Turn 2
Captain Ross ordered Lieutenant Drake to punch it to A - 1, or Tin Town, as it was better known, in order to get the valuable information straight to the Rebel High Command. Unfortunately, even as they were moving, other events were unfolding across the Solar System.
In the Inner System, the factories and gears of War burst to life on Terra and Luna. Expecting a clean and easy win earlier in the War, the Earthling Generals and Presidents hadn't deemed a full military mobilization necessary, but they were disillusioned by the bloodbath on the Red Planet. New Super Carriers and Battle Cruisers were quickly laid out, and within a month two brand-new Terran Fleets were setting course from mother Earth.
The purpose of these new vessels soon became apparent. An all-out assault was launched on the asteroid belt, and 2 of the 3 bases held by the Colonies were Assaulted. A-1 was blockaded and embargoed by 2 Terran Battle Fleets, prime Units that had seen combat in earlier campaigns around Mars and Jupiter. Tin Town is a highly strategic base, controlling vital information that would allow the Earthlings to discover and navigate to Far-Reach, and there is no possibility that the Colonies will let it go lightly.
Meanwhile, the Terrans (also known as the Bluecoats, because of the Solar Fleet Uniform) scavenged among the freighters and transports of Io, Jupiter, and Ganymede, and soon had a new, auxiliary fleet under construction. Most of the ships were refitted with armor and weaponry, but were much poorer counterparts to the main Bluecoat fleets, but some of the ships, especially one carrier and a full bay of fighters, were fresh, top-of-the-line vessels created by the few remaining factories in and around the largest planet.
A-2, another mining belt, also known as the Great Conveyor Belt, for its position resting at the center of Solar trade, was also attacked. With the garrison fleet in Tin Town held down by Terran advances, and no other way for reinforcements to reach the isolated station, The Conveyor Belt was surrounded, and the fleet there destroyed. Upon Reaching A-1, the only reports you can here are that the defenses took a heavy toll on Earthling approaches, but in the weight of numbers carried the day.
Not all hope is lost, however. In order to mount their assault on A-3, the Solar Fleet had to peel off one of its garrison groups, specifically the fleet station over Jupiter. With no real support strong enough to counter them, the Colonials eagerly pushed forward with their own battle fleet, quickly landing on and blockading the Gas Giant. Fighting rages on in the skies and clouds, although with such an overwhelming aerial advantage, and all of the cities floating (there is no real surface), the battle's result seems a foregone conclusion.
Meanwhile, gathering refugee ships, cargo vessels, and producing their own, more efficient (though not as heavily armored or armed) Combat vessels from factories scattered across rebel space, the Outer Planets (and Venus) manage to scrounge another 3 Battle Fleets together, and even though many of the fleets are undisciplined, poorly equipped, or even militia, they all share a profound leadership, and determination to fight back against their "oppressors".
But the Crew of the Sirius couldn't worry about, or even catalog, the transmissions that they received upon disembarking from the jump drive. Instead they had to focus on avoiding the sudden presence of two large enemy fleets, circling around the target destination.
Because you failed the Negotiation roll on Mars, the enemy has been tipped off that your ship may be coming, and it will be more difficult to avoid the enemy patrols.
You must beat a 0 to remain undetected and pass on your way.
The pilot rolls a d10 for a 7 + 1 (Leadership skill of Captain) + 6 (rank of Pilot) + 3 (Evade Skill) = 17. A decent effort, but not enough to evade the enemy patrols. They were looking for approaching vessels anyway, and with the tip they were able to focus some squadrons around the Mars approach, and engage you in combat.
((OK, this will serve as a sort of combat tutorial, as well as giving me a place to implement an experience mechanic that will allow you guys to rank up. I'll be subtracting some fuel for the journey, but otherwise you guys will have to manage what power goes where in order to poer the various functions of the ship. I'll also list the stats of your opposing ship shortly.
EDIT: Because the Pilot is Rank 6, he is more efficient plotting the course to Tin Town, and therefore the total energy expenditure is less than I assumed it would be. 2.5 * 6 = 15. So 15% of the initial PU expenditure is cut away.
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131 111 PU, depleting one fuel cell down to 9, though not expending a cell entirely.))