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I'm enjoying this AAR. What has Alexei done, or not done?

For outstanding achievement in the bafflement of this readAAR, I award you the Order of the Large and Intimidating Robert. You may now be referred to as TemplarComander OLIR. :D

I, TemplarComander OLIR, do solemnly thank you, Sir BigBadBob. In all seriousness though, Thank you very much for this award!

As to what Alexei has done, it shall be revealed overtime.

Is Russian influence in Yemen actually also in RL? As far as I remember they are quite on the american side or?

See loki's explanation below.

no, the old South Yemen was pro-Soviet and the North pro-US (or the other way around, I now forget), there was a brief civil war in the early 90s that saw the collapse of the pro-USSR regime

yet another impressive update

going back to my early comment about ambiguity. I think I now have grasped that he has been sentenced for some crime or the other (real or imagined) but was a bit unsure. You could refer to anything that is onerous and long term as a sentence, not necessarily a legal thing. So a period as a conscript could be described as a sentence.

I hadn't considered it like that, but you have a point. To clear it up a bit, he has indeed committed a crime.

It's good to see that even though Alexei has been sentenced (?), he still doesn't smoke :D

Also, to answer your question, if it makes for a better AAR read, then by all means, go for it.

I'm going to take another look at it, if only because 3 or 4 years for an aircraft carrier, while perhaps being accurate in terms of RL, is not very practical for gameplay purposes. So it's on the bench, and I probably wouldn't shorten it too much.

*giggles creepily*

I loves me custom events in an AAR :D

I prefer them to my older methods that I used to use ... In fact, I've probably spent more time writing the events, than playing the game :p
 
In my book you change change what you want in-game to fit the narrative you are building.

I liked the excursion to Moscow. When I first read that someone had shot the foreign minister I thought it might be the 255th, but then realised it is too soft a job for a penal battalion.
 
Was Alexi done for something to do with drinking? Great AAR, very enjoyable, and with a hottie of a possible villain? Excellent!
 
I think it's ok to make production time for units shorter. Just don't make it too short, keep it in plausible level. I wonder how will situation evolve. Yemen is interesting choice. Expanding Russian influence (back) to the Southern entrance into Red Sea could be a good move. At least Americans won't be able to accuse you of aggressive expansionism due to invasion of Iraq being in full progress.
 
In my book you change change what you want in-game to fit the narrative you are building.

I liked the excursion to Moscow. When I first read that someone had shot the foreign minister I thought it might be the 255th, but then realised it is too soft a job for a penal battalion.

Maybe not too soft for a penal battalion, but definitely too soft for the 255th. As for lowering production times, I've decided to keep them as they are, but I will have a devilish plan if my game goes the same as some Russian Test Games.

Was Alexi done for something to do with drinking? Great AAR, very enjoyable, and with a hottie of a possible villain? Excellent!

Check the first post for some info on his crime. Also, thanks!

I think it's ok to make production time for units shorter. Just don't make it too short, keep it in plausible level. I wonder how will situation evolve. Yemen is interesting choice. Expanding Russian influence (back) to the Southern entrance into Red Sea could be a good move. At least Americans won't be able to accuse you of aggressive expansionism due to invasion of Iraq being in full progress.

Indeed, my choice for Yemen was partially made because they have the second largest population (just behind Saudi Arabia) in Arabia, and a large population will let them field a large army. Also, for their past instability and Russian influence in the area.
As for lowering production times, I've decided to keep them as they are, but I will have a devilish plan if my game goes the same as some Russian Test Games.


Update Possibly Tomorrow. Not sure who it will follow ATM.
 
Operation Confederate, Somewhere in Southern Yemen

iraq03.JPG

Operation Confederate was rather hastily conceived for an operation of its size, with forces from the 255th and other, more tactful and reliable forces, taking part. Many of those arriving, came with false passports, and by civilian airline. Others arrived in secret. A reason for this, is the need for speed to build up another reliable regime, with Saddam on the edge, and Iraq under invasion.

I stood there on the street corner with the wind, picking up and dying down as I looked up the empty road; a myriad of brown and gray shacks and hovels with faded signs, decorated in the curves and loops of the native tongue. Up the street, some kids emerged from an alley, rolling a misshapen loop over and over itself down the road, swatting it with a stick every so often. It was the only sound to be heard, the pitter-patter of feet on hard dirt, apart from the wind.

The screech of a microphone tore into my ear. “Merde!” I yelled as I keeled over, and wrenched it from my ear. A series of beeps and pops signalled the voice of Ivan.

“Paris, you ready?” came his voice. I wrenched myself upright, and thrust my head back, wiping the sweat from my brow as the sun beat down on me, a baking oven reflecting off the sand, and the mud brick homes. “Red Leader, I think he’s dead already!” he said, laughing as he finished.

“Paris, we’ll be there in thirty seconds.” Romov said, in a rather energetic tone. I blinked and let my head down, looking at the rags wrapped around me. A single, enveloping, grey rag covered me from chin to my feet, my toes barely visible in sandals. Another piece of tattered cloth was wrapped round my head and face, obscuring all but my eyes. I must have looked like one of the Al Qaeda zealots fighting the Americans in Afghanistan, and given the nature of the mission, it did not ease my nerves.

