There was no reason to stop the retreat, and so Jack pushed his men further and faster, wanting to destroy the second army also.

OOC:

All out attack
Jack will be +3 again.
12:16, Today: Jack 'Patch' Flint rolled 11 using 3d6 with rolls of 5,3,3.  Strategy.



// We should come up with names of the battles, so Jack can add them to his character description
// Victor of the Battle of X, <year/date>

In reply to Jack 'Patch' Flint (msg # 280):

As you push on, the enemy disappears into the settlement, completely dispersing.

The victors usually come up with the names!

OOC:

Can you remind me of the names of the location, planet etc?

In reply to Jack 'Patch' Flint (msg # 282):

You are on Lemrukiri, fighting for Girii in one of the final battles. Pick some locations from the Ukraine for town names...I had not gone that far!

For all intents and purposes the battle was won. Even if they managed to re-muster, they wouldn't stand a chance against his fort. However just to dissuade it Jack decided on a strategy to entirely devastate the opposition and send a message to those that would harbour his enemies.

"Starshine, come in. I will send you coordinates. Target the site with whatever you have, save at least fifty percent of our ordinance though but, blow the place into the next universe. he said, and the grinned.

"Now it's time to reap our rewards" as he turned the small army back to the city they'd just taken for some well-deserved sacking.




OOC:

OKay, so the goal here is to disengage the force from the army that's melted away and just have the Starshine bomb it as much as they can. I expect levelling a city would be difficult without dropping some high mass (asteroid, etc) objects on it. Or having some significant blast-force missiles/bombs. But ultimately the goal is to just cause as much destruction as possible - without expending all of the Starshine's ordinance.

The army Jack is currently commanding, on the ground, will move back to the city to begin fortification and pillaging. I expect a lot of wealth can be accumulated from ransacking a city, plus it'll give the crew and Jack's followers full license to do what they want and ultimately endear them to his cause and command. It's a tactical move to garner more support from under his command.

As per usual, Aside from 'filling your pockets' all loot must be given to the Captain for divvying up as per agreements.




Victor of:

Battle of the Fortress of Vinnitsa
Battle of Nikopol and Alchevsk

(need something for the space battle)

In reply to Jack 'Patch' Flint (msg # 284):

"The most destructive thing we can dp, short, of nukes, is to use beam weapons to create a firestorm, sir. It is frowned upon, but if they are just waiting to attack when you leave, we can justify that I suppose."

Once your forces have withdrawn, they begin firing. It takes some time, during which civilian pour from their homes and out of the city, with thousands getting killed or badly burnt during the process.

The result is that as you are pillaging the other city, many of your men are set upon by civilians (you loose a total of 10 riflemen, 1 during the fighting and the other nine during the unrest), but you do manage to gather significant loot (approximately $4 million dollars worth, after your men took their share as well) which does cause the men to like you more, though the anger caused by firestorming the other city kind of negates that.

Command also hear of the unrest caused by the orbital attack, and order your ship to stop it at once. You are congratulated on your success, but criticized for the orbital attack. Can't keep everyone happy, apparently.

Your orders to prepare for departure from the city come soon after, and a 'peacekeeping' militia are deployed to hold both the fort and the cities.


16 of April, 2179

Jack looked at the comms unit and the command to cease the firestorm and shrugged. So what if they didn't agree with his method, the purpose was clear, to set the toll of conflict too high for people to oppose him with any sincerity. At least the message had clearly made its mark, and so he did relent and call off the firestorm.

Jack chuckled at the gathered force of the civilians, and admired their resolve to defend the city or at least their properties and family from the carnage but ultimately it paid not much of a second thought. He just strolled through the city watching the burning and his men run around with their arms filled with bounty. In that moment, he felt alone in the universe, almost above it and looking down with an objective disembodied awareness. Something small in the grand scheme of history, that piece by piece was building to a legacy he dared not settle his gaze onto for fear of jinxing it.

When the men were spent He ordered the force, back to the Starshine where he promptly checked the accumulated loot.

"Well done boys and girls. You have done me proud, and now we're all richer for it! he said while walking back to his own quarters.


OOC:

Could I make some kind of leadership role to actually see the reaction of my crew? I guess the 'pillaging' and 'firestorm' would be negative and positive modifiers to the final skill right?

Overall though, even if they dislike it I think the actions of essentialyl two additional wins from battle, and a lot of loot is pmaybe worth rolling to see how more loyal they become to jack.

