Iago Elias McKie's page

As is his usual nature, The Commander wastes no time with idle chit-chat or talking around the issue.

We will support you. He states flatly. The other Officers and I have concerns about the specifics, but they can be discussed at a later time. Seneschal Patronius will need to speak to you about our current set of contracts. My understanding is that nothing will need to change, but it's always safe to make sure we're all on the same page. Iago's usual scowl returns, But we aren't here to discuss coin. You have our answer, General. We will win this War with you, and with it, the world.

Normally I'd discuss this in character first, or at least wait till others spoke up, but I *believe* we were all in agreement? And I'm hoping to help push us on without having the same discussion again. ;)

Well, I always hate people dropping out of games, but it's one of those things that happens in pbp's. I hope everything is alright in his offline life and it's just an overabundance of good things that keeps him away!

I also always hate to recommend killing PCs, but this seems like a perfect opportunity for Dante to have Silas assassinated. He knows at least Iago and Varius would back him, though never if Silas disagreed and were alive. Perhaps it's even done in a way where the body isn't recovered? Just in case Radavel comes back down the road a long ways (maybe a little less of him and more machine, but nonetheless alive.)

Just an idea. Normally I'm hesitant to recommend killing off former PCs, but it seemed like an opportunity to make the stakes a bit higher.

I think it's pretty clear what Iago's vote would be. ;)

But I'm happy with going either way. I think going with the Governor would be disastrous given what we've worked to build here and how tenuous it is. But it would be awesome to watch the train wreck.

That's a good point, perhaps an out-of-character deadline might push things along? I realize we're trying to build up momentum again, so things are a little slow at times, but I think we've been given plenty of time.

Yep, just waiting on Silas. I believe the rest of us have said everything we can about it.

The Commander's frown disappears and his face remains impassive, Today is our deadline Lord-Captain. Our Seneschal will require an answer to give to General Dante. Regardless of when his coup will occur, what will be our response now?

Lord-Captain, with all due respect, that is not an option. General Dante made it clear that he will be doing this. He will not be doing it today, but will wait for an appropriate time. I think we can assume that time will come during the invasion when he believes it is most advantageous and will do the least amount of damage to his cause. It will not be after, for if we prevail, the Governor will be the hero. And General Dante is no fool. He will see his opportunity and strike. With us or without. We remain with two choices, reveal his plan or do not.

The Commander frowns, I cannot stress enough that meeting with Lord-Captain Locke is a mistake. Though if you insist, my advice is to not push her concerning her commitment to the coming War.

General Dante is going to take this action, whether he has our backing or not. Make no mistake. We can either reveal his plans or stand with him. If we reveal them, it is my opinion that we may as well leave this planet now. It will fall. If we do not, then we can either back him openly or privately. My suggestion is keeping our association in this matter in private and tell the General that we will not oppose him. He sighs slightly, though seemingly more so at the situation than the words of the others. General Dante will not be dissuaded. We can try to alter his course to better suit our timeline, but I suggest we remain adaptable and leave it to him. The less involved we are the better. We simply need to be prepared to take advantage of the situation.

He frowns slightly and moves on, As to local unrest, I'm not at all concerned about the local people. We can make General Dante a war hero if necessary, but I doubt it will even come to that. And I can guarantee that Lord-Captain Locke has no interest in who governs this planet, only that it be governed. Lady Orleans obviously has a stake, but she's no fool. She'll object, of course, and probably loudly, but once it's clear that General Dante will rule, she'll work with him. She will not give up her connection to this planet easily, nor should we expect her to. This move simply lessens her hold, it does not remove it entirely.

There is the matter of rightful rulership. I understand that there may be some moral issue here, but my counsel concerns itself with military advice and the future of this Dynasty. I leave the morality of our position to others to judge.

The Commander looks tense. He'd spent the early afternoon walking and speaking with deck leaders. But now he now stood in the meeting room, silent. His arms crossed and his face impassive. Not even his usual scowl is present, just an impassive mask.

Lord-Captain, I believe it is imperative that we work with General Dante. As I see it there are several reasons. He pauses only a moment before moving on. First, the Governor may have stepped up during this crisis, but we have no guarantee that he will stay the man he is now once the threat is gone. So, if someone here is suffering from a weakness of moral conviction, I believe we can at least put that aside. Again he pauses, though again, he continues on before comments, Second, we cannot afford any setbacks concerning our forces. We are already walking a thin line being outsiders and our control here is tenuous at best. Opposing General Dante will put all of that in jeopardy, whereas the Governor has no such support. The Commander sighs as he pauses, but pushes on, And finally, the Governor has ties to Lady Orleans. If he is replaced, by someone who we have a better relationship, the ties of Lady Orleans to this planet will be weakened and ours will be strengthened. There are only benefits to working with General Dante. The Governor is weak, in both will and power. He is more useful to our rivals than he is to us. He is in the unfortunate position of being less useful, and therefore, expendable.

Iago frowns as he continues, this time, on a different topic, As to Lord-Captain Locke, I respectfully recommend that you not meet with her privately. As I reported in my brief, the negotiation with her was delicate. In my professional opinion, we have gained what we can there and trying to push for more will, at best, lead to no benefit. But the consequences of failure are devastating. Her expertise and ship are vital to our efforts in the Void. We have her full cooperation. There is nothing more to gain there and everything to lose.

