If I were a Mandarin

Where do you go?
Where have you arranged- well in advance and very quietly- to stash billions of credits (and aquired lots of local realestate and support) and have an exit plan.

Have any of the Mandarins actualy done that beyond the stuffing away of mountains of credits and arrangements long since made for safe and secure transport to places that won't just turn them over for a few (million) credits?

Can their past exploits and graft not be used to extradite them from someplace at least the SLN wouldn't go to retrieve them?

Moving to a safe place with lots of money and nobody hunting you is great. And how many of these people arn't worth several hundred million credits "plus expenses" to have assassinated?

At the moment, their best hope is they attempt to cut a deal with Manticore and "quietly" retire. Then they will only have a million or so SL individuals and members of Transtellars (and much of the buracracy looking for private taking of scalps. Possibly even the Alignment just to clean up some loose ends.

How do you disappear in the Honorverse when you have at least three very large Star Nations looking for your blood? And who the hell can you trust?

Brigade XO wrote:Where do you go?
Where have you arranged- well in advance and very quietly- to stash billions of credits (and aquired lots of local realestate and support) and have an exit plan.

Have any of the Mandarins actualy done that beyond the stuffing away of mountains of credits and arrangements long since made for safe and secure transport to places that won't just turn them over for a few (million) credits?

Can their past exploits and graft not be used to extradite them from someplace at least the SLN wouldn't go to retrieve them?

Moving to a safe place with lots of money and nobody hunting you is great. And how many of these people arn't worth several hundred million credits "plus expenses" to have assassinated?

At the moment, their best hope is they attempt to cut a deal with Manticore and "quietly" retire. Then they will only have a million or so SL individuals and members of Transtellars (and much of the buracracy looking for private taking of scalps. Possibly even the Alignment just to clean up some loose ends.

How do you disappear in the Honorverse when you have at least three very large Star Nations looking for your blood? And who the hell can you trust?

That is why you have several exit plans in place as any one tracking you will have to figure out which one you used.

One plan should be just grab a small suit case of cloths , a throw away identity, and sufficient funds in a easily controvertible form to get away to where you can better assess your situation. Be prepared to abandon most if not all of your previous assets in the name of survival.

You can't eat credits. From centuries of graft you may be a quadrillionaire but that is just money. If sensible you would have bought several large (10MT up) freighters, loaded them with all you need for civilisation, and enough people for a viable gene pool. You would have at the same time sent trusted scouts out well away from the frontier to find a new home.
Then go the Safehold route. Just keep going until you are sure no one will find you, secure a habitable virgin planet, and settle down.

Daryl wrote:Then go the Safehold route. Just keep going until you are sure no one will find you, secure a habitable virgin planet, and settle down.

That sounds like a lot of work, and somehow I suspect you might well not be in charge for long.

Depends on when I get to start taking over from their stupid. Its easy if I get to take over say... when Bygn was a moron. First I would have figured out why the hell I don't control the monetary system. Seriously, the League should have no trouble printing their budget since its so damn small. Hardly anyone would notice. Just engage in a little bit of graft with the banks and use that to fund the League.

Second I would have thrown Bygn under the bus a lot harder. I would have blamed everything that went wrong over in Talbott on the guy. He clearly blew up a station full of tens of thousands of people so he could try to excuse murdering Manticorians.

Third, I would start reforming the Solarian League into a profitable entity. After Yawata I would have had the perfect opportunity to engage in massive investments. The Yawata strike created the Manticorian GSP many times over in new investment opportunity.

Fourth I would get transplant my brain into a new body.

Fifth, I start funding research into someway to repair the aging to my neurons, or nanotech that can take over their functions. Actuarial escape velocity go! Then I live forever and call it an eternity.

If I have to take over now, I'll need to gather my ill-gotten gains in a form I can control without getting traced back to me. Then I do the brain transplant thing into a body that can't be traced to me. Preferably a victim who has no real family, friends or enemies and is still rather young and healthy. Clone some neuronal tissue of mine and use it to help stage my brutal murder. I may need to do a lot of murder. Invest a bunch of my ill gotten gains into the opportunity Yawata created. I can probably still hit actuarial escape velocity, if I abuse cold sleep tech.

feyhunde wrote:The problem is the Mandarins have only recently begun to consider the prospect they could lose or the League might end.

Up until Beowulf's vote, this has all been merely an ugly incident, not an existential crisis.

Yeah the Invincible SLN has lost a few battles. But organizing the Frontier Fleet for deep raiding and putting pressure on the GA to prevent offensive operations seems viable to buy time. The League after all, is too big for any neobarb to conquer!

The Mandarins know about the force disparity, and they know a few core worlds are very unhappy, buying into this 'Manty Hoax' of a secret cabal of Mesan Supermen.

The Mandarins do not know about the Verge going up in flames. Operation Jansus and the Manty response means big chunks of the protectorate, which the Mandarins rely on for the revenue necessary to build a fleet which can stand up to the Manties, are going to be lost to them.

I disagree. They have known it's an existential crisis since Filareta got reamed and should have known since Crandall. While they aren't aware of all the goings-on in the Verge they know it's going to happen, just not how fast it's going to happen.

The SLN has been relying on their supposed invincibility to hold onto their systems. Getting reamed by the Manties showed that to be false. If they can't restore their invincibility they know they'll lose the Verge and the Shell even if Manticore does nothing more.

The Harrington plan is about shattering the core as well to ensure nothing can rise from the ashes.

