HAT WEARING AUNTIE

Did you really think that without the Terrans we couldn't fight this war?

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LANAKTALLAN FREE GRAZING FIELD OF GREAT VALUE AND FREE PRIZES

Well, to be honest, I had assumed that the Confederacy would still fight, but the effectiveness remained much higher than my analytics had suggested.

I will admit, I did not know what the Treana'ad would bring to the fight.

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RIGELLIAN SAURIAN COMPACT

Yeah, it's a little startling when they do that.

How long has it been since you had a mass warrior hatching like this, Tee?

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TREANA'AD HIVE WORLDS

Oh, about four thousand years.

The B'Klatnikkith Invasion. They hit us first and we needed the troops to defend.

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HAT WEARING AUNTIE

Wow, it's been that long.

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RIGELLIAN SAURIAN COMPACT

Usually, by the time us gestalts realize just how bad things are, the war is over and the Terrans are dancing around the bonfire wearing the skins of their foes and singing victory chants.

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HAT WEARING AUNTIE

Yeah, that's about right.

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LANAKTALLAN FREE GRAZING NETWORK NOW WITH LESS PORN SPAM

How many warriors did you hatch up?

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TREANA'AD HIVE WORLDS

The exact amount's a military secret, but suffice to say, we estimated your military ground forces, tripled it, then added 30% on top of it, went to rapid production of nanoforges to make sure they could be armed.

Let's put it this way: billions.

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LANAKTALLAN FREE HERD

The nanoforge and creation engine is possibly the biggest change to warfare out of everything introduced. I'd argue it even surpasses the Elven Court system or even the C+ cannon.

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RIGELLIAN SAURIAN COMPACT

Well, yeah.

Number one, it completely eliminates supply lines.

It also prevents economic shock from massive rearmament or upgrading.

It lowers turnaround time for service life extension programs or equipment replacement to days or weeks.

No factories to retool. No convoys to interdict or prey upon.

Just... BLAM! Instant factory. Strap two of them to a heavy gun and you have endless ammunition as long as there's atmosphere or dirt.

Upgrade, modify, even swap out ammunition, propellant, everything.

All with no factories.

With the shielding in the nanoforge's 'egg' housing, it even resists nanite-exclusion fields.

Now, strap all that and modern advances to body armor and weaponry to what we consider the best trained troops in the known galaxy, and you've got one hell of a force.

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TELKAN FORGE WORLDS

There is something my scientists have been wondering.

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TREANA'AD HIVE WORLDS

SCIENCE!

Go ahead, young student.

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TELKAN FORGE WORLD

Well, everyone always touts the highlights of laser, particle, and other energy weapons.

Why does the Confederate military largely stick with kinetic weaponry?

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GREAT HERD GREAT GESTALT CHAT OF GREAT DISCUSSIONS OF GREAT TOPICS

We prefer energy weapons.

Less ammunition logistic issue...

oh.

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HAT WEARING AUNTIE

Well, it's a little more complex than just simple logistics.

How many types of rounds are there for the 20mm single barrel assault cannon that's standard issue for power armor heavy infantry?

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AKLTAK SOARING WORLDS

Uh...

Two. A bullet and one of those bullets that leave a streak through the air.

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TREANA'AD HIVE WORLDS

Try one hundred sixty-seven.

From standard copper jacketed lead 'ball' rounds all the way to ones that have like twenty letters and all kinds of words designed to do even more horrible things than normal to the target.

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HAT WEARING AUNTIE

Laser, particle beam, ion, plasma, all of them, even the largely misnomered 'force packet' weapons all have one type of payload. Sure, you can add things like a slight variance in the wavelength or color, maybe even charge it with phasic powers, but for the most part, a laser beam is a laser beam with the only difference being power and color.

Even then, power packs are high tech intensive, have to be recharged and charged, and are subject to things like high-gee shocks, thermal overload, cryogenic shock.

For the most part, at its core, a bullet is a bullet.

BUT, you can do everything from having a nanite-tracking/trace in it to having it explode in a shower of nasty stuff that catches everyone on fire.

Ring penetrators, gyrojet rounds, phasic munitions, anti-matter core, tungsten cores, warsteel jacketed, all kinds of stuff.

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TREANA'AD HIVE WORLDS

What sis is badly trying to explain is the fact that kinetic rounds are mission variable munitions in a way that energy weapons are not.

Additionally, they don't suffer atmospheric attenuation.

If you have a laser weapon in the fog it loses power and suffers micro-refraction from the water droplets even as it vaporizes them.

With a kinetic weapon whoever you just shot couldn't see you. That's about the only effect.

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LANAKTALLAN MATRON GOSSIP CHANNEL AND I GUESS YOU GUYS CAN USE IT TOO

Most species give up kinetic weapons for energy weapons.

Mass, velocity, recoil, all of those are part of the equation.