I cannot stress enough how important it is to go back and look at the briefs (and what happened) with both Locke and Dante. It took a lot of work to get both of them to where they are and it's a pretty delicate matter. We can discuss it in-character as well, of course, but it's important to go back. I'd prefer not to have to slow the game down and repeat everything that Iago has already given in briefs to the crew.

The warning was for Silas' benefit.

Fair enough!

The Commander's face could be carved from stone, Let us hope that the Lord-Captain is too drunk to notice this humiliation. This is a dangerous game, and we can only hope to avoid Silas' usual temper.

Very well. It appears you shall have your way, General. With a nod of respect, Iago acknowledges General Dante's success. Mr. Marleno's previous assessment of the Southern Wall was that we can afford to pull troops from it without serious danger. I'm sure you and he could work out the rest of the details. Perhaps with Mr. Nacht's input.

So, speaking of the whispering/overhearing incident: we have been warned about this exact issue before. I don't think it'd be out of line for them to know what we're saying. Or at the very least get a perception test. I don't think there'd be any objections in this group. Actions having consequences always makes for a more interesting game. :)

Try Drivethru RPG. That particular book is actually on sale right now. They're my go-to resource for puffs. And, of course, for hardcover books, Paizo sells most rpgs. :)

Just to make it clear, you are in a formal setting at a small defense council, only meters away from other council members. The next IC whispering will result in awareness checks from other characters to overhear. This is not a sensible place for private discussions.

Just so it's really clear, Iago's whispers weren't meant to go unheard. Or at least he didn't expect them to. He's just speaking softly to a single person rather than to the whole group. But I didn't think for a moment that people wouldn't be able to hear him. I'll generally be very clear when I'm trying for a character to go unheard. And ask if it's possible first. :)

We didn't miss her. :)

I really suggest going back and looking at what happened. It's been a while, but there are some important things that came up that we'll really want to keep in mind.

No, we haven't. Iago did have a one-on-one conversation with her at the gala, but nothing beyond that. To be fair, very important information came out in that one-on-one, so I suggest going back and reviewing it. It could come up later on.

Also, because this has come up before, I think it is *awesome* that all of our carefully laid plans could unravel right here and now in the council chamber. I felt like everything was going a little too smoothly (mostly because of a vast series of outrageous rolling). So, I, for one, am having a great time. Even if Iago looks like he wants to pull out what little is left of his hair. :)

The Commander's scowl falters for a moment and he looks genuinely stunned. His eyes narrow, and he harshly whispers back, Lord-Captain, that is not something we should talk about...here.

Is he trying to destroy us? If the General's secret were to come out here...

The scowl returns and Iago turns back to the assembly slowly, his body language clearly showing his displeasure with having to discuss strategy at this point, Very well, Lord-Captain, an open discussion it is. Governor, your assessment of the situation? Does it differ from the General's? McKie scans the room with a scowl, almost as if daring the other members of the Defense Council to speak up.

Intimidation TN30: 1d100 ⇒ 5 Success, 2 extra Degrees.

Play your part. The line is fraying, but it will hold. It has to hold.

Commander McKie leans in to speak to Silas, Lord-Captain, I believe if General Dante could forcibly evacuate these people, he would have already. Perhaps we could discuss this personally with the General, see what his advice would be on how to move forward with your plan, and then we can present it before the Council.

He looks around the room, While everyone here is certainly capable, I think open discussion prior to any actual details being worked out would be...counterproductive.

The Commander looks back at Ludicus, Mr. Marleno, you mentioned during our council that the Southern Wall would be the easiest to pull troops from. Does that assessment still hold? Iago turns to Silas and says, Lord-Captain, if Mr. Marleno agrees, I believe this change is also feasible. Complicated, but I trust that Mr. Marleno's strategic expertise combined with General Dante's experience and knowledge of the planet will be able to manage the situation.

Disagreeing with Rogue Traders so my Lord-Captain does not have to. One of the many benefits of playing the part of the unruly, disagreeable, First Officer. The Commander's scowl never leaves his scarred face, despite smiling inwardly.

It does depend greatly on our priorities, Lord-Captain.

The Commander's ever-present scowl deepens into thought as he runs his non-mechanical hand through his silver hair. He steps forward, all but ignoring Blitz,

Which unit were you thinking of deploying, General? He frowns, No sense in defending the lake if all the rivers dry up. The City may be the source of this planet's wealth, but people are the basis for that power.

While I am loathe to support foolishness in the face of an invasion, civilians act as they act. There is no sense in fighting it or complaining about it. He turns back to the map, If there are a significant amount of civilians, and you can find the troops, I suggest we send them. My only concern is how would we support them. If they are attacked with any significant force, they will be on their own.

The Commander looks stern as he listens to the Council. He nods once, curtly, as Locke speaks. He leans in to speak to Silas,

Lord-Captain Locke's counsel is sound. As we noted in our own War council, she is an expert on such things and we would do well to heed her words.

For the question of Dante, if anyone doesn't remember what happened, you might want to scroll back and read Iago and Kavro's brief on what occurred on the Bulwark.

