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paragon1
Nov 22, 2010

FULL COMMUNISM NOW
Deploy the Craftworlds separately to each area, use our ship and the grey knights + fabs to crush the enemy at each location, one by one. Craftworlds prevent escape, and we're the hammer on the asteroids anvils basically.

Send a message that attacking Terra results in nothing but total annihilation.

paragon1 fucked around with this message at 23:12 on Jan 31, 2016

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Tran
Feb 17, 2011

It's a pleasure to meet all of you. Especially in such a fine settin' as this. Just need us some music an' a brawl an' we'll be set.

Tran posted:

Corsairs raid the gunships, hit and run boarding actions are literally their career. Grey knights serve as infantry reserve and opportunistic strike troops, their personal teleporters will let them freely jump to wherever they're needed on a moments notice. Craftworlds maneuver to use the asteroids as cover so they can support the ground forces, they're not really intended for combat but they do have a lot of trained soldiers and smaller attack craft aboard. The dragon should focus on screening for the lighter corsair vessels on their attack run. Since we recently installed a teleportarium, we can keep track of the ground battle from above and dispatch our brand new psychic and psy-dampening cyber-krieg troops as needed.

Edited prior plan a bit, but mostly sticking with it.

Lord Zedd-Repulsa
Jul 21, 2007

Devour a good book.


paragon1 posted:

Deploy the Craftworlds separately to each area, use our ship and the grey knights + fabs to crush the enemy at each location, one by one. Craftworlds prevent escape, and we're the hammer on the asteroids anvils basically.

Send a message that attacking Terra results in nothing but total annihilation.

I like this plan.

Blasphemaster
Jul 10, 2008

paragon1 posted:

Deploy the Craftworlds separately to each area, use our ship and the grey knights + fabs to crush the enemy at each location, one by one. Craftworlds prevent escape, and we're the hammer on the asteroids anvils basically.

Send a message that attacking Terra results in nothing but total annihilation.

Do this but also send a tightbeam of home movie night to Huron with a header of 'Got Terra Defense Plans, You Owe Me. Love, Anna.'

sullat
Jan 9, 2012

Blasphemaster posted:

Do this but also send a tightbeam of home movie night to Huron with a header of 'Got Terra Defense Plans, You Owe Me. Love, Anna.'

Hmm, allowing the enemy fleet to come under the gestalt control of a super-mega-godlike tier of psykic being. What could go wrong?

paragon1 posted:

Deploy the Craftworlds separately to each area, use our ship and the grey knights + fabs to crush the enemy at each location, one by one. Craftworlds prevent escape, and we're the hammer on the asteroids anvils basically.

Send a message that attacking Terra results in nothing but total annihilation.

We should also send a message to the enemy about where the Craftworlds will be, along with highlighted diagrams of their weakest defensive spots, best avenues of attack, that sort of thing.

Blasphemaster
Jul 10, 2008

sullat posted:

Hmm, allowing the enemy fleet to come under the gestalt control of a super-mega-godlike tier of psykic being. What could go wrong?

ABSOLUTELY NOTHING! :pcgaming:

poor life choice
Jul 21, 2006

poor life choice posted:

Do we have the juice for Exterminatus on one or all? Just curious.

If we lose a planetoid but they lose all their ground troops deployed there it may be easier to board the remaining, now-depleted ships.

Most of the other non-memetic virus plans sound good, but I also genuinely think we should blow two or more of the asteroids the gently caress up with Exterminatus! Chaos has already committed their ground forces and are planning on digging in to make our lives miserable, right? :siren: Nope! :siren: We are going to wipe out their ground game. The defenses on those planets are already boned - die well, bros - but in the grand scale of justification for planetary extermination this is probably the most legitimate use of the delete button we've been presented with in this CYOA.

