[J6 - SSD Terror - TCR] Prologue: The briefing (Freebuild, 3ABY)

[Moff Wibbles]

 

 

 

STAR WARS: FACTIONS

THE INVISIBLE WAR

 

 

It is a time of great strife. The great GALACTIC EMPIRE is beset on all sides by a coalition of terrorists, revolutionaries and traitors calling themselves the Rebel Alliance.

 

Striking from hidden bases and fading into obscurity before the Empire can react, the Rebels have proved to be a deadly and frustrating foe.

 

At the edge of the galaxy, Grand Admiral Martio Batch, known as THE INVISIBLE ADMIRAL, hatches a plan to give the Rebels a taste of their own medicine and restore peace to the galaxy...

 

Dantus Sector (J6), aboard the Super Star Destroyer Terror...

 

The interior of the Super Star Destroyer Terror was surprisingly bland, lacking the highly polished floors of the Executor and the silent bustle of terrified crew. The atmosphere appeared somewhat more laid back - although the navy ratings and officers remained quiet, it seemed more from a sense of honest professionalism than fear of Lord Vader's wrath. Little wonder, since they were at the opposite edge of the galaxy to the drama that had recently engulfed the Anoat sector.

Flight Lieutenants Arias Mercer and Rubee Blue both arrived outside the briefing room at exactly 0700 - and were somewhat surprised to see each other there! Before either could speak a word, however, the doors slid open with a quiet 'hiss'. Awaiting them were a pair of Imperial Navy soldiers - a starfleet Captain with a gentle smile, and a grim-faced Sergeant of the navy troopers, presumably a bodyguard.

 

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The Captain: "Welcome to the Terror, and thank you for coming at such short notice. Can I offer you any refreshments? It must have been a long flight from the front."

The two pilots were a little taken aback - the man hadn't yet introduced himself (and in their experiences, ALL officers wanted their subordinates to know exactly who'd be taking all the credit for their victories as soon as possible), and had even broken protocol to offer snacks. Arias smiled, but Ruby's expression was carefully neutral.

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Ruby: "...It would be rude to decline such a generous offer, sir, so I'll accept."
Arias: "Absolutely sir, got anything to drink? I'm parched."
The Captain: "Would a hyperdrive suffice?"
Arias: "Yes sir, yes it would."
Ruby: "That will be fine, sir."
The Captain: "Sergeant, if you would be so kind?"

 

The grim-faced Sergeant, his eyes hidden behind a reflective visor and his face twisted into what seemed to be a permanent frown, reached up and withdrew a pair of canisters with some kind of glowing blue liquid inside from the cupboard beside him. A blast of chilled air hinted that the cupboard - and therefore the drinks - were cooled. Without a word or any change in expression, the Sergeant gave one canister to Lieutenant Mercer, and the other to Lieutenant Blue. Arias smiled wide in thanks and took a thirsty gulp, whilst Ruby nodded silently in thanks but didn't actually drink. After the Sergeant resumed his post, the Captain turned his attention to the viewscreen behind him, his expression hardening slightly as he moved on to business. He turned his gaze to Ruby, before gesturing out to the stars with a gloved hand.

 

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The Captain: "Lieutenant Rubee Blue. You've been busy, these past few years. You ran a women's self-defence class and had a successful architecture and construction business. But, two years ago, you dropped everything and enlisted in the Imperial Navy. Why?

Ruby: "To be frank sir, news of Alderaan and the Death Star's destruction terrified me. The Rebels were plunging the galaxy into another war. I knew I had to do something to help."

The Captain: "Yet you waited a full year before enlisting. Did you have doubts?"

Ruby: "Not waiting sir, preparing. I wasn't going to go into war without studying what I could about combat and tactics - and I wasn't about to run off on my family and employees. I had to get my affairs in order."

The Captain: "Well, your academy results certainly correlate that. Top marks in engineering, close-quarters combat and tactics. Yet instead of becoming an engineer, you became a pilot. Why is that?"

Ruby: "I caught the piloting bug, sir. Once I flew, I knew it was what I wanted to do. I wanted to see as much of the galaxy as I could."

The Captain: "Well, you're not the first. Thank you, Lieutenant, that's all my questions for now."

 

The captain smiled, apparently satisfied with Ruby's answers. He took a bite from his cookie, before pressing a button on the console mounted to the ugly table that dominated the room. The scratched, dented thing whirred quietly, and a holoprojector built into the center flared to life. Displayed in blue was Arias Mercer's dossier - not his current Navy one, but the one he'd had as a part of the Imperial Army, years prior. He watched the holoprojection for a few quiet moments, then began to interview Arias.