The Commander's usual scowl is present as he walks among the troops and crew. His gaze misses nothing. From the officers on down to the lesser voidsman, Iago let none go without a stern look.

They will fight well. Everything appears in order.

As they walk the halls of the ship, he stops for a moment and places his hand upon the wall. With a nod, he moves on.

Give them good words, Mr. Nacht. They will need them soon. When the Orks come, the Light of the Emperor will seem distant and cold. The Void will welcome them, and some of them will heed its call.

Iago nods curtly, and puts down the last report.

I shall join you, Mr. Nacht.

He turns and nods to Silas. Lord-Captain.

Welcome, Lord-Captain. I see your mission went well. Glad to have you back.

Iago straightens and taps the dataslate in front of him, closing out the report he was reading, and places the slate to the side.

Sorry if it wasn't clear. Almost everything Iago has said about strategy in the void is essentially fluff. I just wanted to make it clear that he's as concerned about our strategy there as he is on the ground conflict.

All sounds good to me. As for personal actions, I'd suggest either waiting to see where we may need it, or picking places that we would like to reinforce.

North and West wall seem like good places for personal actions. Also Levy/Bunkers, and Offense have a lot of troops committed to them. so they'd be good places for our leadership to be.

I think Ioneyse just needs a new background, but should otherwise be good to go, and Casimir needs a slight altering to the end of his background. But they're otherwise ready.

Ioneyse is the ship's High Factotum. Is there a good way to introduce her? I'm guessing the best way to introduce Casimir is to note that he has experience fighting Orks and suggest that he join Ludicus on the ground inspiring the troops and keeping their morale up. Or perhaps Ludicus can request him to come along?

Sounds good. I still think using the System ships for some bombardment might be useful early on. It'll keep them out of the main fighting and less chance of losing them. Unless it looks like we'll need all the help we can get in space. Then, of course, I'd rethink that. But being able to rotate System Ships into the fight, while keeping some out might be our only chance for some relief forces.

"Iago will provide provide tactical assessment throughout the battles in space, using his keen expertise with the augurs in order to predict enemy movements" - That sounds perfect as long as you don't mind me straight up stealing it.

Raider class should be perfect for close support of our two Cruisers. The Ordained Destiny will especially need protection from faster moving ships unless Blitz turns out to be way better at Voidship combat than I expect. Not that I expect him to be especially bad, just that Cruisers tend to need support, and his being less combat capable than a normal cruiser will probably need more. If we do decide to use all the System Defense ships in the main combat, I'd suggest we assign at least one each to protecting the two Cruisers from fast attack ships trying to out-maneuver them.

Yeah, I always seem to find something just outside that window that I'd like to fix.

The Commander follows along with Ludicus' assessment with crossed arms and his usual scowl.

We're almost there. Play your part. Push them for their best...it is the only way.

His left hand rubs his jaw as his metallic one lays flat on the table. Iago leans over the map one last time, tapping the Forge, Mr. Marleno, if the Forge will have a hard time using so much infantry, and it will remain adequately protected, shall we move Blitz' House Troops to the West Wall? He then taps several points indicating the Levy Bunkers, As to the Levy, if the forces there are excessive as it stands, perhaps we can move Lady Orleans' House Troops to our offensive strike. That will add infantry on that front, and still leave more disciplined troops alongside the Gelt-Guns.

The Commander nods in approval, It looks good. I'll leave the final details to you and we'll present it to the Council.

---

The Commander considers the map of the Void with a critical eye.

We need to know more about these Burning Ones. If there are unexpected gravity wells, or other phenomena that we can use to our benefit. Either to trap the enemy or evade. If we have the time, we should scan the nearest areas of the Frozen Reach. I'd hate to have any of our ships caught out of position, but we need to know where we can escape, or draw the enemy to.

He taps a dataslate, Mr. Kavro, what do you think of the System Defense ships? I'm hesitant to commit them fully to our fight. If they aren't cautious, I believe they'll only get in the way and be quickly destroyed by a random Ork vessel. My recommendation to Locke will be to have two support her Aegis and keep smaller craft from her Cruiser. I'd like to leave other two near Damaris to bombard anything that does make it to the ground.

I'll be staying on the Aeternus to coordinate our defense from the Void. But we will need Officers on the ground. He scans the group, waiting.

You mentioned the ability to use "Orbital Bombardment". Does that mean we assign a ship to attacking an "area" of the ground? Or is it a general, "attack the ork horde" kind of thing? As for individual, is "Lend expertise to the space battle" appropriate? Or does it need to be more specific?

Will do.

I think the only thing that came up in the recruitment thread that they're missing is the break down of the initial acquisition on one of them. (I let him know, he should be fixing it right up.)

They're both good on rolls, xp spent, and neither of them as Xenos. For career path they're both fine with Birthright being a "free choice." Though amusingly, they both come out of the Birthright fine, it's just going in that they needed it open.

I think the issue with the Agility and BS on the VM is that she has a +3 Agility from her career path and a +5 BS. So she can either have an Agility 48/BS 49 or an Agility 47/BS 50. I think if she could reverse those stats, she definitely would.

