With the last match having being a wet to test the waters, we have decided on a rematch. Of course to make the game more fun we've also begun to write some fluff for the two fleets. Hope you guys enjoy.
Previously:
The 'Renegade' Fleet:
Cashel slammed a fist against his command throne as he watched the Rouge Trader vessel flee the combat area. While ever ounce of him screamed to give chase, his duty demanded he not. "Bring us around helmsmen, there may still be survivors aboard the
Rabid Wolf". "Aye, as you command
Sa'Falconer" the massive craft slowly turned from the chase. Even with victory secure a bitterness settled over the Marine commander, an eerie calm claiming the bridge of his ship, doing nothing to improve his mood. "Vox Master, the
Wraith is now to commence patrol duties till we are ready to leave, and summon the Astropath, the rest of the fleet must be alerted to these pirates" the Marine then slipped from his seat, making a quick set of written codes and phrases that would only be understood by his fellow battle brothers. He had the notes to the Master of the Vox "This is the message to be sent, make it so" the serf nodded sharply "Aye
Sa'Falconer" he responded quickly. Then the Falconer made his way towards the exit of the bridge, if there was souls to save on the Rabid Wolf, then he would see to it himself that as many possible could be saved. As he moved further through the ship, he was soon joined by fellow Jade Hawks, all more than willing to give their aid, for those aboard the crippled escort shared their same home world. They had all come from Huntress, they were all her children, and even if they were but mortals, each of their lives were worthy of the risk.
The 'Imperial' Fleet:
Admiral T'dee sighed heavily as sweat rolled down his brow, he had failed. He had failed a task, that should have been easier to complete than it had been. The pristine world should have been devoid of another fleet, more so this far from edges of Imperial Space. However, it had not, the ships had pounced upon his fleet like hungry animals, and while he had gunned one down the other two were more than happy to give chase. For a fleeting moment he had feared they would have followed his flight. They had not, and now he was alive with the misfortune of having to report his losses to his Lords, the Sister Rouge Traders. The mere thought of what they may do to him for his failures made his insides churn a cold knot in his stomach. A small voice in the back of his head almost begged for a misfortune in the warp to keep him from reuniting with the Sisters and his fleet. While they claimed the title Rouge Trader, and their fleet an image of Imperial Might, they were more brigand and pirate than noble. That was why they had taken him on in the first place, they cared little for their captain's origins, as long as they didn't question orders, and didn't mind getting their hands bloodied, they were welcomed. Dread coursed through his veins as his craft pulled free of the warp at their destination. He breath a deep sigh of relief at the sight that greeted him, instead of the Sister's battleship, it was the
White Queen and her flotilla of escorts. Things were starting to look up, at least for the moment.
Jade Hawk Fleet:
Hawk's Talons Slaughter Class Cruiser, Space Marine Crew, Brother Lavi
Unrelenting Slaughter Class Cruiser, Space Marine Crew, Brother Burke
Rouge Trader's Fleet:
Joker Firestorm Class Frigate
Jack Firestorm Class Frigate
Mad Hatter Sword Class Frigate
March Hare Sword Class Frigate
White Queen Dictator Class Cruiser
Jade Hawks:
Lavi sat at the command throne of his vessel, while his frame was motionless, the marine's eyes glared out of the view ports of his vessel. Straight ahead toward their destination, as if his eyes could burn through the warp and to the material. The crewmen and women busily prepared themselves with other things, not one wanting to look into those rage filled eyes. Lavi had heard the report from their first encounter with this band of pirates. What knowledge was gleamed from the wrecks of the slain foes had given them a treasure trove of information. None of it good, the atrocities the Rouge Trader family had inflict on both known and unknown worlds was great, and the loss of those counted as brothers and sisters was all the more enraging. While he hated the idea of turning his weapons and battle brothers loose on humans, the costs of their sins were too great for him, or any other Jade Hawk to suffer a moment longer than they had to. While his fellow Falconer was unknown to him, a half breed, a marine not born originally on Huntress, but reborn like any Jade Hawk on her surface. Burke, his name alien to Lavi, but his honors not. Even with his differences and his other wordily origins, Burke had placed his bid to enter the hunting wing, casting aside his escorts without hesitation. Lavi met the bid, and it was this that garnered them the first chance at bloody retribution.
Rouge Traders:
Admiral Blanche Rosario watched the Red Queen slipped back into the warp with the new coordinates towards the heart of their exploration fleet. She clicked her tongue in disgust at the report that T'dee had given her, losing both of his escorts and being hounded from the jewel of a water rich world.