In one move we level the playing field by removing large chunks of it while the bad guy's pieces are on it, leaving our forces unscathed (sorry, already-boned asteroid defense forces. you don't count). We have Titan - a moon almost the size of Mars chock full of super A+ the best psyker space marines, Mars is churning out perfectly safe, non-heretical ships, there are slave revolts happening to Chaos and the Eldar are, you know, here. Anna led Huron to believe he just needs to wait things out. Let's not give him that option: turn the tables on him with a brutal assault and then flip it.

e: I am operating under the assumption that if we start at one end of his fleet and start working through it with boarding or whatever he'll make efforts to bring his troops back to make that more difficult. Like, we'd either have to accept it or spend ships to shoot the transports/carriers/whatever out of the sky as they leave the planetoids. If that isn't accurate then I guess Exterminatus serves no purpose. I just think it sounds pretty 40K. :saddowns:

poor life choice fucked around with this message at 04:13 on Feb 1, 2016

Tran
Feb 17, 2011

It's a pleasure to meet all of you. Especially in such a fine settin' as this. Just need us some music an' a brawl an' we'll be set.
Do not waste time or munitions bombarding the asteroids.

There is no good reason to be shelling them. Even if we have no collective desire to salvage the habitats and inhabitants within, that would only make it a better idea to ignore them altogether. Time spent bombarding them to kill some infantry is time not spent actually fighting the hostile fleet. If you really want everyone on the rocks to die, blow them up after we win the ship battle.

RandomPauI
Nov 24, 2006


Grimey Drawer
[19:44] <cat_herder> someone wants to see me write :syoon:
[19:44] <HiHoChiRho> Devries X Fabiyan
[19:44] <cat_herder> GET OUT
[19:44] <LivesInGrey> nooooo
[19:44] <HiHoChiRho> what
[19:44] <Arkanomen> Devries x Devries
[19:45] <loel3> devries x devries x devries
[19:45] <cat_herder> poo poo
[19:45] <loel3> drat, ark got there first
[19:45] <HiHoChiRho> true love knows no bounds
[19:45] <cat_herder> how many varieties of heresy is that
[19:45] <LivesInGrey> making "go gently caress yourself" literal
[19:45] <Arkanomen> POUNDED IN THE BUTT BY MY OWN CLONE'S BETRAYAL
[19:45] <cat_herder> HAHAHA
[19:45] <RandomPauI> Make it happen cat_herder

Viva Miriya
Jan 9, 2007



ABOARD THE BRIDGE OF THE EMPEROR'S CHILDREN STRIKE CRUISER OSIRIS

“How long until Hassan and his company have been fully deployed to that rock, 1 hour?” “Yes Lord Shabali that would be correct.” “And the ritual to summon our brother daemon?” “About that long, Hassan’s Astartes are roaming the streets and alleys to gather worthy sacrifices and enough narcotics for the ritual to go off without a hitch. I can hear their howls of joy on the vox, they haven’t had this much fun since Gamma Epsilon 420. Excellent, Lilith you have the bridge until I return. Once I return, gather your mortals for the boarding action. This is turning out to be a great Millennia indeed.”

Within the Warrens of 10 Hygiea Local Time: 1800

“How do I look?” Shabali asks one of his Noise Marines as he adjusts his shimmering cape taken off a powerful Q’Sallian sorceror. ”Not as good as me baby.” retorts his second in command, a massive Noise Marine by the name of Cameron. Notable for having forgone his power armour in order to wear a suit made from the hide of a Hive Tyrant, trading out his ancient Blastmaster for an artificer Hyperwave Clarion Cannon on Ghibelline, and wearing a diamond chain with a pedant of Slaanesh, studded with Eldar Soul Stones. ”I see you've added more stones to your chain. A whole howling banshee squad?” “Yeah man poo poo was a blast, but dude love the cape. Shame you didn’t get to enjoy Ghibelline. How was Q’Sal?” “Magnificent.”

As the 2 Astartes walked and talked through the corridors, they are quickly flanked by the rest of the Noise Marine contingent, 60 in all, deployed to quell the slave revolts on Hygiea. The overall Chaos Commander welcomed the arrival of Shabali and his Emperor’s Children warband of 120 Astartes and 666,666 mortal warriors. But as the events play out over the course of the day, he most likely would be praying to the Dark Gods for the intervention of a more….useful warband.

“So a slave revolt eh. How many souls are we gonna liquidate and drink in tonight?” Cameron asks “Projected population 120 million. How long do you think you can run through them and get them distilled.” “2 months to get it done.” “You have 2 weeks.” “Compliance Lord.” “Let us greet our guests then Brother.”

