The Agrippa fleet was unnaturally fun to paint FoaS
It also broke me of my irnrational fear of solid coloured non-grey fleets in Star Wars.
Forces of the Ceknell Subsector
Once I did the first cal cruiser in that bone colour I figured that looks pretty good, lets do more. Its liberating to have options. My Imperial forces have to be grey though, I can't seem to get around that lol. When I get to my Corporate Sector Authority Fleet then I will break free.
Edited by Wes JansonSomething like a corporate sector fleet could be a great method for really getting some interesting colours. Guilds, merchants, militia groups, all those kinds of thing tend to have a nice amount of style and flair to them.
Imperials.... squadron markings or tints, that's about it
Vykes, your ISD, did you airbrush or hand paint them?
The ISD's are a bit of both, mostly hand painted but I applied a tint with an airbrush, then went over it again. Well, I guess it couldn't hurt to sorta show it. I'm using semi-gloss paints on this one, so to ease some eyestrain, I put up a replica false colour image showing the areas that I paint in sequence.
The Vykes Hull Method (It's not really that special)
....
Step 0:
-Just make sure to lay down your basecoat over a primer. I used an airbrush and it just so happens that my base colour is also a dual primer.
Step 1:
-This one's very simple, wash the ship is black, or a very dark blue/brown depending on the tone that you want. This one was a straight wash of GW Nuln Oil. settling doesn't matter too much on the plates, it's mostly the recesses that we're worried about.
Step 2:
-Reapply the base colour, or you can go one shade brighter (as I did here) just to further exaggerate the difference between the shadows and the main structure that we'll deal with. It's almost like a form of blacklining.
-you can apply the colour fairly heavily in neat, even coats over every raised part of the model. I prefer it to drybrushing just because of the control, but a drybrush can yield good results as well.
Step 3:
-Here we go about with our first real highlight. It will be pretty heavy, and in general my 'rule of thumb' for adding highlights, is that it should take up half the area of the colour laid down before it. Try to imagine where the light would fall at the front of the plates. (It's looking washed out in the picture, I'll see if I can adjust it any)
-here is where you have a fairly important step for distinction, you can add a lot of little 'lines' to make streaky uneven panels, or use broad 'bending' strokes to connect the plates opposing corners. If you have a square plate, you can use a 'paif of 'J' shapes to make a U' like stroke following the side and slowly curving until it meets the corner diagonal to it. So it's not a straight line, but curved.
Step 4:
-this step further accentuates step 3, adding the same contrast at about 1/2 the line's width. This just slowly brings up the highlight. To a clean enough finish. By now the plates should look nice and shiny, and the colour will approach white (or a very soft blue/bone, depending on palette).
-- It's also at this stage where you can 'countershade, using a touch of wash or ink to paint the 'back' of the plate or even around the smallest little raised plates. It shows better in step 5.
Step 5:
-It seems I used a seperate ship for this picture so pardon the slight variation, but it does bring up another point for this time. The top highlight and an example of countershading.
-The top highlight for this one was white. It will be your absolute lightest colour, and it should be applied conservatively along the edges of the largest separations (different 'decks' as it were), that will bring the ship into focus. The zenith points will be along the ship's dorsal ridge, and along the leading edges of the distinct levels, front and back. Not on every plate.
-The ship should look exceptionally clean by this point, like polished metal. (I can scrounge up some pictures of some Star Destroyers if you'd like me too, I do have one or two at this stage in my records).
Step 6:
-This is something of a make or break. It's where you can apply an extra tint or shade after you've let everything properly dry (I recommend sealing the ship with something like testor's dullcoat, or some other varnish at this point.
-Apply the wash/ink/tint in patches that you find appealing. Mine was done via airbrush and used a teal and a purple tinted black to get smooth variations in colour.
Step 7:
-There is no pictures, but it is, quite literally, repeating steps 4 and 5, to return the ship's zenith highlights and it's upper most layer to tie the ship's colours in and subdue the effect of the tint. Usually the tint or wash reacts well to the full painted highlights rather than just looking like another coat of paint.
Step 8:
-This ship after step 7 and with full detailing.
You think the light cruiser would make a good raider stand in?
I've been using it as a GSD II and looking into the ILC rules, buuut honestly yeah, I think it's probably closer to a Raider II than anything else that we've got so far. It's a fantastic model.
Edited by VykesThe ISD's are a bit of both, mostly hand painted but I applied a tint with an airbrush, then went over it again. Well, I guess it couldn't hurt to sorta show it. I'm using semi-gloss paints on this one, so to ease some eyestrain, I put up a replica false colour image showing the areas that I paint in sequence.
