Battlecruiser Penitence

From Discovery Wiki
Battlecruiser Penitence
Owner
Corsairs
Location
F/G-3, Dresden

CLASS: Tribunus

CREW: CLASSIFIED

ARMAMENT: CLASSIFIED

Completed at Rhodes Shipyard in 828 AS, the Battlecruiser Penitence was designed as a mobile raiding base, capable of supporting pirate squadrons across the Omegas and Sigmas. Despite this, it quickly took on a military role, due to its ability to rapidly exploit time-sensitive weaknesses in the Corsairs’ enemies. Initially the Penitence saw combat in Omega-5 as a mobile reserve, where it was used to carry out counter-attacks on repulsed Red Hessian and Coalition pushes. After several tours in this theater, the Battlecruiser received a final set of refits in 832 AS before being dispatched to Petra Base in Sigma-15 to take command of the fleet mustering there.

Tasked with crippling the Red Hessian back lines, the Penitence set a strategy of limiting Corsair pirate activity in Frankfurt and Sigma-15 to avoid contact with Rheinland authorities. The Rheinland Military was at that time preoccupied with their own invasion of Dresden. Using mapping from earlier Rheinland incursions in 815 and 822 AS, the Corsair fleet punched through Frankfurt and pushed directly into Dresden. This daring gambit almost immediately severed Hessian access to the remaining Diamonds of the Schwefelnebel, however it has also exposed their long supply lines to blistering attacks by the enraged Bundschuh.

While the Penitence has so far had limited success in disrupting the Hessians’ economy, it is no closer to eliminating Vogtland Base and its fortifications. This possibility is looking increasingly unlikely after the Dresden fleet was stripped of many of its squadrons to urgently bolster the Home Fleet as fighting in Omicron-Theta escalated. Now increasingly vulnerable in the face of heavy Hessian counter-attacks, the Battlecruiser has adopted a defensive posture. Its remaining forces limit themselves to attacks on soft targets, such as Hessian attempts to re-establish mining operations across the system.

Bribes & Missions Offered

Bribes
Missions


Commodities

Imports
Commodity Price
Ablative Armor Plating 30$
Hessian Tears 101$
Medical Equipment 48$
Rum 34$
Light Arms 104$
Black Market Pharmaceuticals 48$
Counterfeit Computerware 71$
Oxygen 23$
Water 23$
Diamonds 111$
Food Rations 51$
H-Fuel 105$
MOX 24$
Pharmaceuticals 34$
Hull Panels 61$
Consumer Goods 39$
Engine Components 47$
Black Market Munitions 27$
Black Market Augments 29$
Synth Paste 18$
Munitions 54$
Xenobiotic Filters 38$
Xeno Relics 220$
Exports
Commodity Price
Deployable Mining Container 50,000$
Toxic Waste 9$


Ships sold


Ship Class Price
Legionnaire Light Fighter 15,242$
Titan Very Heavy Fighter 24,379$
Praetorian Bomber 72,376$


News

[834 AS] Order strikes Corsair smugglers

BATTLESHIP DELOS -- 834 -- The Order has treacherously struck at Corsair freighters passing through Omicron Delta. Their arrogance knows no bounds. We have survived in this region for centuries longer than their organization has existed, yet they have the hubris to condescend to the Corsairs of the dangers? We bear The Order no ill will so long as they focus their attention where it belongs -- the Nomads. The moment they interfere with Corsair business, they can expect a Corsair blade. With the situation in Omicron Theta now stabilizing, the Elders have retasked the Battleship Delos to Omicron Delta to safeguard Xeno Relic smuggling routes. The Order, Core or anyone else shall interfere at their peril.

[833 AS] Outcasts retreat, sealing Corsair victory

FREEPORT 9 -- 833 -- Facing superior Corsair forces, the Outcasts have fled from battle in Omicron Theta, abandoning their Zoner lapdogs. Valiant Corsair fighters cut down their pitiful enemies, putting these upstart Zoners in their place. Despite this, victory has come at the cost of many precious Corsair ships, and ambushes on our freighters continue in the system's nebulae. The Elders recognize that the Zoners are feeble minded and were manipulated by the treacherous Outcasts -- Crete has generously offered peace terms to local Zoner leaders so that they may accept Corsair rule and ensure their survival.

[833 AS] Elders dismiss general over failure

CRETE -- 833 -- Outraged at the destruction of the Battlecruiser Kefalonia and damage to Freeport 9, the Elders have summoned General Galvez to answer for his failure to anticipate the scale of the attack. The Home Fleet is now being reorganized under new command, with the Battleship Delos providing immediate cover while the Battlecruiser Vis and squadrons from Rheinland are urgently pulled back from their present campaigns. Elder Garcia commended the Freeport’s defenders for their tenacity, congratulating them on throwing back the Outcast invaders. “We held our ground, at a cost,” she noted. “The Outcast feel they have struck a blow, but the wreckage shows they’ve paid a severe cost in blood they cannot well replace. When they return, we shall be ready.”