Everyone is having a hard time putting himself in a Mandarin's shoes. If you want to think like a Mandarin you've got to be a Mandarin...

Get into character!

What a Mandarin Would Say

Why should we worry about being caught? Unless we're complete and utter morons. We're Mandarins. Don't you know what that mean? We represent the people who are in the top positions of both power and centicredit. We're in the top 1 %. WE ARE THE TOP 1 %! We have access to the best bioculptors.

We can change our appearance at the drop of a hat. Trust me, we can afford it. In our personae, we have as contacts some of the best. Heck, all of us play golf with Roger McZannon, the top biosculptor in the universe. Who has always been on military payroll. We even have a joint enterprise.

These are Mandarins, people. And they've been rubbing elbows with the crust of society for the better part of their lives. People all over the Sol system have benefitted from their kindness. They have groupies -- people on planet who have and who continue to benefit from Mandarin kindness. People who are more than somewhat loyal to them.


Are we even sure the Mandarins are men? One of them may have been a woman all the time. It wouldn't be the first time someone in their circle had a little "freaky side."

At any rate, I'm sure they all have mega mansions set up all over the galaxy. Wouldn't you?

cthia wrote:Everyone is having a hard time putting himself in a Mandarin's shoes. If you want to think like a Mandarin you've got to be a Mandarin...

Get into character!

What a Mandarin Would Say

Why should we worry about being caught? Unless we're complete and utter morons. We're Mandarins. Don't you know what that mean? We represent the people who are in the top positions of both power and centicredit. We're in the top 1 %. WE ARE THE TOP 1 %! We have access to the best bioculptors.

We can change our appearance at the drop of a hat. Trust me, we can afford it. In our personae, we have as contacts some of the best. Heck, all of us play golf with Roger McZannon, the top biosculptor in the universe. Who has always been on military payroll. We even have a joint enterprise.

I seem to recall a good (very very good) plastic surgeon with good connections for really good fake IDs somewhere around Smoking Frog.

cthia wrote:These are Mandarins, people. And they've been rubbing elbows with the crust of society for the better part of their lives. People all over the Sol system have benefitted from their kindness. They have groupies -- people on planet who have and who continue to benefit from Mandarin kindness. People who are more than somewhat loyal to them.


Are we even sure the Mandarins are men? One of them may have been a woman all the time. It wouldn't be the first time someone in their circle had a little "freaky side."

At any rate, I'm sure they all have mega mansions set up all over the galaxy. Wouldn't you?

And if/when the league comes apart, who is going to go looking for them?

But they have not pre-positioned assets anywhere off Old Earth. At least 2 of them are women, we havr textev of that.

At this late juncture, I'd find a diplomatic pouch and fill it with credit chips from the First National Bank of New Madrid, find a good body sculptor, have a new diplomatic ID made under my new name and face, and book a liner to my new post.

cthia wrote:Everyone is having a hard time putting himself in a Mandarin's shoes. If you want to think like a Mandarin you've got to be a Mandarin...

Get into character!

What a Mandarin Would Say

Why should we worry about being caught? Unless we're complete and utter morons. We're Mandarins. Don't you know what that mean? We represent the people who are in the top positions of both power and centicredit. We're in the top 1 %. WE ARE THE TOP 1 %! We have access to the best bioculptors.

We can change our appearance at the drop of a hat. Trust me, we can afford it. In our personae, we have as contacts some of the best. Heck, all of us play golf with Roger McZannon, the top biosculptor in the universe. Who has always been on military payroll. We even have a joint enterprise.

These are Mandarins, people. And they've been rubbing elbows with the crust of society for the better part of their lives. People all over the Sol system have benefitted from their kindness. They have groupies -- people on planet who have and who continue to benefit from Mandarin kindness. People who are more than somewhat loyal to them.


Are we even sure the Mandarins are men? One of them may have been a woman all the time. It wouldn't be the first time someone in their circle had a little "freaky side."

At any rate, I'm sure they all have mega mansions set up all over the galaxy. Wouldn't you?

cthia,

textev gives 2 of them as being female

cthia wrote:Everyone is having a hard time putting himself in a Mandarin's shoes. If you want to think like a Mandarin you've got to be a Mandarin...

Get into character!

What a Mandarin Would Say

Why should we worry about being caught? Unless we're complete and utter morons. We're Mandarins. Don't you know what that mean? We represent the people who are in the top positions of both power and centicredit. We're in the top 1 %. WE ARE THE TOP 1 %! We have access to the best bioculptors.

We can change our appearance at the drop of a hat. Trust me, we can afford it. In our personae, we have as contacts some of the best. Heck, all of us play golf with Roger McZannon, the top biosculptor in the universe. Who has always been on military payroll. We even have a joint enterprise.

These are Mandarins, people. And they've been rubbing elbows with the crust of society for the better part of their lives. People all over the Sol system have benefitted from their kindness. They have groupies -- people on planet who have and who continue to benefit from Mandarin kindness. People who are more than somewhat loyal to them.


Are we even sure the Mandarins are men? One of them may have been a woman all the time. It wouldn't be the first time someone in their circle had a little "freaky side."

At any rate, I'm sure they all have mega mansions set up all over the galaxy. Wouldn't you?

George J. Smith wrote:cthia,

textev gives 2 of them as being female

This post is turning out to be much more sexist than I intended.

Yes, but of the three who are supposed to be men. How do we really know? And of the two supposed to be women...

I have been fooled quite a few times in California. "Dude looks like a lady." And ladies look like dudes.

In the Honorverse. GOT CASH? Be who or what you want.