferengi ships and 5 Corvettes. First off, I’ll have to assume I no longer have Rigorous there; the most I can hope for really is the Indy, Thermistocles and one of the New Orleans- say the Hyperion. That would probably be enough to see off the Ferengi ships but the corvettes as well could cause a problem, although it’s more a matter of numbers than individual firepower. I’d use the Indy and some of the runabouts to draw off the Corvettes; they’d be the ones I’d send out to intercept an incoming force. Once they’re gone, I’d send in the Thermistocles and Hyperion to escort them to Zechs and there oversee the inspection of their cargo.

1) Provided is a map of the Joval Star System. How will you redeploy your task force once you hear of the fighting? As far as is known, all ships of the Jovali Royal Stellar Navy are in orbit of Joval -- for now.

I’d redeploy the Aristophanes to Jovalisi orbital space, both to keep them out of danger and to guard Federation territory against any expansion of the war into our space. The Hyperion would be withdrawn from her patrol area to the Joval system and I would head back in the Thermistocles also. The Manticore will begin to deploy automated tracking beacons along it’s patrol area and then stand ready to withdraw to Joval.

2) The Jovalisi government urges the Monarch to accept reforms, but he refuses. Although he's not violently xenophobic, he's clearly wary of outside influences. However, Monarch Hrrays does agree to a brief private conference with you as the local representative of the Federation, to discuss the situation. What will you tell him, or ask him, at this meeting?

First off, I’d tell him that the Federation cannot and will not intervene militarily in any civil war. This may change, however, if the war spilles over into Federation territory. Then I’d try and persuade him to accept at least some reforms, at least to spare his people any bloodshed. I’d also provide him with any materials I feel may be useful; I’m sure there must be some examples of similar situations in the galaxy’s history. I would point out that having a democratic government would not necessarily end the monarchy or destroy the Jovali way of life and would probably be beneficial. I’m sure there are also many examples of what happens to monarchs when they do not grant reform (Russia, for example). Hopefully this will persuade him to at least seriously consider reforms. I’m sure there are at least some constitutional monarchies in the federation. If I have anyone from any of these planets or nations in my crews I will ask them to accompany me to prove it works.

1) Both sides of the conflict on Joval are receiving support from various "interest groups" on Jovalis. They're sending medical supplies, foodstuffs, power cells, ships, weapons... even some troops (completely unofficially). However, not all of the materiel that's being sent is home-grown Jovalisi equipment: you start receiving reports of Federation-built phasers used in battles, and even a few small Federation ships used in limited space combat. There's also a vague reference to a rogue group called the Jovalisi Freedom Brigade which is using a group of Federation-built small craft (think Maquis-type ships here) to aid the rebel cause. What will you do in response to this intelligence?

First, I’d declare an exclusion zone around Joval and a list of prohibited materials; my ships and local Jovalisi law enforcement vessels will enforce this. Anyone found smuggling these materials, particularly if they are of federation origin, will face severe charges. I’d pass the information on to Jovalisi law enforcement personnel, hopefully they will be able to track down at least some of the suppliers. I'll also alert my starships as to the type of craft we should be looking for.

2) In order to stop the flow of materiel to the rebels, the Jovali monarch orders a planetary blockade -- all incoming ships are stopped and searched. No vessels are allowed to land on the western continent where most of the rebels are based. The Jovalisi local government protests this blockade and demands it be lifted immediately. The western continent is the source of most of the trade between Jovali and Jovalis, and could seriously hurt Jovalis's economy if contact is cut off. A few Jovalisi ships try to run the blockade, but unsuccessfully. The Jovalisi Merchants' Guild requests Starfleet protection of their ships near Jovalis and the immediate lifting of the blockade over the western continent for neutral vessels.

Hmmm, difficult. If I do nothing then the Jovalisi will complain that I am not assisting them and probably complain to Starfleet and they’d probably be right. But Jovalisi is the largest supplier of weapons and other materials to both sides on Joval; the Jovali government would complain about that and that claim that I am meddling in internal affairs. I’ll have to compromise; I’d demand that the blockade on the Western continent is lifted but I’d accept the stop and search procedures. I’d assign my ships to escort Jovalisi freighters (in convoy) out to the edge of my exclusion zone (say 1.5 light minutes).

3) In a surprise operation, a squad of rebel commandos manages to commandeer the Jovali heavy cruiser Dralliw -- apparently with the assistance of a number of mutineers on board. They escape from Jovali orbit, destroying one of the royal fleet's smaller frigates on the way out. The ship disappears into the asteroid belt, and Jovali forces do not pursue at the moment -- short of sending every remaining vessel in their fleet (one cruiser and three frigates), the Jovali are not likely to recapture their cruiser through conventional means. The rebels waste no time in proclaiming their victory and announce that the commandeered cruiser will be launching reprisals against the royal forces and any of their supporters.

Oh, fantastic… that heavy cruiser could take on any of the ships in my fleet, although I doubt they’d try and attack a Federation ship or that it could defeat more than one of my ships. On the other hand they may attack Jovalisi ships and claim they were assisting the monarch’s forces. The convoy and escort procedures I’ve introduced should guard against this but the cruiser has left the exclusion zone; I really have no way of enforcing this so it’s possible the conflict could begin to spill over (having saisd this if the RSN has any sense it won’t pursue, leaving the cruiser effectively useless except against freighters supplying the Royal faction and given that most of these will be Jovalisi I imagine the captain will be very cautious- I wouldn’t want to aggrevate the Federation. If they do become a threat I’ll hunt ‘em down…

4) Hostility is brewing between some of the more vocal pro-rebel and pro-monarch factions in some of the Jovalisi habitats. Several riots have erupted in colonies, especially in the Deyal Group, and there have been reports of roving gangs attacking supporters of the opposite faction. Leaders from several of the habitats ask you to provide assistance in order to maintain security.

Well, I could deploy some of my embarked Marines and Security personnel but I am loath to do this given the possibility of my ships being involved in combat but I really hve no choice. I’ll try and minimise the numbers I have to deploy and I’ll detatch a few shuttles as well to assist in movement between the habitats. Hopefully this’ll be enough to calm them down.

1) The vast majority of incoming ships carrying refugees are loaded past capacity and were built by Jovali, meaning that sending the refugees out of the system on the ships they cam in is not an option -- they simply aren't fast enough for a true interstellar journey, especially considering the overcrowding on board. What will you do with them?

Link ‘em all up and use them like an additional habitat. This should ease the strain on their environmental plants and give the people on board more space. I’d start emergency construction of temporary habitats as well as asking the Jovalisi government if there is anywhere they can put refugee camps. I’ll also fire off a request to Starfleet for additional support.

2) A Jovali passenger ship enters Jovalis space, pursued by one of the surviviing Jovali frigates, the Llenrup. The large passenger ship has taken heavy damage; there are several hull breaches, their warp drive is offline, their shields destroyed. The captain of the Jovali frigate claims that the passenger ship is smuggling a cell of known rebels away from Joval; the passenger ship captain says that the Jovali navy is trying to keep refugees from leaving Joval.

I’ll send the Aristophanes to intercept and inspect the vessel. If any weapons or other suspicious materials are found I’ll turn them over to the Jovali; my teams will also endeavour to determine who any suspicious materials belong to. Whatever it was doing the passenger ship is my problem now; the Jovalis can bugger off home.

3) A group of raiders have taken advantage of the confusion in the past weeks, and have started raiding Federation freighters carrying agricultural products to Jovalis, and on to the rest of the Federation. It's possible that the raiders are operating out of the asteroid field... and may even be using the cloaking technology that was stolen from G'Sall a few months back.

Not really much I can do; my convoy and escort procedure should keep attacks to a minimum though. I'll see if there's any way to penetrate the cloak by modifying sensors etc. and distribute warnings to all freighter captains as well as my own.

4) There are a series of bomb attacks in various Jovalisi orbital habitats.

Hopefully my security forces I deployed to the cylinders earlier will be able to contain this and find those responsible.

E) After weeks of fighting, the royal faction's ground forces prevail

I'd try to encourage the monarch not to be too harsh and also offer to try and find that cruiser and persuade it's crew to stand down.
 

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Posted by MinutiaeMan (Member # 444) on :
 
Everyone seems to have put their two cents in by now, so I'm posting my own answer! Yeah yeah, it's kinda weird to answer my own question, but since I definitely plan to keep up with the scenario, I decided I'd better have some recorded actions to refer to in future events.

A. Respond to one or more of the scenarios created by the other participants in Part (D) of Question Three. This time, you have your entire fleet at your disposal. (The events in the scenario for your response here do not have to affect the deployment of your fleet for the following questions -- unless you want them to.)

Since he's written a sequel to his first offering, I'll take Timo's scenario again. I must have some affinity for pain...

quote:

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Originally posted by Timo:

It seems a Jem�Hadar ship is indeed loose on the sector. Your forces confront and corner it; the tiny attack ship tries to ram your ship, fails and self-destructs. Nobody is satisfied with the outcome. �This was not the horrible cruiser�, some insist; �You deliberately erased all proof of the ship�s origin�, others cry. �They are still lurking out there!�; �My aunt is a Changeling infiltrator!�; �Watch the skis!�; �The skiEs!�; �Sorry. Watch the skies!� �It�s a cookbook!�

As soon as you whack off one head of the rumor monster, another sprouts out. And then you run into the deadliest of them all: apparently, the surviving Jem�Hadar are about to unleash their horrid Quickening bioweapon on Lucrezea. Or Jovalis. Or Joval. It will arrive on an alien ship, perhaps a human one. Or Yridian. Or Kressari.

And then you capture a Bifourian extremist who says the whole thing was orchestrated by his movement, and that they will win no matter what. The bioweapon does exist, in the form of an infected person who has nothing to lose, and will arrive when and where Starfleet least expects him or her. And even capturing the carrier will only provide proof that the threat is real, leading to the desired panic.

Describe the logistics it will take to find this carrier and to control the possible planetary panic. Factor in the considerable number of weekly shipments these planets need to survive. Your starships will be stretched thin. What other assets do you have available?

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If the Bifourians are taking hostile actions against the Federation, they almost HAVE to take it from a terrorist's point of view. They're vastly outnumbered and outgunned, and they control only a tiny handful of systems compared to an interstellar alliance that smacked down the two biggest threats the quadrant has ever seen. They can't hope to win a conventional conflict -- even if they temporarily overwhelm the local forces, Starfleet will send in a task force to clean up the mess... possibly by carpet-bombing the bloody Cardies back into the stone age. The Driians certainly learned their lesson a few months ago.

I'm tempted to come down on the Bifourians like a ton of bricks, regardless. It's been three years since the end of the war -- one small Jem'Hadar fighter simply can NOT survive on its own for that long in open space. They'd have to be receiving support and supplies from somewhere, not to mention some ketracel-white to keep the Jemmies in line. The other alternative is that there wasn't actually any Dominion personnel aboard, but the ship was run by someone else -- like maybe Cardassians? I'm going to start pulling a hard line with the Bifourians for any future interaction.

My first thought is that this supposed Bifourian defector is actually the carrier himself. I'm familiar with Captain Janeway's logs from Voyager's trek across the Delta Quadrant -- I'm not about to make the same foolish mistake. (see "Basics, Part I") From a terrorist's perspective, taking out even one starship could be seen as a victory. There's plenty of historical precedent for that, too. Consider the problems that Earth had with terrorists in the aftermath of the Eugenics Wars, and the attack on a United States destroyer, the USS Cole. Certainly not a major blow according to simple numbers, but its effect was very far-reaching.

However, something tells me that there is no Quickening plague, no Dominion threat -- and the Bifourians are just trying to cause some chaos and make it look like they're innocent victims along with everyone else. I have no proof and will take no action against them, but again, I'm going to keep a very close eye on them.

In any event, this is a threat that I cannot afford to ignore. I'd bring in all possible assets to cover the Jovalis colonies -- my primary duty since they're Federation members. Given the close relationship and proximity to Joval itself, I'll try to coordinate there if possible. The Tiamat and Eclipse will remain on station at the border, but the Cerberus, Beowulf, and Tahoe will be recalled to Jovalis. I'll set up a planetary blockade in Jovalis orbit, and all incoming vessels will be scanned and inspected. An emergency request will be sent to Starfleet Medical for all information available on the Quickening. If possible, some first-hand experience would be welcome -- it's a bit far to Bajor, but if Doctor Bashir could be spared for a few weeks for this interplanetary emergency, it would be a huge help.

