The Council

[CommandoBob]

Hmm, we've got an ICBM in Ninhursag-Ki in 5 turns and a tactical nuke in Citadel of Ur in 4.

We would have to find the Saber Carriers and then hit them. Maybe we can, but it means running out with our Carriers in Numenor with Stealth Fighters loaded in order to do scouting missions. And that is assuming that the Orange fleets are on that side of The Council.

Need to plot Stealth Bomber ranges from The Igloo.

 

[CommandoBob]

Sent to The Council after Turn 306 was played but before the game was emailed to thme.

Dear Bruised Brothers in Blue,

Over the next 10 turns we will every effort to find the Saber forces that are pounding your cities and hurt them badly. To do so, we are sending Sub Grabber around your northern shores to join up with some slightly larger forces in Free. It will probably take at least 6 turns before that force can set sail, as we gather in our navy.

When that force does sail we hope to have 1 Tac Nuke with it and 1 ICBM. If we get lucky, we might be able to cripple the naval air advantage of Saber by sinking all their Aircraft Carriers, but that feat may take both of us working in unison on the same turn. At this point that is only a dream, but it might work out.

Oh, yes it might!

We sent you three workers this turn and 200 in gold.

We found a small force of Orange Destroyers to your southeast. A screenshot of that location and what Sub Grabber scouted out are attached.

Sincerely yours,

Art Parry
aka CommandoBob

Let FREEdom ring,
Let the white dove sing...

Attachemnts

xc234SE

Spoiler :

xc234sg

Spoiler :

 

[CommandoBob]

Received from The Council on Ocotber 4, while they held Turn 307.

Dear Brothers in Blue,
Our apologies for thinking it would take over 40 turns to complete our get-away ship. We were a bit shell shocked when we wrote that. Our ears have stopped ringing somewhat and we realize we can make at least three shields per turn even at size one with a civil engineer. That is our current status and we show completion in 16 turns. Still not under the ten you think necessary but much better than the forty we lamented about last turn. Shaving turns means increasing the population of our key city. This has proven difficult given the pounding SABER gives us. Here is the current list of their forces:

Spoiler :

1 settler
54 workers
20 marines
1 infantry
1 tank
92 mechinfantry
100 armor
6 artillery
1 tactical nuke
1 ICBM
16 transports
5 carriers
19 destroyers
3 battleships
18 nuclear subs
41 jets
9 stealth fighters
18 stealth bombers
1 leader
8 armies
1 cruiser
12 mobile SAMs

As you can see they have added an ICBM to their arsenal. We know this is not happy news.

We do have some intel to pass on to you. We spotted a very small SABER task force off our southeast coast. Only five ships but three are carriers. We were only able to muster two bombers to attack then and all we could do was redline their battleship. SABER has become quite brave leaving their carriers in plain sight. Well, they are not that brave since they took care to remain seven tiles distant from our roads. One tile closer and we would have happily used one of our tactical nukes on those blasted carriers. We know these ships will be able to move before you can respond but we are sending you a map of their current location. Happy Hunting and may Meleet smile on your efforts!

donsig

Speaking for The Council

Attachment:

Spoiler :

 

[CommandoBob]

Received from The Council before we opened Turn 307.

Dear Brothers in Blue,

We left The Nursery vulnerable last turn and SABER has captured it along with one of our interior cities. We lost two bombers and a tactical nuke when the interior city fell. SABER also nuked a couple of our land unit stacks wiping out close to 40 units (about half our power). Since we do not know how many units they landed nor the extent of our remaining road system we have no idea yet whether we can repel this invasion. We have one tactical nuke and 40 or fifty land units left.

donsig
Speaking for The Council

 

[CommandoBob]

Sent to The Council after we played Turn 307 but before we sent the game to them.

Dear Bruised Brothers in Blue,

Such a deed is what were expecting from the Orange Oppressors, but we had hoped it could be delayed until later in the game. Our reference to 10 turns was not a line in the sand regarding the game but more the hope that we could razzle-dazzle and befuddle our foes and prevent the tragic event that happened to the unsuspecting citizens in The Nursery. The 10 turns was more a reflex reaction to the 40 turns than anything else. We apologize if we sounded like we planned to give up on your dreams.

We sent Sub Grabber, 3NW of The Red Tape, back to the southwest and south to try and find the Saber navy. We saw none. Nor did we see any units on shore. We have sent you what we saw.

We could not engage the Saber ACs off of your southeast coast.

