[AAR] Interrupted Negotiations [Looong]

Interrupted Negotiations – an After Action Report from ECC-VI

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

In the year 2193…

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

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

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

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

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

……

Calendar 77/21//38///933

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

Calendar 77/21//39///041

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

Calendar 77/21//39///052

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

----

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

since it that might have overwhelmed the scattergun defenses – thought

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Eh! A Noble Prize Anagram  (Noam Raphael Izenberg - award winning 
anagrams)