Give the Contingency Star-Eaters

[mial42]

It is heavily implied by the turned-to-dust ringworld orbiting a black hole in one of the Ancient Caretaker's systems that the Contingency can blow up stars. This was a neat Easter egg pre-Nemesis, but now the ability to destroy stars actually exists, and the Contingency should have it - say, one per hub. Just don't let them blow up their own fleets or hubs..

 

[Metallichydra]

I think the black holes and destroyed ringworlds is just because the ancient caretakers are really, really old.

 

[AUSTINZ]

I agree, but please make it look like a Contingency ship and don't just reuse the crisis model.

 

[GhostDanny]

I think the black holes and destroyed ringworlds is just because the ancient caretakers are really, really old.

Yeah, I always assumed the star just turned blackhole naturally.
Possibly because they build the ring world, when it was already well into it's red giant phase.
Although that could still take a bit too long to happen naturally.

But it could've happened by many other different empires, not just the Contingency.

 

[mammonmachine]

This could be fun, but I don't think the Contingency should start with Star Eaters. I think it would work better as an escalation - either a response to the loss of one or more of their hubs, or as a next stage when they have wiped out enough of the galaxy (perhaps one that prompts the re-emergence of Cybrex Beta).

 

[NotAYakk]

I assume the Aetherophasic Engine is a lower-tier version of what the Contingency was programmed to stop.

But giving the Contingency star eating weapons makes sense. I'd have them build star bases, and have those star bases eat the sun, making it go supernova and collapse into a black hole and providing fuel for the Contingency. The base could survive the supernova (!) and and produce a 0% habitability station (defended by troops and that can be conquered).

The Contingency's resource is liquid metal. Each hub can produce liquid metal; so tie the spawning of replacement ships to this. (which also means if they find liquid metal in their conquests they get stronger).

The black hole stations could also have factories that produce dark matter and convert dark matter to liquid metal. Thus speeding up the process of spawning new ships slightly.

These stations can have hyperspace denial fields, 95% bombardment reduction, and significant troop counts; which would slow down the speed you can push the contingency back.

Right now, the solution to the contingency is to wipe out their wandering fleets, then start bombarding their hubs. This could add another dimension to the problem.

And left over are black hole systems and mega-stations with exotic buildings (dark matter siphons that produce dark matter, and liquid metal factories that consume dark matter and make a small amount of liquid metal).

 

[GhostDanny]

Why would the Contingency destroy stars?
They don't want to destroy the galaxy, just the empires within them.

 

[3ishop]

I thought the contingency wanted to save the galaxy from a possible internal threat caused by the civilizations within it...so blowing up stars seems counter point to that outside as the very last option where it would be ensured to fail otherwise. That then runs the issue of not being engaging.

 

[NotAYakk]

I thought the contingency wanted to save the galaxy from a possible internal threat caused by the civilizations within it...so blowing up stars seems counter point to that outside as the very last option where it would be ensured to fail otherwise. That then runs the issue of not being engaging.

No: their goal is to save the universe.

When they spot a society capable of building a type 30 singularity, they are supposed to cleanse it, because T30 singularities destroy the entire universe.

Destroying stars or entire gaalxies is a small scale problem next to what they are trying to solve. And they are built by aome crazy advanced ancient society.

They glitch and replace their activation trigger: in my headcannon this makes them less effective. Each of their planets is putting out pretty huge fleets every year: I imagine if they functioned properly, they'd notice the incoming singularity threat and build up a pile more before starting the attack.

My "black hole starbase" idea was just a way to make the fight more interesting and impactful.

The contingency fight is a 2 phase one. Phase 1 is conment being able to defeat a single wandering fleet.

Phade 2 is reduction: being able to defeat their hib defence fleet.

And once you hit phase 2, the rest is mop up.

There is a risk of fighting 2 fleets or a hub fleet and a wanderer and losing your fleet.

It would be good if the plot lasted longer somehow. And making black holes and harvesting them might do that.