Remaining holes in SLN intel

Plus you just know that the air had to be let out of Filareta's hyper sails when Honor recited his playbook back to him right down to its name. I don't have a problem placing myself in a character's shoes, as I've said.

I was quarterback of my football team. We had an unstoppable play called THE TCU BOMB. It was aptly named after my coach's alma mater, because they had a similar play. I had a bullet arm that could throw the ball 70 yards flat footed. I had a running back that was a record setter in the 220 yard dash. He would outrun the coverage and I made sure the ball reached him. Simple play. But unstoppable. We could run the score up into basketball numbers and often did until the coach taught us how unsportsmanlike it is. I called my own plays. But I digress.

I imagine that it would have been a huge psychological blow if some school that was formidable, and there were several, had confidently walked up to us and said "We know about your TCU BOMB. You put your fast running back in the slot position and he hauls ass down field. It ain't gonna work!" With a sneer.

That would have had a heck of an effect on some of us.

ldwechsler wrote:Keep in mind that not only did he have no real battle experience but the simulations he used were based on his superiority. Chances are the top leaders never lost in those sims. That would be bad politics.

IIRC, there is textev that the SLN's "wargames" were precisely scripted events where everyone was given the proper responses to every scenario.

Weird Harold wrote:

ldwechsler wrote:Keep in mind that not only did he have no real battle experience but the simulations he used were based on his superiority. Chances are the top leaders never lost in those sims. That would be bad politics.

IIRC, there is textev that the SLN's "wargames" were precisely scripted events where everyone was given the proper responses to every scenario.

Well of course they were. You wouldn't want people to get surprised and discomfited. Why, someone's feelings might get hurt!

cthia wrote:

pnakasone wrote:History has repeatedly shown that your best fighting commanders are not your best at the office politics. But war has always been a good method of cleaning out the officer ranks of deadwood.

Being so crew intensive though, losing ships loses many of the possible decent officers hovering near the bottom.

That too has been a part of history. Many capable and competent officers, noncom's, and enlisted have been lost due to having the bad luck to be under the command of an idiot.

Yes everything you are saying about simulations is true. I'm not forgetting or in denial over it. However, IIRC, as his fleet was sitting doggo awaiting those super missiles from Mesa, didn't he feed the specs into simulations and actually try to not tell his people in advance of the scenarios? I seem to remember a convo with his XO over this.

pnakasone wrote:History has repeatedly shown that your best fighting commanders are not your best at the office politics. But war has always been a good method of cleaning out the officer ranks of deadwood.

cthia wrote:Being so crew intensive though, losing ships loses many of the possible decent officers hovering near the bottom.

pnakasone wrote:That too has been a part of history. Many capable and competent officers, noncom's, and enlisted have been lost due to having the bad luck to be under the command of an idiot.

This can happen in the best of navies, anyone else remember Elvis Santino? I've always felt sorry for all those Manticorans killed by his stupidity.

glott wrote:

pnakasone wrote:History has repeatedly shown that your best fighting commanders are not your best at the office politics. But war has always been a good method of cleaning out the officer ranks of deadwood.

cthia wrote:Being so crew intensive though, losing ships loses many of the possible decent officers hovering near the bottom.

pnakasone wrote:That too has been a part of history. Many capable and competent officers, noncom's, and enlisted have been lost due to having the bad luck to be under the command of an idiot.

This can happen in the best of navies, anyone else remember Elvis Santino? I've always felt sorry for all those Manticorans killed by his stupidity.

Another post pegged for me. That's happening a lot lately. Nice comparison.

It reminds me of the question I think all mothers ask their kids. "Are you going to jump off of a bridge simply because someone else does?"

I suppose I have to mom if I'm serving under Santino. All those wasted lives led to slaughter. Poor Jaruwalski is forever haunted by their eyes as she left them to die.

kzt wrote:

Fireflair wrote:Maybe once Honor thins the crowd at the top out some they'll begin to show up.

IF the war continues long enough they will. And people that show an ability to win will keep getting promoted if the war really matters.

But there is no ability to win, and the casualty rate against the RMN appears to be 100%, dead or captured. I suspect that the RMN is now returning very few prisoners.

cthia wrote:Another post pegged for me. That's happening a lot lately. Nice comparison.

It reminds me of the question I think all mothers ask their kids. "Are you going to jump off of a bridge simply because someone else does?"

I suppose I have to mom if I'm serving under Santino. All those wasted lives led to slaughter. Poor Jaruwalski is forever haunted by their eyes as she left them to die.

I think Santino would have been a competent subordinate in a fleet but was not fleet command material where he was the one making the big calls.

pnakasone wrote:I think Santino would have been a competent subordinate in a fleet but was not fleet command material where he was the one making the big calls.

When we first met Elvis Santino in Honor's snotty cruise, he was an idiot and incompetent. He didn't improve by the time cronyism got him promoted to Admiral and got him a station command.