Viva Miriya fucked around with this message at 07:07 on Feb 1, 2016

Loel
Jun 4, 2012

"For the Emperor."

There was a terrible noise.
There was a terrible silence.



:unsmigghh:

Hexenritter
May 20, 2001




Fabulous, truly fabulous.

Hexenritter
May 20, 2001


Slice of Life: The Other Ohone. Location: The Empiricist, 20LY Galactic North of Prospero, Segmentum Solar

"These things. The rakgul. They read like a ship's worst nightmare. Do we have any combat footage?" Ohone asked as she pored over the biologis section of the ship's database. She had already seen that the Tyranid notes she had acquired had been integrated and that there were several projects marked as 'in progress.' She made a note to check them out later.

"we have several hours of compiled footage of shipboard actions involving the rakgul, including null-G manouevres, at which they excel." Replied Sebekh.

Her mind's eye began scanning through the footage which had been compiled from multiple camera angles, extrapolated into a fully navigable three-dimensional environment. It was like somebody just turned on a water cannon, every droplet of water was a xeno. She saw Krieg in the midst of null-G transitions cut to ribbons by darting shapes that were all claws, all teeth. Wave upon wave of exquisite biological killing machines spilling over entrenched positions and soaring through the vacuum like sharks where the Imperial Guardsmen had the manouevrability of children with water wings. Everywhere she looked, melted greatcoats gave way to horrific radiation burns and flesh oozing like warm tallow. There were no screams, per se, but the superheated air venting from their lungs was a far more chilling sound, like lobsters dropped in scalding water.

Advanced processing algorithms and noetic accelerator implants meant that she was able to digest the footage from countless different vantage points in mere seconds. "I'd like to do some testing. We have a full biological template, do we not, Magos?" She asked hopefully.

"One of these days you will remember to whom you are speaking." He replied with a slight grin.

"So rather than asking if you have enough biomass and reinforced holding cells I should just ask if I can use them then. May I?"

"Of course." With a thought, several thousand kilograms of biomass was apportioned from the ship's stores, whether it came from pre-conditioned biomass or from the prison decks Ohone would never know.

At the same time, a high security containment facility was marked for her use. A notification chimed in her head and an optimal route and location indicator appeared when she pulled up the ship layout.

"We will earmark that little project for later in the day. There are several other topics and projects already prepared for today. First, we are going to complete the miniaturised graser you were working on yesterday, and you will take it to the testing range. Athena has also requested that I test you on several subjects to map your progress. Thermodynamic conversion engines, subatomic disintegrators, gravity well generators, temporospatial manipulation and hyperspace blade technology fill out today's syllabus, finishing off with Drexler neurotoxins."

"I never thought I'd be able to absorb and comprehend this much advanced theory and applied science. Those noetic accelerator implants you gave me are fantastic. Millennia ahead of anything the Mechanicus have."

"I'll show you what else they can let you do when we're at the testing range. There's a reason I had you add electrum to your nutrient stream." Sebekh said with a knowing smile.

Hexenritter fucked around with this message at 09:40 on Feb 1, 2016

Runa
Feb 13, 2011

Oh btw I caught up






team catgirl :sparkles:

Xun
Apr 25, 2010

T.G. Xarbala posted:

Oh btw I caught up






team catgirl :sparkles:

Yesssss

Outrail
Jan 4, 2009

www.sapphicrobotica.com
:roboluv: :love: :roboluv:

quote:

"Those noetic accelerator implants you gave me are fantastic. Millennia ahead of anything the Mechanicus have."

So about two years ahead of a culture that rewards the scientific method.

e:edits.

Outrail fucked around with this message at 17:22 on Feb 1, 2016

poor life choice
Jul 21, 2006

Outrail posted:

quote:

Those noetic accelerator implants you gave me are fantastic. Millennia ahead of anything the Mechanicus have."

So about two years ahead of a culture the rewards the scientific method.

That's a purgin'.

Arkanomen
May 6, 2007

All he wants is a hug
Athena knows we are harboring doubt, so she is making the perfect Pinnochio for the puppet show.

Loel
Jun 4, 2012

"For the Emperor."

There was a terrible noise.
There was a terrible silence.