The Vykes Hull Method (It's not really that special)
....
Step 0:
-Just make sure to lay down your basecoat over a primer. I used an airbrush and it just so happens that my base colour is also a dual primer.
Step 1:
-This one's very simple, wash the ship is black, or a very dark blue/brown depending on the tone that you want. This one was a straight wash of GW Nuln Oil. settling doesn't matter too much on the plates, it's mostly the recesses that we're worried about.
Step 2:
-Reapply the base colour, or you can go one shade brighter (as I did here) just to further exaggerate the difference between the shadows and the main structure that we'll deal with. It's almost like a form of blacklining.
-you can apply the colour fairly heavily in neat, even coats over every raised part of the model. I prefer it to drybrushing just because of the control, but a drybrush can yield good results as well.
Step 3:
-Here we go about with our first real highlight. It will be pretty heavy, and in general my 'rule of thumb' for adding highlights, is that it should take up half the area of the colour laid down before it. Try to imagine where the light would fall at the front of the plates. (It's looking washed out in the picture, I'll see if I can adjust it any)
-here is where you have a fairly important step for distinction, you can add a lot of little 'lines' to make streaky uneven panels, or use broad 'bending' strokes to connect the plates opposing corners. If you have a square plate, you can use a 'paif of 'J' shapes to make a U' like stroke following the side and slowly curving until it meets the corner diagonal to it. So it's not a straight line, but curved.
Step 4:
-this step further accentuates step 3, adding the same contrast at about 1/2 the line's width. This just slowly brings up the highlight. To a clean enough finish. By now the plates should look nice and shiny, and the colour will approach white (or a very soft blue/bone, depending on palette).
-- It's also at this stage where you can 'countershade, using a touch of wash or ink to paint the 'back' of the plate or even around the smallest little raised plates. It shows better in step 5.
Step 5:
-It seems I used a seperate ship for this picture so pardon the slight variation, but it does bring up another point for this time. The top highlight and an example of countershading.
-The top highlight for this one was white. It will be your absolute lightest colour, and it should be applied conservatively along the edges of the largest separations (different 'decks' as it were), that will bring the ship into focus. The zenith points will be along the ship's dorsal ridge, and along the leading edges of the distinct levels, front and back. Not on every plate.
-The ship should look exceptionally clean by this point, like polished metal. (I can scrounge up some pictures of some Star Destroyers if you'd like me too, I do have one or two at this stage in my records).
Step 6:
-This is something of a make or break. It's where you can apply an extra tint or shade after you've let everything properly dry (I recommend sealing the ship with something like testor's dullcoat, or some other varnish at this point.
-Apply the wash/ink/tint in patches that you find appealing. Mine was done via airbrush and used a teal and a purple tinted black to get smooth variations in colour.
Step 7:
-There is no pictures, but it is, quite literally, repeating steps 4 and 5, to return the ship's zenith highlights and it's upper most layer to tie the ship's colours in and subdue the effect of the tint. Usually the tint or wash reacts well to the full painted highlights rather than just looking like another coat of paint.
Step 8:
-This ship after step 7 and with full detailing.
A 1,000 times thank you for this post. I love how you broke it down step by step and the picture to the right that really shows what you did each step is simply brilliant. Thank you for sharing as this greatly helps us amateurs out here learning how to paint. My next ISD will have more panel contrast so I will definitely use this method....so...many...plates...
.
Touch late but I got in not too long ago. Anyhow, I did say I'd have a few things and here you go:
Break Free
Captain Ceito's fighter savagely bucked, the flight yolk barely responding as the nimble craft was thrown into a sickening spin. Turbolaser fire glanced across the flight surfaces, the inertial dampeners already stressed to the limit before the ion cannon shots skimmed just wide of the solar panel's surface. The blistering blue lance screamed past, narrowly flaring across the bow of the CR-92 a kilometre behind the depleted fighter screen.
“ Gallowglass ?! Is anyone still there?”
The corvette rocked hard, another small electrical fire sparking from its engine block, wisps of smoke and atmosphere escaping from cracks in its alabaster armour. The ghostly blue traces of its deflector shields did little more than entertain the enemy gunners as they picked up the ion resonance and briefly flickered to life before dying. The corvette's tibanna pumps were starting to fail, its batteries pocked and sparking from hits.