 

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The Captain: "And you, Lieutenant Arias Mercer. Four years in the Imperial Army as a Scout Trooper. You found a truly impressive amount of Rebel patrols, safehouses and bases, but you have a very disappointing number of kills to show for it. Your commanding officers refused to promote you past Corporal for 'lack of courage and fighting zeal in the face of the enemy', and you were interviewed by ISB for potential cowardice more than once. Explain yourself, Lieutenant. Are you a coward?

Arias: "No sir. I've no problem killing Rebels. What I had a problem with was my commanding officer's standing orders to engage any Rebels on sight. Stupid orders, resulted in a lot of missed opportunities, sir."

The Captain: "Not generally a wise move, insulting a superior officer. Elaborate."

Arias: "Rebels aren't stupid, sir. They know if one Imperial trooper opens fire, there's a hundred more on their way. The Rebels would leave a rearguard and evacuate anyone and anything of value well before our main force arrived. Sure, we'd take out a sentry or two, a few grunts, but we wouldn't get any of the officers, wouldn't learn anything of value."

The Captain: "So what did you do about it, Lieutenant?"

Arias: "I lied. I'd report in that we'd engaged the enemy when we did nothing of the sort. Instead, we'd stay hidden, watch, and listen. We'd record everything. When Rebels think they're safe, they're pretty talkative. You'd be amazed what you can learn, when you're patient. Also meant our forces had the element of surprise when we DID attack."

The Captain: "Defying orders and falsifying reports is certainly more dangerous than sniping a few Rebels. You're certainly no coward, at least."

The Captain pressed a few buttons on his console, and the holoprojection changed. Now, it displayed a map of the Dantus Sector. Planets were colour-coded depending on purpose, allegiance and current status. Five of the planets were pulsing with a white light.

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The Captain: "The truth is, I'm speaking to you at the behest of Grand Admiral Batch. He has reviewed your records and decided you are both suitable to take part in his plan to end this sordid war once and for all. With your combined experience in construction, administration, espionage and survival you are ideal candidates for the mission he has selected you for. The Grand Admiral has finished designing a prototype Signal Intelligence array. With it, we can quietly intercept communications across a large area and sift through them for any hints of Rebel activity. You are to go to the planet of Ganlihk and oversee the construction of a hidden base to house this device.

Lieutenant Blue, you will be in charge of designing and building the outpost itself. You will be assigned construction droids and resources. Lieutenant Mercer, you will be in charge of security. You will select the building site and ensure that it remains undetectable to the enemy. The base needs to be small - minimum staff of 2, maximum of eight. You'll be sent in alone with a small team of droids and a shipment of building materials. You're to send weekly reports of your progress to me. A Sentinel-class shuttle will drop off additional supplies monthly - make sure you have a requisition order in your reports.

Normally, this wouldn't be an optional mission. You'd obey your orders without question. However, the Grand Admiral has made it clear to me that due to the long duration and unusual isolation of this mission, you will have the option to decline without punishment or judgement. If you decline, you'll be returned to your previous assignments. If you accept, however, you will formally be moved into the Naval Intelligence Agency, with all the opportunities and risks involved. Are you two up for the challenge?

Ruby: "Absolutely, sir."

Arias: "Been waiting for a chance like this. I'm in."

The Captain: "Excellent. For now, return to your quarters and pack your belongings. Your flight leaves in three hours. Be at hangar bay 312. Dismissed."

The three exchanged a final salute, before Ruby and Arias turned and left. They talked animatedly about the briefing and the mission all the way back to the guest quarters area, before returning to their separate cabins.

After they were gone, the grim-faced Sergeant turned to his commander and, under his visor, raised an eyebrow. He had concerns, and with just the two of them remaining in the briefing room, he felt free to put voice to them.

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Bodyguard: "Admiral Sarn, I don't mean any disrespect, but are you sure about those two? That planet is a death trap - they'll be lucky to survive a week, let alone a month."

Admiral Sarn: "The Grand Admiral is quite adamant, my dear agent. He wants to test their capabilities. Besides, if they don't survive, we have four other teams that might..."

Edited August 11, 2019 by Moff Wibbles
Still learning Eurobricks formatting :)

[Moff Wibbles]

*Your entry has earned 4 XP*

Hi all, this is my first build for Eurobricks. I decided to start off simple and ease myself into the swing of things with a little diorama. In all honesty, my rather limited brick collection prevented me from doing much more at this point.