In reply to Jack 'Patch' Flint (msg # 286):

To be fair, with the finances I have kind of handwaved it to avoid getting bogged down in accounting. There were captured ships, and there were wages, repairs and a good many other expenses, none of which I have really kept track of, so I have taken the approach to say they cancel each other out, unless you want to go back and add them all up, then I will go back and estimate expenses....your call.

Cash can be spent on new Military units that would answer to you, rather than your superiors. At the moment, you have just 6 Riflemen units (60 men). See gear available for troop types and costs...raising quality of troops to Elite requires battle experience...so you could raise 5 units of Riflemen (those that had been with you from the first attack on the base). For Riflemen, that will cost $60,000 to raise them from good Quality to Elite quality. You also do not have any specialist teams of your own, though some are assigned to you for now.

Then there is replacement of losses, and loot from previous battles, and of course loot from this combat.

With the loyalty of your men, feel free to make a roll, with a base +1 per victory (the last battle counts as one) since you took losses, but also gained loot. With the firestorm and the killing of captives, you gain a Social Stigma (War Criminal) worth -5, though lack of evidence prevents them from prosecuting you. Most are just assigned to you for now, but if you want to spend cash on recruiting some, then you can, and they will remain in your service (and you will have to pay wages) after the fight.

The battle on Lemrukiri was chosen because you can easily spend a long time here. The siege does not end until 02 Sep 2179 (Current date16 of April, 2179), but that is the interstellar picture. How the war progresses is very much up to the individuals. You were an untried Commander, so naturally they gave you obscure missions to see how you go. Obscure mission, almost by definition, have little impact on the 'grand' story, which makes them perfect for your introduction to Mass Combat.

Speaking of Introductions, I have given you the skill Strategy (Land), which you should actually have been using, and you have 4 more cp to spend on skills/advantages that you have used (or wealth, to keep some of the hard earned cash!), or to reduce disadvantages that have caused issues.

Duke is in the realm of possibilities, but not on Lemrukiri, since he is a starship engineer/inventor.

OOC: Alright,  that all makes sense. So maybe to 'push the waters' of getting Duke to come on board somehow.

- Jack will spend some money trying to get himself some 'really nice gear'. He'll try and get hold of things that are awesome (this might get him to know about Duke's suit)

- Similarly, he'll have people search for anything that can be found that would help him to upgrade the Starshine.

- He will replace losses though.

- Jack will try to expand his own personal forces. Initially i thought it may be feasible to get a new ship - but they're way way too costly for what JAck has. His ship seems pretty maxed out, so I think any extra 'soldiers' would have to be permenantly landed. The fortress might make a good base of operations.

However what he will do is spend some money on hiring an absolutely 'elite' personal bodyguard, who he will ultimately try to make absolutely loyal to him.

- <b>Loyalty</i> 23:06, Today: Jack 'Patch' Flint rolled 10 using 3d6 with rolls of 2,6,2.  Leadership.


Ultimately, Jack will return the forces to the Fortress, and start setting it up to be a friendly port. Then he will return to the Starshine and sit in orbit while gathering comms and intelligence.

See what the other forces want to do.

In reply to Jack 'Patch' Flint (msg # 288):

With regards to Duke, let me try to put things in perspective:

Duke works for AK Kalishnikov as one of his top scientists developing cutting edge combat technology. Kalishnikov, and indeed Duke, are loyal Terrans, and Terra is about to have another War with the Vilani Empire. You are a Vilani Pirate, war criminal even...yes, supporting Terra in your own fashion, but...

To put it into recent history, your status is like the Taliban fighting Russia, where Duke is like a top US weapons scientist. They might field test some stuff they have made and handed out to their troops, but your chances of getting your hands on their scientists for really new stuff? I hope you can see the challenge...it would be a significant undertaking to have Duke on your crew!

In keeping with the Vilani way of thinking, the best upgrade is...add another one, or make it bigger! Starshine is already pretty close to maxed out in terms of what is available to you, though capturing a larger vessel would be seen as a significant upgrade.

You can have up to 10 extra troops, but not that many of the specialist units have much less than 10 men. You could retrain one unit of riflemen and add 5 small specialist units, and still fit them. Hence, you could easily add 2x Support, 1xAA, 1x Anti tank and 1x Mortar units with ease, though only the support weapon would usually be useful in Ship to ship combat.

The fortress will have friendly units not so suited to combat assigned to it, and you will be directed to more hostile territory, where your...leadership and diplomacy style are more acceptable.

There are still plenty of regions to be fought over, so you are advised to recover your forces and gather what extras you can from among the populace in preparation for a counter-attack.