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TREANA'AD HIVE WORLDS

It's called a recoil compensation system.

Early ones were just springs to take the recoil of the bolt carrier or cannon chamber housing.

Things have moved forward since then.

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LANAKTALLAN FREE GRAZING

Why a non-magnetic barrel inside? You have magnetic accelleration rails as well as coilgun coils on the end. I don't understand why all three.

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TREANA'AD HIVE WORLDS

Man, you're full of questions today.

OK, the coils are at the end of the barrel to provide things like additional spin, slight separation of multi-projectile shells, stuff like that.

The rails are called, officially, hypervelocity rail systems.

The chamber and barrel still use chemical propellant. Even if the gun is out of power, you can still shoot someone in the face.

Trigger pull. Hammer hits the primer. Primer ignites the propellant. Propellant expands. Round is pushed out the barrel at multiple times the speed of sound.

Even if the gun's out of power, that's gonna hurt.

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RIGELLIAN SAURIAN COMPACT

Or, failing everything else, you can just beat the enemy to death with the weapon.

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HAT WEARING AUNTIE

True.

As more than a few warriors and speakers found out on Anthill.

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LANAKTALLAN FREE DISCUSSION CHANNEL BUY WAR BONDS TODAY

You all used energy weapons, didn't you?

Till the Terrans showed up and beat your troops to death with their weapons.

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HAT WEARING AUNTIE

Well... yeah.

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PUBVIAN DOMINION

It's just not nice to mention that part.

"Oh, look, how primitive and quaint! They still use projectile weapons.

"Wait... what's that noise?

"OH GOD IT HURTS!"

"I CAN'T EVEN HEAR THE SHOT!"

We all went through that.

You know why Terrans loved kinetic weaponry so much, don't you?

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LANAKTALLAN FREE HERD

No. Why?

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PUBVIAN DOMINION

Because, way back when in their history, all of the creatures were getting thicker hides, running faster, thicker pelts, bigger fangs, all of the creatures were getting faster and tougher.

The rest of us, we evolved to compete.

Guess what the Terrans did.

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AKLTAK SOARING WORLDS

Outran them.

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TNVARU GRIPPING HANDS

Went to ambush tactics.

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PUBVIAN DOMINION

Nope.

They lifted up a rock, said "Fuck you and your evolutionary arms race, this is my planet now" and hucked it at the nearest deer.

Twenty thousand years later and the planet was theirs.

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HAT WEARING AUNTIE

I love that story.

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AKLTAK SOARING WORLDS

Speaking of "this is mine now", how's the war going?

Did it start?

---NOTHING FOLLOWS---

CONFED.MIL HAS LOGGED ON

CONFED.MIL HAS LOGGED OUT

TREANA'AD HIVE WORLDS

Oh my god! Yes!

It started hours ago!

Pay att

mommy?

mommy? I can't find you, mommy...

RIGELLIAN SAURIAN COMPACT

nobody move

mommy?

mommy, the bug people are in my room and I'm scared

mommy

RIGEL>servkick tammi.rathlass.suds

has disconnected

Damn, there's another leak, I'll be right back.

I think CONFED is doing it somehow.

Wish Cyb was here, he knows about all of this.

---NOTHING FOLLOWS---

HAT WEARING AUNTIE

It hurts so bad seeing those

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TREANA'AD HIVE WORLDS

There's nothing you can do to help them.

And nothing you can do to change the past.

Just know, you were one of Terran Descent Humanity's greatest friends.

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TELKAN FORGE WORLDS

They're just memories.

If I can forgive Lanky, everyone can forgive you.

---NOTHING FOLLOWS---

LANAKTALLAN SUNNY GRAZING SPACE NOW WITH KITTENS AND PUPPIES

I hope I can prove worthy of your forgiveness.

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AKLTAK SOARING WORLDS

We do too.

Anyway, how's the war going?

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TREANA'AD HIVE WORLDS

It's too early to tell.

We definitely took them by surprise.

Both that we dared do it while they're still trying to consolidate their gains during the Spoked Offensive, and that we're hitting as many planets as we are.

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PUBVIAN DOMINION

Yeah, well, I doubt they've ever faced anyone before with the military strength and force projection power to attack nearly fifteen thousand stellar systems with overwhelming force.

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TREANA'AD HIVE WORLDS

Go big or go home.

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TELKAN FORGE WORLDS

Well, Operation Iron Piglet sure as the Detainee's Massive Melons is "Go big!"

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HAT WEARING AUNTIE

I'd be careful saying stuff like that.

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TELKAN FORGE WORLDS

Like what?

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HAT WEARING AUNTIE

Making references to her.

Remember, she's actually real.

Do you really want her showing up and yelling at you?

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TELKAN FORGE WORLDS

Uh, I'll pass.

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RIGELLIAN SAURIAN COMPACT

Good choice.

---NOTHING FOLLOWS---