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Esper posted:On another note, I would like to advise everyone not to underestimate Amacita. I feel like us perceiving her as not a threat / not doing anything might just be an effect of the xeno artifact. She may be far more dangerous than we realize and just expertly disguised as a complacent clerk on large effect because of that technology. Keep and eye on her, keep her in check, and let's never consider her a true ally for as long as she has that artifact. Take a few hours once things have quieted down a bit and perform an accelerated-playback review of the recorded footage from the servoskull we set to follow her around. To combat the artifact, force ourselves to write down an itemized summary of every notable thing she does. Afterwards, if that list is empty, or even very sparse, we should assume we're being played--we know for a fact that she's been doing things like sitting in on inquisitorial interrogations. Try looking at randomly selected individual frames of video and describing in writing what they contain.
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Feb 6, 2015 00:45
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Tran posted:It's really difficult to top a successful rogue trader for personal power, let alone a Rogue Trader inducted into the Inquisition. For possible stepping stones up from there we're talking on the order of, "Become a daemon prince or the Emperor himself." I fail to see the problem  edit: I have my outline done for Plan 2 (Science!), so Imma finish reading "Love and Krieg" and get to writing. Loel fucked around with this message at 00:54 on Feb 6, 2015 |
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Feb 6, 2015 00:51
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My personal ideal endgame is to become the Rogue Trader, stay a member of the Inquisition in good standing, and keep the fact that we are an Inquisitor secret from everybody even once we become the Rogue Trader Basically don't throw our inquisitorial weight around so much as use our power as an 'asset' for the Inquisition.
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Feb 6, 2015 01:09
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JT Jag posted:My personal ideal endgame is to become the Rogue Trader, stay a member of the Inquisition in good standing, and keep the fact that we are an Inquisitor secret from everybody even once we become the Rogue Trader We should get a truly UNLIMITED warrant of trade, if we can. Nothing says "gently caress the Law, I answer only to the Emperor" like the ability to bring looted xenos technology straight to Mars.
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Feb 6, 2015 01:16
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VanSandman posted:We should get a truly UNLIMITED warrant of trade, if we can. Nothing says "gently caress the Law, I answer only to the Emperor" like the ability to bring looted xenos technology straight to Mars.
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Feb 6, 2015 01:32
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Ralith posted:This is an excellent point, and would explain why she was so desperate to get it back. The only surprising thing is that she told us about the artifact at all. Regardless, let's enact countermeasures. This, plus any additional tech-priest measures we can incorporate to help us avoid the influence of the xeno artifact.
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Feb 6, 2015 01:35
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JT Jag posted:My personal ideal endgame is to become the Rogue Trader, stay a member of the Inquisition in good standing, and keep the fact that we are an Inquisitor secret from everybody even once we become the Rogue Trader The funny thing is, it wouldn't even be all that unusual. Every time people become aware of the Inqusition's investigations, everyone starts looking suspiciously at Rogue Traders, since they're usually at least one of the sides involved.
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Feb 6, 2015 01:44
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We shall do science to it! You immediately began performing quarantine rituals. De la Torre was placed in one of the storerooms deep under the earth, and you left a servoskull there to watch her. You also ordered a guard shift schedule to maintain her isolation. She was to be fed and watered regularly - this wasn’t a punishment duty, just a cautionary measure. You made sure to emphasize this point to her. Through the servo skull, and through meters of stone and steel. You also scrubbed the data from the Machine-Spirits, and copied the dangerous data to a separate machine. When you weren’t examining it, you secured it in locked box, marked with symbols of danger, quarantine, and the Mechanicus. Just in case, you assigned a servo-skull to watch the box at all times. You didn’t expect anyone in your regiment to start poking around, but it was better to be prepared. In other isolation rooms, you set up a viewing station. One for a labor-servitor, and one for a convict-laborer. It was six hours of footage, so you had some time to play with. You ran the material through a filter, reducing it to its most basic visual data, and plugged it into the viewing stations. Parallel to this, you set up a team of servo skulls loaded with shotguns. If either candidate began acting erratically, they were ordered to fire. You had barely settled in to begin examining Amacita’s data when you heard the shotguns blast. The servitor was still watching impassively, but the labor-convict