• We have updated our Community Code of Conduct. Please read through the new rules for the forum that are an integral part of Paradox Interactive’s User Agreement.
Yes, what is the nefarious number one doing? Establishing S.P.E.C.T.R.E. ? :eek: How many white cats has he owned? :D

225px-ErnstStavroBlofeld.jpg

Ernst Stavro Blofeld

According to the wikipedia article:

Wikipedia said:
Fleming details Blofeld's background in the novel Thunderball; none of his background is ever revealed in the Bond films. Ernst Stavro Blofeld was born on May 28, 1908 to a Polish father and a Greek mother in Gdynia. Blofeld attended the University of Warsaw where he studied economics and political history. He later went to the Warsaw Technical Institute to study engineering and radionics. He then took a communication position with the Polish government, at the Ministry of Posts and Telegraphs. He began to use his position for insider trading, buying and selling stocks at the Warsaw Stock Exchange.

Forseeing World War II, Blofeld made copies of top-secret wires and sold them to Nazi Germany. Before the German invasion of Poland in 1939, he destroyed all records of his existence, then moved to Turkey, where he worked for Turkish radio and set up an intelligence organization. During the war, he sold information to both sides. After the defeat of Erwin Rommel, he decided to back the Allied war effort; ironically, he was awarded numerous medals by the Allied powers after the war's end. After the war, Blofeld temporarily moved to South America before founding S.P.E.C.T.R.E.

Despite his willingness to murder millions to get what he wants, Blofeld has a few professional scruples. For instance, in the novel Thunderball he learned that during a standard fundraising kidnapping mission of a young girl, the responsible agent had sexual relations with her. Although Blofeld says that the relations may have been "voluntary or involuntary on the girl's part," he had the agent killed as punishment and returned the girl and half the ransom to her father as compensation. His reasons had nothing to do with morality, but rather with the importance of S.P.E.C.T.R.E. being known for keeping their word to those they did their "business" with.
 
Thanks for all the comments, and a special welcome to Stuyvesant and Storey - welcome to the readership!

Regarding the plot to come, I have a general idea of what is going to happen, but that is modified somewhat by actual game outcome and what ideas I happen to get that fit together with the big picture. There is a plot framework, you could say!

As to Blofeld, it would seem he's in his early thirties and working for the Turkish military intelligence right now, but he's surely furthering his main aim of enriching himself. Maybe he will find employment with the Si-Fan? ;)

Good catch about Bond's longevity, therev!
 
Last edited:
Leibstandarte Barracks, Berlin
Greater German Reich

December 20th, 1939

meyerA.jpg


One of the duties of a commanding officer that Otto Skorzeny would never learn to appreciate was drill instruction. During the officer training he had taken at Bad Tölz, he had learnt and understood why it was necessary and how it helped foster discipline and obedience in a unit, but he still felt like a complete idiot every time he stood on the court outside the III Bataillon barracks shouting ‘Left… left… left, right, left!’

The victorious end of the war and the advent of Christmas, a Christmas few in Germany had dared hope would be one occurring during a time of peace, had brought most of the Reich, including the constituents of her armed forces into a most un-martial mood. Thus on this dark winter morning, when great snow flakes drifted down from a tranquil sky to form a soft, sound-muffling blanket on the courtyard cobbles Skorzeny had felt particularly reluctant to take his men out for the daily drill. Atheist or not, his recent experiences made him look forward to this Christmas with a warm feeling he hadn’t had since he was one third of his current height.

The men seemed more at ease with the drill than their commander though, and esprit de corps made the Leibstandarte soldiers march through the half-melted slop as no other unit in the Waffen SS, or indeed the whole Wehrmacht could. Hitler’s Praetorians, all muscular, blond and of the same towering height looked magnificent on parade. Their fanatic dedication to the Reich and to national socialism actually made them a very easy unit to command, Skorzeny thought as they stomped by in perfect step.

