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Director Consort Mariko Weiss posted:It seems unnecessarily harsh to refer to the destroyed colonies and their constituents as "toys." Led as they were by the shortsighted and foolish, these unfortunate victims of tragedy were creations of God like you or I.
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Jan 12, 2023 07:32
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Not to mention the difficulties inherent in maintaining a state of peaceful flux in our various quadrants in general. Expanding means upgrading to our own lofty standards of productivity and popularity. Bite only what you know you can protect. And try to wait for the cosmos to offer a special bargain so you can get that conquest with all your allies forming up navy that we wont have to buy.
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Jan 12, 2023 07:40
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Ilario Weiss posted:If only the noble houses of the Shannon League in general, and Homan in particular had been better able to cooperate and coexist. This tragedy wouldn't have occurred.
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Jan 12, 2023 07:53
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Stella Waters, officer in House Weiss Technology posted:Wait, that's not an asteroid... radar imaging is suggesting a relatively smooth metallic surface. By God. Could that be a habitat? We need a visual.
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Jan 13, 2023 12:51
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Ilario Weiss posted:As grim a topic as it is, Thomas's most recent brush with death does bring up a point. Our line of succession to the throne is well established, but what are our succession plans for council positions?
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Jan 14, 2023 01:39
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My understanding now (as non participant) is that all of the colonies under our control/influence have reasonably stable infrastrucutre and the worst of discontent has been cut down to managable levels and also our relations with our vassals are (for the most part) reasonable to the point they're not launching invasions of one another? Of the general (without knowing game mechanics) that 'get your own house fully in order' is an important before aggressively expanding. And also that we have suffiicent justification established, etc.
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Jan 14, 2023 02:24
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General Revil posted:
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Jan 14, 2023 02:42
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dervinosdoom posted:I honestly figured it would be my boy Romeo until his sister dies and then he royally screws things up by taking him and Prudence out of the council. That's actually one of the specific things I was thinking of. Romeo is in a great position to take over administration. But if Jane or Thomas, and Romeo's sister die in close succession, we'll have a big gaping hole in administration. Technology has the same ticking time bomb where Romeo's sister's passing will pull Prudence out of Technology. Ilario is in a good position to take over, but he is older than any of the Weiss siblings, and is likely to predecease them. Again not something to worry about in the immediate future, but it is there. Meanwhile, Diplomacy, Security, and Military have been our weaker departments. Diplomacy and Security seem to be essentially one-woman-departments, and I don't know if Military has ever been the same since the passing of the admiral.
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Jan 14, 2023 03:18
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Been a hot minute since I played myself, but I don't believe Romeo being promoted out of house Weiss would take Prudence away. That said, one of their children would then inherit Romeo's position when he kicks it. (Unless they're already at a higher noble rank in our house, which in practice means Jane's current position, or not directly controllable as a Duke of one of the Weiss League's vassal states. Or technically a baron, but they inherit a ducal post outside our league they'd move there instead as that's a higher rank.)
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Jan 14, 2023 03:31
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Director-General Jane Weiss posted:Of course, tradition dictates that, in the event of vacancies in their council, a ruler dictates the replacements for council positions, and so pre-defined successors are not strictly necessary. That said, I fully appreciate the concerns raised. To that end, and bearing in mind both questions of merit and questions of ensuring that the spouse of a sitting ruler is on the council as tradition demands, my current plans for council replacements in the event of vacancy are as follows- for Executive Director, Project Manager Rebecca Weiss, followed by Project Manager Romeo Weiss or Project Manager Malachi Weiss depending on who remains in our House. For Admiral, Colonel Geraldine Weiss. For Diplomacy Director- bearing in mind the advanced age of Keir Weiss and Rebecca's position in the succession- Senior Scientist Ilario Weiss. For Commissioner, Senior Investigator Noelle Garcia. For Technology Director, Senior Scientist Emily Weiss. I am aware of the thinness of our Diplomacy department and intend to ensure that the first promising candidate entering into their adulthood from our young members enters into Diplomacy to ensure that we are developing an effective successor to Mariko. Should an effective alternate successor to Mariko be developed, I then intend to have the alternate successor be the intended successor for Diplomacy Director and Senior Scientist Ilario Weiss as successor for Technology Director. As little as I like to consider our passing, we have all served for many years and the time will come we will be gathered to God's judgement and thereafter hopefully to our eternal reward, and it is our duty to leave a foundation in place for the next generation. Are there any questions or concerns about this plan?
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Jan 14, 2023 03:44
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Groetgaffel posted:Been a hot minute since I played myself, but I don't believe Romeo being promoted out of house Weiss would take Prudence away. That said, one of their children would then inherit Romeo's position when he kicks it. I think we'd lose Prudence along with Romeo, but we likely wouldn't lose their adult children (although their adult children would be eligible from being invited out of our court into theirs). The fact that everybody loves Jane at least improves our odds of talent retention in that event. That said, Ross 128 is under 'oldest sibling' inheritance, so the throne of Ross 128 then passes to his next oldest sibling, we're actually not in danger of Malachi inheriting Ross 128 from what I checked. wedgekree posted:My understanding now (as non participant) is that all of the colonies under our control/influence have reasonably stable infrastrucutre and the worst of discontent has been cut down to managable levels and also our relations with our vassals are (for the most part) reasonable to the point they're not launching invasions of one another? Of the general (without knowing game mechanics) that 'get your own house fully in order' is an important before aggressively expanding. And also that we have suffiicent justification established, etc. We have a lot still to work on in the colonies under our control as far as infrastructure and development, but they're basically out of the 'danger zone', at least. (Well, not a lot to work on in Vega, or a couple other colonies, some are actually fully developed.) Unrest is likewise a game of whack-a-mole, but one we're staying ahead of for now. What's really in order is relations with vassals, Jane is incredibly beloved amongst her vassals. Between the efforts of Diplomacy, Jane's glorious deeds, and our policy of running a consistent light tax rate which rather endears us to our vassals and buys us stability thereby. E: I believe that Thomas and Mariko can comment on the 'infrastructure' and 'vassal' questions respectively, given the privileged information they get in their departmental reports. I think, also, for the benefit of Wedgekree, the people getting privileged reports should indicate just how meaty the departmental reports are. And I need one for every department with a live player. It's something that would be overwhelming for most readers, for sure, if I were including all five departmental reports in every update. (And it's something that makes a lot of work not as immediately obvious to the casual eye.) nweismuller fucked around with this message at 03:55 on Jan 14, 2023 |
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Jan 14, 2023 03:49
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Ilario Weiss" posted:Thank you Jane.