Now with options, so you are looking at spending cash to make your 5 Riflemen units elite? That would be $300,000. To upgrade their equipment from Good Quality to fine will cost $60,000 per units, or an additional $300,000, which is twice the normal cost to upgrade them in peacetime, because you are in the field.

You can upgrade any equipment to fine, using what is available from those you have captured, but since you are in the field, cost for equipment upgrades are doubled. So to raise the  2x Support, 1xAA,, 1x Anti tank and 1x Mortar units I talked about before, at Good Quality troops, will cost $347,000. But to give them Fine Equipment, normally costing as additional $173,500 (the base cost of the troops) will now cost an additional $347,000, raising the total cost to $694,000. That will bring the total to $1,294,000 for your 5 Elite Riflemen and Good Quality 2x Support, 1xAA, 1x Anti tank and 1x Mortar units, all with Fine Quality equipment, and all able to be carried on Starshine. If I understood you correctly, this is the type of elite cadre of guards you are looking for?

Of course, for such action, you might want to capture a Gashidda and modify it as follows:

AK Gashidda Planet Raider, Upgrade Cost M$26.5 Solars + M$130.4 Solars for small craft, 400 dTon Close Structure
(4.7G/Move:370, dDR:90, dHP: 62, dTons of Cargo Space: 2, SM:+9, Fuel: 2 Parsecs)
Crew:80 (Includes 40 Troops), Life Support: 80, Endurance: 9.2 weeks, 1x Workshops, 1x Sickbays
4x AK APC, 4x AK Modular Combo Fighter, 4x AK Light Modular Tank,
Weapons: 12xBeam,

OOC: Alright!

Well i guess we have our next mission - lets see if we can capture us a bigger ship.

In reply to Jack 'Patch' Flint (msg # 290):

Let me know if you are taking up any suggestions, and/or purchasing any other units, before they send you in for the next region. Or are you volunteering for a Ship patrol mission, to patrol against rumoured incursions by other pirates trying to take advantage of the situation?

OOC: lets restock the units andthen upgrade to elite. I was thinking maybe like 5-10 super elite personal body guard but i can certainly make this force his elite personal bodyguard instead.

In reply to Jack 'Patch' Flint (msg # 292):

There is no level of super elite, and new units are never better than Good. You only get the opportunity to upgrade them to Elite after several combats.

So, spending $1,294,000 to upgrade your 5 Elite Riflemen and recruit Good Quality specialist units, 2x Support, 1xAA, 1x Anti tank and 1x Mortar units, all with Fine Quality equipment.

That will leave you with M$2.52 and the following troops;

Your Forces:
Personal Troops [Maint: $235.3k per month, round up to $236k]
5 x Elite Riflemen (TS: 5x1920, F, Rec), x10 men  [Maint: 5x$28.8k]
2 x Good Support Weapon (TS: 2x(2000) F), x3 men  [Maint: 2x$22k]
1 x Good Anti-Aircraft Guided Missile team (TS: (2000) (Air)) x4 men [Maint: $16.5k]
1 x Good Anti-Tank Guided Missile Crew (TS: (4800) (Arm)) x4 men [Maint: $19.8k]
1 x Good Mortar Unit (TS: (2000) (Art)) x4 men [Maint: $11k]

The rest of the forces assigned to you are Good Quality, with Good Quality Gear
5 x Good Light Tanks (TS: 5x3000) Arm, Cav, F
10 x Good APC (TS: 10x2400) Arm, Cav, T1
10 x Good Riflemen (TS: 10x1280) x10 men, F, Rec
2 x Good Combat Engineers Vehicle (TS: 2x1280) x5 men, F, Eng, Cav
1 x Good Anti Tank Guided Missile crew (TS: (3840))x4, (Arm)
2 x Good Mortar Team (TS: 2x(1600))x4, Art
2 x Good Support Weapon (TS: 2x(1600))x3, F

Repairs are made to bring them back to operating condition. Some of the infantry has been left to garrison the fortress and the towns.

This gives you the following Strengths:
Total TS: 63,960, Rec: 22,400
F: 45,880
Art: 5200
Air: (2000)
Arm: 39,000 + (8640)
Cav: 41,560
Eng: 1280

Bearing in mind your reputation, command directs you to travel about 500 miles. To aid this, you find 10 wheeled trucks in the city you have just captured. They are not new, but in reasonable condition. They will permit the movement of infantry over long distances, and carriage of supplies.