Some instinct made the Austrian SS officer turn his head and he saw two men approaching across the wide open space that was the courtyard of the Leibstandarte barracks, where white-washed Panzer III’s stood lined up against the outer wall. One of them was clad in SS black while the other, a short man with a huge grey beard wore a plain civilian coat. He was looking about nervously. Despite the distance, it didn’t take Otto many seconds to realize the SS man was Günther Duhrn. He had no idea who the civilian might be though.

‘3rd batallion… HALT!’ Their final step splendidly thunderous, the Leibstandarte demi-gods came to a halt in perfect formation.

‘Men! We have a visitor from Allgemeine SS – Sturmbannführer Duhrn! Men! Let’s show him how the real soldiers of the SS handle themselves!’

‘Jawohl, Sturmbannführer!’ Even their answering shout was in harmonious unison. Sometimes, just sometimes, the whole SS soldier thing slightly sickened him, Skorzeny though. His only comfort was that the Heer was even worse stickers for protocol and discipline. Compared to them, the Waffen SS was almost relaxed.

Duhrn and the civilian came closer and Skorzeny ordered a spotlessly executed about face, so that the Bataillon came to stand facing Skorzeny and Duhrn.

‘Sturmbannführer, so good to you to come to visit us!’ he fairly much shouted. ‘The men stand ready to be inspected!’

‘Eh… thank, you, Sturmbannführer, that won’t be necessary.’ the white-haired sorcerer answered loudly, and then in a low half-whisper: ‘Can we have a word in private?’

‘Sure thing, old boy, just talk like a normal person would and nobody will hear a word you say. Here at the barracks, we only communicate by virtue of shouting,’ Otto answered in a normal conversational tone of voice. ‘ISN’T THAT SO, MEN?’ he added with a resounding bellow.

‘Jawohl, Sturmbannführer!’ the men, who hadn’t heard a word of the exchange, replied in mighty chorus.

‘Very cute, Otto.’ Duhrn said dryly. ‘Look, I have a job for you, and between you and me, I have been given exceptional powers by the Reichsführer-SS for this special project of mine, you know, the one we went scouting for a few days back.’

‘The Dreamland offensive? What do you need from me?’

‘Well, the logistics of moving a Wehrmacht army across the Plateu of Leng are not trivial. As you know there are certain limitations to machinery, so we’re going to have to drag and tow all our vehicles and artillery pieces using only animal power and simple mechanics. That means building a railway through the portal across the Plateu to the Dreamgate into Central Asia…’

‘Why not put up the portal flush with the Dreamgate?’ Skorzeny wondered.

‘As far as I’ve understood, there’s some kind of limit to how close two two-way openings can be, although I might be mistaken. I know very little of these things, truth be told. Once I get Xaltotun’s mummy up and running, he might be able to correct me, but in the mean time, we better plan for the worst case, don’t you agree?’

‘Yes, that makes sense. So what am I supposed to do?’

‘Building the railway and amassing a proper supply dump means we’ll have to have a long-term presence in the Dreamland. The work teams from Organization Todt will have to be protected from the locals – which by the way are not to be trifled with…’

‘I remember those frescoes, Durhn. Vividly.’

‘Well then you know what I’m talking about. You’ll also remember that any soldiers we send into the Dreamland will be able to fight only with their bayonets and rifle butts, since modern technology doesn’t work in the Dreamland. I want to do something about that.’

‘Are you saying what I think you are?’

‘Yes. I want you to train your men to fight with low-tech weapons, like swords, and spears and bows I guess. I’ll leave the details up to you, being a fencer and all. You can order anything you like in the way of equipment, but time is an issue here, so don’t go too exotic on me. I’ve already taken the liberty of placing an order for eight hundred swords from the firm that make our Rune Swords, although we won’t be enchanting these, of course. I guess you should think about some kind or body armour too. Devise conversions if you can, to save time, you know.’

‘You’re shitting me!’

