Excalibur Squadron OOC Thread

[Morrdh]

Out of his works (or based upon) I've only seen the Red October film, plan at some point to pick up the book.

@Tiger; Wraith Squadron eh?

I'll have to keep an eye out for those books, have you read any of the Rogue Squadron comics/graphic novels?

I never read any of the comics, but I did read Stackpole's Rogue book series.
It was okay. Corran struck me as a bit of a Stu at times, but not too much of one. Stackpole's dull-as-oatmeal writing style just kinda dragged it down for me.
It's better than the vast majority of SW books, though, I'll give it that. Allston was just a majorly better writer, and much better at coming up with good characters.
Seriously, you can get the original three Wraith books (minus the new one that just came out like a year ago and is still pretty expensive) for like 12 bucks. I recommend them.

The comics were also written by Stackpole...

http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/X-wing:_ ... 8comics%29

[The Tiger Kingdom]

I never read any of the comics, but I did read Stackpole's Rogue book series.
It was okay. Corran struck me as a bit of a Stu at times, but not too much of one. Stackpole's dull-as-oatmeal writing style just kinda dragged it down for me.
It's better than the vast majority of SW books, though, I'll give it that. Allston was just a majorly better writer, and much better at coming up with good characters.
Seriously, you can get the original three Wraith books (minus the new one that just came out like a year ago and is still pretty expensive) for like 12 bucks. I recommend them.

The comics were also written by Stackpole...

http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/X-wing:_ ... 8comics%29

I might get that omnibus at some point.

[Pan Asian Amercian Coalition]

My dad has a French comic book about French mirage pilots. It's pretty good but it is in French and I can't find an English translation.

And on the Gov't shutdown, my dad got furloughed. Not a good time to be working for NASA

[Goram]

Reports of shots fired on Capitol Hill.

Things are going well in DC then.

[Kouralia]

Reports of shots fired on Capitol Hill.

Things are going well in DC then.

One Article, and another.

First shutting down their government, now shootings. And all we get in Britain is 'back benchers expressing discontent' and a UKIP MEP smacking someone with a leaflet.

[The Tiger Kingdom]

Reports of shots fired on Capitol Hill.

Things are going well in DC then.

One Article, and another.

First shutting down their government, now shootings. And all we get in Britain is 'back benchers expressing discontent' and a UKIP MEP smacking someone with a leaflet.

Is there any proof of the shootings being connected to the political situation?
No reason to jump to conclusions yet, I would think.

[Goram]

One Article, and another.

First shutting down their government, now shootings. And all we get in Britain is 'back benchers expressing discontent' and a UKIP MEP smacking someone with a leaflet.

Is there any proof of the shootings being connected to the political situation?
No reason to jump to conclusions yet, I would think.

None at all. Not yet, anyway.

EDIT: According to Twitter, the shooter is in custody.

[The balkens]

One Article, and another.

First shutting down their government, now shootings. And all we get in Britain is 'back benchers expressing discontent' and a UKIP MEP smacking someone with a leaflet.

Is there any proof of the shootings being connected to the political situation?
No reason to jump to conclusions yet, I would think.

Holy shit, tiger.
What is going to happen next?

[The Tiger Kingdom]

Is there any proof of the shootings being connected to the political situation?
No reason to jump to conclusions yet, I would think.

Holy shit, tiger.
What is going to happen next?

Actually, judging from what little CNN is now reporting, it doesn't sound political at all. It looks much more like somebody was (for whatever reason) in a high-speed pursuit with law enforcement that ended up at Capitol Hill. Sounds like it started in an unrelated incident.
CNN is also saying that whatever the hell was going on is over now, and only one person has evidently been hurt.

[Goram]

Holy shit, tiger.
What is going to happen next?

Actually, judging from what little CNN is now reporting, it doesn't sound political at all. It looks much more like somebody was (for whatever reason) in a high-speed pursuit with law enforcement that ended up at Capitol Hill. Sounds like it started in an unrelated incident.
CNN is also saying that whatever the hell was going on is over now, and only one person has evidently been hurt.