All Terrain Truck, 200 K Solars, 5 dTons, Fusion Reactor
  (Wheeled (All Terrain)/Move:40, dDR:4, dHP:10, Seating: 24/12 and 15 ton cargo/ 30 ton, no PAX),
A versatile and cheap all terrain truck, these are often used as Troop carriers by the Vilani military, or as supply trucks by all armies, due to their versatile abilities.

Combat Engineers Vehicle, $240 k Solars, 14.65x10x8 (4 dTons)
Two of these were captured when the second force fled.
(Tracks, Move: 16, Armour, (Front, Rear, Sides, Top and Underside):40, SM:+3, HP: 140)
Sensors: 2, Fusion Power Plant, Gauss HMG

At your destination, a substantial force of Shigniid Dir Ugkin are known to be holding out. These unorthodox troops have been using guerilla tactics in the jungle areas to good effect, and repeated heavy air attacks have been unable to dislodge them, and have resulted in considerable loss of aircraft. They are not believed to have many tanks, but do have considerable anti-tank and anti-aircraft weaponry.

[OOC: They may be considered Elite forces, and are considered to have been 'gifted' considerable quantities of reasonable equipment in the engagements they have fought in so far. Numbers in reports vary from 50 units to 500 units. Forests are very green, and do not burn...that has been tried! There are known to be some swamplands as well. However, the forest areas are large, approximately 200 miles by 160 miles, and they are believed to be spread out within.

Nothing at all like Vietnam...any similarities are purely co-incidental!]
This message was last edited by the GM at 11:19, Wed 21 Apr 2021.

OOC:
Could we build the 'super elite' personal bodyguard (A group of say 15 or watever) as allies instead? and kind of zoom in on them a little so they're not handled as a 'mass combat unit' so much as an ally group?

In reply to Jack 'Patch' Flint (msg # 294):

Even if they were allies, in mass combat they would still be handled as a unit or group of units in mass cambat. Of course, where numbers are smaller, they can be handled individually, but in mass combat situations, even you would be assigned as a unit if you were not the leader.

Really, your forces will form the core of your elite bodyguard in time, though some of them are not elite...yet.

Key NPCs may be purchased as allies, with specifics, but they need to be unique to get to be a unit on their own. Have you access to GURPs:Mass Combat?

Jack didn't like the new commands, indeed he felt like he was being directed a little too much and with the next mission that much harder he wondered if he was being punished for his recent use of orbital bombardment. Either way, he made a mental note to deal with that problem later.

For now, he commanded the forces to move to the new city but stay outside while they could gather intelligence. He wasn't above using orbital bombardment again, especially if the geurillas were proving to he problematic, but thought that this could potentially be dealt with a better way.

"Set up outside the city, we'll assess the sitation before going in. I don't want to lose  half my armour by being hasty."

He wondered if he could turn the population against the geurillas, even though it might be difficult in lieu of recent events.

In reply to Jack 'Patch' Flint (msg # 296):

Indeed, Jack was being directed a lot, but then, he was working for the military, even if only for a short time. Whist they did provide legitimacy and pay, they also provided very concise direction.

The new city he was being directed against was much smaller, and most, if not all of the civilian population have left. Perhaps due to fear of Jack, but just as likely due to the harsh recruitment tactics of the local militia.

The surrounding area had a lot of hilly jungle, with a swamp on the north side of the city fed by a river that bisected the city.

Will need a recon roll to start off...

OOC:
00:08, Today: Jack 'Patch' Flint rolled 7 using 3d6 with rolls of 1,5,1.  recon.

In reply to Jack 'Patch' Flint (msg # 298):

Ok, to recap:

Your Forces:
Personal Troops [Maint: $235.3k per month, round up to $236k]
5 x Elite Riflemen (TS: 5x1920, F, Rec), x10 men  [Maint: 5x$28.8k]
2 x Good Support Weapon (TS: 2x(2000) F), x3 men  [Maint: 2x$22k]
1 x Good Anti-Aircraft Guided Missile team (TS: (2000) (Air)) x4 men [Maint: $16.5k]
1 x Good Anti-Tank Guided Missile Crew (TS: (4800) (Arm)) x4 men [Maint: $19.8k]
1 x Good Mortar Unit (TS: (2000) (Art)) x4 men [Maint: $11k]

The rest of the forces assigned to you are Good Quality, with Good Quality Gear
5 x Good Light Tanks (TS: 5x3000) Arm, Cav, F
10 x Good APC (TS: 10x2400) Arm, Cav, T1
10 x Good Riflemen (TS: 10x1280) x10 men, F, Rec
2 x Good Combat Engineers Vehicle (TS: 2x1280) x5 men, F, Eng, Cav
1 x Good Anti Tank Guided Missile crew (TS: (3840))x4, (Arm)
2 x Good Mortar Team (TS: 2x(1600))x4, Art
2 x Good Support Weapon (TS: 2x(1600))x3, F

Repairs are made to bring them back to operating condition. Some of the infantry has been left to garrison the fortress and the towns.

