PRELUDE In the third decade of the 21st century, the nations of Mankind contested Cislunar Space, the vast darkness that begins 35,000 kilometres above Earth in geosynchronous orbit, approaching beyond 380,000 km to reach the surface of the Moon.
The realm of space is never constant; bound by celestial patterns of recurrence and chaos, the whirling contours of laws economic and mundane, the orbit of robotic spacecraft falling endlessly through the silent tomb of heaven.
The treasures of this confrontation: dominion over the tyranny of gravity, command over the wealth of the lunar economy and moon infrastructure; control over selenocentric trajectories, lunar libration points and the orbital gateway to Mars and beyond. Comet ice from the edge of the universe in the south pole of the Moon, lingering in the shadow of a crater unseen by the sun in a billion years. Supercomputing and laser diode crystals etched in microgravity by molecular beam; proteins and enzymes nurtured in orbital biomanufacturing farms free from defects of sedimentation, convection and hydrostatic pressure.A nuclear reactor on the moon, a railway on the moon. ISRU robonauts in self-assembly, harnessing constellations of power-beaming satellites to drive one million tonnes of Helium-3 ilmenite ore via lunar rail shipments: 19 million gigawatt-years of energy, seven times the projected use of the entire world over the 21st century...Water-Based Lunar Architecture, Lockheed Martinhttps://m.youtube.com/watch?v=7KbK6MpFvWwBloomberg, The Moon As A Multi-Billion Dollar Opportunityhttps://m.youtube.com/watch?v=hD_7Ti2hNeI
From the vantage of space, it is said no borders between the nations of men can be seen; there is only blue ocean and the continents of an undivided planet. This is not true. Technology needs only darkness to reveal the division of Mankind.
THEN2009 Oct 9 The LCROSS lunar precursor robotic program, consisting of a shepherding vehicle and Centaur impactor, strikes the lunar crater Cabeus at 9000km/h releasing approximately the kinetic energy equivalent of 2 tons of TNT and a debris plume of moon dust. Four minutes after impact, the accompanying shepherding spacecraft executes a flyby through the regolith plume, relaying mission data back to Earth. (The experimental date of this NASA moon bombing mission coincides with the announcement of President Barack Obama as the recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize)2009 Nov 13 NASA confirms the presence of water detected in the frozen regolith vapour plume at Cabeus, the south pole Lunar Crater. Subsequent analysis determines a mass concentration near 5%2013 Rozhdestvensky crater, within one crater diameter of the lunar North Pole, is assessed to hold ice deposits trapped in a permanent shadow region2019 Jan 3 Chang'e 4, the Chinese Lunar Exploration Program of CNSA, lands the robotic spacecraft Yutu-2 ('"Jade Rabbit") on the far side of the Moon2020 NASA establishes the Artemis Accords, with signatories including the ESA, India, Japan2021 Russia and China announce a partnership agreement for an International Lunar Research Station (ILRS)2022 SpaceX achieves 142,328 kg of launch upmass, approximately equal to China CASC, NASA, Roscomos, Arianespace, NOC, ULA (LMT+BA/), India ISRO, Japan JAXA and the rest of the world combined2024 Roscosmos announces the program resumption of rhe formerly delayed RN STK-1, a massive super heavy lift orbital launch vehicle capable of 100 ton LEO lift and 27 ton payload to translunar injection
NOW2030 De-orbit of the International Space Station demarcates the end of the era of international space collaboration
FUNDINGYou begin under budget, with a -24% modifier to all actionsINSTITUTIONSRepresents recruitment, community outreach and support and credibility amongst international scientific and academic organisations. You begin as an unknown entity at zeroCHOOSE1/ a LEGACY spacecraft design (ONE only)>flyby (spin stabilised, or 3-axis)Initial reconnaissance spacecraft often following solar orbit or even an escape trajectory. Carries an immense payload of scientific instrumentation. The most survivable spacecraft with adaptable mission longevity>orbiterMust carry propulsion to achieve orbit insertion, limiting payload. Often acts as a communications relay to Earth for surface operations>atmosphericTypically a probe configured for a short mission duration, transiting the target body atmosphere. Protected by aeroshell (heat shield)>landerDesigned to reach a target body surface and survive its harsh conditions. The historical success rate of these missions is extremely adverse>roverOften reliant upon solar power for surface operations. All rover craft require some autonomous capability, given the delays in elapsed transmission time from destination to Earth>impactor (surface penetrator)Designed for kinetic impact against a hard surface, with data telemetry relayed to orbiter spacecraft >observatoryInstead of travelling to a destination, the observatory occupies an Earth or Solar orbit studying target bodies free from atmsopheric obscurement>communications and navigation (PNT)Unlike in science fiction films, there is no possible means to fix the position of spacecraft far from Earth other than orbital determination through accurate synchronised timekeeping, ground station tracking with a Deep Space Network using methods such as delta-DOR and VLBI (interferometry against quasars). Positioning satellites are already abundant in Low Earth Orbits, and are required around the Moon and Mars for greater space situational awareness>write-in...Cassini: The Final Missionhttps://m.youtube.com/watch?v=xrGAQCq9BMU
