Pre-ChaNES: Into the Void

Official Records
Russian Space Force
A/V Recording
Date of Recording: 2330 UTC, June 7, 2129AD
Recorded At: Military Berths, Novy Mir Space Dock, Mercurial Orbit


The champagne bottle twisted through space ever so slowly toward the hull. Air bubbles floated and rolled through the fluid inside, still fluid from being under pressurization and aided both by the local temperature of the interplanetary medium and the preheating of the container before release. It glinted like a diamond under the brilliant rays of the sun, a lost star adrift amid a sea of carbon black. It careened into the hull at a comfortable ten meters per second, quite enough to crack it open like an egg. Green glass shattered and spun out into space as the beverage within boiled, flash froze, and then began to ablate away under the intense solar glare.

Within the observation deck of Novy Mir, some thirty thousand kilometers above the slowly growing pool of black which seemed to be consuming the blistering surface of Mercury, there was a brief moment of silence as the sponsor declared quite proudly “I christen thee the Destroyer RSC Prokhorovka, first of her kind!”

A wild cheer erupted among the delegates and representatives who had been flown out for the special occasion, among the dock workers who had spent so long building her, among the military brass which were to oversee her operations, among her crew and Captain, and a myriad of others who had been involved in her construction.

“Prokhorovka, Novy Mir. Confirming GO for separation.”

“Roger Novy Mir, commencing separation sequence. MARK.”

Beyond the observation deck, beyond its centimeters thick translucent metal observation windows, in the unyielding diffuse vacuum of space, the gunmetal gray bulk on which they had all labored stirred to life. Umbilical arms swung away, venting traces of gases and liquids to space while power connectors disengaged and the gangway retracted. The Destroyer was now in its elements, its dark hull all aggressive curves, its weapons invisible within their recessed and shuttered cradles and bays, its form silhouetted in the harsh sunlight.

“Confirming tower clearance, Novy Mir.”

“Affirmative Prokhorovka, you are cleared for separation burn.”

Along the hull, blue-white bursts of directed plasma thrust flared as the vessel worked its way out of port, slowly swinging away from its docking bay and course-correcting smoothly, bringing itself onto a disengagement vector. It sailed cleanly past the berth where the RSC Novosibirsk remained under construction, beyond the military segment of the docking bays and into the civilian area, past the remaining Pionerskaya still under major construction and the other hulls gradually being built up, and into the clearance zone for engine ignition.

“Prokhorovka you are clear for main engine ignition to confirm operation.”

“Copy that Novy Mir, spooling up the main thrusters.”

Despite being a warship called a destroyer within the scheme of Russian scheme of fleet classification that was all it shared with its counterparts among the superpowers. At 174.2 meters in length and 47,512 metric tons in mass, it was over twice as large and more than four times as massive as its competitors, which were considered simply frigates. This was in fact virtually all that was known about it, other than its crew compliment and its possession of three primary fusion torch drives for sublight maneuvering, and a top-of-the-line Stigma drive. If there were any doubts remaining among the minds of the ASTRIS members who had been invited to its sending off as to Russia’s capability to project power in space, they were likely dispelled.

“Please do keep in mind this is not an official launch, Prokhorovka.”

“We won’t do anything too crazy, Novy Mir.”

The Novy Mir shakedown crew continued their initial checks of the ship’s systems. The aft of the Prokhorovka emitted a diffuse glow before triple lances of plasma disgorged from it, briefly seeming to outshine the sun which played backdrop to the scene of the ship. It began to accelerate away from Novy Mir at a quite comfortable one-gee. Out of direct line of sight with Novy Mir’s observation decks, the windows glazed over as their optical filters assumed their secondary function as LCD displays, showing transmissions of the maiden flight from the RSC Dostoevsky, the first combat rated frigate which Russia had fielded. Having undergone operations trials and exercises since 2122 when it entered service, its crew was by now well-seasoned and quite comfortable with the task of monitoring their juniors.

Within the observation deck, Captain Gurlukovich and his crew congratulated each other on their good fortune to have garnered such a position while discreetly calming their jittery nerves with the drinks of their choice; tomorrow, they would officially launch for space trials.
 
Out-of-Character: Revised orders sent. I hated my first set so much. I wrote that when I was extremely tired.

