Fan Fiction/Labor Day Offensive 2014

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4. As of this writing, each operation will be represented by its own streamer awarded for chapter/unit/player participation. I may draw up actual "Letters of Marque and Reprisal" for privateers, and perhaps "Wanted Posters" for the pirates, both projects to recognize participation beyond the normal "goody-two-shoes"... er... ''paladin'' method of role-play that we have in this club. :)</font>
 
4. As of this writing, each operation will be represented by its own streamer awarded for chapter/unit/player participation. I may draw up actual "Letters of Marque and Reprisal" for privateers, and perhaps "Wanted Posters" for the pirates, both projects to recognize participation beyond the normal "goody-two-shoes"... er... ''paladin'' method of role-play that we have in this club. :)</font>
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[[Fan_Fiction/Labor_Day_Offensive_2014/Recognitions|LDO 2014 Participation Awards]]
  
  

Revision as of 19:08, 23 August 2014

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This year's Labor Day Offensive is dedicated to vegetarian bacon, a contradiction in terms (not to mention palates) if there ever was one.


Please Note

Currently this page is in work. Our ultimate goal is to give participation credit due to those who helped the campaign happen and come to at least a temporary conclusion. We welcome those who wish to role-play in this forum with us, and only ask that when you present your character or cell portion of the events that unfold, you do not attempt to resolve the conflict through your own direct actions or speak for other cells or individuals also taking part in these events. Should you wish to participate by performing some charitable action or group activity instead, please submit report of what you have done to David W. Ferber on Facebook or via email at angelsy1 -at_symbol- yahoo.com. Thank you for your interest and cooperation.

If you have information on Ships/Units that are participants, you may post to the attached discussion page.
We need the: Ship/Cell Name, Member Name, Member Rank, Member Number, and any notes on the type or amount of participation. This is the Honor System, but we will verify claims as needed. Please only list those who participate in whatever way.






Contents


Introduction and Explanations

INTRO

A low-key LDO this year, brought to you by yore ol' pallies in Special Operations Command. Arrrrrr, matey!

HECATE Banner alternate.gifSpaceholder.jpgMFI-RC-183299.jpgSpaceholder.jpgIkvbloodword.gif


Assorted battle flags of MFI
If your chapter has a battle flag that you want to have listed here, provide a link on the discussion page.



EXPLANATION

I'm not going to step on other people's storylines... er... toes (well, too much). It occurred to me that there are plenty of piratical types in MFI, but we don't really have any fanfic or gaming that focuses on that aspect of the Maquis. Therefore, this year's LDO will be for all the pirates - the privateers - the commerce raiders that MFI has to offer.

Just what is the difference in roles? Well, it has less to do with the activity and more with how official the... er... participants are:


1. A pirate is a free enterprise. Unencumbered by any official relationship with governments, this has some advantages and disadvantages that any pirate movie buff will readily understand.


2. A privateer is a privately outfitted ship whose crew and captain holds "Letters of Marque and Reprisal" - a license issued by a government to act on its behalf, usually in wartime. Sometimes derided as "licensed pirates" by their enemies, privateers were generally considered legal fighting participants in a war so long as they followed the rules of war, but if they stepped over the line, as it were, then they could be executed as pirates without much legal standing to protect them.


3. A commerce raider is entirely official... it is an actual naval vessel with a naval crew, undertaking the same role as a privateer. In case of capture, the crew would be protected by the rules of war vis POW status, and in turn, they would follow their country's sea laws on that matter with enemy crews.


So, in the grand tradition of the British and US privateers in the War of 1812, the CSS Alabama in the ACW, the SMS Emden in WWI, and the US and German submarine warfare in WWII, our Labor Day Offensive will be gamed with these roles in mind. Your chosen role is entirely up to you and your crew.

There's something for any branch to do here... Special Operations can go into enemy ports and check up on worthwhile targets before they leave port, or "cut out" a ship or three and sail'em away. Naval and Marines would have the meat of the offensive in actually taking targets on the high seas... er... in open space, or countering enemy efforts along the same lines. SSD can hunt down leads and police the trade routes, working with the Navy to sweep clear enemy commerce raiders. The Romulans and Klingons certainly don't need my urging to add their own flavor to activities.