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Jan 14, 2023 04:30
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nweismuller posted:E: I believe that Thomas and Mariko can comment on the 'infrastructure' and 'vassal' questions respectively, given the privileged information they get in their departmental reports. I think, also, for the benefit of Wedgekree, the people getting privileged reports should indicate just how meaty the departmental reports are. And I need one for every department with a live player. It's something that would be overwhelming for most readers, for sure, if I were including all five departmental reports in every update. (And it's something that makes a lot of work not as immediately obvious to the casual eye.) The reports I've been getting are nearly as long as the updates themselves. And our infrastructure is doing incredibly well. Thanks to investing in economic growth over everything else, we're getting tons of stuff done every turn. We've gone from a bit under ten wealth per turn to just over eighty in just twenty-six years, so you can imagine the difference that's made. Vega is also the most valuable colony in known space, with only one other colony able to match our base wealth (their facilities also get them a slightly higher bonus to admin, but we have the tax boost from the Corporate Tower, which gives us the edge in overall income long-term, I believe). Once we finish the admin tree and get our Galactic Markets up and running, the game's pretty much won. EDIT: Also, I'll claim Malachi if it's alright (don't recall anyone else claiming him), just to ensure there's continuity of leadership for the department. I'd just need a reminder of his current traits to determine how closely he takes after his father. EclecticTastes fucked around with this message at 13:06 on Jan 14, 2023 |
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Jan 14, 2023 12:58
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EclecticTastes posted:The reports I've been getting are nearly as long as the updates themselves. And our infrastructure is doing incredibly well. Thanks to investing in economic growth over everything else, we're getting tons of stuff done every turn. We've gone from a bit under ten wealth per turn to just over eighty in just twenty-six years, so you can imagine the difference that's made. Vega is also the most valuable colony in known space, with only one other colony able to match our base wealth (their facilities also get them a slightly higher bonus to admin, but we have the tax boost from the Corporate Tower, which gives us the edge in overall income long-term, I believe). Once we finish the admin tree and get our Galactic Markets up and running, the game's pretty much won. Malachi is Intelligent, Greedy, Proud, and Reserved, as compared to Thomas' Intelligent, Honorable, and Dull. Malachi is rather detached and convinced of his superiority over most people, driven largely by the fact he has keen brains. E: 'Nearly as long as the updates themselves' might be overstating it a bit, I think, but still. The fact that Administration has a whole database set up to track infrastructure and local revenues is a bit more than other departments, heh. nweismuller fucked around with this message at 13:52 on Jan 14, 2023 |
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Jan 14, 2023 13:18
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nweismuller posted:Malachi is Intelligent, Greedy, Proud, and Reserved, as compared to Thomas' Intelligent, Honorable, and Dull. Malachi is rather detached and convinced of his superiority over most people, driven largely by the fact he has keen brains. Okay I already know what to do here. Audio Diary of Malachi Weiss posted:I took a meeting with Uncle Thomas today. Cordial as always, but the thing I always notice is, my desk is so much nicer than his. I asked him about it once, and he explained, he was concerned only with functionality and durability, that the fabulous wealth he worked to generate was entirely for the glory of the Weiss Guild as a whole, not for any one person to flaunt. Private Journal of Thomas Weiss posted:I just finished reconciling this month's invoices and they added up to a whole number exactly. It was very satisfying.
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Jan 14, 2023 13:33
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To remind you, Malachi is Romeo and Prudence's son; Thomas' adult children are Rebecca and Emily. Rebecca next in line for the throne, and being groomed for the position, and Emily serving diligently in Technology.
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Jan 14, 2023 13:56
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I'll nab Emily if/when Prudence emigrates then, for the same reasons as EclecticTastes
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Jan 14, 2023 14:16
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Groetgaffel posted:I'll nab Emily if/when Prudence emigrates then, for the same reasons as EclecticTastes Sounds good to me. Nobody else has claimed her, so.
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Jan 14, 2023 15:03
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nweismuller posted:To remind you, Malachi is Romeo and Prudence's son; Thomas' adult children are Rebecca and Emily. Rebecca next in line for the throne, and being groomed for the position, and Emily serving diligently in Technology. Yeah, that's why I had him referring to Thomas as "Uncle Thomas", Romeo as "Father", and his inheritance as control of the administration department (being second in line, but more realistically first since Romeo's due to be pulled away to be baron), which he views (fairly correctly) as the second-most powerful and important position in the Guild.
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Jan 14, 2023 20:25
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Audio Diary of Malachi Weiss posted:I took a meeting with Uncle Thomas today. Cordial as always, but the thing I always notice is, my desk is so much nicer than his. I asked him about it once, and he explained, he was concerned only with functionality and durability, that the fabulous wealth he worked to generate was entirely for the glory of the Weiss Guild as a whole, not for any one person to flaunt. Romeo Weiss, sitting at his mahogany desk on Pulcherrima going over spreadsheets, looks up out of nowhere and feels pride for his son. A single tear trails down his cheek, ending at his glorious mustache. "My boy," he utters softly to himself with a smile on his face. He holds that thought a moment longer, then looks back down at the spreadsheets, cursing Queen McGee for lowering the tax burden.
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Jan 14, 2023 20:55
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EclecticTastes posted:Yeah, that's why I had him referring to Thomas as "Uncle Thomas", Romeo as "Father", and his inheritance as control of the administration department (being second in line, but more realistically first since Romeo's due to be pulled away to be baron), which he views (fairly correctly) as the second-most powerful and important position in the Guild. Let my original post stand as eternal testament to what happens when you post before reading somebody's response. I was just responding to 'how much he takes after his father' there, heh. Well, made myself look silly, that's for sure.