‘Would I do that?’ Durhn said, feigning a hurt look. ‘I’ve even brought you a little gift to help you out. Master Lichtenauer, come forward please!’

The civilian, a man in his fifties with an enormous grey beard protruding over his felt coat, cast one fearful glance at Duhrn and complied, coming to stand next to him. Only now did Skorzeny notice that he did seem to suffer from some kind of skin disorder, since his complexion seemed too coarse, almost grainy.

‘Master Lichtenauer, this is Sturmbannführer Otto Skorzeny, an officer of the armed forces of the German Reich. Otto, this is Master Johannes Lichtenauer, founder of the German School of Swordmanship and the single greatest teacher of the art of longsword fencing in history!’

Skorzeny stared. ‘Are you more than usually insane, Günther? Johannes Lichtenauer lived in the 14th century, and the art of longsword fencing has been dead for the last two hundred years!’

‘Dead?’ the man presented as Lichtenauer whispered, looking grief-struck. ‘I beg thee, Herr Offizer, I doth be Johannes Lichtenauer recast in this impious travesty of flesh by thyne aquintance, Herr Duhrn. A pagan and a necromancer doth he be, having roused me from my mortal remains to serve him in this Hellish realm, that he claimeth to be Germany. If thou art in truth a soldier, I beg thee: free me from him, take me into thyne service, and in return thou and thyne men shalt be instructed in the noble art of the sword! It pains me to think that mine art doth have perished in the long centuries passed since my demise. And once thou have learnt well, then as payment shalt thou return me, after confession and last rites, once more to my eternal sleep, so that I might violate the Laws of God no more!’

Skorzney stared with open mouth at the famous fencing master, five centuries dead.

‘See?’ Duhrn said with a sardonic smile on his thin lips. ‘I told you so!’​
 
Last edited:
The Yogi said:
Maybe he will find employment with the Si-Fan? ;)

Noooooo! :eek: Blofeld must not be a mere puppet of the Devil Doctor, he should be an arch villain in his own right. :)

I don't know if I need to say it - but that was another excellent update. :)
 
So Skorzeny and his men are going to turn into a bunch of SS knights being trained by a 600 year old zombie ... that is an interesting turn of events. I am strongly reminded of one of the rather odd levels in one of the Medal of Honor games, in which you had to infiltrate a castle being run by a nazi mad scientist, battling off nazis in full plate with swords, and German Shephards armed with SMGs and rifles.

If Blofeld is going to running around causing trouble, what about the even more sinister Dr. Evil?

250px-Dr_Evil.jpg
 
a splendid update, I like the zombie teacher touch. It seems that the grunts are going to have to learn how to fight with medieval weaponry. :cool:

But why not using powerful BB guns, compressing air with a spring is not a invention, but compressed air is sort of a natural phenomenae, so it could be used in the dreamworld. Not particulary modern concept not involving particulary modern technology. ;)

What do you think? :confused:
 
Deus said:
What do you think? :confused:

Doesn't work, every modern tool/weapon brought into the Dreamlands turns into a medieval ‘equivalent’. Still, Yogi might have decided on different rules for his Dreamlands. :)
 
Great updates, Yogi; having three so close together was just awesome.

As for the medieval weapons question, there are several gunpowder weapons that might still be effective like the old hand-cannons; or do you mean just swords and bows and arrows when you say "low-tech"?

Also, the zombie teacher is a nice touch. It makes me wonder just who else might come back from the grave in the future.
 
Thanks everybody, I'm happy you like it!

Regading the Zombie thing, I'm using the "rules" for resurrection of the dead laid down by HPL in his story "The Case of Charles Dexter Ward", ie a COMPLETE body is reduced to its "elemental saltes" by certain alchemic proces and then brought back to life using a special incantation. The revenant looks much like he did in life except there's a certain coarseness to his complexion - we're not talking shambling brain-swilling living dead here! The revenant can also be returned to his "elemental saltes" by a reverse form of the raising incantation, as done by Grand Inquisitor Hidalgo early on in this story.