Emperor's teeth she cursed mentally, while they had just been escorts, they were still losses that would take a great deal of time to replenish. She sighed heavily as she tried to focus further on the task at hand, her eyes closed tightly as she brushed thoughts on the subject of the fleet's losses from her mind. When her eyes snapped open, her returned vision was filled with the trembling frame of the Augury Reader's apprentices. "Lord Admiral, we h-have detected unmarked vessels closing on our position". The Admiral lashed out with her sharp heel boot sending the lad rolling form her sight and crashing to the floor. "All hands to battle stations, get those escorts ready for combat!" she hissed, a part of her happy to have a distraction from the boredom of watching over the reclamation of the slumbering space port, while also giving her a chance to prove herself to her Rouge Trader masters, if she could out shine her sister ship, perhaps she could be given a better command than just these pitiful escorts.
Deployment:
Feeling lucky, and knowing my Slaughters need to close the gap fast for maximum output, I deploy close to the cluster of Rouger Trader vessels, ready to get to grips with them. Time to see how that pans out for me.
Turn 1
Rouge Trader:
The entire fleet moves forward as a whole, the Jade Hawk Cruisers just out of range no shooting happens, however the Dictator still lets out four flights of fighters.
Jade Hawk:
The Imperial Ships moved closer, all part of the plan! Being able to move 30cm is almost unfair.
Unrelenting engages the ordnance as best it can, hoping to swat aside the bombers before they can do harm. The lances miss the closest bomber wing, however the gun decks claim the fighters in fiery death. The
Unrelenting engages the nearest Sword with her prow weapons, but the escort proves to be another elusive target. Sadly the
Hawk's Talons has even less effect.
Turn 2
Rouge Trader:
Joker and
Jack fire their lances at the Unrelenting, and score a single hit, yanking a shield from her.
Mad Hatterand
March Hare try to engage the
Hawk's Talons, to no effect. The
White Queen engages
Hawk's Talons, but lands only two solid hits, the Slaughter's shields keeping her safe from the Imperial Cruiser.
Hawk's Talons swats aside one of the bomber wings, but is unable to prevent the second from delivering an explosive payload on her hull. The
Unrelenting fails to destroy the bomber flight, but they do disrupt the bombers preventing any damage from befalling her hull.
Jade Hawks:
Unflinching from the savage beating they had received, the Marine ships use their greater mobility to get behind the Imperial Cruiser.
Unrelenting pounds the
White Queen, with the prow and side gun decks(14 Firepower is painful), the shields absorb some of the punishment but its not enough, a blistering hail of firepower rips into the hull of the cruiser. The
Unrelenting Lances score savage damage across the White Queen's prow ruining her Torpedoes and leaving the Dictator with merely two hull points left. The Hawk's Talons also joins in on savagery, but due to intervening explosions and shards of ship armor, the punishment is lightened. This leaves the
White Queen with one Hull point remaining. The
Unrelenting Swats at one of the Fireswords, but misses.
Turn 3
Rouge Trader:
The Escorts are all that is left that can engage the Slaughters, but with the position, it leaves them sorely out of place to do so properly, and the two Jade Hawk ships are unharmed.
Jade Hawk:
The
Hawk's Talons strikes a killing blow, downing the forward Sword Frigate. That however is the end of the shooting, everything else had been left out of range due to movement.
Turn 4
Rouge Trader:
The fleet zips forward, the escorts trying to get in behind the Slaughters, while the
White Queen crawls forward slowly. The Escorts try to harm the
Unrelenting, but fail to do anything more than remove a shield.
Jade Hawks:
The two Slaughters roll around the station, the Hawk's Talons slices into the crippled
White Queen, finally ending the Dictator.
We decided to call it here, the frigates were positioned to far to catch as they made a run for the edge and survival.
Crushing victory for the Jade Hawks!
Post Story:
"FIRE!" Lavi roared, the weapons batteries sent ripples through the Slaughter class cruiser's hull, the crippled Dictator had no hope of crawling out of the way. The ship's burning hull was ripped and torn asunder, then her engine's shielding cracked. The ruined ship became a massive fire ball as devastation ripped through the her hull, turning the once proud warship into nothing but slabs of slag metal. The pair of Slaughter Class Cruisers prowled past the ruined enemy craft, only to find the Escorts fleeing in their wake. They had escaped, but blood had been drawn, and the lost souls of the
Rabid Wolf had been avenged. Lavi watched the Unrelenting pull up along side the Hawk's Talons, a warm yellow series of lights flickered along her hull in a silent salute. The marine chuckled "Well met indeed brought, good hunting" he turned from from the display visible from the bridge. "Return the greeting, and the greetings and let us prepare to see what had those pirates so interested in that space port" He slowly he reclined as best his armor would allow. While this had been a victory, it was only a sign of further bloodshed that lay ahead, no doubt word would be reaching the heart of the Pirate fleet soon. He doubted very much this was to be the last skirmish with the bastards.