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Game Notes

1. In the basic game, each chapter chooses one of the below operations to take part in, whether you are gaming or writing fan fiction. Chapters may team up as they agree, but it is not necessary. You are quite free to run things from an independent point of view in this setting. The "objectives" listed in the operations simply flesh out the setting and viewpoints of the various roles, and provide prompts if you need them.

2. As you can see, all sides have levels of complexity and shading that should make for interesting stories. Even though they're all Maquis, that doesn't necessarily mean they're all on the same side - they might even be working actively at cross-purposes to each other. It is optional that players/chapters - that agree - could in fact game against one another, and the outcomes of their game(s) would designate which aspect won out in the overall story. Even if they're both playing as good guys, then whoever loses simply lost against whatever bad guy they are fighting in the story. This uses the game as an abstraction of the contest between good and evil that solo-play can lose out on. Food for thought.

3. You don't have to follow the prompts in your chosen operation - they are simply scenarios that fit the archetype. You are also free to write from a character that is not your normal persona in MFI - and, if you like, you may even choose more than one operation to take part in. Feel free to be creative.

4. As of this writing, each operation will be represented by its own streamer awarded for chapter/unit/player participation. I may draw up actual "Letters of Marque and Reprisal" for privateers, and perhaps "Wanted Posters" for the pirates, both projects to recognize participation beyond the normal "goody-two-shoes"... er... paladin method of role-play that we have in this club. :)

LDO 2014 Participation Awards



TACTICAL BRIEFING

THE ENEMY

Florkian commando.png
Florkian Commando attempting the "Vicious Hug of Doom", a trademark martial arts maneuver of this species. Maquis warriors are cautioned against countering this threat via physical force - shoot to kill always. If unarmed confrontation is avoidable, do so: run away! Run away! Do not attempt to overcome this attack without VERY heavy weaponry.

Informational Source: SOC Xenobiology Directorate "Finding new and interesting species to kill in new and interesting ways"













Enemy nation: Florkian Unified Commonwealth and Kingdom
Species name: Flork
Expected level of resistance: Heavy
Fleet composition:
Home Fleet: (3) cruisers, (1) scout ship, (10) corvettes, (23) patrol ships, (5) repair vessels, (1) hospital ship, at least 100 fighters/shuttlecraft/other
1st Patrol Sqdn: (1) heavy frigate, (1) scout ship, (5) patrol ships, circa 10 fighters/shuttlecraft/other
2nd Patrol Sqdn: (1) auxiliary cruiser, (2) destroyers, (1) scout ship, (3) patrol ships, circa 10 fighters/shuttlecraft/other

Merchant Marine: circa (100) freighters, (100) container ships, (200) short haul cargo vessels, (10) liners, (100) tugs and miscellaneous auxiliaries
Basic description: Rumoured to be a distant relation of both tribbles and the vicious beasts of Caerbannog III, Florks display an annoying habit of being cute and cuddly everywhere they go, enthralling mindless teeny-boppers in a vicious circle of fashion couture and eventual zombiefication. Adults are at times similarly affected to the point that they are powerless to resist the cuteness factor, losing all free will.

Of course, the Federation has already fallen into this trap, while the Klingons and Cardassians, and to a lesser extent the Romulans, are still relatively successful at resisting the allure of Florks. For the good of the universe, and children everywhere, we must hold fast - we must fight the good fight. In this case, the good fight centers on the immense merchant fleet and wealth of the Florks, largely derived from rich deposits of dilithium in their native system.

War has not been declared, but we need dilithium. The Florks sell it at a nice premium, but we don't have the resources available to meet those prices. Therefore, your operational protocol will guide your chosen role in how you will overcome the lack of funds and thereby get us what we need.


Briefing compiled by the Maquis Forces Department of Cynical Propaganda, which is not responsible for any factual inaccuracies in this briefing.
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OPERATIONAL PROTOCOLS

Objectives of Operation BUNNY HOP

Piracy role-play, with an alternate description of Florks and thereby justification for your actions (if you even need it).

1. Rumoured to be an unholy spawn of tribbles and the vicious beasts of Caerbannog III, Florks display a variety of subhuman traits that have marked them for exploitation and victimization.