[832 AS] Breaking the Stalemate

PETRA -- 832 AS -- Grinding stalemates against the Hessians in Omega-5 and Omega-48 have gone on for decades, with tens of thousands having met their end in these systems. High Elder Montoya once pioneered the Road to Rheinland strategy to break this impasse. He envisioned an assault through the Sigmas into Rheinland, crippling the Hessian back lines in Dresden. While the High Elder has since passed, today we have the power to once again put his bold plan into action. Our scouts aboard the Battlecruiser Penitence report that the Rheinland Military and Hessians have severely bloodied one another in a massive clashes within Dresden. Both are weakened and preoccupied; all we must do is administer the fatal blow. The Elders have directed our forces to assemble at Petra and prepare to break through Frankfurt into Dresden. Be wary of the Bundschuh, who have harassed our raiders and resupply freighters in the area. They will likely try to stop us, and are to be shot on sight.

[832 AS] Core on Our Doorsteps!

CIUTADELLA - In a surprise attack, the Core battleship Mars has emerged from the Theta Jump Hole in the Omicron Kappa system, and launched a massive attack on the Artificial Intelligence planet of Gammu!

They cowardly waited for our forces to be dispersed between various theaters, the latest one being the Outcast return to Omicron Theta, and took advantage of our inability to crush them like the pests they are.

Special orders were relayed to Battleship Delos in Theta to coordinate additional patrols in the Amarus Cloud to interfere with their shipments of Gammu materials as much as possible.

[832 AS] The Outcast Menace Returns

DELOS -- 832 AS -- In a bitter day for the Corsair Empire, the Outcasts have returned to Omicron Theta. The crew of the Battleship Fes gave their lives to raise the alarm, allowing the Corsair defenders of Freeport 9 to assemble and repulse the assault.

The Elders have authorised the deployment of elements of the Omicron Gamma defence fleet to respond to the Outcast invasion and secure our borders. These elite fighters are more than a match for the drug-addled Outcasts and will hold the line until the Northern and Southern Fleets complete their assignments in Dresden and Dublin.

The Battleship Delos has been dispatched to the system to coordinate our counter-attack and avenge the loss of the Fes. The Elders have announced that a great honor will be bestowed upon the pilots responsible for the destruction of the Outcast Battlecruiser Augusta.

[832 AS] Gunboat Prosperity

CRETE -- 832 AS -- The rightful occupation of Freeport 9 has relieved some pressures on Crete, but stressed others. While we now control the biodomes of Omicron Theta, Food production has begun to decline. Our engineers think this is because of the high-yield synth crops depleting the soil.

The Zoners seem to have prevented this previously by importing Fertilizers from the Houses. Similarly, Crete, Leon and Cadiz are facing a shortage of Pharmaceuticals, complicating the treatment of our casualties. The Zoners now refuse to sell us these goods, so we must look elsewhere to obtain what we need.

The Elders have decreed that the raiding fleets are to redouble their efforts in Cambridge, and make new inroads into the Frankfurt system. Petra Base in Sigma 15 is to be reinforced, and the Fertilizer convoys from Planet Holstein treated as priority targets.

The Corsairs have always prized strength, and we have the strength to take what we need from the weak. Prosperity is there to be seized.

[832 AS] The Gold-Paved Path to Victory

CADIZ -- 832 AS -- The Gallic War left Bretonia a wounded beast, stumbling along in a desperate attempt to prolong the inevitable. This new 'peace' has left the Bretonians weak, lazy and complacent. This presents us with critical opportunities. Our reavers scourge their trade lanes to feeble opposition, each raid securing the plunder and materiel needed to rebuild our mighty fleets. Now, the Mollys have seized the Dublin system, and its immense Gold wealth along with it. The Mollys are but gnats compared to the mighty Corsairs - the Elders have decreed that the system will be ours. The Battlecruiser Santander has already struck a great victory by eliminating the Battleship Hood. The Mollys fear to meet us in open battle, but soon they will be forced to fight or starve. With the wealth of Dublin secured, no one will be able to oppose us. The path to the Corsairs' great victory in Bretonia and Rheinland is paved in Gold.

[831 AS] Freeport 9 Seized Over Zoner Treachery

FREEPORT 9 -- 831 AS -- For decades we tolerated the insolence of Freeport 9's Zoners. They wrongly assumed that the Corsairs would simply ignore the sheltering of our enemies and the disrespect of our laws, so long as their biodomes continued to provide for Crete.