The vessel had come off poorly from a knife-fight engagement against a Raider. To its credit, between itself and the Dragon , that same Raider which had inflicted the damage now drifted as a ruined husk near the edge of the asteroid field.
“Knight six, Gallow 's comms are down. Relay must have blown.” A gravely voice of one of the captain's wingmen chimed in.
The Tie flight still skirted the capital class, providing close-in protection; Hackett's trap-fleet drew ever closer, throwing every shot it could at Reylk's tiny group. The Gallowglass had come out the worse for wear compared to one of the Raider's that had slipped right next to it. Hackett's lead ship Banshee veered hard to port, loosing a full spread of torpedoes which corkscrewed across the void, a dark shadow swept across the Gallowglass.
The massive bulk of the ISD Dragon slipped in the way, scarlet ribbons of flame sweeping across cracked and buckled plates, soaking up the fire meant for the smaller stricken ship. The Dragon was rocked, wreathed in baleful fire and wounded by the onslaught. Its lights flickered, but held.
The massive beast's turbolasers adjusted, then breathed a barrage of heavy bolts at Hackett's fleet. It struck the Gladiator in the bow. The shields flickered on the first shot, the second passed straight through and impacted against its dorsal spine which promptly burst into flames.
“ Banshee is hit! You seeing this!?” crackled over the holo-link.
Captain Ceito smiled as the Tie pulled in close to the Dragon , skimming past the buckled armour plates and venting oxygen clouds. “I see it, I see it. It's still too far out for us to get too. Stay with the Dragon . If any more snubfighters show up, we'll have to get them before they bring her down.”
“Sir, yes sir.” one voice after another echoed back.
The enemy fighter screens had been a hassle, but the bombers, the advanced, each one he'd clashed with had disappeared in flames. Although there was scarcely half a dozen pilots left now. Ceito inhaled deeply, listening to his heartbeat slow. It was a duel between the behemoths, not his fighter pilots. Again, if the Dragon were taken out, they might very well be stranded there.
The Dragon and the Gallowglass slipped right past the Gladiator which altered its heading after a last parting shot. They slammed into the Dragon , sheering off pieces of its heavy armour as if descaling a fish. All that was left was the last Raider. But the Gallowglass was barely holding together, and the Dragon itself seemed to be functioning on strength of will alone.
“Raider-two, Ion cannons!” One of Ceito's pilots shouted into the com-channel, making it crackle painfully on his headset. But sure enough, he was right. The tiny Raider altered its course and slipped closer, the Dragon 's guns still focused on the distant Gladiator.
“We're getting awful close to that thing Cap'n-”
“I know!” Ceito's composure cracked as he stared at the corvette. They were the bane of fighter craft across the outer rim and beyond. But as the turrets twisted to track the Dragon , the man took an unsteady breath.
Colonel Alhonza's words rang in his ears, a moment long ago when he stood on the parade grounds as a newly inducted pilot. 'I expect only one thing from you: the courage to do what's right no matter the cost. If you are to be knights, you must be dedicated : dedication to each other, to the honour of the squadron, and to every person on every world that relies upon you for protection. You are Knights, not because of the name on your flight patch, or by the call-signs, but by the actions you take when the accountability rests on your shoulders alone. You are knights, and so long as you hold to these things, no one can take that away from you.'
The captain tapped his all-ship communication channel. “I'm going to see to it that the Dragon gets away no matter what. This isn't an order.”
His hand stayed on the throttle for a moment. It was an insane, inane, and likely fruitless venture if that Raider ignored them. But he had to try something. Another voice rasped across the com net, “Copy that, locking in the Raider.”
“Throttle up and close in on point-o'six, make their gunners pick a target!”
“Let 'em see what the Knights can do!”
Ceito clenched his fist around the metal thrust lever. “Hear that, Dragon ? Get yourself and Gallowglass out of here. We'll cover you as long as we can. Might even take that nosey little corvette with us.”
The Tie fighters banked hard and pulled away from the Dragon and climbed, finding the highest attack angle. Hackett's Raider placed a few shots on the Dragon , but it seemed to have hesitated as the fighters closed to attack range. Ceito's target reticule still showed black as the rangefinder's readings decreased with astonishing speed.
“Close to one-three and open up!”
The black circle lit up bright green, and Ceito's thumb mashed hard on the flight yoke. Lances of green laser fire raced towards the Raider and impacted against its shields which flared bright blue arcs. The rest of his group's joined in, bombarding the shields in emerald spears. It crackled, and under the onslaught, burst with a rasp of sparks.