Oh, and wow. Casimir's luck is awful. His first set of stats were pathetic (and less than 100 total so he rerolled as per the recruitment thread). His second were "fine". But then a 1 on Wounds? And an 80% chance to get something interesting and good for an heirloom and we end up with the second Missionary in a row with an archaeotech pistol? It's a cool looking weapon, but on a Missionary they're essentially props. That's just...sad.

Varius: Awesome! I was a little worried, and even had written a short post about it out-of-character before deleting it. I'm all good with tension between characters as long as it stays between characters. :)

I think, for the most part, we'll be planning the battle in the Void with Locke. We currently don't have enough information about that part without just making up clever tactics that may intuitively work but which are largely meaningless. Being really general about what we want to do works, but the details can't really be set.

The Commander narrows his eyes and looks questioningly at the Explorator. No one is questioning your skill in battle, Mr. Kavro. Your opinion as to the importance of the Forge has been noted. And, as you can see, we are, so far, planning to devote a significant amount of forces there.

What is going on? Varius sees offense where none is intended. The Lord-Captain has been too soft on us all if tempers can rise from simple discussion and pointing out areas of expertise. This will not do. We cannot function if we cannot trust each other. Though I suspect, in War, we will learn more respect for one another.

Iago nods and crosses his arms as Varius suggests changes.

My initial thought was as yours concerning the Infrastructure. However, while they are of little strategic value in the War, they have value to Damaris if it survives. I'm unsure if the Council will agree to leave them with so few troops. But perhaps...if we pull the Mustered Guardsmen from those two areas, we could put one on the West Wall. what do you propose with the other? Reserves? Mr. Marleno, what do you think?

As for our assault units, you assessment is sound. We could send Lady Orleans' House Troops. The Skitarii would have the same problem as the Storm Troopers, and I expect that the Gelt-Guns will be better in bunkers on defense.

They're both pretty flexible, I'm sure they'll be fine with that. :)

From speaking with both Casimir and Ioneyse, it looks like we could bring them in through the transport bringing the Gelt-Guns? The ship gets attacked, ships get entangled, crew fights the Orks and holds off long enough for the ship to get here. With most of the officers dead, that leaves their pilot (Ioneyse) and a Missionary that hitched a ride (Casimir) in charge.

When they arrive the ship itself is basically dead. Damaris breaks it down for spare parts and what's left of the crew is used to fill out the ranks of the Gelt-Guns and replace their losses in the fight, and what few are left spread throughout the fleet.

Does that work? I'm guessing the "transport" they're coming in on is relatively small and fast, unlike a standard Transport class vessel. Maybe it comes out of the warp in the wrong place, gets jumped by a small Ork ship and boarded, but manage to make it here. The Gelt-Guns will be largely intact (the same mechanically speaking, just a few more bodies who didn't train with them, but have been in a fight, so it evens itself out.) Maybe we could run into them as Trien is "scouting" the nearby system and getting a better idea of what's around here.

I think both are pretty flexible, so if that doesn't work, we can do something else.

Iago's usual scowl breaks into what could be described as a smile,

Agreed. I apologize for sounding so frustrated. I was up most of the night with the Lord-Captain. I understand the reservations. And it's good to hear them now.

The Commander looks up at Trien, Our strategy in the Void will be highly dependent on what we learn about this system. Commander Reynolds and Lord-Captain Locke know it well. I believe our best plan of action there is to coordinate with them. We should present your idea and see if it's workable with what else we have. Whatever plan is decided upon, the main goal will be to push, or draw, the Ork ships into line with the Bulwark.

He nods at Trien's suggestions, The Gelt-Guns and Skitarii seem like a fine choice. I'd prefer to keep the Storm Troopers on attack.

He frowns and looks over the map, We have eight Battalions of Damaris Infantry, and eight separate locations to hold. I suggest we place a Battalion in each area. In line with Trien's suggestion, I believe we should assign the Gelt-Guns to the Levy and Outposts. Perhaps one cohort of the Skitarii...and the House Troops of Lady Orleans. He pauses and looks around, then continues. We have four units of Mustered Armsmen. I suggest we put one each on the South and East Walls, along with Artillery in both places. That should give us a mix of bodies and firepower enough to hold off just about anything the Orks throw at those walls.

He looks over the map again, I believe we should place the other two units of Armsmen within the Infrastructure. The areas are of little strategic value, so I don't expect them to be attacked heavily. Given how spread out the areas are, a large amount of soldiers will be better used than a small number more highly trained.

That leaves Lord-Captain Blitz's House Troops, and a unit of Skitarii to join the Battalion at the Forge. Along with the unit already there, as well as it's defensive position, I believe that will hold. Which brings us to the Storm Troopers and Armored Tank Companies. I believe we should use these as counter-attacking forces. They are our fastest moving units, by far, and should be used aggressively. If General Dante is open to it, I'd like you, Mr. Marleno, to take personal command of these units and strike where necessary to blunt the Ork invasion. Find their leaders. Strike them, and kill them.

Last, I'd like to keep the Magistratum forces within the wall. If the fighting goes against us on any wall, we can push them forward to relieve units, or reinforce areas. But I'd prefer to keep them back during the initial assault. We have no idea how long this war will last. Weeks at least...perhaps even months. If we knew the scale of the enemy, I'd hold back even more and rotate forces to keep them fresh. But since we do not... I do not think this feasible.