In-Character: The United States of America hereby signs the treaty brought up the Russian Federation regarding space and its usage. The USA also proclaims its entry into the ASTRIS organization to promote peace, goodwill, and common sense among the people of Earth.
 
FROM: Russian Federation
TO: United States of America
CC: ASTRIS Membership, General Release


On behalf of the existing members of ASTRIS, the Russian Federation gives a warm welcome to our newest member, the United States, and congratulates both its government and its people on their depth of character and clarity of conviction. We are all greatly looking forward to working with America and the American people in our joint endeavors, and heartily welcome the strengths they bring to our organization.
 
The deadline passed awhile back, and there are still a few sets of orders missing. I won't outright reject any that are sent this late, but try not to make a habit of exploiting my tolerance.

Anyway, this update is likely to take awhile to make. There's a lot of new stuff to add to the stats this turn.
 
oh oh oh...I can't believe I forgot. I won't make a habit of this, but to not slow down the update, just continue my policies from the last few turns. You know, industrialization & oppression of the masses ;)
 
May I join as the governor of Zenit? (I can probably send orders in tomorrow but they're probably not needed. I'd appreciate it if someone (symphony) filled me in on the diplo)

Long live Russia!
 
OOC: Until stated otherwise, there's no point in applying to govern them either.

OOC: I don't think symphony wants any PC governors, sorry, but you're out of luck.
 
OOC: Because the front page is under the mod's control, and not symphony's :p
 
OOC: If I were to decide to allow it, I wouldn't do so until the update is up, so either way you have to wait until then.
 
Apologies for the long delay, folks, but I'm not even close to being done as of this post. I knew that this would be a long update to make, so perhaps I should've warned you all beforehand, but I have a lot to do. Combine that with the obscene number of credits I'm taking right now, and it's no wonder that this update is taking quite awhile to make. Anyway, don't hold your breath - I'm making active progress on it right now, but I still have a lot to work on here.
 
Keep up the good work Chand, we'll be here when you're ready! :thumbsup:
 
As long as we know what's going on. ;)

Yes, things are going smoothly jerkily, but still going nonetheless. Computer troubles and other assorted RL difficulties have been impeding progress. However, the update itself is quite close to done. I'll post that as soon as it's finished, as a reward for my players' patience.

After that, I still must update the stats and map, and I think that I might write a basic recap and awards section as well, since this is the halfway point of the Pre_NES.
 
However, the update itself is quite close to done. I'll post that as soon as it's finished, as a reward for my players' patience.
OOC: You're being held to this one, Daftpanzer; it's been three weeks. :p
 
OOC: But there are massive rule and stats change!
OOC: And since we're not using those at all to play their lack of inclusion prevents you from comprehending the update precisely zero percent. :p The thing you maybe could have gotten away with was demanding the map, but seeing as how any rename and claim of a system will be explicitly stated, that's easy to work out with what you have; and you didn't even make that argument.
 
Pre-Update 6
2126-2135 CE

Sol

In the heart of human development, it was again the interplay between Russia and the United States that defined the time. While Europe and China focused elsewhere, the cooperation and competition between the other two great powers would leave the most lasting impact on Sol itself.

And indeed, there were both cooperation and competition between those two powers. In the outer solar system, American corporations were able to seize a distinct advantage in the gas mining industry, while Russian efforts were hindered by the demands of their fledgling colonial effort. Still, the Russian presence there, along with minor Chinese and European ones, kept the market competetive.

The cooperative aspect was more new, more interesting, and possibly even more frightening to the other powers. Russia's offer of ASTRIS membership to the other nations of Earth was expected to draw nations like Israel and Japan, but when America joined as well, some surprise was expressed. However, since the United States had let interstellar colonization take a back seat to Solar development, it was in a similar situation to ASTRIS's other constituents. The US's industrial capacity also contributed immensely to the project, dwarfing even that of Japan, which was previously the biggest contributor.

America's military was also even larger than Russia's, and so it joined ASTRIS as a military member alongside Russia, prepared to use its power to defend the coalition. Yet it also had an appetite for more colonies, having only one on Carmenta presently, which surely disturbed some of the other ASTRIS members. Yet America was too valuable an ally to turn down, and so it began putting its industrial and military might to the cause.