Down the road, a car pulled into view, a trail of dust rising behind it. I’d imagine that a dust trail, is not the sort that the 255th was used to leaving. I had no doubt, that it wouldn’t be the only trail left after this mission. As the old , and battered car pulled closer I could see Romov in the driver’s seat, dressed as I was, though his turban was draped alongside half his face, exposing a growing beard that might otherwise have been hidden. At first, I hardly noticed Ivan in the back, hidden amongst the sand coloured seats, in his similarly coloured robe.

"Couldn't grab a white car, could you, Red?" I asked as I pulled open one of the side doors and jumped in next to Ivan, who stared blankly at me.

"We don't argue with what the Kremlin provides, they'd just kill us." Romov said, not glancing off from the road as he sped forward and passed the children with their sticks and tumbling loops.

"What good is a white car out here going to do?" Ivan said, holding his empty glare.

"White reflects the heat. It would keep us cool." I said, with the voice of what must have been a condescending tutor, expecting his student to already know the basics which he had never heard.

"Do you believe that shit Romov?" Ivan called out. Romov was silent, speeding down the dirt road, past a wrecked car, and into the howling desert.

4_0.jpg

"He doesn't believe you." Ivan added, turning off to stare into the desert. It was then that Romov glanced up in the mirror, cracked on its left side as it was, and looked back at us.

"We're meeting with Rudnev further up the coast. Keep an out for-"

"What fucking coast?" Ivan interrupted. Romov paused for a moment before continuing.

"Get some rest. You're going to need it."


Terrible bout of Writer's Block today. Spent nearly 4 hours trying to write something. Hopefully, it will whet your appetite until the next update.
 
Not really. I demand an update tomorrow!!

Or later. Whatever. I do wonder what theyre doing out there though
 
Not really. I demand an update tomorrow!!

Or later. Whatever. I do wonder what theyre doing out there though

I will have an update for you for Sunday.

Can we just have one, really really really big update on like Saturday?

That is my new plan, thanks for the suggestion ! :D

This is very interesting, I'll be watching!

(fellow competitor)

Always good to see a fellow competitor on here :D
Thanks!

at a guess that wreck is the 'white car' if so ... I'm keen to learn more

really atmospheric writing

Thanks!

So yeah, expect a big update Sunday. ;)
 
Somewhere in Northern Iraq ...

e-3-AWACS.jpg

The prototype E-5 Vanguard, an aircraft designed to function as a mobile Command and Control Centre, based on the E-3 Sentry aircraft.

“Wolfpack, you are clear for Operation Sapphire. Aerial recon shows limited force deployment of Iraqi ground troops. We count 34 tangos spread throughout the facility, 13 on the exterior. When you secure the package, call up the NEST teams on hand. Wolfpack Six, you have operational lead.” Commander Whitman said, looking at the black and white heat map screen in front of him. He could see the facility, a large square like facility, with towers rising from its four corners, and a large central one, gradually arching up.

From the ground it must have looked like a solid tower, maybe a control center or the office space of the men in charge of the Iraqi Nuclear Program, but here, from above the clouds, it was hollow. The peak of the building looked in on a dug out area beneath it where missiles and rockets were launched as part of Saddam Hussein’s weapons tests. Here in Northern Iraq, the fight would go unnoticed. Most of the army was engaged in the south, and the rest was in the cities, patrolling and preventing uprisings.

Commander Whitman and his team were aboard a prototype of the new Air Command Centre, complete with stealth protection, and state of the art surveillance gear. This was his operation and no one on his team would let anything go wrong. Each of them were at their station, headphones stuck to their ears and blinking lights and flashing images on the screens in front of them.

This was the first time the government had authorized a mission like this since the Cold War. After that, it had become too risky. Or at least, many had argued that.

seal.jpg

“Execute.” Came the voice of Wolfpack Six.

The blinking images of the Navy SEALS sprung into action and the soldiers ran forward, flashes erupting from their rifles as Iraqis fell to the floor. Without hesitation, the SEALS continued with the slaughter before the Iraqis could even react.
“Form up on entry points.” The team leader said, his voice bristling through gunfire and static.

“Switch to helmet feed.” Commander Whitman ordered as a flash of light erupted around the entry points, and the SEALS vanished into the building.

“Yes Sir.” Came the response of one of his subordinates. It took a second, but the screen fizzled to static for a moment, as another flash of light slowly faded to display the helmet feed of Wolfpack Six.

Commander Whitman and the others, watched in silence as the warriors moved through the building, undeterred and unstoppable.

“Team One is at Entry Bravo. Team Two, status?” came the same, calm voice on the intercom.

“Team Two has Dr. Al Saleem in custody. Removing him from the premises.” Said another voice, a more anxious voice.

“Good job Team Two. Team One, breach.” Wolfpack Six ordered, as the men stacked up on either side of the door. One of them, dressed in the usual black of the SEALS thrust a charge onto the door and stepped back as it went off, temporarily blinding the camera. Bursts of gunfire could be heard over the radio, as the image feed faded in and out.

Several calls of “Clear!” came on over the radio, though the image on the screen would not clear.

“Wolfpack Six, I can’t see anything in there. Do you have the package secured?”

“Negative, Sir. The Nuclear Device is not present, I repeat, the Nuclear Device is absent from the site.”
 
Hm. I wonder where they got those?
Also,
"complete with stealth protection"?

How the hell can a ordinary passanger plane THAT big be stealthy. Not to mention that big ass radar.