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Jan 14, 2023 23:20
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Awesome! Thanks for elaborating on how things work a bit behind the 'screens'!
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Jan 15, 2023 01:45
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Director-Consort Mariko Weiss posted:Regarding the council's inquiries about our vassals: Artificer fucked around with this message at 16:38 on Jan 18, 2023 |
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Jan 18, 2023 00:55
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Just a reminder, the title for Jane is actually 'Director-General', as distinct from 'Colonial Directors' or the council members, three of which are formally titled Directors for us (Executive Director, Diplomacy Director, and Technology Director) and the other two of which may permissibly be addressed simply as 'director' rather than Admiral or Commissioner more informally. Just 'Director' for Jane is actually not proper etiquette, but Jane's unlikely to get too exercised, she's relatively informal in council meetings.
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Jan 18, 2023 01:42
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Ahh good to know. Thanks!
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Jan 18, 2023 16:38
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 As of 2528, Security and Diplomacy, while gathering information from those leagues we have contact with, have achieved confirmation that- although there are member states of some leagues we lack direct contact with- the leagues we have contact with do not have neighbors beyond their borders we are unaware of. The Wang League, Werner League, Simpson League (and the rebel state of the Busuttil Collective from the Simpson League), Gilmore League, Weiss League, Lindsey League, Anderson League, and Shannon League comprise every colony within accessible space. If other colonies yet survive, they are sufficiently distant to be completely isolated from the known colonies. With this confirmed, we can be confident that the Weiss Guild is the largest single state and the Weiss League the largest league of the colonies. House Weiss has yet to make direct contact with three states of the Wang League, one state of the Werner League, and two states of the Anderson League, as well as a fair number of individual colonies within various states. I've checked and confirmed that we now have the edges of the map- all 115 colonies that exist in the game are now accounted for, in one sense or another. To achieve victory, we need control of 58 of these, of which we currently control 25- which still makes us the largest power in the colonies. nweismuller fucked around with this message at 18:44 on Jan 18, 2023 |
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Jan 18, 2023 18:41
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Heads up, I will try to get the update out tomorrow. Was planning to work on it today, but instead I was sleepy, sluggish, and lacking in creativity. Alas.
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Jan 29, 2023 02:33
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I just hope we get our hands on at least one of those planets that perhaps can be terraformed before winning.
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Jan 29, 2023 14:37
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Almost done, but I am functionally a sleep-deprived corpse right now. Update will be completed when I've slept longer than 0 hours in the past 24. It was a good spurt of creativity but it also kept me up and I'm now a wreck.
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Jan 30, 2023 20:34
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The Fall of Homam House Weiss Administration under the direction of Executive Director Thomas Weiss finished a project to restore a defensive station at Mu Capricorni in the later part of 2526, with Thomas thereafter turning his project team's attention to maximising the revenues from taxation of the White Federation. The Weiss League was preparing for war, and, for the moment, the expenses of building up the economic strength of the league needed to be reduced.    Duchess Leane McCoy of the McCoy Dominion, archon of the Gilmore League, had long had fragile health, making it little surprise when she died shortly after the midpoint of 2526. Her son Tumo Calderon rose to the throne, returning to House McCoy from House Calderon, which he had married into. Although Tumo Calderon was far better-regarded than his mother, the plans for war against the McCoy Dominion were already in motion, and the Director-General had no intention of calling them off. Nonetheless, Director-General Jane Weiss accepted the invitation to the feast to celebrate Tumo Calderon's coronation as duke and his swearing of the oaths as archon of the Gilmore League, not wishing to pointlessly offend Tumo Calderon even before the outbreak of war.    As Executive Director Thomas Weiss had requested of his sister Jane that Oriole be granted a leave from serving as champion for House Weiss in tournaments- driven as he was about concern for his wife's injuries- Jane instead appointed her stepmother, Admiral Carmen Weiss, as the Weiss champion in this tournament. Carmen was eliminated relatively quickly, but not before inadvertently injuring Analise Maxwell, the head of the minor House Maxwell in the McCoy capital colony of Albali, in a match. Governor-Consort Edwina Ibarra, the wife of Colonial Governor Shaman Ibarra of Delta Pavonis, went on from her victory against Carmen to claim the championship of the whole tournament, winning glory for House Ibarra.   The feast was temporarily interrupted when Admiral Dewey Ferrell of the Ferrell Clan got into an extended shouting match with Ruana Garrett, the abdicated former duchess of the Garrett Confederation, but this was calmed when House McCoy Security officers intervened and separated the two nobles. Despite this disruption, the feast and the subsequent ball and gathering was generally considered to go well, and many guests departed with a conviction that perhaps Duke Tumo Calderon would be able to hold the Gilmore League together where his mother had struggled to maintain her realm. Oriole, frustrated at being passed over as champion, drank heavily during the feast, and continued to show a worrying tendency to drink too much at meals thereafter. Although she refrained from drinking on duty, off her duty shifts she began to be found staggering in the evenings, having had more wine with her dinner than most would consider prudent.  Somewhat later in the year, an invitation came to Director-General Jane Weiss from Acting Duke Alvin Lindsey of the Lindsey Coalition to attend a feast in honor of Coordinator Saxen Anderson- an attempt by the archon of the relatively small and weak Lindsey League to curry the favor of their large, stronger direct neighbor. The Director-General attended with her usual party of companions and their minor wards, as befit diplomatic expectations.     It came as something of a surprise when Admiral Carmen Weiss triumphed against every challenger in the pre-feast tournament, handling her tournament interceptor with precision and aplomb. The prestige of this triumph reflected well on House Weiss, and was taken as a token of celebration. Oriole, of course, celebrated the triumph of this other member of the House... with a drink.  The feast and gathering went well overall, although Oriole, by the end of the feast thoroughly drunk, managed to make something of a fool of herself in the process. The members of House Weiss went home happy- even Oriole, who little appreciated the embarrassment she had suffered.  