Mass Effect: Embers [Complete]

[The Epic Notepad of GrangerAirstrike]

If you want help splitting the cost of the shipyard, this could be a way to do it! My thinking is that construction priority will be assigned based on potential monthly profit - with Illium itself having no inherent right to jump the queue. The one caveat would be that I'd need to activate my own relay first in order to send something your way. But that could easily be a condition of the Duumvirate's support.

...
Oh right! I let it slip from my mind that the extranet is still a thing and was still around even after the Reaper Invasion!

We shall see, my money-grubbing friend. The Duumvirate could indeed negotiate something across the extranet, though how that'd work and what the result would be, I am not sure. After all, the Duumvirate is rather inwardly focused right now, but not against communication and cooperation with other factions. Plus uhhh... It's gonna be difficult to send anything over, unless it's a quick cash injection which I'm not sure the Duumvirate will so readily do, or if it's viable
Though I'm still a little confused about how we go about the whole extranet thing, what it's limitations are or if certain factions/groups are disconnected from it, partially or fully. I can assume at the very least Lynima T'sashi would be connected but Heshtok isn't the most extranet-connected place, hah



EDIT:
I do wonder though. If places are at least connected via communication reliably, would it not be so unreasonable to suggest that... Well, for instance, the Terminus Hierarchy and the Heshtok Duumvirate know of one another?
And I wonder how T'sashi will feel about the news of her old home still alive, kicking and up to it's standard commercial shenanigans as before? Ooooh :P

[Bentus]

Added in the Turn 1 and Turn 2 actions for Illium in my last post! Working on updating the archive too.

In separate news, if anyone's interested in selling industrial capacity or materials in exchange for credits - hmu!

[The Empire of Tau]

Added in the Turn 1 and Turn 2 actions for Illium in my last post! Working on updating the archive too.

In separate news, if anyone's interested in selling industrial capacity or materials in exchange for credits - hmu!

How many credits per unit?

[Bentus]

Added in the Turn 1 and Turn 2 actions for Illium in my last post! Working on updating the archive too.

In separate news, if anyone's interested in selling industrial capacity or materials in exchange for credits - hmu!

How many credits per unit?

Didn't have a set ratio in mind. What sounds reasonable? 5 credits for 1 industry, 2 credits for 1 material?

[The Empire of Tau]

Didn't have a set ratio in mind. What sounds reasonable? 5 credits for 1 industry, 2 credits for 1 material?

How much you want? I got plenty of materials and industry.

[Bentus]

Didn't have a set ratio in mind. What sounds reasonable? 5 credits for 1 industry, 2 credits for 1 material?

How much you want? I got plenty of materials and industry.

Oh nice. All else being equal I'd prefer to get my grubby mitts on some industry. I've got 270 credits to play with at the moment (and more coming in next turn if you want to have a regular trade going).

Alternatively, you could directly invest your industry into a new shipyard that I'm trying to build. That way you get a cut of the future profits and have an IC-reason for wielding some influence over Illium politics.

[The Empire of Tau]

Oh nice. All else being equal I'd prefer to get my grubby mitts on some industry. I've got 270 credits to play with at the moment (and more coming in next turn if you want to have a regular trade going).

Alternatively, you could directly invest your industry into a new shipyard that I'm trying to build. That way you get a cut of the future profits and have an IC-reason for wielding some influence over Illium politics.

I don't mind regular trade and how much cut of the profits if I were to invest in the shipyard?

[G-Tech Corporation]

Added in the Turn 1 and Turn 2 actions for Illium in my last post! Working on updating the archive too.

In separate news, if anyone's interested in selling industrial capacity or materials in exchange for credits - hmu!

*cough*

Hate to say this, but trading will need a relay connection.

[Bentus]

I don't mind regular trade and how much cut of the profits if I were to invest in the shipyard?

It'll be based upon the percentage you contributed to the initial industry cost. Might be best explained with an example!

The military shipyard will cost 600 industry to produce. Let's say it ended up being built with the Terminus Republic, the Quarian State, and Illium each contributing 200ind, so each have a 33% ownership stake.

Anyone would be able to place an order at the shipyard (including those who did not originally invest in the project), but they would need to make an offer above the base cost of whatever ship they're looking to build. Let's say that the Quarians offer 60 credits for a Heavy Cruiser (base cost 45 over 7 months), and the Duumvirate offer 20 credits for a destroyer (base cost 15 credits over 3 months). The Heavy Cruiser would return a per month profit of (60-45)/7 =2.14cr, while the destroyer returns (20-15)/3 =1.67cr. Since it returns more per month, the Heavy Cruiser gets prioritized and built first.