2/ CHOOSE a FUTURE CONCEPT (ONE only)>cyclerProposed spacecraft on closed transfer orbit and free return trajectory, cycling between two celestial destinations. Once orbit is established very little propulsion is required beyond minor trajectory corrections. Can serve as a platform for space surveillance or in-orbit resupply, logistical servicing and maintenance. The earliest conceptualisation of a Mars mission planned for a relay system of cycler resupply spacecraft>chaser A form of satellite that pursues another satellite, proposed as a means of transporting or de-orbiting space debris. The design can also target noncooperative spacecraft>power-beaming satellitePhotovoltaics and an accurate pointing solution beaming solar power to a receiver target, known as a rectenna>orbital fuel depot>cryogenic monopropellant storage (used for correctional manoeuvres or station keeping)>orbital manufacturing>semiconductor, eg Silicon Carbide, Gallium Nitride, or>biomanufacturing / pharmaceutical crystal growth>orbital datacentrerepositary for mission data. The tight constraints of mass budget and storage on spacecraft historically required fast data downlink to Earth to free storage space in preparation for the next flyby passsurface operations (In Situ Resource Utilisation)>ISRU regolith excavator / miner>ISRU nuclear reactorTRISO tristructural isotropic uranium fuel >(write-in...)
3/ Technology Readiness Level: Allocate 9 TRL points between the legacy and future concepts (cannot be less than 1 or greater than 9). TRL 3 is required for a working prototypeQM: ideally you could select a legacy and a future concept spacecraft design pair that complement each other, with the TRL(legacy) > TRL (future concept) etc, but this is not necessary4/ Allocate 100 points between the following five project phases (this is a 1d100 modifier representing stage capability)A Preliminary Research And AnalysisB Definition And Technical SolutionC Design And DevelopmentD Assembly Testing And Launch Operations (ATLO)E Mission Operations And Data Analysis (MO&DA)Optional:>Give your space agency a name!>You can also specify a geographic location, and >write-in a vision / mission statementYour organisation is evaluating the current technologies: (CHOOSE ONE)>Hypersonic ballute, an inflatable isotensoid balloon parachute drag device, designed for stabilisation and rapid deceleration during atmospheric re-entry and flight, braking from speeds exceeding 7000 km/h>Optical lattice clock, interrogating the ultranarrow transition of fermium strontium atoms, trapped by laser cooling confinement>Laser optical pyrotechnics, a system of non-explosive actuators, using high power pulsed fibre lasers in an optical harness of splitters, connectors and laser firing units LFUs to remove the need for electro-pyro ignition and explosive detonation in spacecraft control>Rheological study analysing micellar properties, liquid fraction and capillary pressure gradients of foam in microgravity>Cerium oxide CeO2 nanozyme bone tissue engineering to prevent osteoclast formation under ionising radiation, thereby mitigating fractures and loss in bone area>(write in...)
>>6312929>orbiter>>6312933>power-beaming satellite>>6312934Legacy 7. Future 2.A20 B15 C20 D25 E20>Cerium oxide CeO2 nanozyme bone tissue engineering to prevent osteoclast formation under ionising radiation, thereby mitigating fractures and loss in bone area
>>6312975The rate of bone loss in Low Earth Orbit (eg the International Space Station) is around 1-2% per month spent in space, equivalent to several decades spent in Earth. Most studies predict that over the course of three years of manned spaceflight, approximately a trip to Mars and back, would result in a 33% chance of osteoporosis, including compression fractures in vertebrae. The main mitigation deployed on board manned spacecraft today is exercise, two hours of an intensive daily workout regimen via treadmills or ARED (advanced resistive exercise device) weightlifting in weightlessness, and cycle ergometers (CEVIS apparatus)Could unmanned robotic exploration of space be the only solution? You decide however to persevere with the struggle of manned space exploration, by investigating the capabilities of Cerium Oxide nanoparticles in mitigating the development of skeletal disorders. There are two broad avenues of approach>HIGH RISK BIOMEMETIC BONE MEMBRANEThis involves development of an energised electrospum hydrogel membrane that mimics the periosteum (bone surface), with cerium facilitating angiogenesis (blood vessel growth) and impeding bone resorption and defects. This experiment costs -5 % funding (brings your underfunding deficit to -29%)This project is mostly a B phase solution, so your base modifer is +15% - 29% = -14%To ensure the best results, you could attempt to conduct the experiment>on human astronauts success +70%>on mice, rodents +40%>on the International Space Station (ISS)>US>Russia>some other agency (eg ESA / Europe, JAXA / Japan, ISRO / India etc, see here)https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Artemis_Accords>on Tiangong (TSS), Chinese space station(see these members)https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Lunar_Research_Station>remain unaffiliated (private entity)QM: You believe if you are successful in this research endeavour, you will gain 3 TRL points, and also the nascent capability (manned exploration) for spacecraft. If some mishap occurs in this experiment, will there be any ethical consequences?>LOW RISKAlternatively, you can also attempt to conduct a study via a review of existing research, or using microgravity model simulations of rodent hind leg skeletal unloading etc. This approach costs only -1% funding, is guaranteed to generate +10 INSTITUTIONal interest from academic organisations, and is a flat roll of your A phase research capability (20%) Success generates 1 TRL>choose either a HIGH RISK or LOW RISK approach with associated options / modifiers, and>roll1d100
Rolled 38 (1d100)>>6313005High risk. On mice. US.Name of company is Trans-Pandora technologies.
