Reflecting Upon RTH -- SPOILER THREAD

::blushes::

Howard

Another question that comes to mind is the amount of reinforcements mul Gurthak has available to stem the tide of the Sharonan advance? If there aren't any to speak of, Sharona can build up construction slips at Mahritha? (Hells Gate swamp portal) before those reinforcements come into play. That and getting the Orcas and porpoises into those oceans for recon. Odds are good the drakes will also get shipped in, but that is true if there really is nothing to send forward quickly.

The question really is how long it will take to send out reinforcements? Quicker to send them from Portalis or from other chains with forks closer to Hell's Gate? The downside of sending from the outer universes is that those units will not have worked in any sort of cohesive force. Whereas any units sent from the capital would have more likely trained as part of a large scale operation.

If the Union of Arcana is truly this slow at mobilizing, lord help them try to slow down the Sharonan advance!

The Union of Arcana is letting their second string wannabe's run the show and commit the entire Union to a course of action. No mention of replacements have been made.

This is not unprecedented in World History.

You just described the relationship between Great Britain and the East India Company, as well as Great Britain WRT Cecil Rhodes in Southern Africa, come to that.

Except in this case, the "Maxim guns" are on the other side.

Opps.

PeterZ wrote:Another question that comes to mind is the amount of reinforcements mul Gurthak has available to stem the tide of the Sharonan advance? If there aren't any to speak of, Sharona can build up construction slips at Mahritha? (Hells Gate swamp portal) before those reinforcements come into play. That and getting the Orcas and porpoises into those oceans for recon. Odds are good the drakes will also get shipped in, but that is true if there really is nothing to send forward quickly.

The question really is how long it will take to send out reinforcements? Quicker to send them from Portalis or from other chains with forks closer to Hell's Gate? The downside of sending from the outer universes is that those units will not have worked in any sort of cohesive force. Whereas any units sent from the capital would have more likely trained as part of a large scale operation.

If the Union of Arcana is truly this slow at mobilizing, lord help them try to slow down the Sharonan advance!

Peter Z,

I don't think it is a matter of mobilization as much as it is Arcanian over reliance on Dragon Transport.

The distance from sliderways to the forward battle universe are so large that even if Arcania was on the ball, they just don't have the speed of communications to pull together a big enough force compared to Sharonan rail lines of communications.

From the "Stopping the Sharonan advance" thread --

Point 1 -- 24,000 miles to the nearest slider-head is many more to cover than 4,000 or 7,000 for Sharonan rail roads.

Point 2 -- Arcanian sliderway line building is compromised by the existence of dragons and levitation spells compared to the 25 mile a day rate for Sharonan TTE building crews.

Point 3 -- Arcanian sliderway lines require a lot of magically gifted people and magical infrastructure (magic power grids) to support them vice non-talented transport dragon pilots.

Point 4 -- The ability of Arcania to surge such magical infrastructure has not been shown by the text thus far. In fact, it has pointed the other way.

Point 5 -- Even if all of the above were taken care of, the Arcanian ability to surge economic/magical/military resources after decisions have been made are handicapped by its arthritic 100 mile an hour over long distances communications speed compared to Sharona.

Mil-tech bard wrote:

The Union of Arcana is letting their second string wannabe's run the show and commit the entire Union to a course of action. No mention of replacements have been made.

This is not unprecedented in World History.

You just described the relationship between Great Britain and the East India Company, as well as Great Britain WRT Cecil Rhodes in Southern Africa, come to that.

Except in this case, the "Maxim guns" are on the other side.

Opps.

Yes, but how long were the British Empire's second stringers calling the shots once the Brits met organized, effective resistance? The counter arguments are French and Indian war where heavy reinforcements were on their way within a year (and with an ~3mo one way com lag), American Revolution, and the Boer War.

Mil-tech bard wrote:

PeterZ wrote:Another question that comes to mind is the amount of reinforcements mul Gurthak has available to stem the tide of the Sharonan advance? If there aren't any to speak of, Sharona can build up construction slips at Mahritha? (Hells Gate swamp portal) before those reinforcements come into play. That and getting the Orcas and porpoises into those oceans for recon. Odds are good the drakes will also get shipped in, but that is true if there really is nothing to send forward quickly.

The question really is how long it will take to send out reinforcements? Quicker to send them from Portalis or from other chains with forks closer to Hell's Gate? The downside of sending from the outer universes is that those units will not have worked in any sort of cohesive force. Whereas any units sent from the capital would have more likely trained as part of a large scale operation.

If the Union of Arcana is truly this slow at mobilizing, lord help them try to slow down the Sharonan advance!

Peter Z,

I don't think it is a matter of mobilization as much as it is Arcanian over reliance on Dragon Transport.

The distance from sliderways to the forward battle universe are so large that even if Arcania was on the ball, they just don't have the speed of communications to pull together a big enough force compared to Sharonan rail lines of communications.

From the "Stopping the Sharonan advance" thread --

Point 1 -- 24,000 miles to the nearest slider-head is many more to cover than 4,000 or 7,000 for Sharonan rail roads.

