Okay, so my post DID get condemned to the catacombs. Should have known waiting for Niki's response and replying with the constructive bit after that would be a bad move.
Anyhow, for those who wish to see it it's here, along with Niki's reply:
http://backstage.eve-inspiracy.com/index.php?topic=1206.0When I mailed Seri and Niki in-game asking them to read and post in reply to this I did get Niki's reply saying she had. At that time however RL slapped me and I never got around to answering fast enough. I'll do that now however. As before, I'll try (harder this time) to remain somewhat cool about it all.
First off, Niki's reply.
Frankly, while I won't comment on your talk with Seri about this (I were not there after all) him saying that an infiltration is unlikely and opting for an all-out assault is by far the most likely scenario. Why?
Imagine:
The Angel Cartel want to infiltrate the SDII's station holding Myxx's family. It's an SDII station, it's supposed to be secret thus safe, and it's location is a very secure secret. Firstly to get this intel is hard enough, upon doing so however the likelihood that the SDII will NOT realize there has been a breach of security is extremely unlikely. More likely is that the station and possibly any and all other locations compromised are set to high alert and added security arrives. At that point actually going in quietly will be next to impossible. Best option now would be an all-out assault, gunning your way in.
Let's assume however that the location is known and you do in fact manage to keep this fact from your opponents. You sneak a team in. Let's further assume that you do manage to get this team past all the SDII operatives guarding the station, and that none raises questions as to why that suitcase of yours is shielded from scanning. And that none inspects it by hand. And that none raises questions to why you bring 250 marines to a station with 50-70 SDII operatives at max, and why they are actually cleared in.
The moment fighting begun all cover would be blown. Whatever HQ section the station have would likely instantly close and lock any and all blast-doors securing the station, notify their space-born security and call in back-up. You will have to fight the defenders and any and all possible automated defenses, and make holes in walls and doors to move around and get out. This requires even more heavy gear that you also somehow got past customs. Or you will have to have some reason why the SDII should trust someone among 250 new FDU soldiers into their HQ section where they can off the operators and assume control of the station's security. Also you have to have a reason for why these 250 people disperse to all sections of said station, I don't think
“adding security” will do much good – they were after all quite secure already. Finally, assuming you do manage to make it to Myxx's folks, dump the now armed nuke and start to work your way back, every guy you bring is one more possible casualty. Getting 250 people in and even more out with no losses is still extremely unlikely. And then, you will have to get past the ships outside.
Two reasons say they will be ready for you – the station is either attacked and notify them of this, or the station goes silent and don't respond to hails. Something is wrong, and that new ship that recently arrived fall under suspicion. For this reason too an assault is the most likely option – after all you will likely have to fight your way clear of the station with your cargo secure anyway.
So, let's imagine:
The Angel Cartel want to infiltrate the SDII's station holding Myxx's family. It's an SDII station, it's supposed to be secret thus safe, and it's location is a very secure secret. Firstly to get this intel is hard enough, upon doing so however the likelihood that the SDII will NOT realize there has been a breach of security is extremely unlikely. More likely is that the station and possibly any and all other locations compromised are set to high alert and added security arrives. At this point an assault on one location is practically the only logical option.
Now, Seri said (according to you, Niki) that you should
“march thousands of troops through it and kill off tens of thousands of civilians” - I do not agree to the numbers (though this might be your angry exaggeration speaking) but this scenario is not very unlikely. No matter how awesome the Cartel's soldiers are the SDII prefer quality over quantity and it is their home-turf, their facility and their security with only they know how many secure doors, automated sentry-points, security Androids popping out of walls with automatic weapons, their hangers possibly filled with mechanized hardware loaded with anti-infantry weaponry and so on – fighting them will not be easy no matter how you look at it and to assault this you have to be prepared, and casualties are a given. The only question is how many.
On the topic of civilians, there being any of them in the station depends on how the SDII operate. We know for a fact (from epic mission arcs or COSMOS missions, I recall not witch) that the RSS keep the families of their operative in safe locations in their own dead-space locations, because the last thing anyone dealing with organized criminals like the Angels want, is to have a call from some guy with a gun to his daughter's head. Ergo the SDII likely operative on very similar terms regarding their family. We do not know yet (atl I don't) where the SDII keep their families or if they share location with any holding/interrogation facilities. If they do, or some do, it's not to far-fetched that the SDII have some civilian populations in their stations. These are the people that Myxx and you have sworn to mass-murder, along with the rest of the Federation's people.