We hope to have ICBMs in a few turns and would gladly use them to destroy any Saber units infesting your land, but we would coordinate this with you, to keep damage to a minimum.

We have sent you 300 gold and 4 workers/slaves.

Sincerely yours,

Art Parry
aka CommandoBob
Let FREEdom ring,
Let the white dove sing...

Attachments

xc243sg

Spoiler :

 

[CommandoBob]

Received from The Council after their Turn 308.
EDIT:
Well, we saw it after they played Turn 308, though it seems to be from before they actually played their turn.

Dear Brothers in Blue,

We took an initial look at the save and are happy to report that the SABER invasion was merely an opportunistic attack and not a full scal invasion. SABER razed the two cities they captured and we lost a tactical nuke so their raid was a successful. Their nukes targeted only three quarters of our land units. There is only one marine and one modern army on our soil. If Meleet smiles on us we will get a leader and finish our spaceship. We will need Meleet's intervention though since we do not have any elite units. We are showing 15 turns till launch.

donsig
Speaking for the Council

 

[CommandoBob]

Received from The Council while we held Turn 308 but before we opened the save.

Dear Brothers in Blue,

We are happy to report that we eliminated the SABER landing force. Meleet did not see fit to grant us a leader so we must continue on. We are confident that none of our coastal cities are threatened this round. We currently show 15 turns and 45 shields from completing our escape pod. Depending on where SABER's nukes next fall we may or may not be able to bump up production next turn. We thank you for the workers and the gold. We continue to airlift FREEdom workers from the Tujana area.

Here is our current report on SABER's forces:

Spoiler :

1 settler
56 workers
19 marines
1 infantry
1 tank
92 mech infantry
96 armor
6 artillery
1 tactical nuke
2 ICBMs
15 transports
6 carriers
19 destroyers
3 battleships
18 nuclear subs
41 jets
10 stealth fighters
18 stealth bombers
1 leader
7 armies
1 cruiser
13 mobile SAMs

We are a bit worried about SABER's ICBMs. If they systemactically target our landforces we will soon be defenseless allowing them to land unopposed.

donsig
Speaking for the Council

PS: Here's the current battlelog from SABER:

Spoiler :

Battle log from SABER:

Nuclear missile hits E-S of The Arboretum.
Stealth bomber redlines the modern armor that killed our marine.
Stealth bomber kills modern armor.
Stealth bomber destroys railroad on mountain south of The Aerie.
Stealth bomber destroys road/mine on mountain south of The Aerie.
7 stealth bombers destroy 3 bombers in The Treasury and The Chamber
and destroy a courthouse in The Treasury.
Stealth bomber destroys road/irrigation W-SW of The Silo.
Stealth bomber destroys railroad S of The Igloo.
Stealth bomber destroys road/mine S of The Igloo.
2 stealth bombers miss The Igloo.
Stealth bomber destroys road W of The Treasury.

 

[CommandoBob]

Sent to The Council after we played Turn 308 but before we sent the game to them.

Dear Greatly Relieved Partners,

Well done on ridding your happy and peaceful lands of the foul footprints of the Orange Ogres! May they never trample the sand of your beaches ever again.

Your exploits this turn were better than ours. We found a small gathering of Saber ships a bit north of Sid City. We are watching them and hope to do some damage soon. But we must strike hard to damage and sink the escorts and the carrier on one turn; we fully expect our strike force to be destroyed by Saber on their turn if we do not.

We received a semi-offer of peace this turn, but it was only a fishing expedition. It was not Accepted by the Orange; not that it would have been Accepted by us if it were.

We have sent you our World Map, two workers and some gold.

To infinity ... and beyond!

Sincerely yours,

Art Parry
aka CommandoBob

Let FREEdom ring,
Let the white dove sing...

Attachments

sc24211nw

Spoiler :

 

[CommandoBob]

Received from donsig via PM before we played Turn 309.

Dear Brothers in Blue,

We continue along. We managed to boost the population of our key city to three and put them all to work as engineers. We show completion in six turns. Whether this rate is sustainable depends of course on where the SABER nukes fall.

We sent our map again along with economics. Gold and workers seem to be the key now. If SABER nukes all our land forces and then lands, our only defense will be any nukes we have on hand. Gold for the speedy completion of tactical nukes is a high priority. We have been saving all the gold you have sent us. Workers are still also highly prized for rebuilding roads and joining to our key city to be make into engineers. We also do not have access to iron which means we cannot build any railroads. We have diverted some of our precious work force to reconnect our domestic supply and also to reconnect our capital city. If possible please send iron and any other spare resources you may have.