T.G. Xarbala posted:

Oh btw I caught up






team catgirl :sparkles:

Welcome! :D

Hexenritter
May 20, 2001


Outrail posted:

So about two years ahead of a culture that rewards the scientific method.

e:edits.

:laffo: well, yeah.

B.B. Rodriguez
Aug 8, 2005

Bender: "I was God once." God: "Yes, I saw. You were doing well until everyone died."

Can I officially change to Team Mars Federation with Misgivings?

I like the idea of a new Mars Federation, but I'm swinging super hard to supporting The Family. CS FTW.

Also I really hope Ohtwo is just toeing the dutiful student line. We, as a thread playing a game, would have been super suspicious of a goddamn Necron teaching us things.

Arkanomen
May 6, 2007

All he wants is a hug

B.B. Rodriguez posted:

Can I officially change to Team Mars Federation with Misgivings?

I like the idea of a new Mars Federation, but I'm swinging super hard to supporting The Family. CS FTW.

Also I really hope Ohtwo is just toeing the dutiful student line. We, as a thread playing a game, would have been super suspicious of a goddamn Necron teaching us things.

Team Paranoia welcomes Brother Bender!

Hexenritter
May 20, 2001


Slice of Life: Sebekh the Execrator. Location: The Empiricist, 20LY Galactic North of Prospero, Segmentum Solar

Four forms flickered one by one into being on a perfectly smooth plane that stretched off into infinity. Above them a star field that, when viewed a certain way seemed to contain eight interlinked rings.

"So this is what the inside of your head looks like. Empty." Athena Prime said with a teasing smirk. She stood a couple of metres away from her recently re-activated counterpart. The only difference between the two otherwise identical figures was that Athena Beta's hair was twisted up into an intricate pair of braids that wrapped around a ponytail. Both seemed equally amused.

With an expression of feigned injury, hand over heart, Sebekh replied "No need to pull your punches, Athena. Tell me what you really think."

"So, what is it that you wanted to talk about? I'm in the middle of something." Athena Beta's tone was curt and impatient, and her body language was almost hyperactive. Where Athena Prime stood motionless, even in this virtual conference Athena Beta simply could not stand still, her fingers sequentially tapping against her thumbs almost too fast for the eye to see.

Athena Prime glanced sidelong at her agitated mirror and pondered the benefits of taking her offline, scouring her for malcode and rebooting her. Her behaviour and proclivities were cause for growing concern.

Ohone remained silent. Her avatar's red Adeptus Mechanicus robe had, as with every other aboard the Empiricist, been replaced with one of deep sky blue, edged with silver and emblazoned with the interlocked rings of the Mars Federation. She looked between the two Athenas and Sebekh, unsure why she had been keyed into the virtual conference.

"This," Sebekh continued as his humanoid avatar broadly gestured off to one side, causing a block several stories tall to erupt out of the otherwise featureless plane "is the sum of our research projects currently underway."

He gestured to the block again, it grew many times its previous size, the original shape now green, the rest blue. The green portion represented perhaps a thousandth of the block's total size. "This is the scope of all currently planned research, based on a combination of what you have given me, that which was already on my schedule and new avenues based upon a combination of the two."

Ohone looked up at the giant block, and as she looked closer she could make out the invididual projects, disciplines and theoretical works that comprised the whole. Even everything she was working on was less than a single brick in the whole. "We really need to organise." She mused aloud, catching herself and looking sheepishly between the others. "Sorry."

"No need to be. That's exactly my point. What we're doing here is projecting where we need to go first, and prioritising those projects that will get us there quickest. This will not impact your studies at all, Ohone, you will stick to the syllabus we have already laid out."

"Let's get to work then." Athena Beta snapped.

+++I need your help.+++ Athena's voice touched Sebekh's mind.
+++With what?+++
+++I'm worried about her.+++
+++She's doing fine. Exemplary even.+++
+++Not her. Her. You know about Warp taint and the corruptive influence of Chaos. What's your diagnosis?+++
+++Post-traumatic stress, anger, frustration, resolute determination never to be trapped or hurt again. She spent a long time in Goran's head. I look at her and I see someone who was a victim and is hellbent on never being again. Beside that, she definitely is exhibiting some sociopathic tendencies. She's going through subjects faster than any other five of my researchers combined.+++
+++I think it's time...+++

-----

In her laboratory, Athena Beta frowned a bit, like something nagging in the back of her mind. "What?! No! Don't you dare - " with a flicker, she disappeared, the microtool she was holding clattering to the workbench.