had half a dozen gorey holes in his body. You reviewed what the servo-skulls had recorded - the moment the thumping began, the convict began laughing, crying, picking at his skin. Within seconds, the servoskulls open fire. You were undecided if that was a fear reaction to the visual, or an actual memetic response. You might need more viewers. The servitor didn’t seem perturbed at all, so you went back to viewing Amacita’s footage. It was remarkably boring, and you found yourself skipping ahead, choosing random segments to view. Many of them were normal day to day things - hygiene and cleaning rituals, sleeping, eating. She seemed to have a lonely life, and didn’t talk to many people. In the course of her duties, she processed stacks of papers. All of it that you viewed was related to the trade lanes - you had copies of it in your quarters. From what you could see, the numbers matched, so if there was a scam, she was doubling up on it. Skipping ahead, there was a blur of static. When you rewound, you could see her speaking to the skull. “I’m going into the I meeting. They have anti-surveillance, so expect a gap. I’ll tell you all about it when I see you.” Overall, she was a very boring person. You began walking about your office and lab, performing minor tasks, getting things done while you kept half an eye on the screen. More papers, more trade information. Wait. Had you seen this section before? You looked closer. No, it wasn’t looped, but it was close. The papers didn’t match the data in the prior sections, nor the data on your desk. Either she had falsified records somewhere, or … or what? You weren’t sure what might explain this. It wasn’t a loop, you definitely checked for that. Hmm… you sent some tasks and requests up to the Beast. Standard things. Request for a shuttle on standby. Request for navigational tidal information. Request for Astropath signatures. A coded memo to the Magos, suggesting xeno infiltration. The results came pouring back. Shuttle on its way. Warp tides cloudy but manageable. Astropath suffering interference, but manageable. Warp tides had been getting slightly worse over the last six months. Astropath had similar, with a rise in clarity just today. Finally, memos from your forces. An Inspector-Clerk was requesting a meeting with you. The Kriegers were ready for you. Shuttle landing. What do you do? A. Science can wait. Kriegers. B. IG can wait. Find out what the Clerk wants. C. Everyone can wait. You need to do more science. D. You’ve got a bad feeling about this. Take the shuttle and go. E. Something Else
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Feb 6, 2015 02:17
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We should start experimenting with heretical materials at some point. Xeno tech and turning demons into servitors for example. edit: cool, update! B. Talk to the clerk, it'll be quick and may provide some intel. Then head to the Kriegs. Outrail fucked around with this message at 02:24 on Feb 6, 2015 |
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Feb 6, 2015 02:19
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A: Kriegers are "fun".
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Feb 6, 2015 02:24
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B. No reason not to. It should be quick.
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Feb 6, 2015 02:37
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B then A.
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Feb 6, 2015 02:44
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B-A. Have the IG talk to us on the way to the shuttle, on the shuttle if it takes that long. She can ride it back up. If it's important enough, she'll do it. If it's not important enough to walk for it, then who cares?
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Feb 6, 2015 02:51
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B See what the clerk wants for a brief chat, we can ask him to provide a summary of his requests and information that we can review on our way to the Death Korps.
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Feb 6, 2015 03:07
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VanSandman posted:We should get a truly UNLIMITED warrant of trade, if we can. Nothing says "gently caress the Law, I answer only to the Emperor" like the ability to bring looted xenos technology straight to Mars. Aha only answering to the Emperor the perfect idea! Next heist we kidnap the Emperor and sell him to the Xenos! Also B->A
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Feb 6, 2015 03:08
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A Darker Porpoise posted:Aha only answering to the Emperor the perfect idea! Next heist we kidnap the Emperor and sell him to the Xenos! Somewhere on 1d4chan there is a short story where the Orks steal the Emperor. Ill try to find it. edit: Aha, here it is http://1d4chan.org/wiki/Looted_Emperor Loel fucked around with this message at 03:19 on Feb 6, 2015 |
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Feb 6, 2015 03:11
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Kriegers are pretty no-nonsense so the meeting will have an absolute minimum of decorum and bullshit padding it. They've probably already dug earthworks on the crashed elevator, somehow.
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Feb 6, 2015 03:13
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Yeah we can just cut the crap and make a straight proposal to the kriegers. If they can't or won't play ball with us they'll just say so and say why, otherwise they'll just say yes and bam, instant profit.
