[AAR] Interrupted Negotiations [Looong]

Interrupted Negotiations – an After Action Report from ECC-VI

Interrupted Negotiations Or A funny thing happened on the way to the UN Forum
A Full Thrust Scenario for GZG ECC VI Or Task Vob’D’On (Mind Hunt of the
Deadly Fleet)

In the year 2193…

It is now obvious that the Kra’Vak assault into the heart of Human space is
imminent. The United Nations Space Command has ordered all human forces to aid
the defense of the Core Worlds. Response from the starfaring human governments
is mixed. UN Diplomats, and Space Command invest precious time and energy
trying to solve, or at least smooth over, longstanding squabbles and more
serious conflicts among major and minor powers in order to unify the many
factions of humanity in its own defense. Both New Israel and the Islamic
Federation possess significant potential resources in technology and raw
materiel, but their mutual
antagonism has not significantly decreased, even as the Xeno-War
approaches its crisis point.

February 22, 2193. The UN has called in favors and threatened economic
repercussions, forcing a summit between New Israel and the Islamic Federation.
Both sides know the UN will not let anyone go home until some kind of truce is
reached. Representatives from both nations are
en-route to Earth to hammer out at least a temporary normalization of
relations. Even now, however, different human factions pursue their own
agendas. The rendezvous coordinates contain (deliberate?) errors that place
the NI and IF forces in close proximity, yet separated from the
UN escort contingent, led by the SDN-X Neptune. Naturally, both Tzahal
and the IFN escort their negotiation teams with significant fleet elements,
and the ensuing standoff raises tensions as the UN forces scramble to defuse
the situation.

1000 hours ZT (ZuluTerra). The UN arrives in time to keep the staring contest
civil, and calls for the chief representatives of each side to rendezvous with
the Neptune for final transit to Earth.

1020 ZT. As the diplomatic shuttles rendezvous with the Neptune, a massive
internal explosion rocks the ship. It is obviously sabotage, but by whom?
Accusations fly between the fleets over the Neptune’s silence. Both sides
blame each other and the situation threatens to boil over.

1100 ZT. Area scans, neglected by all sides during the escalating standoff
finally trigger proximity warnings. The worst kind of company is calling…

……

Calendar 77/21//38///933

Long range scouts spying deep in Hu’Man space have determined the location
of an important rendezvous between three powerful Inner Clans. The Dominion
Leadership has long been looking for opportunities to test the mettle of the
Inner Clans in their home territories. A strike at Great and Monster class
hu’Man ships so close to family soils will also strike at the mind of the
Hu’Man as the Dominion prepares for its final assault. Three long range
hunter groups have been summoned to the
scout-provided coordinates with the goal of taking the heads of the
various Hu’man forces.

Calendar 77/21//39///041

Approaching in silent running, the Hu’Man are determined to out-power
the Kra’Vak. A straight-up fight might go badly, despite the
enthusiastic growls of some of the gunners. On the other claw, the
Hu’man forces seem preoccupied with each other. Keen long-eye
operators would have spotted your approaching ships some time ago, and you
will not squander that advantage.

Calendar 77/21//39///052

The battle is close, and fortune again smiles as an explosion damages
the most formidable Hu’Man Monster ship.  The Hu’Man short-eyes
finally detect you, but the battle is already begun.

----

Forces/Players:
United Nations (CPV ~1054), Jim Bell:
UNS SDN-X Neptune, damaged to 30 hull (roll standard threshold at start
of scenario) from sabotage. UNS CL Rainier
UNS CL K-2

New Israel (CPV 985), Chris “Laserlight” DeBoe: ATAI CHS She’irei Avinu
ATAI CES Yahuda ATAI CES Matitiyahu

Islamic Federation (CPV 985), Vincent Johnson: SNI Nasr ed Din, Sayf ed Din
Class BB (Heavy Beam) SNI Manzikert, Hattin Class CH (B2) SNI Ain Jalut Hattin
Class CH (B2)

KV (CPV 920+907+907 = 2734)
Group 1, Thomas Tongue: Ko'Vol Yu’Ya’Avo (King Hunter of the Mind) Vo'Bok
Ra’Ya’Vo (Small Mind Hunter) Vo'Bok Da’Hok (Fast Fear Ship) Group 2,
Aaron Teske:
Ti'Dak Kia’Hak      (Spear of the Fear Killer)
Si’Tek Yaa’Kol (Mind of War Monster) Si'Tek Bi’Tol (Cold Dark Monster)
Group 3 Robert Doughty: Ti'Dak Bi’Hek (Cold Fear Ship) Si’Tek Dia’Kan
(Little Death of Fear of Mother) Si'Tek Va’Hol (Great Fear Monster)