Whatever it did, it caught the Raider's attention. Fire at the Dragon slackened as the murderous turrets were turned on the Ties.
“Press the attack!” Ceito howled as the last staccato burst walked across the Raider's hull leaving black pock marks.
The response was immediate: a maelstrom of fire swirled around the fighters as interlocking rapid-fire cannons tracked the screaming fighters. In seconds the first Tie flared into a gristly orange ball of fire and tumbled into the raider amidship, disintegrating in a flurry of sparks and mangled steel. A second was spitted by a heavy laser cannon and exploded. Shrapnel tore off a corner of Ceito's own fighter as he brought his fighter down on an angle below the bow, barely outrunning one of the primary turrets.
Ruby-red fire spat past him, and even a quick count said that he'd lost three fighters already. The quick turn would have certainly been enough to throw most ship's targeters, but it was a vain hope. Another of his wingmen's wings were clipped, sending it into a terminal spin only to be ripped to pieces by another chattering turret.
Bringing his Tie up and around, he flipped his cannon recharge off, letting it drain. The twin ion engines shook as every ounce of power was put into them and the power levels started to fall. The external amps picked up the sound of another explosion behind him as the Raider's guns chattered to life in incandescent streams of fire.
Just a bit more.
Ceito struggled against the high speed spin as he brought his Tie back around on the bow, watching as even the Raider's weapons struggled to keep up as it spat death mere feet from him.
“Thank you, Knights. This is fleet-Captain Reylk, Dragon is away.” The corvette and tthe Imperial-class hung in the void a moment longer, then with a blink, disappeared into hyperspace.
Ceito looked back over his shoulder as he put all his weight against the yoke, lining up the Raider's bow again and watching as the cannon levels completely drained.
He narrowed his eyes and smirked, bringing the Tie right across the Raider's scaly hull, skimming the wing struts over the ship's thin metal hide, eating up the hundred and twenty five meters distance as wrestled the speeding fighter in line with the Raider's bridge.
'Wasn't like that was going to do much anyway... still, this way I'll get to see the look on their faces.'
Post Scriptum: Glad to hear that it's of use BMcDonald, mate. I know that it's not exactly an 'easy' thing to do, it takes a ton of time -stares at just the VSD he's working on- a lot of time, but I always feel the results are pretty good. Painting is worth it, it's worth the effort to actually do it and the time it takes to learn. So I'm always happy to help!
...
In other news.
It's not much to look at now, but I worked up a VSD-I conversion based on the twin-engine design from TIE fighter. Still needs to be painted. But now 'Speed 2 and one yaw' makes a lot of sense. It's also what happens when I finish up all my commissions, gifts, and the like and still want to gnaw on Star Wars stuff.
Second of all, a few last shots of the custom miniatures and some of the V in the R&V sets.
A brighter, faster, more insect-like aggressor. Well, I rather like it.
Gozanti. Yep, guess I need another one in the group for the new flotillas, but they are going to make wonderful alternates to differnetiate types.
I call him Mister Bumbles. Unless he's working as Bossk, then he's 'The Dreaded Mister Bumbles'. Either way, it was fun, and mine looks kinda blase, like some sort of cattle car. You know, Bossk sponsored by John Deer.
Admittedly, that might be because the YV-666 reminds me uncannily of a freight car.
Then thre's these things... ugh, Jumpmasters, I'll admit it right now, next to the Suncrusher, it might be one of my least favourite designs in the Star Wars universe.
And thus I have 2, think I put them up elsewhere. I'm fine with them like that, it's the crescent moon that gets me. It's so on the nose.
Ah, what lovely chunky Landers: why aren't these things in X-wing right now? I'd get one pretty blasted quick.
And then the ones that are in X-wing (okay, so the dorsel wings are incredibly thin and fragile, but if you only have to get one Imperial custom model, really it should be the shuttles. They are just so incredibly nice and fun to work with. Lovely flat panelling and abundant chances to work in some uniqueness if you want. All I did was toy with a few different colours for gems, escorts, and then the 'white'.
Oh, and while I did put up the Reylk-Azora Schism aftermath thing in its proper spot (3 pages back if memory serves), I'll add in another version here for a little while. You know, to be sure.
Break Free:
Edited by Vykes
Oh, and while I did put up the Reylk-Azora Schism aftermath thing in its proper spot (3 pages back if memory serves), I'll add in another version here for a little while. You know, to be sure.
YAY!!!