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Feb 6, 2015 03:24
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Honestly the Kriegers are like Ohone's ideal diplomatic contacts. Neither side encumbered by such unnecessary concepts as humor and sentiment. So the obvious answer is to offer to make a bunch of them into Skitarii as a secondary sales pitch. Magos gets a bunch of new experimental material, Kriegers get shiny new murder cyborgs, the family makes some money, and Ohone maybe gets to keep a few for her personal guard. Edit: added image. Tran fucked around with this message at 03:40 on Feb 6, 2015 |
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Feb 6, 2015 03:38
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Kegslayer posted:B Agreed, basically. I'm a little confused after the update--have we figured out what's weird about what Amacita is doing in the footage, or are we not sure?
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Feb 6, 2015 04:18
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A. I don't think it's a great idea to keep Kriegers waiting.
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Feb 6, 2015 04:28
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Chantilly Say posted:Agreed, basically. Im being a bit intentionally vague, yeah. Theres something there, but you need a bit more time to figure it out. Outbound Flight Securing everything properly, you left your labs. It would take more time than you had to continue the research you wanted, and you’d rather not keep the Kreig waiting. If you could secure a second Army to supply, your wealth would quite simply double. It was a big enough event that everyone in the Family would have to lay low about criticizing for you for a while. Mentally, you resolved to send a thank you note to whoever stole the Filthy Lucre. Without looking, you told the Inspector-Clerk to follow you. She fell in behind you patiently, and you took long strides to head for your shuttle. It was already warmed up and full of fuel, and you double checked that there was always a standing order to keep it so. Having a quick evacuation plan would likely keep you alive, although you decided it would need more redundancies built into it. Faster engines, stealth systems, decoys. If it were you, you’d sabotage the shuttle, fake an emergency, and then watch it explode as your target ran away. The flight gave you time to examine the Inspector-Clerk. An older matronly looking woman, brown skin, almond shaped eyes. Black hair in a bun. She was drinking from a travel flask - some sort of herbal concoction by the smell. She met your gaze impassively, and seemed willing to wait for you to speak. You considered indulging the power game and just staring at her the entire flight, but it seemed more optimal to find out what she wanted. “I’m on my way to a meeting with the Krieg, but we can talk on the flight. What brings you to the Tunnel Cats?” Her voice was soft, melodious. “I am Inspector-Clerk Sincera Pax. I’m following up on a few questions that WFA had about some of the recent operations in your Area of Operations.” Waste Fraud and Abuse? They were a joke department of the Munitorium. If you knew anyone or anything, you could bring down their hammer on someone else entirely. To see someone take it seriously was … surreal. Oh, you remembered her now. She was following up on the loss of that penal battalion. You put on your best smile. “What can the Tunnel Rats do for you?” “What do you know of Captain Devries?” You made a show of thinking. “Well, its a big Army. I have a few dozen captains working for me myself. Can you narrow it down?” “He was responsible for supplying one of the penal battalions with water. He vanished, and a thousand men died before they could die in battle.” “A tragedy, to be sure. What does that have to do with me?” She looked at you from over her wire frame glasses. “Orders were found deploying him to your Ship. No one can be found to have actually given those orders.” You shrugged. “Perhaps a clerical error? I don’t have much experience with the Guard.” Pax sipped her herbal water. “Perhaps. WFA found it strange that people from your units started occupying buildings he had been known to have been affiliated with.” “Buildings? I thought you said he was a water supplier?” She paused. “He was also suspected of being medium size criminal boss in the military. We were rather hoping to investigate some of his materials. Your men processed them with almost unduly haste.” “I’m sorry, I don’t know much about that. I know scavenging happens in a warzone though, perhaps its that.” “Perhaps. Do you have anything to say about your name being on the admittance papers to your ship?” What? “That seems unlikely. My cousin Amacita is responsible for things like that.” “Of course, I apologize. Amacita’s name.” “Well, if the orders seemed legitimate, it seems likely she would want to support the Guard. Perhaps you should ask her?” “Perhaps. You don’t find it strange, General, that Devries vanished aboard a ship your Family owns, and at the same time you acquired most of his empire? Vanished after an WFA investigation was close on his heels? It might give the impression of impropriety to people watching.” You shrugged indifferently. “I would say to ask the people involved in it, madam. Perhaps when you see Devries next.” The shuttle began its landing procedure. You glanced back at Pax. “Thank you for the conversation, Inspector.” The landing pad was actually built sunken into the earth, safe from direct fire. It would take supremely good luck or accuracy to drop shells on this location, and you took a moment to appreciate it. A bit rough on pilots