Tactical Deployment Update 4.0a

Given the origin of the threat, I believe it's possible to focus the search, though. Legitimate, Federation-registered freighters that are incoming from the core worlds are less likely to be used as a conduit for this attack. They'll still be scanned and checked, but the main focus will be on independent and non-Federation vessels -- especially so-called "free traders" (i.e. smugglers). For once, I'm actually glad that the Aristophanes is in the area, because having a hundred extra warm bodies to help out will be useful. All cadets will still be supervised and will work alongside the commissioned officers, but will be given full authority necessary to conduct the inspections. The Aristophanes itself can serve as an interdiction ship -- it's not likely to be outrun by most of the freighters, and its small crew can still handle ship-to-ship engagements.

Planetary panic -- that's the one major problem here. It's also one reason why I've pulled in every ship possible; I want to be VISIBLE and reassure the Jovalisi citizens that I'm taking this threat seriously, even if it's only a remote possibility.

Given my manpower issues, I really can't afford many resources to spare for Lucrezea. However, they have a much smaller relative population, and therefore it shouldn't be that difficult proportionally. The Tiamat will be in the area to lend assistance if necessary, and I'll send a few security advisors to help them get their customs systems up to date. Unless something concrete comes up, though, I can't offer more than that.

I'm going to assume complete cooperation on a military level with the Jovali royal forces. For one thing, the Cardassians aren't really going to care who gets the brunt of their attack, since none of the nearby planets were allied with the Dominion. Joval has a lot less trade with other systems, though, so they won't have as much to worry about. And the warships that they currently have won't have much trouble with most freighters that are likely to show up -- and if they do have trouble, then Starfleet's ready to lend a hand.

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The rest of my answer is on my own sample answer page.

Bring on Question Five, Mark!
 

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Posted by akb1979 (Member # 557) on :
 
I'd post my reply, if I had one!

I've just not had the time in the last week or so.

I'll try to post soon, but don't wait for me.
 

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Posted by Mark Nguyen (Member # 469) on :
 
Y'all may have an extension - I've got a thesis to revise, and that's the priority this weekend.

Mark
 

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Posted by akb1979 (Member # 557) on :
 
YAY!

 

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Posted by MinutiaeMan (Member # 444) on :
 
So... has there been some attack on Starfleet Command that was omitted from my weekly intelligence briefing?
 

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Posted by Mark Nguyen (Member # 469) on :
 
I've been abducted into Real Life for the forseeable future. My thesis defence date has been set for December 17th; I'm afraid that the accelerated timetable means I won't be able to siddown and hack out the next question until after then. Sowwy...

Mark
 

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Posted by MinutiaeMan (Member # 444) on :
 
No problem, I just wanted to make sure we hadn't been forgotten. And to make sure that Starfleet Command hadn't been overrun by some alien enemy again -- because that would probably ruin my day somehow.
 

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Posted by Valles (Member # 925) on :
 
This should properly go in the Sector Beta thread, but for some reason Flare is claiming that that doesn't exist, and I don't have the energy to sort it out and put this where it should be. So it's here, which is at least close. Enjoy, I'm going to go pass out now.


Step One

A) As with Sector Alpha, define what Starfleet's priorities in this sector should be. Note the political nature of the planets in this sector have not changed, nor of the Klingons. Also, note any gaps in the information provided and where you'd want to focus your intelligence-gathering.

1.) Defend Ulia.
2.) Enforce the PD w/regards to Dawson's Planet.
3.) Improve diplomatic relations with the Driians.
4.) Maintain diplomatic relations with the Klingons.

B) Following the Dominion War, resources are stretched pretty thin, with both the Feds and the Klingons wanting to focus on the rebuilding of more important sectors. However, the Klingons do want to have a more permanent presence in here, and want to build a space-based Starbase equivalent to the one you had back in Sector Alpha (think the ones over Ty'Gokor) containing a new comm station, and to assign one Vor'cha and two B'rels to it. Likewise, Starfleet is assigning you enough resources to either upgrade the Ulian starbase to a larger facility with heavier orbital defences and Starfleet repair facilities, or to build a small outpost-like station somewhere in the sector, smaller than SB375 and with moderate defences and support facilities. Choose which option you'd like to pursue, and recommend where the Klingons should put their station. Justify your answers.

Upgrade Ulia Base, and ask the Klingons if they'd be willing to allow other parties to use their base's facilities. That being the case, and with current relations between the Empire and the Federation being so friendly, the ideal location for a base would be the Black Dwarf system. An open base there, no matter who it was officially operated by, would be of benefit to all who use the system's resources, as it could easily provide security and support as needed.

C) The ship that transported you to Sector Beta from your previous assignment is now part of the fleet you'll have to use in this sector. In addition to that ship, recommend to Starfleet what a reasonable number and breakdown of ships should be deployed to this sector to accomplish your goals, and what their primary duties will be. A fleet based on your recommendations will be assigned there AFTER the events of question two. Assume NO MORE than a dozen starships of any kind will be assigned to the sector, and that in addition to this force a number of Federation and Klingon transports will be making regular runs into and out of the sector. At present, in addition to your ship there are a small number of runabouts and auxiliary craft assigned to the Starbase. If you're joining us here without having come from Sector Alpha, you've got a generic Excelsior-class ship.

Excelsior II class, one; Epiphany.
Saber Class, six; Kris, Dagger, Claymore, Tachi, Nodachi, Rapier.
Steamrunner Class, two; Azland, Foglio.
Intrepid Class, one; Victor.
Sovereign Class, one; Drakon. - on shakedown deployment
Moon Inn Class Construction vessel, one; Tasuki. (this is a concept of mine - basically, it builds orbital emplacements, subspace relays, whatever. For fellow Homeworld players, think of it as a Carrier.)


Step Two

B) Assume that the fleet you requested for Sector Beta was granted to you in full. However, it will not arrive until Question Three, although the Starbase upgrade/construction will have happened, as well as the Klingons building their Starbase where you recommended it and equipping it with their forces. Given the forces currently deployed to your sector, for the following scenarios recommend (1) what you would do, (2) what you think the Klingons would do, and (3) what you would recommend the Klingons to do, if you had the chance. The Klingons' priority is obviously to safeguard their mining investments, and their new comm array.

i) After the invasion was repulsed, the Allied forces had effectively bottled up the Driians in their Empire, where one of their planets suffered battle damage to several military and civilian targets as a result of a Klingon attempt to occupy that planet (they were repulsed). Now, elements of the Driian commercial fleet are rigging to commence mining operations in the BDS under heavy escort. The only explanation they are giving is that they need to rebuild after the war, but insist on doing it themselves.

The Klingons will sneer magnificently and ignore it. I'll grin happily and officially cheer them on, then start my spies infiltrating their empire.

ii) The people of Dawson's Planet still generally want to be left alone, and don't appreciate the bright lights in the sky as your ships run patrols in the area. Still, a loose council of their settlements has appointed an Ambassador to Ulia and to Driia, and request the Federation give them the infrastructure to communicate with those two planets.

Blink and set up a small automated comm station wherever they ask for it, then put a manned subspace relay in orbit (with a couple of defense sattelites to keep things honest).

iii) Romulan scouts are spotted in the area. The Romulan Empire is some distance away.

Invite their captains to dinner. Offer to help out with resupply. Put on a 'sorry, orders' face and ask them what the official story for their being here is. Pump them subtly for information, while being as confusingly cheerful and friendly as possible.

D) When your fleet arrives in the sector, Starfleet wants you to start off by running a series of wargames with the Klingons. In addition to simulating combat engagements with the Klingon forces, you'll also practice joint operations and get the crews of your ships used to the sector and each other. One of the big things Starfleet wants you to do is to plan for two major contingencies, should a renewed Driian conflict be apparent: an attack on the Klingon Starbase or on Ulia, or an assault on the Driian Empire by Allied forces.

Plan for how you would deploy your fleet to meet one of these two scenarios, and expect to deploy your ships in those same maneuvers when your fleet gets here. If you want to take the simulated attack on the Driian Empire, you'll do it in empty space away from Ulia or the BDS -- you choose where.

Deploy the fleet in three task forces. Force I will have Kris, Dagger, Tachi and Foglio. Force II, Nodachi, Rapier, Claymore, Azland. Force III, Epiphany, Victor, Drakon. Stage Force I in patrols out of Ulia and Force II doing the same thing out of the BDS. Force III will escort the Tasuki as it sets up a network of relays and sensor platforms across the sector. Once that's done, Force III will take up commerce protection duties while the
Tasuki adds defensive sattelite nets to Ulia and the BDS (approx 150 lightweight weapons platforms around Ulia and nearly 500 scattered around the Black Dwarf System).


Step Three

C) Guess what? Your fleet has finally arrived, and will be moving into their positions as you outlined in Question One. Given the following scenarios, maneuver you fleet accordingly (if required) and describe your reactions to the governments of the various factions, and what you'd want to do.

i) The Driians step up their mining efforts, still with the explanation that they are using it to rebuild. However, Starfleet inteligence reports that the amount of stuff they're exporting from the BDS far exceeds their ability to refine it to useful construction materials. Also, long-range telescopic probes from the border indicate that they are rebuilding their shipyards to construct their larger, Konyac-class battleships.

Presumably, the Federation has designs for battleship-sized orbital construction and refinery ships less advanced than my own Tasuki. Send a message to the Driians including plans for both same and orbital hydroponics farms. Indicate that the described ships should be well within the capabilities of their new construction yards. This allows me to warn them off, without appearing threatening or agressive. Hopefully they're not stupid enough to think that I really -don't- realize what they're up to.

And bright enough to take the hint.

ii) The Klingons decide to build up their fleet to match their own increases in BDS mining, and send in two more B'rels and a couple K'tiingas. The commander of this new Klingon squadron also happened to be the officer in charge of a failed Klingon invasion if one of the Driian planets during the war. To make matters worse, the General's house is a longtime rival of the Klingon station commander's house, were on opposite sides during the Civil War, and they don't really like each other. The General's squadron sets up shop with a small re-supply outpost around the star "south" of the Driian Empire, and starts to conduct patrols around the border with alarming frequency.

That's a Klingon matter, although certainly every effort should be made to promote harmony in our ally's command structure. Indicate politely (for a Klingon value of politely) that starting a war with the Driians, while perhaps offering opportunities for vengance and glory and all those nice things, would be a bit more nasty than is really called for, seeing as how they haven't had time to really get on their feet yet. Kicking them while they're down surely isn't honorable, right?

iii) The Romulans show up at the head of a coalition of four races from Romulan territory, and declare their interest in mining the BDS for the construction of a resource-poor colony or two in the sector directly south of yours. For the protection of their coalition, they unilaterally stake out a full quarter of the Black Dwarf System and declare it Romulan territory. They set up unmanned sensor and defense platforms, build a small command station on one of the asteroids, and use three or four Romulan scout-type vessels (like the ones seen in "The Next Phase") to patrol their territory. While 75% of the BDS is still available and resources are plentiful, the Romulan-claimed territory includes several pockets of especially-rich resource asteroids. As a result, civilian Federation and Klingon mining ships are making dips into Romulan space to swipe the goods.

First, greet them cheerfully and offer help if they want it. If and when they complain about the claim jumpers, indicate that a similar flexiblity on the part of their own miners wouldn't be taken amiss. Balance, and all that. If they still complain, gather together all the various Fed/Klink mining groups and have a gentle chat about Why We Don't Poke The Romulans.

D) The big one: A message comes in from Dawson's Planet. The Ambassador reports that a man named Jed was shootin' at some food, when up from the ground came a bubblin' ancient remains of a colony. Driian colony, that is. The remains of the colony significantly predate the Dawsonites' presence there, and conclusively show that the Driians once
maintained a population of several million there. The Driian Empire has intercepted this communication. Within days, they declare Dawson's Planet as Driian sovereign territory, and that the current population is no longer welcome. To enforce their point, they send five of their Noynac-class ships and a bunch of freighters and proceed to set up a military base on top of Jed's farm. The Dawsonites demand help from anyone, including the Romulans, who are the first to offer troop support and a couple Warbirds to face down the Driian threat, in exchange for a permenant outpost on an unpopulated continent of the planet. The Dawsonites have yet to respond.

Indicate to the Drii that a lapsed colony does not garauntee rights in perpetuity, and that if they want to move onto Dawson's they had damn well better ask the natives permission first. Deploy Force III into orbit around Dawson's, with orders to be polite to the Roms and as forceful as neccessary with the Driians.

i) Outline the top threats in the sector. What are the most likely military conflicts to occur, and which would be the priority for Starfleet to focus on preventing?

Drii/Alliance - most likely, given that the Drii are backed into something of a corner.
Romulan/Alliance - less likely, but much more worrying, seeing as how the Romulans are a Power and the Drii are, well, a banana republic.

ii) Is your fleet sufficient to face down at least two of these threats? If not, what would you ask Starfleet to send you, if anything, for help?

I wouldn't rate the Rom threat as terribly likely. Still, three or four, say, New Orleans class would be a welcome addition.

iii) While you're mulling this over, the Driians announce their own independent findings: some of the tools found in the colony remains are composed of alloys of minerals unique to Ulia. What do you think each faction's next move will be?