Setup: Jim’s UN starts around 10 MU north of the table center, facing south.
Laserlight’s NI is west facing Northeast. Vince’s IF is in the east side
facing west. All the humans are at speed 0 to start. The KV come in on the
south edge of the table, facing nominally north. Tom’s KV 1 and Aaron’s KV
2 were west of center start speed 8, Rob’s KV 3 starts a
little off on the east below the IF, at low speed (1-ish). All players
group their triads of ships relatively closely – and most formations keep
reasonably through the game.

Objectives in a nutshell: The humans were to destroy the KV, hold the space,
and uncover (or protect and escape) the saboteur. KV objectives were to
destroy the Human capital ships (each player was to target one), and wreak
other ancillary havoc. Each player had secondary objectives, though by and
large those got drowned out in the main fight.

The Action: NB. This is paraphrased, not erbatim, and I may well have mixed up
acouple events by +/- one turn.

Turn 1: UN and NI fire up the main drives to get mobility and the Jim launches
the sole fighter group in the game. KV 1 and 2 accelerate to around speed 12,
while KV 3 inches forward. Adrian’s IF turns slow to face KV

3, reaching out and slapping one of Rob’s escorts with his rerolling Heavy
Beam. Neptune takes heavy long KV fire from both oncoming KV groups while New
Israel’s stealth hull keeps it effectively out of
K-gun range.

Turn 2: Laserlight accelerates the NI, leaving the UN between them and the KV,
and heading at a speed that could be interpreted as alarming toward the IF,
who are unfazed as they continue lobbing long range fire at Rob (to less
effect this turn, lucky for Rob, who decides it’s time to start moving to
get in close). Jim turns the UN starboard down the throats of Tom’s and
Aarons rapidly approaching KV groups. The Neptune gets to
fire, but is scragged with 20+ points of K-5 fire. Graser fire is
poorly rewarded. I believe the Neptune’s Graser-3 was downed by
threshold the previous turn, so we never get to see it fire, though the
smaller Graser 1-s hit the KV with moderate to low damage. The Rainier
also takes a threshold from other fire. The UN doesn’t only take it on

the chin, though. Jim royally flays the Kia’Hak in partial compensation
doing perhaps 2 thresholds. And knocking a variety of systems in Aaron’s
first of several Teske Field backfires of the day.

Turn 3: The UN CL’s launch their Antimatter Torpedoes then turn port and
decelerating, trying to doge the KV who are basically on them now. The torps
all get shot down by the Vo’Bok scatterguns, but it does take all the
scatterguns to kill them off (I gave AMT’s 2 damage points to kill). It’s
a shame the Neptune wasn’t around to coordinate attacks,

since it that might have overwhelmed the scattergun defenses – thought

I think the Yu’Ya’Avo was also in scattergun range. The potential weakness
of no defending scatterguns on the Vo’Boks goes unexploited by the wandering
UN fighters later in the game because they generally keep close to other
larger ships. The Rainier dies this turn to more nasty
K-gun fire. The NI come full starboard, planting themselves across the
T of Aaron’s Bi’Tol and Yaa’kol. Laserlight throws out a few beam

dice, and the Yehuda takes K-gun and scattergun damage as they go. It
would have been worse for NI without stealth and without the Teske Field
working against Aaron again, keeping the KV’s from double damage

from the K-guns that hit. Even so, Yehuda thresholds and loses a
stealth level. While Sheirei Avinu taks some longer range fire as well.