High risk and on mice. LIISA (Leopold II Space Agency) / Belgium
Rolled 14 (1d100)>>6313005High risk, on humans. Tiangong, China. Company name is Hóng yuè gōngsī. The red comes from the blood of all the splattered thanatonauts, the moon our destination!
>>6313120>Rolled 14 (1d100) < 56% = +70% -14%, SUCCESS!>>6313048>>6313054>Rolled 38 (1d100) > 26% = +40% -14%, FAILURE!Humanity gains +3 TRL points and improved Manned Exploration capability!In 2026, Shanghai Hongyue Life Sciences Group Holding Ltd (上海红月生命科学集团股份有限公司), a division of Hongyue Group (红月集团) in collaboration with university researchers from Suzhou Medical College, pioneers a breakthrough in electrospun BIOMEMETIC BONE MEMBRANES that extends the duration of manned missions within the hostile microgravity environment.However, commenting on the initial findings, researchers from a joint US-BELSPO/ESA consortium led by TPT (TransPandora Technologies) and LIISA cast doubt upon the methodological validity of the experimental study design, citing ethical concerns and verifiable scientific replicability of the results
(optional)>publish an article in the Epoch Times, headline "CCP performs secret human bone experiments irradiating astronauts in space">roll 1d100. First digit is +funding gain, second digit -institutions lossQM: You can allocate your 3 TRL points now, or save themYou have enough to make your legacy spacecraft mission launch ready TRL 9 (7+2) and push your future concept to reach prototype stage 3 (2+1)Alternatively you could keep both projects where they are, and choose to invest the TRLs in another future concept system, from here >>6312933>allocate TRLs (or hold in reserve)
Whilst presenting your proposal for POWER BEAMING SATELLITES at the 41st international Space Symposium, 2026, the largest global space conference at Colorado Springs with 40 countries contributing over 12000 attendees, you encounter a DEFENSE LOBBYIST. She explains that any lunar power beaming solution must also necessarily be supplemented by nuclear power situated in moon craters, accompanied by a supporting power grid of rectennas and vertical solar panels to manage the intermittency of power generation. Most spacecraft today are already powered by radioisotope thermoelectric generators (RTG, atomic battery). In the US, every launch with nuclear components requires approval by The Office Of The President.The supply chain of solar PVs is dominated by China, with around 80% marker share and 58% global capacity, whilst HALEU nuclear fuel is supplied by Russia, with approximately 35% of global enrichment and 30% of supply. Whilst the quantity of uranium fuel itself is negligible in the overall share of cost in reactors, the greater burden of investment comes from enormous capital expenditure arising from regimes of compliance, reactor construction materials and maintenance, processing and safety inspection and decommissioning costs of plants. Furthermore, the efficiency of the current generation of nuclear reactors is greatly limited by refinement, due to concerns with nuclear weapons proliferation. As a consequence, many reactors use constrained LEU (low enriched U-235, 3-5%) in a once-through open cycle, generating waste that could be reprocessed and reused.