The injured party is, apparently, a police officer who's been hit by a car.

[Len Hyet]

Holy fuck
My cousin is an officer in the 1st District

[Goram]

Holy fuck
My cousin is an officer in the 1st District

It's all under control now, by the looks of things. All pretty minor, I think, but the area was locked down as a precaution. Nothing to worry about.

[Morrdh]

Holy fuck
My cousin is an officer in the 1st District

It's all under control now, by the looks of things. All pretty minor, I think, but the area was locked down as a precaution. Nothing to worry about.

Just like some git dumping their suitcase because they couldn't be arsed to carry it, thus causing a four hour long bomb scare and its resultant chaos.

THAT was a fun day to try and get home...

[Goram]

It's all under control now, by the looks of things. All pretty minor, I think, but the area was locked down as a precaution. Nothing to worry about.

Just like some git dumping their suitcase because they couldn't be arsed to carry it, thus causing a four hour long bomb scare and its resultant chaos.

THAT was a fun day to try and get home...

Some people are nice like that, aren't they?

Nobbus headus est.

[The balkens]

great article len!

are you going to interveiw the rest of us?

[The Tiger Kingdom]

great article len!

are you going to interveiw the rest of us?

I'd be interested in that.
Although, Len, I couldn't help but notice my interview cuts off right about in the middle. I know I wrote a whole fucking bunch, but is there a link to the rest somewhere in your post?

[The Tiger Kingdom]

Also, for the record: Never let it be said I didn't exploit a single opportunity to be a history nerd.

[Goram]

Stanford walked quickly down the hall ways of Bywater's Station Headquarters. The building was spartan, clearly not designed for aesthetics or comfort. The building was barely 18 months old, but already the off white paint on the plaster walls was chipping away in places and the skirting boards were dirty. From the outside, the building didn't look much better. With it's red brick construction, high windows and armed guards, one could be forgiven for assuming that the building was a prison. As it was, the building housed several dozen RAF officers and enlisted personnel, in every administrative role plausible. 24 hours a day, seven days a week the Station Headquarters was alive with activity as the small army of personnel rushed to and fro, dealing with anything from interrogating returning crews and disseminating photographs on the bombing ladder to brewing tea and biscuits for a tired crew at the end of an operation.

The main hall was, by far, the largest room in the building. At one end was a slightly raised stage, with the wall covered by a massive red curtain. Off to the right was a plinth, not dissimilar to the sort that a priest might stand behind, to give his Sunday sermon. The plinth was accompanied by a half dozen chairs and a large blackboard, supported on an easel, onto which various pieces of information, important to tonight's operation, had been attached.

Stanford entered via a side door, to find the room filled with airmen. The crews of Bywater's sixteen Lancasters had already assembled for the general briefing and most had sat down. However, six men were standing by the door, waiting for their final crew member. Stanford clocked the crew at roughly the same moment as they noticed him. At first glance, the crew looked as one might expect. Five of them looked no older than twenty. The sixth looked to be noticeably older, not by very much, but due to the youth of the airmen in the room, an older man stuck out like a sore thumb. It was the older man, a flight sergeant, who approached Stanford first.

"Excuse me, sir...are you Tommy, uh, I mean Flight Sergeant Broad's replacement?"

The man began, in a clearly Canadian accent. Stanford nodded the affirmative, saying;

"That's the general idea, Flight Sergeant"

and chucking as he did so

"Flying Officer Douglas Stanford"

He continued.

"Good to know you, Skip."

The Canadian replied

"Allow me to introduce the boys."

The older man turned slightly and gestured to the boy, for he was no older than a boy, on the left of the group. The Canadian rattled off the names and roles of the crew in quick succession. Sergeant Tommy Carter, the mid upper gunner, stood on the far left. Next to him was Sergeant Andy Potter, Carter's partner in crime and rear gunner. The next two men were both Pilot Officers, Christopher McKellar and Richard Collingwood. These two men worked in close proximity, in the aircraft, filling the roles of wireless operator and navigator respectively. On the right, was Sergeant Peter Haywood, the flight engineer. Lastly, the Canadian introduced himself. His name was Flight Sergeant David Cole, the bomb aimer. At 26 years old, he was the oldest member of the crew and one of the elders of the squadron, known affectionately to virtually everyone as "Grandpa". He was, though he'd never admit it, one of the finest bomb aimers in the entire Group. Few could match his bombing photographs for consistent accuracy on the aiming point.