Point 2 -- Arcanian sliderway line building is compromised by the existence of dragons and levitation spells compared to the 25 mile a day rate for Sharonan TTE building crews.

Point 3 -- Arcanian sliderway lines require a lot of magically gifted people and magical infrastructure (magic power grids) to support them vice non-talented transport dragon pilots.

Point 4 -- The ability of Arcania to surge such magical infrastructure has not been shown by the text thus far. In fact, it has pointed the other way.

Point 5 -- Even if all of the above were taken care of, the Arcanian ability to surge economic/magical/military resources after decisions have been made are handicapped by its arthritic 100 mile an hour over long distances communications speed compared to Sharona.

Could Sharona fort up to defend the swamp portal beyond the possibility of losing it and just ignore Arcana from there? I keep thinking about the logistical difficulties for both sides and have a hard time seeing either side being able to press an attack into the other side's home universe.

Don

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PeterZ wrote:Another question that comes to mind is the amount of reinforcements mul Gurthak has available to stem the tide of the Sharonan advance? If there aren't any to speak of, Sharona can build up construction slips at Mahritha? (Hells Gate swamp portal) before those reinforcements come into play. That and getting the Orcas and porpoises into those oceans for recon. Odds are good the drakes will also get shipped in, but that is true if there really is nothing to send forward quickly.

The question really is how long it will take to send out reinforcements? Quicker to send them from Portalis or from other chains with forks closer to Hell's Gate? The downside of sending from the outer universes is that those units will not have worked in any sort of cohesive force. Whereas any units sent from the capital would have more likely trained as part of a large scale operation.

If the Union of Arcana is truly this slow at mobilizing, lord help them try to slow down the Sharonan advance!

I suspect mul Gurthak's out of reinforcements to send. He will have to get help from outside his command area which does seem short sighted of him.

Don

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Castenea wrote:

Mil-tech bard wrote:(second stringers pushing the pace of events) is not unprecedented in World History.

You just described the relationship between Great Britain and the East India Company, as well as Great Britain WRT Cecil Rhodes in Southern Africa, come to that.

Except in this case, the "Maxim guns" are on the other side.

Opps.

Yes, but how long were the British Empire's second stringers calling the shots once the Brits met organized, effective resistance? The counter arguments are French and Indian war where heavy reinforcements were on their way within a year (and with an ~3mo one way com lag), American Revolution, and the Boer War.

This is a point that has bothered me considerably. Not "Where are the heavy reinforcements?" Heck, has Arcana sent -anyone- forward to Hell's Gate?

The Duke of Garth Shoma has 'quietly dispatched a team' to investigate the rumors of misconduct.

That's it. We don't have explicit or implicit reference to -anything- else from Arcana. Sharona is dispatching troops strait from the home-world by the thousand. And we haven't heard anything from Arcana. No reinforcements, no senior officers, no fact finding committees. They should have crammed a hotshot Commander of 10,000 and representatives of the parliament into a slider and sent them forward as soon as they received word that hostile contact had been made and a full company had been punched out after making unprecedented contact with an alien civilization. Heck, we should have adventurers, entrepreneurs, and academics trying to rush to the front.

Instead, Arcana is quietly staying home, holding committee meetings, and anxiously waiting on news from the front. This is the biggest source of cognitive dissonance I have from the books.

CanoeSage wrote:
This is a point that has bothered me considerably. Not "Where are the heavy reinforcements?" Heck, has Arcana sent -anyone- forward to Hell's Gate?

The Duke of Garth Shoma has 'quietly dispatched a team' to investigate the rumors of misconduct.

That's it. We don't have explicit or implicit reference to -anything- else from Arcana. Sharona is dispatching troops strait from the home-world by the thousand. And we haven't heard anything from Arcana. No reinforcements, no senior officers, no fact finding committees. They should have crammed a hotshot Commander of 10,000 and representatives of the parliament into a slider and sent them forward as soon as they received word that hostile contact had been made and a full company had been punched out after making unprecedented contact with an alien civilization. Heck, we should have adventurers, entrepreneurs, and academics trying to rush to the front.

Instead, Arcana is quietly staying home, holding committee meetings, and anxiously waiting on news from the front. This is the biggest source of cognitive dissonance I have from the books.

It bothers me too. It is almost as though they at rock bottom believe they are confronting primatives who while they have "terror weapons" pretty much have to walk where they have to go. And complicating things, mul Gurthak is deliberately misrouting his reports home, leaving the commandery in the dark.

Don

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If mul Gurthak is relying on a Mthylan force that is already organized and finalizing preparations to conduct war games when the general news of the war broke, the rest of the Union will let that force go to the front. I wouldn't be surprised if Mythal hasn't had contingency plans for using such a force as part of their coup plans. Now those troops will be used to reinforce the AEF.....er mul Gurthak now.

I just don't see mul Gurthak all but tossing away his only force. He sacrifices them to further his plans because he has additional troops to back him up. Back him up and show how much more effective than Andaran led troops the Mythal forces are.