Awesome stuff as usual Vykes! Glad to see that little update since I missed it too! I just wish there were more ships out there to paint haha - got to wait for future waves!
Once I did the first cal cruiser in that bone colour I figured that looks pretty good, lets do more. Its liberating to have options. My Imperial forces have to be grey though, I can't seem to get around that lol. When I get to my Corporate Sector Authority Fleet then I will break free.
I feel the same. I know all the "old canon" is out, but for years I've read that the Empire had very strict regulations on uniformity. They stamped out individualism at every level. All ships were painted identically, with no identifying markers allowed. Pilots were even re-assigned TIE's to keep them from becoming "overly familiar/comfortable" with one in particular. Not even photos were allowed inside the cockpits.
With the arrival of Clone Wars, we see a lot of the nose art and unit patches that permeate actual historical military. I love they added it, but I also love the cold contrast that creates if one keeps the sterility of the Empire.
I believe (again, old canon) the largest Star Destroyer the Corporate Sector was allowed was a slightly under-gunned Victory class, but that only leave one ship out of the entire Imperial force you "can't" paint any shade you like. And that "can't" is less binding than prune juice.
I love these painting threads. Thank you all for sharing your creativity, knowledge, and passion for the game!
I guess the first time the Net-lords devoured that part of the story after all. But it's back now.
Aye ZenMasta, I do wish there was more out there right now. But we'll see if anything is revealed at Adepticon. Who knows, if everything goes to plan (and they don't releae information) I shall force them to release new ships!... by getting a few custom ones made up. Becaue the moment I buy them, they'll start to make them official. It's how the universe works.
Anyway, as a sliiiight repost of what's in the Group Paint thread, I've got that VSD-I conversion worked out. VSD, now in 'white background'!
VSD- Such'nsuch
Yeah, still haven't settled on a name. But I will admit, the aft gaps left by the tri-engines filled in rather well
Hey Vykes, how about the VSD Indictus? It's Latin for "unnamed."
Oh, and before I forgot, again ; very nice work!
How do you make your windows so tiny and still be bright? I use a toothpick for my windows and it works ok, but they always fade a bit so they are not very noticeable on the table.
I freaking love this thread.
For today's tidbit of an update, my least favourite 'common' Tie variant. Blink and they're gone...
Dark Phantom
Painter's note: You know, it isn't just some glare or something. I'm happy to finally be working with some blue ties too.
Mel did a great job on them, even if I have my reservations about the ship. Now I've gotta wait till at least tomorrow to make up my mind about the Interdictor and such, but there should be some stuff at my door soon enough.
You know Jme, I love it too
Windows are usually done by getting an area 'prepped' which darkens it and tints it a little bit compared to the surrounding hull (Using an ink, or drybrushing) then picking out the window individiaully with a small brush. I've been using vallejo's sky blue which is a high pigment paint and seems to keep its brightness. Then I wash it with a thinned blue, and redot the centre with the blue or white if it's a larger window.
Hmm, you know Arowmund, I'm usually against adding distinctly Latin names in Star Wars, mostly because I don't see it done as much as in some other mediums. I mean we don't have Domina.... I mean there is no Tyran.... Instigate... you know, the Imperials use a ton of 'sneaky' Latin, don't they?
Instigator, Devastator, Corruptor. If you want to go further there's latin roots in Relentless and proxy Latin (via old French) in Insidious, Demolisher, Avenger, and Impetuous . The only non-Latin title the Imperials have seems to be Warlord.
It's actually because I love Latin names
Indictus
eh? I think I could work with that: might get a group consensus to release me for other Latin names (BFG background, I do love Latin or pseudo-Latin names).
Years ago some friends were playing D&D and near the end of character creations Joe asked "What's your character name?" My friend replied without looking up "No name, Joe" because she hadn't thought of one yet. That character was "No-name Joe" forever more. When I read you were having trouble with a name, I thought "Why not no name?" Looked it up on a whim and thought "Hey, that doesn't sound half bad! Like what an Interdictor should be called just off how it sounds." lol
--edit--
Plus there's the inside irony knowing its name is "unnamed."
Edited by ArowmundI certainly agree. It feels more clever than No Name for a brand. His majesty's Illustrious vessel Indictus . I'm pretty good with that one.
Ah, D&D names -laughs- we had a player that carefully and deliberately wrote a name on his 3E character sheet, didn't say it more than once in passing. After about a month, and when the player was out of the room, the DM looks over at me and asks, "Hey, what's his name?" And so I look, "Gofaire." "Gopher. You're joking... oh God, you aren't." Never lived that down.