Allen Weiss submitted a request to the Director-General for permission for he and his wife Vanida to try for another child upon Jane's return to Vega, a request that was denied. Despite its great wealth, House Weiss was running up close to the number of nobles it could reasonably support without placing an undue burden upon Vega for their lifestyle, and Jane had little desire to be the person responsible for her family snatching the substance from the mouths of her subjects.  As a project team from House Weiss Administration headed by Rebecca Weiss completed the restoration of a well-stocked research laboratory at Mu Capricorni- sure to be an asset for the Technology department there- Rebecca was reassigned to begin work on restoration of a ship repair platform in Kapteyn's Star shortly after the start of 2527. Although Administration's repair work had been stepped back, it still, for the moment, retained the budget to run one repair project.  As the laboratory was put back into service, House Mendoza in Alsciaukat completed the restoration of a major hospital in their colony. As more hospitals were restored across the Weiss League, the availability of the medicines needed to help address the many health issues of the colonies grew steadily more reliable and accessible to more colonies, thanks to the drug fabs standard to pre-Collapse hospitals being placed back in service.  Keir Weiss, leading a mission for House Weiss Diplomacy, finished the process of making a case for the inclusion of Saiph in the Weiss Guild at about this time. By now, the relative stability and prosperity of the Weiss Guild was remarkable enough that it was a major factor in arguments by Diplomacy for the inclusion of new colonies- it was not beyond reason to imagine that Weiss rule would eventually be beneficial to most colonies they held.  An investigation into the premature death of Gay O'Neal, who had been the wife of Sir Sutton O'Neal, head of House O'Neal at Vega, led Senior Investigator Noelle Garcia to uncover the shocking truth- she had been murdered by her own husband. Director-General Jane Weiss, upon hearing this, immediately made the fact public, ensuring that Gay's kin in House Fardell could pursue justice for their murdered kinswoman. House Fardell made no immediate moves to act on this information, but the Director-General held out hope they would petition her for justice, allowing her to use her authority to ensure that Sir Sutton was properly punished for his crime.  The preparations for war in the Weiss Guild were finally completed, with a war chest started, battle plans for Beta Librae drafted, and a case for Weiss Guild rule of Beta Librae in the process of being made by House Weiss Diplomacy- a task they handled efficiently, even if the usual enthusiasm to help presented by the AI Polly was somewhat muted for preparations for war. Still, the Director-General was concerned about the great expenses that would attend the war, a concern that rapidly found its way to the ears of Admiral Carmen Weiss and Geraldine Weiss, whose rivalry still burned hotly. The Admiral proposed that cost savings could be achieved by cutting down personnel numbers on peacekeeper deployments and stretching peacekeeper equipment maintenance cycles, a proposal Jane considered to only effectively defer expenses. What Geraldine proposed, however, proved of greater value. As Geraldine pointed out, House Weiss was both preparing for war and was in direct control of a major scrap processing plant and foundry at Vega. Making efforts to massively ramp up operations at the Vega scrap processing plant, bringing in serfs from other tasks in the colony and paying bounties for overtime production, in the full knowledge that massive amounts of scrap were shortly to be produced by the clash of fleets, would allow for a compensating increase in revenues. Although such an effort could hardly be sustained indefinitely, and would bring its own expenses, the increased revenues from running the scrapyard at full capacity would be more than enough to pay off the increased expenses of the effort, given the huge surge in scrap availability that would soon apply. Director-General Jane Weiss considered this suggestion and approved it, although the massive push beyond normal operational tempo came with its own share of grumbling amongst many serfs and some officers in Administration who would have to oversee the project.  With this addressed, the Director-General formally delivered a declaration of war against House McCoy, making the demand that House McCoy step down and grant the rulership of the McCoy Dominion to Baron McKale Ritter of Kajam, who had a distant claim to rule of the Dominion. This demand was, of course, refused, and the war to prosecute the demand had little chance of granting Baron McKale the ducal throne of the McCoy Dominion, but nonetheless it was a strong enough justification to greatly reduce the impact on the Director-General's reputation for declaring such a war.  As Director-General Jane Weiss demanded ducal rights for one of her vassals, Duchess Misha Cervantes of the Cervantes Alliance made another request that Alhena be turned over to her rule. The Director-General once again dismissed this request, having little reason to grant it. The diplomatic mission from the Cervantes Alliance departed disappointed, but hardly surprised.  Shortly after the midpoint of 2527, Director-Consort Mariko Weiss finished with her efforts to establish a case for Weiss rule of Beta Librae, ensuring that the case was in place before the fleets being organised under the leadership of Commodore Geraldine Weiss arrived at the colony. When House Weiss attempted to take the colony, they would do so with some justification that would be accepted amongst the wider colonies.     While forces near Vega prepared for the assault on Beta Librae, the Director-General responded to a call for aid from Acting Baroness Kai Lindsey of Alhena, requesting aid against an uprising by House Norman at Alhena. With the support of the Weiss Guild and with aid from Saiph, paying back aid from Alhena in a rebellion at Saiph, the rebellion was swiftly and comprehensively crushed.   Jane refused to get involved in the defense against a raid against Mu Capricorni, her hands bound by her obligation not to fight against her own vassals. By all reports, though, she was grieved by the news that the raid successfully ransacked the wealth of Mu Capricorni, causing significant damage to the colony.  Liberty Weiss fell ill over the later half of 2527, suffering from weakness and a persistent cough, but this cleared up shortly before the beginning of 2528 with only routine assistance from House Weiss Medical.   The Gilmore League saw another of its rulers die in relatively swift succession, with Duchess Cherie Ferrell and being followed as ruler of the Ferrell Clan by her daughter, Talen Gallegos, who had previously married into the minor House Gallegos of House Ferrell's home colony of Phecda. Of the Gilmore League's member states, only the Garrett Confederation was still ruled by a duke who had held the throne for longer than a year.     The first attack of the war against Beta Librae took place well before the end of 2527, with Commodore Geraldine Weiss leading a force of local ships and troops supplemented by a force of mercenaries. Unfortunately, by the time the attack arrived, the coffers of House McCoy, which had significant savings, were nearly emptied in hiring on mercenaries of their own. Rather than risk her force against a superior defense, the Commodore ordered a retreat, taking significant losses before her forces pulled out of the system. Nonetheless, she had still preserved much of the force available to the Weiss Guild, and House McCoy would be hard-pressed to match the same level of force in subsequent battles.  