As always we thank you for your help. Our most recent intel on the size of SABER's forces is attached.

donsig
Speaking for the Council

Spoiler :

1 settler
56 workers
19 marines
1 infantry
1 tank
92 mech inf
96 armor
6 artillery
2 ICBMs
15 transports
7 carriers
19 destroyers
3 battleships
18 nuclear subs
41 jets
12 stealth fighters
18 stealth bombers
1 leader
7 armies
1 cruiser
12 mobile SAMs
uncounted slaves

PS: Here's our most recent battle log from SABER:

Spoiler :

Nuclear missile dropped on The Silo killing 1 citizen.
Nuclear missile dropped on the tile E-NE of The Igloo leaving a 2/4
mech infantry, 2 2/4 modern armor, and a tactical nuke in the stack
that was E-E-N of The Igloo.
5 stealth bombers destroy the mech and the 2 modern armor.

Stealth bomber kills a citizen in The Silo.

Tile S-SW of The Arboretum – 4 stealth bombers destroy barricade,
rails, roads, and mine.
Stealth bomber destroys road W of The Chamber.

Bombing The Igloo:

Stealth Bomber: 4/4 jet fighter -> 2/4
Stealth Bomber: Citizen killed
Stealth Bomber: 2/4 jet fighter destroyed
Stealth Bomber: miss
Stealth Bomber: citizen killed
Stealth Bomber: citizen killed
Stealth Bomber: citizen killed

As you can see SABER knows which two cities we are accumulating shields in and they are determined to keep them at population one. That means our progress can be only three shields per turn or 14 turns from launch. SABER has also begun nuking our land forces. It seems clear their intent is to eliminate our defenses then land and destroy our space ship. Our only defense will be whatever nukes we make. Tactical nukes maybe useless given their limited range and inability to move if there are no roads or rails. Do you see any hope at all?

Personally, I think if this were a chess game we would resign now if we hadn't done so before. I am willing to carry on but I see little point in it and can't really justify spending large amounts of time on the turns.

donsig

 

[CommandoBob]

Sent to The Council after we played Turn 309 but before we sent the game to them.

Dear Fellow Blue Bloods,

Saber has been nuke happy with us, also. Our second capital city, Marad-Dur, and Ninhursag-Ki, were cursed with the radioactive clouds of Orange dust. We lost population, and while we continue to grieve for them, this attack also cut the roads to Marad-Dur this turn. We are busy rebuilding them, but that will not complete until next turn. Thus, for this turn we have no Workers to send you.

We have sent 130 gold, our World Map and a zoomed out view of your south east coastline. It shows nothing but that nothing might be used to your advantage.

Both cities targeted by Saber were building ICBMs. Instead of finishing next turn, we have a delay of about 8 turns from now before the first one completes. Cleanup and rebuilding will shorten this time; we'll know by how much next turn.

On Victory
The people of Free cannot win this game, but those of The Council can. Fourteen turns is a long time, but victory is almost within your grasp. We will send you whatever we can for as long as we can to help you achieve that victory. If Saber prevails before that time, well, then they do and they win a game that is theirs to win. All three teams know that. If, however, you can build that engine, even if everything is held together with duct-tape, spit and kite string, and do it before the Orange Crush tramples your cities into dust, you will have a great victory.

The times are desperate but in 14 turns there is hope. Keep that hope alive.

Sincerely yours,

Art Parry
aka CommandoBob

Let FREEdom ring,
Let the white dove sing...

Attachments

xcSEC231

Spoiler :

 

[CommandoBob]

Sent to The Council before we played Turn 310.

Dearest Brethern,

We have not yet played Turn 310. We accepted your gift of World Map and then looked at your fair land. It now has an infection of Orange. As you know, The Treasury and The Chamber have been forcibly annexed by Saber.

We took screenshots (attached) and then exited the game.

The Silo still needs 13 turns to complete the SS Engine. It may last two more turns before it is captured by Saber. It will not be in your control long enough to leave the planet.

Next turn The Gulag will fall. It is empty or lightly defended. It cannot be reinforced this turn since it is not roaded. It will not autoraze.

Our nearest ICBM is about 7 turns away, far too late to help. We have one Tactical Nuke, but no submarines to put it on.

We don't see a way that The Silo can hold out for 13 turns. One, two, and maybe even three, but not thirteen.



Are we ready to end this on this turn?