I may need to name my first Gozanti flotilla Gofaire squadron. -laughs- already got a name for an Interdictor at least..
Wow, been a while hasn't it? Sorry 'bout that, I've been doing a lot of X-wing stuff. Alright, first thing's first, a very WIP shot for a very big project... oye.
I still need to figure out exactly what scale I want the bridge to be, and I need to go in and clean up some surfaces but like my MC80a, a lot of the paneling will be drawn on. I figured that Mel and eventualy FFG could make the Executor better than I ever could, and I'm more of a fan of the Belator style anyway, so I went and started on my own.
I also realized I never put a shot of my new INT-Siren up here. Bad-bad me! Codex and some alternate shots coming soon!
INT-Siren
But the other good news is that I got another ISD, VSD, and MC30 in! Yay, lots of stuff in the coming weeks me thinks. And hopefully a report and some more story soon too.
Edited by VykesBack on track with the Ceknell story!
Bitter Fruit
The briefing room's pale lights shone through, vanquishing the gloom of the command and control centre in shafts of soft pastel blue. The faint green and blue lights of the Imperial Star Destroyer's consoles behind the podium. The room echoed in hushed whispers, each nervous trill acting upon the others to fill the reverberating chambers with discordant conversations. Even the faint click of leather on the ferrocrete floors did little to dissuade the seated assembly from their story telling.
"Good afternoon ladies and gentlemen." The Arkanian fleet captain hove into view. Reylk's paper white skin picked up a pallor of blue from the ready room's lights, but a smile lingered on his lips.
The hubbub faded into a few hurried breaths and little else. The pale officer smiled, looking over each face in the darkened chamber.
"There. Now, I'd like to take a moment to thank Captain Ceito and the pilots of the third Knights flight. Without them and their actions, neither myself nor any of the crew of the G
allowglass
would have made it out alive. More over, few of us would have proof that now-Admiral Hackett would go so far as to lay an ambush to capture and kill a representative of the fleet so brazenly and openly in order to retain sole control over all the forces in this little slice of paradise. For their memory, for their honour, and in memory of their deeds, may we have a moment of silence." Reylk paused a moment, then bowed. There was a long pause, not a breath seemed to disturb the dead air.
Dozens of officers held still, not even a hint of a whisper dare disturb the peace.
When Reylk straightened himself up, he cleared his throat and pulled at the hem of his dress tunic. "Wh-" he stammered and petered out awkwardly. Taking a moment longer, the fleet captain began anew. "When the Admiral took control, he made it clear that there was no room in his new circle for any that would not completely devote themselves to him. I'm sorry to inform you chaps that none of us should expect any dinner invitations in the near future."
It got a slight nervous chortle from the score and a half of officers assembled. Reylk smiled back as if giving a toast at a victory banquet.
"While we loss a courageous comrade in Captain Ceito, I'm immensely proud and thoroughly relieved to have another officer of ours returned. Captain Arboe-" he paused and swept a hand out towards the ready room door.
The heavy blast doors slid open with a pneumatic hiss. A pair of figures silhouetted against the bright lights from the hallway outside the ISD
Drago
n's ready room. One was slighter, proper, dressed and poised as any imperial officer. The other was wiry, tall, almost swaying as they slipped inside. When she emerged into the lit island projected around the dais, it was already clear she had changed. Her hair was half shaved down, the other slightly longer and crossed over sharply. Tattoos of serpents and firebirds scrawled across her cheek and down her neck, the dress tunic popped open to show the white undershirt beneath it.
Arboe surmounted the shallow steps, joining Reylk while her beaming adjutant acting-captain Camlee bobbed along behind her like a Kath hound. The Arkanian officer extended his hand which Arboe accepted. "Welcome back to the land of the living."
Arboe smirked and nodded, shaking the fleet captain's hand as he stepped down from the dais and slipped into the shadow nearby near the acting-captain. A few silent words were exchanged, blotted out by an almost instantaneous thunder of applause for the freed officer.
"Thanks. Hey, glad to not be dead. Almost my first time saying that this month." She started, though the whirl of conversation kicked up by her arrival wasn't subdued for another few moments.
The ex-captain gripped the edges of the podium and looked back and forth across the sea of shrouded faces. "The fleet captain asked me to say a few things, you know, to everyone. But you're the officers, you're here to hear it first. Now, you're probably a bit surprised. I was supposed to be dead and gone by now. And I'm sure that's what Hackett wanted. And they tried, believe me, they tried.