This gives you the following Strengths:
Total TS: 63,960, Rec: 22,400
F: 45,880
Art: 5200
Air: (2000)
Arm: 39,000 + (8640)
Cav: 41,560
Eng: 1280

All Terrain Truck, 200 K Solars, 5 dTons, Fusion Reactor, x 10
  (Wheeled (All Terrain)/Move:40, dDR:4, dHP:10, Seating: 24/12 and 15 ton cargo/ 30 ton, no PAX),

Combat Engineers Vehicle, $240 k Solars, 14.65x10x8 (4 dTons) x2
(Tracks, Move: 16, Armour, (Front, Rear, Sides, Top and Underside):40, SM:+3, HP: 140)
Sensors: 2, Fusion Power Plant, Gauss HMG

You are approaching a jungle area (with a small abandoned city) where the guerilla force is known to be hiding. Describe to me the precautions taken, and what your intentions are.

Recon Modifiers, Strategy 14, Intelligence Analysis 14, rolled 5 under, +6 for advantages, so they win by 4.]

16 of May, 2179
This message was last edited by the GM at 09:34, Thu 10 June 2021.

Jack didn't like the prospect of having the move the force through a densly foliated jungle with geurillas in order to reach a destination overrun by rebels and scum. Also, the intelligence that they had a significant amount of anti-armour meant that steamrolling the area with tanks was perhaps a little hasty.

His first thought, while the company staged outside of the jungle was to send small teams of recon personnel in. Snipers ultimately, to gain an even better understanding of the enemy's movements. Once some time had been spent figuring out the enemy positions, the teams would be greenlit to go. Shoot, cause havoc and move. Killshots were not necessary but the feeling that snipers and bullets could come from anywhere was the intention. This process was to clear out an area and make it undesirably for geurillas to operate in a portion of the jungle, allowing the armour to move forward.


OOC: Sorry for the delays, I've been away on holiday and interviewing for new jobs and all that malarky!

Anyway actions:

 - stage the main force just outside the jungle, on the perimeter.
 - push as many as possible small recon teams into the jungle to do more observation.
 - Jack want's a good picture of enemy movements within the area between the force and the city (and adjacent areas).

10:32, Today: Jack 'Patch' Flint rolled 8 using 3d6 with rolls of 5,1,2.  Strategy.

In reply to Jack 'Patch' Flint (msg # 300):

Fortunately the rebels are the destination, you do not need to pass through them.

Unfortunately they are expecting your observers, and there are light casualties on both sides, but your information is not good, and the groups reports seem to conflict with each other. Fortunately your heavy artillery restricted them from inflicting heavier casualties, though you cannot tell how much damage you inflicted in return. They are too mobile to get useful information though.

Total TS: 63,960, Rec: 22,400
F: 45,880
Art: 5200
Air: (2000)
Arm: 39,000 + (8640)
Cav: 41,560
Eng: 1280


17 of May, 2179
This message was last edited by the GM at 11:22, Sun 13 June 2021.

Jack was frustrated with the results of his recon plan, he hoped that more intelligenc ewould have helped but in fact it didn't and so he considered perhaps a battle of attrition. He pondeed it and gathered some of the command officers he'd appointed during their campaign.

"Before I decide my next strategy I want an analysis from all of you" he said tersely. In the meantime he would have his artillery units bomb the city.

"Admittedly, I am of the thought of creating a firestorm over the city and its surrounding area, as my patience wears thin with these guerrillas.

In reply to Jack 'Patch' Flint (msg # 302):

"Sir, in this case the city, which is really only a small town, is largely irrelevant. That is a good thing...these guys are hiding in the swamp nearby, and they know their land well. A firestorm would be nice, but I doubt the swamp will burn. All the same, I suspect we have been sent to one of the few places orbital bombardment is not only acceptable, but may even be a good idea. I would advise slow advance, using orbital bombardment supported by mortars, to create enough destruction to try to get them to do something stupid, and have armour waiting for when they do."

Jack smiled, a rare thing indeed infront of his men and nodded. "Make it so..." he said, before taking up his own position in the army.

HE would follow the plan in an effort to route out the enemy.