Some lesser nations also joined the coalition, though their contributions were mostly insignificant due to the precedence of the other nations involved, and so their memberships were more symbollic than anything. In 2132, however, a more significant nation joined - that nation was Indonesia, which was apparently ready to begin healing the rift between itself and the West after the great war 30 years ago that had devastated it along with much of the Islamic world.

And speaking of war, both America and Russia were also making many innovations in the military field. On one hand, the Russians caused several raised eyebrows with their enormous mecha-artillery vehicle, the BEHEMOTH. This quadrupedal mammoth of a machine was equipped with enough heavy weaponry to level an ill-prepared opposing force, and even in an army that had become notorious for unconventional designs, it stood out immensely. On the other hand, the Russians also sought to revolutionize the field of interplanetary warfare with their massive destroyer RSC Prokhorovka. It was accompanied by some smaller "frigates," which were more in line with the contemporary destroyers. This difference in designation produced some confusion with the other nations, but at the same time the Russians made an active effort to propegate their method, and these efforts were seeing some fruition in the international community.

Meanwhile, the Americans adopted a somewhat different strategy. Their infantry forces were increasingly geared towards the use of small, elite units with high-tech powered armor, each one meant to be a "super-soldier" with the versatility to take on infantry, armor, or anything else the enemy could throw at it. America also designed a new ship to fight in space - much larger than its Liberty counterparts, this ship would be called a "destroyer" by the Russian classification. It was, in fact, somewhat larger than the Prokhorovka, and most professionals estimated that it was better equipped as well.

But it was highly unlikely that the two destroyers would meet in battle. Due to the fact that both America and Russia were members of ASTRIS, their militaries would be working together to ensure the safety of their coalition. If either of the great warships saw battle, it would most likely be against one of the other great powers.

Another notable event of the time was the rise of the Sonty corporation, an entity that specialized in interplanetary transport. Its gigantic "cruise liners" didn't have access to Orion propulsion technology, of course, but as they were effectively just resorts for the somewhat wealthy, it was acceptable for them to spend months at a time in space. In fact, each of these ships were largely self-sufficient, with advanced hydroponics and specialized factories to keep the ship well supplied. The cost of even one journey was enormous, and hundreds of crew members were required to attend to the ship and its passengers, but at the same time each trip would carry thousands of paying customers, so the Sonty corporation became one of the most prosperous out there.

Though leisure cruises were the corporation's main source of revenue, Sonty also got the rights to use Stigma drives in their business. Thus, they became one of the few private corporations with the means to conduct interstellar trade - Infinitas proved to be a fine trade destination, and a few trips were made to Nu as well. Yet it was a slight modification on the drive, newly developed, that made the Sonty corporation most notable. This modification essentially allowed a small ship to make a Stigma jump over a short distance. It had limitations, of course - anything much more massive than a fighter couldn't make such a jump in the first place, and the cost and complexity of the modified drive was prohibitave. With all factors taken into account, a series of "Stigma skips" was a faster method than Orion propulsion, but was far too inconvenient and expensive for any but the most time-urgent packages for travel in-system, which explained why it was an avenue of research more or less ignored even by the Europeans. Still, the Sonty corporation was able to also make some small revenue from rush-delivering packages with the Stigma skipping technique, catering to the needs of capricious trillionaires.

Chinese Sphere

This period was a time of consolidation for the People's Republic of China. Having exerted all of the resources at their disposal to reach 025-367, the Chinese were content afterwards to build on their previous gains. Their oldest major colony, Damen, continued to develop its role as a major Chinese military center. Enormous shipyards had been built, allowing Damen to build and perform maintenance on the very ships that were defending it, and stationary defenses promised that any foreign ships that attacked Damen would not make it any farther.

Certainly, the introduction of multi-jump technology meant that an invading army could bypass Damen entirely, and so the fortress-system's importance was decreased in that regard, but Damen was still well-placed as a military hub just outside Sol, away from the prying eyes of foreigners. Furthermore, great resources had already been spent (and were being spent) to accomodate a central military and industrial presence there, and so it was assured that Damen would remain important to the Chinese colonization effort. The population there continued to expand despite the harsh environment, thriving on the ample funds that the Chinese government invested there.