The death of Juan Garcia was but the latest in a line of killings by the Bounty Hunters Guild, abetted by the Zoners who provide them with safe harbor. The Elders have decided: no more. One opportunity was offered for the Zoners to make amends for their transgressions, and instead they chose to ignore our reasonable demands. Last night, Freeport 9 was boarded and the station administration placed under arrest.

From this day forward, the biodomes will provide exclusively for the Corsairs, and the docking bays will admit only those we allow. Fortunately, our ancient enemies the Outcasts appear to be preoccupied with a self-inflicted revolt on their poisonous planet. By the time they turn their focus back to the Omicrons, we will be secure in our conquest.

[831 AS] Jump Hole Upheaval Causes Chaos

HEISENBERG -- 831 AS -- Jump holes across Sirius have become increasingly volatile and chaotic over the last year, with Professor Sophia Nagel from the Heisenberg Research Station linking the unusual phenomena to the Pulse. The Pulse was an unprecedented blast of hyperspace energy that was detected immediately prior to last year's jump gate Blackout.

Professor Nagel and her team are certain the Pulse originated from outside Sirius, but are otherwise no closer to identifying its source or mitigating a future Blackout event. "Following the Blackout, we began to see immediate signs of jump hole destabilization in multiple different regions, with many ultimately falling out of phase alignment altogether", she commented. The dramatic upending of Sirius' jump hole network has already prompted many groups to abandon stations and withdraw from systems that appear to risk being cut off.

While months-long trips between the stars are possible thanks to the Liberty Engine and many centuries of innovation, few ships are designed or provisioned to make such arduous journeys. Those who were displaced by Sirius' redrawn map hope that system connections will return, while adventurers and explorers rush to discover new routes.

[831 AS] Corsair Elder's Son Killed by BHG!

FREEPORT 9 -- 831 AS -- The presence of Bounty Hunters so close to the Corsair home world has long been a source of anger for the Edge World pirates. Zoner Freeports offer a safe harbor and open market to all comers - including the BHG.

For decades the Zoners of Freeport 9 have kept themselves safe from Corsair reprisals by offering useful services, with their biodomes providing Crete with respite from the famines that once ravished it. Despite this, outrage has swept Omicron Gamma after a flight of Hunters killed Commander Juan Garcia, before retreating back to the No Fire Zones of Omicron Theta.

The Council of Elders have ordered the administrator of Freeport 9 to attend Planet Crete to hear their demands. Elder Garcia has vowed that the station's halls would "run red with blood" unless the Zoners turned over all BHG aboard the Freeport. The Zoners are yet to respond, likely trying to anticipate how the Corsairs will react.

[830 AS] Tempers Flare over Pygar Colony!

PYGAR -- 830 AS -- The Zoners have seen many trials over recent years, with the Bretonian invasion of Gran Canaria being one among many. It was this occupation that forced many settlers off-world, with some braving the deadly storms of Pygar to eke out a difficult existence under the barren planet's surface. The arrival of Zoner colonists in Omicron Theta has not been met with warmth by all, however.

The Corsairs see the Pygar colony as a direct competitor for the region's scarce resources, with Elder Garcia warning that there would be "dire consequences" should Freeport 9's biodomes reduce or divert their exports to Planet Crete. Whispers of alien ruins and Artifacts discovered below Pygar's surface may also antagonize the Corsairs, who rely on the Artifact trade as a source of wealth. The hardship of Pygar's extreme conditions and the uneasy relationship with the Corsairs has already led many colonists to consider a return to the now liberated Gran Canaria.

[830 AS] Corsair Empire salutes High Elder Montoya

CRETE -- 830 AS -- The Corsairs all across the Empire salute High Elder Montoya, who died among his family aged 78. The High Elder dedicated his life to the Corsair people, having won a lifetime of glory leading strikes into Bretonia, Rheinland and the Sigmas. Montoya pioneered the 'Road to Rheinland' strategy, commanding the Northern Fleet as it entered Sigma 15 in 815 AS. While that campaign would falter in Frankfurt, Montoya's steady leadership ensured that many Corsair warriors returned to Crete to continue to fight for the Empire and future victory.

In his later years, Montoya would act as a steadying hand on the Council of Elders, counseling against rash decisions and reckless action. The Council has since inducted Elder Rosita Garcia to their number. As she commemorated the launch of the Battlecruiser Santander, she declared that "Sirius shall be set alight as a pyre in Montoya's honor". The Santander and its squadrons have been dispatched to pillage Bretonia.

[830 AS] Bessemer Struck by Corsair Raiders!