The Quarians would pay their 60cr, and the 15cr profit would get split between the Terminus Republic, the Quarian State, and Illium based upon their ownership stake (33/33/33). In this case, each would receive 5cr. In the case of the Quarians, their partial ownership of the shipyard effectively means that they'd get a discount - which makes it easier to place a higher "bid" and get their orders prioritized in the queue.

As an added source of fun, the partial ownership means that folks could ICly try to pull some shenanigans.

Let's say that the Quarians, with their 33% stake, don't want the geth to build vessels at the shipyard. As such, they request a vote to bar the Geth Consensus from placing any orders. Assuming that this vote needs 50% to pass (in reality we might say that some things might require a supermajority, just so someone can't come in with a 50% stake and stop the shipyard from doing anything at all). The Terminus Republic are also having some border disputes with the Geth and so vote yes. Illium doesn't want to lose a potential customer and so votes no, but it doesn't matter. With both the Terminus and Quarians in favor of banning the Geth, it passes.

Edit:

Added in the Turn 1 and Turn 2 actions for Illium in my last post! Working on updating the archive too.

In separate news, if anyone's interested in selling industrial capacity or materials in exchange for credits - hmu!

*cough*

Hate to say this, but trading will need a relay connection.

The Spice shall not flow this day.

My understanding would mean that I can't get foreign investment for the shipyard either in that case. Looks like I'm going to need to start cracking open some relays!

[The Empire of Tau]

*cough*

Hate to say this, but trading will need a relay connection.

Well, it appears my Relay connects to Exodus Cluster. Ohboy.

[Bentus]

Well, it appears my Relay connects to Exodus Cluster. Ohboy.

Yeah. Not going to lie, I was really surprised to learn that the Batarian homeworld is so far away from the Terminus systems. I'd always assumed that they were smack bang in the middle of it.

[G-Tech Corporation]

For the record, lads and lasses, it would be my general goal to aim for 3-4 day months, if possible. Especially early when actions are simple and interactions sparse, to speed up getting to the fun wars and technological terrors.

[The Epic Notepad of GrangerAirstrike]

For the record, lads and lasses, it would be my general goal to aim for 3-4 day months, if possible. Especially early when actions are simple and interactions sparse, to speed up getting to the fun wars and technological terrors.

Sounds like a plan :)

[Elerian]

I have my numbers crunched but I’ve still gotta write a blurb and then I’ll have something up.

[G-Tech Corporation]

I have my numbers crunched but I’ve still gotta write a blurb and then I’ll have something up.

Glad to hear it; you’re in good company, so you’ve got some time. I mainly made that announcement so people can calibrate their expectations.

[Segmentia]

Hopefully I can keep up, with how much overtime I've been getting stuck with at work.

[G-Tech Corporation]

Hopefully I can keep up, with how much overtime I've been getting stuck with at work.

Pound for pound, retroactives shouldn’t be a big deal for the next few weeks; I doubt any wars are going to kick off with the Asari for at least six or seven months.

[The Empire of Tau]

My numbers are also done - just gonna think of good fluff to accompany it.

[Kandex]

Faction: The Raloi Accord

Leader: Shingo Mrefu

Diplomatic Relations Summary:

The Accord, as a newcomer on the Galactic stage, in a star cluster bordering the homehold spacefaring for thousands of years Asari, are only interested in peaceful relations with their neighbours, and for the respect of their right to expand into the rest of the Syda Cluster. The Raloi is also very interested in establishing a positive rapport with established powers other than the Asari, as well, including the establishment of financial ties.

Military Summary:

The Accord's Military capacity is 'theoretical' in more ways than one. While the Raloi have only been familar with post-bronze age technologies for a few hundred years, they've had a mature culture of military theoryizing from the grand strategic to tactical levels far beyond their technological years due constant warfare between massive palace economies and their 'avian-like' capacity for flight forcing them to think of warfare in three dimensions well before most races ever do. On the other hand, it is quite clear that what passes for a capable military amongst themselves, very nearly as far as the powers of the galaxy are concerned. At the moment, the only forces that The Accord that maintains that are up to galactic standard are two battalions of LOKI Mechanicals on Turvess. The Raloi could develop a capable military and in all likelihood will in time, but that moment is not quite yet. It is not as though there's any particular use for one at the moment, at least one they could actually afford to build

History:

Turvess is a unique planet in a universe full of varied wonders, whose surface is covered in perpetual storms that makes it all but uninhabitable, but beneath its surface exists another world of massive caverns that connect to each other from one end of the planet to another. Sufficient light makes their way into the caverns due to a planetary surface covered in deep valleys, canyons and pock-marked craters, alongside cavern walls being covered in bioluminescent moss. Water also flows down into underground lakes and seas from kilometres long waterfalls and is sent back up to surface through dangerous moisture laden jet streams.. It is the offshoots of this water cycle that gives the caverns their own weather system, which allows it to teeming with all sorts of different flora and fauna.