Near the very end of 2527, Baron Javen Nichols reported a remarkable find. His Technology department, in cooperation with Technology officers from House Weiss, had been performing a thorough survey of Miaplacidus, helping to catalogue the various objects in the system away from the normal travel routes. Around the otherwise uninhabited fourth planet of the system, it was discovered that what had long been dismissed as a captured asteroid from distant observations was, in fact, a massive artificial station, rotating at a rate that effectively mimicked the one G of old Earth. Although the structure was both severely damaged and had clearly never been completed, it was possible that a section of it could be restored at relatively reasonable cost, thanks to the abundance of materials and components that could be cannibalised from other sections of the ring to seal a section against the void and restore functional life support. Even this small part of the station would provide a huge increase in the living space available at Miaplacidus. Director-General Jane Weiss urged the baron to keep the ring station intact so that it could be restored as living space.  Exploration of the depressurised interior found evidence of an urban center within one of the more intact sections of the station, as well as a computer system still holding the notes of Tania Cavalcanti, the architect behind the project. Her notes made it clear that even before the Collapse, attempts at large-scale planetary colonies on Mars and Venus in the Sol system had failed, helping increase crowding across the extrasolar colonies. She had devised the concept of the ring station as a means to address the need of supporting larger populations in deep space than ever before, and sought- and gained- the support of the League of Starfaring Nations in the construction of her new masterwork. Along with scientists and technicians from the Galileo Institute, she worked tirelessly to complete the station until the notes stop. For some reason, the project was abandoned, although the records in the station did not elaborate on why. Jane, on reviewing Cavalcanti's notes, was struck by the close cooperation needed between Cavalcanti and the Galileo scientists, and the material support provided by the funding from the League of Starfaring Nations. Working together and relying on their individual strengths, they had achieved something awe-inspiring- something that only encouraged Jane to seek common ground where she could. Calling the asteroid-sized station in orbit around a planet a 'ringworld' is somewhat misleading, given the usual use of the term. It's more of a classic von Braun wheel on a very large, but not 'ring around an entire star or entire planet' large, scale.  In the early part of 2528, Rebecca Weiss finished her oversight of the restoration of the ship repair platform at Kapteyn's Star. With the completion of this project, House Weiss Administration, at least temporarily, put a halt on all major new repair programs, saving the money for the war effort to take Beta Librae and Algorab.  Meanwhile, reports came back to Jane through Security that Governor-General Allison Herring, the ruler of the Herring Union up until her death eight years ago, had, during her reign, funded dissidents on Alathfar in an effort to sabotage the Werner Dominion. What direct use this secret might be was unclear, with the events distant and the one who had ordered the crime dead for years, but nonetheless the report was hurried to the Director-General's hands.    The Director-General offered her support to the baron of Tseen in putting down a revolt in early 2528, little realising how close this rebellion would come to success. Baron Natori Lamb, the current ruler of the colony, was widely disliked, and many nearby colonies had already pledged support to restore Kuron Novak, first and last duke of the Robinson Confederation, to the throne of Tseen. The fleet battle that ensued at Tseen was massive, and fighting between peacekeepers raged through the colony. By the time the battle had ended, the vast majority of both forces were combat ineffective, and the colony had suffered severe damage. Although it had seemed likely that the rebels and their outside supporters would seize control of the colony, somehow the loyalist forces held firm, eventually forcing the rebels and their allies to retreat out of system. The battle had led to severe loss of life and the loss of many ships, and damage to Tseen's economy- the only bright side, from House Weiss's perspective, was the large number of destroyed ships or crippled ships sent to the breakers following the combat. Even with the closer scrap processing plants at Albireo and Nashira taking much of the scrap from the battle, a portion of the losses found their way to Vega, along with the wreckage from the battles in Beta Librae.   The first half of 2528 saw a pair of major revolts in the Simpson League, with the Busuttil Collective breaking away from the league following a botched attempt to depose Coordinator Paisley Busuttil and with Baroness Lalasa Villa declaring herself duchess of the new Villa Federation, a member state of the Simpson League and no longer a part of the Cervantes Alliance. Whether the Busuttil Collective could retain its independence or the Villa Federation could survive against the significantly larger and stronger Cervantes Alliance remained to be seen.  Dallon Werner, duke of the Werner Dominion and archon of the Werner League, completed negotiations with the neighboring Wang Confederation in early 2528, offering an eye-watering two hundred eighty thousand marks worth of money, grain, refined metal, and industrial chemicals to House Wang in exchange for House Wang releasing the Lawrence Union from the Wang League and transferring it as a member state of the Werner League. The Werner League's dramatic growth was nearly unbelievable- opportunity and diplomatic ability had aligned again and again for House Werner, and Dallon viewed it as his duty to forge a new league that could create a brighter future for his section of space.   During the early part of 2528, the Director-General spent a great deal of time in thought, worrying about whether she had lived up to her duties and responsibilities as a ruler. She eventually concluded that she had fulfilled her duties as well as she could, and continued on with a new sense of assurance. There are many events in the base game that will periodically trigger for a player ruler based on personality traits, but not all personality traits are represented in the base game for these ruler trait events. I was struck by inspiration for an appropriate event for Honorable, which was one of the traits missing a ruler trait event, and wrote the Weight of Duty mod. An Honorable ruler experiencing the Weight of Duty event might choose, at significant effort and great emotional cost, to cease being either Cruel or Fickle, both of which traits have significant conflicts with the base honor code of the day, or, at the cost of even more time and some money, might attempt to hone their administrative, military, or technological skills. Alternately, there's always the choice to be satisfied that you're living according to honor and get a simple happiness boost for a bit. I might have gone for the skill improvement if I weren't busy waging a war, which is very demanding both on time and money. The Weight of Duty mod also includes the Price of Loyalty as an event for Loyal player rulers, but it requires quite specific conditions to be valid for triggering. It's fairly likely to trigger if those conditions apply, but they're specific enough that the Price of Loyalty is likely to be fairly rarely seen in play.   