The crew, despite their youth, were an experienced unit. The two gunners, Carter and Potter, were coming to the end of their first tour. They had flown every operation together, lived together and, though they often squabbled like school girls, they were as close as brothers. The flight engineer and navigator were not as experienced as the gunners, yet they still had a respectable number of trips under their belts. The bomb aimer, as one might expect, had by far, the most experience of the crew. Cole had joined the Royal Canadian Air Force in 1936, before transferring into Bomber Command at the outbreak of hostilities. Cole had seen action on numerous types, including Hampdens, Sterlings and now, Lancasters. By this point, in the winter of 1942, Cole was right at the end of his second tour and tonight would be his 58th trip. Only one man at Bywater, Group Captain Stephenson, could best that total. The odd man out was the Wireless Operator. Nineteen year old Christopher McKellar had been a public school boy, ear marked for greater things. When his family heard that he had joined the air force, only months ago, they had practically disowned him. He had passed through training, with only average marks, but never the less had graduated. He'd been posted to Bywater barely two weeks ago and, after countless training flights, tonight would be his first op.

Stanford did not have time to dwell on the men who, in a very few hours, he would entrust his life to. By this point, the Group Captain had entered the room, accompanied by various other officers. As the briefing party walked in, the host of airmen stood to attention, before being told to stand easy and retake their seats.

"Good afternoon chaps. The target for tonight is..."

The red curtain at slowly drew back and one could practically feel the tension in the room as the crews impulsively leant forward. Behind the curtain was a gigantic map of Europe, showing France, Holland and Germany in minute detail. However, this detail was overlooked by everyone in the room. Running from RAF Bywater, was a single red string. It ran out over the North Sea, before veering south. The string crossed the German coast between Cuxhaven and Bremerhaven, before terminating at a pin placed atop a city slightly south of Hamburg.

"Stahlstadt. The target for tonight is Stahlstadt."

Stanford let out an inaudible sigh of relief. No trip to Germany was enviable, but it was certainly better than Happy Valley. However, as the intelligence officer was quick to tell them, Stahlstadt would be no cake walk. Night fighters, based in the Northern regions of Holland and Germany, would be the first gauntlet that might have to be negotiated whilst the bombers were still over the sea. The enemy coast would give them no respite. Fighters could still be expected, along with the odd flak ship as the RAF machines made landfall. The crews, especially the navigators, were urged of the importance of sticking to the planned route in order to avoid known flak concentrations around Bremen and Hamburg. These batteries of guns and search lights, many radar guided, would likely make mincemeat of any aircraft unfortunate enough to get lost. Flak was not expected over the target, however fighters were a major concern over Stahlstadt. Twelve bombers would be crossing the target every minute, creating a target rich environment for the Luftwaffe. The news, thankfully, was not all bad. In order to confuse enemy defences, 18 Mosquitos would be going to Berlin and further 14 would be headed to Duisburg. Elsewhere lone RAF night fighters would intrude into German air space, in order to hunt the hunters. These aircraft, along with the few Wellingtons out tonight, would be forced to exercise caution in the bomber stream. In the pitch black, a nervous gunner was likely to fire upon any two engine machine.

As the briefing went on, Stanford scribbled on a note pad. Forecast weather looked average at best. The target was expected to be partially obscured by light cloud, between midnight and 3AM. The first of eight Oboe equipped Mosquitos, carrying green target indicators, were expected to cross the target at roughly 10PM and the backer upers were scheduled to arrive half an hour later. By the time the cloud formed over the area, Stahlstadt would likely be visible for miles around as hundreds of tonnes of ordinance would already have been expended upon it. A muted cheer went up around the room as the briefing officer described the make up of the 800 bomber force that would be airborne that night. The force was mostly Lancasters but at least seventy Sterlings would be in the stream as well. The Sterling was a far larger aircraft than it's contemporaries, the Halifax and the Lancaster, but it carried a far lighter load. Crucially it's ceiling was only 16,500 feet, meaning it was forced to fly far lower than the rest of the bomber stream. This made the Sterlings a tempting target for flak and fighters, drawing attention away from the higher flying machines.