I wasn't aware of entering Dreamland in the flesh lead to objects "changing" into their medieval equivalents. That would imply some kind of intelligence or consciousness overseeing Dreamland and those travelling into it. What I have assumed was that the laws of physics were warped there leading to modern technology not working. Duhrn and Skorzeny, for example, always found themselves in dressed their SS uniforms, because that's how they imagined themselves in their dreams. They were not outfitted in doublet and hose. :D
 
If I were Skorzeny, I'd go with a mix of weapons, not just swords.

Crossbows for ranged fire (Welsh longbows would be ideal, but they take an awful lot of skill to use well), swords for close melee, and polearms (not certain which - Swiss halberds might do) for most other combat situations. Maces or other bludgeoning tools may also be needed to smash armour; swords have a hard time with plate or mail.

Also bring along some light steel pack ballistas (bolt-throwers). Artillery is very useful.
 
LM+ said:
If I were Skorzeny, I'd go with a mix of weapons, not just swords.

Crossbows for ranged fire (Welsh longbows would be ideal, but they take an awful lot of skill to use well), .

Also bring along some light steel pack ballistas (bolt-throwers). Artillery is very useful.

He'll have to go with crossbows. It took months if not years to train someone to use the longbow effectively. I like the idea of ballistas.

Joe
 
The Yogi said:
That would imply some kind of intelligence or consciousness overseeing Dreamland and those travelling into it...Duhrn and Skorzeny, for example, always found themselves in dressed their SS uniforms, because that's how they imagined themselves in their dreams...

Maybe...or maybe not. :) Our logic can probably not be applied on this. The uniforms would actually not change.

Btw, did you see my mail to your email address?
 
Magnificent updates Yogi. You're really spoiling us with the number of updates lately, and it's much appreciated. :) I think Skorzeny will find Duhrn to be a very valuable friend to have in the future. His magic abilites seem to be formidable, at least compared to his contemporaries. As for the Elixir Vitae, I doubt it's a trap set by Fu. He couldn't have known that Bond would be injured badly enough to require it. You guys are just getting paranoid. :p Fu has mastered the art of appearing to know everything, which is more important than actually knowing.
 
IIRC The SS were big on the medieval concepts - thats where a lot of their mythos came from. I would think that there might aready be weapons and weapon wielders around already.

My only conern is Hitler. Once used the Dreamland will be too tempting not to use again. Maybe to Washington or London - imagine - knights in armour on their warhorses charging through Trafalgar Square at a think blue line of Bobbies. Or Sword wielding Teutons attacking the last remnant of the National Guard guarding Lincoln's Memorial!

Just thought - once the Dreamland passage becomes know - there will be armies from all nations criss-crossing it! Good Grief! I think I'll have a glass of red and lie down!
 
I wouldn't worry about that, London or Washington or any other place could be easly defended by the use of a secret allied weapon whose simple use inspires fear in the most coragerous medieval heart... GUNPOWDER!

And also they would all need the permision of the Priest Not To Be Described to do that.
 
therev said:
IIRC The SS were big on the medieval concepts - thats where a lot of their mythos came from. I would think that there might aready be weapons and weapon wielders around already.

My only conern is Hitler. Once used the Dreamland will be too tempting not to use again. Maybe to Washington or London - imagine - knights in armour on their warhorses charging through Trafalgar Square at a think blue line of Bobbies. Or Sword wielding Teutons attacking the last remnant of the National Guard guarding Lincoln's Memorial!

Just thought - once the Dreamland passage becomes know - there will be armies from all nations criss-crossing it! Good Grief! I think I'll have a glass of red and lie down!

I think they'd start sending armies in there and guard the exits/crossroads ;)
 
So, the Todt organisation builds a railway through Dreamland to attack Fu? I'm astonished. Keep it up Yogi.