Sincerely yours,

Art Parry
aka CommandoBob

Let FREEdom ring,
Let the white dove sing...

xc230SEC

Spoiler :

xc230SECzo

Spoiler :

 

[CommandoBob]

Recieved from The Council before we played Turn 301.

Dear Friends in Light Blue,

Some on the Council have been ready to end long ago. Others would like to see the game conclude naturally. It is tough to give up, being only forty shields from launching. Losing our new capital and our escape pod is a different matter. In that event I believe the Council would readily concede. We urge you to continue so we can assess the situation. If The Gulag cannot be saved the Council will vote on surrendering, a vote I am quite sure will pass.

I must apologize for not communicating last turn. Let me now explain what we last saw. SABER landed six armor on our southeast coast. We almost missed them since their units are camouflaged to resemble the radioactive orange goo that covers our land. While we were unable to touch this mini invasion force or to defend The Chamber or The Treasury our generals dispatched a force to The Gulag that we feel is sufficient to defend that city. This is barring nuclear strikes, of course. We also have a tactical nuke in defensible range and rushed two more. We are embarrassingly low on gold because of this. We also did not have the heart to abandon what were once two of our most glorious cities.

We do not know what new units SABER may have landed but we would like to continue a bit longer if you are willing.

donsig
Speaking for the Council

 

[CommandoBob]

Sent in reply to The Council, before we played Turn 310.

Dear Bold Blue Brothers,

We are with you till the end, whichever way it turns out.

We should be able to reconnect Marad-Dur this turn and send a few workers to you. That would let you build up The Gulag a bit. We might be able to send five workers, which would bump it up to size 6, for a little more defense.

We may have some buildings we can sell for some extra cash to send your way. I'll check to be sure.

Saber hit Cat Ballou and Chicago XIII last turn with nukes. Cat Ballou was two turns out from a TacNuke; Chicago XIII was working on a Stealth Bomber.

Sincerely yours,

CommandoBob
aka Art Parry

Let FREEdom ring,
Let the white dove sing...

 

[CommandoBob]

Sent to The Council after we played Turn 310 but before we sent the game to them.

Dear Fellow Sufferers of Orange Tinted Tiles,

We were a bit too optimistic about the workers we could send. It ended up being only three. There were others we wanted to send, but their work had already taken away their movement this turn.

We did sell some surplus buildings. Libraries, universities and research labs went on the auction block, along with some scattered harbors and markets. We were able to send you 950 gold from the Help The Council Kill Saber! telethon. We know it will be put to good use.

Sincerely yours,

Art Parry
aka CommandoBob

Let FREEdom ring,
Let the white dove sing...

 

[CommandoBob]

Sent to The Council before we played Turn 311.

Dear Blue Allies,

As you know by now, The Gulag has fallen.

We've attached overhead imagery of the area.

Are you still in it?

Sincerely yours,

Art Parry
aka CommandoBob

Let FREEdom ring,
Let the white dove sing...

Attachements

xc229TG

Spoiler :

 

[CommandoBob]

Recieved from The Council before we played Turn 311.

Dear Team FREE,

Sorry for taking so long to reply. Most of the Council has been holed up in bomb proof shelters and communication has been difficult. The Council has no objections to throwing in the towel now that The Gulag has fallen and our spaceship has been destroyed. Would you like to make a post in the UN from your team or do you prefer us to post first?

Thanks for all your help and thanks for a fun game.

donsig
Speaking for the Council

 

[CommandoBob]

Reply to The Council.

Dear Blue Partners in Science, Life and Death,

We will make our announcement via the UN shortly, via a story.

In-game we will gift all our cities to Saber, except for the capital, and then send the game to you.

If The Council does the same, that should be enough to give Saber a Domination victory on Turn 312.

We will not message Saber about our decision. Keeping them in suspense while they ponder the UN story won't hurt them any and will make the victory all the sweeter.

And it has been a fun game... but I am glad (well, and both) it is over.
Sincerely yours,

Art Parry
aka CommandoBob

Let FREEdom ring,
Let the white dove sing...

 

[CommandoBob]

Sent to The Council before we sent the game to them.

Dear Teammates of The Council,

The deal has been done and awaits Saber's acceptance.

The story will be posted soon.

Attached is a screenshot of what we sent Saber.

Good gaming!

Sincerely yours,

Art Parry
aka CommandoBob

Let FREEdom ring,
Let the white dove sing...

Attachements

xc229 Saber Peace

Spoiler :

Note to self: Post #7,000