2. For the good of the universe, and children everywhere, we must take what they have, and then run before those nosy do-gooders in the Federation show up to stop us.

3. It'll be easier than taking candy from a baby - a baby would cry after all, and once we're done with these characters, all we have to do is space the less valuable prisoners and ransom the more important ones. Profit all 'round for every man jack of us - or woman jill as the case may be.

4. We'd better stay below the radar of even the people supposedly on our side, because they'd be better off not knowing how we got our supply - but we can still sell it to them at our own premium - undercutting the competition... that we're literally cutting to pieces.

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Objectives of Operation FRICASSEED RABBIT

Privateer role-play

1. While war has not been declared, for as yet unknown reason there has been growing hostility between the Flork systems and the Maquis Forces.

2. Therefore, the Maquis Forces leadership has offered "Letters of Marque and Reprisal" to captains and investors interested in outfitting their own privately-funded raiders. This will save the Maquis Forces the exorbitant expense of sending in naval forces for such a trifling matter.

3. A special "Prize Court" has been set up to condemn prizes taken by legal privateers, that is, buy at fair market price any ship and cargo captured legally, according to the stipulations of the Letters of Marque - a legally-binding contract that the enemy may not even choose to recognize.

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Objectives of Operation WABBIT SLAYER

Commerce Raider role-play, the Lawful Neutral faction in the Maquis Forces after war is finally declared.

1. After the debacle of piracy revealed as the casus belli between the Florkian Unified Commonwealth and Kingdom and the Maquis Forces, we are now forced to openly counter-declare a war with a tiny power that has no chance against us, with the meddlesome Federation waiting in the wings to interfere. It's embarrassing enough that we're painted as the bad guys in this... unfortunate diplomatic incident, however, even more unfortunately... we are the bad guys.

2. Therefore, ever a people to turn "diplomatic incident" into "favorable opportunity", now we can openly raid for dilithium and other cargo using proper military forces.

3. Since really only the Federation will show up to help the Florks, because the Klingons don't like tribbles, the Romulans are more likely to provide competition with our depredations for a chance to embarrass the Feddies, and the Cardassians hate both sides so much that they won't touch this with a ten light-year pole, we will not have to invest a large force in order to get what we need.

4. That said, even with victory assured if we resorted to standard military tactics, a victory would be bad for business... it's much better to spin this thing out, dodge the Federation, and get as much dilithium as we can, now that we already have the expense of war. We must balance the needs of "harvesting" resources against the possibility that one or more other Great Powers will feel sorry for the Florks and come to their assistance. That would be bad for us.

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Objectives of Operation OVER KILL

30th Hunter/Killer Squadron role-play... the "cops": the Lawful Good faction in the Maquis Forces after war is finally declared.

1. Friendly or unfriendly, if they're pirates, we're bringing them in. If they won't face justice in the courts of our systems, then they will face the next world at the muzzles of our phaser banks and torpedo arrays.

2. Honor, professionalism, and yes, even dirty under-handed tactics like the use of spies and saboteurs will help us to achieve our goal: to rid our space of pirates and enemy combat fleets.

3. Apparently the actions of people on our side started this war; this makes it our responsibility to end it with all dispatch. Too bad we cannot draw upon the full strength of the Maquis Forces. Heh, politicians... truly the scum of the universe. You'd almost think they weren't actually trying to win.

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FLORK CAMPAIGN

Vessels & Units Currently Awaiting Assignment

Vessels & Units Assigned to Operation BUNNY HOP

(More to come...)


Vessels & Units Assigned to Operation FRICASSEED RABBIT

(More to come...)


Vessels & Units Assigned to Operation WABBIT SLAYER

(More to Come...)


Vessels & Units Assigned to Operation OVER KILL

(More to come...)


Debriefing: Summary Report to Empok Nor HQ

(???? ???? ...)

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Various influences on the story and satire found in this RPG setting. If you haven't already done so, I advise you check them out at your earliest convenience.

"Monty Python and the Holy Grail" by the aptly named Monty Python

Bill, the Galactic Hero by Harry Harrison

Cruise of the Snap Dragon by Ruth P. Barbour

Plus a big thank you for permission to use a font for this game's props:

Måns Grebäck

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