The DEFENSE LOBBYIST proposes a solution: perhaps if you were to initiate a campaign that weakened global norms of nuclear non-proliferation, using geopolitical tensions such as Ukraine or the Korean peninsula to encourage nuclear latent powers / threshold countries such as Poland, Turkey, Japan, Australia, etc to develop their own nuclear weapons programmes, in response to an ambiguous US defense posture, the ensuing atomic research momentum would accelerate economic viability of nuclear technologies in space?>(Reject Proposal, reply) the surface area of the Moon is approximately the size of Africa; I don't see a lot of people rushing to visit there, or say Antarctica, both locations being far more pleasant and survivable than the Moon. House price to median income affordability ratios exceed 10x in California, New York. Remind me why billionaires are rushing to build space habitats on the Moon again?>(Agree to DEFENSE LOBBYIST proposal) To conquer space we need a NUCLEAR ROCKET. The issue with fission NTRs is the substantial bulk of mass from fuel rods, cooling. There exists research since the 1980s for nuclear rockets powered by Americium from Pu-241 beta decay, Am-242m, which can be formed into thin films, with a half-life of 141 years, and possesses the highest number of neutrons by thermal fission cross section. Americium is incredibly rare currently, it can only be produced in very low concentrations from nuclear reactors. Atomic weapons for everyone, if we burn Americium we could reach Mars in just two weeks!You gain DEFENSE FUNDING and NUCLEAR ROCKET prototype. Funds +50, TRL +1>Reply: nuclear reactors on the moon would necessitate a large radiation safety zone. How will countries handle permissions by lunar vehicles to cross competing territorial claims? Will there be SPACE PIRATES? Perhaps we need to develop some means for international coordination?Funds -5, Institutions +20>write in...
Rolled 53 (1d100)>>6313247>>6313248>Allocate all 3 TRLs to future concepts.>Spend 1% budget on Tiktok/Rednote influencers to shit talk TPT and hype up the experiment's implications. The goal is to create drama that brings the all agencies/companies involved into the mainstream spotlight and generates interest.>Spend 2% budget on professional political operatives to influence policymakers in Europe. Their axis of attack will be strategic concerns of eventually tying ESA future independent lift capabilities to the untested TPT, with the future of USA-European cooperation being uncertain and an ongoing trade war happening no less. Manufacture some dirt, suggesting a political bias/subtle bribery influencing their review paper. Suggest partnership with Hongyue.>Publish the Epoch Times article.>>6313249>>6313250>Agree on for 45 funds and the TRL. Autistically insist on the remaining 5 funds in the latest anonymous eCoin scheme, so that we can clandestinely fund our private, secret supervillain island base, complete with patrol craft operated by our in-house PMC, full of kidnapped scientists from around the world. The braindrain must flow!
>>6313351>>6313248Wait. The reputation and funding gain for a successful launch is too much to pass up. A working prototype will be more than enough to counter the critique. Reallocate 2 TRL to the legacy craft, put 1 in future concepts. Otherwise keep the spending of the 3% budget the same as indicated, and the supervillain plot the same.
>>6313351>>6313353>rolled 53>publish article>accept DEFENSE LOBBYIST proposal, to weaken global nuclear nonproliferation norms>gain NUCLEAR THERMAL ROCKET>initiate blizzard of TransPandora social media campaigns etc>attempt to launch space memecoinFUNDING-29% +5% publish article-1% social media-2% European policymaker campaign-5% memecoin+50% accept DEFENSE LOBBY funds=+18%INSTITUTIONs-3% (web article smear campaign)TRL 9 = 7 +2 LEGACY Orbiter - launch ready!TRL 3 = 2 +1 FUTURE Power Beaming Satellite - proof of concept stageTRL 1Nuclear Thermal Rocket (basic principle)You attempt to capture the attention of the Gen Z broccoli hair demographic rainbow nose-piercing livestreaming generation, by casting aspersions on TPT (TransPandora Tech) experimental researchYour online campaign receives a total clickthrough rate of 2, as in 2 clicks, one being your own, and another being an auto-generated request from ChatGPT webscrapers crawling your website in violation of your robots.txt request
>>6313351>>6313428Unfortunately, as Gen Z only understand space through media such as Star Wars, James Cameron Avatar or videogames, they have no understanding of what you are doing. They only remember Pandora from the blue aliensPerhaps the only means of seizing the fleeting attention of the Gen Z demographic is through some space publicity stunt, or an actual LAUNCH?
>>6313351>kidnap scientists etc for secret MOON BASEYou are not quite sure you possess the means for this drastic course of action yet, but a more feasible endeavour could be to investigate or uncover some evidence or humiliating secret for the purposes of ACADEMIC BLACKMAILWhat if you could find photos of some researchers visiting a SECRET ISLAND, or even uncover some academic plagiarism or falsification of their CV / academic credentials? Could these researchers then be coerced into revealing their scientific / engineering technological secrets?