Invite them to review my message RE: Dawson's World.

General Hothead will see an opportunity to start a fight and move his force into Dawson's, which is fine because I'm already there and can keep an eye on him.

The Roms have already reacted.

The Drii will probably back down. They're not ready for another war yet, and if I'm not willing to start one then the Klingons or Romulans certainly are.


Step Four

1400 hours: Your second-strongest starship reports a disastrous collision with the Klingon cruiser during high-speed impulse maneuvers. A drive failure has left them on unstable orbits, heading for the star. Evacuation will become necessary in twelve hours (one grid square of travel), and repair time estimates for your ship are gloomier than that. Your captain also estimates it will take the resources of a full starship to tow even one of the ships to safety within the time limit. Contact with the Klingon cruiser cannot be made. The BoP that was also supposed to be participating in the exercise under cloak does not respond, either. The tired voice of a low-ranking underling of General Vargh on the Klingon channel expects you to handle the emergency, as the Klingons have more pressing matters to attend to.

This would be the Epiphany, probably. Given that she, Victor and Drakon are deployed as a group, I assign Victor to drag Epiphany to safety and have Drakon do the same for the Klingon. After that's done, render aid to both.

0600 hours: The damaged Klingon cruiser and your starship impact the star and are consumed, provided you didn't tow them to a safe trajectory. If you did, either ship should be good enough for warp tow now, but their own drive systems are still down. You have also located the debris cloud that was the Rokash. The ship seems to have suffered a core breach while at full stop at (E3). Vargh doesn't answer the phone, and Ren'Qo denies any knowledge of the incident. He acts surprised when he hears your report on the wargames accident -- he wasn't even informed, he growls, before cutting the channel.

Bring them to the BDS, to take advantage of the starbase facilities there.

1800 hours: Vargh finally acknowledges you. He says that three of his mining rigs are rebelling, and that there are humans on all of them. He'd hate to kill them when he mows down the Klingon strikers, and in general he'd like to avoid killing valuable laborers. Perhaps you could personally come to (I5) and negotiate a peaceful outcome?

Happily, I'm already on my way. Tell him about the Rokash, and enquire with worry about what she was carrying. Wonder out loud in a not-too-offensive way if he's heard about the accident.

At the end of day 3, Vargh is ready to talk shop with you. He assures you that his strikebreakers did not use excessive force the first time around: the human casualties must be due to some freak accident. He also vehemently denies that his forces caused the explosion of the other rig. He swears on the honor of his sword that he aims for a peaceful solution, and that spies and saboteurs are at work here to undermine him. He hesitates to name any names yet, though. As a gesture of trust, Vargh places his resident BoP under your command. The other ships are "on assignment," supposedly trying to find out more about the saboteurs, whom Vargh considers to be a greater threat than the Driians at the moment. And no, the ship that fired on the wreckage wasn't one of his.

'Honor of his sword'? He's for real, then. Offer to have my ships pass on anything they can find on the sabotage. If he accepts, give the order. Ask if the saboteurs may have gotten to his internal communications net - Ren'Qo seems to be out of the loop.

0900 hours: Your missing transport finally makes contact from (A8), caught in a "Force of Nature" style subspace pothole. The ship is trying to get out at impulse speed, and will undoubtedly succeed in a week or two. The transport crew launched out a warp-speed distress beacon, but even that caused the rift to expand and destabilize alarmingly. You
could try the LaForge maneuver: coast in with your nacelles saturated and beam out the crew and/or the crucial spares, then coast out. But it might take several passes, and even strand your rescue ship in there.

Task Victor with the rescue run, with orders to be -careful- how they do it - more passes is better than having them trapped too.

2300 hours: The Driian ore convoy reaches BDS and heads for the main Driian ore loading port there, at (H5). Unless you object by force, the transports will begin loading, and the Noynacs will deploy defensively. It looks innocent enough. Two Romulan scouts in the area make passes and sensor sweeps of the Driian expedition. They don't bother your local assets.

Have Drakon and the BoP keep an eye on them, but leave them be.

0400 hours: The Driians are compelled to act: their transports abort loading and blast out from the asteroid field at somewhat reckless speed, escorted by two Noynacs only. The other seven form an attack squadron of typical Driian tradition and intrude deep into Klingon mining turf, shrugging off the occasional mine detonation and making it difficult for anything but a starship of Defiant or Intrepid agility to follow. Seeing that it's futile to try and reach the Klingon main base, they instead surround the richest motherlode in the field, fire at the feeble sessile defences of the largest Klingon mining rig there, and then turn their guns at the habitat domes of the rig. These guys are not above taking hostages. They proceed with raiding the installation; their ships fight back while broadcasting an ultimatum "Back off or the miners bite it."

Dispatch Force I to intercept the transports, less Foglio, which is Warp-Drive-less for the moment.

0421 hours: The looting of the mining rig is interrupted when a BoP decloaks, swoops past the base, drops shields for a moment and then tries to recloak. The Driians fire back, though, and the BoP is wounded. Another decloaks, slices up a Driian ship, drops shields and then cloaks, while the first one continues the fight. Driians start to withdraw. Depending on your response, they will have 3 to 6 surviving ships as they pull out of the asteroid field and head for Driian space. Vargh yells in frustration: his Vor'cha is still at (F4), heading for home, and its chances of intercepting the Driians are slim. He still won't tell where his other BoP is, except that neither of those two was it. And speaking of those, the wounded BoP elects to blow up in battle (defending the mining base) rather than surrender either to you or to Vargh. It's posthumously ID'd as the one that went AWOL from the wargames.

Force II and Drakon act, with the BoP in support. Three surviving Drii. Dispatch Azland and Drakon and her escort to Dawson's, leave Epiphany and the Sabers in the BDS.

0500 hours: The Driians issue at least three different statements. Your base at Ulia receives an elaborate and pompous recording saying that superior Driian forces are about to evict Klingons from Drii-�zak, a star that rightfully belongs to Driians and was not yet occupied by these vile wrinkleheads when the Driians in good faith agreed to the terms of a Federation presence. The fight is purely between Driia and the said scum, and the Feds are instructed to stand aside.

The Klingons prefer things that way anyway.

The Driian High Command also sends a curt message saying that the Starfleet counterreaction to recent Driian operations in the BDS was wholly inappropriate and may be avenged in kind in the near future.

Yaaay. We're -so- impressed. First point, the Klingons are close allies of the Federation, and we are morally obligated to support them in whatever way possible. Second point, using threats against innocents for personal gain is an abomination and will be treated as such.

Finally, the head of the Driian mob at Dawson's enthusiastically declares that the days of the Federation there are over. He's dragged away by Romulans in the middle of his speech, though.

Have Drakon's captain give the Rom commander a couple bottles of really good booze, with my compliments.

And even a (Vargh spits) Driian might figure out how to use it, given enough time.

Triple bugger.

Also, by this time you may have learned the hard way that the Driian ore transport distress was a trick. If your ship drops shields for transporter use too close to the convoy, the ore carrier under tow blows up on your face. Expect even a heavy ship to suffer some damage, and a light one to lose either weapons, shields or warp for a dozen hours at least. The rest of the transports again scatter and try to run for Driian space.

Say that it was Tachi, and she's lost warp. Given that she's in no immediate danger, the other two go hunting transports.

2000 hours: The two Konyacs first seen at (E5) have come to join the various Noynacs, which appear to be doubling back and converging at (F5). Together, these ships might cause problems even for a large number of your ships. Apparently, the Driians can improvise tactics like this on the run.

The mobile parts of Force I break off pursuit and begin to take turns towing Tachi to the BDS. Have Victor break off from her rescue attempts and return to the BDS.

2300 hours: Unless you actively helped at Lone Star, this is when the remaining Driian fleet hits Dawson's. The Klingons are in hot pursuit with one cruiser and two BoPs, but the two Noynacs and one Konyac are still in a condition to devastate the planet. Ren'Qo shouts revenge: his garrison has been bombarded, his two backup cruisers are crippled, and he himself is prepared to ram the Konyac when he catches up. Which will probably happen on low Dawsonian orbit, with the associated fireworks.

Alas for them, Drakon, Azland and the borrowed BoP were waiting for them. Pretty explosions.

Dispatch the BoP to Lone Star with instructions to capture or, if neccessary, destroy the ship carrying the starkiller. Send a message to Driian Central Command regarding the starkiller and its probable intentions. Hopefully they'll listen if I'm wrong about what the cloaked BoP knows.

0200 hours: As the Driian main fleet is now observed in the middle of (G4), it seems apparent that the BDS is their main target. The mining installations go to red alert, but they do not stand much of a chance against starship attacks. It's up to you to handle the Driians.

Order Drakon and Azland home to the BDS at a dead-flat run.

1300 hours: The Driian main fleet hits BDS defences. The smaller cruisers make use of the cover of the asteroids, while the big battlewagons concentrate their fire on your largest vessel, maintaining their distance from the asteroids and possible minefields.

Fortunately, I have plenty of firepower there by now. I'll assume that the Force I sabers made it in time - one Excelsior (my flagship) and six Sabers against two heavies, two kludges and three lightweights.

Send Epiphany and a Saber into the asteroids after the Noyacs - after all, I know where the mines are, I helped set them up. The quarters are a little tight for an Excelsior class, but presumably this -isn't- one of those ridiculously dense SW:ESB-style "asteroid belts". Have the other Sabers play wolfpack against the Konyacs' bears, and hopefully lure them into the defense net the Tasuki set up earlier.

The freespace battle is, on paper, against me - two Konyacs and two of the new ships against five Sabers. Fortunately or not, in the face of my decision to take Epiphany into the asteroids, they choose to follow.

The new ships are respectably well-shielded for something of their size (a bit bigger than a Sovereign), but dead slow and almost completely lacking in maneuverability. Being essentially scaled-up Konyacs (which are in turn built to much the same plan as the smaller Noyac class), they suffer the same limited fire arcs. They'd be at their worst in a close quarters dogfight like the asteroid battle will become - and be too clumsy to
avoid threats from the environment, on top of that.

On the other hand, their weapons array is massive, and anything they manage to get a bead on is going to know it's been kissed. In open space, they'll have a much better chance of managing to come to grips with their opposition.

And five Sabers, in the mind of my opponent, aren't much threat. Thus, he splits his force again - letting the Konyacs slowly work their way in after Epiphany and leaving the new ships - call them the "Nightwish" class - to deal with my lights.

The Sabers start out with a pattern of long-range fencing and evasion, poke and retreat, poke and retreat. It's unlikely to cause much damage, but the Nightwishes are an unknown factor and the entirety of their capabilities isn't immediately clear.

In the asteroids, the initial fight goes poorly, with one Noyac drawing the Saber off into a twisting, intricate dogfight and leaving the other two to dodge in and out of cover, taking snapshots at Epiphany before the larger ship can respond.

This lasts until one of them gets a little too bold, during which shining, single moment Epiphany takes the shot and it is discovered that, ageing and out of date or not, an alpha strike from an Explorer grade starship will take a good sized chunk out of anything. The Noyac wobbles away, trailing plasma and air and generally looking perfectly ready for the wrecking yard.

The other Noyac swoops in to provide cover fire, secure in the knowledge that a volley like that won't be repeated for at least a minute. Epiphany locks it down with tractor beams and plays pinyata with an asteroid instead of a candy-filled paper-mache doll and a Noyac instead of a baseball bat. Unfortunately, asteroids are as much tougher than Noyacs

as paper-mache is -not- tougher than a Louisville Slugger, and we don't get our Asteroid Candies. It is at about this point that the damaged Noyac, sensors almost blinded, stumbles into part of the automated defense network and is destroyed.

The third Noyac latches onto the Saber's tail and stays there, pounding away, through a series of extreme maneuvers and in the face of heavy fire. Eventually, the Saber's captain dives through a (well described on his charts) minefield. The Noyac attempts to follow, but lacks the data to avoid the mines and blunders into nearly a dozen in quick succession. Boom.

It's at this point that the two Konyacs who broke off from the external battle finally manage to work their way in through the close quarters to face Epiphany and her returning consort.

Switching fields again, it becomes apparent to my Sabers that the Nightwish must still be in the prototype stages, because its systems display a level of instability that would never be accepted in a production starship. Its Structural Integrity Fields are overworked, its manuevers are jerky and uncoordinated instead of properly smooth, and its power systems are so overloaded as to actually make its shields -flicker- when it fires.

All of which does them exactly -no- good if they get hit.

The plan, then, is to swing wide apart and come in from such divergent vectors that the 'Wishes can only hope to engage two of the five... waitaminute. The shield flicker would make the firing ships easy meat for the other Sabers, but I'd still likely lose two.