Killing civilians is something you have said you'd do and something the Angel Cartel do on a daily basis (And likely something the SDII do whenever they 'need' to, as well), so if you don't like the idea of your men gunning down women and children then sorry, you picked the wrong faction to join.
So, let's say there are civilians on the station. If so that's another reason the SDII would fiercely oppose any infiltration or invasion – their families are quite literally on the line, another reason your infiltration would likely fail if you tried it. Another reason, I bet, why Seri said it might be the best option – it sure is a considerably more realistic one.
Moving on... you need to assault this place, right? It's very hard, but nothing is impossible. Let's try this:
Your new masters in Curse agree that Myxx's family must be extracted – a capsuleer is a very nice asset and to have her impeded from doing anything because her family is held by the Federals is not good. They grant you a large strike force and a good number of ships to deal with this – we all know the Angels have no lack of ship-based hardware. None at all.
You acquire the intel on where the exact station holding Myxx's folks are, and move in to deal with it as soon as you can. If you don't, the SDII will likely find out that you know and have time to act on the intel: locking down the station and possibly calling in the Federal navy or atl a huge division of their own forces to defend it, making any assault extremely hard and costly, far more so than striking instantly. Of course, if you wait they might evacuate the civilians, if any – along with Myxx's family.
So the assault is underway. Let's say you use secret gates in Serpentis-secured dead-space pockets to navigate this force from outside the Federation's space and to the system in question – from there you instantly and without warning land them all on the security perimeter and assault the Black Eagle's dark-colored ships patrolling. You force your way to the station before reinforcements arrive (or possibly while they do) and assault the station directly, possibly while still fighting in space so that you waste no time. You manage to breach the outer defenses and land several ships filled with soldiers and hardware, these assault the defenders and the station's automated security and clear the landing area.
Now the ugly melée starts; blowing open and invading through any sealed doors and possibly vented-to-space hallways, gunning down any defenders holding the lines and defending the access points, popping any tanks or mechanized units in your way. After slowly gunning your way to the apartment areas, any civilians not in shelters are caught in the cross-fire along with any other troops holding the area. After moving your way in to the location of Myxx's family you might find them where they are supposed to be, perhaps moved further away, possibly to evacuate them. If this happen you have to fight your way to them or conquer the main security hub and assume control over, then disabling, the stations security.
Perhaps at this point you manage to cancel all locked doors and such, to more easily overwhelm any security left and open any shelters any civilians are hiding in. At that point said civilian's are likely shoot, or if you have time dragged off as slaves – they are after all the families of your enemies and might make very fine servants, or fetch good money either as hostages in turn (ooh, the lovely irony) to be ransomed back, or slaves to be auctioned off.
Maybe you will find Myxx's family in the station then, or perhaps they had time to be shipped off in an SDII transport, possibly along with more civilians – in this case you will have to stop all transports trying to leave. Those taken who did not have your family (if any) might make good slaves too.
With your family in hand, the defenders dead and dying, the families the same or in your custody, you may deploy your nuke to blow up the station after you leave. The Angel's retreat with their cargo and the remaining soldiers and ships not blown up yet, and make it back to Curse through the Serpentis' gate network.
Congratulations, your job is done.
-----
this is what you did not do. This is one of the things you might have done. Simply ignored the option of trying to do anything might well have been viable, waiting for the SDII to release Myxx's folks on their own. If after quite some time (say, 3 weeks, a month?) they still had not, you would in a manner have been justified in attacking, even. After all, Seri would have lied and the SDII would have kept your family. By the time you struck others might have shared in, for instance; what if there were other capsuleers on this station? A member of the EL-G helping to organize the defense, for instance? Working out a scenario with them over some time could have been loads of fun for all of you. If you had gone with the option of attacking and say, taken slaves of their families, another reason to escalate the situation would have presented itself. The fun would have gone on.
Basically Niki, I'm angry with you for not only denying anyone else who might have wanted in on this golden chance the enjoyment, but also for god-moding it into absurdity - something that has hurt your reputation, IMHO – and for going for the cheap-shot of simply claiming that “Seri and his ilk are evil and suck, we are good and rule” in very simple terms.
If you get a chance to co-opt a RP story with anyone else again, I hope this does not repeat.
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Topic: SDII and godmodding. (Read 11963 times)