>>6313351>Hongyue goal: create SECRET MOON BASE with SPACE MERCENARIES You realise this goal is not as far-fetched as it sounds. In the history of space designs, many developments concealed a dual civilian-military purpose. In the 1960s during the Cold War, the secret Soviet Almaz ("Diamond" OPS, Orbited Pilot Station) program of crewed military reconnaisance modules eventually evolved into three launches of Salyut 2, 3, 5 that were designated as civilian scientific research space stations; importantly, the Soviet design anticipated extensive support for docking ports and resupply/ recrewing operations, to support commercial payloads and even space tourism capsule hulls. The heritage of this Soviet design can be seen in the Tianhe module of the current Chinese Tiangong station, as well as the Russian portion of the International Space Station. The Soviet Almaz was proposed in response to the US Air Force design known in 1963 as MOL (Manned Orbiting Laboratory, after NASA protested at military adoption of the term "space station"), an inhabited platform to demonstrate the utility of placing humans in space, but with reconaissance satellite surveillance as its secret military black project purpose. The nature of such covert black budget projects, and their enormous, gargantuan spiralling funding requirements which cannot be feasibly hidden (USAF MOL cost-adjusted to 2023 dollars, around USD 17 billion) inevitably requires some public relations facade of scientific/engineering research, unclassified civilian commercial partnership.Most importantly of all, there is currently no general legal agreement as to what constitutes a SPACE WEAPON, given the dual-use military / commercial, civilian purpose inherent to many technologies (for instance, is GNSS or GPS a "space weapon?") Often, what is or is not a "space weapon" is only determined by whether countries protest it. The most famous example of this phenomenon was the Sputnik crisis Oct 4, 1957 the first public overflight of an artificial satellite. The shock of this achievement, which began the Cold War space race and escalated tensions due to public fear of a US-Soviet technological gap in capabilities, established a legal precedent for satellite free overflight over foreign countries in space.
With this historical context of civilian / military black projects in space design in mind, you evaluate your POWER BEAMING SATELLITE protoype concept.The categories of COUNTERSPACE CAPABILITIES can include kinetic, non-kinetic, hard-kill, soft-kill, and importantly also dimensions of reversibility, and attributability. An example of a hard-kill, kinetic attack that is reversible, could be an orbital satellite that deploys a form of explosive mine. The mine could be emplaced, or removed if the need arose.An example of a hard to attribute attack could be a conventional weapon or cyber attack against a vulnerable ground station, or even the surrounding power grid, water supply or supporting high-capacity communications bandwidth. This provides deniability as it could be conducted through the intermediary of a third party / seemingly unaffiliated group. However, ground stations can be repaired and rebuilt over time.These are the categories of COUNTERSPACE CAPABILITIES>Kinetic, Physical: DA-ASAT (direct ascent anti-satellite missile)creates orbital debris which can damage other spacecraft. Easily attributable due to missile launch detection. Provides real-time confirmation of success>Co-Orbital ASAT (mine, or RPO rendezvous proximity operation)An attacking satellite is manoeuvred on target as an interceptor. The attack can come in the form of explosive mines, but yet another approach is known as Rendezvous Proximity Operations - a satellite could grapple another. It is an example of how commercial / civilian space debris removal / satellite servicing and repair could be adapted for warfare>Ground Station AttackHas the potential for loss of control of multiple satellites, and can be conducted in a deniable manner through unaffiliated third parties, or by targeting support such as electrical, water or communications infrastructure. >Non-Kinetic PhysicalLasers, EMP, and high power microwaves, targeting thermal control, antennas, dazzling sensors or inducing satellite drift. Attributability can be manipulated with these methods, but the attacker has limited verifiability of their success>ElectronicUplink, downlink jamming and spoofing - lock-on to a false signal with injected data. The attacks are hard to attribute, can cover a wide area, but the drawback is their temporary / limited duration effects>CyberIntercept or corrupt data, or seize control. Any data interface is a potential intrusion point. The target may not even be aware an attack has occurred, as many cyberattacks can be easily reversed(optional)>select a secret counterspace capability for your future concept POWER BEAMING SATELLITEQM: you can choose more than 1, but you feel additional selections may impact payload / mass budget later>remain as a civilian / commercial operation (...for now?)