The Commander rubs his face, What do you think? Mr. Kavro, is there a better place to use the Skitarii? He looks around again, Do you think any on the council will object to specifically where their troops are deployed? And if so, what objections might arise? Do you think the Rogue Traders have an interest in protecting any specific areas?

To clarify, here's my recommendation on troop placement:
1. "Damaris City Walls (Plains West)": One Infantry Battalion (Damaris)
2. "Damaris City Walls (Forge North)": One Infantry Battalion {Damaris)
3. "Damaris City Walls (Main South)": One Infantry Battalion (Damaris), One Company of Mustered Armsmen (Lady Orleans), One Armoured Artillery Company (Highland Wardens)
4. "Damaris City Walls (Sphinx East)": One Infantry Battalion (Damaris), One Company of Mustered Armsmen (Lady Orleans), One Armoured Artillery Company (Highland Wardens)

5. "Outer Industrial Infrastructure": One Infantry Battalion (Damaris), One Company of Mustered Armsmen (Lady Orleans)
6. "Outer Planetary Infrastructure": One Infantry Battalion (Damaris), One Company of Mustered Armsmen (Blitz)
7. "Shard’s Forge and Manufactoria": One Infantry Battalion (Damaris), One Company of House Troops (Blitz), One Cohort of Skitarii
8. "Levy Bunkers and Outposts": One Infantry Battalion (Damaris), One Company of House Troops (Lady Orleans), One Cohort of Skitarii, The Gelt-Guns

"Offensive Operations": Two Armoured Tank Companies (Sphinx Heavy Guards), Platoon of Storm Troopers (8th Calixian Storm Trooper Company), and Ludicus Marleno (a unit unto himself!)

"Inner Industrial Infrastructure": One Magistratum Enforcer Cadre, One Magistratum Suppression Cadre
"Outer Planetary Infrastructure": One Magistratum Enforcer Cadre

You are able to form companies by sacrificing crew population on your ship but your star ship is likely to be just as crucial to the defense as ground troops, if not more so. Its also likely to take both direct damage and attrition.

Fair enough. Is it possible to look into how to make that work, but not use it until later? Perhaps if the fight is going well in space, but not well on the ground? I'm certain Iago would have no way of knowing if that's possible (hence why he asked about it.)

Please note the levy bunkers and outposts are an abstract location, not limited to the east wall.

I did not realize that. Alright, that makes a little bit of difference, though I still think the plan is sound.

Also note every location has its own defense score so leaving a given wall unmanned isn't the same as having it undefended (half of the PDf infantry have been held back and spread out to man the walls as per the information detailed above).

I'll also, further note, that Iago hasn't ever said he wanted to leave any places *undefended*, just overloading some places and leaving others less defended. (I was taking into account that Dante wouldn't let us leave any place undefended and had reserved units for those places already, if that wasn't already clear). Though with things being *set*, I assume you mean that counter-attacking forces won't be able to shift on the fly. Which is fair enough, I wasn't sure how well that would work with our limited mobility and the size of the city. In which case, I still think leaving one unit of infantry on the north and west walls (along with what's already there) seems to be the best plan. It's a lot of bodies, but if we're going to be able to shift at all, I'd rather limit the amount of places that we have to shift to or from. And, apparently, Iago's little bit of knowledge backs that up.

Oh, with that said, what can "offensive" units do? Is there any obvious place that we should be using them? I'm guessing Ludicus would have a much better idea on that score than Iago. :)

Cool. I think that answers all of my questions. I have kind of a rough idea where I think troops should go, but I'd prefer to hear from everyone. And really, beside overloading the Forge, South, and East Walls, I don't have a particularly strong opinion on where specific units should go. Maybe artillery on the South and East walls? Mercs to go in the Forge with a mix of other infantry? We have eight battalions of Damaris infantry and eight places to defend. That seems like a decent starting position unless someone has an idea?

On a separate note, I'd like to apologize for all of the extra discussion and ooc stuff going on. It's just complicated and I wanted to make sure everything was clear to me. Hopefully it helped out some others as well.

Alright, lets keep moving. I will narrate any actions by Arannis and Yosarni for now. Iago, let your recruits know the game has slots to fill.

Will do!

I thought I'd take this moment to note that while Iago seems really frustrated, I am decidedly not. I get why Varius wouldn't like this plan, at least initially. And I'm all on board with that. He's logical and straightforward, but Orks and War are neither. And I'm happy to have a discussion that highlights Varius' logical nature and attachment to the Forge.

This is all, of course, in the hopes that the game does continue.

Iago sighs, and looks to Trien, I apologize, you spoke before. I believe your plan, to ambush them, might have merit. Discuss this with the other Navigators. I'll present it to Captain Locke. I fear we may not be able to allow more Orks to land, but perhaps she will see a way to use the tactic anyway.

He turns back to the map with a scowl, With all due respect, Mr. Kavro, you and Mr. Yosarni have your skills, but war is where Mr. Marleno and I are well practiced. I understand that you do not see our strategy, but I shall try to explain it...again. He says with a sigh.

First, the facts before us are this: We cannot afford to defend every area equally. If we do so, the Orks will choose where they attack and we will be reacting. This, we cannot afford.