Instead, they send a message that sends the defense platform network to silent running mode, and start a tightbeam update of targeting data with instructions to fire as soon as it stops.

In the busy space of the BDS, those platforms will just vanish into the clutter... until they fire.

Then the Sabers start to coax the Nightwishes in under the guns of the hidden platforms.

In the belt, Epiphany beams a dozen-plus photorps outside her shields and locks them into position with her tractors. As the Konyacs close, she uses the tractors to fling them at the nearer ship simultaneous with a full volley from her forward launchers for a total of twenty-two photorps. Accuracy is lower than usual, but enough still hit to hammer the Konyac's forward shields flat and cause major structural damage.

Alas, not enough damage to take the ship out of the fight, but the volley of precisely targeted phaser fire that follows immediately afterwards is aimed entirely at her weapons systems, and does a pretty good job of pulling her teeth.

(This tactic is not standard because of the chance that some clever fellow on the other side will see the external torpedoes and zap them before you 'fire'... the backblast of which is Not Nice to be near. I was gambling that the Driians, being uninterested in the expertise of others, wouldn't have heard of it... and I was right, too.)

The other Konyac promptly expresses her displeasure with this course of events. Shields hold, this time, but given the number of Excelsiors that have suffered metal-fatigue related structural failures under circumstances -just like this- (under fire and heavy manuevers), discretion is definitely the better part of valor.

Naturally the Driian persues, but with the asteroids and the after torpedo tubes to keep her honest, Epiphany is able to lead the Konyac a merry little chase through the asteroids.

Hey, that's kinda swell - they really should have picked a better trained helmsman if they were gonna try a slalom course through the asteroids like that... really pretty splat mark, though.

Now to finish the other one.

Out in space, the running battle goes just as intended and the first two examples of Driian Battleship, Starfleet Recognition Code "Nightwish" vanish under volley after volley of 100mt fusion tipped warp missiles (chosen for the defense platforms because, without the space issue you find on actual starships, they're a lot -cheaper- than all the antimatter you'd need to equip all those defense platforms with photorps. True, you need ten times as many hits, but when a single unmanned sattelite carries a hundred of the things, you don't want to have to spend that much AMAT...).

And so, the Battle of the Black Dwarf System comes to and end.

Simultaneously, the three Noynacs and the scoutship move in on your ships at Ulia, ignoring the starbase entirely. You find that they have a reason to do so when the first volley from the starbase's big type-11 arrays immediately loses focus. Collapsing nadion cascades burn out the emitter crystals. Internal fires erupt at the phaser installations. Your ships have to fight on their own for a while.

Ship, singular. Have the station's runabouts launch in support, and divert Victor to Ulia. Direct Foglio to fall back inside the defense net's support range (the net is -not the same- as the starbase, n'kay?).

Among the names are some of Vargh's closest assistants in the BDS mining project. More to your interest are the human names, including two key people in charge of Ulian defences!

Kuso! That explains a few things.

However, if your forces appear victorious, the cowardly Romulan veruul will simply slither away. Too bad that their warbird hits a Klingon mine on the way out, revealing its presence to you... Can you know whether they know that you know? Do you avoid confronting this vessel for now, or do you grasp the opportunity?

I won, yes, but my ships were hammered in the process, and Drakon and Azland aren't there yet. And it's a -Warbird-. Let them go.

At the same time, a Driian agitator wanders into Dawson City Hall, bloodied and exhausted. She rants about treason and betrayal and says that her superiors must be mad to persist with the attacks now that Romulan support has been withdrawn. Romulan police forces move into the city, saying they are looking for an escaped criminal, but Dawsonites lock the doors of the City Hall. A rather one-sided firefight ensues, but the Mayor has called for help, from you and the Klingons.

The Klingons send down marines, and the Relay Station starts to play Nasty Transporter Tricks. The Romulan forces attempt to go to ground, but have a very hard time doing so when portions of their cover keep vanishing from in front of them and reappearing to fall from overhead.


Step Five

i) Starfleet has ordered a consolidation of forces until the Tac Wing gets there. Your priorities will be to safeguard Ulia and any fleeing allied transports. Rearrange your fleet accordingly.

Presumably, I have my spare parts by now. Consolidate my two shiny new New Orleans class with Force III and station them in Ulia - given that Force III's ships took most of the damage in the Driian offensive, they need the drydock time.

Force I to the BDS.

Force II to Dawson's. Have the Tasuki reinforce all three defense nets, then set up a repair station at Dawson's - tack it onto the comm relay already in place.

ii) General Vargh's forces are to safeguard the BDS, per an order from the High Command. He assures everyone that he'll be able to do so. Is he correct?

Probably. As long as the Roms keep being sneaky, instead of playing rough.

i) The Romulans make it clear they will not tolerate any Driians coming into Dawson space. The Dawsonites acknowledge that the Federation and Klingons will have other things to worry about right now, but publically declare their intentions afterwards to become a Federation protectorate or something afterwards. What will you do in response to this?

Send a frostily polite message to the Roms thanking them for their efforts against Driian agression, but seeing as the owners of the planet that they're on have made their position quite clear would they kindly -shove off-, before we finish the other things on our priority list and have to -make- them. Then forward a report on the situation to SFC
- a war against the Roms isn't a decision that's in my scope to make, really - with the recommendation that their diplomacy people talk the Praetorate out of this thing -fast-.

ii) The Romulans however, still claim their stake in the BDS, and have left behind a number of specialized cloaked mines there. At their command, should anyone violate their space to the point that they won't be able to come back, the mines will be detonated. This will not destroy their stake; rather, it will irradiate an unspecified area of the whole place with enough radiation to make the raw materials there useless to mine. Vargh is furious at this, and asks that you get your miracle workers to find a solution to this -- but not necessarily to use it.

Answer yes, provided that he doesn't push the Roms into actually doing anything and enforces a similar restraint on the local civvies.

i) Two of your least maneuverable ships (you choose which ones) are fired upon point blank and are destroyed. Everyone else manages to dodge the attack, but then it's revealed that the ships were merely "in the way" -- the target is the planet behind them. The plasma overloads the orbital defenses and strike the planet, causing heavy damage, and thousands of casualties. Your forces easily dispatch the unmanned ships, but the damage is done. What will your immediate priorities be?

@#$^&#$%^@#@!!!!

One of the New Orleans is lost, along with most of her crew. Drakon takes crippling damage and has to be towed into drydock, where she will remain for the next six months (or as long as the rest of the scenario takes).

ii) Three Konyacs and seven Noynacs are detected leaving Driian space, heading for Ulia. If you chose to write up a defensive scenario in the earlier question, enact it now. If you did not, take one of the others' scenarios and use it as your own. What forces do you lose? What forces would they lose? Assume that the Tactical Wing will arrive some time after the Driians fight their way to the planet. I'll post what forces the Driians really have left by the time they get there.

Epiphany, Victor, Nova Scotia (New Orleans class), a refurbished Starbase Ulia and a -very dense- planetary defense net vs. 3 Ks and 7 Ns. Have the starships hang together and well within support range of the net. Leave the net's scanners down for now.

They obviously haven't learned from my use of defense nets in the BDS, and come straight in at my starships. The net comes up and opens up. It's not enough to handle them on its own, but it's more than sufficient distraction to overcome the imbalance in mobile forces. Epiphany and Nova Scotia take moderate-to-heavy damage and are brought into drydock for express repairs.

iii) The Romulans cloak their ships. Are you too busy to worry about that? What about the Klingons?

I'm busy. The Klingons have orders to stay put.


Step Six

# A single, heavily-damaged Bird of Prey emerges from the Driian jamming zone. Immediately, Ren'Qo's daughter broadcasts on all frequencies that Vargh has betrayed everyone, starting with Ren'Qo's forces. Citing various Klingon customs, she challenges Vargh to single combat, and that her supporters in the BDS hold him until she can get there. She's intent on killing him, and seems confident in the ability to do so. Another officer on the BoP will be filling in the reasons behind all this.

It's a Klingon thing, although I'd -very- much like to know for certain what's going on.

All the accusations are making my head spin.

# The Driian jamming system goes down, allowing your sensor network to get a look to find out what's going on (refer to the map above). What is seen is several Romulan ships occupying the Drii-Grak system, and significant damage done in the Drii-Oban system. The Klingon officer reports that their fleet had attacked the two satellite systems around Driia Prime simultaneously, and had taken the Drii-Grak system (the smallest system of the three) with the help of sudden Romulan reinforcements. However, they had discovered a much larger force than they'd anticipated at Drii-Oban, and were defeated there. However, the combined forces managed to take a significant part of the mobile Driian fleet out with them. A large number of damaged Driian ships are being repaired in the drydocks.

Oooo-kaaaaaaayyy...

# The Romulans had been running an independent investigation since they knew they may be implicated by the cloaking devices. They found out via their own means that it was Vargh who'd been in secret cahoots with the Driians, and had given them the plans for the old Romulan cloaks and plasma weapons. He wanted to use them to implicate any of the three major powers, as all three had access to that older technology; it was also Vargh that had goaded the Drians in to attcking when they had the ships, but not necessarily the manpower to attack Ulia. The remaining Klingons from Ren'Qo's fleet have confirmed this.

So, the Roms have been running a sabotage campaigne against Vargh to gain control of a good-sized sector of the BDS. Vargh has been intriugeing with the Driians and selling them tech. Ren'Qo was building a superweapon for use against the Driians. Glah?

This is the point where the man on the scene should admit he's beat and ask his bosses to send a specialist to look into the matter.

A) Rear Admiral Roland Royce has arrived aboard the USS Hawke, and declares that he's ready to kick Driian tail. Royce is an experienced combat veteran, having spent the Dominion War commanding this tactical wing, and through actions as far back as the Cardassian War. His ships have been with him for several years now, and function well together. However, Starfleet did not specify who should be in charge. How will you solve the command dilemma, since you are in command of the sector, but he has superior combat experience? You technically have the same rank, though he did receive his promotion
first. You many choose to ignore the Janeway rule that the tactically-superior ship has anything to do with it, if you wish.

Beta Sector Fleet and the 26th are different formations, and would probably have a hard time working together. Thus, we'll operate seperately. Since he likes my mission plan, we'll go by that, but in worst case he's the senior officer, and hence my superior.

B) Plan the assault on Driian space.

With two more Sabers gone, leaving four, and Epiphany in drydock beside Drakon.

i) What are the objectives in attacking Driian space? Are there secondary objectives? How long do you anticipate your operation to take? Bonus points for those who derive a rough timeline of anticipated events.

Destroy the Driian ability to wage offensive war. Create a settlement that ends in the removal of the -need- for Driian expansion.

ii) How will you divide up your forces,or will you launch a single assault? Assume

that the Drii-Grak system is stable and that the Romulans will not help. What will be your basic plan of attack? Justify your answers.

The 26th is used to working as a unit. Tossing my forces into the bargain would just make things awkward, so Royce and I will operate in seperate forces. On the other hand, the possibility of defeat in detail means that we should operate close together for mutual support.

First, use the Tasuki to equip some reasonable-sized asteroids with impulse drives, basic guidance systems and Driian pseudocloaks. While we wait for that to finish, concentrate
the Beta Sector fleet in Ulia and split the 26th into two forces, one in BDS and the other in Dawson's.

Then, once everything's ready, in Drii-Oban, Beta Fleet will hit Oban II's defense station simultaneous with the 26th hitting Oban II itself (this assumes that there is a substantial distance between the two). If the Oban I forces choose to reinforce, that will be acceptable. Otherwise, the 26th will move on to I after things have been settled in II's local space. If the Vyrsac's on the defense stations don't oblige by coming out to fight, that's fine, they don't have warp, they don't matter for our goals. Give them time to evacuate the shipyards, then destroy them.

Next, the Driian system (given that it's still there, I guess I must assume that the Driians managed to stop the sunbomber BoP). Warp tow the self-throwing invisible rocks that the Tasuki built into the outskirts of the system and let them run up close to lightspeed before they hit the defense stations (note that the initial positions will be set so that the rocks strike as close to simultaneously as can be reasonably reached).

Boom, that's settled. Now invade the system. The 26th goes to Driia Prime, and the Beta Sector Fleet takes Driia II. Once the defensive fleets have been destroyed, have the Tasuki install some monitoring stations while the two fleets move on to Drii-Oban.

Thank you, Yang Wenli.

The rock strike and first invasion should take place in -immediate- succession, with the goal that neither will be early enough to set the enemy on alert for the other. Given that the timing of the rock strikes is a simple matter of orbital mechanics, this shouldn't be too hard.

If I'm -reaaaaaaally- lucky, the Driians will dispatch their superluminal fleet in a suicidal bid to relieve Oban. I'm not expecting it, but it's worth dangling the lure.