MAINZ -- 830 AS -- An Ageira Technologies research vessel, the ATS Bessemer, has come under a Corsair attack during its final venture through the Munich Jump Gate. The Bessemer, dispatched on a joint expedition by Ageira and the University of Berlin, was en route from the Raubling junction to the Frankfurt gate when it was waylaid by Corsair raiders on the edge of the Schwarzwald cloud. The RPU Dohna, a police gunboat tasked with overseeing the gate during the expedition, was quick to respond, but not before the raiders dealt significant damage to the unprepared civilian vessel. Anonymous sources report that as many as five Ageira employees lost their lives in the attack.

The incident came as a shock to the public and the law enforcement alike, as pirate activity was believed to have completely died out in the desolate Munich system. The frequency of strikes, from both Corsairs and domestic pirates, have steadily declined ever since the antimatter storm first ravaged the system. While the chaotic evacuation efforts from Nuremberg had initially caused a spike, as the system's population decayed to just skeleton crews and Junker scavengers, the criminal element became nearly absent. Some theorize that the Corsairs were there for the Bessemer specifically, intending for one last taunt at Rheinland's people. Thankfully, the Dohna and her crew were there to thwart their efforts.

The ATS Bessemer was dispatched into the Munich system in order to deploy a network of specially reinforced satellites, meant to monitor the advent of the antimatter storm's core. According to the University of Berlin, the core will wash over Munich around the end of this month, stripping away planetary atmospheres and most likely collapsing all remaining jumphole anomalies. The probes deployed by the Bessemer will provide the scientific community with first-hand data of the storm and its effects, transmitting it back to Berlin through a central relay nested within the safety of Raubling's hulk.

With the task complete, the Bessemer was meant to be the final ship to make the jump from Munich, with the Jump Gate being shut down later the same day. However, due to the damage sustained in the attack, the RPU Dohna did the honours instead, covering the Bessemer's departure to ensure its safe return.

[828 AS] Reconquista

CRETE -- 828 AS -- Following a lull of successful conquests waged by the Corsairs, the Elders have finally broken their silence and issued an ultimatum.

"The standing Navy of the Corsair Empire as well as its irregular raiders must do everything within their means to break existing stalemates or make progress. The enemies of Crete have grown arrogant and take for granted that Corsair offensives have lost their steam, this is an assessment which must be proved woefully wrong."

In response to these express instructions, activity across every Corsair installation has intensified to levels that suggest substantial mobilization.

[825 AS] Hessians on the back foot

CADIZ -- 825 -- The Red Hessians are on the back foot as the Cadiz fleet continues to grind forward through their defences. Over recent months we've seen fewer and fewer green Rheinlander recruits, and a noticeable drop-off in Hessian firepower. Cadiz's generals believe the Hessians are tied up with problems in Dresden and are now having trouble supplying the front, forcing them to beg The Coalition to commit its own reserves. While Cadiz has called for a surge in manpower to finally break the stalemate, the Elders have been slow to approve any transfers due to the critical stage of ongoing deployments in Bretonia. While the Corsairs of course defer to the wisdom of The Elders, this window of opportunity will not remain open for long.


Rumors

Corsairs
  • We have a golden opportunity to take over the system, now that the Military and Hessians bled each other dry, but between sending supplies to the Santander and having to keep Zoners in Theta pacified, head honchos can't send us all the men we need. Blast it all.

  • The charge this ship is spearheading is a rude awakening to everyone delusional enough to think they're safe from us. If you're here now, then I suppose that means you're smart enough not to mess with us. Keep it that way.


  • I came here with supplies recently, figured the herculean effort this ship is undertaking would make ammo and parts necessary.


  • Me and my wing have actually witnessed the destruction of Bautzen and the following battle. Much to Manuel's dismay, we kept our distance, no reason to interfere with our enemies killing each other, si?


  • Being part of this ship's raiding party is a big honour. You have to be a shining example of what it truly means to be a Corsair to even be considered, they won't accept anything less.


  • This ship has a lot of weight riding on it, first of her class means she'll set a legacy for years to come. It's a legacy we'll labour to be worthy of, I can promise you that much.


  • We have a golden opportunity to take over the system, now that the Military and Hessians bled each other dry, but between sending supplies to the stranded Santander and having to keep Zoners in Theta pacified, head honchos won't send us the men we need. Blast it all.


  • Our enemies have grown complacent, feeling rest assured that our recent shortcomings would extend into the future. Complacency kills, we'll show them how.


  • Me and my wing have actually witnessed the destruction of Bautzen by pure chance. Much to Manuel's dismay, we kept our distance, no reason to interfere with our enemies killing each other, si?

  • Some say we're too tough when it comes to standards. Tell me that again when you're outnumbered two to one and your only saving grace is discipline.


  • I got assigned to the raiding detachment aboard this ship, seen plenty of action since we settled in to give Rheinland a bloody nose. But I'm more eager to put the squeeze on those Hessians when we get the chance, have to teach them where they stand.


NOTE: Page generated on the 07/06/2024 at 15:55:47 UTC