Second, The Levy, the Forge, the Outer Planetary Infrastructure, and the North Wall are all close to each other. The South Wall and Industrial Infrastructure are in proximity. The East and West walls are not particularly far, but not close to anything.

My proposal is not to let the North Wall fall. It is to place counter-attacking units, reinforcing units, within reach of four different areas. The North wall and the three areas beyond that wall. If we leave the wall less defended, we will be able to reinforce the three other places. I propose that we reinforce the South and Eat wall to a degree that we know they will hold because they won't be getting reinforcements. Unless you have some miracle that will transport our couter-attacking troops anywhere as we react to the Ork forces? He pauses only a moment, No? If tanks were faster, I suppose. But no, they will need to be near where we plan to use them.

So, if the Orks attack the North Wall, we will have units ready and waiting to attack back. If they break through even before those units can arrive they will be in the Inner Infrastructure only. They won't be directly in our heart, unlike if they broke through the South or East wall. If we put Magistratum troops in that Infrastructure, even better. However, if the Orks decide not to attack that wall. Instead, attacking the Forge, or Levy, or even Infrastructure, our couter-attacking forces will be nearby.

I believe we can also leave the West wall less defended if we can place our Tanks and Stormtroopers in a place that can get there quick enough. This is less sure, but I trust that you can calculate an estimation on arrival time and risk assessment, Mr. Kavro. The same holds true about the Infrastructure behind, however.

As for the Forge, I have certainly never thought to leave it undefended. In fact, I agree we should send significant troops to defend it. I understand the danger of it being cut off, but I don't intend on letting any area of the city fall. If any Wall falls, the Orks will overrun this city. If the Levy, or Infrastructure is destroyed, this city will take centuries to rebuild.

The plan isn't to let the North Wall fall. Far from it. Now is it clear? Let us move on and decide just what forces to put where. To be more specific, I propose that we place only one Damaris Infantry Battalion to reinforce what is already on the North Wall. I believe this will also suffice for the West Wall, but again, we need to know if we'd be able to reinforce that area fast enough, while staying within striking range of the Forge and Levy. Mr. Kavro, you are familiar with the Skitarii and their abilities. Where are they used best?

Iago looks around the room and waits for the others to respond.

Common Lore (War) TN50: 1d100 ⇒ 2 Success, with 4 extra degrees.

As Iago does not have Scholastic Lore (Tacticae), I don't know what the reduction would be for Common Lore (War). Up until Arduous (-40) he still gets a success.

I, for one, really hope you do not AK. As I mentioned, there are several players I know of that are interested. I know it's a lot of work, I hope it's still worth it to you.

Well, I know it's probably too late, but I'm sorry to hear that. I would have preferred to hash things out and resolve this. But, I also understand not wanting to play in a game if it's not going to be fun for you.

With that said, I'm having fun. I was even having fun arguing in character. And I want to make it clear that no matter how upset Iago sounds, I'm not usually (ever?) anywhere near as upset as he is. I expect characters to disagree and I'm a fan of inter-party tension. I just dislike out of character tension and prefer to talk that through when possible. So, if anyone is ever upset with *me*, feel free to tell me. I'll be happy to talk through whatever it is.

The issue is twofold:

1. AK has been explicit in stating the criticality of the forge. Re read his opening at the top of the page, if the Forge falls we die. You want to leave that part of the walls open-ish, letting the xenos cut the forge off from us. With all due respect it's an idiotic idea only reinforced by the fact you picked it randomly and are now attempting to back-justify it.
2. Passive aggressive aside, you're not showing any open-ness to debate or others ideas. It definitely reads to me as 'I chose this idea at random and now this is the only thing we're doing'.

I repeat, leaving the North anything other than well defended is a stupid decision both IC and OOC. Go ahead and do your weak wall gambit if you like... Just do it on a different part of the defenses.
Either you as a player and character are listening or we may as well skip this bit and random roll every decision just like you did here

I'm moving this to the discussion thread because it seems like this may take some time to work out.

First, I think you're reading a lot of tone into these posts that just isn't there.

I disagree with you as to the plan. I think it's a good idea. I did choose it randomly, and as I noted, in retrospect, it actually turns out to be a workable idea. I'm not an idiot. I'm, in fact, a halfway decent tactician (though by no means a master). I agree that there are dangers. Iago has also agreed with Navis that there are dangers. But, in my opinion, the benefits outweigh the dangers. He's (Iago has, that is) explained why he thinks this is beneficial. (The fact that the counter-attacking troops can stay near the important places such as the forge and levy as well as this wall, the fact that if the wall falls the places beyond it are less important than if we try this tactic in the south and fail, etc.) Iago certainly doesn't mean to leave the Forge unprotected. In fact, it's one of the reasons to choose the north and west walls. Not only will the counter-attacking forces be nearby to the north wall if it is attacked, but if it isn't, and the Forge or Levy are instead attacked with more troops than we placed there, we can counter-attack *in those places*.

Now, as I said in-character, there seems to be something else going on here. And it appears more true out-of-character than in. It's not just the plan. Even another player agreed with it. You jumped on it as idiotic, and when you were simply disagreed with, you exploded. I'm not being passive aggressive, nor was Iago. (Again, I think you were reading a whole lot of tone that just wasn't there. He even complimented Navis. I had to go back and read what I wrote just in case I *had* inadvertently insulted someone. And I have to say, it's very difficult for me to understand how anyone was.)