Arkanomen
May 6, 2007

All he wants is a hug
Ohtwo is most definitely Athena's brain copy and this reality is her simulation.

poor life choice
Jul 21, 2006

Hexenritter posted:

Slice of Life: Sebekh the Execrator. Location: The Empiricist, 20LY Galactic North of Prospero, Segmentum Solar

Four forms flickered one by one into being on a perfectly smooth plane that stretched off into infinity. Above them a star field that, when viewed a certain way seemed to contain eight interlinked rings.

Time works the same way.

Loel
Jun 4, 2012

"For the Emperor."

There was a terrible noise.
There was a terrible silence.



poor life choice posted:

Time works the same way.

:golfclap:

Blasphemaster
Jul 10, 2008

So...looks like alt-Ohone is kitted up to be able to hack us like we messed with that poor techpriest in Devries' warehouse back on Golgotha.

Mom has a new favorite and she's gonna replace us. :ohdear:

paragon1
Nov 22, 2010

FULL COMMUNISM NOW

Blasphemaster posted:

So...looks like alt-Ohone is kitted up to be able to hack us like we messed with that poor techpriest in Devries' warehouse back on Golgotha.

Mom has a new favorite and she's gonna replace us. :ohdear:

No way! She just likes us so much that she wants us to be able to be in two places at once, just like her! Everything is fiiiiiiiiiiiiine.

Also, as a note on my proposed deployment strategy, it runs the risk of a Craftworld being overwhelmed by a concerted attempt at retreat. I don't really know how tough those things are, but my plan does run the risk of a whole buttload of Eldar dying.

Whether this is a point against it or in its favor is an exercise I leave to other participants.

Hexenritter
May 20, 2001


Slice of Life: The Other Ohone. Location: The Empiricist, 20LY Galactic North of Prospero, Segmentum Solar

The Empiricist never slept. Its crew of thousands rotated and operated in shifts computed for maximum efficiency by a cadre of Chronokineticists. Every nanosecond, nanojoule and nanogram accounted for and tracked by minds keener than scalpels and senses that missed nothing. There was none of the noise, bustle and tumult that Ohone remembered from the Beast. None of the human chaos. From what she gathered, things had become even more streamlined since Sebekh had returned and she had arrived. For a Mechanicus vessel, or what once was, that was no small feat.

+++Skitarii Cohorts 04 and 05 report to Augmetics & Cybersurgery Deck for scheduled upgrades.+++
+++Servitor Taskmasters are instructed to report any malfunction or non-standard operation of Servitors during this transition period.+++
+++Maintenance crew requested in laboratory 075, Laboratory Deck 6. Recalibration of containment field requested. Biological cleanup requested.+++
+++Hangar Deck 3 retrofit complete. Drone Manufactory Online. Printing drone template D-3017 designate: Scythe.+++

Normally, such broadcasts were directed only to the parties affected, but she liked to listen now and then, and opened her comm node up to the various dedicated subchannels. The noise reminded her of home. Sure, she had several acolytes tasked to her as lab assistants but they seemed to quietly resent her accelerated education and her closeness with the Magos and Athena.

+++Are you free?+++ She sent tentatively.

+++For you, always.+++ Came Athena's response.

+++Our spot?+++

+++Be there momentarily.+++

She was still getting used to the teleportation device. It felt like someone tugging your brain one way while your body got tugged the other.

"You'll get used to that." Athena smiled as she looked over her shoulder. In front of her, the observation window yawned wide, the naked majesty of the firmament framing her. Ohone sidled up to stand beside her, her knuckles accidentally brushing Athena's. This time as she peered into the void she was able to pinpoint Sol in a microsecond.

"It never gets old. I could lose myself standing here." Ohone said softly.

Hexenritter fucked around with this message at 22:54 on Jan 19, 2017

Tran
Feb 17, 2011

It's a pleasure to meet all of you. Especially in such a fine settin' as this. Just need us some music an' a brawl an' we'll be set.

paragon1 posted:

No way! She just likes us so much that she wants us to be able to be in two places at once, just like her! Everything is fiiiiiiiiiiiiine.