I refused to abandon The Kolishna station and that competent scurrg-stuffer crashed his ship on the rocks. So, he took it out on me. But it turns out he didn't just send me to a secluded Imperial Security Bureau, he did it without the real Admiral's approval. In fact, I'm sure it was his pan to kill Kassik all along, to strand him and hope that our opponents would do his dirty work: though he's not above it either. Fleet Captain Reylk can attest to that. He's got his lapdogs around him all the time. He couldn't give a **** about any of us, anyone at all in fact. I'm living proof that everyone is an acceptable sacrifice. Yes you Alhonza, Camlee, Jahenna, everyone. It's not that he's just corrupt, but he's trying to take control of the whole sub-sector. It's the first step towards being a Moff."
Arboe let her words sink in. The woman held on to the podium, her nails practically digging into the sturdy frame while she glared back and forth, a scowl etched on her face and the veins in her neck bulging. "Make no mistake!" every word punctuated her the sound of her balled up fist striking the stand, "He will kill you to get what he wants! And he won't stop until he gets everything in this galaxy. There's only one thing worse than a traitor to the Emperor's subjects, and that's the political parasite that professes loyalty while siphoning off all the rewards for themselves and leaving others with the scraps. I for one will not settle for scraps anymore! I won't be kicked, I won't be beaten, I will not be locked away in a hole in the ground to rot while that scum sucking sector sycophant sits in his ivory tower gorging himself like a mynock. No, I say no!I'm better than that, and you better believe you are too!" she stabbed a finger at the assembly.
Reylk's clap broke the stunned silence from the tirade. Red faced and snarling, the captain was gently guided aside by the Arkanian. "Well said, captain. Well said. But this is for all of us. I'm not your leader, I'm merely a speaker. So, a word if you would." his crystal eyes scanned the crown, "Officers of our Imperial fleet, loyal protectors of Ceknell, warriors of highest esteem, I put this question to you: how should we answer our ne'er-do-well usurper-extraordinaire sitting in his throne in Jump Point Prime?"
"He wasn't good enough to lick Kassik's boots! Hell, he's not good enough to lick mine but I might have a mind to give him a chance!" a baritone voice called from the back of the room. That's all it took.
"Boot that arrogant bastard back to the Core!" a more assured soprano howled. She bit her lip after, but standing a head taller than most and keeping to her black flight suit, 'Paladin' was hard to miss.
"Tell him to sod off!"
"That Gamorian reject better choke on whatever he's hogging down. Better than what I'll shove down his throat."
Reylk grinned and held up a hand for a measure of silence. He was ignored for almost half a minute, much to the mirthless glee of Arboe. Camlee fidgeted with her tunic hem, that grin torn from her.
"I'm quite certain that our loyal crews and officers one and all will agree. We will continue to discharge the duties entrusted to us by the Emperor's Imperial edict, upholding law and order for the welfare of the citizens of this sector and this subsector. We will safeguard the loyal people's of Ceknell against all threats from within and without. We are his majesty's Imperial navy regardless of what the usurper says."
Reylk held up a hand to the thunderous applause of his subordinates.
"I declare here, in good faith and greater company, that I will never dance to the tune of a tyrant. I will make my intentions known to the Grand Moff and to sector command: effective immediately, we the loyal protectorate of Ceknell, disavow Admiral Hackett and will defend his majesty's subjects against any aggression. So help us, long live the Empire, long live its people!"
Behind the solid blast doors in the heart of the
Dragon
, the Azora schism bore fruit.
Amid the cadre of the select officers and officiates gathered, was a single unadorned navy corpsmen. He clapped along with the rest, the echoes of which filtered through the holonet link halfway across the subsector to a quiet stateroom overlooking a shimmering ice field.
Commodore Lylent poured another measure of sech wine and reclined in his chair. The pirate prince's feet rested on the edge of the immense desk, a lingering chortle never entirely fading as he heard the grainy echo of a renewed chant and unceasing applause. "How now does the loudest voice and brightest hope sway the undecided to swiftest treason?" Acting on news of Arboe from the drunken loutish mercenaries was the right move after all.
...
Alright, back on track to some degree. I've still got to get a few assets back for making more proper battle reports, but we are going to be going along with the next story arc soon enough. Been a while, sorry about that all. And I'll very likely go back and clean up the others to take the spoiler tags out. This is going to get more story-based while the new Shipyards thread gets all the extra stuff.