Above all the creatures of Turvess are four subraces of avian-like sentients collectively known as the Raloi. There are the wise Mbuni, long-lived, medium sized and ostrich-like, the clever Kasuku, tall and bright coloured, the powerful Tai, large in both width and height and lastly the resilient Kuku, small and durable. The Raloi have neither been in absolute peace, nor in absolute division for their history. All Raloi societies tended to have Mbuni and Kuku in roughly comparable numbers across societies. However, most societies has broadly differing counts of Tai and Kasuku. The two have frequently been rivals due to their respective capacities to serve in the martial classes of their societies. While in some cases they could live in harmony, in most either the Tai or the Kasuku dominated.

Over 300 years ago, the "Sky Peoples", which Raloi would later learn to be the Elcor, crashed a spacecraft inside of Turvess in a society equivalent in technological development to Earth's own bronze age. However, while the technological development was of that era, the philosophical and social development of their society was far beyond that. The simple reality was, the Ralnoi civilization was one of such intense warfare and competition, combined with a unique planet whose basic resources of advanced development were too difficult to access, mean't the knowledge that could have allowed for rapid technological development could never be applied, lest said society was simple overrun by what already existed.

The arrival of this elcord ship would be one of the things that would change that calculation. Just before their time of arrival, a religious philosophy was spreading. It was purportedly founded by a seemingly mythic individual who was a hybrid of all four subraces of Raloi. Even a hybrid of two of the subraces was exceedingly rare. Few had the mutations to impregnate or be impregnated by another Subrace. Fewer of those survived birth, even fewer of those survived infancy and if they did, they would often be killed as abominations. These hybrids were said to contain the strengths of their parents in equal measure, making the prophet an entirely unique and superior in capacity to all other Raloi. The odds of a 'synthesis' Raloi were exceedingly low, but to produce one with a unique philosophy while another world changing event occured, seemed infinitesimally small.

What was that philosophy? It was the notion that not only should the Raloi unite into a singular civilization, they had to. This prophet claimed to have been struck by a vision deep in the cave systems of Turvess. A vision that there existed a threat beyond the surface that the Raloi had to be prepared for, or face destruction. The 'arrival' of the Elcor at first seemed to fulfil this prophecy, driving many to abject terror, but when it came clear that no aggressive raiding party followed, it had a different effect. To some, it lead them to believe the universe outside of their planet was friendly, to others, it reinforced the reality that there was a world outside of Turvess that could mean them harm, even if these Sky People's didn't.

Over the next few years, at the head of an army that used repurposed technology repurposed from the crashed ship, the synthesis Raloi prophet waged the largest, most deadly war by far in Raloi history, but in the end, the planet was unified. This victory would mean the Establishment of 'The Accord', the Mbuni would lead with their wisdom, the Kasuku would be administrators and specialists across a variety of fields. The Tai would keep the peace and the Kuku would provide the backbone of labor in building this new society. Yet, this new order would not be led by the prophet. Her health would start to fade and rather than choosing an heir, she'd leave behind a democratic order of Synods that would govern the Raloi. As for the Prophet herself she would not stay around to allow herself to become a direct object of worship. She would head deep into the caves of Turvess alone, never to be seen again.

The initiative she had set forth, however, would continue to move forward. The improvement of living standards brought about by unification, which made possible the gradual replication of Elcor technology and allowed for them to make their own original innovations, made anything but continued unification unthinkable, even if rivalries among the subraces continued. Over the next hundreds of years, The Raloi would put themselves toward a singular goal: maximise the economic strength and population of their civilization, within the confines of the interior of the planet of Turvess alone, without any expansion onto the surface, nevermind space.

In the last century or so, it became increasingly clear that Turvess was approaching the maximum carrying capacity of their planet given their technological know-how. Rather than slow and eventually freeze population growth, the leadership of Turvess, in alignment with a large minority of support in the planet, capable of overriding a majority divided on a proper alternative, carried out the deliberate degradation of living standards in the planet to bring it toward an absolute minimum. Around 20 years ago, while a majority was finally able to unite around one alternative, take a look into space, leading to the detection of an asari cruiser in their solar system and first contact. Kasuku representatives would get to spend the next 2 years studying at the citadel, sending knowledge back that would improve Raloi science and help standards increase. Furthermore, they learned more of the galaxy,specifically the variety of races within it and came to be infatuated with their diversity. So when they learned of the reaper threat, it was a painful shock. So soon after reaching out to the universe, the found that they had no choice but to reenter hiding. But before doing so, they'd have a valiant effort to acquire genetic samples of every sentient race they could get their hands on, determined to wait out the reapers and reseed the universe with what was lost, to reclaim the galaxy for the descendants of those that currently lived in it. Except, of course, with The Accord being the sole dominant force left.