"And one more thing, chaps"

The photographic officer said, making the last point of the briefing

"Creepback. We don't want any of you chaps getting windy over the target - you'll just have to go back again if you do. You've got to hit the TI's, chaps, not the fires."

Creepback was a phenomenon that plagued Bomber Command's higher ups. Crews, due to the fear of flak, fighters and even collisions, tended to drop their bombs fractionally short of the aiming point. Even the backer upers were susceptible to creepback, dropping their indicators short and exacerbating the process. In order to remedy this problem, Bomber Command had begun to place their first markers on the far side of the target, correctly assuming that the bombs would creepback over the target.

This sour note was the final point of the briefing and the crews, dismissed. Many would go to the mess, for a traditional pre-flight meal of bacon and eggs. Others would simply sleep. Barring a freak meteorological occurrence, tonight's op was now in no doubt at all.

[Canuckland]

Well, after a time of consideration: I think I can come back full time.

[Morrdh]

Tiger, that medals/commendations thing you mentioned a short while back.

I presume you might give some out?

[Len Hyet]

great article len!

are you going to interveiw the rest of us?

I hadn't really thought about it though I suppose I could

great article len!

are you going to interveiw the rest of us?

I'd be interested in that.
Although, Len, I couldn't help but notice my interview cuts off right about in the middle. I know I wrote a whole fucking bunch, but is there a link to the rest somewhere in your post?

Size constraints are a bitch. And Tiger I wanted to say your entire interview was gold. Unfortunately I'm not part of a different NS Paper, so no link.

[Morrdh]

On A Wing And A Prayer, Part IV

RAF Scatsta, Shetland Islands, January 1941

"If want to take it easy with the throttle sir." Stated the corporal after he'd helped Charlie strap into the Spitfire's cockpit. "Since the armour and all that has been stripped out, she's fully laden with fuel and extra tanks."

"Gotcha." Charlie nodded. "Any advice?"

"Yeah, don't get hit and don't crash." The corporal replied cheerfully.

"Thanks..." Muttered Charlie as he completed the rest of his pre-flight checks, he glanced at the various dials and realized that the fuel gauge would be a tricky one to monitor since the aircraft had the extra fuel tanks to boost its range. He vaguely recall the corporal saying that the dial wouldn't move until he got onto the main fuel tanks or something along those lines. Though removing of some of the fighter's normal equipment to make it lighter, also made a bit more space in the cockpit which Charlie put to good use to store a haversack full of rations and a couple of flasks of hot tea which were to be his only real comfort on the long and cold flight ahead.

Eventually he'd gotten the checks completed, made a hand gesture to the ground crew as well as shouting, "Crank it over!"

The ground crew fired up the accumulator trolley that was plugged into the starboard side cowling of the Spitfire, the engine coughed a few times as the propeller rotated round until it fully caught and the engine roared into life. A quick look at the gauges in front of him told Charlie that the engine and oil pressures were holding steady as he increased the throttle inch by inch. Once satisfied he gestured for the ground crew to remove the chocks that held the aircraft in place, then taxied out towards the runway where he swing the tail round to line up with the runway and applied the brakes. He revved the engine until he saw that a green flare had been fired into the sky letting him know he could take off, he released the brakes and the Spitfire started to roll forwards. Carefully the throttle was inched forward, the corporal's warning clear in Charlie's head as the plane began to pick up speed.

Sixty... Eighty... One hundred... One twenty... One forty... One sixty... She's struggling a bit... One seventy... One eighty... One eight-five... There, she's caught the air...