I'm willing to hear other plans. But nothing you have said has been persuasive. If by "not showing any open-ness to debate or others ideas", you mean that I won't instantly change my mind because you ask me to, then yes, that's not going to happen. I'm willing to discuss it. Heck, I'm even willing to argue it. I came up with an idea that I thought would work. Iago has some knowledge of war, and so I put it forth. I expected that Ludicus would have something to say, given his character also knows a little something about warfare. And then I thought we'd refine the idea. Iago asked some questions of the other characters which I had hoped would get them into their element and add their input to the plan in a way uniquely suited to each of them. But you seemed to take this as an insult and jumped down my throat. I'm afraid I don't really understand what the issue is. I get that you don't like the plan. I even understand why. I simply don't agree with your assessment.

If you have another issue then we should discuss it. But it seems to me this is more of an out-of-character issue than a character problem. And we should definitely clear this up so it doesn't bog down the game.

Sad to see you go Castor, but entirely understandable. Good luck with your other endeavors!

For the game, I asked a couple questions in the Gameplay thread, but I don't want them to get lost in the rest of my walls of text (which, I hope, isn't too much to sift through.) I'm only re-posting here so they don't get lost, not to imply that people haven't read them or anything. ;)

So, here are my questions about the invasion forces:

1. Is there any way to predict where we may get hit the hardest? I assume given we're dealing with Orks it's difficult, or impossible, but is there a way we can work on forcing them to land/crash in certain areas? Or at least encourage this?

2. Do the groups have to stay together? i.e. If we place the "2 Companies of House Troops", do both Companies have to be placed in one spot, or are we allowed to mix up the groups? Could we, for example, place one company in the "Outer Industrial Infrastructure" (Section 5) and the other in "Outer Planetary Infrastructure" (Section 6)? Also, if we can, do those of us with Common Lore (War) or other appropriate skills, know if this is a good idea?

It's a little easier, I think, if we can spread units around. But if we're limited, then it's 10 total units (including the mercenaries, but not any troops of our own, if we can manage to field any bodies from the ship), with two being offensive in nature. And one that should be (or needs to be?) teamed with an infantry unit, that being the artillery. Also, two (Magistratum) that seem of limited use if unsupported, so shouldn't be in a place alone. This isn't a complaint, just noting that we'll have to make much more difficult choices if we only have 8 defensive units and 8 places to hold, with several of those that should be teamed up with other units for best effect. However, if we can split them up, I think it's a bit easier. I still think going heavy on two walls and leaving two weak is better than trying to man them all evenly, but at least we can put *something* on those walls.

3. For "urban" areas for the Magistratum units, do the "Infrastructure" areas count as urban (either outer or inner)? Or does it matter? (It seemed, from the description, that they might be not suited to man the walls, for example.)

Iago sighs, Mr. Yosarni, I think you may need to step back and clear your head. Obviously something is bothering you. My plan has always included the Western wall. In fact, I said just that. The North and Western walls should be left less defended. And we should concentrate the troops dedicated to defending walls on the South and East walls. Those will need to hold on their own, with little to no reinforcements.

Iago leans back and looks at Navis thoughtfully, What's wrong Mr. Yosarni? Speak plainly. There must be something else going on here. You see insults where there are none, and ignore compliments as if they do not come. You are obviously distracted, and not listening clearly. Something I've never known you to do.

The Commander crosses his arms, So...what is it truly bothering you?

I realize that I rolled randomly to determine the West and North walls up above, but Iago didn't. Also, in my opinion at least, it turns out those might be good choices. Certainly I, and by all appearances, Iago too, am willing to be convinced otherwise. Normally I wouldn't post something like this out-of-character, but I thought it worth explaining why I rolled a 1d4 a couple times up above since it might not have been obvious.

Iago frowns and his scowl deepens, I understand tempers are short, but you misunderstand my tone, Mr. Yosarni. I'm sure these mercenaries will do their part. Against Orks, more soldiers will always be better. and I would have hoped to get more. However, I understand the constraints you were under. You did more than a fine job. More than any of us could have expected.

Obviously annoyed, Iago presses on, But perhaps I wasn't delicate enough for you, Mr. Yosarni. You'll just have to get over it. I don't have time to coddle any Officers, and we don't have time to read insults into discussion of basic strategy. Save it for the Defense Council. I'm sure there will be plenty of Ego and Pride present to fill the entire hall.

He leans over the map again, As to the North wall, that is exactly my plan. I expect that either the Orks will attack the places we put the most troops, hoping for a fight, or that they will attack this very wall, because it is nearly undefended. It is the closest to several other areas that we will have massed troops. If it is attacked, we will have troops nearby to push back. Also, we will have our Armoured Cavalry and Storm Troopers ready to counter-assault. Drawn them in, strike back.