The second attack against Beta Librae, in the early part of 2528, was led personally by the Director-General, reinforcing local forces with a significant mercenary fleet. She was met there by Commissioner Absolom McCoy leading the fleets of the Gilmore League, supported by a small mercenary force- House McCoy's treasury was badly depleted, and could no longer afford a major mercenary presence. The Commissioner offered an opportunity for the Weiss forces to retreat without interference. Although the Director-General saw that House McCoy's forces in place were strong, she nonetheless believed she had an advantage in both frigates and in bombers, and believed also that she could gain further advantage by effective tactics. She refused this offer, pressing the attack and seeking to capture the colony.    Jane opened the battle by ordering an aggressive push by her frigates, exposing them to heavier fire but letting them bring their primary guns into play and inflict heavy losses on House McCoy's interceptors, the strongest portion of their force. She then ordered interceptors to first cut in, despite exposure to enemy fire, helping isolate and destroy hostile bombers that were inflicting losses, and then fall back to the rear of the Weiss formation and cover incoming troop transports from attack. Although nearly half of the attacking fleet was rendered combat ineffective, ultimately needing to go to the breakers, the defenders were shattered by Jane's tactics, with only scattered squadrons returning to their home colonies. Commissioner Absolom McCoy survived the battle, but was severely injured when his command frigate was breached by the primary gun of one of the Weiss frigates, and only survived because one of the interceptor pilots from the McCoy home colony of Albali risked his own life in the heat of battle to recover Absolom from the wreckage and cram the injured noble into the lap of his electronics and sensors officer before fleeing with the fleet tenders at the edge of the system, a deed which earned the interceptor's two-man crew the highest commendations from Duke Tumo Calderon.    With House Weiss peacekeepers in control of Beta Librae, Director-General Jane Weiss promptly acted to strip Baron Terryal Gates, who had himself been injured in the fighting, of his rank, appointing Judith Fardell, head of House Fardell, as the new colonial director of Beta Librae. With House Fardell now relocated to Beta Librae, the eight Houses that had once called Vega home at the end of the Goodman Kingdom had been reduced to three- House Goodman having been scattered in the initial revolt that brought House Weiss to power and with Houses Eaton, Fardell, Nichols, and Kelley having eventually been rewarded for their support in that revolt by the rule of various colonies taken in war. Vega, once known for its abundance of minor Houses, was now utterly unremarkable on that account.   On her return to Vega, Jane was greeted with the news that Emily Weiss had given birth to her third child and first daughter, Georgina, while Jane was away leading the attack. Although Jane celebrated this news, she refused permission for any further children for Emily, citing her concerns about the size of the House. This was, naturally, disappointing to Emily, but still, she accepted her aunt's judgement. The Weiss Guild and Weiss League, Early 2528   Although most departments under House Weiss are still operating at very high efficiency, they have seen little improvement overall over the past two years. House Weiss has now reached a full 27 members, making it, perhaps, the largest House in the colonies. The aid of the AI Polly, whose cheerful diligence is unmatched, and the secrets incorporated into House Weiss policies from the old Galileo Institute datastore, continue to be powerful assets to House operations. Our permanent modifiers of Bean Counters, 'Strategic secrets from pre-Collapse data vault', General AI, and Intersteller Authority Corps continue to bolster our operations. No new temporary modifers have expired yet, but many of the temporary modifiers are getting close to expiration.  The scrap processing plant at Vega is operating at a fever pitch, with an immense quantity of scrap to work through. Both by providing salvageable components for direct use by the House and producing metal for use in whatever manufacture or repair is needed, and by the sale of other components or metals to other Houses, this has proven a valuable- if temporary- source of revenue. Although there is notable grumbling amongst the serfs involved about the punishing work schedules involved, the fact that much of the additional work has been able to be motivated by bonuses and incentives rather than harsher measures has kept this at a level that is no threat to colonial stability or House authority.  Within the past year, the colony of Homam in the Spencer Sector has suffered a terrible fate. Although once a reasonably prosperous colony, heavy fighting in the colony led to such severe damage that a cascading life support failure ensued over about the following two months. A desperate series of evacuations proceeded, the Houses native to Homam fleeing the doomed colony with what followers they could, freemen desperately seeking whatever passage they could off-colony, and nearby rulers organising pickups of what serfs they could save and bring into their service. Ultimately, however, about half the population remained on the colony as temperatures and air pressures continued to drop below survivable levels- although hunger and thirst as water systems broke down and food stores were ransacked had already slain many of those who remained. The loss of life was beyond any other event since the turn of the 26th century.  The ring station in Miaplacidus, if its most complete section could be properly repaired, would increase living space at Miaplacidus for the colony to import workers from various nearby colonies, set up workshop space and hydroponics racks to keep these workers profitably employed, and still significantly reduce crowding on the colony overall as much of their existing population was moved onto the ring station. This station will no doubt prove an immense blessing to Miaplacidus once it is placed into operation. The original effect of the ringworld section is 1 wealth (range 1), which doesn't make a huge amount of sense. I've changed it to match the effects of the ark ship installation that can occasionally be found the represents 'a huge amount of additional habitable space'. For what it's worth, Glen agrees the original effect is a bit incongruous and thinks modding that detail makes a good amount of sense. Maybe it's something that will see changes in a future patch.  Although Director-General Jane Weiss retains a strong reputation, the war has nonetheless somewhat tarnished the opinions others hold of her, somewhat mitigated by the glory of her victory at Beta Librae. She has, by now, matured into a skilled military commander, if not a great commander like her father was. Conducting the war has ensured a huge number of demands on her time and attention, but so far she has managed to stay ahead of what is necessary.  With Administration temporarily slowed in its work of repairs and rebuilding, Executive Director Thomas Weiss has, for the moment, had his personal project team focus on ensuring the best possible revenue stream from the White Federation. A long-standing project he has had to ensure a properly codified tax law to cover House Weiss's relations with its vassals has been growing increasingly close to completion, perhaps to go into effect in the next two years. The aid of his protégé has continued to help his productivity.  Admiral Carmen Weiss's long years of experience have helped mature her into a superb military leader- although her native talents in military affairs were unremarkable, she has learned more than many ever will about military operations and logistics. On top of her overall responsibility for Military, she has continued to oversee a deployment of peacekeepers to Miaplacidus, who have helped greatly reduce unrest and disorder there.  