Once the Spitfire started to lift into the sky Charlie eased the throttle all the way forward as the heavily laden aircraft clawed its way into the sky, its controls felt a little sluggish which Charlie guessed was due to the weight of all the fuel. The Spit fought for every feet of altitude, but before long it reached a few thousand feet and Charlie levelled off as he trimmed the aircraft in addition to easing back the throttle.

Now all he had to was settle down for the long flight ahead...

[United Kingdom of Poland]

great article len!

are you going to interveiw the rest of us?

I hadn't really thought about it though I suppose I could

I'd be interested in that.
Although, Len, I couldn't help but notice my interview cuts off right about in the middle. I know I wrote a whole fucking bunch, but is there a link to the rest somewhere in your post?

Size constraints are a bitch. And Tiger I wanted to say your entire interview was gold. Unfortunately I'm not part of a different NS Paper, so no link.

post the whole interview here

[Len Hyet]

*le barf*

1. What is Excalibur Squadron, and why should people join it?

Excalibur Squadron is a PMT (WW2, to be specific) action/adventure/military RP that has been running since late July of 2012 without hiatuses or interruptions (although a short hiatus may be on the horizon - nothing's set in stone), created and OP'd by me, the American Tiger Kingdom. It's an RP about an elite Allied fighter squadron/commando outfit working for the Special Operations Executive, composed of people from all sorts of Allied countries, and with all sorts of crazy backgrounds.

Together, they fuck Axis shit up in every way you can think of.

You should join it because it's the best RP on Nationstates, frankly, and we're always in need of good, active RPers - like you, the reader!

2. Where'd you come up with the idea for ES?

Honestly, it's a medley of quite a few things. I've been a WW2 nerd since I was literally about six years old, and I've read literally hundreds of books on the subject. I'm also a big fan of pulpy adventure novels - it's the literary equivalent of Skittles for me, effectively: delicious, totally non-filling, no real redeeming values at all, but you can't eat just one.
And one of those book series that I really liked was Aaron Allston's old Wraith Squadron novel trilogy. They're Star Wars novels, written from the perspective of a Rebel fighter squadron - no Force, no Jedi, no lightsabers, nothing. Just a team of badass pilots fighting the Empire who also can mix it up on the ground. They're all genuinely excellent books, much better than the standard SW book or tnhrowaway thriller novel, and I'd heartily recommend them to anyone with an interest in this sort of stuff.

I'll admit, ES is essentially Wraith Squadron in WW2. The squadron setup, the crazy multinational team, the insane missions, it's all in there. Thankfully, I can't be sued for stealing concepts, I guess .

So one day, I was rereading one of those books, and it just hit me - how awesome would it be to see this sort of thing in a WW2 setting? And right around that time, I'd been joining a few RPs, but they never really clicked for me - the people OPing had no idea what they were doing, or the concepts I was seeing weren't interesting me, or worst of all, I'd join an Rp with a good concept and a good roster of RPers, and it would just sort of...die...for lack of interest on the part of the OP over time as they'd move on to something else. Very frustrating.

So I knew this concept had some legs under it, and that I could do something with it for at least a little while.

Needless to say, I didn't quite anticipate this.

3. How did you come up with unique characters like Noble and Page?

They're far from unique, Len, but that's not necessarily a bad thing.

Captain/Squadron Leader Robert Page's character was created piece-by-piece - and is still in the process of being created, actually - over a very long period of time. His name, as I've noted before, comes from my old habit of combining the names of members of my favorite bands, because I'm absolutely terrible at just coming up with names spontaneously. Robert Page is, of course, a portmanteau of Robert Plant and Jimmy Page, of Led Zeppelin fame. I think it's got that sort of badass ring to it that a lot of good action-adventure hero names have - it's simple, powerful, all of that.