If they do not attack there, but attack the Forge, or the Bunkers and Outposts, our counter-assault troops will still be within reach. We cannot afford to cover all the walls evenly. The South and East walls are not close enough to other important areas to keep extra troops nearby. So they will have to hold on their own. Also, we can keep the Ministratum troops inside the walls, in the Inner Infrastructure areas. If the Orks breach the walls, we'll have to hope those troops hold them in the streets. Then we can push back and retake the walls. If either the South or East wall is breached, the Orks will be in the heart of the city. We won't survive that.

The Commander sighs and leans back, As our Lord-Captain is so fond of saying, Sacrifice is part of War.

These "Gelt-Guns" will have to do. Mr. Yosarni, if it becomes necessary, how many men can we muster from the Aeternus? At some point, they may need more bodies on the ground than we need in the Void. We should make preparations for this even if they are never needed.

Is there any way to predict where we may get hit the hardest? I assume given we're dealing with Orks it's difficult, or impossible, but is there a way we can work on forcing them to land/crash in certain areas? Or at least encourage this? If it is possible:

Common Lore (War) +10, TN50: 1d100 ⇒ 15 Success, 3 extra Degrees.
Forbidden Lore (Xenos), TN40: 1d100 ⇒ 35 Success.

Iago surveys the map weighing the options.
1d4 ⇒ 2 North.
1d4 ⇒ 2 Hrm...apparently north really wants to be undefended.
1d4 ⇒ 1 And, West. Yay, for choosing who dies randomly.

Given the layout, there doesn't seem to be any obvious walls to build up or leave less defended. I suggest the North...and West...wall for less troops. Those are closest to where we'll have a significant amount of troops and we'll be counterattacking with our armored cavalry and storm troopers.

My intial thought is to keep the Magistratum units in the Inner Planetary and Industrial areas. Hopefully, if the West and North walls fall, they can hold out in those areas long enough for reinforcements. Otherwise, we'll be completely overrun.

Two questions before I give my recommendations as to where to actually send troops: First, Do the groups have to stay together? i.e. If we place the "2 Companies of House Troops", do both Companies have to be placed in one spot, or are we allowed to mix up the groups? Second, for "urban" areas for the Magistratum units, do the "Infrastructure" areas count as urban (either outer or inner)? Or does it matter? (It seemed, from the description, that they might be not suited to man the walls, for example.)

Character sheet also updated.

No worries. First, sorry to hear about your Mother. I hope she recovers and gets well. Second, I expect that it'll take some time to get momentum going again through the whole group. It was a long time off and it's not a game/setting that everyone is as familiar with as Pathfinder.

Again, I hope everything goes well!

The Commander frowns and rubs his chin as he reads the reports.

We've said this before, but the goal is to focus what Ork ships do land into places we can control. They don't care about traps, feints, or tactics. These Orks are looking for a fight. War is the goal for them. They tend to be unpredictable because they'll do suicidal things to get into a fight. Keep that in mind, and we may not be caught unawares.

Iago looks over the void resources they have and his frown deepens.

Ork ships tend to be difficult to destroy. My guess is that we'll need to concentrate fire in order to take them down rather than hope they'll be deterred by a bit of damage. The goal will be to draw them into the firing arc of the Bulwark. We may be able to accomplish this through baiting them. But the Aeternus has an alternative. Our Torpedoes can do a significant amount of damage, but beyond that they also serve another tactical advantage. With proper aim, and a bit of luck, we may be able to convince some of them to alter their path into far more firepower than we can bring to bear otherwise. Then again, they may simply ignore them and plow through. Only time will tell.

I'd like to keep these System Defense Ships back initially and use them as relief when and if our main forces need to repair and resupply. Captain Locke may have other ideas, we shall see.

Turning to the ground forces he sighs and runs a hand through his silver hair,

Mr. Yosarni, if we had to contribute to the ground forces on the planet, how many soldiers would we be able to bring?

He turns to Ludicus, Mr. Marleno, I'd like you to be our leader on the ground. Form a squad of your best men for a security detail. Take control where you are needed and coordinate with General Dante.

Feel free to name the guys in the security squad. If they survive this war we can start giving them better equipment, some personality, and be sad when they inevitably die.

I believe our strategy on the ground should be similar to in the Void. We have several units that excel when attacking. We cannot fortify everything well. But we can fortify some areas very well. Well enough to handle things on their own, while leaving others vulnerable. If we can keep those areas in range of our counter-attacking forces, they can respond if any of those areas are attacked. Orks, being Orks, may still attack the over-fortified areas. But they should hold. And if they attack where we are weak, we will be ready to support those areas. They key will be making sure the speed of our response is sufficient enough to prevent a breech. He looks around the room. Assessments? Mr. Kavro, what is the state of this city's infrastructure? What do we need to do to keep everything running?

The Commander sighs and leans over the table. Mr. Trien, once we organize our Void defenses with Captain Locke I'd like you to work out how best to find out more about this system. If we have time, I'd like to do a quick scan of the nearby planets and satellites, whether moons or otherwise. Ask the other Navigators what they know. Perhaps the pilots assigned to the System Defense ships. I want to know every trick we may be able to use in this system. Places to hide, places to run to or from. Anything that could be of use.

He picks up a report in his mechanical hand, scans it, then returns it to the table.

It's going to be a long day. He nods and looks around the room. His scowl gone but his demeanor still grim. Let's get to it.

I'll post more about specifics once we get the map.