Director-Consort Mariko Weiss's latest area of focus has been establishing a firm case for the Weiss Guild to rule Algorab, in addition to managing foreign relations overall. Having a firm claim will make taking Algorab in war be viewed as more legitimate.   Commissioner Oriole Weiss has recently developed something of a reputation of drinking too much, although thankfully this primarily applies when she's not on duty. Being prevented from competing in the tournaments at feasts has frustrated her, as she has long thrived on the thrill and danger. She has continued to maintain tight protective details on the Director-General, while training as a pilot in the hopes she once again will be permitted to compete.  Between the discovery of the ancient ring station at Miaplacidus, the discovery of the Eden ship at Albireo, and the uncovered Galileo Institute datastore at Lalande 21185 has meant that House Weiss Technology under Technology Director Prudence Weiss has uncovered some of the most exciting technological discoveries since the Collapse. Although the ring station is yet to be restored, the mere knowledge that such a feat was once possible has awed Prudence. She has been personally overseeing the training simulations for military tactics and piloting that Commissioner Oriole Weiss has recently been focused on.  With the necessity of pulling back on repair expenses in order to fund the war, Rebecca Weiss has recently been shifted from overseeing repair projects to monitoring taxation and logistics at Beta Eridani. Her daughter Salome has recently turned four- soon to begin her education as the ward of somebody on the House Weiss council. Rebecca has developed both as an administrator of remarkable ability, as well as growing somewhat more grounded in military matters.  Romeo Weiss has continued managing taxation and logistics for the Lamb Clan, where he continues to ensure the delivery of thousands of marks to House Weiss coffers every year. With recent increases in the Lamb Clan tax rates, he has had even more tax revenue to delivery home to Vega recently.  Senior Investigator Noelle Garcia's solving of a noble murder case at Vega has been a remarkable achievement for him, even if he has been frustrated at seeing Sir Sutton O'Neal go unpunished thus far. Without House Fardell pressing the matter, House Weiss's hands have thus far been tied. He continues to investigate affairs at Vega, helping to ensure that crimes and secrets come to light.  Ilario Weiss has continued to travel with Rebecca, overseeing her training in military affairs and helping to raise his young daughter Salome. There are great hopes in the league that the child of two such sharp people as Rebecca and Ilario shall herself grow to be a bright and capable noble and a promising future ruler, especially with the early genetic therapy to help select for health and intelligence now standard in House Weiss.  Malachi Weiss, although the most junior noble in House Weiss Administration, is nonetheless a skillful and capable administrator who has helped ensure maximum revenues from Rotanev. He and Geraldine are expecting their second child, who should be born before the end of the year. He and his wife are delighted by her pregnancy, although their eleven-year-old son Adam has somewhat mixed feelings about no longer being an only child.  Geraldine Weiss has been remaining at Vega recently, helping to draw up attack plans against Algorab. She has some hope that she will eventually be permitted to lead the attack against Algorab, proving her worth after the retreat she was forced to make at Beta Librae.  Leslie Weiss has continued to serve as a colonel of peacekeepers at Mu Capricorni, helping keep the situation there from boiling over through a House Weiss peacekeeper presence working alongside an elevated peacekeeper force sponsored by House Harvey of Mu Capricorni. With the aid of local peacekeepers, it appears the situation is finally settling, although he believes the colony is not yet ready to have the House Weiss force withdrawn.  Keir Weiss has been focused on ensuring relations with Coordinator Lili Shannon of the Shannon Collective remain solid, securing that vulnerable border of the Weiss League. Thus far, it appears his efforts have borne fruit, and it seems likely there is little danger of the peace breaking down on that border.  Vanida Weiss is in mourning following the recent death of her father, Sir Virgil Noble, as well as being the member of House Weiss furthest from Vega. She continues to oversee espionage at Alathfar, although the Werner League's affairs are relatively distant from the Weiss League's affairs. Her recent uncovering of a secret of House Herring, although interesting, is nonetheless difficult to make direct use of as things stand.  Emily Weiss, although happy at the birth of Georgina, nonetheless is saddened that she is not permitted to try for a fourth child as things stand. Her task in Technology has been to overseeing training simulators for Director-General Jane Weiss, helping Jane develop her military leadership skills.  Allen Weiss has accompanied his wife Vanida to Alathfar in recent times, helping ensure she has training materials to improve her skills as a Security agent and spy. He has been quietly content with his lot, and appreciates that his current assignment lets him spend more time with Vanida. Security and Diplomacy have made enough inquiries amongst the distant states known to House Weiss to slowly realise that- barring the rebel Busuttil Collective- eight leagues comprise the whole of the colonies. Reports from the Simpson League and Wang League indicate they have no neighbors beyond the borders already known to House Weiss. Although many of the details of affairs in these distant leagues are vague, at least the overall borders of colonised space are now clear to House Weiss. House Weiss is the largest- and the wealthiest- noble House of the colonies, and governs both the largest single state and the largest league in the colonies. Although the colonies have slowly struggled upwards towards a greater prosperity, violence and neglect are a constant threat to what man has built, as has been starkly illustrated by the fall of Homam, which was the single largest tragedy of the 26th century thus far. Although the Gilmore League has been battered by this war, its new archon has helped ensure the stability of the territories he yet controls, and it seems likely the Gilmore League will endure for a time yet. With the conquest of Beta Librae, half of the Weiss Guild's objectives in the current war have been achieved, while efforts in Administration promise to help bring steady and regular law to intercolonial taxation. May the greatness and glory of House Weiss continue to endure into the future. nweismuller fucked around with this message at 07:22 on Feb 2, 2023 |
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Feb 2, 2023 05:54
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Director-General Jane Weiss posted:With the capture of Beta Librae, we have made the first step forward towards achieving our goals in this war- which, in themselves, may help eventually pave the way to Sigma Draconis so that we may make use of the Eden ship there. We could, potentially, attempt to move on Algorab while 2528 still lasts, or we could give Diplomacy time to finish making our case. Moving as soon as possible minimises the chance House McCoy has to build up a war chest again, while waiting will help ensure we have a better-planned attack and soften any impacts upon our reputation. This war has, sadly, already been costly to our good name, although we can eventually repair our relations in the peace that will follow. I urge my Council members to advance their thoughts on what course we should take.