trying to land shuttles, but the Krieg seemed to think the added security was worth it. You strode out of the shuttle, marched really, and approached the Krieg nearby. They were statues. Or near enough. Gasmask, greatcoat, autorifles. You could feel their gaze on you, and you were certain there were others you couldn’t see. The surface, you knew, was a weave of trenches, nests, and kill points, and you were sure half of them were hidden from sight. The Krieg didn’t move or say anything as you got close, so you spoke first. “I’m Brevet-General Ohone, here to meet with Krieg HQ.” They didn’t say anything, didn’t even nod. After a moment, one of them turned, began walking into the tunnels. Were you supposed to wait here? Internally shrugging, you followed. There was minimal lighting, reducing everything to a yellow glow. The corridors were thin and shallow, even cramped. Every wall looked the same, and every intersection was a killzone redoubt. It was a matter of minutes before you were hopelessly lost, bewildered by the repeated loopbacks, merges, splits, rises and falls. You lost count of the number of bunker/barracks you saw, all the same. A dozen masked figures, sitting on ammo boxes. Waiting. You were almost ready to ask for water when a final turn brought you to a much larger chamber. Well, large for the area - your own HQ, for a fraction of the numbers, was about the same size. There were the usual maps and folders, but no tables or chairs. Instead, the general staff looked nearly the same as any of the barracks troops you had seen - gas mask, trenchcoat, autorifle. Only after a close look did you see slight changes in their uniforms. The close look did reveal that those outfits were full NBC cleared. You were pretty sure you could drop everything you could think of on them and wouldn’t give them the sniffles. In the distance, or perhaps buried under those masks, you could hear undecipherable murmuring. Perhaps a battle cant, or old dialect. It sounded like it was coming through the radios, anyway. In the center of the room, an older man dressed in Commissar's regalia. His Comissar hat was on the box next to him, and you could see he was balding, with scraps of hair on the sides. He had watery blue eyes, and always seemed on the verge of sneezing. As you approached, his voice was a low murmur. “And… salute.” You saluted him, he saluted back. His face was expressionless. No, that wasn’t strong enough. It was a dead face, as if all the nerves had been cut. You could only see any sort of expression in the eyes, and even that was minimal. His low voice continued. “Don’t shake hands. Don’t smile. Don’t laugh. They… don’t really get it. It bothers them. Or confuses them. Or something like it. They don’t have emotions with those names. “I’m Commissar-General Fabiyan Konichev. Nominally, they have a command staff, but they aren’t good at it.” He paused, as if searching for words. “Krieg troops aren’t good at .. talking, really.” His expression still hadn’t changed. You wondered at his ability to separate his words from his tone from his face so effectively. It was like watching someone dubbed in another language. You wondered if he had Moebius syndrome, or if this was just what being with Kreigs were like. “Commissars in this unit are here to be diplomats to the outside world, and sources of restraint here. I haven’t had to shoot anyone in twenty years. They would shoot themselves if I asked it. Imagine I laughed there.” His mask of a face was unbreakable. “They’ve been waiting to meet you ever since they heard about your tunnel mission. Imagine I look excited and shook your hand. Pat your back.” That monotone was beginning to horrify you on a very basic level. You knew Tech-Priests with more personality. He continued. “Fighting a psider as you rapelled up an elevator shaft? Amazing.” In anyone else, you would have called that tone sarcastic. Here, it was just dead. “Anyway, they like you. Or, whatever emotion that might be similar. ‘Hope to die with you soon’ might be close. You’re here for the elevator, of course.” He leaned forward slightly, the first emotion you’d seen in this place. ”Whats your plan?”
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Feb 6, 2015 04:37
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Be straight and to the point. Lay out what we have to offer in detail and price for a minimum of haggling. Everything screams that they will either accept our offer or reject it out of hand, don't give them any reason to reject it. As for what we have to offer there are the obvious things like continuity of their supply chain, but the beast is more than just a ship. It's an entire floating megacity complete with factories and a (depleted, but still sizable) pool of specialists and labor. Offer to broker a deal with the magos for combat augmentations or murder servitors, trade combat stimulants from the laboratories of the gangs, or just more bodies to assist with the excavation of their ever growing earthen fortifications.
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Feb 6, 2015 05:01
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Shut off emotions, and if they "liked" what we did with the psyders, describe what we did against the warp demon. Note the personal sacrifices and emotional attachments we destroyed to further the glory of the Omnissiah and rid of our enemies. We hold respect for Krieg troops, but they are a tool like other regiments. We would just know how to use them more wisely. Having them under supply of our ship, we will obviously make a profit, but we would also ensure no corners are cut for such troops worthy to fight in name of the Omnissiah. did i get that right? 