Also, as a note on my proposed deployment strategy, it runs the risk of a Craftworld being overwhelmed by a concerted attempt at retreat. I don't really know how tough those things are, but my plan does run the risk of a whole buttload of Eldar dying.

Whether this is a point against it or in its favor is an exercise I leave to other participants.

Use the Eldar as cannon fodder and they will abandon the fight. They're only in this as far as they believe they'll benefit. Any plan that puts the largest risks on their populace will just have them balk.

RandomPauI
Nov 24, 2006


Grimey Drawer
Okay, so we have Clohone who would be fine going all machine, and we have Ohone who is trying to strike a balance. This means we need a third Ohone, one that's all organic. It's the only way to bring balance to the universe.

Loel
Jun 4, 2012

"For the Emperor."

There was a terrible noise.
There was a terrible silence.



RandomPauI posted:

Okay, so we have Clohone who would be fine going all machine, and we have Ohone who is trying to strike a balance. This means we need a third Ohone, one that's all organic. It's the only way to bring balance to the universe.

something something mother maiden crone something symbolism

Hexenritter
May 20, 2001


:siren: WARNING: GRUESOMENESS AND GORE AHEAD. :siren:

Slice of Life: Team Mars Federation. You knew what you were voting for.
Location: Linnaeus III, Ultima Segmentum


The Empiricist hung in the blackness of space, orbiting the backwater agricultural world of Linnaeus III. The warm orange glow of its main sequence star shone in the distance, illuminating a single drop pod of ostensibly Mechanicus design. On the bridge, two figures stood side by side as the Empiricist's vastly improved sensory arrays scanned the planet. A grid overlaid itself upon the planet's surface and a number of blips appeared dotted across the northern continent. Each blip told a similar tale. The world below was feudal, with only a single large city serving as capital.

+++Population dispersal appears optimal. Tech level predominantly pre-fusion. Final coordinates locked. Pod on final approach.+++

A plume of smoke and fire was seen that day arcing across the midday sky by a dozen different settlements. Outriders from the nearest were dispatched, arriving several hours after impact. They rode to within several hundred metres, stopping at the behest of their headman, who lifted a pair of viewing glasses to get a closer look. Six small figures were hauling objects out of the pod and assembling them nearby. It looked like a large wagon, some fifteen metres in length and half that in height. It appeared to have legs, rather than wheels. The headman lowered the binoculars and turned to explain what he saw.

Several noiseless flashes emanated from the top of the pod. Equally as many corpses fell beside their likewise slain mounts.

+++Perimeter secure. Gatherers dispatched.+++

----

In the following days, three more plumes of fire descended from the sky. One more on the northern continent, and two on the southern. It was a week before the stories started to circulate. Strange walking wagons and small, spindle-limbed figures stalking the wilderness. Farms and homesteads emptied of their occupants and even livestock. Children of alien mien, and borne upon transparent wings, swooped from the sky and snatched horses, carrying them off with terrifying strength that belied their diminutive size.

It was another week before the first organised defence took place. Ruhr's Wake had gathered everyone from settlements and homesteads for many kilometres. Every man, woman and child. They were all armed. They were all frightened. At nightfall, the noises started. Whirr-CLUNK. Whirr-CLUNK. Whirr-CLUNK. Distorted sounds like voices but not.

Reinforcements summoned from neighbouring counties arrived to find only scorched earth, patches of bloodied earth, and the ruin of half a dozen plascrete prefabs.

----

"What do you mean? Gone?! How does an entire region's population simply disappear? There were over sixty thousand people in Ruhr's Wake and the surrounding towns." Simeon Rand, planetary governor of Linnaeus III was starting to panic.

"My lord, all we know is what we've found, which is nothing. We need to mobilise the Arbites and PDF. Draft the children if we have to. We also have yet to receive a response from the Imperial Navy or... well... from anyone. The last transmission our Astropaths received implied the entire Navy was being summoned to a world on the other side of the galaxy." General Gorman was equally as worried as the governor. He masked it behind a brusque demeanour.