I created Page's personality by delving back into those same books that inspired me originally, but instead of making him a carbon-copy of those kind of square-jawed, rough and tumble, relentlessly brave and noble Allan Quatermain/Biggles sorts of heroes, making him somebody who's internalized them and tries to fit himself into that mold. He's the kind of guy who spent his formative years reading those kind of books and hearing those kinds of stories from his dad, who was an RFC veteran from the First World War, and he took to them in a really big way. But I realized that I couldn't just have Page be one of those characters - after all, none of those characters could ever realistically come into contact with a World War, do what Page is being asked to do, and come out unscathed. Instead, I wanted him to be a bit like me on that score: learning from the book how to try and be a hero. And he goes out there, and it works for him, for a few years, but then it starts to fray around the edges - or collapse completely. And if you've been keeping up with ES at all recently, it's fair to say that now, the wool has been entirely torn off of his eyes. His whole conception of what life would be like as the "hero" of his own story has been pretty much totally torn down.

With Flight Lieutenant Alix Noble, on the other hand, I kinda knew what her character was going to be from the start. I think that shows in how quickly her name came together - I wanted it to sound very British upper-class, sort of "Bond-girl-esque" (without all of the flagrant stupidity/misogyny of naming a character "Pussy Galore" or "Plenty O'Toole" and expecting people to take you seriously), and "Alexandra" struck me as a perfect first name. "Noble" came to me second - it's a bit silly and on the nose, but then again, this RP is a bit silly and on the nose, so it fits perfectly. It was that simple. Took about ten seconds, which is very strange.

What I wanted Alix to be was a girl who knew what she was about, who was smart, confident, self-assured, and tough. Many of the books and series (although by all means not all of them), especially the older ones, have a real problem with including women. I realized immediately that having a woman actually serving in a combat squadron in a WW2 timeframe and mentality was going to be a bit of a chore in terms of accuracy (the Soviets did actually have female flyers in the VVD, but they served in all-female squadrons, not integrated units). I couldn't have Alix be some reverse-misogynistic Hollywoodish conception of a "feminist" - you know the type, the female character that gets written to be "tough and independent", but is just essentially totally unpleasant and unlikable, because that would be as awful to write as it would be totally anachronistic for the time. And I obviously couldn't have her be some insecure wreck, totally dependent on the approval of the men around her and having her just be a damsel in distress either. Instead, I just wanted to write her as a normal person someone who wouldn't be defined by her gender or her relationship with Page or anyone else, necessarily. As such, I try to write her not as a "female character", just as a character. She's not in Excalibur to be eye candy; she's there because she deserves to be there.

4. What's the point of Excalibur Squadron? Is it just for fun, or is it something with some actual meaning to it?

It definitely started as something that was just for fun, but now, as you can probably see from the massive walls of text above and the ones to come, I have found that there is some sort of conflict and "message", I guess, underpinning the whole thing. I feel that there i definitely a conflict happening - and this'll be expanded on later - between these sorts of conceptions of war, and what war is like, as expressed both in those stupid action/adventure novels and in actual, bloody, gruesome accounts of what combat was like in a World war.

Let me put it this way. Page is like me, in a way - I started this RP at first with the intent of having it just be dumb fun and not having any real underlying issues, or any enduring problems that couldn't be solved by kicking Nazis in the crotch. As I've written him, Page was originally the same way, he's lived his whole life imagining himself as a kind of Rider Haggard/Boy's Own hero, swooping in to be unfailingly badass, get the girl, and save the day with not even a scratch on him. And for a while, because he's a damn good pilot, soldier, and all around "hero-type" of guy, this actually sort of worked for him for a while. It was a mixture of good luck and skill that lasted a good, long while.
But that's not reality. That's not how life works. In the last few operations, Page has seen situations fall apart and his best efforts at something fail, he's been stymied, he's had friends killed around him, he's had a woman who he might have loved (he's not sure about it and can't really think about it) and who apparently loved him cold-bloodedly executed in front of him, in circumstances that resulted from him making one bad decision. He's been captured and tortured mercilessly for weeks, then was effectively left for dead. What this does to a person's idealism about the glory and badassery of war...we'll see later.

So I guess the underlying theme of Excalibur, at least with what I'm writing, is Page's battle between these two elements of his psyche - these pretty, glorious ideals and the sheer ugliness and horror that war generally is as well. Of course, I'm committing the cardinal sin of self-projection here, because this is the same way I'm split about writing this thing as well. We'll see how it turns out. Alix will eventually have her own thoughts on the matter as well, but that's for later.