With the defense nets I have in place and Starbase Ulia back online, my rear sectors are secure. Dawson's might be exposed, but I somehow doubt that the Driians are going to expend forces to try and take such a strategically -useless- place when their situation is as far in the pot as it is.

Anyway, Oban is on the way to Driia from Ulia, so why not? There's the argument that I could take advantage of sheer enemy -shock- after losing all their defense platforms like that, but I think that the -waiting- for an end that they know is inevitable will be more effective.

iii) The key to the plan lies not in how you will conquer the territory, but in how far you believe you should go. Devise a fallback plan should your primary objective(s) fail. What's the minimum acceptable success?

Given the amount of firepower available to myself and Royce, the only failure point I can see is if the Driian stations see the rocks coming and destroy them in time. This makes operations in Driia much more complex.

If the rock toss game doesn't work, then I'll borrow a page from the books of my compatriots and start in with superluminal photorp bombardment passes by Beta Fleet, starting with the big station in Driia Prime orbit and working around to take out any station in support range. Hopefully, the superluminal forces will allow themselves to be drawn out from under the guns of the harbor, so to speak, at which point they'll have to face the entire 26th, which will be lying doggo along Beta's extract vector in anticipation of just such an opportunity... I'm operating on the presumption that the Federation's emphasis on technical developement and exploration has paid unequaled dividends in fields like surveilance and such, with the Driians falling well behind 'standard' in that field. Preferring firepower over balanced forces is a classic minor power mistake.

After that, things are simple.

C) Given your remaining assets and predicted outcome of the assault, recommend to Starfleet what they should send after you're done. Whatever they send won't arrive for at least a month, as you're already draining their resources for starships. Also recommend to the Klingons what they should do.

A diplomatic and economic recovery team, and all assets they request after studying the situation.

D) Okay, everything's ready. Your forces are about to drop out of warp at their first target(s). Weapons are hot, and there are red lights flashing everywhere. All the fleet needs are motivational words from their Admiral before they go into battle. A short speech, evocative of the finest commanders in Starfleet, must be uttered to ensure victory. The bosun's whistle sounds, and you confidently say to all hands...

"We talk about justice. We talk about freedom. We talk about duty, and rights, and free crazy bread for all.

"What does it really mean, if a world where every time we try to live up to it we get kicked in the teeth?"

Pause.

"The Klingons say it best, I think. 'If there are gods, they do not help, and victory goes to the strong. But all things done beneath the naked stars are remembered.'

"We stand, here, now, today, because there are those that believe that they need have no concern for right, for justice, no concern for anything but the fact that they have the guns and the power to take, to take, to take whatever the -hell- it is that they've decided they want this week! We're here, and we'd -be- here even if it -wasn't- a member world they'd attacked.

"We'd be here because, they're -wrong-.

"They're wrong.

"They -don't- have a right to just -take- whatever they want.

"And we have the power to stop them. Which means that it'd be -just- as wrong to stand aside and do nothing.

"So, we'll do it. Do the right thing. Let's roll."


Five minutes later, the T-minus clock on the rock strikes finish, and the fleets move into Drii-Oban. The Driians refuse all initial orders to surrender.

On my end, Kris and Claymore take heavy damage, and Foglio takes moderate damage. Most of Rolls' ships take light damage, with heavier damage to Hawke, Warwick and Onokoro. T'Rel and Charles V are lost in the fighting.

Beta Fleet finishes its mission first, just in time to dash past II and intercept the relief forces that have been dispatched from I. That's taken care of rather quickly.

In the end, all that's left of the in-system forces are the other defense stations. Given that they still haven't figured out how we managed to destroy the stations in their home system, and that our starships can rip apart their Vysac's any time we please, they elect to surrender under the generous terms that the Federation has been offering from the start - immediate end to local hostilities, temporary Starfleet occupation of command centers, no retribution against combatants or innocents, democratic elections required at the end of five years, Federation oversight of Driian military construction and operations for the next twenty-five years.

Halelujah! The rock strikes worked as planned! Well, almost. Out of the stationed ships, the superluminals at the big station survived the destruction of their base - they weren't in dock when the hits happened. These ships have concentrated around Driia Prime.

Okay, fine, we can deal. The defenses around Driia Two are pretty light, actually - only fifty defense sats.

Hm. Lets be sneaky. Warp the 26th to the edge of the system, then send them creeping in towards II under silent running. Given how -big- a solar system actually is, and how reliant even the Federation is on a target ship's continued emission of -stuff- to find same, the Driians shouldn't catch them until they're pretty close. Not close enough for a surprise attack, but that's all right by me. The Driians won't know where they are, and thus won't be willing to run the risk of an offensive operation with a large enemy force hidden somewhere in their home system. Once the 26th is, say, four or five light-seconds away from Driia II, Beta Fleet warps in to hit II.

My ships will each be carrying a varying number of Federation defense satellites (conveniently provided by the Tasuki) bolted to their hulls. Once they warp in, but before the fight starts in earnest, they'll dump these off in the middle of the Driian Defense Network. They won't be enough to take it out, but they certainly should make things easier for me, right? Seeing as how I'll -win- if they don't, Home Fleet will come out (because it's only a minute or so to warp between the two planets, and the defense net can hold of -anything- for that long) and hit -me-... at which point the 26th stops lurking and warps in. So, I'm between Home Fleet and Driia II, but Home Fleet is between
me and the 26th.

So, now it's a clusterfuck, a point-blank slugging match. This is actually good, because Federation ships have heavier shields and better fire arcs than Driian ones, not to mention better computer systems (and, therefore, better targeting). This also negates the Noyac's mobility advantage. Most importantly, even the Saber class ships can engage
several Driian vessels at once - which, in turn, means that each Driian ship will be engaged by several Federation ones.

For the record, this is three Konyacs, fifteen Noyacs and twelve Vyrsacs (the other twenty survivors are staying home) against a Galaxy, an Ambassador, an Akira, two Excelsiors, three Mirandas, four Steamrunners, two New Orleans, five Sabers and an Intrepid. Leave the Shelleys out of it, and the fighters as their escorts.

None of the Konyacs survive, and the two Noyacs that win free and retreat to Driia prime are damaged. Unfortunately, so are Diefenbaker, Formidable, Vandal, Trafalgar, Ayers Rock, Dagger, Tachi, Azland, and Nova Scotia, though none of them so badly as the Noyacs.

Actual ships lost is relatively low, for the Federation - Galatea, Warwick and Nodachi, all of them but Nodachi lost only in the sense of 'not moving or salvageable'.

Driia II surrenders shortly thereafter. A long, ranting message from Driia Prime High Command is cut off by a phaser whine and a nervous voice enquiring about the exact conditions offered for surrender.


Step Seven

B) Assume that the Driian campaign succeeds, with the loss of no more than 40% of your fleet (the actual numbers lost aren't terribly relevant at this point). The Federation is shipping a peacekeeping force and a variety of facilitators to monitor Driian activities -- consider this a similar situation to the United Nations occupation and monitoring of Iraq following the Gulf War.

Well, except that in this case, the dictator was executed by his own bodyguard before the wolves could close in. Turns out he had been reacting to downturns in the war by instituting progressively bloodier purges, and the Driians are so fed up with the mess (and the starvation rations and neglected infrastructure and...) that -any- new management is looking good, even if it is run by a bunch of stinking aliens.

The new Federation Ambassador being assigned to the Sector has asked you to consult on the occupation of Driian space. The Federation does not want to commit too many resources here after the assault; Admiral Royce's tac wing will be leaving. The current plan calls for the Driian governmental system to remain relatively intact for the foreseeable future while the Federation presence becomes gradually indroduced to the xenophobic Driians. The leaders of the current government will be removed and extradited to Ulia for trial. A number of Federation/Ulian inspection groups with carte-blanche authority to monitor any Driian activity will be formed, plus a token Starfleet garrison of several hundred in the capital city of each Driian world.

i) Would you consider this an acceptable plan? What minimum Starfleet presence would you recommend for the garrison given what the Driians have left following your assault, and that the Federation does not want to commit too much here? What other points should the Federation consider in the occupation and monitoring?

As long as the inspectors do their jobs, fleet assets can safely be cut back to basic sector security levels. Given that a garrison large enough to supress actual -problems- would be prohibitively large, the described force should be more than adequate. The two surviving Noyacs should be crewed by and put into use for the defense of the Driians,
with Federation veto and supervision.

ii) War crimes trials will also take place on Ulia, with security provided by Starfleet. Odds are that at least several hundred Driian officers and soldiers will face imprisonment. However, a problem arises when the Klingons demand to remove prisoners also guilty of war crimes against the Empire to their prisons, facing certain death, while the Ulian government instead insists on keeping them on Ulia against future prosecution. Suggestions?

Specify that the trials shall take place according the Driian's -own- laws and code of conduct (which are presumably pretty reasonable, if only for propoganda purposes) and be judged by a tribunal made up of -objective- representatives of all concerned parties and chaired by the Starfleet rep.

iii) The Romulans and the Klingons are also interested in monitoring the Driians and offer participation, though obviously given Starfleet's largest role in the attack grants the Federation primary jurisdiction. What kind of joint operation would you recommend, if any? What do you think they are entitled to do given their role in the assault, and what should they be willing to do in order to get more responsibility?

The Driian Commission should be a tri-governmental group made up of officers and forces drawn from all three militaries on a six(Fed - took two systems)-three(Rom - took one)-one(Klink - as a courtesy, since they did fight, if badly) basis, with 'say' in the guidance of policy and such apportioned on the same basis. It's powers and duties should be to ensure that Driian government sets up operation as a peaceful democracy or other reasonable system of government and doesn't begin to construct warships until it is no longer likely that they'll use them for more than police work. Also, the Commission should organize the aid and rebuilding efforts pouring in from the Federation.

C) Time to pick up the pieces. Comment on the following, and what should or shouldn't be done.

i) Sa'ral doesn't get her chance to kill Vargh and avenge her father -- Vargh jumps the gun and commits ritual suicide, saving what little honor he has in the books for his children. Sa'ral's husband takes over the house of Ren'Qo, and both of them head for Qo'noS to petition Martok to take over Vargh's house too. They leave behind the outpost, whatever ships both houses have left, an inexperienced paper pusher in charge, and no real power structure except for what the High Command tells them.

I don't know -what- to think about Klingon politics, and I don't really care. Have my TF commander in the BDS (Beta Sector Fleet having split up into its three nodal patrol fleets once again) keep an eye on things there and help out if he can. Fortunately, the Klingons really won't have much to do (wrong).

I can't wait to hear what the investigation committee comes up with.

ii) The people on Dawson's Planet kick out the Romulans for essentially abandoning them during the attack, and apply to be a Federation protectorate. The Romulans return to their old digs in the BDS, but a remnant faction of Driians sets off the mines in the Romulan-claimed territory, rendering a sizeable chunk of the BDS unsuitable for mining.

This pisses off a lot of miners, as now the remaining space will need to be regulated by someone -- there's no longer more than enough for all people interested.

Wire a chewing-out to the local Rom commander about letting that happen, and ask SFC to send a -very- strong protest to the Praetorate about their handling of the entire Black Dwarf System affair.

iii) There's an awful lot of wreckage and such left after the fighting, and salvage business is bringing lots of non-Federation types into the sector to pick through the leftovers. No truly sensitive Federation asset are known to be missing, but bits of other races' technology may be floating out there for the picking. Salvagers include the Humans, Yridians, and Ferengi.

Use the previously emplaced sensor net to figure out where all the interesting bits are, then mark them off limits and have the Tasuki pick them up.

iv) What other loose ends are there to worry about? Anything specific to your replies?

Spies in allied control structure. Origins of Driian cloaking devices. How the -hell- to keep the starkillers under wraps from now on. Fortunately, the investigation I've requested from SFC should take care of most of this.

D) Once again, it's time to move on -- Starfleet commends your job here, and promptly orders you to pack up your office and take off. The incoming Rear Admiral will need a briefing however before he continues your work, and that is your final official duty. As with Sector Alpha, read over your responses to all the previous questions. Define what Starfleet';s priorities should be in this sector, and your recommendations to your replacement as to what he should concentrate on. Also recommend a reasonable set of additional ships to complement your remaining fleet to that end.

Saber Class, three; Dagger, Tachi, Rapier.
Steamrunner Class, two; Azland, Foglio.
Intrepid Class, one; Victor.
New Orleans Class, one; Nova Scotia.
Moon Inn Class Construction vessel, one; Tasuki.
Sovereign Class, one; Drakon.
A shitload of defensive sattellites and monitoring stations, scattered everywhere that could possibly be useful.

Given the elimination of the Driian threat to this sector, current resources -should- be adequate to meet mission requirements, those being:

-Assistance with rebuilding of Ulia and the Driian worlds.

-Getting things organized in the BDS.