The neighboring system of Xiaoping also saw a time of renewal. As the system of 025-367 was safely secured, the Chinese government could allocate more resources to their other great treasure - the planet Xu Fu, which by 2130 had the largest population of any extrasolar planet. With the Chinese government's greater investment, Xu Fu's (and its neighboring planet, Enlai's) productivity were increased greatly, meeting the expectations that they had been founded with. Due to the ever-increasing ease of interstellar travel, many thousands of immigrants flowed from China to the aquatic planet and its snowy companion - so many, in fact, that the colony began to see an ironic overpopulation problem of its own. But Xu Fu's atmosphere was a breathable one, and so the colony was able to expand enough to house all who came to it, until they could be of further use to the People's Republic.

Haiyaoliangge and 039-240 also saw some benefits from the completion of the Chinese effort towards 025-367. After all, each system had some intrinsic value beyond that of Damen, and with the prominence of multi-jump systems, it become more important to guard each of them from potential threats. Haiyaoliangge, especially, saw new growth, as it expanded from being a simple waypoint into a successful colony in its own right.

Finally, the Chinese invested the vast plurality of their funds into the newly colonized system of Tiantang. Its most hospitable planet was named Baoyu, though a second habitable planet in the system remained as-yet unnamed. Since the initial rush to colonize the system had been successful, the Chinese government followed it by rushing to populate the two planets. Baoyu saw by far the most settlers, as its environment was as friendly as Earth's, but its colder sister planet also had native life and a mostly-breathable environment, so some settlers went there as well. Many of these settlers were skilled scientists and technicians, as Baoyu was also a prime location for studying complex extraterrestrial life.

Along with this influx of population came development, and Tiantang's rate of growth was much higher than any colony's had ever been. As of 2135, the system still had a significantly lower population than Xiaoping, but the gap was quickly closing. One of the attractive features of Tiantang was its great distance from Sol, which allowed it to retain a very small degree of freedom from the oppressive surveilance of the Chinese government. Indeed, to better appeal to settlers, Tiantang's governors sought to model the way of life there after the more traditional aspects of the old Chinese lifestyle. This was a tremendously successful strategy, and applications from potential colonists were extremely competetive in mainland China.

Infinitas

In contrast to the tumultuous happenings of the previous decade, matters in Infinitas remained mostly serene from 2125 to 2135. Certainly, there was a great controversy over the PR disaster from then-governor of Carmenta, the late Neil Haselton. Historians would debate for years afterwards on what his intentions were and whether he had ever planned to go through with the plan to break from the United States, but his convenient (and indeed, some would say too convenient) death made it a moot point. In any case, his successor, Clinton Charlie, handled the aftermath with a surprising aptitude, and life continued normally for the vast majority of Carmentans.

Indeed, Bacchus's independence gave Carmenta a unique opportunity to close the gap somewhat with the larger colony. Terraforming projects continued with some moderate success, introducing more life into the harsh atmosphere. It was slow going - Carmenta was hostile to life for rather unusual reasons, so the standard methods of terraforming were less effective.

Bacchus itself was in a more difficult situation, as the only independent nation not based on Earth. In general, the Bacchans sought to retain good relations with the Europeans, but these efforts may have been sabotaged from the beginning. The Bacchans' slide towards the political right certainly didn't help matters any. However, at the same time, Bacchus became a symbol of freedom from the old empires of Earth. Bacchus went out of its way to attract foreign investments and immigrants - and given Bacchus's relative isolation from the authorities of Sol, it also became somewhat of a haven for those fleeing the law. However, the growth and total prosperity gained by these measures was undeniable, and the open, inhospitable lands of Bacchus begged to be settled.

In fact, the surface of Bacchus was also being improved by a dedicated terraforming project. Hardy, single-celled creatures had already been spread across the surface, forming patches of life in a few choice spots on Bacchus, but now tangled patches of ivy joined them. Genetically engineered plants of many types were being developed to bring Bacchus's barren surface to life. The planet's size was an advantage in the terraforming as well - Bacchus's deeper gravity well made it much easier to retain an atmosphere, and the day when humans could breathe unaided on that world came closer.