YAY FOR UPDATES!!!! I love the story you have been telling here. I can't wait to see what you add into the story when Wave III and IV come out.
Edited by Salted DiamondThe Tower's Shadow
T
he captains quarters of the
Indefatigable
was as quiet as a graveyard. A pale green pallor bathed the room in half-tones of green and black, all cast by flashing icons and long strings of numbers which flitted across a half dozen data slates.
At the center of it all was a single woman sitting cross-legged on the floor. Her dress uniform was peeled open, hair hanging in kinked tangles down to her shoulders, seemingly immobile except for the bloodshot eyes which scanned the streams of data. Troop movements, inventory reports, geological surveys, atmospheric extrapolations, Administrative resource quotients, all of them writhed like ribbons across those many screens.
Myra Sage looked back and forth, finally rubbing her eyes and catching a glimpse at her chronometer. 0927. It helped with determining how long she'd been cooped up with tactical reports, but it still wasn't enough to nail down exactly how long she'd spent in her quarters.
With a long and belabored sigh, the commodore leaned back on her hands and stared at the blackness of the ceiling where the pale glow couldn't quite reach. After massaging her tired eyes, the woman stayed still, drinking in the quiet.
A quiet beep prompted her attention back to a data slate cogitator.
"Data compiled," a grainy mechanical voice chimed unbidden, "Suitability rated at grade-A. Probability of success given current allotted task force resources, seventy percent."
"Convenient." she muttered and errantly flicked the offending data slate away. It skidded across the floor and came to a rest at the foot of her cot. With a repressed growl, her fingers scraped at the ferrocrete floor.
A sudden knock at the door made the woman start. Sage nimbly jumped to her feet amid the nest of resources she'd constructed for herself. "Yes?" her voice squeaked, a little more squirrly than she'd meant to.
The heavy blast door slid open with a pneumatic hiss. A willowy man poked his head inside, "Ma'am. You asked that I tell you when we arrive at Fort Respite."
Commodore Sage pulled her tunic hem down and quickly fastened its clasp on her shoulder, "Yes?"
"We've arrived at Fort Respite, ma'am."
"Umm... yes. Of course we have." She cleared her throat and straightened her uniform before reaching in the dark to instinctively grasp her peaked cap. Still, the man lingered at the door.
"Was there something else, Ensign Olvaner?" the commodore shot him a quick glance, gathering up the data slates and shutting them off one by one as the lights began to rise, illuminating the stuffy pseudo-library packed into the once luxurious living space.
"Yes ma'am. Per your instructions, Captain Mars hailed Port Eikron and Fort Respite. Clearance has not yet been given and no response has been forthcoming." Ensign Olvaner straightened up as the commodore set the final holocron on its levitating plinth.
"Is there signs of damage to any of the facilities? Perhaps their transmitters have been disabled. Pirates or what not, even the Alliance may have penetrated this far into the outer rim." The captain emerged from her quarters and entered the onyx hallway.
"We're still too far to ascertain that for certain. Commodore, if I may." he paused. Seeing no objection he continued, falling in a step behind his superior, "Our orders are top priority. The Admiralty was very clear: forces participating in Operation Citadel are to treat all opposition as hostile whether it is inherently dangerous or not."
"Give them five minutes to respond. This is the outer rim, you've seen how lax even our core worlds can be when there's little action. Perhaps they are just relaying our message to their superiors or verifying it with command. Is there any other signals over the holonet?"
"I can't say for certain ma'am. There's something peculiar about the whole situation. Nevertheless, Grand Admiral Lukanes was very clear-"
"Yes-yes," Commodore Sage flicked a wrist, summarily silencing the man. "Take all precautions. Any military display or act of resistance must be viewed as provocation. Inform Captain Mars he is to lead the attack, and Fleet-Captain Linslow will detach
Tower-Three
to Mars' formation. But any orders to proceed are to come from me alone. Understand, ensign?"
"Ma'am." he replied.
Commodore Myra Sage strode towards the bridge after the abrupt pause. Olanver hadn't interrupted. "I hope they don't resist."
...
Thanks Salted, mate! I'm looking forward to seeing Waves III and IV in here too!
Edited
by Vykes
Can you take a post a picture of for Interdictor with the VSD and ISD? I'm planning in getting one and a vindicator, but was hoping for a comparison shot.
Sure thing, Salty mate! here you go.
I personally advocate for a medium Immobilizer base (or have in the past) but I included a small size just 'for the record'.
In other news, I'll have the next part of the story up soon! Just looking through it right now.