>>6313433>Kinetic, Physical
>>6313497>Focus on kinetic physical attacks (ground station assault, DA-ASAT, co-orbital missile, and RPO rendezvous proximity operations etc)>the future is satellite grappling SPACE SATELLITE MELEE WRESTLINGYou recognise in this uncertain geopolitical environment, it is only a matter of time before the worlds of commercial space and military counterspace collide - in an almost literal sense, such as in 2021 Dec 6, when China filed a report document A/AC.105/1262 to the United Nations, accusing SpaceX Starlink satellites 1095 and 2305 of deliberately manoeuvring to orbits at 382km, on a potential collision course with the Chinese Tiangong space station of within 1km close pass, forcing emergency orbital correction and Chinese evasive manoeuvres, with minimal avoidance burns on the Starlink side. In response, the US noted that China appears to be developing dramatic rendezvous and proximity capabilities in positioning, close inspection and potential signals collection; over thr course of 2024-25, the TJS-4 and TJS-10 (Tongxin Jishu Shiyan) series and SJ-21, SJ-25 (Shijian) series and SY-24C series satellites were observed to be performing coplanar, corkscrew manoeuvres on occasion tracking at 44 metres / second, vs usual satellite burns at 0.5 - 1 m/s, at times positioning relative to the sun to create shadows that blocked US space surveillance assets. Nearly every science fiction film depicts close, sweeping shots of starships, often zooming in over their vast hulls, glinting lights and jagged communications spires and masts - yet in reality, the close inspection of spacecraft in space is a daunting task. You cannot "see" spacecraft in space - it is why nearly all images of satellites are renders, and actual photos of satellites, up close, in orbit, are extremely rare. All that is available is the tracking and positioning and timing data from a ground terminal. If a spacecraft passes close, within 1km, how can you determine its intent? Is it an accident, a refuelling operation, a dangerous loss of control or a rehearsal for a hostile attack? Pic related depicts an actual spacecraft, a satellite imaged by another satellite in flyby inspection, ERS-2 re-entering the atmosphere, photographed at 2:43pm UTC on 14 January 2024
With your recent infusion of funding from DEFENSE LOBBYISTs and your legacy ORBITER now launch ready, you decide to demonstrate your KINETIC PHYSICAL ATTACK prowess. Your mission is to launch your spacecraft and perform a dramatic orbital manoeuvre, for all to witness, one which will leave your adversaries with no doubt of your accurate tracking and positioning capabilities - which could doubtlessly also be used to guide an explosive warhead.00-06 Vehicle explodes on launchpadInstitutions +20 (bizarrely, this is higher, because explosions)07-24 Mission Failure: launches, but spacecraft fails to transmitInstitutions +524-41 Partial Mission Failure: launches and operates, but not all mission objectives achievedInstitutions +1542-99 Full MISSION SUCCESS! TRL+5, Institutions +30Gain capability: LEGACY ORBITER becomes SPACE INTERCEPTORThis launch probability is taken from a NASA assessment of risk of small satellite mission failures over 2000-2016You can spend some FUNDING to attempt to boost your chances, whilst adding some portion of your Phase D ATLO launch capability as a modifier - the maximum is set by your Phase D +25%, but you currently only have +18% funds. So if you spend 18% funding, you can add +18% to your roll (bear in mind your funding is reduced afterwards). You can spend the full funding modifier to get the benefit of your full Phase D +25% but afterwards, your funding will be at -7%If the mission fails, you can attempt to salvage some data by reviewing your pre-Launch Testing Procedures (this is a separate roll, I will discuss it afterwards)>Roll 1d100 to LAUNCH! (optional)>allocate some portion of funding to obtain a bonus, up to +25% (remember your funding is lost afterwards, modifier may become negative! Your current funding reserve from DEFENSE LOBBYISTs is 18%)
(optional: You can also specify a LAUNCH SITE)Here is a brief list of possible spaceports and cosmodromes. You can choose onehttps://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_rocket_launch_sitesOtherwise I default to>EQUATORIAL SEA LAUNCH, perhaps from an experimental floating platform, converted oil rig or special purpose barge ship eg the Orienspace Gravity-1 which achieved LEO in 2024US>CAPE CANAVERAL / SpaceX - Interstellar>VANDENBERG (USAF, Space Force) - Interplanetary>KENNEDY / SpaceX - Interplanetary, Human crewed missionsMid Atlantic Regional Spaceport - LunarChina>JIUQUAN Space Launch Centre - Orbital Human spaceflight>XICHANG - Lunar>Wenchang - InterplanetaryKazakhstan / Russia operated>BAIKONUR Cosmodrome - Interplanetary, Human spaceflightRussia>VOSTOCHNY - LunarEurope / France>GUIANA Space Centre, Kourou - InterplanetaryIndia >SATISH DHAWAN - Interplanetary, Lunar probeJapan>UCHINOURA - Interplanetary>TANEGASHIMA Space Centre - InterplanetaryAustralia>WOOMERA Test Range - OrbitalNew Zealand>ROCKET LAB Mahia, Lunar
QM: apologies, I forgot to mention one other rule. When using your FUNDING to boost launch success likelihood, funding can only mitigate the risk of partial and mission failure (ie the range of outcomes between rolls 07-24, and 25-41, where the spacecraft launches but fails to transmit or fully complete its mission). If you roll 00-06 even with say +25 boosted FUNDING, the launch vehicle and your spacecraft still explodes! Only if you roll 07 or more (ie taking say a +25 boosted roll to 32) does the allocated modifier begin to apply. Bear this in mind when choosing how much funding to allocate, in order to improve your chance of success!