-Continuing the slow, slow reclamation of Dawson's World.

-Coming up with a way to reclaim for use the Romulan Sectors of the BDS - additional science vessels might be called for for this purpose.

-Supression of piracy and so forth across the sector.

The Klingon presence in this area -was- heavily political. That seems to be mostly settled, now, but that doesn't mean they're done being a pain in the ass.

The Romulans are still around, and still inclined to be paranoid, sneaky, and disloyal. Business as usual, with them, in other words.

E) Choose one of the remaining ships in your fleet (probably your personal ship), as long as it's not your largest remaining ship. You'll be riding it to Sector Gamma, and at your discretion will be incorporated into your fleet there. Alternatively, a Centaur-class starship will pick you up and ferry you there.

I think I'll stick with that old friend and workhorse, the Epiphany (Excelsior II).


Critiques! (I imagine MinutiaeMan is tired of me singling him out, but he makes it so easy!)

His initial fleet offers more combat power than mine, and is actually reasonable given the sector's location. On the other hand, the Tasuki's ability to create and place various automated platforms will be a major advantage, allowing me to make my deployments with full knowledge of the location and actions of everything else in the sector.

Basically, even if I don't have so big a hammer, I can concentrate my forces, secure in the knowledge that I won't be blindsided.

His defensive wargame planning is sound and takes good advantage of his hardware. Likewise, by concentrating his forces he avoids any possiblity of defeat in detail and stands an excellent chance of annhilating the Driian force if they choose to press. One wonders about his intended course if they break off the attack or switch targets, but that's not part of the scenario.

As for his late-war assault plan, the probe decoys and high warp torpedo bombardments are excellent ideas. It might be a good idea to precede the actual attack with hit-and-fade operations against the other defense stations in system, probably by means of the same high-warp firing passes used against the polar station in Drii Oban - not neccessarily because the stations themselves would be a problem, but rather to hopefully take out potential reinforcements (which would be individually inferior, but -awefully- numerous) in their docks.

Shik's website seems to be down. I can't see his Q6. ;_;


Scenario Responses! (Ditto)

One Federation starship (pick one), while on patrol near the Driian border, comes across a seriously damaged Driian ship. The ship is on the far side of the border (inside Driian space) and is leaking plasma. A warp core breach appears imminent. There are no other Driian ships within sensor range, although they may be lurking nearby. The starship captain calls you for instructions. (Assuming you're not personally commanding the ship.)

Assume that this happens when Force III is in the area. That being the case, it's good excercise for Drakon (not to mention that she's the single ship best able to handle a doublecross)

Move to intercept, and transmit an offer of assitance. See if there's anything to be done to help stabilize the core - if not, beam them off and put them in the nicest digs available. Send a message to Driian High Command asking how they'd like to arrange the transfer of their personell back home.


Nate's Scenario Emporium! (Sane situations half off!)

For Question Three - A group of immigrants arrive in the Black Dwarf System and announce their intention to set up a permenant orbital colony there. They haven't made any claims to permanant ownership of anything in the area, but the Klingons and Driians are still not at all pleased to see them.


Hmm. I -know- there are some goofs and internal inconsistencies (not to mention misspellings) in there, but I can't bring myself to care. Not to mention I was using WAGs for travel times in Q4...

The Moon Inn class is contemporary to the Ambassador class, and built around an organization very close to that used in the much later Sovereign class explorers - primary and secondary hulls, nacelles on about the same plane, no neck. The nacelles and primary hull are externally identical to the Ambassador class, but the secondary hull has been expanded to the point of representing about half the ship's mass. While not defenseless, mounting the same phaser compliment as the formidable Ambassador class, they carry no photon torpedoes, relatively weak shields, and are quite slow - not combat ships at all.

Blessed be.
-n
 

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Posted by Mark Nguyen (Member # 469) on :
 
Holy Hannah! You get bonus points for the LoGH thread - I'm so glad SOMEONE still remembers that fantastic anime featuring some of the BEST fleet combat scenes ever.

And no, Sector Gamma has NOT been abandoned. I'm re-reading it now, so we can get going again. We should be rolling again next weekend. I hope.

*crosses fingers*

Mark

[ January 25, 2003, 11:14 PM: Message edited by: Mark Nguyen ]
 

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Posted by Valles (Member # 925) on :
 

quote:

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Holy Hannah!

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quote:

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You get bonus points for the LoGH thread - I'm so glad SOMEONE still remembers that fantastic anime featuring some of the BEST fleet combat scenes ever. [Smile]

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quote:

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And no, Sector Gamma has NOT been abandoned. I'm re-reading it now, so we can get going again. We should be rolling again next weekend. I hope.

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Sweet. I'll have my take on Gamma up sometime... later today. Yike. Sleepy time.

Blessed be.
-n
(Really does have a younger sister named Hannah.)
 

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Posted by Valles (Member # 925) on :
 
Q1

A) Evaluate the sector, and determine what Starfleet's priorities should be. Note that unlike previous sectors, you're coming into an area where Starfleet has had a small but significant presence for some time. Now that the Federation has a member world in the sector, how should Starfleet's priorities change? Summarize your thoughts, note any gaps in the information that you were provided, and where you should focus your intelligence-gathering efforts.

1.) Defend Jovalis.
2.) Defend Lucrezia.
3.) Support the Jovalis upgrade project.
4.) Enforce the Prime Directive around G'Sall.
5.) Improve relations with Joval.
6.) Improve relations with Bifour.

B) Though Jovalis has benefited from Federation trade for several years now, their new membership will allow for a full-scale upping of their society to the latest technologies. One of the greatest tasks is the upgrading of almost one hundred of their old rotating colony cylinders with artifical gravity, upgraded power systems, and so forth, which are antiquated despite their otherwise current technology level. Starfleet can only allocate so many resources to this far-off sector, and much of it is going to this task, which will absorb hundreds of Starfleet personnel for several years. With what's left, Starfleet will allow either a DS9-style upgrade to the DS12 station, making it into a full starbase within a year's time; or to begin construction on a larger starbase of Starfleet design, which will take at least three years to build using a combination of components shipped in or built on-site. Given that this will be your headquarters for the foreseeable future, what would be the best option? A Starfleet starbase can be built anywhere in the sector you choose.

Presumably, the Jovalisi have their own shipyard facilities, drydocks, etc. In a worst case scenario, these can be requesitioned for Starfleet use.

That being the case, upgrading DS12 is more cost effective, and -certainly- faster.

C) Starfleet sees this as a relatively stable sector, and while they want an expanded presence in the area they will not commit many ships to the sector. There will be a steady stream of Federation freighters coming into the sector for the Colony Upgrade Project, in addition to the expected influx of Federation trade.

1) Recommend a fleet of no more than SIX starships to be assigned to the sector. This fleet will be evaluated back at Starfleet Command, and if approved will arrive in-system AFTER the events of Question Two. However:

Two Excelsior class, Epiphany and Rougepelt. While the Excelsior class is rapidly approaching (some say, has already passed) obsolescence, and more tellingly is approaching the point where metal fatigue of their structural members begins to represent a significant threat to day-to-day operation, they are still full Explorer grade starships, with the attendant power and flexibility. The seeming slight of sending such old starships on diplomatic missions can be considered as balanced by the fact that both of the ships specified have served with great distinction over careers long enough to create very respectable lists of accomplishments. Additionally, Epiphany is one of the Excelsior II subclass, with the attendant high-grade sensor systems.

One Moon Inn class fleet construction vessel, Subaru. These massive, mostly automated ships are designed to turn raw resources into usable hardware at for fast and for cheap. Leaving aside the usefulness of an extensive physical plant in supporting mobile assets, its capabilities would be of great assistance in the Jovalis upgrade project. While it might be considered as falling above the mass limit set on my requisitions, I'm going with the idea that those are set as limits on -first line- starships.

Two Steamrunner Class, Southwest Chief and Twentieth Century Limited. These vessels will provide both additional area coverage and basic firepower if hostilities should break out with either Joval or Bifour.

One Sequoia Class, Fulminant. For fast response purposes.

Eight additional Runabi, to cover all the little things that don't rate a starship.

2) Until your fleet arrives, the only ships that will be assigned to the sector are the USS Rigorous and the ship you arrived in from Sector Beta (if you didn't participate in that scenario, you're arriving on a generic Excelsior-class starship). At your discretion, the ship you arrived on can be incorporated into your fleet. Where will you deploy your two ships until then? What will the deployment of your fleet be when they get here?

Rigorous will provide security for Lucretiza, on the assumption that Jovalis' defenses can hold until relieved. Epiphany will escort the supply ships for the Jovalis upgrade.

D) The USS Rigorous will not be a part of your fleet, as she is scheduled to be decommissioned after a long and eventful life; Captain Nall herself is retiring from the Fleet. However, her command crew need not be sent away as well. The Rigorous' command crew is a good team, and includes:

* First Officer -- Commander Michael Boston (Human, 12 Years of Service) -- Excellent Service Record. Experienced Diplomat.
* Tactical -- Lt. Laura Kardon (Human, 6 Years of Service) -- Good Service Record. Native of Zechs. Little Combat experience.
* Science -- Lt. Commander Shezef (Andorian Male, 15 Years of Service) Excellent Service Record. Expert on the Pink and Purple Nebulae.
* Medical -- Commander Taris Sani (Bajoran Female, 20 Years of Service) -- Fair Service Record. Married to a Jovalisi diplomat on DS12.
* Engineering -- Lt. Commander Sayl (Betazoid Male, 8 Years of Service) -- Good Service Record.
* Helm -- Lt. (j.g.) Walter Shumar (Human, 40 years of Service) -- Excellent Service Record. Legendary pilot. Has convinced all but one of his commanding officers never to promote him.

Hmmm. Keep them together. Say that Fulminant is new construction, have her ferryed out by a skeleton crew and reassign the Rigori to her. Their experience, rapport, and local credit are too valuable to mess with.

* DS12's CO -- Commander Stalek (Vulcan, 20 Years of Service) -- Good service record. Known to the Jovalisi, though not terribly popular.

Solid, reliable, fair. Leave him in place, I think. Find him a nice, diplomatic 2IC to smooth things over.

1) As the new Admiral in the sector, you have the option of assigning this crew to your command. Do you want to keep them around, and what would you do with them? Justify your reply.

See above.

2) The Rigorous is to be decommissioned, but a group of Jovalisi citizens wishes to keep her around as a museum ship for their nation. Another group from Lucrezea also wants her, but as the flagship for a new militia they are creating. While the ship will be stripped of any sensitive technology in either case, the selling off of such an old starship to friendly concerns would not be unheard of. Recommend to Starfleet what they should do with the requests, and if any conditions should be specified to either party.

Rigorous should go to the Jovalisi (personally, I'd ask that she be kept in flyable condition, just because any ship that faithful deserves better than just being left to rot), and offer the Lucrezians an orbital defense net, instead.


Q2

Tactical Planning:

Assets:
Epiphany
Rigorous
4 runabi
12 frieghters

1. Up to half of the Cardassian threat forces in the sector.

That'd be a Galor and either another Galor (a) or the fighters (b).

(a): Given that the local system is small enough to cross in a few seconds of warp, I'd have the freighters keep clear during the initial stages. Once they commit to a specific target, warp the other ships in between the Cardies and the cluster. Engage in coordination with the defense sattelites. If they split up, come out as a fleet and -mob- the closer one, trusting the sattelites on the other target to hold for as long as it takes. Commit the freighters, in kamikaze runs if neccessary.

(b): The defense stations would be more of a problem for fighters than a cruiser, I think. So, have the runabi wait among the weapons platforms and use their support to take on the fighters. Have the starships team up against the Galor, with platform support if possible.

2. Up to twenty smaller vessels as though from a Maquis attack.

Epiphany in Piranti, Rigorous in Deval and the runabi in Cluster. Four freighters to each area. If the Maquis split their forces, settle in for a siege. If they commit everything to a single target, use warp drive to pull all of our forces together to meet them. In both cases, make the maximum possible use of platform support.

3. Just for fun, a Borg sphere entering the system.

1. Pray. Repeat Step 1 whenever a free moment comes up.
2. Yell at the Jovali for help, 'cause we all know where the Borg will go after they finish Jovalis... if they don't go there first.
3. Load every ship I have to the bulkheads with antimatter. Crew the freighters with volunteers.
4. Link up with the Jovali, unless the Borg are coming on too fast for that to happen. If so, jump to Step 5.
5. Dogpile on the Borg, with combat ships trying to cover the freighters on kamikaze runs. Hope that either that works, or help arrives before it's too late.

B) The following are several situations that occur on your watch. For each scenario, describe what the nearest (or most relevant) starship to that event should be, what that ship should do in response, and how your fleet status could or should change as a result. Describe also any diplomatic efforts your staff should be making. NOTE: Assume that events from one scenario will not directly affect the others.