I haven't built anything for display (or indeed for anything but my own entertainment) before, so I'm still very new to this kind of thing. I decided to experiment with a couple of concepts I am unfamiliar with, such as the MILS system (the base for this build is a miniature MILS base) and adding photo-editing (the starscape in the viewport). Truth be told, the build itself only took about a day, but I spent a good week working on storyline and waiting for contact from the faction I signed up with, to see if they had any orders that might require me to modify anything. As I haven't heard anything yet, I decided to simply establish the characters and a prequel storyline for them - one featuring isolation and limited supplies. The entire build is on a 16x16 MILS-style base, and enclosed on three sides. I also made a removable roof, because why not?

My plan is simple: I will make a build every week, and tie it to a situation report. Every month, I will buy $100 AUD of parts from bricklink - parts that will then be used in future builds and explained 'in story' as supply shipments. I'll also try to experiment with new ideas and build strategies, growing my repertoire of skills as my lego collection also increases. This storyline will take the characters through the events leading up to the Battle of Endor, and the chaos that follows - eventually catching up to the main storyline of Star Wars: Factions. These will of course just be freebuilds - I'll still work with my faction on builds and competitions when possible. 

If anyone has any questions, comments or constructive criticism, please feel free to voice them here! I freely admit I'm a relative newbie to this world and am eager to learn.

I'm including here some behind-the-scenes photos of the build, just in case anyone is curious.

THE SCREEN, WITHOUT PHOTO EDITING: I wanted to replicate to some degree the kind of hexagonal screen used for the Death Star in Episode IV. I built it up with wedge plates and tiles, then placed the construction upright against a set of blocks with studs on the side. I'll likely be using this (or a modified version of it) in future builds as well, since I really like the look of it.

 

THE INTERIOR WALLS: I wanted to add texture to the walls without heavy greebling - Star Destroyers seem to have a relatively clean interior, and I wanted to maintain that. I used mainly slope blocks to build up nooks and crannies like in Episodes IV and V, and keep the 'hexagon' design language the Empire seems to use to heavily. I would have loved to use more white and black, but I sadly lack the pieces to do so. I used grill patterns for air vents, and containers for storage. The idea is that this room is essentially a modified supply closet. The snacks were a part of Admiral Sarn's deception - an attempt to throw off the characters and measure their reactions.

THE UGLY-megablocks TABLE: Yes, it's meant to be ugly. I drew inspiration from the angular, stark design language of Krennic's shuttle and Lord Vader's castle for this table - all harsh angles and sharp lines. In-story, this desk actually once belonged to Krennic himself, and was auctioned off after his death. Admiral Sarn is something of a fan of the Director's style, and purchased it for himself. With a starkly different colour and design style to the rest of the room, I used it as a focal point to draw the eye to the center of the room.

 

THE EXTERIOR WALLS: The diorama is only really meant to be viewed from one angle, but this shows how I used whatever pieces I could find for the build. The base uses the standard 1x4 block with technic holes, 2x4 block and stacked 2x2 plates you see in MILS builds. I eventually intend to make modular designs that run on this very system for ease of transport and storage, so this was a test run I am quite happy with.

 

THE CAST:

From left to right:

• Agent [REDACTED] - Admiral Sarn's right-hand-man and personal enforcer. May or may not report to Isard on the side.
• Admiral Sarn (a character from Rebel Assault II - the Hidden Empire. He notably wore the rank bars of a captain in cutscenes).
• Flight Lieutenant Arias Mercer (my Signature Fig). I actually have this costume in real life.
• Flight Lieutenant Ruby Blue (my fiancee's signature fig). She actually has this costume in real life.

 

I hope people enjoyed reading about my first Eurobricks build :D

Edited September 11, 2019 by goatman461
I pressed post too early :(

[Gubi0222]

Nice start! Solid little build and I like your writing, it's structured really well.

[MKJoshA]

Great beginning! I love the reference to "Join the Dark Side, we have cookies." And I love the Isard reference. I'll warn you that I've been considering using her for Factions challenges. But that shouldn't prevent you from including her in your stories. She's not official canon after all.

[Moff Wibbles]

Thanks! I plan on leaning heavily on Legends materials for my plotline and characters - especially the 90's video games. This campaign heavily references Rebel Assault II, and my next diorama to help out the Remnant draws inspiration from Force Commander.