5. Why do you think ES has endured for so long?

Stubbornness, and having a hard core of people who've stuck around and contributed excellent posts.
It's trite, yeah, but that's just it. Most people get bored with their ideas and create ten RPs a week with no intention of telling any story of interest or ever even finishing their work. I don't do that. ES is essentially a compilation of everything I've ever wanted to write about, so why would I stop?
And thankfully, there are people here who are both skilled at RPing and evidently willing to indulge my absolutely massive egomania and unreliable schedule.

6. Do you have a favorite Excalibur Squadron operation/think one of them is the best?

Hmm...
That's a good question. I'm very proud of many of them: Lancer, for the value of me trying to OP something for the very first time, having it actually work, and end up not pissing it down my leg or getting bored with it...Guillotine, for the value of trying to basically improvise a whole middle and end together after having no solid concluding idea to begin with, on top of having to deal with something like 70% of the entire RP group leaving...Cambyses, for coming up with what I still think is a really cool idea for an operation, even if I didn't quite exploit is as well as I'd have liked...Taurus, for integrating the one-shots and for letting us lose...
Something in there. I'm very proud of all my one-shots as well, although I think they're going to be in need of some severe retconning soon. I guess

7. Least favorite?

Operation Falkland, by far. Absolutely. Mordred's a bit of a misfire too, but I think there are good pieces in there - it's just annoyingly fragmented and incomplete-feeling.
Falkland just makes me depressed.

It was definitely a story I didn't have any inspiration for, really. I was a bit high on RPing life after Lancer finished successfully, and I guess I was thinking that I didn't necessarily need a good idea for an operation, I would just write and it would all come together and be awesome. And it didn't. You may notice there's absolutely no middle to that operation in terms of narrative - there's a (very boring) beginning, and an end, and a coda that's entirely too big and implausible after the ending, but no actual middle. There's also nothing "special forces" about it, there's nothing interesting that that operation added to the Battle of the River Plate - it just follows the historical narrative (with one stupid honking exception). There's no need for Excalibur there. It's very flawed that way.

To say nothing about how I had to actually break one of my own cardinal rules and explicitly violate history by saying that there was a German aircraft carrier there. Very disappointing.

I've contemplated retconning it out of existence entirely, but I haven't done it yet.

I also kind of like the opening post, and it was the op that introduced Alix, but I completely forsake it besides those points.

8. Some of your readers may have noticed that you work a frankly anomalous number of music references into your work - naming one-shots after classic rock songs, the
aforementioned naming scheme, occasional references in the ICs themselves - what's the deal with that?

Yeah, it's a recurring thing with me.

I'm a man who really is obsessed with music, to a degree. And while I am aware of the sorry precedent of trying to fuse rock music with WW2 (see the lukewarm reception of Pink Floyd's The Final Cut and the utterly bizarre film All This and World War Two for evidence of that), there's absolutely no doubt that there are some connections there. The violence, the drama, and/or the power you hear in songs like "Achilles Last Stand" or "Hells Bells" or "Creeping Death", to me at least, dovetails perfectly with the atmosphere I'm trying to create with Excalibur. I guess it's a thing where I'm not just content with writing a scene, I have to provide the soundtrack too.

9. What does the far future hold for Excalibur?

Well, we've just barely crossed into 1941, which means that the War's barely started as of yet. And as Russia and America enter the war, Excalibur's going to be doing a lot of business traveling, to say the least. As to specifics...I don't want to say too much, beyond the statement that barring some truly unforeseeable change, Excalibur will be sticking around P2TM for a long time to come.

[The Tiger Kingdom]

Tiger, that medals/commendations thing you mentioned a short while back.

I presume you might give some out?

...I mean, that's kinda on you guys to submit.
Which nobody has, yet.
So if you want to get someone decorated, go nuts and send me something I can approve.

I should probably edit that form onto the OOC when I get home.