Lastly, there was another event of interest from the Planetary Republic of Bacchus in 2130. A rather large mecha-type vehicle was seen being towed from Vulcan to Bacchus. Once there, it performed some basic maneuvers in space, displaying what appeared to be a rather small fusion generator (though not as small or efficient a design as the Russian model used in their new Sokol variable fighters). It then proceeded to enter Bacchus's atmosphere and land on the surface before performing some more training exercises. In its design, this new type of variable mecha resembled a scaled-up version of the Russian HAVOC mecha - somewhat smaller than a corvette. Though its design received sharp criticism from many military experts, Bacchus was apparently confident in the design's usefulness, and it was projected that a second variable mecha would be completed within a couple of years of 2135.

European Sphere

The awkward situation in Soyuz was resolved without much conflict. Fortunately for the Russian colonists on 110-142C, the Pionerskaya-class colony ship there was mostly intact, and with some specialized equipment sent from Russia, it was re-launched, leaving the system in European hands. The Europeans, for their part, did not waste this opportunity - their planet, which they renamed Logos, was small and somewhat resource-poor, but it had a breathable atmosphere and some fairly complex plantlife, and a shallow gravity well to boot. European development here was somewhat neglected due to continuing colonization further from Sol, but Soyuz remained a valuable asset.

Meanwhile, the lesser European colonies grew at a steady, though slow, rate. 101-139 was renamed Pirenia, and its planet, Lilas, had some terraforming projects performed on it. These ultimately proved unsuccessful, but development continued nonetheless. Valhalla remained significant as the gateway to many of Europe's newer colonies, and development there continued as before. Lucenta, however, was less fortunate. Though it initially acted as a valuable conduit to Russian Zenit, it became obsolete in the 2130's due to ASTRIS Stigma skimming routes that had been blazed elsewhere. The colony still survived, of course, but its development had somewhat stagnated by 2135.

This was a sharp contrast to the neighboring system of Olympia, which became ever more prosperous into the 2130's. Development spread from the main planet of Arcadia into other parts of the system, and population increased as Arcadia became a main hub of European colonization efforts. It's orbital industry developed to the point that it began producing its own interstellar shuttles, along with several military craft. Furthermore, Olympia enjoyed a very advantageous position at the center of European colonization efforts - some likened it to the new Bacchus of the European frontier. In any case, there were no events that threatened this favorable position, and it appeared that Olympia would continue to prosper for many years to come.

Beyond Olympia, a further series of expeditions were launched with the eventual goal of reaching the distant system of 070-642. To this end, the colony at Carpathia was expanded and a Stigma skimmer was built there, and from there a colony ship was sent to 073-406, which was renamed Aria. The planed, named Crescent, was a large, hot, dry planet, but its position was an advantageous one for making a long final jump to 070-642. The colony there grew swiftly, but before a ship could be dispatched to the next system, a notable event occured back in Carpathia.

Two civilian freighters made a close pass in the orbit of 075-321C. Abruptly, one of them opened fire on the other, disabling its engines, and the offending frigate began to tow its victim out to the gas giant 075-321E. A corvette from the planet Duhlen gave chase, but the two frigates were able to get to the far side of the gas giant and hide on one of its moons. More military ships came from the neighboring system of Olympia as soon as word reached them, but the damage had been done. The Europeans' already thinly-stretched space forces were forced to be further distributed, and confidence among all colonists was impacted. The pirate ship - for it surely deserved that label - was never tracked down, and there was some fear that more attacks could take place in Carpathia or elsewhere.

But ultimately, the Europeans' colonization efforts remained unhindered. A heavily guarded colony ship was sent through Aria to 070-642, which was renamed Tyrelia, and the Europeans cemented their claim to that valuable system. The colony was placed on a very earthlike world - the most distant one that had yet been colonized. Europe now had more colonies than China did, and the effects upon its economy were obvious. It would be some years before these colonies became profittable, and a ship travelling to Tyrelia could take upwards of four years to make that journey - Europe's colonial empire was stretched to its limit. Certainly, it had secured many of the best planets for itself, but its resources and its citizens' patience were beginning to wear thin - it remained to be seen whether their strategy was a successful one.

As a final note on European colonization, their efforts on the planet Isis, in the Nu system, picked up more momentum. Though the planet was still far from being habitable to an unprotected human, progress was certainly being made. In particular, its atmosphere was being thickened to better repel deadly radiation from its star, and some deposits of liquid water were being accumulated in two narrow bands near the poles. The results from the Europeans' terraforming projects were tangible, and they acted as an encouraging example for other nations considering similar projects.