1. The first Federation delegation arrives in the sector to welcome its new member world. Several of the delegation wish to tour the sector to meet key parties on all the worlds, including a diplomatic mission to Bifour IV at the invitation of their government. Recommend how the delegates should go about their plan, which of your assets should be used, and how the rest of them should be deployed. The delegates arrive aboard the USS Ki, an Intrepid-class starship, and will return to the core systems on another ship. The Ki is on her way through Bifour space (with their permission) to explore the sectors beyond.

Schedule them for a tour of the sector aboard the Rigorous, which presumably hasn't been retired -quite- yet, (for prestige reasons). Make the appropriate arrangements for meetings with the various leaderships, as well as laying the PR groundwork. When they arrive, brief them on what's been done and what else they might do to help Federation membership seem like a positive option for the Jovali and the Lucrezians.

2. Miscalculating a warp equation, one of the Jovali cruisers creates a wormhole and drops itself right in the middle of the Pink Nebula, where it is disabled. The Jovali ask for help; however, Cardassian ships are closer and offer to respond. The Jovali aren�t terribly fond of the Cardassians.

Transfer Lt. Commander Shezef to the Epiphany, on a temporary basis, and send it on the rescue mission post-haste. Indicate that Cardassian aid in the Federation's rescue operation for our ally's starship would be appreciated. That way, they either sneer and ignore me because trying to get involved would make them subordinate to me in the operation, or they'll have to at least seem to play by my rules. Either way, I win.

3. The �duck blind� ground station is raided by pirates. They steal the station�s cloaking device, cloak suits (see �Star Trek: Insurrection�), and bioneural computer system. The pirate ship escapes, integrating the cloak into their shields. The mission crew cleverly bumps their heads in the right places and are hiding among the population, but need help before they are found out.

Bugger. Borrow a freighter from the Jovalisi and send it to pick them up by transporter, with a couple of combat-config runabouts for escort.

D) The USS Ki fails to check in on the far side of Bifour space. She sent a regular report through the DS12 comm network on schedule when she was more than halfway through their space, but they are more than a week late with their scheduled report. All the Bifour Cadassian ships are accounted for, and they report their last contact with the Ki a couple days after their last check-in. The Cardassians realize that you will want to send someone in to search for them and will let you do so; however whatever you send in will be escorted by one of their Hidekis who will aid in the search. Detail your plans, deployments, and search priorities.

Configure my last two runabouts for long range work, add in one of the escort runabouts and another borrowed Jovalisi freighter with some technicians, spare parts, and empty bunks. First priority is to find and ensure the safety of the Ki's crew, next is to find/salvage the ship itself. And, oh, if they see something interesting about the Bifouri that's just fine, but they're not to go out of their way.


Q3

C) The fleet you requisitioned in Q1 arrives in full, with an additional present: the USS Aristophanes (Miranda-class, Saratoga-refit, NCC-31923). The Aristophanes is a Starfleet Academy training ship, and carries about a hundred cadets and a regular crew of twenty on a second year field cruise. They'll be spending a few months in Sector Gamma, helping out with routine assignments while having cadets spend a couple weeks at a time on your ships. So, adding the Aristophanes into the mix, maneuver your fleet according to the following scenarios. Make note of any political reactions from involved parties that may occur. The Rigorous has now gone to whatever fate you've recommended in Q1.

1) The Lucrezeans get their act together and purchase some ships to head up their militia. Their patchwork fleet includes a smattering of customized shuttles, two surplus Klingon Birds of Prey (D-12 class) from the Ferengi, and a Yridian destroyer. In response, the Bifour fleet moves a Galor and two Hidekis around Zechs, despite repeated statements that the Lucrezean government has no interest in expansion/retaking the former Federation colony.

Dispatch Rougepelt and Aristophanes on a nice-nice type visit, express some very quiet concern about their intentions, and have Subaru start setting up a network of monitor stations all around the Federation side of the sector, starting with the border.

Have my intelligence staff/spies/etc. (I -do- have some, right?) look into public opinion on Zechs and Lucrezia.

2) Whatever search party you sent out to find the USS Ki finds a gaggle of escape pods close to the pulsar in the adjoining sector, containing about a third of her crew. Your people eventually reconstruct that the Ki struck a gravitic mine left over from the Cardassian conflicts of the 2340s. The mine stuck the bridge, wiping out the command crew along with most of the saucer. Some wreckage of the ship is located where it should be, and the energy signatures match that of a larger-than-usual, but not unheard-of, Cardassian mine.

Frell. Okay, load the crew on the freighter and bring them home. No proof to be found, alas alack. Request that the Bifouri locate and mark whatever minefields are to be found in their space.

3) The separatist elements in Jovalis space are mostly concentrated in the Cluster, though no more than a third of any colony cylinder there is interested in separation. However, a bombshell is dropped when a cylinder holds a referendum not to separate, but to move -- separatists in a Deyal group cylinder want to move their home to the Cluster. The vote succeeds, and the municipal government requests that Starfleet tractor their colony to its new home. Such an action will tie up your largest ship, or two of your smaller ships, for a couple months. However, the Jovalis government sees this as a legal action, so...

Hmmm. Well, I'd have at least that much stationed in system for defense purposes -anyway-, and they can always just drop the thing if there's an emergency, so there's really no reason not to, is there? Set the Steamrunners to it.


Q4

B) A civil war breaks out on Joval. In the past few years a pro-democracy movement has gained strength on the homeworld, particularly on the western continent which is the most industrialized region of the mostly-agricultural planet, and maintains the strongest off-world ties. Numerous local leaders call for the establishment of a planetary parliament and a full constitution. Monarch Ypaha Hrrays (supported by many of the more traditional politicians in his court) accuses the reformists that they are betraying the Jovali way of life, and refuses to allow the formation of a parliament. The provinces on the western continent respond by declaring independence. The monarch in turn accuses the rogue provinces of jeopardizing the security of the whole planet by instigating such division. However, when the provinces refuse to back down, Monarch Hrrays sends in ground troops to pacify the continent.

*sigh* Nothing is ever easy.

1) Provided is a map of the Joval Star System. How will you redeploy your task force once you hear of the fighting? As far as is known, all ships of the Jovali Royal Stellar Navy are in orbit of Joval -- for now.

Pull the Aristophanes back to Jovalis.

2) The Jovalisi government urges the Monarch to accept reforms, but he refuses. Although he's not violently xenophobic, he's clearly wary of outside influences. However, Monarch Hrrays does agree to a brief private conference with you as the local representative of the Federation, to discuss the situation. What will you tell him, or ask him, at this meeting?

Ask him to ask -himself- what was important to the basic identity of the Jovali people (as opposed to their political structure), what could be afforded to keep it, and where efforts to keep every little thing the same became counterproductive to the greater good. Those are questions that every society must ask, and answer for itself. Point out how often it has been seen that the identity of a people is a completely different thing from the language they speak or the way they govern themselves.

C) Despite declaring independence from Joval and joining the Federation, the Jovalisi have always maintained strong cultural and economic ties with the homeworld. The civil war on Joval threatens to spread to the various Jovalisi habitats -- it's obvious that many Jovalisi citizens will to get involved somehow. The majority of Jovalisi favor the rebels because of their common democratic beliefs, but there is a vocal minority of pro-monarchy activists, as well.

The local Jovalisi government's official position is in line with Federation policy -- the civil war is an internal matter, and they'll remain neutral. Of course, in practice that policy isn't worth much at all. Since the Federation does not have any high-ranking civilian officials in the region, it falls to you to set the Federation's policy and make sure that Starfleet is not dragged into any local conflict.

1) Both sides of the conflict on Joval are receiving support from various "interest groups" on Jovalis. They're sending medical supplies, foodstuffs, power cells, ships, weapons... even some troops (completely unofficially). However, not all of the materiel that's being sent is home-grown Jovalisi equipment: you start receiving reports of Federation-built phasers used in battles, and even a few small Federation ships used in limited space combat. There's also a vague reference to a rogue group called the Jovalisi Freedom Brigade which is using a group of Federation-built small craft (think Maquis-type ships here) to aid the rebel cause. What will you do in response to this intelligence?

Find out where they're getting them and end the pipeline. If the equipment is being accquired illegitimately, reclaim it (using Fulminant and the runabi) and return it to its rightful owners. Information about the goals and relative success of this measure will be available for anyone who asks (but no actual operational data).

Any JFB ships caught by Starfleet will be impounded until the bona fides of their purchase can be verified - for diplomatic reasons, this can be read as, 'for the duration'.

2) In order to stop the flow of materiel to the rebels, the Jovali monarch orders a planetary blockade -- all incoming ships are stopped and searched. No vessels are allowed to land on the western continent where most of the rebels are based. The Jovalisi local government protests this blockade and demands it be lifted immediately. The western continent is the source of most of the trade between Jovali and Jovalis, and could seriously hurt Jovalis's economy if contact is cut off. A few Jovalisi ships try to run the blockade, but unsuccessfully. The Jovalisi Merchants' Guild requests Starfleet protection of their ships near Jovalis and the immediate lifting of the blockade over the western continent for neutral vessels.

Offer to use Aristophanes as an inspection ship to ensure that no war materiel is landed if the Jovali will allow the resumption of trade.

3) In a surprise operation, a squad of rebel commandos manages to commandeer the Jovali heavy cruiser Dralliw -- apparently with the assistance of a number of mutineers on board. They escape from Jovali orbit, destroying one of the royal fleet's smaller frigates on the way out. The ship disappears into the asteroid belt, and Jovali forces do not pursue at the moment -- short of sending every remaining vessel in their fleet (one cruiser and three frigates), the Jovali are not likely to recapture their cruiser through conventional means. The rebels waste no time in proclaiming their victory and announce that the commandeered cruiser will be launching reprisals against the royal forces and any of their supporters.

Nothing for now, save to write up and send off a strongly worded condemnation of any attack on civilians by either party, and a warning of how darkly Starfleet and the Federation will look on such actions.

4) Hostility is brewing between some of the more vocal pro-rebel and pro-monarch factions in some of the Jovalisi habitats. Several riots have erupted in colonies, especially in the Deyal Group, and there have been reports of roving gangs attacking supporters of the opposite faction. Leaders from several of the habitats ask you to provide assistance in order to maintain security.

Frack! Thank goodness for stun settings on phasers. Have the Steamrunners' security detachments outfitted for riotbusting and attached to those departments asking for help.

D) Things start going south. Jovali ground forces are advancing across the planet, and refugees are streaming into the Jovalis colonies by the hundreds, then thousands. The various orbital habitats can handle the newcomers for the time being, but the longer the situation goes on, the more difficult sustaining them will be. Although the habitats are already close to their maximum, the flow of refugees shows no sign of decreasing as the fighting continues. The general estimate for the habitats as a whole is 3 weeks before a supply shortage develops. This estimate includes life support capacity, food supplies, and overcrowding, and assumes that the situation is not resolved and the flow of refugees does not diminish.

Double frack. Okay, bring both Excelsiors into base and have the Steamrunners drop that colony where it is - it should be plenty safe in its current orbit, but tow a couple of defense sats into place to keep it company.

Strip the Excelsiors and the Steamrunners down to skeleton crews, then get permission to move the extra refugees to some uninhabited part of Lucretzea. Once that's done, set those four ships up shuttling refus out at maximum cruise. This is a stopgap, but what else to do? They'll have pretty good capacity, with the crews gone. Move Subaru to
Lucretzea and have her set up some reasonably comfortable refugee camps, expanding them as needed. Presumably, Federation technology is sufficient to turn bulk vegtable matter of whatever type into something nutritious and vaguely paletable - we can repair the ecological damage later.

Send Starfleet a message asking for enough basic food and medicine to take care of the refugees for the duration after the refugee camps run out of trees and before the problem is solved, and additional transport resources to make things move easier and give me most of my fleet back.

1) The vast majority of incoming ships carrying refugees are loaded past capacity and were built by Jovali, meaning that sending the refugees out of the system on the ships they cam in is not an option -- they simply aren't fast enough for a true interstellar journey, especially considering the overcrowding on board. What will you do with them?

Decrease the passenger loads to something that their enviro systems can sustain and use them for extra housing.

2) A Jovali passenger ship enters Jovalis space, pursued by one of the surviviing Jovali frigates, the Llenrup. The large passenger ship has taken heavy damage; there are several hull breaches, their warp drive is offline, their shields destroyed. The captain of the Jovali frigate claims that the passenger ship is smuggling a cell of known rebels away from Joval; the passenger ship captain says that the Jovali navy is trying to keep refugees from leaving Joval.

Impound the liner, her crew and her passengers, then ask the Jovali for descriptions of the rebels and assure them that they'll be placed into custody.