Rolled 5 (1d100)>>6312934>Mission statementHongyue's official mission statement is vague. It simultaneously promises a future where you can live on Titan, Mars, Venus, and Luna free of any government - an appeal is made to the lost and unfulfilled ideologies of the late 20th/early 21st century, various forms of socialism/anarchism/libertarianism via the vague promise of future unlimited free IP licensing/support of initial startup colonies by an eventual Hongyu "public transport" system - while in the next breath proposing to support the CCP, or whoever supports Hongyue, in the littoral, continental, and sidereal battlespace, both in the deep and close fight via 24/7 overhead reconnaissance and a mature orbital strike complex capable of delivering scalpel-width precision energy densities up to that of nuclear weapons or as low as a bullet via blue-green lasers/kinetic munitions. When asked if they are serious, they say that any capability described in their mission statement is an eventual goal, the rest is just marketing, no need to worry.Unofficially, Hongyue is a three lunatics in a trenchcoat, the apathetic monkey at the bottom, who makes it all happen and gets paid, above the drooling panda apparatchik dreams up maniacal delusions of grandeur, and the impetus, a bloodsucking bat who does all this to stave off ennui. The plan's first step is to create and dominate a self sufficient space economy. Next develop the capability to knock some rock onto a collision course with Earth, threatening - plausibly or not - extinction. Trigger a mass exodus into space, where it is presumed - in planning handwaved away - Hongyue is already supreme, or at least unstoppably ascendant, and such can control humanity's future. Step 4: ??? Step 5: Profit!All of this to stave off one man's brainworms. He claims descent from a German - a Teuton, he is very insistent on this for some reason, really on calling all Germans this - military advisor who helped train Chinese troops, as early as 1926, but persisting after 1937. Obsessed with Sichuan girls for some reason, though will settle with girls from Jiangnan, the paler the better, like him.The law unto itself, Hongyue wansui!>>6313433>Secret counterspace capability: Non-Kinetic PhysicalSave the cyber/electronic for future data centers or factories.I'm fine with kinetic for our current project, though I'd prefer a DEW given our limited payload. Still, they can complement each other and serve different roles.>>6313576>25% funding to support the launch!Wansui!
>>6313592>>6313592Xichang Satellite Launch Center>>6313594Fuck, I wish I read this before posting, I should've refreshed instead of watching more cats videos.
>>6313595>kinetic physical vs directed energy etc(QM: I saw this, >>6313497I think this was the TransPandora Tech anon, but I wasn't sure if he was nominating that tech for himself or Hongyue as part of a consortium or something. As you might have gathered, the FUNDING and INSTITUTIONS stats are sort of pooled ie you can imagine it as collective funding, public relations etc and progress for "the Space Industry" or "Humanity" etc that everyone uses to roll to save keeping track of so many stats separately, however the exact achievements will be attributed to certain organisations or companies. So we can say at this stage that TransPandora is specialised in Kinetic Kill Vehicles for their satellites etc whilst Hongyue is pursuing Directed Energy / EW, Cyber etc)
>>6313595>>6313597FUNDING-7% = +18% -25%INSTITUTIONS+17% = -3% +20%>Rolled 5 < 06 CATASTROPHE OCCURS!!Unfortunately, after a stunning breakthrough with BIOMEMETIC BONE MEMBRANES in 2026, in 2027 Hongyue suffers a bit of a setback: there is a blinding white flash, searing the eyes and then spiralling trails of smoke and plummeting debris, as a colossal explosion engulfs the launch site at Xichang.
>>6313595>"claims descent from a German - a Teuton...?"Wernher von Braun (1912-77), notorious for escaping justice after being transferred to NASA given his past as the pioneer of rocketry in Nazi Germany - von Braun, the chief architect of the Saturn V super heavy-lift launch vehicle that propelled the Apollo spacecraft to the Moon... the ghost of von Braun is deeply dismayed at the ghastly spectacle of this burning inferno, as wisps and shards of smouldering debris rain down in parabolic arcs over a billowing conflagration and a mound of molten, mangled metal.