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Feb 2, 2023 06:40
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Director-Heir Thomas Weiss posted:Alright, let's just snap up Algorab as quick as we can and get this war over with. And if possible, could we find some way to punish house Durham? We really must make an example of one of these destructive idiots eventually. I had just gotten done overseeing that defense platform and then they shot it to hell. Anyway, immediately begin repairs to the Ship Fabrication Plant and/or Retrofitting Center at Beta Librae, and then begin conducting repairs in Mu Capricorni and Tseen as soon as we've wrapped up this conflict. I imagine we'll also want to jump right into repairs at Algorab, once we've claimed it. Once all four of those colonies are no longer at risk of famine, then begin work on the ringworld section at Miaplacidus. It's very telling that the war went quite smoothly, but it's the irresponsible fools here at home that are the real threat. If the children won't stop squabbling, they should really be given a time out. Seriously, at this point, I'd just be popping open the save file to edit every member of houses Durham and Novak to give them every health-damaging trait possible and watch 'em die off. On the other hand, big props to House Herring, Alathfar is the only colony to rival Vega for highest wealth potential, so gently caress those guys. Audio Diary of Malachi Weiss posted:I was once told that my grandfather's first proposal after the fall of House Goodman was the acquisition of Beta Librae. I'm embarrassed to admit to some genuine familial pride at seeing that ambition finally realized. He may not have lived to see it conquered, but I- Malachi Weiss!- shall live to rule it from behind the throne! Once the administration department is under my control, that ridiculous "Priority" system will be a thing of the past. Oh, I'll prioritize wealth-generating jobs, all right, meaning jobs that generate wealth for me! I'm sure our vassals are just champing at the bit, desperate for an official they can bribe to fast-track their own colony's repairs! I've already got a shell company operating out of our corporate tower, ready to launder every cent! Wait, blast, I shouldn't have said that, delete last sentence! Undo! Backspace! drat it all, where is that user's manual?!
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Feb 2, 2023 07:49
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Ilario Weiss posted:This ringworld is amazing! This is power that the League of Starfaring Nations was able to bring. So many nations cooperating to build the next best thing to planetary habitation. If only we had the knowledge, technical ability, and the will to restore this entire station. It may not be as good as a planet, but this ringworld would put all of our habitats to shame if we could complete its construction. Still, it will be beyond impressive once we have the free time and money to complete even the small part that is within our means. Ilario Weiss message to Liberty posted:Hi Liberty,
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Feb 2, 2023 10:07
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Director-Consort Mariko Weiss's Personal Log posted:Another year, and another devastating tragedy that could have been avoided. all those lives lost..
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Feb 2, 2023 18:20
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Are emergency repairs to the colony that had a catastrophe possible or not? Or not remotely viable due to the game/vassals/war? Speaking as observer of thread here.
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Feb 2, 2023 19:10
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wedgekree posted:Are emergency repairs to the colony that had a catastrophe possible or not? Or not remotely viable due to the game/vassals/war? Speaking as observer of thread here. They're possible, but not for us- the dead colony needs to directly border our league for us to do repairs. Homam is inside Shannon League borders, so inaccessible to us. If we did have access, it would cost a hefty two hundred fourty thousand marks to repair the colony, establish new life support, and import workers to resettle it.
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Feb 2, 2023 19:15
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wedgekree posted:Are emergency repairs to the colony that had a catastrophe possible or not? Or not remotely viable due to the game/vassals/war? Speaking as observer of thread here. Homam can only be restored through a fairly lengthy and expensive project that AI players would likely never be able to do, given how bad they are at managing their holdings to begin with. The only way for a colony to collapse like that is if all of their facilities are damaged, and then they take further damage, which causes the main colony to be ruined and renders the whole place uninhabitable, which goes to show how bad the AI is at this game. Like, if a negative random event hit Beta Librae before we could repair any facilities, or if another battle broke out there, there's a good chance it would face the same fate as Homam, which is why I'm insisting on getting something fixed up there before literally anything else.
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Feb 2, 2023 19:17
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Got it, thanks for elaborating and explaining! So as horrible and terrifying as it is, at least it's not in our space.
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Feb 2, 2023 19:27
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Director-General Jane Weiss posted:I appreciate your frustration with raids within our territory, but we are not the ones with the right to respond. We must trust to Baron Clemens Martin of Mu Capricorni and to Governor-General Gualtier White of the White Federation if we hope to see justice done. Take heart, Thomas. Even with the obstacles we have had to overcome, we have steadily been bringing prosperity to the colonies of the league, to the benefit of all its rulers and their people. These setbacks- and they are setbacks, I know- shall be temporary, I am sure.
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Feb 2, 2023 20:10
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While I am sure you can guess that my thoughts on the war are "go full  and roll it up," I actually do have a good reason for it, and am not doing my "belligerent warmongering dipshit" bit. We have the momentum, and as noted, that first fight we had to retreat from is because they broke all the piggy banks in order to field a massive mercenary force, and they can't do that again. Everybody walked away from that second fight bloody, but we can absorb the losses and they can't. There's no point in dragging this out, just rip the bandage off and get it over worth.I don't know how effective "make an example of some of these dipshits" would be, but I am in favor of it, because I think it will be funny.
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Feb 3, 2023 23:32
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