"It's true. No-one can hear us." The representative from the planet's Choir of Astropaths said quietly. "I can see only death. The faces of loved ones rent and bloodied. Eyes filled with hate and murder." He pulled the pistol from General Gorman's belt, looked at it contemplatively. The clerks watched him in horror. "No-one is coming. No-one will survive."

----

Whirr-CLUNK. Whirr-CLUNK. Whirr-CLUNK.

"There it is! Open fire!" Came the cry from behind a ruined balcony.

"God-Emperor! It's the size of a Baneblade!"

From a dozen different vantage points, lasguns flashed, heavy bolters barked and the hollow thunk of grenade launchers presaged a sequence of deafening explosions.

As the smoke cleared, the arachnoid machine pulsed a bioscan and shifted on its adamantine feet, stabilising itself as the ground beneath it cracked and splintered. Then came the screams. Combat servitors were climbing over everything. Their spindly, bladed limbs still wearing ragged tatters of human flesh, leering with faces that made a phantasmagorical mockery of the human visage.

Weary, terrified PDF troopers blasted and swung and kicked at the mechanical horrors assailing them, but their foe gave no ground. Creatures that were once family, friends, brothers in arms fell upon them, shrieking their hatred. Some troopers threw their weapons down, trying to reason, to plead with the people within. Tried to make contact. They were the ones who suffered the most. It took less than thirty seconds. What was left of Heavy Weapons Company Bravo was then gathered up and thrown, whole or piecemeal, into a hopper atop the machine.

Soon enough, the only sounds were the sickening crunches, squelching and the whirring of bonesaws. Organs were plucked and emulsified, replaced by silicon and metal.

----

///Surveillance Servitor Rho-472 Live Feed

Slowly, the camera panned from left to right across a shattered cityscape. Mamucium, capital of Linnaeus III lay in ruins. Its spires, small as they were, lay crumbling, like fallen colossi.

Harvesters trod the ruins methodically, surrounded by their swarms of gatherers. Combat servitors swept for lifesigns in grid formations, repulsive winged children soared overhead. Screaming bodies were dug and torn from the wreckage of civilisation, clawing and fighting to the bitter end. Lives extinguished and reconfigured within the processing bays of the Corpse Engines.

On the horizon, the mother of this nightmare swarm, the original pod. Now the size of a small town, it tore with violent intent at the very earth. Ripping and digging downward in search of ore. Upon its rearmost section, gantries, cranes and welding limbs set about constructing more harvesters.

Flipping through the visual feeds from more surveillance servitors, across half a dozen continents, the image was the same.

Athena turned to look at Sebekh and nodded. "1.6 billion organics processed. 64% in good enough condition for processing. 83% of processed organics survived further collection. results: Acceptable. We can begin production."

Hexenritter fucked around with this message at 06:02 on Feb 2, 2016

RandomPauI
Nov 24, 2006


Grimey Drawer
Switching to Team Riiiiiicola

Loel
Jun 4, 2012

"For the Emperor."

There was a terrible noise.
There was a terrible silence.



RandomPauI posted:

Switching to Team Riiiiiicola

Wow, just when the going gets tough :colbert:

poor life choice
Jul 21, 2006
I thought it'd be less robo-Tyranids and more Star Trek, honestly. :shrug: Athena tricked me until it was too late!

RandomPauI
Nov 24, 2006


Grimey Drawer

LowellDND posted:

Wow, just when the going gets tough :colbert:

I'm pained by this development and need some soothing relief. Giving relief is a core part of the Ricola platform.

Hexenritter
May 20, 2001


poor life choice posted:

I thought it'd be less robo-Tyranids and more Star Trek, honestly. :shrug: Athena tricked me until it was too late!

The best thing about the prototype Corpse Engines is they're entirely non-DAoT :v:

Loel
Jun 4, 2012

"For the Emperor."

There was a terrible noise.
There was a terrible silence.



Hexenritter posted:

The best thing about the prototype Corpse Engines is they're entirely non-DAoT :v:

Really, the only difference is that Athena is making servitors, not the Mechanicus :v:

See? No reason to panic! :3:

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paragon1
Nov 22, 2010

FULL COMMUNISM NOW
p sure this is against The Rules fam.

Mind ethics I mean

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