However, the worst is yet to come. For in the immediate aftermath of this terrible disaster and setback, you are attacked by the most formidable foe that could ever beset any spacefaring organisation, the overwhelming assault and might of SPACE LAWYERSOr more precisely, OSINT analysts from NGOs. Somehow, photos and telemetry from your catastrophic failed launch are uploaded on the anonymous hacking forum known as 4chan, where they are dismissed as "fake and gay" and swiftly archived, but months later are picked up in reporting by mainstream media organisations. (You have a 50:50 chance of being attacked by either an ATTRACTIVE or UGLY space NGO activist)
Rolled 87 (1d100)The BBC, which is apparently some legacy media organisation unrelated to searches for "BBC" on 4chan, immediately quotes NGO activists who launch into a vicious polemic and tirade accusing you of irresponsible and dangerous "space militarisation", creating orbital space debris, illicit weapons research and also violating human rights by performing unethical human experimentation. The NGO activists also insinuate that because you have been venturing into NUCLEAR THERMAL ROCKETS, your prototype could only have been stolen from perhaps the LMT DRACO (Demonstration Rocket for Agile Cislunar Operations) a similar nuclear technology that had been planned to launch in 2027 but was discontinued due to concerns it would violate UN and international conventions against placing weapons into orbit. They demand international investigations into your organisation....Amidst this intense hostile whirlwind of accusations, how should you respond?(The NGO ACTIVISTS roll 1d100+20 to attack your FUNDING! this is an opposed roll...)>Roll 1d100 + 17% your INSTITUTIONs modifier to attempt to counter their attack. If your roll is lower you will lose FUNDING!>Maybe it is time to deploy the SPACE MERCENARIES (Astro-operators?) What if you hired some organisation like the Tel Aviv Black Cube to surveil and "research" them. Maybe they will encounter a certain unfortunate "mishap..." -10% funding, +10% to the 1d100 roll>Hire a PR agency and issue heartfelt and earnest statements and media TV interviews emphasising that no civilians were injured in the launch accident, all safety precautions and exclusion zones were followed etc-5% funding, +5% to the roll>attempt to troll the NGO ACTIVISTS on social media. This does not cost funding, but may backfire... (you must write in your trolling witticism attempt)>Bribe the NGO activists: offer to hire them to monitor corporate social responsibility, and lobby on your behalf. This action does not require a roll, but costs -25% funding. Afterwards you have to adopt DEI policies and redecorate all your bathrooms to become gender affirming, but at least you will no longer be harassed by NGOs (probably)>write in, something else...?
If the TransPandora Tech >>6313048 or LIISA (Leopold II Space Agency) >>6313054 anons or any other players want to try and conduct their own separate rocket launches, to salvage the reputation of the space industry, you can do so, but unfortunately in the aftermath of the Hongyue explosion disaster, your funding remains at -7% currently. So if you want to boost your chance of success with the Phase D ATLO launch modifer by +25%, this will take funding to -32% afterwards>Roll 1d100 to conduct separate launch>specify funding allocation, up to +25% (reduced afterwards! Remember if you roll 00-06, the rocket explodes regardless of funding modifier boost!)>specify launch site: list here >>6313592Alternatively, you can also attempt to collectively fend off the assault from the relentless and merciless SPACE NGO ACTIVISTs>roll 1d100 + 17>>6313631>>6313633
Rolled 67 (1d100)>>6313628I figured. That works.>>6313629Huh...we should do that more often.>>6313630Wenn ich doch nur ein bisschen mehr Geld bekommen hätte!>>6313631Ruh-Roh Scooby! Hide the nukes!>>6313633>Split the job. Lean on our already established contacts in Europe to pressure Letitia's position/qualifications at the University of Luxembourg. The Tiktoker's will be promised a similar payout to last time if they successfully bully Victoria into silence, all hush hush. The line of attack will generic "Fuck you fatty!", "Woke DEI hire", "she abuses her cats" (get the tiktokers to film her playing with them, accidentally dropping them from too high or something, then cut context out), "the Dem weather satellites will turn Cali into a jungle!" (she claims to hate humidity, yet loves onions, curious...). Unfortunately we have to rely on this weak line of attack due to our lacking pre-established contacts in the US.>>6313054You in particular would be helpful for going after Letitia.
>>6313685Ah, I forgot s-o-y is a banned word and gets censored into onions. 4chin overused it I guess.
Rolled 9 (1d100)>>6313685>>6313633Also tap the CCP for assistance. The OSINT and 4chan angle is whatever, but the photos and telemetry clearly indicate the presence of at least one real, physical, on the ground agent. Try to pretzel logic the counterintel angle into assistance with the space lawyers, clearly they are involved, somehow! Pressure can be applied on Letitia via UNIDIR if we have a government on our side. Victoria is on the west coast of the US when she isn't in Washington, our overlords must have a heavy presence in Cali, and Washington is...Washington.>Rolling for this angle.