Turn 4:
The K-2 Comes about port and fires on the KV that have passed him. The
K-2 will cut down both the Va’Hol and Bi’Hek before finally being
taken down itself in turn 6. The NI come hard about, turning 4 starboard
without damaging engines, turning Inside the KV 2’s turn of 2 and leaving
Aaron with few targets. Tom’s group arcs to port while the Jim’s last CL
comes around to face the Rob’s KV 3 contingent which is finally in the fray
and coming at the Vince’s port broadside. The IF had readlined its engines
to turn south for some serious maneuver as well. The Sayf ed Din blows its
engine, but repairs it at the end of the turn. The Sayf ed Din takes a
threshold as well but stays well in shape. Kia’Hak is destroyed by combined
arms of the human forces, but
the Vince gets the kill with a display of Heavy B-2 power, also dished
out to the Bi’Hek. The UN fighter group flits around the board looking

for a vulnerable target. Aaron’s Bi’Tol having lost all heavy weapons
and both firecons to a catastrophic, Teske-fueled threshold, is
seriously hurting and moves out of the main battle.

Turn 5: Tom, his mission largely accomplished take KV 1 hard about heading
west out of the fray. KV3 turns into the IF and trades heavy fire. Losing the
Bi’hek to the combined IF and UN firepower. The UN also manages to

kill the Va’Hol (but this may be next turn). New Israel has turned south and
can throws a few beam dice at peripheral targets.

Turn 6: The signal arrives that a large UN relief force is going to arrive on
turn 9. More heavy maneuver brings Rob’s KV3 facing the NI dead in their
sights. The IF saves the Yehuda from near certain death by shearing off the
weapons and firecons of the Dia’Kan before it can fire. Even so Yehuda takes
enough damage to threshold a second time and lose its remaining stealth. The
other KV are too busy getting ready to leave and dealing with other, more
pressing targets (like the IF) to do much about it. Aaron’s Yaa’Kol is
nickeled and dimed bast threshold 3, and
in yet another ironic threshold set loses its K-3’s and both firecons
all at once. Tom turns back into the thick of things one last time pointing
the correct way to disengage back the way the KV came. Both Vo’Boks take
some two thresholds by the end of it, but are still good to disengage by FTL
in a turn or two. The IF, discover secretly that the Ain Jalut is harboring
the saboteur.

Turn 7: All remaining KV head to the edge of the field to disengage.
Laserlight turns New Israel back toward the middle of the field while the IF
come facing east and warm FTL. Late fire sees the loss of Va’Hol and the
crippling of Dia’Kan.

Turn 8: The KV accelerate off the field, Vince jumps the IF out, and The NI
circle back north to await the UN with the shell-shocked fighter group.

End game. By the time the UN relief fleet arrives a couple turns later, New
Israel Holds the field with one crippled and one untouched Maccabee, and a
scratched cruiser. The IF vacated with a heavily damaged Nasr ed Din and one
moderate and untouched Hattin. The UN remain in the local space with their
sole fighter group as witnesses to events. The KV have gone; KV 1 in triumph
to assured future leadership in the coming siege, the other two families in
shame and ignominy.

Tactically, The IF and KV1 had the greatest victories, followed by NI. The IF
scored a KV kill and successfully evacuated the saboteur, keeping him
unrevealed to the rest of the Human forces (they may be suspected, but will
likely never be proven. Moreover, the IF pulled off the single most unifying
action of the encounter, preventing destruction of the Yehuda at the hands of
the KV. KV1 was every bit as successful with regard to its own agenda.
Thomas’ group scored all three of the KV’s kills, all on his primary
target – the UN. New Israel controlled the field at the end of the game
without losing a ship. The UN had a moderate loss – all ships gone, but two
KV kills. KV 2 and 3 had significant losses not achieving their goals of
destroying their target capital ships. Strategically, the Humans win the game.
The KV
have at least partially failed in their over-arching mission to disrupt
and demoralize the Hu'man.

In the aftermath of the battle, the trilateral negotiations were, needless to
say, cancelled. However, in the month that followed the recorded events,
diplomatic traffic began to flow between the NI and IF governments and a
marked decrease in border conflicts and other partisan skirmishes was noted in
that part of human space. The two
groups quasi-independently began working with the UN to coordinate
inner system defense and, eventually provide significant assistance during the
siege of Sol.

Note: Negative Entropy events took a different for in this game. We didn’t
have the Five sixes in a row from beam fire, though we had a couple moderate
runs. The real stories, as mentioned above, were horrid KV threshold rolls. I
enjoyed them a great deal, mainly because of the irony of watching the Teske
Field backfire so gloriously. Sorry Aaron.

That’s it. Players: please forgive me if I’ve mixed something up or
forgotten something wonderful. Feel free to correct me on it. It was great fun
to run and I think it turned out OK. I’d run it again without hesitation
with only a couple tweaks.