3) A group of raiders have taken advantage of the confusion in the past weeks, and have started raiding Federation freighters carrying agricultural products to Jovalis, and on to the rest of the Federation. It's possible that the raiders are operating out of the asteroid field... and may even be using the cloaking technology that was stolen from G'Sall a few months back.

Load -all- the runabi (with my initial four, plus the eight I asked for, that gives me twelve of the little nasties, yes?) for combat and send them and the Fulminant in to search through the asteroid field and root out the pirates.

Pirates die.

4) There are a series of bomb attacks in various Jovalisi orbital habitats. Although none has resulted in a major loss of life, the docking facilities of one station have been severely damaged. The attacks have been confined to the Cluster -- so far. How do you ensure the security of your home base, Deep Space Twelve? (Keep in mind the ongoing refugee situation, and the fact that many of the refugees may need medical attention at a Starfleet facility.)

Frell. DS12 will just have to scan incoming ships for explosives before allowing them to dock. Medical emergencies will be transported directly to sickbay, with transporter filters to pull out any hidden bombs and such.

E) After weeks of fighting, the royal faction's ground forces prevail. All of the major cities in the rebel provinces are occupied and placed under martial law. Monarch Hrrays begins issuing strict new edicts to ensure the "pacification" of the provinces. News from the provinces is scarce as the royal forces almost completely cut off the region from any offworld contact -- even after the war is declared to be over and the provincial governments surrender. The Jovalisi local government isn't happy with the developments and cuts off diplomatic relations with the homeworld, although they take no other action.

Bring up a couple of historical cases of crackdowns causing widespread revolution - the American Revolution, say, and my version of the Driians. No need to be particularly blunt about it - they're not Fed members, or even really allied, and I don't want to go getting their backs up.

However, it seems that a guerilla war is still going on in some out-of-the-way areas, and the monarch is using this as an excuse to crack down. The Jovali royal navy has also failed to track down and capture the cruiser that was captured in Part (C). They seem to be laying low for now.

Well, now that the refugee situation isn't getting any worse, the Subaru can go back to her monitoring network. Before very long, it'll be finished and she can add the promised defense net around Lucretzea, then move on to thicken Jovalis' defenses. Likewise, I can bring my Excelsiors and Steamrunners back to full crewing.

And that monitoring network would, naturally, see the cruiser the instant it does anything. I might not tell the Jovali about it - it's still an internal matter, the way I see it - but it'd be nice to know what the sucker's up to.

Diplomatically... *sigh* It's an internal matter, so all we can really do is encourage leniency and an attention to finding those who are actually -guilty-, as opposed to simply disgruntled or unlucky.


Critiques! (Picking on MinutiaeMan throughout, because he's been kind enough to pull all his answers together on one page.)

Defense planning, Scenario One - I wouldn't have expected the Jovali to have -time- to come in aid, even assuming they were willing. Personally, I'd have put the Jovali on point and had the faster Starfleet ships perform the flanking - the Jovali heavies, if they really are matches for Starfleet's Sovereigns, should be able to handle the Galors on their own, but the flannking move requires a degree of mobility that I doubt they have.

Scenario Two - I doubt that a single starship could be quite -that- decisive, but Cerberus would have plenty of support, so no problem.

Scenario Three - They're Borg. All you can do is the best you can, and hang the butcher's bill. Good job.


Scenario Responses! (ditto)

Scenario: A Cardassian Hideki-class warship emerges from the Purple Nebula, heading on a "southeast" vector. However, once it's clear of the nebula, it changes course towards Zechs... at Warp 2.3. Long-range scans indicate that the ship may be damaged, but the Hideki is transmitting no distress call, or any other messages for that matter.

First, send two messages, one to the Hideki itself and another to Bifour IV expressing concern over their apparent distress and offering any assistance within my power. Then dispatch Rigorous and a couple of Runabi to 'help' and poke around the nebula to see what it ran into.

Over the past four weeks, a large number of freighters from Bifour have been heading into and out of the Pink Nebula. The Cardassians say that they have discovered a brown dwarf star system within the nebula which contains a resource-rich asteroid belt, which includes dilithium. Soon, the Cardassians shift one Galor and two Hidekis to patrol the border near the nebula.

Well, it's in their space, and I already have that area under surveilance, so what's to do? Not much - I already have all my targets defended, and I'll see them coming no matter what.


New Scenarios (fruits of a twisted mind)

Rigorous and initial ship: A Hideki comes screaming over the border at maximum warp, broadcasting a request for asylum. A Galor and all six of it sister ships are hot on its tail, bellowing about traitors and punishment and internal affairs that Feddies had -better- not get involved in.

Full Fleet: The second eldest of the Jovali Monarch's daughters dissapears on her way to a diplomatic visit to Lucrezia. All but one of the Jovali Fleet's ships move out immediately, and the Monarch transmits a formal request for Starfleet aid in the search.
The first ship on the scene will find residues from a very short fight between her yacht and a ship with Cardassian made weapons, hull, and engines. The Jovali don't declare war, but their 'diplomatic' exchanges with Bifour IV are fast becoming anything but.


Blessed be.
-n
 

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Posted by Futurama Guy (Member # 968) on :
 
How exactly does this fit into the realm of canon trek 'starship and technology' category we otherwise see in this forum??
 

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Posted by Wraith (Member # 779) on :
 
Oh, who cares?

I think there was a discussion about this earlier and it was decided that since this had started here it'd stay here.
 

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Posted by Identity Crisis (Member # 67) on :
 
Once upon a time the consensus was that this forum was for discussing trek technology. However, recently the consensus has shifted and this forum is now more restrictive (though pleanty of non-canon stuff - like Sternbach's magazine articles - is still discussed here).

And things like tactics and fleet deployments have always been treated as technical by a large portion of the fanbase - you know the ones who like starships and stuff, rather than the ones who froth at the mouth over every detail of Riker and Troi's relationship.

This means that the Designs, Artwork, & Creativity forum now carries pure discussion on non-canon technical matters where there's no actual creative input from any of the members.

Does anyone think it's worth asking for a non-canon forum in the Trek section? Where discussion of Novels, Treknical fandom, RPGs, computer games, etc. could be discussed?

Timo has already stated that future "You're the Admiral.." threads should go in the Designs, Artwork, & Creativity forum but that he wasn't going to move this one.
 

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Posted by Timo (Member # 245) on :
 
I'm offline for two minutes and a) a question pops up which I'm supposed to answer and b) some smartass types faster than me...

Consider whatever I was going to say said.

Yeah, Sector Alpha is idle and Sector Beta is dead. Sector Gamma should be finished with the next question or two, if we ever get around to those - and Sector Delta or the "You Are the Commodore" thing promised by a certain individual will have to start at the Creative forum and not here.

Timo Saloniemi
 

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Posted by J (Member # 608) on :
 

quote:

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Originally posted by Identity Crisis:
(though pleanty of non-canon stuff - like Sternbach's magazine articles - is still discussed here).

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Thin ice subject... many people consider Sternbach the authority on all treknology issues and thus just as canon as the show.
 

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Posted by MinutiaeMan (Member # 444) on :
 
I'd also contest the need to put this stuff in the creativity forum. The overwhelming majority of stuff in these scenarios revolves around starship operations -- combat, diplomacy, interstellar deployment strategies. As Mark said at the start of Sector Alpha, this is kind of a quantum upgrade of the "What Starship Would You Send?" threads on one of the old newsgroups.

Or should the weekly new tech threads be moved to the Enterprise forum because they're about ENT?
 

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Posted by David Templar (Member # 580) on :
 

quote:

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Originally posted by Identity Crisis:
And things like tactics and fleet deployments have always been treated as technical by a large portion of the fanbase - you know the ones who like starships and stuff, rather than the ones who froth at the mouth over every detail of Riker and Troi's relationship.

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quote:

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Originally posted by Mark Nguyen:
Mark <--- leaving for a convention in 36 hours.

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Hey Mark, I utterly hate your guts and hope that some massive and old sweaty fanboy trips and crushes you beneath his behemoth self and his magical girl costume. Please remember that while you're enjoying Sakura Con.
 

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Posted by akb1979 (Member # 557) on :
 
Steady on there David Templar!!! There's no need for that!

Have fun at the convention Mark.
 

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Posted by Mark Nguyen (Member # 469) on :
 
Aww, David loves me. He's just expressing it. For all I know he's the one behind my mysterious fan site that showed up yesterday. Besides, I still know his dark and terrible secret.

Mark

PS - SakuraCon WILL rock, assuming I don't get killed getting there.
 

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Posted by Sol System (Member # 30) on :
 
That's odd.
 

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Posted by Valles (Member # 925) on :
 

quote:

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fan site

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Gwak! *falls over and explodes*

Blessed be.
-n
(...mahou tsukai tai...)
 

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Posted by Harry (Member # 265) on :
 
What? Who? Where am I? GO AWAY!
 

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Posted by David Templar (Member # 580) on :
 
I want to scream, but I have no voice...

*gouges eyes out with a spoon*
 

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Posted by Valles (Member # 925) on :
 


*looks around, sees all the No New Content*



*pokes the thread with a stick*



Blessed be.
-n
 

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Posted by Ultra Magnus (Member # 239) on :
 
This of course, is absolutely terrifying.

Well,wait.
 

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Posted by The_Tom (Member # 38) on :
 
Maybe Flare should get a cosplay forum?
 

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Posted by PsyLiam (Member # 73) on :
 
Only if Rob dresses up as Sailor Mercury.
 

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Posted by Mark Nguyen (Member # 469) on :
 
Allow me to explain. I organize and execute Western Canada's premier anime event, Animethon. Among my duties is the host for the Anime Improv, Anime Rant, and of course cosplay. In the latter, I have a yearly challenge: that if someone was willing to make me a costume, I would wear it at Animethon regardless of what it is. This accounts for some of the pictures on this fan site.

Anyway, let's leave this thread be, awaiting the day that I will resume lectures on what it's actually supposed to be about. If one wishes to continue ridiculing my lifestyle, feel free to start something up in the Lounge.

Mark
 

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Posted by MinutiaeMan (Member # 444) on :
 
Just a quick self-serving notice that I've started a new "You're the Admiral!"-inspired scenario over at Bernd's and my own message board, the Subspace Comms Network. Mark already knows about this, and it's not intended as competition, but if anyone's interested in more starship-oriented fun, head on over!
 

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Posted by MinutiaeMan (Member # 444) on :
 
*bump*

Yo Mark! It's been 3 months since you said you'd be getting back to this! I've been discovering that writing the answers is a lot more fun than coming up with the questions! (Although I do definitely enjoy doing my own spin-off scenarios too... )

There's an Anaitsirhc-class heavy cruiser running around out there with some rebels who've seen their fellow freedom fighters wiped out by loyalist forces, a major security threat to the orbital habitats, not to mention the possibility that the Bifourian nutcases destroyed the USS Ki back in Question Three...
 

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Posted by Mark Nguyen (Member # 469) on :
 
The above-referenced Animethon is in 12 days. We'll talk after that.

Mark
 

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Posted by MinutiaeMan (Member # 444) on :
 
Gotcha.

In the mean time, I went back and re-did the maps for the old sectors, mainly because before I was developing my graphical style as I went along. Now, I've got a pretty snazzy image set going!

Sector Alpha Map
Sector Beta Map
Sector Gamma Map
Deep Space 12 - Just for my own purposes in the game, but cool looking!
 

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Posted by Mark Nguyen (Member # 469) on :
 
Well, after much soul-searching, I'm gonna officially put this thread on indefinite hold. I'm simply far too busy with other priorities to come back to this in the forseeable future. Never mind the reasons, but the fact remains that there won't be any "You're the Admiral!" for a while.

I apologize to you guys (and especially Dan!) for stringing you along for so long... I *want* to come back and finish this off, but reading the whole thing over and getting back up to speed, and then finishing off the remaining questions, isn't something I have time for right now. When again? I hope soon. But until then, no.

If you wish, you may graduate with partial credit scaled up to recognize the lack of 25% of the course. Otherwise, there will be room set aside in the stasis hold for those cadets who choose to wait it out.

Again, apologies to all. It was fun while it lasted.

Mark
 

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Posted by MinutiaeMan (Member # 444) on :
 
Well, fiddlesticks!

(That reminds me, I've got to write up the next question for Sector Epsilon over at the SCN...)
 

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Posted by MinutiaeMan (Member # 444) on :
 
So folks, it's been almost four years since the scenario started. After much pestering, I've given in and agreed to pick up and finish off the story, with Mark's notes as a guide.

But... does anyone else want to pick this old dangling plot thread back up? It seems like a bunch of us are still around, but I dunno how many people would be comfortable picking up on four-year-old responses.

If this does get brought back, then it'll start once Shik's done with Sobchak Sector.
 

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