While nearly all Raloi would return to Turvess, a few volunteers would stay behind in the seemingly doomed galaxy, the catalogue all they could before it all went dark and hide it in a predetermined location for retrieval of the passage of the culling. It would be this group, that would instead witness, to their surprise, the destruction of the reapers. This stay behind team would rush back to Ralnoi to tell them of the news. It was met first with relief, it was never a sure thing that they would successfully hide. But it wouldn't be too long before disappointment developed. They had expected to have the galaxy to themselves. An opportunity to claim what they could not, a chance to be like the citadel's founding members, but better. All that was gone, they'd be nothing but newcomers to a mature universe, nevermind the destruction of the mass relays making the ability to expand out into the galaxy even more cost prohibitive than it was for the mature races. They'd do their best to develop their locality as much as they could, but envy burned inside of them. When the news that the mass relays were repairing themselves, The Accord decided that it was now or never to work, and fight, even, to claim their position on the galactic stage and build themselves toward the dominance they believed was invisible well less than a lifetime ago.

To that end, they would start by making the Planet of Egaon, in their home system, of Rapdae, the second planet of theirs to be habited. They would also, at great expense, without the shipyard infrastrucutre approaching the cgalactic standard, build a fleet of 5 Mining ships for their home system, to be served by an orbital mining station around the gas giant of Afinogad and a colony ship, now arriving in the Cheloab System.

Infrastructure and Claimed Worlds: 330 Points
Syda Cluster - Rapdae System:

Mirail - Barren
Egaon - Non-Hostile Terrestrial

2 Industrial Complexes (40 Industry) [Materials: -24, Industry: +12]
Major Industrial Complex (50 Industry) [Materials: -30, Industry +20, Credits: +10]
Monthly Input: [Materials: 54]
Monthly Output: [Industry: 32, Credits: 10]
Monthly Net: [Materials: -54 Industry: +32, Credits: +10]
Turvess - Garden World (Raloi Homeworld)

4 Industrial Complexs (80 Industry) [Materials: -48, Industry: +24]
Major Industrial Complex (50 Industry) [Materials: -30, Industry +20, Credits: +10]
Monthly Input: [Materials: 78]
Monthly Output: [Industry: 24, Credits: 10]
Monthly Net: [Materials: -78, Industry: +44, Credits: +10]
Asteroid Belt
Nepess - Barren
Inssia - Gas Giant
Fostrawe - Gas Giant
Afinogad - Gas Giant

Orbital Mining Station (130 Materials)
Monthly Input: [N/A]
Monthly Output: [Materials: 30]
Monthly Net: [Materials: +30]

Military: 411 Points
a) Terrestrial Forces:

1x LOKI Mech Battalion (Sniper Teams + Heavy Weapons Teams) [Turvess]
1x LOKI Mech Battalion (Flamethrowers + Close Combat Specialization) [Turvess]

b) Space Fleets:
Colony Ship [Cheloab System]
5x Mining Ships [Rapdae System, Materials: 125+]

+4 Spare Industry
+5 Spare Materials

RP Example: viewtopic.php?p=40638001#p40638001
Questions and Suggestions:
S14

[The Orson Empire]

Don't think I'll be able to get up a full post in time, so I just posted my spending.

[The corporate states of Astavar]

I do not currently have access to my computer until tomorrow so i'll just make placeholder post until then

[G-Tech Corporation]

I do not currently have access to my computer until tomorrow so i'll just make placeholder post until then

Not to worry - the absolute earliest I will be updating is tomorrow anyway.

[The Epic Notepad of GrangerAirstrike]

Heya The corporate states of Astavar, I believe since the extranet is still alive and well, the Duumvirate and Terminus Hierarchy might already be aware of one another... Potentially

When you can get back to posting, you are free to do with that information what you will ;)

[Ovstylap]

First post out, depending on any OP responses, I should be able to get my Turn 2 out quickly as well, I merely await a reply from Elerian too and will check for any other interactions.

[G-Tech Corporation]

@ Ovs: I've updated the January results to include your jumps to the nearby systems.