ASTRIS Sphere

The Russian-led coalition of ASTRIS nations was poised to take to the stars, and with the United States among their number, they had an unprecedented drive and ability to colonize. India, Brazil, Australia, Israel; these nations were among the first to sign onto ASTRIS, and each of them were to recieve one world, if not more. Each of them also had significant industrial might to contribute to the effort, and with their joint purpose, their goals could be realized.

By 2126, the Russian colony at Zenit had finally started to flourish. An agreement between the Russians and Europeans had been reached, and so vital supplies were able to flow through the chain of European colonies to Zenit. The planet there was an excellent one - as good if not better than Earth itself. The colony was able to grow almost as fast as people could be sent to it. Work on a Stigma skimmer began almost immediately, but before it was finished, ASTRIS would send out more colonizing missions.

First, the system of 134-111 was colonized and given to India. It was promptly named Hastinapur, and the Indians began sending some of their ample population to the icy world there. The planet was too cold for unprotected humans, and its only resource was a virtually inexhaustible supply of water ice, but it came with the promise that further colonies would be founded for India - and India's massive population could certainly make use of multiple colonies, even if some of them were less than ideal.

Secondly, an ASTRIS colonization mission sent was sent to 129-209 directly from Sol (and narrowly beating European plans to colonize that same system) - this was possible due to a combination of European double-jump technology (apparently purchased from the Europeans in some way or another) and a Russian portable jump module. The system was to be given to Brazil, and so it was named Amazonas. The world there was an aquatic planet not unlike Carmenta, but it was significantly less stormy, as well as somewhat larger. The system had little strategic significance - on the edge of a large volume of relatively empty space, it seemed destined to become a backwater system. Yet its intrinsic value was fairly high, and Brazil surely would not have been able to acquire a colony of its own without ASTRIS help, and so they were not inclined to complain.

The next mission was sent through the new Stigma skimmer at Zenit, and its destination was 090-401. The world there was an excellent one, almost as good as the one at neighboring Zenit. The system was named Victoria, and given to Australia. Another mission was soon sent to the planet of 090-401D, as it was almost habitable in its own right, and the abundant water ice there, combined with the planet's shallow gravity well, would make it a useful outpost.

Simultaneously with these missions, ASTRIS was also using its unparalleled combined industrial might to pursue an unconventional strategy to expand its colonial horizon. Previously, Stigma skimmers had been constructed in-system, while the colony grew around it. However, ASTRIS saw fit to construct most of the components of a Stigma skimmer on Earth, and then send it to the system where it would begin operation. This was an inefficient way to transport a Skimmer for a normal colony, as the cost of transporting the many bulky components of a Skimmer far outweighed the ease of producing them on Earth.

The factor that made it an efficient move for ASTRIS was that these Skimmers were not stationed in growing colonies. Rather, they were sent to a system with a small staff of maintenance workers (notably less than the 10,000 required for colonial claim by the CAUST agreement). This allowed ASTRIS to maintain contact and send supplies to growing colonies more distant from Sol than would otherwise be possible. The first of these was placed at 101-139, giving the Russians an alternative route to reach Zenit, and the second was placed at 134-111.

It was by way of this second Skimmer that ASTRIS reached 152-229 in the year 2034, giving the system to Israel and naming it Zion. The world there was a hot, wet one, with somewhat sparse plant life, but it had a breathable atmosphere nonetheless. Israel's colony there began to grow as well, though by 2035 it had had little time to do so. Meanwhile, at Sol, ASTRIS was preparing further missions. Its successes so far had attracted new member nations, and both America and Japan remained to have their colonial claims satisfied. Also, the Russians' first battle squadron was completed and began patrolling around Earth. Though America's entry into ASTRIS meant that its ships would be serving the Alliance as well, Russia's new fleet was a welcome addition.
 
Alright, I've updated the first post with the link to the update and the list of playable entities for this coming turn. Stats aren't up yet, so I'd encourage the players to be reserved in their diplomacy and planning in this stage. The update contains the most vital, conspicuous information for the turn, but plenty of more subtle stuff will be in the stats. Also, replies to intelligence questions asked in the previous turn will be sent out as soon as the stats are done. So, in short, the early posting of the update is just out of courtesy to the players - any vital decisions should wait for all the supplemental stuff to be ironed out.
 
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