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Feb 6, 2015 05:03
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Can't help but visualize this guy as Steven Wright the Commissar.HiHo ChiRho posted:Shut off emotions, and if they "liked" what we did with the psyders, describe what we did against the warp demon. Note the personal sacrifices and emotional attachments we destroyed to further the glory of the Omnissiah and rid of our enemies. We hold respect for Krieg troops, but they are a tool like other regiments.
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Feb 6, 2015 05:10
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These are men who care only for the efficiency of their violence and stoicism in battle. We can entice them with stories of endless battle against challenging and brutal foes. We need only for them to follow us and fight where we point. As HiHo said, we can brush off he Psider as a simple skirmish and point out that we do battle with warp spawn and xeno's on a consistent basis. Do not say this braggingly, but as a matter of of daily life for us. What we can bait them with is access to more efficient and deadly Mechanicus approved weapons on top of new opportunities to fight and triumph.
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Feb 6, 2015 05:11
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DO NOT MENTION THE DEMON People who had contact with demons are treated with suspicion. People who talk about demons without a very good reason to tend to be shot.
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Feb 6, 2015 05:15
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I'm confused. Are we trying to hire the Kriegers or make money off them?
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Feb 6, 2015 05:15
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Something else for consideration: They've lost the transit line - the way for things to get from A to B. So, while the Beast can do a lot of neat factory things, the big question is how you want to get them from A to B. Space elevators take a lot of resources to build/install/test, for example.
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Feb 6, 2015 05:16
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We're trying to close a deal. If we get them to agree to use the Beast as their primary supply point we'll make money hand over fist. Everything else is secondary to that.
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Feb 6, 2015 05:17
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Tomn posted:I'm confused. Are we trying to hire the Kriegers or make money off them? Make money, but I guess some people want to hire a few? Focus on the money, guys. Once we have the money, we can buy better people.
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Feb 6, 2015 05:17
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Someone remind me, are the Kriegs on the Gamma front? Either way, without a space elevator, we'll have to ferry things down in shuttles won't we? Very pricey. paragon1 fucked around with this message at 05:19 on Feb 6, 2015 |
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Feb 6, 2015 05:17
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Tran posted:Be straight and to the point. Lay out what we have to offer in detail and price for a minimum of haggling. Everything screams that they will either accept our offer or reject it out of hand, don't give them any reason to reject it. this
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Feb 6, 2015 05:17
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paragon1 posted:Someone remind me, are the Kriegs on the Gamma front? Nah, SouthWest Bravo. I haven't shown anything with Gamma at all yet.
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Feb 6, 2015 05:18
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Tomn posted:I'm confused. Are we trying to hire the Kriegers or make money off them? my dad posted:DO NOT MENTION THE DEMON Oh well what would you suggest Warhammer Guru My Dad
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Feb 6, 2015 05:19
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Lay out our offer of continuity of supply. They may have received other offers already, of course, and while we have brownie points with them after being so gutsy in the tunnels, they are also very practically minded, so we still need to be competitive, I think. Do what we need to secure them as our customers, while still of course making shuttle-loads of cash. Longer-term, try to find out who set the Inspector on us and what she can actually do. Perhaps Limosa has a hand in this? Where is Limosa now? What is he doing? What was Amacita doing? Is there any indication the memetic virus has affected the army or the Beast somehow?
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Feb 6, 2015 05:19
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LowellDND posted:Something else for consideration: How feasible/efficient would it be to create one-shot supply drop pods to supply the Kriegers with until we can get our own space elevator up and running?
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Feb 6, 2015 05:19
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Lowell are you asking us for a plan on how to actually supply the Kriegers?
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Feb 6, 2015 05:20
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I guess I should ask, does the Beast have another elevator? Can we steal one from somewhere?
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Feb 6, 2015 05:21
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Tomn posted:How feasible/efficient would it be to create one-shot supply drop pods to supply the Kriegers with until we can get our own space elevator up and running? Yes, good  This is the direction I want to go with. You could use hollow torpedo pods from the Beast, you could try to get a drop pod deployment ship from the Imperial navy, or something else entirely.Basically, Im thinking of two lines of plot: Persuading the Kreig that you should be their source Coming with an idea on how you will supply from that source
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Feb 6, 2015 05:23
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